After spending a few nights at Bonnie's house to try and settle down her anger at her crazy cousins to a less murderous level, the witch, and the slayer found themselves once again in the Gilbert/Summers home.
As they chilled on her bed instead of talking about the new boy Luka that had caught Bonnie's eye, both girls were focused on the moonstone.
Given all the hassle they had gone through to get it, Buffy felt a cloud of disappointment every time she looked at it.
It was just so dull.
This tiny thing was literally the key to everything, it was supposed to hold a lot of power...yet it looked like a bar of soap.
"So how does the bar of soap work exactly?" Buffy asked Bonnie as she continued to stare down at the moonstone, twisting it between her fingers.
Bonnie snorted slightly at the look on Buffy's face "Right now, it's what's binding The Sun and Moon Curse." She explained as she grabbed a handful of popcorn out of the bowl that was resting between the two of them.
If there was one benefit to hanging out with Buffy, it was that she always had snacks.
"If I can figure out a way to remove the spell from the stone, the stone becomes useless."
"Cool." Buffy whistled as she placed the moonstone back in Bonnie's bag before taking a handful of popcorn for herself "Then we just have the vengeful Klaus to deal with. But one step at a time."
Bonnie shook her head in amusement before gesturing for Buffy to open her mouth so they could play with the food.
It was nice to have some childlike fun every now and then, during all the magical hell.
Buffy grinned and quickly caught the first cornel as Bonnie threw it at her.
As Buffy punched the air in excitement, Bonnie laughed before moving to throw another piece "We should be able to keep him from finding out."
Three pieces of popcorn collided with Buffy's nose causing the two girls to combust into giggles.
Their giggles were brought to an abrupt hold, however, as the buzzkill of the Summers family walked into the room.
"Shouldn't you guys be focused on getting Stefan out of the tomb?" Elena questioned from the doorway.
Sharing a quick look, both Bonnie and Buffy rolled their eyes. Elena was no fun.
Ignoring Elena for a moment, Buffy trying to keep the smile on Bonnie's face quickly threw some popcorn at her causing her to squeal between her giggles.
Once she was sure Bonnie was happy, Buffy turned her focus back to Elena.
Who yet again hadn't knocked on her bedroom door.
Why did everyone think they could enter her room without asking?
"Does anyone knock in this town?"
Stifling a small laugh at her words, Bonnie swallowed down the buttery popcorn in her mouth before focusing on Elena. She immediately sighed as she spotted the unamused look on Elena's face "Stefan wants me to focus on this."
Elena shook her head in disbelief before she turned to Buffy, shocked that the blonde was not panicking at the idea of her boyfriend being trapped in the tomb with Katherine.
Though technically he was still her ex-boyfriend.
"Don't you want him out? He's in there with Katherine."
At the reminder of that little fact, Buffy rolled her eyes. First of all, as worried as she was, she did trust Stefan, plus, they had way bigger things to worry about.
As much as she hated knowing Stefan was trapped, right now his freedom wasn't her first priority.
"I know that, Elena." She sighed "And as much as I dislike it, he's right. If we don't do this now then we're all screwed. Plus, he saved Jeremy to get the moonstone. Not focusing on the moonstone would make everything he did pointless. Plus, he doesn't age and he's patient. He will be fine."
He had dated her, there was no way he wasn't patient.
"You guys are wrong, you don't need to protect me." Elena told them only causing both Bonnie and Buffy to glance at each other again, sharing the same disbelieving look.
Elena totally needed to be protected.
Hell, she needed a full-time nanny.
"I'm with Buffy on this Elena." Bonnie told Elena as she purposely threw her arm over Buffy's shoulder.
She was Team Buffy right now.
Plus, Buffy was the only one of them that had literally dealt with end-of-the-world scenarios, she had the most war ready mind out of all of them.
If Bonnie was going to put her money on anyone making it through this, it was Buffy Summers.
"We're not gonna let you get used in some creepy sacrifice ritual. And we're not gonna let Buffy be forced into becoming some psycho's Queen slash prisoner."
Buffy grinned smugly at Elena's annoyance.
As though sensing the tension filling the air between the three girls, Jeremy walked into the room frowning as he spotted the glares being exchanged "What are you guys arguing about?"
At his blatant lack of knocking Buffy huffed and threw herself into Bonnie's arms, fake sobbing "Seriously, people. Knocking is an actual thing! And we're not arguing bout anything."
Bonnie giggled again before tapping Buffy's head sympathetically "How about I go get more snacks and some coffee?"
Buffy frantically started nodding in excitement "You rock."
"I know." Bonnie teased before grabbing the now-empty bowl of popcorn and heading out of the room.
Leaving the Summers kids alone.
