Ok that's it for this chapter. Not sure what you guys think of its progression so far so review – they make my day

Chapter 6 - Turbulence

Warning: I've been listening to my playlist on YouTube having already started this chapter and suffice it so say that things may get a bit turbulent. You've been warned. Having said that here is another chapter. Enjoy!

After Elena's eloquent dismissal Damon decided that he should let Jeremy know that she was fine. Heading towards her bedroom door he couldn't help but glance over at her to make sure that she was fine before he left. He had been so worried about her. She had gone through a lot over the past year and he couldn't help but notice that there was something that was really unsettling her. For now, with Ric away on his latest lead, he would stay tonight and look over them both relieved that she would be out of danger.

Having reached the bottom of the stairs Damon found Jeremy staring pensively through the kitchen window. Coming up behind him purposely making a noise as he went, Damon placed a hand on his shoulder,

'She's fine. I'll stay here tonight so why don't you get some rest. I know that Bonnie won't find you half as delectable if you're semi-conscious and staring into space'

'I'll have you know she finds me irresistible. Conscious or otherwise' giving a light smirk Jeremy turned and headed for his room. Pausing briefly he couldn't help but say thank you to Damon.

Not that it's required, he thought. He had been torn between heading over and staying at the boarding house before he received the call for Jeremy but he had been set clear boundaries by Elena. With Jenna's passing, Ric's legal battle for guardianship over the Gilberts and Stefan's disappearance, they could all do with maintaining the sense of normality for as long as possible.

But then since when did Damon ever do anything for the sake of normality - maybe for an easier life, in pursuit of a goal or generally for his own amusement. Or more recently for Elena's sake.

Thinking over the past few months he realised that the only selfish action he had taken was to hunt down Katherine in the hope that she might tell him where he might find his spineless brother. Ok he has saved his life but did it not occur to him that he didn't have to keep his word. If he had told him what had happened with Klaus, the Scooby gang would have been rallied and a solution found. But no, Saintly Stefan had to be the martyr and leave a grief-stricken Elena and co for him to deal with. They had crossed swords with Klaus quite a few times and of course Damon had a few aces to play. Even if no one else was aware of it, he wouldn't stand by any longer maintaining the distance that Elena had dictated to him. He wouldn't watch from the shadows while she withdrew away from them and towards something that he couldn't seem to put a finger on. The attack on her tonight had not been by forced entry into their home. It had been a metaphysic presence that had touched her whilst awake and drew her into a place even he couldn't reach. What unnerved him was that he wasn't sure what had drawn her back to herself.

Pulling out his cell he began dialling a number and proceeded to call in a few 'favours'.

Gradually the sun began to stream through Elena's window . The warmth comforted Elena as she basked in the morning sun and at her own pace began to surface from her slumber. Opening her eyes she sighed in complete contentment. She hadn't slept that deeply for such a long time that she was reluctant to welcome the morning with the usual rituals of clothing and breakfast. She was awake wasn't she? So instead she arched and stretched under the sunlight that filtered in through the window . Like any content being she basked in the warmth provided by the morning sunlight.

'Good morning, kitty cat'

Sitting bolt upright Elena turned to see Damon coming into her room. There was a smirk on his face but his eyes didn't reflect the candour he was going for. She paused in her greeting to think what might have caused such an expression. They hadn't argued, he hadn't done anything typically Damon in the past few months and so she was at a loss as to what was going on. Going over the last day or so she remembered meeting with Caroline, coming home and working on an assignment then having a shower. She gasped as a thought came to her.

'The shower!'

Damon came across the room using his preternatural speed to sit beside her on the bed grasping her hands gently to steady her.

He asked, 'What do you remember?'

Realising that she didn't remember how she came to be in her bed and thought it best to start from the beginning.

'I remember… I had finished working on an assignment and headed to the bathroom to clean up before bed'. She stopped to see whether there was a corny remark coming her way. Once she saw that Damon's attention was focused entirely on her. Going back to her memories of the previous night she found herself drawn in.

'There was something in there with me'

'What was it? A vampire? A werewolf? What was it?'

Shaking her head she continued, 'none of those. It didn't mean any harm but rather to com… sooth'

' Sooth? Elena your brother found you unconscious in the shower. Whatever was in there with you seemed to have some kind of reason to be there and I find it hard to believe that it was to be' he almost chocked before he spat out the word, ' soothing' . He decided not to mention the fact that she felt the need to be comforted. He would have hoped that she could come to him with whatever had been bothering her. After all he had waited patiently for just that. He would just have to do the Damon thing. Looking at her he tried to pick up on anything else she wasn't saying. Silently Elena fumed that Damon did not believe her but she knew that no harm was meant by whatever had appeared to her.

