AN: Didn't want to keep you waiting for too long! Thanks for the lovely reviews. Let me know what you think =)
the leaving song
Don't waste your touch, you won't feel anything – or, were you sent to save me? You won't find anything worthy of redeeming.
"Relax, she's not dead." Damon said when he saw Bonnie's furious reaction as Katherine's broken body slumped to the floor. Her lips were still ruddied from his kisses, her skin glowing where his fingers had held her to him. Bonnie had glared at him so he quipped: "Even if she was, you could just summon her."
"Why did you do that?" Bonnie said, her voice steady with just a dash of angry disbelief daring to show.
"I told you," Damon said, his voice rumbling in a threatening way as he stepped over Katherine to tower over the young witch. "I will kill anyone you call."
When she frowned, unimpressed, he added: "Who isn't already dead, of course. And yeah, even then. Not allowed."
"I had it under control," Bonnie said, throwing her arms down in frustration. She jabbed Damon in the chest as she spoke: "We could have taken her back to the tomb."
"Really?" Damon laughed drily, his eyes narrowing with anger. "What was your plan for when she was ripping your neck out?"
"She wouldn't have," Bonnie shook her head.
"Not everyone has my amazing self restraint." Damon said, a small smirk pulling at his lips even as he studied her stuttering reaction. She thought Katherine would keep up her deal to do as she said? If so, she was a terrible judge of character. Then again, she was just kissing Damon, so...
"I would torch her," Bonnie said, her eyes steady on his, "Pin her to a wall, or stake her somewhere non-lethal. Aneurysm. All of the above."
"I see knowing me has had its benefits," Damon muttered, noting that she had tried most of her punishments on him at one point or the other. "But it wouldn't stop her for long."
"We could have gotten her to go back," Bonnie insisted, interrupting his thoughts, "We could have made a deal."
"What deal could you possibly make?" Damon scoffed, "You have nothing she wants."
"She wanted me." Bonnie said, meeting Damon's glare defiantly. "Would it be such a big deal if the promise of a taste of my blood could lure her back?"
"You'd let her bite you?" Damon said, his face twisting with disgust.
"If it came to it." Bonnie nodded, more talking herself into it that him. It wasn't a foolproof plan, no. But if she could get to the tomb – if Katherine was as overcome for her blood as she claimed – maybe they could lure her close enough to combine their magic and strength to trap her inside.
Damon took a step closer, reaching out to grab her neck before shoving his hands down at his sides, as if he couldn't trust himself to touch her. "Did you not just tell me I couldn't bite you?"
His eyes were doing that maniacal, narrowing thing that left her breath catching in her throat. "That's different."
"How is it different?" Damon said, taking another step towards her. They were almost touching now, she could feel his breath on her face when he grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "How?"
"I just didn't want you to kill her!" Bonnie blurted out, her face flushed with frustration. She blinked her eyes furiously to keep tears from falling as a look of betrayal flashed across his face.
"What's so special about her?" Damon punctuated his remark by kicking her slumped body.
"It's not her, it's you," Bonnie snapped, reaching up to drag his arms off her shoulders. "Haven't you killed enough?"
Damon let out a humourless sound lost between a laugh and a scoff. He had a strange, amused expression on his face as if he had been duped and couldn't believe he had fallen for it. He walked backwards to Katherine and slumped to pick her up.
"Damon, I don't want you to kill people because of my mistakes," Bonnie said, "Especially not Katherine."
His eyes were dark and wary. When he spoke, it was low and menacing – almost threatening: "Right, I'm the bad guy."
"No," Bonnie said quickly, surprise clear on her face, "That's not what I meant."
"To the tomb?" Damon said, shifting Katherine's weight in his arms. "She's only going to be out for so long before she heals, so I better get going."
"We," Bonnie clarified, "I'm coming with you."
Damon arched a brow, "I'm not going to stake her."
"I know," Bonnie snapped again, her eyes lighting up angrily. "This is my mess, let me clean it up."
"For the record," Damon said before slinging Katherine's slouched body over one shoulder, "I have a bad feeling about this."
"Leave the premonitions to me." Bonnie said, sidestepping him to lead the way to the car.
BDBDBDBD
Break down and cease all feeling; burn now what once was breathing.
