BAD MOON RISING

The door bell rang. Alaric strolled into the boarding house, his eyes landing on Stefan and I - we were sitting on the couch - then to Damon who was pouring a drink for himself by the parlor.

"Hey Alaric." I greeted him with a soft smile.

He nodded at me, "Hey,"

"Thanks for coming, Rick." Stefan said.

Damon spoke up from the parlor, "Can I get you something to drink?" He looked at Alaric, "Coffee, bourbon? Bourbon in your coffee?" Damon smirked at his own joke.

Alaric rolled his eyes, and ignored him, turning to Stefan and I, "Ariana mentioned you needed my help."

"Yeah, we were hoping you could help shed some light on the Lockwood family." Stefan stated.

Alaric raised his eyebrows, and took a seat on one of the comforters across from us, "Now, why would I know anything about the Lockwood's?"

"Well, you wouldn't." Damon said, "But your dead vampire wife might." A.k.a., my birth mother. Alaric's eyes widened.

I explained, "Isobel's research from when you guys were at Duke together."

"You said that she had spent years researching this town." Stefan added.

"Isobel's research here in Mystic Falls rooted in folklores and legends, but at the time, I thought much of which was fiction." Alaric said. So there was more. Not just vampires.

"Like that amazing vampire story." Damon commented, and smirked.

"Aside from vampires, what else?" I questioned, curious yet afraid.

Alaric stared at me for a few seconds, then answered almost under his breath, "The lycanthrope."

A light bulb turned on in my head, "Werewolves." I breathed out. At the carnival the other day, Stefan and Damon claimed to have witnessed Mason Lockwood expressing inhuman behavior. And even previous to that, before Mayor Lockwood had died, Damon said that he was affected by the Gilbert device, but not the vervain. The theory was that they weren't vampires, but some other supernatural creature... perhaps werewolves? If they existed, that is.

That would mean that Tyler Lockwood - a friend since childhood - could really be a werewolf. That would totally change my perspective of everything.

"No way, impossible." Damon immediately denied, "Way to Lon Chaney."

"Is it?" Stefan countered back.

Damon gave his brother a look, "I've been on this planet one hundred and sixty some odd years." He shook his head, "Never came across one. If werewolves exist, where the hell are they?"

No one had an answer to that. It was silent until Alaric spoke up, "Why do you suspect the Lockwoods?"

"Because vervain didn't affect the mayor at Founder's day, but the Gilbert device did, and it affected his son Tyler." Damon answered.

Tyler. My friend. I wondered what he was going through. Was this the reason why at times he could be easily angered and frustrated? Because he was a ... werewolf?

"And at the school carnival, his uncle Mason exhibited inhuman behavior when he fought with one of the carnival's worker." Stefan explained. It was as if they had both read my mind. "It suggests it's some sort of supernatural entity."

"We were hoping that Isobel's research could help us figure out what it is." I said, trying not to wince when I said her name.

Alaric breathed out, "Well, all her things are still at Duke." He stated, "I mean, her office is still there. She's technically still missing." Yeah... 'missing'.

"So we can get access to it?" Damon inquired. Alaric seemed uncomfortable, not saying anything for a few moments, and Damon sighed, "Rick, we need to know what we are dealing with. If this wold men thing is true, I've seen enough movies to know it's not good. It means Mason Lockwood is a real life Lon Chaney, and that little Tyler punk may just very well be Lon Chaney junior. Which means Bella Lugosi, meaning me, is totally screwed."

I got a heavy feeling in my chest, and tried to stay calm and aware. As if we didn't have enough supernatural stuff going on, and now there may be an entirely different race threatening to harm the ones I loved.

After Alaric agreed to take us to Duke, I told him and Damon that I'd invite my sister if she wanted to come, since Isobel was her mother as well. They had reluctantly nodded, and I gave my thanks.

Stefan waited in my room while I knocked on Elena's door. "Come in." She called, and I entered her bedroom. "What?" She questioned, pulling out her earbuds as she shoved them and her phone into her pocket. She was dressed in matching sweatpants and a sweatshirt, sitting on a chair by her desk.

"Hey," I stated, "Remember what I told you about Mason and Tyler?"

