#crazyimpulsive

❝   & here, we call them witch. over the centuries, vampires have fought them & fought beside them, bedded them & burned them. whether adversary or ally, they have been a force to be reckoned with.   ❞

who are you really?; a mix for the boy with blood-stained lips & the girl with hymns stuck on her tongue.

01. BITE—troye sivan  //  02. YOUNG GOD—halsey  //  03. DO I WANNA KNOW?—artic monkeys  //  04. COMPASS—zella day  //  05. WHO ARE YOU REALLY?—mikky ekko  //  06. EDGE OF SEVENTEEN—the wind and the wave  //  07. WAITING GAME—banks  //  08. A LITTLE DEATH—the neighbourhood  //  09. WHAT THE WATER GAVE ME—florence + the machine  //  10. DEVIL’S BACKBONE—the civil wars

writing meme !!!

tagged by: @notgriieving

( txt: big bad vampire ) are you busy right now ???

( txt: big bad vampire ) if not, could you come over ???

☾ ┆5 KISSES MEME.

i. founder’s day ( feburary 25, 2010 )

                     it’s nearly 11, kennedy realized as her feet hit the concrete driveway of her house. the sun had long since left the sky, leaving behind bright stars ( the kind only visible in small southern towns ) in its absence. the cool air whipped her hair back & forth, & kennedy felt a shiver run down her neck, nimble fingers pulling at the ends of her gray sweater. her chocolate brown eyes flickered towards the glow of warm light filtering through the front window. her father was still awake then, probably waiting for her to walk in the door a minute past curfew so he could berate her ( again ). a soft sigh escaping her lips, kennedy shook her head. if there’s was one thing her dad was a stickler for ( other than eating vegetables ), it was curfew.

                      ❝   thanks again for walking me home,   ❞   the words tumbled past her pink lips as she turned on her heels to face the dark-haired vampire standing next to her, poster boards from the library’s founder’s day booth in his hands. face relaxed but serious, she has no jokes tonight, no terrible puns ready to counter his biting words & cause his face to scrunch up in embarrassment of ever associating with her. it’s an odd sorta friendship the two of them have developed over the past few months————one full of bad jokes & teasing remarks, a lingering intensity neither of them acknowledged hidden underneath.

                       he shrugged off her gratitude, blue eyes roaming the house behind her.   ❝   well, last time i let you walk home alone, you were kidnapped by a bunch of vampires, so i thought, better not test it.   ❞

                      ❝   true … although, those vampires are dead now———   ❞   she trailed off. her fingers picked at a hole on her right sleeve, pushing through the cotton material. she didn’t understand how things could be so awkward & relaxing, intense & at ease, all at once. maybe the comfortable atmosphere stemmed from knowing damon in a past life. eliza gilbert had been best friends with damon hundreds of years ago; meanwhile, kennedy was just getting to know damon herself. perhaps that contrast caused the dueling mood around the two of them, for the same could be said about the older man. he had known eliza back in the day, but he had only met kennedy months ago.   ❝   ————m’glad you’re okay, & you know … not dead & stuff,   ❞   she tried to fill in the tense silence, referring to the blazing fire that roared only an hour or so earlier downtown. many people ( vampires, but people nonetheless ) had died because of the gilbert device, the same device bonnie had promised to deactivate but hadn’t.

                       his gaze moved back to her face, blue eyes searching for something before he shrugged again, his easy smirk sliding back over his features.   ❝   technically,   ❞   he began, & it took everything in kennedy’s might to not roll her eyes right there.   ❝   i’ve been dead for over 140 years now, so …   ❞

                      ❝   so m’glad you’ll get to be dead for over 140 more,   ❞   she quipped back. a second later, her warm lips have connected with his cold cheek before she stepped back, small smile lingering on her face, posters now in her hands.   ❝   good night … see you tomorrow ???❞   she didn’t wait for his response, opting instead to walk inside just as her watch ticked over to 10:59 PM. just in time for curfew.

ii. the birthday ( june 22 2010 )

                       she rolled over, hands tugging the white cotton pillow above her head. a soft groan escaped her lips as she tried to block out the bright rays of sunlight streaming in through the window. it was no use, seeing as she had been at this for five minutes & was now wide awake. a few seconds later, she peeled the pillow off her face & opened her eyes, blinking & sitting up. her gaze wandered to the other side of the bed, noticing it empty for the first time since she had woken up. she could hear the sound of the shower running & figured that was where she would find him. it wasn’t like anyone else was living in the boarding house at the moment, well, not since before summer had began.

