A/N: Thank you for all the reviews. I enjoy reading them and appreciate the feedback as always! Sorry it took so long and that I'm not responding to each review like I tried to do with Bloom. I failed to edit this one, sorry if there are a ton of mistakes.
Xxxx
It was late afternoon when Damon returned. Elena and Ric were cleaning up the living room when he rushed through the front door.
Elena looked at Ric in alarm when Damon grabbed her by the wrist and started moving her towards the front door, talking over his shoulder, "I'll call you in a few."
When they reached his car he didn't wait for her to buckle up as he backed out of her driveway and sped down the road. He made it to a back road close to town before he pulled to the side and cut off the engine. Her mouth opened in question, the words dying on her lips as he thrust an iPod and earphones into her hand.
"Wear these. I'm sorry about this. Been fighting off the compulsion for too long today," he explained lowly. He did look incredibly tense.
Then he maneuvered into the backseat, tugging her with him. He positioned her on her back, the groan of leather filling the silence.
"Put those on. Hurry please," he urged.
As she set the ear buds and pressed play, he was tugging her clothes off. The music blared loudly and she stared up in question as Damon sucked his bottom lip in, something deep and concentrated behind his eyes. His fingers drifted down her inner thighs, parting her slightly. Her legs shook a little and she saw him mouth he was sorry again. But she wasn't shaking because she was frightened, it was just what his touch did to her.
She watched his middle finger disappear into his mouth and then she about slammed her head jerking back when he slid it inside of her. One of the ear buds fell out as she arched her neck from the way it felt to be touched like that by him.
"Keep those on and close your eyes. I'm calling Ric," he explained in the seconds it took for him to remove his finger and free himself with a sharp unzip of his jeans.
She obeyed, her thighs clenching tightly around him as he entered her with ease. It was as if her body had become used to him already. As the music drifted inside her, just as pulsating and fluid as he, she had to grab onto the paneling behind her as her body responded. She could feel the heated flush creep from her chest to her neck, until it settled at her cheeks.
Her eyes drifted open for a second, unfocused on his fingers that gripped the seat above her line of sight. It was detached this time, he was clearly thinking of something else. But he was all she could feel. For whatever reason, her body responded in the highest degree to this. She could feel that she was soaking the seat below her bottom. She could feel a throbbing inside that was so intense it hurt. Maybe it was because he moved slower, filling her and settling there before moving again. It made it tortuously erotic.
Her eyes flew open, this time connecting with his, when she felt his hand cover her mouth. She must have been making some noise. He was talking into his cell, sweat beading at his brow. Her lips parted and she could taste the salt of his fingers, running just the tip of her tongue against his skin. He clenched his jaw and gave her a look that resonated between admonishment and amusement.
Then he hung up the phone and tore her ear buds out, her mouth hot where his hand had been. That's when he picked up the pace and she found herself crying out within seconds. As she clenched and dipped around the length of him he cursed under his breath. She watched his eyes settle at her lips and what Ric said before echoed in her mind.
When she knew he was on the cusp of letting go, she pulled his mouth to hers.
As he emptied inside her his mouth formed words between her parted lips, his gasps and breath entering her mouth in hot bursts with a sweetness that was his.
This time, he fell slack over her, staying inside and breathing deeply against her neck. She slowly, tentatively, raked her fingers down his damp back and up again to rest at the base of his neck. When she swallowed, her skin pushed against his mouth and for a moment she found herself fighting the urge to ask him to drink from her.
As if reading her mind he whispered against her pulse, "You're lucky I already ate today."
She mindlessly let her fingers creep up his neck and tangle into his dark hair. Then after a moment she realized she was holding him tightly in her arms. She realized she was afraid of letting this go. It was both a wonderful and terrible feeling to admit to herself that she loved him too.
Xxxxx
It was Ric's idea to go out for the night. Elena rushed immediately up to her room the moment Damon brought them back to her home. She didn't want Ric to see her face flushed and mouth swollen, dampened from running her tongue along Damon's taste that seemed to seep like wine; staining every line of her lips.
Her body was fire; nerve endings flickering like flames and all reason just ashes left behind. Was it because it was so wrong that she took such pleasure in being touched by Damon Salvatore? Was this intense feeling of love she felt real? What was love anyway. She loved Stefan; swore by it. She could picture spending her entire life with him and be wholly happy. Her heart completely blossomed when they were together. That was love…right?
