Chapter 19: Carnival Rides

Jenna, Jeremy, Elena and I quickly walked out of the door as my phone started to ring. I grabbed it and answered without looking down at the Caller I.D. "Hello?" I asked, closing the front door behind us.

"Mariana? Where are you?" Bonnie asked in a worried tone from the phone and I sighed, walking down the porch.

"Bonnie, I know. I'm running late but we're just getting in the car. I'll be there in five." I reassured as I walked to the car and opened my door. "Don't worry. I'll be there." I added with a small smile before I hung up and got in the car, closing the door behind me.

~~~

"Looks like the whole town has turned out." Jenna informed as we walked up to the Lockwood mansion and I slowly nodded in agreement at all of the people.

"Yeah well he is—he was the mayor.." Elena replied in defeat as she dug through her purse for her phone.

"Why don't they save it for the funeral?" Jeremy asked in annoyance as he held the goodie basket.

"It's what people do. The Lockwood's were here for us when we went through this. It'll be quick. We'll drop off the fruit, pay our respects and go." Jenna reassured him with a smile as we walked up the steps, seeing the front doors that were wide open.

"In and out? Sounds like a plan." Jeremy nodded back at her in agreement. I rose an eyebrow and looked to the side of the porch where Damon stood, staring at me with a glass of bourbon in hand.

"I'll, uh, catch up with you guys soon, okay?" I asked with a reassuring smile and looked over at them. Jenna nodded back at me before walking inside with Elena and Jeremy as I walked over to Damon. "Hey.. How are you doing?" I asked, raising my eyebrow at him.

"Great, Mariana. Walking on sunshine. Thanks for asking." Damon replied sarcastically, making me sigh at him.

"Damon.." I stated, looking over his face carefully but he rolled his eyes.

"Mariana.." He mimicked in the same time of voice back at me and I crossed my arms over my chest.

"We should be able to talk about this, Damon. We're close enough now, aren't we? I really want to know how you're doing." I pointed out and watched as he looked away from me and drank from his glass.

"I kissed you. I thought you kissed back. Doppelgänger hijinks ensued. How do you think I'm doing?" Damon asked emotionlessly as he looked down at me in skepticism.

"I think that you're hurt." I answered and tilted my head back at him.

"Mmm, oh. I don't get hurt, Mariana." Damon protested, smirking in response but I rolled my eyes.

"No, you don't admit that you get hurt. You get angry and cover it up and then do something stupid." I corrected with a small scoff before I looked away from him.

"You're scared." Damon informed, looking down at me with a small smirk and I furrowed my eyebrows. "You think Katherine's gonna send me off the deep end, don't you?—I don't need her for that." He stated, shaking his head in annoyance and walking past me, brushing against my shoulder as he did. "You know, why—why is it such a surprise that I would kiss you?" Damon asked and we turned back to each other. I stated back at him in silence, looking into his blue eyes before I sighed and looked away.

"Because I'm not Katherine." I answered emotionlessly and walked inside. I avoided the amount of people and moved down the halls curiously, trying to find a quiet room to drown my sorrows in. I walked into Mayor Lockwood's study that looked completely empty. I was about to close the doors behind me so no one else would come in, but I saw Tyler sitting on the couch across from me, drinking from a flask. "Hey.." I whispered, making him look up at me in confusion before his eyes softened. He looked back down at the flask in his hand and I sighed, turning around and closing the door behind me. "I-I'm sorry about your dad, Ty." I stated and turned back to him, watching him slowly nod and look back at me.

"You know, today's been a day full of sorry's from people who really don't give a crap." Tyler admitted skeptically and I sighed, slowly nodding.

"I remember when my dad died, I had a house full of strangers telling me what a great guy he was." I informed quietly as Tyler looked down at the flask in silence. "I-I know how hard all of this is, Tyler." I added, shaking my head in reassurance.

"Difference is, in your case, it was true." Tyler countered emotionlessly before looking back up at me. "My dad was a dick." He pointed out in some anger before drinking from the flask again and I slowly nodded.

"Yeah, yeah, he was." I agreed softly and Tyler eyed me carefully before gesturing down at the flask.

"I found this in his desk." He stated, handing the flask to me and I rose my eyebrow down at it. "He won't mind, he's dead." Tyler added sarcastically and I sighed at him as I leant against his father's desk that stood behind me.

"Hey, what's going on in here, Ty?" A voice asked, opening the doors to the room and coming in. I rose and eyebrow and looked at who who it was before I felt my eyes widen.

"Mason?" I asked in disbelief and smiled widely at him from where he stood in front of me.

"Mariana Gilbert? That can't be you." Mason replied in some shock and amusement a he looked me up and down, making me chuckle and quickly hug him. "God, you've gotten bigger, huh?" He asked, eyeing me and I shrugged as we pulled away.

"Well, Ty and I were both fourteen the last time you came home." I pointed out, looking at Tyler who watched us in silence before back at Mason, who noticed the flask he was holding. Tyler stared back at Mason in silence, waiting for him to say something but he just gestured for it. Tyler sighed and handed the flask over to him before Mason took a swig of it, not saying anything. Tyler and I exchanged a confused look, letting silence fell over the three of us before Mason handed the flask back over to Tyler, making him smirk.

