The front door opened and Lexi walked in dropping her duffle bag to the floor. "Anyone home?" she called out.
"In here, Stefan called back before coming into the foyer.
"Sorry I took so long getting here. " She hugged Stefan then sniffed. Sniffing again, she took the mug from his hand and took a cautious sip. "Human? What did I miss?"
The ceiling suddenly shook and a crash came from above.
Stefan walked past her into the lounge, grabbing a bottle from the bar as he passed. "A lot."
Lexie strolled down the stairs and into the lounge. Upon her return to Mystic Falls, she had to get quickly up to speed on everything from Stefan's experimentation with diluted human blood and not only the falling out of him and Elena but that of Damon and Bonnie.
"Well, he's sober and in the shower." Lexie picked up a coffee cup and drained it, making a face when she found the contents cold.
It had been a long night that was followed by a longer morning. Damon had trashed his suite and then proceeded to get trashed himself. And a drunken self-loathing Damon was a destructive Damon. Stefan was eternally grateful that his best friend showed up when she did. There was no way he would have been able the reign in his brother on his own. He might be drinking some human blood now but he still wasn't up to his brother's strength yet.
And truth be told, it did make him chuckle when Lexie tackled the blue eyed vampire on the driveway when Damon announced that he was going out for a 'bite.' She had dragged him back inside, scolding him for being such an idiot. Deprived of more alcohol, Damon had transitioned from violent to sullen before he skulked back to his room to sleep it off. Lexie finally went up to survey the damage and plant a boot in his ass (her words) so that they could start planning their next step.
"He seemed more reasonable." Lexie offered.
"I hope so." Stefan finished his own cold coffee. "We don't need him going off on a bender because he's feeling sorry for himself." He shook his head. "If he and Bonnie can't patch this up, I'm not sure what he'll go and do."
"He'll keep it together, or we'll keep it together for him." she concluded. "We always assumed the worst of Damon and it turned out there was more to his story."
"Yes." Stefan stared at the low burning fire. "But he had a promise to keep and what does he have now?"
"You." Lexie laid a hand on his shoulder. "He has you and you've always been important to him."
"Stefan?" A frightened voice called from behind them. They turned to see Caroline standing in the doorway, her eyes wide and teary.
"Care? What's wrong?" Stefan walked over and hugged her.
"Katherine." she sniffled. "She found me at the Grille. She wants the moonstone tonight at the party or she's going to start hurting people." Caroline began crying.
"That woman needs to be stopped." Lexie exclaimed.
"Oh she will be." Damon stepped into the room, his hair still damp. "Because I'm going to kill her."
"No, brother. I get that honor."
"Hey!" the oldest vampire in the room interjected. "I've had to deal with both of you the past century and a half. I get dibs."
Damon smiled for the first time as he looked at the group. "I think there's enough of Katherine to go around." He started to press the speed dial on his phone then stuffed it back into his pocket remorsefully. "Someone call Bonnie. We're going to need her and Sheila."
An hour later the lounge was packed as the 'Scooby Gang' planned for their confrontation with Katherine.
"So we're keeping Elena out of this, right?" Stefan looked to Jeremy.
"Actually, that's my job." Alaric spoke up. "Jenna and I were suppose to go to this thing but considering we just got her home from the hospita,l we had to cancel our plans. Elena is going to help me cheer her up. In fact," he looked at his watch. "I need to go pick up some take out and get back to them."
"Just make sure our doppelganger stays at home tonight." Damon looked at his drinking buddy. "So Baby Gilbert and Barbie are going to tag team Katherine and get her upstairs?" He received grimaces for the nicknames but both parties nodded.
I can run back up if Katherine starts getting touchy feely." Ana added. "But we'll let her think you boys are up to no good."
"Bonnie and I will get the room set up prior to her arrival." Sheila was studying the moonstone. "Caroline, Ana, you are not to go into the room. Let Katherine go in first, otherwise, you'll be stuck till we drop the spell." The girls concurred.
"I'll already be in the room when the spell goes up." Lexie grinned. "No way I'm missing out on this."
"No one knows you're in town yet, so you're our ace." Stefan grinned.
