My Year of the OTP 2025 contribution for the prompt : Major character death.
I'm sorry for the mistakes, English is not my native language. I hope you like it.
Disclaimer : The Vampire Diaries belongs to L. J. Smith, Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec.
Last moments
Who could judge him ? Everything Damon had done, he had done it for the of love of Elena. And if he had to sacrifice himself for her, he would do it without hesitation.
A month had passed since Elena had turned into a vampire. Even if the transition had been difficult for her, she was controlling herself and she could be in the presence of humans. She and Damon were both at the entrance to the forest. It was a shortcut to go to the hospital where blood bags were waiting for them. Damon looked at the moon and he opened his eyes wide. It had been several days since a pack of werewolves had settled in Mystic Falls and tonight was the most dangerous night for vampires. Tonight was a full moon.
Why had he accepted that Elena accompany him ? If something happened to her, he would never be able to forgive himself. Suddenly, he heard it, the howl of a werewolf. Elena looked at him, frightened. They both knew what it meant. A wolf was not far from them. The beast's footsteps came closer. If they ran away now, they would be noticed. Damon grabbed Elena's arm and they hid behind a tree. He signaled Elena to be quiet and listened carefully. The werewolf was getting closer and faster. Damon looked at Elena. He had to protect her.
"You're going to go home as soon as possible," he told her.
Elena opened her eyes wide, understanding what he wanted to do.
"I'm not leaving without you."
Damon grabbed her shoulders.
"Elena, do what I tell you. Run as fast as you can and go home."
She did not move.
"Nothing will happen to me," Damon tried to reassure her. "I promise. Now run."
Elena headed for the Salvatore house, while Damon headed for the werewolf. He had to play for time so Elena could escape. He ran several meters until he finally saw him.
"Hey !" He shouted.
The werewolf turned and looked at him, growling. That's it, Damon thought, focus on me. The werewolf was about to lunge at him, when he suddenly stopped and ran in the opposite direction. No ! He must have heard Elena. Damon ran after him at full speed. He had only one thing on his mind, to catch the werewolf and kill him before he attacked Elena. He finally saw him. He was ready to attack Elena. Without hesitation, Damon ran as fast as he could and stood in front of her.
"Damon !" She screamed.
He let out a howl of pain. The werewolf had bitten him on the leg. The pain was so violent that for a moment he thought his leg was going to be torn off. He gathered his strength, grabbed the werewolf that refused to let go of him and threw him violently against a rock. Damon did not take the time to check if he was still alive. He took Elena in his arms and left the forest as quickly as possible while he still had the strength. In barely a minute, they were inside the Salvatore house. Damon released Elena and fell to his knees, wincing. His leg was hurting more and more. She crouched down next to him and rolled up the bottom of his pants. The wound seemed to be getting infected by the second.
"Oh no," she whispered.
She looked up at the stairs, hearing noise upstairs.
"Stefan !" She called.
Stefan came down and he rushed to his brother.
"What happened ?" He asked.
"We were attacked by a werewolf," Elena answered.
Damon stood up with difficulty, trying to hide the pain he felt. He felt like his whole body was shaking.
"After the blow I gave him," he began, "I'm sure that damn wolf didn't survive. At least we'll be safe."
"Damon..."
"Stop wearing that gloomy expression Stefan. I'm fine."
He headed for the living room, pretending that everything was fine. He refused that his brother or Elena saw him dying. He took a few steps, but his head started to spin. He put his shaking hand on the wall, trying to regain his senses. It was the second time he had been bitten by a werewolf, but this time, he felt like the pain was spreading faster. He fell forward. He heard Elena and Stefan calling him, but their voices seemed far away. And darkness invaded him.
~00~
Damon slowly opened his eyes and saw that he was in his bedroom. He felt like he had been asleep for hours. The dream he had had then came back to him.
He was in 1864 and he was human. He was attending the Founders' Ball. He saw Katherine dancing with Stefan. The jealousy he had felt for over a century resurfaced. Stefan. For Katherine, there was only had Stefan. Why had she chosen him ? Damon loved her. He loved her more than anything. He was even ready to give up his human life for her and become a vampire. He was about to leave the room when he saw her. Elena was there too and she looked so sad. Damon stared at her. How could she be here ? It was impossible. That was when he heard her. She was asking him not to give up, not to die. And even though he knew it was impossible, he promised her that he would not give up. Because all he wanted was to see her smile again.
