"So Sarah attacked Tyler. He pushed her away and she tripped and fell, and she hit her head." I stated as I walked around my room while giving Damon a play by play of last night since he was stick with Katherine.
"Does Matt remember anything?" Damon asked as he leant against my window while I grabbed the pair of boots I was going to wear today.
"He thinks he's just blacked out." I answered with a shrug as I started putting the boots on. "But I know Matt and Sarah were both compelled by Katherine. Which is why I asked Caroline to cover for Tyler and say it was an accident." I stated and watched Damon roll his eyes.
"I don't understand that. The guys a tool." He stated sarcastically and I scoffed lightly.
"We don't need Caroline's mom as well as his, asking questions that he can't answer. I mean, do you really think it's a good idea for him to try to explain to anyone that he's a werewolf?" I asked in some amusement, which made Damon smirk and look away from me.
"Well, no." He stated in agreement and I sighed as I walked over to my dresser and grabbed my phone.
"We both know that the werewolf road is just going to end up leading straight to vampire boulevard and sooner or later, potentially even witchy Avenue. So, I figured I was just thinking fast on my feet." I stated as I looked at my home screen to see texts from Caroline about her mom. "The Sheriff is leading a search party for Amy Bradley." I informed, reading one of her texts as I turned to him.
"Oh, teens today and their underage drinking. Tragic." Damon replied with an over exaggerated sigh, making me roll my eyes. "Waitâdid you see wolf-boy's eyes turn yellow?" He asked and I rose an eyebrow as I thought it over.
"More gold with amber highlights." I answered with a shrug and Damon tilted his head at me. "Well, at least he can only turn into a werewolf on a full moon." I stated in reassurance.
"Yeah, but now he has increased strength and who knows what else." Damon countered in annoyance and I slowly nodded in agreement. "I wonder how much Mason told him.. Does he know about us? What'd you tell him?" He asked as I grabbed my bag from my bed and threw it over my shoulder.
"I told him nothing. And I don't think he knows much of anything. He seemed really freaked out, and honestly I feel bad for him. He's alone in this and me being his girlfriendâit's nothing I can even help with." I stated in defeat and watched Damon look away from me. I watched him for a few seconds before I sighed and walked over to my door. "Look, I'll find out what he knows. I won't tell him anything." I stated reassuringly as I opened the door and turned around, only to gasp as Damon stood directly in front of me now.
"No, don't ask him anything. The more questions you ask, the more curious he will get and he cannot know about us. A bite from a werewolf can kill a vampire, but for you? He could tear you into a million pieces without even blinking.. So you need to keep your distance from him for now. Do you understand me?" Damon asked in a serious tone and I furrowed my eyebrows at him. His face was tense but his eyes were soft.. concerned.
"Yes.. I understand." I answered quietly and saw his demeanor change as he stepped around me and opened my door more.
"If you wanna drop the hint to the Sheriff that Amy's body is at the bottom of the quarry with a cracked spine, it might save her some time." Damon stated sarcastically as he gestured for me to walk out of my room and I sighed deeply. I walked down the hall toward Elena's room, only to see her door wide open.
"Elena?" I asked, looking inside of her room only to see it empty and her bed not even slept in. I looked over my shoulder at Damon who was waiting for me at the staircase. "Did she stay with Stefan last night?" I asked, moving over to him but he shrugged.
"Not from what I heard last night. The house was as silent as a mouse." Damon answered with a smirk and I scoffed at him as we walked down the stairs together.
"You're disgusting." I replied in annoyance, making him chuckle in response.
~~~
I walked down the halls of the school and spotted Tyler looking down at all the flowers and decorations surrounding Sarah's locker. "Hey. How are you doing?" I asked, walking over to him and he sighed.
"Not good." He answered as he stuffed his hands into his jean pockets.
"How's your mom? I heard that she was pretty freaked out about everything that happened to Sarah." I stated in defeat as I put a hand on his shoulder reassuringly.
"How did you know?" Tyler asked and I tilted my head at him.
"What do you mean?" I asked, shrugging as I tried to play it off.
"About me. How did you know?" He pressed and I sighed deeply.
