Damon leaned against the desk at the front of the room. Irritated. That's all he felt. Liar. Damon kept from shaking his head at his own inner voice. Of course he wasn't just irritated. He was mad. He was upset. He was jealous.
"How did this happen?" Stefan asked after he was done pacing. Damon rolled his eyes, ignoring the twist in his gut when he had watched Stefan walk into the room without Eve…
"Well, I fed her blood and Katherine obviously killed her…and A plus B equals…" Damon trailed off, looking back at Stefan.
"But why?" Elena asked, sounding distraught at the news. Of course she would be…
"Because Katherine is a manipulative, nasty little slut." Damon snarked back at Elena. Stefan began to pace again.
"And she said 'game on'?" Stefan asked. "I mean, what does that even mean?" Stefan asked, seemingly irritated at the situation.
"It means she's playing dirty." Damon explained. "She wants us to know."
"But why Caroline?" Elena asked. Damon let out a puff of air to indicate he didn't know. Katherine was up to something, obviously, but Damon couldn't understand why it had to be Blondie. Eve was probably devastated…or ecstatic. She could have a better friend for eternity. One that won't toy her along for a century…
"Caroline must be completely out of her mind, she has no idea what's happening to her…" Stefan muttered, his hands going up to his head.
"Oh I think she does." Damon muttered. "All my compulsion from the past started wearing off on her the minute she was in transition." Damon explained. Damon could practically see Eve running around frantically either to find Caroline, or to keep an eye on her. Either way, she knew and Damon knew the guilt was going to kill her.
"We have to help Eve find her. I haven't gotten a call saying she's had any luck." Stefan muttered, pulling out his phone and looking at the screen. A hint of jealousy ran through Damon's blood. Stefan was getting more attention from his Evie than he was…No. She wasn't his. Jealousy quickly turned to anger.
"Yep, and kill her." Damon muttered.
"You're not going to kill Caroline." Elena stated sternly with a shake of her head.
"She knows who we are. She's officially a liability. We gotta get rid of her." Damon said seriously. Stefan touched Elena's shoulder, keeping her from moving towards Damon.
"Damon, absolutely not." Stefan chastised as Elena glared back at Damon.
"If you ever want to patch up your relationship with Eve, killing Caroline is not going to help." Elena snapped. Damon felt his heart ache before he shoved down the feeling angrily.
"Need I remind you of a tragic little story of a girl named Vicki Donovan?" Damon recalled casually, watching the quick change in attitude at the memory. "Yeah. Caroline, of all people, will not make it as a vampire. Her mother is a vampire hunter." Damon continued explaining. "Guys come on, we all know how this story's gonna end, just flip to the last chapter and…"
"It's not an option, Damon." Elena interrupted.
"No?" Damon asked, feeling the irritation leak out. "Your silence is deafening, Stefan." Damon mocked, looking over at Stefan who had his head down. "Wait, wasn't there a school carnival the night you staked Vicki?" Damon asked with a smirk. "Huh. Talk about a town where history repeats itself." Damon chuckled darkly. "You know I'm right." Damon said with a roll of his eyes. Stefan walked over to him, pointing one of his judgy little fingers at him.
"We're not gonna kill her." Stefan stated sternly, walking out of the classroom. Elena let out a small huff as she began to follow. Damon rolled his eyes.
"It's the only way." Damon muttered to Elena as she passed him. Elena said nothing as she continued to storm out of the classroom. Damon was now alone with his thoughts…which wasn't good. Damon left the school, walking out into the carnival.
Was he really going to kill Caroline? As much as he hated it when Elena was right, if he did kill Caroline, Eve would surely never talk to him again. The thought brought an ache to his chest that nearly knocked him out.
No.
He couldn't think like that. Eve had already moved on. She was flirty enough with that stupid surfer boy, and he seemed pretty confident that Eve wasn't going to wait for him…and fuck did that hurt. Eve must have told him some sort of lie…Mason said that she wasn't that into him…which seemed like a lie, but maybe…maybe he was right. Mason seemed pretty pleased with himself, mentioning how it seemed funny that Eve would wait for him. Damon let that fill his head. He was going to kill Caroline. He didn't care that it would hurt Eve. She was going to leave him anyway…what did it matter…
Damon grabbed a wooden stake from a tent and followed the sound of Caroline's cries. Another ache entered his chest. How well he knew Caroline's cries and how Eve was now best friends with the girl he was going to kill because he was sad and mad and jealous. Damon hoped he got there before anyone else. Stefan would try and stop him. Elena would try and stop him. Eve would kill him. The smell of blood pulled him to the edge of the carnival and soon he found Caroline sitting next to a dead body on a trailer. Damon walked up to Caroline, ignoring all the blaring warnings in his head.
