Many thanks to Brittiny and sailor silvimoon for the lovely reviews. Good to hear that my story is appreciated.
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"Okay guys, I want you all to write me a paper on the current subject. You`ve got one week. And Wikipedia copies will be marked with an F. Without exception." Alaric stated, shooting Tyler a pointed look. He didn´t care if the guy was the Mayor`s son and star of the football team. The same rules applied for him as for anyone else. The students groaned and grumbled about the homework, while they packed their things and slowly filed out of the room. Ric watched them go, noting absent-mindedly that Stefan and Elena lingered.
A little over a week had gone by since Stefan`s capture and rescue and today was the first day he was back at school. Ric had been watching him discreetly, but he seemed to have recovered pretty well. He was a little edgy maybe, but the teacher wasn`t really sure if that was anything new. He hadn`t had all that much dealings with Stefan until very recently and the vampire skipped class more often than not.
The teacher sat down on the edge of his desk and watched the two approach. Stefan seemed uncomfortable, kept his eyes downcast. "I just wanted to say thank you. For helping Damon and Elena to save me." he mumbled. Ric shrugged. "I`m not sure if I was all that much of a help." Finally the vampire met his eyes. Up this close Ric noticed that he had definitely looked better. "From what Elena told me, they couldn`t have done it without you. And I know you had no reason to help me. After everything Damon has done. So thank you. And if I can do anything to repay you…"
The mention of the older Salvatore made Ric stiffen. He hadn`t seen Damon since their encounter behind the Grill, but he had thought a lot about his words. He still wasn`t a hundred percent sure if he believed what Damon had said. If it weren`t for that tiny fact at the end he would write it off as Damon trying to mess with his head. But there was no way the vampire could know about his scar. It was driving Ric mad. This uncertainty and the many questions. Had he really known Damon? And how well? He just couldn`t go on not knowing. But he didn`t trust Damon. So if Stefan offered a favour, maybe he should take him up on the offer?
Clearing his throat he looked at the vampire. "Well… maybe there is something I could use your help with." Stefan blinked, obviously surprised that the teacher really wanted to cash in the offered favour. "Sure. What is it?" Ric hesitated, wondered if it was such a good idea to bring Stefan into this. But he trusted the vampire. At least more than Damon. And he really wanted to know the truth. So he took a deep breath and declared: "I need you to compel me."
Stefan actually stumbled a step backwards at his unexpected request. "You want me to…? Why?" he asked. Elena looked just as shocked as her boyfriend. "There`s something Damon said to me. I just… I just need to know if it´s true." The uncertainty was killing him. "What did he say?" Elena wanted to know. "He claims that I`ve known him. Before he turned Isobel. He said he compelled me to forget." Ric told them. The younger Salvatore gave him an almost pitying look. "You shouldn`t believe anything Damon says. He`s toying with you. That´s his thing. Mind games, lies.. he`s good at that."
Elena nodded enigmatically. "Stefan is right. You should just ignore Damon. He tried that stuff with me, too. Just forget what he said." The teacher sighed. Just forget it. Good advice. He would love to, but he simply couldn`t. "I normally wouldn´t believe him, trust me. At first I was convinced that he was just messing with my head. But he knows things about me… About a scar and how I got it. He can`t know that." Ric muttered. He had spent the whole week wondering how Damon could have found out. The answer was simple. He couldn`t. Not if Ric hadn`t told the vampire himself. No-one but his parents knew about that little accident from his childhood days. And he seriously doubted the vampire had visited his parents.
Elena and Stefan looked thoughtful. "Maybe Isobel told him?" the girl suggested. Ric shook his head. "She didn`t know. No-one but my parents knows this story." He was sure of it. "Damon offered to take the compulsion off, but I don´t trust him. I`m afraid he might plant false memories into my head if he gets the chance. You wouldn`t do that. So I need you to compel me and undo whatever Damon has done." the teacher explained. "If there´s really something he made me forget, I just need to know." Elena smiled in sympathy and told him she could understand, but Stefan looked troubled.
"I can`t help you, Alaric. I`m sorry." The teacher wanted to scream in frustration. What the hell was Stefan`s problem? He was allowing him to use compulsion, so he didn`t need to feel bad for doing it. And he would only undo the damage his brother had done. Ric opened his mouth to protest, but Stefan cut him off. "It`s not that I don`t want to. I simply can`t. I`m not strong enough to override Damon´s compulsion. It´s the animal blood. I`m weaker than Damon. It wouldn`t work." He looked truly apologetic. Ric cursed under his breath. That was something he hadn´t thought about.
