A/N: Here is the latest. Enjoy.
Disclaimer: These characters are the creative property of LJ Smith and The CW. No copyright infringement is intended.
Someone once told me that only rock stars leave behind good looking corpses. Well, I'm going to have to disagree on that. I'm one, if not the most beautiful specimen walking the earth and…(laughs bitterly) I'm dying. I'm a dead man dying. This makes absolutely no fudging sense but it's the gotdamn truth. That's right ladies and gents, famed Damon Salvatore, vampire extraordinaire, playboy, and the sometimes humanitarian—at least when it suits me—is about to make a grand exit. Thank you, thank you, you've all been so kind.
I should stop playing around and get serious. This is, after all, a serious matter. Why so serious as the Joker would say. When I was human I thought dying for love was like making the ultimate sacrifice, but then another sort of death happened and here I still stand, although barely, but I'm here nonetheless and it seems my Final Destination moment has finally caught up with me. Darn. I was so looking forward to beating Death at its game but I'm just a little pawn in a huge game called life and apparently all of my chips are down.
Most people when they know they're about to die want to settle old scores, handout apologies and give away forgiveness. I'm not doing that. That wouldn't be my style and that's not who I am. Besides if I started giving away my most prized possession everyone would automatically assume I'm about to off myself.
I certainly can't give that tidbit away. Not yet at least.
I've done so much dirt and shit in my prolonged life I wouldn't even know where to start in saying my final goodbyes. I guess the obvious choice would be Stefan but then he would try to talk me out of what I'm going to do next and then he'd probably sacrifice himself in order to save me. The idiot. He knows my history better than anyone yet he believes there's something in me still worth saving. Alaric when he first came here had the right idea. I needed to be stopped, killed because otherwise I'd just keep destroying everything I touched. I still haven't exactly figured out how I flipped him to Team Damon side, but (shrugs) it's better than him wanting my head on a silver platter.
Next on the list would be the Gilberts. I'll just go ahead and lump those losers together, kill several birds with one massive stone. Elena, it was nice chasing your skirt around town despite the fact I never got the chance to put my hand up it. Jeremy, pfft.
Vampire Barbie it's been real. Not!
Bonnie.
I quite literally ripped into her life, treated her like she was expendable, but she never once backed down from me. She is the only woman I know who was able to put me in my place. Well, after her Grams put the whammy on my brain, Bonnie became the second woman I knew not to piss off, yet I did anyways. What can I say? I'm a glutton for punishment obviously, but Bonnie became my reluctant partner, friend, and well we could have become so much more but now it will never happen and that makes my already sore body ache even more.
Her face is the last face I want to see before I close my eyes for good. I know if I told her she'd be here, or she'd do everything in her power to help me, but I've made my peace, I suppose. It's time to close the curtain, but there is one final thing I'd like to say to her and maybe, maybe she might kiss me.
A dead man can have a wish list, right?
Damon Salvatore
Bonnie was dragging her feet. For some strange reason she was feeling more tired than usual. She realized this shouldn't have been the case because she went to bed at a reasonable time, didn't do any strenuous activity. But sometime during the night she woke up, and hadn't been able to get back to sleep until it was time to get up.
Yawning she entered homeroom and took a seat at her assigned desk. Bonnie dumped her satchel next to her feet and fiddled with her cell while waiting for the morning announcements.
Like a zap of energy to her butt Bonnie looked up towards the door at the same time a new kid strolled through the door. Hmm. Not bad looking Bonnie thought distractedly as she kept her green eyes on the caramel hued guy with the low haircut who was dressed in head to toe Tommy Hilfiger.
The new student handed a note to Mr. Preston who quickly read over the information before lifting his eyes to face the rest of the class. Everyone had been giving the guy either probing or surreptitious glances, yet Bonnie knew right off the bat that they were kindred.
"Hey, everyone we have a new student. This is Luka Martin, a transfer from Connecticut. Let's make him feel welcome."
Luka waved and then proceeded down one aisle over from where Bonnie was seated. The vibration she felt coming off him increased and Bonnie snapped her eyes away when Luka boldly made eye contact with her.
He was a witch and she wanted to know what he was doing here and if he could tell they had something in common. To say she was tense for the next twenty minutes was an understatement.
An hour earlier…The Gilbert Residence
It was getting easier for Jenna to move around. Now that she was officially off the baby food diet, she took full advantage by eating her first boiled steak for dinner last night. Moving up and down the stairs still took some care, but she was getting her strength back. To prove she wasn't as delicate as everyone was trying to make her out to be, Jenna had gotten up early to cook breakfast.
She turned on the television and sliced an English muffin in half and slathered it with strawberry jam as she listened to the news.
"There has been an outbreak of pet attacks that have left law enforcement baffled and hospital staff flustered. The attacks seemingly began around eight p.m. last night and continued until dawn. So far there have been three fatalities while many more suffered minor injuries from these attacks. The names of the deceased have yet to be released, and as more information becomes available we will keep you updated…"
Jenna licked jam from her finger and shook her head. For the past year it seemed there had been nothing but a slew of animal attacks that usually only resulted in a single death. But now it appeared people were being attacked by their own family pets.
