Disclaimer: I, of course, don't own the Vampire Diaries. Never have, never will. I'm just playing around with the story!
Reviewers and Replies:
delenawolves: Well, he's back in this chapter! Thank you for the review! I hope you like this chapter as much as the last one!
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-TBTST-
"Evette, this way, ma chérie," Jacqueline, Evette's mother calls as she and Evette shop for fabrics at the markets. Sixteen year old Evette looks up from the various artifacts at a stand, and lifts up the skirts of her dress, before running to her mother's side. "No running, Evette. It is not lady like."
"Mère," Evette groans.
"Honestly, Evette, you will never find a husband acting that way," Jacqueline scolds, and Evette sighs, before looking down at her feet, completely oblivious of the man who stands yards away from the two women, looking at Evette with an expression that holds nothing but complete shock.
-TBTST-
"Merci," Evette says to the woman as she picks up the three different spools of thread to take back to her mother, weeks after their trip to the markets for fabric. Evette begins her journey back to her home, humming an old lullaby softly as she walks.
"You have a lovely voice," a man says behind her, and Evette gasps before turning around, seeing a handsome man with dark hair and dark eyes watching her with a small smile. Evette smiles back, blushing slightly.
"Merci, monsieur" Evette says, curtsying slightly.
"Elijah," he corrects her, taking one of her hands in his and kissing the back of it gently.
"My name is Evette," she says, smiling slightly.
"Evette… A name almost as beautiful as you are," Elijah says, and smiles gently upon seeing the blush that touches her pale cheeks.
-TBTST-
Summer groans as beads of sweat begin to form on her forehead. She hears the door open and she pries her eyes open and sees Stefan enter the room with a damp rag and a glass of water.
"Hey," he says, smiling, and she takes a deep breath. "Here, try drinking some of this. You need to stay hydrated," he says, and she nods weakly. She feels the bed sink a little bit next to her, and she groans as Stefan lifts her up a bit. He allows her to lean against him and she takes a drink of the water through the straw that Stefan put in the glass. When the first bit of water touches her lips she shakily reaches up and takes the glass from Stefan, realizing how thirsty she actually is, and she takes the straw out of the glass and tosses it on the bed before quickly gulping down the water.
Stefan takes the glass from her and puts it on the nightstand by the bed in one of the guest rooms of the boarding house, and helps her lie back down. He folds the cloth up, and puts the cool cloth across her forehead, making Summer sigh with blatant relief.
"Elena un-daggered Elijah," Stefan says, and Summer lets her eyes slide shut.
"He can help us," Summer rasps out before clearing her throat. "Elena can talk him into helping us."
"I think he'd be more persuaded by you," Stefan says, looking down at her.
"But Elena's my best friend… He'll listen to her," she says, opening her eyes a bit and looking up at him.
"How do you know?" Stefan asks, frowning.
"I don't know how… I just know," she says, shutting her eyes, and falling back into unconsciousness. Stefan sighs as he looks down at her unconscious form, and he stands, but frowns when his hand brushes against her arm. He reaches down and touches her arm again and his eyebrows shoot to his hairline when he feels the temperature of her skin. He quickly places a hand on her cheek, and he frowns, concerned when he finds that it's the same high temperature as her arm, and he touches the cloth and takes it off of her forehead when he discovers that the once cold cloth is already warm. Stefan quietly walks out of the bedroom, and back downstairs.
"She's burning up," Stefan says upon seeing Damon.
"Now she has a fever," Damon says with a sigh.
"No… No this is worse than a fever."
-TBTST-
"Elijah, may I ask you something?" Evette asks as she and Elijah walk down a path, her hand in the crook of his offered arm.
"Of course," Elijah answers, looking down at the shorter blonde.
"Have… Have you ever been in love?" Evette asks, and she sees Elijah's facial expression change slightly. "I apologize. I should not have asked."
"No, you do not have to apologize for simply asking a question, Evette," Elijah says.
"It is none of my business," Evette says, looking up at Elijah apologetically.
"I have," Elijah says after a few long moments. "Once. It was long ago."
"What was it like?" Evette asks, her eyes alight with curiosity.
"It was… Indescribable. It was one of the most powerful feelings I have ever experienced," Elijah says, softly.
"What happened to the one you loved? If you do not mind me asking," Evette asks.
"She was killed… Tragically," he says, his face going blank before looking down at her.
"I… I am sorry, Elijah," Evette says, her blue eyes wide.
"No, you need not apologize, Evette," Elijah says, smiling softly at her.
