CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: Revenge tastes oh, so sweet
WARNINGS: murder, violence, mentioned/implied lovebombing, mention/implied manipulation, threats, ratt donovan, damon, stefan
A STORM HAD ROLLED IN AND ATHENA relished in it. She loved storms. She always has. Esther used to chase her through the woods when she was young, never letting little Athena out of her sight in fear of the wolves and other creatures. They'd be covered in mud and soaked by the time Esther caught her.
"I say we go to their little hideout, break down the door, and kill the fucker who attacked Lincoln last night," Luther, one of the older wolves, said. The little boy looked up from where he was playing with his toys on the ground at the sound of his name. He was playing with a couple of Athena's old collectable cars and action figures.
Athena, Violet, Akemi, Luther, Bael, and Quinn were all in the library, surrounding a table. Ace, Leah, Mateo, and a couple of the other kids were spread out around the house, doing their own things. Some of the older adults were either at the Mystic Grill or doing something else.
Inside the library was the head of The Vultures. Akemi and Violet represent the witches. Quinn, a 413-year-old woman, represents the vampires. And Luther, a 31-year-old man, represents the werewolves. Bael, an 167-year-old vampire, helped Quinn if she needed it and considering his son was the one who was attacked, he was allowed inside.
"Then what?" Violet asked, giving the werewolf an exasperated look, "turn to the rest of the vampires in the house and say 'oops, sorry'?" She raised an eyebrow.
"No," Luther snapped. Akemi shot him a sharp glare, wrapping an arm around her waist. "We kill the rest of them!" He slammed his hands down on the table.
Lincoln jumped and hid behind Athena's leg, wrapping his little arms around her and glancing up at the werewolf. Athena didn't mind, leaning down a bit to caress the back of the boy's head.
Quinn crossed her arms, scoffing and rolling her eyes, "we have rules, Luther and I understand that you haven't been here for that long, but we abide by them," the woman snapped. "And one of our rules is that we do not attack people who have not done anything against us."
Luther glared at the vampire, "then maybe it's time we make an exception."
"You do not get to make that decision," Bael argued with an incredulous scoff. He gestured to Athena, "she is our superior. She creates the rules. And she has made her position on the subject clear!"
Everyone turned to look at Athena. The woman was standing quietly, listening to the conversation taking place. She looked between all of them. "Bael is correct. I have made my position clear. The rules have been created for a reason—want a refresh, go down the damn hallway and to the right! Challenge my authority and I will see it that the wolves pick a new representative. Do I make myself clear?" She demanded, her demeanor calm and collected.
Luther swallowed and bowed his head, "crystal, ma'am. I'm sorry for overstepping, I'm just angry."
"We all are," Akemi said, "doesn't mean people have to die. We gave them a warning, how they see to it is their decision. Our move will be based on that. If they choose to go against us..."
"Then we spill blood," Athena smiled, scooping up Lincoln who rested his head on her shoulder and started playing with her necklaces. She kissed his forehead and rubbed his back.
"As long as that dick gets what's coming to him," Luther murmured, brushing his finger over Lincoln's cheek.
"Oh, he will," Athena said, turning around and walking towards the front door, "but Bael gets the final say in who kills him." She sets the boy down on the couch and walks towards the front door. "I'll be back. Don't do anything stupid, please!" She calls into the house.
"NO PROMISES!" She hears one of the younger witches say as a bunch of others yell their goodbyes.
She chuckles and shakes her head.
┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙
ATHENA WALKED THROUGH the door of the Mystic Grill where she was meeting her girlfriend. Caroline had slipped out earlier this morning before the meeting, saying she had to get ready to go see her dad and his boyfriend.
Athena is apprehensive to let her girlfriend drive alone in the storm, but she trusts Caroline to make the right decisions if it gets too dangerous.
She closes the umbrella, setting it on the coat rack near the front door. Athena glances around, trying to pin-point her girlfriend.
"Because. You like it. And I like you," she hears the familiar voice of Jeremy say and turns her head towards it. She finds one of the people she's looking for and begins to walk over.
