Chapter 7

Walking out of her second final, Elena wished that they were over already. Waking up that morning, she had been a bundle of nerves; somehow, she made it through her first final, but when she walked out of that one, she had been feeling good. The second one was the same; Elena had been nervous until she had finished it. Elena felt confident that she would pass her finals; she just hated having to sit down and take the damn tests. But she was done for the day.

Caroline, Bonnie, Sarah and Elena had all agreed to pizza in the girl's dorm that night to try and calm any other nerves. Elena was the only one who had a final early the next day, so she knew that the rest of her friends would probably be staying up much later, but she was looking forward to the distraction. Elena did want to get back to her dorm to study before the rest of the girl got back, though.

Hiking her bag higher up her arm, Elena walked across the Quad and enjoyed the warmth of the sunshine on her skin. Her phone started to ring. Elena pulled it from her pocket and almost ignored it. Damon Salvatore's name flashed across the screen. She hadn't exactly been avoiding him, but Elena didn't exactly feel comfortable talking to him…not since Christmas.

The phone stopped ringing, and Elena sighed in relief. But it was short-lived when Damon rang again.

Elena decided to answer. "Hello, Damon."

Damon said, "Elena, been a while."

"That it has. What can I do for you?" she asked

Damon sighed. "Straight to the point, not even a 'how are you?'."

Elena tried to relax her thumping heart. She asked, "Was there something you wanted, Damon?"

"How you wound me, Elena."

She stopped walking and wished he was in front of her so that she could smack him again. "If you are just going to be condescending, I will hang up on you."

"Sorry for just trying to make conversation."

"Damon…"

"Look, I wanted to…I wanted to apologise for what happened."

"You mean…"

"When we kissed."

Elena wasn't sure she wanted to talk about it at all. Apology or not. She wanted to pretend that nothing of the sort had ever happened. It hurt too much to think about. And it terrified her what Stefan would do if he learned the truth.

She said, "You kiss me. I didn't kiss you."

"I may have leant in, but your tongue certainly got involved."

"Damon! I did not kiss you."

"Sure, okay."

Elena clenched her jaw and started walking. She wasn't too far from her dorm. "If this is what you call an apology, your brain is fried."

"Fine, listen. I am not sorry for kissing you. I am in love with you, Elena, and I am sick of feeling like the bad guy because I can't control myself around you."

She had just stepped through the front doors of her dorm building. The words sunk in, and her heart started to ache. Why did Damon have to be so honest? The one time she wanted him to lie to her and be an ass, he was being honest and vulnerable with her. If it was any other situation, Elena would have been excited at his progress.

Elena swallowed the lump in her throat and said, "I'm sorry, Damon. But I am with Stefan; I love Stefan."

Damon huffed. "Yes, you have told me that before."

"Then I don't understand why you keep trying to force your feelings down my throat."

"Maybe because I know that you feel something for me."

Elena snapped. "No, I don't—"

"Yes! You do!" Damon yelled.

"Damon—"

"No, Elena."

Elena squeezed her eyes shut and tried not to let the ache in her chest overwhelm her. She couldn't admit what he wanted.

He said, "I know the reason you refuse to admit anything is because you don't want to be like Katherine. But you could never be like her; your heart is too big for that. Elena, you see the good in everyone. You saw the good in me."

He was right. So damn right. But she wouldn't do it. Elena refused to break the bond between Damon and Stefan, not after everything they both had done over the last five years to fix it.

"Damon…what do you want me to say?" she asked.

"I just want you to be honest with me."

"I am being honest with you; I love Stefan."

Damon scoffed. "Right now, I don't care about my brother. Do you feel something for me?"

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do."

"Damon, stop," she begged.

"No. I won't."

"I can't do this."

"Elena—"

She ended the call. Hanging up, tears slid down Elena's cheeks, and as she opened her eyes, a familiar blonde vampire was standing in front of her. Caroline looked at her with a mix of confusion and concern.

"You okay?" she asked.

Elena swallowed. What was she supposed to say? No one knew that Damon had kissed her or that he seemed to be set on confessions his feelings whenever he wanted. Elena didn't know what to say.

"Was Damon bugging you again?"

Elena nodded.

"He seriously needs to find someone else to annoy. Have you told Stefan?"

She hadn't. Nor did she want Stefan to know. "No. He's harmless." Elena moved towards the stairs that would lead up to their dorm.

Caroline followed. "Damon is anything but harmless. Remember how he treated me when he first came to town?"

Elena frowned. She didn't like to think of Damon as that person. He had changed since then, made up for what he had done. "Damon's changed since then."

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Changed or not, the man is trouble."

Elena wasn't going to agree or disagree.

They reached their dorm and found Bonnie inside. She was standing in the kitchen making a cup of tea. The microwave was also running, and they could hear popcorn popping.

