"You don't have to be here, you know." Elena said.

"I know, but I want to help." Margret told her. They headed up to Damon's room.

"Just can't stay away, can you?" He asked them, without even turning around.

"You've been dodging my calls." Elena pointed out.

"Yeah, well, busy dating a dead fake girlfriend and all." Damon said. Margret raised an eyebrow at that. She hadn't known about that, but then again, there were things about Damon's private life she didn't want to know.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Elena asked him.

"Happy Birthday, Elena. Stefan killed Andie." He started to leave the room.

"He called me, Damon." Elena said. He stopped suddenly.

"What?"

"Stefan called me last night." Elena repeated.

"Well, what'd he say?"

"He didn't say anything, but it was him. I asked Sheriff Forbes if she would trace the call's origin. It came from Tennessee." Elena said.

"And she confirmed it was his number." Margret added.

"We went through this, Elena. Stefan's gone. I don't mean geographically." Damon said.

"If he was gone, he wouldn't have called." Elena pointed out. He didn't seem to be listening. She walked out of the room, but Margret stayed where she was.

"What is your problem?" She asked him.

"Excuse me?"

"What's wrong with you? He's your brother and he's clearly going through some issues." She pointed out. "I thought that you of all people would try to help him."

"Look, I can't help him." Damon said, turning toward her. "The way I see it, he's too far gone to be saved."

"Well, that's the difference between you and us. We're not giving up on our friend." Margret said. "I never thought you'd be the one to give up on him, though." She left the room.

She must've looked angry because the first thing Elena said when she stepped outside was, "You okay?"

"Looks like we're the only ones that aren't giving up." Margret told her. "Sorry."

"It's okay, Margie. I figured he wouldn't be much help anyway." Elena said. "Come on, let's go."

At the Grill, Rob was working with Matt in the back room. "So, I saw Jeremy here earlier."

"Yeah, he came by to drop something off." Matt said.

"Yeah, what's up with him, anyway?"

"Well, he's been trying to contact spirits and asked me to help him." Matt told him. Rob glanced at him. "I'm kidding, man. Lighten up."

"Huh, I wonder if that's typical of the Gilbert twins." Rob said.

"What do you mean?" Matt asked, turning to face his friend and co-worker.

"Well, for a while after the accident, Margret tried everything she could to try and contact her parents." Rob said. "Everything from small rituals involving her infamous crystals to communicating through fire. I'm not so sure I believe in that stuff myself, but I figured it was a way for her to try and find closure with them."

"Yeah." Matt said sadly. "I guess you're right."

"You know, it wouldn't hurt to humor him." Rob said, continuing. "Jer's like a brother to all of us and with his girlfriend out of town, it seems like he could really use a friend right now."

"You're right, as usual. How did you get to be so wise?" Matt asked him.

"You start dating someone who changes your whole life," Rob said. "You start to see things from their perspective sometimes."

"Yeah. Hey, man. I know things have been a little off this summer, but thanks for being here. Things have just been really awkward with the others lately." Matt told him.

"Hey, we've known each other since first grade. I'll always have you're back, man." Rob pointed out. He headed out of the room.

Meanwhile, Margret had just arrived at the Grill and headed to where Amy and Alex were sitting. "Hey, what's up?"

"You guys bailed on the party. Did you guys really hate it enough to ditch?" Amy asked her. She seemed angry.

"Hey, take it easy, Amy. She probably just wanted to make sure Elena was okay." Alex said. Margret smiled, glad that he understood her. "She was kind of upset, anyway."

"You're right. I'm sorry I snapped, Margret. I'm just a little worried." Amy said. "Aunt Liz said Caroline didn't come home last night. Tyler hasn't seen her, either. He asked me if I knew where she was."

"Relax, Amy. Caroline's probably went out shopping and forgot to tell you where she was going."

"Overnight?" Amy asked.

"Well, maybe she's doing retail therapy outside of town. She's done it before, you know."

"True, in eighth grade…" Amy began, but Margret seemed concerned. It wasn't like Caroline to just up and disappear on them. Before she could think about it too hard, Elena sat next to her.

"Hey, Margret."

"Did you figure out where they are?"

