Chapter 34: Out of My Hands
Elena, Bonnie and Caroline were still fast asleep when I left her house to go jogging. Caroline had momentarily woken up when I moved but I quickly managed to send her back to sleep after telling her that I was only going out for a jog. She laughed before falling back into her bed.
I stopped and hunched over to catch my breath when my phone started ringing. I didn't even have to check to know who it was. Neither of my friends were awake at this time and Matt was at work that left Damon or Stefan, the latter of whom was most likely busy worrying about his girlfriend. My phone rang a few times while I snapped back to stand and stretch out a bit. Maybe I'd let his calls go straight to voicemail but then the stupid thought came to me that what if it was an emergency?
Sighing, I shoved my hands into my pockets to reach for my phone when I felt a deathly chill run down my spine. Seriously, can I not have one morning by myself.
"Are you not going to get that?" I heard Elijah's calm voice behind me and I let my phone fall inside my pocket, instead reaching for my dagger. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. I come in peace or whatever they say these days."
"Elijah." I breathed out, turning around to glare at him. "Do vampires not have a job or something? I mean you were moonlighting as a historian—I'm sure that's gotta keep you busy—busy enough to not stalk a high school girl."
The corners of his lips went up and he turned his face away from me for a second before turning back to me. "Hilarious." His words were dry but the ghost of a smile on his face did say a lot. He found me amusing. "To satisfy your curiosity, I do have an…event to attend later this afternoon: the Historical Society's Tea Party. This town really does like these events."
"It keeps people busy." I said with an awkward smile. "My parents are part of the historical society, they don't exactly enjoy it but…you know."
"So I'll be seeing you there then."
"No. Damon's gonna be there and I'd rather not get between Damon's attempts to…k-maim you."
Elijah chuckled. "It's amusing to see him try. Young vampires are very arrogant."
"No it's just Damon." I refuted. Lexi and Stefan were fine, even Caroline who was technically the youngest was more careful than Damon. Even Rose was more careful than Damon.
I could've sworn I saw a shift on Elijah's expressionless face but maybe it was the fatigue from the jog getting to me because when I actually focused on him, he was blank faced. "I see you've chosen to ignore my warning."
I laughed in disbelief. "I barely listen to my own family, what makes you think I'll listen to someone who tried to kidnap my childhood friend—someone I've known for like five seconds."
"Hmm." Elijah pretended to think but really he was probably calculating his odds on actually getting me to take his advice and I was calculating the odds of me killing him. "I suppose you have a point."
"Please tell me you're not gonna offer a 'get to know you' session because I would rather go on a date with Tyler Lockwood than spend time looking over my shoulder."
"That was precisely what I was going to say." He looked a little disappointed but still very amused. I wasn't joking. "I knew your grandmother."
At the mention of my grandmother, I narrowed my eyes at Elijah and took a few steps back. "All the more reason not to trust you."
"Even though, I mean what I say. I do keep my end of the bargain."
"Your deal is with Elena and with all deals, I'm sure there is a loophole in there somewhere."
Elijah laughed quietly as if I had said the funniest joke. I tilted my head in confusion and that seemed to only amuse him more as he pursed his lips to hold back a smile. "It's interesting how you reject your grandmother and what you are yet…your true nature shines through."
"My true nature?"
"You're a smart girl, I'm sure you know a little about faeries." I did know a little but I just didn't get what he meant.
Before I could ask him, my phone started to ring again. I ignored my ringing phone and turned back to Elijah but he was gone.
"Damn it." I muttered under my breath and glared at the spot where Elijah just was. I was really getting tired of him appearing and disappearing out of nowhere. "Damon, what is it?" I picked up my phone on the first ring the third time Damon called.
"Good morning to you too."
I rolled my eyes and walked inside Caroline's house, dropping her keys on the table and checking on my friends before going back to the kitchen. "There is nothing 'good' this morning."
"Ouch and here I thought you were a morning person."
"I am. It's just something or someone is getting on my nerves."
"Who?"
Elijah's name was on the tip of tongue and I was about to tell Damon what happened but at the last second, I bit my tongue and swiftly changed the subject. "Nevermind, it's not that important. How's things on your end?" I had a feeling that if I told Damon, he'd just get more reckless at his attempts to kill Elijah and the last thing I needed was him dead. It was strange thinking about it, standing in Caroline kitchen given our recent past.
"Hmm." Damon quietly hummed, probably considering whether or not to drop the subject. "Well, John Gilbert left a present."
"I don't have a good feeling about this. It's probably poisoned."
Damon chuckled before carrying on. "Yeah, well, his present is a…little interesting." I'm sure it was but knowing John, nothing came for free, there was probably a hidden trick somewhere. "He gave me a dagger and some saw dust—the remains of a white ash tree."
"A dagger and some dust?" I echoed and leaned against Caroline's kitchen's counter. "He's pulling a prank on you I think."
"I was thinking the same thing because no way some dust and a dagger can take down an Original."
"Oh it's for taking down Elijah." I turned around to check if the pan on the stove was hot enough before grabbing four eggs. "Yeah, I don't think it's going to wor—good morning Sheriff."
Sheriff Forbes ran out of her room and waved at me. "Morning Ava, you shouldn't be doing this."
"It's fine besides if I let anyone other than me or Care cook, you'll have to call the fire department." I joked. Caroline could do the basics but Elena was hopeless and so was Bonnie.
Caroline's mom made a face and reluctantly nodded. "Still—"
"Here's your breakfast, Sheriff." I cut her off by placing a plate of eggs and waffles on the table.
Sheriff Forbes could only sigh but at least she was smiling. "I forgot how stubborn you are."
"You have no idea." I said, thinking back to my conversation with Elijah this morning. Damon was still on the phone and I could hear him snickering in the background at my sudden change. "Historical Society's Tea Party?" I guessed, watching the sheriff hurry with her breakfast and occasionally turning around to check on the waffles for me and my friends.
"Yep. Is your uncle in town or…"
"He's in town. He's done with his thesis or maybe he submitted it already—I'm not sure but I know he's mostly free now and spending time in town." To keep an eye on me and Jenna. Of course, I didn't say everything I was thinking or knew out loud to the Sheriff.
"Already?" Sheriff Forbes seemed a little surprised and I found it funny. If anything I thought he was behind schedule. "I thought he was still working on that thing, I mean Jenna is still working on hers."
"I mean it's April. His semester for his masters ends in like two or three months."
"I know that. I just—"
"I think he finished over the winter break, he's just been going over it to make sure it's all good before submitting it."
"Huh. Sometimes, I forget how efficient people in your family are."
"Well, it's best to tackle a problem as quickly as you can before it grows and becomes tomorrow's disaster—wise words of my dad."
Sheriff Forbes laughed and nodded. "And he's right. Well, I'll be seeing you then."
I waved the sheriff off and plated the remaining waffles, shoving them into the microwave to keep it warm. I waited for a few minutes until Sheriff Forbes' car had driven off and only then did I pick up the phone again.
"It was Sheriff Forbes and yes, I'm still at Caroline's."
He laughed. "You know it's funny how you're the only one in that little group of yours who knows how to cook."
"Not true. Caroline knows a little."
"I'm sure she does."
"Whatever, back to the dagger and dust thing. What did John say about it?"
"Dip the dagger into the remains of the white oak ashes and stab Elijah with it."
That sounded too simple. There had to be a catch. "Don't you think that sounds a little—"
"Simple?" Damon guessed. "I know right. I just keep thinking there's gotta be something wrong with this whole thing, doesn't really help that the dagger looks a lot like your family dagger you carry around with you all the time."
My mind went blank and the wooden spoon I was holding fell from my hands, clattering to the ground. "I'm sorry what?" I asked, my voice sounding a little too loud even to my own ears. "I mean…what do you mean?" I lowered my voice and cleared my throat before speaking again. I almost sounded a little nervous.
"You okay, sunshine?"
"Peachy. The dagger, Damon."
"I said it looked a lot like your family dagger like all the small details and everything except it was missing your family's crest." Damon paused and I heard some rustling on the other side. "You sure your family doesn't have any history with the originals?"
Various scenarios ran through my head and I didn't know what to say. I breathed out loudly and stared at the ground. I didn't know anything and that was the problem. Everything I knew, my family knew. If my family by chance did have some history then I was really screwed. The Originals might hold grudges I wasn't aware of.
"Have you talked to my uncle?" I questioned.
"Nope, he was meant to meet me at my place with Ric but I think Mason's taking his time."
"Pause. Mason's back?" I mean I was glad he was back but the threat wasn't gone. "When did he return?"
"Last night. Thought you knew."
"Um, I was occupied by other things, Damon and how the hell did he return so quickly."
"Heard he was in the town over—"
"Grove Hill?" I guessed.
"Yep, that one." Huh, I didn't expect Mason to be so close when his life was in danger. "He apparently got a new phone and turned off his old phone. He's back to deal with Tyler so that's a problem taken care of. We just need Elijah gone."
