Author's Note:

THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS MULTIPLE TRIGGER WARNINGS! They include mentions of self harm, physical abuse and suicidal thoughts/attempts. We learn more about the Ramirez's backstory and that is when most of it is talked about. None of it goes into too much detail, as it's all talked about in passing. There is also be a section that could be considered Elena bashing, but it isn't anything too serious.

Buckle up, y'all, because this is a long ass chapter (over 8k words!). Word vomit, am I right?

"I swear if he hurts you, I'm gonna kill him," Esmeralda threatened as she worked on her latest book (yeah, Esmeralda was an author). Elowen shrugged her shoulders as she opened the fridge. She looked for something to eat as Josiah did his homework across from his mother.

"I think I'd beat you to it, mom." Elowen pulled out leftovers from dinner the night before and walked over to the microwave to heat it up.

"Welp, that's the last time I leave my phone anywhere near Damon," Josiah mumbled. He turned to the next page so he could continue the geometry problem he was on.

"That's the last time you hang out over there while he's a threat," Esmeralda corrected. Josiah looked up in disbelief.

"Mom," he protested. "Stefan's a good guy, don't let Damon ruin me finally making friends. Besides, I can protect myself," Josiah lifted a hand, spouting fire from his fingertips. "Remember? Fire can seriously injure vampires." He extinguished the flames.

"And kill them," Elowen supplied as the microwave beeped, indicating her food was done.

"Thank you!" Josiah gestured in her direction and dropped his pencil on the table. Esmeralda peered at her son from over her reading glasses, sighing as she removed them.

"Josiah," she began, but before she could continue, Elowen walked over with a plastic container that held her food.

"Ah, ah," she interrupted, coming to her brother's defense. "We all know that Josiah has had trouble adjusting since we made this move." Elowen glanced over at Josiah. This was sort of a sensitive topic.. "The only "friend" he's made here is Bonnie, but we both know she's closer to me because we're in the same grade. I'm sure he's also tired of hanging out with his big sister and her friends because he doesn't have any of his own." Elowen crouched down so she was level with her mother. "The day Stefan brought me home because I was dizzy, the day we saved Vicki, Josiah was bringing over Jeremy Gilbert so they could hang out," a look of shock crossed Esmeralda's face. "He's making progress, and the fact that he's trying to be friends with Stefan proves that. It's time to release your hold on him just a bit, okay? Let him handle it by himself. If Damon hurts him, he'll know what's coming to him."

Esmeralda looked back at Josiah, who had gone quiet when Elowen had begun to speak. He looked up and met her gaze. After a beat of silence, Esmeralda caved and nodded her head. "Alright, I guess I'll allow this one vampire friend."

A smile broke out on Josiah's face and Elowen grinned in triumph as she picked her food back up. "Thanks, sis," Josiah went back to his homework as Elowen patted his head.

"No problem, nerd."

"Good thing you approved Stefan, mom. I think he might be your son in law in the near future," Josiah joked loudly as Elowen walked away. She twisted back around at his words, her mouth full of spaghetti.

"Hey!"

Esmeralda had put her glasses back on, tilting her head down to look at Elowen with an eyebrow raised. "Is that so?" Before Elowen could respond, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" Elowen yelled as she sped out of the kitchen, desperate to escape the conversation. She could hear Josiah laughing as she retreated. Opening the door, she found Bonnie standing there. "Oh, hey. What's up?"

"Sorry I didn't call or text but, Elena was supposed to help me pass out flyers for the comet thing this evening. She just bailed on me."

"I'll go get my things," Elowen turned back around so she could grab her bag and her phone, then left the house with her food still with her. Bonnie gave her a look and pointed at the tupperware.

"Um…."

Elowen helplessly shrugged her shoulders. "What? I'm hungry!"

"Okay," Bonnie held her hands up in surrender, laughing as they walked to her car.

They rode in silence for a few moments as Elowen ate the rest of her food. Bonnie took a deep breath and finally gained enough courage to speak up.

"Are you a witch?"

Elowen, caught off guard, slightly choked on her spaghetti as she looked over at Bonnie. Swallowing what was in her mouth, she raised an eyebrow. "Did Elena really bail on you, or was this your tactic to get me cornered and alone?"

"Just answer the question."

"And if I say yes?"

Suddenly, Bonnie turned the steering wheel and pulled over, shutting off the ignition. "Show me."

Elowen stared at her for a long while before sighing. She set the container on her lap. "Bonnie, listen, it isn't my place to tell you about this. You should try listening to your Grams one of these days."

"That's the thing, I am trying to listen! But none of it is making any sense! I don't know what's right from wrong and I'm so confused. Grams is always so vague and answers my questions with more questions and it doesn't help that she's usually drunk. Please, Elowen. Help me try to understand."

Elowen bit her lip, unsure as to whether or not this was a good idea before giving in. "Okay. Let's start out plain and simple. What your Grams says is true, Bonnie. You're a witch. So am I, so is Josiah, so is Grams, and so is my mom. Bennetts' and Ramirez's have been friends for many generations. The saying goes that wherever there's a Bennett around, a Ramirez isn't too far away and vice versa. However, this is where things begin to differ: Bennett witches are Traditional witches, Ramirez witches are Elemental witches.

