Okay, this is the last chapter. A big, heartfelt thanks again to everyone who took the time to leave a comment. And also thanks for all the follows and faves.
###########################
A few hours later Alaric was just getting dressed when someone knocked on the door of his apartment. He did up his pants and, expecting Damon, didn`t bother with a shirt. Therefore he blushed crimson when he opened the door to reveal Caroline. "Hey, uhh… what are you doing here?" he greeted the blonde, rather puzzled at her sudden appearance. She was already dressed up for the party, he noticed, although she was carrying a clothing bag.
"I came to bring your outfit for tonight." she announced cheerfully, trying to walk past him, but unable to cross the threshold. "Ugh, you need to invite me in." Ric just stared at her open mouthed. "My outfit?" he repeated dumbly. He couldn`t remember telling her he needed one or anyone mentioning that he needed to dress up specifically. Well, it was a Masquerade Ball he remembered, but he had thought he`d just wear a suit. Caroline ignored his question and just looked at him pointedly. "Are you inviting me in now or what? We don`t have all night."
Surprised at her commanding tone, Ric found himself stepping back almost automatically. "Yeah, come in." The blonde walked past him, dumped her purse onto a table and shoved the clothing bag into his arms. "Here, Damon asked me to get something for you. Said you would only show up in that ugly suit you wore to the last founders party otherwise. I think this should fit you. I`ll wait here while you get dressed."
"He did what?" the teacher sputtered indignantly. "He`s right, you know? That suit was ugly. Hate to say it, but your fashion sense is seriously lacking." Caroline told him. Shaking his head, Ric opened the clothing bag, revealing a beautiful dark suit, complete with dress shirt and tie. "That looks pretty expensive." he commented, noticing the fine material. The blonde shrugged. "Don`t worry. Damon paid for it." Ric didn´t know how he felt about Damon buying clothes for him. Partly he thought it was an almost sweet gesture, but partly he was annoyed that the vampire had gone behind his back once again.
"Hey, it`s totally okay to let your boyfriend buy you clothes. And Damon´s loaded. He paid for this dress, too, if it makes you feel better. Although unknowingly. Shouldn`t have sent me shopping with his credit card." Caroline admitted with a giggle. "Damon is not my boyfriend." Ric protested, earning himself an eye roll from the the blonde. "Your lover then, or whatever you want to call him. Doesn`t matter. Stop discussing and get dressed now. We can`t be late for the party."
Giving in, Alaric grabbed the bag and headed for the bathroom. Arguing with Caroline was pointless anyway. Especially when it came to clothes. That girl was used to getting her way. Probably inherited the bossy attitude from her mother.
When he emerged from the bathroom about fifteen minutes later, he had to admit that she at least did have taste. The suit fit him perfectly and it did look good on him. He even felt remotely comfortable, although he usually hated wearing suits. Caroline grinned when she saw him. "Great. Just like I imagined. Okay, let me see to your hair." Frowning Ric took a step back. "No thanks, I`m not Elena you know?" The blonde sighed in exasperation. "Yes, I did notice. I wasn`t going to use the curling iron on you, don`t worry. And now stop being a baby and sit down."
She pushed him down onto the couch with surprising strength and started fussing with his hair, while Ric vowed silently that Damon would pay for this. That`s what he got for interacting with his students outside of school. They had no respect. Okay, most of them probably hadn`t had any respect for their teacher from the start. And he supposed Caroline had long since stopped viewing him as her teacher and now saw him as some sort of big brother or whatever.
About ten minutes later Caroline was finally satisfied with his appearance. Ric didn`t see any difference to his usual hairdo, but was smart enough to keep that thought to himself. The girl handed him a mask that was luckily rather simple in design. It was black with little swirls of dark blue, devoid of fancy accessories like gems or feathers.
