I know it's been a long wait, but I hope this chapter makes it worth it!

Enjoy :)

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Chapter 6: The Aftermath

"I can't believe what we just did," Bonnie stated as she sat on the bed, lost in thought.

"It was genius," Elena replied from the window, looking out over the city.

"He deserved it," Meredith countered.

"Yes, but you didn't see the look on his face after I…" Bonnie trailed off and both friends looked at her questionably. "It doesn't matter." Bonnie stood. "What's done is done. I'm just afraid that we might have started a prank war."

"Don't you think Damon is a bit too sophisticated for that?" Meredith asked.

All three girls looked at each other, not daring to believe otherwise. If it turned out that the 500-year old vampire wasn't above seeking revenge over practical jokes, they were in big trouble.

Standing in the hallway before Matt and Stefan, Damon casually slipped his underwear back on.

"What happened to you?" Matt asked.

"You humans think you're clever, don't you?" Damon replied.

"What are you talking about, Damon? We went to the pool after you took the girls shopping. Talk to him Stefan."

"I – " Stefan snorted and burst into peals of laughter. "Whatever you did to…the girls…must've…REALLY pissed them…off!" Stefan choked out through laughter.

It had been decades since Stefan laughed even half this hard. Matt stared at him in amazement, noting how out of character this was. Damon, on the other hand, was purely annoyed.

"So you knew what they were up to?" Damon retorted, as Stefan made an effort to calm his breathing.

"I had no idea. But I must admit that whatever they did, and however they pulled it off, had to be brilliant in order to fool you."

"We'll see about that."

Damon turned and made his way back to his suite. Not a moment after the door was shut, the sound of Matt and Stefan howling with laughter filled his ears. Damon growled.

"So, this is the last day before we get back on the road. What should we do tonight?" Elena asked.

The entire group sat in a restaurant inside the CN Tower, an attraction that gives view over the entire city, after going on a real shopping trip and a walking around the Toronto Entertainment District. The girls had insisted on going to the theatre, but the guys showed no support for that idea.

With everything that had happened in just two short days, the outing was blissfully uneventful.

"How about a nudist beach?" Damon winked at Bonnie, who shrunk down in her seat.

"There's plenty of clubs around here," Meredith stated.

"Or we could go see a movie," Bonnie suggested. She feared the chaos that could ensue if they were crammed into a building filled with tipsy, dancing people – especially if some of those tipsy people were them. A movie seemed like the safest route.

"I think a good party is exactly what we need," said Elena.

"I kind of like Bonnie's idea. A movie would be nice," replied Stefan.

It dawned on Elena what Stefan really meant – he didn't feel comfortable in large crowds. All the buzzing minds, and different heartbeats, would tug at Stefan's predatory instincts and make the night miserable for him.

"On second thought, a movie would be nice," she agreed, giving Stefan a small smile.

"So which is it?" Matt asked. "Either way will work for me."

"I say party," Damon replied.

"Bonnie?" Meredith asked.

"Movie?"

"The club it is," Damon declared.

"I said movie!" Bonnie sat up straight in her seat, scowling.

"In the form of a question."

"So?"

"So, your vote doesn't count if you don't know even what you want."

Before Bonnie could counter, Damon stood from the table and proceeded to pluck Bonnie from her chair and throw her over his shoulder.

"What?" Bonnie blurted as she was slung over helplessly.

"Come, little witch. We're going to have a blast tonight, as you young Americans like to say," Damon replied as he exited the restaurant, toting a very confused little witch. The odd stares Damon got did nothing to faze him.

"I wonder if I should follow them, for Bonnie's sake," Meredith stated as the remaining group, Matt, Stefan, and Elena, stared after the two that had just left.

"Something tells me she'll be just fine," Stefan replied, earning strange looks from the others. "I know my brother, so for once you don't have to worry. Now, Miss Gilbert." Stefan turned to Elena. "I believe we have a date."