Anna shakes her head, "you only like me because of what you want from me," she argued.
"No. I—I like you," Jeremy denies, looking completely serious. He smiles at her. Athena stays back for a moment, watching the interaction. She knows there is vervain in the bracelet that Jeremy had given Anna, but after what Violet said yesterday about Mateo "locked" onto the younger vampire, she knew Anna had to rethink a lot of things.
Anna looks down at the bracelet and then gives Jeremy a small smile, "you know, you should wear it. It looks better on you anyway." Jeremy grinned at her and took it back, putting it on.
Athena resumed her walk, coming up behind the young vampire. "Anna—" The young vampire jumps, hitting the bar with her knees. Athena stops for a moment, cocking an eyebrow at the girl as Anna puts her face in her hands. She rubs her face for a moment before turning to look at Athena with slight fear. She stands up and grabs the redhead's arm, guiding her away from Jeremy who looks extremely confused.
"Athena, Bethanne and Frederick—Mom and I had no idea what they were up to. We didn't have anything to do with it, I swear," Anna pleaded, staring up at the woman.
Athena set her hands on the girl's shoulders, "I know, honey. Calm down, yeah? Just breathe. You will not be hurt," she explained softly, giving Anna's shoulders a firm squeeze. She dropped her arms and pulled her jacket, plucking a folder from the inside pocket. "I do need a favor though if you want to keep the others safe. I can only do so much to keep my pack reined in," she began.
Anna frowned slightly, "what do you have in mind?"
"This," Athena raises the folder and shakes it a little, "is a peace-treaty. You get your mother to sign it, and we leave your vampires alone."
"What's the catch?"
"We get to execute Frederick."
Anna stares at her in shock for a moment before looking down at the folder. She seemed to be thinking it over, hesitating. Then she grabbed the folder. "I'll get it to her as soon as possible. Thank you, Athena," she whispered.
The redhead gave her a small smile, "you have done nothing to me. You don't deserve what will be coming to Frederick. You're innocent... keep it that way," she warned. Anna nodded quickly.
"Of course."
Athena gave her arm a small squeeze once more before walking towards the bar where her girlfriend is. Matt is pouring salt into small salt shakers while talking to Caroline who was saying something back while leaning against the counter.
Anger shoots up Athena's spine, yanking Matt away from the counter and fisting his shirt, lifting him in the air slightly. "Woah!" He yelps, raising his hands in surrender, fear flashing through his eyes. Unfortunately, she has a rule against killing or harming anybody under the age of 18—or who is still in High School.
"Athena, baby!" Caroline grabs her arm and pulls her off of him, "wait, wait, wait—stop."
"Stop? This bastard tried to force himself on you," Athena argued, glaring at Matt who shrunk away from her gaze. Caroline put a hand on Athena's chest, her other hand wrapped around the nape of the redhead's neck.
"I know, I know—trust me. But, just listen to what he has to say. He apologized to me—"
"Hasn't he done that before? The first time? Huh? What'd he do? He did it again," Athena snapped, anger blazing in her eyes, her lips curling up in a snarl. "He won't fucking stop until somebody beats it into him. And trust me, somebody will," she glares harshly at Matt.
He gulps, shaking slightly.
"ATHENA!" Caroline shouts and the redhead looks at her girlfriend. The blonde looks irritated, "just fucking listen to me for a second! And stop interrupting me." Athena breathed out heavily through her nose then gave the blonde a nod. She could feel the eyes of the other occupants in the restaurant on them, but she couldn't care less. "He apologized. And he's sincere. He walked me inside earlier and we talked," Caroline began to explain then looked over at Matt, nudging her head in Athena's direction.
Matt swallowed roughly and nodded slowly. He looked at Athena, "these past couple of months... they've been a—a blur. I've been losing days—sometimes weeks. It started happening after you got to town, after Caroline and I broke up. And, yes, the first time I tried to force," he cleared his throat, looking ashamed, "on Caroline—that was all me. But, I swear to you, after that I don't remember doing it ever again. I barely remember seeing Caroline. I just see her walking through the halls at school and in class."
