15. The Dinner Party

While Elena and Fae were inside the lakehouse, Stefan stood on the dock, talking to his brothers.

"What's going on?" Stefan asked.

"Well, me and Brayden showered, we shaved, had breakfast, we are very relaxed" Damon replied, entering Brayden's room and putting his phone on speaker.

"I'm surprised Brayden's relaxed" Stefan said.

"I'm not" Brayden said, "I'm pissed".

"Oh, did you two hear, Tyler Lockwood ran away from home last night" Damon informed, "I heard it from Sheriff Forbes who heard it from a very distraught Carol Lockwood".

"Yeah, I already know" Stefan said.

"How?" Brayden asked confused.

"Tyler left a letter for Fae, explaining that he's leaving town with Jules, Fae has been upset all night" Stefan replied.

"Would you look at that" Brayden said amused, "Turns out Damon isn't the only one with competition".

"Shut up, Brayden" Damon snapped, "Anyways, with Tyler leaving with Jules, that ends our werewolf chapter, bringing us to--".

"Killing Elijah" Stefan finished.

"Exactly" Damon said.

"Well, it's not gonna be easy, he's crafty, and let's not forget Kaitlynn's soulmate, she's not going to just let you two dagger him" Stefan said.

"Which is why Kaitlynn's not going to find out about our plan, none of the girls are" Brayden said.

"What?" Stefan asked shocked.

"If the girls find out, they're going to try and stop us because of Elijah and Kaitlynn's connection" Damon replied, "So it's better if they don't find out about our plan".

"They're going to kill us" Stefan warned.

"They will be much easier to deal with once Elijah is out of the picture" Brayden said.

"Which we can do with a crafty little dagger" Damon said.

"He's an Original" Stefan reminded, "We don't know what all that encompasses".

"Oh trust me Stefan, we're gonna dot all our T's, we don't want any surprises" Damon assured.

"Wow, tell me are the notorious Salvatore twins actually gonna be careful for once?" Stefan teased.

"Yikes Stefan, the fun brothers are becoming boring like you, looks like it's the end of the world" Brayden said.

"Gotta run, have a murder to plan, busy day" Damon said, hanging up on Stefan.

***

Brayden, Damon, Andi and Alaric sat on a table at the Grill.

"Other than your lecture on Mystic Falls, get anything out of Elijah?" Damon asked.

"No, it was boring" Alaric replied, "Of course, Jenna thinks he's charming".

"That's cause he is" Brayden said, as Caroline and Kaitlynn walked over to the group, "Right, Kaitlynn?".

"Shut up, Brayden" Kaitlynn snapped.

"Look princess, she's starting to speak Damon's language" Brayden teased, making room for Caroline to sit.

Caroline chuckled, "You're unbelievable".

"Move" Kaitlynn told Damon.

Damon rolled his eyes but nonetheless moved and made space for Kaitlynn to sit, his eyes then landed on the entrance, where he saw Elijah enter the Grill with Jenna.

"Ah, there's Jenna with her new boyfriend" Damon said, making everyone look at Elijah and Jenna.

Caroline looked at Kaitlynn, who refused to look at Elijah, "They're not dating" Caroline said, more to Kaitlynn then anyone.

"Let's find out" Brayden said, before Caroline could stop him, Brayden waved Elijah and Jenna over, "Hey".

"Hey, guys" Jenna greeted, walking over to the group with Elijah.

Kaitlynn quickly stood up, "I have to go" she said, but before she could leave, Damon grabbed her wrist and forced her to sit, "Damon--".

"Shut up and sit, Kaitlynn" Damon said.

Kaitlynn looked at Damon and for a moment both the vampires looked into each others eyes and had a silent conversation between, their moment not missed by Elijah, and after a moment, Kaitlynn nodded, "Fine" she said.

"So how was the meeting of two historical minds?" Brayden asked, taking Elijah's attention off Damon and Kaitlynn.

"It was very insightful" Jenna replied.

"Well, as much as I'd like to continue this, I've got papers to grade" Alaric said, standing up.

"You know what?" Andi said, "We should continue this, let's have a dinner party".

"Ooh, my girl, full of good ideas, me and Brayden will be happy to host" Damon said, confusing both Kaitlynn and Caroline.

