Petrova Lineage

by JasonMorganfan87

Summary:

This is a rewrite to my story ‘Heritage’. Desperate to find out why she’s destined to die at Klaus’ hand, Elena tries to learn all she can about her family background and her doppelganger lineage. What she finds shocks her to her core. How will her relationship with the Mikaelson’s change when she finds out she’s one of them?

Notes:

This is a rewrite to ‘Heritage’ For those of you that read the first version, while the first chapter is very similar to the first version, the story will quickly change course in the following chapters, as I wasn’t too happy with the way the story came out.

Chapter 1

Elena was seated at her kitchen table glancing over some documents that Alaric gave her from Isobel. She was currently looking at her family tree. It documented her family going back centuries. Katherine was even listed there. When Alaric had first brought her this stuff, shortly after he found out Isobel was her mother, she had no real interest in it. She just threw it in her closet and forgot about it because it was right after she’d met Isobel, and her emotions were really raw about it. She didn’t really want to know much else about Isobel. However, after learning everything she knew about being a doppelganger and about Klaus wanting to sacrifice her to end the sun and moon curse, she decided to look the things Alaric brought in hopes that Isobel knew something that she didn’t.

There was soon a knock at the door. Then Caroline’s voice could be heard. “Elena!”

“Kitchen!” Elena called without looking up from what she was doing. She was examining a family tree that she found in the box of Isobel’s things.

Bonnie and Caroline came into the room moments later. “Hey. We’re going to be late,” Caroline said.

“Right, sorry. I got distracted,” Elena said. Caroline was giving both her and Bonnie a ride to school. Elena’s car was being repaired, and Bonnie was in between cars at the moment.

Bonnie peered over her friend’s shoulder to take a look at what she was looking at. “Is that a family tree?”

“Yeah, mine, on Isobel’s side. Ric gave it to me, along with a bunch of other things of hers,” Elena said.

“I didn’t know you were interested in learning about that side of your family,” Caroline said.

“I wasn’t, until I found out that because of my lineage, I’m supposed to be a sacrifice to help the first vampire to ever be created. If I’m going to die, I’d like to know exactly why,” Elena said. She knew about the sun and moon curse, but she didn’t know why it had to be her or why she was a doppelganger.

“You’re not going to die. We will stop Klaus,” Bonnie said.

Elena didn’t argue the point. She didn’t think that they’d stop Klaus, and she didn’t want to try, given what happened to Katherine’s family when she tried, but she didn’t want to argue about it. “I just want to know why me.”

“But we know that already. You’re a doppelganger,” Caroline said.

“Yeah, I’ve done a little research. The blood of a doppelganger is very powerful,” Bonnie said.

“I understand that, but it has to have something to do with my family line, right? I mean, Klaus went after Katherine too. It’s our family line that has to break the sun and moon curse. I want to know why. It also means there had to be at least one more person in my family with my face. Katherine was a doppelganger too. That’s why Klaus needed to use her. Someone else had to have had the face first. I’d just like some answers. Unfortunately, this family tree only seems to go back as far as Katherine’s parents. I guess that is pretty impressive, given that she’s over five hundred years old, but I was hoping for more,” Elena said.

“Well, if this is really important to you, we’ll help you find out all we can. Right now, we have to go to school though,” Bonnie said.

“You’re right. Let me just go put this away,” Elena said before picking up the family tree and rolling it up.

“Hey, why isn’t Stefan picking you up today?” Caroline wondered.

“I asked him not to. I love him, but he’s been hovering a lot since we found out about Klaus. I just needed him to back off a little. I’ll be right back,” Elena said before heading up to her room.

 

Xxxxxxxxxxx

 

A few days later, Elena, Caroline, and Bonnie were all in Elena’s room going through the contents of Isobel’s things. Bonnie and Caroline had been helping Elena go through it every day since they found out what she was doing.

“Wow, Isobel had a lot of stuff, and a lot of it had to do with vampires,” Caroline said. There were a lot of books about vampires. There was some stuff on other creatures too, but mostly vampires.

“Yeah, Ric said she was pretty much obsessed. That’s why she had Damon turn her,” Elena said.

“Do you think she knew that Katherine, her ancestor, was a vampire?” Caroline asked.

“Probably. Maybe that’s what triggered her to want to become one,” Elena said.

“Maybe you should ask Isobel about all this heritage stuff. We could find her, and you could talk to her. It would probably be easier than trying to find out through all this stuff here, assuming she knows,” Bonnie said.

“No. Even if she would answer my questions, I couldn’t trust anything she says. At least whatever she’s got here would be somewhat believable. I don’t trust Isobel and I won’t bring her back here,” Elena said firmly. One meeting with that woman was more than she ever needed. She’d kidnapped her brother and threatened to kill him if she didn’t do what she said. She didn’t need a woman like that in her life.

“Okay,” Bonnie said. She could understand that. Isobel did some damage the last time she was around.

“Hey, I might have something. It looks like you and Isobel have something in common. She kept a journal," Caroline told Elena before bringing it over to her.

Elena sifted through the pages until she found something that she decided was interesting. “It’s not exactly a journal, more like a notepad. I can’t understand a lot of it, but this entry references Katherine.”

Both girls peered at what their friend had found. “It references her as Katerina Petrova. She knew her real name,” Bonnie said.

Elena flipped through the pages some more until she found something else. “Look. Mystic Falls, 1864. That’s when Katherine met Damon and Stefan. There are other dates and places too.”

“She tracked Katherine’s past movements. It looks like she tracked her for years. She was obsessed with Katherine.

Caroline, meanwhile, started looking some more into the box of Isobel’s things. “Hey, I think I found something else. It looks like another family tree, only not as old. This one looks like Isobel might have done it herself. It references Klaus.”

Elena immediately took the offered paper from her friend and examined it. It had many names on it, but the beginning seemed to be Klaus, Elijah, and a woman named Tatia. “Elijah’s here as well, right next to Tatia and Klaus, and names of descendants trickle down from there. There’s a slash between Elijah and Klaus, like Isobel didn’t know which one of them had a child with this woman, Tatia. She also put the word ‘brothers’ off to the side with a question mark.

“Klaus and Elijah are brothers. I thought Rose said that Elijah was basically a henchman,” Bonnie said.

“She could’ve been wrong.”

“How did she find all this out when even vampires don’t seem to know much about Klaus? And why didn’t Alaric tell us about this?” Caroline asked.

“He might not have seen it, and even if he did, he probably didn’t understand what he was looking at. He might have put it out of his mind. As for Isobel, she was a researcher, and she was obsessed with the supernatural. She could have found out on her own or found a vampire or a witch that knew all this,” Elena said.

Bonnie looked closely at the piece of paper in Elena’s hands. She pointed to a name. “The last name Petrova is mentioned halfway down this tree. Hey, where’s that other family tree?”

Caroline looked at the papers sprawled out on Elena’s bed. She found the one she was looking at and handed it to Bonnie.

Bonnie took it and the one Elena had. She put them both on the bed and put them together, one in front of the other. “I think this is all connected. Klaus and Elijah’s family tree becomes Isobel’s… and yours, Elena.

Elena examined the whole thing, starting with Tatia, who seemed to have had a child with either Klaus or Elijah, and going all the way down to herself. She gasped and looked up at her friends in shock. “That would mean…”

“It would mean that your bloodline can be traced all the way back to the original vampires,” Bonnie said.

Caroline looked at her friend in shock. “It means that you’re related to Klaus.”

