THE VAMPIRE MIRACLE
A/N: OKAY I DECIDED TO REWRITE STARTING FROM CHAPTER SEVEN INSTEAD! CHAPTER FIVE IS ALRIGHT AS IT IS! I TECHNICALLY DIDN'T REWRITE THIS CHAPTER! I JUST TOOK SOME PARTS OUT, LIKE THE FUTURE STUFF(LIZZIE AND THE GIRLS) I AM SAVING THOSE FUTURE-VERSE STORYLINE FOR LATER CHAPTERS! ANYWHO, ENJOY!
6. THIS IS OUR HOME
~THE SALVATORE BOARDING HOUSE~
"Wait, what do you mean by the baby was supposed to be Elena and Stefan's?" Matt asked as the group except for Tyler/Julian, are in the Salvatore House.
"Markos said, originally the miracle baby was supposed to be created from the last two doppelgänger but, in his own words, "Being Doppelgänger blood is boring"." Damon told them.
"Boring? Meaning what?" Jeremy asked.
"Well I guess meaning it has no physical power other than some helpful blood here and there. No offense." Damon said to Stefan and Elena.
"What else did he say?" Bonnie asked.
"She is a witch-vampire Hybrid. He called her a heretic, something like that." Damon told them.
"Wait, a witch-vampire Hybrid? Is there even such a thing?" Caroline asked.
"According to Markos, there are very few of them but they do exist." Damon told her.
"Hold on, can we go back to the whole Stefan and I were originally supposed to have this miracle baby? What changed Markos mind?" Elena asked.
"Well beside the whole boring doppelgänger blood, he said he wanted to spice it up a little." Damon told her.
"Spice it up a little? What does he mean by that?" Stefan asked.
"He said she still needed to be Salvatore blood since it was Silas' blood that was first to create the doppelgänger curse. Why me? I don't know." Damon told them.
"Neither him or the traveler are leaving town anytime soon so how do we get rid of them?" Caroline asked.
~OUTSIDE THE SALVATORE BOARDING HOUSE~
Elena walked out of the boarding house. Caroline following behind her.
"Elena, wait up." Caroline called from behind.
Elena stopped and turned to face her friend.
"Look, I'm sorry. I know you've wanted to be a mother ever since we were little girls." Caroline told her.
"Yeah well...I'll be fine. Turns out I'm not meant to be a mother, at least according to Markos." Elena said.
"Elena—" Caroline started.
"No Caroline. I'm happy for you...and damon." Elena told her.
"That is what this is about... Damon and me." Caroline realized. "Well, there's nothing going on with Damon and me...not romantically. Yes I am having his baby. That's it. It's not like I actually love the guy." She told her.
"Hm." Elena nodded. "Where did everything go wrong? I didn't ask for this life. I am supposed to be living the big college life by now, graduate, get a job, meet some guy, have a family and grow old. I didn't ask to be a vampire—" Elena started.
"And you think I did?" Caroline asked.
"Caroline—" Elena started.
"No Elena...I wanted the college life too and have all of those thing you wanted, but instead...instead I get turned into a vampire at 17, have my parents hate me for who I am, tortured by father...even though he was a big douchebag to me, he's still my father and I didn't want him to die but he did...I almost died from a werewolf bite, it was miracle I even graduated, then the moment I get to college I found out two of my best friend were suffering, a friend I made a promise to die, then by some insane travelers, I get pregnant with the one guy I rightfully despise...and the same travelers that created my baby want her to help them break some curse. God knows what they're going to do once they…so no I didn't ask for any of this either." Caroline told her before walking back to the house.
~INSIDE THE SALVATORE BOARDING HOUSE~
Damon listens to the conversation outside just before he is struck in the chest with a whittled piece of wood.
"Forgetting someone?" Enzo asked.
"Bonnie!" Damon yelled.
"He said you promised to bring him back." Bonnie came into the room.
"Ah. You're paraphrasing. He said, quote; "I will find a way."" Enzo told her.
"Whatever." Bonnie turns to Enzo and rolls her eyes.
"Hello! Still here. And I know what I said." Damon told Enzo.
"Remind him that he doesn't have a very good track record for keeping promises." Enzo said to Bonnie.
