After her tense conversation with John, Riley found it difficult to fall asleep. She ended up calling Jayden, asking him to come over to study for an impending chemistry test. Her parents trusted Jayden and did not mind that he spent the night in her room. He was the perfect distraction from all the insanity happening in Mystic Falls, from John's return to the angsty werewolves. She focused on her schoolwork, refusing to discuss John. Jayden was aware of the animosity between the two of them. He had no idea about the vampire incident, only that John put Riley in terrible danger while she was in his care. Though she tried to actually do some studying, she struggled to ignore her conversation with John. It was just like him to bring up something interesting and then withhold information. Riley did not want to fall for one of his cat and mouse games. She felt unnerved when he mentioned how terrible incidents happened around her. It made her curious if he had any idea about her control over fire.

Riley was sitting on her bed with Jayden, holding a chemistry textbook on her lap. A tray with two plates of breakfast food rested between them. He bit into a piece of toast. She twirled a few strands of her hair around her finger. He waved his hand in front of her. She snapped out of her daze.

"Did you say something?"

"I was asking if I got this problem right. Are you okay? You were spacing out a lot last night too. I know you don't like to talk about him but does it have to do with a certain uncle?"

"Why would you think it has to do with John?"

"Well, I could lie and say that I can read minds but I think the picture of John on your bedroom door with darts all over it makes it pretty clear"

Riley looked at her bedroom door. There was an old picture of her and John at the lakehouse, hung on the door with tape. While waiting for Jayden last night, she took out her frustrations by throwing darts at the picture. John's face was covered with five small darts. She sighed, lying that she and John had one of their typical fights.

"What did you fight about this time?"

"We fight about everything, Jay. We could fight over the color of my shirt and whether it's black or a really dark blue"

"What is he even doing here? No offense but everytime he shows up in town, bad things happen"

"He wants to be there for Elena and Jeremy"

Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of glass breaking downstairs. Riley could hear her mother yelling at someone, most likely John. She hurried down to the kitchen. Both of her parents were glaring at John. Pieces of glass were scattered across the floor near the doorway. John dodged another glass thrown by her mother.

"How could you be that stupid, John?"

"It's far from stupid"

"Giving him that dagger? You know what it will do if he uses it"

"Because it will be such a loss. You don't like him much either, Alice"

"He's not exactly a gentleman but he's not a danger to this town. Brendon and I trust them"

"Typical of you to be so naïve"

Her father, who became very aggressive when anyone insulted Riley or her mother, grabbed John by his shirt collar. Riley could not hear much of their conversation. He called John a moron for what he had done last night and that his actions could incite more problems in the town. John countered that it would essentially 'kill two birds with one stone'. She was distracted by Jayden joining her in the hallway but caught the end of her father's lecture, which involved a word that sounded very close to Klaus. Her father noticed them outside the kitchen. He let go of John, not bothering to hide his angered expression. John straightened out his shirt.

"Good morning, Riley. Your parents and I were having a little chat. I see you're still friends with Jason"

"Jayden" he replied, rolling his eyes at John's inability to remember his name.

"Right. Were you two alone?"

Her mother poured tea into a cup. "It's none of your business, John. We trust Jayden and Riley. She could have ten boys in her room and it's still not your concern. I think you should leave before this cup gets thrown at your face"

"This conversation isn't over, Brendon"

"Far from it, little brother"

John stepped over the broken glass and left the kitchen. Jayden needed to return home to get ready for the party at the Lockwood mansion. The Historical Society was having a tea party in honor of Elijah visiting under the guise of a historian. Out of all the children of founding families, only Jayden and Riley needed to attend since their parents were part of the society. Jayden's father worked at Whitmore College as a history professor. Once he left the house, she looked at her parents.

"What did John do?"

"It's nothing, sweetheart. John is just unwilling to trust any vampire. He doesn't think before he acts and as always, your father and I will need to clean up the mess. You should get ready for the party. Remember to dress appropriately…no jeans" said her mother.

"But"

"Riley, no jeans"

She sighed. "Fine. I'll practice holding my pinky in the air too. Will my favorite uncle be there?"

