Chapter Twelve: Sticks and Stones

Sticks and stones will break your bones and leave you lying in the mud
But you get scared when we're alone, like I might suck your blood
And I could tell you a witch's spell but it just might blow your top
And you start to run just as I'm having fun and it's awfully hard to stop
It's awfully hard to stop
~The Pierces

She ran for the exit, her head was spinning and there was an ache in her hand. She stumbled out of the gym, into the parking lot. Tears were streaking down her face, her hands were shaking and her head was spinning. Anger was rolling off her in sheets, while grief made her vision blur. Nilin trekked through the parking lot until she stopped, having to lean on someone's red pick-up truck that was parked outside. Nilly held her already swelling knuckles in front of her. She examined them while she wiped the tears out of her eyes with her good hand. She flexed it and a fiery pain shot through her knuckles and up her arm.

"Shit," she cursed, closing her hand again. It was definitely screwed up, but was worth it. A cast for the cost of uglying up Caroline Forb's face? Completely worth it. Nilly wasn't usually the violent type, but there's a line and Caroline had crossed it. She slid down to the ground and threw off her heels, wincing when she moved her hurt hand in the slightest bit. She took a few breaths and leaned her head back on the truck. Anger swelled up inside her again, hearing Caroline's voice repeating in her head. She had never said those things straight to Nilin's face before. It left a particular painful sting.

Usually Elena was a barrier between them. She was a common ground, but Elena hadn't been there. A moment of that barrier being down had left Nilly with a screwed up hand and Caroline with another reason to hate her.

Laying her hands in her lap carefully, she looked down at her black dress. It still looked as dazzling as it did in the beginning of the night, but now all Nilin wanted to do was rip it off and trade it in for a pair of sweatpants. Her makeup was probably ruined, along with her hair. She lifted her good hand to comb her fingers through her curls and out of her face.

Then she heard movement, heels scuffing against the pavement. Nilly squinted in the dark. She could see a little thanks to the few lamp post scattered around the school's main parking lot but the surrounding woods were dark.

Could it be Caroline, wanting me to even out the bruising on her face? Nilly thought with a dry smirk. Using her good hand and the mirror of the red pickup truck, she hoisted herself up. Standing again, she got a better view of who it was.

"Bonnie?" Nilin called, squinting in the dark. It was Bonnie, walking through the parking lot and heading straight towards the trees. She was wearing a woodsy green colored dress that contrasted with her skin perfectly. It hung to her knees and had thick straps with an oval neckline that made her look almost like a forest nymph. A strange necklace hung around her neck that shown orange when light from a lamp post hit it.

"Bonnie!" Nilly called again, but she didn't even look at her. She kept walking, back straight, head forward, right for the woods. Nilly hugged her hurt hand to her chest and ran after Bonnie. "Didn't you hear me?" she asked when she reached her, but Bonnie kept walking, not looking at Nilly. "Bonnie? Bon, what's wrong?" Nilly was walking with her now, trying to keep up as they headed for the tree line. She stepped in front of Bonnie, holding her hand out to stop her. "Look at me, Bonnie. What's wrong?"

Bonnie stopped, she looked up at Nilly with a strange expression. "I have to destroy it. I can't let him have it," she said in a low detached voice.

"Destroy what? Who can't have what?" Nilly asked confused. Now she was really starting to get worried. Bonnie started walking again, shoving past Nilin. Then she disappeared into the woods. Nilly couldn't let her go in alone. She looked around desperately for anyone to help, but the parking lot was vacant. So, like any person as sane as she was, she went after Bonnie into the forest, bare feet and all.

"What did I tell you, Damon?" Stefan was yelling. Elena had never seen him so angry before. His voice made her jump a little.

Damon was leaning on a locker, arms crossed over his chest with a bored look on his face. Elena stood behind Stefan, glaring at the eldest Salvatore brother. When Damon saw her staring at him he grinned arrogantly, giving her a wink. Elena's eyes hardened before she looked away and focused back on Stefan.

"I warned you to leave Nilin alone. She's not going to be put in harm's way because of you." Stefan said. "People die around you, Damon. Don't you see that?" he continued. "And most of the time it's by your own hand."

