Everyone had been seated and they all tucked into the dinner they had been served, Elena and Elijah were sat at the large round table at the top centre of the room with their families seated with them, including Davina and Cami and Marcel was sat beside Rebekah with there hands intertwined. Elena was happy for them, they deserved it.
The starter had been a delicious prawn cocktail served with leafy greens and a Marie Rose sauce that went down a hit, for a main they were presented with a filet mignon with red wine sauce and served with roasted garlic potatoes and dessert was a luxurious chocolate cheesecake with strawberries presented on top.
When everyone had finished eating and the waiters were done clearing the plates and serving everyone a fresh red wine, Elena and Elijah had stood from their chairs and he tapped a knife against his glass, instantly commanding the attention of the room.
"We would like to thank each and every one of you for joining us tonight and celebrating with us as we embark on this entirely new and exciting journey together into marriage," he turned his gaze onto Elena and fixated on her eyes, "if there is one thing my beautiful bride-to-be has taught me is that, above all else, power and eternity means nothing without the love we hold for each other and our families and friends, for that, I'm grateful, always and forever has become my biggest gift, now that I have you to face it with."
Elena's eyes welled up and she had to fight back the tears of joy that desperately wanted to escape, "I love you," she mouthed the words, before placing a quick kiss on his cheek.
"I love you," he mouthed the words in response and turned his attention back onto the room, he held his glass up once again and finished the speech, "so, please, everyone enjoy the remainder of the evening and the festivities will continue at the Plantation shortly where the party becomes a lot less sophisticated."
Everyone cheered and clinked their glasses together as Elena and Elijah returned to their seats and had a drink together; Kol stood from his seat next, being the first brother to offer a speech.
"As I'm sure most of you are aware, I am the least romantic and most skeptical man on this earth, I never believed in unconditional love or understood the need to devote yourself to one other person... That is, until Elijah and Elena, their love is the strongest, albeit most nauseating, force of nature I have ever witnessed in my thousand years on this earth and it means everything that we can welcome Elena into our family officially, to my brother and our beautiful sister-to-be," Elena was an emotional wreck, she had not prepared for Kol's speech to be so profound and loving, "congratulations."
The speeches continued, Caroline had reminisced about their lives before vampires and shared several embarrassing stories from their youth, ones Elena would have been happy to remain a secret until her deathbed but she loved remembering those times.
Bonnie had spoke of their lives together, the bond of sisterhood and how she wouldn't be the same without Elena in her life; Jeremy focused more on the joining of families and how he welcomed the Mikaelson's into their lives, the most important speech for Elena and one she would hold in her heart forever.
Rebekah had spoke about finally having a sister to love and cherish, a best friend until the end of time and the love they shared between them, she had always been a firm believer in true love and thanks to them, she knew it was out there for everyone.
In a spur of the moment decision, something he wouldn't normally do but decided it was for Elena, Klaus stood to his feet and held his glass out towards the happy couple, a small smile gracing his lips," Before we leave for the plantation, I would like to say a few words to the happy couple; my family and I have spent many lifetimes on this earth, doing whatever we needed to do in order to survive, I thought this was the only the way of life we deserved but not my brother, he has always saw the best in us and hoped for a better future, well, I don't say it often but he was right, once Elena came into our lives, everything changed for the better, she brought us all together in a time of love and peace and that is why I've never met a couple more deserving of the love they share than you two, the very best of us."
He walked around the table and stood between them, his hand on his brother's shoulder and his gaze locked on Elena, "may you both live a long and happy eternity together, congratulations."
Elijah placed his hand on top of his brothers and Elena grinned widely, just as she stood up and gave him a hug for his words, ones that would stay with her forever, the night quickly took a turn for the worst.
A sharp breath escaped her lips as a flash of pain seared across her head, she felt a pressure building up within her, she pressed her hand to her chest and leaned forward slightly for relief; everyone in the room immediately stood from their chairs and went on the defence.
