Warning! This is a DARK chapter. As in, pretty hard to write... and I know how everything's going to end! This is, however, important to tie some previous foreshadowing in... Also, this is about as far as I've written.
Crimson Dagger
Short, rattled breaths. Choppy. Agonizing. The cold set in my joint; wounds burning. An icy sweat covered my skin. Was I shivering? Whimpering? I couldn't tell.
Thea! My eyes parted slightly. I tried to call his name, but even my thoughts were muddled. I'm coming, Thea! Just hold on! Words. Noises. I was sure they held meaning.
Something latched against my mouth. With a gasp, I jumped back, somehow knowing I should drink. No matter what, don't drink! Something pinched my nose shut.
"Eventually, you will cave." Muttered words. Couldn't breathe. I thrashed violently, desperate for some taste of air. My vision began to fade. Fuzzy. Couldn't feel my limbs. Don't drink… don't… Damon.
Blinding light suddenly seared my eyes. Shying weakly, I struggled to see the room. Different. He'd moved me.
I know. You're further north. Damon murmured. Can you see anything? No, there were no windows. A cellar?The blinding light shown from a flood light above a worn, wooden door, illuminating the empty room. Plain concrete walls. Concrete floors. Grey. Everything was grey.
"No! Let me go!" Someone screeched. I knew that voice… Caroline! Confirming my fears, the door flung open and the blond was thrown in. "Thea!" she cried, racing toward me. "What's going on?! Are you alight?" Within seconds, the restraints around my wrists and wings were shattered. With a grown, I collapsed. Caroline just managed to catch me and guide me down. "Here," she murmured, holding her wrist to me. In a panic, I flung myself away from her.
Thea! Damon roared suddenly. I hadn't noticed his failed attempts to catch my attention since Caroline's arrival.
"Sorry," I mumbled, "still fuzzy." He hesitated, a pang of guilt shooting through him.
I need you to ask Caroline some questions for me. Weakly, I nodded, earning a confused look from the blond.
"Damon." I explained.
"Thea, drink; then I'll get us out of here." Caroline pressed. Shaking my head, I struggled to hear Damon's voice.
How long ago was she taken?
"How long ago were you taken? I asked.
"I don't know." She replied, "Maybe a few days after Damon left."
Does she remember anything? Where he took you?
"Do you know where he took us? Caroline began fiddling with the door.
"No," she grunted, slamming her shoulder into the unyielding wood, "I was out until just a second ago. I only saw the staircase."
"What about how he got her?" My lips moved automatically with Damon's words. We both paused.
"Try that again." I whispered, focusing entirely on him.
"Thea?" He called through my lips. Caroline abandoned the door and stared at me.
"Was that Damon?" she asked. My hand lifted to my face, seamlessly obeying Damon's command. Thea, if that vampire ever fully understood the potential of the link, he could work his way into your mind and take complete control over your body. My mother's words swept through my mind. With a flare of adrenaline, I slammed my hand down, relief flooding me as it obeyed. With a sharp exhale, I met the blonde's confused gaze.
"Yeah. That was Damon." I replied, listening to Damon's mind working of the new ability. Clearing my throat, I repeated his question. "How did Lukas get you?" her cheeks suddenly burned red.
"I was… uh… I was with Tyler." She paused a moment. "That's the last thing I remember." Concern flooded her voice. Did Lukas have Tyler as well? Why? What place a vampire with me?
Thea, no. Damon warned as I struggled to my feet.
"Caroline, feed from me." I ordered darkly. Possession flared through Damon. "My blood will make you stronger." I explained.
"Thea, you're barely standing as is." She dismissed, albeit struggled to keep the darkness from her eyes.
"I'll be fine." I dismissed. "Lukas had s at least 500 years on you. If we're going to get out of here, you'll need it." Her eyes widened slightly in fear before locking on my offered wrist.
"No!" Damon snapped before I could stop him. I sighed.
"I'm not going to drink from her, Damon." I assured him before turning my attention back to Caroline. "A word of warning, though: Damon says I'm… addictive." She couldn't help but chuckle before shrugging.
"Why not? Sorry Damon." I tensed as her fangs pierced the sensitive flesh. A moan rippled from her throat. Jealousy flared from Damon.
Just a means... to an end. I assured him, the thought blurring at the end.
She's taken enough, Thea. Tell her to stop. Damon instructed.
It's fine… the more she takes, the stronger… she'll be. I stumbled against the wall. Caroline's fangs instantly retreated, deep breaths rocking her nearly trembling form; exhilaration clear in her eyes.