"He's dead." Caroline stated, her mouth and nose covered in blood. "I killed him." She continued before she began to hyperventilate. "What's wrong with me?" Caroline asked, starting to cry again.
"Hey, hey, it's okay." Damon reassured, ignoring the feeling of guilt as it continued to wrap around his heart like a snake. "I can help you." Damon muttered softly, putting on a show. Ever the showman…
"You can?" Caroline asked quickly, looking up at Damon. For a moment, Damon reconsidered. Eve would never forgive him.
It wasn't like she was waiting anyway. It doesn't matter.
"Yeah." Damon said flatly. "I have to." Damon said aloud. For Caroline, but more so for himself. He had to kill Caroline. She was a liability that, especially with the mayor dead and him in charge of the secret vampire committee, it was his duty. It wouldn't hurt…
Liar.
"What are you going to do?" Caroline asked, now sounding a little more calm, but a little more hesitant that Damon would actually help her.
"The only thing I can do." Damon said, pushing her hair out of her face. "I'm gonna kill you." Damon said casually. Caroline stared at him for a moment before she pulled away, shaking her head.
"No, there's gotta be another way!" Caroline said quickly. "I haven't-I didn't mean to kill him!" Caroline said with a sad look over to the dead man. Damon shook his head.
"It's the only way I can help." Damon shrugged coolly. Caroline jumped down from the back of the trailer.
"Please don't!" Caroline begged. "I don't want to die!" Caroline said with another sob. Damon couldn't help the roll of his eyes.
"It's the only way, Caroline." Damon shrugged casually. Caroline shook her head.
"No, you can't!" Caroline stated quickly. "If you kill me, Eve will never forgive you!" Caroline snapped, her mood shifting to anger. Damon would have smirked at the newly turned vampirisms of not being in control of emotions, but Caroline hit a nerve.
"Yeah, but can you forgive her?" Damon snapped back, instantly regretting his words. Caroline's brows furrowed for a moment in irritation, before she seemed to be thinking. "You're already dead, so what's it matter?" Damon asked with a roll of his eyes, trying to get the bad taste of his own words out of his mouth.
"I'm…I'm not dead, okay, just-just help me." Caroline begged, her emotions flipping back over to hysterics. Damon felt his brain begging to flip the switch. It would be so much easier. Easier to kill Caroline. Easier to let Eve go. "Just, please, please help me!" Caroline sobbed. Damon raised his hands in defense.
"Okay, okay." Damon said, getting close and hugging Caroline. Caroline continued to sob, letting Damon get the stake and raise it up. "It's the only way." Damon said softly. Damon didn't even have a chance to plunge the stake into Caroline before he was tackled roughly to the ground.
"Damon!" The words sounded not far, but not from who had tackled him. Damon's eyes shot open when he felt the stake ripped out of his hand and raised at him. "Eve, don't!" Stefan. It was Stefan who was shouting. Damon stared into Eve's eyes as she glared down at him, holding the stake, ready to plunge it into Damon's heart. Oh the cruel irony. Stefan flittered over and pulled Eve off of Damon, allowing him to sit up.
"Get away from me!" Caroline screamed, but Damon couldn't look away from Eve. Their eyes were locked. Damon felt his heart ache and burn and the longer he looked at Eve looking at him with so much…hatred…She didn't even need to stake him. The squeezing of his heart was enough to think he was dying. "You killed me!" Caroline screamed, finally breaking Eve's gaze from his own. Damon looked at the scene before him.
"No, no, no, no, Caroline, that wasn't me." Elena stood in her ever defensive stance as Caroline stared at her. "You know that, that was Katherine!" Elena explained quickly.
"No! Then why did she look like you?!" Caroline screamed back at Elena. Damon looked back over at Stefan as he continued to hold Eve. Stefan looked over at Damon. Damon raised his eyebrow back, nodding towards the hysterical baby vampire. Stefan sent a glare back, shaking his head. "And why-why did she do this to me?!" Caroline sobbed loudly, backing away from Elena.
"Stefan, we've gotta get her inside." Elena said, looking back at Stefan. Stefan glanced down at Eve who was staring at Caroline with so much guilt. Damon nearly got up that second; he should be the one holding his Evie, not Stefan.
"Come on, Eve." Stefan said in a soft voice, letting his grip of her go, but Eve stood frozen.
"Give me a second, Stef." Eve said in just a soft voice back. Damon felt the irritable feeling of jealousy slink back into his veins.
"Alright." Stefan muttered, gently touching Eve's arm. Eve stayed put, folding her arms as Stefan turned his attention towards Caroline and walked towards her. "It's alright Caroline, come with me." Stefan said, walking quickly as he grabbed hold of Caroline's hand.
