She heard the back door flung open with a loud crash and she ran as fast she could – not fast enough for a vampires super-speed.

Damon was already outside facing Klaus. Still standing. Still alive. That was good.

She waited. Her heart in her throat.

Damon spoke first, "before you do anything rash. You should know we have your little sis locked away where you can never get to her."

Klaus laughed.

"Are you serious? This is your grand plan? Nothing is inaccessible to me. "

"This place is forever Klaus."

"I am forever. And every lock has a key."

"Good luck finding this one. But until you can, we have a new deal."

Klaus laughed again. Behind him, out of the shadowy woods, figures emerged. His hybrids. His pack. They didn't move like people or like vampires, they seemed to be moving in unison, unnaturally. The same smile on all their lips. She shivered with dread. No one should have this kind of power.

Oh god. Oh my god. Tyler. Tyler was here. She locked eyes with him, she couldn't read his expression from this distance. He truly wasn't on their side. Another friend lost. He looked away from her, but casually, like it didn't even matter.

"And what is this bargain you think you can make with me?"

"It's very simple. Elena's life. The lives of her family and friends. You negate it, you will never get Rebekah back. You know Rebekah found out it was you who killed your mother? You know despite your lies she was still ready to defend your miserable life? She was your favourite wasn't she? The one closest too you. It was a pleasure to wield that dagger through her heart."

The same eerie smile stayed on Klaus's lips, but his eyes narrowed.

Damon continued, "do you really want to bet your lock-picking skills against the possibility of never seeing her again?"

Don't push him too far Damon. Don't unleash his fury.

"You know Damon, I quite like you. You think like me. You move like me. And yes you and that brother of yours have found my Achilles heel, so I'll take your bargain. Congratulations." His tone was sarcastic.

He paused, considering his next words, " I'll take it because I have mastered patience through the centuries, whereas you're the most impulsive little shit I've ever met. And that is your undoing."

Brother of yours have what? Stefan? What the hell was he talking about?

"That and your love for one pathetic little human. Don't get me wrong, she's quite a special little girl to me, but I don't understand your obsession . Did Katarina mess so much with that hot head of yours? Skills passed down through doppelgangers maybe, like some genetic survival pheromone? Granted, Katarina did get to Elijah too, but he was always such a romantic. "

"I'm getting bored of your speech Klaus. Your pack of freaks really adds to the drama of it all, but I couldn't care less. We have our deal?"

"Yes. Yes we have our deal. But once I get my family back – and believe me you will lose in the end – I will make the streets of this town run red with blood. But not you Salvatore's. Oh no. I will take Elena away from you forever. And I will leave you to live with the knowledge that I am torturing her for the rest of her natural life."

Elena held her breath as Damon's hands balled into fists. Salvatore's? He said Salvatore's. Plural. Something about this whole encounter was off. She wasn't understanding some key thing.

"Maybe when she's old and broken in body, mind, and spirit I'll have her turned into a vampire and send her back to you. Have her tell her you all about her long life with me. I had so much fun with Katarina when she was a human. I wonder how eager Elena could become to please me?"

Elena desperately wished she could see Damon's face too, wish she could calm the encroaching storm. He'd been riding the edge for days and Klaus was right – his damn impulsive head could get him killed here.

"Do you think you could drive a stake through her heart then? End her misery? Live the rest of your lives with this terrible guilt?"

"Enough with the rhetorical questions. Leave. Now."

Damon's tone was neutral, almost bored, but a blind man could see the rage rolling off him. His body was tensed and ready to pounce. Ready to die for all the wrong reasons.

"Oh I will be, but not just yet - Elena!"

He called to her in a sweet, sing-song voice and her blood ran cold.

"Elena dear, I can hear your sweet little bird heart rattling behind that door. Come out here child, I won't bite."

She swallowed her panic and complied, slowly.

Damon turned around then. His face…oh god his face, Klaus was wrong – the wrath of hell was in him and he could kill them all even if he ripped himself to shreds in the process.

