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Chapter 51: Gone, But Not Gone


"Just can't stay away, can you?" Damon complained as he ripped down the papers about Stefan's killings off his wall.

"You've been dodging calls," Elena stated as she walked in.

"Yeah, well, I've been busy with my dead informant and all," Damon sighed.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Elena asked.

"Happy Birthday, Elena. Stefan and Sakura killed Andie," Damon mocked.

"He called me, Damon," Elena stated, surprising Damon.

"What?" Damon turned to her.

"Stefan called me last night," Elena explained.

"Well, what'd he say?" Damon prodded her.

"He didn't say anything, but it was him. I asked sheriff Forbes if she would trace the call's origin. It came from Tennessee," Elena bit her lip nervously.

"Where he's binge drinking on the country folk. We went through this, Elena. Stefan's gone. I don't mean geographically," Damon wanted her to give up.

"If he was gone, he wouldn't have called," Elena stated, "Besides, doesn't that mean you think Sakura is gone?"

"Maybe, maybe not," Damon said as he threw the papers into the fire.

Elena frowned, shaking her head, before storming out his room.

"She's not going to stop you know," Leilani appeared in his doorway. Leilani glanced back to make sure Elena was gone before walking up to Damon. "You won't tell her, but you'll tell me right?" Leilani asked and waited patiently, "I'm a supernatural being as well, remember. I'm not strong like Sakura, but I can help."

"They've been tracking werewolves, them and Klaus. All over the eastern seaboard," Damon sighed as he glanced at her, she looked up at him hopeful.


Klaus, Stefan and Sakura are walking in the mountains. Stefan was carrying and unconscious Ray over his shoulder. "You ok? Is Ray getting heavy?" Klaus asked.

"I'm fine," Stefan grumbled.

Sakura glanced up at him. "Sure you are," she rolled her eyes before continuing to survey the area, walking backwards half the time.

"You sure about that? You know, we've been walking for quite some time now. If you need some water or a little sit-down..." Klaus started to say.

"You know, I get that we're, uh... we're stuck together, but if we could maybe just skip the chitchat, it'd be great," Stefan sighed.

"So much brooding. Your self-loathing is suffocating you, my friend," Klaus commented.

"And everyone else," Sakura said in a sing-song voice. Stefan glared at her and she smiled back at him.

"Maybe it's 'cause I'm a little tired of hunting werewolves. We've been at it all summer," Stefan complained.

"Thanks to our pal Ray, we found ourselves a pack. There," Klaus said and they stopped in front of a pack. Stefan entered their camp and they all stared at him. He set Ray on the ground and a woman ran up to him.

"Ray! Oh, my God. What's going on? Who are you?" she asked them.

Stefan walked back up to Klaus and Sakura. "The important question is who am I. Please forgive the intrusion. My name is Klaus," he introduced himself.

"You're the hybrid," she gasped.

"You've heard of me. Fantastic," Klaus smiled.


Klaus and Stefan sat down as Sakura looked around more. All of the pack just kept staring at them. Sakura winked at one of them and they turned away gulping. "You're scaring them Sakura," Klaus laughed.

"Aw," Sakura giggled.

Klaus shook his head and sighed, "It's fascinating, actually... A werewolf who isn't beholden to the moon, a vampire who doesn't burn in the sun. A true hybrid."

Ray woke up with a gasp.

"Excellent timing, Ray. Very dramatic," Klaus smiled.

"What's happening to me?" Ray growled.

"Stefan?" Klaus called on him.

Stefan gets up, "Are any of you human? Your friend here needs human blood to complete his transition to vampire. If he doesn't get it, he will die."

"Doesn't take much, just a sample. Anyone? A boyfriend, a girlfriend, along for the ride?" Klaus asked them.

Sakura looks at one of the men, "You." She pointed at him and used her power to pull him forward into the opening. Klaus bit his forearm and Stefan threw him to the ground, in front of Ray. The woman at his side tried to protest and Klaus grabbed her by the throat.

"If you don't drink it, Ray, I will. Problem is I don't know how to stop," Stefan threatened.

Klaus looked at the girl, "It's the new order, sweetheart. You join us, or you die."

"I'd rather die than be a vampire," she spat.

"Wrong choice," Klaus forced her to drink his blood. Ray started to drink from the man. "She'll thank me for that later," Klaus laughed before killing her.

"Man I'm thirsty," Sakura complained mockingly. Everyone in the pack backed away slightly. "Oh I don't drink blood," Sakura laughed.

"Ok, who's next?" Klaus turned to the rest of them with his eyes glowing yellow and his fangs out.


