Nadia and the others were getting ready to leave. Some of the others came over to them. "Promise me you'll be careful." Lexi told Rose.
"Relax, Trevor and I can handle ourselves." Rose told her.
"I'm just saying, this better work." Anna said.
"I hope so, too, Anna." Nadia told her.
After what seemed like a few seconds, the group left and started walking away from the field they'd gathered in. They found themselves headed toward a forest.
"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Trevor asked.
"It's the right direction, alright. At least, according to this map Emily gave us." Pearl said.
"Let me see that." Rose said. She examined it with Nadia. "It is the right direction."
"Do you have trust issues or something?"
"Let's just say I don't trust witches often. Most of them betrayed me before." Rose told her.
"You're telling me. My ex tried to kill Katherine." Nadia said. "He was just using me to find her. I don't even remember what I saw in him."
"Guys like that are jerks. And you're looking at someone who reformed from that." Trevor said as the group walked through the forest.
"Yeah, because you fell for a girl who was way out of your league." Anna pointed out.
"How long have you known?" Trevor asked.
"I've been watching a while. Had nothing better to do considering I couldn't find my mother for months." Anna said.
"Okay, can we please stay focused here?" Nadia asked.
"Trust me, we're just as focused on helping you find her. But it wouldn't hurt to do a little bonding before we get there." Rose said. "I mean, who knows if we'll all survive that place?" Everyone looked at each other. They hadn't considered the fact that they could all possibly get trapped or worse once they got there.
"Oh, that's right." Anna said.
"Rose, you have got to stop with the doom-and-gloom talk." Trevor said.
"I'm just being realistic." Rose pointed out.
"Well, she does bring up a point." Nadia said. "It's not like we're exactly close friends here and we might have to rely on each other for help later. How can we do that if we don't trust each other?"
"Trust is the key to working together." Pearl agreed.
"Well, how do we know if we can trust you?" Anna asked Nadia. "How do we know you're not going to leave us in danger when you do rescue your mom?"
"Because I know that ghosts are bound to their word." Nadia pointed out. "And I meant everything I said back there. I won't turn my back on you guys."
"Well, I believe her." Trevor said.
"You do?" Rose seemed surprised.
"Over the years, I've gotten good at telling if people are lying." Trevor said. "One more thing I learned from trusting Katherine. And I will admit, I've been following Nadia ever since she set foot in Mystic Falls."
"You were spying on me?"
"Technically, the Other Side's like an invisible mirror, except we can't interact with the world of the living." Pearl explained.
"Well, that would explain the creepy feeling I got that someone was watching me." Nadia said.
"Well, I will say this, your mother definitely was smart, manipulative, and one of the strongest people I knew." Rose said. "On the run for five hundred years and never looking back twice, that takes a lot of courage."
"Yeah, well, she's also got at deceiving people." Trevor said. "Remember, she tried to trade the doppelganger for her own life. Not that we were any better than her, but still…"
"Yes, I've heard all about the mess with the Originals she got Elena and her friends into." Nadia said. "On the other hand, she also got them out of it. There hasn't been a trace of them in Mystic Falls since last autumn."
"True, but Katherine's the one who caused that mess in the first place." Anna pointed out. "I'm only counting it because they left on good terms with them."
"You know she was just looking out for herself, right?" Nadia said. "I know she's caused a lot of damage over the years. It's not like my life was exactly normal before I turned. But the most painful thing is never getting to know your mother. I was lucky enough just to meet her before we both died."
"I know what you mean. Before Mama and I got separated over here, we kind of got into a fight." Anna said.
"Yes, but I was the one who was wrong about trusting that boy." Pearl said. The others looked to each other, confused.
"I fell for Jeremy Gilbert." Anna explained. "He already knew what I was. He was helping us out. Because of history with his ancestors, Mama believed I was making a huge mistake."
"But I was proven wrong. I was there the night he tried to save my Annabelle from those vampire hunters." Pearl said. "I could tell he had strong feelings for her." Anna held her mother's hand as they continued to walk through the woods.
"Yeah, that must've sucked." Trevor said. "Getting used like that." She noticed how resigned he sounded.
"Hey, I'm sorry about what my mother did to you." Nadia said. "I know you were in love with her."
"It's fine, Dia. Some part of me deep down knew she didn't have feelings for me, even when we were both human." Trevor said. "Besides, if she hadn't, I never would've gotten as close as I had with Rosie here."
"That is one good thing that came from her betrayal." Rose smiled. "To be honest, I really don't blame her for doing what she did, though. If either of us were in her shoes, we would've done the same thing."
"I'm starting to realize why my grandparents gave me to another family." Nadia said. "If I had been there, I would've been killed."
"And then you never would've met your mother." Anna said.
"Seriously, Anna?"
"Couldn't help it. At least I'm trying to lighten the mood, Mr. Doom-and-Gloom." Anna said.
"We're here." Pearl said. The five of them stopped in front of a stone cave.
"Kind of dark in there, isn't it?"
"It's a cave, Trevor. Of course it's dark." Rose said.
"I don't suppose any of you brought flashlights?" Nadia asked.
"We didn't die with any on us." Anna pointed out.
"Right, forgot. You know there's a chance our powers might not work here."
"We have to take the risk anyway." Pearl said.
"Mama's right, there's no turning back." Anna said.
"Okay, let's go." Nadia said.