(pure strength)

"Before we do this, I just want to know one thing," Kai said as he wrapped his arm around Margot's shoulders.

The group were making their way to the boarding house to have one last drink before they went home. The eclipse wasn't for a few hours so what better way to waste time than get drunk?

"What now?" Damon asked with a scoff.

"Why did you think this was your hell? I mean, I get why Ellie did. But you? You haven't said a word."

The heretic smiled slightly at the name. She had told Kai that he could still call her Ellie, it had been her name for so many years. It was their thing, no one else was allowed.

"Why don't you tell us how this pile of crap is gonna get us out of here?" the Salvatore asked, gesturing to the ascendant in Bonnie's hands.

"I'll explain as soon as you tell us what you did on May 10th, 1994."

"What difference does it make?" Damon asked, his arms flaring out. He already hated the Parker boy.

"Put it this way, Bonnie's magic is one part of the equation. My as-yet undisclosed knowledge is the other. Which means you would be hitching a ride home for free. I just want to know if you deserve to come along."

"What about Margot and Klaus? They haven't done anything."

"Are you really that stupid? Margot is my kid and Klaus is the father of her unborn children. I'm a sociopath, not a dick."

Damon sped over to Kai, grabbing onto his jacket before holding him in the air. "Or, I could just torture you until you say something usefu–"

In one second he was holding Kai and the next his body was consumed by blue mist before he was thrown across the street. Margot stood above him, her eyes dark blue as the mist danced along her fingers. "Don't touch him ever again."

Damon groaned as his body cracked into the concrete, going down a few inches before the mist disappeared.

"Fine– fine," he coughed out.

Margot smiled before kneeling down and giving him her hand. However, instead of helping him up, she was sucked inside his mind.

"Barely see you in 50 years, Stefan. You're not gonna invite a brother in?" Damon asked as he stood outside the boarding house.

"Give me one good reason why," Stefan retaliated. Margot smiled as she stared at her father, sure he wasn't real but it was nice to see him again.

"Check your answering machine. I'm trying to turn over a new leaf."

"I heard your message. I also heard you sent Lexi some flowers... 17 years after you left her to burn to death on a rooftop."

"Well–"

"It's a little late, but I see you're trying to make amends. I just want to know why."

"Um, well, I can tell you this, Stefan, I'm tired of tearing up New York City. Maybe it's the partying, maybe it's my conscience."

"I believe that would require one."

"-And then I had this moment of clarity. And I said, 'wouldn't it be great if I just woke up in my own bed and could have a fresh start'?"

Just then, a man appeared behind Stefan. Margot recognized him. 

"You must be Damon," The man said.

Stefan sighed, "Damon, this is, uh, Zach Salvatore. He owns this house now. He knows the family history. And I told him if you got out of line, I'd take care of you myself."

Damon smiled at his brother, "Why are you always expecting the worst out of me, Stefan?"

"Oh, I don't. Otherwise, I wouldn't allow this."

"Come on in, Damon," Zach said before walking off, leaving the brothers alone.

"Oh... Thanks," Damon said, patting Stefan's shoulder before walking inside only to be held back by Stefan. "Are you ready to start over?"

"Hell yeah."

— — —

Zach stood in front of his wife with a camera. He grinned widely as he took a picture, the photo showing the beautiful woman with icing smeared on her lip.

"I am so getting rid of that photo," the woman warned as she grabbed it with a smile. She sighed playfully before looking back at the vampire, "Stefan, take a picture of Zach and me.

Stefan quickly walked over before grabbing the camera from his uncle.

"Thanks, Stefan."

The camera clicked, emitting a white flash before he pulled it away from his eye.

The woman grinned as she turned back to a tray of cupcakes, "And now back to my cravings."

As Zach walked away, Stefan moved over to the pregnant woman. He smelled blood. He glanced down before gently grabbing her wrist, "What happened to your wrist?"

The woman's eyes widened as she stared at the two bite marks that lined her wrist, "I don't know."

Stefan sighed before walking over to Damon who stood across the room with a smirk, "Damon, what did you do to Gail?"

"Looks like the jig is up," he groaned as Stefan grabbed his arm, leading him away from the guests. "Hey, how the hell did you feed on Gail? She's on vervain. It's in her coffee."

"I swapped it out last week. Same for Zach."

"These people are my friends. Zach is family. They trust me."

"Then they'll trust us both. Look, I'm only feeding inside this house, right? Snatch, eat, erase. It's all completely functional, Stefan. I told you, this is a new start."

