I wake up the next morning feeling like we’ve reached a milestone. Katherine, the reason for most of our problems, is gone. Damon was able to push any feelings that he ever had for her to the back of his mind and succeed in locking her where she belongs. In a tomb to rot.
I wake up the next morning feeling good. With Katherine gone, Damon and I might be able to save any shred that’s left of our friendship. My brother’s safe and I’m ready to move on from all of her charades.
I know that my life of vampires is not over, but at least a huge problem is out of the way.
DAMON’S POV
“So Sarah attacks Tyler and he pushed her away and she tripped and she fell and she hit her head.” Caroline explains to me as she gets ready for school.
There was a rumor circulating that Tyler Lockwood accidentally killed a girl last night which would mean that he triggered the curse. I’m here with Caroline to get to the bottom of it since she saw this all first hand.
“Does Matt remember anything?” I ask. He went after Tyler trying to get Tyler to fight back and when he failed, Sarah went after Tyler.
“He thinks he blacked out, but I think they were both compelled by Katherine. That’s why I covered for Tyler and said it was an accident.” Caroline has a good theory about Katherine being at fault here, but I don’t understand her concern for Tyler.
“Yeah, I don’t understand that. The guy is a tool.”
“Gee, duh. Tyler getting blamed for Sarah’s death just opens up questions that he can’t answer and do you really think that it’s a good idea for him to tell his mom he’s a werewolf?” She fires back at me.
“Well, no.”
“And that werewolf road leads straight to vampire boulevard. I thought I was thinking fast on my feet.”
“Where is your mom?” I ask changing the subject.
“Leading the search party for Aimee Bradley. They haven’t found her body yet.” She says and I laugh.
“Oh, teens today and their underage drinking. Tragic. Wait, did you see Tyler’s eyes turn yellow?”
“They were more gold with amber highlights.”
“Oh.”
“Can he turn into a wolf now?” Caroline asks naively.
“Only on a full moon but now he has increased strength and who knows what else. I wonder how much Mason told him. Does he know about us?” I ask and Caroline doesn’t answer as her fingers slide across her phone screen.
“Hey! What did you tell him?” I ask again and she snaps her head up.
“Nothing. Really. I don’t think he knows much of anything. He seemed really freaked out and honestly, I felt kind of bad for him.” She says walking towards her front door.
“He’s got to know something.”
“Alright, I’ll ask him.”
I shake my head and rush over to her grabbing her shoulders. “No, you won’t Caroline! He cannot know about us. A bite from a werewolf can kill a vampire, so don’t be his friend! Do you understand me?”
“I understand.” She says quietly as I release her. “I’m late for school.”
“Right. If you wanna drop a hint to your mom, that Aimee’s body is at the bottom of a ravine with a cracked spine. Might save your mom some time.” I smirk, opening the door for her and walking out of the house.
ASHLEY’S POV
I walk up to my locker and stick my books inside. When I close my locker, I see Stefan standing next to me. I jump slightly but smile when he does.
He’s about to speak when Jeremy comes up to us.
“Hey Jeremy.” I smile and he gives me a nod before turning to Stefan.
“Look, Elena’s got to let me know if I’m supposed to cover for her. Jenna’s cool with the two of you but you guys are pushing it.” Jeremy says and I frown. I didn’t know they had fixed things.
“What are you talking about?” Stefan asks.
“You and Elena. I’m glad you guys are back together, but if she’s gonna sleep over…”
“Wait, wait…” Stefan interrupts. “Hold on a minute. We’re not back together.”
“So, she didn’t stay at your place last night?” Jeremy asks and Stefan shakes his head. Jeremy turns to me. “Did she stay with you?” He asks hopefully and I do the same as Stefan, not sure what’s going on.
“I saw her at the party but that was it. She didn't sleep over.” Stefan speaks up.
“Well her bed hasn’t been slept in and Mrs. Lockwood said that her car was still in the driveway. Where is she then?” Jeremy asks and I look at Stefan, hoping that he has an answer.
He doesn’t.
***
“This has Katherine written all over it.” Stefan says as Damon and I stand with him outside of the school.
“Katherine’s in the tomb. Trust me, I’m the one who shut her in.” Damon smiles to himself.
“Did you?” Stefan questions.
“Did I what, Stefan?”
“Well, I know the hold that Katherine has on you.”
