A/N: Be excited! It's a new chapter for A Thousand Years! I hoped everybody enjoyed the last chapter, it really kicked my ass when I was trying to figure out where I was going with it.
I don't own The Vampire Diaries. All characters except for Grace belong to author L.J. Smith. This story belongs to me.
Please review constructively, but please do not flame me or my story. Huge thanks to everybody who has persevered so far with the story, and left reviews to show your appreciation and encouragement. Please keep them coming!
On with the show!
SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES
"Fair is foul, and foul is fair."
~The Witches (William Shakespeare: Macbeth [1606])
Mikaelson Mansion
Esther's Ball
Night
In my opinion, 'surprised' was probably not really an accurate way to describe how I was feeling at that moment. No. 'stunned' would probably be closer to the truth. Or even the term 'floating on air' could be hitting the mark. Nik and I were finally back to where we had left off a thousand years ago: Happy, and engaged. Too bad our happiness was all about to be shot down in flames the very second, we walked back into the foyer; hand in hand and completely unaware of the shit that was about to go down.
Ting ting ting.
All heads swiveled over to the staircase where Esther was standing, holding a glass of red-tinged champagne in her hand. Her eyes were scanning the room, and both Nik and I stiffened and frowned a little when they locked on us and a joyful smile spread across her face.
"What is she up to?" I mumbled underneath my breath to Nik who squeezed my hand reassuringly as he responded just as warily.
"I don't know." He replied, glancing around the room for one of his siblings. We both spotted Elijah, looking blank-faced as he stared at his mother's reaction to our presence also. When Nik gave him a questioning look, he shrugged much to Nik's frustration.
"Good evening, Ladies and Gentlemen." Esther projected to all her guests with the perfect hostess smile on her face. "Waiters are coming around with champagne." White gloved waiters carrying trays of the same red-tinged champagne immediately entered the room and started handing them out to the guests, including Nik and myself, and the rest of his siblings. "I invite you all to join me in raising a glass. It provides me with no greater joy than to see my family back together as one." Esther announced before locking eyes on both Nik and I again. "And I mean this quite literally. For just this evening, something very special has just recently occurred."
I felt the blood vanish from my face, while Nik immediately frowned when we both realized what she meant and what she intended to do in front of the guests. So, it had been Esther's eyes that I could feel penetrating the back of my head earlier.
"Oh, God. She wouldn't." I pleaded.
"Believe me, love; she would." Nik stated angrily, as the guests started muttering among themselves about what the Mikaelson's 'special event' could be.
"Would my children please come up here with me on the staircase?" Nik raised his eyebrow before raising my hand and kissing the back of it.
"Just breathe, sweetheart. We'll get through this." He promised me. I nodded as he released my hand and waded through the crowd to come stand with Finn, Elijah, Kol, Rebekah and Henrik on the staircase, who were looking puzzled, while he was looking mutinous.
"What's going on?" I glanced over at Jeremy who looked at me with concern. He must've noticed how pale I had gotten the very second Esther had mentioned the special announcement and came over to investigate. "You look like you've seen a ghost." He commented. I wished I could laugh at that comment, considering that I really could see ghosts whether I wanted to or not, but I was too horrified to care.
"I wish to extend a heartfelt congratulations to my son, Niklaus, on his engagement to Miss. Grace Williams." Esther said. Finn, Elijah, Kol, Rebekah and Henrik's eyes immediately swiveled over to me just as somebody grabbed my left hand and let out an excited shriek.
"Oh, my God! You got it back!" It was Caroline and I immediately started to panic, hearing my heartbeat thudding in my ears. "Congratulations!" She yelled, before wrapping me up in a bear hug that I struggled uselessly to get out of. Caroline took one look at my face and immediately looked concerned, especially because I wasn't jumping up and down and basically acting like any other girl who just recently got engaged to the love of her life, and ready to dissolve into excited babbling with her girlfriends.
If that seriously was what Caroline was expecting of me, then she really didn't know me and needed to get with the program.
"What's wrong, Grace? Aren't you happy about this?" She looked genuinely confused by my reaction as I gently extracted my hand from her grasp.
"Very happy. But Nik and I wanted to keep our engagement just within the family for the moment." I told her over the rising sounds of applause around me. My eyes narrowed. "Esther is bang out of order." I added and watched Caroline glancing in the direction of the staircase and visibly cringing.
"Yeah. Klaus looks pissed off." She observed and I glanced up to see that my fiancé looked ready to pounce and was being subtly restrained by Elijah and surprisingly Kol, although Elijah didn't look exactly pleased either and he was looking at Esther with suspicious eyes.
"Please come on up here, Grace." Esther called out to me and a hand suddenly took mine. I glanced up at the person, with the intention of telling him or her to not touch me and to bugger off. But faltered when I saw that it was a very serious faced Damon.
"Damon? What are you-?"
"I just wanted to come over and congratulate the soon-to-be bride in person." He explained in a loud clear voice as he smiled at me but looked a little worried as well. "Just go along with it. I'll try and help you figure out what's going on." Damon muttered in my ear before tucking my hand into the crook of his elbow and pulled me towards the staircase.
As we walked, all that seemed to be going through my head were the words 'dead woman walking'. When we reached the bottom of the staircase, Damon quickly handed me over to Nik who pulled me toward him and backed up to where Elijah and Kol were standing looking down at me sympathetically. I managed to smile demurely at the guests before trying to half-hide behind Nik as I wished that this whole night was over and that I was anywhere but here. Pretty sure Nik was thinking similar thoughts as well.
Esther, obviously oblivious to the embarrassment she had caused, raised her champagne glass in a salute.
"I'd like to thank you all for being part of this spectacular evening. Cheers!" She takes a sip from her glass and the rest of the guests follow suit. I sighed and raised the glass to my lips, and I was about to sip when an odd but familiar smell camped out in my nostrils. An almost metallic smell that I could just barely make out behind the alcohol. Frowning, I took a sip and immediately spat it back into the glass when I realized what it was.
"Sweetheart? What is it?" Nik whispered to me urgently.
"Oh, my God. Don't drink it!" I warned him, and consequently Elijah and Kol who were about to sip as well.
"Why? What is it, poppet?" Kol whispered also.
"Blood! There's blood in the champagne!" I whispered back urgently. All three brothers looked down at their drinks in horror. Kol immediately reached over and tapped Rebekah on the shoulder. She turned and looked at him questioningly, as he relays what I had just discovered to her. Rebekah looks at her glass with disgust. All five of us look at Esther, suspiciously.
"What's the plan?" Rebekah questioned, sternly.
"For now, we do nothing." Elijah responded, much to our shock. "Clearly there is a reason why mother polluted our champagne with blood. So, our best course of action is to go along with it and make her believe that we have drunk the champagne." Elijah suggested.
"We'll figure out the finer details later." Nik agreed. Rebekah glanced down at Finn.
"Should we let Finn know?" She asked.
"No. I wouldn't count on him to help us; he's been by mother's side all night." Elijah explained. "I fear he might be involved with what mother has been planning."