"Please stop talking." Bonnie told him
"The other side is on the brink of collapse. I plan on pestering all of you until I'm safely returned to the land of the living." Enzo told her.
"You need to fix this before I lose my mind." Bonnie told Damon.
Damon: Hey! I'm sorry. I've got an insane traveler who wants to use my unborn daughter to help him with his little problem, which includes wanting to rid our town of magic; and I've got the friendly banker, Mr Sikes, in the coat closet. So your escape from the netherworld is going to have to wait till tomorrow." Damon told him.
Enzo becomes increasingly angry. He picks up a bottle of alcohol and chucks it into the fireplace, causing the flames to climb up the wall.
"I think he wants to be penciled in for today." Bonnie told Damon.
"Then you bring him back." Damon told her.
"What?" Bonnie asked him.
"Liv is cooking up a spell to pull you back from the other side before it goes "kaboom." So whatever you're doing, just include Enzo in it." Damon told her.
Bonnie doesn't answer. Instead, she looks down at her feet and avoids making eye contact with Damon.
"You hear me, Enzo? Just hitch a ride with her. Okay. See? There. Delegating. I feel better." Damon said.
"That's not a great idea." Bonnie told him.
Before she can explain further, Jeremy comes into the room.
"You called?" Jeremy asked the older Salvatore.
"You.. I need you and your xbox buddy to run an errand for me. Come on, let's go." Damon told him.
Jeremy and Damon take off, leaving Enzo and Bonnie alone.
"Well? What are you waiting for? Ring up your little witchy friend and get her over here." Enzo told the former witch.
~OUTSIDE THE SALVATORE BOARDING HOUSE~
"Feel better princess?" Damon asked as he sees the blonde coming his way.
"Nope. Not one bit." Caroline stopped in front of the raven. "Where are you two going?" She asked.
"We are going to pick up the travelers that are in the cave and bring them back. Surely Markos need them." Damon told her.
"Ok...what can I do?" Caroline asked.
"You and our pretty little unborn child aren't going to do anything but rest. Not to be rude but you need it." Damon slung his arms around the blonde leading her to the house.
"Damon…" The blonde let go of him and face him. "I need to do something or else I'm going to go on a rampage and probably kill a few people, but I can't. Even smelling human blood is unsettling, let alone having some." She told him.
"Hm, fine, you can try to contact the wonder twins. Maybe they know where Markos is or what the travelers are up to." Damon told her.
"I can do that." Caroline told him.
"Good. Later blondie." Damon said before leaving with the young Gilbert boy.
~LATER AT THE SALVATORE BOARDING HOUSE~
Damon picks up pieces of broken glass.
"Ahh! Great. I'm going to add carrying to the list of things you can't do well, but that's okay. You can repay me with your salary from the grill... if you want to work a couple thousand years." Damon told Matt.
"Why don't you do us all a favor and start dating Elena again." Matt told him.
"Just put her on the pool table." Damon told him.
Matt lays one of the traveler's bodies on the table when Caroline comes into the room.
"Liv and Luke aren't answering any of my calls." Caroline said. "Uh Damon, it's not like I don't trust you which I don't but what per-say are you planning on doing with all of them?" She asked the raven.
"You two make yourselves useful. Patrol the town; call me if you see anything weirder than usual." Damon told Matt and Jeremy. "Markos put them in a cave. I'm hoping he wants them back." Damon told Caroline as both Matt and Jeremy left.
"So you think drawing Markos to your house is the best idea?" Caroline asked him.
"It's the only idea! Unless your body snatched ex-boyfriend in the basement can help us." Damon told her.
"Julian is not Tyler. Therefore, he has no reason to help us. So until I figure out a way to get Tyler back, he's just extra baggage" Caroline told him.
"There's no shame in giving up. I mean, aren't we all a little sick of Tyler?" Damon asked her.
"Damon, I know you are all over the place with Elena and the baby but the whole "too cool to care" thing is really starting to get old." Caroline told him.
"Spare me the unsolicited relationship advice." Damon told her.
"Fine! Just keep your torture happy hands away from Tyler until I figure something out." Caroline told him before walking away.
"I'm sorry." Damon blurted out, which surprised the blonde.
"Ok I'll bite." Caroline turned around to face him before walking back to him.
