Disclaimer: Don't own Smallville or Vampire Diaries.

Sequel to: Death Is Only The Beginning.

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Leaning her head back heavily against the pillow, Chloe hugged another pillow to her body. It'd been nearly a year since Damon and Stefan had taken her from Mystic Falls, and she had learnt most of what the brothers had to teach her about being a vampire-no matter how conflicting their views on that subject might be.

Chloe, who was used to being on the road even before being sired, was feeling bone-tired, and was surprised at how much she just wanted to settle down in one place.

She'd told Damon and Stefan this, but they weren't happy with the idea.

She was a rare vampire, and she knew they feared what would happen to her if certain vampires found out.

Namely Katherine Pierce.

Their psychotic bitch of a sire.

Chloe closed her eyes tightly, fighting the tears.

They'd been trying so hard-had done their best-and she'd gone and fucked everything up.

Slowly, she'd been building that resistance that was needed to feed from a human without draining them dry. The first couple of weeks had been tough, with Stefan and Damon having to intervene to keep her from killing her victims, but she'd been pulling away more and more easily these last two weeks, and the vampires had been watching her with pride. Damon was also taunting Stefan on how soon Chloe would have more control than the younger Salvatore when it came to bloodlust towards humans. Of course, that always made Stefan feel guilty because it was due to his inability to control his lust for human blood that had ended Chloe's life and began her undead life.

Stefan got broody and sentimental when that happened.

He always got guilty as hell.

And while Damon obviously enjoyed this Chloe did not.

She admired Stefan's desire to drink only animal blood, because she couldn't imagine herself having the strength to do so herself...or the desire.

Human blood was just too delicious.

And that was what had gotten her into this trouble, hadn't it?

Chloe hugged the pillow tighter, tears trailing down her cheeks and messing the porcelain white of the pillow cover.

They'd been in the woods so that Stefan could go and hunt, and Damon had gone to check out something he'd heard. Chloe had strayed from where they'd told her to stay and wait. She'd been bored. She'd felt overconfident.

And that had led her to a campsite.

To a bunch of drunk college boys.

She'd been foolish and self-confidant and sure she could handle this.

But one of the drunken idiots had been hurt, bleeding, and another tried to force her company, and she'd snapped.

No one had survived.

Damon and Stefan, drawn by the overwhelming scent of blood, had found her, and while Damon had obviously looked proud at the massacre on their hands, Stefan had looked so sad.

Chloe cried harder.

They'd been wondering what to do with the bodies, when they heard sirens close by.

Obviously someone had managed to call the park rangers.

And then they'd realized that one of the boys had survived.

He was pretty slashed up and weak, but he was alive.

Damon had gone to finish the kill, but Chloe had placed her bloody hand on his, and he'd understood, sighing.

Instead of killing the boy he'd Compelled him to remember a creature attacking the camp, a bear.

Chloe had entered into shock around there, but even through it she was grateful to Damon.

She couldn't Compel someone unless they were wearing Vervain or had it in their system.

It was one of her weird quirks.

The Ranger had arrived seconds after and, to her luck, was a fan of Chloe's.

Stefan and Damon had been shocked to realize that Chloe had once been a celebrity, and when Damon tried to Compel him to let them go, they realized he was wearing Vervain. As a follower of Chloe's (now on hiatus) web blog 'Chloe & The Dead People', and of Supernatural Diaries, he knew enough of the lore that Vervain protected people against vampires (and he admitted to having silver bullets on hand just in case he came against a werewolf...and such).

With Chloe in shock she couldn't Compel him, and they were all forced to go back and give reports and somehow the news of the long disappeared Chloe Sullivan reappearing spread like wildfire. By the time they were able to leave the police station, there were reporters everywhere.

The whole of the states probably already knew that she'd reappeared and what had happened.

She'd turned on E! and had heard the reporter announced how "Chloe Sullivan" had "resurfaced after her long hiatus from the limelight" and "in the worst way possible". The woman had then relayed how Chloe and "two unidentified male companions" had been out camping when they and another camping party had been attacked by a "monstrous, bloodthirsty grizzly" and that only four had managed to survive this encounter.

Chloe had then turned off the television and cried.

She wasn't the brave survivor.

She was the murderer.

