I am so happy to be done with finals! I have been studying and working for two weeks and now i'm done and back to writing! Thank you all for sticking with me, and enjoy the next chapter!

P.S.- You may have noticed that we've skipped ahead a good many years, don't worry, there will be some flashbacks through the rest of the story.


Chapter 9

Year: 1890

"So you two are married?" the young waitress asked Caroline as she and Damon sat side by side in a secluded booth in the back of a large bar. Caroline looked at Damon and smirked as she shook her head.

"No, but we've been partners for a long time." She said with a chuckle. The waitress grinned and sat their drinks down.

"Like partners in marriage or something else…" she asked.

"More like partners in crime." Damon smirked at the young girl. Caroline watched as she reacted to his lovely stare down. The waitress swallowed hard and laughed her nervousness off. As she turned, Caroline reached out and caught her wrist, the girl gasped as Caroline leaned in.

"Forget we are here, you never saw us." Caroline whispered. The girl nodded slowly and walked away. Damon glanced quickly at Caroline, her eyes were shifting back and forth quickly, her body rigged, she was worried about something.

"What's wrong?" he asked scooting closer to her.

"We need to leave." She said hurriedly.

"Why?" Damon asked looking around, trying to see what she saw.

"I smell something. We have to go." she said grabbing his hand. He followed without much choice as she pulled him out of the bar. Once on the road outside she turned toward their home and raced away. She burst through the door and shoved Damon toward the stairs.

"Pack our things, I'll be back." she said slamming the door. Damon wanted to chase after her, but he didn't, he did what she said, he turned and ran up the stairs of the temporary home. He grabbed their bags and began stuffing their clothing inside.

"Mr. Salvatore, is something wrong?" one of the maids said coming into the room. He turned to her.

"Tell Frank and Douglas to get the horses and carriage ready. After that, gather everyone in the main room." he said. She nodded and hurried off as he continued stuffing clothes in bags. This was not the first time they'd had to flee one of their various homes. Damon had slipped up and forgotten to compel a girl after feeding from her, she'd told the town and they'd had to run, but not before compelling the girl to forget everything. They'd still left though, they never stayed anywhere long. He closed the bags and grabbed them up, rushing down the stairs, the front door opened and Caroline was there.

"Frank and Douglas are getting the carriage, everyone is gathering in the main room." he said. Caroline nodded and she jerked her head.

"You handle Frank and Douglas, I'll handle the others." She said. He nodded and rushed toward the waiting carriage. He quickly tossed the bags inside and turned to Frank and Douglas, before they could speak he compelled them both to forget everything and go back to the barn. They walked away slowly as Caroline came rushing out of the house, holding her large flowing dress up. Damon held out his hand and helped her up into the carriage and he climbed in front, grabbing the reins of the horses.

"Go through the woods." She instructed. Damon nodded and hit the horses, they snorted and grumbled but took off quickly. Damon glanced over his shoulder at Caroline as they entered the woods. She was looking back at the town, as if she feared something might come after them.

"Are you going to tell me what you smelled?" he asked. Caroline turned to him and climbed up next to him.

"Someone I used to know." she said looking in front of them. He could tell she was not in a talking mood, but he wanted to know who was so scary that they had to flee so fast.

"The man who turned you?" Damon asked. He'd always known that she did not like to talk about the man who had turned her. Anytime he'd brought it up, a certain sadness had come into her eyes. He knew she didn't hate him, he had a feeling that she'd once cared for him deeply. She shook her head and looked at him.

"No, not the man that turned me…his father." She said. Damon nearly stopped the carriage. He knew she was old, and he knew the person that turned her was old, but he didn't know that there was something older than them.

"And he is dangerous?" Damon asked. Caroline nodded and slipped her arm into his.

"He is very dangerous." She said carefully. Damon nodded, he could sense she didn't want to talk about this anymore, he knew she was done, so he stopped questioning, and he continued to move along.


