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Chapter 48 - Bitten

Sakura burst into Alaric's apartment. "Why are you here?" Sakura growled, breathing heavily. She looked directly at Damon, then glared at Katherine.

"Sakura?" Damon was genuinely surprised, "How did you..."

"Do you really need to ask?" Sakura rolled her eyes. She looked at the bite on his arm getting worse. "We have to do something," Sakura walked up to him and lifted his arm, "How much does it hurt right now?"

"It's manageable right now," Damon stated.

Sakura put her hand overtop of his wound. "Refectio," the wound healed, but only slightly, "You'll last at least a little longer."

"You really love him, don't you?" Katherine frowned and looked at them with a mixed look of disgust and jealousy.

"Some people care about others Katherine. Some people would chose a short time together, over and eternity alone," Damon kissed Sakura.

Sakura looked into his eyes, "We'll find a cure, something, anything that will help. I'll do what I have to."

"You need his blood, Klaus's blood," the Fenrir laughed in her head. Sakura cringed and shook it off.

"What was that?" Damon eyed her.

"Nothing," Sakura sighed.

"What are you going to do?" Katherine asked Damon.

"I'm going to offer myself as a replacement to Klaus," Damon replied.

"He won't take you. He saw your bite; he said that your blood is impure. I'm sorry, Damon. But Jenna's dead, there's nothing you can do about it," Katherine shook her head.

"She's right. There has to be a way to fix this, all of this," Sakura was racking her brain trying to figure things out.

"Let's go, I have to tell them everything," Damon walked out and pulled out his phone to call Stefan. "You're not going to like what I'm about to say. It's happening. I tried to stop it, but it got... Complicated. He's got Jenna, Stefan. He got Katherine to lure her out of the house. He's going to use her as the vampire in the ritual," Damon explained before hanging up. "Let's go home for now. By the way, how did you get here?" Damon inquired.

"Ran..." Sakura laughed nervously and he raised an eyebrow. "A straight line is the fastest," Sakura explained.

"Straight through everything," Damon understood.

They were back at the boarding house and it wasn't too long before there was a constant knock at the door. "Heard ya," Damon complained as he started to head to the door. He started to feel dizzy and Sakura rushed up to catch him. She put his arm over her shoulder and let him lean on her. He opened the door to see John, "Great. I was just thinking about getting a bite to eat."

"Elena hasn't returned any of my calls for days. I need to see her," John seemed genuinely concerned. He walked into the house, looking around.

"Well, you're a day late and a daughter short, John," Damon sighed.

"What are you talking about?" John frowned.

"Klaus has her. Sacrifice goes down tonight," Damon informed him.

"How could you let that happen? You were supposed to keep her safe. Wasn't that the sum total of your plan; to keep her safe?" John freaked out.

"Things aren't that simple," Sakura sighed.

"She is safe. I fed her my blood," Damon stated and Sakura would of preferred he kept that too himself.

"You what?!" John yelled.

"When Klaus kills Elena in the sacrifice, she will come back to life. Granted, as the thing you hate most in the world, but no one really cares what you think," Damon stated.

John tried to punch Damon, but was stopped by Sakura, catching his fist. "You don't want to mess with him right now," Sakura warned John as she released his fist.

"You ruined her life. You know that, right?" John yelled at Damon, overtop of Sakura.

"I know, John. I took her choice, destroyed her future. Trust me, I get it. It actually gets worse," Damon bit his lip.

"How could it possibly get any worse?" John's eyes were almost bulging out of his head. Damon told him about Jenna and John stormed out.

Sakura's phone rang and caller ID said it was Leilani. "I'm going take this," Sakura said before walking into the kitchen, away from everyone. "Leilani?" Sakura was hopeful.

"Sorry to disappoint you love," she heard Klaus reply.

"Where's Leilani?" Sakura swallowed hard.

"If you want her back, you'll have to come to Steven's quarry. Alone. Without telling anyone. Tell anybody and I'm guessing you know what happens to your precious friend," he threatened. Before she could say anything, he hung up.

