ATHENA

I find myself in the Salvatore family crypt looking straight at Stefan.

I side-eye Damon, his eyes showing all the emotions and no emotions simultaneously.

"I'm lost, brother, I'm lost," Stefan says through gritted teeth. He sends his bottle of bourbon hurtling right towards Damon and me. Damon shoots his hand out and catches the bottle, liquid sloshing out of the rim of the bottle.

"So, what? I'm gone a couple of months and you think it's okay to waste a perfectly good bottle of bourbon?" Damon says, giving an adorable lopsided smile as his younger brother turns around.

"Damon?" he says, agape.

"Yep," Damon responds. "In the flesh."

"But how can I see you two?"

A small smile plays on my lips. "Because we're not dead, Stefan."

He breathes a small chuckle. "I mean this stuff's good, but it's not 'I see dead people' good."

"It's a hell of a long story, brother. But we're back," Damon says. He pulls his brother into a hug. "Yeah," he murmurs. "We're back."

"I thought you were gone," Stefan breathes.

"Well you didn't think I was gone gone, huh? I promised you an eternity of misery," Damon says.

Stefan chuckles. He turns to me slowly. "Athena," he says.

"Stefan."

I was always closer to Stefan than Damon. Where Damon was sarcastic, inappropriate and wild, Stefan was caring, considerate and loyal. That's not to say that one brother is worse than the other, though. Stefan had been through some pretty rough patches through the centuries but had always pulled out on the other side. Either way, Stefan was the least irritating out of the Salvatore brothers.

"I missed you, Stefan," I say into his shoulder. He squeezes me tight in a bear hug.

"What she's trying to say is that she finally realised which brother is the better friend and has decided to terminate your friendship," Damon says. I flip him the finger behind Stefan's back. "Rude," Damon mutters.

Stefan pulls away from the hug. "What about Bonnie?"

Damon furrows his eyebrows apologetically. "She sacrificed herself so we could come back."

"Yeah," I say, suddenly feeling a hollowness in my stomach. "Which makes it more uncomfortable than it already is," I add.

"What are we going to tell people?" Stefan asks.

I fold my arms over my chest. "That she wasn't over there."

Stefan raises his eyebrows. "Where is there, exactly?"

"Mystic Falls, 1994," Damon says. He looks as if he's finally realised how crazy that actually sounds.

"Mystic Falls?" Stefan asks. "1994?"

"I know," Damon says. "If a bunch of witches were about to get together and create a space time purgatory, you'd think they'd choose a better year than when Kurt Cobain killed himself."

"So how did you get back?"

"Long story," Damon says. "Big flash of light, two decades worth of jetlag. I will explain all of it in that flannel housekeep but first I have someone to go see."

"Uh, yeah," Stefan says. "About that. Elena got all the memories of her loving you compelled away."

"She did what?" Damon asks.

"She got Alaric to do it," Stefan says quietly.

"And you were trying to give me relationship advice," I scoff at Damon.

Damon ignores me. "I just need to see her," he urges. "Our eyes will meet, fireworks will go off and the balance of nature will be restored. She loves me."

And with that, Damon slips out of the family crypt and goes out to see Elena.

Stefan looks over at me and smiles. "I'm guessing you want to see everyone else," he says.

"Oh, god. I missed you all so much," I say. "Wait, maybe that place did change me. I sound a lot more corny than I want to."

He chuckles quietly. "You have no idea how hard I tried to find you and Damon," he says but his voice has a strange edge to it.

"So, have I missed anything else?" I ask. We come to Stefan's car and I open the door on the passenger's side. I sink down into it as Stefan jams the key into the ignition and twists it around.

"Hmm, where do I start?" The car roars to life and lurches forward. "The anti-magic border around Mystic Falls is still up, Luke became Elena's drug dealer, Liv and Tyler have a little thing going, Matt's boss is actually a vampire hunter and, well..."

"And what? Spit it out!"

He gets that brooding look on his face which means he's done something that he's unsure about. Even so, his confession is spoken loudly and confidently. "I handed Enzo over to him."

"Oh, my god, bring it here Stefan." I hold up my hand and he high fives it. "I knew I didn't suffer through four months of the same day over and over again for nothing."