Ending the conversation she decided that she needed to get ready for the day. She was about to get out of bed when she realised she wasn't wearing anything. Thankfully she had remained covered by her comforter whilst she had been talking to Damon and it dawned on her just how worried Damon had been to not have mentioned or even taken advantage of her current state of dress.

'Damon, can you wait for me downstairs?'

'Has kitty misplaced her fur?' he shot her a brooding look as he tipped his head down slightly to give her the distinct feeling she was prey.

'Out!'

Of course he didn't move but it didn't matter. Getting out of bed she wrapped the sheet around her slinging the excess material over her left should, walked to her wardrobe, picked what she wanted to wear for the day and headed over to the bathroom. Just before she passed the threshold she noticed that the door, Jeremy had apparently broken to get to her, was fixed. Turning to Damon she asked what happened with only a look. He shrugged casually,

'I thought it better to get it fixed whilst you slept so that you might have some privacy between the two rooms. Plus if anything did decide to happen I can always knock it through again.' He was casually making his way over to her with a steady almost sauntering pace.

What is he up to? She wondered. Shaking off her thoughts she asked, 'You fixed this? Whilst I was asleep? But I didn't hear a thing.'

By now he was stood right in front of her leaning ever so slightly towards her but not touching. She had been cornered against the door to the bathroom with her back pressed up against wood and from the feel of it, iron seemed to block the path in front of her. There was comfort in the warmth he gave off as he braced his arms on either side of her. But despite being cornered she had never felt calm.

'With over an eternity to spend with no real occupation, you should know that it can get pretty boring quite easily.' He smirked, 'even for me'.

'Are you telling me that you know carpentry?' her question gave him the invitation he had been waiting for. Bringing up his right hand he gently swiped a lock of hair off her cheek from when she had whipped her head around to ask him her questions. Her skin was soft to the touch not that it surprised him. He had touched her on a number of occasions and he found that only with her was he happy to find that what you saw when you looked at Elena was what you got - her soft, gentle sun-kissed skin with proportionate curves and a fierce fire and loyalty glaring out of her big brown eyes. Whatever was stalking her wouldn't succeed no matter its motive. She wasn't going anywhere.

'I'm very good with my hands, Elena, and they prefer to stay occupied'. With that said he winked and left the room.

After an exit like that, Elena couldn't help but gape after him. He hadn't flirted with her for months. Since Stefan had left he had become one of her best friends. She couldn't however just stand there in the in-between. Knowing Damon he would do the unexpected and appear in front of her again. With that in mind she retreated into the bathroom, closed and locked the door.

After her experience last night she didn't want to worry Jeremy or Damon by taking another shower this morning. Although her experience hadn't been particularly unpleasant for her, she would seriously consider another shower later on to see if it might lead to another blissful night of sleep.

Those arms

They were warm, strong and almost familiar. They held her so tight and gradually the body heat had crept from his skin through to her own almost like her favourite blanket straight from the dryer when she was a little girl.

Wait his?

She realised that there were definitely male arms that had held her. The warmth similar to that of an impossibly warm body and there was no denying that husky whisper. Or for that matter the purely masculine growl of approval that pre-empted the words he spoke. And yet she wasn't afraid of the being nor of the experience that had granted her the rest she had so desperately needed. She knew that if she had continued to go on without sleep that she would have burnt herself out. Despite wanting to protect her loved ones she knew that even by hiding what she was feeling and the horrors she had seen she would ultimately do exactly what she set out to avoid. Her breakdown would mean, ultimately, further suffering for those that cared for her.

She needed to face this if it was going to end. She wasn't sure if the horrors she had seen and experienced in her dreams were the coming from the same source as the security and contentment she had felt. Deep down she felt that the two were separate if by nothing more than their contrary nature. Given the fact that her experiences had not been entirely physical. It had been whilst she was unconscious and so possibly spiritual in nature. She needed to speak to someone who understood the forces of nature, the seen and the unseen. She had to speak to Bonnie.

It was time to face her nightmare once more.

Damon wasn't the only one that had been keeping an eye on Elena. The symptoms of her experiences had ben watched and noted as they had progressed.