A/N –Thanks for the feedback. Onto chapter 2!

"Elijah."

The man smiles softly. "Hello, Elena. It's a beautiful night for hunting. Do you mind if I join you?"

Elena stiffens as Elijah moves towards her. His dark eyes never leave her face, though they occasionally flicker to her red lips. "I thought you left town."

"There was a change of plans."

"Where's Rebecca?"

"She's...preoccupied." Elijah smiles. "She always has her fangs sunk into something."

The air is warm and humid. Flies begin to circle around the dead woman's body, and the sight makes Elena snap back to reality. The bloodlust recedes, just barely, but it's enough to make Elena sick to her stomach.

She's killed someone. Again.

"How many is that now?" Elijah asks.

"What?"

"How many have you killed?" Elena locks eyes with Elijah. Can he hear me, she thinks. His gaze is dark, penetrating. Elena rubs her arms. The skin is tingling. "Go on," Elijah says. "Give me a number."

Elena looks away. Her voice is soft. "I don't know." She pauses. "The first few nights. It was all so confusing."

When Elena awoke as a vampire, she was alone. Her brother was gone. Stefan was gone. Damon was gone. Caroline was gone. She was alone in a cold, empty room, and it was the middle of the night. From the hallway, she could smell, no she could hear the pulse of someone's blood. She rose barefooted and moved down the hallway silently in her paper gown.

That was her first kill.

Afterwards, she snuck out of the hospital, and...it's all a haze. A blackout with slashes of red. The next morning she woke up curled inside of a cave, covered in dirt and blood. When the sun went down, it happened again. And again.

Elijah steps closer. He looks concerned. "Where are the Salvatores?"

"I don't know." Elena hugs herself. "I mean, I haven't been to their house. I can't see them yet. Not like this."

"I'm surprised they haven't tracked you."

"I think I've been hard to find." When Elena woke up on the third day, she was no longer in Mystic Falls. She was in some small town at least sixty miles down the highway. She was wearing new clothes, but even they were speckled with dry blood. Maybe she stole them off of a victim's dead body. "How did you find me?"

"I followed the trail. You really should be more careful about cleaning up after yourself."

"What do you mean?"

Elijah smirks. "It was like a trail of breadcrumbs, but instead of breadcrumbs, I followed the dead bodies."

All the people she's killed. She can't remember their names. She can't remember their faces. But she can remember their screams, can hear their pleads echoing through her mind. Don't kill me, please stop, no, no NO. Buried deep inside, there's in immense guilt trying to claw its way to Elena's surface. But her mind hardens and pushes the feelings away. "Why are you here?"

"To help you."

"Why?"

"You're a new vampire. I can't allow you to run amuck and destroy everything in your path."

"Why?"

"Because that would be irresponsible."

"Why didn't you just send Damon or Stefan?"

Elijah sighs deeply before clasping his hands together. "You need a teacher, Elena. Not a boyfriend."

"Their not- he's not- neither of them are my boyfriends."

Elijah takes a step closer. There are only a few inches separating him from Elena. He leans in so that his mouth just brushes across her ear. She shivers. "When you become a vampire, all of your attributes, all of your desires are enhanced. If you dislike someone, you hate them. If you're annoyed, you're filled with rage. If you're hungry, you're ravenous. If you're lonely, you're filled with insatiable desires." Elijah's voice is soft and accented. "Things might not stay so...platonic with the Salvatore brothers now that you're a vampire. You'll act on your desires. You won't have control." Elijah pulls away just enough so that he can lock eyes with Elena. His deep, unyielding gaze unsettles her, but she can't look away. "Is that what you want? Do you want to lose control?"

I already have. "No. Of course not."

"Than you'll come with me."

"Where?"

"We need to get out of town. Mystic Falls is only an hour's drive from here. I can't run the risk of the Salvatore brothers catching our scent and showing up without an invitation."

"What about Rebecca?"

Elijah smiles slowly. "As I said, Rebecca is preoccupied."

"Okay. I'll go with you." Elena trusts Elijah more than the other originals. And he's right- she can't spend time with Stefan or Damon right now. They're too volatile. Too attached.

Elijah, though not necessarily safe, is at least steady.

"Wonderful. We'll have to clean up this rather awful mess you've made, and then we can be on our way."

Elena glances at the dead woman. Minutes ago, she was alive, and now her body is cold and empty. Elena bends down and maneuvers the woman's hair so that it covers the bite marks. The hair is dark and thick, so much like her brother's.

Jeremy.

"Wait," Elena says suddenly. "Before we go- I have to see my brother. He thinks I'm dead."

"I'm sure the Salvatores have informed him of your miraculous revival."

"It doesn't matter. I won't leave without saying goodbye to him."

Elijah sighs deeply. He tucks his hands into the pockets of his trousers. "We shouldn't go back to Mystic Falls. There's bound to be trouble if we do."

"You can't stop me."

"Oh, I most definitely can." Elijah pauses. "But I don't want any trouble. I like you sweet and willing. Let's not start our journey with a rotten taste in the mouth."

"So we can go?"

"Yes, but only under my restrictions. It'll have to be during the day. We can stay in Klaus's old house, and I will have Jeremy come to you."

"What if Damon and Stefan find out?"

"Let's hope they won't."

"Don't hurt them."

Elijah's dark eyes shimmer in the moonlight. "I don't like making promises. I don't like telling lies. If you want to see your brother, than you run the risk of making things complicated. Do you accept that?"

Elena bites her lip. What's more important to her? Her brother? The safety of the Salvatores? Her own personal interest? At the moment, half of her is thinking about Elijah, but the rest of her is imagining the next kill she can make. The next time her fangs can sink into the fragile skin of some unknowing victim.

Before she turned, everything was so clear. Stefan loved her, and Damon loved her. But Stefan was there first, and he was so much more solid than his unstable brother. But now, as a vampire, everything is muddle by an insatiable bloodlust. Elijah is right- her desires are already overtaking logic.

What would the human Elena do?

Family is always first.

"I need to see him, just once. We'll be careful, I promise. But Jeremy is my brother, and I can't imagine what he's going through right now. I need to see him and tell him that everything will be all right."

"Fine," Elijah says shortly. "You know all too well how much family means to me, so I will respect your decision." He glances at his watch, holding it under the light of the moon so that he can read the numbers. "It's almost sunrise. We will hide somewhere tonight and then return to Mystic Falls tomorrow."

Elena doesn't need a watch. She can feel the moon receding. She can feel the sun inching its way into the horizon. But she's not ready for bed yet. She's still hungry. Her face starts to transform, and she can feel her fangs lengthen.

Elijah notices her transformation, and his eyes sparkle with amusement. He smiles. "Perhaps before we rest, we can attain a bed time snack. Would you like that Elena?"

No more death. "Yes."

"Good. Let's try not to be so messy this time. Your table manners are dreadful."

A/N – The chapters will get longer if I keep this story up. I guess I just want to see if there's any interest. Should I write more?

Thanks for reading and reviewing : )