OMG. Thank you to everyone that reviews. AWESOME RESPONSE.

Music

What Can I Say - Brandi Carlile (Meredith/Avery)

Black & Blue - Chris Garneau (Hospital)

Just Looking - Emma-Lee (Ben Phillips)

Avery made sure to wake up before Meredith. She knew that it was one of her few days off of work. After being with Kol, she couldn't sleep and started to realize how awful how the things she said to her aunt were. Meredith only took her in because she wanted to. There was nothing in it for her. And all Avery did in return was tell her to stop trying to act like her parents. She had to apologize.

Avery had planned on making her breakfast but was disappointed when there was absolutely nothing in the house to make anything. Since Meredith had basically been working all week, she had no time to go to the grocery store. There was an apple and banana that seemed somewhat edible. She didn't even cut them as she threw them on a plate. She quietly snuck into Meredith's room and sat at the edge of the bed, knowing her presence would somehow wake her up.

Meredith slowly woke. She sat up quickly, immediately thinking something bad had happened. Then she calmed when she saw how relaxed Avery was sitting.

Avery handed her the plate with the banana and apple. "It's a peace offering." She said blankly. "I'm sorry for everything I said last night. I didn't mean it." She sighed when she saw Meredith's face slowly turn sympathetic. "I was going to make you a big breakfast…but we don't exactly have any food. At least I covered one food group…" She finally laughed a little at how briefly her idea had survived.

"I'm sorry too, Avery." Meredith returned hurriedly. "Hey, I have an idea! How about we go into town for breakfast?" Avery immediately smiled at the suggestion and nodded her head in agreement. "And then maybe after we can go to the grocery store and actually stock the kitchen full of all the food groups."

A half hour later, Meredith had brought Avery to the little café where she had first run into Sheriff Phillips. According to her aunt, it had amazing breakfast. Being an early Saturday morning, a lot of people were eating with family and friends.

All of their conflict was put behind them instantly. Plus, Avery was in too good of a mood to be mad at Meredith any longer. Kol was responsible for that. Even with the few hours of nighttime she was left with, it had been impossible to go to sleep. He kept slipping into her thoughts, causing her to smile like an idiot. It was almost hard to believe everything was so simple with them. Other than the fact they basically had to hide their relationship from everyone. Was it okay to call it a relationship? Avery wondered. She hadn't really thought about it that way until now.

"You're deep in thought…may I ask what your daydreaming about?" Meredith asked before taking a sip of black coffee. Her words slapped Avery out of her reveries. She wanted to tell her all about the boy in her life. But she couldn't because it was Kol. And Meredith had made it very clear what her thoughts on him were.

"Oh…just spacing out. Sorry. I didn't get much sleep last night." It was sort of true. That was why she didn't completely ruin the partial lie.

The waitress, arriving with their food, saved Avery from getting asked any more questions. The first few minutes of their meal were completely silent. It was like neither of them had anything to eat in a week. Meredith paused for a moment, judging if she should bring up a tense subject.

"So, I found a few college acceptance letters I believe you accidentally threw out in the garbage…" Meredith tried to sound casual about it so she wouldn't upset Avery enough to push her into her preferred silence.

"It wasn't an accident." Avery immediately replied without looking up from her chocolate chip pancakes.

"Well…I found some pretty awful school's in the pile anyway. Harvard, Princeton, Yale…you know, colleges that only really stupid people go to." Meredith added sardonically. But Avery wasn't smiling. If she had known college would be a topic of discussion, she wouldn't have agreed to go to breakfast.

"Look I know going to school is the last thing you want to think about right now. But I just don't want you to stop your life because they're gone. I feel like you're punishing yourself. They would've wanted you to be happy, Avery. Don't let yourself believe that you don't deserve it." Meredith sighed.

Avery put down her silverware. She felt sick now for so many reasons, most of which she didn't fully understand. Meredith was right of course. But Avery was being stubborn and didn't want to admit it. She never used to act like this. Stubbornness had never been part of her nature. But she wasn't the same person she had been before her family was murdered.

By some miracle, she was saved by Meredith's cell phone ringing. Her aunt's eyes wrinkled in worry when she recognized the number as the hospital. It was one of her few days off at a hospital that was understaffed and didn't have as many talented doctors as Doctor Fell.

Meredith picked up the phone, slightly irritated. Before she even said anything, whoever was on the other line started talking as fast as possible without her misunderstanding.

