Author's note: Ohhhh – two updates in two days. It must be NaNoWriMo or something. I always end up writing fanfic when I'm facing writer's block. My loss, y'all's gain.
Glad y'all seemed pleased with the last chapter. I know it's still kind of aligned with the progression of the show, but I had to bridge where I left off to get where I'm heading. You'll likely find this chapter a little repetitive too, but I PROMISE that after this chapter I take a major turn away from the show (or at least I hope I do). I probably won't have a third chapter go up before Thursday, so depending on how close my way of thinking is to the writers' (insert laughter here), I might be paralleling the show again in the future.
Warnings: Mature – adult content, language, Stefan, violence, sensitive subject matter, Bonnie, character death, VOMIT, VOMIT, THERE IS LOTS OF VOMIT. I had to "borrow" that element of the plot because it ties in with something else I'm writing.
"Thanks, Liz. Yeah, I think we're going to need at least two…maybe three days." The retching coming from down the hall finally stopped and the toilet flushed. "So if you could conveniently lose some paperwork, the ME's report, something like that."
"I'll take care of it." Damon could picture the worried look on Liz's face. Not only was she having to cover up the death of the town's most recent history teacher, three of Klaus' hybrids had been found dead in the woods, and now she learned that the town had one more vampire on its hands. "Do y'all need any help?"
"Um. Probably not the best idea to have visitors right now." The sink turned on full blast. Damon heard Stefan's footsteps going down the hallway, away from his bedroom. He probably needed fresh sheets.
Saying Elena's first attempt at feeding with the vampire blood hadn't gone well was an understatement. Damon had been good. Once Stefan returned with a mug of fox or squirrel or something, Damon slid out from beneath her arm resting across his chest and retreated from the room. Elena was sleeping anyway. She didn't even know he'd with her.
Stefan woke her up, and at least she wasn't quite as disoriented as she'd been before she'd fallen asleep with her head in Damon's lap. She knew who she was and why she was at their house. She hadn't asked for her mother again, but she still wasn't quite herself – or like any other new vampire he'd met.
But she'd only swallowed a single mouthful of his blood at her house, and even that only stayed down for twenty seconds at the most. Enough to complete the transition, but far less than she required.
And that's where the mug of blood a la Stefan came in.
"Here you go." Stefan's bed squeaked as he settled on the mattress next to Elena. Elena had groaned in response. "It's not that bad. You'll get used to it." Stefan's encouragement was hard to ignore, even with the distance between the brothers' bedrooms.
"I don't…"
"Elena, you need to eat something."
Elena didn't answer, but Damon heard her swallow once before she gagged.
"You're doing good. Just try another sip."
"Stefan…"
"Two more swallows." God! Could Stefan treat her more like she was an infant? But Elena did as she was told. She gulped down two more mouthfuls….before her gag reflex kicked in again.
Obviously caught by surprise again, Damon suspected from Stefan's reaction that Elena's stomach was forceful in trying to let him know that the animal blood wasn't agreeing with her.
Now, as Damon listened to Elena's sniffles from the bathroom, the overwhelming smell of Pine-sol drifted through the hallway.
"I'm sorry, Stefan." Elena's voice was choked as she fought through another wave of tears.
"It's okay. You'll get used to it. I did."
Soft footsteps sounded in the hallway, stopping right outside his door. A very pale Elena, her skin had lost its olive glow and now almost matched the white washcloth she held to her mouth, paused in his doorway. Her eyes were bloodshot, and tendrils of her hair curled damp around her face and shoulders. She stood there, silently watching him move around the room. "I thought you left." Her words held the barest hint of accusation.
"You what?" Damon put down the towel he was folding.
Elena stiffened. "When I woke up. You weren't there any longer. I thought…" Her lip began to tremble and she drew in a shaky breath.
"Shhh." Damon crossed the room and stood in front of her. He caressed her cheek with the back of his hand. "I just thought you and Stefan needed some time…alone."
Elena nodded stiffly and swallowed, her eyes wide and vulnerable. He knew she didn't intend to make him desire her even more, but right now, he seriously wanted to kill his brother for his role in putting that much sadness in her eyes.