So what was this love? What was this lightning and fire and frighteningly disorienting state? If it was just lust, then what was this feeling in her chest that felt like the slow flap of raven wings; feather soft and heavy thumps. Something inside of her very being, the thing that made her Elena Gilbert and not Katherine Pierce or any other soul, was awoken by the very thing that made him Damon Salvatore. Just Damon Salvatore.
His darkness seemingly outweighed the tenderness, and even that reached out to her. Even that pulled her in and whispered promises.
She smiled at her reflection in the mirror that was streaked with remnants of her earlier suicide attempt. Charcoal black was smudged from squeezing her eyes so tightly as the orgasm from before had reached up and yanked her heart into her gut. She'd never be able to breathe in the leather of his seats or the dampness of his sweat seeping into the cotton of his shirt without being thrown back into that memory. It was a memory she vowed to keep forever.
She changed dazedly into some white shorts and a gauzy merlot sleeveless shirt that brought out the olive tone of her skin. Her hair was so tangled that she just threw it up in a messy knot, pulling a few strands out to frame her still-flushed face.
The men were waiting in Ric's car. Elena was grateful they'd be riding in that instead. She couldn't imagine sitting in Damon's back seat right now. She didn't argue when Damon let her sit in the front with Ric and nobody said anything when she turned the air up full blast despite it being a fairly cool night.
"You look nice," Elena complimented Ric lightly as they backed out of the driveway.
He was freshly shaven and in a crisp collared shirt with navy shorts. Such a clean and all American look to him. It was a stark comparison to Damon's dark and edgy appearance. He was in his usual designer jeans and fitted dark shirt that she'd learned just how it felt against her skin.
Ric just grunted in reply as if he didn't agree but really, he never could take a compliment.
"Are we going to that one place?" Damon asked from the back. Elena turned slightly to peer back at him. His eyes flicked to meet hers for a moment before returning towards the back of Ric's head. She felt her stomach jolt from that one moment his eyes had rested on hers. How had she never noticed the depth of his magnetism until now?
Ric turned down the air, tossing Elena a look; she'd just have to deal with how hot and bothered Damon had made her.
"Yeah, I prefer not running into my students," Ric replied. Elena knew he was more bothered by being seen with her by other students. People talked and it always got back to them.
The bar was more club-like than Mystic Grill. It wasn't a dressy place but there was more seating and a nice area down by a dance floor that nobody seemed to be using for dancing so much as for standing with drinks in their hand, shouting above the thrum of bass.
Elena followed the guys to a small table that had a circular cushioned seat wrapped around it, positioned between the bar and dance floor. As soon as Elena settled between them, a waitress with tumbling blonde hair and doll-like eyes cheerfully asked for their drink orders.
"Can I see your ID hun?" she asked Elena.
Elena quirked her eye brows when Damon immediately stood and led the waitress away by the elbow without a look backwards.
"What is he doing?" she muttered aloud.
"Making sure you don't get asked that again and probably having a snack. He likes to multitask…haven't you noticed?" Ric replied.
Elena felt her cheeks grow hot. She wasn't sure if he was referring to today in the car while Damon spoke to him on the phone or not but when she snuck a look at his face he seemed relaxed and more interested in the drinks headed towards the table from another waitress.
Elena knocked back the tall shot of bourbon that was set in front of her, barely wincing at the sear it left at the back of her throat.
"Easy," Ric murmured, knocking his own back.
A song, and then two more passed and Damon still hadn't returned. Elena got antsy and took Damon's shot too. Ric grumbled something incoherent at her and she noticed his hand flag down another waitress as Elena slid out of the seat.
She headed towards the bathroom, hoping to catch a glimpse of where Damon was. She wasn't sure why she was so bothered that he was gone. It was probably partially the fear of Klaus somehow gobbling him up out of her life too and partially the thought of his mouth against some woman's neck didn't settle well.
Elena noticed a curtain at the end of the hall past the bathrooms. Curiosity got the best of her so with a single finger, she slowly parted the dark velvety material down the middle. She expected lots of things. Things like blonde hair and bloodied lips, but never this.
Stefan stood close to Damon, arms crossed and tight. His expression was unrecognizable; Elena had never seen him look so void of emotion. Damon's face was every shade of pain as his mouth moved rapidly and hands made gestures that were clearly rigid with exasperation. It was hard to stay still. She wanted more than anything to rush into the room and demand to be let in.