"I'm not sure whether I should be unnerved or not by your enthusiasm," he says.

"Does Care know?"

He keeps his eyes fixed on the road. "She's about to."

As the car rolls along the road, I realise how much I missed the little things about the real world. Like driving along roads with other cars. Other people.

I wonder how Bonnie and Kai are going in their prison world. I miss Bonnie, of course, and a guilty hollowness seizes my body whenever I think of her. But a little part of me also misses Kai, as well, and I can't stop thinking about that flicker of emotion in those dark blue eyes that had made him hesitate.

"Athena," Stefan says impatiently. "What are you thinking about? You seem so...disconnected."

I shrug. "Yeah, well. When you've been to hell and back it's sort of hard to settle in like nothing's happened."

He lowers his eyebrows, concern filling his eyes. "Is it Bonnie?"

Kai. It's Kai. I look down at my hands clasped in my lap. "Yeah, it's Bonnie."

"It's not your fault," he says. "She chose to stay there. You couldn't have done anything about it."

I avoid his eyes. "I guess so."

The car slows to a stop and Stefan says, "We're here."

I get out of the car and shut the door behind me, the buildings of Whitmore College looming before me. "I can't believe it's been four months," I sigh.

"We told the college that you were taking a break to explore Europe," he says. "Are you going to continue your Egyptology major?"

I bite my lip. "I think so," I say. "I guess I just want to get back into routine."

He starts walking and I sidle up beside him. He leads me through a labyrinth of buildings until we finally come to some familiar corridors. Alaric's office door is open and I stride in. The tension in the room as thick and everyone stands around with concerned expressions.

"...Anybody have an idea how Tripp even got his hands on him?" the familiar voice of Alaric pipes up.

Stefan leans against the doorframe. "He didn't. I turned Enzo in to him."

The group has just acknowledged our existence and their faces all turn to us. Caroline widens her eyes. "Athena?" she says. "Oh, my god."

"That's right," I smile. I bring her into a bear hug. "Oh, god. I missed you all so much. You have no idea how hard it was being with Damon for four months." She pulls away after one last squeeze. "So what're we going to do about Enzo?"

Caroline purses her lips. "Matt, where is he being kept?"

"Tripp keeps his vampires in an abandoned building on Old Miller Road," Matt says. He knits his eyebrows together in concern.

"I need to go find him," Caroline says.

"I'm coming with you," Stefan says.

"What? Why?" I urge.

"I got Enzo caught, I should get him out," he says.

"Oh, god," I mutter. "You haven't changed at all." Caroline turns to me, beckoning me to come with her eyes. I sigh. "Oh, what the hell, why not? It's been a while since I've done anything exciting like breaking a vampire out of a den of vampire hunters."

"I thought you hated Enzo," Stefan says.

I sigh. "I do," I say. "I'm going because if Stefan doesn't get Enzo out, he'll beat himself up over it for God knows how long." I pause. "And also because I have nothing better to do. Let's go."

I follow the two vampires out of the room, trailing awkwardly behind them. "Hey, Stefan," I call. "Can we stop at my apartment on the way? I want to grab a few things."

"Yeah, sure," he says. "Just don't take too long."

I pull the car door open and file in after Caroline and Stefan. Apparently, it's an unofficial rule that I always have to sit in the back behind the older members of the group. I slump back into the middle seat. "So," I pipe up as Stefan starts driving. "Do we have a plan or anything?"

Stefan furrows his eyebrows. "Uh, Caroline?"

She rolls her eyes. "No, we do not need a plan," she says over-enthusiastically. "I think we can take on a few vampire hunters, don't you think?"

I raise my eyebrows. "Whatever you say, Care," I say. "But I'm not saving your vampire asses if you do get caught."

Stefan keeps his voice hushed and leans over to Caroline. "You know, she acts like she doesn't care about us, but she was almost about to break down when she saw you."

"No," I argue. "I was mildly glad to see you."

"Right, Athena, right," Stefan says.

Caroline slits her eyes at me. "Something's not right with you. Is there something you want to talk about?" she asks.