"I'm sorry!" she shouted, reaching for me. "Are you okay?" Regardless her support, my legs caved and I slid to the hard floor.
"Fine." I assured her.
You're not fine. Damon growled.
You worry too much. I said with a chuckle, letting my eyes wearily close.
"Thea?" her voice rose an octave as her concern grew. I tried to answer her, but my lips wouldn't obey me. "Thea?" She called louder.
"Nope. She'd out." Good job Blondie." Distantly, I felt my lips move.
"Damon?"
"No, it's the Ghost of Christmas past." He retorted. "Hurry up and get her out of there!" As Caroline heaped my limp body onto her back, I vaguely wondered if I could speak through Damon as well…
"Tyler!" My eyes shot open at Caroline's frantic cry; wings automatically lashing out. Sliding from Caroline's back, I followed her gaze to a restrained Tyler.
"Caroline?" he called weakly. "Thea?" His eyes widened. Coarse ropes seared into his wrists and ankles, binding his to a wooden chair. Caroline darted forward, intent on shredding the ropes, but, the instant her skin touched the threads, her skin burned. With a muffled cry, she jumped back.
"It's soaked in vervain and wolvesbaine." She murmured. Without pausing, I took her place.
Thea, get out of there! Damon suddenly shouted. No, I wouldn't leave him. Damn it! It's a trap! My heart dropped. Almost instantly, laughter echoed through the cellar. Desperately, I managed to rid his wrists of the ropes, but, as the door slammed behind us, I knew it was too late to do more.
"Stay back!" Caroline ordered. Praying the feeding would allow her to hold Lukas off. I turned my attention to Tyler's ankles. A loud thud announced Caroline's body being thrown against the wall just seconds before he turned on me. One ankle had just come loose as Lukas' hand latched around my throat and he hoisted me against the wall. As the unyielding plastic slammed against my head, my vision tried to falter.
With a growl, Tyler was on his feet, golden eyes enraged, and he wrenched Lukas away from me. Coughing violently, I crumpled, only able to watch as Caroline charged them again. Still, he laughed. As Tyler pinned him to the wall, Caroline snapped a leg from the wooden chair. A split second before the jagged stake reached him, everyone froze. Tyler and Caroline strained against some invisible force; trapped.
"You drank from her." H purred, gaze locked on Caroline. In a single, fluid motion, nearly too fast for my eyes to see, he snatched the wood from Caroline and impaled it into Tyler's chest.
"No!" I shrieked, darting toward him. Lukas caught me almost the instant I'd started moving, ramming me back into the wall. A choked cough shook through Tyler before his body caved and he slumped to the ground.
"Watch," Lukas murmured. Something cold began to creep through my; my chest. Damon felt it too; ice… ghosting through us. "Can you feel him dying?" A whimper. Had it come from my lips or Tyler's?
"Tyler!" I shouted, "Hold on!" Tears streamed from Caroline's eyes, but, still, she couldn't move.
"This is all because of you." Lukas' breath flowed over my ear. "You see, familiars can't support too many bonds. It weakens them. This dog is an unnecessary drain." He paused. "However," and drew his wrist to his lip. "Drink... and I'll release her. With your blood in her veins, she can take his bond from you; she can heal him with her blood." A drop of crimson fell onto my lip. No. I wouldn't drink.
Slamming my eyes shut, knowing the consequences, I screamed. His grip on my arm tightened nearly to the point of crushing my arm. So I screamed louder.
"Quiet!" he roared. Distantly, I heard Caroline rip the wood from Tyler's chest.
"Shut up!" Ignoring him, I let instinct announce my face, a scream of panicked shrieks tearing through me. With a growl, he brought his fist down on my cheek. Don't' stop. Just a little while longer. Again. And again. He struck me, my frantic scream sending him deeper into madness. Damon was shouting for me to stop, terrified Lukas wouldn't be able to restrain himself enough to stop in time. Just a little while longer.
A snarl suddenly raged through the hall. Lukas instantly released me, eyes suddenly clouding with fear, and he turned toward the man he'd left for dead; the wolf. Blood clumped the fur of his chest, but the wound was fully healed. And he charged. Before Lukas could react, Tyler's fangs locked around his throat. With a loud thud, the vampire tore the wolf from him and slammed him into the hard floor before vanished from the room. Excitement. Hope. I felt a smile cross Damon's lips as Tyler raced after the fleeing ancient.
Tyler just bit Lukas. He told Stefan.
How? It's not a- His brother couldn't help but mirror Damon's excitement.
I don't care. Damon dismissed.
