"Damon" I said quietly, "Can we talk?"

"How are you feeling?" he asked standing up.

"Better" I mumbled.

"The hallucinations?"

I bit my lip, frowning and he frowned back.

"They're gone… Elijah made them stop" I said.

"Oh. Great"

He turned and continued to go through stuff. I dropped my bag in an armchair and approached him.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Stefan heard what Elijah said… About Elena. So, I went to confirm it. She's drinking from blood bags after I told her to try"

"That's… good" I kneeled beside him. "But why are you going through this stuff?"

"In 1942 I was in New Orleans, Stefan found me there and… Anyway, there was a girl at the time, I changed her and she was sired to me" he explained.

"Charlotte" Stefan said.

I glanced at him, he was leaning against the threshold watching us.

"Yes" Damon said.

"And you probably took full advantage of that until you got bored of her, right?" Stefan frowned.

"No" Damon snapped and gave me a card before he stood up. "I found a witch to break the sire bond. Get ready, I'm leaving in twenty minutes if you want to join me"

I turned the card over.

Valerie LaMarche
630, Bourbon Street

I looked at Stefan who was watching me intently.

"Don't worry, I'm alright. I'm not crazy anymore at least, I mean" I said chuckling.

"You're going?"

"Of course" I mumbled. "I'm sorry about Elena"

"I'm sure Damon isn't" he said angrily and stormed off.

"I'm sorry" Stefan said when we met in the driveway.

Damon was still looking for a few things from his past in New Orleans, and we were just waiting for him.

"I… I know Damon didn't mean to do this. Hell, he didn't even want Elena as a vampire" he chuckled mirthlessly. "It sucks anyway"

"The hybrids are sired to Klaus because in their minds, he saved them from the pain of transforming every full moon" I mumbled. "Tyler had to go through the pain several times to break the bond"

"So… what is the equivalent to vampires?" he asked frowning.

"I… I don't know" I frowned. "I… What Elijah and Damon have in common about me and Elena? Elena liked Damon, I guess…"

"And didn't you like Elijah?" he cocked an eyebrow at me.

"I…" I sealed my lips shut as Elijah walked towards us. "Elijah"

"Bella" he smiled at me.

"We're going to New Orleans, to find out more about the sire bond… Damon has a clue" I said.

"You do whatever you need to do… Call me if you need" he said, he glanced at Stefan and stepped back. "Could we talk? Privately?"

I looked at Stefan and at the house. Damon would be out any moment… He was mad enough as it was…

"Please" Elijah said.

I nodded and followed him. Stefan scowled at us. Elijah stopped at the edge of the woods. Stefan could still hear us if he wanted to, but it was as far as we could go without getting out of sight.

"I really hope you trust me when I say I never meant this to happen" he said.

"Didn't you?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"In a way, I did. I wanted vampires created by my blood… But the possibility of that happening was so small. And I thought I would be here to make sure you wouldn't be one of those people. And for that, I'm sorry"

"I trust your word, Elijah, I trust you… It's just really hard to tell if it's sire bond telling me that or not"

"I would like to think we were close enough before you turned that it wouldn't be the bond" he said softly. "I… I thought of something, but…"

"What?"

"The only thing in common, between you and me and Elena and Damon… I… I loved you, Bella. And Damon loved her"

"Not at the time of her change" I said shaking my head.

"Bella…"

"Not like that. He was with me. He cared for her, but he was already with me at the time"

"He loved her at some point, like I did to you. And… It is of my understanding that she had feelings for him"

I stared at him, and shook my head slowly, putting my hand against his chest.

"Elijah, don't go there. Please" I whispered. "I know where you're going with this. You are a good friend to me, and I care for you. But not like she cared for him. It will always be Damon for me. Please, don't…"

He frowned at me, and my heart broke for him. It would be so simple if I loved him. I would be out of the confusion that was the relation between the Salvatore brothers, Elena and I. I could leave, and never have to worry about ex-girlfriends, ex-infatuations… But I didn't love him like I loved Damon.

