Chapter 8 - Chapter 7

The Vampire Diaries

Season 3: Episodes 6,7,8

Multiple Episodes

The scream Åse had let out left the whole room tensed. On the Mystic Falls side of the room everyone looked scared of the female Original. The entire time she had been seen on-screen she hadn't been this angry. It was the same with her sitting only a dozen feet away and literally threatening them. On the Originals side they all had the same expression of surprised anger. This was mostly because of Mikael's name being spoken.

While all of the Originals were afraid, Åse and Klaus seemed to be the tensest. Mikael believes that they were both abominations who should perish from this world. They hated him with every fiber in their bodies.

Klaus would never say it loud, but he was scared of Mikael. The man he grew up knowing as his father, the man who had abused him, the man who had chased him across the Earth for a thousand years just so he could kill him, was his biggest weakness. Klaus Mikaelson hates weakness.

Åse had to close her eyes to restrain her powers. The way she reacted on-screen was exactly what she wanted to do now. Yes, she had the same fear as the other Originals, but it was for a different reason. She was more afraid of Mikael being able to kill part of her family than herself. The fact that she and the rest of the Originals have had to deal with him for a thousand years has made her extremely bitter and angry.

The room had been stewing in an extraordinarily tense silence for several minutes. The screen had been black the whole time as to let everyone have a break while they processed what was happening. After only a few more minutes of silent anger and fear the screen lit up with another message.

Dear everyone,

The next three episodes will be summarized in shorter clips.

You will be shown the most essential bits of information for your future.

Everyone was slightly confused but didn't comment because the screen turned on.

The first thing everyone saw was Damon walking down the stairs in the boarding house as loud music played. When he reaches the bottom, he has to step over two dead girls that he looks at in slight disgust. Continuing to walk through the house he reaches the living room and sees girls playing a bloody game of twister with Stefan spinning the wheel. As he walks in Stefan says, "Uh oh. Alexandra. Left hand, please." The girl gets up and walks over to the vampire with the designated limb extended. Stefan casually feeds from the girl when Damon speaks up. "Hey, the two brunettes on the stairs owe me a Persian rug." Wiping any blood from his lips Stefan replies, "You mean they owe us a Persian rug. It's my house, too, brother." Not waiting for a response, he holds up the spinner and with a smile he asks, "Ooh. Would you like a spin?" Damon disregards anything his brother just said as he says, "So this is what Klaus had in mind when he compelled you to protect Elena?" As if it was obvious Stefan gestures towards said ladies and says, "These ladies are helping me be all that I can be." Damon is quiet as he just shakes his head.

Stefan was just about done seeing two different personalities of himself. He had been thinking about it since he saw the evidence that he was compelled to hate the Ripper. If he thought about anything the most it would be how free he must feel without Åse's compulsion constantly drilling itself into his mind.

On the other side of the room Åse was biting her bottom lip to suppress the smile wanting to break out. She had seen the conflict on Stefan's face and discreetly read his mind to see what he was thinking so hard about. She was not disappointed. Noticing his wife's expression Klaus gently took her hand in his to grab her attention. When Åse looked his way, he just quirked a brow in question. Not saying anything Åse pointed with her free hand over to the Mystic Falls side of the room.

Stefan had made up his mind. Taking a deep breath that caught the attention of those around him he turned to face the Original's side of the room. To his slight surprise Åse was already looking at him with a devious smirk. He shook it off before asking the burning question. "Can you remove the compulsion?" With no change in her expression Åse said, "I thought you'd never ask. Get over here, Ripper."

As Stefan stood up there were protests on that side of the room. Most were just vehemently saying that he was wrong and shouldn't do it. Not everyone said something though, and Åse noticed. She mentally noted who they were for later. Being drawn out of her mind Åse heard loud yelling from none other than the doppelgänger. "Stefan, you can't! This isn't you!" The girl even tried grab the vampire's arm, but he just maneuvered out of her reach.

Making his way to the Original's side Stefan met Åse at the end of the aisle she and Klaus were seated in. Åse's smirk still hadn't left her face. Giving no time for hesitation she looked directly in the younger vampire's eyes and said, "Remember." It took a few seconds for Stefan to remember everything, but when he came out of his daze, he looked between Åse, Klaus, and Rebekah just like he did in Chicago.

Åse looked behind her to Klaus and saw the love in his eyes as he looked back at her. They shared a smile before Åse turned and spoke to Stefan. Pointing a few rows down she said, "Why don't you and Kol switch spots." She leaned closer and whispered, "Need a reunion with Rebekah too."

The two switched spots and when Kol got close enough, he jumped right onto Åse's back. She could only smile and shake her head at her favorite brother-in-law. Kol was carried back to his new seat until Åse tapped his arm to let go. When he jumped off, he turned Åse around and gave her a hug that was long overdue. For a few seconds they just stood there embracing each other. Before Kol pulled away, he squeezed just a little bit tighter and whispered so no one else could hear. "Thank you, Åse. For everything." The two Originals let go and sat down next to each other. Åse in the middle with Klaus on her left and Kol on her right.

Stefan checks his phone as there was a knock at the door that caught his brother's attention.

Rebekah: I'm coming to your house. Play along.

Stefan raised an eyebrow in intrigue but shrugged nonetheless.

Damon opened the door only to reveal Rebekah. Immediately walking in she asks, "Where's Stefan?" "Who the hell are you?" Completely ignoring the older Salvatore Rebekah speaks to Stefan. "They left me here. My brother and his wife actually left me here." Playing the whole nonchalant act Stefan says, "I'm sorry, your tone implies that I'm actually supposed to care." Damon speaks up from a few feet away. "Your Klaus' sister?" The blonde merely spares him a glance over her shoulder as she says, "Rebekah. Pleasure, I'm sure." Turning back to Stefan she asks, "Which one's my room?" Stefan smiles condescendingly as he speaks but holds up his phone that he hopes Rebekah notices. "You're not staying here." She looks back at Damon who shakes his head in denial. "Rude. Both of you." Walking away she grabs her phone from a pocket, making sure Stefan sees, and says, "I'll see to it myself." "Well I guess she's staying here." Damon just barely nods his head before walking away.

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The scene changes to Katherine dangling a mouse over a desiccated and chained up Mikael.

The Originals all looked shellshocked. The one man that had been chasing them for centuries wasn't even up and walking around. Out of anger the other Originals turned to look at Åse and Klaus. If they remembered anything it was that they were the two who had implied they would be undaggered if Mikael wasn't an issue. However, the only emotions they saw radiating off of the married couple were anger and disbelief.

"Come on, Mikael. Breakfast. Yummy." A phone starts ringing in the background. Katherine gets angry at the temporarily dead vampire and growls out an irritated, "Mikael, wake up." Pulling her phone from her back pocket Katherine answers with a stern "What?" as she continues to dangle the mouse over Mikael's desiccated face.

The screen changes to show that Damon is the one talking on the other side of the phone. "What do you mean what? I've been calling you for two days." "Odd. That's exactly how long I've been ignoring you." "Jeremy Gilbert told me that you found Mikael." "Sort of. He's a little out of commission."

Damon scrunched his eyebrows in confusion as Katherine kept talking.

"He won't eat. And I've tried everything. Gravediggers, mourners, mice, rats, bats. He's just not interested."

The Originals all share knowing looks at what Katherine had said.

"Well, try harder. We need him to kill Klaus so I can de-rippefy Stefan before he destroys my house."

In a whispered sing-song voice Kol said, "Not gonna happen."

Katherine leans up against the door to the mausoleum she's in. Looking out the small window she sees a man with a bouquet of flowers walking up to a grave. Letting out a sigh she says, "Fine. I'll give it another shot." She hangs up the phone and then proceeds to open the mausoleum door.

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The scene changes to the football field and track outside of the high school.

Elena is jogging around the track when Stefan comes up next to her matching her rather slow pace.

"Look at you being all fit." Elena ignores his attempt to annoy her. "Hey are you going to the bonfire tonight? Sounds like fun, right?" Elena keeps her gaze forward as she says, "Seriously, Stefan, leave me alone." She turns around to try and avoid the vampire, but he simply starts jogging backwards. "You think I'm annoying now, wait till homecoming. Hey, who are you bringing by the way? I don't want it to be weird."

Elena suddenly bumps into another teenage boy. He apologizes quickly enough, and Elena was about to respond when Stefan shoves the boy to the ground. "Watch it, dick." Accusatorily, Elena said, "Who are you?" Stefan barely paid her any mind as he responded. "I'm the guy who's been assigned to protect a human blood bag." Stefan stepped closer so that he could really look Elena in the eyes to say, "I mean, no offense or anything." Elena could only shake her head as she finally decided to walk off. Stefan took a slow few steps around as he said, "What?" like he didn't know what he just did.

