Bloodlines
Chapter 13: Handle with Care
Beta: PrincessOfSilence
Disclaimer: I own nothing of TVD or TO. I only own my characters and my story.
Three soft heartbeats and the sound of the crackling fireplace were the only noises that could be heard in the Salvatore living room. Husband and wife lay cuddled on the couch, Cassandra's head rested on Damon's chest and his arms were wrapped tightly around her body. The fire warmed the room on the crisp fall day and Cassandra gave a contented sigh. Nothing like a moment of peace and quiet since they were far and few between in Mystic Falls.
"This is nice," Cassandra murmured sleepily into Damon's chest, her eyes drooping closed as they adjusted to the heavy curtains being drawn to give the room a more romantic mood.
"It is nice," Damon whispered in her ear.
"I like our life like this; peaceful and quiet." She said.
"But it is our life, which probably means that somebody's going to walk through that door and shatter it." He grumbled under his breath.
Cassandra closed her eyes and groaned loudly. "Ugh. No, don't say that."
"In 10...9..."
"Damon..."
"...6...5..."
"Damon, today is the day that we're going to bring Bonnie back. It's a good day." She tried to lighten the mood, but Damon continued his countdown.
The vampire gave her a kiss in her hair. "3..." Another kiss. "2..."
His wife leaned up, placing a finger on his lips. "Don't ruin the moment." She replaced her finger with her lips, kissing him tenderly and grinning when his hands squeezed her behind. Damon nibbled teasingly at her upper lip and she giggled softly.
"Greetings!" Silas chirped as he came through the front door and both of their heads popped up from the couch.
"1."
"Damn it."
"Good morning, frenemies!" The curtains were suddenly drawn back with the flicks of his wrists, letting more light into the room and the couple sat up in disbelief. Silas was now a warlock and his powers were in full force.
Silas made his way into the living room, walked past the couple and stood by one of the windows. "You know, I'm only a few hours into my old life as a witch, but somehow, the sun feels warmer." The bright sunlight streamed across his defined features and he actually felt his skin warm for the first time in two thousand years. "Probably because I'm not cursed with having to outlive it anymore."
Damon and Cassandra stood from the couch. "What's with the home invasion, Silas?"
"Well Damon, after 2,000 years of a miserable existence," the warlock turned to face them both, a grin upon his lips. "I finally get to die."
"Okay, so we're all here. Can we get this started?" Elena stood sternly with her arms folded over her chest while Damon and Cassandra were just off to the side of her.
"We all know that Tessa was a real vengeful bitch. Your doppelganger, Amara, died at her hands, but today, after 2,000 years, Amara and I will finally reunite." Silas stated, gesturing to Elena.
Damon gave an exaggerated roll of his eyes. "Alright. Skip the mushy parts. Look, my wife here is just trying to have a good day." His hands were gently placed on Cassandra's shoulders, giving her a reassuring squeeze. "And there are promises that we're all expecting you to keep."
Silas's eyes trailed over to the young vampire who wanted Bonnie back most of all. "Oh, you don't think that I keep my promises?"
"You said that now that you're a witch again, you would bring Bonnie back from the other side." She said.
"I did and I can."
"And you promised Damon you would do that if he helped you." Cassandra jumped in.
"Yeah." He nodded.
Elena shifted uncomfortably. "But you're kind of evil. No offense."
Silas made a face to say that he hadn't taken offense to her accusation. "None taken."
"So, I'm just trying to figure out how I can trust that one of your last acts in the world will be to bring my best friend back." She stated, rolling on the balls of her feet anxiously.
"Did you want me to pinky swear? Silas sarcastically raised his pinky, expecting her to take it, but Cassandra stepped forward.
"She's trying to have a good day. We all are. Just tell her how it's going to go down." She demanded.
"I just want to destroy the other side, so I don't get stuck in that pit of a purgatory when I finally do kill myself. Before I do that, I'll bring Bonnie back. And being the amazing and incredible and all-powerful witch I am, I can totally do both things. I just have to find the anchor first and destroy it." Silas explained.
