I do not own TVD or TO
Rebekah clung to the arm of the chair, watching the coffee table with wary eyes as the firelight winked off the sharp knife.
"Are you still staring at that?" Elijah held the back of her chair.
"We're stuck in here," she gestured towards the windows, "and there's nothing better to do – at least not while Hope is napping."
She stretched forward to pick up the knife and spun the point on the tip of her finger; a small trickle of blood ran toward her palm.
"You're going to drive yourself crazy," he plucked the blade from her hands, circling around to sit beside her.
Rebekah glanced at him, struggling to recall the last time he had appeared so haggard, or the last time she had seen him in jeans. She supposed it made sense; trapped in the house there was nobody to intimidate or impress, and with her there was no reason to hide the weary set of his mouth.
"Better I lose my mind then Elena," she sighed, sinking into her chair. "Between her sleepless nights, and searching for answers, she's running herself ragged."
"And you think Freya's botched spell holds the answer?"
Klaus strode into the room where his siblings sat, blinking to bring some moisture back to his dry eyes.
"All that that knife holds is the ability to enrage me," he grumbled, snatching it he drove the end down into the table.
"Was that necessary?" Rebekah rolled her eyes. She just managed to catch her glass before it tumbled to the floor; they were running dangerously low on dishes as it was. It wasn't like they could replace the things they broke anymore.
Klaus scrubbed a hand over his face, exhaling slowly.
Elijah lifted a bunched cloth from his brother's shoulder.
His head jerked up, tired eyes watching Elijah fold and line up the pink stripes.
"You've got a rabbit in your pocket," he nodded.
"Feeling a little peckish, Nik?" Rebekah smirked, unable to resist teasing.
"Sod off," he growled. Pulling the stuffed animal free, he cocked his head to the side, listening for any sign that his daughter was fussing without it. "What are you doing with that bloody knife anyway?"
"Lamenting the fact that it's not bloody," she spun her glass in her hand, watching her brother absentmindedly fiddle with the rabbit's ear. "I don't understand what went wrong."
"Freya's magic is subpar compared to our dear aunt?" Klaus shook his head.
"But the logic makes sense," Rebekah shook her head. "Dahlia's three greatest weaknesses should have rendered her mortal."
"Perhaps the ingredients were wrong," Elijah placed the blanket down on the table in line with the knife. "Misinterpreted, perhaps?"
"How do you misinterpret sacred Norwegian soil, Viking ash, and blood?" She sighed, tipping her head back to stare at the ceiling.
"Was it the right blood?"
Rebekah jumped, twisting towards the door.
"Sorry," Caroline shrugged, "didn't mean to scare you. Although I did enjoy the result," a small smile tugged at her lips.
"That's the third time this week," Rebekah's eyes trailed over the baby vampire. "How do you move so quietly in heels?"
"I'm part cat," she deadpanned, moving forward on silent feet. "You didn't answer my question. Was it the right blood?"
"I don't see how it could have been wrong," Klaus sighed.
"Were there requirements for the blood?" Caroline perched on the coffee table, crossing her ankles. "Did it have to be a certain blood type?"
"In a way," Rebekah finished the last of her drink. "It had to be the blood of the witch who broke Dahlia's heart: Freya."
"Freya?" Caroline's brows knit together.
"Yes," Klaus' eyes flickered over her face.
"Freya," Caroline repeated. "The beloved child your aunt stole away from her only sister?"
"That is who she is," Klaus frowned. "Why is that important?"
"Well…" Caroline chewed her bottom lip, moving her hands as she spoke. "It's just that stealing a child from her sobbing mother and younger brother sounds pretty heartless to me. And then she went on to make Freya's life a living hell."
"Somebody broke her heart long before Freya came into the picture," Rebekah straightened up.
"That makes the blood open to interpretation," Caroline glanced over her shoulder. "The only question is who did it?"
"Elena, you need to sleep," Kol ran a hand back through his hair.
"I can't sleep," she took the stairs down to the courtyard.
"Sure you can," he skirted the fountain, barely sparing Finn and Sage a nod as he passed. "All you have to do is close your eyes."
She whirled on him, stabbing his chest with her shaking finger. Muscles jumped under her skin. "How am I supposed to do that? How, Kol?"
"How am I supposed to sleep when every time I close my eyes I see her?" Her stomach twisted; bile rose in the back of her throat and tears shimmered in her red eyes. "How am I supposed to sleep when all I can see is her taking our baby?"