Automatically both Jeremy and Buffy were glaring at Elena with matching scowls.
"What?" Elena huffed growing annoyed by their constant glares. It had been like this for three days!
"Why are you on some suicide mission?" Jeremy asked his sister bluntly. What sucked more than learning about her plan was realizing that she had never planned on even saying goodbye.
They deserved to say goodbye!
Before Elena could answer, Buffy pulled herself to her feet and leaned her elbow on Jeremy's shoulder, answering for the brunette "Because she's crazy and thinks drawing a thousand-year-old vampire to town is a good idea."
Newsflash...it was a terrible idea!
Especially given that they still barely knew anything about how the curse needed to be broken yet. For all they knew, Elena might not be the only one getting sacrificed.
They literally knew nothing but one tiny detail!
"I'm trying to prevent everyone else from getting hurt." Elena argued only to earn eye rolls from both Jeremy and Buffy.
It was actually creepy how similar the pair of them were. Then again they did share the crazy sarcastic Summers gene.
"So bringing Klaus the moonstone so you can get yourself killed is ok?" Jeremy argued as he stared at Elena in disbelief.
He genuinely was unable to even figure out how her brain worked.
"And basically leading Klaus right to Buffy so she can become his bitch..."
"Hey!" Buffy exclaimed causing him to wince as she slapped the back of his head, making it clear to not bother finishing that sentence.
"Sorry." He winced.
His phrasing hadn't been the best he could see that now.
Buffy sighed before focusing back on Elena "What you're doing is stupid. You're helping Klaus break a curse that will allow vampires to walk in the day. How many people do you think are gonna die if that happens Elena, huh?" She questioned walking over to Elena making the brunette gulp slightly as she took in just how serious Buffy's words were.
Elena had only been focused on protecting the people she loved, she hadn't even considered how her decision could technically lead to thousands of deaths.
But Buffy could not stop thinking about that fact. As much as she loved and wanted to keep her family safe, they were not the center of the universe. This one choice could lead to consequences for the rest of the world.
"Cause I suggest you think about that next time before you basically hand over the key to millions of people's deaths."
With that, Jeremy and Buffy moved out of the room leaving Elena standing in the hallway.
Yet, despite Buffy's words, it was just like everything else. In one ear and out the other as she let her own moral compass lead her.
Elena's eyes automatically focused on Bonnie's bag.
Where the moonstone was tucked away.
Sure enough, common sense had not gotten through Elena's thick skull.
Not even a minute after they had left the room, the brunette had taken the moonstone. Clearly, nothing was going to get through to her now.
So the group would have to resort to Plan B.
"She took the moonstone." Jeremy announced as he and Buffy walked down the stairs where Bonnie was currently blocking Elena from leaving the house.
Shaking her head in disappointment, Buffy glanced over at Jeremy, her frustration with her cousin growing by the second.
What part of the thousands of deaths did Elena not understand?
It wasn't exactly complicated.
"You know common sense isn't working anymore."
Elena merely frowned in confusion and glanced at Bonnie trying to figure out what was happening. How did they know she would take the moonstone?
"How did you—"
"We tested you." Bonnie explained "And you failed."
"You're predictable." Buffy added in a harsher tone causing Elena to flinch.
Elena couldn't help but shake her head. She just wished her family could see that she was doing this for them "Klaus killed Katherine's entire family just because she crossed him. I can't let that happen."
Bonnie merely sighed at Elena's words.
This wasn't just about them!
They were talking about an extremely powerful and dangerous curse here that would unleash chaos on the world.
It wasn't just about Elena.
"Elena, Buffy's right. Hundreds maybe thousands of people are at risk if you keep trying to hand yourself over."
When Elena doesn't say anything clearly not giving in to common sense Bonnie shook her head before stepping aside allowing Elena to pass her.
However, as Elena opened the door and moved to walk out of the house she slammed into a barrier.
She was trapped inside.
Pressing her hand against the barrier in shock, Elena scoffed before glancing back at the others "What did you do?"
Buffy merely shrugged at Elena's glare as a small innocent smile crossed her lips.
She had to admit...she was enjoying this a lot more than she should.
"Don't look at me, Bonnie's idea. My idea was to chain you up and dump you in the Salvatore cellar. Luckily for you, it was vetoed. So be grateful."
After doing an intense workout session in the back garden, Buffy made her way into the kitchen, pouring herself a glass of water before grabbing her towel.
Using it to dab away the sweat on her forehead.
Ignoring Elena's glare from the couch in the TV room, Buffy just shot her a grin as she wiggled her fingers in a playful greeting before moving down the hall.
Elena was not scary or intimidating in the slightest.
Buffy was more concerned about getting to her classes on time today.
Intent on heading for her room to shower, Buffy froze as she reached the staircase.
