Elena woke up the next morning feeling like a truck hit her. Her head was pounding and she was nauseous. When she opened her eyes and looked around, she was in an unfamiliar room. She was confused at first. Then she remembered the events of the night before. She'd gotten drunk, got into it with Damon, and then Elijah and Rebekah came and got her. She was at the Mikaelsons.'
Elena just laid there for a while. Even if she could get up without her body making pay for it, she would have to deal with others. There was no way she could get out of the house without someone noticing her. She was in a house with a family of vampires, her family of vampires.
Elena still didn't know how to deal with that fact. In fact, it was worse now. She remembered Damon flying across the room when she got pissed at him. She didn't think that it was Elijah. She was pretty sure it was her. She'd used some kind of power to hurt him. So much of her life had changed forever. She didn't know what to do about any of it.
Elena soon heard a knock at the door. She groaned. She didn't want to talk to anyone. She wanted to tell whoever it was to go away, but she supposed that wouldn't be very polite. "Come in."
The door was opened moments later by Sage, who was carrying a bottle of water and a bottle of aspirin. "Hi."
"Hi," Elena said without looking at the woman. "She was sort of hoping it was Elijah at the door, or Rebekah. Hell, she would've even taken Klaus at this point. She didn't know how to be around Sage or Finn yet. She wasn't sure she ever would know how to do that though.
Sage walked over to her daughter. "I brought you something for the hangover I'm sure you have."
Elena sat up to accept the aspirin and water offered to her. Any awkwardness was worth getting rid of the massive headache she had. She took two aspirins and washed them down with some water. "Thanks."
Sage nodded before taking the water and aspirin and putting them on the table next to the bed. "How are you feeling, aside from the hangover?"
"Kind of stupid. Getting wasted wasn't my smartest decision," Elena said.
"Maybe not, but I wouldn't call it stupid either. It was a natural reaction, even if it was a self-destructive one. I think we've all done it at one point or another," Sage said.
"So, you're not going to lecture me then?" Elena asked.
"Elena, I don't think I have any right to lecture you. You and I don't know each other. I want to change that, but we're not at the point where I can tell you how to cope with shocking news," Sage said.
"But you think we're at the point where you can tell people to stay away from me?" Elena asked a little bitterly. She regretted it instantly. She didn't want to fight, even if she believed Sage and Elijah overstepped by trying to tell Damon to stay away from her. "Sorry. I didn't mean to say that."
"But that's the way you feel, right? You're upset that I told Damon I wouldn't let him near you. I understand that, and you're right that maybe I overstepped a little bit, but I have no regrets about it. I want you to know that I have no intention of dictating who you can and can't be friends with, as long as they're not a danger to you. Damon is," Sage said.
"Damon wouldn't hurt me," Elena said. Yes, Damon could be controlling, and he could even be physical at times, but he wouldn't intentionally hurt her.
"Elena, you told me that Damon forced his blood down your throat. Elijah told me he put his hands on you last night," Sage said.
Elena scowled a little. Of course, Elijah had to tell her that. He probably told her all of it. She knew he was trying to help, but it didn't stop her from being annoyed. "He was trying to get me to leave the bar. I was pissed, but he was trying to help in his own way."
Sage pulled up a chair from the corner and brought it over to the bed before sitting down. "Okay, tell me something. Did Elijah or Rebekah have to use force to get you out of that bar?"
"No. Elijah helped me to the car, but he didn't manhandle me," Elena said. Elijah had made it clear that he would make her go with him if she didn't cooperate, but she doubted he would've used the same tactics that Damon did. He wouldn't have grabbed her arm in that rough manner.
"So, there were other ways to get you to leave then. You don't have to tell me, but I'd like to know what happened between you and Damon last night. Elijah told me what he saw, but that wasn't much," Sage said.
Elena sighed. "Damon showed up about an hour after I got there. He started asking me questions about what happened the night before. I wouldn't tell him anything. I didn't want to talk about it. I wanted to forget about it for the night. He wouldn't stop asking though. The more he talked, the more I drank. He started getting mad that I wouldn't tell him. He told me he needed to fix what I screwed up."
Sage could see her daughter getting angrier the more she talked, and Sage couldn't blame her. She was getting angry just listening to it. Soon, the nightstand next to Elena tipped over without either of them touching it.
Elena gasped, realizing that she'd done it. "Oh, God."
"It's okay. It's not a big deal. I've got it," Sage said before standing up and picking the table up.
"This happened last night. When Damon grabbed me, I got mad and I think I sent him across the bar," Elena said in a shaky tone.
"Good for you. If someone puts their hands on you, you have every right to defend yourself. It sounds like your emotional state made you tap into your witch powers," Sage said.