"Leilani..." Sakura trailed off, feeling dizzy. She put her phone away and turned around to see Damon. "How long..."

"I just got here," Damon cut her off. "You okay?" he noticed her stumble a little as she walked towards him. "Who was that on the phone?" he eyed her suspiciously.

"Just a friend..." Sakura tried to brush it off. "I'm just a little overwhelmed at the moment, I think I'll lay down for a few minutes," Sakura laughed half-hearted.

"Sakura?" he started to really worry. He quickly picked her up and rushed upstairs, laying her down in his bed. "If you need rest, then rest, I'll keep an eye on things, okay?" he looked serious and yet his brows were furrowed in such a way, that Sakura started to second guess her decision.

"Okay," Sakura laid back fully. He kissed her on the forehead before leaving. Sakura wiped away the tears that had started to form in her eyes. "I'm sorry Damon," Sakura got up, out of his bed and left Leilani's necklace on his pillow, just in case anything went wrong. She opened his window and jumped onto the tree nearby. She quickly climbed down, keeping an eye out for anyone around. Once she was out of sight of the boarding house, she started off in full sprint.

She made her way to the quarry and as soon as she saw Leilani, she started to run faster. "I don't think so," she heard Klaus as he stepped in front of her and she crashed into him. Leilani saw her, but couldn't move as she was surrounded by a ring of fire. Sakura glared up at him and groaned as she got to her feet. He lifted her sleeve to look at the tattoo. "Oh so close," he laughed. "We'll finish this off soon enough," Klaus smiled at her. He looked into her eyes, "We have another guest, stay here," Klaus commanded. her before walking away.

"Sakura?" she could hear Elena calling out to her, "Is that you?"

Sakura was surprised to find that the compulsion worked and she couldn't move. Through willpower, Sakura forced herself to take a step. "Tsk tsk, I'm afraid you're not allowed to do that," Sakura's eyes went wide when Allen appeared in front of her. "I'm sorry Sakura, I really am, I have no choice. As you can tell, his compulsion is strong," Allen stated.

"I'm here to talk," Sakura could hear Stefan.

"Very well, then," Klaus said as he headed up to where Stefan was, on a cliff above.

"What's going on?" Sakura could hear Elena and Jenna clearly.

"I-I don't know. You can hear them. Your senses are heightened. You can hear anything. Just focus on them," Elena instructed her, What are they saying?"

"I can't-I can't make it out," Jenna cringed.

"You can do this. Just relax. Focus," Elena tried to calm her down.

"Oh, my god," Jenna started to freak out.

"What is it?" Elena asked.

"He wants to take my place," Jenna stated. It seemed like something Stefan would do.

"I have to stop him," Sakura growled.

"Sakura, Sakura!" Leilani called out to her, "Whatever happens, save yourself first."

"Like hell!" Sakura yelled. Suddenly her phone started to ring, alerting Allen.

He walked up in front of her, leaned in close and took her phone out of her pocket. He picked up the call, but didn't say anything right away.

"Sakura, WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?!" she could hear Damon yelling. "I go to check on you and you're GONE! No note, or anything, except Leilani's necklace! Sakura?" he noticed she hadn't answered.

"Damon..." Sakura said before Allen hung up and put it back in her pocket.

"High strung much?" he laughed.

"He's worried," Sakura stated.

Stefan and Klaus came down from the cliff. Stefan apparently hadn't noticed Sakura, by how surprised he was to see her. "Sakura?" Stefan didn't know what to say.

"Yes, yes, she's here and easy to bait," Klaus laughed. "Anyways," they walked by her, "Quite the predicament. You know, it's unny, All this talk about preserving family, and here's Stefan, granting your wish," Klaus said to Elena. Suddenly Klaus found it hard to move. It didn't take him long to realise what was happening. "Let me go, or I kill her," Klaus said to Sakura. She glared at him, but released him, knowing it wasn't a bluff.

