"How's catching up on your work coming?" Damon asked as he started to change Alaric's diaper.
Elena moaned an indiscernible sound, sinking into her books.
"Illness isn't just expensive… it's time consuming."
"If your professors aren't understanding of the situation, you know, we could just call Tyler up and see if he fancies a snack."
"Ha ha. I don't think Caroline would appreciate that very much." Elena growled.
Damon finished wrapping the diaper. Alaric gurgled and smiled in appreciation. He kissed the boy's forehead and set him on the ground. Alaric waddled off to play with his toys in the corner of the living room.
"What if we were vampires again? Then we could just compel them to give you a break." Elena nearly dropped her book.
"What did you say?"
Damon watched Alaric chew on a brightly colored plastic toy.
"Would it be so bad? We could live longer, watch over our children and their children's children. Make sure that bastard Klaus never got his hands on them, and I'm sure there are more supernatural beings that want doppelganger blood. I wouldn't have to worry about you collapsing on me anymore... plus, you could avoid those wrinkles and white hairs that you think I don't see you checking for every morning. " He smirked at her.
"Oh don't you try to make this into a lighthearted conversation." Elena set her book down and stared at him, trying to read past the typical Damon smoke and mirrors and find the true reason behind this topic. "I think they might have a harder time explaining their incredibly young parents when they get to high school and college. More than that… as vampires, we were frozen not just outside, but inside. We didn't discover that until we turned human and started to really change and develop with our bodies. I've loved experiencing that with you. Would you really trade that in?"
"For the right price." Damon replied, his eyes still trained on Alaric.
Elena looked down at her stomach. She had definitely thought about it… but she really was enjoying humanity. It wasn't just that they could conceive now- everything was brighter, everything was more beautiful because the end was always in sight. She didn't fear death the way she thought she would. She didn't miss craving blood, either.
"Are you sure you aren't projecting your grey hair fear on me? I've seen you checking the mirror as well, buddy, so don't pretend I'm the only paranoid one in this house." Elena said playfully.
"I know you aren't. I've seen how Alaric eyes those toys, like they're going to come alive and get him. Do you know why he was crying last night? That cute stuffed pig we got him said it was going to eat him in his dream." Damon walked over and sat down in the play area next to his son. Alaric squealed with delight. He carefully picked out a toy and handed it to him expectantly.
"I don't know, Damon. This isn't something we can just talk about once." Elena sighed, rubbing her hand over her bulging stomach again.
"I know. But it might not be such a bad thing to start thinking about." Damon said, a smile on his face as he moved the toy around comically, laying a character base. Alaric clapped.
"Well, for now at least, I don't care for the idea. I love our life."
Damon sighed, breaking character. He looked at her straight.
"I know."
Alaric half-crawled, half-waddled over to Damon's knee. He grabbed it and crawled into his lap. Damon helped him out. Alaric stood to put his arms around Damon's neck. Blue eyes met blue.
"Daddy."
"Yes?"
"Daddy, dragon. Alaric, lion."
"Ok."
They exchanged toys
Elena smiled.
"He only wants to be a lion because that's what you were. Now he'll want to be a dragon."
Alaric met her eyes and she thought he might have understood her, as he did so often nowadays. He was unnervingly perceptive sometimes; his eyes were wise beyond his one and a half years. She could already tell how bright he was. "Alaric, lion."
"Yes you are, sweety. And Daddy's a dragon."
"I've called this meeting here today-"
"I called this meeting." Klaus clarified, irked.
"Sure." Damon continued without really acknowledging the statement. "Anyway, the reason I called this meeting is to threaten you."
Klaus laughed. Caroline looked between them, panicked.
"Damon, don't."
"Are you sure you want to play this game with me?" Klaus said lazily. He sat back in the chair, crossing his hands over his stomach as he grinned up at him through the heavy sunshine. They had agreed to meet at a little coffee shop downtown to keep… everyone… civil.
