In The Morning

"Elena."

"Elena, wake up."

"Miss Gilbert, if you don't wake up in the next five seconds I will take back this coffee I just spent the last half hour procuring."

Said Gilbert bolted upright, eyes zeroing in on the plastic cup even through the fog of sleep. "You wouldn't dare."

Elijah's mouth crinkled in a savage half smile. "Oh, believe me, I would. But for the sake of a peaceful morning I shall refrain from keeping you from your caffeinated treasure."

Taking the cup from his outstretched hand, her knuckles brushed against his, resulting in a jolt more potent than any cup of coffee. But Elena hid her reaction well, draining half her drink in one go.

"Careful," the Original chided. "I wouldn't want you to start choking. Or bouncing off the walls."

Elena laughed, half-heartedly swatting at his shoulder. "Mean. I'm not that bad."

"That remains to be seen."

Finishing off her cup, Elena finally noticed the state of the room. As in, it was not in a state. As in, Elijah tidied up.

"You didn't need to clean up, Elijah," she protested, swinging her legs out from under the blankets, suddenly feeling very naked in her tee and shorts.

"I know I didn't need to, Elena, but I wanted to. You did me a great help; the least I can do is clean up after myself."

"Do you ever get tired of being so annoyingly nice?" the brunette huffed, tying up her hair and grabbing her toothbrush and toothpaste, as well as some clean clothes.

"Do you ever get tired of not accepting help when it is willingly given?"

"I accepted yours, didn't I?" Elena pointed out with a victorious smirk.

Elijah caved. "Touché. And don't walk around with a toothbrush in your mouth; it's dangerous."

Elena stuck her tongue out at him -with her toothbrush still clamped between her teeth- and proceeded to the bathroom, feeling more alive with the fresh minty taste mingling with her lingering coffee. She was soon in a pair of jeans and doing up the buttons on her purple blouse when Elijah began, "I think we should start from the beginning, lay our cards out on the table and such, so that we can plan the best course of action."

"I agree," Elena said, trying to get the last button done up, not looking where she was going, her chest bumping with Elijah's enough to halt her motions.

Elena blushed, "I'm sorry. I'm not a great multi-tasker."

Elijah tutted ruefully. "Teenagers today, always in such a rush." His fingers reached out, deftly doing up the last button on her sleeve.

Suddenly needing to put distance between him and his piercing stare, Elena retrieved the map she'd been pouring over yesterday -was it really only yesterday that she'd found him, yesterday that she'd been in this room all alone, contemplating the impossible?- and grabbing her room key. "Do you feel like taking a walk?"

The crisp summer air was refreshing, sighing through the trees in the gentlest of exhales, brining with it the smell of fresh grass and warm blue sky as the two made their way over to a secluded spot by the pool, sitting down and spreading out the map between them on the rough wood of the nearby picnic table, Elena using her empty coffee cup and her elbow to hold it down and stop the flimsy paper from rustling, the sunlight dappling her hair with golden streaks as she turned her attention to the task at hand.

"Here's what I have so far," she indicated the small spots of red, each one a greater distance from Mystic Falls than the last, covering nearly a thousand miles. Elijah was impressed. "I know it's not a lot, but I think by now I'm pretty familiar with what's an 'animal attack' and what's an 'animal attack'," she supplied with a knowing smile, her use of air quotes unnecessary but charming.

Focus, Elijah. Stop getting distracted.

Clearing his throat delicately, the vampire shifted forward, one closed fist propping up his chin while the other waved away at the surface of the map. "My brother has never been one for putting down roots," Elijah confided, meeting Elena's curious gaze head-on, "except for our time in New Orleans."

"You lived in New Orleans?" she inquired excitedly.

Modesty flew out the window as he smirked wickedly, triumphantly, "Darling Elena, we built New Orleans. Klaus and I, as well as our sister Rebekah and brother Kol, we created it from almost nothing, turning it into the supernatural powerhouse it is today. We ruled it like kings for almost two centuries, admittedly not shying away from our vampire instincts, some indulging more than others. While we might have settled in what is now the town of Mystic Falls, New Orleans is the only place any of us have ever truly called home. And we did everything we could to keep it so."

