The next morning, Elena was sitting at the breakfast table with Jeremy. He wasn't very happy, and he'd made that pretty clear. He hated Niklaus, and Elena couldn't exactly blame him for that. "Jeremy, I know you don't like it, but you knew this was going to happen. I told you that it was months ago."

"He killed Jenna," Jeremy said.

"I haven't forgotten that," Elena assured him.

"But you've forgiven him," Jeremy said in disbelief.

"No, not yet, but I will forgive him in time. You have to understand that he is not just some stranger that showed up one day and started wreaking havoc. He's my nephew. As angry as I am at the things he's done, he's family," Elena told him.

"You don't even really know him, and you hated your sister," Jeremy said. Elena told him the whole story. When she first told him, he thought it was some kind of elaborate joke, but he soon realized that she was completely serious. He'd thought nothing else could shock him after learning about vampires, but his sister managed to with that story.

"I hated who she became. I hated the cold woman who found it acceptable to steal someone else's child. I still love the girl she once was. I love the girl that I raised and protected. And in any event her children are not responsible for her actions. And you're right, I don't know Niklaus very well, but I know the life he's led, and I'm not saying that that justifies the things he's done because it doesn't, but I do understand how he became who he is. It's the kind of life I can relate to," Elena explained.

Jeremy nodded. Sometimes he forgot that while Elena lived the same life he did, she also lived a very different one, one where she wasn't treated very well. "Alright, I guess I'll just have to get used to him being around, but you can't expect me to like him."

"I don't. You are entitled to the way you feel," Elena said. She would forgive Niklaus for what happened to Jenna, but that didn't mean Jeremy should be expected to. He was going to feel how he wanted to.

Jeremy smiled. "If nothing else, it'll be nice to see you put Klaus in his place. Speaking of which, how did the others take it? I would've given anything to see the look on Damon's face."

Elena smiled back at him. "Let's just say that no one was all that happy about what I had to say."

"That probably explains why Bonnie called me three times last night and twice this morning," Jeremy said. He'd been asleep when she called last night, so she didn't answer, and he'd ignored her calls this morning, having a good guess about what she wanted to talk about.

"I'm guessing the first thing she did last night was go to our house to see you. She probably noticed you were not that, nor were most of your things, and she deduced that I'd taken you away," Elena said. This was the entire reason she'd had Jeremy come here. She knew the first thing anyone who wanted revenge against her would do would be to go to Jeremy. She wasn't going to allow that.

"She's probably going to do a locator spell," Jeremy said.

"I wish her good luck with that. This house is cloaked," Elena said. She would have to deal with Bonnie at some point, as well as the others. She had told them she'd speak to them later if they wanted her to, but she had other priorities first. She needed to get her nephews back into the land of the living and help them adjust, both to being awake again and to a new hierarchy in their family. She had no intention of taking their choices away, but there would be changes that had to happen. She wouldn't allow them to continue to be reckless because they thought they were invincible.

Just then, Klaus and Rebekah made their way into the room.

Elena smiled at them. "Good morning."

"Good morning, Elena, Jeremy," Rebekah greeted.

Klaus merely grunted in response.

"Hi, Rebekah," Jeremy said. He ignored Klaus. He decided that was his best option at the moment.

"There's some blood in the fridge if you want some," Elena said. She'd stocked up. She knew she was going to need it at some point, especially when it came time to wake the others.

"Thanks," Rebekah said before going to the refrigerator and grabbing two blood bags. She walked back over and gave one to her brother before sitting down.

"Have you made your decision, Niklaus?" Elena asked, referring to whether or not he was going to willingly retrieve his siblings for her.

"Must you call me that?" Klaus asked. It was bad enough that Elijah and Finn called him that.

"Yes. I refuse to call you by a name you use to strike fear in everyone you meet. I don't fear you, Niklaus," Elena said.

Klaus scowled before sitting down. He almost told her to call him 'Nik,' but he didn't want her calling him that either. That nickname was reserved for family, and blood or not, the doppelganger hadn't earned that title yet.

"I'm waiting for an answer, Niklaus. Are you going to retrieve your siblings willingly or do I have to do it myself?" Elena asked.

Klaus gave her a smug smirk. "Perhaps I'll call your bluff."

"If you don't mind disappointment, I'm just fine with that. It really makes no difference to me how this gets done. I'm giving you a chance to help right your own wrongs, but that's your choice. One way or another, your brother's will be in this house by the end of the night and free from the daggers in their chests," Elena said.

