AN: I'm delaying John Gilbert's arrival a bit more, because quite frankly, I hate him and I wanted some more Dalaric bonding.

Chapter 3: Magic Cards.

Darwin knocked on the door to Jenna Sommers' house at exactly 9 Sunday morning. A boy he guessed was about his own physical age opened the door. But he was quite a bit taller, Darwin noticed, enviously. Teenagers were gigantic these days.

"You must be Darwin, "he said.

"Yes."

"I'm Jeremy, "he told him, "Come on in. Jenna is expecting you."

He stepped inside and looked around. The house seemed perfectly normal. Just like the ones he'd been at in Denmark. It calmed him remarkably.

"Jenna, Darwin is here!" Jeremy yelled. He disappeared up the stairs, as a young woman came in from another room.

"Hi, Darwin, "she smiled, shaking his hand, "I'm Jenna Sommers."

"Pleased to meet you, Ms. Sommers, "he answered, politely.

"Call me Jenna, "she said, gesturing for him to follow her.

"I'll try to remember that, "he said. It didn't seem proper, though. As suspicious of authorities as he was, he had never really let go of the old ways of adressing adults. He wasn't a kid, really, but he was from another time.

They went into the kitchen, which was pretty large. He saw boxes of old books and documents on the kitchen table.

"My sister kept a lot of old journals here, "Jenna explained, "We currently have a writer in town, who is doing research on the area. I'm going through some stuff to find anything that may be of interest to him. The rest will be moved to the archives at the Library."

Elijah.

"If you want, I'll help you with that, "he offered.

"Thank you, "she said, "I also need someone to go through the archives for him."

He smiled at her. He liked her presence. It wasn't strong; it was soft and slightly fragile. He guessed that she was plagued by several inferiority complexes, but that would be expected in a woman, who were trying to raise two teenagers at such a young age.

"You actually look a lot like him, "she noticed.

"Really, "Darwin stiffened slightly, "Is he also from Denmark?"

"No, I don't think so, "she answered.

"Then it's probably a coincidence." He grabbed a book from one of the boxes and looked through it, quickly. It was a leather-bound Journal. "So what is this writer looking for?"

(Break)

"I think we should focus on the werewolves, "Damon said, "That's the one thing we can actually do something about."

"And by werewolves you mean Tyler and Jules?" Alaric asked.

"Especially Jules. She was the one, who killed Rose. If I run into her again, she's dead!" Actually, Rose's death wasn't bothering him as much as his reaction to it. When did he start to care?

He and Rick were sitting at a table at the Grill, not at the bar like they usually did. The seats at the bar were all taken; The place was packed this Sunday.

Alaric sighed. "And what do you suggest we do about Tyler?"

"Kill him, too?"

"Killing Jules is one thing, "Alaric remarked, "she's new in town, but Tyler has lived here his entire life and he's the Mayor's son. If he disappeared it would not go unnoticed."

"We could make it seem like an accident."

"The people of this town no longer believe in accidents."

Damon snorted, but he knew Rick was right. Too many people had died already.

Alaric changed the subject: "What about this new lodger, you have?"

Damon shrugged. "Name's Darwin. He's flakey, but Stefan think he's harmless. I think he might be right."

"Flakey how?"

"Early this morning, he was standing in the kitchen in his pyjamas, sniffing Oreos and then throwing them out ... and there's his music. Sounds like he's standing in his bathroom, playing the recorder."

"That is strange."

Damon shrugged again. "So how is it going with you and Jenna?"

"Fine, I guess, "Alaric looked down at his drink, "But I hate lying to her. I wish I could just tell her the truth. How about you? Any action on the female front?"

"No, I'm not getting involved with another woman anytime soon."

Alaric frowned. "Didn't think I'd ever hear you say that."

"You're my best friend. Couldn't lie to you."

"I'm your only friend, "Alaric reminded him, then asked, "Is it weird? Us being friends?"

"Probably, "Damon nodded, "But no weirder than Darwin."

(Break)

Darwin looked up at the kitchen clock. It was almost ten past two. He was starting to get hungry again. He always was, though. He didn't drink a lot of blood, but he ate human food on a regular basis. It somehow made his hunger for blood easier to bear.