"Sadly. No fights with John today. The same goes for you, Brendon"

Riley headed back to her room. She spent the next hour getting ready for the party. All of her attempts to avoid it were pointless. She could usually convince her parents to let her not attend these fancy parties but it never worked with parties involving the Historical Society. It meant that she had to endure hours of boring conversations. As she searched for a pair of heels in her closet, she sent a text to Elena. She had gone to the Gilbert lake house to spend time alone and take their minds off of recent events. Elena sent a text back, telling her that they had just arrived at the lake house and if they were in trouble, she would call her. Riley put her phone in her purse and walked downstairs. Her father was putting on his suit jacket.

"Riley, I'm sure Damon will be at the party today. Make sure he doesn't do anything…stupid"

"Like what?"

"I've seen he can be a bit impulsive. Just keep an eye on him"

"Is John trying to hurt him? I heard Mom mention a dagger"

"Like I said, keep an eye on him. Let's strive for no deaths today"

Riley walked with her parents to the Lockwood mansion. She quietly hoped that Tyler would attend the party, wanting to make amends with him. The werewolf situation had put a strain on their friendship. A waitress handed them cups of tea. Riley feigned a smile as people complimented her. She checked for any sign of Jayden or Tyler. Mrs. Lockwood was speaking with Elijah near the entrance to the living room. As always, he was wearing a suit. Her father's hand pressed into her back. He was very wary of Elijah, knowing that he was one of the Original vampires. Mrs. Lockwood introduced him as Elijah Smith. Riley stifled a laugh at his fake last name.

"Brendon and Alice are part of the Historical Society. They've made many contributions. Brendon is the head doctor at our hospital. Alice is actually quite the famous archaeologist though she's settled down a bit, teaching at Whitmore College. They know all about the history of this town. I'm sure you could get some interesting facts from them for your book"

"That would be great. It's a pleasure to meet you both"

Her father shook his hand. "I'm sure you'll find a lot of things to write about here. This is my daughter, Riley"

"Yes, we met when I stopped by Jenna's house for some historical documents. Wonderful to see you again"

For the first time, Riley had a genuine smile on her face. Mrs. Lockwood asked him questions about his book. Riley was impressed that he could answer every question with ease. He had definitely prepared before the party. Her father told them about an old witch legend that originated in Mystic Falls. She attempted to dump the tea into a potted plant. Elijah pretended to listen to the conversation, watching her with amusement. Her mother spotted her tipping the cup near the plant. She shot her a small glare. That one look was enough to make Riley hold onto her cup. She scrunched her nose at the sight of Andie kissing Damon.

"Oh dear god. Don't tell me they're together" whispered her mother, shocked.

Damon walked over to them, smiling. Mrs. Lockwood greeted him warmly and introduced him to Elijah. The tension in the room rose as Elijah and Damon looked at each other. They shared a stiff handshake.

"Brendon was just telling us a fascinating legend"

"I'd love to hear it. I'm always in the mood for a good story"

"Actually, I need to talk to Damon for a minute. He's been helping me with homework. Is that okay?" asked Riley.

"Well I wanted to get to know Elijah better. Everyone's talking about him"

"You've got plenty of time for that. Come on, buddy"

She wrapped her arm around his neck, tugging slightly. He chuckled.

"Be careful with this one. She's tiny but feisty"

Riley brought him outside the mansion. She questioned him about his relationship with Andie. Damon explained that he was using her as someone to confide in after Rose's death. He told Riley to not put labels on their relationship, having no interest in being an actual couple. She thought it was dangerous, especially if he had to compel her on a regular basis. When she asked him about John, he was suspiciously quiet.

"We should get back inside. I'm in the mood for some tea"

"Don't change the subject on me, Damon"

"Who said I'm changing the subject?"

He returned to the party, disappearing into the crowd. She kicked the wall in frustration. A waitress placed a tray of sugar cookies on a table before heading into the bathroom. Riley took the tray and sat on a bench, waiting for Jayden. She bit into a cookie, muttering about Damon being an idiot. Caroline bombarded her with texts, asking her to meet her, Bonnie, and Jeremy. After learning that Luka and his father were working with Elijah, they formed a plan to get information about the sacrifice. They were bringing an unconscious Luka to Elena and Jeremy's house for the interrogation. Riley doubted she could sneak away from the party. Her mother had the eyes of a hawk. She told Caroline to text her whatever they found out from Luka.

"Are you not enjoying the party?"

Elijah walked over to the bench. She shrugged.

