He came back looking disappointed, getting into the driver's seat, "It wouldn't burn, damn magical protection."
"Is that a problem?" Asked Sage.
"No, I just wanted to watch it burn," said Finn sadly.
"There's always next time," said Sage, amusedly.
"Yeah," he sighed.
"Speaking of, I have something for you. Ah, wait. I need to do this properly," said Finn, hopping back out, speeding over to the passenger side, and opening the door.
"I know this isn't the most romantic place, but I figured I'd make it official; You've waited more than long enough," said Finn, getting down on one knee and taking out the fancy silver ring with his name on it.
Gasping, her hands shot to her mouth, completely astonished.
"Sage, I love you; will you forever be mine, as you always have been?" asked Finn, showing the matching ring already on his finger, which had her name on it.
"Yes! A thousand times yes! I love you, Finn!" she exclaimed, tears of happiness glistening in her eyes as he slid the ring onto her finger, sealing the moment with a passionate kiss.
Falling over as she practically jumped him enthusiastically, enjoying the moment she never thought would come.
"Glad, you, approve," said Finn between kisses, "But we really need to get going, so much to do, so little time," curbing her enthusiasm.
"Fine, but tonight you're not sleeping," said Sage, subdued.
He grinned, "Wasn't planning on it."
Slipping back into the driver's seat, they headed for Mystic Falls.
Still overwhelmed by emotions, she leans over to undo his pants.
"Whoa, what are you, oh, oh," he groaned as she took him into her mouth.
Minutes later, hearing sirens, she began to come up when he pushed her head back down, "Don't stop now," he breathed, enjoying the feeling of her lips and tongue.
Deciding to pull over, not wanting this to turn into a big chase. He rolls the window down and leans his head back, eyes closed, as she works him.
The cop walks over, knocking on the side. "Did you have a little too much to drink? You were swerving all over the… Oh," says the cop, finally noticing what is happening.
"Tell you what I'll do. Have your girl do me one and I won't bring you in on DUI charges," said the officer with a nasty grin.
Opening his eyes, he looked at the officer, pushing Sage back down, "BJ and a meal, you shouldn't have," said Finn, pulling the confused officer in by the shirt and chomping down on his neck.
Meeting both his needs at once, he wasn't the only one receiving a meal, as Sage also began to swallow.
The cop's cries going unanswered by the passing motorists, who briefly glanced at the unusual view of the cop leaning halfway in with legs occasionally flailing before falling flat.
"I know you just ate, but can I interest you in another?" Finn teased, offering her the cop when she finished with him, tucking him safely back into his pants.
Sage grinned, "Sure," she said, taking a wrist.
Finished, he pushed the body out and drove off.
"We'll need to switch cars now," said Sage, seeing multiple cars stop behind them to check on the cop.
"Yeah, okay," said Finn.
"By the way, I thought you stopped eating humans, " Sage said with a sly grin, though they agreed he was fine with her eating evil humans.
"Depends how you define it I suppose," said Finn, though he didn't intend to justify it. Eating humans carries an addictive risk of possibly being unwilling to go back to a vampire-only diet. He chopped it up to being in the heat of the moment, and the cop should never have brought Sage into the mix if the fool wished to live.
"And it's not like I'm against eating evil humans myself, I just don't want to grow addicted and find myself eating whoever, whenever, like some sort of evil bastard of an animal. I prefer to start my diet with vampires who I know deserve it and then work my way down the list," he said. Vampires, after all, are just another version of a human in the end.
"Makes sense, I guess," said Sage.
Switching cars, they carried on their way.
Nearing his destination, he pulls out his phone and calls Eva.
"Go for Eva."
"Heya Eva, it's Finn."
"Heya Finn."
"Are they still at the same place?"
"Yep."
"Alright, thanks, I'll call you if I need ya."
"Okie dokie."
"Could you guys be any cuter?" Sage teased.
"She's fun, it's a shame she got stuck with such a dull bunch, and don't even get me started on her sister with a stick so far up her ass it's coming out of her mouth. Probably why she's always frowning, due to the constant smell," said Finn.
Sage gave him a baffled look at his unique phrasing. It was at times like this that she realized how much he's truly changed, though thankfully, the core of who he is was still there, even if it was a bit cracked.
In Mystic Falls, he drives up to Klaus's mansion, clocking the hybrid guards patrolling.
"I don't think they're home," said Sage.
Finn agreed, "Yeah, Klaus would never have the hybrids patrolling the place if they were."
"Hybrids, a first generation. It'd be annoying if they could make more. This might be tough, they'll likely be stronger than you, possibly as strong as me, an Original… Think you can handle it, or will you stay here?" asked Finn.
