The Tragedy of Being a Whitmore
Chapter Twelve: The Descent
March 31, 2010
Amelia Whitmore sat next to Rose as she told her and Damon her life story. Amelia nodded and asked questions, trying to ignore her pestering headache.
"I was born in 1450. That makes me five hundred and sixty years old." Rose told them.
Amelia hesitated, trying to be cheerful. "If you were a bottle of wine…" She trailed off, smiling at the injured vampire.
"So, I can die. I've lived long enough." Rose stated.
"You know, if you're going to be maudlin, I'm just going to kill you myself just to put me out of your misery." Damon joked, pouring her a glass of blood from a blood bag.
Amelia cringed, disliking the sound of the thick blood falling in the glass. She didn't bother to admonish Damon, it was just how he was.
"Come on, it's just a little werewolf bite." Damon prodded, handing her the glass.
"Just a little fatal to a vampire werewolf bite." Rose corrected in her British accent, chuckling.
"Well, according to legend which is a notoriously unreliable source…" Amelia said optimistically.
"Drink up… blood heals." Damon told Rose, gesturing to her untouched glass.
Rose sighed but drank the whole glass before pausing for a moment. "Yeah, it does feel like it's working." She said.
"Let's have a look, come on. Let me see." Damon suggested, pulling her jacket down from her shoulder.
Amelia forced herself to stay silent as she and Damon exchanged a look at the wretched looking wound on her shoulder.
"How is it?" Rose asked worriedly.
"Definitely… better." Damon lied, grimacing behind her back. Amelia said nothing and he elbowed her.
"Ouch!" She muttered. "Er, yeah… much… better…" She said. Maybe if she squinted at it a bit more…
"Right Elena?" Damon called looking up.
Amelia glanced up as well, noticing that Elena had just entered the room. "It's not bad." Elena lied, trying to make Rose feel better.
"Where's Stefan?" Amelia asked, trying to change the subject.
"He left." Elena told them before making eye contact with Damon. "I need you to talk to him. He's convinced that he has to find Isobel, but I think that's going to upset Elijah."
"No can do." Damon told her, refilling Rose's glass. "I'm with Stefan on this one. But, if you two could play nurse for a little while…" He trailed off.
"It's not necessary." Rose objected.
"It is necessary. Amelia's a do-gooder. It's in her nature - she just can't resist. And Elena, don't even get me started on saintly Elena…" He joked, leaving the room.
Amelia gave Rose a small smile before following after Damon and Elena. "Damon, is she gonna die?" Elena whispered.
Amelia frowned - did they forget that Rose was a vampire with super-hearing?
"Probably." Damon whispered. "The wolf bite caused some kind of infection. It's getting worse."
"Like poison?" Elena asked.
"I don't know, Elena. I'm not an expert in the field." Damon said, annoyed.
"I'm sorry." Elena told him, touching his arm.
Amelia glared at that arm as Damon responded. "Death happens. We come, we go. Sooner she dies, the better. It's gloomy as hell in here."
Amelia and Elena watched him leave in shock, disbelieving that he could be so heartless.
"I hate this." Rose complained as the girls helped her into bed. "I'm a vampire. I haven't had a cold in five centuries.
"Just get in bed." Elena advised, helping her out of her jacket.
"We don't get sick. When we die, it's fast and sudden and it's certainly not drawn out with an illness." Rose explained.
"You're not gonna die." Elena denied as Amelia tucked her in.
"Such a human thing to say." Rose said, observing the girls. "You've never been in Damon's room before, have you?" Rose asked Elena as she looked around uncomfortably. Rose looked at Amelia. "But you have."
Amelia said nothing as Elena looked at her questioningly. Elena picked up one of the books near his bed, "Gone with the Wind," it read. "Not what you expected?" Amelia murmured to Elena.
"It's just a room with a bed. Maybe I expected there to be silk sheets." Elena responded, making Rose laugh. Amelia opened her mouth, and almost informed her that he didn't need silk sheets with his silk boxers, but then she thought otherwise, slamming her mouth shut.
"You're lucky, you know." Rose told the girls. "No one's ever loved me the way you're loved."
Amelia frowned. "What're you talking about?" She asked.
Rose scoffed. "You can't tell me you have no idea Damon's completely in love with you?" She asked, shaking her head.