"How?" She shrieked.
He reached for her shoulders, pulling her closer as she struggled against his grip until she was encased in his arms. Her fingers curled around his jacket. He smoothed down her hair as she sobbed, kissing the top of her head. He could feel a gentle shifting where her stomach pressed tightly to his.
Her tears slowed, trailing off into the occasional hiccup as Kol lowered her to sit on the edge of the fountain.
"I will die before I let that bitch anywhere near our baby," he swore, trailing his fingers down her arm.
She clung to his shirt, glancing up through wet lashes and whispering. "That's what I'm afraid of."
"Nobody is dying Elena," Finn moved some broken wood aside. The courtyard was slowly being cleaned up and resembling something semi-respectable – if in desperate need of repairs.
"I made sure of that," Sage swept up some broken glass. "Remember?"
"How could I forget?" Elena made a sound between a groan and a laugh. "I hated you for that."
"It all worked out," she surveyed the courtyard, "you still found enough white oak for your spell."
"And then promptly destroyed it," Finn brushed some dust from his sleeves. "Right?" He lifted an eyebrow.
"Right," Elena whispered.
"Then you truly have nothing to worry about," he nodded, gesturing towards the stairs. "So go and get some sleep because Kol is right, you need it. This isn't healthy."
"I still have plenty to worry about," she lowered her eyes, staring at the ground. "She's still coming back for her," she smoothed a hand over her stomach, "and we can't stop her."
"We'll find a way, darling," he rubbed her upper arm.
A loud knock drew their attention up toward the front of the house. Elena used Kol's arm to awkwardly get to her feet and then crossed her arms. She stared at the floor, walked around the remaining rubble and ducked into the hall leading to the door.
"I'm surprised you haven't put her under with a spell, brother," Finn watched Elena go.
"I could put her to sleep, but I can't control her dreams." Kol rubbed the knotted muscles in the back of his neck. "I'd be trapping her in her nightmares."
"What about dreamless sleep?" Finn tilted his head. "Or peaceful dreams? There are spells for it."
"The compound isn't exactly equipped for magic," Kol frowned.
"Wow…" Elena lifted her head when she heard Marcel's voice. "I haven't seen you this distraught since that time you bumped into Elijah in Europe. Do you remember that?" He stood a foot away from the barrier.
She nodded, shivering at the vivid recollection. She could see Elijah in her mind's eye as he drank himself into a stupor. He had been so far gone when she found him that he didn't even recognize her glamour, and after learning why he was drowning his sorrows she had wanted to join him.
"This is a little different then finding out people I care about are at the bottom of the ocean," she whispered. "What are you doing here?"
"We brought you some stuff," he tipped his head to the left.
Elena followed his gaze to where Davina and Thierry were pulling some bags from the trunk of his car.
"Hey," Davina greeted. She pulled up the handle of a rolling suitcase and strode towards the door, nearly crossing the threshold before remembering at the last second.
"What's all this?" Elena squinted. She recognized the bag; it was the same one she had dragged to Greece and back.
"I… we…" she amended, "thought you might like some of your own things. You must be longing for your stuff."
"Davina packed your clothes," Thierry lifted a cooler from the trunk, "I made sure she put your journal in as well."
Warmth spread through her chest, momentarily chasing away the cold. Her eyes surveyed the bags as she curled her fingers around the handle Davina nudged through the open door; there was fresh blood, some groceries and several bags full of different things from the mansion.
"Thank you," she rubbed a hand over her cheek, tucking hair behind her ear.
"You okay?" Marcel leaned against the gate. "You look tired. Have you been sleeping?"
"Of course not," she scoffed. Her posture relaxed a fraction when she felt a warm hand on her back. She looked up over her shoulder. "Look, we got a care package."
"Oh I'm thinking this was all for you," Kol kissed her temple. He reached and took the cooler Thierry held out. He flipped the lid, chuckling at the contents. "AB negative?"
"That was not easy to find," Marcel shook his head.
"I believe it," Elena smiled.
"Sophie sent some gumbo too," Davina waved her hand, "it's in one of the bags. She felt really bad about Monique locking us in the cottage."
"Did you ever figure out why she did that?" Elena leaned into Kol's side.
Davina shuffled her feet, lowering her eyes. Guilt prickled the back of her skull. "She… she wanted to trap me like I trapped her. She said she was going to let you out after a few hours."
