Enthusiastic. That's what Aly felt for her AP History class for the first time in ages. Mr. Saltzman, or Rick as he wanted to be called, got their class more and more relieved the longer the class hour passed by. For once her classmates finally willingly raised their hands to respond, no longer annoyed by the teacher. His homework was even relevant to the topic! It was a far cry from what would put them through.

"Ms. Gilbert? Alyssandra?" he called out once class was over. Aly made her way up to him with a polite smile.

"It's Aly." she tells him, "Alyssandra's a bit of a mouthful."

"Aly then," he smiled back, "I've seen your class records, I know you and your twin are really smart." He said. Aly frowned, not knowing where he was heading. "But I can't help but feel a little concerned for your younger brother." of course "- and I can't help but also notice that Elena's grades aren't as well-matched as they were before. It doesn't really help that Elena wasn't here today, and a couple of days before." The frown on Aly's face deepened, not knowing when exactly her twin cut class besides that day. "I wouldn't mind cutting them off some slack- if you could tell them that."

Alyssandra blinked, not expecting that but feeling grateful nonetheless. "I will." she said, "Thank you. I'll tell them.".

"Not indefinitely," he points a finger, "but for now. That goes for you too, alright?" Aly nodded, mumbling a small thanks. "You can tell Jeremy I'll give him another week for that extra credit." he said. "-and I'll let Elena off the quiz next meeting."

Alyssandra couldn't help it, she met 's gaze with questioning eyes. "Why?" she asked. "You're too nice- not that I'm not grateful." she winced, "Sorry. It's just Mr. Tanner wasn't as... lenient."

"I know you guys hardly know me," His voice went to a softer tone "but I know what loss feels like. Your parents... it wasn't that too long ago. Your family has my condolences."

Aly blinked once more, her throat suddenly dry while the rest of her face felt hot. She looked down, "Thanks." she murmured. "Um. Condolence to you too."

Mr. Saltzman seemed surprised at this but he gave her a smile- pained, she took note. "Thank you." he said, "I'll see you next week."

Aly gave him another nod before exiting the room, maneuvering herself away from his next class. She put her earphones on, tucking some hair behind her ear. She wondered what her parents would think over recent events, of vampires and witches being in Mystic Falls.

Mr. Saltzman seemed like a really nice guy, she would trust him completely if only his ring didn't look so much like the one the Salvatore brothers were wearing.

Her line of thought broke off as she bumped into a guy, her books falling off her. Aly frowned, grabbing her stuff. She glared slightly at the raven-haired guy. "Sorry?"

That man wasn't supposed to be there.

He wore a simple gray shirt and had a school bag dangling on his shoulder. His hazel eyes seemed to twinkle in delight and there was a bemused expression on his face. Besides looking way older to be grouped around a bunch of students, there was something about him that made Aly suspicious. "Can I help you?" She asked, wary.

"Oh no." He fake-laughed, "I'm new here, sorry for bumping into you. I'm Noah." He offered her his hand, smiling.

Aly cautiously shook it, telling him her own name despite being creeped out. He spoke in a complete monotone, his expression never changing. "Welcome to Mystic Falls High."

"Do you want to walk to class together?"

"Um-" Aly frantically looked around the hallway, trying to spot any of her friends. Her eyes widened in surprise upon seeing Bonnie standing near her locker. Aly didn't know she was back. "Sorry," she gave Noah a small smile, "I can't really right now- I have a friend." she pointed and walked towards Bonnie's direction, ignoring Noah's creepy stare on her back. At least, she hoped Bonnie and her were still friends.

"Bonnie!" Not giving her a chance to go away, Aly dove right into a hug, pulling her close and tight. "It's been so long," she murmured. "I missed you."

Bonnie seemed to tense up against her embrace but she soon wrapped her arms around her as well, nuzzling her neck. "I missed you too." She finally admitted. "I think we have a lot to talk about."

~ soulmark ~

"I can't believe you cut class to have birthday sex with him, Elena."