"And this is why I was against owning a dog," she said.
Elena bounced into the kitchen, kissed Jenna on the cheek before heading to the coffee machine to start a pot. "What were you saying about owning a dog?"
"Oh, just on the news people have been getting attacked by their pets. The attacks seemed to start around the same time last night."
Elena's eyes widened as she grabbed the remote and turned up the volume on the TV, but of course nothing was playing save commercials.
"They did say pets specifically or animals in general?"
Jenna stared at her strangely. "Pets. Family owned pets. Is something wrong?"
"Ah, no," Elena attempted to smile and grabbed a mug from the cabinet. "It's just when you think this town couldn't get any weirder, it proves that it can."
Memories from last night flooded Elena and she remembered Stefan going outside because he heard dogs barking all over the city. He also speculated they could have been reacting to some malevolent supernatural presence but couldn't say with a hundred percent certainty.
Elena was glad the full moon cycle was over. Maybe now things could return to some sense of normalcy.
Damon strolled through the living room, correction, limped into the living room heading over to the curio chest to extract his favorite bourbon. This morning he had done nothing but drive through town despite the pain in his leg, with no set destination in mind.
He filled a glass, favoring the left side of his body to keep weight off his right leg. He took a sip and gulped it down and immediately felt the urge to puke. It came out in rivers, nothing but blood.
Disappointedly, Damon looked down at the lovely mess he just created and clenched his stomach as a roaring pain went through him making him feel as if he just swallowed hot coals. The pain was too much making Damon collapse to his knees. Rolling over on the floor, staring up at the ceiling, feeling the world spin around him, Damon just wanted to eat his own leg off so he wouldn't feel anymore pain.
Unfortunately that wasn't going to happen.
His eyes closed and he thought, this is it. He was going to die on the floor of his family home in a pool of vomited blood. Smashing.
When his eyes opened he was staring up at his brother's brooding forehead. This must be hell.
"Damon," Stefan sighed in relief. "What happened? You're sweating and burning up."
The vampire in question coughed, which racked his entire body. "Leg," was all he could manage to say as he battled against another wave of unconsciousness.
Stefan was confused and was about to ask another leading question when he figured out that whatever was responsible for Damon's condition would be revealed if he looked at his leg. He rolled up Damon's right pant leg and there was a vicious looking wound.
Stefan cursed loudly feeling several levels of pissivity. As carefully as he could Stefan lifted Damon on his shoulders and sped him up to his room. He dumped his brother's body on his massive bed, face grim, lips smashed into a hard lime. Leave it to Damon to get bitten by a werewolf. Stefan knew without asking that it was a werewolf bite because a bite from an ordinary dog wouldn't do the horrible damage he just witnessed.
"Tucking me…into…bed…how sweet," mocked Damon.
"Don't talk please," Stefan responded tersely. "You need to converse your strength. How long ago were you bitten?"
"I…thought…you didn't…want me…to…talk?"
Hands on hips, Stefan just glared at his older brother. Damon rolled his eyes, felt the room swirl around, as another strong wave of nausea slapped him upside the head.
"Yesterday."
Stefan closed his eyes and then reached for his cell phone. Neither one of them knew much about werewolf bites other than the fact they were deadly to vampires. Maybe there was something that could make Damon comfortable while Stefan searched out a way to save his life. In any case he had several calls to make and a very limited time to make them.
"I'm…thirsty," Damon heaved.
"I'll get you something to drink. Don't move."
Stefan flashed down to the basement to get a blood bag and cursed because he heard the front door slam open before shutting. He closed his eyes, slammed the deep freezer and went in search of Damon.
Her body never got past its lethargic state so that meant a coffee recon at Mystic Grill after school stat. Bonnie walked through the doors and felt that odd wave of power again. Sitting in a booth not that far from the entrance was the new guy from her homeroom, and he wasn't alone. Seated across from him was a distinguished older man, probably his dad. Food sat untouched before them as they looked to be engrossed in a heavy conversation.
Yet as Bonnie drew closer she noticed that the older guy stiffened slightly and his dark brown eyes landed on her.
Bonnie threw a pleasant smile on her face, determined to bypass their table, yet she had to walk past it in order to reach the main part of the dining room. Just great because she knew she was about to be ambushed.
Bonnie pretended to search for something in her bag, but then heard her name being called. She stopped and pivoted on her feet, smile still in place but it didn't reach her eyes.
"Yeah?"
Luka slid out of the booth, hand extended. "Luka…we have homeroom together."
"Oh, right," Bonnie shook his hand and cast her eyes briefly on his father who was staring at her with an intensity that reminded her of a pair of vampires. "How was your first day?"
