Chapter Eleven
"Just because the school has been temporarily condemned, is no reason we can't graduate, Elena!" Caroline protests, her hands cupping a mug of animal blood. She sits pyjama-clad, curled up on one of the stools in the small-but-open kitchen. The sunlight streaming through the windows behind her illuminates the wayward strands of her blonde hair, giving her an ethereal glow. "It's only April," she insists, "We could get back to Mystic Falls before graduation."
"Caroline…" Elena exhales with an exhausted sigh. "I think it's time we just accept that maybe a GED is better solution." She leans over the counter on her elbows, scrapping up the last of her Cheerios with her spoon. Her eyes fall on the half full coffee pot and she wonders if she should have a second cup; the jet lag of moving from Europe to the States and back again with barely a week in between is wearing on her.
Caroline gives one of her typical it's-the-end-of-the-world-as-we-know- it sighs. "I just wish we could enjoy the normal stuff, you know? Like prom and graduation and everything."
Elena makes a face, beyond over the whole idea of high school. "It's never going to happen, Caroline."
Damon stumbles down the stairs, into the open living room and kitchen, rubbing his eyes blearily. He doesn't say anything, just strolls straight to the coffee pot propped on the side of the counter next to Caroline. Elena resists the urge to run her hands through his adorable bed hair. Instead, she reaches for a mug from the cabinet above her head. She holds it out for him, dangling it by the handle between her fingers. He hooks his finger around it, brushing hers, and holds her gaze for a second.
"Morning Elena," he murmurs drawing her name out sultrily with a hard e.
"You only get one shot at high school and you're missing it," Caroline continues her tirade, interrupting their moment. Damon pulls away and fills his mug with coffee, black. Elena blinks a few times, trying to remember what Caroline was talking about.
"Sure," she replies vaguely as she busies herself with pulling the milk out of the fridge. Damon gives her a knowing smirk over the rim of his coffee cup and Elena bumps her hip affectionately against his in response. Elbowing the box of Cheerios on the counter towards him, she gives him a small smile, urging him to eat. He replies with his own exasperated look, but sets down his coffee cup and fills his bowl with cereal and milk.
"Faith is going to be here soon to show us around," Elena remarks, glancing at the clock. Damon gives her a nod from where he seats himself at the table between the kitchen and living room.
Caroline glances at the clock hanging above the stove in surprise. "Ugh, I should go get dressed." She looks down at her empty mug and holds it out to Elena. "Could you pour me some more pig's blood before I go, please?"
Damon snorts into his cereal. "Boy, do I not envy you," he mutters.
Elena takes the mug, shaking her head. "Ignore him; turns out he's not a morning person."
"Oh, I always do," Caroline replies brightly, shooting him a scornful look.
Damon glares back at her. "Right back at you, Yappy."
Caroline frowns disapprovingly as she notices Damon wearing the same grey long sleeved shirt he wore when they arrived. "Didn't you wear that yesterday?" she accuses in roughly the same disgusted tone she would have used if she'd caught him snacking on one of her classmates.
"Faith borrowed some clothes for you," Elena informs him breezily, handing Caroline her mug. "They're on top of the dresser."
"I know," Damon grumbles, "But I'll go naked before I'd be caught in a Doctor Who t-shirt."
Caroline snorts. "Watching you freeze to death naked while all the Slayers vie for a chance to keep you warm would make my day."
Elena raises her spoon at Caroline teasingly. "Watch it," she warns her with laughing eyes.
Caroline gets up off her stool, taking her mug with her. "Well, I should go get dressed. If none of the clothes fit maybe I'll go naked myself," she jokes as she climbs the stairs. "It's not like I'll get cold."
"Yeah, good thing, too," Damon calls up after her. "No one is going to fight to keep you warm!"
Elena bites back her laughter at their antics as she opens the fridge to put away the pig's blood. As she does so, her eyes fall on the carton of orange juice crammed into the back. She smiles slightly, remembering the previous summer mornings when Damon used to come around for breakfast. He came by frequently, often staying the night due to his and Alaric's benders. When he did, he always cooked them breakfast while absolutely insisting she drink some orange juice with it despite the fact that she hated the stuff. Every morning he was there, they argued about it, and every time he'd find a way to convince her into drinking it anyways. It was silly, but it took her mind off Stefan and made her laugh even for just a few minutes. Elena grabs a large glass and pours it to the brim, plopping it in front of Damon with a smirk.
"Seriously?" he quirks an eyebrow. "Is this some kind of retribution?"
Elena smoothes his shirt, smiling. "You said it would help me become a strong, healthy doppelganger. I'm just repaying the favour."
"Ah, but I'm not a doppelganger," he tells her wryly.
"Lucky you," Elena murmurs, situating herself sideways in his lap.
"Cute PJs," he quips, suggestively eyeing her too small sushi covered pyjamas.
