HEY GUYS! Just a reminder to please remember, to review. It gives me motivation and makes me update faster. Thanks guys xx

SMACK! a window blew open in Elena's room from the storm, causing the girls to fling themselves up, and out of sleep with a gasp and scream.

"Urghhh," Brea groaned burying her head back in the pillow still half asleep. Elena hauled herself out of bed and shut the window. Brea lifted her head and remembered what Anna told her about her ring. Brea checked it, just in case it wasn't the wind, but by chance some homicidal vampire that blew open the window. When she saw the ring wasn't glowing, she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"Hey, can you check on Jer, help close all the windows?" Elena asked as she wrestled with her own window.

Brea just mumbled in acknowledgement and stumbled through Elena and Jeremy's bathroom to knock on the door of Jeremy's interconnecting room. "Hey, you're still up," Brea said with a yawn as she opened the door to see him sitting on the edge of his bed.

"Hey, what's up?" he asked nervously.

"Looks like there's a big storm rolling in, can you help us make sure all the windows are closed?" Brea asked rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, sure," he said gesturing his head and laughing at his own open window. Brea just smiled and stumbled back into Elena's bed.

Brea ran down the stairs in the morning dressed and ready for the day, only to see her two siblings and aunt sitting sluggishly at the table drinking coffee. "How can you drink that stuff? It's vile."

Jenna then looked up at Brea and smiled muttering "morning."

"Oh my god!" Brea gasped, walking towards her aunt. "What happened to your eye?" Brea asked pointing to her aunt's black eye.

"I don't know. I think I ran into something."

"Oh," Brea said with a small laugh.

"What? Do you know something?" Jenna asked unable to recall what happened.

"Yeah, you ran into my door last night, silly."

"I did?" she asked as Jeremy and Elena looked up to give their aunt a weird look.

"Yeah I… stubbed my toe and screamed. You thought I was in trouble or something and, bang, drunk Jenna ran straight into my closed door."

"Urgh," Jenna said dropping her head in shame. "How did I get home?"

"Oh my god, Jenna!" Elena said with a laugh.

"Jenna, we took a cab together," Brea explained laughing.

"I am never drinking again," Jenna said, and as soon as she did, the three siblings sprung to face each other.

"Lounge?" Jeremy asked and the girls nodded and they all, except Jenna, raced into the living room. "$10 each this time?"

"Sound fair," both girls nodded.

"I call one week," Elena said.

"3 days," Brea said.

"Tonight," Jeremy said.

"Oh he of little faith," Brea mocked as the girls gave him a smug face. "Rules?" she asked.

"Standard. No pouring her a drink, no talking about alcohol in front of her, no leaving bottles out on the bench for her to find," Elena listed. "Deal?"

"Deal," Jeremy and Brea agreed before the three of them returned to the table.

"What was that about?" Jenna asked. "Guys! Tell me, I don't want to be left out," Jenna whined as the siblings smiled coyly.

Brea had just finished explaining everything Anna had told her last night to the Salvatore brothers, whilst completing ignoring Damon as she was still mad at him. Damon and Stefan, in turn, told the girls about how two tomb vampires smashed into their house last night and how Damon had struck a deal with Pearl to keep her in the loop about all council-related matters.

"I say we go to Pearl's, bust down the door, and annihilate the idiot that attacked us last night," Damon suggested.

"Yeah, and then what?" Stefan asked. "We turn to the rest of that house of vampires and say 'oops. Sorry'."

Brea narrowed her eyes and turned her head to Stefan, "did you just crack a funny?" she asked and Stefan sent her a smile.

"I can't believe you made a deal with her," Elena scowled at Damon.

"It was more like a helpful exchange of information. And it was not like I had a choice. She's… scary. Besides, she's gonna help me get Katherine back."

"Of course, she is. Damon gets what he wants, as usual, no matter who he hurts in the process," Elena snipped.

"You don't have to be snarky about it. Besides, you should be happy with this method. I could always seriously threaten, or harm, our reincarnating 1,000-year-old little freakoid over here and I'm sure Katherine will come running from whatever corner of the globe she's camped out at to protect her," Damon said with a shrug of his shoulders as the twins glared at him.

"You're a dick," Brea hissed.

