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Note: I know how excited you all are about Bamon making some *cough* progress *cough* but there are things that need to precede this – survival being the most prominent. And if the story suffices without sex for you, then great, if not, hang on a little longer will ya ;) XO

A huge thank you to Chele On Rage for being so lovely and so kind to me. She's one in a million I tell you. You lot are wonderful, seriously, it's crazy how much love I get in your reviews. I'm one lucky lady.

Without further ado:

"It is not death that alarms me, but dying"

-Montaigne, French Philosopher

Bonnie's eyes scanned her surroundings quickly; her back pressed up against Damon's as they moved around in a slow and steady circle. She had a naginata in her hand, holding it steady, the metal pole gripped in her fist while the blade at the end stuck up into the sky; glimmering, begging to be used. Strapped around her shoulders were two holsters resting under her arms, housing TEC-9's. Damon had a katana in one hand and a handgun in the other; his face hard, like Bonnie's, waiting for someone to make the first move.

"I love you" Bonnie whispered as she locked eyes with a creature that seemed to be made out of swirling smoke and sharp teeth. She and Damon continued to move in rotation, Bonnie's small frame wedged neatly under Damon's shoulder blades as they moved in unison.

"And I love you." Damon replied, softly, keeping his eyes on the sickly green phlegm oozing out of this thing in front of him. "If we die –"

"Damon –"

"–If we die," he went on, "Then we die together, do you hear me? No more me without you or you without me. We love together and we die together…Promise me." Bonnie swallowed but cleared her throat and her head.

"I promise." Her words were followed by a shrill cry from above and as if it signalled the end of their world; and the demons descended upon them.

Bonnie gasped awake. She'd barely gotten any sleep over the last four days; this…hour she'd just gotten being the gist of it. She sat up and turned to look at Damon who was sound asleep, sprawled out on his back, his one hand stretched out where her head had just been. He muttered her name then, softly in his sleep and she swore heart thumped in response. She smiled and trailed a hand over his face. He stirred then and slowly his eyes opened and he moved his head so that her hand cupped his cheek and smiled sleepily.

"What time is it?" he whispered.

"Four, I think?"

"In the morning?" he asked, sounding hazily distraught. Bonnie nodded as she swooped down to kiss him. "Why are you awake?"

"Demon dreams." Bonnie explained as he pulled her down so that she was snuggled in his arms. He hummed as if it were the most normal thing for her to be dreaming of demons.

"Wanna talk about it?" He offered, his words coming through with a stifled yawn. Bonnie smiled and drew circles on his chest with her fingertips.

"Nothing to say," Bonnie replied softly and he moved a little then, adjusting them so that he could see her better in the dull pre-dawn light, "All I've been thinking about since Fahada told us about the 'Unholy Trinity' is dying and loving you."

"Totally normal stuff." Damon said with a hollow laugh.

"Exactly." She smiled, "I'm sorry I woke you."

"Sleep can do what it likes as long as you're with me." Damon replied and lifted her chin with his forefinger, "Do you know how long it's been since I told you I loved you?"

"I don't."

"It was the day we got here," he said, "Then the same day a week later I got shot and you said you loved me," he went on, "two days after that Elena left, then two days of endless training, and then all those hours Caroline hogged you for…it's been almost two weeks." Bonnie frowned, "Crazy, huh?"

"It feels so much longer," she admitted, "In the best way."

"Agreed." He hummed.

"…Damon?" He hummed again, "You don't regret anything?"

"I regret many things." Bonnie rolled her eyes, "I'm assuming you mean about us?" She hummed in affirmation. "Couldn't regret it if I tried…living with you on the Whatever Side, losing you, losing my mind, getting you back, us becoming what we are now…yes it happened so quickly that it hardly makes sense on paper but it makes sense to me and I know it makes sense to you too; you're too pernickety to just fall in line with something you don't agree with to at least a certain extent." Bonnie laughed softly.

"You're right."

"I do love hearing those words," Damon said with a cheeky grin, "Especially coming from you." They shared a smile.

"…Damon?"

"Yes?"

"…How do you feel about Elena leaving?" He blew out a breath then as he mulled over the question and tried to come up with an honest answer that wouldn't chew away at the girl in his arms unnecessarily.

"I'm disappointed in her," he said after a while, "I thought it was shock that I felt when she left but it wasn't…it was that familiar sting of disappointment…just like Katherine." Bonnie's hand stopped moving over his chest and fell flat onto his sternum.

