The New Deal

Waking up in Damon's bedroom had become the norm for me. It was like my second room, except I didn't have much stuff there. I really ought to.

I snuggled into his chest as he wrapped an arm around my waist. "If this is what happens when our plans fail miserably, maybe I'll start sabotaging them."

I rolled my eyes and laughed. "No, you won't, because then we'll stop having oh-no-our-plan-failed-sex."

"Wouldn't want that to happen," Damon said.

My phone beeped in my trousers' pocket. I got up, wrapping the blanket around me and checked it. Meet me and Bonnie at the Grill? I think I'm going crazy - Elena.

I frowned and texted back. "What is it?" Damon asked.

"Elena's sanity," I said, strapping on my bra, facing the closet. "I'm meeting her and Bonnie at the Grill."

He groaned. "Why can't we just stay in bed all day?"

"As much as I would like that... I have a sister who's falling apart and a best friend who's having creepy dreams about coffins." I smiled at him. "Lie-ins aren't really an option."

He got out of bed and gripped my hips gently. "One of these days, we're going to just relax all day and eat pizza... and have sex."

I laughed and nodded. "Got it."

"Good," he said. "But for now... I'm gonna drink half of Virginia."

I furrowed my brows. "Is this because of Stefan?"

"Of course it is." His expression darkened. "He's gone. My brother's gone full ripper and I can't save him."

"He'll save himself, I know he will. We just have to wait." I examined him, worried. "Don't spiral."

He scoffed, a smirk plastered on his face. "I would never."

"I feel like I'm going crazy," Elena told us. "I'm totally paranoid all the time."

"You have a right to be," Bonnie said. "Klaus is still out there and he knows you tried to kill him."

"But why hasn't he done something?" I asked them. "Got some revenge. There's been no sign of him. I think I'm going insane..."

Bonnie sighed. "Join the club. Every time I close my eyes, I have that nightmare. On repeat."

"Same dream?" I questioned.

She nodded. "Yeah. Four coffins... Klaus is in one of them. It's weird."

"What if it´s not just some dream? What if it´s like... you know... a witch dream?" Elena asked her.

Bonnie shrugged. "It's just stress. I'll figure it out. And what about Stefan? Has there been any sign of him?"

I shook my head sadly. "He betrayed us... he killed our only chance at a Klaus-free life. The Stefan that we know is long gone."

She shot me a sympathetic look. "How's Damon handling it?"

My face fell. "Damon is... Damon."

"What?" I exclaimed.

"One of the workers told Ric and I that Jeremy got fired," he repeated. "Do I have to say it again?"

I groaned and pulled out my phone, calling my baby brother. The phone rang out, but Jer didn't answer. "Jeremy friggin' Gilbert, the minute you get this call me!" I hung up, taking my anger out on my poor phone. "Unbelievable!"

Damon was throwing darts. He smirked. "You're feisty when you are mad."

"I'm not mad," I told him. "Well... maybe a little. It's more that I'm worried.

"Why?" Damon asked, tossing another dart at the board. "He lost his job at the Grill. He can survive, Louise."

"He's spiralling," I said. "Since the whole Anna fiasco and Bonnie breaking up with him, he's gone moody. And he rarely ever leaves his room."

Damon shrugged. "Typical teenager."

"Who's also a medium and has lost everyone he cares about," I added.

"Not everyone. He still has you and Elena."

I shrugged slightly. "I suppose." I looked at Damon worriedly. "You alright, Damon?"

"What makes you think I'm not?" Damon asked through gritted teeth.

"You're daydrunk," I noted. "It's not your most attractive look."

He smirked as he edged closer to me. "Hm... what is my most attractive look?"

I rolled my eyes good-naturedly. "I never said you had one," I teased. "I'm saying this is my least favourite one."

"Noted," he said. "I'll see if I can make any improvements."

He stroked my cheek gently. I smiled at his touch. "Good."

"Don't mind me."

We turned to see our least favourite in the whole wide world... "Klaus," I said, glaring at him.

"You gonna do this in the Grill?" Damon asked. "In front of everyone? It's a little beneath you, don't you think?"