Chapter 2

A few days past since Elena discovered Isobel’s theory that they were related to the original vampires. Elena tried to forget about it in that time. She tried to tell herself that it was an insane theory from a woman who was obsessed with vampires, but she just couldn’t get it out of her head. If Isobel was crazy, how did she come up with all those names on that family tree. She didn’t pull them out of thin air.

Elena had actually considered Bonnie’s idea to talk to Isobel, but she really didn’t want to do that. Isobel had done a lot of damage the last time she was in Mystic Falls. However, there was one other person who might know the truth. Well, aside from Elijah, and there was no way, shape or form that was going to ask him about this. The other option was Katherine. Elena didn’t exactly want to speak to Katherine either, but at least Katherine was locked in the tomb, so she couldn’t do any damage.

Elena approached the entrance of the tomb, although, she of course, stayed outside it. “Katherine?”

Katherine arrived moment later. “Back again, huh? What do you want? Is the reality of your impending death setting in?”

“Did you know?” Elena asked.

Katherine smirked. “I know a lot of things. Did I know what?”

“About the Originals. Did you know that they were the beginning of our bloodline?” Elena asked.

Katherine raised an eyebrow in surprise. She wasn’t surprised by the information itself, just that the little doppelganger knew about it. “Huh. So, Isobel told you.”

“So, you did know,” Elena surmised.

“Not at first, obvious. I thought they were human when I met them. It certainly would’ve changed my interactions with them if I knew,” Katherine said. She’d seduced Klaus in an attempt to gain power and money from his wealth. Technically, it wasn’t incest, since they were so many centuries apart, but it was still creepy to think about. “I found out the same way you did, through Isobel. I thought she was crazy at first, but she showed me her research.”

Elena gulped. If Katherine was to be believed, it was true. Of course, she wasn’t certain she did believe Katherine, but his combined with Isobel’s family tree made it hard to refute. “How was she able find out so much after so long.”

“You’d be surprised how much information there is out there. If you know the right place to look, you can find things out going back to the dawn of time. And Isobel knew where to look. The only thing she couldn’t determine was which one it was, Klaus or Elijah, not that it matters. Oh, don’t tell me you’re hoping to use this information to save your pathetic life. Do you think that Klaus is going to abandon a plan he’s had for more than five hundred years because you might have a few strands of DNA in common?” Katherine asked in a mocking tone.

“Why would I think that. You and I also have those same strands of DNA in common, and you still wanted to hand me over to be executed,” Elena said. She wasn’t naïve. She knew this changed nothing for Klaus, not even half of the things she’d heard about him were true. She wasn’t trying to save herself. She just wanted to know about her own history.

Katherine shrugged uncaringly. “It’s nothing personal. Well, maybe it is a little personal. Stefan’s mine. I have no intention of sharing him with some cheap imitation of me. But mostly, I did it to save myself. You would’ve done the same thing.”

“No, I wouldn’t have,” Elena said.

“Then you’re an idiot.”

“It’s called not being a selfish bitch,” Elena said coolly.

Katherine growled and was about to say something back when she noticed a presence behind Elena. She physically recoiled.

Noticing the change in Katherine’s demeanor, Elena turned around. She found herself face to face with Elijah. “Elijah.”

“Elena, would you mind coming with me please?” Elijah asked. While he was polite, his tone made it clear that it was not a request.

Elena nodded and followed him away from the tomb. “Were you following me.”

“No. I saw your car from the road. Elena, it was not wise to come here,” Elijah told her as he led her further away from the tomb and Katerina.

“I’m fine. Katherine can’t leave the tomb, and I’m not stupid enough to go inside,” Elena said.

“That isn’t what I meant. Katerina is extremely manipulative. I would hate for you to fall victim to that,” Elijah said.

“I’m not going to run, if that’s what you’re afraid of. I’m not like her. I will never put my loved ones in jeopardy to save myself,” Elena said. They stopped walking as soon as they made it to her car.

“Yes, so I gathered that from the tail end of your conversation,” Elijah said as he turned to her. He’d arrived just as Elena told Katerina that she would not sacrifice someone else to save herself, even Katerina. “May I ask why you felt the need to speak with Katerina?”

Elena hesitated, but she figured if she didn’t want Elijah to be suspicious, she should tell him something. “I had questions.”

“About the ritual?” Elijah asked.

“No. That’s pretty much been explained. I have to die to break the curse. I wanted to know about doppelgangers, about the Petrova line. If I’m going to die for some stupid curse, I at least want to know why it has to be me,” Elena said. That much was true. That was why she’d looked at Isobel’s stuff to begin with. It just so happened that it spiraled into something more.

Elijah raised an eyebrow. “What makes you think you’re going to die?”

“I’m not an idiot, Elijah. I know how careful you are when you speak. That’s why Rose walked away after making a deal with you and Trevor didn’t. You promised to protect my friends and family. You never promised to protect me,” Elena said.

Elijah smirked. “Smart girl.”

“I can live with how this ends, so to speak. I will gladly die to protect the people I love, but that doesn’t mean I’m okay with it. It doesn’t mean I don’t want to understand why. I want to know why it has to be me. Why does it have to be my family line. Is it just bad luck or is it more complicated than that?” Elena asked. She wasn’t really asking Elijah. She wasn’t sure he even knew. She was just speaking her questions out load. She wondered if it was her line because they descended from the first vampires. Was that the reason only her bloodline could break their curse? Of course, that didn’t explain the whole doppelganger thing.

Elijah sighed. He hadn’t been planning to tell her any more than she already knew, but she made a good point. She was willing to die. The least she deserved was to know why such a purpose fell on her. Of course, he also hadn’t told her yet that he had a way for her to live. Before he considered giving her the elixir, he wanted to check with his witches to see if it was even still viable. “The doppelganger curse as existed as long as vampires have. The blood of a human woman was used to create vampires. That, in turn, created doppelgangers of that same woman.”

“Is that why only a Petrova doppelganger can be used to end the sun and moon curse? Because the first doppelganger was used to create vampires?” Elena asked.

“You’re almost right. It’s because her blood was also used to create the curse Klaus wants to break. Also, doppelganger blood is very powerful. It has magical properties; hence it is an ingredient in a lot of dark spells,” Elijah explained.

“Who was the woman? The one who was used to create vampires?” Elena asked. She couldn’t drop Tatia’s name. Then Elijah would know that she knew more than she should.

“What makes you think I know?” he asked.

“Because you were one of the first vampires, you and your brother,” Elena said.

Elijah raised an eyebrow in surprise. “I gather Katerina told you that. Why do you want to know about a woman who died centuries before you were born.”

“Because technically, she’s my family, isn’t she? I wouldn’t exist if she hadn’t. I’m curious,” Elena said. Also, she was hoping to figure out for certain if Elijah or Klaus fathered a child with her. She might be able to tell by the way Elijah talked about her.

“Her name was Tatia. She was a very kind woman who lived in our village. You remind me a bit of her,” Elijah said.

“I look just like her,” Elena pointed out.

“Perhaps, but you look exactly like Katerina as well, and you are nothing like her,” Elijah said.

“Thank you,” Elena said. She would definitely take that as a compliment.

“As I said, Tatia was very kind. She didn’t deserve what happened to her,” Elijah said. He had never forgiven his mother for what she did to Tatia. He never would.

“You sound like you cared about her,” Elena commented. She saw the pain in his eyes as he spoke about her. It just made her suspect even more that it was true.

“It was a different time. Have I answered all of your questions?” Elijah asked, eager to move on. He’d already said more than he’d ever intended.

