Fighting Love | Stefan Salvatore

The One With The Great Smoky Mountains

Emily was seriously regretting her choice of clothing right about now. The Radkova witch really wished she would have changed into some shorts and a tank top before they began their travels through the rough terrain that is the Great Smoky Mountains.

Emily was still wearing the Lockwood werewolf's baggy sweatpants from the night before and it was definitely not agreeing with the hot and humid weather of Tennessee.

The best thing that the Radkova witch could do was roll the grey pant legs up to her knees and tie the long grey Mystic Falls High School football t-shirt above her belly button. It wasn't exactly comfortable but Emily didn't have a choice if they were ever going to get the information they needed before the full moon was completely out for the werewolves to enjoy.

The quartet were quiet as they silently followed the stream of water that is the Baskins Creek Falls towards the Great Smoky Mountains. Alaric was leading the group with the Gilbert twins behind him and the Lockwood werewolf picking up the tail end.

The forty-five minute stretch of silence was broken when Tyler let out a rough and painful cough from the back of his throat. The Radkova witch quickly looked back at her best friend in worry before she found Tyler leaning against his knees as he practically coughed up his lungs.

Emily left her sister's side as she swiftly jogged towards the Lockwood werewolf. The Radkova witch placed a gentle hand on Tyler's back and began rubbing comfortable circles against his warm skin. "Are you okay?" Emily worriedly asked.

"Yeah," Tyler grunted after he wiped the back of his hand against his lips before the Lockwood werewolf stood up straight. Tyler shook the plastic bottle that contained a mixture of wolfsbane and water with a small chuckle. "It's just kicking my ass," the Lockwood werewolf stated.

Emily furrowed her brows in worry as she stared up at her best friend. "Do you need to take a break?" The Gilbert girl inquired.

Tyler immediately shook his head as he quickly waved off the witch's concern for him. "I'm fine," the Lockwood werewolf swore as he bent down and stored the plastic bottle into his backpack before he slid it in place on his back.

Tyler shot the Radkova witch a small smile before he wrapped his arm around Emily's shoulder. "I'll be okay," the Lockwood werewolf assured the worried girl as he pulled her to catch up with Alaric and Elena before he stated, "the wolfsbane just takes a lot out of me."

"We could take a break until you're ready," the Radkova witch quickly offered as she kept glancing over to Tyler to make sure he was actually doing okay.

The last thing Emily wanted was for her best friend to hurt himself right now. For one, they didn't have time for someone to get hurt when they were on a time crunch but most importantly, Emily didn't want Tyler to be in pain from the wolfsbane and the spell she had to perform earlier.

The Radkova witch still had no idea what the spell would do to Tyler once he would have to go through the transformation from the full moon, so Emily was, of course, quite worried for her best friend, no matter how many times the Lockwood werewolf told her that he was okay.

Tyler let out a light chuckle. "I'm fine, really," the Lockwood werewolf promised as he squeezed Emily against his side. "I can handle a little pain," Tyler murmured. "Besides, we don't have time to take a break," the Lockwood werewolf reminded the young witch.

"He's right," the Saltzman hunter jumped into the conversation as he glanced back to Emily and Tyler from his position at the front of their group. "We only have a few more hours until the moon will be in the sky," Alaric mentioned before he stated, "so, we don't have a lot of time left."