CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

(act iii)

FULL MOONS AND USEFUL STRANGERS

''the sacrifice and by the light of the moon''

"So a hybrid walks into a bar, says to the bartender–" ~ Klaus Mikealson 

JENNA'S POV:

I was setting up another lunch for the kids and Mason – having mason here and being present was weird. He was never like that, always floating along, doing whatever he wanted. He was a free spirit; he could never settle down, and I hoped he had changed for some reason. I wanted to settle down and have Elena and Jeremy in college so I could finally live my life. I loved them, of course, I did, there was no doubt, but it was hard.

I was still in college when Miranda and Richard died, I had no desire to be a mother right now, but I had to. I never regretted being their parental figure. I would hate to see them in some orphanage. But I did want some peace. Frankly, I was slightly over Elena's supernatural drama. What a shock that was; Miranda and Richard used to talk about and tell stories to Elena and Jeremy, but I never knew they were true.

Hopefully, they weren't as scary as Richard made them out to be, Enzo was a charmer, and all he wanted to do was drink, read, and live his life with his loves and family. They were just like any other human, just had a different diet.

As I set the table with the help of Ana (it was still weird to call her Ana and not Caroline or Care – but I don't judge), there was a knock at the door. I glanced at Mason, who was in the kitchen, thinking he might have invited someone. Ana told me it was her, Bonnie, and her cute but very serious boyfriend Damian, Daviana, Tyler, and Jeremy.

Elena was out with her newest boyfriend, Damon, and he was much too old for a young girl like herself, but no, she thought she was a mature adult. I was just waiting till she came to me crying because he broke her heart; he was an asshole. Everyone in the family hated him, but Elena couldn't see (blinded by love, I'll say).

I walked to the door, thinking maybe Alaric had come by. He was smitten with Ana, and who wasn't? That woman had more men than I had friends... that's rather sad and pathetic, Jen...

Opening the door, I was met with the bright sun and an equally bright woman with blonde hair, golden-kissed skin, and pale blue eyes. I raised an eyebrow at the pretty stranger, I'd never seen her before, and Mystic Falls was the smallest town around.

"Hi," the blonde greeted with a smile and crinkled eyes.

"Uh, hi?" I said, and it came out like a question; I was confused. Please tell me she isn't here to make join her weird cult or something.

"Sorry. Rude. You have no idea who I am. I'm Jules, a friend of Mason's from Florida." She introduced herself, and I squinted my eyes. Was this bitch trying to steal my man?? Woah, Jen, you've just reunited for a week and kissed like once. Calm down.

"Nice to meet you. Why are you looking for Mason?" I asked quickly, wanting to finish this conservation, my stomach was calling, and I felt slightly jealous.

She squinted and answered, "I'm just trying to track down Mason. We need to talk."

I nodded and said, "He's inside." I opened the door wordlessly, not saying the magic words just in case. She raised an eyebrow, smirked slightly, and walked over the threshold slowly, showing she was not a vampire. But that didn't rule out anything else.

I walked behind Jules into the open-plan area with a dining room and a kitchen. Mason looked up and grimaced at this Jules person.

"Jules came to see you. She said she needed to talk to you," I told the now annoyed Mason while I eyed Jules with suspicion due to his reaction.

Ex-girlfriend or something, maybe?

"Mason," she greeted with a smirk. He sighed, placed the hand towel down, and asked, "What is ya doing here, Jules?"

She walked towards him while I stood near Ana, and we watched the scene together. "You've been gone a long time; we all miss you. The funeral was weeks ago," she tells him, and I scoffed. There was not a time for grief, hell, it's been months, but I wasn't 'over' it and never would.

Mason let out another sigh, and he was done with this woman. Luckily Davina, Tyler, and Jeremy (the kids of the house) were playing video games upstairs while Bonnie and Damian were outside in the garden in their own little worlds (like usual).

"I've settled down, Jules. I'm done with the pack. My life is here now, with my nephew and my girlfriend," he told her, and I blushed bright red. Ana nudged me playfully (something she and Bonnie always did), and I smiled. He called me his girlfriend! We didn't talk, but it seems we don't need to.

She scoffed and asked him with a sneer, "So they know what you really are?"

He panicked momentarily, looking at me with sad eyes, and I nodded, much to his surprise. Jules turned to me and said, "He's a monster. A werewolf!"

I rolled my eyes and told her, "He's not a monster. He's a human being that is sadly cursed once a month."

She squinted in disbelief while Mason asked, "You know?"