His dream had ended like this. He let out a small laugh. Even in his dreams, he could not keep his promises. He heard footsteps in the hallway and after a few seconds, the door opened. Elena came in and she sat on the chair next to his bed.
"How are you feeling ?" She asked.
Damon smiled at her. He did not want to worry her any more. He took her hand and squeezed it lightly.
"It's okay. Don't worry."
"I'm so sorry. If I had been faster, I could have..."
"It's not your fault. If I had to do it again, I would. The important thing is that you are okay."
Tears ran down her cheek. It was true, he did not regret anything. And if he had to die for her to stay alive, he was ready to die.
"Where's Stefan ?" Damon asked.
"Downstairs, with Bonnie. They're trying to find a way to heal you."
Damon nodded. He never would have imagined that Bonnie could help him. He would have even thought that she would have been the first to celebrate the day of his death. Suddenly, a violent pain ran through his body. He closed his eyes for just a few seconds. He opened them again and he saw Katherine in Elena's place. What was she doing there ? What had she done to Elena ? But he was sure of one thing, when Katherine was around, it did not bode well. Katherine smiled maliciously at him.
"Katherine."
"What a shame," she smiled. "To die knowing she would never love you. That she'll always love Stefan."
His breath was irregular. Anger was rising inside him. He knew. He knew all along that Elena loved Stefan. But hearing Katherine telling him, made him furious.
"It'll always be Stefan," she continued.
He jumped on her. He grabbed her neck and pinned her against the wall. His veins showed under his red eyes.
"Shut up Katherine !"
"Damon !"
Katherine opened her eyes wide, suffocating. But something in her gaze had changed. It was not the malevolent look he knew. He realized she was not Katherine, but Elena. He let go of her quickly, scared of what he had almost done to her. He had almost killed her, thinking she was Katherine. He did not even dare to imagine what would have happened if she was still human. He moved as far away as he could, finding himself at the back of the room.
"Go away !" He said.
"Damon."
She approached him, but Damon gave her a murderous look.
"I'm dangerous, go away !" He shouted. "I don't want to hurt you."
But Elena did not listen to him and came closer.
"I'm not leaving, do you hear me," she said. "I'll stay with you."
She was now a few inches from him. Damon raised his hand gently towards her, afraid of hurting her. He brushed a lock of her hair away and stroked her cheek. His strength was leaving him again and he fell on the floor. He woke up a few hours later in his bed. Elena was sitting next to him and holding his hand. Despite her smile, he could see that she was holding back her tears.
"The news is not good ?" He asked.
"I'm sorry, Bonnie didn't find anything."
Damon nodded. Even though Bonnie was a powerful witch, he knew there was nothing she could do and he was sure Klaus would refuse to help him again.
"We'll eventually find another hybrid, half vampire, half werewolf, who will save me," he smiled.
Elena stood up and lay down next to him, not taking her eyes off him. Damon took her in his arms and she rested her head on his chest. She was not ready to let him go, not now. Tears streamed down her face. A year ago, she would never have believed it possible, but little by little, Damon had managed to have an important place in her heart and she could not imagine her life without him. If only things could have been different. If he had not made her forget their first meeting, maybe everything would have been different between them. She had resented him and had turned to Stefan. Stefan represented a security, he had been there when she needed him after her parents died. But Damon. Damon was such an important part of her life. When she was near him, she could feel this consuming passion, a sincere love that scared her. She was afraid of letting herself go completely to her feelings.
"I wish things were different," Damon said, as if he were reading her mind.
Elena looked at him and approached her lips. She did not want to be afraid of what she felt anymore. She had wasted too much time. If only she could have understood how much Damon meant to her before it was too late. They slowly moved away from each other. She was crying harder.
"I love you," she told him.
Damon smiled at her tenderly. It did not matter if it was true or not, he just wanted to enjoy this last moment with her. He hugged her a little tighter and kissed her again. He gently wiped the tears that were streaming down her face. The pain was getting more and more intense. He knew it was almost the end.
"It's going to be okay, don't worry," he whispered, exhausted.
"Damon, no."
Not now, she thought. He could not die, he should not.
"I love you," he said.
He closed his eyes one last time. He heard her calling his name, begging him not to die. But her voice grew more and more distant. He understood what Rose must have felt when she told him that she was no longer afraid, since he too had just spent his last moments with the woman he loved.
The end