~~~~

I folded my arms over my chest while Elena wiped the blood off of Stefan's stomach with a small towel from where he sat on a bench, outside of the Lockwood estate. "Are you gonna be okay?" I asked, looking down at him skeptically.

"Yeah. It'll heal." Stefan answered quietly as he looked down at the wound and I rolled my eyes.

"That not what I meant." I countered softly and he slowly nodded back up at me.

"I was trying to figure her out. I was playing along.. I let her get to me." Stefan stated in disappointment at himself as he talked about Katherine, and I slowly nodded as I listened intently before Damon came over to us.

"Tried to track her but she's gone. Ooh—cover up, Fabio. We got a crazy ex on the loose." He stated sarcastically, looking away from Stefan as Elena pulled his shirt down. "Better watch out, looks like Katherine's trying to steal your guy." Damon added with a smirk and she furrowed her eyebrows before looking away from him.

"That's not what's happening." Stefan replied quietly and looked away from us, making me raise an eyebrow while Elena's face fell.

"Isn't it?" Damon countered, shaking his head and Stefan looked back up at him.

"Katherine's going to try to play us against each other, you do know that, right?" Stefan asked in annoyance and sat up toward him.

"Brother, don't you worry. Our bond is unbreakable." Damon stated in amusement, making Stefan stand up from the bench while Elena and I rose an eyebrow.

"We need to say united against her. Look—I'm not going to let Katherine come in here and destroy the part of you that is finally, after all of this time, willing to feel something." He added, shaking his head at Damon who looked at me for a few seconds, before looking away and avoiding my eye contact again. "She'll try to break you. She'll try to break us. And how we respond to that will define us. It's our choice, Damon." Stefan pointed out in defeat. I watched in silence as Damon stared back at him for a few seconds before he looked away in defeat.

~~~

"Thank you so much for coming and staying after to help clean up, Mariana. It means a lot." Carol stated with a small smile as we stood in the living room of the Lockwood mansion.

"Of course. I know that this house can get a little crazy sometimes—And you already have so much to deal with." I replied softly, feeling my face fall at my words and she slowly nodded in agreement before clearing her throat.

"Have you seen Tyler? I um, I haven't seen him for most of the day." Carol stated in defeat and I rose an eyebrow before looking around us curiously.

"I'll, uh—I'll look for him before I leave." I reassured with a nod and she gave me another smiled in thanks before I walked away. I rose an eyebrow and walked down the hall toward the stairs, to go see if Tyler was in his room. I was about to go upstairs before I heard grunting noises coming from the Mayor's study. I furrowed my eyebrows and walked toward the noise before into the room to see Tyler shove everything that sat on his father's desk, off of it abruptly. "Tyler." I stated in confusion toward him and furrowed my eyebrows at all the now shattered picture frames.

"I hate him." Tyler stated, pacing back and forth in front of me and I sighed, walking forward.

"Don't say that." I stated quietly, moving over to him and putting my arms around him in reassurance but he shrugged me off.

"Don't touch me, Mariana." Tyler warned, breathing heavily in anger and I furrowed my eyebrows at him as he walked away from me again. I sighed in defeat, about to leave him alone but I narrowed my eyes at his back and walked forward again. I grabbed him by the arm and turned him towards me, making him face me. "What the hell—" He started in protest but I quickly cut him off.

"I am here, Tyler." I stated in frustration as I shook my head at him while he looked back at me with aggression in his eyes. "I am here." I repeated, my voice softening as he slowly furrowed his eyebrows. I watched as his eyes glazed over and I pulled him toward me, holding the back of his neck reassuringly as he started crying in my arms. "I'm here, Ty." I whispered and felt him pull me closer to him by my waist. "I'm here." I whispered again, gently running a hand through his hair as my other one rested on his back, feeling his breaths heave from crying.

