AN: My first Beklena:') I've been working on this for quite some time. Years actually. Anyway. Just a little fic of how I wish Homecoming went. Neither Rebekah or Elena are involved in the Mikael plot because that's just too complicated. Title is taken from Holding A Heart by Girl Named Toby, aka one of my ultimate Beklena songs, definitely check it out, it's gorgeous. I hope ya'll enjoy this. Review if you please:)
My Own Work of Art
When Elena asked if she and Rebekah could talk after school, she hadn't expected this. The compelled girls prancing around as Rebekah's own personal fashion show were unsettling, but not entirely unexpected. She was, after all, Klaus's sister. Even the threat of violence unless Elena played along wasn't surprising.
It was only when Rebekah tossed her hair over her shoulder and nonchalantly informed her that she had to make sure that her dress didn't clash with the red one she'd picked out that Elena was finally taken by surprise.
"Excuse me?" Elena asked, caught off guard. Rebekah huffed out a long sigh—exasperated that the pretty brunette had been unable to read between the lines.
"Now that we know my dress is red, make sure yours doesn't clash," Rebekah repeated slowly.
Elena blinked at her, not understanding. "Why does it matter if my dress clashes with yours?"
Rebekah rolled her eyes and sat back down gracefully. She'd already dismissed the girls from the room, so it was just her and Elena in the Salvatores' living room.
"It's customary to bring a date to a school dance—and I've gathered that whoever has the prettiest date 'wins' so to speak," Rebekah said primly. "Now you might not be quite as pretty as the original, but even the ugliest Petrova is prettier than anyone else."
Rebekah gave her an earnest smile. Elena opened her mouth, and then quite abruptly closed it. She cocked her head to the side.
"Thank you?" she guessed. In a backwards way, Rebekah had called her pretty. Rebekah nodded benevolently.
"You're welcome, love," Rebekah chirped sweetly, grinning brightly at her. "So it's a date then?"
Elena shook her head, trying to organize her thoughts. This entire encounter had her all turned around. She sat down on the couch across from Rebekah.
"You don't even like me," Elena reminded her. "Why are you asking me to be your Homecoming date?"
Rebekah looked taken aback.
"I don't dislike you," she declared, looking wounded. "I barely know you, darling. As for why I'm asking you, as I've already said, I want to win, so I must have the prettiest date at the dance," Rebekah explained logically. "Besides, my brother seems quite taken with you, so you must be worth getting to know," she added.
Elena blinked, unable to process what she was hearing. Focusing on what Rebekah had said last, she frowned.
"Klaus isn't taken with me," Elena denied, suppressing a shudder. "He just needs my blood to make his hybrids," Elena reminded her. Rebekah gave her a pitying look.
"Oh love, of course he is," she insisted. "After all, it's not every day that a pretty girl tells him to go to hell."
Elena's eyebrows raised in disbelief.
"I said that after he murdered my aunt," Elena said. "Right before he killed me."
"That wasn't personal, darling," Rebekah replied pityingly.
Elena blinked and wondered if she was having an out of body experience.
"He killed me," she repeated.
"I never said you had to like him for it," Rebekah said. "At any rate, he finds you fascinating, as do I."
Elena stared at her, dumfounded.
Rebekah raked her eyes over Elena's form appreciatively.
"His loss is my gain," she purred. Elena gave her an incredulous look.
"You do remember mauling me, don't you?" Elena asked bluntly.
Rebekah looked affronted.
"That wasn't personal, I swear, I let my jealousy get the better of me, and then I saw my necklace around your pretty neck and I just lost it," Rebekah explained, a perfectly innocent expression on her face. Elena gave her an unimpressed look.
"So you tried to tear my throat out?" Elena didn't look pleased.
Rebekah gave her a fondly exasperated look.
"Would you like me to apologize?" She continued without waiting for Elena to reply. "Because I am sorry that I attacked you, Elena. I reacted in the heat of the moment, and I'm very glad Nik pulled me off of you."
Rebekah gave Elena her prettiest smile.
Elena regarded her warily. As far as she could tell, Rebekah was sincerely regretful about attacking her. She nodded slowly.
"Apology accepted," Elena relented at last.