I nodded and pointed to Ana, "Yeah, I've known about the existence of the supernatural for a while. Ana here different too, and I don't care," I told him softly. He smiled at me with loving eyes and hugged me, ignoring the huff of the woman and the slam of the door.

__________

We all sat down, eating lunch and chatting.

"So Auntie, any plans?" Davian asked me while dipping her chips in sauce. I smiled at her. She was the cutest thing!! She wraps me around her finger, especially when she calls me auntie, and the little knucklehead knows it.

"Yeah, some writer is supposed to be coming by today. Gotta play historical society hostess, Carol Lockwood's orders!" I told her, waving my hand and intimating Miss Lockwood. They all laughed while Ana gave Bonnie a pointed look, and she blushed.

"Sounds..." Davian drawled, not trying to offend me, but I could see the mischievousness in her eyes.

"Lame, I know," I told her, taking a sip of wine while Mason's warm hand squeezed my thigh, and I still, for a moment, looked up at him apoplectically. "Sorry," I murmured.

He waved me off, "Carol can be a piece of work, especially when events our outsiders are here," he told me, and I breathed a breath of relief.

After lunch was cleaned up, we got a movie ready to go. Mason was cooking the popcorn, Davina chose (she did the puppy dog eyes), and Jeremy and Tyler were playing wrestle on the couch while Bonnie and Damian were whispering. It was a normal weekend for us Gilberts, Lockwoods, Forbes/Ravens, with Mason being the newcomer and us missing a few people like Ana's other boyfriends (Stefan, Enzo, Alaric) – they wanted their own time together.

I was searching in the closet for Miranda's archives for this Elijah guy. He sounded familiar, but I wanted to finish this so we could start the movie.

With a knock, I had my eureka moment finding the boxes he needed. "I'll get it!" Ana called out and went to the door and invited him.

I turned around, lugging the boxes onto the kitchen table, and looked at him. He wore a nice black suit, parted brown hair, and dark eyes that screamed knowledgeable.

"You must be Elijah," I greeted, shaking his hand. He nodded and said, "Yes, lovely to meet you."

"Do you want any help loading these in your car?" I asked him if I did want to see the movie, Davina was surprisingly good at picking movies, and I was craving to watch something fluffy and animated.

He nodded, and Ana called out to Bonnie and Damian, "These two will help you," she said with a smirk and that matchmaking twinkle in her eye, the same one she had when she reintroduced Mason to me. I rolled my eyes at her antics and left them alone, and ate the finished result of Mason's 'hard' work.

Nice, extra butter!

BONNIE'S POV:

I was sitting on the couch with Damian, whispering about Jenna and her new boy toy Mason. It was good seeing her happy. I didn't think she would recover from her sister's death and take care of Elena and Jeremey. There was a knock, and I froze. I knew who exactly was at that doorstep.

Ana had tried to set me up with him for years before Damian was in the picture. Honestly, if he weren't, I would undoubtedly go for it. Ana spared the man many compliments over the years. I don't know why she was adamant about me getting with him. She had me convinced for a while that we would end up together. It was bound to happen. But I saw through her matchmaking ways she had lessened when Damian came into the picture but was still at it.

Whenever I questioned her, she just said, 'more the merrier' and shrugged. I mean.... she wasn't wrong.

Damian sensed my nerves and took my hands into his. I had told him about the noble Mikaelson in a few rants that probably just sounded like me complimenting him because I didn't have anything bad to say about him, Ana didn't, and since I didn't know him, I took her word for it.

We stood up when we heard Ana say our names and told the man (who I didn't have the guts to face) we would help him with the boxes. She sounded caring and nice, but I knew she was at her cunning antics like usual. She was the most mischievous person in the room. It didn't help when Kat played along too.

Damian and I grabbed a box and walked out but not without sending a glare to a smirking Ana. We walked down the stairs to his car, a sleek black Toyota.

"So why are you here, playing writer?" I asked as he opened the boot; it seemed unnecessary. Ana had everything prepared.

He shrugged and answered, "I was hoping Miss. Gilbert would be here so I could threaten her to stay true to the ritual. I've been keeping tabs on you all just in case, Miss. Anastasia thinks it's a good idea to betray my trust."

 I scoffed, "Ana is the most loyal and trustworthy person I know! She'll come through; she's been planning for years for this!" I told him he might be hot, but he was bad-mouthing my best friend!

"Sorry darling, this ritual is important to me," he said calmly, soothing me.

I nodded; I knew what was on the line. "I know, sorry. It must be hard; I don't know what I would do without my family," I softly said while Damian gave him a soft look.

