Come As You Are

Klaus pulls her out of her dream like she's drowning, sputtering for the truth of her life and not these false realities. She clings to his shirt, fingers curling and pulling at the thin fabric. And yet they all feel so real to her that she wonders if they aren't possibilities of where her life could have led. None of that seems to matter when she looks into his smug face. His eyes shine with delight for the first time since he found out about the shared dreams.

"Was that you?"

"I watched you as you slept. I couldn't help but poke around a bit. The thought of what you two were doing together overwhelmed me. I had to find out for myself." Klaus is propped up on his forearm, looking down at her. With his free hand he drags unseen designs into her stomach.

She swallows hard, he seems far too happy for her comfort in this moment. "What did you find out?"

"Even with whatever magic is happening between the two of you, Stefan's place in your head is entirely unimaginative," he gloats as his fingers tickle up and down her hips. She gasps when he pushes himself up and hovers just above her. The way he looks at her conjures up images in her head of a starved wolf circling a dying fire, waiting her out until she's exhausted and he's ready to pounce.

"Unimaginative? You were in there? Watching me get married to Stefan?" She can feel her heart beat pick up and knows he can hear it. It's her reaction to him that goads on his aggression as he uses his knees to separate her legs.

"Of all that we have done together and all that we will do, Elena love. Of all that you are to me and everything I am to you. It all amounts to so much more than some false oath taken under an altar. No man, father or otherwise, can gift you to me for our covenant belongs to just you and I. A bond forged out of blood magic stronger than anything I watched in that silly dream of yours." His arms lock her legs to his side, his hands resting on her thighs. She keeps waiting for him to descend on her in a flurry of claiming kisses. Instead, he keeps looking down on her as if he's triumphed over something.

Her?

"So, you went into my head," she says slowly, "and pulled me out of my dream? How?"

"Talent," he responds simply. "That wasn't a normal dream, Elena. You should have seen me immediately, but for the longest time you couldn't. Each time I tried to talk to you or touch you, a door went up. Door after door until you started letting me in. You were conflicted between what you thought was reality and what actually is."

"You make it sound a little scary. They are just dreams, Klaus."

"Perhaps. I think someone is putting them there. Confusing you. You refused to see me and that should be impossible. It took a great effort to garner your attention and too long for you to work out the truth for yourself. I'm worried that if left unchecked, these visions could consume you into a boring, pedestrian version of your life."

"What? Like I'd be brainwashed?"

"Possibly. These visions are meant to draw you and Stefan together. How could they not? But if for some reason either of you resisted them then I wonder if there was a failsafe within the spell. A way to render you comatose until your body could be retrieved. Lull you into a complacency with saccharine delusions."

"The Travelers spelled the doppelgängers to be drawn together. So these dreams are part of it then. We have to find a way to stop them from happening."

"These dreams haven't a shred of truth in them. I know you, sweetheart. You're not nearly as boring or predictable as a white wedding." Finally, he rolls off of her, moving to stand next to her on the bed. "That said, I agree. Until we can find a way to permanently do away with these invasions then I will create my own disruptions in your subconscious."

"Your solution is to invade my head every night?" Clearly not a solution she likes as she eyes his outstretched hand.

"Do you have a better idea?" She shook her head as she grabs his hand and slides out of bed. She didn't, but that didn't mean she liked his.

Klaus continues on about his plan over breakfast on how to handle whoever is responsible for implanting her and Stefan's shared dreams. She doesn't want to interrupt his tirade that he seems to revel in so well so she listens and nods when he pauses long enough to look at her.

Meanwhile, Elena contemplates what he meant by boring. Getting married and having a family are things she's wanted for such a long time. They don't feel boring to her. She wonders what it is that Klaus sees in her that doesn't include children or marriage as he seems to want neither. She liked how she felt walking down the aisle. Once, a long time ago, she did imagine Stefan at the altar. Now, she had a different groom in mind, but she hadn't considered that he didn't share the same thoughts on their future.

She'd been worried over how Klaus would react if he knew the contents of those dreams and now she was weirdly disappointed that he didn't seem to care. He'd come close to mocking them. He claimed he knew her, but did he? What ideas of grandeur had he transposed on her and could she live up to them wanting such simple things in life he had deemed unimaginative?

A call from Caroline interrupted Klaus's gory descriptions and her silent apprehensions. She was secretly glad for it since it got her out of her head and on to something more concrete. "Hey, Caroline says Bonnie has figured out a solution to the Traveler problem. She said they found something in her gram's grimoire," Elena explained, setting down her phone on the table.

"Wonderful, love. I will go and confer with the witch right now. The closer we solve this problem, the closer we are to eliminating those dreams entirely."

"I'm coming with you," she says as she gets up from the table, heading to the closet for her shoes and purse.

"I'd prefer you stay here. You're safer here."

"I'm pretty safe with you."

"Not knowing who in town is a Passenger and who isn't puts you at risk, unnecessarily. I'd rather you stay in place until this all gets sorted."

