'Where does one go from a world of insanity?

Somewhere on the other side of despair.'

(T.S Eliot)

The bell rang out for afternoon classes to begin. The students flocked the corridors, bustling and pushing their way to their next lesson. Through the dim surrounding him Stefan could hear Matt's voice from the opposite side of the corridor.

"No, I haven't seen Elena since the beginning of lunch. She didn't look so good this morning, I mean she looked, well, fragile. She seemed really on edge".

"I wonder where she's gone..." said Caroline worriedly.

"Damon was with her when I left" Matt added in a low voice. Stefan could see Caroline's eyebrows raise in response.

"Well, that's a whole other problem isn't it" Caroline mumbled quietly under her breath.

Matt's brow furrowed, nodding gravely in agreement. "Shall we tell Stefan she's gone? I know we shouldn't babysit her, but-"

"No we should" Caroline said firmly. "I mean you'd want to know if your girlfriend, in a fragile state, had disappeared, last seen with the likes of Damon?...Especially with their history" she added in a hushed tone.

Caroline's words made Stefan's insides tighten at the thought of his girlfriend's 'history' with his brother. He knew there were things that happened between them when he was away, but neither had he particularly wanted to know. The guilt he felt for the hideous crimes he'd done in the time away from her, coupled with his relief that, even after all he had done, she had come running back to his arms, had been enough to repress any desire he had to find out.

Yet, now in the present, he felt unease. The night Elena had returned from Whitmore she'd cried and cried in his arms on her porch and despite her physical closeness to him she had been distant.. Stefan sighed to himself, don't be paranoid, she loves you, she chose you. She's just not herself right now. The blood lust was affecting her in ways Stefan did not like, her temper, her impulsivity, her bitter responses of late were not part of the girl he fell in love with. She wouldn't have to wait long, he prayed. The cure would come, and she would be herself once more.

Stefan decided to make an appearance. Walking up to Caroline he greeted her with a warm smile, she may be a gossip but Stefan cared greatly for Caroline. He admired her morality and control in being a vampire. He'd even stretch to say he was in awe of her at times, he thought to himself.

"Hey Caroline, you seen Elena anywhere? I haven't seen her this lunchtime" Stefan enquired casually.

"O-h yes, well no, I mean-" Caroline shook her blonde locks lightly, gathering her flustered state together."No I haven't seen her since this morning but Matt said she didn't look so great earlier, we think she's maybe with Damon? If you know where he is? She isn't answering her phone."

"No don't have a clue where he is. Last time I'd seen him he'd packed a bag and said he was off, to quote him: ' on a blood and booze vay-kay', and that was a week ago." Stefan said sourly.

"Charming" Caroline remarked with a mildly disgusted look on her face.

Stefan's phone rang from his pocket.

"Speak of the devil.."

Stefan's face turned to concern as Damon recounted Elena's disappearing act.

"So which direction was she running in?"

Down the phone Damon responded sarcastically along the lines of Elena not being like a homing pigeon that will only fly in one direction once released. After Stefan impatiently prompted him for an answer Damon replied that she went out via the back entrance of the labs as she'd set the alarms off, but bar that it was anybody's guess. Stefan hung up the phone and relayed the information to Matt and Caroline's worried faces.

Caroline was first to jump into action, clapping her hands she distributed the following orders:

"Well we can't stay here chatting, Stefan you come with me we'll check the playing fields at the back. Matt can you go find Jeremy and see if he's seen her?"

Along the now deserted corridor the group divided in search of Elena.

Elena sat slumped against the trunk of an old oak tree on the outskirts of the woodland. She repetitively ripped the grass up from underneath her, trying to calm her breathing, to no avail. She was starving, the hunger pulsed through her veins, hot and feverish, even her teeth and gums were aching from it. She felt like nothing more than a rabid dog, aggressive, psychotic, not longer wanted by society, she thought to herself..

She just had to feed.. She frantically looked around her, she could hear every branch break, every rustle of the leaves but to her disappointment all were caused by scrambling mice, rats, rabbits darting in and out of their burrows, crows flapping high in the trees.. Oh why can't I eat animals! She thought desperately to herself.

