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Damon's POV

When I open the door, my brother is standing there. We just stand there looking at each other until we both break down. He wraps his arms around me like no time has passed and I just hug him back. So many times over the years, I'd wished that I could see him; talk to him because no matter how pissed I was, we still needed each other; we both still needed our brother. But, we both knew that we couldn't have seen each other. There was too much pain invested into the past that a reunion would just stir up heartache created in our history. And there was Elena. He knew I would always love her, so we parted ways in hopes that distance would dull the angst over time. This is the first time I'd seen him in over a century. I had missed him.

After a few seconds, we let go and he just puts his arm on my shoulder until Imari walks into the room and introduces herself to Stefan. Imari leads us to the back room where Elena is sitting quietly on the rug. Her and Stefan make eye contact briefly, but glance away quickly.

"Alrighty. Shall we get started?" Imari breaks the silence. "I need each of you to provide blood."

She cringes when we simultaneously bite into our wrists.

"You are going to need to feed them. Who is the strongest of you three as of right now?"

We glance around at each other until Imari speaks up, "Fine, I'll pick. Stefan will feed Cadence since he looks the strongest. She will need the most energy since she is the oldest. Damon will be with Ashton and Elena with Rose. We all clear."

We nod in unison. She stares at us with her dark brown eyes, "feed them."

I carefully pick up my son out of the coffin and put my wrist to his lips. My blood drips into his tiny mouth. I glance beside me and see Stefan holding my wife in his arms and Elena with my daughter. Tears start to roll down my cheeks. What if this doesn't work?

"Ligabis ad inferos ducere vitam redisse. Sanguine coniunctum ad mortem. Mortem coniunctum vita." Imari repeats until her nose starts bleeding profusely until the candles burn out. In the dark she whispers the spell one last time and then passes out.

It didn't work. It failed. I failed them. Then, the miracle happens. Ash opens his eyes. When I glance up, my daughter awakens and then, my wife.

Xxxxxxxx

They are weak, so Stefan takes a trip to the hospital to pick up some blood bags. Imari wakes up after a few minutes with a pounding headache, but is glad the spell worked.

Cadence doesn't say anything, but I understand she is still in shock. She holds Ashton while Rose sits on my lap. Elena finds her way around the kitchen and makes tea in the meantime. I kiss the top of my daughters head and breathe in the sweet smell of her floral shampoo. I feel her breathing as her chest rises and falls in a steady rhythm. Thank you. Thank you for bringing them back to me. I think to myself, but am interrupted when Rose taps my shoulder.

"Yes, sweetheart."

"Is the bad man gone?"

When I hear Rose ask this, my heart stops. I had hoped that she didn't remember, but I was wrong. I wonder to myself where the bastard is. I was going to find him and I was going to kill him.

"I won't let him come near you," I tear up while I reply.

"I was scared, but mommy was brave."

I hold her close to my heart and let the tears fall onto my cheeks. Cadence stares at me with this lifeless expression of indifference and uncertainty. She is utterly emotionless. I look away, unable to understand her.

When Stefan returns with the blood, they drink it all in a matter of minutes. We all sit there for a while in complete silence.

"How did you save Mrs. Brendson?" Elena asks timidly. As if on cue, Cheri Brendsen comes in, "I thought you'd never ask."

"It was about 62 years ago when I was 17 years old. I was hot, young, with a full life ahead of me, but I was going to trade it in for instantaneous death," she pauses for a moment, "My father and boyfriend were abusive. I didn't have any funding to go to college and not a penny to my name."

I remember the day like it was yesterday. She called me a hero, but I was simply a man who spoke the truth.

"I decided to end it all. With the wind pushing back my hair, I stood on the ledge of a bridge. Tears smeared mascara down my cheeks. When I was about to take a step, this mysterious man called out to me and gave me the best advice I had ever heard."

I finish her sentence with my own words, "There is another way. All you have to do is turn left instead of right, choose differently because there is a life out there for you; you just have to find it."

I notice Elena staring at me. I look at her, but blush the moment her gaze meets mine.

Cheri smiles at me and continues, "I turned around right then and there. He helped me down off of the ledge and took me to go get a drink. I told him my story and after that night, I ran away. I changed my name, went to school and became a psychiatrist for young adults."

"That is incredible." Elena has an amazed look on her face. "What a beautiful story."

"Thank you Elena," Cheri says, very pleased that someone enjoyed it.

"We should probably get going," Cadence changes the subject, speaking for the first time. I wonder why she is in a hurry, but decide it didn't matter. If she wanted to get back, so be it.

"Um, she's right. We have a little bit of a drive back to Nashville, so…" I say.

"We will send you a check in the mail," Cadence says while gathering our kids in her arms.

Stefan and Elena automatically rise to their feet.

"It's 2 in the morning. It is really ok if you stay and get some rest."

"Thank you Imari, for everything, but I think we better get going."

Imari stands there speechless and as soon as she leaves the room, Imari grabs my arm and pulls me back and whispers in my ear "I don't know what she is like on a regular day to day basis, but I have a feeling that something is up. It isn't uncommon to learn or see things on the other side."

I nod and walk out the door. I talk them all into stopping at a motel for the night. Cadence falls fast asleep with Rose and Ash on each side of her. Elena and Stefan each get rooms on the second floor next to ours. I try to sleep, but adrenaline is running through my veins. I put on my shirt and go outside to find Stefan and Elena sitting on the ground up against the wall a few feet apart.

"Couldn't sleep?" I ask.

"Just needed some air," Stefan answers stoically.

I take a seat in between them and laugh slightly at the irony.

"What?" Elena asks sounding a little fatigued.

"The three of us. Together. It just reminds me of way back when." I smirk again at the thought.

We suddenly all laugh at the situation.

"We went through hell together," Stefan reminds us, "but we made a good team."

We smile to ourselves, reminiscing over old memories.

"Thank you," I say, "nothing I could ever do would compensate for what you two did for me."

They nod in acceptance. We sit there in silence until the sun starts to rise.

"You know," Elena starts, "in all these years, I've never just simply watched the sunrise."

Stefan nods his head in agreement.

"Neither have I," I say and with that we watch. We simply watch night become day.