taxonomites | 013 ━ [ visual ] / [ location: elena's house ].

The sheets were soft; much softer than those on his own bed or anything he had access to on Serenity. They weren't the fine silks that Katherine's bed was lined with, either. Yet, the feel of them against his skin was familiar to him somehow, and in the bleariness of morning, Stefan couldn't quite place it.

He stirred, rolling over instinctively towards the warm body on the other side of the bed. Still sleepy-eyed, he smiled at her. "Good morning."

Elena stirred at the familiar words and voice, putting her hand on her forehead to push the hair that had fallen in her face as she'd slept out of her face. Blinking as things came into focus, she turned to the other body occupying her bed and smiled, pleased to see him. "Morning."

Stefan held that smile for a moment longer until reality set in and who he was in bed with clicked. His eyes widened. "Elena."

Elena's eyebrows knit together in confusion for a moment, wondering why he was surprised, and then everything came back to her in a split second and she sat upright with a start, eyes going wide and a hand clapping over her mouth.

"Stefan," she said breathlessly once she removed her hand. "What are you -- what are we -- what happened? Do you remember?"

He sat up, too. "No." Last he could recall, he was crawling into his own bed at the boarding house. He couldn't remember how he even got to Elena's, let alone what they did or did not do. "Do you?"

"No," she replied with a shake of her head, absently feeling around to make sure her clothes were still on. Not that she didn't trust Stefan and not that they weren't sleeping together anyway, but she didn't like that she couldn't remember it if it had happened. "Just going to bed last night."

Similarly, Stefan was lifting up the covers with and peering under the sheets to make sure he still had pants on. Check. Thank God.

He slid out of the covers and stood-- Or he tried to, but the silver chain that had thus far gone unnoticed pulled taught between them, catching him off guard. Stefan stumbled and fell awkwardly over the side of the bed.

Elena was concentrating on not panicking when she suddenly found herself jerked violently to her side, landing face-down on her bed as Stefan fell over the side. "What the--" And then she saw it -- the chain glinting in the early morning light that connected them by the wrists.

The chain wasn't what Stefan's eyes were on. "Elena..." They were on the bright red recording light on the tablet.

It recorded a few more seconds of footage, then cut off the feed.

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"I thought she was you!" He feels horrible for protesting with that, especially in Elena's presence and he has to stop himself from casting a glance her way to see how she responded to the comment. "I woke up here, Katherine. They moved me. Take it up with the hamsters for sticking me in your sister's bed."

Stefan purposely throws 'sister' into that, as if to remind her, in case she's forgotten in her outrage, that this is unlocked and certain appearances need to be kept up.

"You know how to tell us apart!" The impulsive, indignant response is out of her mouth before she can fully even process it, a knee-jerk reaction stemming from her private abhorrence of the fact that there was someone else on the face of the earth with her face. Katherine hated to be compared to or mistaken with Elena in any instance, especially with anything that had to do with Stefan. It was one of her few sore spots.

Setting her jaw stubbornly, Katherine stews in helpless rage, shoulders jumping up and down as she huffs out a frustrated breath. She knows Stefan is correct, but damn it, she doesn't like it at all. And this isn't something she can make go away, either, which only adds to her annoyance.

"Fine. You and Elena have fun with your little alien-induced reunion."

"Katherine," Stefan pushes his anger aside in favor of something softer, adopting a pleading, apologetic look. "Don't be like that."

It feels wrong to be doing this in front of Elena, putting on what is and isn't an act with her sitting right beside him. If he could take this conversation somewhere private, he would, but he can't unbind himself from Elena -- in more ways that one. There's guilt sitting on his shoulders like a heavy blanket of snow weighing down the limbs of a tree, and he can't figure out if it's because of what he's doing to Elena or what he's doing to Katherine.

Maybe it's both. When did he become the bad guy in this?

For all her normal self-assurance, the idea that Stefan would be spending however long the glitch lasts in such close proximity to Elena makes something twist inside Katherine - something that smacks distinctly of not only jealousy, but also uncertainty. Does he still love Elena? Katherine knows he still cares for the doppelgänger. It's Stefan, it's what he does. And that's exactly what concerns the older vampire. She loves both brothers, but if she had to, she would have no problems discarding (in whatever capacity - even permanent death) Damon from her life. It would always be Stefan for her. One part of Katherine suspects Stefan wouldn't be able to do the same with Elena, make such a distinct, permanent choice. But Stefan has pledged his love for her, chosen her and not her doppelgänger, hasn't he? This prickle of doubt is ridiculous, wasn't it?

Were this a private conversation, Katherine might actually push the issue, but it isn't and she won't. Not with Elena right there.

"Well, I'm sorry if I'm less than thrilled about this turn of events," she manages grudgingly, sounding slightly less spiteful in response to Stefan's pleading tone.

He knows what he has to do in order to reassure himself, as much as he can right now, that she won't try anything. Katherine can rage in her own private corner of Taxon, but Stefan doesn't want her coming anywhere near this house or Elena. It's not her fault, or his, that they're stuck together. It is, however, his fault that he's still involved with Elena behind Katherine's back (behind everyone's backs), and there's a self-involved part of himself that hopes she'll leave things be for his own sake, too.

Doing what needs to be doing -- or rather, saying what needs to be said -- with Elena right there makes it difficult and Stefan has to focus on the screen to keep his expression steady and unwavering, to stop himself from looking over at her doppelgänger. If he looks at Elena, he'll not only waver, but also lose his nerve. This is going to hurt her, he knows, but as much as he actually trusts Katherine, he doesn't want her temper and possessiveness of him to get the better of her and for Elena or Jenna to get hurt caught up in the crossfire.

Best get it over with.

"You know I love you, right?"

Indeed Stefan knows Katherine well, for the thought of seeing if her invite into the Gilbert-Sommers house holds weight in Taxon has already crossed Katherine's mind and is seriously considered for a few long moments, the fact that she had promised Stefan to keep away from Jenna ignored in her fit of temper. What exactly would storming the house actually accomplish is another question entirely, one that Katherine hasn't really contemplated at all. That's clearly beside the point, here.

...But then Stefan speaks up and, oh -- that selfish side of Katherine is suddenly rather glad Elena is right there, feeling shamelessly gleeful that the doppelgänger heard Stefan say that to her. The satisfaction from this goes a long way to calm Katherine's mood, and the corner of her mouth tugs up into a tiny smile.

"Mmhm," she hums her agreement. "I love you, too."

The sense of vindication is fleeting, however, and some of the disgruntlement over the situation returns. But what can she do? Damn hamsters. Exhaling a tetchy huff of air, she relents. "Come see me after this thing is done?"