Hello everybody!
Okay, I look haggered for two reasons.
1. Far Cry 4
2. Plot-Bunnies. I couldn't sleep without imagining this chapter in my head. God help me.
So please reap the benefits of my torture. This is also an apology for any confusion regarding the release of the 3rd chapter yesterday.
Please Note: This the continuation of Chapter 3. If you haven't read it, you are going to miss some inside jokes. Warnings: Swearing. Un'betaness. And Steroline splashes again. If you don't like that can of worms...maybe skip those parts. They aren't that big anyways.
Please enjoy and review! Reviews bring the lights to my eyes and lure the plot-bunnies home.
~Whorendous
I'm coming home, I'm coming home
Tell the world I'm coming home
Let the rain wash away
All the pain of yesterday
Bonnie looked over the steering wheel of Damon's 1969 Chevy Camaro Convertible, glancing at the cloudless sky. She fingered the zipper of his leather jacket. Her lips quirked. She grabbed the jacket from his room on an impulse. Today was risky and she needed to feel someone was with her, even if that person was once her sworn enemy. She leaned back and looked up. The moon was just about to cover the rays of the sun.
Alright, it's time. Adios, 1994.
She angled her head down again and grinned. She whispered the ancient words, magic weaving together. Pulling the gear, she pressed her foot on the pedal, the growl of the engine blaring to life. The car raced to the edge of the cliff and flew off, quickly descending into the unknown.
I'm coming home, guys.
"How bad is it?"
Stefan combed his hand through his hair, the other hand on his hip. He glanced back at Elena with a sigh.
"Bad."
Elena grimaced. She knew that Damon had taken their abandoning of Bonnie hard, but she never expected him to hole himself away. She was surprised, not only due to her erased memories of him, but because he had been so relentless about their relationship, it was weird to see him obsessing over anything else.
I did this for Bonnie, not for you, Elena.
Then again, he had been surprising her ever since their failed trip to 1994. She tilted her head and placed her chin on the edge of the sofa, watching the fire. It almost made her feel like she didn't really belong in his world right now. She didn't know how to feel about that.
Stefan placed his hand on the cool stone of the cottage's fireplace.
The doors slammed open and Alaric, Tyler, Caroline stormed through. Elena sat up as Stefan righted himself.
"What the fuck does Enzo got against you Stefan? He took Matt!" Tyler roared.
"Hey! Don't get mad at him. For all we know, Enzo is just doing this for kicks!" Caroline retorted, sitting next down next to Elena.
Elena watched Caroline with barely disguised amusement. She was always quick to defend those she loved, even if she was mad at them. It was one of the things Elena loved her for.
Caroline could feel Stefan's eyes on her and despite herself, she stared right back at him. He gave her a small smile of thanks and she quickly went back to eying Tyler. She hated when he did that. Really.
Alaric was growing impatient. "Who cares about some nutso, vampire? My girlfriend's psycho brother is back from some time dimension that Elena and Damon helped him come out of!"
Elena's anger spiked. "We were helping Bonnie, Alaric! Damon wanted to get her back and Kai escaped on his o-"
Alaric kicked a nearby chair, the thud echoed, running along the tension. "He compelled me, Elena. Unlike some people, I didn't want it."
Elena flinched.
Stefan put his hands in the air, trying to defuse the situation. "Guys, come on. We can't fight right now. We have Enzo and Kai to deal with and this isn't helping. We need everyone to work together regardless of any personal," his eyes slid to Caroline, "issues. Especially, since we might be a man down." He pressed his lips together firmly.
Caroline ignored his look and eyed the room around her. "Where the hell is Damon?"
Stefan opened his mouth to answer but Elena cut him to the chase.
"He's…researching." Elena bit her lip.
"Researching? Wait what?" Tyler was taken aback. He had been feeling like he was in the Twilight Zone ever since he came back from New Orleans. From Caroline screwing Klaus and now Damon thinking before he did something unbelievably stupid and damaging to them all? What the actual fuck happened while he was gone?
Stefan sat down, elbows on his knees, and rubbed his face with both hands. "He has been obsessed with finding a way to get Bonnie out."
Alaric could feel his anger flare. "What the hell? He already tried that and failed. And now we have bigger problems to deal with." Elena and Caroline stood in protest, Alaric backed away lifting a palm up. "Not that she doesn't matter but Kai is about to slaughter his entire family here, including Jo." He looked over at the single Salvatore. "I don't care what he does anymore after what he did, but you're right. We need everyone. Get him here, Stefan."
