Hey everyone! Things are slowly starting to come together! Thank you for being so patient! Please leave reviews if you can so I know you are wanting more of this story! The time for Bamon is slowly coming! Enjoy! I will also try to get Chapters 8 and 9 done next weekend, I combined these two chapters only because chapter 5 had a pt 1 and pt 2!

The Characters and whom I envision playing them:

Bonnie Bennett – Kat Graham

Caroline Forbes – Candice King

Damon Salvatore – Ian Somerhalder

Emily Bennett – Bianca Lawson

Elena Gilbert/Salvatore – Nina Dobrev

Disclaimer: These Characters Belong to LJ Smith/CW Network. No Copyright infringement is intended.

Bastien Archambeau – Jesse Williams

Emeline Archambeau Bennet – Whitney Peak

Sophia Archambeau – Tawny Cypress

Chapter 6 - Tis the Damn Season

It had been about 7 months since Damon found out Elena was pregnant. Elena wanted to wait to tell Bonnie until she got home from her travels for the holiday. Bonnie had been quite busy in different parts of Asia and Africa learning different herbal medicines, meditations, and spells with Sophia and other supernatural beings along the way. Bonnie had promised Elena and Caroline that she would be home for the holidays and Sophia had told Bonnie she needed to check in with her family as well, so it worked out.
The only thing Bonnie knew about Sophia's family was that she had kids, a son, and a daughter whom Bonnie had never met. Sophia makes sure to keep most conversations focused on Bonnie and strengthen her magic and psychic abilities rather than Sophia's personal life.

Bonnie had helped Caroline teach Lizzie and Josie a spell to help send letters to Bonnie like Bonnie had been sending to her loved ones. She noticed but didn't have the time to really think about how Damon hadn't really written to Bonnie, and it had more so been Elena writing for both of them. All she knew was that she was excited to see her loved ones for the holidays.

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"All right, I will be seeing you after the New Year! I was thinking we can start out in Haiti, the weather will help you de-thaw from the cold Virginia winter! I'll be available via cell or magic….Merry Christmas Bonnie!" Sophia exclaimed while wrapping Bonnie up in a tight hug at the New Delhi IGI Airport in India.

"Are you sure I can't come to France with you? Caroline's last letter was an itinerary for my three weeks home and I'm not sure I have the capacity to, what was it? Oh yeah, caroling with Caroline and co." Bonnie shook her head and rolled her eyes which made Sophia laugh.

"In time, I'll introduce you to my world, in the meantime you need to get on that flight, if you miss it Caroline will never forgive me, and she hasn't even met me yet!" Sophia laughed.

"Also, say hi to Damon for me, and for you, remember your training, you're more powerful than you were since you visited last year, try not to let your emotions trigger any of your magic, I'll be seeing you, Bennett!"

"Thank you Soph, I'll see you soon" Bonnie went in for another hug and then they went their separate ways to go to their respective terminals.

On the last flight into Virginia, Bonnie started to feel anxious. This had been the longest time since she had been gone from Mystic Falls. Even when she first left the year prior, she made sure to come home for at least a few days for Christmas, months after her first leaving. She had been trying to keep in contact with everyone, but things had changed so much already, with all of them. She wasn't sure how to jump back into those old patterns after so much had changed between all of them and Damon, she couldn't quite understand what felt different about their bond, but she tried not to think about it for too long.

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Once Bonnie acquired her luggage, she made her way to the pickup area where she and Caroline spotted each other at the same time.

"Girls! There's your Aunt Bonnie!" Caroline beamed while squeezing the twin's hands.

"Bonnie!" They both yelled with excitement.

Bonnie didn't know if she was caught up in the moment, or if it was just the nostalgia of the holidays but when she laid her eyes on Caroline and the twins, who were now 8, Bonnie immediately started crying happy tears as she made her way towards them.

"Oh, Bonnie, I've missed you so much!" Caroline exclaimed as she let go of her girl's hands to walk up to Bonnie and pull her into a hug where they stayed for a moment just hugging, laughing, and crying.

"Mom!" Lizzie exclaimed, wanting to have a moment with Bonnie too.

"Oh, sorry girls," Caroline responded pulling away from Bonnie and wiping her eyes.