"I should go get something to eat, "he said, putting down the documents he had been looking through.

"Oh, "Jenna also looked at the clock, "I could make you something."

"No, thanks, "He said, grabbing his backpack, "Where do you go to eat in this town."

"The Grill is definitely the cheapest place, "Jenna told him.

"Where is it?"

"Well, Jeremy said he'd be going there today, "she said, "Maybe he'll take you there ... Follow me."

They went upstairs and Jenna knocked on a door. "Come in!"

She opened the door and poked in her head. "Are you going to the Grill soon, Jeremy? Darwin needs someone to take him there."

"Sure, "the boy answered, "I'm almost done with this assignment. It'll only be about ten minutes. He can wait in here."

Darwin went into the room and Jenna shut the door. The room was quite cluttered. There were shoes and clothes on the floor. Jeremy was sitting in front of his computer writing with his eyes on the screen.

"I know what you are, "he suddenly said, sounding casual.

"How?" Darwin asked.

"Elena told me. Stefan told her."

"Does it bother you?"

Jeremy shrugged. "No, not at all."

"Good, "Darwin looked at a box next to the un-made bed, "You've got quite a lot of magic cards."

"Yeah, you play?"

"Yes, but I left my cards in Denmark. May I take a look?"

"Sure."

Darwin kneeled down by the box and started to look through the decks. He pulled one out from the black deck: "Whoa, Lord of the Undead, 9th Edition. I've been looking for that one."

"It's rare, but it's not hard to find online, "Jeremy informed him. He had finished writing and turned around. "We can play sometime, if you want."

"I'd like that, "Darwin smiled at him, feeling a little insecure for some reason, "I can have my cards send over, and we can trade."

"Cool, "Jeremy got up, "I'm done now. Let's go."

(Break)

"Seems like all we ever do together is either killing or getting drunk. Maybe I should invite you over for movie night?" Damon wondered.

"Isn't that a little too soon? "Alaric asked, "We're only on our 80th date."

"Don't play hard to get!"

"I can't help it. You gotta woo me."

They were still sitting at the table, but keeping an eye on the bar in case some seats might become available. Seated here, they had to get up to order more drinks.

Alaric sighed. He knew he was almost at his limit for a Sunday. Unless he wanted to teach classes with a hang-over the next day. And it wasn't even three o'clock yet.

Alaric glanced at the door and saw Jeremy walking in with another boy, he had never seen before. They looked around, saw him and Damon and walked over to them.

"Hi, "Jeremy said.

"I'm Darwin Havens, "the other boy introduced himself and held his hand out to Rick.

"Alaric Saltzman, "he said, shaking the boy's hand.

"So, what are you talking about?" Darwin took a seat at the table.

"We're talking about werewolves and women, "Damon answered, "You know anything about either?"

"Werewolves? Nothing at all, "Darwin answered, "And women? Even less."

"Come on, "Damon urged, "You must know something."

"Ok. I remember that in the Middle Ages, people used to believe that werewolves had their fur turned inwards during daytime. So if they suspected someone was a werewolf, they would cut him open, and ..."

"Yes, thank you, "Damon interrupted, "That's very informative."

"You remember the Middle Ages?" Alaric asked baffled.

"Yeah well, in Denmark the Middle Ages didn't end until around 1530. Why are you asking about werewolves?"

"We have a couple in town and they're not exactly friendly, "Damon explained.

"They never are. But after a while, you'll be able to pick up their scent. Makes it easier to avoid them."

"There's Matt, "Jeremy interjected, "I have to go ... Do you think you'll be able to find your own way home?"

"I'm not sure, "Darwin admitted.

"I'll take him, "Damon offered, "I'll probably need a driver in a little while anyway... You do know how to drive, don't you?"

Darwin sendt him a doubtful look. "Not really."

"Sounds like it'll be an interesting ride home."

AN: I used to play Magic: The Gathering with my ex-boyfriend just to humour him. Anyway, I needed something for Darwin and Jeremy to bond over.