                        she flopped back down on the bed, fingers running through her tangled brown locks as she glanced around his bed room. this wasn’t the first time she had spent the night here, & just like many other nights, it had begun & ended the same way. over the course of the summer, the two had become something more. what more was, kennedy wasn’t so sure, but she liked it. dinner & research, star-gazing & spell practicing, late night drinks & early morning pancakes. it was a routine she had grown familiar with, & one she was glad she didn’t have to give up when the school year began ( since she had decided to delay college by one year. funny how a year ago, she couldn’t wait to be out of this small town, & here she was voluntarily staying another year ).

                        hearing the water cut off, kennedy tugged at the covers, wrapping herself back into them & closing her eyes. she knew her feign of sleep wouldn’t convince him very long, but it might convince him he had nothing better to do all day than lay around the house. she felt the bed dip next to her, & she rolled over, curling into him. surprisingly, he was dry, despite only having gotten out of the shower a minute ago. she sneaked a glance upward, finding him laying there in only a towel. eyelashes fluttered as she blinked before shaking her head softly at the smirk on his face.

                       ❝   good morning,   ❞   he announced, chirpier as ever, & kennedy rolled her eyes, nodding softly. it was a good morning. she was relaxed, having slept peacefully through the night next to her best friend.

                      ❝   mmmhmmm,   ❞   she agreed, leaning back into him & closing her eyes. she felt his lips press against the crown of her head, & she smiled.

                       he laughed softly.    ❝   i’d hate to make you get up, but i just heard elena open the front door. we better get up & see what she wants.   ❞

                      ❝   ‘nother lead ???   ❞   kennedy perked up at his words, sitting up.

                      ❝   probably, she needs to stop looking.   ❞

                      ❝   well, it’s not like you’ve stopped looking either.   ❞   she glanced over at the bedside clock, eyes landing on the date.   ❝   either way, be nice to her today. it’s her birthday.   ❞

                       he scoffed.   ❝   when am i not nice ???   fine, fine. get dressed & meet me downstairs in a few, okay ???   ❞

                       she nodded, watching as he got up, still dressed in only his towel, & walked downstairs.

iii. heart of darkness ( winter 2010 )

                       the motel room was dark, dimly lit from the moon’s light seeping through the window. if kennedy had been more awake, she probably would have made a comment about how the light wasn’t actually coming from the moon, it was just the sun’s light reflecting off the moon, but after a long day on the road helping elena & damon find jeremy ( & then later running away from kol ), she didn’t care too much about being 100% accurate, especially since no one else was awake to hear her be correct. elena & jeremy laid in the other bed, tucked under the scratchy, wool blankets & snoring softly. kennedy turned in the bed at the sound of the bathroom door creaking, eyes cracked open enough to make out a shirtless damon. she watched as he walked towards the ice box & grabbed a bottle of whiskey. biting her lip, she wondered if she should make her awakeness known but thought better of it as she watched him peer out the window, put on one of his dark button-downs, & pour himself a drink. he sat down at the table, propping his legs up in the adjacent chair.  her gaze lingered as he took a sip of the amber liquid. silence continued to fill the air, leaving room for kennedy’s thoughts to wander.

                        the past few months had come & gone in much of blur. it was the first year since 1997 that she wasn’t enrolled in school, which, in theory, should have left her more time to relax & enjoy life. of course, that wasn’t the case. between searching for stefan, fighting off klaus & his family of original vampires, & now dealing with alaric’s crazy alter ego, kennedy had done pretty much everything but relax. so it was moments like this, quiet seconds stuck between the chaotic hours of her day, she found time to take a step back & think. sometimes, she’d write, jot down all her reflections into a worn journal, much like her previous incarnations. but she didn’t have her journal with her, so she was left to silently analyze the way damon’s blue eyes scrutinized the now empty plastic cup in his hands. his gaze flicked towards her, eyebrows furrowing at the sight of her awake, & she dug her teeth further into her lip.

