𝐔𝐍𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄

( ben barnes, 27/178, he/him )  welcome to reprieve, DAMON SALVATORE who is from THE VAMPIRE DIARIES, SEASON 3.  rumor has it they are a VAMPIRE, but only they could tell you the truth! when i close my eyes, i think of them and imagine BARBED INSULTS DRIPPING IN BOURBON, DARK COLORED V-NECKS, AND A SUPERNOVA JUST BEFORE IT BECOMES A BLACK HOLE.

“ i’m  fine  with  hiding  out,  kind of beats the alternative —- this town feels far enough away from home. ” 

..

“  oh  i’d  bet  it’s  closer  than  you’d  think. ”   there’s  a  smirk  that  crosses  his  features  as  he  drops  in  across  from  stefan,  pilfering  the  drink  from  his  hands  and  claiming  it  his  own.   he  finishes  it,  letting  the  empty  glass  clink  against  the  table  as  he  greets  him  properly.   “  hello,  brother. ”

“ they say the devil that you know is better than the devil that you don’t  —- ignorance truly seems to be the best medicine in all our case’s. ”

..

“  where’d  you  get  that,  pinterest  ?  c’mon  buddy,  i  know  it’s  been  awhile,  but  even  you  can  do  better  than  that. ”   deflection,  hiding  behind  a  snarky  comment  and  a  smirk;   the  damon  salvatore  way  to  avoid  dealing  with  your  trauma  when  it  smacks  you  in  the  face.   in  his  defense,  however,  there’s  no  right  way  to  have  a  conversation  with  a  guy  you  left  for  dead  a  few  decades  ago.

Veronica placed her hands into her pockets as she looked at the stranger. “Well it is a real place and you are standing in the middle of it.”She said lifting her hands up and motioning around the two of them. “Well it’s in the states of course. You must be one of those that are from,as others are putting it, out of town. I can tell.”

..

“  oh  goody.  at  least  i’m  on  the  right  continent. ”   he  says  dryly,  lips  pressed  together  into  a  tight  line.  it’s  meant  to  land  as  a  joke,  but  there’s  some  sincerity  in  the  words.  if  he’s  still  in  the  states,  getting  home  shouldn’t  be  that  difficult.    “  out  of  town.  yeah.  something  like  that. ”   eyes  narrow  as  he  tries  his  phone  again,  unsurprised  when  it  fails  to  connect  to  the  networks.  it’s  about  as  useful  as  a  stake  on  an  original.   “  have  you  met  a  lot  of  people  from  ...  out  of  town  ?   any  leggy  brunettes  with  big,  sad,  eyes,  and  a  locket  around  her  neck  ?   or  a  brooding face  attached  to  the  worst  case  of  hero  hair  you’ve  ever  seen  ?   no  ?  ”

to say she was f r u s t r a t e d would be an understatement, caroline was very much tipping into the neurotic parts of her personality in the pursuit of looking for her daughters. “ugh! answer your p h o n e s!” she grumbled, hanging up with a little more force than she meant to and landing a small crack in the screen. every time she tried to call it kept saying the call could not be completed. “this better not be some freaky prison world thing where i can’t contact my children, where is b o n n i e when i need her.” mostly, she was speaking to herself and didn’t even realize that another had been listening in because she was so concentrated on getting ahold of josie and lizzie.

@reprievestarters·

he’s  drunk.  not  stumbling,  belligerent,  levels  of  drunk,  but  drunk  nonetheless.  if  anyone  asks,  he’ll  say  he  was  just  bored,  and  in  need  of  a  new  bar  to  make  his  home  away  from  home,  but  in  truth  he’s  equally  as  frazzled  as  caroline  about  this  bizarro  world  they’re  stuck  in.   he’s  not  sure   W  H  A  T   a  prison  world  is  but  context  clues  would  suggest  it’s  not  a  place  he  wants  to  be. 

“  how  rude  of  glinda  the  good  to  be  M.I.A  when  we  actually  need  her. ”   he’s  always  the  most  vocal  to  complain  about  bonnie  —  or  rather,  how  annoying  her  do-gooding  and  butting  into  things  can  be  —  but  he’d  actually  be  HAPPY  to  see  her  right  about  now  if  it  meant  things  went  back  to  normal.   it  takes  him  a  moment  before  he  clicks  in,  looking  genuinely  baffled.   “  hold  up,  blondie.   i  don’t  know  if  you  need  an  anatomy  lesson  but  even  in  crazy  prison  worlds,  vampires  can’t  procreate. ”    he  smirks.   “  though  we  love  trying. ”

     “does this place sell just a regular black coffee ?? or is it all froofy frappuccinos and pumpkin spiced golddust here too ??”