Elena frowns. "No deflecting, Damon; drink your juice."
"What do I get if I do?'
Elena raises an eyebrow enticingly.
"Sexual bribery; I like it." He raises the glass as if to toast and takes a small sip.
Elena leans her head on his shoulder. "You still owe me from last summer. We were all going to drive down to Virginia Beach, remember?"
Damon chortles. "Virginia Beach sucks anyways; I'll take you somewhere better." He thinks for a moment. "Jeremy would love Brazil."
Elena smiles sadly, thinking of how much her brother loves the ocean. She bites her lip, deepening in her resolve to get him back. Damon kisses her cheek reassuringly.
"I should probably go get dressed," Elena sighs, trying to get off his lap.
"Wait," Damon pulls her back towards him grasping her chin and giving her a lingering kiss. "Good morning," he murmurs.
"Drink your juice," Elena says against his lips. She gives him another soft peck and slides off his lap brightly.
Upstairs, Elena sorts through the clothes Faith left her. Thankfully, she can make do with the jeans she wore the day before; the ones Faith left her are several inches too short for her height. She dons a black Harley Davidson shirt, as well as the dark blue Burberry coat that she saved for months to buy. Even after the dry cleaning it still smells faintly of gasoline from when Rebekah tried to light her on fire, but she loves it too much to replace it.
"Elena, Caroline?" Damon calls up the stairs. "Faith's here. Any chance you can speed up the primping routine?"
"We can't all roll out of bed as flawless are you are," Elena calls back. "We'll be down in a minute." She hears Damon chuckle, followed by the front door shutting behind him.
She gives herself a once over in the mirror. Without the constant bloodletting and the addition of several square meals a day, her cheeks are rounder and she looks much healthier. The stress of her young life is still visible in the rings under her eyes, but she lets it go; she doesn't have any make up. Her hair has grown out a bit, and un-styled, it forms gentle waves, a nice compromise between her former flat iron and Katherine's curls. Elena gives herself an approving nod and turns away from the mirror. She grabs Damon's leather jacket off the chair for him and heads outside.
The compound looks much less threatening in daylight, although it is far larger than Elena originally thought.
Her footsteps crunch on the gravel path winding from the wooded area surrounding their quarters towards the open, circular clearing where the main buildings are clustered. While the fence is still visible from the main area, it soothes Elena to see that most of it is blocked out by trees and buildings; it feels less like a prison.
The place is full of women—some around Faith's age, many Elena's age, and even some younger girls—all rushing around in and out of different buildings. Regardless of their age, they all have an air about them, a sense of authority but also a weighty responsibility that sets them apart. There is no doubt that these girls and women are Slayers.
Most of them chat animatedly with each other while they make their way around the pseudo-campus, but a handful stroll along by themselves, a haunted look in their eyes as if they've seen too much. Even the very young ones project a sense of maturity well beyond their years, hardly paying the four of them any mind at all. While Damon is the recipient of more than a few sideways glances, Elena can't help but notice the utter absence of whispers and giggling she's used to hearing follow in his wake.
Despite their obvious lack of attention, Caroline walks nervously through the compound, her back rigid despite the face no one makes any aggressive movements towards her.
Faith shows them around what is essentially the pseudo-campus, pointing out the many different buildings that consist of several types of gyms, dorms, classrooms and even a multipurpose building for dining and relaxing. "We've gone through a lot of changes in the last ten years or so," she explains. "There used to just be one Slayer at a time, but Willow unbound the magic because of an Apocalypse."
Damon and Elena nod, already aware of this, but the details surrounding the Slayer are all new to Caroline.
Faith shoves her hands into her pockets, stopping them in front of a huge, imposing building she hasn't explained the purpose of yet. "Originally there was an organization called the Watcher's Council back when it was just Buffy and I—"
"I thought you said there was only one?" Caroline interrupts, confused.
"There's only supposed to be one," Faith replies. "It's complicated. Basically Buffy drowned and another Slayer was called, but then Xander gave Buffy CPR and she came back. So there were two of them. And then the Slayer that was called to replace Buffy died and I was called. So for awhile it was just us two."
Caroline nods in acknowledgment, processing the information.
"Anyways," Faith continues. "Things used to be more rigid, there was a Council that basically ran the show, did a lot of things to piss us off. They were already kinda corrupt, but then they were basically sacked and destroyed by evil itself in 2003, so afterwards we just took what could from what was left and started over here."
Elena rubs her hands together against the cold, wishing she'd had her gloves with her when they fled from Mystic Falls. "How exactly does this work anyways?"
Faith shrugs. "We're sort of a loosely bound organization these days; we have a team of people who recruit Slayers and bring them here if they want to join us. They train here for about a year or so and then they're assigned a Watcher. From there they go all over the world; they report back if they need back up or something big is happening. But mostly we work pretty independently; it's our nature." She gestures around them vaguely. "This is sort of a headquarters, if you will; we call it the Slayer Collective." She makes a face. "I told them it sounds like a creepy cult but I was over ruled."
