CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Nyx starts to wake up, and her eyebrows furrow as she looks around the room that she's in. She groans and rubs the back of her head; it's throbbing lightly.

"She's awake." Katherine says, and her eyes finally settle on her. The teenager quickly backs away from the vampire, and a man starts laughing.

"Hello, love. I believe you've been expecting me." He says as Nycole looks over at him; he's entirely unfamiliar and he has a British accent. "I'm Niklaus."

"How did it get here?" She asks, confused.

"I had a friend of mine pick you up while you were leaving Nebraska." He says, but she doesn't remember that. The last thing she remembers is leaving the motel with Dean and Sam after her sister left with John.

"Nebraska..." She mumbles to herself, trying to remember anything.

"You have today to say goodbye. The sacrifice is tonight. Seeing as you're the eldest, you'll be sacrificed instead of your sister." Klaus says. "You and your friend are free to go." He motions to the side, and she sees Ric standing there.

"Come here." Alaric holds his hand out toward her, and Nyx gets up.

Nycole stumbles over to him, and he quickly wraps his arms around the teenage girl to steady her. He helps her leave the apartment that they were in — his apartment — and the two head straight over to the Salvatore Boarding House.

Jenna freaks out the moment she sees them walk through the front door. "Get out!" She yells as she points a crossbow at Ric. "Let go of Nycole, and get out!"

Nyx quickly gets in front of Ric as she looks at her aunt. "Jenna, it's okay." She says as everyone​ else rushes over to them then. "What is going on?"

"Jenna, put the crossbow down. It's me." Ric tells her.

"Klaus told Jenna about vampires while he was in Ric's body." Stefan tells Nyx.

"What?" Nycole looks back at Jenna and shakes her head. "No. Okay. This is Ric. I just saw Klaus — he's back in his own body. This isn't him."

"Prove it." Jenna says, clearly pretty shaken up.

"Okay, uh, first night you and I spent together, Jeremy walked in on us when I was about to—" Ric starts.

"It's him." She cuts him off and lowers the crossbow.

"Why did he let you go?" Stefan asks as he looks between Nycole and Ric.

"He wanted us to deliver a message." He says, and she sighs.

"The sacrifice happens tonight. And it's going to be me." Nyx tells them.

Everyone looks at her for a moment, stunned, before turning to a man standing behind Stefan and Elena​. "I believe you and I should talk." The stranger says, looking at Nyx.

"And who the hell are you?" She asks, looking at the man dressed in a nice suit.

"I'm Elijah. Niklaus is my brother." The original tells her. "And I may have a way to save your life."

"How?"

"With a magical potion that's centuries old." Damon says, anger evident in his voice. "It's crap."

"It sounds like a chance for hope, if you ask me." Nyx argues. "Five seconds ago I thought I was just going to be dead."

"There is a chance it may not work. I don't want to mislead you." Elijah says, and she turns back to him.

"I take it and there's a chance I survive the sacrifice. I run and it's definite that everyone​ I love dies." She says. "Right?"

"I'm afraid so. Yes." He nods.

"Then I don't really see any choice here. I'll take this...potion."

"Elixir."

"I'll take the elixir."

"Nycole..." Jenna shakes her head, her voice weak, and her niece looks at her.

"How are you doing?" Nyx asks as she walks over to her.

"Are you sure about this?" She asks. "I mean, how can you— I— I can't imagine—"

"I'm fine." Nyx says before hugging her aunt. Elena makes her way over to them then, and her sister quickly pulls her into the hug as well.

Damon goes upstairs, and Nyx sighs as she pulls away from them. "I'll be back." She says, and they both nod.

Nycole goes upstairs, feeling like she should talk to Damon since the two of them have been on better terms more recently. She finds him in his bedroom.

"I don't want to hear anymore." He tells her.

"I know. And I'm not going to argue with you about it." She says. "I just wanted to thank you."

"For what?" He questions as he turns around to face her.