"About what? That you were upset? C'mon, Ty, I'm your girlfriend." I stated jokingly, which made him look at me in question.
"That's not what I'm talking about." Tyler stated as I looked over his shoulder and spotted Stefan at his locker, further down the hall.
"It was an accident, okay?" I asked, looking back at Tyler and giving him a small smile. "I gotta goâjust please don't blame yourself." I added as I put a hand on his cheek and kissed him softly. He gave me a small smile before I walked away from him and over to Stefan. "Hey. Elena has gotta let me know if I'm supposed to cover her with Jenna. Especially after last night, okay?" I asked, walking up beside him as he shut his locker.
"What are you talking about?" Stefan asked in confusion as the two of us walked down the hall, in the direction of history class.
"Look, I'm glad you guys are back together, but if she's gonna sleep overâ" I started but he quickly cut me off by standing in front of me.
"Wait, Wait.. Hold on a minute. We're not back together." Stefan stated as he looked at me in confusion.
"Wait, so she didn't spend the night at your place last night?" I asked, folding my arms over my chest and Stefan rose an eyebrow.
"No. I mean, I saw her at the party.. But that was it." Stefan pointed out with a shrug and I slowly nodded.
"Elena's bed hadn't been slept in.. And Mrs. Lockwood said her car was still in the driveway." I informed, feeling a bad feeling creep up my spine. "So then where is she?" I asked and watched Stefan's brows furrow.
~~~
"This has Katherine written all over it." Stefan stated once Damon met up with us outside of the school.
"Katherine's in the tomb. Trust me. I'm the one that shut her in." Damon protested as he folded his arms over his chest.
"Did you?" Stefan asked in a doubtful voice which made Damon tilt his head challengingly back at him.
"Did I what, Stefan?" He asked, narrowing his eyes at his brother.
"Well, I know the hold Katherine has over you." Stefan pointed out and Damon scoffed.
"She's in the tomb. Period. End of story." Damon pressed and Stefan started pacing in front of us. "But she did say something to me right before I shut her.. I thought she was lying." He added, scoffing in annoyance at himself.
"What did she say?" I asked as Stefan and I both looked at him expectantly.
"Elena and Mariana are in danger.." Damon stated looking at me and I scoffed.
"And you didn't think to ask her to elaborate?" I asked in annoyance as I started pacing in front of him.
"Everything Katherine says is a lie, Mariana. How am I supposed to know she's going to start telling the truth?" He argued and I rolled my eyes in response.
"We have to go talk to her." Stefan pointed out as he put his hands on his hips but Damon quickly scoffed.
"No, noâLet me tell you how that's going to go. We're gonna go ask her for help. She's going to negotiate a release, which we're going to be dumb enough to give her. Then she's going to get out. And kill us, that's exactly what she wants." Damon argued in annoyance and I sighed heavily at the two.
"I don't really care." Stefan stated as he turned away from us and walked in the direction of his car.
"Stefan, it's a bad idea." I protested and he looked back at me from over his shoulder.
"It's Elena." Stefan countered,walking further away from me. I sighed deeply and pushed one of my hands towards his back, making a rush of air rush at him so he fell forwards but he caught himself. Stefan slowly stood from the ground and looked at me in confusion.
"What if there was another way?" I asked, looking between him and Damon intently.
~~~
"How does this work?" I asked, looking down at the map of Virginia that Bonnie set out on one of the desks in Alaric's classroom.
"I'll use your blood to draw the energy for the tracking spell. You're blood related, it'll make the connection stronger." Bonnie informed as she held a knife toward me.
"Alright, Alaric said we gotta clear outta here within ten minutes. I got weapons, he stocked me up." Stefan stated as he came into the room and shut the door behind him before he put the bag of weapons on Alaric's desk. I took the knife from Bonnie and took a deep breath before I cut the palm of my hand while she lit a few candles beside us. I watched as my blood dripped onto the map below us and Stefan looked away from it. Bonnie started chanting to herself and I watched as the few drops of blood on the map, formed into one. It slowly moved away from Mystic Falls, making me look at Stefan in confusion. After a few seconds, Bonnie stopped chanting and the blood stopped on a location.
