I didn't plan on going any further with this particular day, but a comment got me thinking about it, so here you go.

8:46 PM

Elena crumpled the formerly white handkerchief in her hand. It had taken her a few minutes, but eventually she had managed to reach over and pull the crisp white linen from Elijah's breast pocket. She'd balanced Miranda on her knee and cleaned her hand behind her daughter's back. Thankfully the night was reasonably warm and Miranda had been dressed for December, so they were fine to remain outside.

Elena's hand shook ever so slightly when she glanced over her baby's shoulder. Dahlia had fallen face forward onto the grass, but Elena still kept Miranda facing away from her. She would have moved away, but she wasn't sure her legs were fully functional.

It had been six months and three days since her transition. Six months and three days since she became one of the most dangerous creatures on the planet. Six months and three days since she had first enjoyed the taste of blood on her tongue, but today was the first day she had resorted to violence.

Dahlia was the first life she had taken.

Elena put on a brave face for her child, but inside she was quivering. The world seemed to spin around her. She allowed the red handkerchief to fall beside her leg. She closed her eyes as her spine morphed into cooked spaghetti; the cool ground made her shiver.

"Ma-ma," Miranda lifted her head from Elena's chest and reached for her shiny hair.

"Don't pull mama's hair, little miss," Elena sighed, but she didn't try to stop her from pulling.

A soft series of snaps echoed around the garden.

Elena hugged the baby closer to her chest. The smooth blanket ruffled in the swift wind.

Elijah bolted up right and looked around frantically. His eyes lighted on the still body of Dahlia before darting to the heart a few inches to the left of her. He followed the dark line of Elena's jeans to the bloody cloth that resembled his handkerchief.

"Ba-sss-sa-ma," Miranda's eyes started to drift shut.

"Elena," he sighed in relief. He fell back to lie beside her in the grass and leaned over to kiss Miranda's cheek. "Hello sweetheart," Elijah tried to take Miranda and frowned when Elena's arms tightened. "Elena?"

"I-I c-can't…"

"What happened?" Kol sat up and flashed to kneel beside them. He rolled Dahlia over and stared at the gaping hole in her chest; her eyes were wide and unseeing.

"Honestly Elijah… you couldn't have ripped her heart out before she broke our necks?" Klaus asked. His head snapped around when he heard the sharp cry from the woods. He was gone a second later to help Caroline.

"It's not that a broken neck is bad in the long run, but I have to agree with Nik," Rebekah knelt by Kol. "You couldn't have done that sooner?"

"I didn't do this," Elijah propped himself up on his elbow and rubbed Miranda's back.

"Then who did?" Klaus returned with a weak Caroline.

"Elena," Caroline rasped. Her face was pale and drawn after having the wood pulled from her back. "Elena did it. I heard."

The Original's turned to Elena. A small amount of blood clung to the skin of her hand.

Elijah carefully moved Elena's arms and lifted Miranda who had fallen asleep. He sat up and passed the child to Rebekah before pulling Elena into a sitting position in the grass.

"I," her eyes fell on Dahlia. "I killed her."

"Yes," Elijah wrapped his arm around her shoulder and rubbed her shoulder. "She's dead."

"Miranda?"

"She's sound asleep," Rebekah adjusted the blanket. "I guess time travel takes a lot of her."

"She's safe," Elijah stood up and helped Elena to her feet.

Elena felt her knees tremble under her weight. Elijah clearly felt it to because he kept his arm around her waist. She took a deep breath and reminded herself that Dahlia would have taken her child. She took another breath and listened to her child's heart beating; it was a sound she would never grow tired of. With her third deep breath she reached down and squeezed Elijah's hand; her knees had stopped shaking.

Nothing was ever as daunting after three deep breaths. Somehow Elena didn't think this was the sort of thing her mother had in mind, but the idea stood firm.

"I'm alright now," Elena held out her arms and took back her sleeping infant. "I'm alright." There was only one reason she could ever have used to justify her actions, and that reason was now cradled in her arms.

"Good," Klaus lowered Caroline onto a bench. "Now there is just one question that needs to be answered."

"And what is that?" Elijah glanced up from Miranda's face.

"What do we do with the bodies?"

"Bodies?" Elena tilted her head. "There is only one body…" Her eyes darted around to the four witches lying in the grass.

"Two bodies," Klaus clarified. He nodded to his mother with a small frown. The garden fell silent as everyone listened to what Klaus had already heard.

Dahlia had lied. At least she had lied partially. Only two of the three witches held sleeping heartbeats. Bonnie and Freya stirred in the dew, but Esther remained still. There was no sign of life coming from the Original witch.

"She said it was a sleeping spell," Elena whispered. "She said they'd be fine."

Elijah shook his head. "She said 'your friend' would be fine. Mother was already dead…"

"He's right," Kol bent and pulled his older sister to her feet. "She was reanimated so we could use her blood, but she was already dead."

"I know this is a family matter," Caroline helped Bonnie stand up, "but might I suggest the obvious solution?"

"Go ahead," Rebekah nodded.

Caroline wrapped an arm around Bonnie's waist when she stumbled. "Typically people bury their dead relatives," she sighed, "or they cremate them."

"We're not people love," Klaus scoffed.

"I forgot," Caroline rolled her eyes, "you're the psychotic hybrid. What do psychopaths do with their family?" She glanced around the clearing at his siblings. "Are you going to stick them in a couple of coffins and cart them around with you for centuries?"

"Careful, love," Klaus stepped forward and looked down into her eyes.

Bonnie scrambled back out of the way and nodded when Elijah caught her arm to keep her from falling over.

"Do you have a better idea?" Caroline glared at him.

Elijah thought back to the last person who had been foolish enough to call his brother out on his actions. The vampire had made it twenty paces before his tongue was ripped out; the tongue had been followed by several internal organs before his heart had been torn from his body. For a few seconds he genuinely feared for Caroline's life; he was preparing to move to her defence when Klaus stepped back and shook his head.

"No," he frowned, "I don't have a better idea."

Also before I forget to mention this a comment from Serendipity. now on the last chapter got me thinking about a possible sequel. I'm still mulling it over.

In the confines of this story Caroline has not yet given Klaus a chance. I'm thinking of doing a short sequel set around the time of Miranda's first birthday that is an alternate version of the first season of the Original's that right now would include the Hope/Hayley story line. It wouldn't go up for a while because I've got other stories on the go, but it might be another summer project that I take on.