The Reaping – Ch2

ELENA's POV

I wake up to the unique scent of Stefan's cinnamon vanilla French toast and the Christmas morning-like sound of the voices and the laughter of every single person in the world that I love having breakfast in my home.

Hugging Stefan's pillow, I smile – eyes still closed, I can't remember the last time I felt this whole – truly complete. Maybe all the way back to my childhood when I still believed in Santa and my little world was still intact and simple.

I stay that way for a long time, half-asleep and listening to the inaudible voices and laughs and the scraping of silverware against dishes, the high-pitched giggles and squeals of our children – our reward for making it through the years of distress that have brought us all to this morning. I think I catch Jeremy's laugh, then a playful 'whatever' from Bonnie, but it's the unmistakable 'brother' that opens my eyes and pulls me from my reverie of childhood memories and thankful prayers.

It's because of their age – the way Stefan and Damon call each other brother. Not 'dude' or 'man', not even 'buddy'… 'brother'. That's how they speak to one another. I know it was Damon's voice that I caught referring to Stefan and the knot in my stomach makes me feel a bit ill.

It's a fifty-fifty problem.

Half of me wants to see Damon and show him that he and I can be friends and that Katherine and I can get along – I want to show Stefan that the four of us can actually be in the same room with one another… that he and I could attempt a relationship with them. That he can resurrect his once unbreakable bond with his brother.

The other half of me wishes Katherine would have stayed in the states; wishes that I could forget the triangle and the entire selfish relationship that I toyed around in with Damon while Stefan and I were apart. This half of me wishes I would have gave up carbs the day I gave birth to Grayson and is berating me for not making passionate, bed rattling love to my husband when he carried me – tipsy and drowsy -to bed last night.

Stefan won't admit it, he won't say it aloud, but he's been silently concerned with my current feelings for Damon.

I can see it in his telling-green eyes when I've answered the phone and found Damon calling for Stefan. I can see the way he listens to me talking to his brother, dissecting my tone and my laugh. Stefan is not a jealous man. He's not a suspicious husband in any way… but he's cautious when it comes to Damon. Just as he says that even a human Katherine is dangerous, Stefan believes that human Damon is just as devious as he was a vampire.

I hope not.

Slipping on a pair of white khaki shorts, my green bikini top, and blue sleeveless chiffon shirt that's dark enough to hide my body, but sheer enough to let in the breeze and for the green of my bikini to show through, I give myself a quick once over as I brush my teeth and pull my hair back –somewhat satisfied.

Blue and green when paired with white are a current fashion trend – with the likes of Caroline Forbes-Mikaelson and Katherine Pierce, I've got to be on my fashion a-game.

STEFAN's POV

Even without the sensitive hearing that I had when I was a vampire, I can hear Elena, Bonnie, Katherine, Damon, and Jeremy laughing and talking on the deck. I'm probably thirty yards away, standing in the sand and watching Allie, Lola, and Liam playing – the proud smile of an adoring father squarely on my face as Allie tends to her younger cousins in a very responsible way. Keeping them from getting too close to the water, holding their little hands and running up the sand and away from the tide, before turning to chase it away again.

If it weren't for her green eyes and the wave in her now dark chestnut hair, I'd be worried that the doppelganger curse may be turning for a third rotation. The older Allie gets, the more she resembles her mother – and the harder I know my life is going to be when she gets older. Elena has no shortage of admirers whether she realizes it or not.

These last few days I've been preparing myself for the first big Damon/Elena/Stefan/Katherine test and thus far, we're all playing it pretty safely. Katherine hugged me with one arm, my hand resting high up on her back during the short embrace – my brothers eyes on me, inspecting.

While I cooked for the masses, Katherine sat in the floor of the dining room and held Grayson in her lap and played with Allie. Bonnie and Jeremy joined us soon after and the addition of the twins kept Katherine busy while Damon and Jeremy started mixing Bloody Mary's. By the time Elena made it into the kitchen, everyone had ate and Bonnie, the slowest drinker of the group, was working on finishing her second drink.

I caught Damon's long look at my wife.

I saw it.

While starting on her French toast and pouring a cup of coffee, I gritted my teeth and clenched my jaw – smiling as Elena hugged him with both arms around his shoulders. After an awkward hello with Katherine, Elena came to me – beautiful with her glowing skin and tension breaking smile. With a quick kiss on my lips and that smile, all of my tension melted away and I stood with her, proud that I had a hand in making Elena so thoroughly happy.

If there is one thing you should know about Elena, it's that she's only truly happy when she's surrounded by her family. It's how I know we're going to have the lets move back conversation the moment she and I are alone. We've discussed it before – many times, and I can't say that I'm against it or for it - but I think we both let it go without coming to a resolution because neither of us are sure about how all of this would work.

This get together… it's a trial period, a dry run of sorts.

