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!

61. Break On Through

Disclaimer: I only own my OCs

A/N: Merry Christmas :) We're getting into the final few episodes of the season, so exciting! While a bit more of a plot focused chapter compared to the previous one, we also get some lovely bonding moments! And some fun ;)

XXX

Meredith had arranged for me and Ric to get scans at the hospital. She was determined to rule out all potential medical solutions before we turned to magical ones. I didn't care what she was doing, I just wanted to be fixed. Ever since I found out that my ring had made me go insane, I hadn't been able to relax. The fact that I could have killed someone during my blackouts was terrifying.

Damon and Elena had barely left my side. Despite their bitter disagreement over how Stefan should be taught control, they had acted civil for my benefit. The fact that I had been pushed into my third panic attack of the day after finding out the truth had probably helped. Even though there was no guarantee that that was the cause, even though it almost certainly was, I had immediately given my ring to Damon. I didn't want to even look at it. The thought that it had done this to me made me feel sick.

I had my scan first. And I hated it. The tube was too small, I was stuck staring at myself in the weird little mirror that they had. It was horrible. It was only because they had left the microphone, so that I could hear my family's voices, that I didn't freak out. It was close. To be honest, I was close to freaking out ever since the theory was put forward. And, deep down, it felt like the reason why this was happening. Both Ric and I had rings. We had both died the same amount of times. The same thing was happening to us. It just made sense.

After my scan, I retreated to the control room. I knew that I should get changed back into my proper clothes, instead of the comfortable ones that I had put on for all the tests, but I just wanted to wrap myself in my sister's arms. We had properly forgiven each other for what happened the night of the ball. This was too important, and I knew that I couldn't get through this without my twin's support.

So I stood in Elena's arms, while we watched as Ric got ready for his scan. My arms were wrapped tightly around my sister and I heard her sigh as she adjusted me into a more comfortable position. But she didn't try to move me away. I think this whole thing was scaring her just as much.

"What are you looking for?" Jenna asked quietly, one of her hands resting on my back as she glanced over at Meredith. Our aunt was another person who wasn't dealing well with this. Not only was her boyfriend going insane, so was her niece. We were just lucky that Meredith was determined to help and was able to look after Jenna too. Since none of the rest of us were in a good position to.

"I don't know," the doctor sighed, shaking her head. "A tumour, vascular anomalies, anything physical that might explain their behaviour. It it's medical, I can treat it."

"And if it's not?" my sister couldn't stop herself from asking.

Meredith glanced over at her, a comforting look on her face, "Well, then we'll deal with that too."

Once he had been given the signal, the technician in the room slid Ric into the machine. The technician who was with us started the MRI machine. I hated that machine. And I wished that I never had to go inside it again.

"When did you start to suspect him?" Jenna's voice was the only noise in the room. "That it was Ric who was killing all those people?"

Might have been the one killing them. I could have killed them too. Hell, we might have even killed them together. Like some kind of sick game. Oh god, Alexa, stop thinking about that.

Meredith glanced away from the screen to shrug gently, "It was after you told me about his ring. I remembered a story my grandmother had told me about Samantha Gilbert and her secret journal. I don't know if you know this, but we Fells are notorious busy-bodies."

"But then, why did you protect him?" my sister frowned, carefully shifting me so that I wasn't looking at the machine that I hated so much.

"Because I'm a doctor," Meredith replied softly, a pensive look on her face as she looked at the screen. "I don't like to see someone hurt by something that they have no control over. And because… I had never seen Jenna so happy as I did when she was with him. I just kind of want to help him."

"And I appreciate that," my aunt rested a hand on her friend's shoulder. "We all do."

"I'm just sorry for what happened before," the doctor sighed, looking truly regretful.

"It's fine," I mumbled into my twin's shoulder. "Don't worry about it. Water under the bridge."

Meredith gave me a grateful smile before glancing down at the monitor. I had no idea what she was seeing, but it was enough to put a frown on her face. She flicked on the microphone and asked, "Everything alright in there?"

There were a few seconds of silence before Ric replied, "Yeah. Yeah, everything's okay."

"That machine sucks," I muttered, grateful for the fact that I was no longer looking at it. "I hate it. And poor Ric does too."

"You don't need to go in there again, Alexa," Meredith gave me a kind smile. "I've done all the tests that I need to do. Once Ric is done, I can sign you two out of here."

"Oh yay," I sighed, scrunching up my nose in annoyance. "Back to lunatic watch at home."

"Not quite," Jenna spoke up and I glanced over at her. "Damon's taking us to the Wickery Bridge Restoration Fundraiser."

"I don't know if that is any better," I said dubiously, thinking about all of the stuffy people that would be there. As well as the history that my family had with the bridge. The only good thing would be spending time with Damon. And I might even be able to get some alone time with him.

XXX

After Ric had finished his scan, Elena whisked me away to the room that had been officially allocated to me. Since Meredith had used her influence to get out tests done quickly, the room was only really being used to store my clothes. And it was somewhere that I could hide when it all got a bit too much. Which was like, all the time, really, but I didn't want to admit that.

I slid on a jumper and swapped my trackies for jeans. To be honest, I would have much rather gone back home and curled up in my bed with Damon. But that wasn't really an option. My boyfriend didn't tend to go to these things unless there was a reason. And those reasons were usually related to plotting.

Ellie did my laces up for me while I sipped at the can of soda that she had got for me. I was content to let her mother me. I kind of needed it. And it helped her cope with her worry.

"I would have gotten you coffee," my sister sighed, gesturing to the can held close to my chest. "But, well, you know what hospital coffee is like…"

She trailed off as I pulled a face, "It's yucky. And yucky coffee is the last thing that I need."

Once she was content that I was ready, Elena picked up my bag and wrapped an arm around my shoulders, leading me from the room. I rested my head against hers as I was directed to the room that Ric had been given. It wasn't too far away from my one. Which was quite lucky. And quite likely only happened due to Meredith's influence.

Ellie knocked on the door and Jenna opened it, letting us inside. Our other guardian was tucking his wallet and keys into his pocket. And I spied his Gilbert ring sitting on the table, glinting evilly in the sunlight.

"Meredith says that everything is normal," my sister informed the group. She had seen the doctor while she was getting me my drink. Normally Elena wouldn't have left my side while we were here, but she knew that I needed caffeine. I had barely slept since the other night where Meredith revealed her theory. And I had been dosing up on caffeine as a result. Normally, my sister wouldn't tolerate that. But I guess this was extenuating circumstances.

"Yeah, well, everything is normal," Ric rolled his eyes, sounding frustrated. "Because there is nothing wrong with me. I didn't kill Brian Walters, I didn't kill Bill Forbes, and I sure as hell didn't shove a hunting knife into my stomach."

Apparently, Ric was in denial. Surprisingly, I hadn't gone down that route. But I think I had been panicking over the blackouts a lot more than he had. So the fact that I had an answer was a relief and a curse. Maybe that was why I had latched onto this.

The hunter looked down at the ring. He hadn't even tried to pick it up, and I had seen his eyes glance over at my ringless hand. It felt weird, not wearing it anymore, since I had been wearing it for so long. But I couldn't stomach the thought of touching it anymore.

"Or I did and I've gone insane, just like your ancestor who wore that ring," he sighed, shaking his head. Samantha Gilbert had worn my ring. Her grandfather, Jonathan Gilbert, had worn the ring that Ric had. Jeremy had the ring that belonged to one of the other family members. I wanted to get rid of his one as well, but I also didn't want him to find out about this. He was doing well up in Denver. I didn't want to ruin that.

"Look, I'm gonna call Bonnie," Elena revealed as Jenna tugged me over to one of the chairs. She sat me down and started to redo my hair for me. It was still tied up in a messy bun from where I needed it out of the way for all the tests. "The rings were made by a Bennett witch so maybe a witch can reverse the damage."

"I hope something does," I muttered while Ric pushed his ring towards my sister. She looked down at it before glancing up at the hunter.

"Take it," he said, refusing to look at the evil piece of jewellery. "I don't want it anymore."

I could tell that Elena wanted to protest, but she glanced over at me, at my bare hand, before nodding. She picked up the ring and tucked it into her pocket. Hopefully, without the rings, there would be no more blackouts. And no more deaths. I still didn't know how many I had been involved in. But I just couldn't shake the feeling that I had been involved. And I hated it.

Movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention, and I turned to face the door. Damon's gaze immediately met mine, glancing me up and down to make sure that I hadn't got into any trouble since he last saw me. Which was kind of unfair for him to be thinking. I didn't get in trouble all the time.

"You ready to ditch this House of Horrors?" he asked, opening his arms for me. Jenna had let me get up from the chair and the first thing I did was step into those arms. I buried my face against my vampire's chest as he held me tight. He glanced over at Ric and winced dramatically. "Ooh, you look terrible."

You could how bothered Ric was by the whole situation as he didn't argue or even roll his eyes. He just sighed, "Yeah, let me… let check outta here."

We watched him walk out the room with a sad look. I think this was hitting Ric harder than it was hitting me. Although, my strangely zen attitude, and lack of full-blown panic attacks, was weird. And I knew that it was only a matter of time before it all caught up to me. It was just a matter of when it would happen.