Klaus glared at her. "I see. So, I suppose you're going to be the one who controls Kol when he decides to go off on one of his murder sprees or Finn for looking for some way to kill himself?"

"Yes. I thought that I had made it clear that that was the plan. There are better ways of curbing someone's worst impulses than by sticking a dagger in their chest. And for the record, Niklaus, you can add yourself to the list of these who need to learn better habits. What is it going to be?" Elena asked.

"Fine," Klaus said grudgingly after a moment. He wasn't an idiot. He knew she truly could find his siblings on her own. He'd watched her torture and desiccate his father with minimal effort. A locator spell would come as easily as breathing to her.

"Good," Elena said before sipping her coffee.

Rebekah was smiling from ear to ear. Not only was she going to get her siblings back, but Nik had just been bested. Even Elijah had trouble putting Nik in his place most times. This was like Christmas to her.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Elena watched as her niece and nephew brought the last of the coffins into her living room a few hours later. She'd asked Jeremy to stay upstairs while they took care of the others. She didn't want him around three extremely hungry vampires. She had a ton of blood bags for her nephews to feed with.

Elena soon noticed that there were four coffins. To her knowledge, there should only be three. "Why are there four? Other than Freya, you only have three living siblings."

"The other one is Mother's. It was sealed after she was put inside. I've tried to open it many times, but it won't budge. I've had witches try as well," Klaus said.

"Consider yourself lucky you failed. When something is locked by magic, there's a reason. We'll put in the basement under a barrier spell later. I don't want anyone touching it until I can figure out what to do with it," Elena said.

"Can we take the daggers out now?" Rebekah asked.

"Elijah first," Elena said. Elijah wasn't daggered as long as the others. He would need the least amount to TLC when he woke up.

"Why not all of them at once?" Rebekah asked curiously.

"Because they are each going to need one on one attention, and it's easier for me to give it to them if we do it one at a time. Elijah will be the quickest to sort out," Elena explained.

Rebekah nodded and opened Elijah's coffin. She took the dagger out and placed it on the table.

Elena stepped forward and recited the same spell she'd used to speed up Rebekah's awakening. There was no need to make her nephew wait hours to come back to them.

The color returned to Elijah's face and his eyes popped open. He sat up abruptly.

"Elijah!" Rebekah exclaimed before hugging him.

Elijah hugged her back on instinct. He was starving though, so most of his mind was on the need to feed.

Once Rebekah let Elijah go, Elena offered him her hand while holding a blood bag out for him in the other.

Elijah immediately snatched the blood from her hand and began to drink. Once he had had enough to register what was going on, he took Elena's hand and let her help him out of the coffin.

Elena guided her nephew to the couch and let him sit down. "It's alright, Elijah."

Elijah looked at her in surprise. Now that he was coherent, he was more than a little surprised to see her among his siblings. "Elena."

"It's okay. Drink," Elena said before handing him some more blood.

Klaus, meanwhile, reached for the blade that had been in Elijah's chest while Elena was preoccupied with his brother. He didn't know what she planned to do with the daggers, but he did know that he wanted to hang onto at least one of them.

Elena's hand shot out and the dagger flew into it. She put it in her pocket. "Don't test me, Niklaus."

Klaus merely scowled in response. The woman clearly had eyes in the back of her head.

Elijah stopped drinking and stared at Elena in disbelief. He'd just watched her take the dagger from his brother without touching it. Not to mention that she'd just spoken to Niklaus like he was an unruly toddler, not that it wasn't deserved. "Elena, how did you do that?"

"Later. You need to feed," Elena said before pushing the blood bag back towards his mouth. She then placed a hand on the back of his neck in comfort.

Elijah was confused as he drank his blood, not to mention a little disconcerted. Elena had become a little pushy since the last time they'd met, and he still couldn't figure out what was going on between her and his siblings.

"The others now?" Rebekah asked.

"Soon. Give your brother a few minutes to adjust," Elena said.

"I don't remember you doing this for me," Rebekah commented as she watched her aunt rub her brother's neck in comfort. This was probably the most TLC Elijah had ever received, and it was evident by the fact that he seemed extremely confused and possibly uncomfortable by it.

"We were short on time and you had been daggered for a few hours. And again, I regret the need for that," Elena said.

Rebekah nodded to indicate that she forgave her.

"What is going on?" Elijah asked in disbelief.

"I know you're confused, Elijah. I promise to explain, but I would like to wait until your brothers can hear it as well," Elena said.

Elijah nodded. He could wait. He trusted Elena enough to wait a little bit.

Elena nodded towards Rebekah to take out the next dagger.