I shake my head fervently. "Pfft, me? Not right? No, not at all. It's not like I just came back from hell or anything."

Stefan slows the car to a stop. "Be quick, alright?"

I nod and push open the car door. My apartment is a two bedroom in a ten-storey building near Whitmore. When I was exiled from the Amazons, I was also kicked out of my mom's house and my mom had bought me the apartment. I'd like to think it was because she felt some indignation at ditching me, but it was probably so I had no good excuse to come back.

During my time with the Amazons, I was already studying and living life as a normal teenage girl except that my extracurricular activities involved wielding daggers and bows and attending lessons on what was fatal to vampires and werewolves. Even so, when I was thrusted into the real world with no real idea on how to go through my life, I had trouble.

I was left with sufficient funds and my college already paid for, perhaps so that I didn't feel any desire to head on back to the Amazon community. Even so, I had had no idea how to sort out bills, insurance and the like. Luckily, by then I was already acquainted with Stefan and the others and I was guided by Stefan into the world of grown-up stuff. After all, somebody who has experienced at least a few years of three centuries should know a thing or two about bills.

It was difficult to get on with my studies when crazy-ass-possession-witch-creeps called Travellers were running amok around town and throwing their voodoo crap at anyone who would take it. However, I had taken up a major in Egyptology and was determined that I would achieve one thing in my life that didn't involve rippers or rogue werewolves.

I get to my apartment and take a deep breath before opening the door. If it didn't feel real yet, this is what would make it sink in that I'm no longer dead. I swing open the door and it makes a familiar small creaking sound. For the first time ever, I'm actually glad to hear the door make that noise.

It's exactly the same way I left it that day when I went to get blown apart in the diner. The cushions on the couch are spaced out perfectly, the beds are made, the kitchen drawers are in check and the only untidy aspect is the layer of dust on everything.

I walk slowly on the floor, taking care to avoid the ones that creak. I feel like a visitor in my own home, I think to myself. It feels too quiet and the whole place just seems dead. I make a special note to myself to make the whole place a lot more welcoming when I get back. I go into my bedroom and pull open the doors of the wardrobe. It feels good to open my wardrobe and see more than just a few 90s outfits and Kai's clothes on the floor of the wardrobe. I breathe a sigh of content as I take in all the clothes that I had left behind. Not flannel. Thank god.

I push the clothes apart and scan the wall of weapons behind them. When I lay my eyes on the bow, I pull it down, tracing my thumb over the perfectly crafted weapon. I take down a quiver of arrows and push it over my shoulder. As an afterthought, I grab a dagger before pushing the clothes back over the weapons.

I go back through the apartment and hastily get out of there. I tread quickly back through the building. After all, if somebody saw me walking through the building with a small arsenal they would probably call the cops and that would cause yet another problem to deal with.

I scurry out of the building and duck into Stefan's car. I've barely shut the door when he speeds off again. Caroline widens her eyes at me. "Who the hell keeps a mini arsenal in their apartment?"

I shrug. "Who the hell keeps blood bags in their room?"

She doesn't say anything to that.

Stefan's car eventually comes to a stop outside...nothing? Everything I can see out the window is woods. "Uh, I think we have the wrong place," I say.

He points to the vague left of the woods. "We have to walk through there," he says. "Parking close would give us away."

"Fine," I groan.

I step out of the car and shut the door behind me. I start in the vague direction of where Stefan pointed. Stefan and Caroline fall into step beside me. "I still can't believe you turned him in," Caroline says.

"Look, Enzo wasn't being careful. Tripp would've caught him eventually and that meant danger for us," Stefan says.

"Right," Caroline remarks. "So you handed Enzo over so we wouldn't be targeted, and now you're rescuing him so we won't be targeted. Way to go."

"Well, I thought Tripp was gonna kill him. I didn't think he was gonna keep him alive for information," Stefan insists.

"Oh, well, in that case, sounds like you were just being practical," Caroline says, crossing her arms over her chest. "So did you rat out Ivy, too?"

"What?" Stefan asks.

"Well, you didn't want to deal with her anymore. You wanted her gone, and now she is," Caroline says.

"Wait," I interject. "Who the hell is Ivy? Am I missing something?"

