The Newest Salvatore

Chapter 69

"Otti?"

The voice sounded tired and strained, and Ottilie tried her hardest to follow it so that she could try and comfort its owner.

"Otti, can you hear me? Open your eyes, sweetheart."

She could feel a hand holding her own, stroking the back of it softly. She tried again to open her eyes, fighting against the inky blackness that she was wallowing in.

It must have had some effect, as a different voice spoke, this time laced with some hope.

"That's it, baby, come back now."

Ottilie managed to prise her eyes open, feeling like they were superglued together. The first thing she saw as she gazed up from where she was lying were the tired, yet ever dazzling blue eyes of her father.

Everything came rushing back to her and she burst into tears.

Damon felt his heart breaking all over again at the sight of his daughter crying, and as quickly and gently as he could, he gathered her into his arms, holding her close to him so that he could feel the comforting thud of her heart against his chest.

"I'm so sorry," she was sobbing. "I'm so, so sorry."

He rocked her gently backwards and forwards, trying to sooth her and prevent another attack as the sobs wracked her frail body.

"Sshh, little Otter, it's okay. Take some deep breaths for me, alright?"

He could feel her trying, and kept up the encouragement, looking worriedly at his brother who was gently stroking Ottilies back.

Eventually, Ottilie calmed and stayed exhausted in her father's embrace, the tears falling silently.

"I'm so sorry, Dad," she whispered, whilst Damon, unseen by his daughter, frowned in confusion at Stefan.

"Why are you sorry, sweetheart?" Asked Damon, trying to prise her arms from around his neck so that he could look at her.

"I ruined your wedding," she said, sorrowfully. "Wheres Lexi? I need to go and say sorry, she must hate me."

She looked so forlorn that Damon suddenly felt like laughing, the idea of Lexi ever hating Ottilie was so ridiculous. The young girl made a move to get out of bed before she was quickly stopped by Damon.

"Oh no you don't," he said sternly. "You get right back into bed, and you will stay there until Jo tells you otherwise. Understand?"

She nodded meekly, falling back into the pillows.

"You didn't ruin the wedding, Ottilie, and Lexi certainly doesn't hate you!" He added.

Ottilie looked unconvinced. "It was almost perfect until I ruined it... I saw Kai and he did something to take my magic so I couldn't control my heart anymore..."

"Kai was there?!" Stefan asked, sharply, wondering how on earth he had snuck in without anyone noticing.

Ottilie nodded glumly. "Did he hurt anyone else?" She asked, suddenly worried again.

"No, no," Damon reassured her quickly in a bid to keep her calm. "Everyone else is fine. Most of the guests had gone home by then anyway."

Ottilie sighed a little in relief, and felt her eyelids starting to droop.

Damon, noticing, gently kissed her forehead. "Get some more sleep, little lady, I'll make some food for when you wake up, okay?"

She barely managed to nod as she was already drifting off. Damon and Stefan crept from the room to tell the rest of the worried group downstairs that Ottilie had finally woken up.

Entering the kitchen, they saw Klaus standing with Elijah, who still looked very strained and tired. Rebekah was with Kol whilst Lexi, Bonnie, Caroline, Alaric and Jo were huddled together in a corner, talking in hushed voices. They had all been staying in the Salvatore mansion since the wedding 48 hours before, anxious for news on Ottilie. They all looked up as the brothers entered the room.

"She woke up," said Damon, smiling weakly at them. The groups worried faces were immediately replaced with ones of relief. Alaric smiled down at Jo proudly, remembering how she'd saved Ottilies life. Elijah looked like he was on the verge of passing out, and Klaus clapped him on the shoulder. The relief in the room was evident, and Damon smiled around at the people he now classed as family, grateful to have them in his life.

"How does she seem?" Asked Elijah, his voice wavering a little.

"She said that Kai had somehow snuck into the wedding, and that he'd siphoned her magic so that she couldn't use it to control her condition." Said Stefan. "But she's okay, just very tired, I think. She was worried that Kai might have hurt someone else, and very concerned that she'd ruined the wedding." He smiled at Lexi who returned it, albeit sadly at the thought thought Ottilie blaming herself for what had happened.

"She's sleeping again now," said Damon. "Maybe when she wakes, Jo, you could take a look at her, if you don't mind?"

Jo nodded readily, happy as always to take care of Ottilie. "She'll need something to eat," she said pointedly at Damon.

"Already on it," he smirked, opening the fridge to get the ingredients out.

The Mikaelsons and Bonnie went home, reassured that the news about Ottilie was good, and Lexi went to telephone Greg's parents to let him know.

Meanwhile, Damon cooked up Ottilie's favourite pasta dish, hoping that the carby meal would give her some strength. He and Lexi took it up on a tray, and Lexi knocked gently on the door, not wanting to scare Ottilie.

"Food delivery," Damon called gently, hoping to make her smile.

Entering the room, they found Ottilie gazing sleepily at them, trying to sit up in bed.

Damon handed the tray to Lexi and went over to help his daughter. "Oopsy daisy," he said, lifting her up so that she was seated more comfortably, and arranged the pillows behind her.

Her face lit up at the sight of the pasta, and he chuckled, ruffling her hair. "Dig in, sweetheart. You must be starving!"

Ottilie took the tray gratefully and started loading her fork with pasta. "How long was I out for?" She asked.

"About a day and a half," replied Lexi, pulling up a chair to sit next to Ottilie, whilst Damon perched on the bed.

Ottilie suddenly put down her fork, looking guiltily at Lexi. "I'm so sorry for ruining your wedding, Lexi," she said quietly. "I feel terrible- you must hate me. How can I ever make it up to you?"

Lexi took the young girls hand. "You didn't ruin it, sweetie, I promise. What happened wasn't your fault, and I would never blame you for it. The only way you could have ruined my wedding is if you died. But you lived, and that was the greatest wedding gift I could have asked for."

Ottilie smiled tearfully, "thank you," she whispered.

"Now start eating!" Ordered Damon, breaking the tension and making the girls laugh.

15 minutes later and Ottilie was starting nod off, so Damon and Lexi decided to leave her to it.

Exiting the room, they both just about caught Ottilies words, so quiet they almost missed them.

"Love you, Dad. Love you, Mom."