"Personally I have a little trouble believing that," Marcel rolled his eyes.
"Personally I don't really care anymore," Elena shut her eyes, inhaling sharply. "I just want to get out of this house so I can attempt to disappear."
"You know that won't work, my love," Kol murmured. "You heard Freya: her magic will be like a beacon."
"Let me dream, Kol. Let me dream," she sighed. She let go of the suitcase and reached for the cooler. "I'm going to go put this away, and glare at Klaus if he goes for the AB negative."
Kol nodded, watching her go for a moment before turning back to the guests.
"How is she really?" Thierry frowned. "She said she hadn't slept."
"She hasn't," he shook his head. "She's terrified, and I don't know what to do to calm her down."
"Because you're freaking out too?" Davina guessed, crossing her arms.
"I believe I have a right to 'freak out', little witch," his jaw ticked. He cursed under his breath when she turned. "Wait."
"Why?" She tapped her foot on the sidewalk.
"Because," he gritted his teeth, "I need your help."
"Why would I help you?" Her blue eyes hardened.
"You'll help me, so I can help her," he smirked, nodding to where Elena had disappeared.
She glanced over his shoulder. "Fine," she uncrossed her arms. "What do you want?"
"Lavender, smoky quartz and parchment."
"Where am I supposed to find smoky quartz?" She frowned.
"There's some at the Jardin Gris," Thierry cleared his throat. "I can take you."
"I thought that place was shut down."
"I have a key," he shoved his hands in his pockets. "We'll be back in a half an hour."
"Where'd all of this come from?" Hayley slipped into the kitchen, surveying the multitude of bags. "People outside of this family actually like this family?"
"Don't be ridiculous Hayley," Kol unloaded a grocery bag; "people in this family don't like this family. Elena is the only Original to inspire friendship wherever she goes."
"I do not," she stifled a yawn. Her tired eyes fell to Hope as Hayley moved towards the counter. "Hi," she traced the baby's tiny fist with her finger, "I thought you were napping."
"She was," Hayley carefully passed her daughter to Elena, "but then she woke up and decided she was hungry."
A wrinkle appeared between Hope's brows, and in that moment she was the image of her father; she made a displeased grunt and suckled at the pacifier.
"Do you get cranky when you're hungry?" She cooed. "Thierry used to get really cranky when he was hungry."
"She's not a very cranky baby," Hayley shook her head, reaching into the fridge for formula.
"Are you sure she's Nik's?" Kol flipped on the bottle warmer.
"I'm pretty sure," Hayley rolled her eyes in the direction of the courtyard.
"Then she must get her temperament from you," Elena managed a small smile for Hope.
Hayley's loud laugh startled Hope into wiggling against Elena's bump; the baby kicked up in response, to which Hope harrumphed and wiggled again.
"Okay," amusement leaked through Elena's weary voice, "somebody needs to take her; she's started a shove off with her little cousin."
"Ah," Kol smirked, "so she is Nik's."
"Are you implying that I push people for no reason?" Klaus strode into the room and plucked Hope from Elena's arms.
"I'm not implying anything," Kol placed the last of the groceries in the fridge, "I'm saying it outright."
Elena placed a hand on Kol's chest, gently pushing him back a step and inserting herself between the brothers. She really wasn't sure how they had survived the last two weeks in close quarters.
A piercing cry filled the kitchen, reminding her.
Hope was the reason the brothers had refrained from fighting and destroying the rest of the compound in the process. Hope and her; Klaus was busy taking care of his child and Kol had his hands full with her.
Hayley tested the bottle on her wrist and then passed it to Klaus.
Elena pulled a bag of blood from the fridge.
"Is that AB negative?" Klaus squinted at the label.
"Hands off," she growled, opening the bag and taking a long pull.
"You'll find my hands are full at the moment," he looked down to where Hope suckled the bottle.
Elena was prepared with a smart retort, but the sudden arrival of the rest of the family held her tongue. She sipped her blood, tilting her head as Caroline gestured people towards the table.
Elena shrugged and sat in the chair Kol pulled out for her, knowing better than to ever argue with Caroline Forbes about anything; the woman could make a grown man cry before she possessed super strength.
"Was there something you wished to share, Caroline?" Finn leaned back in his chair. His brows lowered when she dropped the knife on the table.
"She developed a theory earlier," Klaus shifted Hope onto his shoulder, rubbing her back.