"I doubt that." Elena said, thinking about how heartless Damon was. He wasn't capable of love.
Amelia misinterpreted what she had said and her shock from Rose's comment turned into irritation. She assumed that Elena was trying to slight her - that she didn't believe she was good enough to be loved.
Rose misinterpreted her comment as well. "Trevor was my best friend, nothing more. I spent all those years on the run from Elijah. I just never thought it was a good idea to set up roots. The whole idea of a family is not exactly compatible with being a vampire." She explained.
Amelia was quiet as she imagined never having children. She wasn't sure that she wanted children, but she didn't really want to rule out the option.
"Why are you so eager to give up?" Rose asked Elena.
Elena handed Rose her glass of blood. "I'm not giving up on anything. Here." She lied.
"What do you call this whole deal with Elijah?" Rose questioned.
"I call it my best option." Elena explained.
"It's your easiest option." Rose argued.
"That's not fair." Elena said, shaking her head.
"You really think that your witch friend destroyed the moonstone?" Rose asked, looking at Amelia.
Amelia looked at Rose in shock. She thought they were becoming friends. "What do you mean? I helped myself - I saw it explode!" She argued.
"And I spoke with Bonnie - I know that they had the help of another witch." Elena told her. "Assuming it's Elijah's witch, so, no, I don't." Elena realized, wondering if it really was Elijah's witch.
"What?" Amelia asked, dumbfounded. Sure, she had a strange vibe from the Martin's, but she didn't believe that they had betrayed her.
"You really are determined to die, aren't you?" Rose asked Elena. "At least I ran. You're not even trying." Rose handed Amelia the glass of blood. "I'm so tired." She said, before closing her eyes.
Amelia and Elena exchanged a look before starting to leave the room.
"No, wait! Tell them to prepare the horses." Rose murmured, hallucinating.
"It's okay, Rose. Just get some sleep. You'll feel better when you wake up." Amelia soothed, brushing her hair out of her face.
"Trevor, don't be so stupid. We're never gonna make it there before the sun." She murmured, tossing and turning. Rose opened her eyes, becoming more aware. "Oh, Amelia, I need more blood." Rose groaned.
"Yeah, of course, here." Amelia murmured, handing her the glass.
A moment later, Rose leaned over, gagging and retching blood all over Damon's bed. Amelia held her hair and rubbed her back soothingly as she coughed.
Elena ran over and wet a cloth for Rose. "It's okay, it's all right." She said.
Suddenly, Rose disappeared. Amelia looked around, confused, before seeing Rose behind Elena, a murderous expression on her face. Amelia gasped as Rose grabbed onto Elena and shoved her into a wall. "It's all your fault, Katerina! You, Katerina, you did this!" Rose yelled, veins appearing under her eyes.
"Rose!" Amelia shouted, fumbling off the bed and tripping on the sheets, falling to the floor embarrassingly.
"I'm Elena, Rose, Elena! I'm Elena, I'm not Katherine!" Elena protested, struggling under her grip.
Thankfully, Rose seemed to realize her mistake. She backed away from Elena as Amelia got to her feet. "Elena?" Rose realized hesitantly. "Oh, my God."
"It's me, it's Elena." Elena confirmed.
"Oh, my God, Elena, I'm so sorry. I don't know what's happening to me." Rose apologized, frightened.
"It's all right, you're going to be all right." Amelia soothed.
"My mind, I'm…" Rose trailed off, covering her face as she walked away from them.
"It was only for a second." Elena said.
"I'm sorry, don't be scared of me." Rose pleaded.
"I'm not, I'm not. But… you need to rest." Elena assured her.
"I'm scared." Rose admitted, crawling under the covers.
"You're not alone. We're right here." Amelia assured her.
Rose sat up, looking around. "Here? Where's here?"
Elena put a hand on Rose, "Damon's bedroom. You're in Damon's bedroom." Elena reminded her.
Rose looked around, frightened. "I wanna go home." She cried.
"Tell us about it." Amelia suggested, sitting down next to her cautiously.
"St. Austell. Thirty kilometers south of London. With fields and trees and horses." Rose murmured, closing her eyes.
"Sounds beautiful." Elena whispered.
"When you live long enough, everything disappears. So much time wasted. I just wish I hadn't been so afraid." She admitted before drifting off into a restless slumber.