"Don't do anything, Damon." I warned him. He was reckless and that was the undeniable truth. I was probably sounding like a broken record at this point but I needed him to stay put until Stefan, Bonnie and I had a clear understanding of the situation. Elijah's side was still stronger than ours and then there was the little werewolf problem. There was a whole pack of werewolves that Damon managed to piss off. "I mean it, Damon. Don't do anything. We can't trust John, not without more details on the dagger."
Damon made a sound. "Hey, if this is similar to your dagger then there's nothing to worry about."
"Actually then there's a lot to worry about then." I retorted. My dagger was to be used by humans only. "Vampires—nevermind. You've never used either. Don't take the risk." I warned him, already knowing how suspicious I sounded but I was being as honest as I could be without giving my family secrets away.
Silence responded to me. Damon had gone quiet. "...You're hiding something from me."
I was and I'd carry on to hide it until I had permission to talk about it. "Just drop it, Damon and listen to what I'm saying."
"Alright but we are gonna have to talk about it. I am tired of Stefan knowing things about you before I do."
Despite my worries making me feel anxious, I could still laugh a little. "Sounds like someone's jealous." I teased him, not expecting a response as I was ready to hang up.
"Actually yeah I am." Damon actually responded.
My eyes widened and I fumbled around with my phone. Without a word, I hung up just as Elena skipped out of Caroline's room. I stared at the phone as heat spread from the tips of my ears, flooding my cheeks. I covered my face with my loose hair and nearly screamed into my hands.
"Good…morning." Elena greeted me, a little confused at my appearance.
I looked up at her, nervously. "M-morning."
"Why is your face so…"
"I went out for a jog and then made breakfast. It's the heat." I said, motioning towards the table and then opening the microwave to show the waffles. "I'm gonna…go get changed and let you eat."
I didn't even let Elena talk before I was rushing past her. What the hell was going on with Damon? Why would he even say something like that? He's just so…ugh. I felt like stabbing something.
Caroline and Bonnie stared at me in disbelief as I aggressively tied up my hair after getting changed into a lavender pleather skirt and a navy full-sleeved t-shirt paired with some knee-high heeled boots.
"Is everything okay?" Caroline carefully asked.
"Perfectly fine." I sputtered out, taking out my mascara and trying my best not to stab myself in the eyes.
Caroline didn't believe me but she was nice enough to move on from the topic and leave.
The grill was quite busy when Caroline, Bonnie and I walked in. Elena left after breakfast, she and Stefan were going away for a little romantic getaway. How fun and smart of Stefan because the further Elena was from the mess that was going on in town, the safer she'd be.
I spotted Jeremy sitting by himself in the distance. His face brightened when he saw Bonnie, something I couldn't help but notice. I could faintly hear his thoughts without even trying to, causing me to stop as my friends found their way to a table.
"Ava? You coming?" Caroline called out to me and I weakly nodded before shooting a look at Bonnie who already had a guess why I stopped.
Bonnie held out her hand in front of her. "Don't start. I know. I'll handle it."
"Handle what?" Caroline questioned, tilting her head to the side in confusion before she finally got what we were talking about. "Jeremy?" She asked, huddling closer to us.
"Caroline!" Bonnie hissed out.
"I mean I'm not judging you, he's sweet—much better than Luka."
I rolled my eyes. In my humble but honest opinion that I didn't bother to vocalize, I thought both Luka and Jeremy had their pros and cons. Strangely enough, I didn't blame Luka for lying to Bonnie. He seemed genuine in his interests towards Bonnie but I guess something else took precedence over his own feelings.
There was also that thing about him and his father working for Elijah. Witches generally didn't work with vampires unless vampires had something on them or offered them something. If I just knew what Elijah offered the Martin warlocks I could get one on Elijah and get them on our side. I just didn't know how.
Caroline clicked her fingers in front of my face. "Earth to Ava, were you listening?" She pouted, her smile falling when she spotted Matt.
"No, honestly I wasn't." I nodded at Matt who reciprocated my gesture despite his gaze being on Caroline. There was a lot of tension between them. It didn't really help that I was acting as a buffer between the two. "Sorry, what were we talking about?"
Bonnie and Caroline shared a look before the two sighed at the same time. Caroline decided to take over. "Bonnie's gonna ask Luka about…" She paused when someone passed our table and then dragged herself closer to me across the table. "Elijah's plans."
"Gotcha. It's a terrible plan, a lot could go wrong."
"But we don't have a choice." Bonnie pointed out and I took out my phone, I forgot to text uncle Nate about the dagger John gave Damon. "What are you doing?"
"I need to tell my uncle something." Matt passed by and I noted the look he gave me. Oh no. Not today, I was not in the mood to play the buffer between him and Caroline. I grabbed my "I'll just call him."
Caroline grabbed onto the sleeve of my jacket and looked up at me, pleadingly. "Please."
"Nope. Not today."
I had too much on my plate right now. I loved Caroline but she couldn't use me as a buffer between her and Matt forever, he needed an explanation from her not me. I felt bad for them both but I could only stand between the two before I got tired myself and I was tired. Then there was Tyler. Oh god, Caroline's love life was giving me a headache. I still had my own to figure out.
I slipped out the back and took out my phone, tapping uncle Nate's name on the screen of my new phone. The phone rang only twice before my uncle picked up. "You are so lucky that I haven't gone in or neither Elijah or Damon are here." He sounded tired and just a little annoyed, not that I cared. What I had to say was important.
"Yeah, yeah I know." I brushed off his words. "Listen, have you heard about what John gave Damon?"
"Yep, a dagger and some ashes. Something to…take care of our Original problem."
"Have you seen the dagger?"
"No. I was meant to but Jenna needed some help with her thesis this morning and then she almost burned instant pancakes so I had to make her breakfast and then—"
"Okay! I get it. I didn't ask about Jenna."
Uncle Nate made a sound and I rolled my eyes. "Like I said, I haven't seen the dagger but I'm guessing from the tone of your voice, it's something I-we should be worried about."
I bobbed my head up and down, looking around for a second before telling him what Damon said. "Damon said the dagger looked similar to our family dagger."
Uncle Nate went quiet. "What?" He mumbled out. "That can't be right. Maybe he's mistaken."
"That's what I thought. We need to have a look at it before Damon uses it on Elijah."
"Shit." Uncle Nate cursed under his breath. "If..if…" He nervously muttered. "If it is the same or similar, we can't let Damon or even Stefan use it."
"What'll happen if they do—I mean I know you guys told me that vampires can't use it but I don't understand what exactly will happen."
Uncle Nate sighed loudly. "...They'll die." He said quietly. "I don't know how, the witch who spelled it made sure vampires couldn't use it. I know our family dagger has multiple spells on it but the spell preventing vampires from using it is one of the older spells on it."
"You can tell?" I was a little impressed despite being concerned about the whole thing, it was fascinating.
"Yeah, your grandma Janine and grandpa Charles—my mother was into magic research, she analyzed that thing and almost tried to take it apart—that's not the point—point is, our dagger is dangerous and if the one John gave Damon is anything like it or is similar to it then we are screwed."
"I know. I know. That's why I told you."
"Lo—" Uncle Nate cut himself off. "I have to go. Our two friends are here. We'll talk about this more at home." He hung up after that, leaving me with more questions than any answers.
To be fair, uncle Nate was confused himself. I groaned and threw my head back, my head hitting the wall behind me. Damn it.
I knew what this was going to lead to; a family meeting.
I was so not looking forward to seeing aunt Evelyn again. Maybe she would take this piece of brand new information as peace offering and the two of us can bury the hatchet. I started to laugh immediately after the thought came to me.
Yeah, aunt Evelyn was never going to get along with me. She still blamed me for not seeing grandpa and her husband's death before it happened. That wasn't my fault. My visions back then were far weaker than they were now.
Checking my phone for any new messages, I shut it off and headed back. Caroline and Bonnie were huddled together, still plotting the interrogation of Luka. I was not looking forward to that either. "I'm back." I announced, taking my seat.
Caroline smiled and pulled my chair back when Matt passed us again. This time, his face was blank and he looked a little conflicted. "What was that about?" Bonnie asked, looking straight at Caroline.
"Uh, I don't know. I thought that we were...I don't know." Caroline confessed. She did look confused as her eyes followed Matt.
I glanced between the two and rolled my eyes. "Do you guys want me to peek into his head?" I asked, keeping my voice low and quiet, just loud enough for Bonnie and Caroline to hear.
Caroline glanced at Matt and back at me, gnawing her lips. Bonnie and I shared a look and just from that I knew Bonnie wanted me to look into Matt's head. Caroline, on the other hand, looked a little conflicted. She gave in after Matt's second round of walking past our table. "Ugh. Fine…just peek. I don't want you to hurt yourself or Matt."
