Elena was sitting on a small couch in Finn's bedroom with Sage sitting next to her. She was quite a bit unsettled. She wasn't exactly afraid. Sage and Finn both promised no one would hurt her, and she believed them, although she wasn't exactly sure why. It was more like she was unsettled by the way everyone was acting. Sage confused her a lot. She'd just met this woman today, but Sage acted as though she'd always known her. She'd held her protectively when Finn pulled her away from Esther and she defended her when Rebekah got angry with her. It was surprising to Elena, both because they didn't know each other, and because Elena had though earlier that Sage must not like her. When they first met, she was nice to her, but she'd pulled Damon away from her to dance. It made her think that Sage wanted him for herself, not that Elena minded. She'd taken it as a good thing that Damon had stopped hovering over her for a few minutes.
Finn confused Elena as well. Her interactions with him in Esther's room were different than when she'd originally encountered him. He was polite to her, but there was gruffness about him. He had an agenda, likely the same one Esther had. However, when she saw him in Esther's room, he was different. He was softer with her. He spoke to her reassuringly. Ironically, it was Rebekah's treatment she was most comfortable with. The blond Original yelling at her was the most normal thing to happen tonight.
"Are you okay?" Sage asked, pulling Elena out of her thoughts.
"Yeah, I'm just confused," Elena said.
"I know. Everything is going to be explained, I promise. And just know that I'm not going to let anybody hurt you," Sage told her.
"That's what's so confusing to me. You and I just met, and I thought you probably had a problem with me when we first met," Elena said.
"Because I wouldn't let you dance with Damon?" Sage asked.
Elena nodded.
"Do you like Damon?" Sage asked. She hoped not because she wouldn't allow a relationship between Damon and her daughter. She knew Elena was an adult, and in most aspects, Sage would treat her as such, but Damon Salvatore was an emotional danger to her daughter, if not a physical one. He'd already displayed controlling behavior with Elena. At the very least, if it continued, it would eat away at Elena's self-esteem. Sage wouldn't allow it, and she knew Finn wouldn't either.
"Not the way he likes me. We're friends. I was dating his brother. Damon wants to be more than that though," Elena said.
"Damon and I do have some history, but that's not why I stopped him from dancing with you. I intervened because I didn't like the way he spoke to you," Sage told her.
"Oh," Elena said. Sage had made a comment about that when she approached them, but she figured the redheaded vampire was just trying to be humorous. That kind of confused her even more. "Damon's just like that. He thinks he has to protect me all the time."
Sage wanted to say something about the way Elena defended that sort of behavior, but she knew now wasn't the time. They needed to begin building a relationship before she talked to her about things like that. "Do you think that's true?"
"Sometimes, I guess, but Damon can take it too far," Elena said.
"May I ask how? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Sage said.
"He forced me to drink his blood once when he was afraid I was going to die," Elena said.
Sage was barely containing her fury at this point. She was ready to tear Damon limb from limb. That was definitely the sort of behavior she was talking about. It bordered on abusive. No, there was no way she'd allow that kind of man to have a relationship with her daughter.
Just then, Finn walked in. He immediately closed the door behind him. "I'm sorry. Things took a bit longer than I thought."
"It's okay. We've been fine," Finn said.
Finn turned to Elena. "Elena, I'm sorry all of this happened. I put you in a terrible position tonight. I hope you can forgive me."
"Um, sure," Elena said.
Sage cleared her throat. "Elena, there are some things I have to tell you. Finn doesn't know most of what I'm going to say, and what he does know, he only learned tonight." Her daughter might just hate her for the things she did. She didn't want her to hate Finn too.
Finn sat down on the arm of the couch next to Elena.
"First of all, my full name is Sage Petrova," Sage told Elena.
"Petrova? That's the name of my family line. We're a part of the same family line. Is that why you were so concerned for me?" Elena asked.
"Sort of. I was turned into a vampire roughly nine hundred years ago by Finn. We fell in love and I asked him to do it. I wanted to be with him for eternity. Unfortunately, though no fault of either of ours, we were separated," Sage said.
"Because Klaus daggered him," Elena guessed. Honestly, she wasn't even sure why she was being told this. It was none of her business.
"No, Niklaus wasn't the one who daggered me, but he did make sure the dagger stayed in," Finn said a bit bitterly.
"It wasn't until after he was daggered that I found out something that should've been impossible. I was pregnant," Sage said.
"But you were already a vampire and so was Finn. How? Damon told me vampires can't have children," Elena said.
"Yes, that is what most vampires believe, even the Originals believed it," Sage said.
"I didn't think it was possible until tonight," Finn told her.
"I was in denial for a long time, most of the time actually. I couldn't deny it when my baby girl came into the world. It was the most wonderful thing to ever happen to me," Sage said with a smile.
Elena looked at Finn. "So, that's why the way you talked to me changed. If Sage is from my bloodline, her child was too. Technically, I'd be part of yours too. This is strange."
Sage put her hand on top of Elena's. "I'm afraid it's going to get stranger because it's more complicated than that. Not long after the birth of my child, a witch approached me. She told me about a deal that was made for the firstborn children in each generation of Mikaelson witches."
"Dahlia!" Finn said with a shudder. How close had he come to losing his daughter then and there?
Sage shook her head. "No, not Dahlia. To my knowledge, Dahlia still doesn't know. The witch I met was a bit closer to you. She told me that she promised to always look out for you. She said she was living up to that agreement by protecting our child."
