Renaissance
By: Darkest Ember
Chapter 7: Allies and Enemies
Stefan cursed under his breath as Damon stalked into the Gilbert's backyard, spitting off demands of returning his doppelganger while listing all the ways he was going to make 'you over-aged Mikaelsons' pay. When would he learn that charging into a heated situation never ended well? Before he followed his headstrong brother, Stefan acknowledged the two semi-terrified girls standing behind him.
"I need you two to stay here until we get Elena."
"Are you kidding?" Caroline gasped. "That's our friend in there. You can't expect us to just stand here and watch!"
Bonnie agreed with Caroline as her pleading eyes locked on Stefan. "You know I could help. Maybe distract Kol with an aneurism or something."
The moment an agitated sigh left Stefan's lips, they knew he had conceded. "Fine, you can come along, but we need a plan first."
Stefan scanned the yard and was surprised by what he saw. Two people were strung up hanging from the tree and a boy was lying on the ground, practically bleeding to death. Since Damon was already dealing with the deranged vampire responsible for all this, it was obvious that the three of them needed to save the humans. Taking control of the situation, he began issuing commands.
Once they agreed on a plan of action, Caroline sneaked through the Gilbert house to the other side of the yard and out of the warring vampires' sights. She'd seen the scene from a distance when she'd been standing with Stefan and Bonnie, but upon approaching Alaric and Jenna, she couldn't help but gasp loudly in horrified shock. It took her a moment to take it all in, but once she came to her senses, she stepped on an extra milk crate and carefully removed the rope.
"Oh my God, Mr. Saltzman…Jenna…are you alright?" she asked as she helped their strained bodies step down.
Through gasps for breath, Jenna thanked her and gladly accepted her offer to help her walk over to the house. Alaric stayed behind, initially concerned when he saw another vampire approach Jeremy. Just when he considered charging forward with a pointed twig in hand, he realized that this vampire – the other Salvatore brother – was saving Jeremy.
Alaric took stumbled steps toward Stefan and gripped him by the collar once he was done giving Jeremy blood. "Save Elena," he gritted out.
All Stefan wanted to do was save Elena, but the extent to which he could save her was unknown. Would he just save her from Kol? Or could he defy his brother and save her whole life from ending far too soon?
He glanced over his shoulder and saw that Kol's hold on Elena remained, which caused Damon's enraged expression to deepen. Something told Stefan that when Damon gets Elena back, he's never going to let her out of his sight. Not until he kills her himself.
Pleased with his conniving work on his mother's behalf, Finn decided to enjoy the rest of the day. After watching some documentaries on the History Channel, he found himself drifting asleep, imagining what the world was like during all those years he rotted in that coffin.
His imagined version of the American Revolution suddenly morphed into an image of Esther, looking far from pleased. "Why hasn't Niklaus left yet?" she demanded.
"Mother!" he exclaimed, startled by the change in mental scenery. "His flight is leaving later today. I don't understand what the hurry is."
Esther sighed, wishing her son understood the witchy aspect of the situation. "If one of those vampires doesn't perform the ritual within 48 hours, then we will have to wait until the next full moon. The longer it is prolonged, the quicker this world will spiral into a state that is beyond saving."
"What are you talking about?"
"As it stands, there are more vampires than humans living on earth. Soon the blood supply will vanish, creating many starving, desperate vampires. Do you understand why this ritual must be completed now?"
"Yes, I understand. Once the doppelganger dies, all of us will die."
Esther nodded with a curt smile. "Once the vampires are gone, the humans will thrive once more."
"I won't let you down, mother."
Although Finn had conversed with his mother in a dreamlike state, his voice carried over into reality. Rebekah heard every single word.
Kol and Damon exchanged heated glares as Kol's grip on Elena tightened. "You know," he taunted, "for someone trying to become the ultimate vampire lord, it took you such a long time to find us."
Damon easily laughed off the insult as he took a couple steps closer. "I didn't think you'd be so obvious. If I were you, I would've gotten the hell out of this town. Now, you're just going to die."
