Once they had returned home, Elena had tried to escape to her bedroom but she came under fire by Klaus starting an argument and there was no end in sight, "unification leader, Elena, what were you thinking?"

"That I wanted the meeting to end and go to bed," she spoke sarcastically, hinting at him to read between the lines and let her leave, "what did you want me to do, Nik? You were acting like a child, threatening every wolf and looking for a fight."

"A show of power, little warrior, they need to fear us."

"And whose show of power actually worked?" She argued back, crossing her arms across her chest as they stood at opposite ends of the living room, yelling at each other to vent there own frustrations, "how many times do I have to tell you that you don't need to kill everyone to be feared, that's why you have a thousand years of enemies trying to kill us."

"And they never succeed because I kill them," he barked back, picking up a glass from the table with his speed and throwing it against the wall, "your compassion will not be the undoing of our enemies."

"You've just signed a peace treaty, we're not supposed to have any enemies in the city anymore," her voice was growing louder and so was her anger, she had been waiting for the day they had a full blown argument, she just wished it wasn't today, "why don't you just say what's really on your mind, Klaus, so I can go to bed and sleep off my bad mood."

"You have once again put yourself in the centre of this, making yourself a huge target for those who mean to harm us, they will kill you just to get to us," he yelled back.

"Put myself in the centre?" Her eyes widened and a small gasp of shock left her lips; she took a deep breath and attempted to collect herself but she blew, "I'm only in this mess because of you!"

"Please do elaborate, I'd like to see how you can put blame on me for your reckless decision," he spat back, his temper taking over.

"If you hadn't of threatened everyone in there, I wouldn't have had to stop you from killing them all, if it wasn't for constant enemies at our doorstep, I wouldn't have to feel the need to be the one to change a thousand years worth of hate against you," her voice was becoming louder and her emotions uncontrollable; she felt a surge of energy power through her and she heard a vase smash behind her, "if you hadn't of brought me here in the first place then I wouldn't be in this mess!"

"And there it is," he waved his arm up in the air, as if he had been waiting all this time for her to use that against him, "you chose to stay, Elena, I may have took you but I never made you stay, you're free to leave whenever you like."

The mirror above the fireplace smashed when he spoke those words, her anger mixing with disapproval and sadness at how easy it was for him to say, "oh, of course, I'll just leave."

"Go right ahead," he extended his arm towards the door and pointed at her exit.

"Fine, I'll leave but don't forget, I'm the only one who saw you for who you truly are and accepted your flaws, I've stood by your side and ignored the mistakes you've made since we've been here," she walked closer to him, her voice was lower but it held more rage, "I chose to stay because I love you all, how many people can you say have actually met you and stayed by choice? And you act as if I mean nothing to you, I'm done."

She watched as his entire demeanour changed, his temper was shut down and he looked at her with regret in his facial features; she just shook her head and stormed towards the front door, she grabbed the handle and opened it but she was stopped by him flashing in front of her and slamming it shut.

"Move, Klaus," she warned, her lips pursed together tightly.

"There have been many who have been forced to face my temper and you should never have been one of them," his voice was filled with regret, "if you leave then this city won't be the same, our family would be incomplete and you'll take a part of us all with you."

"I'm tired, Klaus, literally exhausted! I just spent the whole night at that meeting for you and this is how you thank me? You yell at me, treat me as if I'm stupid, question my decisions and look at me with a hatred in your eyes, I don't deserve it."

"No, you don't deserve it and I'm truly sorry I let my temper get the better of me, I should never have treated you that way, not you," everything about him radiated sadness and regret and she felt it, "you can't leave, this family needs you... I need you."

A small sigh escaped her lips as her temper calmed and her defensive mode crumbled, "I swear if you ever put me through that again, I will gauge out your eyes and leave for good, got it?"

"Understood," he smiled as she pulled him into a hug, both of them relaxing against each other as their fight came to an end.

"So, drink?" She pulled back from the hug and they both shared in amused smile before heading back into the living room and Klaus tended to drinks.

"You can all come out now," Klaus called out through the house as he poured out drinks for everyone, "we've mended fences."

"I was genuinely scared for your life then, brother," Kol grinned as he took a drink from Klaus and sat beside Elena on the sofa, "I think I'm falling for this one, Nik."

"Don't be daft, Kol, we aren't that lucky," Rebekah said playfully as she too grabbed a drink and joined them in the sitting area, "and you are way out of her league, brother."

