GOAL: 10 COMMENTS THAT DO NOT SAY "UPDATE!"
FORTY-THREE; TELL ME A LIE (S3E18)
~
"Alaric Saltzman killed my father?" Caroline asked Estella and Elena.
Stefan had texted the three to meet him in the woods, and Elena thought it best to tell Caroline who murdered her father. Estella wasn't so sure about the plan and stuck next to Elena for safe measure.
"I can't expect you to be okay with this," Elena said to her friend. "But at least these herbs that Bonnie's giving him, they're healing him and they're keeping the dark side buried."
"Yeah, and that's supposed to make everything okay?" Estella turned Caroline towards her so Caroline was facing her. Estella noticed the teary eyes, making her sigh.
"No, Caroline, it's not okay. It's horrible and we feel horrible about it, but he's a victim of something supernatural, he didn't ask for this, it just happened to him. Just like Bonnie's mom, I mean, she didn't ask to become a vampire. And neither did Stefan or Tyler," Estella explained.
"Or me," Caroline spoke.
"Or you. None of you asked for this, but who would I be if I just turned my back on any of you?" Elena asked.
Caroline moved to the side of Elena with Estella next to her. Caroline swung her arm around Elena.
"Oh, Elena Gilbert, savior of the cursed and the damned," Caroline declared.
Matt appeared from the woods.
"Hey. What's with the cryptic secret meeting text?" Matt asked them.
"I don't know. Stefan just said to meet here," Elena told him.
Stefan and Damon walked out to the group, looking around.
"Where's Bonnie?" Stefan asked them. "I texted her too."
"Um, Bonnie's mom bailed on her. Again. So, I think we should leave her out of this one," Caroline explained softly.
"What are we doing here?" Estella asked her brothers with a confused look.
"We found some more white oak," Damon stated. "Long story, wait for the movie."
"Hang on," Elena interrupted. "White oak? You have a weapon that can kill Klaus?"
"Nope. We all have a weapon," Stefan declared.
Stefan threw down a duffel bag full of white oak stakes. Estella raised an eyebrow in shock.
"You two took a sign and made all this?" Estella asked them.
"Yup. Plenty to go around," Damon remarked.
"Klaus has always been one step ahead of us, but now we have the advantage," Stefan declared. "We're all armed and they are all linked, meaning we only need to kill one of them. We need to seize the best opportunity, which means we need to prepare for every opportunity."
"Scenario number one." Damon grabbed Elena and had her play Klaus.
"Rebekah is our target so we distract her and catch her off guard. To do that we need to keep Klaus separate and occupied," Stefan stated. He looked at his sister. "Estella."
"Why am I always Klaus bait?" Estella whined, rubbing a hand over her face.
"Because he's obsessed with you," Damon replied. He walked over to Caroline. "But for right now we need you to play Rebekah. We use the quarterback to distract her. Just keep her talking."
"How?" Matt asked Damon, a puzzled look on his face.
"Act interested," Damon responded. "She's lonely, desperate."
"Clearly. She slept with you," Caroline said sassily.
Estella snickered while Elena suppressed a grin. Damon let a fake laugh escape his laugh.
" Hm. Beefcake holds bombshell. I come up from behind her." Damon put Caroline's arms behind her back. "Grab her arms like this."
"Ow!" Caroline yelped.
Stefan came up and pretended to stake Caroline in the heart.
"Gives me time for one shot," Stefan explained.
Damon let go of Caroline, making her scowl at him.
"Got it? Good," Stefan said. "So we all have one stake, we keep it hidden and we look out for any opportunity we have."
"No last minute attacks of pity for any of them." Damon looked at his sister and Elena.
"Don't worry about me. Not after what happened to Bonnie's mom," Elena said to him.
"Trust me, anything to get Klaus away from me," Estella remarked, nodding at her brother.
"Barbie?" Damon asked, looking at Caroline.
"Oh, I'm ready," Caroline confirmed. "Anything that will free Tyler from his sire bond to Klaus."
"Busboy?" Damon questioned.
"Do I have a choice?" Matt asked sarcastically.
"Good point," Damon responded with a smirk.
"We have 12 stakes, 12 shots at killing one Original. We can do this," Stefan said to the group. "Alright, let's try another scenario. Elena grab a crossbow. Matt, you play Klaus."
