Chapter Seventy-Nine

                                    

                                          
To take his mind off of the wait for Cassandra, Damon wanders around with a drink in his hand, trying to get a read on these people and what this game is. Other than Esther wanting to talk to the girls there has to be something that the Originals want. To invite the whole town to a party. He fears it means they are planning on sticking around and that feels like it would be exhausting having to deal with them every single day. Dealing with a risk like that every single day. He's sure they are not just going to let them stick it out here, not if they are considered enemies. He wouldn't. He grabs a champagne flute from a passing waiter's tray before he heads towards where Carol Lockwood is standing.
"Hello, Carol" Damon greets as he hands her a glass of champagne.
"Hello" She counters taking it from him.
"Hanging out with your new besties?" He asks as he takes a drink from his own glass. He's a little annoyed actually, that he seems to be losing allies in town, on the council.
"I'm the mayor, Damon" Carol points out. "When the oldest, deadliest, family of vampires moves into your town, you welcome them with a smile"
"Hmm, Well at least you know who you're borrowing that cup of sugar from"
"I'm trying to protect this town. They've assured me they want peace, and I've assured them that I'd enforce it" She tells him, but there is a warning to her tone. She doesn't want trouble, and if it comes down to it, she will side with them and not him. Damon clenches his jaw in annoyance at that thought. That this is his home, Cassandra's home, and Carol and the council will turn on them and stand with dangerous outsiders. Kol Mikaelson approaches the two of them, completely ignoring Damon, instead giving his whole attention to Carol. He takes her hand and kisses the back of it in greeting.
"Mayor Lockwood. We haven't formally met" He starts and then leans up. "Kol Mikaelson" He introduces himself. "I hope your lovely town embraces us just as much as we plan to embrace it" Damon holds out his hand to shake Kol's hand.
"Damon Salvatore. Have we met?" Kol doesn't shake his hand, instead gives him a dry smirk.
"I've met a lot of people. And you don't particularly stand out....." Kol draws off as he spots something over Damon's shoulder. Damon scoffs and then turns to see what has stolen his gaze, but he himself is drawn in by what he sees. Cassandra. Damon lets out a breath as he takes her in. The way that the dress fits on her, the way it shifts as she steps down from the entrance to the main floor. Kol takes a step as if to approach her, but stops when Damon moves, ignoring everything and everyone else to reach her. She smiles warmly at him as he stops in front of her, his fingers touching her arm before he pulls his hand away again. Just in case. She steps closer to him.
"Have you seen him?" She whispers.
"Mmm-hmm" He nods and glances over his shoulder at Kol who is watching the two of them intently. Cassandra peers around him to look too. They both know how important Kol is to Ally, they know that she is around and waiting. This might just win them some brownie points with Kol and that might just be enough for him to back off for a while. Maybe. Fingers crossed. Damon turns back to her. "What about....?" He asks her.
"On the way" She assures him, patting his chest. "Get me drunk" She adds. "Might make this more bearable" He smirks and nods. That he is more than ready to help her with. Drinking is the only thing that might just get them through the night. He offers her his arm and she takes it, settling at his side as he escorts her into the party. Both of them are aware of Kol's eyes glued to Cassandra. It was bound to happen. She looks exactly like his lost love. Damon understands that so he's trying not to run over there and gauge Kol's eyes out over the look.
......
Elena and Stefan arrived after Cassandra, they'd spent some time out the front talking. Cassandra didn't want to listen, that's their business and honestly, she didn't care to pay attention to their relationship. If she expects Elena to stay out of her relationship with Damon, then she has to give the same to her relationship with Stefan. Cassandra takes the drink offered to her by Damon, the two of them tucked away from the crowds of the party, just wanting to keep to themselves whilst this all goes on. Neither really wants to be here but that's more to do with the host than the fact it's a party. There is a hush that suddenly descends. Damon raises an eyebrow and looks around to find out why. Ally, standing in the doorway just as Cassandra had before. The black dress is a stark contrast to Cassandra's deep red. Damon kisses Cassandra's head as both sets of eyes seek out Kol for his reaction to this. His back is to the door so he hasn't seen her yet. Elijah, in front of Kol, has seen her and he nudges his brother around to face his long-lost love. Kol's eyes widen instantly and before anyone can even blink, he is moving towards her. Ally smiles seeing him and moves herself, not caring for anyone else around her, just him. Both of them sink into one another when they meet. Kol holds her tightly to him, his eyes wrenched closed as he curls his hands around her back. Ally wraps her arms around his neck and sighs into the hold. There is a burst of relief that seems to fill the entire room. Damon curls his arm around Cassandra as they both watch a reunion 308 years in the making. They'd spent more time apart than they had together. And Ally spent a lot of that in a deep dark hole with nothing but her memories of him. Cassandra can't begin to imagine what this much feel like for Ally. She glances at Damon at her side. She doesn't know what she would do if she lost Damon. That bond makes being apart so hard even just if he's in the next room, let alone being separated the way Kol and Ally were. Damon seems to sense her eyes on him and he looks down at her at his side. The two of them share a look before he leans forward and presses his forehead to hers, closing his eyes. Because he knows. He knows what is going through her head right now. He leans back and strokes her chin before he glances back over at Ally who glances back over at him. Damon and Ally share a look. Something so peaceful now on the older woman's face. Something more whole and...well sane. Something more settled. Ally nods her head as she takes Kol's hand, his eyes never straying from her face. It's been a long, long, long time since they've seen one another, more than a lifetimes worth. The two of them walk away from the crowd, heading outside. They're not leaving, but they are taking a moment to themselves. It is such a public place for a reunion, and they have more than 300 years of catching up to do.