Percy woke up screaming and thrashing in her bed. Nightmares took over the demigod and once she woke from them, she didn't want to go back to sleep.
She quickly got up and took a shower to get rid of the sweat that coated her skin from the dream. After getting changed, she decided to go on a run. She needed to stay in good shape.
Leaving her house, she spotted the doppelgänger standing with a man outside the Salvatore Boarding House. Percy crossed the street and jogged over to the pair.
"Hey, what's going on?" The raven haired girl asked.
Elena shook her head and raised a finger to her lips in a 'quiet' motion. "Not here," she said under her breath.
Percy's eyebrows furrowed slightly. Elijah turned to the demigod with a small smile. "Hello, Persephone."
Percy smiled back, "Hi, Elijah."
The two got along well. Elijah knew Percy was a demigod and he always treated her with upmost respect.
Elena led them to the car, so the group could leave the Salvatore residence.
Once they were far enough from the house, Elena pulled over. Elijah was drinking from a blood bag.
Elena examined Elijah, "You look better."
"Elijah always looks good." The raven haired beauty pointed out from the backseat.
The corner of the original's mouth went up at the comment. He turned his body to face Percy, causing Percy to move her closed hand out towards him.
Elijah gently fist bumped her fist after realizing what she was trying to do. The girl was probably the only person the vampire would even consider doing such a thing with. Percy grinned at the thought. She just fist bumped an original.
Turning back to Elena, his face hardened again. "Where did you get the dagger?"
Elena responded, "I'll tell you everything. But we have to work together, Elijah. I need your word."
"Your ability to make demands has long passed."
Percy nodded a bit. They did dagger him.
Elena defended her actions, "No demands. I'm offering you my help. And in return, I want yours."
"And why should I even consider this?" The original questioned.
The doppelgänger replied, "The same reason that you haven't killed me. You need my help to kill Klaus. And I need you."
The conversation was interrupted by a phone buzzing. The doe eyed girl answered the device.
Stefan's voice could be heard on the other side. "Where are you? Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine," Elena assured her boyfriend. The Salvatore asked another question, "Where's Elijah?"
"He's right here." The doppelgänger answered.
Percy could easily hear the whole conversation. The volume on her phone was up high.
"Where? I'm on my way."
Elena refused. "No, Stefan. Elijah and I need some time alone."
What a great thing to say to the person you're dating.
"Listen to me, he can't be trusted. He'll use you to get to Klaus." The younger Salvatore reasoned.
Elena locked eyes with the original next to her. "Elijah is a noble man, Stefan. He lives by a code of honor. I can trust him. He knows that I'd be incredibly stupid to betray him again. By removing the dagger, I have proven myself."
Percy had the small urge to cringe at her words.
"You can't do this alone." Stefan said, concerned for the well being of Elena.
"It's my decision, Stefan. Please respect it," Elena asserted.
The Gilbert added, "Besides, Percy is here with me."
Damon's voice could be heard on the other side of the phone. "Percy's with you?"
The demigod felt it was her time to speak up. "Hey, Dae."
"See? I'll be fine. Percy's with me. Make sure Damon doesn't do anything stupid. I'll be in touch." The doppelgänger hung up the phone.
Elijah held out his hand for her to put the phone into. Elena gave him the device and Elijah placed it in his pocket.
"He's here." Elena told the vampire.
Elijah looked bothered by the statement. "Klaus is here?"
"He's taken over Alaric's body," Percy explained.
The original vampire's eyes narrowed. "Of course, he has. It's one of his favorite tricks."
"Really? What are his other tricks?" The demigod questioned.
Elena added a question of her own, "What is he going to do next? You're the only one who knows him."
You could tell by his expression, that the man had been through a lot. "Yes, I do."
•••
The trio arrived at the Lockwood house. Elijah rang the door bell and Carol Lockwood opened the door. "Elijah! Percy, Elena, what are you doing here?" She caught sight of the man's appearance. "What happened?"
Elijah replied, "I've had a bit of an incident, Carol. I'm hoping you could help."