"Witchcraft lies heavily on our connection to mother nature and the earth itself. Traditional witches are exactly that, traditional. They use herbs and natural remedies in their spells and if focused enough, can perform many other forms of magic such as, telekinesis, pyrokinesis, hydrokinesis, and many others as they are basic abilities for Traditionals to master. But, these abilities don't always work? According to Sheila, at least; if you're thinking too much or don't have a clear mind, I guess you can't do the spells properly.

"Elemental witches aren't too different, but at the same time, we differ a lot. It depends on how you look at it. Elementals can do the same types of spells as Traditionals, use the same herbs and customs and such. It's when you get to the physical powers that things start to change. Elementals got their name because, in the beginning, they had full control over the earth's four elements. That meant they could perform these powers whenever they wished without trying or concentrating, unlike Traditionals who had to work hard to even get the air to change direction for a split second. As time went by, Elementals began to evolve to the point where we discovered other powers we could use, but the more it developed, the more we lost touch in being able to control all four of the elements. Nowadays, each Elemental is gifted with one power that is unique to them, whether it be an earth element or a newer power that mother nature decided to give us. I suppose that if we really tried, we would be able to learn how to control the elements again since it's distantly in our blood, but I don't know of anyone who's tried and succeeded. Anyway, our powers can grow and expand and it isn't uncommon for Elementals to inherit a second power in their lifetime."

"Okay, it sounds like you ate the Witchcraft Beginners' Manual," Bonnie joked nervously, causing the both of them to share a small laugh. She went quiet for a moment. "You're really serious about this, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I am."

"What power were you born with, then?"

"Premonition. Although this is kind of a power that Traditionals and Elementals share, the Elemental version is way more in depth and advanced. For example, Traditionals can only sense when something is wrong, but Elementals with this power know something is wrong. I've been told that when Traditionals get premonitions they're usually in dreams and always cryptic but Elementals get them whenever, wherever, 24/7 and we see exactly what's going to happen. Usually it gets triggered when I touch something or somebody but there have been cases where they just happen. It's a little exhausting actually."

"So the knowing part….. You just randomly know things?"

"Yep. For example, I know that you had a teddy bear named Ms. Cuddles that you lost when you were 9."

"Whoa. Okay, creepy much?"

Elowen smiled cheekily at Bonnie, who reached over and hit Elowen's shoulder. Elowen laughed and rubbed her shoulder. Then she went mute, sighing again. "Do you even believe anything I just told you?"

"Truthfully? I do, though I admit I'm still a bit skeptical. Between what Grams has been telling me and the weird stuff that's been happening lately, I don't know what to think. So yeah, it isn't the craziest thing I've heard within the past few weeks."

"After the comet passes by, come over so my mom can answer any questions you may have. We can teach you everything you need to know about being witch, alright?"

"No, no, I don't wanna intrude, plus Grams can-"

"Bonnie, stop. Any Bennett is automatically family to us. You're welcome over anytime."

Bonnie, getting slightly emotional at Elowen's declaration, felt herself getting choked up. Clearing her throat, she awkwardly smiled. "You're sure?"

"I'm sure," Elowen confirmed confidently. "Now, c'mon. Let's go hand out some flyers before Caroline eats us alive for being late."

"Tonight, night of the comet! Would you like a program?" Bonnie announced, handing a pamphlet to a person passing by. When no one was around, she turned to Elowen. "So, there's more witches than just our families, right?"

"Oh, of course. Before I moved here, I knew like, two different students at my school who were witches. There's entire generations of families who are witches," Elowen explained, before changing her attitude as more people passed by them. "Hi! Tonight's the night of the comet! Want a program?"

"So," Bonnie began once they were alone again. "Since Elementals only have access to one physical ability, does that mean they're at a disadvantage?"

"Depends on how you look at it. It's either excel at the one power you have, or constantly "train" to be able to briefly use many abilities at a time before it drains you. The latter sounds too exhausting to me, if I'm being honest."

"Are there other supernatural beings out there, or is it just us?" Bonnie changed the direction of the subject the thought occurred to her. Elowen gave her a look as someone passed by and half overheard her. The man fast walked quickly in the opposite direction.

"Bonnie!" Elowen whisper yelled. "You have to be more careful than that!"

"Sorry!" Bonnie apologized. "It's just…. Are there?"

Elowen glanced around and crept closer to Bonnie, significantly lowering her voice. "Yes. Vampires and werewolves are real, too. I don't know of any other things being real, but honestly, who knows."

Bonnie was getting ready to ask another question when Vicki Donovan walked over. She tapped on Elowen's shoulder. She turned around, surprised to see her. She looked over at Bonnie, who also looked as confused as she did. "Hey. Elowen, right? Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Yeah, sure. Be right back," she handed Bonnie the rest of the pamphlets in her hands and followed Vicki to a bench nearby. Sensing she didn't want anymore, 'How are you doing?' questions, Elowen stayed quiet until Vicki spoke.

