( continuation of this )

[ katherine's gaze softens. where she had expected him to rip her palm from his cheek, he merely holds it. it's strange, to see the boy he used to be, the one he no doubt is with elena; she's grown harder than before, constructed walls so impossibly tall, to ensure that boys like him don't ever cause the fall of girls like her. ]

[ she's so used to fighting him, tooth and nail, strength to strength, but it's here that she's not quite sure who folds first: is it her, or him? ]

[ she tilts her head to the side, her eyebrow arching slightly. ] Why, Stefan? Why ask a question you won't like the answer to?

The one thing Elena liked the most about Texas was how it had more than one popular place to hang out. After exhausting her time at Applebees for the week, Elena found herself at the Alamo Freeze, standing before the counter while she gazed up at the menus of drinks and ice-creams.

Clutched to her chest were a few of her books; finishing off her last year of high school in Dillon, Texas, ensured that she would actually be graduating. After the commotion following her last few years at Mystic Falls High, Elena had found herself wanting to continue her studies in a place that didn't look at her as the doppelganger or the plaything between two immortal brothers. Her life had, unintentionally, been placed on hold the moment Stefan Salvatore had swept her off her feet and into a completely new world she could never fathom saying no to. She owed it to Jenna to complete her studies, after all, and considering Jeremy had found his way back to Denver for the time being for some soul searching before he picked up the rest of his school year, Elena found herself needing a brand new start - regardless of how permanent or temporary it may be.

It was lonely, but the few friends she had made while out in Dillon had allowed her to reconnect with a life she had never thought she'd miss. Despite not being too interested in being a cheerleader again, Elena found that anything that allowed her to take her mind off of Mystic Falls or worrying herself to death over Jeremy was a welcome distraction. Studying at the Alamo Freeze to escape the heat lurking outside and the chances of getting lost in her photographs back home just happened to be today's course of distraction.

"Decisions, decisions, decisions," she muttered to herself. The one thing that hadn't quite improved since her move was her inability to pick between vanilla or chocolate, a drink or ice-cream, or whether she wanted both. "They never get any easier."

The best thing about summer is the fact that all the crazy crap that happens seems to slow down to a nice, smooth halt. Caroline can go back to being delusional and thinking she's a normal girl hanging out with a boy she now kind of likes more than she did about a year and a half ago. Tyler's turning into someone she can't quite tear her gaze from, and she's finding that she honestly doesn't mind it.

In her room sits a calendar on a dresser by her bed. Today's date has been circled, and in pen she's scribbled Full moon across it. She's not quite sure if Tyler's keeping track of the one thing that doesn't make him normal, but she has been. It fills her with anxiety when she realises what today will actually entail. Him transforming, with his bones breaking underneath him, is the worst sound and sight she's ever bared witness to. It's one thing that haunts her when she's asleep. Abandoning Tyler during his time of need, even if he won't openly admit it, is something Caroline will gladly swallow her discomfort for. When she needed a friend, she had no one to turn to; she refuses to allow the same for Tyler, regardless of how annoyingly stubborn he is or how confused he makes her feel when he gives her a particular smile.

That's why she's at the Lockwood mansion, knocking on the door with her perky demeanour revving on overdrive. Pushing Tyler to prepare himself is what she does best; Caroline enjoys taking the wheel and pulling people along to face the things they need to in order for her to avoid hers. It's turning around on her, though, as the one thing Tyler never wants to face seems to be the very thing she fears, too. "Open up, Lockwood! I can hear you in there shuffling around!" She chirps cheerily and gives the door another hard, impatient knock.

[ when elena turns, she ends up ripping a boy in half. his face belongs to a memory of a girl she will never be again; remembering his taunts of a younger jeremy, back when the gilbert house was still a hole, this kid's words would have jeremy shaking to the core. it's purely incidental that she finds him. her hands itch to rip into his skin, and she does the unforgiveable in pulling the flesh from his muscle and completing her transition by draining him dry. a part of her feels no remorse while another part, the larger part, is drowned in it.

she finds him somewhere outside of virginia, in a place she's never been to nor would ever go to. he looks like how he left; hair in place and suit crisp and there's not a single drop of uncertainty when she openly begs him for help. she cannot face her family back home, to see the disappointment curl in stefan's posture, the sparkle of pride in damon's eye, and the pity and sympathy that undoubtedly would exude from caroline. she fears jeremy's most of all; she picks fights with those he can battle on his own.

out in the woods, where it's abandoned, elena feels her senses starting to relax. the city, with it's sights and smells and sounds, is overwhelming. she urges to rip it away, to tear the flesh from bones again to simply make the guilt stop. pulling her out into the woods has her hearing the crunch of leaves, the breathing of animals hiding near by, and silence. the urge to kill is gone; pretending she is a normal girl is much easier out here. ]

So … [ it's too quiet for her; she's still getting used to hearing sounds she never thought possible, even after weeks of being by his side. his tutelage has proven useful, and she has found herself calming, feeling more in control, but a part of her is afraid and it is this that overwhelms her and keeps her glued firmly to his side. ] Is this the part where you teach me to eat bunnies?

[ her face is scrunched up. she feels guilt for everything, and love, the biggest pain in the ass of all, is she feels compassion for these animals, like she belongs with them or they with her. a child she sees on the street she feels overwhelmed to care for. the urges are hard to control along with the desire to give into the creature she's become. ] It's just that … I'm not really sure I can do that.

After Matt's arm almost snaps in half underneath a car, Elena's not quite sure she has it in her to remain standing. Her feet move on their own accord, side-stepping bodies as they swarm towards the car and the ambulance that's come for Matt. She's looking for a dark mop of hair, hunched shoulders, and an attitude that sets him apart from all the other kids who smoke and internalise every little thing that they're feeling.

Her heart quickens as she can't find him or the straight shoulders and stiff posture of Isobel. Pushing through the crowds, she makes her way to the Grill in hopes of contacting him via his cell phone. It's her fault that Jeremy's hard to reach these days; as she became further and further involved in the Salvatore scandals of centuries past, she's been pushing her friends and family as far as she can away from herself. It's not intentional, but every choice she makes on their behalf pulls her away from their circle of reach. She hates how Jeremy seems to look at her and see a stranger, how there's a glint in Bonnie's eyes that still doesn't forgive her for what happened to Grams.

Call it luck or coincidence, she finds Jeremy in the Grill. She's not sure what he's doing here, but she sure hopes to block his attempts at moving even further away from her. "Jeremy!" she calls out, unnecessary for such an empty space. The energy's based outside, not inside for once, and it's taking her a few moments too long to grasp her sea legs. Making her way towards him, she pleads, almost tripping over her own feet, "Jeremy, please talk to me. Let me explain."