(A/N: Hey everyone! Thanks for all of the reviews and follows! One more chapter after this and we'll finally get to meet Elijah. Sorry for the overdue wait, it was hard deciding where to cut the chapters and what seemed important to have. This chapter is kinda intense, and long so Wooo! The page was done at four in the morning and slightly sleep deprived, so if you see anything that needs changed or any suggestions send me a pm!)
Chapter 6
Shatter Me- Lindsey Stirling ft Izzy Hale
Dear Diary
It's been a few days since my little… fight? Would it be considered a fight? Whatever, we'll go with that. Anyway it's been a few days since that little skirmish with Damon. Now it's like nothing even happened! I'm probably reading too much into it, this just seems to be our norm of pissing each other off.
Not too much has happened, so this will be shorter than normal.
Well, other than Elena's biological mother wanting to meet her out of the blue. That must have shocked the hell out of poor Alaric. She appeared out of the blue and asked him to arrange a meeting with her. I didn't like it one bit. Not with the theatrics she's already pulled on my poor sister. She met with Elena alone in at the grill, thankfully Stefan stayed within reach just in case anyway. Oh! And Stefan is back to his normal self too, so we have that going for us.
I wanted to be there with Elena, but she made herself clear that she didn't want Isobel to know about me, at least about the supernatural part of me anyway. Pretty sure the ship has sailed on that one, but I won't get into that. After threatening friends and family, Is-a-bitch finally got what she wanted: Our family vampire weapon compass thing. What another vampire would want with it is beyond me, but she broke Matt's arm and kidnapped Jeremy to get it.
The upside is we got Bonnie to 'de-spell' it. I hope she really did, since she's still on her 'hatred toward all vampires' schtick. I am a little ticked off at Bonnie and Elena for keeping me out of the loop through that ordeal, but I guess Elena knew I wouldn't be able to stand by and let her birth mother keep hurting her like she was.
Last problem to vent about: Uncle John.
Damon thinks he's Elena's father too. I can't not tell her. I just don't know how to bring it up…
Well Aunt Jenna's gonna be busy getting Elena ready for more founder's stuff, so I'm gonna sneak the coffee while I can! Write again soon!
Oh! And I practiced more, so it's getting easier to control my little photosynthesis sunlight stuff. Not to mention it's not taking as much out of me anymore either!
-Kyra
Fully dressed and already peppy for the day, I bounced my way down the stairs headed straight for the coffee pot. Jer still avoided Elena like the plague, but he wasn't as hostile. She still needed to talk to him about being adopted, but baby steps. I had my own secret that I needed to talk to Lena about, so I can't be hypocritical. Humming a tune that popped into my head, I turned in time to see the devil appear himself.
"Aren't you supposed to stay away from that stuff?" John asked me with a raised brow.
Eying him suspiciously, I asked, "Are you gonna squeal?"
"Nope, just showing concern," he held up his hands in defeat.
"Riiiiiight," I drawled, taking a long drink from my heavenly goodness. "You don't have to force yourself to pretend, I'm not ten years old anymore…"
John sighed heavily, something akin to guilt showed in his eyes. "Listen, Kyra, I know it doesn't seem like it all the time, I'm just trying-"
"Too keep your daughter safe," I finished for him, giving him a smug smirk when I saw him blanch. Stepping closer to the kitchen island, coffee never leaving my hand, I decided to play further. "I didn't get it at first, your sudden appearance. Then I thought about it, the other dots already connected what with Isobel being Elena's mother and Alaric having the same kind of ring you do. What could possibly make you come back into town? I get it though, can't have your daughter by birth dating a vampire."
He composed himself, despite the color completely drained from his face. Carefully, he cleared his throat, thinking of how to proceed. "You're smarter than you look. Then you also know, that I would do anything to protect her."
"The you should know, this is my home. Everyone in this house is my family, even though it's not by blood, and that will never change," I explained, my tone holding an underlying threat in it. I turned and put my mug in the sink before I added, "She doesn't know. Not yet anyway."
There was a tense pause until he replied, "Thanks for the warning."
Jenna bounded into the kitchen, dispelling the unpleasant atmosphere with her own narrowed eyes. "Kyra Lissa Gilbert! You get away from that coffee pot!"
"Crap," I muttered to myself. "Uh… See you at the parade Aunt Jen!" I practically sprinted out of the door. "Caroline needs help mediating!" I called one final excuse behind before leaping to freedom in the sun. I practically danced halfway to the school when a familiar Camero pulled up next to me.
