It was just after two in the morning when Emily finally saw the Salvatore boarding house in her sights after a very long night that was usually filled with so much fun.
It took way longer than Emily would have liked to leave the bonfire, especially when the Radkova witch was so exhausted from the night's events.
Obviously, they didn't have a way home since the vampire hunter's car was blown up, so Emily, Alaric, and Stefan had to wait for the Sommers vampire to come pick them up.
While they waited for Jenna to come, the trio also had to file a police report after there were multiple calls to the police station about an explosion at the party.
Thankfully, Emily and Alaric sweet-talked the deputy to chalk it up as a faulty car issue and not a targeted attack before a wrecker driver hauled the ruined SUV off to the salvage yard.
The car ride to the Salvatore boarding house in Jenna's small car was mostly silent - besides the Sommers vampire questioning what happened to Alaric's car and constantly making sure Emily was okay.
While Jenna sprouted her worries onto her niece and boyfriend, Emily had been occupying herself by answering multiple text messages from the group chat that she shared with Scott, Stiles, and Allison from Beacon Hills.
The Radkova witch had quickly texted the group chat before Scott could even think about driving to Mystic Falls at the feeling of their shared mark burning up from almost falling to her death and being burnt alive.
Emily was honestly too exhausted to recap the whole night to the trio, so Emily just assured the group that she was perfectly fine and that she would explain everything in the morning.
The Radkova witch had just texted good night to the group chat before she felt Jenna's car slowly pulling to a stop. Emily glanced out the window before she released a breath of relief when Emily saw they were parked in front of the boarding house.
Emily reached between the two front seats before she placed her palm onto the Sommers vampire's shoulder. "Thanks for the ride, Jen," the Radkova witch murmured as she praised her aunt.
Jenna turned to face her niece before she shot the Radkova witch a small smile. "It wasn't a problem," Jenna assured her niece before she told Emily, "get some rest, Emmie."
"I will," the Radkova witch promised before she gave Jenna's shoulder a short squeeze. Emily shot her aunt a small smile in return before she opened the door and exited out of the Sommers vampire's car.
Emily would usually be worried about what they were going to do with the emotionless vampire after they went through this whole plan to trap Stefan but Emily was honestly too exhausted to care at the moment.
Emily just wanted to go to sleep, so she didn't even both giving the emotionless vampire a second glance after she climbed out of the car. Instead, the Radkova witch headed straight up the porch before she opened the front door to the Salvatore boarding house.
Emily didn't get the option to feel that state of comfort after coming home after a long night when she suddenly gasped in surprise when she felt a body slam right into hers.
However, the Radkova witch quickly relaxed once she smelled the familiar scent of the strawberry shampoo and conditioner that she knew Elena has used since they were fourteen.
"Thank God you're okay!" Elena gasped as she tightly wrapped her arms around the Radkova witch's shoulders. "I'm so sorry I left you out there," the human girl hurriedly apologized, "but Dam-"
Emily softly chuckled at her twin sister's ramblings. "It's okay," the Radkova witch murmured as she interrupted Elena's string of apologies. Emily assuringly squeezed her sister's waist before she pushed herself out of Elena's tight embrace.
A grin immediately pulled onto the Radkova witch's face when she looked to the living room and noticed Damon waving a glass of bourbon from the couch for her.
Emily quickly crossed the foyer and walked into the living room before she headed over to the Salvatore vampire. "Thanks," Emily murmured as she accepted the glass of bourbon.
Meanwhile, the human Petrova doppelganger released a heavy sigh of relief after knowing that Emily wasn't upset with her. "Oh, thank God," Elena gasped as she followed after her twin sister into the living room.
"Things just got out of control very quickly at the bonfire," Elena exclaimed as she tried to explain what happened from her side, "I saw Rebekah stab Damon and I knew I had to get him out of there."
Emily downed half of her glass of bourbon as she carelessly waved her hand at her twin sister. "It's okay. I understand," the Radkova witch assured Elena as she exhaustedly fell back onto the couch beside Damon.