Aly's annoyed voice rang out through their living room. She was still mad over her conversation with Bonnie earlier and it was leaking through. Aly couldn't believe that Sheila had Bonnie stay away from her, even going as far as making Bonnie believe that she wasn't a 'good' and 'true' witch, whatever the hell that meant. And Aly thought Sheila and her were on good terms now! Apparently not. Or maybe they were, considering Bonnie was back in school.

Elena glared at her from the kitchen. Both Jeremy and his brunette 'friend' looked at them in surprise. She didn't know how or why Jeremy suddenly had a history tutor, but she was glad he did.

"You don't understand, Aly. I needed to talk to him."

"About what?"

Elena angrily pulled her from the couch, yanking her all the way to the kitchen. She slammed the kitchen window down for privacy. Aly rolled her eyes at the behavior, still feeling mad that she had Jeremy compelled the other day.

In truth, Aly had gone from furious to begrudging in a span of a day. Jeremy had so much progress in the last 48 hours, in his schoolwork, friend groups, and art, that it was hard to get mad. It was the first time she had seen him doing something because he wanted to and not because he needed to. She hated the fact that it was all because of Damon's compulsion (which she could hardly believe that Elena even ASKED him to do in the first place), deep down she still felt that it was all some sort of illusion.

Had Elena not thought of what would happen if his compulsion broke? The entire thing would turn into a mess.

"I had questions." Elena answered softly, "There were just some things that I need to know."

Aly compulsively ran a hand through her hair, messing up her half-pony. "Like what?" she asked, "Elena- you do realize that Stefan's dangerous right?"

"I do," Elena admitted, nodding. "But- but I'm in love with him," she said determinedly, Aly grimaced. "And it's not because of some anchor magic! I swear."

"How would you even know if it was or wasn't?" Aly snapped, "Lexi told me all about it!"

"Lexi did not say that!" Elena exclaimed in equal fashion. "Lexi was there earlier and she told me that humans can't have anchors. Besides, I've read Emily's grimoire and she said mates don't work that way. It's not a two-way thing. What I feel for Stefan-" she grabbed her hand, "-it's real, okay? It's not because of some magic or whatever. And I know it's true because- because-"

"Because what?"

"Stefan was Katherine's mate." Elena didn't look happy admitting that. Their unknown mystery triplet was what led them to their problems in the first place. "And he claimed that Katherine compelled him all of his emotions. He would never do that to me."

"And how do you know he hasn't done the same to you?" Aly asked, creeped that their predecessor would ever do such a thing.

Elena touched her necklace, a beautiful silver locket adorned with ruby. Vintage. "Because he gave me vervain."

"I don't like this Elena."

"I know." Elena looked like she was about to cry, her eyes were all wide and weepy. Aly bit back a remark that Stefan was just a guy. "But I promise I'll be okay- I trust him."

Aly didn't. But she knew that her sister would find a way to meet with Stefan. Aly lost count of all the times Elena would sneak outside the house or even cut school whenever she wanted to. She took a deep breath in. "Fine, whatever."

Elena's frown deepened. "Aly-"

"I'm not having any of it, Elena."

Jeremy was still on the table doing his homework when Aly buzzed out of the kitchen. But his brunette friend's movement on stepping away from him was far too quick to be considered normal. She couldn't help but smirk towards their direction. Jeremy sent her a glare.

"Hey." She gave them a wide smile, "Do you guys want anything? Food? Drinks? Pizza?"

"We're fine, Alyssandra." Jeremy jerked his head towards the door, a clear signal for 'get out'. She ignored him, looking at his 'friend' instead.

"Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend, Jeremy?"

Jeremy glared at her again, closing his book with a 'snap'. "Aly, this is my friend, Anna. Anna, this is my most annoying sister."

Aly mock-gasped. "Aw-shucks. Here I thought we all agreed Elena's most annoying." she sighed, but handed her hand over to Anna for a shake. "It's nice to meet you."

Anna gave her a soft smile, shaking her hand in return. "Nice to meet you too."

Aly then frowned, looking at the book Jeremy was reading in confusion. She knew that hardcover anywhere. It was a Gilbert Journal. "Why do you have those out?" Aly kept her voice light

Jeremy shrugged, " had me doing extra credit. I thought what else could I use better than the Gilbert journals?"

