09|HISTORY REPEATING

Gemma's head snaps up when Damon walks into her room, smiling innocently and holding a cup of tea as a peace offering. She stiffens in her spot at the end of her bed, a headache pulsing through her temple. She rises silently, shuffling toward Damon and taking the cup of tea— putting it down on her desk all in one motion.

"Gem," he starts softly.

"I'm so angry I could hit you," she says. "I could hit you."

Damon winces, "yeah."

"We both know how I feel about violence, especially within the family," Gemma stares at him. "But I could kick your ass right now, Damon."

He nods.

Stefan rounds the corner into Gemma's room, stilling at the sight of his two siblings. "Don't tell me you already let him off the hook."

"Not even close, little brother," Gemma mumbles. She turns away from them and grabs her cup of tea, taking a long sip of t.

"I got the town off our back," Damon pipes up. "It was for the greater good, but I'm sorry. And, to prove it, I'm not gonna feed on a human—"

Gemma snorts.

"For at least a week," he finishes. "I'll adopt a Stefan diet! Only nothing with feathers."

"Because I realize that killing your closest and oldest friend is beyond evil, and yet somehow, it's worthy of humor," Stefan mocks his brother.

Gemma runs a hand through her hair with a heavy sigh, sitting on her bed and preparing herself to watch the scene unfold between her two brothers.

"Are you mimicking me?" Damon gapes.

"Yes, Stefan. Now that the secret society of vampires haters is off our back, I can go back to my routine of how can I destroy Stefan's life this week?"

"And I can go back to sulking and Elena-longing and forehead brooding," Damon tries. He laughs, "This is fun! I like this."

"And I will finally reveal the ulterior motive behind my evil and diabolical return to Mystic Falls."

"Yeah," Damon glares. "I'm done. That's just like you, Damon. Always have to have the last word."

Stefan rolls his eyes and glances at Gemma, raising his eyebrows. "You want in on this?"

"No," she deadpans. "I'd rather stake myself."

Damon exits the room— occupying himself with something else— while Stefan lingers in his sisters room. "Gem," he starts. Her eyes cut into his with a sharp look and a heavy breath escapes him. "You wanna talk about last night?"

"What about last night?"

"Elena said—"

"Elena said—" she mocks him. "Elena did this, Elena did that—"

"Okay, I get it," he relents. "I was just worried about you."

"I'm perfectly fine," she blinks.

"You don't seem fine."

"You don't either," Gemma bites back. "If you forgot, Lexi died."

The youngest Salvatore winces at her words, "how could I forget? I was there, Gemma, while you were here drunk off your ass. Do you know how hard it is for vampires to get that drunk? Yet somehow, you still managed."

"You done?" Gemma asks boredly.

He shakes his head in exasperation and exits the room, leaving Gemma to sulk alone in her feelings.

•••

"You look like a jackass," Stefan says plainly. "It's night time and you're wearing sunglasses."

"Piss off," the female Salvatore snaps. Gemma pushes her sunglasses further up the bridge of her nose, her hands twitching nervously in the pockets of her leather jacket. "I don't know why you forced me to come here with you," she mutters distastefully.

"Because Elena wanted you here too," Stefan says.

Gemma side eyes him, "and the wants and needs of your girlfriend are more important than your sisters mental health?"

Stefan looks at her, his expression questioning. "How is your mental health, Gemma?"

"Not very good, thank you for asking."

"Alright, then," he nods. He knocks a few times on Elena's front door, and shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

"Hey," Elena greets as she opens the door. She sends Gemma a soft smile before glancing back at Stefan, "Thanks for coming. I wouldn't have called if it wasn't important."

"Clearly," Gemma snarks.

Elena frowns at the girl.

"We know that," Stefan says to the girl.

Elena steps onto the porch and closes the door behind her, crossing her arms over her chest as she shifts nervously in front of the siblings. "He threatened Bonnie, guys."

"Damon?" Gemma pushes her sunglasses into her hair, an amused smile tugging at her lips. "He was gone for like, fifteen minutes before you called."

"Doesn't that tell you something?" Elena raises her eyebrows, "that hes able to wreak havoc that quickly?"

Gemma shrugs, "he's got a certain set of skills."

"What would Damon want with Bonnie?" Stefan questions, confused.

