CHAPTER 10
Author's Note- Mary Louise has had enough. Caution: there will be blood!
Bonnie answered the door when Nora knocked and greeted them both with a warm smile.
"I guess it worked then."
Nora smiled and nodded.
"It did. Thank you."
Bonnie shut the door behind them and the two vampires came face to face with Valerie.
The Heretic offered them both a small smile and then looked behind Nora at Mary Louise.
"Good to have you back."
"Oh spare us the pleasantries." Mary Louise drawled with a roll of her eyes.
Nora inwardly grinned. That was definitely her Mary Lou.
Damon stood in the corner, near his brother's body.
Nora raised her chin.
"Shall we get on with it then?"
Bonnie nodded and Valerie took her place beside Stefan's body, joined by Bonnie, and Nora and Mary Louise stood on the other side.
Nora looked at Mary Lou as they held their hands over Stefan's body.
"Just like we did with Julian." Nora whispered.
Mary Louise nodded and they both shut their eyes. Bonnie and Valerie did the same.
They all spoke the words of the incantation and let their hands hover Stefan's body as they felt all their power working together.
It took a lot of time and effort but then Stefan's eyes snapped open and they all stood back as he sat up.
Damon's mouth dropped open when he saw his brother and Valerie had tears in her eyes. Bonnie and Nora smiled a little, happy that the spell had worked and Mary Louise kept her eyes on Valerie, showing little to no emotion.
The blonde moved to Nora's side as the rest of them started asking Stefan if he was alright and did he remember anything (which he did so no problem there like there was with her) and she took the brunette's hand.
"Can we go now?" She asked impatiently.
Nora smiled and then nodded.
"Yes. Of course we can."
The two left without so much as a goodbye and went back to the house to pack the few things that they had.
...
Nora packed a few books and Mary Louise stopped packing to watch her.
When Nora felt the blonde's eyes on her, she looked up with a bright smile on face.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Do you have a plan for where we are to go next?"
Nora's brow furrowed.
"I haven't actually, no." She said sheepishly.
Mary Lou smiled and let out a small sigh.
"You were just fantasizing again, were you?" She asked playfully.
Nora nodded her head slowly.
Mary Louise came around to her side and sat down on the edge of the bed, looking up at the brunette.
"Tell me about your fantasy. What did you envision for us?" She asked softly.
Nora smiled as she recalled all these months of dreaming and she sank to her knees on the floor as she picked up a book of poems and flipped through the pages; not really reading them, just remembering that when she read the poems, they helped her see the perfect place for herself and Mary Lou in her mind.
"I see a little cottage by the river in the country somewhere. We would stay there all day, doing silly little chores, like cleaning, cooking, tending to the garden."
"Well I think I will take over the cooking, you seem to not be able to get the hang of that." Mary lou teased.
Nora chuckled and tapped her leg with the book.
"Very funny." She muttered but she said it with humour.
"What else is there?"
"We have a small garden...it's beautiful. Full of roses and lilies and the grass is so green and rich. The river runs right by our cottage and it's so soothing. We can stay by it for hours and nobody comes by because the place is so remote."
Mary Louise smiled as she imagined it in her own mind. It sounded like heaven.
Nora continued;
"When we do eventually have to feed, we'll go into the town and we'll go into the clubs and dance the night away before taking a couple of humans and making sure that we are sufficiently fed."
Mary Lou nodded.
"And then?"
Nora looked into her girlfriend's eyes and they softened.
"Then we go back home and drift off into a peaceful sleep in each others arms and when we wake up the next day, we'll realise that we never needed power or vast amounts of money; we have each other and that will always be enough."
Mary Louise smiled and lovingly kissed Nora.
"I cannot wait to make that happen with you." The blonde said.
Nora smiled warmly at her and then went back to packing.
"I would like to say goodbye to Bonnie before we leave." Nora told her.
Mary Louise nodded.
