The Tragedy of Being a Whitmore
Chapter Eleven: By the Light of the Moon
March 30, 2010
"Now that you've got this back, what are you gonna do with it?" Elena Gilbert asked her two friends, Bonnie and Amelia, holding up the moonstone.
Bonnie and Amelia were huddled over a grimoire on Elena's bed. "Right now, it's what's binding the Sun and Moon Curse. If we can figure out a way to remove the spell from the stone, the stone becomes useless." Bonnie explained.
Amelia still thought that they should be focusing on getting Stefan out of the tomb, but she said nothing.
"And, according to Katherine, Klaus becomes vengeful." Elena reminded them.
"'According to Katherine.'" Amelia emphasized, reminding her how manipulative Katherine is.
"Maybe, if he finds out." Bonnie agreed.
"Bonnie, can't this wait? Stefan is stuck in the tomb with Katherine - we've gotta get him out!" Elena protested.
Amelia silently agreed with her. "Stefan wants us to focus on this." Bonnie argued.
"Well, don't listen to him. He thinks he's protecting me, but he's wrong." Elena tried to convince her.
"I'm taking Stefan's side on this one. I'm not gonna let you get used in some creepy sacrifice ritual." Bonnie told her.
Elena noticed that Amelia hadn't said anything. "Well, what do you think, Lia?" She asked, hoping that she would be on her side.
Before Amelia could answer her, Jeremy opened the door and walked inside. "What are you guys arguing about?" He asked.
"Not arguing about anything." Bonnie dismissed, putting the moonstone in her bag on the bed as she stood up and left the room saying, "I need a coffee."
"Er, yeah, me too…" Amelia bolted.
"I know you hate coffee!" Elena yelled after her, but Amelia pretended she didn't hear her.
She waited at the bottom of the stairs with Bonnie for a moment until they heard pattering footsteps down them. "Where are you going?" Bonnie asked Elena.
"Um… to see Stefan." Elena said.
"You're lying." Bonnie and Amelia said at the same time.
"No, I'm not." Elena denied, trying to move past them, but Amelia stepped to the side.
"Really? Tell your face." Bonnie told her.
"Are you serious?" Elena asked.
Just then, Jeremy came down the stairs. "She took the moonstone." He announced showing them Bonnie's empty bag. Amelia groaned, really wishing that she hadn't.
"How did you-?" Elena began.
"We tested you." Bonnie explained.
"And you failed." Amelia said, frowning.
Elena looked at them before glancing up at Jeremy, feeling desperate. "Klaus killed Katherine's entire family just because she crossed him. I can't let that happen." She pleaded with them.
Bonnie stepped aside and Elena attempted to leave the house, only to hit an invisible wall. She tried to break through for a moment before turning to look at the witches. "What did you do?" She demanded.
"It's for the best, Elena." Amelia murmured.
Amelia stood with Bonnie as she knocked on the Martin's door. They looked around nervously until Luka opened the door. "Hi," Bonnie said sheepishly, holding up Luka's necklace that she had used to channel him.
Luke took his necklace back. "I don't know what makes me more upset - that I showed you how to channel… or, that you almost killed me." He said bitterly.
"Luka, I am so sorry." Bonnie apologized. "I wouldn't have done what I did unless it was really important. It's just that there's things that I-."
"I forgive you." Luka interrupted her, opening the door to let them in.
"What? Just like that?" Amelia asked, not believing him.
"I was always taught not to hold grudges." He said simply, following them inside.
"Wow, so much stuff. What is that?" Bonnie asked Luka, taking the book from his hand. "Is that a grimoire?"
"They're all grimoires." Amelia realized, shocked, as she looked around the room in wonder. So much information…
Bonnie looked to Luka for confirmation and he nodded. "How'd you get all these?" She asked, wandering around the room.
"Well, witches all around the world have collected their spells in grimoires, but over the centuries, most of them have gotten lost, and my dad is obsessed with finding them, and making sure that our family's heritage stays intact." Luka explained.
"These can't all be your families." Amelia disagreed, leafing through a nearby grimoire.
"Well, the way he sees it, all witches are family. We're all bonded together by a code of loyalty to help each other." Luka told them.
Amelia looked at him in disbelief - Sheila had always told her the same thing when she had questioned why she was helping her.
"So that's why you've been so nice to me." Bonnie laughed.
"That's one reason." Luka flirted with her.
Bonnie smiled at him, and Amelia interrupted their love fest. "Listen, do you know how to break the bind between a talisman and a spell?" She asked him.
"Uh, well, that depends, because spells are unique and very specific." Luka said, as if he were explaining it to a child.
"I know that." Amelia told him, irritated.
Luke glanced at Bonnie who was giving him a pouty look. "But, uh, I'm sure we can figure it out." He said, smiling at her.
A little while later, Amelia was helping Luka and Bonnie set up candles on the balcony. She glanced up at the sky, looking at the full moon worriedly, and hoping that her sister would be okay.
She noticed that Bonnie was lighting all of the candles with a match, and she grew frustrated, lighting them with her mind.
Bonnie gave her a look and Luka was reading the grimoire. "Yeah, this is really good. It's a clear view of the moon. And, uh, it's private." Luka told them.