"Elena, what is it?" Klaus kept a tight hold of her waist until Elijah came to her side and took a hold of her, she was breathing heavy as a flash of images appeared within her mind. Each vision left her with an extra twinge of pain and she was instantly panicked.
"The night walkers," she said between visions and laboured breathing, "they're being attacked."
The visions came to an end and the side effects vanished with them, Marcel, Kol and the Salvatore's blurred through the room and went to help the vampires outside but it was too late, all the exits had been magically sealed off and there was no way out.
Emerging through the main doors of the room that lead from the hotel was a blur of fast vampires, they each took a hold of at least 20 of their guests and a group of witches entered behind them, all joined in a circle as they began chanting.
The guests in the room of a vampire nature where all brought to their knees from the aneurysm spell and they where screaming out in pain; Davina, Bonnie and the coven instantly came together and they held out their hands, chanting a spell that would disable the magic of the witches before them and render them useless. The wolves all darted for the vampires that attacked the guests, ripping through their throats and removing their hearts from their chests.
"More will come," the leader of the coven before them spoke as she saw the Mikaelson's and the Salvatore's return to their full strength, they lunged for the witches, attacking each of them violently.
Elena had to watch as they tore through them mercilessly, breaking their necks, feeding from them and pulling out their hearts; Elijah had remained by her side the entire time but everything started to move in slow motion when she saw three vampires burst through the doors and instantly attack.
One plunged his hand through Stefan's back and clutched his heart, Elena quickly held out her hand and twisted it into a fist, clicking her fingers shut and his neck snapped, Stefan finished the job by breaking a chair and staking him with the spindle.
She saw the other two, one headed straight for Davina and the other tried to attack Bonnie, they both screamed out as she focused her magic, channelling everything she had within her and the rage and fear she felt for her friends came through and she didn't need a spell to end them, she simply held out her hand and let her fingers loosely hang, bringing forth the desiccation spell upon them and watching as they withered away into nothingness.
"Are you both okay?" She said, once she snapped herself out of the magical trance she was in and approached them, wrapping her arms around both of them and they shared in a hug of relief.
Once she knew they were okay, she walked towards the centre of the room, her steps catching in the puddles of blood beside the bodies of the witches and pouring from their wounds; The Mikaelson's each sped to her side and she looked at them, covered in blood and on the defence.
The vampires had desiccated and the wolves were covered in blood, each of the pack leaders nodded their heads at Elena and she smiled towards them, grateful for ending them before they killed someone she loved.
She heard a knife tapping against a glass and she turned around to face Elijah, he quickly brought an end to the tension in the room and stood beside her once again, "what's a party without a modicum of drama? If you would all like to start making your way to the Plantation, there is an unhealthy amount of liquor waiting."
The vampires all started to exit the ballroom, they where neither concerned nor phased about an attack, they where used to it and often would find enjoyment in the kill; the oldest of the witches in her coven all decided against attending and wished her all the best and the wolves followed out behind the vampires.
Elena said her goodbyes to everyone and Kol and Rebekah lead her Mystic Falls family out of the building and safely returned them to the plantation; Elijah, Klaus and Marcel all remained and she was ready to find out who they truly where and why they attacked.
"Can I have the maps please, Marcel?" She asked as she walked towards one of the tables and he passed her them, she spread them out across the table and found no lines of enemies near the city, "whoever led this attack was cloaked by powerful magic, strong enough to hide from my spell, I have no way of knowing if there are anymore coming."
"How is that possible?" Marcel asked, as he leaned over the map and turned to look at her.
"Either they're using dark magic or there's a witch powerful enough to spell a talisman, it focuses their magic and enhances it, I won't be able to find them with spells," she responded, her eyebrow raised and her patience thinning with the onslaught of attacks from vampires and witches.
"And who are these?" Klaus asked, watching as she walked towards the bodies and knelt down beside them, she hovered hands over one of them and began to focus; channelling her power, she began reading the witches aura's and using a spell to enter the remnants of her memory.