Damon Salvatore opened her front door and strolled in like he owned the place.
"You should really lock your front door." Damon teased Buffy before his eyes widened as he spotted what she was wearing.
She was in a pair of shorts and a navy blue sports bra. He had to admit he couldn't stop his eyes from darkening at the exposed skin.
Rolling her eyes at the way he was eyeing her, Buffy punched his arm causing him to focus back on her face instead of her legs "What is it with all of you and knocking?"
Tearing his gaze off her tanned and very toned legs, Damon rolled his eyes at the question before heading into the living room. He smirked as he spotted Elena pouting on the couch.
He had been the only one to agree with Buffy about chaining Elena up and dumping her in the cellar, but at least she was still miserable.
It was so entertaining.
"Oh, come on pouty." Damon taunted as he and Buffy stood in the hall "At least give me 2 points for ingenuity."
Elena couldn't help but glare as Buffy snorted in agreement "Do you think this is funny?"
Honestly, Buffy found this incredibly hilarious.
Without answering Buffy smiled before grabbing her shirt off the end of the couch "Yes, Elena, it's hilarious how much of a pain in the ass you're being that we have to lock you in your own house to make sure you don't float around helpless like a feather and die."
"Buffy!" Elena exclaimed in disbelief as Buffy pulled the shirt over her head.
Buffy just shrugged, unbothered by the hurt in Elena's voice. Clearly being nice hadn't worked with Elena in the past. So tough love was the next best option.
Plus, it wasn't like she was lying.
Everything she had said was complete facts.
"Sorry, but it's true."
With that, Buffy ignored her cousin's pointed gaze and turned to Damon "What did Stefan say?"
"He had a good laugh?"
Lie.
A very obvious deflection to avoid answering the question.
"The Elijah thing, dumbass."
Wincing slightly Damon smiled weakly "Yeah, that. I didn't tell him."
"Why not?"
"Well, A—he can't do anything about it, and B...what I just said. Where's Bonnie?"
At that moment, Jeremy walked into the room and moved to stand by the couch "I thought she was meeting you."
"No. She's on moonstone duty and I'm stuck on Elena patrol..." Damon mumbled distastefully glaring pointedly at Buffy.
He did not want to be trapped with her cousin all day.
He might actually try and stake himself if he heard Elena whine once more "Buffy won't trade with me."
Jeremy turned to Buffy curiously "What'd you get?"
"First, Bonnie has class this morning she is handling moonstone stuff later, and me? Actual patrol for Elijah after class." Buffy explained as she moved toward the wooden box in the corner and unlocked the deadbolt she kept on it so Jenna wouldn't see her weapons "See if I can find out where he's staying."
Jeremy nodded as he watched Buffy start gathering her weapons before turning to Damon. There was still one other issue they hadn't addressed yet.
The recently triggered werewolf.
"And who's on Tyler Lockwood and the full moon?"
Damon just shrugged "Vampire Barbie asked if she could handle it and I said why not? I figured if she screwed up, he'd bite her, and then I'll be rid of two of my problems."
Elena's eyes widen in shock, she had completely lost track of time over the past few weeks.
How was it already the full moon?
"Hold on a second. Tonight's the full moon?"
"Yep, but you're too absorbed with all your suicidal tendencies to notice." Damon taunted before sighing as he spotted an incoming call, without a word, he walked out of the room leaving the three teenagers alone.
Elena groaned loudly before frowning as she spotted Buffy shoving her crossbow into her bag "Buffy..." She tried only to be halted as the blonde's phone started ringing.
Reaching into the pocket of her shorts Buffy grabbed her phone freezing as she spots Ric's name on the screen.
"I'll be right back." She told her cousins and ignoring their objections she walked out onto the porch, shutting the door tightly behind her before answering.
"Ric?"
Alaric sighed in relief at the sound of her voice "Did you forget that you have your Literature Final today?"
Buffy froze, her blood going cold at his words. There was no way that final was today! Right?
Though, to be fair given all of the supernatural hijinks she could barely keep track of the day of the week right now.
"What!!!" She screamed, frantically rushing back into the house, bolting up the stairs to her room.
She had to get her Willow notes and the flashcards Caroline had made her!
She needed to put on anything other than workout clothes!
That was when it clicked, Jenna had her car!
"Crap! Crap! Crap!" She hissed as she fumbled to slip on her jeans while simultaneously speaking to Alaric and trying to figure out how to blackmail Damon into driving her to school.
"Yeah, in like 30 minutes with the rest of the seniors, get here right now. I can maybe hold them off for an extra ten minutes max."
Buffy grumbled out a thank you before hanging up and grabbing her hoodie.
Pulling her Sunnydale High jumper over her head, she grabbed her bag and started to dial Giles's number.