                        their eyes stayed locked, seconds beating between the two before kennedy’s gaze broke away, & she shuffled on the bed. scooting over, she patted the empty space next to her. he nodded softly, setting the glass down on the table & standing up. he walked over, feet hitting the cold floor before he laid down on the bed. head turned towards her, his fingers found her long brown hair & brushed it out of her face.   ❝   hey———————what are you doing still up ???  ❞

                        she shrugged, not quite knowing the answer herself. it was just one of those nights where her mind didn’t want to shut off,  so she stayed awake, thoughts circling over & over in her head.   ❝   you never told me about that, you know ???   ❞

                        he blinked.   ❝   told you about what ???   ❞

                       ❝   what you did for rose. i mean, i know you had helped her, i just … didn’t know how much.   ❞

                        she watched as his blue eyes flickered to the ceiling & he pulled his hand away from her face.   ❝   didn’t seem like something that needed to be told.   ❞

                        a frown formed on her lips as she sighed, twisting to face him better.   ❝   why do you do that ???   ❞   her voice was soft, dark brown eyes observing every detail of his dimly lit face. she didn’t understand it, & normally, she didn’t question it out loud either. she knew damon was a good guy, understood that even though he sometimes did bad things, his intentions & motivations usually turned out pure ( or at least, as pure as a 171 year-old vampire’s intentions could be ).   ❝   why don’t you let people see the good in you ???   ❞   the way she said it made it was obvious she hadn’t included herself as ‘ people ’. somewhere along the way, in the past two years of knowing damon, she had been granted glimpses of him others had never seen, moments where his guard was down & he could just … be. he always seemed more human to her during them, & sometimes, she’d wonder if maybe that was what he was like with eliza.

                        it felt like hours before he spoke.   ❝   because when people see good, they expect good.   ❞   his eyes finally met hers again.   ❝   & i don’t want to have to live up to anyone’s expectations.   ❞

                        her frowned lingered, but she nodded nonetheless, understanding where he was coming from. expectations were a hard thing to get past, whether coming from family & friends or total strangers. kennedy remembered how tough the beginning of high school had been, her overtly excitement for learning having been thrown off by everyone else’s desire to just get done with the lecture & go home. she had learned to stop interjecting in the middle of class & just sit quietly & do her work instead. she had let others’ expectations influence how she acted in school. fingers found her own, & her head turned to see damon staring at her again, mind probably wondering where hers had gone off to. it seemed to be a night meant for staring contests as their gazes lingered again, seconds turning into minutes. at one point, kennedy couldn’t take the intensity of damon’s stare any longer & stood up, abruptly grabbing the sweater she had left on the table & walking out of the motel room, feet still bare.

                        she made it all the way to the vending machine, leaning against its cool side as she took a few deep breaths. she couldn’t quite wrap her head around where she stood with damon. were they dating ??? the amount of times they had kissed & one of them had stayed the night at the other’s the past few months indicated, yes, they were. but there was also a distinct lack of communication of their feelings between the two of them, leaving kennedy wondering what the hell their relationship status was. turning, she found damon had followed her out of the motel room & was standing only a foot or so away, arms folded across his chest. he opened his mouth to speak, clearly confused as to what her problem was.

                       ❝   what are we doing ???   ❞   she asked, cutting off whatever he was going to say.

                       ❝   what do you mean ???   ❞   he took a step closer.

                       ❝   i mean what are we doing ??? me. you. what are we doing ??? because i literally have no clue.   ❞

                       ❝   kennedy—————   ❞

                       ❝   are we dating ???   ❞   she swore she sounded more mature in her head, but as the words tumble out of her mouth, she realized she sounded much more like a confused teenager than anything. granted, kennedy was still technically a teenager for another eight months, but the sentiment still held true.

                        blue eyes narrowed, damon took another step forward until he was standing right in front of her. his arm stretched out, fingers clasping around her wrist & uncoiling her hand.   ❝   well, i kinda thought we were. why———did you think we weren’t dating ???   ❞

                       ❝   no———i mean, i don’t know. this is very confusing. you’re very confusing.   ❞   although she wouldn’t admit it, she kinda liked being confused. it was nice reprieve from knowing everything all the time.   ❝   i think everyone but you right now is confused.   ❞

                        kennedy didn’t have time to blink before his lips were on hers, coercing her to stop asking so many goddamn questions & just let it be. she kissed back, hands roaming until they found the hem of his shirt & pulled him closer.  his lips began to wander down her neck before she lifted his head back up to her lips.

                        behind them, someone cleared their throat, & kennedy quickly pulled away, face flushed, brown eyes trailing until she found elena staring at the two of them.    ❝   uh———   ❞   kennedy tried to make out an excuse as to why her & damon were making out in the late hours of the night, but she couldn’t seem to get her mind to assemble an articulate response.