"I feel as if I should. No one should ever go through that. Especially not you," Evette says, and Elijah feels his dead heart warm at her words and the genuine look in her familiar beautiful blue eyes.
-TBTST-
"Do you think that I am odd?" Evette asks Elijah, looking up at him inquisitively.
"Of course not. Why would you ask such a thing?" Elijah asks and Evette gives him a look.
"I see the looks people give me. I hear the way they talk. They think me as odd since I do not have a husband," Evette says softly.
"Evette," Elijah says, demanding her attention. "Why would you ever listen to a thing that others say? I thought you better than that," Elijah says, and Evette looks away, but he places a hand on her cheek, keeping her face turned towards his. "I believe it to be admirable that you wish to marry for love, and not because it is what is believed to be acceptable. You deserve love. You deserve a man that can give you all the love you desire. You deserve the best."
"Do you really think so?" she asks, her eyes staring into his.
"I know so," Elijah responds, kissing her gently on the forehead.
-TBTST-
At the Lockwood Mansion, Elijah and Elena stand outside in the garden talking.
"You found a way to save the life of the doppelganger?" Elena asks, frowning.
"Yes, Elena. I did. But unfortunately, Katerina took matters into her own hands first. I believe you already know how that played out," Elijah responds.
"You cared about her, didn't you?" Elena asks, and Elijah smirks slightly.
"No. It wasn't me that cared about Katerina," Elijah responds. "I cared deeply for the woman who befriended Katerina. She begged me relentlessly to help her find a way to save her friend, so I did what was requested of me, and two hundred years later, Katerina betrayed her in the worst way."
"How?" Elena asks, curiously.
"She took her life," Elijah says, looking at Elena, his already dark eyes darkening even further with anger. Elijah hands Elena her jacket and walks away, and Elena follows after him. The two of them leave the mansion, and head back to the boarding house. "What has become of Summer in my absence?" Elijah asks, not being able to fight the feeling of betrayal as he speaks her name.
"Please… Don't be angry with her. She was just trying to protect me," Elena says, looking at Elijah pleadingly, and sighs when his face remains blank as he stares out the windshield. "I… We don't know what's wrong with her actually. She's been really sick since yesterday."
"Sick, how?" Elijah asks, frowning.
"Yesterday when I first saw her she was really weak and pale. I convinced her to go home half way through the day to rest, and when I saw her later last night she looked better, and she said that she felt better, but then almost an hour later, she collapsed. She's been at the boarding house since then, and she was unconscious and running a really high fever when I went to see Jenna," Elena says, glancing at Elijah worriedly.
"I see," Elijah says simply.
"Do… Do you know what's wrong with her?" Elena asks.
"I have my suspicions… I just hope that I'm wrong."
-TBTST-
Stefan walks into the library of the boarding house and he holds both of his hands up when Jenna looks at him, frightened.
"I won't hurt you Jenna," Stefan says, and Jenna continues to stare at him warily. "I need your help with something."
"What?" Jenna asks, frowning, and Stefan gestures for her to follow him. Jenna hesitantly rises from her seat on the couch and follows Stefan out of the room. He leads her to a door, and he pushes it open, and enters the room. Jenna walks into the room behind him, and her eyes widen when she sees Summer lying on a bed, drenched in sweat, clad in only a tank top and a pair of shorts. Jenna quickly approaches the bed, and touches the side of Summer's face, but quickly pulls her hand back with a gasp at the temperature of Summer's skin. She glares, and immediately rounds on Stefan. "What did you do to her?" she snarls, taking a step closer to the vampire.
"I didn't do anything to her. She's been sick since yesterday. We don't know what's wrong with her," Stefan says, and Jenna's face softens slightly. "I just need your help taking care of her. I think it would do her some good to have you here with her."
"Why didn't you take her to a hospital?" Jenna asks, sitting down on the edge of the bed beside Summer.
"Because this is more extreme than any human illness I've ever seen," Stefan says and Jenna frowns at him. "We think this may have something to do with what Summer is."
"You mean the… Phoenix thing?" Jenna asks, still having trouble believing everything, and Stefan nods.
"Jenna?" the pair of them hear Summer ask weakly, and Jenna's head quickly snaps in Summer's direction before she puts on a small smile upon seeing the girl looking up at her.
"Hey, Summer," Jenna says, pushing back some of Summer's sweat drenched hair. "You need anything?"
"Water," she responds, clearing her throat. Jenna turns to look at Stefan, who nods and before he can leave, Damon enters with a glass of cold water. He walks around to the other side of the bed, and sits down. Damon and Jenna both carefully lift Summer into a sitting position, and he lifts the glass to her lips, letting her take a few small drinks out of it before handing it to Jenna. She places it on the nightstand beside the bed, and helps Damon lie Summer back down on the bed.
