Elena was understandably distraught.
She'd asked Rosalind to take her back to the school. At first, Rosalind thought she'd left something there. Maybe the headband she'd been wearing was still in the gym.
But she marched straight to Alaric's classroom and began tearing through it, shoving his weapons into duffel bags.
"Elena," said Rosalind gently. "I can come with you and do this tomorrow morning, if you'd like. You ought to get some rest."
"No," replied the doppelgänger, pushing piles of stakes into the duffel. "I'd rather get it over with now before some janitor comes to clean out Alaric's stuff and realizes the history teacher was a vampire slayer."
"No janitors are coming until tomorrow at midday, perhaps we ought to give it a night before—"
"I can't," said Elena, her lips trembling. "I can't go and rest anywhere. I need to do this now, because I don't want to be able to think of anything else. I can't think about the fact that Jeremy and I don't have anyone to take care of us any more or that we've lost another friend, I just, I can't think about any of it."
Rosalind grabbed onto her shoulders, stopping her just before she cut her hand on the edge of a knife. "Elena..." she slid her hands up to cup her face. "You're going to hurt yourself and I don't want that to happen. Please, sit down."
Elena sank onto the ground, tears running down her face. "I don't have anyone any more. I don't... I've got no one..."
"That's not true." Rosalind sank down beside her. "Jeremy is still here. So is Matt. Caroline, Bonnie, Tyler, Stefan, and Damon. And me. I'm still here. I am so sorry, Elena. I'm sorry that this has happened all over again. If I could change things, I would. Unfortunately, as much as I'd like to, I can't control what has already happened. But what I am in control of right now is how I help you through this and as someone who's lost a lot of people too, I can tell you that you are not okay, and you shouldn't be here. It's okay to just let yourself cry for a night before you pack everything up, Elena. It's okay to break down completely. You don't need to seek out distractions or try to move on with life right away. Avoiding the pain will only hurt you more. Hey..." she brushed her knuckles over her cheek. "Breathe. Breathe..."
She gasped several times before managing to follow Rosalind, breathing deeply along with her lead. "I miss him," she choked out. "He's not even dead and I miss him."
"I know," said Rosalind, pulling her into her arms to caress her head. "I know, and you're going to miss him tomorrow, and the day after that. Even more in a week and a month. But eventually it hurts less. You will see him again, one day. And you'll get to tell him all about the things you accomplished. You'll tell him you became a doctor like your dad. With a kind heart like your mom and Aunt Jenna. You'll have... a perfect, clean little house. Three kids and two very spoiled dogs..."
Elena managed a weak laugh, wiping her eyes. "And what if I don't? What if I don't see him?"
"There is peace out there," murmured Rosalind. "I know it. There has to be. We can't possibly live in this world where peace doesn't exist. Alaric will be at peace. He's at peace with his decision. And you will be at peace, too."
"I don't want to be here anymore," admitted Elena. "I just want to take Jeremy and leave. Start fresh somewhere else. And I know my parents wouldn't want that, but this town... Matt's right. It's messed up, and we shouldn't have to live this way. I just don't even know where I'd start. How I'd leave or where I would go."
"There are ways," said Rosalind quietly. "Klaus was talking to me today about wanting to leave. So there's that option. You and Jeremy could come with us. He thinks he's interested in going to New Orleans. The hybrids would protect you both, and you could have a true, fresh start. A new school, new people. It can be for a little while or for a long while. You've been through so much, Elena, it's okay to decide that you need to step away from it. Alaric, Jenna, your parents, they'd all want you to take control of your own fate and do what makes you and Jeremy happy. Do what will bring you peace in this existence."
Elena wiped her eyes. "He'd really let me go with you?"
"He knows I wouldn't go unless you came with me." She offered her hand. "Come on. Let me take you home, I'll draw you a warm bath, I'll make you and Jeremy something to eat, and I'll spend the night downstairs and give you both some time to digest everything and grieve. I promise we'll come back in the morning and pack everything up once you've had a night to accept what's happened. Right now, I just worry you'll hurt yourself."
"Okay," sniffled Elena. "Let's go."
She seemed so emotionally exhausted, that Rosalind decided to just carefully pick her up, carrying her to the car. She drove to the Gilbert House, and found that Matt had just brought Jeremy home. She went upstairs to prepare Elena's bath, then gave Jeremy a hug before going to the kitchen and having Matt help her with some waffles and pancakes, which is what the two Gilberts claimed they were craving.
