They were completely entangled in each other, Elena was laid on his chest with her back to him and nestled between his legs. Elijah was propped up on the headboard and had his arms wrapped around her, their legs intertwined and she was smoothing her fingers along his hand and arm.

"I'll never be able to get enough of you," her voice was low and her facial expressions completely softened as she traced her finger across the back of his hand.

"Keeping us apart will be impossible," he responded easily and he was completely undone, there was nothing left he hadn't bore to her, no emotion left unfelt or touch she hadn't experienced, no thought or secret that he hid from her, it was all hers. He was irrevocably hers.

And she was his, always.

She turned to lie flat on her stomach and she rested her head onto the palm of her hand to prop herself up as she looked at him, a small smile creeping up on her lips, "I pity anyone who tries."

"I would descend upon them," he smirked, his usual cool and collected smirk that meant he was gravely serious and he made her swoon.

She felt him trail his fingers slowly along the curve in her spine and she bit lightly on her lower lip, a sheepish grin poked up in the corners, her head dipped slightly and she hid her impure thoughts behind a mask of sweet innocence.

"You're beautiful, Elena," he caught a loose hair that dangled freely along her face and grazed his fingers across her cheek as he swept it behind her ear.

She felt the heat beneath her cheeks and she was blushing, a shade darker than usual and she was completely enamoured by him. She found herself straddling his waist mere moments later, her hands wrapped around the nape of his neck and pressing small kisses along his jawline, speaking between each one, "you're sweet."

Kiss,

"and devilishly handsome,"

Kiss,

"Strong,"

Another kiss,

"Yet gentle,"

And again, more kisses.

"Passionate and loving,"

Heated kisses.

"The perfect man and husband, everything I've ever dreamt of."

His heart was racing and his smirk was unwavering as she showered him in affection, his hands smoothed down her back until he caught her waist in his arm and flashed her onto her back.

He towered over her, her legs instantly wrapping around him and they met in an intense and passionate kiss. He pulled the covers over them and buried themselves within each other, open to exploration and intimacy on every level.

Elena awoke several hours later when the sunlight crept in through the curtains, she blinked her eyes several times to fix the sleepy vision and smiled softly when she saw Elijah, sleeping peacefully and without a care in the world.

She looked at the bed, it was a mess of blood and crinkled sheets, she bit lightly on her lower lip as the memories of the night before came flashing through her mind and she traced her fingers along her lips, remembering how his lips felt on hers and the intimacy that they shared in, over and over again.

She fell into a surreal state as she climbed out of the bed and went into the bathroom, he was all she could think about and it was intense. Even as she looked in the mirror, there was a trail of blood along her chest that crept down In between her breasts and stopped just above her navel, the images swept across her mind and it brought a fiery heat within her.

She brushed her teeth, showered, readied herself for the day all whilst thinking about him, their life together and how perfect it was. How perfect he was.

Elena, dressed in a pair of black high-waisted jeans, a long-sleeved, sage green body suit that tucked nicely inside her pants and a pair of black heels to match, went downstairs and into the kitchen. Everything about their new home was more modern than she was used too and with just a press of a button on the LED screen, her coffee was brewing.

There was so much Elena had to get used too, like how quiet it was, too quiet, there wasn't the usual bustling about of the siblings or her normal coffee and paper routine with Nik, no hybrids swanning in and out and she even missed the squeak of the kitchen door that no-one ever got around to fixing.

The coffee machine beeped and she began searching for a mug, there was so many cupboards and of course, it was the last one she checked that housed them. She retrieved one, poured herself her caffeine fix and instantly took a sip.

Nursing it in her hand, she walked into the living room, taking in all of its features. The large fireplace with grey marble surround was the centrepiece of the room, it was attached to the far wall in the perfect middle and in front of it, a short distance away, was the glass, oval shaped coffee table with a large, brushed cotton u-shaped corner sofa in the colour light grey around it.

There was a large white rug under the seating area with a silver marbling detail to it. It brought it all together perfectly.

Opposite it was two armchairs that sat either side of the fireplace, all matching perfectly with the white cushions that had sage green floral detailings on them and a blanket draped over the armrest.

She walked to the side of the room with the wide windows and they reached from ceiling to floor, leaving only a small gap at the top where they had panelled in, there was so much natural light and she loved it. There was a glass console table against the wall that separated the windows and placed on it was a large vase of roses, two framed pictures, one of her and Elijah and the other of the family. Perfect.