Damon is about to explode so I step forward. “She’s in the tomb, Stefan. I was there.” My mind flashes back to last night and my heart rate increases. “But…”
“But what?” Stefan asks urgently.
“Well, she did say something. Damon and I thought she was lying.” I say looking at Damon who has come to the same horrifying conclusion.
“What did she say?” Stefan asks.
“Elena’s in danger.” I whisper, looking past Stefan.
“What? And neither of you thought to have her elaborate on that?” Stefan is really mad and I feel so bad for not taking her threat seriously.
“Hey, it wasn’t Ashley. I accused Katherine of lying. Everything she says is a lie. How am I supposed to know when she starts spouting out the truth?” Damon says.
“We have to go talk to her.” Stefan decides and Damon shakes his head at him.
“No, no. Let me tell you how that’s gonna go. We’re gonna go ask her for help, she’s gonna negotiate her release which we’re gonna be stupid enough to give her and she’s gonna get out and kill us! This is exactly what she wants!” Damon tells Stefan and he’s absolutely right.
“I don’t really care.”
“It’s a bad idea, Stefan.” I say, siding with Damon and he turns to me with anger in his eyes.
“It’s Elena.”
He walks towards the school, leaving me and Damon feeling horrible for not telling Stefan about all of this earlier.
“He’s right. It’s Elena. We need to help him figure this out.” I speak up and Damon turns to me.
“And then what, Ashley? Katherine gets out and she kills someone…you…any of us. We all plotted to kill her and you and I locked her in a tomb. I think it’s safe to say she’s pissed and vengeful.”
“So we’re just supposed to let whatever’s happening to Elena happen? We have no idea where she is or what she’s going through.”
“And we care, why?” Damon shoots back and I shake my head at him.
“Because it’s Elena, Damon. She would do the same thing for anyone one of us, including you.” I pause and he doesn’t say anything because he knows I’m right. “I’m going to help Stefan. You can come or you can stay. It doesn’t matter to me.”
My words are bitter and I’m about to walk away when I think of one more thing to say to him.
“But the Damon I was friends with, would have come and helped.”
***
“I can’t undo the tomb spell, Stefan. Even if I wanted to, it took both me and my Grams to undo it the first time.” Bonnie tells a disappointed Stefan as he and I confront her in the hallway.
“But I can open the door, right? I can talk to her?” He asks.
“Yeah, but Damon’s right. She’s not gonna tell you anything without something in return.”
“I know but Bonnie, I have to do something. I have no idea who has Elena. I have no idea where she is.”
“What if there was another way to find her?” Bonnie suggests and Stefan’s face lights up.
***
Bonnie and I gather in Ric’s classroom along with Jeremy. We spread a map of the area across a desk and I watch as Bonnie places a candle on top of it.
“How does this work?” I ask her.
“I’ll use Jeremy’s blood to draw energy for the tracking spell. They’re blood related. It’ll make the connection stronger.” She explains as Stefan walks in, closing the door and locking it.
“Alright, Alaric said we’ve got to clear out of here within 10 minutes. I’ve got weapons. He stocked me up.”
“Are you ready?” Bonnie asks Jeremy as she gently cuts his palm.
I frown in discomfort as he blood drops onto the map. Bonnie begins casting a spell as the drops of blood merge together and slide across the map, stopping in a certain location.
“There. She’s there.” Bonnie points to the map.
“That’s 300 miles away.” Jeremy exclaims.
“No Bonnie. We need a more exact location than that.” Stefan says but Bonnie shakes her head.
“That’s as close as I can get.” She says quietly.
“We can map it, ariel view will show us what’s around there, help us narrow down the area.” Jeremy suggests and Stefan smiles.
“Perfect. You and Ashley do that. Call me with whatever you find.” Stefan heads for the door and I stop him.
“No, no. I’m coming with you!” I try to slide past him but he stops me.
“No Ashley, you’re not.”
“I’m not just gonna sit here. What if she’s hurt…or worse? What if she’s…”
“She’s not.” Stefan says as I trail off. “If it’s just you and me, I won’t be able to protect you.”
“It won’t be just you two.” I hear a voice behind me and I turn around to see Damon smirking at us. “Let’s go.” He says looking at me and Stefan.
“You’re coming?” I ask in disbelief.
“It’s Elena.” He says and I smile before following him and Stefan out of the room.
