Who: Stefan and Rebekah Salvatore What: Dreams. When: Jan 21st Where: Their house Rating: PG Status: Complete
Some nights Rebekah just couldn’t sleep. It was hard to pinpoint just one reason why because it ultimately ended up being quite a variety of reasons. Tonight was that she felt guilty for not turning into a vampire coupled with some new dreams. She had left a supposed happy ending with that strange human, Matt Donovan, in Mystic Falls to go join her brothers in New Orleans and feelings for a former paramour tangled with her own thoughts. It wasn’t a bad thing to think about things like that, but she felt guilty letting any kind of thoughts like that in her own mind. She had a wonderful husband, but sometimes those dream feelings clouded your mind for a brief moment.
So, there she was curled up on the couch watching a late night infomercial with a cup of tea. Hopefully this would help her fall asleep, but she also didn’t mind a brief moment alone with her thoughts after these dreams. She let herself get lost in them and didn’t hear Stefan coming down the stairs.
When Stefan had gone to bed, Rebekah had still been up--which wasn’t odd, for them. Stefan often passed out early in order to get up early, taking care of Talia’s needs while Rebekah rushed around to get ready for work.
But when he’d awoken, mind reeling from what he’d dreamed, and she was nowhere to be found, he became concerned, methodically searching the upstairs--bedroom, bathroom, Talia’s room--before padding downstairs. He found her curled up on the couch, and sat down next to her before she was even aware of his presence.
Having a husband that was willing to do that kind of stuff was always something that amazed Rebekah day after day. Stefan was her perfect half. They fit so well together, worked in synch, and he made her happier each and every day. Which was why it took her a moment to realize he was beside her since his presence had just become a part of her own. A tired smile appeared on her face as she reached over to take his hand into hers, “Hey there. I didn’t even hear you come down. Can we buy this weird oven thing that can cook a whole chicken at the push of a button?”
“We can cook a whole chicken in the oven already,” Stefan pointed out, smiling as he shifted closer, their fingers lacing together as he bumped her shoulder with his. “Not that we actually cook chicken.” He closed his eyes, and inhaled, not entirely sure how to bring up the fact that he’d had a dream.
“...so, I had a dream.”
That probably worked.
“Yes, but this one takes a lot less time,” Rebekah countered with a small grin as she squeezed his hand lightly and returned the bump to his shoulder, “And we cook chicken. Just not whole chickens.” She had no issue with cooking chicken breasts, but there was just something weird about putting a whole chicken in the oven. She would go to the store if she wanted a rotisserie chicken for dinner. But her thoughts of chicken were quickly derailed with his next comment.
“What?” Her eyes blinked in a rapid succession as her lips parted in surprise, “Oh no. I’m sorry.”
Stefan waited for her to catch up, and then smiled, his expression rueful. “I’m not. I mean...I’m not saying they were good dreams, but it’s nice to finally understand what you’ve been going through.”
“Yeah, but I was kind of wishing that you wouldn’t have to dream. They never really lead to anything good in your life. It’s somewhat interesting, but our dream lives are completely fucked up,” Rebekah explained with a sad sigh. She had been hoping maybe Stefan wouldn’t dream, but he was intertwined in her own dreams, so it was bound to happen, “What did you dream about?”
“Everything, it feels like,” Stefan sighed. “My head feels...full. Packed. I remember Damon, and my childhood, our parents. I remember Katherine. Lexi. I remember meeting you and Nik in Chicago.” There were happy memories, and sad. It was all jumbled, and intense--more intense than his own memories seemed to be, but he wasn’t sure why that would be.
She let go of his hand so she could reach both them up and gently massage his temples with a soft laugh as she listened to him explain what he dreamed about. Wow, that was quite a bit especially if he had dreamt about their time in Chicago. “Oh goodness. You got quite a wallop in your first time dreaming. Seems like you’ve got all your backstory, but nothing involving Mystic Falls and Elena yet?”
Stefan made a soft sound at her touch and nodded, his eyes closing. “I grew up in Mystic Falls--I remember that. But I don’t remember anything after World War II. And the fact that that sentence even makes sense makes my head hurt.” He groaned, theatrically, and leaned forward, so his forehead bumped hers. “You never said how much it hurt.”
“I know, but I mean current time. All your memories seem to be catching you up on your past. And what in the world were you doing in World War II?” She realized that her dream self really never caught up with Stefan to see what he had been up to while she had been daggered in a coffin for years. But she was interrupted in those thoughts as he whined and moved his forehead against hers and she let out another laugh, “Oh my goodness. You’re such a baby sometimes.”
“Love you too,” Stefan muttered, reproachfully, and burrowed against her, making more soft, pitiful sounds. “And in World War II I was...fighting? And there were pyramids.” That sounded right. Maybe. “What about you? I never saw you again, after you and Nik left Chicago. I don’t think. There was...I think Nik tried to force me to forget you. And him. But that makes absolutely no sense.”
As he burrowed against her she made soothing noises and let of her hands lift up into his hair and pet his hair, “Klaus decided that I was some sort of dangerous and daggered me. I was left in a coffin for 90 years until we meet again someday in the future. Nik was very much covering his own ass and making sure that people stayed loyal to him. The idea of you and me being a couple scared him and he did something incredibly stupid.” She didn’t add ’like usual’, which was what she was thinking.