"The anchor?" Elena questioned and the warlock nodded.
"So, where is it?" Cassandra asked.
"Jersey." He replied and that earned him a couple of raised eyebrows.
"New Jersey? The supernatural other-world is bound by an object in Snooki's backyard?" Damon questioned.
"Well, that was...anticlimactic." Cassandra sighed.
"It's in a stockyard and it's being shipped out. So, we really need to..." The warlock trailed off, feeling another presence in the room, a rather hostile one. Three sets of eyes peered over Silas' shoulder to see Jeremy aimed with a crossbow at his back. "Hello, hunter. Banner day for you, huh?" He turned to face Jeremy who straightened his hold on the weapon. "Didn't you and the Bennet witch used to..." He clicked his tongue quite suggestively, making the hunter stiffen and Elena scowl.
"Hey, knock it off. Okay?" She told Silas and then looked to her brother. "It's okay Jer. We all want the same thing today. Silas dead, Bonnie alive."
Silas grinned at Jeremy. "Yeah."
"AKA, put the damn crossbow down, Pocahontas." Damon palmed his face in his hands, already growing tired of dealing with the trigger happy teenager.
"We're just supposed to believe that he's going to bring Bonnie back to life out of the goodness of his heart?" Jeremy posed, still keeping the crossbow aimed at Silas.
"Well, I hope not. I mean, I am kind of a monster." The warlock shrugged and in retaliation, the hunter trained the bow right on Silas's head.
"Enough. The both of you." Cassandra stepped forward, holding her hands up in a peaceful manner. "Like it or not, Silas, you made a promise and now it's time to keep it."
Silas looked around the room and made a face of distaste. "You know, guys, I'm feeling really ganged up on right now. Okay? I would hate to lose my temper and do something...crazy" His hand rose up and his fingers caught on fire. Cassandra gulped, the closeness of the flames making her a bit antsy. "If I remember correctly, Cassandra, you are quite familiar with fire. You nearly perished in one when you were, what? Ten? I'd hate to think of that happening again especially since you're in such a delicate condition." He wiggled his fingers to taunt her and she clenched her fists. She wanted to say something back, but Damon stepped in front of her, shielding her from Silas' magic. The two had a silent stand off for a few beats of silence and Silas chuckled quietly under his breath at Damon's boldness. He then waved his hand, snuffing the flames out. "Good point, Damon. Why should I kill her when her own child will?"
"That's en—" Damon reached forward, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him.
"Damon," Cassandra pleaded with her husband not to piss off Silas because it would only end badly. "It's okay." Her tone brought him comfort and Damon slowly backed down, but he continued to glare at Silas.
Again, Silas' eyes darted between the two, almost torn between being filled with disgust or admiration at their love for one another. On the one hand, it bothered him to no end that even through everything they had been through, their love still managed to survive and grow. He had heard of Cassandra's so-called prophecy and even with that news, the couple remained nauseatingly close. And then at the same time, he admired their love from a far as it served as a distant memory to when he and Amara were in love. He would also be lying if he said that a part of him wasn't feeling jealous that Damon and Cassandra had found love and he had to go without his one true love for what felt like forever. Whatever he was feeling was making him physically ill, so he just shook it off like nothing. "Ah. Man, I really love being a witch again. I feel like I'm constantly reinventing myself. I'm like a supernatural Madonna, don't you think?"
Cassandra scoffed under her breath and busied herself around the room while Silas barked orders at Jeremy and Damon. Elena followed suit, trying to tidy up the house before she left to go with Silas, Damon, and her brother.
"Alright. We gotta get going." Silas droned and looked to Jeremy. "You grab a crowbar, or four from the garage."
"What for?" The hunter asked as he placed his weapon down.
"Does it matter?" He replied rudely and then saw out of the corner of his eye that Elena and Cassandra were moving towards the front door. "You two are not going. Men only."
"Are you serious?" Elena was taken aback by the sexist comment, but Cassandra had expected it. "He's not serious."
