"All right, I'm here," Alistair said when he arrived at Klaus'. "What exactly happened again?'

"It seemed like a good idea when I came up with it a few days ago," Klaus said. "Caroline and I have decided to make things more official than they were and I thought that since that was the case, it would be best to have a dinner where Caroline and Roxanne were in the same room. It seemed like a good way to give them an opportunity to bond, but, surprise, surprise, it didn't work."

Alistair looked around. "At least the house is all in one piece," he said. "You have to consider that a victory."

Klaus scoffed. "Yes, but that's the only one! Everything else just fell apart."

"Well, it shouldn't surprise you that Roxanne misbehaved," Alistair said. "Based on her behavior in the past, I should think you would know by now that Roxanne misbehaving at a party is inevitable."

"But that's just the thing!" Klaus said. "Roxanne didn't misbehave. She was very civil. It was Caroline who made a complete and utter fool of herself."

"But why would she do that?" Alistair asked. "I thought she seemed like a nice woman."

Klaus nodded. "She's incredibly sane most of the time, but there's something about Roxanne that makes her ill at ease. She has made it quite clear that she much prefers Lucy's company."

"I'm sure if they all met Roxanne and Lucy, the general population would feel as Caroline does," Alistair said. "So you and Caroline and Roxie were at this dinner when Caroline began acting out."

"Selina and Elijah were there too," Klaus said. "Roxanne invited Selina to come."

"Did she?" Alistair asked. "How curious. I thought the two of them didn't get along."

"They don't, at least not that I know of," Klaus said. "Maybe Roxie was desperate."

"Where's Caroline now?" Alistair asked. "Is she here?"

Klaus shook his head. "Lucy called this morning and she and Caroline went out."

"Well think of it this way," Alistair said. "If Roxanne was willing to be civil at this dinner you had with Caroline, it could mean she's turning herself around. This could be a new beginning for the two of you."

"I'd like that," Klaus said. "Things really haven't been good between us since she left when she was six. I still don't understand why she did that."

"Maybe she'd explain it to you," Alistair said. "All you have to do is ask." He paused. "But that's easier said than done between the two of you, isn't it?"

"Yes," Klaus said morosely. "It is."

"Why is that?" Alistair said. "Why is it so hard for the two of you to sit down and have a conversation with each other?"

"Because she doesn't want to talk to me," Klaus said. "That Vince is all she cares about. He's why she left for ten years and I didn't hear a peep out of her."

"I thought you liked him," Alistair said. "You turned him into a hybrid and everything. And he was more than willing to submit to it. That's what you've always told me."

"I pretend to like him," Klaus said. "I thought that if I made it seem like I liked him, then Roxanne would like me too. Do you understand that?"

"It makes sense," Alistair nodded. "I take it that things aren't going like you planned?"

Klaus shook his head. "She still lives far away. With him. Never calls, hardly ever visits. So I devote my time to Lucy instead, and that just makes Roxie angrier. It's like I can't do anything right."

"Just try and talk to her sometime," Alistair said. "It's possible that she feels the same way you do and just can't bring herself to tell you."

Klaus sighed. "I don't know," he said. "She's grown up now. What would she need me for?"

Vince came in from the backyard and found Roxie curled up in a ball on the sofa, the phone clutched tightly in her right hand. Her eyes were wet and puffy and her face was red. "What's the matter?" He asked her.

"Charlie just called," she said. "She told me that she and Tony are moving away!"

Vince nodded. "Yep. Charlie's dad needs her so they're moving. Tony asked me to help him get their stuff to their other place."

"How long have you known about this?" Roxie asked him. "And why didn't you tell me?"

"Because Charlie asked me not to," Vince said gently. "She thought it would be best if she told you herself."

Roxie sniffled and slammed the phone down. "Well, I can't believe how selfish those two are! When they thought up this plan to move, did they think at all about how it would affect us? With them gone, we have no other friends!"

"I have lots of friends," Vince said. "It's you who doesn't have any other friends."

"Well, it's not my fault that I have standards and most other people are stupid," Roxie said. "I could get more friends if I want to. I don't need Tony and Charlie to have a fun and interesting life!"

"Well, what are you going to do instead?" Vince asked her. "Or should I even ask?"

"Oh, shut up!" Roxie said. "All I need is to go down to the mall or somewhere like that and I bet I could find hundreds of people who want to be my friend."

"It doesn't count if you compel them," Vince said. "That's not a real relationship."

"If you don't mind, I think I know how to have a real relationship," Roxie said to him. "I'm with you, aren't I?"