Aunt Bonnie, we missed you so much" Josie said as she and Lizzie both went to hug Bonnie.

"I missed you both, so much!" Bonnie pulled back from the hug so she could place her hands on their shoulders.

"Look in your pockets" Bonnie whispered, smiling.

They both looked in their pockets and saw that Bonnie had somehow spelled the candy she got for them from India into their pockets. They both widened their eyes with excitement, and Bonnie put a finger up to her lips so they would keep it a secret knowing that Caroline could hear the secret with her vamp ears anyway.

"All right girls let's help grab some of Aunt Bonnie's bags so we can get out of here and you can show her the lovely room you decorated for her at Aunt Elena's and Uncle Damon's house" Caroline looked at Bonnie and smiled nervously to relay an unsaid message that however the room was decorated was not her fault.

"I can't wait, I bet it looks amazing," Bonnie said shooting the girls a warm smile.

On the drive to Elena and Damon's, Caroline and Bonnie talked a million miles a minute trying to catch up on so much lost time but were able to quickly step back into their close friendship which helped ease Bonnie's anxieties.

"So, there is another surprise once we get there, and I am just so proud of myself that I haven't spoiled it for you like I spoiled it for the girls" Caroline looked in her rearview mirror to shoot Josie and Lizzie an apology with her eyes. The girls both giggled.

"Yeah, Aunt Bonnie, she told us the moment she came home from going to Aunt Elena's but made us promise to act surprised when we found out," Lizzie said with an accusing tone.

"Your mom is notorious for that" Bonnie laughed.

"Hey! I kept the secret about Damon opening a bar in New York!" Caroline exclaimed in a defensive tone.

"Damon is opening a bar in New York?" Bonnie asked in a serious tone which made Caroline tense up and widen her eyes.

"I'm joking, Elena told me in one of her letters" which made Bonnie and the girls in the back roar with laughter.

"NOT funny Bonnie!" Caroline shot Bonnie an annoyed look which made everyone in the car laugh again.

They finally pulled up to Damon and Elena's modest two-story cottage house that had a porch decorated with Christmas lights and their porch swing decorated with garland and Poinsettias.

"Damon! Come down! They're here!" Elena said smiling with tears in her eyes rubbing her 7-month pregnant belly.

Damon finally threw on his matching Christmas sweater Elena insisted on them getting because "these are the memories the baby will want to remember", which he thought was silly because the baby wasn't even born yet but knew to comply so Elena wouldn't burst into tears like she had been since she became pregnant. At least it was a black Christmas sweater, even if it had the words DAD in small white snowflakes. Damon felt a pang of guilt for not telling Bonnie as soon as he found out, but Elena kept on insisting that this was news she did not want to tell over a letter because it was too important not to tell Bonnie in person. As soon as Damon found out, he realized that the impulsive decisions he could normally make without feeling much guilt about them, he couldn't make anymore. He replayed the conversation with Sophia repeatedly, every time he thought about the conversation and the night with Bonnie that only he would remember. He wanted to not believe Sophia's warnings about the battles to come but knew deep down she was someone that could be trusted, at least when it came to weird prophecies, he also knew his unborn child with Elena would also have the potential to be a traveler since it ran in their blood through Katherine's line, and the threat for all supernatural's to not exist was a threat he couldn't take lightly. He was almost relieved as well knowing Elena wanted to wait to tell Bonnie the news because it gave him time to work through the feelings of loving Bonnie but needing to let her go. To distract him from the different changes in his life he had started plans to open a bar in New York, which meant there were a few days out of the week he wasn't able to be home but knew that Elena was busy with school and Caroline loved nothing more than to spend every free moment at their house preparing for the baby. Now with the holidays and Elena having a break in school he knew he had to make an effort to be home for the next few weeks which meant putting his bar plans on hold until the New Year, he also wanted to be home because Bonnie would be staying with them and even though he had to bury his feelings for her, being in her orbit felt like being under the sun on a cold day.

"Coming!" Damon yelled while coming down the stairs.

"Damon, can you grab the cookies from the kitchen? We need to put them on the coffee table, they're Bonnie's favorites." Elena motioned to the kitchen.