Anyone else might have been frightened. Anyone else might have shied away at the implications of this piece of their history, at the blood and destruction they'd all left in their wake -himself included- but all she did was murmur, "That sounds incredible," and look at the map, her eyes travelling to the bottom as if expecting to find the city he'd described laid out before her on the paper. Maybe one day she'd grant him the pleasure of showing her.

"Do you think Klaus might try and go back?" Elena asked softly, as if she was trying to respect that the thought of his brother was still an unpleasant subject.

Elijah shook his head, cufflinks glinting as he trailed Klaus' course. "These marks don't indicate that, and to my knowledge Niklaus has not returned since our father drove us out in 1919. New Orleans is...under new management, from someone I doubt Klaus would go to for sanctuary."

"Could this new manager be of any help to us in the long run? Do they really hate Klaus that much? Enough to kill him?"

"Possibly. He also hates me, and our entire family."

No surprise there. "Why?"

"Because he was our family. New Orleans' current ruler, Marcellus Gerard -but he always preferred Marcel- was a slave boy Klaus took under his wing. We raised him, loved him as our own flesh and blood, turned him, but then it got...complicated."

"When does it not when dealing with Mikaelsons?" she asked rhetorically but left it at that. "Okay, if he's not a fan of you, then I'm definitely not putting him on the Christmas Card Ally List, not if he wants to hurt you."

Shock and incredulity took up a dance across his features. "You'd really put my safety above getting revenge on my brother?"

Elena did not hesitate with her response. "Yes. Revenge won't bring Jenna back, or John, it won't even help me bring Stefan home. You tried to safe my life, Elijah: I haven't forgotten that fact. Nor have I forgotten that you protected the people I cared about, even after they weren't exactly friendly to you. We're in this together, and if you're not planning on throwing me under the bus then I'm sure as hell not going to do it to you."

"'Throwing under the bus?'" Elijah repeated confusedly.

Elena laughed. "Have you really not heard that one before?"

"No, I haven't. Care to explain it to me?"

"Okay, super simplified version, it basically means that I'm not willing to let you suffer, alone, for my sake. That I'm not just going to abandon you, or our deal, even if it means having to go the long way around to get Stefan back; I won't compromise my morals, or myself, and I know he wouldn't want me to for his sake."

"Ah, I see now. It seems I have a lot to learn when it comes to the language of today's youth." He didn't examine the depth of her words, not yet, not when there was still so many things left unresolved between them. He was yet to apologize for his betrayal,although her actions up until this point suggested that she did not believe one was necessary, but he did.

Elena smiled at him, a sight as beautiful as it was rare. "I'll teach you."

"Is that an offer?"

"No, Elijah, it's a promise." Her gaze settled heavily over him, almost palpable, like a second skin. God, he really, truly, needed to hold himself together. Elena seemed to think so, too, for she went, "Anyway, back on topic, if New Orleans is out of the equation, is there anywhere else you could think of that Klaus might go next, or might plan to go? Did he give any sort of general indication before he left or after..." The ritual. After he killed me. After he stabbed you in the back.

"No, he spent two days as a wolf, wreaking havoc in the woods..."

Elijah stilled, his whole body ceasing to move, and he knew in that moment he must look like a statue to Elena, a thing of marble, cold and hard and unfeeling.

Her hand shot out, upturning her cup, gripping his forearm with surprising strength. "What is it?" she demanded fiercely. "Elijah, what's wrong?"

"Why did my brother wish to break his curse?"

Elena blinked at the change of subject but recovered quickly. "So that he could become a werewolf, reunite his two halves," she said slowly, reclaiming her hand and settling it in her lap.

He inclined his head in acknowledgement. "The world's first Hybrid. And what does one do if they are new, and the only one of their kind in the world?"

She slumped back, running her hands through her hair, and muttered, "They make more of themselves. You think that's what he's trying to do," Elena continued, her expression becoming more grave with every passing word from her lips. "You think he wants to make more hybrids."

