Elijah made his way to the Salvatore home a couple of days later. It was time for him to have a conversation with Stefan. He'd been keeping track of the young vampire, so he knew where he lived. When he got to the house, he knocked on the door.
The door was opened moments later by Stefan, who looked shocked to see Elijah.
"Hello, Stefan. I think you and I are overdue for a conversation. May I come in?" Elijah asked. There was no one alive living in the home, so he didn't technically need an invitation but asking for one was the courteous thing to do.
Stefan didn't say anything. He just stepped aside to let the other vampire enter. He had a feeling Elijah would do what he wanted anyway, and Stefan kind of did want to talk to him. This way maybe he could find out what Elijah really wanted with Elena.
"Thank you," Elijah said before walking inside.
"What do you want?" Stefan asked after closing the door.
"Well, for starters, I think you and I need to have a chat about boundaries and your inability to recognize them," Elijah said.
"Does Elena know you're here?" Stefan asked.
"Right this minute, no, but she knows I intended to speak with you. Now, let me get right to the point. I better never have to remove you from my path when it comes to my daughter again," Elijah told him.
"I did what I had to do to protect her. I don't know what you did to get her to trust her, but I know it's misplaced. I'm not going to let you hurt her," Stefan said firmly.
"That comment shows a lack of respect for my daughter, and I will not tolerate any disrespect towards her," Elijah said dangerously.
"I respect her!" Stefan protested heatedly.
"You disregard her feelings as though they aren't important. She has told you that she trusts me, that she wishes to have a relationship with me, yet you disrespect that deciding she's wrong," Elijah said.
"She doesn't want to live with you, and you plan to force her too. Isn't that disregarding her feelings?" Stefan asked.
Normally, Elijah would not explain himself to anyone, but he thought perhaps by doing so, he might be able to teach this young vampire something. For Elena's sake, he was willing to try. "No, that's parenting. You're correct, she doesn't want to live me. I acknowledge that fact. She is entitled to that feeling, and I would never tell her otherwise. However, part of parenting is doing things your child may not like to keep them safe. I am her father. That is my responsibility. You are not her father. You have no business making decisions for her. You have no business telling her how she should feel. And you will never interfere with my relationship with her again."
"I love her," Stefan said.
"Then you should want her to be your equal. You should want to make decisions with her, not for her. You should treat her with the respect she deserves. That is the only type of relationship I will accept for my daughter," Elijah said in a firm tone.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Stefan asked.
"It means that should you not start treating Elena with the respect she deserves, you won't be a part of her life much longer, and I would be most displeased if that were to happen because it would cause her pain," Elijah said.
"So, it's a problem for me to make decisions for her, but not you?" Stefan asked.
"That's right. As I said, I'm her father, not you. Heed my warning, Stefan. My daughter is not going to have a controlling boyfriend," Elijah said before heading for the door.
Xxxxxxxxxxx
A few hours later, Elijah stopped by the Gilbert home to speak to Jenna. He knocked on the door and waited.
Jenna opened the door a few moments later. "Hi. Elijah. Elena's not home right now."
"That's alright. I wanted to speak to you," Elijah told her. He'd hoped to see Elena too, but he knew there was a chance she wouldn't be there.
"Come in," Jenna said before stepping aside.
Elijah smiled and stepped inside.
"Can I get you something to drink?" Jenna asked before shutting the door. "Thank you, but no. I actually brought you something. A copy of Elena's original birth certificate, as well as an updated one that lists me as the father," Elijah told her before reaching into his suit pocket and pulling out the two documents. Obviously, they were forged. Jenna needed proof of Elena's paternity, and this was the only way to give it to her.
Jenna took the paperwork. "Thanks. I believe you though, and my brother-in-law confirmed most of your story."
"Yes, Elena told me about that," Elijah said.
Jenna started walking towards the kitchen and motioned for Elijah to follow her. "I owe you an apology for that. I should've called you when I decided to contact John. I didn't expect him to show up here though."
"It's alright. I wish you had told me, but I understand why you didn't. You had just found out about me. You were used to making decisions for Elena by yourself," Elijah said.
Jenna nodded and sat down at the table. She watched Elijah sit across from her. "You should know that I told John if ever came back here that I would call the police, but if you want to call them anyway, I certainly wouldn't protest."
Elijah chuckled. "While I'm certainly tempted, I don't want to put Elena through that. She's dealing with enough. Speaking of that, I am looking at houses tomorrow afternoon. I'd like Elena to come with me. You and your nephew are free to join us as well if you'd like."
Jenna's face fell a little at the reminder that her niece would be leaving her soon. "This is all happening a little quicker than I thought."
"I know. I'm sorry. Please remember that you and your nephew will have unrestricted access to Elena. I will not keep you apart. In fact, I wanted to ask you something. Please know that I am not trying to take an unwanted liberties here, but I would like to give Jeremy a room in my home," Elijah said.
"Really?" Jenna asked, quite a bit surprised. She knew he'd said that she and Jeremy were welcome in his home anytime, but she thought that meant more like visiting, not allowing Jeremy to call the place home from time to time.
