❝soft spot❞ 

"KATHERINE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING? LET ME GO!"

Rosemary pulled against the glaring woman's tight grip, her body covered in goosebumps from the loose covering of her nightgown in the cold night. 

"Just a little further, now, Rosemary. They'll be waiting for you."

"What are you talking about?" Rosemary shook her head, her voice thick with fear. "Katherine, I must get back to Damon, he'll be worried and come looking for me."

Katherine spins around, her glare gone in place of a smirk that sends fear shooting down her spine. "Don't you worry about Damon, he's going to be just fine."

Rosemary yells out, her timid voice cracking as Katherine lunged at her throat, sharp fangs tearing through the delicate skin there.

Pale skin tinted red, and Rosemary's screams died out as Katherine tore into her throat relentlessly, and she whimpered helplessly as the woman shoved her down, letting her fall to the ground limply.

"K–Kath–"

The brunette bent down, her lips smeared with blood as dark veins disappeared beneath her eyes. "Don't worry, Rosemary. It's all over now."

Rosemary blinked sluggishly, and Katherine was gone when she opened her foggy eyes again.

She tried to swallow, but a spurt of blood shot up her throat and she coughed it out onto the dirt road being muddled with her blood. Her weak hand clenched around the silver rings in her palm, dirtied with the mess of murder.

She let out a hoarse, choked off sob, unable to contain it as she realized she was going to die in the middle of a dirt road.

All she could think about was her husband, and how devastated he'd be. They'd not been married a full week. Just an hour prior, they were discussing what they'd be doing for Christmas, and when they'd start building their first house. 

She didn't want him to find her like this.

Uselessly, she dug her fingers into the dirt beneath her and tried to drag herself away, but realized it was a useless battle with how much blood she'd lost in such a short amount of time. 

Her eyes were growing heavier and her heartbeat slowed in the lull of the night in the once-peaceful town of Mystic Falls. Rosemary Salvatore lay dying, clutching onto her husband's wedding ring and praying he'd be alright without her. 

The last thing she remembers before her eyes closed for the last time, was the silhouette of a woman with pretty blonde ringlets on her shoulders, approaching with a small, sympathetic smile.

Rosemary thought she was dead, so she figured it was at least a bit of comfort that she had a guardian angel now, even if it was too late to save her. 

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Rosemary startled when a sharp knock echoed through the empty house. She shares a confused look with Damon, but gets up from where she'd been positioned against his chest on the couch while they read.

"Hey, just ignore it," He reaches for her hand, pulling her back towards him. "It's probably just a Mormon."

"If it's just a Mormon, then we can have a snack," She taps the end of his nose and steps away from him again, giving him a knowing smile. "I'll be right back, Damon."

"Fine."

She rolls her eyes playfully, but turns and heads towards the front door, where the person's knocking has picked up rapidly. Rosemary swings the door open and gasps in surprise, a smile growing on her face. "Kol!"

"The one and only, sweetheart," He holds his arms out and she lunges out of the doorway, crushing him in a tight hug he returns with a laugh. "Nice to know I can charm a married woman."

She scoffs, pulling away from him. "You're ridiculous. But you're here– does that mean,"

"My brother's rotting carcass has been hand delivered to that irritating witch by yours truly, yes. As much as I hate to admit it, we should be expecting him as normal by tonight."

She glances over Kol's shoulder, narrowing her eyes warily. "Hold on," She looks over her shoulder back into the house. "Damon, will you come here for a minute?"

He appears in the doorway as she finishes her sentence, his shoulders tense with fear. "What's wrong?"

She smiles at him, and shakes her head. "Nothing, I promise. I just remembered you and Kol haven't met."

"So this is the husband," Kol raises his eyebrows, his usual cocky smirk in place. "Shocking that you chose him over me."

Rosemary rolls her eyes, and gives her husband an apologetic look. "Much to Kol's dismay, I refused his supposed charm all because of you. He just can't handle the reality that he's not as alluring as he thinks."

Damon smirks, stepping out of the house to eye the man. "I've heard plenty about you. All terrible things, of course."

Kol's smirk widens, and Damon likes him immediately. "Yes, according to my brothers, I'm rather problematic to our endeavors."

"You know, my brother would say the exact same thing about me." Damon rolls his eyes at the thought of Stefan. "He's got a bit of a hero complex. It's all in the hair."

Rosemary laughs and grabs his hand, relishing in the way he immediately intertwines their fingers without even taking his eyes off Kol.

"Come on in, I'm sure we have plenty to discuss before Klaus gets here." Damon gestures for Kol to follow them, and the Original steps into the house behiind the couple..

Kol adjusts his jacket and runs a hand through his light hair. "Rebekah is going to be here tonight, she's on a flight from France. Klaus had her retrieve a few things he left behind in his rush."

Rosemary smiles wider at the mention of her friend's impending arrival, and gives the man an inquisitive look. "What about Finn? Is he coming, still?"

"It's yet to be determined, I'm afraid. He's rather taken with that girl he met during his daily perusing of the Louvre." Kol rolls his eyes and looks at Damon as they sit down on the couch across from him. "Hopeless romantic, my brother. I suppose one of us had to be."

"We all know Rebekah's a sucker for true love,"

Damon huffs amusedly. "I don't know, I think Klaus has a thing for Caroline." He looks at Kol, whose eyebrows are raised in curiosity. "She's a friend of ours, and helped him out with some stuff last night that has put her high on his very short list of people he can actually stand."

"Caroline seems so sweet." Rosemary sighs, holding a hand to her heart.

Kol huffs a laugh at her dramatics. "Rebekah may be a sucker for true love, but you've always had a soft spot for the helpless ones." He shakes his head, fondly exasperated. "I can't even begin to count how many times we've had to stop this one from turning every down-on-their-luck person she meets."

Damon looks at his wife's face as she laughs at Kol and throws a sarcastic remark back at him. He's reminded of that settled warmth in his chest that's fresh with her return, and he smiles to himself at the thought that no matter how terrible they may be, the Originals were her family, just as Caroline and Rose had become his.

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author's note; this book is turning into nothing but soft fam moments and it's completely self indulgent, i'm not sorry

edited and published; 1.14.23.

- liz