Åse and Kol had started quietly laughing when Stefan started his antagonization. By the time the scene was switching they were leaning on each other due to their laughter. Kol looked down a few rows and spoke to the younger vampire. "You are much better with the compulsion gone, mate." Stefan shook his head as he held a lighthearted smile on his face.

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Katherine was now holding the man that she saw earlier, dead, and dripping blood onto Mikael's mouth.

After a few seconds the desiccated vampire started twitching. Soon enough the color flooded back into his skin and the first thing the man said was a whispered, "No." Turning angry very quickly, but still whispering due to the lack of use of his voice, Mikael said, "Get it away." Katherine was very confused. "You need blood." Mikael was not changing his mind. "Get it away from me." Deciding to comply Katherine threw the dead man to the ground before leaning on the concrete casket Mikael was chained up in.

"Happy?" Mikael seemed to have calmed down as he said a small "Thank you."

Klaus and Åse shared incredulous glances at what they just heard. Never before had they heard that man utter the words "Thank you." The other Originals were less shocked but were still wondering why Mikael was being the nicest they've ever seen or heard.

Katherine took a second to exam the man lying in front of her. With furrowed brows and her head slightly tilted she said, "I remember you. Chicago, 1920s. You were looking for Klaus." Mikael was taking deep breaths still coming out of his desiccation as Katherine gave him a once over. "You're not so scary for a bad-ass vampire vampire-hunter."

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Elena, Damon, Caroline, and Alaric were all in the teacher's classroom at the high school.

"I'll lure Stefan away from the fire. Then, when he's distracted--" Alaric cut Elena off to say, "I'll shoot him." Damon was sitting on a short bookshelf with his head leaned on the wall as he spoke up. "Can't Bonne just Juju him? Or something?" "I'm trying to keep Bonnie out of this. I don't trust that Stefan won't hurt her."

In a mumbled voice that only vampires could hear Caroline was actually the one to say, "But you'll drag me into it without a second thought."

Changing her focus Elena looks towards her blonde friend. "Caroline. Are you covered?" "Yes, I will make sure that the old Forbes jail cell is prepped and ready." Damon looked between the other three occupants of the room as he said, "You're forgetting a key player here. Rebekah. Wherever Stefan goes, a blond ponytail tends to follow." Elena turned around and looked hesitant as she told him, "Which is why it's your job to keep her away."

Åse looked at the screen with her mouth slightly hung open. She turned to her right to see if Kol had caught the same thing she did. When they locked eyes, she saw the same shocked expression that displayed what she felt. At the same time, they rolled their eyes and said, "I hate doppelgängers."

Klaus had obviously overheard the two talking. When Åse turned back in her seat he looked at her with a brow raised in question. Knowing that his interest was piqued she leaned over on his arm rest and whispered, "Doppelgänger 3.0 is planning to capture Stefan, right, so she can have her precious boyfriend back. Even though at this point with my compulsion removed that would never happen." She rolled her eyes before continuing. "In this plan that she has so haphazardly put together she is not only using her friend, but she is also using the older Salvatore to try and trick Rebekah. But that's not the worst part. In her attempt to trick your sister, she is subtly exposing her poorly hidden feelings. She is outwardly showing that she hates the idea of Damon, what I can only assume is seducing Rebekah. In reality though you can see in her eyes that she hates the idea of him carrying out this task. And guess what... that just proves she is exactly like every other doppelgänger and has to have more than one person worshipping her at her alter."

Klaus could only sigh at his wife's explanation. As the screen was about to un-pause, he mumbled, "What have we gotten ourselves into?"

"How? She's an Original. Last time I checked, we're out of daggers." "So then preoccupy her with your charm." Alaric snarkily spoke up from his spot behind his desk. "Might have better luck finding a dagger." Caroline was in the background suppressing a laugh as Damon looked to Ric. "Are you ever not gonna be mad at me, Ric?" "Doubtful."

Tyler then suddenly came striding into the room.

"Sorry I'm late. What's going on?" Elena rested her hands on Alaric's desk as she spoke to Tyler. "We need you to raid your mom's vervain supply. Enough to keep Stefan down for a while." Immediately Tyler was denying the request. "You can't do that to Stefan." From beside him Caroline has furrowed brows as she asks, "Why not?" Elena was in the same boat as she said, "Trust me, Tyler, it's in his best interest."

"And what would you possibly know about my best interest, huh?" Stefan had spoken up from his spot beside Rebekah. He had tilted his head so that he could just barely see the reactions from the Mystic Falls group. To say they were surprised would be an understatement.

Not truly giving the doppelgänger enough time to think up a misrepresentation of the truth he kept talking. "We knew each other for what? A year? And then, within that already short time frame, we dated for only a few months. That is not nearly enough time to consider yourself all-knowing about a single person. Especially someone who's been alive a lot longer than you have. So, you don't get the right to say what is or isn't in my best interest."

Rebekah, Åse, Klaus, and Kol were all smirking at the one-sided interaction. It was always wonderful to see someone bite back at a doppelgänger.

Caroline seemed to agree as she turned and looked at Tyler confused.

Wanting to clear any misconceptions about herself Caroline quickly turned to Stefan on the other side of the room. "I just wanna say I don't believe that now that I know the truth." Stefan gave her a half-smirk half-smile in return when he saw she was telling the truth.

Åse observed the baby vampire sitting amongst the residents of Mystic Falls. In her opinion, the girl seemed out of place.

Tyler looked between everyone as he said, "But it's not in Klaus'."

This seemed to catch Damon's attention.

Caroline was confused as to why her boyfriend would be defending Klaus. In response she said, "But Klaus is the bad guy, Tyler."

Åse gave a side glance at the blonde at her statement. Caroline piped up again, albeit more hesitantly this time, and said, "I actually don't totally agree with that either." When she saw the other Originals look like they were about to protest she quickly added, "I mean I wouldn't say he's the good guy either, but he isn't completely terrible. He's more of a dark grey in the world of black and white."

Almost everyone was unconvinced by what the young vampire had said. However, Åse and Klaus himself seemed pleased. They shared a small smile before glancing at the now slightly uncomfortable blonde.

Caroline huffed slightly before saying, "Why are you acting like some freaky hybrid slave-minion?" Damon slowly slid off of the bookshelf he was sitting on as he said, "Uh-oh."

At the same time off-screen Damon reacted the same way as the Originals all shared looks of disbelief.

Glancing at the older vampire in the room Alaric asks, "What?" Tyler was still looking at Caroline and spoke before Damon could say anything. "Klaus made me who I am, Caroline. I owe him everything." Damon was closer to the rest of the group now and said, "Oh, boy." Fed up with them Caroline whips around saying, "Okay, can we cool it on the commentary, please?" Not understanding the situation Elena asks, "What is going on?" Damon grabs a vervain syringe off of Alaric's desk without anyone noticing. Tyler, seeing the tension in the room, quickly tries to leave. "I'm just gonna go."

The hybrid had only taken a step or two when Damon sped up behind him and stabbed him in the neck with the syringe effectively knocking Tyler out. Caroline threw her hands up before making her way over to her now incapacitated boyfriend on the ground. "What are you doing?"

As on-screen Damon spoke, he did the same off-screen along with all of the Originals.

"He's been sired." "What?" "Sired. He feels loyal to Klaus because Klaus' blood created him." Standing away from where the action happened Elena asks, "Loyal how?" Damon glanced down at the hybrid on the floor as he said, "He'll seek acceptance from his master. It's really rare. Maybe not so much in hybrids." From her spot near Tyler's head Caroline innocently asked, "So how do I fix him?" "Get a new boyfriend."

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Rebekah was now seen at the bonfire party. She was standing at a keg unable to get beer to flow out of the spout. Stefan walks up from her left and quietly asks, "You alright there?" She gives him a small smile as he fills her drink for her. Then she looks around annoyed as she says, "I thought Tyler would be here." Taking on a teasing tone Stefan says, "You're into Tyler now, huh? Fickle." Rebekah lightly hits his arm with a fake offended look on her face as she says, "Since Åse's compulsion is gone and you're willing to give me the time of day I have no need to hanker for other possible suitors." She leans in and whispers in Stefan's ear saying, "A girl does have needs you know." Stefan looked the blonde Original up and down as a smirk worked its way onto his face.

Just as Stefan was going to respond Elena barged over and poured a beer of her own. With a strained smile Stefan said, "Elena, hi. What are you doing?" "I'm having fun, Stefan. You have a problem with that?" She then proceeded to chug every bit of the alcohol that she had poured for herself. While the doppelgänger wasn't looking Stefan and Rebekah shared an annoyed glance. Turning back to the attention seeker Stefan said, "All right. Take it easy. We both know you're kind of a lightweight." Elena finished her drink and scoffed as she moved to pour another. "Really? You think I'm gonna let a blood-addict tell me how to drink?" She then tossed the spout to the keg and walked off.

