A/N: Not gonna lie, this is not my favorite chapter. This particular storyline wasn't supposed to happen until way, way later in the story. But last week, during a random scroll through the document I realized, I had changed certain parts of the story too much for it to still make sense at that point in time. So, I was either going to scrap it completely or change the order of the chapters. So here we are. Let me know what you think.

Seattle | January/February 2020

"Damon. Hold up," Damon heard Dot calling after him as he was about to make his way upstairs to his apartment. Where Elena was hopefully not freaking out. Or changing their plans for the evening.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah?" Dot mocked him. "What was that?"

"I've no idea."

"Don't give me that. I just lied for you."

"I heard," Damon replied. Then his curiosity won out. "Why did you?"

"I don't know. I guess I just followed my instincts."

"And they're telling you what?"

"That you and Elena are good people. Which makes me wonder what this woman out there wants."

"I honestly don't know. I've never seen her before."

Dot watched him carefully and could see in his eyes that he was telling the truth. He broke the eye contact, glancing upstairs towards his apartment. Dot realized he was probably itching to go see if Elena was okay. Something definitely was going on even though Dot could tell that Damon himself most likely didn't know what exactly that something was. She would let it go. For now. Before Damon could walk away, she said, "Eventually you'll have to tell me."

Damon nodded. He knew she didn't mean the woman in the bar per se, but rather all the secrets and things he kept from her.

"Hey, Dot?" he called before she disappeared back through the door. "You're good people too."

He watched her go and thought he saw her fight a pleased smirk on her face.

Damon found Elena in the upstairs bathroom. She sat on the side of the tub, lost in thought, while the water still flowed from the sprout. Damon reached over and cut it off before the tub could overflow. His presence jarred Elena awake.

"Everything alright downstairs?" she asked.

Damon looked at her for a long moment before answering. He knew she was concerned; he was too. But nothing was getting resolved tonight and Damon wasn't about to waste an evening alone with Elena. "Yeah, I think so," he finally replied.

"Do you know who she was?"

Damon shook his head. "Never seen her before. Could have been a coincidence, her recognizing the name Salvatore."

"Yeah, could have been," Elena returned quietly. Neither of them was convinced of that possibility, this much was certain.

Damon stepped into Elena's space and she looked up at him. For the longest time they just looked quietly at each other before Elena wrapped her arms around Damon's hips and smushed her face into his stomach.

"We'll keep our eyes out," Damon said into the quiet. "I'll call Ric and Caroline, see if anyone's been lurking about or asking questions. In the meantime, don't worry about it, okay?" he asked, pleaded almost, knowing full well that Elena had enough on her plate already.

"I won't if you won't," Elena returned, head tilted upwards so she could meet his eyes.

Damon gave her a brief smile and bent down to kiss her.

"I believe we have plans that involve that bathtub over here," he said with a nod to said bathtub.

Elena glanced down, as if just now remembering where they were. She rose to her feet and undid the knot on her bathrobe, letting it fall open and reaching for the hem of Damon's black t-shirt. As soon as he had tossed the material, he reached for Elena.

"Mhhh," he breathed as he slipped the fabric off her shoulders and nosed along the exposed skin, "now that's what I call a perfect ending to a less than mediocre day."

Elena chuckled. "Running your own bar isn't all that you imagined it to be?" she teased him.

It was an obvious attempt at changing the topic and Damon gratefully jumped on it.

"No," he protested, "running the bar is. It's the paperwork that I've underestimated. Stefan was right, man. Taxes. They're a form of punishment not even Cade could have come up with."

While divesting him of his last few articles of clothing, Damon's words once more reminded Elena of the baggage that they had both brought along. They had started over, but they couldn't escape where they'd come from. Could it be that the past was coming to catch up with them?

Elena couldn't even bring herself to be surprised. In Damon's case, with his 180 years, there was a lot of past to catch up to.