@reprievestarters·

“  if  you’re  looking  for  regular  coffee,  you’re  in  the  wrong  place. ”   he  answers,  lifting  one  of  the  pumpkin  spiced  monstrosities  in  solidarity.   “  the  word  artisan’s  in  the  description.   look  it  up.  ”

the  good  thing  about  this  town  was  the  gift  of  denial,  even  among  the  uncertainty,  the  horrendous  feeling  of  being  trapped.  elena  got  the  opportunity  to  hide  from  her  indiscretions.  she  could  hide  from  how  she  felt,  just  a  little  longer.  because  the  longer  she  got  to  do  that,  the  longer  she  didn’t  have  to  admit  what  had  happened  minutes  before  she  wound  up  in  reprieve.  AND  MAYBE  SHE  LIKED  THE  PEACE  OF  THAT.  of  the  escape,  even  if  it  terrified  her.  she  got  to  simply  exist,  without  circumstances.  because  the  truth  was,  that  elena  didn’t  even  know  where  to  begin  even  if  she  did  try  to  unload  the  baggage  that  came  with  the  kiss  in  a  motel  room  with  her  current  boyfriend  —–  or  ex  boyfriend’s  brother.  she’s  pretty  sure  it  would  swallow  her  whole.

but  like  so  much  bad  luck  already  in  her  life,  time  decides  to  not  be  on  her  side.  and  it’s  decided  that  she  has  no  option  than  confronting  it.  because  across  the  street  from  her,  she  notices  him.  he’s  here  too.  sticking  out  like  a  sore  thumb,  and  how  could  she  not  notice  him?  it’s  like  he’s  taken  her  head  hostage,  giving  her  no  other  choice  than  to  think  about  him.  or  to  think  about  how  he  stirred  emotions  within  her,  and  that  those  emotions  could  be  felt  DOWN  to  her  very  bones.  it  shook  her  to  her  core  so  much  because  it  was  the  strongest  thing  she’d  felt  ever.  even  with  stefan.  and  what  did  that  make  her?  WHO  did  that  make  her?  just  like  katherine?  all  she  ever  wanted  was  to  be  set  apart  from  her,  and  yet  she’s  fallen  into  the  same  actions  —-  head  first,  in  fact.  and  she  feels  shame,  because  of  how  she’d  professed  to  never  be  like  her,  and  she  feels  shame  because  her  brother  CAUGHT  her.  and  maybe,  the  reason  she  decides  on  a  whim  in  that  very  moment  to  approach,  is  for  her  brother.  (  it’s  also  because  it’s  damon,  and  she’s  not  ready  to  acknowledge  it  yet,  but  she’s  beyond  glad  to  see  him.  that  simply  knowing  he’s  there,  it  offers  a  security  unlike  any  other.  )  she’s  heading  over,  coming  to  a  stop  just  a  few  meters  for  him,  and  choosing  to  speak  to  alert  her  presence.  “  damon…  you’re  HERE,  thank  god.  that’s… that’s  great,  did  my  brother  happen  to  hitch  a  ride  too  with  you  on  whatever  brought  us  here  ?  ”  it’s  clear,  that  she’s  being  cagey,  that  her  eyes  are  looking  everywhere  but  his.  that  she’s  trying  to  distract,  but  her  loved  ones  wellbeing?  it’s  important  to  her,  as  always.      /    @wrckhvck·    .

fate  has  always  liked  screwing  with  him,  so  it  should  come  as  no  surprise  that  the  second  he  has  hope  —  it  gets  ripped  away  from  him;   straight  out  of  his  hands,  making  him  wonder  if  it’d  ever  been  real  to  begin  with.   except  he  knows  it  was;   can  feel  the  ghost  of  elena’s  lips  on  his  own,  can  remember  the  little  sigh  she’d  breathed  out  before  giving  into  her  feelings.   he  remembers,  so  it  had  to  have  been   R  E  A  L.  

reprieve,  however,  has  been  a  great  big  ball  of  suck  ever  since  he  arrived.  he’s  seen  a  few  familiar  faces,  learned  enough  to  figure  out  that  not  everyone’s  on  the  same  page,  and  he’s  ready  to  go  home  now.   he’d  take  a  century  of  wondering  where  he  stood  with  elena,  of  wondering  how  he  could  bring  his  brother  home  and  keep  the  mikaelsons  out  of  their  hair,  over  this.   whatever  this  is.   