"How about tonight?" Brayden suggested.

"It's good for me" Andi said, "Jenna?".

"No, I don't know if tonight works--".

"Yeah, I'm free" Jenna interrupted Alaric.

Elijah shrugged, "It would be a pleasure".

"Great" Damon said, while Brayden just nodded.

Kaitlynn and Caroline looked at each other in confusion, both of them knew the twins were up to something, but what they had no idea.

***

Damon and Brayden entered the tomb, where a desiccated Katherine laid, Brayden threw a bottle of blood at Damon, who opened it and started waving it under Katherine's nose, then slowly helped her drink it.

"Drink up, good girl" Damon said, "We come bearing gifts".

"He comes bearing gifts" Brayden corrected, as Katherine slowly woke up and grabbed the bottle from Damon's hands.

"Fine, I come bearing gifts" Damon said, rolling his eyes at his brother, "I didn't have time to properly shop, but I did get a couple things", Damon pulled out some clothes from and hanged it on the railing.

"Would you look at that" Brayden said, looking at Katherine, "You no longer look like a grandma".

"You're almost pretty again" Damon taunted.

"Gross" Brayden commented.

"What is it you two want?" Katherine asked.

"Guess who's back in town" Damon said, "Your old friend John Gilbert".

"The one whose fingers you cut off" Brayden reminded.

"Really?" Katherine asked, pretending to be oblivious, unknown to the twins, Katherine already knew about John being in town, as he was still working for her.

"Mm-hm" Damon replied.

"Why?" Katherine asked.

"Said he loves his daughter" Damon replied, "Wants to protect her from Elijah and big bad Klaus".

"Touching" Katherine said sarcastically.

"I call bullshit" Brayden said, "But there is something else your old friend told us, this old tale about how to kill an Original".

"And you two wanna know if it's true" Katherine realised, "If it was, I wouldn't tell you two".

"Now, why not?" Damon asked, "I mean, you want Elijah and Klaus dead as much as we do".

"Klaus, yes, Elijah, no" Katherine replied, slowly standing up and grabbing the clothes Damon brought, "He's compelled me to stay in here, if he dies, I'm stuck forever, and let's not forget, my sister would be heartbroken".

"Don't pretend like you care about your sister" Brayden snapped.

"I do care about her" Katherine snapped.

"Bullshit" Brayden mumbled.

"You won't understand, Brayden" Katherine said, "None of you will, and forget killing Elijah, that would be a suicide mission, you two can't do it, unless your ready to lose your lives alongside Kaitlynn's trust".

"I don't need Kaitlynn's trust" Brayden said.

"But your brother does" Katherine retorted.

"Which is why he's not killing Elijah, I am" Brayden said, making Damon look at him in shock.

"What?" Damon asked.

"Kaitlynn only has to hate one of us, Damon" Brayden replied, "And that's going to be me".

"You can't kill him, it's not possible" Katherine said, before Damon could say anything to his brother.

"Really?" Brayden asked, "Not even with a dagger and white oak ash?".

Katherine looked at Brayden in shock, "No, Brayden" she protested, "If you kill Elijah, then I'm stuck in here forever".

"You're really scared" Damon observed.

"Just get me out of here first, and then I'll help you two" Katherine pleaded, "I'll help you two kill Elijah or protect Elena and Caroline, whatever you want".

"We get you out and your ass is sipping Klaus-free margaritas on some unknown island somewhere, no way" Damon said.

"And I already told you Katherine, your misery makes me so happy" Brayden said.

"Brayden please, I'll stay and help, please, just don't do it" Katherine pleaded.

"Well, thank you" Damon said, "You've told us everything I need to know".

"I've told you two nothing" Katherine said.

"Yeah, you have" Brayden said, "Your panicked expression just confirmed that it is possible to kill an Original, which I'm going to be doing tonight, did you know that a certain Original is coming to dinner".

***

"What are you and Damon up to?" Caroline asked, entering Brayden's room.

"What do you mean?" Brayden asked, walking over to Caroline and placing a quick kiss on her lips.

"Why did you invite Elijah to dinner?" Caroline asked.

"To find out what his endgame is" Brayden lied.