Elena nodded. He’d answered all the questions she was prepared to ask right now. If she pushed further, he might get suspicious. She wasn’t prepared to tell him what she found out. Elijah was kind to her, but she barely knew him, and truthfully, she doubted it would make a difference to him. “Thank you for answering my question.”

“Of course. Elena, I would prefer that your friends not know about my connection to Klaus, or about anything else I’ve told you,” Elijah said.

“I won’t tell anyone,” Elena assured him before getting in her car. She drove away as soon as he stepped away from her car.

Chapter 3

Elena stared down at Elijah shortly after being forced to dagger him. She hated that she daggered him, but she wasn’t given a choice. Elijah had shown up at the lake house to take her away after Damon had Ric dagger him. She had managed to convince Elijah to reinstate their deal after stabbing herself as part of their ploy. For a split second, she wanted to leave it that. She knew Elijah would keep his word. However, Damon and Stefan wouldn’t. They were going to try again, and Elijah was only going to tolerate that for so long. Elena had to choose between the Salvatores and Elijah, and at least Elijah would be okay once the dagger was removed. She could remove it before the sacrifice.

Elena was angry that she was put in this position. Everything was good. Well, considering the fact that she would die soon, it was good. She’d made her deal with Elijah. He was going to protect her friends and family. Then Stefan and Damon had to take matters into their own hands. Now, she had been forced to dagger someone who had been kind to her, most likely a member of her own family. That made her feel angry and guilty.

“Are you okay?” Stefan asked as he put a hand on her shoulder.

Elena shook his hand off of her before turning to him and glaring. “No, Stefan, I’m not okay. I’m pissed off! You and your brother put me in a terrible position tonight.”

“I know. I’m sorry you got hurt,” Stefan said.

“You think that’s why I’m angry? This is why I’m angry!” Elena said as she pointed to the body on the floor of her lake house living room. “This shouldn’t have happened! I had to put a dagger in his heart to protect the two of you!”

“Hey, I didn’t know if I removed the dagger he’d wake up,” Damon said from a few feet away.

Elena turned and stared at him incredulously. “Seriously? There is something wrong with you on a fundamental level if you think that the problem is that you took the dagger out! You should’ve left him alone! I made a deal!”

“Elena, he was going to lead you to your death. We were protecting you,” Stefan said.

“I didn’t want your protection! If you had told me about this asinine plan before you went through with it, I would’ve told you that. I told you earlier, I knew what I was getting into. This was the deal I made. I help Elijah stop Klaus and he protects my loved ones. I knew I wouldn’t survive it,” Elena said.

“Well, then you’re an idiot, and we just saved you saved you from yourself,” Damon said.

Elena gave him a withering glare. “Get out, both of you.”

“Elena,” Stefan started in disbelief.

“Go. I don’t want to see either of you right now,” Elena said. She was furious. If they stayed, she was going to say something she’d regret later.

“Whatever. Call us when you’ve gotten over yourself,” Damon said before walking forward and bending down to grab Elijah.

“Don’t. Leave him,” Elena told him. She wasn’t letting them take him. This man was more than likely a member of her family, and despite the fact that she barely knew him, that mattered to her. She wasn’t going to trust him to people she knew would’ve killed him permanently if they could.

“We’re going to take him back to the boarding house,” Stefan said.

“No, you’re not. He stays here,” Elena said.

“No way in hell! You’re not taking that dagger out,” Damon said with authority.

“If I wanted to take the dagger out, I wouldn’t have put it in. But I’m not giving him to you either. For all I know, you’d throw him to the bottom of the option. Not gonna happen,” Elena said firmly.

“If you’re not going to take the dagger out, why do you care?” Stefan asked in confusion. He didn’t understand why she was so upset. He got that she didn’t like daggering Elijah, but she was acting like they’d daggered her brother or her father or something. This man was a stranger who wanted to get her killed. She shouldn’t care what happened to him.

“I put that dagger in his chest. I’m responsible for him. Now leave. Don’t fight me on this, Stefan. I’m already not happy with you. You don’t want to make that worse,” Elena warned.

Stefan reluctantly nodded. “Come on, Damon.”

“Are you kidding me?” Damon asked, sounding pissed.

“Drop it, Damon. Let’s go,” Stefan said before walking to the door.

Damon scowled at Elena but followed his brother out of the house.

Elena waited until she heard them drive away before dropping to her knees next to Elijah. “I’m sorry. You were kind to me. You answered my questions when you didn’t have to. You didn’t deserve this. I’m really sorry.”

 

Xxxxxxxxxx

 

A couple of hours later, Elena was still at the lake house. She was sitting on the couch. She’d moved Elijah’s body to the shed and locked it up tight. She put him there because it was a separate entity from the house. No vampire could get in without her permission, not even Stefan and Damon, since she hadn’t invited either of them into it. He would be safe until she figured what happened next.

Elena soon heard a knock at the door. She sighed as she got up to answer it. She swore, if it was the Salvatores, she would be livid. She was surprised to see that it wasn’t though. When she opened the door, she found Caroline there. “Caroline, what are you doing here?”

“Stefan called. He said that you were really upset and asked me to check on you. He said you weren’t talking to him,” Caroline said.

“Come in,” Elena said before stepping aside to let her in.

Caroline smiled at her friend and walked inside.

Elena shut the door and led the way to the couch, where they both sat down. “Did Stefan tell you what happened tonight?”

Caroline nodded. “He said you daggered Elijah, which incapacitates him as long as the dagger stays in.”

“I didn’t have a choice. Stefan and Damon provoked Elijah, and they weren’t going to stop provoking him. Daggering him was the only way I could protect them,” Elena said.

“Stefan said that Elijah was planning on handing you over to Klaus,” Caroline said.

“That was the deal I made with Elijah. My life for the lives everyone I care about,” Elena said.

“Why would you do that?” Caroline asked in horror.

“Because I can’t lose anyone else! Caroline, do you know what it’s like to have the people you love die virtually right in front of you? I can’t do that again,” Elena said as her voice started to break.

Caroline closed her eyes sadly. She knew Elena still carried guilt for the deaths of her parents, even though she shouldn’t. She would probably carry it with her forever. Caroline could understand where she was coming from it. If it came down to her or her mother, she’d give up her life too. “Maybe there’s another way. Have you ever considered telling Elijah what you’ve learned about your family history?”

Elena shook her head. “I can’t do that.”

“Why not? It might matter to him. It clearly matters to you. You wouldn’t be this upset about daggering a virtual stranger if it didn’t matter,” Caroline said.

“You’re right. It does matter to me. Maybe it shouldn’t with so many centuries between us, but it does. It might matter to Elijah too. In the few minutes he spoke to me about Tatia, it was clear to me that he loved her. If he conceived a child with her which eventually led to me, he might care about me. And that’s why I can never tell him,” Elena said. She actually had thought about it over the last few days. It only strengthened her resolve to make sure Elijah never knew.

“I don’t understand. He could stop the sacrifice,” Caroline said.

“Exactly. That would put everyone I love in danger, because while he might care, after everything I’ve heard, I’m certain that Klaus won’t. If Elijah interferes with the sacrifice, Klaus will kill everyone I love. I can’t do it. I can’t take the risk,” Elena told her.

“So, you’re just going to die?” Caroline asked with a shudder.

“I don’t want to die, Caroline. I don’t, but I have to protect my family. If I lost Jeremy and Jenna, it would crush me. I might as well be dead then,” Elena cried.

Caroline pulled her friend into her arms. “We’re going to figure this out. No matter what, you’re not going to lose anyone else.

Elena nodded and let her friend hold her as she cried. It had been a very emotional day. Hell, it had been a very emotional week.