He looked at me momentarily, his straight lips turning into a small smile like Damian's. "She told you?" he asked, amused.

I put a hand on my hip and pushed my hair over my shoulder, "Of course, we've been friends since we were children," I told him.

As he smiled, I noticed his eyes crinkle, "Sassy one aren't you?" he asked with a chuckle.

"You won't believe how much sass in her little body," Damian told him, patting my head, showing my short height compared to him and Elijah.

I huffed in embarrassment while they both chuckled at me. We stood out there for a while, movie day and friends forgotten.

Okay, maybe Ana was right (are we surprised?), and Elijah was...cute. Seeing him and Damian talk and connect over books while getting a tease in about me made me feel complete. Maybe he was missing, and I didn't want Ana to be right again. I can't take her smug face anymore!

Okay, that was a fat lie. I'll take her smug face if it means I get to see him, and Damian sends me that small soft smile that conveyed more emotions than I thought a smile could.

___________

Timeskip ~ Later that Day

TYLER'S POV:

After lunch and movie day, Ana, Davina, Jeremy, Bonnie, and I walked through the woods toward the cellar. Mason was with us, too, lugging a bag full of chains. He was helping me with my first transformation, and the others supported me.

Telling Mason that I had triggered the curse was a hard conversation. He was disappointed but also very understanding about what happened. He was adamant that it was an accident (which it was), and Ana was right by his side saying the same thing.

"This is going to be so much fun!" Davina says excitedly, being her bubbly self. Jeremy nudged her, seeing my slightly annoyed face, and she rubbed the back of her head.

Did she not know that I would break every bone in my body? How is this going to be fun?!

Ana patted my arm, realizing I was spiraling. She was intuitive like that. She always seemed cold to the others at school, but deep down, she was a softie.

I was scared, so undeniably scared. It was going to hurt bad. I had broken a few bones while being a varsity-playing athlete (four if we're counting). It helped that everyone was here to support and help me through this. Having mason here was the biggest comfort. He had been through this and broke the curse similarly to me. It was also nice having an actual family member who wasn't afraid to talk about dad and how much of a jerk he was.

We quickly reached the cellar with the daylight shining the path. We all headed down the stairs in a single file with flashlights in our hands.

We headed deeper and followed Mason to the transition area with old bolts and chains. Deep scratches were engraved on the walls, making me nervous about becoming a literal fictional monster.

"These look old," Jeremy noted, placing his fingers in the groove marks and slowly dragging them down.

"Us Lockwoods have been using this cellar for decades for transformation," Mason explained as he examined the chains. He waved me down, and I followed him.

"These bolts and chains are rusty. We'll need new chains – which, luckily, we got some. These bolts could hold until we can fix this place up better." Mason explained to me, and I pulled on the bolt seeing it was in good condition despite the appearance.

He started pulling the chains out, and I helped him lock them. While he did it, he went in-depth about the transformation.

"Listen, Ty, the first transformation is always the hardest; it's the most painful." He told me, and I nodded. Ana had told me that. "But we're all here. I'll be turning alongside you; it'll be better when we change. We'll form a makeshift pack; it will help with the transformation." He explained it made sense.

He pulled out bottles of water that looked like loose-leaf tea. "This," he said, shaking the bottle, "is wolfsbane. Highly toxic to werewolves, it will help us with our control with the shift. It'll hurt like a bitch" he said, chuckling at the end.

Everyone sat on the side watching and listening to us, and Ana spoke up, "It's like with vervain for us vampires."

I nodded; I had seen the effects of vervain on vampires – it was fucked.

"So, how long does this last?" Bonnie asked quietly, stepping forward towards me and sending me her small smile.

Mason grimaced at the question and answered softly, "It's longer than five hours."

After hearing that, I was done. I shook my head, "No. No! Five hours of that shit? No!" I said, stepping back quickly.

Ana was at my side as usual and stroked my head as she hugged me. "It won't be that long unless you accept you. Accept the pain, don't let it control you. Be one with your wolf. You mustn't fear it. I know it's hard for me to ask you that, but you have to. If you don't, it will be the worst hours of your life," she told me, pulling me back and scanning my fearful eyes.

"Understand?" she asked sternly, and I nodded slowly. I took a deep breath. I can do this.

________

The time had come, the sun had gone to rest, and the moon had come out. The unseemingly beauty of the moon and the quietness of the cellar did not prepare me for what would happen. The conversation with Mason about his transformations and the never-ending knowledge that Ana possessed could not help me now.

