Stefan followed the trail of books strewn across the floor and eventually found Damon. "'Cha lookin' for, Damon?"

"Not your concern," Damon nonchalantly replied.

"No, but kidnapping Elowen for some mysterious trip to Atlanta is."

Damon stopped his search and sighed. "Look, for what it's worth, I wouldn't have taken her if I had known."

Stefan crossed his arms and tilted his head. "Known what?"

Damon rolled his eyes and turned to his baby brother. "She told me about her dad." He continued his search and tossed another book to the floor. He paused again. "Did you know she doesn't drink? She never told me why, but Stef, she got plastered in Atlanta. Go be a good boyfriend and check up on her."

"Damon said you told him about your dad."

Stefan had offered to walk Elowen to school that morning. Josiah had left earlier with Jeremy; something about turning in a paper to Mr. Saltzman.

"Uh.. yeah. I guess I did." She brushed her hair behind her ears, gripping onto her backpack strap with her other hand. "I don't remember much, to be honest. It's just a bunch of fragments."

"But he didn't hurt you?"

"No." She shook her head. "He was my drinking buddy, I think. But he still tried to limit my alcohol intake. Apparently, I'm a stubborn drunk. Can we talk about something else, please?"

They walked in silence as Stefan figured out a new topic.

"I have an idea," he said. "Why don't we go to the decades dance? Y'know, to get your mind off of things."

Elowen thought about it for a moment, then nodded her head. "Yeah, I'd like that."

After school, she and her mom dug through an old box that had been stowed away in their attic. Josiah had another box all on his own. They were all looking for clothes to wear to the decade dance.

"So, our history teacher, huh?" Elowen teased, pulling out a tan circle skirt. She tilted her head and held it against her waist. Esmeralda sighed and threw an old black blouse at her.

"He only asked me to chaperone."

"Please, mom." Josiah jokingly rolled his eyes. "He wants to do more than chaperoning."

Esmeralda let out a strangled laugh. "And here I thought you were the one who thought it was weird that I thought he was attractive."

He shrugged. "If he makes you happy, I don't care who he is."

She looked at Elowen, who shrugged. "You've got my approval. Ric seems like a good guy." Esmeralda bit her lip, her cheeks flushing slightly. Elowen and Josiah gave each other knowing looks, but the moment was cut short when Elowen's phone went off. She smiled when she saw Stefan's name on the caller ID.

"Hey! What's up?" The smile fell from her face when Stefan told her that Elena had another encounter with the vampire who was after her. "What? Okay, yeah, I'll be right over." She hung up and sighed. Esmeralda and Josiah were looking at her, waiting for her to explain. "It's Elena. I'll be back later."

Elena was still shaken up from the whole ordeal. "What does he want with me?" She asked, taking a seat on the couch. "And- And if he's trying to kill me, why call first?"

"Because we're predators, Elena. We hunt. We stalk. It's often as exciting as the kill," Stefan explained.

"But that still doesn't explain why he's after me."

"You look like Katherine," Elowen said. "He's probably tormenting you because she did something to him and you're a lackluster way of revenge."

"Since this guy is still coming after you, you should have this," Stefan took a seat across from Elena and handed her the compass.

"This is Jeremy's pocket watch." Elena knit her eyebrows together. "How did you get it?"

"I took it from Damon, who took it from Logan, who probably took it from you."

Elena opened the lid and looked down at it, confused. "I don't understand. What would Logan have wanted with this?"

"Just watch," Elowen said, sitting on the arm of the couch. The needle spun around for a moment before it landed on Stefan. Elena followed the direction of the pointer and saw that it was directly on Stefan.

"So, this does what? Shows you supernatural beings?"

"Vampires, to be more specific," Stefan explained. "If he ever comes after you again, you'll know. It's a safety measure we're gonna have to take until we figure out why he's so fixated on you."

"But, the dance. I was planning on going with Bonnie. Does this mean I have to cancel now?"

Elowen shook her head. "No. Stefan and I are going so we can keep an eye on you. Don't worry. We won't let him hurt you."

Elena nodded and closed her hand around the compass. "Okay. I trust you."

The next day at school, Caroline asked Josiah to help make banners for the dance.

"You're supposed to be some great art wiz," she had said. "Prove it."

So, after school was over, they were out in the school yard, painting a banner together. Caroline snuck a glance at Josiah and smiled to herself. He was immensely concentrated on his job, keeping a steady hand on his brush and a (super cute) crinkle on his forehead.

"I thought I was supposed to be the one who took things too seriously," Caroline giggled. Josiah looked up from his work and grinned sheepishly.