"I don't know, Jer." Aly gave him a disapproving look. "Don't you think you think you're too young for that?"

Jeremy frowned, shooting her a look. "They're basically just ghost stories, Al. What are you talking about?"

"Dad would stop us from reading them because they're for adults."

Jeremy let out an annoyed laugh, shooting Anna a look that said 'I'm so sorry'. "You're not being funny, Al."

"I'm not trying to be funny." Aly crossed her arms, frowning. "I'm serious. You shouldn't be reading those."

"Oh yeah?" He leaned in forward, eyes narrowed down. Anna's eyes went back and forth between the siblings. For some reason, Aly thought she was trying to pin something down. "You used to read these all the time in his study. Dad never said a word." He angrily slumped back to his chair, now glaring at her vehemently. "I always knew it was your thing with him, but you don't have to be so greedy with it."

Aly took a step back in surprise, hurt. "That's not-" she stammered up, she had never read any of the Gilbert journals in her entire life. "I didn't mean it that way. I've never read the journals, Jer."

Jeremy rolled his eyes, standing up. He takes the journal with him, grabbing along Anna's hand who looked incredibly uncomfortable over the ordeal. "Whatever." He pushed past her, going all the way up to his room with Anna right behind him.

Aly felt her stomach do a backflip, and she stared hard at the seat where Jeremy sat. She jogged through her memories, thinking hard. Except nothing about the Gilbert journals came up. The only thing she could remember from it was from what her parents had told her.

Hearing the door close brought Aly out of her daze, a quick glance at the mirror tells her that Elena had gone out. Aly shook her head in an effort to clear her head, though despite it her mind swam in constant confusion.

Had she read them? She couldn't remember. There's no way she had either, her dad would never have let her. Aly was too young.

Aly winced, her hand flying across her head as she felt it pulse in pain. For a moment, her vision doubled, and she took a seat down. Aly picked the Gilbert watch out of her pocket, thinking on whether or not she should give it back to Jeremy or not. Her stomach still remained in knots, and she thought back on Jeremy's angry look. The last thing she wanted was for him to think that she was keeping their parents away from him- even if it was only in memory. Especially since their memory of them was all they had.

Aly sighed, flicking the damned watch open. She straightened up quickly upon seeing it spin around in circles- there was a…

Aly quickly stood up from the chair, making a move to head straight to Jeremy's room. Somebody banged insistently on their entrance door, and Aly could see the familiar figure of Damon wearing his favored leather jacket. Aly felt herself deflate, her momentary panic disappearing as she eyed him through the glass planes.

"I know you're on the other side, little witch!" He yelled out. Aly remained standing on the stairs. "I can see you!"

"What the hell do you want?!" She called out, knowing fully well that he can get inside their house if he wanted to.

"I need your help." Damon impatiently knocked the door again, before sighing and opening it himself. Aly cautiously took a step back (or up) on the stairs. "I've ran out of witches to play nice with."

Aly looked at him darkly, "What makes you think I'll help you?"

Damon didn't make a move on stepping inside their house. Aly thought it was his point.

"I'm not going to hurt you."

"Much?" she echoed from days before. "Not going to hurt me much?"

"At all." He corrected, "I need to find her, Alyssandra. Please."

Aly sighed, leaning on the stairs. "Even if I wanted to- I have no idea how."

"I've been around for a while now." Damon smirked, "I'm sure we can figure something out- don't you have a grimoire of your own?"

Aly shook her head, making her way towards him. "You've done nothing but lie and hurt me." She glanced at his shoes, he still hadn't stepped inside. "Give me a reason to trust you. Why- why should I trust you?"

Damon leaned in, hand resting on the doorway. "I'll give you another grimoire." He said after a while. "Isn't that the type of things you like? Old and historical?" his gaze softened, "You're the only one who can help me."

Aly pursed her lips, hardening her resolve, she stood her ground. "I need something more than that, Damon." She went up to close the door, "Come back when you have a better reason."