Caroline started speaking, "when he walked me in, he didn't understand why I was so distant and... afraid." Athena glanced down at her, seeing the blonde's eyes slightly glazed over. "When I reminded him of what happened, he didn't remember. I truly do think he's telling the truth." Caroline looked sincere and serious, giving her girlfriend a look.
Athena thought for a moment. She could tell that Matt wasn't lying when he said those things, even if she didn't want to believe it. She could tell he was being completely serious. It sounds supernatural—what's happening to him and especially how he's been acting. As if someone is making him do it.
Sounds like compulsion.
The loss of days and weeks—the actions.
"Matt, I need you to think back to that week I got here. Did something change in your schedule or did you bump into someone or...?"
Matt's brows furrowed as he began to think, setting down the salt on the counter. "Yeah... yeah... about two days after you got to town, this woman came up to me. She had, like, snowy white hair and—and these really pale green eyes... She was honestly creepy as shit. She was asking me a bunch of questions about Caroline and my relationship and then about you. It was some weird stuff. I shut it down quickly and walked away, but..." He frowned, "actually I don't know what I did after that..."
Athena looks over at the other end of the bar, seeing Joseph staring right back at her. She gives him a firm nod and he throws back his drink, setting the glass on the counter, and then walking out of the restaurant.
Athena sighed and rubbed the back of her neck, "um, alright, uh... that woman, I know her. She's—she's not a good person. She... fuck, okay. Matt, you need to tell me if you run into her again or if you see her." She grabs a napkin and takes a pen out of her jacket pocket, scribbling down her phone number. She puts the pen away and hands the napkin to the blonde boy, "this is important, Matt. Understand?"
He nods quickly, "yeah, yeah, of course. As soon as I see her, I'll let you know. I promise," he said. "And I'm truly sorry for whatever I did during my... blackouts. I swear, I didn't mean anything that I said." He stuck out his hand.
Athena looked down at his hand then shook it. "We'll see if that's true in your actions in the future, kid," she said, taking her hand back. He nodded and went back to work.
The redhead then turned towards her girlfriend, deflating with a tired sigh.
"Hello, luv," she said, caressing the blonde's cheeks and giving her a kiss. Caroline kissed her back, holding onto her girlfriends hands and rubbing the back of them were her thumbs. "You look cute," Athena murmured against her lips before pulling back and looking down at Caroline's outfit.
"Thank you," Caroline smiled, a pink tint on her cheeks. She holds onto Athena's jacket, "are you sure you don't wanna come with me? I'm sure my dad would love to meet you..."
Athena chuckled, shaking her head in amusement. "I'm not gonna drop in on your poor dad's boyfriend's daughter's birthday party. I will meet your dad, okay? I will, and I'd love to meet him, but let's do it sometime where we can actually focus on just meeting each other. Not a kids birthday," Athena smiled, pressing a lingering kiss on Caroline's forehead.
The blonde groaned, burying her face in Athena's chest, "but, babyyyyy, I don't wanna go," she pouted, wrapping her arms around Athena's waist, dragging her lips up to the redhead's neck.
"I thought you guys had a non-traditional traditional ritual," Athena teased, slipping a hand under the blonde's jacket and rubbing her back. She ducked her head, resting the sides of their heads together.
"Please come with me," Caroline whispered, emotion building up in her throat. She feels tears sting the back of her eyes and buries her face into Athena's shoulder.
Athena brings her other hand up to the back of Caroline's head, caressing it. "This isn't just about going alone, now is it, sweet girl?" She whispered back.
Caroline's hold on her tightened, "what if you're not here when I get back?" She asked, choking on a small sob. She swallowed it down, a few tears falling from her eyes.
Athena closed her eyes, her heart thudding painfully in her chest. She pulled back, making Caroline look at her. The blonde avoided her eyes, wiping her face quickly. "Hey, look at me. Look at me," she demanded, forcing the girl to look at her, being a little rough. Caroline met her eyes. "I am not going anywhere. I will call you, I will text you, fuck—I'll email you. I'm not leaving you. I am going to be right here when you get back. I promise," she said.