Suddenly she was brought to reality by the sounds of footsteps. Elena listened as she heard laughter and chatter. A deeper male voice was telling an amusing story about waking up in an alleyway after one too many and the twittering giggle of his female friend followed..

Elena darted upright, hiding behind the tree where she had been sitting. A kind of manic excitement was building inside her, it banished all remaining logic, she could smell their blood coursing through their veins, flowing like a heavenly river, calling to her..

She needed them to come her way.. She knew she must get them near her...

Almost as in a trance Elena took a branch from the forest floor and carved a deep wound into her leg, tearing through her jeans as she did so. She smeared the blood all around the ripped fabric...so even if the wound healed it still looked like an injury she thought to herself..

From her hiding place Elena crept from tree to tree towards the happy voices.. Louder and louder they came until Elena could see them only fifty metres ahead of her. Emerging from her hiding place Elena stumbled loudly to the ground.

"Argghh! Oh god! " she cried. Elena reached for her already healing wound, dry tearless sobs emitting from her.

"What was that? Look over there there's a girl!" she heard the girl exclaim pointing in Elena's direction.

"Oh, hey over here! P-Please help me!" Elena cried.

The couple ran towards her, reaching the clearing in the trees where Elena lay curled on her side. Elena's body trembled with anticipation.

"Are you ok? What happened?" the male stranger asked worriedly.

"My leg.. I-I fell over, I don't think I can walk" said Elena.

The man approached her frowning worriedly at her ripped and blood stained jeans. As he bent down to eye level, Elena looked into the man's eyes, and he looked back. His face turned to horror as he gazed into the cold abyss of Elena's eyes. The jet black of her pupils spread down in spidery webs under her eyes, a dark smile curled round her mouth, exposing her fangs.

"Neither of you will make a sound or move" Elena said glancing from the man in front of her to his shocked girlfriend standing a few feet behind him. The shock from their eyes faded to blankness as the compulsion set in.

Elena struck.

Her teeth plunged into the man's neck, causing blood to run down Elena's chin down to her chest. The taste was intoxicating, she gulped down more and more, unaware of the life seeping away from the human beneath her, the world had only one colour. Red.

Caroline and Stefan froze in the middle of the playing field. It wasn't human but they could both smell it. Blood.

Instantaneously they looked at the forest that lay before them and then at each other. With a nod, at full speed they ran, directed by the smell that grew ever stronger. They arrived at the edge of a clearing looking around for Elena.

There ahead they saw her. She was lying on the ground, cradling a wound which both Stefan and Caroline could see, even from the distance where they now stood, was healed. Two humans were there at her aid.

"What is she-" Stefan stopped, he heard Elena's command to stay still and silent. He couldn't believe what he was seeing, what Elena was doing.

" NO! Elena! Stop!" screamed Caroline. They raced towards her.

In a flash, Caroline wrenched Elena's jaw open and threw her backwards with massive force. Elena collided with the base of a tree with an almighty crack. The trunk of the oak had split down the middle with the power of her landing. Elena rested motionless, a pile of twisted limbs. Worry for Elena rested on Caroline's face before quickly returning to one of assertive determination. Caroline ran to the man, nearly drained of his life, who lay unconscious on the ground. She bit her wrist and pressed the flowing redness to his mouth. Caroline barked new compulsion at the frozen woman:

"Run away! None of this ever happened!"

Stefan crouched down beside Elena. "Elena, can you hear me? Elena!" Stefan shook her shoulder.

Elena's body slowly began to unfurl itself. The sound of bones snapping back into place filled the silent air as Elena untwisted her arm out from underneath her. She rolled herself up onto a crawl position, stretching out her back with a gut-wrenching click of her spine. Elena's head remained hanging down between her arms as she stayed on all fours, her dark hair obscuring her face.

Both Caroline and Stefan stared transfixed at the horrific sight.

"Elena?" Stephan asked tentatively.

Elena let out a feral growl. She stumbled to a half standing position, her posture stooped, shoulders raised, blood dripping from her snarling mouth. Elena whipped back her tangled hair from her face and lunged furiously at Caroline.