"She will die." Damon muttered as he finally stood up. "It's only a matter of time." Damon muttered, brushing off his back. Damon could feel everyone glaring at him, but his heart hurt to even look over towards her.
"Yeah, maybe so, but it's not gonna happen tonight." Stefan snapped back, leading Caroline back towards the school. Even from his spot, he could see Caroline looking helplessly towards Eve. Irritation quickly replaced the aching.
Without saying anything, Damon flittered over and grabbed the stake that Eve had thrown and flittered to Caroline. Eve didn't hesitate either, seemingly having known his motives without a single word. Elena had gasped as Eve was now standing in front of the trio, protecting them. Eve glared up at Damon as Damon held the stake threateningly, but Eve continued to stand her ground.
"Go." Eve stated aloud, not breaking eye contact with Damon, but he knew she wasn't talking to him. Damon slowly lowered his arm, barely noticing that the trio had begun to leave.
"Caroline?" Damon knew the voice without even looking. It was Bonnie.
"It's okay, come on." Stefan muttered, but Damon was staring at Eve. So many emotions raced through his mind, and hopefully only his mind.
"No. You're not…you can't be." Bonnie muttered. Eve's breath staggered as she heard Caroline whisper Bonnie's name. "Oh God." Bonnie rushed over to the trailer where the man Caroline killed was lying.
"If you kill her, Damon Salvatore, I promise I'll-" Eve muttered out shakily. Damon grabbed hold of one of Eve's hands, wrapping her fingers around the stake. Eve's eyes shifted from anger to sadness.
"I get it." Damon muttered, grabbing and pulling Eve's hand up by her wrist to rest the stake's point against where his heart beat. Eve's brows furrowed. "It'll be easier this way anyway. Even if I kill Caroline, you'll still have your little surfer boy toy, right?" Damon growled lowly. Eve's sadness quickly shifted as she pulled the stake away from Damon's heart angrily, once more tossing the stake.
"I should stake you fer that." Eve growled back. "How did that truth findin' go fer you, by the way?" Eve asked venomously. Damon felt his chest tighten in agony and anger. "Honestly, just feck off." Eve snapped, turning and beginning to walk away from him. Damon looked at Elena hesitantly as she looked worriedly between Bonnie and Damon. Damon felt the pain continue to fester. He would have preferred to be staked.
Enough.
Damon felt so many emotions bubble up and suddenly he had flittered over to Eve and flittered her out of sight from Bonnie and Elena. They were around the back of the school, more so from where Stefan had taken Caroline inside. No one was back behind there, fortunately. Damon wasn't thinking. Well, he was, but it wasn't rational. The only thing he could think of was Eve.
"Damon, what the feck are you doin'?" Eve snapped angrily, taking a step back from him.
"I want the 'I told you so'." Damon stated stubbornly, folding his arms. Eve stared back at him, irritation and confusion flooded across her face. "I found my truth and-" Damon got out before Eve shook her head.
"Don't." Eve stated flatly, putting up her hand. Damon felt so many things continue to bubble, and he knew it was coming out.
"Evie, I figured it out and I just-"
"Damon." Eve stated sternly, forcing Damon's monologue to a halt before it had even begun. "You've given it a day." Eve emphasized the word. Damon rolled his eyes back at her.
"That's all it took." Damon said with a shrug. Eve let out a scoff.
"It only took Damon Salvatore a day to get over two people he thought he could have?" Eve asked irritably. Damon shifted slightly, feeling the familiar ache in his chest.
I miss you.
It's the only thing Damon could think of now that he had Eve alone. Well…He had another thought, but the absolute fear he had of Eve's rejection kept him planted where he was…
"You told me to find my truth, and the truth it-"
"You need more than a day, Damon." Eve chastised, once more cutting him off.
I miss you. I miss you.
"Who are you to tell me how long it takes?" Damon snarked back, irritation for the whole day slipping out. Eve let out a sharp laugh that Damon could nearly feel stab his heart.
"I know you, Damon." Eve stated with a soft shake of her head. "I know you." Damon let the ache burrow inside him.
I miss you. I miss you. Please forgive me. I miss you. Please, I'd do anything to have you back.
"Well, I figured it out. Both instances." Damon shrugged, folding his arms, allowing his memories to come up front. "Elena rejected me. Plain and simple. She only thought of me as a friend." Damon shrugged, remembering how stupidly soft he had been with Elena and little brother Gilbert. "She loves Stefan." Damon said with a shrug. Eve raised an eyebrow back at him. "And I'm okay with that." Damon shrugged. Eve let out a small puff of air.
