the challenge, bring order to the whole

[braveandstupid]

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[braveandstupid]

[It's been a slow night at Mystic Falls General, and Elena's been enjoying the quiet. With things quieting down in New Orleans, there's less to worry about, especially with the news that Monroe is gone for good. And that Allison is okay.

Honestly, all of it is a relief.

Elena gets word from one of the nurses that a patient is asking for her and she's surprised. But when she pulls back the curtain and sees who it is, she's simultaneously confused and annoyed.

The annoyance might be an automatic response.]

What are you doing here?

[shreds]

( Elena Gilbert always did prefer the slower nights, not that Katherine could blame her. Katherine sent a wrecking ball into Elena Gilbert's life years ago, all in the name of self preservation. And look where it got them. Elena in the job she was destined for, barf, and Katherine, with a hot piece of arm candy and a job she doesn't see as a job. It helps that she's more formidable than most humans should be. But, that's what comes from five hundred years of discipline.

That cockiness is not bulletproof, unlike her having been actually bulletproof in the past. The job was straightforward and she almost got out of it unscathed. She saved the girl and beheaded the vampire. But, word of her working with the Winchesters had spread and an errant demon entered the grateful girl, exchanged words with her and attacked. One thing led to another, a knife made contact with her cheek, she was just defending herself. Contrary to what some might think, she cares. This was an innocent girl. But, this is what most demons want. Innocent blood shed.

Demonic smoke flies out of the girl's mouth as she slumps against Katherine.

She calls the police anonymously. She supposes the girl, no longer possessed but having stabbed herself, might be wheeled in behind her. But, she also knows what happens when you step up, when you're a good person. And she looks too good to be in all brown or blue or orange or whatever color the prisons have decided on. That, and, she can't do real good behind bars or hire a lawyer or anything like that. So, she helps how she can and she takes herself out of it.

Mystic Falls General is the closest hospital, and after hearing the barbaric cries from the bed next to her and seeing the shoddy suturing from a, frankly, past her prime nurse, Katherine insists they call one person if she's on call.

Elena's hippocratic oath will keep her civil. She hopes. )

This is the closest hospital and Nurse Ratchett butchered the guy's face in the next bed. I thought if I want the best, why not ask for the best.

( Her cheek is cut deep enough that she will need stitches, but the blood has mostly dried. She did use her own antiseptic. It hurt like a bitch. )

Please. A hunter's face is her calling card.

( Or, Katherine's is. )

[braveandstupid]

[There's a deep sigh through her nose, before she draws the curtain closed behind her.]

Didn't tell them not to go for the face?

[She steps to the side, pulling out some supplies from the cabinets in the room and grabbing a pair of rubber gloves to get started.]

[shreds]

( Elena can act like this is the most difficult thing she'll do all day. Katherine wouldn't rather be spending the end of her evening in the emergency room, and yet, here they both are.

And yes, she's aware she dragged herself in sans cat. )

Demons tend to only go for the face. Or the jugular. ( A different Katherine would expand. She'd say, 'that's right, you should know all about that what with your shacking up with hunter royalty,' because people talk and oh does Katherine talk. But she really likes her face. ) I don't think my saying so would've helped.

( Also, Elena. Any any time someone screams don't go for the face. You know that's the number one prime target. )

[braveandstupid]

[She has heard some stuff about demons. She makes a face at the mention, before going to start cleaning out the wound.]

Was the demon in town?

[tearhiseyesout]

[A few hours in, Ezra's phone begins to ring. It's an unknown number, as he and Jaqueline have never really been what you would call "close." But she is going to keep calling and calling and calling until someone answers the phone so ...

Whenever you're ready, Ezra.]

[praevaricatio]

( Ezra, like most doctors, keeps his phone close. And like most milennials, he ignores numbers he doesn't recognize. On the first, second, and third rings at least, he plans on ignoring it.

It could be a number of associates, someone who's referred him, or a poorly timed they will regret this choice in the morning wrong number. He shrugs in David's direction, groans, and picks his phone up from the charger, unplugging it.

Reading glasses on, he sees it's the same number, again, and answers, finally. )

This better be an emergency.

[tearhiseyesout]

Why do neither of you answer your fucking phones.

[It's not an actual question. She intends to issue an order soon after, but before she can, there's a burst of gun fire, followed by bullets hitting a wooden door.]