"Why yes, Mr. Salvatore," Elena giggled. "Are you two coming?" Elena asked Matt and Meredith, as she and Stefan stood with arms linked.

"You two go ahead. No need for a third…and fourth wheel," Matt replied.

Remembering the bill, Stefan reached in his pocket to pay for their dinner.

"I got it." Matt held his hand up to stop him.

"You sure?" Stefan honestly didn't mind paying for the expensive meal. It was nothing to him, but Matt nodded his head and Stefan understood that it was okay.

As the couple strolled off, Matt and Meredith looked at each other.

"So what do you want to do?" asked Meredith.

"Might as well crash a party. Just like old times?"

Meredith smiled. "Just like old times," she replied.

Before Elena's parents died, before the Salvatores rolled into town, Bonnie, Matt, Elena, Meredith, and even Caroline were known to be the liveliest bunch at Robert E. Lee High.

The girls would take turns throwing the parties, and Matt would round up his football friends to help make the parties even crazier and, consequently, add 10x more fun to what was already a highly successful occasion. If you missed out on those nights, you were missing out on life.

Of course this wouldn't be the same without the rest of their group, but Meredith and Matt would make the very best of it.

They stood as Matt slapped some money on the table. If this night was going to be anything like old times, Toronto wasn't going to know what hit it.

Stefan and Elena bought two tickets to some romantic comedy that they had never heard of before. It was the person behind the ticket counter that suggested the film when they asked for a recommendation. Suggesting something romantic was a nice thing of her to do.

They entered the theatre room, found two seats much further from the rest, and cuddled up close. They had missed the previews and were just in time for the start of the movie.

Meanwhile, Damon had driven Bonnie all the way back to the hotel.

"What are we doing here?" Bonnie asked.

"You need to change your outfit," Damon replied, referring to Bonnie's jeans and graphic tee.

"Would you just tell me where we're going?" Bonnie asked, once they were inside her suite. She watched wearily as Damon dug through her luggage, trying to find something he wanted to see her in.

"Put those down!" Bonnie snatched away a pair of dainty underwear and matching bra that Damon held up with a sly grin on his face. "I can pick out my own clothes anyway. I'll meet you in the lobby."

"If you insist," Damon replied, taking on last glance at the extreme casual wear that Bonnie had sported throughout the day. Bonnie rolled her eyes, though displaying a smirk of her own, and begin surveying her clothes.

Damon was finally growing impatient with waiting when Bonnie stepped out of the elevator and onto the main floor. He smiled in pleasant surprise.

Bonnie strode towards Damon in an emerald green tank-top, black leather jacket, and black-jean shorts coupled with 6' Stilettos, of the same color, that made her legs look amazing. She also carried a small clutch in her hand containing some money and a few supplies, should her makeup need retouching.

Not only was her outfit perfect, but her curls looked the best that Damon had ever seen. Bonnie always did a good job at maintaining them, but tonight not one strand was frizzed, and her hair shined and bounced in the light as she walked.

"Impressive," Damon responded, taking her in. He noticed that Bonnie had done her makeup in a way that wasn't caked on, but only enhanced her natural beauty. "You're exquisite."

Bonnie blushed but continued to smile at Damon as they linked arms.

"Thank you, Damon. Now will you tell me where we're going?" Bonnie asked.

"To have the time of our lives," Damon replied.

The closest club to the CN Tower was in walking distance. Fortunately enough, Matt and Meredith were already dressed so there was no need to go back to the hotel and change. Meredith wore blue, washed out skinny jeans, black gladiator heels, and a white halter top that flowed as she moved. Matt had on dark blue jeans, a t-shirt, and his new sneakers.

The lights were low, the music was blaring, and there were people everywhere. Both Matt and Meredith were beginning to feel themselves loosen up after only a few minutes of dancing.

"This place has great energy!" Matt shouted over the music.