"Gotcha." I sat back and focused on Matt. Most of his thoughts were about work until I found a few fleeting ones about Caroline…and Tyler. "Oh my god." I gasped out.
"I know there's something going on between Caroline and Tyler."
"Tyler's being weird and so is Caroline, are they—"
"Oh god no." I muttered under my breath, hearing Matt's thoughts. I turned to Caroline with wide eyes. "Yeah, I might need to step in or you need to talk to him."
"Why?" Caroline asked.
"He thinks you and Tyler have something going on."
Bonnie made a face and looked at Caroline. "He's not wrong." She commented.
"Bonnie!" Caroline and I said at the same time. "I mean, Bonnie does have a point." I mumbled out and Caroline glared at me. "But there's nothing, absolutely nothing…not anymore anyways."
Caroline slumped back into her seat and folded her arms. "You two are terrible."
Bonnie shrugged. "We're just being honest."
"And if I mention Jeremy then I'm terrible."
Caroline was dragged down, her head nearly hitting the table. Bonnie shushed her with a glare. "Seriously? Care, he's here." Bonnie hissed out. I watched the two with a smile on my face. "And why are we not talking about Ava and Da—"
My smile dropped and I coughed loudly before Bonnie could finish. "Okay, let's talk about our plan with Luka instead."
Bonnie and Caroline shared a look and laughed at the same time. "You are unbelievable." Caroline said between her giggles. I noticed Matt looking over at our table, still with the conflicted look. When he caught my eye, he quickly looked away.
"No, I'm staying on topic." I retorted. I so didn't want to talk about Damon. "Besides, the only time I will discuss Damon is when I am at my therapist's."
"A little harsh." Bonnie remarked and I shrugged. "Anyways, we're all in on this plan to get Luka…" She trailed off when Luka walked into the Grill.
"Got it." I said. I guess I was the back up.
Luka wasn't the only one who walked into the Grill. Tyler followed him soon after. The minute he was in, he spotted Caroline who tried to duck down, away from his gaze. Bonnie and I shared a look. Both of my friends were in a love triangle. How fun. I felt bad for them but I was just glad it wasn't me.
"You know what. I'm gonna…get a drink." I got up and went over to order something. Matt walked over and looked at me but Caroline stole his attention again. "Oh my god, you have that look again."
Matt jolted awake and looked side to side. "What look?"
"The abandoned puppy look." He gave me a deadpan look and rolled his eyes. "You know the one you had when Elena and you broke up."
"I don't have 'that' kind of look." He pulled out his notepad and went over the bar to take my order.
"I have a mirror in my bag—wanna take a look?" Matt looked up and sarcastically smiled before busying himself. "An iced strawberry lemonade please."
"And that's it?" I nodded as he got to work. "How's…you're gonna ask me to ask her, aren't you?"
"Normally yes but…" I pursed my lips and looked around, knowing Caroline was probably listening in. "I think you two need space. Caroline is going through some stuff and we're all kinda sorta busy with something."
I watched as Matt scooped some ice and dumped it into a plastic cup. "Caroline and I had plans and she just ditched me. No texts, no calls. Nothing. I don't know where she went off to. Was she with you? I know she wasn't with Bonnie because Bonnie was there."
I considered lying but I could never lie to Matt. "No, she wasn't. I was…dealing with something. I mean it—it was bad, we all ended up having a sleepover at her place."
Matt stopped, the plastic cup filled with ice nearly toppling over in his hands. "Is there…something going on between her and Tyler?"
I was left speechless. I mean I knew there was but at the same time, there wasn't. I looked around once again. Neither Caroline or Tyler were in my sight. "That's a little…" She had momentarily gone away to get something from her car. "Alright, I'm not going to lie and say there isn't anything but it's not from Caroline's side."
He stared at me for a while, the cup of ice still in his hand. He didn't say anything as he finished making my drink. "How do I believe that? How do I know—"
I touched his hand, stopping him mid-sentence. "Trust Caroline, she loves you, more than you know."
He passed me my drink and I paid for it. "I find what you're saying hard to believe." He mumbled.
"Look, I'm telling you—you're the only one Caroline loves not…Tyler."
He let out a tired laugh and walked away to clean some tables. I watched him go, not following him or stopping him. Caroline came back a moment later and went straight to him. I really did hope they worked out even if the two wouldn't work out in the long run, I wanted them to be happy in the time they did have.
I turned away and nursed my drink while keeping an eye on Grill. I watched as Caroline tried her hardest to talk to Matt, only for him to brush her aside and walk away. Tyler took that as an opportunity to approach Caroline. I wanted to hit Tyler at that moment but I sat back and watched.
I only moved when Caroline and Tyler bumped into each other. Caroline's stuff spilled over the floor and she cursed out loud. Tyler and Caroline were both on the floor, trying to gather her things. He kept trying to apologize to her while helping her. He glanced over at me when he noted my presence,
I only nodded at him in greeting and dropped down to help Caroline. My fingers accidentally brushed against Tyler and I had a really bad feeling all of a sudden. I felt a little sick.
"Care…you have everything?" I asked, grabbing her arm and stopping her from leaving.
Caroline stopped and checked her bag. "I think so. Look, let's just go." She tried to pull me away but I didn't budge. Something was telling me that she didn't have everything.
"Are you sure you have everything?" I asked again, keeping an eye on Tyler.
"I'm sorry Caroline and…Ava." Tyler spoke. He was fidgeting around too much.
I ignored him again and turned to Caroline. "Check again." I said, looking at the floor before I took out my phone and for some reason decided to call Caroline.
"Wha—" Tyler's words were cut off as Caroline's phone started to ring behind him. It was a little muffled but the ringtone was no doubt Caroline's.
Caroline stopped dragging me and marched up to Tyler. She looked at him with wide eyes, shaking her head. "You didn't?" She was lost and confused why Tyler would do that. "Wh-why would you do something like this?"
Tyler looked at me, surprised I figured out his plan and then back at Caroline. He looked really apologetic. "Caroline, I can explain."
"Save it." Caroline took her phone back and grabbed my wrist to drag me away. Tyler stopped her and dragged her. I freed myself and stood aside. "Just leave me alone, you don't have to be a thief."
Noticing the commotion, Matt came around. "What's going around here?"
"Nothing, don't worry about it, man." Tyler lied with ease.
Caroline scoffed. "He tried to steal my phone. That's not nothing."
Now I was the one pulling at her arm, telling her to go. "Caroline, let's go." I tried and I was ignored.
"Not cool, Ty." Matt stood between Tyler and Caroline.
"Stay out of this Matt." Tyler awkwardly smiled and tried to pat Matt's shoulder but Matt swatted his hand away. I glared at the two boys.
God, why were they so dramatic?
Matt laughed sarcastically. "Oh, I should stay out of it. You've been following Caroline for a while. Don't tell me what to do!"
"Okay." I cut between the two. "That's enough of this stupid love triangle. Nobody wants to see this or you two fight. I speak for everyone when I say nobody wants another Founders' Kickoff Party situation."
Tyler visibly flinched at my words and looked away, ashamed and so did Matt. But it seemed neither wanted to really stand down because the moment I went over to check on Caroline, they were at each other's throats, trading verbal blows.
"Tyler that's enough!" Hearing that familiar voice, Tyler froze. His eyes teared up as he looked at the source of the voice.
I heard Caroline gasp next to me. "Oh he really is alive." She mumbled under her breath before looking at the stunned Tyler.
"Uncle Mason." Tyler breathed out. "Wha-how?" He looked at me and then back at his uncle.
"Why is it that everytime I'm back in town you have to pick a fight with someone?" Mason complained, walking up to Tyler. "I'm sorry about him Matt." Mason made Tyler bow his head and apologized on behalf of Matt who just muttered out some insults before getting back to work.
Caroline looked stunned, she kept glancing between me and Mason. I rolled my eyes, can't believe my own best friend thought I lied. "You're late for someone who was staying somewhere close by." I knocked against his shoulder as Caroline and I walked out of the Grill leaving him and Tyler there alone.
I didn't even have to turn around to know Tyler had followed me. Caroline and I separated as Caroline did not want to deal with Tyler after that whole thing back at the grill. What the hell was wrong with him? Why would he even try to steal Caroline's phone?
"Ava!" I heard Tyler call out to me but I wasn't in the mood to listen. "Ava!"
Tyler grabbed my arm and pulled me back, nearly causing me to trip but I caught myself and looked up to glare at him. I pushed him off me and stood up to tighten my scrunchie around my ponytail before deciding to speak.
"What do you want?" I spat out.
Tyler looked down at the floor, tugging his sleeve, guilt written all over his face. "Can we ta—"
"No."
"Please just hear me out."