Stefan glared at Alaric. "You think I don't know that? I've been trying but he's being…difficult."
Alaric's fists squeezed in anger. "When the hell is he not, Stefan?" He walked away and sat in the chair in the corner of the room.
Damon sat at the desk and took a sip of the bourbon from the tumbler in his hand. He flipped through the book he stole from Lucy. His brows furrowed as he bent over the manuscripts. The witchy juju language made no sense to him, but he was determined. Emily taught him some stupid terms, so he wasn't completely helpless in his search. He glared harder at the pulpy, musky pages but the words started to blur together. Anger ripped through him and the glass of bourbon flew at the wall in a burst of crystal and amber.
"God damn it!"
He flipped the desk over, papers and books flying as the dark oak wood slamming on the floor resonated around him. He marched over and snatched the bottle of bourbon off of the lamp side table. Ripping off the cap, he took a big swig and wiped his mouth. He could feel his hands shake with anger and frustration. Vampire emotions were intense but he has never ever been so pissed off before. He dropped to the floor with finality, one arm resting on his knee and the other holding the bottle in his hand. His ice blue eyes scanned the battered library. He missed his library. He missed his home and….damn it all, he missed Bonnie.
He slammed the bottle in his hand down on the floor next to his thigh. Guilt was tearing him apart. He lied. He always lied. But this time, he end up lying to the one person, other than his brother, that saw that he was worth anything. (Elena is currently excluded in this list due to a little memory problem.) And he had left her behind. Again. He leaned his head back, eyes closed and groaned.
Of course, Judgey would be the one to make me half insane with guilt. It's two of her specialties in one deal.
He rubbed his face and looked down at the mess he had made. Raising the bottle to his lips he drank the rest of the bourbon with ferocity. When he drank the last drop, he threw the bottle behind him, the crash of glass echoing along the silence.
His eyes stared off in the distance as his mouth twisted, his nose crinkling in contempt. He was going to kill Kai. He burned the last hope of getting her home. Also, did he mention he was a psychopath? Damon's jaw clenched. He was going to rip off Kai's arms and feed them to that mutt Tyler. Right. In. Front. Of. Him. Then he was going to force that blonde witch from the freaky coven to make a second ascendant and send him back to 1994.
But that fucking barrier.
Damon let out a frustrated huff. He had no witches. His-mother-should-have-swallowed-him Kai, took anyone with magic for his creepy family reunion. How the hell was he going to get to him? His mind was spinning and nothing was coming. Damon stumbled back up and glared at all his research that was splayed out on the floor. His eye caught a sheet of paper. It was the Bennett family tree. The family he was supposed to protect. Another wave of guilt swam over him and he was about to drop it when he stared at the cursive penmanship.
Family.
His eyes widened. That was it. That was how he was going to save Bonnie and kill Kai at the same time. He started grabbing everything he needed.
Bonnie opened her eyes and looked around. It was night time and she might not have recognized exactly where she was but she knew she was in one of the towns outside of Mystic Falls. Her hands dropped from the steering wheel excitement bubbled from her fingertips, heart fluttering. Exhaustion from the spell seemed so far away. She noticed a couple walking hand in hand across the street.
Oh my god, people! I'm really back. I did it!
She grabbed the keys before hopping out of the car and ran to them. They backed up in surprise as she looked at them wide eyed. She held out her hand and asked if she could use their phone. The guy with the sweater around his shoulder nodded and grabbed the phone out of his back pocket. The weight of the iPhone (wait when did they get bigger?) landed in her hand and she smiled at him gratefully, tears brimming in her eyes. She ignored their startled looks, hands shaking, as she put in the only cell phone number she knew by heart. Finishing Jeremy's phone number, her thumb hovered over the "Call" button when a rush of wind past her carrying a familiar scent. Her heart stopped and she whipped her head to stare in the direction the blur went.
Damon!
A hot flash of joy spiced with adrenaline spiked within her and she shoved the phone back to the stranger without looking back. She ran, laughing, in the wake of his path.
Bonnie caught her breath, leaning on her knees for support, and looked up at the foreign house in front of her. She could hear the voices of her friends shouting over each other. Her head cocked to the side and her grin dropped into a frown.
What on earth is going on?
"Bonnie should be here and you fucking know it, Ric!"
Damon's voice vibrated through her and Bonnie cautiously approached the window that was glowing with light. She pressed her body to the outside wall of the house, her curiosity getting the best of her, and listened further.
Alaric was pissed. Damon used him for his own selfish gains and now he was thinking of the most insane idea that would most likely get Jo killed. Damn him.