                        elena shook her head.   ❝   jeremy says rose found mary. she lives in kansas.   ❞

                        damon glanced towards kennedy & then looked back to elena, sly smirk curling onto his face.   ❝   okay then. let’s go.   ❞   he walked back into the room, door closing shut behind him.

elena’s curious gaze never left kennedy’s stunned face. before the younger brunette could get a word in, however, kennedy let out a sound of disbelief.   ❝   a simple yes would have worked too.   ❞

                       ❝   what ???   ❞

                       ❝   nothing. let’s get going.   ❞

iv. summer nights ( july 2 2011 )

                       two years ago, kennedy would have laughed if you told her she had let someone in on where her secret hiding spot was. of course, she knew oliver ( & maybe even bonnie ) had some clue as to where she’d run off to in the middle of the week, when work & school & everything else seem to pile on top of her all at once & she just needed some space. but that didn’t mean she had ever told oliver, & to be fair, she hadn’t actually told the dark-haired vampire laying next to her on the rough grass either. well, not at first, at least. in fact, the whole reason they were sitting out here in this clearing, eyes locked on the stars above them,  was because damon had taken her out here several weeks ago with the intent to show her where he & eliza had spent many of their nights together, laughing & talking & sipping wine. kennedy had managed to ruin the surprise when she informed him only seconds after reaching the clearing this was her favorite spot to star-gaze & write in her journal ( & had been for several years now ).

                        she really needed to learn the art of timing.

                        but, hey, if damon hadn’t broken up with her over her terrible puns yet, her poor timing wasn’t going to push him over the edge anytime soon.

                        so there they sat, fingers plucking at the tall strands of grass below them, gazes fixated on the stars above. it was a peaceful scene, just like every other night this summer had been, actually. it only took two years, but everything had finally quieted down in mystic falls, & everyone left in town had returned to a semi-normal routine for the summer. & damon & kennedy, well, they were no exception. without any supernatural drama to deal with, the couple was left to do actual couple things for once. a month ago, they were worried about an immortal witch being awakened from his thousand year slumber, & today, they were laughing at one of her bad puns, & he was pointing out different constellations to her & explaining to her the origins for each one ( although, she did have to correct him on a few greek myths ).

                       ❝   & that’s why there’s technically 13 zodiac signs & not 12.   ❞   she finished her story, twisting around on the grass until her body was curled up next to him. his arm wrapped around her waist & pulled her short frame closer.

                       ❝   interesting,   ❞   he muttered into her hair, & she could practically feel the grin radiating off him at her over-enthusiastic explanation of the zodiac signs.   ❝   you know where you could see the stars better ??? ❞

                       ❝   where ???   ❞   she asked, half-expecting his reply to be some sort of innuendo. instead, she felt him run his fingers through her tangled locks, twisting each strand around his fingers.

                       ❝   up in the mountains, where there’s no city lights to block your view or dim their brightness.   ❞

                       ❝   yeah ???   ❞

                       ❝   yeah.   ❞   his grip around her waist briefly tightened before his gaze met hers.   ❝   we could go to some if you’d like. i’ve got a place in the ozarks. we could head up there for a few weeks, just the two of us.   ❞

                        she hummed in response at his offer. the idea of leaving mystic falls for a few weeks & getting to have damon all to herself was very tempting. it wasn’t like she had anything better to do either. she didn’t start college for another two months, & there wasn’t any supernatural drama going on for once. all she would have to do would be to tell the library she wouldn’t behere for a few weeks.   ❝   that sounds really nice.   ❞

                       ❝   yeah ???   ❞

                       ❝   yeah.   ❞   she grinned, & he grinned back. he leaned down, lips meeting hers in a deep kiss before she pulled back, giggle escaping her throat. she pointed back up to the sky, index finger homing in on a constellation to the far right.   ❝   so tell me about that one.   ❞

v. since you’ve been gone ( october 10 2012 )

                       to say her head hurt would be an understatement.  a soft groan escaped her lips as her brown eyes fluttered open. squinting, she tried to adjust to the dim light illuminating the unfamiliar room. as she began to make out the layout of the room———large king bed, table set off to the side, older television laid on top of a dresser———, she realized she was in a motel, which also explained why the sheets were so rough against her skin. cold fingers brushed her hair back, & kennedy’s questions as to how she had gotten there drifted to the back of her mind.