"How are you doing?"
Elena shrugged and shook her head. Her lip quivered so much her teeth began to chatter.
Damon couldn't stand it any longer. To hell with Stefan standing down the hall. Screw their agreement. He doubted if Elena even remembered making any decision that night, and right now, she needed something his brother damn sure wasn't providing. Damon pulled Elena into his chest and smoothed her hair. "You're going to be alright."
"Damon, I can't do this."
He pulled back and focused on her eyes. "Yes, you can." He cupped her cheeks in his hands. "We're going to get you through this."
"But Damon..." She cast a guilty glance back over her shoulder.
"Everything okay in here?" Stefan stood in the doorway, wiping his hands on a towel.
Elena nodded like an obedient child and pulled away from Damon. Before any of them had a chance to continue the conversation, the doorbell sounded from below.
"Elena, you…"
"Look like hell. I know." Elena had actually scared herself when she'd glanced in the mirror that morning. She was well aware of the pallor of her cheeks and the shadows under her eyes. She sat perched on the edge of the leather couch, uncomfortable under the weight of Caroline's inspection.
"How is everything going?"
"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" Elena shot to her feet and stormed in the direction of the fireplace.
"Because you've been a vampire for about….six hours." Caroline glanced at her watch.
Really? Just six hours. It felt like an eternity since she'd made the decision. She was still fighting to separate reality from some of the most vivid dreams she'd ever had. Her hands unconsciously flew to her neck to slide the charm from her necklace from side to side. She even dreamed that….
"Elena?" Stefan's voice broke into her thoughts. "Caroline was talking to you."
Right. Elena took a breath and tried to focus. Focus on the words Caroline was saying – not the overwhelming smell of smoke from the fireplace or the boom from the grandfather clock down the hall or the faint scent of leather from Damon's jacket. Where was Damon? She turned in a circle.
"Elena?" Caroline let out an annoyed huff. "Can you stay with me for just five minutes."
"Ok." Elena nodded and focused all her attention on Caroline.
"My mom's not going to be able to delay the funeral. By the time she got to the ME's office, he'd already filed the report."
Elena squeezed her hands so tightly into fists that she drew blood.
Blood.
She was hungry. Starving. She didn't know the last time the thoughts of how ravenous she was totally filled her entire consciousness.
"Elena." Damon stepped into the room. "Alaric's funeral is going to be the day after tomorrow." His eyes fixed on hers and for once she could focus on something other than the overwhelming attack on her senses. Of course, his eyes were attacking her in a totally different way.
Now she was hungry for something that definitely wasn't food.
"Elena." Damon's voice was calming as he approached her. "We need to know if you're going to be okay to go to the funeral. Alaric's funeral." He repeated the last words for emphasis.
Alaric's funeral. Elena lowered her head and tears welled in her eyes. "I'm the reason he's dead."
"No." Caroline's reply was forceful. "Esther's the reason he's dead. You're the reason the rest of us are alive. He was going to kill all of us." Caroline looked between the two brothers in the room. "Can y'all give us a little space?" Her eyes narrowed. "I think we need some girl time."
Damon nodded and walked toward the stairwell. Stefan kept his seat.
"Both of you." Caroline looked pointedly at Stefan. She waited for him to disappear down the hallway. She took the seat on the couch that Stefan had vacated. "Elena." Caroline reached out and took hold of Elena's hand. Only a faint trickle of blood slid down her palm now. She pulled her to the couch next to her. "Will you be alright for the funeral?"
"I have to be." Elena was certain about that. She might be dreaming about Damon placing the necklace around her neck, but she was sure about this new reality. "I really am the reason he's dead. I'm the one who asked him to stay. When Stefan was…with Klaus, Alaric wanted to leave. I asked him to stay."
"Oh, you can't think like that." Caroline wrapped Elena in a hug and pulled her tightly into her shoulder. "Elena, we all have things we'd do differently." She took a deep breath and pushed Elena off her shoulder. "But right now, I'm worried about you. How's the whole…blood thing working out?"
