CHAPTER 27 – The Reaping

-Bonnie-

I'm shushing Lola as I do that half-bounce/walk thing that usually works to calm her down, moving quickly from countertop to fridge, fridge to table, pantry and back, my left arm numb from Lola's weight and my right handling the frantic making of breakfast – It's all just autopilot at this point. I mean, to be honest, I feel like vomiting or crying or running up and down the street calling for Allie and Grayson, but my little ones are hungry and I have to settle them.

My neck is cricked over to the side, smashing my phone between my ear and my shoulder as I try Elena for atleast the twentieth time this morning and it's not even six yet! I don't know what I'm going to say should she answer… Hey, it's me, I woke up this morning and I can't find your children?

"Elena, please." My tone is less upset than I feel, but it doesn't hide my worry at all. "Just call me back." Sitting Lola in her high chair causes me to let go of my phone and it hits the floor right about the time that I hear the police sirens in the distance. In between getting something for the kids to eat, calling Elena and Stefan ump-teen times, and sending Jeremy out to search the street, I've called Caroline to have her go to Stefan's apartment and called Damon.

He's the police. He's my friend. Damon will know what to do… he always does.

"Mama" Liam smiles my name when I hand him his sippy cup, but I can't focus. I can't respond with the appropriate amount of exuberance. I just give a nervous smile back to him as my shaking hand tips the cheerios box over Lola's tray.

"NOTHING!" Jeremy shouts, coming through the back door with a fearful look in his eyes and sweat covering his face. "I ran three blocks in every direction and nothing!"

"Oh God, Jer." Both of my hands come to my face, my fingers slipping into my hair as I do everything I can not to break down. All the worst possible scenarios are racing through my head and at the end of each one is how could I have let this happen?

The blaring siren and screeching of tires out front pulls me from the spiraling thoughts and I head towards the door to meet Damon, picking up my phone on the way.

"You called the police?" Jeremy questions.

I stop at the door just long enough to say, "Two kids are missing! Of course I called the police!", then let the screendoor slap behind me.

"What happened?" Damon's voice is loud, frustrated, scared even, but he looks every bit the part of a police officer – in control and capable.

Something about seeing his face – the worry in his eyes – it sets me off and I start crying as I explain in a quick, choppy pace. "Liam woke up and after I changed him I went to peek in on Grayson, but he wasn't there! He wasn't in his crib and Allie wasn't in her bed and they weren't in Elena's room and I've looked everywhere Damon! I don't know what could have happened! I don't know where they could have gone!"

I want to fold into myself, or lay down in the dew-damp grass, or fold into him maybe – but Damon keeps it together, grabbing me by my upper arms and forcing me to focus and answer his questions.

"Have you talked with Stefan? Elena?"

I sniffle, "No, not since late last night… I've called them both so many times but they aren't answering."

-Stefan-

Something wakes me. I couldn't tell you what, but after a very small moment – just enough time for me to realize that the place isn't on fire and neither Allie nor Grayson are calling for Elena and I – I close my eyes and start to fall back asleep.

"What was that?" Elena mumbles a warm exhale onto my chest, rubbing her nose against my shirt as she finds a comfortable place for her head.

I make that humming sound – the one that sounds like 'I don't know' but actually has no syllables or vowels – and turn my face into her hair, leaving a kiss in the lavender-mint scented satin bunched up on my shoulder.

After a long while of my breathing and her breathing and the hum of the ceiling fan above, she asks,"Is your arm numb?"

I feel her move, her weight lifting off of my upperbody a bit, but I don't open my eyes and I lie as I shake my head no, lifting my tingling-asleep arm up to pull her back down to me. I'm not ready for her to go, for her body to be removed from mine, so I wrap both of my arms around her – she's so small that my hands squeeze the opposite sides of her waist as she lays back down. I hear a smile in her gentle 'mmm' and she finds a comfortable position, now directly ontop of me, and squeezes her arms between me and the couch cushions below us. Adding through a yawn, "I'm cold." for explanation.

I'm awake just enough to smile at the sound of her voice and to pull the throw blanket from the back of the couch onto our tangled bodies. After a couple of wiggles and kicks and tugs of the blanket, Elena seems to have maneuvered it the way she wanted it and is still again.

