Merry Christmas :)
Elena was still trying to process what she'd just witnessed, as Damon walked over to her.
Damon, who's hand was still covered in the blood of the fallen Darkling.
As she'd watched the scene from the staircase, she'd been terrified.
Not because Damon had killed a Darkling, they all had done that, but because of how easy it was for him to do so.
When Arcs killed, it was for the greater good.
The cost of war.
Kill or be killed.
Damon had murdered his own soldier without blinking, just because he could.
And for whatever reason, that sent chills down her spine.
"I thought I told you to stay in my room," Damon started, reaching her.
Her eyes flickered to the body behind him, "I...I got bored."
Despite the tightness she'd heard in his tone, he chuckled, "You listen as well as you always have. I see you found some clothes."
The top and pants were hers. He'd guilty kept them, hidden away, of course, for the nights he needed her scent surrounding him to sleep.
She nodded, "I found them in your closet."
Her eyes flickered back to Kol's body.
Damon's clean hand grabbed her chin, and her attention, "Kol was challenging me. I had to make a point."
She met his hard gaze, her voice level, "I didn't say anything."
His expression remained the same, "You didn't have to."
He dropped his hand and she straightened, "It's not important. He's a Darkling, now he's dead. Back home, we call that a win."
She expected a smirk or an eye roll to follow.
Not for Damon's hands to close around her shoulder, forcing her against the nearby wall.
"What the hell?!" she demanded.
His eyes were cold, "Don't speak that way. Not here. I don't need to give them any more reasons to doubt me."
She still felt stunned, "I didn't mean to-"
"I know," he stated, releasing her, "Just don't."
"Okay," she promised, rubbing her shoulder.
Damon studied her, then sighed, "I want this to be a safe place for you. But it won't be if you walk around here, talking as if you are an Arc."
"But I am an Arc," she pointed out.
His eyes held hers, "You're not while you're here."
The joking tone left her at those words.
And how scarily close they were to becoming true.
She stepped closer to him, and his jaw clenched, "Then what am I?"
His moved, his hand closing around her arm.
With a blink, they were in his room again.
"Mine," he answered, before throwing her onto the bed.
Stefan stood on the staircase, looking down at his soldiers.
The Arcs were dedicated to their training, of course, and he was pleased to see that their situation was being treated as seriously as it was.
They were all in danger, after all.
He heard footsteps approach, and knew who it was before her hand even touched him.
"You look stressed."
He turned, meeting Caroline's concerned expression.
"I'm fine," he assured her, "As long as everyone is doing what they are supposed to."
Caroline nodded, looking down at the others distractedly.
"Something on your mind?" He asked after a moment.
She met his gaze, "It's just been difficult to wrap my mind around. About Elena, I mean."
Stefan straightened, "It's not complicated, Caroline. She had the choice between right and wrong. She chose Damon."
His brother's name was acid on his tongue.
"She always has," Caroline commented, not improving his mood.
"Yeah, well, this time, it may very well have gotten her killed."
Silence spread between them for a moment.
Then Caroline whispered, "I thought you said she would be spared."
"And I pray she can be," he promised, "It's up to Elena, and how far she falls into the Dark's grasp."
"She could still come back to us," the blonde sighed, with little conviction.
"Maybe," Stefan smiled kindly, "But until then, we have work to do."
She nodded, just as Jeremy and Matt came running up the stairs toward them.
"What is it?" Stefan asked immediately.
"Darklings," Matt exhaled, "Just beyond the yard."
"An attack?"
"No," Jeremy chimed, "Surveillance, it looked like. Their scoping us out."
Stefan closed his eyes.
Perfect.
Just what they needed, nosey Darklings.
"Okay," he commanded, "At the second morning hour, we'll return the favor. Matt, you and Lexi will go. Don't pass their perimeter, but collect as much information as you can. Jeremy, I want you and Tyler to stand at point, once they leave. And Caroline, keep tabs on the rest, make sure our schedule is being met, and that everyone is doing their best. We have to be prepared."
The three nods encouraged him, "If it's war they want...it's war they'll get."
"Don't you ever miss the Light?" Elena asked, many hours later.
They'd drug themselves from the bed, and showered, before walking out onto his room's private balcony.
Damon played with her fingers where their hands were clasped, and she rested against his shoulder, as they sat, leaning against the balcony wall's structuring.
He considered her question, "It was, and in a way, always will be, home to me. Yes, I miss it, and I'm sure a part of me always will. But I have come to understand that there are more important things at stake. Feeling homesick is such a small misfortune in the larger scheme of things. Free will, morality, choices...They all have a part to play in this war. I'm merely a pawn in the game. What I want, what I miss...it pales in comparison to what must be done."
He glanced down at, just to see Elena's face was turned upward, her eyes searching the sky.
He followed her gaze to the stars above.
"I wish I felt as strongly as you do," she murmured quietly, "But it's hard to be so sure."
Damon frowned, "Are you having second thoughts about staying already?"
