"I always thought it was just a lame selling line." Rebekah muttered eventually, breaking the silence that had reigned over the room.
"What do you mean?" Kol asked, most of the room still entranced by the glowing necklace.
"When I had the charms made, the woman who made them told me that in the hands of love our souls would be saved."
"You didn't think to mention this to us?" Klaus bit, examining the charm hanging around his neck.
"I thought it was a selling line, Nik, just something she made up; I never had cause to think otherwise until now."
"Wait," Elena interjected, grabbing Elijah's hand without looking or consciously thinking about it, "the only reason Elijah is alive right now is because I happened to have his necklace when he died?"
"It would seem that way," Kol replied softly, noting the look on Elena and Elijah's faces, "yes."
Shaking her head, Elena's hand tightened around Elijah's for a moment, her fingers flexing before she released her grip on him, startled when he turned his hand to catch hers.
"We need to look into these necklaces further," he dictated, slipping into his usual role of controlling the room calmly, "we have no idea exactly what happened, or of there will be any side effects." Turning to his youngest brother he raised an eyebrow. "Can I leave this research in your charge, Kol?"
Kol nodded resolutely, already thinking about potential texts he needed to source and examine.
"I'll help." Bonnie said firmly, raising her chin when Kol turned to her in surprise. "It seems like two people would be better than one to get through everything about this sort of magic, and like Elijah said, we don't know if there will be any side effects, time is probably not on our side if there are."
Kol studied her intently for a few tense months before nodding slowly. "Very well, Bekah, you can help too, seeing as you're the one who commissioned these necklaces in the first place."
"What about us?" Elena asked quickly, looking between Elijah and Kol. "What do we do?"
"Collect yourselves." Kol replied, taking the pressure from his brother. "Take some time to calm down and breathe, especially you, Elena."
"Why me?"
"Because you need to figure out what you're capable of. Use Nik as a magic punching bag if you like, but you need to get a handle on what you can do." Standing to leave, Rebekah and Bonnie followed suit, sensing that their work was about to begin. "If I were you, I'd enlist Davina, she's young, but she's clever, and extremely powerful."
With that, Kol turned and left the room, Rebekah close on his heels; Bonnie following too after a hesitant pause.
"I don't even know where to start." Elena sighed, running a hand through her hair in frustration. "I don't have anything to even begin to understand how to use magic; this is ridiculous."
She paced the length of the centre aisle of the church, Elijah, Davina, Marcel, and Klaus watching from various seats in the pews.
"Magic links to emotion," Davina said softly, sighing when Elena turned to look at her, "as a vampire all of your emotions are heightened; you need to focus on taking control of just one of them and find a way to use that to your advantage."
Letting out a terse scoff, Elena threw her hands up in frustration, turning on her heel and pacing away from the small group watching her.
"Niklaus." Elijah murmured, standing from his seat and gesturing subtly to his brother to clear the room.
The hybrid looked between the pacing doppelganger and his brother before sighing and gesturing for Marcel and Davina to move out of the main church as Elijah approached Elena.
"Elena?" He broached, stopping a few steps behind her and tucking his hands into the pockets of his slacks as she continued to pace. "Talk to me."
She shook her head, letting out a wry laugh and chewing on one of her nails. "What do you want me to say, Elijah?" She turned to look at him, transitioning from chewing her nail to picking at the skin of her lip. "What on Earth could I possibly say?"
"Tell me what you're thinking." He prompted gently, determined to get answers from her, but terrified to push her too far. "Davina was right about the emotional link, you just need to try and make that connection, Elena."
"I don't even know if my emotions are on or off, Elijah!" She shouted, narrowing her eyes at him when he only quirked an eyebrow in response, not even bothering to remove his hands from his pockets as he waited patiently for her to elaborate. "What am I supposed to connect to when I can't even feel them?"
"You're feeling now." He shrugged, deliberately not reacting when she abruptly stopped half a foot away from him. "You wouldn't be shouting if you weren't feeling something."
"How are you doing that?" Elena hissed, glaring at the man in front of her. "How do you act like you just don't feel anything?"
Taking his hands from his pockets, Elijah undid the button on his jacket. "We're not talking about me."
"No." Elena scoffed, shaking her head. "No, you know what, we are talking about you now, because you died, Elijah! You died!"
"I'm aware." He replied softly, his quiet voice in stark contrast to Elena's shouting. "Now I am no longer. What would you like me to do?"
