Invisible Strings ✧ Mikaelson

2. 𝓢𝓸, 𝓛𝓲𝓴𝓮 𝓒𝓮𝓻𝓫𝓮𝓻𝓾𝓼?

"Stefan? We'll always be together, right?" A young Brie spoke with tears in her eyes.

"Right," Stefan swore, his cheeks red from his own crying.

"If you two don't go to sleep father will separate you," Damon spoke softly, his striking blue eyes peered into mirror forest green. The ten-year-old twins were sat on his bed, tightly clinging to one another as they had all of their lives. His lips curved downward at the thought of them ever being torn apart.

"But mother," They chimed only to be hushed by their elder brother placing a finger to each of their lips. From beyond the closed door heavy boot steps echoed in time of creaking wooden boards.

Damon stood before them, acting as a barrier. He felt each of their hands latch onto the cotton of his shirt, bunching up the fabric and causing him to falter backward. After a moment, the heavy footsteps continued to echo down the hall, in the direction of the servant's staircase.

"Father's scary," Brie whimpered, her hands tightening on her brother's.

"He's not scary," Damon hushed, turning and tucking them into his bed. "He's just sad that mother left. Now go to sleep or else I'll be scary." He pressed a kiss to her forehead, smiling at her quiet giggling. He ruffled Stefan's hair and picked up his candle.

"Damon? You'll always protect us, right?" Stefan spoke, his eyes heavy as Brie yawned and snuggled into him, her eyes fluttering.

Damon hushed them rather than answer, blowing the candle out and thrusting the children into darkness.

Forest green eyes blinked open as a dry cough escaped chapped lips.

 "Sonuva bitch." Brie wheezed, sitting up and rubbing the back of her neck. Her thoughts were foggy but she easily recalled her neck being snapped by Elijah. Her gaze swept her surroundings, realizing morning sunlight was filtering through soft pink curtains. 

A sense of comfort washed over her as she realized she was in her bedroom. It wasn't a bedroom in a boarding school, a rented apartment, or rented home, it was her bedroom at the Salvatore Boarding House; it was home.

The large and simple room was as messy as she'd left it, almost as if she had just walked out of the door rather than not being back in fifty years. The stacks of books and her journals were still piled on the window bench and her desk. Her closet door was strewn open and piles of shoes and jackets remained where she tossed them or kicked them off.

"I figured you'd break my arm if I cleaned up," A warm voice echoed, pulling Brie's attention to the open doorway.

Stood with his arms crossed and shoulder resting against the wooden frame, was Stefan Salvatore. His dirty blonde hair was shorter and styled like some comic book hero. His forest green eyes shone with joy and reservation; it always did when the twins met up after two years apart.

"That's because you put everything in the wrong place," Brie pushed her pink and purple blankets from herself, revealing her night shorts and camisole. "You changed me?" She stood and rolled her shoulder and popped her back.

"Who else would know you wear spider-man night shorts paired with a batman camisole?" Stefan acknowledged her mismatched pajamas.

Despite being beautiful, she didn't have the best fashion sense and always wore whatever was clean or close at hand. The only time she cared about what she wore was her pajamas; he never got it but it was just his other half and her weird quirks.