The door opened, and she didn't bother looking up, knowing who had the keys to the room.

"Not more tears." Damon groaned, kicking off his shoes and throwing himself on the bed behind her, his hand going to her hip. His thumb caressed her as he leaned over her, draped over her back, breath against her neck. "You did nothing wrong."

Stefan sighed and went around the bed to kneel in front of her, placing his hand on her, facing her. "You're still young. Things like this will happen."

"You're a vampire." Damon's voice rumbled sexily in here ear, his teeth nibbling, his fingers clenching around her skirt, bunching it up at her thighs. "We feed to live, we feed on humans. This is natural."

Stefan shot Damon a glare before turning his softer eyes on Chloe, reaching out and rubbing away a tear with his thumb. "I hate to say it, but Damon's right. It's in your instincts, our instincts, and you're still young. You'll learn to control it in time." He tightened his hold on his hand. "Do you know how rare it is for a vampire to feel remorse? Or to even want to learn how to feed from a human without killing? You haven't lost your soul, Chloe."

Somehow, Stefan always knew what to say.

She reached out and cupped his face, her eyes fluttering closed, her lips opening in a soft whimper, as Damon began to nibble at her neck.

"Damon." Stefan glared at his brother. "This is not the time. She's vulnerable! She's-!"

Chloe grabbed the front of Stefan's shirt and pulled him towards her, unbalancing him, their lips crashing together roughly. She swallowed his cry of surprise as she moved her lips against his while, with her other hand, she pressed against Damon's hand on her hip and moved it towards her core.

Damon growled appreciatively into her neck, his nibbles growing more painful and yet delicious.

Chloe knew that this could very well be one of the biggest mistake she ever made-that these brothers had definitely not been able to handle sharing one woman before-but she was so sick of running away from what she wanted at the first sign of problems.

She'd run away from Bruce and Oliver, not giving them a chance or choice, and now they were happy with Dinah Lance and Vicki Vale. Chloe was happy for the two superheroes, and wished them the best in life, but she would be lying if she said she wasn't somewhat jealous of the two women in their lives. She also wondered what might have happened if she'd stayed and fought and knocked Ollie and Bruce's head together enough to get them to see reason...but that hadn't happened. She'd ran.

Just like she'd ran from Sam and Dean.

God.

It still hurt to think of Sam and Dean.

She'd really felt something for them, and she still did. Sam and Dean's memory were just as persistent and stubborn as the boys were, and Chloe knew that if she hadn't run away she wouldn't be dead right now. Wouldn't be a vampire. Like the coward she hadn't accepted she was until now, Chloe had once again run away from the life she'd made for herself, from her friends and family, and from two guys who genuinely cared for her. Sam and Dean had never made what they felt for her a secret, and every moment she'd been with them she'd been cowardly fighting her attraction to them, denying it so thinly that everyone knew she was lying.

She'd been a coward and a fool, and she'd paid the price for it.

She'd never be able to see them again, much less be with them, tell them how sorry she was.

Or give them a chance.

No, she'd ruined two very good chances for her by being a coward, and Chloe refused to do that again.

So although this was probably the riskiest of any relationship she had ever encountered, although her instincts told her to run before she got hurt, Chloe kicked the shit out of the instincts that'd fucked her over so many times in the past.

She cared for Stefan and Damon.

She cared for them a lot.

And they obviously felt something for her as well.

And even if it was only lust she wasn't going to run anymore.

She refused to.

She'd lived her life running.

She wasn't going to spend her unlife doing the same.

Vampires didn't run from things, they embraced them, especially if they were particularly deviant...or so Damon had assured her on a number of times-to Stefan's immense annoyance.

But as Stefan rose slowly, lips never leaving hers, and joined them on the bed, Chloe guessed that he didn't mind this sort of deviance too much.

One hand cupped behind Stefan's head, drawing him in closer as she opened her mouth to his hungry invasion, and the other hand on Damon's hand, urging him on as he tortured her with his fingers, Chloe finally let go of everything that'd been holding her back for so long.

She wouldn't hold back anymore.

Refused to let her fear dictate her life anymore.

This was her unlife, and she was going to live it as she wanted to.

Come what may.

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See you all in the sequel! ... Whenever it comes out!