Klaus grinned. "I don't know what you are talking about. I just came down to my local pub to grab a drink with a mate." Klaus' 'mate' - a very sired hybrid, presumably - came up behind him. "Get a round in, would you Tony?"

That was the jogger I saw every morning... the creepy guy Elena had pointed out. So, he was a hybrid. Of course.

"I'm surprised you stuck around town long enough for happy hour," Damon quipped.

"My sister seems to be missing. Need to sort that out," the hybrid said.

"Cute blonde bombshell... psycho... shouldn't be too hard to find."

"Truth is I've grown to rather like your little town... and the people in it." He shot me a wink and Damon growled beside me. "Think I might fancy a home here. Oh I imagine you're wondering how does this is affect you. The answer is... not in the slightest. As long as I get what I want and everyone behaves themselves you can go on living your little lives however you choose. You have my word."

"You broke your stupid hybrid curse. What more could you want?" I asked him.

"Well for starters, love, you can tell me where I might find Stefan."

"Stefan skipped town the second he saved your ass," Damon informed.

Klaus grinned. "Well, you see that is a shame. Your brother stole from me. I need him found so I can take back what's mine."

"That sounds like a Klaus/Stefan problem, not a everyone-Stefan-has-met problem," I said.

He stepped towards me. Damon jumped in between us. Klaus smirked. "Ah. Well, this is me broadening the scope, sweetheart."

Elena, Ric and I were preparing dinner. Ric was cooking as Elena and I set the table. "So, you guys ready?" he asked us.

"Vampires, hybrids and originals... no problem," Elena said.

"Rebelious, drugee brother... worried out of our minds," I continued.

"Proof that the two of you are still human." I shot him a look. "Oh, let me correct that. Human and human with juju," he teased.

I smiled. "Better."

The front door opened and Jeremy came in, going straight for the fridge. "Just in time for a nice family dinner, Jer," I said.

"Sorry, just passing through."

"Ah, well I thought we would all stay in, have a meal together like a typical... atypical family," Ric told him.

Typical atypical family... perfect way to describe us.

Jer shrugged. "Why?"

"Maybe because you got fired and you didn't tell anyone," Elena snapped.

Jeremy's cocky face fell. "Ah... look, can we do this later? I made plans with Tyler. He's right outside."

"Wait!" Ric called as Jeremy made to leave with the hybrid. "When did you start hanging out with Tyler Lockwood?"

"I don't know... Does it matter?"

"Uh-huh." I nodded frantically. "It really matters. Tyler was sired by Klaus... which means he's his slave minion... which means he's dangerous. Two plus two here, Jer!"

Jeremy shushed me. "He can still hear you. He's right outside. Besides you of all people are gonna lecture me on who I can and can't hang out with?"

He meant Damon and Stefan. Of course. "Yeah. I am. Damon and Stefan aren't psycho hybrids who abide by Klaus' every demand. So drop the attitude."

Jeremy rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever, this is lame. Tyler's waiting."

Again, he tried to leave, but Elena blocked his way. "Oh, no, no! You're not going anywhere, especially not with Tyler."

He looked to me for help but I didn't budge. He switched his pleading glance to Ric. "I'm with the twins on this, Jer. Sorry."

Jeremy gave up, or so we thought. "All right, fine. You want me to stay in? Let's all stay in then." Yo, Tyler! Come on in!"

I gaped. "Jeremy! What the hell?"

The sired hybrid walked through the threshold.

Salvatore Boarding House

Damon poured himself a drink. He whipped around and saw Klaus, America's Most Hated Hybrid. standing in the doorway. "I think it's about time we had a drink, don't you?"

"I'd say we're overdue," Damon replied.

"Well, you've been so busy with all your plotting and scheming."

Damon smirked. "You know me. Never miss a chance to plan an epic failure."

Klaus grinned. "Don't be so hard on yourself. Who could have guessed your own brother would betray you?"

"Well, I did have a front row seat when your sister lied to you," he replied.

The hybrid's face fell. "Yeah, well, she's fickle that one. And you say you have no idea of her whereabouts?"

"That's the thing with younger siblings. You just never know what they're gonna do. Drink?"

Gilbert House

Jeremy handed Tyler a glass of water. "Thanks," the new hybrid said.

