Elena sucked in a deep breath, raising her eyebrows as she thought back over the last few months. "I think I need more alcohol for that conversation," she said eventually, leaning forward over the bar and trying to catch the eye of the bartender. "Two more, please," she called when he met her eye, nodding her thanks when he placed the two fresh bottles in front of her.
"Here," she said, pushing one towards Katherine. Finishing off the last of her old beer, Elena placed the empty bottle on the bar and wrapped her hand around the cool, fresh one.
"You tried to kill me," Elena said bluntly, giving a little shrug. "You hurt Damon, you toyed with Stefan, you upset my friends and you tried to kill me. I was glad when you were gone. But I'm also glad that the you that's here hasn't done those things. Because, honestly, I don't know how I would deal with this if you had." Elena paused, taking a long drink from her fresh beer before taking a deep breath. "But, before all those things, I wanted to forgive you. Because I can understand how you became the person you are. And I know that I'm lucky to have the friends I do because, if I hadn't, you and I might not have ended up so different."