"That's it?" Caroline asked, not believing her boyfriend.

"That's it" Brayden replied.

Caroline sighed, "Brayden, Kaitlynn's stayed away from her soulmate for five hundred years, whatever your going to do, just think if we were in that place, imagine staying away from each other for five hundred years, whatever your going to do tonight, try not to hurt Kaitlynn anymore then she already is".

"Elijah's going to sacrifice you" Brayden reminded, "He lied to you".

"Elijah is Kaitlynn's soulmate" Caroline retorted, "You lose your mind whenever someone even touches me, could you imagine what Kaitlynn would feel like once she sees Elijah's dead body, because I know for a fact you and Damon have figured out a way to to kill him".

"Caroline--".

"The choice is yours" Caroline interrupted, "Attack Elijah and lose not only Kaitlynn's trust but also mine and Fae's, or let your manly ego go, and figure out another way to save me and Elena, a way that doesn't include hurting Kaitlynn".

After saying her point, Caroline left Brayden's room, leaving behind a conflicted Brayden.

***

"You know, this is a bad idea" Alaric said, as Brayden entered the living room.

"There's no such thing as a bad idea, just poorly executed awesome ones" Damon said, he gave his twin a glass of bourbon.

"Kaitlynn's already hurt because of Elijah" Brayden said suddenly.

"What?" Damon asked confused.

"We can't do this" Brayden suddenly said.

"Woah, hold up, Bray" Damon said, "Half an hour ago, you were so ready to kill Elijah, what changed now?".

"Five hundred years, Damon" Brayden snapped, "That's how long Kaitlynn suffered, I am all for you and Kaitlynn, but Caroline is right, Kaitlynn is already suffering, I thought I could kill Elijah and make Kaitlynn get over it, but the truth is, if we do this, Kaitlynn will never forgive us, so the plan is off, Elijah's coming here for dinner, that's it, nothing else, I've already called Stefan and he agrees with me, killing Elijah, means losing Kaitlynn's trust, and probably Caroline and Fae's as well, and we can't have that".

Brayden handed the glass back to Damon and left the room.

"What just happened?" Alaric asked, shocked seeing Brayden being so understanding.

"Caroline Forbes happened" Damon replied, realising like always, Caroline was the one person who stopped Brayden from being an idiot.

"Are you going to listen to him?" Alaric asked.

"Of course not" Damon replied, downing the bourbon.

"What about Kaitlynn?" Alaric asked.

"Kaitlynn already hates me" Damon replied simply, taking his phone out and calling someone, "Bonnie, I need a favor".

***

The doorbell of the boarding house rang, and Jenna went to open the front door, thinking it was Elijah, but to her shock, it was John.

"Who invited him?" Jenna asked, not happy to see John.

"Get out" Brayden said, glaring at John.

"When Jenna told me she was coming to a dinner party for Elijah, I decided I couldn't miss out on the fun games" John said, as Jenna walked away, and Kaitlynn and Caroline walked over.

"There is no longer any games happening here" Brayden said, glancing at Caroline, who gave him a small in return, realising Brayden had changed his mind about whatever he was planning on doing tonight.

"Tonight is just a friendly dinner party" Caroline added.

"Right" John whispered.

Suddenly, Brayden grabbed John by his throat and slammed him to the wall, "However, if you are planning on playing any games tonight, I suggest you leave right now, because I will rip you limb to limb and then throw you in a garbage bin to rot".

Brayden let go of John, who started violently coughing, Brayden then forwarded his hand to Caroline who gladly took it.

"Thank you" Kaitlynn whispered to Brayden.

Brayden looked at Kaitlynn, and realised Caroline and her had a talk about the twins ulterior motive.

"I want to kill Elijah for trying to sacrifice Caroline" Brayden admitted, "But at the same time, Caroline is right, you have suffered a lot, you and Elijah need to talk, and then after that it will be your choice as to what you want us to do with him".

Kaitlynn gave Brayden a small nod and then walked away.

"You're a good person" Caroline whispered to Brayden.

"Cause I have someone stopping me from being an idiot" Brayden said, kissing Caroline's forehead.

"Are you going to tell me what the original plan was?" Caroline asked curiously.

"After the dinner" Brayden promised.

