Bloodlines
Chapter 48: Home – part 2
Beta: PrincessOfSilence
Disclaimer: I own nothing of TVD or TO. I only own my characters and my story.
Knock, knock, knock.
Elena looked to Caroline who was humming softly while holding Ava in her arms. The two of them had been on baby duty while Cassandra recovered and quite honestly, they didn't want to put Ava down. They took turns holding her and feeding her and she was a little bit of hope for the future. Elena hopped off the bed and opened the door to see a smiling Cassandra standing there.
"Hey!" She greeted her excitedly. "We thought you were resting."
Cassandra chuckled lightly and moved into the room. "There is only so much a person can rest." She saw Caroline with Ava and her gaze passed between the two girls. "I hope she wasn't too much of a bother."
"Absolutely not." Caroline spoke up. "She was a perfect little angel."
"And not to mention she is the cutest baby in the whole world." Elena added.
"Yes, she is." Cassandra's smile grew wider. "Do you guys mind if I spend a little time with her?"
"Do we have to give her back?" The blonde joked.
"Caroline." Elena bellyached.
"I'm only kidding." She handed Ava to her mother who kissed her chubby cheeks. "Come to think of it, I'm kinda hungry. We'll see you later, okay?"
"Sure. Take your time." Cassandra sat herself down in the armchair by the window and door clicked closed just as Ava's bright blue eyes opened. "Hello princess. Your aunts are going to get some food for a bit, so it's just you and me."
Ava yawned, her little arms raising above her head and she quickly fell back to sleep. Cassandra brushed her index finger along Ava's hand and her tiny fist opened enough for her mother to slip her finger in the space created. Ava's hand closed around her mother's finger and Cassandra smiled sweetly.
"I'm going to let you sleep, but I'm just going to talk, okay?" Cassandra adjusted Ava in her arms and leaned her back against the chair. "So, your daddy is going to do something pretty crazy and I'm a little mad at him. I know why he's doing it, but you'll learn this about your father as you get older. He likes to do very crazy things for the people he loves. I tried to talk him out of it, but he is going to do it no matter what. But please try to understand that he is doing this for you because he loves you so much."
She'd come back from her talk with Damon in the woods and she cried the entire way back to the dorms. She had agreed to let Damon go forward with Project Kaboom and she hated herself for it. She respected his choices, as Damon had asked her to do and she hated herself for it. She was now telling her daughter that her father was going to go on some crazy suicide mission and she hated herself for it. It wasn't until she pulled into the parking lot of Whitmore did she realize how silly she was being by crying over it. It was as if something inside her took her by the shoulders and shook her hard. She could either sit idly by or let Damon do this on his own. Or she could stop crying over it and do something about it.
"So, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret. Like how daddy does crazy things...mommy is going to do something crazy too. But I don't want you to worry, alright? Mommy and daddy are going to come back to you and we can all go home." She felt a lump rise in her throat, but she pushed it down to keep herself from crying. "Oh, Ava, you should see your nursery. Daddy painted the walls pink and it has everything you could ever need. And when you get older, you can have friends over in the living room."
She was rambling to a day old baby and she knew that, but Ava should know how beautiful the boarding house was. Cassandra was itching to get home and was ready to bring Ava home with her too. A little girl should not be living in a college dorm room with her aunts. She should be at home in her own crib with her own blankets and her own space to grow up.
"I just want to let you know that I love you so much and there will never be anything in this world that can keep me from you. I will make it back to you no matter what." She kissed Ava's forehead and then her cheek. "Just don't give Aunt Elena a hard time while she's watching you, okay?"
Cassandra rocked herself back and forth in the chair and stared out the window. The sky was still light and she knew that she had a couple of hours before she was going to meet with Damon and tell him that she was going to go with him. He wouldn't take it well, but just like she was respecting his choice, he'd have to man up and respect hers. She held Ava against her chest, so their heartbeats would sync as one and she could think of nothing better to do than enjoy her last few moments with her daughter.
