Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and The Vampire Diaries. They belong to J.K. Rowling and L.J. Smith. I am writing this just for fun and no money is being made.

It breaks my heart to say that even after weeks, the Amazon Rainforest is still burning. This is just to remind everyone that by doing this, not only are we destroying Earth, but we're inviting chaos and death into our home. It's basically suicide.

Pray for Amazonia.

AN:I don't have a beta, so I would like to apologise for my mistakes in advance. Unedited. Please do not copy this story.

Mystic Falls

Salvatore Boarding House

"Hello, Damon."

"Katherine."

She cocked her head to the side, the corners of her mouth turned down sulkily. "What? No hello?"

The smile fell off his lips as he stared at her and muttered irritated, "You've got to be kidding me!"

She huffed and kept the glass down before standing up and walked towards him. "I just had to see for myself if the rumours were true."

Damon arched an eyebrow at that, urging her to get it over with. He wasn't in the mood for her antics.

Katherine looked at him curiously and said, "That you aren't pining after my pathetic doppelgänger any longer? And by the looks of it, they seem true."

"I don't understand how any of this is your business?" he replied with a shrug as he dropped his jacket on the couch.

She snorted disbelievingly and stopped right in front of him.

"I know you, Damon, and you don't do humans. You thought you loved Elena? No. You were filling the void I left behind with my lookalike. Both you and Stefan? I have to say – she did a pretty good job." She said truly baffled, moving ever closer until they were a breath apart.

He rolled his eyes at how delirious she was! How desperate!

Her fingers trailed down his chest slowly her voice took a seductive note as she whispered in his ear, "You never got over me… no matter how much you tried. Even poor little Elena couldn't compare. You slept with her in the hope that it would be the same – the passion… the fire that we had? But it wasn't, was it? You couldn't find it anywhere else."

Damon grabbed her wrist as soon as it slipped down, and before she could touch him anymore. His eyes narrowed and he asked suspiciously, "What do you want?"

She smiled coyly and bit her lip provocatively as she looked at him through her lashes. She leaned forward until her lips almost touching his and breathed huskily, "Right now? I want you."

He would've probably agreed, after all, he had been desperate for her affection, but now, he cringed when he felt her hands on his body and her breath ghosting over her lips. All he could think about was Athena and how her taste still lingered on.

"You are nothing but a manipulative slut and you can go to hell." He purred and before she could react, he pushed her with all his strength. She flew back and collided with the wall with a loud cry before crumpling on the floor.

"FYI – I despise you," Damon added with a smile as she stood up and glared at him.

"Fine!" she said hotly, righting her jacket. "I'm not here for you anyway. I…"

The sound of an engine stopped her and they heard footsteps before the door opened.

"Damon?" called Stefan.

"In here, brother," Damon called back, eyes never wavering from the figure standing in front of him.

Stefan stopped as soon as he entered inside and stared between the two.

"Katherine." He said, glaring at her through narrow eyes as he stopped next to Damon and they shared a look.

"Mmm…" she licked her lower lip sensuously, eying Stefan like a piece of meat before adding, "How romantic! The three of us… just like old times."

Stefan sighed tiredly and asked, "What're you doing here, Katherine?"

"You're no fun." She pouted before observing, "Isn't it sweet? Looks like the feud is finally over."

When they didn't respond, merely looked bored, she straightened up and dropped all pretence before telling them gleefully, "I wanted to let you know that I've found a way to deal with the big bad hybrid."

Both their eyes snapped towards her and Damon muttered aghast, "What?"

"I've found someone who can get rid of Klaus without killing his entire line in the process. FYI…" she mimicked Damon and told Stefan, "Those include me – and you – and everyone you've ever turned... including your new flame."

They tensed and shared a wide-eyed look, while she regarded them closely, waiting for their reaction.

"What exactly do you want from us?" Stefan asked carefully after a couple of seconds, meanwhile, Damon crossed his arms across his chest.

She levelled them with a look and replied seriously, "I'll tell you what I want soon, but for now, I need your help… or aren't you interested anymore?"

Damon pretended to think with his finger under his chin and said sarcastically, "Oh no! We're just dying to help a backstabbing bitch who thinks about no one but herself."

"You were just as willing to kill him not long ago. Why the change of heart?" questioned Katherine with a scowl.