"Go" he said softly, giving me a small smile, taking my hand from his chest. "Anything just call me"

I nodded, smiled at him and rushed back to the boarding house. Damon was just walking out as I stopped beside Stefan and thankfully Elijah wasn't mentioned.

"Elena called" Damon said awkwardly unlocking the car. "She wanted to know if she assault our wine cellar for a Girls' Night"

Stefan nodded silently in resignation. We got in the car with me in the backseat and I could already tell it would be one of the most awkward trips I've ever made.

During the trip, Stefan and Damon told me, through brief arguments, that Damon was living in New Orleans and Stefan came with Lexie to meet him. When I tried to get them to tell me what had happened during the time I had been locked up hallucinating, they told me, but it ended in a fight of course. At least I knew they had already found a "solution". Jeremy was a potential hunter apparently, but no one wanted him to go killing vampires. Thankfully one of the hybrids had eavesdropped while Jeremy was with Connor, drawing the map, and heard Connor said that it became instinct, need and he had to kill vampires. Considering his sister and half of his friends were vampires, everyone agreed to leave Jeremy out of it. Elena had broken up with Stefan after Damon filled her in on the hunter and cure situation, claiming she was confused by Damon. Hayley had disappeared after the Miss Mystic Falls Pageant, so Caroline had cooled off a bit, and Klaus as well, but Tyler was still in town and making things not only awkward but tough on Caroline.

I stayed silent as they fought over the fact that Elena texted Damon saying she was making herself at home with the girls, like he told her to. Stefan got mad, stating there wasn't anything Damon asked that she hadn't done.

"Bella doesn't do everything Elijah tells her to" Damon snapped.

"Doesn't she? She stopped hallucinating when he assured her nothing was real, and she would be fine" Stefan pointed out.

"Really, I don't want to get into this" I murmured.

"Bella's… bond with him is different" Damon mumbled.

"How?" Stefan said angrily. "Or you aren't capable of admitting that Elijah is better for her, sire bond or not?"

"Stefan!" I snapped.

"You're mad your girlfriend left you for me, sire bond or not, admit it" Damon retorted angrily.

"Elena wouldn't be so blind to see how wrong you are for her" Stefan said. "That is, if she wasn't controlled by you!"

I leaned back and sighed. I tried to stay out of the fight as much as I could. Eventually they stopped, both mad, hurt by words and desperate to end the sire bond. It was the longest ride of my life.

When we got to New Orleans it was already night and Stefan's temper seemed to have cooled off. He apologized, told Damon why he had came to New Orleans to meet him in 1942. As they tell how that night went, after Damon volunteering to go with Stefan to the war, I started to get worried.

"So… Charlotte did everything you asked?" I asked Damon. "Get dinner, kill anyone who touched your drink?"

"Yeah" he said awkwardly as we walked down Bourbon Street.

"And… didn't you pity her?" I frowned. "I mean… you just got rid of a girl whose entire life seemed to be revolved around you"

"I had to before she went all fatal attraction on me" he shrugged.

"And what will you do if Elena is like that?" I asked.

He glanced at Stefan, frowning at the look of fear in his brother's face.

"We're leaving town. The hunter is gone, the cure is lost and… Really, there isn't anything to do in Mystic Falls anymore" Damon said. "We're leaving as soon as this is solved"

He took his hand in mine and I squeezed it as we approached the address of the witch.

"Well, this can make things a bit harder" Stefan mumbled.

There was only a car shop in the address. We looked around but Damon didn't see anything remotely alike the witch's 1942 shop.

"What now?" I asked with a sigh.

"We'll we could contact Charlotte and ask her" Stefan suggested.

"What?" I scowled. "No" they frowned at me. "Are you serious? Contact a vampire that was obsessed by Damon and that He left behind? She's probably pissed off, and there's the risk Damon screws up whatever broke the bond by seeing her again"

"Well, she's our best shot to find Valerie LaMarche" Stefan said.