She watched what happened next as if it were in slow motion. Damon took a staggering step backwards as Stefan wrapped his hands around the blonde waitress's neck and snapped it with ease, tossing her body to the side like a rag doll. She clasped her hands over her mouth to stifle any semblance of a scream or mere gasp. That's when Damon's eyes found hers through the curtain.
"Point taken brother. Take her with you huh? I'm just here for a drink, wasn't really prepared for cleaning up your messes," Damon stated loud enough for her to hear, stepping so that he blocked her view of Stefan.
"Next time it will be Elena. Understand?" Stefan asked coldly.
Elena about fell to her knees. Stefan couldn't possibly mean that. What had Klaus done to him?
She stood there in a haze before Damon finally appeared in front of her, the curtains sliding with a metallic scrape on their track. She let him lead her into the bathroom, a loud click indicating he'd locked the door behind them. It smelled like perfume and bleach and the bourbon in the back of her throat as she exhaled in a shuddering breath.
No words were spoken; he just lifted her so that she sat perched on the countertop between two sinks, using the rough pads of his thumbs to swipe away at the drizzle of tears that silently fell from her disbelieving eyes.
"'You knew he'd be here?" she asked, her voice taking on the wobble of emotion; tears like water against a crumbling dam.
He shook his head slowly, tucking a strand of dampened hair behind her ear, "No. He followed us."
"What's wrong with him?" she asked, hating that he wouldn't look her in the eye…hating that his own eyes looked rheumy and dejected.
"It's the blood. All these years and it's always the goddamn blood. Changes him," Damon muttered. He dropped his fingers from doing the things they were doing to her face so he could roughly rub at his own.
She didn't think, she just did what she needed to. Her arms wrapped around his neck and she breathed him in when his forehead rested heavily against her shoulder. She felt his hands find her hips and it reminded her of the way he held her against him when she rode atop him on her squeaky mattress.
After a moment he lifted his head and spoke against the skin of her temple, "Let's go get dunk. We'll deal with this tomorrow."
She slid off the counter, landing close to his body even though he took a step back. "No, tell me what he wanted."
Damon tilted his head to the side, his lips twisting in that way they did when he didn't like his options. She stared him down, the tears subsiding and her jaw setting stubbornly. It usually worked; he'd give in.
Finally he looked away and leaned a hand against a stall, drumming his fingers as he replied, "Klaus figured out he needs your blood to make the hybrids. Stefan will earn his freedom if he delivers you, but Stefan isn't himself right now. He doesn't want his freedom, he wants his revenge."
Elena rubbed her elbow absently, not understanding but trying to. "So he told you this?"
Damon shook his head, "No, that's what I found out on my own. He came here to warn me to stop looking into things. I think this time I should listen."
His gaze slid back towards hers in time with his palm slipping off the stall to dangle by his side. Her heart thudded audibly and she startled when someone pounded on the door. Damon glanced at it with disdain, muttering, "You go on back to Ric. I need to eat."
She didn't want to be anywhere else but near him. "No, I'll stay."
He looked at her in surprise, lips parting as if he were about to say something, but the pounding got louder so he yanked the door open. A girl with short chestnut hair and thick rimmed glasses stumbled in. Elena noted the moment's hesitation on her face when she eyed Damon's piercing stare.
"Don't make a sound," he told the girl in the smoothest voice she'd ever heard come from him.
The girl nodded and backed slowly towards the stall until she ran into it with a hollow thud. Elena was standing close enough that her own hand brushed against the girl's. She noticed the tremors of fear against her fingers.
Elena wanted to tell him to stop. She wanted to tell him the girl was too scared. But instead she asked softly; hesitantly, "Are you going to hurt her?"
"It won't hurt," he murmured, stepping forward so that he hovered over the girl.
Elena had been bitten before and it had hurt. She couldn't imagine a feed that wasn't messy and brutal; yet, she couldn't peel her eyes away from Damon's every move. The way he took the girl's chin gently, tilting her head to the side; eyes turning red and veiny…it didn't scare her. She'd always viewed this part of being a vampire as something monstrous, but the fangs that slid past his row of neat teeth sank in almost seductively slow. The girl stilled as Damon drank soundlessly. Elena noticed his thumb running soothingly up and down the girls tilted neck. A pang of guilt hit her; she had always assumed being a vampire meant being a monster. Damon had done his share of monstrous things, but seeing the way he handled this girl now…
When he unlatched, Elena winced at the wound on the girl's neck. It looked painful but the girl looked dazed and stared up at Damon almost adoringly. He bit into his wrist, forcing it into the girl's mouth. Elena knew that taste all too well now. It was amazing watching the wound heal in front of her eyes.