"I'm not a tea party kind of girl. I needed some time away from old ladies pinching my cheeks and telling me how pretty I am and how I've grown since the last time they saw me"

"You shouldn't be out here alone"

"Yea, the squirrels that hang around here are dangerous. I think I saw one pass by with a knife in its mouth" she joked.

He smiled, sitting beside her. "They can be quite vicious. You look lovely in that dress"

"I'd say you look nice in a suit but you always wear one"

"Does that bother you?"

"No, I like it. I hope you're not out here because Damon is bothering you"

"I was looking for you. I would ask if you wanted to take a walk but I wouldn't want your father to worry. He seems very protective"

"Believe me, he's calm right now. When he's holding a gun with wooden bullets to your face, then you'll know that he's being protective"

"I'll remember that"

The party was much more enjoyable with just her and Elijah talking outside. She felt very comfortable around him. Though both of them had traveled around the world, he had more exciting stories. Her worldly experiences were limited since she was stuck in school most of the time. She listened to him talk about New Orleans.

"I've never been there. It sounds fun"

"My family and I loved it there"

"Do you have any family left? I wasn't sure if they were turned into vampires too or it was only you"

There was a pained look in his eyes. She regretted asking him such a personal question.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked that"

"My family is a sore subject. I have a brother but we are estranged at the moment. I tend to always clean up his messes. This may sound awful but I do hope that you never meet him in person"

"Everyone has that kind of person in their family. In mine, it's my uncle John. He's a jerk, to put it lightly. He really likes to mess with my head"

"How so?"

Riley was reluctant to tell him about her conversation with John. A small part of her urged her to be honest. Elijah was over a thousand years old. With his life experiences, he could possibly have an explanation for her strange abilities. Jayden was getting out of a car with his father. He walked over to them, his smile vanishing when he saw Elijah.

"Took you long enough"

"My dad had to finish grading papers. I tried to ditch but you know how he loves to spread his history knowledge"

"You remember Elijah"

"Yea, old guy with a funny name"

Riley threw a cookie at him. He defended himself, saying it was a joke.

"I think I'll head back inside. If you need to talk, you can come find me, Riley" said Elijah.

Jayden took his spot on the bench. Once Elijah was inside the mansion, Jayden asked if she was dating him. Riley looked at him, strangely.

"We're just friends, Jay"

"He's kind of old"

"Don't start with that again"

"I'm not wrong"

"Elijah is really nice. He's not as an idiot like other guys in this town"

"Like me?" he asked, sounding a bit hurt.

"No, not you. I meant guys like Cameron. Did you see Tyler at all? I thought he'd be here"

"Nope. I haven't heard from him all day. Is everything okay between you two?"

"We got in this stupid fight about Mason. Tyler is really confused and I just need to explain everything to him"

Suddenly, she felt as if someone was choking her. The sensation passed after a couple seconds. She thought that it had to do with Elijah. Jayden asked if she needed any water, thinking she choked on a cookie. She nodded and went into the mansion. Within minutes of her searching every room, she found Elijah and Damon in Mr. Lockwood's old study. Elijah had his hand around Damon's throat, pinning him to the wall.

"How dare you come in here and challenge me?"

"You can't kill me, remember? It's not part of the deal"

Grabbing a pencil from the desk, he jammed it into Damon's neck. He noticed Riley near the door and zoomed over to her. In a split second, his expression turned from anger to concern. His fingers brushed against her neck.

"Are you all right?"

She nodded. "What's going on? I'm pretty sure there's a rule against fights at tea parties"

"Just the arrogance of a young vampire"

Damon was leaning against the desk, holding his neck. Blood seeped through his fingers. Elijah took out a handkerchief from his suit pocket. Damon snatched it, pressing it against his wound.

"I'm an Original. Have a little respect. The moment you cease to be of use to me, you're dead. You should do what I say. Keep Elena safe"

Elijah turned towards her. "I think it is time for me to leave. I suggest you do not let him go until his wound is fully healed or else people will ask questions. Stay safe, Riley"

He left the room. Damon was cursing under his breath. Riley grabbed the bloody pencil.

"Are you healing?"

"Yea. The pain is gone"

"Good"

She slammed the pencil into his hand. He groaned in pain.

"What the hell?!"

"Why did you attack Elijah? Are you insane?"

"No"

"He's an Original, Damon. You don't just attack them. You're lucky he just hurt you with a pencil"

"Why did he ask if you were all right? What's going on with you two?" he asked, moving the handkerchief to his injured hand.