"Yes, if you're okay with it. If you're not, I won't bring it up again. I certainly do not want to interfere with you and your nephew. I just want to make this as easy as possible for him and Elena. I want Jeremy to feel welcome in my home," Elijah said.
"I think he'd really like that. I don't think he really believes you when you say I won't keep him and Elena apart. This would go a long way in proving to him otherwise. Thank you for considering my nephew. He's not your responsibility," Jenna said. She had only met Elijah a couple of times, but she liked him more and more each time, which was also kind of annoying because she would really like to hate him.
"He may not be, but he's important to Elena. I know what they both mean to each other. I want them to be as happy as possible. Does this mean you're okay with it?" Elijah asked.
"Yes. Again, thank you," she said.
"Of course. When do you expect Elena home? I would like to see her for a few minutes before I leave, if possible," Elijah said.
"I'm not sure. She's probably with Stefan. She's with him almost every waking hour," Jenna said with a chuckle.
"You don't know for sure where she is?" Elijah asked. He wasn't thrilled to hear that. He believed that someone should know where Elena was at all times, but he had to remember that everyone parented differently. He shouldn't judge Jenna for her parenting.
"No. I usually let Elena go where she wants. She's very responsible. But you're not happy to hear that," Jenna said as she got a look at his face.
"I don't have any business commenting on your parenting style, Jenna, but if I'm honest, I would prefer one of us knows where Elena is at all times," Elijah said.
Jenna nodded. "My sister and brother-in-law were the same way. I guess I let it go because Elena is so responsible most of the time. But if you want me to keep track of where she is, I will. If I'm being honest, it's something I know I should've been doing the whole time. I'm not very at enforcing rules."
"This whole thing was thrust on you, I'm guessing. It makes sense that there would be adjustment issues," Elijah said.
"Parenthood was thrust on you too, and you're doing great so far," Jenna said.
"I had younger siblings that I mostly had to keep in line myself. I've had practice," Elijah said with a smile.
"Well, I have to get better at it for Jeremy's sake. As for Elena, I think that she should start following your rules. It might make things easier when she goes to live with you and has to follow them anyway," Jenna said.
Elijah nodded after a moment. "I didn't want to step on your toes, and I also didn't want to put too much on Elena at once, but perhaps you're right. Maybe at least implementing a couple of new rules would be beneficial."
"Do you have plans for dinner tomorrow night? If not, why don't you come over tomorrow night after the house hunting? We can sit down and let her know that some things will changing right away, rule wise," Jenna said.
"Yes, I think that's a good idea. Thank you," Elijah said before standing up.
Just then, they all heard the front door open. Elena entered the room moments later.
"Elena, I'm glad you're home. I was hoping to see you before I left," Elijah said.
"Elijah. What are you doing here?" Elena asked in a tight voice. She'd just come from Stefan's. Stefan had told her that Elijah threatened to end their relationship, which he had promised her he wouldn't do. Needless to say, she wasn't very happy to see her father right now.
Elijah raised an eyebrow at the attitude he was receiving, but chose not to comment on it for now. He could guess why she was upset. If she'd been with Stefan as Jenna theorized, he probably told her of their conversation. "I came to speak with Jenna, but I did hope to see you as well."
"Elijah is gonna to pick you up tomorrow after school to look at houses. Jeremy might go too. Then he's going to have dinner with us and we're going to talk," Jenna said.
"No thanks," Elena said before she began to walk away.
Elijah took her gently by the arm and turned her to face him. "I don't believe that was phrased as a suggestion. I can see you're unhappy with me. I can only assume that young Stefan told you I went to see him."
"He said you threatened to stop me from seeing him. You said you wouldn't do that," Elena said with a glare.
"I said I had no plans to, and I still don't. Whether that changes is entirely up to Stefan. Should he start treating you the way you deserve and remembering his place, we won't have a problem. And that is the end of this conversation. I will pick you up around four tomorrow, and I would suggest this attitude be gone when I do," Elijah said in a warning tone. Elena was free to be upset with him, but he'd already told her that he would tolerate disrespect, and walking away while she was being spoken to was disrespectful.
"Can I go now?" Elena asked through gritted teeth.
"You can," Elijah said before releasing his daughter's arm.
Elena immediately stormed out of the room in a huff.
"Wow. I haven't seen Elena act like that since before her parents died. I guess that's partially my fault for being so lax. My sister once told me that if your kid isn't pissed off with you sometimes, you're not doing your job right," Jenna said.
"As I said, an adjustment period is expected," Elijah said.
"Did I miss something with Stefan? He always seems very respectful and kind to Elena," Jenna said.
"He has been trying to interfere with my relationship with Elena. I stopped by a couple of days ago and tried to keep me away from her. That is controlling and disrespectful behavior. I won't allow it," Elijah said firmly.
Jenna nodded after a minute. "Okay. I can see your point. I hope it was a one-time thing, but I can definitely see your desire to nip it in the bud. I'll also try to talk to her about it in a little while. She should know that that wasn't okay for Stefan to do."
"I appreciate that, Jenna. I'll see you tomorrow," he said before heading out.