"Yer not goin' to tell me that it didn't hurt you." Eve snarked back. Damon shook his head, taking a hesitant step towards Eve.
"No, I'm not, but I'm also not going to tell you that it's caused any resentment or anger towards either Elena or my baby brother." Damon said truthfully. Eve continued to look annoyed.
"Mhm, and Katherine?" Eve asked. Damon felt his heart flutter as he remembered what happened with Katherine…
"She showed up at the boarding house," Damon began, the ache still hurting. "She actually never loved me." Damon shrugged and Eve laughed. Damon looked at her, feeling the ache lighten just a moment…even if it was a sharper laugh than he would have liked, it was still his Evie's…
"That doesn't surprise me." Eve said with a shake of her head. "She's always been a complete and utter feckin' bitch." Eve hissed out angrily. Damon felt the chuckle leave his throat.
"Not all of us can be as smart and wise as you, Evie." Damon snarked back with a small smile.
"Of course you can't." Eve said with a hint of her usual sass. "I'm obviously the smartest vampire in this town." Eve continued, even putting her hands on her hips. "I've never been in love with Stefan." Eve said with a smile. Damon chuckled and took a step closer to her, feeling the usual pull and ignoring how it didn't feel the same…
"Says the one who's sired to him." Damon sassed back, stopping dead in his tracks when Eve's smile fell. "So…I mean, you must have-" Damon got out before Eve shook her head, the playfulness leaving just as quickly…as if she remembered that they were fighting…
"We aren't playin' this game of if I loved Stefan or not, Damon." Eve stated sternly. "Stefan is a friend, and yes, when we first met, I had a little bit of a crush on him, obviously since I've been sired to him since," Eve continued with a small glare towards Damon. She knew him too well. She knew he would get jealous of his brother… "But I was never in love with Stefan." Eve stated sternly. Damon gave a small smirk her way, and he could practically feel Eve's mood decline at their usual playful moments… "Damon, I've got to go to Caroline…" Eve muttered softly, looking back towards where they had just come from. Damon couldn't help himself as he flittered over to her first.
ImissyouImissyouImissyouIloveyoupleasedontleaveme.
Damon hugged her, his arms under hers, expecting her to wrap her arms around his neck…But the longer she stood there, desperately clinging onto Eve, the more his heart began to ache as Eve didn't hug him back.
"Damon…" It was soft and it was painful.
"I'm sorry." Damon muttered, burying his head into her stupidly curly hair, needing to bend down to do so to keep her on the ground… "I can't ever begin to apologize enough for all the hurt that I've caused you for being a complete asshole." Damon continued, feeling his heart continued to ache. "I've been a shitty person and I've been an even worse vampire, but most of all, I've been an awful friend." Damon said, still clinging to Eve as she stood, frozen… "I'll find my truth again, I'll do whatever you want me to do, but please, Evie, please don't leave me." Damon begged. "I fucked up and I'll spend the rest of eternity regretting that I even had to find out that both Katherine and Elena never loved me and would never love me." Damon continued, his throat feeling as if it would close at any moment. "Please, Evie, please. I hate missing you when you're here and not thousands of miles away." Damon muttered softly. Please forgive me please.
"Damon." Eve said, her voice nearly breaking as she said his name. Damon bit his tongue to keep himself from letting out any noise or sniffle or…anything. Damon tightened his grip once more, wanting to fully engulf himself with her.
Please don't leave me.
A simple request that Damon was begging in his mind. He wasn't one to beg anyone for anything, and yet…His pressure point; his weakness had and would always be her.
"You aren't the only only one who doesn't like this." Eve muttered softly, her whole body relaxing slightly, but she still kept her arms down, not rewarding his begging with the hug Damon wanted and needed. Damon pulled away slowly. "I just want…I just want to be able to talk to you without…all the theatrics." Eve muttered softly, suddenly grabbing hold of Damon's wrists to keep him from fully backing away from her. Even with the slightest touch, Damon felt his heart lighten. "I know yer not happy about everythin'." Eve continued as Damon managed to move Eve's hands into his own, relishing in the simple feel of her hands in his. "But…we have to find our own truths." Eve said with a soft shrug. Damon nodded. Whatever it took. "Even if that means being jealous or upset with one another." Eve continued softly. Damon cocked his head slightly, feeling the playfulness slowly creep into his chest.
"Us? Be jealous or upset with one another?" Damon asked with a smirk that slowly grew as Eve rolled her eyes. "Perish the thought, my queen." Damon said with a little bow as Eve pulled her hand from his and hit his chest. Damon grabbed her hand before it could slip away; before she slipped away. "I know we're both upset, but…Evie, I know you're terrified of Alistair," Damon began, hating the physical flinch Eve did at just the mention of his name. "But, I…I don't want you just going off to…to fight him." Damon stated sternly. Eve rolled her eyes, beginning to pull away, but Damon kept his grip on her hands. "You've kicked his ass three times now. By yourself, and that's impressive and all, but…maybe if you had 2 other strong and old vampires to help…" Damon shrugged, but Eve shook her head instantly.