Luka drew his hand back and hunched his shoulders. "It was like any other first day at a new school. A little nerve wracking but nothing too embarrassing happened. So far everyone I've met have been cool."
Bonnie nodded her head.
"I'm being rude," Luka said sheepishly. "Let me introduce you to my dad."
Inwardly Bonnie groaned. Jonas stood from the booth, towering over Bonnie, pummeling her with his gaze.
"Jonas Martin. Nice to meet you, Bonnie…?"
"Bennett," she supplied her last name. She hoped Jonas would drop their introduction and let her go about her business, but to her horror he extended his hand in invitation for her to join them at their table. Bonnie sighed deeply. She knew Jonas and his son Luka were witches but that didn't mean she could automatically trust them. New people who popped up into town never had good intentions in mind.
Luka and Jonas retook their seats and waited for Bonnie to sit down. She did on the very edge of the booth, next to Luka.
"Bennett? Any relation to the Bennett's in Salem?" Jonas interrogated.
"A vague relation," Bonnie fibbed. "So what do you do? If you don't mind me asking."
Jonas slipped off his frameless glasses and cleaned them. "I teach anthropology and alternative religions at the university. The former professor…" he stopped suddenly and looked at Bonnie again. "Was Sheila Bennett your grandmother?"
A lump formed in Bonnie's throat. Again she nodded her head and refused to say more. Luka could tell she was tense.
"I'm sorry that she passed. I heard she was a remarkable woman."
"She was," Bonnie quickly agreed.
"And I heard she was a fellow practitioner of the craft."
Bonnie said nothing but other than hitch an elegantly arched eyebrow in the air. Luka took that as his cue to intervene because he knew the man was probing and nosy which made him one of the best researchers in America. And also one of the most dangerous ones. Knowledge was power and his father did nothing with his spare time other than read books that had fallen out of existence centuries ago, devouring every myth and legend until his mind was nothing but one big twisted ball of conspiracy.
"Dad, I think Bonnie was on her way to meet someone. We shouldn't hold her up."
It took a minute for Jonas to break his stare. "I'm sorry, Bonnie. I didn't mean to keep you from your company."
A pale white hand came out of nowhere, took Bonnie by the hand, and pulled her out of the booth.
The father, son pair stiffened even more because they knew what the intruder was. Bonnie ignored their reaction to Damon, and turned in his arms to give him her undivided attention.
"Not to worry," Damon moved his coal black eyes from Bonnie's gorgeous face to Jonas and narrowed his orbs, "unlike others I know how to share…occasionally."
Bonnie slightly pushed against Damon to get him to back up. The last thing she needed was for anyone to cause a scene over nothing.
Bonnie chanced a look over her shoulder and saw that Jonas's face was not friendly at all. Yep, it was time to move this along and quick. She turned around until her back faced Damon's front who wrapped his arms around her waist, pinning her against him.
"Luka it was nice to meet you. You as well, Mr. Martin. I'll talk to you later."
With that she and Damon walked hand-in-hand all the while feeling two pairs of eyes burning a hole in her head.
Once she was a safe distance away, Bonnie upturned her mouth for a kiss to which Damon happily obliged. And because he knew they had a special viewing audience, he took his time savoring her mouth, deepening the kiss to make those in the vicinity uncomfortable and mumble things incoherently under their breath.
Bonnie knew she should end the kiss because one, she was a private person and didn't really engage in public displays of affection, and two, because she was traveling inside Damon's mind again.
Only this time she bypassed the boy who was chained to that humungous rock. There was no time for her to speak, to ask how he was doing being left alone with nothing other than his chained wrists and a sliver of light as his only companions.
Now she was in the Salvatore boardinghouse. Damon, the one with the light eyes was standing in front of the stain glass windows and as Bonnie looked closely she saw that his skin was reddening and he was burning.
Bonnie violently ripped her lips away from Damon, panting heavily wondering if what she saw was a vision of the future or something that could be happening right now.
Damon stared down at her, brows furrowed. "Bonnie?"
She ignored him and reached for her cell phone and called Stefan. The minute he answered she said, "What is your brother doing right now?"
"Bonnie, it's not good. Can you come to the boardinghouse as soon as possible? I'll explain more when you get here."
The call ended and Bonnie felt something shift inside of her. She didn't like Stefan's tone and that vision made her break out into goose bumps. Something was fatally wrong with Damon.
However the one she was currently with wanted answers to several questions. He didn't like the way the Martins looked at him—as if they knew what he was which they probably did considering they were witches, he could smell it on them—but more importantly he wanted to know what trouble the other Damon had caused which naturally left it up to his girlfriend to fix.
It seemed the boy was involved in some kind of mini-drama every week! And he for one was damn sick and tired of it.
"I have to head to the boardinghouse," Bonnie stared up at him with those apologetic malachite eyes of hers.
Damon shook his head. "No, we have to go to the boardinghouse. It's you and me, you promised me that."