"How do you train them?" Damon glances around critically. "Given you're already supernaturally adept that is." Elena can tell he's thinking of Jeremy. Something tells her his training tactics are probably not in the Slayer handbook.
"Yeah we are," Faith agrees. "And trust me, there's a real steep learning curve. But you know as well as I do it's really luck and skill that keep you alive."
Damon nods knowingly.
"I'm not really involved with recruiting and training new Slayers, but they work on a bit of everything," Faith continues. "Mostly endurance and tactical stuff. Their year here is pretty introductory: basic tactical advantages, history of vampires, intro to demons, that kind of stuff. Once they get matched up with their Watcher, they get one-on-one attention and they learn a lot more." She gestures to the imposing Romanesque building behind them. "The big draw here is the library," she explains. "Biggest collection of demonology in the world. Giles has spent his lifetime on it."
"Do the Watchers train here?" Damon continues his line of questioning as Faith starts walking again, moving them down a slight hill. Below them stretches an open, grassy area where girls are practicing archery, beyond that a small lake juts up against more woods.
"They do to an extent," Faith answers. "They have a separate school they go to, but they come here a lot for the library. Giles and Andrew handle them; Buffy and Willow are in charge of the Slayers."
"What do you do?" Caroline inquires, looking to the group of ten or so girls lining up with crossbows aimed at targets. A small, dark haired woman walks up and down the line, barking orders.
"I travel a lot," Faith replies hazily. "I don't like to stay in one place long. Mostly I investigate random things that pop up, like you guys."
Elena gestures towards the fence just peaking out over the treetops. "How effective is that thing? Will it keep Klaus out?"
Faith nods. "This place is magically cloaked; he won't even be able to find you. But even if he did somehow, Xander and Willow have comprised some of the best security in the world. You're absolutely safe here."
She turns to Caroline. "Even you. Anyone on this compound is under our protection; the Slayers know better than to hurt you."
Caroline visibly relaxes a bit at her words.
"Anyway," Faith continues. "I have to go deal with a few things before lunch; you guys can feel free to wander around. Caroline, if you could come with me, I'll show you where you can get more animal blood. We keep some handy for Spike."
Caroline nods and follows Faith, leaving Damon and Elena properly alone for what seems like the first time in ages.
"Want to go for a walk?" he asks, nodding towards the path leading to the woods. "Not sure how far this goes before we hit the fence, but we could try."
Elena grabs his hand and smiles. "I'd like that."
They stroll in silence for fifteen minutes or so, until they reach the relative darkness of the woods. "Look at us, doing something normal," Elena comments, swinging their entwined hands playfully.
"We're locked on a compound of vampire Slayers, Elena," Damon chuckles.
She grins. "Normal for us, then." Letting go of his hand, she hops onto a fallen log, balancing herself precariously.
"Careful," Damon warns, watching her with a protective gleam in his eyes. "You've lost your super balance."
Elena sticks out her tongue and takes a few elegant steps, her toes pointed like a gymnast, then dismounts gracefully. "I was a cheerleader remember? I have excellent balance."
Damon gives her a wicked smile and slings an arm around her waist. "Oh, I remember," he quips, pulling her close.
"Have you been smoking?" Elena asks, wrinkling her nose at the slightly bitter smell lingering on him. "Since when do you smoke?"
Damon takes a tentative whiff of himself. "I don't, usually. It got boring half a century ago. But I was standing next to Faith this morning; she was smoking while we were waiting for you and Caroline. Thought I'd see how it felt as a human." He shrugs nonchalantly. "I'm over it."
"Oh," Elena replies. "I guess you and Faith have kind of hit it off, huh?"
"Is that a hint of jealousy I hear, Miss Gilbert?" he teases.
"I'm not jealous," she denies lightly, pulling away and bending down to inspect a bit of heather growing at the base of a nearby tree.
Damon takes a step closer to her. "Elena. Your nose twitches when you lie."
She pulls a piece of the heather, and takes a small sniff of the pleasant smell. Her mother had always liked heather. "I'm not jealous, Damon," she tells him, straightening and trying to manoeuvre around him to continue on the path.
Damon catches her arm. "Elena, I know what you're trying to do."
"Continue our walk?" she attempts to deflect. "Yeah, you got me."
He raises an eyebrow at her quizzically, and Elena knows she's been caught. Really, she should know better; Damon is the king of deflection. "Are you kidding me? This is a classic emotionally repressed martyr move. You're putting Stefan to shame here."
Elena raises her chin indignantly. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Elena, I know you; you're trying to reject something you're feeling because you think it's wrong." Elena narrows her eyes at him, but he continues. "It's okay to feel jealous sometimes. There's nothing going on, and there's no reason for you to be, but it's okay if you are. You're human."