Chapter 4

Elena exited Stefan’s car when they arrived at school after they’d switched the deed of the boarding house to her name. Weeks had passed since she daggered Elijah. She was on speaking terms with the Salvatores again, though things were strained. Actually, she should say she was on speaking terms with Stefan. Damon she only spoke to when necessary. He showed no remorse for what he’d forced her to do. Stefan showed some at least, although she was fairly certain he was only sorry that he’d put her in the position to have to be the one to dagger Elijah, not that he was actually daggered. Still, it was something at least. Damon continued to refer to her as stupid any time she got mad about it, and she was over that. He also continued to pressure her to give him Elijah’s body, which would never happen.

“I’m just saying that maybe Damon’s right. With Klaus almost certainly on his way to town, we should put Elijah someplace safe,” Stefan said.

“I’m not giving you Elijah, Stefan. Stop asking,” Elena said firmly.

“Why? Why do you want to hold onto him so badly. I know you feel bad about daggering him, but this man is not your friend. What are you going to do with him anyway? Are you going to remove the dagger?” Stefan asked.

“When the time comes, yes. I’m not going to leave without waking him up,” Elena said.

Stefan sighed. “I wish you’d stop saying that. You’re not going anywhere. We will stop Klaus.”

“And I wish you’d stop talking like that, but here we are,” Elena said.

“You know, we might be able to get somewhere with Klaus if we had Elijah as leverage. I know he’s just a foot soldier, but he’s one Klaus clearly trusted. It’s worth a try,” Stefan said.

Elena scoffed at the very suggestion. Even if Elena was willing to use Elijah like that, it wouldn’t make a difference to Klaus. Klaus and Elijah no longer spoke. Elijah wanted Klaus dead. There was clearly no love lost between the brothers. Klaus wasn’t going to stop the ritual for him. “It’s not worth anything. Klaus isn’t going to abandon his quest to break a curse he’s been dead set on breaking for more than five hundred years for anyone. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to be late.”

Stefan sighed and followed her as she headed towards the school.

 

Xxxxxxxxxxx

 

Klaus had been planning to lay low. That was why he took control of Alaric Saltzman’s body. It allowed him to see what his doppelganger and her little friends were up to without letting them know it was him. He also intended to mess with them a little bit. However, he hit a bit of snag. According to Katerina, the doppelganger was the only one who knew where Elijah was. She wouldn’t even tell her vampire boyfriends. That was a problem. After all, he couldn’t very well let her go to her death without finding out where his brother was.

Klaus decided that he would use his persona as her beloved teacher to try to get her to tell him first. However, if that didn’t work, he would have to force the information out of her. Hopefully, she’d cooperate. He wasn’t ready to reveal himself yet.

He waited until his class with her was over, which was thankfully the first class of the day. As everyone was leaving, he called out to her. “Elena, could you stay back for a second?”

“Sure, Ri… Mr. Saltzman,” Elena said.

Klaus watched as Stefan hesitated before leaving. Elena had to motion for him to leave. Honestly, Stefan needed a hobby. His obsession with a teenaged girl was a little troubling.

Elena approached her teacher’s desk. “Is everything okay, Ric.”

“Yeah, I just wanted to check in with you. How are you doing?” Alaric asked.

“You mean now that Klaus’ arrival is imminent. I’m fine. It’s not like I wasn’t expecting this,” Elena said.

“Right, of course. Well, try not to worry about it too much. You should just continue living your life,” Klaus said.

“That was my plan. I’m not hiding from this man. I won’t give him that satisfaction,” Elena said firmly.

Klaus nearly raised an eyebrow in surprise, but he kept his face impartial. “Good for you. About this whole Klaus thing, I was wondering what you were planning to do about Elijah.”

Elena huffed in irritation. “Oh, for God’s sake! Not you too! I don’t know how many times I have to say this! Do I need to learn a foreign language and say it in that?”

“What?” Klaus asked caught off-guard.

“I am not giving Elijah to Damon! Get that through his head please! He and Stefan have been pestering me about it for weeks. Hell, I know he broke into my lake house to try to take him back. I’m not telling you or anyone else where he is” Elena said firmly. One of her neighbors had called a week ago and mentioned that they saw someone leaving her property. She’d had to tell them he had her permission. He hadn’t checked the shed though, not that it mattered. He wouldn’t be able to get in.

Klaus was surprised by the ferociousness with which the girl spoke. Why did she care so much about holding onto his brother. What did she want with him? “Hey, I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m just confused about why you want him so badly. Are you planning to use Elijah to get out of the sacrifice?”

“You’re the second person to suggest I do that today. No, Ric. I’m not naïve enough to think Klaus cares enough about Elijah or anyone else to do that,” Elena said.

Klaus was ready to rip the girl’s throat out right now. Who was she to tell him that he didn’t care about his brother. Sure, Elijah annoyed him, and he’d probably leave him daggered for a while, but he loved his family. “You don’t think Klaus cares about his brother?”

Elena frowned a little. She never told Ric that Elijah and Klaus were brothers, and she knew neither Bonnie nor Caroline had. They’d promised her they wouldn’t. How the hell did he know that. Something was off, but something told her it wasn’t a good idea to confront him about it. “Elijah turned on Klaus for a reason. If he thinks Klaus doesn’t care about anything, I have no reason to doubt him.

“I see. So, what do you hope to gain by holding Elijah?” Klaus asked.

“Nothing. I am not trying to use Elijah for anything, but I’m not going to let anyone else use him either. He doesn’t deserve that,” Elena said.

Klaus blinked in surprise. “You care about him?”

Elena was becoming more and more suspicious of her teacher. He seemed to be fishing for information. She wondered if he was compelled, but she was fairly certain he took vervain. “What is it that you’re trying to get out of me, Ric? What are you after?”

“I’m just trying to figure out what you’re planning?” Klaus said.

“I’m not planning anything. I’m more than likely going to be dead by the next full moon. The only thing I want is to make sure the people I love don’t die too,” Elena said.

“You’ll really sacrifice your life that easily?” Klaus asked. Katerina had told her that the girl was ready to die to protect her lived once, but he hadn’t quite believed her. After all, she was kin to Katerina, and the older doppelganger would see out anyone to save herself. “You know, I don’t know how anyone could confuse you for Katherine. Despite your looks, you’re nothing alike. She would sell out her loved ones in a minute. Hell, the two of you are technically family, and she sold you out.”

“I know. That’s how I know it wouldn’t make a difference,” Elena said under her breath.

Klaus frowned, having heard her. “What wouldn’t make a difference.”

“Nothing. I have to go. I’m already late,” Elena said before hastily heading for the door.

Klaus watched her leave with an unsettled look on his face. The girl was hiding something, and that didn’t sit well with him. It wouldn’t do for him to continue with the sacrifice without knowing what she was hiding. He’d waited too long for this to let anything ruin it. It was time for another chat with Katerina. She’d obviously left something out when telling him about Elena.

 

Xxxxxxxxxxx

 

Klaus walked into Alaric Saltzman’s apartment in time to see Katerina stab herself again. He smiled at the sight. “You can stop now.”

Katherine sighed in relief and dropped the knife.

Klaus approached her and sat down on the couch. “I had a little chat with my doppelganger today. I got the feeling she was hiding something from me, which means, so did you.”

“I told you everything you needed to know, everything about her life and her family and friends. If she’s hiding something from you, I don’t know what it is,” Katherine said. That, of course, wasn’t true. She didn’t tell him they were both technically related to him, but he didn’t need to know that for the sacrifice, and she didn’t want him to know. She could only imagine the ways he’d torture her with that knowledge.

