When they were sitting at the breakfast table the next morning, Ric suddenly said: "I thought some more about the mystery of the Lockwood family. You know, Isobel spent years researching this town. Of course her research rooted in folklores and legends. But she was certainly right about the vampires." He actually wondered why he hadn`t thought of it sooner. Damon grinned. "Certainly. Well, aside from vampires, what else?"
"The lycanthrope." Damon`s eyebrows shot up. "Werewolves? No way. Impossible. Way too Lon Chaney." For a supernatural creature the vampire sure had a hard time believing in other supernatural creatures. Alaric found that he had become a lot more open minded concerning these things over the last few years. "Is it?" he asked. "Ric, I've been on this planet one hundred and sixty some odd years and never came across one. If werewolves exist, where the hell are they?" Damon shot back.
Ric shrugged. "I don`t know. Hiding, maybe? I`m not even saying the Lockwoods are werewolves. I`m just saying they could be." The vampire looked thoughtful. "And you think Isobel's research could help us figure it out?" he asked after a while. "It´s worth a try, don`t you think?" They had nothing to lose here. And even if it turned out to be a waste of time, at least he would be wasting his time with Damon. "Can we get access to it?" Damon asked.
"Well, all her things are still at Duke. I mean her office is still there. She's technically still missing. So it shouldn`t really be a problem." The teacher hadn`t been there for years and he wasn`t sure how he felt about going back there. But maybe it would provide some sort of closure. Although plunging a stake through Isobel`s stomach should have been closure enough.
"You know what that means, right?" Damon asked with a sly smile. Ric gave him a puzzled look. "What it means?" He had no idea what the vampire was hinting at. "Road trip." Damon explained, his smile widening. Ric couldn`t help but smile back. "Road trip. Sounds like a plan."
They agreed to meet at the boarding house two hours later and start from there. This would give both of them enough time to pack a few things. Damon also needed to tell his brother about their plan and Ric decided he would call first, to make sure they would get into Isobel`s office. He spoke to a woman named Vanessa Monroe. The teacher explained that he was Isobel`s husband and that he had decided to finally pick up her things. Vanessa told him it wouldn`t be a problem and to just ask for her once he was there.
He had just hung up when Damon called. "Elena wants to tag along." the vampire grumbled. "She thinks she might find out something about Katherine and her lineage." Ric could hear Elena talking in the background and stifled a sigh. He knew all too well how stubborn this girl could be. She wouldn`t stop giving them grief until they agreed to take her with them. "Well, if she insists." he mumbled, not even trying to hide his disappointment. He had been looking forward to a road trip with Damon. Taking the girl with them wasn`t planned. "All right. Pick us up at the Gilberts then." Damon answered, the resignation in his voice clear.
Ric hung up and turned back to his bag. He wasn´t sure if they were going to stay overnight, so he had decided to pack a small bag, just in case. About 40 minutes later he finally left the apartment and drove to the Gilbert house. Jenna opened the door and told him that Elena would be down soon. "I want you to know that this means a lot to Elena. I appreciate you taking her along today." she said. Ric shrugged. "I`m not sure what she expects to find, but if it helps." Jenna nodded and looked at him closely. "I hope she won´t be ruining your plans. If you would rather be alone with Damon…"
"I would prefer being alone with Damon." Ric admitted, glad that he didn`t have to hide from her. "But Elena will be pissed if we don`t take her with us. And I guess after everything that´s happened she can use the time-out." He could understand her need to get away from Mystic Falls for a while. Even if it was only for a day. "Yes, the whole Katherine-thing was pretty tough on her. Then she found out that John of all people is her father. And now Caroline´s a vampire…" Jenna´s voice trailed off.
"She tells you everything now, doesn`t she?" Ric asked, a little surprised at how much she knew. "No more secrets. That`s what we promised each other after the latest disaster. Not only Elena and I, but Jeremy as well. Did you know that he read Elena`s journal? He had no problem invading her privacy, since she had asked Damon to compel him. I think we all lied to each other for a long time and it brought us nowhere. Now we`ll try honesty. Hopefully that works better." Jenna explained. "But don´t worry. I can keep a secret. I won`t say anything about your.. friendship with Damon." she promised and Ric gave her a grateful smile.