Speaking to Alaric had reminded her to call the other research enthusiast in her life to ask if he could dig up intel on Elijah.
"Buffy?"
"Hey, just a quick thing." She rushed out the words as she stumbled down the hall, frantically trying to pull on her boots without falling face-first to the ground "I thought I would have time to do this in less than 30 seconds but I have a final in 30 minutes, so nope."
Buffy could have sworn she could hear him start cleaning his glasses.
"Giles...do you know anything about a vampire named Elijah?"
There was a long silence with nothing but the echo of paper being flipped from page to page at a frantic rate before a sigh of disappointment escaped the Watcher "Elijah? I'm afraid not. Does this have to do with the curse?"
Just as she managed to pull on her other boot, Buffy skipped the staircase altogether and just leaped over the railing quickly landing on the first floor "I hate to ask but maybe just ask Angel if he knows anything about a vampire named Elijah."
"Buffy, if you need me to come up there—"
Buffy managed to cut him off before he could finish his sentence. This wasn't up for discussion, Klaus was too dangerous. She already had enough people to worry about keeping safe right now.
"Don't worry I've got help. More help than I want. Just Elijah details please." As she grabbed her books off the coffee table she swore as she spotted the time on the clock "I gotta go first final crap bye!"
With that, Buffy hung up and quickly rushed back into the living room to let her cousins know about the sudden change in plans for the day.
"What was that about?"Jeremy asked with a worried frown.
Before Buffy could answer, Damon walked back into the room and looked over at her "Change of plans. Hunt Elijah another day. You babysit."
Buffy just shook her head in refusal as she quickly pulled on her leather jacket and started shoving the last of her things into her bag "No can do. I gotta go."
"Wait, what?" Damon asked in confusion as he spotted her now fully dressed with her hair pulled back into a messy ponytail.
Since when could Buffy get ready this quickly?
What the hell had he missed?
Buffy sighed "I have my literature final and I am not missing it. I want out of this town in three months. So I need to graduate or Jenna will track me down and make me do another year here!"
Damon raised an eyebrow "And Giles?" He knew she had been planning on calling him after she started her Elijah search.
"Is going to talk to Angel to see if he knows anything about Elijah."
Damon rolled his eyes at the name "And you didn't mention Klaus because?"
"Because Angel knew about the Prophecy and The Originals. If Klaus really is the worst of the group and he finds out I am being threatened..."
As she trailed off Damon groaned completely understanding what she was hinting at.
"He'll show up." He finished her statement.
He in no way wanted another brooding forehead with hero hair strolling into town.
Buffy grimaced slightly. She did not want Angel in Mystic Falls, and she sure as hell did not want him around Stefan.
It would just make everything more complicated.
"I just don't have the time to deal with Angel showing up right now."
As Damon nodded in complete agreement with her, Buffy turned her focus to Jeremy "You babysit Elena." She told him before turning back to Damon and grabbing his wrist, hauling him toward the front door "You're driving me to school."
At the mere idea of having to do that, Damon yanked his wrist out of her grip "Wait? No, why?"
Buffy had her own car! Why the hell was he getting dragged into her finals drama?
That was certainly not how he was planning to spend the day.
Buffy just grumbled in annoyance and started shoving him toward the front door again "Jenna has my car, hers is in the shop and you are not scared to break speed limits. Let's go, let's go!"
"But.."
"Fine, give me your car keys instead."
That dramatically got him to shift his opinion on driving her to school and he quickly clutched his car keys to his chest and gestured to the front door "Never mind, my thing can wait, let's go."
With that, Damon and Buffy started to head for the door but Damon paused and popped his head back into the living room looking over at Elena with a bright smirk "Hey, you know, you should get out, enjoy the sun. Oh, wait. You can't."
A pillow was promptly launched at his face before Buffy dragged him out of the house.
**
The second that Damon had pulled up in front of the school, Buffy had practically leaped out of the car.
Sprinting through the halls of the school in search of the classroom that Alaric had told her to head to.
Buffy's mission was brought to an abrupt halt as she crashed right into the one and only Bonnie Bennett.
Stumbling slightly, Buffy sighed in relief as Bonnie grasped her shoulders before she could faceplant to the ground and embarrass herself.
Just as she moved to thank her friend, Buffy froze as she spotted the very cute guy Bonnie had clearly just been talking to.
The mysterious Luka.
All thoughts of her finals quickly vanished as she smiled at the boy "Bonnie and cute guy, hello cute guy."
Luka chuckled slightly as he stared at the frantic blonde with messy hair "Luka is fine."
Buffy just smirked at the confirmation before shooting a knowing look in Bonnie's direction. The fact that Bonnie's cheeks quickly turned a bright pink had her smirk growing.