Elena shrugs off his arm. "No, it's not okay, Damon," she snaps. "It's not okay because I know I have no reason to be, and there are thousand and one things I should be more concerned with right now. And above of all, it's selfish because I know you like her, and you don't like anyone."
Damon's brow crinkles. "That's not true."
"All I'm trying to say is," Elena rephrases, "I know you could use a friend. We all miss Alaric, but I think it's been hardest on you. If you enjoy her company, you should hang out with her."
"I'm not looking to replace Alaric, Elena," Damon spits defensively.
"I know that. But I want you to have friends, okay?" She takes both his hands in hers. "I want you to be happy."
Damon leans forward, both hands cupping the back of her neck. "I am happy, Elena; I have you."
Elena slides her arms around his waist, leaning her head against his chest.
What happens when you aren't enough anymore? Katherine taunts in her head.
It seems as if her words are never far away these days, even if she and Katherine are oceans apart. If Katherine had intended to be cruel, Elena knows she could brush the words away without another thought; but for once, Katherine had been speaking the truth with no ulterior motive. And that makes a cut thousands of times deeper than any intentionally cruel words she could ever have mustered.
It's not that she thinks he will cheat on her or even that he'll leave her; she knows that nothing short of extenuating circumstances would separate them. And that is what worries her most: he would stay with her no matter how unhappy it made him.
Sensing her agitation, Damon tilts her chin up to meet his gaze. He leans closer, about to kiss her, when a sharp blast echoes through the quiet woods. Elena gasps as a sudden pain rips through her shoulder.
"Damon?" she cries out, her eyes wide with disbelief. She sees only a glimpse of his face, white with shock, as he tries to lower her to the ground a series of shots ring out, ripping into his chest. They stare at each other for a moment, in utter shock.
"Run," he manages to gasp as the realization hits him. Elena just manages to catch him before he collapses, biting back the pain in her shoulder she struggles against his weight, eventually lowering him to the ground.
Despite the agonizing pain in her shoulder, Elena manages to peel off her coat and press it against Damon's rapidly bleeding wounds.
"Don't move!" a harsh voice demands.
Elena looks up to see a towering man standing maybe two feet away, flanked by trees as he aims a handgun at her. Elena blanches, caught like a dear in the headlights; she's never had to stare down the barrel of a gun pointed at her before.
The man steps closer and Elena can fully see his dark hair and frantic eyes behind the barrel of the gun he keeps trained on her. "How did you get on the compound?" he inquires calmly.
Elena presses her jacket down harder on Damon's his wound to try and stop the bleeding, he's completely lost consciousness. She looks back up at the man with pleading eyes. "Please, help us," she begs, disregarding his question.
His face softens for half a second, then hardens with resolve. "I know what you are now, Katherine. Why would I help you?" he spits, taking a step closer.
"But I'm not—" Elena cuts herself off when she feels Damon's breathing becoming short and ragged under her hands.
Full blown panic sets in.
"Caroline!" Elena shrieks at the top of her lungs. "Caroline, help!" With a shaking, free hand, Elena pats Damon's face, trying to rouse him. "Damon?" She shakes him slightly, careful not to take pressure off his wound. "Damon, wake up. Look at me! Please!" She smacks him again, harder this time. "You can't die like this! You promised me," she whimpers quietly.
"Shut up!" the dark-haired man shouts, seething from Elena's pathetic pleas. "You're vampires on a compound full of Slayers. Who do you think is going to help you?"
"Try me."
Elena and the man snap to the other edge of the woods where a blonde woman emerges. At first, Elena believes it's Caroline. But when she steps into the light spilling down from some of the tree tops, she realizes the woman is shorter and several years older. She moves with a dignity that demands attention.
"Put the gun down, Robin," the blonde orders, her voice fuming with rage, beneath it simmers a strong undercurrent of authority. Elena has no doubt she's one of the Slayers.
For a moment, the man—Robin—doesn't move, but the blonde keeps her eyes locked on his and he quickly lowers his gun without a word. The woman moves to the injured couple and kneels beside Elena, studying Damon intently. Her resigned eyes match the downward curve of her lips.
"He's dying," she confirms softly.
"We can save him!" Elena chokes out desperately, tears streaming down her face. "Please, I just need—"
Before Elena can finish, a blonde blur crashes into the woods. Caroline pushes the other woman aside and leans over Damon, placing her wrist against his parted lips. Caroline puts her hand on Elena's shoulders as Elena cradles Damon's head in order to help the blood ease down his throat.
Relief floods through Elena as Damon coughs. His deep blue eyes snap open, fixating on her with a weak smile. Caroline pulls her already healing wrist away and Elena leans over him, sobbing with reprieve.