that  is,  until  he  sees  her.   she’s  already  spotted  him,  making  a  beeline  like  there’s  a  thread  that  ties  them  together;  a  connection  that  tethers  them  to  each  other,  keeps  drawing  them  back  in  whenever  one  starts  to  stray.   in  ways,  he  thinks  there  is.   there’s  always  been  a  connection  ...  even  if  they  both  tried  to  ignore  it.   history  repeats  itself  even  when  you  don’t  want  it  to.   except  this  time,  it’ll  be  different  —  it  has  to  be.    

“  elena. ”   it’s  murmured  quietly  as  he  closes  the  last  few  meters  between  them,  arms  encircling  her  and  pulling  her  in  tight.   for  him,  it’s  been  weeks.   he  doesn’t  know  how  long  it’s  been  since  she  last  saw  him.   who  knows  how  time  passes  outside  of  reprieve.   he  knows  her  should  answer  her  questions,  break  the  bad  news  about  jeremy,  but  he  can’t  bring  himself  to  do  it.   not  yet.   instead  his  hands  frame  her  face,  drink  her  in,  before  closing  the  gap  to  kiss  her  properly.

she  made  the  first  move  outside  the  motel.  today,  he  returns  the  favor.  

‘welcome to reprieve’. That sign hadn’t been that welcoming and he still wanted to know where the hell was Reprieve on a map. But at least there was no fear in starving to death or dehydration, the town offered both. There was still the questions of how the hell did he get here and why, but right now in terms of survival, not really that important. He wasn’t in any immediate danger and he’d been taught to get the lay of the land. So that’s what he was doing. figuring out places and people.

He hears some shout and it’s followed by a hinting car horn and angry ‘stay the hell out of the middle of the road’ angrily thrown back. That car takes a fast right turn and speeds passed Isaac just as he comes to the end of the sidewalk and look the way the car went and back to whom he assumes did the first shouting. “I don’t think they cared either way about road etiquette.” He offered with a shrug. “Maybe it’s a thing here in Reprieve.” 

..

reprieve.  it  sounded  more  like  a  painkiller  than  a  town  but  given  he  was  from  somewhere  as  ridiculous-sounding  as  mystic  falls  ...  he  didn’t  have  much  of  a  leg  to  stand  on.   he  simply  grimaces, dusting  off  his  jeans  and  grumbling  under  his  breath.  “  this  was  expensive. ”  an  audience  usually  wouldn’t  be  enough  to  keep  from  snapping  necks  first,  asking  questions  later,  but  moments  after  being  dropped  in  a  mystery  town  doesn’t  feel  like  the  right  time.   

“  reprieve.  great.  perfect. ”   now  that  he  knows  where  he  is,  he  can  figure  out  how  to  get  home.  just  moments  ago  he  was  back  at  the  motel,  kissing  elena,  and  now  he’s  here  trying  to  figure  out  what  the  hell  went  wrong.  maybe  this  is  karma  for  kissing  his  brother’s  girl.   or  worse,  for  falling  in  love  with  her.   “  which  state  is  it  in  and  what’s  the  fastest  way  to  the  interstate  ?  i’ve  got  place  to  see,  people  to  do. ”   he  waves  a  hand.  “  mistakes  to  make,  bridges  to  burn.  all  things  i  can’t  do  here. ”

crap. she’d never actually seen it happen before, someone being popped into existence. at least she assumed that’s what that was, unless he was real fast and real oblivious. it took her a second of blinking before she spoke, poking her nose in where it didn’t belong most likely.

“no offense, but you should probably get out of the road,” came the voice from the sidewalk hoping to diffuse or distract from a blow up. “in their defense you did just sort of appear there. i’m sure they wouldn’t just try to run someone over for fun.” at least she hoped so, anyway.

“  oh,  thank  you.  i  never  would  have  come  up  with  that  on  my  own. ”   his  words  are  dry  as  he  watches  the  driver  swerve  around  him,  lifts  twitching  upwards  at  the  terrified  expression  on  their  face.   he  enjoys  that  a  little.  he  does.  it’s  a  bright  spot  in  an  otherwise  grey  moment;  the  circumstances  of  his  appearing  here  —  as  she  so  aptly  put  it  —  still  an  unanswered  question.  

