The Vampire Diaries
Season 3: Episode 10
The New Deal
The first thing to be seen is Bonnie Bennet walking through a clearing in the woods towards an old, abandoned house.
The Mystic Falls inhabitants all recognized this to be the old witch house where Bonnie gained the power of a hundred witches.
Åse saw the recognition in the groups eyes and narrowed her own in suspicion. She hated not understanding things. So, she called out to Stefan and asked, "What is this place, Stefan?" Not hesitating in the slightest, Stefan turned around and said, "It's an abandoned house that was built over where the murder of a hundred witches happened."
The female hybrid Original nodded her thanks towards the younger vampire. She said nothing, but her mind had instantly started thinking of possible reasons that the young witch would be going to this place.
Bonnie slowly entered the house and closed the front door. As she walked through, whispering voices started bombarding her ears. They seemed to be leading her somewhere as she opened a door and headed down a set of stairs.
Now in what looked like the basement of the house, the young Bennet witch was met with three coffins sitting in a row and a fourth coffin sitting on a raised platform behind them.
Åse and Klaus immediately tensed at the sight of the coffins not in their possession. They shared a glance that promised eternal pain and torment to whoever stole their family and that bitch.
Bonnie's gaze zeroed in on the coffin that sat away from the others. The whispering around her intensified as she kept walking closer. Opening the coffin, the young woman was met with a presumably asleep Klaus Mikaelson.
Åse's eyes widened at the sight on screen. Her left hand quickly shot out to grab hold of Klaus so that she was reassured of his presence. Klaus himself was extremely confused. He gripped his wife's hand just as tight to restrain any anger that was fighting to emerge.
The young witch's eyes looked down to Klaus's clasped hands. Wrapped around his fingers was the same necklace that Elena had been given by Stefan, the same necklace that Rebekah claimed was hers. She went to slowly reach out for the necklace but was stopped by a creaking floorboard.
Whipping her head around, Bonnie suddenly shot up in her bed.
Everything she had seen was a dream.
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The next scene to come on showed Damon playing darts while Elena stood behind him on the phone.
Elena can be heard saying, "Jeremy, the minute you get this, call me." before hanging up. Damon shoots a perfect dart and turns around as Elena says, "Unbelievable." The vampire looks the doppelgänger up and down before saying, "You're feisty when you're mad." "It's not that I'm mad, I'm just, I'm worried." "Why? He lost his job at the Grill? I think he'll survive, Elena." Actually managing a concerned look for her brother, Elena replies, "He's spiraling. Ever since Bonnie broke up with him he's moody, and he's not really talking to anyone."
Caroline had a deadpan expression as she said, "That's literally the normal thing to do when someone breaks up with you." Almost everyone else in the room either nodded their heads or voiced their agreement. Even Jeremy himself.
Not really seeing her point, Damon just says, "Typical teenager." "Who's seeing ghosts and who's lost everyone that he cares about." Damon turns around to throw another dart saying, "Not everyone. He still has you."
There are a few seconds of silence as Damon walks up to the dartboard to collect the darts he's thrown. As he turns around Elena gently asks, "You okay?" Shrugging off her concern the vampire replies, "What makes you think I'm not okay?" "Well, you're day drunk. It's not exactly your most attractive look."
Kol leaned over towards Åse as he lowly said, "Which implies that she thinks he has a 'most attractive look.'" Åse quietly laughed at her brother-in-law. However, after a couple seconds they both looked one another in the eye with faces twisted in disgust.
Damon walked back from the dartboard looking Elena up and down once again. "Oh. What is my most attractive look?" He stepped so close that the doppelgänger had to look up as she said, "Ah-ah. I'm not saying you have any attractive look. I'm just saying that this is my least favorite one." She had finished her statement with a tiny smile. Damon tilted his head as he replied, "Noted. I'll see if I can make any improvements."
The staring contest that the doppelgänger and vampire had just engaged in was quickly interrupted by an accented voice from behind them saying, "Don't mind us."