"Ah...ow." Cassandra moaned as she woke up. Her aching limbs screamed at her as she propped herself up on her hands and knees. The scents of gasoline and charred bodies wafted into her nose and the lightest hue of blue touched everything around her. It took her a few moments to realize it, but she had woken up in the Grill after the accident. Her mind was fuzzy, but she remembered the crash and seeing Bonnie in the woods by the old crypt. She told them to—
Damon.
Damon was with her when she spoke to Bonnie. Cassandra was now frantically searching for any sign of her husband in The Grill, but he was nowhere to be found. She stumbled upon the Camaro or what was left of it after the explosion. But what she could make out were two blackened and boney bodies sitting in the car, both with daylight rings resting on their fingers. Cassandra backed away, becoming lightheaded from looking at their dead bodies and began overturning fallen beams and broken furniture to find him. Severed electrical wires sparked and she shielded herself from them.
"Damon! Damon!" She called loudly.
"Well, well. I should have known you and your husband were the cause of this."She whipped around to see Markos standing opposite her and he did not look pleased.
"Markos..." She hissed.
"We meet again, Cassandra." He took a few steps forward, so the hybrid backed away, her legs hitting the passenger side door. "You and your husband did quite a job here. I must say, I was a bit surprised to see that you were able to survive the explosion."
"What can I say? I'm very resilient." She spoke up.
"That you are." He noted and his gaze then wandered to her flat stomach. His blood boiled and he clenched his teeth. "And judging by your appearance, that abomination has been born."
Cassandra's fists clenched at her sides and she narrowed her eyes at Markos. "Don't call her that."
"Ah, a little girl. How wonderful." He grinned evilly. "So, she can grow up to be a monster like her mother."
The hybrid had heard enough of Markos' digs. She gripped a piece of metal from the grill of the Camaro and yanked it out. The end had a sharp point, perfect for severing his tongue. "Keep talking. I can make sure you never talk again."
"More empty threats." He shrugged his shoulders and was suddenly smirking at the sight of a dribble of blood falling from Cassandra's nose. She wiped it away with the back of her hand like it was nothing, but Markos knew what was happening to her. "Oh, dear. It looks like you don't have much time at all to get to Bonnie."
Cassandra's hand tightened around her weapon and she tried to make herself look strong, but she couldn't help but notice the sickly feeling that had been looming over her since she woke up on the Other Side. She didn't know how to explain it, but she didn't like the feeling. Her nose began to bleed again and she suddenly cried out at a stabbing pain that shot up her spine. She fell to her knees, dropping her weapon in the process and she whimpered weakly. A mixture of bile and blood bubbled over her lips and her watering eyes could make out the tips of Markos' boots drawing closer until he was standing right above her. She felt the tip of the grill at her throat and Markos used it to tilt her head up.
"Just think, I kill you, I pass through Bonnie," Markos applied a bit of pressure under her chin and she winced feeling her skin split. "And then I kill your daughter. You're making it very easy for me."
"You stay away from her." She growled.
"I'm afraid I can't do that. I cannot allow a threat to my people to stay alive." He told her.
"My baby won't be so easily reached, Markos. She has a lot of friends that will gladly take you on."
"As if your friends could defeat me. I can end their pathetic lives in the blink of an eye." He dragged the point down her neck, traced over her collarbone and stopped right where her heart was hammering away in her chest. "Just like I'm about to end yours."
Suddenly, Markos' body crumpled to the floor in a heap and Cassandra gasped seeing Alaric standing over him with a short beam clutched tightly in his hands. He helped Cassandra up and he leaned her against the car.
"Man, I hate listening to that guy talk." He chuckled and tossed the beam aside. He helped Cassandra to clean the blood off her mouth and neck with a piece of his shirt.
"Thanks," Cassandra breathed and wobbled on her feet. "Where is Damon? I have to find him."
"Listen to me, I will find him. You have to go ahead and get to Bonnie." Ric stressed.
"No, I can't leave him here." She shook her head.
"I'll find him, Cassandra." He assured her. "What you have to focus on is getting to Bonnie before you die here."
"I'll go with you." Vanessa appeared beside her friend and gently took her by the arm. "Come on, you have a little girl to get home to."
