They went back to Whitmore.
It was Saturday, and they should have been in a great mood, even excited to go to the Whitmore Historical Ball. But it was hard to be thrilled about anything when they had no clue how to help Matt. Or what to do about the Katherine situation.
"Something really weird is going on," said Tyler when he found them preparing costumes in the dorm. "Jesse's completely M.I.A. We were supposed to go on another run today."
Rosalind frowned. "When did you last see him?"
"Thursday. We went on a run, and I slipped him some blood in his post-workout pomegranate juice. I figured it would help him so he wouldn't be in pain. But now he's gone. By my calculations, he should have been there and been fine, but now he isn't."
"Wait, wait, what?" said Caroline. "You fed him your blood? Tyler, he must have freaked out if he was suddenly healed from an injury that's been bothering him for so long. You need to find him! What if somebody kills him? What if he got into an accident?"
The hybrid held up his hands in surrender. "I will check the hospital and his dorm." He made to walk out, turning last minute to say to Caroline, "And just pick something for me, I have no idea what to wear."
"Don't worry!" said Caroline. "We're going to be Bonnie and Clyde."
Bonnie smiled. "And what are you going to be, Elena?"
"Anne Boleyn," said Elena, holding up a red dress that was as close to accurate as one could possibly be when it came to last-minute costumes. Rosalind thought it looked rather nice. "Rosalind, what do you want to be?"
She shrugged. "Well, there's another dress in the batch similar to the one you picked so I could be a... lady from the same time period as you?"
"Or Henry the Eighth," said Bonnie, holding up a white shirt and a grey necklace with a pattern of ornate squares. Rosalind had seen it in a show or a movie, she just couldn't remember which.
Rosalind hummed. "Well, I'm not putting my hair up, but I think I can rock that Henry the Eighth costume. Even though I am a big fan of dresses, especially those cute poofy ones. Oh, well, there will be another occasion." She took the shirt from Bonnie. "What about you? What are you going to wear? You said Jeremy was coming, right?"
Bonnie nodded. "Neither of us really know what to wear and Jeremy jokingly suggested pretending to be Greek deities so I think I could just put on a peplos dress and say I'm Hecate. Jeremy likes using his crossbow so he can be... Apollo."
"Question," said Rosalind, slipping off her pants to try on the ones that came with the Henry the Eighth costume. "Do you think Dr. Dickfield will be there? Maybe we could try to isolate him or something."
"Good thinking," said Elena. "We should talk to him, try to get him alone. Ooh—" she noticed the pants slipped right off of Rosalind. "Okay, I have some dress pants that might fit you better than that." She went over to one of her drawers to look.
"So," said Caroline curiously, "are you two like... an official thing?"
Both girls looked up. "We will be tomorrow," said Rosalind, winking at Elena. "That's the plan, at least, which nobodybetter mess up."
Elena handed her the dress pants with a smile. "It'll be fun to share clothes, now that I think of it. We're the same size, Rosalind's just a little taller."
"Three inches taller," said Rosalind pointedly. "Which makes these dress pants hang... three inches above my ankle. I guess I can wear my black boots and hope nobody looks down."
Caroline handed her a pair of black socks that would help hide how far up the pants were. "Well, I'm happy for the two of you." She grinned at Elena, "We're going to be almost sister-in-laws!"
Rosalind slipped on the white shirt, scrunching up her nose. "Is there even an English word for what you two would be, you and Tyler and me and Elena got married? Like, she'd be your sister-in-law's wife, Caroline. And you'd be her brother-in-law's wife. But like, in Spanish, you'd be concuñas while you and me would be cuñadas, Caroline."
Bonnie blinked. "I didn't realize there wasn't a word for that. At least, not a word I know."
"Since when do you speak Spanish?" asked Caroline, who was more thrown off by that.
"I know some," said Rosalind. "My maternal grandmother was Hispanic, from what my dad told me. The 'Collins' surname came from my maternal grandfather. When I was little and I thought my mom and grandparents were dead, I learned a little bit from my neighbors." She clipped the necklace to her shirt. "I wonder what she'd think of all this. What if I actually got saved, 'cause my mom would have been a homophobe, or something? Would have done more damage for her to be in my life but hating what I am." She noticed her friends didn't seem to know what to tell her, so she changed the subject, "How does this look?"
"Great," said Elena, beaming at her. "You make a perfect king."
Rosalind bowed. "And you make the perfect queen."
After figuring out their costumes, Elena joined Rosalind in walking to her apartment to get ready. As they moved through the main path of the school, they came across a young blond sitting next to Megan's memorial.
