『Chapter Twenty-Two』
『hikes are the worst』

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   In any other condition, Bodie would have scolded Henry for drinking to the extent that he did, but he restrained himself from doing so, knowing that it was one of the few times that Henry finally got to wind down as a whole without either himself or Will around. And honestly, Bodie was happy for Henry to at least have friends even if he asked Henry to have them. It meant everything to him in knowing that Henry had friends as a whole even though he knew that the only reason why he did was because of him—but even still, Henry had friends that wasn't him.

   He left Henry to sleep in, knowing that Henry needed sleep. Though, before Bodie left, he placed multiple blood bags by Henry's bedside table just in case he woke up needing it. After that, he left to go out into the town of Mystic Falls, knowing that all that he was going to do was judge the living fuck out of the modernity of the town, knowing full well that it was bound to happen.

   He walked his way into the town centre, making his way to the Mystic Grill. He knew that it was far too early for day drinking, but he needed something to do with himself. He'd been saying to Henry for a while that he was buying things for their house—which he had been, but he was getting bored of it. He could have compelled people to do it for him, but he chose against it, mainly because he had a feeling that the people within the town knew of the existence of vampires and were probably drugged with vervain.

   Anyway, going to the Grill was somewhere where he hoped that he wouldn't have to stress too much about anything. Of course, he knew that there was a chance that something would come up, which he was half expecting, but he just wanted some form of peace. He opened the door to the Grill, walking in, and the first thing that he took notice of was Tatia and Katerina's doppelganger sitting in a booth with some other guy that he was sure was called Tyler. He remembered Henry talking about him.

   "A lot of us like to keep to ourselves for the full moon," Tyler was saying to Elena. Bodie moved for the bar, though kept listening. "Chain ourselves up," Tyler continued, "but there are some werewolves that like to gather in places where they don't have to do that, where they can enjoy it."

   "What kind of places?" Elena asked.

   "Mountains, state parks, deserts, that kind of stuff," Tyler responded.

   "Anywhere in Tennessee?" Elena questioned.

   "Yeah, here," Tyler responded, "give me your phone. I'll try to pull up a map."

   "Thanks for this," Elena said after a moment.

   Bodie, now with a drink in hand, came towards the pair of them. Tyler was arching his neck down to Elena's phone, though looked up when Bodie came up to their table. "You know, if you want to talk about werewolf issues, ones that lead to Klaus—I presume, I wouldn't mind taking you to where he could be."

   Both Tyler and Elena gave him a look, both tensed up under the thought and the fact that a stranger basically offered help. They gave each other a look as if they were unsure on what to do or if there was anything that they could do.

   "Who are you?" Tyler asked stiffly.

   "Bodie Erikson." Bodie told with a smile. "See, I'm like you, a werewolf. I know quite a bit about where some packs stay for the full moon to run freely. Specifically, the ones in Tennessee."

   Elena shot up then, giving her attention to Bodie as a whole. "Where?"

   "The mountain range, the smoky mountains, to be exact." Bodie told with a slight smile. "If you liked, I could take you to find it." Again, the two gave each other a look as if Bodie wasn't meant to be trusted as a whole which made Bodie sigh then. "Look, I know I give you both no right to trust me, but if its anything to be considerate about, I know Henry. He's like my brother. We're here together, and I want to help you both because of Henry."

   "You know Henry?" Tyler asked slowly. "The witch?"

   "Yes. I know him well," Bodie told. He tried not to say anything that might offend them or snap, but he wanted to find Klaus just to see if it's all true—he wanted to see if Klaus was now another Hybrid like him and if by using this group to his advantage was something that he needed to do, then so be it. Plus, he knows that Henry would want to know for Will's safety, to know that Will is okay. He wanted to do this just so that Henry knew of his brother's safety as that's what mattered to him quite a bit.

   "Sorry, if Henry's like your brother and he's a witch. . ." Elena trailed off, giving him a look.

   "Then what am I if I know the existence of the supernatural?" Bodie finished. Elena slowly nodded. "Well," Bodie made Tyler move just so that he could sit down, "I'm a vampire, but not an ordinary vampire."

   Elena's eyes widened in recognition then which surprised him. "Elijah mention you. The only other Original that exists outside of Elijah and Klaus."

   "If you're one of them, then why are you here?" Tyler asked after a moment.

   "I know that you might think that I am with them," Bodie told, "but I can assure you that Klaus hates me, though that's not why I'm helping. I'm here because we're trying to make sure that someone that both myself and Henry are close to is safe. Klaus has someone else other than Stefan, and I want them back to make sure that they're safe as a whole."

   "Who?" Elena asked.

   Bodie gave her a look then. "That's for something for me to know. Unfortunately, my deal to take you to find Stefan and Klaus is running thin." He took out a pen and took hold of a napkin. "Find me at this address if you accept my offer. If you want to bring others along like Damon for safety, then that's fine, but know that if he or any other vampire pisses me off, I will make sure that the werewolf bite that I provide brings them pure agony."

   He slid the napkin across to Elena and left with a smile. He walked out of the Grill with an almost satisfying feeling building in him, he knew that they—he and Henry—had a plan that he wouldn't get involved in anything unless he had to, but he knew that the plan would go to bits, plus he wanted to get an idea on everyone himself. God, he knew that Henry was going to have an issue with this just as a whole, and he did trust Henry, but he needed to see them all himself.

   He eventually made it back to his house where Henry was sat there awake in the living room with a book in his lap, he stared blankly at the fireplace as if he were trying to light it himself though Bodie couldn't be too sure. Bodie didn't say anything to Henry just in case Henry was in the middle of something that he wasn't too sure on. But even that small doubt inside him, he did eventually greet Henry with a small grasp onto his shoulder to which Henry just placed a hand over Bodie's.