Stefan said calmly, "We don't want any more bloodshed, Katherine."

Her eyebrows pressed together, tone agitated, clearly calling out on their white-faced lie and she snorted. "You? The Ripper? The list of your victims is longer than I have in more than five hundred years – shying away from bloodshed? And Damon? The one who loves the thrill of it all… the feeling that comes after ripping someone to shreds unwilling to kill someone who made your life a living hell? Do you really think I'm that dumb?"

Stefan frowned, eying her warily but asked, "Come on, Katherine. We all know that you don't need our help, especially now when you have someone helping you. What are you really here for?"

"Handsome and intelligent. See… this is the reason that I fell for you." She giggled shyly earning an eye roll from Damon. "I was working while you two were busy playing house with Elena, Caroline, and Athena."

Both the brothers tensed even further, feeling the tremor of foreboding run deep inside them when Katherine smirked. They knew how unpredictable she could be, especially now when her eyes were shining with an evil glint in her eyes that they knew so well.

"Really Damon? A werewolf – and Klaus's daughter?" she tutted condescendingly and Damon gritted his teeth at hearing Athena's name. Of course, the bitch would have been stalking them. He should've known.

"Is this one of your games?" asked Stefan, staring at her intently.

Katherine shrugged. "I'm just looking out for myself… and I don't want to run for the rest of my life." She added as an afterthought. "After I'm done, Klaus won't be a problem any longer – at least not for me."

She straightened up knowing that for now, it was time to leave because Damon looked ready to lash-out and there was someone waiting for her.

"I'll see you soon." She blew Stefan a kiss and was out of the door before either of them could respond.

Once outside, Katherine rolled her eyes at the Salvatore's. They were even dumber than she had anticipated.

Mikaelson Mansion

Rebekah raised her eyebrows at her niece's appearance. The button of her jeans was undone, her hair ruffled and wild more than usual, lips were swollen and red, leaving nothing to the imagination what she had been up to recently. But what appalled her the most was the smell of older Salvatore which Athena was covered in.

Her nose wrinkled and she gasped outraged, "Uhh… Damon? You had sex with Damon Salvatore?"

Athena's head snapped towards her aunt; horrified eyes met hers as she felt herself turning ten shades of red. She spluttered indignantly, not knowing how and what to say? "How?"

Rebekah rolled her eyes and said repulsed, "Other than the fact that you smell like him and sex or the small detail where your jeans are still open?"

Athena was mortified, feeling like she should hide somewhere until this incident was forgotten. She did her buttons hastily and asked, "Where's dad?"

"You should be grateful he isn't here. God knows what Nik will do with your precious Salvatore when he finds out!" Rebekah snorted with disgust.

Panic filled Athena at the thought and she begged, "Please don't tell him!"

"I don't need to. He'll be able to smell it from miles away." Rebekah replied as she motioned towards her. "Please take a bath or we'll have to face your father's wrath."

Rebekah felt nauseated as she imagined Nik's lovely and innocent daughter with the asshole. What she couldn't understand was why Damon? Why not Stefan? The younger one was more mature, unlike the older one. 'And he was wild in bed', she thought.

"If it had to be one of the Salvatore's, why not Stefan? He's much better." She couldn't control herself and asked before Athena could rush to her room.

Athena stopped at that, looked straight at her and stated softly, "I… uh… I love Damon."

Rebekah's jaw hit the floor and she was left staring wide-eyed at the empty spot where the girl had been standing, too flummoxed to come up with anything other than the fact that Nick was going to kill the guy like he always did.

Athena had made extra sure to use a spell on herself to remove any 'smell' as Rebekah had said, even after the bath. Now, she was too afraid to step out of her room, knowing that her dad was back from wherever he and his brothers had been and were waiting for her downstairs. She hadn't forgotten their reaction when she had returned in Stefan's clothes after her transformation and she wasn't ready for being embarrassed like that again.

It had already been planned and obviously, she had jumped at the chance when they told her that they wanted her to be there for Christmas this year. Even though they still had a couple of days to go, the preparations had been made and there was a huge tree in the living room along with a pile of gifts underneath.