"Yeah, I'm glad we came!" Meredith replied. "Who is that girl that keeps looking at you?"

"What?" Matt spun around, ready to break into a cold sweat, only to relax and see that it was Jade from earlier that day. They met when he and Stefan went down to the hotel pool.

"Whoa, you alright?" Meredith put a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, I met that girl before. Let me introduce you," Matt replied. He didn't want to admit that he was a bit scared of Bethany after that last phone call.

They made their way over to the bar where Jade and her friend, Tiffany, were standing.

"It's nice to see you again. Meredith, this is Jade. Jade, this is Meredith," Matt said.

"I didn't know you had a girlfriend," Jade replied, glancing at Meredith.

"Oh no. Meredith is my best friend. We're here on a road trip with some other people." Matt began rubbing the back of his neck and looked to Meredith for assistance.

"Were are they?" Jade questioned.

"They're out and about in the city right now. Dates." Meredith stepped up. "We didn't want to be third wheels so we came here. But I have to tell you that I've known this guy all my life, and you should really dance with him."

"So you're not dating?" Tiffany inquired.

Meredith looked at her. "No. He's like my brother. And since I know him so well," Meredith turned back to Jade and smiled, "I can honestly say that you two should dance."

"Would you like do dance?" Matt asked her.

"I'd like that," Jade replied.

That's when the music changed.

Everybody!

Matt and Meredith looked each other in the eye, communicating the same thing – just liked old times.

Matt called out in his loudest voice, "All drinks on me!" and was sure that everyone heard because the cheering from the crowd became louder than the music.

"Matt are you crazy?" Meredith asked, wide-eyed.

"Yeah, a little! C'mon Jade, let's go dance! But first!"

Shots. Shots. Shots. Shots. Shots. Shots. Shots.

The bartender began pouring countless drinks (thanks to Matt's credit card) as the song "Shots" by LMFAO bounced through the airwaves.

Meredith had to laugh as she, Matt, Jade, and Tiffany knocked one back and made their way to the dance floor.

"So why aren't you here with a guy or something?" Tiffany asked, as she and Meredith danced beside each other (but not together).

"He's in Russia."

"That's so cool!"

"Not really…"

Both girls grabbed a drink of the tray as a waiter walked through the crowd.

"Well, I see that you and your friend like to party," Tiffany stated. "Buying drinks for all these people? That's huge."

"We don't do this very often," Meredith replied.

"Life got you stressed?"

"I don't want to think about it. I just want to loosen up!"

As Meredith danced her cares away, she looked over at Matt and smiled. He was having a good time laughing and joking with Jade. They needed this.

Her smile quickly turned into a scowl as some random guy tried to dance on her, from behind. One sharp jut of the elbow and Meredith was rid of him. Yes, she wanted to loosen up that night, but she had no intention of meeting a guy. Russia or not, Alaric was still her one and only and Meredith could have fun and be confident all by herself.

At the movie theatre, Stefan couldn't be any more annoyed. Not only had some parent made the excellent decision to bring their crying child to a romantic comedy, but the child decided to throw popcorn at the back of his head once the crying had settled. Sighing heavily, Stefan ran a hand through his hair to brush butter flavored snack out and turned in his seat.

"Excuse me," Stefan whispered.

No answer.

"Excuse me," Stefan asserted a little louder, ignoring the shushes and the "Be quiet, down there!" directed his way. "I think your child is throwing food at me. Could you make it stop, please?"

"Oh, sure thing. I'm so sorry," the mother whispered back in reply.

Stefan nodded in thanks and turned back to face the screen.

"What was that about?" Elena, who was so engrossed in the film that she didn't notice the flying popcorn, asked.

"Nothing. Liking the film so far?"

"I love it."

