❛ ACT II ❜
-ˋˏ chapter one ˎˊ-

WARNING : MINOR UNWANTED TOUCHING

SOFIA GILBERT NEVER GETS what she wants because if she did, she would not be sitting in ugly van on a dirtroad in Tennessee listening to ear piercing screams six o' clock in the morning.

The brunette closes her eyes and feels her shoulders shrink at the horrible shrill sound. She really regrets not owning headphones.

Her hand reaches for the dial of the radio and turns up the volume of the song the station is playing. She let's out a breath of relief.

But her moment of peace shatters into tiny pieces when an annoying, aggravating, mind stabbing voice fills her ears.

"Are you trying to burst my eardrums? Turn it down!"

Sofia rolls her eyes, keeping her head pressed against the cool window of the front seat. She would have gone to the backseat, but Stefan claimed it because he didn't want to be near Klaus. So, she was stuck with him.

"No because you would unfortunately heal, and I wouldn't get the chance to bask in your pain and discomfort." She shoots him a dirty look.

The hybrid scoffs, although he really shouldn't be offended anymore after enduring two months of insults and threats from her.

"Don't snap at me, little nuisance. I offered you the chance to come with us but you decided to stay behind."

"Because I don't want to watch you slaughter innocent people!"

"It's been two months, you should be use to it."

Sofia glares at Klaus, watching him climb back into the the front seat.

"Where's Stefan?" She asks.

"Getting his fill." Klaus smirks.

All summer Stefan has been drinking human blood from the vein. It has been difficult to watch all his progress fade away. Sofia didn't blame Stefan. Klaus was the one who is making him to do this in exchange for the cure that saved Damon's life.

Sofia has been there for Stefan, and he appreciated the support, but it was clear the only person who could help him was gone.

Sofia shifts in her seat and wraps Stefan's jacket tighter around herself. "Did you finally get a lead?"

"Yes, I did." He says smugy. "We're heading to a bar on Route 16." He shuts the car door.

"How long will that take?"

"Six hours."

"Great, more time filled with the misery of your company."

Klaus glares at her. "Don't think your company has been a delight either. You and Elijah truly are each other's soulmates, you both are buzzkills." He runs his hand through his hair, irratated with Sofia's constant attitude.

Sofia grits her teeth, another insult ready to be fired but the sound of the backseat door opening interrupted their bickering.

Klaus sends her another look before turning his head towards Stefan, who gets into the car silently. "Ah, had your fun?"

"Just drive." Stefan's gruff voice replies, avoiding looking at his friend and deciding to look out the window.

The sound of the engine coming to life was ignored by Sofia as she gazes at Stefan with a frown. He always did this after he killed with Klaus. He'd avoid looking her in the eye for a day or two before going back to normal. He feels shameful so he won't look at her.

There was no point in talking to Stefan until a few hours past so Sofia just sighs and faces forward again, watching as they returned back to the main road.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

"You want me to what?"

Sofia glances between the two men unimpressed. She is already in a bad mood because it was Elena's birthday, and she couldn't be there to celebrate with her sister for turning eighteen.

Klaus frowns in annoyance, slowly losing his patience with Sofia - not that she cares.

"You need to go in there." He points to the bar. "And find out for sure if that's the werewolf we're looking for by using your charm I'm sure is in there somewhere beneath all that daggers you shoot my way. " He tilts his head and explains in a voice that implies Sofia is four years old.

She narrows her eyes. "That's stupid. Why can't you just go in there first and get this over with?"

"Because, if Stefan and I go in there and ask he'll know we're trouble. We'll scare the poor thing off. You." He raises his eyebrows at her. "On the other hand, look harmless."

"Fine." Sofia gives in, not looking happy about it though.

Stefan sends her a reassuring look and squeezes her arm. "Just find out if he's Ray Sutton and if he is, give us a signal. Then you're done. We'll be compelling everyone in the bar. " He tells her, in a much nicer tone that Klaus.

Sofia purses her lips but doesn't say anything more. Instead she turns to the sideview mirror of the car and bends down, making sure her appearance is just what they needed.