                        turning on her side, kennedy blinked as her eyes landed on a familiar pale face. her breath caught in her breath as her heart pounded in her chest. a few memories clicked back into place———damon blowing himself up to find bring back stefan from the other side, kennedy searching & searching for a way to get him back until finding the answer in her uncle, her uncle henry later slicing her throat to try & resurrect katherine. kennedy’s hand trailed up to her throat, fingers stroking the unharmed skin. realization came to her then, & she let out a jagged breath.   ❝   m’dead, aren’t i ???   ❞

                       ❝   what ???   ❞   she has never heard his voice rise that high before, so full of disbelief & confusion. the expression on his face would be humorous if the situation wasn’t so serious. he was dead, & if she was seeing him, touching him, interacting with him, then logically, she was dead as well. it was the only way her brain could make sense of it all. her uncle had killed her, had sliced her throat & let her bleed out, & for what ??? so katherine could come back from the prison world kennedy had sent her to so the manipulative bitch didn’t have to suffer in HELL ??? at least kennedy could take comfort in knowing katherine wouldn’t be too happy gracing the earth again ( not when nadia was still in the prison world without her mother ) & would probably kill henry for releasing her. meanwhile, kennedy was stuck in some sort of limbo ( … was this heaven ??? must be if she had finally been reunited with damon ).

                       ❝   i’m dead … actually, properly dead.   ❞   she frowned as she sat up in the bed, fingers pushing back the covers. this was an experience she wasn’t sure she was ever going to have. she didn’t know many details about how the reincarnation spell actually worked ( where did her soul go in between incarnations ??? how come she always looked the same even though she wasn’t related to any of her other-selves ??? ). she had always been more afraid & reincarnating & forgetting everyone she loved than dying permanently,  but she had had an inkling that the spell wouldn’t work since the other side had been destroyed, & right now, it looked like she had been right.

                        sometimes she hated being right.

                        surprisingly, right now wasn’t one of those times.

                       ❝   you’re not dead, kennedy,   ❞   damon huffed, hand clasping around hers. his fingers found the crevices between her own & squeezed. there was a glimmer of amusement in his blue eyes, & kennedy wasn’t sure what he found so funny about this situation. they were dead. this was not a joke.

                       ❝   yeah ??? & what makes you think that, hmm ???   ❞

                        damon’s lips connected with hers then, & she sighed, kissing him back. four months. it had been four months since she had kissed him, seen his face, heard his voice. she didn’t care if they were in some sort of afterlife right now. she wasn’t curious to explore their surroundings & figure out whether the religion she spent half her life believing in held any sort of truth in it. she didn’t care about anything except the dark-haired vampire ( could one be a vampire after death ??? ) kissing her right now. but too soon, he pulled away, breath heavy against her face. his face still held the look of amusement across it, although hidden underneath she could see he was worried.   ❝   did that do the trick ???   ❞

                       ❝   how … how was kissing me supposed to prove i’m alive ???   ❞   she asked, giggling softly before shaking her head. damon shrugged, obviously not knowing the answer himself, & kennedy sighed & decided to play along.   ❝   okay, i’ll bite. if we’re not dead, how are you here ??? last i checked, you kinda drove your car into the grill & blew it along with yourself up.   ❞

                       ❝   & now she’s asking the real questions. i knew my brainiac was in there somewhere.   ❞   he smirked, free hand moving to push back more of her hair.   ❝   well, you see, someone had the decency to pop up in my dreams & tell me to start looking for an ascendant. i found it, escaped, & ta-da, i’m here.   ❞

                        kennedy blinked, damon’s words slowly sinking in.   ❝   that actually worked ??? henry wasn’t lying to me ???   ❞   her grip tightened on his hand, & she frowned. damon had been stuck in a prison world. henry had confirmed her suspicions as soon as she had arrived in memphis. that’s when she had managed to perform a spell to make contact with him, showing up in his dreams & telling him what little she knew about prison worlds, hoping it would lead him back home to her. apparently, it had worked, but that still left one tiny detail.   ❝   that explains how you’re here & alive, but what about me ??? i distinctly remember having my throat cut open.   ❞

                        this time she felt damon’s hand tightened on hers. his eyes grew gentle, amusement being replaced with affection.   ❝   vampire blood does a good job at healing most wounds, kenn———you left ric & your dad all worried with talk of your uncle & not showing up to class for a whole week. so when i got back & you weren’t there, well, some of us can still put 2 & 2 together.   ❞

                        another blink. her head was beginning to clear, more memories from her uncle’s ritual coming back to her: his voice calling out to her as her uncle held the knife to her throat. alaric & oliver had been there as well; although who knows where the two of them were now ( probably still on their way back to mystic falls ). & katherine ??? had katherine been released from her prison world even though damon had stopped the ritual ???   ❝   you saved me ???   ❞

                       ❝   of course, i saved you. s’kinda what i do, you know.   ❞

                        she rolled her eyes, half-tempted to list the numerous times she had saved his ass, but she didn’t want to ruin the moment.   ❝   so we’re alive then ???   ❞

                         he nodded.   ❝   we’re alive.   ❞

                       ❝   good. that means i can do this again.   ❞   her lips pressed against his, but he pulled back.

