[*Chapter Twenty-Eight*]

Sorry for the delay. This is a long chapter. Unfortunately, Darcy doesn't feature much. You'll find out why... Just don't kill me! See ya! 💜🖤

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A little while later, Darcy joined Elena and Stefan at the table. While sitting beside her sister, she diverts her attention to the vampire. "So, are you actually going to go through with this? You know, go behind Damon's back?"

Stefan stopped skimming through the pages and lifted his gaze to Darcy's. A pained expression crossed his face as he nodded in confirmation, "Yeah, I can't allow Damon to let Katherin out of the tomb. If he does, I can't imagine how many lives could be at stake." Or yours, he thought.

Call him cold or callous, but other than Darcy and her family, he doesn't care what happens to the rest of Mystic Falls. He's grown to care a lot for the young huntress and will not lose her now, not when they just got her.

Darcy sighed and scrubbed her face, "I don't know, guys. This feels wrong." Pulling her hands away, revealing her stressed eyes, "You and Damon... are starting to repair the last damage, and doing this will tarnish those developments. Are you sure you want that?"

The Protectress switched her attention to her sister and rolled her eyes when she wasn't even paying attention. Does she really not care? Would she sit by and watch two brothers fall apart again? Especially over her doppelganger.

Stefan looked from Elena and back to Darcy and sent her a second nod. Because no words were needed, he was ready to throw everything away. Regardless of what happens, deep inside Darcy's soul, she can feel something brewing. Something much darker was coming, and she doesn't think they all will be ready for the mayhem.

"Hey, Stefan?" Elena called.

He hummed and leant over to see what she was pointing out. He mimed the words before he could get to the end; his eyes widened suddenly, recalling Jonathan Gilbert's fascination with Pearl, but what he read next had him choking.

"What? What is it?" Elena asked, alarmed, seeing her boyfriend's shocked face.

"No... No, it can't be. How?" he spoke out loud to no one in particular, then snapped his head to Darcy, "Quick, get hold of Damon and tell him we know who Anna is. If you can't reach him, go to the Grill." He ordered.

"Who is she?" Elena demanded but got ignored as Stefan pinned his gaze on her sister as she jumped out of her seat and headed towards the door, phone in hand.

"Darce." he waited until she glanced back, "Just say Pearl, and he will know."

Darcy nodded, then closed the door behind her and skipped down the porch steps heading towards her bike, mumbling curses under her breath when she couldn't reach Damon, "Damn it! Is it so hard to answer a phone? Why have one if that's the point?" she sighed and slipped her phone into her jeans pocket, and threw her legs over the seat, ready to fire the engine, and cursed yet again when she realised she forgot her helmet, "Well, aren't I a doofus!"

She bit back a satisfied grin feeling the bike rumble under her jean-clad thighs. After discussing with Jenna about her reluctance to start riding again, she's got to admit she's missed the feeling and glad to be back in the familiar skin. She revved, the tyres kicking back dirt as she sped out of the driveway and down the dark street, the near midnight breeze slapping her in the face, causing the stray away hairs to fly in her wake. She thought back to Stefan's shocked face as he recalled who Anna and Pearl were, and from the expression alone, she knew Damon would be at least pleased. No, let's rephrase that: he'll be an angry bloodsucker.

Who exactly were they? And why was Anna hanging around her brother? Darcy's not-

"What the fu-." she yelled as a black mass darted in front of the bike, causing her to lose balance and drift sideways, struggling to gain control on two wheels. Just as she righted herself, the mass came back, this time more vicious, erupting in the bike toppling on its side, and Darcy's unprotected head smacked off the asphalt, her ribs took the brunt as she skidded across the street.

Except for the distant cars driving by further up the street, only silence remained. Darcy groaned, feeling a wet substance running down her cheek. Pushing her upper body off the ground until she was sitting up, then brought a hand up to her face and grimaced, feeling the burning sting announce its presence. She looked down at her hand and let out a grumble upon identifying the blood coating her fingers. Her teeth chattered, feeling the cold air nip at her exposed arms, 'Could I be more of a dumbass? First, my helmet and now my jacket. What the hell is wrong with me?' she thought as she began to peel herself off the tarmac. Once standing, she staggered as a wave of dizziness attacked her. Squeezing her eyes, she threw out her arms, attempting to maintain balance. Please don't fall on your ass, Darce. Come on, girl, you're smarter than this.