"Besides," Kol scoffed. "He was one of the few who drank their champagne quickly after mother finished embarrassing our brother and poor Grace." He said with disgust. The four of them immediately raise their glasses to their lips and made a show of drinking the red-tinged liquid, and the entire time Esther was watching us.
Rebekah looked at me with worried eyes.
"Are you okay now, Grace?" She asked, concerned.
I smiled a little, "I'm fine. More annoyed than anything." I confessed. Rebekah frowned at her mother who was quickly retreating upstairs and out of sight. Nik wrapped both arms around my waist and pulled me close to kiss my temple.
Still obviously angry.
"Where are you going?" I asked Elijah who was making his way back down the staircase, looking like a man on a mission.
"To have a word with Elena. I have the feeling she was lying to me when I first confronted her tonight after her conversation with mother." He disappeared into the thinning crowd and I noticed that Kol had disappeared as well.
I shook my head.
Vampires… I thought, exasperatedly.
"We should rejoin the guests." Rebekah suggested as she descended the staircase and went to mingle. Nik and I followed cautiously and politely smiled or nodded at well-wishers who came over to congratulate us on our engagement.
"I feel a sense of déjà-vu coming on." I joked, earning a chuckle from Nik when he realized what I meant. When we were first engaged, we didn't get a moments peace for about a week. Which was typical for a small Viking village where everybody knew everyone's personal business.
Suddenly we hear somebody yelling out from extreme pain and it was coming from the balcony outside. Nik and I looked at each other in confusion before hurrying outside towards the balcony to investigate what was going on. However, before we could even step outside; we saw Damon standing behind a visibly injured Matt Donovan who was cradling his crushed hand. Damon was glaring at Kol, who looked unusually dangerous and just a wee bit smug for some reason.
"Easy on the hand. Guy's a quarterback." Damon told Kol before rushing at him and pushing him off the balcony. He immediately jumps after him.
"Damon!" I yelled out in protest and rushed after them, as I heard Nik sigh in frustration behind me.
"Figures. What the hell did you do now, Kol?" He muttered, following me at a leisurely pace. At the bottom of the stone staircase I turned the corner and gasped when I saw Damon beating the ever-living hell out of a bristling Kol.
"Stop it! The both of you!" I yelled, rushing over to them.
"Keep back, Grace. Nik won't forgive me if you get hurt!" Kol warns me, and I bristled at him.
"Well, we wouldn't be in this position if you hadn't broken Matt's hand, now would we?" I retorted. Kol rolled his eyes, taking them off Damon for a split second to look at me with mild disgust.
"Geez, crucify somebody for just having a little bit of fun. Is that really a crime now?" He bitched, before Damon suddenly catches him off guard and snaps his neck.
"Yes. Yes, it is." Damon drawls, sarcastically.
I gawk in horror, "What the fuck, Damon!?" I rushed over, crouching at Kol's side, just as Stefan comes running out of a door and takes one look at the scene before scowling at his brother in annoyance.
"Damon! Are you crazy?" He wanted to know, as Nik calmly walks up behind me and the rest of the Mikaelsons and Elena suddenly appear overhead from the opened door to see what the commotion was. Damon looks bored as he looks up at the balcony and shakes his head.
"Maybe a little." He agrees, before pointedly frowning at somebody up above. Smart money would be on Elena. "Far be it from me to cause a problem." He added, snidely.
"Actually, I think it was probably the most appropriate action to take at the time." Nik suddenly pipes up, much to the surprise of everybody on the scene. Damon didn't smile.
"You're welcome." He grunted at Nik who rolled his eyes at this defiant response, before Damon looked at me with concern.
"Thanks, Damon. But I think you'd better go before Kol wakes up." I suggested, earning a scowl from Damon. "Don't look at me like that. It's for your own safety. Unless you want Kol to rip off both your arms, string you up and play 'whack the piñata'." I stated, and Damon relaxed the frown from his face when he realized that I was trying to help him. He nodded.
"Congratulations to you both." He said to us, before taking one last look at somebody up above, then turning his back and walking away.
Nik and I glanced down at Kol's temporarily dead body.
"So, now what?" I asked, smoothing back Kol's hair from his face. Nik craned his head. He was listening for something only his advanced hearing could pick up.
"The party is winding down. Now, we pick up Kol and put the fool into his room so he can recover in private. Then, I guess the rest of the night is ours." He shrugged, as he stooped down and scooped Kol's body up into his arms and over his shoulder. I followed him back up the stairs and into the mansion.
"So, we're not going to come up with a plan to figure out what your mother is up to and how to stop it?" I asked, a little concerned that that wasn't his main priority.
Nik shook his head, "No. To tell you the truth, I'd rather spend the rest of my night with my fiancée, whom I had just re-proposed to this night and haven't gotten the chance to let it sink in yet." He told me, smirking.
I smiled back and shook my head at him.
"You're an idiot." I told him fondly, before leaning in and kissing him. "I'll see you upstairs." I promised before walking back into the mansion, leaving Nik to deposit Kol into his bedroom upstairs. I was walking towards the kitchen to ask the hybrid servant working in there to make me a cuppa when I spotted Rebekah standing at the front double doors, looking indecisive. "Bekah?" She looked up at me. "You okay?"
"Why wouldn't I be?" Rebekah asked, a little defensive.
"Because you look like you're struggling to stop yourself from doing something that might get you into trouble?" I pointed out, and she sighed in defeat.
"It's kind of my fault that Matt got hurt." She admitted and I raised an eyebrow at the confession.
"How is it your fault?" I asked.
"I originally invited Matt to the ball so I could kill him." She said, and I looked at her with horror.
"Why would you do that?" I demanded, appalled.
"To make Elena suffer." I glowered at her, unimpressed. "But I changed my mind at the last minute because Matt was being nice and a gentleman towards me, and I couldn't bring myself to destroy that." Rebekah admitted, and I relaxed a little.
At least that cleared up part of the confusion.
"What does that have to do with Kol's actions?" I asked, hoping that she would continue to clear things up.
"I told Kol my plans. He must've taken it upon himself to finish the job when I backed down at the last minute. Bloody moron." Rebekah stated, with disgust. I bit my bottom lip, worried about my 'twin's' sanity.
"Has Kol always been like that?" I asked her, unsure that I wanted to know the answer.
Rebekah winced.
"No, this is Kol on a good day." She confessed, and I shuddered.
"Jesus! I'd hate to see him on a bad day." I said, uncomfortably.
I continued inspecting my sister, who still looked hesitant about something involving the blonde quarterback. I realized that all Rebekah needed was a little nudge out of the door and some encouragement; since it was obvious that she wanted to make amends with Matt for her brother's bloodthirsty attack on him. "Why don't you go and clear the air with Matt." I suggested, gently.
"Excuse me?" Rebekah looked taken aback.
"You heard me. You probably won't get a good night's sleep unless you do so." I pointed out.
"You really think I should?" Rebekah hesitated.
"Carpe Diem. Who knows, this gesture might turn out in your favor. And if it doesn't, at least your conscience will be clear." I reminded her. "What have you got to lose?" Rebekah paused for a few moments, letting my advice sink in before eventually smiling and opening the front door.