Amelia and Bonnie joined him inside the candle circle, sitting cross-legged. "If anyone looks up, they're gonna think we're insane." Bonnie complained.
Luka leaned in closer to her. "Aren't we?" He whispered, flirting with her. He leaned back. "So, uh, what's this mysterious talisman we're unbinding?"
Bonnie pulled the moonstone out of her pocket and handed it to him, while Amelia scrutinized him. "Oh, wow, a white rock, fascinating." He joked, playing with it.
"Hey, I know it doesn't look like much…" Amelia told him.
"What's it spelled with?" He asked.
Amelia gave Bonnie a threatening look and was glad when she didn't say anything.
"Really? Help a girl out, and she still keeps secrets." Luka complained.
"I'm sorry." Bonnie apologized sincerely.
"I'm just teasing." Luka said, laughing.
The three of them exchanged a glance before they all held hands, also holding onto the moonstone.
"Phasmatos Tribum Unum…" They began to chant. They grew louder as the candlelit flames grew taller. Bonnie and Luka exchanged smiles.
Amelia looked up in surprise as the moonstone floated upwards into the night sky, before it exploded into a million pieces. Bonnie laughed as the fireworks fell down on them.
Late that evening, Amelia was sitting at her desk, trying to study for her upcoming biology test, when she heard a knock on her bedroom door. She stood up, confused, and opened her door to see Damon. They were silent for a moment before Damon awkwardly said, "Hi…"
Amelia pulled him into her room and glanced around the hallway before shutting the door. "Damon, what're you doing? Liz didn't see you did she?" She fretted.
"No, of course not, I'm a ninja, Amelia." He joked before turning more serious. "You're always complaining about me not knocking… I'm trying here." He emphasized before pulling her to sit with her on the bed. "But, listen, that's not why I'm here. I… wanted to check in on you - make sure you're okay. There's another werewolf in town, and she bit Rose." He explained.
"Oh, my God, is she okay?" Amelia asked, concerned. She felt bad that she had been so mean to her.
Damon hesitated, "I thought so, at first. She healed… but, then the wound came back, and it looks all infected and gross… Anyway, how did your little witchy adventure go?" He changed the subject, eager to find out what had happened.
"Good… great, actually. We really did it. We destroyed the moonstone." Amelia told him, smiling.
"Finally, some good news." He groaned, flopping down on her bed.
Amelia's phone dinged, and Damon picked up her phone before she could, a frown on his face. "Damon, give me my phone." She ordered, trying to grab it away from him.
Damon ducked out of her reach. Amelia glared at him and reached her hand out, catching Damon off guard as the phone flew out of his hand and into hers.
Elijah: You can reach me at this number if you are ever in danger. Please call me at your earliest convenience so we can discuss our next meeting. I would like to speak with you.
Amelia's eyebrows shot up in surprise as she read the text message and Damon looked at her irritatedly. "Stupid vampires…" She muttered running a hand through her hair stressfully.
"I don't like this." Damon stated. "He's probably just using you."
Amelia couldn't control her rage at his comment. A huge crack appeared through her mirror, surprising the both of them. "You mean like you did?!" She growled, trying to calm herself, turning away from him.
He was suddenly standing right in front of her. "I can only apologize for that so many times, little witch." He told her glumly, resting his hands on her shoulders. "I'm not claiming to be perfect, trust me… but, I'm trying to do better." He promised.
Amelia took a deep breath and glanced at her cracked mirror. She chuckled bitterly at their broken reflection. Oh, the irony…
After Amelia had fallen asleep that night, she had a dream that she was a little girl, playing in the woods with her brother.
She hid behind a large rock, her tangled hair falling in her face. She carelessly wiped it out of her face, only to squeal as her brother tapped her on the head. "Ha ha, Freya, I caught you!" He giggled.
Freya pouted, and huffed. "No fair, Finny! I was not ready." She complained, crossing her arms. She looked up and noticed that the sun was much lower in the sky than she had thought, beginning to sink over the horizon. "Oh, no, Mother will be so angry!" She realized, taking off running back to the house.
Her little brother trailed behind her, unable to keep up with her longer legs. His tangled hair blew back behind him, snagging on tree branches.
Freya attempted to brush the leaves and dirt off of her clothes, but knew it was hopeless.
"Father!" She exclaimed in surprise, sliding to a halt in front of their home. A moment later, Finn ran her over and they went tumbling to the ground.
The tall man turned around, rubbing his chin. He glared at them for a moment and Finn averted his eyes. Freya pouted up at him, making her eyes nice and round. Mikael looked at his two children for a moment and Freya was beginning to think they were goners until he burst into laughter, resting his hands on his knees as his bellows echoed through the trees.
"Mikael? What is this?" Esther exclaimed, her hands on her hips as she hurried out of the house.
"'Tis nothing, Esther." Mikael told her, lifting his daughter up and tossing her in the air before catching her. Freya squealed and laughed.
Esther looked her children up and down, frowning and shaking her head. "Shall a day ever pass without you two coming home looking like you took a mud bath?" She asked irritated.
"Oh, let the children be children, Esther." Mikael chided, watching as they chased each other in the clearing.
Esther sighed and walked inside, wondering when Mikael would learn to stop spoiling his daughter.
A/N: Thank you for all of the kind reviews!