Alaric and Elena had tracked them to Tennessee and were getting close. Elena looked down the cliff into the water below, "I don't know why you think that you're a lost cause." Damon appeared out of nowhere and threw Elena into the water. "Damon! How are you even here?" Elena screeched.

"Thanks for the tip, brother," Damon smiled at Alaric.

"You sold me out," Elena growled.

"Think I'd take you to a mountain range of werewolves on a full moon without backup?" Alaric raised an eyebrow.

"Sorry Elena," Leilani called down to her.

"You're letting Leilani come?" Elena complained.

"At least she has some training and magic," Damon replied.


Klaus gives his blood to the human and compels him, "There. Good as new. Now you relax, ok, mate? We're gonna need you when the rest of them wake up." Klaus smiled, wanting to us him as a blood bag.

"They're dead. They're all dead," Ray stammered.

"Ah, he's through his transition. He should be feeling better soon," Klaus commented.

"So is this your master plan? Build an army of hybrid slaves?" Stefan inquired skeptically.

"No, not slaves. Soldiers, comrades," Klaus corrected him.

"For what war, might I ask?" Stefan prodded.

"Oh, you don't arm yourself after war has been declared, Stefan. You build your army so big that no one ever dares pick the fight," Klaus laughed.

"How many do you really think you'll need?" Sakura asked as she stared at Ray.

"Worry not, you guys will be at the top," Klaus replied, not answering her question.

"What makes you so sure that they'll be loyal?" Stefan frowned.

"Well, it's not difficult to be loyal when you're on the winning team. That's something you'll learn once you shake that horribly depressive chip off your shoulder," Klaus stated.

Stefan started to laugh, "That's why you're, uh... you're keeping me around? To witness my attitude adjustment?"

"You'll know why I'm keeping you around when I've decided that I want you to know," Klaus didn't answer again. Klaus's attention was grabbed by Ray's bleeding eyes, "Something's wrong."

"That shouldn't be happening, should it?" Stefan saw Ray.

"Obviously," Sakura rolled her eyes. She walked up to him and grabbed Ray's hand, "He's not going to make it."


"Get out of the water, Elena," Damon rolled his eyes at her.

"If I get out of the water, you're gonna make me go home," Elena splashed water in his direction.

"Yes, because I'm not an idiot like you," Damon spat.

"Right now, you're both acting like idiots," Alaric interrupted.

"You gave up on him Damon, on both of them," Elena yelled at him.

"I didn't give up on them, Elena. I face reality. Now get out of the water," Damon was losing his patience.

"No!" Elena refused.

"Elena please," Leilani sat at the ledge and looked down at her.

"What's your big plan, Elena? Huh? You gonna walk into a campsite full of werewolves, roast a marshmallow, and wait for Stefan to stop by?" Damon made his way into the water.

Elena backed away from him slightly, "My plan is to find him and help him. Damon, this is the closest that we've been to him since he left. I'm not going home."

"Klaus thinks you died when he broke the curse. That makes you safe. This, this is not safe," Damon argued.

"It's better if he thinks you're dead," Leilani tried to help.

"I'm not leaving before we find him," Elena continued being stubborn.

"It's a full moon tonight, Elena," Damon pointed out the dangers again.

"Then we'll find him before then. Damon, please," Elena pleaded.

"Ok. Ok. But we are out of here before the moon is full and I'm werewolf bait," Damon stated, not wanting to get bitten, again.

"I promise," Elena agreed.

"Unless you want to relive that whole deathbed thing," Damon zoned out, his thoughts trailing back to Sakura. If he knew what she was up to, he would have died instead of let her go with him, but there wasn't really any way for him to stop her.

"I said I promise," Elena said, bringing him back to reality.

"What? Yeah... Fine," Damon sighed as they got out of the water.


Ray is shaking and he is bleeding from his eyes still. "You said it was going to feel better. Why doesn't it feel better?" Ray growled.

"Some master race," Stefan scoffed.

"Lose the attitude," Klaus frowned.

"It happens. Sometimes you have to fail a few times to get things right," Sakura sighed as she stared at Ray.

The woman started to wake up. "Derek, come feed your girlfriend," Klaus commanded.

Ray got up, snarled and jumped away. Sakura looked at Klaus, who turned to Stefan, "Go get him." Stefan chased after him.

"I'll make sure," Sakura sighed as she casually followed Stefan. She followed him, but saw Ray getting away. Stefan seemed distracted. Sakura looked around curiously and she suddenly felt a strong pulse. Someone was close, more than one person, that had a link to the real Sakura, and she could feel it.

Klaus walked past her, "Where did he go?"

Stefan tried to block Klaus's view, "He, uh... he got away. Forget him. Let's go."

Klaus noticed the bite on his arm, "A fatal werewolf bite. Ouch."

