A/N: Hi all, appreciate you liking this enough to flip to the second chapter. This one is an unedited splurge of my stream of consciousness on where this story should go. Please let me know what you think.

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"No one can say that death found in me a willing comrade, or that I went easily."

Cassandra Clare

1110 A.D.

"Elijah!" Karena's laugh bubbled out despite her best efforts to keep it in. "Stop that this instant, or I will be forced to come over there and make you."

"It's called having fun, sister," Elijah looked up and winked at her. "You should try it some time." It wasn't often that Elijah let his hair down like this, literally and figuratively. It only happened once or twice a decade, and the moment caught Karena in such a state of shock that she couldn't help her amusement.

For over a century now, Elijah had taken on the role as the head of the family, and he took that role seriously; some, namely Karena, thought he took it too seriously. None of his siblings had ever been particularly up to the task: Finn too self-righteous, Niklaus too volatile, Rebekah too emotional, and Kol too immature. Even Karena had fallen short of the mark, lacking the willingness to lead or the ruthlessness to do what must be done. They all looked to Elijah for guidance, leaned on him in times of need. His family was his responsibility. He rarely let his guard slip, even in front of them.

It was a welcome sight for Karena. "If I knew you had finally learned the word fun I would have brought Finn with us tonight. The shock would have killed him, and I would have finally got my revenge on him for ruining my favorite dress."

"Well then, perhaps we should go get him!" Elijah jumped to his feet with a smirk.

Most days Karena could forget that Elijah and Niklaus were brothers. They didn't look terribly alike; Niklaus taking after their mother and Elijah their father. However, there was no mistaking that smirk. Niklaus and Kol used it the most, but all the Mikaelsons kept it in their arsenal. It melted the hearts of young woman and seduced young men, truly a weapon to behold.

"Oh no, Elijah, you have that look in your eye, and I do not trust it." Karena waved him away as Elijah marched across the room to her. "I have seen that look in your brothers' eyes one too many times to fall for it."

"Very well, very well." He conceded, but the smirk did not leave his lips. "But we should move on soon. You still appear hungry, and I do not think these two will be of any further use to us."

Karena looked down at the elderly couple slumped against the wall and remembered why they were here.

Niklaus had decided to paint a family portrait. Today was Rebekah's turn to sit before the artist, and he'd insisted on absolute silence, banishing Karena and his brothers from their home for the day. Elijah had decided to accompany Kol and Karena on a trip a few towns over to a small village, yet untouched by vampires, in hopes of finding food. The trio hadn't even needed to compel their way into the home before the elderly woman extended an invitation, but Kol had abandoned the pair, almost immediately after entering the home, instead going in search of younger, more enticing prey.

"Yes," Karena eyed the pair. "Perhaps it is good Kol left us. This couple were very kind, and I would have hated it if they had died."

Elijah darted across the room and observed the unconscious humans with his usual calculating gaze, "Yes, they were incredibly accommodating hosts."

"Should we see them to their beds or leave them as they are?" Karena looked around the room. It was a meager two room house, lacking any comfort or amenity. Other than her own dress, there appeared to be nothing she could use to clean up what blood had dripped onto the floor. It seemed to be a good idea to leave them as they were to draw their own conclusions of the mess rather than improperly restore order to their home.

"I think we should…" Elijah didn't finish his thought, and Karena quickly realized why.

"Karena! Elijah!" The two vampires stood alert as they heard the screams from outside. "Karena!" Someone was running towards the home. "Elijah!"

Karena knew that voice by heart. She lunged forward and threw open the door. "Kol!" She gasped and dragged the young man inside.

Kol haphazardly fell into the nearest chair. He looked pale, almost greying, the shade that one only saw in the dead and dying as they took their final gasping breaths. His hands were shaking, and his knees quaked with the effort it had taken to support his own body weight as he ran all the way across the village square.

"Kol," Elijah knelt before his brother, "What happened to you?"

"Vervain," He gasped out in a hoarse voice, "and a stake." He gestured to his shirt. A gaping hole plastered in his own dried blood was just an inch too far to the right of his heart. "They only," he gasped again, "just missed. I'm surprised I stayed conscious."

Elijah growled under his breath, getting to his feet. "I will make them pay for this." He marched to the open door, determination in his eyes and blood on his mind. "No one hurts my family."

"NO!" Kol lurched out of his chair, hitting the floor. He reached out for his brother's hand, dragging him back from the door as much as he could in such a feeble state. "No."

"Kol," Karena lowered her voice to a whisper and closed the door. "What happened to you?"