Caroline and Stefan exchange a look like they know something I don't. Caroline shifts her eyes onto mine. "It's his girlfriend," she says. "Or at least used to be before Tripp ran her across the border and undid the magic that kept her alive."

"You had a girlfriend?" I ask Stefan. "Why wasn't I introduced?"

"Because he wanted her to have a normal life," Caroline says. "And look how that worked out." Stefan parts his lips to speak but Caroline cuts him off. "You know what? You really should write Tripp a thank-you note."

Stefan narrows his eyes at Care. "Hold on a second, Enzo turns Ivy, right? A hunter kills her, and yet I'm the bad guy? I'm not the one threatening to turn in other vampires to save his own skin."

"The only one who's turned in other vampires is you, Stefan."

The trees give way to a small road and behind that, a squat, small building with a few men outside of it. I shush Caroline and Stefan and duck behind a mound of discarded wooden crates. "How many are there?" Caroline whispers.

I raise my eyebrows and point up. Should I peek? Stefan nods slowly. I crane my neck so that I can see over the crates and study the building. The two men are holding automatic rifles and pace back and forth before the door. They seem to be relaxed, though, and don't seem to be vigorously guarding the place.

I duck back down and raise two fingers at the pair of vampires. "I think I can take them down from here," I whisper.

Stefan raises his eyebrows but then gives a subtle nod. I peek back over the crates. The second man has sat down on the threshold of the place and has put his rifle down. I pull out an arrow and nock the arrow in the bowstring. I draw back the bowstring and train my aim onto the man standing up. I take a deep breath and let the arrow fly.

The arrow embeds itself in the man's chest. With a choking sound, he falls to the ground. The second man fumbles for his rifle. I get to my feet and aim another arrow at the second man. I send it flying, the arrow burying itself in the man's gut.

I skirt around the crates and walk across the small road, keeping an arrow drawn in case of anymore hidden guards. I kick open the door and scan the room.

And realise that there's no one here.

"Enzo's gone," Caroline breathes.

I put the bow down and feel a lump in my throat. "We should move and fast. We don't have much time."

A sudden ringing cuts through the silence. Caroline fishes her phone out of her pocket and answers it.

"No, Enzo is not here," Caroline hisses. "Any idea where he might have taken him besides the very obvious one?" The person on the phone says something inaudible and Caroline snaps, "And? The guy is a murderer. Petty theft isn't much of a stretch." A pause. "Oh my god, he knows what I am."

Caroline shuts the phone and turns to us. "It was Matt," she says. "And he said that Tripp knows I'm a vampire."

"Shit," I mutter under my breath. "We should get back to Whitmore. We need to make a plan."

We hurry back to the car, getting in and going above the limit all the way back to Whitmore. We meet the rest of the group in Alaric's office, where tensions are already running high. Everyone looks grave and worried and it soon becomes apparent why.

"Stefan," Elena says. "They found Damon. They have Damon."

"Oh, my god," Stefan breathes. "We have to do something."

"Well, no shit, Sherlock," I say. Everybody turns to me. "Sorry," I mutter.

"Okay," Alaric says. "There's two routes into Mystic Falls. I'm thinking that Stefan and I pretend to be broken down right outside the boundary. When he gets out of the car, Athena and Stefan can work fast to get Damon and Enzo out. On the other route, Elena and Care pretend to be broken down and do the same."

I bite my lip. "Well, we should get going before it's too late, then."

The night has fallen by the time we arrive at the border. Alaric parks the car and I follow him and Stefan out of the car. I draw my jacket closer around me as a biting cold wind blows over me. Alaric opens up the hood of the car. I peer inside at the labyrinth of pipes and machinery.

With a sharp tug, Alaric rips out one of the pipes. He repeats this a few more times until Stefan finally says, "You don't have to take the whole engine apart, we just need to lure Tripp out so we can grab them."

"You know, it's not your fault," Alaric says.

"Pretty much is," Stefan responds.

"Look, you're not the only one who gave up," Alaric says. Gave up? What is he talking about?

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot the illumination of two headlights heading right towards us. "There," I say. "That's him."

