Elena was sitting in the living reading a book. It was late, but she couldn't sleep. It had been a very stressful few days, and it was far from over. Not only did was she still dealing with the shock of her paternity not being what she thought it was again, and the Salvatores kidnapping her siblings, but she was also trying to deal with Klaus' hatred for Mikael and his threats to force her to leave Mystic Falls. She hadn't thought her life could get more complicated after vampires came into her life, but she was wrong. Ironically, the supernatural aspect was probably the least stressful part of it all.

Elena soon heard someone walk in. She turned to see Mikael enter the room. "Hi."

"Hello, dear. I don't want to disturb you. I can leave if you'd like," Mikael said.

"No, that's okay," Elena said before closing her book.

Mikael smiled and took a seat next to her on the couch. "I know you still have questions. Since there doesn't appear to be anything we can do for your brothers but wait at the moment, I thought I might try to answer them."

Elena nodded. "I'm not even sure you can answer most of them. You don't know what I am, do you? I mean, I'm human, but I'm not. I have vampire abilities, but I'm not technically a vampire."

"No. I'm afraid I can't tell you what that makes you. To my knowledge, you're the only being to ever be born to a vampire. I'm not even sure how it's possible, but I am sure that I'm glad it happened," Mikael said.

Elena smiled a little. "Yeah, I figured you wouldn't be able to answer that question. I guess it's just something I'm going to have to figure out myself. I just wonder how much of a vampire I actually am. I'm not drawn to human blood, but my blood is apparently like vampire blood. I can't be killed by human means. I wonder if a stake through the heart would kill me like it would a regular vampire."

"I don't know, but I would prefer not to find out," Mikael said.

"I second that," Rebekah said as entered the room. "No staking yourself to see if it can kill you."

Elena chuckled. "Trust me, I have no intentions of it. The last stake in my body was enough to last me a lifetime."

"Don't remind me of that please. The Elder Salvatore boy is lucky to still be breathing after that," Mikael grumbled. Not too long ago, he definitely would've killed him, despite his daughter's pleading with him not to. But he was determined to be a better father. That meant taking his children's feelings into account.

"Speaking of, I haven't heard anything from Damon in hours," Elena said.

"Let's not jinx it, Elena," Rebekah said.

Stefan stormed in at that moment. "Where the hell is my brother?"

"How should we know? It wasn't our job to watch him," Rebekah said.

"Well, it sort of was. I mean, we are supposed to be keeping an eye on those two," Elena said. That was why she'd mentioned Damon's absence. They should've kept better tabs on him in case he could lead them to their family members.

"Oh, well," Rebekah said.

"You really think kidnapping my brother is going to get your coffins back? I'm never going to tell you where they are," Stefan said.

"You can't tell us where they are. You don't know. That's why it would be stupid for any of us to kidnap Damon as leverage against you. It wouldn't get us anywhere," Elena said.

"Don't bother using logic on him, Elena. I don't think he has the brain capacity for it. Honestly, what either of us were thinking when we chose to date him, I'll never understand," Rebekah said.

"I'm sure Damon's fine, Stefan. He's just being Damon," Elena said before standing up and taking a step towards him. "I will say though, it would serve you right if someone did kidnap him. Then you'd have an inkling of what it's like to have your brother used as a weapon against you."

Stefan glared at her. "Stop acting as though they are anything like us! Your so-called family are monsters! Klaus sacrificed you. Elijah broke his promise to you. Even Rebekah was perfectly willing for you to die not that long ago. And you stand by their sides now, after everything they've done! You've chosen them over us after all we've done for you!"

"Watch your tongue, boy!" Mikael growled as he got up and went to stand by his daughter's side. He would not sit there and let this insolent child disparage his children.

Elena wanted to punch Stefan. Looking at him now, she could see no trace of the man she'd loved. She wondered if he was just gone or if he was just never there. She'd never seen him this cruel before, other than when his humanity was off, but she wondered if that was just because she'd never opposed him before. "Spoken from a ripper."

Stefan growled and lunged towards her, but before he could even make contact, he found himself flying into the nearest wall.

Mikael found himself facing a similar fate. He had been about to give the little idiot what he had coming, but someone beat him to it. He noticed someone blur in front of him at vampire speed. The next thing he knew, he was sent crashing across the room.

Elena was shocked as she looked at the person in front of her. It was the last person she expected, as the last she knew, he was in a coffin with a dagger in his chest. It was Elijah that had come to her aid. "Elijah."

"Elijah?" Rebekah asked in shock.

Elijah beckoned Rebekah towards him while looking at Elena. He wanted both of them by his side.

Rebekah immediately went over to her big brother. "How are you here?"