Damon turned to walk away only for his neck to be snapped.

— — —

Damon groaned in pain as he woke up, the sun cascading onto the ground just a few inches beside him. He glanced up, his vision blurry, only seeing the shape of his brother.

"So, here's what I don't get, Damon. Why'd you insinuate yourself back into my life? And then cheat and lie and break all the rules?"

Damon sighed as he stood up before leaning against the wall. "Well, I lied because I knew you'd be mad. Believe it or not, Stefan. I like being here." he grumbled before walking out only for his hand to burn as soon as he reached the sunlight.

He grunted in pain before quickly speeding back into the shade as his hand healed.

"You'll get your daylight ring back when you decide to behave. Now, answer my question. Why'd you come back here?"

"Because I missed my brother. I wanna have a connection to my humanity, Stefan. I wanted to feel something again. And when I decided to come home, it all came rushing back just like I hoped it would."

Stefan scoffed, "Congrats. Now what?"

"Let's just hit the road, you and me, huh? I'll let you drive my car. I'll get you off this vegan diet. I'll teach you how to feed again. It'll be great, Stef, huh? What do you say? Come on, trust me."

"Man, I can imagine a road trip with you."

"Yeah."

"I can imagine you feeding on innocent people and, uh, leaving a trail of bodies behind. I can imagine you making me drink human blood and laughing at me while I suffer."

"Way to be an optimist, Stefan."

"I'm just looking at the facts, Damon. In 1912, you convinced me to drink human blood again which is why I became a ripper. In 1942, you almost pushed me off the rails again because you were so damn needy. In 1977, you left my best friend to die, after I sent her to come help you. And now, I'm finally happy. I have a new life. I'm doing well. And, uh, you just can't handle that, can you, Damon?"

"I'm not trying to screw up your dumb new life."

"You don't have to try, Damon! All you have to do is exist. Because no matter what I do or where I go, you will be with me forever. Trying to destroy every single thing that I built. I don't know why I thought this time would be any different. I wanted it to be different, but you just keep failing."

"Guess that's a no on the road trip, huh?"

Stefan rolled his eyes, "That's a no on the road trip."

— — —

The moon had eventually covered the sun which freed Damon from the confines of the Salvatore shed. He smirked viciously before speeding into the boarding house and grabbing Gail harshly. Damon grinned as the woman screamed in his hold, feeling his fangs tear into her throat.

Stefan and Zach quickly ran in only to see bodies littering the floor while Damon, blood covering his face, held onto Gail's almost limp body.

"This eclipse party blows. I didn't see the sun at all when I came across the yard. You forget how much stronger we are when we drink human blood?"

"Zach," Gail whimpered against Damon's tight hold on her neck.

"Damon, please don't hurt her," the human Salvatore spoke with a frightened look in his eyes.

"I want my ring back, Stefan."

Stefan glared at his brother before pulling the ring out of his back pocket and throwing it to the other vampire.

"Thank you," Damon said with a smile as he placed the ring back on his finger.

"I'm never going to be rid of you, am I?"

"No. No, you're not. Because in 1912, I showed you who you were, Stefan. In 1942, I gave you your freedom. And in 1977, I almost killed your best friend, because it should have been you there to help me, Stefan. You owe me. And It'll take you an eternity to pay me back."

Damon grinned, his fangs protruding out of his gums as dark veins appeared around his black eyes. He sent one final look at Stefan before biting into Gail's neck and draining every drop of blood she had.

Margot quickly pulled her hand away from Damon's letting him drop to the ground once again. "You killed her? You killed an innocent pregnant woman?"

Damon grunted as his head hit the concrete once again, "Yes, okay. I get it, I'm a monster. We've already covered this, kid."

She rolled her eyes, using the blue mist to levitate Damon before whispering in his ear, "She didn't deserve that, Damon," before snapping his neck.

Klaus smiled at her proudly while Bonnie stared at Damon's body in shock. Kai, on the other hand, was practically jumping for joy as he walked over to Margot, "Oh, my little one is all grown up. You're just like me, Little Ellie."

— — —

Damon woke up with a groan. His neck hurt like a bitch.

Kai chuckled. He liked seeing the vampire in pain, it was a nice change. "Poor Nephew-Uncle Zach."

Damon rolled his eyes as he sat up before leaning against the couch, "Stefan compelled Uncle Zach to forget about the girlfriend and the baby. But he couldn't cover up all the murders. The founders' council was restarted and Stefan took off. About a decade later, Stefan finds Margot."