Elena took the crossbow, aiming it at Matt.
~
Estella trekked further out in the woods, marching to the spot where she buried her chest. The blonde noticed a small patch of green was beginning to grow again, making the blonde frown. She shouldn't bury the stake there. She needed another place.
Estella thought for a moment, thinking of the many areas and parts of Mystic Falls until her mind set on a place. She smirked, speeding to the Mystic Grill. The blonde walked inside, spotting Matt inside.
"Matty-Blue," Estella greeted. She stepped up to the bar. "I'm gonna hide something here. Don't say a word."
Matt seemed to understand, handing her the keys to the back door. Estella nodded at him before stepping into the back room. She found a space on one of shelves and slipped it in, quickly speeding away.
~
Estella met up with Caroline, Elena, and Matt at the town square. The blonde frowned when she sat down, eyeing the person who was also in town square, talking with Sage.
"Is it weird that Klaus' brother is in the middle of town square?" Estella asked the trio quietly.
"That's Finn," Elena replied with a matching frown. "I thought he left town."
Estella and Caroline pushed back their hair, listening into the conversation.
"So, can you guess why I've dragged you out here?" Sage asked Finn.
"If memory serves me, this is where the Natives use to make sacrifices to their Gods," Finn responded to the cherry colored hair girl.
"This statue was built where we used to rendezvous. Back when you used to have to sneak away from your siblings to see your tawdry lady friend," Sage whispered in his ear with a small smirk.
"I assumed after 900 years you'd moved on," Finn remarked.
"I took care of myself, but I never stopped loving you Finn," Sage replied softly. "I don't want you to die."
Estella and Caroline exchanged knowing looks. The younger of the two turned to Elena, explaining the basis of the conversation while Estella would butt in a few times. Elena grew anxious, wanting to call Stefan. This made Estella smile; she was glad her and Stefan were finding their way back to each other.
"Hey. Where are you?" Elena asked Stefan through the phone.
"I just got home," Stefan answered. "Why?"
"Klaus' brother, Finn is in the town square and he's with some ex-girlfriend or something," Elena stated, worry clear in her voice.
"Ex-girlfriend? Guy's been in a coffin for the last 900 years," Stefan remarked. He paused and thought for a moment. "Sage. It's got to be Sage."
"We have an opportunity," Elena said to him. "So how do we do this?"
"Listen to me, Elena, do not do anything, okay?" Stefan told her. "Sage is very old and very strong. You don't stand a chance against her."
"Then get Damon and get down here," Elena demanded.
Estella faintly heard groaning in the background of Stefan's phone call. She grew confused, wondering what could've caused Alaric to be hurt. Alaric muttered something about Rebekah, only making matters worse.
"I think we have a problem," Stefan stated.
~
Estella walked into the library of the Salvatore Boarding House, holding some medicine for Alaric. She approached him slowly, taking in the damage. All in all, Alaric didn't look too beat up.
"Hey. I hear you had a run in with Buffy the vampire," Estella remarked with a half smile.
"Yeah, I'll live," Alaric grumbled. He looked up at her. "What are you doing here? I thought you were on the outs with Damon and Stefan."
"Checking up on you." Noticing Alaric's puzzled look, she further explained. "In case you're not you."
"I'm me," Alaric replied seriously.
"Well I guess not you would say that too. Which is why..." Estella held up a bottle of the mixture Alaric had to drink in order to keep "evil Alaric" at bay. "Elena said you have to drink this. I hope it tastes better than it smells."
"It doesn't," Alaric stated weakly. He grabbed the bottle and drank it quickly, making a face at it's horrid taste. "Mmm. That's disgusting."
"It's either that or kill people," Estella remarked with a shrug. She shot him another smile and patted his shoulder. "You'll be fine. We'll all be fine."
~
Estella walked up to Elena and Stefan outside the Grill. She noticed Elena was worried all over, making her roll her eyes. Elena was too wound up most of the time.
"Hey. How is he?" Elena asked Estella once she spotted the blonde Salvatore.
"Hey. He's just banged up. Caroline's gonna stay with him and make sure Alaric stays Alaric," Estella stated. Her voice grew serious and low. "Matt texted me and said Finn is still in the Grill. We need to plan our next move."