Damon just huffed, the smirk still planted on his haughty face. "She's a human being, Damon. Not some play toy of yours," Stefan said, walking up to his brother and jabbing a finger at him. "Do you understand me?"

Damon just laughed, brushing Stefan off as if he was an annoying child bugging him for attention. Elena's stomach was doing flips and her hands were clasped in to fist by her sides as she watched Damon. Her emotions and adrenaline were still on high.

The moment she saw Nilly with Damon her heart dropped. She had begun to feel jittery, like she was about to throw herself between the two of them. That would have caused a scene though and would have made more problems than solved them. Not that the two Salvatore brothers squaring off in the middle of a crowded gymnasium did much to help.

She had told Nilly, begged her to promise, to stay away from Damon, but there she had been, dancing with him right there. Did she realize how fast Damon could kill her if he wanted to? Hell, if he was bored enough to! The thought made tears prickle her eyes, but the anger she was feeling bit them back.

Damon pushed off the wall, and held his hands up. "Hey, I wasn't the only one told to stay away. You warned her too, Elena," he said, pointing his finger. "And she didn't listen. So I, technically, wasn't the only one at fault here," he said with a grin. "Where is Nilin, anyway?" he asked, looking up and down the hallway before his eyes landed on Elena. "Oh that's right, you left her in there to fend for herself. Nice work, Elena."

"Don't change the subject Damon, you should have stayed away." Stefan said, "You had the power to, she didn't."

Damon's expression changed, like something was amusing. He walked over to Stefan. "Are you implying I compelled her to dance with me? That I've been compelling her?" Damon laughed, "Oh, little brother. I can assure you that I don't need to compel anyone for any reason." He winked again, and leaned back up against the same locker as before, "Besides, I can't compel her," he shrugged, crossing his hands over his chest. Stefan and Elena looked at him, confusion on their faces. "She's wearing vervain," Damon elaborated.

Vervain? How is that possible? Elena hadn't given Nilin anything containing it yet. She was planning to, but it was a rare plant, hard to come by. She was waiting for Stefan to get more of the sprigs before she slip some into a necklace she had gotten for Nilin. So, how was it possible for Nilly to have some already?

Elena spoke up finally, "I never gave Nilly any vervain."

Stefan and Damon's eyes went to her, confusion on both their faces. Of course Elena realized how stupid it was to let her cousin walk around Mystic Falls without any vervain, but she couldn't do anything until Stefan got more. Obviously, Nilin didn't need it though. She was all covered.

"Well, she has some. Trust me." Damon said.

Elena's heart dropped with the realization behind his words. "I'm warning you, leave her alone, Damon," she threatened, starting for him. Stefan shot out a hand to stop her from getting any closer to his brother, though.

"And what makes you think I'd listen to you, Elena?" Damon asked.

"Nilin has been through hell and back," Elena said. "Do you really think she needs Satan himself flirting with her?"

"This is all your fault, Elena. You should've been more honest with Nilin." Damon smirked. "You should tell her about the big bad vampires that reside in our little town here. Tell her what your sweet cherub boyfriend really is, tell her what I really am," he continued, his dark eyes hardening. "Let's see how fast that sends her packing."

"I'm not going to do that to her, I cant. Nilly doesn't need that in her life," Elena said firmly.

"Good, then I think that we've all come to the agreement that our lips stay sealed. You spill about me, dear Elena, and all your dirty little secrets might just slip out as well. Are we clear?" Damon asked, his dark eyes threatening.

When he saw Elena nod, he grinned. "Oh, and don't worry. I know what Nilin's been through," he said.

"How's that, Damon?" Elena questioned, but he just laughed. It was clear he wasn't going to tell them.

Elena saw it and so did Stefan because then he asked, "What are you doing back in Mystic Falls, Damon? Just tell me."

Damon pushed off from the locker again. With an amused look on his face, he strolled over to his brother. "Well, Stefan. That's for me to know and for you to dot… dot… dot…" he leered and began to walk down the hallway. "Have a nice night, you two," he called over his shoulder. "I expect you home before ten o'clock, young man."

