A/N: As always, I don't own TVD because, if I did, many things would have turned out differently. Any recognizable characters, plots and dialogue belong to the L.J. Smith and the CW. A plot bunny hopped up to me today and demanded that this happen, and who am I to deny plot bunnies?

Esther

The ball was underway, and Esther watched from the top of the stairs as the guests from Mystic Falls streamed in. She had insisted on hosting this ball ostensibly to show the guests she and her family meant their town no further harm, but all of this frivolity would distract her children from her true purpose.

Since she had returned, Esther had heard some comments from some of her children, and before her plans could move forward, she needed to assess how accurate those comments were. Rebekah and Niklaus were of the opinion that Elijah had once more developed feelings for a doppelgänger. Esther rather thought that he would have learned his lesson about that folly by now, but she had to see if there was any truth to her children's thoughts. If there were, it might complicate matters.

Aside from finding out about Elijah's feelings, she wanted to meet the girl herself. She had tried to kill the girl from the other side, but that had been nothing personal – just a way to prevent Niklaus from creating his abominable hybrids. She was grateful she had failed, however, because now she needed the doppelgänger's blood for her own purposes.

Which is why she was here, watching as crowds of people entered the house Niklaus had had built. She wanted to see the moment the doppelgänger arrived.

When she finally did, it didn't take a master of observation to notice the exact moment Elena Gilbert entered the house. At least three of Esther's own children turned to look, and Elena's own friends stopped what they were doing when they saw her.

Interesting, Esther thought. It would appear as though they didn't expect her to come. Or rather, judging by the frowns, she had been told not to.

Elena's glittering gold and black gown caught as much attention as it did the soft lighting. Esther noticed, in particular, that Elijah and two younger vampires – one with raven hair and noticeable pale blue eyes and the other sandy-blond – could not take their eyes off of Elena. The two younger vampires hurried to Elena's side when they saw her. There was a brief hushed conversation, but at the end, Elena stood tall and resolute as the men's shoulders sagged and they appeared resigned.

The blond man held out his arm first, and Elena took it before looking expectantly at the other. He sighed but finally held an arm out for her as well. When her arms were linked with both men, the trio made their way in to join the rest of the party guests.

From the corner of her eye, Esther saw Elijah's jaw tick as he watched the same scene play out. There was no other evidence of emotion on his face, but it is impossible to hide some things from a mother. In that moment, Esther knew that Rebekah and Niklaus had the measure of the situation. Elijah had indeed fallen for another doppelgänger, but he was not asserting his interest, so perhaps he had not yet had the realization on his own.

There was a brief glance exchanged between Elena and Elijah as she was led away by her apparent chaperones, and Esther saw in that one short look that perhaps, unlike the last two times, Elijah was not the only one with feelings. Esther frowned at the realization. This meant she was going to have to tweak her plan the slightest bit. It seemed unlikely that Elena would willingly play a part in anything that could harm Esther's second-eldest son.

Meanwhile, she noticed that Niklaus and Rebekah had also been unable to look away from the doppelgänger. She knew that Niklaus viewed Elena as nothing more than a tool, so she was not worried about his emotions. And the feelings that Rebekah held for the girl boiled down to jealousy. Yes, she was angry at Elena's actions against her, but more so at the fact that Elena had everything that Rebekah wanted – including humanity, which Esther had torn from her.

She stayed long enough for Elijah to announce the evening's first waltz and to greet the people she had invited into their home, but as the first strains of music began, she withdrew to her room. Finn knew that she needed to speak to Elena alone, and he would convey the message. In the meantime, she needed to come up with a solution to the unforeseen problem of feelings between Elijah and Elena. She needed to ensure that her plan succeeded. The spirits were depending on her, and if she failed, there would be repercussions for her – worse than having to watch her children and feel their victims' pain for a millennium.

She was pulled from her thoughts when Finn joined her after the first dance. It was not long after that a knock sounded on the door. Finn answered it at her request as Esther finished spelling the sage that would keep her and Elena's conversation private, even from all the prying vampire ears. Elena entered – completely alone – and Esther was pleased that the girl could conform to simple requests. Though, she had known Elena was brave, sometimes to the point of stupidity. However, tonight it played in her favor.

Esther dismissed Finn and she and the girl took their seats on the sofa in the center of the room. Elena promptly began to ask questions, and Esther allowed this. She was willing to answer Elena if it would help to make Elena more compliant in the plan, though she made sure to choose her words with caution. It wasn't long before Elena was asking questions that exercised all of Esther's skills of evasion.

"You're gonna help us kill Klaus, aren't you?" There was something hidden in Elena's tone. On the surface, she sounded excited by the idea of a solution to the scourge of Esther's son. But Esther sensed that she was not alone in playing this conversation carefully.

"One thing at a time, Elena. For now, I simply need your help."

Esther had to hope that she had said the right thing. She knows from what she had heard from her children and what she saw while she was on the other side that Elena was someone who wanted to help, who wanted to protect, and Esther needed to play on that to reach her goal. She noticed that Elena was still nervous as she sat beside Esther, withdrawing to the far end of the couch, though she tried to look self-assured as she kept her spine rigid.

Esther began to talk about the past and how she had turned her children into the abominations that they were. As she did so, she stood and moved around the room lighting candles. She needed to do something for she still felt the guilt from the decision to turn her children. Not because of why she had done it, but because of what it had wrought on the world after she was gone.

Elena pressed for how Esther was going to kill vague, and she kept her answer vague. She feared that if Elena knew the cost she would not be willing to pay it, even given her distaste for Klaus. Even if Elena wanted to spare only one of Esther's children, the spell wouldn't work. Esther couldn't allow that.

"Endling Klaus' life will take time, magic, and your help," Esther said.

Elena looked askance at her. "What do I have to do with it?"

"Tonight, I have brought my children together, not to celebrate our reunion as they believe, but so that I may perform a ritual. The first step requires your blood, the blood of a doppelgänger."

Elena shivered and muttered in a low voice, "Of course it does." She wrapped her arms a little tighter around her middle, but she was still listening.

Esther watched Elena's reaction. She tried to set her at ease, since this would work so much better if the girl cooperated. Blood freely given was even more powerful than that which was taken by force.

"Only a drop is needed," she said in a soothing tone. "It will be in the champagne for the toast this evening, but only its essence is required." Esther held up the athame that Finn had sharpened for her earlier. Its tip glimmered in the candle light, sharp as a needle. "Will you do it, or shall I?"