Elena was sitting at the table of the lake house waiting for Sheriff Forbes to call her back. She needed to make sure her plan was legally feasible before she put it into motion. She wasn't actually sure Sheriff Forbes would be able to help her. It was more of a lawyer question, but it was possible that she could help. Her plan wasn't going to get her brother's back, at least not right away, but it would make life very uncomfortable for Stefan and Damon. It would also show them that she wasn't just going to lie down and take their crap anymore.

Jeremy soon came over and sat across from his sister. "Are you sure about this plan of yours?"

"Well, would I prefer a plan that would have more immediate results? Sure, but we don't have one of those. Torture won't work. I feel like those two just get off on it sometimes. Torturing them mentally and psychologically is the best we can do. I know I'm not putting you in the best position though. It won't exactly be comfortable for you, but you'll be safe. We won't let anything happen to you. Mikael promised he'd protect you, and so will I. So will Rebakah, maybe even Klaus," Elena told him.

"Are you kidding? I'm kind of looking forward to it. I can't stand Damon, and I've never really been that much of a fan of Stefan's either. I kind of want to see how they react if you get the go ahead. It's not going to be a very comfortable experience for the rest of you though, and I think Klaus just might kill one of them in under a week," Jeremy said.

"The boy makes an excellent point," Klaus said as he entered the room. Rebekah was with him. "This whole plan is bloody stupid. It's not going to get my coffins back."

"You mean our brothers, and, no, not right away, but it's the best option we have right now," Elena said.

"Or we could go back to option one, where I remove all of their body parts until they tell me what I want to know," Klaus said with a grin.

"Which, as I've explained, will not work. I know these men better than you do. They won't respond to torture, not that kind of torture anyway," Elena said.

"I happen to like Elena's plan. True, it will test all of our patience, but psychological torture isn't too bad either. You know, Elena, you're starting to remind me of our brother, Kol. He definitely would've done something like this. Well, he would've before he was turned. Now, he'd happily resort to physical violence," Rebekah said.

Mikael soon entered the room. "I don't know about this plan of yours, Elena."

Elena sighed in exasperation. Well, if nothing else, Mikael and Klaus agreed on something. "Look, will you guys just trust me. This is going to work… eventually."

"It's not you I don't trust, dear. It's myself. I don't trust myself not to kill them both when I'm in the same room with them. I'm not a patient man, and they are using my children as pawns," Mikael said in a furious tone.

Just then, Elena's phone rang. "That's Sheriff Forbes. I'll be right back," she said before getting up and heading outside.

Klaus huffed. He did not like this plan in the slightest. Sure, the idea of how the Salvatores would react was a bit satisfying, but he was not a patient man on a good day, and with this father around, it was not a good day. He just wanted his siblings back and to get all of them away from his father as soon as possible, especially Elena. His father wasn't going to play nice forever. He refused to allow her to become as broken as the rest of them.

Elena was gone for about ten minutes before she returned. "Alright, we're all set. I have to pick up documentation on the way there, but then we can start this. Everyone remember to channel your inner Elijah."

They all headed out of the house, with Klaus and Mikael looking none too pleased.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Damon was on his fifth drink since Elena left. He still couldn't believe Elena chose the Originals over them. So what if they were technically related to her? They weren't really her family. They were strangers to her or worse. Damon and Stefan were her real family. Her loyalty belonged with them.

Stefan soon walked into the room. "Are you still brooding over Elena?"

Damon snorted. "That's quite the accusation coming from you, brother."

Stefan smirked and went to pour himself a drink. "Relax, Damon. Everything is going our way. We have Klaus right where we want him."

"I'd hold that thought if I were you, Stefan," Elena said as she entered the room. The others were behind her.

Damon turned around and glared at Elena. She wasn't alone this time. She had Jeremy and the Originals with her. "Oh, I see you've brought the cavalry. You here to torture us?"

"That was my vote," Klaus piped up.

"Nah. We don't need to resort to such tactics. There are better ways," Elena said as she held up a folded piece of paper.