The others sat on the other side of the cellar door for protection – I would kill myself before I hurt or even killed one of my friends and family members. I had grown up with them, matured alongside them, and become a better man because of them.

Mason and I had finished the wolfsbane water, and it was disgusting. It tasted like pure acid, and it burned like it too. It was the hardest to keep down, but Mason said, 'It was for the best. It would make us weaker. 

We were chained up, waiting for the first bone to snap. Ana was inside watching us with a soft smile that showed off all my worries and fears. She was good like that.

Then just like that, my ankle snapped, and I let out a scream of anguish. Fuck that hurt!

"You need to breathe through this. Concentrate on the air in your lungs, the dirt, and the floor beneath you. If you fight it, the pain will make you want to delay it. You think that's all you can take, but you can take more: Tyler Lockwood, a five varsity sports player, a great artist. You are strong physically and mentally. Let it in; allow the pain and transformation to swallow you whole. Then and only then, it cannot break you." She told me firmly, bringing tears to my eyes from the pain and love. I focused on her words while every bone in my body broke, and my gums ached.

"It hurts," I cried out, trying to let it swallow me as she told me. I tried.

She held my head in a hug and stroked me, "I know. You can do this. I'm so proud of you," she told me, and I let myself fall into an abyss of pain and black.

She let go of me, giving me space, and with the loudest yell, the transformation was done. I was wild and free, and I was finally complete. Most of it was a blur, fighting for dominance with Mason.

___________

NO ONE'S POV:

Damon Salvatore was at the bar trying to get answers from the new blonde looking for Mason.

He had easily drugged her drink with wolfsbane and was trying to coax her into drinking it.

"Mason's a great guy, and after his brother's funeral, he stuck around and helped his nephew and..." he told her, knowing she was looking for him. he looked down at her full drink and said, "You haven't touched your drink."

She nodded and smiled at him (fakely) and told him, "You know, I'm not much of a drinker. I should get going."

"Oh, come on. Look, one drink." Damon told her with that (ugly) charming smile.

"It'll help me sleep." She said, looking back at it. She lifted it up, and he clinked it against his drink and saluted, "To sleep."

She then sniffed the drink, sat it back on the bar table, sighed, and looked at him, "You fool. You think you're clever, don't you?" she said condescendingly.

Damon stopped the happy and nice persona and asked, "What do you want with Mason Lockwood?"

"He's my friend." She told him with narrowed eyes.

He shrugged and said, "you should leave town."

the blonde woman scoffed and asked, "You're threatening me? On a full moon? How stupid are you?"

she stood up, and they glared at each other, testing the waters.

"You think I'm afraid of you?" Damon asked, seeing her attempt at dominance.

She rolled her eyes and said, "No, I don't. That's your vampire arrogance. You should be. I sniffed you out when you entered this bar, along with your pathetic wolfsbane. I've been at this a long time, and the situation would be reversed any other night of the month, but tonight is not the night to pick a fight with me."

She grabbed her bag, stepped away from him, and told him, "You've been marked," With that, she walked out, leaving the drink and him alone.

_________

Damon arrives home to an empty house; his younger brother Stefan is elsewhere like usual. Damon walked the bar cart and made himself a drink, unaware of the prowling werewolf outside his massive house.

He drank his glass of bourn and went to pour himself another because of today's failure when he heard glass breaking in the other part of the house. Damon raised a curious eyebrow and placed the expensive glass on the cart, and went to investigate.

Speeding into the other parlor room and seeing the broken window, he grabs the decorative sword off the wall and looks around for the intruder. Snarling echoes around the room and a wolf lunges onto his back and takes a bite of his shoulder. 

He drops the sword with a yell and throws the wolf off him. the wolf then speeds off while he drops to his knees, holding his shoulder.

"Fucking Jules," he grunted, looking at his shoulder and breathing in relief, seeing it healing.

A few hours later, he had a shower. Standing in his large bathroom, he died himself down. Looking in the mirror, he touched his neck, which was blisted and pussing. It looked like a red burn mark. It did not heal.

He closes his eyes in pain, punches the mirror in anger, and falls to the ground, putting his head in his hands.

________

Sorry for the late chapter, I have no motivation for this, but I'll finish it!

Yes, I'm killing Damon off. What of it? I hate him, and he'll get a SMALL and HALF-ASSED redemption arcs for the simps.

What do we want to see after the ritual arc?? I need some inspo, I've got some stuff planned for Davian and the school, but idk. I wanna end this nicely and not half-assed.

vote and comment x

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