"For everything that you've done good." She says. "And I do mean good. Even when I didn't agree. You've been there when I needed it, even when I didn't want it. And you've helped protect Elena. You can't do any better than that by me."

"You believe that so much that you're willing to die so she won't?"

"I'm willing to die so that all of you won't." She tells him. "But Elijah's​ giving me a fighting chance at survival here."

"This elixir isn't going to work. You're going to die, Nycole." He argues as he walks over to her.

"I don't believe that. I choose to believe that he can help me." She says. "Come on, take another leap of faith with me."

"It's not you I'd be putting my faith in, it's him. And I don't trust Elijah."

"I trust Elena, and she trusts him. That's enough for me." She says as she puts her hand on his arm. "It's my life, Damon. And it's my choice. I choose to save you."

"And I choose to save you." He says and then he bites his wrist.

"No! Damon, no!" She tries to get away from him, but he grabs her and puts his wrist to her mouth. He forces her to drink his blood, and he's too strong for her effectively fight back.

She continues struggling, trying to get out of his hold, and then he's suddenly gone. She falls to the floor when he's no longer holding onto her.

"What did you do?" Stefan questions, and Nyx turns to look up at him. "What did you do?!" He yells at his brother as he kneels down beside her; she has her hand pressed to her lips.

"I saved her life." Damon says as Stefan helps her back to her feet. "You're so bent on dying, at least this way I know you'll come back."

"As a vampire." He says, his anger growing. Stefan has his hands on either side of her face as he looks at the blood around her mouth, and Elena runs in with Jenna, Ric, Dean, and Sam right behind her. "She'll come back as a vampire." He lets go of her and turns to face his brother, keeping himself between Damon and Nycole.

"Nycole..." Elena walks over to her sister as she wipes Damon's blood from her mouth.

"It's better than nothing else." Damon argues as she turns to her sister with tears in her eyes.

"How could you, of all people, take that choice away from her?" Stefan questions.

"Go ahead, wish me an eternity of misery." Damon says as Nyx looks back at him with dark, glassy eyes. "Believe me, you'll get over it."

Stefan attacks Damon then, and she quickly pushes her way out of the room. Nyx goes into a bathroom down the hall and rinses her mouth out, but it doesn't matter. His blood is already in her system.

"Nycole?" Dean walks in, and she looks at her reflection in the mirror.

Her eyes land on the silver locket around her neck and she looks down at it. "I guess I won't be needing this anymore." She scoffs.

"Are you alright?" He asks, and she turns to look at him. She sees Damon walk by and runs out and down the stairs to go after him.

"Damon!" She yells, and he looks at her.

"What?" He's angry.

"You didn't change anything. All you did was give me more time to say goodbye." She tells him. "When I wake up in transition, I won't turn. That's my choice, and you can't change it."

He turns around and walks away from her. Dean places his hand on her shoulder and she turns to him. He then rests his hand on the side of her face and wipes some of the tears away. He pulls her to him and she rests her head on his chest as he wraps his arms tightly around her.

"Nycole." Stefan calls from down the hallway, and they both turn to him. "I'll make sure the transition goes your way. I won't let him take this choice from you too."

"Why don't you two get out of here?" Ric says as he walks up behind Stefan.

"Yeah." She nods, and she and Dean leave.

—

"Nycole?" John walks​ up behind her, earning her attention.

She turns around and looks at him. They're in the square, she asked him to meet her here so that she could talk to him. This could be her last chance to talk to him, and she doesn't want to die with their last conversation being their last conversation.

"Hey."

"I was glad when you called." He says.

"Really?" She asks, and he nods.

"I wanted to apologize for what happened the last time we spoke, and for what happened with Isobel. I had no idea she was going to do any of those things." He tells her.

"Which ones? Tell Klaus exactly where me and Elena are? Or kill herself while she was standing right in front of us?"

"All of it."