"It's the only reason I can conceive of for this little spree he's on. It is also the only reason I can imagine him keeping Stefan so close."

Elena picked up on his reasoning. "Because werewolves would naturally seek him out as prey."

Elijah gave her a tight smile. "Exactly. As you know, werewolves are notoriously difficult to track, having been hunted to near extinction. Most travel in packs, and while there is safety in numbers-"

"It also makes them more likely targets for attack, getting them all in one place and then wiping them out." Absently, Elijah wondered if the two of them would ever be able to carry out a conversation that didn't include death and chaos. He wouldn't bet on it, and he had more money than he could ever hope to spend. "Do you have any idea which packs he might go after first?" Her fingers brushed against her bare collarbone as she spoke, unconsciously, as if seeking out the familiar comfort of the necklace he knew she had lost, a clear indicator of her mounting anxiety. It was an anxiety Elijah wished he could quell with easy answers, but sadly he had none to give her.

"I do not, but I suspect that Klaus did his research before he even set foot in Mystic Falls in regards to the local werewolf population. Perhaps there is more of a method behind all this than we originally thought"

The brunette argued stubbornly, "That still doesn't help us find Stefan, though."

While her loyalty was commendable, it was unfortunately not their biggest concern -at least not his. "No," Elijah began calmly, "it doesn't. You must see though, Elena, that this cannot all be about finding your Salvatore. Who knows what the transformation could do to these creatures, the pain they might have to endure: Klaus had the gene when he was turned, these people don't. They are innocents, and should not be subjected to my brother's cruelty, should not be used as his personal guinea pigs simply because he does not want to spend eternity alone. There are plenty of others ways of going about like." Like restoring our family.

Her face flushed with shame. "You're right, of course you're right. I'm sorry; I must sound so selfish."

"It's alright," he replied softly, hard exterior melting somewhat, as it was so oft to do in her presence now. "If I was in your position I don't think I'd be able to be even half as objective as you currently are."

She was hesitant to accept his praise. "Trust me, I have more experience with freaking out in supernatural crisis's than I'd care to admit, and I know that Stefan wouldn't want innocent people to get hurt because of him: that's not who he is."

The vampire winced. It was just a twitch, a fluttering of his jaw, hardly visible to the eye. But Elena saw it. She honed in on it like a moth to a flame, her whole demeanor shifting from one heartbeat to the next.

"Elijah." It was both a question and an accusation, a plea and a refusal. "Elijah, what aren't you telling me?"

Mercifully, he was saved from speaking by the bleeping of her phone. Elena made no move to answer it, she just continued on with her fierce expression.

"Aren't you going to answer that?" he asked of her, if only to break the tension.

"No, I'm going to stare at you until you give in and tell me whatever it is that I currently don't know."

Elijah smirked, bracing his forearms on the table. "Then you better settle in, Miss Gilbert: you'll be here a while."

"I can deal."

Her cellphone kept ringing, vibrating ever closer to the edge of the table.

He raised a brow, a challenge thrown down. "Can you?"

Sighing in defeat, Elena answered the phone. Not even bothering to look at the caller ID, she demanded in a petulant huff, "Password?"

"'Apple Dumplin'. Seriously, I don't know why you insisted on this whole password thing, 'Elena: I could be compelled right now and you'd have no clue. It's not like Independence Day or The Invaders where you can clearly who's an alien and who isn't."

Elena laughed, tinkling and bright. "Remind me to see how straight your pinky is when I get home."

"You've got it. I've also got a new lead for you, courtesy of my mom."

She shook her head, although her friend of course couldn't see it. "Caroline, you didn't have to call me at," she checked her watch, "seven fifty two in the morning to tell me this. We both know you're never out of bed before nine if you can help it."

Ah, so this was Caroline Forbes, Elena's other best friend and Mystic Falls' resident baby vampire. She seemed to balance Elena out well, and anyone that could get her to laugh like that after the conversation they'd just had was definitely someone worth protecting.

"You know I like my sleep," Caroline insisted. "Just because I'm a vampire now doesn't mean I shouldn't get my nine hours of beauty sleep."