For now, they were having dinner together. Her first meal with her family and Athena realized that all her worries had been for nothing. Rebekah hadn't told anyone about Damon, for which she was grateful. She wanted to tell him herself and not find it out from someone else.

'After Christmas', she decided.

They had a wonderful meal. She was fairly surprised to find that they couldn't even remember the last time they sat and had dinner together and she was glad and a bit thankful that they were indulging in this because of her. Athena ignored the glasses that were filled with blood and its strong smell that was wafting through the air, instead focussed on the four siblings, who shared stories from the time when they were human, embarrassing each-other and laughing like a normal family.

It was everything she had ever wanted and for the first time in her life, she felt truly a part of the family… Her family to be precise.

Next Day

Mystic Grill

Her father was off somewhere with Kol and Rebekah was shopping. There had been many times when she had spent days like this with Kol. He loved having fun and she could easily say that he was the one she preferred among the others. Such was the case with Rebekah as well. She loved to dress her up like it was her personal mission and had taken her shopping out of town twice now. She had also spent a day with her dad not days ago and it had been nice to know more about him. He had shown her his paintings and he wanted to know more about her – so he had asked her everything he could think of.

Now, she was here with Elijah, wolfing down a burger with french fries. And it was clear that he didn't feel as awkward as her because he was sipping his coffee leisurely, looking like he didn't have a care in the world. He gave her a smile occasionally before going back to reading his newspaper.

"Here's my favourite girl with my favourite original!" Damon sang, standing right next to the booth they were seated in.

Elijah raised his brows questioningly as he looked between his niece and the Salvatore.

"Uh… Did I forget to mention it? Damon's joining us for breakfast." Athena told Elijah sheepishly in a high-pitched voice.

"Mr. Salvatore." Elijah greeted eyeing the vampire who had settled himself next to Athena.

Damon nodded and dropped a small bag on the table before stealing a fry from her plate and popping it into his mouth. It didn't miss Elijah's notice how Athena shifted closer to him unconsciously or how Damon's hand found its way on her shoulder, tucking her closer to him, even though she definitely hit him for finishing the last of her hot chocolate. He also didn't miss the way how the elder Salvatore grinned at her or how he was solely focused on his niece, despite the fact that Miss Gilbert was sitting with her brother and Miss Bennett not far away and was eying Damon sadly, looking ready to cry. It seemed that the two had forgotten about him entirely as Damon was whispering something to Athena, who was giggling. From the moment he had met his niece, and it had been months now, he had not seen her smiling, much less giggling.

'What exactly was going on between them?'

What was Damon up to? And if what he was seeing was indeed true, then perhaps he should warn Athena about her father and Kol's murdering tendencies. Niklaus has become attached to her, just like he was to Rebekah; Kol even more so because of the pranks they played on everyone. Elijah was positive that they would do something which Athena wouldn't approve of. It might include the vampire's heart being ripped apart by his brother like he tended to do every single time and he wouldn't be a bit surprised if Niklaus was already feeding his daughter blood without her knowledge.

No one apart from their family knew how much more ruthless their brother could be when it came to the ones he loved and Elijah had no doubt that Niklaus already loved his daughter like he did Rebekah. Which was why he was worried. Neither Athena nor the Salvatore knew. He cleared his throat and their heads snapped towards him, making him feel like an intruder, which was preposterous. He didn't care about Damon, but he wanted to warn the child who had already been through so much. She was family after all.

Athena blushed, remembering that she flirting with Damon in front of 'her uncle' who was staring at her with an unreadable expression on his face.

Elijah asked slowly, "How was Mr. Weasley's wedding?"

"Uh… good? It was good." answered Athena, thoroughly confused. Hadn't they talked about it yesterday at dinner? Why was he asking again?

Elijah folded his hands, on top of the table as his eyes met Damon, who glared back, knowing what this was about.

Finally, he asked Damon, "You must be aware that you're playing with fire?"

"We can all say that we're aware of the psychotic tendencies your brother has," Damon smirked, shrugging indifferently, even though his fingers tightened on Athena's shoulder as if afraid that the original would whisk her away.

Meanwhile, Athena glanced between the two bemused. Of course, she knew that the two families hated each other, but she hoped that they could respect her choice and not make an issue out of this. This was her life and she had enough of people making decisions for her.

