Consequences

AN; Sup, y'all. I, too, don't know how I manage to crank out a chapter so quick after the last one. Guilt from leaving y'all hanging, probably. I stated on other parts of the series, chapters are gonna be a little slow till I graduate in May. Please bear with me you guys, I'll do my best to still update but I'm more than a little busy. Additionally, this chapter deals with some pretty heavy shit in Damon's section. Please check the tags for a potential trigger warnings. There was some stuff about canon that I really couldn't ignore and felt that this was the best way to address it. I needed daemon's character to be a bit more palatable, and I think writing him this way leaves the potential of redemption. TRIGGER WARNINGS FOR MENTIONS OF RAPE, STATUTORY AMD OTHERWISE AS WELL AS COERCION OF A MINOR. Thanks for reading everyone. As always, let me know how it was by leaving a comment and check out the rest of the series! Until next time!

XXXXXXXXXX

'How bold," Elijah Mikaelson drawls, "there aren't many brave, or perhaps foolish enough, to call this number. Who is this?"

I smile, "You can call me Midnight."

"Hmm, but that's not your name." It wasn't a question.

"It's one of them," I reply honestly. "Aren't you curious about how I got this number?"

"A traitor, perhaps?" He purred, the violence clear in his voice despite the lazily tone.

"No, not that I'm aware," I answer, careful to keep the accent I was using steady. It was a weird mix of accents I'd picked up over my lifetimes, something rolling and lilting and not entirely of this world. "I'm a seer."

The line goes silent, and I tilt my head, wishing I could feel the aura on the other end. My inability to do so made me kind of despise any communication that wasn't in-person. Without my abilities, I"m rather socially insecure.

"You're a witch, then."

"Uh, no. Sorry, that was perhaps misleading. I'm a magic user, but the witch that introduced me to the supernatural said I didn't seem to be a witch. Guess I'm just a freak of nature. Oh, well." I chuckle sarcastically. "Anyway, let's just say I'm something you've never seen before. By the way, you're getting a guest in 3, 2,…"

I hear a door open on the other side of the phone and a sharp inhale into the mic, before there is silence again. After a few moments, Elijah speaks again. "That's admittedly far more straight forward than anything I've seen from a seer or oracle. And a bit creepy."

I shrug, "That's fair. But the point is that I have information for you."

"And pray tell," he says coldly, all traces of playfulness gone since I've unsettled him, "Why would you tell me anything, let alone something to my benefit."

I consider for a moment before being as honest as possible. "There are a few reasons, some you would believe more then others. For one, whenever one of you Mikaelsons rage, bodies pile up. I…I want to keep the peace, I suppose."

"Peace?" The mocking is clear, but I don't feel offended by it. The Mikaelsons have never known peace, not really. I pitied them for it.

"Yes. Our paths will be crossing soon, too, and I want as little a mess to clean up as possible."

"Hmm, I'll decide on how to deal with you once you give me your information. So, speak, before you find yourself at the end of my patience."

I hesitate for a moment before blurting out the first bit of information that will get the ball rolling. "Niklaus lied to you."

"…he does that. What in particular are you referring to?"

"Ah, you're siblings. He hasn't killed them or dropped them in the ocean or anything like that. He's just been carrying them around in coffins, daggered and sleeping."

There is an inarticulate sound, something like an agonized howl and a choked whimper all in one, and I wince at the misery of it. "Wh-what?" Elijah's voice is breathless from the pain and devastation.

"He lied. Your family is safe. Breathe. You'll see them again. It's okay," I gentle my tone, giving the ancient vampire a moment to gather himself.

"If your lying-" Elijah hisses.

"Yes, yes. you threaten me, I threaten you, blah, blah. Whatever. I'm not lying."

"W-why would he…" it seems like I stunned the vamp so bad he's showing vulnerability. Yikes.

"Uh, I actually have a theory on that," I offer in hopes of distracting him. "It's because he's a hybrid. Worse, he's a cursed hybrid."

"Tread carefully, Women," he warns sharply, and my lips twitch at how easily he falls back into his roll of protective older brother. It reminds me so much of myself that I find I'm a bit endeared by it. Bonds that strong are always incredible to witness.

"No, seriously, think about it. Is Klaus prone to violence, fits of rage, possessiveness, and territorial behavior?" Elijah is silent but I continue on. "That's all werewolf shit. What does Klaus value more than anything, for as long as you've known him?"

