Chapter Text
Elena sat in her car several houses away from the old Bennett witch house. She followed Stefan there. She’d been following Stefan since he tried to drive her off of that bridge. That was the moment she realized she no longer owed him anything. Damon defending him was the moment she realized she no longer owed him anything either. It was painful, but it was also freeing. Her ties to the Salvatores was the only thing keeping her from doing something she’d been thinking of since Klaus announced he would be staying in Mystic Falls.
Elena understood Stefan’s hatred for Klaus, she did. She understood his desire for revenge. She hated him too. She wanted revenge too. She probably wanted it much more than Stefan did. Stefan claimed Klaus took everything from him. He didn’t know what it meant to lose everything. He wouldn’t know that until he watched the people he loved die. Elena did know. She had watched it. So, yes, Elena did know what it was like to want revenge. The difference was that she wouldn’t be so stupid about it. She honestly didn’t know what he was hoping to gain by stealing a bunch of coffins anyway? Did he think that he’d be able to hold onto them forever? Did he think Klaus would never find them? And even if he didn’t, what was Stefan’s endgame. Revenge was fine, but he at least needed to think it through, and he had to be willing to face the consequences if he failed.
Elena wanted to hurt both Stefan and Klaus, and she knew what she needed to do to make that happen. Hurting Stefan was easy. Her plan for Klaus would do that. Hurting Klaus would take time, time, patience, and a lot of self-control. All things Stefan made clear he wasn’t capable of. And she had nothing left to lose. All of her family members were either dead or forced to leave town out of fear of him. If her plan failed, she could live with the consequences. There wasn’t much Klaus could take from her anymore, other than her life, and that wasn’t worth a whole lot anymore.
Elena was pulled from her thoughts as she watched Stefan come out of the house and drive away. Honestly, she should’ve realized from the beginning that this was where he brought the coffins. This was the first place she’d seen him after he took them. She didn’t know why she didn’t think about it. It was the one place vampires couldn’t enter without feeling a hell of a lot of pain. Unless the dead witches let them, of course.
Elena got out of her car and headed inside. She looked around the house, but she couldn’t find anything. However, that didn’t mean they weren’t there. The Salvatores were coming here for a reason. Plus, she knew the Bennett ancestors controlled this place. “You know, this plan is going to fail, whatever it even is. The fact that two Salvatores are in charge of it is proof of that. Klaus will find them eventually, and when he does, he will kill everyone involved, including Bonnie, and there goes your entire line.”
Elena felt like a lunatic talking to herself, but she knew they were listening. “You know, I hate Klaus too. He killed my aunt, my biological mother. He’s tormented me and my friends for months. But, again, this plan will fail because those involved are morons. I’ve got a plan of my own, and I have the determination and the patience to see it through. I know what you’re all probably thinking. What can a human do? That’s why he’ll never see me coming. Give me a chance. It will take longer, but it’s the better option.
Elena wasn’t surprised when there was no response. She knew it was unlikely that she’d be able persuade a hundred witches that were already set on what they wanted. “Or I’ll just lead Klaus hear anyway. He might not be able to get in right away, but he’ll find a way, and he will kill Bonnie. He will because I’ll tell him that she was involved and that he should kill her, and she’s not strong enough to stop him.” She was lying about the last part. As annoyed as she was that Bonnie had involved herself in such an asinine plan, she could never bring herself to hurt her. The dead witches didn’t know that though.
For a second, Elena thought she might have to make good on at least part of that threat, but then the coffins appeared in front of her. She smiled and lifted up one of them. She found Elijah desiccated inside with a dagger in his chest. She thought about undaggering him but that wouldn’t help her plan. In fact, it would hinder it. The longer Elijah stayed daggered, the better.
Elena took out her phone and dialed a number. After she heard the click of someone answering, she didn’t even wait for the person to speak. “It’s me. I need you to get a large truck and meet me at the old witch house.”
Xxxxxxxxxx
An hour later, Elena was standing with Matt at the house. She thought of just calling Klaus, but she decided that delivering them herself would be better.
“Are those what I think they are?” Matt asked.
Elena nodded. “These are Klaus’ coffins.”
“How’d you know they were here?” Matt asked.
“I followed Stefan. Did you manage to get a truck?” Elena asked.
“Yeah, I borrowed it from my boss at the Grill. I assume you want to move these. What are going to do with them?” Matt asked.
“I’m going to give them back,” Elena said matter-of-factly.
“What? Elena, these coffins may be the only way to stop Klaus,” Matt said.
Elena scoffed. “Don’t be stupid, Matt. This isn’t going to stop Klaus. All this does is piss him off more, and it’s not like he’ll never find them. He will, and when he does, everyone will suffer for what Bonnie and the Salvatores have done,” Elena said.
“Giving them back doesn’t help either,” Matt reasoned.
“Oh, you never know,” Elena said quietly. “Matt, I know what I’m doing. Please trust me. Let me handle it my way. You’d be the only friend I have currently that has given me that courtesy. Every single one of her friends tried to make decisions for her, even Caroline, although she wasn’t as bad as the others. That’s why she wasn’t planning to tell anyone what she was up to. Someone would definitely try to stop her.