"That they were some sort of weird supernatural thingie?" She raised her eyebrows, "Yeah." She confirmed.

"Well, Alaric thinks it's possible that they might be... werewolves." I stated.

She snorted and looked at me if I was crazy. "Werewolves?" She questioned, "Really, Ariana?"

"Did you believe in vampires before I told you they existed?" I countered, and she lost her smug look, staying silent. I took that as an answer and continued, "I'm going with Alaric and Damon to Duke to - "

"Wait, what?" She blinked a few times, her voice raising an octave.

"We're going to Duke to - "

She cut me off again. "No, no, no, no. Not that part." She shook her head, then gave me the same strange look, "Are you insane? In what universe would you ever consider going with - with Damon - " She sneered his name, " - anywhere ever again?"

"Elena - "

"No," She defied my reasonings, "He killed our brother. He killed Jeremy!"

"I know that." I said, feeling anger at this subject. I didn't want to remember that night. It was in the past, and I wanted it to stay there. It didn't exactly help that everyone around me was trying to bring back that day again... the memories of that night.

That night scared the hell out of me.

"Look, Elena," I started again, "I'm not saying that I've forgiven him for what he's done. But the reason I'm going on this trip is because I want to know the story behind the Lockwoods and... and Isobel went to Duke. She's the one who had information on the supernatural creatures."

Elena stared expressionlessly at me for a few seconds. "Okaaaaay." She finally dragged out, "I'm still not getting the whole point on why you're going with them."

I sighed, feeling like I was talking in circles. "Isobel's our mother. Shouldn't we see if there's any information about her? And in that process, we could learn more about everything else."

"I thought I made it clear before that I wanted nothing to do with her." Elena stated stubbornly. But I could see the inner conflict in her when her eyes darted around the room, looking for some sort of distraction. It revealed what she really thought. She was hurt. Hurt by Isobel and our birth mother's lack of concern for her two daughters. Elena was disappointed in her, and she covered it up by acting like she didn't care.

I took a deep breath, speaking in a softer tone, "Wouldn't you like to know more about her?"

"No."

I tried again, "What about the supernatural world?"

"Not really." She was still acting stubborn.

"Well, I'm going." I said, "You're welcome to come if you want."

"You're still going?" She asked me in disbelief.

"Yes." I turned around, and started to walk back out of her door.

"Wait." She called out, and I looked back at her. She rose from her chair, rolled her eyes, sighed, then looked to me, "Fine, I'll go."

I smiled a bit. "Good. You should get packed, we're leaving soon."

After Elena had picked out a few necessities for the road, she joined Stefan and I in my room, as I packed.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Stefan asked me.

"I've been asking her the same thing." Elena said, "I wonder, which is worse: Digging through our birth mother's life work or going to Duke with Damon?" She then looked at Stefan, "It's easy for you to decide which one you hate the most, right?"

I saw Stefan roll his eyes at Elena's comments. I smiled.

Elena continued, "The first part's just plain awkward, and as for the second..." she paused, "Well, Alaric's coming right? So we can all bond in our anti-Damon solidarity."

"I guess that's the plan." I simply said, and shifted my gaze over to Stefan, who smiled at me, "Though, I wish you were coming."

He seemed in thought for a moment, then suggested, "You know what? Maybe we should wait a couple days, huh? Wait until Caroline is less of a danger and then I could go with you."

Elena gave me a look, "Why don't we just not go at all? I'm sure Damon and Alaric can handle this on their own."

I looked at her, confused. "I thought you wanted to go?"

She scoffed, "Yeah right. The only reason I'm going is so Damon doesn't try anything with you. We all know what happens when he's around you: People kiss, people die, then he gets his heart broken and more people die." She shrugged, "The circle of life, I guess."

Stefan and I stared at her in shock, uncomfortably, while she glanced between us. She suddenly said, awkwardly, "Okay, maybe that was over the line. I'll be in the car."

When she left my bedroom, I didn't know whether I should've laughed or not. I looked back over to Stefan, and asked, "It's okay that I'm going, right? I mean, I can just stay here and we can take care of Caroline."