Stefan relaxed in his seat. No sooner he began enjoying the movie, even chuckling at the current scene, Stefan felt the tiny sensation of popcorn landing in his hair. It was everything in him not to turn around, snatch the bucket, and dump it over the kid's own head – and his mother's. But for the sake of Elena's enjoyment, he sat tight-lipped and tried his best to ignore it.

Screw that.

Stefan channeled his Power and Influenced the kid to stop, which worked immediately since Stefan was so irked.

"Stefan, what's wrong?" Elena asked. She and Stefan were so connected that she could feel when he used his Power, even when her mind was distracted the way it was now.

"I'm fine. Let's watch the movie," Stefan replied, kissing Elena before they both gave their attention to the screen.

Stefan, once again, settled into his seat this time with a confident grin on his face. His smile broadened when Elena took his hand and gave it a small squeeze.

A couple of blocks from the club where Matt and Meredith were partying hard, Damon brought Bonnie to a club that was a bit more laid back.

"This place is nice, Damon. We have to dance!" Bonnie was already beginning to bubble with excitement. This was her type of thing and it had been so long since they'd been able to have good, unadulterated fun.

"And that's exactly what we came here to do," Damon replied as he led Bonnie forward.

Once on the floor, "I Would Do Anything For You" by Foster The People began to play. Bonnie and Damon drew close to each other as the first verse began. In her heels, she was finally able to look him eye to eye. Bonnie smiled.

"I didn't know you were such a good dancer."

"All noblemen know how to dance."

Bonnie giggled. "Sorry, I sometimes forget. It's not every day that you dance with somebody from the Italian Renaissance."

"I just have one rule," Damon stated.

"What? What do you mean?" Bonnie scrunched her face in confusion. Weren't they there to have fun?

"No drinks tonight. I want you to remember this."

"If you insist," Bonnie replied, recycling Damon's words from earlier.

When chorus of the song came on, the two began jiving to the music.

Oooo la la. I'm fallin' in love, and it's better this time than ever before.

"Yay!" Bonnie shouted with delight when Damon spun her. Even he had to chuckle. They were truly having a blast.

Still dancing, Damon took a hand to stroke Bonnie's soft curls.

"What is it, Redbird?" Damon asked as her face went solemn.

"About that prank I pulled on you…"

"All is forgiven," he replied before Bonnie could finish her sentence. Ensuring that the subject was dropped, Damon spun Bonnie again, eliciting more laughter.

Hours passed as Bonnie and Damon literally danced the night away. Given her choice of shoes, Bonnie was surprised that her feet weren't bleeding when it was time for the club to close.

"Thank you so much for this, Damon," Bonnie said as they entered the parking garage.

"It's what I do." Damon winked at her.

"I really mean it. And…despite the circumstances surrounding us then, I meant that kiss in the clothing store."

"So did I."

Bonnie took a sharp inhale of breath as Damon's cool lips met her own. She remembered this feeling from when they were guarding Vickie Bennett's house and Damon had caught her by surprise. She even thought back to when Damon and Bonnie met for the first time at the library, and again at Alaric's party. Both times they kissed, but this felt different. Like there was a hunger in Damon that wasn't bloodlust, but to be understood and loved wholly – not to be someone's second choice. Bonnie knew this because that hunger belonged to her as well.

The two pulled back and gazed at each other for a moment. Their playful relationship had entered an entirely new territory, and both seemed to be perfectly fine with that.

"Get away from her!"

They had no time to see who was shouting because there a stake protruding from Damon's back, just a split-second later. Damon collapsed to the ground, reaching in vain to grab the wood and yank it from his body.

"What are you doing?" Bonnie shouted at the man holding the crossbow.

"Saving you from a monster."

The man aimed the bow and Damon for another shot, but Bonnie conjured up her Power and sent it flying out his hands. He was next to sail through the air before hitting a concrete wall and being knocked unconscious. Bonnie then knelt down and did Damon the favor of pulling the stake out his back.

"When did you get so strong?" Damon asked, standing.