Caroline stared at her, tears welling up in her eyes again. She just stared, holding Athena's hands.
"I love you."
Athena froze, her mouth opening slightly. She was speechless. Did Caroline really just say that? Caroline loved her. Caroline loves her. How the hell did that happen? How did she manage to get this wonderful, kind, caring, and loyal young woman to fall for her? She was truly in awe.
Athena laughed a bit, looking down, "you love me?" She asked, still in disbelief. She swallowed and looked up at the blonde.
Caroline laughed, tears falling from her eyes as she looked up at the ceiling. "I think I have since the moment I met you," she breathed. She looked back down at Athena who almost fell to her knees at the look in Caroline's eyes.
Athena bit her lip, shaking her head. She leaned her forehead against Caroline's, "I love you," she said and her girlfriend deflated in relief, smiling as a tear rolled down her cheek. "I love you so much," Athena then connected their lips.
Caroline wrapped her arm around Athena's neck, pushing her body into the redhead's and using her other hand to grip the Heretic's jacket tightly.
Athena didn't let their kiss go another further then a couple minutes, just letting their lips disconnect and reconnect.
Athena pulled back just a bit, their breath mingling and their eyes closed. "I love you, I do, but you really need to go before the storm gets worse," Athena whispered. Caroline shook her head, holding on to Athena's jacket tighter.
"No. I'm not going. I'm staying right here with you," she muttered, pecking Athena's lips once again.
"Baby," she smiled and pressed a quick kiss to Caroline's cheeks, "you need to go. I'll be here when you get back, and when you get back—trust me, I'll show you just how much I love you. But, I won't if you do not go see your dad." Athena watches as Caroline's eyes open, shock swirling in those cerulean irises. The Heretic smirked.
Caroline pouted a bit, but nodded. "Fine," she sighed. She poked Athena in the chest, "when I get back, I'm holding you up to that—and if you don't give it to me, trust me; I'll make you suffer."
"Mhm," Athena's smirk deepened, "buckle up, don't speed, and stay off your cell phone." Caroline laughs a little at the last part. "And call me when you get there. Actually, call me if you have any problems and I'll be right there to come and get you."
"Got it. Anything else?" Caroline asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Just one thing," Athena said with a smile. She leaned in again, kissing her softly. Caroline smiled against her lips. "Oh, wait," Caroline raised an eyebrow as her girlfriend slowly pulled her back by her sleeve, "I want you to think about something as you're up with her dad." She pulled out another folder from her jacket.
"Where the fuck do you keep these things?!" Anna asked as she passed by, looking at the folder incredulously. Athena ignored her, reaching over and pushing her head away as she kept her gaze on Caroline.
"Just look at this whenever you have free time, alright? Maybe it'll take some stuff off your mind," Athena said. Caroline took it, narrowing her eyes at the woman.
"This isn't, like, a sex magazine or something. I mean, it would explain why it's in a folder—"
"What? No!" Athena scoffed out a laugh, shaking her head in amusement, "it'll make sense when you look at it. I mean, if you want a sex magazine, by all means, I'll get you one. Or we could make our own—"
Caroline gasped and hit Athena's shoulder. The redhead laughed and kissed her girlfriend one more time.
"Good-bye," Caroline muttered.
"Bye, mi reina," Athena murmured back.
Caroline pulled back, her brows furrowed, "what does that even mean?" She asked.
Athena smiled, "go. The storm is gonna get bad and I want you to get there before the worst of it." She nudges her girlfriend in the direction of the door. Caroline gave her a small wave as she walked out of the restaurant and Athena blew her a kiss.
┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙
ANNA GOT HER mother to sign the contract after the woman read over it thoroughly. Pearl closed the folder and handed it to Anna, giving her a look that meant she was serious.
"Get this to Athena. Now," Pearl said, "we cannot waste another second." Anna nodded, taking the folder and stuffing it into her bag. She kissed her moms cheek before walking out of the restaurant and vamping to the Salvatore Boarding House.