Damon slowed down next to me, eyes covered by sunglasses. "Hey Sparky, hop on in, I'll give you a ride." I couldn't help but eye him suspiciously. We didn't exactly make up, but we weren't exactly on good terms either. He just acts like our little snippet didn't happen. "Come on," he enunciated with a whine in his voice. "Look, I'm sorry I was such a dick last time. Chalk it up to," he paused trying to think of a reason, "stress! Come on, I miss my partner in crime," He flashed me his pearly whites, so with a sigh, I agreed and hoped in.
"Apology accepted. Is Stefan already there?" I asked, trying to fill the silence.
"Aw, does the other sister have a crush on Mr. Broody Stuffy Pants?" Damon ended on a cutesy note.
I wrinkled my nose in slight disgust at the thought. "Ew, no offense to Elena, but Stefan isn't really my type."
"Then who is your type?" he raised his eye brow, combined with his trademark sexy smirk. "Cause you know, we have some time-"
"Shut up Damon," I deadpanned, getting used to the constant flirting that embodied the vampire next to me. "I just wanted to see if he'd help me break the news to Elena about John."
He looked mildly offended when he asked, "But why Stefan? I can help too."
I rubbed my temples, trying to think of how to break it to him. "This needs less of a wrecking ball touch, and more of a gentler break the news sort of thing. No offense, but you aren't very good at that sort of thing."
"Why not? It'll be like ripping off a band aid, painful but quick," he pushed as we pulled into the school parking lot, filled with students and floats.
I sighed, stepping out of the vehicle. "Maybe because I know my sister? I don't want her to go into shock. Just, please Damon, promise me you'll let us handle it?"
"Handle what?" Stefan appeared out of NOWHERE. Seriously, do either of them know how to give a girl a little warning?
"Christ in a hand basket Stefan! I expect that from Damon, not you!" I scolded, clutching my chest. Straightening myself, I added, "And we're talking about breaking the news about Elena's birth father, I was hoping you'd help. Of course, I'm also assuming that Damon discussed it with you to gloat in some, Damon-y gloating way."
Stefan started to say something, but stopped for a moment. "You know, I think you've been spending too much time with him."
I watched Damon glare at me out of the corner of my eye. I smirked back and added, "I knew it. Damon loves to gloat over stuff he knows." Elena started walking toward us, smile on her face, and I felt bad for what was about to happen. "Okay, now shoo Damon, I'll meet up with you again in a bit." He bowed mockingly with a smug look on his face before he disappeared into the crowd.
"Hey guys, is everything okay?" she asked, her smile faltering. She looked stunning in her old time attire. I did not envy her in that corset though. I value the ability to breathe being unimpeded.
"There's something you should know Lena…" I trailed, not knowing how to get it out.
"Jonathan Gilbert is your biological father," Stefan blurted out. I smacked my forehead at the subtlety. "What? Better than having Damon do it with his usual grace."
"Yea, sure… I'm don't know why I keep trying at this point," I sighed.
Elena's face screamed confusion. "Wait… What?"
"Uncle John was dating Isobel when she was fifteen. Alaric, Isobel's wife, has one of the Gilbert Family rings. Who do you think gave it to her?" I explained, gauging Elena's expression.
"I did some digging myself. Jonathan was the one that took Isobel to your father's clinic the night you were born. It all adds up Elena," Stefan added to my argument. She needed to know before John did anything else shady.
Elena shook her head at the thought of him being her biological father. "No, I believe you. I just can't believe that he's been in my life this entire time. I don't even like the guy," she sounded almost sad at the afterthought. It's not her fault her birth father was a class A douche bag. "What am I supposed to do? Do I just confront him and say, 'Are you my biological father?'"
"I guess when you're ready," Stefan said, being the supportive boyfriend.
I reached forward, taking hold of my sister's shoulder. "Listen, you don't have to do anything you aren't ready to. Remember that," I assured her.
"But I'm never going to be ready. Guys, I have enough problems with the family that I actually care about. Jeremy hates me, and why wouldn't he? My journal gave him every single reason to," Elena confided in us. Jeremy still hadn't come around, but it had only been a few days since that slice of this giant drama pie.
I rolled my eyes at my sister. Stefan beat me to the punch of comforting her. "He's just hurt. He's confused."
