Come As You Are

by FireFlower17

Ava Fitzroy returns to Mystic Falls in the wake of her grandmother's death. A town her family had fled when she was young to escape demons hiding in the dark. With her return, more strange disappearances and deaths spring up. Slowly her nightmares turn to reality as she descends into the deep darkness of Mystic Falls, led by the dangerous and mysterious Salvatore Brothers.

19. Chapter 18: Breathe Deeper

Chapter 18: Breathe Deeper

---

The wind brushed past me, making me shiver. I pulled my beige cardigan around me tighter. It was slightly warmer than it was yesterday. The rains and storm had given way to a sunny day and I wanted to take advantage of that. The white marble gazebo I sat under was a nice welcome from the usual session of sulking in my room. Well, that and the fact I had a few pieces of homework left to do before next Monday and the founder's kickoff party tomorrow night. I had so far finished my history essays which were neatly tidied inside an 'A4' pink transparent folder and my English essay which was inside a blue folder. The two folders along with my pens and pencils were scattered on the white metal garden table. In front of me was my easel. I still had one small painting left to do for art.

I crossed my legs, with my free hand, I tucked a piece of my stray hair behind my ear. My hair might've been up but the slight wind was still making it harder for me to manage. I lightly wondered whether or not I should cut my hair, while Bonnie chatted away on the phone. She kept saying that short hair was so last season but it would be way more practical than my long hair. Honestly, it was just a small way to distract ourselves from the way our lives were becoming messy. I sighed and redirected our conversation back to the current serious topic.

"So they found Vicki?" Bonnie asked. Her voice was hushed and quiet like she was watching her back.

I nodded before I answered. Sighing, I picked up my paintbrush and held it up in front of the painting. There was no point procrastinating. "Yeah. It's—uh—been rough." The painting in front of me sat unfinished as I pressed the phone to my ear, holding it up with my shoulder. I dabbed my paintbrush into the cyan and brought it to my canvas.

Bonnie hummed lightly. "I can imagine." She sighed. "You shouldn't blame yourself Ava. If anything—" She paused as she hummed a little louder. I heard footsteps on the other side of the phone. "—Damon's the one to blame." She continued.

"Yeah but I pretty much helped him hide her body." I answered with a grimace. It was true. "So I've been going in and out of the Donovan house. My parents were back in town. Mom stayed over at Matt's to help Kelly—she just went back yesterday. My dad went back two days ago."

"I heard. And Caroline's been baking her shoes off." She giggled thinking about our blonde friend. I did feel bad for her. Matt had been acting weird around her and strangely going to Elena or even me for comfort. It was making me uncomfortable. Caroline at least understood where I stood but Elena, on the other hand. She still felt small next to her, I hated it but I couldn't do much. Elena was never going to understand, she'd make an excuse or even if she did understand, she wouldn't do much. The last thing I wanted to do was get involved in someone else's relationship. It was messy and I had enough on my plate.

"You should've seen Kelly's reaction to her." I laughed, remembering Kelly's awkward smile and face when Caroline was not in the room. I was on my best friend's side, no doubt. However, it was hilarious to see the two go at it with each other. A small break from all the grieving Matt said.

"Lemme guess, one step away from throwing it all on Caroline's face." I made a sound in response, confirming her answer. "Wow. I don't get why Kelly doesn't like Caroline."

I swirled my paintbrush into the pot of water and picked up another from it. Carefully, I dipped it into a pale green shade and brought it back onto the canvas. The paintbrush glided smoothly on the canvas. "Well, isn't it obvious. She hates the Sheriff. Highschool shit. Y'know the usual." Kelly was nice as a person but she was someone who was still stuck in the past. At least that's what my mom once said. I didn't really know her much. Like my mom said, Kelly still held onto grudges from her teenage years. Her young mind had stunted her ability to be a better parent and had subsequently led to Matt and Vicki parenting themselves. I vaguely remembered my mom and Miranda, Elena's mom, arguing with Kelly over this when I was ten at a birthday party for Vicki that my mom threw. Her actions were terrible and she never changed. It was clear from the way she acted and treated Caroline that she wasn't going to change at all but I didn't have the heart to tell Matt. Then again I guess Matt knew that too, deep down.

"So she dislikes Caroline by default." Bonnie stated, bringing me back to where we were.

"Pretty much." I nodded and placed the brush down, sitting back to take a look at the semi-finished piece. "By the way, how's—um—y'know, staying at your aunt's." The wind brushed past me lightly.

Bonnie whistled. "Kinda boring. I miss you guys." Sheila's death was still fresh in her mind and mine. I hated to bring it but I missed my witchy friend. Without her around, it felt like I was the only voice of reason. Well, was. In a weird sense, Mr Saltzman's addition to this stitched up group had brought another voice of reason. How long would this last? I didn't know. Mr Saltzman had his own goal and I didn't know what would happen if he didn't get what he wanted. Maybe Bonnie was better off staying away from all of this. Maybe. Just maybe. Still, I pouted and let out a deep breath. I missed Bonnie.

"We miss you too. Oh." I changed the position of the phone to my other hand. Quickly, I wiped my paint stained hand with a rag and got up. I walked around the gazebo and leaned against the white railing. "I emailed the work you've been missing along with your homeworks, as well—" Squinting my eyes, I tried to remember what else I emailed. Absent-mindedly, I turned to look at the rose bushes nearby in the distance. The gardener watered those flowers and I just stared, trying to remember. Almost giving up, I sauntered over to the table and opened my laptop, pulling up my emails. "My own notes, copies of my own work—don't tell anyone I did that. Caroline will kill me if she finds out I did that and I'm already giving Matt my notes—he's not even taking school seriously—" I sighed, thinking of Matt and his situation. "—and y'know Elena—honestly—" I sucked in a breath, trying to pace myself. "—I don't know how she's going to be a writer with those subpar stories and let's not get started on her secondary option as a doctor."

Bonnie said nothing for a short while before bursting out in a fit of laughter after a moment of silence. She kept laughing instead of saying anything. I had to put my phone at arm's length until she stopped. "Trust you to worry—" She giggled and sucked in a breath."—about school in the middle of all of this."

I could almost picture the young witch shaking her head in disbelief. I scoffed at the image. "Hey! Someone's gotta make sure you all graduate or make something of your life." I rolled my eyes, almost offended at Bonnie poking fun at my attempts to help my friends. "Y'know, this supernatural shit is temporary. It will pass." At least, that's what my aunt Diana said. I didn't bother to say that out loud. Bonnie would understand where I was coming from. And even if this mess continued for god knows how long, I will just leave or try to. It'll probably backfire.

"And I believe you." She chuckled and it sounded like she tried to mute her laughter with her hands.

Shaking my head, I sat back down. "No, you don't. Anyways, Caroline was saying we should have a group call. She's at her dad's, by the way."

"I heard. I'm down."

"Cool. I'll just tell Elena—"

"Ava." Bonnie cut me off all of a sudden.

I froze and shut my eyes in horror. I had totally forgotten about it. Elena was still a touchy subject for Bonnie. She was distancing herself from Elena's whole vampire drama. The only reason Bonnie wasn't blowing me off was because I was against the whole tomb opening from the start. I breathed out and quickly racked my brain. "Sorry, I forgot." It was a simple apology but I didn't wanna go into detail and bring up even more bitter memories for Bonnie. "Anyways, when are you coming back?"

She laughed. "Don't worry about it. Elena's been spamming me with voice messages—"

"—That you've been ignoring."

"That I've been ignoring and...I don't know when I'll be back. I'll let you know before I'm back." Her tone had changed and she sounded a little tired at the mention of talking to Elena. "I got your emails. Thanks." That was all she said. There was a clicking sound as Bonnie hung up. I pursed my lips and was about to turn off my phone. I stopped. There were so many unread messages from Elena, Damon and the student council.

Tired, I leaned back in my seat. I sighed and stared back at the half-finished work. In a daze, I picked up a paintbrush and started painting without a thought or care in the world. In the back of my mind, there were all the worries that had piled on. I wasn't ignoring them but those were bridges that I'd cross when I had to, like finally having that talk with Damon about the 'mind control' thing and those awful psychic dreams. I still debated whether or not to tell the Salvatore brothers or even Elena more of what I was going through. Oh well, that was another bridge I'd cross sooner or later. Now I had to focus on what truly mattered. School.

---

29th January 2009,

It's been a rough couple of days. The storm and the rain, the tomb vampires. So much has been going on lately that even if the sky is clear today and the sun's out, nothing from the past couple of days is going to make 'now' better. Although, I feel a little better as I write this entry in the ever-growing library in the Fitzroy manor, in the presence of Uncle Nate. It's not everyday that I get to enjoy a quiet day with nothing going on. Even so, I feel strange. I'm not relieved or the nervous wreck I was. Maybe a part of me is finally getting used to all of this. Either way, I have to get used to things or I'll drown in stress.

The storm was so bad that it washed away some roads, destroyed property and even unearthed things that maybe should've been left buried. Now my mind's a mess. I don't know if the storm was good or bad. My mind's mess and I don't remember ever crying this much. It still hurts thinking about it. After months, they finally found her. They found Vicki's body. The storm washed away some roads, like I mentioned and it moved some dirt, soil and rocks. Her body washed up in that mess. Just thinking about it makes me ill. Even more, when I think about how Caroline found her. She was supposed to be going to her dad's and instead she found Vicki's dead body. I have no right to be upset or anything.

After all, I helped to hide her body with Damon. I failed to heal her or anything. I didn't save her. Her funeral was a couple days ago. It was hard to say the least. Kelly Donovan, Vicki and Matt's mom, didn't even shed a tear. It was like she knew Vicki was going to end up this way. Matt was inconsolable. The guilt of seeing him like that is eating me alive and it didn't help that Jeremy came up to me about her. Jeremy is on to us. I know he is, I read his mind. He knows Anna is a vampire. He figured it out. Damon's compulsion wore off quicker than I thought it would or maybe he's more smarter than I give credit for. I know he suspects something off about Vicki's death. It's only a matter of time before he finds out the truth and d—

The sound of loud doorbell rings stopped me in mid-sentence. My pen hovered over my journal as I looked up. Nearby my desk, on another desk, uncle Nate also looked up. He had his reading glasses on, his laptop opened and the lamp attached to his table turned on. For a moment, he waited for a second round of ringing as he put his pen down on his Computer Science textbook. He and I shared a look as I started to get up. With a motion of his wrist, he gestured for me to sit back down. He was on his guard. We both waited for the ringing to go on but it stopped. My brows scrunched up. I brought my left hand forward and held it up in front of me. I stared at the watch on that wrist with narrowed eyes and tiredly rubbed my eyes. It was late. Really late. Who was insane enough to be disturbing us at this hour. For now the ringing had stopped but the confusion still lingered. False alarm, I mouthed to my uncle who again shrugged. He didn't look convinced, well, neither, was I.

Then another round of ringing started.

I sighed and decided to finally speak. "Are we expecting someone?" I questioned, staring at my uncle. He mirrored my look and turned to the butler who had been keeping watch over us. Robert shrugged, moving out of the room to check on the sudden guest. It was late at night, almost past midnight. No one should be coming to visit us. "Could be the Sheriff?" I added, trying to guess.

Uncle Nate frowned. He looked confused at the idea of the Sheriff coming over. Sheriff Forbes wasn't the type of person to disturb people at this hour. I knew that she would usually call instead of dropping in unannounced, given the fact it was almost time for the start of the Founders' celebrations. The vampires had been quiet lately, as well. Quiet as they could be. The problems with the tomb vampires hadn't arisen lately. Pearl had kept her word, so far it was still too early to tell whether or not we trusted her. Well it didn't matter if we did. That was Damon's problem not mine or my family's. The ringing of the bell kept going on while I stared into space. This time, there was no sign of stopping. I looked down again to see my uncle getting up with a big sigh. Robert followed after him silently. He, like uncle Nate didn't look pleased but in a split second, the old man managed to quickly cover his expression.

For a moment, I debated following the two before I got up. I closed my journal and shoved it inside a drawer underneath the desk, making sure to lock the drawer. Slipping the key into my pocket, I walked out of the library and into the first floor hall. The hall was sparsely lit, some of the lights here and there were turned on while the others were turned off. It was almost eerie, standing in these halls after the storms that passed through recently. I shivered thinking of the nightmares I had around that time and marched towards the reception of the manor. The reception, unlike the library, was dimly lit. Robert stood in front of uncle Nate, facing the door. Uncle Nate spared me a glance before I walked to stand behind him. The two men for a moment said nothing but simply stared at each other. Even without reading their mind, I could tell what they were thinking. They didn't want to open the door.

The door bell started ringing again as uncle Nate clicked his finger. Robert turned around and stared at my uncle and I for a suggestion or orders. I didn't say anything or do anything. Uncle Nate, on the other hand, gestured for Robert to open the door. Robert nodded with a blank look and turned the key before pulling the huge wooden double-doors of the manor wide open. A man stood on the other side of the door. His back was turned away and he had a travel bag slung over his back. My uncle and I shared a look. Nothing. We felt nothing. No chills. Nothing. Whoever this man was, he was human. An annoying one who couldn't tell the time. The moment the man turned around, my thoughts about him were proven to be true. I silently groaned seeing the man and I wasn't the only one. Uncle Nate's jaws clenched as he motioned Robert to step aside. He moved forward to stand on the threshold of the doorway.

"John." Uncle Nate greeted quietly. I moved behind him like a shadow and used his body to almost hide myself from the familiar guest. His body stiffened and he looked a little unhappy to see the guest. "John Gilbert. What are you doing here past midnight?" My uncle interrogated. He didn't seem happy at all for someone who was seeing an old friend. In fact, my uncle was pissed but he did a great job at hiding it.

John didn't seem to care at my uncle's tone. He shook his head and pursed his lips, letting out a laugh of disbelief. "Come on, Nate. That's not how you greet an old family friend...it's not how Diana would've greeted me." He said the last part, a bit quieter but my uncle and I still managed to hear it. I narrowed my eyes and glared at him while uncle Nate tightened his fist. "Oh. Ava's here too. Hello." He craned his neck to the side to look at me and waved.

What a dick. I thought as I simply threw a strained and awkward smile at John. I didn't bother to wave back either. "Aunt Diana's not here." I stated with an over-polite tone and took a step back. John Gilbert, Elena and Jeremy's uncle was someone I never cared about. Unlike his older brother, he was a womanizer and a believer of the old ways of the founders. John, like Logan, was obsessed with the council and maintaining order in the town. Like the rest of my family, I found him to be a little too intense. Ironic considering my family pretty much started the 'Founders Council' and if I was really being honest we were the only 'true' hunters in the council or at least that's what aunt Evelyn said.

"Even so." John replied with a light smile.

Uncle Nate stood aside and made space for me now. There was no point hiding me from him. He knew I was here. I almost wished I was in bed instead, I wouldn't have to deal with this awkward situation. "Diana's married now, John. Remember?" My uncle stated, reminding John. It was no secret that John once had a relationship with my aunt and at one point everyone believed they would even end up together. But John being John happened. Now he was treated as a stranger, no, worse than a stranger for what he did. I still bore no ill will. His relationship was with my aunt and that was it. I just found John to be the only Gilbert I found to be mildly annoying and that was saying something considering Jeremy's track record.

"So I've heard." His face hardened and he looked away. There was a cold look in his eye, that looked as if he was hurt. Uncle Nate almost scoffed at the idea. "I wasn't invited. Grayson and Miranda were—heck even the Lockwoods and Zach...Salvatore was...but I wasn't."

