Chapter 24

The Salvatore brothers spent the next two days by Ottilie's bed in the hospital, waiting for and willing her to wake up. She looked so frail, thought Damon, as he sat holding her hand gently in his, hating himself for letting her come to so much harm. How can a child go through so much before her 13th birthday? He sighed, wondering why it was taking Stefan so long to get the coffee that they both desperately needed after 48 hours of hardly any sleep and intense worry.

All of a sudden, Damon noticed a change in the sound of Ottilie's breathing, and he looked quickly at her, searching for any signs of distress. Instead, he saw her eyes start to open, and she gazed blankly around the room, still unmoving. She finally made eye contact with Damon, and smiled faintly, her eyes the only colour in her otherwise white face.

"Otti," Damon whispered, grasping her hand a little tighter, and gently stroking her hair with his free hand, "Can you hear me sweetheart?" The little girl gave no indication that she had heard, save for blinking up at him and smiling a little stronger. "You'll be okay, little Otter," coaxed Damon, softly, "You'll come back to me, won't you? I love you…" He swore he felt her little hand tighten around his, and then she was asleep again.

Stefan returned 15 minutes later, and Damon turned to face him, grinning from ear to ear. "She woke up!" he said incredulously, as a delighted Stefan placed the coffee cups carefully down on a table in Ottilie's room and ran to her other side to grasp her hand that was not clutched in Damon's.

"Hey, Otti?" said Stefan, leaning close to his nieces head and placing a soft kiss on her cheek, "Wakey wakey, you've been asleep for ages now!" She stirred again and Stefan looked across at Damon excitedly. "That's it, baby, come one!" encouraged Stefan, rubbing her hand gently. The little girl's eyes fluttered open and she stared at the both, apparently confused about where she was and why she was there.

"Morning, sweetheart," said Damon, gently moving some hair from her face, "how are you feeling?"

Ottilie tried to speak but starting coughing, having not used her voice in a few days, and Stefan quickly grabbed a glass of water whilst Damon gently moved her to be sitting, propped up against the pillows. He tucked a blanket that Caroline had brought to the hospital for Ottilie around her and Stefan helped her to drink from the glass, as she was unable to hold it with her shaky hands.

Having taken a few sips, the colour was already starting to return to the little girl's face, and she looked with more focus at the tired faces of her family. "What happened?" she asked quietly, almost afraid to know the answer.

The brothers exchanged glances, and it was Stefan who answered, sounding nervous and unsure as he stroked the back of his niece's hand absentmindedly. "Elena gave you some coffee, Ottilie. The level of caffeine in it caused you to start having one of your attacks, and then she dragged you up onto the roof. She wanted me to choose who to save – you or her. Do you remember?"

The little girl nodded but kept quiet.

"Elena jumped from the roof, but you stopped her from falling and lowered her until Klaus arrived to catch her. The combination of the caffeine and using your powers was too much for your heart and, well…" Stefan's voice cracked as he struggled to continue with the story.

Damon came to his rescue, leaning over Ottilie's bed and putting a comforting hand on his brother's shoulder. "Then you fell, Otti, and Stefan caught you and he and Elijah brought you inside. The attack was really bad. You had a seizure and you stopped breathing. We thought we were going to lose you for a second, but you're so strong sweetheart. You're so strong and you fought so hard and you're still with us."

Suddenly overcome with emotion, Damon pulled his gently into his arms and held her close to him, relishing the sound of her steady heart and breathing, now knowing just how quickly they could go. Stefan stroked Ottilie's hair, appreciating the moment and the relief he felt, knowing that Ottilie was now on the mend.

A few minutes later, the brothers noticed Ottilie's breathing slow slightly, and deepen, and realising that she had fallen asleep, Damon placed her gently back into her bed, and they tucked the covers around her, along with the little teddy that the Mikaelsons had dropped off for her the day before.