Stefan and Klaus share a look, watching Sofia ruffle her hair to have more volume and pull her top a little south so if you look down you'd have a view of her cleavage.

Once she was satisfied, Sofia stands up straight and looks to see both men staring at her chest. She rolls her eyes, not shocked that her idea would work.

She clears her throat.

Stefan is the first to realize what he is doing and immediately becomes awkward. He suddenly finds the tar beneath them interesting. Klaus, on the other hand, just nods in approval of her method with a tiny smirk.

Shooting them a look, Sofia turns around and walks into the bar with the boys not too far behind.

There aren't many people. Just some men and woman at the bar and pool tables scattered around. Klaus and Stefan leave her side to compel everyone.

Sofia looks around until she sees someone seated at the bar nursing a drink that looks like the man Klaus showed her a picture of.

Taking a deep breathe in, Sofia shoves her bad mood down and puts on a smile.

She walks over to the empty bar stool next to Ray and makes sure to brush her arm against his when she sits down, catching his attention. Sofia doesn't look at him when she calls the bartender over.

She smiles sweetly. "Hi can I have the, uh, what's it called again?" She scrunches her nose up in false thought. "That drink that looks like water....it has those grapes in it..."

It was common knowledge that some men go for the girls who aren't self dependant or too bright because they were 'easy' to get. It makes Sofia feel sick that her act seems to be working, watching Ray observe her from the corner of her eye.

The bartender looks at her blankly. "A martini, miss?"

She gasps excitingly. "Yes, oh my gosh! That one! You totally read my mind!" She giggles, thankful she knew how to give a convincing one.

"Coming right up." The woman rolls her eyes. She walks away to prepare the drink.

"Hurt yourself thinking that much, pretty thing?" A thick southern accent asks from her side.

Sofia refrains from visibly cringing. Instead she turns her head towards him shyly and giggles more. "You think I'm pretty?" She bats her eyelashes at him.

The dirty blonde man smirks and leans closer to Sofia. "Very."

Sofia turns her body in the stool to face him and, just like she expects, Ray's eyes immediately shoot down to her breasts. Then they travel up her sitting figure, drinking her in, until his now dark eyes meet her flirtatious ones.

"Whats your name, baby?"

Sofia rests her chin on her palm and bit her lip slightly. "Allison."

Like hell she'll tell him her real name.

Ray catches her off guard when he suddenly slides his hand over her knee and up her thigh, resting it dangerously high. She doesn't show her discomfort but struggles to still seem flirty with his sudden touch that makes her skin crawl.

"I'm Ray." He tells her. "Wanna get out of here?"

Bingo.

Her innocent act drops, and her eyes sharpen. Ray visibly does a double take at her behavior change but doesn't get to do anything because Sofia grabs his hand off her thigh and crushes the bones in her one hand. Ray screams, his other hand hitting the counter from the pain. His body bends to its knees on the ground from her tight hold with his eyes squeezed shut.

"Don't ever touch a woman without her permission." Sofia tells him, squeezing his crushed hand for emphasis. Ray wheezes in pain.

"Easy love." Klaus comes up behind her and places his hands on her shoulders. "If he wasn't so important I'd have ripped his hands off and stuffed them down his throat myself."

Sofia finally releases his now dented hand, watching Ray clutch it to his chest. Stefan comes up behind him and pulls him to his feet by his collar. He slams Ray's upper body down against the counter, earning a grunt.

Stefan looks at her. "You okay?"

Sofia nods and steps back, brushing Klaus's hands off her shoulders coldly. He stands in front of her, watching Ray's eyes dart wildly between the three of them with his face pressed against the wood.

"Ray Sutton." Klaus smiles. "I've been looking everywhere for you. We started in Florida, Pensacola. I met a young chap there who you used to work with before you moved to Memphis, now he directed me to two lovely young women. And they led me here, to you."

Ray tries to escape Stefan's hold and fails. "I wouldn't do that." The Salvatore warns.

Ray realizes what is happening and his eyes widen at Klaus and Sofia. "Vampires."