I think I fall back asleep – or maybe I hang in that half-conscious state for awhile because I sort of feel her short nails brush through my hair, just over my ear. And a few moments later I sort of hear her sleepy, raspy voice say my name in a whispered, sing-songy way. And I think I notice that effervescent warmness between start to change… When she starts to move again, lifting herself off of me, I feel so disappointed that she's going that it wakes me just enough to register that she's sitting on me, straddling me… and now I'm awake. Looking up at her looking down at me with a mischievous smile on her face.

I feel my brow lower and my eyes squint a bit, returning her smile as my drowsy brain sluggishly tries to figure out what she's up to – all the while, falling deeper into a welcomed intoxication by the soft glow of morning sunlight against Elena's skin.

I watch with pleasant surprise as she drags her finger tips down my torso, her eyes following her hands, pushing my shirt up to my chest. Tossing her hair over to one shoulder, Elena leans over to me, placing cool kisses on my stomach, still warm from our shared body heat. My hand finds her head and I start to sit up, guide her mouth to mine, as my lips are somehow jealous of the attention my stomach is getting – but with a wicked little giggle, Elena sits back up and shakes her head, gently pushing my chest for me to lay back down.

I'm both too tired and too intrigued to fight so I do as she instructs, laying back – my hands resting on her bare thighs.

I don't know – Maybe I'll forever be seventeen when it comes to my raging hormones and Elena – but when she crosses her arms over her body and pulls off her top in a fluid, graceful motion, I swear I lose my breath for a second. She's just so beautiful – curved and soft, smooth and firm, flawless skin that makes my fingers yearn to touch her. I'll blame the early hour and the small amount of sleep that I've had for the slow and deliberate way I'm touching her – exploring her. For the way my eyes are caught up in how her waist curves into her hips and how my hands move on their own to feel her – one slipping behind her, beneath the silky fabric of her panties, and grabbing her ass and the other slowly tracing the perilous contour of her flat stomach on a direct path to her purple laced bra.

It's nice – no, it's too great for words… I can't tell you how amazing this is - Elena is letting me touch her without her hands cautiously hovering near mine, waiting to stop me from moving somewhere she's insecure about. The way she seems to be finding just as much pleasure in my hands on her as I am and the slow ride of her body on mine. The sun is just high enough in the sky that it's dimly lighting the room and I swear to you, Elena looks like a goddess – her tan skin glowing golden and a slow, unintentional smile on her face as she enjoys my touch.

The way she leans her head back, eyes closed, biting her lip as my hands move over her, the look on her beautiful face – it's perfectly indecent. I can't explain how badly I want this woman. To taste her, bite her sweet lips, to make her breathless and trembling, and to lose ourselves in the reckless abandon that is only found when I'm deep inside of her and she's wrapped all around me to the point that it's difficult to find where I end and she begins.

Slowly, cautiously, I reach up and slip my hand around the back of her neck, pulling her down to me, but her satin panties slip against me in such a way and with such a beautiful kind of pressure that it makes me groan just as her smiling lips graze against mine – taunting me.

Really burning now, I start to kiss her, lifting a bit to reach but she grinds against me again – slipping over the length of me still captured beneath my boxers, and restricted from her body by her panties, but the pressure is intense; tightening my torso and forcing my head back – an involuntary move caused by the overwhelming feeling of pleasure and gravity and sensation and love coursing through the deepest portions of my body. Elena giggles at my reaction, leaving kisses on my neck and jaw line as she grinds again and I say something that sounds like it was supposed to be 'God' but I can't finish the word before she's pushing against me again - her teeth graze against the bottom lip of my open mouth before she sits up again. My hands taking hold of her each of her hips -Gripping her hard to stop the grinding and at the same time, considering flipping us over and taking charge of this. I want to taste her. I want to move inside of her and feel her arching beneath me. When she starts to unbuckle my belt, I look up from examining the shadowed curvature of her spread legs fitting so perfectly over me to her face – silently asking what's next.

With a subtle lick of her lips and the shaking of her hair off of her bare shoulders, I receive my answer.