Both hands wrapped around a coffee mug, Damon stood at the windows, gazing at the impressive vista in front of him. This side of the cabin was made entirely from glass and the unobstructed view emphasized the impression of being outside. It was February, but the water was calm today and the sun shone from a pale blue sky, turning the ocean's surface into a flawless mirror that reflected the surrounding woods and rocky hills. One could almost believe it was spring and not the freezing temperatures of mid-winter in the Pacific Northwest.

Damon felt the air move behind him and smiled when a moment later Elena's arms wrapped around him from behind and her whole body was pressed against his back.

"Packed and ready," she said into his shoulder.

"You think anyone would miss us if we just stayed here?" Damon mused out loud.

"Hmm," Elena pretended to think. "I can tell my study group that we decided to leave behind the developed world and went to live in a nudist community – they would probably just send thumbs-up emojis and leave us be. But Dot might seize the opportunity and put up those Valentine's decorations after all."

Damon frowned. He had fought Dot on the matter. Hard. That woman was way too fond of decorating the shit out of everything. Including herself. A week before, she had come in for her shift, the ends of her hair dyed a candy pink color and heart symbols all over her black tights. She'd looked cute, of course, but Damon didn't say that out loud. Instead, he spent the night dodging her attempts to convince him to cover his bar in pink garlands and heart-shaped cutouts on drink straws.

She also pestered him to host a secret valentine party at the bar on the fourteenth which Damon relented to, but only because it made sense business-wise. Besides, he wouldn't be there to witness this perversion as he and Elena had decided a few days prior to flee the city for a weekend getaway.

They had found a remote cabin on one of the islands surrounding the Seattle area, with no phone access or Wi-Fi. It had been heaven. But it was Sunday afternoon now and they had to get back to the city and back to their regular lives.

As soon as they had reached the mainland, Damon's phone dinged with several messages, backlogged from the few days outside reception. He pulled it from his pocket and held it out for Elena to take since he was the one driving.

Elena punched in the code and checked the messages. "Four missed calls from Ric, one text from Caroline. Hold on – they left voicemails, too." She paused while navigating the menu, then put the phone on speaker, "Call when you get this." Alaric's voice was clipped but not urgent-sounding. Before Elena could try to figure out what the problem was, the next voicemail played. "Ric forgot you were unreachable this weekend. Everything's fine. Nothing happened. Everyone's alright. Enjoy your weekend and happy Valentine's," Caroline's voice chirped happily. "Oh, Elena, I found a pair of the most beautiful boots you can imagine. I bought a pair for you too. Expect a package very soon. Byeeee. Love you, guys."

"Why is Vampire Barbie leaving messages for you on my phone?" Damon grumbled.

Elena chuckled.

After arriving home, Damon went downstairs to check on Bar None while Elena begged off, needing a shower. He had a quick talk with Dot who gave him an update on everything important that happened while he was gone and then hurried back up to the apartment. He was itching to call back Alaric. While the tension of anticipation had slowly dissipated over the past weeks, Damon hadn't let down his guard. They rarely talked about it, but he knew that Elena, too, hadn't forgotten the mysterious woman from the bar, but neither had she shown up again and even though everyone was on high alert in Mystic Falls – so far, all was quiet on that front as well. But if Alaric had tried to call him now, surely that could only mean that something had changed.

"What's the news?" Damon asked as soon as Alaric answered his phone, foregoing a greeting.

"Hello to you too," Ric replied. "And how was your weekend?"

"Spare me the small talk," Damon almost growled. "What do you know?"

"I don't know if it's anything or if it's in any way connected—"

"But?" Damon interrupted, his patience wearing thin. Pushing a hand through his hair, he looked to the ceiling and spotted Elena. She stood at the balcony overhang, obviously showered and changed into comfy clothes.

Damon held out an arm in invitation and watched her come down the stairs and mold herself to his side as they both listened to Ric's explanations.

"You told us to be on the lookout for someone asking questions," Ric began. "Well, nobody has so far. But someone did access the city records, looking for information."

"What kind of information?"

"Historic documents, city council manifests. That sort of thing."

