Written by: Peter
Disclaimer: The Vampire Diaries are the property of L.J. Smith and the CW Network. I’m just writing about them for the fun of it.
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Post-season 3 finale.
Pairing: Stefan/Elena
For a century, I've lived in secret.
Hiding in the shadows, alone in the world...until now.
I shouldn't have come home. I know the risk.
But I have to know her!
I am a vampire—and this is my story.
-Stefan Salvatore
Lying on her bed, Elena wrestled with everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours. She didn't want to believe any of this was real, but what had happened downstairs confirmed it.
Elena had pushed Damon away as if he was nothing. She'd been so strong—too strong. Her unnatural strength removed any doubt in her mind that she was no longer human. In a few hours, she would either be dead, or a vampire.
So what? Caroline was a vampire, wasn't she? So was Tyler. Stefan and Damon had been vampires since the moment she'd met them. Would it really be so bad to be like them?
A memory of the school gymnasium played across Elena's mind. Of Stefan—the kindest, most compassionate person she'd ever known—savagely murdering two innocent people. She knew it wasn't his choice—that he'd been forced to by Klaus—and yet...
Elena clutched the stuffed koala bear closer to her. She couldn't be that! She'd rather die than hurt anyone.
“Elena?”
She looked up to see Stefan lying on the bed, facing her. She gives him a sad smile.
“Sorry for being so dramatic,” she sniffles.
“Considering the circumstances, I'd say you've earned it,” Stefan tells her, reaching over to take her hand. “Elena--”
“Stefan...” she speaks his name pleadingly. “I'm scared.”
“I know,” Stefan replies, his voice full of emotion. “Maybe if I'd been stronger—if I'd been faster...”
“Thank you,” Elena whispers. “Thank you for saving him.”
“Did you know?” he asks. “Elena, did you know what Meredith had done to heal you?”
Elena gives a small nod, looking as though she was about to fall apart at any moment.
“Why?” Stefan asks.
“Matt wouldn't have come back,” Elena reminds him. “I—I couldn't live with myself if I let him die, Stefan. I've lost too many people. I—I just couldn't let him die. I couldn't...”
“Shhh...” Stefan whispers. “It's going to be okay.”
“No it's not!” Elena cries. “I don't want this, Stefan—I don't.”
“I know.”
“But I don't have a choice,” she admits in a defeated tone. “If I let myself die—if I do that, I take away the only family Jeremy has left. You saw the look on his face downstairs, when he thought—when he thought I was gone. I can't do that to him, Stefan. I won't do that to him.”
Stefan nods, understanding her choice. From his expression, he almost looks as pained by this as she does. Elena reaches over and touches the side of his face.
“I won't do that to you,” she adds. “I'm—going to complete the transition.”
With those words, Elena starts to cry, hugging the koala tighter—as if trying to hold onto what it represents to her. A time when she was happy—before all this. Before originals, and doppelgangers—a time when all she wanted was to feel normal. Because now it was clear she would never be 'normal' again.
“I'm going to be a vampire,” she says out loud. “Oh god—I'm going to be a vampire.”
Stefan wraps his arms around Elena, letting her cry into his chest.
*****
Downstairs...
“So that's it then,” Damon finished explaining. “Thanks to Alaric's psychotic alter-ego, the council knows about us.”
“What about Elena?” Jeremy asks.
“You do the math,” Damon responds. “She was pronounced dead, and they saw Stefan carry her out of the hospital. If they don't know now, it won't take them long to figure it out.”
“I won't let them kill her!” Jeremy announces.
“There's twelve active members on that council, all on vervain!” Damon points out. “I won't be able to compel that many at once. Not without someone getting suspicious.”
Jeremy's eyes narrow.
“Then we do something a little more permanent!”
Damon's eyes go wide.
“Are you suggesting we kill them?” Damon scoffs. “The entire council?”
“Look who's suddenly gun-shy about killing people,” Jeremy pointed out.
“A little drastic, don't you think?” he challenges Jeremy. “I'm pretty sure your witchy ex won't turn a blind eye when I try to take them out.”