"So this is Luka? Huh?" She teased before turning back to the very cute guy "Damn, sorry to objectify you but you are hot. "
Luka barked out a laugh at her blunt tone "Thank you..."
"Buffy." She held out her hand toward him, the pair of them shaking hands in a polite exchange.
Bonnie groaned in embarrassment as Buffy started wiggling her eyebrows playfully "Buffy, don't you have your first final today?"
She needed Buffy to go away right now and stop embarrassing her.
Buffy just waved her off. Given that Bonnie and Elena had literally interrogated Stefan before the two of them had even been official, this was pure Karma.
"It can wait, so Luka. You have been stealing my girl here since you showed up in town."
She had barely seen Bonnie since Luka's appearance.
Luka grinned slightly before glancing subtly over at Bonnie "Jealous?" He teased focusing back on Buffy.
Before she answered with words, Buffy threw an arm around Bonnie's shoulders and gasped dramatically "Incredibly, I barely get to see her, but hey you're a cute witch helping her."
The mention of his supernatural status caused him to falter "Uh..."
"Vampire Slayer. Biggest Bennett witch fan, No time to explain." Buffy explained simply before he could freak out.
Short on time, Buffy turned to Bonnie and quickly pulled out a book from her bag shoving it into the Bennett girl's arms "I asked Giles for this for your birthday. Sorry it was late, it was stuck on a flight from this shaman guy in Shanghai. Happy belated birthday. I hope you like it, I was sent a very long email about not being allowed near it cause he's worried I will spill BBQ sauce on it. One time, I spill BBQ sauce! One time! Over a 2000-year-old book and he becomes a book dictator."
Despite Buffy's whole BBQ sauce story, Bonnie's eyes were still focused on the book Buffy had given her.
Given that Buffy had kept her up to date about the whole fallout following the lie about Angel being alive the fact that Buffy had willingly talked to Giles about anything other than the curse or the Prophecy had her stumped.
Buffy had made it very clear she wasn't ready to be talking to Giles more than absolutely necessary.
Why would she go through the effort to get her a book on the history of witchcraft and the Bennett's move from Salem to Virginia?
A birthday gift was not worth all the complications that came with it.
Bonnie just genuinely couldn't help but be confused, though she had to admit she was incredibly moved by it.
"I thought you are only talking to him when it was important."
Buffy just smiled brightly at her friend "It's to help you practice and feel more connected to your family history. That is just as important."
Given how shocked Bonnie seemed every time she did something kind for her without any strings attached, Buffy was intent on making sure Bonnie knew just how amazing she was.
She refused to let Bonnie live in a world where she was nothing but the witch problem fixer.
That wasn't fair to her.
Bonnie smiled down at the book through glassy eyes before throwing her arms around Buffy, clutching onto her tightly.
"I love you."
Buffy hugged her back even tighter "Love you too."
Despite how sweet the moment was, the bell going off caused Buffy to panic.
She was so going to be late.
Alaric was going to kill her!
Wiping away her happy tears, Bonnie placed the book in her bag before purposely starting to push Buffy away "Now go to your final!"
The reminder of her final caused Buffy to gulp and start legging it down the hall "Crap! Bye!"
As Buffy tripped before disappearing around the corner, Luka laughed before turning back to Bonnie who was still smiling brightly.
"She is a lot...but a good friend, clearly."
Bonnie grinned in agreement only to let out a laugh as she heard a loud crash followed by Buffy cursing and threatening someone "Buffy's gonna do what Buffy's gonna do. But she's the best."
**
The Triquetra.
In the two hours following her literature final, Buffy had been hauled up in the art room sketching the same thing, over and over again.
A triquetra burned into the grass with fire. Each circle with a figure standing in the middle of the flames.
Three spaces with three people.
The image had been haunting her dreams all weekend. What made it worse though was that just like her dream, the figure in the center of the triquetra was familiar.
Elena.
It was the ritual to break the curse, Buffy could feel it in her gut. Plus, given the long lecture Willow had gone off on during their Sunday study session yesterday, Buffy was almost positive there was more to just breaking the curse than sacrificing Elena, pretty much confirming the comment Katherine had made to Elena.
Both Willow and Giles had suggested that because the curse was about breaking a cure on vampires and werewolves one of each species would also have to be sacrificed.
And given that recent turning of Caroline and triggering of Tyler's wolf side, it wasn't hard to put the pieces together.
Katherine wanted freedom from Klaus and she had literally prepped the doppelganger, the slayer, a new vampire, and a freshly trigged werewolf on a plate for him.
Even if Katherine had told Elena about the other sacrifices needed, her cousin was clearly not focused on the whole you hand yourself over you are still securing the death of two other people.
