(1) Family Ties (D. Salvatore)

Chapter Twelve

Elena slides into the seat across from Tansy who has taken up residence in a booth away from the main horde of the party. Mainly to avoid the way people were looking at her. She knows why. It was not lost on her that she looks remarkably similar to Elena. She saw it the moment Bonnie and Elena walked up to her. She just doesn't really think it is worth noting. It happens, sometimes, and she's been through too much to question it. 

"What do you want?" Tansy asks her, annoyed still by the magic reveal.

"Please don't hate Bonnie for telling me" Elena asks of her. Tansy snorts and gives her a look.

"You don't understand my world" Tansy counters. "Keeping what we are a secret is one of the most important laws of our people, even if we married a normal person, we wouldn't be allowed to tell them. The best friend is way, way, way down that list" Tansy sighs softly and shakes her head. "I'm not mad at Bonnie, and I'm not going to hate her for it...because I understand why she told you" Tansy can't say that she wouldn't have done the same if she had a muggle best friend and had no experience in the magical world. Bonnie has turned to the known to comfort herself. Elena glances around the Grill and notices that Damon's attention is all on Tansy, a frowny scowl on his face. His almost angry at her. Confused, definitely, and he's upset about that.

"Damon is watching you" Elena muses and Tansy scoffs.

"He seems to have sniffed me out" Tansy admits and pulls a face. "Shame" Elena frowns a little and glances at Tansy who is watching her back, knowing in her eyes. "You know what he is," Tansy realises.

"He's my boyfriend's brother" Elena defends and Tansy laughs.

"You know that's not what I meant" She scrunches up her nose with a smile. "Fuck me, you are neck deep in this aren't you?" Tansy leans closer to her. "That's your loophole" She whispers to her and then pulls back to give her a look. "I assume Bonnie doesn't know, because you would have mentioned this earlier" Elena shakes her head. "We don't have secrets...." Tansy draws out with a small smirk, reminding Elena of Bonnie's earlier words.

"It isn't my secret to tell" Elena argues.

"Hmm" Tansy taps her fingers on the table. "Even if that secret endangers the people around you? You'll still keep it?" Elena opens her mouth to answer Tansy, but then thinks better of her response. Because she knows that Tansy is right. "If I find that this secret poses a threat to Bonnie, I will tell her" Tansy warns her. "If you think you can keep this a secret, then props to you or maybe you are just that delusional" She comments. "But secrets have a nasty way of never staying buried for very long. Hope you are prepared for the fallout" She adds and then scoots along the booth, ready to leave. Elena reaches out and touches her arm.

"Hey" She stops Tansy from leaving. "Do you think that we...?" Elena motions between herself and Tansy who tilts her head.

"Can't say that there isn't some....similarities" Tansy admits. "But...live through what I have and you stop questioning weird shit" Elena raises an eyebrow. "Long story for friends" Tansy is quick to tell her before she can ask.

"Well, I would still like to know if there is a reason..." Elena argues. "Were...were you adopted?" Elena asks her, Tansy snorts.

"No," Tansy tells her. "I know who my parents are" She leans back in her seat. "Isobel Flemming and James Potter, and yes, they are my birth parents, I had a wonderful step-mother, Lily, and I have a step-father I've never met, Alaric" She leans up and tilts her head. "Are you so sure that I am the one who should be questioning their heritage?" Elena frowns at her. "You are so sure that the reason we look alike is because my parents lied to me?"

"Well, I guess" Elena frowns and shakes her head not wanting to go there. "I can't ask them" She adds quietly. "They both died" Tansy hums a little.

"Sorry you lost them" Elena looks at her softly, surprised by the emotion in her voice. Tansy knows what it is like to lose both parents.

"Thanks" Elena offers and Tansy nods. "What about you?" She asks. "Can we ask your...?"

"No" Tansy stops her sharply. "We can't...perhaps just leave it at coincidence" She pushes herself to her feet and grabs her empty glass from the table. "Soon I will finish teaching Bonnie, and I will leave..." Elena sighs a little watching as Tansy walks towards the bar in search of a new drink.

......

At the bar, Damon is watching Tansy as she leans on the bar, her eyes find him and he makes no hiding of his watching of her, she raises an eyebrow back at him and then sticks out her tongue at him, he scowls back. She is clearly at an advantage over him right now and he very clearly doesn't like it. She doesn't know what it is, but Tansy rather likes that she is annoying him. She doesn't know him, and yet, watching him glower at her fills her stomach with the warm fuzzies. It reminds her of the feeling she used to get when she and Draco would annoy one another. Maybe she just likes rubbing people up the wrong way. Maybe that says something about her.

Note: I know that Tansy has planted the seed here for Elena to figure out the adoption thing a little earlier than she finds out in the show, but it had to come up with them looking alike. I don't think it changes much because Elena's freak out was more to do with Katherine looking like her more than the adoption thing.