"Well, I'm on my way to a meeting, so I-"
Elijah stepped forward, "It won't take but a minute of your time." He compelled the brunette in the doorway.
Immediately, she responded with a smile, "Of course, anything you need."
"Thank you."
Elijah stepped in the house, the two teenagers following. "Well, first thing's first, I'm going to need a change of clothing," the original stated.
Carol closed the door behind them, "Well, we can try one of my husband's suits. I haven't boxed them up yet."
"Wonderful." He responded coolly.
When Carol walked away, Percy asked Elijah. "How did you know she wasn't on vervain?"
The man answered, "'Cause I'm the one who got her off it."
"Nice." The demigod replied.
Elijah returned his gaze to Elena. "Right before you and your friends killed me. Twice."
Elijah began to walk away, "If you'll excuse me, I'll be down in a moment."
Percy wandered around the room admiring how tall the ceilings were. Elena scrunched up her face at the girl who was leaning her head back to stare up like a little kid. "What are you doing?"
Percy shrugged, "What are you doing?" The demigod stuck her tongue out at the doppelgänger.
Elena rolled her eyes.
The suit loving vampire returned. "So, I assume that the Martin witches are no longer with us."
Looking down at her lap, Elena responded, "No." She raised her head and softly said, "I'm Sorry."
"And Katerina," Elijah continued, "She would have been released from my compulsion when I died."
"Klausy took her." The demigod piped up from her spot on the sofa. Elena explained further, "We think that she may be dead."
Elijah, however, denied the statement. "I doubt that. Not Klaus' style. Death would be too easy for her after what she did."
"Ooo what'd she do?" Percy asked.
Elijah had a hint of amusement in his eyes at the green eyed girl.
Elena shook her head, confused at his words and ignoring the demigod. "I don't understand. You say that you want Klaus dead, but you still made Katherine pay for betraying him."
Elijah clarified, "I have my own reasons for wanting Katerina to pay."
"It seems like everyone does. She doesn't seem that bad." The raven haired beauty remarked. Percy struggled to stay focused on things for too long with her ADHD.
The original brought them back to the conversation after nodding at Percy's words. He didn't want her to feel ignored even if he didn't agree with her comment. "There was a time, I'd have done anything for Klaus."
He seemed to be thinking about past memories. "Klaus is my brother."
"Oh how the turns have tabled," Percy muttered. Although it made sense that the originals would be related somehow.
Elena, however, couldn't believe what she just heard. "I'm still processing."
"Yes. I'm a little behind on the times, but I believe the term you're searching for is O.M.G."
Percy laughed at his words and gave him a high five.
The original stood up and walked up to the mirror on the wall and examined his appearance.
"There's a whole family of originals?" Elena asked.
Adjusting his dress shirt, he responded, "My father was a wealthy land owner in a village in eastern Europe. Our mother bore seven children."
The doe eyed girl spoke, "So your parents were human?"
"Well, vampires can't procreate." The demigod pointed out.
Elijah nodded at her, "That is correct, Persephone. Our whole family was. Our origin as vampires is a very long story, Elena. Just know, we're the oldest vampires in the world."
The sea green eyed girl looked at the ceiling again, gathering water droplets in the air.
Elijah continued his origin story, "We are the original family. And from us all, vampires were created."
Elena voiced her thoughts, "Right, but Klaus is your brother. And you want him dead?"
Dam.
"I need some air. I'm still feeling a tad...dead." He walked past Elena, "Come."
Elena picked up her jacket and looked back at Percy. Irritated that the girl was still on the couch, the doppelgänger spoke, "Let's go."
Percy jumped off the couch and walked by Elena, knocking their shoulders a bit as she passed.
As the trio walked down the steps outside, the original carried on with the story. "As you've seen, nothing can kill an original. Not sun, not fire, not even a werewolf bite. Only the wood from one tree; a tree my family made sure burned."
"That's were the white ash for the dagger comes from," Elena concluded.
"Yes. The witches won't allow anything truly immortal to walk the earth. Every creature needs to have a weakness in order to maintain the balance."