Caroline moves so she is sitting on his other side, "We have to get the bullets out," she explains as she opens up his jacket and rips apart his shirt as easily as if it were paper. "I saved his life, but they'll just kill him again if we don't dig them out right now. I think one hit a lung…"
Damon arches against Elena in pain as Caroline presses her fingers into the first bullet hole, but Elena manages to hold him still. He bites his lip as the blonde vampire wrenches her nails into the rapidly healing wounds, but makes no sound.
"It's okay," Elena softly strokes his cheek in attempts to comfort him. Within seconds, he passes out from the strain. She twirls locks of his hair between her fingers, humming softly, while Caroline continues to remove the bullets.
"Done!" Caroline finally exclaims. Her voice shocks Elena, but she reaches for Damon's wrists, feeling the rapid beat of his pulse dance under her fingertips.
"I think he's going to need a little more blood," she announces.
Caroline nods and cuts another small opening on her wrist. Elena lifts Damon's head and Caroline presses her opened skin to his mouth, forcing the blood to spill inside. It takes a few moments but his skin starts to return to its normal colour.
Caroline removes her wrist as Damon's eyes flutter open. "You know," he chokes out wearily, "If you wanted me to take my shirt off, all you had to do was ask. Preferably somewhere warmer."
Elena lets out a noise that seems to be half a laugh mixed with half a sob. "You're fine."
He squeezes her hand reassuringly, giving her a faint sideways grin. "I've survived Katherine, Rebekah and Klaus; you think I'm going to let a redneck with a few wooden bullets kill me?" He tries to sit up but Elena and Caroline both force him back down.
"You punctured freaking lung!" Caroline shrieks. "Stay still so it can heal!"
Damon acquiesces, lying back on the cold ground with his head back in Elena's lap. Elena adjusts his jacket, pulling it back so it covers him and arranges her own bloody coat on top of it, trying to keep the chilly air at bay.
"Elena, your shoulder," Caroline finally acknowledges.
"It's nothing," Elena snaps, keeping her attention fixed on making Damon lie still.
Now that Damon is alright, though, she does finally get a look at the man the Slayer called 'Robin.' He's quite good looking for a man who runs around the woods shooting at what he thinks are vampires. Both of his ears are pierced, which she finds at odds with his meticulous clothing. He stares back at her with a disturbing intensity, as if afraid she will attack at any moment.
The Slayer takes the gun from him and empties the chamber of the wooden bullets. "What the hell were you thinking?" she inquires calmly. However, there is an infuriated edge caught in her voice. She's tiny, but obviously strong, with shoulder length blonde hair pulled into a pony tail. Like Faith, she has a decided air of power about her. But where Faith does nearly everything with an almost reckless abandon, this woman radiates a sense of control. Her every move appears deliberate and precise.
"They're vampires!" Robin cries, gesturing to Caroline, Damon, and Elena.
"They're humans!" The Slayer exclaims, shaking with rage. "You brought a gun onto the compound and you fired on humans." She draws back, letting her words sink in.
"But—" Robin stutters. "That is Katherine Pierce!" he shouts, pointing at Elena.
"I'm Elena Gilbert," Elena foams, easing Damon's head of out her lap and climbing shakily to her feet. "I'm Katherine's doppelganger, her human doppelganger."
"And them?" Robin spits angrily, gesturing towards Damon and Caroline. "There is no doubt in my mind he's Damon Salvatore, and there's no other explanation in the world for—" He gestures towards Caroline. "—for that."
Adrenaline fuelled fury at Robin's attitude toward Caroline floods through Elena's veins. Despite the pain in her shoulder, she launches herself at him in rage.
"How dare you?" she shrieks, pummelling him with her fists. He tries to back away, looking to the Slayer, but she makes no move to stop her. "You don't even know us!" She brings an elbow to his nose, resulting in a satisfying crack. "You should be lucky I'm human, because if I wasn't, you'd be dead right now!" She kicks him in stomach, hard enough to bring him to his knees. "You think a few wooden bullets could stop a vampire that easily? Especially one as old as Katherine?" She stops kicking him and stands over him, hands on her hips, glaring at him with rage. "I was the crappiest vampire ever, and even I could've snapped your neck in a heartbeat."
"Elena…" Caroline comes to stand next to her, grabbing her good arm. "Calm down. Let me look at your shoulder."
Elena throws one last nasty look at Robin and lets Caroline sit her down next to Damon. She bites back the pain as Caroline pulls her shirt aside and probes into her wound. The next few moments are sheer agony; when she finally comes out of the pain with the help of Caroline's blood, her coat is tucked around her. It's so soaked in Damon's blood that it doesn't give much warmth, but she puts her arms back into it anyways, grateful for whatever she can get. Damon is on his feet now, standing over Robin with his eyes fixed in a downright murderous gaze; she assumes he's been going for awhile but she only catches the end of his tirade.
"—don't care what species I am; I'll kill you in a second and I won't think twice about it," he threatens.