"No. You didn't hear me or Caroline out." I pointed out, reminding him how I almost begged him to believe us. Of course, he had to go believe strangers he had never met before over us, his childhood friends. "So I have zero reasons to hear you out. Now if you move out of the way, I can get to my car. I have an art project to finish before someone decides to start a problem!"
Tyler didn't move. I narrowed my eyes and puffed up my cheeks. I so did not want to compel him to move. I did have things to do and staying in bed the entire day was not on my agenda.
"Look…I'm…sorry." He finally said those words with much difficulty. He couldn't even look me in the eye. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that Caroline got hurt and I didn't believe you."
I just stared at him, annoyed, angry and just tired. This all could've been avoided if he just listened. I didn't understand why he didn't. "Had a tough time saying that, didn't you?" I questioned, looking away. "You already burnt a bridge, rebuilding it is going to take more than a few sorrys."
"I know that."
"Do you?" I retorted. "Caroline almost died…for real and if she did, I would've never forgiven you."
"I wouldn't have forgiven myself." And he meant that. He seemed sincere. "I thought uncle Mason was gone and I just…"
"You just couldn't believe me that he was fine? I begged you to believe me."
"I'm sorry."
I sucked in a deep breath and let go. In a small voice, I said. "You should've just…listened." Tyler didn't say anything, he took a step back, opening and closing his mouth, swallowing up his words. "I didn't ask for a lot, I just wanted you to listen. It was for your own good. I wanted you to stay away not because of some sinister plan but because even if you were a total dick at times, you were our friend and I know Caroline cared about you so did Matt. You just couldn't listen, could you?"
"...I'm sorry." Tyler apologized ever so quietly. His eyes were downcast but I caught a glimpse of it. They were red and a little watery as if he was going to cry. Good. He deserved to cry after what he put Caroline through. She was lucky that it wasn't a full moon. "My uncle told me a bit about what happened—I…uh…was wrong. I'm sorry, Ava. I just…" He let go a pained breath and looked up. "I just thought I was doing the right thing."
"Well you didn't." I said. "Tyler, you put a lot of people in danger. On top of that, you should be glad it wasn't a full moon or else Caroline along with Stefan and Damon would be dead."
"That wasn't what I wanted."
"Then what did you want?"
"I just…I don't know. My uncle was the only one apart from my mom that I had and I—I'm sorry.
"You should go back home Tyler, your mom's probably going to get worried." In the distance, I noticed Mason coming out of the grill. "Right on time. Take Tyler home and talk to him." I patted Tyler's arm and pushed him toward Mason but Tyler didn't budge. "Actually," Why did Tyler try to steal Caroline's phone, I didn't really think about it before. "Wait. Caroline's phone, why did you try to steal it?"
Mason stopped trying to take Tyler away. Tyler stood in front of me and I watched as his face paled. "Shit." I heard him mutter under his breath. "Caroline's not going to forgive me."
His uncle and I shared a look and Mason decided it would be best for him to take over. "Not if you explain it to her, why'd you do that for Ty?"
Tyler clenched his fists and then unclenched. "I thought you were gone." He said in a quiet voice. "Your pack or people who knew you—people like us—they showed up. I thought I could trust them."
I couldn't explain it but I didn't feel so good about where Tyler was going with this. It seemed Mason shared my sentiments because he had a grim look on his face. "Tyler, what you did to Caroline wasn't—" But Mason was cut off.
"I know I screwed up. I was just…I needed someone."
Seriously?
"And Caroline was that someone." I retorted, suppressing the urge to slap Tyler.
He seemed to know what I was thinking because he looked down and was almost ready for me to attack him. "I know…I just…"
Mason placed a hand on Tyler's shoulder and patted it, looking up at me to go easy on him. I looked away. "You could've made up with her back then, why'd you try to steal her phone Ty?" Mason questioned, circling back to the topic of Caroline's phone that almost slipped my mind.
Tyler hesitated and looked around before motioning us to come toward him. I did not want to be anywhere near him but nevertheless I relented. "They said something about a curse—"
"The sun and the moon curse." Mason guessed, panic laced in his voice. He shared a look with me and he started to panic more. "Tyler please tell me you're not getting yourself involved in this."
"Like you didn't get yourself involved with that chick you were seeing—Kathy?" I was surprised Tyler knew about Katherine or Kathy in this case. Guess the werewolves did keep a close eye on Katherine and Mason. I eyed Mason's face and watched as he went pale. "Did you know Kathy looks exactly like Elena? Like that's gross, man."
"Listen I didn't know—"
"Whatever. You're trying to preach like you weren't involved in this before. That's why you were looking for the moonstone, wasn't it?" Tyler looked up at his uncle. He sounded angry and I wanted to scoff. Both of them screwed up and I didn't want to deal with this. "It was to break the curse? Wasn't it? So that werewolves wouldn't have to transform every full moon night."
Mason's jaws tightened and his eyes became colder. It seemed he was still mad about the whole thing. I mean I would if I was in his spot. "Yeah, I did but…" He paused. "I wasn't like you—"
I scoffed. "No you two are exactly the same." I pointed out. The two were like reflections with how easily they believed strangers they didn't know. "You," I pointed to Mason. "Trusted freaking Katherine Pierce, a conniving class-A backstabbing bitch who actually left people for dead just to survive."
Mason didn't meet my gaze, he was too ashamed. Good.
"And you," Tyler looked away and gave me a look to tell me to drop it. No, I wasn't going to drop it. "You trusted a group of people—strangers you've never met just because they shared one similarity with you—over your own childhood friends who have been actually here for you through it all. You trusted them over Caroline…" My voice lowered but I knew they could still hear me. Werewolves like vampires had good hearing. "Caroline put her second like on the line for you—one bite from you and she'd be dead permanently and what did you do?"
"I said I'm sorry!" Tyler shouted out. He wanted to say more but he immediately quietened once he met my gaze. I was not in the mood to play nice.
"Let me remind you Tyler that tonight's not a full moon. Don't piss me off." I quietly warned as a quiet barely audible hum filled the air. Wind began to pick up as fallen leaves and dust began to fly around. "Or you will regret it." Immediately, the parking lot of the grill quietened and stilled.
Tyler took a step back and turned to his uncle for support. Mason didn't bother to stand up for him. He knew I was right. Mason only went after the Salvatore brothers, he didn't go after people that helped him.
"The curse…" Tyler said in a quiet voice.
"Is possibly fake." Mason pointed out, remembering the multiple arguments uncle Nate and I had against him.
There was a silence that followed Mason's words. Tyler looked up at the two of us and under his breath, I heard him mutter a curse.
My face paled and my stomach twisted into knots. I didn't have a good feeling about this. "Tyler…what did you do?"
"I…" He nervously glanced around at us before his eyes settled on his uncle. "I told them about Elena and they said about a dopple—"
"Doppelganger." I bit my lips the moment I said it. "Shit. Did you tell them everything?"
"I just told them I knew her and w—"
"That's why you tried to steal Caroline's phone." Mason said. "They wanted to know where Elena was."
Tyler nodded. "Look we don't know if this curse is actually fake—what if—what if it can help us werewolves?"
I glared at Tyler and fished my phone out of my pocket trying to call Stefan. But of course, he didn't answer. I heard Tyler trying to justify breaking the curse, we had no idea it was real or fake or if it was real, what or who was cursed. We didn't know anything.
"God Tyler!" I shouted. "You want to be free so bad that you'll let Elena and maybe others die?" The wind started to pick up again as the quiet hum grew louder.
Mason took several steps back. "Ava, calm down. Let's not—"
"Don't." I hissed out. "Don't tell me what to do. Bonnie, Stefan, uncle Nate, Damon and I are running around trying to figure out this stupid curse and how to get rid of Klaus and maybe Elijah while you had to run off after screwing up the first time around and if that wasn't enough Tyler had to pour gasoline over the fire. You two don't get it! Everything about this stupid curse screams bad and something tells me that Elena isn't the only thing that'll die when the curse needs breaking."
"What do you mean?" Mason suddenly stopped focusing on Tyler and turned his attention to me. "Ava, what do you mean?"
I stopped talking and bit down my words. It was just theory so far on the curse about how Tyler, Caroline, Bonnie and Elena were actually just ingredients to break the curse. I wasn't sure if it was actually real.
I couldn't say anything as Caroline texted me, distracting me. I had all but forgotten about the plan to get Luka to talk. Damn it. Mason and Tyler were still with me and we needed to keep an eye on Tyler so I had no choice but to take them with me. I knew Caroline was going to be pissed but what choice did I have.
"So Mason's back and he's with Jenna and your uncle?" I nodded. "Sounds fun. Can't imagine what that feels like but—" Caroline glared at Tyler who looked like he was in pain, well not as much pain Luka was going to be in. "Why is he here?"
"I'm watching him so…you see I had no choice but to bring him along." I tried to reason but Caroline was not listening and it seemed neither did Tyler.
The two stared at each other in silence. Caroline was glaring at him while Tyler looked sorry. This was painful to watch, more painful than watching Caroline and Matt be at odds with each other.