"You'd rather I stay here with Stefan?" she asks, gesturing upstairs. "You want to leave me here alone? With Stefan and Elijah?" She knows which buttons to push and she isn't above it if it means getting him to take her with.

He lowers his head and clenches his jaw. She can tell she almost has him before he shakes it off. "I trust that he'd protect you with his life. I may not relish in the idea of you spending time alone with either of them, but between him and Elijah I am confident you will be safe. I won't be gone long." He walks past her, leaving with a quick kiss to her forehead.

"I don't like being left out of things," she calls after him, stopping at the entrance.

"Text your friend," he ignores her as he heads for his car, "Tell her I'm in route to the boarding house."

She obliges and texts Caroline. After saying goodbye to him at the front door, Elena wanders around the mansion. Even though Stefan is probably still in the guest room and Elijah is likely in his study, the house feels empty without Klaus. She grabs her computer and sits in the front room. It's been months since she's written anything or pitched an article. Dying, she's found, is bad for freelance writing. Not that she has a need for money with Klaus, but she misses having something that is all hers.

She's thinking about her future, what she wants it to look like once they get past the danger of the Travelers and the promise she made Jeremy, when she sees Jenna pull up in the front driveway and step out of the car with a to-go bag.

Elena meets her at the front door, happily surprised. "Hey, what are you doing here?"

"Bonnie was telling me that you haven't been feeling great lately, so I thought I'd bring you some breakfast and check in on you. I also thought it would be nice to spend some time together here without a parade of people coming in and out."

"She told you?"

"She's worried about you, Elena. She misses how close you two were."

"I know. So do I. Hey! Did she mention whatever it was she found out about the Travelers?"

"No, we just talked about you."

Elena sets the bag of pastries down on the kitchen island and nibbles at the edge of one as she starts to make them coffee. She makes small talk with her aunt about Grace and Ric, who are enjoying a daddy/daughter morning at the park. She's half paying attention. She's distracted thinking about Bonnie, worried that she wouldn't mention the new information about the Travelers to her. But then again, she rationalizes, she hasn't exactly been warm to her friend since she's been back in town.

True, she's been angry, but Elena thinks it might be time to thaw out a little. Especially if Bonnie was voicing her concerns to Jenna instead of Elena or having Caroline call to relay important discoveries. They were still friends and she made a mental note to call Bonnie as soon as Jenna left.

A crash upstairs reverberates through the entire house. There still isn't a lot of furniture and the noise is loud as it echoes through the halls. Elena stands up and peers out of the kitchen. Her aunt is at her back, a hand on her shoulder. "Maybe we should go get Elijah first? Let him check out the noise." Jenna offers.

"Not a bad idea," Elena agrees and the two women walk up the stairs as she leads her aunt to Elijah's room. She forgoes knocking and opens the door to find Elijah slumped over his desk. At first she thinks he's just fallen asleep while working but her stomach lurches when she sees how grey his neck looks peeking out from his suit collar. She gently tilts his head to the side, exposing his ashen cheeks.

"Is he dead?"

"I'm not actually sure he can die, Jenna." She spots a wooden stake lodged in his side, likely piercing his heart. "He should be fine. Will you get this stake out of him? I'm going to see if Stefan is okay."

"Elena, if he isn't okay what makes you think you'll be able to do anything about it?" Jenna is working at the stake, trying her best to wiggle it out from in between Elijah's ribs.

"I have to try. Just stay with him and come find me when he wakes up. If you hear anything, hide and call Ric."

Whoever had managed to incapacitate Elijah, even for a moment, was someone Elena didn't want around Jenna. She makes her steps walking down the halls purposefully loud, trying to lead the intruder away from her aunt. As she walks towards the guest bedroom, she texts Klaus quickly asking him to come home.

"Stefan?" she calls for him as she approaches the door, tentatively opening it up. Caroline stands over Stefan who is crumpled on the ground, his neck twisted. "Caroline? What the hell are you doing?"

"You're only half right, doppelgänger." It's Caroline's voice, but there is something off about her smile. She's never seen her friend smile so cruelly.

"Jenna! Get out!" Elena yells as she turns to run out of the room. She knows shutting the door behind her is useless just like she knows running down the halls is useless. But she runs in the opposite direction of Elijah's room in the hope that Jenna has heard her in time to hide or run. Elijah waking up in time would be too good to be true, but maybe she can buy enough time for her aunt to escape.

She feels Caroline's weight on top of her and the needle piercing her skin at the same time. She fights against her friend knowing that whoever has taken control of Caroline doesn't care about how hurt she gets in this struggle. Slowly, whatever she's been injected with starts to work and she fades into an uncomfortable unconsciousness, fighting against it each step of the way.

When she finally comes around, she squints to try to get a bearing on her surroundings. The light is too bright and she feels too dizzy to stand. She closes her eyes again and gives herself a few deep breathes. When she opens her eyes again, better adjusted to the light, she sees her aunt slumped over in a corner.