"Family." It's spoken without hesitation, and I doubt he would have let such a thing slip if I hadn't been throwing him off balance so much already.

"No. Pack," I correct gently. "Just because his werewolf abilities are sealed, it doesn't change the fact that, fundamentally, he-"

"He's a wolf," the original finishes, the revelation soft.

"He's probably slowly been going mad this entire time, unable to express what he needed, his desire to protect you all making him do some extreme shit. On top of that he's unable to manage it by shifting, " I add, leaning my head back to look up at the ceiling of my loft."It-it doesn't make everything he did okay, but… maybe you could make up with him?"

"And why would you want that?" The vulnerability is gone again, and the threat was back at full throttle. "How could that possibly benefit you?"

This would be my first time telling anyone my plans for bringing balance to this world. I'm not sure if this is where the damage to the Balance is coming from, but having lived so many lives, this issue is glaringly obvious to me, and the best place to start.

"We are entering a new era," I begin slowly, "Supernaturals can't keep existing like how we did centuries, or even a handful of decades ago. There are cameras everywhere and it only takes a few clicks for a video to be visible all across the globe and it's only going to get worse. As our community is now, we won't be able to remain a secret from the mundane much longer, and trust me, we want to. You might not be able to be killed by a nuclear bomb, but it'll sure mess up your diet. I'm sure you don't wanna live in a world like that anymore than I do."

"I-I've never thought about it," Elijah states, the alarm just barely audible. "Fighting with the humans would be counterproductive and tiresome. We'd just be reducing our own food source."

"Imagine dying over and over again, slowly, painfully, your sire line hunted to extinction, your legacy gone, because frankly, both the tech of humans and the sheer numbers means we would lose fantastically," I add, deliberately trying to scare the hell out of him.

"As alarming as all this sounds, I don't understand what it has to do with how well my siblings and I are getting along." Elijah asks.

I decide to give him a hint. "Think of it like this. Out of all the races, vampires are the most conspicuous, especially with the way you guys leave corpses everywhere."

"Ah, I see. You want us Originals to retake control of all the vampires and enforce subtly on them. You want to make us rulers again." He sounds intrigued. Got you, you power hungry asshat. Mwahahahaha!

I smirk, "I want more than that. I want laws and cooperation between the races. I want alliances and systems. I want to build a society, one that will withstand this new era, and fucking thrive in it."

Elijah finally speaks up after several moments of silence on the line. "You have given me much to think on."

"Go. Go track down your troublesome little brother and discuss things with him." I wave my hand even though he won't be able to see it. "Tell him I'd like to help break his curse. I look forward to meeting you both within the year at which point I will ask for my payment for the help I provided you with today. Goodbye, Elijah."

"Wait-" I hang up gleefully, turning the burner off, raising my arms above my head for a good stretch.

"Excellent. It's time to start preparing for a reunion of a different set of brothers. Hah… peace is hard," I mutter to myself in the empty room. I tell myself there isn't anything wrong with the emptiness, that I wasn't expecting to hear a reply back, or feel the presence of a loved one from times past. I tell myself I'm not lonely. (Where are they? Did they leave me? Why can't I see or feel them? Have I been abandoned-).

I've never been good at lying to myself.

XXXXXDAEMONXXXXX

"Hello, Brother," I drawl, throwing myself into the comfortable armchair next to the broody bastard, fascinated by the cafe's atmosphere I found around us. To my surprise, Stefan wasn't the least bit surprised to see me. He shouldn't have been strong enough to sense me with his "vegetarian" diet, but rather than the horror and alarm I was giddily awaiting, he just scowled.

"Daemon. You're here." His tone is oddly flat, and I wonder if he finally manned up and turned off his emotions. I'm not even sure how long mine have been off for and I was living just fine. Maybe he won't be such a stick in the mud anymore.

Maybe we can be brothers again.

"Aw, happy to see me? You look good. I like the hair," I grin, deliberately flashing my teeth a bit more than necessary. The slight furrowing in his brows and the twitch of his muscles tells me that, no, he isn't happy to see me, much to my sadness amusement.

"Here you are, Stef. Is this that brother of yours?" I glance up, surprised both by the interruption and the idea that Stefan would tell anyone about me.