The curtains were a light grey, sheer voile and they matched the furniture perfectly. In the corner next to the window was a large plant and a mirror hanging next to it. She walked further along, passing a floor-to-ceiling bookcase that had been made into the wall, the fireplace once again, another bookcase on the other side to match, and she came to other side of the room.

In the corner was another tall plant, then a door that lead to the bar and entertaining area, then in the centre wall was a light grey, large, high gloss sideboard with drawers and cabinets, a mirror hung just above it with a matching coloured frame and placed on top was smaller plants and a silver tray with a crystal decanter, filled with scotch and two glasses.

She left the room, walking through the corridor, past the bar area and back into the kitchen. She went out to the garden/pool area through the conservatory and returned to the seating area they were at last night.

She picked up her purse, rummaging through the pocket until she found her phone and opened up her recent dials, she clicked Rebekah's number and pressed the phone to her ear.

"Elena, it's 6am," she was met with a still asleep Original vampire, "why must you rise so bloody early?"

"Sorry, I'm not used to the quiet, it's so strange," she said as she picked up the crystal photo gift Elijah bought her and walked back into the house.

"So, spare me the details but tell me, how was your first night as a married couple?" She still sounded sleepy but a tad more interested.

"Perfect," a soft grin appeared instantly on her lips. She reached the living room and approached the fireplace, resting the crystal photo in the centre of it.

"And how are you feeling?"

"Same answer."

"Great, the niceties are complete and I'm going back to sleep. I love you, 'Lena but I need my beauty sleep. I'll see you at noon."

"Bekah, wai-"

"Call Nik, he'll be up," she hung up the phone, much to the dismay of Elena.

"Great," she mumbled under her breath and rolled her eyes slightly, she tapped her phone onto her forehead due to her Klaus-related annoyance before returning to the kitchen, pouring herself another cup of coffee and leaning against the kitchen island.

She continued to take in the features of the house, the kitchen had a wrap-around style counter space in the colour white and the paint was a silky gloss that made them shine. There was a white, built-in double oven in the centre, a sink on one side, a microwave built into the kitchen and a large fridge/freezer at the end of the counter space.

The kitchen island was coloured in white to match but with black marble detailing and 5 black stools on the opposite side to match.

On the opposite side of the room, there was a large dining area in an open-plan style to the kitchen and the large space between them was the exit that lead to the conservatory and then the garden area, which could be looked out by the window wall, which only had small black frames between each large glass panel.

She stood inside the conservatory, the furniture, rug and soft furnishings where all in a pale grey colour and there was a futon, two armchairs and a three seater sofa with a small glass coffee table in the centre. Everything was so modern and clean looking, she loved it.

She felt a sudden breeze on the nape of her neck and Elijah was behind her, hugging his arms around her waist and lavishing her neck with kisses. She grinned widely, her happiness apparent as she spun around quickly to sink into him, "good morning."

"Good morning, my love," he kissed her again, and again, his happiness all too obvious, "how are you feeling?"

"Perfect," her gaze on his eyes was unbroken as she took his hand and lead him out onto into the garden. They stood on the deck, looking out at the grassed areas and the forest that was attached to the back and she was in a state of tranquility, "I love it here."

"I'm glad I can finally understand your connection to nature, I can feel it, the growth of every root, the sway of the breeze and even the air surrounding us, it flows through me, it's incredible," he stared out at the same trees she did, catching the movement of the clouds and the shine of the sun, it all meant something new to him now, "how does everything feel for you now your part vampire?"

"I can't even begin to describe how I feel," she let go of his hand and walked off the deck, walking to the bush of roses that grew beside the conservatory and smoothing the petals between her fingers, "I feel more in control, stronger, like I have more power to channel but yet, I'm more emotional and connected than I was before. I can't explain it, it's just a euphoric feeling."

"There is still definitely an air of mystery surrounding our new found abilities that I assume will take time for us to fully understand," his arm found its way around her waist and he pressed a soft kiss onto her temple, "but we'll get there, all will be revealed eventually."

"We'll figure it out," she smiled reassuringly and without a flicker of a doubt in her mind regarding their new abilities. She had to have faith. "Besides, I can think of something else I'd much rather be doing."

"Pray tell, what do you have in mind, Mrs. Mikaelson?" He noticed the change in her demeanour and desire was etched into her facial features ever more prominently and he was captivated.

She grasped his hand and took advantage of her new found vampire speed by flashing them into the living room and sitting him on the sofa, she climbed onto his waist and started ravishing him with passionate and heated kisses.

