The next morning, Elena was sitting in the kitchen having some breakfast. The Salvatore's didn't have much when it came to real food, but Elena managed to get herself some eggs, toast, and coffee. Stefan and Damon ate real food most days, but they typically didn't cook for themselves. She would usually go out. She would need to go shopping. The cohabitation at the boarding house was probably going to last at least a few days.
Soon, Jeremy walked into the room. "Morning."
"Morning. There are some eggs on the stove if you're hungry," Elena told her brother.
"Cool," Jeremy said before searching around for a plate and silverware. He then helped himself to some eggs and coffee before sitting down at the table with Elena.
"You sleep okay?" Elena asked.
"Yeah, although, it was a little weird being her. Actually, I'm not sure what's stranger, staying in this house or being in the same house as the Originals," Jeremy mused.
"Sorry. I know it's not the most comfortable situation, but it's not safe for you to go home. I can't be sure what Stefan and Damon might do to you. I can't trust them anymore," Elena said.
"But it's safer for me to be living under the same roof is them?" Jeremy asked with a chuckle. It seemed like backwards logic to him. Not that he minded too much. It was kind of fun watching his sister make Damon squirm. He couldn't be happier that she was done catering to the jackass.
"Yes, because there are four of us here that can protect you from them. We can keep an eye on them," Elena said.
"The Originals are going to protect me. God, this isn't going to stop being weird anytime soon," Jeremy said. He felt like his whole world had turned upside down. It wasn't that long ago that Klaus was a danger to all of them, and now he was apparently one of their protectors.
Elena chuckled. "You're preaching to the choir, Jer. I never thought the day would come when I would trust Klaus more than I'd trust Stefan or Damon."
"You really trust him?" Jeremy asked.
"Not completely, but I know he's not going to do anything to hurt us," Elena said.
"What about Mikael? Klaus said a lot of concerning things yesterday. He flat out said that Mikael was abusive, and Mikael didn't really deny it," Jeremy said.
Elena sighed. "Klaus is entitled to the way he feels about Mikael. Rebekah and I are trying to get him to see the truth, but I'm not sure it will make a difference once he does, because Mikael did do those things. He wasn't in his right mind. He had been under a witch's influence. Someone used magic on him to make violent towards his kids. Klaus doesn't believe that, and like I said, even if he did, I'm not sure it would change anything."
"Are you sure Klaus isn't right? What if Mikael's lying?" Jeremy asked.
"If he were lying, I think Klaus would already be dead. You can't hide the kind of hatred Mikael is said to have for Klaus. I've heard the way that Mikael talks about Klaus. I've seen him defend him. I've also seen him stay his hand for one of us when he was ready to kill someone. He spared Damon's life because I asked him to. I don't see the man he's rumored to be doing that for any reason. Klaus thinks he's trying to win me over, but I don't think he would if he were really like Klaus thinks he is. I think he'd just take what he wanted, even me. Rebekah seems to agree too. She believes him," Elena explained.
"Rebekah is living in a fantasy," a new voice said.
Elena looked over to see Klaus standing in the doorway.
"She craves love, always has. Usually, she looks for it in men, but I think what she really wants is a parent's love, and Mikael is dangling it in front of her. He's more dangerous now than he's ever been," Klaus said.
"Give us a few minutes, Jer," Elena requested. Klaus seemed calmer now than he had been yesterday. She might be able to get him to listen to her a little better, but he wasn't going to say much with Jeremy present.
Jeremy reluctantly nodded before getting up and grabbing his plate. He didn't like the idea of leaving his sister alone with Klaus, but he had to remember that things were different now. Elena was his sister too, and that seemed to matter to him.
Elena waited until Jeremy was gone before she spoke again. "The first time Mikael came to see me; I was reluctant to even let him in. I didn't want to have anything to do with him. I certainly didn't want to talk to him alone."
"Yet you brought him here," Klaus said a bit resentfully.
"I didn't bring him here. Damon and Katherine did. That was their plan. I went along with it for Stefan's sake and my own. I didn't want to spend the rest of my life waiting for you to show up and force me out of my home to become my blood slave," Elena said bitterly.
Klaus had enough decency in him to look guilty. He didn't care a few days ago about the things he'd done to her or would continue to do, but things were different now. He would never knowingly treat his own sister the way he would the rest of the world. "I won't use your blood anymore."
Elena nodded in slight appreciation. She wouldn't thank him though. He didn't deserve gratitude for not treating her like an object he could use whenever he wanted. "As I was saying, I didn't want anything to do with Mikael. I didn't know much about him, but I knew he was an abusive son of a bitch. No matter what you did to me, you didn't deserve that. Then he told me why he was like that. He told me a spell had been put on it, and it broke when he was desiccated."
"And you just believed him," Klaus said with a sneer.
"I've been in the supernatural world long enough to know the kind of things it can do, so have you. Vampires can compel humans to do things they wouldn't normally do. Why is it so farfetched to believe that witches could do something similar?" Elena asked.