Alaric looks at Stefan. "You should stay in the car," he says. "He knows what you look like."

"He thinks I'm on his side," Stefan replies.

"Yeah," Alaric says. "Unless Enzo told him different. You, too, Athena. Your assortment of weapons isn't really inconspicuous. Go tell Elena he's here."

I don't hide in the car, but Stefan and I duck down behind the vehicle and watch as Alaric runs onto the road waving his hands. The car approaching slows to a stop in front of him. Alaric goes around to the window of the truck as Tripp winds down the window just a fraction. "Evening," Alaric says. "Tried to get my buddy to a bachelor party and our car just stopped. You think you can help us out?"

"Uh, I don't know anything about cars," Tripp responds.

"Well, maybe you could give us a ride then," Alaric suggests.

"Sorry," Tripp says. "In a bit of a hurry."

"Yeah," Alaric says. "So are we." Alaric punches the window, glass erupting everywhere. He grabs the vampire hunter by his shirt and I watch in horror as the car ploughs forward as Alaric is still holding onto the side. It smashes right into the front of the car Stefan and I are behind. Stefan hauls me away from it just before it crashes right into the place we were just a second ago. Tripp's car ricochets off of the impact and skids, losing its grip on the road. The car turns over, making a loud crashing sound.

And it goes over the anti-magic border.

I mutter a string of curse words and rush over to the border. There's no way I can get them out without my Amazon strength. I'm just a weak eighteen year old human girl now. Still wondering how the hell I'm going to get them out, I step over the threshold of Mystic Falls.

As soon as my foot hits the gravel, I can feel the magic being sucked out. It feels like when Kai sucked my magic out but it's stronger and makes me feel like I've shed anything and everything that had ever made me feel strong. I feel vulnerable and afraid but I still sling my bow onto my shoulder and run over to the van.

I haul open the doors and I'm immediately struck by the sharp stench of plague and blood. Consumption, I think. Enzo died of consumption. I take a look around and suck a breath in. Both Damon and Enzo are chained up and they're dying extremely fast. Damon has a spray of blood on his chest and Enzo has blood running down his face, coughing out some more every few seconds.

I climb into the back and crouch down beside Damon. I grip the chain with my hands and tug, but it's useless. The metal digs into my palms and my skin feels raw from pulling so hard, but it's to no avail. It won't come out. I pull the knife out and thrust it into the link, willing with all my might for it to come undone. But the thing just won't budge and time is running out.

I feel a hand gingerly push me out of the way and look back to see Stefan with a tool in his hand. I skirt out of the way as he smashes it into the chain and it breaks, Damon's arm falling limp beside him.

It's only then that I realise that Stefan is dying too. Stefan's chest has blood gushing from it, his movements slow and laboured. "Go," I tell him. "I'll take Enzo."

He looks back at Damon and then back at me, tossing the makeshift chisel into my open palm. He pulls Damon down from his position propped up on the bench. He half-drags, half-carries Damon out of the vehicle and across the grass. I don't wait to see if they make it across before turning to Enzo.

His eyelids are heavy and blood and sweat spray his face. His eyes flutter open. "Hello, love," he says in that really annoyingly sexy British accent.

I grip the tool with both hands and drive it into the link holding the chain to the floor of the van. The link stays intact and I slam it in again to no avail. "No, no, no," I grunt over and over. I'm not strong enough. I hate this. I can't be weak in a time when my strength really matters. I draw my arm back and send the tool smashing against the link with as much energy as I can muster up.

And the link breaks.

I repeat this on the other side, the link snapping. "You still with me?" I ask.

He flitters open his brown eyes. "Yeah," he mutters. "Can we just get out of here?"

"Right," I mumble. I hook my arm under his shoulder and support him as he pushes himself off of the bench. I half-drag him down to the ground where he stumbles over in a fit of coughing. I groan as he leans onto me for support. With all the perks of being an Amazon gone, I can barely keep myself or Enzo upright.

I haul him after me, his feet shuffling along weakly against the grass. I can see the Mystic Falls sign in my line of vision. Just a few more steps. I drag Enzo after me, my breathing heavy and fast. With a final grunt, I push him over the anti-magic boundary before me. As soon as I've passed the boundary, a burst of energy hits me. My breathing is back to normal and my body feels energised again.