Damon cleaned the girl's neck for her, using a paper towel he dampened after reaching around Elena. The veins in his eyes were slowly subsiding, pulsing slower and disappearing under his porcelain skin. He compelled the girl to forget what had happened and opened the stall for her so she could go about her business.
Just as the trickle of the girl emptying her bladder filled the silence, Damon turned his full attention on Elena. She stared at how blue his eyes had turned, noting the color coming back to his face. She wondered if after a feed was as close to looking like their former human selves as vampires could get.
His mouth was swollen and glistening with still-warm blood. Elena reached out and swiped it away from his lower lip with the pad of her middle finger. The way his lip moved in a lazy snap under her touch caused a burn and twinge to ignite. She was about to wipe it away when he grabbed her wrist and thrust her middle finger between his lips, rolling his tongue around her.
Usually, his kisses were cool. The insides of his mouth always reminded her of the way breath felt sucked in against a peppermint. But now, after this feed, he was flaming hot.
She let out a small sound. As small as it was, it was full of so much.
He let go of her wrist and took a step back, his lips leaving her finger coated and cold as air hit.
"You're killing me girl," he admitted, stepping slightly out of the way as the stall opened and his previous meal walked around them to use the sink, humming merrily.
Elena fought the urge to settle her palms against the planes of his chest and push her tongue against his. Her body was screaming with curiosity; his mouth hot instead of cold, the taste of another fresh on his tongue. That look in his eyes.
"What are you thinking?" she asked softly. She's always wondering what's in his mind. She never asked; never dared to before.
He blinked slowly, the corner of one side of his mouth lifting into a curl of a smile. She'd always loved that lopsided smile.
"I'm thinking about what it would be like to make you look at me like that without having to think about saving my brother. I'm thinking about how selfish it is to be happy I've been given the chance to know what it feels like to have you cum while nestled deeply inside you. I'm thinking about how good you smell right now and how much I want you to feel what it is to be fed on by me," he spoke evenly. Not an ounce of hesitance.
The girl left, the music leaking loudly inside the bathroom as the door pushed open in her exit. He asked Elena for her thoughts in return, stepping so close.
She answered truthfully because truth was all that was left. She'd spent a long time ignoring things that she knew good and well were there all along.
Her voice sounded whispery, almost matching the fluttering in her belly, "I feel like I'm no better than Katherine."
He breathed long and slow through his nose. Time stretched before he finally spoke, but she barely noticed with the way his eyes bore into hers. Sometimes she forgot that he wasn't human; Stefan too. It had become such a fact in her life that there were vampires and other supernatural creatures present; hell, she was a supernatural being too. Then there were moments like this where time stood still and she was entranced; the minutes he took to ponder and peer expanding. He was a vampire; it struck her suddenly. He was an antique, a token from the past. He was dark and dangerous and absolutely seductively hypnotizing. From the crow-black hair and steel eyes; slender fangs and cool skin…he was enchanting.
Unlike Stefan, he radiated the qualities that made him this creature. Stefan spent his life suppressing it and it was clear as to why. Stefan's vampire qualities made him a monster. Damon's drifted and seeped between heaven and hell. Elena saw so clearly now.
He interrupted her thoughts, warm coppery breath tickling deliciously along her skin, "Tell me why."
She swallowed thickly, eyes falling to his lips like the slow trickle of a raindrop against glass. She noticed his fingers twitch at his sides, stealing her attention from his swollen mouth.
"I want you both," she whispered. She cringed at her words. It was the first time she'd said it aloud. Hell, it was the first time she'd even admitted it to herself let alone to him.
"What do you want from me?" he asked lowly, stepping closer and pressing her against the side of the stall with just his presence.
Her mind was foggy; so many thoughts. Her body was burning with what she could only identify as raw need. It was a good question and with so many answers swirling in her pudding-like brain, she replied, "Everything."
"And my brother?" He asked, running just a single fingertip up her left arm. She felt a pulse of something deep in her gut warm her entire boy.
She thought of the before; deep devotion and a sweet love. She thought of the now; empty eyes and death threats. If now were forever she'd say nothing. She had always been so sure of it. You just can't love more than one person at the same time; a whole heart doesn't duplicate into two. She dazedly pictured her split image, Katherine so in love with Stefan that she basically spat on Damon. Perhaps it did duplicate into two. Perhaps she was meant for Damon.