"What little training we've done has greatly helped. I can do this," she said resolutely, not wanting to be left behind. Not doubting for a minute that he would face them all alone and come out victorious with or without her, but she wanted more than anything for it to always be with him.
"The question is, when will they be back?" Sage said, changing the subject. Separating was no longer an option for her, and she wouldn't allow it to happen again while she lived.
"Then we'd better get going," said Finn, opening the car door.
"And don't forget about their bite," he reminded.
Right, the bite. Something else to worry about while fighting, Sage thought, thoroughly irritated. She hadn't felt this weak since the day they took him from her.
"Wait until I start, when all their attention is on me, then you can join in and ambush them from behind," said Finn, glancing at her.
Receiving a nod, he blurs into the building, crashing through the door. Alerting the dozen or so hybrids walking around the premises that he was there.
Chuckling at how the scheming bastard didn't protect his dwelling beyond that of hybrids.
Running through the house he takes out the first one he sees blocking his path with a series of quick hits, each more devastating than the last as his fists tore through the poor sod's flesh.
A couple more showed up with one of them crying out, "No, Derek! Fuck!"
Then two more behind them, chasing him down as he made a break for it, leading them away from the front, towards the billiards room.
"Surround him, don't let him escape," ordered one as Finn engaged another of them in combat inside the room.
Three of them circled the pool table, two to his back, one to his front to join the one currently engaged while the leader watched, given the limited space. Finn kicked the legs out from under the one he was facing and smashed his head into the edge of the pool table, splitting it open, killing him.
"Trevor! Damnit, kill the fucker!" ordered the leader.
Closing the gap towards the single foe that arrived too late to help, Finn blocks a couple of strikes before grabbing the head and delivering a devastating knee strike, obliterating it, popping it like a watermelon with a sledgehammer.
"Garrett!" cried the female, throwing a strike at his exposed back.
Spinning around in time to catch her fist, Finn twisted it until the bone cracked. Releasing it when her companion came to the rescue, wildly attacking, forcing him to back off, nearly tripping over the two bodies behind him.
"Are you okay?" asked the burly gentleman to the female.
"I'm fine, just get him already," the annoyed female growled.
"Don't just swing at him, bite him!" yelled the leader. Deciding to take matters into his own hands, he sprang over the pool table on all fours like an animal, tackling Finn into the wall, teeth barred.
Grabbing one of the nearby hanging pool cues, Finn broke the tip off and plunged it into the side of his face, driving it through his cheeks, which prevented him from biting down, causing him to stagger backward and release a painful whine as he was thrown off.
Finn ducked as the burly gentleman's fist flew at him, putting a hole in the wall. Shooting to his feet, Finn grabbed him by the neck and choked and slammed him, ripping out his throat as he was tackled from the side by a new foe.
Tumbling over their leader, who just got the pool cue out of his cheeks and right under the female, who had another cue poised over him, stabbing downwards.
Pulling the one who tackled him in the way, the man cried out at being stabbed in the back.
She winced, "Fuck! Sorry!"
Finn chuckled as he snapped his neck and then reached over to snap her ankle, dropping her painfully, before rolling him off.
Then the leader was there, teeth out, lunging at him. A quick heel kick to the face ended that, allowing Finn to swiftly rise to his feet as four more showed up.
"There sure are a lot of you. Can we talk about this?" asked Finn, grabbing a couple of pool balls.
"You must be Finn Mikaelson, surrender now!" ordered one.
"Come now, this is a playroom, so, let's play!" shouted Finn, throwing the two balls one after the other in a blur of motion. Each going through the chest of one of them, right through the heart, instantly dropping them.
"You'll Pay For That!" one of them shouted, and they charged. One zoomed around to engage him while the other threw the billiards table out of the way, but not before Finn grabbed two more balls.
"Don't you mean play for that?" said Finn, chuckling at his terrible pun. Dodging their strikes as the previously wounded crawled out of the way to heal.
Seeing the previous leader looking to join, Finn tossed the ball in his left hand, smashing the leader's face, stopping him in his tracks as the unlucky fellow clasped it sorely for a third time.
Ducking a strike from the right, he stomped on the guy's foot on his left, crushing it, painfully dropping him to his knees. Pushing the one on his right away, he spun back around to his left and yelled, "Eight ball, center pocket," and slammed the eight ball with his right hand into the left guy's temple, embedding the black ball three-quarters deep, ending him.
"No! Brent! I swear I'll kill you if it's the last thing I do!" yelled the partner who was pushed away.