Stefan and Rebekah shared another glance of annoyance and underlying anger once the doppelgänger was gone. Rebekah rolled her eyes and lowly whispered, "Something is wrong. They're all planning something." Stefan just barely nodded his head in agreement. Speaking in the same tone he said, "Split up so we're not suspicious and try to figure out what's going on." With a final nod from Rebekah, Stefan split off and waded through the crowd of drunk teens.

It was later and Rebekah was sitting at a small fire with a marshmallow on a stick. Damon came over and sat down while talking about the right way to roast the marshmallow since Rebekah kept burning them.

Across the woods Elena happened to be watching them when Stefan walked over. He leaned on the tree next to her and asked, "What's that look?"

Kol and Åse leaned closer to each other and loudly whispered, "Jealousy." This caused a few laughs from Klaus, Rebekah, and Stefan.

Elena just rolled her eyes and went back to her staring as she asked, "What look?" "Well, my brother's got his flirt on. And you're jealous." If watched closely enough Stefan had a slight tinge of anger in his eyes at the fact that Damon was flirting with Rebekah specifically. "I'm not jealous." "It's all right, be jealous. By all means. I'm sure Damon will be thrilled." Elena moved away slightly as she repeated herself. "I'm not jealous, Stefan." "All right. It's my mistake." The doppelganger threw down her now empty cup and said, "Whatever. I'm outta here."

Stefan sighed to himself as Elena walked away. He scrubbed a hand down his face and took one last glance at Rebekah before he followed the doppelgänger.

Damon was handing Rebekah a s'more. For a few seconds the two vampires just sat in silence and stared at each other. Eventually, Rebekah said, "Why are you being so nice to me? You hate me. You should be mean." Looking right into the blonde's eyes Damon said, "Well, I could be mean if that's what you're into." A single twitch of Rebekah's left eye was the only indication of her irritation at that statement. Standing up she said, "You're distracting me. Why?" Also standing Damon replied, "Just trying to be a good housemate." Rebekah smiled just slightly as she laid a gentle hand on Damon's left shoulder. She leaned forward and whispered, "There's never a fair fight between us, Damon." She took the stick she was holding and stabbed the older Salvatore in the stomach with it. "Remember that." And she walked away.

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The scene changed back to Katherine in the tomb with Mikael.

She was lighting a few candles since it was nighttime and now dark inside the tomb.

Mikael could be heard shifting in his chains before he started speaking. "I apologize for my outburst. It would have made more sense had you known that I'd been denying myself human blood for as long as I can remember." Katherine moved so that she was once again leaning on the edge of the concrete casket Mikael resided in. When the man saw her face he asked, "Why is it that you awoke me?" Tiredly, Katherine said, "I thought you might know how to kill Klaus. But something tells me that I've been sorely misinformed."

Immediately all of the Originals were tensed. If Mikael had the means to kill Klaus, then he had the means to kill all of them.

Mikael struggled in his bindings for a second before he said, "Would you mind helping me with these? I can assure you there's no way I can kill Klaus from beneath them." "Does that mean you do know how to kill him?" Extremely sure of himself Mikael said, "I can kill Klaus. And I will."

Once Mikael was on screen again Åse had moved to sit in Klaus' lap. His arms wrapped around her waist tight enough that if she were human, she would have serious internal injuries. She turned to look Klaus in the eyes as she spoke in a serious tone. "He will not succeed. His head will have been removed from his body and would have joined Esther before he even has the chance to lay a hand on you." Klaus didn't say a word, but he did lean his head on Åse's shoulder to try and calm himself because of her words.

Katherine hesitated for a few seconds before giving in and ripping off Mikael's chains. The older vampire stretched his arms and said, "Thank you." As Katherine observed him she said, "A little blood will grease those muscles up real quick. Just saying."

Quietly, Åse whispered, "She just offered herself up on a silver platter."

Mikael looked at Katherine intently as he said, "I don't feed on living things." Extremely confused Katherine asked, "Then what do you eat?" Without any signs of warning Mikael snatched Katherine by the neck and dug his fangs into her and started drinking.

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Elena and Alaric were just leaving the boarding house when Stefan called out to the doppelgänger. "Elena, wait." When she turned his way he kept talking. "After you and Alaric captured me and the car was on fire, why didn't you just let me die?" "Because I still have hope." Stefan's brows were furrowed as he said, "After everything I've done... you still think I'll find my humanity again?" He knew he was really playing up the no humanity thing, but what else could he do to have fun in the small crap town of Mystic Falls.

Elena turned around fully as she said, "Yes, I do. I know who you really are. Better than anyone, Stefan. And I'm not giving up."

Åse, Kol, and Stefan all nearly cackled at the extremely bold statement Elena had made. Klaus, and even Caroline and Jeremy, all also had matching faces of shock at what the doppelgänger had said.

When he had somewhat calmed down Kol didn't look away from the screen as he said, "You are bloody fucking delusional, doppelgänger."

Stefan waited a couple seconds as he watched the desperation start to seep through Elena's features. In a whisper he said, "Elena, do you have any idea how pathetic that makes you?"

And the screen went black.

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After the screen was black for several seconds another note popped up.

Watchers,

This next episode will be very quick and show only small clips of what you need to know.

P.S.

There will be people that have died on screen. Just so you know, they are actually dead. What you will be seeing is their ghosts that have been revealed.

Everyone was confused by the mention of ghosts. No one said anything due to their shock, so the screen started playing quickly enough.

The first thing everyone sees is Damon, Alaric, and very surprisingly Mason Lockwood sitting at the Mystic Grill bar.

Damon had a mixture of confusion and anger written all over his face. Tyler had an increasingly strong grip on the arms of his theater chair as he tried to hold back tears.

Mason picked up a shot glass full of alcohol that was originally meant for Damon as he said, "One of you will pay for this, right?" After Mason took the shot Damon was speaking. "Let's get to it. I killed you. If you want revenge, get in line."

Tyler was about to jump out of his seat when he was somehow held down. Looking down at his arms, they seemed to be stuck to the armrests of his chair. From the other side of the room Åse spoke up. Sternly she said, "I don't care for Damon. At all. But if you start a werewolf vampire fight, and he gets bitten, Klaus will get involved. I can tell you right now his blood will go nowhere near the older Salvatore. So, calm the hell down, now, or I'll just kill you and you can join your uncle in the afterlife." Tyler seemed to contemplate his choices for a few seconds. Eventually, he ended up calming down enough for his invisible restraints to be released.

Mason leaned forward in his seat as he said, "Actually, I want an apology."

Nearly everybody off-screen let out a laugh at the mere thought of Damon actually apologizing.

Alaric laughed and said, "Good luck with that." In an attempt to avoid the apology Damon asked, "Don't you have a family to haunt? You know your nephew was turned into a mindless hybrid minion." "That's why I'm here. To help Tyler." With a scoff Damon says, "Well, sorry to break it to you, buddy, but Tyler can't be helped. At least not while Klaus is alive, which is, like, always." "Not necessarily. Not if you found a weapon that could kill him." "There is no weapon that--" Seeing the look on Mason's face Damon immediately stopped talking.

With a brief sarcastic smile and an inquisitive look Damon asks, "What do you know?" Mason leans forward and says, "I know you need to apologize." Incredulously Damon says, "You gotta be kidding me." Alaric looks completely over it as he says, "Are you incapable of remorse. Just apologize." Damon glances at an expectant Mason. He lets out a brief sigh and closes his eyes before speaking. "You're right. I didn't have to kill you. I do a lot of things I don't have to do."

There was a second or two of silence before Mason lets out a laugh. "That's good enough." The ghost gets up out of the barstool he was sitting in as he keeps talking. "Meet me at the old Lockwood cellar. Bring a shovel." After a short glance at Alaric he says, "Come alone." Damon raises an eyebrow and asks, "What, you gonna bury me alive?" "Don't tempt me."

The scene changes to the Mystic Falls city jail.

Inside Lexi opens a cell door revealing Stefan unconscious and locked in a chair.

Stefan stares at the screen sadly as he sees his dead friend.

Behind Lexi, Elena walks in.

"Klaus really did a number on him, huh?" "He compelled him to turn off his humanity. And this lady, the Gravedigger, was there too. She made him feed from me as soon as his humanity was gone."

"If that was an attempt to have another person against us the doppelgänger will be sorely mistaken." Åse's whispered voice was only heard by Klaus and Kol. Klaus nodded in agreement as Kol turned to the women with a raised eyebrow. Åse just waved him off and pointed at the screen.

Lexi turned her face away so Elena didn't see her biting her lip to suppress a laugh. Under her breath so the human couldn't hear she said, "Åse. Of course she did. She's always hated doppelgängers."

Åse nodded along with what Lexi said on-screen.