"Listen, I just wanted to personally thank you and Jo….. siah?" Vicki looked to Elowen to make sure she got her brother's name right. When she nodded, Vicki continued. "If it weren't for him fighting off that animal and you dragging me to safety, I don't know what would've happened. I saw the bandage on his forehead earlier at school today….. Matty was surprised I went and to be honest, so did I," Vicki sighed, going silent for a moment. "It's common knowledge that I'm a druggie, right?"

Elowen, not expecting her to be so blunt with it, sputtered out nonsense in surprise before Vicki scoffed. "You don't have to be nice about it. Anyway, last night made me realize that being stoned all the time makes me vulnerable and that I hate feeling that way. Matty could've lost me last night, and I can't do that to him. I can't leave him alone. So I decided that I'm going to get clean. I wanted you to be the first to know." A look of shock crossed Elowen's face, before a genuine smile took place.

"I understand what it's like to do something harmful to your body and get addicted to it, and I know that it's difficult to quit once you start. You probably don't want to hear any sappy bullshit because I know I didn't, but I'm proud of you for making a healthy decision. Uh," Elowen reached into her purse and pulled out a pen. She searched around a bit more for something to write on but only found an old napkin. Quickly scribbling her number down, she handed the napkin to Vicki. "This is my number. Going through something like this alone isn't smart and definitely isn't fun, so call me just to talk or rant or if you need anything, okay? I'm here to help."

Vicki took the napkin, a smile on her face. "Thank you so much. Trust me, you don't know how much this means to me, for you not to laugh in my face and say I can't do it. You're almost a complete stranger and here you are, offering so much help and support. God, I forgot what it was like to have a real friend. Really, thank you." Vicki took a small glance down at Elowen's wrists. Her jacket sleeves were rolled up, exposing her wrists. "I, um, I noticed the scars. You're very brave. I admire that." Vicki smiled again, patting Elowen on the shoulder as she got up to leave. "I'll see you later."

"What did she want?" Bonnie asked as Elowen approached her, taking her half of the flyers back.

"She just wanted to thank me for last night."

By now, the sun was almost completely set, so both girls decided to head towards The Grill. People were beginning to crowd around in the town square for the comet and as they were weaving their way through said crowd, Caroline pushed her way through with a box in her hands. "I brought candles!" She announced, dropping the box onto a nearby bench. She began handing them out to some others close by, but saved the rest for her friends.

"One for you," she gave one to Bonnie. "One for you," she slid another to Elowen. "One for you," she tossed one over to Matt as he grew closer. "And one for you." She smirked as she passed a candle over to Stefan, effectively ruining his surprise.

"Oh, hey!" Elowen greeted, a goofy grin covering her face. Stefan mirrored her smile as they stared at each other for a moment before Caroline interrupted them. "Alright! Does anyone know if Elena is coming?"

"Right here." The brunette in question popped out of the crowd that seemed to get thicker within a couple of seconds. "I decided this would be good for me, to get out."

"Good choice," Caroline praised, taking another candle out of the box to give to Elena. Caroline picked up her own candle, her eyes lingering on the last candle in the box. Elowen knew she had grabbed it for Josiah, so she quickly pulled out her phone to text him to tell him to get over here. When Elowen put her phone away, Caroline had gotten her candle lit from another townsperson and had just lit Elena's candle, who lit Matt's. There was a slight awkwardness in the air, so Matt hastily turned and lit Bonnie's candle. Naturally, Bonnie lit Elowen's candle, so Elowen turned and lit Stefan's. Her phone buzzed and when she checked, it was a text from Josiah.

Jeez, calm down. I just got here. Where are you guys?

Elowen texted him the spot they were at and put her phone away again. Josiah had found them within a matter of minutes. Caroline lit up once she saw him. "Oh my god, hey! You came!"

"Of course I did. I couldn't exactly leave my big sister alone with him," Josiah said playfully, jabbing his thumb in Stefan's direction. The group shared a laugh, and afterwards Caroline took the last candle out of the box. She handed it to Josiah so she could light it.

As the group of friends stood and watched the comet pass by, Elowen leaned up to whisper in Stefan's ear. "So, Bonnie's Grams says the last time the comet passed a lot of death followed. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Stefan glanced down at Elowen and sighed, shaking his head in amusement. "I'll explain later, when we're alone. I promise."

As Elowen was about to respond, Matt spoke up, laughing. "Hey, lovebirds! We understand that we're too inferior for you guys, but at least get a room, yeah?" Everyone was sent into laughter as Elowen and Stefan flushed in embarrassment. Elowen reached over to hit Matt, though she felt herself being sucked into a premonition a second later.

Damon sitting at the bar as Vicki comes over to refill his glass of bourbon. Damon, recognizing Vicki as the girl Stefan and his little gang saved from him, immediately grew interest and started flirting with her. Vicki politely smiled and excused herself, leaving to use the restroom. As she was washing her hands, she looked up and saw Damon standing behind her. Red veins began to crawl down his face from under his eyes. Vicki turned around and screamed as Damon lunged and attacked her.

