Elena found herself outside a café having lunch with Davina. The two of them had become good friends since being introduced by Freya. Elena didn't like many of the New Orleans witches, but she liked Davina.
It had been about a week since Esther and Mikael arrived in New Orleans. There had been no word from since then. Elena and her siblings mostly stayed at home since then, but after a week, Elena was feeling cooped up, and they were all getting on each other's nerves. They'd all needed to get away from each other. "Thanks for having lunch with me. I needed to get out of the house.
Davina laughed. "Yeah, I talked to Freya the other day. She said she was getting close to hexing Klaus."
Elena chuckled. "Yeah, we're all getting on each other's nerves. Klaus and Kol nearly came to blows the other day. Rebekah and I have sniped at each other a couple of times. Even Elijah's superhuman patience has been tested. We finally came to the conclusion that we had to get away from each other for a few hours, despite the threat our crazy ass parents' pose.
"Any word from them since your last confrontation?" Davina asked.
Elena shook her head.
"Well, call me an optimist, but maybe they gave up and left," Davina said.
Elena laughed loudly. "I don't have that kind of luck, Davina. In fact, I'm fairly certain the only kind of luck I have is bad. If Esther hasn't given up in the last year, she's certainly not going to give up now.
"Mothers don't give up on their children, darling," a voice said.
Elena groaned as she heard the voice of her reoccurring nightmare. She turned to her left, and sure enough, she was face to face with Esther.
Esther smiled first at her daughter and then at the young girl she was dining with. "Elena, would you like to introduce me to your friend."
"Not necessary. I think I can figure out who you are. Every witch in the city knows who you are, and there are a lot of us," Davina said in a cold and threatening tone.
Esther chuckled. "Ah, I see. And I suppose my eldest daughter is ready dispatch every last one of you."
"Damn right."
"Well, I assure you, if I were looking for a fight, I wouldn't have announced myself in such a public place. I simply want a private word with my daughter," Esther said.
"No," Davina said coldly.
Esther ignored the younger girl and turned her attention to her daughter. "I only wish to talk, Elena. Here me out and I will leave without incident. You can return home unimpeded. You have my word."
"Your word means nothing to me," Elena said before turning to Davina. "But she's right. She's not going to do anything here, and she won't leave until she gets what she wants. Go."
Davina was hesitant, but she stood up and pointed to a table several feet away, where she would still have a good line of sight on Elena and Esther. "I'll be over there if you need me, ready to activate every witch in the city."
Elena smiled at her friend and watched her leave.
Esther took the vacated seat across from her daughter. "Interesting young girl. Arrogant though. She should be aware that she is not a threat to me. In fact, I imagine that your power is even stronger than hers."
"What do you want from me, Esther?" Elena asked.
Normally, Esther would have something to say about the way Elena chose to address her, but she was trying for a gentler approach, so she would let it go for now. "I don't like the way we left things the last time we spoke."
"I'm sure you don't because it didn't end the way you wanted it to," Elena said.
"Did it end the way you wanted it?" Esther asked.
"Well, I'm here talking to you right now, so not really," Elena said.
"Elena, I am trying to have a civil conversation with you. Please do not disrespect me," Esther said.
"Screw you! You've never done anything to earn my respect! You treated me like a possession. You abused me and my siblings. I owe you nothing," Elena said.
"That is a lie, and you know it. I have never raised a hand to you," Esther said.
"No, that was all Mikael, who you've brought back to torture us more, because murdering me and abusing the others nearly to death wasn't enough. Your preferred methods of abuse are mental and emotional. You locked me up like a prisoner for months. I couldn't even hold a private conversation with my siblings without you making sure you heard about it from Finn. Don't even get me started on Finn. You abused all of us, but what you did to him was the worst. You scapegoated him into believing he was responsible for what happened to me. You had his mind so warped that he thought you were the only person he could count on,"
"You know, I'm glad that you and Finn have made peace. I truly am. I think it's important that you get along with all of your siblings," Esther said.
"It wasn't too hard after we both realized the damage you did to him, first by forcing him to keep quiet about what happened to Freya and then by placing a lifetime of guilt on him for something that was your fault," Elena said.
"Finn knew that it was a mistake to leave you with Mikael. He knew the damage his father could do, and he left you with him anyway. That led to your death," Esther said.
"Finn wasn't my parent, you were! It was your job to protect me, not his!" Elena snapped.
Esther nodded. "I happen to agree with you on that. It was my job to protect you, and that it all I've ever tried to do. I know I am the devil in your eyes, but I am strict to protect you. You have no idea what it means to lose a child, Elena. There is no worse pain. I have lost three."
Elena shook her head. "No. You didn't lose Freya. You sold her!"
"And if I hadn't, none of you would exist. That is not to say I don't have my regrets, but there's nothing I can do to change it. There will be time to discuss the past later. Right now, you need to understand the danger that you and your sister face. It is that danger I hoped to protect you from by keeping me close," Esther said.
Elena laughed bitter. "Now you're going to tell me that you treated me the way you did because you wanted to protect me from Dahlia. I don't care. You treated me like property and now you want to do it again, more than that, you want me to agree to it. No thanks."
"Dahlia is coming, Elena. She will come for you, but more for Freya. You've said that you would rather find yourself at the mercy of Dahlia than take my help, but what about your sister? If Freya is here, I imagine she ran from Dahlia, just as you did from me. I imagine she won't take it nearly as kindly as I did. Would you truly risk that for her?" Esther asked.
Elena shook her head and stood up. She'd heard more than enough. "Go to hell! I'm done!"
Esther raised a finger and pointed it downwards towards her daughter. Moments later, the girl was forced back into her chair and held there. "We are finished when I say so.
Elena tried and failed to get up from her seat. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Davina rise from her seat. Elena raised a hand to tell her not to intervene. She wasn't ready to call in the calvary yet. She then turned back to Esther and glared. "I guess we're done with the niceties, huh?"
"On the contrary, darling. I am prepared to continue this conversation civilly, but I am still your mother, and you won't walk away from me. Now, I see you're not ready to face to face facts yet. That's fine, but you will have no choice eventually. I'm going to offer you a deal, and I want you to think long and hard about it and discuss it with your siblings. I will protect you and Freya from Dahlia. The only thing I require is that you all return to my side. If you want, we can remain here. You've all made a home for yourselves here. I'm willing to join you. I am even prepared to forget everything that went down in Mystic Falls. No one will be punished. We can forget it ever happened, but there will be no more running away," Esther said firmly.
"So, you or Dahlia? One warden or the other? That's our choice? I can't decide which is worse," Elena said honestly. It seemed pretty similar, to be honest. Either way, they were stuck with someone that would treat them like possessions.
Esther waved her hand and allowed her daughter to move freely again before standing up. "Think it over, darling. I will be in touch."
Davina walked back over as soon as Esther was gone. "Are you okay?"
"Not particularly. I need to get home," Elena said before standing up.
"Do you want me to go with you?" Davina asked.
"No. I appreciate it, but Esther isn't going to try anything else today. She made it perfectly clear what her intent is, and it's not to kidnap me. I'll call you later," Elena said before walking away.