"Thanks, Grace. I'll see you in the morning." Rebekah promised and I smiled back.
"Go get him." I encouraged her, before continuing towards the kitchen when the front door closed behind her. Half-way towards the kitchen, I changed my mind and instead headed for bed.
I was so over this night…
Next Morning
I sat curled up on the couch downstairs in the Mikaelson's living room in a pair of comfy blue jeans with ripped knees, a bottle green wool cashmere sweater and some thick woolen socks; circling my hands around a large steaming mug of tea as I sat, deep in thought about what happened earlier this morning when Nik and I woke up.
A coy smile spread across my face as I recalled exactly what happened…
(Flashback)
I stirred, groaning when I glanced over at Nik's clock radio and realized that yet again, I had woken up way too early. Yawning, I sat up and flipped my legs over the side of the bed with the intention of getting up to greet the day. However, I didn't get very far as a strong arm suddenly wrapped around my waist pulling me back down onto the bed. I let out a startled 'eep!' as I landed on my back with a surprised grunt and stared up, bewildered, into Nik's smirking and playful, but still slightly sleepy face.
"Nik?" I blurted out, before smiling in relief.
"Where do you think you're going?" He chided, playfully. I laughed, sitting up against the headboard as Nik re-positioned himself so that he was kneeling between my splayed knees and leaning over me.
"It's morning. Time to get up." I clarified, putting my hands flat on his T-shirt covered chest, preparing to gently push against him so I could get up again. He shook his head, tightening his arm around my waist and gently pulling me closer as I instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck.
"I think not." He murmured, leaning down to kiss me and nuzzle at my neck. This sent a wave of shivers down my spine and I felt him smirking into my neck as he continued teasing me with slow, calculated kisses. To my surprise and delight, he continued traveling south; kissing as he went.
"So, the light reflecting into the room is a figment of my imagination?" I teased, feeling slightly breathless as I attempted to get closer to him, while at the same time pressing him closer; enjoying the attention he was paying towards my body.
Nik chuckles, "Completely."
He sits up and smiles at me tenderly.
I truly love the 21st century. It would've been forbidden for Nik and me to do anything like this during the 10th century until after we were married. Thank god the rules have changed, and couples can be a bit more adventurous with their affections for each other. Not to be shunned or have people whispering behind their backs and given filthy, disapproving looks by the prudes.
A mischievous smirk of my own spreads across my face.
"Well, in that case—" I immediately flipped us over so that I was straddling a surprised Nik's waist and stared down at him. He recovered almost immediately, looking up at me with pure delight on his face as he caressed my thighs and attempted to sit up to wrap his arms around my waist. I put my hand up to stop him. "I better make the most of it, before I 'wake up' for real." He chuckled as I captured his lips with mine.
"I love you." Nik whispered, pulling back a little to look at me with a vulnerable expression on his face.
I carded my hands through his hair, before pressing my forehead against his.
"I love you too, Nik." I whispered back before resuming our kiss.
(End of Flashback)
The sound of the front door opening jerked me back to the present, and I frowned getting up off the couch and walking towards the entrance. I lean up against the door frame; out of sight, to see who was letting themselves into the mansion. I saw Rebekah, still dressed in her emerald green mermaid ballgown, attempting to creep back into the house to avoid waking everybody else up. She quietly closed the door behind her and headed for the staircase. I observed that her previously perfectly curled honey blonde hair was now hanging loose and losing its curl, and had been unceremoniously shoved into a sloppy ponytail; something that Rebekah wouldn't dare leave the house in.
Hmmm? What do we have here? I wondered privately as I sipped at my tea and watched as my sister glanced about to see if the coast was clear, before taking to the staircase and hurrying up them for the sanctuary of her bedroom. Curiously, I quietly and calmly followed her; sipping from my tea as I padded up the staircase, and down the corridor towards the bedrooms. I approached Rebekah's bedroom and knocked politely on the door.
"Go away, Kol!" I heard Rebekah shout through the door.
I paused, slightly taken aback; wondering how many times Kol had done this in the past for his sister to suddenly stop him in his tracks before even setting foot into the room. I knocked again, this time a little more insistently. Immediately, the door was wrenched open and an annoyed Rebekah appeared, ready to shout in my face before she faltered upon seeing me, looking at her with amusement.
"Good morning, Rebekah. Are you well?" I asked, casually. Without warning, she grabs me by the wrist and drags me into her room and slams the door behind her. "You can make as much noise as you want, Bek. Your brothers aren't here." I pointed out, observing her obvious nervousness as I took another sip from my tea and waited for an explanation. When none was forthcoming, I decided to ask for one. "So, what's with the walk of shame?" I asked casually.
"Walk of shame?" Rebekah looked at me quizzically. "What on earth is that?" She demanded, as she quickly reached back to unzip her dress and shimmy out of it, revealing her strapless black lace bra and (something I wasn't prepared for) French knickers.
"Oh, yeah. Of course, you wouldn't know that term." I mentally face-planted, kicking myself for my idiocy. "It's a term to describe a person walking from another person's house to your place wearing the same clothes that they had been wearing the night before." I explained, taking a seat upon her bed and sitting cross-legged. "Typically, and popularly used when said person is returning from a night of sex, and it is obvious that that has occurred because of wrinkled clothing, disheveled hair and/or smudged makeup due to heavy making out." I added, smirking when my sister's dark blue eyes widened, and she turned away out of disgust.
"That sounds vulgar." Rebekah commented, resuming to disrobe.
"But still true, and sometimes amusing to watch." I pointed out, cheerfully. "Many of my friends at College performed the walk of shame, often regretting their conquests over very large mugs of black coffee." I reminisced, nostalgically.
"I'm so glad I can entertain you, sister." Rebekah stated, sarcastically.
"So, I take it that Matt accepted your apology then?" I grinned over the rim of my mug as I winked mischievously at her. Rebekah scowled at me, pulling her hair out of the ponytail.
"No. He did not." She said, embarrassed and looking guilty. My grin faded slightly, replaced with a look of confusion.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Who was the lucky man then?" I asked, taking another sip from my tea.
"Damon Salvatore."
I did a spit take, "WHAT!?" I coughed and spluttered as Rebekah smirked back, mischievously. "Since when?" I demanded, clearing my throat as Rebekah changed underwear and pulled on a pair of tight white skinny jeans, a black and white blouse and some white strappy sandals.
"Last night, at that Mystic Grill establishment." Rebekah responded, with a bit of disinterest; although I could see a small smile playing about her lips as she recounted last night's 'recreational' activities. That sparked my immediate interest.
"This I gotta hear." I immediately piped up.
"No. I don't think I shall elaborate." Rebekah retorted, light-halfheartedly.
"What? Why?" I demanded, crestfallen.
"Because you were being mean. I don't take kindly to being teased." My sister smirked. I sighed, hopping off the bed and walking over to where Rebekah was sitting at her dressing table brushing her hair and re-applying her make up.