"Damon." It was a warning to drop the subject, but Damon missed talking with his Evie.
"It's just a suggestion…After all, maybe it'll be three extra vampires with Blondie." Damon said with a shrug. Which instantly shifted Eve's mood from fearful to worried.
"Speakin' of…" Eve said, pulling away once more. Damon finally let her go. "I wouldn't kill you if you killed Caroline, by the way." Eve muttered, turning to go back to the school. Damon raised an eyebrow, folding his arms back at her, not believing her at first. "I would never speak to you again." Eve said sternly before she flittered away. Damon's heart fluttered anxiously. That would be worse than being staked…Damon sighed.
It wasn't the best conversation…Eve hadn't even hugged him…but, they were talking, which he felt like they hadn't done…it felt lighter. There was still a new bridge he had to build to get back to her fully, but for now, the method of a can and a string would do. At least that way he could still talk to her.
Even if he was still upset that his heart ached from Katherine and Elena's rejection. Even if he was still upset about Eve being with that insufferable supernatural surfer boy. Damon let himself sigh as he looked around the back of the school, spotting a shovel near some trash cans. He could be irritated and jealous and all other kinds of emotions he didn't want to feel while he buried a body.
Eve's heart was still heavy as she entered the school. Damon was…Damon. But it felt lighter. He wasn't the only one who was missing the other. The fear of Alistair had been pushed to the side, and as much as it warmed her heart to know that Damon would pull Stefan (and Caroline) to help fight and protect Eve from a much older vampire, she knew she would have to do it by herself. It was always supposed to be a showdown…Eve shoved the thoughts down. She needed to focus on Caroline right now, not some near century old feud she had with an old vampire enemy.
Eve listened for Stefan's voice once she entered the school. She quickly went to a bathroom on the opposite end of the school from the carnival. Eve knocked before slowly pushing the door open. Stefan stepped in front of Caroline, broadening his shoulders, but quickly stopped the big tough guy act once he realized.
"It's okay, it's just-"
"Eve." Caroline muttered, stepping around Stefan as Eve made sure the door shut behind her. Eve felt her heart flutter anxiously as she watched Caroline quickly walk up to her. Eve blinked and Caroline was hugging her tightly. Eve didn't hesitate to hug her back just as tightly. "Oh my God!" Caroline stated, gently pushing Eve back, but keeping her hands tightly on Eve's arms. "I drank your blood in New York!" Caroline said, making Eve wince.
"You almost died in New York because of me too." Eve said guiltily. Caroline shook her head.
"How was I supposed to know that lady was a vampire if I didn't know you were one." Caroline snarked, shaking her head. "Also, what the hell!" Caroline snapped, punching Eve hard on the arm. Eve sucked in a breath, pulling her arm away. Fuck, new vampire strength hurt. "I'm like, your best friend! Why didn't you tell me you were a billion years old?" Caroline huffed, folding her arms. Eve stared back at her before a laugh left her mouth. "No, this is not time for laughing, how dare-" Caroline began to snark out before Eve quickly hugged her again, Eve's eyes prickling with tears. "Wha-what did I say?" Caroline asked Stefan, who gave an almost relieved chuckle in response.
"I'm pretty sure she thought you'd never speak to her again." Stefan said, making Eve nod her head against Caroline. Caroline let out a scoff, pushing Eve away a little.
"As if." Caroline chastised. "I'm invested in your life story. Now for so many more reasons than just the Damon Chronicles." Caroline teased. Eve rolled her eyes, swiping under her eyes quickly to make sure no tears had actually fallen. "Don't get me wrong, this all sucks and is a lot, but…you're my best friend…and I'm not going to just dump you." Caroline said with a soft smile, her emotions still not being under control as tears fell from her eyes. "Especially after you bagged Mason." Caroline continued with a light laugh, turning and going back to the mirror. Eve felt her heart skip as she saw Stefan look over at her quickly. Heat burned her ears.
Fuck, her life was way more complicated than it should have been at nearly 120…
Eve pulled her phone out of her pocket, dreading to look back up at Stefan. Always so judgy…he and Elena were truly meant for each other.
Mason: Sorry about tonight. Let me explain over breakfast tomorrow?
Eve felt her heart flutter gently as she remembered that just earlier that night, she had seen Mason have glowing yellow eyes, as well as him having strength enough to beat both her and Stefan in an arm wrestling match, despite their vampire strength.