"That smells so good," said Caroline. She dropped her bag onto the chair and inhaled deeply.

Elena sat down on the couch and listened to her friends.

"I made enough for us all," said Bonnie, "Sarah did call and say that she would be late. Apparently, there is another Professor she needs to argue with."

Caroline laughed. "That girl loves to argue."

Bonnie picked up her freshly poured tea and walked over to sit beside Elena on the couch. She placed her hand on Elena's knee. "You okay?" she asked.

Elena frowned. "What makes you think anything is wrong?"

"Elena, we love you. But your emotions are always written all over your face," said Caroline. She sat down across from them. "And you always have this look on your face after you talk to Damon."

"Wait, this is a Damon face?" said Bonnie.

Caroline nodded.

"What did he want?" asked Bonnie.

Elena sighed. She didn't know if she should tell them, but it was bugging her. There was no way that she could ever admit the truth to Stefan; it would break his heart and the relationship he had built with his brother. Taking a deep breath, she ran her fingers through her hair.

She said, "He wanted to apologise."

"About what?" asked Bonnie.

Caroline said, "What horrible decision has he made to ruin your life now?"

Elena cringed. "He kissed me."

The look on Caroline and Bonnie's faces were priceless.

"Excuse me?" asked Caroline.

"When did that happen?" Bonnie sat forward and put down her tea.

"Christmas. At the Boarding House," explained Elena.

"Christmas! And you're only telling us now," yelled Caroline.

Elena frowned. "I didn't want to tell anyone. Damon kissed me while my boyfriend and family were all downstairs. Telling you would have just made it more real."

"It was real anyway."

"I know that. But I just wanted to pretend that it very happened. Now Damon has it in his head that I kissed him back, and he keeps declaring his feelings for me."

"Did you kiss him back?" asked Bonnie.

"No!"

Caroline stood up and walked over to sit closer to Elena. She grasped Elena's hands and said, "Why so defensive?"

"Because I would never do that to Stefan."

"But if you wouldn't do that, then why are you so aggressively trying to deny it. If Damon kissed you, then you did nothing wrong."

"So you think I did kiss him."

Caroline shrugged. "I don't know. What I do know is that you love Stefan and that Damon is a complicated mess." She squeezed Elena's hands. "A mess that you need to sort out. If Damon spills the beans to Stefan, it could spell disaster for you."

Elena didn't know what to do. If she told Stefan, she believed that they would be fine, their relationship would be just as it was. But she didn't want to destroy what Damon and Stefan had built over the past five years. They were getting alone; they were happy. After everything that had happened to them, Elena wanted for them to have that bond.

"I don't want to hurt either of them," said Elena.

Bonnie placed her hand with Caroline's on top of Elena's. She said, "The longer this is kept from Stefan, the more it will hurt him."

"And Damon has done this, not you," added Caroline. "He is the one ruining your lives."

Elena didn't know what to do.

Elijah arrived at the Gilbert Family home around five. He parked his car out the front as Jenna and Alaric pulled out of the driveway. Both of them gave him a wave as they headed off on their date. He knew inside of the house was Alex and baby George; they were on babysitting duty so that Jenna and Alaric could have some adult time. Alex's words, not his. He had stopped by the Grill on his way and picked them up dinner, so they wouldn't have to cook and had made sure to also buy some ice cream too. White chocolate raspberry was Alex's favourite.

Alex had messaged him before he arrived and had told him to just walk in, so he did. Inside, the house was warm, and Elijah caught the sound of soft giggling. Elijah walked towards the kitchen and couldn't stop himself from taking in the scene before him. Alex had George sitting in his high chair; she was smiling at him with a spoonful of something orange and was making popping sounds with her mouth. George seemed to enjoy each pop because his mouth would open wide, and he would clap his hands. Alex took the opportunity to get the food into his mouth.

Glancing up and catching Elijah's gaze, Alex said, "Take a picture."

Elijah smirked. He was unashamed of being caught staring. He lifted the bag of food onto the counter and said, "I much prefer the real thing."

Alex grinned and shook her head. "Elijah thinks he's so charming." She poked George's stomach and gave him another spoonful. "What's for dinner?"

Elijah pulled out the two containers filled with fries and burgers and placed them on the counter. "And let's not forget the good stuff." He pulled out the ice cream and slid it across the bench.

Alex's eye widened, and she grasped the ice cream. "Let's have dessert first."

Elijah chuckled.

Walking around the island, Elijah pressed a kiss to Alex's head before smiling down at the child, who was now staring at him with wide eyes.

He said, "George has gotten big. Haven't you?"

George reached out a grabbed Elijah's hand.

Alex nodded. "He's a lot heavier."

Elijah moved their dinner into the lounge room while Alex finished off George's dinner. Elijah put the ice cream in the freezer for later and told Alex to pick out some wine; he would make sure to replace it later.

