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How did Stefan end up getting dragged into saving Klaus of all people considering he should be running for his life still baffles him. But considering his life was in danger either way and according to all his friends he had a “hero complex” to save everyone, he shouldn’t be that surprised.
If it wasn’t for the damn mark Stefan would be happily with Caroline or in his home having a drink. Instead, his laying down besides someone he briefly remembers seeing around Mystic Falls what seemed like forever ago now, risking Rayna finding him all to save Elijah and Klaus and possibly his own life and that of Damon and Caroline since they are all sired to said Mikealson.
“Are we close?” Stefan broke the silence between them, turning his head slightly to look at Hayley. She looked at her phone, the screen producing a dimm light in the darkness of their surrounding. “A few more minutes” She said and swiped left on her phone, revealing a picture of a smiling baby.
“That’s a cute kid” Stefan smiled, the fact that Klaus had a kid still baffled him, but if Caroline could get babies syphoned to her even if Vampires can’t procreate, then a Hybrid being able to have kids shouldn’t be that surprising.
“Yea, she is” Hayley glanced at Stefan for a second before looking back at her phone, staring at the picture of her daughter. “If she the reason you’re here?” Stefan asked, if what little he knew, her and Klaus weren’t together and definitely didn’t love each other.
“In a trunk with a stranger, going into a fight we may not win?” Hayley shut her phone off and pocketed it, giving Stefan a slight smile. “She's not the only reason, but yeah” there was a moment of silence. “Maybe I just don't want her to grow up without a father” She admitted. “Guess that depends on the father…” Stefan hummed, conjuring Guiseppe in his mind. His probably one of the few people Stefan hates more than Klaus, maybe not Silas but close enough, the man did his damaged.
Hayley turned her head to look at him but Stefan kept staring forwards. “ I could have done without mine. If it weren't for my brother, I probably wouldn't have survived the guy” Stefan knew he had been favored by Guiseppe, but it din’t mean that he was safe from the abuse. If Stefan stepped out of the line Guiseppe would punish him until he was black and blue or bleeding. Damon tried to protect Stefan the best that he could throughout their humans life. (He couldn’t say childhood, technically Stefan never got to out grow his own and he barely even had one in the first place) but there was only so much his brother could do, it was one of the many things he was grateful about Damon.
“So, he stood up for you, and now you're risking your life for him?” Hayley asked, confusion in her tone. “Yeah, something like that” It was a lot more than that, but the entire story would take a lot more than the few minutes they have until they arrive. Damon sacrificed a lot for Stefan, he knew that, ever since they were children. Even if Damon wouldn’t admit it before, he gave up a lot of chances and opportunities for the happiness of that of Stefan, even when he pretended to hate him, Stefan is just finally repaying him for it all.
Hayley was quiet for a few seconds, her head turned slightly to the side as she pondered something in her mind. “You know, I never understood the brotherly bond until I met Klaus and Elijah” she began “They hurt each other more than anyone, but... They're vicious when it comes to each other”
Stefan almost found it ironic how much Elijah’s and Klaus relationship was like his and Damon, of course not to their extreme, the Salvatores family problems were nothing compared to the Mikealsons. At least Damon and Stefan could count on each other now, of what Stefan knows Elijah and Klaus are constantly either along side each other or against each other.
“I get it in someway, mine and Damon’s relationship was like that for a while” Stefan confessed to her, who turned her head to look at him again, curiosity written in her eyes. “The vampire who turned us split us up, we used to be really close before she came along” Stefan still hated Katherine with a burning passion, he doesn’t think he’ll ever be able forgive her.
“What happened?” Hayley asked. “My brother fell in love with her, she compelled me to love her, and we were suddenly at odds with each other. A lot of things happened but when we woke up in transition, we thought she was dead and were planning to die. But I…fed” Stefan would rather not mention that he murder his father after he tried to kill him again, he’s sure Hayley has seen a lot worse living with the Mikealsons, but it wasn’t one of my proudest moments.
“All my emotions were heightened, and I din’t want to be alone, so I forced Damon to turn as well. He was mad at me, promised me an eternity of misery, and for over a hundred years we were constantly against each other” Stefan din’t like thinking a lot about the past, not only for how distant him and Damon were but for how bloody his trail is, all his mistakes he wished he could take back.
“What changed?” “Well, no matter how much Damon said he hated me, or how much I tried to hate him, we couldn’t. We came back to Mystic Fall for different reasons, stayed for the same, and at some point we realized we couldn’t handle loosing each other, we still have our bumps but we’ve been closer than we have been for year” It was one of the many things Stefan was thankful for Elena for, she changed Damon in a way Stefan would have never been able to do alone.
There was a moment of silence. “I guess I’ll never understand siblings” she joked slightly, and it got a small laugh out of Stefan. “Not all siblings are like us or the Mikealson, I don’t think there is a family as messy and crazy as the Mikealson to be honest” Hayley laughed at that.
“So, who's on your homepage, huh?” She changed the topic, and Stefan chuckled as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, turning it on and passing it over to Hayley. The picture was of him and Damon, Caroline took when they hadn’t notice her. Damon sat on the sofa of their boarding house, a drink of most likely bourbon in his hand; Stefan was asleep against him, head resting on his shoulder. They had been watching a movie when Stefan fell asleep, Damon hadn’t bothered to wake him yet, just letting him sleep like that until the movie was over. It was one of the few peaceful moments they had in while when nothing was actively killing them.
“Ahh, the infamous Damon Salvatore” Hayley stated as he looked at the photo, a small grin on her face. “Think Klaus has said a few particular words about him” Stefan gave her an amused look as she handed him back his phone. “Well, Damon’s said a few words about Klaus as well” he pocketed his phone. “You’re both from Klaus’s sireline, Is he the reason you’re here?”
Stefan thought about it, Damon wasn’t the only reason, he had friends and his girlfriend as well. Caroline just became a mother and Damon and Him were getting their happy ending, not to mention all their friends who’d loose them if they din’t save Klaus. And if they did loose and Elena woke up to that….
“In a trunk with a stranger, going into a fight we may not win? I guess we both have our reasons” he smiled, the car was slowing down and Stefan was about to risk his life, even if they did save Klaus and Elijah, Stefan was still at risk with Rayna.
Stefan hopes it will all be worth it in the end…