Cassandra nodded wordlessly and leaned against her friend as they exited The Grill. She wanted to stay and find Damon, but she could feel her body dying from the inside out. She just hoped and prayed that Damon would be right behind her.
Alaric kicked Markos' still body just as he heard a mumble coming from the opposite side of The Grill. He cautiously approached the sound, but sighed in relief seeing that it was just Damon waking up.
"Friendly advice: Don't blow up the mother of your child." Ric joked as he helped Damon to his feet.
"Good to see you too, buddy." He chuckled and brushed himself off. He then caught sight of Markos who was still face down on the floor. "What happened to him?"
"Eh, I had to take care of business." He replied. They were both alerted to the sound of someone moaning in pain and at first, Ric thought he'd have to knock out Markos again, but the sound was coming from a woman. Liz Forbes was trapped under a pile of ceiling beams and was waking up from being unconscious. Ric and Damon ran to her and started to lift the heavy beams off her. She blinked up at the pair and clutched her ribs. Once she was freed, Ric gently pulled her away from the wreckage and checked for any outlying injuries.
"I think she's going to be okay." He said.
"Good." Damon nodded, but was suddenly aware that his wife wasn't with him. "Where's Cass?"
"I told her to go ahead while I looked for you. She's with Vanessa now." Alaric spoke.
"I've gotta get to her." Damon clapped his friend's shoulder and moved to rush out of the door, but Ric stopped him.
"You better do it quickly, Damon. She's dying."
The vampire's blue eyes were wide. "She's what?"
"Every second she spends here is making her body deteriorate."He explained. "So, she has to get to Bonnie and pass through, but she won't do it without you, so get your ass out of there and find her."
Damon's breath was knocked out of his lungs. He'd forgot about that tiny detail when she decided to get in the car with him. He'd always known in the back of his head that Cassandra would die if she spent too much time on the Other Side. He mentally kicked himself for being so stupid, but now was not the time to pity himself. He ran out the door of the Grill and down the streets of Mystic Falls, towards the woods. Hopefully, he'd be able to get to her before things got ugly.
"Come on! Let's keep going!" Vanessa led the way while Cassandra trailed behind, barely putting one foot in front of the other. The conditions on the Other Side had significantly worsened. Winds pushed them back and fallen branches and trees were obstacles to keep them from getting to Bonnie. Cassandra was dying with each step she took and she worried that she would never make it to Bonnie and back home.
Cassandra checked behind her again to make sure that Markos wasn't following her, but to see if Damon had caught up to them. Too much time had passed and Damon was a fast runner; he should have been here by now. A dark figure had appeared when she looked over her shoulder and she stopped dead in her tracks. Joy washed over her and her hope was restored seeing that Damon was finally here, but Vanessa's heart caught in her throat. It wasn't Damon who was following them.
It was Markos.
Vanessa sped to him, grabbing his shoulders and shoving him back, but he came back at her, throwing a few punches which she dodged. Markos then lunged for her, knocking her to the ground and they wrestled for dominance. She was able to pin him down and noticed that Cassandra hadn't moved from her spot.
"Run, Cassandra!" She shouted.
"But what about you?"
"I'm fine! Just go!" Vanessa was then socked in the face by Markos' fist and Cassandra turned on her heel to run. She was able to go a few feet, but she tripped over the roots of a large tree. She plummeted to the ground and began to throw up more blood. Thick chunks piled on the dirt and leaves and she pretty sure she had coughed up a piece of her lung, but she had to keep going. With great effort, she crawled forward, pulling on anything rooted to the ground to keep her momentum going. She could see the crypt not far off in the distance and she spurred herself to continue, but a hand wrapped around her ankle.
Markos' evil laugh sent a shiver down her spine and her stomach dropped seeing that Vanessa was nowhere to be found. Had she been sucked away by the Other Side? Or had Markos killed her? The Traveler pulled on her ankle, making her slide back, but she refused to be beaten by him.