"I'm on my way right now." She muttered hurriedly before throwing her phone into her purse. Without explaining to Avery, she was already throwing money on top of the table and getting up to leave. Abruptly, it seemed like she remembered Avery was still there. "That was the hospital. An animal attacked Sheriff Phillips. Listen, I don't have time to drop you off at home…"

"Another animal attack?" Avery immediately regretted saying it aloud. She wasn't supposed to know about the files in her closet. And how else would she know about other similar attacks? Plus, Meredith still didn't know about the party she went to where Chase drugged her, then was also attacked and killed by an animal.

"If it's just an animal attack, isn't there another doctor who can handle it?" Avery knew she had a point. It didn't seem like too difficult of a task for only one specified doctor to treat. Then everything her aunt had explained suddenly settled in: Sheriff Phillips was the one attacked.

Avery didn't argue as Meredith quickly walked out of the café and drove to the hospital. Avery said she'd park the car when they stopped right at the front entrance of Mystic Falls Hospital.

Avery didn't rush inside once she parked the car. The last time she'd been in the hospital was when she had to identify her family's bodies when they were on their way to the funeral parlor. Taking them to the hospital to confirm what caused their death seemed pointless to Avery. Hospitals were rarely a place for good things. A happy childbirth was all that she could think of as the automatic sliding doors opened for her. People were either dying, receiving a dangerous surgery, or having a disease slowly suck the life out of them.

Avery walked around the hospital nervously. She had no idea where to look for Meredith. A part of her didn't even think she should do that. She'd probably only get in the way. But after a few minutes, she spotted her talking to two cops. Meredith looked angry, as if she was lecturing them. Avery hid around the corner to see if she could overhear what they were saying.

"He lost a lot of blood. And you won't let me to do what could guarantee that he will make it through the night. Stop acting like you're above it."

"Sheriff Phillips made us promise him that he wouldn't get the blood, especially from the freaks that attacked him." Avery recognized the man as one of the deputies that had been outside her house when Kol dropped her off. Everything Avery was hearing was only confusing her. There wasn't any animal that could've attacked the sheriff, which could also offer him the blood he was refusing.

"Maybe he wouldn't have been attacked if you weren't trying to end their entire species! The sheriff is lucky he's not laying dead right now." Meredith's eyes widened when she saw Avery trying to stay concealed. The cops followed the doctor's gaze and knew it was time to end their discussion. Avery saw she had been discovered and decided to walk over to aunt, acting like nothing happened.

"You're already on thin ice, Doctor Fell. We advise you figure out whose side you're on. We hope you choose right." The deputy said quietly before storming down the hall. Both him and Meredith thought there was no way of Avery overhearing the last comment. But she caught it somehow.

"Is he ok?" Avery asked quietly. She didn't mind Sheriff Phillips. He'd been nicer than most people in town. The last thing she wanted was to see him hurt.

Meredith nudged her head to the room next to her. "He's lost a lot of blood. But we're confident he'll make it just fine." Avery hadn't realized his room was right next to them. He lay on the bed of the empty hospital room. "He doesn't have any family in town." Meredith added as she watched Avery staring at him. "You can sit in there if you want…keep him company. There are still a few things I have to do while I'm here. It could be awhile." She gave her niece an encouraging smile.

Avery nodded her head, still looking at Sheriff Phillips. Slowly, she walked into the room. There was an empty seat conveniently next to his bed. She looked around the room as if someone would magically appear that was better suited for such a job. After she realized how pathetic she was acting, Avery awkwardly sat down in the chair.

Her eyes stared at his neck. There was a cotton patch tapped over his it. There was a shadow of red visible that was probably vibrant on the other side of the bandage. Sheriff Phillips face was pale and slightly moist with perspiration. Avery couldn't help but notice how young he looked in such a state. She'd always known how fairly young he truly was. He was still just a kid. Now she felt like it could be her on the bed, having played a game of cops and robbers that went horribly wrong. Avery sighed and looked at the ground. Did all hospitals look for the most depressing tile to put in their rooms? She asked herself cynically.

"Avery?" She heard a coarse voice whisper. Sheriff Phillips had awoken and now looked at her in wonder. Avery hastily got out of her seat in surprise.

"Sheriff Phillips, you're awake! Should I go get Meredith? Are you in pain? Do you need something?" The questions rolled off her tongue like bullets.

But it put a smile on his face. He raised one of his hands to calm her down. It was covered in IV's and other lines. "Ok. Take it easy. I'm fine. I don't need anything." When he was satisfied that she'd calmed down, he put his hand down. "You know…you can call me Ben instead of Sheriff Phillips, Avery."