"Elena!" Damon hissed her name out between gritted teeth.

"Stop. I'm not afraid to look him in the eye. Let him say what he will."

"Get. Back. Inside. NOW."

"I'm not stupid enough to actually leave the doorway."

"NOW!"

"Damon…." What else could she say? She locked eyes with him, pleaded silently, prayed he would step off that edge. Damon look at me, remember what's at stake, please Damon.

Seconds passed that felt like hours. And then he did. She saw it happen. Saw his eyes - narrow slits, hazy with delirium widen just ever so slightly - it was an inch of give on his part. A millimetre. Just enough to return to the borders of sanity, a perilous slope for him on his best day, impossible on his worst. But that little bit of give was enough for now.

Klaus continued in the same syrupy voice, "Elena, dear—"

"- Stop calling me that. Stop talking to me like I'm some fucking imbecile child." she shouted.

"Fine. Here's how it is then. If you can stop being selfish for a moment, you will realize the truth of my words. You have lost. This thing you think you have against me is a temporary setback."

His voice was cold. It was ice that burned through her making her teeth chatter.

"Come to me like a good fucking imbecile child and never see these people again. Never contact them. And I will spare them their worthless lives."

He continued mercilessly, "or continue on this road and I will do as I have promised. You know I will find my family. You know I have already won. Bow out like a graceful loser and stop letting the people you claim you love destroy themselves for you."

She stared up at the sky, the impossibly blue sky. Her mind was in turmoil as she considered his words.

She had already thought this through. But to trust him? To trust Damon to ever stop if she left? He had spent more than a century fighting to release Katherine from that tomb.

She swallowed hard. Her mouth dry. No, he would never stop. None of them would.

She saw everything clearly then and her shaking stopped. Her fear was gone. There was no more room for fear.

She had lost so many people in such a short amount of time, lives that would weigh heavy on her soul for the rest of her life – whatever was left of it.

She so desperately wished time could just stop and freeze them here but it never could. She had put away her childish dreams some time ago, and she hadn't even realized she had done so. Whatever choice she made now, whatever step she took, this thing had been set in motion centuries ago when the first girl like her had been killed to seal the curse. And whatever was going to happen would.

A strange calm settled over her, quieting her mind and racing heart. Elena was not eighteen years old anymore but a thousand, and thousands beyond that.

She felt some stirring of wisdom come up from within her she'd never felt before. The voice of that first ancestor, bled out at the peak of her life; dead but not gone, doomed to be trapped in this cycle forever. That girl was inside of her, and she always had been. And so was Katherine, or that part of her that had died when she made the choice to turn cold and run and keep running - the soul she had forsaken.

Whether she let Klaus take her by the hand and take her away to a life of darkness, or she stayed here with her loved ones and fought, she didn't really have the choice. It had been made for her long ago, long before she was born. Decreed and stamped into her soul or spirit or energy or whatever.

Klaus's unnatural existence would end with her one way or another. She knew this. They would kill him.

She knew all of these things even if she did not understand how she knew them. The way she knew her name, the way she knew the sun would continue to set and rise long after their petty little dramas and lives had ceased to be or matter.

She looked Klaus in the eye, and that look carried with it the weight of centuries of power, eons of power, long before they were and long after they would be.

She said one simple little word, she said it quietly.

"No."

And somehow he understood that some great change had just taken place. It had been seconds only, but to Elena it felt like hours before she had finally spoken.

And with that the weight and guilt of death was taken from her.

Every one of them that died, that she loved, that she hated, that she didn't get the chance to know enough or understand their motivations or their hearts - they were there with her in that split second and then they too departed and she felt a weightlessness she had not felt in forever.

Doppelganger. She was the key. The key to his power. The key to his downfall. Intrinsically she knew this. Somehow she knew! She just hadn't found the lock yet either.

"No."

She smiled. She looked only at Klaus, and for the first time, he looked worried. She continued smiling as a sneer formed on his lips. But the worry would not leave his eyes.

"Never."

