"Jonathan!" Amy said as she opened the door and saw her former fiancé on the other side of it. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to check up on you," Jonathan told her. "Are you all right?"

"Of course," Amy nodded. "Come in." He did so and she took his hat and his coat. "It was sweet of you to want to come here and check on me, but it's really not necessary."

"Of course it is!" Jonathan told her. "Do you really feel like you can defend yourself against him?"

"Yes," Amy nodded. "I can…cause I'm a vampire, apparently."

"You…you're what?" Jonathan asked, his jaw dropping a little. He had heard about vampires all his life and couldn't believe that Amy was one of them.

"She's a vampire all right," Klaus replied, coming from a place so close to the front door that he had to have been eavesdropping. He put his arm around Amy's waist and smiled. "Do you have a problem with that?"

"Well, well, I…I don't suppose there could be anything done about it now, can there?" Jonathan asked. "But how could you do that to her? Did you do it just to keep her with you and to spite me?"

"I don't know how it happened," Amy told him honestly. "I don't remember being bitten at all, least of all by him. I just…I saw the blood and then there were fangs and I was biting and…" she shut her eyes and swooned, which caused Jonathan to grab her before she hit the floor.

"I think you should lie down," he told her.

"Yes, she should," Klaus agreed, giving Jonathan a death glare. "And maybe you should go so she's not even more overwhelmed than she already is."

"Amy," Jonathan said firmly as he gazed at her. "Would you like me to go?"

"Yes," Amy nodded. "I think you should. If you stay, you'll just be disappointed in me, and I can't bear that. There's no use in pretending otherwise."

"You know I'm not like that," Jonathan told her. "You do, don't you?"

"Yes, but your parents are," Amy replied. "What's the use of us marrying if they're just going to disapprove? I can't bear your children or anything like that either. I think it would just be better if we went our separate ways."

"All right," Jonathan nodded, even though he was still uncertain. "I'll go. Goodbye, Amy."

"Goodbye!" Klaus said cheerfully as Jonathan left. "I hope you never feel the need to come back!"

"Wasn't that a bit unkind?" Amy asked as she wiped her eyes. "You didn't need to say it."

"You're right, I'm sorry," Klaus apologized. "I was out of line. Would you like to go find Astrid so she can clean you up?"

"Yes," Amy nodded, looking down at her blood stained dress. "That would be lovely."

So Klaus called for Astrid, who had just finished dusting in the dining room.

"Yes?" She asked when she came to them. "What is it that I can do for you?" She saw Amy and gasped. "What in the world? Are you all right?"

"I'm a vampire," Amy said, not sure if Astrid had heard the fracas. "I'm a vampire and that's where all the blood came from."

"Oh," Astrid nodded. "All right. Let's go get you cleaned up. It will be all right."

Amy was surprised at how easily Astrid had accepted the situation. She helped her to the bathroom and got the water running as Amy undressed and boosted herself into the tub.

"Do you need me to stay in here while you bathe?" Astrid wanted to know. "Having something like that happen to you really can shake a person up, so if you don't want to be alone, I understand."

"Thank you," Amy smiled. "I would love that very much."

Astrid went and got her some fluffy towels and then came to sit with Amy and chat as she washed herself off. "I hope this doesn't seem too strange for you to do this," Amy told her.

"No, it's fine," Astrid replied. "It's not a bother, really. And you're going to be all right as a vampire. It's really not as bad as the witches make you think."

"Can I ask how you know that?" Amy wanted to know.

"I don't know how I know," Astrid shrugged and pushed a strand of blonde hair out of her eyes. "I just do."

"So you don't think I'm out of my mind for accepting a place in Klaus' house and bed?" Amy questioned. "He doesn't seem like the most stable man."

"Maybe not," Astrid agreed. "But I think you're safe with him. He likes you very much, and I'm sure Alistair will keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't hurt you." She shrugged.

"And where else would I go?" Amy asked. "My family won't take me back, and I don't feel like moving in with my sister." She then paused and said thoughtfully, "I suppose I can make a home here since I have no other choice."

"There you go," Astrid told her and handed her a towel. "You'll be all right. I know it."