It was almost noon, they were pulling up in the driveway of the plantation and even though she was only gone for one night, Elena missed her family already. It was going to take some adjusting to living separately from them and at that current time, she was struggling.

Elijah sped to her car door and opened it for her, she stepped out and they walked to the front door hand-in-hand. As soon as they entered, they were greeted by an overly excited Rebekah and Kol, each of them hugging the other.

"Tell me everything about the new house," Rebekah said as she took Elena by the arm and lead her into the living room. Kol took Elijah into the kitchen to discuss the events of the day.

"It's amazing, huge but I love it, you should see the pool," she spoke excitedly, her grin unwavering as they walked over to the liquor cabinet that housed the wine.

"I may move in," they chuckled lightly at her words but Elena only shook her head, much to the dismay of the Original sister.

"Since the wedding and the ritual, we have a much more insatiable appetite you wouldn't want to hear," she loved to tease Rebekah, she was an easy target, so much amusement from very few words.

"Just, ew, Elena," she faked an overly exaggerated shudder and they laughed.

"How was the party last night after we left?"

Everything felt more natural here, even as she chattered away with Rebekah and poured them each a glass of wine, just like she always did and she was comfortable and more relaxed.

They joined with the brothers in the kitchen and they each took a seat around the table, Elena clinked her glass against Rebekah's when she held it towards her and they each took a sip, "so, plan for the day?"

"Your family will be arriving at 14:00, dinner is scheduled for 15:00, Nik is with the caterer as we speak and should be returning home any minute now, guests start arriving for the party at 17:00 and by 18:00, it should be distastefully savage in here," Rebekah relayed the information with an added smirk at the end of it, she was looking forward to letting loose and this party was going to be her perfect outlet.

"Sounds perfect."

"Dinner is set to arrive at 14:30 along with several waiters," Klaus announced as he walked into the kitchen and dropped his jacket over the back of his chair on his way to the bottle of scotch, "we have quite the feast being delivered."

Elena was nervous by his arrival, she hadn't put much thought into the occurrence of the night before, she was far too consumed in Elijah to even allow her the chance to process. All she knew was she didn't want anything to change between them.

"You're in a good mood, brother," Elijah noted before standing from his chair and joining him quickly in a brotherly hug.

"Why wouldn't I be? Our family is together, it's Christmas and we have quite the spectacular day planned," he was all smirks and nefarious attitudes as he poured his brothers a drink and handed one to Elijah.

Just as he passed Kol his, Elena flickered her gaze from Rebekah and onto him when she heard the glass collide with the wooden table. A fleeting moment of vulnerability swept across his features but he shut them down just as quickly as they started and distracted himself, "how are you feeling today, little warrior? Enjoying the perks of being a vampire?"

She shrugged her shoulders and plastered a small but soft smile on her lips, "I have no complaints."

She could feel the awkward tension between them, it may not have been obvious to the others but she could already see the difference in them, they were closer than this and their bond was affected.

"Good," he gave a nod of his head a small curl of his lip in return before joining at Elijah's side once again.

"So, Kol, how are you finding the necklace?" She quickly diverted her attention away from Klaus and landed her gaze on him, her curiosity piqued.

"Incredible," he grinned, grasping the necklace between his index finger and thumb and smoothing it along his skin. She watched as he channelled the modicum of power she placed within it and he chanted a small spell as she felt the magic in the palm of her hand radiate.

She opened her hand slowly and within it was a blooming red rose, a wide grin spread on her lips as she watched the stem grow and the petals open and reveal a beautifully crafted flower, "Kol, that was amazing."

"If this is only a fraction of your magic then you are one powerful witch, Elena Mikaelson and I might be a bit scared of you now," he brought an air of amusement to the room and they all chuckled along, even though he was deadly serious, he kept his humoured charm.

"Perhaps now you will relent in your constant pursuit of my wife," Elijah spoke with a smirk, bringing his glass to his lips and taking a small sip. The way he spoke the words my wife so smoothly and effortlessly made Elena blush ever so slightly and bring a warmth to her heart, just enough for him to notice.

"Unlikely, she may be able to kill me, brother but it would, in fact, be worth it," he said playfully and flashed a wink at her. There was eye rolls and laughter and everything felt more normal than ever.

"Before an all out battle ensues, we have more presents to open," Rebekah said giddily before she stood from her chair and headed to the exit of the kitchen, "come on then."

They all looked amongst each other for a brief moment before they stood from their chairs and followed her into the living room. She was stood by the Christmas tree and there was five piles of gifts stacked around the base.