Eve: What time and where. I'll meet you there.
Eve let out a soft sigh to herself, not even daring to look up at Stefan. He knew he would give her a lecture with his disapproving eye contact without even speaking. Mason was dangerous…and she slept with him. For a moment, her heart ached. She missed Aidan and how unproblematic he was and had always been…
Boston; 1922
Eibhlín walked with Seán and Eva's hands in hers as they walked down the sidewalks of Boston to a new candy shop within the neighborhood, not far from the hospital as well as Séamus' house. Eibhlín didn't mind Seán's babbling of how he was excited to attend school in August, and Eva chiming in about her own excitement to start school. Eibhlín had missed out on the last 10 years of her brother's life due to her own…well, becoming a vampire, killing a lot of people in a bar fight before running away, living with Damon and moving to New Orleans with him, only to have to run away again when she met Stefan and some strangely strong vampires who would absolutely kill her because she had snapped their necks and ending up back in Boston only to stumble upon Séamus and his family. Those weren't the best life stories for a seven and four year old though. So instead, they were going to a candy shop while her brother and his wife, Dorothy, were at a hospital, having a third child.
"Auntie Ebie." Seán said as they approached the candy shop that was already overflowing with children. "I dink dere's too many people fer ya to do yer magic trick." Seán said with a little pout, pulling his hand from hers to fully pout. Eva did the same, mimicking her brother.
"Aye, Auntie Ebie." Eva sassed, her Irish accent a little stronger than her brothers, due to her not having attended school yet.. "How are ye supposed to do de eye ding wid so many people?" Eva asked, still pouting. Eibhlín couldn't help but chuckle at the two children. They were Nicbranagáin's alright. Eibhlín could remember Séamus' own pout when they were younger…and how she had copied him, much like Eva did. It never got Eibhlín or Séamus anything but a beating from their father, but times were different…Séamus would never beat his children like they had been beaten…Not if Dorothy had anything to say about it. Eibhlín could almost see the heavily pregnant woman smacking her brother around with a broom if he even thought about hitting Seán or Eva.
"Well, dere is no reason ta pout about anythin', I do have money fer you, leanaí chatach." Eibhlín sassed, reaching into her dress pockets and pulling out two dollar bills. Both looked at the money gleefully before Eva squealed in excitement and hugged Eibhlín's leg before snatching one of the dollars from Eibhlín's hand.
"Dank you Auntie Ebie!" Eva squealed while jumping and keeping her grip on Eibhlín's leg.
"Come on Eva, ya look silly." Seán chastised grabbing onto Eva's hand and pulling her off of Eibhlín's leg. Eibhlín chuckled softly, handing the other dollar to Seán. "Do ya want anythin' Auntie Ebie?" Seán asked, antsy to get into the popular new shop as he looked back at it and to her quickly. Eibhlín shook her head with a smile, kneeling down a little to be at their level
"I am alright. Now go have fun, just keep an eye on each other, alright?" Eibhlín asked with a smile, shooing the two excited children into the store. Eva let out another excited squeal before the two practically dragged one another into the store.
"I bet yer husband's goin' to love that sugah rush." A man with a deep voice muttered behind Eibhlín. Eibhlín stood up and patted her dress down to help with the wrinkles. The fashion had changed so much in such little time. She hoped she would be able to keep up with it all in her ever immortal life. Eibhlín turned and could almost feel her heart stop…before it started back up.
"I-dey are not me children, but me brother's." Eibhlín sputtered out, her cheeks burning slightly at her stumbling of words. This man looked very much like Damon Salvatore. He was tall and pale, his eyes were a shiny blue but not as light as Damon's were, and his hair was dark, maybe fully black and slicked into place. He was tailored in a dark grey suit and he looked very nice. The man chuckled. Eibhlín felt her cheeks grow warmer as she realized she had accidentally looked him up and down. She hoped it had been more quizzical than as forward as it suddenly felt. "H-he and me sister-in-law are at de hospital havin' another." Eibhlín continued, filling the silence with more embarrassing stuttering as she nodded in the direction of the hospital.
"Oh, so yer causin' mischief by making his kids hypa fer the new baby?" The man asked playfully. Eibhlín hadn't even thought of it that way; she thought she was doing something nice for the children. Was she that out of touch with how humans acted and behaved? It had only been a decade. Eibhlín's ears began to burn. "Don't worry too much though, I won't tell anyone 'bout this." The man said with a smile. "Or, yer magic eye trick." The man said with a wink. Eibhlín couldn't help but pull her sunhat over her face in embarrassment, before she quickly tried to adjust it back on her wild curls.