"Wait, wait, Rebekah has Damon; our next move should be finding him," Elena said to her.
"Rebekah took Damon?" Estella asked in shock.
"No, we need to stay on point," Stefan corrected Elena. "See an Original, kill an Original. That's the plan."
"Yeah, that was the plan before Damon's life was hanging in the balance," Estella argued.
"I thought you hated Damon?" Stefan asked his sister.
"It's...complicated," Estella responded with a scowl.
"Look, guys, I understand that you're concerned about my brother's life, but if he even knew, for one second, that we were talking about missing a chance to kill these people he would lose his mind," Stefan said to the two girls.
"Yeah, and if the roles were reversed he would stop everything to save you," Elena responded angrily.
"I know what my brother would want," Stefan told her.
"So do I!" Estella protested.
"What he would want and what we should do are two different things," Elena said simply.
"You two gonna help me with this or not?" Stefan questioned with a tone of finality in his voice.
The two girls exchanged looks, silently debating what they should do. Estella turned to look at her brother scornfully, deciding she wanted to save her older brother over killing an Original.
"Okay, I'll figure it out myself," Stefan declared, walking away.
Elena and Estella turned towards each other. They both sighed. They knew Stefan was going to end up killed if he did it alone, leaving the two girls to help him on his bender.
~
Estella fiddled with the white oak in her hand, biting her lip as she stood in her position. Her and Elena, at their cue, burst out of a door. Elena shot Finn with a crossbow, weakening him, and Estella made the final move. She pushed the white oak through his chest, directly to his heart. Estella let out a huff, pushing her hair away from her face.
She stepped away from the scene, leaving a sobbing Sage on the ground. Her, Stefan, and Elena made their way back to the Salvatore Boarding House. Caroline stood in the library when they arrived.
"Hey. How's Alaric?" Elena asked the bubbly blonde.
"He'll be okay. I gave him a bottle of Bonnie's herbs and he went home," Caroline replied with a smile. "Oh, did you guys kill Finn, did it work?"
Estella felt like it didn't work. It should've been more dramatic; Klaus would've been guarding each of his siblings. It didn't sit right with her.
"Nothing worked until I see Klaus's dead body myself," Stefan stated.
The conversation was put on hold when Elena's phone rang. Estella looked over at her, wondering who it could've been.
"Bonnie," Elena breathed out in relief. "Where have you been?"
"Klaus has Damon," Bonnie stated simply.
"Klaus should be dead," Elena said in a rush. "They should all be dead, we just killed Finn."
"No, Elena, he forced me to do a spell that unlinked all the siblings. He's still alive," Bonnie replied over the phone.
Estella knew something was off.
"Okay, Bonnie, where's Damon?" Elena asked the witch, worry growing over her face.
"At Klaus' mansion," she replied. "It's bad, Elena, he threatened Jeremy. And my mom."
Bonnie started to choke up, suddenly crying. Estella frowned at the sound, wondering why Bonnie was crying in the first place.
"Stay with Caroline. I'll call you when it's over," Stefan demanded the two girls once she hung up.
"Stefan, stop. Klaus is stronger than you, we need another plan," Estella said to him, pulling him back.
"What we need is for Klaus to be dead," Stefan growled.
"Stefan, stop it! You're acting on anger!" Elena exclaimed, turning the vampire around so he was facing her.
"Anger gets things done, Elena!" Stefan argued.
"Or it'll get you killed! It'll get Damon killed along with you," Estella retorted with her arms crossed over her chest.
"Klaus does not get to survive this. Not after everything he took from me," Stefan snapped at the two.
He stormed out, slamming the door shut. Elena jumped up slightly. Caroline walked out, mumbling something about old Stefan before the said-vampire was thrown back into the house. Estella jumped up from her seat, alarmed.
"Ding dong," Sage said sarcastically.
Caroline went to attack her, yet Caroline was pushed to the ground. Estella's eyes widened, moving the doppelgänger back into the house. Sage spotted the blonde vampire, making her growl.
"You need to go," Estella demanded to Elena. She nodded in response, running away.
Estella stood next to her brother, swallowing thickly.
"We had to kill him, Sage," Stefan spoke slowly.
