ᴡᴀʏᴡᴀʀᴅ ⤕ ᴛᴠᴅ ³

two

She couldn't smell it anymore. 

That aroma of bourbon and cologne she loved so much, the one that welcomed her into the Salvatore house every time she stepped through the threshold.

"-at about Brooklyn? Has anyone checked with her parents?"

Stefan nodded his head quietly. "Klaus sent out feelers the day she went missing, if he'd heard anything, I think he would have let us know."

Billie stepped into the room, keeping to the shadowy corners, even though nobody would have seen her anyway. Looking at everyone around her, fresh waves of grief rolled over her. "Bonnie, anything, please."

The witch shook her head sadly. "I've been trying but I can't find her. It's like there's nothing to find, like she's..." She stopped, not allowing herself to finish the sentence, sinking into her seat.

"Oh my God..."

The quiet exclamation had Billie turning her head towards Jeremy as he stood up, making direct eye contact with her. She took a couple steps back in surprise, speaking hesitantly, afraid that she was wrong and the little hope rising in her chest would be shot down once again. "Wait, you can- Jeremy you can see me?"

She turned around quickly, making sure he wasn't talking to anyone behind her before whirling back. He nods quickly, eyes flitting between the living in the room and the clairvoyant.

"Jeremy, what's wrong?" Elena questions him, detaching from Stefan's side to step towards him, unwilling to get too close in case she accidentally hurt him on account of her recent vampirism. 

The younger Gilbert looked around at the others, realising that no one but him could see the clairvoyant and coming to a horrible realisation. "It's... it's Billie."

Silence fell down on them like hail as the truth of the matter sunk into each one of them. Bonnie reached a hand to her mouth, shutting her eyes tightly like it would block out the reality around her. 

No one spoke for a long moment, until Elena stumbled slightly, shaking her head to her little brother, eyes wide. "No. No, no no, what do you mean?"

Billie wanted to cry, her eyes begged to, but her ghost wouldn't allow it and no tears fell. "The night of the dance, Rebekah she- she didn't look right and when I got to their house she took me, I guess so I couldn't tell anyone." She explained briefly to the Gilbert, seeing as he was the only one that could hear her.

Jeremy shook his head, thinking for a moment. "The night of the dance... Billie, that wasn't Rebekah, that was Esther." Billie nodded in understanding before he continued. "But that was almost a week ago, how is it I can only see you now?"

Billie pursed her lips slightly. She looked around the room at the grieving faces. The wound was still fresh for them, for her too. There was no way she would talk about the details of her death with them right now, or ever. "It- it's not important."

"Well?" Damon prompted, looking almost completely emotionless, like he wanted more than anything to be leave the room. The only thing keeping him from storming out was the fact that there was no other way to talk to Billie but through Jeremy.

Jer sighed, addressing the vampire. "She won't say."

Damon slumped into his seat, the saddest and smallest of smiles at the edge of his lips, knowing now for a fact that it was Billie with them. "Of course she won't."

Bonnie wordlessly left the room, a hand still over her mouth, the grief spilling from her every pore. Caroline followed her friend's departure with her eyes, looking once at Jeremy before she stood quietly, arms cradling herself as she sought out the witch to grieve with her, Elena disappearing soon after.