"Would you like some coffee?" Astrid asked after knocking on Alistair's bedroom door once Amy's bath was done and she was reading in her room. "And I made some cake too, if you want."

"Well, thank you," Alistair smiled. "Aren't you sweet?"

"I try," Astrid smiled. "How's the plan to get us back to the present going?"

"Oh, getting us back to the present is not the problem," Alistair told her. "I know how to do that. The problem is getting you all to remember enough that you won't be lost and disoriented when we get back."

"It wouldn't be that bad, would it?" Astrid asked. "Have you ever been in a situation like this before?"

"No, this is my first time, honestly," Alistair confessed. "But don't let that frighten you."

"Oh, it'll take more than that to scare me," Astrid smiled. "Is there anything I can do to help you? Do you need me to convince you to take a break so you don't work too hard?"

Alistair chuckled and kissed her at that remark.

"What?" She asked. "What's so funny?"

"It's usually me that says that to you," Alistair told her.

"Is it?" Astrid asked, sitting on his lap. "Do I really work hard?"

"Yes," Alistair nodded. "All day at the Council, week after week." He kissed her. "But you come home after and we talk at night. It worked well enough for us."

"That sounds nice," Astrid smiled. "I wish I could remember it. And when we get back, I might not work so hard. I'd like to be at home with you more."

"I would like that too," Alistair agreed. "It feels so nice to say it. I've wanted to for years, but I never wanted you to feel like I wasn't supporting you."

"Well, when we get back, I'll try and do better by you," Astrid promised. "I don't like hearing that you feel bad because I work too much and leave you all alone."

"I wasn't always alone," Alistair replied. "Until just recently, I was as busy as you were, keeping an eye on Klaus and all. That's a full time job in itself. Then you decided that I should devote myself to other things, since my looking after him was supposed to be a punishment for a crime I committed many years ago and it no longer seemed like one. So you brought Amy in and suddenly I was struggling to find a way to full up my hours."

"I apologize for how I inconvenienced you," Astrid told him and played with his hair.

"That's nice of you, but it was probably a good thing that you separated Klaus and me in the long run," Alistair told her. "Although this situation that we're in now is comfortably familiar to me."

Astrid kissed him and said, "I promised you some coffee and some cake. I'll go get it for you now."

"Thanks," Alistair told her. "And get some for yourself too. I'd hate to eat alone."

Astrid brought the cake and coffee back, and Astrid made a toast. "To getting back to the present and a new and happy life together."

"Hear, hear," Alistair smiled. They clinked their coffee cups, drank their coffee, and ate their cake, and then she kissed him and said, "Would you like me to go ask Klaus if I can have a few hours off? I think you need a break."

"All right," Alistair smiled. "But I'll go ask him. You stay here."

Astrid smiled and nodded while Alistair ran to find Klaus coming out of his room with a bathrobe on. "If you don't need me for a while, I'm going to be spending some time alone with Astrid," Alistair told him. "Would that be all right with you?"

"Oh, of course," Klaus grinned. "I hope you have as enjoyable a time as I'm having."

"Me too," Alistair nodded, his jaw dropping just a little as Amy poked her head out of the room and he could tell she was wearing nothing but the sheet from the bed, asking Klaus what he was just standing in the hallway for.

"Alistair and I were talking," Klaus told her, grabbing her around the waist and letting the sheet fall to the floor as they kissed.

Alistair quickly averted his eyes and ran back to Astrid, who was sitting naked in his bed with a grin on her face. "I undressed while you were gone," she said as he undressed himself, joined her in bed, took her in his arms and gave her a kiss. "I hope you don't mind."

"Oh, I don't," Alistair assured her. "It was a very good idea. We can have even more time to ourselves now."

"That was my thought too," Astrid replied, clutching him tight as he slipped inside her, then pushed in and pulled out over and over again. Astrid gasped and leaned her head back. The pins were out of her hair and he could feel the silkiness of the blond strands draped over his fingers.

As she lay down on the mattress, Alistair smiled down at her before gently sucking on her nipples as he gently massaged her breasts with his fingers.