The teacher breathed a sigh of relief when she finally announced that it was time to go. He grabbed his wallet and car keys, slipped two vervain darts into his jacket pocket, just in case, and they left. Once outside Caroline took her leave and got into her own car. The drive to the Lockwood mansion was a short one. Slowly Ric was starting to get nervous. There was so much that could go wrong tonight and just the thought of Damon, locked in a room with Katherine was making his stomach turn. He knew that once Bonnie had completed the spell, no vampire would be able to leave the room. The Salvatores would be trapped like Katherine.
The fact that Stefan would be in there with his brother was only a small consolation. Ric wasn`t sure if the Salvatore brothers would be strong enough to win a fight against Katherine. If they would really be able to work together against her. He could only hope that the element of surprise would give them enough of an advantage. At least he would be there to step in if they needed help. And he had also made sure that both vampires were armed as good as possible.
Arriving at the party he fastened his mask and took a stroll around. He spied Jeremy, somewhere off to the side, framed by Anna and Bonnie. Nodding to the three of them and receiving a similar greeting in return, the teacher walked on and finally stopped on the steps that led out into the garden. He let his gaze sweep over the couples on the dance floor, perfectly illuminated by colourful lights. Carol Lockwood and her volunteers had outdone themselves once again. He just felt bad for Jenna, who had been really looking forward to this night and now she couldn`t attend. He just hoped she would spend a nice evening with Mason.
A low whistle made him turn around. "I knew it was a good idea to send vampire Barbie shopping for you. You look damn hot." Damon commented, letting his eyes rake over the teacher`s tall frame. Ric could feel his cheeks heat at the compliment and hoped the mask would hide his blush. "Thanks. But you could`ve warned me." he shot back. "You would have told me not do it and shown up in that ugly suit. This looks so much better on you." the vampire reasoned, stepping closer and letting his hand trail over Ric`s arm lightly.
The teacher had to smile despite himself. And he had to admit that the suit was nice. "Okay, I would have. But I`d still like some warning next time you decide to let Caroline pick my outfit." Because he knew that once Damon got away with this, he´d probably try it again. Knowing Mystic Falls and its addiction to festivities there would probably be another party within the month. "We`ll see about that." Damon murmured, taking a step back again and not even trying to hide the fact that he was staring at the teacher.
Ric was admiring the sight in front of him as well. The vampire always looked good in a suit and the dark mask highlighted his blue eyes perfectly, giving him an exotic and mysterious touch. "You look gorgeous tonight." Damon´s eyes widened at the rare compliment. The surprise however was quickly replaced by his trademark smirk. "Thank you, Ric. Glad you noticed." he drawled.
The beeping of Damon´s cell phone startled both men and reminded them that they weren`t her to party or flirt. "Plan´s in motion. The room is ready and Stefan just spied Katherine on the dance floor." the vampire relayed the message, after taking a look at his phone. Ric nodded and tried to swallow his nervousness. Their plan was good. It would work out, he reassured himself.
Only minutes later Stefan appeared beside them, worry etched all over his face. "Katherine just killed a girl in the middle of the dance floor. We`ve got to call this off." he let them know. Damon shook his head. "What? No. No way. This woman ruined our lives, Stefan. She destroyed us! Tonight it ends. We can end it. Together." he looked at his brother closely. Stefan seemed to be debating with himself. "It`s too dangerous to do this here. More people could get hurt." he pointed out.
"How many more people will she hurt if we don`t do this tonight? This is our best shot. Don`t leave me hanging." the older Salvatore pleaded. Stefan looked at Ric, who nodded. "Damon is right. We don`t know if we ever get another chance like this." Heaving a resigned sigh the younger vampire finally agreed. "Alright. Let`s do this." Damon clapped him on the back and sent a quick text to Jeremy to let him know that it was his turn. "I just hope she doesn`t hurt Jeremy." Stefan muttered. "Don`t worry. He´s got Anna as back-up. She`ll look after him." his brother tried to ease his fears.
"Now, let`s move upstairs. Ric, you follow us once you`re sure that Katherine`s on her way." Damon ordered. Alaric nodded and hung back, while the two vampires entered the building. He watched them climb the stairs and tried to calm his racing heart-beat. Everything would work out. Only a few minutes later he spied Katherine, who was dragging a weakly struggling Caroline upstairs. He waited until they were out of sight and was just about to go inside and follow them, when he suddenly saw Elena out in the garden, heading for the house, closely followed by Jeremy, Bonnie and Anna.