"Listen, I want you to go, okay?" He said, sincerely, placing his hands on my face. "I do. You have questions about your lineage and about Katherine and..." He glanced away for a few seconds, then looked back to me, "... and I'm not gonna let the fact that Damon is going, keep you from an opportunity to get some answers. Anyways," He shrugged, joking, "You have Elena there to help you."

I laughed. "Yeah." I read his eyes, then teasingly said, "You hate it, though."

"I hate it." He admitted, then smiled, "But, I love you."

"I love you too." I replied, and he kissed me.

Oh, a few hours on the road with Alaric, Damon, Elena, and I, in the same car traveling across states. What could possibly go wrong?

I changed into a black shirt with sheer long sleeves, jean short-shorts, and black heels. Along with a sliver clip in my hair, a silver ring, silver and black diamond studded bracelets, and a silver mid-lengthed heart-shaped necklace.

"Ariana?!" Jenna's barely audible voice came from downstairs, even though she was yelling, "Are you coming?"

Grabbing my bag filled with bottled water and an extra set of clothes, I walked out of my room, met up with Stefan, and we descended the staircase.

Jenna stood at the bottom, looking a bit lost and conflicted, "Hey, Jenna, are you okay?" I asked her, worried.

"Yeah, just, men and their baggage." She joked, trying to cover up whatever it was bothering her. I saw her glance at Alaric who was outside, and understood. Ah, guy problems.

Alaric was already in the driver's seat of the car, while Damon and Elena stood outside, glaring at one another. Great. When I finally came into their view, with Stefan behind me, their eyes snapped up to meet mine. Elena spoke first, "Finally," she said, "Took you long enough. I've had to wait for you here with..." she glanced at Damon, "...him."

Damon scoffed, turning to Elena, "Speak for yourself. The disdain goes both ways."

"Damon." I stated, and he looked at me. They were both acting like children. I gave him a look that implied, 'Be nice. You did kill our brother'.

Damon sighed, then gestured to Elena, "Why is she coming again?"

"Because she deserves to know all about Isobel, Katherine, and the world of supernatural creatures." I replied.

Elena cut in, narrowing her eyes at Damon. "But I'm mostly here to keep you in line." She said to him, then took a deep breath, "Whatever, can you just unlock the damn door?"

Damon looked at her strangely, "It is unlocked." He stated.

"No, it's not - " She started, but cut herself off when she pulled the handle of the door, and it opened. "Oh." She looked embarrassed. "It was locked before..."

We all looked at her questioning, and so she clamped her mouth shut, ducked her head, and sat on the left side in the back seat of the car. The door quickly shut behind her.

Damon shook his head in disbelief and smirked at Stefan, "Sorry you can't come too, Stef."

Stefan rolled his eyes, but ignored his brother. "Call me if you need anything." He said to me.

"Oh, I'll take really good care of her." Damon said, smirking at us.

Something in that sentence must've jabbed Stefan the wrong way, because his eyes lit up with fire, and he pulled me into a deep kiss. I felt myself get backed up into the car as he kissed me passionately. For a second I forgot about everything; that Damon was standing right there; that Elena and Alaric were waiting for us in the car. I was lost in Stefan's soft lips which ravaged my own, and I didn't want it to stop.

"Okay, time to go." Damon's uncomfortable statement snapped me out of my trance, and Stefan finally pulled away.

"See you when you get back." He said to me. I nodded.

Damon still looked hurt, but he tried covering it up as he gave me a smile, and opened the back door for me. I stepped into the car, taking the seat beside Elena. Once Damon had occupied the passenger seat, Alaric started the vehicle, and we were driving. Through the windows, Stefan gave me a concerned look, and it was the last thing I saw before we left the pavement.

As we rode in the car to Duke, Damon kept trying to start a conversation with me, but I ignored him. I was still mad at him. I mean, it was reasonable, right? He killed my brother, and I wasn't going to immediately forgive him after something like that. Thank God Jeremy was wearing the ring, or I -

No, I wasn't going to think about it.

After about an hour on the road, and at least ten separate conversation starters from Damon, he turned around to look at me, and asked, "How are you doing back there?" I didn't answer, and he continued, "You know, this whole pretending to hate me thing is getting a little silly."