"I want you to feel something, Elijah!" She shouted, half-heartedly shoving at his chest. "You died! You died in my arms and you're only alive because I just happened to be wearing your necklace! What if I hadn't been? What then?" Tearing herself away from him, she turned her back, storming away as tears began to fall from her eyes, traitorous rivulets of water running of their own accord.
A soft gasp escaped her lips as she found herself suddenly pressed against one of the walls of the church, Elijah boxing her in with his hands either side of her face. Closing her eyes, Elena refused to look at him, shaking her head softly.
"Don't you dare." The words left his lips in a soft whisper, but his tone was firm. "You don't get to run from this...from me, not anymore. Because I did die, Elena. I died, and all I could think was that there was so much left unsaid between us."
Pulling in a deep breath, Elena still refused to open her eyes, turning her head into his hand without any real thought when he brought his palm up to her cheek.
"You don't get to run, Elena." He said again, tilting her face up to his as she opened her eyes. "You don't get to hide from me, from us."
Tears running from her eyes again, Elena leant her face into Elijah's hand, her impassive expression fading and crumbling as a sob escaped her, her eyes scrunching shut in concentration.
"I can't." She gasped eventually, barely able to get words out of her mouth around her sobs. "I can't do this."
"Can't do what?" Elijah pushed, bringing both hands to the sides of her face. "Talk to me, sweetheart, please."
Letting out another sob, Elena almost jumped when she found herself wrapped tightly in Elijah's arms; her face buried against his chest and her hands fisted in his shirt.
She continued to cry, taking heaving breaths every so often to try and articulate her thoughts, though she kept finding herself unable to talk around the lump in her throat.
How was she supposed to do this? How was she supposed to talk to him, to explain what she was feeling when she could hardly understand it herself? She'd tried to turn her emotions off, but since he'd come back all she could put a name to was a burning terror that haunted her thoughts and followed her wherever she went.
"Breathe." He instructed softly, rubbing her back in circles. "Just breathe, Elena."
Suddenly angry, she tore herself from his arms, shoving him so abruptly that he stumbled back in shock.
"I can't breathe!" She shouted, glaring at him even as tears ran down her face. "How am I supposed to breathe when I'm worried every minute of everyday that I-" Abruptly cutting herself off, she shook her head, running a hand through her hair and pacing away from him.
"What?" He pressed, seemingly recovered from his shock at her outburst. "That you'll what, Elena?"
She let out a choked laugh, shaking her head and walking away from him, again finding herself stopped; Elijah in her path.
"That you'll what?" He pushed again, softening his gaze and his approach when he saw her eyes watering again. "Why won't you talk to me?"
"What am I supposed to say?" She bit out. "What do you want from me?"
"The truth." He implored. "That's all I've ever wanted. Talk to me. Tell me what you're so worried about, Elena."
"Losing you!" She screamed, frustration overtaking her as Elijah continued to press her for answers. Anger and fear and sadness boiling over inside of her until she fell to her knees in a graceless heap, overwhelmed by the sheer volume of emotion. "I'm terrified of losing you again." She whispered, burying her face in her hands as any fight leached out of her.
Elijah didn't say anything, scarcely daring to move as Elena appeared ready to finally open up to him.
"You weren't supposed to die." She whispered. "You weren't supposed to leave me like everyone else. Every time I close my eyes I remember watching you die, and every minute I'm awake I'm terrified that something else will happen to take you away for good. You're alive because of a fluke, Elijah, how am I supposed to be okay with that?"
Kneeling beside her, Elijah gently placed a hand on her back, taking her weight when she leant into him, head still held in her hands.
"We don't have to be okay with it." Elijah said softly, wrapping both arms around her tightly. "I am alive because of a fluke, and that's scary; I never imagine I would be the one to leave you behind, but life is unpredictable in that way. We have to embrace the chance we have been given, Elena. People don't get second chances, especially not our kind, it sounds rather cliché, but you need to try and see this as an opportunity rather than a curse."
"I am cursed." Elena argued, shaking her head. "The Hollow infected me, I'll never be free of her, of what she did."
"Well then, I'll have to find the cure, won't I?"
HisSecretLover18: Thank you so much! The explanation was a long time coming!
Guest: Aren't we all? I'm glad you enjoyed and thank you for the chefs kisses as always! I'm sorry I've made you wait so long!
QueenAsura: Thank you, I'm so glad!
Well, I am so sorry that this story has been left in the lurch for so long! My laptop broke and I've had no other way to salvage or post anything until now. I can only hope that you haven't all forgotten about this story, because I promise you I haven't! But I'm back now, and hopefully with a bang!
Can't wait to hear from you all!
Until next time
~ I x