"It's done, John. I'll deal with the aftermath, just like I always do." She says.

"I know you don't see it, but everything that I have ever done has been for​ you and your sister." He says, and she scoffs as she looks away from him for a second.

"How?" She questions.

"I was only sixteen, so I gave you parents who could actually raise you. They gave you a better life than I ever could have. And I wanted those tomb vampires dead so that they couldn't spread word that Katherine was alive and draw Klaus to Mystic Falls. I was going to let Stefan and Damon die because you and Elena deserve better than two vampires. That's the same reason I gave Damon the dagger." He says. "And with Isobel — I was trying to protect you from Klaus."

She wipes the tears from her cheeks as she listens to him. "Well, you did a bang up job." She mutters. "But I don't have it in me to be angry with you anymore, John. You're the only parent that I have left."

"I'm so sorry, Nycole."

"I forgive you, John. I forgive you for lying about who you are to us for seventeen years. I forgive you for telling me that I'd be disappointing my parents by living the life that I am. I forgive you for your misplaced trust in Isobel that has left me completely and utterly screwed to hell." She tells him. "I forgive you...because I can't hate you anymore. And I can't hate you because somehow I love you."

"I love you too, Nycole. I really hope you know that." He says. "And for the record, your parents would be proud of the woman you've become."

"You really think so?"

"I know so." He nods, and she smiles as she wipes away more tears.

"Thank you." She says, and he smiles at her.

She spends the rest of day with Dean, and neither one of them really says much. The pair simply enjoy each other's company and the feel of their hands holding the others. They seem to fit so well together — perfectly.

Once it gets dark out, the two head back to the Boarding House to wait for what's to come. Dean grabs her hand when they get out of the car, and she turns to look at him.

"I'm going to find a way to save you." He says. "You and Sam saved me. There has to be a way to save you too."

"Just don't get your hopes up on something that might not work." She tells him.

"I can't make any promises." He says, and she smirks.

"That sounds about right." She nods.

"Nyx." Sam walks out of the house then and they turn to him.

"Hey." She smiles as she walks over and hugs him. He wraps his arms around her and when she pulls away from him, she sees tears in his eyes.

"I'm really gonna miss you." He says, and she smiles.

"I'm​ gonna miss you too, Sammy." She says, and he laughs​. "Take care of Dean for me. Or I'll haunt both your asses."

He chokes out a laugh, he knows that she's only saying that because it's what his brother said to them when he was in the hospital. "I will." He says.

"You know, I'm actually gonna miss this stupid car too." She says and as she looks between the boys, and they both laugh.

"Well, isn't this a beautiful moment?" Klaus says from behind her, and she immediately turns around to face him.

"So, this is him?" Dean questions, looking at the man with the British accent.

"You ready, my dear?" Klaus asks Nycole.

"No. But I'll go." She takes a step toward him, and Dean grabs her arm.

"Please." Dean begs, and she turns back to him.

"Hey, look at me." She rests her hand on his cheek as her other finds his own hand. She intertwines their fingers as he looks down at her.

"Nyx..."

"I'm okay. I promise you, I'm okay." She tells him, and tears fill his eyes. "These last ten months have been some of the happiest that I've ever known. My life with you has been the most eye-opening, terrifying, real thing that I have ever experienced. You've changed me in ways that I never knew were possible, and you... You taught me to be stronger, and how to use that strength to help other people. I can never thank you enough for being exactly what I needed. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me." She tells him.

There's this huge part of her that wants to tell him that she loves him, but as she looks into his eyes — his sad green eyes... She knows that that would only hurt him even more. So, instead, she pushes herself up onto her tippy-toes and presses a soft kiss to his cheek, and her lips lightly brush the corner of his.

"Goodbye, Dean." Nycole whispers.

Her eyes flicker to Sam, and he rests his hand on his brother's shoulder. Dean turns to look at him as she takes a step back, her hand slipping from his. And she's gone when he turns back.