Amelia was downstairs catching up on homework when Elena came running down the stairs. "What's wrong?" Amelia asked, standing up.
"It's Rose - she's gone. I don't know where she went." Elena told her.
Amelia frowned, and helped Elena search the house, pulling out her phone. She dialed Damon's number and groaned as it went to voicemail. "It's Amelia… I'm worried about Rose - I think you should come home."
The girls heard a clattering noise from across the house. "Rose?" Amelia called, hanging up the phone. She hurried to follow Elena as she went down into the basement.
She bent down and picked up a near empty blood bag in confusion as Elena rounded the corner to find Rose kneeling on the ground, licking blood off her fingers. "No, no, no, Elena!" Amelia called, sprinting around the corner.
"Katerina." Rose said viciously, running towards the girls.
Elena screamed and ran up the stairs. Amelia quickly followed after her, pointing her hand at an old door, making it fall in Rose's path as she tried to get them.
They made it up to the living room before Rose caught up with them, her face terrifying as she stalked them. She had dark veins under her eyes, fresh blood dripping down her chin, and her fangs were bared at them as she hissed.
"Rose! Rose! Stop, I'm not Katherine - it's Elena! You're hallucinating!" Elena reminded her, trying to pull her out of that state. "I'm not Katherine. I'm not Katherine." She repeated.
Amelia lowered her hands as Rose's face went back to normal. She breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that Rose was herself again.
She realized that she was very, very wrong when Rose bared her fangs at her and leapt onto her, knocking her, and the curtain, onto the ground. Rose screamed as the sunlight came pouring onto her back, burning her.
Elena took off running towards the front door as Amelia stood in the sunlight - protected. "Elena, no!" She called after her.
Elena didn't look back and Rose disappeared from her sight, going after the easier prey. Amelia had a moment of panic as she briefly debated climbing out the window before she decided she couldn't leave her friend here to die.
She groaned as she ran after them. She came to a screeching halt as she saw Elena digging her nails into Rose's painful wound.
Rose screamed in agony and Amelia followed Elena up the stairs as she ran away. They locked themselves in a bedroom. Amelia immediately ran to the windows, throwing the curtains open and bathing in the protection of the sunlight. Elena shoved a heavy desk in front of the door (which was futile in Amelia's opinion) and broke off two legs of the wooden chair she had knocked over, creating stakes.
The two girls flinched in fright as the doorknob jiggled. "Elena, I know that it's you and not Katherine." Rose said before she began gagging and coughing. "Amelia, please, I need your help." She begged.
Amelia felt a deep pain in her heart, wanting to help Rose, but needing to keep herself and Elena safe.
Amelia spent the better part of the afternoon arguing with Elena, insisting that they needed to leave now, while they still had the sun on their side.
Elena refused to leave, and Amelia refused to leave her, so they sat together quietly as the sun went down.
They sat across from each other on the floor, tensing up at every chirp of the birds and every sound of the wind.
"I'm sorry about how I've been treating you lately, Amelia. I haven't been a great friend to you." Elena admitted, looking upset.
Amelia took a deep breath. "I'll admit, I was pretty upset about that whole road trip with Rose… but, I understand - you've been under a lot of stress lately." She forgave her friend.
Elena gave her a small smile before hesitating, like she wanted to ask her something.
"What is it, 'Lena?" Amelia asked, concerned.
"It's just… I'm worried about you, Lia. This whole thing you're doing with Damon… What's going on?" Elena admitted, concerned.
Amelia closed her eyes and sighed. "It's complicated…" She trailed off, glancing at the disbelieving look Elena was giving her. "Okay… Damon, he… he makes me happy, most of the time. He wants to be with me, but I told him I needed some time… some time to think about it." She divulged. "I-I don't even know why though, I mean, he could have anyone, why me? It makes no sense."
Elena frowned at her. "He'd be more than lucky to have you, Lia, don't talk like that. I'm glad he makes you happy… Just…. be careful, okay?" She requested, giving her a small smile.
Amelia returned the smile and nodded.
A little while later, Elena was feeling brave and decided they should make a run for it. Amelia felt like strangling her friend, but said nothing, staying on high alert as they ventured down the stairs.
Amelia's heart was pounding, and her headache still hadn't let up. She thought she could keel over and puke at any given moment from the adrenaline pumping through her veins.