"Of course. She is your friend after all. There is something I have to do too. So take all the time you need. I'll be back before dark."
Mary Louise left the house before Nora, and made sure she was out of sight before taking her phone from her pocket and dialing Valerie's number.
The other Heretic answered straight away.
"Mary Lou? I wanted to talk to you. To say thank you. I'm sorry for what I put you through but you must understand that I only did what I did to save someone I love. You would've done the same for Nora." She babbled.
Mary Louise contained her anger and nodded her head.
"Of course I understand. In actual fact, I would love to put this all behind us. Can you meet me for a little chat?"
"Of course. Shall I return home?"
"No. Meet me at the cemetery. I think it's fitting; burying the past and all that."
"Good idea. I don't want anymore bad blood between us."
Mary Louise smiled.
"Neither do I. See you soon."
...
Valerie turned up at the cemetery gates and looked around. The blonde was no where in sight.
"Mary Lou?" Valerie called out but she didn't answer. Maybe she wasn't here yet.
Valerie's phone buzzed and she looked at it as she pulled it from her jacket pocket.
WHERE ARE YOU?
Valerie frowned, looking round again to make sure she hadn't missed her standing there.
She text back.
I'M HERE. WHERE ARE YOU?
INSIDE. NEAR THE SALVATORE CRYPT.
Valerie nodded. Makes sense that she would be inside.
OK. ON MY WAY.
Valerie made her way to the Savlatore crypt but still there was no sign of Mary Louise.
She stood, her back to the crypt.
"Where are you?" She whispered to herself.
Valerie heard a twig snap but didn't turn around fast enough as Mary Lou brought a thick plank of wood down on the back of her head.
The Heretic fell to the cemetery floor, out cold...
"Ah, I see you're awake." Mary Louise noted as Valerie slowly raised her aching head.
"What did you do to me?" She asked groggily.
The blonde smirked as she stood with arms folded across her chest, in front of Valerie.
"I think that was pretty obvious." She said with a glance at the plank of wood that was resting against the wall of the crypt.
"Where are we?"
"The final resting place of the Salvatores." Mary Louise replied as she looked around.
Valerie moved her arms and found that they were tied. Her eyes widened as she realised she was in trouble.
"What is this? You said you wanted to talk, to clear the air between us. Why am I here?!"
Mary Lou grinned inwardly. She could hear the panic in the other Heretic's voice.
"I actually wanted to teach you a lesson. One that you will not be so quick to forget."
Valerie swallowed as the blonde vampire circled her.
"You brought Nora and I back and then proceeded to manipulate me when you discovered I had no memory. But one thought keeps running through my head, something I hoped you could shed some light on."
She stopped circling and glared down at Valerie.
"Why is it that Nora had her memory intact but I didn't?"
Valerie opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. So Mary Louise continued.
"Would you like to know what I think?"
Valerie licked her lips nervously.
"I think that you made it that way. I think you took my memory from me so that you had a bargaining chip to use. For you see, what would be the point in bringing us back as we once were? What was the certainty that Nora and I would agree to help you bring Stefan back? There wasn't any. You had to make it certain."
"Yes, I did, ok? I admit that. I made it so you had no memory. I knew that if Nora had something to fight for, she'd do anything and you would be easy to talk to because you didn't know any better."
The blonde nodded along to every word as Valerie confirmed her suspicions.
She crouched down in front of the other Heretic and rested her elbows on her knees and as she clasped her hands together.
"Do you know why I have brought you here?"
Valerie glanced around and then shook her head.
"I want to show you what your actions have lead to; Lily rests here but she wouldn't have been. She would still be alive, if not for that mouth of yours'." She spat.
"I had to tell her! She had a right to know that Julian was not the man she thought he was!"
"And where did it get you, Valerie? Lily is dead, our family is torn apart and are you Stefan's lover? No, you're not, because he loves another and nothing you do will change that! We all know the truth, the only one who doesn't, is you."