   "Hi," Henry said weakly.

   "Hi," Bodie said. "Is everything okay?"

   Henry shrugged. "I'm not sure. Will sent me another note that said that they found the werewolf pack, so I'm not sure if it means that Klaus is going to try or not with creating more."

   "Then, we better get to them then, for their safety." Bodie told. "Has Will said anything else?"

   Henry nodded slightly then. "Yeah, he noted that he thinks that Klaus knows about his messages that he's sent me. I don't know what it means, but I'm worried that Klaus might hurt Will because of it."

   "Hey, we're going to make sure that he's safe, fuck it, we'll make sure that we bring him back with us," Bodie told.

   "How?" Henry asked, throwing the book onto the floor. "How Bodie? We don't know where they are, all I know because of the stupid necklace Will gave me is that they're somewhere in the woods. And going by what the others know, Will's in Tennessee!"

   Bodie found himself smiling then. "They're in the mountain range. If they're after a pack of werewolves to make hybrids, then there's a likelihood that they found out from the tortured wolf that Will wrote about told them where to find his pack. They're in the smoky mountains in Tennessee."

   Henry gave him an odd look then, one which Bodie couldn't quite decipher then. "How'd you figure it out? How long have you known!?"

   Bodie rose his hands as if he were trying to calm an animal. "I only figured it out this morning. I stayed up quite late last night trying to work on it to get an idea. And it was only because of what Tyler said that I realised exactly where a pack would be."

   Something within Henry shifted then, though Bodie really didn't know if it was him being happy over what he just said or concern over the fact that he mentioned Tyler. Henry rose his finger slightly then. "You spoke to Tyler?"

   "Yes." Bodie nodded. "Both he and Elena was at the Grill, Elena wanted to know about where werewolf packs might go for a full moon. And that's when I talked to the pair of them, I told Elena Gilbert that she can meet me here if she wants me to take her to where Stefan and Klaus could be. But don't worry, I didn't tell them about Will or his meaning to you, I just said that Klaus has someone that we both want back. They will not know anything about what you truly are until you're ready to tell them."

   Henry looked pleased, he came over to Bodie then and unexpectedly hugged him. "Thank you for not telling them. Are we going today?" Henry pulled away quite quickly afterwards.

   "I presume so. Elena seems determined to find Stefan, though I am too just to see who he is." Bodie told.

   "You never met Stefan Salvatore?" Henry asked a little confused.

   Bodie shrugged. "I wouldn't have, no, given that I have more of a tendency to hope all across the globe. I wouldn't have met every vampire in existence."

   Henry nodded. "I'm going to get changed, if we are gonna go and find Will with Elena, I at least want to be ready to go."

   Bodie didn't say anything, he knew that he wouldn't be able to stop Henry from coming with them, finding Will was a priority on Henry's list—on both of their lists—and he wouldn't want to stop Henry from finding Will at all. As much as Bodie wanted to strangle William for what he did forty years ago, he knew that he would much rather hearing him out for Henry's sake more than anything else.

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   Elena knocked on their door and it was Henry who answered the door. Elena seemed a little confused as to why Henry answered, though it wasn't until Henry called for Bodie that she realised that Bodie was telling the truth. Even still, the three plus the history teacher made their way to the mountains in Tennessee, though, Bodie wasn't an idiot when it came to spotting when one was tense. And both Elena and Alaric were tense all the way there, though Henry kept trying to have a conversation with the pair of them.

   Bodie didn't mind the tension as a whole, in fact it was something that he was thriving on. Henry kept shooting him looks as if he was wondering if Bodie was going to say something which he wasn't. He didn't have anything to say, he was the one to tell them about where Stefan and such could be, he was just here to keep his promise to Henry—to find out if William was safe.

   Once they arrived, they had little discussion about where they should go and the fact that Bodie made a comment on the wolfsbane he could smell in Alaric's bag. Though, his comment only got a threat by Alaric, telling Bodie that if he made a wrong move that Alaric would make sure to find a way to put him down. Bodie would have challenged that, but Henry pulled him away enough to stop any comment that might have come out.

   Though, now, Bodie wasn't too sure how long they were walking for, Henry kept telling Bodie that he could feel more of a balance in his magic now that they were in the same general area as Will. Henry kept placing a hand around his necklace and informing Bodie that they're in the same place as they have been for a while now and that there were other bodies now on the ground.

   They came towards a river then, and it was then that Alaric spoke. "In a couple hours, the full moon's gonna rise, just above that ridge." Alaric pointed towards the small mountain ridge in the distance while he spoke. "If Bodie and Tyler's right that's where the pack will be."

   "Why would I not be right?" Bodie asked. "I know much about this land."

   "Really? How?" Alaric asked rather sarcastically.

   "Wouldn't you like to know, blood bag." Bodie shot back. Henry hit his side.

   After a moment of silence, Elena—walking behind Alaric—asked. "You were a boy scout, weren't you?"

   Bodie had no idea as to what the fuck that was, though there was a part of him which wanted to make a comment based around it, but he chose against it.

   "Shut up."

   "A boy scout, slash vampire slayer." Elena joked as she took a sip from her water bottle.

   "Slash whisky-drinking all-around lost cause," Alaric added.

   "Whisky's good though." Bodie muttered.

   They all took a pause near the river, Alaric slung his bag onto the ground to dig through it. The one thing that Bodie nor Henry expected to see was a collection of things that could kill the pair of them if they decided to go against them. They gave each other a look then wondering how quickly they could make those disappear without Alaric killing them both.

   "Wow, you came stocked." Elena told.

   "Well, we aren't exactly bird-watching," Alaric told.

   "And here I thought you brought them just for dear old me," Bodie commented with a dry laugh. "I thought I gave you the correct information as well."

   "Excuse us if we don't trust an original vampire," Alaric said.