I gave her shoulder a light push in response. "He just needs more time Lena. He's just as mad at me for letting it happen. Just focus on having fun today. Founder's day festival and stuffy parade and all," I sent her a horrible wink that got her to giggle.
I used that as my chance to excuse myself to give my sister and her boyfriend some privacy. They just got back on even footing, they deserved some extra time alone together. Looking around with searching eyes, I finally found my targets. I jogged the few feet it took to get up to the bubbly, bouncing, blonde and her boyfriend in an arm cast. At least, I think they were together? I was really bad at keeping track of Caroline, and that made me an even worse friend.
"You look great Care!" I called out, sneaking up next to Bonnie, mid photography session.
"Thank you Kyra!" Caroline beamed at me, happiness shining in her eyes. "I feel like we haven't seen much of each other, like, at all lately," she pouted at me. "But I know it's not your fault, what with the almost dying thing," she paused at her own sentence, and I could tell she didn't mean for it to come out like that. "I'm sorry! That's not what I-"
"Caroline! It's fine, really," I chastised her half-heartedly. "How about a movie weekend soon? It's your movie pick this time right?" I attempted to bribe her with sleepovers and corny movies.
She nodded in satisfaction at the idea. That was when I noticed a mischievous look cross her features. "Yea, then we can talk about, you know, boys and stuff. Like what's going on with you and Damon," she wagged her eye brows suggestively.
"What do you mean?" I asked her, completely oblivious to her meaning.
Caroline rolled her eyes, exasperated with me. "You can deny it all you want, but he's different with you, and I will get the truth out of you movie weekend. Now come on, I want to take a picture with you and Bonnie," she grinned, ushering us over to her and pushing the camera onto poor Mattie.
Right after we got into position, Tyler came over to offer his help. Matt then proceeded to icily refuse him with one of the worst cold shoulders I had ever witnessed. Huh… trouble in the bromance paradise? I must have missed something of epic proportions for those two to fight like that.
"I said I was sorry!" Tyler called out to him, forgetting about the picture completely.
Caroline sighed next to us and moved forward to get the camera back. "You made out with his mom and then beat him to a pulp. You're gonna have to do better than 'sorry'."
My eyes bugged out momentarily at the reveal of the answer to my initial question. Attempting to pull myself together in a dignified way, I asked, "The hell did I miss?!"
Bonnie chuckled at my response in her good nature way when she patted me on the arm comfortingly. "I wouldn't worry about it too much. I'm sure Care will fill you in later." I shuddered in response. I don't think I wanted to know anyway. "Come on, we should head out, they're getting ready for the parade," She linked her arm in mine to guide me away from whatever drama I had missed while wrapped up in my sister's own complicated life.
We made our way downtown, making small talk here and there, but I could tell she was being kind of edgy. She must regret de-spelling the Gilbert device for us. I knew she was on the fence about it to begin with, but I'm glad she did it. I don't know what Elena would do if she lost Stefan too. Thinking back on the device, I had random thoughts sprinkle through my mind.
"Hey Bonnie, remember reading about the device?" I questioned my friend, not actually meaning it to go anywhere. "Did the journal say that it affected just vampires or all non humans?" I pondered out loud. "I wonder if it would have done something to me," I questioned when the parade started. "Thank god you dispelled that spell then right?" I laughed to myself. Bonnie wouldn't do something like that right? I mean we talked through her differences, and I helped her put everything in perspective.
My sister's float started to coast by and she, Stefan, Caroline, and Mattie all sent us a wave and a smile. Damon stepped in front of us to give his brother a smug wave. Even from behind him I saw that he was trying to push their buttons. Bonnie rolled her eyes at the display, still holding a deep hate for the vampire in front of her.
Damon turned around to get her attention, flashing me one of his devilish smiles. Bonnie stared him down, not bothering to hide her dislike of him. If it wasn't for the fact I knew she very well could light this man on fire, I felt like she was trying to burn him with her mind.
"What do you want Damon?" she asked heatedly.
"Nothing just enjoying the parade," he shrugged her off. Bonnie caught my hand in a firm grip, pulling me away with her. "Hey, where are you going?" he questioned, following whichever way Bonnie decided to drag me.
"Away from you," she glared back at him.
"I want to say something to you," he started. His stance at first glance seemed threatening.
"Just leave me alone," Bonnie pursed her lips, pushing me behind her. Stop being weird Bonnie, Damon's had some rough patches sure, but he's been decently helpful lately.