"There." Bonnie stated, pointing at where the blood flowed to. "She's there." She informed and I looked at the town called 'Reinsdale'.
"That's three hundred miles away." I stated in disappointment as I looked at Stefan who shook his head.
"Bonnie, we need a more exact location than that." Stefan pressed as he looked between her and the map.
"That's as close as I can get." Bonnie admitted in some defeat but I rose an eyebrow.
"We can map it. Get an areal view of the area." I pointed out as I looked back at Stefan. "Help us narrow down the area." I added with a shrug and he quickly nodded in agreement.
"PerfectâCall me with whatever you find." Stefan replied as he grabbed the bag of weapons and walked towards the door.
"No, no. I'm coming." I countered and started to walk after him but he turned back to me.
"No, Mariana, you're not." Stefan protested and I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Stefan, I'm coming. With or without you." I warned in an unwavering voice and firmly folded my arms over my chest.
"Well then it's going to be a road trip." Damon stated, making us look at him from where he leant in the doorway of the classroom.
"You're coming?" Stefan asked, gesturing to his brother before looking back at me.
"Like you said. It's Elena." I pointed out before I walked past the two of them and out of the classroom.
~~~
"Alaric sure likes his weapons." Damon stated as he drove while Stefan looked through the bag of weapons before he pulled out some sort of grenade. "The hell is that?" He added, watching Stefan examine and play with it.
"I don't know." Stefan answered, looking at it more closely and messing with the trigger on it.
"It's a vervain bomb or grenade launcher." I informed from where I sat in the back seat and looked out the window.
"Weird." Damon stated as he turned his attention back on the road.
"Hey, how much further is it?" Stefan asked as he looked over at his brother.
"About eighty miles." Damon answered, not looking back at him.
"Who do you think took her?" Stefan asked again, this time looking at me through the rear view mirror also.
"Someone from Katherine's past. She said she was running from someone." Damon answered, which made me scoff lightly.
"Well maybe they got the wrong girl." I countered quietly, still looking out the window.
"Thank you for helping us do this, Damon." Stefan stated with a grateful expression and Damon sighed.
"Can we not do the whole, road trip bonding thing? The cliche of it all makes me itch." Damon countered and Stefan chuckled and looked away from him.
"Oh, come on, Damon. We both know that you being in this car has nothing to do with me, anyway." He replied, making me furrow my eyebrows at him.
"And the elephant in the room let's out a mighty roar." Damon stated in annoyance as he rolled his eyes and I moved in between their seats.
"Well, let's talk about it." Stefan suggested looking between Damon and I who avoided eye-contact.
"Hmmm, what's this song?" I asked, changing the subject quickly and turning the volume on the radio up. Stefan rolled his eyes at me as I sat back in my seat and folded my arms over my chest before I stared out the window again.
~~~~
I looked down at my phone before I let out a soft sigh and put it in my pocket. "We're getting close. Jeremy said that there's an access road just past mile marker six." I informed as I sat up between Stefan and Damon's seats again.
"Hand me that?" Damon asked, gesturing toward the seat next to me. I rose an eyebrow but didn't protest as I handed him a blood-bag. I looked away as he started sipping it while Stefan rose an eyebrow, staring at him. "If you want some, just ask." Damon pointed out in some amusement.
"I want some." Stefan admitted with a soft shrug and I rose an eyebrow.
"Awe, that's so sweet. Gonna be all big and strong to save your girl. Well, don't worry. I've got your back. You'll be fine." Damon reassured him and I rolled my eyes.
"I'm not joking." Stefan countered, making Damon look at him confusion. "I've been drinking a little everyday, slowly increasing my intake and building up my strength." He informed with a smile. I furrowed my eyebrows as I watched Damon hand him the blood bag before Stefan drank from it.
"Elena know you're drinking blood?" I asked, gesturing toward Stefan who looked away from me and handed the blood-bag back to Damon.
"I've, uhâI've been drinking hers." Stefan answered awkwardly. I rose an eyebrow and looked at Damon who shared a confused look.