"Bekah, I was just ribbing you. That's what sisters and very good friends do to each other." I told her, setting aside my mug and wrapping my arms around her shoulders.
"I don't kiss and tell." Rebekah insisted, and I glanced in the mirror, rolling my eyes when I realized that she was trying and failing rather spectacularly to keep a straight face.
"Alright fine. I'll strike a bargain with you." I changed tactics.
"Listening."
I pulled away from her and moved to lean against the dressing table so I could see Rebekah's face properly. She raised an eyebrow, waiting to hear what I had to say.
"You tell me what happened last night…" I said.
"Yes?"
I brandished my left hand at her, and her eyes zeroed in on my engagement ring. They grew as wide as dinner plates.
"And I'll tell you how I got this back." I bargained, and a huge smile spread across Rebekah's face as she took my left hand in hers to examine the ancient ring.
"He did it? Nik bloody well did it!" She muttered, looking at me then at the ring and back again. I looked at her in confusion.
"Well, do we have a deal?" I asked, taking my mug with my right hand as Rebekah still had my left hand in her possession. She looked at me, before shrugging and letting go of my hand.
"Fine. But you've got to go first." Rebekah insisted, acting haughty, and I nodded smiling at her fondly, knowing that she was excited that I was getting a second shot at becoming her sister-in-law officially.
"Fair enough." I agreed without an argument, before proceeding to spend a good ten minutes regaling her with how Nik decided to romantically re-propose marriage to me. Rebekah made a face when I mentioned Nik's use of Elvis Presley's song Love Me Tender to assist himself with asking for my hand.
"Who is this Elvis Presley person?" She asked, frowning.
My mouth fell open.
"Are you serious right now?" I stated, with disbelief. Rebekah just looked at me blankly, causing me to pull my phone from my back pocket to access Google and look up the King of Rock n' Roll in the images page. I selected the appropriate picture and handed my phone to Rebekah who took it and glanced down at the photograph of a younger version of Elvis from the '50s before he beefed up and lost his svelte body.
"Oh. Yummy…" Rebekah smiled a little then glanced up at me. "What happened to him? Is he still around?" She asked, looking a bit hopeful. I frowned, taking back my phone and accessed a picture of Elvis in his later years before his death in the 1970s. I passed it back to Rebekah who eagerly glanced down at my phone and recoiled in horror. "Bloody hell! What happened to him?" She asked.
I shrugged, replacing my phone back into my pocket.
"This is the dark side of fame. What can sometimes happen to you." I replied, uneasily.
Rebekah frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"Elvis sort of went off the deep end." I explained, reluctantly. "He turned to drugs, alcohol and fatty foods in abundance. Died in his mansion in Memphis, Tennessee in 1977." I told a disappointed Rebekah, leaving out how he died to spare her the details. "Oh, don't worry. He had a fantastic life … it just got too much for him in the end." I reassured her. Rebekah brightened a little. "Okay, now it's your turn. Tell me what happened last night. Just don't go into excruciating detail about what went down with Damon." I pleaded, shuddering at the mental picture that appeared in my head.
Rebekah sighed and shook her head as she started on her explanation.
(Flashback: NO P.O.V)
Last Night
Mystic Grill.
Late.
Rebekah, on the advice of Grace, nervously arrived at the Mystic Grill where she was sure Matt was likely to be and pushed open the doors, making her way inside and glancing around for the blonde quarterback. It didn't take long for the Original to spot her target who was sitting at the bar, drinking a coffee and looking thoroughly miserable. His right hand had been wrapped in a bandage, and Rebekah winced sympathetically when she saw it; cursing Kol for going behind her back when she had specifically told him to leave Matt alone at the ball, after giving up on her plans of killing him to prove a point towards Elena Gilbert.
"Hi. What are you doing?" She tentatively asks Matt, who visibly stiffens the second he hears her voice.
He reaches for the sugar and stirs some into his cup.
"Well, let's see," Matt's voice dripped with anger and hurt, and Rebekah instantly felt even more guilt than she had already been experiencing before she set foot into the restaurant. "I went to a dance and got my hand crushed. I found out that I don't have health insurance, so I just needed a moment to myself." He responded, bitterly.
Rebekah bit her bottom lip.
"Well, I thought, maybe I'd buy you an apology drink?" She asked him, cautiously. Matt once again stiffened.
"Maybe, you could just leave me alone." He retorted, taking a sip from the coffee.
Rebekah flinched. "Look, I'm-I'm really sorry about Kol. He's a lunatic—" She attempted to redeem herself in Matt's eyes, but unfortunately, he didn't want a bar of it. Matt immediately swivels round to face Rebekah with the hurt reflected clearly on his handsome face.
"Look, Rebekah. You're really fun and pretty and all." Rebekah smiled, hope reflecting in her eyes. "But I really need you to leave me alone." He insisted, before getting up from the bar and leaving the restaurant after leaving what he owed on the bar top.
Rebekah sat alone at the bar for several minutes, before making the decision to get up and leave when another presence suddenly takes a seat on the stool beside her. She frowns, turning her head towards the intruder and immediately stiffens when she realizes who it was.
"Burn." It was Damon, who had very obviously witnessed Rebekah's humiliation at the hands of a down-on-his-luck high school quarterback. She glares at him, unamused as he sets down a nearly empty bottle of bourbon on the counter-top. Rebekah regards at him with disgust. "Rejected by the captain of the football team. Welcome to adolescence." He drawls, drinking down the last of the bottle.
"Shut up, Damon." Rebekah snapped, not in the mood for Damon's smart mouth to bring her down even worse than she already was. "I knew I should've killed him. Mother wouldn't let me." To Rebekah, Matt Donavan was just another in a long line of men who had let her down and disappointed her.
She was getting sick of it.
Damon snorted as he reached over the counter and snagged another bourbon bottle, "Pretty sure Grace would be disappointed in you too if you had succeeded." He pointed out, as he cracks open the bottle and pours himself and Rebekah a shot each. She eyes it for a second before giving in and taking the shot. "Besides … you would have broken him in a second."
Rebekah swallows and eyes him, feeling mildly offended while Damon smirks suggestively at her.
"Are you suggesting that I can't be gentle?" She asked him as he refills her glass and Rebekah immediately shoots it.
"No. I'm just saying that you should find someone a little more … durable." He shrugged, nonchalantly. "That's all." Damon ignores the shot glass and drinks straight from the bottle just as Rebekah eyes him contemplatively, questioning what Damon's motives were and why he was suddenly taking an interest into her well-being. She honestly believed that this cheeky, arrogant baby vampire was only there to mock her after Matt's rejection.
Now she wasn't entirely sure…
"And who would that be…?" Rebekah took the bait Damon was very obviously dangling underneath her nose, and he stopped sculling the bourbon and looked at her suggestively.
Mikaelson Mansion
Rebekah's bedroom
Morning.
(Grace's P.O.V)
All I could do was just stare at my sister in total disbelief in what I was hearing fall from her full painted lips.