He lunged forward, fangs barred and murderous intent clouding his eyes. Elena cried out as Kol pulled her arm back into an unnatural position, using her as a human shield. He clicked his tongue in mock disappointment. "Ah, ah, ah. Wouldn't want to hurt the precious doppelganger before the ritual."
Damon growled, stopping in his tracks. "Let her go."
"You might want to hear me out first," he said, dipping his head closer to Elena's neck, "or else I might get hungry. And I'm not particularly known for controlling my appetite – AHHH."
Any appearance of confidence Kol had shown before was replaced with confusion. Although the sudden pain would vanish as quickly as it arrived, it still felt as though his skull was being split with a hammer. By the time he located the witch responsible, hiding in the bushes, he'd already lost his hold on Elena, who was now standing between him and Damon.
A satisfied smirk crept across Damon's lips as he glanced over his shoulder. "What do ya know, the Bennett witch can be helpful after all." Before losing his opportunity, he snatched Elena's arm in a bruising grip.
Kol didn't seem to share in Damon's appreciation. Once he was sure the stream of anuerisms had stopped, he sped over to where Bonnie was hiding and plucked her from the bushes, leading her back to the group by tugging on a handful of hair. He sped right past Damon and Elena and slammed Bonnie into the tree trunk.
"That was a big mistake," he snarled.
Elena's eyes went wide with horror as she put all her strength into her attempts to free herself from Damon's grip. This night had already been so horrifying, but she refused to stand there and watch one of her best friends die for her.
"You have to let me go," she gritted through struggles. "Without Bonnie, I'm assuming it would've taken you much longer to find me."
She could feel his muscles tense around her and began fearing that perhaps teasing, even in the lightest sense, would forever be a mistake around him.
Damon rolled his eyes, but silently admitted that he wouldn't have been able to retrieve Elena without Bonnie's help. "There really isn't any point in tormenting her," he said flatly. "You've already lost. Go back home to your tea parties…or whatever."
Keeping his hand wrapped firmly around Bonnie's throat, Kol gave Damon a sideglance as he addressed him. "I don't think I've lost anything," he said calmly. "Aren't you at all curious as to why I set up this whole charade in the first place? Don't you find it odd that I'd steal the stolen doppelganger from my own brother?"
Damon's disgruntled expression showed a brief sign of intrigue before settling into indifference. "It's really not that surprising, given how dysfunctional your family is."
It was evident that Damon's remark stung a little, but Kol wasn't deterred. In fact, he played on that detail to weasel his way into Damon's head. "That's exactly right. They are dysfunctional, hence why I'm here. I wanted to make sure that if someone must complete the ritual, it would be you."
Surprised by Kol's response, Damon narrowed his eyes toward the Original, while ignoring Elena's pleading and trembling. Damon laughed flatly. "Let me get this straight. You want me to defeat your own brother?"
"Half-brother, really. Besides, I'm certain word of my betrayal has already reached him. "
"Whatever," Damon said, rolling his eyes impatiently. "If you really want to help me, then you can start by leaving. I don't need your help."
Elena was both relieved and panicked when Kol took a few steps away from Bonnie and held his hands up in defense. If Kol manages to get into Damon's head, then the ritual really will happen tomorrow, and I'll be a vampire, she thought. Refusing to settle for her fate, she managed to distance herself from Damon and shoot him a harsh, judgmental stare.
"Are you seriously going to do what he says? He's your enemy. He can't be trusted."
"Look, I know how strange this might seem, but you have to listen to me, Damon. I happen to know that you have all the components needed for the ritual. Now there's nothing holding you back. Don't deny yourself what's rightfully yours."
The pace at which Damon's lips curled upward indicated that Kol's words had already crawled into his brain and began to influence his thought process. "You're absolutely right. We shouldn't be wasting time here anymore."