"Thea! Thea!" Something lightly taped my cheek. My eyes slowly parted and Caroline sighed with relief. "Come on, we need to get out of here." As carefully as she could, Caroline pulled me onto her back. I bit back the grown as freshly forming bruises protested the movement. Couldn't see. Even the short gasps seemed more trouble than they were worth. My wings hung limp behind us, the primary feathers sagging on the ground.
Damon… I couldn't hold onto a single though, but, somehow Damon kept me from fading. I struggled to focus on him. Had to focus. So he could find me. I suddenly ached for the feeling of his arms wrapped around me; the absolute safety of his embrace. Had it really been a week? And, when I saw him last… a giggle escaped me.
"No! You will not take her!" Adrenaline flared from my chest just as something plowed into Caroline.
No! Damon shouted. Without a second's hesitation, Lukas' hand clasped around Caroline's neck. On no. And I heard the snap. Tyler's howl tore through the forest. Mere seconds away. Yet, I knew it was too far. Even as my wings gave a desperate, futile flap, I knew it was too late.
A cough weakly escaped my lips.
"Ah, she wakes." Before I could grasp any bit of understanding, something slammed into my side, launching me into a damp wall. My body was too weak even to try to regain my footing. Broken. I could only lay, frozen and trembling, on the ground. Dirt...
Clawed fingers snatched at my hair and wrenched me up. Couldn't even whimper. Bleary though my vision was, I could see the deathly paleness of his skin; a layer of icy sweat clinging to him.
"You're… dying." I breathed with a smile. Scowling, he flung me away; merely letting me drop back to the chilled earth.
"On the contrary," he growled, "you shall keep me alive." Frowning, I tried to turn towards him, but, in the same heartbeat, his fangs ore into my throat. Falling. Just before the darkness claimed me, I felt him quickly draw back and curse.
A noise. A voice. No…
"Weak up, little bird." With a gasp my eyes shot open; my body instinctively straining against the new restraints. "Enough!" My body froze, trembling in wretched anticipation of the coming strike. "It seems we have a… a little problem."
"Running out of time?" I mocked in a breathy voice. Annoyance flashed across his face, but it was quickly suppressed by… remorse? A new fear began to well in me.
"The wolf bite will be healed soon enough, courtesy of your blood." He dismissed. Frowning, I met his gaze, straining to call Damon through our link; to lead him to me. Maybe another day's travel separated us was moved again… I tried not to think of what could happen in that time. Lukas swallowed hard, fighting the words. With dread, I could only wait.
"You're pregnant." The air left my lungs in something between a bark and a laugh. Liar. Just another head game. But his eyes…couldn't…. he had to be lying… but he wasn't. Somehow, I knew he wasn't.
Damon nearly crashed. Impossible. It wasn't… I couldn't… Damon. Gasping, I couldn't only stair at the ancient vampire.
"It's rare, but possible. Vampire and familiars, in and of themselves, are infertile, but, together… sometimes," he nodded toward me. "And always girls. I've never heard of a male child." He added. My jaw hung open; my mind blank. Damon… Couldn't think. Oh god… In horror, my eyes darted back to Lukas. No… I shook my head, silently begging him.
"As long as you carry another's seed, you can't take on another bond."
No… Lukas drew a dagger from his belt. No! Damon shouted.
"Damon…" In terror, I called his name. "Damon!" Knowing he was too far away. He couldn't help me. Couldn't let him… I couldn't let him hurt her.
Something in me snapped. There was not though. I had to save her. Shrieking my rage, I charged him. The restraints seemed to snap on their own. Effortlessly, I tackled him to the ground, wings beating furiously. Without needing to look, I knew he no longer carried the stake. Didn't need it. In a frenzy, I pounded my fists into him. I felt the bones in his wrists snap as I deflected his attempt at retaliation, sending the blade tumbling from his grasp. As I reached for it, however, he struck me hard across my face. My vision flared white, but my body didn't pause. The icy hilt of the blade met my fingers and I lashed out at him.
Fear. There was ear in his eyes as he threw himself back. Away from me. No fast enough. He wasn't near fast enough. Roaring my anger, I didn't give him the slightest change to recover as he stumbled over himself to avoid my assault. The straining of my barely healed bones didn't matter. The ringing in my ears didn't matter. I could cleave that head from his shoulders.
But then everything changed. He simply stopped, allowing the dagger to burry itself deep into his chest. Dread. I tried to jerk the blade free and deliver the final blow, but it was too late… I couldn't recover fast enough.