"Nyx," Stefan greets the woman, and it's the way the tension slips from his face and shoulders, and the softening of his eyes and mouth that has me curios enough to really look at her.

And damn, was I glad I did. Exotic features and delicious curves, I took in the sweet, fond look on her face, and promptly decided to make her my next meal. Gladly. She wasn't a traditional beauty, but she was definitely attractive, and it would have the added benefit of pissing Stefan off, which was always a bonus.

"My, oh my. I don't think I've seen something so delicious headed my way in a while. Nyx, was it? I'm Daemon." I take her hand as she sets the plate of pasteries down, kissing the back of it and making it real clear I wasn't talking about the food.

Rather than the giggling and blushing I expected, the sweet smile that she was wearing vanishes, and something sultry and mesmerizing replaces it, briefly baffling me. She leans down, flashing some excellent cleavage as she looks at me through thick, hooded lashes, before purring, "Hello, Daemon. Why don't you and Stefan come upstairs so you can chat together with a bit of privacy, hmm?"

She grabs the plate without waiting for an answer and, hips swaying, leads us to a back room and up some stairs to the loft above the shop. I restrain my laughter as I can practically feel how pissed Stefan was growing as I flirted shamelessly with the women who easily gave as good as she got. Wasn't he supposed to be crushing on Katherine's look alike? How does he even know this woman?

Setting down the pastries again, Nyx, (Alright, that can't be her real name-), saunters over to Stephan, the raw sex appeal disappearing and that fond look coming back as she pats his cheek warmly. The relief on my brother's face from whatever silent conversation they were having stirred something in me, deep under the frozen lake of my emotions, the reverberations and echoes of it catching me off guard. Jealousy, huh? When was it last that I was close enough to someone to understand them without words and them me? When was it that I was last touched for something that wasn't violence or sex?

I sit myself on a worn but comfortable armchair and toss back a pastry that, while damn good, was a complete mystery to me, both in origin and in content. I watch them, entranced as Nyx hip bumps Stefan playfully, and his lips twitch into a faint smile. Gasp! It smiles?! I snicker to myself over my silent joke.

"Now, let's get down to business," Nyx claps turning back to me, her smile wide, and I get only the barest of warnings from my instincts before I find myself bound to the chair with chains that came out of thin air, the smell of vervain in my nose.

"To defeat, the Hans…" Stefan adds in a monotone as he plops on his couch in front of me, completely unbothered. At the incredulous looks from both the witch, (because of course she was a witch, goddamnit-), and I, he just shrugs and replies, "Too much time with Thea."

Nyx snorts, so it must have meant something to her, but I'm still more flabbergasted with my brother's Disney knowledge than my own capture. Nyx turns back to me, "So, Daemon, we're going to be setting some ground rules for your time in Mystic Falls."

"Hmm, safe words. I like it," I tease, trying to pull my arms free of the chains with zero success. What the hell? Is she a Bennett or something?

"Yeah, see, times have changed," Bitchy Witchy states, leaning against the arm of Stefan's chair, and I have to wonder how exactly my broody brother managed to get so far a witch's good sidee that she's comfortable enough to do so, "Messy eaters are a bigger problem than they used to be. The animal attack excuse isn't going to cut it much longer. So, new rules; No killing in the falls. Feed descreately. No arbitrary compulsion. Basic common sense with a touch of the bare minimal of being not a complete trash person. Doesn't seem too difficult, does it?"

"Interesting. Didn't expect the council to make any rules that weren't kill on sight for vampires. What brought on such… leniency?" I shift, deciding to get comfortable in hopes it will piss her off. My life doesn't seem to be in immediate danger, and if Stefan was going to let me be killed, he'd have done it ages ago.

Bitchy Witchy tilts her head. "This has nothing to do with the council. I honestly couldn't care less about them. I'm more concerned with the safety of the supernatural community as a whole."

"…You say that like witches and vampires would ever cooperate en masse," I say slowly, confused.

"You say that like witches and vampires are the only supernaturals," she counters, eyebrow raised. I'm relieved that I'm not the only one shocked by that announcement as Stefan bolts upright, startling Nyx.

"What? Really?" Stefan asks. She blinks, but nods. "Like what?"