I looked at him with my eyebrows raised, unamused.

"Oh, she's not pretending. We definitely hate you." Elena stated, glaring at him.

"Yeah, you did kill their brother." Alaric added.

"There is a huge asterisk next to that statement: he came back to life." Damon defended himself.

I felt rage boil within me, and I snapped at him, "Yeah, thanks to a ring you didn't know he was wearing."

"Why are you so sure I didn't know?" He questioned.

"Did you?" I challenged.

"Yes." He replied, but I remained unconvinced.

Elena glared at him, stating, "You're lying."

"Ariana, I saw the ring!" He exclaimed, "It's a big tacky thing, it's hard to miss."

Nobody said anything after that. We all held the same previous thoughts regarding whether or not Damon had seen the ring. He didn't. I knew he didn't. And even if he did, he should have never killed Jeremy in the first place. I still wouldn't be ready to forgive him yet.

From the front seat, I saw Alaric raise his hand, the Gilbert ring on his fourth finger sparkled in the sun. It's good that he had that; it would protect him.

A few hours later, we arrived at Duke. The university was beautiful: The grey and white stones created a campus that looked as if it was built from the medieval ages. The architecture was brilliant, with many details that completely rivaled against the Salvatore boarding house's.

We got out of the car, and the four of us walked towards one of the buildings on the campus, with Alaric leading the way. "So Isobel was officially employed by the anthropology department given that most paranormal phenomenon is rooted in folklore," He explained.

We entered an office; not like the modern day kind, but with wooden floors, tables, bookshelves, and designs. It was charming.

A woman in her mid-twenties with darkish hair and light eyes sat behind the desk, reading papers. She looked up at us when we came in, and Alaric greeted, "Excuse me, hi. I'm Alaric Saltzman, I called earlier."

"Yes, of course." She stood up, dazed as she took in Alaric. It was a wonder he was still single, though since he spent most of that time searching for his wife who didn't want to be found, I guess it made sense. "I'm Vanessa Monroe, research assistant comparative folklore."

When her eyes drifted over to Elena and I, she gave us a strange look, lingering on me. Then her gaze shifted to Damon and glanced back at Alaric.

"Uh, let me just grab Isobel's keys." She said, preparing to move, but Alaric's voice stopped her.

He gestured to us. "These are my friends; Ariana, Elena, and Damon. I hope this isn't too much of an imposition."

Vanessa covered up her strange look with a smile, and said, "Oh please, Isobel's office is right through there." She pointed to a closed door. "Isobel was one of my first professors. I'm a grad student. She was brilliant and one of the reasons I went into folklore." She shifted suddenly and looked uncomfortable, "Uh, I have to ask, has there been any news?"

"No, I'm afraid not." Alaric replied.

Vanessa's expression turned solemn for a few seconds, then smiled again, "It's this way." She backed into the closed door and turned the knob. Elena and I shared a glance. This was our mother's office, and we were about to go into it.

When the five of us went in, I saw that the room was slightly dark, grey; the absence of something... or someone. A simple desk and table was pushed to the back of the office, but there were many shelves lined along the walls, filled with interesting souvenirs, artifacts, and fossils.

"I'll grab the light, feel free to look around." Vanessa announced, "It's fascinating, isn't it?"

I walked towards one of the shelves, and picked up a fossil, marveling at the bronzed stone. Damon spoke up, "Where did she go?"

I think he was referring to Vanessa, but I wasn't really paying attention. I tentatively touched another artifact, this one looked like a crystalized black diamond. Beautiful.

I heard footsteps loudly behind me, and turned around, just in time to see Vanessa standing there with a crossbow in her hands pointed in my direction. An arrow came hurtling towards me, and I stood there dumfounded, expecting to feel the pain of impact. It never came.

Damon flashed in front of me, protecting me, and the arrow pierced through him. A grunt of discomfort escaped his lips and he leaned forward towards me, catching himself on the shelf behind me with his hands. I gasped in shock and fear, the events finally catching up.

