Forever Yours

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Dust fluttered on Caroline's cheeks and nose, making her want to sneeze. As she rubbed her nose, she finally opened her eyes. Bright stars twinkled down at her as she stared at the sky. Ash fluttered all around her. It took her a moment to remember what had happened.

Someone killed Cade.

At the thought, she sat straight up and looked around. Everyone was unconscious on the ground. Klaus and Bonnie lied in the dirt, not moving.

She ran over to Klaus. He lied on his back, eyes still closed. Dirt encrusted his face and body. A thin line of dried blood had leaked out of his mouth and stained his shirt.

"Klaus! Wake up." She shook his shoulders frantically. She knew he wasn't dead but he sure as hell looked like it.

All of a sudden, he gasped and his eyes flew open. Panic filled his eyes for a moment until he recognized his surroundings.

"Caroline," he muttered. "Are you all right, love?" He grabbed her face in his hands gently as he stared into her eyes. Klaus stroked strands of gold hair out of her face as he held her. Care and concern leaked through his eyes, making her stomach turn in a way that she hadn't felt in a long time.

She couldn't help the tears spilling over her cheeks and onto the ground. The simple satisfaction of seeing him alive reminded her of what pain she had felt in the past. All the times someone she loved died, it practically ate at her. But just seeing Klaus's face reminded her that she wasn't alone; that she was okay.

"I'm so glad you're okay," she whispered into his ear. She sobbed gently into his chest and breathed in the scent of his shirt. All the stress and lies had finally melted away as she cried. It was a real cry, a deep cry she needed to release years ago.

Eventually she tore her face away from his chest to get Bonnie. The small witch was slightly stirring but just barely moving.

"Bonnie!"

Bonnie's eyes fluttered open and she sat up straight to embrace Caroline. Her small arms held her strongly. 

"Caroline," she breathed. They hugged each other tightly in a warm embrace. Tears were soaking their dresses and relieved laughs were exchanged.

"What happened?" Caroline asked Bonnie. "Who killed Cade?"

Bonnie's eyes flickered toward the heap of ash that was now Cade's body. Next to the pile was an unconscious person.

"Stefan!" they yelled in unison. Klaus, Caroline and Bonnie raced over to his side. He was deeply asleep and just barely alive. Next to him was the same dagger Alaric had found years ago in the Armory. To their knowledge, it was the only weapon that could kill Cade or basically the Devil. How Stefan got it, they didn't know but that didn't matter at the moment.

Klaus joined them and bit his wrist and let the blood leak into Stefan's mouth. Stefan then coughed and his eyes also fluttered open. He gasped and fumbled around wildly, desperately trying to remember what had happened.

"Shh, Stefan. You're okay. Cade is gone. He's dead. You killed him." Caroline whispered those words to him, calming him down all the while. Slowly but surely, he took deep breaths and calmed down.

Klaus took him arm and hoisted Stefan to his feet. "Come on, lad. Let's go home."
~~~~~~~~~

Two hours later, the four were at the same airport that Caroline and Stefan were at just days ago. People walked around them to get to their flights but that didn't stop them from giving the group of four questioning looks. After all, they were all covered in dirt, blood and practically the ash of Cade's dead body. So yeah, maybe a little strange.