Elena's struggling ceased. She bemoaned in disbelief. Something about that sound she made – so full of despair – and the way her heartbeat dipped to a low, depressed rate made it difficult for Kol to enjoy this moment. Why can't she realize that in the end, I'm saving her…forcing her to embrace life, rather than barely exist in it?
"I have one more suggestion, if you'll hear me," he said, his voice losing that edge of arrogance and confidence she was so used to hearing. Kol had already noticed that most of the humans had been escorted inside, leaving Stefan to tend to the injured boy. "Why don't you let Elena spend her last night with family and friends?"
While Elena's narrowed eyes filled with suspicion and the smallest shred of hope, Damon snorted out a laugh. "Yeah, so she can plot her umpteenth escape plan? I don't think so."
"That's why you have leverage to ensure she won't do anything stupid," he said, nodding toward Jeremy.
That threw Elena off the tracks of this emotional roller coaster he's forced her to ride. How dare he come into her home, terrify her family, and think he can control her future? Now, he thought she'd willingly let her brother be put in more danger for her own benefit? "Forget it, Kol," she said, thrilled to hear her voice without any quivering. "I'm not putting Jeremy in any more danger. Just take me now." She turned her harsh gaze onto Damon, praying that for once he'll oblige her.
Instead of Damon leaving it at that, his own suspicions started manifesting. He could tell, just as Kol could, that Elena cared more about her loved ones than herself. Why wouldn't she want to spend her last day alive with them? Unless she was up to something already. Damon peered over Elena's shoulder at Stefan. "Grab him," he said. "You can go wherever you want in the city limits of Mystic Falls. But if you're not back here by noon tomorrow, I'll rip his head off and leave it waiting for you on the porch."
Seeing the somewhat satisfied look on Kol's face sent Elena into hysterics. She gripped the sleeve of Damon's jacket. "Please don't do this. I don't want it! Just let me go with you."
"I'm only allowing this for your benefit," Damon replied, yanking his arm out of her grasp. "Consider yourself lucky. Katherine never got this opportunity."
Although there were countless pleas still begging to be used on her tongue, Damon's statement successfully confused her, causing her to stand stuck in place as Stefan led Jeremy out the back gate with Damon and Kol behind him. Who's Katherine? She wondered, completely lost in thought until Bonnie stumbled over and pulled her into a warm, though teary-eyed embrace.
Inside the Gilbert house, while the negociations were happening outside, Caroline was preparing ice packs to help with the swelling and bruising around Alaric and Jenna's necks. Jenna was curled up on the couch with her knees pulled up against her chest. Her body racked with sobs as tears continued leaking from the corners of her eyes.
Everyone's heads whipped toward the patio doors when they opened and Bonnie and Elena came inside. Jenna leapt from the couch and hugged Elena. "Where did they go?" she asked. "Wait…where's Jeremy?"
Elena pulled away and bitterly smiled through tears. "They took him as insurance. I get to stay here tonight, and as long as I got back to them tomorrow, they'll let Jeremy go."
"Why did Kol even suggest this? He didn't strike me as the compassionate type," Bonnie murmured, rubbing her sore shoulders.
"He's psychotic!" Elena replied, flopping down on the couch. "He tortured my family and then, just before you guys arrived, he shoved some of his blood down my throat. He wants Damon to perform the ritual tomorrow night so that when he kills me, I'll come back as a vampire."
Alaric, who had been standing by the window to make sure no one would be coming back, turned to face the group of worried women. "There has to be a way around this," he said softly. "We've been given a chance to fight back…we shouldn't waste it."
"The minute Damon suspects something, he'll kill Jeremy," Elena countered.
"So that's it?" Caroline asked. "You're just going to give up?"
"What choice do I have?" she cried. "I…I'd rather be a vampire than watch any of you get hurt."
Jeremy fell to the unforgiving marble floor with a thud. "What're you going to do with him until tomorrow?" Kol asked, mischief edging its way into his voice.
Stefan shoved his way past Damon and Kol, purposely bumping both their shoulders. "You should just leave him alone. Don't you think he's been through enough tonight?" He shot a particularly accusatory glare at Kol. Stefan didn't trust Kol at all and wondered why Damon was being so uncharacteristically swayed.