"Sorry."

"No! It's okay. I've just never seen you so serious before."

Josiah looked her up and down and shrugged. "And I've never seen you such a mess."

Caroline playfully gaped at him and swiped her paintbrush on his arm, leaving a big streak of blue paint on his forearm. Josiah quickly darted forward and left a splotch of paint on Caroline's face in retaliation. She gasped loudly and jumped back.

"Josiah!" She pouted at him. He laughed at the sight of the white paint smeared diagonally across her right cheek and mouth. She continued to pout, so he grabbed her face and leaned in for a kiss. When he pulled back, she couldn't help burst into laughter. The paint had smudged onto his lips from where he kissed her. Josiah tilted his head at her.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" He asked, causing Caroline to laugh harder. He smiled, pulling her into a side hug. "That's better."

"So what are you wearing to the dance?" Caroline asked when she pulled away.

"I have absolutely no idea. All I can find are a pair of old saddle shoes that my great-grandpa owned." Josiah dipped his brush in fresh paint and continued his job.

"I guess color coordinating is out then."

"Pff, definitely."

"Can I trust you to put together a decent 50s outside all by yourself?" Caroline asked, helping him put the finishing touches on the banner.

"Guess we'll find out."

Later that night, Elowen and Esmeralda helped each other get ready for the dance. Elowen was wearing the tan circle skirt she had found from the previous night, along with a white, half sleeved blouse tucked into it. She had a tan belt around her waist and a pair of black flats on her feet, along with a striped scarf tied around her neck. Esmeralda had done her hair, putting it into a high ponytail, curling it and finishing it off by tying a ribbon around it.

Esmeralda, on the other hand, had on a black polka dot halter dress with a red belt and a pair of black pumps. She found her mother's old pearl necklace and a pair of white gloves and decided to put them to use. Elowen had curled her hair à la Marilyn Monroe and topped it off with a red flower behind her ear.

They each decided to wear minimal makeup, save for the iconic red lipstick, and deemed themselves ready after one last look over.

"Josiah! Are you ready?" Elowen called as they left the bathroom. "I wanna see how badly you messed up."

Esmeralda lightly knocked her daughter's arm. "Stop it. He'll do fine."

The door to Josiah's room opened and out he stepped, donning a plain white button down shirt, grey vest, tie and black slacks. He had the saddle shoes he mentioned to Caroline on as well as a black fedora.

"So, how do I look?" He asked in a mock New Jersey accent. Elowen flat out laughed at it while Esmeralda did her best to hold hers back. Josiah dropped the act and pouted at them. "What? It's not that bad!" He defended.

"What are you even supposed to be?" Elowen asked after her laughs died down.

"Isn't it obvious?" He did a little turn. "I'm a mobster!"

"Sweetie, I don't think mobsters wore saddle shoes." Esmeralda was looking down at his shoes. "Do those even fit you?"

"They're a little big," Josiah answered honestly. "But I don't have anything better!"

"Okay, I'll let it slide this one time." Esmeralda held up her index finger to prove her point.

The doorbell rang throughout the house, alerting them that someone was here. Elowen started making her way downstairs.

"That would be Stefan. We're supposed to meet Elena at her house."

Elowen answered the door and sure enough, Stefan stood on the other side. He eyed her attire up and down, a faint smile on his lips.

"Roll your sleeves up and style your hair a little differently and you could pass as Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday."

Elowen let out a small laugh and stepped outside, closing the door behind her. "Good, because that's the look I was going for."

"Well, you nailed it." Stefan cupped her face and pecked her lips. "You look beautiful, by the way." Elowen blushed, bumping into Stefan's shoulder with her own. His smile widened and he took her hand in his own, dramatically gesturing to her car. "Your chariot awaits."

Elowen pulled into Elena's driveway and the two of them got out of the car. It wasn't until they were making their way up the patio steps that they heard a muffled scream from behind the door. Elowen quickly threw the door open and saw that a vampire had Elena in a hold, his fangs already extended.

"Hey!" She yelled the first thing that came to mind. He looked up at the loud bang and ran the second he saw he had company. Elena had fallen to the floor at the force of the vamp speed, shaking from the encounter. Elowen was down on the ground the moment he was gone to check on her.

"Are you okay?" She asked. Elena gulped and nodded her head. Stefan had his hands against the doorsill, leaning as far in as he could.

"Elena, invite me in."

"Uh, I- I invite you in," she said breathlessly. Elowen helped her to her feet as Stefan stepped inside and did a quick look around to make sure he wasn't still in the house. The girls were seated on the couch when Stefan came back downstairs.