   "Don't trust me, trust Henry, he's the one that I'm here for and so long as Henry's on your side, so will I." Bodie told.

   Alaric shook his head, though he grabbed something and passed it to Elena. From the looks of it Bodie could tell that it was a bomb and the fact that it had a liquid in it which was enough for Bodie to assume that it was wolfsbane. Bodie gave Henry a look as if he were silently pleading that they don't use it on him.

   "Vervain grenade?" Elena asked.

   "Wolfsbane."

   "Well, if were exchanging gifts," Elena said as she held out a ring.

   Bodie wanted to make a comment but chose not to, so he chose to turn to Henry then. "We get to them, see if he's alive, and then we go, okay? As long as we know that he's okay, then that's all that we need to know."

   "But, I thought that we were going to get him back," Henry muttered. "He needs us before Klaus kills him."

   "If anything, Will can talk his way out of it. Plus, Klaus wouldn't kill him, he would rather have a witch by his side continually, just in case," Bodie told. "He would rather an alive witch by his side than a dead one. Plus, if anything, Will can put Klaus in his place—both Klaus and Stefan."

   "But, what about my magic? It's been different without him here," Henry countered, crossing his arms.

   "Henry, have you even thought that the reason why your magic has been weird is because you believe that it is?" Bodie asked. "Ever since we left, your magic has been playing up. I don't think it's because of the distance between the two of you, I believe it's because your too reliant on William to help you in cases of magic that you feel lost. Trust me when I say that your magic is only as good as what you make it to be and you're holding yourself back because of believing that the distance is an issue."

   Henry gave him a blank stare then, it was something like a mix of confusion and the need to throw Bodie across the forest. Bodie would be concerned given the look, but it was something that had been playing in Bodie's mind for the past four decades that he couldn't shake. He had an idea that the only reason why Henry's magic was being rendered basically useless was the idea that Henry wasn't used to doing simple spells alone given that over the past god knows how many hundreds of years, Henry had Will to help him as a silent encouragement.

   And don't get him wrong, Bodie did comfort Henry throughout all of this, but there was just something wrong with the fact that Henry couldn't preform magic without Will now. It was like an itch that he needed to scratch, so, he hoped that his theory was correct, that Henry was just hiding himself because of knowing that Will wasn't here to help him during spells that he might not be overly familiar with. Bodie had hoped that in their first twenty years away from Will that Henry would have figured it out, but clearly he hadn't, and it was something that was just annoying Bodie at the moment.

   "You're a real ass, you know that Erikson?" Henry snapped. "I am not holding myself back at all, thank you very much. And no, I don't agree with anything that you just said, you bloodsucking ass wipe."

   "Henry, you good?" Elena called out, cutting Bodie off from anything that he would have said. It was then that Bodie realised that the pair of them were right by the river bay, and even with Elena coming towards them, Bodie used it as an excuse to part ways with Henry—he was going to join Alaric's side though he realised that he had absolutely nothing to talk about with the history teacher.

   Bodie opened his mouth to say something but the one thing that he—nor Henry—expected was that Elena went flying before crashing into the river. Henry moved his hands up as if he were preparing to either fight or use his magic, while Bodie just stood there with wide eyes and the need to laugh. Alaric, however, held up a crossbow.

   "Damon!" Elena yelled from the river. "How are you even here?!"

   "Thanks for the tip, bother." Damon said, looking more towards Alaric.

   "You sold me out," Elena said, almost defeated.

   "Think I'd take you to a mountain range of werewolves on a full moon with a witch we can barely trust and an original vampire that none of us heard about without any other form of backup?" Alaric asked.

   Elena gave him a look then and Bodie was close to ripping people's heads off their shoulders. Though, in all honesty, he was hurt that even still, others don't trust Henry of all people, and including him even though he told them that this was the place that they would possibly find the one that they've been so willing to look for.

   "You know, werewolves aren't an issue if you surround yourself with one that can cure you," Bodie shot.

   "Sorry, but I don't see Klaus anywhere, unless you're bringing us to him to slaughter us." Damon said, sarcastically.

   "Klaus isn't the only Hybrid, you know? Or did Elijah not tell you that part?" Bodie stated with a grin. "There's two Original Hybrids in the world, one of which wasn't bound by any curse like the other."

   Elena, who had decided to stay in the river a little longer. "Elijah didn't tell us anything else other than the fact that there was another Original Vampire not part of his family. One that was still close."

   "That's right, my dear." Bodie grinned.

   "Enough of this," Damon declared, not really interested. "Elena, get out of the water."

   Elena glared at Damon then. "If I get out of the water, you're gonna make me go home."

   "Yes, because I'm not an idiot like you," Damon shot back.

   Both Henry and Bodie shared a look with each other. Henry faked a gagging motion which made Bodie chuckle slightly.

   "Right now, you're both acting like idiots," Alaric stated.

   Elena shook her head then. "You gave up on him Damon."

   Damon moved off of the tree that he had been leaning on. "I didn't give up on him, Elena. I faced reality. Now, get out of the water."

   Elena crossed her arms then. "No!"

   "What's your big plan, Elena?" Damon asked as he neared Elena and the river. "Huh? You gonna walk into a campsite full of werewolves, roast a marshmallow, and wait for Stefan to stop by?"

   "My plan is to find him and help him," Elena explained, now face to face with Damon. "Damon, this is the closest that we've been to him since he left. I'm not going home."

   "Klaus thinks you died when he broke the curse," Damon pointed out. "That makes you safe. This," he gestured to around him, "this is not safe."

   "I'm not leaving before we find him." Elena told, once more.

   "It's a full moon tonight, Elena." Damon pointed out, again.

   "Then we'll find him before then!" Elena desperately said. "Damon please."