"I have an idea." Elena suddenly spoke up. "Why don`t you ask Damon to take the compulsion off while we`re there as well? That way Stefan and I could make sure that he doesn`t give you any false memories." Alaric looked at her in surprise, wondering why he hadn`t thought of this earlier. "That´s a good idea. You´d have to listen closely to what exactly he`s saying. But he couldn`t really mess with my mind with you two there." he agreed. Elena grinned at him, pleased about her plan. Stefan nodded his assent as well. "Come over to the boarding house later. Damon should be home and we`ll be there as well." he promised. Ric thanked him and agreed to show up.
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About two hours after school was done for the day the teacher found himself standing in front of the boarding house. His heart was hammering and he felt nervous as hell. He couldn´t help but wonder what he would remember and if he really wanted those memories back. Taking a deep breath he finally knocked. No way to find out but to try. The door opened seconds later to reveal Stefan. "Come in. Damon`s in the library." Alaric followed the younger Salvatore inside, where Elena was already waiting as well. They entered the library and found Damon lounging on the couch, a glass of bourbon in one hand and a book in the other.
He set the book down and looked at the three of them with a frown. "Did I miss something?" Ric took a hesitant step forward. "You said you compelled me to forget something and to find you when I want those memories back. Well, I want them back now." A sly smile spread over Damon´s lips. "Do you now? Well, in that case I`m happy to oblige. Follow me." He drained his drink, got up and went to the door, but Ric didn`t budge. "Where?" he asked suspiciously. The dark haired vampire shrugged. "My room?"
"Why not here?" the teacher wanted to know. "Why not in my room?" Damon mimicked and Ric felt the urge to strangle him. "I don`t trust you." Damon`s lips twitched. "But you trusted me once." he claimed, sounding pretty sure of that. "Well, unfortunately I can`t remember. So I want Stefan and Elena to be there so they can make sure you don`t plant false memories into my head." The vampire looked like he wanted to argue. Surprisingly enough, he didn`t. He just stared at Ric for a second. Then he rolled his eyes and heaved a dramatic sigh. "Alright, if you insist. Let`s do it here."
He walked over to Ric, stopped directly in front of him and the teacher felt his nervousness spike. Damon´s closeness did ridiculous things to his body that made him wonder if his subconscious remembered something he didn`t. "I suppose you`ve still got vervain on you?" the vampire guessed. Alaric hesitated a second. Then he took off the bracelet and handed it to Elena. Damon moved even closer. It took all of Ric`s willpower to stay still and meet that blue eyed stare. His heart was pounding and his knees felt weak.
He watched fascinated how the vampire`s eyes darkened. Damon´s voice sounded hypnotic and oh so close. "I want you to remember everything I made you forget." It took only a few seconds. Then Damon lowered his eyes and took a step back. Ric shook his head, blinked, a little disoriented. Gasped when all of a sudden his mind was flooded with images. Damon and him in the kitchen of his and Isobel`s apartment, lounging together on the couch, sitting in a car, walking through a park, drinking at a bar. The two of them laughing, drinking, talking... So many memories. So much he`d forgotten. They had been friends. And so much more.
Damon was watching him with an unreadable expression. Ric stumbled backwards, right into Stefan, who reached a hand out to steady him. Elena was at his side in an instant, looking at him worriedly. "Ric? Are you okay?" He couldn`t deal with her right now. Couldn`t deal with anyone right now. So many memories.
"Yeah, I just… I`ve.. got to go." he mumbled and practically fled out of the house. Elena called after him that he`d forgotten his vervain bracelet, but he didn`t care. He needed to get away. Jumping into his car he sped off. Not really knowing what he was doing or where he was going he just drove on. Out of Mystic Falls, further along the street, until he reached the ruins of a deserted old farmhouse. There he parked his car and sat just staring into space. Remembering.
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FLASHBACK:
Alaric parked his car in front of the apartment building and frowned at the blue camaro in the driveway. For a second he wondered if Isobel had a visitor and debated just leaving again. But no, she wouldn`t. Not at their home. She knew the rules. And it was already late. Work had taken forever today. He got out of the car and went to the door. The sound of hushed voices greeted him when he entered the apartment, made him stop in his tracks for a moment. Warily he went on, followed the voices to the kitchen, where he found his wife sitting at the table with a guy he didn`t know. Isobel smiled at him. "Hey, Ric." He bent down to kiss her, noting slightly hurt how she turned away from him. Trying to act nonchalant Ric looked at their visitor.
Blue eyes met his. The guy stood up and held out his hand. "Damon Salvatore, I`m a student of Isobel." He seemed nice enough, but Ric was pretty sure what student actually meant here. Damon was hot. You`d have to be blind not to notice that. Tall, lean frame, paired with dark hair, sensuous lips and eyes to drown in. Isobel sure knew how to pick them. Ric forced a smile to his face and shook Damon´s hand. "Alaric Saltzman. Pleased to meet you." Damon nodded. "Yeah, you`re Isobel`s husband. She told me about you." This surprised Ric, but he tried not to let it show.