Damon wiped the blood off of his chin. He glared at Alaric and dropped the book on the table. He pointed to it and leaned forward.
"This is the only way we can kill Kai and get Bonnie back. I don't get why you are so against this. We can save your girlfriend by killing Kai!"
Alaric snarled. "Their father tried to kill Jo just when you asked him about it. He'll try to do it again once you tell him Kai was back! Are you fucking crazy?"
Damon punched the wall behind him, his eyes never leaving Alaric's.
"Damn it, Ric. Listen to me! We get their Abraham-wannabe father" Damon waved his hands to the side, "to bring down the no-no magic barrier so we all can go after Kai." Damon inched closer to Alaric and moved his hands to the other side. "Then we get Kai, and use him as a bargaining chip to get Bonnie back from that stupid 1994 nightmare so he can send Kai back there. No harm, no fowl. Every. Body. Wins."
Tyler pushed back from the wall and glared at Damon. "That is not even 10% of a plan, Damon. How do we know Kai is even a good enough bargaining chip?"
Caroline and Elena looked at each other and held hands.
Elena cleared her throat. "We don't. But it's something, isn't? We don't have anything else, do we?" She looked around and landed her stare on Alaric. Hope shining in her eyes.
Alaric looked back at Elena. He cringed. He knew Elena wanted her best friend back but this was not a good plan.
"We should wait a little-"
Damon growled. "Wait until Kai merges with Jo and becomes an unstoppable douchebag? Without Bonnie we are nothing."
Stefan unconsciously hummed in agreement with his elder sibling.
Damon looked back at Stefan with a sarcastic grin and placed his palm on his chest. "Thank you, brother. It warms my heart to have you agree with me."
Stefan snorted a laugh.
Alaric's anger snapped back. He glared at both Salvatore brothers. He shook his heads while running a hand through his hair. He turned around for a second before turning back and grabbing Damon by the shirt and slamming him against the wall. Everyone stood up in shock. Caroline backed up into Stefan, stumbling. Stefan held his hands out to catch her and yelled at Alaric.
Alaric was seething and he punched Damon in the mouth.
"This is not a joke. Jo could fucking die and you guys are acting like we can easily defeat their dad by using the son he banished as bait!"
Damon glared down at him. "It's for Bonnie."
Alaric laughed. "Since when did you care about anyone but yourself?"
Damon's eyes flashed with hurt for a second before hardening into a fierce glare. Alaric was about to raise his fist to punch Damon again when the most amazing sound hit Damon's ears.
"Stay away from him."
Every candle in the house lit up with a woosh as Bonnie walked through the door way, glaring at Alaric.
The silence was deafening as everyone's head whipped to look at her. Bonnie smiled faintly at everyone before landing back to Alaric. The exhaustion of her trip was catching up with her but she took a deep breath.
"I'm serious. Drop him, Alaric."
Alaric's mouth was wide open and it looked at Bonnie to Damon then back to Bonnie again. He raised his hands in the air and backed up.
Damon eyed the witch from her toes to the crown of her head. The heart that shouldn't be beating, felt more alive than it had in almost century and a half. His mouth quirked to the side.
"Judgey."
Bonnie smiled back.
"Demon."
Damon scoffed at her new nickname for him and squared himself to face Bonnie. He opened up his arms and waited. When nothing happened he stared at her expectantly.
"Come on, don't I get a hug?"
Bonnie raised an eyebrow before breaking into a full grin and running into his arms. She jumped, wrapping her arms around his neck. Damon returned the gesture by positioning his arms around her back. They both laughed as Damon spun her around. He set her down and brushed hair away from her face, grinning as he looked down at her.
"O.K. what the fuck has been going on. I have got to be dreaming." Tyler quickly sat down on the chair behind him, eyes wide. He was a little freaked out. He looked back at Damon and Bonnie. Okay, he was a lot freaked out.
Caroline looked at Stefan for answers. Stefan, who was less stunned than everyone else, just smiled back at her and shrugged his shoulders as he shoved his hands in his front pockets. Caroline gave him a look that screamed she would hound him later for details. He was actually looking forward to that. Stefan: 1 Caroline's grudge: 5. Yeah, he had a lot to catching up to do.
Elena looked on with bewilderment until she remembered all the times Damon mentioned Bonnie in the past month. Her eyes softened.
I knew he kind of loved her.
Bonnie looked back at Damon with glee. She owed some pretty decent "thank yous" to him and was about to speak until she heard Stefan cough. She turned to face him.
Damon rolled his eyes and glared at his brother.