"Mr. Salvatore. Always condescending," said Elijah before leaning back, eyes filled with mirth. "Actually, what you've seen until now is mercy. You have no idea how much more… psychotic my brother can be."

"Are you kidding me?" Damon said incredulously.

Elijah looked amused more than anything until he became serious. "As you know, our family is everything to us. And Niklaus can be… a bit overprotective. He won't even think before ripping your heart out."

Athena's eyes widened and she gasped, "He won't!"

"Believe me. He will." Elijah stated casually. "He ripped Rebekah's newly turned fiancée to shreds, somewhere around the 13th century, right in front of her because he was afraid that she would leave him. I think it was before he killed the human she fell in love with."

All colour drained from her face and she felt like she might get sick until Elijah added as an afterthought, "Stefan's the only one who has lived to see the day after dating our sister."

She finally croaked out, "What?"

Damon looked at her and nodded sympathetically, "Don't worry. I felt just as disgusted when Stefan told me that he dated the original barbie."

Before she could process Elijah's words, and in the middle of her internal panic and terror, another thought flittered across the periphery of her consciousness. Athena inhaled sharply, and both Elijah and Damon looked at her concerned, but her mind was busy joining the dots – Ron had shown her the muggle newspaper which had the details about the Dursley's death. It happened the same day Klaus and Kol arrived in London. There was no trace of magic around the house and she knew that Death Eaters always left their mark behind. It wasn't Lestrange at all like she had first thought. It was her dad. He tortured the Dursley's before killing them.

She stood up hurriedly needing a minute alone, startling the two vampires in the process and excused herself, unable to respond when Damon asked worriedly 'if she was fine?' She rushed to the loo and locked the door before splashing cold water on her face, thinking about everything she had just learned. She wasn't surprised, far from it. Hadn't she showed him everything every single memory from the day she was left at their doorsteps, despite knowing his nature? They had come a long way, but he had tried to kill her the first time they met and would've succeeded if it hadn't been for her magic.

It didn't matter to her that the Dursley's were dead, but her mind was screaming at her that she was the reason. She didn't want people to die or suffer because of her, but apparently, people around her always end up dead. It wasn't her dad who killed them, it was her. She probably had some kind of a curse and she couldn't help but think about Elijah's words.

Lestrange was still out there and was planning something – who else would give that potion to Dr. Maxfield? And Greyback? He knew where she was and he had attacked Damon. What if it was Damon who died next? Or Klaus? Or Stefan? Or what if something happened to the Weasley's?

She was just staring at her reflection in the mirror when someone knocked on the door and she heard Damon's voice, "Athena! Open the goddamn door!"

Athena took a deep breath, trying to calm herself and as soon as she unlatched the door, Damon burst inside like something was on fire before closing the door behind him. He didn't ask what was bothering her, nor did he speak. Instead, his eyes met hers and he asked concerned, "What is it?"

Athena shook her head and swallowed convulsively before saying, "My dad… He is the one who killed the Dursley's."

Damon gave her a tense smile as understanding dawned on him, but what could he say? He knew he would've done the same thing, but before he could come up with something, she said numbly, "What if you die because of me?"

His brows furrowed in a perplexed frown. "What?"

"I can't lose you," muttered Athena.

His heart swelled absurdly despite the situation and his lips twitched slightly before he cupped her face in his palms, thumbs rubbing her cheekbones in a soothing motion and assured, "You won't. I'm not easy to kill."

"People around me die. What if something happened to you because of me?" she murmured hoarsely.

"In all my years, the only one I could count on had been me, but now…" said Damon reverently, eyes gazing into hers seriously and he tucked a strand of her hair around his finger. "Now, I finally have someone I trust, something to live for – and I'm gonna fight for it until my last breath. So, you better believe it when I tell you that you're not going to lose me."

Damon willed her to believe him before his arms found their way around her body, pulling her close and Athena sagged against him. She closed her eyes and leaned into him, pressing her forehead into the crook of his neck, while his hand moved up and down her back slowly. She did believe him, but she knew her luck or better yet, the fate of the ones who loved her. She didn't think she would be able to cope if something happened to him… or her dad. She hadn't spent much time with her father, but Athena knew she already was too attached. For the longest while, they said nothing, content to bask in each other's presence, eyes closed and marvelling the closeness until he pressed his lips on top of her head and murmured, "What are you thinking?"