Rebekah beamed. "So it's settled then," she declared happily. "I really hope your dress doesn't clash, that would be unpleasant."
Elena stared at her.
"I accepted your apology, I didn't agree to be your date," Elena explained.
Rebekah's whole form deflated. She gave Elena a displeased look.
"Well why not? Do you already have somebody in mind to accompany you?" Rebekah asked, looking perfectly irked. Elena rolled her eyes.
"No, but—"
Rebekah cut her off.
"So if you don't want to go with someone else, why not go with me?" Rebekah suggested sensibly.
Elena heaved a sigh. Rebekah was becoming more and more infuriating with every passing moment. Feeling a headache coming on, Elena switched tactics.
"Don't you want to go with someone else? Like Stefan?" Elena proposed, hoping to entice her away from the wild idea she'd hatched.
Rebekah gave her an unimpressed look, seeing right through her.
"I'm through with boys who don't like me back," Rebekah replied simply.
"I'm not exactly encouraging you," Elena pointed out. Rebekah gave her a smug grin.
"But you've yet to flat out tell me no, so I'm going to assume you'll say yes eventually," she said. "Unless you're the one who's hoping to go with Stefan?" Rebekah asked innocently, but her mouth pursed ever so slightly, and Elena could tell that she was displeased by the idea. If it was because Rebekah was jealous of her or of Stefan, she didn't know.
"No, I'm not exactly into the idea of throwing myself at someone who called me the 'Human Blood Bag'," Elena replied bitterly.
Rebekah winced sympathetically. Elena bit her lip. She was still adjusting to Stefan's sudden change in attitude toward her. She wasn't used to the callousness that he treated her—and everyone—with, thanks to his lack of humanity.
They were quiet for a long moment, Rebekah biting her tongue in hopes that Elena would decide to be her date without any further pushing on her part. Elena was lost in thought.
Although her first—and second—encounter with Rebekah couldn't exactly be called pleasant, Rebekah had apologized, and quite sincerely. She was Klaus's sister, and Elena knew that meant she couldn't trust her, but some small part of her did like her. She was smart and pretty and she seemed like she knew how to have fun. Elena remembered what fun felt like—what it felt like to be with someone who was fun. She desperately missed that feeling.
Elena took a deep breath, wondering if she was going to regret this.
"Okay," she said. Rebekah perked up. "I'll go to Homecoming with you."
Rebekah beamed.
"Excellent," she enthused. "Now about your dress?"
Elena rolled her eyes, but smiled at her.
"It's white," she told her. Rebekah smiled and nodded, looking satisfied.
"Oh good, I have a feeling we're going to be the best looking couple at the dance." Rebekah gave Elena a pleased look. Elena smiled back, feeling slightly uncertain, but warm nonetheless.
She stood up to leave, and Rebekah trailed after her on her way to the door. They exchanged slightly awkward goodbyes, and then Elena headed out to her car.
"I expect a corsage," the blonde called after her. Elena stopped and turned back to look at her.
"So do I," Elena replied, flashing her a blinding grin. Rebekah looked momentarily dumbstruck by her radiance before she snapped out of it and gave her a slightly challenging look.
Elena returned the look good-naturedly and then continued on her way. When she was seated in the driver's seat of her car, she took a second to reflect on what had just happened.
"What did I just get myself into?" Elena muttered under her breath. She didn't stop smiling. She couldn't even if she wanted to.
"You're what?" Caroline asked, aghast.
The two friends were browsing through the formalwear section of one of the boutiques in Mystic Falls. The blonde had yet to find her dress for the dance, and she'd demanded that Elena help her search for the perfect one.
Elena sighed. She flipped through the dresses, making a face at a bright aqua taffeta disaster.
"I'm going to Homecoming with Rebekah," Elena told her again. Finished with the rack in front of her, she casually drifted over to another one, hoping that her nonchalance would lessen Caroline's reaction.
Her hopes were in vain. Caroline blinked, shook her head and then stomped after her.
"Rebekah as in Klaus's sister?" she hissed. Elena bit her lip and nodded.
"Yup," she confirmed. Caroline's eyes widened, and she stared at Elena in disbelief.
"She said that she wanted to steal my popularity and my boyfriend, and you agreed to go to Homecoming with her?" Caroline hissed. Elena rolled her eyes.