"They're witches that actively practice in dark magic, I can see more of them," she delved as far as she could into her mind without being lost to it, she used what power she had to find their plan, "there's a ball of light, a bright white light hovering in the middle of a tomb and they're channelling it."
The air in the room began to encircle around her, a whirlwind that destroyed some of the furniture but Elena held the spell and pushed further until she saw what she needed.
She inhaled a sharp breath as she brought it to an end and looked to the vampires around her, "they want either my power or the new power we're meant to create at the wedding to bring back Quetsiyah, when she hijacked the prophecy, she added an opposite effect and instead of saving the supernatural species, she intends to destroy them."
"If they bring back Quetsiyah, we won't have the power to stop her, she's one of history's most powerful witches," Klaus spoke solemnly, his facial expressions blank as he thought of the repercussions of Quetsiyah.
"Elena," Elijah said as he sped beside her and placed his hand on the small of her back, helping her to her feet, "we should leave and join with our guests at the party."
Elena looked to the floor and saw that she was standing in the puddle of blood beside the body and her dress had laid in it when she was doing the spell, "of course."
She pushed back her anger and negative feelings and held out her hands towards the vampires, Elijah and Klaus took her hands and Marcel completed the circle; she mumbled a chant under her breath, closing her eyes and focusing her mind, she thought of the Plantation and moved them through her magic to the front porch.
"That was insane," Marcel said filled with shock as he pressed his hand to his forehead and collected himself; each of them laughed lightly at his disorientation and walked inside the house.
The party had already started, majority of the guests were in the garden waiting for the bonfire and the rest were in the main area of the house, dancing and laughing the night away; they all cheered when the happy couple walked in and took a drink in their honour.
Elena smiled as kindly as she could muster before heading straight up the stairs and entering her bedroom; she sat at her dressing table for a long moment, staring at herself in the mirror whilst she took the pins out of her hair and removed some of her jewellery.
The bedroom door opened and Elijah was stood in the doorway, resting his shoulder on the frame as he gazed at her, "do you wish to be alone?"
"I don't think so," she stood from the chair and approached him, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him into a tight embrace; his arm slid around her waist and he lifted her slightly from the ground, carrying her inside the bedroom and closing the door behind them.
"I'm truly sorry about tonight," he spoke softly as he returned her to her feet and held her as close to him as he could.
"I'm just thankful no-one got hurt," she pulled her head back slightly to press a small but passionate kiss onto his lips before she separated from him and turned around, "would you mind?"
He took the zip in his hand and slowly dragged it down, his free hand tracing along the side of her waist and feeling the curve on her hip; he leaned in, leaving soft kisses along the nape of her neck until the zip was completely down, revealing her bare back and a heat was starting to ignite within him.
She felt a forceful wave of pleasure wash over her but she knew they couldn't, she had to use all of her strength to turn around and stop herself from devouring him, "let's just get this party over with."
She smiled weakly at him and walked towards the wardrobe, she pulled out the second dress she planned on wearing this evening and allowed her ballgown to slide down her body, Elijah watched lustfully as she stepped out of it and stood only in her lingerie and heels.
"I think we should send everyone home now, I don't mind postponing the festivities until our wedding," the smirk on his lips was filled with desire and she grinned amusingly.
"I wish," she pulled her new dress over her head and slid her arms into the sleeves before walking towards Elijah and asking for his assistance with the zip once again.
It was a plain long-sleeved, black dress with a low-cut and square neckline that flattered her chest area with a bodycon style length that moulded to fit her figure and a ruched body and sleeves.
"Your beauty is unmatched, my love," he slowly pulled the zip up and forced the impure thoughts from his mind.
He offered her his hand and she took it, interlocking their fingers as he escorted her out of the bedroom and back into the main area of the house; she pushed all of her negative thoughts aside and stayed in the moment with Elijah, he was all she needed to lift her mood and smile.