***
I’m sitting in the passenger seat of Damon’s car as we speed down the highway. Stefan is hot on our tail in his car. We decided to take two cars because we aren’t exactly sure what we’re walking into. I riffle through the bag of weapons from Ric.
“Alaric sure likes his weapons.” Damon scoffs as I pull out some kind of bottle filled with vervain. “What the hell is that?” He asks me.
“I don’t know. It’s a vervain bomb or grenade launcher or something like that.”
“Weird.”
“How much further?” I ask him.
“About 80 miles.”
“Who do you think took her?”
“Someone from Katherine’s past. She said she was running from someone. They got the wrong girl.” Damon says sounding angry.
“Thank you for helping.” I say quietly and he sighs.
“Can we not do the whole road trip bonding thing?” He rolls his eyes.
“Oh, come on. You and I are really good at road trip bonding.” I tease causing a smile to form on his face. I smile for a moment but it fades as I think about the real situation here. Why did Damon want to help? I know I’ve tried so hard to push away the thoughts that he might have feelings for Elena, but they keep coming to the surface.
He spent over a century obsessed with a girl that looks just like Elena. That must mean something to him. I’m just afraid to find out.
“I know that you being in this car has nothing to do with you wanting to help your brother.” I speak up.
“You’re right. It doesn’t.” He says flatly.
“So, if you aren’t in this car because you want to help your little brother save the girl that he loves, then it must be because…you love her too.” I admit and he’s quiet for a moment.
I didn’t mean to bring all of this up, but I need to know how he feels about Elena before I attempt to try to feel something for him again. Although who am I kidding? I never stopped feeling anything for him. It was buried under betrayal but it was there the whole time.
“You wanna know why I’m in this car?” He pauses after his rhetorical question as I stay quiet. “I’m in this car because of someone that I care about very much. Someone who means more to me than anyone will ever know. Someone who came to me and told me that her friend needed help. And I knew that if anything were to happen to her friend, she would fall apart. And I can’t stand to ever see her in any type of pain. So, I decided to would help. I decided I would play the good guy and help get her friend back because it’s what she wanted. So think whatever you want about me, Ashley, but I’m in this car right now for you.”
He finishes and I lean back in my seat, not sure what to think.
***
After too much time in an awkward silence, we finally arrive in a field close to the abandoned house that Jeremy found. It’s a shot in the dark but it’s all we have.
Damon shuts the car off and gets out, grabbing a blood bag from the back. Stefan pulls up behind us and walks over to Damon.
“If you want some, just ask.” Damon teases, sipping the blood.
“I want some.” Stefan says as I walk over to them.
“Ah, that’s so sweet. You’re gonna be all big and strong to save your girl, but don’t worry. I’ve got your back. It’ll be fine.”
“I’m not joking. I’ve been drinking a little every day. I’m slowly increasing my intake and building up my strength.” Stefan says, taking the blood bag. I’m surprised by this.
“Does Elena know you’re drinking blood?” I ask.
“I’ve…been drinking hers.” Stefan confesses and I exchange a look with Damon who looks as confused as me.
“How romantic.” He scoffs taking another drink. “The house should be just beyond those trees.” Damon says as Stefan starts walking that way. I’m about to follow when Damon steps in front of me.
“Yeah, you’re not coming.” He says and I frown at him.
“What? You’re the one who said I could come.”
“I said you could come and you’re here. But there’s no way in hell you’re going in there. Whoever has Elena is probably who was after Katherine in 1864 and before that.”
“And?” I question and he rolls his eyes.
“And if you listened to anything I said in the car, I’m here for you, not Elena. Which means that if anything happens to you, this is all for nothing. You’re staying here.” He says and disappears with Stefan without giving me time to argue.
I groan in frustration and look around for a minute. If Damon thinks I’m just gonna sit back and let him save the day, he’s doesn’t know me at all.
***
I arrive at the house and am surprised with my own newfound confidence. The door is open so I carefully step inside. I don’t see Stefan and Damon anywhere but it’s a big house so I’m hoping that I won’t. I’m completely out of my mind right now and Damon would kill me if he knew what I was doing.
The house is large and empty as I take in my surroundings. I walk slowly up a large staircase careful not to make any noise, knowing that they can hear me if I do.
As I reach the top of the steps, I hear voices coming from the room in front of me.