"Hey," said Elena kindly, figuring this might be someone who knew Megan more personally. He might have insight about her.
He glanced back, seeing them. "Hey."
"I'm Elena," said the girl. "This is Rosalind. Megan lived across the hall from me. Did you know her?"
He nodded. "We knew each other growing up."
"I'm sorry for your loss," said Rosalind politely.
He shrugged, picking up a wilted flower from the shrine. "Pretty sad memorial, huh? Guess it's not exactly cool to mourn during fall rush."
Elena and Rosalind shared a look. "Everyone mourns differently," said Elena. "Some do flowers. Others do what their loved ones would've wanted."
Rosalind tried to stop herself from thinking, 'Some of us go crazy and do things we regret heavily later on.'
"Yeah," said the boy. "Well, what Megan would have wanted was to still be here alive."
"They said she committed suicide."
"Yeah. I know. That's what they said."
Rosalind raised a brow. "Sounds like you think something different went down."
He stood up. "If you care about her, get her sunflowers. She liked those." He began to walk away.
"Hey," said Elena before he could disappear from view. "Do you have a name?"
"Yeah," he said. "I do." He didn't stop walking, and was soon too far away for them to continue the conversation.
Rosalind crossed her arms. "Well, he took that question very literally. He's someone we need to look into. What do you say I scope out Dr. Dickfield and you find out more about No-Name Guy?"
Elena nodded. "Sounds like a plan. Hey, has Damon messaged you any updates about Katherine?"
She shook her head. "No, but now that I think of it, I want to know what's going on with that." She dialed his number. "Hey, Damon, random question, but you do know how phones work, right? There's a little app where you text in group messages to update people all at once because— newsflash— we're not in Mystic Falls anymore but we still care about what happens there."
"I usually wait to update til after everything is resolved," he replied simply. "But since you're in a nosy mood, I'll tell you. Katherine is still gone but someone did come looking for her. Some random person with a European accent."
"And? What did they tell you?"
"Some bullshit about needing 'one of each.' They were trying to recruit Jeremy to help them kill Silas. They mentioned something about the original doppelgängers being encased in stone, and how they need to use the cure on them. But clearly whoever was here today isn't associated with the person who took Katherine, 'cause they didn't know she was even gone."
Rosalind drew away from the phone. "Give me a second. Let me text Klaus to ask if he and Kol are willing to do some research for us. They've been around for so long, they're bound to have heard something."
"Let me know if they reply."
He hung up, causing Rosalind to roll her eyes.
At seven o'clock, they made their way into a large building nearby Whitmore House, where the ball was being held. Rosalind escorted Elena in, holding her arm proudly.
"You look beautiful," she said, eyes flickering over her figure. "That dress makes your chest look great, the hair frames your face perfectly, and the eyeshadow you did gives you the perfect amount of shadows over your eyes."
Elena blushed. "Well, aren't you honest."
"I am very honest, my dear. That's why I must admit that I'm going to cut your head off."
She grasped her neck dramatically. "You wouldn't!"
"Oh, I would," said Rosalind solemnly. "As saddening as it is to think of slicing through that pretty neck of yours." She snapped her fingers. "Speaking of necks, I spoke to Klaus earlier, getting general updates about the situation in New Orleans and figuring out whether he and Kol would be able to help us or not, and I asked if he might be willing to send us some vials of his blood. For emergencies, and also in case I accidentally bite you. I worry that I'll get carried away and do it without meaning to."
Elena furrowed her eyebrows. "Do you think it's really that much of a risk?"
Rosalind's cheeks reddened. "I can't help but feel curious about what your blood tastes like. I've heard that it's... intimate when vampires feed on each other. I worry my subconscious desires will just burst out and I'll bite you accidentally. I'd never be able to live with myself if I killed you because I got too excited."
"Then it'll be a good thing to have those vials," said Elena. "But, for the record, I trust you, Rosalind. If you want to taste my blood, that can be arranged."
She shook her head. "It's better we don't. If I get one taste, I might enjoy it too much. Oh, hey..." she spotted a familiar face. "No-Name Guy is here. The dance floor's still pretty dead, what do you say we go and interrogate him further?"
"You read my mind, dear husband," teased Elena, curtsying. "I'm not going to let Megan's death fall through the cracks. We have to find out what happened to her. I can't imagine what her family must be feeling right now. Some closure for them, for her friends, and for us, because her death clearly has something to do with what we are..."