"What a shame." I commented. "It was a beautiful ceremony. Aunt Diana and uncle Ethan looked amazing as well and—"

"Ava." Uncle Nate called out to me. It sounded like he was warning me but his thoughts said otherwise. "I'd tell you to carry on but this guy's a dick, he'll retaliate." I clamped my mouth shut and nodded. "Good. We need to get rid of him." Uncle Nate's thoughts echoed a little but they were more clearer, the more I only focused on him. "John's not Logan." I was very much impressed and in awe of his quick thinking. I made a quick note to talk about this later on and shifted my attention back to the unwelcome guest. "John." He turned back to the Gilbert man with an icy look as he folded his arms. "What are you doing here?"

John's smile dropped and his shoulders stiffened. He stood straight as the air around him changed. There was a slight dangerous air around him that made me suspicious of him. "We need to talk." He stated. Uncle Nate and I shared a look while Robert sighed quietly behind us. His thoughts almost made me laugh. I took a few steps back, ready to leave these two alone when John spoke up. "I think you should stay. You know everything already. After all, you, your brother and cousins will be doing this soon enough."

"We'll see about that." Uncle Nate retorted without waiting a moment. "And I'm sure we can wait till the morning for this—"

"It's important." He insisted again, inching closer to the threshold. Uncle Nate took a few cautionary steps back. "Can I come in?" John asked, looking around for a sign of any other life or anything. When he found nothing he turned his attention back to us. "Well?"

"Again, we can do this tom—"

"You're right. I should go back to my brother's house. Maybe Jenna's still up an—"

"Wait!" Uncle Nate called out just as John turned around. My uncle huffed loudly and pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. John had been back for less than twenty-four hours and he had already managed to get my uncle's pressure up. And my uncle did not have any health problems. An impressive feat, if I also didn't want this man off the Fitzroy property just so I can have a peaceful night's sleep. "...Let's talk." My uncle tiredly drawled out. He rubbed his eyes and moved aside while motioning John to follow him inside. He didn't verbally invite him in but instead the two of us, Fitzroys waited. We watched with slightly narrowed and cautious eyes as John crossed over the threshold of the manor with ease.

I rolled my eyes and threw a glance at Robert. He didn't need any further commands as he bowed and disappeared into the direction of the kitchen. Then I took the lead even though I would rather be in my bed. I led the two men behind me to the living room. The room was pitch black save for some light from the hallways that had leaked into the darkened living room. Uncle Nate moved to turn on the lights and the room sparked to life. The chandelier above twinkled to life as it brightened the room. He didn't say anything, instead he gestured to John to sit on the couch while he took a seat on an armchair next to the couch. John turned to me and stared at me just as I was about to leave again. I sighed. Reluctantly, I sat down on the loveseat opposite the armchair my uncle had taken a seat in. I crossed my legs and threw my bed back as I boredly waited.

"Talk."

John didn't need further commands from uncle. He leaned back and got comfortable before he glanced at both of us and started. "A hospital blood bank in the neighboring county of Amherst has reported several break ins over the past two weeks. Seven hunters, four campers and two state employees have been reported missing as well. All of this within a 75-mile radius of Mystic Falls—" John cut himself off as his eyes scanned our faces. He rolled his eyes and sighed. "—but seeing the two of you makes me think that the Fitzroy family probably already knows about it all." Despite his impressed tone, his face said it all. He wasn't happy with us. No. He wasn't happy about being kept in the dark. One thing John hated or envied was how much wider our web of information was compared to the founders' descendants. "What a waste of resources—if it was me." "—undeserving." He truly hated it. "You knew."

"Maybe we do. Maybe we don't." My uncle replied with a slight grin on his face. He leaned back and tilted his head. John narrowed his eyes at my uncle. "And it's four hunters and three campers. Check your source again." He added. "This is fun." "Maybe I should piss John off more."

"I assume your family got involved."

Uncle Nate shrugged. "Who knows?" He took the tray of drinks from Robert who had returned and placed them down on the glass coffee table. Robert gave a slight bow before my uncle dismissed him for the night. With the butler gone, only the three of us remained. "I mean we did have a family outing recently." Uncle Nate spoke out again after a moment. "It was—uh—nice to get together after a while." He picked up a glass and handed it to John who wordlessly accepted the glass. "Wasn't it Ava?" My uncle asked, turning to glance at me. I was confused and I guess my confusion was clear to see. "Play along." I heard but his mouth didn't move.

Getting the hint, I breathed out and nodded. "It was really fun." I smiled sarcastically. I did not enjoy this at all but I played along. "Woodcarving was...fun."

John took a sip of his drink and then placed it back down. He glanced at me and my uncle. His jaws clenched. He was not happy at all. "Then I can assume this family—"

"No." His old friend answered immediately, cutting him off. "It was a one or two-off thing. I assure you that won't be happening again anytime soon."

"Really?" John asked again for confirmation. My uncle nodded. John rubbed his forehead in frustration. "You're wasting your resources and talents." He finished, glancing at me.

"And that's our choice. I'm sorry for what's going on but we made our own choice a long time again."

"And you're not going to change it."

"I don't have the power to."

"Then ask Gabe to change his mind." My eyes widened as I saw John reach into his pocket.

I brought my hands together and clapped. "Okay. I think that's enough. Why don't we all call it a night?" I pushed myself off my seat, glancing down at the two men.

John stared at me for a second before he chuckled. "Well, I suppose it is late." He commented. Then he turned to my uncle. "So should we call it a night?" My uncle nodded and got up. "In that case, you two mind if I stay here...just for the night."

"Yes. I do." I answered without any hesitation.

My uncle and I shared a look. I wanted him to leave already without caring about being nice and all. For all we know, he would snoop around and find something he shouldn't. "John..." My uncle began, trying to play the part of the good guy.

"I could disturb Jen—"

"Fine but just for tonight. Stick to the guest room." Uncle Nate quickly gave in once again at the mention of his best friend. I opened my mouth to protest but closed it again when he gave me a pointed look. He gestured for me to go up the stairs and pointed at the watch on his wrist. It was late and I did have school. I started walking to the stairs again but this time I was followed by the two men. I turned around to glance at John who had a smug look on his face that I just knew my uncle wanted to punch. "Oh and we want our loan back." Uncle Nate added before stopping outside an empty room.

"I thought it was a gift."

"It was a loan." My uncle repeated, opening the door while I eavesdropped. "Don't linger or snoop, John. I'll see you in the morning...or not."

---

The hallways were crowded as students ran past me. Realistically, I should've been telling them not to run in the halls in the absence of a hall monitor but I was so not in the mood. I leaned against a locker sandwiched between my two childhood friends with my phone out. Matt was on my right, going through his locker and Elena stood next to me. The three of us had strangely enough had been spending more time together along with Tyler who was absent. I knew Caroline and Bonnie would also be here were they not absent. The discovery of Vicki's body had driven us all to spend more time together. I wasn't complaining but not all of us were happy.

My phone buzzed as another message came through. I placed my other hand on the top of my phone screen, hiding it from Matt and Elena. Another text from Caroline. I sighed. She was over at her dad's but she still kept asking about Matt. She did not trust Elena and Matt together, her unfortunate insecurity wouldn't. "So John's back." I stated out loud, keeping up with the conversation while I quickly typed up a response to Caroline.

I'm with M & E too.

Happy?

- Rosy

"Who are you texting?" Matt asked, trying to look over my shoulder. I tried to move away but he laughed and grabbed my phone.

"Matt!" I exclaimed. I jumped and tried to get my phone back while Matt continued to laugh. He grinned down at me while reading the message on my phone. His smile widened as his blue eyes scanned the screen. "Elena? A little help?" I turned to Elena and asked for her help, only for her to shrug in response. "Ugh. You guys are annoying."

"Says the one whose watching over me for Caroline." Matt replied, handing me back my phone.

"She asked." I rolled my eyes at him. "She's worried, y'know. She might've not been on the bestest terms with Vick but she cares about you." I added. Matt's grin dropped as he sighed. By now, he was getting tired of all the pity looks he got for having a dead sister and dead beat mom. "Anyways, back to John..." I quickly changed the topic before things got a little too somber. I didn't need to remind myself of my guilt over Vicki's death twice a day now.

I switched my phone off before Caroline could reply to my last. Turning around to look at Elena who nodded at whatever I just said. "He said his trip is open ended." She replied, fidgeting with her hands.

"Ugh. He stayed over at mine last night." I complained, remembering the awkward meeting. Then the awkward breakfast this morning. Like Logan Fell, this guy only thought about vampires. He was definitely more sufferable back before I could read minds, now I just wanted to stake him instead. "Worst guest ever." Elena rubbed my shoulder sympathetically. She understood.

Matt laughed as he opened his locker. "Uncle John, I never really liked that guy." He said, trying to comfort Elena.

"Does anyone?" Elena asked.

I grinned. Elena and Matt frowned seeing my expression. They knew that look too well. "Jeremy does." I answered.

I felt two hands grab my shoulders and pull me back gently. I turned my head to glance at the person doing that only to come face to face with Matt who was looking down at me. "What she means is—we're here for moral support if you need us." He said as he pushed my head down. That's not what I meant but I shut my mouth.

"Thanks, I think I'll suffer this one alone; you've been through enough." Elena answered with a smile.

"Thank you by the way, for just...for everything you two did at Vicki's funeral and the memorial. I couldn't have done it without you two."

"Of course Matt." "What are friends for." Elena and I answered at the same time just as my phone went off.

I groaned. I fished out my phone from my pocket and turned it on. It wasn't Caroline so that was good news but my face quickly dropped the minute I read the text. "Crap. I forgot." I hissed under my breath as I shoved my phone back into my pocket. I pushed myself off my locker and grabbed my bag from Elena. She stared at me with a confused look.

"Student council meeting?" Matt correctly guessed.

Sparing a glance at him, I nodded and started walking backwards. "I'll catch you two later." I waved at them two before sprinting down the halls.

Again I wasn't meant to be running the halls but it's not like anyone would say anything to me. I kept cursing at myself for forgetting like how I forget about the student council especially around Founders' festivities. I groaned again as I dodged a couple of freshmen goofing off. I did not want to be late to this. I mentally thanked Will for his texts. The last thing I wanted was to get an earful from Dana. A couple of seniors parted when they saw me just as I reached the student council room. Will stood outside, waiting. He stood next to Kira who had a light flush to her cheeks while she played around with her hair. I rolled my eyes as I got Will's attention. I knew he was silently cursing me right now but he definitely didn't show it. Kira left after seeing me while I unlocked the door to the council room. We both went in and Will complained under his breath about me being early for once.

---

"So the founders' festivities are about to begin soon." I said, leaning back into my chair and twirling a pen between my fingers. Beside me, Dana and Will sat down quietly. Will quietly wrote down what we had discussed before. He was no doubt calculating the budget for it by now. Dana, on the other hand, was silently fuming for no particular reason. I didn't care to ask.

"The Founder's Day Kickoff party is tonight." Will asked, looking up. Jeff nodded. Taking that as his answer, he went back to writing down something in his notepad. There weren't many people in the student council room today, just the student council members. It was a nice welcome to me considering this room was always full with the different heads of different clubs along with the football team and cheerleaders. "...So the kickoff party is going to be followed by the pageant."

"We don't have to worry about that." Dana said. She put her head down with her arms on the table. "I mean who cares about a stupid pageant."

"Clearly you do." Chad mumbled under his breath.

Dana clearly heard it. She lifted her head and ripped up a page from her notepad and bunched it up. She swung her arm back, aiming for her boyfriend. Chad ducked before the ball of paper hit. "Come on." He tried to placate his girlfriend, only it had the opposite effect. Dana ripped out another page from her notebook and chucked it at Chad. He ducked again, only to be hit again in the face. Dana laughed as her boyfriend looked annoyed.

"Guys..." Will spoke out. He took off his glasses and glared at the playful couple. "Pay attention." He turned to me, gesturing for me to continue.

"Right, no one cares about the pageant. Blah. Blah. It's the parade we need to worry about." I picked up where Will had left off. I mean I wasn't really bored, I was just a little tired from thinking. At least I was missing maths. "So we need—"

"That's not true." Aimee spoke up. She threw a stray piece of her hair back and leaned forward.

"What's not true?" I asked, genuinely confused.

"No one caring about the pageant."

"Oh my god." Jeff complained.

"Well, I heard that Amber Bradley was selected as a finalist...and no she's not my cousin guys." Aimee had a light grin on her face. She eyed Dana. There was a mischievous glint in her eyes. "It's a big deal."

Will put on his glasses again. "I heard. It's the first time a non-founding family has been chosen." He scanned his notes and then looked up. "I guess it is a pretty big deal and I guess it's why Dana looks pissed. Ow." He hissed in pain while rubbing his head in pain. Dana had smacked his head. I was lucky enough to duck in time.

Looking at the two, I let out a laugh. Quickly I covered my mouth and shook my head. Dana gave me a look, pouting. Then she rolled her eyes before pushing herself back into her seat. "It's not like she's gonna win." Dana grumbled. This got everyone's attention. I mean we all already knew that Amber wasn't gonna win but clearly Dana meant something else. "I mean everyone knows why she was really chosen."

"To show that the pageant isn't biased...which it is but y'know." I replied, shaking my head and looking away from this. There was no point, listening to this. I made a quick note on my notepad about the parade, the float and the props. The students of the school would be handling those, I thought. I needed to talk to Will about the budget before talking to the football team and I guess the pageant winner along with her 'court'.

"Ava." Dana snapped. She clicked her fingers in front of my face. "Listen." She shook me. Then she let go and drew back. "Where was I? Right. The real reason Amber was selected was because she's a placeholder for Ava."

"Aw. That's cute, Dana but you forget I'm a founder's kid too."

"Yeah but your family isn't insufferable." Jeff added. "No offence to the other founders' kids."

"We're barely here to begin with." I chimed in, reminding everyone that we were here only for holidays and special events. "We just throw money at the town and disappear."

"Exactly. Imagine if the Lockwoods did that." Dana joked.

"We wouldn't be subjected to Tyler." Chad added. Will actually stopped what he was doing to agree. Unbelievable. I mean they weren't wrong. Most of the founding family were way too arrogant to begin with. "Come to think of it. I don't ever remember anyone in your family ever taking part in the whole pageant thing, we usually more Fells or some distant Lockwood relative filling in for your family."

I laughed. I decided to give up trying to mediate this little meeting. Might as well join in. "Unless you count Lydia Fitzroy who was one of the first Fitzroys in this town. Then no. We don't."

"Oh. Didn't she win or was that someone else."

"No. She won in 1862, the second Miss Mystic Falls. We just don't do pageants." Not when we were busy cleaning up the town. It was time consuming and boring if I was being honest. The closest we got to taking part was being the honorary judges or something. Sometimes we'd take over the role of the previous winner when a pageant was skipped and act as the host alongside Carol Lockwood or whoever was the wife of the mayor that year. "Can we get back to the whole parade. We have to talk 'bout the floats."

"Right." Will clicked his fingers and passed his notebook to me. "I've drawn up some plans along with the budget for the parade this year."

"We're doing a re-enactment of the Battle of Willowcreek not the discovery of the town." I passed the pad back to Will who quickly crossed out the initial notes. He quickly redid his notes and passed it to me and Dana. We both leaned in and scanned the notes. "Yeah, this is fine. I'll run it by Mr Saltzman later on, whose gonna pass it onto Carol Lockwood."