Elena instantly turned around as Damon's gaze snapped up. In a scared whisper she said, "Klaus." She had the sense to move her sightline slightly to the right and was even quieter when she saw the emotionless eyes of, "Åse." The two Originals smirked at the fear that crossed the features of Damon and stayed planted on Elena's face.
No one in the Grill would have suspected that the two most powerful creatures in the world were standing right there based on what they looked like. Klaus was wearing a simple gray t-shirt, a black leather jacket, dark blue jeans, and a pair of boots. Åse was wearing a long-sleeved sweater dress and thigh-high stilettos. It was an outfit much less extravagant than she would usually wear, but that morning she felt weird about wearing tight clothing. She almost didn't put heels on because, until she downed a blood bag, her feet were hurting too.
Åse scrunched her eyebrows in confusion. She is a vampire, an Original at that. She should not feel pain unless it is obviously inflicted on her.
Unknown to Åse who sat in her seat confused, Klaus had paled multiple shades. He remembered only one other instance in which Åse complained of those exact issues. In his mind he fervently denied the possibility.
Their chance was stolen from them one thousand years ago. It would be incredibly naive to think they would ever get that chance again.
Damon moved so he was halfway standing in front of Elena as he said, "Gonna do this in the Grill? In front of everyone? A little beneath you, don't you think?" Klaus shrugged as he pushed off the banister he was leaning on. "I don't know what you're talking about. I just came down to my local pub to grab a drink with my wife and a mate." Åse gave a sarcastic smile along with a finger wave before turning around to the hybrid that came with the two Originals. "Get a round in would you Tony?"
Tony nodded and left. As Åse and Klaus focused back on the two in front of them, they saw Elena's face contorted in confused fear. The Originals smirked at this. They had tasked the hybrid to keeping an eye on the doppelgänger's whereabouts. Apparently, he had made his presence known.
Taking their attention, Damon said, "Surprised you stuck around town long enough for happy hour." Klaus was the one to reply. "My sister seems to be missing. Need to sort that out." "Cute, blonde bombshell, psycho? Shouldn't be too hard to find." Klaus started walking forward as he said, "Truth is... I've grown to like your little town. Thinking I might fancy a home here."
Åse took the pause in her husband's words as an opportunity to walk forward and steal the darts Damon was holding right from his hand. Klaus smirked at this while he moved to lean against one of the high tables that surrounded the group of supernatural's. Watching his wife he said, "I imagine you're wondering, how does this affect you? The answer is, not in the slightest. As long as I get what I want, and everyone behaves themselves you can go on living your little lives however you choose."
The male Original turned his head to spare Elena a glance as he adopted a slightly sarcastic expression and said, "You have my word."
Kol and Åse both let out unabashed chuckles at Klaus's statement. Klaus could only fondly shake his head at them as Elijah gave a halfhearted scoff from his seat a few rows in front of them.
All Elena could ask in return was, "What more could you possibly want?" Klaus left his relaxed position to point between the doppelgänger and vampire while saying, "Well, for starters... you could tell me where you found the audacity to steal from me."
Klaus was now stood only a foot away from Elena. This caused Damon to reflexively move in between the two. Staring at Klaus he replied, "We have no idea what you're talking about." Holding his hands up in fake surrender Klaus backed away towards the table he was previously leaning on. "Well, you see, that is a shame."
Åse, who had been watching the entire interaction, now turned to face the dart board. In the blink of an eye, she had thrown a single dart right into the center of the board. It made a slight cracking noise from the force of her throw and caused the doppelgänger behind her to flinch. The female Original swiftly turned around and made quick work of the space between herself, the doppelgänger, and Damon.
Towering over Elena, Åse looked between the doppelgänger and vampire as she sternly said, "We don't know how you did it, but you stole from us. We intend to take back what's ours." Stupidly trying to be brave, Elena said, "That sounds like a Klaus-Åse-Stefan problem." Åse let a wicked smirk pass over her lips as she slowly backed up until she was resting against Klaus's right side. Staring a hole through the doppelgänger's head she teasingly said, "So quick to assume the worst when someone isn't on your side." Both Originals see confusion pass over Elena's face while Damon minutely tenses.