It was Riley's turn to change the subject. She lied that Elijah probably thought she was in shock from seeing their fight. A few minutes later, his wounds healed and they left the study. Her parents were busy speaking with other council members. She walked over to Alaric and Jenna and asked him to bring Damon back to the boardinghouse, claiming that Damon had a bad stomachache. As she told Damon to call her if his illness got worse, Alaric seemed to understand her hidden meaning. She met up with Jayden and both of them had to spend another two hours at the party, roped into many dull conversations. Jayden's father went on and on about the history of the church. They were thankful when the party ended at half past nine. When she returned home with her parents, she lied that she was going to meet Caroline and Bonnie at Mystic Grill. She drove her car to the boarding house to check on Damon and give him another lecture about not attacking Elijah again. The door was wide open. She cautiously entered the house. Someone grabbed her roughly, covering her mouth.

"You're not very good at hiding. I could smell your scent before you even walked in here" said a gruff voice.

She was dragged into the living room where she saw Damon chained to a chair with a collar around his neck. The collar, covered in wooden nails, dug into his skin, creating deep gashes. Some of the werewolves from last night, including Jules, stood around him.

"Oh look, it's your little friend. Maybe she can help us out. Tie her up"

Riley was thrown into a chair beside Damon and restrained by chains. Jules stood in front of her.

"You're a tough one, huh? A little fighter. Unlike your vampire friend, you won't heal if we hurt you so tell us where we can find the moonstone"

"I'm not telling you anything"

"Sure about that?"

"You don't scare me"

"Poor choice of words"

She nodded her head towards the guy next to the fireplace. He grabbed the fire iron.

"Last chance, princess. Tell us where you're hiding the moonstone"

"Bite me"

The fire iron pierced her leg. She bit her lip, trying not to scream. Jules warned Damon that each time he kept quiet about the moonstone, Riley would get hurt. The fire iron was used over a dozen times on various parts of her body. She did not let the pain show on her face.

"Just kill her. Consider it payback for Mason's death"

Riley felt a warm sensation swelling inside her. The guy grabbed a set of chains to choke her. He was about to use them when the chains seemed to move of their own free will, wrapping around his own neck. Struggling to breathe, he fell to his knees. She watched as he stopped breathing, laying motionless on the floor.

"What the hell was that?" asked the guy holding the chains connected to the collar.

One of the guys took out a knife from his pocket, holding it to Riley's throat. "It was her"

"Get away from her" said Damon, glaring.

"She killed him"

Riley shook her head. Jules pointed a rifle, containing wooden bullets, at Damon. For the fiftieth time, she asked about the moonstone. The knife pressed into Riley's throat.

"Get over it, honey. You're never going to get it"

"Looking for this?"

Elijah was standing in the doorway, holding the moonstone. He entered the living room and placed the moonstone on the table.

"Go ahead. Take it" he said, calmly.

Without thinking, they attempted to get the moonstone. Elijah easily stopped them by ripping out their hearts. Jules vanished from the room. He walked over to the last guy, the one who had been hurting Damon. The guy put his jacket over his head, shaking in fear.

"What about you, sweetheart?"

Elijah lifted him up by his collar. "Take a shot"

The guy shook his head, silently. With one punch, Elijah broke his neck. He removed the chains around Damon and Riley. Carefully, he lifted her up from the chair.

"You realize this is the third time I've saved your life. I will take care of Riley"

He grabbed the moonstone and left the boardinghouse. She leaned her head on his shoulder. Seconds later, they were inside a small, one-story house. He laid her down on the bed. Biting into his wrist, he held it out to her. She pressed her lips against her wrist, drinking his blood. Her wounds began to heal.

"Do you need anything? A glass of water?"

"Sure"

As he entered the kitchen, she heard her phone vibrate. She reached into her purse. Caroline had texted her about the success of their plan with Luka. It turned out that Klaus had kidnapped Luka's older sister to help him break the curse. Elijah promised Luka and his father that he would help them get her. He planned on letting Elena die in the sacrifice in order to kill Klaus because after breaking the curse, he would be extremely vulnerable. Elijah returned with a glass of water. If she had vampire strength, her phone would be snapped in half.

"Riley, what's the matter?"