"Yeah, about that. I'm taking a small trip to where they are." Elena told her. Margret glanced at Amy and Alex, who were too busy arguing about Caroline's whereabouts to notice their conversation.

"Are you sure about this?" Margret asked her. "I mean, one girl disappearing in this town is enough, but this mission is risky. If Klaus finds out you're alive…"

"I know. But I need to at least see him, Margret." Elena said. "Besides, I'm not going alone. Ric's coming." Margret still seemed concerned. "Look, I promise, we'll be back before midnight."

"Okay, I guess." Margret said. She watched as they left. She turned back to Amy and Alex who were still arguing. "Would you two give it a rest?" They looked at her.

"Hey, guys." Rob said, walking up to them. "Everything okay here?"

"Yeah, fine." Margret said. "Just the usual family drama."

"Margret, you don't have to pretend. I've known you long enough to know something's wrong when you start blowing us off."

"Really, I'm fine." Margret said. He sat down next to her.

"Look, I know it was hard losing Jenna. You two were really close." Rob said.

"Well, I think Alaric's having a harder time with it than the rest of us." Margret said. "After all, he was really into her. He moved some of his stuff out yesterday."

"Something tells me this isn't just about our history teacher."

"It's like she's doing it again." Margret explained. "It's almost like Elena feels that she has be stronger than the two of us because she feels guilty or torn. It's like she's overcompensating."

"Maybe she's just trying to protect you." Rob said. "Most older siblings have a protective instinct toward their younger sisters or brothers. Sure, she might be overdoing it, but she's been like this since the accident."

"Yeah, that's true." Margret said. "And I know she'd never hurt us."

"It's like that in all older siblings, even jerks like Damon." Rob said. Margret hit his arm playfully.

"Hey, back off. He's done a lot to help us with things at home." She told him. He shrugged, giving her an apologetic look.

"That protective thing? It happens in surrogate siblings, too." Amy said. "Or cousins." She sighed. "Care still hasn't picked up." She left.

A few minutes later, Rob got up. "Well, I've got to get back to my shift. We'll talk later."

"Okay." Margret said. "Well, this is awkward."

"Not really." Alex pointed out. "At least we're alone now."

"I guess that's a positive."

"Hey, no matter what's going on in your family, you know we're all here for you." Alex said. "We always will be." He reached over and took her hand. Margret looked at him and smiled.

"Thank you, Alex. It's weird, but sometimes I feel like you're the only one who gets me around here."

"I know what you mean." Alex said. "You were the only one who believed I'd make the football team."

"Sometimes all you need is one person to believe." Margret said, smiling. He leaned closer and kissed her lightly.

"I should probably go before it gets dark." Margret said. "Jeremy's been kind of distant lately."

"Well, maybe he just has a lot on his mind. You know, new job, his girlfriend's out of town…" Alex pointed out.

"Yeah, maybe your right."

"Want me to take you home?" Alex asked.

"Sure." Margret said. They headed out to his silver car. She loved riding in the car beside him. Being around Alex just made her feel more alive and happier.

After he dropped her off at home, she'd spent most of the night in her room, working on a series of bracelets for her friends. She heard something outside her door and stepped out of her room. She was a little surprised to see Alaric.

"Hi, Margret."

"What are you doing here? I thought you left."

"I changed my mind." He told her. "Your sister makes a very convincing argument."

"She's special like that." Margret pointed out. "What happened out on that mountain?"

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" Alaric suggested. Margret found Elena in her room, staring out the window.

"Hey."

"Hi." Elena said.

"Was there any luck?" Margret asked.

"Not really. We nearly got attacked by a werewolf that Klaus turned." Elena told her. "We managed to get out just fine, but at least we know that they're still out there."

"Something happened, didn't it?" She said, noticing that she seemed a little concerned about something.

"Damon showed up." Elena said. "He helped us out back there."

"Is he okay?" Margret asked, remembering his last encounter with a werewolf.

"Yeah, he's fine. There were no wolf bites this time." Elena told her. "Thank god. We kind of left things in an awkward place and I'm not sure what to do about it."

"I know you'll figure things out, Elena. Everything always finds a way of working out." Margret told her. Elena smiled a little.