The huntress let out a startled yelp as a pair of arms stabilised her. Her icy eyes rested on the familiar face of Ben. Ben, the one Bonnie went out on a date with tonight, "Oh, cheers, Ben. I seemed to lost control of my bike and somehow flew across the street," she let out a manic laugh, feeling as if she was going crazy.

Why the hell did Ben have veins crawling under his skin, and since when did he have fangs?

"Erm, Ben? Either I've hit my head hard and seeing things, because you look like a vam-- argh! What--Get your fucking dirty leech hands off my mouth-," She bit down on his hand, causing him to let a yelp and release her, given her the chance to run like a madwoman running away from a deranged vampire- Oh, wait, she was. Well, fuck me! she thought and picked up speed, paying no mind to the angry grunts and the staggered whoosh behind her.

She connected the dots, linking them back to Anna- She was the only other vampire, apart from the Salvatores in Mystic Falls; she must have turned him after they staked Noah.

She couldn't help but taunt him. "Aww, you're a newborn vampy! How cute, you're like a baby Bambi, learning how to walk. But, not as cute. Nope, no one can beat Bambi. I mean, have you seen those gorgeous-." she got cut off as Ben launched himself at her and sunk his teeth into her shoulder and before she had the chance to let out a scream, he slapped his hand over her mouth and sped them away before anyone could see.

💜🖤💜

The moment the door shut behind Darcy, Elena and Stefan went back to surfing through the journals, shifting sheets of paper providing background noise in the quiet household.

"I found it!" Stefan exclaimed upon discovering where the grimoire's located. They wasted no time, gathering the journal and rushing out of the house.

-

Jeremey shut and locked the door behind him and trailed up the stairs, his mind buzzing from the events happening at the Grill. All he could summon up is how? He skimmed his eyes over the living room as he reached the top, identifying it's empty. He knocked on Darcy's door and received no answer. Elena's door was open and was also vacant. He chalked it up to the trio had left and wandered into his room and sat on his bed, running a tired hand through his messy strands. Yet again, his mind flashed back to Damon-

Damon and Jeremy arrived back at the Gilberts upon discovering Anna was also a vampire back from 1864, his mind still spinning off the possibilities of how, when Pearl is in the tomb with Katherine. He turned his sharp gaze on the younger Gilbert and placed his hands on the boy's shoulders, making sure he had his attention.

"I need you to stay here, okay?" he shook his head when Jeremy began to protest, "Stay home. Don't leave. Lock the door, and do not let anyone in. Actually, why don't we just don't open the door? Yeah, that sounds like a brilliant idea." The vampire nodded to himself and clapped Jeremy's shoulder.

"What about Anna? What are you going to do to her?" Even though she's a vampire, he can't deny he developed some feelings for the girl.

"No, Little G. You need to stay away from her. We don't know what her motives are. She could use you against us for what she has planned. It's not safe. Stay here. Okay? I need to get to Anna before she finds a way to open the tomb, and if you're in the way, she could use you as an advantage, and your sister will kill me. Literally."

Jeremy opened and closed his mouth. Feeling oddly confused because the Damon he thought he knew had no regard for others wellbeing, let alone a human. So who is this man standing in front of him? The younger Gilbert nodded his head in agreement, knowing there wasn't a point in fighting; he will lose.

Damon patted his shoulder and stood back, "Good. Stay here with your sister."

Then he was gone and not aware if he listened, no one was home.

Jeremy snapped back and frowned. What the hell has his sister done to the older vampire? Since when did he have feelings or care about humans? Rather, he and his sister?

💜🖤💜

With his speed, it didn't take Damon long to track down where Anna was staying. He sat back in the seat inside the motel and waited. He wasn't going anywhere until he got what he wanted. He stiffened as the doorknob twisted, then vamped over, hiding behind the door. As it opened, the short brunette vampire walked in, and Damon sped over to her, slamming her against the wall, his throat constricting around her throat.

Anna gave back much harder, causing him to cough and wheeze, "Okay! I give." She let him go and watched as he rubbed at his neck. "Damn, you're strong for a little thing."

"I was wondering how long it would take you to find me," she said, walking around the room.

"How long have you been here?" he asked, following her tracks.

"I arrived around half-past comet, watching you screw up every chance you had to open that tomb," she said, not taking her gaze away from him.

"How did you know about the spell?"

"I didn't say much back then, which means I heard everything."

"So if you've been here the whole time, then why we are just crossing paths right now?" he asked, playing oblivious.

Anna shot him a smirk, "I like to use others to do my dirty work."