Over Damon's shoulder, I saw Alaric push Vanessa roughly against the wall. The crossbow landed to the floor with a thud, and Elena kicked it away, her head swiveling back and forth between all of us.

Damn, Vanessa tried to kill me. Instead, Damon had saved me, sacrificing himself. Good thing he was a vampire, although, if the arrow had hit him an inch closer to the left, he'd be a corpse right now. The weapon was wooden. I felt a deep gratification towards him, making it harder for me to not be forgiving.

Alaric took Vanessa into the other room, trying to calm her down. I heard shouts of "Katherine Pierce" and "Damon Salvatore" come from her, and realized that he had mistaken me for my ancestor.

Damon had thankfully semi-recovered, and now leant against the desk, the arrow protruding from his back in my direction. I really had no clue what to do. The wound freaked me out a bit. "Pull it out. I can't reach it, Ariana." Damon commanded, "Just pull the damn thing out. It hurts." I didn't know why, but there was an undertone in his voice that implied he was liking this situation. Creepy.

"Nah, I'd leave it in." Elena said, snarky.

Ignoring her, I hesitatingly wrapped both hands around the wood, and used all my strength to pull it out, removing it cleanly. Damon straightened, and rolled his shoulders, as the wound healed instantly.

"That bitch is dead." He stated, starting towards the door.

I stepped in front of him, "You're not gonna kill her."

Damon scoffed, staring at me, "She tried to kill you; she deserves to die."

"No one deserves to die, Damon." I stated, confused at his strange logic and reasoning. "Please, don't hurt her. She was scared, that's all."

"What makes you think that has any power over me?" He questioned intensely, "Because I took an arrow in the back for you?" His eyes hardened, "You are severely overestimating yourself."

"I don't think she is." Elena piped up from beside me, pretending to look thoughtful, "I mean, just a second ago you were about to kill that Vanessa chick for trying to hurt my sister." She shrugged, "Seems to me like she has complete control over your actions." She smiled devilishly at Damon.

"Elena!" I scolded, having no idea how this conversation had started.

"What?" She shrugged, looking back over to Damon, whose jaw was clenched, "Then again, I forgot that you're a psychotic mind who snaps and kills people impulsively. Fine. Kill Vanessa, and see what happens." She side-stepped Damon, and walked through the door, shutting it behind her.

So much for the "keep Damon in line" role she had come here to play. I thought she was here to help, not create more problems and rile Damon up.

He gave me a thoughtful look, actually considering what Elena had said. "Is it true?" He questioned, "Are you just trying to manipulate me?"

"No!" I denied, "Of course not. Damon, I'm just saying that it's wrong to kill people." I softened my gaze, "Please, Damon. Don't hurt her."

My thoughts grasped ahold of the day he killed Jeremy, and Damon must've been thinking of the same thing, because he licked his lips, and gave me a quick nod. His eyes told me so much: He wouldn't kill Vanessa, because he didn't want to give me another reason to hate him.

When he turned around to walk back out of the door, with me following him, I felt a tug of guilt. Why was I feeling guilty? I had done a good thing; told Damon not to kill someone. So why did it feel as if I was playing with him in some way? Manipulating him?

I wasn't... or was I?

Elena made it sound as if I was doing something evil, and now it felt like I was.

Great. Fantastic. Another way to make me feel like I was at the bottom. Like I was acting low.

Vanessa was still freaking out when Damon and I re-entered the charming office. I was still wary of her, afraid that she would do something. She sat in the desk chair, with Alaric looming over her, waiting to jump in at any time.

Her eyes were frightened as she watched me, and I explained, "I'm Ariana Gilbert," I gestured to Elena, who stood there, expressionless, "My twin sister - Elena Gilbert - and I are Isobel's daughters and descendants of Katherine Pierce." Realization pervaded throughout Vanessa's features. I pointed to Damon beside me, "This is Damon Salvatore."

"Who you just shot, by the way." Damon added, whispering; "I'd be extra nice to me right now."

I took a deep breath, my gaze focusing on Vanessa's, as I tried to sound sincere, "We need your help, okay? We need to see all of Isobel's research, anything related to Mystic Falls."