"Well she's clearly not interested in your boyfriend anymore," Elena pointed out with a smile. Caroline glared.
Elena took a deep breath and stopped browsing through the dresses to look at her friend.
"Care, I get that you're trying to look out for me" Elena began, "And I love you for it," she reassured her before continuing. "But as crazy as this might sound, I actually want to go to Homecoming with her." Elena gave Caroline a pleading look. "So can you please just be happy for me so we can find you a gorgeous dress to wear to the dance?"
Caroline stared at her for a long moment.
"So wait—this is like a date date?" Caroline asked.
Elena pursed her lips.
"Yes," she said carefully. She held her breath, wondering how Caroline would react.
"You're going to Homecoming with a girl?" Clearly Caroline was having some trouble wrapping her head around it.
"Yes Caroline, I'm going to Homecoming with a girl as my date," Elena replied slowly.
"You like girls like that?" Caroline continued to question her.
Elena bit her lip apprehensively but nodded. "Yes I do," Elena responded carefully.
Caroline blinked, looking slightly hurt. "Did Bonnie know before me?" she asked carefully, looking almost vulnerable.
Elena rolled her eyes.
"No!" Elena insisted. "It's not like I've ever even really thought about it before," Elena tried to explain. "I mean, I guess I've kind of always known that I'm attracted to girls, but I just never really put that much thought into it, okay?"
Caroline didn't look disgusted—but she didn't look happy. If anything, she looked disappointed.
"So Rebekah's the girl you really want to go to Homecoming with?"
Elena gave Caroline a searching look, wondering if maybe there was a wrong answer to this question.
"She's the one who asked me, Care, and I want to go with her," Elena answered truthfully.
Caroline flinched imperceptibly, and then forced a smile on her face.
"Then I'm happy for you," she insisted, as she nodded her head and tried hard to mean it.
Elena reached out and squeezed her fingertips between her own gratefully.
"Thanks Care," Elena said, smiling brightly. "Now let's go find you the perfect dress."
Elena whirled around, intently skimming through the clothing racks.
Caroline rubbed her fingers together—still tingling from their brief contact.
"Shake it off, Caroline," she whispered to herself.
Elena turned back to look at her, dark eyes wide and sparkling. Her cheeks were flushed pink, and a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. She looked happier than she had in months. Caroline returned the smile with effort.
"Maybe we should go to Richmond? I don't want to end up wearing the same dress as anyone else. Besides, everything here is a taffeta disaster."
"I'm going to Homecoming with Rebekah," Elena blurted out, and then she held her breath.
Bonnie looked up from translating the photos of the symbols they'd found on the walls of the cave. She raised an eyebrow at Elena's abrupt announcement. Elena's own photos lay abandoned in front of her.
"Do you want to go to Homecoming with her?" Bonnie questioned carefully.
Elena let out the breath she'd been holding.
"Yes?" she admitted. "Is that crazy?" she asked uncertainly.
Bonnie smiled sympathetically.
"Maybe a little bit," she admitted. "But if you want to, then I don't see why there's anything wrong with that," she added before Elena could start freaking out.
Elena gave her a grateful smile.
"Thanks Bon," she said.
Bonnie waved her off.
"She is hot," Bonnie said.
Elena let out a startled little laugh. She cocked her head to the side.
"Yeah she kinda is," Elena admitted. Bonnie grinned.
"And the accent is killer."
Elena laughed again, but nodded, her face flushed a pretty pink.
"Yeah," she agreed dumbly.
Bonnie giggled and shook her head fondly at her blushing friend.
"So it's not a big deal or anything," Elena began at dinnertime with Jeremy.
He looked up from his slice of pizza. It was only the two of them that night.
"But I'm going to Homecoming with Rebekah," she told him. "Klaus's sister, Rebekah," she clarified.
He raised an eyebrow at her.
She bit her lip, waiting for his reaction.
After a long moment, he finally responded.
"So are you only dating vampires from now on?" he asked, looking exasperated and amused.
Elena laughed out of pure relief.
"Nah," she replied, shaking her head in mock-seriousness. "Maybe Ty's got a hot wolf girl for me," she joked. He laughed. "Or who knows, maybe there's a warlock in my future." Elena wriggled her eyebrows and Jeremy shook his head at her antics.