Stefan suddenly turned around and looked between Åse and Klaus as he asked, "You two knew Lexi?" The two Originals shared a smirk before looking to Stefan. Klaus was the first to speak. "Ah, yes. Alexia. She was quite the interesting one." Åse softly laughed as she said, "Yes, Stefan. It was before she met you, but we knew her. Quite well might I add." She ended her statement with a devilish grin that made Stefan question the meaning behind her words.

Lexi turned back to face the unconscious vampire in front of her. Speaking to Elena she said, "Well, we're just gonna have to convince him to turn it back on." As she stepped forward, she whispered to herself once again. "Let's just hope Stefan's acting is as good as I think it is."

The blonde vampire kicked the leg of Stefan's chair to wake him up. Stefan's head slowly rose upwards as he looked around in confusion. Genuinely wondering what the hell was happening he asked. "What is this?" He yanked a couple times on his restraints and got louder as he said, "Let me out of here." It was then that he noticed Elena standing several feet away.

Stefan scoffed before rolling his eyes in disbelief. Lexi noticed his reaction and had to hold back a laugh as she leaned forward to block his view. Setting her hands on his armrests she said, "Inside voices, please." Stefan was about to retort when Lexi stopped him. In a whisper that Elena couldn't hear she said, "You're gonna hate this, so I'm sorry, but I'm gonna have to pretend to give you a Ripper detox, so this godforsaken doppelgänger believes your story." Begrudgingly, Stefan said a very quiet, "Fine." that let Lexi know it was okay to move forward.

The last thing anyone hears before the scene changes is Stefan gasping for breath and then a gut-wrenching scream.

Stefan winced as he realizes Lexi is making him believe that he was starving.

Mason comes on screen again and is seen blowing out a match.

Looking up from his lantern he sees Damon and says, "I'm surprised you showed." Damon walked up with a shovel in hand as he spoke. "Hit a snag in my only other Klaus lead. So I'd say I'm highly motivated." "Mikeal? Yeah. That didn't turn out so great, did it?" Damon hands over the shovel as he asks, "How can you know so much?" Mason moves towards a wall as he talks. "There's not much to do on the other side but sit around and watch other people screw things up."

Damon walks over to Mason as he asks, "What are we looking for?" "There's an old Lockwood family legend about a weapon that can kill an Original vampire." The ghost takes a swing at a bricked over wall with the shovel. He barely made a dent. "And like the rest of their secrets, they kept it buried."

Klaus, Åse, and Kol shared confused glances as Rebekah, Elijah, and Finn did the same a few rows in front of them. Åse had a look of realization cross her face and she nearly groaned in response. She withheld a huff so that everyone could keep watching and start to understand what she already did.

Damon already looked over it as he watched Mason make no progress. He pushed himself off the wall he was leaning on and said, "Oh, come on. Give me the thing." Mason stopped swinging and ended up handing over the shovel. Only taking a few swings Damon made a hole in the wall that they could fit through. When they used the lantern Mason brought and looked through the hole, they saw a long, dark corridor.

As the men stepped through the hole the scene changes once again.

What everyone sees is a feral looking Stefan Salvatore straining to get out of the binds he was currently trapped in.

With his teeth bared Stefan growled at Lexi saying, "Did I ever tell you how glad I am that you're dead?" Lexi merely smiles as she replies, "Aw, I missed you too, friend."

For a few seconds the screen goes black to show a passage of time.

When it comes back on Stefan has now made himself work up a sweat and is panting as if he is truly in pain.

"I have to say, your acting skills are astonishing, Stefan. Even I would feel inclined to believe you." The praise from Klaus came as a surprise to most of the room. However, Stefan turned around and gave a smirk-like smile to his friend. The younger vampire shrugged and said, "What can I say? I'm just that good."

Stefan looked to Elena who was leaned against a wall several feet away. "Elena? Elena. I'm hurting. Please help me." As the doppelgänger held a hand over her mouth Lexi abruptly said, "Don't listen. Shut him out."

Either not listening or not caring Elena took a step forward and spoke to Stefan. "I am helping you, Stefan." With a face of desperation Stefan said, "I'll do anything. I'll change. I promise."

Lexi leaned on the back of his chair as she said, "It's a lie. He'll say anything right now."

Somehow, Stefan pulled out the most desperate voice he could and said, "Elena, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Just make it stop. Please, just make it stop."

Before Lexi turned to Elena, she hid the impressed look on her face behind one of her hands. Turning to her left to face the doppelgänger she sternly said, "You have to separate yourself from your emotions. Don't let him play on them."

Elena's gaze kept bouncing between Lexi and Stefan.

Now resorting to pleading Stefan said, "Hey, look at me. Look at me. Elena, I love you, okay? I love you. I love you so much. I love you so much."

Kol and Åse both looked to each other with impressed expressions. Kol faced forward as he spoke towards Stefan. "Very dramatic, mate. Pulling out the 'I love you' card." Åse nodded her head in agreement. Seeing that Stefan turned around because of Kol's praise, she spoke up. "Sentiment. It is a crucial weak point for most."

From the other side of the room Caroline hesitantly spoke up. "I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but you make it seem like you are one of the few that sentiment doesn't affect." Åse nodded as she slowly turned her head towards the blonde. "That's because I am, Sweetheart." With furrowed brows Caroline asked, "But how? I mean you have a husband. You have the rest of the Original family." Again, Åse nodded. As she responded to Caroline, she reached over to hold Klaus' hand. "Yes, I may have those things, Caroline. But they very well may be the only way to get me to react to sentiment." "What do you mean?" Åse let out a sigh as she said, "I have never cared much for anything. Even when I was human I had very little care for what happened around me. Over the course of my one thousand years that has only amplified. Life, death, anything that the general public sees as morally incorrect, I just don't care. So, yes, sentiment is not something I'm particularly worried about." Åse finished her speech with a tight smile as she faced the screen once again.

The room was tense as the screen started playing.

"I'm sorry. I just don't believe you." As soon as Elena finished her sentence Stefan's face changed. He had gritted his teeth and looked at the doppelgänger with nothing but hatred. "You know what? I don't want your help anyway. I wish I'd never met you. Every single moment that I've spent with you has been a complete and total waste."

Åse's attitude completely changed when Stefan had ripped into the doppelgänger. Along with Kol and Rebekah she had started cheering at the brutality of what the younger vampire had said.

When she had calmed down Åse said, "I'll never get over how much better you are without my compulsion, Ripper." Stefan could only give her a small smile and a shake of his head in return.

Lexi made her way back over to Stefan and stabbed him in shoulder with a wooden stake. This caused Elena to stumble backwards out of shock. As she stabbed Stefan again, Lexi said, "You have to cause him pain until he's ready to be saved. Day in and day out. Like running the treadmill. Like making coffee." When she moved to stab her friend for a third time Stefan roared, "I will rip you apart, Lexi!" The older woman just smirked and said, "You can't. I'm already dead." And she proceeded to stab Stefan again in his other shoulder.

As Stefan screamed from the pain, Elena started backing away. Breathing heavily, she said, "I can't." and left the jail cell as fast as she could.

The scene then changed back to Damon and Mason as they walked through the rocky tunnels.

Damon walked in front as Mason was behind him with the lantern. Still skeptical about working with the man he killed he said, "I'm still waiting for the other shoe to drop. Your motives are deceptively pure." "You talk the talk, but I know you'll do anything for your brother. You won't screw me over as long as we have the same agenda." "I'm supposed to believe you're not gonna screw me over?"

The two men were silent for a few seconds as they reached a fork in the tunnels. Damon looked to Mason and asked, "Alright, which way?" "I don't know. Flip a coin." Incredulously, Damon asked, "Aren't you supposed to be all-knowing?" Mason looked back at the vampire with a deadpan expression as he says, "I'm a ghost, I'm not God." Just guessing the dead werewolf ended up saying, "Go left."

Damon, obviously not trusting the other man, took the tunnel to the right. Mason sighed as he slowly followed. "Or not. You have trust issues. Anyone ever tell you that?"

Damon kept walking forward, but out of nowhere wooden spikes sprouted from the walls and embedded themselves in the vampire's abdomen, securely keeping him in place.

The screen darkened to show a passage of time.

Damon was still stuck with the stakes as the screen came back on.

Mason reappeared with the lantern and the shovel. Grabbing onto one of the stakes he said, "Sorry. Thought you might need this." and he proceeded to use the shovel to break the stakes connections to the tunnel walls so Damon could get free. "You're welcome."

"Damn. Wish he could have stayed there longer." The whispered statement surprisingly came from the Mystic Falls side of the room. It was quiet enough that the humans didn't hear, but the vampires and werewolf did. Åse shared a glance with Klaus and Stefan in suspicion because they all noticed it was Caroline's voice that had spoken.

As Mason helped yank out the remaining wood in Damon's body, the vampire asked, "What's your game, man?" He continued to speak through his yells of pain. "I killed you. I jammed my fist into your chest. I ripped your heart out. There's no way this buddy-trust act is real."