Elowen staggered backwards into Stefan as she was brought back to the real world. Josiah was by her side in a split second, holding her steady as Stefan leaned down to mumble in her ear, "What did you see?"

Elowen swallowed as she muttered back, "Vicki."

"Do you suffer from vertigo or something?" Caroline asked, oblivious as to what was happening. "You did that earlier when I was talking to you yesterday." Elowen blinked. She looked over at Caroline, ready to answer when she noticed Jeremy coming up from behind.

"Hey, has anyone seen Vicki? She just up and disappeared."

Tyler, who had showed up moments before looking for Matt, snorted. "She probably found somebody else to party with. Sorry, pill pusher, I guess you've been replaced."

"What's with the pill pusher?" Elena asked, looking towards Jeremy for answers. "Are you dealing?" Everyone seemed to ignore her as Tyler and Jeremy continued to argue.

"She's never gonna go for you."

"She already did, over and over again. And I didn't even have to force her into it." There was an underlying meaning in Jeremy's words, causing Tyler to suddenly get uncomfortable and quiet. Matt looked at his best friend, disbelief in his eyes. However, before the accusations could get any worse, Elowen cut in.

"Vicki isn't some kind of prize to be won!"

Once she had Tyler and Jeremy's attention, she continued. "She's a human being, not a trophy you walk around with to make other people jealous. If either of you really cared about her, you'd stop to consider what she wants and not what you want, so keep her out of your little 'I'm the alpha male' fight for once, alright? Now, are we all just gonna stand here, or are we going to look for Vicki?"

"Caroline and I will check around The Grill," Bonnie immediately offered, blowing out her candle as she grabbed Caroline.

"I'll check around the square, maybe she just got lost in this crowd somewhere," Matt announced, heading off. He stopped next to Elowen before he disappeared into the crowd. "Thank you," he murmured lowly in her ear, and in return she smiled at him. Jeremy tried following Matt, but Elena yanked him back to lecture him. Elowen had seen her do this a couple of times and she was fed up with it. Josiah, noticing what she was watching, pushed her to go help Vicki.

"It's okay, I'll deal with Jeremy. Go."

Once her and Stefan were gone, he turned towards the Gilbert siblings.

Jeremy had just stormed off. Elena watched him leave hopelessly when Josiah approached. "Y'know, you aren't really handling the situation very well. Can I offer some advice?"

Elena scoffed, turning to face Josiah. "No offense, but we aren't friends. You don't know me or what I've been through, so I'd appreciate it if you stayed out of my family matters." Normally, she wouldn't talk like that. She was just frustrated from her conversation with Jeremy. She moved to walk away, but Josiah reached out and grabbed her arm to stop her. The nice guy attitude was gone.

"You and your parents went over Wickery Bridge earlier this year. You survived but your parents died, and Jeremy's way of coping was getting high and drinking, right? And instead of just being there for him, as his big sister, you've been trying too hard to act like his mom and treating him like a little kid in the process. That's not the way to do this. Get your head out of your self victimizing ass and remember that he lost his parents, too, not just you. He just needs someone to talk to; he needs his sister. Not the parent police," Josiah let go of Elena's arm when he was done with his speech. He left Elena standing there, tongue-tied.

Josiah eventually found Jeremy sitting on the steps behind The Grill. He was holding a beer in his hand that he must've swiped from the bar somehow. Taking a seat beside him, a look of annoyance instantly crossed Jeremy's face. "Elena sent you after me, didn't she?"

"Nope," Josiah denied, shaking his head. "I came looking for you because I know you need a friend. Not someone who shares an interest in weed or someone who only sticks with you because you deal, but a real friend. I'm not here to reprimand you about how reckless you're being or any of the adult talk. I've been here long enough to watch you destroy yourself and I've also seen that deep down, you're just a kid hurting from the death of his parents. If you really were some kind of problem child, you wouldn't have accepted my offer to hang out the other day. I understand what you're going through right now, because I've been exactly where you are. I'm willing to tell you my story if you're willing to listen."

Jeremy had been looking at the ground as he listened to Josiah. He swallowed hard as tears filled his eyes. Knowing that there was someone out there like him, that there was someone out there who wasn't trying to change him by force, was the best thing he'd heard all day. Someone who was willing to just listen. So, Jeremy found himself nodding his head, because if Josiah was going to be his friend, it was only fair he treated him the same. Taking a deep breath, Josiah wet his lips before he spoke. He hadn't really talked about what happened since his parents split.

"My parents fought all the time, 24/7. There was never a time where they weren't yelling at each other. I guess it started getting really bad when he accused mom of cheating. It even got to the point where he almost made my mom believe that she had.