"Well, I do enjoy a challenge," he smirked, laughter erupting from the two girls.

"Thank you, Niklaus," Elijah said as he handed him a drink.

"No quips, brother?" Klaus mused.

"There's no need, Elena can handle herself," he patted his shoulder before entering the sitting area and perching on the sofa beside her.

They spent a short while celebrating there victory, the werewolves and vampires were at peace and they were one step closer to the unification ritual; Elena said her goodnight's and retired to her room, it was 4am and she needed to get at least a few hours of sleep before she could face the next day.

She threw on a pair of shorts and a vest top and ran a brush through her hair; as she pulled back the cover and went to climb into bed, Elijah appeared in the doorway and rested against the frame, "I never did get to take you to dinner."

She smiled at the sound of his voice and turned to face him, "I'm thoroughly disappointed."

"As am I," he loved her smile, it brought him joy to see her happy, "may I come in?"

"I'd be offended if you didn't," she spoke playfully, "Where are the others?"

"They departed for Rousseau's, I felt inclined to stop them but I couldn't refuse the house to ourselves."

"My, my, Elijah, where is your honour?" She grinned, causing a smirk to appear on his lips; he walked towards her slowly each time they spoke, shortening the distance between them.

"As of right now? Non-existent."

"I quite like this side to you, it's endearing," he was becoming closer and closer to her, taking the air in the room with him; her breathing became heavier and her heart began to race.

"Duly noted," he brought his hand to her face, his fingers smoothing down her cheek and across her jawline until he wrapped his hand around the back of her neck.

"I don't think I'll be able to control myself if you keep touching me like that," she spoke nervously, as she felt his breath on her skin, there faces mere centimetres away.

"Like this?" His other hand slipped around her waist and slid across her back, he held onto her hip as he pulled her into him, her back arching and her arms swinging around his neck to pull him in.

"Just like that," her gaze shifted from his eyes to his lips and she stared at them with an insatiable longing, she had waited all day to be able to touch him and she thought it wasn't going to happen.

The hand that had entangled in the hair on the back of her neck had started smoothing down her body, his fingers trailing along her spine and pressing into the centre, closing any gap that had remained between them; she started to feel her power surge through her the more she sunk into him, with each touch and pleasure she gave into, it sparked within her.

He placed soft kisses along her collarbone and her head leaned back, her fingers entangling in his hair as he lead his kisses up her throat, over her jawline until he crashed there lips together, Elena's heart exploded and she fell into him, feeling only raw passion seep from him.

She kissed and held onto him with an urgency as she left all of her emotions on her sleeve and the feelings she had for him made obvious with her kiss; she wanted to completely let him in, no more distance or restrictions between them but she couldn't control the magic within her, it started to make the floor tremble and the more she connected with him, the harder it was to fight.

She had been so consumed by him that she hadn't even realised the breeze had returned, it encircled around them and it was growing heavier the more she refused to let go of him; it knocked items off her dresser and when the lamp went hurling onto the floor, she had to pull herself away, and the magic came to an end

Resting her forehead on his chin, she tried to steady her laboured breathing and collect herself but she couldn't, she knew deep down that her heart was about to break; she took everything about him in, his touch, his kiss and the way he felt when he held her so tightly.

"Elijah, I can't do this," her voice was low and filled with sadness, her heart was telling her to stop and to not lose him but her mind and body told her to protect them both.

He brought his hands up and cupped her face, using his thumb to slowly wipe away a tear that rolled down her cheek; he softly pressed his lips on hers and kissed her slowly, a last attempt at showing her what she means to him, "don't do this, Elena."

The way he held her face so close and kissed her so delicately made this so much harder for her, she could feel everything inside her tear apart and leave an emptiness within it, "I have to protect us both, you awaken something so powerful within me and I don't know how to stop it or control it."

"You have to completely let me in, the more you hold back how you truly feel, the harder it's going to become to control it. You have your magic in check with everything but me, what's stopping you?"

"Everything, Elijah, I have this insane magic, factions to lead, a life to figure out, ancient Egyptian Soul Eaters to face and I don't know if I'm ready to let myself feel so powerfully for you," her eyes began to well up and she couldn't look at him, if she saw even a glimmer of pain on him, she wouldn't be able to live with herself, "everytime I let myself become vulnerable or feel everything that I do for you, I get scared."