"Oh, you remember me," Sage said condescendingly. She kicked him and Stefan flew into a chair. "Good. Then you know I like to go all ten rounds."
Sage turned to Estella, raising an eyebrow.
"You ready to go, blondie-locks?" She asked sarcastically.
"Whenever your ready," Estella replied with a smirk.
Estella was about to throw a punch, but Sage started to cough, her nose starting to bleed. Estella frowned, yet lifted her leg to kick Sage in her gut. Sage attempted to punch her, but Estella grabbed her fist and threw her down to the ground.
"Troy, help me!" Sage called out for her friend.
He began to rush over to Estella, yet he too sunk to his knees.
They both coughed violently, rolling around on the ground and crying before they died. Estella stood in shock, dropping the piece of wood in her hands.
"She just died!" Elena exclaimed.
"So, Sage and this Troy guy die within an hour of Finn," Caroline stated.
"But why? Were they bitten by a hybrid or..?" Elena trailed off, looking around for answers.
"Hybrid bites don't look like that," Caroline responded with a confused look. "Maybe Sage was so in love with Finn she just died of sadness."
"No, that doesn't explain Troy," Stefan said.
"It's the blood. The bloodline. It has to be," Estella realized. "Think about it: Finn turned Sage, Sage turned Troy. They're all part of the same vampire bloodline that originated with Finn."
"Wait, so when an Original dies every vampire turned from their bloodline dies along with them? Because that would mean..." Caroline's eyes grew as she started to comprehend what Estella was saying.
"If the Originals die, so do all of us. The entire vampire species would...it'd just be dead."
~
Estella stayed at her house, helping Elena and Caroline clean up the bodies around her house. She scrunched up her nose, pushing Sage's body in a bag.
"Vampire disposal. Not my strong suit. Uck," Caroline said, making a disgusting face. "Where'd Stefan go?"
"Trading the stakes for Damon," Estella replied.
"All of them?" Caroline asked her.
"No, not all of them," Estella answered with a small frown. "We still have uh- enough to kill three out of the four of them. If we can figure out who to save."
"How are we supposed to do that?" Caroline inquired with a puzzled look.
"I have no idea. You were turned with Damon's blood, and Damon and Stefan were turned by Katherine, and we know that Katherine was turned by a vampire named Rose," Elena informed.
"Well, who turned Rose?" Caroline questioned.
"We don't know. But it can only link back to one Original and if the odds are in our favor, hopefully it won't be Klaus. So that we can still kill him," Elena explained.
"Even if Klaus didn't create our bloodline, we know for a fact that he turned one of us," Estella said slowly.
"Tyler," Caroline breathed out with wide eyes.
"And me," Estella stated, wincing.
~
Estella sat at the Grill once again, drinking down their supply of Bourbon. She didn't know why she had gone there instead of her own house; she would've enjoyed being alone much more than all the guys hitting on her. Yet, something told her to go to the Grill.
"Hello, love."
Estella was never trusting her instincts again, she decided. The blonde closed her eyes and sighed, downing the shot in her hands.
"Did you get your stakes?" Estella questioned him, glancing at him.
"Not all of them...not yet," Klaus replied, sitting at the spot next to her. "I'm sure you turned yours in like a good girl, hm?"
"I used mine to kill Finn," Estella stated. She shrugged at him. "Sorry not sorry."
Klaus didn't laugh, yet he wasn't frowning either. In fact, Klaus wasn't sure how to feel about his brother's death.
"Thanks for telling me about the whole bloodline thing," Estella remarked bitterly.
"Now, don't be mad..."
"I'm not mad, Klaus..." Estella thought about her reply for a moment. "I'm just surprised, is all. I mean, you told me everything you could about your family and the perks of the Originals. Why keep this one a secret?"
"Believe it or not, sweetheart, it was a form of protection at one point," Klaus explained. Estella was surprised, yet kept her face void. "I'm regretting that decision now that you and your friends want to kill me."
"It's more my friends that want to kill you, now, considering if you die...I die," Estella said. She shrugged again and looked at him. "But I wasn't planning on killing you, so I guess it all works out."
Klaus smiled this time, clincking his glass with hers before they both downed their shot.
~
estella is starting to accept klaus guys!!!
what would you do if Estella died?
-holly