The teacher stifled a curse and went to intercept them. "Elena, what are you doing here? You`re supposed to be at home with Jenna." The girl looked at him defiantly. "You wanted me to stay home while you try to kill Katherine? You`re crazy. This will never work. Please, Alaric. Stop this insanity now. They won`t listen to me." she pleaded. "I`m sorry, but it`s too late for that, Elena. Go back home." Ric ordered, but she wouldn`t listen. "I can`t just go back home. How am I supposed to feel if one of you guys gets hurt because of me?"
"No-one but Katherine gets hurt tonight." Jeremy stated confidently, while Bonnie assured her friend that they all knew what they were doing. Ric was fidgeting, getting restless. He didn`t want to leave the kids alone down there, but he also knew that Damon counted on him to have his back. "I`ve got to get upstairs. Get her home." he told Jeremy, who nodded.
Ric had just reached the stairs, when a scream from Elena made him rush back outside. His eyes widened in horror when he saw a bloody patch spreading across her back. "Elena, what´s wrong?" She screamed again and her arm started bleeding. Ric could only watch, completely helpless. He had no idea what was going on. Thankfully Bonnie understood faster. "Oh god, it's Katherine. She's linked to Katherine. Get them to stop! Now!" she shouted and Anna took off in a run, skipping upstairs in a blur.
She returned only a few moments later. "Katherine has a witch on her side. She linked her to Elena." she confirmed Bonnie`s suspicion. Alaric cursed under his breath. They had thought of everything, planned every detail, but they hadn`t realized that Katherine might have back-up here as well. Once again that bitch had managed to outsmart them. Another pained scream from Elena brought him out of his reverie. Blood spread across the girl`s palm. "What are they doing? They know that hurting Katherine hurts Elena." Jeremy cried.
"They`re not doing anything. That´s Katherine. She´s doing this to herself." Anna said quietly. Ric shuddered. How sick was that woman? He glanced at the young vampire, a little worried because of the blood, but Anna was keeping herself in check. Bonnie tried to take some of Elena`s pain away with a spell. Thankfully it seemed to be working. "The girl I saw, the one inside!" Bonnie spoke up suddenly. "That was Katherine`s witch. Stay with her, I`ll find that witch!" she ordered, taking off before anyone could reply.
Since there wasn`t much he could do here, Ric decided to head upstairs. Damon and Stefan were still trapped in that room with Katherine and they couldn`t even really defend themselves, since they couldn`t risk hurting her. Jeremy and Anna assured him they would be fine here, so he rushed off. When he arrived at the room, the three vampires were sitting around, watching each other warily. "Oh, more company." Katherine commented. Damon got up and joined Ric at the door.
The teacher wanted to update him, but knew that Katherine would hear as well. Thinking quickly he pulled out his cell phone and typed: Bonnie is looking for the other witch., before holding it up for Damon to read. The dark haired vampire nodded. "Hope she hurries up. The second the spell is lifted, I'm gonna drive a stake right through Katherine´s heart." He glanced at the woman in question, who didn`t seem the least bit concerned about his threat.
Stefan said something that Ric didn´t quite catch and Katherine laughed. "Yes, I have to say I was very disappointed with Mason." she admitted. Damon snorted. "Well, probably should have kept him on a tighter leash." he suggested. "I'll have to remember that for next time. He's not the only wolf in town, you know?" Alaric didn`t like the sound of that, but before he could give it more thought, a dark skinned woman appeared next to him. He stepped aside automatically. There was something about her that was … eerie.
"Katherine, the spell on this room has been broken. You're free to leave. And I got this." the woman announced, holding up the moonstone. Ric tried to stop her from giving it to Katherine, but with a dismissive wave of her hand the witch knocked him into the far wall. When Damon tried to lunge at her, she sent him flying across the room. With a grin Katherine took the stone.
