Elena lay with her lover on her bed, constantly pressing a cool cloth to the vampire's forehead, which was covered in sweat. Katherine's curls splayed across the pillow, but some clung to her forehead.
The girl had barely slept. For three days Katherine had been bedridden, and Elena refused to let her stand. She could not see the woman weak, she could not allow it. For a moment, Katherine seemed peaceful, as if this trouble was long behind them.
She knew that wasn't the truth, but hope was something she could not help. The girl was only human, and as her lover woke a sliver of hope emanated from her, hoping the vampire was all right.
That hope was quickly diminished as Katherine began coughing, and blood slipped from her lip. Elena quickly grabbed the bowl she had on the nightstand and placed it under her.
She held Katherine's hair from her face as the vampire placed her hands on either side of the bowl to support herself as she continued to spew blood. Her other hand comforted the vampire by rubbing her back gently, trying not to disturb her.
Katherine pushed the bowl away, but her breathing was still erratic as she lay back against the pillows once again.
"What can I do?" Elena pleaded, "We have to do something."
"There's nothing you can do," her lover responded, looking up at her weakly.
"There has to be something! I won't let you die," her eyes filled with tears. The girl had never seen Katherine so weak.
"I'm not letting you go to Klaus for me. He'll kill you, Elena."
"I don't care," Elena whispered, "I can't let you die."
Katherine reached up to weakly cup the girl's cheek, wiping away her tears with her thumb. She sat up, wincing as she did so, to place a gentle kiss to her lover's lips. Elena immediately responded, wrapping her arms around the vampire's neck. More tears fell down her cheeks as she pulled away to stare into Katherine's dark eyes. A soft smile curled the woman's lips as she allowed herself to lie back against the pillows with a wince.
The sigh that escaped Katherine's lips as the girl ran her fingers so gently through her hair was inevitable. She was so comfortable, more comfortable than she had been in a long time. There was never a time the vampire could remember receiving such affection, such love. It was almost unbelievable, but Elena changed that every day.
She fought against the urge to sleep. Katherine wanted to assure her lover, and herself, that things would be all right. If a fight were what she had to give then she would give everything, for Elena. Only Elena could make her feel so different.
Of course she had thought of the consequences of succumbing to the darkness, and finally finding peace. She would never have to run. She would have her freedom. Freedom, the prize that she had worked five hundred years to earn, was now the price she had to pay to remain with her lover.
"Do you need more blood?" she heard the girl whisper.
"No," she sighed, "I don't need anymore."
"Are you sure?"
"It'll only come back up," the vampire smiled, but obviously her lover was not amused.
In an attempt to cheer the girl up she rested her head over Elena's beating heart, listening to the beating as she closed her eyes. She could feel the tension in her lover's muscles, but they relaxed as Katherine nestled herself against Elena's side.
"Can you be less cute for five minutes?" Elena asked, a small smile on her lips.
"It's impossible," the vampire replied with a sigh.
"Are you okay?" the girl asked, her heartbeat speeding with worry.
"Just tired."
Elena watched Katherine yawn and waited until her breathing slowed, signaling she was asleep.
As the stars began to light the night sky, and the moon shone high above the city, Elena managed to sneak from the bed. She carried the bowl of dried blood down the stairs to the sink and began to rinse it out, only letting the water run from the faucet at a slow and gentle pace.
An arm wrapped around her waist and a hand was placed over her mouth, muffling her cries. She tried to pull away, but the grip was supernaturally strong.
"Calm down," she heard a voice whisper behind her, somehow familiar, as if she'd almost forgotten it.
After several moments she stopped struggling, letting a silence hang in the air. As the figure's grip loosened, she turned to see the blue eyes of her blonde best friend.
"Caroline?" she whispered, "What are you doing here?"
"Rescuing you!" Caroline shouted before receiving a glare from Elena. She lowered her voice before speaking again, "What does it look like I'm doing?"
"Rescuing me? What are you talking about?"
"Stefan told us everything. He said Katherine took you and he couldn't catch her because she knocked him out," the blonde quickly explained, then pulling the girl into a hug, "I'm so glad you're safe."
"Caroline," Elena said, pulling away, "Katherine didn't kidnap me. She saved me."
"Katherine saved you? Why don't I believe you, Elena?"
"I know it's hard to believe, but she did. Stefan was attacking me and," she paused for a moment to smile softly, "she rescued me."
"Oh god," Caroline mumbled, obviously concerned.
"What's wrong?" Elena asked, her eyes suddenly widening in concern, "Who's with you?"