Rebekah sat on the floor and waved her hand for them to join her. Kol sped beside her and sat down, followed by Elena. Elijah and Klaus merely glanced at each other with a shared disapproving look before the Eldest finally joined by Elena's side on the floor.

"You're being a grinch, Nik," Elena said amusingly as she turned her head to face him and catching his gaze.

"Do I even want to know what that is?" His eyebrow raised and he gave her only a look of confusion, which was only heightened by the small gasp that escaped her lips.

"You've never seen The Grinch? The movie?" She looked at him with wide eyes and a playful grin.

"I can't say that I have, love," she looked at him in disbelief and flickered her gaze amongst the siblings who all shared in Klaus' confusion and simply shook their heads.

"You shouldn't have told me that, now I have a movie night planned with popcorn, fluffy pillows, pyjamas, the works,"

"I can hardly wait," he was rife with sarcasm and they shared in a soft smile, first of its kind of the day, as he took a seat on the floor beside Elijah and Rebekah started handing out gifts.

Kol went first and he was gifted a new watch, Elijah next and his present was an exquisite new tie, Klaus received a bottle of fine scotch from his sister and she saved Elena's until last.

Rebekah handed her over the gift with an excited smile and she began to tear away at the paper. She was holding a hardback, black book in her hand and when she turned it over, her lips parted slightly and she was overwhelmed.

On the cover was a picture of their family, the one from their day spent at home when they decorated the Christmas tree. She smoothed her fingers over the words that were engraved underneath the picture and smiled warmly.

"The Mikaelson's.

Always and forever."

She opened it up to the first page and there was three pictures printed on it, the picture from the rehearsal dinner and two selfies of them all.

"The first section is from the rehearsal dinner, the second from our day at home and the third from the wedding," Rebekah explained, her gaze fixated on Elena as she flicked slowly through the pages, "just in case, wherever you and my brother end up in the world, you start to miss us."

"Bekah, you have no idea what this means, I love it, thank you," she was all smiles as she turned the next page, on the left page was the picture of her and Elijah at the rehearsal dinner printed to fit the page and the right was the selfies they took, there was one of her and Rebekah and the one she forced Kol and Klaus to suffer through.

"I'm glad you like it."

She reached the second part of the photo book and laughed slightly as she saw the pictures of them all at home, there was a selfie of them sat at the table playing poker that Rebekah must of snuck without them realising.

There was several candid shots including one of her and Elijah resting their foreheads together in the kitchen, along with ones of the brothers stirring sauces and laughing together, one of her and Rebekah covered in flour and another of her and Klaus at the sink in a fit of hysterics after they had soaked each other with water and all of them at the dinner table with their prepared meals.

"These are my favourites so far," she pointed to each one of the kitchen pictures and held it up for them all to see, they were all smiles and laughter before she returned the book to her lap and closed it, saving the rest for a later time.

They opened the rest of the gifts and cleared away the shredded wrapping paper before the Mystic Falls family all arrived. Elena was so excited to see them, she felt like they had barely spent any time together since their arrival in New Orleans and she planned on making it up to them.

"We missed you guys at the party last night, 'Lena," Bonnie said as she brought her into a tight embrace, "what happened?"

"Tired, too much scotch, magically spent, you know, the usual," she chuckled, offering the same excuse she gave to everyone else who had asked, including the siblings.

"That's a shame, the party was amazing, I've never seen so many loosened up vampires in one house before," Caroline offered up her opinion.

"Yeah, it's been a long year, the inner circle needed to blow off some steam," Elena responded amusingly, "they can get pretty wild."

"And the werewolves, they had a ball, although they weren't overly fond of Damon and his quirks," Bonnie continued, a small chuckle bursting through their lips.

"What did you do, Damon?" Elena said with folded arms and a smirk curled up on her lip.

He simply shrugged his shoulders, his usual amused attitude fully apparent on his facial features, "nothing, I swear."

"To summarise, he threatened three of them and asked two of their wives to leave with him," Stefan explained, always with the disappointed tone in his voice that was reserved for Damon's antics.

Elena looked at him with a shocked gasp and stared piercing daggers into his eyes, "he's joking, right? Damon, I swear-"

"He's not joking, in fact, he managed to royally enrage everyone in attendance last night to the point we were almost collectively plotting his demise," Klaus appeared beside her, his hands folded behind his back and a smirk spread on his lips.

"Oh look, Elena's favourite hybrid, here to get me into more trouble," he smiled sarcastically, his gaze flickering between the two of them, "goody."