"Yeah, or maybe you could just date a hunter next," Jeremy suggested—not completely joking.
Elena rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you and Ric would like that, wouldn't you?"
"You have no idea." His tone was even less joking than it had been before.
Elena frowned.
"Seriously Jer, if it bothers you I can just tell her I can't go—" she started but he shook his head.
"Hey, if you're happy then I'm happy," he assured her. She smiled uncertainly at him. "Just make sure you're not gonna start some World War Three between her and her brother because he had some weird claim on you or something, okay?" he added, back to joking. "We don't need anymore siblings duking it out for your affection, 'Lena."
Elena laughed uneasily, remembering what Rebekah had claimed earlier.
"I don't think we have to worry about that," Elena assured him. But Rebekah's insistence that Klaus found her fascinating left her feeling like a liar. She shook it off, reminding herself that it was an absurd idea.
"Good," he said with a certain amount of gravity. She smiled at him and he returned the gesture.
Elena turned back to her pizza, feeling more lighthearted.
"Just so you know, I wasn't joking about the hunter thing—it would be nice to know that your boyfriend—or girlfriend—isn't going to try and eat you if they're having a bad day."
"Jer!"
After telling Jeremy, Elena decided that there was no one else that she absolutely had to tell. She and Ric weren't exactly close enough for her to inflict that kind of torture on him, and she didn't see how it was either of the Salvatore brothers' business who she was going to the dance with. They could find out the same way everyone else did—when she arrived at Homecoming with Rebekah.
The day before the dance, Elena was in the middle of perusing the Salvatore's extensive library for books to use in her history report when a strange man attacked her. One second his weight was bearing down on her and she was wondering if this was finally how she was going to die—and the next second Ric was plunging a dagger into his back.
Alaric helped her to her feet and she stared at the incapacitated stranger. His skin was gray and drawn.
"He's an original?" Elena blurted out unthinkingly.
Alaric opened his mouth, a frozen look of surprise on his face.
Stefan, Damon, and Rebekah poured into the room, saving him from answering. Damon hurried over to make sure she was okay, looking far less concerned than Elena would've expected from him.
Stefan gave her a cursory look over; making sure his charge hadn't been damaged in the assault. It was impersonal in a way that Elena had grown used to.
Rebekah however—had stopped almost as soon as she'd entered the room. Her eyes were fixed on the incapacitated stranger.
"Father?" she whispered disbelievingly.
Elena blinked.
"He's your dad?" she croaked. Rebekah tore her eyes away from his prone frame on the floor to look at her.
Elena glanced at the other people in the room—noticing that while they all looked surprised—none of them looked that surprised. Instantly her suspicion increased. She directed her focus back on Rebekah.
The blonde nodded at her.
"Yes he is," she replied simply. "Are you all right?" she asked. "Did he hurt you?" she ran a concerned eye over Elena's form.
Elena shook her head.
"Ric stopped him before he could do anything," she told her. Rebekah nodded, looking relieved.
The exchange between the two girls had finally brought genuine surprise to the faces of the three men in the room. They exchanged a wary look while the girls were more intent on each other than them.
"How did you know to stab him with a dagger, Alaric?" Elena asked, suddenly turning the attention back onto him.
He blinked and opened his mouth, looking unsure.
"Uh, I didn't. It was the thing I had in my hand when I heard you scream," he explained gruffly.
Elena frowned but bit her tongue. She wanted to ask how he had gotten there before the three vampires in the house, and why he had a dagger in his hand in the first place, but she wasn't sure if she'd like the answer.
"I have to call my brother," Rebekah declared suddenly, leaving the room swiftly.
Elena glanced at the three men in the room.
"Am I missing something?" she asked.
Damon gave her an affronted look. Stefan looked at her condescendingly. Ric frowned and shook his head.
"I don't know what you mean, Elena."
So Homecoming was abruptly taken over by Klaus's own personal agenda—celebrating the death of his father and tormentor. Normally Elena would've simply stayed home, but she wanted to go to the dance with Rebekah.
So instead of putting on her comfy sweats and watching bad horror movies with Jeremy, she spent all day primping with Caroline—who was going with Tyler, and Bonnie, who was flying solo and proudly so.