"Scared of what?" His voice was so soft and she could hear the pain she was causing him.

"Losing you, having you, getting hurt, my magic or ruining what we have."

"If you can look me in the eyes and tell me that this is what you truly want then I'll leave," there was a hint of desperation in his voice, an urgency that wouldn't let him stop fighting for her, "But for me to walk away from you, to stop fighting for you then have to tell me you don't feel anything between us and only then will I stop."

She slowly lifted her gaze and fixated on his eyes, staring deep into them as if she was looking into his soul, there was so many emotions and delicate feelings between them and she couldn't hurt him, "I can't tell you that, Elijah, you should know I feel."

"Tell me," he said softly, stroking his thumb along her cheek and tucking a loose strand of her hair behind her ear.

"I can't," her voice broke and she closed her eyes for a long moment, her mind racing and the butterflies in her stomach kicked up a storm, everything about them felt right and so natural, that maybe her magic was fighting her resistance towards him but it was a risk, her life was such a mess that it felt unfair to involve someone she cared for so deeply into it.

But if she wanted to protect him, she would have to hurt him and she just couldn't do that to him, he didn't deserve it.

"Elena," His heart was aching and everything within him yearned for her and it felt almost impossible that this was happening, he felt everything between them and it was hard for him to ignore it, to just leave was not in his nature.

Within a flash, he was gone and she stood frozen, tears flowed from her eyes and she felt empty, every part of her was aching with a pain so deep, she didn't know if she'd survive it.

Elena awoke a few hours later to the sound of Klaus banging on her door, she groaned and shot up into a sitting position, "come on, luv, we have a whole day of plotting and meetings awaiting us."

She threw her pillow at the door and she heard him chuckle on the other side of it, she wanted to just curl up in a ball and let her bed swallow her up, she was an complete mess, her emotions where everywhere, her hurt ran deep and she didn't want to face the world, not today.

But she had too, she spent a little extra time in the shower trying to compose herself but she would just end up crying more, she had to suppress more of her heartache and she thought she would explode.

She quickly got dressed, slipping into a pair of leggings and a camisole, she slid her feet into a pair of black trainers and she readied her phone and EarPods for her music.

Reluctantly, she exited her room and headed downstairs into the kitchen, she was dreading seeing Elijah but it appeared he wasn't home; she grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and took a bagel from the plate on the counter.

"Ah finally, she has risen," Klaus joked, a smirk plastered on his lips; she responded with a tilt of her head and squinting at him, her mood worsening by the minute.

"Good morning, luv," Kol said as he flashed onto a chair by the kitchen table, picking up the paper and catching up with current affairs.

"Mornin', Elena," Rebekah was next, offering her a kind smile as she grabbed herself a coffee and joined her brothers at the table.

"Morning," she hadn't realised her voice was sour and unwelcoming, she remained stood by the counter and her eyes fixated on the garden; the siblings had been looking between at each other with furrowed brows, it was extremely rare Elena was in a bad mood and they where concerned.

"You alright, luv?" Rebekah asked, turning in her chair to face her, along with the others.

But she just stared out into the back, fixating on the nature that brought her calm and trying to hold back the tears that wanted to break through so desperately.

"Elena?" Kol said abruptly, bringing her straight from her trance and snapping her back to reality; she spun quickly on her heel to face them and smiled weakly.

"Yeah?" She asked, trying to ask as though everything was normal for her, after all, they could never know about Elijah.

"Is everything alright?" Rebekah asked, focusing on her friend and offering a shoulder to lean on.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she tossed the bagel into the trash and took a sip of water, her appetite was non-existent and she just had to get out of there, "I'm going for a run, be back soon."

"Be careful, Miss Unification Queen," she ignored Kol's attempt at a joke and just put her music on, drowning out the world around her.

She exited the plantation and instantly began to run, she could already feel some of her worries leave her as she used the quiet to think more deeply into her life; she had to figure it out, what she wanted, how to balance building a normal life and a supernatural one, to be a practicing witch but also go to college and how she can get past all of her problems so she could be with him.

Him. Her heart hurt that extra bit more everytime she thought about him, he was perfect and her life once again, come in the way of her true happiness.

Her heart began to race the faster she would run, the loud sound of her breathing and panting echoing in her ears and her feet pounded against the floor as she cleared more distance through the Quarter; she had been running for an hour and without realising it, she stopped to catch her breath right on the dock.