"Oh, he's serious alright." Cassandra grumbled. "Look, Elena, I know that bringing Bonnie back is really important to you, but I think it's best if we both stay at home."
"What? No." The baby vampire fought. "This is ridiculous. We're bringing my best friend back from the dead. I'm going."
"I would listen to her." Silas grew visibly annoyed when Elena brushed past them to the front door and he raised his hand. A click, a whoosh, and a thunk sounded off before Elena gave a grunt of pain. He had used his magic to press the trigger on the crossbow, sending an arrow right into Elena's leg. She sunk to the ground and Cassandra was by her side in an instant.
"Jesus! Was that really necessary?" She glared at the warlock.
"The next one goes in the heart. Now hurry up. I only have until sundown before Tessa tries to stop me." Silas barked and all of the men trudged out the front door. Cassandra tugged the arrow free from Elena's leg and helped her up. Damon gave both girls a sympathetic look and he mouthed an "I love you" to his wife who returned it by blowing a kiss his way.
Sometime later after some pacing and some soul searching, Elena snuck downstairs into the foyer. She'd spent too much time in her room worrying about Stefan who was with Tessa when she called him. It bothered her that he wasn't the same person she'd grown to love. Instead, he was like a stranger to her and she hated that. It irked her even more that he was spending a lot of his time with Tessa. People might go so far as to say that she was jealous and she would even go so far as to admit it. She had to get him back in any way she could, but there was one person she'd have to get passed who was sure that wouldn't let her leave.
As she peered into the living room, she saw Cassandra wrapped up in the blanket on the couch. Her eyes were closed and her shoulders rose and fell with each peaceful breath she took. Elena sighed gratefully; this made her escape plan a lot easier. She tiptoed out of the living room and towards the front door and as quietly as one could, she opened the door just a crack. She was almost there, just a little-
"You should have used the window." Cassandra's voice made her spin around and quickly shut the door.
"Hey! Uhm...I was just going to get some fresh air." She stammered, hoping Cassandra wouldn't catch it.
"Very funny." She deadpanned and Elena's shoulders slumped.
"Look, I'm sorry. It's just that...I'm worried about Stefan. He's with Tessa and I-"
"I know. I heard you talking to him on the phone." Cassandra crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. The expression on her face was one of contemplation and her bottom lip was being worried between her teeth. After a few moments of silence, Elena was ready to go back to her room, but Cassandra's voice stopped her.
"Man, Damon is gonna kill me..."
Elena sent her a questioning look and raised her eyebrows. "Huh?"
She sidestepped the baby vampire, grabbing her jacket and car keys. "You wanna get Stefan back? Let's go."
"But-"
"Elena, I see how you look at him and I know that look. You miss him. The Stefan you're looking at right now is not the Stefan you met almost four years ago." She explained and Elena bounced on the balls of her feet anxiously. "I know that you love him and I'll be damned if I'm the one that will keep you two apart."
"So, we're going to get him?"
"As much as it is against my better judgment, yes."
Tessa scowled at the two women standing on her doorstep. Heaven forbid she would enjoy herself too much, but no, as soon as she was getting close with Stefan, his girlfriend showed up. She could tell that Elena was nervous to be there, but she was putting up a strong front. Cassandra on the other hand looked as if she'd been dreading coming to the cottage in the woods. Tessa and the hybrid matched glares and the latter was growling low in her chest.
"Well, well, well. Look at what the wind blew in." Tessa sighed, leaning against the door frame.
"Where is he?" Elena asked and the witch smirked. Cassandra didn't like that smirk at all.
"Come on in." She stepped aside, allowing both women to come in.
Stefan's gaze lit up as soon as he saw Elena and at first he couldn't bring himself to words, taken aback by her. He quickly hid it as Tessa closed the door and came back into the room. "You two shouldn't have walked through that door."
"Well, we wanted to see how you were." Cassandra stepped forward. "You know, that's what friends do for one another."
"Look, this has been fun, but you guys don't need to check up on me." Stefan shrugged.
