Elena was back a couple of days later. She'd taken a couple of days off to think about things. Thankfully, Ric covered for her and said she was sick. She was doing better with everything. The shock had mostly worn off. Now, she just had to deal with the truth. That started with having a real conversation with Finn and Sage, which she planned on doing after school.
Elena found her friends talking by a group of lockers. It was Caroline, Bonnie, and Matt. She went over to them. "Hey, guys."
"Hi, Elena. How are you doing?" Bonnie asked.
"I'm okay. I'm doing better with things. I'm really grateful that you and Caroline have bene so supportive," Elena said. She honestly wasn't sure how things would go when she told them. Her friends hated the Originals. Finding out they were her family had the potential to go bad.
"Always," Caroline said.
Elena turned to Matt next. "Hey, Matt. I'm really sorry about what happened at the Grill."
"It's okay. It was mostly Damon's fault anyway. If he'd left you alone, you probably would've been okay. I was actually worried you might be mad at me for calling Rebekah," Matt said.
"I was a little annoyed at first, but I know you meant well. It was for the best. Listen, I'm going to come down later to pay my bill and talk to the owner. I know I must have done at least some damage to the property. Hopefully, I can make a deal with him to start paying for the repairs and he won't press charges," Elena said.
"You don't have to worry about that. Elijah compelled everyone. No one even knows you did it," Matt said.
"Maybe not, but I still need to take responsibility. I'm going to tell him that I was responsible and pay for the damage," Elena said.
"You don't have to. Elijah came by the other night and wrote the owner a check. He paid for the damage and for your bar tab. He also told him in no uncertain terms that if he ever supplied a minor with alcohol again that he'd be lucky just to be shut down," Matt said with a smile. He'd actually liked that. He didn't like supplying his classmates with alcohol. Some handled it okay, but there were younger kids there too that his manager had forced him to serve without carding.
"He paid my bills? Okay, at least I don't have to deal with the owner. I'll just pay Elijah," Elena said.
"I wish you good luck with that," a new voice said.
They all turned to see Rebekah walking over.
"Elijah isn't going to take your money," Rebekah said.
"Rebekah. I didn't realize you were back at school," Elena commented. She probably should've. Rebekah enjoyed high school. She liked the experiences that she didn't get when she was human.
"Yes, well, appearances have to be kept up. I was attending before I was daggered," Rebekah said.
Elena cringed a bit. She'd felt guilty about daggering Rebekah before she found out they were related. Now she felt even more guilty.
"I wasn't trying to guilt you by saying that. I'm not exactly thrilled that you daggered me, but we can put the matter behind us," Rebekah said. If it were anyone else, she'd make the person pay, but Elena was her niece, and she knew it hadn't been done out of malice. If she could forgive Nik, she could certainly forgive Elena.
"Thanks. I am sorry," Elena said.
"Me too, for trying to kill you over it," Rebekah said.
"You guys are going to have a weird family dynamic," Bonnie said. Honestly, the whole thing was a little disconcerting to her. She worried for her friend being related to the Originals, but she also thought that it might be a good thing. The reason there was so much vampire drama in Mystic Falls right now was because of the risk Klaus had posed to Elena. Maybe now that she was his niece, that would go away.
"Have you met our family, Bonnie? It's already a weird dynamic," Rebekah said.
Elena shifted a bit uncomfortably. All this talk about her being family with the Mikaelson's was still strange for her. Just a few days ago, she considered them all enemies, except for Elijah. Klaus and Rebekah had both tried to kill her, and she didn't know the others. Now she had to somehow navigate her feelings, as well as what kind of future relationships she'd have with them.
"Yeah, especially for you two. I mean, you guys shared a boyfriend," Caroline said with a chuckle.
"I had forgotten that connection until just now. Thank you, Caroline," Elena said sarcastically.
"I hadn't forgotten, but I was trying very hard not to think about it," Rebekah said. It had occurred to her not long after learning the truth about Elena. The one thing she didn't want to have in common with her niece was the fact that they'd both dated the same guy.
"On the plus side, neither of us is dating him now," Elena said. If she'd ever had the inclination to go back to Stefan before, she was fairly certain it was gone now. It was hard for her to deal with the fact that he'd been with her doppelganger. She couldn't be in a relationship with someone who dated her aunt.
As if on cue, at that moment, Stefan made his way over. "Elena, can I talk to you for a minute?"
Elena groaned. "Stefan, we have to get to class."
"We've still got about five minutes," Stefan said.
"If she doesn't want to talk to you, she doesn't have to," Rebekah said shortly.
