Jeremy walked into the living room shortly before dinner time. He'd spent most of the day holed up in his room, trying to avoid his father at all costs. Elena and Rebekah had left hours ago to meet with Marcel Gerard and asked him not to say anything. The best way he had of accomplishing that was to stay out of sight. He wasn't stupid enough to think he could lie to his dad, or to even try to.

Kol was in the living room when Jeremy got there. He was playing a video game when he noticed him. "Hey, mate. Want to play a game?"

"Uh, where's my dad?" Jeremy asked his uncle.

"Not sure. He and Jenna have been gone for about an hour or so. I think they decided they wanted to flirt in private so they couldn't be called out on it. I'm sure they'll be back soon." Kol said.

"Have Elena and Aunt Rebekah come back yet?" Jeremy asked. They probably would've told him if they had, but he was clinging onto a little bit of hope.

"No, not yet. I haven't seen them since they dropped you off after lunch. Where'd they go anyway?" Kol asked.

"Uh…" Jeremy trailed off, wondering if he should tell his uncle. Kol would keep it a secret if he asked. Then again, he might also go after Marcel, which was not what Elena wanted.

Kol got a look at the hesitant and somewhat guilty look on his nephew's head and promptly shook his head. "Never mind. I think it's best that I don't know. If I don't know, I can't lie about it. Actually, I should say I can't attempt to lie about it, because we all know that no one can lie to Elijah, except for Nik."

"Yeah, he's a freaking walking lie detector. Hopefully, they'll be back soon," Jeremy said before grabbing the spare controller off the coffee table and joining his uncle for a game. The two of them played several games. Before they knew it, about an hour had passed, and Elijah and Jenna were back.

"Hey, you two," Jenna said as they walked in.

Jeremy stiffened a little. Rebekah and Elena still weren't back.

"Dinner will be shortly. Are Elena and Rebekah still out?" Elijah asked. He assumed they were because Rebekah's car was still missing. They had been gone quite a while.

"Uh, it seems so. I'm going to go wash up for dinner," Jeremy said before getting up and attempting to make a hasty exit. Attempting was the key word. The moment he passed his father, he felt a firm hand grasp his shoulder.

Elijah pulled his son back towards him gently but firmly and then put an arm around him and smirked. He knew what it looked like when one of his children was trying to get one over on him.

"Hey, Dad," Jeremy said nervously.

"Hi, son. Where are your aunt and sister?" Elijah asked as he continued to grin at his son.

"Um, that's a good question," Jeremy said.

"You know what would also be good? An answer," Jenna said as she folded her hands over her chest. She was no longer the pushover she was when she first took guardianship of her niece and nephew. Parenting with Elijah had taught her a lot. It allowed her to be the guardian they needed.

"I couldn't say," Jeremy deflected. He knew better than trying to lie to his dad. It would fail and only get him in more trouble, but he hoped he could stall.

"Jeremy," Elijah warned before removing his arm from the boy's shoulder and instead taking a near identical stance to Jenna's.

Jeremy sighed in defeat. "Alright. Elena and Aunt Rebekah went to meet that vampire king."

"The one that tried to kill Elena?" Jenna asked alarmed. She knew Elena could handle herself, but seeking out someone who had tried to kill her was still a pretty foolish move.

Jeremy reluctantly nodded. "We met this witch earlier that told us some things about him. Rebekah recognized his name."

"Who is he?" Elijah asked. If Rebekah knew him, it was very likely that he and Niklaus did as well.

"Marcel Gerard," Jeremy said.

"What did you say?" a new voice asked.

They all turned to see Klaus and Finn enter the room. Klaus looked both shocked and irritated.

"The witch told us that Marcel Gerard is the vampire that runs the Quarter," Jeremy said.

Kol laughed. "Who on Earth would let that idiot rule over them?"

"Marcel. That's the boy Niklaus took in, right?" Finn asked. He'd heard the story just after they moved back to New Orleans.

Elijah nodded in answer to his brother's question before focusing on his son. "Jeremy, you must have heard wrong. Marcel is dead,"

"Yeah, that's what Aunt Rebekah said too. She was pretty pissed to find out he was alive this whole time. The witch we talked to said Marcel had kidnapped a teenaged girl, but Aunt Rebekah didn't believe that. She and Elena went to talk to him.

Just then, the vampires in the room heard the front door open. Elijah was the first one to respond. He headed out of the room and arrived in the entry hall just in time to watch Rebekah and Elena Walk inside. Marcellus was indeed with them and alive. He remained outside the door.

"You can come in, Marcel, but if you do anything to harm any member of my family, I will kill you painfully," Elena warned.

"Uh, I think I'll wait our here," Marcel said.

Rebekah laughed. "Yes, because the door is going to save you from my brother."

"I'll wait here," Marcel said.

Elijah walked further into the room and made his presence known. "Nonsense, Marcellus. Do come in."

Marcel gulped as he found himself face to face with Elijah. To most, Elijah would seem calm cordial right now. There was no trace of anger on his face. However, Marcel knew better. He'd seen that look many times over the course of his life with the Mikaelsons. Elijah was livid. He was seconds away from murdering someone. "Elijah, listen, I didn't…"

Elijah didn't let the young vampire finish. He flashed over to him and grabbed him roughly by the back of the neck before hauling him inside. He brought him over to a nearby table before slamming him face first into it.