"Okay," Damon drawled. So far that didn't sound too suspicious. What was it then that had Ric's alarm bells going off?

"They also requested to see records of property ownership under the name Salvatore."

Damnit, Damon swore inwardly. Even if the deed for the boarding house was no longer under his name, 'Salvatore' was still pretty prominent and right there in the title. Besides, that still left the other property in town that he owned.

"Do you know who that person was?"

"I didn't see them. But Caroline asked around," he said 'asked around' in a manner that suggested compelled more than asked, "and apparently it was a woman. The description fit the one you gave us."

Damon swore under his breath. "Anything else?" he asked brusquely.

"Yeah," Alaric replied. "Jeremy says hi."

Damon was pretty sure that was code for 'the cavalry is ready to do whatever was necessary'. He thanked his friend and threw his phone into the sofa cushions. His arms now free, he tightened them both around Elena and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"I have to go to Mystic Falls."

"What?" Elena detached herself from Damon's side and stared at him, wide-eyed.

"I have to take care of it before it gets out of hand. Before they find out about us." He was back to running his hands through his hair again which he only did when he felt caged.

Elena knew in this type of situation Damon couldn't think rationally. Or rather all his rationale was diverted to one thought and one thought only: to protect her, no matter the cost.

"By take care you mean kill?"

"If that's what's necessary – yes."

"We don't even know who she is. She could be a vampire."

"Even more reason to nip this in the bud."

She also knew that with all the heated emotions any kind of protest on her part would result in an argument, but she couldn't take that into consideration right now. What Damon was suggesting was too close to another suicide mission. Only this time, there would be no coming back from it.

"You're not going to Mystic Falls to potentially fight a vampire. No."

"What do you mean, no?" Damon's voice rose, partly from disbelief, but mostly rising anger.

"It's not a difficult word to understand, Damon," Elena barked. "Not much room for interpretation, either."

"What do you expect me to do?" Damon yelled. "Sit around and do nothing?"

"No," Elena bit out. "I expect you to sit back and let other people handle it. People better equipped to do so."

"Better—" Damon repeated but cut himself off, too shocked at her suggestion. "Who? Blondie and your kid brother?"

"She's a vampire and you're—"

Damon didn't wait for her to finish and cut in, "Weak? Fragile?"

The love of my life that I won't risk losing, Elena thought. "Human," she said.

"So's your brother."

"He's a hunter."

"He's a kid," Damon replied, derisively. Forcibly trying to calm himself down, he added, "And I can help him."

"And I said no." Elena shook her head sadly. "If it needs 'taking care of'," Elena made the quotes around the words with her fingers, "Care and Jeremy are more than capable to do what it takes. They even have witches among their students who can assist with locator spells, if need be. But you're not getting involved."

"You expect me to sit back and let children fight my battles?"

Elena bit her lip. It sounded horrible when he put it that way. And he was partly right, she knew that. Still, she was holding fast on her standpoint. There were a few things Elena wasn't willing to compromise on and Damon's life was at the very top of the list. "My brother knows what he's doing," she said instead.

"So do I. And I've been doing it a lot longer than he has."

"Not as a human, you haven't."

"That's beside the point."

"That's the whole point!" Elena flared up again. "You're not going vampire hunting with my little brother and that's that. It's not up for discussion."

"I can get the Gilbert ring from Donovan and wear the damn thing if it'll make you feel better," Damon tried again in another valiant effort.

Elena adamantly shook her head. "We don't know if the ring would work on you. You've been a vampire for the better part of your existence."

A hysteric laugh from the doorway interrupted their argument. Elena's and Damon's head whipped around, staring at a wide-eyed Dot standing in the open door. Had Damon been in such a hurry that he forgot to close it?

"You really should close the door if you don't want people to overhear. Also, I need a signature here," she added faintly, waving a half-crumpled form in her hand that was probably the reason why she had come up in the first place.

A heavy silence hung in the air and Damon and Elena barely moved as all three of them stared at each other.