"Speaking of which." Bonnie pulled a pendant with a lapis butterfly suspended on it out of her change purse. "I just need to spell it and you'll be walking in the sunshine."
"Oh wow. Thanks Bonnie." Lexie fingered the charm.
"Once we get Katherine to tell us exactly what the moonstone is for, we'll stake her and dump her in the tomb where she always belonged." Damon rubbed his hands together. "Then bye bye bitch queen. We'll hold a wake tomorrow in celebration." Everyone gave a soft cheer.
Everyone separated to either change or gather things they needed. Once Bonnie had charged Lexie's new daylight necklace, Damon decided he'd had enough of the witch's cold shoulder.
"How long are you going to avoid me, Bon-Bon?" He asked once Lexie had excused herself to help Stefan load the car.
Bonnie sighed but straightened her shoulders. "I don't know, Damon. Maybe when I can look Tyler in the eyes again."
"Huh?"
"Tyler's father is dead because I couldn't undo Emily's spell in the stupid watch."
"That wasn't your fault."
"Probably not and it wasn't my fault that I saw you rip out his uncle's heart." Her tone was angry and her body language rigid.
"We've been through this, Bon." He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "I had to make sure that Mason Lockwood could never hurt any of us again."
"And part of me gets that. Honestly, I do." Her shoulders relaxed a bit. "And yes this isn't any different from you killing the owner of the farm house."
Damon gave the faintest of smiles and started to reach for her until she stepped away from his touch.
"But." she continued. "when you killed that woman, I didn't see how much you enjoyed it."
"What?" Damon's eyes large and round.
"I could see it in your eyes, Damon. You like killing." She stepped farther away from him and paced. "I'm certain you often regret the actions later but in that moment, you get a thrill out of it."
"I'm a vampire. I can't change that." Damon's head bowed a bit. He saw what was coming.
"I know." Bonnie stopped pacing. "I won't ask you to change but don't ask me to just accept it." She turned to go looking for her grandmother.
"Bonnie." Damon found himself at a loss. "I love you and I know you love me. Doesn't that count for anything?"
"It does." she looked at him for a second longer before turning her back on him and muttering as she left the room. "It just makes this all the more painful."
Lexie watched as the young witch walked away. The girl was wiping tears from her face and the vampire heard a muffled whimper. Damon had a death grip on the mantle above the fireplace, his forehead pressed against the stone.
"Hey, you still with us?" the older vampire questioned, placing a hand on his arm. "I can talk to her if you want. "
"No, it's alright." he straightened. "This is what she wants. I can't change her any more than she could me." Realizing that time was short, he made to go dress for the evening. "I should have known better than to hand over my heart to a seventeen year old."
"You sure you're okay?"
"I'll be right as rain once we stake Katherine." His expression turning feral for a moment . The look softened as he noticed a light still in Lexie's eyes. She had just had her first moment in the sun after several centuries of night. "I shouldn't have left you up on that roof in New York." He gave her a wink despite his heart not being in it or his libido.
"Nah, You couldn't handle me." She laughed.
"I thought I handled you just fine." Damon sped up the staircase, dodging the pillows she threw at him.
Stage one of the plan went off without a hitch despite Bonnie being slightly wigged when she bumped into a party crasher. Caroline had squealed in excitement that she'd been able to fool Katherine.
"Well aren't you two proud of yourselves." Katherine surveyed the brothers. "But really, if you wanted a ménage a trios, you didn't need to go to so much trouble."
"Oh it was no trouble at all." Lexie stepped out of her hiding place in the bathroom.
Katherine sneered. "Ah the infamous Lexie. So glad we finally meet."
"You didn't think I'd miss out on this, did you?"
Stefan took the opportunity to try staking his maker only to be tossed to the side as Katherine threw the stake at Damon.
Avoiding the projectile, Damon grabbed the weapon Alaric had loaned him for the occasion. It didn't take long before Katherine was bloodied and slumped over. The trio were about to forego their earlier resolve to pump her for information and just be done with the eldest vampire when Ana called from the doorway.
"Stop!. Whatever you do to Katherine is hurting Elena?"
"Elena?" Stefan looked to Ana.