When she arrived at the boarding house, Stefan answered the door. He gave her dressed-up appearance an appreciative look quickly followed by a mocking smile, even though he was dressed in a suit and tie.
"Aw Elena, you didn't have to get me a corsage," he cooed, referring to the box in her hands.
Elena sighed deeply, opening her mouth to correct him, but her date beat her to it.
"Actually, that's for me," Rebekah said, descending the stairs. "Hello Elena, you look very pretty," she added, smiling at the brunette. Elena smiled back at her brightly.
"Thank you, Rebekah, you look very pretty too," Elena said.
Stefan glanced between the two girls, torn between amusement and confusion.
Rebekah was also carrying a corsage box, and—ignoring the gaping Stefan—the two girls exchanged corsages.
Elena had picked a white gardenia corsage with a satiny red ribbon that perfectly matched Rebekah's dress, while Rebekah had gone for the slightly more traditional red rose corsage, with a white ribbon. The corsages matched perfectly with their dresses and contrasted beautifully.
In fact—Stefan couldn't help but notice that Elena in her white, one-shouldered Grecian style cocktail dress that made her look angelic and Rebekah in her sleek red strapless dress, looked like the perfect couple.
The two girls fussed over each other, securing corsages on wrists and complimenting each other's jewelry, hair, and other accessories.
Bemused, Stefan left them to find his brother and share the news—and to go over the plan.
"I have something for you," Elena confessed. Rebekah gave her a pleasantly surprised look.
"What is it?" she asked, trying and failing not to look too eager.
Elena slipped a black velvet box out of her clutch and handed it over to Rebekah. The blonde opened carefully and beamed at Elena when she saw her necklace.
"I figured you might want to be able to wear it to your first school dance," Elena said, smiling at her.
"Thank you," Rebekah said, her eyes suspiciously shiny. Elena waved her off and carefully helped her put the necklace on.
In an uncharacteristically shy move, Rebekah pressed a kiss to Elena's cheek in thanks. Blushing, Elena cleared her throat.
"We should probably go before Damon decides to grace us with his presence," Elena suggested. Rebekah laughed but nodded in agreement.
Linking their fingers together, Elena led her out the front door to the car.
Elena and Rebekah's entrance upstaged even Klaus's enthusiastic party opening. Everyone had something to say about the new girl and their beloved golden girl appearing together at the first big dance of the school year. Most of what people had to say was favorable—much to Rebekah's satisfaction. They barely had a moment to themselves before people began descending upon them.
Rebekah watched in awe and thinly veiled glee as everyone rushed to greet Elena and tell her she looked pretty. Her favorite part was when they turned to her and gushed over her dress or hair. It was exactly what she'd dreamed of for her first school dance.
The first of Elena's friends to greet them was Matt who gave them an awkward smile and told Elena she looked pretty. He gave Rebekah a wary smile and then took off. Bonnie was next, sidling up to them to slyly inform them that they were already considered the best dressed couple at the dance and give Elena a conspiring look at their intertwined hands.
"So this is what it's like to date the prettiest girl in school?" Rebekah mused when Bonnie took off to find some of the other cheerleaders. Elena gave her a slightly abashed look but grinned at her teasingly.
"What? You aren't enjoying being the center of attention?" Elena asked, her eyes wide with pretend bewilderment. Rebekah rolled her eyes at her antics but shook her head.
"No, I'm enjoying it very much," she said matter-of-factly. Elena laughed.
They went to find drinks, Elena stopping every once in a while when someone demanded her attention.
It was a heady feeling for Rebekah, knowing that she was at the dance with the girl everyone wanted. It felt like winning—and Rebekah adored it.
Of course, every once in a while someone had something unfavorable to say, but no one dared say it to their faces, so only Rebekah heard the whispers from behind palms. If Elena was aware of it, she gave no indication. She'd been so used to being the center of attention in her early high school career that falling back into old habits was easier than riding a bicycle.
"I can't believe she brought a girl—"
Rebekah and Elena exchanged amused looks.
"I suppose in their opinion I'm probably the strangest date choice you could've made," Rebekah said candidly. Elena shrugged.
"I could've brought Katherine?" she suggested, and Rebekah had to laugh.