"And some coffee. And something to eat. Have you even had breakfast yet?" Elena demanded, and Elijah let out a quiet snicker at her tone.

"God, Mother Hen, quit your pecking! It figures how even though you're however many miles away you still can't resist with the maternal nagging."

The young woman insisted, "Since Bonnie's with her dad's family somebody has to."

"Do you want the lead or not?"

Elena rolled her eyes. "Fine, lay it on me."

"College students. Bodies found at a campsite in the woods. It's not pretty, 'Lena."

The young woman stiffened but replied angrily, "I'm not expecting it to be, Caroline. I know what Klaus is capable of better than anyone."

She was thinking of her aunt, he could see it in her eyes as clearly as if he were reading a book, see the hurt and the loss that he was only now beginning to understand rested so heavily on her.

"I know, I'm sorry," Caroline apologized, and he just caught the sound of a fridge door closing in the background as well as the clinking of a ceramic mug. "It just seems like they're getting worse, you know? Each one seems more violent than the last, like-"

"Like a part of him is doing all this to taunt us" Elena replied glibly before demanding, "Tell me where."

"Sylvia, Tennessee. So far they think it's an animal attack, and as long as it stays that way I'm sure you can get in and out."

The brunette nodded her head, although of course her friend couldn't tell that. "Alright. Do you want me to call you if I find anything?"

"No, I want you to call me when you need me. For anything. Even if it's just to rant or bounce ideas off."

"How's everyone?"

Caroline cut right to the chase. "He knows, Elena."

Elijah didn't have to ask who 'he' was.

"How did he take it?" Elena broached carefully.

Caroline scoffed. "What do you expect?"

"Is the Boarding House still standing?"

"Wow, someone thinks highly of themselves," the young vampire teased. Was that jealousy he detected in her voice? Perhaps.

"Don't ever underestimate Damon's talent for destruction," Elena cautioned her, and a part of Elijah winced at how she'd learnt that lesson first-hand, the hard way. And yet she still had the grace to ask, "Will you tell him I'm sorry? Wait, don't; I don't want him going off on you if he finds out im talking to you and not him."

"He's not a bomb, Elena, he's a hundred and fifty year old vampire who needs to get it into his thick skull that you can do what you want, that your life isn't about making choices he does or doesn't agree with."

Elena swung around on the bench, boots toeing the cracked cement. "You really must not have had any coffee yet if you're being so honest and filter-free."

"I'm just sayin' it like it is. I can handle Damon, Elena. I will handle him. You just focus on staying in one piece, okay? And maybe getting home early so I can throw you a birthday party."

The brunette was not amused. "Caroline, we've had this discussion already."

"And I'll tell you again that you shouldn't spend your eighteenth birthday in some dingy motel with a can of pepper spray in your hand waiting to get nibbled on by some psycho?"

Elena sighed wearily, pinching the bridge of her nose between thumb and forefinger. "Nibbled? Really?"

"What, we've all seen Silence of the Lambs! These things happen!"

"Not to worry, Caroline, no ones going to nibble on me," Elena promised her.

Caroline was not convinced. "How can you be so sure?"

Elena looked the Original dead in the eyes as she insisted to her best friend over the phone, "Because Elijah Mikaelson would never let anything happen to me," and hung up.

Almost instantly, her phone started buzzing again, but she switched it off, giving him a look that dared him to contradict what she'd just said, but of course he couldn't, so he remained silent, waiting her out. But it seemed like she was going to remain tight-lipped forever, so he was forced to break the quiet with, "That doesn't seem particularly nice, leaving your friend with such an OMG statement."

Oh, she got the reference. She got it perfectly. "You're not the only one who likes to drop dramatic bombshells, Elijah. Now, are we gonna sit here all day or are we gonna get me some breakfast and then head down to Tennessee?"

"No, we're going to get you something actually edible for breakfast that isn't covered in a teeth-rotting coating of sugar, then we shall proceed to Tennessee."

Her fingers drummed against the map, right over Alaska. "Maybe pencil in a shower first. And a shopping trip."

"Why, what do you need?"