No, they're not Damon thought while heading toward the kitchen. They had argued earlier about which Christmas cookies Bonnie would like, Elena argued that it was sugar cookies with red and green cookies, and Damon argued that they were the Pillsbury cookie dough with artificially colored Christmas trees preprinted on them. He knew he was right, but Elena started to tear up when she accused him of thinking that she didn't know her own best friend, so he quickly dropped it and let her make the cookies she wanted to make.

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"Bonnie don't worry about getting those, we'll take them in for you," Caroline said while Bonnie was walking towards the trunk of her SUV.

"Thanks Care, I guess we should go inside? I haven't seen this house since they first started looking at it, it's so them" Bonnie said smiling while observing the perfectly decorated porch and manicured lawn. Bonnie thought about the different gardens that would fit perfectly on their lawn. Bonnie also felt a little anxiety while walking towards the porch and she couldn't quite figure out why. Once she got to the door Elena swung the door open.

"Bonnie! Oh my god Bonnie!" Elena exclaimed and pulled Bonnie into a hug.

Bonnie hugged back and realized something felt different, she looked down in shock and excitement as she saw Elena's belly through her Christmas Sweater and the words MOM written on her sweater in small white snowflakes.

"ELENA! OH MY GOD" Bonnie exclaimed while smiling and leaning down to hold Elena's belly.

"I know, I wanted to tell you in person, she's already so excited to meet you Bonnie, here, feel!" Elena said while crying happy tears as she moved Bonnie's hands to where she could feel the baby.

"Elena, I am so happy for you," Bonnie said while tearing up and smiling, she looked up at Elena while still crouching down to hold on to Elena's belly. She looked over to the side and saw Damon standing behind the couch with a soft side smirk.

"Damon.." Bonnie said softly and shot Damon a warm smile. He responded by raising his eyebrows and nodding.

"Uhm hellooo, can we come inside? Damon, can you get Bonnie's big bag?" Caroline said carrying Bonnie's carry-on while the girls had her purse and one of the bags she checked in full of presents.

"You're the one with vamp strength Blondie, I will take this" Damon said to Caroline as he walked towards her to grab the carry-on which made Caroline roll her eyes.

"Whatever, girls please follow your Uncle Damon, I will be right back," Caroline said and then shot Bonnie a look and smile that read Welcome back which made Bonnie laugh.

"Bonnie please sit, I made you your favorite cookies" Elena excitedly picked up the tray to hand Bonnie a cookie.

"Thanks! These are actually Matt's favor.." Bonnie slowly stopped her sentence as she looked over at Damon who came back down the stairs and motioned her to stop.

"You know what, I love these! Thank you, Elena," Bonnie said looking back at Elena who had a defeated look on her face.

"You HAVE to tell me everything, I cannot believe you BOTH kept this from me!" Bonnie said shooting both Elena and Damon a look.

"Bonnie, I tried to tell them!" Caroline interjected as she was bringing in Bonnie's big bag.

"And you too, Caroline! Actually? I'm impressed." Bonnie stated which made both Elena and Caroline laugh.

"I'm going to pick up dinner, Elena insisted we had to get your favorite Christmas meal from the diner, I'll be back soon." Damon walked over to kiss Elena's head and kissed his fingers to place them on Elena's belly. Bonnie stood up to finally greet Damon.

"Welcome back Bon-Bon" Damon said softly while wrapping her into a hug, taking in the scent of his favorite hair oil Bonnie uses which smells like peppermint and rosemary. He placed a kiss on her forehead before grabbing his keys to pick up the food.

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After a long dinner with Matt, Jeremy, their new fiancés, and Alaric joining in and Bonnie dispersing the gifts among everyone, it was finally time to settle in for the night. Bonnie took note of Damon's unusual distance but could only imagine how tired he was of dividing his time between his home and New York. Bonnie insisted that she help Damon and Caroline clean up since Elena could barely stay awake any longer even after Elena pleaded for her not to raise a finger. After Damon helped get Elena's nighttime routine of keeping a fresh glass of water on the nightstand, as well as stocking up on chocolate granola, Cheetos, and apple sauce packets for her "in the middle of the night" snacks, he headed downstairs to hear Bonnie and Caroline singing "Drops of Jupiter" to each other with utensils as mics as it came on the playlist. Once he got closer to the kitchen, he stood in the doorway, leaning on the frame with his arms crossed admiring the impromptu show.