"I don't know how to help them," said Matt quietly as they cooked. "I just wish I could get us all out of this town, away from all the tragedy that's happened here. This is ridiculous, Rosalind. How many more people will we lose? Who'll be the next victim? You? Me? Jeremy?"
Rosalind sighed. "I know. It's got my head spinning. I don't know if leaving would actually be helpful at all. I just want to keep everyone safe but every day, it becomes harder."
They went silent as they heard movement on the stairs, alerting them that the siblings were coming down.
Their meal was quiet. Damon's last message informed them that he was staying with Alaric until the end, and would be taking care of his body as Alaric wanted.
Matt went home after they ate. Rosalind made herself a place on the couch, then went to check on the Gilberts. Jeremy was already in bed, curled up and with his ears plugged, listening to music. Elena was in her room, staring out the window and hugging a stuffed animal.
"I'll be downstairs if you need anything," said Rosalind gently.
Elena turned to look at her, and quickly wiped her eyes. "Oh, god, you're still wearing your dress, I should give you something to wear."
"It's okay," said Rosalind. "I have a change of clothes in my car, I just need to go get it."
"Can you stay with me?"
Rosalind realized she meant in the bed with her. "If you'd like. I'll be right back, I'm going to go get dressed."
Once she had her clothes, she ducked into the bathroom and changed. She didn't really like sleeping in jeans, but she hadn't anticipated a sleepover.
She found Elena was waiting for her. She crawled into the bed beside her, with Elena under the covers and Rosalind on top of them. They were facing the same direction, allowing Rosalind to slowly smooth her hands over her head and down her back, just as her father used to do whenever she had nightmares and came to sleep next to him. Which had happened pretty often when she was younger, and then again when she was older and found out the truth about why her mother wasn't in her life.
"I've got you," said Rosalind, stroking her hand across the girl's body over and over, sensing that she was soothing her, even slightly. "I'm right here."
Elena cried for a little bit before she fell asleep. Even once she'd drifted off, Rosalind was still massaging her shoulders, making sure she stayed that way.
She couldn't sleep. She wanted to remain alert the entire night, and vigilant. She messaged Klaus around one in the morning to tell him about what had happened. He was still awake, and told her to focus on comforting Elena. He was giving her time off from her training.
'I told her about coming to New Orleans with us,' she messaged. 'She said she wanted to leave. Maybe things will work out after all.'
'Good. Truth be told I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable leaving without you. You're part of the Pack. No member left behind.'
Rosalind smiled. 'Or forgotten.'
He sent her three question marks. She replied, 'It's from a movie, Lilo and Stitch. We need to have a Disney movie marathon one of these days.'
'Only if it means I can force you to watch opera with me.'
'I'll fall asleep, but sure.'
Around three in the morning, she felt movement. She sat up and saw Elena was getting dressed and tying her hair up.
"What are you doing?" asked Rosalind tiredly.
"I need to do something," she said. "I can't just sit here. I'm going to paint Alaric's room."
"Elena, it's three in the morning."
"And I need to paint Alaric's room."
Rosalind rubbed her eyes and followed after her as she gathered the cans of paint stored in the downstairs closet. The hybrid took charge of priming the walls, yawning repeatedly into her hand. About half an hour into their project, Jeremy came in, asking what the hell they were up to. He, too, opted to help, and primed alongside Rosalind so Elena would have more to paint.
Around eight in the morning, Stefan came by to bring them breakfast. "Going darker, huh?" he observed as he found them painting away.
"It's the only color we had," said Elena, running the paint roller over the walls.
"That's what happens when you decide to paint your dead guardian's room in the middle of the night," said Jeremy under his breath.
Stefan pursed his lips and gave Rosalind a significant look. "I don't suppose anyone tried to talk you guys out of doing this so soon."
"She started this at three in the morning," said Rosalind, glaring at him. "I wasn't about to force her back to her bed. Who am I to tell her not to do it if it's what she wants?"
"We have to keep moving," said Elena. "Otherwise we'll start thinking and we don't want to think."
The doorbell rang downstairs. "I'll get that," said Stefan, heading down. Rosalind followed after him, planning to snarl at him not to be too judgmental about the way Elena and Jeremy decided to cope, unless it was seriously a threat to their safety.
When he opened the door, Damon was there, holding Bonnie by the arm. Blood was dripping from Bonnie's neck. "We have a problem," said the elder Salvatore.
"I would think so," said Rosalind in disbelief. "What the hell happened to Bonnie?"