“We have a long journey ahead of us. We should be going.” An unknown accented voice speaks rather elegantly.
“Please, don’t let him take me.” I hear a plea and I immediately recognize the voice. Elena.
I hurry to the doorway and peak inside. There are four people standing in this vast room. Elena, two men, and one woman.
“One last piece of business and we’re done.” The elegant one says, ignoring Elena. He walks over to the other man who looks scared.
“I’ve waited so long for this day, Elijah. I’m truly, very sorry.” The man says with a heavy british accent.
I conclude that the elegant man’s name is Elijah and the other man must have betrayed him somehow.
“Oh no, your apology’s not necessary.” Elijah responds cryptically. “I appreciate your gesture of handing the doppleganger over to me as she is the key to breaking the curse. I realize that you’ve been trying to make up for your betrayal for years now.”
The curse? Like the sun and the moon curse? I thought the moonstone was the key.
“And I’m so very sorry. You trusted me with Katerina and I failed you.” Katerina? I figured this all had to do with Katherine.
“Oh yes, you are the guilty one and Rose aided you because she was loyal to you and now that, I honor.” Elijah says and I discover that the woman is named Rose. “Where was your loyalty?” Elijah asks the man.
“I beg your forgiveness.” The man says in fear. I assume they’re all vampires so why do they seem so afraid of Elijah.
“So granted.” Elijah coos.
The man smiles in satisfaction but only for a minute. I watch in horror as Elijah slashes the man’s head from his body in one swift motion with his hand. I gasp and quickly cover my mouth so they don’t hear me.
“You!” Rose screams as Elijah nonchalantly wipes blood from his hand.
“Don’t Rose. Now that you are free.” He says carelessly before turning to Elena. “Come.”
Elena looks horrified and I think quick on my feet before walking into the room.
“What about the moonstone?” I speak up, taking a shot in the dark.
I have no idea if it means anything to these people but it meant a lot to Katherine and these seem to be the people she was running from. Elena’s eyes land on me as Elijah and Rose both turn quickly to see me standing in the doorway.
I don’t know if this was the best idea but at least I can buy Stefan and Damon some time.
“Who is this?” Elijah asks looking at Rose.
“I have no idea.” She says in confusion, her accent thick.
“What do you know about the moonstone?” Elijah asks turning back to me.
“I know that you need it and I know where it is.” I stay strong and I’m surprised with myself.
“Yes?” He suddenly becomes interested and I’m glad that I brought it up.
“We can help you get it.” I say, making sure he knows that I don’t want him taking Elena with him.
“Tell me where it is.” He demands.
“It doesn’t work that way.” I snap.
“Are you negotiating with me?” He asks and in seconds, he’s in front of me. I gasp at his presence and he smiles at my fear.
He looks into my eyes and I realize that he’s trying to compel. He pulls away with a smile on his face.
“What is this vervain doing around your neck?” He rips the necklace from me and throws it on the ground. My head is forcefully taken in his grasp as he compels me. “Tell me where the moonstone is.”
“In the tomb, underneath the church ruins.”
“What is it doing there?”
“It’s with Katherine.”
“Interesting.” He says, breaking his gaze.
Suddenly, a noise is heard in the hallway that sounds like breaking glass. Elijah’s head snaps up as he looks at Rose.
“What is that?”
“I don’t know.” She responds and he turns to me.
“Who did you come with?” I just stare at him, not sure of what to say. “Grab her!” He yells to Rose as he catches my arm and pulls me out of the room. I look behind me to see Elena in Rose’s grasp.
When we reach the hallway, I hear the noises of people running by. Elijah notices too as he stops walking with an evil smile on his face.
“Up here.” I hear Stefan’s voice from up the steps.
Elijah rolls his eyes and pushes me into Rose’s hold. I take a minute to look at Elena and give her a small smile. Elijah speeds up the steps in anger.
“Down here.” I hear Damon’s voice chime to annoy Elijah and a smile spreads on my face.
Elijah is suddenly shot in the hand with a stake. He removes it and is about to turn around when I feel my body rushing through the air.
I open my eyes and gasp when I feel a hand over my mouth. I look up to see a pair of blue eyes looking at me. He gives me a disapproving smile and I know he’s upset that I came in here alone. He keeps my body pressed against the wall in a corner and I look across the hall to see Stefan and Elena in the same position.