Elena watched him leave, before giving Damon a filthy look and following the teacher from the room. I wasn't surprised that she had done it, but I thought that she would be a bit more sly about it. my sister knew that I didn't like it when they fought. But maybe the stress was getting to her.

"Come on, Ally," Damon sighed into my hair, resting his hand on the back of my neck. "Let's get you checked out of here too."

XXX

Damon barely left my side while I got checked out of the hospital. Most of it was due to worry. He knew that I was on the edge of a breakdown, and I knew that he would want to be there when it happened. The other part of it was because he was being a possessive little shit. He hadn't been too pleased when he found out about my little adventure with Klaus. He had muttered something under his breath before thoroughly ravaging me. He trusted me when I said that nothing happened. But he was grumpy that Klaus had managed to manipulate me into spending the day with him.

It was equal parts annoying and adorable. But either way, it meant that Damon only left my side to go help Stefan have a lesson in self-control. And when that happened, he forbade me from leaving the house unless the others were with me.

As we walked outside, I had reached the point where I was resting most of my weight against my boyfriend. Despite my caffeine hit earlier, I was getting tired again. It was a bone-deep kind of tired. Where I was just exhausted and done and all I wanted was my bed. But I wasn't going to get that any time soon.

Elena wasn't accompanying us to the fundraiser. Stefan had found some information regarding the original Gilbert psycho, and so, Elena was going to head to the Boarding House to get that information. I knew that she wanted me to go with her, but I just wanted to spend time with Damon. I knew that he would look after me, and that I didn't have to think about anything while I was with him.

My boyfriend was doing a very poor job at reassuring my sister, "Don't worry about them. I'll take them out for chicken soup, get them a martini or three, and make sure that they don't kill anybody."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, I couldn't stop myself from snorting at his words. Ellie was kind enough not to judge me for my amusement, but she didn give Damon a dirty look. Again. Honestly, she should be careful. She was using all of her evil looks, and she would run out looks to give him.

"What is wrong with you?" my twin snapped, while Ric and Jenna walked on ahead. "How could you just go out feeding with Stefan like some vampire pub crawl?"

"Oh right," my vampire rolled his eyes, tugging me slightly closer. "I thought that we were talking about Alexa and Alaric, but of course, we're talking about Stefan."

"S'always about Stefan," I muttered into his chest. Luckily, Elena didn't hear me. But that didn't stop her from spinning around and storming up to us. Her eyes were narrowed and I knew that this was finally the argument. They had been dancing around the Stefan situation for a while. But apparently, that wasn't going to last any longer.

"You stood there and let him feed on an innocent girl," she spat, just about aware enough to keep her voice down. Damon had told me what he was doing that night. Why he had encouraged his brother to feed on a girl. And why Rebekah was with them. I didn't judge him for it. It was like I said to Elena, Stefan needed to learn moderation, to learn control. They only way that he could do that was to feed on people.

"I didn't let him do anything," my vampire snapped back, narrowing his eyes. "If you want to get nit-picky about it, I made him."

"Why would you do that?" my stubborn twin demanded. She knew exactly why he would do that. She just didn't want to admit it to herself. She had fallen in love with Stefan the Bunny Eater. The safe Stefan. The Stefan that didn't feed on people. But, in some ways, that made him more dangerous. He had proven before that he wasn't able to control himself. And even if Klaus hadn't come along, there was no guarantee that he would have stayed on the bunny diet. At least with Damon, he embraced what he was. And he could feed from me if he needed to without trying to kill me.

"Because we're vampires, Elena," Damon rolled his eyes, his tone derisive. "We need human blood to survive. We're predators, not puppies."

"Well, Stefan found a way around it before," my sister was not to be persuaded otherwise. Her stubbornness was useful at times. But right now, it was just annoying.

"Stefan has built himself a delusional wagon which he has repeatedly fallen off of," Damon contradicted sharply, moving his hand to my cheek. He pressed my face further against his chest, almost as though he was trying to protect me from his words. "What he needs to learn is control."

"He was able to manage when he was drinking my blood," Ellie shook her head, refusing to listen to my vampire's words. Even though he knew better than she did. He had been around Stefan ever since they were turned. He knew what Stefan's hunger was like. Whereas my sister didn't know as well, during their time together, the younger vampire had tried to protect her from the truth about his dark side. And even though she had seen it since, she still didn't know it properly. "Small amounts every single day."

"Ah yes," Damon sighed mockingly, looking up at the sky. "Back when you two were in love and it was all rainbows and unicorns."

My twin narrowed her eyes and ground her teeth, "I'm just saying, maybe you're not the right person to be teaching Stefan about self-control."

With that said, Elena turned on her heel and flounced over to our car. She gave my vampire one more dirty look before getting in. As she drove off, I rolled my eyes and sighed, "If it was any other person, she wouldn't be acting like this."

"But because she still loves Stefan, she is," Damon shook his head, and I tilted my head back to look at him.

"You really think that she still loves him?" I asked, a small frown on my face. I had suspected that before, but I thought that I was wrong. But if Damon had seen it too, then maybe I was actually on the right lines.

"Yep, not that she will admit it," my boyfriend ran his nose against my cheek. "But I know the signs well enough."

"Yeah?" I giggled as he nipped at my earlobe before pulling me in for a kiss. I melted in his arms, enjoying the feel of him against me. It had been far too long, and I knew that this would be the perfect distraction. But unfortunately, we had places to be. Which sucked.

XXX

Going back to Wickery bridge was a weird feeling. I had successfully managed to avoid it since Stefan went all psycho and threatened to drive me and my twin off of it. I didn't really want to be here, but I knew that it was important that I came. It would help me take my mind off of the fact that I was going insane because I had died too many times.

The Founder's Council were already here, mingling with the townsfolk who apparently had nothing better to do. Construction workers milled about, getting everything ready to being the restoration. My guess was that they would officially start everything once Mrs Lockwood had made a speech. That's how it normally worked.

I happily stood in Damon's arms, letting him direct me as needed. I knew that he was wary about letting me leave his side. And I wasn't about to argue that. After everything that had happened over the past few days, hell, the past few weeks, being coddled by my boyfriend felt nice.

"Rebekah's up to something," my boyfriend gestured over to the blonde Original who was talking to Mrs Lockwood. "She's been snooping around in places that she shouldn't be."

"What is she after?" I asked quietly while my boyfriend adjusted my coat so that it was covering more of my neck. I had foolishly forgotten to bring my scarf along and that meant that I was colder than I would have liked.

"I'm not sure," Damon groused, sounding grumpy that he didn't know the details of someone else's diabolical plan. It was quite funny. Back in the day, the vampire holding me was the one who came up with all the diabolical plans. And here we were, trying to work out someone else's.

"Tell me again," Ric sighed, shaking his head. "Why are we here?"

Damon rolled his eyes and glanced over at the hunter, "Ric, the world can't stop just because you and Alexa are accidental psycho killers. My girl is playing along, why can't you?"

"Damon," Jenna hissed, looking a combination of shocked and amused. "You can't just say that. Don't you have any tact?"

I managed to style out my snort into clearing my throat. But judging from the look that my vampire gave me, he didn't quite believe it. Fortunately, I was saved by the arrival of one Carol Lockwood.

She approached us with a smile, looking at Ric, "Alaric, I'm glad you're here. Did you bring the sign?" Poor Ric so confused as he exchanged a glance with Jenna. Mrs Lockwood must have realised as she elaborated, "The restored Wickery Bridge sign. The history department promised me that you'd have it today."

It was clear that the teacher had no idea what she meant, but he forced a smile, "I-I don't have the sign actually, it slipped… it slipped my mind. I've been… busy."

"It's my fault, Carol," my aunt spoke up, saving her boyfriend from being scolded. "He's been helping me look after Alexa the past few days. She hasn't been feeling very well."

The mayor glanced over at me. She must have believed it. The way that Damon was protectively holding me against him probably helped. Mrs Lockwood nodded, a weak smile on her face, "Well, it's not an emergency. We'll just, um, unveil it when the bridge is complete."

With that said, the mayor retreated back into the crowd, probably looking for her aide. The poor guy. Knowing Mrs Lockwood, she would grouse at him over this for a little while. Luckily, Paul had had enough experience dealing with this that it wouldn't bother him too much. But still, my heart went out to the poor guy.

The conversation with Mrs Lockwood must have pushed Ric over the edge, as he groaned, "Get me outta here."

Jenna nodded sympathetically, "Let's go." She glanced over at me, "Alexa, are you okay to stay here?"

I held up my thumb, giving her a thumbs up, "I'm good."

My lovely aunt must have realised that I did not want to move away from Damon, so she nodded and took Ric's hand in hers. I watched as she gently tugged him back towards his car, a sweet look on her face. I knew that they would probably head home, where Meredith would meet them. She had said something about dropping by once she had properly examined all of the test results.

Once my guardians were out of sight, I glanced up at my boyfriend. He was staring into the crowd, a surprised look on his face. I followed his gaze and narrowed my eyes when I saw that he was staring at a woman. A beautiful, red-headed woman. Who smiled back at my vampire when she saw him staring at her.