And crumbled to the ground just a second later, gasping for air. "You should have told me another witch was involved. She's a Bennett witch, Katherine, but I'm sure you knew that." the witch said coldly.
"Wait, Elena!" Stefan shouted. "Elena's fine. The spell is broken. She'll heal quickly. Bonnie's with her." the witch reassured him. Katherine was writhing on the ground, her struggles getting weaker, until she finally fell unconscious. "I apologize for my involvement. I never meant for this to happen. Katherine forced me to help her. Still, I can`t let you kill her." the witch spoke up again. "I think we`ll find another way to get rid of her. Don`t worry." Damon mused, getting to his feet again. She nodded and left.
Ric joined the Salvatore brothers and looked down on the unconscious Katherine. "Alright. What do we do with her now?" Stefan just shrugged, but Damon already had an idea. "She was supposed to be in the tomb, but she never was. Why don`t we remedy that?" he suggested. The teacher smiled. "Lock her up? Seems fitting." Stefan agreed as well. "We`ll have to ask Bonnie to renew the spell." he pointed out. "Okay, get the witch. We`ll take care of Katherine." Damon decided.
While the younger Salvatore went in search of Bonnie, Damon picked up the unconscious Katherine and slung her over his shoulder. "My car is right outside." Ric offered. Damon nodded. "Lead the way then."
Surprisingly enough they made it to the parking lot without encountering anyone. The party still seemed to be in full swing and most people were out in the garden. They put Katherine into the backseat and drove to the old church ruins, after Bonnie had texted to let them know she would meet them there. The brunette didn`t stir when they put her into the tomb. Bonnie arrived only minutes later. She placed some candles onto the floor, sat down and started chanting. Ric watched fascinated how the wind picked up and the candles flickered. Vampires were something he was used to by now, but witchcraft still gave him an eerie feeling.
Once the spell was done, Bonnie left, after telling them that Jeremy and Anna were taking Elena home. Damon made no move to leave, so Ric lingered as well. Finally Katherine stirred. She looked around in puzzlement, but quickly realization dawned. Shooting up she tried to run out, but the invisible barrier held her back. She looked at Damon in shock. "What did you do? Where am I?"
"Where you should have been all along. I thought you'd have learned your lesson by now, messing with a Bennett witch." Damon chided. He went to close the door. "No, Damon, don't. Damon, don't. I'll do anything, please. You love me." Katherine screamed. It was the first time Ric heard something like panic in her voice. "I don´t love you. Not anymore. I hate you." the dark haired vampire spat. "No, you love me. Damon, please." Katherine kept pleading, but the older Salvatore just regarded her coolly.
Finally Katherine seemed to realize that this was going nowhere. Her face darkened in anger. "And I never loved you. Just like your father never loved you. Like Elena will never love you. You may hate me, but a lot of people love me. Someone will get me out of here in no time, you`ll see. But you? No-one ever loved you. And no-one ever will." she said cruelly. Ric could see that her words were having an effect on Damon, even if the vampire tried not to let it show. His shoulders slumped slightly and his face went blank. Without another word he pushed the door closed, ignoring Katherine´s cries.
"Damon…" Ric started, taking a step towards the vampire, but he moved away. "Let`s just head home." Alaric followed him to the car, not really knowing what to say. The drive to the boarding house passed in uncomfortable silence. Stefan called to let them know he`d be staying with Elena tonight. Damon only mumbled his okay and hung up.
When they entered the boarding house, Ric tried to speak up again, but the beeping of Damon´s cell phone interrupted him. The dark haired vampire quickly read the text and cursed. "From vampire Barbie. Looks like Katherine compelled someone to attack Tyler Lockwood. We`ve got another werewolf on our hands." Alaric stifled a curse as well. Just what they needed. But they could worry about that tomorrow. Now he had a vampire to worry about.