"She has this necklace," the Gilbert explains. "Caroline got it from Damon, and she gave it to Bonnie, and now Damon wants it back. He's tormenting her."

"Over a necklace?"

"It's not just any necklace. It has to do with Bonnie's heritage. It belonged to one of her ancestors who lived here during the Civil War..." Realization dawns on her and she looks at the siblings with wide eyes. "When you guys and Damon lived here."

Gemma wraps her arms around herself, her eyebrows furrowing as she recalls the time she spent in Mystic Falls as a human.

"Her name was Emily," Stefan informs the girl. "She was Katherine's handmaiden, and a witch."

"You know?" Elena looks surprised. "About Bonnie?"

"We're vampires," Gemma deadpans.

Stefan nudges Gemma in the ribs, giving her a look that screams behave, please. "The first night that you invited us over for dinner, I made the connection." He tells his girlfriend.

"All she had to do was say Salem and it was obvious," Gemma mumbles under her breath.

"And now Damon knows, and for some reason he wants that necklace," Elena voices.

"What does it look like?"

"It's an antique iron setting with a—"

"—with an amber crystal," Gemma blurts, a faraway look in her eyes. "Yeah, I—I remember seeing it. It belonged to Katherine. I was there when Emily gave it to her."

"Which means that..." Stefan trails off.

"What?" Elena wonders.

"I don't know, but I'm gonna find it out. Let me talk to Damon."

"Will he tell you?"

"He'll tell Gemma," Stefan says.

Gemma looks at him, her eyes hard. "I am not having a part in whatever game you're about to play with Damon."

Elena shuffles forward, her eyes pleading. "Gemma, please, I'm scared he'll hurt Bonnie if we don't figure this out."

"He—" Gemma swallows dryly, searching the girl's face. "I don't, uh—"

"We'll get it out of him," Stefan promises abruptly. He wraps an arm around Gemma's bicep and pulls her off of the porch, tugging her lack form along with him as they trudge down the sidewalk. "What was that about?" He asks.

"It was nothing," she brushes it off. "Thinking about Katherine and seeing Elena's face in front of me threw me off."

"Elena's not Katherine, Gemma."

"Trust me," a smirk pulls at Gemma's lips. "I know."

•••

Gemma struts into The Grill and wastes no time in heading for the bar, grabbing Damon's bottle right out of his hand and taking a long gulp of it. Damon doesn't react, just leans over the side of the bar and grabs a bottle of Bourbon, giving it to Gemma with a nonchalant expression. She nods in thanks and gives him back his own.

Stefan approaches his siblings, idling up on the other side of Damon. "So, Stefan—" he begins mocking his brother again. "You know, I've been thinking. I think we should start over, give this brother thing another chance. We used to do it, oh-so well, once upon time."

"I don't, Damon," the oldest Salvatore plays into Stefan's ploy. "I can't trust you to be a nice guy. You kill everybody, and you're so mean. You're so mean, and—" he stops with a heavy sigh, giving Stefan a defeated look. "You're really hard to imitate, and then I have to go to that lesser place."

Gemma snickers, slipping her sunglasses over her eyes and opening the bottle of Bourbon.

"Can I get a coffee, please?" Stefan asks the bartender, flashing him a tight smile. He glances back down at Damon and then to Gemma, shaking his head in disbelief. "So, what's with the bottle?"

"I'm on edge," Damon explains. "Crash diet. You know, I'm trying to keep a low profile."

"I just don't wanna be sober," Gemma explains.

"You could always just leave, Damon, find a new town to turn into your own personal Gas 'n' Sip."

"I'll manage," he tells Stefan. "You don't have to keep an eye on me."

"I'm not here to keep an eye on you."

Gemma glares at him behind her sunglasses, feeling guilty for letting Stefan play Damon.

"So, why are you here?"

"Why not?"

"Well," Gemma stands up and hugs the bottle of Bourbon to her side. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm going home."

Damon grabs a fistful of her jacket, yanking her back toward the bar when she tries to turn away. "Oh, no you don't, little sister. You're staying with us."

"Why?" She whines.

He grins, wiggling his eyebrows. "You up for a game of darts?"

•••

Stefan throws a dart, grinnng at Gemma and Damon's irritated expression when it hits the bullseye.

"Lucky shot," Damon calls.

"More like a carefully honed skill over many decades."