"Yes, we did." Elena spoke up. "I was worried about you, Stefan. I know that you don't remember any of us, but you have to know that we still care about you."
"Why would you care if I can't even remember who you are?" He asked and Elena readied herself for what she was going to say.
"Because...I love you." She finally said it after all that time of keeping it bottled away. She wished that Stefan would at least be moved by her confession, but he didn't even flinch. The room was silent, too silent that it had become painful and Elena's eyes found the floor. She had finally opened her heart to her him, making herself completely vulnerable and he had just stomped on it. Tessa smirked in her own little corner, practically watching Elena's heart break in two and Cassandra frowned at Stefan's insensitivity.
"C'mon, Elena. Let's get out of here." Cassandra placed a comforting arm around her shoulders and led the teary-eyed vampire to the front door. They both moved to step outside the house, but their feet couldn't pass the threshold. Elena banged on the invisible barrier and Cassandra peered back at Tessa who was smirking to herself again. Oh, how badly did she want to slap that smirk off of her face.
"Yeah. You really shouldn't have come inside," Stefan murmured.
The drive to the warehouse was long enough for Damon's taste and he practically kissed the ground when they had arrived. It meant that he didn't have to listen to anymore of Silas' knock-knock jokes. They were all armed with crowbars as they walked along the hallways that were lined with boxes; the anchor just had to be in one of the boxes. The only problem was figuring out which one. Damon wielded his crowbar, allowing Silas to lead the way while Jeremy walked behind the warlock. His cell phone buzzed in his pocket and he slowed his pace, making sure that both Silas and Jeremy were both out of earshot before he answered his wife's call.
"Miss me already?" He grinned to himself.
"Guess again." A woman answered who was not his wife.
"Tessa?" He raised an eyebrow. "What the hell? Where is Cassandra?"
"She's here and she's safe. For now." Tessa said. "Since I'm occupied at the moment, I need you to go ahead and kill Silas for me."
Damon gave a quick once over of his location, making sure that Silas wasn't around to hear him. "Gladly, but he's such a control freak, he wants to off himself."
"You mean, after he destroys the Other Side? Yeah, that's not gonna happen, plus I want him dead before he has the pleasure of finding the anchor." The witch told him.
"Yeah. I'm not following."
"Kill him. Now." She ordered.
"Damon." A small voice could be heard from the receiver.
"Did I mention I lured your brother's girlfriend here to me? And your wife also tagged along." Damon's grip tightened on the phone, growing agitated with Tessa's taunting and the ability of both girls to always get themselves into trouble. A piercing scream rocked him and he immediately recognized it.
"Cassandra!" Elena's voice could barely be heard over Cassandra's loud screams and Damon's panic level went through the roof.
"Stop! Stop it!" He demanded of the witch, but he could still hear his wife yelling in pain. Who knew what Tessa would be doing to her or the baby? Again, Damon looked around before replying in a hushed tone. "I can't kill him yet. He has to do something for me first."
"Is that something more important than Cassandra? Or perhaps your unborn child?" Tessa threatened and Damon never felt so helpless in his life. He could hear her crying now and Elena begging Tessa to stop. "Because Silas put a spell on this house and bound it to the sun, which means we're trapped here until sundown. That means you have until then to kill Silas or I kill Cassandra and her child."
"No..."
"Leave her alone!" Elena hissed.
"Damon!" Cassandra's pained cry made his heart sink further down in his chest and his anger rise significantly. He didn't like not being able to helped the woman he loved and Tessa knew it.
"Just give me some more time-" He was met with a harsh click and a blaring dial tone. Damon growled loudly and started to smash some nearby boxes in an effort to get his anger out. The crowbar destroyed the wood, splinters flew everywhere and some packing material littered the floor. He was angry with Cassandra for leaving the house when she was supposed to stay at home and he was mad at Elena too for initiating the idea of going to Tessa's cabin. His method of getting his anger out worked for a second or two before starting up again, but he had to put it aside until he could come up with a new plan of action. If it meant that Bonnie didn't come back to life, then she wouldn't come back to life. Right now, there were more pressing matters at hand. He promised himself that he would keep Cassandra and their child safe and he'd be damned if he broke that promise.