"Sometime after I turned 8, my dad started getting physical. Mom did everything she could to keep his anger directed at her so he wouldn't hit me or Elowen, but I made a mistake one day. I intervened. After that, he started hitting all three of us. Elowen and I chose different ways of coping. She decided to hide the bruises and lie to everyone, did everything she could to put off going home; buried herself in schoolwork and clubs, "studied" in the library, anything. I chose to act like it never happened and tried to carry on my day. When anyone asked where the marks came from, I'd laugh it off or ignore them. Eventually, we both became quiet and closed off. I slowly began picking fights at school and hung out with the wrong crowd, drinking, smoking, the works. If anything, I turned into a bully, taking my frustration out on innocent students. My grades dropped, I skipped classes, I never talked to anyone unless it was to threaten or talk shit. I was a walking time bomb, ticking, waiting to explode. I had so much pent up anger." Josiah laughed humorlessly, turning his head to look at Jeremy. "Sound familiar?" There was a beat of silence before he continued. "Elowen… she self harmed. It wasn't that hard to figure out. But we had each other to lean on, support from one another to get through those painful 2 years."

"What made your mom finally decide to leave?" Jeremy quietly spoke up from beside him. By this point, he had set his beer down and had his knees pressed against his chest. His arms were wrapped around his legs as he listened to Josiah. The boy in question sighed, shaking his head as he thought back.

"It was actually a bit unfair…. I had been in the hospital because I jumped off the roof of our house. I was super drunk and emotional and all I could think about was wanting the abuse to end….. So, I jumped. We only lived in a two story house so the worst injury I sustained was a fractured wrist, dislocated shoulder and a really bad concussion. The rest of it was just more bruises. Elowen and my mom stayed by my side until I was released, and when we got home…. All of our stuff was packed and sitting neatly on the front porch. There was some bullshit note that said he couldn't deal with attention seeking crybabies, or something like that. We moved in with my aunt so we could recover while my mom filed for divorce. While Elowen and I unfortunately had to go through one more school year at our old school, the divorce went by pretty quickly once the abuse was revealed. Mom was automatically granted custody of both of us and since he has to pay child support, we had a good amount of money to move us here shortly before my freshman year. Now, a year later, we're almost happy. Nothing is perfect yet and we're definitely still healing. But we had Bonnie and her Grams here to ease us into small town life and my mom had a spark of inspiration for a new book series. Elowen finally wasn't using marching band as a way to stay away from home and found passion in music again. And me? I decided to broaden my art abilities, so I took up painting. I admit, I had the most trouble with the move. I don't even have any friends, if you don't count Bonnie." Josiah turned his gaze up towards the sky. The comet was still moving slowly across the stars. "It gets better, but only if you allow it."

It was silent for a moment. The only sounds were the slight gust of the wind and the crickets chirping when Josiah heard it. Sniffling. Looking back over at Jeremy, he discovered the younger boy crying. There were tears pooling out of his eyes as he tried hard to fight them back. Josiah's immediate reaction was to wrap an arm around him and pull him closer. Once Jeremy's head hit Josiah's chest, he broke down, full on sobbing as he started to hyperventilate.

"Just let it all out, Jeremy. Let it out."

Jeremy's crying intensified, getting slightly louder when he tried to talk. "I mis-s them s-so m-much," he choked out, hiccuping. "Why d-did they have to d-die?"

All Josiah could do was hold him, though he felt that this was the beginning of Jeremy's healing process.

Meanwhile, once Elowen had left her brother to deal with Elena, Stefan listened for anything out of the ordinary. "This way," he informed her, heading in a random direction. "I heard her scream."

Eventually, they found themselves in front of a building. They easily spotted two people on the roof. Without any hesitation, Stefan wrapped an arm around Elowen to steady her as he jumped up onto the roof.

"No! No!" Vicki screamed as Damon held her arms down so he could bite into her neck. Immediately, Elowen held her hand out, palm facing Damon as she cast the pain inflicting spell. Damon recoiled in pain. Vicki, in shock from the whole situation, didn't have time to question anything as she noticed Elowen and ran over to her.

"What the hell is going on here?!" Vicki questioned to nobody in particular, panic all over her face as she held a hand against the wound on her neck. Elowen released her hold on Damon as she turned to tend to her friend, removing her hand to check the bite. Seeing that she hadn't lost too much blood, Elowen placed Vicki's hand back on her neck.

"Keep applying pressure. I'll explain everything in a minute. Just stay behind me." Dazed, Vicki could only nod in response.

By this point, Stefan had Damon pressed against the door leading back downstairs. "What the hell are you doing, Damon?"

Damon sadistically laughed as a reply. His eyes landed on Vicki. "Finishing what I never got the chance to start."

Vicki, putting the pieces together, gasped in horror. "You mean it was you who tried to attack me last night?!" She looked down at Elowen. "You said it was an animal!" She accused.

"Well, what was I supposed to say? 'Vampires are real and one just tried to eat you'?" Elowen retorted, and Vicki bowed her head in defeat.

"I guess you're right," she mumbled.

"So, that's it? No ulterior motive?" Stefan asked, and Damon smirked. "Other than the fact that she smelled so… good," The veins started to form on his face again, and Damon attempted to vamp speed towards Vicki. Elowen was expecting this, so with a quick twist of her hand, Damon's neck snapped and he fell to the ground, limp.