They joined in the garden area out back and Marcel's vampires had just finished building the bonfire; Klaus appeared beside them and handed them both a scotch, she glanced around the area and all of their guests had joined them for the lighting of the bonfire.
"Would you care to do the honours, little warrior?" Klaus said, motioning his hand towards it and gesturing for her to light it.
She took a step forward, raising her hand towards the stacked wood and uttering just one word, "incendia."
The wood caught a blaze instantly, the fire soaring as high as it could; the ember flickered and sparked as the wind blasted through it and everyone in the area cheered; the flames seemed to spur the vampires on, they went crazy with excitement and started blurring around it.
The witches used their magic to manipulate the fire and make images within it, one formed the shape of a dragon that flew around the bonfire and another was a phoenix rising from the ashes, it was beautiful.
Marcel joined the vampires together to start the fight club again, oddly enough, it seemed to be the only thing that kept them focused and calmed them down; Elijah and Elena had been mingling amongst his friends once again and she had quite a lot of stories to listen too until Caroline saved her from the tedium.
She sat on the grass away from the chaos of the bonfire and sat with her girls, Rebekah had snuck a few bottles of liquor away from the kitchen and she poured them all a glass.
"Oh, did you tell everyone their roles in the wedding party?" Rebekah asked as she took a sip of scotch.
"Well, Bonnie and Caroline already knew but I did forget to ask you both," she turned to face Davina and Cami, a wide grin appearing on her lips, "I know it's short notice, but would you two be my bridesmaids?"
"Yes!" They both exclaimed simultaneously and dived onto her, pulling her into a tight embrace and squealing excitedly; once they finally released her, they sat around and talked everything wedding and Christmas before the girl talk started.
"So, what have you picked out for your wedding night, Miss. Elena?" Caroline said in a sexy and playful voice, "what does the wife of a Mikaelson wear before they consummate a marriage?"
"Care!!" she glanced across the field and saw Elijah talking with Klaus and Kol, she saw him flash her a quick side glance and a smirk, "he can hear us."
They all slowly turned their gaze towards him, all except for Rebekah, she was disgusted by the notion; they were trying to be subtle but they were far from it, even Klaus noticed and they made it more obvious by giggling.
"I think we need the barrier, 'Lena, she's probably not going to stop anytime soon," Bonnie said with an amused grin and Elena obliged, much to the dismay of the brothers who had been quite enjoying their girlish ramblings.
"If we're having girl talk then we're not talking about me and Elijah anymore," she was insistent, she grabbed the bottle of scotch and refilled the glasses before choosing her victim of torment, "so, Rebekah, your turn, you and Marcel, spill."
"What?" Caroline said excitedly, "you and the vampire hunk?"
"Maybe," she said sheepishly, trying to fight the redness that overcome her cheeks, "I followed Elena's advice, I asked him out for drinks and we've been dating ever since, I didn't want anyone to know just yet, you know how these things can go."
"No way, you have both been in love for over a century and besides, I see it in his eyes, he has the proposal glimmer," Elena responded, bringing an air of excitement around the original vampire, "I can feel everything, I know how much he loves you."
"We shall have to see, won't we?" She pouted her lips together playfully, masking the love and excitement she felt beneath her toughened exterior.
"And it'll be my turn to plan you one hell of a princess wedding," Elena held out her glass towards her and Rebekah clinked hers against it.
"I'll hold you to it, sister," they shared in a kind smile, as the other girls all joined their glasses to theirs.
"We want in on that," Camille stated, nudging Davina and she nodded her head in agreement.
"Davina's turn," they all turned to face the young witch after Rebekah's words and they stared intently, she always kept her love life private and this was uncomfortable for her to say the least, "Please tell me there isn't another one of us who fancies one of my brothers?"
"I, erm-" Davina stuttered, her cheeks turning a bright shade of red as she was put on the spot by the Original vampire herself, "erm, he's,- I have no words."
"Oh god," Rebekah placed her hand on her forehead and grinned amusingly, "all we need now is for one of you three to marry Niklaus and we'll be one big happy family."