Cassandra rubbed her stomach again as she sat propped up against the wall in Tessa's cabin. Her body still ached from the pain the witch caused her and she was now worrying that something might have happened to the baby. Her body could heal quickly, so that wasn't a problem, but she could guess that her child wouldn't have the same luck. She would feel a few strong kicks here and there and Cassandra would thank her lucky stars that her baby was alive, but she worried about injuries that she couldn't see. Elena sat beside her, a comforting arm around her shoulder and she placed a hand on her stomach too.
"The baby seems fine. I can feel it kicking," she said and Cassandra almost corrected her by saying "she."
"I'm just worried that something else could be wrong and I wouldn't even know it." The hybrid murmured. "I'd never forgive myself."
"Cassandra, you can't blame yourself..."
"I can and I will." She cut her off. "And I know that Damon wouldn't forgive me either." Elena tried to find something to say, but she knew that Cassandra was upset with herself, so she just sat quietly. If she were to argue with her, she knew that she'd lose miserably. A small smile graced her lips as she peered down at Cassandra's bump.
"Did you start thinking of names yet?" She asked and Cassandra shrugged. Yes, she did start thinking of names, but she was too distraught to play the name game with Elena. The young vampire frowned sadly, upset that even thinking of happy things couldn't bring Cassandra out of her pity party and her eyes then trailed to Stefan and Tessa who were happily messing around in the kitchen. She just hated seeing Stefan with someone else. Sure, the two of them weren't romantically involved with each other, but that didn't make it hurt any less.
"Look at all the incredible things they've dreamt up to do with food. Pineapple on pizza?" Tessa laughed musically and Stefan humored her as he continued to slice some vegetables. She caught Elena watching her with a jealous glare who then quickly averted her eyes. Tessa then looked to Cassandra who hadn't said much in the time she'd been in the cabin.
"So sad. Let me guess, trying to eat healthy?" Cassandra didn't answer her. "Then again, by the way bulked out, my guess is that you've been eating everything in sight."
"Careful, Tessa. That one stung a little." She growled. Weight had never been a problem for her, even when she was a human, but she was slowly putting on pounds and gaining weight in places she never thought possible. It was a sore subject because she was used to looking perfect, but now her body was changing in all sorts of ways. She hoped that she'd go back to her normal size once the baby was born.
"She speaks." Tessa smirked and helped Stefan to chop some more ingredients.
"How did you get here?" Elena spoke up now.
"Excuse me?"
"Here, alive, from the Other Side. How did you come back to life?" She clarified.
"Ah, yeah. That. You can blame your friend Bonnie for that. She opened the door and distracted herself when she brought your little brother back. So, I just walked right through when she died." Tess announced proudly before turning her full attention back to Stefan.
"Look, why don't we forget about the pizza? What do you say I make something?" Stefan wondered and the witch's smile grew.
"Okay. Roasted duck?"
"Wait. Do you have a duck?" He asked.
Tessa shook her head. "No, but maybe I can lure one inside. I got Elena and Cassandra in here. How much smarter can a duck be?" Both Stefan and Tessa giggled while Cassandra sulked and turned herself away from them. Her brown eyes were staring blankly out the window; the sun was slowly beginning to set and she knew that she didn't have much time left.
Stefan busied himself around the kitchen, tasting and mixing different concoctions in pots that were cooking on the stove. The entire cabin smelled wonderful, but Cassandra could hardly appreciate it as she stood by the window. Elena remained sitting on the floor, scowling silently at the pair in the kitchen while Tessa hung around Stefan, watching him work like a busy bee.
"Try this." Stefan removed one of the spoons from a pot. He blew on it to make sure it wasn't too hot and held it to Tessa's lips. "Let me know what you think."
Tessa's eyes lit up. "Alright." She opened her mouth and sipped daintily at the spoon. "Mmm. It's good."