~~~

I walked into my room while I stared down at my phone. I saw someone sitting on my bed out of the corner of my eyes and I jumped, only to calm down once I noticed it was Damon. "You scared me." I informed, breathing heavily toward him.

"Just doing my part in the neighborhood watch." He replied quietly and I slowly nodded, walking past him and over to my dresser.

"Thanks." I started, staring at him through the mirror in front of me as I took out my earrings. "For um, looking out for us. For me." I added in a grateful voice but he didn't look at me.

"That's me. The trusty bodyguard. Calm in a crisis." Damon answered sarcastically and stared at the wall in front of him, making me raise an eyebrow and turn to him.

"Have you been drinking?" I asked in confusion and watched as he held his hand up toward me, pinching his pointer finger and thumb together, answering my question. "And you're upset. That's not a good combination." I stated, sighing in defeat.

"No, I'm not upset—Upset is an emotion specific to those who care." Damon countered quietly as he looked away from me and I softly sighed.

"Come on, Damon. That's a lie. You care." I prostrated and nodded down at him. I watched him look back up at me, seeming almost sober by the expression on his face.

"You're surprised that I would kiss you because you're not Katherine? You can't imagine that I'd believe you didn't want me to." Damon stated emotionlessly as he stared at me.

"Damon—" I started in protest but he cut me off.

"That what we've been doing here, means something? You're the liar, Mariana. There is something going on between the two of us, And you know it. And you're lying to me, you're lying to Elena and Stefan, but most importantly, you're lying to yourself." Damon stated, slowly standing from my bed. I sighed in annoyance and watched as he walked over to me, making me furrow my eyebrows. "And I can prove it." He added before grabbing my face in his hands and kissing me. I widened my eyes at him and pulled away, tasting nothing but bourbon.

"Damon, don't. You're drunk." I pointed out in annoyance as he still held my face in his hands.

"Lie about this—" He started, trying to kiss me again but I turned my face away from him quickly.

"I'm serious, Damon. You're better than this." I argued, getting frustrated and watched as he shook his head back down at me.

"That's where you're wrong." Damon countered, leaning toward me again but I covered his mouth with my hand to block him.

"No, no, no, no. Damon, I care about you." I stated, shaking my head as he stopped and stared down at me. "I care about you so much, Damon. I do—But you're drunk. So just go home, okay?" I asked, furrowing my eyebrows up at him and stared back at me in silence, still holding my face in his hands.

"Mariana, what's going on in here?" Jeremy asked from my doorway and I looked at him before Damon pulled away from me, making me sigh.

"Nothing, Jer. Everything's fine—it's okay. Just go back bed." I reassured and looked away from him but he didn't move. Instead, he folded his arms over his chest and narrowed his eyes at Damon who turned to him.

"No, it's not okay, Mariana." Damon answered in defeat, looking at Jeremy who watched in silence. Damon stared at Jeremy for a few seconds and I furrowed my eyebrows as he looked back at me again, as if something had clicked in his brain. "He wants to be a vampire." He added emotionlessly, looking back at Jeremy who rose an eyebrow. Damon vamped at Jeremy and pushed him back against the wall, holding his throat in his hands and I widened my eyes.

"No, Damon, Stop!" I yelled in protest toward him, feeling my eyes glaze over as I watched.

"You want to shut out the pain? It's the easiest thing in the world. The part of you that cares, it just goes away." Damon stated emotionlessly toward Jeremy who squirmed from under his hold as it became hard for him to breathe.

"Damon, please—please don't make me do something I don't want to do." I pleaded, my voice shaking as I held my hand up toward him, angrily in warning.

"All you have to do is flip the switch and—" Damon started, ignoring me as he twisted Jeremy's neck and I felt my breath hitch in my throat as I heard it snap.