"True," Vince said. "Take the knowledge you have about getting along with me and use it to meet other people."

"Would you come with me?" She asked.

He sucked in a breath. "I'm busy the next couple of days," he said. "I have my friend Brian's bachelor party and then his wedding. I'm best man."

"What?" Roxie asked. "You didn't tell me that you were gonna be part of a wedding! Do you get to have a plus one?"

"Yeah," Vince said. "But I think I'll just go by myself. That would be best."

"Why?" Roxie said. "I'm here and I don't have anything better to do. Are you ashamed of me? Is that why you don't want me to come?"

"No, that's not it," Vince said. "It's just that the group of friends who are gonna be at this wedding, they aren't from Enid's. They're normal, human people and you don't play well with others."

"I might be able to if you give me a chance," Roxie said testily.

Vince shook his head. "I don't think so, sweetie. But I'll tell you what: I'll arrange a get-together with a small group of them after Brian and Jeannie get back from their honeymoon and you can meet them then. Is that a good compromise?"

"No!" Roxie said. "I want to go to the wedding!"

"Well, too bad!" Vince said. "I'm not gonna take you. You'll have to find some way to entertain yourself while I'm gone. You're a smart girl. I bet you can do it."

He walked off and Roxie began looking around the house for Vince's invitation to his friend's wedding. It had to be around here somewhere.

She finally found it hidden at the bottom of a basket of important papers near the phone.

Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Finch invite you to share in the joy of the marriage of their daughter Jeannie Rose Finch to Mr. Brian Murphy on Saturday, the eleventh of November at two in the afternoon...

Roxie made note of the name of the church and the date and time of the wedding and put the paper back where she'd found it. She'd go to that wedding, whether Vince wanted her to or not.

The day of the wedding, Vince left early after Roxie did up his tux and made him look suave, comfortable in the knowledge that Roxie would find some way to entertain himself and he'd be able to celebrate his friend's wedding without incident.

An hour or so later, once she was sure the wedding was over, she put on her nicest dress, got in the car, and drove to the reception hall. She parked in a handicapped parking space and ran up the front steps of the building, where she was stopped by two ushers dressed in black pants with gray stripes down the sides and red jackets. "Who are you?" one of them asked. "We didn't see you at the wedding."

"I'm the plus one of the best man," she said, locking eyes with both the ushers. "I came later because it took me longer to get ready. May I go in, please?"

"Sure," said one with a buzz cut. "Go on in."

"Thank you," Roxie said with a satisfied smile. She walked in and strode over to a woman standing in the hallway, directing traffic. "Excuse me," she said. "Could you tell me where the Finch/Murphy reception is being held, please?"

The woman gave her a motherly grin and pointed her in the direction of one of the bigger ballrooms. She slipped inside and took a seat at a table just inside the door. She people-watched for awhile before someone joined her.

"Well, hello, there!" He said. He had olive skin, curly hair and was on the heavy side. "What's a pretty thing like you doing here by yourself?"

"I'm not by myself," she said. "I have a date. The best man, Vince. We live together."

"I think Vince would have mentioned it if he had such a pretty girlfriend," the man said. He got closer to her. He smelled like cheap beer and Juicy Fruit and it made Roxie gag. "My name's Sid," he said. "What's yours, Pretty Lady?"

"My name is Not Interested," Roxie said and shoved Sid away. He was a bit drunk and staggered back, hitting his head on the table. He then fell to the ground, a trail of blood on the leg of the table.

Roxie looked down. He wasn't moving. "Sid?" Roxie got down on her knees and shook him. "Sid? Sid, you have to wake up!" As she shook him, his head hit the table again. Roxie checked his pulse. He was dead. Whistling to herself, she got up, shoved him under the table with her foot and walked away, toward the table where Vince was chatting with the bride and groom.

"There you are, honey!" she said, running over to him. "I'm here!" She looked at Jeannie and Brian, who seemed shocked at her sudden appearance.

"Vince," Brian said, pushing his blond hair out of his eyes. "Who is this?"

"She's no one," Vince said. "You know, there's a place that's full of call girls next door. Maybe she wandered over here."

"Hey!" Roxie said angrily. "That's not very nice!" She slapped Vince up the back of his head and grabbed the bride's hand. "Hi," she said. " You must be Jeannie. My name is Roxie. I'm not a whore, I swear. I live with Vince. He's my boyfriend. He didn't want me to come and meet you for some reason I can't figure out for the life of me, but I decided to come anyway. I thought it would be a nice surprise. Congratulations on your wedding."

