Time-line and setting: After episode 2.10 the Sacrifice - Stefan is still stuck in the tomb with Katherine. So Elena didn't make the deal with Klaus yet. It's winter.
Summary: After 'The sacrifice' Elena can't discern the difference between feeling trapped and feeling safe. It's up to Damon to clear things up.
Authors Note: Went with first person, present tense - I thought this could make for some interesting introspective moments, getting to know Damon and Elena. It's a bit of an experiment. So please tell me if and when I manage to botch it up. There will be a plot, somewhere in the near future ;)
Bitter Warmth
Chapter 1
Elena
I lift my fingers to the frosted glass, watching as the ice crystals slowly melt on the other side. The world outside is a beautiful cold white. It's 3 in the morning. The sensible part of Mystic Falls still sleeps. But I can't sleep, and I'm most certainly not sensible enough to do so.
/Get your ass out the door before I throw you over my shoulder and carry you out myself./
Damon's words still ring loud in my head. His gaze chilly, his body strong and solid, bearing down on me. I know he cares, too much. But I doubt he actually enjoys it.
The house is silent, warm. I should stay inside. It's much safer.
I thought I wanted to be safe. A normal life. Life. But there's no turning back. I am snared, waiting to be poached, simply because someone wants to use my blood. Use me, because it seems I only exist to be used. Because I look like her.
The house suffocates me. My bedroom feels smaller than before.
I pull a woolen vest over my sweater and add a second layer of socks. I trap my boots under my elbow as I descent the wooden stairs. The steps seem to agree with me for once, staying blissfully silent. Only two hurdles left.
I quietly grab my coat - One.
I unlock the door - Two.
I succeed at both, though the latter seems to echo loudly through the house. My heart thumps as I wait a few long seconds, holding the door open. There are no frantic out-of-bed noises coming from upstairs, no curious voices calling out. The sensible people of Mystic falls are still sleeping. Once outside and on the porch I pull on my boots and button up my coat.
I am not going to do something stupid. I'm not planning to throw myself in to the tomb. I just need to be closer. He's in there, with her. And she looks so much like me.
It's immediately obvious I can't take the car. Starting the engine would wake up the entire neighborhood. And if that wouldn't do the trick, having to scratch the thick layer of ice from the windows would.
I pull up the edges of my collar, regretting the absence of my scarf. As I slide my bare hands into the pockets of my coat I also realize that mittens would not be considered an added luxury.
I stubbornly trudge onward, willing myself to walk away from the house.
Damon
The light in her bedroom is still on. It's not an unusual sight, not even at 3 o clock in the morning. I can see her shadow at the window. She briefly touches the glass with her fingers.
She moves away, bending over. Pulling something on. Then the light switches off.
She wouldn't...-
She would.
The stupidity of this girl eludes even me. Still, she seems to have wrapped me around her dainty little finger.
I care.
I made a promise.
Two of many reasons why I'm here, watching her. Making sure she's safe.
I silently curse as I hear her descending the stairs inside the house. A rustle of cloth follows and then the loud 'click' of the front door unlocking.
Her aunt, even her oblivious brother must have heard the door unlocking. But nothing happens, the residents of the house sleep on in blissful ignorance.
As Elena steps outside and pulls on her boots - I step back, behind the trees, letting the shadows fold in. I should confront her, stop her right now. But something in the set of her shoulders holds me back. Perhaps it's simple curiosity. Wanting to see how far she'll go, for him.
She is fragile, cold. And not at all properly dressed for a midwinter adventure. I can see her hesitation, a tiny flicker of it, before her stubborn nature wins out and she walks away from her house.