They approached the boy as he poured himself something to drink. "Hey, whatever-your-name-is," said Elena, nodding to his tuxedo t-shirt. "Nice t-shirt, understated."
He looked over them, a bit confused. "Hey, whatever you two are supposed to be."
"Anne Boleyn," replied Elena. "Pre-beheading, of course. And this is Henry... etta? The Eighth."
"Henry the Eighth is fine," said Rosalind with a shrug.
The boy nodded. "Impressed."
"So, does a costume compliment earn us, like, a formal introduction?"
He seemed suspicious. "Why do you want to know who I am?"
Rosalind put her hands on her hips. "Would you rather we just be like 'Hey, you,' anytime we have to address you?"
"Guess not." He still didn't offer his name.
Elena got impatient, looking into his eyes. "Did you kill Megan?"
He blinked. "Of course not."
"Then why are you acting so shady?"
"Because everyone around me dies," he admitted. "It's like a curse. My friends, my family— one by one, I've lost every single person in my life. So, if you had any idea what survivor's guilt felt like, you'd leave me alone."
"Trust me, we know," said Rosalind. She compelled him this time, "Forget what we were asking."
He said instead, "It's Aaron. My name. I'll see you two around, maybe." He walked off.
"Mysterious as ever," said Rosalind, pouring them both something to drink. Once they'd taken several sips and finished the contents in their cups, she extended her hand. "Shall we?"
"We shall," said Elena, allowing Rosalind to lead her onto the dance floor.
They spotted Caroline and Tyler in the crowd, as well as Bonnie and Jeremy. Since they seemed to be perfectly okay, they danced to several songs, just the two of them, pressed close together. Elena placed her head on Rosalind's chest after a while, hugging around her shoulders. Rosalind smiled, resting her chin onto her head as best as she could.
They left the dance floor several songs later to get another drink. This time, it was Dr. Maxfield standing by the punch table.
"You look like a woman on her way to the guillotine," he told Elena.
"Actually," said Elena, "she was beheaded with a sword."
"See?" said Dr. Maxfield with a light chuckle. "And that's why I teach bio."
Rosalind cast him a cheeky smile, observing his outfit, which included a top hat. "President Lincoln?"
"Dr. Jekyll," he corrected.
"Okay, yeah, I can see that," mused Elena. "So, where's Mr. Hyde?"
"I don't know," said Dr. Maxfield. "I am not responsible for my darker half."
"You totally are," said Rosalind. "Everyone should hold themselves accountable when it comes to their dark sides."
"Sounds like you'd know a bit about that."
Rosalind's lips curled up. "Maybe I do."
"So," prompted Elena, "would it be totally inappropriate if a student asked you to dance?"
"Who could refuse a queen?" he said, holding out his hand. "Besides, you're not, nor will you ever be, one of my students."
Elena cast Rosalind a look, as if asking that she listen in. Rosalind couldn't help but feel jealous as Dr. Maxfield took Elena's hand and led her onto the dance floor. She leaned onto the drinks table, glaring intently and keeping her ears sharp.
"Major points for the dance moves," said Elena as they swayed, "but zero points for lying on my roommate's death certificate."
"Look," replied Dr. Maxfield, "I didn't want to lie, but I couldn't exactly tell her parents a mountain lion attacked her at a frat party. I'd be fired."
"Huh," said Elena casually.
"Want to know my theory?"
"What's that?"
He became very serious, "I think a vampire hunted her down, ripped her throat out, and threw her off that roof."
Elena kept her face neutral. "What do you know about vampires?"
"Doesn't matter what I know, Elena, because we're never gonna see each other again."
"And why is that?"
He leaned in to whisper in her ear, "Because there are people at this school watching you and your friends and asking questions you don't want them to ask." He stepped away from her. "So, pack your things, drop out, and move back to Mystic Falls."
Rosalind was quick to reach Elena's side once Dr. Maxfield disappeared. "Fucking weirdo," she said. "So, he does know. Guess that means we have to compel him to give up names and we can just compel the lot of them, or something."
"We'll tell the others when this is over," said Elena quietly. "Think you have it in you to dance for a bit longer?"
"Just a bit," said Rosalind, since she could tell Elena really wanted to. "Can't quite say no to my queen, can I?"
Pretty soon, though, both of them were in agreement that they didn't feel well enough to stay there. They went to one of the campus restaurants and bought some food, still wearing their costumes. Rosalind walked Elena to her dorm, then made her way back to her apartment. While she was heading there, Klaus called her.