"Thank you," Damon said in an uncharacteristic show of gratitude. "The device that Emily spelled could have killed me, and I don't take what you did lightly, so, thank you."
She looked at him, a guarded expression on her face. "I did it for Elena and Kyra," she attempted to brush off his thanks. What was up with her? She wasn't acting like herself. Normally I was pretty good at reading my friends, but I didn't really know what was up with her.
"I know that, and I am still very grateful," he pushed his gratitude onto her. He sounded sincere and I smiled at the thought. Maybe Damon was beginning to be an okay guy. Deep, deep, deep, deep down there. "And," he looked like he swallowed something sour for a second as he added, "I owe you. Enjoy the parade."
Damon walked away on that note, shooting me one of his trademark smirks when I found myself grinning back to him. I mouthed a 'proud of you' to him before he turned away.
"That was nice of him. Maybe he's not so bad," I smiled at Bonnie who just had a dumbstruck look on her face. I knew better than to dwell on that idea too long, she might give herself an aneurism. "Oh, so I know you told me to wait a while longer, but I've been practicing. Before you say anything all 'mother-hen' like just listen to what I found out. Please?"
Bonnie nodded, a look of irritation in her eyes, but she didn't say anything. She was definitely the mother hen type.
"The sunlight really does recharge me. I practiced for hours and didn't feel my energy get sapped or completely drained at all! Do you think I'm some weird plant creature or something?" I voiced my earlier thoughts from the day before. It had been eating away at me. Maybe I should take some skin shavings to a biologist or something of the like.
Bonnie rolled her eyes at my question, taking it like a grain of salt. "No Kyra, you're probably not some weird plant creature thing. I'll keep looking through the Grimoires at home, so don't worry about it too much."
I sighed, but turned back to enjoy the parade. "That's what people keep telling me," I grumbled. Don't worry about it; is that all people can tell me? I get there's nothing I can do about it, but it was already hard enough not knowing the first nine years of my life as it were.
Once the parade ended, I headed to The Grill for some food and relaxation time. I didn't mind just fading into the background once in a while to just people watch instead of interact. Eventually Jeremy walked in and sat as far away from me as he could. He must have still been conflicted. He'll get over it eventually. Elena walked in shortly after, and started chatting with Damon. Huh, they don't usually talk but they seem to be civil so far. Then of course, she had to turn her attention to our little brother. Oh Elena sweetie, please don't pester a teenage boy while eating, that's dangerous in its own right.
Taking my queue, I stood up from my spot in the back and made my way toward my family. I caught what Elena said, something about being able to fix the rift between them, then Jeremy got angry and went to get up to leave.
"Jeremy, just hang on a sec will you?" I called out exasperated. He turned and shot me a dirty look. Okay, this looked like I hadn't resolved our issues yet.
"No, you had just as big a part as Elena. And you kept all of that stuff going on with you from me too, just leave me alone, both of you." he stormed out the door. I had thought we had gotten through that, but now I didn't know.
Damon took a quick look at my crest fallen face and went after our brother, leaving Elena and I behind. I decided to switch the subject to something else that held my curiosity. "So what were you and Damon talking about?"
"Just telling him to watch himself if he expects us to be friends," she replied with a shrug. "If he's going to be hanging around more, I wanted to be clear he knew what we expected."
"He's still going to be the same old flirty Damon though. How does Stefan deal with that anyway? It's probably a rough place considering the whole, Katherine thing and all," I thought out loud. It was an annoying habit sometimes,
Elena did one of those deep breathes she usually takes when she was on the verge of annoyance. "Oh the usual 'Jealous boyfriend' way, by threatening him. But-" she stopped, trying to find the right words to tell me. She probably thought it was something I didn't want to hear. "Stefan's more concerned with how much he's been hanging out with you…" she trailed, the suggestion out in the air.
"What do you mean?" I asked completely oblivious.
Elena took a deep breath in, like she was going to break some bad news to me. She looked me in the eyes and asked, "Nothing's going on between you and Damon? Nothing at all?"
"I mean, we had that little scuffle, but we're still friends," I pursed my lips in thought.
"That's not what I meant Ky. Stefan and I talked about it, and we think that maybe… Damon has… you know, feelings for you," Elena winced as she said it, thinking I'd take it badly.