"He is here, Karena." Kol locked eyes with her, pleading and in pain. "He has found us. I don't know how."

Karena felt a knot begin to form in her chest as a sense of dread washed over her. "Mikael did this to you?"

"N-No, the villagers did this. The girl came with me too willingly; I should have known." Kol tried to push himself back up into the chair, and Elijah caught him under the arms and helped him into it. "She was full of vervain; the men were on me before I even realized." Kol kept a firm grip on Elijah's arm to keep himself upright in the chair. "They were talking about him. He was already on his way; they wanted to keep me for him to kill."

"And if they knew he was already on his way, then by he will be here any moment." Karena deduced exactly what Kol had said. Only once before in her long life did Karena ever remembered feeling this afraid, and then, just like now, she hadn't been afraid for herself.

"We have to run," Kol urged the older pair.

"No," Elijah shook his head. If Kol hadn't had a death grip on his arm, Karena was sure he would be anxiously pacing. Elijah was usually the composed guardian, but all of the Mikaelsons had a problem with not being in control. "It is too late for that. If he is here or even close, he will find us. Running will only lead him back to Rebekah and Niklaus."

"So we run the other way," Kol suggested. Panic broke through in his voice, as if the slightly manic look in his eye wasn't evidence enough to how dire the situation was. "We lead him away from them, away from here."

This time, Karena objected. "He would still catch us, and even if he did not he will know there are only three of us here from the villagers. If we do not get to them in time, he will just retrace our steps to kill them."

"Then what?" Kol threw up his hands in exasperation. "What are we supposed to do? Await our deaths and hope he is satisfied with today's catch?"

Karena's eyes widened a moment. "Yes." That was their only option.

The brothers looked at her as if she were mad. Of course, many of times over the decades they had considered the possibility that she might be. She was, after all, with Niklaus. This, however, was a new level of insanity.

"Only one of us has to die tonight."

"Karena," Elijah spoke solemnly, "What are you suggesting?"

"Stall him. Then run and warn the others."

"That would be suicide." Kol pointed out.

Karena's gaze did not waver as it met Elijah's. "Not suicide. Sacrifice."

It was the only way. Elijah knew it the moment she said it, but he didn't want to voice it. Voicing the idea made it real. There was no time to run and no place to hide. Mikael was stronger, faster. He had at least one white oak stake, maybe more. He was the only thing in existence that could kill them, and he was about to start knocking on their door. Someone was going to die tonight. If it wasn't going to be Mikael, the only question was who.

"I will stay." Elijah pulled his arm free from his brother's fist. "Karena take Kol and get to Niklaus and Rebekah as fast as you can. Hopefully Finn has beat us home. Leave everything behind and run east. I will try to draw Mikael west and stall him for as long as I can."

"Elijah," Kol looked shocked. "You cannot be serious."

"She's right, brother. There is no other way."

"No, I refuse to let you..."

Elijah cut his brother off, sensing the impending tirade Kol was about to launch. "I am the head of this family. You and Karena are my responsibility. I swore to keep you safe. If that costs me my life, so be it."

Kol clearly wanted to object. He wanted to insist they stay together. He was sure there had to be a means of escape, but Karena and Elijah both seemed sure in their decision. The determination in their eyes was enough to drain him of all hope. "No, Elijah, we are over a century old. We are not children; you have no responsibility to watch over us as such. You have no responsibility to die for me, nor will I allow you to when it makes the most sense that I stay behind."

"Kol," Elijah practically scoffed at the notion. "No, you cannot."

"Elijah, I am already injured. Even with a distraction, Karena and I would not make it back to warn the family in time." Kol waved a hand to his face. The color had still not returned to his skin, and his hands still trembled with each movement. Before tonight, it had been over five days since he'd drank any blood. His first taste had been poisoned with vervain that still hadn't been flushed from his system, and he'd been stabbed. He was weak, a liability. "It has to be me."

Elijah opened his mouth to argue again, but Karena had heard enough. She'd made up her mind.

"We don't have time for this!" She growled. Karena grabbed Kol, and with a swift flick of her wrist, she snapped his neck.

"Karena!" Elijah shouted in a panic, catching his brother's limp body before it hit the floor.

"Stop, Elijah." Even after a hundred years, Elijah hadn't known Karena was capable of such a tone of authority. "I have made up my mind. Leaving Kol was never an option, but he is right. I would never get to the others fast enough to warn them. Take him and run."

Elijah was still standing still in shock. "Karena."