"Hey there," she said. "How's it going?"
"All's well here, at least today," he replied. "Kol did find something about who this might be about. Travelers, a sub-culture of witches, not quite powerful alone, but very strong in a group. Their spells are in Czech, it could explain what was told to me about Matt. These Travelers have the ability to become Passengers in the bodies of others. The story appears to be inconsistent throughout the different books and journals Kol had, but it all points back to two famous Traveler witches: Silas and Qetsiyah. It details the creation of the Other Side and the use of an anchor just as ancient as the two of them. One with mystical abilities. Damon stated that the person they saw today said both original doppelgängers were encased in stone. Silas, in the caves. Apparently a doppelgänger of Stefan. This woman, Amara, the first Petrova doppelgänger, is the anchor. Calcified completely and holding the balance of the Other Side. As an immortal, it keeps it stable."
"Huh," said Rosalind. "So they want just one of each. My guess is that's why they want Katherine, to kill her. But... then that leaves Elena for their own evil gains. Wait, actually, I'm confused how they plan to kill Silas without the cure."
"I'd imagine Katerina's blood is now the cure, given she ingested it. There is nothing written about that bit, considering no one had taken the cure and lived on to tell the tae until Katerina. This does not bode well for the stability of the Other Side, or for your girlfriend. Kol and his little witch will see what can be done, considering that would affect where all of us would go if we were to perish. Witches are fond of balance. If the anchor that has held the Other Side upright for two thousand years were to die, then I expect that hellish limbo would vanish soon afterward. Rebekah is particularly worried about Finn. What I wonder is where Mikael and Esther would disappear to if it collapsed."
"I'm sure they'd get chucked straight to Hell," said Rosalind. "I mean, the Other Side is like a purgatory/limbo, so if it's gone, wouldn't there only be two paths? Hell and peace?"
"Perhaps. With any luck..."
Rosalind leaned the phone on her shoulder. "How are you feeling? There's only a few weeks until Hayley's due date. Have everything ready?"
"Today, I put the finishing touches on the nursery. I added a few of my paintings for a splash of color. The child... she kicks often. Just today, Hayley was complaining of pain. I feared something was wrong. But it appears my daughter is merely a football player."
"Or a runner," said Rosalind. "Maybe I can teach her to run like I do. Have you guys decided on a name yet?"
"Still... working on that. We've been busy."
"Nicolette Mikaelson. Or Luna, because she'll be the daughter of two wolves. Or some H name for Hayley. If all else fails you should name her after me."
"I don't quite imagine Hayley will be thrilled to have a daughter named Rosalind."
"Well, I've been nice whenever I call you, and I did send you guys some baby clothes I bought in Florida when you told me it was going to be a girl. You could give her an 'R' name and say it's for Rebekah! Or name her after Elijah or Kol."
"Hayley's birth name is Andrea. What do you think of that? Andrea Mikaelson."
"That's pretty. Would you call her 'Andy?' Cause if so, I fucking love that. But would you pronounce it Anne-dree-uh, or Ahn-dray-uh?"
"Ahn-dray-uh, most likely."
"Cute. Super cute. Andrea Nicolette Mikaelson."
"Just for that, I'd be willing to make you godmother. Though, I suspect Rebekah might murder you if I did that."
"Oof, yeah, let Rebekah have that honor, it's going to be her only niece. I might have a whole bunch with Matt and Bonnie and Jeremy being mortals. How funny would it be if Tyler could reproduce, like you?"
Klaus laughed. "Nobody could be like me in that aspect, love, I am unique."
Rosalind shrugged. "Had to ask. So, um, I'm going on a date with Elena tomorrow. I'm going to ask her to be my girlfriend, officially."
"I'll be sure to rush that order of my blood, then. In case it gets... out of hand after you become official."
"No worries, I don't think we'll be sleeping together tomorrow. She's got a three-person dorm, I have a two-person apartment. We'd need to get a hotel room, and I think it's just too soon to go that far. We're planning a weekend getaway to the Gilbert lake house... sometime eventually." She drew her phone away from her ear when it buzzed, indicating a text had arrived. "Oh, Damon says Katherine just returned to the Boarding House. Some Travelers took her blood. But somehow, she's still alive."
"Well, then," said Klaus gravely, "I suppose we're about to find out what actually happens if the anchor to the Other Side is killed."
.
A/N: Happy 500 pages! I'm about to have family staying with me for a week so updates might slow down :/ sorry guys! I would much prefer to be updating tbh, but it'll be hard to get alone time.