Tyler's armrests cracked and fixed themselves continuously after he heard what Damon had done.

Once Mason had pulled out the last stake, he spoke. "You know what the other side is like? We're all alone. We watch the people we left behind and we regret our decisions. That's it." The ghost moved to pick up the lantern as he kept talking. "Look, I can't change what happened to me. But maybe I can change what happened to Tyler. I don't need revenge, Damon. I need redemption."

As the werewolf and vampire started walking through the tunnels once again the scene changed back to Lexi and Stefan.

Lexi was leaning on the armrests of Stefan's chair with a stern look on her face as she listened to Elena leave the city jail. When she heard the door upstairs shut, she immediately removed the stake from her friend's shoulder and gave him a smile. Stefan lost his enraged expression and gave Lexi a tired smile in return.

Backing away, Lexi started talking as she tossed the bloodied stake she used between her hands. "You did good, Stefan. I'm honestly surprised. I mean, sweat, really? How the hell did you manage that?" The younger vampire shrugged the best he could due to his bindings. "I don't really know. Just happened naturally I guess." Lexi snorted in amusement before she responded. She bit her lip and asked, "Are you in contact with Åse and Klaus?" When she saw Stefan's confused nod she kept talking. "Are they doing alright? They have a tendency to overwork themselves when they want something."

Åse and Klaus shared a gentle smile at the concern Lexi showed for them even centuries later.

For a couple seconds Stefan closed his eyes in confusion. His best friend knew two of the Originals? Clearing his throat he said, "Physically their fine. Mentally... I don't know. I mean the group here is trying to kill Klaus. Said they were looking for a Mikeal, or something." Lexi's head whipped around so fast that if she was human, she'd have whiplash. "Did you just say 'Mikeal?'" At Stefan's hesitant nod Lexi raised a thumb to her mouth and started to bite her nail.

For a few moments Stefan just watched his anxious best friend pace the cell they were still in. They were knocked out of their silence when they heard the upstairs door loudly creak open.

Shaking herself out of her shock Lexi quickly moved so she was once again leaned over Stefan. Whispering very quickly she said, "When you see them again you tell them..."

No one heard what she said next because the point of view changed to Elena walking down the stairs towards the jail cell.

"Aw come on! I wanted to hear what she said!" Kol's outburst caused other people to laugh, but Klaus and Åse looked to each other, concern hidden in their eyes.

As the screen switched back to Lexi and Stefan Lexi was saying, "Can you do that? Please?" Stefan looked completely stunned but he was able to nod his head and say, "Yeah, yeah, of course." "Thank you, Stefan."

When they heard Elena getting closer Lexi said, "Ready to put your game face back on?" Stefan stretched his neck and let out a sigh before saying, "As ready as I'll ever be."

Just as Elena was reaching for the handle of the cell door Stefan was being impaled with the stake Lexi had in her right hand.

In a growling voice Stefan said, "You wasted your whole life taking care of me. Now you're dead and you still have nothing better to do."

Elena burst into the room and the screen immediately switched back to Damon and Mason in the tunnels.

Rebekah let out a sigh of relief and rested her head on Stefan's right shoulder as she said, "At least we don't have to see the bloody doppelgänger whine and complain."

Mason was now leading the way through the tunnels. As he stepped down and into another section, Damon was stopped by an invisible barrier.

As he hit his hands against the barrier he said, "God, this is not happening." Still moving forward Mason asked, "What now?" "I can't get through. It's like I'm not invited in." When he saw that Mason wasn't stopping, he said, "Wait." "I'm not stopping just because you're stuck. I'll let you know what I find." "Yeah, but--" "Looks like you're gonna have to trust me."

Using his lantern Mason stared at the rock walls around him.

From his spot Damon asked, "So? What'd you find?" Just as Mason was going to answer he disappeared, and his lantern fell to the ground.

The screen went black for a few seconds showing another time skip.

When the screen turned back on Alaric was walking into the tunnels with a flashlight.

From his spot on a set of stairs Damon said, "You're here. About time." "You didn't have anyone else to call?" "No actually I don't. Because I need a non-vampire to get into the cave and other than Elena your pretty much the only one I trust." "Well, you have a crappy way of showing it." Damon rolled his eyes before saying, "If Mason Lockwood can get over the fact that I killed him, can't you cut me a little slack, Ric?" "I shouldn't have to get over it. I was your friend, Damon. You shouldn't have done it in the first place." "Well, sometimes I do things I don't have to do." Alaric just raised his eyebrows as he said, "You're gonna recycle that same crap-ass apology you gave Mason Lockwood?" "Yeah. Well, I didn't mean it with him."

Alaric shook his head with a ghost of a smile on his face as he gestured for Damon to follow him back into the depths of the tunnels.

Damon and Alaric shared a short smile with each other as they saw themselves making up.

Now in the same room that Mason was in, Alaric was shining his flashlight at the walls.

From outside the barrier once again Damon asked, "Was Mason screwing with me or is there something in there?" With an expression of awe Ric said, "I found something." "What is it?"

The last thing anyone sees before the screen goes black is ancient Viking drawings on the walls of the cave.

The Originals shared looks of disbelief at what they saw. They all knew that they were the ones to draw those pictures on the cave walls.

What the other four didn't see though was Klaus and Åse sharing a brief look of anxiety. There was something drawn on those walls that none of the others knew about and they didn't know how they would react to the news.

When the screen turned back on the eyes of the Originals went wide at what they saw.

The first thing to be seen was Rebekah carving her name into the same cave walls that were shown in the last clip.

While the blonde held a large knife and carved her name, Klaus could be seen holding a torch to give her light. As he watched her, he said, "Rebekah, let me have at it." "Quiet, Niklaus. I'm to have my concentration if I'm not to slice off a finger." "Father will not like you handling the blade." Rebekah abruptly stopped her carving as she turned to look at her brother. "If I want to wield a blade, I shall wield a blade. Father need not know." Klaus spoke as Rebekah turned back to the wall. "He will find out. He always does." Rebekah was finished as she walked to stand in front of Klaus. "That is because you always tell him." Klaus looked to the ground as he quietly responded to his sister. "I cannot help it. He frightens me."

Without thinking about the consequences Damon cockily said, "Ooo, the Big Bad Hybrid is actually scared of something. Funny."

Not even trying to hold herself back, Åse immediately snaps her head in the direction of Damon and inflicts an amplified version of a witch's aneurysm spell. The older Salvatore instantly fell to the floor in agonizing pain. That went on for a few minutes before Åse got annoyed with his screaming.

Standing up, Åse heard none of the yells from the Scooby Gang as she sped over to the other side of the room. When she reached the flailing Salvatore she kneeled and harshly plunged her hand into the vampire's chest. As another scream ripped through the air she grunted in annoyance and said, "You're too loud." And then she proceeded to rip Damon Salvatore's heart right out of his chest.

Åse stood with Damon's heart in her hand and looked directly at the doppelgänger. Staring at her copied face she spoke with no trace of emotion as she said, "If you don't want to join him, I'd suggest you keep your mouth shut." Then, just for emphasis, Åse squeezed the heart in her hand so that it exploded into a million tiny, bloody, pieces.

No glances were spared to the Mystic Falls side of the room as Åse walked back to her seat. Just as she was going to pass Stefan she stopped and set her clean hand on his shoulder. Not wanting anyone to hear them she spoke through her mind and said, "I know he was your brother, so I'm sorry for that. However, I'm not sorry that it happened. It would have happened sooner or later because he couldn't keep his mouth shut." Stefan had no response, but he did nod his head in understanding.

Åse said nothing as she ascended the stairs and sat back in her seat between Klaus and Kol. When she reached for Klaus' hand, she saw that she still had blood on her own. With a brief grimace of disgust, she waved her hand and not only got rid of the blood, but also the body down on the floor.

Grabbing her husband's hand Åse felt him give a squeeze of thanks. She returned the gesture to say she was there for him before focusing back on the screen.

Rebekah let out an understanding sigh as she said, "He frightens us all. That is why we stick together as one. Always and forever." Klaus looked up and saw his sisters smile and returned it. "Right, traitor?" Rebekah asked. "Right."

Handing her brother the knife she had, Rebekah said, "Here, you finish. I'm to help mother with the meal." "Yes, go tend to dinner and leave the blades to the men, little sister." Rebekah gave him a sarcastic smile before roughly putting the blade into his hand, effectively cutting him. "Bekah." "It's just a little blood. Be a man about it." As she walked away, she turned slightly and teasingly said, "Or you could get your precious Åse to help to clean it up." Klaus huffed slightly as his sister finally left. A smile made its way onto his face as he thought about the girl he was infatuated with.

The scene changed back to the present and showed Rebekah doing a brief stretch before executing a few flips.