"You're swifty swift Ray!" Klaus says enthusiastically before taking Ray from Stefan's hold and forcing him to sit down on a barstool. "Yes! My friends here-"

"I'm not your friend." Sofia pipes up, now drinking her martini and watching.

"I consider you the person who's blackmailing me into being your friend." Stefan adds on, pursing his lips.

Klaus shoots them dirty looks before continuing. "- are vampires. That one." He nods at Stefan. "-compelled everybody in the bar so don't look to them for any help. I however, I'm something else, a different kind of monster. I've got some vampire, I've got some wolf."

"You- what?" Ray stutters.

"A hybrid Ray, I'm both. You see I want to create more of me. Now you being the first werewolf that I've come across in many a moon, pun intended Ray! I need you to direct me to your pack. So, where can I find them Ray?" Klaus tries to compel him.

Ray shakes his head, eyes briefly going to Sofia and Stefan then back to Klaus."You can't compel me, it won't work."

Klaus sighes before looking towards Stefan again. The Salvatore scratches his head before getting the bartender's attention. "Can you bring out the darts please?" He requests.

Sofie continues to watch whilst silently sipping on her drink.

"Tell you what Ray, We're gonna play a little drinking game, something I like to call truth or wolfsbane." Stefan tells him carrying a pouch of wolfsbane.

Klaus smirks at the clearly anxious werewolf. "Oh, this is going to be fun Ray."

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

It takes two hours of Klaus and Stefan torturing Ray for the werewolf to finally give up the location of his pack.

Sofia can tell Klaus was beyond happy to hear it. She doesn't understand why he would want more of his kind. She thought he'd love to be the only hybrid in existence. But the man hasn't revealed his agenda to either Stefan or Sofia.

The Gilbert stayed away from what the boys were doing the entire time. Instead, she sat and drank by herself, thinking about how much she missed everyone back home. And how sad she was to miss her sister's eighteenth. It was an important milestone in Elena's young life and Sofia would do anything just to hug her and wish her a happy birthday.

She wondered how they were doing now that it was just Elena and Jeremy. She wondered if Bonnie and her brother were doing well in their relationship, how Elena's party that Caroline definitely planned went or if Damon was handling things and not killing people irrationally.

These thoughts remain in her head the next day as she hikes the Smoky Mountains. She is grateful for her vampirism in situations like this because she knows her human self would have collapsed not even twenty steps in.

The trio of supernaturals are surrounded by tall forest trees and bushes, the air thick and flustering. Sofia is not enjoying the annoying buzz of mosquitoes everywhere and the feeling of the heat on her skin.

Stefan carries an unconscious Ray over his shoulders with Klaus next to him a few feet in front of Sofia. They are talking but Sofia was not paying attention, occupied with her thoughts.

She snaps out of it when she felt someone grab onto her arm to balance her and Sofia realizes she almost tripped over a thick log.

Her dark eyes look to her side and, for a moment, Sofia sees Elijah's concerned face. But before she can call out his name like she so eagerly wants to, she realizes that it is not him. She was just remembering that day in the park

"Watch out Sof. You good?" Stefan asks her with concern evident on his face.

It is Stefan. She feels an ache in her chest but quickly pretends it's nothing.

"Oh yeah. Sorry." Sofia mumbles, blinking in surprise.

When he isn't brooding, Stefan is babying Sofia for no reason. It warms her heart and tells her that Stefan Salvatore hasn't fell off the deep end.

Sofia straightens up and Stefan removes his hold on her. Klaus watches them for a moment before continuing to walk, now the one carrying Ray.

"I'm zoning out alot today." Sofia says. Her hand reaches up and brushes some fallen hairs away from her face.

The weather was bothering her to no end and Sofia was beyond happy she packed appropriate clothing. At the moment she wears a black tank top and a pair of army green shorts. Her usual ankle boots are replaced with black laced up hiking boots. Her hair was up in a ponytail but it was clear she fiddles with it constantly.

"And yesterday." Stefan adds and looks at her as they continue their hike side by side, branches and dry leaves crunching under their weight. "And it's not difficult to figure out why." He looks at her knowingly.