"Nobody is killing anyone," the Slayer interjects. She turns back to Robin. "You know how I feel about guns; you know they're not allowed on the compound. Does Xander know you're here?"
Robin nods. "I got here a few hours ago. He didn't say anything about them, though."
"Well why would he need to? You know the rules. Anyone here is under our protection, even vampires."
"You shouldn't be protecting vampires, Buffy!"
The Slayer's eyes flash. "That is not your call, Robin!"
"What the hell happened here?" Faith shouts as she runs into the clearing. "I was talking to Caroline and suddenly she just took off." She looks at Robin with a quizzical expression. "I thought you were in Iowa."
"Yeah, that's the least of our problems," Buffy replies curtly, not taking her eyes off of him.
"I can see that," Faith announces as she assesses the situation. She looks to Elena and Damon, both covered in blood. "Do you need a hospital?"
Damon shakes his head. "No hospital," he looks down at himself. "Shower would be good, though. Any chance you've got a loofah? Gets blood out of those hard to reach places." He gives Elena wink. She knows he's trying to put her at ease, so she gives him a faint, reassuring smile in return.
"I'll take you back to the guest house," Faith offers. "You guys need to get out of the cold." She looks to Damon. "Can you walk?"
"If he can talk, he can walk," Caroline comments drily, helping Elena up. Her shoulder is still a bit stiff, but she already feels better.
"You said we were safe here!" Elena spits shrilly at Faith as they make their way out of the woods, leaving Buffy arguing with Robin.
Faith winces. "I'm sorry, Elena. I'm not sure what's going on, but I'll talk with Buffy. We'll deal with it, alright? In the meantime, everyone is okay, right? No harm, no foul."
"Damon almost died!" Elena cries in outrage.
Faith's face sets with resolve. "And I'm sorry it happened, but there's nothing I can do to change it."
Damon cuts in, his eyes frantic with anger. The weight of the day's events are finally beginning to sink in. "That's all you have to say to her? Do you have any idea what she's been through?"
"Damon..." Elena tries to calm him as they come to a halt at the front of their quarters. She already regrets what she knows was a misplaced outburst at Faith.
"I trusted you," Damon says to Faith, his voice thick with the hurt of betrayal. "You said you would help me keep her safe."
He brushes past her angrily into the house.
"Damon!" Elena follows him, catching up to him at the base of the stairs. "Hey," she says softly, grabbing his arm. "Look at me."
Elena nearly flinches at the hollow, lost look in his eyes. It is much more than just his perceived betrayal on the part of someone he took for a friend. It's the face of a man confronting the reality of his human frailty for the first time in a century and a half.
Elena takes both his hands in hers. "Come here," she says softly, tugging him up the stairs and into the bathroom.
He says nothing, only stares back at her blankly as the door clicks shut behind them, and she shrugs his jacket off him. It's ruined, peppered with three small bullet holes and seeping with blood. The shirt he was wearing beneath it is in tatters. She gently tugs it off him, examining where the bullet holes riddled his chest less than an hour ago. Small red marks remain where the tissue is still knitting itself together under the slick coating of blood.
"Elena?" he chokes out uncertainly.
"Shhh," she soothes, pushing him lightly to sit on the edge of the counter so she can ease his boots off his feet. "You're alright."
She flicks on the water to the shower, and then unzips his jeans, sliding them down his legs with his boxers so he can step out of them and into the warm water. Watching the blood stream off him and down the drain, she quickly sheds her own ruined clothes and climbs in next to him.
There's no loofah, but she grabs a wash cloth and softly scrubs away the blood that has congealed on him.
"That's better, hmm?" she inquires him softly when she finishes. Wrapping her arms around him, she leans her head against his chest. His head bows, tucking his chin on other side of her shoulder. They stay there for a long time, letting the water wash them clean.
"I wanted us to have lifetimes," he finally says. "I wanted to take you everywhere, show you Bali, Turkey...you've never even been to Paris."
"Hey," she rubs his back gently. "We can still do that. We'll just have to make it count."
"Elena, we haven't really talked about what happens...if we make it through all this. Whether you'll go to school, I'll get a job. That stuff."
Elena takes a hesitant breath; she tells herself she hasn't brought this conversation up because she doesn't want to push him before he's ready to handle it. But some part of her knows the real reason is her fear that if she does, she'll only find validation in Katherine's words.
Softly, she runs her thumb down his neck and over his shoulder, marvelling at how much warmth he gives off, how his skin flushes from the heat of the water. It's still so new to her. "First of all, I don't want to hear any ifs. We are going to make it through this. But let's get through the Great Brother Rescue first," she finally says. "One thing at a time okay?" It seems to appease him for the moment because he gives a small nod against her.
"Thank you," he murmurs into her neck with lips soft against her wet skin.
"For what?"