"Alaric happened," said Damon. "He turned."
Stefan made a face. "What do you mean he turned? I thought you were standing guard!"
"Don't blame me," said Damon. "Blame Bonnie the blood bank. She fed him."
"I had no idea what was happening," said Bonnie angrily. "Okay, the witches led me there. They wanted him to feed so he turned."
"What about the white oak stake?" asked Rosalind.
Damon stared at Bonnie. "We don't know!"
Stefan beckoned them into the kitchen so he could get Bonnie a rag to stop the bleeding on her neck. Rosalind was quick to text Klaus about what'd happened as she trotted upstairs to tell Elena the bad news.
She found that Elena was on the phone, her face as pale as the sheets they'd used to cover the furniture while they painted. "What is it?" asked Rosalind when she put the phone down.
"Alaric has Caroline at the school," said Elena quietly. "He wants us to turn ourselves over to him."
"I was just coming up to tell you the witches forced Bonnie to make him transition," said Rosalind softly. "And wait... 'us' like you and me? Why?"
"I don't know. Come with me." She motioned to the window. "We have to go alone and we have to go fast."
Rosalind didn't like the idea of not telling anyone where they were going. But, against her better judgment, she followed Elena out the window, down the room, and out to her car. As she drove them to school, she made Elena type a message from her to Klaus, which they sent the instant they entered the building. At least then, someone would know where they were. She'd asked Klaus to go to the Gilbert House to brainstorm with the others first.
They walked to Alaric's classroom quickly. As they turned the corner, they found Caroline sitting at a desk, a vervain gag in her mouth and pencils stabbed into her hands to keep her there.
"Right on time," said Alaric with a malicious smirk.
"Caroline!" cried Elena. "Let her go, Alaric!"
He pointed at the blonde. "Free her yourself."
Elena moved toward Caroline, and Rosalind made to stand protectively between Alaric and Elena, to keep him from interfering. But, faster than she anticipated, he tossed her out of the way and slammed the pencil deeper into Caroline's hand, shoving Elena aside.
"You said that you would let her go!" cried Elena.
"How many times do I have to tell you, Elena?" asked Alaric. "Stop trusting vampires!"
"Why the hell did you want us here?" asked Rosalind, shielding both Elena and Caroline as she staggered back toward them.
"I'm going to teach Elena a lesson," said Alaric. "And you're going to help." He pointed at the seat beside Caroline. "Elena, sit down. Rosalind, on the other side of her."
They did as told. Rosalind was looking at all the exits, all the weapons that were still there inside the duffel bag on the desk because she hadn't let Elena pack them up the previous night. She could see the indestructible white oak stake laying by itself next to the bag. If she could get that and stab it into Alaric's heart... maybe she could end this once and for all.
She watched as Alaric reached for a beaker, removing the cloth from Caroline's mouth. He dipped the cloth in, then started to place it back on her as she screamed.
"Leave her alone!" cried Rosalind. "What the hell kind of lesson is this?!"
"This keeps the vervain in her system," he said calmly. "It's like inhaling razor blades with every breath. It'll make it easier on Elena when she puts her out of her misery." He reached for one of the regular wooden stakes inside the bag, handing it to Elena. "Kill her."
"What?" said Elena. "No!"
"Isn't this what you wanted, Elena?" asked Alaric. "For me to teach you how to kill a vampire? Well, here's a vampire, Elena. Kill her."
"This isn't what I want!"
"Of course it is. All those hours you spent training, getting stronger, you could be a hunter, Elena. But you've never actually staked a vampire through the heart. Kill her, or—" he yanked Rosalind out of her seat and to the floor, kicking her twice in the face and once in the stomach, "or she'll feel pain for every second that Caroline remains alive."
Elena's eyes were wide and teary. Rosalind cried out as Alaric slammed his foot into her stomach again. "I can take it," she moaned out to Elena, trying to crawl away, only for Alaric to kick her again, this time hard enough to break her nose. "I can take it... don't... don't kill her..."
"You need to stop trusting vampires," sneered Alaric, kicking her again. "And stop loving them."
"Leave her alone!" shrieked Elena. "Let them both go! Don't do this to them!"
"They're monsters, Elena," said Alaric. He gestured to Caroline. "She's a murderer. She told me she killed someone and liked it. And she—" he pulled Rosalind up, squeezing her throat and making more blood run down her mouth and nose, "sided with Klaus to do the same... murder people. Turn them into monsters."