"You're beating me."

"Yeah," Stefan scoffs. "It's because I'm better than you."

Gemma shakes her head when Stefan tries to give her a handful of darts. "I'll hit one of you."

"You're not that bad," Stefan frowns.

She smiles dryly, "I know."

"I'm onto you," Damon accuses. "Reverse psychology. It's a little transparent, but I admire the effort."

"You prefer the brooding forehead?" Stefan asks.

"Seriously, what game do you think you're playing?"

"That's a funny question considering the fact that I have been asking you that for months," Stefan blinks. "It's frustrating, isn't it?"

Damon grits his teeth and smiles, strained. "Touché."

•••

Gemma looks around the football field tiredly, immediately shaking her head at Stefan's hopeful expression. "There's no way in hell," she grumbles.

"Oh, come on, Gem," he smirks. "The last time you played football with us, we were all human."

She folds her arms across her chest, giving him a blank face.

"We're bonding, Gemma!" He exclaims. A small grin tugs at his lips and he launches the ball toward his sister, laughing when she dodges it with a yelp. "We're vampires, catch it!"

Gemma glares at him and picks up the ball, hurling it toward Damon. It collides with his abdomen, a groan escaping his lips. "Don't forget who taught you two how to play this game," he says smugly.

Gemma throws her hands up in surrender and tries to plop down on the ground, only for Damon to rush over to her and grab her around the waist— forcing the football into her hands. "Come on," he urges. "One last game."

Her eyes meet his and she squints, shaking her head. "Fine, you pest. One last game." She shares a glance with Stefan and Damon and throws the ball, watching it soar through the sky. Damon takes off— intent to catch it, but Stefan runs after him and tackles him to the ground. Both brothers fall in a heap, lying beside each other on the ground while the oldest Salvatore releases pained groans. Gemma laughs and joins them, spreading her arms out and gazing into the night sky.

"That hurt," Damon groans.

"Downside of my diet—" Stefan informs him. "Getting hit actually hurts a little bit."

"I'm impressed, Stefan," Damon turns his head to look at his little brother. "Fun with booze and darts, sentimental with football, and now? Starry night."

Gemma looks at Damon, seeing the look on his face.

"What do you want, Stefan?" He questions.

"It wasn't real, Damon," Stefan says stoically. "Our love for Katherine. She compelled us. We didn't have a choice. Took me years to sort that out, to truly understand what she did to us."

Damon pulls himself up from the ground, offering Gemma a hand and hauling her up too. "Oh, no, Stefan. We are not takin' that on tonight." He turns to walk away.

"What do you want with Katherine's crystal?" Stefan blurts.

"How do you know about that?"

"Come on," Stefan scoffs. "You knew Elena would tell me."

"How do you know it was Katherine's? Emily gave it to her on her last night. I was with her, and you weren't."

Gemma stares at Damon sympathetically, giving him a soft shake of her head when he glances at her.

"I was the last one to see her, Damon," Stefan argues. "Now, what do you want with Katherine's crystal?"

"She didn't tell you?"

"We had other things on our mind."

Damon uses his speed to get in Stefan's face, the veins under his eyes prominent as his anger rises. "I could rip your heart out and not think twice about it."

"Damon—" Gemma tries.

Stefan smirks, "I've heard that before."

"I have a bigger surprise, Stefan," Damon backs away slowly, spreading his arms out. "I'm gonna bring her back."

Gemma loses her breath, her lips parting in anxious shock. "What?" She breathes, a chill slithering down her spine.

"How can you bring Katherine back?" Stefan asks, looking worried.

"Before Katherine and the others were killed in the church, you remember what it was like in this town?"

"I remember the fear and the hysteria."

"Townspeople were killing vampires one by one. When they came for Katherine, I went straight to Emily, said, I'll do anything. Name your price. Just protect her. She did."

"How?"

"She did some kind of spell with the crystal," Damon explains. "And while the church was burning, and we thought Katherine was burning in it, she wasn't."

The female Salvatore covers her face with her palms, her heart in the pit of her stomach. Her chest tightens and her lungs squeeze painfully, her eyes watering as she hides them beneath her hands. "This can't be happening," she panics.

"But I saw her go inside—" Stefan cuts himself off.

"There's a tomb underneath the church," he says. "The spell sealed Katherine in that tomb, protecting her."