“Maybe, maybe not. We’ll see shortly. Why is Elena holding onto Elijah’s body?” Klaus asked. He obviously had to ask direct questions. She was finding ways around his compulsion.

“The Salvatores think it’s guilt for daggering him.

Klaus got up and stood in front of her. He bent down so that they were eye to eye. “And what do you think?”

“She does feel guilty,” Katherine said as she shifted uncomfortably. She was avoiding completely answering him.

Klaus roughly grabbed her chin. “You’re trying my patience, Katerina. What is Elena keeping from the teacher and her little friends? And why does she care what happens to Elijah?”

Katherine gulped, not because he was threatening her, but because he asked the right question, and she couldn’t get around the compulsion. “Because our bloodline, the Petrova bloodline, stems from his, from yours.”

Chapter 5

Klaus had never been so floored, not in the one thousand years he’d been alive. He had his guesses on why Elena Gilbert might care for Elijah. On the top of his list was the possibility that they might have had an affair. However, this was not even in the realm of possibilities to him. It still wasn’t. “What did you just say?”

“You heard me,” Katherine said, not wanting to say it again.

“Repeat it!” Klaus ordered.

“Elena is protecting Elijah from her friends because she found out that they come from the same family line,” Katherine told him again.

Klaus was silent for a minute. Then he let her go and took a step back. “And what would lead her to believe that.”

“I’m not entirely sure, but I’m guessing that her mother, Isobel told her. She came to the tomb days before Elijah was daggered and asked me about it,” Katherine said.

“Mmm. No doubt a lie that you spread,” Klaus said. As he said that though, he had his doubts. If this was a lie Katerina had made up to save herself, why wouldn’t she have used it by now? Keeping quiet after he kidnapped her made no sense. However, the alternative was impossible. The only connection he had to the Petrova line, other than his curse, of course, was a fling he’d had with the first doppelganger a thousand years ago.

Katherine scoffed. “Me? I couldn’t make this up in my wildest dreams. I didn’t want you to know this anymore than Elena did. As if I needed to give you anything else to torture me with.”

“Tell me exactly what you know,” Klaus ordered.

Katherine sighed. “I met Isobel a couple of years ago. She’d been searching for me since she became a vampire. I was impressed that she managed to find me. Not even you managed that.”

“Get to the point!” Klaus snapped impatiently.

“She told me about all this research she did of our family line. She said it could be traced back to another doppelganger and a pair of brothers. I didn’t believe her at first, but she showed me her research. You or Elijah fathered a child with a woman named Tatia Petrova. From there, we all descended. It appears we’re more connected than even you thought, Klaus,” Katherine said.

Klaus glared at her. “You’re spewing lies! Tatia had one child, fathered by her dead husband!”

“Not according to what Isobel found out. There was a second child. And why would I lie? I was never going to tell you this. Elena was never going to tell you. Even that weak bleeding heart knew it wouldn’t make a difference to you. Yet somehow it does to her. She held onto Elijah because of some blood bond that would barely exist after this many centuries. She’s pathetic,” Katherine drawled. Frankly, the sudden protectiveness over Elijah only made Elena more pathetic to her. She found it stupid that her doppelganger felt some kind of connection to someone who was barely related to her, and it wasn’t like Elijah would return the favor.

“Shut up!” Klaus snapped. He needed to think. He wanted to believe this was a lie, but there were certain things that he couldn’t refute. He slept with Tatia. He knew Elijah had to. If there had been a second child, it was very possible that he or his brother were the father. He remembered Tatia disappearing for quite a while, long enough for her to complete a pregnancy and give birth without anyone knowing. She didn’t come back with an infant, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t one. “Do you have proof of this?”

“No, but what does it matter. It’s not like you actually care. You know what Elena is hiding now. It’s nothing that will interfere with your plans. Being her great grandfather or great uncle many times removed doesn’t mean anything,” Katherine said.

Katerina was wrong. If she was telling the truth, it changed everything for Klaus. There were not many things he considered himself above, but killing his own blood was one of them. Sure, he’d killed his mother, but that was a complicated situation. She’d forsaken him first, and he hadn’t actually meant to kill her. He’d done it in a fit of rage. He couldn’t kill this girl if she was his blood. Family meant something to him. He might dagger them at times, but he would never permanently kill a family member if it wasn’t necessary. Hell, if this was true, it even changed his plans for Katerina. To what extent, he didn’t yet know, but he couldn’t torture her for centuries if she was related to him.

Of course, Klaus was not prepared to give up his chance at breaking his curse without some kind of proof that this was true. He also wasn’t willing to kill Elena without said proof that it was a lie. He needed to know. Maddox would return soon. Klaus would question him on whether or not this could be proven with magic. In the meantime, however, he needed to secure Elena. Leaving her to her own devices wasn’t an option anymore. Plus, he wanted to hear all of this from her. He would take her tonight at the dance.

 

Xxxxxxxxxxx

 

Elana stood by the punch bowl at the decade dance. She’d managed to ditch Stefan and Damon for a few minutes. Damon had got himself assigned as a chaperone, and the two of them were hovering. Damon, of course, was still trying to get her to give him Elijah. She had managed to find out that he had not pressured Ric into asking her about it, which made her suspicious, and she was already suspicious of Ric. Something was just not right with him.

Elena had considered again that her teacher was compelled. He always took vervain, but maybe he’d forgotten for a day or two. However, he didn’t act like someone compelled. She’s seen how people acted when they were compelled. While it could be difficult to tell sometimes, often they acted robotically when they were being forced to do something. It wasn’t like that with Ric. He was almost acting like a completely different person. Something was up with him, but it wasn’t compulsion.

Elena soon felt a presence next to her. She turned to see none other than Alaric next to her smiling. Even his smile was unlike Ric. This was really going to bother her until she figured it out.

“Hello, Elena. I see you’ve snuck away from the Salvatore’s,” Klaus said as he poured himself some punch that he really wished was scotch or blood.

“They’re hovering,” Elena said, trying to act normal. She couldn’t very well let him know that she knew something was wrong with him, not until she knew what it was.

“They’re worried about you. I’m sure it seems like overkill to you though, huh? I mean, the whole school is here. Surely, you’d be safe. No one would dare try anything in such a public place,” Klaus said.

Elena merely hummed in responsible before taking a sip of her drink.

“Although, with everything we know about Klaus, it probably wouldn’t matter to him. This man has slaughtered hundreds of people over the centuries. A school filled with students and teachers wouldn’t mean a thing. He’d kill every last one of them to get to you if he had to,” Klaus said quietly, his smirk present.

Elena went still. She knew a subtle threat when she heard it, and ‘Ric’ was definitely threatening her. If his words weren’t enough to convince her, the sadistic smile on his face as he said them definitely was. And that’s when she realized this was not Ric at all. She was face to face with Klaus, sort of.

Elena cleared her throat and poured herself another drink, suddenly wishing it was much stronger. She refused to show fear. She would not give him that satisfaction. “I wasn’t aware that vampires could possess people.”

Klaus chuckled. He had to admit, she was good. Maybe she was related to him, although that would be a serious damper in his plans to break his curse. He wasn’t sure she would figure it out with that vague threat he’d made. “It’s more of a witch thing, to be honest. You can do just about anything if you have the right connections.”

“What do you want? I'm not going to tell you where Elijah is?” Elena said firmly. He could do what he wanted to her. She wasn’t handing Elijah over to Klaus. She wouldn’t hand him to the brother he wanted dead.