"Let go of me!" She screamed and kicked her legs out, but Markos kept a firm grip on her ankle. Cassandra reached for a thick branch that had fallen from one of the trees and smashed Markos in the face with it, allowing herself to momentarily get free. Her fingers dug into the dirt as she crawled forward, but she was quickly yanked back by Markos pulling her hair and tossing her weak body aside. She coughed up more blood and struggled to get up, but the Traveler kicked her in the ribs. A whine left her lips along with the sickening crack of one, maybe two of her ribs and she hissed when Markos wrapped a hand around her throat and hoisted her up, pinning her against the trunk of a tree.
"You put up a good fight, but it just wasn't enough." He growled and squeezed her neck harder, making her gasp. Black spots began to form behind her eyes and she cried for Ava, knowing that her best efforts would not be enough to save her.
A sudden darkness loomed over Markos' shoulder and the winds picked up, so much so that Cassandra could feel his grip loosening. He tried to ground himself, but the winds only grew angrier at his attempts of resistance. His nails scraped against her skin, leaving bloody trails in their wake and Cassandra was finally freed from his hold. She turned around to hug the tree and she watched in horror as Markos was dragged away from her by the darkness.
"No, no, no!" He clawed the ground beneath him, but the darkness was stronger. With a sudden gust of wind, Markos was blown into the air and sucked into oblivion, never to be seen again. Cassandra pressed herself into the bark of the tree, letting out a sob and crying tears of joy that her nightmare had been ended for good.
"Cassandra!" She could hear two voices calling for her and the winds dissipated just enough for her to lift her head. Vanessa and Tyler were bounding for her and Cassandra let go of the tree to meet them. She nearly fell into Tyler who caught her and looped her arm around his shoulders and the trio limped over to Bonnie who had been waiting for them.
"You need to come through." She told Tyler.
"What about everybody else?" He asked.
"You don't have to tell me twice." Enzo suddenly appeared behind Bonnie and gripped her arm. He appeared back in the physical world where he was greeted by Caroline. He brushed past her without so much as a goodbye and gave no word as to where he was going.
Soon after, Tyler was thrown into the physical world and Caroline rushed to him.
"Tyler?"
"Yeah! It's me." He nodded. Caroline threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. Tyler then drew back, a confused expression on his face.
"Woah..."
"What's wrong?" She asked nervously.
"That felt different," he said.
"What do you mean?"
Tyler looked around on the ground and picked up a pointed rock. He sliced his palm with the sharp edge, watching blood pool in his hand. A few seconds went by and the wound remained the same.
Caroline took up his hand with wide eyes. "You're not healing."
"I'm not a hybrid anymore."
"Come on guys, we don't have much time. Grab my hand!" Bonnie's hand remained open for someone to take, but no one moved.
Lexi lightly shoved Stefan forward. "Go! Go!"
"No." Stefan shook his head.
"You have to go! Come on!" She begged. Once she saw that Stefan was not going to move, she looked to a very weak Cassandra. "Your turn."
"I can't." She wiped more blood away from her nose. "Damon's not here yet."
"Cassandra, you have to go." Vanessa told her. "You're gonna die here."
"I'm not leaving without Damon!"
"You go. I'll wait here." Stefan offered, but Cassandra was stubborn.
"No!"
"This place is falling apart!" He fought.
"Cass!" They all looked up at the voice on the wind and Cassandra felt her heart beat faster. "Cass!"
"Damon! He's coming!" She cheered. True to her word, she waited for Damon who scooped her up in his arms and hugged her tightly. It wasn't until he felt her depleting form in his hold did he realize how little time she had left here. The features of her face were sunken in and her limbs looked thinner than he'd ever seen them. She was truly dying, sacrificing her life in order to wait for him.
"I thought you'd never make it here." She was smiling from ear to ear.
"Hey, do I ever break my promises?" He quirked a grin at her.
"We don't have much time!" Bonnie warned and Cassandra nodded.
"Come on, take my hand." Cassandra held her hand out for him to take, but he didn't take it. "Damon, let's go."