Katherine Pierce was smart and she didn't do anything without reason.
Pulling out her phone, Buffy quickly texted Bonnie to warn her about this update.
"Pretty sure Caroline and Tyler are Katherine's got to for the sacrifice. Keep an eye on them."
Once the text was sent, Buffy focused back on her drawing. Not only would Elena get herself killed if she kept trying to hand herself over, but there was a high chance that if Katherine managed to get out of the tomb then Caroline and Tyler were on the chopping block too.
Buffy refused to let that happen.
The art room door slamming open caused Buffy to jump slightly as she spun around to face her godsister who was strolling into the room.
Caroline was in front of her not a second later, a nervous look on her face "Hey did you manage to get the stuff Tyler asked for?"
Buffy snorted slightly before grabbing the duffle bag she had taken from Alaric's office and pushing it over to Caroline "Yeah. Alaric keeps some of my supplies in his office. Grabbed it after my final." Closing her sketchbook, Buffy couldn't help but quirk a curious brow.
Tyler had asked Caroline to ask her to get some heavy chains that would help for his first shift tonight.
The fact he hadn't just come to her directly had Buffy a little curious.
"Is Tyler scared of me?" She asked Caroline flatly "Or does he just not know about me?"
Automatically, Caroline started to sputter nervously.
That was one way to confirm that Tyler knew she was a Vampire Slayer.
"Um...huh...why?"
Rolling her eyes playfully, Buffy purposely pointed to the bag filled with heavy steel chains "I am the one with previous full moon experience yet this is the first thing he has asked for."
Truthfully, Buffy just wanted Caroline to admit that she had spilled the secret.
It was beyond obvious given that Buffy had caught Tyler glancing at her every now and then during their classes together.
He had also stopped hitting on her.
Caroline grumbled before finally giving up the secret "He knows about you! I'm sorry! When he found out about me he started to think you were a vampire cause of all the times you kicked his ass."
Buffy snorted at the memories. Such beautiful memories they were.
"By the way, he is so sorry now."
Buffy giggled slightly before offering Caroline a small reassuring smile. Honestly, she wasn't surprised that Caroline spilled. If it came down to spilling about her or Damon, Buffy would rather her name be added. Because if Damon found out that Tyler knew about him being a vampire it would not end well.
"He's scared I'm going to kill him?"
"Big time." Caroline admitted as she nervously twisted the necklace Buffy gave her between her fingertips.
Buffy just giggled before unzipping the bag of chains she had placed at Caroline's feet "Okay, so these are heavier than the kind we used for Oz during his first full moon under lock and key."
Just as Caroline started to pull the chains out of the bag, Buffy's art teacher Nora walked back into the room only to stare at the chains in horror.
Her eyes quickly shifted between Buffy and Caroline before she raised her hands and slowly started to back out of the room "Nope. I don't want to know. I feel like knowing would be more disturbing than anything, so please never tell me."
Just as she moved to leave, Nora quickly popped her head back into the room, focusing on Buffy "By the way Buffy I sent a few of your pieces to the head of the Art department at Columbia!"
"Good idea Miss-what you what!"
The classroom dorm slammed shut before Buffy could finish her interrogation.
What the actual hell?
Nora couldn't be serious about sending her drawings to different colleges! Right?!
Despite the fact that Buffy's teacher had literally walked in on them on what looked like some weird BDSM exchange, Caroline couldn't help but squeal in excitement.
For a short moment, all thoughts of Tyler's upcoming transition vanished.
"Oh my God are you going to move to New York!? Dibs on living with you during my freshman year of college if I go to Columbia too. I can totally compel us into a penthouse on Fifth Avenue. Buffy, if you get into Columbia and don't go I will kill you for taking this dream away from me."
The sudden seriousness in Caroline's voice caused Buffy to gulp, clutching her sketchbook to her chest nervously "You are scary intense when it comes to shopping."
**
As she waited for an update from Giles, Buffy sat crosslegged on the bench in the town square.
Her sketchbook was rested in her lap as she continued to draw the figure that had been hovering in the background of all of her recent dreams.
So far the only defining features she had managed to catch were dark blonde hair, a strong jawline, and ocean-blue eyes.
Feeling someone take a seat beside her, Buffy sighed as she spotted the one and only Elijah now sitting beside her with two to-go cups of coffee in his hands.
"I should hope one of those is for me."
Elijah chuckled softly at her unaffected reaction to his sudden presence at her side. Handing her one of the to-go cops, he smiled down at her "Hello again, Buffy-Anne."
Lowering her pencil, Buffy couldn't help but snort as she took a sip of her coffee before eyeing Elijah skeptically "Hmm...hello not so dead Original in a suit. What's up?"
Honestly, Elijah was shocked by just how unfazed she seemed "You seem remarkably unfazed by my presence."