"Everything that you went through, all the pain that you felt, were all my fault. I am sorry for that." Damon apologized.
"I don't hate you Damon. I just dislike you, as I rightfully should. Although I'm starting to think Stefan was right. And you are forgiven." Caroline smiled before walking away to the cellar.
~IN THE CAVES~
Markos goes back to the cave full of sleeping travelers. Only when he enters, he sees that the cave is empty. His eyes finally make contact with a note hanging on the wall, which says: "Found: Cave of wannabee witches. For more information, call Damon Salvatore." He rips the note off the wall and crumples it up, throwing it on the ground.
~IN THE CELLAR~
Caroline goes down to the Salvatore cellar to question Julian about Markos and the traveler's plans. Once standing over him, Caroline just gawks, without saying anything.
"Quite hoovering. It's weird." Julian said to Caroline.
"You're like.. permanently inhabiting the former love of my life. Let's debate the level of weird." Caroline told him.
"If he's former, why do you care?" Julian asked her.
"Because he's a person... whose life you stole without asking. He deserves to be fought for." Caroline told him.
"Whatever." Julian said.
Caroline rolls her eyes and debates leaving, but she decides to sit down and give Julian a lecture.
"So. Why can't Markos and the other travelers find some other place to live?" Caroline asked.
"It's nice here.. Besides, it's not just about breaking the curse that keeps us from being able to settle; it's revenge against all of the things the witches stand for. Every grimoire; every talisman; every vampire, right down to your daylight rings." Julian told her.
Caroline fiddles with her ring as Julian continues on.
"The travelers see it all as a perversion of pure magic. Markos wants to destroy that perversion. He wants to restore the balance." Julian told her.
"But that's just.. wrong." Caroline told him.
"It's not really wrong, when you think about it. If anything, it's kind of right." Julian told her.
"Well, why does he have to be so violent about it?" Caroline asked.
"When it comes to getting what he wants, Markos doesn't have much of a sense of humor." Julian told her.
Caroline held onto her stomach, scaredly. She has a feeling this wasn't going to end well.
Damon taps his fingers on the head of a comatose traveler sitting in his living room.
"Nothing." Damon said to himself.
He goes and picks up a fireplace poker, to presumably see if that warrants a physical response from the traveler, but his phone starts buzzing before he can.
"Salvatore Boring House." Damon answers his phone sarcastically.
"I'm calling about my people." Markos said on the other end of the phone.
"Hey! You found my note! Now listen, don't be offended, but I can't just give them to anyone. So, what do they look like?" Damon asked.
"They're ragged; beaten down by the world, desperate for a home." Markos told him.
"You just described homeless people, aging hipsters, and Matt Donovan." Damon told him.
"One of them is 5'10, wearing a black coat... You're standing next to him." Markos said.
Damon looks around for a moment, before Markos enters through an outside door.
"I know the concept of a home is new to you, but it is polite to knock." Damon told him.
~CAROLINE, ELENA AND BONNIE'S DORM ROOM~
Bonnie shuffles her belongings into a box, while Caroline talks.
"So Julian is trapped inside Tyler forever, or until he dies. So, I was thinking.. what if he does die? You, know, maybe that's how we do it! That's how we get him out!" Caroline said, packing her things.
"You want to kill Tyler?" Bonnie asked.
"He'll go to the other side and then, when Liv does the spell to help you and Enzo, Tyler can come back." Caroline explained.
Bonnie doesn't say anything. She just continues to pack the room up.
"And speaking of, shouldn't you be, like, preparing, or talking to Liv? Or doing anything other than packing up our dorm room?" Caroline asked.
"We have to be out of here right after finals, which I might skip, due to the potential extinction of magic in the place where I was spending my summer break." Bonnie told her.
"Right, but I think the other side falling apart is slightly more pressing than late housing fees." Caroline said.
Bonnie grows more frustrated. She aggressively tosses one of the boxes, which piques Caroline's suspicion.
"There is no spell.. I made it up. The other side is collapsing and everyone in it, including me, is going away for good." Bonnie confessed.
Caroline is strangely speechless.
"So no. I don't think you should kill Tyler." Bonnie storms out, but Enzo had been listening to the conversation the whole time from a corner in the room.
~BACK AT THE SALVATORE BOARDING HOUSE~
Markos eyes the main room at the Salvatore House.