Year: 1892

Caroline sat in a bar, her mind reeling, Mikael was getting close, she'd heard through the grapevine that he'd become a vampire hunter, hunting and killing the very thing that he was. He was dangerous, but he wasn't hunting her and he wasn't hunting Damon. She had a sinking feeling that he was hunting Niklaus. Her heart hurt at the mention of his name, and here she was thinking all her emotions were slipping away. However much her heart hurt, Niklaus was a distant memory, but no matter how distant the memory, she still recalled every single moment of her life with him, every kiss, every touch, every perfect moment. He had been her husband, the father of her child, the man she'd loved. Except she was with Damon now, and comparing the two men would be like trying to compare a hard bar stool and a soft cushioned seat. The two were nothing alike, both were seats yes, but not at all similar. While both of them were men, their personalities were opposite. Caroline loved both men, in what she felt was an equal way. If both men were in her life now and she had to choose between the two, she could not imagine how she'd do it. Her heart belonged to Damon just like it belonged to Nik. She'd never forget either man. She finished her drink and climbed off the bar stool, she'd had one too many drinks. She walked around the back and toward the home she shared with Damon, she was nearly there when something hit her nose, it was coming from inside their barn. She felt her fangs extend, hurting as they pushed through her gums. She raced into the barn and stopped suddenly, a girl, young, maybe twenty was there, her arm bleeding. She'd cut it on something, but Caroline did not care, her heart raced, her body lunged forward, the alcohol in her system was controlling her, she couldn't stop herself. She grabbed the girl and bit into her throat, blood ran down her face as she drank in huge gulps. 'Stop it Caroline, stop it!' she was screaming at herself, but she couldn't stop. She ripped away, falling to the ground and dropping the girl. Her body was on fire, she could barely move, she felt awful. She jumped to her feet and rushed to the girl. Her fingers scrambled across her throat, to make sure she was still alive. She was, her pulse was easy under Caroline's fingers. She breathed a sigh of relief as she lifted the girl's face.

"I was never here, you stumbled and cut your neck along with your arm. You don't remember a thing." She whispered. She stood and raced away, out of the barn, into her house, and up to her room. She slammed her door and fell to the ground. She couldn't believe what she'd done, that girl, that poor girl. She'd never hurt someone that did not deserve it, that girl had been hurt. She'd always compelled people before she drank from them, except for a few that she wanted to hurt, but she could not imagine having her neck ripped at because someone was out of control. Damon was there in front of her now. He was on his knees, pulling her close.

"What's wrong? Who did you feed on?" he asked pulling her face up.

"The girl who keeps the horses, she'd cut her arm. I couldn't stop myself." she said shaking her head.

"Did you kill her?" he asked softly. Caroline shook her head back and forth slowly.

"She is alive." She said. Damon breathed a sigh of relief and pulled her into his arms, dragging her up out of the floor and pulling her to sit on the bed.

"I can't do this anymore. I can't hurt people like this. I need more control." She said shaking her head.

"We have not eaten in days, you were hungry, it was an accident. We have to remember to eat, if we do not eat then we make mistakes." Damon said. Caroline nodded along with his words and then she looked up at him.

"No more innocent lives Damon." She said, her blue eyes meeting his.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"No more innocent people, we cannot feed from anymore innocent people." She said.

"Then who should we feed on?" he asked. She pursed her lips and her eyes shifted quickly before they came back to his.

"Criminals, people who have done bad things. We can drink from them." she said.

"Are you suggesting we break into the jail every time we are hungry?" he asked. She shook her head quickly.

"No, you can tell when people are criminals, the wanted posters, the everyday bar people that we run into that commit crimes on a daily basis, and sometimes, if we are desperate, we can compel the sheriff to let us take a sip." She said. Damon smirked and nodded.

"Ok Caroline. No more innocents." He said. She tossed her arms around him and pulled him close, kissing him gently at first. Damon smiled against her lips and deepened the kiss, pulling her body against his. Her hands sank into his hair, pulling his head back as she crawled across his lap and pushed him back onto the bed. He grinned as she sat up, tugging away her dress as fast as she could. She tossed it to the ground and they began working away his clothes, they came off quickly with two pairs of hands and speed. Their lips returned to one another and they kissed slow and sweet. They crawled further onto the bed, Caroline rolled on top of Damon, spreading her legs across his body. He felt himself growing underneath her bottom. She smiled and dipped down, kissing across his neck, gently pressing her lips to his collar bone and down over his chest, her tongue flicked out, tracing around his nipple slowly. He shivered as her tongue and mouth traveled further down, sliding over his stomach, around his belly button, and down his abdomen. He jerked away, grabbing her and pulling her under him as he climbed on top of her. He grabbed her hands and pulled them above her head, holding them there as he dropped his lips to her neck. She could easily pull away from him, but she didn't. He nibbled on her neck gently and then dropped down to her breasts, his mouth covered each one slowly, licking and sucking, she moaned and arched up into him. When she did, he entered her, pushing himself into her quickly. She cried out and lifted her legs, wrapping them around the backs of his thighs as he pushed into her over and over. Her hips moved with his, both of them moving together, he released her hands and planted his firmly next to her. Her hands wrapped around his back and she lifted her mouth to his shoulder, kissing, biting, sucking. His paced picked up and she began to moan loudly in his ear, which only spurred him on.

"Damon…Damon." She whispered his name and then tipped over, her teeth sank into his shoulder and she shook against him. He hissed in pain and went right behind her, jerking inside her and finding his release. He sank down next to her and they curled around each other.

"How much longer do you think we'll have this?" he asked.

"Have what?" Caroline asked.

"All of this, the money, the houses, the travelling, each other." He said.