Klaus glances between the two in front of them with a small chuckle before his face quickly falls into an emotionless expression. Not letting them fully register what his wife told them, he said, "Well, this is us broadening the scope, sweetheart."
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The screen went black for a few seconds before a new scene came on.
Damon could be seen in the living room of the boarding house pouring himself a drink. As he was setting the glass decanter down, he felt another presence in the room. The vampire turned around and low and behold there was Klaus and Åse. Klaus spoke for the two of them as he said, "I think it's about time we had a drink, don't you?" With a sarcastic smile Damon replied, "I'd say we were overdue."
The two Originals walked down the small set of stairs into the room as Klaus said, "Well, you've been so busy, what with all your plotting and scheming." "You know me. Never miss a chance to plan an epic failure." Åse gave a sarcastic smile and said, "Don't be so hard on yourself. Who could've guessed your own brother would betray you?" Damon gave the same expression as he looked at Klaus and said, "Well I did have a front row seat when your sister lied to you."
Rebekah looked down at her clasped hands at the mention of her part in wanting to kill her brother.
Åse rolled her eyes at the younger vampire while Klaus said, "Yeah, well, she's fickle, that one." At Damon's slight head tilt of agreement Åse sighed before moving to sit on one of the couches in the room.
Klaus watched his wife with a minute amount of worry so Damon wouldn't notice. Quickly blanking his face of emotions, he turned back to the older Salvatore and asked, "And you say you have no idea of her whereabouts?" "That's the thing with younger siblings. You just never know what they're gonna do." Damon fake chuckled before downing the small amount of alcohol he had poured before the two Originals showed up.
Klaus spared a glance at the back of Åse's head knowing that she had her own opinion of what Damon had just said. His wife sat with her back to him, and her eyes closed, but when she felt his gaze, her head minutely shook back and forth. Klaus interpreted this as her disbelief that Damon was blaming his own brother for what he did.
Stefan looked at the screen with anger and disbelief. He thought his brotherly relationship with Damon was better than this. Yes, they didn't get along all the time, but putting the blame on him in a situation that involves Klaus and Åse? Unbelievable.
As Damon turned away to pour drinks for the three of them, Klaus's face, that he had forced into a smirk, instantly dropped.
It took a few moments, but Damon eventually poured three glasses of bourbon. Åse held a hand over the back of the couch when she heard him set the decanter down and was met with her glass only a few seconds later. As Klaus took his glass from Damon's hand he said, "Cheers, mate." Damon raised his glass in a toast and replied, "Down the hatch."
Damon had downed his entire glass while Klaus only drank a swig. Åse on the other hand, stared at the drink in her hand in slight discontent. She could smell the vervain in it before the bottle was even opened. The female Original was pulled out of her thoughts when she heard Klaus say, "You know we've actually got a lot in common, you and I." Åse didn't hold back her scoff as she interjected and said, "That is one of the only things you've said in a thousand years that has made me want to physically throw up." She then proceeded to knock back the entirety of the drink Damon had poured her.
Grumbling, Åse said, "I agree with future Me's statement." Klaus just smiled as he leaned over and kissed his wife's temple. "I'm sure I said it in the future, but apologies, my love."
While Klaus lowly chuckled at his wife's words and said a quick, "Sorry, my love." Damon had a pinched and offended look on his face. As Klaus turned to look at him, he wiped that away though and said, "Really?" As he kept talking Klaus moved so he was standing in front of the couch Åse was perched on. Damon poured himself another drink as he said, "Well, yeah, maybe we can bond over our mutual loathing of my brother."
