𝓒𝓵𝓪𝓻𝓲𝓽𝔂 || Stefan Salvatore || Vampire Diaries ||

Seven

Waking up was a chore. Something that Elliott usually had no problem with had become almost impossible. The right side of her head stung, making the rest of her head throb. Rolling her head forward, she pried her eyes open.

She was greeted with the floor of a cave, covered in bones. Her shoulders were on fire and her fingers tingled and were almost ice cold.

Looking up, she found herself chained up with a rusted chain and cuffs. They creaked and whined when she put weight on them, something she silently celebrated. There was a flare gun against her back in her waistband, hidden by her tee shirt.

Hunting a wendigo alone, for her first hunt, probably wasn't the smartest thing to do. However she knew that if she was gone for too long, a hybrid and a vampire would come for her. She couldn't have gotten that far from the werewolf camp.

Pushing her full weight onto the chains, they shattered with a loud snap. Gritting her teeth, the girl ignored the shackles that hung from her wrists like bracelets. The loud sound of the metal giving way had apparently attracted unwanted attention.

A loud roar thundered through the cave, making the remnants of the chains rattle. Ellie dove to her knees, crawling quickly across the ground, bones snapping underneath her weight, poking and scratching her dirty skin. The girl made it to her destination without obstruction, the corner of the cave chamber that held a small mountain of backpacks and gear. She rummaged through the supplies, finding her own pack.

Ellie retrieved the bag, shoving her still aching shoulders through the straps and letting it press against her back. The brunette reached back, yanking the flare gun out and pointing it towards the ground. She tried to quiet her breathing, her panicked gasps softening into shallow inhales.

Another roar shook the cave, making Ellie flinch and almost drop the flare gun. She tightened her grip stubbornly, wincing as a particularly harsh throb twinged above her right eye.

The beast lumbered into the cave chamber, growling at the sight of it's captive gone from where it had been left. It's eyes searched the chamber slowly, almost missing Ellie's huddled form. With a hungry hiss, the creature raced forward towards the teen, opening it's deformed jaws to bite into her.

Ellie waited in anticipation as the wendigo almost appeared in front of her. Now, with no possibility of missing, the brunette raised the flare gun, pressing her back to the wall and pushing the barrel of the gun into the creature's chest. She fired, ducking away just as the cannibalistic beast cried in pain. The flare went up, engulfing the Wendigo in red flames. Ellie panted, watching the creature wither and die.

She returned the flare gun to her waistband, opting to place it in her backpack once she got back to the werewolf camp.

She felt exhilaration, as she realized she had just successfully survived her very first hunt. The girl rose to her feet, stumbling out of the cave system and into the slowly darkening forest. Ellie trudged back towards the camp she had left, pride welled in her chest.

She entered the werewolf camp to find the hybrids scattered across the forest floor, dead. Her heart thundered, her excitement and joy washing away to be replaced by dread.

She found Klaus, sitting on a downed log with his head buried in his hands. His shoulders shook slightly, as if he were crying. Ellie moved, her backpack falling to the ground right when she stood in front of the hybrid. His head lifted, to look at her.

As soon as their eyes met, Klaus has an arm full of huntress. Her grip on him was brutal, and she was whispering apology after apology that his hybrids failed. After overcoming his shock, the man returned the embrace, relishing in her touch.