"Are you going to let Elena die in that sacrifice? It's a yes or no question"

"It's complicated"

"Wrong answer"

She started to get up from the bed. He grabbed her arm.

"Let go of me"

"I promise no harm will come to her"

"She's going to die! I get that vampires heal quickly but regular people don't. For us, dead is dead"

The lights in the house flickered. Elijah swore to her that Elena would be safe. He explained that he had an elixir that would restore her. She thought it was very convenient that he mentioned the elixir at this moment.

"I am not lying to you. You and I both feel the need to protect family. I promise you that Elena will not die. Once Klaus breaks the curse, I will kill him and I will give her the elixir to bring her back to life"

"If you're lying, I'll lock you in a box and throw you in the deepest part of the ocean"

"Exactly why I will keep that promise. Riley, believe that I would never put you through the pain of losing family. Would you like me to bring you home?"

"Could I stay here? I feel like my uncle is probably waiting for me and I don't want to deal with him right now"

"Of course. You can rest here for as long as you need"

"Thanks…for letting me stay and saving me and Damon" she said, taking the glass from him.

"Is something troubling you?"

"You'll think I'm crazy"

"I would never think that"

Riley told him about the incident with the chains at the boarding house. She left out the sensation in her stomach shortly before the chains wrapped around the guy's neck.

"You think it was magic?"

"What else could it be?"

"Perhaps it was Jonas protecting you"

"Maybe. I just thought…forget it. I'm glad those werewolves are gone"

"You should get some rest. You've had an eventful evening. I will make sure no werewolves sneak in for another attack"

After sending a short text to her mother, claiming that she slept over at Caroline's, Riley drifted off to sleep. She woke up the next morning, her head resting against Elijah's chest. He had fallen asleep in his suit. His arm was slipped around her waist. She quietly slid off of the bed, trying to make no noise.

"You do know it is nearly impossible to be quiet around a vampire" she heard.

Elijah was awake. "Did you sleep well?"

"I guess. I should get home"

"I'll walk you"

"That would be bad. Walking me home at…six in the morning in our clothes from last night? My dad would definitely get his gun and shoot you. Besides, my house isn't far from here. Thanks again for letting me stay"

Riley pecked his cheek. He did not let go of her waist. She giggled, moving his arm. He looked slightly embarassed. She returned to her house. Millions of thoughts were racing through her mind. She convinced her father, who was rushing to get to work, that she felt ill and he allowed her to skip school for the day. As her father left for work, she entered his study. She spent the day searching through old Gilbert journals and other historical records. Her hope was to find something to explain the strange incidents around her without asking John for help. By the afternoon, the room looked like it had been hit by a tornado. She dumped files from one of the cardboard boxes.

"You look very sick"

Her father was standing outside the room. "Dad, I was just"

"Why are you in my study? What's wrong?"

"Nothing"

"So you're trashing my study for no reason?"

"I just—I think something's wrong with me. I lied about going to the grill to meet Bonnie and Caroline. I went to check on Damon and he was being attacked by werewolves. They went after me too"

"What?!"

"I'm fine. Elijah showed up and he healed me. Before he came, something weird happened. One of the guys was going to choke me and he had these chains. They started moving by themselves and choked him. I—I think I did it"

"Riley, you're confused"

Riley opened up to him about her conversation with John. Her father was getting angrier by the minute. He did not appreciate John scaring her and assured her that John only wanted to cause trouble. She could not bring himself to tell him about her experiences with fire.

"What if he does know something?"

"He doesn't, Riley. This is typical of John. He's scaring you to win back your trust. I don't want you to speak with him. Do you understand me?"

"But Dad, you don't—it's not just this thing from last night. I"

"John is making you feel crazy. Your mother and I need to go out of town for business. We'll be gone for a week. Do not let him into this house. You lock the doors even if you're home. If you're worried about being alone, Jenna said that you could stay with her, Elena, and Jeremy. Your mother is waiting in the car"

"I'll be fine, Dad"

"Oh, Jenna had invited us to a dinner party at the Salvatore boardinghouse. Since you decided to fake being sick, you can go in our absence and your mother and I will want to know everything you talk about there. It's at eight. There won't be many people…just Jenna, Alaric, Andie, and Elijah. We'll know if you don't go"

"I promise to be there. Have fun on your trip"

Her father kissed her forehead and left the house. Around seven, she started to get ready for the dinner party. Riley doubted that she needed to wear formal attire yet she found herself caring about her appearance. She had gone through more than a dozen outfits before she chose a pair of dark skinny jeans, a black v-neck halter top, and black ankle boots. Twenty minutes were spent on her hair alone, conflicted on whether to leave it up or down. She drove over to the boarding house and knocked on the door. The door opened, revealing Damon. He looked surprised to see her.