Valerie looked down.
"It won't last...him and Caroline. He'll come back to me."
Mary Louise grinned darkly.
"No, I don't believe he will. I see the way he looks at her in comparison to the way he looks at you. You Valerie, are his past and that's all you'll ever be to him. It doesn't matter wether you were carrying his child or not."
Tears filled Valerie's eyes.
"That's not true...he loved me once, he-"
"Can love you again? You poor girl. Are you really that deluded?" Mary Louise asked with a pout, her tone portraying nothing but mockery.
"I was carrying his child until your precious Julian killed it!"
"Lily died because of you!"
"You can't blame me for speaking the truth!"
"But why now?! Why did it take you so long to say all this?! Your only goal was to get back into Stefan's life you didn't care who got killed or hurt because of it! You are selfish, Valerie! And you wonder why I have always hated you!"
Valerie stopped and Mary Louise stood there, her eyes dark and threatening.
"I brought you here... to kill you." The blonde whispered dangerously.
The fear returned to Valerie's eyes and she shifted as much as she could in the chair.
"You-you don't mean that?"
"Don't I?" Mary Louise questioned calmly. It was eerie how calm the blonde vampire appeared to be.
"For all you have done, Valerie; the thing I cannot forgive is that you nearly destroyed Nora and I...
I lied to her, you made me lie to her. I believe that if I had not of gotten my memory back, she would never trust me again. I nearly lost her because of your manipulation and lies. I will never be made to feel that way again. I will not risk losing Nora again."
She took a menacing step towards Valerie, making the other Heretic look up at her.
"And the only way to give me peace of mind, is to eliminate the problem and that problem, Valerie...happens to be you."
Valerie started to plead with Mary Louise when the blonde's hand came across her face, snapping the girl's head to the side. She tasted blood in the corner of her mouth.
She turned to face Mary Louise again and this time, the blonde used the back of her hand, making a cut open along the right side of her face.
Valerie cried out as the blood dripped down her cheek, stinging and throbbing.
"Stop! Please, stop!" Valerie cried.
Mary Louise grabbed the front of Valerie's top and dragged her, along with the chair, up so that she was eye to eye with the other Heretic.
"I'm not even close to being finished with you yet." She growled.
The next thing Valerie knew was that she was being thrown across the crypt whilst still tied to the chair. As she hit the wall, the chair broke underneath her and she shook the ropes from herself as she crawled into a corner, holding onto the wall like a frightened child. Her back ached, her face felt sore and looked painful and still Mary Louise didn't seem satisfied.
The blonde vampire came over to her and grabbed the girl by her hair, lifting her to her feet as Valerie called out and struggled to get free but the blonde was too strong.
"Mare, stop! You don't have to do this!"
"Oh yes I do. Everytime I think of the fact that I could've lost Nora, I feel sick to my stomach but then I remember that it was you that could've made that possible and instead I get angry. Beating you to a bloody pulp should brighten my mood."
She then laughed and Valerie winced.
"In actual fact, I'm having the time of my life!" On the last word, she brought her boot up and kicked Valerie back to the other side of the crypt.
Valerie coughed as she held her stomach where Mary Louise's boot had made contact.
"And what would Nora say if she found you doing this?" Valerie asked, choosing another tactic, hoping to stop Mary Louise's torture.
"She would be disgusted..." A voice from the doorway said softly.
Mary Louise turned, breathing hard, to find Nora standing there, looking at the blonde as if she'd just murdered a small child.
Valerie rested on the floor.
The blonde wiped Valerie's blood from her cheek.
"Nora, I have my reasons."
Nora shook her head as she stared down at Valerie.
"What could possibly be a good reason for harming your family?"
"She is not our family." Mary Louise snarled.
"She is to me!" Nora roared, going over to where Valerie was laying.
"Would someone who you call 'family' almost destroy us?!" The blonde questioned, trying to quell her anger.