"Hmm. How romantic." I replied quietly in disinterested before I sat back in my seat again.
"Since we're road trip bonding, remember the days when all you lived for was blood? You were the guy who'd rip someone apart just for the fun of it?" Damon asked in amusement and Stefan slowly nodded, eyeing him.
"You mean when I was just like you?" Stefan countered, making me smirk a bit.
"Yes, Stefan! Exactly. Back when you put blood into me so I could be a big, bad vampire." Damon stated nodding as he looked toward the road again. "Wonder if Elena would be so quick to open her vein to that guy.. By the way, whatever happened to that guy? He was a hoot." He added, sipping on the blood-bag again while Stefan eyed him.
"Guess he found something else to live for." Stefan replied quietly. Damon rose an eyebrow and looked at him before drifting his eyes to the rear view mirror to look at me. I stared at Damon for a few seconds before I looked back out the window, avoiding his eyes.
~~~
The three of us all got out of the car and I rose an eyebrow as I looked at the woods around us. "The house should be just beyond those trees." Damon stated gesturing in front of us as he close his car door. Stefan nodded in agreement and started walking in that direction as he carried the duffel bag over his shoulder. "WaitâSo I've got a little more experience than you with this thing." He added, walking after Stefan who turned around.
"So? What's your point?" Stefan asked, obviously not in the mood for argument.
"His point is whoever has Elena is probably the same person who was after Katherine in 1864 and before that." I informed in annoyance as I stood between the two.
"And?" Stefan asked, trying to find our point in this conversation.
"And it puts them at five hundred years old and strong. Are you sure you want to do this?" Damon asked in a doubtful tone as he looked over his brother.
"Yeah. I'm certain I wanna do it." Stefan replied with a scoff and I folded my arms over my chest.
"Because when we go in that house.. We might not come out." I pressed, slowly tilting my head at Stefan to see if it would psych him out.
"Alright, then I won't come out." Stefan answered emotionlessly, making Damon raise an eyebrow.
"So noble, Stefan." Damon stated, letting his eyes narrow on his brother.
"IâI can't think of a better reason to die." Stefan replied in an assertive tone as he looked between us and I slowly nodded in agreement. "But if you wanna stay here, I'll totally understand." He added, gesturing Damon to the car before he walked away from us. I rose an eyebrow at Damon before I gave him a small shrug.
"We have a solid plan.. So let's just hope it goes well." I stated reassuringly before I walked after Stefan, hearing Damon groan in response but he didn't protest further.
~~~
The three of us crept inside the abandoned house, not letting our movements give us away. I looked around the the house carefully to see a doorway to the left, leading into a separate room while a large staircase stood in front of me. I looked at Stefan who vamped upstairs quickly, in order to set up. I glanced to my right to see an empty closet with french doors and I rose an eyebrow at them. I looked at Damon who gestured me toward them and I nodded in agreement. Indistinct voices came from the room beside us and I quickly moved into the closet while Damon vamped up the stairs silently. I shut the closet doors quietly, leaving them open with a slight crack. I focused on my breathing and calmed myself, careful not to give away my position. After a minute, the sound of glass breaking echoes through the house, drawing the attention of whoever was in the room beside the stairs. "Move!" A loud masculine voice stated from the room as footsteps quickly followed. I watched silently from the crack in the closet as Elena came into view, being pulled into the landing by a man in a suit while a woman with short hair stood across from them. I watched as Damon vamped around the three, fast enough to blur and cause confusion to stir between all of them. Elena ran out of the man's grasp and over to the woman who grabbed her, as if protecting her. "Rose." The man's voice stated in warning, making me furrow my eyebrows.
"I don't know who it is." The woman answered in an English accent as they looked around uneasily.
"Up here." Stefan's voice baited from the stairs before the man clenched his jaw and vamped up them quickly.
"Down here." Damon's voice countered from somewhere on the first level. The three of them all looked around quickly, not sure which direction to even start in. The sound of a weapon firing erupted the silence before a small stake shot through the man's hand. I furrowed my eyebrows and watched in shock as he just stared at it, no reaction or pain at all. Instead, he pulled the stake from his hand while Damon grabbed Rose and Stefan grabbed Elena, vamping them somewhere safe around the house. I watched with an arched brow as the man on the steps threw the small stake away from him, letting it clatter on the floor.