"Riley, what are you—I'm glad you're looking better but why are you here?"

"My parents got called out of town for some work. They sent me in their place"

"That's not necessary"

"Damon, if I don't stay, they'll know and then they'll make me live with John. That's torture. What's so bad about me being at a dinner party?"

"Nothing. I just…you're young. You should be partying it up with your fellow teens"

"Why are you being weird?"

"Not being weird at all. You can help Jenna and Andie set up in the dining room if you want"

Riley went into the dining room. Jenna and Andie were setting up the table. Her anger rose when John entered the room, carrying plates. He did not look pleased to see her, thinking that Damon invited her to the party. Jenna defended her, explaining that her parents left town and Riley was taking their place.

"It must be so exciting to do that kind of work. Have you ever helped at a dig site?" Andie asked, smiling.

Riley nodded. "A few times"

She ignored John while helping Jenna with the glasses. He would purposely stand next to her. It was as if he was asking her to hit him. Sensing Riley's discomfort, Jenna asked her to see which bottle of wine Damon wanted to use for dinner. Riley headed back towards the front door. Elijah was standing in the doorway, speaking to Damon. She tousled her hair. Realizing what she was doing, she mentally scolded herself. Elijah grinned, entering the house.

"Riley, I was not expecting you"

"My parents had to leave town for work so they sent me instead"

He kissed her hand. She tried not to blush.

"You look stunning" he whispered.

"Well since we're all here. Let's eat" said Damon.

They walked into the dining room. John practically forced Riley to sit next to him. Elijah and Alaric were across from her. She listened to Elijah talk about witches in Mystic Falls. Though John mocked it as a ghost story, Riley knew it was true. Damon questioned why he wanted to know the location of a witch massacre.

"He's a historian, genius. It's part of his job"

Jenna stifled a laugh. Damon, Alaric, and John looked at Riley like she had ten heads. She avoided eye contact, drinking her glass of wine.

"It's true. Historians like to know every detail" said Elijah.

Throughout the rest of the conversation, she and Elijah would sneak small glances at each other. Her stomach felt like it was raging with butterflies. After dinner, Jenna shoved plates into John's arms, insisting that he help her and Andie clean up the dishes. Riley went into the bathroom to check her hair and makeup. She swiped on lip gloss and left, almost bumping into Elijah.

"Are you stalking me?"

"Perhaps I needed to use the bathroom as well"

"You're a bad liar"

"I'm glad to see you're feeling better than last night. I thought this would cheer you up. I was going to stop by your home after the party to give it to you"

Reaching into his pocket, he gave her a jewelry box. She opened the box, seeing a silver-chained necklace with an emerald gem in the shape of a teardrop.

"Wow. It's…this is for me?"

"Yes"

He put it around her neck. His hand brushed against her cheek.

"It's almost as beautiful as you"

"I bet you've said that line to millions of girls in the past thousand years"

"And I've only truly meant it once"

Her heart was racing, nearly jumping out of her chest. He leaned down to her. She could see herself reflected in his eyes. Before she could even process what was happening, his lips pressed against hers for a brief second. A spark ran through her body. The kiss was short and sweet. They stared at each other, neither saying a word.

"Riley"

John was at the end of the hallway. Elijah moved his hand to his side.

"Why don't you help Andie and Jenna with dessert? Elijah, the men are having drinks in the study. You should join them"

Grabbing her wrist, John led her towards the kitchen. "Let go of me, John"

"What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm not your daughter so I don't have to tell you"

"Oh, I'm sure your father would love to hear that you're alone with a vampire…an Original, no less. Did our conversation from a couple nights ago mean nothing? I don't want you near Elijah"

"Elijah's helping to keep Elena safe. He's not the enemy. We were just talking"

"It looked like more than that"

His eyes rested on her necklace. He reached for the necklace to rip it off of her. She smacked his hand, angrily.