"Thank you, Jenna. I`m glad to have someone I can talk to." And he was. Jenna had been a big help for him over the past few weeks and she was still the only one who knew what was really going on between him and the older Salvatore. Alaric wasn`t sure if he wanted that to change in the near future. Despite the fact that he trusted Damon, he was still a little insecure. "How are things going with Anna?" he asked, changing the subject. Jenna`s smile told him she knew exactly what he was doing, but she let it slide.
"Okay, I guess. I think she still has a hard time coping, but she agreed to stay and give it a try. Jeremy barely lets her out of his sight. He´s fallen head over heels." Jenna grinned, obviously happy for her nephew. "And you have no problem letting a vampire move in with you?" Ric wanted to know. She shrugged it off. "Not really, no. We got her a mini-fridge, so she can store some blood bags here. I don´t want those in my fridge. But apart from that… I see no problems. Stefan spent a lot of nights here and I never had a problem with that. Truth is, I feel sorry for the girl. She`s been through a lot." Her smile turned sad. "We`ve all been through a lot." Ric murmured. Both jumped when a car horn honked outside. Ric rolled his eyes, even as a grin tugged at his lips. "Damon."
Jenna called for Elena, who came rushing downstairs about a minute later, followed by Stefan. "Are you coming with us as well?" Ric asked, not sure if he`d be happy or sad about that prospect. He had no desire to turn this into some sort of field trip, but at least Stefan would keep Elena busy and he`d have more time with Damon. But the younger Salvatore shook his head. "No, I`ll stay here. I`m teaching Caroline to hunt. Elena managed to convince Bonnie to make a daylight ring for her." He didn`t look all too happy, probably felt insecure about letting his girlfriend go on a trip with Damon.
Elena seemed to sense this too, because she turned to him and asked if it was really okay that she was going. "Please be honest. Because if it's not then I can just stay here and we can take care of Caroline together." she offered. Stefan smiled and assured her it was okay. Just then the car horn honked again. Ric chuckled. "I guess we should get going. Sounds like Damon`s getting impatient."
He stepped outside and sure enough there was Damon, leaning against the side of Ric`s car, a frown on his face. The teacher went over to him, while Stefan and Elena said their goodbyes. "What took you so long?" the older Salvatore grumbled. The teacher shrugged. "Tearful goodbye. You`d think we`d be going on a weeklong journey." he replied sarcastically. Damon snorted and called to the girl: "Come on, Elena. We haven`t got all day." She finally managed to tear herself away from her boyfriend and got into the backseat. Ric and Damon got in as well and they drove off.
###
It took Elena and Damon about five minutes to get into the first argument. The vampire changed the radio station and the girl started complaining loudly, stating that she liked the song they had just been playing. Damon shot back that the song was crap and they bickered back and forth, until Alaric rolled his eyes and popped in a CD.
About 30 minutes into the trip Damon started complaining that he was bored. Another ten minutes later Elena asked Ric to stop at the next gas station, since she had to use the bathroom. The teacher was starting to feel like he was in the middle of two twelve-year olds and wondered what he had gotten himself into.
"This is no fun." Damon muttered, while they were waiting for Elena to return. "Yeah." Alaric agreed absently, looking over the map to decide the best route. "It would be a lot more fun without her." the vampire continued. "I didn`t invite her." Ric reminded him without looking up. "I didn`t either. She invited herself. Probably did it on purpose, to spoil our fun." Finally Ric took his eyes off the map and regarded the dark haired vampire with amusement. "You´re cute when you`re pouting."
The indignant look on Damon´s face was funny to watch. "I do not pout!" he insisted, crossing his arms and pouting even worse. He looked so much younger like this, the teacher mused. "Of course you don`t. Evil vampires don`t pout." Chuckling he looked at the map again, but it was suddenly snatched away from him. "You drive, I read the map. Worked before, didn`t it?" Damon cut off his protest. Ric had to admit that he was right. "Okay." He looked out the window, wondering what was taking Elena so long.
"We could just take off and leave her. She`s got her cell phone with her and we`re not far from Mystic Falls. Someone could pick her up." Damon suggested. The teacher glanced at over at him, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "She´d never forgive us." Although the idea was very tempting. "She would. Eventually. And we`d have lots of fun without her." the vampire argued, turning in his seat to face Ric. "Ever gotten a blowjob while driving?"
"Only that one time." Ric admitted, blushing slightly when he remembered their drive home from the spontaneous weekend trip they had taken while Isobel was off doing research. It had been dark outside, but still Ric had been scared shitless of getting caught. And it had taken all his concentration to keep the car on the road. Damon had a very talented mouth after all.