Klaus walked over and took Jeremy's vacated seat. "You're asking me if I think it's possible. Fine, yes, there are witches that can do what you're talking about. Let's entertain the idea that some witch did that to Mikael for a second, no matter how ludicrous it is. Who? And why?"
Elena sighed. Rebekah had asked her that too. She'd told her sister that she'd never know, but the truth was that Elena was pretty sure of the answer. Well, at least the answer to one of those questions. "I can't answer the why. I can't fathom why anyone would want to hurt kids like that. But I think we both know who. I'm pretty sure Mikael does too. He just isn't saying for yours and Rebekah's benefit."
Klaus scoffed in response. "As though he'd do anything for our benefit."
Elena ignored her brother's comment. "It seems to me that we both know who could've done this. The same person responsible for the horrible circumstances you and I met under. The same person who made it necessary for you to drain my blood in a human sacrifice ritual. The kind of person that would curse her own son," Elena said.
Klaus closed his eyes and shook his head. No. She couldn't hate him that much, not then anyway. Now, yes, she would hate him, but he was just a boy then. She was his mother. She wouldn't hurt him that way. "You're wrong."
"I certainly hope so. I would hope a mother wouldn't be capable of doing something like that, but you asked who. It's the only thing I can come up with," Elena said.
"That's because the answer is no one. No one made Mikael do anything. He is a monster. That is the explanation," Klaus said.
"What if you're wrong? What if the whole time, someone was pulling his strings? Look, I'm not saying you have to forgive him. Spell or no spell, he did it. That would be hard to get past. But you can at least know it won't happen again. You don't have to be afraid anymore. You don't have to run anymore," Elena said.
"I can't take that risk, not for any of us. That's why once this is over, I will wake up Elijah, and he will help me get the two of you out of here," Klaus said.
"Elijah will listen to me, Klaus," Elena said. That she was sure of. He might not believe Mikael at first, but he would listen to what Elena had to say.
"Certainly. Elijah is nothing if not reasonable. He'll listen to you, as I have just now, and he will come to the same conclusion as me. He will realize the danger Mikael poses to you and he will do what is necessary to protect you. So would Kol and Finn for that matter," Klaus said. He and his siblings often disagreed. He imagined that Finn and Kol would hate him when they woke up, but there was one thing they all agreed on. Their father couldn't be trusted.
"I'm not leaving Mystic Falls, Klaus," Elena said firmly.
Klaus stood up and spoke calmly. "You will, one way or another."
Elena sighed as she watched him leave. It was yet another conversation that didn't go well. In fact, she was even less encouraged by that conversation than the ones she'd had with Klaus yesterday, because he actually had listened to an extent, but his position had not changed.
Rebekah entered the room moments after her brother left. "Well, that didn't exactly go well, did it?"
"You heard all of that, didn't you?" Elena asked.
"Of course I did. I'm a vampire, love. I would've heard the whole thing from anywhere in the house," Rebekah said before joining her sister at the table.
Elena sighed. It was wishful thinking, but she'd hoped her sister wouldn't hear. "Look, Rebekah, what I said about your mom…"
Rebekah interrupted her by waving her off. "It's fine, Elena. It's not as if I didn't consider it. There were very few capable of doing what happened to our father. I don't want to believe it, but I can't deny the possibility."
"I don't know what else to say to Klaus. He was calm today, but he still won't believe it. It makes me think he never will," Elena said.
"Yes, when Nik still won't listen to reason when he's calm, it is a cause for concern. You have to understand something. Nik spent his entire human life looking for some sort or reason for our father's hatred of him. He craved the man's love, and he never got it. That's why I don't think he's willing to take the risk now. And he's hellbent on protecting you from ever seeing the side of our father that the rest of us have," Rebekah explained.
"I won't leave Mystic Falls, Rebekah, and especially not without Jeremy," Elena said.
"The latter wouldn't be a problem. We'd take him with us if we left, but I understand what you're saying. You want to know Mikael, don't you?" Rebekah asked.
"A part of me does. I mean, I'm still processing all of this, but he's my father. I would like to get to know him. What about you? Do you want to know who he really is?" Elena asked.
"I truly don't know. I understand that it wasn't his fault, but I can't forget a thousand years of agony at the hands of that man. I can't forget being abused my entire human life. I can't forget being hunted for centuries. I have never known a kind word or a kind touch from that man my entire life. I don't know how to forgive that," Rebekah told her.
"I get that. Well, sort of. I know I can't really understand what this must be like for you or Klaus, but I can see how it would be hard for you to look at Mikael after all that he's done. Would you rather leave?"
"I don't know. A part of me feels like it would be easier, but I won't run if I don't have to. I'm tired of running. And the fact that Nik wants to force us to makes me defiant on principal. However, if our other brothers get involved, I'm not sure we'll have much choice," Rebekah said.
"Do you really think Elijah would try to force us to leave?" Elena asked.
"If we can't convince him that we're right about Mikael, absolutely. Elijah is fiercely overprotective. He'll respect your choice on most things, but not where safety is a concern, and he will see our father as the biggest danger there is, especially to you," Rebekah said.
"I will not leave without a fight, and it seems I can put up a hell of one this time," Elena said before getting up and heading out of the room.