Matt sighed and nodded. He could understand her point of view. Everyone was constantly trying to protect Elena, but no one actually stopped to take what she wanted into account. Elena was the one with the most to lose from Klaus. She should be able to deal with him her own way. “Okay. What do you need me to do?”
“Help me load the coffins up and then give me the keys. You can take my car home, and I’ll have the truck back to you when I’m done,” Elena told him.
Matt’s eyes widened in horror. “You’re going to go to Klaus alone?”
“He’s not going to hurt me. I’m too valuable to him,” Elena said.
“Elena, you can’t go alone. At least let me go with you,” Matt said.
Elena chuckled. “No offense, Matt, but even if I did need protection, you couldn’t offer it to me.”
Matt nodded after a minute. Now that he thought about it, it did sound ridiculous. He had no chance of defending Elena against an unkillable hybrid. “Because I’m just a human.”
“If it makes you feel any better, everybody is basically just a human to Klaus. He could kill any vampire or witch just as easily as he could a human. I appreciate the gesture though. I need to do this alone anyway,” she said.
“Promise me you’ll be careful, and if I don’t hear from you within an hour, I’m getting the cavalry,” Matt said firmly.
Elena smiled. “I promise. Thank you for supporting me with this. You’re a good friend. Do me one more favor. The second we graduate, get the hell out of this town.”
Matt chuckled before they both went over to one of the coffins and started lifting it.
Xxxxxxxxxxx
It took Elena over an hour to make it to Klaus’. It took longer than expected for her and Matt to load those coffins up. They were extremely heavy. When she did get there, she honked the horn and stepped out of the truck. She leaned against the truck and waited. Someone would be out to see what was going on, she was sure.
Before Elena knew it, A hybrid appeared in front of her at vampire speed. To her credit, she managed to keep from flinching in surprise.
“What do you want, doppelganger?” the hybrid asked.
“Well, if it isn’t one of Klaus’ puppets… I mean hybrids. Get your master. Tell him I have a gift for him.”
The hybrid sneered. “The only thing you can offer Klaus is your blood, and he’ll take that when he’s good and ready.”
“And the only thing you can offer him is a body to stand in front of him and take the death shot when someone eventually tries to kill him. Now, get Klaus. On second thought, you’re not even useful enough for that. I’ll do it myself. Klaus, get your ass out here before I shove a stake in this guy’s chest!” Elena yelled. Sure, she knew if she even was able to stake this hybrid, it wouldn’t kill him, but it would make her feel better at the moment.
The hybrid snarled and went to attack Elena, but a voice called out behind him.
“Stand down before I take off your head!” Klaus snarled as he made his way over from the front door. He glared at his hybrid as he made his way over. He’d heard every word, of course, but he found himself amused by the exchange, until, of course, his hybrid tried to attack the girl. “No one touches my doppelganger. I made myself clear on that! Now, get lost!”
The hybrid glared at Elana before walking away.
Klaus smirked at Elena as he made his way closer. “Well, it seems you’ve found your claws, sweetheart. Tell me, what gives you the nerve to show up at my home? And where are your stalkers?”
Elena ignored the last question and moved around him to the back of the truck. She opened it and gestured for Klaus to come over. “Take a look.”
Klaus chuckled and made his way over. He had to admit, he was intrigued. When he saw the four coffins in the back of the truck, he was shocked, and then he was annoyed. There was no way the doppelganger managed to get his coffins away from the Salvatores, and even if she could, she wouldn’t. “Just how stupid do you think I am, doppelganger? Do you expect me to believe you managed to steal my coffins back from Stefan?”
“See for yourself. I think it’s about time you stopped underestimating me, Klaus,” Elena said.
Klaus stepped onto the truck and opened the coffins one by one. He found his siblings in each one, except for the locked one, of course. He checked that as well found it was still locked. Then he slowly began to chuckle. “I’m impressed, doppelganger. I didn’t think you had it in you. What will Stefan say when he realized what you’ve done?”
“I don’t give a damn.” Elena said matter-of-factly. And she meant it. Any part of her that cared about what Stefan or Damon might think died on that bridge a few days ago.
“And what is it that you hope to gain from this. I assume you’re expecting something in return,” Klaus said. Not that he had any intention of giving her anything. If she thought he would somehow feel that he owed her after this, she was more naïve than he thought.
“That would be pretty stupid considering I already handed the coffins over to you. If I wanted to make a deal, I would’ve done it before giving you exactly what you want. I gave them back because this entire thing was stupid and pointless, and I refuse to suffer anymore because of another asinine plan of the Salvatores. Now, get them out of here, I don’t have all night,” Elena said.
Klaus gave her an impressed smirk. “Well done, love. You’re not nearly as stupid as I thought,” he said before walking back towards the mansion to get a couple of his hybrids.
Elena slowly smiled. “It might not seem like it, but her plan was working. It was a tiny first step, but it was a step. It was a step in gaining Klaus’ trust, in worming her way into his life so that she could destroy it from the inside out. It would take a long time, maybe even years, but when she was done, he would suffer for everything he took from her. This was the long game, and she intended to win.