She looked up at him and mumbled without thinking, "That I really want to kiss you."

He didn't need telling twice as in a lightning flash, he leaned down and captured her lips against his. His hand slid down her back, pulling her flush against him, while the other tightened in her hair. She parted her lips easily, kissing him back with equal ardour as he plundered her mouth with his tongue. Damon moaned at the feel of her warm lips against his and not to mention those hands that were roaming shamelessly over his body.

God, how he missed this! Had it only been a day?

She pulled back with a gasp, breath coming out in pants and his name tumbled from her lips when he trailed kisses down to her neck.

A loud knock sliced through Athena's muddled brain, snapping both of them back to reality. Damon grumbled something unintelligible with frustration, pulling himself away from her before opening the door abruptly, only to come face to face with Elijah.

His hand tightened on the frame of the door, which crushed under the pressure as his eyes roved over his niece, taking in her appearance and he said tightly, "Could you please control yourself in a public place?"

Athena blushed while Damon answered with a sardonic smile, "Could someone not interrupt while I am trying to have a peaceful moment with my girl?"

Elijah's jaw tightened and Athena felt herself turning hot to the tips of her ears, but she said loudly before 'someone' could hurt 'someone', "Alright! Why don't we go outside?"

Elijah inclined his head as he glared at Damon who smiled back innocently and Athena rolled her eyes.

'Seriously? If this was the reaction of her calm and collected uncle, how exactly would her dad react?' She shivered at that thought.

Damon excused himself when he saw Alaric at the bar and left with a peck on her lips and a whispered promise that 'they weren't finished.'

Elijah barely restrained himself to snap his neck at the display and Athena rubbed her cheeks self-consciously, avoiding his gaze and followed him out silently when the original said that they should go back home.

Until she collided with someone right outside the grill and would've hit the ground if the guy wouldn't have grabbed her. His arm was around her waist as he steadied her and she looked at him and said, "Thank Yo…"

But the rest of her words were lost when she saw his eyes – red glowing eyes and she gasped loudly before pushed him away from her with all the force she could muster. The boy hit the ground with a sudden cry and she too fell down in the process. Athena stumbled back away from him until she collided with someone.

'NO, No, no, no… It wasn't possible! It couldn't be! He was DEAD!' Her mind screamed frantically.

She didn't look away when Elijah called her and pulled her up… she couldn't because her eyes were fixed on the dark-haired boy, who was now bleeding and inspecting the wound on his arm with a frown marring his features.

He glared at her and said with a scowl, "I was just trying to help!"

Athena's eyes widened further when she stared into his eyes – Grey, not red! His eyes were grey.

"I – I – you're not…" she stumbled for words when Elijah blocked her view and asked concerned, "Athena? What is it?"

She shook her head and looked around Elijah at the boy. He had black hair with grey eyes and couldn't be older than her. What had she been thinking? The guy was trying to help her! Voldemort would never have done it!

She cleared her throat before looking at the guy and whispered, "I think… I had a misconception. I thought I saw someone. I – I am sorry."

Elijah looked at between the two with narrow eyes and smiled politely. "Thank you for helping my niece. I haven't seen you here before. New in town?"

"Just passing through." The boy shrugged.

"I am Elijah." He introduced himself.

"Tom." Was the reply.

Athena gulped as her heart rate increased, earning a frown form Elijah. 'Many people were called Tom, it was just a coincidence', she reminded herself. Her only consolation was that she couldn't feel an ounce of magic from him. The boy was thankfully a muggle!

Elijah looked back at the boy and compelled, "Aren't you too young to be travelling alone, Tom?"

Tom blinked and replied indifferently, "I'm an orphan. My… friends," he said the word as if it left a bitter taste in his mouth. "…would be here soon."

"Athena?" she heard Stefan's voice and turned to see him standing beside Damon, with similar expressions on their faces

Tom left after scowling at her and Athena replied to their unanswered question. "I just had a misunderstanding."

They weren't convinced, but they let it go for now.

Next Day

Potter Manor

Athena was sorting her clothes, throwing half of them unceremoniously in her bag so that she could take them to her dad's house, now that she practically lived there. Or at least she was trying because Damon had been very thorough in distracting her throughout the morning.