"It's fine. I'll meet you guys in class," Elena said reluctantly. She didn't really want to talk to him right now, but she knew she couldn't put it off forever.
The others walked away, Rebekah reluctantly so.
"I'm guessing you've spoken to Damon," Elena said.
"Elena, you can't really believe what these people are telling you. Vampires can't have children. It's impossible," Stefan whispered in case someone was close enough to overhear.
"It wasn't too long ago when I thought vampires were a myth. I've had to adjust my views on the impossible more than once since I met you," Elena said.
"That's because you're human. You didn't know any better. I do," Stefan said.
Elena raised an eyebrow at him. "Do you realize how condescending you sound? You think you know better than me because I'm some stupid human? How pompous can you be to think you know everything about this world?"
"This is different. If we could have children, it would've happened by now," Stefan said logically.
Elena shrugged. "Finn is an Original. Who knows if that makes it different. Actually, I suppose we do know because I exist. Are we done? I need to get to class."
Stefan grabbed Elena's arm as she tried to leave. "No, we're not done."
"Stefan, take your hand off me," Elena said calmly but firmly.
Stefan did so. "What's going on with you. You're acting like I'm the enemy."
"I'm not entirely sure you're not, Stefan. I don't know what I'm going to get when I'm around you anymore. The guy I fell in love with or the revenge hungry maniac that nearly drove me off a bridge," Elena said.
"I thought we'd gotten past that," Stefan said as he looked away.
"Gotten past it? No. I forgave you for it, but I haven't forgotten it. I forgave you for my own piece of mind, but I don't know that I'll ever look at you the same way. Look, I have a lot going on right now. I just found out that I have ties to people I thought were my enemies a few days ago. I have to figure out what that means. Not to mention that I am some sort of creature that has never existed until now. I need you and your brother to leave me alone for a while, because neither one of you is helping right now," Elena said.
"You're assuming all of this is true. Come on, Elena, you have more common sense than this. The Originals are lying," Stefan said.
"Alright, I'm done. I need to go," Elena said before walking away without another word.
Xxxxxxxxxxx
Finn found himself outside the Bennett household. He was hoping that one of the Benett witches could offer him a solution for his mother. He and his siblings had been trying to figure out what to do with her to no avail. Niklaus wanted her dead, obviously. Elijah wasn't too opposed to that option either. Kol and Rebekah were more reluctant. Finn wasn't sure how he felt. He loved his mother, but not more than Sage and Elena. His mother was a threat to his daughter. If it came down to Elena or his mother, he would protect his daughter without question. However, killing her didn't seem to be an option. She was drawing power from the two Bennett witches. Thus, Finn found himself visiting them.
The door was soon opened by the elder Bennett witch.
"Hello. I'm Finn…"
"You're one of the Originals. If you're looking for an invite, think again," Abby said cooly.
"If you wish to speak out here, I understand. I mean you no harm," Finn said.
"What do you want?" Abby asked.
"To protect my daughter," Finn said.
"Elena," Abby stated. Bonnie had told her everything last night, with Elena's permission. Abby had found it hard to believe at first, but then Bonnie told her that Elena was also a witch, which would coincide with the story being true.
"Yes. I see she's told you."
"She told my daughter and my daughter told me," Abby said.
"Good. That will save us time. My mother is a threat to Elena's life. She sees all vampires as abominations," Finn said.
"And the child of two vampires would be even more of one in her eyes. What makes you think I don't see her the same way?" Abby asked. She didn't, of course, but she wondered why Finn wouldn't think so.
"You've spent time around her. She's your daughter's friend. I believe that that would make a difference. And if you ever did come after my daughter, I would tear your heart from your body within moments," Finn said a bit coolly. He wanted it made very clear that he was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt, but he would have no trouble killing her if she became a threat.
"What do you need?" Abby asked.
"I need a way to neutralize my mother, but she is currently drawing power from your family line. Killing her wouldn't be enough," Finn said.
"I can't undo that spell. It was cast over a thousand years ago. I know nothing about it," Abby said.
"Then I need a way to neutralize her without killing her," Finn said.
"You could turn her. She would no longer have access to magic if she were a vampire," Abby said.
"She would still be a threat if I turned her, just a lesser one," Finn said.
"But she could be killed," Abby pointed out.
Finn said nothing. The truth was, he didn't want to turn his mother into a vampire. He hated what he was. He didn't want to force that life on anyone else unless there was no other option.
"You don't want to turn her," Abby realized.
"If it's necessary, I will, but I'd prefer another way," Finn said.
"And you want me to help you with that. Alright, I'll try to find a way for Elena's sake. I'll come see you once I've thought it over," Abby said.
"Thank you," Finn said before walking away.