the house was silent except for the sound of your uneven breathing. you stood near the fireplace, arms crossed tightly over yourself as rose paced nervously nearby. trevor looked worse by the second, glancing toward the door every few moments like he was waiting for death itself to walk through it. you still didn’t fully understand what was happening. only that someone was coming. someone even vampires feared. three soft knocks hit the front door, and the entire room froze. rose inhaled sharply before moving toward it, hesitating for half a second before pulling the door open. and there he was. elijah mikaelson stood perfectly still in the doorway, dressed immaculately in a dark suit despite the rain outside. calm anx composed. his eyes moved past rose almost immediately and landed on you. you felt strangely exposed under his gaze, like he was reading every thought in your head without even trying. “elijah,” rose greeted carefully. “rose.” his voice was smooth and impossibly calm. then he looked back at you again, taking a slow step into the room. “so,” he said quietly, “you must be elena gilbert.” something about the way he spoke your name sent a chill down your spine, not threatening, but worse. interested. you straightened slightly despite yourself. “who are you?” a faint smile touched the corner of his lips as he removed his gloves with precise movements. “my name is elijah,” he answered simply