First, he had coaxed her in bed, making her forget what she was here for in the first place. And how could someone say no when the man stared at you with his baby-blues, making you feel like you were his whole world? Some might, but she didn't have that kind of determination, especially because the said man was a gift from God to humanity – or to the female population of humanity. She had succumbed under his ministrations… and by Merlin, the man could work serious magic with his tongue and hands alone.

It took her about an hour to stand up from the bed where she had fallen in a boneless heap, much to Damon's amusement. They had sex twice in her bed and once again in her bathroom while taking a shower together… not a great idea when you were already late to meet your dad. After which she had strictly told him that she needed to pack and get dressed for lunch with her family. It was becoming a routine which particularly looked forward to every day – learning more about her family wasn't something she wanted to miss.

She was also relieved that both Elijah and Rebekah hadn't told either Kol or Klaus about her relationship with Damon. Athena knew this was cutting too close for her comfort, but she just wanted sometime before the shitstorm hit.

Even now, Damon was standing behind her naked, his hands running up and down her body slowly and occasionally moving up to massage her breasts through the fabric of her bra. She could also feel his very prominent erection pushing between her ass-cheeks through the pyjama-short she had donned in her haste. And as if this wasn't enough to make her mad, he was placing wet kisses from her neck to her shoulder.

'Didn't vampires get tired?'

She knew this was his plan to make her skip the lunch, then it was working because instead of pushing him away, she leaned her head to the side to give him better access with a loud moan when he nipped at a particularly sensitive spot behind her ear. Athena felt him smirking as he made no move to stop until he lifted his head and she turned her head to find him frowning.

"What?" she asked.

"Someone's at the door." He mumbled and as if on cue, the bell rang.

Damon grumbled something under his breath when she pulled away and picked the first top she saw before throwing it on. When he still didn't make a move to get dressed, Athena couldn't hold back the snort and she taunted, "Pouting doesn't suit on someone your age, Damon."

His eyes snapped towards her affronted and he asked threateningly, "Did you just – called me an old man?"

She shrugged and had to bite her lip to stop the laugh that was about to burst out at his expression of outrage, but her eyes widened when he glared at her through narrow eyes and smirked mischievously. He launched himself at her, just giving her enough time to jump out of the way and apparated downstairs. He was at the bottom of the stairs when her eyes landed on him and she prepared herself to apparate outside – after all, she was the only one dressed. He wouldn't follow her outside like this; she was sure of it.

"Oh no, you don't." He hissed, grabbing her by the waist, at the exact moment she apparated.

They landed in her garden like that – she with her back to Damon, who was holding her by the waist. He let her go as soon as he hit the ground and she rolled onto the side. Athena looked at him and they both burst out laughing at the silliness of it all.

"Damon?" they heard a familiar voice, reminding them that there had been someone at the door, which they apparently had forgotten about.

"Bon-bon!" Damon said cheerfully and Athena closed her eyes embarrassed before standing up and nodded at the witch with as much dignity she could muster under the situation.

"Bonnie? What are you doing here?" she asked confused.

Bonnie gasped loudly when her eyes landed on Damon and closed her eyes tightly before snapping, "GOD! Would you please get dressed?!"

"No. I'm comfortable." He deadpanned with a smile. "You're the one interrupting a few precious moments with my girl."

Athena didn't know whether to laugh or cry because Damon was standing waggling his eyebrows, supporting a very prominent hard-on and Bonnie gritted her teeth angrily, looking ready to hex him.

So, she intervened, "Damon? Why don't you get dressed?"

"Why? We should be working on getting you out of those clothes. I'm still not done with you." He said innocently.

Athena glared at him and threatened, "Don't make me hex you."

"Aww… You're jealous. Don't worry. This…" Damon pointed towards his erection and added with effort, "…is not going near anyone but you."

With that, he pulled her towards him, cupped her face between his hands and plundered her mouth with his tongue. He pulled back, smirking at her red-face before trotting inside at a leisurely pace.

Bonnie looked between the two with utter disgust but lastly said, "Stefan told me you might be here. I wouldn't have come, but it's important."

Athena cleared her throat unnecessarily, trying to shy away from the piercing eyes of the witch and invited her in. "Why don't you come in?"