Damon sighed once again before he glanced between Margot and Bonnie, "Can we go back now?"

Kai glanced at the witch who looked unsure, "Oh, come on, Bonnie. You want to go home to your friends. I want to go back and give the rest of the Gemini Coven an excruciating death before becoming an uncle. It's a win-win."

"Bonnie, I know Kai isn't exactly a model citizen but none of us are. And if you knew what his coven did to him, you'd understand. I- I did the same to my coven and you didn't hold that against me," Margot spoke up from across the room.

The hybrid glanced down at her, tightening his hold on her.

"We need to get back, Bonnie. And if it means bringing home a sociopath then so be it. We can deal with him after," Damon added, his eyes pleading as he held onto her arms.

Kai sighed, glancing out the door and saw the sun, "We missed today's eclipse. Rain check for tomorrow?"

— — —

"Look, we can still get out of here, Bonnie. We just steal that ascendant contraption. Find out what Kai knows and then we ditch them all. He doesn't have powers, Klaus is a dick and Margot will be fine. It'll be just you and me."

Kai scoffed as he walked into the kitchen. It was late, the sun had already gone down and Margot and Klaus were back at their house, both too tired from the earlier events to deal with the needy vampire.

"Actually, Damon, it's not that simple," said the male siphoner as he walked behind Damon with a bag of chips in his hand.

"You gotta stop doing that. It's creepy."

"Here's the thing, I have a peculiar effect on magic. I believe you know someone who had the same effect. You see, I can't generate it myself, but I can consume it from others. Temporarily," Kai smiled as he walked over to Bonnie, "My family called me an abomination, called Ellie one too. That hurt my feelings."

He smirked before grabbing Bonnie's hand, the touch emitting a deep red glow as Bonnie screamed in pain.

Kai held up his hand causing flames to appear around Damon. "Ok! We get it!" the Salvatore yelled in slight fear.

Kai smiled before letting go of Bonnie causing the flames to disappear. "You can see why my coven and I didn't get along."

"You're like Margot."

"Finally. It took you long enough..." He paused, his grin reappearing on his face, "Now if I consume all of Bonnie's magic, I am just gonna end up killing her. But, if we work together, we can all go home as friends. Or, I can devour her magic, kill you both and bring Margot and the dog home with me. What's it gonna be?"

— — —

"You're in a good mood for the first time this decade. Stop that," Bonnie told Damon as he whistled out of tune. They were walking inside a forest towards the centre of the wooded cemetery where they first appeared.

Damon grinned, "I have a hot date with my girl tonight."

"Yeah, assuming Kai's telling the truth."

He quickly ignored the witch's attitude. "I'm thinking of dinner and a movie. You know what? Screw dinner and the movie, skip straight to the good part."

"Yeah, and assuming I can do the spell, which I won't know until I see it."

Damon frowned, "What happened to hope, Bon? Remember when I was all like, "boo, grr," And you were all 'hooray, hooray. We're getting out of here'!"

"Look. I want to go home more than anything, but Kai's a sociopath. Who is to say he won't screw us over?"

"Me. I say because I will kill Kai and anyone who comes in the way of me going home."

Just then, Kai followed by Margot and Klaus walked towards them. "I heard my name. All good I hope," the siphoner said as he glanced up at the sky. "The eclipse will happen directly overhead in perfect alignment with the Gemini constellation. You need to dig into the tunnels below us. We'll do the spell there."

"Why?" Bonnie asked in a harsh tone.

"Have you never portal jumped through an eclipse before?" he asked, earning odd looks from the people surrounding him. "Ok. Look. The light of the eclipse will shine down and activate the ascendant. You spout a little witchy woo, and then poof! Anyone standing in the circle of light holding the ascendant goes home."

"By witchy woo, I assume you mean the spell. Let me see it."

Kai shook his head, "When the time comes," before kissing Margot's cheek and walking away.

"Where are you going?"

"Into town. I need to gather some important supplies."

An hour later, Damon was still digging a hole into the ground, grunting occasionally. Bonnie had been sitting against a tree, observing the vampire, "Hey! You know there's a very probable chance you're digging your own grave and... not bothered."

Margot sighed from her seated position beside the witch, "Kai isn't going to kill us. I already told him you two are off limits so stop worrying."

Damon grunted, "And why can't you help me dig this hole?"

"I'm pregnant and Nik is my emotional support. Now get digging, I'd like to go home relatively soon."