"I can't believe you haven't run into anything but witches since you've turned. What the hell? Y'all live in a coffin or something?" She muttered, pinching the bridge of her nose. "You know what? We've gotten off track. We can talk about it later. Yes, the witches and vampires will learn to work together. They'll have to, and things are already in motion." She waves it off like she hasn't been dropping one earth shattering bomb of info after another.

"And why should I listen to you, little witch. What's stopping me from just waiting until you let your guard down and snapping your pretty little neck?"

"Daemon," Stefan growls, warning clear as he leans forward, but he falls silent when the woman raises her hand.

"First, I'm not a witch. Second, I'll know the second you go too far. Hell, I'll know before you even finish contemplating the thought. And I can be miles and miles away, but all it will take is a twitch of my fingers to remove your head from your body, put a stake in you, or set you on fire. Please test me. The results will bring me some sorely needed entertainment."

"Don't test her, Daemon. As much as you annoy me, I really don't want you dead."

The deeply buried echo of fear sends a thrill down my spine. I'd met a lot of terrifying people in my unlife. I've learned to tell the difference between the braggarts that shouted their power to anyone who'd listen and the ones that could kill you before you knew what had happened. The warning bells blaring in my head told me that whoever this Nyx was, she could do exactly what she said she could and that I was better off not pissing her off.

I wasn't really known for listening to my better sense, though.

Taking a deep breath, I start screaming. "HELP! SHE'S TRYING TO KILL ME! HELP! AHHHHHHHHHHH- huh?" I blink, noting how no one in the packed cafe even twitched at my howling.

Stefan is gaping, but Nyx is openly laughing. "Sound proofing spells. Nice try, though."

"Guess I don't have much of a choice here. I'll agree to your terms, Witchy Bitchy," I lie easily. She gives me an amused knowing look but comes over to shake the semi bound hand I wave at her. As soon as she touches me, something shifts. Her face goes stone cold and her eyes blank, her body freezing. And then before I can even contemplate how to take advantage of the situation, burning hot rage seems to fill her body. Blindingly fast, she whirls and slams her fist into my face.

I sputter, shocked, as Stefan yelps, climbing to his feet, "Whoa, Nyx. What the hell?!"

I spit out some blood, honestly baffled and impressed in equal measure, and feel the echo of fear resurface, this time louder as I note the way everything in the room starts to tremble slightly. Aw, fuck, little brother, who the hell did you get involved with?

"Change of plans. He has to die." Her voice is empty of the disgust written all over her face. Stefan flashes in front of me, arms held out placatingly as he tries to calm the angry maybe-witch, the rattling of things around us getting louder. "Move, Stefan."

"Nyx, please-"

"He's vile. He sees no issue with sleeping with and feeding on an underage girl, and compelling her all the while. That's rape. Move aside." She growls, and with a flick, Stefan is tossed back onto the couch.

"I-I wouldn't rape anyone, let alone a little girl," I snap, the alarm building as she stalks closer, and I notice the way her eyes seem to have changed color, glowing an otherworldly silver color as her hair begins to float around her.

"Didn't I tell you? Times have changed. 16 is considered a child now, you son of a bitch. And compelling someone to forget your feeding on them, or too not care, so you can keep sleeping with them? That's beyond fucked up!" She hisses, and I see Stefan recoil, horror growing on his face.

I frown, confused. To my knowledge it wasn't something I had done, but it didn seem outside the realm of possibility for me. Before we had turned, 16 wasn't an uncommon age for girls to be married at. I had never even realized that a relationship with someone that age was considered so horrific in modern times. It's not like I had extensive ethical conversations with my food. But the not-witch in front of me was genuinely revolted by the idea. And I had never compelled anyone to have sex with me, but was it wrong to make them forget what I was or not care?

I couldn't tell, and it bothered me. I didn't want to feel the guilt and conflict and pain. I didn't want to feel anything. That's why I turned my emotions off in the fucking first place.

"A sore spot for you, Witchy Bitchy?" I regret it as soon as the words spill free from my mouth, the emotion strong enough to shake the metaphorical door I hid my heart behind. It's obvious as the room goes silent and the rattling stops, the light in her eyes disappearing, leaving only dullness behind. The only thing I can hear is the quickened thumping of our hearts. When… when did I become a person who would throw something like that in someone's face? I can't imagine saying something like that even to an enemy when I was human…

"Nyx…" Stefan sounds strained, and unbelievably sad.