"You aren't the only one with naughty thoughts, Stefan" She teases in a whisper, scooting down my legs and unbuttoning my slacks. Even a half way decent blow job is ten times as beautiful as the most perfect sunset, and Elena, well, let's just say she's quite proficient. I know I'm smiling like a fool, watching as my wife leans oh so achingly slowly over me and pulls me free of my boxers.

Opening her mouth, hesitating just centimeters from me, I feel her warm breath as she exhales and looks up at me with a wicked spark in her dark, playful eyes. I lift my head to get a better view, forcing my eyes to stay open when her course tongue licks the length of me – from base to tip - punctuating the salacious move with a soft, sucking kiss on the tip as she wraps her hand around me.

I've always found Elena's face enchanting – from the shape of her small chin to the arch of her eye brows – it's simply captivating and right now, I have to touch it. I have to have her sweet face against my overzealous fingers. Grazing lightly down the side of her face, she leans into my touch, kissing the palm of my hand before looking up at me. When our eyes meet, that magnetic frequency we share, it's warm and slow and soothing and it stops us for a long moment. Holding us right there, looking at one another – forcing us to really see each other, to realize how lucky we are to have this inexplicable and unbreakable connection.

"I love you" I say through an excited smile, my voice just loud enough for her to hear as I say these three words that I rarely speak aloud but have always felt. Literally from the moment I looked into Elena's eyes in the hallway of Mystic Falls High, it was instantaneous and endless from the very start.

Elena gives a soft giggle and I watch her shiny lips as she whispers a teasing, "you own me, Stefan", then kisses/sucks me again before tracing her tongue around the head of my cock – forcing my eyes shut when she slips me into her mouth and the hot, wet pressure is devastating to all of my self-control. I want to watch her – see the way her cheeks cave in as she pulls back on me, watch how her wet lips look slipping back down – but I can't keep my eyes open or my vision clear, it simply feels too good. I lose my battle when she wraps her hand tightly around me – the gliding motion paired with her dancing tongue is overwhelming and I give up on trying to watch, deciding to lay back as my fingers slip into her hair, resting against her gently bobbing head.

The sucking pressure, her grip, the speed, the gentle mmm's she's vibrating onto me – it's all building up, increasing, taking me closer to the edge. I wonder what I taste like in her mouth. I'm dying to between her legs and get my own taste of her. My jaw is clenched, my eyes closed with images of Elena's beautiful face and perfect body flipping through like a slideshow, I feel my chest and abdominal muscles tighten and my fist closes in Elena's hair, pushing her down – pushing myself deeper into her throat.

"OH MY GAWD!" The scream is half disgust, half laugh – but for Elena and I, hearing Caroline's voice is something like a gun shot. In a split second, Elena is completely beneath the blanket and I'm working to fasten my pants and belt. I can almost feel the heat radiating from Elena and I imagine she's fully red with humiliation and smiling that huge, beautiful way she does when she's embarrassed.

"What are you doing here!?" I try to sound really pissed off that Caroline used her key to get in, uninvited, but to be honest, I'm having a difficult time not laughing right along with her.

-Jeremy-

I drop another handful of Cheerio's on both of the kids trays, then sneak a look through the blinds to make sure Bonnie and Damon are still talking. It looks like they're calling someone, so I figure they're going to be out there atleast a few more minutes – deciding it would be safe to call Katherine.

I never would have thought she was the type to kidnap Elena and Stefan's kids, but she'd joked about it in the past and now, I don't know of anyone else who would do such a thing.

It rings four times before she picks up – the sound of her voice is so alert and clear that I can't tell if I woke her or if she's already up.

"Tell me you didn't do this, Katherine." I say in a loud whisper, my heart racing in my chest with the fear of getting caught talking to her. "Tell me you didn't commit a felony."

"Well, I probably did," Katherine gives a half-hearted laugh, "but why don't you tell me what you're talking about before I confess."

"Dammit, Katherine." I usually don't get angry with her and the whole 'bad girl' act she likes to play – to tell you the truth, its usually a huge turn on – but right now, she's screwing with my sister and has my niece and nephew and I am so angry when I respond that I'm spitting as I speak, "Where are they? They're just kids for Christ's sake!" - talking loud enough that Lola and Liam stop their babbling and look into the living room at me.