"Why were ya eavesdroppin'?" Eibhlín asked, folding her arms and staring at the man crossly. The man continued to beam at her, despite her dangerous look…Well, how dangerous can someone be with only being 5'1" while he looked well over 6'...A flash of a bar made her heart flutter anxiously. She was dangerous…
"If you must know, I was listenin' in to see if ya wanted to get a drink sometime, and I wanted to make sure it was the right kind of drink, seein' as the whole outlawing certain drinks has been a thing." The man began, his smile turning playful. "Well, I don't think it's quite legal to get the kind of drink I was thinkin' of, even before the whole prohibition." He continued playfully with a shrug. Eibhlín stared at him for a moment before she couldn't help the laugh that left her mouth. A few people stared at her as they passed, but Eibhlín paid them no mind.
"If I dink I understand what yer suggestin', Mr…" Eibhlín said with a gentle wave of her hand towards the well dressed man. The man smiled.
"Kelly." The man introduced, reaching out his hand. Eibhlín reached out to shake his hand, but he kissed the back of her hand, staring up at her through his lashes with his pretty blue eyes. "Aidan Kelly, but you can call me whatever you want." Aidan said with a smile and a wink. Eibhlín tried to keep her eyes from widening too much…but her burning cheeks were a whole other problem. "What may I call such a beautiful woman such as yourself?" Aidan asked, keeping Eibhlín's hand in his for a moment longer.
"Auntie Ebie!" Eibhlín blinked, hearing Eva's voice behind her. Eibhlín gently took her hand back and turned around. "Didn't papa say not ta talk ta boys with dark hair 'cause dey're trouble?" Eva sassed, a hand going to her hip while she had a bag of candy at her side. Eibhlín rolled her eyes at the little girl, kneeling down to her level, taking a napkin that the nice owner must have thrown into the bag, seeing as the little girl had chocolate already smothered across her face.
"Mmm, and didn't papa say not ta ruin yer ma's nice new dress she made ya?" Eibhlín sassed back, playfully shoving the napkin across Eva's mouth. Eva scrunched up her face, trying to grab the napkin from Eibhlín's hands. "What papa does not know, will not kill him." Eibhlín tapped Eva's nose, getting as much of the chocolate from the little girl's face as she could. Seán soon came bounding out of the shop quickly.
"Auntie Ebie, I dink I upset de owner." Seán said, looking over his shoulder guiltily.
"What did ya do ta made de owner upset?" Eibhlín asked with a sigh, watching as a man tried to get around children angrily to get to the front door.
"I may have tried de eye trick." Seán said guiltily, pulling Eva behind Eibhlín's leg, looking up at Aidan quizzically. "Papa's not goin' to be happy yer talkin' to a black haired pale man, Auntie Ebie." Seán said, behind Eibhlín. Eibhlín rolled her eyes.
"Aye, and do you dink he is goin' to be happy you tried to do yer Auntie's magic trick again?" Eibhlín snarked back down at him. Seán stuck his tongue out at her as the owner finally pushed his way out of the shop.
"Ah, you must be this little runt's poor excuse of a mother." The owner snapped angrily. Eibhlín had expected an angry man, but one who insulted her nephew so quickly, as well as her? That was not going to be the case.
"Excuse me?" Eibhlín snapped quickly. The owner only let out a sharp laugh.
"You heard me. Your little brat of a son was trying to cheat me out of what he owes." The owner snapped, wagging a finger at Seán as he stood behind Eibhlín's legs. "I shoulda figured he had a mick of a mother." The man said with a shake of his head. Eibhlín let out a sharp scoff, but before she could say another word, Aidan came up and stood beside her.
"Hey, how about you not speak to my wife life that." Aidan snapped, his arms folding angrily. Eva and Seán looked at each other for a moment before the Nicbranagáin gene kicked in.
"Don't you know who we are?" Seán snarked back at the man, his demeanor changing, as if he hadn't just ran and hid behind his aunt turned fake mother.
"Aye!" Eva snapped, glaring at the man as she licked a rainbow colored lollipop.
"I will not be bullied by a bunch of dirty micks." The owner snapped, wagging a finger in Eibhlín's face. Eibhlín nearly bit him out of anger, but she didn't get the chance. Aidan grabbed hold of the man's shoulders and looked him in the eyes.
"Ya aren't goin' to talk to her, or anyone like that again." Aidan said sternly. Eibhlín saw the man straighten up. "Apologize to my wife and children now, ya flat tire." Aidan snapped, stepping aside. Eibhlín watched as both Seán and Eva looked at Aidan with such mesmerized looks, that if the owner hadn't just been compelled, he would have surely caught on that this man was not, in fact, their father.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say derogatory terms to your family." The owner said obediently to all three. Aidan shook his head.