"Seriously? God, Damon…" I moaned, hiding my face in my hands as Rebekah looked at me, a little hurt. "That's just typical of him to pick up a girl – not to mention my sister – when she was down and out." I looked up at her, pleadingly. "Please, tell me you turned him down flat and didn't fall for his obviously drunken bullshit." I urged her. Rebekah avoided direct eye contact and I groaned in exasperation. "Bekah…!"
"I'll have you know, Grace. Damon was surprisingly sweet and understanding about the whole thing." Rebekah defended her actions, and surprisingly defended Damon. I couldn't help but feel a small shred of triumph underneath the mortification that their relationship was just taking shape. Here's hoping that Damon didn't stick his foot in it and royally offended Rebekah.
He would be ancient history if he did.
"So, I take it you 'spent the night' at the Boarding House then?" I guessed, using air quotes in the right places. Rebekah smirked playfully.
"And then some…" She confirmed.
"Ugh…"
(Flashback cont.…)
Salvatore Boarding House
Night
(No P.O.V)
Damon and Rebekah burst into the Boarding House, locked in a heated make out session as they crashed and bumped their way into walls, shelves, tables etc. on their way towards the staircase that led upstairs to Damon's bedroom. Once they finally made it, they immediately start to rip at each other's clothes to get them off, and Rebekah moans out when Damon pays a little extra attention by kissing her neck.
Stefan, who walks into the Boarding House several minutes later, pauses when he can hear the commotion going on in Damon's bedroom. Listening in for a few minutes, he suddenly realizes what is happening and makes a revolted face before sighing and rolling his eyes. Feigning deafness, he makes his way up to his bedroom, which thankfully for him, is on the other side of the house and he disappears inside it for the night praising everything that is sane that he and Damon had the sense to make their bedrooms soundproof when they closed their bedroom doors.
Dawn
(roughly the same time Grace and Klaus 'wake up')
Stefan, Damon and Rebekah are still in bed at the Boarding House. But only Stefan is awake, and he is nonchalantly writing in his diary. He barely reacts when his phone suddenly buzzes, except to pick up his phone to see who is trying to get into contact with him. He immediately rejects the call when he notices that it is Elena.
In Damon's bedroom, he is just stirring and rolls over to grab his phone when it suddenly starts ringing to avoid waking up Rebekah who had also stirred when the phone started ringing, but she deliberately feigns sleep to listen in on his conversation. Rebekah still didn't entirely trust Damon, despite how understanding and nice he had been the night before. She was suspicious of his motives.
"What?" Damon barks into the phone, understandably annoyed at the caller who had rudely disrupted their sleep.
"Hey, I-I called you ten times last night. We need to talk." Rebekah frowned when she heard Elena's voice come over the line, and only stopped herself in time from rolling over, snatching Damon's phone from him and telling Elena to 'bugger off'.
"Sorry, I've been busy." Damon responded, not sounding at all sorry while Rebekah smirked; remembering what happened the night before and privately admitting how much she did enjoy having somebody's undivided attention … even if that person just happened to be Damon Salvatore. Elena huffed, and both Damon and Rebekah could picture the petulant little bitch frowning that she wasn't getting the answers she wanted.
And people have the audacity to call me a 'brat'? Rebekah thought, sourly.
"If you're mad at me, Damon, you need to get over it." Elena had the cheek to suggest to him. He snorted, derisively.
"Oh, believe me. I'm definitely over it." He reassured her, coldly.
Damon hung up on Elena before she could open her mouth to retort and tosses his phone back on his bedside table as he lays back down in his bed. Rebekah immediately felt Damon's eyes on her, as sleep finally took her over again.
Late Morning
A few hours passed with some more undisturbed sleep for both Damon and Rebekah. But eventually, both had to get up so their respective families – not that Stefan would give a shit – wouldn't develop angst. Rebekah strode downstairs in her emerald mermaid dress whilst pulling back her hair into a ponytail. A topless Damon followed close behind as he escorted Rebekah to the front door.
"So, let's not make a big deal out of this." Rebekah suggested, as she tucked a stray lock of her hair behind her ear.
Damon scoffed at the thought, "My thoughts exactly."
"Besides," Rebekah paused mid-step and turned to look at him with a straight face, trying to prove that none of what happened between them mattered, when it did. "I expect you'll come calling soon enough." She predicted, not holding her breath that he would.
She wasn't that lucky.
Damon chuckled a little, putting his hand on the front doorknob as Rebekah braced herself for yet another rejection from another man.
"Probably sooner than you think." He replied, and Rebekah blinked at him in complete astonishment. Then, surprising even herself, she stepped towards him and planted a chaste kiss on Damon's cheek.
"Thank you. I'd like that and thank you for a lovely night." She complimented him, smiling a little. Damon smirked at her words, reaching up to tuck the same loose hair behind Rebekah's ear.
"It was wasn't it?" He smirked, being cocky. Rebekah immediately scowled and grabbed a fistful of Damon's hair as a warning.
Damon winced out of pain and glowered at her.
"Don't push your luck." She hissed, before letting go of his hair and turning back to the front door. Damon opens it revealing Elena standing outside with her hand raised and poised to knock.
Rebekah immediately smiles sweetly (but nastily) at a shocked Elena and walks off without another word.
Mikaelson Mansion
Rebekah's bedroom
Morning (Grace's P.O.V)
During Rebekah's explanation of what she had gotten up to after we went our separate ways for the night, I was amused to notice that a happy little smile had been gradually growing on her face as she reminisced. Which told me quite clearly that she had enjoyed being in Damon's company last night, even though she would never openly admit that out loud. And that she had also especially loved screwing with Elena this morning when she finally left the Boarding House to come home.
However, bringing this to light and exposing Rebekah to the truth was likely to cause my sister to immediately shut down. So instead, I took on a different route; preferring to let her come to her own conclusions by acknowledging that for once in her existence, my sister had let down her hair and spent the night in the company of a man she was interested in; without her nosy, overprotective brothers interfering.
"I'm glad that you had fun last night, Bekah." I told her, smiling happily. "And thank you for not going into explicit detail about what you did with Damon. I do not think I would be able to erase that image from my head otherwise." I added, shuddering a little.
"What kind of person do you think I am, Grace? Honestly." Rebekah looked slightly annoyed, as she finally got off her vanity bench and took my hand in hers. "Come. I believe my brothers have returned from wherever they had gone off to this morning." Rebekah told me, and I nodded following her out of the door. We almost collided with Jeremy and Henrik in our haste to get downstairs.
"Hey guys! Did you enjoy yourself last night?" I asked, brightly.
Jeremy shrugged while Henrik grinned; obviously happy that he had gotten the opportunity to attend a gathering like last nights with his family in over a thousand years.
"Absolutely!" Henrik chirped, earning a fond smile from Rebekah. But Jeremy had a very different response.
"Yeah, I guess. I mean, it wasn't really my scene; but it was great to get out of my room for once without being exposed to Elena and the rest of the gang." He responded, causing Rebekah to look mildly surprised.
"But I would've thought that you'd be used to gatherings like last night. Doesn't this town frequently host formal and informal events?" She asked him.