There is a long pause before she responds – such complete silence that I think she may have disconnected – asking in an obviously confused and aggravated, "What?!"

-Damon-

"What the fuck, Stefan?" That's how I answer when he calls my phone. Caroline sent Bonnie and I a text telling us that Elena and Stefan had the kids all along, but I'm still running on the fear-forced adrenaline and can't keep from being royally pissed off. "Answer your goddamn phone when people call you!" I'm pacing, ready to move, ready to find my missing niece and nephew while Stefan and Elena were sleeping through a hundred phone calls!

"Sorry… really, Damon," Stefan's voice is too light for my liking – it's not fitting for the terrifying morning that I've had, that poor Bonnie has gone through – so I hang up on him in the middle of his apology.

"He's such an asshole!" I groan, tossing my phone into the window of my squad car instead of smashing my fist through the still-closed back window.

Bonnie is still in shock from spending nearly an hour with the idea that someone had kidnapped Allie and Grayson from her home, but she tries to calm me down – reminding me that everything is okay, that it was a simple miscommunication, nothing actually happened and Allie and Grayson are safe and with their parents, "We should just try and relax – forget this ever happened."

Inhaling deeply through my nose, I nod in agreeance, then lean back against the fender of my car to take a beat – get my thoughts together. Bonnie joins me – standing mirror image of me, arms crossed and all. After a long moment, enough for me to chill out a bit, Bonnie shrugs and says, "Come to think of it, I don't think Elena actually said anything about the kids being here last night."

A frustrated laugh comes out of me before I can stop it, followed by, "I forgot how unreliable you Bennett witches can be." Bonnie mocks an insulted frown, lightly smacking my stomach, but we both laugh it off. In the easy silence that follows, I notice Jeremy through the window – on the phone – and I'm reminded of Bonnie's late night request that I start tailing Mr. Football Coach. "Speaking of unreliable, what's going on with Little Gilbert?"

Releasing a heavy sigh, Bonnie looks down at the pavement, kicking at a rock for a moment before she speaks. "I don't know… probably nothing… but maybe something." I nudge her with my elbow and when she looks over at me, I feel sorry for her – the fear in her eyes, the wrinkle between her eyebrows. I remember what it felt like to be cheated on – by Katherine, then Elena. It's like being burned alive from the inside out by what you'd thought was the antidote, but ended up being the poison.

"Probably nothing." I lie, repeating her words.

Jeremy is a dumb ass kid who doesn't know how lucky he got when he landed Bonnie. Hell, I didn't see her for the wonderful woman she is until I'd known her for a few years and I'm basically two hundred. No way some pip-squeak like Jeremy figured it out… besides, he's already proven he's a piece of shit when he fucked around on her with Anna. "But I'll check it out."

Bonnie gives me a sad smile, sliding towards me just enough that our shoulders are barely touching. "You're a good friend, Damon…"

It feels good to hear her say that. If I'm being honest with myself, it feels good to feel her shoulder grazing mine. Ignoring that thought, I shrug dramatically, raising my eyebrows with faux smugness, finally getting a laugh out of her. I wait until she's done with the giggle – because it's a great giggle and because it's become one of my favorite rewards… Bonnie's giggle – then say, "Yea, you aren't terrible either."

Another giggle.

"Too bad we couldn't have figured out that we liked each other way back when." She stands straight, slipping her hands into the back pockets of her jean shorts and turning to face me. "We would have made a great team."

"We made a fine team back then even hating each other."

She thinks it over for a moment, then looks away from me when she adds, "Yea, but who knows what might have happened if we wouldn't have been always fighting one another."

… what?

... wait…

Is this Bonnie Bennett nostalgically flirting with me?

I have a million responses – things I've thought of during my late night boring ass shifts when Bonnie and I pass the night playing cell phone games and texting – but I don't want to screw up the friendship we have by assuming that she's hinting around at something more than friends. Instead of a smooth, more flirty response, I put the ball back into her court with, "Like what?"