"Stefan…" Elena trailed off.

"It's okay," he assured her.

"Well. Who's it going to be, Elena?" Klaus asked.

"No," Elena refused to answer.

"Oh, don't worry. There's actually no choice," Klaus laughed and staked Stefan in the back.

"No," Sakura growled and moved towards Klaus, only to be restrained by Allen. She thrashed around, but couldn't get out of his grip.

"Sakura, I have werewolf strength," he warned her.

"No! Stefan! No!" Elena cried out.

"I have other plans for your boyfriend. I want him alive. But for now...," Klaus punched Stefan in the stomach and he fell to the ground.

"Whenever you're ready, Greta," Klaus smiled.

Sakura hadn't even noticed Greta there. Someone who was an important part to the ritual. The fire around Jenna went out and Klaus turned to her, "Your turn."

"No, Jenna, no!" Elena screamed.

"It's alright, Elena. I know what I have to do," Jenna had turned to her. She rushed up to Greta and bit down, when Klaus stopped her and staked her. Jenna fell to the ground and looked at Elena, who started to cry.

"Just turn it off. Jenna. Turn it off. You won't be scared anymore," Elena pleaded when Klaus finished her off with a stake to the heart. "No! Jenna! No! Jenna! No," Elena screamed and Stefan woke up.

"You bastard!" Sakura screamed and broke free from Allen. In a fit of rage, she appeared before Klaus and punched him in the face, knocking him down.

"Can't you just do as you're told?" Klaus spit out blood and appeared in front of Allen. "Kill Leilani, no matter what happens, you must kill her," Klaus commanded. The fire around Leilani dropped and Leilani stood frozen.

"Run!" Sakura screamed. Leilani started to run and Sakura tackled Allen. Allen fell to the ground, but quickly pushed Sakura off of him. "Umbra Ferrum, Duo!" Sakura summoned her swords. "I don't want to hurt you, but I'll do what I have to," Sakura slashed at Allen to give Leilani more time. Allen jumped back, dodging her swings.

"You'll have to kill me, to stop me. I'm sorry Sakura," Allen looked down at her sad. She swung at him again, half-heartedly. He quickly grabbed onto her hand and tossed her aside.

Sakura groaned as she hit the ground and dropped her swords. When she looked up, Allen had already started to run. She held her hand up and used her powers to stop him, but for some reason, it didn't hold him for long.

"It's the only way, I won't blame you!" Allen yelled at her. "Hurry, I can't stop," he was gaining a fair bit of distance from her already.

Sakura pushed herself up, off the ground and picked up her swords before following suit. Running as fast as she could, she could see Allen catching up to Leilani. Leilani glanced back at Allen and tripped over her own feet and landed flat on her face. He slowed down as he approached her. She cringed as she turned over and scrambled to back up until she ran into a tree.

"Please don't," she pleaded.

"I'm sorry, really," Allen walked up to her.

"Then why are you?" Leilani figured he should be able to control himself.

"I don't have control. It's what I'm compelled to do and I can't fight it. Trust me, I've tried," Allen looked down at her sadly. He grabbed onto her neck and picked her up. She struggled, clawing at his hand. His hand started to get tighter when suddenly he dropped her. Leilani gasped for air, holding onto her neck as she looked at the ground. Blood started to drip down into a puddle in front of her. She looked up to see blood dripping out of his mouth, along with a sword going through his chest, right where is heart was. The sword was pulled out of him and he dropped to his knee and started to fall towards Leilani. Leilani heard the clang of swords falling to the ground, before a pair of hands gripped Allen's shoulders, stopping his descent towards Leilani, but not before some blood dripped on her face. Allen was pulled back to reveal Sakura, who held him in her lap with tears streaming down her face.

"I'm sorry Allen," Sakura kissed him on the cheek.

"Sakura..." Leilani stared at her.