"How can I be a witch and a vampire at the same time? I mean, am I a vampire? I don't crave blood, but I'm the child of two vampires. What does that make me?" Elena asked. Her voice was still shaky.
Sage sat back down. "We're in unchartered territory here. I don't know what you species wise, but you are my child. That's the only thing that I care about you being."
"Can I ask you something?" Elena asked.
"Of course you can. You can ask me anything," Sage said.
"Did it freak you out when you finally realized you were pregnant?" Elena asked. Sage had told her that she was the best thing to happen to her, but she had to be worried too, didn't she? She had to wonder what she was bringing into the world.
"Yes, but not in the way that you're asking. Every parent freaks out when they find out they're going to be a parent, especially if it's a surprise. There is nothing more daunting than being responsible for another life. Any mother who says she isn't freaked out is lying her ass off. But not one time did I ever see you as something that shouldn't exist. Not one time did it matter to me that you weren't human or that you were something new altogether. I want you to think about something. There was a time when vampires didn't exist. There was a time when the Originals didn't even have anything to call themselves," Sage said.
"Like me," Elena said. She supposed she never thought of it that way. It would've had to have been the same for werewolves, maybe even witches. Every supernatural creature had a point where they were the only one of their kind.
"I know this is hard, but there is nothing wrong with that. Don't ever think there is. Don't let anyone ever tell you that," Sage said in a strong tone.
"Like Esther? She wanted to kill her own children. She called them abominations because they're vampires. I can't imagine what she must think about me," Elena said.
"It doesn't matter what she thinks about you. That woman's word is not law. She doesn't know you. She doesn't even really know her own children. She's no kind of mother. No mother would ever hurt her own child," Sage said.
Elena eyed Sage a couple of times before speaking again. "I…I don't know how to feel about you."
"I can understand that. You haven't really had a lot of time to process everything," Sage said.
"I've been down this road before. It was less than a year ago when I found out I was adopted. I thought my mother was Isobel. I met her twice. She was nothing like you, other than the fact that she was a vampire," Elena said.
Sage didn't say anything. She just decided to let Elena speak.
"She only met with me the first time because she wanted something. She used my little brother to get it. She was so cold. The second time I met her was a little better, but I still didn't like her. She tried to excuse the way she was by using vampirism. I don't accept that. I know vampires. One of my best friends is a vampire, and she's a very loving person. I don't accept that vampirism turns you cold to the people you're supposed to love," Elena said.
"Good. You shouldn't. It's true that vampirism changes you. Vampires are predators. There's no way around that, but we can still love," Sage said.
"I didn't like Isobel, and I never liked John, who I thought was my biological father. The thing is, I was grateful for that. I thanked Isobel for being a disappointment. But you're not a disappointment, neither is Finn. You I've met twice as well, and I know you care. I know Finn does to. That kind of makes it worse," Elena said.
Sage was pretty sure she understood where Elena was coming from with what she was saying. "Because if we didn't care, you wouldn't want to know us. You wouldn't have to feel like you were replacing the parents who raised you."
Elena nodded.
"Elena, the last thing we want to do is take their places. I know you loved the Gilberts. They were your parents at least as much as Finn and I are, probably more. We respect that. You loved them and they loved you. Loving us one day doesn't mean that you don't love them, and they will know that. They wouldn't be upset that you might want to get to know us and love us one day. They will be grateful that you have people to look out for you and love you. I can tell you that for certain because that is how I feel in regard to them. All a parent wants is for their kids to be happy, even if it's not with them anymore," Sage told her.
"I think I need time to figure things out," Elena said.
"Okay. You can take all the time you need. Would you like me to take you home now?" Sage asked. She was determined to give her daughter the space she needed. They'd had a good talk. She believed Elena was open to having a relationship with her and Finn, but she had to let Elena go at her own pace.
"Uh, would it be okay if I stayed here a while longer?" Elena asked. She didn't really want to be there either, but she wasn't ready to go home. Damon would probably be nearby ready to ambush her. He wouldn't dare show up at the Mikaelsons,' she didn't think.
"Of course. You can stay here as long as you want. I'll give you some space. Just call my name if you need anything," Sage said before standing up and heading out of the room.
Finn was waiting just outside as Sage came out. "Is she alright?"
"Yeah, she just needs a little time. I think we made progress though," Sage said.
"What's this I hear about the little bastard shoving blood down her throat," Finn asked.
Sage smacked him on the arm. "Stop eavesdropping."
"I'm killing him, Sage," Finn said.
"Not today you're not. Come on," Sage said before leading the way towards the stairs.
"Tomorrow then?" Finn asked as he followed her.