Despite having the door closed, Aly tensed up in front of it, waiting for it to open in typical Damon-fashion. She watched as Damon's figure disappeared. He didn't hurt her. Not this time. But that didn't mean he won't.

Aly let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, running a hand through her hair- a new habit she picked up- before turning back towards the living room. Her eyes caught sight of the cupboard under the stairs, and she grimaced.

Perhaps it was time to read the Gilbert journals.

Aly opened it up. The masses of books were already shuffled up- no doubt by Jeremy's doing. Her eyes trailed over the year markings on the spines, the journals went all the way to the early 1800's. It was lowkey amazing. Aly randomly picked a book up, 2004, briefly going across the pages. A quick look on the cover tells her that it was her Dad's.

Aly flipped back to the first page, she felt more and more concerned as she read through the pages. Aly snapped the book shut. There was no way that was actually real. She shook her head, letting out an aggravated sigh.

It turns out she's heading to the Salvatore's anyway.

~ soulmark ~

It's been a while since Aly had talked to Zach Salvatore. They were never extremely close, despite them both being in the same social circles (her GPA wasn't going to build itself). She held up the journal close to her, her frown never leaving her face. She needed answers.

5 knocks later, she decided to barge in the Salvatore boarding house. She completely ignored Damon and Vicki lounging around the corner but it seemed like the sentiment didn't extend to her. Vicki flashed right in front of her- Aly jolted up slightly in surprise.

"What are you doing here?" she snides, "Got something to say to me like your sister?"

It looks like Elena visited Stefan again. Aly rolled her eyes, "Not everything's about you."

Aly gasped, Vicki slammed her against the wall on the chokehold. Vicki glowered at her threateningly. "Listen here, I just had a nice chat with your bitchy twin."

"Let go of me you psycho bitch!" She spat out.

Damon threw Vicki off her, she instantly flashed forwards to him, practically growling. "Ladies, no need to fight. Can't have only half of the wonder twins running around." Damon tilted his head, narrowing his eyes, "Time to get lost."

Vicki sent him a harsh glare, but she did speed off. A loud 'bang' resonated within the house. It was probably Vicky snottily shutting the door shut.

Aly rubbed her neck soothingly, "I didn't know vampires still had pms."

Damon snickered, turning back towards Aly, "You changed your mind?"

She pursed her lips. "Is Zach here? I need to talk to him. It's important."

"Zach's dead. I killed him a couple of weeks ago."

Aly's mouth fell open, staring at Damon with wide eyes. "I'm joking." He rolled his eyes. "He's around here somewhere, as usual, all safe and sound."

"That's not funny." Aly shook her head.

"You shouldn't have come here, Alice." Zach entered the living room, he looked more tired than usual. His blue button-up was disheveled along with his hair. Aly felt relieved to see him, his patience must be the size of the moon, having Damon and Stefan for his care. He sent Damon a wary look. "Is there something wrong?"

"I need to speak with you," Her eyes briefly went to Damon, "Alone."

Aly took a deep breath. "I came here to talk about Dad's job from the abandoned clinic," she raised her dad's journal, "I didn't know you worked with him at Whitmore."

Long before he died, Grayson had set up a clinic near the town's square. He never actually transferred from the hospital, and Aly knew that he had his own office set up at a different place. All this time Aly thought the place was just for show. But here in his journal laid all the 'truths'. The journal spoke of patients Aly had never heard from.

Granted, he was never allowed to disclose patients' information to their family, but his journal was filled with stuff family medical doctors don't normally do; sudden illnesses curing themselves, miracles within the medical field. That, coupled with Jeremy's claim on her never having read their dad's journals, along with their family's history with vampires. Something just wasn't right.

Zach seemed to have visibly paled, his eyes darted from the book then back to her face. "I've never worked with your dad."

"Obvious lie," Damon drawled, he intensely looked at Zach with curiosity. "Even a stranger could catch that."

"It's not what it looks like, Alyssandra."

"I'm heading to the clinic either way."