“Fine, then I'll do it myself!” Jeremy yelled, retrieving a crossbow from a hidden compartment under a painting. “An arrow through the heart kills a human just as easy as a vampire, right?”
“Do you realize what you're saying?”
The two of them turn to see Stefan walking down the stairs, not looking happy about their conversation at all.
“You're talking about committing murder, Jeremy!” Stefan says in an even voice, looking at Jeremy very dangerously. “They're humans. I want you to think very carefully about what you're suggesting here.”
“And how many people did you kill while you were with Klaus?” Jeremy reminded him.
“I'm a vampire, Jeremy!” Stefan reminded him. “I didn't have a choice! I couldn't control myself! If you choose to kill someone of your own free will, I promise you—there won't be any going back.”
“I can't let her die!” Jeremy pleaded with him. “They're not going to stop coming after you now that they know, and sooner or later they'll find out about Elena too. What else can we do?”
Stefan hesitates a moment.
“We run,” he sighs. “Like Caroline and Tyler were planning. Just like you and Matt tried to do. As soon as Elena's finished transitioning, we leave Mystic Falls. Together.”
He gives Damon a look. Damon nods to confirm his plan.
“We split up,” Damon announced, taking over. “Meet outside the entrance to the tomb in about six hours. And keep an eye out—we don't know if Alaric told the council about you and Elena or not.”
Stefan looks at Jeremy.
“You should talk to Elena,” he suggests. “She's doing this for you, you know?”
“I know,” Jeremy admits, looking down.
With that, Stefan follows Damon out the door.
*****
The other side...
“So what is this?” Alaric asked. “Some kind of ghost town council?”
“I sense hostility,” Bill Forbes commented. “The founders council was established to protect Mystic Falls from the vampire problem. What we're trying to do here is a much more selfish pursuit. Protecting our children.”
Alaric hesitated. He wasn't sure how to respond to a man whom he himself had murdered. Truthfully, he was surprised that Bill wasn't exacting vengeance on him. Was it even possible to kill a ghost?
“I'm sorry,” he said quietly. “What I did to you...”
“No apologies necessary, Mr. Saltzman,” Bill reassured him. “You didn't kill me. Esther did. You were just the weapon she chose to employ. Like Ms. Donovan over there.”
He points towards Vicki, who stood in the corner.
“Esther promised her a second chance at life in exchange for Elena's death,” he explained. “That's what she does—she uses people.”
“I took care of her,” Alaric reassured them. “She's dead.”
“Oh yeah, brilliant plan there genius,” the blonde woman from earlier spoke up. “Or don't you remember how you ended up on the other side? All you did was send her right back here, where she has a bunch of dead witches backing her up.”
“Who are you exactly?” he asks.
“Someone just like you,” she explains, smiling. “Someone who has a personal stake in that loon not getting what she wants.”
“You're a vampire?” Alaric questions her.
“Was,” she corrects him. “Everyone here was some kind of supernatural being at once point. That's how the other side works. I've been here the longest, and I haven't seen anyone who was human when they died. Except maybe Johnny over there.”
Alaric scoffs.
“That's debatable!”
“Compared to what you became, Alaric, I was a saint,” John snapped at him.
“You expect me to believe that ring is what turned you into a vampire-hating sociopath?” Alaric asked.
“That's what it did to you, isn't it?”
Alaric froze.
“Every time I died with that ring on, I slipped a little further,” John recalled. “What started as a generational obligation mutated into a hate-filled obsession. She used me, just like she did you—now all I want is to make up for it. To stop her from hurting anyone else.”
“But you weren't supernatural,” Alaric pointed out.
“I took Elena's place, in case you forget,” he sighed.
Alaric paused. He started to look around.
“Where's Elena?” he asked. “She—she should be here too, shouldn't she? The only way I could have died was if she did. Elena was supernatural, right?”
Around the room, the others all have uncomfortable looks on their faces.
“Ok—who wants to break it to him?” the blonde repeats. “Anybody?”
“You remember how I was able to say goodbye to my daughter after you stabbed me, don't you Mr. Saltzman?” Bill reminds him. “Your—girlfriend--has a very unorthodox treatment plan for her more serious cases.”