The others soon made it into the room, but they said nothing. Klaus took one look at the man underneath his brother's hand and was shocked. He didn't believe it until he saw him. The boy he'd raised as his own was alive, and he'd tried to murder his niece.

"I have a little problem, Marcellus. Perhaps you can help me solve it. My daughter was attacked by someone who claims to be the king of this city. That would be you, or so I'm told, but I find it hard to believe that you could be so foolish."

"Dad," Elena started.

Elijah raised his free hand to stop his daughter before returning his attention to Marcel. "After all, you grew up in my home. You know exactly what my family means to me. You have witnessed just what I would do to those who tried to hurt my siblings. Just what do you think I would do to the individual who attempted to murder my daughter?"

"I didn't know," Marcel said with a groan.

"Hmm. More foolishness, huh? I would've assumed you'd know better. Again, you grew up under our roof. You ought to know better than to attack an enemy without being aware of who they are and what they or their kin are capable of doing," Elijah said.

"Dad, he didn't hurt me. He never even stood a chance of it. We're going to need him. Please let him go. You told me you'd let me handle this my way," Elena reminded her father.

"You made your point, Elijah. Let him up," Klaus demanded.

"Understand that you live only because you are important to my brother. And understand that this is the only reprieve you will get. If you ever attempt to harm my daughter again, it will not matter how my brother feels about you," Elijah said before releasing him.

Marcel groaned and rubbed the back of his neck. Before he could do anything else, however, Klaus was in front of him, and he looked far from happy. "Klaus, I…"

"You tried to murder my niece?" Klaus asked before he could finish.

"I didn't know who she was. She was a witch in the Quarter, and I only control the witches because they know I'll kill any witch that uses magic. I had to make a point."

"How did that work out for you?" Kol asked with a smirk.

"I don't care for your excuses. Apologize to her," Klaus said before pointing to Elena.

"Uncle Nik, it's fine. We've already dealt with it," Elena said.

"No, he's right. I'm sorry, Elena. If I'd known, I wouldn't have touched you," Marcel said. Attacking her was a mistake on all kinds of levels. She was family, and as Elijah pointed out, it was stupid to attack someone he knew nothing about. He was lucky she didn't kill him because it was very clear that she could've.

Klaus looked at the boy he'd raised for most of his life and took him into his arms. He was angry, very angry, but he was also happy to see him.

Elena looked over at her father. She could tell he was mad, and not just at Marcel. He wasn't happy about the way she went about this. She supposed she couldn't blame him for that. She had gone out of her way to hide what she was doing. "Dad."

Elijah nodded towards the living room before heading towards it. Elena followed him, as did Jenna.

"Dad, I know you're mad, but I wasn't in any danger. I can take care of myself," Elena told him the moment the three of them were alone.

"I know that, Elena. I know you've taken on Marcel's army before and survived, but that doesn't stop me from worrying about your safety, especially with someone who tried to harm you. But I know that you are an adult now and that I have to let go some. However, I still need to be able to trust you. You went out of your way to hide this from me. You asked your brother to keep it a secret. That's not acceptable under any circumstances," Elijah said firmly.

"I didn't tell Jeremy to lie, but I did ask him not to tell you if he could avoid it. I just wanted to talk to Marcel without the whole family there. If what just happened between the two of you had happened before I had the chance to talk to him, I don't think I would've gotten anywhere," Elena explained.

"Then you should've told me that. I wouldn't have been happy with it, but as I said, you're an adult. I would've let you handle it your way, as long as you promised to keep yourself safe," Elijah told her.

"You wouldn't have told Uncle Nik that his son was alive?" Elena asked skeptically.

"I wouldn't have liked it, but I would've been willing to delay telling him for an hour or so. I would've trusted that you had a good reason. Elena, we've discussed this before. You need to trust me enough to tell me these things when they come up. You need to trust that I'll at least hear you out," Elijah said.

Elena nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked Jeremy to cover for me. And I do trust you, Dad. I guess I just didn't think the whole thing through. It happened fast. I wanted to act quickly. Just so you know, while Marcel was certainly stupid, he had a good reason for the way he acted."

"He tried to kill you, Elena," Jenna reminded her.

"Yes, like I said, he was stupid, but it was really more about the New Orleans witches. They can't be trusted. Look, we all need to talk to Marcel," she said.

Jenna groaned. She had a feeling she knew at least the general direction that this was going. "Elena, you know I love your selflessness, but please tell me you haven't gotten involved in someone else's problems."

Elena gave her aunt a sheepish grin. "Sorry, Aunt Jenna."

"Do we need to remind you that there is a crazy, power-hungry witch after you?" Jenna asked. She loved how her niece thought of everyone before herself, but sometimes it was very frustrating and concerning.

"The witches killed three sixteen-year-old girls and tried to kill a fourth. That's why Marcel outlawed witchcraft here. He's protecting the other girl," Elena said bluntly. She knew if her aunt heard that she'd understand.

Jenna closed her eyes sadly. She thought about Elena when she was that age. She thought about Jeremy, who was that age. If kids were being murdered, she couldn't let that stand.

"Alright. I'll get the others. You can tell us what's going on and what you want us to do," Elijah said before leaving the room.