Xxxx
Damon shuffled into the kitchen where he found Elena nursing a cup of coffee. Her hair was pulled into a messy bun on the top of her head and she still wore her blue flannel bottoms and white tank top pajamas. She looked up at him and offered a small smile as she sipped at the mug.
He eyed her for a moment, trying to decide how to approach the subject that kept him wide awake the entire night.
"There's more coffee," she nodded towards the pot on the counter.
He pulled a mug from the cabinet and a bottle of whiskey, filling it half way. With his back turned to her he scrunched his eyes and took in a deep breath, "There's something you need to know."
"What's that?" she asked, her voice still hoarse from sleep.
He took a swig of the whiskey and set it back on the counter louder than he intended. He gripped the counter top tightly keeping his back to her, "Some of the memories involving me and…me and Stefan. They are going to be…difficult."
"Difficult?" her tone turned sharper.
He let his head fall back and he stared at the ceiling. He really needed to paint it. It was getting all kinds of discolored. He jumped when he felt Elena's arms wrap around his waist. He turned around in her arms and met her eyes questioningly.
"You're going to have to tell her better than that…" she smiled coyly, standing on tip toes to nip at his nose.
He groaned loudly, "Goddammit Katherine." He breathed her in smelling Elena and then glanced at her attire.
"I never said I was her, she offered her jammies last night. They aren't my usual nighttime choice but they will do in a pinch."
Stefan stalked in suddenly, stopping only briefly to quirk an eyebrow at Katherine's arms around Damon before stating, "Elena said the memories have started."
"Better I go soften the blow?" Katherine tossed over her shoulder as she made her way towards the stairs. She didn't have to walk far, Elena pushed past her into the kitchen and wordlessly grabbed a coffee mug. She yanked the whiskey from the counter and stalked out of the room.
"Uh oh…" Katherine murmured, sending a knowing look towards Damon before following Elena.
Damon and Stefan hovered at the doorway to the living room and watched as Katherine joined Elena on the couch.
"Out with it, what memories did you get?" Katherine demanded.
"I just can't believe he would do that…" Elena whispered, her face crumpling.
Katherine rolled her eyes at the little girl's sniffling and asked again, this time through gritted teeth, "Which memory?"
Elena took a sip from the bottle of amber colored liquid, grimacing a little, "Your father. He hit you when you told him you were pregnant."
Elena shuddered as she repeated the rest, "And your mother…she just stood there as you fell to the ground."
Katherine snatched the bottle and stalked to the window, visibly disturbed at her locked down memories being on display in detail.
"Why didn't you get up and run?" Elena asked, her voice so small, so naïve. Such a child.
Katherine gulped down several mouthfuls of whiskey, knuckles white around the neck of the bottle. After she wiped at her mouth with the back of her hand she muttered towards the window, "Because I loved him. Didn't you feel that?"
Elena was quiet then but Katherine found her staring at her upon turning slowly around.
"I felt guilty and shamed. I felt scared and sick," Elena admitted, pity evident in her tone.
Katherine looked away and shook her head slightly, muttering, "Exactly," before stalking out of the room, her shoulders brushing stiffly past the brothers.
Xxxx
The memories continued in snippets during naps and in what seemed like days' worth during the night. Elena enjoyed the ones from Katherine's childhood the most. They were the least eventful but it was the only time Elena could relate to the little identical child in her dreams.
Katherine continued to hound her every time Elena's eyes popped open but she was quick to wave her hand to silence Elena if it was a human memory. Elena wrote everything down in her journal though, the need to tell someone seemed imperative, even if it was only a memory of the first time Katherine rode a horse or lost a tooth.
Damon and Stefan had become withdrawn and hard to talk to. She knew it was because they had grown worried for her. She had trouble keeping her eyes open and the desire to feed was lessoning despite her obvious physical fatigue.
Damon was the one to coax her into blood bags and sometimes French toast. He never asked, just left a blood bag on her pillow or a plate by her bed. She knew it was him because she smelled his scent all over her room. He smelled of anxiety and something she couldn't put her finger on. She was still getting used to all the smells and sounds that she never picked up on as a human.
It was nice to smell the grass in Katherine's memories. It's muted and crisp under the burning sun like it should be; not intense and searing like it is to her vampire senses. It burns her eyes like onions now.
Xxxx
Elena's face was white as a sheet and pools of sweat gathered on her forehead. The sheets tangled against her damp body as she writhed and moaned. She sat up suddenly, a scream escaping her mouth followed by body wrecking sobs.
All three of them reached her doorway at the same time, bursting into the room. Stefan left Damon, who's mouth was slightly agape, at the doorway and rushed to her side. He knelt by the bed on his knees and reached to touch her face.
Before he could, she was out of the bed and wrapping her arms around Katherine, who stood frozen. Elena sobbed into her hair, whispering "I'm so sorry" over and over.
Katherine finally pushed her away and sank to the floor, her eyes glazing over. Elena sunk down with her, hugging herself tightly and rocking back and forth still choking on sobs.
"Stop crying," Katherine murmured dully.
Elena tried and failed, the tears wetting the entire sides of her face.
"STOP CRYING" Katherine shouted this time, her eyes ablaze.
"I'm sorry. Your baby…your family…" Elena's chest heaved between waves of utter despair.
Stefan shuffled on his knees to come closer to the two identical woman. Damon followed suit until they were all seated on the floor in a circle. The room was dim except for a large candle that flickered next to Elena's bed. She had fallen asleep reading when another batch of memories came over her. It was like a dream she couldn't wake from but the pain was real. She felt everything and it didn't go away upon waking. It was a part of her now and she just wanted to turn it off.
It was a strange moment for them all. Elena reaching for Katherine's hands; Katherine's shoulders sagging and eyes spilling over with long overdue tears; Damon placing a hand on both women's knees; Stefan rubbing small circles on both women's backs.
"You didn't even get to hold her," Elena said sadly.
"For that I'm grateful. Can you imagine having to let go of her. ..Mama was right," Katherine mumbled.
"Yes, she was," Elena agreed.