Apocalyptic (Book 7: The Vampire Diaries & The Originals Fanfic)

I Went to the Woods

Now - 2016

It was nighttime.

I was still sitting on the ground next to Stefan's body at the airfield, looking at him sadly.

Valerie had just found Nora and Mary Louise's bodies and had wrapped them in sheets to be burned in the middle of a huge field near the airfield, holding Rayna's sword in her hands, staring at the now-broken Phoenix Stone with a devastated expression while crying for Nora, Mary Louise and Stefan.

Damon and I slowly approached her from behind.

Valerie's expression turned stony as she addressed us, not even bothering to turn around to face us. "They didn't know... that Rayna had stabbed Stefan. That his spirit was already trapped in the Phoenix Stone. They probably thought they were doing the world a favor."

"Well, that's awfully generous," Damon told her sarcastically. "Of you, not them. Considering they never gave a damn about anyone else other than each other. So, if you're done mourning Thelma and Mary Louise, I think we should get out of here."

Valerie turned to face us with angry tears in her eyes. "I'm not going anywhere with you. You could have prevented this. All you had to do was take Stefan's scar and put your brother first, for once in your life."

"Hey," Damon told her. "I'm trying to make it right, which is why we have to find Rayna and get Stefan's soul back in his body.

I was exhausted and overwhelmed, devastated. "The Stone is destroyed, Damon. And Stefan with it."

"We don't know that," Damon told us. 

"Yes, we do, if we have logic, and a sense of reason, and a brain," Valerie told him angrily.

"I see it differently, okay?" Damon asked. "If Stefan's dead, then I'm responsible. Which means I'm going to spend the rest of eternity haunted and doing penance and seeing my own self-loathing reflected in everyone else's actual loathing. And, I'm not ready for any of those things. Ergo, he's not dead. Try it my way. It's less depressing."

"I see I've been charitable in assuming you have a brain," Valerie told him.

"You can keep being a Debbie Downer, or you can do a locator spell and help us find Rayna," Damon told her. "What do you say?"

Valerie turned around, walking away.

I turned after her in annoyance. "Where are you going?"

Valerie turned to face us. "To do what Damon just told me to do. Without either of you. Invisique."

Valerie vanished as her cloaking spell took effect.

I scoffed in frustration. "Really? Really?"

    *******    

Damon and I had just returned to the small propeller plane to see that Stefan's body had disappeared.

   *******   

Damon was driving his car.

I was in the passenger seat, leaving a message for Valerie.

Valerie: (voicemail) "This is Valerie. And now, you speak."

The voicemail beeped.

I sighed. "Valerie, I don't know why you took Stefan's body, but if anything happens to..." Damon slowed us down. I stopped talking. We saw someone walking toward us, seeing it was Stefan. I frowned in confusion. "My brother... Never mind."