Title: The Invited
Disclaimer: If you recognize it, I don't it.
Summary: Post-2x21 The Sun Also Rises. Elena gets an unexpected guest one night. Elijah/Elena one-shot.
A/N: I just wanted to write this – mostly just to justify Elijah's actions at first but then it turned into something more. Hope you guys enjoy!
*Some major spoilers for 2x21*
Elena is exhausted. The last couple of weeks have been downright draining, filled with funerals and panic over werewolf bites. It's only nine, but she just wants to lie down and sleep until the next morning.
She's sitting in front of the mirror and brushing her hair when she feels someone behind her, watching her. Her body tenses up at the feeling growing in the pit of her stomach. She hates how her life has turned into a constantly rotating list of dangers and problems.
She turns around, and near her closet is a man with dark brown hair, brown eyes and a chiseled face dressed in a crisp, perfectly tailored black suit.
Elijah.
She doesn't know if she's feeling relieved or absolutely terrified, but she does know that she can't say that this surprise is a pleasant one.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she hisses, immediately standing up.
"Hello, Elena," Elijah greets easily, coming out from the shadows. When she immediately goes to grab the chair, she now knows the feeling is terror.
"Get out."
"Is that how you treat an old friend?"
"We were never friends."
"Allies then," he corrects, moving a step towards her. A few weeks ago, she would've said that they were on the same side, but after he left with Klaus and didn't make an appearance in Mystic Falls after the sacrifice, she assumed they were out making a generation of hybrids to take over the world together. Which meant that they were no longer allies and definitely not friends.
"I told you to get out," Elena seethes. She backs away from him, and if her fear wasn't apparent before, it certainly is now. She grips the chair tighter and raises it in a show of defense. It might not do much, but it might give her some time to call for backup or run away.
"I am not here to harm you," he assures.
"How do I know that? You're a deceitful coward. I should've left that dagger in you," she raises her voice angrily.
"Ouch," he says unimpressed at her words of hate. He takes another step, and she realizes that he's trapping her in the room.
"We should've known that you'd go back on your word," she goes on, trying to thrust the chair towards him in warning. She is always a fighter.
"I'm sorry," he offers. She stumbles a bit at his words, but she regains her composure quickly.
"Sorry isn't good enough. Aunt Jenna and John died. Because of your brother. And you decided to take his side."
"I didn't take anyone's side," he says simply.
"Could've fooled me," she begins, rolling her eyes. "I was under the impression that saving him and disappearing with him meant taking his side."
"After all of this…everything you've been through," he starts slowly, "You must know the importance of family."
Elena doesn't say anything and Elijah comes closer. She instinctively backs away again, but she is met with the wall.
"What do you want, Elijah?" Her voice is demanding and firm but her body is trembling in fear and anticipation. He leans forward slightly, and he's only a foot away.
"Your trust." She knits her eyebrows together in confusion.
"You- you want my trust?" she stutters. "Are you crazy? After the stunt you just pulled a couple of weeks ago?"
"I didn't take Klaus' side, Elena. I took my family's side. Klaus knew where they were," he says calmly.
"So what?"
"I know this might not mean much to you coming from my mouth, but you are alive and most of the people you were closest to are as well. I wasn't completely dishonorable."
"No…" Elena admits, "You were not completely dishonorable." There's a brief silence at her agreement, but he doesn't move away from her. "But I wouldn't exactly put my faith in you," she adds finally.
"I would not be here if I did not think it was important," Elijah tells her.
"What is it now?" she sighs, giving in, "Why do I need to place my trust in you?"
"Once I have pried the information I need out of Klaus, I want him eliminated. He needs to pay for what he did to my siblings." He says it lightly and naturally, as if getting revenge on his brother were an everyday occurrence. Considering the past several months she's known Elijah, she guesses it is true to some extent.
"What did he do to them?"
"Now is not the time to discuss this. I will only tell you that they all fell at his hands."
"Why should I help you?"
"You've lost some of your loved ones because of my brother. I wouldn't want to see that happening again."
"You've never cared about who died around me before this," she says warily.
"I am merely pointing out similar circumstances. A new hybrid generation will likely wipe out your beloved vampire friends."
"How do I know you're not tricking me?"
"I suppose you do not know…but why would I ask for your help in the first place if I knew our alliance had been compromised?" She pauses to think about this. Elijah did have a point. He wouldn't ask her after he knowingly betrayed her unless he was desperate. But she doesn't think she could work with him knowing that he could turn on her any minute. As if sensing her apprehension and doubt, he interrupts her thoughts.
"I have methods to make you more agreeable," he tells her in a low voice. He places his hands on the wall beside her, completely trapping her between his body. Elena's eyes widen at his blatant threat, and her body goes limp underneath his dominant and intimidating stance.
"John gave me his ring," Elena replies, trying not to show her anxiety.
"That only protects you from death, does it not?" he asks, leaning into her neck. Elena immediately stiffens and puts her hands flat against the wall.
Her head is spinning at all the contact between them. She feels the lapels of his suit brushing against her chest through her thin tank top and his cuff links barely touching the sides of her arms. She feels his silky hair touch her cheek and she lifts her head. To move away from him or to give him better access to her neck, she doesn't know. She stops breathing for a few seconds as his nose grazes the nape of her neck, and he inhales her scent deeply.
"Not say, a bite?" he asks roughly, "Or two?" he goes on, moving up her neck appreciatively. She knows he won't bite her, but she closes her eyes anyway in anticipation of it.
She gasps when the air temperature around her suddenly drops and he abruptly pulls away. She immediately opens her eyes and she notices that his eyes are closed when he pulls away from her. She lets out a shaky breath and tries to stand up straight, as she ignores the rapid beating in her chest. His eyes open suddenly and he is still so close to her that all she can see is his intense desire for her in his brown eyes and all she can feel is his breath on her lips. He looks her in the eye and holds her gaze.
She doesn't think she's been so drawn to him and fearful of him at the same time.
"What am I supposed to do?" she lets out, barely above a whisper. Elijah is apparently an expert at compulsion…no supernatural tricks or dilation of the pupils needed.
"I need to use that witch friend of yours. But don't tell anyone I was here yet." He steps away from her suddenly and the fear is gone, but the inexplicable attraction still lingers in her body.
"Wait…what?"
"I'll explain later. I just needed to know that I have your trust right now. Do I have your trust? Will you help me?" The way he says it seems completely honest and innocent. It feels like the time he told her about Klaus and Katerina.
"Yes," she says softly.
"I'll be back tomorrow then," he informs, leaving through the bedroom door before she can say anything. She wrinkles her eyebrows in frustration and confusion.
When Elena lies down on her bed, she doesn't even know where to begin in her thought process – the fact that she's now helping Elijah at all or the fact that something very non-platonic was occurring between them just a few minutes ago.
So she doesn't think about it and she just sleeps on it.
A/N: Thanks for reading, and reviews are always appreciated! I left the story open for more late-night visits, but I think that this will most likely be a one-shot.