Sakura swallowed before saying anything to her, "I wish it was different, that I had time to find another way. I wish you didn't have to see that. But right now, you need to get out of here, somewhere safe."

"Sakura, I can't leave you alone," Leilani managed to say.

"Please go," Sakura stayed staring at Allen, not wanting to face Leilani.

Somewhat understanding, Leilani got up to leave. She started to walk away, but stopped to give her a hug from behind, "It'll be okay." Leilani released her and continued on her way.

Sakura stayed there, holding onto him, not thinking about Klaus and the ritual that was currently going on. Not thinking about who else might be dead now. Only thinking about the fact that she killed her friend, who only recently showed up and the tattoo burned more then ever. She could feel that the warmth had already left his body, but she wasn't sure what to do.

"Sakura?" she heard Damon's voice behind her, but also the sound of multiple footsteps. Sakura wiped the tears away before glancing back to see Damon and Stefan. "I didn't know where you were or what happened, but Leilani said you needed help. Glad as I was to see her, I was surprised you weren't with her. Elijah couldn't do it, Klaus is alive, Jenna is dead, Elena died and came back human," Damon explained. "What are you doing anyways?" Damon and Stefan slowly walked up towards her. She didn't say anything and just turned back.

"That's..." Stefan trailed off.

"Allen..." Damon looked at his brother. Beside Sakura was her bloody sword and they both figured out what happened, at least partially.

Damon put his hand on her shoulder and she just pushed it off. "Just go away guys, you can't help me," Sakura mumbled as she clung to Allen.

"Sakura," Stefan knelt down beside Allen and looked at her sadly.

"You guys know what happened right? I killed him, my friend. Stabbed him in the heart," Sakura was having trouble holding back tears.

"Come on Saku, let go," Stefan lifted her hand and kissed it. "We know he was compelled to kill Leilani, which is a major factor," Stefan pointed out. "Don't worry Saku, I'll take care of him," Sakura let go and Stefan picked Allen up. "I'm sorry you had to go through this, but I'm happy Leilani is alive," Stefan said before running off.

Figuring it was his turn, Damon sat down beside Sakura, without saying a word. A few minutes later, she laid her head on his shoulder. It wasn't long before the tears forced their way out. Damon pulled her in, to sit with him. To his surprise, she turned to him, grabbed onto his shirt and squished her face into his chest as the tears fell. He kissed the top of her head and stroked her hair with one hand, while hugging her with his other arm and whispered, "It's going to be okay. I'm here and not going anywhere." He stayed there, comfortingly, until she calmed down. Damon carried Sakura to Elena's, where the others were. Elena had woken up, saved by John, who sacrificed his life for hers.

Jenna and John were being buried discreetly in the family Gilbert plot. Stefan arranged for Allen to be nearby, between the Gilberts and Mazaki's. Sakura, Leilani, Alaric, Stefan, Bonnie, Caroline, Damon, Jeremy and Elena were all looking at the grave, Elena had four roses.

"And because of my prejudices, I failed you. I'm haunted by how things might have played out differently. If I'd been more willing to hear your side of things," Elena's letter from John read. Elena put two roses in the grave. "For me, it's the end. For you, a chance to grow old and someday do better with your own child than I did with mine. It's for that child that I give you my ring," Elena put two roses by her parent grave as she cried. "I don't ask for your forgiveness or for you to forget. I ask only that you believe this. Whether you are now reading this as a human or as a vampire, I love you all the same as I've always loved you, and always will. John."

"We're going to head back to the house," Stefan told Sakura and Damon.

"And then what's the plan, Stefan? The curse is broken. How does one go about killing an all-powerful wolf vamp and his two-faced older brother?" Damon asked.

"I have no idea," Stefan frowned.

"You need to get an idea. Fast," Damon hissed. "Let's go Sakura," Damon let her to Allen's grave.

Sakura placed a rose on Allen's grave. "Now what do we do to prevent adding another dead person to my list?" Sakura asked, pointing at Damon's bite.

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