"Don't touch me. I don't need to explain myself to you. If you keep this up, my dad will deal with you and it's going to involve putting you in a coffin for good"

Riley grabbed a tray of cupcakes and entered the dining room. Elijah was walking down the hallway with Andie, their arms linked. As Andie talked, Elijah looked at Riley. It was like electricity passed through her. She grabbed a cupcake to keep her mind off of him. Damon appeared in front of her with a confused expression on his face.

"What are you doing?"

"Eating a cupcake"

He swatted the cupcake from her hand, knocking it onto the table. "Not the cupcake. I'm talking about your eye-sex during dinner with an Original"

"I'm not" she started.

"You think I don't know what it looks like? I basically invented it. It's not the cutesy googly eyes you make when you've got a crush on the kid playing in the sandbox. If it was possible to have sex with just our minds, you two would be doing it on the table"

She scoffed. "There is nothing going on, Damon. You're hallucinating"

"Don't let him fool you. We can't trust him. Do I need to remind you that he's going to let your cousin die for some stupid sacrifice? Don't look at him for the rest of the night"

"Damon"

"Not even once"

Jenna was still in the kitchen, cleaning dishes. The rest of them sat at the table for dessert. Once again, she was next to John. Elijah was on the other side of her. She listened to Damon, keeping her eyes on her cup of tea. Andie questioned Elijah about his work as a historian. Alaric was searching for her notebook in her purse. Riley felt something on her hand. Glancing down, she noticed Elijah's hand resting over hers. His fingers moved back and forth as Damon mentioned that John was Elena's father. Sipping her tea, Riley let out a tiny giggle. A hard sensation connected with her knee. Taking her fork, she stabbed John's leg. Andie left the table to help Alaric.

"What I'd like to know is how you intend on killing Klaus" said John.

"Gentlemen, there are a few things we should get clear right now. I allow you to live solely to keep eye on Elena. I allow Elena to remain in her house with her friends as a courtesy. If she becomes a liability, I'll take her away from here and you'll never see her again"

"I suppose you'd take Riley too"

"John, I will literally pay you to stop talking" replied Riley, glaring.

"It must be very difficult to be sitting so close to her. The scent of her blood…"

"I happen to have excellent self control. I would not harm Riley"

"If you two stopped being paranoid for five seconds, you'd realize that you both sound stupid right now" she said, looking at both John and Damon.

Elijah suppressed a smile. Andie returned with her notebook.

"Okay, my first question is when you first got here to Mystic Falls"

Her question was interrupted by Alaric stabbing Elijah through the chair with a dagger. Riley's eyes widened in shock. Elijah's skin turned grey and for a second, his grip tightened on her hand. He slumped in the chair, looking dead. Alaric removed the dagger. Neither Damon nor John seemed very surprised.

"This is why you wanted me to leave" she said to Damon.

"Riley"

"What the hell are you doing?! Do you choose to not ignore all of the stupid ideas in your head or are you just incapable of thinking like a rational person?"

"This is for the best. Now we're all safe"

Riley felt a sharp pain in her chest. It was like a knife cut her heart. She cried out in pain.

"Riley, what's wr"

Her head knocked into the table as she fainted. When she woke up, she was no longer in the boarding house. She was laying on the bed in Jeremy's room. Jeremy entered the room, carrying a bowl of chips and a bottled water. He looked relieved.

"Riley, I didn't think you'd wake up"

"What happened?"

"You uh fainted at the boarding house. Damon brought you here"

"I need to go back there. They—there was a dagger and—Elijah…"

"Riley, you're okay. Just take a few deep breaths. Bonnie and I are right downstairs if you feel sick again. I need to make sure she's okay too. Jonas stopped by while you were still unconscious. He took her magic"

"Why?"

"Because he was mad and—I don't know. Just stay in here until you feel better"

Jeremy hugged her and walked out of the room. She remembered everything that happened before she fainted at the boarding house. Alaric had used a dagger on Elijah to kill him. It was a plan between him, Damon, and John. They were not the only ones to lie to her. She had a feeling that others knew about their plan. As she left Jeremy's room, she felt that pain in her chest again. She clutched her chest, leaning against the wall.

"Jer!"

"Riley?"

The last thing she remembered before fainting was falling down the stairs…

A/N: Thanks for reading. The connection between Riley and Elijah won't be explained right away but it is significant that both times Elijah was daggered, Riley fainted. The next chapter is going to reveal a bit more about her abilities and introduce Klaus.