"So are we done?" Aimee asked despite the least amount contribution.

Will glared at her and he wasn't the only one. Dana and Jeff mirrored Will but neither made a sound of complaint. I let out a breath and nodded with a stretched out smile on my face. Bringing my hands together after I finished copying Will's notes, I got up. I faced the room with my arms on the desk. "That concludes our meeting today—" The shrill ringing of the bell cut me off. "—Just as the bell rang. Perfect. I'll see you guys around." I said, leaving first. Dana followed after me while clutching Chad's arms. Outside the room, Kira waited probably for Will. I simply waved at her before making my way to my next class.

On my way to class, I stopped when I passed the door leading to the benches outside. Tyler sat on the table of a picnic bench. He was hunched over with his hands covering his face. I bit my lips and looked around for a sign of anyone else but there wasn't any. I don't even like Tyler. I mean he was tolerable but that was it. Pausing again in my tracks, I walked back against my better judgement. His thoughts pounded in my head causing my head to ache lightly. I rubbed my forehead to ease the pain. The pain dulled a little but I could still hear him. Guess he really did care about Vicki in his own way, even if he didn't show it. He was still a dick though for treating her harshly in life.

I looked to the side and checked again for anyone before reaching into my bag. I pulled a couple of chocolate bars and a post-it pad. Quickly, I wrote down a note and stuck it to the bars. I vaguely remembered them being Tyler's favourite from when we were kids. No, I wasn't doing this cause I was sorry or anything. I just felt bad. At least that's what I kept telling myself. Sighing, I took the other doorway outside and crept up behind him. Without a single word, I placed the candy on the table next to his bag while he was distracted and sneaked out again. Tyler didn't notice at all. He was too busy rubbing his slightly red and puffed up eyes to care for his surroundings. Maybe a part of me did care for Tyler, the same way I cared for Elena, Caroline, Bonnie and Matt. Just maybe.

---

I tapped my pen on the table anxiously while keeping an eye on the clock behind Mrs Halpern. From the side, I could feel Will glaring at me for the loud tapping but he didn't bother to say anything. Occasionally I would stop and take notes on the board or something relevant Mrs Halpern had said. God, I hated Trig. This along with Physics always numbed my brain. I looked at the clock again and breathed out. Soon. The bell would go off soon and then I could leave this mind-numbing class and go home.

Well, right after I went to see Mr Saltzman. I shut my eyes and dropped my pen to rub them. Mr Saltzman knew but that wasn't news. Now he wanted to talk about the supernatural, he had been bugging my uncle and I for a while now since the whole farmhouse incident with the tomb vampires. At first it was easier for me to ignore but then he brought up his wife and like a sentimental idiot, I caved in. Sometimes I'm too nice. My uncle took longer to cave in. He, unlike me, had to actually report back everything to my dad and his siblings. It took them a week or two but in the end they decided to trust Mr Saltzman. I guess the idea of a vampire hunting history teacher amused my dad. He thought it was a 'fun' idea. I snorted thinking back to that whole conversation. If I was being honest, my dad was only okay with Mr Saltzman because technically this had nothing to do with us. A little harsh.

I dropped my hands and picked up the pen, eying the clock. Two minutes. Come on. I chanted under my breath. Hurry up. I picked up my pen again and started tapping it against my trig notebook. One minute. Time seemed to tick on slowly. I decided to quickly write out the last answers on the board in my notebook. I could at least pretend to do something before the bell rang. The moment I put pen to paper the shrill sound of the bell echoed through the halls and classrooms. Finally. I dropped my pen and quickly started to pack my things. "—at's all for today. Ms Fitzroy—" Mrs Halpern called out to me while everyone was rushing to get out. I stopped in mid-action and looked up with a polite smile. Seriously? "Do you mind staying behind for a few seconds." She said before turning around and going back to her desk.

Nodding at what she said, I finished packing up and fell back down my seat. Great, just great. I was failing trig. I knew it. I should've paid less attention to Elena and the Salvatore brothers and more on trig and physics. I poked my cheek with my tongue as various scenarios went through my mind. "Is everything okay?" After a few minutes, I got up and asked.

"Yeah. I was just looking—found it!" Mrs Halpern took out a stack of papers from her desk and dropped them down onto the table. "Here." She passed the stack of papers to me. My smile faltered and my eyes almost started twitching. Extra work, how nice. Not. I hated it. Maybe I could compel or mind control her into forgetting about giving me work. Mrs Halpern carried on unaware of what I was thinking about. She sat back down on her desk and took out a post-it note pad. I watched as she wrote something down and placed it on top of the stack. "You're close to Stefan Salvatore right?"

What. Confusion was etched onto my face, I just knew it was. I didn't need a mirror for that. I blinked, staring at her. "Excuse me?" I questioned, looking around.

"Well, I've noticed you hang around with Stefan. He's part of your little group." She carried on.

"I guess." I answered. Still confused.

"Great!" She gestured to the pile again and turned back to me. "If you have time, do you mind dropping this off. He's been missing a lot of days off school and since you're in most if not all of his classes, you can give this all to him." That was all she said before she got her own bag and walked out of the room. She didn't even give me time to say yes or no. I don't think she cared.

"Sure Mrs Halpern, I'll totally—ugh." I didn't even bother. What was the point of that sarcastic comment? If anyone had heard me, well, there goes the model student reputation I had. I sighed and picked up the pile. I guess I'll drop this off in my car and then go see Mr Saltzman.

Half-annoyed, I picked up the tall pile and silently cursed Stefan for missing so many days off. I get it he is a vampire and all but the least he could do was compel our teachers' not to give him catch up work. I was sure he didn't need it. He had over a century to polish up on his knowledge. I speed walked over to my car, dodging students running in the halls and weaved through people flanking the corridors to find a door outside. Pushing one of the double doors with my side, I used my leg to hold it and then got out. Ugh. This was seriously heavy. This was all his work for all his subjects. Apart from Art and Physics, Stefan was in most of my classes.

The car park was in the midst of emptying. I watched as people drove out of the parking lot and I was careful not to trip over and almost become roadkill. I dropped the pile of work in my car with a thud, shaking my arms off later. "Are you going home?" I jumped when I heard a voice behind me.

Clutching my chest, I turned around and came face to face with my uncle. "Can you at least give me a warning?" I glared at him as I panted. "And no. I was dropping off Stefan's work." I retorted, shutting the passenger seat door and locking the car. "Let's go." I gestured to the school with my head and led him through the now-empty halls to Mr Saltzman's classroom.

---

"Thanks for coming on such short notice." Mr Saltzman got up and shook my uncle's hands while I trailed behind. Quietly, I shut the door behind me and locked it just in case someone tried to get in. Someone like Jeremy Gilbert. "I know what I asked for was a lot but—"

"It's fine." Uncle Nate cut him off with a gesture of his hands. Mr Saltzman gestured for us to take a seat. He had propped up to seats in front of his desk and disappeared to get his bag. He reappeared and took a seat at his desk. "Ava told me you know. I guess the cat's out of the bag. I think that's great but we need to set a few things straight."

Mr Saltzman folded his arms and placed it on the desk. "Like what?" He asked. His face was pale and he looked more and more tired lately. There were dark circles underneath his eyes like he hadn't slept in a while. He probably hadn't. I felt bad for him. It was clear that he was spending every waking moment trying to find what happened to his face.

"Like keeping 'this' hobby of yours under control." My uncle's smile dropped. The carefree facade was gone. His eyes narrowed and his eyes darkened. He had a look in his eyes that felt dangerous. Carefully, I observed him, making sure he didn't go off. I knew what members of my family were capable of. We were different from the other founders for a reason. "We understand that you've been doing this for a while."

"I assume 'we' refers to your fam—"

"Answer the question Ric."

I let out a little laugh seeing the look on my history teacher's face. It was interesting. "Relax Mr Saltzman. This isn't an interrogation. We're not gonna skin you alive or something." I joked and then turned to my uncle for a confirmation "Right?" I asked. No answer. "...Right?" I asked again a little unsure. Even Mr Saltzman looked concerned when I spared a glance at him.

My uncle looked away. "...Well, I can say our family hasn't skinned anyone since 1762...I think." He answered after a while.

"I so did not want to know that."

"Wha—" Mr Saltzman gasped.

"Oh my god. Ju—Just answer him." I quickly brought them both back on topic while being a little horrified by the sudden revelation.

"Yes." Mr Saltzman answered without further questions.

My uncle folded his arms and leaned back into his seat. "Okay then. Ground rules." He clapped his hands together. "Rule number one, do not expose yourself to the rest of the normals in this town or elsewhere. Rule number two, don't expose yourself to vampires—which you already failed. Congrats."

Mr Saltzman leaned forward and placed his hands on the desk. His brows scrunched up as his eyes narrowed and then he glanced at me in protest. "Ava also broke rule number two."

Way to be mature. I threw a look of disbelief at my teacher and shook my head. I had an actual reason for mine. "In my defence I was trying to save Caroline from being eaten and then it kinda spiralled." I stated. I wasn't not saying his reasoning wasn't but from what I gathered about Isobel, she was in the nicest way possible a nut job just like Katherine. What was with exes and being insane? Isobel was obsessed with vampires while Katherine with the Salvatores.

Uncle Nate looked like he recalled that moment and simply nodded as moved along. "Moving on to rule number three. Most important rule. Do not under any circumstances expose us or drag us into your messes. We don't want any part of it. None of it."

"But isn't that your—" Mr Saltzman tried to argue again.

"No. Not since eight or seven years ago." Uncle Nate cut him off again before giving me a look. He, like me, was tired of Johnathan Gilbert's journal. If that journal wasn't classified as a historical artefact, we would've stolen and burned it ages ago.

"Does Jenna know?" Mr Saltzman asked without hesitation. He stared at his friend.

"No...but if she does find out, I'll tell her."

"Why didn't you tell her?"

"Because. She wouldn't have believed me...and I did try. A long time ago. She laughed it off."

"So how long have you been doing this 'Van Helsing' cosplay?"

"Seriously?"

"What? It's funny."

Mr Saltzman sighed. "A couple of months after my wife disappeared." He answered and fidgeted in his seat, glancing at me for reassurance. I looked away and jotted down his responses.

"Your wife?"

"Isobel Flemming." I stated blankly, finishing what I was writing. "Mom actually knew her apparently." I added after a moment turning to my uncle. Mr Saltzman's head snapped to stare at me. He opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water. I could tell he was shocked. I didn't even need to read his mind for it.

"Your mom knew my wife." His mouth was open agape and eyes wide. He was shocked to say the least. Guess I forgot to tell him. I debated telling him about Isobel being a vampire now but thought it through. If she was a vampire and still alive or undead, then she didn't come to find him. I didn't want to open that door. It wasn't my place after all this was between him and Damon not me and my family.

Mr Saltzman turned to look at my uncle. Shock and surprise were still etched onto his face. "Don't look at me, this is news to me." My uncle shrugged and tried to reason with his friend. "Care to explain?" He asked as he really didn't know either. My mom wasn't the type to openly talk about her childhood with anyone. It was always a surprise when she did end up talking.

"Hey. I just found out recently." I answered, looking away. I wasn't lying. "Isobel was from Grove Hill—my mom grew up there and then she moved...after her family died. She was apparently friends with my mom's younger sister or something. I don't know. I couldn't get much since Elena jumped the gun on the person telling us 'bout Isobel."

My teacher fell back into his chair and shut his eyes. It seemed his wife had more secrets that he ever could imagine. A part of me wondered how they ever got hitched with that amount of secrecy between them. Again, that wasn't my place to wonder or ask. I simply let my teacher have his moment of quiet thinking. I wasn't the only one. From the corner of my eyes, I could see my uncle silently observing his friend. Gone was that deadly look, now he looked concerned. My uncle clenched his fists and drew back, letting his friend have some space while he took out his phone to reply to some message. No doubt those were from Jenna. I turned away from the two men and glanced at the clock on the wall above the board. I still had to drop off Stefan's catch-up work. I almost groaned remembering all that work I had to drop off. I really prayed that Stefan would get better for everyone's sake, especially mine because I couldn't keep carrying a huge stack of papers every other month.

---

Elena paced around her room as she ran her fingers through her hair. her footsteps pounded quietly against the wooden floor. I sat on the floor, leaning against her bed. She was about to drill a hole into the floor. I sighed and brought my knees to my chest, wondering how I ended up here again. I was meant to be delivering Stefan's work and then going straight home for an eight hour nap but now I was here listening to Elena cry about Stefan. Granted, it was a serious topic. Stefan was getting more and more out of control from what Elena told me. If I was truly being honest with Elena, she would've probably embarked on another suicide mission. She seemed to have a knack for those especially if the farmhouse incident taught me anything.

This is Elena's fault.

A small voice in my head whispered. I knew it was right. Had Elena not chosen to show Damon some undeserved compassion for his 'Katherine cause', we wouldn't be here. Sheila wouldn't have died. There wouldn't be any tomb vampires loose in the town. Stefan wouldn't have gotten kidnapped. We wouldn't have to go on that rescue mission. She wouldn't have to give Stefan her blood. None of this would be happening. But there was no point crying about that. All I could do was listen and maybe offer a shoulder to cry on. I wasn't an expert on vampire junkies.

"...So Stefan did that." I drawled out, actually forgetting what he did.

Elena nodded. "Yeah. He's scared he's gonna hurt me. I'm really worried." She said as she stopped in front of me. Her arms were wrapped around her body and I could tell she was shaken up by whatever had happened. "Any ideas?" She asked.

I stared at her confused. "Call...Damon?" I answered, a little unsure.

She was not pleased with my answer. My childhood friend's face twisted and she looked down at me, a little unimpressed by my effortless suggestion. What did she want me to do? I wasn't a vampire therapist or a vampire doctor. This was probably much more deeper than either of us knew. "I did." She replied after a while. "You don't have any ideas. I thought you were sort of an expert..."

"—On killing them, 'Lena. Not helping them." I reminded. She sighed and sat down on the floor opposite me, taking my hand in hers. Her hands were cold. I felt almost bad for what I had just said. "I would call Lexie but—y'know." Lexie would probably know what to do but calling her back when the council was still on the edge was not the best idea. I hoped Elena would get that hint.

Elena nodded. "Damon should be here soon." She quietly muttered under her breath. "...I was thinking of telling Jeremy that I'm adopted."

"Oh."

"Yeah. I know. It's a big step."

"Well it's the right step." I stared down at the ground and contemplated telling Jeremy about vampires. "I think you should tell Jeremy about...the vampires too." I quietly added.

Like my words had stung her, Elena drew back her hands and stood up. Her eyes were wide. She grabbed her arms and vigorously shook her head. "No. I'm trying to protect him." She said, trying to sound convincing. Her words weren't convincing at all. In fact, it seemed as if she was trying to convince wasn't fooling anyone, not even herself. "I'm trying to protect me" I was a little surprised when I heard that. I didn't let it show on my face, instead I acted as if I was fine.

"Elena—" I cut myself off when I felt a cold chill go down the back of my spine. It almost knocked the wind out of me. By now I should've been used to this deathly feeling but it still managed to take me by surprise every now and then. "I think Damon's here." Elena stared at me before closing her eyes and opening them again as she nodded. She ran out of the room, beckoning me to follow her.