I squeezed Damon a bit tighter as I ground out, "Who is that?"

I felt Damon smirk into my hair as he replied, "A blast from the past."

Damn, had he heard the jealousy in my voice? You know what, I don't care if he did. He was my vampire, and I had every right to be jealous. But that didn't stop me from grumbling slightly as he led me over to her.

The female vampire glanced me up and down, looking distinctly unimpressed. I just narrowed my eyes at her and did the same.

"Damon Salvatore," the redhead purred, switching her attention to my boyfriend. "My favourite student."

"Sage," Damon nodded back, his thumb stroking my hip. "My favourite teacher. What are you doing here?"

"I'm just passing through," Sage shrugged, the smirk on her face killing her attempt at mystery.

"Oh come on," my vampire rolled his eyes playfully, sounding even more intrigued than before. "Nobody just passes through Mystic Falls."

It was then that it clicked in my mind. The conversation a few mornings ago. Where Damon said that someone had taught him how to enjoy being a vampire. I don't know why I thought that it was her. Maybe it was because Damon called her his favourite teacher. Or maybe it was the way that she was looking at my vampire. But either way, I wanted to speak up to stop her from looking at him like that.

"Is this the person that taught you how to enjoy what you are?" I asked, drawing Sage's attention back to me. I met her stare head on. I wasn't about to let her intimidate me.

"Yep, this is the one," Damon nodded, and I tried to ignore the smug look in his eyes. I knew that I was being a bit obvious with my jealousy. But I couldn't help it. It had been a long few days and I was entitled to be jealous when some woman gave my boyfriend looks. "Sage, meet Alexa Gilbert. Alexa, meet Sage. She was in town during the early 1910s."

"Hmm, interesting," I muttered as someone new made an appearance. Rebekah walked up to us, a look of disdain on her face as she looked at Sage. And even though I was grumpy with the blonde for her threatening to kill my twin in the tunnels, I was pleased that she didn't seem to like Sage either.

"Look what the cat dragged in," the Original sneered, looking at Sage with contempt.

"Easy there, Rebekah," Damon sounded far too amused for my liking, and I had to fight not to roll my eyes. "You know she used to beat men for sport."

"She always was quite common," Rebekah glanced over at me, noting the unhappy expression on my face as I stared at the redhead.

"Rebekah," Sage looked as happy to see Rebekah as Rebekah was to see her. "What a happy surprise."

My friend gave up on the pleasantries as she glared, "What are you doing here, Sage?"

The redhead glared back, a fake smile on her face, "Well, I heard that Finn was finally freed from that casket your rageaholic brother Klaus carted him around in."

"Mmm, Finn, you just missed him," Rebekah looked like she was enjoying giving Sage bad news. And I enjoyed her enjoyment. "He left town and didn't tell a soul where he was going."

Sage tried to style it out, and failed miserably, "He probably went looking for me."

I snorted, and didn't even bother try to hide it this time. Rebekah looked quite savagely amused as she smirked, "Or, quite possibly, he forgot all about you."

The redhead looked shaken, but that didn't stop her from narrowing her eyes, "I doubt that."

"No?" the blonde feigned innocence as she paused to think for a second. "Cos he didn't seem to mention you. Sorry you came all this way for nothing. Have a nice life."

The Original shot me a wink before walking off. And I suddenly loved her even more than I did before. Yeah, I barely knew Sage, but I got bad vibes from her. Probably because of the way that she stared at my boyfriend. But either way, I didn't like it. And I liked that Rebekah dragged her and tormented her.

Sage glared at Rebekah's retreating back, "God, I hate that elitist Original bitch."

"Really?" I shrugged innocently when Sage turned her angry eyes to me. "Cos she just so happens to be one of my best friends."

XXX

Despite my jealousy, I didn't stop Damon from going for a walk with Sage, to catchup. I really didn't want him to. Sage looked at me like I wasn't worth her time, and I hated that. And I didn't want that bitch to spend any time around my vampire. But I had no valid reason for stopping him, since my jealousy wasn't a legitimate reason. For his part, Damon promised to come back to me soon, and had pointed Rebekah out in the crowd so that I had someone to talk to.

I approached the Original and crossed my arms, "So, Sage seems like a bitch. How do you know her?"

"She's been obsessed with my brother Finn, for over 900 years," Rebekah rolled her eyes. "He used to sneak off to be with her, before Nik daggered him."

"So she's been waiting for him for over 900 years?" I raised an eyebrow. "Yikes."

"She tried following us for a few decades, waiting for an opportunity to 'rescue my brother' but she quickly fled when Kol threatened to rip her head off," the blonde shrugged.

"Damn, if only he had followed through," I muttered, glaring in the direction that Sage had taken my boyfriend.

"Why don't you like her?" Rebekah asked, glancing over at me.

"She looked at me like I was dirt," I scoffed, scuffing my foot against the ground. "Like she would take Damon from me because I was worthless in her eyes."

Not even Klaus had looked at me like that. Yeah, he had looked at me like I was annoying, like I was a pest, but he never looked at me like he thought that I was dirt. Which, having met fucking Sage, was something that I apparently admired about him.

"What a bitch," the Original rolled her eyes before glancing over at me, speaking slowly as she changed the subject. "I'm sorry for threatening Elena, down in the tunnels. I wouldn't say that I regret it, because it saved my family. But… I do regret that it hurt you."

I turned to look at her. For her part, Rebekah did look like she meant what she said. And I respected her for that. I knew that she was only looking out for her siblings, and it would be hypocritical of me to be mad at her for that. Besides, she still reminded me of my lost friend. And I just… I didn't want to be mad at her.

"It's cool, I understand," I nodded before wincing. "I mean, I did dagger Kol. So I guess we're a bit even."

Rebekah sounded surprised, "You daggered Kol?"

I liked to think that I heard an impressed tone to her voice, but I pushed it from my mind as I shrugged, "He did try to compel me so that he could 'play' with me. So he did have it coming."

"He never told me that before he fled town," the Original muttered to herself, her eyes narrowed. It was sweet that she was annoyed by that. It was moments like that, which made me feel like I was right in wanting to be her friend.

So I shuffled closer to her, resting my hand on her shoulder as I said softly, "I'm sorry that your mom wanted to kill you. That sucks… and I hate that you had to go through that."

Rebekah's eyes softened as she looked over at me, "Thank you, Alexa. That means a lot. I haven't really had anyone to talk to about it. Nik was the only one who stayed in town and he hasn't wanted to talk about it."

"That doesn't surprise me," I sighed, wrapped my arm around the blonde's shoulders. "If you do want to talk about it, I'm here for you. I haven't really had the same experience, but I'm good at listening. And, if you're really lucky, I might even show my care through baked treats."

"I heard that you did that," Rebekah laughed, a shaky edge to her voice. "Thank you for offering."

"You're my friend," I muttered and cleared my throat. "I like to help my friends."

I was saved from the emotional conversation by the arrival of my vampire. Damon passed me a cup of water, taken from the refreshments table, before glancing at the Original by my side.

"Rebekah, glad to see that you're playing nice," he smirked at her, wrapping an arm around my waist while I sipped at my water.

"Why wouldn't I play nice with Alexa?" the blonde scoffed, shaking her head. "I actually like Alexa. I just don't like you. You were quite rude the other day, using me to help you with Stefan and then shooing me away like a stray dog."

"Oh, but that was brother business," Damon pouted, and I rolled my eyes at him. "You can't hold that against me. Besides, I really did appreciate your help, even if I didn't show it."

Rebekah narrowed her eyes and sniffed, "You were mean."

"He just acts mean," I interjected. "But come on, Bekah, you know you enjoy it. As a younger sibling, it's obvious that you do."

"No, I don't," the Original protested, glancing away.

Damon, sensing the opportunity, tease, "No? You didn't get a thrill back there, pushing Sage down, crushing her dreams of true love?"

Rebekah cleared her throat and shrugged, "Maybe a little." But you could see the smile on her face as she remembered tormenting Sage. I was smiling too. If I had to deal with Sage, at least I had Rebekah around to be mean to her too. It made me feel a bit better.

"Knew it," I laughed and my friend rolled her eyes at me.

"Why don't you come back to the Boarding House for a drink?" Damon suggested, his sharp eyes studying her, despite the casual look on his face. "Sage will be there."

"Ugh, seriously," I groaned dramatically, throwing my head back. "Why does she have to be there?"

"She wants to spend some time catching up," my vampire shrugged and I scrunched up my nose in annoyance.

"Sage wants to fuck off," I muttered. My words must have made up Rebekah's mind as she jerked her head in a nod.

She held up her hand, pointing at my boyfriend, "I'm only going because Alexa is. And I don't want her to be dealing with Sage by herself."

"Good enough for me," Damon nodded with a smirk. "See you soon."

XXX

While we waited for Rebekah, I took advantage of the peace and quiet to go lay down in Damon's bed. I curled up under the covers, and closed my eyes. I knew that I wouldn't be able to fall asleep, and I didn't want to, if I was being honest. But it gave me a chance to just reset and take a breather. Which would be much needed since I would be hanging out with Sage. Ugh, fucking Sage.

