I know, I know - I said I'd update sooner, and I didn't - I suck big-time. But I have good news: I'm home for the whole weekend, and my boyfriend stayed at our flat, so I have a lot of time. Hopefully, I'll be able to write some chapters, especially as (and you will see it in this chapter) things are starting to get serious. I hope you'll enjoy it!

Claire awoke when a ray of sunlight hit her eyes. It took her a moment to recognise her surroundings. Why was she lying on the floor of the Salvatore's living room? She felt something heavy on her hips and turned to the other side to see Damon lying next to her, fast asleep. One of his arms was wrapped around her waist, whereas the other was still holding a Scotch bottle. Now Claire remembered. Their little celebration got a bit out of control. As if on cue, her headache set in. She grunted while pushing Damon's arm away and standing up. Claire felt like she had been run over by a truck. Unsteadily, she strolled into the kitchen and opened the freezer. The cold felt so good and she sat down right in front of it.

"You're not trying to freeze yourself, are you?" a voice asked from behind her. Normally, Claire would have spun around in no time to face the intruder, but 'fast' was a completely foreign concept when you were having a hangover.

"I'm just trying to make the pain go away," she sighed. Moments later, Stefan sat down beside her.

"Here, take this," he said and handed her a glass of water and a white pill. Without hesitation, she gulped down the pill and sipped some water afterwards. She looked at him and saw a slightly different Stefan than before last night. Some of the concern that was constantly covering his face was gone, there was some mischief displayed on it now. Once again, Claire asked herself if it had been the right decision to let him drink her blood.

"How are you doing?" she asked.

"I'm great. On the contrary to you," he said laughingly. Claire grunted and let her head drop on her knees. She was too old to get that wasted. He put one arm around her shoulders and hugged her encouragingly.

"It will go away eventually. Now, have you talked to Elena yet?" he asked.

"I just got up, I haven't talked to her since last night. Why?"

"I went by her house earlier, but she was not there. Bonnie knows of nothing and I did not reach Caroline," he explained.

"Do you want to tell her about what we did?" Claire asked, a slight panic accompanying her voice. Elena would not be too happy to hear that her boyfriend drank her friend's blood.

"At one point or the other, we will have to. But I'm really concerned about her right now. Could you do a locating spell?"

"Maybe you should talk to Caroline first. I'd rather not do magic in my condition. Your carpets aren't that ugly that vomit would not ruin them," she suggested. Stefan laughed slightly and got up. He kissed the top of her head and left the room to visit Caroline. When Claire had first arrived, he did not like her very much, but things had changed since then. The fact that she believed in him when not even he himself did meant a lot to him. He was glad she was there.

"Stay hydrated," he yelled from the door while Claire had to fight very hard not to throw up instantly. Stupid alcohol.

Sheriff Forbs was just about to leave for work when she ran into Stefan Salvatore in front of her house.

"Oh, good morning, Stefan! Can I help you?" she asked friendly.

"Morning, Sheriff, I was hoping to speak to Caroline, is she up yet?"

"She spent the night at Elena's, you'll probably find her there."

"Oh, right. Thanks!" he said confused and turned around to walk to his car.

"Stefan, wait! Is Damon home? He's not answering his cell," the Sheriff asked him.

"He's home, but probably still asleep. Did something happen?" he asked, concerned now. When Liz wanted to talk to Damon, it usually involved vampires.

"Oh, no nothing serious. Someone went missing, and I thought I saw him talk to her a few nights ago, but maybe I'm mixing things up. Anyway, have a nice day!" she said while getting into her car. The situation was actually more severe than she had admitted, but she did not trust Stefan as much as Damon.

Stefan watched in confusion as she drove away. What the fuck was going on? He got out his cell and tried calling Caroline again. Luckily, she answered this time.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the newest member of the 'I drink human blood'-club," she greeted him with disdain in her voice.

"Everything is fine, Caroline. Yes, I drank Claire's blood, but I don't want to go drain every human now. I am fine, trust me," he said annoyed. He was lying a bit, it really was a hard task to not give in to his cravings, but he was under control. For now.

"And you're not lying to me?" she asked, some of the hostility gone.

"No, Caroline. I'm not. Now, where are you? And is Elena with you?" he asked eagerly.

"Uhm... I'm home. And no, she's not with me," Caroline said uncomfortable.

"I am at your home, and you're definitely not here. So tell me the truth, Caroline!" Stefan could hear someone else whispering in the background. Whatever was going on, it was strange as hell.

"Okay, okay, but don't tell anyone, alright? I spent the night at Tyler's."

"So, you two are a couple now?" Stefan asked, surprised. He did not expect that.

"Sort of. But please, please, please, don't tell the others, okay? Now, what's going on with Elena? I thought she stopped by your house yesterday night?"

"No, Damon dropped her off at home before we called you. Nobody seems to have seen her since..."

"Uh-Oh."

"What, Caroline?"

"I'm so sorry Stefan, I really am, but I was upset and scared and I didn't think clearly...," she started off. Stefan's alarm bells were ringing. "I called her and told her about your plan. She was going to drive to the Boarding House instantly."

"Oh, no. We didn't tell her about the plan. She must have seen us and freaked out. But where could she have gone?"

"Have you seen her car so far?"

"No, but that's a good idea. I'm gonna go look for it. Can you help?" he asked in a hurry.

"Sure, whatever it takes. I'm so sorry, Stefan."

"Don't worry. Take Tyler and go to the Boarding House. Try to revive Damon and get Claire to sober up. We need them. Search for her everywhere after," he gave her the instructions.

"What happened to them?" Caroline asked in surprise.

"Scotch. Now, hurry!" he said and hung up. He was panicking. Somehow, he knew that something must have happened to Elena. Where was she?

Elena was not sure if she was conscious or not, everything around her was black. Her head hurt like hell, and she could faintly remember getting it hit with something. When she tried to move, she found out that her hands and feet were bound and that she was lying on a wet ground. The last thing she could remember before blacking out was seeing the Earl. What was going on here? She did not understand it, she had thought him harmless. But somehow, he had looked different… More dangerous and vile. Suddenly, a door to her right opened with a loud bang and let some light into the room. Elena could now see that she was lying in some sort of cellar. A tall figure was standing in the doorframe, slowly approaching her. She could not see his face, but he seemed familiar. The man lifted her up effortless, even though Elena was pulling up a fight.

"Please, Miss Gilbert, if you would be so kind and stop this? I do not necessarily want to hit your pretty head again," the Earl said. Elena stopped wriggling and gave in. she was too weak anyways. He carried her through a dark corridor into another windowless room. She could make out two people sitting on a desk before she was being thrown on a bed. Every muscle of her body hurt like hell. She groaned in pain.

"Well, well, look he's not so protected after all," a familiar female voice came from the table. Katherine. Of course she was involved in this plan. Elena would have spat on her if she would have been in reach. She turned around and faced the rest of the room. A man sat next to Katherine, an amused expression on his face and a dangerous spark in his eyes. James stood next to her.

"What's going on?" Elena angrily asked. Katherine grinned at her and gestured to the stranger.

"Elena, I want you to meet Klaus."

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