"Or my brother," Rebekah pointed out. Elena rolled her eyes, still unwilling to believe her insistence that he had any fond feelings toward her.
Elena caught a glimpse of Tyler, and remembering her conversation with Caroline in the store, she turned to Rebekah. She took a deep breath.
"When I told Caroline I was going with you she told me you threatened to steal her boyfriend and her popularity?" Elena raised an eyebrow at her.
Rebekah sighed, cursing the other blonde's big mouth.
"Yes, that was regrettable," she agreed. Elena scoffed.
"Regrettable?" she questioned, unsure of what she meant.
"Well I'm obviously not trying to steal her boyfriend anymore," Rebekah pointed out, gesturing to their clasped hands. Elena gave a conceding nod.
"And her popularity?"
"Well you see, that was before I figured out that there was a way for me to make my own popularity, but now I've got a plan, so I don't need hers," she explained.
Elena gave her a skeptical look.
"So am I a part of your plan?" she asked.
Rebekah smiled and squeezed her hand tightly—a quick pulse to reassure her. She raised her hand and gently tucked loose strands of her hair behind her ear, her fingers lingering too long on the curve of her jaw.
"You are my favorite part of my plan," Rebekah corrected. Elena blushed, but still gave her a scolding look. Rebekah rolled her eyes. "I could do it without you, but I don't want to," she offered simply, and that finally seemed to appease her.
"Okay," Elena said softly. "Does this mean you're going to be nice to Caroline when she comes to over to say hello?"
Rebekah heaved a dramatic sigh.
"Well I suppose I could be civil," she agreed reluctantly. Elena smiled.
"I'd try a step up from civil, she is my best friend after all," Elena reminded her.
"True," Rebekah agreed. She didn't relish the idea of being nice to Caroline—something about the perky blonde just rubbed her the wrong way—but she liked Elena enough to try for her.
"Better start practicing your nice face, because here she comes," Elena said, catching sight of Caroline making her way toward them in the crowd. "Be nice," she told Rebekah sternly.
When Caroline reached them she gave Elena a tiny smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. It faded when she saw their clasped hands, but she quickly pasted another one on.
"God that dress is perfect on you, Elena," she said, smiling fondly at Elena, something wistful in her eyes. Elena smiled and returned the compliment.
Rebekah's grip on Elena's hand tightened slightly. It was the way she looked at Elena that made Caroline Forbes so unbearable to Rebekah. When the younger vampire turned to Rebekah, she fought the urge to scowl at the almost accusatory look in her eyes. It wasn't her fault that the other girl had never worked up the courage to tell Elena how she felt. Rebekah had just been a little braver, that's all.
Almost hesitantly, Caroline had turned to Rebekah and given her an uneasy smile.
"I love your dress, Rebekah, it's really pretty," she said sincerely, and Rebekah cursed her. If she was trying that meant Rebekah had to too. Elena gave her an expectant look.
"Your hair looks very pretty," Rebekah offered, giving her a thin smile. She'd never been fond of sharing, and she was especially not fond of anyone who wanted what she had.
After several minutes of slightly painful conversation, Caroline slipped away to find Tyler. Rebekah tried not to heave a sigh of relief, but couldn't hold back a tiny exhalation.
Elena, catching the motion, squeezed her fingers and gave her a sweet little smile.
"Thank you," she said. It was then that Rebekah knew she'd be nice to Damon bloody Salvatore if it meant Elena would keep looking at her like that.
Rebekah tossed her head and gave her a nonchalant smile.
"It was much easier than I thought it would be," she admitted. Elena smirked and Rebekah couldn't help but laugh a little.
There was a brief respite where no one came to bother them, and Elena convinced Rebekah to dance with her—all too easily. She was so used to pouting and begging with Stefan that she'd forgotten what it was like to be with someone who wanted to dance as much as she did.
"I think people are finally used to the idea of us," Rebekah mused during a break from their dancing. Elena shook her head.
"No, they're just too drunk to care anymore," Elena assured her. Rebekah laughed out loud. Elena grinned.
"I think the only person who hasn't come to chat is my brother," Rebekah said, frowning slightly. "How very rude of him."
Elena shook her head and indicated with her chin toward Klaus's prowling figure.