The petite vampire quickly explained how Elena had shown up to find out what was going on then suddenly started bleeding as if she'd been cut or stabbed.
"You're not the only ones who can get a witch on the payroll." Katherine pushed Damon away from her. "Sweet little Elena and I are currently linked. Whatever you do to me, she gets it too." She picked up a stake and sliced the palm of her hand.
"Sheila and Bonnie are with her, trying to break the spell." Ana told the room.
"Go tell them another witch is here." Damon ordered.
Ana sped away and relayed the information.
"The woman I ran into earlier, it has to be her." Bonnie stood from where she'd been kneeling over her friend. "I'll go look for her. Grams, can you do anything for Elena?"
"Till we break the spell, I can try to lessen the pain," Sheila gathered Elena to her. "Like you said you did for Damon. Now go find the other witch."
Damon growled to himself as he poured a drink for Katherine. The woman looked far too pleased with herself. If it were not for the fact that it would probably kill Elena, he'd happily shatter the glass in his hand and force feed the pieces to Katherine.
Taking the drink from Damon, the vampiress in question ran a hand possessively over his back before she seated herself across from Lexie. "I suppose I should thank you for looking out for my boys while I was away."
"Given how much time you were actually with them compared to how much time I spent with each of them, I'd think they are more mine then yours." The blonde smiled sweetly.
"Oh but while I've had both of them." Katherine countered. "You've had only one of them and even that was only once. Isn't that right Damon?"
From his place leaning as close to the doorway as the spell would allow, Stefan looked from his best friend to his brother in askance.
"It might have been only once but I can assure you that once was all I needed to know that our Lex is more woman and vamp then you'll ever be." Damon goaded the brunette. "My rash behavior the morning after can only be attributed to poor judgment and a bad temper on my behalf."
Lexie silently mouthed to Stefan that she'd explain later when his features showed his confusion.
A woman came to the door and walked in and up to Katherine. Upon gaining a release from her obligation, the woman handed the moonstone to Katherine. Still clutching the stone, Katherine went into a swoon and collapsed to the floor.
"Your friend is safe." the stranger told the vampires as they looked at Katherine. "I apologize for my role in tonight but sadly I owed this one my life. She should remain unconscious for a few hours. "
"So what should we do with her?" Lexie asked.
"We were going to dump her in the tomb. No reason we still can't." Damon suggested as he threw Katherine over his shoulder.
Sheila and Bonnie stood with Lucy, a relative they had never met before. Lucy had owed a huge favor to Katherine and was relieved to have the business done with. They exchanged contact information and promised to keep in touch.
"Jeremy." Damon's voice rang out causing the women to look his way. "I need your help getting this one into the tomb."
After checking that Elena was okay to get herself home, Jeremy and Ana helped Damon load Katherine into the trunk of the camaro.
"So that's the Bennett family guardian." Lucy breathed as she watched Damon covertly give Bonnie a wistful look. "I had heard the rumors about how your side of the family tree was protected. I was always a bit jealous and seeing him in the flesh, I'm even more so." She squeezed both Sheila's and Bonnie's hand and gave the younger witch a sly wink before bidding her goodbyes.
Elena watched as Stefan and Lexie exited the party arm in arm. "I can't believe you slept with my brother. Why didn't you tell me?" She overheard her ex-boyfriend exclaim.
"Stef, it was over three decades ago." Lexie giggled at his indignation. "Just a bit of fun."
"Fun, he left you on a rooftop in the daylight."
"And as you can see, nothing horrible happened." She patted him arm.
Elena finally looked away from their retreating form so that she go make her way to her car. Maybe now that Katherine was out of their hair, she and Stefan could rebuild their relationship. Lost in thought, she never saw the dark form come behind her.
Damon carried Katherine down to the tomb's opening. Ana moved the stone door as Jeremy took the still unconscious vampire and dumped her unceremoniously in the dirt. In their haste to close off the entrance, none of them thought to take the moonstone with them.
Caroline unfortunately ended up having to stop Matt from picking a fight with Tyler, only to then see Tyler invoke the Lockwood family curse when a girl died accidently at his hands.