I looked at Damon and he shrugged with a sigh.

"I met her on the corner of Bourbon and Dumont" he said pointing the direction. "I asked her to count all the bricks of New Orleans and I would meet her there but… I was gone the next morning"

"That's shitty, Damon" I commented.

"Nandi said I had to disappear" he shrugged.

"Come on, let's check that corner and see how literal the sire bond is" Stefan said.

We walked down the street, Stefan falling behind us and Damon wrapped his arm around me.

"I'm sorry" he whispered. "For being a dick, it's not your fault…"

"It's fine, Damon. I'm not happy with Elena's sire bond to you either, so I get it" I said. "I was wondering if it was a doppelganger thing… You met her doppelganger, you were in love with Katherine… And Elijah loved Blaire…"

"Maybe" he frowned. "But that wouldn't explain Charlotte"

"Yes, she shot my theory to hell" I mumbled.

"When are we going to tell Elena?" Stefan asked.

"Maybe we shouldn't tell her" Damon said.

"Of course, so you can take advantage of it!" Stefan scoffed.

"You just can't handle the fact that you're losing the girl for once"

"Enough" I snapped. "I spent the week slowly going mad but you two are driving me insane with only one day! Damon didn't ask for the sire bond, Stefan, I know you hate this, but it's not his fault" I said angrily and turned to Damon. "Stop being a dick. You, better than anyone, should understand him. Elijah sired me. So… Stop fighting you two" I looked around. "There's no one here, and I need a drink"

I started to walk away and heard Damon running after me.

"Bella, wait!"

I turned to him with a frown, and he stopped, breathing out and his shoulders slumping a bit.

"You're right. I'm just pissed off at Elijah"

"Damon, I…"

Something jumped on Damon, throwing him to the ground. Someone. My face changed as I saw someone hovering over Damon. I attacked, pinning the person to a building's wall, and heard a few bricks crack. The girl whimpered, pulling on my hand, but something over my shoulder caught her attention. She smiled as if my grip on her neck didn't bother her.

"Damon" she breathed out.

I looked at Damon with a frown and he stared at us in shock. Stefan had rushed to us when he saw the attack and was looking around, for witness or other vampires I didn't know.

"Charlotte" Damon said awkwardly.

Her hair was bright auburn red and her eyes hazel, staring at Damon like he was a miracle she was witnessing. I let go of her and she rushed to him. I growled as she jumped on him, kissing him. Stefan took a step forward, ready to intervene in case I attacked the girl. Damon pushed her away, shooting me a look.

"Charlotte" he said again, holding her off him.

She reached for him, caressing his face lovingly. I clenched my jaw and he decided to hold her by the wrists so she would stop.

"Charlotte" he said again to get her attention.

"I've missed you" she said smiling. "I knew you would come back, you told me you would"

He glanced at me and Stefan with a fearful look.

"Please, tell me you've done something else other than counting bricks and waiting for me" he said.

"Of course I have" she chuckled. "I'm not crazy"

Damon shot me a look that clearly meant he disagreed with her.

"So… What have you done?" I asked.

She glanced at me before grinning at Damon.

"You know how when someone breaks up with you, there's a song that reminds you of them?" she asked quietly, her hands caressing Damon's chest and shoulders. "First you hate it but then it brings you back all the good memories. Counting bricks is my song and I've been playing it for decades"

"So, you didn't do anything else" Stefan clarified.

"I did. When there was a new building I would count again" she smiled at Damon. "Like you asked"

"Good" he said nervously. "Thanks"

"Then you must know New Orleans better than anyone" Stefan said.

"Yes, I guess"

"We need your help finding a witch" I said.

She frowned at me, but as Damon pushed her away carefully, her attention turned back to him.

"Help us track down Valerie LaMarche?" he asked.

"Of course, Damon" she said softly.

"Elena and I are lucky if you ask me" I said quietly as Stefan and I followed Charlotte and Damon.