It wasn't until the Radkova witch was in the living room with better lighting than the foyer that Elena noticed the burn marks on Emily's arms and face. The human girl released a loud gasp before Elena hurriedly asked, "what happened to you?"
The exhausted Radkova witch was confused at what Elena meant until she glanced down to her hand that was holding the crystal glass before she noticed the cuts and the pink and red pigments on her skin.
Emily twisted her arm around to look at each mark as she quietly admitted, "yeah, I'm not exactly sure what happened myself."
Emily's words quickly gained the attention of the annoyed Salvatore vampire from his interaction with Klaus' sister. "What's that supposed to mean?" Damon inquired as he looked over to Emily with his brows pulled together in confusion.
"It means I don't know," Emily muttered as she shrugged her shoulders.
"One minute, Ric and I were loading Stefan in the trunk of his car and the next, there was a fire surrounding us," the Radkova witch stated as she tried to explain what happened to the couple.
"I couldn't see anyone causing it but I could definitely feel some strong magic being involved," Emily murmured as she thought back to what happened tonight. "I'll have to call Bonnie soon and see if she knew anything about it," the Radkova witch muttered, mostly to herself.
"Well, that can wait until tomorrow," Elena proclaimed as she brought her palms together for a clap. "First, I'm patching you up," Elena told her twin sister.
Emily released a loud groan before she tossed her head back against the couch. "Elena!" The Radkova witch whined, "I just want to sleep!"
Elena playfully rolled her brown eyes at her twin sister and her tantrum. "You can sleep once I'm done," the Gilbert girl promised as she forcefully removed the crystal glass from Emily's hand.
While Emily knew it would be easier and quicker to just follow along to Elena's plan to patch her up but the elder twin couldn't help but want to give Elena some issues. It was Emily's duty as the older sister, anyway, it annoy her younger sibling.
The Radkova witch immediately began to give Elena trouble as Emily kept her body glued to the couch while Elena had to forcefully drag her off of it. Emily continued to drag her feet once Elena got her standing and started pulling her towards the staircase.
Meanwhile, Damon stayed relaxed on the couch as he watched the Gilbert twins with an amused smirk playing on his lips. It was like a little comedic show at the way that Emily and Elena were whining and fighting one another.
Emily finally decided to give in once they began walking up the staircase, much to Elena's relief. The Radkova witch figured Elena had suffered enough.
Elena kept a tight hold onto the Radkova witch's wrist as she led Emily into her and Damon's bedroom. The human girl walked Emily over to the king sized bed before she finally but cautiously released Emily's wrist.
Elena pointed her index finger at the bed before she commanded her twin sister, "sit and don't go anywhere."
Emily released a chuckle of amusement before she innocently raised her hands up in the air. "You got it, Nurse Elena," the Radkova witch murmured as she teased her twin sister.
Elena rolled her brown eyes but couldn't help but chuckle at the Radkova witch. "Just sit still," the human girl ordered before Elena swiftly turned around and headed into the attached bathroom in her and Damon's bedroom.
The Radkova witch broke out into light giggles when she watched Elena practically sprint out of the room before she quickly returned with a tube of cream and a box of bandages in her hands.
Elena widely grinned when she saw that the Radkova witch had followed her orders. "Good patient," Elena teasingly murmured as she uncapped the tube. "Now, let's get you healed," the human girl proclaimed.
Emily rolled her green eyes at her twin sister and her antics but decided to not fight it this time around.
The Radkova witch wasn't lying, she was really exhausted. Emily just wanted to get this done, so she could finally rest for at least a couple of hours.
Elena silently grasped onto the Radkova witch's injured arm before she gently began to apply the cream onto the pink and red marks that covered Emily's skin.
"Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!" The human Petrova doppelganger hurriedly apologized when Elena could feel Emily flinching underneath her touch.
Emily clenched her jaw at the pain that she could feel shooting across her arm. "It's okay," the Radkova witch muttered as she tried to assure Elena to not make her feel bad, "I'm okay."