"One without a permanent scar, and did you miss me while you were looking for yourself out there" they both sang with Caroline pointing at Bonnie before shaking their hair to the music. Caroline motioned at Bonnie to look behind her, with her eyes, while they were still singing, which made Bonnie look behind her to spot Damon. They both then started to sing to him while both pointing at him to join in on their kitchen concert.

"You both have terrible taste in music" Damon stated while walking towards them to pluck the utensils out of their hands and place them into the sink.

This made them laugh and continue to sing until the song was over.

"Damon, do you think you can handle it from here? I have to go, we have a long morning at the school tomorrow doing different repairs..Bonnie, I am so glad you're back, I left your phone in your room just in case you want to use it while you're here and Alaric dropped off our extra car so you can use it, meet us at the school tomorrow around 11? I have on your itinerary that we're getting matching manis and pedis at lunch, I figured you and Elena can come to pick me up! I love you Bonnie" Caroline said before giving Bonnie one last hug before leaving.

"I love you to Care, thank you for everything, your daughters did amazing, although I might've accidentally torn down some of the garland that was hanging from the bathroom door" Bonnie laughed as she returned Caroline's hug.

"Good-Night Damon, take care of our girls, all three of them while I'm gone," Caroline said while going in for a hug with Damon.

"Yeah, I will, night blondie!" Damon responded.

Damon then went to walk Caroline out so he could lock the door for the night.

Bonnie sat down at one of the stools in front of the kitchen island.

"So, are you going to avoid me the entire time I'm here? Damon, I think you might be losing your number one best-friend spot!" Bonnie joked.

"Impossible witchy" Damon shot Bonnie a smile before unloading the dishwasher.

"Seriously Damon, you've been off ever since leaving Japan, I thought you would be excited to tell me about the biggest news of your life. I'm honestly shocked you even waited to tell me."

"What do you want to know," Damon said while still putting away dishes not facing Bonnie.

"Okay, I'm going to shower and get ready for bed, maybe we can try this again tomorrow" Bonnie stated as she got up from the stool to walk towards the stairs. Damon grabbed her and pulled her into him and held her there in his arms.

"Bonnie, I'm scared as shit, I'm tired, I miss my brother and I miss you, and I feel like I'm spiraling, internally, and all I want to do is run," Damon said softly as held Bonnie in his arms.

"Damon, you should be scared, I would be worried if you weren't and Stefan should be here, I know, and I'm so sorry about that Damon, but I'm here and you don't need to miss me" Bonnie responded with her arms wrapped around him as well.

"But you're not, you're here and then you'll be gone, and I'll be here."

"Damon, that's not fair, and I hear you're not even here most of the time, you are running, why are you opening a bar in New York?"

"Because I can and I want to, Elena is looking into going to New York to do her residency, so I might as well start something up there for myself now."

Bonnie started laughing, which made Damon pull away to look at her.

"What's so funny?" Damon said with a confused face.

"It's just, it's so typical. Damon, you're having a child and your first thought is to open a bar in New York, when Elena has what, a year ½ left at Whitmore? You might as well have bought a motorcycle" Bonnie smiled up at Damon.

"See, I knew you were still judgey"

"It's not that Damon, I just think you're making it harder on yourself and Elena, you really don't need to open a bar anyways, you're kind of set for life, for the next few generations at least."

Damon stepped back from Bonnie to take in what she said.

"And you don't need to travel to be stronger Bonnie, and yet you leave everyone without even a reliable way to get ahold of you, so I don't need a lecture on what I should be doing unless you're ready to have that conversation," Damon said as he clenched his jaw and furrowed his brows.

"Is that what this is? Are you mad at me? I'm not the one that has changed, you've been weird ever since you left Japan" Bonnie responded, not backing down.

"Ha! One day you'll realize how funny that statement is, I didn't change Bon-Bon, I'm just finally starting to grow up and find fulfilling ways to occupy my time." Damon had gotten cleaning wipes from under the sink so he can start wiping down the counters.

"Okay.. and I'm doing the same? It's kind of nice to be able to learn and grow my magic when I'm not forced to save everyone's ass, time and time again which has sometimes resulted in my death."