Immediately, her head shook, "No, of course not. I chose you, Damon, and I'm sure about my decision."
"But..." He prodded.
"But that doesn't mean I can turn it off as easily as you seem to," she told him, "I miss the Light, I miss the beauty of it, the warmth and wonder. I miss having such a paradise to call home, and I feel like it's slipping away a little more each day. And those stars...," she sighed, still staring at the heavens, "Those stars are all I have to remember it by. And that used to be good enough. But now...I guess it's just not as simple as it used to be. And here you are, telling me why I'd have to give it up."
Damon flinched a little at the raw pain in her voice.
As an Arc, the Darkness was hard enough to accept. Losing faith in their home, completely, was too much despair to see on such a beautiful face.
Elena was lost because of him.
And he didn't know how to fix it.
With a deep exhale, he looked back at the stars.
So little and bright, and just a glimpse of the Light's pureness.
They shone down on this dark world, a constant reminder to it's Warriors that there is purpose.
That there is life beyond this existence.
A pure bliss that they all once knew, protected, and loved.
Such a small symbol for such a brilliant message.
And it was all a lie.
Elena must have sensed where his thoughts were.
"Do you remember the story we were told?" she asked, "About the falling stars?"
He smiled slightly, "They were fallen angels, each one damned, but given a second chance in the form of a wish. Mortals would place their faith in the falling star, and the angel could once more do an act of righteousness before burning."
Elena nodded, "It's such a sad thought, but when you first left us, when I would wait on the roof by the clock tower, I'd occasionally see one of them. A falling star. And I'd make a wish."
Her lips lifted slightly, but then trembled.
Damon slid a finger under her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze.
"I always wished for you," she whispered, "That somehow, you weren't beyond my reach. That someday, I would once again touch your skin, feel the beating of your heart, and that someone was actually hearing the wishes I made on those damn stars, and they'd send you back to me."
Her eyes closed as he cupped her cheek.
"I'm sorry for your pain," he offered soundly, knowing there was nothing more to be done.
They were in a war.
They had chosen their side.
No matter how much pain would spin from that choice, it was too late to turn back now.
They were sent to this mortal realm with a mission, but only in the darkness, could they truly see.
And now, all they could do was watch as the fragile lining of fate unfolded before them, and pray that they could survive to the end, whatever it may be.
The stars above would be a contestant to their cause, and if they perish, forever be the dying wish on the last of their breath.
Damon pulled Elena tighter into his side, before kissing her head and whispering, "Close your eyes."
She blinked up at him, almost startled, but his smile was reassuring, and her eyelids fluttered shut.
He turned to the sky then, the impending darkness with its tiny shimmers, until he found the brightest light and focused on it.
He felt the familiar pull of his power, the very essence of the Arc inside of him, rising up as he stretched out his hand.
With clarity only an angel could possess, he shot a jolt of energy, the color of blue lightning, from his body and into the sky, toward that bright speck.
Moments later, the night was illuminated with a thousand stars raining down.
The gasp that escaped his lover brought his attention down to her, now very open, brown eyes.
They gazed in wonder at the show above, as endless lights shot across the night like a meteor shower of fire.
Her lips fell open in awe, as her eyes reflected the heavens, until finally, she smiled.
He couldn't take his eyes from her in this moment.
In this rare second, she was the same innocent angel she'd been in the Light, before they'd been cursed to this half life of a mortal realm.
As she watched the falling stars, her eyes held a hope and a happiness that he would kill to give her every minute of every hour.
Anything to keep that perfect smile on her lips.
When the Lights finally dispersed and the night was one again shadowed, Elena looked at him.
"Thank you."
Her voice burned with emotion far beyond words of any mortal language, and Damon kissed her.
He couldn't stop himself, even if he had wanted to.
She was his everything, his one hold on sanity in the middle of chaos and he needed her.
Had been without her for too long.
She kissed him back with equal ferocity, throwing herself into his lap as his arms locked around her.
It felt like hours before they pulled apart, and he didn't mind at all.
Her smile was wide and the joy she encompasses swelled in his own chest.
Her eyes flickered to the edge of the balcony, then back to him, and he knew what she was asking.
He nodded, smirking, "Go."
If possible, her face lit up even further, as she climbed to her feet.
He stood as well, not about to miss a thing.
Elena walked out ahead of him, until she reached the railing.
Gracefully, she climbed onto it, straightening with perfect balance.
Her arms lifted then, spreading, and he knew what came next.
Wings, the purest shade of white, elongated from her skin, her opened-back tank top allowing them to unfold until they towered her mortal body, spreading to their full vastness, leaving him, as always, speechless in their beauty.
The feathers rippled as they stretched, looking softer than their true steely strength, and the moonlight glistened off their ends.
Then Elena jumped.
His breath held, until a moment later, she rose, further out and much higher than he could reach.
He watched as she soared, then as she spun and dived, before rising again, reaching a new height with each thrust of her wings.
She truly was breathtaking.