"I'm almost done," Elena promised as she began to wrap a white bandage around her twin sister's forearm, where the burn injury was the biggest. "There!" Elena exclaimed after another minute before she took a step back to admire her work with a wide grin displayed across her lips.
Emily lightly chuckled at her twin sister before she turned her green gaze down to her left arm. The Radkova witch silently nodded her head as she looked at the bandage. "You did good, Nurse Elena," the elder Gilbert girl murmured.
"I know you're teasing me but I don't care right now," Elena proudly proclaimed as she observed the state of Emily's arm and the work she did. Elena soon clapped her hands together after a few seconds before she announced to her twin sister, "now, let's do your face."
The Radkova witch immediately flinched at the thought of the cream touching her face after the amount of pain she had felt in her arm. "Do we have to?" Emily grumbled as she tried to move her face away from Elena's grasp.
Elena rolled her brown eyes at her twin sister. "Yes, we do," the human Petrova doppelganger argued. "You have to or your face could get infected," Elena warned the Radkova witch.
Emily frowned as she stared up at her twin sister. That was the last thing the Radkova witch wanted to happen. Emily certainly didn't have time to deal with an infection with everything else going on in her life.
"Fine," the Radkova witch grumbled in agreement.
Elena immediately grinned after she realized that she had won against her twin sister, something that rarely happened between them. "Good!" Elena cheered before she told the Radkova witch, "I'm going to grab a couple of band-aids first."
Emily watched her twin sister walk away before the Radkova witch threw herself back against the king sized bed behind her with a heavy sigh.
The Radkova witch had barely closed her green eyes to relax before the pain she knew she would feel once Elena came back. However, Emily was quickly interrupted when she heard her cell phone ringing from the front pocket of her jeans.
Emily released a loud whine at the fact that she couldn't even relax for a second. The Radkova witch huffed as she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket.
However, the brunette girl swiftly sat up in the bed when she saw who was calling her. Emily hurriedly pressed the accept button on the device before she brought it up to her ear.
"Katherine," the Radkova witch gasped.
"Hello, little witch," Katherine murmured in greeting with a grin ringing all throughout her voice.
Emily quickly shook away her surprise when she heard Katherine's voice before she told the Petrova vampire, "I was worried when you didn't come back with Damon or call."
"Sorry, little witch," Katherine apologized before she explained to her sister's doppelganger, "I thought I should lay low after freeing Mikael from the tombs."
The Radkova witch released a small sound that was a mix of a scoff and a chuckle. "Good thing you didn't come back, then," Emily muttered.
Emily's statement quickly gained the attention of the Petrova vampire. "Why? What happened?" Katherine curiously inquired.
The Radkova witch released a heavy sigh at just the thought of all the craziness that has been going on since Katherine left. "Well, Rebekah, Klaus' sister, is hanging around town and Stefan is apparently Klaus' eyes until he returns," Emily explained just as she watched Elena walked into the bedroom with a handful of band-aids.
Elena quickly frowned when she noticed that her twin sister was on the phone with someone. "Who is it?" The Gilbert girl mouthed the question.
"Katherine," the Radkova witch mouthed a response back.
Elena nodded her head in understanding before she decided to stay quiet for the time being. While Elena still didn't like her doppelganger and probably never would, she knew the special connection that Emily had with Katherine and she respected it. Katherine had never tried to harm Emily, so Elena knew she could trust her doppelganger with her twin sister.
"Ah, the sister," Katherine mused. "I never did like Rebekah," the Petrova vampire muttered, "she was always such a bitch."
"Well, I think she's kind of obsessed with me," Emily muttered as her brows pulled together in confusion. "She's interested in me and always wanting to be friends," Emily tried to explain to Katherine from the handful of times she had spoken to the original vampire.
Katherine released a low tsking sound from her lips before she warned, "you better watch out for that one, little witch."
"She said it was my aura or something," the Radkova witch recalled from her first meeting with Rebekah in the school gym.