"Don't." She replies, steel and fire all in one. "He isn't someone I can let free. Clearly, there isn't an ounce of anything resembling compassion in him, let alone morals. I have to kill him here before he does something we won't be able to handle."

A spark of realization seems to shine behind my eyes, and he blurs back to the witch's side, reaching for her, but when she flinches away, he drops his hand, the pain returning to his face. "You said he didn't feel anything. That's not my brother, not really. He's turned his emotions off!"

She stares, "What."

"It's, it's a vampire ability. It basically seals away our humanity so that a vampire can feed without remorse," Stefan explains quickly.

The incredulity is the first thing to breach her mask in a while, and somehow it brings me relief. There was something more unsettling about the blankness from before. Nyx turns on her heel and drops onto the coffee table, head in hands, murmuring, "What a horrific piece of magic, a mockery of Magic and Death both. By the gods…" After a few moments of quiet as she fought with the air inside her lungs, she stood up, a new inferno in her eyes as she turned to my frozen brother. "Do you realize what you are asking of me, Stefan Salvatore? Ordinarily, I'd have already killed him. Do you know…" She trails off, eyes shutting as she grimaces, before she breathes shakily, eyes meeting mine. It feels like she is staring at my bare soul. "You have one choice. Turn your emotions back on or die. I'll decide what to do with you after that."

I didn't bother argue since there was no question in mind that she would keep her word.

It starts small, cracks in the ice, slowly expanding and growing as decades worth of emotions begin to trickle out. I gasp, my eyes bluring and my chest begins to shudder and ache as I begin to drown. I can't, I can't, oh god it hurts. How many people have I killed? When did I start wanting to hurt Stefan? What happened to protecting him the way Mother asked me to? It hurts IthurtsMAKEITSTOPPLEASEIMSORRHIMSORRYSELFLOATHINGHATERAGEPAINGRIEFJELOUCYLOVEANGERDESPAI- I can't breathe, and vaguely, I hear someone desperately crying. Hands settle on my face, and for the first time in so many years, I see my baby brother's eyes without the veil of detachment. Beneath the rushing in my ears, I can't quite hear him, but as I do my best to focus in on him, the only fucking person left on this earth who still cares about me, his voice begins to break through. "-mon, Daemon! Come on, Fratellone, we've both been through this before. You can do it, so focus."

And like the drowning man I am, I reach out and grasp onto him like a lifeline, anchoring me back to reality and pulling me from the depths. It's always been like that with us, hasn't it? One of us getting in over our heads and needing the other to bail us out. Guess some things don't change. When was it that he last called me Fratellone? It takes a while to remember how to breathe, and longer still to realize the crying isn't only coming from me. Blinking tears free and leaning into my brother's grasp, I look behind him at the women. Nyx, her name is Nyx.

She was slumped on the floor leaning against the armchair, tear trails down her face and chest heaving, and I got the odd impression that I wasn't the only one who had a mental breakdown. Damp lashes fluttered revealing glittering brown eyes that meet mine, and even stranger, that burning hate and wrath seems to have vanished. She almost looks…sympathetic.

Abruptly, she staggers to her feet, wiping at her face roughly with her sleeves, heading towards the door. With a wave of her hands, the vervain chains slide off me, disappearing. Stefan shoots up next to me. "Nyx?"

She sighs, her head falling briefly against the door, and speaks without turning to us. "My instincts and magic tell me that Daemon has the potential to change and is safe, for now. So I won't kill him. Take him and get out of my sight."

Stefan, looking hurt, silently helps me onto weak knees and past the woman who follows us out shutting the door behind us. As we reach the bottom of the stairs, Stefan whirls around, looking up at her. "Nyx-"

"Go. Go, Stefan," she cuts him off.

We went, and once again, I can feel the guilt of having screwed another good thing up for my brother.

XXXXXNYXXXXXX

It had been a couple days since what I've taken to calling "Daemongate" and, frankly, I was still pissed. Not at Stefan. He had been in an impossible position and I never really expected him, or anyone else really, to turn on family. I wasn't even really mad at Daemon. He grew up in a time with completely different morals and then turned into a vampire. He, and Stefan for that matter, would probably have never gotten the chance to contemplate human ethics, and if anyone could understand how difficult it is to adapt to ever-changing norms of different societies and times, I could. Then something particularly traumatic happened to him and he decided to nope out of his humanity as a whole. I could understand that, too, even if I still wanted to set him on fire.