Then she smiled small and almost privately at her wishful thinking. It was so like her to try to find a way to make it not her fault. She didn't want to be a bad person. Didn't matter that maybe she just was.
His finger moved to her neck, increasing in pressure and holding still when he landed on the thick pulse. She could feel it then, thick and heavy and too fast for a human within their comfort zone.
He moved closer, his knees knocking into hers. Their mouths were close, but they'd been closer. Even so, her pulse raced almost dangerously fast. It earned her the most beautifully sexy thing she'd ever seen cross his face. His lips twitched into a smile before he lightly bit his lower lip and pressed even harder against her neck, his thumb then extending to rest under her chin.
He tilted her face slightly so that her eyes were forced to lock onto his own.
"You are nothing like Katherine. Sweet girl, she wanted me for far less."
Then his mouth crashed into hers and she swore there was never anything as good this. She wasn't sure how far it would have gone, for Ric came pounding on the door, splitting them in two. Damon dropped one more kiss at the tip of her nose before opening the bathroom door.
"What the fuck, I was terrified," Ric exclaimed, throwing his hands up at both of them.
"Sorry," Elena murmured, still breathing unevenly.
They followed him back to the table, trying to switch to what they had come here for; a new atmosphere to drink away their sorrows.
Elena tried to do as Damon suggested; just drink it all away. Let the mind get fuzzy enough that things bleed together, never in place long enough to focus on. Damon, the great pretender, laughed just as hard as Ric as the drinks flew and flew and flew.
She looked for Stefan in every face, every dark shadow of the bar. She was scared of him, but also worried for him. She still loved who he was before, even though that definition had become very skewed as of late. She made excuses, I have to pee; I have to order a water; I want to request a song. Every time she scanned the room, willing Stefan's hands to grab her and steal her away. She could get through to him, she knew it. Drunken thoughts clouded the lusty blues with crimson. Bleed together in a jumble of alternating Salvatore voices, eyes, mouths, bodies…
It wasn't Stefan's hands that grabbed her though, it was Damon's; cool and rough. He was steadying her and looking at her with such sadness in his eyes. Then there was Ric and the car and then her bed. Then there was nothing.
xxxxx
Elena knew without giving it much thought that Damon had talked to Ric about getting Stefan back. She was sure there was a plan in place and it was just a matter of time before she helplessly sat on the sidelines and waited for everything to be decided without and for her.
Ric seemed less tense and it almost felt like everything was normal. Damon sat with them at the breakfast table as they ate, but she could barely touch her food. Her stomach was fluttering with nerves. She just nursed a drink she'd made herself. Somehow she'd figured out a way to make plans of her own without touching on what she'd been compelled against by Klaus. She used her emotions without thought and what she had decided scared her.
They grew silent when she pushed away from the table with a loud scrape of wood on tile. She shut herself in her room, her palms sweating.
It didn't take long for Damon to slowly enter and lay on the bed with her. They stared silently at one another, cheeks pressed on hands and noses close to touching.
"Everything's going to be okay," he said softly.
She said nothing even though she had a lot to say. A lot to ask.
Then the door opened and Ric shuffled in. Damon's eyes never left hers even when the tears started to fall.
"No," she whispered when Ric sat on the other side of her, unclasping the vervain necklace. Damon stilled her hands firmly when she tried to stop Ric's quickly moving fingers.
The more she struggled the firmer Damon stilled her with a look of despair all over the face she'd come to love looking at unwaveringly.
"I can't forget," she whispered.
His eyes closed tight then, "Elena, don't."
Ric stood to hang the necklace on the bedpost and spoke softly, "My vervain stash is lower. You'll need to test her. I think it's in her system."
Elena cringed, sliding off the bed and walking slowly backwards towards the door. She knew it was useless, but her body didn't want to listen. Why make it easy on them. This was torture.
She turned and ran, flying down the stairs with such ease she wondered if she just might make it to the car. Front door was unlocked so she rushed outside, leaping off the porch like she did when she was just a kid. The sun was setting and the air was cool. The smell of freshly cut grass invaded her senses as her body pumped adrenaline at an alarming rate. Her feet hit the yard in a few stumbles but she managed to keep up her momentum as she headed towards Damon's car. He always left the keys in the ignition.
Her mind idly wondered why they hadn't stopped her yet just before she reached the car. Then she was on her back, Damon's face hovering above her own. A pain hit the back of her head but it was gone as soon as it came. She struggled under his grasp, screaming out for help.