"This is weird," Elena spoke. "Klaus has hybrids stalking me and now you're just sitting in our kitchen."

Tyler looked awkward. "Look... maybe I should go."

"Oh, stay." He shot Elena a dirty look. "You're not doing anything."

"Unless you have to, you know, check in with your hybrid master," Elena said.

Ooh... low blow. Tyler chuckled. "It's not like that Elena."

"So what is it then?" I asked him. "Is it like compulsion? What's the difference between them?"

"Compulsion: that's just mind control... like hypnosis. And being sired is... it´s like faith. You do something because you believe it's the right thing," Tyler explained.

"So you believe that serving Klaus is the right thing?" Elena inquired.

"I don´t serve him," Tyler assured us. "Klaus released me from a curse that was ruining my life. I owe him for that."

"What if he asked you to jump off a bridge?

"He wouldn't! And even if he did, I'd be fine. I'm a hybrid," he said.

"Okay... so what if he asked you to rip your own heart out?"

The hybrid was uncomfortable. "Again... he wouldn't."

"What if he did?" Elena continued to press him.

"I don´t know! Then I'd rip out my heart!" Tyler exclaimed. All of our jaws fell to the floor, even Jeremy's. "You guys sound like Caroline, getting all freaked out over something you don´t understand."

"You're right Tyler I don´t understand," Elena said. "Klaus has terrorized every single one of us and you're just blindly loyal to him."

He shook his head. "You're over-thinking it. I can still make my own decisions."

Salvatore Boarding House

"Cheers, mate!" Klaus boomed, downing his drink.

"Down the hatch."

"You know, we´ve actually got a lot in common you and I," he said.

Damon scoffed. "Really, like what?"

Klaus grinned. "Like your pretty little girlfriend."

The Salvatore narrowed his eyes at him. "Louise? What could you possibly want with her?"

"She's a pretty thing," the hybrid said, making Damon growl. "As I'm sure you know... feisty as well. I've always preferred brunettes if I am to be honest."

Klaus was enjoying watching Damon get angry. "Well, at least she doesn't prefer psycho wolf-boys with daddy-problems and an addiction to killing people in her family."

He held up a finger, pausing his rant. "Ah, technically, I didn't kill her sister. Only her aunt."

Damon rose his drink. "Hybrid of the year," he said mockingly.

Klaus scowled. "And, other than our mutual liking of the Gilbert girl, we also have a mutual loathing of your brother."

"Why are you so mad at him?" Damon asked. "He stole something?"

The vampire was relieved. that Klaus dropped the previous subject. "My family, the Originals. I had them daggered, boxed-up awaiting the day when I saw fit to wake them. And he went in and pinched the bloody lot."

"Of course he did. Such a buzz kill, my baby bro. Well, I´d love to find him. Just the trouble is, I sure as hell don't work for you."

"You know, your drink stinks of vervain... so I can't compel you. There be no point in killing you because your actually the one with the most help of getting me what I need. And yet it would seem a demonstration is in order. Perhaps I wasn't clear enough when I told you to find Stefan. Well, it seems you people respond best to displays of violence. Why don't you take this as an example of my reach? I don't think Louise will be too happy about it."

He took out his phone and called someone. Damon watched him suspiciously "There he is! So, that thing I told you to do... why don't you go ahead and get on with it?"

Gilbert House

Jeremy got off the phone. "What was that about?" Elena asked him.

My baby brother shook his head. "It was nothing."

I was about to press him further when Tyler spoke up. "I got to go. Um... thanks for the food offer, but..."

Klaus wants me to burn down an orphanage...

"Next time," Ric offered. Tyler nodded to him before leaving. "That was illuminating."

"Yeah," I agreed thoughtfully. "So... Tyler Lockwood's a crazy hybrid, with unquestionable loyalty to the very person we're trying to annihilate... who now has access to our house."

"I mean this whole sire bond thing is... wild," Ric said. "I don't even think Tyler is fully aware of what little reason lies behind what he's saying. It's this weird cult logic."

"Well, great. That's a wonderful influence for you, Jer..." She turned around. Jeremy wasn't there. "Jeremy?"