Elijah didn't answer. His attention was on Elena. He looked her over for signs of injuries. "Are you alright? Did he hurt you?"

"No. Stefan's not a threat to me," Elena said. Even if Stefan had managed to get to her, she'd already proven she could defend herself against him.

"He's not talking about Stefan," Rebekah said.

Elena sighed, realizing who her brother was worried about. "No, Elijah. Mikael hasn't hurt me either. I'm fine."

Elijah brought a hand to her shoulder. "Be truthful with me, Elena. I won't let him hurt you." Under normal circumstances, he'd believe her word, but he knew that if his father had hurt her, she might be too afraid to tell him.

Just then, Klaus ran into the room. He'd heard Elijah's arrival from upstairs. He was shocked that he was there. Currently, the Salvatore's were the only ones who could've undaggered Elijah, but they had no reason to.

Mikael, meanwhile, picked himself up off the ground. He stayed back though. He knew how protective Elijah was. He didn't want to make the situation worse.

"I am telling you the truth, Elijah. Mikael has never hurt me. There are things you don't know," Elena said.

Elijah was mostly satisfied that Elena wasn't hurt, so he turned to Rebekah next. "Rebekah?"

"We're fine, Elijah. How are you here though? Who took the dagger out?" Rebekah asked.

"Damon did," he said.

"What?" Stefan asked after finally picking himself back up. Why the hell would his brother do that? Elijah and his siblings were supposed to be their leverage against Klaus.

"Not that I'm complaining, but why would Damon take the dagger out? That seems a bit counterproductive to his plan," Elena said.

Elijah made a mental note to find out exactly what Elena believed the older Salvatore's plan was later. Right now, he had bigger concerns. He turned to his brother, next, who he'd just noticed had entered the room. "Niklaus?"

Klaus grinned at his older brother. "Good to see you, brother. Now I'm not alone in this insanity."

"Are you alright?" Elijah asked him. He looked okay, but that didn't mean a lot. There was plenty their father could've done to him that would've healed by now.

"I have not harmed any of my children, Elijah?" Mikael finally spoke.

Elijah turned and gave his father a stoney look. "That would be a first, wouldn't it? So, it's true then? Elena is your daughter?"

Mikael nodded. "Yes. I just found out before I was desiccated. I was coming for her and a witch intercepted me."

"A fact we can call be grateful for. God only knows the fate she would've suffered at your hands," Elijah said coldly.

"Elijah," Elena started.

"No, he's right. Back then, you would likely not have faired well with me. Me being desiccated was the best thing for both of us, for all of us. It freed me from that blasted curse to be the father you all deserve," Mikael said.

Elijah stared at his father blankly for several moments. "What on earth is this nonsense?"

"Oh, just a bit of mental torture. You see, it seems after a thousand years of physically torturing us, our father has decided to switch things up and try his hand at mind games. He's claiming that some witch cursed him into being a brutal monster," Klaus said.

"It's the truth, Niklaus. I know it's hard for you to believe it, and once you do, it may not even matter to you. I can accept that, but I need you to know that it's true. You don't have to be afraid anymore," Mikael promised.

"A curse?" Elijah asked in a skeptical tone. Did his father really expect them to believe something like that? It wasn't that he believed it to be impossible. He knew witches were capable of such things, but he didn't believe it happened to his father. His father was an abusive monster, and he always had been.

"Yes. I don't know who did it or why, but when I was revived after desiccating, it was like my mind was finally clear. The hatred I never should've had dissipated. I was horrified by the things I'd done to all of you, especially to Niklaus," Mikael said.

"Quite convenient that the so-called curse seemed to disappear just as he was reunited with his long-lost daughter, don't you think, brother?"

Elijah ignored his brother's rhetorical question. His attention was on his father. "So, you mean to tell me that the relentless abuse, the centuries that you hunted us in order to murder my brother was all the work of a witch's curse? And what about the most recent time where you stuck a stake in Elena's body in an attempt to murder Niklaus." Most of what Damon Salvatore told him was suspect, but Elijah believed that part. His father was the only one in possession of a white oak stake. He was the only one that could've done.

"What? That's not what happened, Elijah," Elena said before taking her brother by the arm to bring his attention to her. "Mikael didn't stab me, Damon did. Damon got ahold of Mikael's stake and came after Klaus. I had just found out he was my brother. I couldn't let Damon kill him. I got in the way. Damon and I struggled with the stake, but I was kind of drunk, so that gave him an advantage over me. His hand slipped and the stake went into my shoulder.