As soon as she got there, she was surrounded by two vampires and a witch. She knew the protocol and let the female vampire pat her down. Anna opened her bag and showed her the contents inside. When the vampire saw the folder, the door opened and Anna was allowed to enter.
The brunette quickly walked inside. A man who smelled of dog, stood up as she entered, eyeing her critically. Anna took out the dry folder, running a hand through her soaked hair. The man smiled slightly, "you're getting water on the wood," he joked, walking towards her. Anna scoffed through her nose, rolling her eyes. "I'm Luther. Those two are Devon and Makenzie—" Anna looked over to where he was pointing and saw two people. The guy was bulkier and was tall. The girl was a bit tinier and looked skinnier, but she had muscle. "—They will be your protection detail when you deliver the message. I'll show you to Athena's study."
Anna followed the man after giving her two bodyguards a small wave. Devon gave her a nod while Makenzie smiled warmly, waving back at her. They walked down the hall, passed the library and the entrance to the basement. Soon enough, they came to a stop in front of a set of double doors. Luther knocked, waited, and then walked inside, holding the door open for Anna.
She walked inside, finding Athena sitting at a desk, sifting through pieces of paper. Her desk was slightly a mess—books, random papers, and stacks of folders thrown around. She seemed to be a bit stressed.
Athena looked up when she entered and Anna approached, setting the folder on the desk. The redhead opened it, finding the familiar signature and then closed it. "She read it?"
"She read it," Anna nods.
Athena smiled, "well, Luther... get the hunting party ready. We're about to have a little fun." The wolf gave a malicious smirk, mischief dancing in his eyes. It unnerved Anna, but she was thankful that she wasn't the one that was going to be harmed.
"As you wish, my liege," Luther bowed, tipping an imaginary hat to Athena, before disappearing out the door.
Athena stood up, buttoning her suit jacket and walked toward the door, opening it up again. "Shall we?" She raised an eyebrow at Anna, holding a hand out.
Anna nodded and took Athena's hand, letting the woman guide her out.
This was going to get messy.
┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙
ANNA WALKS INTO the house. She dodges the stake that was sent flying at her and looks down the hall, seeing the history teacher from Jeremy's high school. Alaric Saltzman. The other vampires are all dead—littering the house floor.
She quickly runs out of the house, "most've them are dead!" She tells Athena, breathing heavily, "I can smell the scent of Stefan's blood. Damon's scent is on some of the bodies—they were here and they killed them. Reinforcements will be here soon, but mother has told them of the contract."
Athena nods her head and turns away slightly, straining her ears. "Vampires—listen. Try to pin-point where they are. Wolves, take a witch and then search the woods. I have a feeling that our little minx escaped the murder-fest," she said.
The three vampires, Athena, and Anna all listen closely, trying to find where the Salvatore brothers and Frederick are. The wolves fan out into the forest each accompanied by a witch. It starts to mist slightly and then begins to grow heavier with each passing minute.
The five split up then, the rain blocking the sound of anything else. Anna runs through the forest, jumping over fallen logs. She has stepped in quite a few puddles, mud splattering on her pants.
Meanwhile, Mateo and Carmen have caught onto the scent of blood and are tracking it. Carmen stays behind Mateo, the two creeping along, keeping low to the ground. Damon was a wild card, the hunter inside of the house could have followed them, and they had no idea where Frederick was. It was better safe than sorry.
They hear a twig snap and freeze, looking over the bushes that they were hiding behind. Stefan lays on the ground with Elena Gilbert hovering over him. Mateo glances around and sees that the two are alone. He strains his ears, trying to hear over the wind and the rain to see if Frederick is anywhere close. He shakes his head in frustration, "I can't hear anything," he says, turning around to talk with Carmen. His eyes widen when he sees Frederick with his arms wrapped around the witches neck. "NO!" He yells, but the vampire has already snapped her neck. Carmen's body falls to the ground, lying limp—unmoving.