Jeremy made a face, "Yeah, no. I go to beer parties in the old cemetery or in the woods, and most of the high school dances. But the formal events? That's something that Elena does. Caroline is usually the one who organizes these stupid events and we're just supposed to attend them whether we want to or not." He explained, taking Rebekah aback because of his negative attitude.
"I see." She eventually said, obviously unsure how to respond to that.
"But hey, apparently you're getting hitched?" Jeremy directed this comment to me, changing the subject. "Congratulations!" He told me when I nodded in confirmation, smiling warmly at him.
"Thanks, mate." I said sincerely. Henrik looked a little distant and both Rebekah and I became concerned. "Something's wrong, Henrik?" I prodded, and he nodded slowly.
"Yeah, he's been like that all morning." Jeremy frowned, also looking a bit concerned. Henrik waved a dismissive hand before responding.
"I'm just trying to work out why Mother was acting so out of character last night." He replied, before looking to Rebekah for some possible explanation. "Did you notice, Rebekah?" He asked, relaxing a little when she nodded.
"Inquiring minds want to know, Henrik. Especially after she was so rude revealing something as personal as Nik and Grace's engagement to a group of strangers like that. But I think Elijah's probably the best person to ask. Let's go and find him." She suggested, wrapping an arm around his shoulders like she used to, as we turned and continued walking down the corridor to the staircase.
Downstairs, the four of us walked into the living room, immediately spotting both Kol and Nik in there. Nik was slouching casually on one of the couches, sketching, while Kol appeared to be reading from a heavy looking leather tome with a lot of interest. That is, until he looked up and spotted us; especially Rebekah who instantly grimaced when she saw the devious expression on his face. Elijah appeared to still be absent.
"Well, well, well." Kol piped up, grinning slyly at both Rebekah and me and ignoring Jeremy and Henrik for the time being. "There are our girls!" He immediately blurred over and engulfed me into a rib-crushing hug that caused me to stumble slightly because I wasn't ready for it. "How are you, darling?" He asked me, kissing my cheek and not a hint of teasing in his tone.
"A little restless." I admitted, uneasily. "But I suppose that might have something to do with your mother." Kol frowned, apparently agreeing with me.
"I'm not really surprised, pet. But don't worry, we'll get to the bottom of that soon enough." He reassured me, before turning his attention towards Rebekah, who was trying to walk further into the living room, taking advantage of Kol's interaction with me to do so. However, Kol immediately blurs in front of her, blocking her way. I giggled at the annoyed expression on Rebekah's face as I glanced over at Nik who smiles warmly at me and holds out a hand for me to take, which I did and curled up on Nik's lap after he set aside his sketching.
"Get out of my way, Kol." Rebekah orders and attempts to move around him, only to growl in frustration when he simply darts back into her path and resumes taunting his baby sister.
"Out all night. What a scandal!" Kol observes in a sing-song voice. "I trust you did better than that commoner. Matt, was it?"
Kol looks over at me for clarification.
I frowned at him, "I'd rather you not bring me into this, Kol." I warned him, as Rebekah finally makes it around him and wonders over to an armchair, sinking down on it.
"If you don't shut your mouth, the next thing to come out of it will be your teeth." She threatens him, and both she and I looked at Nik in outrage when he chuckled in amusement.
"Nik…" I warned him, as Rebekah pounces like an angry lioness.
"Don't start, Nik!" She hisses.
Nik raises his hands into the air in the iconic sign of surrender.
"I didn't say anything." He insisted, as he picks up his sketching and resumes scratching away and I appraise it with interest.
"This is excellent, Nik. What was the inspiration?" I asked him, curiously.
He shrugged, nonchalantly.
"Nothing really. Just felt like drawing it." He replied, and I smiled and made myself comfortable on his lap to continue watching him draw.
Across the room, Kol had gone back to reading from the tome after successfully pissing off Rebekah, and Jeremy and Henrik were sitting on the other couch, playing games on Jeremy's phone. Or rather, Jeremy was playing games; Henrik was spectating while offering encouragement or playfully jeering at him when Jeremy lost or was beaten by the computer.
Eventually though, Kol started becoming noticeably restless and was occasionally throwing looks of annoyance over at the oblivious boys. Finally, he stood up.
"I'm bored. Our sister is a strumpet, but at least she's having fun." Both Rebekah and I looked at Kol, offended. While Nik just looked at him with boredom and sighed, setting aside his sketchbook once again and wrapping his arms around my waist. "I need entertainment."
"So? What are you waiting for then?" Nik asked, getting a little annoyed with him now. "Go on, have at it. Nobody's stopping you." He reminded Kol, who spread a devilish grin across his face.
Kol made a show of 'hesitating', "Yeah, but. It's not fun to go alone." He looked at his brother slyly, which caused Nik to look at him cautiously. "Join me, Nik! It's the least you can do after sticking a dagger in my heart." He wheedled, and Nik rolled his eyes.
"That's a low blow, Kol." I stated, disapprovingly. I jerked in surprise when Nik tapped me lightly on the bum to get me up off his lap, and I acquiesced out of astonishment.
"Why not?" Nik shrugged, and my mouth fell open out of disbelief. He limberly got to his feet and stretched, exposing a little bit of his abs at the same time when his Henley rode up. "I didn't have nearly enough to drink last night, what with you trying to murder Rebekah's date." He stated, as Kol grinned with triumph. I looked at Nik, feeling crestfallen and hurt, which he immediately took notice of. "Relax, love. I'm just going for the blood. I'd never be unfaithful to you." He promised fiercely, and I relaxed a little; feeling a little relief but also slight revulsion when my overactive imagination started giving me a film reel pertaining to what Nik and Kol could potentially be about to embark on.
"Yes, please go." Rebekah agreed, as she removed one of her shoes. "This house has enough men rolling around in it." She said, missing when Kol smirked.
"Just like you, Bekah." He chirped, brightly.
Nik hissed in displeasure, glaring furiously at Kol while I immediately rounded on him in outrage, and both Jeremy and Henrik winced looking at Kol with the pitying stare best reserved for a condemned man.
"Kol! That is totally out of order!" I yelled at him, as Rebekah hurls her shoe at her brother. Nik strode over and smacked the back of Kol's head, then grabbed a fist full of his shirt, physically dragging him to the entrance to the living room.
"Next time, curb your impulse Kol!" Nik growled, as Rebekah shouted after them both.
"Good riddance, both of you!" She snarled. Jeremy looked a bit afraid as turned to talk sotto voce at Henrik.
"Are your siblings always like this?" He asked, a little nervously. Henrik nodded, barely fazed by their behavior.
To him this was standard.
"You get used to it." He replied, nonchalantly. Jeremy looked a little horrified but chose to move on from the subject as Elijah enters the room looking disturbed and holding some burnt sage in his hand. Rebekah and I immediately turned towards him.
"Elijah." I greeted him, feeling concerned by his reaction to the burnt herb. His dark brown eyes swiveled in my direction and he nodded in greeting.
"Good morning, Grace. Rebekah." He spoke up, formally. Rebekah was immediately all business.
"What did you find?" She asked him, albeit a little reluctantly.