"Excuse me?" The man asked in some amusement as he slowly walked down the stairs and onto the landing in front of the door. "To whom it may concern, you're making a great mistake if you think that you can beat me." He informed as he looked around the house from where he stood outside of the closet now. "You can't. You hear that?" He asked walking over to a coat rack by the door. "I repeatâ" The man started before he ripped the rack from its place on the floor. "You cannot beat me.. So I want the girl..." He added, breaking off the hanging rods as he held the jagged point. "..On the count of three, or heads will roll." The man warned, throwing the rods on the floor around him before he broke the rack in half, making a huge ass stake. "Do we understand each other?" The man asked in a threatening voice.
"I'll come with you." Elena's voice stated from the top of the stairs. "Justâplease don't hurt my friends. They just wanted to help me out." She pleaded and the man vamp toward her threateningly, making her gasp.
"What game are you playing with me?" The man asked, tilting his head at her in warning.
"She's not playing a game." I answered emotionlessly as I stepped out onto the landing behind him. He turned to me and I looked him over clearly, seeing his chiseled chin and dark brown eyes piercing into my soul.
"Katherine?" He asked in some bewilderment and furrowed his eyebrows. I looked past him and at Elena who furrowed her eyebrows also.
"No." I answered with a small smirk. "Not quite." I informed before I quickly pulled a vervain grenade out of my jacket and pulled the clip before throwing it at him. Elena jumped back as it exploded in his face, making him groan angrily and lean over in pain. The man easily stood up again, his face red with anger as he vamped toward me but Stefan came from the stairs and started shooting at him with one of Alaric's wooden bullet guns. The man turned toward Stefan, totally un-phased before he vamped forwards, tackling the man as they tumbled down the stairs. I widened my eyes and looked up at Elena in concern but she was more concerned about Stefan. The vampire quickly got up from the stairs and looked down at Stefan who groaned below him. He moved toward Stefan threateningly before Damon vamped toward him, holding the large stake before he plunged it into the man's chest and pushed him back into the front door. I watched as Damon pinned the shake to the door, instantly desiccating and killing the vampire. I sighed in relief and looked over to see Rose who came from the separate room. I watched her look frantically between Damon and the now dead vampire before she vamped away, leaving us. Damon clenched his jaw and was about to go after her before Stefan stopped him.
"Let her go." Stefan warned, shaking his head at Damon as he got up from the bottom of the stairs. I looked up at the top of the stairs and sighed in relief as Elena came down and hugged Stefan. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Stefan asked, looking over her carefully and she shook her head and hugged him tightly.
"I'm fine." Elena reassured him before looking at me from over his shoulder. Stefan and Elena pulled away and she ran over to me, engulfing me in a tight hug as well.
"I'm so sorry Katherine dragged you into all of this." I stated in defeat but she slowly pulled away from me, a worried expression coming across her face.
"I was already in it, Mariana." Elena stated, making me raise an eyebrow at her. "I'm the next Petrova doppelgänger... The moonstone binds the sun and the moon curse together. A sacrificeâthe blood of the Petrova doppelgängerâis what breaks it." Elena whispered and I felt my eyebrows furrow at her words. I stepped away from her in both shock and confusion as she looked between Stefan, Damon and I. No one knowing what to say.
~~~
I walked into my room after I said goodnight to Jeremy, to see Damon sitting on my window seal. "Cute PJ's." He stated, gesturing at them and I sighed lightly and walked over to my bed and threw off a few un-needed pillows.
"What are you doing here?" I asked once he got up from the window walked over to me, holding Elena's vervain necklace in hand.
"Thought she'd want it back. You know." Damon pointed out and I slowly nodded at it as we stood in front of each other now.
"Thank you for what you did for her today." I replied, looking from the necklace to him.
"I didn't do it for her." He countered softly and I furrowed my eyebrows at him. "I think it's time for me to talk about that 'white elephant' in the room." He added but I slowly shook my head.