Damon started to get frustrated.

"What do you want from me, Bonnie? I'm thankful for everything you have done to help me get the life I have now, I will never be able to repay you for being such a martyr, I know you have given your life for me to be happy, Stefan gave his life so I could be happy and I'm here, pretending to be, every single day of my thankfully short human life. You don't think I know I need to get my shit together? For my daughter? For Elena? I am reminded of that every..single..day. I am reminded of that every day you are not here…next to me, is that what you want me to say to you until my last day? I will gladly do it so you of all people aren't constantly reminding me of my past and every fucked-up decision I made, especially the ones I made that hurt you and Stefan, I wish I could take it all back to start over, but I can't. So yes, I am opening a bar in New York City, because it's the only rational, irrational, thing I know to do as a human, and it's the only thing at this moment keeping me completely sane."

"Damon, I..I didn't mean to hurt you, I promise in a few years I will be back, as full-time as I can be"

Damon looked up at the ceiling and back down at Bonnie and smiled.

"No, no you won't, but that's okay, I'll settle for the moments with you Bon-Bon, I love you too much to not settle for those moments" Damon walked over to Bonnie to wrap her in another hug.

In another time, we would have forever Damon thought to himself.

"I love you too Daddy Salvatore" Bonnie said in a joking tone laughing.

"Don't say that unless you want this hug to go in a different direction."

"Perv"

"Judgey"

As they were finishing wrapping up straightening downstairs and listening to Bonnie and Caroline's playlist, Elena got up from sitting at the top of the stairs to go back to their room.

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After Christmas came and went and Bonnie had completed 80% of Caroline's itinerary, Elena and Bonnie finally had some time to themselves to prepare for a baby shower New Year's party while Damon and Alaric had a boy's day away from the house and Caroline was out doing more shopping with her daughters.

"Elena, come see this!" Bonnie exclaimed as she lifted the trash from the decorations with her magic to put it in the trashcan which made Elena giggle in awe.

"Caroline never lets me use my magic to help put things up, she says it's lazy and a bad influence for the girls" Bonnie laughed while shrugging.

"I think it's pretty amazing, you can come to help us decorate and clean anytime Bonnie," Elena said while looking at the decoration packaging slowly going into the trash.

"I actually need to talk to you about something, is it okay if we sit down?" Elena asked while rubbing her belly.

"Of course! I need to say hi to my niece!" Bonnie responded and grabbed Elena's stomach when they both sat down on the couch.

"She really loves you Bon, she's always kicking when she hears your voice."

"That's my girl, my most beautiful baby girl" Bonnie cooed to Elena's belly which made Elena smile.

"Have you guys decided on a name?" Bonnie looked up to Elena to ask.

"Yeah, actually, you'll be the first to know since you were the last to know about her, her name is Stefanie" Elena smiled with tears filling her eyes which made Bonnie's eyes tear up.

"Oh, Stefanie Salvatore, you are already so loved, we all love you so very much," Bonnie said to Elena's belly.

"It just seemed right, Stefan was one of the first people I wanted to tell, if he was here..he always wanted to be a dad" Elena smiled as she remembered different conversations she had with Stefan when they were together.

"Bonnie, do you think I made the right choice?" Elena asked now frowning and blushing with embarrassment.

"What do you mean?" Bonnie sat up to look directly at Elena.

"Now that I'm older, and human again, which means new responsibilities and this little one," Elena said smiling down at her belly.

"I can't help to think what being human would have been like.."

"With Stefan?" Bonnie asked trying not to seem judgmental.

"I know how it sounds and it's probably the hormones, but I can't sit here and not think about it, what would be if I never fell in love with Damon."

Bonnie sat there in silence biting her lip.

"I love Damon, I'm in love with him, and I know it would have never worked with Stefan and I, I can tell how in love Stefan and Caroline were just from the stories I hear, and even from what I saw before Kai's spell."

Bonnie still sat silently and nodded along with Elena.

"But Bonnie, ever since you left last year, he's been..it's been..different. This last time too, since he got back from seeing you in Japan, something is off, and at first, I thought it was the shock from the pregnancy, but the first night you came back Bon, I heard what he said to you downstairs" Elena looked at Bonnie with her wide brown eyes.