"What? Can't you see we're having a moment here?"
Stefan smirked and shrugged a shoulder. "I can see that but you do know that other people might want to say hi, right?" Stefan's eyes pointedly rested on Caroline's head.
Bonnie heard Damon scoffed again and she looked up at him, a warning in her eyes.
Damon waved his hands in her direction. "Fine…fine. Moment over." He widened his eyes for emphasis and walked over pour the bourbon he knew Stefan kept in the cabinet for him. He had to force to tone down the extra skip in his step. He had just shown enough mushiness to last his image for a lifetime.
Bonnie looked at her best friends and smiled. Elena and Caroline ran over and held their long lost friend with so much strength, Bonnie feared for her life. For like a second.
"Guys…can't breathe." The girls relinquished their hold on each other and laughed. Tears of happiness running down all their faces.
Alaric scratched his 5 'o clock shadow and looked around. His eyes narrowed in on the candles. His eyes sparked with recognition and he looked back at Bonnie and walked toward her.
"You have your magic back."
Bonnie wiped the tears from her cheek and looked warily at Alaric.
"Yes." She looked back at Caroline and Elena, smiling again. "I'm back. Witch and all."
Damon took a sip of the glass of bourbon and clicked his tongue.
"I think you mean annoying witch and all."
Bonnie rolled her eyes at him and shook her head, her smile spreading wider.
"You just have to ruin every sweet moment don't you?"
Damon looked her straight in the eyes. "Yep." He popped the 'p' happily with a grin and took another sip.
Alaric shook his own head in disbelief. They were friends? These two? Tyler was right. What the fuck was going on here? He sat down in the other chair and crossed his hand as he leaned his elbows on his knees. His eyes calculating the new information.
"This is good. You can bring down the barrier over Mystic Falls and we can save Jo."
Bonnie sighed. She muttered, "Nothing changes…work…work…work."
Caroline glared at Alaric. She stood in front of Bonnie and crossed her arms. "What the hell, Alaric. Bonnie just got back. From, like, the dead. Give her a freaking break!"
Alaric glared. "I get that Caroline but Jo could be dying."
Caroline stomped over to Alaric. "Back off. I know this sucks, but give her a minute before you have her doing anything."
Alaric sat up straighter and stood back up. He pointed a finger at Damon. "That selfish moron let out a mass murderer from a witch prison. That mass murderer is going to kill the woman I'm dating for power over a coven that lets siblings kill each other."
Damon leaned over the back of the couch and put his chin in his hand. He swirled his drink around and then took a sip. "He got out himself," Damon commented.
Alaric whipped his head around to glare at Damon.
Damon shrugged. "What? It's true. He was gone by the time me and Elena got to the land of pagers and really bad boy bands."
"Damon," Bonnie warned. They both looked at each other. Silently holding a conversation before Damon muttered out loud.
"Fine. I'll shut up."
Okay, now, Stefan was shocked. He never thought he would hear that out of his brother's mouth. He watched the two closely until Caroline and Alaric's argument resumed. He sighed. It was going to be a long night.
Bonnie let out a breath as her favorite blonde argued to let her rest. Go Team Caroline.
Bonnie rubbed her forehead to ease the migraine. Making her own spell took so much out of her. She walked over to the couch and sat to the right of Damon. She closed her eyes and inhaled a deep breath. As she smelled his soap, it finally sunk in that she was back. Her lips quivered as tears threatened fall again. She felt a nudge to her left shoulder and moaned in annoyance.
"What Damon?"
He looked at her and finally observed how worn she was. He was frowning until he noticed exactly what (who's) jacket she was wearing. Something deep inside him felt really good to see her in his jacket and his blood hummed with approval. His lips grew into a smirk and he leaned over to her ear.
"Nice jacket."
Bonnie could feel his lips brush the shell of her ear and she shivered a little bit. She rolled her eyes and looked down at the black leather she wore. She moved slightly to look at him better and then grabbed the glass in his hand. Taking a sip, she grinned.
"You can't have it back."
Damon narrowed his eyes in mock contempt.
"Rude."
Bonnie barked out a laugh.
Everyone in the room turned towards her and she adjusted in her seat awkwardly. Caroline made some snarky comment and everyone went back to focus on the task at hand. She took another small gulp before Damon stole it back.
Damon grinned and finished off his glass and went for a refill. Bonnie leaned back and watched her family argue. She thought she would never get back here again. God, did it feel good. She grinned as she watched Stefan and Caroline. Stefan grabbed her arm to keep her from attacking Alaric and Tyler. Caroline looked at him and told him to let go. He shook his head and told her no. The blonde shook her head furiously and went back to tell the two other boys to back off her best friend. Their hands subconsciously intertwined.