The pair moved warily towards the open door when Amelia felt warm breath on her neck. She spun around, flinging her hands out, deathly afraid, as she sent Damon flying across the room.
He landed hard, groaning as he stood up. "Damn, little witch, what gives?" He complained, blurring in front of them. Amelia flinched. "Where's Rose?" He asked, noticing the makeshift stakes they were carrying.
Elena shook her head. "We don't know."
Ten minutes later, they were outside the fundraising event at the high school, waiting as Damon spoke to Liz. She had just called him, explaining that they had found a vampire attack victim.
Amelia leant up against Damon's car, resting her eyes as she tried to ignore the pounding in her head, and her nauseous stomach.
Elena sighed as Stefan's phone went to voicemail. She left him a quick message before hanging up as she saw Damon approaching them.
"Hey." Elena greeted.
Damon frowned, noticing Amelia's disposition. "You okay, little witch?" He asked her, concerned.
Amelia wanted to lean into his cool hand that brushed the sweaty hair out of her face. "Yeah, I'm fine." She murmured.
"Have you heard from him? Do you know what he's up to?" Elena asked Damon.
"Baby brother's not exactly my priority right now." He told her, glancing around the parking lot. "Take this." Amelia opened her eyes to see that Elena had just pocketed a stake he had handed her. She took the second one from him.
"Come on, let's go." Amelia muttered, looking around.
They had barely begun their search when Damon muttered, "Oh, crap…" And suddenly took off across the parking lot. Amelia and Elena exchanged a glance as they ran after him. They both skidded to a halt as they saw a body on top of a vehicle, a bleeding girl falling to the ground, and Damon on top of Rose as he tried to subdue her. "Rose! Rose! It's me. It's Damon. It's Damon. It's Damon!" He soothed, trying to get her to come back to herself.
Amelia jogged over to the girl, and felt for a pulse. Elena looked at her questioningly, but Amelia shook her head. She was dead.
"Did I do this?" Rose asked, shocked.
Nobody said anything.
"No! I didn't mean to. I didn't mean to hurt anyone. I never wanted to hurt anybody." Rose cried, squirming under Damon's grip.
"I know, I know." Damon soothed.
Rose looked up at Elena and Amelia, her face covered in blood. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Rose sobbed, tears and blood mixing.
"Come on, lets get you home." Damon murmured, lifting her into his arms.
"No, I don't have a home. I haven't had a home in so long! Oh, make it stop! Please, make it stop! I hate it! Make it stop! Please!" She wailed hysterically.
Amelia ended up driving his Chevy as he sat in the back with her, trying to soothe her. Every once in a while, she would glance in the rearview mirror, feeling her heart clench at poor Rose.
Damon laid Rose in bed, and Amelia followed them upstairs quietly. She leant up against the doorpost, listening to their conversation.
"I'm sorry." Rose apologized.
"You went on a murderous rampage. It happens." Damon joked.
Amelia rolled her eyes, suppressing the urge to chuckle.
"I'm sorry, Amelia. I don't like taking human life. I never have." Rose called to her.
Damon turned and glared at her. "You shouldn't be here." He said harshly.
"That's the worst part about death - the hunt. The need to kill. The thirst. Pleasure it brings you afterwards. I wasn't meant to be evil. It hurts." Rose explained.
"Well, then stop talking about it." Damon snapped, walking a few steps away from her.
Amelia frowned at him, and moved closer to Rose. "He's a lot like me. He wants to care, but the minute he does, he runs away from it." Rose told her. "I'm sorry for what I've done today." Rose apologized again, her voice cracking.
Amelia sat down on the edge of the bed and took her hand. "Rose, sh. I forgive you. It's okay." She told her truthfully.
"And you need to fight. I know that you're scared, but you have to do it anyway. I've seen the way he looks at you, Amelia… You can't let a love like that pass you by." Rose pleaded.
Amelia stared at her, mouth slightly agape as she tried to think of a response. She looked down at the floor and snuck a peek at Damon to see that he was staring at her, arms crossed, but a gentler expression on his face.
Rose started coughing and Amelia turned back to her, rubbing her back. "Mmm. Why are you so nice to me?" Rose asked, confused.
Amelia chuckled. "I don't know." She admitted. "I'm just doing what any other decent human would." She shrugged.