"I would've done the same for you, Mare. I would've manipulated Valerie if it meant getting you back. Can you not say the same?"
"I could've lost you." Mary Louise said, her voice breaking.
Nora looked over her shoulder at the blonde.
"But you didn't. We found each other again. You didn't need to do this." She added as she turned her attention back to Valerie.
Nora's hand brushed the strands of hair out of the other girl's face, finding that even her hair had blood in it. Mary Louise really had done a number on her.
Nora stood and faced Mary Louise.
"You could've killed her."
"That was the plan." The blonde didn't see the point in lying. She would've killed her had Nora not come along.
Nora shook her head.
"You may have your memory back, Mare...but you're not who I remember."
Nora went over to Valerie and helped her stand as she looped the other Heretic's arm around her neck and Nora put her arm around Valerie's waist. They then both headed out of the crypt.
"I'm taking her back to the house." Nora muttered with a frown.
Mary Louise followed them out when Nora stopped.
"I don't think you should come." She said softly.
Mary Louise frowned.
"But...that's my home."
Nora thought about it and then nodded.
"Fine."
But there was something about Nora's tone that set Mary Louise on edge.
Regardless, the blonde went with Nora and Valerie back to the house.
...
Once back at home, Nora put Valerie to bed and went downstairs and sat in the kitchen to think things through while Mary Louise sat in the lounge, staring into the fireplace.
After about a few hours, Nora came in from the kitchen and looked at the blonde.
"I'm going to bed. It's been a long day."
Mary Louise nodded and got to her feet, preparing to follow Nora upstairs.
The brunette remained where she was, knowing what Mary Louise would do.
"I think you should sleep down here tonight."
Mary Lou frowned.
"What? Why?"
"I...I can't sleep in the same bed as someone who is capable of hurting their family so brutally." Nora replied, avoiding Mary Lou's gaze.
The blonde vampire pursed her lips.
"To my way of thinking, she deserved what she got. If you hadn't of come along, I would've done a lot worse."
Nora nodded and then finally brought her eyes to Mary Louise's.
"And that's what I'm afraid of."
The blonde's expression softened and she moved towards the staircase. She stopped when she saw Nora's grip tighten on the rail.
"Are you...are you afraid of me?"
Nora looked down for a moment and then back up at Mary Lou.
"I'm afraid of what you might do." She admitted.
Tears sprang to Mary Lou's eyes.
"Nora, I would never hurt you. No matter what you had done."
"I didn't think you would ever hurt Valerie. I know you hated her but I didn't think you would...beat her so savagely."
"I nearly lost you, Nora. I cannot forgive that. Her actions nearly tore us apart."
"But they didn't. You have to stop going back to that, Mare. We found each other again but this, what you've done...you may have destroyed us all by yourself."
Nora then turned and headed upstairs.
"Nora! Nora, wait!" Mary Louise called up the stairs but she heard the bedroom door shut and knew the conversation was over for tonight.
Maybe everything would be better in the morning. Maybe they would talk and get things out in the open. Maybe Nora would forgive Mary Louise for hurting Valerie and she would see that Mary Lou was so scared of losing Nora that it threw her into a blind rage.
She had hope that things would work out. That they would be ok. They loved each other, of course they would be ok!
With that comforting thought in her mind, Mary Louise took off her boots and curled up on the couch, pulling a blanket over her and falling asleep quite quickly.
But when she woke up the next morning, she found a note on the table in front of her.
She sat up and opened it, reading it aloud to herself;
Mary Lou,
I'm sorry but it's over. I love you but your actions have shown me that I can't trust you and without trust, what have we got? Nothing.
I'll always love you but we can't be together. I'm sorry.
Love
Nora
Author's Note- What can I say? I give and then I take away ;)
Don't worry, Mary Lou isn't about to give up on Nora that easily. The question is, will she find Nora before she leaves Mystic Falls for good?
Thank u for your continued support on this story guys, it means a lot. X