"We woke up this morning to learn that all the vampires have been released from the tomb. I've earned snarky," Elena snapped.

"How long are you both going to blame me for turning your birth mother into a vampire? And how long are you going to go not talking to me?" Damon asked pointing at Brea, making her turn her head away from him.

"We're not blaming you, Damon. We've both accepted the fact that you're a self-serving psychopath, with no redeeming qualities," Elena snarled as she came to stand next to Brea. Brea then stuck her hand out and Elena high-fived it without even needing to look.

"Ouch," Damon muttered.

"This isn't being very productive," Stefan noted. "We're gonna figure out a way to deal with Pearl and the vampires. Yeah?" Stefan asked as Damon walked away.

"I'm sorry," Elena said to Stefan. "He just makes me so cranky," she said leaning into Stefan for a hug.

"I know, he makes everyone cranky," Stefan sympathised.

"Jerk, ass, arrogant, inconsiderate, mindless frat-boy, low-life, butt-faced miscreant!" Brea growled. Stefan and Elena then ended their hug to turn to look at Brea with shocked looks on their face. "Jer and I have been on a Gilmore Girls marathon," Brea said with a shrug.

Elena scoffed and turned back to Stefan, "so what are we going to do?" Elena asked.

"Damon and I are gonna handle everything, I promise."

"You have my sympathies," Brea said.

"What about us?" Elena asked. "We can't just sit here and do nothing."

"Um, yes we can."

"No, we can't."

"Lena, did you miss the part where the tomb vampires eat people, and, news flash, we're people! And there's also the part where they hate my guts. We're sitting this one out."

"Exactly," Stefan said with a nod. "That's exactly what you're gonna do because that's what's going to keep the both of you safe."

"Which means nothing if you're not safe too," Elena cooed to Stefan.

"What do you mean? I'm perfectly safe. I have Damon, the self-serving, psychopathic, butt-faced miscreant on my side?"

"Oh, I so wish I recorded that," Brea said laughing as Elena smiled.

"That's comforting," Elena said sarcastically.

"Just give me some of the blanket," Brea snapped pulling the blanket from her sister.

"Go get your own this is mine," Elena said snatching it back.

"We shared a womb, we can share a blanket," Brea said pulling it back as her phone rang. "Damon, for the sixth time," she said ignoring the call.

"I'm going upstairs," Elena said clearly agitated. "Just keep the blanket." As she walked off her phone rang.

"Just ignore it!" Brea called out, knowing it'd be Damon. As she said that, there was a knock at the door. "Lena! Door."

"You're both ignoring me," Brea heard Damon say, so she leapt up and saw him in the hall and then proceeded to glare at her sister for letting him in.

"The 11 missed calls between the both of us, sorry, our phones died," Elena snarked,

"Stefan here?" Damon asked looking around.

"No, why? Something wrong?" Elena asked concerned.

"He went out into the woods, didn't came back. I can't get him on his phone. I figured he was here with you."

Elena then picked up her phone and dialled as Brea walked towards them, now concerned for her friends' safety. "It's going straight to voicemail. Where could he be?"

"You're not going to like what I'm thinking."

"Oh bugger," Brea breathed when she realised what Damon was thinking.

"Elena, please, just try and breathe," Brea tried to coax Elena who was hyperventilating as they waited for Damon to get back to the car after he went to talk to Pearl. "There he is," Brea said when she spotted Damon. Elena then threw herself out of the car, using an umbrella to protect her from the rain. Brea watched them talk and then she watched as her sister tried to run towards the house and Damon was forced to haul her back. Not long after that, he laid a hand on her cheek and Brea straightened up narrowing her eyes as she watched him comfort her.

"Just wait there," Damon told the girls as they walked through the school. "Just wait until I make sure it's safe," Damon said as Elena gave him a look before he stepped out from behind the lockers. "Well don't you look… alive?" he asked Alaric, who he had apparently killed a few days before. Stefan had to fill the girls in on that issue, they weren't talking to Damon at the time.

"You can't hurt me," Alaric warned.

"Oh, I can hurt you alright."