"Thanks, Margret. I needed that."

"Good night, Elena."

"Good night." Margret headed back to her room. As soon as she walked in, she heard the door close behind her. When she turned, there was no one there. "If you're trying to scare me, it's not going to work, Damon."

She turned around and found him sitting on the bench in front of her window. "How'd you know?"

"I heard you woosh in when I was leaving Elena's room." Margret pointed out. "What brings you here? Something tells me you didn't just come by to drop Elena off."

"I wanted to let you know that you were right about earlier." Damon explained. "I thought Stef was gone, but he isn't."

"You saw him?" Margret asked.

"Yeah. I'm guessing Elena told you about our encounter with that wolf guy." She nodded. "He saved me, then he went back to Klaus. He thinks it's the only way to protect her."

"That means we still have a chance to save him, though." Margret said, getting where this was going.

"Exactly." She sat down next to him.

"Thanks for helping them out there." She said.

"Hey, I'd do anything to help them. They are two of my closest friends." He pointed out. "Even if your sister's a total pain in the neck sometimes." Margret turned to him. He'd said it gently, but he looked hurt.

"I think I get what you're going through. You're in love with her." He turned to her, looking surprised. "Relax, I won't tell anyone. Not even my twin."

"I'd do anything to help her, but she wouldn't go for a guy like me."

"Relationships take time." Margret said. "Right now, especially with the way things are going, you need to be her friend. I know it's hard, but from what I've seen, you're the first person she turns to in a crisis, no matter how small or big it is."

"Did she tell you that?"

"No, but I'm good at reading people." Margret said. "And I know my sister better than anyone."

"How come you're always helping me?" Damon asked her.

"Well, I guess it's because you're always doing the same for us." Margret said. "You help us even when you didn't need to."

"For the record, Ric asked me to come to the Summer Kick-Off party."

"True, but if you hadn't been there, I probably would've stayed stuck in that light cable by the tree." Margret pointed out.

"You know I'd always have you're back, Margie."

"I know that." Margret told him. "I'm just glad you made it out of there safe. I care about what happens to you out there, too, you know."

"Really?" He turned to her.

"Well, yeah. You're like the annoying older brother I always wanted." Margret said. "Rob's like that too, but he has a tendency to be a little overprotective."

"I get it. You know, if Stefan and I had a sister, she'd be just like you." Damon told her.

"Really? Well, I'm glad to hear that." Margret said. "It's good to know we have someone we can turn to in this, big, messed up family." She wrapped his arms around him. He seemed surprised, but slowly returned her embrace. They separated afterward.

"And for the record, I never would've left you tied in there. How'd that even happen?"

"I don't even know." Margret said. "All I know is one minute I'm walking next to Alex, and the next my leg gets tangled in the cord."

"Just try not to let it happen again." He told her. They both laughed. He stood up.

"I should probably go before Ric realizes I'm still here." Damon said. "I'll let you know how things turn out." He got up and started to leave the room.

"Hey, it's good to have you back." Margret told him.

"Well, if anyone's going to help save my brother, I might as well keep trying." He pointed out. He left the room. Margret picked up her journal and wrote in it, then fell asleep on her window seat.

Dear Diary,

Well, I suppose things could be better. Amy's freaked out about Caroline's sudden disappearance, and to be honest, I'm worried about her, too. I know she can handle things herself, but the fact she's still not back yet has me worried.

And she's not the only one. I know Stefan thinks he's doing the right thing-sticking with Klaus so he can protect Elena-but he's not the one who's been watching her slowly die inside. I almost wish there was something I could to convince him to return, instead of just waiting on the sidelines, but the last thing I need is to make Elena even more worried.

It's a good thing that we've got Damon around to help. I know he'd risk everything to save his brother. Elena and Damon could actually make a good team-if only they'd just stop fighting each other on everything, especially involving this mission. The way I see it, they're the only ones who can save Stefan from himself. This won't be easy, since teamwork doesn't always go so well for those two, but I trust both of them. I know they'll figure out a way, even if Plans A, B, and C fail. If there's one thing I know about my sister, it's that when she's determined to do something, she does it.