   Damon was silent for a moment, though it was long enough for Bodie to consider compelling him just to agree. "Okay, okay. But we are out here before the moon is full and I'm werewolf bait."

   "I promise."

   "Unless you wanna relive that whole deathbed kissy thing."

   "I said I promise." Elena repeated.

   "Fine."

   "Hurry the fuck up before I decide to drown you both, you're not the centre of this universe!" Bodie called out, growing bored of this already. Henry decided that half-way though that godawful conversation to down his water bottle of blood which Bodie didn't blame at all, though based upon Bodie's comment, apparently that was enough for Henry to try and scold him.

   Both Elena and Damon came out of the river then, Damon then decided that it would be a good idea to come directly in front of Bodie who somewhat had a feeling that Damon would do something like this.

   "I don't know who you think you are, but if you dare betray us, I will kill you." Damon warned.

   Bodie tutted then. "Such disrespect from such a young vampire. And here I thought that you would have been taught to respect your elders."

   Damon then went to attack Bodie then going for his throat, though Bodie shoved his hand through Damon's chest, forcing the man back and down to his knees. Both Elena and Henry yelled at him to stop while Alaric held a crossbow up aimed towards him, Bodie was close in just debating on killing him now, there was no purpose for Damon, was there? Of course, the only purpose that Bodie's seen so far is to be a controlling piece of shit who thinks that he has an opinion and can threaten Bodie of all people.

   "You know," Bodie added, "the one thing that I didn't plan to do for today was murdering an asshat, though if you, Damon," Bodie jerked his hand slightly that held Damon's heart which made Damon groan in pain, "continue to disrespect why I am here, then I will see no good use for you to be alive. Understood?"

   Damon didn't say anything which made Bodie move his hand more then, enough to get a yell out of him. Elena yelled at him to stop, and Henry just didn't know what to do, though Alaric shot a wooden stake at him. With his free hand, Bodie caught it, glaring at Alaric then.

   "Thank you, hunter, for giving me another thing to slaughter Damon with." Bodie grinned then before turning his attention back to Damon. "Do you understand?" Again, Damon didn't say anything. "I would so hate to compel you, but I will if it means obedience."

   "Fine, I understand." Damon strained.

   Bodie pulled his hand out of Damon's chest without his heart. "Good. That goes for all of you." He looked between Alaric and Elena. "If either of you disrespect me or my intentions, I will kill you."

   He turned then, Henry was walking in front of Bodie now, considering that he pulled Henry to do as such. Though, even with Henry in front of him, Henry still snapped at him for doing that, Henry called him a bastard for even thinking about killing any of them. Bodie would have answered Henry's remarks, but he didn't have the effort to do as such, plus he now just wanted to get all of this out of the way and get back home.

   After a moment, Bodie could hear that Elena and the others were following the pair, which for some reason made Bodie smile. Though what made him smile more was the fact that he could hear both Damon and Elena bickering over having Bodie here in the first place, knowing that he was an Original that was close to the family. Hearing the fact that Elijah spoke about him was something oddly weird to him, he thought that given the way that they ended things the last time that he saw then, he thought that Elijah would refuse to speak his name, let alone mention that there was another Original outside of him and Klaus and their family.

   They eventually walked in silence for a short while, Henry was refusing to talk to Bodie about what he done, though he did complain over the fact that Bodie hadn't cleaned his hand of Damon's blood. Of course, the only reason why Bodie didn't was because he wanted them to know that he was being serious with his threat and for it to be a reminder that he can and will kill them if they dare cross him. He didn't have the patience to get fucked over once more—his heart couldn't deal with it anymore.

   After a while, Bodie heard Damon ask, "How you doing?" which Bodie knew wasn't for him, given that no one wanted to talk to him. Though he wasn't going to let that bother him as shoving his hand into someone else's chest was clearly an issue that everyone else had to deal with.

   "Fine." Elena responded.

   "You know, I could help you." Damon told.

   "No thanks."

   "Just one little woosh," Damon said.

   "Yeah, with my luck, you'd drop me."

   "What are you guys? Twelve?" Alaric asked.

   Bodie was about to agree with that, but he really couldn't be bothered to actually speak. More so when they walked up a small clearance within the forest, Bodie wasn't sure why, but he got the feeling that someone was watching them, he was going to mention something about it but felt like he was just being paranoid over something that probably doesn't mean much just as a whole.

   Even if he was being paranoid, he decided to stain his hearing a little, just in case there was something that he needed to worry about. "You better hurry, cause that bite looks nasty." Bodie found himself tensing all over at the sound of that voice, the sound of the voice that he hadn't heard in so long. He knew that there was a chance that he would run into him, but he didn't actually prepare himself for it.

   "Bodie," Henry muttered. "You look like you've heard the worst thing to exist. You okay?"

   Bodie looked at Henry then. "He's here. They both are. You were right. Klaus is here."

   Henry gave him a confused look then. "How'd you know?"

   "I heard Klaus." Bodie told. "I—I think Stefan's bit by a werewolf. I think Klaus turned them all and they woke up."

   "Fuck." Henry whispered. "Do you think that Will was bit?"

   Bodie shook his head. "Werewolf bites are magic, you and Will can just siphon the magic away on yourselves without the effects. Even if he were bitten, he'd be fine."

   "So that's why you think that its Stefan that was bit?" Henry asked.

   Bodie nodded. "Yes."

   "Do you think that if we can find Stefan, he can lead us to Klaus and to Will?" Henry questioned.

   "Probably." Bodie shrugged.

   They'd been walking for god knows how many hours now, and it made Bodie wish that he could just run there like it's nothing just to see if Will is safe and then come back, but he knew that he couldn't if Elena wanted to talk to her precious Stefan.

   "We got about a mile left." Alaric said after so long that the sun was now slowly setting.

   "We've got about an hour left before sundown." Bodie spoke up after so long.