Tiredly, I dragged myself down the stairs while Elena all but marched down the stairs. I stopped at the foyer and stood around while Elena unlocked the door. Jeremy waved at me from the kitchen where he was probably doing his homework or something, I didn't know. He gave me a small smile before going back to whatever he was doing but I could tell that he was definitely keeping an eye on Elena. Ever since Vicki's funeral, he had been a little different despite Damon's compulsion. I didn't know much about vampire compulsion but I knew that it was harder for someone to overcome it.

I turned away from Jeremy to look at Elena who despite unlocking the door didn't open it. She paced around for a bit, wanting to be absolutely sure that it was really Damon that was on the other side of the door. Then there was a sound of a knock followed by another knock. We shared a look while I wrapped my arms around me as the familiar deathly chill grew stronger with the knocks. I wasn't a GPS. I just knew if a vampire was around, not who it was. Elena took a deep breath and hesitantly pulled open the door.

Behind the door, Damon stood. He had his back turned to us as look elsewhere. Elena sighed in relief, seeing him. She gave me another look before turning back to Damon. "Oh good you're here." She greeted him. The moment I saw Damon, I gave him a little wave before tilting my head to look up, indicating for him to come upstairs before I went back. I didn't ask him to come up. It wasn't my house and I wasn't going to call the shots.

---

"Ah, just like I remember." Damon said the moment he stepped into Elena's room. He jumped onto her bed with his shoes on and laid down. I pursed my lips and sighed from where I sat on the floor. "Oh look who's here?" He grabbed Elena's teddy bear and grabbed it's arm. The vampire brought the stuffed toy in front of my face moving it around in a waving motion. "It's 'little miss sunshine' who's been ignoring my calls." Damon poked his head out behind the bear with a pout on his face but his eyes said something else.

I groaned out in frustration and made a move to grab the bear out of his hands. "Really Damon?" Damon moved the bear further from me, making me almost jump around for it. I quickly sat back down, annoyed. "And you wonder why I don't pick up your calls." I commented.

"Guys stop messing around." Elena snapped, closing the door behind her. Like last time, she went back to pacing around in her room. She pushed her hair back and wrapped her arms around herself.

I heard the bed let out a few squeaks while Damon got comfortable. He spread his legs on Elena's bed and held the teddy bear to his chest. I sighed again seeing his typical smirk on his face and cracked open my Italian notebook. This was going to take a while before Damon actually got to the topic of Stefan. "Did you know that your uncle has been kicking it with the Founders' Council?" Damon started. He was talking to Elena, not me. I knew that. He knew after the whole Logan Fell thing that my uncle was partially but reluctantly involved with the council and I never made it a secret that I knew about the council.

"What?" Elena gasped out. I shook my head. I thought I told her to always expect the unexpected but here she was getting shocked at the bare minimum. I wondered how she would react if she knew the type of person her father was. Grayson Gilbert wasn't that different from his brother from what my father told me. He just did a better job at hiding his 'hobbies'. I continued to flick through my notes with an air of distintrest. I knew about this already.

"Yep." I heard Damon answer Elena. "I'm guessing Ava already knew..." He tried to pry my notebook out of my hands, only for me to react quicker.

On instinct, I grabbed his wrist and a small light appeared illuminating my hand which gripped Damon's wrist. His wrist started to sizzle, blister and burn. The smell of burnt flesh hit my senses and I recoiled. Elena let out a gasp in shock while Damon hissed in pain, quickly letting go of my notebook. "Don't touch my things." I stated, picking up the notebook that Damon had dropped. He rolled his eyes whilst nursing his wrist. "...And to answer your question; Yes, I did know. John crashed at my place and it wasn't just a friendly house visit. He's been hovering."

"He's probably trying to recruit your family."

"He is."

Elena stopped pacing around. Damon and I stopped staring at each other. We both focused on Elena who stood in the middle of the room, facing us. "Perfect, we'll just add it to the growing list of how everything is falling apart." She clapped her hands together and smiled sarcastically.

"Well if you ignore a problem long enough, it just...goes away." I retorted with a small grin. From the corner of my eyes, I could feel Damon watching me.

"Kinda like how you've been ignoring me." Damon commented, reminding me that I really hadn't responded to any attempts of contact he made lately. I didn't regret that one bit. I had better things to do than entertain an almost two hundred year old vampire. "Real mature, sunshine." He added after a while. He stopped talking for a bit. I craned my head to sneakily check on him. At the end of the day, he was still a vampire and I should be weary of him. I watched in silence from the floor as he scanned Elena's room. His gaze landed on a broken lamp that Elena had complained to me before. He picked up the plush toy's arm and pointed it towards it. "What happened right there?" He questioned.

"Uh...nothing." Elena answered, looking away. She gave me a meaningful look that begged for my silence. I was happy to comply. "Guys, I'm worried about Stefan. He says that everything's okay but he's clearly struggling." She went straight to the point. Finally, I wanted to say but instead I quietly sat and let her finish. "How long is it gonna take before he goes back to normal?"

"A few days, give or take."

"It's been a few days".

Damon shrugged as he got up from the bed. "Give then, I don't know." He handed the stuffed bear to Elena and walked over to the center of the room. I watched him closely for any signs of a lie or anything really.

It was clear to me. He knew more than he was letting on. I tilted my head and narrowed my eyes at the vampire in front of me. As if Damon felt my gaze on him, he turned to stare at me. I could see it even more clearly in his eyes that there was something off about Stefan, something he and Stefan were both not prepared to let Elena. "Something tells me y'know more than you're letting on." Against my better judgement, I decided to speak my mind.

"Hmm. Maybe I do." Damon answered. I gestured for him to continue, only for him to turn around and ignore me and the question.

Elena sighed loudly, seeing this and walked closer to Damon, grabbing his arm. Oh, she was going to use 'that' card. "...Damon. Please." I heard Elena almost beg Damon.

"What's the big deal?" Damon pulled back and started walking around the room.

"He's not himself, Damon."

Damon said nothing for a while. He walked around a bit before going towards Elena's dresser. "Well, maybe his problem is that he has spent too long not being himself." Damon pulled the dresser open and I glared at him. This wasn't going to be good. I thought.

Before he could take out any of Elena's clothes, I pushed myself off the ground and walked over to the vampire. "Damon. Don't make me do that again." I warned lightly, grabbing his wrist and pulling it back.

"If you wanna hold my hands just ask."

I scrunched up my face in disgust at his words and instantly let go of his wrist as if he was on fire. "Gross." I said. I paused when I heard the familiar sound of my phone. Turning around, I grabbed my phone out of my pocket and used my body to hide the phone from Elena and Damon's gaze. I trusted Elena but she also trusted the Salvatore brothers, there were some things I just couldn't share with either. My face scrunched up into a scowl as I read the small message from my uncle. John the parasite was hovering again. "I have to go." I said to Elena and got down to collect my things. Swinging my bag over my shoulders, I stared at the two as I walked towards the door. "I have to swing by the boarding house and give Stefan the schoolwork he's been missing."

"Be careful." I vaguely heard Damon say.

"Aw. You care." I answered, my hands on the door handle. He looked serious for a moment and my guess was right. There was something worrying about Stefan that neither brothers wanted us to know. "Don't." I called out, seeing Damon go back to opening Elena's dresser. At my warning, he rolled his eyes and shut the dresser. Damon really knew how to kill the mood. "I'll see you at the Founder's Kickoff party." Was the last thing I said to Elena as I pulled the door open and got out. I closed the door behind me and all but ran down the stairs. I had to go home fast.

I landed on the bottom of the stairs and adjusted the strap of my bag. I paused. Standing before me was Jeremy. I sighed and tried to move past him, only for him to move with me. I pursed my lips and took a step back. "Are you leaving already?" Jeremy asked with a curious glint in his eyes.

I smiled and fidgeted with the strap of my bag. "Well I was trying to but you're...kinda in the way." I replied.

"Right." Jeremy started to move away, only to stop.

"Jeremy?" I called out to him.

He looked dazed and deep in thought for a second. I knew what he was thinking about. Vicki. I didn't have to read his mind to know. He, Tyler and Matt were all still grieving. I couldn't lie and say that I didn't grieve but unlike them, I had the unfortunate privilege of knowing and witnessing Vicki's death first-hand. I had enough time to come to terms with it. "Hey, yeah—um—can I have a second?" He asked, turning his attention back to me.

"Is this about—" I let my words hang in the air. If Jeremy was smart, he'd understand my meaning.

Like I thought he would, Jeremy nodded. He definitely knew more than Elena thought he knew. "Anna might be right." "...Vampires." "Vicki." "Anna." "Something's going on..." I heard those thoughts echo in his head and quickly masked my expression. Jeremy knew. At least about the fact vampires were real and his so-called girlfriend was one. Maybe I should have taken out Anna when I had the chance. "Ava?" Jeremy called out to me.

"Sorry what were you saying?"

"I said it is about 'y'know'..." He walked over to me and mouthed 'Vicki' before taking a few steps back. "Can we talk about her? I know you became close to her and Matt after your return and I also have some questions about...other stuff."

I sucked in a breath and breathed out. Oh boy. This wasn't good at all. Jeremy either overcame his compulsion or he was obsessive enough to keep going back to the topic of vampires. I didn't know or care. This was Elena's problem. Not mine. Jeremy was only a year or so older than my cousin Flynn but comparing the two side by side, Flynn had more chances of survival against the supernatural. From the corner of my eyes, I could see the top of the stairs. I turned my gaze back to Jeremy and shook my head. Damon would obviously hear me and it wasn't my place to tell Jeremy. Elena would freak out and I just didn't have enough energy or time to deal with that. "Not now, Jer. I have to be somewhere right now." Besides, just one look at the boy, I could tell his mental state wasn't the best. Who knows what he would do on impulse when I told him the truth.

Jeremy tried to protest before he relented. He sighed and moved. He unlocked the door, pulling it open for me. I gave him a weak smile as I patted his shoulder in a comforting manner while I walked past him to get to my car. He was still standing there, watching me as I got into my car. I waved at him and started the engine. Jeremy waved back. The disappointment on his face was clear but I had my reasons. I swallowed any guilt I had and drove out of Gilbert's driveway. What was done was done, there wasn't any point in me wallowing in sadness over Jeremy being compelled. I did play a part in it.

---

The drive to the boarding house was thankfully uneventful. The only problem was that Stefan refused to pick up my calls. I was just going to ask him to come out so I could dump his work and go home. But nope. Stefan was still unresponsive. I hated it. I mean I get you're going through something but the least you could do is text back or whatever. I was half-tempted to complain to Lexie. The other half of me knew better. The moment I called Lexie, she would rush back and start fussing over Stefan. Her fussing over Stefan wasn't the problem. No. The problem was that John Gilbert was back in town and he was one of the few people who knew how to get the town council back into a frenzy. The sheriff was the easter bunny compared to John the parasite. A nickname, courtesy of Jenna and aunt Diana.

Outside the boarding house was quiet and ominously deserted. Damon was still at Elena's while Stefan was most likely holed up in the study, his room or the parlor. The sun was also about to set any time soon. Damn it, Stefan. I took out my phone and tried to ring him again. But nothing. Stefan didn't pick up the phone at all. It went straight to voicemail. I was getting tired of hearing that. I guess I had no choice but to go in. I really didn't want to. Reluctantly, I got out of the car but not before making sure to drag his pile of work along with me. I sighed as I walked over to the door. I knocked on the door twice. No answer. I tried the doorbell. Again. No answer. Frustrated, I pounded my fists against the wooden door, only for it to give away. It was open all alone. Huh. Do vampires not care about security or something? I wondered to myself.

"Stefan?" I called out, walking in. The door opened wide and I left it open wide. If my experience with Damon was anything to go by, it was a good option to leave an escape route open. "Stefan?" I called out again. But no answer. Seriously, was he even home. "Stefan! It's me, Ava. I got your catch-up work." I said, shouting through the foyer of the boarding house. My voice echoed throughout the house. "Are you he—"

My voice died in my throat as the now over-familiar deathlike chill went down my spine. I heard the sound of wind cutting through the air and turned around. It came from the parlor. Carefully, I sucked in a deep breath and placed Stefan's work on the floor. I held out my free left hand as small wisps of light danced around the tips of my fingers, not quite forming an orb. I was getting good at this. Practice was helping, a lot. The wisps of light trailed along behind me as I walked with my arms out. The parlor looked empty and I could only hear the sound of fire crackling. I noticed the fireplace was roaring. Stefan or someone was here.

"What are you doing here?" I heard the strangled voice of Stefan from above me. I looked up to see my vampire friend, hunched over the railing. His face in the dim light of the fire was still very pale and sickly. His eyes trailed over to my hands as raised his brows. "You're getting better at that." He weakly commented, choking back an urge to fall. The vampire held onto the railing for support as he gazed down at me from where he stood.

I shook off my hands and the wisps of light dissipated. "Oh my god, Stefan." I said. "No offense but you look...terrible. " I moved to go closer to my friend and find a way to join him, only for him to turn away.

"Don't!" He all but shouted at me. "Don't come close." He warned, walking backwards. "It's not safe."

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Nothing."

"Clearly, something is going on since you've been skipping school and acting weird." I retorted back, remembering why I was here in the first place. I sighed and massaged my temples. A dull headache was starting to form, the side effect of using my magic or whatever was still there but it was gradually getting duller as I practiced more. "Look. Don't you dare try to treat me like Elena, okay." I folded my arms around myself and looked up at my vampire friend. "I'm smarter than that, no offence to Elena." I added, as an afterthought.

He let out a soft but pained chuckle. "I know." He said quietly. "—Which is why you should go home, Ava. Thanks for dropping by but you can go now...please. I'm fine now."

"Okay." I said, nodding. I turned around to leave as I heard Stefan's groans and grunts in the background. Just leave, Ava. This isn't your problem I said to myself. But then I remembered the broken lamp. "Ugh. I hate myself for this but," I mumbled "clearly you are not 'fine'. You look terrible and I can't say it in the nicest way possible 'cause it's the truth. I would and should probably call Lexie but y'know calling her right now is not the best option for the most obvious reasons—" I cut myself off when I heard Stefan laugh. "I was rambling. Sorry. It's just—"

"—You're concerned." Stefan finished for me. He was back in the light of the parlor, leaning his arms on the railing of the second floor. There was a small smile on his face. "Thank you." He added, rubbing his hands together. "And please don't call Lexie."

I nodded. "I wasn't going to. The council's still on high alert." I replied, walking backwards to sit on an armchair. Above me, Stefan walked around the mezzanine to get slightly closer to me while still maintaining his distance. This was something I picked up on. He didn't do the same with Elena, the broken lamp was proof of that. So what made me so different and did I want to find out? Probably not. I had enough to find out. "...So you wanna share what's up or..." I clasped my hands and looked up at the vampire.

In the background, the fire cackled and hissed as it ate away at the wood Stefan must've chucked in. The sound of the fire was the only thing I could hear while Stefan mulled over my question. I looked down at my wrist again to check on the time. I needed to talk to Stefan and go home soon. "I have a problem." He started after a short moment of silence. I gestured for him to continue. He sucked in a breath and hesitated for a second. "I have a problem—" He repeated. "—controlling my thirst." I got up from my seat and moved along with Stefan.

"Elena doesn't know, does she?"

"No."

"I guess it's not going well, is it?" I questioned, turning my head to glance at the fire. In front of the fireplace was a glass on top of the wooden coffee table. The glass was half-empty and had a thick liquid that gave off a reddish hue against the light from the flames. Blood. I thought. It was a glass of blood. "That's not animal blood." I commented, my eyes still glued to the glass of blood.