I wouldn't have hated her so much, if she didn't look at me like I was some kind of parasite. But she did. And I didn't like it. So, I refused to play nice. I think Damon understood, as he didn't even try to ask me to play nice. He just told me that I could get as drunk as I wanted, and he wouldn't judge me. He had pulled several bottles of wine out of the basement before heading back down to tell Stefan to basically fuck off.

I had successfully managed to avoid the younger vampire. I knew that he wanted to speak to me. But I just couldn't do it. I didn't know how I felt about him. Whether he I was angry at him or whether I would forgive him. And with everything else that I was dealing with, I couldn't add that on top of it all.

Damon arrived to come and get me after he had spoken to Stefan. By this point, I had the blanket over my head. I didn't care that I was messing up my hair. I just enjoyed the darkness for a while.

"Come on, Ally," my vampire sighed, sitting down on the edge of the bed, resting a hand on my covered back. "Time to go downstairs."

"I don't want to go," I muttered petulantly, keeping my face hidden still. "I don't want to be around Sage."

"I know you don't," Damon sympathised. "But I need her help with something."

I frowned and pushed the blanket down far enough that my eyes were revealed, "With what?"

My vampire winced, "It's probably safer that you don't know."

"Oh no," I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Is this one of those things that will come back and bite me in the ass? And I'll regret not asking more questions ahead of time?"

"Quite possibly," Damon gave me his most charming smile and I groaned loudly.

"Oh joy," I reluctantly pushed the blanket all the way off and sat up. "Well, let's get going then. So I can at least try to mitigate the damage." My boyfriend didn't move as I scooted over to the edge of the bed. Shaking my head, I rested my finger against his lips, "You, my dear, cannot call me a trouble magnet if all of this goes south. Cos you get yourself into a lot more trouble than I do."

Damon took my hand, pressing a kiss to the knuckles before holding it against his cheek. My vampire gave me a cheeky smirk, "That's what you think."

"You're the worst," I rolled my eyes, resisting the urge to giggle, as I got up from the bed.

"Ah, but you love me anyway," Damon smirked, lifting me from my feet to carry me downstairs.

"Yeah, I do," I conceded, pressing a sloppy kiss to his cheek. My vampire carried me down into the parlour, sitting me down on the arm of the sofa. He pressed a soft kiss to my lips before stepping away. He grabbed one of the bottles of wine from the booze table and began pouring it into glasses. Despite the fact that red wine wasn't one of my favourites, I happily accepted the glass that was passed my way. Once he was content that I was happy, Damon went to pass another glass to Sage.

The redhead waved him off, sitting down next to the dude playing the piano. She stared at me with narrowed eyes as she spoke, "Damon, I don't know why you spend so much time with this human." She spat that last word with annoyance. "It's beneath you."

I narrowed my eyes in return and scoffed, "You're just jealous. I'm worth more of his time than you are. I mean, I've daggered three Original vampires. How many have you? Oh, that's right, none. In fact," I gasped dramatically, "You were even scared off by one."

Despite the venomous look on Sage's face, I felt quite proud of myself as I sipped at my wine. To be fair, it was probably because of that look that I felt proud. She treated me like I was nothing. I would do the same to her. Besides, I knew that Damon wouldn't let her hurt me.

My vampire came to stand next to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. Sage still looked incensed, but I knew that she wouldn't do anything now. So instead, she grasped piano man's wrist and bit into it. He had to have been compelled, as he didn't make any noise, and instead carried on playing with his other hand. I made a mental note to make sure that the poor guy was healed and sent safely on his way when able to. I didn't want Sage to kill him, because the bitch probably would.

Damon watched her for a second before speaking, "Finn's gone, you know."

The redhead met his gaze before releasing the human's wrist, "I choose to believe otherwise."

"He strung you along for 900 years," my boyfriend countered, rolling his eyes as he topped up my glass. "Didn't bother to call. He's gone."

Sage watched him before glancing over at me. With a pointed look, she said, "You know, the Damon that I knew was holding out for someone too."

"Yeah, he was," my Damon agreed with a nod. "Hope's a bitch, Sage. Get out while you can. Because you'll only get hurt. And not everyone is lucky enough to find someone to heal you again."

I smiled into my drink at Damon's words. And that smile grew when he stood even closer to me, his arm switching from my shoulders to my waist. Sage glanced at it with a narrowed gaze. But before she could say anything, the doorbell rang.

Piano dude was sent to go open the door, letting the Original into the house. Rebekah strode in, holding a bottle of wine while the music started up again.

"I stole it from Nik who stole it from a Queen," the blonde introduced herself, glancing around the room. "Not sure which one." She paused for a moment before rolling her eyes, "Well, this is depressing. What happened to the party?"

Sage got up from the piano stool and approached Rebekah. She took the bottle from her hands and looked over at Damon with a devilish look in her eyes, "It just arrived."

XXX

The music was turned up and the wine kept flowing. I had lost track of how much I had drunk. But I had that wine buzz in my head and everything felt nice and fuzzy. Compared to how I had been feeling recently, it was nice to be like this. I was no longer worrying about going insane, about potentially being a killer, about the blackouts. I could just relax and properly enjoy myself.

Damon's hands were on my hips, mine around his shoulders, as we danced. He let me just let loose. To grind against him without worry or care. To dance my worries away. Which was exactly what I was doing. I could feel Sage's eyes on me as I pressed kisses to his pale neck. It was annoying, because whenever I felt a mark, it healed like straight away. So I couldn't mark him like I wanted to.

Every time that bitch Sage went to say something, probably a snarky little remark, Rebekah cut her off. The Original, bless her heart, was determined to let me relax too. I didn't know what she knew, or what she had learnt, but she seemed just as determined as my boyfriend did to let me just have a good time.

Whenever Damon left to go get me more wine, Rebekah spun me around. Dancing with her was weird, but it was fun. She let loose in a way that I had never seen before. It was like that nervousness that plagued her sometimes just melted away. Her hands rested on my waist, and I placed mine on hers, and we danced. The music reverberated in my bones, probably far too loud for vampire ears, but it reminded me of the days when I used to go clubbing. When going drinking and dancing was my go-to stress relief.

Sage just watched on from her seat next to the piano man. She wasn't joining in very much, seemingly just content to munch on the poor guy. Rebekah joined her, every now and then, giving the redhead a dirty look before sinking her fangs into the human's neck. I watched through blurry eyes, wondering if sharing a human like that was supposed to be erotic. Or if it just depended on who you was sharing them with.

Whenever Damon looked like he was getting hungry, I just offered him my wrist. He looked reluctant at first, but when I pouted, he gave in. Due to the wine killing my inhibitions, I couldn't stop myself from gasping each time. And it was an aroused gasp. Damon, the little shit, seemed to love getting that noise from me.

Despite our audience, Damon's lips brushed against my neck at every opportunity. His fingers stroking my hips. His fangs scraping against the sensitive skin of my wrist. He continued to wind me up. And the wine was doing the rest. My inhibitions were always lowered when I drank. And Damon just seemed to lower them even more.

Rebekah matched me for every glass of wine that I finished. Well, I say she matched me. She seemed to drink two for every one of mine. I didn't know what had driven her to this. But I let her chase her escape. Sometimes, you just needed to get drunk. And I would give that to her.

Whenever I danced with Rebekah, Sage tried to take my place with Damon. But Rebekah, my sweet friend, always intervened. She'd either spin me back into my boyfriend's arms or she'd just push Sage away, making a catty remark. I was drunk enough that I laughed each time. That only seemed to piss the redhead off. But I didn't care. She didn't think that I was good enough for a vampire. And that just pissed me off.

Just cos I was human didn't mean that I was worth less, that I wasn't good enough for Damon. I had proven on more than one occasion that I didn't judge him for what he does as a vampire. That I embraced that. That I would even turn one day. So Sage could fuck off.

When walking in a straight line became a struggle, and when I couldn't really stand up without Damon's strong hands holding me steady, I was cut off. Despite my pitiful look when my boyfriend filled up Rebekah's glass, mine was left empty. I pouted and tried to lick up any of the drops that remained. But that was hopeless.

"Damon," I slurred, shaking my empty glass. "I want more."

"Sorry baby," Damon chuckled, kissing my nose as he took away the glass. "But I need to cut you off before you throw up."

"I don't always throw up," I muttered petulantly, crossing my arms. I wobbled where I stood and my boyfriend carefully tugged me closer. "That happened one time."

"We both know for a fact that it's been more than once," my vampire's voice was filled with amusement and I pouted as I realised that I wouldn't get any sympathy from him. So I turned my gaze to Rebekah.

"Bekah," I whined as Damon held me against his chest. "Make him gimme more wine."

"Sorry, love," the blonde laughed, shaking her head. Her words slurred slightly and I realised that she had drunk more than I originally thought. "Not this time."

I groused and pouted, resting my head against Damon's chest, "You're all mean vampires. Denying me my wine. Evil."

"Yes, Ally, we're all evil," Damon shook his head, a tolerant look on his face as he resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Come on, let's get you sitting down before you fall down."