"You can never forget it. What it's like to be human. It haunts me. It's the only thing that's kept me going." Rose pleaded. "It doesn't hurt as much anymore." Rose said, referring to the werewolf wound on her back.
Amelia and Rose exchanged a smile before Rose's face suddenly turned sour. She squirmed on the bed, and began groaning and screaming.
"What do we do?" Amelia asked Damon nervously as he sat down next to Rose.
"It's okay." Damon soothed, brushing Rose's hair out of her face.
"Damon?" Amelia repeated, backing a few steps away.
"Just go, I've got this!" Damon yelled.
"Oh, my God! Make it stop! Make it stop!" Rose pleaded, beginning to sob. "Oh, I can't take this anymore, make it stop!"
Amelia felt so torn as she jogged down the stairs. She wanted to stay and help Damon, but he didn't want her there - he had made that pretty clear.
She sighed and laid down on one of the couches, falling asleep eventually as she waited for Damon.
Amelia sat up, her heart pounding, as she heard the front door slam. She stood up and walked over to Damon, who had just returned from burying Rose's body.
"You were supposed to leave." Damon told her.
"I couldn't just leave you. I had to make sure that you were okay." Amelia admitted, pouring him a glass of Bourbon and handing it to him.
"I appreciate the gesture." He replied stiffly, taking a large sip of the drink. "I'm just glad it's over."
"You know I don't believe that." Amelia said, crossing her arms.
"Go home, Amelia. Get some rest. It's a whole new day tomorrow." Damon said optimistically, gesturing towards the door.
"Damon, I'm your friend." Amelia told him, touching his arm.
Damon looked down at her hand and swallowed. "I'm well aware of that."
"And a friend usually knows when their friend is hurting." Amelia responded.
"What do you want to hear? That I cared about Rose? That I'm upset? Well I didn't, and I'm not!" Damon denied, his long hair falling in his face as he turned away from her.
"There you go, pretending to turn it off, pretending not to feel. Damon, you're so close, don't give up." Amelia said quietly, shaking her head.
"I feel, Amelia. Okay?" Damon admitted, moving closer to her. "And it sucks." He emphasized harshly. "What sucks even more is that it was supposed to be me. Jules was coming after me." Damon admitted, his voice quivering.
Amelia felt her heart clench at the thought of him being bitten by a werewolf - facing the same fate Rose had - death. "You feel guilty." She realized.
Damon scoffed and shook his head, moving to stand right in front of her. "That would be human of me, wouldn't it, Amelia? And I'm not human. You're one to talk about giving up. It's all you've done, is give up! You won't even give us a chance!" He yelled. "Go home." He said more quietly, pointing at the door. "There's been enough doom and gloom and personal growth for one night."
They stared at each other quietly, waiting to see who would give in first. Amelia felt her heart sink as he glanced away from her, trying to rapidly blink the tears that were forming in his eyes. She moved to him quickly, wrapping her arms around the stiff, rigid vampire. Damon sniffed and took a deep breath before returning the hug, wrapping his arms tightly around her small frame.
"God, this sucks." Damon admitted, chuckling harshly.
"I know, Damon." Amelia mumbled into his chest. She tried to pull away but he pulled her back to him. "Damon…" Amelia groaned, chuckling.
Damon sighed and let her take a step back. Amelia observed him for a moment, and the unusual defeated sag to his posture.
"Wait here." Amelia told him firmly, running up to his bedroom. She searched through his wardrobe before finally finding what she needed. She tucked it into her jacket and jogged back down the stairs. "C'mon." She commanded, taking his hand as she walked out the door. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Damon sighed as he changed. "Why're we doing this again?" He asked.
"Because I said so." Amelia replied, coming around the corner in her black bikini, ignoring her pounding headache that she had all day.
"Aren't you worried about being expelled for breaking and entering?" Damon teased as he took off his shirt on the edge of the high school pool.
Amelia felt her mouth go dry as she watched him stretch his strong arms, his muscular chest…
"I know I'm sexy but you don't have to stare." Damon teased, waggling his eyebrows at her.
Amelia glared at him and a brilliant idea struck her. She waved her hand at him and caught him off guard as he went flying into the cold pool.
"Hey!" Damon complained, coughing up water.
Amelia giggled at the sight of his long, dark hair dripping into his face. She frowned as she realized he was no longer in the water.