   "Yeah, we can see that, Bodie," Elena sarcastically said.

   Bodie mimicked her to himself then. Henry hit him because of it, with a glare. A part of Bodie wanted to tease Henry over the fact that he's been protecting them against him for part of the day, though at the same time he didn't fancy getting slammed against multiple trees or wake up with a bit of a tree trunk through his chest. Though, knowing Henry, he'd find a way to throw Bodie through a window even though there's like no windows where they were.

   "The moon doesn't reach its apex for a while. We have time," Elena assured.

   They turned into a semi-clearing that still had trees within, though not that many. Bodie and Henry looked around and for a moment there was nothing, in fact they prayed that there was nothing. Though, like normal, their prays were ignored given that a bloody (what they presumed) werewolf that looked like that he took serious amounts of drugs or something.

   There was blood coming out of his eyes, something that Bodie's only seen a few times when either Will or Henry had exhausted themselves of magic and it took a physical toll on them. Though, with this werewolf, he looked like he'd been to hell and back.

   "Stay where you are," Alaric warned.

   Henry narrowed his eyes towards the werewolf, the wind picking up all around them, an indication that Henry was fully prepared to do what was necessary to protect not only himself but everyone else. Bodie was just grinning to himself, he wanted to kill someone and if he couldn't kill anyone that he was in a group with then he can kill the random bloody werewolf in the forest.

   "Vampire," the werewolf said.

   The werewolf rushed forward in a very vampire-like way. Damon rushed to protect Elena or to just play hero, though unfortunately for Damon, his strength was used against him when the werewolf pinned him against a tree on the other side of the clearing.

   "Bodie," Henry said, opening his arm out to take over, even though Alaric shot an arrow at the hybrid.

   "Gladly," Bodie grinned. He took not that Elena was kneeling on the ground trying to get something out of her bag, though Henry forced her bag to stay shut and for the pin in the grenade in her hand to stay put.

   "Henry!" Elena yelled.

   Bodie rushed to stand behind the hybrid, his hand went to the arrow within the hybrid already and with the other arrow from hours ago still in his other hand—he stabbed the hybrid once more. Bodie used both arrows in an attempt to drag the creature off of Damon, though it still struggled to go forward, though the gap between the creature and Damon was a lot bigger than before, big enough that Bodie wrapped his arm around the creature's neck and snapped it.

   The lifeless body of the hybrid now laid on the floor. Bodie pulled one of the arrows out of the hybrid's back and embedded it into its heart, though just slightly below. Bodie found himself grinning at the look of it.

   "Hybrid, right?" Henry asked.

   "Most definitely," Bodie agreed with a grin.

   "Tie it against the tree." Damon told.

   Bodie looked at Henry then. "Get the ropes out. Damon help me pin hybrid guy, against the tree. Henry, you comfortable with doing the tying with magic?"

   Henry nodded. "Yes."

   Alaric and Elena gave each other a look then, though they did what was asked of them and got all the ropes that they would need out, once they were—and when Henry got out a few candles that Bodie didn't know he was carrying—Henry lit the candles themselves and began to chant something under his breath. The ropes levitated for a moment and stayed in the air.

   "Bodie, Damon, the pleasures?" Henry asked, looking at the hybrid still on the floor.

   "Yep," Damon muttered.

   Both Damon and Bodie hauled the hybrid up and against the tree. Without another word, the ropes began to tie themselves around the hybrid and the tree, elaborate ties were made, and after what felt like forever, the hybrid didn't need the support of either Damon or Bodie anymore.

   Henry—like always whenever Bodie watched him—had this serious look written on his face when he muttered the words of a spell under his breath. Bodie wasn't sure why, but he always found it interesting on how differently both Henry and Will used their magic—Will always seemed like there wasn't a care in the world, whereas with Henry he always seemed serious with any spell that he used half the time, even though Henry seemed more carefree with the way that he uses it.

   There was a moment when Bodie thought that Henry was going to pass out given how pale Henry had gotten, though when Henry clenched his fists, the hybrid, was standing up a lot straighter than what he was before and for some reason that surprised Bodie the most given on how much Henry was willing to give for all of this—in fact, he was proud of Henry like a parent would be for their child.

   Once the ropes were done and in place, Damon had the audacity to say; "These ropes aren't gonna hold him much longer. What else do we have?"

   It was only then that Bodie realised that Elena was putting her water over the ropes. For a moment, Bodie thought that she was just wasting her own water, though it took him a moment to  realise that maybe she was drinking vervain, which would explain what he was doing.

   "Henry, can you. . .?" Elena trailed off.

   Henry was going to take a step towards Elena then, though before he could, Damon reached back and let out a yell.

   "I said, Henry!" Elena defended.

   "Alright," Henry muttered. He recited the same spell and the rope rose up and out of Elena's grasp then. She looked almost amazed as if she'd never seen someone use magic, though that might just be what Bodie hoped for anyway.

   "That's the last of the vervain." Alaric said while the rope tied itself around the hybrid. "We don't have enough stuff to hold him." Henry dropped his arms once the rope was all tied around the hybris and tree. "I don't think we're gonna make that ridge before the full moon."

   Elena walked close to the hybrid then. "If we can get him to talk, we don't have to." Elena then went to touch the side of the hybrid's face then, though before she could, the hybrid rose his head with a small gasp.

   There was a moment when they thought that there was a chance that he'd speak, though the one thing that they didn't expect was the fact that the hybrid let out a yell and began to shift. It surprised the shit out of all of them and both Henry and Bodie shared a look with one another.

   "Is he turning?" Damon asked.

   "It's impossible. It's still daylight." Elena said.

   "Hybrids don't need a full moon to shift. They can control their shift," Bodie told.