She wasn't in the mood to argue. Bonnie nodded her ascent and the two of them left of course with suspicious and narrowed eyes glowering at them.
Jonas pinned his son with a reprimanding look which instantly made Luka avert his eyes. He knew he was going to get an earful once they made it back to their apartment.
"Remember what your job is, Luka. I won't accept failure."
Luka slid his elbows on the table and found the courage to look his father in the eye without withering. "I get that, dad, trust me when I say I do, but she's involved with a freaking vampire. Elijah forgot to mention that part."
"Screw Elijah's oversight. He's not our boss. Bonnie is remarkably strong but she's clearly misguided because she's on the wrong side. And you need to make her realize that and soon."
Stefan opened the door and welcomed Bonnie and Damon into the house.
"What's going on?" was the first thing out of Bonnie's mouth. She noticed that the red velvet drapes that were usually left closed this time of day were open.
"Damon was bitten by a werewolf."
Bonnie gasped loudly. "What? When? I mean…oh my God. Last night. It had to have happened last night. Why didn't he tell me? Where is he?"
Stefan decided to answer her questions in the order in which she asked them. "He probably didn't tell you for the same reason he didn't tell me, because he didn't want us to save him. He's in the basement. I had to lock him up after he attempted to get a sun tan."
As a result of Damon's attempted suicide, Stefan practically had to glue Damon's day walking ring on his finger to thwart any future attempts.
Bonnie followed Stefan into the basement abandoning the other Damon to his devices. Well, it would appear that Damon with his cerulean eye self was getting his comeuppance yet the victory of his impending death didn't exactly make dark-eyes feel, well, victorious. He had a rude thought of perhaps Damon getting bitten on purpose so that people could coddle him in his last moments, but he had to discard that notion because Damon might be stupid but he was no idiot. He loved himself too much to actually put his life in real danger.
He listened as Stefan cautioned Bonnie because she wanted to enter the cellar.
"Open the door, Stefan."
"No, he's volatile right now. He nearly ripped my arm out when I wrestled him away from the window. And I think he's been hallucinating. He started accusing me of stealing Katherine thinking we were back in 1864 when were last human."
Bonnie gulped nervously and pushed past her own fear of how Damon might react once he saw her.
"I'll be fine, Stefan. I can protect myself, you know that."
Stefan did know, but what he wasn't so sure about was Damon's mental state. His emotions and reactions were a train with no conductor. One minute Damon could form coherent sentences and the next he would begin railing about some past offense.
Right now he was sprawled out on the dirt floor where a pool of vomited blood was mere inches away from his head. Stefan sighed and opened the door. He would not leave Bonnie unprotected.
Cautiously Bonnie entered the cellar and kneeled down. She touched Damon on the shoulder who groaned and slowly turned until he lied partially on his back.
The light from overhead stung his eyes and blurred his vision. He squinted trying to make out the face of his visitor but the picture kept going in and out of focus. When he made himself blink, his vision cleared and the person staring down at him, he wondered why she was here.
"Emily?"
Bonnie was a bit taken aback. She looked nothing like Emily and figured Damon was probably hallucinating. Did the hallucinations come before he turned violent or after? She forgot to ask Stefan about that part.
"No, Damon it's me, Bonnie," she held him by the shoulder, half supporting his weight.
Damon smiled a real genuine smile as he reached up and cupped Bonnie's cheek, feeling her warm skin. "You came."
She graced him with a shaky smile. Damon looked so broken yet so euphoric to see her of all people. His face was covered in a heavy film of sweat, even his body was covered because his black shirt was damp with it. Bonnie honestly didn't think vampires could sweat.
"Of course I came. Where else would I be? We should move you to your room and get you as comfortable as possible."
Stefan had a huge objection to this. "Bonnie, I don't think he should be…"
She turned her head to glare at Stefan so sharply that he cut off his words immediately.
"Help your brother to his room, Stefan. He's not a caged animal for goodness sake."
Clamping his mouth shut, Stefan did as ordered and quickly carried Damon to his room. Once there he stood back and watched as Bonnie arranged the pillows around Damon. If his brother weren't dying, which was a hard thought for Stefan to process, then he was sure that seeing Bonnie handle Damon with care would never transpire. But it warmed Stefan's heart that other people beside himself cared about his brother. It made the load much easier to bear.
"How do you feel?" Bonnie asked softly as she pressed the back of her hand against Damon's feverish forehead. He was burning yet freezing at the same time. The sensation reminded her of Icy Hot.
Damon peeled open his eyes. "Like I was motor-boated by a porcupine."
Bonnie chortled. "Why didn't you tell me last night that you were bitten?"
Damon attempted to shrug and couldn't. He couldn't get his body to do anything he wanted it to do. "Because the bite healed and I thought I was out of the woods, but then it came back with a vengeance. Go figure."
His eyes closed and he was out again. Bonnie stepped away from the bed and watched as Stefan approached.