Bonnie nodded, following Athena inside the house and glared at Damon, who was lounging on the couch comfortably, still smirking at her. She huffed and took a seat on the opposite side before looking around with interest.

"Would you like something to drink?" Athena asked after the silence became uncomfortable.

Bonnie shook her head. "No, thank you."

Athena looked at Damon who too was frowning, but shrugged anyway. She took a seat next to him before looking at the witch intrigued. It wasn't a secret that Bonnie didn't like her, so it must be something serious if she willingly came to her house.

Damon rolled his eyes and said exasperatedly, "Come on! Get on with it! We have other things planned."

"Clearly." Bonnie mocked before adding, "Why don't you do us all a favour and leave?"

Damon's eyes tightened as he replied, "I am sorry to disappoint, but that's not going to happen."

"I can make you." Bonnie glared.

"You can try." Damon glared right back.

Meanwhile, Athena was left staring between the two, sighing with irritation. She was sick and tired of everyone fighting around her. What was wrong with people? Why couldn't they behave like normal human beings? Why does everyone have to be at each other's throats?

"I'm really sorry to interrupt this lovely discussion of yours," she snapped at the two. "…but is there something you needed or should I leave?"

Bonnie looked at her and stated firmly, "Sorry, but I don't like him."

"The feeling is mutual," Damon added with a smile.

"You can tell whatever it is. I trust him." Athena said hastily before they could start another argument. She was already getting late.

But Bonnie had other things to worry about and spluttered with shock. "You trust him?"

Before she could answer, Bonnie whirled on him and asked rather loudly, "What did you do? Use some kind of a spell on her? Or do you need a witch so you're using her?"

Damon's shoulders tensed, but he said crudely, "I don't need a witch! And the spell I used is in my pants, but from now on, its reserved only for my girl here."

Both the witches cringed, but Bonnie sneered, "You're disgusting!"

"I know." He said with a smirk, but his eyes were filled with barely restrained anger.

Bonnie gritted her teeth and said, "You don't care about anyone but yourself. Just look at Elena. You've been pining after her ever since you came here and now that you had her, you don't care even if she dies!"

"Why does everyone think the worst of me?!" Damon stood up and snarled angrily.

"Have you met you?" Bonnie stated hotly. "Wherever you go, people suffer! Whatever bad has ever happened in this town, is your fault. Klaus might take the cherry, but you cannot deny that it started when you came to town!"

"Are you kidding me!?" Damon snarked incredulously. "Did you somehow missed what happened? You're mad at me because Elena thought it might be alright because somehow, she forgot to mention that Athena would die along with the Originals as well if we killed anyone of them? Or it must be because she thinks of the two Salvatore brothers as her property, just like Katherine did? Oh, wait! No, it must be the fact that she had sex with me while she was still with my brother! If I am a monster, then she's a bi…"

He stopped mid-sentence and his hand went to his head before he fell onto his knees with a loud cry of pain.

"Oh, I'm sorry... Why don't you continue?" Bonnie asked stonily, much to Athena's horror.

She conjured a shield between the two and Damon slumped to the floor with relief before glaring at the witch. "Enough!"

Damon hissed, raging inside that not only the witch had spoiled his day, but she gave him a witchy migraine for no reason at all. "I am going to kill you."

Athena's eyes snapped to his and she pleaded softly, "You're not! She's not worth it."

Damon perused his lips and turned his head away much to Bonnie's surprise; Athena turned back to Bonnie and snapped, "What the hell is wrong with you? You can't just use your powers to torture someone because you don't like them!"

Bonnie suddenly blinked, looking a bit remorseful, but said, "You don't know him…"

Athena stopped her, standing between the two, feeling her anger rise. "I do! I do know him better than you do! Look at him! He didn't do anything!"

Bonnie didn't say anything, but eyed Athena stubbornly, who shook her head perplexed. "If you came here to insult the people I love, then I think you should leave."

"Wait! It is important!" Bonnie pleaded suddenly and Athena crossed her arms across her chest and waited for her to speak.

Bonnie took a deep breath and spoke, "Do you remember when I told you that my Grams was trying to contact me?"

Athena frowned but nodded. Damon too looked at the witch, ready to hear whatever it was.

She continued, "She wasn't strong enough, but the witches helped her. They wanted me to warn you."