"Are you all alright?" I ask.

Stefan looks down at me. "Alaric," he whispers.

Alaric is down on the grass, blood coating his torso. But what's really curious is that there's a woman over him, applying pressure to the wound. She's beautiful; long black hair, bright blue eyes and pouty lips. I also feel like she looks familiar, but I can't remember where from.

"Who's that?" I ask.

"That is Ric's hot doctor girlfriend," Damon says. "Jo. She's a witch with no powers."

The woman puts a gauze over the wound and applies more pressure. I fold my arms over my chest. "Does anybody know why she seems familiar? Or is that just me?"

"She's seeing things now," Enzo says. "Does that have something to do with the whole coming back from the dead thing? Because I don't remember her being that crazy."

Alaric goes still all of a sudden. I hear Damon swear under his breath. Jo is yelling something at Alaric. It gets to the point where if he was going to wake up he already would have and even the sliver of hope I have left is starting to leave me.

And that's when his eyes shoot open and he gasps for air.

I breathe a sigh of relief. Jo pulls out her phone and dials someone - probably the ambulance. Stefan studies the scene before turning to walk away. "I'm going to go call Elena and Caroline," he says.

Damon leaves shortly after. "I have to go talk to Elena," he says.

Enzo turns to me. "Thanks for saving me, love," he says. "Glad to know you still care even a little bit."

I narrow my eyes at him. "It was for Stefan and Stefan only," I say. I begin walking and he falls into step beside me. It's probably an hour's walk back to my apartment. I'm going to have a long night ahead of me.

Enzo hurries to catch up with me. "Ouch," he says. "It's always Stefan, isn't it? Because he's the good guy, right?"

I stop and look at him. "If you honestly think I only ever think of anyone as only good or only bad, then that shows how much you actually know about me."

"Then why do you help him?"

"Because he's helped me," I say. "Especially that time when I got exiled by my people for sleeping with an asshole with a nice face."

"You forgot the accent, gorgeous."

I roll my eyes. "I was right about the asshole part, though."

He stops in his tracks. "You know, while you were gone, I tried everything to try and find you and Damon," he says.

"And?"

"Everybody else gave up except me," he says.

I purse my lips. "Stefan didn't give up," I say. "He said he kept looking for Damon for those four months."

A small chuckle escapes his lips. "Is that what he told you? I'm guessing he didn't mention the part where he scurried off to some poxy, little town and made himself a new life while he let everyone believe he was still looking for Damon, Bonnie and you."

I part my lips in an expression of disappointment. "He really did that?" Enzo nods. "So while I was stuck in hell for four months with your annoying best friend, a witch without powers and a sociopath, Stefan was out there making himself a great new life?"

"Hard to believe," he says, his voice dripping in sarcasm. He pauses. "Wait, what did you just say?"

"Huh?"

"You said you were in there with three other people," he says. "I thought it was just you and Damon. Bonnie was there as well."

I avoid his eyes. "She was," I say softly. "She sacrificed herself for us."

He raises his eyebrows. "And the sociopath?"

I bit my lip. "His name is Kai Parker."

Enzo looks at me seriously. "And you haven't told anyone?" he urges.

"Do you know what Elena would do if she knew we let Bonnie sacrifice herself?" I argue. "She'd probably hate me for the rest of her life and she'd probably put Damon on a years-long sex ban. We all know how much it would affect him."

He has a sly twinkle in his eyes. "Then I guess it'd be a shame if the information got out somehow," he says.

I smile coldly. "Enzo, I saved your life today," I say. "And you'd be surprised how easily I can take it again."

Ω Ω Ω
Hello my loves!! I hope that chapter wasn't too boring since it was Kai-less. Hopefully it gave more of an insight on Athena's character
and her relationships with the rest of the group.
Also, on a scale of vague description to full on fifty shades of grey, how do you want the Kathena sex scene to be?? And, yes, there will be one later on in the book lmao!! Anyway, remember to tell me about what you liked (or didn't like) in this chapter and tell me what you want to see later in the book :)

Until next time, Georgina xx