His Gilbert ring was lying on the table. Oh no... he must have been compelled. This was Klaus' revenge.

"That's his ring," Ric said.

Elena picked it up. "Where did he go?"

We rushed outside. Jeremy was standing in the middle of the street outside our house, about to get run down by a car.

"Jeremy? What is he doing?" Elena panicked.

We ran towards him. "Oh my God!" I exclamed.

"Jeremy!" Alaric bellowed.

Elena shouted, "Jeremy, move!"

Ric pushed Jeremy out of the way as the car was inches away from him. Alaric was hit my the car instead. I knelt down beside Alaric and checked his hand, he was wearing his ring. Thank God.

"There I go again. Bumping into people..." the hybrid from the Grill said. He drove away.

Jeremy stood up and rushed over to us. "He has his ring on. He'll be fine. Are you okay?" I said to Jeremy.

"I don't understand..." Jeremy replied, confused.

"Who was that on the phone earlier?" Elena asked him.

His face lit up in realisation. "It was Klaus!"

"You were compelled, Jer," I told him. "Come on, let's get him inside."

Ric was taking a while to wake. Elena knelt down beside him, clutching his hand in hers. I paced the living room, worried.

"How is he?" Damon asked.

"He's dead... but he had his ring. Klaus' hybrid hit him. Now, we just wait," I told him.

Damon nodded, turning his attention to my brother. "Jeremy, why aren't you wearing vervain? Where is your bracelet?"

"I don't know."

"It was Tyler," I realised. "He must have got you off vervain. That's why he was hanging out with you." Jeremy looked saddened. "Not that you're not awesome... you totally are, bro."

He glared at me a little. "Klaus is trying to send us a message. He wants us to find Stefan who stole his coffins full of his dead family members."

"Coffins?" Elena piped up.

"Yup! So all we have to do is find four coffins and... voila! No one else on your family's Christmas list needs to die!"

"Wait... that's your big plan? To steal back four dead originals so this evil hybrid doesn't kill me and everyone else we know?" Jeremy asked.

"You got a better idea?"

"Yeah! Let's get the hell outta here! Pack our bags and go!"

"Jer, hey. Calm down," I soothed.

"No, no!" he snapped. "I'm not gonna calm down, Louise! This happens every time, no matter what we do! You get on my case about school and work... who cares? None of us are gonna make it out of this town alive."

He stormed off. I stood there for a moment, stunned. He was right. It was one problem after another in this town, but leaving here wouldn't make it go away. There'd always be some other problem waiting for us.

"Klaus wants his family back," I said.

"No! No!" Damon said. "I know what you're thinking! The answer is no!"

"If we give him Rebekah-"

"Yeah, then Klaus undaggers her, first thing she does is kill your sister! And it's not like you haven't lost enough family members to last a lifetime!"

"Klaus' coffins... how many did you say they're were?"

"Louise, hey," Bonnie said.

"Klaus is looking for four coffins, like in your dream. Turns out it wasn't just stress."

"Louise, don't get involved. Whatever Klaus wants, stay as far away from it as you can."

"Bonnie, as much as I want not to be apart of this, Klaus is pulling me into it. He tried to kill Jeremy!"

"What do you want me to do?"

"We need to find Stefan. I know that you don't think your locator spell still works, and I'm not gonna chance doing magic since it's a full moon, but we have to try."

"You don't need a locator spell..."

Damon and I walked towards the abandoned witch house. "Shouldn't you be at home preparing for the full moon?"

"You make me sound like I'm a werewolf," I snorted.

"What's up with that, anyway?" Damon asked.

I shrugged. "I don't know. All that I know is that on full moons, my powers go boom and I'm suddenly a super witch with absolutely no control."

He shot me a sympathetic look. God, I was getting sick of those. He changed the subject. "I thought Bonnie said this place lost all it's mojo."

"The dead witches were pissed at her for bringing Jer back to life. I guess now they have something they want her to know."

Damon groaned. "I hate witches. So fickle... passive aggressive." I narrowed my eyes at him. He smiled sweetly. "You're the exception."

"Thanks," I said sarcastically.

We entered the house. "Stefan?" I called.