Feeling relieved that Vanessa agreed to help, I waited as she got something from the other room. When she came back, in her arms was a cardboard box, filled with old, dusty looking papers, pictures, and books. "This box checks Katherine's arrival to Mystic Falls in April 1864." Stated Vanessa as she placed the box on the desk, allowing us to have full view of it.

"That's all there is on her?" Elena questioned beside me, peering into the box.

"All that I'm aware of." Vanessa responded. Alaric and Damon stood on the other side of the room, checking for books and information. My sights were set on a little dried up plant on top of papers in the box, recognizing it. Elena did too, and our gazes snapped up to each other: vervain.

Glancing to my side, seeing Damon's back turned to us, I grabbed the plant, and handed it to Vanessa, whispering, "Here, take this."

"Does vervain really work?" She asked, taking ahold of the delicate stem.

"Nope, not at all." Damon stated loudly from the other room. He obviously heard us, though he didn't turn around.

I rolled my eyes, and Vanessa questioned, even more quieter this time, "Can he hear us?"

"No." Damon whisper-yelled, "That would be creepy."

I shook my head, trying to suppress the urge to smile.

"Can he read minds too?" She asked again, not bothering to whisper.

Damon turned around, shutting the book he was reading, smirking at us, "You know, if you want to see me naked, all you have to do is ask."

Elena replied, "No, that he can't do." She glared at Damon, "Though, he is very capable of being a first rate jackass."

Damon simply smirked back, "Takes one to know one."

I ignored their argument, and shook my head as I turned back to Vanessa. She nodded and smiled, giving me a silent "thank you" as she stuffed the vervain into her jacket pocket. At least this way, she'd be free from compulsion.

Letters. Words. Sentences. Paragraphs. Pages. Books...

Nothing with more information about Katherine or other supernatural entities. "Any luck?" Damon questioned, arriving next to me as I rummaged through a book with useless information... again. My head felt like it was going to explode.

I shook my head, "There's nothing here about Katherine that we don't already know."

Damon feigned disappointment as he said, "Ah, man, you know, it's a bummer we're not friends anymore, because I could tell you what I know."

I looked up at him, and he smirked. "And you thought I was manipulating you." To think that I was starting to feel guilty and sympathetic towards him.

"Hey guys, check this out." Alaric's voice boomed from across the room. Elena, Damon, and I gathered around Alaric and Vanessa, as she showed us a book, stating, "There's no record of werewolf mythology in Mystic Falls, but here are some records of some of the lesser known legends. Everything from Scandinavian skin-walkers to the Marechal de Retz."

The book showed drawings with different supernatural creatures, most of which I've never heard of.

Vanessa spoke in a foreign dialect, then said, "Which roughly translates into the 'curse of the sun and the moon'."

"It's Native American." Alaric stated.

"Aztec." Vanessa corrected, "It explains one origin of the werewolf curse traced through Virginia. The short story: 600 years ago, the Aztecs were plagued by werewolves and vampires. They terrorized the countryside, made farming and hunting impossible until an Aztec shaman cursed them, making vampires slaves to the sun and werewolves servants of the moon. As a result, vampires could only prowl at night and werewolves could only turn on a full moon. When the full moon crests in the sky, who's ever unlucky enough to fall under the werewolf curse turns into a wolf."

The story sent shivers down my arms and back, as I listened to it, hanging onto every word she said.

"Can they control the transformation?" Damon asked.

Vanessa looked at him as if the answer was obvious, "If it were a choice, it wouldn't be called a curse. Werewolves will attack humans, but instinct and centuries of rivalry have hardwired them to hunt their prey of choice: vampires."

Werewolves may be real, and if they were, they wouldn't only be a threat to humans and animals, but also vampires. It seemed like an obvious observation, but I couldn't help but feel anxious over it.

"Well, if werewolves were hunting vampires, I would know about it." Damon stated arrogantly.

"Not it there aren't that many werewolves left alive." Vanessa stated. "Hundreds of years ago, vampires hunted them almost to extinction."

"Why would they do that?" Elena questioned.

"To protect themselves." She replied. "Legend has it that a werewolf bite is fatal to vampires."