She smiled slightly at what she saw, several wolf packs moving into the houses right on the edge of the river; at least she managed to find one reason to be happy this morning, she was ecstatic that there families could finally live in peace again. She looked closely and saw one of the families was Alexander's, his wife and two children, he caught her watching and she waved, they reciprocated and she made a mental note to check in on their progress in a few days.

Elena suddenly felt a pressure in her head, it wasn't so much painful as it was uncomfortable but she pressed her hand to it to relieve the discomfort; she carried on with her walk back to the house but the pressure worsened and a wave of images flashed through her mind.

There was a young girl, roughly the same age as Elena and she was about to be fed on and killed by a vampire, they were in an alley and she saw an image of a storefront that sold magical items and a sign that had specials wrote on in chalk.

She looked around the area and a short distance away, she saw that exact same sign; she ran towards it, looking around until she saw the witch shop, she darted towards it and found the alley beside it.

Slowly walking down it, she saw them and a loud scream burst from her lips as the fanged vampire went to plunge his teeth into her neck; Elena quickly extended her fingers and shaped them like she was holding a cog, he froze in place and started growling, she turned her wrist once and his neck snapped, his body falling to the floor.

"Are you okay?" Elena ran towards her, holding her arms and checking her face and neck for wounds but she was more shaken up than anything else.

"I'll be fine, thank you for saving me," the young girl spoke as she turned to look at the vampire lying on the floor, a small tear rolling down her cheek at the violence she almost experienced; she was shorter than Elena, long blonde hair and she was wearing a long white dress that reached her ankles.

"Come on, let's get out of here," Elena took her hand and lead her out of the alley, taking her onto the very public and busy street to ensure her safety, "what's your name?"

"I'm Anna," she said, a half smile forming on her lips at her kindness.

"I'm Elena," she smiled in return, "and don't worry, you're safe now, is there anywhere I can take you?"

"My family is at Lafayette cemetery, they'll be worried about me."

"Are you a witch?" Elena asked, somewhat abruptly.

"Yes," she answered, "I've only just recently started practicing though, I wanted to do the whole normal human life thing but when duty calls."

"I get that," Elena emphasised, a light chuckle escaped her lips, "just give me a second? I need to make a call."

Anna nodded her head and Elena pulled out her phone, quickly dialling Marcels number and pressing her phone to her ear.

"Hey, E, everything okay?" He answered, his kindness welcomed by her.

"I'm sorry to call so early, Marcel but one of your day walkers just attacked a witch on the corner of St. Anne's, I didn't kill him, you should get someone to collect him before a local finds his body," she spoke, barely worried about his reaction to her disarming one of his.

"Alright, I'll send someone right away, thanks for letting me know," and he quickly hung up the phone.

He didn't seem too pleased with her but it was another problem for another time; she turned her attention back onto Anna and started walking with her, "let's get you home."

Elena returned Anna to her family in Lafayette Cemetery, at first, she was nervous to go in, she knew the witches practiced here and she hadn't really thought much into meeting them.

Once she stepped inside, she felt herself become stronger and more in tune with the witches around her, like they were all connected; Anna lead her towards a tomb in the centre of the cemetery and she ran in, her mum hugging her and crying when she saw her daughter safe.

"Thank you so much for returning my daughter to me, if anything happened to her," she paused at just the thought of it but she didn't have to finish, Elena knew what it was like to lose someone so important to you, "would you like some tea?"

"Erm," Elena paused as Anna's mum scurried around the tomb, fetching a pot of cold water and several mugs; she placed them down in front of her and started adding the tea leaves to the mugs. Elena watched carefully as she began to mutter a chant, her hands hovering around the pot as it slowly began to steam.

"That's amazing," Elena said as she watched the pot start to steam, a look of awe on her face.

"Oh, thank you," her mum said with a grin, before pouring a cup each for the girls and showing them to a bench in the corner; Elena grasped her mug and sat down, looking around the room whilst she sipped at her tea.

"So, what's your name?" The mother witch spoke as she sat opposite them on a single wooden chair.

"I'm Elena."

"Ah, that's why the ancestors are excited," she placed her mug on the side and turned her attention to face her, "you're the new harvest witch."

"How did you know?" Elena asked, she was usually more cautious and uncomfortable in these situations but she didn't have an ounce of worry within her.

"The ancestors see all, darling, they are the ones who alerted you to my daughter, they are our connection of power here within The French Quarter, you must be able to feel them."