Emily didn't know what the original vampire meant by that or why Rebekah was more interested in her than Katherine or Elena. If the Radkova witch was being honest, she really didn't want to know. Emily was smart enough to know Klaus and his siblings weren't to be trusted. While, except for Elijah but that for a whole other reason.
"I'll be careful," Emily promised. She knew Katherine saw her like a sister, so Emily still wanted assure the Petrova vampire that she would be cautious around the original vampire.
"Good," Katherine murmured. "Now, don't go worrying about me," the Petrova vampire warned Emily. "I plan to stay out of Mystic Falls for awhile," Katherine stated, "I think I'm in need of a vacation."
Emily released a soft chuckle. "I think we all do," the Radkova witch muttered.
The supernatural world wasn't for the weak. Emily knew she and everyone else was in dire need of any sort of vacation from this town. However, that definitely wasn't an option right now; not when they were facing their strongest opponent at the moment.
"Stay safe," Emily told her doppelganger's twin sister, "and call when you can."
The Petrova vampire softly chuckled. Katherine always found it quite adorable how worried the Radkova witch was for her. Hell, Emily was the only person who has truly cared for her in centuries.
"I'll see you soon, little witch," Katherine softly murmured.
"See you soon," Emily responded back before she ended the phone call between herself and the Petrova vampire.
Elena waited for the Radkova witch to toss her cell phone to the side before she spoke. "Is Katherine coming back?" The human girl curiously asked as she began to open up a band-aid packaging.
Emily shook her head. "She's going to lay low for now," the Radkova witch stated as she answered Elena's question.
Elena silently pressed a nude colored band-aid onto Emily's cheek before she muttered, "that's probably for the best."
"Klaus isn't exactly her biggest fan," Emily reminded her twin sister before she added, "so, yeah. Mystic Falls isn't the right place for Katherine at the moment."
While Emily was sad that she wouldn't get see the Petrova vampire for awhile, Emily was partly glad that Katherine wouldn't be around. Katherine wasn't very liked when it came to Klaus and his sister, so it was definitely for the best that Katherine wasn't here; at least until they got rid of the original hybrid for good.
The bedroom grew silent as Elena focused on putting a band-aid onto Emily's temple before there was the sound of someone softly knocking on the door.
Alaric took a step into the bedroom before he focused his gaze onto the Gilbert twins. "I'm about to head out," the vampire hunter told the duo as he pointed his thumb behind him.
Emily nodded her head in understanding as she stood up from the king sized bed after Elena was finished with her wounds. "Is Jenna waiting for you?" The Radkova witch questioned.
"Yeah," the vampire hunter murmured. "I don't exactly have a way to get home anymore," Alaric reminded the brunette teenager.
Emily briefly cringed at the thought of the state of Alaric's SUV; burned and ruined. "Yeah, I'm sorry about that," the Radkova witch mumbled.
Alaric waved his hand to brush off the teenage girl's apology. "It's not your fault," the vampire hunter assured the young witch.
"I know," Emily uttered as she carefully crossed her arms over her chest without irritating her wrapped up arm.
"But we'll figure out what happened tonight soon," Emily swore. "I know it won't bring back your car, but at least we'll find out who was trying to kill us," the Radkova witch stated.
Emily knew it wasn't like they could go back in time and save Alaric's car but if they could solve this mystery, then at least they could close this story. Emily could only hope that Bonnie knew something about what happened tonight.
The vampire hunter shot Emily a small smile. "I know we will," Alaric assured the young witch.
Emily smiled back at the vampire hunter before she nodded her head towards the door of the bedroom. "Let me walk you out," Emily murmured.
"Ooh! I wanna come!" Elena exclaimed as she swiftly jumped into the conversation with the witch and the vampire hunter. "I wanna see Jenna," the Gilbert girl stated.
Emily lightly chuckled at her twin sister and her excitement to see their aunt. "Come on, then," the Radkova witch murmured as she wrapped her arm around Elena's waist.
The Gilbert twins silently began to follow Alaric down the hallway of the Salvatore boarding house before they headed down the staircase. The trio were about to enter the foyer before a voice suddenly spoke up from behind them.