"Damon—" I started, cutting myself off as I watched Jeremy's body fall to the floor in front of me and I froze at the sight of it. "No!" I screamed before kneeling beside Jeremy as tears blurred my vision. I sobbed and shook Jeremy, trying to get him to open his eyes but he lay lifeless in front of me. I looked up at Damon who stared down at me before slowly walking out of my doorway, leaving my sight. I shook my head and looked back down at Jeremy before I furrowed my eyebrows and gasped, feeling myself calm down a bit as I looked at his hand, to see the Gilbert ring.. I looked back at my door as some relief filled me before I gently pushed the hair out of Jeremy's face.

~~~

"He saw the ring.. that's why he did it. He knew." Stefan stated in reassurance, pacing the room after him and Elena arrived.

"He didn't see the ring." I stared emotionlessly, staring down at Jeremy from my window seal while Elena held him in her arms as she cried.

"It's Katherine." Stefan replied in annoyance and I looked up at him, furrowing my eyebrows. "She got under his skin, She undid everything that was good about him." He added in defeat, making Elena scoff.

"There is nothing good about him." Elena protested in anger as a few tears fell from her eyes. "Stefan, not anymore." She added in disbelief and I looked out my window.

"He's decided what he wants." I stated softly in agreement, wrapping an arm around myself. "He doesn't want to feel. He wants to be hated. It's just easier that way." I added, shaking my head at the thought.

"Well, he got his wish." Elena stated from across from me and I looked toward her as Stefan crouched beside her now. "I hate him, Stefan." She added, starting to sob as she wrapped her arms tightly around Jeremy.

"I know... I know." Stefan nodded quietly back at her. I looked away from them again before I heard Jeremy gasp and I widened my eyes, quickly surrounding him.

"Is he okay, is he okay?" I asked in worry as I watched Stefan examine Jeremy's eyes and face carefully while he squirmed in Elena's arms, probably freaked the hell out.

"He's okay." Stefan answered, nodding in reassurance as Elena and I embraced Jeremy, while he shook from under us. "You're okay, you're okay." He stated toward him quietly, trying to calm him.

"He killed me—Damon killed me." Jeremy informer, clearly in shock and I grabbed his hand, pulling him closer.

"Shh. It's ok." I reassured, nodding down at him as I rested my head on his, trying to calm him down while relief washed over me. "Oh, god." I whispered, letting a deep breath escape me as I held him tightly.

~~~

I walked over to my bed after putting Jeremy successfully in his, and I felt my window open. I looked at it and raising an eyebrow before I walked over to it before closing and locking it. I felt someone behind me and my body grew tense. I looked at the reflection from the window before I widened my eyes and turned quickly around but saw no one standing there. I furrowed my eyebrows and shook my head in some relief before turning towards my bed again, only to and jump back and into my dresser. "Hello, Mariana." Katherine stated from where she sat on my bed. "Don't worry. I won't hurt you." She added, tilting her head at me in some amusement as she carefully examined me.

"What the hell do you want?" I asked, my voice tense and raw from crying. I watched her in silence as she got up from my bed and walked around my room slowly.

"I've been watching you." She informed, looking over the pictures hanging from my walls. "And I've seen how attached Damon is to you. I would say sorry, but..." Katherine stated in some amusement as she smirked at me.

"You're the reason he snapped my brothers neck." I stated emotionlessly, feeling the anger boil from inside me. "You're the reason for any of this." I added through gritted teeth and she rose an eyebrow, looking me up and down slowly.

"I heard you met Isobel.. And she gave you insight on your mother." Katherine stated, ignoring my statements and making me furrow my eyebrows. "I still can't believe that you didn't figure it out sooner. I mean, a witch in a Gilbert bloodline? Please." She added, rolling her eyes and sighing deeply in some boredom.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, shaking my head at her in confusion and she rose an eyebrow, turning toward me fully now.

"It seems like along time ago now.. I went to a witch or warlock, whatever. I needed his help to fix a problem of mine." Katherine started and I watched her intently as she sighed, remembering the memory. "I was running from someone. Someone who wanted me dead, so I needed leverage." She informed and leant against the wall across from me. "I asked the witch for a favor.. and in exchange.." Katherine started, leading off as she tilted her head at me and I scoffed, folding my arms over my chest.

"And you're telling me that you had sex with a predatory pervert why, exactly?" I countered in annoyance. Katherine smirked knowingly as she stared back at me before shrugging.