"Yeah?" Stefan smiled and she nodded enthusiastically.
"Yeah."
"All right."
Elena couldn't sit and take it anymore. Their interactions were making her sick. "Okay. I get it. You hate me. You might not have any memories, Stefan, but I do. This person, she's not the type of person you would like." She spoke and both Tessa and Stefan frowned.
The witch clicked her teeth. "That's not very nice, especially considering I've allowed your friend to remain alive until sundown." Her eyes then peered out the window Cassandra was by and she smiled evilly. Twilight was slowly approaching and she would be checking in on Damon.
"Almost sundown." She strutted away from the kitchen and picked up Cassandra's phone from the counter. She was able to swipe it from her when the hybrid entered the cabin and she kept it by her ever since, especially since she knew that Damon would always pick up the phone for his beloved. She dialed the phone and Cassandra's stomach sank even further.
"Elena, don't say a word." Stefan's hushed voice was so low that only Elena and Cassandra could hear. They both listened in; even Cassandra had turned away from the window. "I've got this. I know you think I hate you, but I don't." He then met Cassandra's curious gaze. "I won't let her hurt you or your baby, okay?" The hybrid nodded and went back to sulking at the window, waiting for Stefan to make his move. They bided their time and Cassandra listened in to Tessa's conversation with Damon. Some travelers had crashed the party, but Damon was able to get rid of them. He still hadn't killed Silas or found the anchor and he was trying to get it out of Tessa. She mentioned something about the anchor being 2,000 years old and that it was close to Silas' heart. Cassandra tuned herself out as Tessa hung up and came back into the room. She raised her hands in the air and Cassandra braced herself for the pain, but it never showed. Instead, Tessa was the one screaming out and clutching her stomach. She had been stabbed with one of her kitchen knives and was moaning in pain on the floor.
"Run!" Stefan ordered and Elena rushed toward the door. The both passed right through since the barrier was broken and Cassandra followed suit. She stopped dead in her tracks and went back for her phone which was lying right beside Tessa. She clutched it in her hand and stared down at the witch.
"Not so powerful now, are you?" She grinned and Tessa's hand curled around the hilt of the knife.
"You don't know what you've done. I'll kill all of you." She warned and crawled toward the counter to get herself up.
"Until then," Cassandra had noticed that Tessa was right near the stove where the hot pots were bubbling. She gripped the handle on a large pot of boiling water and tilted it right on top of Tessa. Her wails were so loud that it drowned out the sound of her skin burning and sizzling. Cassandra made sure to empty the pot before zooming outside and catching up to Stefan and Elena.
The trio was never so happy to be back in the boarding house again and Cassandra shut the door behind them while Elena and Stefan talked in the foyer.
"Well, uh, have a good night." Stefan shuffled his feet.
Elena smiled and stepped closer to him. "Yeah. It's weird. Even with no memory, you're still you." She really hadn't expected Stefan to help them, but she was thankful that he did.
"Well, Tessa was gonna kill Cassandra and she didn't deserve that." He said and his gaze met hers. "You...uh, you also said that you loved me. I figured that you were someone very important in my life to come looking for me. So, I was just going on instinct, that's all."
"Exactly. That's what I'm saying. Your instincts were always to protect the people you cared about, so, thank you for-for just being you." Elena said, her heart was already beating faster.
Stefan smiled warmly. "Well, have a good night." Elena turned to walk away, but she stopped in mid-step. She went back to Stefan and gently kissed his cheek. Blushing, she pulled away and went back upstairs. Stefan's fingers touched his cheek, finding his skin still tingling from her kiss. Cassandra grinned to herself and met Stefan in the foyer.
"Thanks again, Stefan," she said.
"No problem. By the way, why did it take you so long to catch up to us?" He questioned.
"Well..." Cassandra smirked slyly. "I gave Tessa a taste of her own medicine." They both shared a laugh.