***

"Good evening" Elijah greeted Damon, who opened the front door.

"Thank you for coming, please, come in" Damon said.

"Just one moment" Elijah said, "Can I just say that if you have less-than-honorable intentions about how this evening is going to proceed, I suggest you reconsider".

"No, nothing dishonorable, just getting to know you" Damon assured.

"That's good" Elijah said.

"Yeah" Damon said, as Elijah walked into the boarding house.

"Because, you know, although Elena, Caroline and I have this deal, if you so much as make a move to cross me, I'll kill you and I'll kill everyone in this house, are we clear?".

Before Damon could saying anything, Kaitlynn walked over to the duo, "Everyone?" she asked.

Elijah looked at Kaitlynn, a small smile on his face, "Even if I wanted to I couldn't hurt you".

"You've already hurt me Elijah" Kaitlynn whispered, Elijah looked at Kaitlynn but before he could say anything, Kaitlynn forwarded her hand towards him, "Shall we?".

"We shall" Elijah replied, holding Kaitlynn's hand.

Damon watched as the two vampires walked further into the boarding house, an angry expression on his face.

***

"I hate it to break it to you two Damon and Brayden, but according to Elijah, your family is so not a founder of this town" Jenna said, as Brayden poured Caroline some wine.

"Why are you getting me drunk?" Caroline whispered to Brayden.

"We both are getting drunk so I don't act out" Brayden whispered to Caroline.

Caroline chuckled, "Good idea" she said, clinking her glass with Brayden's.

"Hmm, do tell" Damon said, turning to Elijah.

"Well, as I mentioned to Jenna earlier, a faction of settlers migrated from Salem after the witch trials in the 1690s" Elijah informed.

"I hate history lessons" Brayden mumbled, which no one but Caroline and Kaitlynn heard, who just looked at him in amusement.

"Over the next hundred years, they developed this community where they could feel safe from this persecution" Elijah continued.

"Because they were witches" Jenna teased.

"There's no tangible proof there were witches in Salem" Andi said.

"There's no tangible proof for a lot of things, Andi" Brayden said, drinking his wine, "Doesn't mean it doesn't exist".

"But Bray, Andie's a journalist" Damon reminded, he turned to Elijah, "Big on facts".

"Well, the lore says that there was this wave of anti-witch hysteria" Elijah informed, "Broke out in the neighboring settlement, so these witches were rounded up, they were tied to stakes if a field together and burned, some say you could hear the screams for miles around as they were consumed by the fire, could you pass the--?", Elijah gestured towards the salt, and Kaitlynn handed it to him.

"I wouldn't repeat this to the historical society" Jenna said, causing Andie to laugh.

"We are so lucky Fae isn't here" Kaitlynn said, "She has a soft corner for witches, and she goes mental when people talk about hating witches".

"It's starting to sound a little like a ghost story to me" John said.

"Who asked you to talk?" Brayden asked, glaring at John, "Hell, who asked you to even be here? Your presence is pissing me off", Jenna chuckled looking at John's angry face.

"So why do you wanna know the location of these alleged massacres?" Damon asked, before John could say anything.

"You know, healthy historian's curiosity, of course" Elijah replied.

"Of course" Damon said, giving Elijah a fake smile.

"I need more wine" Brayden mumbled, making Caroline chuckle.

***

"I need to talk to you" Kaitlynn told Elijah, after Jenna and Andi had gone into the kitchen, "Alone".

"Of course" Elijah said, standing up.

Kaitlynn stood up and gestured for Elijah to follow her into the library.

"Why have you been ignoring me?" Kaitlynn asked, "I've been trying to get in touch with you, but you seem to be avoiding me".

"It's in everyone's better interest for you and I to stay away from each other" Elijah replied.

"I need more" Kaitlynn stated, "I need more then just that Elijah, I'm relying on you here, I have no memories, I have nothing except you, so please just talk to me".

"What do you want me to say?" Elijah asked.

"Katherine told me that you didn't tell us about the sacrifice, why did you do that?" Kaitlynn asked.

"Because I thought I could protect you" Elijah replied.

"How did that turn out?" Kaitlynn asked.

"Terrible" Elijah replied, "I couldn't protect you from Klaus".