Jenna watches as Stefan and Damon leave the room afterwards, and she stays with Summer, occasionally taking the rag from her forehead, and re-soaking it with cold water. Jenna internally begins to panic when she feels the temperature of Summer's skin rise more than before, and she shakes her head.
"What is going on with you?" Jenna asks, quietly, before standing up and exiting the room. She quickly goes downstairs and finds Stefan, Elena, and she's surprised to see Elijah standing in the living room as well.
"Jenna?" Elena asks, and Jenna sighs before shaking her head.
"Her temperature keeps rising. We should take her to a hospital or something," Jenna says, and she watches carefully as Elijah takes a few steps toward her.
"Where is she?" he asks seriously, and Jenna frowns.
"This way," Stefan says, taking off in the direction of Summer's room, and Elijah follows him. Elena and Jenna look at each other before following the two vampires. When they reach the bedroom that Summer is in, Stefan quietly opens the door, and Elijah walks inside. He slowly walks to the bed, taking in Summer's semi-conscious form. He carefully takes a seat on the edge of the bed, and reaches out, removing the cloth from her head, and he gently presses a hand to her forehead. He frowns at the temperature, and takes a deep breath through his nose, and he stiffens when he notices the change in her scent.
"Do you know what's wrong with her?" Elena asks, staring at her friend, frowning with concern.
"Yes," Elijah says with a subtle sigh. "What Summer's going through isn't an ordinary sickness. It seems as though she's going through her transition early."
"What? How is that possible?" Elena asks, her frown deepening. Elijah regards her for a few moments before looking back down at Summer, and he brushes his hand over her forehead. He frowns slightly when she groans a bit, and her eyes crack open a bit.
"Elijah," she whispers, and Elijah smiles gently at her.
"Hello, Summer," he says, and she sighs.
"What's… What's wrong with me?" she asks, opening her eyes a bit more.
"You've started your transition," Elijah says, placing one of his hands on hers. "I need you to tell me what happened two days ago that could have started this," he says, seriously.
"It was Klaus," she says, clearing her throat when her voice cracks. "He had a warlock do a spell… He wouldn't tell me what it was."
"No, you're right. This would be Klaus' doing. He would need you to be a full phoenix for the ritual," Elijah says, and Summer sighs before shutting her eyes again, and she groans a bit when her temperature rises.
"Isn't there something you can do?" Elena asks when she sees Summer's face contort slightly.
"The only thing any of us can do is to keep her resting. Unfortunately, the worst has yet to come," Elijah says, gazing down at the blonde. After a few moments of silence, Stefan quietly ushers Jenna and Elena out of the room, pulling the door shut behind them. Elijah rises from the bed, but looks down when Summer's overheated hand grasps his.
"Please, don't leave," she whispers, her blue eyes looking up at him pleadingly. Elijah closes his hand around her smaller one and gives her a small smile.
"I'm not going anywhere," he says, and shrugs his suit jacket off, and places it on a chair in the room. He rolls the sleeves of his white dress shirt up to his elbows, and Summer watches him through half-lidded eyes.
"How long does it last?" Summer asks tiredly.
"I'm afraid your transition won't be complete until tomorrow. The entire process lasts exactly seventy-two hours," Elijah says, looking at her apologetically.
"You said that it's gonna get worse," Summer states, shutting her eyes.
"Yes. The best thing that you can do is to rest," Elijah says, watching her closely. He listens as her breathing evens out, and knows that she'd once again, slipped into unconsciousness.
-TBTST-
"My brother fancies you," Rebekah says to Viktoria who is knelt behind her and braiding her hair. She hears Viktoria let out an exasperated noise.
"You have lots of brothers, 'Bekah. Would you care to tell me which one? Oh… Please tell me it is not Kol," Viktoria says, her eyes wide, and Rebekah giggles lightly.
"No, it is not Kol. But you know exactly which brother I am talking about," Rebekah says as Viktoria finishes braiding her hair. The younger girl feels her hair and a pleased smile appears on her pretty face, and she turns around to face her older friend. Her smile widens when she catches a blush on Viktoria's face.
"I am afraid that I have not the slightest idea of who you speak of," Viktoria mumbles, and Rebekah laughs.
"Judging by the blush upon your cheeks, I would say that you know exactly who I speak of. And that you fancy him as well," Rebekah says, and Viktoria's blush deepens, making Rebekah laugh delightfully. "Oh Elijah will be so pleased."