"I didn't say that your coming to be was pretty, Maria." She answered and tilted her head at me, making me become silent as I tried to register what she just said.

"What?" I asked, slowly shaking my head in disbelief. I watched as she just smirked in response before turning toward my dresser curiously. "So you're saying—" I started, cutting myself off as she looked back at me with a raised eyebrow. "How—How is that possible?" I asked, shaking my head in disbelief. "It isn't." I pointed out in annoyance and answered my own question but Katherine rolled her eyes.

"Oh, it's very possible.." She countered, folding her arms over her chest and I slowly shook my head. "The witch I went to, took me years to find. And it was worth it. Throughout the pregnancy, you grew quickly by siphoning off of my vampirism. You had witches blood in you and that's what makes you unique.. Since you couldn't have my vampirism, you got something else." She informed, narrowing her eyes at me as she looked me over again.

"I got your face." I whispered, as all of the pieces started fitting together in my mind.

"My face as well as some other things, I see." Katherine replied with a dry chuckle and I narrowed my eyes at her.

"Why are you here, Katherine? It can't be just because of some morbid curiosity of genetics." I stated emotionlessly and watched her shrug.

"I thought I would explain why I left you." Katherine pointed out but I scoffed, turning away from her.

"I don't need or want to hear it. You're not someone I wish to know." I replied, folding my arms over my chest.

"Oh, but I want to know you. I think I might stay.. You never know, you might come to find I'm a good mother." She pointed out sarcastically, making me scoff in disbelief.

"The only thing that you'll ever be good at, is a self-serving, psychotic bitch—who would gladly throw me to a pack of wolves, if ever given the chance." I countered emotionlessly and watched her narrow her eyes in response before a small smirk played on her lips.

"I just wanted to play a game, Mariana. Come on, play with me." Katherine stated with a disappointed frown and I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not going to play games, Katherine. This is my life. Coming in here and trying to kill John, kissing Damon—pretending to be me? It's over." I warned, narrowing my eyes at her and watched as she slowly walked over to me so that she stood directly in front of me. Katherine narrowed her eyes at me and I stood still, not knowing what she was going to do.

"The game's not finished yet." Katherine stated in warning, making me furrow my eyebrows. "It's not over until I say it is. You'll learn to play by my rules." She added with a devilish grin which made my skin crawl.

"And what rules are those, huh?" I asked, finding strength in my voice. Katherine's smirk grew on her face as she thought about my question and slowly she backed away from me.

"No rules, Mariana." She answered, moving over to my window. "No rules." Katherine repeated before vamping out of my window and and leaving it open so wind blew in.. I clenched my jaw and waved my hand towards it, closing and locking it.

~~~

"I mean, Katherine looked just like you.. It was Freakish." Bonnie stated with a sigh as we talked while I marked down the venders we had set for the carnival that was being held at the school.

"Well, she is my ancestor..." I replied, shrugging off everything that Katherine had told me last night. "Hey, I moved the student booth into the cafeteria." I pointed out, changing the subject.

"Your vampire ancestor. And she didn't just resemble you like a family member would. She was you. Mariana, she looked exactly like you and Elena." Bonnie pointed out as we grabbed bags of stuffed animals off of the trailer we stood by, putting them on the booth behind us.

"I-I don't know—I can't explain it, okay? It's creepy and that's all I have right now." I replied with a shrug, wanting to drop the topic completely.

"Well, how do you know that she's still not out there, pretending to be you or Elena right now?" Bonnie asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"I don't, but I could sit here and be tortured by the not knowing or I could get these prizes to the ring toss." I answered sarcastically before I grabbed another bag of stuffed animals.

"Well, have you talked to Damon since he killed Jeremy—or tried to kill Jeremy?" Bonnie asked as we walked away from the paint balloons booth and towards the ring toss booth.

"No, Bonnie, I haven't. And I won't and can't talk to or about Damon—or about anything else that's vampire-related, okay?" I asked, sighing in defeat. I turned toward her and she nodded at me with a smile before taking another bag of stuffed animals in her arms.

"Copy that." Bonnie stated in agreement and I sighed deeply.

"I'm just overwhelmed with all of this that I can't even think straight and right now, I need to think straight so we can run this carnival the way Caroline, would want us to." I pointed out in defeat and Bonnie chuckled back at me.

"Alright, I got it. I'll focus. We need to make Caroline proud.. or she will kill us." Bonnie stated and I chuckled, nodding in agreement. "I don't know how she does this all the time." She added and I checked another box off of my clipboard.

"Well, because she's not human. Obviously." I answered in some amusement, making Bonnie laugh.

"Obviously." She stated with a smile before we walked in the direction of the Go-Carts.