"Oh my god!" Vicki covered her mouth in surprise. "You killed him!"

"Vicki, calm down. He's a vampire. He's not dead, trust me," Elowen briefly explained, turning towards her. "Now, come here before you bleed to death." Elowen carefully removed Vicki's hand and placed her own over the injury on her neck. She closed her eyes in concentration. It was silent, other than the noise from the crowd in town square, as Elowen muttered a healing spell under her breath. At first, nothing happened, but after a few painfully slow minutes, Vicki's wound started to heal. When she was done, Elowen took her hand away and opened her eyes.

"Your nose is bleeding," Vicki stated in confusion. Elowen wiped the blood off with the back of her hand. Not even a second later, her eyes rolled to the back of her head as her whole body suddenly gave out and she fell. Stefan caught her before she hit the ground and picked her up in his arms bridal style.

"Is she okay?" Vicki asked, her eyes wide as she stared at the now unconscious Elowen with concern.

"Her heartbeat is normal, so I think she'll be okay," Stefan reassured. "The healing spell must've been too much for her," He thought out loud, scanning Elowen for any other injuries.

"Healing spell? Wha- Is someone going to tell me what's going on?" Vicki blurted. Her hand went to feel for the bite on neck, though she was met with nothing but skin and no blood. She blindly reached up with her second hand to paw at her throat. At last, her eyes landed determinedly on Stefan. "You better start explaining. Now."

"Basically, you're saying that vampires and witches are real? And that you're a vampire and Elowen's a witch?"

Roughly 5 or 6 minutes later, Stefan and Vicki were sitting on the floor of the rooftop as Stefan explained everything as calmly as he could. Elowen's head was resting on Stefan's lap as she peacefully slept and Damon's body was a few feet away. Every few seconds, Vicki would nervously glance at him. She was scared he was going to wake up any minute and attack her again.

"In a nutshell, yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. But I want this to be your choice, so if this is too much for you, I can make you forget. Once you know about the supernatural, you're constantly in danger at all times. If you don't want to be looking behind your shoulder all the time, let me know."

There was a short silence as Vicki thought this over. Her eyes stared down at Elowen's sleeping figure. Eventually, she shook her head. "No, I want to remember this. I consider Elowen a friend and if I'm gonna be her friend, that means I would've found out about this anyway. Let's just get out of here before, um," she looked over at Damon again, "he wakes up."

"Good idea."

Stefan lifted Elowen into his arms and headed towards the edge of the roof when Vicki spoke up. "Um, what are you doing?"

"Oh, uh, I figured jumping down would be faster than walking down all those steps. If you wanna do that, go ahead and I'll meet up with you but… if not, you can get on my back."

"Isn't that, like, dangerous?"

"As long as you hold on, no."

Vicki was a few seconds away from declining when Damon groaned and began to move. "On second thought," Vicki strode over and quickly climbed onto Stefan's back as he stepped onto the ledge. "This isn't too heavy, is it?"

Stefan couldn't help the amused smile that fought its way onto his face. "Don't worry, it's not." With that, he stepped off the roof and vamp sped to the ground. He didn't stop until when they were a good distance away from Damon, but still out of sight.

"Whoa," Vicki said as she got off of his back. "That was so cool!"

The two of them looked down at Elowen as she started to stir, groaning. Her eyes opened a little, squinting up at Stefan as she tried to un-jumble her thoughts. "What happened?"

"You fainted after healing me," Vicki answered nonchalantly. Elowen craned her neck to see who was talking. She was taken a bit off guard at seeing her. She thought Vicki would've been gone by now. She twisted herself out of Stefan's arms and back onto her feet. Wobbling slightly, Elowen had to grab Stefan again to steady herself. When she was finally centered, she turned to Vicki.

"So, you know now? And you're fine with it?"

"Yep," was Vicki's short reply. She started to walk ahead of them.

"That's it? You don't have any questions or concerns?" Elowen asked, catching up with her.

"Nope."

"Okay, well, Matt is worried sick. Go find him and then go straight home and don't invite anyone you don't know into your home. It's vampire safety 101," she explained at the end when Vicki shot her a weird look. "And I know that you're really close to Matt, but you can't tell him. It'll just put him in danger. Get some rest and then call me tomorrow so I can supply you with vervain. It'll keep vampires from being able to compel you."

"Got it. See you later, Elle." Vicki bid goodbye as the town square crowd came into view and walked off to find Matt.

"You're just gonna let her leave on her own?" Stefan asked skeptically, watching Vicki disappear in the crowd.

"She'll be fine. Damon isn't here anymore."

"Oh."

A comfortable silence fell over the two of them as they stood there together. Elowen was looking up at the comet while Stefan was looking at her. His eyes flickered down at her hand and he was slowly beginning to inch his own over to grab hers when she spoke up. "I should go find Josiah. As fun as this night has been, it's a school night. Everyone is starting to go home, anyway." She turned and gave Stefan a lopsided smile. "Until next time, Stef."