Appearing to weigh all his options, Damon remained silent for a minute, just staring at the teenaged human splayed across his floor. His eyes landed on a rather large ring adorning his right hand. "Where did you get that ring?"
"It's a family heirloom," he said, trying to be as vague as possible.
"You know what that ring does, don't you?" Crap.
"Yeah," he replied, forcing himself to his feet. "It brings me back from the dead."
Damon seemed pleased. He approached Jeremy with a smile and wrapped an arm around his shoulder. "Tell you what, Jer. For being such a good sport, I'll let you sleep in one of the guest rooms upstairs."
Some lowly vampires in Damon's servitude appeared out of nowhere and offered to escort Jeremy to the bedroom. Stefan exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. After what was planned for tomorrow, he could do without any additional inflictions of misery on this unfortunate Gilbert family.
Feeling that his job as protector was complete, Stefan retired to his own quarters, hoping for a relaxing remainder of the evening. As much as he tried to relax, though, he knew that so long as Kol Mikaelson was in their house, he needed to remain on edge.
On the other hand, Damon felt great. He poured himself a drink and reclined in a leather chair near the roaring fire. Kol stood rigidly with a drink of his own cluctched in hand. "Don't tell me you're going to pass up such an outstanding opportunity with Elena's brother?"
A knowing smirk crept across Damon's face. "It's all part of the game, Kol. Lull him into a false sense of security and then begin the chase."
Upon hearing this, Kol loosened up a little and joined Damon by the fire. Their glasses clinked in a cheers as they contemplated how to go about the night's form of entertainment.
Boisterous laughter and the occasional sound of shattering glass drifted from the den throughout the rest of the mansion. While some of the resident vampires, like Stefan, cringed from the obnoxiousness, others were pleased to hear Damon doing something other than terrorizing humans or plotting to defeat the Mikaelsons.
Kol mixed blood and bourbon in a glass and watched with amusement as the blood fell straight to the bottom, leaving a trail of diluted crimson wisps behind. The amount of alcohol they'd consumed would've killed a human twice over, yet they were still hardly wasted.
Damon's eyes flew up to the ceiling. "Shhh! Do you hear that? It would seem that Jeremy is having a hard time sleeping." He grinned at his unlikely friend with purely evil intentions dancing in his eyes.
Kol finished the rest of his drink and slammed the glass on the table. "I say we go help the poor lad out." With that, the two headed up the stairs and crept down the hall to Jeremy's room. Kol nudged the door open, though stayed out of sight.
The sound of the door creaking open was enough to cause panic to creep into Jeremy's mind. He'd already been unable to sleep due to his sinking feeling that his safety wasn't guaranteed here, but now…now someone was in the hall. Cautiously, he sat up and leaned against the headboard. Aside from the dim light drifting in from the hallway, the room was pitch black. Even if someone had sneaked into the room, he wouldn't be able to see them.
Retaining the lessons that Alaric had taught him, Jeremy had a supply of vervain darts and small stakes latched to his ankles underneath his jeans. It took a bit longer than usual, but he managed to assemble the dart gun in the dark. Reassured by his weapon, he crept out of bed and approached the door. He didn't see anyone at first, but once he turned to his right he saw Kol speeding toward him. Jeremy took aim and fired two or three times, successfully embedding the darts into Kol's chest and arm. Kol's amusement quickly flared into anger as he ripped the darts out and cursed under his breath.
"Sorry, but if you're trying to kill me, I'm not going to make it so easy for you."
"What makes you think we'd want to kill you?" Damon asked, standing directly behind Jeremy. "We just want to have some fun."