Alex carried George into the lounge room with a bottle of wine in hand and asked, "How did your mystery meeting go?"

Elijah sighed. It hadn't gone exactly how he had imagined. "A vampire named Eric had some very interesting information."

"Really?" asked Alex. She handed him the bottle of wine. "Did you have to provide something in return?"

"Yes." Elijah poured both of them a glass.

"Another daylight ring?"

Elijah smiled at her and nodded. It wasn't the first time she had done such a thing for him.

"The information better have been worth it."

Alex settled George in a playpen that Jenna had set under the front window. George instantly grabbed for the stuffed animals and snuggled up with them.

"It was certainly interesting," said Elijah.

Alex sat down beside him and picked up her glass of wine.

"It seems that Finn is involved with the Council."

Alex paused mid-sip. "Excuse me?"

"I didn't really want to believe it myself, but Eric provided me with proof." Elijah pulled out photos that Eric had given him.

Alex took them, and her face darkened.

The four photos that Alex held showed Finn standing with three different people, all of who were witches and all who Alex had told Elijah about before. The first photo showed Finn shaking hands with Franklin Jones, a man in his late thirties; he had three parallel scars ran along his throat and one of the five leaders of the Council. The second photo showed Finn sitting at a café with Harriette Adams, a woman in her fifties with brilliant green eyes and greying red hair; she was also another Council Leader. The third photo showed Jones, Adams as well as Richard Johnson standing with Finn. Richard Johnson was one of the five Council Leaders, but he was the strongest and possibly oldest witch in the whole coven. Elijah remembered Alex's story about their one and only meeting; she had claimed that she would never want to be in the same room as that man ever again. Alex had also told him that Johnson was the witch who had mentored Renee.

"Where were these taken?" Alex asked.

"London, a few months ago. Eric claims that Finn went to London with Sage."

"He found her."

Elijah nodded. "But Sage hasn't been seen since."

"So, Finn went to London with Sage, who has disappeared and now he has been seen associating with the leaders of the Council?"

"It seems that way."

"Did Eric have any clue as to why?" she asked.

Elijah sighed. "He said he had more, but he wanted the ring first."

Alex nodded. "I'll make the ring first thing tomorrow."

Elijah reached over and placed his hand on Alex's knee. He knew that dealing with the Council had never been easy for her. For years, they had been her family, her home. And now they were actively trying to kill her.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

Alex shook her head. "I don't know. This is a whole complicated mess that doesn't really make sense." She took a large sip of her wine before putting the glass down and leaning back on the couch. "If the Council do have Kol, then that means two of your brothers are now in their hands. It worries me that the few notes that I found about that linking spell have to do with a much larger plan; a plan that, from the look of those photos, Finn is involved in."

Elijah nodded. "I agree. It is concerning." He took a sip of his wine.

"Why would Finn even work with the Council?"

"The Council's goal is to eliminate vampires. Finn has always hated what we are. Things got better when he met Sage, but that didn't last long because we all got dagger for the first time, and as you know, Klaus kept Finn daggered. I would have thought that if he never found Sage, he might spend his days trying to find an end to his existence."

Alex frowned. "What if something happened to Sage?"

"Maybe."

"The Council know that all of you are awake. They have plenty of information on you which means they had tried to keep track of you. They could have easily found Finn, worked out his weakness and have used it against him," said Alex.

Elijah thought it would be possible. "Do you think they are holding Sage somewhere?"

Alex shook her head. "No. They probably killed her. They wouldn't hold a vampire captive."

"Perhaps we should see if we can locate Finn?" asked Elijah.

"He's probably cloaked like Kol." Alex sat forward and picked up her wine again. She finished off the glass and then grabbed the bottle. "Have you tried calling him?"

Elijah shook his head. "The number he had when he left Mystic Falls hasn't worked in over two years."

"I'm surprised you didn't go chasing after him like you do Kol."

He frowned, and his fingers clenched around his wine glass.

"Sorry, that didn't sound like I meant it." Alex reached for him and cupped his cheek.

"I know," he said, "but it's valid. I hover over Kol, Rebekah, even you. But Finn, I just let go." Elijah wrapped his fingers around her wrist and offered her a small smile.

"Why did you let him go?" she asked.

"Finn has always separated himself from us. When we were human, Finn never really connected with any of us; our mother always told me it was because he never truly recovered from losing our oldest sister."

Alex nodded. She had heard about the eldest Mikaelson child before.

"If Finn is working against us, maybe he was the one who brought Kol here," said Elijah.

Alex frowned. "That would make sense. Kol wouldn't just come to Mystic Falls for no reason."

"Finn could have asked for his help or said something that would bring him back."

"So if we find Finn, we could find Kol." Alex shifted closer. "Once George is asleep, I will try the tracking spell."

Elijah sighed. "And tomorrow, I will see what else Eric has."