Jeremy looked up at me from the floor. He raised his brow in question and I acted like I didn't see him. Luka was laid out on the floor while Jeremy and Bonnie prepared to interrogate Luka. Every so often the two would pause to check up on Tyler and Caroline's silent war. I just pretended I was not there.
The first person to call off the war was Caroline who walked off with Tyler looking as if he wanted to follow her. Jeremy stared at him in pity as if he understood him. I would rather be at the stupid tea party than be the fifth wheel.
In the end Tyler decided to follow Caroline. The two came back later with some candles. "We only have, like, an hour or two before my mom gets home," Caroline began handing the candles to Jeremy while Tyler tried his best to lay them down in accordance with Bonnie's directions. "and these are all I could find."
"Place these evenly around the room." Bonnie said as Caroline handed her the remaining candles in her hand. Jeremy begins placing the candles around the room.
"What are you guys doing?" Tyler asked carefully.
Everyone in the room including me turned to him and Caroline glared at him. "The better question is why are you in my living room after you tried to steal my phone."
"Caroline…" Bonnie tried to calm her down but Caroline shut her up with a glance. "Why did you try to steal her phone?"
I sighed and turned to Luka on the floor. "Mason's old pack-friends roped him into helping them find Elena so—"
"He tried to steal my phone." Caroline was furious. She puffed up her chest and breathed out heavily. "Get. Out." She hissed out.
"I didn't know!" Tyler shouted out. "I didn't know that Elena would have to die for the stupid curse to break."
"It's not real." I mumbled under my breath but I was ignored.
"So that makes things better?" Caroline crossed her arms and went up to Tyler. The two were so close that I thought they would fight or something.
Tyler shook his head. "No," He swallowed. "It doesn't. I know I screwed up many times over but I am trying my best here to do better. Uncle Mason wasn't there and yeah I know you were the only there for me and I did you wrong but…I'm sorry and I mean it this time. I really am." And he seemed like he meant it. "I just…I didn't have anyone like me when I turned. You had Stefan who could show you the ropes, I had to learn everything from a journal my uncle left behind and maybe a part of me was—"
"You were jealous." Caroline finished. She looked at me for support and I stood up from the floor. "Fine." She breathed out. "I'll accept your apology…just this once but Tyler,"
"Yeah."
"Next time, please trust us…trust me. I was there for you."
"I will. I promise I will."
I breathed out a breath of relief. Tyler actually spoke for once instead of running away. I wanted to clap and cheer for the two actually talking to each other. I guess I'd have to apologize to Mason later for going off on him. He was a good influence on Tyler.
Jeremy cleared his throat, breaking the little moment Caroline and Tyler had going on. Bonnie and he motioned to the unconscious Luka on the floor and pointed to the clock on the wall.
Caroline and Tyler immediately separated as Tyler came to stand next to me and Caroline went over to talk to Bonnie. "So now that's over." Jeremy began, eying Caroline and Tyler. "How does this work?"
"Um, I'll put him in a trance and ask him questions." Bonnie awkwardly clasped her hands though there was a ghost of a smile on her face. If the situation wasn't so urgent, she and I would totally laugh about this whole thing. "...It's like hypnosis."
"So it's like Ava does?" Tyler tried to guess.
"Close, Ava's abilities are similar to vampires' compulsion except it's a little stronger and I don't think there's a way to reverse hers. This is just hypnosis."
Tyler nodded, happy that Bonnie and everyone else had gone back to treating him as normal. Jeremy rolled his eyes and spoke up again. "You sure you're strong enough for this?" He asked Bonnie, concern showing on his face to the amusement of Tyler.
"That's what the candles are for. I'll draw power from the flames."
"I'll get the matches." Caroline turned to leave and she was barely out of the room when Bonnie stopped her.
"I got it." Bonnie shut her eyes and the candles flared up. Caroline turned around and smiled in surprise even though I was a little awed by the display of her growing powers.
Tyler stood back a little in surprise. "You really are a witch." He commented and Bonnie nodded with a smile on her face.
"Never gonna get used to that." Jeremy moved a little closer to Bonnie.
Caroline scoffed with her hands on her hips. "Oh, come on. That's pretty hot, and you know it." Her words made Jeremy smile and Bonnie look up at him.
Tyler nudged me and motioned towards them with his head. "Since when is that a thing?" He quietly questioned. Only Caroline could probably hear us, I saw her move a little to listen to us properly.
"They're not." I whispered. "At least not yet."
"I need a bowl of water." Bonnie said and Jeremy was already on the move.
Jeremy nodded and got up. "Yeah, yeah. I'll—I'll go get it." He quickly left and I couldn't help but laugh.
"That was adorable." I couldn't help but say. Tyler looked at me incredulously.
Caroline nodded her head in agreement, smiling broadly down at Bonnie, who looked up at us in annoyance. "Okay. What was that? 'It's hot'?" Bonnie folded her arms and glanced over us.
"Okay that was pretty lame." I agreed with Bonnie.
"And a little too obvious." Tyler mumbled, checking to see if Jeremy was still in the kitchen.
"You're right. Oh god. I feel so—ugh." Bonnie covered her face with her hands and Caroline looked up to glare at Tyler once again.
Tyler and Caroline silently began to argue and I wanted the ground to swallow me up. Why was I the fifth wheel? I should've gone to the tea party. Tyler sighed. "Well as lame as Caroline was, if it makes you feel any better, I don't think he noticed." Tyler grinded out his words, spitting them out while keeping eye contact with Caroline.
Caroline softened her gaze and beamed brightly, mouthing a soft 'thank you' to Tyler as Bonnie uncovered her face. "Exactly. He is so crushing on you." She whispered.
"So?"
Caroline took a seat down on the floor across from Bonnie while motioning me and Tyler to do the same. Reluctantly, Tyler sat down. "So...What, you'd rather be with traitor warlock over here?" Caroline questioned.
"I'm sure he has his reasons." Tyler remarked.
"Of course you'd say that."
I clapped my hands together. "Guys." I quietly warned the two not to start.
Bonnie smiled, amused by the whole thing. "I'm not into Luka."
"Liar." I said. I could tell she and Luka really did like each other. A shame they met under such terrible circumstances. "You like him."
Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Okay. Maybe I did or do. It's just, you know, he understood me, and he was new and different."
"Sounds like to me you still like him a little."
Caroline gently nudged me. "Ava! Whose side are you on?"
"Hey, I told you I'm team 'Let Bonnie be happy' and I won't change my answer." I didn't care about either Luka or Jeremy as Bonnie's potential boyfriend. I wanted Bonnie to be happy and it was clear from the sound of it, Luka and her really did have a connection. "I feel like if Luka and you met when things were different, you two would be great together." If Elijah wasn't in the picture, I had a feeling the two would be the poster child for witches' version of high school sweethearts.
"The right person at the wrong time." Tyler said with a sigh. Caroline looked Tyler and the two just stared at each other as if they understood what Tyler was saying.
Caroline broke eye contact and cleared her throat. "She's known Jeremy since forever, and you only see him one way, as Elena's brother, but you're a witch, he's a werewolf," Caroline pointed to Tyler and then turned to me. "She's a faery—"
"Part faery." I corrected.
Caroline ignored me and carried on. "and I'm a vampire. You know, it's not like we're in any position…"
"To be picky." Bonnie finished with a sigh.
"No. To judge." Caroline said as she started to laugh as did I and Tyler. Bonnie couldn't help but also laugh hearing us. Between the laughter, somehow I noticed that Caroline's gaze went to Tyler.
Oh.
Tyler seemed like he was going to say something but Jeremy walked back in the room with a bowl of water at that moment Tyler opened his mouth. He said nothing and watched as Bonnie took the bowl from Jeremy and placed it on the floor by Luka's head.
"What happens if you can't do it?" Tyler questioned, standing up again.
"Then I step in." I said, looking over at Luka.
"Why aren't you stepping in now?"
"Because—Tyler," Caroline looked up at Tyler, expecting him to understand that this was actually pretty personal to Bonnie. It took him a minute and then he nodded, finally understanding.
Before any of us could do anything, Tyler's phone started to go off. "Tyler." Bonnie hissed. "Put your phone on silent."
Tyler nodded his head and I watched as his face paled. "What happened?" Caroline and I asked at the same time.
"Uhh…" Tyler seemed to lose his ability to speak for a second. In frustration, he pulled at his hair. "We have a problem." He said quietly, trying his best not to alert Bonnie and Jeremy. He kept glancing over at Jeremy and that's when I realized.
Oh no.
I tilted my head to the side and quietly dragged him outside with Caroline at our heels. "Elena's in danger, isn't she?" I asked quietly.
"What?" Caroline glanced between us. "What's going on?"