He drops a gentle kiss on the top of her shoulder. "Everything. You were amazing today. Keeping your head and staunching the bleeding, yelling for Caroline. If you hadn't, I would have died."
"You'd do anything for me; does it really surprise you I would do the same?" She grasps one of his hands with her own and laces their fingers together.
"I've been on my own for a long time, Elena," he says with a crooked smile. "And when it comes to you, I'm used to being the one to do the saving."
"Not all the time," she proclaims teasingly. "I can think of multiple occasions I've prevented people from lighting you on fire."
He glides his free hand down her side, stopping at her hips, where he rubs his thumb in delicious circles. "I wonder what it is about me that makes people want to light me on fire," he jokes, resting his forehead against hers.
"I wonder..." she tilts her head up, giving him a wide smile, which he quickly captures with his lips. She sucks lightly on his bottom lip, pressing herself closer to him and twining her fingers into his hair. Her head is completely lost in him, separated entirely from their surroundings when the ancient shower gives an abrupt shudder, suddenly drenching them in cold water. Elena leaps back from the spray in shock.
"What the—" She wraps her arms around herself, shivering.
Damon turns around and flicks the water off, laughing. "I think the shower is trying to tell us something," he jokes. He grabs a towel off the rack next to the door, tucking it around her tenderly. "Good thing we have a bed, huh?"
Meeting his eyes, an idea slowly occurs to her. "You know what? I refuse to be judged by a shower," she challenges him, letting the towel fall to the floor. The spark she sees glint in his eyes more than makes up for her (temporarily) freezing condition.
Elena wakes to a sharp knocking sound.
Trying to block it out, she rolls over, curling herself closer to Damon's warmth, but the sound persists. Groaning, she sits up, rubbing her eyes. It was late afternoon when they finally drifted off to sleep, but now the moonlight streams in through their bedroom window. Next to her, Damon sleeps peacefully for once instead of his usual restless mumbling and kicking. He might be good in bed, but most nights he's an utter pain to actually sleep with.
"Elena," Caroline hisses, poking her head into the bedroom. "I've been knocking for like ten minutes."
Elena rolls her eyes at the exaggeration. "What do you want?" she hisses back, irritated.
"Bonnie's here," Caroline whispers sharply.
Elena sighs and nods. "Give me a minute; I'll be right down." She slips out of bed when Caroline closes the door, throwing a lamenting look at her ruined coat lying on the floor. She really ought to stop buying nice clothes since they only get destroyed. She manages to squeeze herself into a pair of Faith's jeans and a red t-shirt with Dingoes Ate My Baby etched across the front. She isn't sure she wants to know what on earth that is.
Downstairs, Caroline is lying casually on the sofa with her feet in Bonnie's lap, telling her a long winded story. Elena immediately goes to her friend, who rises so quickly she sends Caroline rolling off the couch. "I'm so glad you're okay," she cries, pulling away to get a good look at her friend.
"I'm fine," Bonnie insists, her dark eyes filled with reassuring warmth. "I'm glad you're okay too; I heard you had an eventful day."
Elena looks away, "Yeah it pretty much sucked," she lets out bitterly.
"I doubt it all sucked," Caroline teases, bouncing up off the floor with a grin. "I had to walk pretty far to get out of earshot of you and Damon."
Elena blushes. "I'm sorry."
Caroline gives her a sad smile. "It's okay. I can't remember the details, but I'm pretty sure I've had my share of he's-not-dead sex."
"Trust me, you have," Bonnie informs her. The smile dies on her lips after a moment, though. She gives Elena a knowing look, remembering their fallen friend.
Caroline perches herself awkwardly on the edge of the couch. "Is it okay if we talk about Tyler sometimes? I know I won't ever really remember unless someone convinces Kol to un-compel me, but I still know there's something ... I still miss him, even if I don't remember him. Does that sound crazy?"
Elena shakes her head. "Of course not, Care! Jeremy went through the same thing with Vicki. He said the grief is still there, it just manifests itself differently." She takes rubs Caroline's shoulder lightly, noticing she's changed out of the ill fitting black one she was wearing and into a soft blue sweater of her own. "We'll tell you anything you want to know, okay?"
Caroline nods grimly. "Right now, though, I just want to know how you got away from Klaus."
"It got pretty brutal," Bonnie explains bleakly. "The whole parking lot was destroyed. Elijah showing up distracted Klaus for awhile, but when he realized what had happened, he got really angry." She bites her lip. "He grabbed Matt, tried to compel him, but when he couldn't he...he snapped his neck."
Elena takes a rattled breath. "No..."
"He's fine," Bonnie reassures her quickly. "He had the Gilbert ring. After Klaus snapped his neck, he yelled some things at Elijah and managed to disappear. We assumed he went looking for you."
"Faith said this place is cloaked magically and he can't find us," Elena announces, her eyes worried. "I don't trust that though; not after today."