It was raining when they got into the car.
Bonnie sat in the passenger's seat with her arms crossed. She was frustrated. She was regretting her actions. She shouldn't have touched Katherine yet. If she awoke – any second now – she would hear the hammering of her heart. She would know she was afraid. But didn't she need her to smell her blood? Didn't she need Katherine to want to devour her – like Damon had – so she could make the trade: a taste of blood, for a step beyond the barrier. It was simple, wasn't it? Give Katherine her wrist, and use her powers to shove her back into the tomb. No Damon necessary.
"Maybe I acted too hastily," Bonnie offered, eyeing Damon's white knuckles tightly gripping the steering wheel. A muscle in his jaw twitched with her admission. "Not that you were exactly willing to come up with a plan with me."
Damon didn't say anything, which only made her blood boil more. Bonnie gritted her teeth. He was treating her like a child.
"No one asked for your involvement," Damon said with a forced smile that did nothing to hide the disdain in his eyes. It was like old Damon all over again. "You should leave the scheming to me."
"You're not killing her." Bonnie repeated, her voice rising.
"Her life isn't yours to end," Damon said, his voice eerily calm and determined. He kept his eyes steadfastly on the road ahead, "It's mine."
"Damon," Bonnie began with a sigh. She didn't want Damon to kill Katherine. She didn't really want to kill her either, without Stefan knowing – there was a reason they were keeping her alive, after all. She had information and she was relatively easily bribed. But more importantly, she didn't want Damon to have to live another hundred and fifty years with that kind of guilt: she didn't want to summon Damon and see his heart breaking eternally because he had been the one to kill the greatest love of his life. For her mistake, she couldn't see his heart break even more.
"What?" Damon spat, taking a turn more sharply than necessary as he pressed on the gas. Bonnie's arms shot out to steady herself. Katherine's body slumped against the door on Bonnie's side and she thought she heard her moan. It was dark outside – the wind whipping angrily against the trees, the moon only a sliver of light in the sky. Bonnie stifled a shiver.
"I'll throw her in the tomb," Bonnie said resolutely. "You stay back."
"Ha," Damon barked. "You think your magic will cut it now she's back in top vamp form?"
"Stop underestimating me." Bonnie snapped, her voice angry and threatening.
"Like hell I'm letting you go in there alone," Damon added, "What a bad babysitter I would be."
"What?" Bonnie said, her brows creasing as Damon took another sharp turn – on purpose, she thought as she adjusted her position on the chair. Katherine's body tumbled off the seat onto the floor. Bonnie kept on eye on her peripherally.
"Elena wanted me to make sure you didn't go around zapping your powers again," Damon said, his voice a bit too smug and pleased with himself.
"Funny," Bonnie said, spitting the word like a curse, "Stefan wanted me to make sure you didn't go around killing pretty young girls."
"Then he shouldn't have left me with one." Damon said, evenly. They were nearing the tomb – the road was more desolate, less smooth. A few bumps sent Bonnie bouncing in her seat. She gripped the handle on the roof near her window to keep herself steady.
"Is that a threat?" Bonnie said, her sentence breaking mid-bump.
"A promise." Damon said. A chill spiked up Bonnie's spine, even as she knew he was talking about Katherine.
"Look, we should just leave her—" Bonnie began, trying to be reasonable, when a loud shriek broke her thoughts.
"What I want to know," Damon interrupted Bonnie loudly. His eyes were even more intently glued to the road. His fingers gripped the steering wheel, relaxed, and gripped it again, "Is what emotion you were sharing with Katherine to summon her."
"I don't know." Bonnie said, too quickly.
"Bullshit." Damon frowned. He jaw clenched. Bonnie turned to face him, ashamed to notice how handsome his profile was cut against the darkness, even with his brow furrowing and his lips pulled into a tight, unreadable line. "You were hating me."
"No more than usual," Bonnie said, regretting the words as they left her mouth. She quickly added, "You were hurting me."
"I was hurting you." Damon repeated, "I get that you're jealous of Elena—"
"I am not jealous of Elena!" Bonnie said, her voice rising as the wind kicked up and howled at the car. Dammit, maybe she was jealous of Elena – that is something she and Katherine had in common. Katherine groaned in the background. "I just don't like being used to get to my best friend."