Feeling cornered and growing increasingly concerned with the look of malice on Kol's face, Jeremy spun around and shoved a stake in Damon's leg before bolting for the stairs. The sound of blood pumping in his ears was loud enough to rival their pounding footsteps echoing from behind him. Although it might be worthless to cry for help in a mansion filled with vampires, Jeremy still gave it a shot. "HELP! SOMEONE HELP ME!" Upon remembering Stefan healing and defending him, he tried calling out his name, but had yet to receive a response as he rounded a corner and made it past the second floor.
The front door, completely unguarded, was in sight now. He found it hard to believe, but maybe he'd be able to save himself – escape on his own. Using what little energy he had left, he pushed himself forward, jumping over the last five steps and landing with grace on the floor near the door. Just as he was reaching for the doorknob, a hand clamped down on his arm with crushing force.
"Aw, you were so close," Kol taunted, increasing the pressure of his grip. Jeremy's face twisted into pained contortions as he tried to pull his arm away. Kol let him go suddenly, causing him to lose his balance and fall. Damon joined them in the foyer, putting his foot on Jeremy's throat.
"How do you think your sister would feel if she could see you now?" Damon asked.
Jeremy clawed at Damon's leg but wasn't able to get him to lift his foot. "She'd kill you," he gritted out. "Both of you." He glanced between Damon and Kol.
Damon crouched down. "I'd love to see her try."
"This is getting boring," Kol butted in. "Let's just kill him and see how he comes back to life. I've never seen one of those rings in action."
"How have you not seen it before? Aren't you supposed to be a thousand years old?"
Kol rolled his eyes. "Have you forgotten that Klaus had me daggered in a coffin for hundreds of years?"
That seemed to be a satisfactory answer for him. He stepped off Jeremy's throat and pulled him up off the ground. He passed him over to Kol, who shoved him up against the wall. "How should we do it?" he asked.
Damon pulled a bloodied stake – the one Jeremy had used – out of his pocket and twirled it between his fingers. "Let's use this." Before there could be any more deliberation or consideration, Damon shoved Kol aside and jammed the stake into Jeremy's throat. The stake broke through Jeremy's esophagus and came out on the other side of his neck. Jeremy's eyes widened as he choked on blood and helplessly tried to suck in air.
Within a few short minutes, Jeremy was dead, pinned to the wall with blood still pouring out from both sides of the wound. The wall was covered in the crimson substance, and Jeremy's clothes soaked it up like a sponge.
Stefan came barreling down the stairs, hoping to break up whatever quarrel had erupted, but was horrified to find that he was much too late. "What the hell is wrong with you two?" he growled.
"We're just having a bit of fun," Kol shrugged.
"Let me guess, this was all your idea."
"It was a mutual effort," Damon said. "What's the big deal, Stef?"
"It's already bad enough that you're going to be using Elena for your own selfish gains tomorrow, but to continue torturing her family…it's not right."
Damon's eyes darkened as he advanced on Stefan. "That's kind of ironic coming from you. What about all you've done to her family?"
The accusing, disgusted look on Stefan's face withered to guilty resignation. "I'm done with this. If he's staying here," he said nodding toward Kol, "then I'm not." Stefan sidestepped the expanding puddle of Jeremy's blood and stormed out the front door.
After Stefan's dramatic exit, Damon walked over to Jeremy, ripped the stake from his throat and let his body fall to the floor in a slump. A few more minutes passed before he awoke, desperately gasping for air and looking bewildered. The hole in this throat had disappeared, leaving behind nothing but blood stains and bruises.
The next morning…
Sunlight filtered into Elena's room as she awoke without the assistance of an alarm. To be honest, she was surprised she'd managed to fall asleep at all. Her body was still tense, and the back of her eyes throbbed from all the tears she'd cried into her pillow. It didn't help that she could hear everyone downstairs still trying to find a way around her self sacrifice late into the night.
Of course she appreciated their dedication, but if they kept this up, they were going to get themselves killed. Not knowing when to expect Damon, she forced herself out of bed and scanned the clothes hanging in her closet. Does it even matter what I pick? She thought with a bitter laugh.
Caroline was the first to stir upon hearing the creaking floorboards. "Morning, Care," Elena said, sitting down next to her.
