The Merging of the Past and Future
Jeremy found himself in the woods somewhere in Mystic Falls, though he had no idea how he got there. The last thing he remembered was Damon breaking his neck after making a move on Elena. The next thing he knew, he was standing right where he was right now. "Am I dead."
"Technically, yes," a voice answered.
Jeremy turned to look behind him and saw an African American woman there. She looked like she was very old, not age wise, but time period wise. She was dressed in clothing from like hundreds of years ago. She actually looked a bit like Bonnie.
"However, that ring on your finger keeps your death from being permanent," she said.
Jeremy looked down at his finger. It was the ring John gave him before he left town. He'd forgotten about it. "Who are you?"
The woman smiled at him. "My name is Ayana. You used to call me Auntie Ana. It is wonderful to see you again, Jarik."
Jeremy frowned and shook his head. "You have the wrong person. My name is Jeremy and we've never met before."
"Not that you remember, but we have. I knew you for the first six years of your life. Well, your first life," Ayana said.
"What are you talking about? And what is this place?" Jeremy asked. Since he was dead, he could only assume this wasn't really Mystic Falls. Was this some sort of Heaven?
"We call it The Other Side. It's where supernatural creatures go when they die, or in your case, where humans go when they're wearing a magical ring with resurrection properties. Normally, I would let you be, allow you to find your body and return in peace, but your memories will return to you soon, and your mother would wish for me to make that less traumatizing as possible.
"You knew my mother?" Jeremy asked surprised.
"Yes, but not the mother you're thinking of," Ayana said.
"What?" he asked. He was confused again. He was beginning to think this woman was insane.
Ayana took a step towards him. "Brace yourself, child. This will be disorienting."
Before Jeremy could say anything in response, Ayana grabbed the sides of his head. The next thing he knew, he found himself in front of some sort of house in the woods. It was daylight now. He saw Elena several feet away with some man. Only it didn't exactly look like Elena. It was her face, but she was dressed much like Ayana was. The man was also dressed like he was centuries old. "Elena?"
"Yes and no," Ayana answered. "That is not technically Elena Gilbert. It is her ancestor, and her doppelganger."
"Katherine?" Jeremy asked.
"No. Katerina Petrova has yet to be born in this time period. You are viewing my memories," Ayana said as she pointed herself several feet away, where she was standing with Finn Mikaelson.
Ayana turned back to the couple standing feet away from them. "That is Tatia Petrova Mikaelson. The man with her is her husband, Elijah Mikaelson."
"Why are you showing me this?" Jeremy asked. Sure, it was kind of fascinating to see his sister's ancestor, but he didn't understand the point.
Before anything else could be said, a young boy with dark hair come from the house and ran to Tatia and Elijah. "Mama, Papa."
Elijah grinned and picked the boy up, while Tatia brought a loving hand to his cheek.
"That is their son, Jarik," Ayana said.
Jeremy whipped his head around to look at her. Shock was evident on his face. "That… That's what you called me."
"Yes," she said almost matter-of-factly.
Jeremy shook his head wildly. "No. It's not possible."
Ayana gestured to the memory. "Watch, child. All will become much clearer soon enough."
Jeremy reluctantly turned back in time to see the boy squirm out of his father's arms.
"Come play with me, Papa!" the child squealed before running off.
Elijah grinned before racing after the boy.
Jeremy watched as Tatia's face turned from happy to somber in a matter of moments. Then memory Ayana walked over to her with the man she was with.
"You both ask too much of me," Tatia told them.
"We have no choice, dear," Ayana said.
"It is for his own good. You know that, Tatia," the man said.
"How is that, Finn? How can it be for a child's own good to be separated from his parents?
"She will come for him. You know that. His magic grows stronger every day. My cloaking spell won't withstand someone as powerful as her or as powerful as Jarik is becoming," Finn said.
"Plus, there is Esther. She has attempted to take his life twice so far," Ayana said.
Tatia's eyes darkened. "She will suffer for the harm she tried to bestow on him, if I have to make that happen with my last breath!"
"She believes she is saving him from a worse fate, although, I do not believe that is a comfort to you," Finn said.
"Certainly not!" Tatia said with a huff before her eyes returned to her husband and son. "Why can I not speak with Elijah of this? He deserves to know."
"You know why, my dear. It is in my brother's nature to fight. It is what we have all been taught, but it is not a fight we can win. You would lose both your son and your husband," Finn said.
Tatia shook her head. "I cannot do it. I cannot send my child away with no knowledge of what will become of him. I cannot leave him alone."
"You will not have to. We have a plan for that. Jarik will be propelled into a future life. He will be reborn, only thanks to a spell, he will not have to die for it to happen. With your traveler magic, along with a spell, you will be able to follow him upon your death. We know you also have Elijah and your daughter from your first husband to think of," Ayana said.
"Upon my death? So, he would be alone until then?" Tatia asked.
"No. Time is a tricky thing. You will arrive at the same time he does, perhaps even before," Finn said.
"Will I remember? Will he?" she asked.
"It's unclear," Ayana said.
Tatia looked out at her husband. "He will never forgive me."
"He'll never know," Finn said.
Jeremy was soon startled by a hand on his shoulder. The next thing he knew, he was back in the forest at night. He just stood there, unable to move or speak. His entire world had just been rocked and he had no idea how to even comprehend it all.
"I know you are shocked, child. That was a lot to take in," Ayana said.
"I… That woman… She's my mother?" Jeremy asked in a shaky tone.
"Yes, child. Your name is Jarik Petrova Mikaelson," she told him.
"I… Elena… She's…" Jeremy trailed off. He could barely speak. He couldn't even form coherent sentences. Hell, he could barely think coherently.
"Elena and Tatia are the same person, although she doesn't seem to remember. She will one day. So will you. That is why I came to you. The magic bound inside of you is becoming too strong for the binding to survive. Once it breaks, you will remember everything, and it will be easier now that you have seen the truth," Ayana told him.
"Magic?" Jeremy asked.
"Yes. The Mikaelson family was known for powerful witches, and as the first born of your generation, you will be more powerful than all of them. That is why you needed to be hidden. The danger you face is extreme," Ayana warned him.
"Why? What danger?" Jeremy asked.
"It is not my place to say more on the subject. You will need to wait for your mother's memory to return to her. I have already gone beyond my bounds," she said.
Jeremy flinched at the way the woman spoke of Elena. Elena was his mother, not his sister. He didn't know how to begin to deal with that. All he knew was that he would really like to get high right now, which was likely the first thing he was going to do when he got back. "Sh… She's my mother, but she doesn't know it?"
"She doesn't know it consciously, but I imagine a part of her has always known. I've watched her with you. I've seen her interactions with you. She has a mother's love; a mother's need to protect her child. She just hasn't consciously realized it yet," Ayana explained.
'What am I supposed to do?" Jeremy asked. He was at a loss. He had no idea how to deal with this. This was the craziest thing to happen to him, and there had been a lot of craziness in his life. The worst part is that he couldn't talk to anyone about it. Anyone he told about this would think he was crazy. Even Elena probably would.
"For now, we find your body and get you home. I suspect that when you wake up, you will convince yourself that this was a dream. However, when your memories return, you will know that it is true. I hope that this night will be helpful to you then. Come," Ayana said before leading him away.
Jeremy followed her almost numbly.