   Damon went to hold the hybrid back then just as Elena said, "There aren't supposed to be werewolves out here until the moon is full."

   "You know, those ropes aren't gonna hold the wolf," Alaric stated.

   The hybrid leaned forward as if it was an attempt to bite Damon even through his screams and cracking of bones. Bodie wanted to leave Damon there to see how long he could last, but he knew that he needed to get all of the rest of them out of the way and back to the cars beforehand. He knew that Henry and he could hold back the hybrid for as long as possible, but the others needed to leave.

   "Damon, we've got to get out of here," Elena yelled. "We gotta get out of these mountains now! Damon, now!"

   The three then ran but Henry and Bodie lingered behind for a bit. They both knew that they needed to follow suit, but they knew that if they were to follow that they wouldn't find Will and that was the one thing that they wanted more than anything.

   "Henry! Come on!" Elena yelled out.

   "Henry, you go find Will. That is our priority, that's why we're here. You won't be affected by the bites, neither will I. We can hold him off for the others to get to safety," Bodie told.

   "But I don't want the others to know about what I am," Henry quietly said. It was almost hard to hear what he said over the sounds of the hybrid turning.

   "What about Will?" Bodie asked. "What about your need to find Will?"

   Henry swallowed. "I can last a little longer on the notes to know that he's alive. I have the necklace as well to see where he is."

   Bodie almost felt sorry or confused for Henry. He didn't understand why Henry had a sudden change of heart, he thought that Henry would have wanted to see that Will was okay. This had been the closest that they've been to Will since they realised that Klaus had him as well as Stefan, Bodie thought that Henry would have wanted to see Will. "Are you sure? Because the minute that we run from this, we're back at square one."

   Henry nodded. "Yes. I'm sure."

   "Okay, okay," Bodie said. "Let's go."

   With that, the pair raced off to catch up to Damon and the others, who seemed to have gotten quite far, though, not far enough.

   The sun was down, and night was officially upon them, though they still ran like hell to get back. They'd been running for a while and no matter how much Bodie wanted to turn back and search for Will, he respected Henry's choice of wanting to wait a little longer. He just prayed that Will was okay and that he would come back home to them—he wanted Will to do as such for Henry's sake. Henry needed his brother more than anything, and he didn't want Henry to wait any longer just to see Will.

   He knew that he could take on the hybrid, but Henry didn't want his cover to be blown which he understood. Bodie didn't want to put Henry into a position where he had to tell the others, but surely, Henry wouldn't mind if he—Bodie—went for Will, wouldn't that mean something? Surely it had to be something? Though at the same time he didn't want to do anything that might go against what Henry asked. He knew how much the opinions of the group meant to Henry, Bodie knew that this group was the first group of people that he managed to befriend without either himself or Will getting him involved in the people that they knew.

   Bodie wanted to protect Henry as much as he could but at the same time he wanted to make sure that Henry knew that his brother was safe. He couldn't do both if Henry wouldn't let him and he couldn't just wait no matter how much Henry would tell him that its okay. It wouldn't be right to him to just leave Will without finding out if he were okay after so long for searching, even if Bodie was still slightly pissed at him, it wasn't fair on Henry to be left in a kind of unknown.

   Elena tripped then and the one thing that they all quickly took notice of was the werewolf—the hybrid—standing over Elena, growling.

   "Don't move." Damon said.

   Both Henry and Bodie shared a look then. He had to protect Henry's secret and find out the truth for Henry's sake. Bodie mouthed an "I'm sorry," to Henry who knew what Bodie was gonna do.

   "Here boy," Bodie said loud enough to gain the werewolf's attention. With that, Bodie turned on his heels and ran with a woosh, followed by the hybrid that ran with him.

   "Bodie!" Henry called. Bodie knew that the minute that he would get back, Henry would beat the absolute shit out of him.

   "Come on, lets go, we need to get out of here," Damon rushed.

   "We. . .we can't leave him, can we?" Elena asked when she rose.

   "Yes, we can," Alaric responded.

   "He would die if he got bit!" Elena countered.

   Henry sighed. "Elena, he's an original. He can only die if he gets staked by a very specific type of wood. A werewolf bite for him would be nothing more than a mild version of what Damon would get if he went." He groaned then. "I'm so gonna murder him when he gets back. Come on! All of you!"

   Alaric, Damon, and Elena then ran back to where safety would be. Henry was hesitant at first to follow, but he then followed after the group. He knew that Bodie was doing this for him, even if he didn't ask for Bodie to do as such.

   Bodie, slowed down his run when he had a feeling that the hybrid werewolf wasn't behind him anymore. He knew that he ran quite far from the others, and he hoped that he was far enough that the hybrid didn't decide to turn around.

   He knew that what he was doing was probably stupid, but he tried to justify it in his head by telling himself that he was doing this for Henry—he believed that he was. Plus, he would like to admit that maybe if he risked his life for Damon, Elena, and Alaric, that they might believe that he means well, he wanted them to know that he didn't come here for trouble and actually wanted them to believe that he meant well.

   Bodie looked around when he heard a twig snap behind him. He thought that there was a chance that his mind was playing up on him, but the one thing that took him by surprise was when the hybrid came running towards him and shoved him back. Bodie fell back—though he more flew back yet he wouldn't want to admit that—and for a moment he was impressed that the hybrid managed to surprise him.

   However, Bodie wasn't down for long, he jumped right back up, with a grin on his face. The hybrid was first to strike once more, and Bodie dodged. And again, it went to strike again and Bodie dodged. He knew that he was just messing around with it, knowing that he could beat it, but at the same time, he was liking the excitement that the fighting was giving him.

   Bodie went to attack, going for the chest, though the hybrid moved out the way before Bodie could do as such. The hybrid threw his fist forward and Bodie caught hold of it and slammed the hybrid onto the floor. The minute that Bodie was about to shove his hand into the hybrid's chest, it kicked him away.