The girls gave each other looks, knowing this conversation was getting nowhere, so they stepped out from behind the lockers. "Mr Saltzman. We need your help," Elena said. Alaric just nodded gesturing for them all to come into his classroom. Elena gave him a brief rundown of the tomb vampire issue before getting on to the matter at hand. "Stefan's in the house. Damon's a vampire. He can't get in. We need you. We would go, but…" Elena started before being cut off by Damon.

"But your live's are valuable," he snarked. "Yours, on the other hand," he said nodding his head to Alaric.

"Oh god Damon, shut it!" Brea snapped.

"Oh talking to me again are you?" he smirked, making Brea turned away.

"Stefan told us about your ring," Brea said.

"What about it?"

"Let me recap - you tried to kill me. I defended myself. You died. Then according to my brother, your ring brought you back to life. Am I leaving anything out?"

"Yeah. The part where I try and kill you again. Only this time, I don't miss," Alaric said standing.

"Well this isn't all that productive," Brea mumbled and Elena sighed in acknowledgment.

"Mr Saltzman, please. It's Stefan," Elena said standing in between the two men.

"I'm sorry, Elena. But it's not my problem," he said turning away. Brea frowned, very disappointed in her potential future uncle.

"That's a shame. Because the woman in charge of the crowd can help you find your wife," as Damon said this all three turned to face him, having a vested interest in finding Isobel.

"You're lying," Alaric scowled.

"Am I?" Damon challenged. "Why don't you ask her for yourself? Coward. Come on Gilberts," Damon said guiding the girls out of the classroom.

"All right! Wait," Ric called after them. "I'll go."

Brea's phone buzzed with a text from Tyler so she took a seat while the others went over the game plan.

T - Grill, please

B - Nope

T - My dad is chatting up some lady. I'm shooting pool, it's so lonely by myself

B - Haha you're such a loner you dork

B - What, no one wants to play pool with you huh?

T - Shh, just come alright?

B - Nah, you can suffer

B - Anyways aren't most the roads flooded?

T - Yeah, so? You'll be fine. You can swim

B - Wow, really concerned about my safety huh?

T - Please come?

B - No I'm too busy.

T - Doing what?

B - Flossing my teeth

T - You're mean

B - Sorry! I really am busy though, I'll try swing by later

"Woah, what are you doing?" Brea heard Alaric ask Elena and Brea came to stand next to her and saw her take on of the vervain darts, so Brea took one as well.

"We're going with you," Elena explained.

"No, no, no, no. No way," Damon said with a smirk.

"You need us. We can get in. You could distract them, and then we'll get Stefan out," Elena said annoyed.

"You'll get yourselves killed. Neither of you is going in there."

"We're going," Brea said standing in solidarity with her twin.

"So when you get me in, get out as quickly as you can, I know how to sneak around where they can't hear me," Damon said turning to Ric, ignoring the girls. "You'll basically just be in the way."

"Damon now is not the time to be the lone ranger," Elena snapped.

"Fine. Elena, you can drive the getaway car. You're not going in the house."

"You can't stop me! It's Stefan we're talking about here. You don't understand."

"Oh. I understand. I understand. He's the reason you live. His love lifts you up where you belong. I get it," he said mockingly as the girls glare at him.

"Can you just not joke around for 2 seconds?"

"I can't protect you, Elena. I don't know how many vampires there are in there."

"Well, then I'll go!" Brea snapped. "I know them as well. I was friends with some of them," Brea argued.

Damon then snapped his fingers. "That's how long it takes you to get your head ripped off. Sure you used to be friends with some of them, but some of them also hated you and then they got locked in a tomb because of your sister! Friendship over," Damon said with a growl. "I have to be able to get in and get out. I can't be distracted with your safety. Or, this will end up a bloodbath that none of us walks away from, including Stefan." Damon then moved closer to Elena. "I know, I get it. I understand," he said genuinely.

"If we're gonna go, let's go," Alaric said packing up the weapons.

Elena sat in the car with Brea looking around frantically and Brea could see where her mind was at. "Still got the darts we took?" Brea asked with an exhale knowing she wasn't going to let her twin run off on a suicide mission alone. Elena then pulled them out of the bag Ric left on the seat and stared at them as a tree branch fell on top of the windscreen making the girls scream in shock. "Dude, if we get scared by a branch what are we going to do in there!"