"Um, uh – you know, I mean," Bonnie stammers around with her words while I watch a rosy glow come to the surface of her satiny smooth skin. No matter what she says now, that bit of blushing has just confirmed my suspicion. I'm fighting back a smile when she finally comes up with, "it would have been nice to be friends, is all."

I don't skip a beat, tossing in, "We could have double dated with Stefan and Elena." A great giggle – the nervous kind that erupts out of a girl when she means to play it cool but fails. "and made out in my camero…"

"And I would have had the hottest date to all the dances." She adds, slipping her hair behind her ears.

I decide to test the waters a bit – just for curiosities sake. "Can you imagine, a Bennett Witch dating a Salvatore vampire… the spirits would have been pissed."

"Yea, well… they've been wrong before." Bonnie shrugs, not looking at me again when she says, "I think we would have been really good together."

Nodding, I stand straight and close some of the distance between us – feeling more like a bad ass than I have in years. A church bus drives by and we both watch it go – all the way to the stop sign, following it with our eyes until we can't see it any longer. It's a good thing, the bus – distracting me – by the time I turn back to Bonnie's pretty hazel eyes and sweet smile, I've got my head straight again and the initial reason for coming close like this – to see if her full lips feel as good as they look – has been forced away by the reminder that Katherine's pregnant and Bonnie is married.

Sure, I've gone after plenty of other guys girls, but I don't chase married women.

Still my eyes go directly to her shiny lips – staying there for a moment too long.

"You should probably go." Bonnie sighs, stepping back from me. The church bus obviously cleared her head too.

I nod again, pressing an exhale through tight lips but I don't know if its from not getting to follow my instincts or from feeling like an ass for having the want to kiss her at all.

I watch her go back inside from the driver's seat of my squad car, waving back when she stops at the door to smile and wave.

Putting the car in drive, it's fucking annoying that I can't shake the thought that it really is too damn bad that I was so screwed up by Katherine when I came to town… Bonnie and I really would have been great.

-Elena-

Caroline and baby Matt are joining us for breakfast and while Grayson is still asleep. Allie has been doting over Matt since she woke up and barely gave me a good morning! It's cute – how she's fawning over him – and probably even better for Caroline, Allie's giving new mommy Caroline a break. While she and Stefan cook, I'm keeping an eye on Allie and Matt and an open ear for Grayson. He's a late sleeper, but the smell of food has recently started waking him like an alarm clock.

"Scrambled for Allie?" Caroline asks me – stopping in mid-vent about her mom's work schedule. I nod once, then Caroline goes to cracking eggs again and starts back in on her mom. "I just don't get it, I mean, how many times does your only daughter have their first child?" I shrug and smile as empathetically as I can, Stefan continues to grill silently. Not to sound rude, but Stefan and I are complete orphans… so Sherriff Forbes hasn't been able to spend a whole lot of time with her and Matt – atleast she has got to meet him! Atleast Caroline has pictures of her mother holding her son… atleast Caroline's mom is alive! "So, I'm like, you can't go shopping with me? And mom's all, Caroline, I've got to get back and I'm like…" It's ridiculous, the ping of jealousy I feel, but today is a bad day for me to discuss parents in any way so I force my face to stay neutral and for my eyes to not read of the annoyance I feel, deciding to distract myself with Stefan's laptop. "…because I know Amy Stanton is a royal pain in the rear, you know – I worked with her in Dallas and, yea she a serious bi- I mean, she's ugh! But still, it's her first grandson, right?"

The screen is just coming to life when I catch Caroline repeating her question, "Right?"

"Right!" I frown, maybe too dramatically. "That's crazy."

Caroline's pause is too long and even Stefan turns and looks over his shoulder at me – an awry smile on his face, telling me my reaction to the question I wasn't paying attention to was way off.

I'm ready for Caroline to get on me about not listening to her, expecting a Caroline Forbes scolding, but Allie's voice turns our attention to her when she says, "You're so light and itsy bitsy!"