Damon hummed, "Like, Logan Fell? Oh, yeah, thanks for that, by the way. Little bastard shot Darcy and me."

"Ahh, your little huntress with a sharp mouth?"

"Nice try." Damon pointed his finger and ignored her jab, not wanting to play into her hands. They weren't here for Darcy. This was none of her concern.

"What? She's a...Interesting human. I'm surprised she doesn't have many suitors. Or does she?" she titled her head, trying to ruffle his feathers.

Damon narrowed his sharp glare and clenched his fists. Anna shot her hands up, getting the message; Darcy was off-limits and diverted the questioning and brought it back to the main reason they are here.

"Logan was an idiot. We slipped him some blood when he started getting all poser-slayer with that compass. I needed his family journal. I couldn't let him die."

"What do you want with the Fell journal?"

"I thought it contained the location of the witch's spellbook... I was wrong. According to her journal, Honorary gave the Grimoire to Jonathan Gilbert. And, according to this. He gave it to your father... So now you're going to help me find it."

"Why would I help you?" Damon shot back and crossed his arms.

"Cause you and I both want that tomb opened. And if you don't, I could always persuade you with using Miss Darcy as an advantage."

Damon growled and sped over, slamming her hard into the wall. He bared his fangs, allowing the veins to appear, "Touch a single hair on her head, and you're dead."

O-okay! I-I won't touch her if you help us in the t-tomb." He paid no mind to her wheezing, and for extra measure, he bashed her skull off the wall and let go.

Damon snatched the journal off of the floor and sat on the edge of the bed, unaware of Anna's nasty smirk playing on her lips. He opened it and let out a dry chuckle coming across a passage and knew exactly where the spellbook was. He wrapped the journal up and threw it at Anna, then walked over to the door, "Sorry. I work alone." Just as he was about to leave, he heard a moan and halted. He turned back to look at Anna, who wasn't paying him any attention. "What was that?"

Anna looked at him and shrugged innocently, "What was what?" she looked strained her ears and blinked, repeating her shrug.

Damon kept his gaze on the female as he backed out of the motel. He didn't trust her for one minute and wouldn't put it past her to make this a pain in the ass for him.

As the door shut, Anna waited until she could no longer hear his footsteps and crept over to the bathroom and opened the door.

"You fucking bitch! Let us out now before rip out your intestines and shove them down your throat!" the Protectress yelled, and despite her blood and bite littered body, she launched herself at the vampire and sent them both sprawling down onto the floor. Darcy reared her arm back and punched the vampire in the jaw.

Anna's eyes widened at the strength behind the punch. For a human, Darcy is strong. Her stare went into angered slits grabbing the girl and hauling her into a frail table, causing it to buckle and the legs to snap under her weight.

Darcy stood up, snatching up a splinted table leg; her gaze briefly analysed the injury it would affect. It wouldn't kill but will cause damage- that was enough.

She braced herself. Legs planted wide, gaze focused on the vampire standing by the bed and was about to launch herself across the room when the motel door opened and in walked Ben. He paused at the scene in front of him, a sick smirk spread across lips.

"Ahh, miss Huntress decided to wake up. Took your time, Princess."

Darcy growled, diverting her attack on to him, and jumped. Her faux makeshift stake raised high, ready to stab him in the neck, when Anna sped over and with her strength, threw her off of him into the wall, causing her head to smack hard and send her unconscious. Darcy slumped to the floor. The two vampires looked down at the small girl and looked at each other.

"She's going to cause trouble. She needs to stay asleep. Got it?" Anna said to Ben.

"Aww, but she's fun to play with. Can I at least feed?" he whined.

Anna smirked and walked over to the ebony girl. She stroked her cheek and admired Ben's bite marks littering her shoulder and arms.

"She's all yours to play with, just don't kill her...Yet."

💜🖤💜

Stefan and Elena were in the cemetery, digging up Giuseppe Salvatore's grave, equipped with shovels and lanterns. Stefan's shovel hit something hard, creating a thump. They glanced at each other in anticipation before tossing their shovels aside and hastily brushed off the dirt covering the coffin.

"Is that it?" Elena whispered. Stefan nodded and pried the lid open.

Inside were the remains of the Salvatore brothers, father. Giuseppe Salvatore. Stefan swallowed hard, unleashing past memories. He pushed them aside when his gaze paused on Emily Bennet's Grimoire. He reached down and grabbed, then quickly shut the coffin and jumped out of the hole.