"Burnt sage." Elijah responded, and Jeremy; surprisingly, frowned in confusion.
"What was she doing a privacy spell for?" He asked, earning looks of astonishment from all of us. "Bonnie told me a little about herb lore." He explained, sheepishly. Elijah nodded, seemingly satisfied with Jeremy's answer. "But seriously, do you have an idea why your mom would want to cast a privacy spell?" Jeremy asked, insistently.
Both Elijah and Rebekah exchanged troubled glances between them.
"We have no idea." I spoke up. "But whatever the reason might be, it definitely involves Elena." Elijah nodded in agreement.
"Elena? Are you serious?" Jeremy blurted out dubiously to sober faces. However, Rebekah seemed to be reluctant to accept that Esther could be up to no good. She shook her head stubbornly.
"You know mother fancies such things, Elijah. Why don't we try and ask Finn?" She attempted to appeal to him. Elijah frowned.
"No, Rebekah. Like I stated last night, I don't trust Finn." He sighs wearily. "He hates what we are, he always has."
"That's not true." Rebekah denied. "And as for mother, even though she embarrassed Nik and Grace, she returned for one reason: to make our family whole again. Now that Henrik and Grace have returned to us also, we can make that a reality." She insisted but Elijah, Henrik and me still had our doubts. "She loves us. All of us. What trouble are you looking to find?" Rebekah demanded.
"I'm not trying to seek out trouble." Elijah insisted, quietly.
"Trouble has already found us, Bekah, when I realized blood had been mixed into our champagne last night." I pointed out, solemnly.
"Wait, what?" Jeremy looked taken aback. We all looked at him. "Is that why the champagne looked all red?" He looked horrified.
"Unfortunately." Elijah confirmed, as Rebekah's face fell out of despair.
Jeremy turned a sickly green.
"You don't think that that was Elena's blood mixed in with the champagne, do you?" Jeremy looked at us, hopefully.
"We're not completely certain. But it seems about 98% likely that it is. Since your sister did disappear momentarily to go and speak with Esther last night." I told him, and he deflated almost immediately.
"And the other 2%?" Jeremy asked. Elijah sighed, also feeling the strain of the situation like we were.
"It's an honest mistake and Elena is completely innocent in this entire debacle." Elijah said, looking grim.
I attempted to hide a sneer.
"Where has Esther gone anyway? Do you know?" I piped up, looking at Elijah curiously. My older brother shrugged.
"I have not seen her since she scolded me over the scene Kol and Rebekah created last night, and I promised that I would take care of it." He responded, and Rebekah looked alarmed. "Relax, sister. Nothing's going to happen." He reassured her, calmly.
"But what is going to happen next?" I asked him, eager to get to the bottom of the entire situation before it could get out of control and blood could be spilled out of vengeance. Elijah's face hardened out of anger and disappointment.
"What I said I was going to do last night. Confront Elena about her lies and try to coax the truth out of her." He said, turning to head for the front door. I stepped after him, feeling determined.
"May I tag along?" I asked him and Elijah paused mid-step, turning back to look at me calculatingly.
"I do not think that would be wise. Elena is already suspicious and quite hostile towards you. I doubt that she would be very forthcoming if you were there with me." Elijah declined.
I nodded, "I know. But I wasn't planning on standing by your side when you did confront her. I was aiming to follow at a distance away where I could still hear the both of you but wouldn't be noticed by Elena." I explained. Elijah still looked unconvinced. "Please, Elijah. I want to know why she is willing to help your mother and then lie about it."
Elijah looked irritated, but eventually nodded. "Just keep out of sight." He instructed and I immediately went to follow him. "And I recommend wearing shoes for this exercise." He added, looking pointedly at my sock covered feet. I blushed sheepishly and moved fast for the staircase, already sensing that Elijah was on the brink of a bad mood.
"I'm coming too." Jeremy declared, and this time Elijah did look annoyed.
"You're supposed to be in Denver, Jer. It would be very fishy if you suddenly made a random reappearance back to town just to spy on your sister." I pointed out, wanting to spare the teenager Elijah's ire.
Jeremy's face hardened, "I'll risk it. But I'm gonna find out what my sister is up to and why she is willing to donate her blood to help Henrik's mom in some crazy scheme." He insisted, stubbornly. "Besides, you guys have been awesome; taking me in and telling me all about the supernatural. I wanna help." He pleaded, and both Elijah and Rebekah exchanged glances between them, touched by Jeremy's unexpected loyalty.
"Very well. But the same rules apply if you do come along." Elijah warned him. Jeremy instantly brightened and walked towards Elijah to shake his head.
"Thanks, man." He said, graciously. Elijah almost smiled and nodded in acknowledgement before looking at me sternly.
"Hurry up, Grace." I nodded and quickly dashed towards Nik's bedroom and stepped into my converse hi-tops. Grabbing my purse and my phone, I quickly ran back downstairs.
"I'll be back soon!" I called back to wherever Rebekah and Henrik (who opted out to spend some time with his sister) were likely to be lurking and headed out the door. Elijah and Jeremy were in the middle of a conversation in front of my car. "Look's like I'm driving then?" I surmised and Elijah shook his head.
"I'll be driving myself."
I nodded, gently pushing Jeremy towards my car.
"Where are we going?" Jeremy asked curiously as Elijah unlocks his car and sticks one leg inside in his attempt to get in. Jeremy slides into my car on the passenger side.
"Your house." Elijah replied simply. "Is that likely to be where your sister would be?" He asked him, calmly.
"That's probably your best bet." Jeremy agreed. Elijah nodded once more before getting in without another word and driving off. I put the car into gear and drove in the direction of Jeremy's house, following Elijah.
Gilbert Residence
Day.
Neither Jeremy nor I spoke a word during our journey back into town and on route to the Gilbert Residence. Not that Jeremy was a particularly loquacious teen, but it was obviously that he was feeling uneasy about this entire situation. When we got close to the house, Jeremy suddenly spoke up.
"Look! Elijah's parked outside my house." I drove up and parked across the road from the house, knowing that Elena had no idea what kind of car I owned. Or if she did, she wasn't likely to remember because of her indifference to me. Jeremy and I watched as Elijah casually approached the front door and knocked.
Jeremy grinned.
"What's so funny?" I asked him, not taking my eyes off Elijah.
"Nothing. All this stake out needs now is junk food and binoculars." He joked and I rolled my eyes at his weird sense of humor.
"We're not the FBI, Jer." I replied, amused. Suddenly the front door opened, revealing a surprised then nervous looking Elena who greeted Elijah cautiously.
"Yeah, that's not at all suspicious." Jeremy drawled sarcastically, obviously having noticed Elena's reaction when she saw Elijah standing on her doorstep. I chuckled, then sighed when Jeremy suddenly ducked out of sight when Elena and Elijah started walking down the footpath towards Elijah's car.
"Sit up. She can't see you, so stop being silly." I scolded him. Jeremy scowled at me, but sat up, nevertheless. "Besides, I thought you didn't care if Elena spotted you. Hiding means you actually give a shit." I pointed out.
Jeremy shrugged.