The girl had a vice grip on his arm and to appease her, he let her. They walked ahead of us, leading the way, as she told him about all the times she thought she had seen him, and how silly she was for mistaking him for someone else. She finally stopped in front of a store. Damon told her to wait outside for him, and even thought she didn't seem happy to let go of him, she stood outside like a statue. Damon opened the door for me and as I passed him, he shot me a worried look. Inside, there was a woman in her forties behind the counter, dealing with some herbs.

"Hello" Stefan said.

She looked at us with a smile that slowly vanished.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Yes, I need to speak to Valerie, I've met her in 1942" Damon said.

"That would be my grandmother" the woman said standing up straight. "I'm Nandi"

"Is she here?" I asked. "We need her help with a spell"

"She has passed away a long time ago"

"Well, maybe you could help us" Stefan said. "We need a spell to break a sire bond"

"I can't help you. I don't practice magic, and even if I did, I never heard of such spell"

I narrowed my eyes, and Damon stepped forward with a frown.

"Your grandmother told me I had to kill 12 people to do the spell. Maybe that will refresh your memory"

My head snapped to him and I stared at him in shock.

"Even if there was a spell, it's lost. Katrina took all my grandmother's stuff" the woman said. "Sorry, I can't help…" she hesitated. "Please, leave"

"You killed 12 people?" Stefan asked in shock as we walked around the neighborhood.

"I had to do something. The sire bond was making Charlotte completely nuts" Damon said. "And if I have to do it again, I will"

"No" I said stopping. They stopped as well and turned to me. "It was a sacrifice, Damon. Natural magic doesn't deal with sacrifices, witches should take energy from nature… What she did was black magic"

"And it didn't work apparently" Stefan muttered.

"She fooled you, Damon" I said.

"But maybe she knew how to do the real spell… Maybe a sacrifice isn't needed…"

"And if it is?" I asked frowning.

"I'll do it. I can't have Elijah controlling you!"

"He doesn't"

"Really?" he asked skeptically.

I sighed.

"Anyway, you heard what Nandi said… Her grandmother's things were lost" Stefan said hopelessly.

"She was lying" Damon rolled his eyes. "She's not her granddaughter, she's her daughter. I remember her. She's well conserved for someone who should be 80, don't you think?"

"And she was dealing with magical herbs" I commented.

"She practices" Stefan frowned. "And she knows what we were talking about"

"Let's see if she'll be more willing on the second round" Damon said.

Damon and I entered the shop and Nandi turned around with a frown.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Calling you out" Damon said. "You're not Val's granddaughter. You're her daughter"

"For 80-years-old, you don't look a day over 50" I said. "You're a practicing witch"

"And as a Swan you should know better than to call another witch out" she said calmly, turning away. "Get out of my store"

"Give me what I want" Damon demanded advancing on her.

She turned around, her hand raised at us and my head felt like it would explode. I cried out as I fell to the floor, clutching my head and Damon followed me, gesturing for her to stop.

"I gave you a chance to leave while you were alive" Nandi said.

"Wait, wait" Stefan said sneaking in.

I looked up and saw a drop of blood coming from her nose. She was frowning at me, as if I was the biggest threat and I understood what it meant. Being a hybrid, it was harder to use magic against me.

"Wait" Stefan said more softly. "We don't want trouble, we… we just need your help, that's all"

"I told you there's no one here who can help you" she said, freeing me from the spell.

I sighed, and stood up, frowning as she continued to torture Damon.

"Stop" I said trying to control myself.

"The kind of magic my mother practiced is unnatural" she said.

"Black magic" I said.

"No" she frowned at me as if I was fool for thinking that. "We don't call it magic… We call it Expression. Channeling the power of human sacrifices, calls on a darkness that can't exist on this plane without swallowing it whole" she freed Damon and he slouched on the floor, breathing heavy. She fooled you into thinking there was a way to break the sire bond because she wanted access to that power" she glared at Damon. "And you gave it to her when you killed those twelve people"

"What are you saying?" Damon asked frowning. "There's no spell?"