"There's just one thing that I have to do first." Damon eyed her hand before stepping forward and giving her a kiss that shook the very ground that they stood on. She leaned into him, pressing her lips closer to his and she held his hands that were cupping her cheeks. The wind whipped around them, growing stronger now as the Other Side grew one step closer to collapsing on itself. He pulled back, his crystalline eyes piercing the soft brown orbs that he loved so much. His thumbs brushed over her cheekbones and he gave her one more chaste kiss.
"Now, Bonnie." He whispered and Cassandra didn't have time to ask him what he had meant by that because Bonnie had gripped her upper arms from behind and she was tossed back into the physical world. She tumbled to the ground, the dry, dead leaves crushing under her weight. She looked around her and cursed out loudly as Caroline helped her to her feet. She could feel the sickness of being on the Other Side leaving her, but that was pushed to the back of her mind now that Damon was still stuck in that awful place.
"No!" She hissed and turned to Bonnie, shaking the vampire off her. "Why did you do that?! We were supposed to leave together!"
"Get out of here. All of you." Bonnie ordered them.
"Bonnie, take me back!" She commanded the Anchor, but she shook her head.
"No, I can't. You have to leave now."
"I said, take me back!" With a growl, she took Bonnie's shoulders in an effort to be sent back with Damon, but a white hot pain surged through her entire body and Bonnie's. They both cried out and Cassandra drew back when the skin on her wrists began to sizzle. She looked down to see burns on her skin and she winced at the sharp pain.
"Leave. Now." Bonnie spoke.
"Wait! Who else are we missing?" Caroline asked. "Where is Stefan?"
Bonnie tried to answer, but she was now coughing up blood onto the forest floor. Once she finished, she straightened up and focused her attention back on those who remained on the Other Side.
"Who's up next?" Lexi asked.
No one got the chance to answer as Bonnie's knees buckled and blood dripped from her nose. On instinct, Stefan and Vanessa went to catch her, but they didn't realize that by touching Bonnie, they passed through her as well. They landed in the physical world, both feeling guilty that they passed through before Damon.
"No..." Vanessa whimpered.
"Stefan? Vanessa?" Caroline helped them to their feet. "What happened?"
"Bonnie fell." The blonde replied. "We were just trying to..."
"What about Damon?" Cassandra asked frantically.
Stefan held his breath before replying. "He hasn't passed through yet."
Hot tears burned behind Cassandra's eyes and she ran a hand through her hair. "This isn't happening. Why did he send me back without him?"
"He had no choice." Stefan told her. "You would have died there."
"Were you in on his crazy suicide mission?!" She growled.
"What? No, I wasn't." The vampire denied her accusation.
"This cannot be happening." She repeated and let a few tears slip. "He supposed to be here. He promised he'd come through."
"It's okay." Bonnie's soft voice touched all of them. "I can do this."
Lexi watched with a frown seeing Bonnie in so much pain. Every person that passed through her was killing her. Perhaps that was why Damon was waiting for the last possible moment to bring himself back. She looked to Damon who was waiting for Alaric and she stepped away from all of them.
"Bonnie, this is killing you, isn't it?" She said.
"I can hold on. I have to. Just come through. We have to finish this!" Bonnie held herself tightly. "Lexi! Come on! It's you turn!"
"Every person that passes through takes you one step closer to death. What kind of a best friend would I be if you died before Stefan got his brother back?" Lexi smiled and stepped even further away from her. She pointed her eyes toward the sky and held up her arms at her sides.
"You're not going to get me!" She shouted triumphantly and a warm white light bathed her entire form. When the light disappeared, so did Lexi.
"Damon! Bonnie!" Ric ran to meet them and Bonnie was quick to touch his shoulder, sending to the living plane as well.
"Okay, your turn." Bonnie said to him.
"Cassandra made it back okay?" He asked.
"She made it through. Her body will heal itself." Bonnie nodded. "Are you sure you want to go back? She's pissed at you."
"She'll get over it once I'm back." He smirked and motioned for Bonnie to send him back to the physical world.
"Okay." The Anchor grabbed Damon's forearms, but nothing happened. Even Damon was confused; he should have passed through Bonnie. With a curious look, she stepped back and grabbed him again, but he remained on the Other Side with her.