"Yeah. I'm gonna need your blood to heal me," Stefan stated.

"Well, I tell you what. You find Ray, and then I'll heal you," Klaus smirked.

"You can't be serious," Stefan sighed.

"You better hurry, 'cause that bite looks nasty," Klaus laughed. "Sakura, go with him," Klaus turned to her. She didn't respond to his voice, she just kept staring into the distance. "Sakura love?" Klaus walked up to her and waved a hand in front of her face.

"Hm, what?" Sakura turned to him.

"Go with Stefan," Klaus commanded, using her as insurance.

"Sure, right," Sakura zoned out as she walked by him.

"Say love, are you alright?" Klaus asked, noticing her absentmindedness.

"Yeah, fine," she responded in a droned voice.


The sun was staring to set, while they were still making their way to their destination in the smoky mountains. "We got about a mile left," Alaric stated.

"I'm tired," Leilani complained, not used to walking so much.

"The sun's about to set," Damon sighed.

"I can see that, Damon," Elena frowned.

"I'm just saying," Damon said.

"The moon doesn't reach its apex for a while. We have time," Elena stated.

They hear twigs snapping beside them. Ray jumped out of the bushes and Alaric aimed his crossbow at him, "Stay where you are."

"Vampire," Ray hissed at Damon. He rushed up to Damon and pushed him against a tree and tried to bite him. Alaric shoots him with an arrow, but Ray persists.

"Lux Saggita," Leilani summoned her bow at shot at Ray, who growled in pain, but kept going.

Elena grabbed a wolf's bane grenade out of her bag. "Damon!" Elena tossed it to Damon. He caught it and made it explode in Ray's face. Ray screamed as his face burned. Leilani shot him again, knocking him to the side and Damon kicked him in the stomach, knocking him unconscious.

"Let me guess. Hybrid," Alaric sighed.

Damon and Alaric picked him up and tied him to a tree. "These ropes aren't going to hold him much longer. What else do we have?" Damon asked.

Elena dowsed the rope and held it up to Alaric, "Ric, here. Take these."

Damon went to grab it, but it burned him, "Aah! Ow!"

"I said Ric," Elena frowned.

Alaric took the rope and wrapped it around Ray, "All right, that's the last of the vervain. We don't have enough stuff to hold him. I don't think we're gonna make that Ridge before the full moon."

"If we can get him to talk, we don't have to," Elena stated.

Ray suddenly started to scream, it was starting.

"Is he turning?" Damon looked at him wearily.

"It's impossible. It's still daylight," Leilani commented.

"Tell him that," Alaric scoffed.

Damon walked closer to Ray and grabbed onto his shoulder.

"There aren't supposed to be werewolves out here until the moon is full," Elena complained.

"You know, those ropes aren't going to hold the wolf," Alaric swallowed nervously. Ray screamed again and snarled at them.

"Damon, we've got to get out of here. We got to get out of these mountains now! Damon, now!" Elena yelled at him.

"Damon!" Leilani grabbed a hold of his arm and pulled him away. They rushed to get away.


Nighttime hit and Klaus was with Derek, the human. "Bad news, my friend. End of the road for you," Klaus bit into him, drinking him dry. The woman stood in front of him, "Careful, love. There's only one Alpha here." All of the werewolves started to bleed from their eyes, "Bloody Hell."


They were all running when Elena tripped. "Don't move," Damon ordered. Elena lifted her head and she was face to face with the werewolf.

"Elena!" Leilani called out as she turned around. She lifted her bow and shot at the werewolf, pulling his attention to her.

"Here, doggie, doggie," Damon threw a stone at the werewolf and it turned to him immediately, running towards him. Damon ran off with Ray close behind.

"Come on. Let's keep moving," Alaric commanded.

"We can't leave Damon," Leilani looked in his direction worriedly.

"He can handle himself. Let's move," Alaric persisted.

"But... If he gets bit, he'll be dead," Leilani bit her lip nervously.

"I know how you feel Leilani, but we have to," Elena frowned, not sure what to say.

"I am the reason he's out here. I told him where we were, and I'm telling you guys to keep moving. Let's go, now!" Alaric said authoritatively.


Ray was rushing at Damon in human form when he suddenly stopped moving. Stefan appeared between Damon and Ray and ripped Ray's heart out. "Fancy meeting you here," Damon smirked.

"What part of "don't follow me anymore" got lost in translation, Damon?" Stefan frowned at him.

"He doesn't normally listen, does he?" an all too familiar voice came from behind Stefan. For some reason, Damon didn't really think he'd run into her. He really should have known when Ray froze. She walked up beside Stefan and Damon's gaze moved to her, and he froze.

"Sakura..." Damon felt his heart sink, he knew it wasn't really her, but she did try to save him.