"I don't fall down," I mumbled as my vampire gave up on walking me over. He gently scooped me up into his arms before walking those few steps to the sofas. He placed me down on one of them, propping my head against the arm. I slurred into the fabric while I felt someone sit down next to me. I knew that Damon was crouching down in front of me, carefully adjusting me. So I glanced over and saw my blonde friend slumping down. Her eyes began to flutter shut as she rested her head against the back of the sofa.

I felt my own eyes fluttering shut and Damon stroked my cheek, encouraging me to fall asleep. I grumbled slightly, but I couldn't stop my exhaustion from winning. I closed my eyes, enjoying the feel of my boyfriend's fingers against my skin.

XXX

Damon's POV

I stared down at the two girls sleeping on my sofa. Alexa puffed out breaths through her mouth, her eyes scrunched up as she muttered under her breath every now and then. I didn't know what she was dreaming out, but I knew that her dreams had been plagued by nightmares about what the ring was doing to her. She wouldn't admit it to anyone, but I knew how my girl's mind worked.

I glanced over to the side as Sage walked up behind Rebekah. She had a hard look on her face as she rested her fingers against Rebekah's temple. Her eyes closed and a look of intense concentration formed on her face. While she did what was needed, I bit into my wrist. I knew that Alexa had drank a bit too much wine before I cut her off. But I didn't want to deny her the peace that the alcohol bought. It had been so long since she truly indulged like that. So, since I was here to keep an eye on her, I thought that I would let her. But that didn't mean that I wouldn't treat and help her escape most of the side effects from the alcohol.

I held my wrist against my girl's mouth, gently encouraging her to drink. She did so slowly, still deep in her sleep. But I was able to get enough blood into her system that she should escape a nasty hangover when she woke up. Once that was done, I carefully examined her face, my fingers gently stroking her cheek. I could see how much the situation with the ring had been affecting her. Despite her assurances that she was fine, I could see the dark circles under her eyes, the way that her body was still tensed, despite being asleep. And I cursed every single being that had dared to kill her. They were the reason why she was going through this, why she was suffering.

Sage tapped me on the shoulder, grabbing my attention. I glanced up at her and she held a finger to her lips, gesturing that we should leave the room. I looked at my girl one last time before leaving the room. I followed Sage to the kitchen, where she put the tap on.

"I take it back," I breathed, keeping my voice low. "Your plan is amazing."

And my girl got to let her hair down for a bit. She didn't have to worry anything for a while. And I was able to help her relax. It was win-win all around. Getting Alexa to relax recently hadn't been easy. The ring haunted her thoughts, even though she was no longer wearing it. It rested in my cabinet upstairs, and I hoped that out of sight, out of mind would apply here. But my girl's capacity for worry hadn't let that happen.

"I told you that if you got her comfortable enough, she's an open book," Sage shrugged, a pleased smirk on her face.

I raised an eyebrow, "Well, are you gonna torture me or are you gonna tell me what she's up to?"

"I'd rather show you," Sage breathed out, a devious gleam in her eyes. The redhead stepped closer to me, pressing her body against mine as she went to kiss me. But I stepped back, shaking my head.

"Sage," I said quietly, a warning in my voice. I knew that she didn't like Alexa, and my girl didn't like her in return. But I wouldn't get involved in that little spat. Nor would I betray my girl like that. If Sage wanted to show me, then she had to find a different way.

There was a hard look on Sage's face as she jerked her head in a nod. She reached out to rest her fingers against my face, her eyes closed. As images began to flash through my head, I closed my eyes too.

Rebekah was showing Klaus a video on her phone, where she had been taunting Elena in the cave. There was an image behind the doppelganger, one that caught the Original's attention. It felt familiar at first, but it was Rebekah's words that made me realise.

"A white oak tree," she told her brother. "There must have been a new tree to replace the old."

The fear on the hybrid's face told me more than Rebekah's words could. This was dangerous to them. And the fact that a new tree was enough to scare the Original Hybrid. And I had to take advantage of that.

It switched to a new image.

This time Rebekah was in the Grill, speaking to Carol. I recognised when this was. It was just before Rebekah came to bother me and Stefan, when we were trying to work out what happened in 1912. Who the killer could be, since we didn't think that it could be Ric.

"It probably got cut down," Carol shrugged, answering the blonde's question. Rebekah had been interested in the new White Oak. Having gone through the Founder's archives looking for answers. And when she didn't find them, the blonde turned to the Mayor. As a member of the Founding Families, Carol would know the answers that she sought.

There was a curiously polite question on the Original's face as she asked, "Do you happen to know who kept the milling ledgers during that period?"

I pulled away from Sage's hands as I realised what Rebekah was after. There was another tree. There was another opportunity to kill them. And the best thing was, they were still linked. We only had to kill one of them, and then they would no longer be a problem.

"There's another tree," I breathed out loud, sharing a triumphant look with Sage. As far as the older vampire was aware, there was a way to get her man away from his family. And as long as she didn't know the truth, she would help us. Sage held no love for Finn's family. And he didn't seem to do the same either. If I could get her to believe that she could save Finn from them, from Klaus, then she would help us.

XXX

Alexa's POV

Damon woke me up with a kiss to my forehead, his fingers stroking my cheek. "Hey baby," he murmured against my skin, gently encouraging me to wake up. I grumbled, opening my eyes. It took me a second for my eyes to focus. When they did, Damon held a finger to his lips. I frowned sleepily, as he carefully helped me up.

I expected my head to hurt when I got up, since I had drunk far too much wine. But there was no pain. Although, now that I thought about it, I vaguely remembered Damon holding his wrist against my mouth. The cutie had given me his blood to kill my hangover before it started. I appreciated him doing that, and I let him know by wrapping myself around him.

My vampire rolled his eyes but he held me close to him as he directed me to the library. He deposited me down on the sofa, pressing a kiss to the top of my head before he walked over to the bookcases.

"What are you looking for, Day?" I asked, resting my cheek against the back cushions. I watched him through tired eyes, as he examined each shelf. It was clear that he was looking for something. But I had no idea what. Despite my indulgence, I didn't remember him saying anything about looking for a book.

Damon glanced at me over his shoulder, a considering look on his face, before walking back over. He sat down on the sofa next to me, cupping my face in his hands, "How do you feel about being helpful?"

"I'd rather do that then fall asleep," I answered honestly, scrunching up my nose at the thought of the dreams that awaited me. "What do you need?"

"That's my girl," my boyfriend breathed out, a pleased smile on his face as he kissed my forehead. I couldn't fight the blush that formed on my cheeks at his words. Damn him, he knew exactly how to get that reaction from me. "I need to find the Salvatore Milling Ledgers from 1912. They're in here somewhere, but it would be a lot easier to find them if I have your help."

I nodded before glancing around, "Where's Sage?"

"Not here," Damon smirked at my jealous expression, bopping my nose. "I'll start on one side while you start on the other."

I nodded before my vampire helped me off the sofa. He paused for a moment before tilting my face up. He kissed me deeply, his tongue devouring my mouth as I clung onto his shoulders. Damon's hands gripped my ass, holding me tight against him.

"Oh," I breathed out when he pulled back, a dazed expression on my face. "What was that for?"

"Do I need a reason?" Damon breathed into my ear, pressing a kiss against my neck before stepping back. "Trust me when I say that you'll enjoy what we find."

I nodded, still feeling slightly dazed, as my vampire pointed me in the direction of the bookcases. I cleared my throat and tried to focus on the titles on the books in front of me. Since I didn't really know what I was looking for, I just looked for the Salvatore name. I remembered it was to do with that family.

Movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. I curled my lip as I saw Sage walk in. The bitch had the audacity to give me a smug look before walking over to my boyfriend. I paused in my searching to watch her. I didn't trust her not to pull anything. I trusted Damon not to fall for it. But if Sage tried it, then I would accidentally let Rebekah wreck her.

"Milling records?" the redhead asked my vampire quietly as she approached him.

Damon paid her no attention as he answered, "Our family made one of its many fortunes selling lumber. It's why Rebekah's been digging around about this stuff. That tree was on our land and milled by our yard. The ledgers will tell me where it was shipped. Business archives should be around here somewhere. Go back to the parlour, make sure you keep her distracted."

Tree? What tree? Why was it so important? Why did Rebekah want it? I was incredibly confused, but I knew that I wouldn't get any answers until Damon found what he wanted. I suspected that he wanted to be sure before he told me. And that was sweet of him. But I hated being left out of stuff.

I watched as Sage left the room, an unhappy look on her face, before resuming my search. I ran my fingers through the spines of the books in front of me, looking intently. We searched in silence for a few minutes before I breathed out my vampire's name.

I had found the milling ledgers for the family company.

Damon immediately appeared by my side, pressing a kiss to the top of my head before easing me to the side. He searched the ledgers, looking for 1912. It took just a few more seconds for him to find it. I looked over his arm as he flicked through the pages, looking for one in particular.

When he found what he was looking for, Damon breathed out, "You gotta be kidding me!"

He was transfixed by the words 'Wickery Bridge' but I was distracted by something else. The wood being described was white oak. As in an old white oak tree. As in an old white oak tree that had the ability to kill Original vampires. That had the ability to make my family safe again.