"We`ll take care of it tomorrow. I`m sure Mason will show him the ropes and I think Tyler and Jeremy are friends. He`ll probably help, too. Let`s just go to bed now." Damon nodded and walked upstairs. He looked tired. Once they reached the vampires room, he started stripping off his clothes mechanically, pointedly ignoring Alaric, who decided it was time to talk. Time to say something he had postponed far too long. He should`ve told him ages ago.
"Damon, what Katherine said. It`s not true." he stated quietly. Still the vampire didn`t look at him. "I know. Nothing she ever says is true." he mumbled back. Ric grabbed his arm roughly. "Look at me." Slowly Damon complied. Their eyes met, locked. Ric could feel his heart starting to race. But he had made up his mind. He had waited too long to say this. "She said no-one loves you. But she`s wrong. Because I do. I love you." he whispered.
Damon´s eyes widened, his breath caught in his throat. Ric wondered how long it had been since he had heard these words. "Why?" the vampire whispered back. Ric gently stroked his cheek. "There are so many reasons. I`m afraid listing them all would take all night. I fell in love with you three years ago. And I never stopped loving you. I may have forgotten for a while." at this he looked at Damon pointedly. "But the feeling was always there. Will always be there." he promised.
The vampire just stared at him for what seemed like hours. Ric held his stare, tried to convey his sincerity without words. Finally Damon closed the gap between them and crushed his lips to Alaric`s, kissing him with an almost desperate urgency. His fingers made quick work of Ric`s dress shirt, unbuttoning it and sliding it off the teacher`s shoulders. Stripping each other was something they had quite a bit of practice in, so it didn`t take long at all until they tumbled onto the bed together, both fully naked.
Ric had thought that first time Damon had looked at him the whole time while they had sex had been intense. But it was nothing compared to this. They took their time, wanting to prolong it as much as possible. Foreplay was drawn out. Ric spent long minutes caressing Damon`s body with hands, lips and tongue, before preparing him gently. When he finally entered the vampire their eyes locked, their hands entwined.
The teacher whispered "I love you." over and over, while he thrust into the willing body beneath him. It seemed that now it was out in the open, he just couldn`t stop saying it. Damon was unusually quiet, but the wondrous look in his expressive eyes was answer enough.
Only after they had come almost simultaneously, after Ric had pulled out and they were lying side by side, their breathing evening out and sweat cooling on their bodies, did Damon speak up again. He rolled them over, so that he was on top of Ric now. Looking down at the teacher he whispered: "I love you, too." And he looked so young and so fragile saying it, that Ric pulled him down and sealed his lips with another kiss. A silent promise not to hurt him like Katherine had. Like so many others had.
"What are we going to do about our little werewolf problem now?" Damon asked after a while. Ric chuckled. Typically Damon to come up with something like that now. "We`ll figure something out. We always do." he replied sleepily. "Yeah. Though I guess you won`t let me kill him." the vampire muttered. Ric just pulled him closer, hoping he would go to sleep soon. It had been a long and eventful day and he was tired. He really had no wish to talk about werewolves right now.
He was already half asleep when Damon spoke up again. "Ric? Do you think you… you could love me… forever?" His voice was quiet, hesitant. The teacher`s eyes flew open. He knew what Damon was asking. And it wasn`t like he`d never thought about it. But he didn`t have an answer yet. He wasn`t ready to be turned into a vampire. Not yet. But maybe in a couple of month? Maybe in a year?
"I`ll think about it. Just give me some time, okay?" he finally answered. Damon had been very still beside him. Waiting for his answer with baited breath. Now he relaxed, cuddling against Ric`s side with a sigh. "Alright. I`ll ask again tomorrow." Alaric chuckled and pulled him even closer. "You`re impossible." He could practically feel the vampire`s smile. "Mmh, but you love me." Damon murmured sleepily, sounding more content than Ric had ever heard. "Yes, I do." he agreed. "And I love you. Forever." the vampire whispered, before finally drifting off to sleep. Ric closed his eyes as well, feeling happy like he hadn`t in ages. As he too drifted off to sleep he wondered absently what his answer would be, if Damon really asked again tomorrow.