Even if it still felt like an excuse.

No, I was mad at myself. I had been blindsided by the vision I'd received when I touched Daemon, completely taken off guard. And then I had nearly been driven mad from the force of him turning his emotions back on, so much so that I'd been driven to my knees and lost my senses.

That is utterly unacceptable to me.

Not only am I without an anchor for my abilities, I am starting to suspect something is weakening me, or stifling my magic, and that I am still missing memories from my past lives. Things just aren't adding up. I should have had that vision before Daemon even got to town. I should have realized that there was something off when I noticed how little emotion he was feeling.

I should have more money in the bank and a safe, warm home for Thea and Nico, and- I force away the spiraling thoughts as I roll more dough out, anxiously kneading.

Alright, it's time to come out of denial, I think bitterly. I can't remember why exactly I was reborn here and I can't feel my loved ones in the beyond even though I've seen and felt plenty of other spirits. I remember being told to bring balance, but there is a blank spot and a nagging sensation that I'm forgetting something important. And yes, I remember being told I'd be alone for a while, but it's been nearly five years since my magic and awareness started coming back. Where the fuck is everyone and why wouldn't I be able to see them when I can sense all the other spirits around this town? I know how unlikely it is, but I feel abandoned. Even the thought makes me feel guilty. My friends on the other side would never do such a thing, but each day that passes without any sign from them and that little traitorous voice in the back of my mind grows louder.

"Get it together, Nyx," I growl at the dough in front of me, punching it for innocently sitting there like it is taunting me.

"Nyx?" I look up to see a nervous Stefan in the kitchen doorway, and after a moment of confusion, I realize he has a shift today. I stare, reading the sadness and worry and hope in his aura and decide I don't have the energy to be mad. I miss my friend, and really, it seems like he is one of very few that I currently have since my ghostly support network is offline. More than that, I don't think he deserves my ire anyway.

Slapping the dough down, I take firm strides to him and hold my arms open. Like a boulder being lifted off his shoulders, he crashes into me, lifting me clear off my feet, and I squeeze him back, forgetting about the flour literally covering me.

"Sorry," he mutters into my neck, but I just pat him gently telling him it's not his fault and that I was sorry if I hurt his feelings. He pulls away, his smile almost shy, and I pat his cheek affectionately, smirking at the handprint left behind

"Come help me with these cinnamon rolls. Jeremy always wrecks them," and for a while, I get to forget my endless problems as I run my cafe and have fun with my friends and siblings.

XXXXXXXXXX

"NYYYYYXXX!" I set the tray in my hands down, bracing myself as 130 ish pounds of blonde sunshine slams into me, arms and legs clinging to me koala style. "I missed you."

"You're the one who hasn't been by. I own this place. I'm literally here 24/7. And what's this I heard about you betraying me by spending your time at, ugh, The Grill. Caroline Forbes, you shameless traitor," I state, looking up at the blonde as I hold her thighs so she won't fall.

She gasps theatrically. "I would never!" I snort, and she slides down, although, really she just has to straighten her legs since I'm so much shorter than her. It makes me feel nostalgic to think her exuberant greeting for me hasn't changed even though so many years have passed. I let the younger girl pull me into a hug, happy to be in her sunshine presence.

I did a lot of things to earn money when I was trying to buy the cafe, one of which was copious amounts of babysitting, particularly for one Caroline Forbes. I am quite fond of the intelligent and kind girl, and like to think her horizons were expanded in our time together. When I'd first met her, she had been a little too deep in the small town vibe, a little shallow and narrow minded, but she'd grown a lot. Now, she was fierce and independent and truly kind. As she's getting older, I am excited that our relationship is gradually moving towards a stronger friendship.

"Hello, ladies. Good to see y'all," I grin at the other members of the group. There was Jenna who was one of my regulars, and someone I thought I could be friends with, hopefully. She was sweet and fun, but we both seemed too busy to actually hang out with each other, both of us balancing careers and children not our own. It was something we bonded over, though. There was also her niece, Elena, Remy's sister. I didn't know her very well, but she came by once and a while with CareBear and to check on her brother. The poor girl wore her grief like a cloak but I was happy to see her doing better today.

Then there was Bon Bon.