Klaus looked at her as though he was a parent looking at his stubborn child, which if what Katerina told him was true, he might as well be. “Don’t be ridiculous, my dear. Of course, you will. In due time. There are several matters we need to discuss, but obviously not here. So, here’s what you’re going to do. And do listen up because I don’t like repeating myself. Unlike my brother, I have very little patience.”

Elena could see Stefan and Damon on the other side of the room. They saw her, but they didn’t make a move to come over. They would consider her perfectly safe standing next to her history teacher. She was actually fine with that. They would make things worse, not better.

“In ten minutes, you are going to walk out of this school and to your beloved teacher’s car. You will wait for me, and when I arrive, you quietly get in and take a drive. If anyone sees you, you tell them that I’m taking you home, as I am also your aunt’s boyfriend. If you deviate from these instructions, this dance will turn into a bloodbath. Understand?” Klaus asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Elena shuddered. This was obviously then end. She thought she’d have more time. She thought she’d be able to say goodbye to her family and friends. She thought she’d be able to undagger Elijah. Caroline could do that though. She knew where he was. Still, this wasn’t how she wanted this to go.

Klaus began to get impatient waiting for the girl to answer. “I told you I’m not a patient man, Elena. Answer me. Do you understand?”

“Yes. Don’t hurt anyone. I’ll do what you want,” Elena said before walking away. She went and found Stefan, who was thankfully alone now.

“Hey. Is everything okay? You look a little off,” Stefan said.

“Yeah, I’m just a bit tired. The dance is starting to die down anyway. I think I’m going to head home soon,” Elena said.

“Let’s go,” Stefan said.

“Uh, actually, Ric’s going to drive me home. He was hoping to try to talk to Jenna anyway. I think he wants to use taking me home as his segway,” Elena said, forcing a smile on her face.

“Oh. Well, what about Jeremy? Is he going with you?” Stefan asked.

“No, I think he said he’s staying with a friend tonight. I’m going to say goodbye to Bonnie and Caroline and then wait outside for Ric. I’ll see you tomorrow,” Elena said before kissing him briefly.

“Okay. I’ll call you later,” Stefan said.

Elena nodded and walked away. She did exactly what she said she was going to and then walked out to Ric’s car. She stood there waiting, resisting the urge to run in the opposite direction. It would be useless though. Not only would Klaus kill everyone in that school, he’d catch her anyway.

Klaus made it to the parking lot exactly ten minutes after his conversation with Elena. He smiled at her as he unlocked the door. “That’s my girl. Hop in.”

Having no other choice, Elena let herself into the passenger side and buckled up. “What do you want from me? The next full moon is days away.

“Never mind that for now,” Klaus said as he started to drive out of the parking lot. “You are going to take a little drive with me back to your teacher’s apartment. Then you’re going to answer all my questions.”

“What questions?” Elena asked. The only question he should have was where Elijah was, and she wasn’t going to tell him that, not if she could help it.

“In due time. For now, just relax,” Klaus said before turning back to the road.

Elena sighed and sat back in her seat. She certainly couldn’t relax, but she knew she wasn’t going to get any answers from Klaus now. She would just have to wait and see what he did next.

Chapter 6

Klaus opened the door to Alaric Saltzman’s apartment and gestured for Elena to step inside. Once she did, he walked in and shut the door behind them.

The first thing Elena noticed when she walked inside was that Katherine was in the living room sitting in a chair. She supposed she shouldn’t be surprised. Klaus had wanted Katherine too, to make her pay for running away from him, and they’d all suspected he had her somewhere.

Katherine glared at her doppelganger. She knew Klaus was bringing her. He wanted some kind of proof that they were related to him. For the life of her, Katherine couldn’t figure out why though. It wasn’t like it mattered to him that hundreds of years, after he was turned, they were born to his line. He could still sacrifice Elena.

Klaus turned to the older doppelganger. “Maddox has yet to return, I take it?”

“Not yet. He’s still getting the supplies for what you want him to do, I’m sure. Although I’m not sure what the point is,” Katherine said. The last part was said mostly to herself.

“What now?” Elena asked Klaus. She wasn’t sure exactly what he wanted from her at that moment. He said he had questions, but other than Elijah’s whereabouts, she couldn’t figure out what those questions could be.

“Now, I get out of this getup, and then, you answer my questions. But first, give me your phone,” Klaus said before holding his hand out in front of Elena expectantly.

Elena sighed before reluctantly digging her phone out of her purse and handing it to him. As much as she wanted to, she knew it was pointless to fight him. He’d take it from her one way or another.

Klaus smiled before putting the phone in his pocket. “Excellent. Make yourself at home. I’ll be back in a minute. Oh, and one more thing, Elena. Trying to run would be ill advised.”

Elena rolled her eyes as he left towards Alaric’s bedroom. Like she needed to be told that. She knew what he was capable of. She knew what he would do to her loved ones if she did what Katherine did.

Elena sighed and went over to where she knew Alaric kept his bourbon. She poured herself a glass and took a large sip of it. After the night she had, which wasn’t over yet, she felt she deserved a drink.

“You’re an idiot,” Katherine said. This whole situation was her fault. Klaus wouldn’t know there was a biological connection to them if Elena hadn’t insisted on holding onto Elijah. That was what made Klaus suspicious.

“Oh my God! Shut up! Like I need to listen to you on top of being kidnapped,” Elena said.

“Hey, I’m here too. I assure you, it wasn’t willingly,” Katherine said.

“Yeah, well, given that tried to sell me out for your own selfishness, I don’t have much sympathy,” Elena said before taking another sip of her drink.

Katherine laughed mockingly. “You’re still living in your stupid fantasy world, even when you’re about to die. In the real world, people do what’s best for themselves.”

Klaus came out a moment later. He was now wearing a black V-neck shirt and a pair of jeans. “Ladies, there’s no need to fight. After all, the two of you are family.”

Katherine only snorted in response.

Klaus took Elena by the shoulder and led her to the couch. “Have a seat, dear. We have much to discuss.”

Reluctantly, Elena sat on the couch. When Klaus sat down next to her, she inched away as far as she could. “What do you want from me, other than to kill me for some stupid ritual?”

“I told you; I have questions. We’ll start off simple. You weren’t as surprised about who I was tonight as you should’ve been. Why? How’d you know I wasn’t Alaric?” Klaus asked curiously.

“I didn’t. I just knew that something wasn’t right. Something was off with ‘Ric’,” Elena said.

Klaus raised an eyebrow. “How so?”

“Well, for starters, when you were pretending to be my teacher you mentioned Elijah being your, meaning Klaus’, brother. Ric didn’t know that, neither did the Salvatores. Elijah didn’t want anyone knowing that,” Elena said.

Klaus nodded. That made sense. His brother was trying to get Elena and her friends to trust him. Telling them that he was the brother of the person who wanted the doppelganger dead wouldn’t help that. “Yet he told you.”

Elena didn’t respond. Elijah didn’t tell her that Klaus was her brother, but she couldn’t tell him how she found out.

“Oh, I see. Elijah didn’t tell you. You found out on your own. How?” Klaus wondered.

Elena kept her mouth shut.

“Come on now, sweetheart. Don’t be like that. You will answer my questions,” Klaus said firmly.

“What does it matter?” Elena asked.

“Everything matters, my dear. Information is powerful,” Klaus said.

“I just deduced it, I guess. I knew you were both originals, and Elijah’s problems with you seemed personal,” Elena said.

Klaus inched closer to her. “You’re lying to me, Elena. I won’t tolerate it.”

