(1) The Phoenix (D. Salvatore)

Chapter Thirty-Three

In the town square, Caroline is helping Bonnie to hang lanterns from the trees for yet another town event. Some historical thing. What else. It's always a historical event. Bonnie shakes out the lantern in her hand before she lifts it up and hands it on a branch before picking up another lantern. She's feeling better over what happened, mostly because she got to send Vicki Donovan away. One ghost girlfriend down. She has no idea how to get rid of Anna, or Jeremy's ability to see the dead.

"So when you did the spell to send Vicki away, did that get rid of Anna, too?" Caroline asks.

"I wish." Bonnie answers. "All I did was block the magic that was helping Vicki get a physical foothold here. Jeremy's still got a direct line to the other side, and as long as he wants to see Anna and she wants to see him, she's still here"

"Okay, you don't think I can actually resist commenting on that" Caroline counters as she gives Bonnie a look. Bonnie sighs and turns towards her. Not really wanting to talk about this with her. With anyone.

"There. You commented."

"Bonnie..."

"What do you want me to say, Caroline? I went against the balance of nature when I brought Jeremy back to life, and now I'm paying the consequences"

"Well, I want you to say you're not okay with it," Caroline tells her.

"I'm a thousand times not okay with it. I just don't know what to do about it" Bonnie admits sadly. Just then, Damon's car pulls to a stop next to them at the curb. He rolls down the window.

"Greetings, Blondie. Witchy" Damon greets and they both give him a look back. "I think you got your voodoo wires all crossed when you got rid of Vicki Donovan"

"What do you mean, why?" Bonnie asks.

"Because we are both having ghost issues this morning" Daphne answers as she climbs out of the car. "My dead parents..."

"And I'm pretty sure I just got spit-roasted by Mason Lockwood's ghost" Damon adds, leaning in the open window to watch the three of them together. Bonnie turns to Daphne with a frown.

"What?" Bonnie asks her, Daphne nods.

"You're going to have to show me the spell you did" She points out. "And we have to work out what went wrong, so we can fix it...."

"I didn't...mean" Bonnie starts, Daphne shakes her head.

"I know" She stops her friend. Bonnie didn't mean for this to happen, but she's still a young witch, mistakes are going to be made, and that's okay. They just have to fix it. "It's not your fault, okay?" Bonnie nods a little."First things first.....we have to find out how a ghost physically interacted with Damon" Daphne looks at Damon who nods.

"Yeah, I don't have time for a vengeful Lockwood" Damon comments. "When I kill someone, they're supposed to stay dead" He glances at Daphne who looks back at him, the two of them sharing a look. They both know what it means, what sending the ghosts away means for her. To lose her parents. To miss out on forming any sort of bond.

"I'll fix it" She assures him and then moves away with Bonnie to talk about the spell. Caroline moves to follow them.

"Hey, Blondie" Damon stops Caroline who lets out an annoyed breath and turns to him. "Keep an eye on her"

"Bonnie?" Caroline asks.

"No, Red...." He argues. "She and her parents have been having it out all morning...or whatever...."

"About what?"

"How they gave her up and stuff" Caroline frowns.

"What are you talking about?" She argues. "Her parents didn't giver her up"

"Her real parents did...." Damon counters, Caroline gives him a look. "Oh, you didn't know....whoops" He mutters and turns back to his steering wheel. He had no idea that Daphne hadn't told any of the others yet. He assumed that she would have told them all after telling Elena. He didn't mean to tell. He just assumed she would have informed them before this. Daphne glances back behind her and Caroline gives her a sympathetic look, Daphne doesn't need to read her mind to know what's going on. Daphne moves back to the car and Damon is quick to look away. Knowing that a scolding is coming. She leans in the open window and gives him a look. Damon keeps his head down, fingers drumming on the wheel.

"What did you do?" She scolds, flicking his ear.

"Oh, ow, hey, it was an accident" He defends and touches her arm where it rests on the open window. "I didn't know the whole changeling thing was a big secret" She shakes her head and goes to move away. Damon tightens his fingers on her arm. "Hey" She turns to him and sighs. "They'll understand; your parents..."

"Stop it" She scolds with a look. "Stop being nice about this" He gives her a look and digs his fingers into her arm. "Ow," She yanks her arm away.

"There, now I'm not being nice," He tells her with a smirk, she rolls her eyes. The two of them share a look before she moves away again. Damon lets out a breath and then drives away, not lingering there any longer. Because he will stay for her. He knows it. That spunky little redhead has wormed her way in. He barely knows her. She's practically a stranger. And he's different. Feeling things. Tingly warm things. In his spine. In his stomach. In other places. He knows that he is deeply attracted to her. But the other stuff, the deeper stuff, he's not used to that. He's not used to real stuff.