"You have a very light touch," Astrid commented. "I like it."

"Good," Alistair nodded and kissed her. "Anything to make you happy."

They went on like this for some time and then after taking a look at the clock, decided they better leave the room and get ready for dinner.

"We don't want Klaus to come in here and find us," Alistair said.

"I thought you asked him for the time off," Astrid pointed out.

"I did," Alistair assured her. "But that doesn't mean that he won't come in and tease us mercilessly nonetheless."

When they were both dressed, they headed to the kitchen and the cook began sending the food out.

"What's the matter?" Klaus asked Amy as she watched the platters of food be set on the table. "Not hungry?"

"I'm just…can I eat regular food now that I know I'm a vampire?" Amy asked.

"You can," Klaus replied. "It's quite tasty. It just doesn't have any nutritional value for you."

"Oh," Amy sighed and reached for a slice of roast and some salad. "That makes me feel so relieved." She paused. "I bet you think I'm stupid cause I've been eating all the time, even before I knew I was a vampire."

"Of course I wouldn't think you're stupid," Klaus told her. "You're very smart. You're very good. That's why I like you."

"Well, aren't you sweet?" Amy smiled. She cut herself some roast (cooked raw) and ate it slowly, savoring the flavor and wiping the meat juice off her chin. "That's really good," she remarked after she swallowed. When she saw Alistair and Astrid, she said, "Why don't you come and sit with us? Have some food! There's enough for sure."

"Would that be all right?" Astrid asked. She then noticed that Alistair was already sitting down and putting a napkin in his lap. Since Klaus didn't seem to object, she sat down too and took some oysters on her plate, opening the shell and letting the oyster slide down her throat. "Yes," she said as she closed her eyes. "Those are so good. I love oysters." She only had a little bit of steak because it was too bloody for her liking, but satisfied herself with the appetizers and dessert so that when the plates were cleared, she was good and full.

"I could help with the dishes," she offered to the cook.

"Oh, no," the cook replied. "The kitchen maids and I can handle it. You go rest yourself."

"All right," Astrid nodded and went to see if anything else needed dusting.

Then, before bed, she asked Alistair, "Is there any way we could talk to our daughter again? I enjoyed that."

"I'll see if I can manage that," Alistair nodded. "I'm sure she'd like to talk to you again too."

"All right," Astrid nodded. "Would you like me to spend the night in my bedroom or yours?"

"Your choice," Alistair told her. "Although I really don't like to sleep alone."

"Well, we can't have that, can we?" Astrid told him with a smile as she undressed and took a running jump into his bed, pulling him close as he threw the blankets over both of them.

Meanwhile, at Klaus and Amy's house in the present, things weren't so idyllic.

"What's the matter with you?" Stefan asked as Felicity lay on their bed, her face turned away from him. "You've been upset since you went to see Adrian. Did something bad happen there? Did he hurt you?"

"No," Felicity sighed and sat up. "I went to see him and he was bonding with other children. I interrupted." Her lip jutted out a little.

Stefan took her in his arms and said, "Do I need to hide all the sharp objects? I don't want you to start hurting yourself again."

"I won't," Felicity whispered and kissed him lightly on the lips. "I promise." Then she put her head on his shoulder and he rocked her back and forth a bit. Then she asked, "Can I have a little bite?" She asked, stroking his neck.

"If I can have one from you," Stefan whispered back against her ear.

Felicity smiled then and with a pounce, sank her fangs into his neck, sucking greedily until her mouth was so full, she had to swallow. She repeated the process two more times and then once the wounds had healed, she let him bite her.

"Feel better?" Stefan asked Felicity when they were both lying next to one another on the mattress.

"Yeah," Felicity smiled. "Thanks a lot. I needed that. And thanks for helping me when I get upset. It's nice to know I have someone."

"Not a problem," Stefan told her. "Compared to dealing with the drama of my mother and my brother, you're real easy to deal with. And next time you want to see Adrian, I'll come with you."

Felicity kissed him again as he laid her down on the mattress and helped her out of her jeans. A few minutes later, she forgot why she'd ever been upset in the first place.