Mateo growls, his eyes turning yellow. He charges at the vampire, throwing a punch. Frederick gets knocked back a few feet. Mateo throws a kick to his stomach and the vampire goes flying into a tree. Frederick is up and moving faster than Mateo can comprehend. They throw punch after punch, kick after kick—dodging and dancing around each other.
Unfortunately for Mateo, he isn't stronger than the older vampire and his wounds don't heal as fast. He's losing and he's losing fast. Frederick has the upperhand.
Frederick speeds towards him, grabbing onto his shirt and slamming him into the ground, knocking the wind out of Mateo's lungs. He gasps and coughs for air, grabbing his chest. Frederick grabs a stick and snaps it in half, holding the sharper end firmly in his hand.
"You're not the big bad wolf now are you, boy?" He taunts with a smirk. He stabs the piece of wood into Mateo's stomach causing him to cry out. "You're just a sad little puppy who's gonna die with no family to mourn you. I know what Athena does—she takes in useless, broken orphans and turns them into killers. She tries to make you into something even though everyone—everyone—knows you are nothing."
"FREDERICK!"
He looks up, finding Anna staring at him with pure rage in her eyes. "Anna! How nice of you to join the party!" He says sarcastically, standing up. He steps on the werewolves chest, pushing down. Mateo gasps, clawing at his foot. Frederick throws the stick and it lands inside Stefan's, near his ribs causing the younger vampire to yell.
"Frederick, get off of him," Anna demands, her voice low and dangerous. Her eyes were darker, the veins slowly protruding from underneath her skin. The rain beat down on them, the wind whipping through the trees. "You're a dead man, Frederick. Killing him won't change that—it will worsen it. Do you know how powerful Athena is? She will torture you even in the afterlife! You may think that death is the way out—freedom from anything she can do, but you're wrong. She is called the Devil for a reason! She is the Queen of Hell!" Anna steps closer, her eyes slowly changing.
"Athena Salvatore does not scare me! I am older, I am stronger—"
Anna laughed patronizingly, "stronger? Athena has taken on a Bennett witch! Do you know how Emily Bennett died? Because when Emily harnessed her power to put you all in the tomb, there was too much! She quite literally shriveled from the inside out—Athena Salvatore is one of the strongest, most powerful beings on the fucking planet. And that is her wolf. You kill him—and it's over for you. Your death was going to be a werewolf bite, some hallucinations, and then you'd be dead. But she will do much, much worse now," she promised.
Frederick snarled, "the other vampires and I will fight her then! And we will win."
Anna shook her head with an amused smile, "no. No, Frederick. You've already lost. Athena made a deal with my mother earlier today. In exchange for our freedom, you are to be given over to The Vultures. You are to be executed because that is their law. And we are merely living in their town!"
Frederick hesitated, his foot lifting from Mateo's chest allowing him to breathe properly. Anna untensed slightly at the sight. Then, the vampire snarled and picked up Mateo, dangingly him in the air. "Fine. If I'm to die, I'm taking him with me," Frederick spat. Just as he was about to grab the wolf's heart, Anna ran towards him, taking off his head with one clean swipe of his neck.
Mateo dropped to the floor as Fredericks body fell backward, hitting the ground with a thump. Anna breathed heavily, her face slowly going back to normal as the rest of the wolves, witches, and vampires appeared. Elena helped Stefan stand up, Damon and Alaric coming to stand by them.
Athena stepped forward, looking down at Frederick's body and his head. She looked at Anna who stared back at her. Athena gave her a nod and the vampire was instantly at Mateo's side, Leah following close behind. The two girls sat him up, Anna running her finger over a gash on his head. He winced.
Pearl stepped up beside Athena, an umbrella making sure she didn't get wet. "The parties responsible for the kidnapping of Stefan were obviously dealt with by Damon and the hunter," she told Athena, "the rest of the vampires understand the rules, correct?" Pearl looked around at the other tomb vampires who all nodded.
Athena picked up Frederick's head, "Bael." The vampire pulled back his hood as he walked forward.