"Not me, you." She continued off his inscrutable look, "Unless you plan on staying in that suit forever? I bet you're dying to get into something that isn't torn and creased and stained."

He had to ask, "Am I that predictable?"

"No, you're just so you."

Whoever that was anymore.

Elena stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror, watching as tendrils of cloudy steam snaked up to kiss the glass, obscuring her reflection. Her hands were braced on either side of the sink, her hair hanging down her back in damp tangles, soaking into the fluffy towel currently wrapped around her heat-flushed skin.

Elijah was currently off -it had taken her over twenty minutes to get him to accept her offer of borrowing her car- in the hopes of finding something decent to wear, and she'd greedily grabbed the chance to gather her thoughts into some sort of order.

Something was bugging her. Something wasn't adding up. Something didn't make sense.

All these bodies, all these victims being reported, Elena didn't think Klaus was behind them all. There was something...off about it. When he'd drained her for the ritual, when he'd killed Jules and Aunt Jenna, there hadn't been any of this...pageantry, this need to showcase his work. Klaus had needed their blood, so he'd taken it, clean and simple, as smooth as a business transaction. But these bodies, the reports she'd seen in Damon's closet, there was pleasure there, unrestrained emotion, like however had done it was giving in to something they'd been trying to fight.

Something like a hundred and forty five year battle with addiction, temptation.

Her body, her heart, recoiled at the mere thought, but it would be both ignorant and stupid of her to not at least consider the possibility that these victims weren't all Klaus'. Sure, of course some of them were -forensics had to found traces of wolf DNA at almost every sight to some degree- but she didn't think even Klaus would be so brutal if he was trying to stay unobserved.

Which would mean Stefan was drinking human blood again. Which would mean she would not only have to fight Klaus, but the man she loved if she ever wanted to get home.

She suspected Elijah had already come to a similar conclusion: he was pretty easy to read, at least to her. Elena hadn't batted an eye when he'd alluded to his own dark past, so why was it so hard for her to accept Stefan's? Why did she suddenly feel scared, as if she'd taken a wrong turn and was now lost, falling into an empty black abyss with no bottom in sight? Why did she feel like crying and crying and never stopping? She'd walked into this relationship with her eyes wide open; just because Stefan hunted fluffy bunnies didn't mean he was one, after all. She'd seen him kill to protect her, seen him feed, had read about his actions in her own ancestors' journal, for Gods sake.

So why could she not take this?

Elena found herself yet again frozen by her reflection.

Katherine wouldn't have been hurt by Stefan's actions, would have likely egged him on like some proudly twisted soccer mom, delighted that he'd finally given in, that he was becoming as she'd made him back in 1864. A hunter. A killer. An animal.

Could she save the good in him? Was it foolish to try?

Elijah still believed in redemption for his own brother, or else he would have let him die. A thousand years, and he had never given up. So she wouldn't either. Yes, she was just another Petrova doppelgänger, and while the last one had brought Stefan nothing but pain, she vowed to not give up until he was once again the kind, compassionate soul she had never been able to walk away from, no matter what he'd said or done.

After hurriedly getting dressed, Elena padded to the main room, scanning the nightstand for her discarded bracelet, not finding it anywhere among the paraphernalia she had somehow amassed on the chipped surface. She eventually caught it peeking out of the pocket of her jacket. The metal was cold as she grasped it, but her fingers were still too wet for her to properly do up the intricate clasp.

"Do you want some help with that?"

Elena spun around, chastising herself for not paying better attention to her surroundings. What if that had been one of Klaus' minions -he seemed like the kind of guy to have minions- behind her rather than Elijah, looking more like himself in a clean charcoal-grey suit and navy silk tie.

"You don't mind?"

"Not at all." Within a blink, the distance between them vanished, his fingers encircling her wrist in a feather-light grip. The pad of his thumb drew soothing strokes over the delicate tracery of veins, brushing the heart-shaped charm. "I take it this is why I couldn't hear your heartbeat?" Elijah tapped the metal for emphasis. "The spell work is courtesy of Miss Bennett, is it not?"