I laughed at the thought. Damon, having feelings for me of all people. Ha! "Good one! You and Caroline are hilarious you know that?"
Elena gave me a long drawn out sigh, obviously thinking I must be blind. "Well, Stefan still threatened bodily harm on your behalf, so."
I rolled my eyes at the thought. "Boys," I muttered. Elena laughed at my mumbling and grumbling in good humor, and we made our way back outside to soak up more of the sun before it became dark enough for the fireworks.
We walked through the crowd, mingling and rejoined Stefan. Everything seemed like it would be an uneventful night. The crisp air that came with the calm starless night from being in town relaxed me. I think it was what I liked about these events, everyone out, having fun together and celebrating a tradition. Maybe I didn't have to worry about anything more tonight, I might even get to snag some alcohol and try to get drunk again to let loose. Oh how I hate jinxing myself, I just wish it had been about the alcohol. Elena and Stefan were walking next to me hand in hand when Damon found us with a look of irritation and… worry? That wasn't a good sign when Damon was worried. He quickly grabbed my hand to look natural, bringing my hand up to his chest.
"Damon, what are you doing?" Elena eyed him for me.
He looked around nervously before he addressed us. "Saving your life. Fifteen words or less, tomb vamps are here, target is founding families. Get them out of here, now," he stated before letting go of my hand to disappear to god knows where.
"Wait, where are you going?" Stefan called after his retreating form.
"That's more than fifteen words!" he yelled back, disappearing.
Stefan went to walk us away from the festival when Elena stopped him. "Wait, Jeremy's still here somewhere."
He looked between me and Elena until he came to a quick decision. "Alright, let's go find him."
"I'll split off and look, it'll be faster, have your phones ready!" I nodded, taking off before Elena or Stefan could stop me. There was one other person I wanted to find too: Uncle John. He needed to know what was happening and what Bonnie did to the device.
I sprinted through the crowd of people, ducking and weaving to avoid slamming into anyone. Mayor Lockewood was just about to end his speech when I noticed a figure in one of the shops owned by the Gilbert family. That had to have been where Uncle John set up base.
I burst through the door, panting and out of breath. "Uncle John, we have a problem."
Damon came through the door right behind me, he must have had the same idea. "I thought I told you to get out of here," he scolded me right away.
"And you should have listened," John agreed eerily. "Now I can't help what happens next."
"Do you have any idea what you've done?!" Damon yelled at him, making his advance.
"Oh I'm well aware," John smiled wickedly at the progressing vampire, making a movement with his hands.
Then the high pitched scraping in my brain began. I couldn't begin to explain the pain that erupted through my eardrums at the sound as I was brought to my knees. I know I cried out in pain, but I almost couldn't hear it. It sounded like I was underwater but with the pressure of being up in an airplane. John walked over Damon to me after shooting him with vervain, and I almost couldn't make out the strained conversation between the two.
"She's your niece!" Damon shouted over the pain.
"By misguided paperwork only. I don't know what she is, but she isn't human," John looked down on me with pity in his eyes. The tears from the pain and betrayal streamed down my face against my will, and I couldn't stop them if I tried. I thought we had reached an accord between us. I didn't know his hate ran this deep.
My vision went in and out when the ringing wouldn't stop. In a futile attempt to stop the noise, I covered my ears only to feel a wet substance pouring from them. Good, cause bleeding eardrums was what I needed on top of everything else.
"Put them in the basement," John ordered some of the deputies that had walked in.
Needless to say, I may have blacked out for a bit. I came too and the ringing had finally stopped. I vaguely wondered if that was what dogs felt when a dog whistle was blown. I started to shift around and found Damon rolled partially on top of me, almost like a vampire shield. I groaned and rolled him off of me carefully. I could smell smoke and feel heat. Great, my dear Uncle wanted to burn us alive.
"Kyra, you okay?" Damon asked me, exhaustion evident in his voice. Just how much vervain did he get dosed with?!
"Yea," I coughed, trying to rid my lungs of the impending smoke. I pushed myself up, trying to figure out a way out of the mess we were in. There were stairs, but there was no way we'd make it up them without either one of us catching on fire. "Come on Damon, upsie-daisy," I hoisted his arm around my neck to lift him to a relatively standing position.
That's when the Calvary arrived. Stefan burst through the door like an angel bursting through hells gates to rescue two unfortunate souls from eternal torture. He looked between us, noticeably surprised I was there and unsure of who to take. I practically threw his brother at him.