"Nice place.. A little rustic. My tastes are a bit more modern, ironically. Still, good bones and all." He knocks on one of the walls, checking to make sure it's sturdy.
"I think you read the flyer wrong. See, the bodies are the only thing on the bargaining table... And in the attic... and in the garage." Damon told him.
"About that…" Markos started.
"And in the kitchen…" Damon added.
"Please tell me taking hostages isn't your grand plan. It feels a little.. small. I think I'll add a half-bath off the foyer." Markos said.
"Funny! Here I thought you didn't have a sense of humor!" Damon smirked.
"Hmm." Markos makes a face when he gets a whiff of something.
"Oh! If you're wondering about the smell, I have your salvation army doused in gasoline and I'm just itching to light a match." Damon told him.
"You're right! None of this would be possible without their willingness to passengered themselves into your citizens and help perform my spell." Markos takes out some crucifix-shaped object. "And while I'd like to give them the opportunity to return to their actual bodies…" Markos takes the cross-shaped object and crams it into the artery of one of the travelers, killing him. "It's not essential to my plan."
Damon is speechless.
"Did you really think you found the whole of my people? Travelers are everywhere. They're the faces that surround you every day... the world over.. the ones you don't notice. Because you're too busy making a mess of all you have..." Markos glances over the foyer again. "They want those things too. A home; a family; a better life. And they're willing to die for it." Markos told him.
"You want a promised land? I get it. Okay, but look: off the record, I mean, Mystic Falls is kind of a dump... bad schools, terrible traffic.. and forget about ever getting a decent cup of coffee." Damon told him.
"Mystic Falls is just a means to an end: like a small pebble dropped into a very large pond." Markos picks up a piece of ice and drops it into a drink he made for himself.
"Very poetic! No idea what it means." Damon said sarcastically.
"Once we destroy the spirit magic in this town, the witch's curse will finally be broken, but from there, the spell will ripple outward, unraveling spirit magic as it spreads. Only pure magic - our magic - will remain. My people will be free to go wherever they choose. And when witch magic, and everything it ever created, is gone from this Earth, you will be too." Markos told him.
"I think I've heard about enough." Damon vamp speeds after him, but Markos easily pushes him across the room.
"You underestimate me. I've completely transfused myself to doppelgänger blood. I am channeling all the power of my people. You aren't strong enough to kill me anymore!" Markos hears chanting humming in the background. "Not that it matters. The spell has already begun."
All across Mystic Falls, travelers disguised as townsfolk are pulling out vials of blood, busting them open in their hands and saying the spell.
~AT WHITMORE~
Bonnie carries one of the boxes from her room to her car, when she is confronted by an angry Enzo.
"When did you plan on telling me? Were you just hoping the darkness would come take me before the awful truth came out?" Enzo asked.
Bonnie turns around and looks at him with a mocking expression. He gets even more angry and knocks the box from her hands.
"Answer me!" Enzo demanded.
"Don't you get it? There is no solution." Bonnie told him.
"There's always a solution. Your boyfriend came back from the dead; Markos came back from the dead; you came back from the dead!" Enzo told her.
"The travelers used doppelgänger blood in that spell to bring Markos back, which means, they basically destroyed the magic that holds the other side together. It's unraveling and there's nothing anyone can do to stop it. It's over, Enzo. You're not coming back. Accept it." Bonnie told him.
"I will accept it when that darkness comes and yanks me to oblivion. I will accept it when I no longer exist. I spent over 50 years stuck in a cell; poked, prodded, tortured. By all rights, I had no hope of ever getting out, but I clung to it. So, I will accept it when it's done... not a minute prior." Enzo told her.
Bonnie seems to understand him, but she doesn't know what to say. So she goes to pick up her belongings, when she sees Maria on her journey to the other side.
"I know you.. you tried to kill my boyfriend in the caves." Bonnie said standing up.
"What's going on?" Enzo asked.
"A traveler just died." Bonnie said to Enzo.
"Tell my husband I tried." Maria touches Bonnie's shoulders and disappears.
~AT THE SALVATORE BOARDING HOUSE~
Downstairs, Julian is listening intently at what's going on upstairs with Markos and Damon. Upstairs, Damon is distracting; pouring drinks for himself and Markos.