She looked at Damon then, his face carried a look of wonder and confusion. Had he felt that ancient power too?

No. That was private. That had been for her alone. She smiled at him.

And just like that, the feeling was gone, that well of ancient wisdom taken away. Gone but not lost.

It was so quiet now.

Something else suddenly dawned on her, something that had been nagging at her through Klaus's cruel words. It suddenly made sense – almost.

"Where is the rest of your family Klaus? You don't have them anymore do you?"

His eyes widened in shock.

She felt like laughing. She felt like jumping up and down like a child without a care or worry.

She did none of those things. Instead she left the safety of the house behind– and that was an illusion anyways - and walked out to meet the monster that had haunted her dreams for months.

Damon was by her side in a second, like she knew he would be. She took his hand and squeezed it, looked up at him, not for reassurance – but to reassure him. He still looked confused, but the anger was gone. It was replaced by fear – fear for her – but she didn't feel afraid in this moment, reckless and stupid of her as it might be.

And he squeezed her hand back.

And I promise I will never leave your side again

His words rose up in her mind and somehow she knew he was thinking of them too. Remembering that night when he had found her being bled dry in a hospital bed.

Hand in hand they walked forward.

We'll survive this. We always survive. Trust me.

"You're going to regret this Elena. Both of you will."

Klaus's words tore her back again to reality.

"You have no idea just how much you will regret this."

And then he was gone. The pack with him. The rustling of leaves in the trees marking their departure back to wherever the hell they would wait and scheme.

She looked back to Damon, her rock. His hand in hers a touchstone, a well of strength – and frustration, and exasperation, and so much hurt and anger – but also love.

"What the hell was that all about?" His familiar smirk. That damned eye thing. She could kiss him.

Instead she hugged him, hugged him hard and long and he hugged her back – something he'd never done before, all those times he had stood there stoically like an idiot and she had tried to comfort him.

Tears filled her eyes, but they were not of despair, they were something akin almost to happiness. They had won something just now. Something she still had no name for, but when she could call it finally by name and bring it to fruition, maybe happiness would not be such a stranger to her.

Despite her current elation, despite this strange feeling that gripped her and brought with it some sort of strange knowledge, she still knew that more fear and more pain and anger were on its way. But not regret. No. Going forward there was no more regret.

"Hey guys…"

They broke from their embrace and turned to see Caroline standing in the doorway. Behind her crowded Bonnie, Jeremy, and Alaric. Elena broke away from Damon and ran to her friends, to her loved ones, and hugged them each fiercely in turn.

It was like she had not seen them in ages, so changed she and the world seemed.

"How long have you guys been here?"

"Oh the whole time. Well right before the point you walked out there to meet Klaus and Bonnie thought she was going to have to use some serious witch mega-power thing-y to stop an all out massacre." Caroline replied, looking at Damon.

"Especially with Restraint-McGee over there riding the killing edge."

No response from Damon. Probably a good thing.

"And what the hell was that anyways? You seemed weird - different somehow. I couldn't see your face, but it's like the air was crackling."

"I don't know." Said Elena hugging her again. "I have no freaking' clue but I feel kinda light-headed now."

She turned to Bonnie who had not spoken yet, a strange light gleamed in her friend's eyes.

"I sensed it too Elena," she said in a low voice. "I don't know what it was, but I felt it and it set my nerves rattling."

Bonnie smiled, "let's get inside. I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm starving, and we have a lot of work ahead of us."

"What else is new?" Elena grimaced.

She linked arms with Bonnie and Caroline and together they walked inside.

Bonnie threw over her shoulder "do you have anything to eat in this mausoleum other then blood bags?"

"I think Elena brought some groceries for herself. Not sure if she knows how to put ingredients together to make food though."

Elena felt her cheeks redden. Stefan had always kept human food for her here before. But after he left, and it become clear he may be gone for a while, she had taken the liberty of bringing in some small groceries of her own for the days and nights spent training or just being with Damon.