“That...doesn’t sound like Nik,” Stefan said, uncertainly. He couldn’t imagine the Nik he knew killing his sister--even if it wasn’t really killing her--and carting her body around for nearly a century. But maybe it was. He sighed, happily, as she combed her fingers through her hair and rubbed his scalp. “Does it?”
“Not the Nik we know here, but he’s Niklaus aka Klaus in these dreams. This dream version of him is a complete asshole and kind of power crazy,” She pointed out to him. It was one of the main things she hated about these dreams. They portrayed some people in a horrible light and she couldn’t imagine them acting like that in real life. It was becoming increasingly difficult to differentiate between the two the more dreams she had, “He eventually daggered all of us siblings and toted us around in coffins. Except for Elijah.”
Stefan sighed and sat up--only to rearrange himself, stretched on his back on the couch, his head in Rebekah’s lap. “I know you’ve told me that your family are the original vampires, but dreaming what that means...I don’t know. Changes things, somehow.”
“Like how?” Rebekah was quite curious as she reached down to run her fingers through his hair. She wondered if these changes were bad, which was most likely to happen instead of good, and if it was going to affect things for them. She didn’t want to think that the dreams really meant anything in the long run, but you never knew in this crazy place.
“I’m just glad I met you first,” Stefan said, his eyes closed. “I’m not sure...if I’d dreamed you first. I’d be a little intimidated.” Which wasn’t quite the right word, but he was still processing.
“Ha,” Rebekah commented, “You’re a suave guy, you would have done just fine. Just be lucky you haven’t dreamt about me in Mystic Falls yet. I’m not a very nice vampire. We were pretty amazing in the 1920’s though. So, you officially freaked out from the dreams so far?”
Stefan caught her wrist and drew her hand down to nuzzle lightly. “I wouldn’t say freaked out,” he decided. “Disturbed. I wondered why Damon had become so...different, lately. But I’m guessing that’s the dreams bleeding through. You say you’re not a very nice vampire, but you can’t possibly be worse than Damon. Or me.” He sighed and pressed a kiss on her wrist, just at her pulse. “I’m not even a good Catholic, but I feel like I should go to confession.”
The nuzzling against her hand made her catch her breath slightly and bite her lip. It was very sweet of him and then she listened to him explain about Damon and she nodded, “Damon is definitely an interesting vampire. And vampires in general are not a happy race. And why should you go to confession? That doesn’t sound like much fun. I’d much rather sin with you.” She couldn’t help but grin as he kissed her wrist.
“Well...I don’t plan on killing anyone anytime soon,” Stefan said, dryly. “But I feel...guilty. About those I killed in the dreams.” He swallowed and sighed again. “And it’s my fault that Damon is the way he is,” he added, quietly. “I don’t know if you knew. If he told you. If I told you.”
“I know you don’t. And if you feel guilty then you can certainly go to confession,” Rebekah didn’t really believe in religion, but she went if Stefan ever asked her to. It just wasn’t something they did in the Mikaelson household when she was growing up, “And I didn’t know that. I don’t talk to Damon that much, but I’m sorry you’ve had to go through that in the dreams. Any dreams of transitions are terrible, but at least you know you’re not alone in your experiences.”
“I’m not sure about that,” Stefan admitted. “I basically...manipulated him. Because I couldn’t see being alone forever. And I killed a woman to do it.” He rubbed his face and drew a deep breath. “The irony is...Damon hated me because of it, so I was alone anyway.”
“Sounds like my mother deciding to turn us into vampires and then having your father decide he wants to murder all of you for being an abomination,” Rebekah countered. They had been manipulated by their mother and hated by their father. It wasn’t something she enjoyed thinking about especially since their parents acted a little like they did in the dreams, “I’m sorry you were alone, Stefan. I wish none of us had to go through being a vampire.”
“Yeah,” Stefan agreed, and squeezed her hand again. “You win the dysfunctional family award. Here and in the dreams,” he said, lightly, teasing to lighten the mood.
That earned a giggle from Rebekah because it was completely true. Everything about her family, real life and dream life, was completely messed up. She had learned to deal with it over the years, but she felt bad for Stefan for suddenly being throw into this mess of her life, “Can I choose not to accept this award? I think I’d rather think about our happy family.”
“Mmm. Well, we can’t choose our families--but we can choose how to raise ours,” Stefan replied, diplomatically--or at least, optimistically. “And I don’t think we’re doing so bad so far.”
“Nope, I think we’re doing a fantastic job so far,” Rebekah had to agree with him on that and leaned down to place a kiss on his lips, “And I think the next step is to buy this chicken oven machine. Or at least that we should stop talking about dreams for the moment and watch infomercials until we pass out.”
Stefan smiled and brushed his fingers lightly over her cheek. No matter what he dreamed, he couldn’t imagine them being more real than this. “I make it a point never to argue with you when you’re right.”
“And that is exactly why I married you,” Rebekah’s laugh was light as she settled back against the pillows on the couch. Now was time to get comfy and just relax with her husband without the idea of vampires running through her mind. That was another problem for another day.