"Day, does this mean what I think it does?" I whispered, glancing up at him with wide eyes. I dared not get my hopes up, not until he confirmed it. But I could feel the excitement humming through my body, just waiting to be unleashed.

"Oh Ally," Damon stared down at me with elated eyes. "It is exactly what you think it is."

XXX

Elena's POV

I had message my sister while I climbed the stairs up to Ric's apartment. I knew that she would be safe with Damon, but I just couldn't resist the urge to check in on her. With everything that had been happening, it was hard having her out of my sight. Despite my best attempts, she had died enough times that the ring had warped her mind. That it had damaged her. And I hated that.

I jolted when I reached the top floor, gasping in shock as I realised that I wasn't alone. Stefan leant against the wall, staring at me with unreadable eyes. He spoke quietly, "Missed you at the house. Alaric told me that you'd be here."

I swallowed hard before shaking my head, pushing past the vampire, "You made yourself perfectly clear this morning, Stefan. You don't want to be around me."

I used the key in my hand to unlock the door, pausing as Stefan spoke up, "I'm not trying to hurt you, Elena. I just can't be who you want me to be right now. I'm not in control."

Glancing over my shoulder, I asked, "So then, what are you doing here?"

I walked into Ric's loft, leaving the door open behind me. I didn't know if the vampire would follow me in. And I didn't know if I wanted him to. I missed him. Despite what he had done since he left town, despite what he had done to me and my loved ones, to my twin, I still missed him.

Stefan cleared his throat before following me in, "I, uh, I did a little more digging on Samantha Gilbert." He closed the door behind him, flicking on the lights before following me further into the apartment. "Founding families were always pretty good about destroying their records, but I found a couple of newspaper articles. It seemed that she killed two people while she was in the institution. A nurse and a guard."

I winced at his words before sighing and shaking my head, "So, she was a psychopath. I get it."

Stefan's voice was serious and that was what caught my attention, "She was under suicide watch. No personal effects, no jewellery."

I paused as I realised the implication of his words, "Wait, so you're saying that the violent behaviour can still happen even if the person isn't wearing the ring?"

Stefan nodded and I cursed under my breath. Neither Ric nor Alexa were wearing their rings anymore. But apparently, that didn't mean that they were safe. I had to find Ric's wedding ring. I had already found something that could be used for Alexa. It was necklace that she used to wear, one that had been gifted to her by our grandmother. But she had stopped wearing it when she was given her vervain locket.

I shook my head and approached the chest of drawers that Ric had told me about. It had always been covered in various papers and weapons, but I never really paid much attention to it. But now I needed to search it. I opened the top drawer, determined to search each drawer until I found what I needed to.

I could feel the vampire's gaze on me, as he stood by the chest of drawers. He had stayed quiet after his revelation, but I knew that it would last for long. I was soon proved right when he asked, "What if Bonnie's spell doesn't work? What are you gonna do with them?"

"I'm not gonna do anything, Stefan," I snapped before taking a deep breath. I closed one drawer and opened another. "I'm gonna keep looking until we find something that'll help them."

"You don't know how long this has been going on," Stefan's voice was full of regret, even if he said something that had my heart clenching in my chest. "Might be too late."

"It's Alexa, Stefan," I closed the drawer with a snap, pausing before I opened the next. I turned to my ex; eyes desperate. "It will never be too late. Not for her. I will do anything I can, no matter how long it takes, to save her from this."

"And Alaric?" the vampire's voice was quiet and I sighed.

"It's my family's ring that's doing this to him," I shook my head, trying and failing to open a drawer. It had clearly been locked. And I didn't know where to look for a key. "A ring that I insisted that he take. It's my responsibility to fix this."

Stefan's voice was soft as he rested his hand on mine, "You can't put that on yourself. Not everyone is your responsibility. Not everyone can be saved."

I quirked my lips up in a mocker of a smile, "Are we talking about Alaric and Alexa here or are we talking about you? Because I wasn't planning on giving up on any of you."

Stefan stared at me with soft eyes. I knew that he was surprised by my words. After everything that happened, he probably expected me to give up on him. But I couldn't. Even if I refused to admit to anyone, I still loved Stefan. Whether that was enough to forgive him for everything, I didn't know. But it was enough that it meant that I would give up on him.

The vampire nodded slowly before easing my hand away from the drawer. Using his strength, he opened the drawer, breaking the lock. I couldn't stop myself from gasping at the sight within it. There were multiple photos of the murder victims, of Bill Forbes and Brian Walters. Newspaper clippings were dotted amongst the photos, articles detailing the murders. There were handwritten notes beneath it all, scribbled in horribly familiar writing.

"What is that?" I breathed; my mind unwilling to accept the truth. I watched with wide eyes as Stefan picked up one of the photos.

He had a frowned on his face as he glanced over at me, "Pictures of their victims."

I felt sick as I flicked through the contents of the drawer. There were so many photos and the sight of them turned my stomach. I had still hoped that neither Ric nor Alexa were responsible for the murders. But this was destroying that hope.

I froze for a second as I saw an envelope with my brother's name written on it. It was Alexa's handwriting; I would recognise it anywhere. With shaking hands, I pulled the envelope from the drawer. Inside were a load of documents with a note attached. I exchanged a glance with Stefan. I didn't want to read the words in front of me, but I knew that I had no choice.

'Jeremy, if anything happens to us, carry on our work. You have the other ring, let the ring make you strong. The council must be cleaned before the work can begin. We hope that you will have one of us to help you in our vision, but just in case, we have prepared everything for you.'

I swallowed hard and Stefan gently took the papers from me. He flicked through them, while I took deep breaths. I had hoped that Jeremy had been left out of this. But instead, they were planning on using him to further their cause if they were caught. I knew that Alexa and Ric would never have gotten him involved if they were in their right minds.

"It's the Founders Council roster," the vampire murmured, looking down at a list of names. Some were crossed out while others were circled. "Looks like some sort of hit list."

I shook my head at his words, "They didn't write this."

Stefan looked his eyes sympathetic as he asked, "Who else would have written it, Elena?"

I shook my head again before picking up the note to Jeremy. I ripped it up into little pieces, before continuing my search for the ring. I had to get back to him, and I hoped that Bonnie was on her way. We needed that spell done.

In the back of the draw, I found the aspirin bottle that Ric mentioned. My fingers shook slightly as I pried it open, tipping the contents out onto my palm. The ring was cold against my skin, but I closed my fist around it tightly.

Looking over at the vampire next to me, I gave a determined nod, "I have to get back."

XXX

Alexa's POV

After memorising the information that he needed from the book, he threw it into the fire. I knew that he would regret doing that one day. It would mean that his books would forever be missing a number. And he could be quite anal about his library. But for now, it would keep the information safe. And that was the important thing here. Rebekah wanted to know about the white oak tree, which meant that Klaus probably wanted to know too. And we couldn't let them know. They would do everything they could to destroy it before we could use it. And I refused to lose our only hope for a weapon. Not now.

He poked at it with the fire poker, making sure that it was burning properly. While he did so, I had retreated to the sofa, curling up in the corner. I was still tired from earlier, and I was content to watch the flames while sitting down, my blanket covering my legs. Damon studied the burning book carefully, manoeuvring it as required. The light of the flames illuminated his cheek bones, warming those blue eyes. It made my heart clench in my chest. He was unfairly gorgeous, and I was sat here with bed hair and in an old tank top.

I glanced over at the door as someone entered. Sage swanned in, an arrogant look on her face. I narrowed my eyes at her. But I was relieved when I was ignored. I didn't have the energy to cuss her out. And there were more important things to do.

"Rebekah just left," the redhead informed my vampire, walking over to him. Huh, she left without saying goodbye. That was a bit rude. I wonder what Sage had said to her when she woke up. Judging from the expression in the vampire's eye, it was something bitchy. Ugh, I really hated Sage. Even if we were plotting against Rebekah's family, and I kinda hated myself for that, I would rather her be around then safe.

"That was quicker than I expected," Damon muttered, keeping his eyes on the fire. I was secretly pleased that he wasn't as enthusiastic to speak to Sage. I knew that we needed her for The Plan, even if I didn't know all the details yet. But I hated that we needed her. I hated all of it. I didn't want Rebekah to die. But the rest of her family had to go. It was the only way to keep my loved ones safe. And I would do anything to make that happen. Klaus was a danger to my twin, and I had to remove that danger.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" Sage asked when she realised that he wasn't going to play along until she asked something relevant. I ruthlessly ignored the petty pleasure that I felt at that.

My boyfriend nodded, giving the charred book one last poke, "Yep. 1912, the Salvatore Milling Company chopped down a forest, its most valuable wood came from an old white oak tree that was used to make the Wickery Bridge. These aren't public records, so Rebekah's gonna chase her tail for a long time.

"So, all the wood stripped from the underside of that bridge is basically a weapon that could kill an Original?" Sage asked, a calculating look on her face. I didn't know what she was thinking. But I got the feeling that I wouldn't like it. To be honest, I didn't like any of it.