Damon sent them both a look, "Is that daddy's diary?" Damon moved to grab the journal from her, and Aly whacked his hand immediately, glaring at him. He hissed sharply, taking his hand back from her, and he even dropped the journal in shock.

"You zapped me!" He exclaimed, cradling his hand. Aly took the fallen journal, glaring at him angrily.

"Can you stop being annoying?!"

"You don't have to do this, Alice." Zach's sudden change of tone got both of their attention. There was a familiar look on Zach's face as he stared at Aly. It reminded her a lot from when her parents died.

"What am I doing?" Aly asked him, stepping forward. "What if it is what I think it is. I couldn't- I don't think he'd ever-" Aly took a deep breath, shaking her head. "I need to check. Maybe the journal's wrong. But the only way I could find out is if I check the clinic, and judging by what dad said, you have the keys in."

Zach shook his own head, looking sympathetic. "I'm sorry, but I have no idea what you're talking about."

Alyssandra stared at him before looking back at Damon. His eyes were narrowed down as well, Aly knew that his curiosity had been peaked. Oh well, if you can't beat 'em- join 'em.

"Damon," He looked at her, "I think I found your reason."

Damon looked impressed. "Well, Zachy. I guess you have no choice now."

It took them mere moments to arrive at her father's old clinic. Aly was surprised to see that the light switched worked when she flipped it on. The glass planes had cobwebs on them, and the DR. GILBERT sign adorned to it was slowly peeling off. Irritated with the way it looked, Aly pressed her hand against it, giving it a small smack to let it stick. Damon had managed to scare Zach into coming with them to the clinic and it turns out that Zach did have her father's old keys. Aly didn't think he'd actually hurt him, they were family after all. So she let Damon bully Zach around.

The desk in the waiting area still had papers in them, along with Zach's placard, and Aly hastily brushed her fingers through the files. Aly randomly picked one up- it was a case file, the name of the patient was already scratched out but a quick scan tells her that whoever it was had an extreme case of Parkinson's Disease.

Aly opened the journal, corresponding the dates with each other. Her dad's diary tells her that the girl, Maya, was cured a month later. Aly tells both Damon and Zach as such.

"I can't see why you're surprised," said Zach, "Your father was a very talented man."

"He's the smartest man I know." Aly admitted, "But I've never heard of such a thing…" she trailed off. Frowning, she jerked her head towards the door that led to her father's other office. She needed more information.

"Open it."

"You heard the girl." Damon bumped into Zach, making him stumble slightly forward. He gave the vampire a harsh glare.

"I heard her." He snapped, fiddling with the keys. His gaze softened as he looked at Aly, opening the door for her. "Here you go."

Aly gave him a small thank you, stepping in forward the room. The office didn't look too different from the other ones that Aly had seen. It had Grayson's signature plack and business cards, along with the pencil case he had up. It dawned on her that the last person that was there was probably her father. Aly blinked as her face suddenly flushed, she ducked down to wipe her eyes.

Slowly, Zach went towards her. "Does your sister know you're here?" he asked softly.

"No," Aly denied, walking away. She examined the books by the shelves, looking around the tiny office. Her eyes drifted off to the chair, and her mind wonderfully tells her that the last person who sat on it was her dad. "There has to be something more here." she murmured. She didn't want to touch a thing.

"There isn't." Zach placed a hand on her shoulder, almost ushering her out the door. "I don't know what you were looking for, Alyssandra, but it isn't here."

Her eyes watered more with his words, and for a moment Aly had forgotten how to breathe.

Damon scoffed, "You are such a liar." He pushed past them both, and Aly blinked as he suddenly wrenched stuff around. Her protest seemed to die quickly on her throat as he rummaged through the office.

He pulled out a piece of paper, "Look at what we have here."

"Damon-" Zach frowned.

"What is it?" Aly walked closer towards him, leaning in to see what it said.

"It's a warrant. Not very well hidden too." He eyed Zach, then looked back to Aly. "Do you know it's illegal to have a secret room built in a medical office?"

"A secret room?" Aly echoed.

Damon pulled something beneath the desk, and the sound of gears went around the office. The shelf next to them gave a soft 'click'. Aly accusingly looked at Zach. He had the decency to at least look guilty. She pushed on forward, determined to get her answer when Zach caught her by the arm.