"He's gone."

Elowen had called Damon, who was now pacing in Elena's living room.

"How did he even get in?"

"He was invited in." Elena was still on the couch, her arms crossed. She kept glancing at the door, as if she were afraid he'd comeback.

"She said he posed as a pizza delivery guy last night," said Stefan.

"Well, he gets points for that. Did he say what he wanted?" Damon asked.

"No," Elena snapped. "He was too busy trying to kill me."

"Look, it doesn't matter what his motives are anymore," Elowen cut in. "He's been invited in." She looked between Stefan and Damon. They both understood the circumstances and shared a look with one another. The two brothers had a short, silent conversation. Damon nodded his head and sat on the arm of the couch, looking down at Elena.

"We get him tonight. Go to the dance and we'll see who shows up. You up for it?"

"Nobody in this house is safe until he's gone… right?" Elena asked, looking between Damon and Elowen. When they both nodded, she slowly gave a nod of her own. "Alright. I'll do it. Let's go."

Esmeralda and Josiah had arrived at the dance before Elowen did. Josiah had spotted Caroline with Bonnie and made his way towards them. When Caroline noticed him, she let out a little giggle.

"What is this, a Frank Sinatra look?" She asked as he leaned over to kiss her cheek.

Josiah looked down at his outfit, mouth agape. "C'mon, I'm a mobster! I even had a fake cigar but a teacher at the door made me throw it away."

"Well, regardless of what you're supposed to be, you look very handsome." Caroline tipped his fedora over his face. "Even this ridiculous hat doesn't look that terrible."

Josiah fixed his hat, revealing a big grin on his face. "I'm glad I passed the test." He leaned forward, but Caroline quickly put her hand to his lips, stopping him.

"Ah, this look took me over two hours and there's no way I'm letting you ruin it with a kiss."

Josiah, with his lips still puckered against her palm, crinkled his eyebrows together in a pout. Caroline removed her hand and he sighed. "Fine," he drawled. "I guess I'll settle for another peck on the cheek." Caroline smiled and turned her head to the side, allowing Josiah to finally lean over and plant one on her cheek again.

Esmeralda had found Alaric soon after her and Josiah parted ways.

"Fancy seeing you here," she lightly joked as she approached him, gaining his attention. He turned, mouth dropping open at the sight of her attire.

"Wow," he breathed.

Esmeralda loudly cleared her throat to snap him out of it. "Thanks," she replied. "There was no way I was gonna pass up looking the part." She crossed her arms and looked out at the dance floor, where various students were having a good time. "I never really got the chance to attend these things since I was either pregnant, working or, y'know, being a mom."

"If you don't mind me asking….."

"Do I ever regret it?" Esmeralda finished his question, looking up at Alaric. He nodded, confirming that that's what he was about to ask. She shook her head. "Never. Could they have been planned better and born a little later? Definitely, but I would never regret having them."

A short silence passed over them as they thought about what to talk about next.

"Well, care for a drink? I hear it's a real boss."

Esmeralda smiled and nodded. Together, they walked off towards the punch bowl.

Elowen, Stefan, Damon and Elena all showed up. Elowen had her hand wrapped around Stefan's arm with Damon on her right. Next to him was Elena. She spotted Bonnie standing off to the side with Caroline and Josiah and nodded her head towards them. Elowen followed her line of sight.

"Be right back," she told Stefan. Her and Elowen walked over to greet their friends.

"What's Damon doing here?" Bonnie asked when they got into earshot. She was glaring slightly in his direction. Elowen sighed.

"He wanted to come," she replied. Josiah and Caroline had joined the conversation, both glancing at Damon.

"So, what is this, like, a threesome now? You and the Salvatore brothers?" Caroline asked, taking Elowen slightly off guard.

"What? No! Look, I have to deal with him because I'm dating Stefan. I don't have much of a choice. Besides," Elowen looked at Damon through her peripheral. "He's really….. Not all that bad."

"Please tell me you're kidding," Bonnie deadpanned, finally tearing her eyes away from Damon. All she could think about was how he tried to kill her. She gave a light shudder. Elowen chewed on her bottom lip, giving a slow shrug.

"When he's not being a devil's spawn, he's tolerable. Sometimes."

Bonnie clenched her jaw ever so slightly. "Fine. Whatever you say, Elle." Damon caught Bonnie's eye and she quickly looked away again. She hated to admit it, but she was scared of him. She would never let him know it, though.

Breathe, she told herself. You're in a public place. He won't hurt you.

Bonnie had a hard time trying to convince herself of that.