𝐀𝐒 𝐈𝐓 𝐖𝐀𝐒 ༄ 𝗦. 𝗦𝗔𝗟𝗩𝗔𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗘 ²︎

𝘧𝘪𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯

¹︎⁵︎

[season four || episode fifteen]
Stand By Me

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amaranthine:
(adj.) undying, immortal;
eternally beautiful

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Lungs suddenly rejecting air, Madeline felt as if the world beneath her began crumbling. A hand squeezed around her heart, transmitting pangs of inconceivable pain.

"No, no, no, no." she sobbed, disregarding the ache in her neck. She was beside her brother in a second, cupping his face. "Pietro, please don't do this to me." Scanning his body for injuries, she spotted his broken neck and a mark left by Katherine Pierce. She lifted his head onto her lap, begging him to wake up. Almost everything had been taken from her grasp. Pietro, Elena, and Jer were the last family she had left. Even with the losses she suffered, nothing seemed to be enough.

Body trembling, she struggled to breathe until Stefan sat next to her, engulfing her in a hug. "Stefan." she cried, incapable of saying anything other than his name. Her cries were the most painful sounds Stefan had ever heard, drilling into his heart and mind.

"I know," he whispered, cradling her head. "I know, Leine."

Pivoting her head to face her deceased brother, she could feel the boiling rage surface. She fought to keep a wave of power from being unleashed.

Her hand grazed her brother's arm, specifically the tear in his sleeve.

A chuckle of disbelief was emitted past her lips. The wave of power that threatened to detonate diminished. She smiled, knowing her brother would return. "He's going to be okay. He's going to be okay. You're going to be okay, Pietro."

"What are you talking about?" Stefan asked, confused.

"I fed him my blood, Stef," Madeline said, determined to stay by her brother's side until he awoke. "He's going to be okay." She wore a smile of relied beyond imaginable.

Gently wiping off the tears that stained her face, Stefan whispered, "Thank god." There was a moment of silence, allowing them to simply be thankful in each other's arms.

"Go after Katherine. She can't get the cure." Madeline sniffled, grabbing his hand. She already sensed his response.

He shook his head. "I can't just leave you, Leine. What if she comes back and — god forbid — does something to you?"

"Stefan," she said, understanding his hysteria. Giving his hand a comforting squeeze, she smiled reassuringly. "We'll be fine. Go get the cure, okay? I am not leaving him."

"Okay, fine. Be careful. You see any movement, you attack, got it?" Stefan declared. In all his lifetimes, Stefan never loved anyone as much as he loved Madeline. Sometimes the love he had for her scared him. He would do anything to keep her safe, and that was the most terrifying part. If he had to, he would hurt every single person on earth to keep her by his side. He wasn't usually thirsty for chaos, but if Maddie was suddenly ripped from his life, he wouldn't waste a second to unleash whatever insanity lingered within him.

"Got it, Mr. Salvatore." She pressed a kiss onto his lips before he ventured to find the brunette doppelganger, leaving her alone with her brother in her arms. Despite how much she wished to help Stefan, she refused to let her brother be alone when he awoke. Still feeling the fear of losing him, she did her best to control her breathing, praying she would hear his voice again.

Without her brother, she didn't know who she was. Vampirism wasn't for everyone, but Maddie was determined to help him survive.

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