"I'm dying in anticipation," Finn cackled.
"Together! We need to face him together!" shouted the leader with the bloody face, rallying those still alive, minus the two who had his neck cracked, and throat torn open.
Finn let the three of them circle him since it had been easy thus far, giving them a chance while wondering where Sage was, as the female struck first.
Catching her arm, Finn pulled her into the leader's way, preventing him from acting as he kicked him through her, using momentum to send him flying. The female, otherwise unharmed, besides a ruined gut, engaged him again.
Putting an arm up to block a strike from behind to the side of his head. She managed to land a strike as he tried to fight them both awkwardly. Grunting as the man behind landed a follow-up body shot due to his distraction.
Maneuvering away and getting them both in sight, Finn blocked and dodged as the female and man ferociously came at him, often using them against each other as he enjoyed himself.
None of them were anywhere close to skilled enough to challenge him; he would be surprised if they had even a single lesson in fighting.
Seeing the leader come once more and the one with the torn neck all healed up, he decided to end things.
"Why don't you, stay, fucking, still!" growled the man as the equally frustrated female threw a wide kick.
Finn snorted, catching the kick and backhanding the man away, knocking out several teeth.
She threw a second kick with her remaining leg in an attempt to free herself, only for him to catch that too, and then with an ominous grin, Finn slammed her down before pulling the legs apart, nearly tearing her in half as the leg and part way up her torso was torn off, guts and blood spilling out everywhere as she unleashed an agonizing scream.
The leader ran at him in a blind fury, allowing Finn to easily sidestep, catch, lead, and throw him out into the hall, and with nimble footing, he sent the burly gentleman right after, sending them crashing into each other on the far wall.
Stomping on the head of the whaling female, putting her out of her misery, Finn turned his attention to the last one standing in the room, the one he had previously backhanded, already rushing at him.
Not wasting time, he tore his head off and stomped out the one with the broken neck.
Speeding out into the hall, he slammed into the two he threw out before they could recover, pinning them against the wall, one behind the other.
Hearing someone new, he looked around and spotted another two, arguing.
"Tyler, we have to go, we have to go now!" cried the female.
"We can't just leave them, Hayley, we were this close to freeing them," the male bemoaned.
"It's too late for them, shit, he's here, run Tyler, run!" shouted the female taking off out the back, with him close behind after sending Finn a hateful glare.
Punching a hole through both ones he had pinned, Finn contemplated chasing them before thinking of Sage and went to look for her.
He found her stuck in the foyer, standing over two bodies with hearts torn out, fighting a third.
She was on the back foot with a busted lip and torn clothes, struggling to finish him as she was pushed up against the wall.
A knee to the nads had him reeling, and she quickly ended things from there with a swift snap of the neck and tearing out his heart.
Finn clapped, "Beautifully done. You got three not bad, I was worried when you didn't show up."
After seeing her lip quiver, he asked, "What's wrong?" Wiping some of the blood off her beautifully marred face with his thumb.
"I've been bit," she said, showing her arm.
"That's a shame, you need more training, better luck next time. I for one am bite-free after taking out 10," Finn boasted.
"You! You Bastard!" shouted Sage angrily.
"Bastard? Where?" asked Finn, spinning around looking for him.
"Not him! I'm talking about you! I'm dying, and you don't even care. Are you that broken?" Sage asked sadly, feeling heartbroken.
"Stop being dramatic, you're not dying," said Finn.
"What are you talking about? I've been bitten by a werewolf Finn, I know what that means," said Sage bitterly.
"Off the top of my head, I can think of at least two cures, and you're wearing one of them, or did you already forget my proposal, and to think of how much effort I put into it," he joked.
"What?" asked Sage, glancing at the new ring on her finger. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"I could have sworn we already talked about this," said Finn, looking confused.
Experiencing Deja Vu, she took a breath, pinching the bridge of her nose. "This again? Tell me what's going on, Finn. What's the deal with the ring?" Sage asked exhaustedly.
"The ring links you to me, it'll protect you from any fatal strike for as long as I live, though it will weaken me until you get better, and I expect you'll likely have to deal with some weakness as well as the usual dizziness and hallucinations until it's worked out of your system from what my siblings tell me, so we better wrap things up here," said Finn.
"Oh," said Sage, and though her heart filled with warmth knowing he truly did care for her, she was still dazed by the bomb he laid on her. Unsure if she should be mad at him for forgetting to tell her, or happy at the amazing gift. She was going to go with both.
After collecting the last of the ash and setting the place on fire, they left for the Salvatore estate.
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