ALMOST IS NEVER ENOUGH | TVD [4]

XVI • DAYS OF FUTURE PAST

sixteen. days of future past

KQBC Channel Three News Station in Dallas, Texas, Three Years Later (2017)

Stefan is bound to a chair in the middle of the dark news station after he was vervained by Matt, outside of the building, to fall into the Huntress' trap while Rayna and Damon (who is still weak and woozy from the toxic werewolf venom he was shot up with and is slumped over the news anchor's desk) are trying to convince him to take Rayna's reasonable deal.

"Sun's coming up, Stefan. Make your choice." The young woman asked.

Damon spoke up, "It's a pretty big deal, you know? Me offering to take this scar from you? But hey, I've been on the bench for quite a while, and you look pretty tired. So, let me tap in and give you a breather! Hashtag 'you're welcome'. Are hashtags still a thing? I don't know, it's been three years..."

"Say yes, Stefan. You can stop running. You'll get your life back."

"All it's going to take is one itty-bitty transfer spell. Any more suspense, I might pass out, little brother. Of course, I might pass out anyway."

Stefan sighs tiredly, "Phone's in my pocket. Valerie can do the spell."

"Hallelujah, he's seen the light. Now, I'm just going to loosen these love-knots a little bit, just to get his phone, then you can have me."

Rayna aims her stake gun at him as he does as he said, "Make sure he behaves." The older man's hands sizzle as he loosens Stefan's restraints.

"You okay?" The clear green-eyed one asked with genuine concern.

The icy blue-eyed one smiles weakly, "Brother, I'm so full of werewolf toxin, I can't even feel my face. A little vervain's not going to hurt me now."

Damon and Stefan share a significant look before they each nod at the other. Just then, Stefan breaks through his ropes before shoving Damon across the room, where he hits Rayna and causes them both to fall in a heap on the floor. Rayna accidentally shoots her gun, which hits one of the windows and shatters. Stefan then takes Rayna's sword and vamp-speeds away with it while Damon takes a piece of broken glass and cuts Rayna on the back with it before grabbing a nearby power cord and wrapping it around her neck, squeezing it tightly as she gasps desperately for breath.

"If you kill me, you kill anyone I've marked with my sword. That includes your brother."

"Don't worry about Stefan. I'm just giving him a head-start." Damon tries to use the cord to put her in a sleeper-hold to knock her out, but Rayna manages to pick up her gun and shoot him with another werewolf-venom-laced bullet, causing them both to pass out on the floor.

****

Damon starts to stir, and when his eyes opened, his vision is extremely blurry due to the werewolf venom. Despite this, he still manages to see Rayna stitching up the wound the vampire made on her shoulder blade.

"Oh, you stayed to keep me company. How sweet."

"Nice try. Once I'm done patching myself up, I'm out of here...Because as much as I'd like to kill you first, my sword is on the move, and so is my target. I have to chase them both. My mystical nature calls." The ruthless huntress winces in pain as she puts in the stitches to close her wound, and Damon groans as he flops onto his back on the floor of the news station, "So weird, how Stefan ran away from your offer...like a coward, like you."

He rolls his icy blue eyes, "He's just being a martyr. He probably thinks I can't handle the scar. Underestimating his own older brother." He pulls his cell phone out of his jeans' pocket and holds it up, "As soon as I charge this, I'll call him. Tell him to get his ass back here. We'll do the transfer spell."