"The bond can't be broken with magic" she said glancing at me. "A vampire only bonds to her sire when she has feelings for him. Before she turns. Human feelings!"

Damon turned away, clenching his jaw and I watched as he lost hope.

"Vampirism only heightens those emotions" she said and walked to Damon. "You want her free?" she looked at me. "You have to set her free" she turned back to him. "Tell her to live her life without you, to never think of you again, to stop caring about you and then… leave her" she looked at me again, staring right through me. "That's the only way around a sire bond"

Stefan turned to Damon with a deep frown and Nandi walked back to behind the counter. Damon sighed, closing his eyes for a moment before looking at me. He stared at me and then stormed out. I rushed after him.

"Damon, wait!" I called out.

He turned around abruptly and stared at me. I caught a faint shine in his eyes but as he blinked they were gone.

"No, I… I need to do something" he said.

"But, Damon…" I said reaching for him.

"Don't!" he snapped pulling away and sighed. "Sorry, just… I'll meet you two later"

I stared at his back as he walked away. I wiped the tear that rolled down my cheek.

He was mad at me for Elijah being my sire. When human, I didn't love him. I… I respected him, I cared for him and in him, I saw a protector. Now everything he told me, I respected it. I cared about how he would feel. When things got rough I would call him. I realized I might go to extremes to make sure he was satisfied, and then I understood what angered Damon. What wouldn't I do for Elijah? How many times, when I was human, he told me to leave Damon? What if he did it again? Or simply expressed his opinion on Damon, and I started to agree. What would happen if Elijah went off the road, and asked me to kill someone on his behalf? Kill Damon. Or Stefan, Caroline, Bonnie, Elena… Anyone. Would I be able to stop? Would I bow down to everything Elijah said? Didn't I have control over myself anymore?

"Bella"

I turned to Stefan who gave me a sad smile. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and I blinked away the tears.

"Come on, let's take a walk… I know where Damon will be" he said.

We found Damon on the bar Stefan had found him in, back in 1942. He was with Charlotte, and we stood outside as they talked. She was crying so I assumed Damon was setting her free.

"This fucking sucks" I mumbled.

"Yes, it does" he said frowning at Charlotte. "So… If I stay with Elena, after Damon frees her, I won't ever be able to see my brother again because of the sire bond… Or… How does this work?"

"We'll break the bond, and leave. We… We'll meet again, sometime, maybe in a couple years, after Elena has gotten over it, and… we'll see"

"I've always thought that once people settled with their respective partners, things would be fine"

"Sounds like this would be the time" I smiled sadly. "Damon and I, you and Elena, Bonnie and Edward maybe…"

"And I thought maybe Elena, Caroline, Bonnie and you would go to college together, and I would join you, and maybe even Damon…" he shrugged. "We would spend the rest of our lives living together, being a farce together…"

I laughed.

"In my mind, I imagined us as the TV show, Friends" I explained at his confused expression.

He smiled.

"Kinda"

"Well, it would be nice… Maybe someday" I said.

Damon walked out and we walked away from the bar. I glanced behind us, but Charlotte hadn't followed like I expected her to. When we were far enough, Stefan excused himself, saying he would call home to check if everything was alright.

Damon slumped on a park bench and I sat beside him.

"I'm sorry" I mumbled.

"What for? For being sired?" he scoffed.

"I… I respected him, cared for him, and saw him as a protector… Nothing else, Damon. I never thought it would be a problem to feel like that. I mean… That's how I felt about Stefan, Jake…"

"He won't set you free" he grumbled.

"He will"

"Why would he?" he said frowning at me. "He loved you, Bella, and now he can… control what you do with your life"

"I'll ask him" I said and he scoffed. "Damon, we both know I always was a soft spot for him… Maybe…"

"Maybe" he nodded.

"Everything will work out" I whispered.

"Once Elena and Elijah are solved, we are leaving. I mean it. For good"

I nodded and hugged him. He pulled me tight against him and in that moment, I really believed everything would be alright.