This time Åse was the one to quietly laugh and shake her head. The older Salvatore was incredibly stupid to think that they actually believed his cover story. Damon kept up with the questions. "Why are you so mad at him? He stole something?" Feeding into the story, Klaus said, "Our family, the Originals. I had them daggered, boxed up, awaiting the day when I saw fit to wake them and he went in and pinched the bloody lot."
Damon gave a lighthearted scoff as he moved around the couch as well. "Of course he did. Such a buzz-kill my baby bro." Åse watched the younger vampire like a hawk as he walked up behind Klaus and kept talking. "Well, I'd love to find him. Trouble is, I sure as hell don't work for you."
Åse glared at the screen as she angrily said, "I have a way to make someone listen. Every time. Without fail." Kol looked at his sister-in-law excited. He loved when Åse went torture crazy. That and her powers are why she is his favorite.
Klaus turned around with an amused smirk. "You know, your drink stinks of vervain. So we can't compel you. There'd be no point in killing you. Because you're actually the one with the most hope of getting me what I need. And yet it would seem a demonstration is in order."
Åse now stood from the couch before speeding in front of Damon. The younger vampire stumbled at the sudden action. Åse didn't care though because she said, "Perhaps we weren't clear enough when we told you tell us where our family has gone." In a foolish attempt at bravery, Damon gave a sarcastic shrug as a response. This only pissed Åse off more. Taking a step closer and lowering her voice she said, "Very well then. It seems you people respond best to displays of violence." As she finished, her eyes flashed a glowing blood red before her right hand suddenly shot out and punched a hole right into Damon's chest.
Klaus watched calmly as his wife literally held the older Salvatores life in her hand.
Åse gave Damon's heart a few light squeezes that caused him to suck in a breath or groan in discomfort. That wasn't enough for the female Original. Tilting her head to the right, she tightly clenched her hand around Damon's heart. She even made sure that her sharp, and perfectly manicured nails dug into the now slowly beating organ.
Damon had let out a yell of pain as Åse basically tore his heart apart with her nails.
Kol was practically buzzing with excitement as he watched the screen. With a large smile on his face his looked over at Åse as he grabbed her right arm and started shaking her. "I love you, Åse. Have I told you that? Because it's true. You are amazing." The older Original just smiled at Kol as she patted his hands. As he calmed down, she said a quiet, "Thank you, Kol. I love you too."
Not removing her gaze from the vampire in her grasp, Åse spoke towards Klaus. "Make the call, Nik." With a nod, Klaus looked to Damon as he said, "Besides my wife's hand in your chest, take this as an example of our reach." Pulling out his phone, Klaus made a call and said, "There he is. That thing I told you to do. Why don't you go ahead and get on with it."
As he hung up the phone Åse ripped her hand out of Damon's chest. The vampire fell to the floor in a writhing pile of flesh, but neither Klaus nor Åse cared. The Originals simple smirked. Obviously enjoying the man's pain.
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The scene changed to show the outside of a large mansion.
Åse knew that they were watching the future, but she still understood exactly what this house being shown meant. She gently took Klaus's hand, because she just knew he was the one to pick the mansion, as she whispered, "It's a nice place, Nik. It'll need some refurbishing..." At the same time both hybrids looked to each other and said, "Obviously." Åse chuckled as Klaus gave a small smile. Still in a whisper she continued, "If they learn to understand why we did what we did they will love it. If not, then they're fools."
The inside of the house is then shown. There are compelled workers roaming around obviously reconstructing the house.
Klaus and Åse are then seen walking into a room followed by a female hybrid. With Åse on his right arm, Klaus speaks to the hybrid. "Compel the men to open up this wall. We need sun. I want a fortress, not a dungeon." His attention diverts across the room as Tyler is seen walking in.
"There he is, the man of the hour." Tyler takes a few more steps as he asks, "So everything went okay?" Åse smirks as she says, "Tony ran down Alaric instead of Jeremy but apples and oranges. Message lands the same." Tyler looks between the married couple before saying, "You said you were sending them a warning." Klaus is the one to reply this time. "And we did, an effective one. Elena's family suffers, she's motivated to get us what we want."