There was another moment of silence. I turned to look at Stefan for an answer. He reluctantly nodded. "Damon poured it. He thought I should try and get used to it." He answered. The pained look was back on his face. I narrowed my eyes as Stefan leaned over the wooden railings of the mezzanine. His hands gripped the carved wooden railings tight but his arms were shaking. "Don't worry it's from a blood transfusion bag and I didn't drink it. I'm still on the...animal blood diet."

I shook my head. "That's not what I was worried about." I took a step back now as the pieces of the puzzle started coming together in my mind. Gasp. I let out a gasp and turned away from Stefan before looking back at him. "Be honest with me, do you have a problem with controlling yourself when you're on human blood?" I turned around again and crossed my arms. My eyes were wide. It all made sense. Stefan had been acting strange ever since he was forced to drink Elena's blood after the whole incident at the farm house.

"I do." He admitted. "Does that scare or disgust you?"

"Kinda. I've dealt with Damon and some tomb vampires. But should I be concerned or something?" I asked. Stefan looked surprised by my answer and looked up. "Y'know I wanna understand you. I really do but if you don't—"

"I'm a...ripper." He admitted. His words echoed through the boarding house as I recoiled. My hands behind my back. I was on my guard once more.

"I don't know what that means."

"It means that...I—" Stefan choked on his words and ran his fingers through his air. His arms were shaking. I could tell he was nervous and afraid. "I rip apart people for blood, even when I don't need it. I've tried so hard to stop but—" He cut himself off and turned away from me. His back was turned away from me. "You should go." Was what he said.

I scoffed. "That's it." I said. "I get it. I'm pretty judgemental when it comes to vampires...but—" I sucked in a deep breath and tried to carefully pick my next few words. I didn't want to hurt Stefan or anger him which might trigger his 'ripper' nature. "—Unfortunately, I think I've gotten a little attached to you...as a friend." I confessed with little reluctance. "You're not a bad person, Stefan and it's obvious to me that you don't enjoy being this—um—'ripper'. You're trying your best to fight against this." I paused as Stefan slowly walked around again. His hands cupped his face. He was not fine at all despite his words earlier, I could tell how much this was really affecting him. "It's okay. You haven't killed anyone in this town yet...and you're not fine. You need help."

"No. I'm not fine." He admitted. Stefan removed his hands from his face and chuckled softly. There was a soft smile on his face as he stared down at me. His eyes were covered in the slight darkness. Times like this, I wish I could read his mind but unfortunately I couldn't. At least I didn't think I could. "I'm trying to get better." He added after a while.

"I can see that." My eyes wandered to the glass of blood. It was untouched. Stefan had resisted his urges even from a blood bag. "I know I rarely agree with Damon but...I don't know, this might be a little—dumb—but have you tried to get used to blood bags slowly—"

Stefan shook his head. "I haven't really tried. No." He answered. "Please don't tell Elena or anyone."

"I won't." I promised. There was a moment of silence between us as I turned away from Stefan and stared at the cackling fire. I could feel his burning gaze on my face but I didn't look at him. I needed a moment of break. I was betraying my family by doing this. I knew that. Everything my family had taught me and my nature, I was going against it for someone I knew less than a year or so. "Y'know if we didn't become friends...I probably would've staked you or turned you into the council." I drawled out without thinking. "I probably might if you end up killing someone. I might just..." I trailed off.

I heard the sound of the wooden railing above me creaking, on the verge of splintering. Stefan let out a choked sound. I didn't look at him. I couldn't face him. "Do you regret it?" He asked. His voice took on a desperate tone that made me falter in my steps. "Getting to know me and—"

"I don't know yet." I answered without thinking. I turned to look at him and smiled. If I was being honest I was very torn on my strange friendship with the Salvatore brothers and Lexi. On one hand, I was taught to be on my guard and despise them but on the other hand, they were still people. "Strangely enough. I don't regret knowing you at all...as a person but as a vampire. That's still up for debate."

"I figured. It's hard unlearning something. I know it well."

"Thanks for understanding. I hope you get better soon. I mean it." I replied. "You're my friend and I want you to be happy."

"Friend?"

"Yeah."

"Ava." Stefan called out to me as I turned my back to leave. I heard the sound of wind behind me and shifted on my feet to check for the source of the sound. It was Stefan. He appeared behind me. Before I could react he grabbed my hands into his. "If. If I lose control, I want you to—"

"Stefan." I warned quietly.

"Please." He begged. "Kill me if you have to." He added, his hands were around mine. Despite the heat from the fire, it was cold. The death-like chill was still there. He let go as black veins appeared under his eyes and his pupils turned black with bloodlust. I didn't move. I blinked and Stefan had disappeared, going back to his original position. "You should go." Was all he said before he slithered into the darkness. As if on cue, the fire died with a loud crack and plunged the room into complete darkness. I was left alone in the parlor again.

---

"I'm home." I called out as I walked into the foyer of the Fitzroy manor. By the time I came back, the sun had set. It was pretty dark outside but inside the lights were all lit up.

I heard footsteps behind me as I turned around to the source of the sound. "You're back. A little late." John said with a wide smile. My face froze into a stiff smile. What was he doing here? I questioned myself. If Jenna kicked him out, great but this town has a boarding house which might be occupied by vampires and motels. But I didn't say anything. Instead, I stared at the man before me and nodded, acting like I was listening. "I thought you had a curfew." He added, almost interrogating me.

"I do," I answered. My stiff smile, never disappearing. "but I already texted uncle Nate that I had some errands to run."

"Must've been important."

"Well," I took out my keys and placed them into my hands. "it was a request from a teacher and it's not like I can turn it down." I stared at the stairs from the corner of my eye and started planning my getaway. "Y'know student body president stuff."

"Your dad was a student body president too."

"So were my aunts and uncle along with my brother. It's a family thing." I shrugged.

"Right."

"John." I heard uncle Nate call out as I breathed out in relief. Thank god. It was getting awkward. "Oh. Ava's back." He sounded a little more relieved than usual. I gave him a questioning look to which he simply shrugged. "Dinner's ready. You didn't eat yet, right?" I shook my head. "Good." He responded. "And John's staying over for the night."

"Hope you don't mind."

"Who am I to object?" I replied. I wanted him out. He was definitely going to snoop around.

"Thank you." I turned away to go up the stairs and change into my house clothes not caring for John's response but I stopped. "Was running by the boarding house an errand as well?" He asked quietly.

I could feel the gaze of the two men in the room. Carefully, I turned around. "Actually. It was." I answered honestly. "I had to drop off some schoolwork for an absent student. That's all." John made a face. He opened his mouth to ask more questions but I turned away and quickly walked off. He was onto them. But that had nothing to do with me unless Damon screwed up.

---

The sound of classical music along with the quiet formal chatter of the guests at Lockwood mansion was the first thing I heard as my uncle pulled up to the gates of the huge imposing building. The white mansion was decorated again in light of the Founders' Kickoff party celebrating god-knows how many years. 150 years. I read from the large signs that were up in front of the building. Uncle Nate stopped his car and got out. He walked over to the passenger seat and held my door as I got out. A chauffeur stood nearby waiting for my uncle to pass him the keys. Noticing him, my uncle passed him the keys and grabbed my hand. I took his hand as he escorted me inside before letting go to talk to Jenna or the Sheriff. I wasn't really paying attention.

I paused near the foyer and sucked in breath. It had been a while since I had been in a room with this many people. The light buzzing whispers of the guests' outer and inner voices mixed in with the scent of vanilla from the candles and the piano almost paralized my senses. I shut my eyes and pulled at the sleeves of my dress. I can do this. I thought to myself. I straightened the skirt of my short green cocktail dress and walked towards the ballroom where I knew Matt would be. My five inch strappy heels clicked softly against the smooth marble surface. It was mostly muffled by the chatter and the music. I stopped just before I entered the ballroom.

I felt a sudden chill. The open back of the dress did not help at all neither did the sweetheart neckline of the dress and tugging at three quarter sleeves wouldn't really help the dress. My hairstyle didn't help either. A curled ponytail, it was practical but not so great against the chill. That familiar death-like chill meant two things, either the tomb vampires were here or the Salvatore brothers had actually decided to come. I had no doubt Damon would show up but Stefan? I didn't think he would take that risk. Well, at least that's what I thought.

"I didn't expect to see you here." I greeted, flipping my curled hair back. I had waited before Damon disappeared to greet Stefan. For a brief moment, Damon had disappeared, he looked uncomfortable and pained, reminding me of the 'him' from our talk at the boarding house.

When he noticed me, Stefan smiled as he handed me a glass of champagne. I accepted it, wordlessly. "I didn't expect to be here either." He answered. His actions were less pained but still very fidgety like he was afraid of doing the wrong thing. He shouldn't have come. "Damon forced me to come. So here I am."

"You don't want to be here." I commented quietly, looking around for a sign of John. He was, after all, snooping around. He did suspect the Salvatore brothers already.

Stefan stared at me for a while as I looked around the room. "Hmm. I don't." I heard him admit. I turned my head to stare at him. "You look good." He said with a little smile that made his green eyes twinkle. I can see why Elena liked him. Stefan was charming if I was being honest, if I ignored his second nature.

"I know and, nice try at changing the subject."

"Well I tried." He shrugged, leading me to the ballroom. "I should've stayed home. If I lose control around Elena—"

"I will personally stake you." I cut in with a sweet smile, my voice quieter than before. "Or turn you into a pile of ashes whichever you prefer." I added nonchalantly while taking a sip of my drink.

Stefan laughed a little as he covered his mouth with his hands. "Hmm. I get to choose. Nice."

"Yep. Don't tell Damon I gave you a choice."

"I feel privileged." He continued to chuckle as we both walked into the ballroom. His laughter died in his throat when he entered the ballroom. I watched as the pained look on his face returned. His fists tightened and he took deep breaths while scanning the crowd. I knew what he was thinking. It was similar to what I felt. The loud voices pounding against your brain like jack hammer and the music. It was overwhelming. The only difference was that he could hear everything they spoke out loud, the tiniest sounds that echoed in the room and their heart beats along with the blood rushing in their veins. It must've been more overwhelming for him. "...Ashes." I heard him speak. I turned to glance at him and he mimicked me. We were face to face now. His forest green eyes stared into my warm caramel orbs. "If you're gonna end me, I'd like to be turned into a pile of ashes with the light."

I laughed nervously and looked away. "That won't happen...unless you kill someone. So relax." I tried to comfort him. "...I'll give Lexi a call later, if it's that bad but I'll ask her to not come here. Okay." I added.

"Thanks." Stefan said. We resumed walking. He looked more confident than before, maybe my pep talk did help. Maybe I should've taken Caroline's offer and joined the cheer team. I trailed behind Stefan as we walked through the hallways. He paused for a second near the bar and smoothly stole a glass of whiskey. Without a word, he threw away the straw and drank it in one go. He breathed out. This time, feeling more energized than before. The glass was gone when he turned to look at me. "I really needed that."

"Who are you and what have you done with the real Stefan?" I commented in surprise. Stefan I knew would not do that.

"What do you mean?"

"You just stole someone's drink." I hissed. It was nice to see him get loose but that twinkle in his eyes had darkened.

"They won't miss it." He retorted, grinning. He stopped near a table and took a seat. "Come on. You're the one who told me to relax. So...I'm relaxing." I let out a laugh of disbelief. "Sit down. We should have a drink." He gestured to the chair he had pulled up.

I shook my head, seeing him. He did a one-eighty in terms of personality. All I did was tell him to relax. I started contemplating if I could get inside a vampire's mind and then looked at him. No. I couldn't. I didn't feel any different and his eyes didn't shimmer into a pale goldish color or amber. "Y'know I have a drink. And are you sure you're good?"

Stefan nodded. "And this," He took the glass of half-drank champagne out of my hands and put it back on a nearby tray. "Isn't a real drink." He leaned in and added. "We need something better. Something like—" He stole a bottle of whisky from the bar and came back. "—This. I don't know if you like whisky."

"Haven't tried it, really." I answered, playing along. He grinned even wider. Now I could see the resemblance between him and Damon. They had similar personalities when they were 'relaxing' and I don't know if I liked it. I watched in silence as Stefan poured me a drink. "Stefan, we're minors. If the Sheriff sees..." I trailed off.

"They won't. Stop being such a goody-two-shoes, Ava." He slid the glass to me and poured himself a glass. "Try it."

I stared down at my glass. Against my better judgements, I took a hold of the glass. I gave a quick glance around me to see if my uncle or the Sheriff were around before carefully bringing it to my painted lips. The cold alcohol stung as it went down my throat. It felt like my throat was on fire. It was the complete opposite of the champagne earlier. I coughed a little, finishing the glass.

Stefan let out a laugh. "So what do you think?"

"Seriously?" I looked at him, trying to get rid of the burning feeling. "I need some water."

"Come on. I thought you'd be able to handle it."

"You sound like Damon." I joked, taking the glass of water from him.

"I mean we are brothers."

Stefan stopped laughing. He stared behind me. Fixed on someone or something. I turned to look at the object of his new focus. I came face to face with Matt and Tyler. Their smiles fell when I turned around. "Hey." I waved at Matt. "Tyler." I nodded at him.

"Come on. You had to turn around just then." Tyler complained. Oh he was about to tackle me, wasn't he? I didn't care to ask.

"You were totally planning to do something."

"Was not."

"Were too."

"Was not."

"Were too."

"Guys!" Matt snapped. Tyler and I looked at the quarterback in surprise. "You guys are fighting like children."

"He started it." Tyler and I said at the same time. "Sorry Stefan as you can see, Tyler's a child."

"Says the girl who hasn't grown since she was thirteen." Tyler quietly remarked. Stefan and Matt snorted at his remark while I gasped. Matt tried to stifle his laugh. I pouted and stared at Matt. He pulled Tyler's sleeve and whispered something in his ears. Tyler's face turned beet red as his face scrunched up. "Ugh! Fine. I'm sorry. Okay!" He blurted out the apology, pulling away from Matt.

Matt and I bumped fists in success. "Apology accepted." I grinned, finishing my glass of water.

"Anyways, we were wondering if you wanted to join us in drinking away our grief." Tyler started.

"Stefan's welcome to join us." Matt added, trying not to make Stefan feel left out. I could tell he didn't want Stefan to join in.

Stefan shook his head and held up his glass of whisky. "I'm good. Thanks."

"You sure?" Tyler asked like he wanted Stefan to be there. He didn't. He still couldn't stand Stefan at all. It didn't help that Stefan, considering dropping out of the football team, made its rounds around the school.

Stefan and I made eye contact as he gave me a look. He couldn't be around them right now. I had almost forgotten about his problem. I nodded at him and tugged at Matt and Tyler's sleeves. "Guys, come on. Don't force him." Tyler nodded and he didn't even wait for Matt or Stefan's response before leading the way to somewhere else. Matt was nice enough to wait for me. "I'll see you later, Stefan." I said while Stefan nodded.

---

Bottles were strewn about the small powder room while Tyler clutched a bottle of vodka and leaned back on the sofa. Matt sat opposite him on an armchair and nursed a glass of champagne. Unlike Tyler, Matt held himself back from getting totally drunk. I wish I could say the same for me but that would be a half-true. There were three tall bottles of alcohol next to me that I may or may not have downed while Tyler and Matt were busy talking. Unfortunately, I felt nothing. My mind was still a mess, not the drunk mess I wanted to be but a rational mess I always was.

"I can't Tyler's a bigger lightweight than you." Matt said, staring at our friend who drunkenly poured another drink while on the verge of nodding off. I nodded. "Thanks for tagging along, by the way."

I brought a bottle of vodka to the mouth of the glass and poured another drink. "Well I needed a drink away from the Sheriff's eyes." I grinned.

Tyler laughed. "You're...su..such a goody-two-shoes." He slurred. I rolled my eyes and threw a plastic water bottle at him. Even slightly tipsy, he caught it with ease. "Thanks." He opened the seal and chugged the entire bottle in one sip. "Nothing better than drinking with my best bud and Ava."

"Gee. Thanks Ty."

He grinned at me in response before his smile crumbled. He sniffled and rubbed his face, covering it with his hands. "I miss her, y'know." Tyler said out of nowhere.

Matt's head snapped towards Tyler. He held back a groan and let out a deep sigh. He missed 'her' too. How could he not, I thought. She was his only sister. I'd be devastated if anything happened to Dan and I know Dan would be the same. "I miss her too." I admitted quietly. Guilt gnawing at me deep inside. Tyler fumbled, letting go of the bottle he was clutching to hold onto my hand. His eyes looked moist like he was about to cry. "...Okay," I pushed myself off my seat and grabbed the bottle away from him and capped it. "I'm cutting you off."

He groaned. "Ugh. Come on, Ava!" He tried to fight back and grab the bottle from my hands, only to fail and fall on the floor.

"You don't look good, Ty." Matt chimed in. He moved to sit on the floor next to his best friend. "I think you've had enough." Matt stopped Tyler's hands mid-reach from grabbing another bottle from the coffee table. "Your dad's gonna be pissed if he sees you like this." He added. He grabbed a bottle of water from my hands and uncapped it. Pouring some into his hands he splashed some at Tyler who groaned in protest. I let out a laugh by accident and cupped my hands over my mouth to stop myself. Matt turned to look at me with a wide grin and did it again. This time we both laughed while Tyler tried to drunkenly fight Matt's attacks.

"...Kn—knock it off!" He shouted.

"Come on, Ty. You're the one who wanted to loosen up." I grinned, sitting down in front of him. I uncapped another water bottle and followed Matt's actions.

Tyler growled and snatched the bottle of water away from me. "Very funny you two." He rubbed his eyes and emptied the bottle in one sip before turning to playfully punch Matt's arm. Matt dodged in time and laughed. "Ahh." Tyler clutched his head in pain.

"Oh look. If it isn't the consequences of your actions."

"Shut—"

"Here." I tossed him a pill. "For the headache." Matt got up and held out his hand for me. I took it and got up while Tyler nursed his oncoming headache. He leaned on the couch with his head on the seat while Matt led him to the hallway. We both needed to get back before anyone noticed we were gone. "...He's gonna be okay, right?" I asked, holding onto Matt.

Matt hummed lightly under his breath. He was a little tipsy I could tell by the way he walked. He swayed on his feet a little. "Honestly," He began. "I don't know but he'll sober up soon. Y'know it's almost supernatural how quickly Tyler recovers."

I laughed and shook my head at Matt's words. "Are you gonna be okay?" I asked instead after a moment. I knew the answer already but I still felt like I should ask him. I could read his mind and it would still give me the answer I knew.

He nodded at my question for a while before sucking in a breath. "I don't know that either." He answered as he let go of my hands. "But thanks."

"For everything."

"You're giving me waay too much credit." I answered with a small laugh. He really was.

"No. I feel like it's not enough." He stared at me with an unreadable look on his face. His deep blue eyes stared deeply into mine as a small smile of gratitude graced his handsome face. "I mean it. You've done more for me and...Vicki when she was here than any of our so-called friends."

I opened my mouth and closed it. Speechless. On one hand, he was right but at the same time, he was very wrong. I swallowed the rising guilt in my heart and plastered a smile on my face. "Don't let Elena or Caroline hear you say that." I said quietly.

He let out a shy laugh. "I won't relax and I know Caroline has some self-awareness."

"Yeah, but—hate to say it—Elena doesn't."

"No, she doesn't."

"What about Bonnie?"

"Love her but she's clearly very much focused on either her or Elena."

"True. Very true." I craned my head and looked at Matt.

"You should give yourself more credit, y'know."

"For?" Just as I was about to answer, Matt stopped me. His eyes seemed to focus elsewhere while he gestured for me to stop talking. "I think you have an admirer." He said quietly, leaning down to whisper in my ears.

I moved my head and turned around to face my so-called admirer. I almost let out a sigh when I noticed the shy but tall younger teen in the distance. He looked almost out of place in the event. "Jeremy?" I called out, sounding confused as to why he was trailing me.

He perked up when I called him and started walking towards us. "He's been hovering for a while." Matt said under his breath, only so I could hear him.

"Oh my god." I exclaimed quietly. I was talking about his sister before. Awkward. "I hope he didn't hear what I said."

"Relax." Matt patted my head, trying to calm me. I shook his hand off and threw him a teasing glare. Really Donovan? He simply shrugged off my look and grinned. "It's not like you said something bad." He added in.

"No. But still—"

"Ava, hey." I heard Jeremy call out to me from behind me.

"Jeremy." I greeted.

"Hey. Matt." He threw a quick wave at my blond friend while tugging at his sleeves. He was nervous. I could tell from the way he moved and he didn't want Matt to be here.

Matt nodded his head in greeting before giving me a side-hug. He seemed to have noticed Jeremy's state and decided to leave before it got even awkward. It was either that or like me he was avoiding the younger Gilbert. "I'll see you in a bit—gonna check on Ty." I nodded. He walked off leaving me with Jeremy.

"I was looking everywhere for you." He carried on, grabbing my sleeve. "Got a minute."

I tightly smiled and nodded. "...Sure." I answered, a little hesitantly. Jeremy nodded and gestured to me to follow him to a side where it was quieter. Reluctantly, I followed.

He sucked in his breath and began. "It's about Vicki." Sure, it was. I didn't even have to guess. "Don't ya think her death was a little suspicious? Like it doesn't make sense and I know you're smart so you might have an idea or what happened or something. I don't know. What do you think?" He rambled.

"Vicki?" I questioned quietly. Putting down the bottle of water on a table nearby, I stared at Elena's little brother. I sighed and rubbed my temples, knowing I was about to lie. "...Again. It was an accidental overdose, wasn't it?" I echoed back to the Sheriff's 'official' cause of death report on Vicki. Despite my voice sounding confident and tired, there was that odd nagging feeling in the back of my head that kept telling me that maybe I should tell Jeremy the truth.

Jeremy shook his head. "Look I know there is something more to this...and you feel it too."

"Well, I feel like you've been getting too deep into that 'vampire' stuff you've been looking up." I replied calmly. Too calmly. "I get you're grieving Jer but this isn't healthy. I—'' Sighing, I folded my arms. I didn't believe a thing I was saying but I carried on. "I think it's time you accepted the life Vicki led, got her killed. You need to let her go. I'm sorry." There was a familiar buzzing in my ear when I finished speaking.

"You know!" He retorted, frustrated by my response. "You know they are real." The young Gilbert grabbed my hands in desperation. He yelped and let go immediately like he was shocked. He lowered his voice and leaned closer to me. "...Vampires are real, Ava—you of all people know that's a fact."

"I think you need help." I tried to shove him aside and walk off. Feeling so guilty that it felt suffocating to be around him. I thought being around Matt was bad but Jeremy was actively poking holes into the lies Damon, Elena and Stefan had made just to keep him out of harm's reach. All I could do now was lie. What else could I tell him without Elena acting as if it was the end of her world. She already lost her parents. I knew if anything happened to Jeremy it would not only hurt her but also Jenna. "I'm sorry. I really am but I have to go."

"Wha—Ava. Please! You've been avoiding me since the funeral." He grabbed my hands again, not caring about the static feeling. Above me the lights flickered. I looked away, trying to see what was going on, only to notice I was alone with Jeremy. The hallway was clear with no one else in sight. No waiters or guests or anything. "Please don't ignore me." He begged. "I'm begging you." He carried on, ignoring the flickering lights.

There was an anxious feeling bubbling inside me, the more Jeremy spoke the more violently the lights flickered. I pulled my hands away from his grasps just as the bulbs above us exploded and shattered. I fell to the floor in a breathless mess. I heard Jeremy gasp in shock and scramble to help me up. "What was that?" I whispered under my breath.

"I don't know." Jeremy answered. He looked around as the other lights in the hallway suddenly came back to life in a bright flash. All but the one above us. "...You're hot." He blurted out.

"Excuse me?" I said, confused and a little horrified.

"I mean your hands are hot." He quickly corrected himself. I pulled away my hands again out of his grasp. "Sorry. I wasn't tryin—your eyes, they...oh my—they're glowing." He clasped his hands over his mouth in shock.

I gasped and closed my eyes as the thoughts of everyone in the building started to echo around me. Not again. I thought I had it under control. Breathing in and out, I tried to calm myself. Then I opened my eyes and stared at Jeremy before taking a glance around us. "You won't remember this. We talked and I got upset and left." I muttered.

Jeremy's eyes flickered to a light gold and some purple as he numbly nodded his head. He blinked and it was gone. Ignoring me, he walked back to the ballroom. The moment he was gone, I let out a breath that I didn't even know I was holding in. Not again. I stared down at the shards of broken bulb and light shades before going back in.

---

I blinked twice as I took in the scene in front of me. Everyone was out of their seats and on the dance floor while music blasted from the speakers. I walked over to Elena and Damon with a questioning look. "What did you do?" I asked Damon, my mouth wide open in horror.

He shrugged. "It wasn't me."

"Then who?"

"Stefan." Elena breathed out. She sounded a little tired.

"He didn't." I said.

"He did." Damon laughed.

"He's gone insane, compelling people while the council are here." I shook my head, feeling a burning gaze on me. I could feel Jeremy stare at us with an anxious look. Great, he was back. "Oh god." I mumbled under my breath, trying to ignore Jeremy. "You're enjoying this, aren't you." I said to Damon while Elena rubbed her arm in concern. Her boyfriend was on the edge of snapping and she didn't even know.

"A little." Damon mumbled, quiet enough only for me to hear. "Wanna dance?" He held out his hand to me while ignoring Elena's look of concern. "Come on, it's a party."

"Pass." I flicked my hair back and accepted his hand with a sarcastic grin. I couldn't be seen with him or Stefan. I walked past Damon and Elena to go find Matt again only to stop. I could feel his gaze on me as I walked away. I tried to leave except I couldn't. Jeremy blocked my path again for a third time this week. "Jeremy. Not this again." I groaned.

"Look I know your family are vam—" I placed my hand over his mouth, muffling his voice and dragging him with my free hand outside while looking around for anyone watching me.

I let go when I got outside. "I think you are absolutely insane!" I whisper-yelled before Jeremy could even get his senses back.

He blinked, trying to make sense of his new surroundings and rubbed his jaw. "Ouch." He blinked and nursed his jaw. "...I'm right. Your family are vampire hunters. Jonathan Gilbert wrote about the Fitzroys—"

"Johnathan Gilbert was in-sane!" I bit back. "And he wasn't the only one. So was Samantha Gilbert, Theodore Fitzroy and a bunch of other founders and their descendants." I shook my head as I exhaled loudly. "Don't go down that road Jer. I mean it." I should've wiped his memory all together.

Jeremy scoffed in disbelief. He didn't believe a single thing I was saying. "I'm not crazy, I know they are real and you know too. Anna also told me."

"Anna?"

"This girl I'm seeing."

The image of a young east asian girl flashed in my mind. Her desperate plea for her mother. How could I forget her? She did steal the grimoire from us. I sighed and wrapped my arms around as I started pacing about. "Okay, lemme get this straight. So this girl you're seeing told you that vampires are real and that Johnathan Gilbert's journal is real." I gave Jeremy a look. "Do you see how ridiculous that sounds? That's the same as believing some dude on the internet."

"I did look up vampires on the internet."

"What..." I threw my hands in the air and gestured to him. "I think...you just want something to believe in, Jer."

"Look I'm not lying or anything. Vampires are real." He insisted again. Oh boy. Damon did a really bad job on compelling Jeremy. I shook my head at the thought and at Jeremy. I could technically still wipe his mind but I don't know if I had enough in me to do that. "Anna's one."

My head snapped towards Jeremy as my eyes widened. "Anna's what?" I repeated.

"Anna is a vampire." Jeremy said. That overgrown brat, Anna, did not just expose Jeremy to this mess while he was grieving not one but three losses. I knew I should have sicced the council and my family on her. Ugh. This was the worst. My night was going from bad to worse. Maybe it was still salvageable.

I nervously laughed. "Oh my god, Jer. You can't call a goth or an emo chick a vamp just cause they wear all-black and rarely go out in public." I joked, trying to get Elena's younger brother to drop matter all together. I jokingly punched him for no reason. "Good one." I laughed.

"No you don't understand."

"I totally do. You and your girlfriend are into some twilight shit right now. Gotcha."

"Ava, no."

I nodded with a teasing grin on my face but inside I kept screaming at Jeremy to leave. Elena and the Salvatore brothers owe me big time. "Well, I'm gonna go back in." I patted his shoulder. Jeremy slumped down like he was disappointed by the attempts he had so far. He should give up by now.

---

I scanned the crowd for a sign of either Elena or any of the Salvatore brothers, even Damon. I paused when I noticed my uncle and Jenna laughing together with Mr Saltzman. At least someone was having a fun time. On the other side, I saw the Sheriff keeping her eyes out. Even though she wasn't in her uniform she was very much on the lookout for something. Guess John's homecoming really shook things up for her and the council. Even from where I stood, I could tell she looked a little on the edge. My eyes lingered for a second and I heard her, well her thoughts.

Her thoughts cut through the overwhelming loud music. "...Maybe I need to look at Vicki's death again." "John...might be right." "...Damon said—" "—Caroline." Her thoughts kept getting cut as the sound of low static-like hum filled my head. I blinked trying to shake the feeling off and focus on her again. "Jeremy Gilbert." My eyes widened and I looked around before slowly inching closer to her without being too obvious. In the background, I could hear the static sound getting louder in my ears and a ringing in my ears. The music and chatter of the crowd didn't help either. "—Keeps being persistent—maybe Jeremy is onto something." "Mayor said—wrap it up."

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding before I straightened up. This was getting annoying. I wasn't used to this. I hated this. If only they never came back, Vicki wouldn't be dead and I wouldn't be out here worrying about Jeremy and Matt. Maybe it was for the best if both of them found out. Well. My thoughts came to a break when I took a look at Elena. Damn it. Jeremy's too reckless and Anna's bad news, if he finds out about Vicki, who knows what dumb thing he'll do.

I took a glass of champagne off the tray from a waiter and swirled the drink in my hand. My eyes wandered around the room before stopping when I spotted him. He sat near the bar, nursing a drink as well. His drink was no doubt stronger than mine. Before I could stop myself, I started walking towards him. "I think we have a problem." I started, taking a seat next to Damon. I can't believe I was doing something like this. "Jeremy Gilbert is stalking me just to ask me waaay too many questions about Vicki."

"That sounds annoying." He grinned while taking a sip of his drink. I gave him a look, he shrugged it off before carrying on. "He asked the Sheriff earlier too."