"Damon, it's fine, remember? You're the one who said to just forget about everything Isobel said, okay? So I forgot. There's no need to bring it up now." I stated, shrugging it off but he sighed down at me. "I can't be compelled, you know." I added, looking at him in annoyance as he stared at me in deep thought.
"Well, I'm not trying to compel you, Mariana. I just have to say it once and only this onceâyou have to hear it." Damon stated, making me furrow my eyebrows. I opened my mouth to protest but he quickly cut me off. "I love you, Mariana." He admitted quietly and I stared at him, unsure of what to say or even think. "And it's because I love you.. that I can't be selfish with you.. And because I don't deserve you." He added, rubbing a gentle thumb over my cheek slowly.
"Damon.." I whispered, leading off as he kissed my forehead gently.. Just like he did the night of the Miss Mystic event.
"As much as I hate to say it.. Tyler deserves you more than I do.. You can have a future with him, Mariana.. one that you won't have with me." He whispered finally as he pulled away.
"Damonâ" I started, but he was already gone.
-Time Skip-
Elena knocked on the Boarding House door before it opened a second later, revealing Damon who stared at both of us. "Hello, Gilbert girls." He nodded in greeting, looking over us.
"Stefan here? He called.. Said it was important." Elena pointed out in an awkward tone as she felt a slight tension as Damon looked me over slowly before looking back at her.
"Right this way." Damon answered, gesturing us in. Elena nodded and walked inside while I followed behind her and into the hall where Stefan stood.
"Hey." Stefan said in an awkward voice as he stuffed his hands into his jean pockets.
"What is this about?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at him as I folded my arms over my chest. I watched Stefan slowly move out of the way as Rose, the woman who grabbed Elena, stepped forward.
"You.." Elena whispered in realization and Rose gave her a small smile while I narrowed my eyes.
~~~~
"Okay. You have to understand I only know what I've picked up over the years. And I don't know what's true and what's not true." Rose informed as she paced back and forth in the library. Elena and I sat in front of her on the couch while Damon and Stefan stood on either side of her. "I mean, that's the problem with all of this vamp crap. But Klaus, I know is real." Rose pointed out as she looked between Elena and I.
"Who is he?" Elena asked, folding her arms over her chest.
"One of the originals. He's a legend." Damon answered as he looking over at us from one side of the room.
"From the first generations of vampires." Stefan added on from another side.
"Like Elijah?" Elena asked again, furrowing her eyebrows at him and Rose sighed heavily.
"No. Elijah was the Easter Bunny compared to Klaus. He was a foot soldier. Klaus is the real deal." Rose warned in a serious tone and Stefan nodded from beside her while Damon rolled his eyes.
"Klaus is known to be the oldest." Stefan pointed out, making me I scoff in annoyance.
"Okay, so you're saying that the oldest vampire in history.. Is coming after Elena?" I asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow at them all.
"YesâNo." Rose and Stefan answered at once and I sighed deeply.
"What they're saying isâI mean, if what she's saying is trueâ" Damon started as he walked over to Rose until he stood beside her.
"Which it is." Rose pointed out in protest but he only sighed in annoyance.
"And you're not just saying it so we don't kill youâ" Damon added, narrowing his eyes at her and she put her hands on her hips.
"Which I'm not." Rose countered again, rolling her eyes as they both turned toward Elena and I again.
"Then we're lookin' at a solid.. maybe." Damon informed sarcastically. I heard Elena sigh deeply from beside me and I got up from the couch and walked away from them, deep in thought.
"Look, Elijah's dead, Right? So no one else even knows that either of you exist." Stefan stated in reassurance as he got up from the chair he was leaning on.
"Not that you know of." Rose stated as she moved over to sit on the arm of a chair and Damon scoffed.
"That's not helping." He stated in annoyance toward her and the two glared at each other while Stefan moved to sit beside Elena.
"Look, I've never even met anyone who's laid eyes on him. I mean, we're talking centuries of truth mixed with fiction. We don't know what's real, for all we know, he could be some sort of stupid bedtime story." Stefan stated reassuringly and Rose quickly stood from where she sat.