"Did you—"

"Before you finish that question," Dot cut Damon off, "no, I didn't hear everything but I heard more than enough. And no, you don't have to bother coming up with a cover story." She nodded to herself a few times, as if coming to a decision. "So, vampires? They're really real? And you mentioned witches, too? And what's a hunter?" Her knees suddenly gave out and she sank down to the floor, her back leaning against the doorframe. "I think I need to sit down," she mumbled.

Damon rushed over to see if she was alright, but didn't dare touch her. Elena joined a moment later with a glass of water in her hand.

"I definitely should sit down," Dot mumbled again.

"You're already on the floor," Elena answered, passing the glass to Dot who didn't take it.

"I am?" Dot asked, looking around and noticing with some surprise that she was in fact crouched on the floor. "Oh, that's good."

She automatically drank the water when Elena held up the glass to her lips and eventually some color returned to her features. "My great-granny, she had Alzheimer's. Most of the time she didn't know what year it was and who we were. But sometimes, on her lucid days, she would tell stories. About vampires and how their blood could bring you back from the dead. Only they never sounded like stories to me. They weren't, were they? Oh my god."

"Damon, go grab a coke for her or something. Something sugary. She's in shock."

Damon hurried away to comply and returned a moment later with a cold fizzy drink. Elena replaced the water in Dot's hand with the can. Dot drank gratefully with her eyes closed. When she finally opened them, she fixed Damon with a stare. "Is that what you are?" she asked. "A vampire?"

"Not anymore," Damon replied.

Dot stared. Then stared some more.

"I used to be one. I was born June 18, 1839." He spoke the year slowly, carefully gauging Dot's reaction with searching yes.

"I knew it!" Dot cried. "I mean, I didn't know it know it. But I knew it. You know?" She glanced at Elena. "And you – what century are you from?"

"I was born 1992."

Dot frowned. "You're not a vampire then."

Elena quickly glanced at Damon before answering, "I was one, for a short while. Now I'm just like you, human. Damon is, too."

Dot nodded, absorbing the information.

"Who else?"

Elena and Damon shared another look. Actually, they shared a whole conversation with the raise of an eyebrow, a nod, the lift of a shoulder.

"Enzo," Damon finally replied. Dot had met all their friends last Christmas when everyone had come to Seattle for the holidays. Because Enzo and Bonnie had stayed longest, Dot had grown pretty familiar with them.

"Oh my god, is Bonnie, too—"

"No," Elena replied. "She's an ex-witch. But just a human now."

"But… but… how? How can they be together? He'd have to control himself around her all the time. She's putting herself in danger—"

"That's not how it is for most vampires."

"These stupid Twilight books, I swear," Damon muttered under his breath. But Elena wasn't so sure that it had anything to do with getting your information from pop culture and more to do with Dot having a major crush on Bonnie. It was the worst kept secret in Bar None.

"And you mentioned your brother?" Jeremy was the only one in their group of friends that Dot had yet to meet.

"Vampire hunter," Elena answered before Dot could ask what he was.

"Of course," Dot replied, sounding faint again. But Elena nodded at her to finish the drink in her hand and as Elena studied her carefully, color began to return to Dot's cheeks. She seemed to be over the worst of the shock. "Is that it?"

"Well, you've met Caroline."

"The cute blonde who's so perky she gave me headaches? Uh-huh."

"She's also a vicious vampire."

"Damon!" Glaring at her husband, Elena then turned to Dot and helped her up from the floor and over to the couch. "Yes, she's a vampire but she'd never hurt anyone."

"You know, that actually explains a lot. I thought she was too young to be the girls' mother."

"She's not really their mom. I mean, she is, for all intents and purposes," Elena hurried to correct herself, grimacing. "But vampires can't have children."

"How come you two are not vampires anymore? How exactly does that work?"

Elena and Damon shared another one of their meaningful looks. Eventually Damon sighed and said, "Well, if you're staying to hear the full story, I might as well go and make us something to eat. 'Cause it's a long one." With that, he turned and walked into the kitchen, Elena and Dot following him.