The return of Elena shook him out of his dirty thoughts. "I bought some snacks." she announced cheerily, dumping packages and bottles onto the seat beside her. Great, by the time they made it home he´d have crumps all over his car. Then Ric remembered that it wouldn`t really matter, since he also had to clean his trunk after last night´s adventure. He hoped no police officer would ever want to look in there, because he´d really have a hard time explaining the various weapons, the dirty shovels and the smears of blood. They`d probably throw him in jail without even waiting for an explanation.
They finally hit the road again, with Elena munching cookies and texting on her cell phone in the back seat, probably conversing with Stefan, and Damon rustling with the map and giving Ric directions. Elena let them know that Bonnie had kept her promise and made a daylight ring for Caroline and that Stefan was taking the blonde out to hunt now, proving the teacher´s theory that she was indeed texting her boyfriend. Damon made a comment about poor little forest creatures, but the brunette ignored him. "How is she holding up?" Ric asked, glancing back at the girl.
"It´s hard for her, but Caroline`s tougher than one might think. And Stefan`s helping her." Elena replied, confident in her boyfriend`s abilities. Damon looked over at Ric and rolled his eyes, but the teacher shushed him. He really hoped Caroline would make it through this. He hadn`t had much dealings with her yet, aside from school, but she seemed like a sweet and kind-hearted girl.
Ric was a little surprised when Damon actually kept his mouth shut and instead reached back to steal some cookies from Elena, who squealed in protest. "If you bring food, you gotta share it. It´s a road trip rule." the vampire lectured, grinning back at her. "You could have asked." Elena grumbled. Damon simply shrugged and bit into a cookie, before feeding another one to Ric, despite the teacher`s protest that he didn`t want any. Once again Ric wondered what he`d gotten himself into. And not for the last time that day.
###
He breathed a sigh of relief when they finally reached their destination. Walking across the campus brought back a lot of memories. They passed the spot where Alaric had met Isobel for the first time, saving her from some guy she had gotten into a fight with. He also remembered picking her up after work, back when they´d just gotten married or meeting her for lunch break in the cafeteria. But mostly it brought back memories of the time he´d spent here with Damon. Glancing at the vampire, Ric realized that he wasn`t the only one remembering.
"Isobel was officially employed by the anthropology department, given that most paranormal phenomenon is rooted in folklore." the teacher explained as they reached the building. They entered an office and Ric approached the young woman working there. "Excuse me, hi. I'm Alaric Saltzman, I called earlier." The dark haired woman nodded with a smile. "Yes, of course. I'm Vanessa Monroe, research assistant comparative folklore. We talked." She looked at Elena and Damon with a frown, while she grabbed the keys.
"These are my friends Elena and Damon. I hope this isn't too much of an imposition." Alaric mumbled. Maybe he should`ve told her he would be bringing someone with him. She had obviously expected him to come alone, judging by the strange look she was giving the other two. "No, not at all. Isobel's office is right through there. Follow me." Vanessa said, leading the way. She kept chattering about Isobel and her research and Alaric got the impression that she was nervous.
Finally she opened a door and waved them inside. "This is Isobel´s office. I'll grab the light, feel free to look around. It's fascinating isn't it?" she disappeared with a nervous laugh. Ric had a strange feeling, but he shook it off and started to look around. The other two did the same. He couldn`t even remember the last time he had been here, but as far as he could tell it looked just the same.
"Where did she go?" Damon asked suddenly, making the teacher realize that Vanessa had been gone for quite some time. He frowned, wondering if he should go looking for her, when she suddenly appeared in the doorway, crossbow in hand. Before he had time to react she shot an arrow at Elena, but Damon sped in front of her and the arrow pierced his back. Ric grabbed Vanessa, pushed her against the wall and wrestled the crossbow from her.
"What the hell do you think you`re doing?" he shouted, warring between shock and fury. A glance over his shoulder told him that Damon wasn`t badly hurt. But seriously pissed off. Well, he wasn`t the only one. Vanessa was struggling against his grip. "Please! I`m sorry. I freaked out, okay? It's not possible! Katherine Pierce can't be alive and Damon Salvatore died in 1864. Okay, I read Isobel's research." she admitted and the teacher groaned in frustration. "Well, then you should know just how possible this is."