   Jesus, Bodie realised that he hadn't fought in a good couple of decades. Either that or it was because he liked to play with what he wants to kill before he kills them. But even still, there was something that he found amusing on how much of a failure this hybrid seems and the way that it fought for his survival was something fun.

   The hybrid pounced at him and went to bite at Bodie's neck, though he was predominately grossed out that the hybrid would even go there—only Klaus, even his he disliked that thought in itself. Bodie ended up shoving his hand into the hybrid's chest, pulling out its heart and watching the hybrid fall to the ground limp and dead. He looked at the body with a satisfying smile and turned to look up and head back to the rest of the group.

   However, the one thing that he didn't expect to see was what Bodie assumed to be Stefan who looked as if he were about to help. For a moment, Bodie didn't say anything, he just stared and thought that there was a chance that Stefan would attack him for whatever reason, but even if he did, it wouldn't be ideal given that Bodie would feel the need to kill him. But even still, Bodie gave him a small nod as if to appreciate any effort that he would have provided if Bodie needed it.

   "You must be Stefan Salvatore," Bodie said, dropping the hybrid's heart.

   Stefan gave Bodie a look. "I take it you are with my brother." Bodie nodded. "What part of 'don't follow me anymore,' does he not understand?"

   Bodie held up his hands. "I have no part in finding you, Stefan. I'm more interested in the witch that you and Klaus have by your side. Though, from what I'm aware, the only reason why Damon and Elena are here is because of the girl, now I think that she's not gonna give up on you until you return safely to her."

   Stefan sighed. "Well, she has to. You tell her that I'm never coming back. Make sure that she gets back okay with my brother, keep her there."

   Bodie took a few steps towards him then. "Klaus did a number on you already, hasn't he? I'm surprised that he's let you live for this long."

   "You know Klaus?" Stefan asked.

   "Considerably well." Bodie said. "Though, I'm not here to talk about what Klaus is to me, I want you to tell me about the witch that's with you."

   Stefan shook his head. "I don't. . .witch?"

   "Yes." Bodie nodded. There was something about the way that Stefan said that which made Bodie worry about Will's safety, he knew that Henry was receiving the notes from Will in his handwriting, but to know that there was a chance that maybe Will wasn't safe made him worry. "William Woodford. The witch."

   "You mean the witch hybrid?" Stefan asked, his eyes widening slightly. "You know him? Klaus has been getting Will to write notes to send to his brother, which I presume is like him."

   Okay, that came as a shock for him, Bodie had wondered if there was a chance that Klaus had involvement for the notes—or the fact that the notes that they'd received could be what could kill Will if Klaus found out. Though, to know that Klaus was allowing it, made Bodie worry just in case this was all a ploy set up by Klaus to get both of the Woodfords.

   Bodie ended up pinning Stefan to a tree. "Tell me. Is Will okay? Why is Klaus making Will send the notes?! Tell me!"

   "To draw another Original to him, a former friend of his." Stefan explained with struggle. "Will is safe. He's safe and keeps giving Klaus a hard time when it comes to it."

   Bodie laughed. "Oh, thank god, he's okay." Though, the one thing that really didn't make sense to him was as to why Klaus would draw him here, it didn't make sense. Sure, Bodie would have come if there was a chance to see Klaus as the hybrid, but to purposely draw him out because of Will made him worry just in case there was something more that he didn't know of. Fuck, if this entire thing had been a plan for something bigger, then both Henry and him were walking right into it. "Tell Klaus that his Bo is here, waiting for him when he wants to meet. If he hurts Will, then I'll make sure that his eternity is a constant hell. Understand?"

   Stefan gave him a look then, tilting it. "Your Bodie, if your that concerned, come with me."

   Bodie shook his head. "No. No. I have to get back. If you want Elena to be protected, I can provide that for you, if you want her safety."

   "Please make sure that she stays put, I don't want her to follow me anymore." Stefan said. "I'll give Klaus your message."

   "Thank you." Bodie said. "Also, tell Will that he is safe. William will know who I mean."

   With that, Bodie left and found his way back to Alaric's car. It took him a while to get there, and his thoughts were all muddled over the same or similar things. Will was okay, but Klaus was using Will to send messages to Henry just to draw them here. It didn't make sense to Bodie at all over the fact that Klaus was draw them here, Klaus hadn't given him anything for the way that he treated him forty years prior and now Klaus apparently wanted to draw Bodie here. And for what? For what reason?

   He had to keep Elena safe, he had to keep Henry safe. Fucking hell, he's become the supernatural fucking nanny at this point. He wouldn't be surprised if someone plopped a unicorn baby in his arms and told him to take care of it. Though, then that lead Bodie to wonder if there was any unicorns that exited. He didn't need that thought, so he shook his head.

   "Bodie!" Henry called out, making Bodie look up and realise that he was coming towards where Alaric parked the car with everyone inside. It surprised him that they were all still sat there waiting for him, though he had a feeling that it was because of Henry that they were still here.

   Talking about Henry, he came right up to Bodie and hugged him. Bodie found himself smiling, returning the hug. At least he had Henry by his side, at least he had that. He really didn't know how he was gonna tell Henry about Will or what Klaus planned to do. A part of him felt like that he had been played.

   "Is that the hybrid's blood on your hand by any chance?" Elena asked from inside the car.

   "Yes." Bodie said when the pair pulled away. "We need to go, now. Before we run into anymore of those things."

   Henry was about to ask Bodie what he meant, but Bodie rushed Henry into the car, telling him to get in. He rushed them all into leaving which he was surprised that they would listen to him. Henry managed to get a tissue out for Henry to wipe his bloody hand with.