"Take him, I'll follow. I don't have vervain in my system," I rationed. With a pained look on his face, he took Damon and vampire sped out. I, myself, made a mad dash for the stairs, only to be tripped by one of the tomb vampires. "Get the fuck off me!" I screeched at him, shooting a ball of light powerful enough to disintegrate his entire face. Great, first kill, family issues, and fire just all went lovely together I think.
I barely made it out the door before whatever kept the fire from consuming the stairs stopped working. I crashed through the door and tumbled to the ground, coughing up my lungs to cleanse them of the toxic smoke emitted through the burning building.
"Kyra, here, hold onto me," I heard Stefan back at my side. I reached up gingerly, nearly in the same position I had Damon in moments ago, and he helped me get away from the building. Elena immediately took me into her arms while she was on the verge of tears.
"Oh my god, Kyra, what happened? You just disappeared and if anything had happened to you I just-" she blubbered on for a minute. I let it sink in for her that I was fine before I interrupted her emotionally distressed rambling.
I hugged her back firmly first. "I'm fine Lana, promise. Uncle John wants me dead though, so we have that problem to deal with later," I explained bitterly, wiping a stream of soot off my cheek. "I don't think that device was just meant for vampires. Mayor Lockwood's body is down there too, and that thing nearly knocked me completely unconscious."
Stefan's brow furrowed in confusion and surprise. "The mayor was down there?"
"Yea, so there has to be more that we're missing. Can we head to The Grill or something? Get out of here before we draw attention," I motioned, keeping an arm around Elena's shoulder for support.
She eyed me suspiciously when I put some of my weight on her on our way to The Grill. "Are you sure you're okay Ky? Stefan, help me get her to a table." My sister and her boyfriend set me gently into a booth and I let out a breath of relief.
I waved her off, in my usual 'don't worry about it' fashion. "On my way up I got tripped up by a vampire and he got a sun ball to the face, that's all. Which by the way, killed my first vampire, so… that was not so fun."
Elena's eyebrows hit her hairline and she decided to be mother hen again. "Stefan, can you go get information about what's going on with the fire? I want us to be prepared for when we get home. I'm gonna get her something to drink. Do you want something with sugar or…"
"Yea, that'll be fine," I smiled at her concern. She really sprung into action when she needed to. So I sat there useless for a time, just trying to regain my strength again. Not going to lie, I was pretty done with this night.
With the boost of sugar and Stefan back to give us the down low, I noticed we were missing part of our little group. "Where's Damon?" I asked suddenly after Stefan explained the fire was deemed as 'faulty wiring'.
"He disappeared after we got you outside," Stefan replied. The two proceeded to have a mushy couple moment I tried not to gag at.
"I'm going to the school to pick up my dress and then head home to check on Jeremy. Are you going to be okay or did you want to come with?" Elena asked, silently judging if I really could get around on my own at this point.
I thought about it for a second, then stood up to test my durability. "No I should be fine. I'll head home, you two go ahead and go get your stuff, have more 'no I love you more' sugary sweet moments," I teased the two of t hem.
"Yea, you're definitely fine," Elena rolled her eyes, but she still smiled anyway. "See you at home!"
I exited the building and headed home alone in the dark. This seemed like a reoccurring theme here. I was thinking, get home, make sure Jeremy was okay, then crash on my bed as best course of action. Over half way home, I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up once more. Someone watched me from the dark, I could feel it in my soul. The feeling sent shivers through me and a sense of fear tingled in the pit of my stomach. I looked around and found the same figure that stared at me last time across the street.
This time though, I was alone. So I did what any logical person would do when faced with the same position:
I ran like hell the rest of the way home, the welcome effects of adrenaline aided me all the way home. Coming up to my porch however, I really wished I had taken more time. There was Elena, dress in hand, and Damon. They didn't hear me approach. Something in Damon's face told me I didn't want to keep watching, but it was like a train wreck. I just couldn't look away when he leaned his face down into my sister's, obviously kissing her.
I felt my heart twinge at the sight, the feeling unfamiliar to me. Why was this upsetting me? It wasn't my business what they did, they were both consenting adults and I had no right to spy like this. Thankfully Aunt Jenna opened the door and went full parental mode on her, ushering Elena inside.
Damon took off after the door closed, but stopped in front of me. "Kyra, how long were you-"
"Long enough," I told him, my face and voice masking any emotion.