                       ❝   nuh-uh. not until AFTER we talk about you almost getting yourself killed trying to bring me back.   ❞

                       ❝   hey !!! the dying thing wasn’t exactly on the table when i originally made the deal with him.   ❞

                       ❝   what about ‘ shady uncle your father doesn’t want you to know ’ about doesn’t scream danger to you ???   ❞

                       ❝   i’m a curious child, leave me alone.   ❞

                       ❝   curiosity killed the cat, kenn.   ❞

It was the gasp that broke her concentration, made her eyes snap open and the Latin words on her lips tumble back into her mouth. It’s not a moment later—one Mississippi, two—when her brown eyes find his blue ones staring back up at her. Her shoulders relaxed, and Kennedy released a breath of her own. For the first time in three months, she knew everything was going to be okay. Shifting her gaze, Kennedy glanced back up at Bonnie, noticing the other witch had also opened her eyes. She found the same relief wash over the younger witch’s face.  They did it. Damon was awake.

Spread around the upstairs living room of the Lockwood Mansion, the candles flickered, and the fireplace crackled, warming the room as all heads turned towards the vampire lying on the wooden dining table. Caroline’s chair sat closest to the trio; while Matt sat in a chair across from the tan couch Oliver and Stefan sat on. All shared the same surprised and confused expression, eyes wide and brows furrowed. No one had expected this to work, not when just hours earlier it seemed as if Damon’s soul had been resisting being rescued by the two witches’ spell.

“No.” They’re the first words she’s heard come from his mouth in three months, and they turn her growing smile into a frown. His tone was soft, broken, and gentle…distraught, almost. Wide and confused, his bright blue eyes searched her face, and she felt her eye twitch. Was he…was he looking straight through her? She squeezed his hand, hoping to alleviate some of his confusion and reassure him everything was okay. He was out of the Phoenix Stone, nothing that had happened in there was real and none of it could hurt him. Hearing the couch squeak behind her, Kennedy turned her head to see Stefan stand up and begin walking towards the trio.

“No…we weren’t done.” Her frown deepened at the crack in Damon’s voice and the sorrowful expression on his face. He sat up, and the Phoenix Stone, which had previously been sitting over the wound on his chest, dropped unceremoniously to the floor. His hand fell away from hers as his words turned frantic. “I gotta get her back. I gotta get her back.”

Stefan rushed over then, hands held out in a show of peace, and despite her wariness, Kennedy stepped aside to let him handle the situation, watching as Damon stepped away from the table. Her mind was too caught up in Damon’s words to argue with the younger Salvatore. Get her back? Who…he couldn’t mean…Her thoughts jumped back to Damon’s blank expression from only moments before…oh.

“Hey, hey, Damon, Damon——” He stood in front of the older vampire, raising his voice to try and grab his brother’s attention. “Hey, it’s me. It’s me!” Pausing his movements, Damon locked his panicked gaze on Stefan’s face. “You’re safe. It’s okay. It’s okay.”

Kennedy watched Damon shake his head, could almost see the tears beginning to well up in his eyes, and she bit her lip, taking a small step forward, ready to help Stefan calm him down if needed. It was clear by his frantic tone that his mind had yet to shake off the effects of the Phoenix Stone. Guilt washed over her as she wished her and Bonnie had been able to get him out of the magic-induced hell hole sooner. They had managed to rescue Stefan weeks ago (although part of Kennedy was still regretting that decision), but every time they tried to do it on Damon, it was as if his soul didn’t want to budge…as if he had unfinished business to finish before he came out.

“No. No! One more time. One more time!” Damon turned back around, eyes trailing over her before landing solely on Bonnie. The younger witch was leaning against the table as Caroline helped steady her. It was obvious the spell had taken more out of her than it had Kennedy. “Send me back. I know what to do now.”

