The Beginning of the End

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"I don't like leaving her out there, all alone," Damon said as he paced back and forth in the villa. 

They had all traipsed back to give her some privacy, and were now sitting around a roaring fire in the main room, except for Hailey, who was upstairs putting Hope to sleep.

"She'll be fine, Damon. She just needs some time," Stefan reassured.

"Yeah, I mean, if you had just lost Stefan, wouldn't you want to be alone for a while, and not have to talk to anybody? Especially to say goodbye?" Caroline put in.

Damon reluctantly nodded. "Yeah, I suppose. But that doesn't make me feel any better."

He looked at the ancient clock on the mantelpiece. It had been over an hour since they had come back, leaving her to her thoughts. "It's been a long time...I think I'm just gonna go check on her."

"Damon-" Bonnie began, but Damon was out the door before he could finish, racing off towards the beach.

Bonnie threw her hands up and shook her head in exasperation. "I give up. He never listens to me anyway."

"Yeah, well, Damon doesn't listen to anyone, so don't take it personally," Stefan patted her shoulder.

"I'm worried about Gen," Elena began. "She and her brother were really close, and to lose him just days after losing her parents? What if it sends her off the deep end again?"

"She'll be alright, I'm sure of it," Elijah assured her.

"How can you be sure?"

"Because I know how she feels, and I know that she can overcome it. She's been alive a long time, and lost many people, and yet here she still is."

"Well that's exactly my point. I mean, how many times do you have to lose someone before it sends you over the edge? Think about what she did after she lost not just her child but the love of her life? Now she's lost the only family she had. How do you think she's going to take that?" Elena argued.

She did have a point, they realized. Having dealt with many losses doesn't necessarily mean you are prepared to deal with them. If anything, it could just make the pain all the worse.

Suddenly Damon appeared at the door, a wild look in his eyes, his skin pale.

"She's gone. She's gone," he said over and over.

"What are you talking about?" Stefan asked jumping from his seat and striding over to his brother.

"She's just gone, I don't- I don't know where, or when she left, but she's gone, and I-I," he stammered.

"Calm down," Bonnie said, "just tell us what happened."

Damon took a few deep  breaths before continuing. "I went down towards the beach, to see if she was alright. The pyre was still burning, but she was gone. All I found was a note, stuck to one of the trees."

He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to her.

'Damon,' it read. 'I'm sorry to do this. I know it's probably a stupid thing to leave without telling you, but this is something I need to do on my own. Circe must pay for what she's done, and it's time for this to end. I hope you can understand. But I want you to know...I've been on this earth for so long, wandering around, with no place to call home. Until...I met you. You made me feel like I belonged, and most importantly, you made me feel loved, for the first time in so long. Never forget that. And, if I never get the chance to say this to you again, I want you to know that I love. With all of my heart. And I've realized that all this time has just been spent waiting for you, even if I didn't know it.

'I've gone to find Circe, and I think I know where she will be. Please don't come for me. I don't want any of you to get hurt. And before you ask, I already know how this is going to end. I've known for a while. And I'm okay with. I came to terms with it a long time ago. So please don't be hurt, or angry, even though I'm sure you will be.'

'I love you.'

'Eirene.'

They were all silent, taking in the contents of the letter, what it meant.

"What a bloody idiot," Klaus murmured.

"Klaus," Caroline admonished. "Now is so not the time."

"Sorry love, but it's true. She's a bloody fool for doing this on her own."

"No, she's not," Bonnie defended. "She may be a bit stupid for not telling us sooner, for just leaving out of the blue, but I mean let's face it, none of us were going to be able to take down Circe. She's too old, too powerful, and we don't know her. Gen-I mean Eirene-does."

"Do you think that's why she signed with her real name? Because she doesn't want to be Genevieve anymore?" Caroline

"Yes, I do," Bonnie replied. "Why else would she do that?"

"She's right," Alaric agreed. "She's done with Genevieve."

"How would you know?" Stefan asked.

"Because she told me."

"When?" Damon demanded.

"The other night, while the rest of you were off doing who knows what, she and I were outside on the balcony, talking. She told me that she had been running from the past for too long, and she didn't want to hide anymore. She wanted to face who she was and what she'd done, but she didn't know how or where to start," Alaric explained.

He took a moment, his eyes averting their gazes and dropping to the ground. "But...there's something else she told me, that I feel like you all should know."

"What is it?" Damon whispered, his voice cracking because deep down he knew where this was going.

"She told me that years ago, she had visions of the future, and what would happen if she continued in her pursuit of Circe. She saw not jut what would happen to everyone else, but what would happen to her as well. She knows how this is going to play out, and it's not good."

"What do you mean, 'she knows'? What does she know exactly?" Bonnie pressed.

"I mean she knows who's going to win in this battle between herself and her sister, and she knows who's...going to die."

Damon's face turned red with anger, and he scrunched up the note in his hand before throwing it across the room and heading for the door once again.

"Damon where the hell are you going?" Stefan asked, appearing in his path.

Damon tried to maneuver around him but failed. "I'm going to find her. I don't care how long it takes, or how far I have to travel, but I'm going to find her, and save her."

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but did you ever think that maybe you should let it play out? If she knows how it's going to happen, and if she knows what's going to happen to her, she's obviously prepared for it, and maybe if we want to save the rest of the world we have to let it happen."

"Don't think for one damn second that I'm going to sit by and watch her die!" Damon argued.

"I know it's hard, but that's how it has to be," Elena insisted.

Damon looked at her and the others incredulously. "I can't believe you guys. I have never once doubted that you would all be the first to jump into the fray and save anyone, to hell with the consequences. The only person here who doesn't surprise me is Klaus. What the hell is wrong with you?"

"We're just trying to think of the greater good," Caroline said.

Damon scoffed, before shoving Stefan out of the way. "I don't give a damn about the greater good. So either help me save her, or stay the hell out of my way." 

He threw the door open and marched out, leaving the others behind, with no clue as to his destination. 

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