"Maybe if you hadn't kept any secrets from me, things would have been different" Kaitlynn said.

"I doubt it" Elijah said honestly, "Klaus has a habit of taking things from us, he took Brayden from Kol, and he took you from me, I think even if I told you the truth, Klaus would have found a way to separate us".

"Did you love me?" Kaitlynn asked suddenly, "I-I need to know if there's still something here to fight for".

Elijah walked over to Kaitlynn, and placed a hand on her cheek, "Of course I love you" he whispered, "But if I let you in again, I'm afraid Klaus will do something else to separate us, something worse then what he did last time".

"We're soulmates" Kaitlynn whispered, "I want to be with you".

"We're not soulmates" Elijah whispered, taking a step back from Kaitlynn, "Not anymore".

"Elijah--".

"So let me guess" Damon interrupted Kaitlynn, entering the room with a smirk on his face, making Kaitlynn roll her eyes, "In addition to the moonstone, doppelganger, the soulmate, the lion, the witch and the wardrobe, you need to find this witch burial ground?".

"I'm not staying here for this" Kaitlynn mumbled, leaving the library.

"Because I feel as though we've grown so close, Damon, I'll tell you yes" Elijah replied, after Kaitlynn left, "Do you know where it is?".

"Maybe" Damon replied, pouring himself and Elijah a drink, "Tell me why it's so important".

"We're not that close" Elijah said, taking the drink from Damon, "This is quite a collection you have here".

"Hmm" Damon said, quietly taking out the dagger he placed behind the drinks.

"Here's a funny thing about books" Elijah said, unaware of Damon's plans, "Before the existed, people actually had memories".

Before Damon could attack Elijah, Alaric ran into the room with Andi, causing Damon to glare at him.

"Gentlemen" Alaric said, "We forgot about dessert".

"Elijah" Andi said, forwarding her hand towards the Original.

"Ms. Star" Elijah greeted, taking Andi's hand and leading her back into the dinning room.

After Elijah left, Damon punched Alaric's arm in annoyance, "What?" he mouthed.

Alaric pointed to the dagger, confusing Damon, Alaric then grabbed a pen and started writing and showed the note to Damon, informing him about what Stefan had found out through the Gilbert journals.

The dagger will kill you if you use it.

***

"Sorry, guys, dessert is taking longer than I thought" Jenna said, as Elijah and Andi entered the dinning room, "I usually just unwrap food".

"You know, I could help, right?" Brayden asked, drinking wine, unaware of what his twin was up to.

"You're drunk Brayden, all you will do is create a mess" Caroline replied.

"Oh please, one bottle of wine doesn't get me drunk" Brayden said, making everyone laugh.

"Why are you drinking so much anyways?" Jenna asked.

Brayden looked at Elijah, then at Kaitlynn, "To be on my best behavior" he mumbled.

"So I know this is a social thing, but I'd really love to ask you some questions about the work you're doing" Andi said, sitting across Elijah.

Brayden rolled his eyes, "Yeah, I'm going to make get the dessert, I'm starving, princess, you're with me".

"But I don't know how to cook" Caroline said, as Brayden made her stand up.

"Then just watch" Brayden said, taking Caroline into the kitchen with him.

"Those two are never going to come if we leave them alone together" Kaitlynn said, standing up and following the couple into the kitchen.

"I'll help as well" Jenna said, also going into the kitchen, just as Damon and Ric entered the dinning.

"I'd love to answer" Elijah told Andi, as Damon sat on his seat, glaring at John.

"Great, oh, that's so great" Andi said, "Ric, would you do me a favor and grab the notebook out of my bag?".

"Elijah, did John tell you that he's Elena's uncle slash father?" Damon asked.

"Yes, I'm well aware of that" Elijah replied.

"Of course, she hates him" Damon said, "So, there's absolutely no need to keep him on the endangered species list".

"No Ric, it's in the front pocket, on the--you know what? Excuse me, guys, sorry" Andi apologised, standing up and walking over to her bag.

"What I'd like to know, Elijah, is how you intend on killing Klaus" John said.