"I'm not in the mood to be interrogated by Elena. Hiding seemed to be the best move." He admitted, and I nodded.
"Fair enough." I turned my car back on when Elijah suddenly pulled away from the curb and started driving off. "Let's go!" I told him, and Jeremy nodded looking like he was enjoying every minute of this 'road trip'.
Somewhere in the Woods.
Day.
Jeremy and I followed Elijah as he drove himself and Elena towards who knew where. Eventually, he parked his car at the base of an almost hidden trail and cut the engine. We waited until he and Elena got out of the car and disappeared along the trail before I drove up a bit closer and parked close by Elijah's car. Still a bit out of sight, in case Elena was coming back with him.
"What the hell are we doing here?" Jeremy questioned, curiously and a little suspiciously as we both got out of the car and hurried to 'catch up' with Elena and Elijah.
"Beats me. I have no memory of this place. It must be some place Elijah only knew about a thousand years ago. I thought you'd might recognize it." I replied, nonchalantly. I trusted that Elijah wasn't likely to be leading us somewhere dangerous. But given his present mood, I wouldn't put it passed him to want to scare the hell out of Elena to get the right information out of her.
"No idea. I've never gone out this far before." Jeremy admitted. "What's Elijah up to?"
"He's probably going to teach Elena a lesson. He won't hurt her unless he's provoked by the wrong people." I reassured him, knowing that even though Jeremy didn't really trust his sister anymore, he still loved her and didn't want anything bad to happen to her if he could help it. I suddenly pulled Jeremy up against a tree when I immediately heard Elijah's voice up ahead.
"Forgot how much I missed this land." Elijah stated, his voice light and unassuming. But if you knew him well enough, you'd know that underneath all the pleasantries; he was angry and disappointed. A bad combination as far as Elijah was concerned.
"I can't even imagine what it must have been like a thousand years ago." Elena commented, glancing about with interest; probably wondering like Jeremy and I were, why Elijah had brought her here. Elijah nodded, still taking a stroll down memory lane, but also deciding to lend a bit of a history lesson to accompany his musings.
"Your school was built over an Indian village. Where I saw my first werewolf." Jeremy's eyes widened and he mouthed 'wow' underneath his breath, while Elena looked shocked by this little fun fact herself. "The town square was where the natives would gather to worship. Matter of fact, near that, there was a field where wild horses used to graze."
Elena was fascinated, "That's incredible."
Elijah almost smiled. If it wasn't for the fact that he was here on a purpose, and that he was angry with her; he probably would've elaborated further.
"Cut to the chase, 'Lijah." I mumbled impatiently and flinched when he discreetly turned when Elena wasn't looking and threw me a warning stare in our direction.
Jeremy winced.
"I think he heard you." He stated the obvious and I glared at him.
"Come." Elijah requested as Elena nodded and followed him obediently along the trail. Jeremy and I following also.
"Do you know this place too?" Elena asked.
"I do." Elijah nodded, "Below us is a cavern I used to play in as a boy." Both Jeremy and Elena frowned while I glanced at Elijah's back in confusion. "It connects to a system of tunnels that stretch across the entire area. Perhaps it's nature's way of providing us with shelter against the savagery of the full moon." Elena suddenly started looking nervous. Her heartbeat must've been really thudding hard in her chest, and by the disappointed expression I could see on Elijah's face; he had obviously noticed it. "My mother said there must be a balance."
"Elijah, I should probably go home." She started walking back where they had just come from, but Elijah immediately stepped into her path, his face hard and very stern. Jeremy gulped at the expression.
"I admire you, Elena." Elijah made sure that he said this very clearly so that for all of us, including Jeremy and I as bystanders, there would be no misunderstanding. "You remind me of qualities I valued long before my mother turned us." He frowned at her. "It's not in your nature to be deceitful," both Jeremy and I snorted at that. "And yet when I asked about your meeting with my mother the other night, you lied to my face."
He didn't raise his voice.
That was probably the scariest part of this entire confrontation. Because when Elijah spoke like this, you'd have to be a fool to not know that you were in deep shit.
Elena made a stricken face, "That's not true. I told you that all your mother wanted was a new start." She explained.
"I can hear your heartbeat." Elijah sighed, "It jumps when you're being dishonest with me. You lied to me at the ball; you are lying to me now. Tell me the truth." He demanded angrily.
Elena deflated visibly, "I never wanted this to happen."
"So why do I find that very hard to believe?" I muttered underneath my breath, as Jeremy grunted and I glanced over to see him looking disappointed also. Elijah raised an eyebrow at Elena's words.
"What, Elena?" He asked, confused. She drew in a deep breath to calm herself down.
"We were told that whatever was going to be in that coffin was going to kill Klaus." I clenched my hand out of fury, and nearly jumped when I felt Jeremy take my hand and squeezing it, presumably to stop me from doing something that I might regret. "When we found out that it was your mother … we didn't know what to think." Elena confessed as Elijah paused for a few minutes, thinking things over.
"Since her return she says she only wants this family whole again." He stated, prompting Elena to continue telling him the truth.
"When she asked to see me, I… I thought that maybe she could help. That she would find a way to kill Klaus." Then she hesitated and stared at her feet, looking anxious. "It's not just Klaus that she wants to kill." She revealed, and both Elijah and I stiffened out of horror when we realized Elena's implications, while Jeremy just looked confused; as well as worried if the looks he was throwing at me were to be believed.
"She wants to kill us all, doesn't she?" Elijah realized, sounding stunned. "She wants to undo the evil she created."
Jeremy swore underneath his breath. He saw the creation of the first vampires a thousand years ago, firsthand through my abilities as a medium, and I was pleased that he knew the seriousness of what Elijah had just uncovered.
Elena nodded, "I'm so sorry, Elijah. I wish there was something I could do to help." I clenched my fists, tight enough that my knuckles turned snow white in my apoplexy when Elena basically confirmed her involvement in Esther's scheme.
"You should've thought about that before, you selfish little cow." I whispered lividly. "You're just too blinkered about your own wants and desires to know that your actions always have consequences. Thank god none of the Mikaelson's – apart from Finn and Henrik, for different reasons – actually drank that champagne."
"They didn't?" Jeremy looked at me with surprise.
"Nope. The only one of them that drank that tainted stuff was Finn, and both he and Esther are in for a rude awakening, if his siblings can't convince him otherwise." I told him. Jeremy nodded uncertainly and glanced back over to Elena and Elijah were standing, and paled.
"I don't like the look on Elijah's face." He said.
I looked over and saw a very calm but calculating Elijah contemplating Elena's words.
"You know, one thing I've learned on my time on this Earth … be careful what you wish for." He warned Elena, who looked confused then scared when Elijah suddenly cracked open a hole into the Earth with one simple, but powerful blow from his foot then grabbed her before she could escape.
"What is he about to do to my sister?!" Jeremy protested, and I had to grab him before he could run out and blow his cover. But even I was questioning what Elijah's motives we were as watched as he jumped down into the hole with Elena in tow.
A/N: Thanks for reading. Next chapter will be out soon!