Ever since my parents died going over that bridge, ever since my twin nearly died, I had hated that bridge. It marked the moment that my life changed. That I wouldn't be safe anymore. And the incident with Stefan not that long ago only cemented that thinking. So the fact that it could help us build a weapon that would get rid of one of our greatest enemies was weird. And I hated that.

"Yep," Damon confirmed, getting to his feet. He glanced over at me before returning his gaze to Sage. I was quite content to just sit back and watch. And the fact that I got to avoid talking to Sage made me want to do that even more. She wasn't worth my time or energy or effort. She wasn't worth the breath that came out of my lungs.

"You see how this could be a problem for me, right?" the redhead crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. Well, so much for her support in our plan. Eh, Damon's plan. She was the one who pushed him into doing it this way. And now she was having second thoughts. Flaky little bitch. She dared to insult me, to belittle me, and then not even go through with what we were doing.

"Why?" my vampire rolled his eyes, taking a step forward. "Because of your true love Finn? Let me tell you something. I met the guy, you're not gonna miss him."

Sage narrowed her eyes and sped over so that she was standing right in front of Damon. She bared her teeth and glared at him as she spat, "I will rip your head off in two seconds if you take one more step." When Damon didn't look convinced, because let's be real, Stefan made better threats when he was denied a squirrely snack. "Okay. How about this? You hurt the man I love, then I'll hurt your precious little human."

"Hey!" I protested with a frown as I was dragged into this. I went to stand up, whether it was to interfere or run away, I wasn't quite sure. But my boyfriend's hand gesture had me staying where I was. He didn't look pleased but he nodded.

"Alright, let's make a deal," Damon said, sounding very reasonable. Even if you could hear the anger in his voice. "You let me kill Rebekah, I consider Finn untouchable, you guys walk into the sunset together."

The older vampire paused to consider his words before asking slowly, suspiciously, "Is that a promise?"

"Yes," my vampire nodded once, an unreadable look in his eyes. "It's a promise."

XXX

While Damon disappeared off to make sure that we had everything that we needed to collect all the wood, I remained in the library. The fire crackled away merrily and I took the chance to do some relaxing breathing. I wasn't anywhere close to a panic attack, which was weird, considering that I was battling a psycho side. But I wanted to make sure that I was as relaxed as possible before we went to go get the white oak. I didn't want anything to screw this up. Especially not me.

Once I had done my breathing, I stood up from the sofa. Damon had been gone longer than I expected, and I felt that little tendril of worry begin to worm its way into my mind. I glanced around the room before moving towards the stairs. But before I could get there, a hand covered my mouth, the other holding my wrists in an iron grip. I struggled the best that I could, as that sickening feeling of vampire speed took over.

As the Boarding House disappeared from my view, I tried to scream for help. But the grip on my mouth was tight enough that no sound escaped. I was utterly powerless and there was no way of calling for help. The arms holding me squeezed painfully, almost as though they were deliberately trying to hurt me.

I didn't know who was holding me. I didn't recognise their scent. But that in itself should have been a clue. I knew most of the vampires in this town well. So I should have guessed that it would be the one vampire that I didn't know well that was taking me somewhere against my will. The fucking bitch.

I was thrown to the ground, my palms scraping painfully against the concrete. I groaned and moved my jaw from side to side, trying to get it to click. My wrists throbbed painfully, but I knew that there were just bruised. I tried to push myself to my feet, but before I could even get to my knees, a foot came out of nowhere. It connected with my stomach and I collapsed back down to the ground, the stones on the concrete biting into my cheek painfully.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" I wheezed, curling up into a ball while I glared up at the vampire in front of me. Sage glared back while I heard the sounding of wood being moved around behind me. But as much as I wanted to look, to see what was happening, I dared not take my gaze off of the angry redhead in front of me.

"What's wrong with me?" she repeated mockingly, and I flinched as she moved. "You ruin one of the most vicious vampires that I knew, you turn him into some kind of whimp, and you dare to question me."

I narrowed my eyes and carefully pushed myself up into a sitting position, keeping an eye on any errant legs that could kick me again. I shook my head and scoffed, "Ruin him? You barely knew Damon. You didn't know what he was like under the hurt and loneliness. I never changed him, I just accepted him for what he is. You just resent it because I'm human. Well, guess what. Human doesn't mean weak."

Sage crouched down in front of me, her teeth bared, "Yes, it does. Before you, Damon would never have considered trying to kill an Original vampire. He would have respected them, admired them. He wouldn't be trying to take my love from me."

"Oh lord," I muttered, rolling my eyes. Of course, I instantly regretted it when Sage dug her fingers into my hair, yanking my head to the side. I knew that my neck was dangerous exposed, but I was too fed up to care. Because, for one foolish moment, I forgot that I didn't have my magic ring on me. I was so used to the protection that it provided, that I allowed myself to get cocky. "Out of the two of us, bitch, you are the one who doesn't know Damon Salvatore very well. He had always been motivated by love. Whether it was love of me or love of Katherine, it doesn't matter. He would never have worshipped an Original, like you do, you pathetic little worm."

The redhead hissed under her breath. She was a lot angrier than I expected her to be. Maybe I went too far with my words. But I couldn't bring myself to regret that. After what I had been dealing with, it was nice to let loose. Even if I was being a bit meaner than I normally was. But in my defence, Sage kind of deserved it. She had looked down on me and my relationship with Damon ever since she met me. The bitch hadn't even given me a chance to prove myself to her.

I couldn't stop myself from flinching as she moved closer to me. Her fangs scrapped against my vulnerable neck as she whispered, "I'm going to enjoy draining the life from you."

I closed my eyes tight, horribly aware of the fact that there was nothing that I could do to stop the vampire from feeding on me. Sage breathed in deep, in that way that vampires did before they sank their fangs into their prey. But before she could do so, another voice called out.

"Sage, don't kill her," I glanced to the side to see Rebekah standing by a pile of burning wood. Deep inside, I knew what wood that was. But I was just amazed by the fact that the Original had wanted my life spared. I thought that she would enjoy seeing me die, since I had helped to find a new weapon against her family. "Take her out of sight until Damon arrives. And don't hurt her."

I kept my eyes on the blonde while Sage dragged me into the woods. She was a lot sweeter than anyone ever gave her credit for. And now I felt even worse about the fact that I had helped looked for a new weapon.

XXX

We didn't have to wait for long for my vampire to arrive. It was the sound of his car that alerted us to his presence. He careened towards the bridge, and the pile of wood that burned in front of it. I honestly expected him to run Rebekah over when he saw her. But instead, Damon slammed on the brakes, coming to a stop just in front of her.

Rebekah watched with a smug look as he got out of the car, slamming his door in frustration. The blonde sighed dramatically, shaking her head as the fire burned happily behind her, "Your grand plans always seem to get ruined, don't they? Sorry to disappoint you. Again."

I watched through sad eyes as my vampire stared at the burning white oak. This was our trump card. And now, because of Sage's betrayal, we were doomed. My heart went out to my vampire, he did seem to genuinely like the redhead, even if I loathed her, and this must be painful for him. I swore to myself that I would make Sage pay for betraying my boyfriend. Damon didn't trust easily, and Sage would have known that. So breaking that trust was just a cruel move on her part. And I found my hatred for her increasing dramatically.

While Damon stared at the fire, Sage moved me over to his car. Her hand covered my mouth still, her other arm wrapped around my waist, holding me close to her. My feet, clad only in my socks, stood on tiptoes as Sage kept my neck close to her mouth. Despite Rebekah's warning, I knew that Sage would kill me if she had the opportunity. She didn't value me as a person, and if I wasn't a useful hostage to use against Damon, she probably would have killed me the second my Original friend was distracted.

Damon must have sensed us behind him, as he spun around with narrowed eyes, a furious look on his face. His eyes examined me carefully, doing his best to make sure that I was unharmed. Once he was as sure as he could be, his incensed gaze switched back to the vampire holding me, "You set me up!"

"No," Sage shook her head, keeping me held tightly. "I'm just looking out for myself."

My vampire went to step forward, but the redhead tightened her grip and I couldn't stop myself from wincing. When Damon saw that, he paused in his movements. For just a moment, his eyes held a helpless look in them, but it was quickly masked by his anger as he spat, "I told you that I'd save your creepy boyfriend!"

"And you lied to me, Damon!" Sage snapped back, removing her hand from my mouth to point at him accusingly. "The Originals are linked, if ones dies, they all die. If I can inside her head, don't you think I'd be able to get inside yours?"

The glare on my boyfriend's face deepened at that and you could tell that he was itching to rush forward. But while the older hostage held me hostage, he couldn't risk me getting hurt. Even if I had my magic ring, he wouldn't risk it. So instead, he growled, low and vicious, "I should end you."

Above me, Sage smirked, relishing in his conflict, "I'm 900 years old, Damon. You're not capable to ending me." The redhead's hand moved towards my neck, pressing down on it enough that breathing became difficult. "Do you really think that I would risk Finn's life for one of your petty revenge fantasies?"

I saw Damon flinch, just slightly, and I only saw it because I knew him so well. I didn't like that. So, me being me, just couldn't keep my mouth shut, "You're the only petty one here, dumbass."