"Nothing lasts forever Damon. That I know for certain. But we have it all now, so let's live in the now, not in the future." She smiled. He chuckled and nodded as their lips came together again.


Year: 1894

Caroline and Damon raced through the woods, chasing a man they'd been after for days. He was a bad man, someone Caroline had a personal vendetta against. He'd taken one of their workers earlier in the week, a young girl, she'd been found yesterday, she'd been beaten and her body had been violated. Caroline had been furious, she was livid and he knew she would hurt this man. They stopped suddenly as they smelled him. He was down toward the bottom of the trees. Damon glanced toward her, he would let her have him, he'd eaten early today, one of this man's lackeys, they raced forward and Caroline was on him before he knew it. She grabbed him up and glared at him.

"You bastard." She said, her hand clenching around his throat. He coughed and his eyes widened down at her.

"What are you?" he choked out.

"You hurt my girl. Now I'm going to hurt you." she said jerking him to her. She ripped into his throat, Damon smelled the blood as it ran into her mouth, some down the side of her cheeks. He smirked and stood back as the man grunted and tried to move, but she was too strong. Within a few seconds she'd dropped him to the ground below. She leaned over him and looked right into his eyes.

"We've never met, this never happened. You and all your idiot friends will leave this town and never return. You will take every last dime that you have and give it to Nikki and her family. Understood?" she asked. He nodded slowly and she moved away from him.

"Why didn't you kill him?" Damon asked. Caroline glanced over her shoulder and shook her head.

"I'm not killing anyone anymore Damon. I thought you understood that." she said.

"I do, but he deserves it." Damon said.

"Yes he does, but I'm not a judge, and I won't put him to death." She said. Damon nodded as she took his hand and they headed back toward town.


Caroline lay in bed next to Damon later that night, her hands wrapped around his bicep, his running up and down her legs softly.

"Well at least Nikki and her mother will finally have some money. I never even noticed the poor girl. She was always so quiet." Caroline said. Damon nodded and ran his fingertips gently across her thigh.

"She is a sweet girl." Damon said.

"She will be ok. She's strong." Caroline nodded. Damon turned and faced her.

"I want you to tell me something, just one thing about the man that changed you." he said. Caroline looked deeply into his eyes.

"Is this something you have to hear?" she asked.

"No, but I want to hear it. I want you to be comfortable enough to share it with me." he said. Caroline nodded and opened her mouth to speak but a loud shriek broke through the silent night. Caroline leapt up and jerked open the curtains of the window. It was wide open to let the cool night air in. There were people streaming out of the local bar as it went up in flames, five men stood outside, grabbing each person that came out and shaking them, yelling something at them. Caroline listened, "Where are the people who drink human blood?" they were saying. Caroline scanned the men and she immediately spotted Mikael. She ripped away from the window and turned to Damon.

"We have to leave, now!" she yelled grabbing the large bags of money they kept under the bed, just in case. She grabbed up her small bag of clothes and Damon grabbed his. Her hand wrapped in his as they raced down the staircase.

"Miss Caroline, the bar is on fire!" one of the maids said as she ran out of the kitchen. Caroline nodded and turned toward their backdoor.

"Forget we were ever here. You have never met us." She said to her.

"Go compel the others. I'll take care of everyone in the house." She said. They raced away from one another, Caroline could feel the men coming closer, as she rushed through the house, compelling everyone she ran into. She rushed out the back door and Damon was waiting. He held his hand out and she grabbed him as she heard her front door burst open. Damon moved to run but she stopped him.

"We cannot go together." she said softly. Her heart was breaking all over again, she had to let him go. Here and now they had to part.

"What?" he asked looking back at her.

"These men are better trackers than you've ever seen. We'll be easy to track together, separate they'll never find us. Damon we cannot go on. This is our future." She said as tears began rolling down her cheeks.

"No, no, we'll be fine, as long as we're together." he pulled her, but she jerked her wrist away.

"I cannot come with you knowing our lives will be at risk, I cannot live knowing you are dead Damon. Just go, we will meet again, someday." She said softly as the men ran through their house, searching, they had seconds left. Damon closed his eyes and nodded. Caroline's heart broke, she sobbed and tears ran down quickly as he grabbed her in his arms and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"I would not be able to live if you died either. Someday, we will be together again." He said looking down at her. Caroline grabbed him and their lips crashed together quickly, the kiss was fast, deep, and left them breathless.

"Promise me one thing." She said as their foreheads rested together.

"Anything." He said.

"Live your life, forget me, don't spend your eternity searching, be happy Damon." She said looking toward the door.

"I promise." He said.

"I love you Caroline." He said.

"I love you too Damon." She whispered. She heard them coming and they broke apart.

"Go, now." she said to him. He turned and ran, Caroline watched his retreating back and she put her hand over her heart, she thought they were forever, always together, but nothing lasts forever.