Isobel motioned for him to take a seat. She didn`t exactly look pleased at him being there. Ric sat down and turned to Damon. "So, you`re studying to be a parapsychologist like my wife?" he asked, trying to make small talk. The dark haired man nodded. "Yeah. Though I`m mostly interested in witches, actually." Damon told him. Ric was about to comment, when the ringing of Isobel`s cell phone interrupted them. She looked at it, then quickly got up and excused herself. Alaric suspected that they wouldn`t see her for some time. Lately she spent hours on the phone and even more time at her computer. It was getting beyond frustrating.
Left alone with the stranger, Ric`s eyes were drawn to Damon once more and he felt at a loss for words. The silence was stretching, starting to get uncomfortable. Ric sighed. This was ridiculous. "Are you sleeping with my wife?" Damon´s eyes widened in surprise. Then he chuckled. "No, I`m not. Although she did offer." Ric nodded. "Yeah, I figured. We`ve…. got an open relationship." And why was he even telling Damon this? It wasn`t like he wanted the guy to sleep with his wife.
The open relationship had been her idea. At first he had refused, had been appalled and also more than a bit hurt by the idea. Wasn`t she happy with him? Was he not enough? What could she get from a stranger that he couldn`t give her? But Isobel hadn`t stopped talking about it. They had fought more than once. In the end he had agreed just to make her happy. They never talked about it now, but he was sure she must be taking advantage of it. Truth be told, he didn`t want to know.
"She told me. But I wasn`t interested." Damon let him know. Must have been a blow for Isobel`s ego, getting turned down. Something she wasn`t used to. She usually got what she wanted. Which was probably the reason Damon was here tonight. She was trying to make him change his mind. Ric`s appearance must have ruined her plans. Well, too bad for her.
"So.. Isobel tells me you`re into history?" Damon asked, steering the conversation towards a less awkward subject. Ric nodded, glad for the change of topic. His marriage problems really weren`t Damon´s fault. "Anything specific?" the dark haired man wanted to know. "I`ve been specializing on the American Civil War lately." Damon looked interested. "Really? Why this topic?"
"I don´t really know. It just fascinates me. The thought of Americans fighting each other because of different opinions and ideals... Pretty stupid, when you think about it. Did you know that to this day there are discussions about what exactly caused the war? It´s all very complex and controversial." Alaric shrugged sheepishly. Ask him about his work and he could start a monologue. He could bore someone to death with it. Damon however didn`t look bored at all. "I know you what you mean. I grew up with all this Civil War stuff. Small southern town, very fond of its history." he let Ric know.
"Where exactly did you grow up? If you don`t mind me asking." Ric asked. "Mystic Falls, Virginia." Ric frowned. "Never heard of that before, sorry." he admitted and Damon laughed. "Like I said, small southern town. You`d probably like it. The people there are really into history. They celebrate events, with costumes and stuff." That did sound interesting. "Maybe I`ll have to visit your town someday." he mused. Damon smiled. He seemed like a friendly guy and all of a sudden Ric didn`t really mind Isobel bringing him home. "Hey, have you seen that exhibition over in Raleigh?" Damon asked suddenly.
"No, not yet. I wanted to, but I didn`t have the time." It was an exhibition focused on the Civil War era, so of course he wanted to see it. But work had kept him pretty busy lately. "I was planning on going to see it on Saturday. Maybe we could go together?" Damon offered. Ric nodded with a smile. "Yeah, I`d like that." Isobel was completely engrossed in her research at the moment anyways. She wouldn`t miss him and it would be much more fun with someone who was interested in the topic as well. "Cool. I`ll pick you up around… nine?" the dark haired man asked. "Okay. Great."
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Alaric smiled at the memory. The exhibition had turned out to be completely boring, so they`d ended up at a bar instead, bonding over a few drinks. There they had sat for hours and talked about anything that came to mind, from their mutual appreciation for bourbon, to family, work and interests. It had been a great day. Back then he`d felt an instant connection with Damon. He had been easy to talk to and Ric had enjoyed his quick wit and dry humour.
The teacher noticed that it was already getting dark. He must`ve been sitting here for quite a while. A glance at his cell phone told him that Elena had been trying to reach him. He had given her his number last week, shortly after their rescue mission. Had told her to call him if she needed help again. After all, she was kind of his step-daughter, wasn`t she? Now he debated calling her back, but couldn`t bring himself to do it. He just needed some more time to himself. Shaking his head he started the car and drove back to his apartment.