"You're a witch," Damon's face twisted with condescension, "Get used to it. Someone will always be using you."
"Not someone," Bonnie corrected, "Just you – always you."
"So maybe don't be so trusting," Damon said.
"You're an asshole," Bonnie said simply.
"What a revelation." Damon said, his eyes widening before narrowing at her. "Don't tell me you're just learning this."
"Why are you being so mean?" Bonnie frowned. "I thought we were, whatever – friends, at least."
Damon frowned. "This is just me." What was with girls and hating him? And then blaming him for it? Ok, maybe she had some justification in blaming him for her Grams' death –but to hate him because he had dinner with Elena just to tell her to keep Stefan away – was that an overreaction or what? Just like Katherine and Elena – always hating him for stupid things like breaking Jeremy's neck (what! He was wearing a ring! No harm, no foul.), or for just loving them. He let an expressionless mask hide his hurt.
"No, it's not," Bonnie said dismissively. "And as soon as we get rid of Katherine, things will go back to normal, trust me."
For thirty seconds, there was eerie silence. Damon turned to her, and Bonnie would swear he was about to smile – about to smile and move his hand from the steering wheel to pat hers reassuringly and say, "I trust you." But instead, there was the siren-shriek of an ancient vampire overridden with blood lust.
The sound of Katherine lunging forward echoed in Bonnie's head as if it were happening in slow motion. She was in full vamp-mode, her face marred with dead, black lines and her fangs protruding. She lunged for Damon first, wrapping her hands around his neck, but he turned the car swiftly and sent her flying against the opposite side before she could twist.
Katherine reached for Bonnie next, but she had already unbuckled the seat belt and was facing the back seat with her arms outstretched. She sent Katherine flying and pinned her to the back seat – her eyes kept carefully on her. But Katherine just let a small smile curl around her lips before she cackled. She started to move forward – the spell was holding her back, but Bonnie could feel Katherine pressing forward with equal strength. It was only slowing her down.
"She's too strong," Damon said, glancing at the scene in the mirror. "Just a bit longer; we're almost there."
Bonnie focused her eyes on Katherine, and imagined veins bursting in her brain. Katherine winced, and raised a hand to her head as if she had been stung by an unpleasant insect. She smiled again at Bonnie, her eyes lighting up, "You've gotten stronger, Bennett."
Bonnie shocked her again, harder, in response. She could feel the power draining from her.
"Your glow was so lovely," Katherine teased, enjoying the tension in the air, "I just wanted to drain you dry."
"Almost there," Damon said, pushing the car to move faster. They could both hear Bonnie's heart thumping wildly from the strength of the spell. The whole car smelled of singed oranges.
"I'm going to enjoy feeding on your power," Katherine grinned wickedly.
Damon's jaw twitched, almost imperceptibly.
"Oh," Katherine noticed, remarking with exaggerated delight, "Has he not tasted you yet?"
"Shut up," Bonnie growled, her eyes darkening as she sent a wave of pain towards Katherine. She doubled over momentarily, but the glint was in her eyes when she began pushing against the barrier Bonnie erected again.
"When I drain her," Katherine promised to Damon, "I'll let you watch. If you're good, I'll leave you a drop." She licked her lips, her eyes focusing on Bonnie's neck.
"Here." Damon said, pressing the breaks sharply, and sending Bonnie falling back towards the windshield. Damon reached out to grab her before she could be hurt, but Katherine went barrelling forward through the shield. Damon set Bonnie down outside, moving at lightning speed.
Katherine groaned as she dusted shards of glass from her skin. "Your driving hasn't improved."
"I meant to do that," Damon shrugged. He spoke over his shoulder, "Bonnie, if you would be so kind."
"Gladly," Bonnie said, her voice as dark as Damon's eyes as he lunged at Katherine. Bonnie focused on all the glass shards until they were levitating in the air. Damon fought with Katherine – their speed sending them flying around the area. From the occasional glimpse, she could see Katherine tearing at Damon's flesh. With a quick incantation, she sent the shards flying straight for Katherine.