"Come on, Stef. Olly-Olly-Ox and free." He walked further into the witch house. The sun, despite him wearing his ring, made his skin burn. "Ah.. ow... uh!" He vamped into a corner. "Really? Still?"

"The witches obviously don't like you," I said. "You did call them fickle..."

"They're using their juju to screw with my daylight ring!" he exclaimed.

I rolled my eyes. "Duh! Wait outside."

"Louise!"

"I'm not leaving until I know he's here and we get those coffins," I said.

I walked through the house and Damon vamped out of the house. "Stefan?"

"Go away!" the ripper growled. "You shouldn't be here, Louise!"

"Bonnie said that you'd be here. We need your help, Stefan."

He huffed. "Well, Bonnie sucks at keeping secrets."

"You need to give Klaus his family back."

"Oh, really? Is that what I need to do?" Stefan smirked, amused.

"Klaus compelled Jeremy to stand in front of a care. He wanted to kill him! Don't you get it, Stefan? He's not gonna stop until he gets those coffins!"

"Louise, stop talking. I'm not giving Klaus anything."

"But... but he's going to kill Jeremy!" I tried.

Stefan shrugged. "Not really my problem."

And that... that hurt like hell. I slapped him across the face, anger boiling inside of me. Wind blew inside the house and threw him against the wall. Stefan's eyes widened as he gaped.

I took long, deep breaths, like Ric had taught me. I was in control... I was in control. The moon didn't control me... I wasn't a friggin' werewolf!

The wind stopped. "I'm not giving up on you, Stefan. You're gonna get you're humanity back. But 'til then, you can go to hell."

I rushed out of the house. He was so far gone... I wasn't sure if I'd ever get him back. I wanted the Stefan who comforted me and played video games with me. Who teased me and binge ate with me.

"That didn't go over well," Damon commented, having been listening to our exchange.

"Don't start," I grumbled.

"Let me talk to him!"

"The witches won't let you in," I reminded him. "Remember?"

He handed me his keys. "Here. Take my car keys. You go deal with your brother. I'll deal with mine."

"He's not gonna stop, Louise. We have to do something."

"Like what, Elena? Stefan won't give us Klaus' family back! There's nothing we can do."

"Actually, there is. The one family member Stefan doesn't have."

Who?... Oh. "Rebekah."

"We can give her to him as a peace offering. Her life in exchange for yours and Jeremy's."

I nodded, even though she couldn't see me. "Alright. Damon won't be too happy, though."

"He doesn't own you."

"No. He doesn't."

"Tony, the hybrid... he gave me Klaus' number. I'll text it to you. You sure you're okay with giving Rebekah to him? Would you like me to?"

"No. I'll be fine, 'Lena."

"Okay."

I opened the door to Klaus. "Thank you for coming."

Klaus grinned and entered the Salvatore Boarding House. "I trust you have news of Stefan."

"We couldn't find him," I lied. "But I have something else." I gestured for him to follow me and led him down to the cellar. "Before homecoming, Elena daggered Rebekah so she couldn't ruin our plan. It just so happens she's in this very cellar."

I opened up the cellar door and he walked in. Rebekah was lying on the floor, a dagger in her heart. "My poor sister. I can´t turn my back on her for a moment."

"You have Rebekah. A deal's a deal."

"The life of my sister in exchange for your brother's? Yeah, I´d say that´s a bargain. Consider him spared."

"When Rebekah wakes up, she'll go after Elena. I don't suppose you want to lose your human blood bag..." I said bitterly.

"I can control Rebekah," he insisted. "Besides, you and the scooby gang are needed to help me find Stefan."

"We don't know where he is," I said.

Klaus undaggered his blonde sibling. "You´re lying. Fortunately you have no shortage of loved ones. If I don´t find my family the question you should be asking yourself is who´s gonna die next. Bonnie? Caroline? Damon? It´s only a matter of time before Stefan gives me what I want."

"And why am I not dead?" I asked him. "It'd send them one hell of a message and you've already tried to kill Jeremy."

"I like the fire you possess, excuse me for not wanting it gone." He smiled slightly... a boyish smile. "So, where's Stefan? I know you know where he is."