Elena shook her head and lowered her eyes.
"That well, huh?" Caroline stooped down to make eye contact with Elena. "I remember the whole – furry friend thing. It didn't work for me. It's ok if you…"
"No. No." Elena bit down on her lip and stood up, taking a few steps back from Caroline. "I have to learn how to do this."
"Blood bags don't hurt anyone, Elena."
Elena shook her head vigorously. "It's important to Stefan. He says I'll be able to do this. I just need more practice. Maybe it's just because the blood's always cold when he brings it back." She took a deep breath to still her stomach as hit churned queasily at the memory. "He's going to try to teach me to hunt tonight."
"Tonight?"
Elena held out her hand. "I don't have a ring." She shoved her hands into her pockets. "I don't think Bonnie trusts me yet."
"We'll have to fix that before the funeral." Caroline nodded as if she were making a mental note to herself. "But Elena, if you can't drink the animal blood…."
"Of course she can." Stefan came into the room with three champagne glasses in one hand and a bottle of the beverage in the other. "Just going to take a little getting used to. After all, you did really well this afternoon."
"I'm not sure if that qualifies as successfully feeding." Elena frowned. "I think it all ended back up on your bedspread."
"And the floor. And the bathroom." Stefan nodded in agreement. "But you swallowed it. That's what counts. It'll get easier. I choked it down for almost six weeks." Stefan placed the glasses on the table.
"Stefan, it made me sick. I…."
Stefan interrupted Elena as he wrapped his arm around her. "But let's not talk about that right now." He popped the cork on the bottle. "To Elena's new life."
The red fox struggled to his feet as Elena released it from her grasp. She wiped the mixture of blood and fur from her chin while fighting back a wave of nausea. Instead of helping her feed, the warm blood only made her stomach unsettled faster.
The second night of hunting wasn't going any better than the first – no matter what she'd just told Caroline on the phone. Elena was dizzy. Her reaction time was even slower than before. So far, a bear, a deer and an elk had all slipped through her grasp. The only reason she'd been able to catch the fox was the poor thing already had a limp.
Stefan offered to catch something for her, but somehow that just made it worse. She couldn't feed while he held a struggling animal down.
She brushed the dirt from her palms as she hesitantly stood to her feet, surprised to see Stefan beaming down at her. "Have I told you how proud I am of you?" He stepped closer to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You're doing so well." He brought his lips to hers and she pushed away.
"But I'm not." Elena protested.
"Yes you are." He rested his hands on her shoulders and brought his forehead down to meet hers. "I knew this wouldn't be easy for someone like you."
"Like me?"
"This is going to take some getting used to. You're compassionate. Loyal. Kind. Protective." Stefan brushed a kiss along her hairline.
"Is that who you think I am?" Elena studied the pensive expression on his face. Did he think she was a woman or a golden retriever? Considering her last meal, it was probably better if she didn't think about that last question too much.
"That's who I know you are." Stefan wrapped an arm around her shoulder and began to lead her back through the woods to the house.
Elena retched into the toilet. Again. At least this was better than throwing up behind a bush or under a tree. She knew that from recent experience. The tips of her hair dipped into the red-tinged water, and her stomach rolled again. She closed her eyes and rested her cheek against the cool of the porcelain. Strong hands gently gathered her hair at the nape of her neck. "You don't need to be in here." Another wave came over her and she was thankful Damon had pulled her hair out of the way. She didn't know how that tiny fox could have filled her stomach that much.
"That had to be a record. You've been home for what, fifteen…twenty minutes?" Still holding her hair with one hand, he reached for the washcloth draped over the edge of the sink with the other. "You're making progress."
Elena chuckled to herself. He'd been prepared this time. He handed her the damp washcloth. She shook her head and wiped her mouth. "I threw up four times in the woods on the way back."
"What does Stefan think you're doing?"
"Chasing squirrels, I guess." She forced a sad smile.