"Elena, calm down," Ric called as he fell to his knees, winded, beside them.
Damon wasted no time, as soon as her eyes tearfully locked onto his he asked, "Is there any vervain in your system?"
"No," she immediately replied.
"The longer we do this the longer it takes me to go save Stefan. Do you want Stefan back?" his eyes were staring so deeply it was impossible to look away.
"Yes," she replied quietly.
This time he asked slower; softer, "Do you have vervain in your system Elena?"
"No," she whispered, flexing her fingers uncomfortably under his heavy grasp to her wrists.
"She's lying," Ric insisted.
Elena said nothing, she was too entranced by Damon's stare.
Damon's jaw tensed and relaxed several times before he asked her a question that was unfair. To ask her this under compulsion was low but she supposed she understood it was the only one she wouldn't be able to answer right away if she didn't have vervain in her system.
"Who do you love more. Stefan or me?" he asked lowly and as if he hated himself more with each syllable spoken.
"You," she whispered.
The look on his face was shock. He just stared at her, his eyes slightly wider.
"Is she lying now Ric?" Damon asked slowly, eyes narrowing, throat straining against a swallow.
"Drink from her, if she has a drop in her you'll know," Ric commanded.
Damon growled and dropped his head, his hair brushing her heaving chest, "We don't have time for this."
"Drink from me," she added.
He looked back up into her eyes, searching her face. Finally, he muttered, "I believe her."
He let go of one of her wrists to grab her chin and stare deeply into her eyes.
"You went to sleep after your birthday, you never found Stefan and you haven't seen me since the party. You love and miss Stefan with all your heart." Damon's voice was monotone and face void of emotion as he compelled her.
Then he was off of her and there was nothing but orange- blue sky.
xxxxx
Elena was just slipping under her covers for the night when she felt the presence in her room.
"Stefan?" she asked tentatively.
Something felt wrong. She willed her heart to stay as steady as possible but it was a pointless effort; as soon as she saw the familiar dark eyes and bouncy chestnut curls, she knew she had every reason to be scared.
"I've been sent here on strict orders," Katherine's voice sliced through the darkness as she stepped into the moonlight that seeped through the curtains.
"RIC!" Elena screamed as loudly as she could, scrambling out of her bed and running towards the vanity where shards of glass still sat.
"Oh they aren't here. I waited until they ran off on a mission that will surely fail. I'm just here for your blood," she shrugged, twirling a strand of hair around a finger.
"Take some and leave," Elena said shakily, her hand gripping a thick piece of glass. It should be just enough to jab into Katherine's neck to buy her some time.
"I need more than some. I think I need it all," Katherine shrugged.
Elena went cold, this was the worst case scenario. She had no out. Nobody would swoop in and rescue her. Nobody would hear her screams.
"I'll kill myself before I let that happen," Elena stated boldly.
Katherine let out a bold laugh and flashed over to her, "I'll still just drain you dry, what's it to me? Your blood for my freedom. Easiest ticket so far."
Elena went to stab the glass into Katherine's neck but barely nicked it before her wrist snapped painfully in Katherine's grip.
"Stupid girl. It's a shame not everything is passed through doppelgangers. You're pretty but lack survival smarts," Katherine sneered as Elena cried out at the pain shooting down her arm.
Elena saw him before Katherine did. Her heart leapt in hope but it quickly diminished when she saw the cold and void look behind once sparkling hazel eyes.
"We need to bring her in one piece," Stefan called from the doorway before taking his time approaching the duo.
Katherine kept Elena's wrist in her grasp but turned around quickly to face him, causing Elena to shriek out again.
"Why exactly are you here?" Katherine asked icily.
"Klaus sent me. He thought better of leaving you in charge. I think his words were The girl will do anything for her freedom but I don't have time for her to play cat and mouse. You know how she gets with the doppelganger," Stefan replied, plucking Katherine's fingers off of Elena's wrist one by one.
"And he thinks you are trustworthy when it comes to this? You aren't fooling me Stefan. You probably have this whole thing planned out with your idiotic brother," Katherine sneered, stepping away from Elena to tousle her hair and peer out the bay window.
Elena's wrist hurt more than anything she'd felt thus far. She glanced shakily down and saw that both bones were clearly crushed. She tried not to but tears of pain and fear and something she couldn't identify but it had everything to do with Stefan, trickled hotly down her cheeks.