"Let's go," Elena said jumping out of the car and started running towards the house. Brea sighed before she threw herself out and ran after her. Eventually, they reached the house and Elena turned to Brea and put her finger over her lips to signal her to be extra quiet. The girls then climbed over the porch railing and plastered themselves up against the wall to remain out of sight.

As Elena started to look around the corner to evaluate the surroundings they heard Fredrick yell, "Billy, Jacob, get back in here!" and Brea grabbed Elena pulling her back against the wall as they both looked at each other wide eyed, now thinking this wasn't such a great idea. Elena then grabbed Brea's arm and pointing at a side entrance to the cellar and Brea nodded and they both ran crouched low, down the stairs to the cellar. Elena then jiggled the handle to the door, only to find it locked.

Brea looked down at her hand and saw her ring with a dull glow and lifted it up to show her sister, "not that bright yet," Elena whispered before she smashed the glass causing Brea to gasp and plaster herself up against the wall in fright, looking around frantically as Elena stuck her hand in and opened the door from the inside. Elena walked out in front of Brea and when they approached a corner Elena stuck her arm out to stop her sister walking further. They both stuck their heads around to see a vampire listening to music. He heard the girls and turned his music off and started walking towards where they were hidden. Elena stuck her head around the corner and then slammed it back with a gasp, he'd seen her.

The girls then heard a groan and a thud and Elena then moved into the open to see Damon standing over the knocked out vampire. "Are you insane?" he asked and then Brea stepped out, " you two are giving me a migraine," he groaned before he stalked away and the girls chased after him. Elena then ran ahead and threw herself through a door. Damon and Brea then followed through after.

"You shouldn't be here," Stefan groaned and Brea's eyes widened to see Stefan strung up from the ceiling covered in blood.

"They were supposed to stay in the car," Damon said walking past the twins and raising his stake.

"No. No. No. Not him," Stefan said in protest.

Brea turned around to look at the vampire Damon was about to stake. "Harper?" she asked.

"Miss Pierce?" he asked with a groan. Brea ran and knelt in front of him as Elena and Damon got Stefan down.

"Why would they do this to you?" Brea asked studying him. Brea then moved behind him and started to untie the ropes around his hands as Elena and Stefan pulled the stakes out of his leg.

"Come on!" Damon was growling. When he saw Brea wasn't moving to leave, as she was still struggling with the rope, he came up behind her and lifted her by the waist carrying her out of the room as she protested. "Can you both get him in the car?" Damon asked as he put Brea down, Brea then ran to help support the other side of Stefan.

"Yeah," Elena grunted.

"All right, go," he ordered.

"What about you?" Elena asked.

"You two rescue, I'll distract. Go."

"That was our plan in the first place," Brea complained to Elena as they hauled Stefan out.

"Can you make it?" Elena asked Stefan as they dragged him through the woods. The three of them then fell to the ground and Brea looked over to see Elena's hand bleeding. Talk about bad timing.

"Are you ok?" Stefan growled through the hunger.

"Yeah, come on, we gotta keep going. Come on," Elena said hauling Stefan up.

"Elena," Brea said showing Elena her ring, which was now glowing a very bright purple.

Elena's eyes widened. "Come on, we have to move, now!" Elena said panicked, taking the rings warning very seriously, every other time it had glowed before, they'd nearly died. "Come on, it's right over here," Elena encouraged as they reached the car. Brea flung open the door for Stefan to get in. Brea and Elena then also flung themselves into the car, scared of the potential danger. Brea saw from the backseat, Elena's face pale, "Stefan," she said nervously just as the window was smashed and Stefan dragged out.

"Dart! Vervain dart! Get the dart," Brea screamed at Elena as the girls raced out. Just as Fredrick was about to end Stefans life with a stake Elena stabbed him in the neck with the dart.

"No Stefan. Stefan. Stefan. Stefan!" Elena begged as Brea kept an eye on Fredrick warily. "Stefan, please! Stefan!"

"Elena!" Brea called as Fredrick started moving again.

"Oh, Stefan. Please get up. Get up, Stefan."

Fredrick started getting to his feet and Brea ran over to Elena and Stefan, "we have to move…" she stopped talking as she saw Elena stick her bleeding palm in Stefan's mouth.

"Elena, please, run," he begged.