"I screwed up by telling Mason's old friends about Elena." Tyler began and Caroline was ready to retort, Tyler quickly carried on talking before Caroline could say anything to interrupt him. "I didn't know about the whole dopple-ganger stuff. I really didn't. They showed me a picture of uncle Mason's vampire ex Kathy and I accidentally blurted out Elena's name."
"They knew about Katherine!" Caroline hissed and Tyler nodded.
"Who's Katherine?"
"Remember I mentioned Damon and Stefan's ex." Tyler nodded. "That's Katherine Pierce, the previous doppelganger, Elena's ancestor." I said, taking out my phone to call both Stefan and Damon. I paused, noticing how quiet Caroline had gotten. "It's not his fault, this time. It was on Mason for not telling him about the doppelganger business."
Caroline looked down at the ground, folding her arms around herself. "Still, how could you—"
"They're not only going after Elena." Tyler accidentally cut her off. "Jules and the rest of her pack are going after Damon."
My eyes widened and I didn't know what to say. I knew what to say but I didn't want to say it. "How did they find out where Elena is?" I asked instead.
"I-uh-I don't know." Caroline stared at Tyler, not believing a single thing he was saying. "I swear I didn't tell them a thing. I don't even know where they are myself."
She sighed and turned to me. "I'll let Bonnie know and—"
I shook my head. "No, stay with Bonnie. She might need you here. I'll call Mason and my uncle—we'll probably have to split up. Some of us will have to check on Elena and Stefan since neither are picking up my calls and some of us will have to check on Damon."
"I can help."
"I never said you can't Care. It's just…Jeremy just started training with my uncle—I don't even know why. Bonnie's magic might be useful but she's still learning. You understand what I'm trying to say?"
Reluctantly, Caroline nodded. She didn't put up another fight and decided to listen to what I was saying. Instead, she pulled Tyler aside and I left the two alone for a while to have their own conversations. Watching the two, I couldn't help but sigh and feel sorry for Matt. Caroline and Matt were doomed the moment Caroline became a vampire which was such a shame. The two were great together.
Tyler came back later with a sullen look on his face and quietly got into my car. On the other hand, Caroline had a bright smile on her face. I didn't question either and just chose to leave.
Only crickets screamed out into the quiet night as Mason and I pulled up to the Salvatore Boarding House. It was silent, eerily silent except for the screaming crickets. Mason checked on me as he took the lead. He must've sensed how strange the quiet was.
It was just a shame that my uncle couldn't tag along. Alaric bailed on Jenna once again which was honestly concerning considering he and Damon were supposed to be together at the Boarding House. Uncle Nate decided to stay with Jenna while Mason wanted to tag along, telling me it wasn't safe on my own.
"I don't get why you sent Tyler off on his own." I said quietly as Mason stopped at the door.
He looked at me behind his shoulders and made a face. "Because Brady and the ones that went to get Elena asked him to be there."
"Right. Why are you not there?"
"Only two or three people went to get Elena and pack politics, Brady doesn't exactly like me. I doubt he'll care about me being alive."
"Because you dated a vampire."
"No, because the friend I accidentally killed to activate my curse was his best friend."
I nodded. "Wow. Katherine made a real mess of your life." He made a face and opened the door.
I could hear a quiet static cacophony of thoughts the moment I stepped through the door. "They're here." I quietly said, grabbing Mason's attention.
"You can hear their thoughts."
"A little. It helps that it's not a full moon."
Mason nodded and carried on, going deeper into the Boarding House. I guess I was glad that Slater left for California before things could get worse for him. The downside was that Alaric was not enough to keep Damon out of his messes.
The first thing I saw when we came closer to the parlor was Alaric's cold body on the floor. Mason cursed under his breath and gave up on stealth, deciding to make himself known.
"Jules! That's enough!" Mason shouted, grabbing everyone's attention.
Jules looked up with wide eyes as did some of the pack members. I rolled my eyes and followed him in. The stench of blood hit my senses and made me sick to my stomach.
I let out a quiet gasp when I noticed the source. Damon was chained to a chair in front of the fireplace with what seemed like a torture device around his neck. He seemed out of it, closing and opening his eyes weakly while softly grunting and groaning in pain but it seemed he noticed my presence because he lifted his head quickly while hissing in pain as his eyes found mine. He kept weakly shaking his head, almost as if he was begging me to leave.
"Mason." Jules breathed out as the pack members started to talk among themselves. "This…this is impossible. Is this one of your tricks, Damon?" Jules turned and pulled the chain attached to his torture device, making Damon groan in pain.
"Let him go. It's me. I'm fine."
"I don't believe this." Jules laughed in disbelief. "We thought you were dead—he killed you."
Mason tiredly breathed out. "It's complicated but as everyone can see I'm fine—I just didn't appreciate you trying to manipulate my nephew."
She scoffed as I started counting the wolves on her side. There were quite a few. I don't know if Mason and I'd be able to take them out. I paused planning when I noticed Damon still staring at me.
"Manipulate him?" Jules narrowed her eyes on Mason and dropped the chain. "I was helping him. You left! You left without a word when he needed you—when we needed you."
"I know but Tyler was my responsibility not yours! I had to leave and I was going to be back."
"I'm sure you had a great reason for leaving—totally doesn't have to do with being the errand boy for that Kathy chick who by the way was a vampire doppelganger." One of the wolves said.
"If I didn't leave, I would've died, Stevie."
Stevie nodded along before laughing mockingly. He didn't really care.
"Yeah because he," Jules aggressively pointed at Damon. "Would've killed you."
"No—I mean he tried but I'm here, aren't I?"
I took a step back and noted the other werewolves kept their gaze on me. They weren't going to stand down. "Mason…" I quietly tried to grab his attention but Mason didn't want to listen.
"Jules…it doesn't have to be this way. I'm telling you to back down." Mason tried again.
"Screw you, Mason! You should've just died!" She hissed out and as if one cue the werewolves jumped into action, ready to attack Mason and me.
With a wave of my hand, small orbs of light formed above my head as the lights above us started to flicker. "So much for a peaceful discussion." I commented and Jules grinned at me like she just remembered I was there.
"That's adorable coming from Damon's girlfriend." She chuckled.
"Not his girlfriend." I retorted.
Damon let out a pained and tired laugh, coughing a few times before he croaked out a single word. "...Yet."
I raised my brow in disbelief. "You know on second thought, you guys can torture him for five seconds more—no more than that."
"Ava!" Mason hissed at me and I shrugged. He should blame Damon for being so reckless. "Jules, let's talk about this."
"There's nothing to talk about." Jules didn't want peace, she wanted a fight. "We want the moonstone."
"Look, if you don't tell your people to stand down, they will die." I tried to warn them.
"Is that a threat?"
"It's a warning. We want a peaceful end to this all without any bloodshed, if you don't stop I can't guarantee that."
"Then hand the moonstone over." Jules tried to negotiate.
"See the thing is we don't really have the moonstone…anymore, it was st—" I tried to say something but unfortunately I was cut off by Stevie.
"Don't listen to her, she probably wants vampires to become daywalkers." Stevie pulled the chain in Damon's torture device.
"Screw you, Stevie." Mason stood in front of me.
I clicked my tongue in annoyance. This was getting so tiring. "I'm not a witch!"
"That's what a witch would say. Like you're not casting spells." Stevie was getting on my nerves.
An orb of light flew through the air towards Jules and her werewolves, shattering on the wall behind them. "I don't cast spells and the curse isn't real!"
"We've heard enough from you two!" A man yelled out, tackling Mason to the ground.
Mason wrestled with a man, trying his best to reason with them, leaving me to deal with rest. Great. This was totally great, not like I didn't—I sighed, yeah, it wasn't going to my plan. I ducked as a man tried to tackle me. I heard a loud crack and I along with several others looked up to see that Mason had broken the back of the person who had tackled him.
The orbs started to fly and hit the members of Mason's former pack while I tried to dodge and duck the others trying to tackle me.
They were not seriously trying to fight a teenage girl, were they?
Lights in the parlor flickered wildly and I was getting pissed. I stood up and glared at one of the men who tried to tackle me. He was unlucky that it wasn't a full moon and that I was pissed. I hesitated for a second but one look at Damon, I narrowed my eyes on the man and two small orbs of light joined to form a big orb before it flew straight into the man.
The orb burnt a hole through his chest and he could only look on in horror. Wide eyed with a face stuck in perpetual horror, he fell forward with the gaping hole in his chest still present and the stench of burnt flesh filled the air.
I was almost thrown back to the night Vicki died and tears almost flooded my vision. I swallowed my tears and looked up to hear a woman screaming. She must've been the man's loved one, not that I cared.
I looked at Jules with a blank face, light crackling at my fingertips while the lights above flickered wildly. "We warned you all." I stated.
Someone tried to grab me and I dropped to the floor before kicking them, knocking them off balance. Another ran towards me and I dodged them with ease.