“Excuse me.” I hear Elijah’s voice downstairs. “To whom it may concern, you’re making a great mistake if you think that you can beat me. You can’t. Do you hear that? I repeat, you cannot beat me. So, I want the girl, and I’m gonna count to three or heads will roll. Do we understand each other?”
I watch in horror as Elena walks to the top of the steps. I struggle in Damon’s grasp but he’s too strong. How could they let her do this?
“I’ll come with you.” She speaks. “Just please, don’t hurt my friends. They just wanted to help me out.”
Elijah speeds to the top of the stairs. “What game are you playing with me?” He asks and Elena throws the vervain grenade at him. His skin burns and he screams in pain before healing immediately.
What the hell?
He makes his way towards Elena again but Stefan comes behind him and shoots him with a stake that doesn’t hurt him. What is he?
Stefan drops the weapon and rushes at Elijah, rolling down the steps with him. Elijah quickly stands up and is about to go after Stefan when Damon disappears from my side and rushes down the steps. He drives a huge stake through Elijah, pinning him to the wall, dead.
Stefan rushes over to Elena as I slowly walk down the steps towards Damon.
“Are you out of your mind?” He asks and I know I’m in for a lecture. Before he can continue, I rush to him and throw my arms around his waist.
He quickly does the same, pulling me close to his body. He’s mad at me, but I don’t care. We’re both safe and that’s all that matters.
***
Elijah is an original vampire…whatever that means. Rose and her friend Trevor, who Elijah had killed had been running from Elijah for 500 years because of Trevor’s betrayal. Elena is the Petrova doppleganger and the key to breaking the sun and the moon curse. The moonstone binds the curse, the death of the doppleganger breaks it. Yes, the death. Elena has to die.
Katherine was the first Petrova doppleganger and Trevor was the one who helped her escape her death.
None of us are really sure what all of this means but we are sure that we’re gonna do whatever needs to be done to protect Elena.
I finish brushing my teeth and walk into my room to get in bed. I jump slightly when I see a person sitting on my bed, but I relax when I realize that it’s Damon.
“Cute pj’s.” He smirks and I roll my eyes.
“I’m tired, Damon.”
“I brought you this.” He says, holding up my necklace. I totally forgot about that.
“I thought that was gone. Thank you.” I smile and reach for it, but he pulls it away from me.
“I just have to say something.” He says and I frown at him.
“Why do you have to say it with my necklace?” I ask, nervous about what’s to come.
“Well, because what I’m about to say is…probably the most selfish thing I have ever said in my life.”
“Damon…” I try to stop him because I know where this is going. I’m just not sure if I want it to or not.
“No, I just have to say it once. You just need to hear it…I love you, Ashley…and it’s because I love you that…I can’t be selfish with you. Why you can’t know this? I don’t deserve you…” He trails off and kisses my forehead as I stand in shock at his words.
He pulls away with a sigh. “God, I wish you didn’t have to forget this…”
“Damon, wait!” He’s about to compel me and I turn my face away from him. “You can’t take this moment away from me. You can’t do this to me without letting me tell you how I feel.”
“How do you feel, Ashley? I killed your brother. I’m a bad person.”
“No, stop. Don’t talk like that.” I say, terrified that he’s going to compel me at any moment. That he’s going to make me forget all about this.
“It can’t be like this. You deserve way better than me.” He sighs, turning away from me.
“No, Damon. You do not get to decide what I deserve. That’s not how this works. Yes, you killed Ryan. Yes, you’ve done horrible things to me and the people I care about. Yes, I should have stayed away from you the first time we met, but I can’t Damon. I can’t and I don’t want to. I’ve been trying for awhile to deny anything that I’ve ever felt towards you, but I can’t do that anymore. I can’t deny the fact that…I love you, Damon.” Those last four words make him spin on his heel to face me.
“No.” He whispers.
“Yes. I do.” I say quietly.
He frowns and takes a step towards me, taking my face in his hands. Here it comes. He’s gonna make me forget this entire thing.
I close my eyes, not wanting this to happen but I’m surprised when I feel something small and cold, wrap around my neck, the metal pendant resting on my chest. I feel his lips land softly on mine and when I open my eyes…he’s gone.
***Author's Note***
I really enjoyed writing the end of this chapter! I hope you guys like it.
Comment and vote please!
~Haley