"Speak of the devil," Elena told her wryly and Rebekah laughed.
"Try not to give him anymore hell, darling," Rebekah requested, smiling affectionately. Elena widened her eyes innocently.
"But I thought you said he liked it," she protested, grinning wickedly. Rebekah giggled.
"Yes he does," she agreed. "That's why you shouldn't do it. He doesn't need any encouragement."
Elena shook her head.
"Trust me, I'm not encouraging anything," Elena assured her. Rebekah grinned.
Klaus reached them and gave them a fondly bemused grin.
"My girls," he greeted them. Rebekah could've sworn Elena's eyes rolled back into her head.
"Hello Nik, nice to see that you've decided to grace us with your presence," Rebekah replied. Elena gave him a terse nod, and Rebekah couldn't fault her for it.
Klaus smiled mockingly back at them.
"Well you two have been awfully popular tonight, this is the first chance I've gotten to say hello without a crowd of admirers hovering around you," Klaus countered.
Rebekah gave a look.
"Like that ever stopped you before," she retorted. He laughed.
"True," he conceded. "Although I have to wonder, did you bring my lovely doppelganger as your date to shock everyone or because you actually wanted to?" Klaus questioned, giving her a searching look.
Rebekah returned it with a scornful look of her own.
"It doesn't take much to shock these people," she retorted dryly. "And I brought her because I wanted to."
He shrugged, unable to disagree.
"All right little sister, if you say so," he said, unusually agreeable. "If you break her heart, I'll slaughter you," he added, still speaking to his sister.
She gave him an affronted look.
"I'm your sister, shouldn't you be threatening her, not me?" Rebekah pointed out.
Klaus shook his head.
"I can't slaughter her, I need my doppelganger alive," he reminded her.
Rebekah glowered at him—somewhere between sincerity and mocking.
"Bastard," she hissed. He grinned at her charmingly.
"Actually, I quite literally am," he reminded her.
Elena glanced between the two of them with amused exasperation.
'Do you two ever stop needling each other?" she asked, feeling like she was in the middle of a volleyball match to the death.
As one, the Mikaelson siblings turned to look at her.
"No," they declared in unison.
She laughed a little at that.
Rebekah smiled and reached out to take her hand again. Elena slotted her fingers in hers and squeezed back tightly.
Klaus smiled fondly at Elena.
"Sweetheart, I hope you don't mind if I steal my sister for a moment?" he asked. Elena gave him a smile that was a fraction closer to genuine warmth.
"I'll go get a drink," she replied squeezing Rebekah's fingers again before she slipped her hand out of hers and headed over to the refreshments table.
Rebekah returned her attention to her brother.
"Well, what do you want?" she asked tersely, already suspecting why he wanted to speak with her.
He gave her a serious, searching look.
"What are you doing with her?" he demanded, confirming her suspicions. She glared at him.
"Having fun, dear Nik, have you heard of it?" she purred, her expression glacial. He rolled his eyes.
"She's not just one of your little fancies, Rebekah, she's my doppelganger," he reminded her. She gave him an affronted look.
"I assure you, I am well aware of who she is to you," she said, giving him a meaningful look. "But my relationship with her is no one's business but mine and hers."
She gave him a fiercely reproachful look. He returned it with one of his own.
"Just don't do anything you'll regret, if she breaks your heart," he said at last. She gave him an unimpressed look. "You have a tendency to overreact little sister, and Elena already has the reputation of being quite the heartbreaker," he explained.
Rebekah tossed her hair over her shoulder.
"I'm quite capable of behaving, thank you very much," she said primly. "And I have no intention of letting her break my heart," she added gravely.
He raised a questioning eyebrow at her.
She smiled mischievously.
"I'm playing for keeps." And it had never sounded more like a promise.
"You always play for keeps," Klaus pointed out, unimpressed by her bravado. Rebekah rolled her eyes at him.
"Yes," she agreed. "But I was playing with the wrong people."
"Well I suppose I should wish you luck then," Klaus replied grudgingly. She smirked.
"Don't be bitter just because you never had a chance in hell with her," she said.
The rest of the night could only be described as a disaster. Rebekah went searching for Elena, but couldn't find her anywhere. Then the elder Salvatore showed up with Mikael of all people, who had Elena within his grasp.
It was clear, that her father hadn't accounted for Rebekah's relationship with Elena, because he was completely taken by surprise when she slammed into him after he stabbed Elena. She threw them off the Lockwood's front porch and into the yard, slamming him into the ground so hard that she could hear the ground buckle beneath them, but she was up and off him, back on the porch, gathering Elena into her arms before he had time to blink.
Klaus fell upon him before he'd comprehended that she was gone, and then he was dead. Rebekah paid them no mind—she'd have time to process the death of her father later. Instead, she focused on the bleeding girl in her arms.
Elena looked so pretty in her white dress, and although she convulsed with pain and her mouth was stained red, red with blood, she didn't look anything less than angelic. It was probably because the wound was on her back; from the front it almost looked like there was nothing wrong with her. But Rebekah's knees were slick with her blood, her hand desperately trying to hold her wound together. She couldn't help but mourn for Elena's dress. Rebekah's could be cleaned; Elena's however, was ruined.
"It's ruined, I'm afraid, darling," Rebekah muttered almost nonsensically. Elena laughed, and Rebekah could see the blood staining her teeth. "It's a shame, you look so pretty in it." Rebekah sounded wistful.
"I'll live," Elena said dryly. Rebekah cursed those damned Salvatores under her breath. It didn't occur to her that Elena might've been in on the plan—the betrayed look on her face when she realized what was going on was too sincere to have been faked.
Rebekah choked back a laugh and then bit her wrist pressing it to her mouth, not waiting for Elena to ask for it herself. Elena sucked down her blood obediently. Rebekah let out a sigh of relief as she felt Elena's wound close up beneath her fingertips.
"There, that's much better, love," Rebekah muttered. Elena laughed.
"I definitely prefer not bleeding out," she agreed.
Rebekah insisted on walking Elena to her door. They'd left the dance before anyone could bombard them; Elena only allowing Klaus to see that she was unharmed because he'd have followed them home otherwise.
When Elena pointed her car toward the Salvatore Boarding House, Rebekah had firmly reminded her that she was a vampire and could find her own way home. So Elena drove them back to her house, and allowed Rebekah to walk her to her door without much of a fuss.
"So do you think there's some kind of prize for most interesting first date we could be awarded?" Rebekah questioned wryly. Elena let out a choked little laugh.
"Is it booze?" Elena asked. "Because booze would be nice."
Rebekah giggled.
"Darling, I think you've earned a drink or six," Rebekah told her. Elena nodded in agreement.
They stopped at the top step, and Elena leaned against a pillar. From this angle, Rebekah couldn't see the bloodstains, and if she hadn't been able to smell the coppery scent on the air, she might've been able to convince herself that it had never happened in the first place.
"Despite that whole 'Your Dad Tried to Kill Me' part, I really did have a good time," Elena assured her, smiling sweetly. Rebekah beamed back at her.
"So does that mean we're going to have a second date, love?" Rebekah asked hopefully.
Elena pretended to ponder it over, a serious look on her face. A sly grin slid across her pretty features and she nodded her head.
"Absolutely," she agreed.
"Even though my father tried to kill you and brother actually did?" Rebekah questioned, looking slightly apprehensive. Elena nodded solemnly.
"I'd never let a little thing like homicidal relatives get in my way," Elena said with a light shrug.
"You truly are something else, darling love," Rebekah marveled, smilingly admiringly at Elena.
Elena leaned over, taking Rebekah's chin in her hands and kissed her square on the mouth. It took Rebekah completely by surprise and sent delicious shivers down her spine. She sighed into the kiss and pressed her mouth against Elena's hungrily. After a long moment, Elena finally pulled out of the kiss.
It took a little while for Rebekah to regain her bearings, her eyes fluttering open slowly. She bit her lip, unwilling to admit that the kiss had left her more than a little weak in the knees.
"I'm surprised," Rebekah said at last. Elena cocked her head to the side and gave her a curious look, so she continued. "I didn't take you for the kind of girl who kissed on the first date," she admitted teasingly.
Elena smiled and shrugged lightly.
"Maybe not normally," she agreed. "But you called me 'darling love', how could I not kiss you?"
AN: Well there you go:) comments? Thoughts? Review!
xoxo
-Pixie