"I'd invite you to stay for dinner, but I'm not very familiar with traveler cuisine. Although I'm sure it involves a lot of trail mix and gruel." Damon said.
Markos is still surveying the house, passive-aggressively mocking Damon.
"I think I'll knock this wall down. I love an open-floor plan." Markos said.
Julian finally decides to comment, knowing that Damon can hear him, while Markos can not.
"Damon, he doesn't know I'm here. Use the element of surprise. Not sure you're clever enough to pull it off. Just thought I'd put it out there." Julian said.
Damon nods to himself.
"Well, all I can ask is that you leave me with a couple good bottles of wine. You know, I spent half my life shop-lifting stuff. I assume you want to see the wine cellar?" Damon asked.
Markos nods and they take off down-stairs.
"Ahhh. Here's something you don't see every day." Damon said looking through his wine collection.
While pulling out the wine, Damon also gets his hands on the key to the cellar.
"I think I won this in a poker game. Or, maybe Stefan brought it back from the war. I don't remember." Damon said.
"Where is your brother? I was hoping he'd be here. The doppelgänger seems to have slipped away without saying goodbye." Markos said.
"That's a good question. Guess he's still trying to wrap his head around it." Damon said.
"And what would that be?" Markos asked.
"I told him what you told me...about the baby." Damon told him. "Both him and Elena know." He added.
"Ah I see." Markos said.
"You done here? I sure am." Damon said as he walked out the door. "After you."
They both start to leave, but before they do, Damon drops the key and kicks it under the door, into Julian's hands.
Markos hears some rumbling in another room, which furthers his suspicions about Damon being up to something.
"What kind of game are you playing?" Markos asked Damon.
Suddenly, Julian pounces on Markos' back and starts biting into his neck.
"It took you long enough!" Damon said.
Markos flings Julian from his back and Julian runs his fingers over the spot where his fangs should be.
"My fangs.. What the hell happened to my fangs?" Julian asked.
"What?" Damon walks a few steps forward, directly into a beam of sunshine. His skin starts to blister. "Woah." It stops momentarily when Damon steps back, but starts again almost immediately after he takes another step forward. "We have a problem."
In the town's square, the travelers that have gathered in public are still chanting, until they start dropping dead one-by-one. The sleeping travelers Damon took are awakened from their slumber. They surround him.
"And what were you saying about this being your home?" Markos asked Damon.
Damon also doubles over in pain when a pool of blood collects in his shirt. He too recalls being shot when he was still human, in the same place his wound appears.
"Like I said; this spell will continue to unravel spirit magic as it spreads, which means you're not long for his world." Markos glances over at Julian, who is now gasping for air. "The sun's about to set. Feel free to buy yourself a little time to say your goodbyes. You and this traitor of yours can try to outrun the spell.. for a little while, anyway." Markos told them.
Julian takes off through the front door. Damon is following shortly after him, but before he heaves, he takes one last look at the place he has called home for over 100 years.
Damon took a shortcut through the woods. Once he reaches a clearing to the road, a car pulls up, with Jeremy as the driver.
"Little Gilbert. I have never been so happy to see you." Damon smiled.
"Get in." Jeremy told him.
~IN THE DORM ROOM~
"What are we even supposed to take? Photos, clothes, hair products? Not that any of that matters when we're all dead." Caroline continues to pack their belongings.
Bonnie just sits on her bed in silence.
"Why are you just sitting there?" Caroline asked.
"I'm thinking." Bonnie replied.
"Well, think while you pack. Death is literally on its way. You said a vampire appeared to you, who died on old Miller road, which means the spell is moving past Mystic Falls. So, whatever will fit. The rest, we'll never see again." Caroline handed Bonnie a box.
Bonnie remains oddly complacent.
"Hello! Bonnie! Which part of "we're about to die" isn't registering?" Caroline asked her friend.
"I think I know how to get us all back from the other side. I need to find Enzo." Bonnie told her friend before walking out of the dorm room.
Matt pulls out some blood bags that are stored in the trunk of his car.
"There are all of the blood-bags I can get my hands on." Matt told Elena and Stefan.
"Thanks. Between the four of us, that'll last a day." Elena said.
"Three." Stefan corrected her.
"What?" Elena asked.