[praevaricatio]

( Between the late hour and the incessant ringing, his (3) leaves recognition to be desired. It's a voice and it's a fucking annoyed voice, that much he knows. The brain fog is strong in this tired witch. Gunfire, that doesn't need any placement in memory. It's gunfire.

Ezra gives his husband a look, hits the speaker button and gunfire erupts on the line. )

Are you looking for me or for David?

[patrols]

[It's date night.

She only gets so many of these a month, especially when Mystic Falls happens to get busy with supernatural shenanigans. She treasures these blissful periods of not having to be the sheriff, and she won't let anyone interrupt them for anything. She's wearing a dress and heels and makeup and as she saunters into the Grille, she'll punch anyone who tries to put her on official duty this evening.

But her date isn't here yet, so she'll saunter over to the bar to say hello to her favorite bartender.]

Two beers please.

[unforgivably]

( As happy as he is for all the couples, Damon is painfully aware he is not one half of one.

When your flirtationship stops and starts in fits and she ups and skips town because her friend died, you throw yourself into your work. Don't get him wrong, her friend died, that's worth more than a stopover. He is working in Mystic Falls, so what that means is keeping the bored housewives and truants company, but Damon Salvatore? Is good company. And if he's asked, yeah, he's happy Allison's not actually dead. And equally happy the Winchesters are elsewhere. They were getting too much new blood at once if you ask him.

Nobody ever asks him! Even when he's right. Did his inside hunter pay off? Maybe barely, but it did. Klaus did tell him to choose better should a situation like that come up again and then his choice in bedfellows is insulted. As metaphorical as it sounds, it stings.

Everything pretty much stings lately. Damon's really having a time of it. The housewives have gone home to their husbands, the truants have gone home to their empty homes and Damon has a pitiful early evening crowd of 0. He, himself, and him. As if she'd planned, the very person Damon needs saunters in. Her getup is fetching, the earrings are just right and he knows that this is not the casual, let's hear about Damon's problems night. Which is fine. He's gotten by without divulging all his slimy little feelings. He can bottle them up for one more night. )

Hot date tonight with Beckford?

[patrols]

Yes, I do.

[She doesn't even care that she's gloating. As much as she loves serving and protecting, she enjoys her date nights too.]

I'm early though, so I have a little time.

[If Damon wants to do some venting.]

[unforgivably]

( The earrings do the gloating for her, she should flaunt it.

He goes about filling two glasses with her and Beck's favorite beers. Dark Guinness for Beck. And Lindsay's favorite. )

If I were you, I'd sit in my heels and anticipate. Or, does the spark go out of the relationship once you relocate for love.

[pastlives]

[Mandatory partner therapy is never fun. Audrey hasn't ever really had it before, but she is definitely not having fun right now. And given that she isn't the one who just came back from a spontaneous sabatical, she's not sure why she's the one that has to be here, sitting in awkward uncomfortable silence.

She likes you Stiles, but she's one hundred percent about to throw you under the bus.]

Maybe this would be better if I ... wasn't here. Not that I don't think there's value in it, but it might be more ... productive?

[phonetically]

( It's not that he doesn't want to talk about it, it's that anything he does say will raise some massive red flags, even if he chooses to use metaphor. The closest thing he can think of is alcoholism and considering his father struggled with it, he has the vocabulary, but he doesn't feel like being suspended and being sentenced to nothing. He did nothing. He sucked at it. So, he's back.

And not talking.

Somehow, his assigned counselor has turned his therapy into what amounts to couple's therapy. Sorry you got dragged in, agent Parker. But if Stiles is good at one thing, it's getting a feel for a situation. )

He's not going to release you. Or, me. Let me guess, the more I don't talk, the more you think we, Audrey and me, should. Because you're convinced that just because I ended my sabbatical early - which is my prerogative - that something must be wrong.

( Or is it customary to have a post-sabbatical debrief. He's never taken one before.

He likes you, Sweets, but you can just let them get back to their work. )

[likeababyduck]

That's not why, actually.

[Sweets is leaning back far too casually, keeping his attention on Stiles, but still maintaining his professional ease.]

We always have these kinds of check ins when agents return from sabbaticals. Especially once that happen so suddenly.

[So it's not how fast you came back, it's how fast it happened.]