After a particularly heated discussion about moving back to Mystic Falls, Elena starting putting this weekend together and though I'd secretly hoped it would fall through or be pushed to the waste side, here I am – watching my daughter play with her cousins on our beach front property with Grayson at my feet and Klaus coming up behind me.

He thinks I don't know he's here.

I have no vampire senses so I can only guess it's a kind of self-preservation that all human's have when their enemy is moving in on them.

Klaus comes to my side and stands in the same exact position as I am – hands in the pockets of my cargo shorts, shoulders and neck relaxed, my eyes on the blue-green water in front of us. I don't flinch or look his way, I don't even acknowledge that he's next to me.

We stand this way for a long while – Allie even turns to wave at him and I still act like he's nothing more than an inanimate object at my side.

I've been apprehensive about Damon and Katherine, but it was Klaus that I've been really dreading. He and I – we have a very odd history with one another. From dysfunctional best friends to enemies, master and servant to warring against one another. He's got to be angry with me… how could he not be?

"Come now, mate" Klaus says, humor in his tone. "We've got to put this behind us, you and I."

Surprised, I turn to look at him as a smile comes to my face. He looks the same – scruffy blond beard and that confident look in his eyes. I'll never admit it, but I didn't realize that I consider him a friend until this moment.

I'm lost in my thoughts of the friendship he and I once shared, that I'd played on when I lured him to Naples, when he nudges me with his elbow and continues through his grin. "I tried to murder your wife a handful of times, you've had sex with mine… I think we can call that an equal trade of offenses, don't you?"

I don't, but I can't help but chuckle a bit at his choice of words, "So what, we're even? Let it go?"

Shrugging, Klaus turns in place and grips my shoulder like he did when we were friends, brothers. Jokingly, he says "Eh, I'd say you got the better end of the deal, but I digress. Let's let bygones be bygones, shall we?"

I don't have much of a choice in the matter – Elena has already given me the rundown of how badly she wants Caroline in her life and the lives of our children – I've got to atleast be cordial with Klaus if that's got any chance of happening. Still, I look at him a bit longer – I guess I'm trying to spot a flaw in his relaxed façade… something to tip me off to this forgiving version of Klaus being a ruse – when Caroline's voice calls my name and she hops onto my back.

I know I should try and shake her off, but honestly I'm so thrilled to have her near me again that I forget that she and I once dated and that the friendly rough-housing is probably being looked upon with judging eyes. Finally, after multiple kisses at the side of my face and the two of us laughing at the ridiculousness of us being part of a world we thought we'd been banished from forever, Caroline slips off of me – looping one arm with me and one with Klaus – her husband.

"You two are making amends, right?" She asks, her voice hopeful and her laugh bright.

I've missed Caroline terribly… more than I would have thought possible.

"Of course, Darling." Klaus coos to her, kissing her lips – I know he's claiming her and I hope to God he realizes that I'm more than fine with it.

Caroline and I may have had a sexual relationship in the past, but it was a means to an end, at best… she is my dearest friend – nothing more, nothing less.

Taking my arm from Caroline's, she gives me a knowing look just before she cuddles up against Klaus and Allie calls to her to come to the water.

He and I stand there a bit longer – quietly watching as our lives begin to meld together for a third time. It's strange, the sense of comfort mingled with the uneasiness I get from Klaus and Caroline – warring emotions.

"How much of this is yours?" Klaus asks, looking down the beach.

Grayson is pawing at my leg, doing his best to get my attention – picking him up, I try not to sound too smug when I say, "two miles north, a mile and a half south… and this little guy." He gives my son a quick once over before turning his attention back to my property.

I don't know why that pisses me off and makes me concerned for Caroline and her hopes of having a family. The expression on his face when he looked at Grayson reminded me a bit too much of Mikael – too cold, too distant.

I watch him inspecting my house, the coconut trees around the deck – the hammock that Bonnie is lounging on and sipping on her drink as Elena hugs close to Jeremy's arm and Damon stands a little too near to her – making her laugh.

Klaus gives me a look, gesturing towards my brother and his comfortable stance close to my wife but I do my best to ignore him and that knot getting tighter in my gut; Focusing on Grayson as he smiles at me and nuzzles against my neck.

I'm proud of the home Elena and I have here on the west coast of Thailand. We've made some minor changes to the home we live in and we bought up quite a bit of the land on either side of us… this place is a safe haven for me, it holds the majority of my memories of Allie and all of my memories of Grayson. It's where Elena and I have moved into a mature relationship, a real life, where we've grown our family and rooted our love – I clench my jaw, thinking of the sure to come plead to move back to the States.

I feel secure here - like my little family, my world, is safe. Most nights I leave the windows open and we sleep surrounded by warm, clean air and the scent of salty water and coconut trees.

Mystic Falls is a cage in a comparison.

"Caroline said you were doing pretty well for yourself." He coos – immediately I know that he's about to one-up me. Klaus, the eternal Alpha. "We've just purchased a vineyard in Southern France – just a little place near La Belle Gordes." I spent some time there during one of my on-the-wagon recovery stints. It's a beautiful, historic area with rolling hills and probably the bluest sky I can remember seeing in my 178 years.

