altruismsreine‌:

                                                       _{(    @tetheredtoelena   )}

_{GHOST    IN    A    CORRIDOR    ;    apathy    turns    her    hollow,    lethality     turns    her    s i l e n t  .    she     flits    through    city    walls    with   practiced     ease,    attune    to    the    risk    of   mistaken    identity   (     katherine    pierce,    ever     the    infamous   !   )    she    listens    now   —-   whispers,    whispers,    whispers,    often     jejune    &    infuriating    —-   UNTIL   !     a    cure    becomes    the    talk    of    the    town   .   it     piques    the    interest    of    the    damned,    albeit    the    effects    were    still   unbeknownst    to   her   .  (    she    learns    later    of    the    testing    &    works    with    an     augmented     meticulousness,     martyrdom     a    notion    of    the    past   .    )     her    issue    comes    in    the    form    of    access    ;    she    has   no    in    with    the    fireflies,    not    with    the    features    of     another    .    (       except    your    brother   !    your     brother    who    is    searching    for   elena    .     not     the    phantom    you’ve    created    .     but     you     could    make    him    believe,    couldn’t    you   ?    feed    him    half-truths    from    candy   coated   lips    just    as    you    used    to      )}   

_{he’s    as    elusive    as    she    is    these    days,    though     she    has    an    inkling   as    to    why   ;   an    attack    at    one    of    the   headquarters,    a    massacre    of    sorts    .    the    details   were    few   &    far    between    but     even    civilians    were    wary    of    a    fabricated   assault    by    the   government   —-    a    lifetime    of    falsified    animal    attacks    taught    her    better   .     if    he   was   involved,    aversion    was     the    smarter    move   .   inconvenient     for    her,    perhaps,   as   months    slip   by      &     elena    remains    empty-handed    .    (    you    want    to    see   him    .   he’s    all    you    have   .    you    want    to   see    him   but     you’ve    ruined    him,    haven’t   you   ?    will    you    still   recognize    him    in    the    rubble   ?    quiet    humanity    yearns     for     him    but    acedia    stifles    her   .        )}   

   _{fate    finds    him    —-    or    rather    informants    —-   after,    roughly,    a    year,    a     sighting    in    the    city,    nothing    more,     nothing    less     .     elena’s     able    to    track    him    in   a    matter   of   weeks   &    she’s    lead    to    the     exact    destination    she     needs   .    she’s    not    an    idiot,    however,    &    waits    to    confront    him,    catching    him    in    the    bustle    of    a   crowd     :}

                                     _{❛     jeremy   .        ❜    
                                                                              she    clutches     his    arm    —    or    tries    to   —}          

                                    _❛      JEREMY   _{?    ❜}  

months into his new normal, joshua is finally beginning to adjust. every once in a while, the ghost of his left hand haunts him, but either asher or katherine were always there to pick up the pieces. he’s refused the use of a prosthetic or witch magic as a crutch. he needs to feel this. he needs to become okay with it. the half extremity is a reminder that the gilberts are more than martyrs – they are SURVIVORS. this is the legacy he wants to embrace.

but his soul is fractured – an abandoned heart left wandering in the wasteland looking for it’s OTHER HALF. he refuses, absolutely refuses to give up. before, coming face to face with old traumas sent him for the hills – but not after lashing out in a way only an orphaned little brother can. he had rather died than be in the world when she looked at him that way [ her coldness only matched by her callousness. it’s his fault she never came home – getting away from him was the only answer. after all, he loved her. and he damned his sister to h e l l . ]

during his most restless sleeps, katherine gave him sweet dreams to quell the broken little boy inside him. in the middle of the chaos of that final night in mystic falls, elena would come to him and take him by the hand and they’d run. outrun the vampires, outrun the infection, outrun the damn end of the world. he still has to grow up at a young age, but at least he’s not LONELY.

almost like in one of those dreams, the hair on joshua’s neck stands on edge. something – someone is close. so far, he’s done his best to stay under the radar while still conducting his business. he’s been preparing to uproot his operations if need be – if he doesn’t not find success by then. and, truth be told, he needs the day off from following false trails to his family. the hood falls from around his face to his shoulders as his head whips to the side, reacting to her very presence. his expression is etched in shock, far more revealing than the last time. he doesn’t even cringe when she refers to him by a dead boy’s name.

“it’s not safe,” he’s recovered quickly enough, and nods in the direction of a nearby alleyway. she could choose to follow him or not. elena would always have a choice with him. it’s not until the shadow of the building overhead hits his chin that he halts, realizing she’d seen. his jaw clenches, sniper breathing to hide his reaction with his back still to her.

                      “i didn’t expect you to still be here. last i’d heard, you’d ventured out of the qz – i almost believed it.”