"I think I know why this knife didn't work," Caroline leaned over the table, bracing her hands on the wood and turning toward Freya. "You used the wrong blood."
"What are you talking about?" Freya frowned. "The spell required the blood of…"
"The witch who broke her heart," Caroline finished. "Except, Dahlia's heart was broken long before you came into the picture."
Kol's hand found Elena's knee beneath the table.
"Who then?" His eyes flickered over his siblings faces. "How are we meant to solve a mystery from before we were born?"
"I believe that's why she's called us all here," Rebekah rolled her eyes. "Go on, love."
"I think the answer," Caroline glanced towards Freya, "is in the rest of the spell."
"Sacred soil?" Sage guessed, tilting her head.
"Ashes of her oppressors," Caroline cocked an eyebrow.
"Viking ashes?" Finn's eyes darted to his siblings.
"She was oppressed by Vikings, right?" Caroline tilted her head.
"She told me once that they murdered everyone in her village and made her use magic for them," Freya nodded.
"Right," she gestured with her hand to the witch. "Okay, so, she's oppressed by Vikings to the point where their ashes become a weakness for her, and then her sister – arguably the last person she has left in the world – leaves her to marry a Viking – possibly one of the ones involved in the slaughter of her neighbors. Do any of you see where I'm going with this?"
"Mother?" Kol's brows shot up. "To kill our aunt and save our children we need the blood of our mother?"
"Yes," Caroline nodded.
"Our dead mother?" Kol's heart slowed.
"Yes."
"The woman we cremated?" Elena paled.
"Yes."
"So there really is no hope," Elijah glanced toward his niece as she was transferred to her mother's embrace.
"Not necessarily," Caroline folded her arms on the table.
"What do you mean 'not necessarily'?" Freya threw up her hands. "It's next to impossible to bring back the dead when they have earthly remains. There is no possible way we could get her blood now."
Elena didn't realize she was drinking the blood faster and faster until the bag was empty and she was sucking on air. She wanted to swear, scream and cry but there was a baby in the room; the bag crinkled in her hand.
"We are royally screwed," she muttered.
"Wow," Caroline snickered. "I honestly thought you'd catch on first."
"What are you talking about?" Kol frowned.
Caroline shifted, watching the confused expressions of her fellow prisoners for a second before sighing.
"Seriously?" She shook her head. "Seriously, nobody? Nobody can think of a solution?" She waited a beat and then leaned over the table towards Elena. "I'm sure you remember how you two met… when you met…"
"When… oh…" Elena's mouth popped open. "That's…"
"Brilliant," Kol finished. "That's bloody brilliant."
"I was gonna say dangerous," Elena shook her head.
"Elena's right," Finn shook his head. "Mother lived a thousand years ago."
"What about a few months?" Kol countered. "She was alive in Mystic Falls when I went in the coma."
"We already manipulated time around that spot once," she shook her head. "It was dangerous than and it would be a lot worse now. We can't send someone back a few months; who knows what would happen to our present, or the fabric of reality for that matter, if someone is walking around with a perfect body double."
"It's one thing when it's hours," Finn added. "That's what time manipulation spells were made for, but it's another entirely when a longer span is in question."
"Elena went back in time and everything was fine," Elijah glanced at her.
"But I had nearly eighty years to work out a solution," she shook her head. "I put myself in an enchanted sleep a few days before I was born so there was no chance of interfering with my human life."
"Whoever went back would have to go to a time before they existed," Freya pushed her hands through her hair. "And that leaves a very long stretch of time."
"I could go," Kol rubbed small circles on Elena's thigh with his thumb.
"Are you crazy?" She grasped his wrist.
"That's one of the many reasons you love me, darling," he smirked, but it didn't quite reach his eyes.
"It's a thousand years," her nails dug into his skin. "You would be alone for a thousand years."
"I did it once, I can survive it again," he flipped his hand over, threading his fingers through hers. "I can make it through, as long as you're both waiting here for me."
"How were you planning on getting through those years, brother?" Finn cocked an eyebrow. "Elena had to put herself to sleep, but those spells won't last more than twenty years – fifty if you're lucky."
"I'll take a dagger…"
"The daggers that don't work?" Klaus cocked an eyebrow. His eyes were glued on Hope's waving arm.
"I can make one work, Nik," he snapped.
"No, you can't," Elena crossed her arms, "because that kind of magic takes two witches and a diamond, and I'm not helping you do this."