"Well, would you look at that...?" Damon trailed off.
"Liv!" Cassandra burst into the crypt, looking for the witch who was in charge of doing the spell, but she was greeted with an empty room of snuffed out candles. Liv was nowhere in sight and her brother Luke was gone too. Running her hands through her hair, she frantically moved about the crypt, her mind running a mile a minute at what could possibly be done to save Bonnie and Damon. She cursed those stupid witches and she promised that she'd skin them alive if she ever saw them again.
"Cassandra," Bonnie's soft voice made her whip around and she met her.
"Bonnie, we need to find them!" She pleaded. "We need to start the spell again."
"We can't." The Anchor shook her head. "That was our one shot."
"But you and Damon are on the Other Side! We have to—"
"Cassandra!" Bonnie interrupted her and the hybrid fell silent. She swallowed her protests and they hurt like she'd swallowed a big pill. "It's too late."
At first she couldn't process what Bonnie had just told her. This plan was supposed to be full proof. No one was supposed to be left alone on the Other Side. Everyone was supposed to be able to come home with no problems. Cassandra was speechless, but once the words sunk into her brain they held a new and heavy weight to them; a weight that would burden her for the lonely years ahead.
"No…" She trailed off and shook her head in denial.
"He's here." Bonnie's voice spoke and Cassandra's watery eyes darted around the mausoleum as if desperate to catch just a glance of him. Tears continued to roll down her cheeks as she searched for him, but she found nothing.
Damon stood right across from her with the faintest of smiles on his face. At least he could see her before he passed on. That was all he wanted to see before he vanished into nothingness. His eyes carefully etched over each feature of her face, hoping to burn the imprint into his brain, so that he could hold onto it forever.
Bonnie frowned sadly to the new mother before looking back at Damon again. "I'll let you two say your goodbyes."She let herself out of the mausoleum and Damon took a few more steps forward.
"You lied to me." Cassandra whimpered hysterically. She was so angry with him, because he lied about coming back with her; she now had to live out her existence without him. He just couldn't do this to her. He couldn't leave her alone to pick up the pieces of her shattered heart and take care of a baby at home all by herself.
"Even if I wanted to apologize, you couldn't hear me, so I won't." A sad smile graced Damon's lips and he tentatively reached forward, his fingers taking hold of a lock of Cassandra's hair and tucking it behind her ear. It still felt soft to the touch. Cassandra jumped back a bit, feeling his fingertips brush her skin, but she couldn't see him. She just hated this. She wanted to see him and tell him how much she loved him.
Cassandra shook her head as more tears fell. Her anger was fading away into a grief that was so deep and heavy that she wasn't sure that she could hold herself up to sustain the weight. She wanted to hear his voice one last time, to hold him, to kiss him, but she couldn't even be granted that.
"Please, don't leave me." She begged sadly and clutched her curls at the roots. She tugged hard on them, wishing to cause herself pain as a distraction from the ache of her broken heart, but she would learn that no amount of pain in the world could wash her grief away.
"I don't have a choice, baby," Damon whispered softly. He felt the rumbling of the Other Side slowly crumbling away and he knew that his time was limited. "You are, by far, the greatest thing that ever happened to me in my 173 years on this Earth. You have not only loved me for who I am, but you have also given me our daughter who has made my life that much more complete." He smiled at that, but couldn't shake the overwhelming sense of sadness that he would never get to hold, or kiss, or see his little girl ever again. He would never see her grow up into a beautiful young woman and make a life for herself. "I know that Ava may not remember me when she gets older, but I know that you'll tell her how much I love her because I do. I never thought that I could love another living thing as much as I love you."
"Damon, don't go..." His wife's knees eventually gave out from under her and her body slid down the cold, stone column she had been leaning against for support. While she couldn't hear him, she could only imagine the sweet and endearing goodbye that he was giving her. That brought on more waves of hot tears and strong sobs that made her entire being tremble. She hit the floor with a dull thud and Damon moved with her so that he was crouching before her. No matter how upset she was, he wanted to spend every single last second he could with her.