"Do not come back for my body until it's safe. If it's not safe, do not come back at all." She continued on as if he hadn't interrupted her.

"Karena, no," Elijah reached out with one hand to clutch hers.

In response, Karena only blinked. There was no time for tears, no time for doubts, no time for fear. There was no time at all.

Karena did not want to die. Quite the opposite, she'd been planning to live forever. She'd imagined a small cottage in the countryside of France, some picturesque, untouched valley. She wanted a flat roof, so she could lay out and watch the stars. She wanted a studio with a wide window, somewhere for Niklaus to paint the scenery outside while she played her music. She wanted her family nearby, scattered around the hills, just out of sight but well within reach. She wanted Rebekah to find a man to love her unconditionally. She wanted Finn to find peace with what he'd become. She wanted Elijah to find joy in the little things. She wanted Kol to find a different kind of magic in this new life, and she wanted Niklaus all to herself. She wanted a lot of things for her future, but most of all she wanted her family to be safe, even if she was not there to see it.

"There is no time, Elijah." Her voice was assured, but resigned. Her fate was sealed the moment Kol stepped through that door. Nothing can be truly immortal. Nature would not allow it. This was her time to die. "Save your brother. Take Kol and run."

Elijah looked at her, agape, not sure of what to say. He wanted to stay in her place, but he could see in her eyes that she wasn't willingly leaving. He couldn't save her and Kol. "We cannot lose you. He cannot lose you."

Karena lifted a hand to Elijah's cheek. "And I could not lose any of you."

This was it. A split second decision that would change her life forever, end her life forever. In the story of her life, her death wouldn't even take up a page. It was so simple, so quick. She at least had to make it meaningful.

"Elijah," her face lost all expression as her eyes bore into his. "Promise me you will look after him when I am gone. Promise me you will stand by his side when I cannot. Give me your word. No matter what, as long as you breath, he will not have to face this world alone."

Not if she was gone. When she was gone. Not if she could not. When she could not. Elijah noticed the difference, and Karena knew it. This was a vow he did not want to make. He would gladly pledge his life and his loyalty to Niklaus for Karena. However, such a promise was only necessary if Karena was gone, and a world without Karena might as well be a world without Niklaus. "Are you sure of this, sister? You could still run."

"I have made my decision, Elijah. Now make yours."

Elijah didn't need to make a decision. "Karena, as long as I and my brother live, I will look after him for you. There will always be someone on his side for as long as I have feet to walk beside him, and when I cannot walk any further I will crawl. No matter what path he travels, no matter what sin he commits, no matter what cause he takes, no matter what enemy he faces, no matter what battle he fights. You have my word. I will be with him, and he will never face it alone." He ended his pledge with, "Always and Forever."

Karena's shoulders visibly relaxed. Even in death, Elijah's word was law. A sad smile parted her lips. "My forever ends today. It will be your turn from now on."

"I cannot replace you." Elijah pulled her into his chest with his free arm and held her there as long as he dared. He wanted to drag this moment out forever. It had taken only a few minutes for him to lose one of the most important people in his life. His world, his family, would be forever changed, and he couldn't begin to wonder how much. In all his nightmares of being caught by Mikael, he had never dreamt of this: either he had died alone, or they had all died together. He had never conceptualized living in a world without a piece of his family.

"No one could ever replace me, Elijah," Karena teased only half-heartedly, "and you certainly do not need to. Everyone has their own place, Elijah, just as you have yours, and you will be enough. You will have to be enough."

Elijah wasn't sure she was right, but he had to try. He wouldn't let her death be in vain. Without a goodbye, Elijah took his brother in his arms and disappeared.

On the rare occasion Elijah Mikaelson cried, he cried to Karena. It had only happened twice in his life, but he remembered both occasions vividly. He never cried on her, always sitting in front of her, looking her in the eye as he confessed his deepest emotions to her in a way he had never opened up to his parents, his siblings, or even Tatia. Karena struck the perfect balance between gentle listener and firm foundation. At the end, she would always wipe away his tears before she sent him on his way.

As he carried Kol to safety, Elijah realized he was crying a third time. There was no soft, loving hand to wipe away his tears, just a harsh, cold wind whipping at his cheeks. Karena would never be there to wipe away his tears again; only he was fairly certain this would be the last time he would ever cry.

Karena, on the other hand, did not cry. She did not want to meet death today, but if she must, she would face it head on, and she would go down fighting.

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PrincessMagic: Thank you! Appreciate the review. Let me know what you think of this one. Don't think I laid it on quite as thick, so we'll see how it went.