"Look I didn't-" he tried to pardon himself, taking a hold of my arm when I tried to walk away mid-explanation. Why bother? Why did it even matter?
"Listen, whatever you do, or whoever you decide to snog with is none of my business. Glad you're alive, have a good night," I stopped him. I proceeded to yank my arm back from his touch and I took off into my house without another glance his way. So what if he liked my sister, didn't I already think something along those lines anyway? I entered my house, taking a second to breathe against the door. Jenna had left for the hospital, telling me that Caroline had been in an accident, and Mayor Lockwood was dead. So I told her I would wait for Elena to put her stuff away and go with her. I had no idea what she was thinking when she kissed Damon. It just wasn't something she would do.
Something tingled in the back of my mind when I heard a familiar voice on the other side of the door. Wait… Elena? How could she be… no, no way. There was just no way.
A shout and a 'thump' brought my attention to the kitchen. "John?" I called out, taking careful steps toward the noise. When I made it to him, his fingers were cut off and he was bleeding profusely. "Oh my god," I gasped at the site.
"Kyra, what's going on?" Elena asked, stepping into the house. She must have heard the shout from the outside.
"Behind you!" John whispered to me in pain. I whipped around to see no one there, but then Elena sprinted into the kitchen from the door way. John flinched at the sight of her, and had there not been a killer vampire psycho bitch in the house, I would have had a justified laugh at him. Instead, I threw a towel at him and brought Elena closer.
"I think we have a visitor," I told her. "I saw you come into the house five minutes ago, Elena, holding your dress and everything."
"But I just got here, and someone stole my stuff from the school," she looked at me like I grew a second head.
"So that confirms it. Katherine's been playing body double," I muttered aggravated. I gave Elena the house phone, and she quickly finished the call to 911 while I took the knife from the counter. Not that it would do much. I'm not physically strong by a long shot.
Elena's eyes widened at the thought of her vampire ancestor being in the house, and her mind went straight to the worst thing of course. "Jeremy," she whispered to me. We both took off at a run, scrambling up the stairs calling out Jeremy's name with no answer. I vaguely heard the door open and slam closed, but I was more concerned about my little brother.
"Jeremy! Jeremy, please wake up!" Elena gripped onto his shirt frantically shaking him. He suddenly took in a deep breath, startling us both. He looked between the two of us, almost like he was expecting something different. "Jeremy, what happened?"
He shrugged my hand off, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Anna gave me some of her blood, to become a vampire."
I stopped cold in my tracks, frozen in place. "Elena, call Stefan," I whispered out, not leaving my brother's side. "What did you do Jer?" I asked, tears threatening to spill again tonight.
"I found Elena's pills from her accident and I took a bunch of them," he told me, not daring to look at me in the eye.
The ambulance had arrived and Elena motioned Stefan into the room. Jeremy had explained a little further about the little vial in his drawer. I remained stock still while Elena fretted over our brother, asking Stefan if he was a vampire or not, which he wasn't I knew that. I remembered what Vikki was like.
"What should I do? Should I call a paramedic?" Elena asked from the sideline.
Stefan had crouched in front of Jeremy and took his chin in his hand to get a good look at him, gauging if he had been in transition or not. "No, he's fine."
"You mean I'm not a vampire? Damn it," Jer cursed at himself. I reeled toward him at his words.
Elena did a double take at his words. "Jer- Jeremy, don't say that. Why would you want that?"
"Did you hear about Anna? What happened to her tonight? She's dead," he tried to justify his actions.
My patience for the night hit the roof. "I know, I was there Jeremy. I was left in there to die with her, and the other vampires your Uncle and the stupid fucking council threw in there without mercy, and you what? Thought it was a brilliant idea to kill yourself on the off chance you might become a vampire so you can shut off your fucking feelings?!" I seethed at him, walking closer with every step. "Do you even get what that means? That means shutting off your humanity. Everything that makes you human. Family? Doesn't mean shit," I spat out at him, continuing my tirade. "You would have killed everyone in this house without a second thought, just because you can't deal with the pain." I clenched my fists at the thought, getting angrier with each passing moment from the pent up shitty-ness of the day. "Don't you ever give us shit for trying to help you forget ever again." I stormed out of his room, hot angry tears rolling down my face. I had to get out of there out of fear I'd pummel him in the heat of the moment.