"Damon and Stefan," she whispered shaking her head, "Elena I-", but Elena cut her off by running up the stairs. The manor was large; she knew it would take the Salvatores a long time to find Katherine.
Her feet carried her as swiftly as they could to the vampire's room; Katherine was awake. She had somehow managed to push herself into a sitting position to try and get off the bed. The girl rushed to her and pressed gently on her shoulders.
"Lie back down. You're not strong enough for this."
"I'm not letting them hurt you, Elena," Katherine said, the conviction and intensity in her voice almost coerced the girl to let her up.
"They won't hurt me," she reassured her lover, pushing one of her dark curls behind her ear, "They'll hurt you."
Suddenly, the vampire put a hand on her stomach and hunched over the edge of the bed. Her dark curls hid her pained face from view, and Elena kneeled down beside her. She placed a gentle hand on her doppelganger's knee and took her hand.
"Elena," the vampire said, unable to finish her thought because of her shallow breathing.
"I know," she whispered softly, "It's okay."
Elena leaned forward and their lips met. The kiss was soft and tender, almost reassuring the vampire she would be all right. The girl's hand slithered to be underneath Katherine's. She held her hand over her lover's stomach, and for a moment the pain seemed to disappear.
That moment did not last. Katherine's eyes widened into the kiss and she pulled away, moving as far from Elena as possible. She fell to the floor, supporting herself on her hands and knees as she coughed the blood that rose up her throat.
The coughing stopped short, and Elena had a small glimpse of hope that Katherine could be getting better. That hope was diminished as she saw Katherine's muscles begin to tremble.
"Elena," she whispered, "Run."
The whisper had turned into a growl, and Elena did not think twice about getting up from the floor and running towards the door. However, she was stopped by a strong set of arms. She was quickly turned to face her lover, whose eyes had turned to crimson and her veins were prominent.
"Katherine," she said, attempting to seem calm, "Don't do this. Please, don't do this."
She struggled, and in the back of her mind she wondered if loving Katherine was a bad idea. Elena threw that thought aside, promising never to think of it again. Her thoughts were only that of fear. She knew the vampire had drained many in her lifetime, but she never thought her own death would come at her hands.
After a moment Katherine went for Elena's neck, and the girl struggled. Oh, how she struggled, therefore the bite was more painful than she could imagine. Hot tears streamed down her cheeks as she screamed and yelled. She could feel her warm blood as it reached the skin of her neck, and she could feel Katherine's lips moving to suck every drop from her.
"Katherine!" she yelled, "Stop!"
The girl saw Damon and Stefan in the door way, but before she could tell them to go away Katherine backed away from her, shock clear in her now brown eyes. Her lips covered in her lover's blood, she watched as Elena put a hand to the wound to try and stop the bleeding.
"Elena?" she questioned, her breath was shallow and shaky, her limbs were weak.
Before Elena could speak Damon sped to the side of her lover and slammed her into the wall, cracking the wall and possibly her skull, however, Elena could not differentiate the sounds.
"Damon, stop!" she yelled as Stefan's arms wrapped around her waist, holding her back.
"It's okay, Elena, it's me," Stefan whispered comfortingly in her ear, but she managed to pull away from him.
The elder Salvatore stopped to look at Elena, her brown eyes pleading with him. He knew what he wanted; he'd wanted it for so long and for once he finally had the chance to take it, to kill her. Damon watched the girl shake her head, and he looked at Katherine to finally notice the vampire bite on her neck, underneath his thumb where he'd been holding her by the throat.
He dropped her immediately after and watched her sink to the ground, using the wall for support to sit up. Elena walked over to him, and he stared at her, pain and confusion in his ice blue eyes.
"Thank you," she whispered, wrapping her arms around him, but removing them faster than he could get his own arms around her.
The only emotion he could feel was shock as he watched Elena kneel down next to her doppelganger and cup Katherine's cheek. She helped her up, and he stood there, utterly confused. It was as if his body wouldn't move, his voice wouldn't work, as if his eyes were betraying him.
"Elena," he breathed, and watched her look back at him, a pain in her brown eyes that he could not explain, but he understood nonetheless.
"Come on, Stefan," he said, finally regaining his voice, "Let's go."
"I'm not leaving without her," Stefan growled, looking at his brother's face.
"If you don't leave on your own I'll drag you out of here," the elder Salvatore's voice cracked slightly, and a tear threatened to fall from his eye, but he fought it back. He wouldn't let his feelings betray him.