He let go of her when Elena and Damon joined them, after the brunette had pulled the arrow out of Damon`s back. Elena introduced herself as Isobel`s daughter and descendant of Katherine, while the vampire glared at Vanessa. Ric wondered what Elena had said to keep him from killing her. "I'd be extra nice to me right now." the vampire warned. Vanessa nodded and apologized profusely, promising to help them with everything they needed. "We`ll need everything you have on Mystic Falls and Katherine Pierce." Ric told her. She quickly went to fetch a box and handed it to Elena.
"This box checks Katherine's arrival to Mystic Falls in April 1864. Far as I know, that´s all there is about her." Elena started going through the box, while Damon and Ric looked through the bookshelves in the other room. The vampire kept taunting Vanessa, who was quietly talking to Elena. Too quiet for Ric to hear what was being said, but Damon seemed to have a blast.
"There's nothing in here about Katherine that we don't already know." Elena called out after a while, the disappointment in her voice clear. Vanessa joined the two men and handed a book to Alaric. "There's no record of werewolf mythology in Mystic Falls, but here are some records of some of the lesser known legends." Pointing to the drawings in the book she started to explain, that it all came down to some old Aztec curse, called the 'curse of the sun and the moon'. According to legend the Aztecs were plagued by werewolves and vampires, 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.
It sounded like a myth, but Alaric had experienced enough strange things to start believing in myth. "Werewolves will attack humans, but instinct and centuries of rivalry have hardwired them to hunt their prey of choice: vampires." she continued. Damon snorted. "Well, if werewolves were hunting vampires, I would know about it." He sounded pretty sure of that, but Vanessa let them know that there weren`t many werewolves left alive, because vampires had hunted them almost to extinction.
"Why would they do that?" Elena asked, looking over the pictures. Vanessa´s answer made Ric´s blood run cold. "To protect themselves. Legend has it that a werewolf bite is fatal to vampires." The teacher looked over at Damon and swallowed hard. If the Lockwoods really were werewolves, that would mean yet another danger to the vampire`s life. Like there weren`t enough of those already.
Elena gasped in shock. "We have a full moon tonight. I need to warn Stefan." She pulled out her cell phone and quickly relayed the news to the younger Salvatore, asking him to be careful. After a few minutes she hung up and turned back to the box. Ric and Damon looked over the rest of Isobel`s research, but there was nothing to be found they didn`t already know. The teacher had a feeling it was time to go home. Maybe they`d even make it before midnight.
He mentioned this to the others and they agreed. Alaric hung back while Damon and Elena walked to the car. "I trust you're not gonna say anything about this to anyone." he made sure. "Or else Damon will kill me in my sleep? Don`t worry. Who would believe me anyways? But if you need anything, you can call. Anytime." Vanessa replied with a smile. She wasn`t actually flirting with him now, was she? Ric frowned and told her not to get involved in this. "Really, it'll take over and will keep you from being able to live your life." He knew what he was talking about.
Vanessa wanted to know if Isobel's disappearance was related to her research and Ric snorted. "Isobel became her research. She wanted to become a vampire and she got her wish." He sighed and looked around. It was really okay to come back here. It felt good to have Isobel in his past. He felt like he was finally over her. He was ready to move on.
"Thanks for your help, Vanessa. Goodbye." She told him again he could call if he needed something, but Ric chose to ignore the comment and joined Damon and Elena in the car. "She was hitting on you." the vampire commented. Alaric shrugged. "Yeah well, I`m not interested." He looked at the vampire, only now noticing the old book in Damon´s lap. "What´s that?" He hadn`t even noticed Damon taking something from the office. The vampire shrugged. "Just a little present."
He threw the book to Elena, who managed to catch it mere seconds before it hit her in the face. "Hey!" she protested. "You didn't dig deep enough." Damon let her know, ignoring her squeal. Scowling Elena read the title. "'Petrova'. I saw this on a shelf. Why are you giving this to me?" she asked, clearly puzzled. "Katherine originally came from Europe. Petrova was her real name. Katerina Petrova, to be exact. I once saw it engraved on an old heirloom. Men snoop too, you know."
This surprised Alaric. Not that Damon had snooped in Katherine´s stuff, of course. He was pretty sure that by now the vampire had gone through his whole apartment while he wasn`t there. But the titbit about Katherine was unexpected. The teacher started the car and pulled out of the parking lot, while Elena opened the book and started flipping through the pages. After only a few minutes she was completely engrossed in the book and ignored the two men completely. Ric wasn`t about to complain. He and Damon used the chance to discuss what they had discovered. The vampire still wasn`t convinced of the whole werewolf-thing, while Ric had to admit that the thought scared him a little.