"Yeah…." he mumbled in return as she walked away.

Elowen found Josiah in The Grill. Jeremy was sitting next to him and Caroline was in the seat opposite of him. Vicki and Matt walked in after her. Vicki headed to the back to get her things so her and Matt could head home. Jeremy, upon seeing her, starting scrambling to get up and go after her.

"I wouldn't if I were you," Elowen casually remarked as she slid into the seat next to Caroline. "Vic's had a rough night and her and Matt have a lot to talk about when they get home."

Jeremy slowly sank back into his seat, brows furrowed together in confusion at Elowen. "What do you mean?" He asked, his voice filled with concern. "Is she okay?"

Elowen shrugged her shoulders, trying to act as relaxed as possible as to not give the young teen a reason to worry. "Let's just say I'm the one who found her. She's okay, trust me, but it's not my business to say what we talked about," she elaborated a bit, referring to their conversation earlier on in the evening. "Give her space for tonight, buddy. Talk to her tomorrow at school."

Jeremy sighed but didn't say anything else. Elowen couldn't help but notice that the air around him was different, lighter and, dare she say it, happier. She had to applaud Josiah for whatever he said or did after she left. Speaking of her brother, he was subtly flirting with Caroline as they talked. There was a smile at his lips and her fingers twirling her hair. She almost didn't want to interrupt them, but… "Josiah," she butt in anyway, getting his attention. "We need to get home. It's almost 11."

"Shit, is it really?" He asked, pulling his phone out of his jacket pocket. Upon seeing that it was indeed nearly 11, he groaned and shoved the phone back in his pocket.

"What's wrong? What happens at 11?" Caroline asked, looking between the two siblings in confused curiosity.

"11 is our curfew. Our mom doesn't like us out too late," Elowen explained, pulling herself out of the booth. Josiah followed suit. "Now, where's Bonnie?"

"She left already," Caroline piped up from behind her and Elowen grumbled. She turned back around to face the blonde.

"You're kidding me," she deadpanned. "She's the one who drove me here! Leave it to Bonnie to chauffeur me here but then forget to take me home."

"Well, how did Josiah get here?" Caroline innocently asked, her eyes darting over to the younger sibling. He sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck as Elowen put her hands on her hips, staring him down.

"I walked…." He meekly supplied, but Elowen snorted.

"He doesn't even have his license yet."

"Oh." Surprise laced Caroline's voice as she blinked at Josiah. "Um, I'm assuming walking will make you guys late and you'll get in trouble, right? So, I'll take you!"

"Oh, god, thanks, Care. You're a lifesaver!" Elowen exclaimed before Josiah could say anything. She quickly turned to Jeremy as Caroline scooted out of the booth. "Do you have a way home?"

"Yeah. I should probably go find Elena. Seeya tomorrow," Jeremy bid his goodbyes as he also crawled out of the booth to go find his sister. The three of them then headed towards Caroline's car and piled in. Elowen supplied directions as Caroline and Josiah talked away, almost acting as if she wasn't there. She couldn't help but roll her eyes at them. When the car came to a stop in front of their house, Elowen exited as quick as she could so the two of them could have some time alone before they said goodnight.

"Cutting it a little close, aren't we?" Esmeralda quipped from her spot on the couch. She lifted an eyebrow as she raised her cup of tea to her lips.

"A bit," Elowen responded, a sly smile creeping onto her lips. "Jo will be in in a minute. He's uh, saying goodnight to Caroline, if you get what I mean." Elowen nodded her head towards the door.

"Huh. Well that explains the nervous butterflies I'm feeling in my stomach," Esmeralda thought out loud, taking a sip of her tea. Elowen smirked slightly, knowing he was going to get bombarded with questions when he got in the house.

"Well, night, mom."

"Goodnight, honey."

Elowen headed upstairs and into her room. She removed her purse and threw it on the chair near her desk, then walked over to turn on the lamp that was on her nightstand. Turning, she nearly jumped out of her skin when she found Stefan laying on her bed, his head resting on his palm as he watched her. She put a hand on her chest, trying to catch her breath. "Stefan!" She whisper yelled, her eyes darting towards her door. Quickly, she ran over and closed said door so her mom wouldn't overhear, though she was probably going to be too busy interrogating Josiah to eavesdrop. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Stefan was sitting up now, his legs crossed as he sat on her bed. "I didn't want the night to end."

Elowen felt her heart swell at the his sweet words, but she had to shove those emotions down fast or else her mom would know something was up. There was the faint sound of the door opening and closing and a car starting up and leaving, indicating that Josiah was in the house now. Elowen pushed her hair behind her ear as she moved towards the door. She was trying to listen in.

"Caroline, huh?" She could hear her mom ask, her voice muffled through the door. Unfortunately, she couldn't make out Josiah's reply.

"She's just a friend," Stefan answered for her. Elowen had to hold in a shiver when she felt his breath on the back of her neck. He was directly behind her.

"So Caroline won't mind if I tell her you said that?" Her mom countered, causing Elowen to smile.