"I get to die knowing I was loved not just by anyone, but you, Cassandra Emerson. It's the epitome of a fulfilled life. It's never gonna get any better than this. I've peaked." His hand reached forward again, this time, wiping a tear from her stained cheeks. "Take care of our little girl, alright? I wouldn't want anyone else to raise her but you. You're going to be such a good mother. You already are."
"Please...please...come back to me." She cried, wishing that this was all some horrible nightmare that she would wake up from. Another rumble from the Other Side made Damon frown.
It was time to go.
The raven haired vampire carefully and gently pressed his lips to her forehead and he heard Cassandra gasp softly. He pulled away to see that her eyes had fallen closed, her wet eyelashes against her cheekbones. He then kissed her quivering lips and Cassandra felt that too. He had to kiss her one last time. When he pulled back, both pairs of eyes had opened and for the slightest moment, it felt as if she was actually looking into his eyes and seeing him.
"I love you, Cassandra." He murmured, a tear of his own sliding down his cheek. He didn't want to let go, but he had run out of time. "Bye."
And just like that, he was gone.
Forever.
Cassandra knew exactly when he had finally gone. The warmth in the mausoleum suddenly disappeared and the small space that they had occupied felt so overwhelmingly empty. She couldn't feel his gentle touch anymore either and that sent her heart shattering into a million more pieces. She let out a wail loud enough to wake the dead and slammed her head back against the stone column. She didn't care who was around or who heard her, she was feeling too much grief to care about anyone else. Her love, her husband, her best friend was gone forever and she couldn't even give him a proper goodbye. Too consumed with sadness, she hugged her knees to her chest and placed her head down, hoping to block out everything else.
Stefan sat motionless on a picnic table bench not far from where the crypt was. He was at a loss. Liv and Luke had left the crypt; the spell was too much for Liv and Luke refused to have his sister sacrifice her life for a bunch of vampires. With the spell stopped, Bonnie and Damon were stuck on the Other Side without a way of getting out. He hated himself for reaching out to catch Bonnie earlier, if he hadn't he'd still be with his brother and that would have given him a chance to pass through. He grieved for his brother, a man who would never know his own daughter and for Lexi, his dear friend and the one who had helped him with control all those years ago.
"I lost them both." He whimpered. "Two people I've known the longest in this world…both gone."
"Lexi?" Caroline questioned.
"She never came out. Neither did Markos." He shook his head. "And Damon…he finally had everything he wanted. He was happy. He should be here."
Caroline's heart broke at the sight of Stefan so upset. He held his head in his hands and his upper body bowed forward. He began to cry and Caroline could not offer any words of comfort for him. Instead, she wrapped her arms around him and let him sob in her hold. She cried too, for her friend Bonnie, who had always sacrificed her own well-being for the sake of her friends.
She didn't know how long she'd been crying for, but her eyes hurt from shedding tear after tear. She was so involved in her crying that she didn't realize that someone had come into the mausoleum to join her. She felt a soft touch on the top of her head and for a split second, she believed that Damon had come back to her. When she looked up, however, she saw that it was Alaric with a solemn expression. He held a hand out to her and she hesitantly took it. He hoisted her up since she didn't have the energy to and looked down at her sad form.
"Ric..." She blubbered and all he did was hold out his arms and envelope them around her trembling form. "H-He's gone."
"I know." He cooed softly and rubbed her back as she shook with small, yet powerful sobs. "I'm so sorry, Cassandra."
"He's gone. He's gone..." She repeated brokenly and cried onto his shoulder. Her tears hit his shirt like hot bullets, searing through everything in their path. "He promised that he would come back and he didn't."
Ric couldn't even bring himself to words. He just didn't know what to say to comfort her broken heart. He was even brought to tears and he hugged her tighter as they both cried. Her fingers were fisting the fabric of his shirt and she wept quietly.
"This place is going down, isn't it?" Damon looked ahead of him to see giant holes of light poking through the barrier between the physical world and the Other Side. The light was so blinding that it was burning Damon's super sensitive corneas, so he had to shield his eyes with his hand.