Damon stared at her trembling hands. "Elena. You can't keep this up. It's been two days now. Let me just go down to the basement…"
Elena shifted away from the toilet and leaned against the wall. Damon came with her, and she leaned against him for support. "No. Stefan thinks I'll make it through this. It took him a month. It's just going to take some time."
"And we all know that Stefan's always right." Damon didn't hid the venom in his voice.
Elena ignored the challenge in his comment. She had a more important question for him – one that she could only ask while Stefan was outside doing…something. "Damon?" She turned her head and looked up at him. "Can I ask you a question?"
"If you want me to teach you to feed the right way, just ask." He smirked.
"Don't….mention food right now." Elena brushed her face with the washcloth before Damon tugged it from her hand and took over the job. He held it at the back of her neck and she relaxed back against his chest. "Much better. How'd you know?"
"Med school." Damon answered without blinking.
"Med school?"
His smirk widened. "You'd be surprised at the things I've done." He wiggled his eyebrows at her.
"Be serious. Just for a minute." Elena took a deep breath. "I keep having a dream, but I don't think it's a dream." She looked at him, waiting for a reply.
He wasn't going to make it that easy for her. "And?"
"It was about my necklace." A muscle in his jaw twitched. Elena was stunned. "It wasn't a dream." She waited for him to correct her, but it didn't come. "Why?"
"Why did I give you your necklace back?" Damon wiped the cloth over the corner of her lip where a trickle of blood had dried. "You needed it."
"Why did you make me forget?"
A door opened downstairs, and Elena stiffened. Damon slid out from beneath Elena and helped her to her feet. "Would it have really made any difference?"
"Elena?" Bonnie's voice called out from below.
Elena turned back and forth in confusion, torn between the loaded question Damon had just asked and Bonnie's presence below.
"Let's go see if we can get you a ring." Damon glanced down at his watch. "Funeral starts in a few hours."
Very much aware of her disheveled state, Elena descended the stairs. She knew her hair was damp, and twigs and grass still clung to her jeans and shoes. When she'd arrived back at the boardinghouse, changing clothes wasn't a top priority.
"Hello, Elena." Bonnie stood stiffly in front of the fireplace. Any warmth from the fire was sucked up by Bonnie's icy greeting.
"Hello." Elena took hold of the back of the couch for support.
"Stefan called me. You need a ring?"
So that was going to be how this morning's visit was going to go. No pleasantries. No question about how Elena was doing. Bonnie was angry about being asked to come to the boardinghouse again, although Elena really could hardly blame her. It scarcely seemed a week went by that they weren't summoning her for yet another useful piece of magic. "I need to go to the funeral, Bonnie." She paused. "Please." Elena wasn't above begging. She'd been in the hospital when her parents were buried. Then Jenna and John didn't have a real funeral. Caroline may have told Elena not to blame herself, but Elena still needed to go watch her guardian be laid to rest.
"I don't know." Bonnie shook her head.
"Bonnie, get real." Caroline's voice echoed from the entryway. She entered the room, flanked by Tyler. At least now Elena knew what Stefan had been doing….calling reinforcements for Bonnie's visit. "Between Damon, Stefan, Tyler, and me, we can keep her under control."
"I'm not a wild animal." Elena's anger flared. How dare they imply that she couldn't keep from hurting people at Alaric's funeral?
Bonnie's lips formed a thin line and she shook her head. "Caroline, how many deputies did you kill right after you turned?"
"Bonnie…this is Elena we're talking about." Stefan came into the room. "She had trouble feeding from a rabbit. She's not going to wipe out the whole church."
"You can take it back after the service. Just…please."
"Come on, Bonnie."
Elena gripped the back of the couch for support as another familiar voice came into the room. What was this, a kind of twisted family reunion? Jeremy stepped through the back hallway and entered the room with Matt just behind him.
All the conversation stopped as Matt and Elena stared at each other.
And then Elena ran.
Woo hoo! No, it isn't Christmas. I'm just procrastinating writing my NaNo piece. If y'all are really good about reviewing….I just might be able to write the third part (of what is really one LONG chapter – even though I've broken them up as 3, 4, and 5) and post it tomorrow.
Thanks a million!
-N.E.P.