Stefan chuckled. "You're going to take us down with a piece of paper?"

Elena held it out for him. "Take a look."

Stefan scoffed before taking the piece of paper and unfolding it. He was confused when he first started reading it, but it didn't take long to figure out what Elena was doing. He immediately looked up at her in disbelief. "You wouldn't."

"What?" Damon asked.

Elena smirked. "Oh, you have no idea what I would do to protect my family. You should though. You had a front row seat to how far I was willing to go to protect them in the past."

"Stop calling these people your family!" Damon snarled.

"And why should she do that. It's what we are. Family, blood. Those bonds trump anything else," Klaus said.

"She's not your blood," Damon said.

"No, but she's blood of my blood, and that is close enough. She's a Mikaelson," Klaus said.

"The hell she is!" Damon yelled.

"Why do you even care so much? It has nothing to do with you," Jeremy said.

"Oh, I know why. It's because he's obsessed with her. He wants her for himself, and he knows we'll never let that happen. He's right," Klaus said as he took a step closer to Damon. "You're not good enough for my sister, not nearly. My siblings and I will never allow you to touch her."

Rebekah sighed and looked at Elena. "I did warn about your love life going up in flames. However, in this case, I agree."

Stefan continued to glare at Elena. "You can't do this."

"Actually, I can. I double checked. I spoke with Sheriff Forbes. Now, she's not an expert on this type of law, but she knows the basics," Elena said.

"What the hell are you talking about? What is that?" Damon asked as he pointed to the piece of paper in Stefan's hands.

"It's the deed to this house," Stefan said.

"Which has my name on it," Elena said before taking the document from Stefan and handing it to Damon. "You do remember signing this place over to me, don't you, Damon. That means it belongs to me."

Damon snatched the deed from her hands. "You can't be serious."

"I'm very serious. I'm not exactly in a joking mood thanks to you. This house belongs to me. You handed it over to me yourself," Elena said.

"To protect you from him!" Damon snapped as he pointed to Klaus. "And it was null and void when he killed you!"

"According to supernatural rules, maybe, but not to the law. Legally you are squatting on my property. Now, I could be persuaded to sign it back over to you if you gave me the location of my brothers," Elena said. She knew he wasn't going to do that, but it was still worth the offer.

"Screw you!" Damon snarled before tearing up the deed until it was in dozens of pieces on the floor.

Elena gave him a patronizing look. "Now, that was childish, don't you think? Especially considering that it was only a photocopy."

"You can't kick us out," Stefan said.

"Actually, I can. This house belongs to me. You don't pay rent and there's no lease or agreement allowing you to live here. I can kick you out if I want. I might have to go though some legal hoops to see it done, but it's more than possible. However, that would be needlessly cruel. It wouldn't be right for me to leave you on the streets, would it? You're welcome to stay. This is a big house. I'm sure we can all cohabitate peacefully," Elena said before turning behind her to her family. "Right, guys?"

"Of course, dear," Mikael said with a smirk. He wasn't a huge fan of this plan, but he couldn't deny that he was taking some pleasure in it.

"What? You can't be serious. There's no way these psychos are staying in my house!" Damon yelled.

"You mean my house, don't you? And you should be a little careful about calling people psychos. After all, the list of people you've murdered is quite high too, isn't it? Anyway, you have a choice. You can hand over what is ours and I'll sign this place back to you, or you can deal with the consequences," Elena said.

"You really think it's going to be that easy?" Stefan asked.

"No, but I thought I'd give you the option. Your other option is to make room for me and my family or leave," Elena said.

"How can you do this? We signed this place over to you to protect you. Now you're using it against us for them?" Damon asked in disbelief.

"You did this, Damon. You declared me an enemy. I'm just playing the part. Oh, and by the way, this is only the beginning. If you continue to use my brothers as pawns in your sick game of revenge, we will make your lives a living hell, and we'll do it without lifting a finger against you," Elena said before turning to the others. "Come on. Let's get settled in."

"Do save us seats at the dinner table, gentlemen," Klaus said with a smirk before they all followed Elena out of the room.