"Very well," his expression darkened as he turned towards Freya.
"Don't look at me," she held up her hands. "Elena has that diamond locked up tight, and I'm honestly more afraid of her than I am of you."
"Darling?" He turned back to Elena.
"No!"
"Do you see a better solution? Somebody has to go."
"It's a thousand years Kol," she glared, "anything could happen! The dagger might not work. You could be lost. There is white oak back there; you could be killed!"
"There's no other way. Do you think I want to go?"
"You volunteered fast enough," her heart hammered.
Klaus glanced up as their voices rose, escalating to a full blown fight with the occasional input from one of the onlookers. He could understand why Finn wasn't volunteering to take Kol's place since he had spent so long under a dagger already. Freya would be the next best choice, but then they were back in the sleeping spell boat. Elijah and Rebekah were remaining quiet, likely trying to think of some other solution, and he stared at his gurgling daughter who despite everything remained oblivious to the chaos around her.
"I'll go."
The quiet settled over the room as disbelieving eyes settled on him.
"D… did I hear that right?" Caroline's eyes were round.
"Yes, sweetheart," he sighed, "I said I'll go. There is a dagger that works on me, so there will be no need for magical experimentation, and I'm fairly certain not one of my siblings will object."
Nobody did. He tried not to let that chafe.
"I'll go back and retrieve mother's blood, along with Viking ash and the sacred soil, and then put myself under the effects of the dagger. Is that acceptable Elena?" He turned toward the doppelganger.
She slowly unfolded her arms and rubbed a spot below her naval. After a moment she pressed her lips together and cleared her throat.
"It's still a thousand years," she ran her tongue over her teeth. "Anything could happen in a thousand years, and how would we get you back here?"
"What if he didn't go alone?" Caroline's fingers drummed over the table.
Elena's eyes widened. "You can't be serious?"
"Why not?" She shrugged. "I can make sure he stays out of trouble, and remains not lost. It's a lot easier to account for two decades then ten centuries."
"You're willing to journey a thousand years into the past and spend those years avoiding anyone you know and carting around a coffin?" Disbelief flashed in Elijah's eyes.
"What is with this family and coffins?" Elena groaned. "Can we step away from the freaking coffins? It's morbid."
"Do you have a better method for transporting a body quickly?" Klaus leaned back in his chair. "Believe me love, you get strange looks when you're lugging around grey bodies."
"Well, you would know," she said the words with false cheer.
"I'm not crazy about the idea of carrying around a coffin," Caroline interrupted before they could get going, "but Klaus has a point. There's not really another method, 'Lena."
"It's heavy, and awkward and morbid." She scrubbed her hand over her face, bracing her elbows on the table. Her nail caught the chain of her necklace. "And you don't know the language."
"I could actually teach her that," Klaus interjected, "provided we were sent far enough into the past."
"It's still a thousand years," Elena shook her head, staring at the table before dragging her eyes up to Caroline. "You would be alone for a thousand years."
"Were you alone?" Caroline countered. "You made friends and had a life, Elena. If you want my opinion I don't think you were at risk of harming your present until you were born. I'll be fine and bonus…" she grinned. "I'd come back physically stronger than everyone in this room, well…" her eyes flickered to Klaus, "almost everyone. Kind of wish I could get around that coffin bit though."
"What if you could?" Elena bit her bottom lip.
3 Weeks Later
Mystic Falls
"Where is it?" He muttered again and again under his breath, agitation growing with each passing second.
He tore through trunk after trunk. Scattered clothes and mementos from decades gone by. Shook every book on the shelf and flipped through each of his journals.
"Where is it?" He rifled through the contents of his desk.
"Where is it?" He flipped the mattress.
Smoke wafted up, over his balcony and through the door. He paused in the middle of kicking the bed post, spinning towards the open air and running to lean over the railing.
"What are you doing?"
"What am I doing?" Damon's face twisted. He took a long pull from the bottle of bourbon in his hand and gestured toward his little brother with a rectangle in his other hand. "What are you doing? It sounds like you're tearing the house apart."
"I'm looking for something," he rolled his eyes. "Why are you burning silk?"
"It's Katherine's old dress," Damon smirked tightly. "I'm getting rid of anything and everything that reminds me of Katherine Pierce and Elena Gilbert."
"What did Elena ever do to you?" He could feel a headache coming on.