My eyes snapped up and landed on Damon. One bite from a werewolf, and he'd be dead. My heart rate increased, and I had to grab ahold of the edge of the table, processing this new information. Stefan and Caroline were in Mystic Falls, near the Lockwoods. If this legend was true, and the Lockwoods were really werewolves, that meant that Mason or Tyler could just bite Caroline and Stefan, and they'd be dead.

Plus: Tonight was a full moon.

Walking outside where it was already night, and into the deserted campus hallway, I rang Stefan, and after a few seconds he picked up, "Hey," He said.

"Hi." I said, smiling when I heard his voice. Then I remembered the reason I had called, and turned serious, "Listen, we've learned some stuff here and I wanted to fill you in."

"What's up?" He questioned, concerned.

I replayed to him what Vanessa had told us, all about the curse of the sun and moon. About vampires and werewolves and the rivalry between them. "I don't know what all this means, or if it's even real but... it's a full moon, Stefan."

"I'll be careful." He assured me.

I was hesitant to say it, but I decided to tell him for safety reasons. "There's one more thing: According to legend... a werewolf bite can kill a vampire."

He didn't answer for a few seconds, but then said in a rush, "Listen, I gotta go. I'll see you when you get home, okay?"

"Okay," My worry for him grew, "Be safe."

"I will." He said, "Bye." He hung up, but my nerves didn't go away. In fact, I felt more anxious then I did before the call. I hoped that Stefan and Caroline would be okay.

Digging through the box from before, back in the office, I found an old, worn-down picture of Katherine. Damn... she really looked exactly like me. There was no difference between us except that she wore nineteenth century dresses. I wondered how she looked now...

"Hey, have you done any research on doppelgangers?" I asked Vanessa.

She looked up at me, "Well, the word means a lot of different things to different cultures, but typically a doppelganger is a living, breathing double of oneself." She looked me up and down, reminded of Katherine obviously.

"Did Isobel have anything that explained the link between Katherine and I?" I questioned.

She pointed to the box, "That's all she had on Katherine, unfortunately, but I can tell you that doppelgangers usually torment the people they look like, trying to undo their lives." She smirked, "It's not exactly uplifting."

Elena walked up to us, hearing our conversation, "And more things we already know." She stated sourly, rolling her eyes as she started to flip through a book that was in the box. "What I'd like to know is why you and Katherine look alike."

"That's what we all want to know." I said.

"Head scratcher, isn't it?" Damon's voice came from behind me, and I turned around to give him a look.

"Do you know something...?" I started.

"Or are you just being your normal-annoying-self." Elena finished as she glanced up at him.

"Well, if I know anything, I'm not gonna tell you." He said to her, smugly. "Definitely not with that attitude."

"I thought that you wanted to be friends." I said to him, and his gaze softened as he looked at me, "Friends don't manipulate friends, they help each other."

I didn't know what game he was playing, or what he was trying to pull, but he wasn't exactly helping me calm down, with everything going on. I walked away from him and his dumbstruck expression as I went to search for any other helpful books I could find.

We were leaving finally, and I walked toward the car, pulling the handle of the door, but it refused to budge. "Here. Allow me." A voice came from behind me. The car lights flashed, and I heard the sound of the vehicle unlocking. Damon stepped into view, and pulled open the car door, holding it in place for me, though he was blocking the way. "You're not gonna be able to hate me forever."

I sighed, and blinked up at him. Elena appeared then, and asked annoyed, "Can we just go?"

Damon held up a book, "You didn't dig deep enough."

I read the title; "'Petrova'. I saw this on the shelf." It was a foreign name - probably European.

"Katherine originally came from Europe." Damon explained, "'Petrova' was her real name. Katerina Petrova, to be exact."

"How would you know that?" Elena asked.

"Back when, I saw it engraved on an old heirloom." Damon smirked, "Men snoop too, you know." He held the book out to me, and I took the old leather in my hands, finding it familiar yet foreign at the same time. Weird. "Let me know what you find, I'm curious myself."

"That's great, now can you move?" Elena queried Damon. He rolled his eyes, and allowed for Elena to enter the car. I nodded at him, and was about to follow her in, when Damon stepped in front of me again.