"No way," Bonnie exclaimed, a small chuckle emitting from her lips as she downed her shot in one at the thought of it.
"I might already be spoken for," Caroline admitted with her hands covering her face and all the girls gasped, turning her attention onto her and awaiting her response eagerly, "it's awkward though, Elena."
"Why? Whoever he is, I'm sure he's lovely," she gave her a kind smile.
"It's Stefan," she opened her fingers slightly to look at her through the gap between them, she was a nervous wreck and Elena only chuckled in response, "he asked me to be his date for the wedding."
"Caroline, I'm happy for you both," she reached for her hands and moved them away from her face, keeping a hold of them in hers and giving her a reassuring smile, "me and Stefan where a long time ago, I'm happy that you have found each other, you deserve it."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course, I love Elijah and I care far too much about our friendship to let a guy jeopardise that," they shared in a gentle and tight embrace and the elephant in the room had vanished.
"So, you and Kol, huh?" Rebekah said playfully and put the attention back onto Davina, who responded with bright red cheeks and a nervous laugh; they all stared at her, awaiting the story.
"Maybe," she was nervous in her speech and she stretched out the word, "it's so weird, I really like him but he's a thousand years old and I'm only 19, that's weird, right?"
"Oh sweetie, you're talking to the wrong girls about that," Cami said without much thought as she was sipping away at her drink, "oh my god, did I just say that out loud?"
A burst of laughter erupted from the girls lips and they couldn't deny it, each of them had been guilty for dating a vampire that wasn't exactly in the appropriate age range; Davina looked amongst each of the girls and they just shrugged their shoulders.
Elena was the first to start in reassuring Davina and she held her hand up, "17 when I met Stefan and my fiancée is roughly a thousand years old."
"17 when I slept with Damon," Caroline shuddered violently at the memories returning to her, "and Stefan is about 150 years old."
"I'm like a thousand years old and Marcel is only 300," they all laughed, once again, when Rebekah spoke and even though it was strange for her, Davina did feel better about her feelings for Kol.
"If you like him, D, you should go for it, I happen to know he has it bad for you," Elena reassured her, "the perks of living with them, I suppose, they can't keep secrets from me."
"They keep secrets from me all the time," Rebekah protested, folding her arms across her chest in a disapproving way.
"You can't keep secrets, you're terrible," Elena argued with a playful grin spread on her lips.
"Well, neither can you, apparently," she waved her hand between her, Elena and Davina, reminding her that she had told them the secrets about Marcel and Kol.
"She's got a point, 'Lena," Bonnie said with a shrug of her shoulders and a smile that said she was in trouble.
"Well, thats different," she argued and they all boo'd her, laughing and tormenting her endlessly, "I guess I just want to see you all happy, even if it means spilling the details of your brother's and Marcel's intimate feelings."
"And that's why we love you, us girls come first," Rebekah was the first to respond with a positive statement and a clink of her glass.
"Always," she agreed with a firm nod of her head and a large swig of scotch.
"We don't mean to interrupt," Elijah's voice emerged from behind them suddenly and they all jumped slightly, making Elena drop the barrier spell and turn to face him; the siblings and Marcel, followed by Jeremy and Stefan all stood around them with heavily amused smirks and grins, "but perhaps you would like to join us? This is a party, after all."
The girls all flashed each other a wide grin before they stood onto their feet and joined with their men; Elena instantly wrapped her arms around Elijah and he held onto her waist, bringing her into him and kissing her with a passionate and unwavering desire.
Once he released her, they all began on the walk back to the house, they had ventured quite far towards the woods for privacy and it was nice to just be together for once without any other burdens or troubles.
"Look," she whispered quietly near Elijah's ear and nudged her head towards Klaus, he turned his line of sight onto him and saw him walking back with Cami, both of them talking and laughing sweetly.
"There may be hope yet," she smiled excitedly at his words before resting her head on his shoulder and walking back nestled in his arm.