Oh….oh this is good. I was right!
She could feel Damon reproach his place behind the couch and she smirked.
"You owe me 100 dollars."
Damon's eyes widened and looked down at Bonnie.
"Um, no I don't."
Bonnie leaned down and untied her combat boots and kicked them off. She curled her legs from underneath her and leaned her head on the arm of the white sofa.
"Oh, yes…you do."
He squinted down at his witch and followed her eyes to where his younger brother and Caroline held hands. He snorted. Ah, that bet. Damon walked around the couch and planted himself right next to Bonnie, pulling her legs out from under her and laying them on his lap.
Bonnie watched him sit down and it reminded her so much of that video tape, she couldn't help but wiggle her toes at him.
"Rub."
Damon looked at Bonnie with one eyebrow perched. He opened his mouth, sarcastic retort ready to aim and fire, when he looked at her weathered face. The shame and guilt of having to leave her behind inched its way back.
Damn...
He sighed dramatically for her benefit and ripped off the purple sock from her left foot and began to rub the appendage with one hand.
Bonnie leaned back and closed her eyes.
So this is what I was missing out on…
She let the bickering and the noises of the house drift away. Her body became limp as the minutes passed.
Damon snorted in his drink as Alaric made a poignant observation about Stefan. He dropped the drink from his face as his gaze landed on the girl beside him. She looked peaceful and he was determined to keep it that way for a long time. She had been through too much shit in her young, witchy life. And he owed her so much. His lip popped into a slight smile.
That doesn't mean the peace has to start at exactly this moment…
"About that Benjamin I owe you…That's a negative, Judgey."
Bonnie almost groaned at him, but he was rubbing her feet so she should try to be nice. She cracked open an eye at him.
"They're holding hands, Damon."
He nodded his head.
"Yes, but you clearly put too much faith in my brother. They aren't together yet. And I distinctly remember that dating was a part of the bet." He tickled the bottom of her foot for good measure.
Bonnie puffed out a cloud of air in annoyance.
"You don't know that." She dug her free foot into his floating rib and he smacked it away.
"Actually, I do."
She really did groan then. She looked at him with both eyes, challenging him.
"Prove it."
"What?"
"Prove. It. If you are so sure they aren't dating, prove it. If you can," she shrugged her shoulders, "you win the bet."
His eyes grew playful and mischief crept along his face as he smirked again.
"Fine."
"Be my guest, Damon."
"What. Now? Here?"
She grinned and cocked her head to the side.
"Now."
He sighed dramatically again.
"So demanding."
Her eyes sparkled with laughter.
"You have no idea."
Damon repressed a shiver at the implication and gripped her foot a little tighter. His eyes got a little hazy and he gave her a lecherous smile.
"Oh?"
She kicked him again and he coughed loudly.
"Ow, you can be such a bitch, witch."
"Only when you're stalling."
He rolled his eyes.
"I am not stalling."
"Yes, you are!"
Damon mock-glared at her again.
"Fine. But don't get mad at me if things get awkward."
Bonnie laughed.
"Been there. Done that."
"True."
"Damon."
"Fine. You win." Damon sat up and looked over to the group who were still at it.
"Yo, Scooby-gang!" Everyone turned to look at them again. "Stefan and Caroline, cheers to the new couple." He gave them a sardonic smile and then Damon raised the glass to his lips to swallow the rest of his drink.
Caroline sputtered and looked down at her hand being held by Stefan. She broke the contact.
"Shut up, Damon," Stefan demanded at the same time Caroline screeched; "We're not dating you creep!"
Alaric shook his head but couldn't help break into a smile briefly before pulling everyone back into the discussion.
Damon gloated by looking back at Bonnie and grinning.
Bonnie's jaw dropped and then laughed at his audacity.
"I…haha…should have known you were…haha…going to do that!"
"Yep." He set down the glass by his feet then pulled off the other sock. He began to rub it with both hands this time.
"Still the asshole."
"Always, Judgey. Always."
Damon put more effort in the massage and looked right into her eyes. A tone of seriousness came over him as her green eyes stared right through him. Like they always did.
"I'm glad your back, Bonnie."
Bonnie smiled and fell back down to the couch. She let the feel of his hands on her feet lull her closer to the edge of a much needed nap.
She whispered. "Me too."
Across the room, Elena watched everything that transpired between the two. She suddenly felt she was losing something important…but she couldn't remember what it was.