"Listen, I'm sorry that I've been a cocky douche lately. I guess I'm just taking my anger out on people because I can't remember who I am." It was a sincere apology and Cassandra didn't think that she'd hear one from him so soon.
"I forgive you and I'm sorry too. I know that I haven't been easy to deal with lately and..." She trailed off and placed a hand on her belly as her daughter kicked a little. "Ooh."
A look of fear crossed Stefan's features. "What is it? What's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing. Just kicking away." She beamed and rubbed her stomach. "Your niece says 'thank you' too."
Stefan looked awestruck, almost unable to process what she said. "Niece?"
"Mmhmm, Damon and I found out a little while ago, but no one is supposed to know."
"I won't tell. I promise." He told her. "Alright, I'm going to head up to bed."
"Okay...I have to go deal with Damon now." She had been dreading it ever since he found out that she and Elena were at Tessa's cabin.
"Good luck with that." Stefan said.
"Yeah, I know that I'll need it." She sighed and walked into the living room where Jeremy and Damon were slumped in their chairs. The floor creaked and the vampire's blue eyes snapped up to see his wife standing there.
"Hi," she greeted meekly.
"Cassandra." He rose from her chair and she gulped as his eyes flashed with an expression that she couldn't quite pinpoint. She also knew that she was busted because he only used her full name when she was in trouble and today looked like it was her day to be in the hot seat.
"Listen, Damon, I'm sorry about today. Elena was going to sneak out by herself and I wasn't going to let her meet with that crazy witch alone and-" her explanations were quickly silenced with a kiss and she was quite taken aback by it. If he was angry, then why was he kissing her? Wasn't he supposed to be yelling at her? He held the kiss and then pulled away to peer down at her.
"Are you alright?" He asked her, still cupping her cheeks and she nodded. "And the baby?"
"Yeah, we're okay." She replied and she saw his tense shoulders relax a little. "Uhm, Damon? Aren't you mad?"
"Of course I was mad. I was furious." Damon told her calmly as he brushed his thumbs over her cheeks. "But I am just so happy that you're both okay." She was going to speak again, but he kissed her passionately, throwing all other thoughts out of her mind. She could have argued that he was supposed to still be mad at her, but for now she was just grateful to be back home and in his arms again. She threw her arms around him, kissing him back and Damon's hands found her waist. She moaned softly against his lip as their kiss became more heated. Damon smirked and he pulled her body into his, making her feel his growing arousal and the couple was ready to keep going when a rather loud throat clear stopped them.
"Oh, Jeremy..." Cassandra blushed and pulled away from her husband. She adjusted her shirt awkwardly and fixed her mussed hair.
"You know, anyone else would have gotten the hint to skedaddle, but not you." Damon droned as he slipped a hand around his wife's waist.
Jeremy just rolled his eyes and drank a little more scotch from his glass. "No need to make me feel any worse than I already do, dick."
"What do you mean? What happened?" Cassandra asked the both of them.
"We failed. We didn't get Bonnie back." The teen told her and the hybrid sighed.
"Does Elena know?"
"I heard." The brunette vampire stepped into the room with a small frown on her lips. She had heard the entire conversation and while today didn't work, she refused to lose all hope.
"Tell her it's for the best, Jer." Bonnie appeared beside him.
"No. No, I won't because it's not." Jeremy spoke with a shake of his head.
Damon raised his crinkled eyebrows. "What?"
"Bonnie's here. She wants us not to worry." The teen said.
"We're gonna keep trying, Bonnie. Okay? It's not over. We've dealt with much worse." Elena told her best friend and she couldn't see it, but Bonnie smiled softly.
Damon placed his glass of bourbon down on the coffee table. "Well, Silas is M.I.A. and out and about which is pretty bad. And Amara's been cured, which is even worse because now she's easy to kill. So, the fate of the Other Side, where Bonnie currently resides, rests on a living, breathing human being that we now need to protect."