Sofia sighs, kicking the dirt and watching the movement. "I miss them, Stefan. I hate how I just left with no goodbye when they were sleeping." She lifts her gaze to meet his green eyes, knowing Stefan understands more than anybody.

She makes sure not to mention missing Elena's birthday because Klaus is nearby and still believes she is dead.

"I hate our situation too Sof." He rests his arm around her shoulders comfortably and brought her closer to his side. The humid weather made Sofia think of pushing him away but she knew he meant well. "But we'll see them again." He bumps his hip into hers, getting a surprised gasp. "Until then, you have me."

Stefan smiles down at her cheekily and the woman smiles back. Her first genuine smile in two days.

"And you have me."

As they walk further, Sofia can tell Stefan wants to say something else but was holding back.

She knows what he wants to talk about.

Sofia hasn't told Stefan about why she joined them on this trip. She remembers the mixed expression of horror and confusion on Stefan's face when she arrived at the warehouse two months ago in Mystic Falls. She made Klaus promise not to say anything (she threatened him and he scoffed) and the hybrid has surprisingly kept his mouth shut.

It would just create a lot of stress and worry for Sofia, and she really didn't want to talk about her and Elijah to anyone. Especially after Jenna died. Her chest aches again and this time Sofia didn't bother to repress it.

Fortunately, Klaus saved Sofia from a soon-to-be uncomfortable conversation.

"We're here." His accented voice called out, turning to smirk at them.

The vampires share a look before quickening their steps to see what Klaus is talking about. And he was right.

About thirty feet ahead, a camp was set up. Well, half of it since people were busy packing their things up. It seems they want to move locations before the full moon that will appear tonight.

Klaus's smirk widens at the sight of so many werewolves and it made Sofia grimace.

"Finally, time for the fun." Klaus says.

He removes Ray carelessly from his shoulders. The body drops to the floor harshly at Stefan's feet making Sofia flinch.

The hybrid looks at them. "Carry the lad will you Stefan? I want to make my entrance." Klaus saunters forward without waiting for a reply.

Stefan turns to her pleadingly. The woman looks between Ray and her friend before scrunching her nose and patting his shoulder.

"You got this Stef."

"Shut up."

The two follow Klaus into the open clearing the pack occupy currently. Slowly but surely does their presence become noticed but it is the blunt thump of Ray's body on the dirt that makes everyone's eyes shoot up.

Sofia tenses. She feels the glares stabbing at her skin. Both of fear and hatred. Yet there in the bottom of her stomach is a feeling of pity for these innocent people who have no idea how bad their luck had become.

A dark-haired woman runs to Ray's body and drops to her knees. "Ray! Oh, my God. What's going on?" She looks up at the three standing side by side."Who are you?" She asks venomously, looking between all of them.

A blonde man rushes to stand behind her and the pack inches closer as well.

Klaus smiles, unbothered by the hospitality. "The important question, is who am I. Please forgive the intrusion. My name is Klaus."

An emotion flickers across the lady's once tan face, now it was almost a sickly white. "You're the hybrid." She mutters.

The wariness and obvious fear in her voice makes Klaus stand taller and his smirk to widen mercilessly. "You've heard of me. Fantastic."

The werewolves stilled.

"It's fascinating, actually...A werewolf who isn't beholden to the moon, a vampire who doesn't burn in the sun. A true hybrid." Klaus drones on and Sofia is honestly so sick of his voice.

She doesn't want any attention drawn so she silently perches herself on a medium sized boulder. The stone feels cool against her hot thighs and some tension leaves her body. Stefan joins her.

They were just there in case Klaus needs backup.

In great time, Ray shoots up into a sitting position with a loud gasp.

"Excellent timing, Ray. Very dramatic." Klaus looks down at the frantic man.

Says the guy who intentionally makes dramatic entrances. Sofia thought lazily.

"What's happening to me?" Ray asks, clutching his throat as if wants to rip it open. It is the thirst.

"Stefan?" Klaus turns towards the vampire.

Stefan pushes himself away from the boulder and walks to the center of the circle the pack formed around the outsiders. "Are any of you human? Your friend here needs human blood to complete his transition to a vampire. If he doesn't get it, he will die." Stefan asks them clearly.