Finn gasped in disbelief. "Freya. You met my sister?"
Sage smiled. "I did. She's a lovely woman. We owe her everything, and I intend to pay that debt one day by freeing her from that awful woman. Freya told me about the deal your mother made with her sister. She put me in touch with a witch who was skilled in time travel."
"Time travel? Witches can do that?" Elena asked in disbelief. She'd seen Bonnie do incredible things with magic, but nothing even remotely close to time travel.
"No, not all of them. From what I understand, it's a rare gift. The witch I met was very reluctant to help me, and I lied my ass off to get her to do it. She definitely would not have helped a vampire hide her part vampire baby. I told her the child belonged to my witch sister, who was trying to protect her baby from another powerful witch. She agreed to send me forward in time to insure the baby's safety. I only had a couple of weeks to do what needed to be done and then I would be sent back. She was willing to let the baby stay, but my presence would've created too much of a disturbance to the timeline," Sage explained.
"This is so strange," Elena commented in awe.
"I need you both to know that if I had another option, I would've taken it. I couldn't find another way," she said sadly.
"Sage, I know how dangerous Dahlia was. She would've killed you and taken the baby if she'd found you. You protected our child. That is all I can ask. It's more than my mother did," Finn said. It was funny. He'd never blamed his mother for what happened to Freya before. He let himself believe she couldn't have saved her. But Sage did. Sage protected Elena. He would've too. He would've laid down his life before he let that woman take his child.
Sage turned to her daughter. "Elena, I want you to understand that I didn't think I had another choice. Protecting you was first and only priority."
"Pr…Protecting me? You were protecting your baby," Elena said. There was a sudden nervousness in her voice as she began to connect the dots. "How far into the future did you go?"
"I arrived roughly eighteen years ago," Sage told her, knowing she'd understand. Elena had already connected enough of the dots to figure out what happened.
Elena's mind began racing and her heart was beating a thousand beats a minute. Somehow, she didn't see this conversation taking this turn, even when Sage was telling her about the baby she'd had. She should've had a clue, as this really had nothing to do with her otherwise, but it didn't sink in until Sage told her that it was her she was trying to protect. She was the baby Sage gave up. She was hers and Finn's child. She didn't understand how that was possible though. "M…My biological parents were Isobel Flemming and John Gilbert."
"It was a coincidence that the person who was said to be your biological mother happened to be another descendent of mine. I wasn't sure what to do at first. My best plan was to leave you at the hospital for someone to adopt, but I hated that plan. It meant I couldn't know if you would be okay. It would also be easier for Dahlia to find you if you were classified as an orphan. You needed parents who were believed to be your parents. There was a couple there fawning over an infant. They'd brought her in after her birth to be checked out. I looked into their minds a little to make sure they'd be good parents. I'm not proud of what I did next. I switched you for the other baby and brought her to a different hospital and left her with a nurse," Sage explained.
"You… You just gave their baby to someone else?" Elena asked in disbelief. She felt almost like she'd stolen someone else's life.
"I did. Again, I'm not proud of it, but it was the best way I could protect you. I'd seen in their minds that that child wasn't technically the Gilberts' anyway. I told myself she'd still be going to a good home. I knew the Gilberts weren't planning on letting it be public record that you were adopted. That was what I needed to keep you safe," Sage told her.
"Oh my God!" Elena said in disbelief. She couldn't believe this was happening again. She'd already lived though this before. How many times could she deal with finding out she wasn't who she thought she was? And this time was even worse. She was related to the Originals. She was related to Klaus. She was the daughter of two vampires. How as she supposed to deal with that?
"I know it's overwhelming, child. It is for me too. Just know that you aren't alone," Finn said.
Elena knew he was trying to reassure her, but it really had the opposite affect at the moment. She was freaking out. She didn't know how to process this. "I…I want to leave. You said I could leave after you were done."
Sage was a little hurt, but she understood. She expected a negative reaction. Anyone would be overwhelmed. "If you feel you need to leave, we won't stop you, but I don't want you to leave alone. You're in a very distraught state right now. I don't think you should be driving. Is there anyone who can take you home?"
Elena thought for a minute. She couldn't deal with either Stefan or Damon right now. Caroline was her best option, although she wasn't thrilled about that option either. "Caroline."
"The young vampire Niklaus has taken to. I'll get her," Finn said before standing up and leaving the room.
Sage turned to her daughter. "I know you're really upset and shocked right now, and you may be angry when that shock wears off, but I want you to know that I love you very much. I never went a single day without thinking about you.
Elena didn't say anything. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know how to feel about any of this. It just felt so unreal. She didn't know how to deal with it.
Just then, Finn came back in with Caroline.
"Elena, are you okay? Klaus and Elijah just kicked everyone out. Stefan and Damon had to be practically dragged out, but I wouldn't leave without you. What's going on?" Caroline asked.
Elena stood up. "Can you take me home, Caroline. I don't think I can drive? And con you please not ask any questions?" Elena asked in a shaky tone.
Caroline could tell something was very wrong. She could see her friend visibly shaking. She didn't think she was hurt or anything, but she was definitely emotionally shaken up. Caroline wanted to question what had happened, but she could tell that Elena didn't need that. She could get the information out of Klaus later if she had to. "If that's what you need from me."
Elena nodded that it was before going over to Caroline and leaving the room with her.