"Wait, who are we protecting now?" Cassandra gave Elena a questioning glance and she matched it. Having been locked up in Tessa's cabin all day really kept them out of the loop. Damon took his wife's hand and whistled for Elena to follow him outside to where the cars were parked. They stopped by one of the trucks and Damon opened the trunk, revealing a young girl with frizzy brown hair down to her lower back dressed in purple robes and a gag over her mouth. Her wrists and ankles were also bound and when the door opened, she wiggled herself backwards to press further into the trunk of the car, clearly fearful of the strangers who were looking oddly at her. So, this was the famed anchor that everyone wanted to get their hands on. The original doppelganger, Amara. Elena was staring at the young woman and Amara was staring right back at her. The two were in complete silence, holding each other's glances.
"No way..." Cassandra hushed.
"Elena, meet Crazy Pants. Crazy Pants, meet Elena." Damon introduced the two ladies and Amara had finally seemed to come out of her state of shock. She gave a loud scream which was muffled by her gag, but it still made the trio cringe.
AN: Hi everyone! So sorry for the late updates, but the semester is finally coming to a close! I officially start student teaching tomorrow and I also have finals (yeah, don't know who thought that one up), but do not worry because I will have two full weeks off for Christmas and New Years! YAY! Hopefully I can write and update then. For everyone who has finals, good luck and this update is a little present from me to you! You guys all rock my socks and I hope that you enjoyed this update!
VampirePrincess11: Thanks so much for reviewing and I am glad that you are liking the Originals :)
xoxobianca13: Thank you for the review, girl! I have heard that opinion from a lot of people and a lot of fans are dumping TVD and running (literally running) to TO. I am watching both shows because let's face it, if I didn't then this story would cease to exist and I don't want that to happen at all! I do enjoy writing both OC ladies because they are very close to my heart. Cassandra was my first OC ever and she has a special place in my heart. Giuliana, on the other hand, was created because I felt that she would be a good asset to the story and I honestly didn't anticipate that she'd still be around. I love Davina too and I liked writing the Giuliana/Elijah scene at the end. The Giuliana/Klaus scenes are always fun because Giuliana knows how to lay into Klaus and she doesn't take his bs, LOL! Damon and Cassandra will always be a crowd favorite and their chemistry is undeniable. Hope you enjoyed this update :)
flazzy cullen: Thank you for reviewing :) Giuliana's heart is pulling her in two directions and she really doesn't know whether to go for Klaus or Elijah. Klaus is a very misunderstood character and I think if he was to have someone close to him, it could go one of two ways. He could push them away or he could thrive with this person. Maybe Giuliana can help him, but she also does have feelings for Elijah. I hope that you enjoyed this update!
SomebodyWhoCares: Thanks for reviewing! Hmm, let's hope that smack keep Elijah in line ;)
grapejuice101: Thanks for reviewing, girl! Glad you enjoyed this one and I hope that you liked this update!
Whitttyyy76: Thank you for your review! I have heard that many people are so DONE with TVD, but they enjoy TO a lot. I watch both because if I don't, my story doesn't happen. I am glad that you are enjoying Damon and Cassandra because I am too! I love writing them :) I do like the Augustine vampire twist and I think it is a very interesting dynamic to explore. I won't spoil anything else for you if you haven't seen it ;) I do love Nina Dobrev, I think that she is an amazing actress, but I am starting to lose track of her dopplegangers. I think Damon needs a doppleganger ;) That might be too much sexiness on one screen! My readers are split between having Giuliana with Elijah or having her with Klaus, but I will have to explore both as the show/story goes on hehe!
sexytime321: Thanks girl! Hope you enjoyed this one :)
Bilbo Baggins Is My Hobbit: Elijah is definitely one of my favorite characters on the show, but I do love Klaus too! I just can't decide. I'll take the both of them ;) I am actually really behind on both TVD and TO because of classes, but I will use my Christmas break to catch up and write a little more! Thanks so much for reviewing!
Rose1324: Oh gosh! Please don't die! That's not good! Hope you enjoyed this update :)
MegaRockinDebby: Glad to hear that you love this story! Thank you for adding this story to your favorites and reviewing :)