"Damon, this isn't funny, you can't just come in here an-"

"I was just playing around," he was almost impatient in his tone of voice but he could see the stress starting to creep onto her face and he wouldn't put her through it, "hence why I'm still alive and here today."

She switched her attention onto Klaus and without so much as a word, he understood her completely and gave a nod of his head, confirming his story to be true. She breathed a sigh of relief before fixating her gaze onto Damon once again, "this is the last night you're all here before you return to Mystic Falls tomorrow, will you just behave, please?"

"Of course, my Queen," he waved his hand towards her and offered a playful bow, his amusement apparent and she simply responded by rolling her eyes and grinning.

"You're not funny, Damon," she shook her head but her smile was still present, so he assumed he was off the hook.

"I happen to think I'm hysterical," he placed his hands on her shoulders and lowered his line of sight to gaze into her eyes but she remained strong in her stance with her arms folded and her amusement apparent, "don't worry, Elena, I wouldn't actually do anything to make your life here harder."

"Thank you," she gave him a nod of her head before he released the hold he had of her and joined by Stefans side once again.

She turned to face Klaus with her eyebrows raised and a now softened demeanour, "it's strange, it's usually you and your homicidal tendencies I have to worry about."

"Happy to not disappoint, love," he was cold and unreachable but she knew it was just this sadness he had buried within him that he refused to deal with and he wouldn't let her help him through it. She didn't even fully understand it.

He left her side and started on a path to the kitchen when she spun on her heel and intended to follow, "Nik, wa-"

"Dinner is served," Kol announced as he slid open the double door entrance to the dining room with Elijah by his side and showcased the feast of food that was spread out across the table.

Elena, pushing her frustrations aside, joined with Elijah in the dining room. There was a large turkey in the centre, a roast beef and lamb, along with bowls filled with all the trimmings, at each place setting, there was Christmas crackers, much to Elena's happy surprise.

They all took their usual seats, Klaus at the top of the table with Rebekah on his right and Caroline on his left and Elijah opposite with Elena on his right and Jeremy on his left. Stefan sat next to Care and Damon and Bonnie sat next to her, along with Kol on her other side.

There was a quiet chatter in the room whilst the waiters poured the wine and they all started scooping the trimmings onto their plates. Klaus stood from his chair and tapped a knife against his glass, the clinking sound causing them all to look his way whilst he held up his drink.

"In the unlikeliest turn of events, we came together as a family, survived the influx of enemies and the wedding and against all odds, we've joined together to celebrate Christmas together, as a newly whole family, there is always a place here for each and everyone of you," he stepped around the table and stood in between Elijah and Elena, clinking their glasses together, "no matter what, this will always be your home too."

"Thank you, Nik," he warmed her heart with his words and she smiled kindly, Elijah offered the usual nod of the head to express his gratitude and stood beside him.

"Shall we carve then, brother?"

There was laughter, intriguing conversation and amazing food but most of all, Elena cherished the memory of her two families coming together to celebrate and actually getting through it without any form of hostility. It was perfect.

It was 4pm, Elena found herself in their old bedroom with Elijah, they had decided to get a start on packing for their honeymoon before the party was due to start.

"I am so excited for our trip," she said with a wide grin as she folded up some of her shirts and placed them in the case, "where shall we go first?"

"That decision lies with you, my love," Elijah stopped in his sped up tracks to stand beside her and answer her question, he found the task of packing to be mundane and wanted to get through it as quick as possible, "what did you have in mind?"

"Paris, perhaps?" She tossed more clothes into a case until it was full and zipped it up, "the Eiffel Tower this time of year is something I would love to see."

"Sounds perfect," he grasped her hand and placed a soft kiss along her knuckles, "there is somewhere in the South of France I would love to show you, it's beautiful."

"I'd love that, where?" She smoothed her thumb along his hand and radiated only warmth.

"There's a small village in the southeastern Alpes-de-Haute-Provence by the name of Manosque, I've been only a handful of times but it has become one of my favourite places to visit and nothing would make me happier than to show you it," his hand found its way to her face, cupping her cheek and entangling his fingers in her hair.

"Sounds perfect," she nestled further into his hold and he brought her in for a kiss, a passion fuelled and loved up kiss. He wanted to share everything with her, even some of his hearts most deepest desires, ones he thought would never come to pass.

She watched as he started blurring around the room again whilst she packed the old fashioned way, relishing in the mundane considering they were far from it and she had to hold onto those fleeting moments of humanity.