"Huh," they heard Kai say as he walked towards them with a backpack. "Looks like I got back just in time," he said just as Damon broke through the ground which revealed a cave underneath.

The Salvatore sped to Kai before grabbing his bag and going through the contents, "Zima, grunge, every Alex Rodriguez rookie card in demand, and a pager. Really?"

"555-hiya-kai. No way I'm giving those digits up."

Margot chuckled as she picked up one of the cards Damon had thrown to the ground and observed its pristine edges, "These were the important supplies you had to get?"

Kai nodded, "Look. The future sounds great, all right? I'm super excited about the internet, but 1994 has been my home for most of my life. I'd hate to get homesick. So, let's get down there."

Bonnie shook her head as she stood up, "No. We are not going anywhere until you show me the spell."

"Okay..." Kai said with a smile.

Damon stared at the silent man in confusion, "Are we literally not going anywhere?"

"Fine. If you don't want to show me the spell, then you can do it yourself. You want my magic. Take it."

"Heh. Uh-oh. She's being brave."

"I'm serious, Kai. This was your big threat, wasn't it? If I do the spell and let us out of here, you'll just take my magic, leave me for dead, and do the spell yourself. So go ahead. Take all of it."

Kai smirked before grabbing the witched arm, "Don't mind if I do."

Bonnie gasped in pain as the skin beneath his hands turned red as if he was searing the magic out of her body.

"Bonnie?" Damon said unsurely with an unknown emotion littered on his face.

"It's ok. He won't kill me."

"Doesn't look like that from here. Hey, Bonnie. Whoa, hey, guys. Stop!"

Kai only smiled before letting the witch go. The look causes Bonnie to roll her eyes, "He doesn't know the spell, which means we don't need him. Motus."

Margot's eyes widened as she watched a pickaxe go straight through Kai's heart. A gasp ripped through her lips as she kneeled in front of him, cradling his head in her hands as tears formed in her eyes.

"Kai? Come on, open your eyes," she begged as tears flooded down her face.

Klaus on the other hand glared at the witch, "Who's the killer now, little witch? Perhaps it's you who doesn't deserve to go home."

Bonnie stepped back with a frightened look.

The hybrid gave her one last glance before kneeling beside Margot and taking her in a hug as she sobbed. She had finally gotten him back after all these years of waiting and now he was dead.

The prison world had changed Bonnie. She had lost all hope and, in turn, gained trust issues. Margot couldn't blame her, she was just a kid, after all. It wasn't the witch's fault that every supernatural she ever met had somehow crossed her.

That didn't mean she wasn't a little pissed though.

She and Klaus sat by Kai's body for the next hour. Margot had refused to leave his side.

During the hour, Damon and Bonnie spent their time trying to figure out the spell. As they were passing grimoires to each other, Damon speedread them while Bonnie read them normally.

"You know, the last thing my Grams said to me was to stay strong. What if that was her way of telling me I have the power to get out? I have the ascendant, a massive celestial event to draw from, plus a burning desire to get away from you," the witch spoke as she stared down at the ascendant, before glancing at Damon.

She looked at Margot one last time before she began chanting. Not long after, the ascendant moved, gears turning as it opened.

She grinned widely as she stood up before walking in front of Damon, "It– It worked."

"Whoa. Where are you going?" the vampire asked as the witch began to walk away from him.

"Home. You three coming?"

— — —

Margot leaned against a stone wall, Klaus by her side as she watched Bonnie gear up for the spell.

The witch used to ascendant to cut open her hand before smearing the blood on the center stone.

Margot grunted slightly. She hadn't had any blood in days. She had just forgotten to.

The hybrid glanced down at her with a worried stare. "Are you alright, love?" he asked as he adjusted Kai's body which was lying limp on his shoulder.

She nodded silently. She could eat when they got home.

"Okay..." Bonnie muttered as she glanced up through the hole in the cave, staring up at the sun as she waited for the eclipse.

Margot's eyes switched from their normal shade of honey brown to a dark blue. The blood was taunting her. Her gums ached as her fangs fought to come out.

She trained her eyes on the ground as she focused on not murdering their only way home.

Klaus sighed, setting Kai down on the ground before turning to Margot and taking her a few meters away. He glanced down at her before offering her his wrist, "Come on, love. If you don't, you'll kill the little witch."

Margot shook her head, "I'm fine. Come on, we don't want to miss it."

Before she could walk away, she was held back by him before he placed his wrist against her mouth. "Drink, my love."

While the couple were distracted, they didn't notice that Kai had seemingly come back from the dead. The sociopath was angry. Very angry.