Bonnie's eyes widened, remembering what Damon had told her.

"Elena, I'm so sor.." Bonnie was not able to finish her apology before Elena cut her off.

"Bonnie, I love you so much, you're my sister, you're the closest person I have to family that isn't Jeremy and even then, I can't with confidence say I wouldn't choose you over him if I needed to." Elena smiled while grabbing Bonnie's hands.

"I know Damon isn't happy, and I don't expect him to be jumping with joy, he hasn't allowed himself to feel the loss of his brother, his immortality and..and I'm not dumb Bonnie, Damon may think I am, but I'm not," Elena said while starting to cry.

"I know he loves me, I know we are each other's last loves of this life, but I know what it looks like to be in love with two people at the same time, I know what that looks like, and what it feels like to be watching it as it happens" Elena continued to say while sobbing and still holding Bonnie's hand.

"Elena, I don't thin.." Bonnie began to say.

"Bonnie…don't, he loves you more than I'd like to admit, more than you apparently know and I'm terrified, and I'll never forgive myself for what I did to Stefan… I now understand how he must have felt" Elena took her hand away from Bonnie's so she could place her face in both of her hands.

"Elena, listen to me" Bonnie ordered as she sat down in front of Elena to hold onto both of Elena's hands.

"Even if that were true, nothing would ever happen, I don't feel the same way, Damon was obsessively, is still, obsessively in love with you" Bonnie reassured Elena.

"I'm not stupid Bonnie, if you did feel the same way, I know him, I know him better than he knows himself, and he would fight for you if you felt the same way" Elena responded while slowly starting not to cry anymore.

"Well, it's a good thing I don't Elena, we're best friends, nothing more and nothing less, we love each other a lot, like you and I love each other a lot, and Caroline" Bonnie smiled at Elena while rubbing her hands.

"I don't know who I am without him Bon, even our fights, I wouldn't want to fight with anyone else, I don't want to do life without him, I'm in it for the rest of my life."

"Might I suggest couples therapy before the baby comes?" Bonnie joked which made Elena laugh.

"Yeah I can see it now, "I think my boyfriend resents me and our relationship because while he might have agreed to be human at one point in time, I don't think he really meant it but he was forced to be one anyways and I think he's in love with my best friend who is the most badass witch so, who wouldn't be, even though he probably isn't and she isn't but there's that small chance that could be true", yeah Bonnie, I want to try to not be admitted before the baby comes" Elena laughed and Bonnie laughed with her.

"Let's get you cleaned up, Caroline will kill me for letting your face get so puffy before the photographers get here" Bonnie stood up and held her hand out to help Elena get up.

"Photographers?!" Elena exclaimed while starting to cry again.

"I shouldn't have said that I'm so sorry!" Bonnie said while helping Elena up the stairs.

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After the baby shower, Elena went to bed and made Damon pretend that it was already midnight so they could kiss at 12. Damon then went downstairs to entertain the rest of the guests and saw Bonnie and Caroline sitting bundled up next to the fire pit in the backyard.

"If any of my blankets catch on fire, I will be sending both of you a bill" Damon stated as he grabbed one of the blankets they were using and sat in one of the chairs across from them.

"Why are you two even out here? It's freezing"

"Well Damon, I am still a vampire who can withstand some cold, and Bonnie is a damn good witch who spelled the blankets to keep us warm" Caroline shot Damon a sarcastic smile.

"And I'm the human with the fat bank account who now has to value my belongings, give me that other blanket blondie" Damon ordered.

Caroline threw the blanket over the fire at him in response.

"We're boycotting happy couples," Bonnie said while looking at Caroline and then at Damon.

"Ah, is it weird seeing both of your exes in mediocre relationships? Having second thoughts? Damon joked.

"Don't be a jerk Damon, not everyone can have the perfect picket fence relationship, and I will gladly kiss Bonnie, on the cheek at midnight" Caroline said while throwing her arm around Bonnie.

Bonnie handed Damon the rest of her bourbon.

"I think it's really sweet you guys named your daughter Stefanie" Bonnie stated changing the subject.

"Yeah, I didn't, she did, one day after looking at old pictures from the first year they met" Damon shot Caroline a look and smiled sarcastically.