"Rebekah if you say anything-," Viktoria starts, but Rebekah holds her hands up in a surrendering motion.
"I will not breathe a word. That is for you to do on your own," Rebekah says, and Viktoria sighs.
"I do not see what good it would do. He seems to have taken quite the interest in Tatia," Viktoria mutters darkly.
"That Tatia wench is nothing but a fleeting interest for him. I have never once heard him speak of Tatia the way he speaks of you," Rebekah says with a grin. "Besides you are far more beautiful than she."
"You are only saying such things because I am your friend," Viktoria says, rolling her eyes.
"You are far too oblivious for your own good, Viktoria," Rebekah says, frowning slightly. "Just yesterday when he saw you with that boy Jakob, I was certain his eyes would turn green with envy."
"Jakob? But he was doing nothing more than assisting me in taking supplies to Ayana," Viktoria says, frowning, and Rebekah smiles.
"He is not fond of seeing you with other men," Rebekah says, and glances to her left before her smile widens. "He is staring at you again."
"What?" Viktoria asks, looking in the direction that Rebekah had glanced in, and she indeed finds Elijah's dark eyes watching her. When their eyes lock, the dark-haired male sends the blonde a smile. Viktoria reciprocates the gesture before looking away, and she narrows her eyes at Rebekah who laughs.
"I do hope the two of you will stop acting so shy and admit that you fancy one another. I simply will not tolerate that dull wench Tatia marrying my brother and becoming my sister," Rebekah mutters, ignoring the look Viktoria throws her.
-TBTST-
Hours after she had once again fallen into unconsciousness, Summer is awakened by a harsh coughing fit. She turns from her back to her side, coughing roughly into her hand. She barely registers the comforting hand on her back as she coughs and once she's finished, she pulls her face away from her hand, and she frowns deeply when she sees that said hand is covered in blood. Summer let's a small panicked noise sound from her sore throat.
"Shh," Elijah whispers, as he grabs the cold, damp cloth that he'd been periodically changing, from the bed where it dropped from her forehead, and he gently cleans the blood from her hand. He gently turns Summer over onto her back, and walks into the bathroom that is attached to the bedroom, and quickly finds a new cloth, and drenches it with cold water. He wrings the water out of the rag and takes it back into the bedroom. He folds the rag and places it on her forehead, sighing slightly when she groans with relief.
"It's too hot in here," Summer rasps out, looking up at Elijah.
"I know. This part won't last much longer," Elijah says, and Summer shuts her eyes. Elijah looks at the door when Elena quietly pushes it open. Elena looks past Elijah and frowns at the state that Summer is in.
"She looks worse than before," Elena says, setting the glass of cold water that she'd brought with her down on the nightstand. She moves closer to Summer, and places a hand on her friend's cheek, and she quickly pulls it away when she feels how warm she is. "Why is her temperature so high?"
"As a phoenix her body temperature will be higher than normal. While the average human body temperature is 98.6 degrees, hers will be around 103 to 104.3 degrees. This is just her body's way of preparing itself for the adjustment," Elijah explains, and Elena nods.
"It's her, isn't it?" Elena asks, suddenly, and Elijah merely lifts an eyebrow slightly. "She's the one you cared about… The one that was friends with Katherine. It was one of Summer's past lives," Elena says, and Elijah doesn't do a thing to approve or deny Elena's statement. "That's why you want Katherine to pay. Because she killed two of Summer's past lives."
"You're much smarter than I originally gave you credit for, Elena," Elijah says, and Elena lets a small grin slip onto her face.
The next time Summer regains consciousness, she sees that it had grown dark outside. She looks around the room, and sees Elijah sitting on the far side of the room in a chair, reading a book. The only light at all in the room is the light coming from the table lamp next to Elijah. She sighs lightly when she finds that the overwhelming heat has passed, but a subtle nauseas feeling had settled in its place.
"How are you feeling?" Elijah asks from his place in the room, and Summer frowns as the nausea grows stronger.
"Like I'm gonna be sick," Summer says, and she struggles to get up from the bed. Elijah quickly blurs over to her, and picks her up before blurring her to the bathroom. He sets her down in front of the toilet just in time for her to violently throw up. He keeps her hair pulled back in one of his hands, while his other hand rests on her back. Summer opens up her eyes once she finishes retching into the toilet, and she shakes her head when she sees that her vomit mostly consists of stomach acid, water, and blood. "Is… Is that supposed to happen?" Summer asks when she spies all of the blood.