"Warn me?" Athena asked baffled.

"That day at the grill, when I touched your hand, I saw something." Bonnie gulped. "Death. I saw you surrounded by nothing but darkness and death."

Athena stiffened along with Damon, who grabbed Athena's arm as if by a simple act, he would stop whatever bad happened to her. Her mind whirled and flashed back to the time when she had met the skeletal man with burning eyes. She swallowed hard and mustered enough courage to ask, "What do the witches have to do with all this?"

"The entity that I felt in the room when you bought Damon back? It wasn't a reaper." Bonnie licked her lower lip, suddenly feeling cold before adding slowly, "Death. It was Death. Damon wasn't supposed to come back… but somehow you forced him to go against the rules. Now, he is angry. I don't know more, but my grams told me that he took the power of all dead witches and transferred it to someone. She said that we don't have time and we'll need all the help we can before everything is destroyed."

A sense of foreboding filled Athena at the witch's warning. She had known all along that something was wrong. The man she had met was Death himself and he had warned her. How could she think that everything would be fine? Happiness was something that was always out of her reach. This was it.

She felt warm hands on her cheek as Damon forced her to look at him and whispered softly, "Hey! Hey! Listen to me. I won't let anything bad happen to you, Cara."

Athena tried not to panic as she gazed into his eyes – so filled with love for her. Her hands moved on their own accord and clutched his and she replied just as slowly, "I'm not worried about me."

Much to Bonnie's astonishment, he pulled her to him, tucked her face in his neck and rubbed her back in soothingly. He kissed the side of her head before mumbling something too low for her to hear. She was stunned by his tenderness towards her. Not only the nickname surprised her, but the genuine worry and love she saw in Damon's eyes. He had never been like this towards Elena. Yeah, he got worried about her and did everything in his power to save the girl, but this? The raw emotions in his eyes made her feel like an intruder and she stood up to leave, feeling somewhat envious. How in the world could she be envious of someone who loved Damon? She had no idea, but by the multiple emotions she saw in his eyes – she was sure that he wasn't faking it. That Damon Salvatore actually loved someone other than himself.

She was about to leave when Damon's eyes found hers and for the first time in her life, she squirmed under his penetrative gaze. "Find something!" he hissed.

"I am sorry, but there is nothing I can do." She shook her head regretfully.

"There always is! You just have to search! Contact your grams, Emily or every single witch if you have to, but find a way!" Damon ordered.

"There is no magic strong enough on this earth to challenge Death." She repeated the same words her grams had told her.

She was ready for another backlash from Damon but was taken aback once again when his entire focus shifted from her to Athena with a whisper of his name from her lips.

She didn't look back and rushed out quickly without another word. Not that the two paid attention, lost as they were in their own world. She didn't stop until she reached home, feeling like she was drowning in the guilt. She wiped her cheeks angrily before getting out of the car. She couldn't hold back anymore and cried as soon as she entered her room, knowing what she had to do.

Bonnie hated it. Hated the fact that she was given no choice in the matter. Angry that she was being forced to do something against her will. Angry that the weight of the world was thrown on her.

She shook her head as if to dispel the thoughts out of her head, trying to concentrate on the task at hand instead. She blinked back the tears of frustration when the memory of her dream popped in front of her eyes like a projection again –

Hundreds of witches along with her grams and Emily staring at her.

"You have to do it, Bonnie."

"Please… I can't. She hasn't done anything."

"The balance needs to be restored. The girl shouldn't have been born and she evaded HIM again and again. HE is angry. Its either her or thousands and thousands of innocents – maybe more. We don't have much time."

She said urgently, "There must be something we can do! Can't you help? You are more than a thousand witches. That kind of power…"

"There is no magic strong enough to challenge Death," Emily stated.

"I am sorry, my child." Gram's whispered before her eyes snapped open, finding her cheeks wet with tears.

AN: The Salvatore's are planning something and Athena will finally face Katherine in the next chapter.

It's almost 9 am here guys. Been up all night, finishing this one. And its Saturday! I'm gonna sleep after what seemed like weeks. Yayy! :)

Thank you for the readers who are still with me on this story and I hope you liked it. Positive criticism is always welcome. Have a nice day everyone. 😊

Aug 24th, 2019