Jeremy shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Åse noticed the boy's movements and couldn't help but ask, "Something wrong, Baby Gilbert?" With the attention of the room fully on him, Jeremy gulped out of nervousness, but as he looked over at Åse to answer, he couldn't help but feel comforted by her gaze. It was weird, she was supposed to be this horrible, murdering monster. Right now though she was the spitting image of a mother wanting to understand their child.
Clearing his throat to finally speak, the youngest Gilbert said, "I mean, I understand why you two did what you did. I just wish my life wasn't being threatened. I have my ring, yeah, but I'd rather not die at all." Åse silently nodded as she took in what she was told. After a few seconds she replied, "That's understandable. However, I think the only way you will be able to achieve such a task would be to leave your sister. I mean, she is the reason you've gotten into such life-threatening situations, is she not?"
Jeremy had a conflicted look on his face for several seconds. Åse was right though. The only reason his life had been on the line was because of something to do with Elena. Also, the fact that he had been stupid enough to try and defend her actions while being a human with zero training in a world of supernatural creatures.
The younger boy looked up from his lap and across the room at Åse. Slightly hesitant he asked, "Can I come sit over there?" The woman gave him a small smile as she nodded and said, "Of course." She had listened to his thoughts and knew he would be better off without the doppelgänger in the long run.
Awkwardly, Jeremy stood up and walked over to the opposite side of the room. Åse leaned forward in her seat and patted the chair in the row directly in front of her. Seeing the gesture, Jeremy took chose to sit right there.
Elena's eyes had gone comically wide at what Åse had done. She tried to stand up and scream at the Original but was somehow held down in her seat and kept silent. The doppelgänger reached up to claw at her throat as her eyes panned around the room wildly. For just a few moments it seemed like everyone around her had stopped moving.
Except Åse.
From her spot next to a motionless Klaus, Åse stared over at Elena with glowing red eyes and a devilish smirk. In a low, teasing tone she said, "First your 'boyfriend' and then your 'brother.' I wonder who will be next to leave to you?"
And then, as if nothing had happened, Åse turned to face the screen as everyone around them started moving once again.
Tyler shook his head slightly as he said, "I didn't think that we'd actually have to kill anyone." Both Originals sighed as they broke eye contact with the hybrid in front of them for a second. Åse licked her lips before sucking her teeth. Looking at Tyler she said, "Tyler, what you're feeling, is the remnant of a guilty conscience. We need you to get over it, okay? At the end of the day, human life is just a means to an end. Our means to our end. You'd do well to remember that."
Klaus had nodded along with his wife's words as he agreed completely. Before Tyler could come up with a response the two Originals turned and left.
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After a few seconds of black the screen lit back up as a knocking sound was heard.
Elena is then seen opening the front door of the boarding house. Only to reveal Klaus and Åse standing there. "Thank you for coming."
Klaus has his right hand intertwined with Åse's as he walks in without a word and pushes past the doppelgänger. Once the Originals were standing in the entryway Klaus said, "I trust you have news of our family's whereabouts." Elena takes a breath before responding, "I couldn't find them." The Originals turned around with matching looks of anger on their faces. Closing the front door Elena says, "But I have something else."
There is an abrupt change in scenery as Elena opens the door of the cell in the basement of the boarding house.
Inside the cell, laying on the stone floor, is a daggered Rebekah.
When Åse sees Rebekah's condition she feels her eyes start to glow as her free hand clenches in anger. To her left Klaus quietly says, "My poor sister. I can't turn my back on her for a moment."
The other Originals all reel back at the amount of emotion they see expressed on the married couple's faces on screen. It still felt weird to them to see Klaus and Åse care about when they were daggered.
Having walked further into the cell, Elena was standing next to the daggered Original's body as she said, "You have Rebekah. A deal is a deal." Klaus tore his eyes away from his sister to reply, "The life of my sister in exchange for your brother? Yeah, I'd say that's a bargain. Consider him spared."