"He's real." Rose protested in annoyance toward him. "And he doesn't give up. If he wants something, he gets it. If you're not afraid of Klaus, you're an idiot." She warned as she looked between all of us.
"Alright, we're shaking. You made your point." Damon stated sarcastically before Elena quickly got up from the couch and walked toward the door.
"Where are you going?" Stefan asked, looking after her but she looked at me and I nodded reassuringly and grabbed my bag from the couch.
"School. We're late." I answered emotionlessly as I walked over to Elena.
"Well, let me grab my bag. I'll go with you." Stefan suggested as he got up from the couch also.
"That's alright. We know where it is." Elena replied before walking out of the library without waiting for a reply. Stefan sighed and looked at me for reassurance but I shrugged.
"Don't you think we've been through enough? When does it end, Stefan?" I asked in defeat, only to shake my head at him and noticed that Rose furrowed her eyebrows back at me. "I'll see you later." I sighed before I walked after Elena.
~~~
After the bell for lunch, I found Stefan and we walked out of the school and in the direction the parking lot. "Mariana! Stefan!" Caroline urged, coming up from behind us and I rose an eyebrow.
"Hey." Stefan said acknowledging her as we continued walking and she fell in beside us.
"Hey, um, I need to talk to you guys. Where are you going?" Caroline asked, furrowed her eyebrows at us.
"Elena went home early. Stefan's just coming over to see if she's okay." I pointed out with a shrug as I pulled my bag up my shoulder more.
"Ditchers." Caroline said jokingly but Stefan sighed.
"I'm kinda worried about her." He shrugged innocently and Caroline nodded in agreement but stopped walking.
"You know what, I understand. I'll just talk to you guys later." Caroline sighed in defeat and I furrowed my eyebrows as I turned to her.
"Talk about what?" I asked, making Stefan stop and look at her in curiousness also.
"I might have done something.." She admitted quietly and I folded my arms over my chest.
"What did you do?" Stefan asked softly as he also folding his arms over his chest.
"...Told Tyler I'm a vampire.." Caroline answered nervously. I rose an eyebrow, obviously taken aback as I looked at Stefan who looked away from Caroline and sighed in defeat.
~~~
Stefan and I watched in silence while Caroline shoved salad in her mouth. Bite after bite and I sighed loudly, sitting back in my chair from where we sat inside of The Grill. "Sorry to drag you guys here. But if I don't eat, I get those 'kill innocent people' urges. Tyler totally has those, too, by the way." Caroline stated, pointing at me with her fork.
"Yeah, what else did you say to him? Been kinda busy you know, making sure my sister doesn't get killed by Originals or anything." I pointed out in annoyance toward her. "Did you tell him that I'm a witch?" I asked, not sure what response I am hoping for.
"No, Mariana. I didn't tell him much. I was trying to keep the questions to a minimum." Caroline replied with a nod down at her food before looking up as Stefan put his face in his hands, sighing in annoyance. "Are you mad?" She asked in defeat, seeing his tension.
"Yes, Caroline. As a matter of fact, I am a little mad. You put yourself at risk, if Damon finds outâ" Stefan started but I quickly cut him off.
"But you're not going to tell him, are you?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at him and he sighed.
"No, of course not. He would kill her." Stefan replied as he gestured at Caroline who smiled at him in thanks.
"Always lookin' out for me." Caroline said happily before shoving more salad in her mouth and I rolled my eyes in amusement.
"Yeah well, you don't exactly make it very easy on me." Stefan pointed out with a small smile and I chuckled a bit.
"Then why do you do it?" Caroline asked, arching an eyebrow and looking down at her plate before furrowing her eyebrows and looking back at him. "Why are you such a good friend to me?" She added curiously.
"I don't know. I guess you, uhâYou remind me of someone." He answered and Caroline rose an eyebrow in amusement. "My, uhâmy best friend, Lexi." He added and I slowly nodded and looked down at my drink in front of me.
"Iâyou have a friend?" Caroline asked in shocked amusement, making Stefan laugh.