When I'd first met her Gran, Sheila, she'd benovalantly taught me much about the magic of this world. In return, I'd strongly suggested she start training her granddaughter early because shit was going to hit the fan in the Falls. After much persuasion, Sheila had acquiesced, if only on the theoretical knowledge. As such, I knew Bonny fairly well, even having taken some lessons with her although we don't see each other as often anymore,

Catching my gaze, Bonny flared her magic in greeting, and grinning, I flared mine back, something only other supernaturals, mostly witches, could sense. I'll have to tell her to be careful with that, though. She could draw some nasty attention. Good progress, though.

"Your regulars? Or are we playing mystery box again?" I ask, ushering them to Thea and Nico's nook. Technically, it was just a particularly secluded, eastern style floor seating, rather than a play area, but it was really mostly for them. The cafe wasn't really child oriented, anyway, and more of a chill work or hang out space. Fortunately, our day customers were understanding and the kids were well behaved. Additionally, the kids and I were gone fairly early with the night worker, Melinda, taking over, and the cafe vibe changing again to our more adult atmosphere.

Both Thea and Nico tottered over to greet the familiar faces, Caroline opting to sit with the munchkins, happily playing with them. "Surprise us, please, Nyx!" She calls out.

I zip away, coming back with some things I think they'll like from all over the place. Jeremy also comes out to take his break with them, but Stefan stays hiding in the kitchen, much to my amusement. I ignore Daemon, lounging in a corner on the other side of the cafe, the same place he's been for the last several days. My magic had been insistent that it would be fine, and I decided to give him a chance to change, but I still found myself pretending he didn't exist. It was better that way lest I gave into my violent urges and wrung his neck.

Jeremy and I settle down, grateful that the cafe is so calm at the moment. Nico totters over and I feed him a soft samosa, a breaded pastry with bits of ground meats and vegetables inside, a safe and favorite option for the not yet two year old to eat. Thea settled next to Remy to eat a rice and curry dish, one of the few non-pastry type items on the menu. I am hoping to expand the number of items, but I will have to wait until I can hire more people, although I think our finances can support it.

"Looks like business is going well, Nyx," Caroline chimes.

I beam, puffing my chest in pride. Jeremy nudges me playfully and I laugh. Remy had been invaluable in the months he'd been working here. It wasn't his work necessarily, although that had taken a lot of weight off my shoulders. It was being around someone supportive and fun. He had been the only other consistent positive presence in my life that wasn't a child. It was better now, though. I had Stefan who was pretty great to talk to and naturally more mature then Jeremy was. I also had several regulars that were genuinely invested in my well being. Things were looking up, even if my mountain of problems seems to be steadily growing,

"Yes, it is going well. How are things going for y'all? How was your first week of school?" I cackle at the simultaneous groans from the teens, sharing a fist bump with Jenna.

"Tanner. Just. Tanner," Jeremy says darkly. I wince, because having gone to the same high school not too long ago, I knew exactly what he meant. I handed the poor kid the best cookie from off my plate, a sacrifice for sure, and he thanks me profusely, slumping against my side dramatically.

"There's a new kid, though. Elena's been friendly with him, aren't you Elena," Bonny adds coyly. Jeremy sits up straight, makes eye contact with me, and promptly dissolves into laughter. I bite my lip, trying not to join him,

"Ah, yes. Stefan," I sip my tea, highly amused.

"You know him?" Caroline perks up, ready for the gossip.

"He seems really mysterious," Elena adds, and I decide to interfere because I know the second hand embarrassment might kill me if one of these girls says something outrageous in range of his vampire hearing. "And very hot. Like really, really hot. Like-"

Ah, too late.

"Stefan!" I call out, knowing it's only going to get more awkward for me based on the wicked grins of Caroline and Bonny.

"Oh, shit!" Jenna murmurs, wide eyed as Elena drops her cup and Bonny chokes on her dango. Jeremy laughs harder, the little shit.

"Hi," Stefan says quietly, eyes locked on Elena.

"Hi," she murmurs back shyly.

Jenna and I bothe snort loudly, sharing knowing looks. Ah,teenage relationships. The height of cringe and awkwardness. Welp, I'm out.

"Where are you going?" Jeremy whispers, as I get up.

"Somewhere less mentally painful,"I whisper back.

I swear I hear Daemon laugh in the distance.

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