"He's stuttering. Can't get a word out," Stefan whispered, continuing to use his vamp hearing to listen in. After a few seconds, Stefan awkwardly laughed and Elowen urged him to tell her.

"What? What did he say?"

"'How come you don't hound Elowen with questions about Stefan?'"

Before she had time to process that sentence, Stefan was staring at her intently. She blinked at him. "What?"

"'Because Stefan isn't her first potential boyfriend.'

'Tobias doesn't count!'

'Tobias counts in my books.'" Stefan repeated what he heard, raising an eyebrow.

"Who's Tobias?" He questioned. Elowen tilted her head in thought, as she had forgotten about him.

"I don't think we're at the "awkward ex talk" yet so I'll be vague. Tobias was my first and only boyfriend back in 8th grade. We were 14, it was embarrassing but a good memory at the same time. Good ol' Tobes."

Stefan let out a laugh at her pet name and Elowen punched his shoulder. "Don't you dare start."

The two found their way onto Elowen's bed, sitting and idly talking about nothing until they heard Esmeralda come upstairs and go to sleep. Stefan listened in for a minute or two before giving the all clear, and then Elowen headed towards her window. She popped it open and went through it, onto the rooftop. She sat down and crossed her legs. Stefan followed her out. He sat next to her as they watched the comet in silence, the cool night breeze being the only sound.

"We're alone now, so are you gonna tell me about this comet or what?" Elowen broke the quietness, still watching the sky.

"I'm too tired to go into that story. Next time?"

"Ugh. Fine."

Another gap of silence followed, the two of them just enjoying each other's company as they watched the comet go by.

"You know, that comet….. It's been traveling across space for thousands of years. All alone," Stefan spoke, causing Elowen to laugh at the cheesiness of his line.

"That was so corny! God, Salvatore, just shut up. You're better off that way." There was another short beat of silence before Stefan responded.

"Why don't you make me, Ramirez?"

Elowen finally looked away from the comet, raising an eyebrow in surprise. She remembered their conversation earlier that day at school and smirked. "Maybe I will," she confidently stated, before the two of them leaned in and met in a long awaited kiss.

Damon sat at the bar in The Grill, a slight scowl on his face. He was thinking about his failed attempts to seduce someone inside Stefan and Co's inner circle to make them his spy. His initial pick had been Caroline, but the annoying blonde had a crush on Josiah and had already publicly turned him down. It would look suspicious if he compelled her and she suddenly showed interest in him. His next choice was Vicki, since she was the older brother of Elena's ex boyfriend and a potential friend of Elowen, but he had been caught when he was in the middle of feeding on her. Whoops. He'd only wanted a taste before he compelled the girl!

Sighing, he downed the rest of his drink and slammed the glass back onto the bar. At the same moment, a woman climbed into the seat next to him, exhaling loudly as she ran her hands down her face.

"Rough night?" Damon asked as the bartender came over to refill his glass. He motioned towards the woman beside him, signaling that she'll have the same as him. She wrapped her hands around the glass when it was set in front of her and mumbled a quick, 'Thanks,' to the bartender.

"You could say that," she replied, raising her glass to take a sip. When she finally turned towards him and he got a good look at her, Damon recognized her as Jenna, Elena and Jeremy's guardian/aunt. A smirk found its way on his lips as an idea formed in his head.

"I'm Damon."

"Jenna," she replied airily, trying to seem as casual as possible. Damon saw right through her "playing hard to get" attitude since he saw the spark of interest flash through her eyes seconds before. Bingo.

They exchanged playful banter for a few hours and several drinks later, Damon took the charm up a notch. He asked if she wanted to go back to his place.

"Well," Jenna began to say. Her brain was a little fuzzy from the alcohol, but was otherwise sober. She was tipsy at most. "It's a school night, and I have kids to worry about…." Damon raised an eyebrow, his eyes flirting and his usual smirk at his lips, and Jenna found herself pulled in. "But, they're old enough to get themselves to school," she finished, causing Damon's smirk to widen.

"Let's get out of here."

The two of them burst through the door, lips locked in a sloppy, but fiery, kiss. Jenna was in the middle of shoving Damon's jacket off as he knocked the door closed with his foot. He lead her over towards the parlor where the couches were. After doing a quick listen in, Damon was very pleased to find out that his guess was right. Stefan must've been over at Elowen's since he wasn't home. He didn't have to worry too much about Zach.

Lowering Jenna onto the first couch in sight, Damon started kissing down her neck, getting a whiff of her sweet, intoxicating scent. He did his best to resist as his hands went to the end of her shirt, pushed it up and over her head, and discarded it somewhere on the floor. A content sigh left Jenna's lips as Damon kissed down her stomach. God, she smelled so good….

Not being able to take it anymore, Damon felt his face change. Veins slithered out from under his eyes and his fangs poked him in the mouth. Just a taste.

Jenna, curious as the why he stopped moving, looked down only to find Damon's morphed face. She let out a scream as he lunged for her neck. His teeth sank into her flesh.

The next second, everything went black.