~~~~

"The bean toss is out of Bart and Homer dolls and Team Jacob T's." Bonnie informed and I slowly nodded at her as we walked around the carnival, hearing people screaming and laughing from all of the carnival rides now that it was dark.

"Okay, I can grab some from the science club. Also, we also lost a speaker from the karaoke booth." I pointed out with a nod as we walked around, checking all of the booths to keep them updated.

"Hey, it's all good Mariana. Take a beat, look around. This is a huge success." Bonnie stated in reassurance as she smiled at me and I slowly nodded at all of the people.

"You mean, I can do more than wreak vampire havoc?" I asked sarcastically and watched her smile and shrug in response.

"Go figure." Bonnie replied in amusement before we both laughed and I turned to see a guy fixing a bolt on one of the food trucks.

"Hey, uh, Carter, right? You're with the carnival?" I asked, eyeing his utility belt and he turned to look at Bonnie and I before walking over.

"Yeah, that's me." Carter replied with a smile and I sighed in relief at him.

"Okay, great." I stated nodding at him and watched as looked over at Bonnie and looked her up and down.

"Wow.. What do you need, beautiful?" Carter asked flirtatiously, making her chuckle. I rose an eyebrow and smirked a bit, slowly turning toward her.

"Um, what do you know about Karaoke speakers?" Bonnie asked, smiling and raising her eyebrow back at Carter.

"Why don't you show me the problem." Carter answered, looking her up and down again and I cleared my throat awkwardly.

"Yeah, Bonnie. Show him the problem." I agreed in amusement and she rolled her eyes at me before looking back at Carter.

"Okay, come on." Bonnie nodded with a small smile before they walked away and I shook my head at her. I turned around and gasped as I ran into Damon, only to quickly back away from him.

"What do you want, Damon?" I snapped in annoyance and turned to walk away from him.

"Look, I know that I'm the last person you want to see right now, but I need you to come with me." Damon stated in a rushed tone and I shook my head.

"Whatever it is, I'm not interested." I countered in annoyance, ignoring him but he sighed.

"Yeah, I need you to come with me right now, Mariana." Damon pressed, making me furrow my eyebrows at him. He gave me a serious look and I slowly nodded before I walked after him.

~~~

"How did this happen, Hmm?" Stefan asked in frustration as he paced back and forth from where we stood in Alaric's classroom.

"Well, I fed her blood and Katherine obviously killed her, and 'A' plus 'B' equals..." Damon answered sarcastically as he leant on Alaric's desk and looked between Stefan, Elena and I.

"But why?" Elena asked, furrowing her eyebrows at Damon in defeat.

"Because Katherine is a manipulative, nasty little slut." Damon answered in annoyance and I sighed deeply, folding my arms over my chest.

"And she said 'game on'? I mean, what does that even mean?" I asked with a scoff as I thought it over.

"It means that she's playing dirty. She wants us to know." Damon countered with a shrug and I sighed in annoyance.

"By why Caroline?" Elena asked, shaking her head at all of us.

"Ah, I don't know." Damon answered in defeat and tilted his head back in frustration.

"Caroline must be completely out of her mind, she has no idea what's happening to her." Stefan stated as he paced back and forth again and Damon rolled his eyes in response.

"Oh, I think she does. All of my compulsion from the past, it started wearing off the minute she was in transition." Damon admitted with a sigh, making me furrow my eyebrows at him.

"We have to find her." I stated in warning and look between Stefan and Elena who nodded in agreement.

"Yep, and kill her." Damon added with a nod, folding his arms over his chest and I furrowed my eyebrows at him.

"You're not going to kill Caroline." I countered in protest and shook my head in disbelief.

"She knows who we are. She's officially a liability. We gotta get rid of her." Damon argued as he furrowed his eyebrows. I sighed deeply and looked at Stefan who narrowed his eyes back at him and crossed his arms over his chest also.

"Damon, absolutely not." Stefan stated emotionlessly, and I watched as Damon rolled his eyes.

"Need I remind you of a tragic little story of a girl named Vicki Donovan?" Damon asked, raising an eyebrow at the three of us and I scoffed. "Yeah. Caroline of all people will not make it as a vampire. Her mother's a vampire hunter." He added in annoyance, but we all remained silent as we thought it over. "Guys, come on. We all know how this story ends, so let's just flip to the last chapter and—" Damon started but I quickly cut him off.

"It's not an option, Damon." I answered emotionlessly and he looked back at me in silence before looking at Stefan.

"Your silence is deafening, Stefan." Damon stated, making Stefan sigh and look down. "Wait. Wasn't there a school carnival the night you staked Vicki? Huh—Talk about a town where history repeats itself." He added in amusement and I clenched my jaw. "You know I'm right." He warned, tilting his head. Stefan looked back at his brother and quickly shook his head before he pointed a finger toward him in warning.

"We're not going to kill her." Stefan stated emotionlessly before walking out of the room. I exchanged a somewhat relieved expression with Elena before we followed after him.

"It's the only way." Damon stated in warning at me as I walked past, but I ignored it.