Elena walked out shortly after, enveloping me in a hug. "Hey," was all she said while I cried into her shoulder, done with this horrible day. "Come on, Stefan's gonna stay with Jer while we go to the hospital to see Caroline, okay?" I nodded with a few sniffles here and there, climbing into her car with her.
Pulling up to the hospital visitor parking, we parked and made our way inside the building. I hated hospitals. Ever since what happened to our parents and Elena and even long before that, they only held bad memories for me. The sick smell in the air, or I guess you could say sterile smell, and the fluorescent lighting didn't help the atmosphere either. Hospitals just felt… suffocating. We were informed that Tyler had crashed the car, and Matt explained that he had some sort of migraine and heard a high pitched noise when he crashed.
Oh good… Damon was there too. Exactly what else I needed tonight. Between not wanting to look at Bonnie for lying and almost getting me killed, and not wanting to focus on those icy blue eyes for making out with Katherine on my front porch. That also brought up another question. Did he know it was Katherine he m tonsil hockey with?
"Caroline's fine, I gave her my blood, little witch agreed to it, so she'll be as good as new in a few hours," Damon explained to us before getting to his own selfish issues. "Listen, Elena, Kyra, we should probably talk about earlier."
So he did think it was my sister. Honestly, that didn't make me feel better… at all. At least if he did know it was Katherine, I could understand better. He chased after her shadow for his whole vampire life. My sister? The only thing she and her vampire counterpart were their looks.
"Probably shouldn't mention that right now Damon," I warned him.
Elena looked confused briefly before responding. "What are you talking about Damon?"
"Well you know… we…."
"You kissed Katherine, congratulations, now do me a favor, and go do your happy dance away from me," I pushed him away in a snit. I just wanted to see Caroline for myself, give her a hug, and go home to pretend this day never happened.
"Wait, what do you mean Katherine?" he pushed back, not listening to what I had wanted.
I practically growled at him, "Your crazy ex that stabbed John in our fucking kitchen, that Katherine you fuck tart."
Damon stepped back, apparently surprised at my language. He had never heard me use such vulgar language so freely. "You okay there Sparky?"
"No! I am not fucking okay Damon," I practically yelled at him in hysterics. "Almost all of my friends and family almost died tonight damn it, and you were just making out with her on my fucking porch." I shouted at him, hitting his chest with frustrated fists, tears returning to my face. At one point, Damon got a hold of my wrists to stop me and held me still with a hug around my shoulders while I cried harder into his chest. Not done crying yet I suppose. To be fair, it had been a really rough night. I forced myself to calm down after finally letting it all out. I wasn't proud of myself, but I'd deal with my self-loathing later. I peeled out of Damon's embrace, wiping my face of stray tears.
"Kyra, I didn't-"
"I don't really want to hear about it right now Damon. I want to go see Caroline, make sure she's fine, and go to my now completely unsafe home. That okay with you?" I asked him, my tone scalding. I didn't let him answer, and instead walked away toward my friend's room. Stopping in front of the door I pulled myself together and entered with a bright smile.
Caroline smiled at me tiredly, happy to see me. "Kyra!"
"Hey Care, how you feeling?" I walked to her side, putting my hand over hers. She almost died, I almost died, Damon almost died, Jeremy almost died, and John also almost died. I don't feel as bad about that last one, but those were too many people close to me to count tonight.
"I'm fine, really. I'll be out of here in no time. At least I better be, I need to head the school festival tomorrow! No offense to your sister, but she wouldn't know fabulous if it hit her in her face," Caroline huffed from her place in bed, her personality not letting her feel tired.
"Or, hear me out, you can relax and heal up as soon as possible, then we can have our movie night," I smiled, eyes getting ready to water again. I couldn't stand seeing her in a hospital gown and not in her usual fashionable attire. It didn't feel right. I enveloped my friend in a hug. I had been neglecting our friendship and that had to change. "You aren't allowed to do this," I sniffled.
"Aw, do what Ky-ky?" She cooed over me, hugging be back firmly.
I pulled back, wiping away the tears and I explained, "You aren't allowed to almost die before movie night. It's your pick you know, I can't pick corny romance movies like you."
When we finally made it home that night, I didn't have to ask Elena, she just crawled into bed with me. She had been just as done with the day as I was, and I think she was still reeling from all of the information she learned today. Katherine was in town now. I had a feeling she didn't want to sing Kumbaya around a fire while Elena made out with Stefan. Just a hunch though.