"Yeah, I do." I was still shocked from his statement. My... 'fire'? What fire? That I go bonkers every full moon? "But I won't tell you. You should know he doesn't care about any of us anymore. You made sure of that when you took his humanity away... you turned him into a monster. Now he's your problem." I smiled sarcastically. "And you should also know that Rebekah kinda wants you dead. She knows that you killed your mother." His face twisted in a mixture of anger and fear. "I suppose you can let yourself out."

"Jeremy chopped a hybrid's head off?" I asked Elena, who nodded. "He's sixteen..."

She nodded again slowly. "I know."

"He can't be around this anymore."

Damon walked into the kitchen. "You know what to do then," Elena said before leaving the kitchen.

"Did you get rid of the body?" I asked him. "The hybrid's?"

"Yeah. Tony the headless hybrid is down at the bottom of Steven's Quarry."

"And Ric?"

"Took care of him, too. He'll be fine. How are you?"

I shrugged. "My baby brother just chopped off someone's head... you know, the ushe."

He cupped my face in his hands. "It's gonna be okay."

I ripped away from him. "I have to tell you something. I made a deal with Klaus. I gave him Rebekah."

"What? No... no, no, no! You did not do that. She's gonna come here and kill Elena and everyone she's ever met! Louise..."

"No she won't. Klaus won't let her kill Elena or me because he needs us."

Something akin to jealousy flashed in his eyes. What the... "And you trust him."

"No. I don't trust him at all. But what else can we do, Damon? I don't trust Stefan... you think he's just gonna hand over those coffins? His revenge?"

"My brother is... sort of running his own show right now."

"Huh. And my brother just beheaded a hybrid! He's a kid, Damon. He doesn't deserve this... he's not born into this world and we're dragging him into it."

"Louise."

I sighed and chewed my lip. "There's something we can do. And I feel like such a horrible person, but..."

He nodded. "I'll do it."

I leaned on the door of Jeremy's room. "Hey, Jer. Can we talk?"

He grinned. "Ah... what did I do now?"

"What you said earlier, about how we should pack up and go..."

"Louise, I didn't mean any of that."

Elena came up behind me. "But you were right. You shouldn't have to give up a normal life... just because of us."

"What's going on?"

Damon entered the room. "Your sisters think we should have another one of our talks." He sat down in front of him on his bed. "Here's the thing, Jer. You're gonna go out of town for a while... a long while. You're gonna stay with some nice family friends in Denver, you're gonna be at a new school, you'll meet new girls, living girls. You're going to drink a few beers, take an art class. You do whatever you want."

"Tell him he's gonna leave Mystic Falls behind and never think twice about it," Ric told him.

Damon looked to me for approval and I nodded. "You're gonna leave Mystic Falls behind and never think twice about it. You're gonna have a better life, Jeremy."

I went out to the front porch, a lump in my throat and a pang in my stomach. Damon followed me out. "I feel like a horrible person."

"You just saved his life, Lou. Take it from me, strange is bad, dead is worse."

"But the last time you compelled him, he..."

"...found out. And he got over it. Again... not dead, Louise! He's so lucky to have you for a sister."

I smiled. "Thank you."

"No problem."

"You should know that Stefan didn't screw us over." I rose an eyebrow. "He screwed us over, but he had a good reason."

"What?"

"He saved Klaus to save me. Then he stole the coffins to get even."

I frowned in thought. "What? Damon... does that mean..."

"He's got his humanity back?" I nodded. "No, but it's slipping in. We might have him back soon."

I smiled happily. "Maybe after this Klaus stuff is over..."

That ruined the happy mood. "Klaus..." Damon growled.

"What'd he do now?"

He looked over to me. "Klaus told me something today... about you."

"Oh?"

It seemed like he was about to tell me, but backed down at the last moment and shook his head. "Nothing." He kissed my forehead gently. "I judt want you to know something."

His forehead was pressed against mine. I smiled. "I already learned a lot today, Damon," I teased.

He chuckled. "Just know that I'm in love with you."

Hearing that... it made my heart flutter. Nothing could have made me happier. But somehow, I already knew that he did. "I love you too."

A/N: What'd you think of this chapter? Damise or Klouise? I really, really love to read your reviews, so... please review! They're like chocolate fudge cake!