Alaric quickly put the pieces together in his head. Meredith must have given her vampire blood before he destroyed her supply. If she died with it still in her system...
“Oh no!”
*****
The boarding house...
Stefan brought a pair of suitcases into the library. It wasn't much—just some clothes and a few keepsakes. Considering what the townspeople had done to their original home, he wished he could take more, but they couldn't risk it. They needed to travel light.
“Guess we're both leaving town,” Damon commented, as he put a portable cooler on the floor. “Funny how that works. Guess the whole 'sixty years from now' thing's kind of a bust, isn't it?”
“What's happening to Elena changes everything,” Stefan confessed. “I'm not leaving her side. Not until I know she's okay.”
Damon looks at him, confused.
“You don't know, do you?” Damon whispered. “She never told you, did she?”
Damon shakes his head, laughing bitterly.
“You honestly thought she'd pick me?”
“Damon, that doesn't matter anymore!” Stefan sighed. “Elena, she—I don't think she'll want to 'pick' anyone anytime soon.”
“It was you, Stefan,” Damon told him coldly. “Right before the crash. She called me. It would have been you.”
Stefan froze, as the information sinks it. He should be happy—relieved—elated, even. But somehow, the defeated look on his brother's face—combined with the tragic fate facing the woman they both loved—made it seem almost frivolous.
“Doesn't matter,” Stefan said, placing a hand on Damon's shoulder. “Hate me, if you want Damon—for saving Matt, for Elena's choice—but right now, she needs both of us.”
Damon tried to look as indifferent as possible, but it was no use—he needed to know for sure.
“She's really going through with it?” he asked.
Stefan nodded.
“For Jeremy.”
“That sounds familiar,” Damon scoffed, recalling his own transition. “We're going to be fighting over her forever, aren't we?”
“Let's—just concentrate on getting out of town safely,” Stefan responded. “There will be plenty of time to figure it out later.”
Damon seemed to have a renewed confidence all of a sudden. Stefan was right, of course. There was plenty of time now. Not just one lifetime, but several. Time for things to change—time for Elena to change her mind. He could afford to be patient now.
“So where is our little magical mystery tour headed first, Stefan?” Damon asked, glibly. “May I recommend Rio? Paris? Venice? Transylvania?”
Stefan raises an eyebrow.
“That last one was a joke,” Damon explained. “Although—it's so cliched it might actually be fun.”
“I'm glad to see you're enjoying yourself,” Stefan remarked, not looking happy at Damon's sudden glib attitude.
“You're depressed enough for the both of us!”
“Elena didn't want this!” Stefan reminded him. “She didn't want to be like us, Damon! You know that!”
“Well, maybe I did want this,” Damon replied, coldly. “And you can play the sympathetic do-gooder all you want, Stefan—but deep down, you know you wanted this, too.”
Stefan stares at his brother, mortified at the suggestion.
“Wow!” Damon laughs. “You know, sometimes the sheer depths of your denial astounds me, brother.”
Hefting the cooler over his shoulder, Damon heads out the front door. Stefan stands there, clearly upset—not because he's angry at Damon for what he suggested. No, he's not angry—he's horrified at the thought that Damon could be right.
As if he needed another reason to hate himself right now.
*****
Jeremy must have stood in the doorway to Elena's room for ten minutes, watching his sister frantically packing. If she noticed his presence there, she gave no indication of it—instead focusing on the menial task of packing a pair of suitcases.
“Elena?” Jeremy finally spoke.
“I'm not sure what I should bring,” Elena said, her voice shaky. “There's no way of knowing how long we'll be gone. A year, ten years—I guess it doesn't matter anymore, either way. I could always call Matt and ask him to ship the rest of wherever we end up after he gets out of the hospital...”
“Elena,” he says again. “Talk to me.”
Elena faces him, a sad look in her eyes.
“I'm sorry,” she whispers. “Jeremy, I am so...”
Jeremy walks up to Elena and hugs her without hesitation.
“If anybody should be sorry, it should be me,” he says. “I'm the one who tried to sneak you out of town. I should have gone with you instead of Matt. My ring would have protected me. You wouldn't have had to make that choice.”