"I'm sorry." She whispered. "I know how much you wanted everything to work out for once." Damon laughed then, a good few chuckles as he moved Bonnie a little further up so that they lay nose to nose.

"Bonnie," he said his voice a mixture of seriousness and exasperation, "If it meant that for once I got to be loved healthily, and by you, then I'd do it all over again if it meant that we got to this exact moment in time."

"I wouldn't want you to go through all those years of pain, it's so cruel."

"Which is what makes it better that I got to have you at the end of it all." Damon said, so confident, so sweet. Bonnie nudged his nose with hers as she smiled.

"Cheeseball." She accused, her smile widening when he kissed her quickly. There was a knock at the door then, three quick and hard raps that had them both upright in an instant. Damon flashed to the door, opening it to find Lucy on the other end.

"The note just came." She said her voice stern and Damon nodded, turning to face Bonnie with unreadable eyes.

Jeremy and Alaric were lost. Horribly lost but as they finally managed to get their luggage they hurried to the nearest exit of the airport and flagged down a taxi. Stammering awkwardly over the address Jeremy gotten from Elena he sank back into the seat with a heavy sigh as he watched Alaric looking out of the window. Elena had been left under Matt's care; she moved and did things but she hadn't said much since her fight with her brother. But he didn't have time for her existential dilemma; he needed to get to Bonnie before it was too late…again. Alaric watched as the sun slowly made its way upward, they'd arrived at around four in the morning and the city was only now coming to life. And what a sight it was to behold.

"You're sure about this?" Alaric asked again and Jeremy scoffed and crossed his arms in response, and Alaric pressed his lips together in annoyance. "We don't know what we're getting ourselves into; the least you could do is pretend to be mature enough to handle that." Jeremy clenched his jaw but nodded.

"I just want to get there already." Alaric nodded as he settled a little further into his seat.

"Me too, kiddo."

Fahada had just shown Enzo how to effectively break someone's neck with just one hand when all the vampires froze. They'd all heard the same thing; tyres moving over gravel, pulling to a stop outside the house. She looked to her brother and his wife with a frown but Amelia shrugged already heading towards the stairs.

"I'll go," Fahada said, interjecting Amelia's steps with inhuman speed, "You stay here with everyone."

"I'll come with you," Stefan spoke up before Imran could object. Imran looked to him and nodded and Stefan inclined his head, he moved to hover a hand at the small of Fahada's back, "We'll be right back." Bonnie chewed on the inside of her mouth as she watched them go; she was practically vibrating with all of the tension and magic coiled inside of her, begging for release. Damon held her hand tightly, less out of affection and more out of keeping her next to him. No one needed to be reminded just how volatile a new vampire could be and Bonnie was already pushing world records with her self-control.

"Okay," Amelia said with a clap of her hands garnering everyone's attention, "I'm going to spell you all individually with Bonnie and Lucy's help…think of them as reinforcements…extra layers of protection. Some will protect you from wooden bullets, others from other spells, but remember, these spells only last for so long." Amelia's face was as serious as it was picturesque, "We'll be laying the foundations for the spells now…consider it a Cleanse of sorts, it won't take long…"

Lucy stretched her hands out, flexing her upper arms, "Let's do this."

Stefan wasn't sure if what he was seeing was real. But looking at Fahada as she stared up at Jeremy and Alaric he knew it had to be happening.

"Jeremy…" he breathed, "What are you, I mean…why are you here?" Fahada looked up at him and then a delicate divot formed between her brows as she gaged his expression.

"Bonnie's in trouble isn't she?" The boy retorted impatiently, Stefan being here meant that Bonnie was here and he needed to see her…now.

"A lot of people are in trouble." Fahada answered, "And we cannot afford to try and protect any more." Jeremy sized her up and though his face was relatively blank there were traces of impatience in his eyes, arrogance…he wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"I'm not here for anyone else." Jeremy said in a clipped tone and Stefan winced inwardly when he saw Fahada's eyes darken…it was incredible how little self-preservation Jeremy had in him…next to none really.

"And therein lies the problem child," Fahada said through her teeth though her face was still smooth and expressionless, "I cannot afford for your emotions to endanger any one of us…so pout all you like but you will not be setting a foot inside of this house."

"I'm so sorry to be barging in like this," Alaric began, "And I know he seems like he has a death wish –"

"He does have a death wish," Fahada said effectively cutting him off, "And you do as well considering you thought it smart to join him." she took a step forward and Alaric fumbled backwards a little while Jeremy stood his ground. Fahada walked until she was right in front of Jeremy. Quicker than lightning she had the boy by his neck and she pulled him down until they were eye to eye. "You will die here Hunter," she hissed, "You feel it, you know it to be true yet you are here all the same…like it's your destiny."