Unfortunately I didn't notice the third werewolf behind me. Not until I heard Mason. "Ava, watch out!"
My head hit a wall and hissed in pain. I was flashes of red and black. My vision clouded in pain and it took me a second to recover before I noticed that a surviving member of Jules' pack had his hands around neck. He squeezed it and I gasped for air.
I turned and twisted trying to free myself while trying my best to stay awake. But it was getting harder with my oxygen being cut off. The man tightened his grip on my neck and I let out a choked sound.
I turned again and noticed Mason being thrown into the air. He hit the wall with a loud thud before falling to the floor and I hastened my attempts to get free.
"Not so brave now, are you little girl?" The man chuckled while he squeezed my neck.
Trying to take large gulps of air, I weakly looked up. My eyes narrowed in on his face and he grinned at me. Weakly I grabbed his wrist, trying to pry his hands off me. I could hear Damon's grunts and groans of pain alongside Mason's.
It really wasn't going to my plan.
I tried again to push the man's hands off me but it just didn't work. Breathing heavily, I stopped trying to push him and instead I just held on.
There was a sudden spark of energy lit inside and I felt warm all of sudden. The man's grip on my neck weakened. "Wha-" I heard him say but he was quickly cut off.
He started to rapidly pale and his face became gaunt like that of a corpse. His skin became colder and colder. His eyes fogged up. He let out a breath and it seemed to freeze up. Gradually he grew weaker and weaker before his grip on my neck slackened and he fell to the floor, only sitting up because of my hold on his wrist.
The air flowed freely into my lungs and immediately I felt better but that wasn't the only thing that made me feel better. The pale and gaunt man on the floor weakly looked up. He tried to mumble out a threat but he couldn't even muster up the energy to do so.
I let go and he crumpled on the floor like a discarded doll. "What the hell?" Stevie gasped out, seeing the scene.
I smiled up at the remaining werewolves as if nothing had happened. "I'll give you all one last chance to negotiate." I said to them all.
"Screw you." Jules hissed out.
I nodded sadly. "Yeah well, I'm tired of fighting so stand down."
"Who are you to tell us what to do?"
"That wasn't a request."
Jules and Stevie shook their heads. To their horror, however, the other remaining members of their pack fell to their knees. Their eyes shining a bright pale gold, shimmering into a light lilac before returning normal.
"How-wha—" Stevie couldn't finish his words as sudden applause interrupted him.
Mason sat up, holding his rib in pain and glanced over at me to check on me. I wasn't looking at him. My attention was on the source of the sudden applause.
My face paled and as did the faces of Jules' pack. Elijah leaned against the bannister still clapping, an amused smile on his face and a bright twinkle in his eyes.
"I have to say you exceeded my expectations." Elijah began, his eyes on mine as he came down. Jules and Stevie shared a glance. "I believe this is what you are all looking for." He took out the moonstone from his pocket and held it up for everyone to see. He placed it on the table and backed away. "Take it." One of Jules' pack members broke free of my compulsion and ran straight towards the moonstone but Elijah was quicker. He plunged his hand straight into the man's chest and ripped his heart out before turning to me. "An extraordinary show of skill but—" Another man ran to him after breaking out of my control. "Don't let your emotions get the best of you."
My breath hitched and I almost choked on air before I looked away. I heard him chuckle lowly under his breath. When I turned around, he was right in front of me. "Wh-what are you doing here?" I breathed out, stepping back to put some space between us.
Elijah studied my face. His grin faded once his eyes trailed to my neck. He reached out to touch my bruised neck but I pulled away, leaving his hand hanging in the air. "My deal with Elena Gilbert." He stated, displeasure in his voice. I walked away and went to check on Damon. He followed behind me quietly and unhappily. "Unfortunately said deal also includes Damon Salvatore."
"Right. I forgot."
"Though I have to say, you've done quite well for yourself."
"Is that a compliment?"
"It is." He confirmed with a ghost of a smile gracing his handsome face. "Though you made one mistake."
"Which is?" I didn't like where this was going.
"You left some alive."
Before I or anyone in that room could blink. The werewolves that were still kneeling on the floor fell head first on the wooden floor, their hearts ripped from their chest. Elijah stood before me nonchalantly with bloodied hands.
"You…" I breathed out. "You killed them."
"They tried to kill you first." He pointed out.
"I know that but still, we—I could've erased their memories and let them go."
Elijah nodded. "I suppose you could've but," He turned his head behind him to look at the ashen corpse of a man who looked as if he died of being left out in freezing temperatures. "You already killed two and why stop at there, when you could kill them all."
"...I had no choice." I tried to say but deep down I knew I did and it seemed so did Elijah.
With a light grin on his face, Elijah turned to the cowering Stevie. "What about you, sweetheart, hmm? You want to take a shot? Yes? No? Yes?" Stevie violently shook his head while I went to help Mason. "Where's the girl?" He asked.
"I don't know." Damon grunted out. Elijah punched Stevie, knocking him out before turning to the rest of us.
Taking my eyes off Elijah, I focused on Mason. I placed my hand near Mason's ribcage. His bones started to heal and I could hear the quiet cracks. Elijah stopped interrogating Stevie for a second to watch me as I focused on healing Mason.
"She must've ran off. Jules…she's fast." Mason breathed out.
Elijah nodded. "It doesn't really matter." He didn't really care. He stood behind me and followed me as I hurried over to help Damon. I struggled a little trying to pry the contraption around Damon's neck open and remove it properly. Elijah noticed it and placed his hand on top of mine before taking over.
"This would've been my third time saving your life if it wasn't for Ava." Elijah said.
"All the more reason why we don't need you." Damon bit out. I pursed my lips and looked away.
Elijah clicked his tongue and glared at Damon. "We shall see." It was the last thing he said before dumping Damon on the couch and disappearing.
I crouched in front of Damon. "You look like hell." I commented.
Damon looked at me with a weak grin. His face was coated in blood, his injuries were already healing but the blood was still there. "I feel like hell." He replied with a weak laugh. "Oh Mason's here too. Come to gloat?"
"Maybe later." Mason stood up. "Jeez why do you always feel the need to piss people off."
"Because it's fun."
"You and I have a very different definition of fun."
"Says the werewolf to the vampire."
I stared at Damon incredulously. "Seriously? Damon, you almost died."
"Just another day for Damon." Mason laughed.
"Whatever." I threw my hands in the air and backed off. "I'm not cleaning up all of this."
"Leaving already?" Damon looked up at me and I shook my head.
I turned away from him, stepping over the bodies, trying my best not to get blood on my heeled boots. "I'm going down to get some blood bags."
Damon finished the sixth blood bag I had gotten from the cellar and tossed it to the side. The parlor was cleared of the bodies with a little help from Mason who left soon after he was done, not wanting to be around Damon for longer despite the two surprisingly getting along. I turned away from Damon and stared at the ground, thinking about Elijah.
What was his actual plan?
Did he really want Elena to die to take down Klaus?
I had so many questions but little to no answers. I didn't know much but I didn't trust him too much. He made me too nervous. It didn't help that my childhood best friend was trying to do her best to be the best sacrificial lamb.
"Hey." Stefan finally picked up my phone. "Sorry I didn't pick up, I left my phone inside to grab some firewood outside."
I chuckled. "You know the whole point of a phone is for emergencies but somehow you never have yours on you during emergencies."
"I know. I know." Stefan sighed. "Tyler managed to get here on time."
"And if he didn't? What then?"
"Then I would've handled it on my own."
"Until they staked you?"
"Hey, I took them out so I can handle myself."
I rolled my eyes and glanced at Damon who was still busy clearing up. "Okay, I'll admit, you can handle yourself but let's be honest if Tyler didn't warn you, Elena and you'd be screwed."
"You're right about that." I heard some rustling in the background and Stefan paused for a second. "I feel bad for Tyler."
"Yeah, at least Mason came back."
"Mason came back?"
"Yeah. Tyler got earful from him. He actually just left to get Tyler." I craned my head to check if Mason was still at the Boarding House, he wasn't. "Think he and Tyler are leaving until the dust clears."
"Good choice. I'd make Elena do the same but…"
"She's stubborn." I lightly hummed in agreement and decided to change the subject. "So Bonnie interrogated Luka."
"Oh." His voice sounded a little muffled and I could hear the sound of gravel being crushed. He must've been outside. "And? Anything?"
I hesitated for a second. "Elijah…he wants to go through with the Sacrifice. He's not trying to prevent it and that means—"
"Elena will die." Stefan finished. I could hear terror in his voice. "And Elena's going to play right into it."
I sighed. "She's still on her martyr crusade?"
"What do you think?" Stefan questioned. "She's hellbent on wanting to do this for her family and us."
"Except there's a chance that we might go with her too. We know a werewolf, a vampire and witch are also needed to break the curse Stefan."
"She won't listen to us. I've tried to talk her out of it."
