A/N: I do not own The Vampire Diaries

Songbird

The third time he saw her she was sitting alone as she watched couples twirl and dance in the small dance space. He was supposed to be heading east once more to take care of his family, but he could not stop himself from seeing her. He had spent a lot of such visits just watching over her as she dated and made friends, but he always found her when she was alone. One night he had watched her sleep on her couch from across the street, the television playing a movie he didn't care to recognize. He ached to touch her but he could not. His talks with the doppelganger, Elena, had renewed emotions for him he had repressed long ago, and made him wonder about another woman who captured a part of him with just a song in a bar.

Elijah strode over to her and held his hand out and he watched as her gaze met his in recognition. "May I have this dance?"

She stood, placing her hand in his as he wrapped his arm around her slender waist and led them onto the floor. He drank the vision in his arms in, as she did the same, waiting for her to speak. "Elijah?"

"I am pleased you remember me," he said and she smiled widely. Gone were the bruises, and most of the darkness in her eyes, all he saw was silver as she consumed him. He spun her around and then back into him and gripped her tight, relishing in the feel of her body against his after so long. He wondered if this was what it was like to experience what Elena and Stefan shared, or even the other Salvatore. He felt as if he was a starving man and she had water, he poisoned and she had the only cure.

"Of course, I never thought I'd see you again," she answered then her features changed into a blush, "is this about the jacket? I never got the chance to give it back to you."

For the second time in his long life, he let out a laugh that only the exquisite creature in his arms could cause. He continued to lead her around in a more intricate step as the songs changed but neither noticed the stares or whispers, they simply danced on. "No, I told you that you may keep it."

"Then why are you here? Family again?" she asked curiously.

"I came to see you, Miss Blake, just you."

"Call me Samantha or Sam, Miss Blake is too formal, especially since I don't know your own last name." Elijah spun her around and kissed the hand he held, not wanting the dance to end. It had been centuries since he had found someone whose presence he enjoyed more. She was his, none of his family knew she existed; none of them knew how deeply he cared, even if she was a human. He had kept his visits secret, watching over her from afar, just to have the chance to see her, reassure himself that he did have humanity, somewhere in the world.

"Samantha," he murmured and she felt herself weaken as he said her name. No one had ever made it sound as he did. As if she was a dying prayer, a wish that could never come true.

"Can you stay?" she said quietly, and he felt a moment of regret. "It's—it's ok, I understand," she stammered as she caught the sudden change in his eyes.

"I'm afraid I cannot, I am needed elsewhere. May I walk you home once more?" he inquired. What he had here, with her was alien to him. She didn't ask anything of him except how long he could stay, she knew nothing about his hidden nature, and she knew nothing of his family. She was innocent and he a monster. But as he held her, he didn't feel like one.

With her nod of assent, he led her back to where she'd been sitting as she gathered her purse and a shawl. Together they left the building, his hand still encompassing her own, both unwilling to pull away. Just like before, the walk to her home was silent, but peaceful. She had questions, where he'd been and what sort of family problems, what he did, why did he come to see her, but the quiet with him was far too familiar and welcoming to break.

Once they reached her home he stopped outside of her doorway but wordlessly she pulled him close, leaning her back against her door. His lips ghosted over her temple, down her cheek and the line of her jaw as he surrounded himself with her intoxicating and unique scent. He felt her heart race at his close proximity, but his hands didn't reach for her like she expected. She expected the heated contact she'd received from previous lovers, but he was different. Her hand remained in his while the other rested casually in his pants pocket as he explored the angles of her face and neck with his mouth. Instead of adolescent lust she felt only intimate passion, until his mouth finally reached hers.

"Come in," she breathed as his breath tickled her cheek. Elijah didn't answer, he just drowned in her. It took more control than he anticipated to pull himself away, to remind himself of who he was, who she was and what his mission was. He'd let himself forget because with her so near to him, he was not an Original vampire but a man. She was not a normal human but a woman. She was the woman he'd thought of and watched over without her knowing, she was undoing all that made him the person he'd spent centuries being.

"I must go," he said finally, wishing he didn't have to. But he did. He came only to check on her like always from a distance, and lost himself in the feeling she brought to life in him. "Think of me," he let himself kiss her just once before tearing himself away. She would never know that it hurt to do so, that he would return now with an invitation into her home, to take care of her.

From that evening on, he would take her to her room when she slept on the couch and leave a rose on her pillow or her counter. She never questioned it, the act never seemed malicious, and the flower, she knew who left it; even if she never saw him.