He tossed Rosalind down, taking the beaker of vervain and splashing it in her face. Rosalind screamed, covering her eyes as she felt it burning her cheeks.
"Kill Caroline," he said, "and I'll put Rosalind out of her misery quickly."
"Alaric, let them go!" sobbed Elena. "They didn't do anything to you!"
Alaric slammed his foot onto Rosalind's head, pressing her skull into the ground and causing it to crack loudly. She whimpered, blinking several times as her eyes bled a bit, her body healing a tad slower now.
"I can take it," she repeated to Elena, reminding her that Klaus knew where they were. Soon, someone would come to help them. Alaric wanted Elena to be the one to kill Caroline. Rosalind would tolerate as much torture as necessary to ensure Caroline stayed alive. To ensure Elena didn't have to murder her best friend. "I can take it..."
"Of course you can," sneered Alaric. "You're used to getting dragged around by Originals, aren't you? You probably enjoy it. Well, I guarantee you won't enjoy this."
He took the beaker, and lifted her up, pouring some of the liquid down her throat. She gagged and coughed, her throat raw as she screamed for him to stop.
"Maybe a practice round is in order," said Alaric. "Elena, stake Rosalind. It won't kill her permanently. Then, you can see what it feels like before you do it to Caroline."
"I'm not doing that!" said Elena. "Alaric, why are you doing this? Please, stop..."
"Because you need me," he replied. "Because you're an eighteen-year-old girl without parents or guidance or any sense of right and wrong anymore."
"Look at you? How is any of this right?!"
"Your parents led the council, Elena. It was their life's mission to keep this town safe. They weren't dead six months before you undid it all."
Elena's eyes burned with hateful tears. "You don't know anything about them."
"Why, am I wrong?" asked Alaric, too focused on Elena to realize Rosalind was inching toward the desk. "Do you actually think that they'd be proud of you?" He knelt in front of her, his back to Rosalind. "If you don't side with the humans, you're just as bad as them."
Rosalind had just been reaching for the white oak stake when Alaric yanked her away from the desk, holding her arms behind her, her chest exposed to Elena. "Now stake her, or I'll do it for you and I'll make it hurt. I might even tear her heart out in the process."
"It's okay," said Rosalind shakily, looking down at Elena. "Do it. Do it..."
"I don't want to hurt you," said Elena shakily. "I don't want to kill you!"
"You're not killing me permanently," said Rosalind, trying to buy time with the conversation, trying to figure out what else could be done. "It's just for a little while, okay? Please, Elena, if he stakes me, the last thing I'm gonna see is his face. I don't want that. If you stake me, I'll die temporarily, and he'll kill me before I wake. The last thing I'll see in this life is you. That's all I could ever hope for."
"You can't die!" pleaded Elena. "I don't want either of you to die!"
"Oh, she has to die," said Alaric in Rosalind's ear. "Aside from his siblings, she's the person Klaus cares about the most at the moment. Without her, the Hybrid Pack will collapse. Those hybrids will never follow him, knowing he wasn't even strong enough to save her from me. It's the one useful thing about those monsters, they adore her. Now kill her." He gripped Rosalind's neck. "Or I'll twist her head off and she'll be gone permanently."
"Just stake me," said Rosalind. "It's okay. It's okay..." she saw her opening. Alaric was so focused on the stake in Elena's hands, he wasn't paying attention to the beaker of vervain, which rested on the table, right within Elena's reach. She tried to signal with her eyes, knowing that Alaric couldn't see what she was doing.
Elena seemed to get the memo. She made to stab her in the heart, but at the last second, switched to trying to stab Alaric's arm. He caught Elena's wrist, causing him to release Rosalind, who grabbed the vervain beaker and smashed it on Alaric's head. He released Elena with a yell, and she yanked the pencils out of Caroline, removing the vervain gag.
"Get help!" she yelled.
Caroline sped off. Elena made toward the door while Rosalind kicked Alaric with all her might, grabbing the regular stake and slashing across his face, cutting open his cheek. Before he could fully recover, she grabbed his arm and bit into it, hard.
He backhanded her, and took the stake, stabbing it into her heart through her back. She gave a croak, sinking down and feeling herself losing consciousness as the desiccated grey veins rose up to her face.
She had a wild hope that Elena and Caroline had already made it out safely. But it really was just wild. Because the last thing she heard was Elena letting out a scream, followed by Alaric snarling, "I should kill you."
"No," she breathed out, trying to reach for the stake, but finding she was too late.