"Should I just—" I never really finished my sentence as I was interrupted by Damon who stood in front of me. "What?" I asked, pausing my conversation.
Damon looked me over while Stefan was still on the line. "Is that Damon?" Stefan asked.
"Stefan?" Damon mouthed and I nodded. He came to stand behind me and I tried to pass him my phone but instead, he just left my hand hanging in the air and held my hand close to his ear. "Well hello there brother."
I heard Stefan sigh on the other side, not so happy at being interrupted. "Damon, nice to hear you're still alive."
"Disappointed?"
I just handed my phone to Damon and walked off. I still had to check the dagger that John gave Damon and check if it was in anyway similar to my family dagger.
Behind me I heard a gasp as Alaric sat up abruptly, clutching his chest. "Oh great. You're still alive." I said, checking behind my shoulders.
"How long was I out?" Alaric gasped for air and tried to ease his lingering unease. I only shrugged in response. "Thanks for that."
Damon hung up and handed my phone back. "Finally. You missed all the fun."
Alaric took one look at the scorched wall where an orb of light had shattered and back at Damon. "What the hell happened?"
I made a sound as I checked my texts. "I think you should call Jenna first. She's a little…"
Alaric pushed himself off the ground and hobbled over to where he left his phone to call Jenna. Damon watched him go silently, his eyes moved from Alaric in mine, the minute Alaric was gone from my view.
"Can I see the dagger John gave you?" I found myself saying without really thinking much.
Damon raised a brow and nodded. "You're gonna compare it to your family dagger?"
"Yeah, so can I see it?" Damon paused for a second and checked if Alaric was still busy before leading me to his room. "You hid it in your room? How original."
He rolled his eyes but there was a playful grin on his face. For someone who almost died that night, he was a little too happy at that moment. "Well, I'll have you know that I was actually checking the dagger before. I have a separate hiding spot just for…" He disappeared for a second and reappeared a second later with the dagger and a small jar. "This."
I went over to him and watched as he took out the dagger from its case. He placed it in my hands. The handle and the blade were too familiar. The only thing missing was my family crest at the tilt. I brought it closer to my face and carefully scanned every edge and groove of the dagger before handing it back to Damon without a word.
"Well?" He asked, his brows raised and standing a little too close than I'd have normally liked. "Is it the same or similar.
For a second, I didn't say anything. I just stared at the blade in his hands. "No, it's different." I lied. "Where did John get this?" I questioned in turn.
He narrowed his eyes on mine and took a few more steps forward, closing the distance between us. We were close enough to touch. "Isobel gave it to him." He wasn't focusing on the dagger but his eyes were on my face. "...Are you sure it's not the same?"
"No." I repeated. "The design is similar. It might be from the same era in time." I added, trying to convince me more than him. He seemed to believe me and sheathed the dagger. "Still if I were you, I wouldn't use it without knowing enough about it."
"You're right this is something from John."
"Exactly and the ashes are something."
"It's just saw dust." Damon joked but I didn't laugh. I was too preoccupied with the thought that the dagger in his hand was the exact same dagger my family had. "You know…I nearly died today." I nodded. "And I was thinking—" He put the dagger to the side and I inhaled sharply as his arms circled around my waist. "I was thinking about you."
"Damon—"
My lips were swallowed by Damon's lips. His hands on my waist and mine on his arm. My mind was in chaos, just for that moment I forgot what I was thinking and let myself give in. With my fists around his collar, I pulled him in closer.
We moved in sync before I found myself on his bed. I closed my eyes for a second and opened them again just to see his bedroom ceiling above me. That view was quickly covered by Damon's flushed face that leaned once more. I grabbed his collar and pulled him in again, letting out a euphoric giggle in between his kisses. He laughed in joy in response.
My hands automatically started to undo his shirt buttons and he took off my jacket, tossing it to the floor as his lips dotted kisses down my neck to my collarbone.
"Hey, I called Jenna and Nate was asking about…" Damon and I quickly separated, sitting up. Alaric stared at us with wide-eyes, his mouth agape. "Oh my god."
"This isn't what it looks like." I said at the same time as Damon said. "This is exactly what it looks like." I lightly punched his chest. Half of his shirt buttons were undone, exposing his chest a little. He smirked at me while Alaric let out an exasperated sound.
My history teacher didn't say anything but just stared at Damon in judgment. "Shit." I cursed out when I noticed the time. "Okay, I'm gonna go. I have a curfew and…" I pursed my lips, my cheeks were warm in embarrassment as I grabbed my jacket off his floor.
"Give me a minute. I'll drop you off." Damon said as I was hurriedly gathering my things.
"I can drive by myself." I retorted, tying up my hair and then promptly letting it down once I saw the marks dotted on my previously clear skin. I let out a sound and turned around to glare at him before buttoning my jacket up to my neck and letting my hair down in an attempt to cover them all. I could only hope that they'd heal quickly by the time I got home.
Damon grabbed my keys off my hands and grabbed me by my wrist, tugging me out of his room. "And I said I'll drop you off. It's not safe with Elijah and whatever that might lurk in the dark."
I scoffed. "Oh like you're not lurking in the dark."
"I don't lurk." Damon replied.
Alaric cleared his throat, following us out into the front yard. "You two do realize I'm still here." He said, glancing between me and Damon.
"Unfortunately." Damon said in response before grinning brightly. "What? You want a ride as well."
"I'm good. Thank you very much."
I didn't say a word and got into my car. Obviously, I was beyond embarrassed and I couldn't help but cover my face with my hands. Damon got in beside me. His smug smile still on his face. I hated how I just gave in but at least he wouldn't question me about the dagger anymore.
Surprisingly, all the lights were not turned off when Damon dropped me off and left. I could hear quiet music playing somewhere mixed in with some laughter. I guess uncle Nate had some friends over.
"You're back late." I heard Tyler say as I put my keys away. "What happened to your neck and lips apparently?"
I ignored his question. "Tyler what are you…" I trailed off once he looked towards the living room. "Jenna, Mason and my uncle?" He nodded and I sighed. "Let's hope they don't get too drunk."
Tyler smiled in response and Jenna drunkenly stumbled into the foyer. "Ava!" She said brightly and engulfed me into a hug. "You're surprisingly late…were you grading papers too?" She asked and I looked over at my uncle who followed her questionably.
Uncle Nate separated Jenna from me and flashed an apologetic smile at me. "Actually, I was dealing with something at the Boarding House." It was as vague as I could be without lying.
"See I like you and Nate. You two aren't complete liars." Jenna said with a giggle. "I mean at least Nate tells me the truth, no matter how d-dumb he sounds. Like vampires?" She laughed. "Can you believe that? Oh!" She grabbed my hand. "You know one time, your uncle told me your grandma Janine was a witch." She said quietly, almost trying to whisper as if she was telling me a secret. "And he told me he was a warlock. He also told me about Isobel, Ric's ex and Elena's mom…I just didn't believe him. I mean it's ridiculous." She stopped laughing and I patted her shoulders before looking over my uncle and Mason.
'John?' I mouthed to them both and uncle Nate nodded. I sighed. John was always the cause of an issue. "It's okay Jenna, maybe you guys should stop drinking and call it a night."
Jenna tried to protest but uncle Nate carefully dragged her away while Mason laughed. "Well, Tyler and I are going on a road trip early in the morning with obvious permission from his mom so I'll call it a night. Come on Ty."
The two Lockwoods were escorted to their rooms by a few maids still awake at night while uncle Nate stayed downstairs to comfort Jenna. It was funny, I wonder how my ancestors would feel looking at all of this. I was just making out with Damon while uncle Nate was partying with a Lockwood.
We were almost free from the ghosts of past, almost but knowing the dagger that John gave Damon was the same my family had, I knew those petty ghosts were nothing compared to what was coming and I was not looking forward to it.
Author's Note: I don't typically write these kinds of notes but I feel like I've been forced to. Someone or a group of people have been leaving my stories some 'interesting' review spams where they advertise their stories. Now, I don't mind story suggestions or ideas. I do enjoy reading reviews, comments, critiques and conversations but I have to draw a line at being threatened to have my stories taken down because I won't give them a review or check out their stories (some of them contain vore and other disturbing stuff). Please refrain from doing those sorts of things. I've posted this on another story that's also been targeted. Fortunately, I've managed to have those guest reviews deleted as quickly as I saw them but once again, I would really appreciate it if people don't do those things or I will be forced to permanently stop uploading here, move to AO3 and Wattpad completely. That's just me mentioning the extreme case scenarios.
If anyone would like to keep up with me on those sites, I go by 'Fireflower17' on AO3 and 'Sylerisya' on Wattpad. Though I am not currently uploading 'Come As You Are' on Wattpad.
I don't want to stop uploading here, this was where I first started uploading my stories and I'd hate to leave because of a few persistent people.
That's all I have to say. As always, happy reading and Happy Holidays!