She tilted her head up, trying to keep the towel wrapped around her hair from falling in her face. "I thought it would be easier, impersonating her in front of other vampires, or just anyone who could want me dead. Although if Katherine ever finds out..." Elena trailed off, shuddering at the mere idea.

Elijah didn't let go of her wrist, instead tugging on it to steer her to the bed. It was only when they were sitting side by side that he let go of her.

"In my thousand years on this earth, I have made many promises. Every single one if them, I have done the best of my ability to keep. It's true, I have not always succeeded in doing so, but I have always tried. So, when I promise you now, that I will protect you, understand that I mean it with every fibre of my being. I will protect you, Elena. But more importantly...I will help you protect yourself."

"Even from Katherine?"

Elijah vowed solemnly, "Even from Katerina." His brown eyes roved over her shocked expression. "Why do you seem so surprised by this?"

"Well, because, you, um, you, and her..ugh!" Elena sighed heavily, plucking at the mattress. "How do I say this without sounding like pre-schooler?" she muttered to herself exasperatedly. Steeling her spine, she broached fearlessly, "You loved her, Elijah. You have over five hundred years worth of history between you two. You know her like few in this world do. So, promising to protect me -me, who you barely know, who has stabbed you in back not only metaphorically, but literally...the scales just don't quite add up, do they? Besides, I wouldn't ask you to hurt someone you love on my account. Not after everything you just went through with your brother."

He was quiet for a moment, studiously contemplative. Elijah soon queried her, "Has anyone ever told you what a unique human being you are?"

"Not that I can recall, no," she teased, smile crinkling.

"While everything you just said is true -yes, I have known Katherine longer, yes, I did once have feelings for her, yes, there may have been some light..backstabbery," a crooked smile, "on your part- I know enough, I have seen enough of you to trust your intentions, and your heart. Elena, you have suffered enough at the hands of your doppelgänger, of my brother; you're only human, and you can only take so much. If I can help it, I will do my best to make sure no more pain befalls you."

"You're really good with these endearing, heartfelt speeches," Elena rasped, blinking away tears. "Did you go to Monologue School or something?"

*I've been around Damon too long, Elena mused, if I'm using humour to get out of emotionally charged conversations.

All he said was, "I've had practice. And spent my fair share of time around playwrights; that kind of energy tends to rub off."

Elena visibly brightened. "Ooh, I'm intrigued."

"Your intrigue will have to wait, I'm afraid," Elijah informed her, buttoning up his jacket and offering her a hand up. "We have things to do: boyfriends to track down, brothers to strangle...we've got quite the journey ahead of us."

She found her eyes darting across the room, memorizing every detail. While she'd only stayed here a short while, while it was just a motel room and therefore not even hers, this had been the first place Elena had felt truly free in so long, and the thought of venturing out into the Big Bad World after the Big Bad Hybrid was a hard pill to swallow.

But it was made infinitely easier by the knowledge she wouldn't be going out there alone.

A laugh escaped her, clearing an invisible weight from her chest. "I hope you're good at 'I, Spy,' Elijah."

The Original hung his head. "Dear God, please don't tell me you're one of those drivers," he pleaded with her.

"Oh I am," Elena was quick to assure him as she zipped up her bags. "You're in for a treat."

"I'm starting to regret coming out of that coffin."

"Come on, it'll be fun."

I hope.

Author's Note: Hello, everyone! Welcome to chapter five, also known as, 'The Chapter That Took Fricking Forever because I had to keep pausing the scene in 3×01 with Damon's closet so I could read all the info about Klaus and Stefan's victims because I love yo be accurate.' The next chapter has also been a bit of a pain to write so far, but it's almost done, and also has lots of Elejah bonding/heartfelt conversing in it. And a surprise from Caroline and Bonnie!

(And yes, for those curious, the Apple Dumplin' mention was a reference to Strawberry Shortcake's baby sister; I was a big fan when I was little, and can imagine Caroline liking all the dolls with their different scents and hair colours.)

Reviews are very much appreciated!

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you all have a lovely rest of your week!

All my love, Temperance Cain.