"I think it's sweet too and I am not responding to your rude suggestion that you're implying, I would be dumb to expect no one else to miss him like I miss him, he was the best and the love of my life." Caroline said while looking into the fire before taking a drink of her spiced sangria.

"Thank you, Caroline, that's very mature of you, I'm so proud" Bonnie teased which made Caroline laugh.

"I'm just so glad you came back for the holidays Bonnie, I think there would have been a shortage of tissues if you weren't able to come due to me and Elena" Caroline leaned her head on Bonnie's shoulders.

"Me too, and no kidding, we almost didn't make the baby shower," Bonnie said leaning her head on Caroline's.

"What do you mean? What happened?" Damon jumped in now interested in the conversation.

"No teasing Damon, but she accused you of being in love with me and that's why things have been off with you too since I first left, which is so silly because of course it's because you've been through so much in the past year and now you're going to be a dad, I mean it's a lot, for both of you" Bonnie explained, which made Caroline sit up straight to look at Bonnie.

"Why is it silly?" Damon asked while taking a drink of bourbon and narrowing his eyes at Bonnie.

"I mean, why would anyone think you would be in love with me Damon, we annoy the shit out of each other constantly" Bonnie responded, now sitting up as well.

"Can I say something?" Caroline asked,

Bonnie and Damon said no at the same time and looked at Caroline.

"Wow" Caroline started laughing.

"You both are so dense, I honestly thought for a long time you both must have hooked up in the prison world, I didn't want to say anything but if someone were to have told me that you both fell in love with each other then, it wouldn't be the craziest thing, Stefan and I talked about it all the time!" Caroline quipped.

"Excuse me, you and Stefan talked about me and Bonnie?" Damon asked, annoyed, wondering why Stefan never said a word about it to Damon.

"Okay I'm sorry but can we circle back that you thought Damon and I hooked up?" Bonnie asked, also annoyed.

"Wow, guys! I don't think that now! Most days at least.. I just think that it wouldn't be far-fetched for someone in a relationship with either of you to feel a little insecure about your bond" Caroline shrugged and then took another big drink of her spiced sangria.

"Caroline, you think I would hook up with Damon?"

"Why do you keep bringing that up, you totally would judgey, if you had the chance" Damon shot her a devilish grin.

"No, I wouldn't Damon," Bonnie said with a stern look.

"Really? You wouldn't? I mean if Elena and Damon weren't together?" Caroline asked.

"I can't think in hypotheticals Caroline, and it doesn't matter because they are and I would never, I would never do that to Elena."

Bonnie's statement made Damon laugh, which confused both Bonnie and Caroline.

"Would you like to share what's so funny Damon?" Caroline asked as she shot him a look.

"I would, in another time, I would be in love with you Bonnie, so no, blondie and Elena are not far off, it just seems like you're the only one who isn't..who can't be honest," Damon said in a serious tone.

This made Caroline's jaw drop as she looked at Damon with a shocked expression.

"Wait, are you in love with her Damon?" Caroline asked.

Bonnie sat there frozen, now just looking at the fire and seeing it slowly start to grow.

"Yes, any more questions?" Damon asked sarcastically and then threw his glass into the brick wall once he finished the bourbon.

This caused Bonnie to manipulate the fire to make it bigger which caused the couch she and Caroline were sitting on to be set ablaze.

"Bonnie!" Caroline yelled as she vamp sped to the other side of the backyard.

"Oh my god!" Bonnie yelled and she quickly incanted a spell to stop the fire.

Damon still sat in his chair looking at the damage to the whicker couch Elena had picked out for their porch.

"I told her this set was too flammable," Damon said looking at the damaged couch. This caused Bonnie to scoff at him.

Bonnie then turned to head inside, ignoring Damon, thankful that no one inside noticed the commotion. Caroline walked towards the porch to follow; Damon grabbed her hand so she would look at him.

"It was a joke, I just wanted to see how she would react, we don't need to bring this up again," Damon said staring into Caroline's eyes.