The silence irks Klaus. "Doesn't take much, just a sip. Anyone? A boyfriend, a girlfriend, along for the ride?"

Sofia didn't mean to. But her hearing instinctively picked up the rapid beating of a heart. Her soft eyes traveled to the blonde haired man standing behind the woman and Ray.

He didn't smell like his friends.

Klaus notices too after watching Sofia. He sometimes does it because (he'll never tell her) he'd picked up on how observant she is. If anyone was going to find the human among the pack, it'd be Sofia.

It seems Sofia and the innocent blonde figured out their mistakes when Klaus suddenly strode to him. "You!" He pointed at the man.

He rushes over to him and bites his forearm. The man screams before he is thrown to the ground in front of Ray by Stefan. The woman tries to run to him but is erupty stopped by Klaus strangling her.

"It's the new order, sweetheart. You join us, or you die." He informs her.

She struggles to speak but her glare says enough. "I'd rather die than be a vampire."

"Wrong choice."

Klaus shoves his blood into her mouth and once she swallows against her will, he snaps her neck and her body falls to the ground.

Seeing the disgusted expression on Sofia's face, Klaus shrugs. "She'll thank me for that later." She flips him off and he chuckles before turning to the rest of the pack. "Okay, who's next?"

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Sofia watches Ray in concern as he shivers and holds his arms, rocking on the ground. She does not like him but it was clear something was odd after he drank Derek's blood.

"They're dead. They're all dead." He mutters, looking at the bodies of his pack scattered around the camp.

"Something is wrong Klaus." Sofia moves her eyes from the shaking man to the one next to her.

"Ah, he's through his transition. He should be feeling better soon." He shrugs her concern off and she scoffs.

"So is this your master plan?" Stefan asks Klaus, stepping forward. "Build an army of hybrid slaves?"

"No, not slaves. Soldiers, comrades."

"For what war?" Sofia questions, eyeing Klaus.

He waves his hand. "Oh, you don't arm yourself after war has been declared, little nuisance. You build your army so big that no one ever dares pick a fight."

"What makes you so sure that they'll be loyal?"

"Yeah, you're not tolerable in the slightest." Sofia adds, earning a fed-up glare from the hybrid.

"Look who's talking. And, to answer your question Stefan, it's not difficult to be loyal when you're on the winning team. That's something you'll learn once you shake that horribly depressive chip off your shoulder."

Stefan laughs dryly. "That's why you're, uh...you're keeping me around? To witness my attitude adjustment?"

"You'll know why I'm keeping you around when I've decided that I want you to know." Klaus answers before taking note of the blood coming out of Ray's eyes and ears.

Sofia's eyes widen and she steps back whilst Klaus and Stefan move closer to Ray.

"Something's wrong." Klaus mutters.

Sofia rounds on him with her hands on her hips. "Oh so now you agree?"

He side-eyes her.

"That shouldn't be happening, should it?" Stefan asks warily.

"Well, obviously" Klaus says, annoyed that Sofia was right.

"You said it was gonna feel better. Why doesn't it feel better?" Ray whines.

"Some master race." Stefan mutters.

"Lose the attitude." Klaus snaps.

The woman that Klaus first killed wakes up and all their heads snap to her.

"Derek, come feed your girlfriend." Klaus calls the exhausted man on the ground, who's been given the job of feeding the hybrids when they wake up.

Suddenly Ray snarls and quickly jumps up before running into the bushes, escaping.

Klaus looks at Stefan and Sofia." Go get him."

Stefan immediately speeds off after the werewolf but Sofia stays in her place with her arms crossed over her chest. Klaus narrows his eyes at her.

"Has your vampire hearing failed you? I said go get him."

"I'm not your little bitch Klaus. If you want one, we could stop by a shelter later." She smiles sarcastically "If you're lucky, they may even take you in!"

Before she could blink her back is against a tree and Klaus's hand is around her throat, cutting off her air supply. Sofia gasps and claws at his hand but Klaus merely tightens his grip.

"You're forgetting who here has the ability to kill you with their venom Sofia. When I tell you to do something, you do it. Understand?" He threatens.