Katherine roared as the shards of glass hit her. She shook them off easily. "Have to do better than that!" She exclaimed as she rolled over on top of Damon. She was straddling him, pinning his arms with her hands as she leaned down to trace her fangs across his neck. "Break my neck, I'll rip yours out."
The wind rushed up and – as Damon was about to kick Katherine off – a tree branch snapped and went flying into her back. The edge grazed Damon's skin and his eyes widened in surprise.
Katherine rolled over off of him, her breaths coming in sharp gasps. She had been hit through the stomach – it wouldn't kill her if they removed it soon. He looked up to see Bonnie standing over them. She was standing on the car's hood with her arms outstretched. Her hair was flying ravenously in the wind around her – her shirt tails flying out like a cape. Bonnie's green eyes had glazed over with darkness that sparkled the occasional emerald glint as her lips moved faster and faster.
"To the tomb," Bonnie said, her voice incredibly serious. Damon couldn't help but find her incredibly sexy as she leaped off the car hood effortlessly, one arm still outstretched to slowly pull the stake from Katherine's body.
Damon nodded, turning to Katherine gasping on the ground. "Damon," she was whispering, "we can take the witch – the two of us. We can share her."
"I don't share," Damon said, almost with a laugh as if it were the most amusing thing he'd ever heard. Don't you know me at all? He grabbed her by the hair and began to drag her towards the tomb. She shrieked in response, stunning Bonnie with the raw violence in her voice. Bonnie followed behind, eyes trained on the struggling woman, as Damon pulled her body towards the tomb. She struggled fiercely as Bonnie slowly removed the stake.
When they reached the barrier, Bonnie had removed it entirely, and Katherine was lying limp in Damon's arms.
"You didn't summon me just to throw me back," Katherine spat out. Damon opened his mouth to let out a cutting remark, when Bonnie spoke.
"You are a mistake," Bonnie said, "In every sense of the word. You have always been a mistake."
"He's the mistake," Katherine said, her face twisted in disgust as she yanked herself free from Damon's grasp. Bonnie kept her distance, and Damon moved to stand between them. She held out a hand, trying to push Katherine backwards into the tomb – but she couldn't. Bonnie struggled to keep her face passive, hoping that Katherine wouldn't realize how weak she was.
"I should never have wasted my time on you," Katherine said, shaking her head. "You're my greatest regret."
"Funny," Damon muttered, "Stefan says the same about you."
Bonnie took a step forward, trying to increase the power of her spell with her proximity, but Katherine didn't even take a step back.
"She'll figure it out too," Katherine smiled, nodding at Bonnie, "And then you'll be all alone again. If I remember correctly, summoning spells require similar emotions. The only emotions I feel now are love for Stefan and hate for you."
Damon rolled his eyes, "Your little tricks won't work here."
"She will betray you, Damon," Katherine promised, watching as Bonnie held up both hands towards her. The witch was weak. "And then it'll be you in this tomb instead of me."
"Unlikely." Damon said, but he had hesitated, glancing back at Bonnie. She was so focused on her spell, he doubted she heard what was going on around her. In the moment it took for him to glance behind him, Katherine lunged forward again.
She grabbed Bonnie's neck, shoving her into the hard ground. Damon heard the blood as it spilled from her head. She was gone. Out. No magic. Just Damon and Queen Bitch Katherine.
Damon grabbed Katherine and threw her off of Bonnie's unconscious form. He spared her a glance – ugh, mortals, so weak – before returning his attention to Katherine. They shoved each other – wrestled, bushed. The scent of oranges was overwhelming. He inhaled, and felt a surge of delicious power erupt inside him.
Bonnie was his. Emily gave her to him. Bonnie was his to guard, to keep, to have. Bonnie was his. The thoughts flooded his mind, inspired every punch and toss and kick as he fought Katherine back into the tomb. His chest tightened as he smelled her blood in the air: a strange, possessive desire overwhelmed him. She was his, and Katherine had no right to harm her. He tore at her, snapped her arms. When she overpowered him, he inhaled deeply and threw her off of him again. He didn't know if it was the magic, or if it was just Bonnie – somehow – miraculously pushing him to new limits of his power.
He didn't realize the fight was over until he was standing over Katherine's unconscious body. He had snapped her neck again. She would wake soon. He tossed her further backwards into the tomb.