"Well, you got me tonight," Stefan announced as he lazily leaned up against the wall that connected the living room and the foyer together. Stefan smirked as he glanced at the three faces before he murmured, "definitely wasn't expecting that."
Alaric immediately shifted his body protectively in front of the Gilbert twins when he noticed the emotionless vampire. "Thats was the point," the vampire hunter deadpanned.
Stefan lightly chuckled as he stared back at the vampire hunter, who was looking at him in disgust. "You know, you can hate me all you want," the Salvatore vampire told Alaric before he turned his gaze over to the Radkova witch and murmured, "but Emily needs me."
The emotionless vampire silently stared into Emily's green eyes as he added, "I'll always protect her."
Stefan had to forcefully pull his gaze away from the Radkova witch once he realized what he said before he focused back onto Alaric. "I think you all are better off having me around," Stefan proclaimed to the group.
Emily honestly didn't have the strength to deal with this type of conversation nor Stefan's mood swings over her right now. Emily just wanted to get some sleep and start fresh in the morning.
The Radkova witch knew Alaric was feeling the exact same way; especially after the shit show of a night they had to go through at the bonfire.
So, instead of entertaining the emotionless vampire, Emily pressed her right hand onto Elena's back and her left hand on Alaric's arm. "Come on," Emily murmured, "let's go."
The Gilbert twins and the vampire hunter only got the opportunity to take a couple of steps towards the front door before Stefan called out, "Emily, wait."
Emily took a deep breath to prepare herself for what her ex-boyfriend wanted to say before she turned around to face the emotionless vampire. "What, Stefan?" The Radkova witch tiredly asked.
Stefan took slow and steady steps towards the brunette girl. "You could have let me die in that fire tonight," the Salvatore vampire stated before he curiously asked, "why didn't you?"
Emily stared into Stefan's green eyes before she released a humorless chuckle a few seconds later. "Isn't it obvious?" The Radkova witch asked as she tossed her arms in the air. "It's because I still have hope," Emily exclaimed, "I still have hope in you."
Stefan furrowed his brows as he stared across at the Radkova witch. "After everything I've done, you..." Stefan began as he took another step towards Emily before he asked her, "you still think I'll be able to find my humanity again?"
The Radkova witch immediately nodded her head without a single ounce of doubt inside of her. "I do," Emily murmured. "We all make mistakes," Emily reminded the Salvatore vampire.
"I did some horrible stuff when I refused to feel," Emily recalled as she pointed her index finger towards her chest. "I never wanted to feel again but you never gave up on me," the Radkova witch proclaimed before she pointed her index finger at Stefan.
Emily furrowed her brows as she stared over at the Salvatore vampire. "You did all of that for me and you honestly think I wouldn't do the same for you?" The Radkova witch asked.
The Salvatore boarding house was dead silent for a full minute before Emily released a loud scoff when Stefan refused to respond. "If you really believe that, then you never really knew me at all," Emily proclaimed.
Stefan continued to stay quiet for another moment before a wide smirk pulled onto his lips. "Do you not see how pathetic that makes you?" Stefan tauntingly asked.
Emily softly chuckled before she took a step closer towards the Salvatore vampire until they were practically chest to chest. "Then you're just as pathetic as me," the Radkova witch whispered.
"Actually," Emily began before the Salvatore vampire could say anything more. "You might just be more pathetic," the Radkova witch exclaimed with a soft chuckle.
"You're the one constantly lying to yourself. You say you don't care about me or if Klaus kills me but I saw your eyes tonight, Stefan," the Radkova witch proclaimed. "You care," Emily murmured as she cautiously brought her palm up to Stefan's chest.
"I'll prove you wrong," the Radkova witch whispered before she leaned up and placed a feather-like kiss onto Stefan's cheek.
Emily pulled away before she grinned up at the Salvatore vampire's frozen figure. "I'll see the real Stefan soon enough," Emily murmured before she swiftly turned around and walked out of the Salvatore boarding house with a new sense of confidence surrounding her.