"Damon, wait." Stefan said, grabbing his arm. "I'm warning yo—" the last words weren't heard as Stefan was suddenly flying down the hallway and slamming into the lockers. When Stefan's body hit the metal, Elena heard a sick snapping noise. Her knees almost buckled right there as she watched Damon easily throw his brother through the hallway, showing off the amount of power he actually had.

One moment Damon was at the end of the hallway with a disturbing snarl on his lips, the next he was standing over Stefan. Damon reached down and grabbed him by the shirt. He slammed Stefan up against the lockers, pinning him there.

"Two things, brother," he warned. His voice sharp, any teasing drained out of it. "Don't touch me, and don't tell me what to do. Because I assure you, someone will get hurt." Then Damon slammed Stefan back into the lockers hard, denting them inward.

"Stop it, Damon! Just leave!"

He turned towards Elena as if her yell had reminded him that she was even in the hallway with them. Damon let go of Stefan's shirt, letting him slide down the wall.

"You should learn to control your boyfriend," he said with a disturbing smile as he fixed the collar of his jacket. Then he was gone, leaving Elena and Stefan the only ones in the hallway.

She ran over to Stefan and knelt next to him. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine," he reassured her as he started to get up. When he stood, Stefan winced and let out a sharp breath.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Elena asked again, as he leaned against the wall for a moment.

"I'm fine, I swear. Are you okay?" he asked looking her over.

"Yeah. I'm okay," she said leaning her forehead on his shoulder. "Let's just find Nilly and get out of here."

Stefan nodded his head, "Yeah come on."

They made their way down the hallway and back into the dance. Something was wrong though. There was no music playing and a crowd had gathered around someone. Stefan took hold of Elena's hand and pushed their way through. They broke through the group of people to find who they were all standing around. A dripping Caroline was there shouting and cursing her head off. She had red stains down her dress, her makeup was running and she was holding the side of her face.

Caroline was yelling to someone about something but none of it made any sense to Elena. She looked up at Stefan in completely bewilderment. When Elena saw Matt, she made her way over to him. "What happened?" she asked when she reached him.

He looked at her as if he was stunned, a wide smile on his face as he shook his head. "Nilly, she punched Caroline in the face," he said starting to chuckle a little.

"She what?" Elena said, her eyes widening. Nilly had punched Caroline, she hit Caroline. Elena tried to get the thought to stick, but she couldn't.

Caroline always hated Nilly. Even Elena, who was one of Caroline's best friends, never knew why. Caroline and Nilin just have never gotten along, but they've never gotten this bad before. That was probably because Elena was always there to stop it before it reached this level.

Nilin and Caroline both cared about Elena, so Nilly never talked about what Caroline would say to her, and Caroline would always ignore anything that had to do with Nilly. But tonight, Elena wasn't there to stop them. Damon's words echoed in her head, "Oh that's right, you left her in there to fend for herself."

"What happened before that?" Stefan said behind Elena.

"Well, Caroline said a bunch of pretty nasty stuff to Nilly, I'm surprised Nilly didn't hit her any sooner," Matt said.

"Because Nilin isn't that kind of person." Elena mumbled, feeling slightly sick.

"Where's Nilin now?" Stefan asked, urgently.

Matt looked at him. "She ran out of here after she hit Caroline," he said.

"Which way?" Elena said.

"It looked like she was heading for the parking lot," Matt explained. Stefan grabbed Elena's hand.

"Thank you, Matt." Elena said to him as they started to rush out into the parking lot. When they got out there she saw that people were starting to leave. "Do you see her anywhere?" Elena asked, looking around the parking lot.

"No, I don't think she's out here."

"But Matt said—"

"Maybe he was wrong, or she could have…" Stefan was saying, but Elena started to walk away, towards a red truck. Something had caught her eye. Stefan came up behind her as she bent down and picked something up. "Elena, what—" he stopped, seeing want Elena was holding up.

"They're Jenna's," she said holding the pair of black heels Nilly had been wearing. She dropped her hand to her side and called, "Nilin!"

Nilly tried to maneuver through the woods carefully, but it was dark and she kept stumbling. Her feet were taking a beating. She cursed every time she stepped on a rock or a stick or something that she rather not want to identify. Bonnie moved carelessly through the trees as if she was floating.