"You are not very good at hiding your family, Klaus." Damon smiled. Klaus narrowed his eyes at him, his smile falling. "I was right there when you daggered them, seven years ago. Seems you haven't found a reason to un-dagger them yet. I'm willing to bet that they aren't so pleased with you, as you're not a very nice person and you've likely done something or other to piss them off. You touch me and you'll never see them again. Elena and Alaric have protection spells around them, so you really can't touch them if that's what you were thinking." Damon leaned back as Klaus lunged at him.
"The witch is dead, boy. You've put her in great danger for this." Klaus scowled at Caroline, who was shaking like a leaf. But Damon had been waiting too long to say this and nothing could stop him now.
"What have you been doing for the last seven years, sticking your head in the sand? If you weren't, you would know not to mess with Bonnie. She's not the same little girl you used to step on. Not only is she the leader of a powerful coven of witches, she's one of the most powerful witches in the western hemisphere now, or so I'm told by every supernatural being that I still keep in touch with. She gladly volunteered to hold this over your ass. She even laughed when I asked if she was sure she wanted to take on the risk. Believe me when I say that you don't scare her."
Klaus fought to hide his fury.
"What is it that you want?"
"You are going to leave us the fuck alone. I don't want you near Elena. I don't want you near my son. I want you to leave town. Then maybe, in a couple of centuries, when my great-great-great grandchildren all have hovercrafts and chips that give them supernatural speed and strength to kick your ass if you try anything, you'll get a little witch note from the other side telling you what part of the ocean your sorry family is buried in. Then you can hop in a submarine and try reading that apology letter to them that you've apparently spent the last seven years refining."
Klaus turned his glare from Damon to Caroline. Then he stood up with far too much aggression, nearly knocking his chair and their table over. A few people around them jumped in surprise and looked worriedly over their shoulders.
"This is far from over." Klaus's lower lip trembled with the effort to contain his wrath.
He turned from them and in a moment he was gone. Anyone who happened to be watching might have blinked and he would have disappeared. Caroline just gaped at Damon for several seconds. Then she leaned over the table to smack him anywhere she could reach.
"Do you have any idea how reckless that was? A little heads-up would have been nice! I thought we were going to calmly negotiate!" She mock whispered. She forced herself to settle down when people started to stare again.
"When have you ever known me to 'calmly negotiate'?" Damon rolled his eyes, lifting a hand to call a waiter over.
Caroline took another moment to finish her huffing. Then a slow smile spread over her face.
"Is that really true? Everything that you said?"
"Yup." Damon grinned. "Fool-proof plan. Bonnie has become exponentially more useful."
"So where are they hidden?"
"I said fool-proof. That stays between me and the witch."
Caroline clucked at him angrily. She stole a chip from the middle of the table and crunched it loudly.
"Lunch?"
Damon considered it. He could still barely stand her, but maybe he could learn to like her if he tried.
"If it's quick."
I got a couple of clarifying requests in the reviews, so if you care about fact checking ( I'm totally like this so I understand completely), you can read my long-winded response to the details of Elena's severe anemia and how Klaus let that happen. If you're willing to live in the realm of suspension of disbelief, then no need.
Elena's anemia- so the deal with anemia isn't about how much blood you make, it's about iron stores that the body builds up over time that get depleted (through many ways, but pregnancy is a big one). Even when the body makes new blood, if it doesn't have enough iron the blood can't carry oxygen to the cells, which is what blood is for. Replenishing the body's stores of iron takes a long time- several months at least. Pregnant women aren't supposed to donate blood because it is so common for them to be mildly anemic since they have to make blood for two people. On top of that, their body actually requires more blood than normal. Mild anemia usually isn't a problem. Elena has severe anemia, which is where the risk comes in for the baby and her, especially during childbirth when Elena is losing even more blood.
To clarify why Klaus, the guy who plans everything so well that he always has a 2nd back-up plan, didn't predict this health crisis- Klaus doesn't care about the baby since they have one child already and that's enough to pass on the doppelganger line. He cares that Elena survives. So in my brain, when he compelled her, he said something like, "take an amount so that Elena will survive and I will be able to make x amount of hybrids" not, "take enough so the baby won't be in danger". In his mind, they can always have more children as long as she's alive. The doctor, being compelled, didn't argue this and he didn't give her a chance to.