"You`re badass vampire hunter. Why would you be scared of a few puppies?" Damon asked. "Because those puppies could kill you with a bite and I`ve lately developed the annoying habit to save your ass." Ric shot back. "That was only twice. Stop exaggerating." the vampire grumbled. "Two near death experiences are more than enough for my liking." The thought of losing Damon was unbearable. "Aww, it`s so sweet of you to be concerned for my well-being." Damon joked. His tone was light, but the look in his eyes told Ric that he was a lot more serious about this than he let on.
"Well, it would be hard to find a new drinking buddy. Especially one who usually pays for the drinks." the teacher muttered, smiling softly at Damon to show him that he was only kidding. The vampire chuckled and hit him lightly on the arm, calling him a dick. "Takes one to know one." Ric shot back with a grin.
After about an hour of driving they stopped at a diner to eat, before continuing towards Mystic Falls. It was already getting dark outside. Elena looked through the book some more and finally fell asleep in the back seat, the book still cradled in her lap. Damon was very quiet as well and Ric wondered if he had fallen asleep too, when suddenly a hand landed on his thigh, just above the knee. "Damon, stop that." he scolded. "Why? She`s asleep. She won`t notice anything."
Ric glanced back at the sleeping girl. "She could wake up any minute." he warned, shuddering when Damon`s hand slid higher. "Come on, Ric. Where´s your sense of adventure?" Damon whispered, his voice taking on a seductive edge. Ric´s body was responding all too readily. He grabbed the vampire`s hand and moved it away. "I said no. Keep your hands to yourself." he ordered. "Oh, so you`d rather watch me pleasuring myself, yeah?" Damon asked, moving his hand to his own crotch.
Ric stifled a curse. "I didn`t say that. Now stop it. I don´t wanna have to explain to Jenna why her niece woke up to see you jerking off in the passenger seat." he hissed. Damon laughed at him. "Would be sight she´s not likely to forget." the vampire bragged. "Damon." There was a definite warning in the teacher´s tone. He wasn`t kidding about this. Even Damon seemed to realize that, because he slumped back in his seat and muttered: "You`re absolutely no fun, Ric."
"Because I`m not an exhibitionist like you?" the teacher couldn`t help asking. He knew he should just let it go, instead of goading the vampire, but he just couldn`t. If it weren`t for Elena in the backseat he wouldn`t have such qualms. If she wasn`t there he`d probably already have Damon`s head in his lap. Or he would just pull over and take the vampire in the backseat. The thought alone made his jeans tighten uncomfortably. "Next time we plan a road trip, we just leave without telling anyone." he decided. "Sounds like a plan." Damon agreed, switching radio stations again.
###
A few hours later Damon entered the boarding house and shrugged out of his jacket with a sigh, somehow glad to be home. He wouldn`t have minded staying somewhere overnight, if it had just been him and Ric. But Elena`s company proved to be a big turn-off. Especially since Ric was way too cautious around the girl. He had even insisted on dropping Damon off first, before driving Elena home. Damon had in turn decided to spend the night alone.
The vampire strolled to the living room to fetch himself a drink, but stopped mid-stride and stared at the couch. Great, just what he needed right now. "What are you doing here?" he asked, not even trying to hide his annoyance. Caroline flinched at his icy tone. "Stefan made me kill a bunny." she murmured, her voice quivering. "And then I hurt Matt. I didn`t mean to. I … I just couldn`t stop myself. If Stefan hadn`t come… Oh god, I`m a monster." she started crying and Damon stifled a curse. Why the hell did she come to him?
Realizing that she wasn`t going to stop anytime soon, he sat down next to her and pulled her against his chest. If they kept going like this he´d have to start sending his cleaning bills to the Forbes. First the sheriff soaked his shirt back in the hospital and now Caroline was making a habit of it as well. Not that she could do much damage tonight. His shirt was already torn and stained with his own blood, thanks to the arrow he had taken for Elena. All this being nice sure was bad for his wardrobe.
After a while Caroline pulled away and wiped at her eyes, looking sheepish. "I`m sorry." she mumbled. "You weren`t sobbing because you killed a bunny?" Damon wanted to know. The blonde shrugged. "I don`t know. That was horrible. It was so cute… and then it only got worse. I bit Matt and then Stefan pulled me off and he told me to run and then there was this.. wolf and…" she stammered. "Wait, there was a wolf?" the older Salvatore interrupted her. "It tried to bite me, but Tyler scared it off."