"I see," Elijah said in a cool tone. He believed her. Elena would never accuse an innocent person of hurting her, even if she were afraid of the person who actually did it. Also, Damon had noticeably not mentioned who wielded the stake when Elena was stabbed. He would pay with his life for what he did. Elijah did not allow anyone to harm his siblings without consequence. "So, if I'm understanding this situation correctly, you believe Mikael's story about being cursed to do the things he did, don't you?"

"Yes. I've heard the way he's spoken about the things he did, and how much he loves Klaus. I don't believe anyone could fake that kind of emotion," Elena said.

Klaus could only snort in response to his father's so-called love for him. "Yes, both our sisters have fallen for his lies."

Elijah turned to Rebekah in disbelief. Elena, he understood. She didn't know any better. She had never been on the receiving end of Mikael's cruelty, but Rebekah had. She'd lived through the same horrors that the rest of them had. It unnerved him that she could believe anything their father would say. "Rebekah?"

"You weren't here, Elijah. You didn't see the differences in him. He gave Nik the white oak stake. He spared Damon's life because Elena asked him to. He has not lifted a finger against any of us," Rebekah said.

"Tactics to win over his long-lost daughter before he destroys her. Brother, I trust that you can see through this. It's nothing more than a mind game. He'll show his true colors soon enough," Klaus said.

Elijah glanced back over at his father. He had never been more terrified of him and what he could do than he was right now. He was terrified because this was a new form of cruelty. Elijah was used to the physical violence, but this was more frightening because he had no idea the of the damage his father could inflict. He was even more concerned about the fact that both of his sisters had fallen for it. They were in more danger than they had ever been. He needed to act quickly to protect them. "We're leaving, right now. We will not remain in this town another moment."

"Elijah, no," Elena started.

"You can't just force us to leave," Rebekah protested at the same time.

"Enough!" Elijah said loudly, cutting them both off. "This is not a request. We are all leaving this place tonight. I will not allow this sick mind game to go on for another moment!"

"Elijah, you're not leaving," Mikael said calmly. If his children all wanted to go, he wouldn't stop them. He'd done more than enough damage to them, but he wouldn't let his son force his daughters into going. He understood that he was trying to protect them, but this wasn't the right way.

Elijah glared at him. "Unless you intend to kill me, I am taking my siblings as far away from you as I can get them. I let you hurt them for too long. Never again."

"We can't leave yet anyway, brother. We're here for a reason. The Salvatore's have taken Kol and Finn. We can't leave without them," Klaus said.'

Elijah sped over to Stefan at vampire speed and grabbed him by the neck before slamming him against a wall. "You have exactly one chance to tell me the locations of my siblings before I start relieving you of your body parts."

"He doesn't know where they are, Elijah. He's compelled by Klaus to do whatever he says. He made sure that he couldn't give up that information. And torturing them isn't going to do any good," Elena said.

"This was a grave mistake on your part, Stefan. I will find my siblings, and you and your brother will suffer the consequences," Elijah said before releasing his throat and then breaking his neck. It wasn't necessary, but it was a bit therapeutic.

"You three, come with me," Elijah told his siblings before leaving the room.

"Elijah, can't you at least consider the possibility that Mikael is telling the truth?" Elena asked as they all followed him.

Elijah sighed and turned to face her. "No, Elena, I can't. That man is more dangerous right now than he has ever been. I will not risk trusting him. Now, let me be clear on something. Once our siblings are returned, the daggers will be removed and destroyed, and then we are all leaving this town. I won't hear any arguments on any of that, am I clear?"

All three of them glared at him. Klaus was pissed about the part of them destroying the daggers while Rebekah and Elena weren't happy about his declaration that they would be leaving Mystic Falls against their will.

"I'm not leaving. You will have to drag me kicking and screaming if you want me to leave my home," Elena told him coldly.

Elijah closed the distance between them until they were only about an inch apart. "I definitely will not enjoy that, but I'm not opposed to it. I will not leave you in the hands of that man. He will destroy you little by little. I won't let that happen."

"Elijah, be reasonable," Elena said.

"Elena, believe it or not, I'm actually grateful that you don't know enough about our father to see that this is me being reasonable," Elijah said.

"I thought you'd at least listen to me," she said.

"I will listen to anything you have to say, but my decision won't change," Elijah said firmly. He didn't want things to be this way. The last thing he wanted for his first interactions with his sister was for him to have to force her out of her home, but his father left him with no other option. He was playing mind games with his sisters. He was painting himself as some sort of victim, and it was only going to hurt them in the long run, especially Elena. It wouldn't last. Eventually, he would show his true colors, and Elena would be hurt, both physically and mentally. He couldn't let that happen.

"Go to hell. I'm not leaving," Elena said with a glare before walking away.