"Thank you," Jeannie said, still looking confused. "It's nice to meet you, Roxie."

Roxie then let go of Jeannie's hand. "It's nice to meet both of you. Vince, honey, would you help me get a drink?" She grabbed his hand and pulled him along with her. They went off to a corner and Roxie hit Vince again. "Why the hell did you tell them I was a hooker?" Roxie asked.

"You surprised me!" Vince said. "I didn't know you were gonna show up! You said you wouldn't!"

"I said I wouldn't show up at the wedding," Roxie said to him. "Is this the wedding? No. I kept my word. Now take me back there and tell the bride and groom who I really am!"

"You just did!" Vince said. "And I think you still made them nervous."

Roxie looked around the reception hall. Couples were dancing in a corner to a trio of violins, but other than that, nothing was really going on. "Oh, come on!" Roxie said. "I thought this was supposed to be a party!" She went and tasted the punch (Which was just Sprite with sherbert in it) and added half a bottle of vodka from a bottle she had in her purse.

"What are you doing?" Vince asked. "Neither Brian nor Jeannie are drinkers! Her father is a minister for crying out loud!"

"Well, that's no excuse," Roxie said. "Things need to be livened up around here and I'm just the person to do it."

Just then, and older woman in a black dress and pearls and leaning on a cane approached the puch bowl. "Can I get you some punch?" Roxie asked the woman.

She nodded. "Thank you, dear," she said. Roxie poured her some of the spiked punch and as Vince watched helplessly, she took a drink.

"This punch has an unusual taste to it," she said. "I like it."

"Well, thank you," Roxie said. "It has a secret ingridient that I'm not allowed to tell you. Go tell everyone else. There's enough here for everyone to come back for seconds or thirds."

"What?" Vince asked as the older lady shuffled away. "Roxie, are you trying to get everyone drunk?"

"You got me," Roxie said. "That's exactly what I'm trying to do. That lady looked like she enjoyed it and she's probably gonna drop dead any minute. Do you really want to deprive her of something that makes her happy?"

"Well, no," Vince said. "I guess not."

Just then, Brian came over to them. "Vince, have you seen Sid? My mother is looking for him."

Roxie pointed out the hallway. "I think I saw him go that way." While Brian ran out of the room to look for Sid, Roxie said to Vince: "I have a secret. Do you really wanna see where Sid is?"

Vince felt himself go cold. "Show me," he told her.

Roxie led him to the table and picked up the edge of the table cloth. "He's under there," Roxie said. "And I think he's dead."

"How could he be dead?" Vince asked. "Roxie!"

"I was just defending myself," Roxie said. "He was drunk without my help and he was hitting on me, so I pushed him away, and he fell and hit his head. I didn't mean to kill him. It just happened."

Vince looked toward the punch bowl where people were lining up to get cups of the liquid and some did come back repeatedly. Soon, people were stumbling around and falling down and at one point, two men got into a fight and one shoved the other's head into the punch bowl until he drowned.

"This isn't going well at all," Vince said. "A person should be able to go to a wedding without worrying whether or not there's gonna be a body count!" He frowned at Roxie. "This is all your fault!" he said. "If you hadn't spiked the punch, none of this would have happened! The people in this family are either all teetotalers or recovering alcoholics, the sort who would kill for even the taste of a drop of alcohol."

"You could have told me that before I spiked the punch," Roxie said. "The shame is on you, my friend."

"Of course it is!" Vince said. "It's always somebody else's fault when you do something wrong. You always do what Roxie wants to do and you don't listen!"

Jeannie said, "Maybe if we start the games now, it will distract people from the alcohol. Let's start with hide and go seek."

"Good idea!" Roxie said. She gave Vince a look. "Wanna hide with me?"

Vince looked at her sourly. "No!" Just then, he looked on in horror as Jeannie's mother stood on the punch table and began stripping off her clothes. "Oh, for the love of god," he said.

Roxie eyed the woman critically. "It's funny you said I was a stripper earlier," she said. "Because Jeannie's mom looks like she's had a bit of experience." The woman was now wiggling and gyrating in a salacious manner while her husband tried to talk her down.

"That's not what I said," Vince told her curtly. "You've caused enough damage here. Go home while I do damage control."

"Fine," Roxie said. "But first-" She ran into the melee, tearing throats and drinking to her heart's content. Once she was full, she came back. "I hate to miss a good party," she said. "But I think you're right. Now it's time for me to go."