She would give Stefan credit for not freaking out. Although he had just as much reason to want Damon dead because he tried to keep his promise of eternal misery to Stefan, at the end of the day they were brothers and would have each other's back.
"Is there anything you can do for him?"
"I don't know, Stefan. Other than keeping him comfortable…" Bonnie didn't finish her sentence. She contacted her boyfriend, via telepathy.
Damon?
Yes, love?
Have you ever met a vampire that survived a werewolf bite?
Unfortunately, no. I knew a vampire who claimed he was eaten by a dragon but then again that was probably a lie. And of course that's not what's currently going on with the neophyte. But I may know a way to ease his passing.
Damon, you're not going to kill him.
I wasn't talking about killing him. I was thinking there are some herbs that can be used in a poultice to relieve his pain. Too bad there are no old fashioned apothecaries around.
Good, can you go get them? And…I hate to do this but maybe you could ask the Martins? They're witches.
I don't think they'll want to help a vampire live.
True, but…I have to try every source I can think of.
I'll try. I'll be back before you know it. Love you.
I love you, too.
Stefan kept his eyes glued on Bonnie. It was like she blanked out for a second. Just when he was about to ask if she were all right, Damon began coughing.
"I didn't mean it…what I said…Stefan."
The vampire in question frowned as he approached Damon and lightly shook him on the shoulder. "Damon, you're dreaming."
"Hun?" his sky-blue eyes opened. What the hell man? He was sick of going to sleep and seeing one century and waking up in a different one. Can't someone just kill him already?
Stefan looked at Bonnie who appeared just as helpless as he felt. They had no idea what to do for Damon.
The Old Woods
Bonnie would be proud of him. He didn't break Jonas Martin's neck like the man had been silently begging him to do. He figured going to the witches— correction—warlocks would be a waste of time but at least he could say he tried to bargain with him. And it wasn't exactly his fault that he may have broken a few of the man's fingers but there was no need for Jonas to try to drop Damon like a bad habit. Didn't he know bad habits were hard, next to impossible to drop?
Damon had actually chuckled when he felt an explosion take place in his cranium. It was a fascinating sensation when he paused long enough to think about it, but then it only served to piss him off. No one got the best of him and lived to tell the tale, but he knew killing the warlock would put him in the doghouse with the missus, so he left with a warning. Try it again, I take your head. Enough said.
Sighing, Damon traipsed through the ancient woods of Mystic Falls looking for three specific herbs. He could smell them. He just needed to find them under all the other overgrown bush and vegetation. Occasionally he checked in with Bonnie to make sure he was making good time, and Bonnie told him to hurry, that Damon's condition was worsening rapidly.
"There you are," he said to the patch of purple and yellow flowers. Damon grabbed a handful and stuffed them in a bag he confiscated from some old lady.
He headed deeper and came on alert when he felt something shift in the atmosphere. Damon spun around, opening up his senses, probing the area with his mind to find where the possible threat could be coming from.
His quest abandoned Damon headed to a clearing in the woods and stood a moment. Suddenly a bright light blinded him. He knew that light.
A dimension was opening.
The Salvatore Boardinghouse
Stefan was downstairs with Alaric pouring through every book Alaric thought could be useful from his own library, to every single book in the Salvatore library. Elena had arrived once she found out about Damon's condition. She quickly peeped in on him, taking heed to Stefan's warning that Damon sometimes hallucinated and might confuse her with Katherine, and depending on his mood, Damon might either be happy or pissed off to see her.
But it had been jarring to Elena to catch Bonnie in bed next to Damon, supporting his weight because he complained of chills and Bonnie ran hotter than the typical human. She pushed past her own discomfort to let Damon know she was there to which she was graced with a lazy smile before his eyes closed again.
Now Bonnie stood, pacing the room, her cell pressed to her ear as she listened to Elijah telling her the only thing that could possibly save Damon was hybrid blood. And this was something he learned in passing throughout the centuries yet of course it was never actually tested.
Elijah was quick to dismiss her idea of what hybrid blood entailed. Bonnie thought he had been suggesting she lift the moonstone curse and go through the ritual of making a vampire/werewolf hybrid. No, that wasn't it at all. The blood would have to be a mix of werewolf, witch, human anomaly, and the blood of an original vampire in order to possibly cure Damon.
Bonnie had access to all of those different types of blood apart from one.
"If I weren't in England you know I'd lend my blood. I'm sorry, my dear."
Yeah, Bonnie was tired of sorry's.
Then a thought occurred to Bonnie. "What about your brother? Niklaus? If I could get a message to him…"
"I have no idea of my brother's whereabouts and even if I were in a position to point you in the right direction, there would be no guarantee he would help. And if he did by some miracle, he'd expect you to pay a price too high to pay. Leave Niklaus out of it. He is no friend to you."
Bonnie gripped her hair and pulled. This was hopeless. "Thanks, Elijah," she said despondently and quickly ended the call. She relayed that information to dark-eyes who said nothing for a while, only offered another sorry. And then she went downstairs to the library to tell Stefan of the possible dead end they just met.