The Gilbert restated his words, "So the sun can't kill an original. Why is Klaus so obsessed with breaking the sun and the moon curse?"
"Unless the curse is actually about Klaus." The demigod said as she thought about the possibilities.
The original looked at Percy with a bit of fascination. Nodding at her words, "Right. The curse of the sun and the moon, it's all so biblical sounding. Don't you think?"
Elijah had a knowing smile on his face, causing Percy to grin.
Elena looked even more confused, "What's so funny?"
The man recounted a memory with his brother discussing Aztec drawings.
"I don't understand. So, Klaus drew the Aztec sketches about the curse?"
Elijah nodded, "Roman scrolls, African tribal etchings, and any other culture or continent we felt like planting in it."
"But why?" Elena asked a lot of questions.
The original answered, "Easiest way to discover the existence of a doppelgänger or to get your hands on some long, lost moonstone is to have every single member or two warring species on the lookout for it."
That's actually a genius plan, the demigod thought to herself.
Elena wasn't getting it. "So it's not Aztec at all?"
The original looked around before returning his gaze to the girl in front of him. "The curse of the sun and the moon... is fake. It doesn't exist."
He turned away and continued walking, the demigod moving beside him. Elena stood in the same spot with her hands at her hips. "What?"
She jogged toward the pair. Elijah continued,"Klaus and I faked the sun and the moon curse dating back over a thousand years."
Cool.
"But if there's no curse.."
Elijah cut off the doppelgänger and explained, "There's a curse, just not that one. The real one's much worse. It's a curse placed on Klaus."
Percy found herself feeling bad for the guy. He had a curse placed on him for a thousand years? She shook her head, dismissing her thoughts.
Elena voiced her thoughts, "What are you talking about?"
"Klaus has been trying to break it for the last thousand years. You are his only hope."
Before the conversation could continue, Elena's phone buzzed.
Elena ignored it, "What is this curse?"
The vampire pulled the phone out of his pocket. "Your phone will not stop its incessant buzzing. Answer it, please." He handed Elena her phone.
The doppelgänger took the device, sighing as she answered it. "Stefan-"
Something not-good must have happened because her next words were, "What's wrong?"
Her hand tugged at her hair in a worried motion. "No, no, no, no. Okay, I'll be right there."
She removed the phone from her ear and hung up. Elena took a deep breath, "Klaus went after Jenna. I have to go to her."
Elijah retorted, "I'm afraid that wasn't part of today's arrangement."
The doe eyed girl defended her reason for leaving, "She's my family, Elijah. I have to. I'll be back." She glanced at Percy. "And Percy can stay with you until I return."
The demigod chose not to argue. The green eyed teen wanted to stay with the handsome original anyways. "K."
Elena quickly nodded and sent her a look that said 'thank you.'
Before she left, the Gilbert assured the original, "You have my word."
Elijah looked unimpressed, "That doesn't mean anything to me until you live up to it."
Elena sighed, "Thank you." Turning on her heal, the doppelgänger left.
"So, what's up?" The demigod said with an adorable smile on her features.
Elijah brought his eyes away from Elena's retreating figure and sent a genuine smile to the powerful being beside him.
The pair continued to walk around. "Can I ask you a question?" Percy asked.
"I believe you just did," Elijah responded. He felt comfortable around the demigod. There was something about Percy that made people want to open up to her. She had this light in her, despite the trauma she faced. He actually felt more inclined to make jokes around the child of Poseidon.
Percy rolled her eyes playfully and nudged his arm. "Ya know, for a super old vampire, you're fun to hang out with."
Elijah chuckled, "How kind of you."
"So, are all your siblings this cool?"
The original's eyes held a lot of emotion. "I think you would have gotten along well with my sister, Rebekah. She was quite... cool, as you put it."
The demigod picked up on his use of the past tense when referring to his sibling. She simply nodded, not wanting to push him into talking about matters that cause him heartache.
❦❦❦
Elena returned to find the pair sitting on a couch laughing at something. Elijah and Percy had been sharing stories with each other as they waited for the doppelgänger to come back.