"Honestly, nothing," Damon shrugged, "I'm just thinking it will be much better for my health if I'm not obsessed with her, and I don't appear to be obsessed with her."
"That's an oddly smart choice for you," Stefan frowned.
"I know right," he smirked. "Just about to get rid of the last of it," he lifted the thin object.
Stefan's eyes widened, horror filling him from head to toe.
"Don't," he shouted, holding out his hand.
Damon froze with Katherine's picture held over the fire, dangerously close to the flames. He looked from Stefan to the tintype and back.
"Don't tell me you've still got a flame for Katherine," Damon snickered. "Flame…" he laughed, waving the picture over the fire, "… get it."
"Damon," Stefan held out his hand. "It is very important that you move the tintype away from the fire right now."
"This kind of behaviour's not healthy, brother," Damon smiled, warmed from the inside by the liquor.
"Damon," Stefan groaned. "You are drunk, and not thinking straight." He took a deep breath and slowly jumped over the rail, bending his knees to absorb the impact. "Give me the tintype," he held out his hand, palm up.
"Why?" Damon frowned, leaning back on his heels.
"Because," Stefan approached slowly, "twenty years ago I put a false back on it. There is something very important behind Katherine's picture. Give me that and then you can burn the rest."
Damon watched his brother for a moment and then abruptly pulled his arm to his body. He put his half empty bottle on the grass and opened the casing around the picture. Then he pried up the photograph from the false back, glancing up at Stefan as he did so. Inside he found a leather book just a little smaller than the picture, and so thin it couldn't have held more than a page or two.
"You were tearing your room apart for this?" Damon held the book between his thumb and forefinger, tipping it back and forth over the fire for a good look. "What's so special about it?"
"It's a really long story," Stefan beckoned with his fingers, "involving Caroline Forbes and Sheila Bennett."
"Blondie?" Damon's eyes shifted. "Isn't she stuck in New Orleans with Elena?" He passed the book to Stefan.
"No," he visibly relaxed with the leather in his hand. Flipping it open he sighed when he saw the pages. "She's right here."
Damon reclaimed his bourbon and took a healthy swig on the short walk to his brother's side. His blue eyes clouded when he looked down into the book at the twin portraits. Caroline Forbes in high-waist jean shorts and a leather jacket stared back at him; mirroring her picture on the right was Klaus freaking Mikaelson with slightly longer curls that tumbled over his forehead and clothes straight out of a renaissance fair.
"What the heck is this?"
"Something Elena needs," Stefan sighed.
"So this is actually them?" Damon spoke slowly, pointing to the pictures. "Elena did her freaky little witchy thing?"
"Yes."
"I could have burned Klaus Mikaelson alive?" His eyes sparkled.
"Yes."
"Can I still burn him alive?"
"No."
"Come on, Stef," Damon slung his arm around Stefan's shoulders. "It'll be fun. We can take Caroline out first."
"No," he sighed.
"Aw, come on," he pouted, "it's not like it would kill him."
"No, Damon," Stefan rolled his eyes. "The stuff Elena needs is with Klaus," he slapped the small book shut and slipped it into his pocket. "I wouldn't be surprised if they planned it that way in case you got a hold of it."
He shrugged off his brother's arm, turned and took off for his car.
"Where you going?"
"New Orleans," he glanced back over his shoulder. "Are you coming?"
"No thank you," Damon shuddered. "I'd like to go at least a decade before running into a Mikaelson if I can help it."
"Do I want to know what happened in New Orleans?" Stefan opened the car door.
"I got on the wrong end of a psychopath," Damon shrugged. He dropped the portrait of Katherine in the flames and watched as the edges curled up. "Kol's the jealous type."
Stefan checked his pockets ensuring he had his phone and wallet before sliding into the car and turning over the ignition. He rolled down the window.
"At least you're learning."
"Mm," Damon grinned. He pointed from the fire to the house. "Would burning anything Katherine ever touched be too much?"
"Considering that Katherine's had her hands on everything in that house – including you – I'm going to say yes," Stefan rolled his eyes. "Don't burn our home Damon."
He put the car in drive and peeled out of the yard, dialing Alaric as he went; he picked up on the fourth ring.
"Hey, it's me. Can you do me a favor and come keep an eye on Damon? There is a small chance he might try to burn down the Boarding House."
"Should I bother asking why?"
There is one planned chapter left and then the epilogue, followed by a sequel set in the future when the girls are teenagers.