“  trust  me,  i’m  not  exactly  thrilled  to  be  here  either. ”  considering  what,  or  rather  who,  he’d  left  behind  —  that  was  inevitable.   “  so  point  me  in  the  direction  of  whichever  witch  cooked  up  this  mess. ”   when  in  doubt,  when  things  go  wrong  in  his  life,  it’s  always  witches.   every  fucking  time.

Truthfully she’s got no clue where she’s going or what she’s doing. It’s been a few hours now, desperately trying to get her cell phone to find some kind of service without any luck. The old Motorola Razr is in her hand as she wanders, hoping beyond hope that she’ll be able to get even a single bar, but the more time ticks on the less hope she has, and she’s got to preserve the battery.

She looks up with a slight sigh just in time to see a man literally appear in the middle of the street, and now she’s starting to think she must be dreaming or something, or hit her head because people don’t just appear out of nowhere like she’s sure she just saw. She’s too stunned in the first few moments to even shout for him to look out, though she ‘wakes up’ enough to move towards him after the fact, concerned even though she doesn’t think anything actually happened, “Are you alright?”

..

once  he’s  safely  out  of  harm’s  way,  he  holds  up  his  hand  for  her  to  pause  as  he  reaches  into  his  pockets.  “  hold  that  thought. ”   he  pulls  a  pen  out  of  his  pocket,  ripping  the  cap  off  with  his  teeth  before  throwing  it  perfectly  at  the  car’s  back  tire  as  it  squeals  away.   he  watches  with  amusement  in  his  gaze  as  the  pointed  end  punctures  the  tire.  if  the  universe  is  so  kind,  the  driver  won’t  notice  the  air  deflating  until  he  wakes  up  the  next  morning  to  go  to  work.   it’s  a  petty,  vindictive,  satisfaction  that  floods  through  him  as  he  tosses  the  pen  in  the  bin.  it’s  served  its  purpose.   “  oh  yeah.  i’m  just  peachy. ”   the  grin  suggests  it’s  actually  true.

when  he  turns  back  to  look  at  her  proper,  he  can’t  help  but  snort.  between  the  outfit  and  the  cellphone  in  her  hand,  she’s  clearly  not  from  where  he’s  from.   which  means,  wherever  this  is,  either  she’s  just  as  foreign  here  as  him  or  he’s  somehow  managed  to  travel  backwards  in  time.    he’s  already  lived  through  over  a  century  of  annoying,  bizarre,  or  downright  terrible,  trends,  and  he  has  no  intention  of  doing  it  all  over  again.  nuh-uh.   “  so  sorority  barbie, ”   he  comments,  idle  curiosity  getting  the  better  of  him.   “  unluckily  for  you,  i’ve  got  a  lot  of  questions  and  you’re  conveniently  here  to  answer  them. ”   whether  she  likes  it  or  not.   “  for  starters  —  where  the  hell  are  we  ? ”

          being stuck in a foreign city, wasn’t what the young witch had desired for. it seemed that life kept throwing things her way & yet- this time she didn’t know how to correct it. reprieve was an immense place, it was a lot wiser getting acquainted with the districts with a car. a car for a healing spell, that seemed very reasonable in the views of bonnie.           getting accustomed to the car components, she had been minding her own business when a male emerged straight in front of her. heavy boots crashing onto the breaks, “ damn it “ cursing to herself before she took a hold of the male. mouth sinking as she saw “ damon “ seeing her friend, she scrambled out of the car. “ if you don’t shut up, maybe i’ll run you over next time “ a modest chuckle leaving her lips as an embracing smile formed.

..

“  don’t  THREATEN  ME  with  a  good  time,  bon  bon. ”   lips  lift  up  with  a  teasing  smirk,  relief  flooding  his  features  at  the  familiar  face.  as  much  as  he’s  loved  haunting  the  streets  like  a  phantom,  looking  for  someone  —  or  something  —  that  sparks  familiar.  she’s  the  first  grain  of  hope  in  an  otherwise  bleak   outlook  so  he  can’t  help  but  be  happier  to  see  her.   “  fancy  meeting  you  here. ”  

he  doesn’t  wait  for  an  invitation,  simply  crosses  over  to  her  car  and  slides  in  on  the  passenger  side.   sticking  his  head  out  the  window,  he  calls  out  to  her  with  his  hands  resting  on  the  hood  of  the  car.   “  well  c’mon  —  don’t  just  stand  there.   let’s  go. ”