Sofia holds his eyes and stays silent, continuing to struggle out of his grasp. She'll never submit to him. Not completely or honestly. He killed Elena and actually killed Jenna. He doesn't deserve her respect.

At her disobedience, Klaus's eyes flash golden."Go get Ray and help Stefan or else I won't give you what you need to live when Elijah is daggered. Don't forget our deal."

Sofia remembers that night. Klaus promised to get her the help from a witch he knows can stop her from desiccating if she went with him and Stefan. In return, well, Sofia does not know yet because Klaus won't tell her.

She feels the fabric of her tank top brush against the dead skin around her heart and finally nods.

"Good." Klaus drops her to the floor and she gasps for oxygen. "Better get going, I hope Stefan has not lost him." He smirks down at her.

Still taking deep breaths, Sofia stands up and glares at the hybrid. So many vulgar threats wait at the tip of her tongue but she just swallows them back down.

Before she speeds away Sofia makes sure her shoulder clashes against his.

The trees blur as she runs so fast that the feeling of her feet hitting the ground is nothing. She catches the sounds of grunting and bodies falling to the ground and changes direction.

Sofia stops when she finds the men wrestling on the ground. Ray is on top of Stefan, struggling to stay that way as Stefan fights back. Sofia quickly wraps her arms around Ray's torso and uses her strength to pull him off Stefan and throw him a distance away. Sofia quickly helps Stefan stand on his own feet but groans when she sees Ray has run away again.

"Stefan - oh no." Sofia gulps when she sees the bite on Stefan's arm given by Ray. "No no no." She gently grasps it but he still flinches.

"It's okay, we just need get Ray back and Klaus will give me his blood." Stefan attempts to reassure his stressed friend. "Let's go and get this done. It's okay Sof."

Sofia let his injured arm go and nods. But her eyes were filled with uncertainty that Klaus would heal Stefan. Sofia doesn't care what she'll have to do to get the hybrid to help Stefan, she'll do it.

The two vampires are about to chase after Ray but simultaneously halt when they hear all too familiar voices close by. Sofia's breath hitches and her eyes are wide when they meet Stefan's.

"There's no way..."

They walk closer to the edge of the ground the they stood on that shows a view of the valley below. There, three figures are walking in a line. Elena, Damon and Alaric. Sofia's fists clench at the sight and Stefan tenses.

Sofia was beyond pissed. Alaric is supposed to protect Elena and keep her away from harm and Damon is idiotic enough to follow them.

"They keep trying." Stefan whispers to her, eyes on his girlfriend and brother talking.

Sofia's eyebrows pinch. "What?" She had no idea they were trying in the first place.

"I didn't tell you because I didn't think Damon was this stupid to try again but they've been tracking us all this time. I got Damon off our trail yesterday." Stefan reveals, feeling guilty for withholding the information from his friend when she sends him a hurt look.

"We need to get them out of here." She whispers before a whoosh of air comes from behind them. They quickly turn around, shoulder to shoulder to block Klaus's view of the valley.

Klaus looks between them suspiciously, seeing they don't have what he sent them out to get. "Where did he go?"

"He, uh...he got away. Forget him. Let's go." Stefan tries to lead Klaus away but the hybrid grabs his bitten arm. Sofia subtly turns her head and check to see if her sister and friends were gone. They fortunately are.

Klaus tuts. "A fatal werewolf bite, ouch."

"Yeah. I'm going to need your blood to heal me."

"Well, I tell you what. You find Ray, and then I'll heal you." Klaus drops Stefan's arm.

Stefan and Sofia share a worried look.

"You better hurry, because that bite looks nasty." Klaus taunts before speeding away to the camp.

"We need to get to Ray before he runs into them and get him back." Sofia rushes out the second she knows Klaus is gone.

Stefan nods before following Sofia back into a blur of green. They stuck close to each other before splitting ways to cover more ground.

The wind is knocked out of Sofia by the force of the hug, and she stumbles. She hesitates in shock before eagerly hugging him back, not bothered by how tight she is being held. Her nose is filled with the familiar scent of her best friend and Sofia never thought she'd be so happy to smell bourbon in her life.