Yet, still feeling hopeful, Stefan decided he would reach out to Tyler and ask him for a blood donation. He'd put Elena on the phone if Tyler wanted to be difficult.
Bonnie went back upstairs at the same time Damon turned over in bed. Bonnie retook her position next to him, getting as close to Damon as she could. He moved to accommodate her but not without wincing, grimacing, or coughing.
She didn't say anything to him for a while, just stroked his soaked hair off his forehead and pressed her cheek to his temple.
"How long was I out?"
"An hour and a half."
"That's longer than the last time," he panted like a newborn. "Bonnie, you don't have to stay with me."
"I do, Damon. Although I know you'd never admit it, but you'd do the same for me if I were…" she didn't finish her thought because somehow it would feel like hammering the last nail in his coffin.
Damon tried to chuckle but only sounded as if someone were choking him. "You can say it, Bon. I'm dying. Finished. This whole being immortal thing is really a technicality. You'd think nothing could kill me."
"Can we move to another topic?"
"If I didn't know any better I would think that you'll actually miss me once I'm gone."
"Me miss your assholian ways, I think not," Bonnie denied.
Damon cracked a lopsided grin. "You'd miss having eye-sex with me, that's for sure. We were the best at it."
"I don't know what you're talking about," she replied drolly.
Damon laughed and only managed to start up another coughing fit that had him spitting out blood. Bonnie wiped it away and settled him back against her chest.
Though Damon, when lucid constantly complained of thirst as soon as he was given a cup of blood and ravenously drowned it, it all came spewing back up. His sheets had already been changed twice.
Vaguely Bonnie wondered why it was taking dark-eyed Damon so long to return with the herbs he said could help ease blue-eyed Damon's pain. It was getting dark outside, and she wasn't sure how much time Mystic Falls Damon had left.
"Bonnie…?"
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry for all those times I tried to kill you. I didn't mean it."
"You're not going to start saying goodbye to me just yet, Salvatore. You still have centuries ahead of you."
"You're just like your great-great grandmother…constantly living in denial." Damon shifted in bed until he was lying down and facing Bonnie. He reached over and traced her bottom lip with his index finger. "I never got to kiss you."
That would have been the part where Bonnie sassily told him he never would, but she saw no need to kick a man when he was literally down.
"We have kissed, Damon. Twice."
He shook his head. "No, the first time that was just for fun, the second, in the heat of the moment, but I never kissed you like…like I wanted to. And you haven't kissed me either."
All of this talk should have been making Bonnie uncomfortable but she felt unnaturally at ease with the topic of discussion. She'd think about what that meant later but right now her focus was making Damon's last moments as peaceful as possible unless of course some miracle happened and she got her hands on original vampire blood. Right now the Save Damon Operation was at a total standstill.
Bonnie swept her fingers over his damp cheek. "I'll only kiss you on one condition, Salvatore, and that's if you survive this."
He smiled. "For a minute I thought you were going to say when I was lying belly up in my coffin. Oh, and make sure Stefan gets me a top of the line casket, no pine box crap. I don't want to fall out of the thing."
Leave it up to Damon to make jokes at a time like this.
Bonnie pressed her index finger up against his lips to get him to shut up. He stared into her eyes. His dead phantom heart was beating frantically. Bonnie was going to kiss him and then he was going to die. Life was so unfreaking fair!
Yet he chose to look on the bright side of things. Bonnie was going to kiss him and that would be the last memory he'd take with him.
But there was something he had to tell her first. "Bonnie…I had a dream. We were married and we had kids. A boy and a girl and you were pregnant with our third."
She was clearly shocked by this as evidence by her lifted eyebrows and loose jaw.
"I really liked that dream," he murmured forlornly.
"Remember when you asked me if I would dream about you?" She waited for Damon to nod before continuing. "Well, I did."
"What did we do?"
"We kissed."
Damon laughed. "Ah, you want me."
The tears were stinging Bonnie's eyes now. She couldn't let Damon die. Somehow it just didn't seem right or fair.
She lifted his chin, stared intently in his eyes and then leaned forward, clearing the space between them. Damon sighed happily the minute he felt her mouth seal over his in a chaste kiss. He moved his mouth accordingly, taking in her breath, hearing her heart speed. He wanted to hold her, bring her even closer but his arms wouldn't cooperate, the motion would have drained him severely of energy and he would need everything in order to make this the best last kiss of his immortal life.
Bonnie deepened the kiss and flicked her tongue teasingly against the seal of Damon's mouth. He received the invitation and parted his dry lips just so and slipped his tongue out to touch and prod hers. A small moan escaped him which was followed with a grunt when Bonnie's teeth lightly bit his top lip.
Bonnie shifted until she almost straddled Damon. Despite him being near death he could still kiss the pants off a chick. She was trying so hard to keep things clean and was glad the rest of his body had difficulty working because Bonnie was sure she'd be on her back, spread eagle otherwise.