Damon cursed loudly, making her flinch again. So the legend was true. There really was at least one werewolf running around in Mystic Falls. Since Tyler obviously hadn`t changed into a wolf, Damon suspected the uncle. Yet one more thing he`d have to take care of. But first he had to get rid of the sobbing blonde, who was now staring at him with wide, tearful eyes.
"Wait here." Without giving her the chance to reply he rushed down to the basement, returning seconds later with a blood bag. He threw it to Caroline, who caught it and looked at him questioningly. "You want the truth? The bunny diet doesn`t work. It doesn`t work for Stefan and it won`t work for you. Sooner or later you`ll want a taste of the real stuff. It´s in our nature to want it. We`re predators, Caroline. An humans are our prey. One day you`ll give in. And then you won`t be able to stop. Ask Stefan if you don`t believe me. One drop of human blood and he snaps. He can`t control it."
She blinked at him and sniffled. "I don`t want to kill someone. Not even a bunny." Damon rolled his eyes. "I fed from you for weeks. I didn`t kill you. Because I can control it." She bit her lip, maybe thinking about his words or maybe remembering all the horrible things he`d done to her. Damon didn`t know. Didn`t want to know. He didn`t do comforting. But he could do brutal honesty. Which might work even better.
"I can supply you with blood bags if you want." he offered, surprising himself just as much as Caroline. "But there won`t always be blood bags available. You´ll have to learn how to feed from humans, how to control it." The blonde hesitated, looked at the blood bag again. Finally she met his eyes. "Can you show me?" She sounded way too hopeful. What the hell had he gotten himself into? But he knew Ric would want him to do that, to take care of the girl. And for Ric he´d do pretty much anything, pathetic as it was.
"Yeah, I can show you." Caroline nodded and wiped her eyes. He could see something like determination in them. Maybe she would make it after all. "Okay." She finally opened the blood bag and drained it, letting out a little moan of delight. When she was finished she looked at the older Salvatore sheepishly. "It tastes better. Is that why you stick to human blood?" she wanted to know and Damon couldn`t help but chuckle. "One of the reasons, yeah. The animal stuff is disgusting. And it keeps you weak. Stefan could never hold his own in a fight against me. We`re not designed to feed from animals."
Caroline nodded. "Stefan won`t like this." she muttered. The male vampire shrugged. "I don`t care. If we`re going to keep you, someone has to teach you how to feed. And it won`t be Stefan. He can teach you the other stuff, all that emotional shit. He´s better at that." The girl looked thoughtful, hesitant. "Why did you do it?" she whispered eventually.
Damon didn`t have to ask what she meant. Somehow he`d been waiting for this question ever since she told him she remembered. "Back then, I had flipped the switch. My emotions were off. And I`m kind of a dick when my emotions are off." he explained with a shrug. Caroline frowned. "You`re always a dick." Damon grinned. "Maybe. But with my emotions off, I`m even worse." He was surprised when she actually giggled at that. She sobered quickly however. "They`re not off now, are they?"
"No, they`re not. Life´s not really easier when you switch it off. You just don`t care anymore." He had no idea where all this honesty was coming from. Alaric must be rubbing off on him. "I broke up with Matt. So I wouldn`t be able to hurt him again." Caroline let him know, smiling sadly. Damon was impressed. It was something he could never do, leaving the one he loved. He was too selfish for that. "Guess you`re not a monster after all." he murmured. Caroline smiled. "Guess you`re not always a dick." she murmured back.
After a few more minutes she got up and grabbed her purse. "Thank you. For the blood bag and not killing me and… everything I guess. I`ll call you about the …uh…" she trailed off. "Training?" Damon offered. "Yeah, do that. Don`t kill anyone. And be careful around your mother. She´s a vampire hunter." he warned. The blonde nodded. "I know. Stefan told me. So… Goodnight, Damon."
He watched her go, shaking his head at the absurdity of the whole conversation. Alaric would be thrilled if he told him he would be teaching vampire Barbie. And Stefan would be pissed that he`d get her hooked on the human stuff. So at least he´d get something out of this as well. And he had to admit that she wasn`t as bad as he`d always thought. He hadn`t even given her a chance back then, he realized. She had definitely surprised him tonight. Maybe she`d surprise him again. He decided to forget about the drink for now and went to bed instead.