~~~

"You agree with Damon, don't you?" Elena asked Stefan as the three of us walked through the carnival, trying to find Caroline. "Stefan." She pressed, realizing he was ignoring her. He breathed heavily in frustration before he punched the side of a food truck as we walked past it.

"Stefan." I stated, sighing heavily in annoyance before he turned to Elena and I, running a hand over the back of his neck.

"Damon's right, not about what we should do, but about what's gonna happen." Stefan admitted before he leant against the food truck. "Katherine all but signed Caroline's death sentence." He added with a light scoff.

"Well, we can't let it end that way." Elena protested and I nodded at her in agreement. Stefan folded his arms over his chest and sighed deeply, looking away from us. "She's doing this to me, isn't she?" She asked in defeat, making Stefan scoff.

"Actually, she's doing it to me." He countered and leaned his head back in frustration. Elena, Stefan and I stood silent for a moment before he shook his head again. "We need to find her." He stated with a nod as we started walking again.

"Where could she be?" I asked, shaking my head in defeat. Stefan stopped abruptly, making Elena and I look at him in confusion.

"What is it? Do you hear her?" Elena asked as Stefan looked around us in uncertainty, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Stefan, what is it?" I asked, watching his confused expression quickly change to a serious one.

"It's blood. I smell blood." Stefan answered, walking quickly away from us and we followed after him. Stefan led us toward the back of the school, away from all of the screaming people and rides. Once we got to the back of the school, Damon hugging Caroline. I furrowed my eyebrows at the two and watched him reassure her while Carter, the guy from earlier, was laying lifeless on the trailer beside them.

"Sh. It's okay. It's all going to be okay.. it's the only way." Damon whispered in reassurance and I widened my eyebrows in shock, seeing the stake he held behind her back, ready to plunge it into her. Stefan vamped towards him and pushed him back angrily, making him drop the stake from his hand. "Stefan." Damon groaned annoyance and I quickly moved toward Caroline, grabbing her reassuringly.

"No, get away from me! You killed me!" Caroline sobbed angrily and pushing me away from her, making me furrow my eyebrows.

"No, no, no, Caroline, that wasn't her. You know that. That was Katherine." Elena countered from beside me but Caroline shook her head aggressively.

"No! Then why does she look like you! Both of you!" Caroline protested as she held her arms around herself. "And why—why did she do this to me?" She asked, her voice breaking and I looked at her in defeat.

"Stefan, we have to get her inside." Elena stated in warning toward him. Stefan narrowed his eyes at Damon and slowly walked back towards Care.

"It's alright. It's okay, Caroline. Come with me." Stefan reassured as he grabbed her hand in his and started walking towards the back entrance of the school.

"She will die. It's only a matter of time." Damon pointed out in annoyance as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Yeah, maybe so. But it's not gonna happen tonight." Stefan countered in protest from where he stood in front of Caroline protectively.

"Oh, yeah it is." Damon replied, angrily picking the stake up from the ground and vamping toward Caroline. Stefan grabbed instinctively, pulling her back quickly while I stepped in front of her and gasped. I widened my eyes as Damon held the stake less than an inch above my heart and narrowed his eyes down at me while both shock and silence fell over all of us.