He grinned maliciously as he grabbed a crossbow, aiming it at the witch before shooting. The arrow shot straight into Bonnie's stomach, knocking her away from the ascendant.

Margot and Klaus quickly parted before speeding back into the cave.

"Forgetting someone?" she heard Kai ask as he held the crossbow.

"Kai?" she whispered in shock. "I- how?"

"I can't die, kiddo. Not here at least," Kai informed, sending the heretic a soft smile before looking back at Damon and Bonnie.

"Did you really think I hadn't tried to kill myself before? Because I had, lots of times, lots of ways," the siphoner trailed off as he held up the weapon in a taunting manner, ignoring the sad looks Margot sent him.

Damon glanced down at the ascendant which caused Kai to scoff, "Grab that, and the next arrow goes in her heart. Your choice."

The vampire sighed before turning back to Bonnie and helping her sit up. As he was distracted, Kai ran to grab the ascendant only for Damon to speed him against a wall.

Margot stared wide-eyed before a blue mist appeared at her fingertips, "Let him go, Damon."

Damon glanced back at her, "What happened to family, Maggie?"

"You stopped being my family the second you betrayed my father. Now, let Kai go and we can all go home. I will take responsibility for Kai and his actions. I promise you, he will not kill anyone... Except for his father. The guy is a dick."

The vampire glanced between Bonnie and Margot before he let the siphoner go, letting his body drop to the ground. "Fine. But if he goes on a massacre I'm killing him myself."

The light of the sun shone down on Margot and Klaus before Bonnie shouted, "Motus!" The word sent Kai flying.

Margot gasped as she was held still by Bonnie's magic, watching as Damon was dragged beside her and the hybrid.

"Don't!" Kai yelled as Bonnie threw them the ascendant.

Klaus caught it with his free hand and watched as the gears spun from Bonnie's resounding magic.

"Take care of the babies, Margot. I'm sorry," the witch spoke before they were consumed by white light.

— — —

The sounds of rustling leaves caused Margot to wake up. She groaned softly as she opened her eyes only to be met with darkness.

She glanced to her right, seeing Klaus sitting beside her before looking to her left and seeing Damon pacing. Klaus sent her a gentle smile as he helped her sit up, leaning her on his side, "We're home, love."

Her eyes widened slightly. "Bonnie and Kai?"

He shook his head. "I'm sorry, love."

Margot moved to lean on her elbows as she stared at Damon who looked at her with a guilty stare. "Go. Go find Elena, Damon."

The vampire frowned slightly but sped away.

Margot stood, sweeping the dirt off of her clothing as she glanced at the Salvatore tomb which was only a few meters away.

She could smell the bourbon and hear a heartbeat. She smiled slightly. It was him.

She glanced up at Klaus only to see him nod. "I'll be at home. Go be with him."

Margot quickly wrapped her arms around his torso, holding him tightly for a few seconds before letting go and walking to the tomb.

She could hear his silent cries as he sipped on the bottle.

"Yep. This is happening. I'm gonna talk out loud to a... crypt filled with my dead family. Everyone but you two. Because wherever you two are, it's not here."

The Salvatore moved to sit down on a concrete bench before taking another swig, "I got to say... I'm not doing so great without you. I keep trying to start over, but... I can't get anywhere... Because I'm lost, sweetheart. I'm so lost without you, Maggie. I don't know what to do with myself – It's like I can't breathe anymore..."

He glanced up at the cobwebbed ceiling in an attempt to stop tears from flowing before he stood up and threw the bottle of bourbon across the room.

Margot sped inside and grabbed the bottle in her hand before sending a smile to her father. "So, what? I'm gone for a couple of months and you think it's ok to waste a perfectly good bottle of bourbon?"

She grinned at him as pointed the bottle to her father before reading the label, "It's a good year, too. Since when were you so wasteful, Dad?"

Stefan stared at her in shock. His lips parted as he fumbled with his words, "Maggie?"

She smiled, "Yep. In the flesh."

"How can I see you right now? Am I– Am I going crazy?" he asked as more tears fell from his eyes.

Margot stepped forward, holding her hand out before grasping his. "Because I'm not dead, Dad. I mean, this stuff's good, but it's not "I see dead people" good," she chuckled softly, "It's a hell of a long story, Dad, but I'm back. We both are."

Stefan gripped her hand before pulling her into a tight hug. "I missed you so much, sweetheart."

Margot wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly as tears threatened to fall from her own eyes. "I missed you too, Dad."