Internally, Buffy was beyond shaking, this man had broken her arm like it was nothing and was now bringing her coffee.
It was disconcerting.
"Elena texted. Smart on you for approaching her while I was stuck in a three-hour final."
Even if he was stronger than her, by coming to her home she would have the home-turf advantage. She had an endless amount of weapons and a literal flame thrower hidden in her room.
Elijah clearly knew not to risk it.
"I have thousands of years of practice avoiding unnecessary violence. I take it Elena has filled you in on our discussion."
Elena had filled her in most of the details. Though the second she had seen the message about Elijah being in the house with Jenna, Buffy had punched a hole through a brick wall.
If she hadn't been stuck in her exam when Elijah had been there she would have stormed over with a rocket launcher.
"A little bit. You want to protect us in order to draw Klaus out before you kill him...I don't buy it."
Elijah frowned in confusion "Why is that?"
Buffy smiled smugly as she rested her elbows on her knees, before taking a long sip of her coffee "He is your baby brother."
Silence.
Utter silence spread between the pair as Elijah stared down at Buffy in complete shock. He truly hadn't expected her to know about the history especially since Elena had barely known anything.
"How did you..."
"Your little sister filled me in."
Elijah chuckled at her response "Then I take it she also told you about my other siblings?"
"I heard about Rebekah and Kol."
The mention of his younger siblings caused Elijah to flinch in hurt, just thinking about his three lost siblings broke his heart "Niklaus dumped them in the ocean. Rebekah, Kol, and Finn...my family is gone because of him."
Buffy hummed silently before clenching her jaw slightly. She was not going to trust this sob story "I don't trust you."
"You're a smart girl." He was incredibly impressed by her deductions.
"So, you gonna go against Mary's keep Buffy alive gest and just chop my head off now to stop the Prophecy?"
Just because Elena said that Elijah gave her his word didn't mean Buffy trusted him.
When it came to family, his word to strangers meant nothing.
Spotting the clear distrust in her eyes and a surprisingly familiar look of paranoia, Elijah sighed "I have no intention of killing you."
Buffy frowned suspiciously, typically the bad guy tried to kill her "Why not?"
Elijah just smiled "I could never harm you, Buffy-Anne."
Not believing a word leaving his lips, Buffy rolled her eyes before focusing back on her sketchbook.
As she continued to ignore him, Elijah couldn't help but frown. He would never kill Buffy and he hadn't enjoyed harming her during their fight.
As much as he hated to admit it, there was still a small piece of hope in his chest when it came to Niklaus.
Deep down, he believed that Buffy was the key to his brother's redemption. And if his siblings hadn't been dumped into the ocean he would have happily introduced Klaus to Buffy himself.
"Buffy-Anne look at me..."
Buffy grumbled in annoyance but glanced up at him "Ugh"
"I will always protect you. I promise I will not bring any harm to you."
She quirked a brow at his statement. Was Elijah forgetting how their first interaction had gone down?
"You broke my arm and threw me through a ceiling."
"Details."
Buffy laughed as much as she tried not to "And The Original has sass, but I am still revoking your invitation to my personal home."
"That is fair."
His lack of argument on that caused Buffy to falter slightly. Most vampires would go crazy if she even mentioned revoking their invitation. Hell when she had originally done that to Damon, he had wanted to murder her.
"Okay...I still don't buy it. But given you're here and I have been having crazy Slayer dreams all night..." Reluctantly, Buffy handed him her sketchbook, purposely showing him the sketch of the triquetra she had been obsessing over "A werewolf and a vampire need to be sacrificed as well, don't they?"
Elijah's eyes were still glued to her sketchbook as he slowly started flipping through the pages. There were so many drawings, some more disturbing than others.
Most were of demons, but every now and then there were a few he could connect to The Prophecy or The Curse.
"How did you--"
"Slayer dreams" Buffy explained as she fought off the urge to tear her sketchbook out of his arms "All weekend I have been drawing those three circles. Given my 90s witch tv knowledge, I know things come in threes."
Elijah smiled almost proudly at her, even if she was basing her idea on a television show "You're correct. And a talented artist."
Buffy rolled her eyes just as Elijah turned to the drawing of three floating grey figures, the creepy one Nora had originally stolen to display at the career fair.
"I'm not an artist." It was her automatic response whenever someone suggested she was. Given that she had never really taken the time to sketch something that wasn't a literal nightmare or warning about some future apocalypse.
There was no joy in it for her.
Plus, she knew for a fact her technique was sloppy, both Nora and Jeremy had pointed it out. Jeremy had just been blunter about it.
"This disagrees." Elijah argued as he turned to the new sketch a small chuckle escaping his lips as he was met with an almost exact image of Marianna. Buffy's work was good, but she needed training.