Stefan took her by the other wrist, never looking her in the eyes even though she stared at his face the whole time. He was leading her to the door when Katherine's voice halted them.
"With all the blood coursing through your veins and your senses are really that off? Or are you just going to ignore the obvious?"
Elena watched Stefan's cool demeanor falter for a moment. He looked sad for one second and angry for the next. She watched him suck it all back in and return to the stoic face; empty and hollow.
Katherine tore off Elena's comforter, tossing it towards them. Elena furrowed her brows, confused for a moment. The pain in her wrist trickled into the background as her mind took in what Katherine was getting at.
"Hm, messy," Katherine smirked, nodding towards the blood stain on her sheets.
Elena's heart thumped loudly as Stefan stared unwaveringly at Katherine. He, after a long stare down, tugged her a little too hard out of the door and down the stairs. She stumbled on a few but he didn't slow his pace. Katherine was right behind them, the heavy clicks of her heels on the wooden stairs jolting Elena's nerves.
"Please let me go," she whispered into Stefan's ear as he reached over her to buckle her into the passenger seat.
She looked for any sign of kindness in his eyes. This man loved her once. He cradled her in his bare arms every morning and left little notes in her purse for her to find during school. He took care of her when she had the flu; soup and a Dawson's Creek marathon. He brushed her hair after she showered and didn't laugh at her when she cried over a commercial. He checked on her friends and protected them as fiercely as he protected her. Who was this person she stared at now?
He said nothing, just shut her door and slid into his seat a few seconds later. Katherine poked her head through his door before he got a chance to close it, her hair brushing the side of his face. He waved it away, looking up at her with clear annoyance written across his sharp features.
"I'll be riding with you, I don't trust you any more than you trust me. I will have my freedom," she stated evenly.
"Then get in," he snapped back.
She widened her eyes as if he were an idiot and gestured at the fact he had to get out for her to do that. He sighed heavily and let her get in, throwing his seat back down with more force than necessary. Elena slid her unhurt hand under her crushed wrist, biting back another moan of pain. She had to be stronger than this. People had fought for their lives with more than a broken wrist before. She had to think; be smart…play on their weaknesses.
The road crawled beneath them, his headlights capturing the line of trees and stream of grey asphalt like the static on an empty tv station. Every bump and turn and stop and go and dip caused her wrist to shift and pain rolled through her. She wondered why her body wasn't doing her any favors. Where was the shock to take some of the pain away? Maybe it was because she was fighting so hard to be aware and sharp.
"Maybe we should heal her, it looks like she's going to puke," Katherine stated from the back.
"Maybe you shouldn't have hurt her," he replied simply, glancing in the rearview mirror.
The groan of leather sounded off before Katherine positioned herself between them, elbows leaning on the center console.
"Maybe she shouldn't have tried to embed glass into my neck. You aren't going to puke are you Elena?" Katherine asked, cocking her head and looking at her with faux pity.
"No, I'm fine," Elena replied roughly. Her voice was scratchy and weak, probably not a good sign. And really, throwing up sounded nice. It would be some sort of relief.
"Great, so I heard about the whole compulsion thing. Klaus is psychotic but very good at his twisted methods. Tell me, how many times did you diddle the eldest Salvatore?" Katherine's eyes were sparkling with merriment.
Elena opened her mouth but clamped it shut when Stefan pushed Katherine into the backseat with extreme force.
"Ouch," Katherine muttered.
The car swerved a little under his efforts, causing her wrist to scream out to her. She bit her lip until it bled. She bit it so hard that once they arrived, her mouth was coated in it. When Stefan pulled her out of the car she audibly gagged. It was the only moment he showed her any kindness. He led her to some bushes where she threw up what she'd drank earlier. Vervain and Damon's blood.
Stefan stared her down as she wiped her mouth. She hoped the blood beading at her lip would pass for what she just hurled. She hoped she still had some of it still in her system or she wasn't getting out of this alive.
"Here," he said simply, biting into his hand and holding it near her mouth.
She swallowed hard and held her wrist close to her abdomen, shaking her head slowly, "No."
His brows furrowed slowly, eyes calculating. Finally he wiped the blood on her already bloodied shirt and nudged her towards the looming house. Katherine was already inside, hovering in the hallway with her arms crossed tensely. The girl looked like she could sprint off any moment, her freedom was so near.
Elena's heart skipped a beat when she saw Damon seated in the room Stefan pushed her into. Their eyes met and his gaze drifted towards the arm she cradled stiffly. He asked dully, "You do that brother?"