Elena's gaze flickered from her to Anna, a small smile appearing on her lips, "you weren't really in danger, were you?"

"The danger on my daughters life was very real regardless of how it became about and you didn't hesitate in saving her life, besides the ancestors thought it time we meet, we have gave you a few days to acclimate to your new power and now it's time we talk," Anna's mum still spoke with such a warm and welcoming voice but Elena was starting to feel nervous, she didn't know what to expect from the French Quarter coven and she was completely unprepared.

"Can I ask your name?"

"Of course, my name is Kimberly, I've practiced magic here in the Quarter my entire life and although we have no remaining elders within our coven, most communication from the ancestors comes through me," she explained, a wave of relief washing over Elena once she was more aware of her background.

"What do they say to you?" Elena asked curiously, her concern growing.

"They think you are a miracle, Elena, a last great effort at restoring our beautiful city and containing the evil within it; they see all, my dear, they watched as you moved the werewolves over the river, controlled the Soul Eaters during your ritual and your doppelgänger lineage means for great power within you, they truly believe in you and your cause."

"But?" She asked, taking a sip of her tea before she tilted her head slightly and stared cautiously at her.

"But they fear you are too vulnerable as a lone witch and worry where your true allegiances lie, you do after all, declare the Mikaelson's as your family and you work with Marcel and his inner circle of vampires, they are the oldest enemies of the witches and they fear you will betray us for them," she wasn't wrong about where her heart truly lies but they should have known Elena was fair, she had no intention of picking sides.

"Everything you say is true, I do love my family and I've grown fond of Marcel but I'm not here to fight with them, I want peace, I want us all to live in a time of peace and unity and I'll do anything to make that become a reality," she exclaimed, feeling passionately about this, "I'm not a lone witch, as you put it, there are many who stand with me in my plight to restore the French Quarter to its once great state and I'd like the coven to stand with me too."

"That is a decision that won't come lightly amongst the coven, we have been at war with the vampires for decades until they forbade us to practice our magic, killing our sisters mercilessly and if I recall, it was the hybrid and Marcel that murdered the witches in this very cemetery."

"They did that to protect me, Sophie would have killed me and jeopardised the entire balance," Elena took a deep breath, continuing in her speech, "witches will never be able to win if they act like vampires, if they take it upon themselves to murder and manipulate then they are only proving the vampires right, that isn't a show of power and it certainly isn't going to harbour peace."

"We only want to be able to practice our birth given right to magic, in the city we live in and without fear of being slaughtered."

"Then work with me and I'll make sure that happens, the ancestors are obviously open to the idea of the unification ritual and living in peace otherwise I wouldn't be here."

Kimberly smiled, impressed with the fight and passion within Elena, "you remind me of myself when I was younger, so much light and fire and passion that you hardly know what to do with it."

"I have to go but please, think about it and come meet with the factions when you're ready, I'm really excited to practice with you and all I want is for all the witches to feel safe whilst we do."

Kimberly nodded her head and took her hands in hers, "you are truly special, Elena, I will confer with the ancestors and witches and I'll send my daughter with a date and time for a peace meeting with the other factions."

"Thank you," Elena spoke, grasping at her hand slightly before releasing it, "it was lovely to meet you both."

With that, she exited the tomb and walked through the cemetery, she could feel the power of the ancestors more strongly within her and how she felt her magic thrive the longer she was in there.

She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket and she pulled it out, seeing Klaus' name on the caller id; she pressed the phone to her ear and spoke, "hey, everything okay?"

"Where are you? Are you safe?" He was frantic with worry.

"Yeah, I'm fine, why, what happened?" She said with a hint of confusion.

"you've been gone for hours, Elena, we've been calling and Rebekah and Kol are out looking for you."

"Sorry, I was just-"

"Where are you? I'll send my siblings to collect you," he cut her sentence short, his worry overcoming him and slowly started turning into an outburst.

"I'm at Lafayette cemetery but don't worry, I'm heading to the compound now, meet me there?" she said reassuringly, quite humbled by his apparent concern.

"I'll text Kol, he'll meet with you on your way and I'll join you there soon, what were you doing at the cemetery?"

"Don't even ask, I'll explain everything when I see you," she hung up her phone, shaking her head at the security detail that was supposed to be her family, she scrolled through her phone and saw an endless amount of missed calls and texts, she rolled her eyes and slipped her phone back into pocket.