It's odd, I know, but recalling my time there makes me feel thirsty.

Even a shack would be pricey – a vineyard must've cost him millions. Klaus waits to see if I say anything, a nod or a raise of my eyebrows to tell him I'm impressed… I'm not. I purchased our five bedroom home, the land surrounding it, and did the renovations to the kitchen and the bathrooms for a little more than three-hundred thousand US dollars. In Thailand, that's nearly a million baht. In France, it's a hundred thousand euro. Compared to Klaus, I'm a beggar. He could've bought the entire country of Thailand for what I imagine he spent on his vineyard in the South of France.

Klaus' smile widens, he looks satisfied and I'm a little unsure why he appears so pleased until I realize that though I'm not impressed and a vineyard is not really my style, I've been quiet much too long and my jaw is still tight from the odd thirst, the dryness of my mouth.

Forcing a smile and a nod, as if to say that's great!, I call to Allie to come back to the house. I want to get away from Klaus and break up the Damon/Elena laughing and find something to douse the thirst raging in my throat.

XXXXXXX

I've put Grayson in his play gym and my mind is focused on finding something to eat – I nearly walk right by the hallway, nearly miss seeing Katherine walk into our bedroom at the end of the hall.

Without really trying, I walk lightly on the dark birch hardwood as I close the distance. Coming to the entrance of the master bedroom that I share with my wife, I find Katherine grazing her finger tips over the white, down comforter of our queen sized bed. I watch her leisurely walk to my bedside table and pick up my watch. She's slipping on her wrist when she finally lets on that she knows I'm there.

"I've always found it sexy that you wear a watch, Stefan." Looking over her shoulder, she gives me a playful gaze that makes me feel bad for looking at her at all.

"What are you doing in here?" Ignoring me, she moves to the open windows and the breeze catches her perfume and the scent of her hair – a mixture of lemon and lavender that threatens to morph my thirst into a different kind of hunger.

In some hope of counter-acting the way her scent brings up the few positive memories I have of Katherine, I take a step back, out of the doorway – adding, "You shouldn't be in here."

After a long moment, she finally turns to me and gives me that same playful gaze and suggestive smile that she's always used as a weapon against me. "I'm just taking a look around – letting everyone reconnect without my interference."

It bothers me, the fact that I'd thought the exact same words when I took Allie, Grayson, and the twins down to the water.

I don't say anything in response, just continue to frown at her and her over-confidence as she leans against the window sill in a way that stretches out her body and the length of her bare legs. I manage to keep control of my raging, unanswered hormones and my eyes never leave the space between her eyebrows – the resemblance of Katherine's dark eyes is much too similar to Elena's and I don't want to deal with that right now – I can't.

After last night, nearly fulfilling my desire for my wife – the desire that's been burning and one-sided for months – I woke up wanting Elena. Too much wine and making a long-night of girl talk with Bonnie pretty much stamped out Elena for any kind of morning fun like we used to have and I wasn't able to get a run in. I'm so very thankful when Katherine finally stands straight and with a roll of her eyes, comes to the door.

Again, her eyes – Elena's eyes, their heavy on me so I keep my focus away from Katherine as she saunters by me, running her finger tips across my chest in the same way that she touched the comforter. When I grab her by the wrist I catch her by surprise – her dainty human wrist feels smaller in my grip than I remember it to be and the quick inhale nearly causes me to smile.

"Stefan!" Katherine says my name in a sweet, excited whisper.

I should feel bad – I know I should. She's a human now, we're all human and we are all supposed to have forgiven everyone for their wrong doings… but Katherine destroyed me.

At just seventeen years old, naïve Stefan Salvatore was wrecked by her and her desperate craving to be wanted.

So even though I know I should feel bad for her confusion, I don't – I let the smile teasing at my lips take over my face and I look right in her cold eyes when I say. "My watch. Take it off."

Katherine's never been good at displaying a poker face. She's a great actress, yes – but catch her off guard, surprise her and she's an open book. Like now, with her furrowed brow and pursed lips. She's angry for my teasing and maybe a little embarrassed.

I see the physical resemblance of my wife and this woman in front of me – it's undeniable and of course, she's beautiful. But I could never care for Katherine – she's cold and calculating, dangerous in her need to be paramount to all others. Katherine's similarity to Elena is shallow – beneath their perfect skin and beautiful face, Katherine is a void hole compared to Elena's warm soul, the way she loves is indescribable.

With Katherine, there's no truth in her beauty.

It doesn't take her long to recover and I suddenly wish I wouldn't have taunted her at all – slipping off my watch she presses in against my chest, leaning into me as she says "Oh, sorry – I forgot. Having you wrapped around me just felt right." Before leaving me tense and watching her saunter away with that mesmerizing sway in her hips.

**MORE TO COME**

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