He heard Bonnie's moan and he rushed forward to meet her, but met an invisible wall. Trapped. He was stuck in the tomb.
BDBDBDBD
Reach out, and you may take my heart away.
"I'm sorry," Bonnie said, her voice barely a whisper as she choked back her despair. She'd failed. Her hair was both matted to her sweaty, bloody forehead and a wild mess from the skirmish. She could feel the power draining from her. But to Damon, even without the spell – she was still a delicious, caramel glow, and her flushed cheeks only added to her rough beauty.
"We should've staked the bitch when we had the chance." Damon muttered. He was standing casually with an arced brow, hands in pockets, on the other side of the barrier. Bonnie moved to wrap her arms around him, but he shook his head "no" – eyes motioning to the darkness where he had abandoned Katherine.
"I should have," Bonnie said resolutely. "It should have been me."
"I would have, if you'd let me!" Damon said, his voice filled with accusation that she didn't even wince at.
"No," Bonnie said, shaking her head. "I can't let you kill her."
"Are you joking?" Damon didn't think he'd ever been more frustrated by someone. "Why the hell not? If anyone should get to kill her, it's me."
"Damon, you can't," Bonnie smiled sadly at him. "You have enough sadness to carry around. Sure, Katherine would be dead." She met his eyes now with sincerity, "But it would kill you to know you did it – to know forever, that you killed your greatest love."
Damon shook his head, but Bonnie silenced him with her next words: "And it would kill me to know that I was responsible."
"Bonnie," Damon frowned. That was the problem with humans: too damn sacrificial and caring. Caring. He was a bit stunned to know that she'd spent so much time thinking about what killing Katherine would do to him, and not what it would do for Elena.
"I said I'd protect you," Bonnie smiled, wiping at her damp eyes. Even her tears shimmered with light in the darkness: they were like perfect orbs – like liquid diamonds as they clung to her lashes. Damon was entranced: a woman crying over him, and not because of him. "Guess I didn't do a good job."
"Evidently," Damon smirked, "Leave the protecting to me."
"I'll fix this." Bonnie said, determinedly.
"Go," Damon said suddenly, shifting his weight. Katherine groaned as she woke up in the distance.
"No," Bonnie said. She took a steadying breath, and raised a shaking hand to move her hair from her face. She licked her lips. "I'll call you."
"No," Damon frowned. He needed her strong if she was going to get out of there. She'd already used so much of her magic juju tonight. He was stuck here with Katherine for the next night or so, and undoubtedly – they would not be getting any rest. "Go home."
"I'll call you," Bonnie said again, her eyes scanning their surroundings. The blood was sticky, drawing a red line from her temple to the height of her cheekbones. Her hair was tousled, and her clothing dirty – but her eyes were glinting with determination. Damon felt a wave of satisfaction settle over him, knowing she was safe – knowing she was going to be curling up in his bed tonight and thinking of him. "Come closer," Bonnie said, even as she was moving into the barrier.
Damon cast a nervous glance behind him, not wanting to continue the battle with Katherine. He stepped to the edge of the barrier, and let his arms fall beside him.
Bonnie waited until Damon's eyes met hers. He seemed so tired, so resigned to his fate. He didn't think she could get him out. "Think about this," Damon warned, "Katherine is all over you – you could summon her too."
"Easy." Bonnie said. She took Damon's shirt off quickly, casting it behind her. Standing in front of him in her bra, she unbuttoned her jeans and let them fall to her ankles. She stepped out of them and kicked them to the side. She paused to look at Damon's face – he was studying her intently, the vampire visage threatening to overwhelm his face. She felt a surge of power knowing that he concentrated so intently on her body.
Bonnie focused on the sound of the rain, holding her hands in front of her like a pool. Suddenly, the rain was slanting into the tomb, she twirled her wrist and it was washing lightly over her body, dripping in delicious wet lines over her curves.
Damon shifted his weight, anxious about the other vampire behind him. Surely, she would be waking soon. "If you're mine," Damon pushed his luck, "You should be able to summon me with nothing at all."
Bonnie smiled and snapped her fingers. The water droplets dissolved off of her like steam floating from her skin. Behind her, his shirt caught on fire and burned high. Damon frowned: "That was my favourite black shirt."