"Damon," Stefan growled, unfreezing him.

"Might want to take it up with your girlfriend. You don't want her chasing you, I'd stop with the late-night phone calls," Damon finally replied.

"I didn't call her," Stefan clenched his teeth.

"Sure you did. She's not going to give up on you," Damon stated and he started staring at Sakura again. He had to fight the urge to reach out to her. Being near her was harder than being away from her, in her current state.

"She has to. Because I'm never coming back. Why don't you get her home? See if you could keep her there this time," Stefan scoffed.

"Stefan, you're so serious," Sakura laughed as she walked up to Damon and circled him. "It's took bad we don't have time to waste," Sakura whispered in his ear. "Say hi to Leilani for me, lover boy," Sakura kissed him on the cheek and vanished, reappearing beside Stefan. "Bye bye," she said cheerfully as she waved at him. "Come on Stefan," Sakura linked her arm in his and they walked away. Sakura glanced back at Damon, who had a baffled look on his face.


Leilani, Alaric and Elena are waiting in the car. "Stefan's out there somewhere and now Damon, and we're just sitting in this car?" Elena complained.

"Sakura is here to, I can feel it," Leilani held her hand up to the window and gazed longingly.

"Let the vampires fight the hybrid zombie mountain man. I'll take care of keeping the humans safe," Alaric grumbled.

"I'm not exactly human," Leilani pointed out.

"Close enough," Alaric retorted.

"I thought you were checking out of taking care of people," Elena commented.

"I know what you're doing. Don't. There doesn't need to be a lesson here," Alaric sighed.

"You're better at it than you think, you know?" Elena sighed.

"Sakura said the same thing about you, you know that?" Leilani glanced at them.

"Oh, boy, are you guys suckers for a lost cause or what?" Alaric laughed half-heartedly.

"You're not a lost cause, Ric. You're just lost. But so is Jeremy, and so am I. Our family is gone. We don't have anybody. I'm sorry, but you don't have anybody either, so... We're kind of right for each other," Elena explained.

"Same situation for me I guess..." Leilani trailed off.

"Sorry," Elena apologized for not including her.

"I'm keeping the ring, then," Alaric smiled.

"Damon!" Leilani practically lunged out of the car when she spotted him walking up to the car. Elena came out right after her.

"Are you ok? Did you..." Elena trailed off, wondering if he got bit.

Leilani looked around Damon, half expecting someone else to be with him.

"Fine, bite-free," he said to Elena. "I'm alone though," he turned to Leilani. "Get back in the car, please," Damon sighed, not wanting to deal with them.

"Can you just give me a minute to appreciate that you're not dead?" Elena was insulted by his reaction.

"I'll give you 10 seconds. 9, 8... hey, Ric, did you happen to see where I parked my car?" Damon distracted Elena and picked her up.

"Damon, stop being such a caveman," Elena screeched.

"Sakura," Leilani gasped. In the distance she could see Sakura with Stefan. Sakura was waving to her. But in the blink on an eye, she was gone.

"Where?" Elena looked out the window.

"Nowhere, I was seeing things," Leilani got back in, without and prodding from Damon. He looked at her questioningly, but didn't ask.


Stefan picked up Ray and head back to the camp with Sakura. "They went rabid. Some of them, I killed. The others just... Bled out. In the end... They're all dead," Klaus yelled, more upset than they would have expected. "I did everything I was told! I should be able to turn them. I broke the curse. I killed a werewolf. I killed a vampire. I killed the doppelganger," Klaus complained. Sakura didn't miss a beat, but Stefan looked at him uncomfortably, "You look like hell."

"Last I checked, I'm dying... And you don't want to heal me. I had to take him out. I didn't have a choice. I failed you. I'm sorry. Do what you have to do," Stefan said flatly.

"It should have worked," Klaus complained again.

"You should probably heal him, if you still want him around," Sakura commented.

Klaus picked up a beer bottle, opened it, bit his wrist and put his blood into the bottle. He shoved the bottle in Stefan's direction, "Bottoms up. We're leaving. It appears you two ate the only comrades I have left."


Damon walked into Sakura's room at the boarding house to find Leilani laying in her bed. "What are you doing here?" Damon asked.

"I don't want to go back to my big lonely home," Leilani replied. "This place feels closer to Sakura somehow. I can sense her you know. She has a different feel to her than anyone I've ever met. I hope you don't mind me being here."

"Nope, do whatever you want," Damon turned to leave when Leilani spoke up.

"Why don't you hang out for a while? I assume that's why you even bothered to come in here," Leilani moved out of the middle of the bed, to make space for Damon. Damon didn't say anything, he just laid down beside her and they stayed together in silence, both missing Sakura.


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