“It's not your fault,” Elena tells him. “It's not your fault, it's not Stefan's fault—it's nobody's fault.”
“A day without vampires,” Jeremy laughed, bitterly. “Guess I should have known better.”
Elena looks at him a moment, fighting through her despair. This wasn't right. Jeremy shouldn't have to suffer because of her choices.
“You don't have to go with us,” Elena explained. “You're human—the council can't do anything to you. You can stay—I'll contact you when Stefan, Damon and I find some place to...”
Jeremy shook his head, cutting her off.
“Right before this started, you told me you were gonna stand by theM, even if that made you the bad guy to everyone else,” he reminded her. “How could I possibly do anything less? If you're going to run—then I'm going to be right there with you, ok? And don't even think about getting one of them to mess with my head this time.”
Elena smiles, sadly.
“I'd be able to do it myself this time.”
“Just go ahead and try,” Jeremy challenges her, with a smirk on his face.
For the first time since she woke up in the morgue, Elena almost seems happy. Or, at the very least, content. It only lasts a brief moment, though, as a throbbing sensation starts to spread through her—starting at her mouth and working it's way down.
Elena yells in pain, clutching her mouth.
“Elena!” Jeremy exclaims.
“My gums--” she cries out. “I think—I think it's starting.”
“Just like Vicki...” Jeremy recalled, the pain in his eyes evident.
Jeremy knelt down next to Elena, trying his best of help her. However, as Elena looked at him she felt something come over her. Like she—wanted something—from him.
“Elena?” he asked, noticing as Elena stared at him intently.
“You need to get away from me,” Elena implored him. “Jeremy, get out of here.”
“I'm not leaving you!”
“Jeremy, I need blood!” Elena told him, angrily. “Human blood! If you don't go, I might...”
“I have my ring!” Jeremy reminded her. “I'm not in any danger—even if you kill me, I'll be fine.”
Elena stares at her brother, horrified. Had he completely forgotten what that ring had done to Alaric? And even if Esther had been telling the truth, and it was her presence that had corrupted him, that didn't make it right. Killing him could never be right, even if she knew he would come back to life afterwards.
“Take it!” he insisted, offering his hand.
Instead, Elena pushes him aside and runs out the door.
*****
The other side...
“How you holding up?”
Alaric looks up from his spot against the wall as the mysterious blonde woman stands over him.
“Feeling like a colossal failure,” he admits. “You know, I came to Mystic Falls to avenge Isobel's death. Maybe I should have just left when I found out there was nothing to avenge.”
“This town's like a poison,” the woman remarked. “I don't know if it's because we started here or what, but things just have a habit of going really, really wrong. At least you made a choice to get in the middle of it all. I stopped by to wish someone a happy birthday, and I ended up with a stake through the heart.”
Alaric pauses, realizing just who he's talking to.
“You're Lexi, right?” he asks. “Stefan's friend?”
“My reputation precedes me,” she responds with a smile.
“I thought you, uh...”
“Passed on?” she completes the thought for him. “No such luck—not while he's still in trouble.”
Lexi looks around the room—at John, at Bill, at Isobel...
“Everyone here has two things in common, Alaric,” she explains. “They died as supernatural beings, and they died with things unfinished. A guilty conscience, a loved one that still needs them—but it's always something that remains unfinished. I can't pass on yet. Not until I'm sure he'll be okay.”
It's at that moment that two new arrivals enter the room. He recognizes them—Jeremy's girlfriend, Anna and her mother Pearl.
“Did you find out anything?” John asked them, eagerly.
Both spirits gave him a cold look.
“You can try to kill me again if it'll make you feel better,” he sighs. “Just tell us what you learned.”
“The witches have been cut off from the physical realm,” Pearl explained. “Apparently they pushed the poor girl too far.”
“Cut off? Alaric asked. “Bonnie can do that?”
The two new arrivals look at Alaric with surprise.
“Well, look who decided to join the party,” Anna remarked. “What, the original mother of the year didn't have any more use for you?”