The food that Elijah had bought for them was cold. Alex used a small spell to heat the food before they ate it and made sure to keep the conversation away from their current predicament. Once they had finished eating, Elijah cleaned up the mess, and Alex took George upstairs for bedtime.

Elijah served a bowl of ice cream of Alex, sat in on the coffee table, and flicked through the T.V. channels until he found an old movie. It wasn't one he knew of, but Alex had a thing for black and white movies. He had watched the film for ten minutes before Alex joined him again. She sat beside him and placed the baby monitor on the coffee table before grabbing her ice cream. Alex snuggled into Elijah's side, and the two of them just enjoy the film.

Jenna and Alaric returned home just before ten. Elijah made sure to grab Alex's ice cream from the fridge before they headed back to Klaus' half-finished house. The home was dark and silent, meaning Rebekah had probably found her way back to Matt's, and the two made their way up to their room.

Elijah headed into the bathroom to shower before bed. Alex took her phone out onto the small balcony that sat off their room. There was a small bench out there that she sat down on and lifted her legs to rest on the balustrade.

On the drive home, Alex knew that they needed more information. With Finn possibly working for the Council, they needed to know if Finn had lured Kol to Mystic Falls. If they could somehow confirm that theory, then they knew to focus on the Council. Without being able to ask Kol directly, they needed to find another way to figure out what brought him back. The only other person that could possibly know was the blonde witch that Kol had been close with back in New York. There was no time to fly to New York, find the girl, and convince her to tell them, but Alex had a friend who happened to live in New York.

Robert Sanders worked alongside Alex within the Council. He was ten years older than her and had spent a lot longer doing things that he never really wanted to do. They had become fast friends after Jamie had introduced them, so when Alex turned her back on the Council after she learned the truth about the horrors they had committed, Robert followed her. He had moved to New York City to start a new life while also keeping a watch over his shoulder for any would-be assassins the Council might send after him, but unlike Alex, he wasn't on their most wanted list.

The last time she had seen Robert was Jamie's funeral; they had kept in touch with the occasional call, but it had been a little while since they last spoke. Alex found Robert's number in her contacts and dialled.

"Alexandra Ravenwood." His voice rumbled down the line with a chipper tone. "It has been too long since I heard from you."

Alex smiled at the warm greeting. "It has been far too long, Robert. How are you?"

Robert hummed. "Things have been good. I have never relaxed so much in my life. Turns out when you're not being sent to hunt down vampires, you can find time for hobbies."

Alex chuckled. She could only imagine what hobbies he had picked up.

"But we both know that you have called for a reason, so instead of letting me ramble on, what can I do for you?"

It was true; Alex hated that she sometimes made her friends feel like she only called on them when she needed something. It wasn't something she was proud of, and she was working on it. "That I am."

"Don't be too concerned, I don't mind. I like being of use to someone."

"How do you feel about striking up a conversation with a young blonde witch?"

Robert laughed. "How young are we talking? These days I'm considered old and young girls don't always appreciate me getting too close."

"Early twenties, I believe. You don't need to sleep with the girl unless you two want to then go for it, but I need to know if she knows why Kol Mikaelson came to Mystic Falls."

"Why don't you just ask him yourself?" he asked.

Alex sighed. "I wish it was that simple. But I'm almost certain the moron got kidnapped and is being held somewhere that is cloaked."

"Someone kidnapped an Original Vampire?"

"Yep."

"Wow! That person's got balls."

"And power. The cloaking spell has been running for days. I want to try and crack it, but I'm having to wait for college finals to be over before getting Bonnie and Sarah's help. Until then, I'm stuck with old fashion detective work."

Robert asked, "How exactly do you want to crack it?"

"I want to try overwhelming the spell. If I can borrow enough power from Bonnie and Sarah, I might be able to crack through the barrier," explained Alex.

"Or you might kill yourself."

Alex frowned.

"If that witch is using a rechargeable power source for that spell, it could take massive amounts of power. If you challenge too much, you could kill yourself and the others."

"I'm not a child, Robert. I know my limits."

"Yes, I know you do. But I also know that this is personal for you. While you might not like Kol all that much, you love Elijah. And from what you have told me, he has an obsessive need to protect his family and will go to whatever lengths he needs to to get it."

Alex wanted to argue, but Robert was right.

He continued, "And you will go just as far to help him."

"I won't push it," she said.

Robert sighed.

"If you speak to this witch, I might not have to," said Alex.

"Fine. I will talk to the girl. Send me her details."

Alex knew that he was worried about her, and she appreciated his concern. But she knew her limits; she wouldn't do something stupid.

"Thank you, Robert," she said.

"You are welcome."

Hanging up, Alex sent him the information she had about the girl. Hopefully, Robert would get something useful, but now all Alex could do was wait. And she hated waiting.