She looks around and sees that it's just the two of them in the cell. She doesn't doubt that they took Stefan, but they must have decided not to hold them together. Smart to separate a vampire from his food source.

Elena crawls over to Jenna and nudges her awake. She winces at the dried blood around her forehead. They were not nearly as gentle with her aunt as they were with her. "Hey, Jenna. Wake up."

"Elena?" she blinks and Elena tries to block the light with her body. "I heard you yell, but when I came out of the bedroom my old high school principal and our mailman shoved me out into the hall. Is this real?"

"I wish it weren't. Jenna, they have Caroline. I'm not sure when or how long she hasn't been her. Or who else they might have control over. Did you get the stake out of Elijah?"

"Yes, I did. Elena? Are you okay?" Elena is holding a hand over her mouth and she's bent over on her knees.

"I'll be fine. Jenna. I'm so sorry I got you wrapped up in this. I'll get you out of here. If Elijah is awake, he'll see what happened and tell the others. Bonnie will find us and Klaus will be here soon." She hopes so fervently that her words are truth. She clenches her jaw tight, trying to show Jenna a strong face. She doesn't want to let on how scared she actually is. "Oh god, Bonnie never found anything in her grimoire. It was all a lie. Klaus could have walked into a trap." She tries to remember the last thing she said to him, hoping it wouldn't be the last.

So much time passes by, she can't be sure but it feels like hours. They should have found them by now. She's pacing the cell, feeling like an animal at the zoo wearing down a circular path with her anxiety.

"Elena? We could try something if you want?" Jenna whispers conspiratorially.

"What do you want to try?"

"Ric's been teaching me how to pick locks."

"What? Why?"

"He's paranoid about Grace locking herself in a room and wants us to be able to get to her as quickly as possible." Jenna shrugs her shoulders and for the first time since that morning, the two women laugh a little.

"Sounds like Ric. Sure, let's give it a try."

Elena bends down on her elbows and tries her best to look out of the crack at the bottom of the door. She doesn't see any shadows of people walking past or hears footsteps leaving or approaching. She gives Jenna a thumbs up, but it's all so weird. Why would the Travelers grab them and just leave them alone?

It takes Jenna awhile and a few tries. Bobby pins aren't the same as a lock picking kit, but eventually they hear the sound of a successful click. They look at each other for a moment and Jenna surprises her by kissing her on the forehead.

"Just in case," she whispers.

"We'll be fine, Jenna." She reaches out and they squeeze the other's hand.

She pushes the door open, inching it a time as she scans the room looking for anyone that could be guarding them. They are both surprised that no one seems to be around. Even so, they do their best to walk through the halls as quietly as possible. They make it out to a space that is open and wide. Elena notes that there isn't a lot of opportunity here to hide. They are too exposed and it makes her want to run.

She finds a door that leads out to a junkyard. It's already dark and Elena hopes that it's only been a few hours instead of a few days. As they make their way through the discarded cars and unrecognizable trash heaps, they hear subdued sobbing.

"Should we go see what that is?"

"I don't know, Jenna. Stefan is probably still in there. We need to get help."

"What if they're hurt?" Elena's mouth is open and Jenna waits for an answer, but she hesitates. She feels like they should go help whoever it is, but Klaus is in her head now too. His voice is telling her to get home, to get to safety and then worry about everyone else.

She's still struggling with an answer when the sobbing stops and she hears her own name in a familiar voice. "Elena? Is that you?" Maria's head pops up over a car hood, her tears streak black down her face.

"Maria?" Elena has a moment to remember her friend flying into the Thames before she comes running, making a beeline to where she and Jenna stand, almost throwing her body into Elena. Her hug is too tight and uncomfortable and Elena is stiff, their last encounter in London playing over in her head. "Maria, how did you get here?"

"I don't remember. I keep waking up somewhere different. I'm only remembering a few things at a time. Elena, help me please?"

The pleading in her voice effectively pushes Klaus's cold reason out of her mind and Elena agrees to help. She turns and does her best to lead the other two women out of the junkyard. It's a frustrating maze and she can start to feel the panic rise up in her throat. It's too lucky that Maria is the only other person they've run into here. None of this makes sense.

She turns around quickly when she hears a grunt. She has just enough time to see her aunt on the ground before she feels the metal hit the side of her head. For the second time that day, she's out.

This time when she wakes up, she's looking down at her aunt. Her arms tingle with a numb sensation. Her arms are tied up and she's strung up to the ceiling. She's on her tip toes standing on a stool. She trembles a little when she sees a large bucket in front of her. She feels like a pig that's been tied up for slaughter. She tries to stretch out her fingers, testing how much give the binding has and it isn't very generous.

Her lips are dry and they stick together when she tries to part them, whispering her aunt's name over and over in a shaky attempt to wake her up.

A/N: I don't know how I managed an additional 1k words while editing this, but there you have it. I already think the next chapter is going to be bigger as more and more happens. Thank you for reading! And for the reviews! I'm so flattered that you enjoy my writing and the characterization of Klena.