Although she knew how to drive and had her licence, Veronica didn’t drive, she normally just walked through town,giving the fact her apartment wasn’t too far from work. She was heading back to her place when she heard the man giving out to somebody. “Yeah some people around here honestly make me wonder how they get their license. As for where this is, this is Reprieve” 

she  says  reprieve  like  it’s  supposed  to  mean  something  to  him.   it  doesn’t.   he  stares  at  her  blankly,  waiting  for  further  explanation,  before  he  accepts  nothing  else  is  coming.  “  reprieve.  right.  that  sounds  like  a  real  place. ”   he  steps  back  onto  the  sidewalk,  safely  away  the  incoming  traffic  and  further  obstacles.  he  pulls  out  his  phone  to  look  it  up  on  the  maps  app,  frowning  when  it  just  buffers  and  never  connects.   NO  SERVICE,    he’s  out  of  luck.   “  where  exactly  is  reprieve  ?  ”

..

unfortunately, caroline had been in this s h i t h o l e for a few weeks. she had tried everything she could think of to get out, to go home to her daughters and be with the ones that needed her and to run the school she had opened with alaric. but nothing was working, and for a woman that almost a l w a y s got her way and had control of all situations? that was not good. normally she would mind her business, the one driving the car didn’t a c t u a l l y hit the other so they didn’t need her blood but the sound of the voice is what caught her attention. 

her brows knit together in a line, causing a faint s m i r k to settle on her face as she approached damon and her hands rest on her hips while she look over him, u n a b l e to stop the laugh that rolled off of her lips. “ you? d a m o n  s a l v a t o r e, are preaching about someone else and their etiquette? now i have seen it all.” 

..

“  hardy,  har,  har. ”   his  response  is  a  low  drawl,  hands  coming  up  to  clap  lazily  as  he  approaches  her.   though  his  words  might  not  reflect  the  relief  he  feels,  seeing  a  familiar  face  helps  alleviate  some  of  the  tightness  in  his  chest.   if  she’s  here,  maybe  that  means  stefan  is.   or  elena.  if  you’re  going  to  find  yourself  stranded  in  a  strange  place,  in  the  future,  better  to  do  it  with  people  you  know  and  (  sort  of  )  care  about.   “  blondie. ”  he  greets,  once  he’s  joined  her  on  the  sidewalk.   “  what  can  i  say  ...  new  place,  new  me. ”   he  pulls  a  face;  he  can’t  keep  up  the  ruse  even  for  a  minute.   “  —  OR  NOT.  ” 

jokes  make  it  easy  to  hide  the  fact  that  he’s  freaked  out.   nothing  about  this  place  feels  right.  in  fact,  it  feels  the  opposite.   he  never  thought  he’d  miss  mystic  falls  yet  here  he  is  missing  the  familiar  all  the  same.   “  looks  like  i’m  not  the  only  one  that  got  dumped  into  the  TWILIGHT  ZONE. ”

dean had laid on the horn the second that someone had stepped out into the road. if he’d been paying attention, he would have known that damon hadn’t been in this reality a second ago. but the human mind tends to string these things together when we aren’t paying attention. he’d stopped, because a free excuse to scream at someone was exactly the de-stresser that dean needed. hearing what he actually had to say diffused what was gearing up inside of him. “what are you, lost?” he still had a sharp tone. “that why you’re walking right into traffic?”

..

“  no. ”   he  responds  dryly,  stepping  around  the  car  and  rapping  his  knuckles  against  the  hood  of  the  car.   “  this  is  exactly  where  i’m  supposed  to  be.  CLEARLY. ”   he  takes  a  moment  to  glance  around  their  surroundings,  eyeing  the  traffic  and  unfamiliar  streets.  this  certainly  isn’t  the  sleepy  town  of  mystic  falls  he  left  behind.   “  which  is  ...  where,  exactly  ? ”    

one  minute  he’s  outside  some  crappy  motel  with  little  gilbert  and  elena,  and  in  the  next  he’s  stumbling  over  his  own  feet  as  some  jackass  almost  hits  him  with  their  car.   the  irony  makes  him  smile,  despite  the  irritated  set  to  his  jaw.   “  watch  where  you’re  going. ”   he  shouts,  smoothing  out  the  lines  of  his  shirt  as  a  head  turns  towards  the  driver.   “  —  or  is  road  etiquette  not  a  thing  wherever  the  hell  this  is  ?  ”