“Anna,” Pearl warned her, before continuing. “I'll explain as best I can. In this place, we're separated from the world of the living. We can see what happens, but we can't interact with the physical world—leaving us with nothing to do but reflect on our mistakes and regrets. At least, that's true for the most part. But those witches have the annoying habit of reaching out to their descendants in an attempt to carry on their work. They believe, if someone else succeeds where they failed, then they can gain their freedom.”
“This time, though, they bit off a bit more than they can chew,” Anna added, smugly. “You don't mess with a girl's mom.”
“Abby,” Alaric realized. “If the originals die, so does Bonnie's mom. There's no way she'll help them now.”
“Right now, Esther is trying to find another gateway into the living world,” Pearl continued. “At the moment, their only connection is that old house.”
“That means, right now, we have an advantage,” John pointed out. “Our gateway is much more—mobile.”
Jeremy. He was talking about Jeremy.
“Are you kidding me?” Alaric turned on John. “You want to use your own nephew as some kind of weapon? That's low, John—even for you.”
“If Esther gets what she wants, every vampire on earth is going to die, Ric!” Isobel reminds him. “Even my daughter!”
“And mine,” Bill adds. “I would think that someone who was drinking buddies with Damon Salvatore wouldn't be opposed to some morally grey decisions when it came to the greater good.”
Alaric sighs. They were right, of course—there was little choice.
“How does this work exactly?” he asks. “Does Jeremy just yank us away from here, or what?”
“Unfortunately, Jeremy's power is still limited,” John explains. “He can only communicate with one of us at a time.”
“Still limited?” Alaric questions him.
“I'm working on a way to fix that.”
“So let's get to it already!”
Alaric turned. Another familiar face—Rose, that vampire Damon had been friends with.
“Oh no!” Lexi scoffed. “Not this time. The last time we let you on the Gilbert hotline, you spent half the trip trying to play matchmaker instead of what you were supposed to be doing.”
“Like you fared much better,” Rose argued. “At least the werewolf showed them where the caves were.”
“Ladies,” Bill interrupted them. “Considering young Mr. Gilbert's current mental state, might I suggest sending someone he trusts?”
John steps forward, nodding in agreement.
“We need you to figure out that spell, John,” Bill says, stopping him. “You're staying right here.”
Alaric turns to Anna.
“You should go,” he says. “He'll be happy to see you.”
Anna shakes her head.
“I'll distract him too much,” she argues. “You go—I'll show you how to pass through.”
Anna turns to the doorway.
“One other thing, before you go,” Isobel says. “That necklace Elena wears—you need to make sure Jeremy has it. It's the key to everything.”
“Got it,” he says. “I won't let you down—any of you.”
*****
Outside the boarding house...
Stefan finishes loading the last of the supplies into his car when his cell phone rings. Looking at it, he sees Jeremy's name displayed.
“Jeremy?” he asks. “We're not supposed to meet for...”
“Elena's gone!”
Stefan froze.
“She ran off,” Jeremy clarified. “She started changing, and I—I tried to get her to take some of my blood to complete the transition. She freaked out and ran away.”
“She could have killed you, Jeremy!” Stefan said angrily. “How could you take that kind of risk?”
“I have my ring!”
“That's not—!” Stefan starts to argue, but then simply sighs in frustration. “Never mind. Do you have any idea where she could have gone?”
This was bad. They couldn't afford to waste any time—not with the council actively hunting them. He could only imagine what Jeremy's foolish actions had done to Elena's fragile mindset. What if she went back to the hospital to check on Matt? With all that blood, even Elena might not be able to help herself.
He had to find her, and fast. Before Elena did something that she would never forgive herself for.
“She sent me a text,” Jeremy told him. “But—it doesn't make any sense.”
“What did she say?”
“Just this...” he replied. “It's my last few hours as a human—why cheat now?”
Stefan's eyes light up.
“Any idea what it means?” Jeremy asks. “Stefan?”
“I know where she's going!” Stefan announces. “Stick with the plan. Meet up with Damon at Fell's Church, outside the old tomb entrance. I'll be there as soon as I get Elena.”
Stefan hung up the phone, and then ran off into the woods—straight towards the falls.