"Well, what do you know? This is an interesting turn of events."

Stefan and Elena spun around to see Daman standing behind them. Stefan looked around, looking for his best friend, frowning, when she was undiscovered. Where is she? He expected her to follow with his brother.

"I can't let you bring her back. I'm sorry." Stefan said, and he truly was, but he couldn't afford the people he cared about getting hurt.

"So am I. For thinking for even a second that I could trust you." Damon replied.

Stefan scoffed, "Oh. You're not capable of trust. The fact that you're here means that you read the journal and were planning on doing this yourself."

"No. Darcy was helping, too. Luckily I can trust someone around here, huh? The only person I can count on is her and me. You made sure of that many years ago, Stefan." a nagging thought was telling him something was wrong; he's not heard from her in a few hours. Damon turned his glare onto Elena, "But you. You thought you had me fooled, didn't you?"

Elena froze and diverted her stare at her feet, wishing she listened to her sister's advice but did she do that? No.

"So what are you going to do now? Because if try and destroy that, I'll rip her heart out." Damon said, switching his glare to his brother.

Stefan shook his head, "You won't kill her."

"I can do one better," Damon said as he vamped over to Elena, bit his wrist and shoves it onto her mouth, forcing her to drink his blood. "Give me the book, Stefan. Or I'm snapping her neck, and you'll have a vampire girlfriend."

Stefan panicked and stepped forward, putting his hands up in surrender. "Let her go first."

"Drop it."

"Please, Damon. Don't do this. Think of Darcy. How would she feel if you turn her sister? She'll never speak to you again. Worse, kill you. Do you want that? The only person you've developed a friendship with?"

Damon's icy eyes blazed at the mention of the girl's name. He shook his head, not letting Stefan know his words affected him and wrapped his arm tighter around Elena's neck. "I said, drop it."

"I'm not going to give this to you until she's standing next to me." Stefan denied, his gaze shifting desperately to his frightened girlfriend.

"Problem is, I no longer trust that you'll give it back!" Damon yelled.

"You just did the one thing that ensures that I will," Stefan said as he dropped the spellbook onto the ground, Damon looked down and then let Elena go. He picked the book up and took a step back, watching as the doppelganger ran back to Stefan and clutched onto his frame, sobs wracking her body. He turned around and vamped out of sight, needing the comfort from a certain Protectress.

💜🖤💜

Stefan took Elena back home and got her settled in her bedroom while he searched for some pain killers. The house was oddly silent. He decided to go to Darcy and inform her of what happened. He peered into Jeremy's room and seen him sitting at his desk, drawing with his headphones on. He walked further down the hall heading towards the kitchen, when he came across Jenna typing on her laptop.

She paused and looked over her shoulder. "You know you're not staying the night, right?"

"We're just going to hang out for a while." He said while smiling a little.

Jenna nodded in approval, "You're lucky I like you. Keep the door open."

"You got it...Hey, do you have any aspirin?" he asked, looking around the kitchen.

"Yeah," Jenna said as she got up and searched the cabinets, pulling out a box and handing them to Stefan.

"Thanks. Uh, have you seen Darcy?"

Jenna put on a thinking face and shook her head, "Not since earlier, when she went bat shit crazy over the ice cream. Why?"

"Oh, I thought she'd be back by now," Stefan said, glancing at his watch, seeing he sent her hours ago, and she still wasn't back.

Jenna smiled for the evident care the Salvatore had for her niece, "She probably met up with Bonnie or Caroline." She then returned to her laptop, typing away.

Stefan stood in the kitchen a second longer and didn't like the feeling in his gut; he knew something was wrong. What if she's with Damon? He thought as he treaded back up the stairs. He stopped at Jeremy's room again and knocked, causing the boy to take off his headphones and glance up at him.

"What's up?" Jeremy asked, noticing Stefan's distressed face.

"Has Darcy come back home yet?"

Jeremy shook his head, "No. I thought she was with you and Elena." He wore a troubled frown and followed as Stefan rushed out of the room, entering Elena's and discovering the room empty. Only the curtains in the room, blowing from the opened window.

"Shit. Elena's gone. That means Darcy also." Stefan exclaimed as he snapped his head over to Jeremy, who had fear written on his face, scared for his sisters.

Stefan swallowed. He had to inform Damon, knowing his brother is already angry, but this could tip him over the edge. This is Darcy they were talking about. The one girl who he let it and managed to crack open his shell.

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Still love me? 🥺♥️

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