She sat back down and shifted in her seat uncomfortably. "Ok…Are you sure I can't get you anything…Ben?" Her hesitation made him smile more.

"I'm fine. Just a little beat up. I think I'll survive." He tried to sound lighthearted, wanting to free Avery of her worried looks of concern.

"What were you doing in the forest anyway? Did you mix up your sheriff profession with a forest ranger?" She asked, just a little humorously.

"I guess I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time." Ben said seriously. He was good at hiding the depth of the situation to her. But he didn't know that Avery was already suspicious to the obscurities that were the town's secrets.

"Ben, don't take this the wrong way…but how old are you?" She asked softly.

He looked away, down at the IVs jammed into his veins. "22."

"How is it that you're so you and the sheriff of a town? Did you go to college?" His situation confused her. Besides, she had no idea what else to talk to him about so she went ahead and asked him what she'd been wondering about.

The subject didn't seem to make him uncomfortable. In fact, it appeared as if he was used to being asked about it. "No…No, I didn't go to college. I was kind of raised my entire life to be this. I guess you could say it's the family business."

"It's the family business to be a cop?" Avery laughed lightly.

Ben smiled at the sound of her laugh. "Yeah…I can't really explain it, to be truly honest." He was now laughing too. She noticed how differently he talked to her when he wasn't being the sheriff. He was just being himself. Once the uniform was off, he was just Ben Phillips.

Their conversation was interrupted when Meredith walked into the room. "Good to see someone awake." She gave her patient a small smile. His lightheartedness and true self instantly disappeared in her presence. Just like that, he had gone back to Sheriff Phillips. It saddened Avery for some reason, seeing it first hand. She wondered how happy he truly was, or rather, how unhappy.

"I just came in to check your vitals and change your bandages again. I want to make sure the stitches are setting in." Meredith said in her formal doctor tone. Avery pushed her chair further back so she wasn't in the way. Her eyes were now glued to the bandage on the sheriff's neck. Avery's stomach flipped when she saw the marks left on his neck. They were exactly like her family had in the pictures Meredith had hidden. But only he had no cut dragged against dead skin.

Avery shot up out of her seat to stand. It was a reaction she couldn't control. Meredith and Sheriff Phillips both noticed, looking at her worried. She realized she had to think of an excuse and then she wanted to leave.

"I'm sorry…it's the blood. I just…I just need to get out of here." She gestured toward the door with her thumb. Her lie was probably believable; her face was pale and she could feel the temperature in her body rising.

Meredith walked over to feel her forehead with the back of her hand. She reached into her lab coat and then had car keys in her grasp. "I don't know how long I'll be. Can you drive okay?" She asked. Avery nodded confidently. But she looked over to see Sheriff Phillips looking apprehensive. He was sitting in a hospital bed with a gash in his neck, yet he was worried about her.

Once the keys were in her grasp, Avery rushed out of the room after promising her aunt she would call as soon as she was home. The Ivy League colleges hadn't accepted her for just any reason. She was smart, close to genius according to every test made by mankind. Every since she was a child, Avery maxed every assessment put in front of her. A researcher studying her intelligence once told her it was because she observed more than the average person and was able to absorb large amounts of information more easily than anyone he'd ever met or studied.

Avery figured things out. If she had questions, she would find the solution. The drive home filled her head with possible answers to the mysteries that were becoming clearer and clearer to her every day. They practically begged her to become solved. Sheriff Phillips was attacked by an animal in the same place on his neck that her family was. An animal killed Chase only a few days before. Such behavior by animals was unnatural. Avery also found it odd that no one spoke of what type of animal it was. There were no wolves in these parts of the country. Bears were found in Virginia but never in such metropolitan regions. It didn't make sense. No animal was capable of causing such harm to humans, especially to a police officer who had a gun and was trained to handle severe situations.

Avery was starting to get a headache. She was had a choice: stop now, forever unknowing, or put an end to all the secrecy. Her fingers tapped on the steering wheel, indecisive. She finally reached the house and texted Meredith that she was home. There was no way she would've been able to hold a verbal conversation. Avery sat in the car, staring at the driveway. Minutes after minutes passed when she finally decided. She needed to know. And if she wanted to, there was no way she wouldn't find out what everyone was hiding.

Yes, I know. There was no Kol. I promise...next chapter. I'm sorry to say, it can't be a Avery/Kol love fest every chapter lol.