"Damon, she's my friend." I stated, shaking my head up at him in defeat. "If it was me, would you feel the same way?" I added quietly, looking between both him and the stake before he clenched his jaw and dropped his hand.

"Whatever happens.. It's on you." Damon replied, pointing at me in warning. He walked away from me and Stefan slowly pulled Caroline toward the school again. Elena looked at me with uncertainty, making me let out a deep breath.

"Go. Get her cleaned up." I stated, nodding at them in reassurance. Stefan nodded back and turned toward the building where Bonnie furrowed her eyebrows, standing in front of them.

"Caroline?" Bonnie asked, taken aback at the sight of blood covering her mouth and chin.

"It's okay. Come on." Stefan nodded reassuringly toward Care who looked down in disappointment at herself.

"No, you're not—" Bonnie started, only to cut herself off. "You can—You can't be.." She whispered, slowly shaking her head in disbelief before she quickly walked over to Caroline and grabbed her hand, reading her.

"Bonnie?" Caroline asked, her voice cracking as her eyes glazed over more. Bonnie shook her head and slowly backed away from her, not believing what she was seeing. "I-I—" Caroline started, trying to put her feelings into words but she gave up.

"Oh, God." Bonnie stated in defeat and looked behind Caroline and at Carter. Bonnie's eyes glazed over and she slowly shook her head in defeat.

"Bonnie.." Caroline whispered, looking at her with sorrowful eyes but I shook my head and looked between Stefan and Elena.

"Just... Go." I stated softly and gestured to the school. Stefan nodded as they took Caroline inside of the school and I turned back to Bonnie who stared at Carter, trying to register what she had witnessed.

"I can't believe this is happening." Bonnie stated through sobs as she turned away from the trailer.

"Come on, don't pout about it."  Damon stated sarcastically as he came back over to us, holding a shovel over his shoulder. "We got a body to bury." He added and I scoffed back him as I stood beside the trailer, silently staring down at Carter. "Thought you were callin' the shots? No?" Damon asked, looking down at me and I looked away from him, not wanting to answer. "Sucks to be you, buddy." Damon added with a sigh before he threw the shovel onto the trailer bed beside him. He took a step forward, only to start clutching his head and groan loudly. "UHH!!" He yelled out, hunching over and I furrowed my eyebrows over him. "AAH!!" Damon groaned, kneeling on the ground in pain. I looked at Bonnie in confusion to see her narrowing her eyes at Damon, silent tears falling from her eyes. Bonnie's eyes drifted over to to a hose that was attached to the side of the school, and easily turned the faucet on.

"I told you what would happen if anyone else got hurt." Bonnie warned emotionlessly as she looked back at Damon. I watched the water start to flow from the rose and toward Damon as he still yelled out in pain from the ground.

"I didn't do this!" Damon stared, yelling out in protest but she ignored him.

"Bonnie, this wasn't his fault." I added, looking at her in warning as I shook my head.

"Everything that happens is his fault, Mariana." Bonnie countered in disbelief as she looked back at me. I furrowed my eyebrows and looked at the ground again to see the water start to flow right next to me, in the direction of Damon.

"Bonnie, what are you doing?" I asked, looking at Damon who stopped groaning, but was too weak to get up by himself. "Bonnie." I pressed, watching her angrily glare down at Damon before the water caught on fire and I widened my eyes. "Bonnie, stop it!" I yelled out, watching the fire make its way over to Damon who widened his eyes also. Damon's legs caught on fire, making him yell out in pain as it made its way up his body. "Bonnie, stop it!! You're going to kill him!" I protested toward her in warning but she didn't look back at me. She didn't even speak. I heard Damon's screams start to come from beside me and I groaned in annoyance before I waved my hand over the fire. I watched as the fire subsided, making Damon sigh in relief before he groaned and leant back on the cement, breathing heavily as his body tried to recover itself.

"Why did you stop me! How could you!" Bonnie yelled at me in anger, making me furrow my eyebrows at her behavior.

"Because this isn't us!" I protested in disappointment. Bonnie looked back at me in silence, now feeling ashamed of what she had just done. "Bonnie, This can't be us." I added in defeat before I walked toward her. She slowly nodded her head in agreement, while tears fell down her face again. "Come on." I stated in some reassurance and pulling her toward me.

"Oh, god." Bonnie whispered in disbelief at herself as we hugged tightly before the two of us walked away.