Elena glared at him. “What are you going to do? Sacrifice me twice?”

Klaus chuckled. He had to admit, he liked this girl. She had courage, defiance. He honestly wouldn’t mind being related to her. The downside was the fac that her death was the only thing that could break his curse, and he would be unwilling to do it if she was his family, even if it was a distant relation. Even if just the tiniest amount of his blood flowed through her veins, she was untouchable, so was Katerina. “You have spirit. You remind me of my sister. She’s stubborn too.”

Katherine sighed dramatically. She had enough of the back and forth. “Oh, for the love of God! Just tell him. He knows about our connection to him.”

Klaus grinned. “Well, it seems Katerina has taken away the suspense. Go on then, sweetheart. Tell me what you know about this theory that we’re related.”

Elena glared at Katherine. The one thing that the two of them seemed to agree on was that Klaus never know they were related to him, yet she’d spilled it all.

“Don’t look at me that way. I was compelled. Besides, it’s your fault. You piqued his interest by refusing to give up Elijah. All you had to do was hand him over to the Salvatore’s after daggering him. None of this would’ve come out!” Katherine snapped.

“That’s enough, Katerina. Family loyalty should always be commended. Of course, you wouldn’t know anything about that,” Klaus said. He honestly had no idea what he was going to do with her if she truly did descend from him. He couldn’t kill her or torture her, but he couldn’t trust her either. She was a traitor of her own blood. She’d proved that by selling Elena out to him.

Elena blinked in surprise by Klaus’ words. She didn’t think Klaus cared about anyone other than himself, but his comment made it sound like he valued family. That couldn’t be right though, not after everything she’d heard about him. Even Elijah believed he was a lost cause. He had to have done something awful for his own brother to hate him.

“Well, go on then, Elena. Answer my question,” Klaus ordered.

“Why? You already know,” Elena said.

“I know what Katerina has told me from her perspective. I want to know yours. Tell me what you know,” Klaus said, impatience seeping into his voice.

Elena sighed. “Fine. I was looking at some things that my biological mother had. She had documents, a family tree, that indicated that our line was created either by you or Elijah, along with a woman named Tatia Petrova. That’s also how I knew you and Elijah were brothers. Isobel wasn’t sure, but she seemed to suspect that you were.”

“That’s your proof?” Klaus asked sounding skeptical. Granted, it was still too much for him to ignore, but it wasn’t proof of anything. He would have to rely on Maddox to help him get that proof if the girl had nothing else for evidence. Although, the fact that Isobel had managed to deduce that he and Elijah were brothers did mean something regarding her research. Again, it wasn’t proof though.

“I never said I had proof. In fact, I wouldn’t have told you about this at all if I had my way. I believe it’s true because I spoke to Elijah and asked him about the original doppelganger. The way he spoke about her made it clear that he had feelings for her,” Elena said.

“And did you tell Elijah all of this?” Klaus asked. It didn’t make sense if she did. Elijah wouldn’t have let the sacrifice happen if he knew. There was no one more concerned with family than his brother. Perhaps that was why Elena daggered him.

“No. Elijah didn’t know anything about this. I barely told anyone. This wasn’t exactly something I wanted to brag about,” Elena said.

“I see. Well, that was foolish of you. Elijah would’ve stopped the whole thing if you’d told him,” Klaus said.

“Yeah, I thought he might. That’s why I didn’t tell him. I knew it might matter to him, but it wouldn’t to you. I wasn’t going to risk the lives of my friends and family,” Elena said.

Before Klaus could tell her how wrong she was, he heard the door burst open. He saw Maddox come in moment later carrying a bag. “Ah, Maddox. I take it you have everything you need?”

“Almost everything. I need blood from one of them and from you or your brother,” Maddox said.

“Blood for what?” Elena asked.

“Well, since you have no proof of your theory, Maddox is going to help us with that. Now, since this isn’t my body, and my body will be at least a day out, we’ll need Elijah. You’re going to need to tell me where he is now,” Klaus said.

Elena immediately shook her head. “No.

Klaus moved closer to her and took her gently but firmly by the chin. “That wasn’t a request, my dear. You will tell me where my brother is one way or another.”

Elena glared at him. “You can’t compel me. I’m on vervain.”

Klaus grinned. “Oh, there are other ways. Perhaps I’ll just burn down every structure in this town until I find him, or until you come to your senses. What will it be?”

Elena was reluctant, very reluctant, but she knew it wasn’t an empty threat, and truth be told, he would get his way one way or another. He had a witch in his pocket. She would be the cause of pointless death and destruction for nothing. “He’s in the shed behind my family’s lake house.

“That’s a good girl. That wasn’t so hard, was it?” Klaus asked before getting up and leaving the room. He returned moments later with a pad of paper and a pen, both of which he put down in front of Elena. “Write down the address.”

Elena sighed but did as he asked and then handed him the paper.

Klaus handed it to Maddox. “Go now. If I have that dagger out tonight, he should be conscious by morning.”

Maddox nodded before heading out of the apartment.

Elena stared at Klaus. “Why are you doing this? What do you care if we’re related? It’s not like the sacrifice won’t work if we share DNA.”

“You’re right. The ritual would still work, but it doesn’t matter. There’s not much I wouldn’t sacrifice to see that curse ended, but I won’t sacrifice my own blood,” Klaus said.

“What?” Elena asked in disbelief. She’d spent so long believing that Klaus wouldn’t give a damn if he knew the truth, that it would just be something for him to laugh about before he took her life. She never imagined that it would actually stop him

“What? You’re saying this actually matters to you?” Katherine asked.

“Yes, Katerina, it matters. Unlike you, I don’t sacrifice those related to me,” Klaus said. Granted, he did dagger them at times, but they always came back. Of course, this was true, he had unknowingly killed those related him, but he couldn’t be blamed for people he didn’t know about.

“And does that include me?” Katherine asked. For the first time, she had hope that she’d survive this and wouldn’t be tortured for the next couple of centuries.

“It does, but don’t get too excited. I don’t know yet what I’ll do with you. You have no loyalty, so you can’t be trusted. We’ll just have to see,” Klaus said before looking back and forth between the two doppelgangers. “Well, get comfortable, ladies. It’s going to be a long night.

Chapter 7

Klaus was lounging in a chair a few feet away from where his brother was lying unconscious in Alaric Saltzman’s bed. It wouldn’t be long now. He’d removed the dagger last night and had been waiting ever since. Originally, he hadn’t intended on waking Elijah, at least not for a while, but that was back when there was no question about him being able to sacrifice Elena. Obviously, things had changed. He needed Elijah’s blood for proof, and it wouldn’t work if he was technically dead. Also, he would like to have Elijah around to navigate this mess if Elena and Katerina were related to him. He was better at these things than Klaus was, and Klaus still had no idea what to do about Katerina.

Elijah suddenly jumped up. He looked around and found himself in an unfamiliar bedroom. He looked over and saw Alaric Saltzman sitting a few feet away from him, only something seemed off about him. The smirk on his face reminded him of his brother.

“Welcome back, brother,” Klaus said.

Realization hit Elijah rather quickly, and he sighed. “Niklaus. I see you’re up to your favorite tricks again.”

Klaus threw him a blood bag that he had in his hand.

Elijah caught it with ease and started drinking. He was certainly hungry. He wasn’t sure how long he was daggered, but it must have been at least a few weeks.

“Drink up. We have much to discuss,” Klaus said.

Elijah finished his blood and glared at his brother. “We have absolutely nothing to discuss.”