"I don't have a destiny." Jeremy snarled but it only made Fahada's grip on him tighten and his face turned red from oxygen deprivation and the pressure of her slender fingers around his throat.

"Then I may as well kill you myself for those who have nothing to live for are surely unopposed to death."

"Let me see her first," Jeremy wheezed, "Let me see her and then you can kill me." Fahada froze then. In her mind's eye she saw herself, hissing the same words at the mercy of Kiera's Coven before the witch in question removed herself from Fahada's life to protect her. Releasing the audacious boy Fahada took a step back and drew in an unsteady breath, and Stefan was next to her immediately – instantly concerned. She waved him off as she frowned at Jeremy.

"Let the boy die if he so wishes." She said, almost angrily before she turned on her heel and sped into the house. Alaric stood, frozen in shock while Jeremy moved to walk past Stefan who stopped him with a hand on his chest.

"You don't know what you're walking into." Jeremy sneered.

"Just lead the way and I'll keep up."

Moments after Fahada rushed onto the third floor looking like she'd seen a ghost Alaric and Jeremy stepped up onto the landing behind Stefan. Bonnie had been grappling with Damon; straddling his chest as she pinned him down with her magic. He managed to flip their position at the last second with a smirk when Caroline gasped softly. Looking up from Bonnie's face, Damon frowned and this caused Bonnie to follow his line of vision. Jeremy walked boldly towards her, slow precise footsteps and she and Damon were on their feet immediately; standing side by side. Alaric looked like he wanted to disappear into the walls but let Stefan lead him to Imran and Amelia to introduce him even as the Original Vampire's eyes stayed glued to Jeremy – like everyone else's.

Bonnie took Damon's hand in hers and Jeremy's nostrils flared in response, his brown eyes turning impossibly darker with rage and disappointment.

"So it's true?" Jeremy spat as he came to stop a few feet from the couple.

"Specify." Damon snapped. Bonnie's eyes went from Damon's to Jeremy's and back again.

"That, that you two are in love?" The face he pulled as he spoke was a mixture of disgust and horror. Bonnie narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips.

"Yes." She said, her voice soft but clear. Jeremy moved his gaze to her face then and even he could admit to seeing changes there. Beyond her eye colour and her hair that had grown since she last cut it, since she was last alive. The way she stood, hand in Damon's, her shoulders back, and her eyebrows in stubborn arches as she dared him to say something. Everything about her was so familiar yet so alien…like he was only just now remembering what she looked like. He felt his resolve begin to crumble but he righted his posture and nodded, a humourless smile tugging at his mouth.

"Elena said someone was trying to kill you." He went on, his tone cold. Bonnie's face faltered slightly at the mention of Elena but she nodded any way.

"I'm still waiting for you to enlighten us as to how this has anything to do with you." Damon said, not bothering to hide his anger.

"It has everything to do with me when Bonnie's in danger." Jeremy hissed. Damon's head fell back as he barked a laugh before locking eyes with Jeremy, unconsciously taking a step forward in his building rage. Bonnie held onto Damon tightly, reminding him that he shouldn't do whatever it was that he was thinking. Damon stayed where he was, partially because he didn't want to hurt Bonnie by doing something admittedly idiotic and also because for once, he wanted to settle the score with words and not blood. Must be Jeremy's lucky day.

"You don't get to come swooping in here with your pseudo-nobility when you're not needed; when you'll become more of a liability than anything else…" Damon hissed, "And don't try and sell me that 'I'm here for Bonnie' bullshit, before she and I died I did more than anyone in that godforsaken town to bring her back to life, to do the hard stuff that everyone was too busy crying about to see through…I'm the one who will always protect her and if anyone's jumping in front of bullets coming for her it's going…to, be, me."

"You shouldn't be here Jeremy." Bonnie added softly, her face sad. Lucy and Caroline were still tensed, waiting to have to break up a fight.

"Well I am," Jeremy growled, "Deal with it." He turned then, looking at everyone else in the room, "Elena left so I'm taking her place in whatever plan you all have and I won't take no for an answer, some of you might think I'm useless but I am a damn sight more useful than Elena on a bad day…so, whenever you're ready." He said, throwing his arms out to either side of him, "Because I am."

Oh Jeremy.

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