Everyone but Kennedy’s eyes widened, confusion among the room’s inhabitants growing. The idea that Damon wanted back inside the Phoenix Stone seemed to boggle everyone’s mind, but Kennedy knew better. Although she was sure she’d never get the full story out of him, she was beginning to piece together a coherent narrative of what Damon might have saw in the Phoenix Stone. It only took one word to sum it up: Eliza.

Her throat tightened at the thought, mind ever distrustful of Damon’s feelings for her past incarnation. Deep down she knew better, had long ago buried the idea that one of the reasons Damon stuck around was because she reminded him of her and nothing more, but the thought that he so desperately wanted to get back to her despite Kennedy being right there didn’t hurt any less.

Stefan’s voice dragged her back out of her thoughts. “Damon, it’s not real—”

“I know it’s not real,” he cut off angrily. “None of this is real!”

Snap.

She blinked, watching with wide brown eyes as Stefan’s body tumbled to the floor. Damon had snapped his younger brother’s neck, clearly delirious. She began to step forward, wanting to help, but it was Oliver’s gaze in the back of the room that stopped her as he shook his head. Now was not the time for heartfelt heroics. He wanted her to let the vampires handle it.

“Damon, don’t———” Caroline’s words snapped Oliver and Kennedy out of their silent conversation. Before the duo could react, Damon had broken a chair and managed to stab Caroline in the chest with one of its legs, and the pregnant vampire fell into Bonnie’s arms.

Matt rushed forward. “Damon!” Snap. Matt’s body fell to the parlor floor, neck broken from Damon’s backhanded slap. Kennedy took a step back in shock at the crazed look in Damon’s eyes. It was no longer than a blink later that Damon had Bonnie pinned to the wall with a fireplace poker pressed against the short brunette’s throat.

“Damon, no!” Kennedy’s words had no effect on him, however, and she continued to watch in horror as Bonnie struggled to free herself and breathe.

“Ugh, Damon—” Bonnie managed to choke out, hands grappling at his wrists, but Damon ignored her, pressing the iron rod harder against her neck.

“I have to get back to her,” he whispered, and Kennedy felt her heart clench at his voice.

Bonnie fell to the floor, and Kennedy’s eyes began to tear up in panic. She wasn’t…she wasn’t dead, right? The other witch had just lost consciousness from the lack of air, right? Kennedy didn’t get long to contemplate her friend’s life status before she witnessed Oliver rushing over to the smaller witch, managing to get his own neck snapped by Damon and leaving only Kennedy left conscious in the room.

“…Damon,” she whispered, taking a hesitant step towards him. Her face held a neutral expression, lips curled into a thin line and eyes gentle, trying to mask her shock and fear. “It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not,” he replied, flashing forward, hands gripping her arms painfully tight. His wide blue gaze never left her face, but he was seeing straight through her again. He was seeing Eliza again. “I…I have to get back to her. I have to save her.”

Stilling all other movements, she slowly shook her head, tone slow and soft. “S’okay, Damon. It’s okay.”

“M’sorry.” His hand wrapped around her throat, cutting off her air supply, and she forced herself not to struggle and to just let him choke her. She knew everything would be okay, but she needed to make sure he knew that as well.

“It’s…o-okay,” she choked out, gasping. “…I forgive you.”

His eyes showed no understanding of her words before she slipped out of conscious, falling to the ground just as the others had moments before. Damon stumbled away, breath ragged. He blinked, confusion flooding his veins. “Why am I still here?” He turned on his heels, taking in the violent scene before him, the lifeless bodies of his friends scattered around the room. “This isn’t real…This isn’t real.” His eyes flickered back and forth between his friends’ bodies. As the fire continued to crackle in the background, Damon glanced around the room again, expecting to wake back up in the Civil War any second, but as time ticked on realization began to settle into his bones

“No,” he whispered, a soft admission that this was, in fact, reality he stood awake in. He stumbled over to Matt’s body on the floor. “Donovan!” Shaking the young policeman’s face, he tried to wake the human up. “You do not get—” He bit into his wrist, pushing it against the blonde’s lips. “—to die. Donovan, drink.” Not seconds later, Matt woke up, breathing heavily, and Damon pulled his wrist away, moving on to heal Bonnie, whose body lay crumpled against the wall.