"Yes, ma'am?" He asked. Damon stared at the man in shock, his mouth opening slightly as if he was going to say something. Stefan stared at Bael, confused as he kept Elena against his side.
"You get to pick his torture," she replied. Bael gave her a nod and stepped back, flicking his hood back on. Athena handed the head to Quinn who wrapped it with a towel. Luther scooped up Frederick's body and then grabbed onto Quinn who vamped them out of there. Athena looks around at the tomb vampires, "any of you violate the contract—your journey in this 'new' world will end very quickly. You violate my rules, you get punished. You abide by them, you are free to stay—enjoy the food, get some drinks, live your life. But Anna was right, this is my town now. What I say goes and if you don't like it, there is a tree in the sun with your name on it, my friends."
"We'll follow your rules," one of the vampires spoke up, "we just wanted out of the tomb. The new generation has nothing to do with what happened to us back in 1864. We thank you for giving us another chance. We won't blow it."
"I hope not," Athena says.
Then everybody starts dispersing. Pearl gives Athena a nod before heading back to the house. Anna and Leah helped Mateo up and the wolf winced a bit, wiping his bleeding lip.
"Leah," Athena says and the wolf looks up at her, "go with Pearl. Escort her back home. Miss Anna has Mateo."
Leah nods and kisses Mateo's cheek, squeezing Anna's hand before walking after the woman. Anna brushes some hair away from Mateo's eyes and then pulls his head against her chest, kissing the back of it. Mateo wraps his arm around her.
Athena turns away and heads over to the other four, keeping her distance. Bael stands behind her, looking around to make sure there are no threats. "Are you four alright?" She asked.
Stefan nods, "we're okay. Just a little shaken. What happened?"
"A rogue vampire," Athena shrugged. She didn't need to explain herself to them. "Go home. The vampires won't be after you anymore," she said.
"Athena," Bael says and she turns to look at him. He hands her her phone and she takes it. She must've dropped it some time back near the house. She has two missed calls from Caroline and five from Liz. Bael checks his phone, "Vicki Donovan's body has been found," he explains. They have an insider in the police station—a fairy who keeps them updated.
"Dammit," Athena says, "Damon, how did someone find the body?" She demands, looking over at the man.
"Nobody should be over there. It was far away from the road, stuffed in a hill. She shouldn't have been found unless someone was looking for it," Damon defended.
"I don't think Miss Forbes was looking for it," Bael said, his voice void of emotion.
Athena slowly turned around and Bael froze. He swallowed at the look that was in the redhead's eyes. He has never seen it before—not even with Cassidy. There was something deep, an emotion that he couldn't put a name to in her eyes. "Caroline found the body?" She asked.
He gave her a small nod, "yes, ma'am. According to... our source, her car got stuck and she was trying to find service. She fell down the hill and almost ended up in the river. She was climbing up when she pulled some roots and revealed the body," he explained.
"Who cares about that—how the hell are you still fucking alive?" Damon demanded, stalking forward, "I watched you die." Athena tossed him effortlessly into a tree before he could get within five feet of Bael.
Damon fell to the ground with a groan, the wind knocked out of him. Bael glanced at him for a moment before looking at Athena, "I'll have the witches start cooking up some calming herbs and get someone to see to it that you have everything you need."
Athena nods, "thank you, Bellamy." He gives her a small grin and bows slightly before disappearing in a gust of wind. Athena turns to Mateo and Anna, "you two either get back to the Boarding House or go with Leah and Pearl—either one, just get him cleaned up so he can heal correctly."
"Yes, ma'am," Anna said as she started guiding Mateo out of the forest.
Athena turns towards Stefan, Elena, Alaric, and Damon. "Go home. Get some rest. And Stefan," he looks up, "I will put you down if you go on rampage here. The suspicions are too high for another murder. If there is one, somebody will pay—I don't care who, but someone will, do you understand?"
"Yes. Yes, I understand," Stefan said.
Athena looked at Damon, "same goes to you. If someone turns up dead, you're dead. I'll have someone's ass... or head." Stefan pales slightly and looks away.