"I understand your fascination."
The voice made him jump, as he was caught off guard, and Damon turned sharply to see Enzo smiling at him from the archway entrance to the bedroom.
"Pardon me," he could hardly contain the bite in his voice, as the Darkling was interrupting such a private moment.
"Your woman," Enzo continued, walking forward, as unbothered by Damon's foul mood as ever, "She is quite a sight to behold like this."
His eyes followed Elena as she danced across the sky.
"She is enjoying herself," Damon noted, "Last time I checked, that wasn't against our rules."
Enzo smirked, "Easy, Damon. I'm merely observing."
"Is observing all you were doing?" He challenged, "Or was there another reason you're interrupting me after hours?"
Enzo's mouth twitched with a slight annoyance then, and Damon smirked, "Well?"
"I just thought you'd like to be informed that scouters are back, with news. The Arcs are training again. So your brother must be through pouting now. He has them preparing for battle."
Damon frowned.
This was not the kind of news he wanted on such a perfect night.
But he also knew that this couldn't go ignored.
If Stefan was training again, he intended war.
Revenge, no doubt, for Elena's departure.
Elena...they'd come for her now, he was sure of it.
And he'd kill them, all of them, if that's what it took to keep her safe.
He met Enzo's gaze, and realized the man was still waiting for an answer.
"We'll do the same," he stated, "As I told the others, our training starts tomorrow."
Enzo nodded, but a lingering look passed his expression.
"Anything else?" Damon prodded.
Enzo sighed, "I trust you, Damon, and your judgement. But some of the others have been wondering...And I, myself, have grown a bit concerned...if your head is still in this."
"Why wouldn't it be?" Damon asked, straightening.
He didn't miss how Enzo's eyes flickered to the sky, to Elena.
"Word spreads quickly, brother. And some share our dearly departed friend's thoughts. They are worried that having your Arc here is...well, a distraction. One that we can't afford."
The growl slipped from his lips before he could stop it, "Elena stays, and will remain unharmed. Any Darkling that has a problem with that can take it up with me personally, and chance meeting the same fate as Kol."
Enzo raised his hands, "No one is looking to challenge you, Damon. They just want assurance that your loyalty is still with us."
"Have I given any evidence to the contrary?" He questioned.
Enzo sighed, "No, but you can't deny that you are different with her. You can't blame them for being concerned. Perhaps you should launch an attack soon, or kill one of the Arcs we have in the holdings, just to ease their minds about what side you're fighting for."
Damon set his jaw, and exhaled before answering, "I appreciate the advice, and I will take it into consideration."
He looked out to see Elena fully swan dive toward the ground, before looping back up seconds before crashing, "If there is nothing further, I'd recommend you take your leave."
Enzo nodded, and began to walk back toward the balcony entrance, but paused, and shot Damon a sorrowful look.
"I've seen the strength she brings you, mate, she can be good for you, for our cause...but-"
"But?" Damon clipped.
"But the emotions that control you in her presence can be dangerous. Poisonous, even. You should be careful."
"I can control myself," Damon stated icily.
Enzo's head shook slowly, "Damon...you destroy galaxies just to see her smile. Control is the least of the problems she could present."
Damon turned to defend himself, his actions, but Enzo was gone.
He stared at the empty space until the sound of Elena's wings descending filled his ears.
Plastering a smile, he turned to her.
Her hair was windswept, her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were brighter than the Light itself.
"I'd almost forgotten," she rushed over to him, her wings closing as she did so, sinking back into her skin, "Stefan doesn't let us fly anymore."
Damon nodded, staring at her lips as Enzo's words echoed in his mind.
"You destroy galaxies, just to see her smile..."
What wouldn't he do for her happiness?
Were the Darklings right in their concern?
He grit his teeth.
No.
He was in control.
He would prove that he was capable of both leading them, and loving her.
And Elena would be at his side when they faced the Arcs.
He wouldn't lose her over this.
He was in control.
Elena's voice pulled him from his thoughts, "Have you ever tried reopening your wings? The skin is sealed, but surely your wings are strong enough to-"
"Elena-" he cut her off.
She blinked and he sighed, pulling her against him, "Enough talk for tonight."
"I was just-"
The rest of her sentence was lost to his lips, as he crushed his mouth against hers.
His hunger for her peaked and within moments, he had her lifted, into his arms, and carried her back through the arch, into his room.
He used his power to set the lock, then fell onto the bed with her, their bodies molding together.
He bit her lip as she pulled at his hair and he lost a little of his mind.
Control, he reminded himself, I am in control.
Elena gasped as he threw her clothes away, her nails scraping his sides.
I'm in control.
Their underwear joined the heap on the floor as he pulled her legs apart and thrusted home.
She moaned as he filled her.
Control.
His body flew into a rage, needing her, harder, faster, now.
And he took everything she offered until they both fell apart, again and again.
And again.
I am in control.
I'm just gonna leave this here :)
Reviews make great Christmas presents, hint hint ;)