Damon swirled his tongue around, capturing and releasing her lips, trying in earnest to make this last as long as possible. He ignored the pounding of feet that were stampeding to his room. He needed to inhale as much of Bonnie as he could get before they were torn apart. The pain in his body seemed to evaporate the minute he began to feast on Bonnie's exquisite mouth.
He pulled away just a half a second before his door opened.
Bonnie, with her face still impossibly close to Damon, frowned and then burned with embarrassment because she knew they were no longer alone.
She quickly pulled away and looked at the semi-shocked faces of Stefan, Elena, Caroline, Alaric, and finally settling on her boyfriend although she knew he knew what she had been up to. His face was passive yet she could clearly see he was angry.
"The cavalry has come to pay their final respects," Damon boasted. "It seems everything has come full circle because I recall trying to kill every one of you at some point and now you've all assembled to watch me die."
Stefan was the first one to place what he witnessed on the back burner. "You're wrong, brother. We're here to save your life," he said.
Elena stepped forward and handed Bonnie a vial. Bonnie took the proffered item and stared at Elena quizzically. "It's my blood."
Caroline stepped forward handing Bonnie a similar vial. "I was able to convince Tyler to lend a helping hand."
And the final person to step forward was Damon. His eyes were…they weren't looking at Bonnie affectionately but they weren't cold either. She wouldn't say he appeared resigned and she got the distinct impression that something else was bothering him. Nevertheless he handed her a vial of blood.
"I don't think you meet the age requirement of being an original vampire," she said softly.
A dazzling smile flashed on his face prior to it disappearing. "I got it from someone much older than your uncle and that's all I can say."
Bonnie could waste time questioning Damon on where in the world he found a vampire older than Elijah who just happened to be strolling through town, but she wouldn't. All that was left was her blood and she could do the spell which Lucy had been kind enough to tell her how to bind lives through blood. It would be complicated but Bonnie, backed with the power of a hundred witches was sure she'd be successful.
"What else do you need?" Stefan asked.
"Just something to make an incision, candles, and then… I need to be alone with him."
Damon's eyes were closed and Bonnie felt that death was sauntering up the walk away about to knock.
"We gotta move this along," she said hurriedly.
Activity broke out and people left the room.
When Damon was able to open his eyes again it was to see Bonnie standing at the foot of his bed that appeared to be on fire or maybe she was burning candles. His vision was in the crapper. The pain was so intense that it was taking all he had left not to roar to high heaven. But when he focused his eyes on Bonnie, her hands were raised, and her eyes were glowing white. What in the world was she doing?
Her voice began to echo around the room as if she were yelling in a cave as Latin spewed from her mouth in one long continuous stream. There was a heaviness in the air that pressed down on his already pain saturated body and he thought he would start bleeding from every orifice of his body.
In minutes Bonnie stopped chanting, and poured something into a cup. She approached the bed, climbed up but Damon was fading, super fast now that he was seeing colors behind his eyes.
"Damon…"
Bonnie's sweet voice was slipping away and he could barely feel her shaking him.
"Goodby-," he wanted to say.
"NO!" was shouted into his ear and he was yanked as if by some invisible force. A heady, thick liquid was poured down his throat and his first reaction was to reject it, but his head was wrenched backwards leaving him no choice but to swallow. Whatever it was, it felt like he was swallowing lava.
Damon began to squirm. He didn't want that foreign substance in his body. Everything hurt. Everything was too loud, too bright. He just wanted everything to stop, leave him alone and let him die with the memory of Bonnie kissing him, of Bonnie's fragrance coating his lungs.
And just when the pain reached another crescendo, making him contort against the bed as if each individual muscle was being electrocuted, Damon surely thought he was being torn in half from the inside out. Tears slipped from the corner of his eyes, spittle from his mouth.
Then suddenly everything stopped.
When he opened his eyes his vision was perfect. When he inhaled, he smelled nothing but honey and cinnamon. When he sat up in bed, he did the motion so fluidly he felt as if he hardly moved. And when he spotted Bonnie standing next to him with tears in her eyes, he knew he was in heaven.
He reached up and cupped her cheek. Bonnie nuzzled into his touch. "Welcome back," she said.
"You know I couldn't leave yet." Pause. "Thank you."
Bonnie smiled and then, "Stefan!" she bellowed.
Stefan came bursting through the door, stumbled a little as he saw his brother sitting up in bed, cupping Bonnie's cheek but that didn't matter. What mattered was the fact Damon was alive.
Bonnie stepped away but Damon reached out, lightening fast, gripping her hand and keeping her by his side. Stefan moved and hugged Damon and then pulled Bonnie into a one-armed hug. She did the impossible by saving his brother, but then…this happy moment would only be fleeting.
"Bonnie…Damon wants to talk to you. He's downstairs."