"Damon, you will forever be my brother and my family, because of Stefan and Stefan only, but we're not besties, and I know you well enough to know you're not joking, but I will also never be the one to hurt Elena or Bonnie. The fact that you can admit that to us but not to her.. figure your shit out, Bonnie will never love you in that way, and you have a baby coming, and you and Elena love each other, but I swear if you pull that shit again with any of my best friends I will sell your blood to every lousy vampire out there and watch you age like the grumpy old man you are." Caroline jerked her arm out of his hand and walked inside and slammed the door.

BBBBBBB

After the conversation they had, Bonnie never brought it up for the rest of her stay home, and neither did Damon or Caroline. Bonnie focused on spending time with Caroline and Elena, as well as visiting her mother who stopped in town to say hi so they could visit Gram's grave and Bonnie's father's grave together, as well as getting the finances in order that were left to her so she could continue to travel. Bonnie made sure to not spend too much time with Damon or say goodbye which he understood, she wasn't mad at him, surprisingly, but couldn't explore the extremely buried feelings she had for him that started to come up when he said he was in love with her, joking or not. But she saw how Elena became unglued at the mere thought of anything happening between them and didn't want to be a part of the reason why someone she loves is hurting, especially with a baby on the way. She knew that this trip home would be one of the last times in a while she would come back, even for the holidays. She was ready to leave it all behind again to focus on herself and her magic with Sophia.

Chapter 7 – Enjoy the Silence

Emily has shown up disturbing Damon's afterlife of finding peace:

"Damon I'm serious, we had a deal, did you really think your actions as a human and the few good deeds as a vampire alone awarded you peace? Neither of you were supposed to end up here" Emily looked past Damon to make eye contact with Stefan.

"Bullshit Emily, we've done our time, we both have sacrificed our lives for the greater good" Damon scowled.

"Even if that were so Damon, we had a deal, I need you back, you and your brother" Emily looked up at Stefan again who had a tense look on his face.

"No way, he stays out of this just take me, I knew this was too good to be true" Damon argued.

"Two Salvatore's are better than one" Emily stood her ground.

"And one is better than none, enough with the riddles, what do I need to do, who in this line am I protecting, you came to me before I died saying that I could finally rest and that Bonnie was powerful enough to no longer need anyone's protection, what changed."

Emily looked at Stefan and then looked at Damon.

"You're correct Damon, she doesn't need anyone's protection, it's her daughter that needs your protection, both of yours, only she can get her mom back and she can't do it alone, Bonnie has lost the support of almost all supernatural beings, some not by choice, and Emeline can't do it alone."

"Bonnie is alive" Damon stated.

"Yes, she's alive but not really well," Emily responded.

"Her husband?" Damon questioned.

Emily shook her head.

"He's gone and he won't find peace until his family is okay, he knows I'm coming to you for help Damon, he only trusts you, you're the only person who loves Bonnie and her daughter more than he does."

Damon made a pained scowl.

"I want to see her" Damon demanded.

"That's not possible, I can only do so much in a world designed for peace, this is already taking a lot out of our line to send me here, the spell I created around the time we first met when I sensed something special about you is still holding strong, mainly because of the love you and Bonnie share, it has only strengthened my spell to have an invisible string tied to you. She's also almost completely blocked her line out after finding out what we did, it almost broke her once all the memories came back, all the times she was falling in love with you."

"I told you, what did you think would happen," Damon said visibly angry.

"When do I go back, send me..now" Damon ordered.

"We still have communication with Emeline, we've been directing her to a spell, a spell we have kept locked away for generations to bring you back, but Damon, you need to understand you and your brother won't be coming back as humans, you'll be coming back as vampires, but with the strength of an original, what you both do with this second chance at life, will determine if you will find peace, permanently, should you both perish again. I am also calling in on an overdue favor by summoning another friendly..not so friendly face, who is also on an invisible string, who has not found the peace you two have, but can now get the chance to if they play nice. I'll be seeing you both."

Emily took one last look at both brothers before quickly leaving.

"Damon, it's Bonnie, I'll do it, I owe her everything, I know we will get this chance again," Stefan said softly.

"I'm so sorry Stefan" Damon said still staring scowling and staring at where Emily was standing.

"I know brother, this is my chance to make it all up to you, to truly be worthy of finding peace," Stefan patted Damon on the shoulder.

"I need to talk to Elena" Damon responded.

"I need to talk to Lexi" Stefan Replied.