⋅⋆✯✼⋆⋅

   Will watched as Stefan brought back what he thought to be a dead werewolf-hybrid. All around the campsite was dead hybrids and in the middle was a very unpleased and clearly pissed off Klaus that Will was trying to avid saying anything to in hopes that it doesn't mean his life. For four decades, it's been like this, whenever he knew that Klaus was in one of his moods, it was best to just block it out or try and be useful. And that's the one thing that he tried to do when the hybrids went rabid. He knew that Klaus wanted it to work, which was part of the reason as to why he had his head buried in one of his grimoires in hopes that it might lend him some idea as to what the issue is, though he had no idea where to begin at all.

   Stefan threw Ray on the floor and let out a small groan, the werewolf bite having its effect on Stefan. Will had already been bitten a few times, trying to kill the rabid ones, but essentially rid the bite of its magic and it healed.

   "They went rabid," Klaus said. "Some of them, I killed. The others just. . .bled out." Klaus rose to his feet with a bottle in his hand. "In the end, they're all dead." For a moment, there was nothing, and then Klaus turned and threw the bottle in his hand with a yell filled with anger. "I did everything I was told! I should be able to turn them. I broke the curse. I killed a werewolf. I killed a vampire. I killed the doppelganger."

   There was something in Stefan's eyes then when Klaus mentioned the doppelganger, though Will wasn't sure if it was because of the werewolf bite or if it was because of something else that Stefan knew that they didn't.

   Klaus shifted then when he stared at Stefan then. "You look like hell."

   "Last I checked, I'm dying." Stefan said, holding out his arm that had the bite on it. "And you don't want to heal me." Both their gazes went to Ray, the first attempt of a hybrid. "I. . .he had to be taken out. There was no choice. I failed you. I'm sorry," Stefan then filled the gap between both him and Klaus then. "Do what you have to do."

   For a moment, Will thought that Klaus would have killed him, but when Klaus didn't, he was surprised. "It should have worked," Klaus told.

   Klaus turned and went back to the boulder of empty bottles that sat on top, and it was then that Will thought once more that Klaus would have snapped at Will for not finding an answer quick enough, though when Klaus picked up an empty beer bottle and turned back to Stefan. Klaus bit the inside if his wrist then, holding it over the opening, the blood going in.

   After a moment, Klaus held the bottle out to Stefan. "Bottoms up." Stefan took the bottle then. "We're leaving." He turned to face Will for a moment. "Pack up, you can search for a way that I can make Hybrids when we get settled somewhere else."

   Will shut his speel book then and shoved it back into his bag, zipping it up and following Klaus to go god knows where. Though, the one thing that Will didn't expect was the fact that Klaus would pause and look at the bodies surrounding the camp.

   "It appears you two are the only comrades I have left." Klaus said bleakly.

   Klaus was going to walk off then, though Stefan called out. "Klaus, I. . .I ran into someone when I was getting Ray." That caught Klaus' attention. "Your Bo is here or in the area to say the least, if you want to meet him, he'll be more than willing."

   Something shifted in Klaus' features then, something which made Will wish that he passed away than deal with the oncoming storm that might come. Klaus looked at Will for a moment and there was this small part of him which thought that there was a chance that he was going to have his heart ripped out for ever making contact in the first place, though it was Klaus who wanted to keep Bodie in the loop.

   Klaus didn't say anything, he just turned and left. Will really didn't want to know what was going through his mind and he didn't want to find out as a whole.

⋅⋆✯✼⋆⋅

   When they were on their way back, Bodie whispered to Damon that he saw Stefan and that Stefan wanted Elena safe, he asked for Elena to stay safe. Though, the one thing that Bodie decided to keep was what Stefan said about Will, he waited until Henry and him got back to their own house which wasn't that long.

   They said their goodbyes to everyone, and Elena thanked them for their attempt today which was oddly nice. Though, the one thing that Bodie didn't expect was that as soon as he closed the door behind him for Henry to throw him against the wall with his magic.

   "You're such a fucking idiot, Bodie!" Henry yelled. "You almost blew my cover!"

   Bodie groaned slightly. "Okay, okay, listen, I found something out when I got the fucking hybrid away from all of you!"

   "Please don't lie to me." Henry said, giving him a look.

   "Will is okay. He's okay, he's safe for now." Bodie told. "Will is okay! Klaus hasn't killed him!"

   Henry dropped his hand then, therefore dropping Bodie from the invisible force keeping him against the wall. "You saw him?"

   "No, but I saw Stefan. I kinda compelled him to tell me about Will." Bodie explained. "But there's something else."

   "What?" Henry demanded.

  "Klaus has been using Will to bring us—bring me—back to him for whatever reason. I don't know what it means or what Klaus wants with us, but he's been using Will's notes to bring us to him in clues," Bodie explained.

   Henry looked at Bodie with defeat which made a part of Bodie think that Henry already worked it out but still needed confirmation. "He was trying to tell me, through his notes. There would be specific letters larger than others. I think that's what Will was trying to tell me, that Klaus had control over this in some way."

   "Hey," Bodie came up towards him then. "We'll get him back, if Klaus knows that we're here and he comes back here, we have a greater chance that we can get Will back with us."

   "But what if he doesn't?" Henry asked.

   "Then that's his choice," Bodie said. "As painful as it is to accept that, there's nothing that we can change when it comes to someone and their choice. If William chooses to stay with Klaus, then so be it. Hell, even if you decide to join Klaus just because of Will, I'd accept that, because I understand."

   "All I want, Bodie, is to have Will back." Henry said weakly. "I want my brother back. I can't deal with the space between us anymore, I can't take it. I just want him back." He shook his head then which was enough for Bodie to give him a quick hug. "I just want my brother back. Is that too much to ask for?"

   Bodie rubbed Henry's back then. "It's not. We'll get him back, I promise you that, Henry. We'll get him back home with us."