"Are you telling me that Katherine's alive?"

"If that's what you wanna call it," he shrugs. "She's been trapped in a mystical holding cell for the last century and a half, but you're an expert on starving a vampire, so how do you think she's doing, Stefan? Did you know that witches can use celestial events to draw energy into their magic? Me either. But in order to give the crystal its power, Emily used the comet that was passing overhead. And, in order for that crystal to work again..."

"The comet had to return." Stefan realizes.

"Downside?" Damon cocks his head. "Long time in between comets. And, a couple of hiccups along the way with the crystal, but the comet passed, and I got the crystal. And then Caroline got the crystal, and now Bonnie has the crystal, and here we are."

"Why would Emily—?" Stefan shakes his head, confused. "Why would she do this for you?"

"Because she knew they were gonna come for her, too, and she made me promise that her lineage would survive."

"You threatened Bonnie," Gemma points out weakly. "You don't think that's seriously pissing off some old witches?"

"Before you interrupted," Damon shoots his sister a look. "Being of Emily's lineage is the only thing keeping me from ripping that little Bonnie girl's throat out to get my crystal back. Oh well, a deal's a deal." He pauses and flashes his siblings a smile. "So...you two wanna go throw some more?"

Gemma gapes, "you can't just drop a bomb like that and act like it's nothing serious!"

Damon smacks his lips, "I just did."

"Damon!" Her voice wavers. "It's Katherine Pierce we're talking about!"

"Oh," he scoffs out a laugh. "Right. I thought you'd be glad that I'm bringing Katherine back. You two were close, weren't you?"

"What?" Stefan's eyebrows furrow as he moves closer to Gemma and Damon. "What's he talking about?"

"I—"

The sharp ringing of Gemma's phone interrupts the tense atmosphere, the woman's shoulders slumping in relief at the save. She digs it out of her pocket, the anxiety in her chest rising again when she sees Elena flashing brightly across the screen. She clears her throat and presses the accept button, holding the phone up to her ear. "Hello?"

"It's Bonnie."

Gemma's eyes flick to Damon, "yeah? What's wrong with her?"

Emily is possessing her. She said something."

"And what did she say, Elena?" The vampire pinches the bridge of her nose.

"Don't snap at me," Elena bites. "She said I won't let him have it. It must be destroyed. And then she just left."

"That's a little more helpful," Gemma mutters. "Do you have any idea where she'd go?"

"I don't know," Elena sighs, and pauses to think. "Fell's church, by the old cemetery that's where she took Bonnie in her dreams. We have to help her, Gemma."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. We will, don't worry."

"Is—is Stefan there?"

Gemma glances at the said boy, "yeah. He's here. I'll bring him with, give you two lovebirds some time together."

"I—" Elena huffs. "Goodbye, Gemma."

"Mhm."

She hangs up and shoves her phone into her pocket, looking up at Stefan and reeling back at his expression. "What's that face for, bunny muncher?"

"Why'd she call you?" He demands.

"Maybe you should ask her that," Gemma wrinkles her nose. "The last time Elena and I were talking, it wasn't very nice. There's no reason she should be calling me and if she is, it's all her."

Stefan stares at his sister for a short second before nodding once. "We should— what?"

Gemma looks around, her eyes widening. "No," she groans.

"Where's Damon?"

•••

"Why is Damon going after Bonnie?" Elena asks Gemma, falling a step behind she and Stefan.

"I don't know," Gemma mutters.

"Is he going to hurt her?"

"I don't know."

"Is he—?"

"I don't know!" Gemma exclaims, shooting Elena a look over her shoulder. "Believe it or not, I don't know every move Damon's going to make."

They come to a clearing and Gemma gasp, rushing forward to help her brother. Damon— injured from the hand of Emily— is hanging from a tree with one of the limbs sticking through his abdomen.

"You okay?" Gemma worries.

"It hurts," Damon whines. "This is why I feed on people."

"Yeah," Gemma gives him a reassuring smile. She helps him down from the tree, wincing whenever cries of pain leave him. "You should've stuck with the people diet, stupid."

"Gemma," Emily calls.

Gemma glances over her shoulder at Emily, giving the witch a dark look. "Emily," she greets stiffly. Damon latches onto her and she holds him by the waist.