Stefan nodded towards a chair in the middle of the room that had several IV bags next to it.
"No, I did," Katherine replied cheerfully as she sauntered towards the chair, pushing Elena's shoulders down to force her into a sitting position.
That's when Elena noticed Tyler was in the room, seated tensely to her left near the door. Oh God, they are going to turn Tyler into a hybrid with her blood.
"Tyler, run," she told him faintly. She was feeling off.
"What did you do to her?" Damon demanded loudly.
"I can't," Tyler replied, his eyes defeated.
Everyone must be compelled. Everyone but her. Ric had been right, she'd ingested a healthy dose of vervain and Damon's blood, every intention of turning. She'd planned on doing so that night. Planning triggered suicide via compulsion but she never got the chance. Katherine had interrupted her plans and now she was stuck as a living and breathing blood bag. No matter that she threw up most of Damon's blood, she had to have some left in her system. She didn't want Stefan or anybody to know that she was willing to turn. It was part of her own plan to rescue both brothers. She'd just have to figure out the mess that came with it later. If she could even get out of this.
She felt sweat bead at her forehead and chills started to travel through her body. She tried to suppress anything that signaled weakness but failed. She shook and her teeth started to chatter. The pain was too much. Maybe she should have just taken Stefan's blood when it was offered.
"What did you do to her?" Damon asked lowly.
She suddenly remembered Ric. Where was Ric anyway? Where was Klaus?
"She got sick before we came in. I offered to heal her but she wouldn't take it," Stefan replied, stepping so that he blocked Damon's view and stooped down to peer at her.
Elena knew she was just finally feeling the effects of shock and maybe just a build up of the entire situation. She was scared and she was devastated. Her body was on overload.
"I'm so sorry," she murmured to Stefan's looming face.
His face faltered once again but before she could push further, Klaus's voice filled the room.
"Ah, I see everyone is here. Katherine, collect a bag of Elena's blood please," he stated loudly, taking a chair and scraping it across the floor until he was seated closely and directly in front of her.
Her good arm was snatched away and strapped swiftly to the arm of the chair. She let out a choked cry of pain when her hurt wrist thudded into her lap. She could feel a bone shift inside and she about saw white from the sting.
"Oh love, I do hope you realize I have no intentions of killing you. Your blood will serve me for many years. Stefan deserves a reward for his loyalty anyhow. Speaking of, Stefan, you and your brother may go to the basement. This isn't going to be easy on the eyes," Klaus spoke softer.
Elena's eyes flew towards Damon's and something passed between them. He looked almost surprised, reminding her that he thought she was compelled to remember nothing of what had happened between them. She was supposed to be the same old Elena; in love with Stefan and tolerant of Damon.
The needle stung for a moment, Elena briefly wondered when Katherine learned to do all this. She supposed being so old she'd learn one way or another lots of things. Perhaps she shot up heroin at some point. Who knows. Elena's thoughts were all over the place.
"Are you sure she can handle losing any blood right now? I mean look at her," Tyler spoke from her side.
Klaus's eyes flickered away from hers and she watched him purse his lips. He really was an attractive man. She thought about what he must have been like all those years ago as a human. She couldn't even imagine living so long, the world had changed so drastically. What was with all these ancient men being both frightening and beautiful in these strange ways. She hated him for killing Jenna and for turning Stefan into someone else. She hated him for forcing this complicated twist on who Damon was to her. She also felt grateful that it happened.
"She comes from a tough line. She'll be just fine," Klaus assured him as if he cared.
"What are you going to do with him?" Elena asked softly, Damon on her mind.
"Turn him into a hybrid my dear," Klaus replied curtly, eying the blood filling the bag hanging above her head with greedy eyes.
"Damon," she murmured, blinking against the dizziness.
"Oh…I see…" Klaus said, his lips curling into a smile. At first glance he appeared to be a friendly and honest face. Looks can be so deceiving in this alternate world of vampires and werewolves.
"Take me and leave them. Please." She felt her head droop a little.
"That'll be enough Katherine," Klaus told her.
Elena's eyes slowly closed, though she could still hear what was going on around her. She heard the tape rip off her skin and the crinkle of her blood bag. She heard Tyler struggle and cry out. She heard footsteps before she was lifted out of the chair. Her wrist hurt vaguely but it all seeped away. Then there was just the ringing in her ears and cool hard ground beneath her. She thought she heard Damon…or maybe it was Stefan…and then nothing.
Xxxx