She grumbled a response, smiling as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. But then she sprung upright with a horrified expression. "Morning?! Oh God, my mom doesn't know that I left last night. I…I have to get going." She scrambled to her feet and pulled Elena into a quick hug. "Look, I don't know what's going to happen tonight or if I'll be able to be here for you, but you better not go down without a fight!"
Shortly after Caroline's animated awakening, everyone else started to wake up. Much to Elena's relief, no one touched on the "let's stop the sacrifice" topic. In fact, the atmosphere was noticeablely tranquil, all things considered. Jenna shared funny stories about when she'd babysit Elena and Jeremy. Alaric discussed his awkward college years at Duke. The reminiscing lifted Elena's spirits and reminded her of all the amazing people still left in her life, despite the one's she'd already lost.
The shrill sound of the doorbell ringing caused an immediate silence to settle in. Alaric cocked a gun loaded with wooden bullets and peered out the window. "It's just the pizza guy," he said, a woosh of relief in his voice.
He opened the door with a smile, but that quickly vanished when he saw who was standing on the porch. Dressed in the Domino's Pizza uniform, Kol grinned. "I've got a special delievery for Miss Elena Gilbert."
Upon hearing that awfully familiar voice, Elena ran to the door just in time to see Kol pull Jeremy up the porch by the collar of his shirt. "What, are you doing Damon's dirty work now? He can't even come get me himself?"
Kol shrugged off her insult with indifference. "He had to go deal with his meddlesome brother or something. So, shall we continue with the exchange?"
Jeremy's bruised arm and bloodied clothes didn't go unnoticed. She lunged forward and pulled him away from Kol. "What the hell did you do to him?" she growled.
"They killed me," Jeremy sputtered. He explained how the ring worked…how any signs that he'd been stabbed vanished when he came back to life.
Kol rolled his eyes. "Now that we've got all the dramatics out of the way, let's get going, darling." He reached for Elena's arm but she dodged.
"I don't care what you say. Hurting my brother was not part of this arrangement. I'm not going with you."
Kol sighed. He tried to make this as painless as possible, but clearly Elena enjoyed living her life in constant struggle. Alaric, tired of watching this going back and forth, aimed the gun at Kol's head and demanded that he leave. It was obvious that Kol didn't take the threat seriously. "Go ahead," he cheered. "Shoot me. I need a good reason to kill someone."
Alaric's outstretched arms wavered slightly, but he maintained his aim once he pulled the trigger. The bullet embedded itself in his neck, effectively puncturing the jugular. Kol stood still, shock settling in. But then in a flash, his eyes held a murderous gleam as he plucked the bullet from his flesh. Elena knew that he was going to retaliate, so she leaped into his line of attack. She smirked as he stumbled to a stop mere inches in front of her.
She looked up at him with confidence she didn't know she possessed. "I'm ready to go now," she said pleasantly. "Watching you bleed made me feel a little better."
Kol scowled as he harshly grabbed her elbow. "If you're not careful," he said lowly, "I'll shove more of my blood down your throat."
As he lead her toward the door, she realized that he wanted to leave right in that very moment. She began struggling against his grip, but it was unrelenting. Forced to continue walking out the door, she helplessly glanced over her shoulder and watched as her family… her house…her life as she knew it got further and further away.
He didn't even let her say goodbye.
Elena gets feisty with him and Damon almost flirts with her before tossing her in a holding cell in the dungeons, conveniently located next to Katherine, who fills her mind with ideas of escape.
So...there was kind of a lot going on in this chapter. I wanted to include more, but it would've been way too long . I know it's been a while since there's been some Delena action, but trust me, that will happen in the next update.
Some things to ponder until then: What did Stefan do to the Gilberts? Will Elena and Katherine get a chance to meet before the ritual? Can Rebekah get to Mystic Falls before Klaus? What's Elijah been up to all this time?
Comments would be greatly appreciated! Regardless, thanks for taking time to read my story :)
XoXo Amber