Obviously, Sage didn't like that. She increased the pressure on my neck, giving Damon a dangerous look when he stepped forward. After glancing down at me, my vampire returned that look, sneering cruelly, "Let me tell you something, your long lost love has a suicide wish. Cos when mama witch linked them together in a spell, he's the one that volunteered to die."

My boyfriend's words shocked Sage enough that she loosened her grip. While I coughed in surprise at the sudden influx of air, the redhead shook her head, "He wouldn't do that."

Damon continued to taunt her, a vicious look in his eye, "He didn't want to live. Not for you. Not for anyone. He doesn't love you, Sage. Now, when I do find a way to kill those Originals, I'll start with Finn."

"You're lying!" Sage hissed, a pained look in her eyes. "He wouldn't leave me like that. Maybe he just doesn't know that I'm still alive. He just needs to find me."

"Bullshit," I wheezed as Sage squeezed my waist painfully. "Just stop being so pathetic and get over him. He clearly got over you."

The redhead hissed furiously, suddenly releasing her grip. I wobbled slightly in surprise before familiar arms were wrapping around me. I immediately clung onto Damon, closing my eyes. He cupped the back of my head, pressing my face against his chest. I happily did so, breathing in his comforting scent.

"She's gone," Damon murmured into my hair, resting his cheek against my head. "I've got you, baby."

I closed my eyes and allowed my boyfriend to just cradle me against him. For the first time in a long time, I had faced the possibility of truly dying. My ring had given me false courage. Yeah, there was always a chance that someone could take it off, but most of our enemies didn't really consider that. Not in the heat of the moment. But now that I no longer had it, I had forgotten just how vulnerable I really was. And it scared me. Now that I was safe, I realised just how terrified I had felt. Even if I didn't admit it at the time.

XXX

Damon took me back home, probably sensing that I wanted the familiarity of my bedroom. My bedroom in a building that Sage couldn't enter. Because I wouldn't put it past that bitch to try something else. She knew that I was important to Damon, who had just threatened her boyfriend. When she got over the shock of his words, it wouldn't surprise me if she tried something else.

Everyone was asleep when we got home, not that I was surprised. It was late. And judging from my sister's message, they had been through it tonight. So I couldn't blame them too much for being asleep. Ric had attacked Meredith, had slashed her with a knife. Jenna had managed to fight him off long enough to drag the doctor to my sister's bathroom upstairs. I was just thankful that Evil Ric hadn't gone after her too. Despite his desire to wipe out council members, he seemed to not want to hurt her. Stefan and Elena had arrived home in time to stop Ric from actually killing Meredith, and the vampire had healed her.

My boyfriend took me up to my room. I sat down on the bed while he checked my bedroom windows, making sure they were locked, before closing the curtains. I appreciated that, as I knew that I would definitely hate the sun when I woke up in the morning. It was the downside to having my bedroom where it was, I got the sun first thing in the morning. And it was a killer when you forgot to close the curtains.

"Hey, how are you doing?" Damon asked me, joining me on my bed. I stared at him through bleary eyes. The combination of wine and adrenaline were taking their toll on me. But I didn't care. Somehow, tonight was the best that I had felt in a long time. Being a hostage included. I had managed, for just a little while, to escape everything bad that was happening to me. I got drunk, danced with my boyfriend, and just enjoyed myself. Of course, Sage had to ruin that. But I was ignoring that part.

"You know me," I shrugged, moving so that I was straddling his lap. "I'm fine."

My vampire looked unconvinced, but he let me unbutton his shirt. I craved the feeling of his skin against mine. I wanted to be distracted from everything that was happening. I wanted to feel good in that special way. Damon must have realised that as, when his shirt fluttered down to the ground, he immediately pulled my tank top off. It was dirty from the road and I certainly didn't care when it went sailing to the ground.

I sucked on my vampire's bottom lip as he undid my bra, his fingers stroking my skin as he moved. He went slow, teasing me while I teased him. When the clasp was undone, his fingers moved against my skin as he pushed my bra off. It was thrown to the ground and before I knew it, Damon's mouth was on my boobs. He sucked on my nipples, pinching them and rolling them. Squeezing the soft flesh of my breast in his hands. I threw my head back, trusting him to not let me fall, as I enjoyed feel of his mouth and hands.

My nails scrapped against his back, leaving little red trails. Damon groaned against my skin and his free hand trailed down to my jeans. I nodded, breathing out his name, and Damon made quick work of my button and zipper. He stood up, lifting me to my feet, and I shimmied off my jeans as quickly as I could without losing his touch on my skin. Once I was stood there in just my panties, I fumbled with Damon's belt. Instead of pulling it free, I just unclasped it and undid the jeans that it held up.

Damon smirked against my skin and helped me with getting his jeans and boxers off. Despite the fact that he was no longer touching me, I wasn't too upset. Damon stared down at me with dark eyes, before gently stroking my cheek. I leant into his touch before stepping forward. I held eye contact with him as I gently pushed him down onto the bed.

Damon went willingly, holding my hips as I settled over him. He let me take control as I held him firm, before lowering myself onto his cock. My eyes fluttered shut as he slowly slid into me. I bit my lip to stifle a moan at the feeling of being so full. One of Damon's hands moved to rest against my back, while the other cupped my head, pressing it against his shoulder. But other than that, he let me control the pace.

My nipples rubbed against his chest as I moved up and down. His strong thighs brushed against mine as I ground down on him. With every move that I made, I felt his body against mine. Both inside and out. From the position we were in, I could feel him drag against me with every movement of my hips, brushing against that sensitive spot.

My movements grew sloppy as I felt myself getting close to that edge. Damon's hand moved to my ass, keeping me moving as my fingers dug into his back. It was the feeling of his fangs scraping against my skin that sent me over the edge. I bit down into his shoulder as I came, muffling my moans the best I could.

Damon's hands switched to my hips, keeping me moving long enough for him to finish too. He bit into spot between my neck and my shoulder. Feeling utterly spent, I slumped against his body, trusting him to get me sorted.

"I love you, Damon," I whispered into his skin, enjoying the feel of his arms around me. Cuddling after sex was a guilty pleasure and one that Damon never denied me. He actually enjoyed it, not that he would admit it.

"I love you too, Alexa."

XXX

Bonnie arrived the next morning to complete the spell. I was still in bed when she arrived, my sleep surprisingly free of nightmares. The witch saw to Alaric first, since he seemed to be a lot more stab happy than I was. It was weird, since we had both died the same amount of times. But I wasn't complaining. I didn't exactly want to go around stabbing my loved ones. Or anyone, really.

The witch held my necklace in one hand, the one that my grandma had given me, while in the other was a jar of herbs. Bonnie's eyes were closed as she chanted quietly, a look of intense concentration on her face. I knew that I should remain quiet, because this was an Important Moment. But it was hard. I didn't know much about this spell, other than it was supposed to help me not turn psycho. And I didn't like not knowing.

I could feel Damon's eyes on me while Bonnie did the spell. He was sat on my window seat, making sure that nothing went wrong. It was reassuring, having him there. Not that Bonnie would hurt me. I knew that my friend would never do that. But I was worried about her getting hurt. I didn't know what triggered my evil side's emergence. And the last thing that I wanted was for my psycho side to emerge because it felt threatened.

I switched my gaze back to my witchy friend when she finished chanting. She opened her eyes and smiled tiredly. I could tell that she had been through a lot, even if she didn't give me a chance to ask when she first arrived.

"Bonnie?" I asked quietly as she placed the necklace to the side. "All good?"

"For now," my friend smiled softly at me, reaching out to place the herbs in my hand. "You need to take these twice a day, Alexa. They are the binding element for the spell."

"Oh yay," I wrinkled my nose but took the herbs. If it meant that I didn't hurt anyone else, then I would take them without complaint.

"I'll get you some more," Bonnie shook her head at me. "I don't know how long you need to take them for, but I'll find out."

"Thanks Bon," I sighed, placing the jar to the side. "I don't suppose you know why this is happening to me?"

"Well, Abby says that all the dying and coming back to life might have chipped away at your psyche, making it easier for the darkness to take hold," my friend answered, her eyes sympathetic.

"I knew that ring was too good to be true," I shook my head at the thought before taking Bonnie's hand in mine. "How are you doing, Bon? How is your mom?"

"It's been hard," my friend winced slightly, a pained look in her eye. "I never thought that any of this would happen. But I'm going to stay with her, while she adapts. I think it'll be good for us, it'll give us a chance to actually work things through."

"I'm so sorry that this happened to her," I whispered, pushing back the tears that wanted to form. "I tried so hard to find another way, to keep you all alive. And I failed. And I'm so sorry that I did."

"It's okay," Bonnie pulled me forward into a hug. "I don't blame you. I don't blame either of you. Caroline told me what you did and I appreciate you trying."

"If you need anything, then I'm here for you," I mumbled into her shoulder, squeezing my friend tight. "No matter what you need, no matter what time of day it is, I'm here for you."

"I know you are, Lexa. And I appreciate that."

XXX

A/N: No reviews? Darlings, I'm disappointed :( Do I need to threaten to withhold the smut again? Because I am tempted to. I hope you enjoyed the chapter :) if anyone has any requests for season 4, please let me know :) Until next time xoxo