He watched his brother growl before Stefan sped away. Damon took several steps forward to follow him, when a hand gently touching his shoulder stopped him.
When he turned he saw her doe brown eyes staring into his, as if they were sharing a moment. Whatever he was thinking in that moment disappeared as he heard her shaking voice.
"Thank you," she whispered, taking his hand and intertwining their fingers.
Damon looked at their hands, and gripped hers tightly. He was like a child, fascinated by the simplest of actions, by how it made him feel. Yet, somehow, he knew he could never have her. When she was with his brother, it seemed as if the elder Salvatore had a chance, but now things were different.
Stefan may not have seen it, but he saw what she was feeling in the way Elena looked at Katherine. He saw it in the way their eyes met, the way Katherine seemed to regret biting the girl. Damon knew what it meant, and somehow this seemed to be the end, the end of his hope.
"For what?" he whispered, barely letting his eyes meet hers, his voice betraying his emotions.
"For understanding," she responded, her voice powerful with raw emotion, "For not taking her away from me."
"What do you feel for her?" Damon asked suddenly, forcing his eyes to bore into hers, furrowing his eyebrows.
"You already know."
"Say it," his voice was angry, yet hurt. He knew he answer, and yet he forced himself to hear it.
"I love her, Damon."
The Salvatore ripped his hand away from hers and turned his back on the girl. For once he thought he had more of a chance, and it was torn from him by his brother and by the woman he once loved. He blamed Stefan, he blamed Katherine, but ultimately the blame came to him.
Though he had tried to deny it, the truth was clear. He had waited too long, and hadn't done enough to try and win her heart. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he would never win, but false hope had always been his ally, and now, he forced himself to let it go.
A tear slipped down his cheek as he shut his eyes and turned his head over his shoulder to look at her again. Rivers of tears were pouring down her cheeks as she stared at him, hoping for him not to hate her.
"Damon," she said softly, "I-"
"You don't have to say anything," he paused, but the raise of her brow forced him to continue, "I get it."
"You do?"
He nodded gently, "You don't choose who you love," he whispered, his eyes traveling to the floor.
Damon felt her arms wrap around him, and her head rest on his shoulder as tears slipped onto his leather jacket. He put his arms back around her, and kissed the top of her head before resting his head against hers. They swayed to and fro for several moments before she pulled away.
"What about Stefan?" she asked, obviously concerned for her lover, who had managed to crawl into the bed.
His blue eyes met Katherine's, whose eyes seemed to fill with rage as she heard the name. They were filled with emotion, and all of it was directed to the girl he loved. He had thought Katherine incapable of love, but obviously he was wrong.
A sigh escaped him as he looked back to Elena. Her hands were fidgeting and she was constantly shifting her weight. He realized their love for each other was stronger than his could ever be, and finally, he truly understood love.
"I already told you once, Elena. No one's going to hurt you, especially not my brother," he said, adding a small wink at the end, letting the corner of his lips curl to a little smile.
"And you're okay with this?" she asked, wrapping her arms around her middle.
"I am," he replied, "look, I'm going to go. Have to make sure baby brother doesn't do anything stupid."
Damon turned and began to walk out of the room, a slight smile on his face when a voice called him back.
"Damon," Elena said, causing him to turn around, "Thank you."
The girl watched him leave, though she was slightly confused, she was grateful he understood. A sigh escaped her, what was she going to tell her friends? What was she going to tell her brother? Would she have to tell them, or would Stefan ruin it by telling them for her?
Once she heard her lover cough she rushed to the bed and laid beside her, pulling the vampire into her arms and resting their foreheads together. Tears of joy and pain rushed down her cheeks as she sobbed.
"It's okay," Katherine whispered softly, pulling Elena into her embrace, letting the human rest her head on her shoulder.
"You almost died today," Elena told her, curling up against Katherine and sighing.
"I'm just glad you weren't hurt," she replied, kissing the top of her lover's head.
"I'll find a cure for you, Katherine," the girl whispered, moving from the embrace to stare into the eyes of the woman she loved. "I promise."
Though Katherine didn't believe it, she would never tell Elena so, she would never dampen the girl's spirits with her own thoughts.
"I know you will," she replied softly, a smile curling her lips.
Elena pulled her lover's head against her shoulder and began to massage her scalp gently. She heard the vampire moan softly as her breathing slowed for the second time that night. Once Katherine had fallen into slumber, Elena quickly followed suit, and found herself in a dream, a dream where she and Katherine were together, and all their problems were behind them.