However, soon after Elena left, the two forgot about her and got engrossed in conversation. Unknown to the demigod, Elijah felt reminded of what it was like to have a sibling, when he was in the presence of Percy. He had grown quite fond of her jokes and comments.
Once the pair noticed Elena's presence, they grew serious again. Elijah sighed, "Welcome back."
She felt confused as to why Percy seemed to be getting along with the original so well. Stepping closer, she asserted the room. "Tell me. What is Klaus' curse?" The doppelgänger tossed her jacket on a chair and crossed her arms.
Elijah gestured to a chair, "Please."
Elena seemed a bit annoyed as she sat down in the seat. "My family was quite close. But Klaus and my father did not quite get on too well. When we became vampires, we discovered the truth. Klaus was not my father's son. My mother had been unfaithful many years before. This was her darkest secret. Klaus is from a different bloodline. Of course, when my father discovered this, he hunted down and he killed my mother's lover. And his entire family. Not realizing, of course, that he was initiating a war between species that rages until this day."
"A war between the species?" Elena questioned.
Percy guessed, "The vampires and the werewolves."
"That is correct." Elijah nodded.
Elena clarified his words, "So, Klaus' real father was from a werewolf bloodline. What does that make Klaus? A werewolf? Or a vampire?"
Awesome, Percy answered in her head.
Elijah replied, "He's both."
Dun, dun, dun.
Elena looked terrified at the information.
The original spoke again, "A hybrid would be deadlier than any werewolf or vampire. Nature would not stand for such an imbalance of power." He began to pace around the room. "Therefore, the witches, the servants of nature, saw to it that my brother's werewolf side would become dormant."
Percy felt empathy for the hybrid. A part of him was taken away from him for a thousand years. She couldn't imagine what that would be like.
Although the teen had wished sometimes that she wasn't a demigod, Percy wouldn't know what to do if her abilities were taken from her.
The raven haired beauty didn't judge people before getting to know them herself. At the moment, Klaus didn't seem so bad. She also considered the possibility that his step father might have been similar to her own.
"That's the curse that Klaus wants to break?" The doppelgänger questioned.
"He wants to trigger that part of him that's a werewolf. If allowed, Klaus would sire his own bloodline. He'd build his own race. Endangering not just vampires, but everyone."
Elena pushed, "But you helped him."
"He's still his brother, Elena." The demigod piped up.
"Yes," Elijah agreed. "I helped him because I loved him. That's changed. Now he must die."
Even though he said it, Percy didn't think he could follow through with his words. After all, Klaus was family to him for a thousand years. Love doesn't just go away.
Elena didn't seem to share the same thought. "We have the dagger now. We can stop him."
Elijah shut her down, "When a werewolf is wounded by silver, it heals. An original can't be killed by anything but white oak ash on a silver dagger. So, you see the conundrum. The dagger does not work."
"What, are you saying that Klaus can't be killed?" Elena asked panicking.
Elijah responded, "There's one way to kill any supernatural species, at the hands of the servants of nature themselves."
"A witch," Elena realized. "If they can channel that much power."
"But it would kill them," the demigod said softly.
Elijah continued, "The curse must be broken during the full moon, when Klaus is in transition. That's when he'll be at his most vulnerable."
He took a step forward, "A witch with enough power, can kill Klaus."
Elena replied, "What if I told you that I knew a witch that could channel that much power?"
Percy was shocked. Was she suggesting sacrificing her best friend? Elena knew Bonnie would die if she used all that power.
"Then I would tell you there's one more thing that you should know." Elijah began to tell a story from his past.
Percy watched as Elijah and Elena conversed.
The doe eyed girl was surprised, "You found a way to save the life of the doppelgänger?"
Elijah had his eyes trained on the ground. Softly, he said, "Yes, Elena." He slowly looked up, "I did."
The Gilbert looked hopeful for the first time in a while. Elijah started to walk around the room again.
"But unfortunately, Katerina took matters into her own hands first. I believe you already know how that played out." He picked up Elena's jacket at handed it to her.