"Gentleman, there's a few things we should probably get clear right now" Elijah said, "I allow you to live solely to keep an eye on Elena and Caroline, I allow Elena and Caroline to remain in their homes, living their lives with their friends as they do as a courtesy, if you become a liability, I'll take them away from you, you'll never see them again".

"Okay, my first question is, when you got here to Mystic--", Andi was interrupted, when Alaric stabbed Elijah with dagger, causing him to scream in pain.

Brayden, ran out after hearing the scream, and was shocked seeing a desiccated Elijah.

"What the hell did you do?!" Brayden asked Damon.

Before Brayden could react, Damon speeded over to him and snapped his neck.

"Brayden!" Caroline yelled, running out with Kaitlynn, who was shocked seeing Elijah desiccated.

Before any of the girls could react, Bonnie, who Damon had called, entered the room and using her magic, snapped Caroline and Kaitlynn's neck.

"Get all of them out of here before Jenna comes" Bonnie said.

"Brayden's going to kill all of us" Alaric mumbled, looking at an unconscious Brayden.

***

Brayden groaned and slowly woke up, sitting up, he realised he was in his bed.

"Stupid asshole" Brayden snapped, rubbing his neck, remembering that Damon snapped his neck, looking to his side, Brayden was shocked seeing an unconscious Caroline beside, "Caroline" a panicked Brayden said, tapping Caroline's cheeks, "Hey, wake up".

Suddenly, Brayden's phone started ringing.

"Not now, Stefan" Brayden snapped, answering his phone.

"The dagger has to stay in" Stefan said quickly, as Damon entered Brayden's room.

"What?" Brayden asked confused.

"In order for Elijah to stay dead, the dagger has to stay in his body" Stefan replied.

Damon and Brayden exchanged a panicked look, and both vampires rushed down to the basement, only to find no sign of Elijah.

"Caroline" Brayden whispered, realising he had just left her alone.

Rushing into his room, Brayden was shocked to see that Caroline was now gone.

***

"Please" Caroline pleaded, as Elijah dragged her towards the Gilbert lakehouse, "I didn't know, I didn't know what Damon was planning".

"Doesn't matter" Elijah said, "The deal is now broken".

"But--".

"Stay put" Elijah warned, bending down and grabbing a handful of rocks, he then threw it at the front door causing it to shatter, "You know, I might not be able to enter this house, but I am a very patient man, I'll wait you out, with your friend Caroline right here".

After a moment, Elena showed up at the front door, she made sure to stay inside where Elijah couldn't get her.

"Shouldn't have done what they did" Elena said.

"The deal is off" Elijah stated.

"I'm renegotiating" Elena said.

"You have nothing left to negotiate with" Elijah snapped.

Suddenly, Elena pulled out a knife, "I'd like to see you lure Klaus into Mystic Falls, after the doppelganger bleeds to death, and the female soulmate becomes useless".

"Stefan won't let you die" Elijah said.

"You're right" Brayden said, coming behind Elena, making Caroline breath a sigh of relief, "But I will", Brayden took the knife from Elena's hand, "Give me Caroline, Elijah, or Elena dies, and trust me, I will do it, don't test me".

"Promise me that you won't harm anyone that I love" Elena said, slightly scared that Brayden might actually stab her, "Even if they've harmed you".

"Screw the deal" Brayden snapped, "You want to fight Elijah? Then let's fight, but leave Caroline out of this, she didn't know what me and Damon were planning".

"He didn't know either" Caroline quickly added, "Brayden didn't know what Damon was planning, Brayden wanted to kill you, but he changed his mind because of Kaitlynn and your connection".

"Caroline, stay out of it" Brayden said.

"Stop taking the blame on yourself!" Caroline yelled.

"Can we not do this right now?" Brayden snapped, he then looked at Elijah, who was still holding Caroline's arm, "I will gladly hand Elena over to you, if you give me Caroline".

Elijah looked at Brayden, "I'm sorry, Brayden" he said, "You're not going to stab Elena, I'm going to have to call your bluff".

"Fine" Brayden said, "You do that".

Brayden forced Elena to face him, then without wasting a second, stabbed Elena in the stomach.

"No!" Elijah yelled, trying to speed into the room but he couldn't as he wasn't invited in.

"Brayden!" Caroline yelled shocked.