"Alyssandra," he started, "You have to understand that your father was a good man."

Aly roughly takes her arm back from him. "I already know that." she said, voice hard. She stepped forward in the shelf, taking it all in.

It looked more menacing than the outside of her dad's clinic. Damon flicked the lights on, and it didn't help the atmosphere at all. There were two table racks on the side, and what suspiciously looked like surgical equipment. Flasks and jars were left unopened on a frozen glass freezer, and it explained why the lights were still working on the damn place. The 'how did it get there' remained unanswered.

There was another room on the side, smaller. Aly opened the door, and she was stunned by how familiar it looked. Her hands felt clammy, and her body screamed at her over a sense of wrongness over everything. It was a white padded room with a chair stuck in the middle. There were speakers on the back, and what Aly thought looked like an optometrist's phoropter.

"Question:" Aly's voice rang out through the silence, she looked back towards a bewildered-looking Damon and a guilty Zach. "What the hell is this place?"

Zach swallowed hard, "This was where your father conducted his experiments."

Aly's stomach dropped. Her suspicions confirmed. Her dad experimented on vampires.

"I told you-" Zach tried to appease.

"Don't." Aly's breath hitched, her world had momentarily spun. "I think- I think I already knew." she said quietly. Her eyes drifted towards Damon, who for once had gone completely quiet.

"How did you find out?" Zach asked, aghast. "Your father would never have done anything that'll let you."

"Still lying." Damon spoke for the first time they got in. "You know, that's the thing with you humans. You just don't get that we can hear through your lies." He hissed, taking a threatening step forward. "A little jump in the heart there, some blood rushing through the head, a missed breath."

"Damon-" Alarmed, Aly held him back by the arm. He doesn't look away from Zach.

"But not all of them. Some of you actually knew what you're doing. They knew how to hide their fear. Some of you got smart and wanted to mess around." Damon continued on quietly, his eyes darted from the white room to back to Aly. "I thought you couldn't do magic when we first met."

Aly frowned. "What? What does that have to do with anything?"

"I couldn't compel you back then." He said, "I always wondered why."

"That's enough!" Zach's powerful yell surprised them both. He moved towards one of the shelves and dusted off a box. "Your- your father wouldn't have wanted you finding it out this way." Zach said shakily. "You have to know that he loved you so much, Aly. Everything he did was to protect you."

Zach took up a file from the box, carefully handing it over to Aly. "You were such a sickly kid when growing up. Anemic, underweight. It's why your parents insisted that you and Elena take up gymnastics, to help you two toughen up. But it didn't work. For some reason, you'd always end up getting checked in the hospital because your blood pressure was too low."

Damon took a step back, his dark aggression was replaced with surprise. "What are you talking about? No- he experimented on vampires"

Aly opened the file, seeing her own picture and name attached to it inside.

"You were such a smart kid too, you always knew something was up. You would question where your father went, you knew things that you shouldn't, by intuition or upon figuring it out on your own. You went to Whitmore!" Damon suddenly gripped her tight, pulling her back from Zach. His movement didn't go unnoticed by the two of them. "On a bus! On your own, at 7 years old. You just- you just knew. So your father tried to hide you, the other scientists couldn't know. Your father feared about what they'd do. What would they say, when they find out that a kid found out about their vampire experiments? That she was a witch?"

"I don't- I don't remember."

"It was because of your magic. You were intuitively gifted." Zach explained, "And there was always some- correlation between your blood and magic. Everytime you did something extraordinary, you always lost some blood. But it never happened with Elena, a different type of witch despite being twins." He scoffed, "He never wanted to hurt you, Aly. The both of you. He just wanted you safe- far away from all of it! He did everything he could to protect you both from people like him!" Zach angrily pointed towards Damon, breathing hard.

"What did he do to me?" Aly whispered, her hands were shaking as she held the file, not daring to look at it again. Instead, she stared at Zach's distraught face. He said nothing. "What did he do!?"