"I'll buy you a new one," Bonnie rolled her eyes, a teasing smile on her lips.
"Come closer," Damon said, not believing the words himself as they escaped his lips. He was risking Bonnie. Asking her to step into the tomb where Katherine could reach her. But he couldn't help it: he needed to feel her – one last time, he needed to touch her.
Bonnie stepped into the tomb. She immediately reached for his hands, clasping them in her own. She raised them up between them and pressed her lips to his palms. She rested her forehead lightly against his chest and sighed, "Damon, I'm so sorry."
"Call me out," Damon said, feigning confidence in her abilities.
"Want to cross the barrier," Bonnie insisted, "Just want it enough."
"I will," Damon said, inhaling the scent of her skin. She smelled of flambéed oranges. He pressed his lips to her scalp, nuzzled her hair with his face. He slipped his hands from her grasp and reached out to pull her tightly against him. Stay, he wanted to say. But knew she couldn't. She couldn't.
"I'm going to call you," Bonnie whispered into his ear, her eyes scanning the darkness for a sign of Katherine, "And then I'm going to leave. And you're going to want to come out. And you're going to come to me."
"And if I can't?" Damon asked, rubbing his cheek against her face. He ran his nose against hers, brushed her lips lightly with his without delving into a kiss. The prospect of being away from her while under that spell – it was just too much.
"You will." Bonnie said, determination fresh in her eyes. Damon smiled sadly as her lips pressed against his ear. Any other time, he would've enjoyed the attention. But she wasn't singing him a gifted song: she was about to sing her leaving song. She would leave him, vampire skills reduced, alone with insane Katherine, with nothing but a tug at his gut to remind him of the beautiful witch he had watched walk away.
"I'm in here," Bonnie sang softly into his ear. A sharp spike of pleasure hit him as he heard her song – so personally, so close –for the first time. Her voice was sweet and melodious: soothing, and delicious. He closed his eyes as she sang. She slid down Damon's body, and he smiled at the feeling of her soft curves pressed against him. Another time, another situation – and he would've been the happiest man alive (or, not alive). Bonnie took a deep breath in the middle of her song and raised up on her toes, pulling Damon's face to her forehead.
"I need you to hold all of the pain," Bonnie sang softly as Damon realized that she was nudging his lips to kiss her wound. His eyes fluttered open as he scented the sharp, delicious citrusy blood.
She was glowing more radiantly than ever in the darkness. She was a bundle of iridescent caramel – lit up with flushed pinks, and a deep, delicious dark red for her blood. Her emerald eyes were sparkling like stars in the night. She was glowing all over, but her song wasn't over. She was pausing, humming, waiting for him to do something.
She nudged him lightly, reaching her hand up to twine around his hair and pull him down. Damon took the hint: he dragged his lips and tongue against the trail of blood on her face. Bonnie gasped in pleasure at the feeling of Damon's hungry lips against her skin – she felt when his fang sliced her wound open and lapped up some more. She shivered under his grasp, tightening her hold on his hair as his hands ran up and down her half naked body.
Suddenly, she shoved him off of her and stepped back. Dizzy with her blood, and lost in the sweet, sultry pleasure of her taste, Damon let her. His tongue was still thick with the taste of citrus and caramel – it was too heavy in his mouth to speak.
Bonnie finished her song. She smiled at Damon and donned her jeans. Katherine groaned in the background.
"Want me, Damon," Bonnie said, her eyes flashing that gorgeous emerald. Damon's vamp face was ordinarily twined with black marks, but this time –as her eyes flashed – he licked his lips, and his icey blues flashed as well.
Bonnie left quickly after that. Katherine awoke, and ran at him, but he only had to extend and arm to keep her at bay. Bonnie's blood was running through him – he could almost see the glow of her life rush through his body. He felt like he was on fire in the most delicious of ways – it was like he had her inside him, but he didn't – and he needed, craved more of her. Katherine was secondary to this want. Katherine and Klaus and all the rest of them – secondary to this need.
Damon's eyes focused as he scanned the darkness. This boundary – secondary to this heady desire. Damon wanted her.
I took her life; I ate it slow – now it consumes me.