"Paybacks a bitch." He whispered, his lips brushing against her ear.
Amelia squealed as his strong hands gabbed onto her hips and she felt her toes leave the ground. The cold water dripped from his hair and onto her.
"Damon, no! I'm sorry!" She pleaded, squirming as she tried to escape her fate. She knew that she could probably get away from him if she used her powers, but she was in a playful mood.
"Ah, ah, ah! Not as sorry as you're about to be!" He told her, laughing as the threw her into the cold water.
Amelia surfaced and spluttered, glaring at the vampire. He only winked at her before making a cannonball and splashing her as he landed. They were both laughing as they engaged in a splashing war. Eventually, Amelia had to admit defeat, acknowledging that she was no match for him. "Okay, old man, I give!" Amelia squealed, shielding her face from his onslaught.
Damon scoffed. "Old man? Really?" He groaned, swimming over to her. "You're one to talk, jailbait." He teased, looking at her tiny swimsuit. The smile fell off his face as he realized she hadn't stopped shivering since they had entered the pool. He noticed her skin was much paler than it's usual light cream color, and he could hear her heart beating at a much faster rate, almost as if it were struggling to keep up.
"You don't look so good." Damon told her, grimacing.
"Gee, thanks…" Amelia trailed off, embarrassed as she thought he was referring to her looks.
"No, seriously, Amelia. You've looked really sick… all day today." He realized, feeling guilty. "How're you feeling?" He asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.
She grimaced. "Not great." She admitted, not looking at him.
Damon Salvatore was laying on Amelia's bed in his undershirt and boxers thinking about how he missed being human. The sound of the shower was all he could hear in the quiet house. Damon wanted to lash out. He wanted to hurt people - to kill them and drink every ounce of blood from their body as they begged and screamed in his arms.
Damon thought about the possibility that Amelia was somehow related to Elijah and he felt relieved, even though he refused to admit it to himself. If it were really true, he wouldn't have to decide whether or not to break his vow to the Whitmore family.
Damon heard the door open, and the familiar sound of Amelia's heartbeat moving towards him. He heard her sigh as she climbed into bed, wrapping her arm around him. She rested her head on his chest and he glanced down, noticing the warm puppy pajamas she was wearing. Despite the warm clothing and her hot shower, she was still shivering.
They were both silent, lost in their own thoughts. Damon ran a hand through her hair, trying to get her to relax her stiff body.
I have a secret, Damon realized, I have a big one and I never said it out loud… I mean, what's the point? It's not gonna change anything. Its not gonna make me good, make me adopt a puppy… I can't be what other people want me to be - what she wants me to be. This is who I am.
Damon looked down at the sleeping girl who lay on him so innocently. It would only take him a second - less than a second even - to snap her neck. Or, he could rip her heart out… send Elijah a message… How he would love to sink his fangs into her neck again…
The sleeping witch stirred, her brow furrowed and her drool covered lips frowning. Damon wondered what was bothering her - if she were having a nightmare…
Why do I care? Damon thought. She means nothing to me… just a distraction… He tried to convince himself. I mean I could definitely kill her if I wanted to… right?
Damon sighed, observing her unusually pale skin, her light blonde hair… He knew that if she opened her eyes, those baby blues would be looking at him in delight, a happy smile on her face…
I'm not sure I could kill her if I wanted to, Damon realized, a frown on his face. She's my existential crisis. Do I kill her or do I not kill her?
The sleeping seventeen year old had no idea of the thoughts circulating through his head.
But I have to because I'm not human and I don't care! And I miss it… I miss it more than anything in the world! That is my secret, but there is only so much hurt a man can take…
Just as Damon was thinking about doing it - ending her life, she stirred and rubbed her eyes sleepily. "Damon? You're still here." She realized, yawning.
Damon swallowed and blinked the moisture from his eyes, hating himself. I love her so much, I could never kill her… never hurt her…
He cleared his throat and turned on his side, wrapping an arm around her. "Yeah… I'm still here." He murmured, pulling her close to him and wrapping a blanket around her.
Neither witch nor vampire slept easily that night.
A/N: Hey guys! This was a huge, huge, huge turning point for their relationship! As you can see, I've strayed away from canon with Andie and Damon's relationship. This was definitely one of my favorite chapters so far! I appreciate all of the feedback! -TeamComrade11 :)