"He- he used his previous findings to create a machine," Zach answered, voice low. He gestured towards the white room. "He erased everything you found out and made you think you didn't have magic at all. He made a compulsion room."

Both Damon and Aly watched him, as his energy began to slowly deflate. "And- and I helped him." he said, "I never wanted to-" he gave her a look, "Your father loved you so much, Alice. He would have moved mountains for his children. For you."

He took out something from the box. A letter.

"He was a genius, Alyssandra. One of the smartest men I know. A great man. He thought ahead and," Zach gave it to her, "He thought of the possibility of you finding out after he died. He wanted you to read this."

"I think that's enough." Damon said. He pulled her away from him. Aly felt herself follow, she stared at the letter on her hands, the file, then to the box.

"No-" Zach begged. "You have to read it, Alyssandra! Your father-"

"Shut up." Aly's voice came out smaller than she expected. The letter felt heavy on her hands. "I- I think I've learned enough."

Zach's face twisted. "I should have said something sooner-"

"SHUT UP!"

A powerful surge went through and two Salvatore's were blasted away. Aly fell to her knees, lightheaded. She took in deep ragged breaths as vertigo hit her. Damon was next to her in an instant, and she sniffled as he leaned her against him. Aly held the file and letter tight on her hands, eyes wide from what she just did. "Zach-"

"Zach's fine." Damon reassured. His great-nephew laid across the floor, he had hit the wall pretty hard but he was still breathing. Damon sent him a look before picking her up. "Let's get you home."

Her vision blurred, and when it stopped they stood right outside the Gilbert house. To their not so great surprise, Stefan stood outside. He looked alarmed at seeing them together, but Aly paid him no mind. She still felt slightly breathless, she wanted to do nothing more than fall into her bed.

Her father had written her a letter.

"Now's not a good time." Stefan stammered as they walked towards the porch. He sent Damon a look, "I just told Elena how they're related to Katherine."

Aly shakily took a step back, looking back and forth between them. "What? How?"

Damon glared at him, "You're right. Really bad timing."

"Doppelgängers." Aly's mind clicked, "That's how we're her doppelgänger."

Any of her other conclusions broke off as Elena stormed out of the house, Jenna in tow. "Did you know?" she demanded. Aly's throat cut off, did she know? Did their dad do the same with Elena? Elena took her silence for an answer. "Of course you did." she accused, lip wobbling, "They always told you everything!"

"Elena, she had no idea!" Jenna called out, she looked at Stefan and Damon warily.

Elena fumed, glaring hard at Jenna. "Well I'm telling her now, since we're so close." Elena grabbed her arms, looking at her straight in the eye. Elena had unshed tears. "We're adopted." she said in deadpan.

Aly's jaw dropped. "What?"

"Elena!"

"They lied to us. Grayson and Miranda adopted us."

A/N So we're seeing a lot of Damon and Aly action! Honestly, I didn't expect that to happen, but since Stefan's always with Elena it didn't leave me that much of a choice. I'm hoping yall enjoying the weird friendship thing that they have going on.

Okay so, I was actually debating on whether or not Aly finds out about what Grayson did to her early or not (or whether she finds out at all) but I thought it'll be good character building. So in case you haven't noticed, she's a siphoner. I left out a few hints about Grayson's compulsion and her magic in previous chapters and I'm unsure of whether it was obvious or not. I really wanted to see a doppelgänger witch because they can use their own blood for spells. And I thought the siphoner aspect would let them lose a lot of blood every time they did magic- because they accidentally siphoned themselves lmao. I always thought doppelmagic was cool, so I thought why not. I wanted to write and Elijah mate fic as well so I combined them. I'm glad it's finally out! I was so excited for this chapter. I still have a lot of plans in store, so keep an eye out on that!

I wanted Elena to say "Grayson and Miranda aren't our real parents" but that was OOC.

There would be a lot of elements going on with the story and I literally can't wait to break my mind over them. I hope I'll be able to give to you guys what I've imagined and do it with justice.

Okay so this was a really long A/N so Bye! See you guys in the next one :)) I hope you enjoyed it.

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