"I guess I've been practicing for times like this. Let's get to the others," Bonnie replied.

"One thing."

"What? Ooohhh."

Bonnie kindly turned her head as Damon plunged his fangs into the attacker's neck.

"Now we can go," Damon said once he was finished.

They hopped into the SUV and sped to the hotel.

"Get up! We have to go!" Damon boomed as he pounded on Stefan and Elena's hotel door. Bonnie was busy making sure her things were together. The door swung open.

"Merda Damon, ma sei pazzo? It's 3 in the morning." Stefan was clearly agitated and Elena stood behind him, half-asleep but wondering what the fuss was about.

"Hunter-slayers. Don't ask questions, we just need to move," Damon replied, smoothly.

"Where's Bonnie?" Elena asked. She was fully awake now.

"Getting packed."

"Good. I'll wake Meredith," Elena said, as she brushed past the brothers.

"I guess I'll get Mutt."

"Damon, it's 'Matt'. With an A," Stefan correct.

"Mark. Maybelline. Whatever," Damon replied, heading down the hall.

Elena frowned when she found Meredith's door partially open. Something wasn't right.

Cautiously, she pushed the door open and took a tentative step inside.

"Meredith?"

A muffled groan.

Elena gasped at the sight before her. Calm, cool, and elegant Meredith lay sprawled, face first, on her bed in the same outfit that Elena last saw her in. Minus one shoe.

Meredith made the tedious effort to sit up when Elena ran to her side.

"Meredith! What happened?" Elena asked, moving the disheveled hair out of her friend's face.

"One tequila. Two tequila. Three tequila. FLOOR," Meredith replied, holding a palm to her aching head.

"Oh…" Understanding replaced the look of shock on Elena's face. "Just like old times, huh?"

"Yep."

As much as Elena like to reminisce, there were much more pressing matters.

"Meredith, we have to leave. Damon and Bonnie were attacked by hunters."

"Yeah, about that," came a voice from the door. "There's been a slight technical difficulty."

"What do you mean?" Elena frowned as Damon handed her a piece of paper. She began to grow frantic when Stefan walked in looking grave as ever, and Bonnie like she was going to pass out.

She took the note and unfolded it.

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN,

JADE AND I GOT GHOST-FACE WASTED AND DECIDED TO FLY TO LAS VEGAS AND GET MARRIED. YOU'RE ALL INVITED TO THE WEDDING (EXCEPT FOR THAT DAMON PRICK), BUT I DOUBT YOU'LL MAKE IT IN TIME BECAUSE I'M LEAVING IN…NOW. HAHA. DOESN'T THAT SUCK?

YOURS TRULY,

MUTT

"Shut up, Damon!" Elena snapped, showing the note to Meredith who burst into a fit of drunken giggles.

"What are we going to do?" Bonnie looked around the room.

Damon flashed a grand smile.

"We're going to Vegas."

I had fun writing this chapter.

Two questions: What do you think will happen next & Do you think Damon really let that prank go, or should he get them all back? Hmmm...

Anyways, I know that this was a wait but I'm in the process of getting my stories caught up. I even wrote 1,000 extra words to make up for taking so long (the word count proved it)!

The song I used while Damon and Bonnie were dancing is called "I Would Do Anything For You" by Foster The People. I love it because it's one of those songs that make you feel happy inside lol. I would put a YouTube link on my profile, but, for reasons unknown to me, none of my links work. Also, the dividing lines that keep my long profile organized have disappeared. Must be a glitch. I encourage you to check the song out (after you leave a review ;) ).

The movie scene was kind of me expressing my own frustration towards rude people at the movies. It's hard to enjoy the film when, not only are there people talking during the movie (and revealing spoilers) but there's a kid behind you kicking your seat and smacking on hot Cheetos. -_-

On a different note, I want to say thanks for all the support! All the reviews, favs, and story alerts are not only appreciated, but help keep me going.

Thank you!