That whole mindset of all the worst possible things that could ever happen speeding through your mindseye, it's one of the very first traits that you gain when you become a parent and both Caroline and I move into action immediately! We move from the eat-in-kitchen to the east wall of the living room and are hovering around our children in a fraction of a second. Mommy speed and vampire speed are actually quite similar! Allie is barely six and other than Grayson, whom she never holds unless she's sitting in the floor, surrounded by pillows with her father or I supervising, has never held a baby… much less a newborn preemie!

Caroline is kneeling in front of Allie, her hands just under Matt's small body like a safety net, while I shadow Allie incase she falls or stumbles or we have an earthquake or the floor falls through – "Here, sweetie, let's sit down and give Matt back to his mommy." My voice is all overly smooth and calm, like I'm talking a person off of a cliff and Caroline is looking up at me and Allie with huge, worried eyes.

"Look at him, Mommy!" Allie says in a quiet squeal, "He's smiling!" Smiling – a newborn? He's barely a week old and born more than three months early… but sure enough, when I peer over Allie's knotted bed head into the small crook of her arm where Matt's fuzzy blond head is resting, looking right up at my daughter are Klaus-blue eyes and a perfect Caroline-shaped grin. "He likes the sunlight, Aunt Caroline!"

I'm stunned into a very happy version of shock, calculating how long it took for Allie's eyes to turn green – three or four months atleast! - and when it was that she and Grayson gave their first real smiles – maybe 6 weeks? - while Caroline gently wiggles Matt out of Allie's wiry little arms. "That's amazing!" I run the back my fingers down Matt's chubby little cheek, still grinning mind you, and his light blue eyes look directly into mine.

"I know, right! I was totally worried that he was going to have brown eyes forever," Caroline coos at her son, then smiles at me apologetically. "I mean, no offense or anything," Grayson and I have dark brown eyes, but I know what she means and am not insulted at all – still in awe of Matt. "But just like those books said, his eyes changed and I'm like crazy excited that their blue like his daddy's." Stefan and I share a quick look from across the room, silently agreeing that it's odd… maybe even weird, that Matt is already making eye contact, smiling, and his eyes are so crystal clear blue, while Caroline is laying out a blanket for him on the floor in the sunlight. "Klaus is going to be so excited when he gets back this weekend!"

"Right." Stefan seems to stiffen, even his stance is awkward in some way as he does a decent impersonation of someone acting nonchalant – leaning onto his elbows on the counter-bar, closing the laptop screen, then moving he spatula from one hand to the other a few times when he asks, "he mentioned he'd be in town in a few days."

"Friday." Caroline stretches out the syllables, responding to Stefan but talking to little Matt who is laying on the floor and gazing up at her, on her knees beside him with Allie close by. "Daddy's going to be so excited to see you, Matty." She coos, gently grazing her fingertips over his tummy. "Daddy was hoping you'd look just like him and you do don't you? You sure do!" I'm about to mention that his smile is the spitting image of Caroline's – less the perfect white teeth – but the sweet, gurgly giggle that comes out of the 6 pound new born premie stops me.

I look at Stefan again – No way. I know for sure that Allie and Grayson didn't laugh for months. He shrugs, giving me that champion smile of his and I'm disappointed all over again that Caroline put a stop to what was sure to be an epic resuscitation of the sex life Stefan and I have been missing since Grayson was born. Ugh.

"Did you guys find a place in Roanoke?" Stefan asks, now back to cooking – his back to us. His perfectly shaped, sexy, muscular back. Ugh.

"Yea we did…" Caroline backs up a little, letting Allie get in near Matt again, but staying close enough to jump in just in case. "I've actually got to get going pretty quickly – meeting with the realtor from there at nine to get everything lined out." I don't know what my face looks like, but internally I'm kind of thrilled… I'd like to get back to making up and making out with Stefan – Caroline misreads me, quickly adding. "Roanoke isn't that far, Elena… we'll totally be able to hang out on weekends and vaca together! It's going to be really great, I promise! Just like we'd always planned."

I smile – reaching over and squeezing her hand. Caroline has changed so much, but really, deep down, she's still the Caroline I grew up with. She's still my best friend and I love her like crazy! "Yea, totally great, Ker."