"Well you said and I quote "between the four of us". It's three since Caroline can't technically have human blood." Stefan told her. "But that's a tomorrow problem. Right now, we've just got to outrun the spell, regroup in about a thousand miles and figure out a game-plan."
Another car pulls up, this time carrying Jeremy and Damon.
"Are you okay?" Elena asked her brother.
Jeremy nodded.
"Where's Caroline?" Damon asked, surprising the group but not so surprised since he's been acting this way towards the blonde ever since he found out he was going to be a father.
"Uh she's still on campus with Bonnie." Stefan told him.
"Alright what's our next move?" Elena asked.
"Jeremy, head back with Matt. We need eyes and ears in Mystic Falls. You guys take Jeremy's car. I'm going to wait here for Caroline and Bonnie." Stefan told them as Damon looked at his brother, which didn't go unnoticed. "I'll make sure they're ok." Stefan told Damon.
"I'll call you in a few hours, Jer." Elena hugged her brother.
"Be careful." Jeremy told his sister.
~IN THE DORM ROOMS~
Bonnie takes one look at the dorm room and takes the last box to leave. When she enters the hallway, Enzo is there.
"What's wrong?" Bonnie asked him.
"We hit a little snag." Enzo told her.
Caroline and Stefan are still waiting on Bonnie near their car.
"Where's Bonnie? She was right behind me!" Caroline said.
"I'm going to find out what's taking so long." Stefan told her before Julian approaches them.
"I'm looking for Maria. I heard she brought you back to Mystic Falls." Julian told them.
"Uh, yeah, she did." Stefan answered.
"Did she tell you where she was headed? Cause she can't stay there. The town's completely overrun." Julian said.
Stefan looks down at his feet.
"What's the problem? Did she tell you where she was headed, or not?" Julian asked him.
"Listen, uh, you're not going to see Maria again." Stefan told him.
"What are you talking about?" Julian asked, confused.
"She's dead.. I'm sorry." Stefan tries to comfort Julian, but he recoils.
"Don't touch me." He told Stefan.
"It wasn't Stefan's fault." Caroline intervened.
"She saved your punk ass." Julian told Stefan.
"I wasn't the one that killed her. The witches did." Stefan told him.
"Well, someone's going to pay for it." Julian pushes Stefan.
"Hey, hey, hey, hey. Whoa. I'm in no mood to fight tonight, all right?" Stefan tolf Julian.
"Look at me.. my wife's dead. I'm in somebody else's body. I've got nowhere to go because my own people are trying to kill me!" Julian told Stefan.
"Listen, we're going to find a way to stop this spell and even if Mystic Falls is gone, we're going to find a way to save ourselves, all right?" Stefan told Julian as Caroline sneaks behind him and attempts to snap his neck, but he catches her in the act.
Stefan lunges toward him and tries to pin him to the car, but Julian has the upper hand. He reaches into Stefan's chest cavity and pulls out his heart. Caroline gasps as his skin starts to desiccate, before Stefan falls to the pavement; dead.
"There! Dead doppelgänger. Stopped the spell." Julian said before walking away.
"Oh my god! Oh my god. Caroline said hysterically as she rushed over to him and held his body in her arms. "No! No! No!"
~BACK AT THE DORMS~
"What the hell happened? Marie was the only one who was willing to help us who knew the spell."
Bonnie said to Enzo.
"The great beyond happened. And it's going to keep happening, so we need to find a way out of here and fast." Enzo told her.
Bonnie looks behind Enzo and sees Stefan standing there.
"Stefan..." Bonnie said softly.
Enzo also turns around, but sees nothing.
"What?" Enzo asked.
"Bonnie…" Stefan said.
"This can't be happening." Bonnie said as she walked toward him.
"Please tell me that you've figured out a way to bring us all back." Stefan said.
"I lost it.. I'm sorry." Bonnie apologized.
"I—uh, I told Damon I'll make sure Caroline's ok." Stefan told her.
"I got it." Bonnie assures him.
Stefan touches her shoulders and passes through to the other side.
~IN THE PARKING LOT~
The three girls appeared in a parking lot.
"Help me Please! Oh my god! Oh my god! Somebody help! Somebody help!" Caroline yelled, still holding Stefan's body.
END OF CHAPTER