"Great, now scram before I change my mind in letting ya go." Aidan snapped, waving harshly for the owner to leave. The owner went back into his shop, which had an audience of children and adults looking out through the windows nosily, all of which turned and pretended they hadn't just been watching the scene with great interest. Seán and Eva looked at each other before they both echoed off each other, bouncing around Aidan excitedly.
"Wow! I didn't know someone else could do Auntie Ebie's magic eye trick!" Seán exclaimed excitedly.
"Auntie Ebie said she couldn't teach us!" Eva whined. "Papa said we couldn't learn it, but ya did!" Eva said, bouncing around.
"Seán, Eva, Eibhlín!" Eibhlín heard the familiar call of her brother.
"Papa!" Seán and Eva yelled together, stopping their bouncing around Aidan as they suddenly ran down the street to greet their father as he walked away from the hospital building. Eibhlín couldn't help but snicker as they began excitedly yell at him about their day as they continued running towards him.
"Eibhlín, huh?" Aidan asked aloud, turning Eibhlín towards him. He said her name right...Eibhlín's heart fluttered. "Lovely name." Aidan said with a smile. Eibhlín snickered back.
"Well, it is the name of yer wife." Eibhlín teased. Aidan let out a laugh.
"You're right; it is" Aidan said with a smile and a wink. Eibhlín knew she was going to fall head over heels for this man, whether she wanted to or not…
Translation:
leanaí chatach - curly children
AN: Whoops! I didn't add an Author's note in the last one because I accidentally uploaded this onto Archive of Our Own (xNebulaPrincessx if you were curious) first and was in a hurry for the last one! It's not edited (and neither is this one so). BUT! Thank you all for still reading! This one is a little shorter than what I'm used to, but forgive me, I'm still getting into the groove of writing again, and this ending felt better.
If anyone was wondering where I was, here's a long explanation, but if not, Hello Team Steroline Mom, I've missed you (and everyone else who has favorited and liked and all that jazz), I'm happy to be back!;
I had to keep living with him until the end of December, and in my manic state, I applied for a job in Baltimore, Maryland at Amazon, went out and did a drug test, got a studio apartment that I was going to share with a best friend of mine, and moved 1,647 miles away from my ex and 1,100 miles from all of my family! And then! I realized a month in that I absolutely HATED Baltimore! So! I began looking for jobs back near my family. And I got a job! After 4 months, I left Baltimore and headed back the 1,100 miles back home! Luckily our lease was only 6 months. Unluckily, it is very difficult to live with a best friend in a studio when we're both up each other's ass at every point. And it didn't help that our neighbor would call our landlord anytime we made any kind of noise (which was hard not to, as we worked the night shift so we were up from 6pm to 6am). Basically, the universe humbled me for my manic planning. I had wanted to live in Baltimore since I visited there back in 2018. Basically, Covid ruined everything, as all the reasons I loved Baltimore had closed down due to the pandemic. So, I spent 4 miserable months in Baltimore, heart broken and manic. BUT! After about 4 months, before moving back home, I was starting to heal. Well, I was in a lot better space (lol who knew having over 1.5k miles between your ex would help heal).
Cut to now! I was on Tumblr when I got an ask. The user was akwodoq693723. It looked like a throw away account, but the ask was so SWEET. It asked if I was the writer of Not the Queen. They told me they found my little story last year and hoped that I was okay because I disappeared. And let me tell you, I was sobbing at 3am (because my other job I got was also night shift). I basically gave the same sort of update over on Tumblr (nebula-princess if anyone is curious). And then! ANOTHER ONE! A different user named mysticalxtime sent me an ask after the 1st, as they saw the first ask and wanted to also send me an ask about it. They found me a few years ago and were sad to see no updates in forever. They found it on HERE! Fanfiction dot motherfuckin net. They told me that there were others out there who were patiently waiting on a new chapter...and finally, here I am! I didn't hit that two year mark!
Basically, to anyone still around, still waiting on the updates, still giving kudos and commenting and thinking about me and Evie and Damon, thank you. Truly. I could never have done any of this without the occasional comments and kudos and likes and all of it.
Stay safe, stay healthy (especially mentally), sometimes being manic is a trip, and sometimes it helps you heal.
Don't move to Baltimore if you're from a small town with a friend in a studio apartment. Or do. Who am I to tell you what to do with your life? A writer who doesn't write for over a year, that's who.
Anyways. I love you all. Truly.
(and in regards to the accents, I'm going to drop the harsher ones because my old laptop died and it knew how what to autocorrect to and it's actually v hard to continue writing in that same harsh accented way. But this is still like previous ones, but...yes. Anyway, i love you all still. sorry it's still short but ily!)