Just as she was going to keep going, she was met with a face full of doppelgänger. She gives Elena a sarcastic smile and says, "You. Goody." " I was hoping we could talk." "About what? Stefan?" When Elena looks away shaking her head Rebekah plays her part and says, "Don't worry. I'm off him until he starts treating me better. In fact, you should probably take a page out of my book, if I'm being honest--" Elena interrupts the Original as she pulls something out of her bag. "Actually, I'd rather talk about this." She holds up a printed picture of the carving of Rebekah's name on the cave wall.

Rebekah's face immediately morphs into an expression of recognition. "I'm curious why you and Klaus have spent 1000 years running from your father." Rebekah knew that she shouldn't say anything, so she tried to change the subject. "I should get back to the girls. Homecoming's right around the corner." As she was turning away Elena said, "Well, then maybe I'll ask Mikael when we wake him."

Rebekah's face was turned away, so Elena didn't see the concern written on her features. When she turned around her expression was slightly condescending to hide what she really felt. "You're bluffing. You don't know where he is. No one does." "So, then who's rotting in that old cemetery in Charlotte?" Rebekah doesn't bother to hide her expression this time as she moves to stand directly in front of Elena. "If you wake Mikael we are all doomed." "So then tell me." "Why do you wanna know?" "Why don't you want me to wake him?" "I need to get back to the girls." As she finishes Rebekah walks away and doesn't look back.

In a low voice that reverberated through the room Åse said, "The only reason you aren't dismembered into a dozen pieces already is because I want to drain you dry of your blood until you look like a bloody raisin." No one had to question who she was talking to.

The screen switched to another flashback.

Rebekah could be seen running with a little boy as she said, "Come on, Henrik. Our brothers are fighting again."

All of the Originals, including Åse, tensed when they saw Henrik on screen. Åse had a tight comforting grip on Klaus' hand and forearm as she felt him tense.

Elijah and Klaus could then be seen sparring with swords near a campfire. When Elijah caught sight of Rebekah he said, "Oh, look, sisters arrived to watch my fast-approaching victory." Klaus held up his sword as he responded, "On the contrary, Elijah."

Klaus swung his sword and Elijah quickly blocked it. As the kept up their spar an older man and woman were seen slowly approaching. Klaus ducked low and swiped his sword at Elijah's belt to distract him. As this happened, he said, "She's come to laugh at you." To prove his point Rebekah did indeed laugh at what had happened.

The older women spoke quietly to the man saying, "Relax, Mikael. Niklaus means well." The older man, Mikael, merely replied, "That's precisely my problem."

Klaus clenched his jaw and turned his face away from the screen, not wanting to relive this experience.

Mikael walked over and silently asked for Elijah's sword. He gave it to him without question.

"So... why don't you teach me that trick, young warrior." Klaus looks hesitant but he defends himself when Mikael swings his sword at him. "Father, we were just having fun." Angrily Mikael snaps at Klaus. "We fight for our survival, and you find time for fun?"

Because of all of the commotion, a human Åse suddenly walks up beside Elijah.

Mikael starts yelling at Klaus. " I wanna have fun. Teach me. Come on." As Mikael takes steps forward Klaus backs away. "Father, it was nothing." Mikael doesn't care what Klaus says and he viciously swings his sword overhead and swings multiple times until Klaus is disarmed.

Åse went to step forward but Elijah quickly grabbed her arm to stop her. She whipped her head to the side with a glare resting on her face. Elijah barely shook his head in protest, and Åse decided to listen.

Mikael had harshly pushed Klaus to the ground and held the end of his sword to the boy's throat. "You are foolish and impulsive, my boy. What, no more laughter?" Several feet away the woman from before called out and said, "You've made your point, Mikael." The man said nothing, but he did let out an angry grunt and stab his sword into the dirt right next to Klaus' head as he stood up. Now towering over the boy still lying on the ground he said, "Some days, it's a miracle you're still alive, boy."

Åse had a feeling that what they were watching was going to be filled with a lot of flashbacks, so to prevent Klaus and herself from freaking out too much she moved to sit in her husband's lap. Immediately Klaus had wrapped his arms around her waist and laid his head on her shoulder.

The scene changed again to Rebekah at the Salvatore house.

She had two glasses of champagne as she greeted Elena. "Hey, what's up?" "You invited me over. To talk." Rebekah smiled as she said, "All right, girls. Have at it." At once several compelled girls came out all wearing a different dress. "Okay, now twirl please." Elena walked down a small set of stairs as she said, "You compelled your own private runway show?" "I need a homecoming dress. So, what do you think? Pick one." Elena scoffed and said, "I'm not here to help you shop. I'm here to talk about why you don't want me to wake up Mikael."

Kol and Åse both scoffed and spoke in unison saying, "Like you would actually do any of the work yourself. Please."

Rebekah smirked before she sped behind one of the compelled girls and bared her neck, ready to feed from her. "I said pick one, Elena." Not wanting the girl to die she rushed out, "The red one." Rebekah backed off as she said, "There. That wasn't so hard, was it?" Turning to the girls she said, "Go away. Remember nothing."

Rebekah grabbed a glass of champagne and then walked so she was stood right in Elena's face. "You do not threaten me. You will learn what I allow you to learn. Is that clear?" Elena gave a shaky nod in response and Rebekah moved to walk behind her.

The scene changed to Stefan's room in the Salvatore house.

Walking in with a smile Rebekah said, "How fun is this?" Elena looked upset as she glanced around the room. "We shouldn't be here." Rebekah rolled her eyes as she subtly glanced around the room for any of her things that might be on display. Luckily, there wasn't anything. She started going through one of Stefan's drawers as she spoke. "Of course we should. Come on, like you've never wanted to snoop?" She turned slightly to face Elena as she held something in her hands. "Boxer briefs. Now that's a change from the '20s."

"Are you gonna root through his stuff all night, or are you gonna tell me your story?" Rebekah sighed as she walked to the middle of the room. "You really are no fun. What do you want to know?" Elena finally stepped into the room as she said, "Well, Elijah said your father was a landowner in Europe. How did you guys end up here?" Rebekah was still going through Stefan's things as she answered. "My parents had just started a family when a plague struck their homeland. They lost a child to it. they wanted to escape and protect their future family from the same fate." "So how did you end up here? This part of the world hadn't even been discovered yet." "Not by anyone in your history books. But my mother knew the witch Ayana, who heard from the spirits of a mystical land where everyone was healthy. Blessed by the gifts of speed and strength. That led my family here, where we lived amongst those people."

Elena raised an eyebrow as she asked, "The werewolves?" "To us, they were just our neighbors. My family lived in peace with them for over 20 years, during which time my family had more children. Including me." "You make it sound so normal." "It was."

At the same time Rebekah spoke on screen every Original said, "Because it was."

Another flashback came as Rebekah kept talking.

"Once a month, our family retreated to the caves beneath our village. The wolves would howl through the night, and by morning we'd return home."

A scream full of desperation, panic, and sorrow rang through the air as Rebekah was looking out a window.

"Mother!"

Immediately Klaus had his head buried in Åse's neck so he didn't have to watch what was going to be shown. All of the other Originals winced as they also knew what was coming.

Alarmed Rebekah quickly said, "Is that Niklaus? Something is wrong." Glancing back out the window Rebekah sees Klaus carrying their baby brother Henrik. As she yelled his name, "Henrik!" she ran outside. Klaus yelled out again for their mother as he fell to the ground with his brother still lying limp in his arms.

"One full moon, Klaus and my youngest brother, Henrik, snuck out to watch the men turn into beasts. That was forbidden. Henrik paid the price."

Everyone in the original family was quickly gathered around the youngest of them all. Their mother brushed a hand through his hair saying, "Henrik. No. No. What happened?" With tears falling down his face Klaus spoke in a distraught voice with his eyes not leaving his limp brother's form. "The wolves. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Åse had heard the screaming from her house and had come running. When she saw Klaus on the ground and what he was crying about she had no hesitation in coming up behind him and setting a hand on his shoulder. At the abrupt contact Klaus flinched slightly, but when he realized who it was, he looked up with tear-filled eyes and whispered, "It's all my fault." Åse couldn't bear to see him like this, so she did what she could at the moment. She removed her hand from his shoulder and rested it on the back of his head and let him rest his face on her leg as he continued to cry.

The mother sat at Henrik's head looked to the witch Ayana who had followed Rebekah when she heard the screaming. "We must save him. Please. There must be a way." Ayana removed her hand from the young boy's face as she said, "The spirits will not give us a way, Esther. Your boy is gone."

Elijah had placed a hand on his mother's shoulder as he held a distraught look on his face. Rebekah joined Klaus on the ground as she leaned into him and started to cry as well. Åse wasn't actively crying, but she did hold a hand to her stomach as she willed the tears she felt in her eyes not to fall.

"And that was the beginning of the end of peace with our neighbors."