"No. Stefan, my wrist, here. Take my wrist. You need more blood," she begged him putting her arm in front of his mouth.

"Go, Elena. Run. Run…"

"Lena," Brea said as Fredrick was near all the way stood up.

"No. I trust you," she said and he then bit into her wrist. Brea watched as her sisters face contorted in pain. Just as Brea was about to throw them apart Stefan let go of her wrist, looking much healthier.

"Go, hide, I'm fine now. But I need to kill him. I've been listening to them talk all day. They've been talking about hurting Brenna. I have to kill him. Hide please," he said to the girls, Brea nodded and then dragged her woozy sister to hide behind the trees. They watched as Fredrick stood up and armed himself with a stake. Just as he was about to stake Stefan again, Stefan sprung up and slammed Fredrick into a tree and proceeded to stake him. Stefan kept stabbing him even though he was already dead.

"Stefan! Stefan!" Elena called running toward him, trying to snap him out of it. But Stefan turned around and growled at her, causing her to stumble back a few paces as her sister ran up beside her. Stefan's vampire face instantly faded as he looked shocked at his actions and stared at the upset girl's faces.

Damon had dropped Brea off at home before Stefan and Elena went back to the boarding house. As Brea entered her house she saw Jeremy curled up on the couch crying. "Jer! What happened?" she asked running to kneel in front of him.

"Brea?" he asked through the tears.

"Whats wrong? Please, Jer!"

"It's Vicki."

"Vicki?"

"They found her body, Brea. Buried under mud."

"Oh my god," Brea breathed. "I'll be back in one second, Jer, I swear," she said running to her bag and pulling out her phone.

"Hey Brea," Elena answered.

"Elena, they found her body."

"Wait-what's going on?"

"Vicki's body, Lena."

"Oh no," she breathed.

"I'm going to take Jer to Matt's. Meet us there," she said hanging up. Brea took a deep wobbly breath before walking back over to her brother. "I'm going to sound like a real ass for saying this, but is there any chance you could stop crying?" Jeremy then gave her an incredulous look. "Yeah I thought it sounded bad too, we're going to head over to Matt's, but when we get there I don't want any of us to be crying. We need to be strong for him right now Jer, I'm so sorry."

"Probably should've led with that," he muttered before he nodded and went off to splash water on his face. As he was gone Brea let a few tears fall. She was never Vicki's biggest fan, but this was still a girl she'd watch grow up, Matt's baby sister. "Ok, you ready to go?" Jer mumbled sadly as he appeared back in the living room.

"Yeah," she said wiping her eyes and the two got in the car.

Jeremy, Tyler and Brea sat at the table in the kitchen. Jeremy and Tyler both sat there staring sadly into nothing as Brea leant on Jeremy, Caroline was running around pouring everybody coffee. After a few moments, the doorbell rang and Brea got up to see Elena on the other side "he's in Vicki's room," she said to her sister knowing she'd want to see Matt. Brea followed not too far behind and saw Matt ran up to Elena to give her a big hug. Brea watched Caroline's face fall in defeat and Brea walked over to her best friend and whispered in her ear, "it's ok Care, let's just think about Matt right now," she whispered rubbing Caroline's arm before heading back to her spot in the kitchen.

After a while the Gilbert's walked solemnly back into their house, none of them said a word on the ride home. As the reached the kitchen they saw Jenna drinking a glass of wine on the couch laughing with Alaric.

"What the hell," Brea and Elena sighed remembering the bet, but none of them smiled.

"That's $10 each please," Jeremy muttered getting a glass of water.

"How'd you do it?" Brea asked.

"Texted Ric, from her phone, asked if he wanted to come over for drinks at night."

"Sneaky devil."

"Oh, there you three are!" Jenna called turning around. "Wow, what's with the sadness?" she laughed. "Who died?" she laughed harder.

"Vicki Donovan," Brea sighed.

"Wait, what!" Jenna asked face paling and eyes widening.

"They found Vicki Donovan's body today," Elena muttered as Jeremy went off to his room.

"Oh my god," Jenna breathed. "Is he?"

"He'll be fine," Brea assured. "He seems to be doing ok, he hasn't said much. I think he kind of already knew. Look I'm gonna go to bed, it's been a long day," Brea said with a look at Alaric.