She did have a gift for shading.
"Your work is good, though has room for improvement with training."
In another life, he could have imagined Niklaus himself would have taken that training upon himself.
Buffy shifted awkwardly in her seat, it was beyond weird for her to have someone compliment her work without once bringing up her twisted and disturbing the drawings were.
She had no idea how to react to it.
Noticing her discomfort, Elijah shut the book and handed it back to her offering her a curious look "Do you paint?"
Buffy snorted as she shoved her book back into her bag "I am a vampire Slayer, do you think I have time to wait for paint to dry?"
Elijah chuckled softly before standing from the bench and smoothing out his jacket "Speak to Elena regarding the deal made. If you have any queries do let me know." With that, the Original started to walk away but not without throwing back one small smile her way "You should try sketching with chalk."
And with that, he was gone.
As he disappeared Buffy leaned back against the bench. She had just had a somewhat pleasant conversation with an Original Vampire and she had no idea how to feel about it.
Elijah seemed kind and compassionate but there was something in Buffy's gut that was screaming at her.
That Elijah was probably the most unpredictable out of his family.
Which made him all the more terrifying.
**
As Buffy kept in constant contact with Caroline so she could be aware if things went haywire and she needed to rush down there to stop wolf Tyler, Elena popped her head into the room.
Elena snorted at the way Buffy was lying on her back with her head hanging off the edge of the bed.
Hearing her snort, Buffy groaned before rolling onto her stomach "I still don't trust Elijah or this deal. But while he is in town, we don't really have a choice if we want to keep everyone alive."
For now, Buffy would follow the rules of the agreement, at least until she found something sketchy or a more reliable way to stop the curse.
Elena shifted her gaze down to the floor before clearing her throat and rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly "So how was your first final?"
Instead of answering Buffy just let out several loud disgusted noises causing Elena to laugh slightly.
Even if she was still doing better in school, Buffy was Buffy, she would never actually enjoy it.
"The art teacher sent a bunch of my drawings and one of my art history papers to the head of the art department at Columbia." She admitted softly as she flopped onto her side, clutching her pillow to her chest. Honestly, she hadn't been planning on telling anyone about it, except Caroline had been with her.
And Caroline had been so excited about the prospect of them sharing a penthouse together that there was no way she would keep it hush-hush.
Elena's eyes bugged open in shock and she quickly jumped onto Buffy's bed a bright smile on her face "In New York! Buffy that's amazing!"
Despite the fact, the news was technically great because it meant she might have a shot...Buffy wasn't excited. The prospect of leaving for college filled her gut with dread.
A part of her still wanted to go back to Williamsburg so she could be near Mystic Falls in case everyone needed help.
However, a certain update from Giles had thrown that plan to smithereens.
"It's not like I would ever get in, plus I couldn't go even if I did."
"What do you mean?"
Spotting those big inquisitive brown doe eyes focused on her, Buffy quickly placed a fake smile on her lips and just waved off the concern starting to spread through Elena's face "I--it's complicated and nothing is for sure yet so don't worry."
The truth was...there was a chance that Sunnydale might be pulling her back into orbit. Especially, if Faith continued down the path she had started.
Knowing not to push right now, Elena just tapped Buffy's knee comfortingly before focusing back on the whole reason she had come in here "I brought you a present."
At the sudden change of subject, Buffy quirked an eyebrow curiously. While she loved presents they still had a few weeks till her 18th birthday "My birthday is not for 2 weeks, why-?"
Elena sighed before offering her cousin a small smile as she jumped back up to her feet, and started to walk back to the door "It's not that kind of present. There was one thing I didn't tell you about my deal with Elijah...."
Before Buffy could push the subject, Elena stepped out of the room, and just as Buffy moved to chase after her a familiar voice spook up from her window seal.
"Buffy."
No...that wasn't possible
Buffy froze, unable to believe the voice she was hearing was real.
Unable to hold herself back she spun around, her voice catching in her throat as she spotted Stefan standing by her window with a soft smile on his face.
"Hey." He whispered as he took slow steps toward her, his smile growing bigger with each step.
Buffy just continued to stare at him in astonishment, she just couldn't believe he was here and free of the tomb "How-?"
Stefan chuckled "It's complicated. I'll explain later."
In less than a second, Buffy rushed over to him and jumped up, her legs wrapping around her waist as he caught her.
She was a lot shorter than him so this just made the most sense in her head... truthfully, she loved it when he carried her around.
Stefan laughed as he held onto her thighs so he didn't drop her, only for his laugh to be cut short as she kissed him.
Buffy didn't care about anything else at this moment.
All she cared about was that he was free...and they were finally together again.
At least for now.