She expects the raven-haired vampire to let her go and yell her seconds into the hug but is surprised by the fact that Damon Salvatore doesn't move away. He just stands there hugging her silently.

"Damon-"

"Yell all you want in a few seconds, just-" He let's out a shaky breath and squeezes her tighter. "Let me be happy you aren't dead Sof." He mumbles, voice muffled by her shoulder.

Instant guilt hit her like a fright train. He thought she was dead all this time? Sofia never thought he'd come to believe that after she left. She feels horrible.

She stays silent and let's him hold her longer. But the moment is ruined when her eyes land on Ray's dead body next to them, his heart at their feet.

She was searching for Ray and found him on top of Damon, trying to bite him. She didn't think because, to her, Damon's life was threatened and there was no way she was strong enough to fight a hybrid. So she killed him without a second thought in a blink of an eye.

The two best friends finally pull away from the embrace and from the expression on Sofia's face, Damon already knows he won't be able to convince her to come home.

"You need to leave these mountains, now. Klaus is close and he can't know Elena is alive." Sofia tells him urgently. "Take her and Ric, please Damon." She squeezes his hand, urging him to take off.

But how could he? One of the most important people in Damon's life is standing in front of him after he went months believing she was dead. He knows how dangerous the situation is yet he stood still.

But then the anger broke through.

"Do you know how hurt you left everyone?" He glares at her but Sofia knew there was no hatred in it. "Caroline and Bonnie couldn't hear your name without crying for days. Jeremy burned that letter you wrote and Elena has been way over her head thinking she could bring you home."

Sofia frowns. "I'm sorry Damon. I hate this and how I left you guys but it's really for the best. I wish I could explain buy I can't. Not now. Please just stop trailing-"

"She's not going to stop Sof." He scoffs, looking away from her before looking back. "I was like that too but then Stefan made it clear that we need to stop. You know he killed Andy just to make that point, right? Then he called Elena."

"What -"

"He's on it again, isn't he? How bad?"

Sofia avoids his eyes and crosses her arms stiffly. "It's bad. But I'm here and that means something. I won't let Klaus break him." She meets his eyes with a sad gaze. "He's all I have and I'm all he has. Trust us, Damon. We know what we did and are doing is for the best."

He stares at her for a moment before letting out a angry breath. "You didn't even say why." Then she sees the hurt shining through when he whispers. "You just left."

It is silent once again until the crunch of the leaves under her feet as she takes steps towards him. Her arms wrap around his torso and she lays her head on his chest. He doesn't return the hug though, stubborn.

"I didn't want to." She sighs, closing her eyes. "I miss you and I'm sorry. But if you don't leave then all the effort Stefan and I have put in goes to waste. You care about her so do what's best and make sure she stops trying to get us back. We'll find a way to get there on our own, I promise."

Damon doesn't say anything and Sofia thinks he's has enough of her but then he hugs her back, much gentler than the last time. She feels him lay his cheek on the top of her head and the woman let's herself relax for the first time in months.

It was extremely rare for Damon to show this much emotion about their friendship. It just reassures her that he does miss her and wants her back in Mystic Falls. But that time is not now.

She sucks in a breath and holds him tighter before breaking away from him. Her eyes observe the way Damon immediately puts his mask up again after their moment.

He nods at her emotionlessly and takes a step back to leave but Sofia speaks up.

"Don't let my siblings wait for me, please." She asks softly, clenching her fists to stop herself from asking for another hug. "They deserve better after everything."

Sofia knows it's unfair to ask this of him. She's knows her siblings will never stop waiting for her to return because the truth is - Sofia is all they have left in the family department. But it will kill her to know they keep destroying and distracting themselves searching for her.

Damon stares at her for a long moment before nodding. She smiles sadly.

"I'll see you again, Damon."

"You better, Bambi."

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I finally updated, yay!

anyway, I would LOVE to hear your thoughts / opinions on this chapter because alot happened.

Like your thoughts on Klaus and Sofia perhaps? 👀 Or Damon and Sofia? Or just Sofia in general?

Please vote and thank you for reading, I appreciate every reader! 💗