"These people don't deserve this. They should never have to know such evil."

"What do you mean evil?" Stefan questions, inching in front of Elena.

"Emily," Damon grunts. "I swear to God, I'll make you regret this."

"Hey, buddy, not the best idea to threaten the witch who just turned you into a kebab." Gemma murmurs, keeping her arm wrapped around him so he wouldn't fall.

"I won't let you unleash them into this world," Emily says firmly.

"Them?" Stefan's eyes widen. "What part of the story did you leave out, Damon?"

"What does it matter?" He retorts.

Stefan looks to Emily for the answer, knowing Damon wouldn't tell him. "Emily, tell me what you did."

"To save her, I had to save them."

"You really didn't," Gemma spits out. "God, you're causing problems in life and death, just stay dead!"

Damon hushes Gemma, not wanting the wrath of the witch aimed at his little sister.

"You saved everyone in the church?" Stefan asks, horrified.

"With one, comes all."

"I don't care about them," Damon moves forward, desperation leaking into his tone. "I just want Katherine."

"I knew I shouldn't have believed a single word that comes out of your mouth," Stefan hisses toward Damon, his eyebrows drawn together in anger. "This isn't about love, is it? This is about revenge."

"The two aren't mutually exclusive."

"Damon, you can't do this."

"Why not?" He snaps. "They killed 27 people, and they called it a war battle. They deserve whatever they get."

"27 vampires, Damon. They were vampires. You can't just bring them back."

"This town deserves this."

"Damon," Gemma starts, her voice almost sad. "This could be our home again, why— why are you doing this?"

"You're blaming innocent people for something that happened 145 years ago," Stefan continues on.

"There is nothing innocent about these people, and don't think for a second it won't happen again." Damon glares at Emily. "They already know too much, and they'll burn your little grandwitch right next to us when they find out. Trust me."

"Things are different now," Emily says calmly.

"Don't do this," Damon pleads.

"I can't free them. I won't." Emily lifts her hands and chants, "Incendia!" The pentagram Emily carved into the dirt around her is set ablaze, and flames create a wall between she and the group of four.

"No!" Damon tries to rush forward but Gemma yanks him back, wrapping her hands around his arms. "No, please!"

"Damon, stop!" Gemma begs, feeling the heat from the fire scorch her skin when Damon pulls them forward.

"Bonnie!" Elena yells.

A guttural scream rips from Damon's throat when Emily raises her hand to throw the necklace in, "No!"

Gemma flinches at the sound, closing her eyes against her brothers back.

Emily throws the necklace into the air, and it explodes above them. Once the spell is complete and the crystal is destroyed, Emily leaves Bonnie, the young Bennet witchs eyes darting around in panic. Damon turns and shoves Gemma onto the ground, the woman skidding across the dirt. In a fit of rage, he lunges toward Bonnie and sinks his teeth into her neck. Stefan wastes no time in ripping his brother off of the girl, cautioning Elena away when she tries to get too close.

"She's alive, but barely," Stefan informs Elena after checking Bonnie's pulse.

Gemma's eyes dart from the girl's bloodied neck to Stefan's line of vision, her heart leaping to her throat. "I'll do it," she blurts as she scrambles over to them. "I can save her."

Stefan gives her a grateful nod and backs away from the teen.

"Gemma, are you sure?" Elena breathes.

Gemma ignores the girl and bites into her wrist, pressing her arm against Bonnie's mouth. After a few seconds, she takes her wrist away and sits slack onto the ground, her shoulders slumping.

"Her neck, it's healing," Elena marvels.

"Yeah," Gemma nods with a shaky smile. "One of the advantages of being a vampire."

"Gem," Stefan calls for his sister. He offers her a hand and helps her up, nodding his head toward Damon who sits on a rock in the distance. "Come on."

"Here we go," she whispers to herself. She and Stefan take their time in getting to Damon, not knowing if they want to hear what the oldest Salvatore has to say to them.

He looks up at them with watery eyes, hurt evident in them. "Katherine never compelled me," he says. "I knew everything. Every step of the way. It was real for me. I'll leave now."

"Damon—"

"Did she ever compel you, Gem?" Damon asks quietly.

Gemma inhales sharply, feeling Stefan's stare on the side of her head. "No," she admits. "No, it was real for me too."

•••

not edited.