"The Salvatores told me that they each tried giving you blood to heal you when you collapsed the previous night. That isn't your blood," Elijah says, attempting to sooth the girl. "Right now, your body is cleansing itself before you complete the transition," he says, lifting her into his arms and taking her back to the bed, and lying her down gently.
"Please tell me it's not gonna get any worse," Summer groans, clutching her stomach, and turning onto her side.
"I'm afraid not. The worst part of your transition will happen at the very end. It's very brief, but it's painful," Elijah says, bluntly and Summer shuts her eyes tightly.
"And does this last until then?" Summer asks, referring to the cramping feeling in her stomach.
"No, as soon as your body is fully cleansed, the pain will subside," Elijah says, reassuringly.
"Is there anything we can do to maybe speed this part along? This is like… Cramps on steroids," Summer says, and Elijah gives her a small smile while brushing some of her blonde hair back away from her face with his hand.
"Unfortunately the only thing you can do is to just wait it out," Elijah says, and Summer sighs. Minutes turn to hours, and the stomach cramps that Summer experiences gradually get worse, and are accompanied by a throbbing headache.
"I want my mom to be here," Summer whispers as tears leak from her eyes due to the pain she's experiencing.
"Summer-," Elijah starts, frowning down at the girl.
"Please, Elijah? Please, I really want my mom," Summer cries, pressing the heels of her hands to her forehead. Elijah watches her for a few moments, his frown deepening, before he nods.
"I'll be back shortly," he says, before rising from the bed, retrieving his suit jacket, and making to exit the room. He pulls open the door, and sees Damon leaning against the wall beside the door.
"I'll stay with her," he says, and Elijah regards him for a few moments before nodding, and fully leaving the room. Damon watches as he walks down the hallway for a few moments before he walks into the room. Damon frowns at the sight of Summer clutching her head while tears roll down her face. He walks over and slowly sits down on the bed beside her. Summer opens her eyes slightly, and looks up at him, and she sighs when he smiles slightly at her. "That bad, huh?" he asks.
"I think I'm dying," she croaks, shaking her head slightly.
"That's a little melodramatic," Damon quips, and Summer glares at him through her tears causing Damon to raise his hands in a surrendering fashion. "You're looking a little better, if it helps."
"It doesn't," Summer grumbles, wiping the tears off of her cheeks. Suddenly, Summer's stomach lurches violently, and her hand flies to her mouth. Damon stands quickly, and lifts her off of the bed and blurs her to the bathroom, setting her down by the toilet, and he cringes a bit as she begins to retch violently while leaning over the toilet. Summer opens her eyes quickly as soon as she finishes, and she sighs when she sees no traces of blood in her vomit that only consists of stomach acid and water again. "He said that this was my body cleansing itself… But I seriously doubt that I have anything left to throw up."
"Thank god for that. That was disgusting," Damon says, and she narrows her eyes at him.
"Screw you," Summer bites out at him, and Damon smirks.
"You're a little too sick for that, princess," Damon says, and he chuckles heartily when Summer gives him the finger. "Come on, lets get you back to bed," he says, and easily lifts Summer into his arms. He gently lays her back on the bed, and sits down next to her. "Feel better after that?"
"A little," she admits, still in pain, but not as much as minutes before.
"Well, think positively. You only have until tomorrow, and then your transition is finished. Plus, Elijah said that this sick phase won't last for much longer. Maybe it's starting to go away now," Damon says, and Summer nods slightly.
"Maybe," she groans, putting a hand on her stomach. Damon sits with Summer for a few more minutes before he hears Elijah returning with Summer's mother.
"Where is she?" he hears a woman's voice ask frantically.
"Your mom's here," Damon says, and Summer looks up at him. Seconds later the door is flung open, and Summer's mom is immediately at her daughter's side.
"Mom," Summer says weakly, smiling at Allison, and Allison gives Summer a small smile in return.
"Hi, honey. How are you feeling?" Allison asks.
"It hurts, momma," Summer says, and Allison frowns, before stoking her adopted daughter's hair lightly. "Mom, I-," Summer starts, but Allison shakes her head.
"Elijah explained everything, sweetie," Allison says, and Summer frowns.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about anything," Summer says, looking at her mother apologetically.
"I already know about vampires, Summer," Allison says, and Summer's frown deepens. "I'm part of the Council, honey. We all know about vampires."
"Why didn't you ever tell me?" Summer asks, and Allison raises an eyebrow at her.
"Why didn't you tell me that you knew?" Allison asks, and Summer shuts her mouth tightly. "Exactly."
-TBTST-
A/N: And there's chapter 10! I hope you all liked it! Next chapter is the big one where Summer finally completes her jumpstarted transition!
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