She takes a step back before disappearing.
┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙
ATHENA WAITED OUTSIDE, leaning against one of the police cars. Liz is inside, sitting on the couch with Kelly. Matt is inside his room, sitting down on his bed. Jeremy and Tyler are sitting in the dining room in silence.
Caroline walks out the door, needing some fresh air. She shook her hands out and then smoothed back some of the loose strands from her ponytail. She began to pace outside of the house, going back and forth.
Athena pushed off the car as Caroline took out her phone, muttering 'fuck' over and over again. Athena's phone began to ring and she took it out, seeing Caroline's contact flash on the screen.
Caroline looked up when she heard the familiar ringtone and Athena gave her a closed-lipped smile. It was quick, less than a second.
The blonde ended the call and stuffed her phone back in her pocket. She walked towards Athena and the redhead put her phone back, preparing for the hug she was sure was coming.
She was wrong.
Caroline shoved her, sending her back half-a-step. Caroline shoved her again. "Vicki's dead," another shoved, "and you knew," another shove, "she turned into a vampire." Caroline slowly had tears falling down her face, letting out a small sob. "Stefan killed her and you—you helped them keep it a secret! You let them believe that Vicki had just run away!" Caroline shoved Athena again. "You—you let me believe that my friend had just run away! How—how could you do that?"
Athena didn't respond, she merely stared back. She looked defeated and slightly ashamed.
"I trusted you," Caroline whispered, poking Athena in the chest, "and I thought you trusted me." The back of Athena's eyes began to burn. Caroline hiccuped, "why didn't you just tell me?" She whispered, eyes blurry as tears rolled down her cheeks.
Athena looked down, scrunching her nose to stop from crying herself. Seeing the blonde's tears hurt her more than she thought it would.
"I don't know," she whispered back. Caroline let out a small sob. "I—I just... Stefan didn't kill her Caroline," Athena shook her head, shrugging a bit and gesturing to herself as a lone tear slipped from her eye, "I did." She let out a small, humorless laugh, "that's why I didn't tell you. I killed your friend."
Caroline furrowed her brows, "but—"
"No, Caroline. There is no but. I killed her. I staked Vicki through the heart. She was going to kill Elena and Jeremy. I made a last minute decision. Stefan and Damon buried her," Athena explained, "I'm a killer." She stepped toward Caroline who swallowed a bit, "I killed Vicki Donovan," she whispered, "I did not tell you because you were the only person who didn't think I was a monster."
Caroline's face softened, "you're not a monster—" Athena scoffed, "—okay. You are. You're a monster. But you are one of the best monsters I've seen. I see the way you interact with the people around you. How you interact with me. You may be a monster, but you're my monster." Caroline raised her hands and caressed Athena's cheeks. "And I love you. No matter what you do."
Athena turned her head and kissed Caroline's palm, "that's dangerous. Loving me no matter what. Loving me has only gotten people killed," she said. Her mind flashes back to Cassidy's dead body. And, like some cruel joke, her mind flashes back to Esther's and Alix's bodies.
Alix was the woman who helped her shift into her wolf form for the first time.
Athena looked down.
Caroline used her fingers to tilt her head back up, her thumb brushing Athena's chin. "Take me home," she whispered.
The Heretic looked up at her, her eyes turning black for a moment before she yanked the girl against her body.
"Your wish is my command, bella." [beautiful]
AN: i just realized that Jeremy is kind of a dick 😭 he played Anna (and he may have had feelings for her, but not like he did for Vicki) so she would give him blood so he could live for an eternity with Vicki and then Jeremy cheated on Bonnie with Anna who was a ghost. but that is just my opinion--if you don't agree, that's okay! i hope you guys enjoyed and sorry if the scene between Anna, Mateo, and Frederick seemed rushed! Matt is definitely not off the hook just because he "apologized". all the Italian and Spanish translation that you will see is from google translate and i know that isn't always correct if not at all!
Finished: June 9th, 2022
Word Count: 6438
Edited: