Alexandria Gilbert

by JChavz95

Vampires, witches, werewolves and doppelgangers, oh my! All Alexa Gilbert wanted was a quiet life, a free drink and to party the night away with her friends without being nagged by her twin sister Elena, but the arrival of the mysterious Salvatore brothers may just ruin those plans... Starts Season 1, Episode 1, Slowburn Damon/OC, Now on Season 4!

14. Fool Me Once

Disclaimer: I only own my OCs

Happy Holidays everyone! Sorry for not posting yesterday but I had eaten (and drank!) far too much on Christmas to be able to coherently update, I could barely talk lol. I hope everyone is enjoying the festive period as best they can. Mine hasn't exactly gone as planned but at least I have my husband to celebrate with!

XXX

Ok, breathe, Alexa, breathe. Deep breaths.

"Stefan, where the hell is my sister?" I asked, my voice shaking. She was gone. My sister was gone. She had been taken. Why had she been taken? My head pounded in time with my heartbeat as I struggled to process what just happened.

Oh god, I couldn't breathe. Tears welled up in my eyes as my body shook. Stefan didn't answer me; he just stared at the open window in shock.

"Stefan, please!" I begged. My voice cracked and I felt tears fall down my face. "Answer me!"

I was closely reaching the point of hysteria.

"Hey. Hey," Stefan's hands were suddenly cupping my face. I gripped his wrists, twisting the fabric of his sleeves between my fingers. My hands were shaking. My body was shaking

"Alexa, look at me," he softly demanded. I managed to raise my eyes so that they stared into his. "I will find your sister. Ok? I will find Elena."

The conviction in his voice was so strong that I couldn't help but believe him. I squeezed his wrists in acknowledgement. He loved Elena as much as I did, he would save her. He had to. Failure was not an option.

Stefan looked as though he was having some sort of internal debate before he opened his mouth.

"Alexa, I want, I need you to stay here while I search the town," he gently ordered me, making sure to keep eye contact.

He wanted me to what?! No. No. No. No.

I immediately shook my head, "Stefan, I can't, please, let me go with you."

"Hey, I'll bring her back, but I need to make sure that you're safe," he responded, wiping away my tears with his thumbs. "Alexa, you need to stay safe."

I bit my lip. I could see where Stefan was coming from. He couldn't save Elena while keeping me safe. But I needed to find my sister. I couldn't just stand around.

I opened my mouth to argue but Stefan stopped me by covering my mouth with his hand.

"Alexa, please, trust me," the vampire begged softly, looking intently into my eyes.

Oh no, not the trust card. Anything but that, Stefan.

"Ok, I'll stay here," I finally relented with a lot of reluctance. I had no choice. If I didn't agree to wait at home, Stefan would find some way to make me.

"Thank you," he sighed before pulling me into a hug.

I buried my face into his chest and held in the sobs that wanted to burst free. Stefan cupped the back of my head and let me grip on him tightly. I felt like I was falling apart and it was only Stefan's hands keeping me together.

"Find my sister Stefan, please," I whispered.

"I will," Stefan promised before disappearing from the room.

I staggered slightly at the loss of contact before sighing. Outside the room, I could hear Stefan telling Jenna what had happened. I was glad that he did it, because I don't think I could get the words out without breaking. Tears once again filled my eyes. Without Stefan's comforting presence, all I could think about was what could be happening to Elena right now.

Anna was a vampire, judging by Stefan's reaction to her name. And that was bad. Very, very bad. If he knew her and she wanted the Gilbert journal, then she was around in 1864. That meant she knew Katherine and chances were, she wanted revenge on her. And now she had my sister. Anna had taken Elena for a reason. A part of me suspected that it was because she looked like Katherine. It honestly wouldn't surprise me. Katherine was the root of all problems.

I stumbled over to Elena's bed and collapsed on top of it. I grabbed one of Elena's pillows and curled around it, breathing in my twin's smell. She had to be alright. She wasn't allowed to be anything other than alright. Losing her... I can honestly say that losing Elena, my twin, would destroy me. She was everything to me. My sister, my best friend, my confidante. I needed her so much.

I sighed softly, tightening my grip on the pillow. I knew that I wouldnt be able to sleep. Not until I had my sister back.

A creak sounded behind me.

I shot up and looked around. But the room was empty.

I was probably just being jumpy. Our house had an annoying habit of creaking at night. I had learnt to just ignore it. I guess that after everything that had happened today, I was too keyed up to ignore it. That, and the fact that I was completely alone.

I wanted someone to be there with me. I knew that it couldn't be Stefan as he was out searching for my sister. Luke and Jazz were out of town. I suppose that I could phone Jazz but I couldn't phone Luke. He didn't have his phone on him. But the problem with seeking comfort with them is the fact that if they found out the Stefan and Damon were vampires, they would most likely try to kill them.

I could have asked Tyler to come round. But there was the issue of having to explain it to him. And I didn't want him to be dragged into this. He didn't deserve to. He put up with so much crap from his dad that it would be unfair to involve him in this.

Normally, I would have called Damon. But after what he did to me earlier, I couldn't face him. It would be too hard. I'd just break down crying. And if I let myself break, even a little bit, then I don't know if I could put myself back together. Not until I had my sister back in my arms, where she was safe.

XXX

It was a battle, but I managed to stay awake all night.

After a bit of time, Jenna had come in. Jeremy had wanted to go out looking for Elena himself. Which, while understandable, was stupid and reckless. So in order to distract both of us, my aunt dragged us downstairs. Jer angrily played the Xbox while I cleaned the kitchen. I emptied out each cupboard and drawer, giving everything a deep clean. I cleaned the fridge, the freezer, even the oven.

Jenna watched on, a worried look on her face, cradling a mug of coffee. She had offered me one but I turned it down. The thought of drinking anything made me feel ill. I think that worried Jenna even more. I never turned down coffee. Like ever.

Jenna's patience lasted until around 3am. I had finished cleaning the kitchen and had started on dusting. Even though it wasn't keeping my mind busy, it was keeping me occupied. After Jeremy swore at the Xbox for the sixth time, Jenna made us go up to bed. My brother didn't look impressed, but it was clear to see that he had worn himself out. Myself, on the other hand, I was still too wired. My mind was racing with thoughts of what was possibly happening to my sister. And I couldn't let myself fall asleep. Or the thoughts would just turn into nightmares.

I didn't go back to my own bedroom. Jenna allowed me to go to my sister's. I think it was her way of compromising. If I was waiting in there, then at least I wasn't trying to sneak out and search for her myself.

I curled up on my twin's bed, hugging my knees to my chest. My hands smelt of bleach. It was weird but I couldn't take my mind off of that fact. The smell of bleach filled my nose and that kept me awake.

Stefan didn't return. He hadn't texted either. The worry and the fear clawed at me. What if something had happened to him as well? He was my only chance of getting my sister back. No, calm down Alexa, breathe. It's Stefan, he'll be fine. He's Stefan, for god sake. He's quite capable of looking after himself. And he won't let anything happen to himself. He knew that he needed to find my twin.

A hand on my shoulder startled me. I leapt up from where I was laying and grabbed the first thing that my hand touched. I held it up threateningly, breathing fast.

Stefan stood there with his arms in the air, a look of surprise on his face.

"Alexa, relax. It's just me," he said soothingly, doing the universal 'calm down' gesture. "Put the teddy bear down."

Huh?

I frowned and looked at my hand. Elena's teddy bear was innocently smiling up at me. Whoops. Sorry Mr Cuddles. I slowly let Mr Cuddles fall from my hand before looking up at Stefan. He was looking at me worriedly. I'm guessing that I didn't look my best. My clothes were rumpled and my eyes red-rimmed. My hand still smelt of bleach and I didn't even want to think about how bad my hair looked. So yeah, definitely didn't look my best.

"Did you find her?" I asked hopefully, slumping back down onto the bed. Please say yes. Please say yes.

Stefan shook his head and my heart sank. I brought my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them. I had to hold myself together. The fear was consuming me. Oh Elena, where are you?

Stefan walked over and sat down on the bed. He sighed and wrapped his arms around me.

"Hey, we'll find her," he reassured me, giving me a squeeze.

I rested my head in the crook of his neck and sighed. It was too hard. I couldn't do this. I just wanted my sister.

"So, I'm gonna assume that you've come back because you couldn't find her," I stated blandly, staring forward into space.

"Partly, but I also wanted to check on you, make sure that you were safe."

Stefan was kind enough not to add that he was also making sure that I wasn't doing anything stupid.

"Thanks Stefan."

Stefan smiled slightly before hesitating, "There is someone who could help us find her, but I don't think that you'll be too happy to see him."

I was confused for a moment before I realised who he was talking about. Damon. I had tried so hard not to think about him during the night. We had hurt each other. I had told him that he could trust Elena and Stefan. And then they turned around and betrayed him. So he hurt them by hurting me. I don't know if he would have killed me and turned me.

"Am-Am I going to have to see him?" I asked, my breath hitching slightly in fear. I didn't know if I was scared of him or scared of what I would do when I saw him.

"Don't worry; I'll be right next to you the entire time," Stefan was quick to reassure me.

"I don't know..." I trailed off, biting my lip. Seeing him so soon after last night would be so hard. But if it helped find Elena. Then there wasn't really a choice. It was Elena.

"I'll go," I nodded, strengthening my resolve. To save Elena, I would go and see Damon.

Stefan looked down at me for a moment, almost as though he was reconsidering bringing me with him, before sighing and scooping me up into his arms. I quickly wrapped my arms around his neck for support and buried my face in his neck. The vampire held me tightly as he leapt out of the window.

My head spun as the air whooshed past us.

Stefan let go of my legs once we reached the ground by kept a hold of my waist while I found my footing. I will always hate how that feels.

"Jesus Christ, Stefan," I gasped as I let go of his neck. "Give a girl a bit of warning next time."

"I'll be sure to do that," Stefan replied, letting go of my waist.

He helped me into the car and did up my seatbelt. I normally hated being coddled like that. But I understood why Stefan was doing it. He couldn't protect my sister but he could look after me until he got her back.

XXX

The thought of facing Damon filled me with nervous tension. I honestly didn't know how I would react once I saw him. But, hopefully, he will help me find my twin. He needed to help me.

Stefan pulled up in front of the boarding house and took a deep breath. He guided me into the building, a firm hand on my back. My hands shook as I glanced around the parlour. The stress and lack of sleep were catching up with me. And that meant that I was getting more emotional. And this was the worst possible time to be getting emotional.

Stefan paused before leading my down the hallway, into the library. Damon sat on one of the leather chairs, the fire burning bright behind him. The grimoire was open on his lap and my stomach felt heavy with guilt. The vampire's ice blue eyes flickered up as we walked in.

"Oh, look what the cat dragged in," he smirked, looking back down at the grimoire. "Well, what the cat would have dragged in had Stefan not eaten it."

Uh, what the hell was that?

"Anna's taken Elena," Stefan said, completely ignoring what was just said. I got the impression that Damon often piped up with comments like that.

"Yeah, I got that from your 600 voicemails," he drawled, sounding completely disinterested. "Now, remind, why do I care?"

Because he's supposed to! That's why! I get that he feels betrayed, but come on. This was Elena. She couldn't die. Like at all.

"Damon, all night long, every single street in town, I've been searching," Stefan growled, leaving my side to stalk towards his brother.

I ran my hands through my hair in frustration, wincing at the tangles I encountered. Stefan's words only reminded me how long my twin had been missing. Anything could have happened to her in that time.

"Damon, please, tell me what us know," I begged, temporarily drawing Damon's attention to me. "You've gotta know something."

"No, I don't," he replied, his tone cold.

"You were with Anna, you have to know where she's living," Stefan reasoned, thankfully drawing that cold gaze away from me. Stefan sat down on the sofa while I remained standing. "Just tell us where we can find her."

Damon paused for a moment before replying, "Nope."

I let out a groan of frustration and tugged on my hair. I rested my elbows on the railing in front of me and let my head fall forward into my hands. Deep down, I knew that Damon had the right not to help us, especially after what happened last night. But the rationale part of me wasn't exactly in control.

"You can go," the asshole smirked. "Really."

He had to know where Anna was which meant that he was deliberately keeping my twin's whereabouts from us, from me. And that hurt. He knew how important my sister was to me. And he was keeping her from me.

"You know, all I can remember is hating you," Stefan started with a sigh. Damon frowned and looked at his brother. "There might have been a time when that was different, but your choices have erased anything good about you. but see, I also know you have just as much reason to hate me. This all began with me. Katherine got taken away from you because of me. And I'm sorry."

Damon watched Stefan with a small smile on his face. If I didn't know better, I would call it tenderness and love. I had the feeling that his was the first time that they had properly talked about what happened. And the first time that Stefan had specifically apologised for Damon losing Katherine.

"Apology accepted," the older brother replied, his voice thick.

"So please, just tell me what you know. It's Elena," Stefan gestured behind to where I was standing. "It's Alexa's twin. If you know something, tell me."

There was a desperateness in Stefan's voice that wasn't there before. And that desperateness had my heart racing. The fact that Stefan showed it meant that he was running out of options. And that meant that we were running out of time to rescue my twin.

Damon glanced up at me at the mention of my name. I could only look him in the eyes for a moment before looking away. I still felt guilty for what happened. I really should have known what they were planning. I should have trusted my instincts. But I refused to believe that my sister would lie to me like that. And Damon got hurt as a result.

The elder vampire sighed and stood up, grimoire in hand. He paused, searching for the right words, before looking at his brother.

"Not my problem."

Stefan deflated, sinking back down onto the sofa. What was he doing? Was he just giving up? He can't give up! He needed to get Damon to help. He needed to save my sister.

"But you can still help," I protested as Damon went to leave the room. He paused and I took the opportunity to move closer. I quickly walked down the steps and stopped a couple of steps away from the vampire. "Please, Damon, please help us."

Damon stared at me and I let myself hope that my words had gotten through to him. That he would help me find my sister. But it wasn't to be.

"I don't help traitors."

The words cut through me and I staggered back a couple of steps. I didn't know if he was referring to me or my sister. But either way, he wasn't going to help us.

I watched as Damon left the room, grimoire in hand, and collapsed to my knees. Hope was cruel. I had hope that we would save my sister. That Damon would help. But my heart sank as I realised the truth. I couldn't save my sister. Without Damon's help, Stefan wouldn't find her. He had been searching all night without any luck. What else could we do?

Strong hands gently gripped my elbows and lifted me to my feet. I glanced up at Stefan before allowing my head to fall forward against his chest. I felt, more than heard, him sigh as his grip moved from my elbows to my back.

"We have to find her, Stefan," I whispered into his chest, gripping the fabric of his hoodie tight.

"We will."

XXX

I had made the mistake of telling Stefan that I hadn't had any sleep. I was hoping to be able to set up camp by the coffee machine. But the buzzkill had quickly put a stop to that idea. Instead, he took me up to his room. I think he was hoping that if I settled down onto a bed, I would fall asleep. But I knew that it wouldn't happen.

After a stern look from Stefan, I reluctantly sat down on the bed. I pulled my knees up to my chest and curled around them. My body felt heavy and I knew that I needed sleep. But I couldn't switch my brain off.

Stefan paced around the room, deep in thought. I watched through lidded eyes as the vampire groaned in frustration and ran his hand through his hair.

"Alexa, I'm going to go and have another look around the town," Stefan declared, turning around to face me. "I'll be back soon."

Wait, what? That woke me up and I pushed myself off of the bed.

"Stefan, you can't leave me again," I protested, quickly moving forward. "What about Damon?"

"He's gone out," Stefan replied. He had? How did Stefan know that? No, wait, ignore me. Vampire hearing. Forgot about that.

"Oh, okay," I bit my lip before blurting out. "Please let me go with you."

"Alexa," Stefan sighed as he cupped my face. "It's safer for you here. And you need to sleep."

It was the desperation in his voice that had me nodding my agreement. He was right. I wouldn't be of any help whatsoever. I just felt so powerless. I wanted to save my sister. But what could I do that a vampire couldn't?

"Ok, just..." I took a deep breath. "Just be back soon, ok?"

I did not sound desperate. I really didn't.

"I will," Stefan promised before disappearing from the room.

And I was alone. Again. Of all the days to be left on my own, this was probably the worst. I settled back down on the bed and debated whether it was worth trying to get some sleep. My body needed it. I knew it did. It felt heavy and I was beginning to get that sleep-deprived headache. But every time I tried; my mind just wouldn't shut off. Thoughts of what could be happening to my sister buzzed around it, each scenario worse than the other.

Eventually, I gave up. I pushed myself off of the bed with a groan. There was nothing that I could do to get some rest. So either I drank my body weight in coffee. Or I went for something stronger. And despite my promise to Tyler, I couldn't resist the urger for that something stronger. The itch under my skin was overwhelming and I couldn't fight that and the urge to chase after Stefan.

I slowly made my way downstairs and my gaze was immediately drawn to the table with Damon's alcohol. I didn't even hesitate. My legs led me over to the table and I took a deep breath. I knew that I shouldn't. But I needed it. I was barely holding myself together. This was the only thing that could stop me from breaking.

I poured myself some whiskey before making my way into the library. I curled up on one of the armchairs and stared at the fire. The flickering warmth helped soothe me a bit and the whiskey did the rest. As cliché as it sounded, it wasn't fair. My sister should never have been abducted. We never should have been involved in this bullshit. All I wanted was for my family to be safe. But I had the feeling that that was never going to happen.

I sighed and rested the empty glass against my forehead, closing my eyes.

"So, you're still here."

I wearily opened my eyes at Damon's voice. My gaze flickered over to the doorway where he stood. I lowered the glass and gave a small shrug.

"Stefan wouldn't let me go with him," I sighed as the vampire walked over.

"Ah, Saint Stefan," Damon snorted as he placed the grimoire down on the coffee table. I watched as he stood in front of the fire. The light softened his face and my heart ached.

"I'm sorry."

The words left my mouth without warning. Damon's blue eyes flickered over and I felt compelled to continue.

"I didn't know that they would betray you like that. I just… I honestly thought that they wanted to help you. Like I want to help you. I want you to get Katherine back. And," I sighed, "I'm sorry that I didn't realise what they were up to."

Damon was silent, his eyes staring into mine. I didn't know what he was thinking but I felt slightly better for having said what I needed to. I still felt guilty for what happened and I would for a while. But apologising helped. A lot.

Eventually, Damon sighed and walked over. He perched on the coffee table in front of me and leant forward.

"You trusted your sister, you can't be blamed for that," Damon's gaze captured mine and I couldn't look away. "I shouldn't have done what I did."

"Would you have done it?" I couldn't help asking. "Would you have turned me?"

Damon hesitated before sighing, "I don't know."

I nodded. That was fair. I didn't always think through my actions and it would be unfair to hold Damon to higher standards. He was hurt and he lashed out. I could understand that all too well.

I glanced down at the empty glass in my hands before looking back up, "I'm scared."

I swallowed hard, pushing back the tears that I was too tired to fight. I couldn't admit it before. Stefan needed me to be strong. He couldn't go search for my sister if he knew how weak I was, how close to breaking. But with Damon, I could admit it. He was my friend and I still trusted him. Even after last night.

I huffed out a shaky laugh, "I don't know what I would do if I lost her."

My body shook as the tears finally fell. I bit my lip to muffle the sobs as I finally broke. I heard a sigh before a strong body settled next to me. Damon gently threaded his hand through my tangled hair and pressed my face against his side. I gripped onto his other hand as I cried into his side. Damon didn't say anything, but he didn't need to. His kindness was enough.

XXX

"Have you tried ringing her phone?" I suggested once Stefan had finally got back.

I was still in library but this time, I was alone. Damon had left after I had cried myself out. He had taken the empty glass and had left me dozing. It wasn't a peaceful sleep. But it was enough to recharge me.

"No one answered," he sighed as he sat down on the coffee table, patting my knee as he did so. "But you could try again."

I immediately pulled out my phone and dialled my twin's number. The fact that it rang filled me with hope. Every beep of the dialling tone had me holding my breath. I prayed to every deity known to humanity that my sister would pick up. I needed to hear my sister's voice. I needed to know that she was still alive.

"Come on Elena," I muttered, tapping my fingers against my knee. "Pick up. Pick up. Pick up."

Someone answered the phone. Oh thank the lord. I let out a non-sob, "Ellie? Oh god, Ellie! Are you alright? Speak to me, Ellie, please!"

"She's fine," a strange voice answered. "For now."

Wait, what? It took me less than a second to work out who I was speaking to. And I got pissed. The anger that had been lurking under my fear pushed its way to the surface.

"Anna? Is this Anna?" I growled, seeing red. "Anna, you bitch! Give me back my sister!"

The phone was wrestled from my hand. I leapt up to try and snatch it back, but Stefan held me back with one hand. I seethed as I was denied the chance to curse out the twin-stealing little bitch.

"Anna," Stefan stated, sounding a lot calmer than I did.

I hissed in anger. Wait until I got my hands on that vampire bitch. She was dead meat. Dead, dead, dead meat. I swear, if she has hurt even a single hair on my twin's head, she will feel twice the pain. Nothing would stop me from avenging my sister.

I don't know what Anna said to him, but Stefan replied with, "I can get it."

I can only assume that she was talking about that bloody witch's grimoire. I would have destroyed the damn thing if it didn't hold the key to Damon's happiness. It was only my friendship with him that protected it.

Stefan allowed me to move closer so that I could hear what Anna was saying. Apparently, I didn't look as angry as I did before. Or he knew that I needed to hear.

"... I have the witch. So one of you had better meet me in the very public town square in 30 minutes so we can safely discuss how it's gonna be to work together."

I saw too busy glaring daggers at the phone in Stefan's hand to notice that Damon had entered the room behind me.

Anna hung up.

That bitch was so dead.

"I'll help."

I spun around at Damon's voice. My heart filled with hope at the thought of him helping us, helping me. The look on my face must have been something special as Damon shifted uncomfortably under my gaze.

He looked at his brother, "I'll keep Anna busy while you rescue Elena and the witch."

XXX

Right, so, here's the situation: bitch had Bonnie.

Which is not good. Really, very not good. And not only was poor Bonnie at the mercy of a bitch vampire, we couldn't even use her witchy powers to help us find Elena. The thought that someone else I cared about was in danger had me pacing the room. Damon had disappeared to distract Anna but was unable to tell us where she was hiding. Apparently the conniving little vampire had ditched her previous hiding place. So we were almost back to square one.

Stefan had apparently had an epiphany while I was cursing Anna. He quickly ushered me out of the Boarding House and into the car.

The vampire had come to the conclusion that Shelia Bennett, aka, Bonnie's grams, would help us find my missing twin and friend. I had asked why he had come to this conclusion and he has said that it was because Bonnie was a Bennett witch. Apparently, Bennett witches will always protect their own. Or something to that extent. I wasn't really paying attention.

Stefan pulled over in front of Sheila's house.

We got out of the car and quickly walked up to the door. Stefan probably would have blurred us to the door if it wasn't broad daylight.

I knocked on the door and waited impatiently. Come on Shelia, come on. I have a sister to rescue. Shelia opened the door and Stefan took charge.

"We need your help," he said before I could say anything.

"Why? Whats happened?" Bonnie's Grams asked, glancing over at me.

"Elena's been taken. By a vampire," I answered, wrapping my arms around myself. God, I hated saying that. "And she's not the only one..."

I trailed off. How the hell do I tell her that Bonnie was also abducted by the bitch? I wasn't good at this at sort of stuff.

"Bonnie was also taken," Stefan finished for me.

Shelia's face hardened.

"You had best come in," she said, stepping to the side.

Stefan gestured for me to go first so I did. I nervously sat down on the sofa and watched the angry witch pace the room. The candles around the room flickered as Shelia took a deep breath.

"All we need is a simple locator spell and then I can go and save them," Stefan explained once he had sat down. Wait, what? I turned and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Oh hell no. I was not going to be left behind again.

"Don't you mean that we can go and save them?" I questioned, tapping my fingers against my knee.

The vampire immediately shook his head.

"No, Alexa, it's not safe enough for you to go," he disagreed, giving me a stern look.

"What do you mean that it's not safe enough?" I exclaimed, my anger overruling my fear. There was no way in hell that he is gonna leave me here!

"Alexa, they were taken by vampires."

"So?"

Stefan sighed, "Do you think that Elena would want you to put yourself in danger just to go and save her?"

I opened my mouth and closed it again. Damn, he had me there. My sister would kill me if she found out. And I knew that I would do the same if our positions were reversed.

"Fine," I frowned, crossing my arms and slumping back. "I'll stay here."

"Thank you, Alexa," Stefan smiled gratefully which I pettily ignored. I wanted so desperately to go save my sister. I hated feeling so powerless.

While I had been having my mini-argument with Stefan, Shelia had done her spell. It hadn't taken her long, her fear fuelling her powers.

"They're at this address," she told us, passing Stefan a piece of paper. Stefan quickly slipped it in his pocket, making sure that I couldn't see it, and stood up.

"I'll be back soon," Stefan promised, looking me straight in the eye. "With your sister and Bonnie."

I stood up and gave him a quick hug.

"Thank you, Stefan," I whispered into his chest. "Stay safe."

Stefan returned the hug and pressed a light kiss to the top of my head. He left the room and I slumped back down on the sofa. I continue to tap my fingers against my knee. I was filled with a nervous energy and just needed to move.

I think Sheila understood as she gave me a sympathetic look before leaving the room. Running my hands through my hair, I groaned in frustration before climbing to my feet and resuming my earlier pacing. Moving helped. Even if it wasn't exactly what I wanted to be doing.

Bonnie's Grams returned with a steaming mug in her hands. I paused as she approached me. She ushered me over to the dining table before passing me the mug.

"Herbal tea," Sheila told me as I glanced down. "It'll help calm those nerves of yours."

"Thank you," I smiled faintly as I brought the mug up to my face. Even the scent of the tea was calming. Sheila grabbed her own mug and joined me at the table.

And then, we waited.

XXX

The moment that Elena walked through the door, I leapt on her. Literally. I flung myself forward and wrapped my arms around her, tightening my grip as I let myself believe that this was real. She immediately returned the hug and buried her face in my neck. I rubbed her back and ran a hand through her hair. For the first time in hours, I was able to relax. My sister was safe and in my arms.

"I'm here, Ellie," I whispered to her. "You're safe now."

I was so thankful that I had her back in my arms. My twin sister was safe. And nothing was ever going to happen to her again. As Bonnie passed me, I grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze. She glanced over and I asked, "Are you alright?"

She gave me a smile and a smile before hugging her Grams. My heart went out to Bonnie. She was only caught up in this because she was a witch. She didn't even choose to be. It was in her blood. I watched as Bonnie left the room with her Grams for a reunion of their own.

I caught Stefan's eye over my twin's shoulder.

"Thank you," I mouthed to him gratefully. He nodded and moved forward to join us in the hug. Normally, I would have let him have his own hug with my sister. But after what had happened, I didn't have the strength to release my sister. Was it selfish? Probably. But I didn't care.

"You alright now, twin," I reassured her, giving my sister a squeeze. "Alexa's here to protect you from the big bad vampires."

"Did you just refer to yourself in the third person?" Elena asked as she pulled away enough to look me in the face

"Noooo."

Elena just raised her eyebrow at me. Don't look at me like that twinsey. Seriously, don't. Not after everything I had been through.

"Elena, stop looking at me like that," I raised an eyebrow of my own.

She shook her head and pulled back. I reluctantly allowed my sister to leave my arms. Logically, I knew that I couldn't hug her forever. But logic wasn't really my strength at the best of times. Ellie turned to look at her boyfriend and I rested my chin on her shoulder.

"Where have Bonnie and Mrs Bennett gone?" she asked him, glancing around the room.

"They went into the next room," he replied with a small smile. My sister nodded, a determined look on her face. Elena took Stefan's hand, put an arm around my waist and pulled us into the other room.

"So, what do we do now?" my twin asked as we entered the room the Bennett's had relocated to. Bonnie and her Grams were sitting down at the table, holding hands.

We moved to stand next to the table. Stefan let go of Elena's hand to stand on the other side. I slung my arm around her shoulder and started fiddling with her hair. The thought of not being in physical contact with my twin made feel ill. I needed to be touching her to be reassured that this was real. That I actually had my sister back.

"Well for now, you need to stay here," Stefan stated only to receive identical looks from myself and the witches.

"A prisoner in my own home?" Bonnie's Grams scoffed, shaking her head. "I don't think so."

"I can't protect you if you leave the house," Stefan countered. Oh Stefan, what is it with you and protecting everyone today?

"We'll protect ourselves," Grams smirked slightly. And I believed that she could. Sheila had always been wise and had a quiet strength about her. And since I found out that witches were real, I realised just how strong she was.

"We have to help him get Katherine back," I suddenly said, speaking my thoughts out loud. Everyone turned to look at me and I cringed slightly. "Damon's not gonna stop until he gets her and when he does, then this should be all over." I paused before adding, "And I promised that I would help him."

I would want people to help me get Luke back, if we were in Damon and Katherine's position. Besides, Damon was my friend. And I wanted to help him.

"No," Bonnie immediately tried to shoot down my idea. "He doesn't deserve to get what he wants."

Judging from the look on Stefan's face, he wasn't too happy with that idea, either.

"Alexa's right, what other choice do we have?" Elena stood up for me. Yay twin! At least I can rely on her to back me up. We get each other. And after last night, she kinda owed me too.

"Witches being pulled down by vampire problems. As much as we try to do to stay out of it," witchy senior sighed before she looked up at Stefan. "I'll open the tomb. You get your brother's girl and destroy the rest with fire. Then this will all be over."

The thought of burning the rest made me feel ill. I understood why. They would want revenge on the town and having 27 pissed off vampires around would not be good. But the thought of so much death just didn't sit right with me.

"We still have to get Damon to agree," was Stefan's reply.

"He has already agreed once," I pointed out, trying to hide how eager I was to help Damon.

"Yeah, and then we double crossed him. So now he's angry," Stefan shot back.

"Uh, actually, you two double-crossed him," I couldn't help but point out. "I've always tried to help him be reunited with Katherine. And besides, he isn't just angry. He's hurt too."

Elena agreed with me, much to her boyfriend's annoyance. My twin glanced at me before adding, "And I think I know what has to be done."

I did not like the sound of that. And I was right not to.

"Someone needs to go and persuade him to trust us," my sister said before turning to look at me. "And that person needs to be you, Alexa."

Bonnie frowned, "Why does it need to be Alexa?"

"Because he trusts her," Elena answered, exchanging a look with Stefan.

XXX

Stefan dropped me off outside the Boarding house before leaving me. He had wanted to stay but I had made him leave. Not only did he need to help set up everything for later, I just felt safer knowing that he was with my sister. Despite the fact she had two witches with her, I felt more comfortable knowing that she had a vampire there too.

Jesus Christ. I was so bloody nervous, it was unbelievable. I knew that he trusted me to help. Especially after my apology earlier. But getting him to believe that the others would help him was another thing entirely. None of them had given him a reason to trust him in the past. Especially Elena and Stefan. And after the debacle that was last night, well, this task might just be impossible.

I slowly and quietly made my way inside the Salvatore house. It never failed to amuse me that they didn't bother locking their front door. But now was not the time to think about it. The parlour was empty and it occurred to me that I didn't even know if he was home. I was just hoping that he was. I made my way through the house to the library.

And there he was.

I breathed out a sigh as I realised how lucky I was. If I had got there a few minutes later, he probably wouldn't have been. He turned around and froze the moment he saw me. I bit my lip and gave him a small wave.

"I'm gonna have to change the locks," he smirked slightly, picking up the grimoire. "Found your sister yet?"

"Yeah, we found her and then Stefan saved her," I replied, running a hand through my hair. "Thank you for helping. Stefan said that there was just a new vampire guarding them."

Damon's gaze met mine for a brief moment before flickering away, "I'm glad you found her."

"Me too," I smiled slightly before taking a deep breath. Here comes the hard part. "I managed to convince Bonnie to help you."

All emotion left Damon's face.

"I doubt that."

I walked down the steps. He knew that I was genuine in my desire to help him. But I needed to get Damon to believe that the others were too. Especially since they were involved now, more so than before.

I took a deep breath, "They regret lying to you, y'know. They explained why they did. They were just protecting the people that they love. Which is ridiculous really but I understand why they thought that they needed to. But what they don't understand and I do, is that you were protecting the people that you care about to. In your own unique way."

I think that I was getting through to him.

"We're all on the same side, after the same thing, working towards the same goal. And as much as you may scoff at that, it's true."

"Not interested."

Damon turned to leave.

Ah shit, not good. Come on, Alexa, you need to think of the right thing to say.

I blurted out, "Yeah you are. You were willing to work with them yesterday."

The vampire turned to face me.

"Fool me once, shame on you," he smirked.

Fool me twice, shame on me, I finished silently.

"You're my friend, Damon," I sighed, stepping forward. "I don't expect you to trust them properly. Not after yesterday. But trust me. I've made it perfectly clear to them what will happen if they betray you again. I give you my word that they will help you." I could see that my words were getting through to him. "We... we have something. You and I. A special kind of understanding. And I won't forgive myself for ignoring my instincts and letting the betrayal happen. What we have is different compared to how it is with you and Stefan, and even you and Elena. But I promise you Damon, I swear on everything I hold dear, I will help you get your Katherine back."

I stared the vampire in the eye throughout my entire speech. My heart pounded in my chest as I tried to emphasise how genuine this was in every word. Damon didn't look convinced and my heart sank. Damnit. There had to be some way for him to believe what I was saying. And then it hit me. I unclasped my necklace and held it up so that he could see it.

"Alexa," he started but I held up a hand.

"Compel me, Damon. Ask me if this is genuine," I searched his gaze as he walked forward. I reached out my arm and let my necklace slip from my grip so it landed on the table next to me.

"You know Anna won't stop, no matter what I do," Damon warned as he stopped right in front of me.

My heart pounded as he placed his hands on my shoulders.

I nodded in agreement, "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

Damon looked deep into my eyes before sighing. He released my shoulders and reached past me to pick up my necklace. My breath hitched at how close he was and I had to remind myself to stay calm. Damon gently put my necklace back on for me. The feel of his skin against mine had my body tingling and my heart pounding.

"I don't want to compel you, Alexa," he admitted softly. "I trust you to help me."

"I won't let them betray you again, Damon," I reassured my friend. "They'll have to go through me if they even think about trying it."

XXX

I texted Elena, telling her that Damon had accepted our deal. I was relieved that he had. That he trusted me enough that my word that he wouldn't be betrayed was enough. She had texted back telling us to met her, Stefan and the Bennetts at the tomb. At nightfall. They were using this time to get ready to do the spell. And it gave Stefan enough time to get together everything he needed to burn the other vampires.

Damon had insisted that I use this time to catch up on the sleep that I had missed last night. I had resisted at first. I wanted to help him get ready. He was pulling together some stuff for when he got Katherine back. Blood bags, to be specific. He would need blood to bring her back.

Damon had played dirty and guilted me into napping. The dumb dumb. He said that I would be more helpful if I was well-rested. And then he threatened to call my sister and tell her that I hadn't been sleeping. The snitch. We both knew that Elena would have immediately rushed over and forbidden me from going tonight if she found out that I was running on zero sleep.

So I did as I was told, for once. I napped in the library, on the sofa in front of the fire. Thankfully, my sleep was dreamless. Despite the fact that I had my sister back, I was still worried about nightmares. My overactive imagination was still thinking of what could have happened to my sister. Elena had told me everything that had happened while she was a hostage. But I knew my sister well enough that she would have omitted certain details to protect me.

I woke up not long before nightfall. The buzzing of my phone disturbed me. My immediate thought was that it was Luke. Ever since he had disappeared on his little training adventure, I hadn't heard from him. Which hurt. I missed my boyfriend. I missed talking to him, laughing with him. I swear, when he gets back, I'm not letting him disappear on me again. No more training adventures.

Since I was awake and there was still a bit of time until we had to leave, I decided to ask Damon a question that had been bugging.

"Why did you use me?"

I knew that Damon would be able to hear me from the basement. The perks of super-hearing, eh? But it was lucky for me. Meant that I didn't need to shout or get up. Was I being lazy? Yes. But I think I had earnt lazy after today.

The was a rush of air and Damon was suddenly standing in front of me. Luckily, I didn't jump at his sudden appearance. I knew that if I did, he would never let me live it down.

"What do you mean?" he frowned as he tucked a blood bag into his jacket pocket.

"Last night, at the graveyard. Why did you use me as your hostage? Surely Elena would have been a better hostage. I mean, she's Stefan's girlfriend, not me."

"Are you saying that you would have preferred me to threaten Elena, instead?" Damon smirked. And I immediately regretted asking.

"No!" I exclaimed, rolling my eyes. "You know what I mean. Stop putting words in my mouth."

I pouted and crossed my arms.

Damon laughed before saying, "What you are forgetting is that with you as my 'hostage', there would have been even more pressure on Stefan. What with his girlfriend screaming at him to give me the book to save her precious twin sister."

I considered that logic for a moment. I had to admit, it did make sense. In a really weird way. I had seen the way Elena had looked at Stefan. If he didn't give up the grimoire, I honestly thought she would have flipped out at him. And if our positions were reversed, I would have done the same.

"I accept that answer," I finally declared.

"Oh thank god for that, I can live the rest of my eternal life in peace now that I know that."

"Oh shut up."

"So what do you think you'll do?" I asked the vampire as he sat down next to me. When he glanced over, I elaborated, "When you get your Katherine back?"

Damon shrugged, a small smile on his face, "I was thinking that I would show her the world. France, Italy, maybe even take her further east."

I couldn't help but smile with him, Damon had such a tender look on his face and I was so happy for him.

"I imagine the world has changed a lot since Katherine last saw it."

Damon shot me a smirk, "You can tell that by how short dresses are these days."

I laughed, "Must be so scandalous!"

"Incredibly," Damon wiggled his eyebrows, causing me to giggle. "But I think Katherine will enjoy the freedom. She hated being told what to do and with the freedom women have these days, she'll revel in it."

"I'm happy for you, Damon," my smile turned soft. "You'll be getting her back after so long."

The look on his face turned pensive as he gazed into the fire, "Sometimes it's hard to believe."

"You better believe," I grabbed his hand and gave it a quick squeeze. "Because I promise you that by the end of tonight, you will have rescued your girl from the tomb."

The emotion in the room must have been making the vampire uncomfortable as he made a snarky comment about how the sappiness was more his brother's scene. I laughed as Damon glanced down at his watch, declaring that we had to make a move. Personally, I thought it was a bit early, but I knew how eager he was to get his girl back. I was kind of curious to meet this Katherine. She looked identical to my sister. But from what I had heard, she sounded like a complete bitch. Although, that was from Stefan. So his view might be slightly biased.

I got up to leave but Damon, in a move that I probably should have been expecting, picked me up and swung me over his shoulder.

"Damon!" I whined, enjoying the view.

It was one that I would miss. My crush aside, Damon had become a good friend and I would miss him. I wasn't stupid enough to think that he would hang around in Mystic Falls once he had Katherine back. Neither of them had good memories in this town to want to stay. And besides, her resemblance to my twin would ask far too many questions.

Even though I was happy for him, I was sad that he would soon be leaving my life. I knew that it wouldn't be the same without him.

XXX

The party was in full swing when Damon and I arrived.

"Gee whizz, I haven't missed a Duke party in years," I mumbled, glancing around. There was a bonfire in one of the bigger clearings that the teens in town huddled around. There were various kegs scattered around the area and the air was filled with music and laughter.

Luke, Tyler and I always used to go together. We had a drinking competition to see who could drink that most beer bottles by the end of the party. Then Tyler's Uncle Mason would drive us back to Tyler's and give us an alibi. It was something that we did as a trio. Jazz had always excused herself and hung around with Caroline. This is the first year in forever that we haven't done it. Life was changing. And I honestly didn't know if that was a good thing.

A thought hit me and I groaned, "God, I hope they stay away from the church."

"Your hope, not mine," Damon drawled, placing his hand on my back to guide me forward.

"Don't be such a dick," I sighed, rolling my eyes. "But then again, that would be pretty impossible for you, eh bruv?"

Damon just gave me a look.

Haha, I laugh in your face.

I was so busy laughing at Damon in my mind that I didn't notice the two people standing in front of us. Damon grabbed the back of my jacket and yanked me backwards. I stumbled backwards and fell into the vampire. I quickly enjoyed the feel of his firm chest before I pushed myself upright. While it was nice of him to stop me from walking into them, he could have been a bit nicer about it.

Someone cleared their throat and I looked forwards. Caroline and Mat stood in front of us. They were such a cute couple! I was so happy for both of them. Especially Caroline. She needed a good boyfriend. Damon was too much of an ass for someone as sweet as Care. And besides, he was too busy being in love with another girl.

"Hey Alexa," Matt smiled.

"Mattie!" I laughed happily as I stepped forward to give him a hug. Oh Mattie, I love you. He was one of the nicest people that I knew. I hadn't seen him in ages. We had grown up together but since my sister ended their relationship, things had been a bit too awkward for us to properly hang out. And drunken catchups didn't count.

Matt laughed and returned the hug, rolling his eyes at my old nickname for him. When Matt released me, I turned to look at Caroline.

"Hey, Care-Bear," I smiled at her before giving her a hug too.

As I pulled back, I noticed Matt and Caroline link hands. Ah, Caroline is showing Damon that she has moved on from him. Nice move there, Care.

"Alexa, hey," she smiled, glancing over at Damon. "I haven't seen you in ages. Where have you been?"

"Long story, no time to tell it," Damon rudely interrupted with a roll of the eyes. Oh my god. Didn't he see that I was catching up with my friends.

I smacked his shoulder with the back of my hand before scolding him with a "She wasn't talking to you, you dick."

The look of shock on Caroline's face was hilarious. She was probably expecting Damon to rip my head off any second now. I'm probably one of the few people who can get away with doing that. Oh I love the power that I have over him.

"Sure she was," Damon smirked at me.

I rolled my eyes, "Not everything is about you."

"Uh, we haven't met. I'm Matt."

Dear, sweet Mathew interrupted our argument before it could lead to violence. And, knowing the two of us, that was very likely to occur. Especially since he had dared me on the drive over that I couldn't take him in a fight. Vampire-ness aside, I totally could. I got skillz.

"Matt. There's a reason you and I haven't met," Damon brushed Matt off and pushed me in the opposite direction.

"Oh my god!" I exclaimed, stumbling forward. "What did I just say to you?! Stop being rude to my friends!"

I turned my head to look back at the pair, "Guys, I am so sorry about this idiot. I'll speak to you later."

I then turned to glare at Damon and elbowed him. I'm willing to be that it hurt me than it hurt him. Not that I would ever admit it.

"For god sake Damon! Will you at least try and stop being such an ass to my friends?"

I turned to face the front and grumbled to myself. God. He was so annoying. I knew exactly what he was doing. Damon loved getting under my skin and then lording it over me. I think it was one of his favourite hobbies. I had noticed that he always followed a sweet moment with being an annoying little ass. Well, I say sweet. It was sweet for Damon.

"You know, if you keep frowning like that, you will get frown lines on that pretty little face."

I grinned happily at the familiar voice and turned around to see Tyler Lockwood standing behind us. He had a beer in his hand and a smirk on his face.

"Ty-Ty!" I beamed before running forward and leaping on him for a hug.

Luckily, he caught me. I remember when I did that when we were 6. He didn't catch me and I landed on the steps of the Lockwood property. I split my lip and had quite a huge gash along the side of my face. My mom went ballistic and we had to think of a reason that wouldn't get Ty in trouble. Fortunately, I already had a reputation for being a klutz. Which really should have been worrying.

"Alex!" Tyler laughed, spinning me around, being careful not to spill any beer on me.

We didn't let go of each other once the hug was finished. I felt safe in Tyler's arms. He was the older brother that I never had. And one of my partners in crime. We grew up together. Thick as thieves.

"How ya been?" I smirked up at him, stealing a sip of his beer.

"Same old. You?"

"I've been wallowing."

"Missing Luke, huh?"

"Yeah." I nodded sharply to accent my point. I want my Luke to come home. I missed him, even more than I did before. Dating him made me realise how much I loved having him around.

Tyler glanced behind me.

"What are you doing with Damon Salvatore?" he whispered into my ear.

Oh, if only he knew that Damon would be able to hear him anyway.

"Elena wants to spend the day with Stefan without dickface over there interrupting them," I whispered back. "So I decided to be an awesome twin sister and took Damon out for a while."

Tyler snorted, "You make him sound like a dog."

"Well, if the shoe fits..." I smirked, enjoying getting my revenge on the vampire.

A hand grabbed my jacket and pulled me away from Tyler. My bro let out a shout of protest but I sent him a reassuring look. It was sweet of him to worry but it was fine.

"Damon!" I whined, putting on my most pathetic pout. "I wanna be with my Ty-Ty!"

"Tough," Damon smirked before wrapping an arm around my waist and lifting me up. Way-Hey, free ride! I lifted my feet up so that Damon had to hold my entire weight.

"Buh bye Ty-Ty!" I shouted towards my Tyler as Damon carried me away. "Catch ya later!"

"Bye Alexa!" Tyler shouted back, shaking his head.

"Y'know, you're a very rude person," I commented as Damon walked through the woods.

I didn't get a verbal reply, but I looked up to see the vampire smirking.

XXX

It didn't take long for us to meet up with the rest of the team.

"Brother. Elena. Witches," Damon nodded at them as we walked towards them.

Damon put me down before disappearing down below. I noticed Stefan giving his brother a look but I ignored it. I knew that Stefan sometimes had doubts about my friendship with his brother. But I didn't care. I was old enough to make my own choices about who I was friends with.

"Ellie" I smiled as I walked over to my twin. Even though I knew exactly where she was and who she was with, I was still worried about her. Elena's little abduction adventures had put me back to square one with me being able to let my twin out of my sight for more than a couple of hours.

"Alexa," she greeted, pulling me in for a quick hug.

"How ya doin?" I asked her, pulling back to look her in the eyes.

"I just want to get this over with," she sighed, glancing around.

I nodded and turned to the others, "You heard the lady. We ready yet?"

"Yes," Bonnie replied, giving us an understanding look.

"Awesome!"

Let's get this shit over with.

XXX

The witches were setting up the finishing touches for their spell. Bennett senior was lighting the torches while Bonnie got the grimoire ready.

"Air. Earth. Fire."

"Water," Bonnie finished passing her Grams a bottle of water.

She poured it on the floor. Which, wasn't exactly what I was expecting. I thought it would have at least had to go into a bowl. Pouring it on the ground felt a little weird.

"That's it?" Elena questioned from where her, myself and the Salvatore's were standing by the entrance.

"As opposed to what?" Shelia smirked slightly, knowing what we were thinking.

"Huh, would've thought that it'd have been blessed or mystical or something," I commented with a shrug.

My attention was captured by a rustling sound from Damon's jacket. It was the blood bag that he had grabbed earlier. The slightly morbid part of me noticed that it was O neg. I don't know why that part fascinated me. But it reminded me of one of the conversations that I had had with Damon a while back. On whether the different blood types tasted different to each other. And what his favourite was. He didn't tell me his favourite, just made a snarky comment on how Gilbert blood was his favourite.

"What's that?" Stefan asked. Silly goose, it's a blood bag. Even I knew that.

"It's for Katherine," Damon replied, wrapping up the weird tube thing that was sticking out of the bag. "Gotta have something to get her going. Unless your girl or her sister are offering up a vein to tap."

Stefan gave his brother a dirty look before pulling his girlfriend close. There was silence for a few moments before Damon smirked at Stefan.

"Admit it. You can't wait to get rid of me."

"I can't wait to get rid of you," Stefan replied.

They shared some sort of secret smirk thing. Awwwwww, brotherly moment.

"We're ready."

XXX

The witches were chanting. No idea what they what they were chanting, but they were chanting something. They held each other's hands, eyes closed tight, as they drew on each other's strength.

"What are they saying?" Damon asked as the four of us watched on.

"Sounds like Latin," Stefan answered, his keen eyes watching closely.

Really? It doesn't sound like Latin. Not that I was an expert on Latin but I had watched enough Supernatural to be able to recognise some words.

"I don't think its Latin," my twin disagreed, her eyes narrowly slightly.

See, my twin agreed with me. She doesn't think that it's Latin, either.

The torches flared up and the humans in the room went nope. Elena moved closer to Stefan while I just stepped backwards. I just so happened to be moving closer to Damon. But who was going to say anything? Elena had her vampire and I had mine.

He lightly rested a hand on my back and I took that as an invitation to move closer. What the hell was happening?

There was movement behind us and I let out a small squeak. Glancing around, I covered it up with a deep cough, luckily, no one was going to call me out on my bullshit. Damon and I turned around to see the tomb door opening, revealing the darkness behind it. The smell emerging from the tomb had me wrinkling my nose. It was musty and damp with a hint of death.

"It worked," Bonnie gasped, leaning forward to look within the tomb. She sounded so amazed. Well, doesn't she sound confident in her abilities?

"Of course it worked," Bonnie's Grams said, looking as calm as she normally did.

"Don't you have some fires to build?" Damon turned and said to Stefan. The younger vampire spoke to my twin sister before disappearing to ground level. I watched him go, that guilty feeling sinking in my stomach. I knew it needed to be done. But the thought of executing all those vampires made me fell ill.

Damon stared at the two witches for a moment before sliding an arm around my waist. I glanced down at it before glancing up at the vampire.

"You ready?"

"Uhhh, ready for what?" I asked, my eyes wide. Had I missed something?

"You think that I'm gonna go in there by myself so that you can seal me in?" he scoffed, looking over at the witches in the room. He pulled me so that my back hit his chest. I really shouldn't be enjoying being this close to him considering he wanted me to go into that tomb with him.

Where is Luke when I need him?

"Damon, don't you dare take her in that tomb," Elena growled at the vampire, stepping forward

"I'll bring the walls down," Shelia threatened, an angry look on her face.

Awwww, I didn't know that she cared. Bless you Shelia. I've always liked you.

"You'll bring the walls down even if I don't," Damon argued sharply.

Ok, that's probably true. Neither Bonnie nor Shelia liked Damon that much. So it doesn't surprise me that they would be willing to do that. But then again, it was his own stupid fault for making enemies of them in the first place. He really was a twathead.

"Think I trust you?"

"As much as I trust you," Shelia countered, placing her hand on Bonnie's arm. Ooooh, nice comeback. And the winner of that round is Shelia Bennett. Yay! Go Shelia!

Damon did not look happy. Someone had best interrupt before blood is spilt. Maybe I should do it. it is me that they're fighting over. And isn't that just a brilliant boost for the ego?

"Look, guys, chillax," I intervened, riding to the rescue. "As flattered as I am by you lot fighting over me, I get what he's saying. He needs leverage. He needs to know that you're not going to close the tomb while he's still inside. I understand. I'll go in."

"Alexa, no!" Elena snapped, crossing her arms. She didn't look to happy at the prospect of me going into the tomb filled with desiccated vampires who would kill for some human blood... ok, I can see why she isn't too happy when I put it like that.

Meh, I'll be fine. I'll have Damon to protect me.

... Oh god, I'm doomed.

"Twinnie, calm down, I'll be fine," I assured her. "It's me. I'm always ok. You're not gonna get rid of me that easily. And besides, it makes sense. I gave him my word that nothing bad would happen tonight. This is the easiest way to keep that promise."

See how good I am at calming her down? It's the magic Alexa touch. And yes, that is trademarked. No stealing from Alexa the Awesome! Anyway, moving on... before you think that I am insane. Because I am not... honestly.

While I was reassuring my darling twin sister, Damon had found a torch. It was one of the fire ones from the circle. I have to admit, it took me a few seconds to realise where he took it from. I astound myself sometimes.

The fire illuminated his face, highlighting his sharp cheekbones and igniting his gorgeous eyes. And let's move on. Think of something else, Alexa. Hmmm, I've been thinking of buying a leather jacket. Damon makes wearing one look so badass. And I wanna look badass. I am badass. No should mess with Alexa. Alexa is da best.

"May I?" he asked, offering me his arm.

How on earth does he make such a gentleman like gesture look so patronising? And annoying. I rolled my eyes and accepted the arm. With a great amount of reluctance, may I add. I was not eager about it at all.

"As if I have a choice," I muttered before a thought occurred to me. Without letting go of Damon, I turned to look at the witches. Pointing at my sister, I ordered, "She is not to come into this tomb, no matter what. I don't care if you have to knock her out. Got it?"

Bonnie nodded despite the fact my sister looked pissed. But I didn't care. It was bad enough that I was going in there. I was not going to let my sister step foot in this tomb. Over my dead body.

Once I was reassured, I turned back to face the entrance. Oh joy, into the dark, dank, disgusting tomb we go.

XXX

The tomb was every bit as bad as I thought it would be. The air was tight and it was hard to breathe. The light of the torch revealed the odd rat skeleton and desiccated vampire. Each face was lined with pain and I felt so bad for them. They never chose this and now they were trapped in this place.

I huddled close to Damon, having let go of his arm to wrap mine around his waist. Don't judge me. This place was freaking me out. It was only my word to Damon that stopped me from getting the hell out.

When I had let go of his arm, Damon had seemed reluctant to let me go. I had frowned up at him as I had huddled closer.

"You know that I wouldn't let them lock you in here," I said firmly. "I promise."

Elena had thoughtfully given me a torch before I had entered the tomb, so I used that to look around. Well, I say thoughtfully. Unless her almost knocking me out could be considered thoughtful. But then again, being unconscious would mean that I didn't have to go with Damon into the tomb. Though he would probably wait for me to wake up before going in the tomb. He just loves annoying me that much. The dick.

As we walked further into the tomb, I kept expecting some sort of monster to come leaping around the corner and eat us. It was one of those places where you would set a horror story. And I had watched far too many of those in my short life. It was at times like this that I regretted letting Tyler and Luke talk me into watching those stupid films.

Damon hadn't found his Katherine yet and I was beginning to get bored, which was bad, I know. There was nothing to do in here. Other than walk and point a torch in different directions and avoiding looking at the desiccated vampires. And I can honestly say that watching paint dry is more fun than that. Believe me. I would know. Once, when we were all quite drunk, Tyler, Jazz, Luke and I painted on of the Nolan rooms, got a whole load of alcohol and munchies and sat in the middle of the room, watching the walls. We watched the paint dry. It was si fun! That is, until Heather Nolan walked in and freaked out about the fact that one of her rooms had been painted a different colour. Luke on exasperated the situation by saying that it was just a stupid old spare room. That no one used. And was ugly and outdated. I don't think that I have ever seen anyone turn that shade of red before.

Then, from out of nowhere, whispering echoed through the tomb. Creepy. Really creepy. I was really regretting watching all those horror films as a child. It was really screwing me up. What with vampires and witches actually being real.

"What the hell is that creepy whispering coming from?" I asked as I huddled even closer to Damon.

If anyone would know, it would be him. Besides, he was the only person around who I could actually ask. Unless I asked the walls. And I wouldn't exactly get a very good answer from them, now, would I?

"They can sense you," he replied distractedly, looking around. Well, that wasn't at all disturbing. Thanks for that Damon. I think that I preferred not knowing.

"Now, where is she?" Damon mumbled before disappearing. I staggered as I took a moment to regain my balance. Then I just stood there in shock for a few moments before I actually realised what he had done. He had ditched me! That asshole!

"Damon!" I exclaimed in a hiss. "Don't leave me here on my own!"

I stamped my foot in a temporary moment of childishness. So sue me, I know that I'm allowed to have some of those moments. I read the rules to being a teenager.

How dare he abandon me in this place! Not only was it extraordinarily rude. It was also rather dangerous. Only an idiot would leave a human on their own in a tomb of starving vampires. Oh, yeah, this is Damon that we're talking about. Ha ha, silly me.

I turned around and walked in the direction of the entrance of the tomb. Well, I would have done, if I could remember where the entrance was. It looked so different in torch light compared to candle light. Besides, I was following Damon. I didn't really expect him to desert me. Even if I probably should have done.

Ok, deep breaths, Alexa. You'll be fine. You'll get out of here. Stefan wouldn't let you be permanently abandoned in a tomb filled with vampires. Stefan likes you. And Elena would never let him forget abandon you.

"Damon?" I called, glancing around. My voice trembled. Damn. I was scared. I was really, really scared. As much as I would love to deny it. But only an idiot would not be scared right now. "Damon?"

I cursed as the torch flickered in my hand. Giving it a whack, I regretted letting Damon hold the good torch. The visibility this one was shocking poor. So poor, in fact, that I wasn't at all surprised when I tripped over something. I fell to the ground in a graceless heap, scraping my arm across the floor at the same time. Um, ow. Not good. So not good. I'm bleeding in at tomb of vampires who are craving blood. Today is just not my day.

Oh dear, the creepy whispering vampires were back. And they were even louder this time!

"Damon, I know you can hear me!" I hissed angrily, glancing around. "You better come back for me or I'm gonna kill you myself!"

No answer.

Not that I expected one. But it made me feel better.

I turned a corner. And ran into someone. Someone that wasn't Damon.

I gasped and fell back, pointing the light up. A girl that I didn't recognise stood in front of me. Her long black hair hung in front of her face as she gave me a dirty look.

"You Gilberts," she sneered, looking me up and down. "You just can't stay away, can you?"

It took me a second to realise who this newcomer was. And I was not happy. Right, Alexa, time to put on your drama shoes.

"You must be Anna," I glared at the little bitch. "So you're the bitch who kidnapped my sister. Oh boy, you are so lucky that I'm not driving a stake through your cold little heart."

"You're not strong enough," the girl scoffed, moving forward.

I sensibly took a step back for every step she took forward.

"I don't need to be, I just need to be angry enough," I countered with a raised eyebrow. I couldn't let her see how scared I was. Even if my heartbeat was probably giving the game away.

"You want to see angry?" Anna hissed, blurring forward and pushing me against the wall. "You should have seen me in 1864 when your sister's boyfriend got my mother captured."

I gripped the vampire's wrists, my heart pounding in my chest. But there was something in her words that caught my attention.

"That's why you're here, isn't it?" I gasped out, the stone at my back digging in painfully. "To save your mother."

Anna frowned and stepped back, releasing her grip. I breathed heavily, edging away a couple of steps.

"I just want her back," Anna admitted and my heart went out to her. I could completely understand. I would do anything to get my mom back. But to know that she was so close but you couldn't do anything? That must have been so painful. And to suffer like that for 145 years, I couldn't even imagine what that felt like.

"So let's get her back," I said simply.

Was I crazy? Probably. But even though this girl abducted my sister and threatened her life, I couldn't bring myself to hate her. All she wanted was to get her mom back. To save someone she loved. I understood that.

XXX

I led the way through the tomb, looking at every vampire we encountered. The tomb was a lot bigger than I expected with several rooms branching off the main corridor. Luckily, Anna's vampire sight made the challenge of finding her mom a lot easier.

Of course, that didn't make being with Anna a lot easier. She kept sneering about how this was all Stefan's fault and that bonding over dead mom's was not happening. But I ignored it. Either way, this girl was getting my help. Even if she didn't want it.

Behind me I could hear Anna murmur names of those she recognised. Billy, Harper, Bethanne, Fredrick, Kristina, Charlie. The name Kristina flickered in my mind, there was something familiar about it. But I pushed it away. It was something to think about when I wasn't in this damn tomb.

We entered one of the final rooms and I was praying that Anna's mom was in here. If she wasn't, then I could only imagine that she was one of the corpses that we had found. There weren't many, just a couple. But it gave an indication as to what had happened before these poor souls had desiccated. The emotions they must have been going through.

There was a strangled gasp behind me and Anna shoved past me. I staggered to the side, holding out a hand to stop my fall. Unfortunately, I didn't factor in the sharpness of the rock and hissed as it cut my hand. Well, that was even more super. Honestly, when would my body realise that this was like the worst possible place to be bleeding?

I glanced around for my companion and saw her crouching down in front of one of the bodies. I couldn't hear what she was whispering but from the way she was cradling the vampire, I could only guess that we had found her mom.

"That her?" I confirmed, crouching down next to the girl.

Anna smiled at the body in her arms, "It's her."

"Well, that's one problem sorted," I sighed as I rolled up my sleeve. Anna glanced over to me with a frown as I held out my bleeding hand.

"She needs to feed, right?" my heart was thudding in my chest but I refused to let myself regret what I was doing. "So, here you are."

Anna's eyes were full of suspicion, "Why are you doing this? Are you full of vervain?"

"Nope, no vervain in me," I huffed out a strangled laugh. Damnit Alexa, get a grip. "Look, you need blood for your mom and I am stupidly offering a vein. I suggest you accept it before I realise what I am doing and take back the offer."

I didn't get an answer. Instead, sharp fangs pierced my wrist before it was dragged to the mouth of the desiccated vampire in front of us. I winced and watched with morbid fascination as the lips clamped around the wound and started sucking. I honestly didn't know why I was doing this. Was it some kind of guilt that my ancestors did this? That Stefan did this? Or did I just want to help a lonely girl get her mom back when I couldn't?

I was lucky that Anna was around as I wouldn't have been able to stop the starved vampire from draining me dry. The girl roughly pulled my wrist away and began fussing over her mother.

"You're welcome," I mumbled with a roll of the eyes. My head felt woozy and I couldn't stop thinking about the fact that Elena and Stefan were gonna kill me. I could hear it now. 'What were you thinking offering your blood to a starved vampire?' 'Why are you so reckless?' Oh and Stefan's disappointed frown.

Yikes.

I needed to get my head together and hide this from them.

Anna helped her mother up from the ground and supported her weight. Even with my blood, she was still weak. So I let my heart continue to take control and wrapped her other arm around my shoulder's. Both vampires glanced over at me and I shrugged self-consciously.

"What?" I frowned. "She needs help and I'm willing to give it."

Luckily Anna didn't push the subject and instead led us back the to entrance of the tomb. It was slow going and it wasn't made any easier by the whispers echoing around us. My blood was calling out to them and I was lucky that they couldn't move. But as I went past, I could feel their red eyes on me. It made my skin crawl.

We got to the entrance and I stepped back, gesturing for the two vampires to go ahead of me. I could see my sister frowning from the other side of the chamber. It was such a relief to see her there. And I was so thankful that she hadn't followed me in. Stefan stood at her side; an arm wrapped around her waist. It was my guess that he was the reason why she was still safely outside the tomb.

"What's happening?"

Anna's sharp voice drew me from my thoughts. I frowned as she stepped forward but didn't move any further.

"Guys, why can't she leave?" I looked at the witches. Bonnie looked back with a guilty look on her face. Anna stepped back and I took the opportunity to move forward. My voice turned sharp. "You didn't lower the seal."

Bonnie glanced away from my accusing stare. My hands shook as I tried to control my anger. They lied to me. Because of them, I had betrayed Damon again. I gave him my word and they had broken it. How dare they.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I had to calm down. Just breathe, Alexa, breathe.

"Right, this is what is going to happen," I opened my eyes and looked at the witches. Sheila met my gaze while Bonnie couldn't. "You are going to lower the seal while I find Damon. He, Anna and her mom are going to leave. Then you will raise the seal again. Understood?"

"Why should we?" Sheila countered.

"Because I gave him my word," my tone was even and I think that scared Bonnie more. I was known to shout when I got mad. The fact that I was so quiet meant that I had passed anger and was well into the territory of furious. "And if you make me break my word, then I will never forgive you." I glanced behind me before adding, "And I will not leave this tomb."

"Alexa, you can't stay in there!" my twin snapped and I glared at her.

"If it means keeping my word then I fucking well will," I hissed, giving them all furious looks. "I will not let my friend be betrayed again. Do you understand?"

I watched as Bonnie and her Grams had a whispered conversation. Every glance that the younger witch gave me was drowning with guilt. And I couldn't bring myself to feel bad about that. They knew that I had given my word and they knew that Damon was my friend. I hated giving them an ultimatum but I didn't regret it.

"Even if we're able to break through the seal, we won't be able to hold it for long," Shelia spoke, agreeing to help me save my Salvatore.

XXX

The witches were once again chanting a spell. This time, they were actually lifting the seal which prevents the vampires from leaving the tomb. I honestly couldn't put it into words how pissed off I was that they didn't do it the first time. They almost made a liar out of me. And I don't like that.

Elena was pacing a circle around the witches while I stood in front of the tomb. My foot tapped against the ground. My heart thrummed with nervous energy. As an added incentive, I had sent Stefan in to retrieve his brother. I knew that Bonnie liked Stefan. So I had asked him to go find his brother. My sister sent me a betrayed look at that. But I didn't care. I didn't completely trust the witches to lower the seal. But with Stefan in there? I knew they would.

Come on witches, come on.

The torches flared and I looked up from where I was leaning against the entranceway to the tomb. Elena had tried insisting that I go and wait with them. But I refused. My threat was true. I would stay in the tomb until they got Damon out.

"I think its working!" Elena exclaimed, jolting me from my thoughts.

Right, time to test it.

I stepped to the side and gestured for Anna to go first. She helped her mother to her feet before escorting her out. I released the breath I hadn't realised I was holding when she walked through. It had worked.

"I just wanted my mother back," Anna said to my sister as Elena gave her a filthy look. "Jeremy's fine." What was that about my brother? "He's outside." Good. "I won't touch him." I'll kill you if you do.

She helped her mother up the stairs and disappeared.

The torches started to falter. Fuck. That's not good. My heart constricted in my chest. If they failed this time then I don't know if they would ever be able to do it. I watched with wide eyes as Bonnie's knees weakened. It was only the grasp of her Grams that kept the young witch on her feet.

"Bonnie, keep going!" Shelia encouraged her granddaughter, her voice weak. "They better hurry."

That's it.

I took a deep breath and turned back to face the tomb. I needed to go back in there myself and get my vampire. There was no way that I was letting Damon remained trapped in this accursed place. No way in hell.

"Alexa!" Elena shouted after me.

"Ellie, stay there!" I shouted over my shoulder. "Go check on Jeremy!"

Hopefully, for once, she'll listen to me. Apparently, she did. Thank god.

"Stefan, they can't hold it for much longer!" Elena's voice echoed around the tomb.

Come on boys, where are you?

I looked around. Come on. Come on.

... Was that Stefan's voice?

It damn well was!

I raced in the direction that the Salvatore boys were.

Come on Alexa, run faster.

"No!" Damon shouted, his voice making me run faster.

I turned the corner to see Damon standing across the room from me. There was the most heart-breaking look of loss on his face. Oh Damon. I had a really nasty feeling that I knew what had caused it. and I really didn't want to be right.

I skidded to a stop. Well, I tried to. But I tripped over a random stone on the floor. I went careening into the older vampire. Damon's hands shot to my elbows to steady me and I rested my hands on his shoulders.

I looked up into his ice blue eyes. The look of heartbreak in them nearly broke mine. Katherine, the bitch, wasn't there. She wasn't in the room. She wasn't in the tomb. She had never been in the tomb. And she hadn't tracked Damon down. All this time, he had loved her and planned for her release. And she had abandoned him.

"Damon, we've gotta go," I frantically told him. "Please, come on."

I twisted the collar of his jacket between my fingers as I waited for his answer. His eyes stared down into mine. I remained silent but tried to show the urgency in my gaze. Eventually, he nodded slightly and I sighed in relief.

"Thank you," I whispered as I let go of his jacket and grabbed his wrist.

Stefan took the lead and I followed, pulling Damon with me.

XXX

We just made it out of the door before it closed.

Stefan immediately ran over to my twin while Damon just stood there, staring at the door.

"Jeremy!" I gasped before racing up the stairs. Elena had either not heard my request to go see him or she had ignored it. But it didn't matter. I was going to him now. I skidded to a stop by his side and thanked god that he was okay. I knelt down beside him as Elena and Stefan joined me.

"Baby brother?" I asked, tapping his face, desperately trying to wake him.

"He's ok," Stefan assured us.

Jeremy groaned slightly. Damnit Jer, don't scare me like that.

I heard footsteps and glanced up to see Damon walking up the stairs.

He looked so lost. And sad. I'd never seen Damon Salvatore look like that. And I never thought that I would. I hoped that never would.

I slowly stood up and walked towards him. Letting Elena take my place at Jeremy's side.

Damon turned to face me.

I gently cupped the side of his face before wrapping my arms around him.

"I'm so so sorry," I whispered in his ear. I was so mad on his behalf. Katherine had proven what she was worth. And that was nothing. She had betrayed and abandoned Damon. He had loved her for 145 years only to be thrown to the side.

He didn't return the hug but he did rest his head on my shoulder.

Oh Damon.

XXX

"How's ya head, baby bro?" I asked as Elena passed Jeremy a glass and some pills.

He was sitting on his bed and I was sitting behind him.

"Uh, it's alright," Jer answered with a sigh. "I just... I wish I knew how I passed out. I didn't drink that much, I swear."

I patted him on the shoulder.

"We know that you didn't," I assured him, making sure he drank all of the water.

"You don't remember anything?" Elena asked, frowning. Anna sure had done a good job at covering her tracks.

"The whole thing's pretty cloudy," he replied. "I know how this looks, I'm sorry."

"Oi, don't be sorry, there's nothing to be sorry about," I told him before kissing the side of his head. "It's not your fault that Anna got you from behind."

"Alexa!"

Aunt Jenna's voice interrupted our little sibling moment.

"Coming!" I shouted down the stairs. "Looks like I'm going." I pointed at my sister. "Get it through his thick head that it's not his fault that Anna knocked him out."

I waited until my sister nodded before leaving the room. Trotting the stairs, Aunt Jenna stood by the front door, speaking to someone outside.

"There's someone here to see you," she smiled at me when I got halfway down.

Ooooh, wonder who that could be. I excitedly hopped down the last few stairs before flinging open the front door all the way.

"Luke!" I laughed happily at the sight of my gorgeous boyfriend.

"Hey babe," he smirked at me, holding his arms open.

I happily flung myself at him. Our lips met. I groaned in satisfaction.

"God, I missed you so much," I panted when we separated.

"I missed you too," he grinned. "I also missed this."

He leaned in for another kiss.

Someone cleared their throat from behind us.

We pulled apart and looked behind me to see Aunt Jenna, Elena and Jeremy smirking at us.

"PDA, much?" Elena said with a raised eyebrow.

"You and Stefan, much?" I retaliated.

She laughed, "I need to get through the front door. Jenna is going to go sit with Jeremy. "

"Sweet," I nodded. "Go for it, see ya later twinnie."

I pulled Luke through into the living room. He sat down on the sofa and pulled me onto his lap. I giggled and wrapped my arms around his neck.

"How you been?" he asked.

"Wallowing," I pouted.

"Awwww, did you miss me?"

"As a matter of fact; I did."

"I missed you too."

"Of course you did. It's me. Everyone misses Alexa the Awesome."

"Careful babe, your ego's inflating."

I rolled my eyes, "Like yours isn't bigger than mine."

"Good point."

"I know," I smirked before leaning in for another kiss.

XXX

A/N: I hope you are enjoying the changes I've been making. This one I wasn't entirely sure on but I went with my gut and went for it. Please review, my lovelies, and I hope you enjoyed xoxo