Groaning in pain, he trapped my wrists in one hand. Shrieking my terror, I flapped madly, violently to escape. But it was futile. And he knew it.
No! Damon. God, Damon… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry. Lukas slowly drew the blade from his chest. I was sobbing, pleading, begging.
"Lukas, please! Don't do this!" he hesitated. Just for a moment, a single breath. But then he plunged the knife into me.
No! No! Thea! Damon was screaming. Distantly, I felt Stefan force Damon to pull over, felt something in his break. I couldn't respond. Looking down at the handle protruding from my lower abdomen, I couldn't move. Or scream. Or cry. Damon nearly ripped the door from the car as he stormed away, shouting his pain and guilt and loss.
Damon! Damon, what happened?! Stefan asked, frantically. Damon didn't hear hi, didn't notice Caroline and Tyler hesitantly file out behind him.
Thea! Thea, can you hear me?! He roared. Say something! He begged. Tears spilled down my cheeks.
"I'm so sorry…" I murmured. "Damon… I'm so sorry."
"You have to drink." Lukas stated blankly. Blindly, I looked at his offered wrist. "If you don't, that wound will kill you." The breath fled Damon's lungs. He knew I wouldn't drink. It didn't matter what Lukas did, I wouldn't drink. Void of any emotion, I met Lukas' hard gaze. And my knees failed.
No! Damon shouted. Lukas caught my, but I didn't feel him. I felt only cold: the cold steel of the dagger; the ice flooding my veins. Thea! Damon sobbed. Thea, drink. Please! I can't lose you.
"Damn it, drink!" Lukas ordered. I struggled against the darkness, but, still, I held his gaze. In a rage, he wrenched the dagger out. I gasped weakly from pain, but gave no other response. "Drink!" He slammed the dagger into a stone beside my head, showering my face with sparks. Still, I didn't move.
Thea, don't do this! Damon begged. We'll find a way to get you back! Heavy breaths shook his form. Please!
"Damon." I whispered just as my eyes finally slid together.
From some distant place, I heard Lukas yell his anger, his defeat. Damon fell to his knees. Unable to move. Stefan gripped his shoulder and started to speak, but, as the look on Damon's face, fell silent. He seemed to deflate as he stumbled away from his older brother, trying to deny what had been so clearly implied.
No. Stefan exhaled. Damon, tell me she isn't… he couldn't finish, couldn't give voice to the words. Caroline held her hands to her lips and turned into Tyler.
She isn't dead Bonnie revealed herself from the car. Frowning, almost afraid to let himself believe her, Damon turned toward the witch, jaw taunt to hide the tremble. Lukas won't let her die. She assured him. He'll force his blood into her. It won't create a link, but it'll heal her. I tried to call his name, to confirm Bonnie's claim. There wasn't enough strength in me to form words, but he felt the attempt.
Thea. He breathed. Yes, Damon, I'm still here. But Lukas… I wanted to break down and sob, but, at the moment, I seemed to exist only in Damon's mind as a tiny whisper. Vaguely, I wonder if, were Damon not there, I could have simply faded away.
His jaw trembled as he struggled to collect himself. Finally, he met Stefan's gaze. Swallowing hard, he explained in a breaking voice.
She was pregnant. Nodding to himself, he got to his feet, tears falling freely from his eyes. She was pregnant… with my daughter. Confusion settled over Stefan's face. Apparently, familiars and vampires can only… have children… with each other.
I'm sorry, Damon. Bonnie whispered. Anger suddenly stormed through him.
You knew. It wasn't a question. That cryptic bullshit about her 'needing me more than ever.' he spat, approaching her.
Damon. She called sympathetically.
Don't! He interrupted, and, taking several deep breaths, said in a voice so dark, even Bonnie hesitated. This is your faults. She said nothing. His teeth ground together as he glared at her. If we didn't need you-
But you do need me. She stated, voice void of emotion, and, gentler, So get back in the car and let's go find her. Barely able to contain himself, Damon forced himself back into the driver's seat.
"Oh, no you don't!" With a gasp, my eyes shot open. Lukas crouched over my body. Reality crashed down around me, as though I'd been dreaming. Ignoring the enraged vampire, I focused all of my senses on Damon. Ever atom calling for him.
"What are you doing?" Lukas demanded. Couldn't sense Tyler anymore –that was alright; allowed me to focus more completely on Damon.
I know where you are. Damon. I shuddered at the rage storming through him. And, finally, I met Lukas' crazed eyes. And I laughed.
Time for my asides... I am neither an advocate for teen pregnancy nor pregos drinking! Just go with it