“Bon.” He bit back into his wrist, placing it in her mouth, before his free hand moved to cradle the back of her head. “Bonnie, Bonnie. Oh, I’m so sorry.” A small cough escaped the witch’s throat as she regained consciousness. “I didn’t know where I was,” he began to explain, apologetic. “I didn’t know I was out—” His words cut off as he fell to the floor, and Caroline sat up, gasping, the fractured piece of chair she had used to stab his neck in her hand. It wasn’t long before Oliver and Stefan also regained consciousness, both taking a moment to orient themselves before rushing over to Caroline, crouching next to her. Their eyes roamed her face and body, brother and boyfriend taking stock in her appearance to make sure everything was okay with her and the babies.

Matt stumbled to his feet from his previous position of the floor, scratching at the back of his head and glancing around to see the living room in shambles. Tyler was never going to let him live this one down. One of the chairs was smashed to bits, Bonnie’s blood now stained one of the walls, and Kennedy still laid limp on the floor, unconscious. “Oh my god.”

The room grew eerily quiet as Oliver’s head turned at Matt’s voice, eyes trailing to follow his gaze to the small brunette on the floor. All three vampires listened with baited breath, trying to locate the sound of a third human heartbeat in the living room, but none came to their ears. No words were spoken as Oliver crawled over to his best friend and pulled her into his lap.

Green eyes settled on the brunette, eyes wide with shock as fingers shakily brushed back the hair from her face. This wasn't happening, this couldn't be happening. A lump formed in the midst of his throat, and it soon became hard for him to breathe. His ears perked up as he waited and waited for a small beat, for her chest to begin rising and falling once more. The blonde had leaned down, placed his forehead against her own, brushing the hair out of her face, “Please…” he murmured. “Please, please, please wake up.” Oliver's voice was raspy as tears glazed over the brim of his eyes.

“Oliver...she's gon—” Stefan whispered.

“No! Don't you dare say it!” he snapped. The vampire refused to believe that. It didn't make sense to him. She was just there, bargaining with Damon, trying to get him to see that things were okay. Her voice pleading with him would be all he ever heard of her again. It couldn't happen. He couldn't be going through this again. It was too much for him to handle. Tears fell down his cheeks as he raised his head up, hand wiping away the wetness, but his face continued to be dampened by the water from his eyes.

A sniff and a bite of his bottom lip occurred as his eyes remained fixed on her, a sharp breath was exhaled as he began to come to the realization. This…this wasn't the end. No. Oliver could remember catching her one day, downing a shot of pure blood. That was when she had told him everything. The small amount of blood she'd been ingesting each day in case something like this had happened. Yeah, yeah, she's okay. She's just sleeping for a while. His head nodded in agreement with his thoughts as he spoke. “She's gonna be just fine…” he whispered.

“Ollie,” Caroline started. “She's gone.”

“No. No, she's not. She's not gone. She's just…sleeping.” Everyone looked at him with pity. The way he continued to deny everything in front of him. “She didn't want you guys to know this, but...” he paused. Should he? Of course, he should. They were just as much her friends as he was. “She's been ingesting Salvatore's blood for the past couple of months, ever since Kai cursed Elena. They were afraid something like this would happen, and she was just being…cautious. She's gonna be okay.” The blonde truly believed that, that was all that he had. The belief that she would come back to them in a matter of hours. It would be okay. She'd be like him, and she'd be right back. He'd have his best friend back once more.

                        ❝   i’m TIRED.   ❞   her words are muffled by his chest, her face pressed against his black stretch cotton shirt. a soft sigh escaped past her lips as she turns in his hold, teeth digging into pink lips. the days events continued to replay through her head as her eyelids fluttered. the two had had a ... long day, to say the least. between silas pretending to be stefan, compelling kennedy to try & kill damon, & then disappearing altogether, kennedy was still a bit freaked out. it was the first time she had dealt with compulsion herself, seeing as she was a witch, & now that she knew what it felt like, she was a little more grateful that she was immune to all other forms of compulsion.

Tagged by: no one Tagging: @crazyimpulsive, @katheriinefacade, @calledforthis, @turnedforbes, @tragcdyveined

PLANT PERSONALITY: D N P

DANDELION: Scrappy and tough, you’re a pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps kind of person. You don’t give up easily and you often thrive in situations that others would find discouraging. You have an instinct to serve others and see yourself as most useful in times or places of crisis, but you may over rely on your toughness and forget how sensitive you really are.

NETTLE: Truly a nurturing and supportive friend, you’re the kind of person that just isn’t for everyone. But those who take the time are rewarded with your gentle disposition, and the kind of friendship that does a person good no matter the difficulty they’re facing. When out of balance, you can become more prickly than supportive or nurturing, though—a sign that you need to shower yourself with the same kind of nurturing you so freely give to others.