"You know, Elena," Stefan says over his shoulder, dishing out the eggs and turkey sausage onto the plates, "You and Caroline should go out for lunch today – after her realtor appointment and your visit to see your parents. I'll keep Allie and Grayson."

Ugh. Stefan.

I mean, that's really sweet, but I'd really rather be here. With him. With Allie and Grayson. I've missed spending Sunday's doing nothing with my family.

"Yes! Oh my gosh, Elena!" Caroline smiles wide – Matt giggles again – and I'm reminded of Caroline's rant about not having her mom around and Klaus is in Texas and I suddenly feel like a crappy friend for initially not wanting to go to lunch with her. She's lonely. "I've got to show you my wedding and bachelorette party plans!"

-Katherine-

Ok. So Jeremy isn't bad looking, and I guess he's not all that bad in bed, but

He's late meeting me

He's wearing cheap gym shorts and old Mystic Falls High t-shirt

I'm in a pissy mood

So when he immediately leans in and tries to kiss me and puts his big, clompy hands on my hips, I can't help that my immediate reaction is to lean away, push him back, and knee him in the balls.

"Jesus!" Jeremy's doubled over, groaning and moaning like a baby and I'm once again reminded why we meet in secret. Im Katherine Pierce – no way I'm going to be seen with such a little wimp. "What in the hell, Katherine?!"

"Self-defense is a natural reaction for me, Jer." I smirk, getting a good look at his red and now sweaty face. Thank god I don't have testicles… they're literally the weak link on the male body. " Oh come on, stop being dramatic."

"You kicked me in the-"

"I know what I did, Jeremy! I did it. But you called me over here because people think I've kidnapped Stefan's little monsters," truth be told, they're cute kids… but I have a reputation to hold. "I think we have bigger fish to fry than you trying to get an apology out of me."

A few more exaggerated whimpers and moans before he's standing upright again, then Jeremy gives me the full explanation and I'm sorry… what an idiot Bonnie is! Dumb bitch. HA!

"So yea, it was a false alarm."

"Then why didn't you cancel this big emergency rendezvous at the high school? I could have spent my morning doing something else, you know?" It's like the kid can't read body language, or even hear my GTFO tone of voice – as I'm basically telling him that I do not want to be here with him, he's trying to be all GQ and slick and put his Baby Gilbert moves on me. Another Idiot.

"I dunno, Kat," he pushes my hair back from my face and leans over, kissing the sensitive skin by my eye, then my cheek, then whispering against my ear, "I guess I just wanted to see you. I missed you."

He missed me? Oh Gawd. "Hmm." I think any sane person could actually hear my eyes rolling just by the attitude that hmm carried. But Jeremy is as dense as his useless wife.

"You know, I can't stop thinking about you." A couple more kisses on my face and neck and I am for real wishing I was vampire so I could break his thick neck. "I think I might even be falling in love with you."

…

Ok. Now. This I can use.

I give a shaky breath, a heavy sigh, touching his arms and then his chest, leaning into him and using my best damsel in distress voice when I say, "Jeremy… we can't. I mean…" Fake sniffle, "he'll kill you. He'll never let me be with you, or anyone else. He wants to keep me for himself, no matter what!"

"Katherine, you don't have to be scared of him." Ugh, puke! Jeremy pulls me into a big bear hug and good lord he smells like that cheap body spray and Right Guard. "I can handle Damon."

Ha. Such an idiot… falling right into place.

"Not Damon, Jer." I back away and do that doe-eyed bullshit look that Elena gives the Salvatore boys when she's in desperate need of rescuing. "It's Stefan…"

MORE TO COME!

Hope you're enjoying The Reaping

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I love (CRAZY LOVE) to read your thoughts and reviews so please feel free to comment here and/or tweet me. Next chapter we'll be getting into the DNA testing, moving back into the Gilbert home, seeing some old friends, and there may even be a little trouble brewing up!
With the summer hiatus, I'll be doing my very best to give you guys an update once a week to help with the TVD withdraws and the Stelena heartbreak we all suffered during the finale. Keep hope alive, Stelena's… it's season 4 of 6 seasons - Elamon is the arc, not the storyline.

Long-game, it's Stelena!