Footage of the reception was on the news that night. At one point, the hall had caught on fire, and by the time the fire department had managed to put out the flames and the ambulance had arrived, twelve people were dead and twenty more were wounded.

"They say your wedding day should be the most memorable day of your life," Vince said. He was drinking from his third beer bottle that was nearly empty. "I have a feeling Brian and Jeannie will have a tough time forgetting this."

"I would say a good time was had by all," Roxie said.

"People died," Vince said.

"Well, yes," Roxie nodded. "They did. "But at least they died drunk and happy. That's how I would like to go. If I wasn't practically indestructible, I mean."

"Is that so?" Vince asked. "Because I was thinking that you'd go an entirely different way!"

"Look," Roxie said. "I know you're mad at me, but can we just talk about this?"

"What's there to talk about?" Vince asked. "All I wanted was for my friends to have a nice wedding. You showed up and you wrecked it after you specifically promised that you wouldn't. Roxanne, that upsets me."

"I know, and I'm sorry. I just, I wanted to have some fun," Roxie said. "Those people were boring!"

"You could have left!" Vince said. "There was no law that said you had to stay!"

"I had to if I wanted to be with you!" She said. "And if I have to make a choice of being alone or being with you, I'm always gonna pick you."

"Well, lucky me," Vince said sarcastically. "I get to spend the rest of my life with a clingy, codependent bitch who can't make any other friends. Yay."

She slapped him. He started laughing, high, cold and cruel. She slapped him again and again and again, but the laughter just went on and on. Finally, she ran to their bedroom and shut the door, throwing herself on the bed, tears flowing freely from her eyes.

"You'll like this place," Lucy said to Jason as they walked into a restaurant for lunch. "They have great pizza." He pulled out her chair for her and she sat down, not noticing that Damon was at the bar. He sneakily turned his barstool around to take a look at the two of them, and once the bartender's back was turned, he hopped off his barstool and followed a waiter into the kitchen.

"You see that table over there?" Damon asked him, pointing to the table where Lucy and Jason were sitting. The waiter nodded. "Is it yours?" Damon asked. "Would you serve those people?"

The man nodded, and Damon said sharply, "Give me your shirt!" The red shirt with green writing that said "Willy's Pizza" was the closest thing the restaurant had to a uniform. Damon put the shirt on and then left the kitchen to go stand at Jason and Lucy's table. "Good afternoon," he said. "What can I get the two of you?"

"How about our actual waiter?" Lucy replied. "What did you do to the poor guy?"

"I didn't do anything!" Damon said.

"Right," Lucy said. "So you expect me to believe you took a job here in addition to the one you have watching Lenora?"

"Yeah," Damon said. "Anna insisted."

"I don't believe that. I think you're pulling this stunt to see me," Lucy said. "And it doesn't matter what you do or what you say. I'm still going to Europe."

Lucy looked at Jason. "This isn't our waiter."

Jason nodded. "Yeah, I know it's not. But do you think he could get us breadsticks and drinks anyway? I'll have a Pepsi," he said to Damon. "And You want an iced tea, Lucy?"

Lucy nodded. "All right," she said. "I suuppose."

"Sure," Damon said. "I'll be back in a minute." Lucy watched Damon go and get Jason a soda, and then saw him spit in it when he didn't think anyone was looking. Then he came back and plunked it down in front of Jason. "There you go," he said, his grin wide. "Drink up!"

Lucy put a hand on Jason's wrist. "I wouldn't," she said. "Just trust me."

Jason slowly pulled his hand away. "I don't think I'm thirsty," he said.

Lucy picked up Jason's cup. "Get him a new one please, Damon."

"But why?" Damon asked. "That one's fine."

"I saw you spit in it," Lucy said severely. "Get him a new one, please. I think I'll come with you to make sure you do it and don't pull anything else." She followed him to the pop dispenser and dumped what was in Jason's glass and then handed it to Damon and watched as he poured Jason another Pepsi.

"Why are you acting like this?" She asked. "Is it because of Jason?"

"I'll take Stupid Questions for five-hundred, Alex," Damon told her flatly. "I hate him. He's a dork."

"I don't care what you think," Lucy said. "You're not the one who hangs out with him.

"Are you sleeping with him?" Damon asked. "Have you seen him naked? Is he bigger than me?"

Lucy looked around. "Keep your voice down, would you?"

"Answer my questions," Damon said.

"None of your business, none of your business and none of your business!"

"So he is bigger than me!" Damon said, quieter this time.