Klaus sighed dramatically. “Alright, let’s get the unpleasantness out of the way. I lied.”

“What?”

“I didn’t dump our siblings in the ocean. They’re nearby and perfectly safe. Frankly, I was disappointed you would believe that I could do that,” Klaus said.

Elijah stood up and glared at him. “Are you kidding me? You tell me you lied to me about throwing away our siblings like trash, and you have the nerve to be upset that I believed you?!”

Before Klaus had a chance to respond, he was struck in the face by his brother’s fist, causing him to fall over, chair and all. “Alright, I guess I deserved that, but try to remember that this body is human.”

“Assuming I were to believe you now, where are they?” Elijah asked.

Klaus pulled himself to his feet. “They’re safe. I would never allow harm to come to my own blood. You ought to know that. In fact, that brings us to why I woke you.”

“And why is that? Given that you’re in the body of Alaric Saltzman, I assume you have yet to break your curse,” Elijah said. His brother would have no need for the body if Elena were already dead. Elijah assumed he was using it to trick Elena and the Salvatore’s until the full moon.

“No, and it remains to be seen if I’ll even have that chance,” Klaus said.

Elijah frowned. Nothing should be preventing his brother from ending his curse. Elena wasn’t going to fight him, and Niklaus could handle the others. Elijah didn’t want to see that girl murdered permanently, but he knew his brother had no issue with it. “What do you mean?”

“I’ve come into some shocking information. The doppelgangers may descend from either you or me,” Klaus said.

“What? That’s impossible. Neither one of us had children. We were turned before we had the chance,” Elijah said.

“To our knowledge, however, there is a theory that Tatia had a second child before we were turned. If that’s the case, either one of us could have been the father,” Klaus said. They’d both slept with her. In fact, they’d had a massive fight about it when they both learned the other had been with her.

Elijah shook his head. “We would’ve known if she had another child.”

“Would we? Tatia disappeared for quite a while, long enough to give birth to a child?” Klaus said.

“She would’ve said something,” Elijah said. However, as the words left him, he realized that that wasn’t necessarily true. Tatia knew the way they’d lived. She’d seen the way their father treated them on more than one occasion. She would’ve been reluctant to allow her child to be subjected to that. Plus, not knowing who the father was would probably give her pause. There was no way to determine that back then. “Perhaps she wouldn’t have. How did you come by this knowledge.”

“From the lovely doppelgangers, both of them,” Klaus said.

“Elena knows about this theory?” Elijah asked. She hasn’t said anything to him, although, it was possible she didn’t know until after she’d daggered him.

“Yes, although she was reluctant. It seems her mother did research on the matter that the girl came across,” Klaus said.

Elijah suddenly remembered his conversation with Elena about doppelgangers. She’d asked about the origin of the doppelganger, and more specifically, about Tatia. She’d said it was because she wanted to know why she had to die, but it seemed more likely now that she already knew about this and was trying to ascertain if it was true. “You said both of them. So, Katerina knows about this as well.”

Klaus nodded. “She’s who I first heard it from. I wanted to believe it was a lie, but I compelled her, and she wasn’t keen on telling me. I had to force it out of her, Elena too.”

Elijah took in the information, as well as the implications of it. The ritual couldn’t happen. He wouldn’t allow it, not even with the elixir. It was not a risk he was willing to take. He believed in blood above all else. He would not allow his brother to hurt that girl. “Niklaus, if this is true, you cannot touch her.”

“I know,” Klaus grumbled. He wouldn’t hurt his own family, but that didn’t mean he was happy about it. He’d waited a thousand years for this, and now it was falling apart. He was still clinging to hope that the doppelgangers were not related to him, but that hope was dwindling by the second.

Elijah nodded. He was glad to hear that. He knew his brother had said that the ritual was in question, but he wanted to make absolutely sure his brother knew that he couldn’t use Elena if she was related to them. “You can’t harm Katerina either.”

“I know that too, but we also can’t trust her. She has no loyalty to anyone. She sold Elena out the second she could when she thought it would save her. The only person she’s loyal to is herself,” Klaus said.

Elijah sighed. That was true, but they had a hand in that, a big one. Elijah hadn’t been very sympathetic before, but if Katerina was his family, it changed everything. He had to look at the situation differently. “We are not blameless in that, Niklaus. A lot of who Katerina is has to do with what she suffered. You are aware of the fact that if this is true, you savagely murdered members of our family?”

Klaus sighed. That fact wasn’t lost on him, but he couldn’t do anything about it. “I can’t bring back the dead, Elijah.”

Elijah nodded. He knew he wasn’t innocent either. He chased Katerina with his brother as well, but his brother also had a point about her. No matter the reasons for it, Katerina was dangerous, especially to Elena. “We will figure out what to do when the time comes. We should take it one step at a time.”

“Right. Well, let’s join the others. My witch is ready to proceed once he has your blood,” Klaus said.

Elijah led the way out of the room. He found Elena pacing the living room while Katerina sat on the couch looking bored and annoyed. There was also a man standing over a table that had a bowl on it. He was adding ingredients to it.

Elena looked at Elijah. She had a guilty look on her face. She felt really bad about the dagger. She hated doing it. “Elijah, I’m sorry. I didn’t know what else to do.”

Elijah put up a hand to stop her. “Let’s handle one thing at a time. Once this was over, you and I will have a long talk.” Honestly, he wasn’t even that concerned about the dagger. He wasn’t happy about it, but he understood why she did it. What upset him was that she hid the fact that they could be related from him. It was extremely reckless. She’d put herself in danger by doing that. If Niklaus hadn’t realized that something was amiss, she would on her way to her death right now. Elijah would not let that go.

Elena cringed but nodded. She could tell he wasn’t happy. He reminded her of her father when he was disappointed in her. She hated that feeling.

“Maddox, are you ready?” Klaus said.

“Yeah. I just need blood from your brother and blood from one of the doppelgangers. After I start the spell, it will be minutes before we know. If they’re related to you, the mixture will turn blue. If not, it will remain red,” Maddox explained.

“So, you can’t tell us which one of us started their line, if it’s true?” Klaus asked.

Maddox shook his head. “There are other heritage spells, but they wouldn’t work here. Too much time has passed between you. I can only determine if you have DNA in common.”

Elijah walked towards the witch and then bit his wrist. He held it over the bowl of water and other herbs and squeezed his blood out.

Maddox nodded that it was enough after Elijah released several drops of his blood.

Elijah turned to where Elena and Katerina were. “Katerina, your turn.”

“Why me? Elena can do it,” Katherine said.

“Because she is human, you are not,” Elijah said simply.

“That’s hardly my problem,” Katherine said, making no move to get up from the couch.

Klaus raised an eyebrow at the older doppelganger. “Someone has gotten a bit bold since I told her I wouldn’t kill her if we’re related. Just because I won’t kill or torture you doesn’t mean I won’t deal with you! Get up and give Maddox your blood before I use force!”

“It’s alright. I’ll do it,” Elena said.

“No. There is no reason for you to spill your blood when she is self-healing,” Elijah said. He then motioned with his head for Katerina to comply. The stony look on his face made it clear it was not a request.

Katherine sighed before walking up to Maddox and repeating Elijah’s actions. She bit herself and squeezed her blood out. “Happy?

No one replied. Maddox held his hand over the mixture and started chanting. Less than a minute later, it started mixing together and bubbling. Moments later, it turned to a dark shade of blue. “There’s no question. There is a blood relation.”

“Lovely,” Klaus grumbled before heading for the door without addressing anyone else. His plans to end his curse had just gone up in flames. He needed a minute.