[phonetically]

Some high school friends needed help. I wasn't aware I had to disclose that. It rolled into taking a few mental health weeks. I was told the department encouraged that.

( Again, he skirts around the bush but at least starts to buzz at the hedges? )

[likeaweapon]

Neal and Sara will be here any minute!

[Rebekah steps out of the closet to fix her earrings, looking over her collection of shoes to find the appropriate ones for the evening. It's been some time since they had some good old fashioned adult fun, and with Peter and Elizabeth taking Henry for the evening for a play date with little Neal, she fully plans to take advantage of it.]

How's the chicken coming?

[cowman]

( Losing Wynonna was not as crushing a blow as it could have been. The push and pull of their relationship did get him through a lot but once he shut that door behind him he was better off. And human. Doc drove Cheryl away and never looked back.

Domestic bliss wasn't reached easily, and there really is no such thing as domestic bliss. He and Rebekah have something close therein. He settles in New Jersey, first, until he decides that he likes the bustle of Manhattan. (Jeremy and Waverly visited more when he moved to the city.) Jeremy surprised him with Adele tickets courtesy of Black Badge and that is where he met his future wife. The bar outside an Adele concert. They both agreed Adele is real music and that she harkens back to a simpler time.

Their courtship was an innocent one, free of revenants and vampires. But, an old witch's grudge brought the both of them back into the world they left behind and it came out that they were both once immortal, something that only brought them closer together. Jeremy, Wavery, Nicole, and even Wynonna attended the wedding. One of her sisters and two of her brothers made it. It was a family affair.

He knows he will never be right for Rebekah in Niklaus' eyes. He is the cowboy from Purgatory. There were words exchanged about the significance of the word and long-held resentments of Rebekah choosing to cure herself. But time heals and passes and soon they had a child together.

They lived a particularly insular, cultured life with very few close friends, two of which had grown extremely close with them. Neal Caffrey, a man Rebekah had met while traveling abroad and Sara, his forever fiancée, a modern idea if he ever saw one. But, he liked Sara, she was tough-as-nails and found him gainful employment that was better than police work. Even though he liked being law enforcement, he very rarely colored inside the lines and his number would have been up when it came to legality. Everything worked out.

Adorning himself of cufflinks, he straightens his collar out, checking himself in the mirror. No hat tonight, not on such a formal occasion. Instead, his hair is slicked back behind him. )

It is tender, juicy, and resting atop the stove.

[likeaweapon]

Perfect.

[She never thought she could be this happy. But with a husband she loves and a family she treasures, it's like she has the life she's always wanted. If only Klaus could be less of a dick about it at times.

She smiles as she turns to face him, before adjusting her collar.]

You look very handsome.

[cowman]

That is not hard to do in your presence.

( Every day she takes his breath away, dressed up or down, with their child underfoot or in hand, or not.

He knows that like most, family takes time to come around. He has high hopes for her brother and hers relationship. )

I lit candles for the ambience. Too much?

[thefaxwhisperer]

[It's a late night at the firm. Harvey had been pulling them, partially to distract himself from what happened in New Orleans, and partially because he had a few days to catch up on. Donna's been helping, trying to see if he wants to actually talk about it versus stewing and pretending it never happened.

They've wrapped things up for the evening, and Donna is packing her things away when she hears the sound of the elevator starting.

She glances at her watch, then back at Harvey.]

Did you notice any associates working late tonight?

[rehire]

( What is there to talk about. That he saw a bar full of people die before his eyes, that as the human, all he could do was be of moral support? Not to mention the second dead body they found in the church. His work with the witches led to dicey situations but none like he'd been caught in the middle of. That didn't mean he wasn't fine. Harvey Specter bounced back. He always bounced back.

Harvey closes his laptop and puts it into his bag, hearing the same. )

No, but you know our first and second years. They're like overachieving people-pleasing ghosts.

[thefaxwhisperer]

Mmm-hmmm.

[She's not so sure about that. She hasn't lived this long by being reckless and with everything that's been happening, she's not looking to let her guard down.]

We should go.

[rehire]

( They haunt the halls. But, he knows better than to ignore when Donna tells him something. She is the reason he is who he is and the reason he's alive. Standing up, he grabs his shoulder bag by the handle. )

Should we take the stairs?