Klaus and Åse took a couple steps forward as Elena spoke again. "You should know. I was the one that daggered her."
At the news, Åse's hand detached from her husbands. She took a small step forward as the doppelgänger kept talking.
"When she wakes, she'll come after me." Klaus gently caught the material of his wife's sweater dress before she could walk too far. With a face blank of emotion he said, "We can control Rebekah." He hesitantly let go of Åse's dress to crouch down and get a closer look at his sister. "Besides, I still need your help in finding the rest of our family." Elena gave the snappy reply of, "I told you I don't know where they are."
Klaus proceeded to take the dagger out of his sister's back. "You're lying. Fortunately, you have no shortage of loved ones. If we don't find our family, the question you should be asking yourself is, who's gonna die next? Bonnie? Caroline?" As Klaus trailed off, Åse smirked at the doppelgänger and said, "Damon?"
The male Original stood as he spoke again. "It's only a matter of time before you give me what I want." Elena shook her head before she said, "I don't know why you're asking me. The one you should be asking to find your family is Stefan. He obviously doesn't care about me anymore. You made sure of that. You turned him into a monster. So, now that he's your problem, he's probably the one that took your family too."
Åse felt the armrests of her chair splinter and break under her harsh grip. She heard the same reaction several rows in front of her come from Stefan.
The two rippers obviously wanted to fulfil their titles as they murdered Elena.
There was a beat of silence before Elena took a step towards Klaus and said, "And just so you know, I'm not the only one Rebekah wants dead. She knows what you did to your mother. She knows that you killed her."
Elena had stepped around Klaus and was about to walk out of the cell. However, she was quickly stopped as she was dragged and pinned to one of the cells stone walls.
The doppelgänger was a foot off the ground, held up by the throat, by a lightly tanned hand with perfectly manicured pure black nails. Gasping for air, Elena looks down, only to be met with furious glowing red eyes. Barely restraining herself, Åse had her fangs fully exposed as she spoke in a deep, menacing voice. "You do not get to threaten him. We are the most powerful creatures in the world. Your words are meaningless. Just as you are. You'd do well to remember that." After squeezing the girl's neck to draw blood from each point her nails made contact with, Åse dropped her unceremoniously to the floor.
Klaus grabbed his wife's left hand with his right after hearing her on-screen words. Åse was angry, but it slowly dissipated as Klaus gently brought her hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before focusing on the screen once more.
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The scene changed again to show Klaus and Åse walking into another room of the mansion they were having reconstructed.
The two Originals held hands as Klaus looked forward and quietly said, "Here we are, Rebekah. Home sweet home."
Rebekah is shown to be laying on a wooden table still desiccated from her time under the dagger.
Klaus looks around them as he says, "Only took a thousand years." He turns his gaze to his sister, and with a slightly bitter tone says, "And to think I was counting on you being here with us. But that's all ruined now isn't it." Åse had a bitter smile on her face as she and Klaus shared a glance.
Rebekah couldn't help but feel herself tear up as she turned her eyes to her hands that stayed settled in her lap.
The married couple looked Rebekah over for a few seconds before they noticed her right hand twitch. Åse let out a quiet sigh at the sight of the blonde waking up.
Stepping up to the table Rebekah was on, Klaus leaned over his sister and whispered, "I'm so sorry." He brushed the back of his knuckles over her cheek. "Sister." With one hand keeping him steady, he said, "Well meet again one day." and then re-stabbed the dagger through Rebekah's heart.
Åse stepped forward and laid a hand on Klaus's back. Her husband immediately turned around and tightly embraced her. As she held the back of his head in one hand and wrapped her other arm around him, Åse kissed his temple. Klaus's face was not shown, but the shaking of his shoulders was.
Åse ran a comforting hand through her husband's hair as her eyes were zoomed in on. The dark eyes of Åse Mikaelson were glassy, and just before the screen went black a single tear slid down her cheek.
And the screen went dark.