"Give me Caroline, Elijah" Brayden said, holding on to Elena, "And I will let you heal Elena".

"Fine!" Elijah yelled, "You can have Caroline, let me heal Elena".

"I hear you're a man of your word, so give me your word you won't take Caroline away from me" Brayden said.

Elijah sighed, "I give you my word I won't take Caroline away from you".

"Great" Brayden said, shoving Elena towards Elijah, and then running over to Caroline.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Caroline yelled, shoving Brayden.

"Just shut up" Brayden said, hugging Caroline, who after a moment gladly hugged him back.

Suddenly, both Brayden and Caroline heard Elijah let out a yell, turning around they realised Elena had stabbed Elijah with a dagger, and this time she made sure it stayed in.

"Are you kidding me?!" Brayden yelled, "Where did you even get that from?!".

"That will be me" Damon said, walking over to the group.

Brayden glared at Damon, he speeded over to him and punched him in the face, "That's for hurting Caroline", he punched him again, "And that's for hurting Kaitlynn".

"No!".

Everyone turned around when they heard Kaitlynn's yell.

"No!" Kaitlynn cried, running over to Elijah, she tried to take the dagger out, but Damon quickly grabbed her hand.

"Don't" Damon warned.

Kaitlynn glared at Damon, and then slapped him across the face.

"I trusted you!" Kaitlynn yelled, shoving Damon, "And you broke my trust, Damon! How could you?!".

"I did it to save Caroline" Damon snapped.

"Liar!" Kaitlynn yelled, shoving Damon again, "You're nothing but a liar, you don't care about anyone but yourself!".

"Kait!" Fae yelled, running over to her best friend and hugging her, "It's okay, it's going to be okay".

"I hate him" Kaitlynn cried, hugging Fae, "I hate him, Fae".

"Hate me all you want, Kaitlynn" Damon said, "At the end of the day, it's me whose doing something to save Elena and Caroline, while the rest of you go soft".

"How could you say that?" Fae snapped.

Damon ignored everyone and picked Elijah's body up, "Oh, just so you know Kaitlynn, you won't be able to get to Elijah's body, thanks to a boundary spell Bonnie Bennett is currently doing in our basement".

"Just leave" Caroline snapped, glaring at Damon, "Go, don't make this any worse".

After sparing Kaitlynn one last glance, Damon speeded away with Elijah's body.

Brayden and Stefan, who had now healed Elena, looked at each other in concern, realising that their old brother had screwed up once again.

***

After dropping Caroline off at her house, Brayden entered his room, where he heard the shower running.

"Kaitlynn, I know your heartbroken and all, but I don't appreciate you using my shower without my permission!" Brayden yelled.

Suddenly, the shower turned off, and a very naked Katherine came out.

"Are you bloody serious?!" Brayden snapped.

"Hello, Brayden" Katherine greeted, "Hey, do you have a robe?".

Without looking anywhere but at Katherine's face, Brayden grabbed a towel and threw it at Katherine, not wanting to have a conversation with her being naked.

"How the hell did you get out of the tomb?" Brayden asked.

"I knew that if I begged you and Damon not to kill Elijah, that's exactly what you'd do" Katherine replied, wrapping the towel around her body, "Little known fact? Originals can compel vampires, but soon as they die, compulsion wears off".

Brayden let out a bitter laugh, "And of course you knew, and you played me and Damon, like always".

"But I'm still here" Katherine said, "I didn't run, meant what I said, Brayden, I'm going to help you".

"Yeah, I don't believe you" Brayden said, laying on his bed, "Now get lose and go annoy someone else".

Katherine smirked, "Fine, I guess I'll see you around then, since it looks like we are roomies now".

"Kill me now" Brayden mumbled, as Katherine walked out of his room, "Hey, you better clean the wet footsteps you're leaving in my room!".

***

Presenting 2x15 of The Vampire Diaries . . .

How was the chapter?

Thoughts on the brothers initially planning to kill Elijah without letting any of the girls know?

Thoughts on Brayden changing his mind about killing Elijah after talking to Caroline?

Thoughts on Damon snapping Brayden's neck, while Bonnie snapped Caroline and Kaitlynn's?

Thoughts on Kaitlynn slapping Damon?