She turned and threw him a consternating look but he just smiled innocently. She rolled her eyes and turned back to her friends.

"Elena?" Damon called.

"Yeah?"

"How did you know about the rest of his family?"

She stopped. Frozen in her tracks, disengaged herself from Caroline and Bonnie's arms.

"I don't know," she replied slowly, trying to think. "The things he was saying, the way he was saying them…" she trailed off. "And then I just got this strong feeling. I don't know. That whole thing was weird."

Damon nodded.

"Okay. Let's go get you lot some food. And I desperately need a drink."

"Me too!" squealed Caroline.

"Oh god," replied Bonnie, "I think I can deal with the blood better than the amount of liquor you now consume as par for the course."

They continued on, chatting, allowing themselves a brief respite from their personal and collective fears. It was an immediate understanding that some little bit of normalcy was to be allowed in before the doom continued.

But Elena's mind still raced. How had she known? What other part of the puzzle had they stumbled into and how were they going to make it fit? Damon was quiet. A look of concentration on his face. His mind was wrapped up in the mystery too.

What else did they not know? She brooded over her thoughts. Damon came over and quietly sat down next to her, giving her shoulder a squeeze. Everyone seemed to notice the gesture. She didn't care.

Alaric rifled through the fridge while Jeremy peered over his shoulder.

"Eggs and bread and peanut butter. That's it. And vodka in the freezer." Alaric looked back at them. "I could eat my weight in bacon right now. Or steak and eggs"

Jeremy laughed, "yeah me too. Any places deliver breakfast? Hey Damon, can you compel over the telephone?"

"I wish. I'd never have to leave the house for blood anymore."

Elena playfully punched him in the shoulder, "that's just gross!"

Alaric sighed. "Eggs and bread it is."

"And peanut butter sandwiches," Jeremy chimed in. "Hey sis, did you stash bananas anywhere?"

"Unfortunately, no."

"Bananas? Now that's just gross" Damon said.

"Whaaat?" Elena said in mock horror.

The frivolity of banter couldn't last.

"Did you see him out there?" Caroline said quietly. She meant Tyler of course.

"Oh God please save this talk for your next girly slumber party. I can't handle it right now."

Damon got up and left the room before Caroline could reply. Elena watched him leave, worried.

"I think everyone's emotions are a bit on edge right now." Said Jeremy uncomfortably.

"Yeah no kidding." Elena got up.I'm not that hungry.I need a got up and left the room.

"I need to get back to the grimoires," Bonnie added. "I need to find a spell that will prevent anyone, even under compulsion from getting Rebekah out of those caves."

"I'll come with you," Caroline said.

"I could help you too," Jeremy said quietly.

"No. Thanks." Bonnie's reply was cold. "Caroline let's go."

"Let's head back to Duke, Jer. We need to keep researching. I think there's something we're still overlooking."

Jeremy looked at Alaric gratefully.

"Alaric," Bonnie called, "look into doppelgangers."

Alaric nodded. They both got up and left first, leaving the girls in the kitchen.

"I'm so sorry about Tyler."

"Yeah me too." Caroline looked down. "We needed him on our side."

"He still might be," Bonnie said.

"I can't hope for that. Look at Stefan."

Bonnie sighed, "yeah I guess you're right. He betrayed all of us, especially Elena and Damon. Not that I particularly care about that dicks feelings. Let's go."

They got up and left the room in silence, each one burdened with her own jumble of thoughts and emotions. Bonnie's mind was troubled most of all by that weird spike of energy that had gone through Elena when she faced Klaus.

What was that?

Her senses had become so accustomed to energies and changes in the natural world. But that had felt like a razor stroking every nerve in her body. Everyone else had felt something too, even if the effect had been muted for them.

Vampires and werewolves and hybrids and witches and doppelgangers.

Oh my.

Doppelganger. Why and what did the original witch intend? They had been spending all their efforts looking for a weapon to kill Klaus. What if that weapon was right under their noses?

Their real work was just beginning. She only hoped each of her friends was left standing at the end of this.