The brown eyed girl picked up on the vampire's demeanor. "You cared about her, didn't you?"
Elijah looked towards Elena, "It's a common mistake, I'm told. And it's one I won't make again."
The man went to leave, but turned around briefly. He held his arm out to Percy. "Would you honor me with your presence at the Salvatore residence?"
Percy laughed at the fanciness of his invitation. She instantly got up and looped her arm in his. Grinning, she led him out the door.
Elena's face scrunched up in confusion as she watched the duo.
"Let's go, Ella." Percy called out over her shoulder.
The doppelgänger looked offended. "It's Elena. You know that."
Elijah had to hold back a laugh at the demigod's antics. Especially when the raven haired girl began singing, "We're off to see the wizard, the wonderful Wizard of Oz."
She continued until they reached the car. Percy let go of his arm and opened the door for him. Bowing dramatically, she said, "Your seat, good Sir."
Elijah snickered and got in the car. "Thank you, my lady."
Percy laughed as she entered the vehicle. Elena looked at the demigod, "You're so weird."
Grinning, the sea green eyed girl responded, "I know."
The doppelgänger was going to retort but saw Elijah's cold stare. She gulped and started driving to the boarding house.
✧✧✧
Once they arrived at the door of the Salvatore house, Elena invited Elijah into the house. A loud crash could be heard from another room. The trio walked farther to find Damon and Stefan fighting.
"Stop!" Elena yelled.
The two brothers immediately broke apart. Damon saw that the original was in the house. "Now you've invited him in?" He asked baffled.
Elena explained the situation, "Elijah and I have renewed the terms of our deal."
"Really?" The older Salvatore asked with irritation dripping in his voice.
Elijah spoke, "The two of you will come to no harm at my hands." The original stepped forward, "I only ask for one thing in return."
"What?" Damon asked.
Elijah answered, "An apology."
Damon made a face of pure disgust. He was not familiar with the term. "A what?"
Everyone made a point of looking at someone in the room, as if waiting for someone to make the first move. It reminded Percy of the Spider-man meme.
Elena looked at Damon. Percy looked at Stefan, and Stefan returned the gaze before looking at Damon. Damon looked back at Stefan which caused Stefan to look back at Elena. Damon looked at Percy. Percy looked up at the ceiling again, wanting it to feel included. Damon and Stefan looked at each other. Stefan then looked at Percy, Elijah, and Elena.
Percy wanted to slam her head against the wall. All this for an apology?
Gods, they're acting like someone just stole the last cookie from the jar.
So dramatic.
Finally, Stefan decided to take the lead. Percy mentally applauded him.
Stepping forward he said, "I'm sorry for the part that I played in your death. I was protecting Elena. I will always protect Elena."
Good job, Stefan.
Percy gave him a thumbs up.
Damon, however, looked like a toddler who's mom said he couldn't get any ice-cream. In other words, he was looking pretty grouchy.
Elijah accepted the apology, "I understand."
Stefan nodded and Elena smiled. Everyone looked at Damon expectantly. Percy didn't need to have the daughter of Athena with her to realize Damon wasn't going to apologize.
Elena spoke up in an effort to convince him, "Sacrifice is going to happen, Damon. Bonnie will be able to kill Klaus without hurting herself. And Elijah knows how to save my life. I told you I'd find another way. And I did."
The older Salvatore's expression didn't falter, "Is that true?"
"It is," Elijah responded at the same time Percy said, "Yup."
Damon still seemed very moody. "And you're trusting him?"
"I am." Elena confirmed.
"You can all go to hell." Damon declared.
Percy mumbled, "Already have. Don't feel like returning any time soon."
Elijah glanced at the girl for a moment. He looked back to see Damon leaving the room.
Stefan defended his brother. "He's angry with me right now. But, he'll come around."
"Perhaps," Elijah replied.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
omg yall made it this far. you're legends. i stan you kings, queens, and non-binary icons.
anyways was this too long of a chapter??
let me know !!
3912 words
peace out 🍕
-Shay