"It is." Bonnie nodded and steeled herself against the forceful winds that were blowing around them. "I'm sure there are a million people we'd rather be with right now, but..."
Bonnie took Damon's hand in hers and intertwined their fingers. Damon peered down at their joined hands and felt a pang of guilt strike him. He shouldn't be here. He should be home with his wife and with Ava, but right now he was facing his terrifying fate of never seeing them ever again.
"A couple thousand, at most." He joked with her, but Bonnie couldn't bring herself to laugh. The orbs of light grew to enormous lengths, ripping through the tops of the trees which were swaying wildly in the winds.
Bonnie's eyes squinted and she took a deep breath before speaking. "Do you think it'll hurt?"
The fabric of reality was splitting at the seams. Light was pouring everywhere, touching everything in its path and the ground rumbled beneath their feet. Their hands were still gripping one another's and Damon stared blankly into the oblivion with nothing but Cassandra and Ava on his mind.
"I don't kn—"
And there it is…the final chapter of Bloodlines. Thank you to everyone who has favorited, alerted, read, and reviewed this story. This one was a tough one for me and looking at the upcoming seasons, the struggles have only just begun for our characters. While this story is complete, I will be adding a post when the new stories are up and running. I look forward to seeing you all soon. The TVD and TO stories will be separate on their own with maaaayybe some crossovers. Keep a look out for my post! Enjoy the summer :)
A HUGE thank you to my beta, PrincessOfSilence, who makes my stories freakin amazing! I could not do ANY of this without you and I am looking forward to working with you again on the upcoming seasons of TVD and TO. Can you see me doing my happy dance?! Is it bad that I've already started writing? Ah, I just can't wait!
VampirePrincess11: Thanks so much for reviewing, my dear! I hope you enjoyed this TVD chapter and I will see you in season 6 and season 2 ;)
SomebodyWhoCares: I know, right?! Thanks for reviewing!
xJenzaFreakx: Thank you so much for this review! These stories were tough to write and I am just happy to put a nice neat bow on them. I am also thankful to have incredible reviewers like you who support my stories.
Isn't that sad? A lot of the writers that originally got me inspired to write are no longer writing :( I guess I am carrying on their legacy. Trust me, writing allows me to escape from my hectic life haha. I will be continuing both stories and it would be an honor if you would continue to read them.
Enjoy your summer and I hope you enjoyed the final chapter of Bloodlines.
CarlyLynn: Thank you, CarlyLynn! I hope you liked the ending and I hope you will continue to follow my stories into the following seasons.
NicoleR85: Thanks for reviewing, Nicole! Giuliana and Audrey will have to make some adjustments to their lives and they will each have new demons to face.
twin of a sister: Hello, my dear friend! *runs and hides* See? You can't see me now. I have a method to my madness and I promise that Damon will not be gone forever. Thank you for being an amazing friend and a wonderful reader. See you in season 6 and season 2 ;)
binks13: Hi, my dear friend! How are you doing? The Mikaelsons are interesting breed, but you just love to hate them, I suppose. The casts of both shows are so wonderful and they make the shows amazing! I hope you liked this update and I will see you soon ;)
elisesellas: Hello Elyssa! Such a beautiful name! I love the unique spelling of it. Giuliana and Audrey will certainly have to make some changes in the following season, so I am looking forward to writing it. Thank you, as always, for your kind words and your reviews. I cannot wait to see you in the following seasons ;)
Enjoy the rest of your summer and I will talk to you soon xoxo
Asma20: Hi there! Thank you so much for reviewing my story! I have gotten a lot of requests for Cassandra to keep her memories of Damon. I don't feel that compelling memories away is a quality of Cassandra's, but perhaps losing Damon might be the push she needs. Who knows ;)
Lostgirllove: Feel free to cry, girl! I know I did when I wrote this chapter. I also cry reading awesome reviews like yours. Thank you for reviewing and I will see you next season!
Jakpot: I guess this means I'll be sleeping with one eye open then? Thanks for reviewing!