"You say that with such aâa discouraging amount of surprise, Caroline." Stefan replied as he shook his head at her and she smiled.
"No, I justâSorry, I just... tell me about her." Caroline stated, picking up more salad with her fork. Stefan became silent as he looked at Caroline before nodding and sitting back in his seat.
"He will some other time. We gotta go." I pointed out as I changed the subject. Stefan gave me a small knowing smile as we started to get up from the table.
"Wait, no! Umâwhat do we do about Tyler?" Caroline asked, furrowing her eyebrows at us. Stefan and I exchanged a look of annoyance before we sat back down with her. "IâI just don't want Damon to kill him, 'cause there's a full moon coming up, and Tyler's totally freaking out about it." She added and I furrowed my eyebrows at her.
"One, Damon isn't going to kill him. Two, speaking of Tyler, I really need to go see him and Stefan needs to see Elena." I sighed in defeat as we went to leave again.
"Wait, umâ" Caroline started but Stefan quickly cut her off.
"No, no, no. Caroline, you have two seconds to come clean." Stefan warned as he looked at her in frustration and she furrowed her eyebrows.
"What do you mean?" She asked innocently but I rolled my eyes.
"We'd believe the entire innocent act a little better, if we didn't know first hand, at how good you were at providing a distraction on demand." I pointed out and she sighed as she looked between Stefan and I.
"Where's Elena?" Stefan asked, raising an eyebrow at her. Caroline stared back at us and I narrowed my eyes at her warningly before she sighed in defeat.
"I can't tell you." She answered and Stefan sighed, sitting back in his seat.
"You can't tell me. Are you kidding me?" He asked in annoyance while I observed her slowly.
"Elena must have made her swear on girl code." I pointed out, making Stefan scoff. "Caroline, Elena was kidnapped yesterday. She could have been killed. You're really not going to tell us where she is?" I pressed, shaking my head at her in defeat.
"Elena's not in any danger. I wouldn't let her put herself in any danger." Caroline argued in reassurance and I furrowed my eyebrows at her, as did Stefan.
"Not let her put herself in any dangerâwhat do youâ" Stefan started but I cut him off.
"Come on, Care." I stated, shaking my head at her in annoyance.
"Caroline, if you're my friendâlike you've been pretending to be all day, you'll tell me where she is." Stefan stated emotionlessly toward her and she sighed.
"Stefan.. I am your friend. But I'm also Elena's.. I'm sorryâBut I'm not going to tell you where she is." Caroline replied quietly and Stefan furrowed his eyebrows. He let out a frustrated scoff before getting up and walking out of The Grill. Caroline sighed in defeat and looked at me but I slowly shook my head.
~~~
I walked up the stairs and in the direction of my room before I noticed Elena's light was on. I rose an eyebrow and walked in to see her sitting on her bed with her knees to her chest. "Lena?" I asked, furrowing my eyebrows at her before she looked up at me with tears in her eyes. "Elena, what happened?" I asked, quickly moving over to sit on her bed beside her.
"I went to talk to Katherine.. About Klaus." She answered as more tears fell from her eyes and I furrowed my eyebrows.
"Elena, Katherine is a liarâ" I started, shaking my head at her but Elena shook hers back, grabbing my hand tightly.
"No, Mariana, she's not." Elena stated as she cut me off and I furrowed my eyebrows. "To break the sun and the moon curse you need a vampire, a witch and a werewolfâKatherine turned Caroline and wants Tyler so she can bargain all of our lives for hers." Elena stated frantically as mascara ran down her face. "I wanted to know the truth and I got it. It's not just me that's in danger, Mariana. It's Caroline and Tyler.. and Bonnie. They're all part of breaking the curse. I can't blame anyone else anymore. I can't blame Stefan for coming to town or for falling in love with meâit's because of me. Everything is because of me." Elena stated angrily at herself before I quickly pulled her toward me, holding her tightly. "Everything is because of me.." She whispered over and over again and I closed my eyes, trying to keep from crying along with her.
"This is all going to be fine, Elena." I reassured as I held her closely, trying to comfort her. "Everything will be fine.." I whispered, only to feel her cry harder.