The scene changed back to the present as Rebekah kept speaking.

"And one of the last moments my family had together as humans."

The Originals all had to take a moment to collect themselves after watching the youngest Mikaelson die once again.

Åse felt for them all, she really did, but she couldn't help but remember what she lost after Henrik's death.

The scene changed again to Damon and Stefan in a bar.

The brothers sat at the bar as Damon asked, "What are we drinking?" Knowing he had to play up the whole "No humanity Ripper" act Stefan said, "Hopefully something a little bit warmer. A little blonder." He had waved down the bartender and Damon smirked in response. Turning to the young woman he said, "Hello, Callie. I would love a shot of your best whiskey. And my brother here would love a shot of you." He had compelled the girl with his last sentence, so when he grabbed her forearm and held it out to Stefan the girl didn't resist.

Stefan smirked slightly as he asked, "What's the catch, Damon?" "No catch, brother. Drink up. It's on me." There was no hesitation as Stefan moved forward and sunk his teeth into the blonde bartender's arm and fed.

Back at the Salvatore house Rebekah was now laying on Stefan's bed flipping through a book.

Elena sat in a chair at a desk as she asked, "Did you get your fill of snooping yet? Can we get on with the story?"

Åse reached out to grab Kol's arm as she saw him start to rise out of his seat from the corner of her eye. With a minute shake of her head, he begrudgingly sat back down. In a grumbled whisper that no one but she and Klaus would hear he said, "It's like she doesn't understand that it's not just a story. It was our lives. It still is! It's like she didn't just hear how our little brother was just murdered." Kol didn't see Klaus flinch at the word "murdered", but Åse felt it. She moved to sit sideways in his lap and run a hand through his hair as she responded to Kol. "I know that. No one wants to kill her more than I do. But that can't happen just yet." When she saw he was going to protest she held a hand up to stop him. "No. Don't say anything, Kol. I don't care how much you don't care about creating the hybrids, but Nik does, which means that I do. So, I don't want to hear it." Kol just sighed as he nodded his head.

Klaus had his face pressed into Åse's neck as he said a very quiet "thank you." Åse let a small smile grace her face as she pressed a kiss to his temple. "Of course, my love. Of course."

Rebekah got up from the bed and walked over to the desk Elena was at. She set her book down and picked up a picture of when Elena and Stefan were dating. Knowing she had to play her part she said, "Honestly I don't get you two as a couple." With her arms crossed Elena said, "Why would you? You don't know anything about who he really is."

Åse, Rebekah, Stefan, and even Klaus, all snorted in amusement at the doppelgänger's bold statement.

Rebekah tossed the picture back on the table as she leaned forward to get closer to Elena's face. "I know exactly who he is. He's a vampire. We're a predatory species. We don't have time to care about humans and their silly little lives." Elena leaned up slightly as she said, "Is that why you did that runway show earlier? Because you don't care about the Homecoming dance?"

Finally getting fed up, Elijah spoke up to defend his sister. "That's not what Rebekah was doing. She was trying to experience something she hadn't had the chance to because she was stuck, daggered in a box for 90 years." The blonde Original gave her brother a smile at him defending her. Elijah gave his sister a gentle nod in return.

When Rebekah didn't say anything, Elena said, "You know what? I'm just gonna go." Just as she got out of her chair Rebekah said, "You haven't even heard half the story." "And you're not going to tell it. Your just bored and looking for someone to push around. Find someone else to play with. Maybe you can compel yourself a friend."

Rebekah sneered at the doppelgänger from her spot next to Stefan and said, "Even compelling a friend would be better than staying in your presence."

As Elena was walking away Rebekah sighed and said, "The necklace wasn't Stefan's to give. It belonged to the Original Witch." Turning around Elena asked, "The one who put the hybrid curse on Klaus?" "Not just the hybrid curse. She's the one who turned us into vampires."

The scene changed to another flashback.

Mikael could be seen speaking to the witch Ayana. "Please, Ayana, I implore you. You must call upon the spirits before the next full moon." The woman immediately denies him. "I will not. It is a crime against nature." Esther spoke up from her spot across the room. "Ayana we have already lost too much. we cannot lose anymore. The spirits can help us find a way to protect our children." She let out a harsh sigh before she added, "And as much as I hate to say it, we can protect Niklaus' wife as well."

Back to Rebekah and Elena.

Rebekah walked out of the room and down the stairs as Elena followed.

"So, vampirism was a form of protection?" "What else would it be?" As if it was obvious Elena said, "A curse." "My parents only saw a way of keeping their children alive." "Yeah, but why stay? If they were so afraid of the werewolves, why not leave?"

At once every Original said the same thing as on-screen Rebekah, "Pride."

Now at the bottom of the stairs Rebekah turned to face the doppelgänger. "My father didn't want to run anymore. He wanted to fight, and be superior to the wolves. Where they could bite, we had to bite harder. Where they had speed, we had to be faster. Agility. Strength. Senses."

Mikael's voice saying, "Everything could be heightened." was the first thing heard in another flashback.

The man moved to stand at his wife's side as he kept talking. "And our family could live forever." Still trying to sway him Ayana said, "At what cost? This magic you speak of breeds consequence. This is the makings of a plague, Esther. The spirits will turn on you."

Still not willing to give up Esther asked, "Please, Ayana." The woman still denied them. "I will have no part in it."

Once Ayana had left Mikeal rested a hand on Esther's shoulder and said, "If she will not protect our family, then it is in your hands alone, my love."

Back with Rebekah and Elena.

Rebekah was walking as Elena asked, "In her hands? How could she do anything?" "Because my mother was also a witch." "What?" "The witch of the Original family."

As Rebekah spoke on screen Bonnie lowly gasped and whispered, "The Original Witch."

As Rebekah was pouring a glass of wine Elena curiously asked, "How did you turn?" "She called upon the sun for life and the ancient white oak tree, one of natures eternal objects, for immortality. That night, my father offered us wine laced with blood. And then he drove his sword through our hearts." In a quiet whisper Elena was shocked as she asked, "He killed you?" Rebekah turned to face Elena as she said, "And he wasn't delicate about it, either."

The scene changes to another flashback.

What everyone sees is Klaus, Rebekah, and Åse all laying on the floor with large bloodstains on their clothes where their hearts were just stabbed through.

Klaus wakes up first and sees his wife and sister laying lifeless on the ground. He first shakes Åse by the shoulders as he starts to panic. When she grumbles and starts to move, he releases a breath. Moving to Rebekah he sees that she was starting to wake up on her own.

Rebekah looks down at her night dress and says, "Blood. What happened?"

As Klaus tries to console his sister, he doesn't see Åse now fully awake. The dark-haired woman had one hand where the bloodstain from her heart was and another resting on her stomach. As she sat there, not moving a muscle, tears sprouted from her eyes. She raised a hand to cover her mouth as a sob threatened to rack through her body.

The implications of what happened to Åse were pretty clear to everyone in the room. The Original family all hesitantly turned in their seats to see if she would say anything. All they saw though was Åse and Klaus curled into each other and lightly shaking.

Mikael suddenly came into the room the three were in dragging a young girl with him.

Looking at him warily, Klaus asked, "What are you doing?" "We must finish what we started." He made the girl kneel in front of the three and said, "You must drink if you want to live." He then took out a large knife and slit the young girl's wrist right in their faces so that they could see and smell the blood.

"We had to drink more blood to complete the ritual."

Klaus looked queasy at the incision and the blood flowing out of it. As Mikael said, "Drink." and went to bring the girls arm up to Rebekah's face, Klaus tried to wrestle him away from the girls in the room. Mikael ended up shoving Klaus to the floor before he moved back to grab the young girl's arm and forced Rebekah to feed on the girl's blood. He then tried to do the same thing with Åse.

At first Åse didn't try to fight. She was still in too much shock. But when she saw her face was getting pushed towards the girl's bloody arm she started kicking and screaming. Klaus was instantly moving forward to try and help his wife, but Mikael threw a knife at him that imbedded itself in his shoulder.

With Klaus in pain on the floor Mikael on had to focus on Åse. He yanked her up by the hair and dragged her back to the young girl who was still bleeding. With every bit of strength she had left, Åse tried to fight. She would have used her powers, but she didn't have a good enough grasp on them yet. They were too chaotic, and she didn't want to risk killing Klaus and Rebekah.

As she was dragged closer and closer to the bleeding girl, she kept fighting. Until the last moment Åse was biting, scratching, kicking, and screaming. She tried anything to get Mikael to stop, but nothing worked.

Eventually, Mikael was able to push Åse's head down so that she drank the girl's blood.

"It was euphoric. The feeling of power was indescribable."

Åse did not watch the screen for those few minutes. She did not want to see the way she turned. It was already traumatic enough living through it.

Back to Elena and Rebekah.

