Thinking Elena, Stefan, and Damon sat around the firepit. The lack of hiding places made them come back through Damon's portal to the little hut in California.
They all were shocked by the recent events and tried to put the pieces together.

So far they knew that Klaus had planned from the beginning to kill off Elena. He must have known that she would transform into the chimaera after that. But from there, they were in the dark.

Either Klaus came to know that the children he would have with the chimaera would give him power, his long awaited victory, and finally a family; or he is afraid of the destructiveness that the Chimaera could bring him.

If he wants her only to give birth to his children, why would he let her get away so easily without even bothering to show up at all?

No, he must have known that she is more than a birthing machine. Maybe he'd let her go with the two brothers, to find out about her defense and what she is able to do to him. See if and how she might kill them.

Stefan had enlighten Elena and Damon about the stuff that Klaus had forced him and Katherine to do. Stefan had been compelled to play the role of the threatening distraction. Only then, Katherine had been able to compel Bonnie without her knowledge and plant the apocalyptical visions and the idea of the "forget-Stefan-spell" in the witches head.

Klaus had his minions observing Elena long enough to know, that Damon would never let her run off all by herself. Bonnie's spell and powder was meant for Damon to inhale, and change him into an uncontrollable beast all along.

Didn't Klaus know, that dying an supernatural death would have never transformed her into the Chimaera? Maybe he just gambled on that. Dead or alive. Both was worth something to him.

And now they didn't know which step they should take next. Could Elena inadvertently kill them?

Stefan's and Damon's uncharacteristic brotherly behavior and their tolerance for each other, concerning Elena's feelings, were outstanding since Elena went through her transition. Elena became the Chimera by drinking not only the blood of one, but both of them.

According to the legend, only the blood of a loved one would have worked. She was never able to say out loud that she loves Stefan as much as she loves Damon. And since she and Damon got so close, she would forever miss a piece, if she had to decide for only one of them to be with. The mixture of their blood and its effect had finally revealed the truth.

The small white lines on Stefan's and Damon's wrists, where she scratched them, didn't seem to vanish like all of their other scars.

"You may have marked us." Stefan pointed out.

"You mean marking us, as in making us her property, her devoted subordinates?"

"Yeah, Damon I guess this is why the scars won't disappear. It also could explain, why we are so easy going with each other right now, knowing what we know." Stefan took a meaningful glance over to Elena, who ashamed looked somewhere else.

"Whow, … but even if we would give in... in this wonderful threesome idea,... we don't know if this is actually what this ashole of hybrid is planning all along, right?"

"What do you mean? Do you seriously consider …You kidding,right?..."

"Oh common Elena. Don't talk like you hadn't liked it, earlier." Damon snarled at her.

"Would you excuse me? I feel slightly sick!" Elena stood up and went toward the hut.

"Oh wait, I'm going to beg on my knees now, for you to forgive me. My impertinence preveils over my obedience..."

"Shut the fuck up, Damon." Stefan snapped.

"Argh, whatever."

For a while the two men were staring into the fire. They had built it on the same spot that Elena had used for her fire, when Damon had locked her out of the hut a day ago.

The snow was reflecting the silvery light of the full moon. The night was clear and there was no cloud to be seen.

A loud and glassy sound echoed through the woods half an hour later, when they were about to go to sleep as well.

Panic all over her face, Elena woke up totally disoriented. Without a warning, all her Chimaera features appeared again. She darted out of bed and ran against the closest furnitures and walls, like a trapped animal would do. Stefan and Damon had a hard time to catch her and wrestle her down to keep her save on the ground.

Only when Elena buried her claws and canines into their flesh to fight them off, the smell and taste of their blood seemed to calm her a little.

"Better?" Damon asked.

Huge amber eyes were fixating his blue ones.

"Where is this creepy sound come from ?" Childlike she waited for him to reveal what kind of man-eating monsters would hide themselves in these forests.

"It's only the lake, sweetheart. The ice is expanding and cracking. Because it's so big, it sounds a little strange."

"That's all?"

"That's all!"

"If I had known... It startled me for the... 3rd time?...and I couldn't even ask you."

She remembered hearing the sound two days ago when she had stepped into the animal trap, and when she lost her balance sitting on the edge of the loft yesterday morning.

She blushed fiercely thinking back how tense it got from there with the blue eyed men next to her.

{sorry, couldn't finish the chapter properly. but wanted to upload what I had. I am on vaccation for the weekend...)