"Do you know how desperate and stupid you sound right now?" Lucy asked.

"I know you are, but what am I?" Damon shot back. Lucy rolled her eyes, grabbed Jason's pop and walked away.

"Here you are," she said to him. "Sorry about the wait. This place is having problems with their help, apparently."

Jason took a swig of his Pepsi. "Are you gonna come over tonight? You told me you would if you weren't busy with your pictures."

Lucy gasped. "It's a full moon, isn't it?"

Jason nodded. "It would really make everything easier for me if you were there."

"Does it hurt you to change?" Lucy asked quietly.

"Yeah," he said. "It's been a few times now, so not as much as when it first happened, but it's no walk in the park."

Damon came back again. "Did you want something to eat?"

"If we get a medium pepperoni, will you go away?" Lucy asked.

Damon nodded. "For the moment." He turned away and then scampered back to the table to sit next to Lucy. "So, what are the two of you doing tonight? Something special?"

Lucy sighed. "Just doing stuff."

"That's all you're gonna give me?" He asked.

Lucy nodded. "It's more than you deserve."

They went to a movie and then the grocery store because Lucy promised to cook Jason something before his transformation, but were stuck there when a robber came and held up the cashier for up to an hour and a half. When the police finally let everyone in the store leave, it was much later than either Lucy or Jason would have preferred.

"We'll be all right," Jason said as they walked away. "If we run, we should be all right.

But he was wrong. Halfway through the park, the moon shone brightly overhead and Lucy watched in horror as Vince began to convulse and change, his body twitching, his bones cracking. Pretty soon, Lucy found herself face to face with a full grown, growling, drooling wolf with yellow eyes and sharp fangs. He spotted her and began advancing. Lucy let out a shriek and ran. "Help!" She cried. "Somebody help me, please!" But since it was so late at night, no one was around to hear her. Finally, he got her up against a tree, his jaws snapping. Lucy closed her eyes and waited for the bite, as Jason's hot breath tickled her cheek. But at the last minute, all she felt was cool air. She opened her eyes and saw that something had pulled Jason off her. She took a deep breath and tried focus. Finally, in the moonlight, she saw Jason tussling with someone. They went back and forth until Jason sunk his teeth into the man's arm. The man dropped like a bird shot out of the sky. Lucy finally had enough presence of mind to grab a large, thick branch from under the tree and hit the wolf on the head with a sickening crack. The wolf fell and finally, Lucy was able to get close enough to see the face of her rescuer.

"Damon," she whispered. "Damon, oh, my god. Why the hell did you-?"

"He was gonna hurt you," Damon said weakly, his voice slurring. "And I can't let that happen. If you're hurt, you won't get to go to Europe and you want to so bad."

Lucy got down on her knees and cradled him. "You're drunk," she said.

He nodded, his eyes only open a sliver. "You know it."

"What about your arm?" Lucy asked. "Where he bit you? We have to get you to a doctor! Or is this just something you can heal from?"

"No," he said. "I can't. Werewolf bites-" He groaned painfully. "Werewolf bites kill vampires."

"What?" Lucy asked, so shocked she nearly dropped him. "Are you saying you threw your life away for me? Why did you do that? I'm not worth it!" She paused and took a deep breath. "No, we can't think that way. There has to be a way to save you." She stood up. "Can you walk?"

Damon got up slowly, his body wracked with pain. "Here, lean on me," Lucy said.

"What about Jason?" Damon asked.

She looked down at the wolf. "He'll live. You're more important now."

Leaning on each other, they made their way across the city. "How did you find me?" Lucy asked. "I didn't tell you where Jason and I were gonna be."

"Pure dumb luck," Damon said. "I stayed at this bar called The Sunset Strip until last call and then I walked home on my usual route that cut through the park and there you were."

They reached Alistair's and Astrid let them in. "Can we see Alistair?" Lucy asked her. "This is an emergency. Please tell me he's here!"

"What is it, Lucy?" Alistair asked, his eyes full of concern. "What's happened? Are you hurt?"

"No," Lucy shook her head. She helped Damon to a sofa and he slowly sat down. "Damon's been bitten by a werewolf. He's gonna die, isn't he?"

Alistair examined Damon's arm. "Usually, the answer would be yes. There is a way to save him, though."

"What is it?" Lucy said eagerly. "Whatever it is, I'll do!"

"Even tell your father?" Alistair asked. "His blood alone can cure a werewolf bite."

Lucy felt her heart sink. "That's the only way?"

Alistair nodded. "Yes, my dear. I'm afraid it is."