"Did he?" I asked, acting like I didn't just read the Sheriff's mind. "Great. Just great." I said. I lowered my voice and leaned in. "I'm starting to think you purposely did a shitty job at compelling him just so Elena would come to you again for help."

He let out an amused laugh and shook his head. "Sounds like something I'd do but nope. I did a pretty good job. Thank you very much." He took a swing of his drink while throwing me a sarcastic grin. "Besides, if you think I did such a poor job why don't you go and do your mind-control trick. You don't even need eye contact."

I opened and closed my mouth, searching for an answer. "...I don't know how long this mind-control thing lasts."

"Looks like it's permanent to me." He said in a small voice. "...I went back and looked up that lady that owned that farmhouse those tomb vampires were holed up in. She acted like nothing happened and wouldn't budge when I tried to compel her to come out of her new home or invite me in."

I nodded and gnawed at my lips, nervously. This didn't comfort me at all. "...Permanent." I mumbled under my breath. I swallowed thickly and quickly changed the subject. "Back to Jeremy."

"Right. Elena's not-so interesting but very persistent brother." I rolled my eyes at his response. "Well, he's not the only problem I have."

"John?" I guessed.

"Yep. John Gilbert." He spat out his name. "Boy these Gilberts are something aren't they."

I snorted at his comment. "Well..." I started before nodding again. Gilberts were annoying and in desperate need of a hobby that didn't concern vampires or anything supernatural. "Anyways, John's not my problem. He's yours."

"Ugh. That's not the only problems we have."

"What now?!" I groaned.

"I think Stefan's about to fly off the handle soon...but you didn't hear this from me."

I rolled my eyes and sat back down. "I know, Stefan already told me."

"He," Damon scrunched his face up in a frown and turned to look at me in disbelief. " told you."

I nodded. He blinked, still confused. "I mean as long as he doesn't kill anyone." I added.

"Seriously?"

"What?"

"You gave me so much shit for everything I did and you're—giving him a pass. What!"

"Okay—but you deserved it. You rolled into this town with fresh kills scattered about."

Damon scoffed in disbelief. I could tell he was annoyed. "Well, he might just kill someone if he doesn't get back in control. Oh—and don't tell Elena 'bout this."

"Because she'll overreact."

"Because she'll overreact," Damon confirmed, swirling the drink in his glass. "And you're under-reacting. Hmm." The vampire scanned me from head to toe. He leaned in close enough just so he could see my slightly fogged up light caramel orbs and flushed cheeks. "I just realized, you are being waay more chatty than usual."

"Okay and?" I snarkily retorted.

"Are you drunk?"

I giggled at the question and shook my head. There was no way I was drunk. My mind felt fuzzy but not as jumbled as I did when I was truly drunk. I would know. Last spring break was wild. Well before 'that' happened. But I remembered what it was like to be completely drunk. "I just had one or three. I can't remember really—Tyler had the good stuff though." I whistled, glancing around for a sign of my friend. He was nowhere to be found.

"Oh okay. So you had about three glasses or shots of something. You're tipsy."

"No. No. No." I laughed and shook my head. "I meant bottles. I had three bottles of something really strong—at least that's what the label and Tyler said—and I'm not drunk. So weird right?" I giggled again. Despite everything going on, I did feel a little lighter than usual.

"THREE BOTTLES?!" Damon whisper-yelled. "Are you trying to poison yourself? Like that's easy alcohol poisoning."

"Aw you care. It's weird but I'm not slurring or anything. I just feel fine. In fact," The buzz faded out. Like a fog had lifted, my mind became more clear and sharp. I was back to being cautious and anxious all over again. The muted thoughts of everyone around me came flooding into my mind as I flinched back trying to block them out again. "I think you just helped...kill the buzz. So congrats." I replied.

"So your limit is higher than normal—" He looked around for any signs of eavesdroppers and came a little closer to me. His mouth almost touched my ear. It sent shivers down my spine. I hated it especially now that the slight buzz had faded. "—humans." He finished in a quiet voice.

I rolled my eyes and shrugged. "Beats me." I pulled away from the older Salvatore brother and looked for a sign of the bartender.

"Y'know we never really talked about it..."

"About?"

"You. The whole mind control thing you did...not once but twice or multiple times and now you're psychic."

"Hmm...and I should tell you because?"

"Because I'm bored and you're the most interesting person in the room."

I laughed, throwing my head back. "Cute pick up line." I said. I picked up the glass of champagne and took a sip. It was a welcome from whatever I had been drinking with Tyler and Matt. The cool liquid felt nice. I took another sip and stared at Damon who hadn't taken his eyes off me. His piercing electric blue eyes bore into my caramel orb. I wondered if I could get inside his head but did I really want to know what was in his head was the question. "I mean I would tell you but I don't know where to begin. All I know is that ever since I can remember I've been having these...um...dreams?" I started with a hint of uncertainty. "You see, these dreams weren't normal. They were moments of the future and...past."

"The past?" Damon echoed my words. He leaned in a bit closer, more interested than he had been before. I nodded, taking another sip of my drink.

"It was nothing at first. Just minor things. Small accidents or events but then it all changed one day." I dropped my gaze to my half-empty glass. The grip on my glass got tighter as I tried to blink away my coming tears. "One day I fell asleep and I saw my first death—I saw my grandfather die...my mom's dad." I added. "I was—uh—only seven."

"You saw your grandfather die?"

I took a sip of my drink and shook my head. "No. I relived it." I shut my eyes, thinking back to that awful nightmare. "By the time, I saw it. My grandpa had been dead for over twenty years." It was actually the first time I had really ever seen the past. Up until recently, I had it buried deep in my mind, refusing to think about it. I turned back to Damon and smiled. "As for the whole—" I dropped my voice to a bare whisper and leaned into Damon. "—compulsion or mind control thing. That's fairly recent." I deliberately chose not to let Damon know about the fact I could read minds. I still didn't trust him enough for that and that was something I couldn't easily spill.

Damon opened his mouth to ask me more before stopping. He didn't bother to say anything, instead he took a sip of his drink. "Elena. Incoming." He mumbled, giving enough time to kill our previous talk.

She waved at me with a smile before sitting down on the other side of Damon. There was an anxious look on her voice. "Have you noticed what your brother has been up to?" She began.

Damon took a sip of his drink and looked almost annoyed. "No, I have been too preoccupied with yours." He retorted. Elena's eyes widened. She looked at me before looking at Damon and cocking her head to the side. She gave us both a sign to continue or to explain. Damon's eyes met mine, questioning me whether he or I should take the lead. I shrugged. I didn't think I would be the best option, considering I was leaning towards telling him the truth and maybe compelling or mind controlling him not to be reckless. Damon sighed and took the lead. "Jeremy has been asking questions about Vicki Donovan's death."

"That and he's stalking me." I chimed in.

"He's stalking you?" She asked, now very concerned.

I nodded while Damon grinned. I shoved his arm a little to stop him from joking around before responding. "He keeps asking me about Vicki."

Elena blinked. "He knows that her death was ruled an overdose." She said with a nervous tone in her voice that tried to sound somewhat convincing.

Damon and I snorted. Elena was trying her best to just ignore her brother's problems and focusing her efforts on Stefan which in my opinion was a bad idea. I could see that and I guess so could Damon. "Really?" Damon retorted, putting his drink down before turning around to give me a look of disbelief. He turned towards Elena and leaned towards her. He coughed a little before speaking again. "Oh but sheriff, someone buried her. Who would do that?" He said. I let out a small laugh before covering my mouth with my hands to stifle my laughter while Elena looked concerned. Damon turned to me and then pretended to think. "Who would do that?" He repeated. I shrugged while taking a sip. Damon pretended to think for a second before talking again. "I know I know! Me! I mean I could compel him but he's wearing vervain but—" He turned to me. "—Ava," I knew where this was going. Elena nervously glanced at me "on the other hand—"

"Not a chance." I cut him off.

Elena shook her head. "No, I don't want either of you to do anything to him."

"If he keeps asking questions…"

"We just tell him the truth." I offered.

Damon laughed. "Sure, then he gets himself killed or worse turned into, y'know." He retorted. "I suggest, Ava—"

Elena cut him off before he could finished. "Damon, no I'm serious." She said, shaking her head. "I'm not going to do that to him again. I'll handle it."

I pursed my lips and slid the half drank glass of champagne away from me while leaning over to Elena. "I hope 'handling' it is not you lying even more. Look Elena, I don't think you understand—"

"I said I'll handle it." She repeated.

Neither I or Damon were convinced. For once we were on the same page. He and I shared a look. It was clear he wanted to erase Jeremy's memories rather than what I suggested and he wanted me to convince Elena. I turned my head away, signalling that I wasn't going to. He sighed and turned back to Elena. "Okay. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Elena stared at Damon for a while before Damon got up and left the bar. She pursed her lips and glanced at me with an anxious look. "I feel like I just made a bad decision." She began.

I didn't say anything for a second before letting out a little smile. "...Wouldn't be the first bad decision you've made." I said.

"Thanks for the pep talk."

"Says the former cheerleader." I pointed out.

"Emphasis on former."

"Well." I got and drained the glass of champagne. "I'm gonna get some air before your brother or Damon starts annoying me again." I straightened my dress and pushed back a few strands of my hair behind my ear. "You gonna be okay here?"

She blinked before nodding. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

"Cool, if you need me—"

"I'll call."

I nodded and headed out of the ballroom. My heels clicking softly against the hard and smooth cream marble floors. I walked out the ballroom, picking up my pace, the further I got from the ballroom. I should've stayed at home. It was still slightly overwhelming.

---

The cold night air brushed past me, causing me to shiver slightly. I pulled my black coat over me tighter. It might've been slightly warmer earlier but now the temperature had dropped. I let out a tired breath and carefully took out my phone. I scrolled through my contact list before stopping. I hesitated over one. God, it's been a while. The last time I saw or heard from them or him was the memorial back in June. It had been long. I didn't mean to ignore or avoid them. I didn't. I gnawed at my lips, contemplating whether or not to call. Maybe I should. I did miss them. I missed him.

Without thinking, I did it. I called him. I needed this. A peace of normal. Someone that was my go-to comfort from all of this mess. Maybe I was being selfish but I needed him right now. I held the phone to my ear and waited. The phone rang for a while before a small crack was heard. He had picked up. "...Ava?" I heard the very familiar voice call out from the other side. My voice got caught in my throat. "Ava? Is that you?"

"Hey." I barely got out. "...Ash, it's me." I greeted back with a small smile. "I know it's been a while since we last talked—"

"Oh my god. If you're about to apologize I'm gonna let Scarlett loose on you." Asher cut me off. I could hear the small joy in his tone. He wasn't angry at the inconsistent texts or calls at all. "It's good to hear your voice again. Texting is not the same as talking."

"No. It's not." I admitted. "I miss you." I said in a small voice. "I mean I miss you guys." I quickly corrected. "I'm at this boring event, something about the founding of this town and it reminded me of you guys."

"I bet it did." He let out a boyish laugh that I missed so much. "We miss you too, especially Scarlett."

I tugged at the sleeve of my coat. "...How is she and everyone?" I gently asked.

"We're coping. Scar and I've been in and out of therapy. She's back on stage, even resumed cheerleading like nothing happened. Devin, on the other hand, is still getting physical therapy for his spine."

"How's the progress for Dev? I remember he managed to stand up by himself before I left."

"Yeah, well Isaac did a number on him." Asher commented quietly. My throat seized up as a sick feeling welled up in my heart. Just hearing that name made me break out into a cold sweat. I hated him. He was possibly the worst person I had met so far. The worst mistake I ever made. I still wondered how he became a vampire but there was no point to knowing how. He was gone, leaving us scars of that night. "—va. You there?"

"Sorry. I'm here."

"You zoned out again, didn't you?" I heard him sigh.

"I'm sorry Ash."

"No, it's fine." I bet he was shaking his head right now. I just knew he was also running his fingers through his ash-blond hair. He used to do that a lot whenever he was frustrated or whenever he was flustered. God I missed him. "...Y'know you don't have to be fine. It's okay to not be...fine with whatever happened to us."

Tears welled up in my eyes slightly, I turned around and tried to blink them away. I had not had a moment of peace since that night. My grandma died, then Vicki and then Sheila, not to mention all of this stupid things that were happening around me with all these strange powers that I suddenly had and let's not get started over the unfinished business of 1800s that I had to deal with. I was exhausted to say the least. Yeah, my family are supernatural vampire hunters but even this is taxing on someone's mind and heart. I could see why my family had stopped this practice after the death of grandpa Charles. "Thank you for that. God." I wiped off any stray tears that were about to fall. "You always just have to know what to say. Why are you so—"

"Perfect?" He joked.

"Ash."

"What? I didn't lie."

I let out a small giggle as a soft blush spread across my face. The cold started to fade out as warmth from the blood rushed to my face causing my face to heat up. "I miss you." I repeated.

"I know. I miss you too." He admitted, a little softly. "You can always come back, y'know that?"

"I do but..."

"But?"

"It's complicated."

"More complicated than 'that night'?" He questioned.

I nodded, letting out a sigh. "Very."

"I won't pry."

"Thanks." I played with a strand of my hair and chewed on my lip, probably ruining my makeup but I was way past that. "How's Max?"

"Changing the subject. Smooth—Max's fine. He's back on the field. Coach let him on the moment he finished his physio. Scar's been helping too. Oh. Wait." He paused, humming lightly under his breath. "Did she tell you—"

"That Max asked her out?" I said with a little laugh.

"Yeah. They seem to be doing well."

"Well, I'm happy for them."

"Me too. Max seemed devastated after he went insane and did that."

"Yeah..." Images from that night flooded into my mind. "Did they—um—find Hanna?"

Silence followed my question. Asher cleared his throat awkwardly. "Ava, I'm so sorry."

"No..."

"They stopped looking for her." He admitted. "You remember Dean? Well, he said that his dad and the rest of the Sheriff's department were asked to stop investigation into the incident and Hanna's disappearance also got roped into this."

"Shit. Don't tell me, I...Isaac's family paid em off."

"Not exactly paid. More like threatened to pull funding for the dam repairs."

I scoffed. "Bu—but that would kill people if the dam breaks."

"Like father, like son." Asher dryly commented. "Luckily your dad decided to increase his contributions and even got your aunts to jump in. Even Hanna's parents decided to pay for the dam repairs over the search for her."

"Still messed up."

"Very. They did find Jason and Brook's bodies...I'm not gonna go into too much detail about that."

"Ash—"

"It's for your own good. Scar told me you've been getting nightmares about that night."

"Well, they usually go away if I text or call you or Scarlett."

He laughed. "Do they now?" He said in a teasing tone. "Maybe I'm your dreamcatcher."

"Asher McCullough, are you flirting with me?" I joked with a hand on my heart. My ears were bright red and warm. God. I need help.

"Well, I'm not allowed to flirt with someone so beautiful." I smiled at his words. He had gotten more bolder since that night and I wasn't the one to complain at all.

"Now—" I was cut off when I felt a familiar death-like chill. It brought me back to my cold and harsh reality, reminding me why I was still here. Cautiously, I looked around for a sign of a vampire either tomb vampires or any of the Salvatores but nothing. "I'll call you later?"

"Is everything okay?" He asked, stopping me from hanging up. Before I could answer, I heard a loud crack above me. Slowly, I turned my head to look at the balcony above me. It happened in a blink of an eye. First it was the crack then all of a sudden a body fell right in front of me. I yelped out of the way. My hands clasped around my mouth in horror shock. "Ava!" I heard Asher scream out my name in concern while I stared at the body.