This just made it about a thousand times harder to keep track of her. Nilly had given up on calling her name or telling her to stop awhile ago. Bonnie just kept going with no acknowledgement of Nilly's presence.

"Owch," she winced as she felt a sharp twig jam into her heel. She leaned on a tree and pulled it out with her good hand, cursing the entire time. She looked back up and realized she had taken too much time fussing over the twig, she'd lost sight of Bonnie.

In a rush, Nilly started in the direction she'd last seen Bonnie heading. Not paying attention to the ground anymore, she stumbled over a fallen tree. She landed hard on the ground, not able to catch herself. Her knuckles were on fire and her knees stung with scrapes. Leaves and dirt tangled with her hair and stuck to her dress. She rolled on her stomach, cradling her hand carefully. Looking around, still on the ground, she saw movement. "Bonnie?" she whispered.

Nilin grabbed a hold of a tree and pulled herself back up. She pushed through bushes, but stopped dead once she looked up. She had found Bonnie, holding a large stick and using it to draw something on the ground. She didn't even notice Nilly as she stepped forward. Bonnie just continued to drag the wood through the dirt.

"Hey! Whoever you are, what are you doing?" Nilin asked loudly. Bonnie's head shot up at her, stick frozen mid-dirt scribble.

"I'm Emily," Bonnie's lips said, but in that same detached voice like before. "I have to protect them."

Nilly's mind was working fast, trying to piece this together. She thought hard, still staring at Bonnie, or Emily, whoever this was in front of her. Then it came to her, her eyes widened. "When did you die, Emily?" Nilly asked. Bonnie froze again and smiled, confirming Nilly's suspensions.

"Over a hundred years ago," she answered softly. She was a spirit, a spirit that somehow managed to take control of Bonnie's body. Well, that's definitely not something you see everyday. And to think she almost didn't come tonight…

"You're not hurting her by doing this, Emily. Are you?" Nilin asked hesitantly.

Bonnie looked up, "Of course not. She is my family. I have to protect my family. You should understand that, please."

Nilin was quiet for a moment, she nodded. "Yeah, I can understand that," she answered, watching the strange sight playing out in front of her.

"I can't let him open that tomb. They can't be freed." Emily told her, dropping the stick and stand straight up a few yards from Nilly.

"Who? Who are you protecting them from? What are you destroying?" Nilin asked, almost shouting now. Bonnie pulled the necklace around her neck off and held it out in front of her.

"This is where it all started," she said, beckoning to the old ruins behind her. Nilly realized where they were now, it was the old crumbled Fell's Church. It had burned down during the Civil War era, or so the story was... Over a hundred and forty years ago. "I made a mistake saving them, now I'm fixing it," she continued.

Then, suddenly a wall of fire burned between her and Bonnie. Nilin gasped and stumbled backwards falling to the ground. She bit her lip to hold back a cry of pain as she fell, and tried to back up away from the fire. She could feel the heat of the flames on her skin as she managed to stand up again.

"Emily!" Nilin yelled, trying to get her attention. But she was facing the other way, her lips moving. Was she talking to some? Nilly tried to look over the fire, but it burned higher the closer she got to it.

"No!" Nilly heard someone yell. The voice sounded familiar, but it was hard to hear with the flames that were roaring in her ears. There was someone else here with them, it wasn't just Nilly and Bonnie anymore. Someone was trying to stop Emily from destroying the necklace, but who could have found them out here and even know what she was doing?

She heard the same voice yelling over the fire. Nilly thought it sounded like a man, but she couldn't hear what he was saying. Emily said something back to him and then threw the necklace up in the air. There was an explosion that caused Nilin to go flying backwards.

Her back hit the trunk of a tree. She felt a sharp pain in the back of her head and then a wetness drip down her neck. The flames went down, turning to smoke and revealing Bonnie standing in the middle, knees wobbling, staring at Nilin dazed and confused.

That's when Nilly saw the man looming behind her. "Bon..." she tried to warn, but before she could mumble the last syllable everything went dark.

Author's Notes:

Thanks for reading! Favorite, Follow & Review! Have a fantastic weekend,

RLS