"But the witch Ayana was right about the consequences. The spirits turned on us and nature fought back." Rebekah sighed as she turned her gaze to the floor as she kept talking. "For every strength, there would be a weakness. The sun became our enemy. It kept us indoors for weeks. And though my mother found a solution-- there were other problems. Neighbors who had opened their homes to us could now keep us out. the flowers at the base of the white oak burned and prevented compulsion. And the spell decreed that the tree that gave us life could also take it away." Rebekah waited a second before she said, "So we burned it to the ground."

Rebekah stepped away as she moved to stand near the window once again. "But the darkest was something my parents never anticipated. The hunger. Blood had made us reborn and it was blood that we craved above all else. We could not control it." The blonde turned around as she said, "And with that, the predatory species was born."

The scene changed to Stefan and Damon at the bar.

The brother's had started a full-on party, but at the moment were leaned up against the bar top getting another set of shots. Stefan looked over at Damon and said, "All right, time to fess up. What's the point of the jailbreak?" Sarcastically, Damon says, "Thought you could use a hug, Stefan." "Come on, Damon. You know Elena's gonna hate you for letting me out. And we both know you care about what she thinks." "Maybe I wanted to remind you what freedom was like before Klaus took it from you."

Stefan turned his head away as he took his shot and rolled his eyes. Some brother Damon was if he couldn't tell that he wasn't truly compelled to turn off his humanity.

Looking back at Damon he said, "As long as Klaus is alive, I do what he says." Exasperatedly, Damon says, "That's exactly my point, Stefan. You've given up. Now you can sit around and be his little bitch, or you can get mad enough and you can do something about it." "Damon, he can't be killed."

"I'm glad the older Salvatore is dead." Åse's low whisper was only heard by Klaus and Kol. They both nodded in agreement. Even just looking at him on screen was annoying them.

Walking up beside them, none other than Mikael shows up and says, "Maybe I can help with that." Looking between the two of them he said, "The Salvatore boys, I presume."

Stefan hides his shock and resists the urge to pull out his phone and immediately tell Klaus and Åse who was standing in front of him. Instead, he stood from his barstool and said, "Mikael" as if just figuring out who the man was.

Still at the Salvatore house, Elena asked Rebekah another question. "Why did Mikael start hunting Klaus?"

Rebekah heaved a sigh before saying, "When Nik made his first human kill, it triggered his werewolf gene. With that, he became my father's greatest shame." "Yeah, Elijah told me this part of the story. Your mother had had an affair with one of the werewolf villagers. Klaus wasn't his son."

Not wanting to bash her mother Rebekah said, "She tried to make it right."

Åse was immediately angry at Rebekah's statement. "No, she did not. That wretched woman bound half of what makes Nik his true self so he couldn't access it. That is not making something right. That is called making it worse."

Rebekah set her glass down as she continued. "She put the hybrid curse on Nik to suppress his werewolf side and then she turned her back on him."

Wiping her hands on a cloth Rebekah said, "But Mikael's greatest weakness as a human was his pride. As a vampire, that was magnified. He went on a rampage and killed half the village. Then he came home and killed her."

Klaus and Åse shared an extremely brief glance that no one saw. They had a feeling the truth about what happened to Esther was about to be revealed.

In shock Elena asked, "Mikael killed your mother?" Turning around to face her Rebekah said, "He said she broke his heart, so he would break hers. He tore it from her chest as Nik watched.

Another flashback came on as Rebekah kept talking.

"Afterwards, my father took off in a rage and the rest of my family scattered. Nik stayed so he could help me bury her. He knew I had to say goodbye to my mother."

Klaus had just finished covering Esther's grave as a tearful Rebekah spoke to him. "I know you think she hated you, Niklaus, but she did not. She was just afraid."

Klaus said nothing to his sister's sentiment. All he did was turn his head as Åse walked up to his right side and held his hand.

Rebekah spoke up again to break the silence. "I'm sorry she turned her back on you. I will never do that."

Åse and Klaus nearly scoffed at that. Rebekah certainly didn't live up to her promise.

Elijah suddenly came towards the three of them saying, "Nor will I."

Again, Åse and Klaus had the same reaction.

All standing around Esther's grave Rebekah looked at everyone as she said, "We stick together as one. Always and forever." She held her hands out in a silent question to seal the promise.

All four Originals, Klaus, Åse, Rebekah, and Elijah, made a promise of "Always and Forever" that day.

Only two of them will have truly lived up to it 1000 years later.

Rebekah was standing there, done with her story. She no longer wanted to play along with whatever Elena was getting at.

Walking to the door she said, "Leave, Elena." When the doppelgänger made no move to leave, she said it louder. "I said leave!" She took a few steps forward as the start of her oncoming threat. Getting in her face Rebekah said, "Do what you want. Wake Mikael at your own peril. But make no mistake. If you come after my brother, I will rip you apart. And I get my temper from my father. Now leave."

The scene switched to Mikael, Stefan and Damon.

Mikael was questioning Stefan on Klaus' whereabouts. "Has Klaus entered the country?" "I can't tell you." "Has he spoken to you since he left?" "I can't tell you." "All right. Can you tell me the last time you spoke to Niklaus?" Stefan sighs and crosses his arms as he says, "I am compelled to do what he says and he says to keep my damn mouth shut."

From his spot on a barstool Damon pipes up. " I really hope this game of 20 Questions isn't your secret weapon." Mikael has no change in facial expression as he turns to speak to Damon. "You see, Damon..." Mikael laid a hand on the vampire's shoulder as he kept talking. "I've been a vampire hunter longer than you've been alive. It's why I found you here. It's why I'm gonna find Niklaus." "Well, Klaus had been running for about a thousand years. So, if you think you're gonna get a workaround here--" Damon was abruptly stopped when Mikael plunged a hand into his chest.

Stefan moved forward just slightly which Mikael saw. "Careful, Stefan. One move, and his heart's gone." As he squeezed Damon's heart just slightly, he asked, "Now, where is Klaus?" Stefan was trying to think as quick as possible for a lie that would work into the story he has built for himself within Mystic Falls.

"One twist and he's dead. Unless you don't care of course." "His emotions have been shut off. He can't care." "Really? His link to Klaus is so strong that he would let his own brother die?" With a few more seconds of hesitation Mikael said, "No ideas? Think, Stefan." Stefan glanced between the two other men in front of him without saying a word. "I guess you're right. He's a dead end. And so are you Damon." Mikael was just about to pull Damon's heart out when Stefan said, "Wait. I can bring him back. I can lure Klaus back to Mystic Falls." "Well, there's our loophole." And then Mikael roughly let's Damon's heart go.

"Get Klaus back to Mystic Falls and I will gladly drive a stake through his heart. Fail... I'll drive it through yours."

Lowly, so that only Klaus could hear, Åse said, "That will not happen. You are not going to be killed and taken from me by that pathetic excuse of a man."

Elena could be seen storming back into the Salvatore house with a handful of pictures as Rebekah was pouring herself another drink.

"I thought I told you to leave. Twice." Not wasting any time Elena asked, "How do you know that Mikael killed your mother?" As if it was obvious Rebekah said, "Nik was there. He told me."

Åse and Nik both tensed again as they realized this is what they had been waiting for.

Elena sighed as she stepped further into the room. "He lied to you." "And how do you know that?" "The cave where you carved your family's names is covered in symbols. The story of your family. How your parents arrived." Elena started laying out the pictures that correlated to her words. "How they made peace. The spell that turned them into vampires. And this. This is the symbol for hybrid. It's the combination of the werewolf and the vampire symbol. And this is the one for your mother." Rebekah recognized the symbol and said, "Her necklace."

Elena laid one last picture down as she said, "And this is the story of her death." As she pointed to the picture she said, "The hybrid killed the Original Witch. Not Mikael. Klaus."

Rebekah was quick to deny Elena's claim. "No. No, he wouldn't." "She put the curse on him. Made it so he would be the only one of his kind, and then she rejected him. With the werewolf gene comes aggression and violence. When he turned all of that was heightened. He killed her, Rebekah. And then he made up this entire lie about your father so that he wouldn't lose you."

Even though it looked like Rebekah might believe the doppelgänger's story, she started yelling. "These mean nothing. They're just stupid drawings done by stupid people who had no idea who my family was." The blonde had grabbed up all of the pictures of the drawings and thrown them into the fireplace so that they burned.

"Then why are you so upset?" "Why are you doing this to me? I've done nothing to you." "Klaus killed your mother. He has a hold on you, on me, on everyone. He has for a thousand years. We have to make it stop." Rebekah finally reached her breaking point as she pushed Elena up against a wall and started to choke her.

"Shut up! Just shut up! Don't talk anymore! Nothing!"

The true realization set in after a few seconds, and Rebekah let Elena go.

She backed away and ended up falling into a seat on the couch as she started to cry.

And the screen went black.