"I don't know. I have to go." I blurted out as if I was on auto-drive and hung up. Carefully, I crept towards the body and flipped him over. I gasped when I saw his face. John. I panicked and grabbed his wrist, checking for a sign of life. His skin had started to go cold and not because of the January cold but something else. There was no pulse. John was dead. I gasped and let go of his wrist. He was dead.

The sound of gravel crunching made me stop and slowly try to back off from the body. "...Hey, what are you doing out here?" The familiar voice of my uncle made me sigh in relief.

"Uncle Nate...it's John." I gasped out while gesturing to the cold body a few feet away from me. "I think he's...dead."

My uncle tilted his head to the side and stared at me in disbelief before rushing over to John's body. He crouched down and grabbed John's wrist, starting to feel for his pulse like I did a few moments ago. Like I knew he would, he let go off his wrist when he didn't find a pulse. He gently placed two fingers near John's neck for a minute before pulling back. "...Shit." I heard him curse out before he grabbed his other hand and looked like he was checking for something. He let out a laugh of disbelief and let go of John's hand. "False alarm." He announced quietly. "John's fine." He added.

"Fine doesn't mean being dead." I cried out just as my uncle got up and dusted himself.

He chuckled. "He's not dead." He simply said.

"Wha—" I was cut off by a sharp gasp that came from behind us.

At the sound, we both turned around to see John sitting up. "See." Uncle Nate gestured to the former dead man who was getting up. "He's not dead." Uncle Nate walked over to offer a hand of help to John who silently took it without a complaint. "...You gave Ava quite the scare, Johnny."

"Not my fault." John grunted out while cracking his neck. He waved at me in greeting. "Hello again."

"You were dead." I said in shock.

"Ah yes. I thought you knew."

"Oh she does." Uncle Nate answered for me. "You know about the ring. Right?"

"The ring?"

"The Gilbert ring?" John asked.

"I think so..." I said. "I thought you lost yours or something."

"Close but…" He trailed off as a tired and pained look crossed his face for a moment. "Isobel..." I froze when I heard that name in the sea of his thoughts. Isobel. Before I could ask him more questions about his ring, John shook his head. "Never mind." He shook his head. "Grayson lent me his before—y'know."

"Right." I nodded, a little convinced.

John smiled awkwardly while adjusting his ring back on his finger. "Damon..." "She might know about them." "Salvatore brothers are vampires." "I need to keep Elena and Jeremy safe." "Grayson." My eyes widened for a second, the moment I heard his thoughts and recoiled from his reach. He knew. I looked at my uncle and gave him a look that screamed for help.

My uncle instantly took the hint and moved to stop John from saying anything. "If you're fine, we should go back inside." He said, grabbing John. "Ava, coming?"

"I'm gonna look for Matt or Elena." I simply said, taking the lead and going back before John could question me about any of the Salvatore brothers.

---

I didn't have to go far before I bumped into Elena and Matt in one of the hallways. Elena noticed me first and she waved me to come over. Matt brightened up when he saw me. "There you are." He said. "I was looking for you."

"Got held up by John and my uncle." I said with a groan while hooking my arm around Elena's.

Elena frowned and tightened her hold on my arm. "Uncle John?" She said. "What did he want?"

"Long story. I'll tell you later." I gave her a look. She nodded, understandingly and sighed. "So Matt," I leaned over to Matt who beamed at me. "How are you finding the founders' party?"

"Oddly fun." He answered.

I scrunched up my face in disgust. "Seriously?"

Elena laughed at my expression. "Like I was telling Matt, this is rare."

"Well, we have Stefan to thank for that, I guess." I said with a small smile. I breathed out loudly. "Well I'm glad you two are enjoying yourself, you both deserve it." I let go of Elena's arms and drew them both my friends into a hug and stepped back.

Matt laughed and drew me in for another hug while Elena stood off to the side smiling brightly at us. It was actually rare for all of us to be happy for once. I mean, there were bumps in the night like Jeremy's incessant stalking, Stefan breaking his diet and finding John dead but otherwise no one was actually dead or hurt. It wasn't a bad night, after all. "You're starting to sound like Caroline." He laughed.

"Um...excuse me. I'll have you know that Caroline sounds like me."

"Right."

"This is nice. The three of us having 'fun' together." Elena lightly commented, walking ahead of us.

Matt shook his head with a small smile on his face while swinging my hand that was clasped in his. "Ugh. Please don't jinx it." I groaned.

"Stop being so superstitious, Ava." Matt grinned as Elena pulled open a door.

Just as Matt had spoken, Elena came to a halt. "Oh my god." We heard her gasp out and cover her mouth in shock. Matt and I stopped. Following Elena's gaze, my mouth hung open at the image in front of us. In the dim light, I could barely make out two figures. The more I stared, the more horrified I was. Tyler and Matt's mom were wrapped around each other and they were kissing. Unknowingly, Elena had jinxed the night for her and Matt.

"Tyler!" I screamed out in shock, breaking up the ignorant mismatched couple. Tyler broke out of his daze and looked at me.

"Av...Ava?" Tyler slurred.

Matt balled up his fists. "What the hell are you doing man?" He said. His voice was filled with anguish and anger.

"Matt?!" Kelly exclaimed in horror at being exposed.

"Mom!" Matt screamed out in anger and disappointment.

Tyler stepped back from Kelly and tried to explain himself. Elena pulled me back with her while inching away from the brewing conflict. "I can explain..." Tyler said, staring at me.

"Better be the best explanation of your life." I gasped out.

"Matt." Tyler turned to his best friend and tried to plead. Matt balled up his fist and stomped over to Tyler. "Whoa dude calm down."

Before I could blink, Matt punched Tyler in the face. Elena gasped out loud while Tyler punched Matt back, drawing blood. I gasped when I saw Kelly, Matt's mom being pushed hard across the room. She landed on a table behind her that had several champagne glasses on display. Her body shattered and the glasses as she landed on top of the table, breaking it into two. With a small screech, she fell to the floor. "Matt! Stop!" I tried to stop the fight before it got worse. Tyler was the mayor's son, this wasn't gonna look good on Matt at all. I grabbed Matt's hands and tried to remind him of that but he wouldn't budge at all. Tyler wouldn't even look at me, he looked like was in a strange daze with no signs of stopping. Seeing this, Matt gently shoved me aside and tried to land another punch on Tyler but Tyler got the best of him, kicking him down.

"Matt! Stop it!" Elena screamed out, trying to get through him. He didn't budge at all. "Tyler!" She exclaimed, seeing Matt on the floor. "Stop it, you're hurting him!" Tyler kept on punching Matt with no sign of stopping while Matt tried to block off his hits. "Somebody help us." She called out to the crowd that had formed around us. "Ava, what do we do?" She cried out.

I sucked in a breath and bit my lips. I knew what I could do. I hesitated for a second, looking at the two. I could try to get inside their heads and make them stop but there were too many people around. Before I could move, Mr Saltzman and my uncle ran in. Mr Saltzman and uncle Nate pulled the two off each other, holding the boys by their collar. Uncle Nate nodded at Mr Saltzman who pushed Tyler against the wall, trying to calm him down while uncle Nate held down Matt's arms before he calmed down. I sighed in relief and turned to look at Tyler who was thrashing against the grips of Mr Saltzman.

Elena and I ran towards my uncle and Matt while Mayor Lockwood, Tyler's dad stomped towards Tyler. Uncle Nate helped Matt sit up and he threw me a look as he got up to talk to Mr Saltzman. I turned to check on Tyler who looked like he was back. Gone was the dazed look on his face

Mayor Lockwood turned to my uncle and Mr Saltzman and politely smiled at them. I could tell he was pissed. "Thank you for your help." He politely said before turning to Tyler and throwing him a glare. At that moment, I pitied Tyler for a small moment. What he did was a dick move but his dad was a bigger jerk. He ushered Tyler away before turning to the crowd. "Everything's fine." He said but everything was not fine at all. "Everything is fine." He repeated with more conviction. "Come on, everybody, back to the party. Let's go. Come on, have a good time!"

"Unbelievable." I hissed under my breath while crouching down.

Elena just shook her head and checked Matt. "Are you okay?" She asked.

"Where is she?" He asked instead of answering.

I rolled my eyes and took out my purse. "Seriously, Matt you're bleeding." I retorted.

Matt grumbled something under his breath. "Put your head up." Elena instructed as I got out my trusty first aid kit. Noticing that, Elena shuffled to the side. "Stay like that for a second." She carried on. "Do you want to—"

"It's fine." I took out some ointment and some band aids, moving to patch my friend up. "I got this."

Matt snorted. "Starting to get why you have a habit of carrying that thing around."

I let out a smile unconsciously while cleaning his wound. "That's cause you guys get hurt waay too often." I finished applying the band-aid and slipped everything back in the kit. "All done."

"Oh. You're done..." We turned at the same time at the voice of my uncle. He walked towards us with a first aid kit in his hands. Elena gestured to the smaller one in my hands. "Should've known." My uncle passed the kit to one of the waiters and walked back over to help Matt up. "You okay, Matt?"

"Not really." Matt said.

"I figured."

"Nate, have you seen my mom?" Matt asked as he was helped up.

"Honestly," Uncle Nate looked around the small clamp of people that remained around us. "I haven't but we should head back...if you're up for it?"

Matt looked down at his fists while a disappointed look flashed in his face. I felt bad for him. Things were not going great for him at all. "I'm gonna look for Stefan." Elena whispered to me before giving Matt a small pat and going back into the ballroom. I sighed hearing that and rolled my eyes.

"I think I'm gonna head home." Matt answered after a moment.

"Oh." My uncle looked sad and disappointed but he didn't say it. It wasn't often that non-founding families were invited to these events and Matt really looked like he was enjoying himself before. "...Let's get you home then. I'll drive you back."

Matt politely smiled and shook his head while holding a hand up at his bandaged injury. "No, I'm fine. I'll take a cab back."

"Matt..." I tried to convince him, only for him to brush off my attempt.

"I'm fine." He repeated, backing away from us. "Your family's done more than enough for me. Thanks."

"Matt, come on." Uncle Nate tried to convince Matt. Again he shook off our attempt.

"Mom's probably home by now." He commented quietly. "You guys have to go back in for that 'bell ringing' thing." He added.

"I mean we could skip it. Right?" I said, turning to my uncle to back me up.

"...Yeah." My uncle answered with some uncertainty. "Yeah."

"Thanks but I wanna be alone."

I nodded and engulfed him into a hug. "Call me when you get home, okay?"

"I will." That was all he said before he walked away.

Uncle Nate and I waited around for a moment before heading back in. The halls were now empty again. Everyone had gone back in and forgotten all about what had happened. Matt had gone back home in a very bad mood. So much for a good time, I thought. I sighed while uncle Nate gently patted my back in sympathy while leading me back into the ballroom. It was time after all for the final festivities of the night. Honestly I just wanted to go home. This was tiring but at least it wasn't me or uncle Nate ringing the bell tonight.

---

"Thank you all, thank you very much, thank you." Mayor Lockwood gathered everyone around the room while he stood facing the audience. His wife was next to him along with John. All three acting like nothing had happened.

"Unbelievable." Jenna commented, just quiet enough that only uncle Nate and I could hear. She had joined us once we got back in, fretting over my uncle and checking if he was okay while Mr Saltzman had disappeared. No doubt he was with Damon. Logically if I was on the same side as them or cared enough, I would go and talk to them about John but that was never my focus. All I had to do was make sure none of the vampires in this town started killing people. Simple.

Uncle Nate chuckled quietly. "Y'know Richard." He replied quietly while scanning the crowd. "If it was up to him, he'd pretend that Tyler never existed."

"Or his marriage never happened." Jenna chimed in.

"Um TMI." I hissed at the two. The two recoiled in embarrassment, remembering that I was still there. "I soo don't wanna hear bout this."

Jenna sheepishly smiled and patted my shoulders. "Sorry." She apologized.

"Oh here he goes again." Uncle continued, acting like what he said wasn't wrong at all.

The three of us turned to stare at the stage once again. Mayor Lockwood just finished getting everyone's attention. Seeing everyone's eyes on him. He clasped his hands together and smiled his best politician-esque smile ever and continued. "Thank you all for joining us tonight, in just a few moments we will officially begin the countdown to our upcoming Founders' Day celebration," He nodded at his wife who had a bright painted smile on her face while her eyes seemed concerned. Concern for Tyler probably. "and it's a very special one this year. The one hundred and fiftieth birthday of our town." The moment he said that everyone around us burst into a wave of claps of jubilation.

"Happy one hundred and fiftieth years to the most hell-ish town in America." I commented quietly.

Jenna snorted and covered her mouth to stifle the bubbling laughter. "More like the world." Uncle Nate chimed in while I nodded.

"...You two are gonna get me kicked out." Jenna whispered while still trying to stop her laughter.

"You'll be fine." My uncle said and tilted his head towards his best friend. "I'll throw some money at these people and they won't do anything." He added with a grin.

"Nathaniel!"

"Oh my god." I lightly muttered under my breath and rolled my eyes.

These two were definitely drunk or tipsy. There was no way my uncle would joke about throwing money at people in this town in a crowded place. I mean it wasn't a lie but still. I only hoped these two wouldn't embarrass me. I already had enough for one night. My mind went back to Jeremy, Matt, Tyler and even Kelly as I shut my eyes, trying to block it out. It was funny how the death of one person can shatter the lives of many.

I shook my head and focused my attention back on the stage just as something was wheeled onto the stage. Two people wheeled in an old large bell that was rusted and matted with dirt. It was attached to an old wooden frame that might have been it's original resting place.

Mayor Lockwood stood aside and clasped his hands together, ready for the next part of his speech. "And...and I would like to welcome back one of our town favorite's sons to do the honors of ringing our official charter bell." He gestured to the person off to the side of him before beckoning that person to come over. "John Gilbert, would you please join me up here?" He called out with an inviting smile.

John smiled back and waved at the crowd before stepping up to the stage. "Bastard." "Scum." I heard my uncle and Jenna say at the same time. I didn't even have to look to know they were glaring holes into John's head, much to John's ignorance.

"—hundred and fifty years of community, prosperity, family. We take care of each other, we look after each other, protect each other." John walked over to the bell and grabbed the thick rope that was handed to him. He smiled again at the crowd. "It's good to be home." He said as he pulled the rope. The sounds of the bell echoed throughout the room as thunderous applause followed after it. I played along and started clapping.

Sounds of applause slowly faded in the background as the chimes of the bell grew louder and louder until my surroundings got darker and darker. The people around me faded away into the darkness as my vision started to flicker like an old television screen. I blinked softly trying to come back to reality only for it to become even more distant. I vaguely heard my name being called and being pulled somewhere when the room around me changed. The ringing of the bell grew even louder and more ominous like it was calling something or summoning something.

---

Author's note: Whew, I'm back and not really happy with this chapter, considering it got deleted three times. So, I had to take a break since my laptop started being annoying and basically deleted most of my files which included several pre-done chapters of this fic. So that was fun. Not.

Anyways back to Ava who is starting to get tired of Elena and her constant focus on Stefan even though her 'brother' is also falling apart. Someone please get Jeremy a good therapist. Everyone seems to be having a bad time this chapter but at least Ava has her friends from her previous school keeping her sane.

Hope y'all enjoy this chapter, till next time.