Bonnie holds her gaze for a moment. "Trust me then, Elena." She closes her eyes, inhaling deeply. "If I concentrate, I can feel the magic working. There's so much it almost buzzes," her voice takes on that deep but calming otherworldly quality she gets when she is working magic. Her eyes snap open. "You're safe from Klaus here; I promise."
"Thank you," Elena chokes out gratefully. "Did Matt get off to LA alright?"
"I saw him and Sheriff Forbes get on a plane myself," Bonnie declares.
"Your Mom went with him?" Elena questions, turning her attention to Caroline.
Caroline bites her lip tentatively. "I haven't talked to her, but I think it's for the best. She needs to get out of that town before it kills her."
Elena silently agrees. Klaus probably wouldn't kill her out of his strange respect for Caroline, but he has a tendency for the unpredictable. It's best she is far away, just in case. Perhaps Angel could put her to work along with Matt; she would be a formidable assistant to his cause.
"I'm so glad to be back with you guys," Bonnie says, repressing a yawn. "But I should probably get to bed. Caroline?"
Caroline looks to Elena apologetically. "I figured you wouldn't mind if I moved to the other guest house with Bonnie. That way she's not alone and you and Damon can have some privacy."
"I'm sorry if we've made you uncomfortable, Caroline," Elena apologises, embarrassed that Caroline noticed their behaviour, but not embarrassed enough to regret a single second of it.
Caroline laughs. "Me? Uncomfortable?" She waves her off. "You don't have to apologise, Elena." Her face softens into a beatific expression Elena very rarely sees. "Do you know how nice it is to see you happy?" she exhales. "I know you're worried about Jeremy and Stefan...but you're happy too. And that's okay. You deserve to be." She takes a deep breath, gearing herself up to say something. "I know said some things about you and Damon that I shouldn't have...and I'm sorry." She looks at Bonnie with a half-smile. "Next time Bonnie tells me to butt out of your relationships, I'll listen to her."
Bonnie lets out a half laugh. "I'll believe that when I see it," she teases.
Elena gives Caroline's hand a small squeeze. "You saved his life today. Thank you."
Caroline grins. "I owed him one."
Bonnie gestures to her black duffle bag and a tall suitcase sitting at the edge of the stairs. "I packed some stuff for you and Damon. You were pretty easy; I just packed what you already had at the boarding house, but I kind of had to guess with him."
Elena throws her arm around her friend. "Thank you so much, Bonnie. You have no idea how nice it is to have my own clothes."
Bonnie hugs her back lightly. "It's not a problem, Elena." She pulls away, eyeing the too tight jeans which hit Elena well above the ankles. "I can see you needed them."
Caroline loops her arm through Bonnie's and walks her towards the door. "We'll see you in the morning, alright? The whole gang is meeting at ten in the library."
Elena wishes them goodnight and shuts the door, locking it behind her.
She hoists the bags up and drags them upstairs. Exhausted, she peels herself out of the jeans and tip toes back to the bed in the semi darkness. Crawling over Damon, Elena nestles herself back into her cocoon of blankets.
"Where'd you go?" Damon mumbles sleepily, burying his face in the crook of her neck.
"I wanted to see Bonnie," she answers.
"And how is my favourite Halliwell?"
Elena frowns for a moment. "Halliwell?" Then it dawns on her. "Have you been watching Charmed?" She bites back a laugh.
"I was trapped in the house all day with a freaking vampire babysitter while you were at school. What can I say? Alyssa Milano is hot."
She pokes him playfully. "You totally identified with Cole, didn't you?"
He holds up his thumb and forefinger, pretending to pinch them together. "Little bit."
"Damon?" Elena says after a moment, not sure if he is asleep or not.
"What?' He replies, not moving.
She pulls back a bit, brushing a strand of hair off his face. "You saved Matt's life by giving him that ring. Klaus snapped his neck."
His eyes flutter open and he reaches for her hand. "I'm glad he made it."
Elena swallows. "I know you said that if it came down to me or Matt, you would save me. But thank you...for trying to save him, for doing what you could."
"It's your ring, Elena. You should've just given it to him in the first place."
She shakes her head. "I couldn't do that, Damon. Matt is my friend, and I love him, but if I had to choose between saving you or him, I would choose you. You should know that."
He cups her face, his gaze heavy with intent. "There's a part of me that I don't think will ever forgive Stefan for not saving you. But I hope you never, ever have to make that decision."
She tucks her chin under his chest. "Me too," she whispers as she drifts off.
A/N: Sorry for the delay with this chapter, it got far too long and I had to split it in two parts. I hope you didn't mind the heavy Delena chapter, I promise the next chapter there's lots more Buffy, I hope to have it up soon. Thank you all so much for all of your reviews/follows etc. they mean the world to me. Special thanks to my awesome beta Skye!