"You have every right to hate me." He stated, now serious, "I understand, but you hated me before and we became friends. It would suck if that was gone forever." He stared at me with his burning eyes, making it difficult for me to think, "So, is it? Have I lost you forever?"

I didn't know how to answer that question. I wasn't ready to forgive him. He killed Jeremy, and that's all I could picture every time I closed my eyes. All I heard every time it was silent was the snapping of his neck. The pain and agony ripped through me at just the mere thought. It pained me.

"Thank you for the book, Damon." I said gratefully, and he succumbed, letting me pass into the back seat. I slumped against it, fatigued and tired. Physically, mentally, and emotionally.

3rd person POV:

"I shouldn't be with him, should I?" Caroline asked Stefan, referring to Matt. Today, she almost killed him in the woods, almost bled him dry. Then the werewolf could've definitely been capable of ripping him to shreds, and Caroline hated feeling like all of that was her fault. "Because if there is any danger..."

"I'm the last person to make that kind of decision for you." Stefan told her truthfully. "If I had followed my own advice, I would've walked away from Ariana a long time ago."

Caroline stayed silent for a few seconds, then inquired, "You ever think you should have."

Stefan gave out a humorless puff of laughter, "I know I should have." He shrugged, "I just can't. I love her too much." Stefan felt pained whenever he thought about leaving Ariana. He couldn't imagine the heartbreak he'd experience if she were to ever leave him either.

Caroline nodded, understandably, and made up her mind. She would break up with Matt. It had a lot to do with the fact that she was putting him in danger, but also because it would never work out between them. Matt didn't love her, not in the way she loved him. It was always Ariana, and it would always be her for him.

Caroline loved Ariana like a sister, they were best friends. But sometimes the blonde would like to imagine what the world would be like without the dark-haired beauty, how instead, it may be Caroline who guys would flock to, not Ariana. Then Caroline would shake the thought away, bury it into the back of her mind and lock it in a safe, until it'd be reopened again when she felt her low self-esteem plunge into an abyss.

Ariana POV:

When we got back to Mystic Falls, Alaric and Elena entered our house, saying goodnight to me. I stayed outside for a few moments, just to marvel at the full moon, and wonder about all the legends and curses tied into it.

Damon walked along with me when I finally decided to go back to the house. When we reached the porch, Damon commented, "Road trips work well for us."

"Yeah, sure." I replied, unenthusiastically.

"Oh, come on!" Damon exclaimed, smirking, "You know I chipped a bit off of your wall of hatred."

I changed the subject, getting to the question that's been hovering above our heads for the entire day, "I need to know the truth. Did you know that he was wearing the ring?" No other explanation was needed. We both knew I was referring to Jeremy. I already knew the answer, but I had to hear him say it.

He looked at me in a pleading way, searching my eyes for forgiveness. "No. No, I didn't." He responded genuinely. Well, at least he didn't lie again. "Katherine really pissed me off and I snapped and... I got lucky with the ring. I don't know what I would've done if he wasn't wearing it." He looked at me, softly and sincerely. "Ariana, I'm so sorry."

"Thank you for being honest." I told him. "And to answer your question... the truth is that I don't hate you." His eyes lit up, "I thought I did, especially right after what you did, but ... I don't think I could ever really hate you."

You're too human, I wanted to say.

"I still need time, though." I continued. "I'm not sure if I'm ready to forgive you yet, so please... I just need some time."

He nodded, and swallowed, "That's understandable." He said. "I'll give you all the time you need."

I gave him a tight smile, "Goodnight,"

"Goodnight, Ariana." He smiled back. His eyes were hauntingly piercing.

Opening my front door, I walked through the threshold, and closed it behind me. That night I dreamt of werewolves biting Stefan, Damon, and Caroline. Their mangled screams filled the air loudly, but were barely audible over the sound of people's bodies tearing to shreds.

I never woke up happier, realizing that it was all just a dream...

So, this chapter was slightly longer than the last, and I hoped you enjoyed it! New supernatural creatures = new problems and dilemmas.

Thank you for reading and I love all of your reviews. Please review and share your thoughts and ideas. Thank you!

-Spiralcloud