"Okay," she said and then gripped Damon's hand one final time before slipping out of the room. She was stopped by Caroline and Elena who engulfed her in their arms, but their faces were split between happiness and sorrow.
Something was going on.
Bonnie went downstairs and saw Damon standing off to the side but he wasn't the only occupant in the room.
First her eyes were drawn to the large man with skin so bronze he looked like an Oscar statue. His blonde hair nearly matched his skin color and when he looked at Bonnie and offered a smile she felt as if someone had punched her in the gut. He was freaking gorgeous and topless and what a torso! Bonnie shook her head and her gaze landed next on a pixie redhead with large brown eyes.
Oh, God no, Bonnie thought. It couldn't be?
Bonnie's eyes flashed to Damon and she understood everything without him saying a word. He approached her, reached for her hands and brought them up to kiss. Although Bonnie couldn't see the girl she felt her stiffen at Damon's display of affection.
"Damon, what's going on? Who are they?"
Damon sighed heavily. "They're from my world, Bonnie."
The redheaded girl gasped but received a sharp look from the bare-chested blonde.
Bonnie was deeply confused. "I don't understand. What are they doing here?" she asked through clenched teeth.
"My presence here has made a mess of things in Fell's Church. They've been traveling from dimension to dimension looking for me. And finally they found me. From what I've been told, my brother's life is in danger. And I made a promise I would look out for him. I'm just like you, I keep my promises."
The ache in her heart was starting again. Round two so it seemed. "But what about your promise to me? You said that if I asked you to stay you would stay."
"I know, Bonnie. I don't want to leave," he said desperately. "Despite the fact my relationship with Stefan is less than ideal, he is my brother, and you've always drilled it into my head that he's all I have in the world." He cupped Bonnie's tear stained face, marking everything he loved about her into memory. Tears threatened to spill from his eyes, but he didn't want to make this moment any harder than it presently was.
Bonnie gripped one of his wrists. "Please, don't go."
"I'm sorry, princess. If there was some way I could stay I would, but you and I both know this was bound to happen at some point."
Being stubborn, Bonnie shook her head. "Damon, you know you belong with me."
He would have believed her if she said that an hour ago. He hadn't witnessed Bonnie and Damon kissing, but he caught the gist of what they were doing when he entered the boardinghouse. She had feelings for her world Damon even if she weren't fully aware of them yet. He loved Bonnie and didn't want to give her up, but at the same time Damon felt duty bound to help his brother.
He didn't hate Stefan was much as he used to and carried on with the belief that if anyone reserved the right to kill him, Damon had earned it.
Damon turned to look at the pair over his shoulder. "Can you two give us a moment? I'll meet you at the rendezvous point."
The blond nodded as the redhead rose from the couch. She kept her big brown eyes on Bonnie and walked past her but then stopped and doubled back.
She pulled Bonnie into a hug. "Thank you for taking care of him," she said in a voice that sounded so child-like with just a hint of a southern accent.
Bonnie didn't hug the girl back because she was too shocked. She watched as the blond pulled the redhead away, yet he bowed gallantly before Bonnie. They walked out of the boardinghouse.
Bonnie turned back to Damon. "Was that your world Bonnie?"
Damon nodded.
"Who was the blond?"
"He goes by Sage, and he was the donator of the blood I gave you. Sage is…I forget how old he is. But he's ancient."
"I should tell him thank you," Bonnie murmured. Her body was beginning to feel numb.
"I'll relay the message." Damon pulled Bonnie into his arms and transferred her head to his chest. Her tears began to wet his shirt and he allowed one of his own to escape before he tightened up. Damon Salvatore wasn't a crybaby.
Damon pulled back slightly and elevated Bonnie's face. "You're going to be magnificent. A goddess amongst mortals. You already are, and I know you're in safe hands." Pause. "You'll always be my treasure, Bonnie. Never doubt my love for you because you own my heart."
He kissed her ignoring the taste of his enemy on her tongue. "Remember what I said to you. If we are meant to be, no dimension on earth will be able to keep us apart."
"Damon…please…you can't leave," she stared deep into those fathomless eyes.
His tongue got lodged in the back of his throat. He kissed Bonnie's forehead. "Close your eyes," he told her gently.
Bonnie didn't want to because she knew once she did he'd be gone.
But she did as he asked and closed her eyes. She felt his lips against hers so lightly she didn't think he was kissing her.
"I love you."
Was the last thing Bonnie heard and when she opened her eyes, her worst fear became real.
She was alone.
Chapter end.
A/N: It was time for Book Damon to return. Originally he wasn't suppose to last this long, but he certainly helped change Bonnie's opinion, not only about herself, but about vampires in general. How will his leaving affect Bonnie and what will Damon do now that he essentially has Bonnie to himself? And the Martin's can you trust them or no? Thanks for reading. Love you. Oh and a special note. If you've noticed that Don't Ask Don't Tell is gone its because I deleted it from the site. I've moved it along with Ambition to The Writer's Coffee Shop and Valent Chamber.
