Elena and I met up with Bonnie at her locker, she was curious if Elena process on her birth parents.

Plus, I think she was eager to talk about something that wasn't supernatural once.

'Any luck with your aunt?' Bonnie asked.

'I can hardly stand to be in the same house as her.' Elena lamented. 'Besides, Jenna was a kid when I was born, I doubt she knows much or anything at all.'

'I couldn't hurt to ask.' I said as I held the door open for the two, Bella's scent filled the room.

I heard her small voice mutter, 'I wish I had a friend to hang out with.'

'A boyfriend?' Caroline said gaiety.

'Caroline.'

'Well, you can hang out with me, Elena and Bonnie seemed to have formed an anti-Caroline club.' I heard Caroline say sadly as we searched for a table.

'Just go talk to them, Care.' Matt insisted. 'I'm sure it's what you think.'

I watched Caroline as she stared at us crestfallen for a bit as

we chose a table near the window, then looked at her food.

Having her feelings hurt is better than having your neck ripped open. If she knew what was going she would freak out.

'It's nothing.' Caroline stabbed her apple with her spork.

'Stefan, your face.' Bonnie began to cringe.

'What is it?' Elena looked around.

'Isabella.'

'Is she bleeding?'

'No,' Elena scoffed, 'apparently Bella has the sweetest blood Stefan ever smelt.'

'Elena...'

'Is Bella in danger?' Bonnie looked at Bella.

'I'm fine.'

'I could go with you.' I heard Bella's quiet voice offer.

'What's special about her blood?'

'I don't know.'

Isabella Swan is not a snack.

'No, they shut me out, when they're ready to talk, then they can come to me.'

Isabella Swan is a person.

'Bella's blood sings to Stefan.' Elena grimaced.

'I'm sorry if me wanting to rip open your friend's arteries and drain her dry is an inconvenience to your day.'

'She's not my friend.' Elena pouted.

Isabella Swan is a person with thoughts...

A person with feelings.

Caroline turned to Bella. 'Why did throw your drink in Stefan's face?'

A person who throws her drink in my face.

Does everyone know about that?

'How'd you find out?'

'I told her.' Matt confessed.

'If being near Bella is such a problem for you-'

'It's fine.'

'Caroline seems sad.' Bonnie murmured.

'I wonder why Elena didn't.' Caroline wondered aloud.

'She misses her two best friends.' I told her.

'I heard Bella threw her drink in your face.' Bonnie stated.

'Seriously?'

'Why?'

'He said I'm behaving like an obsessed freak.' Bella articulated.

'It doesn't matter.'

'Is that what he said?' Matt looked at her. 'I thought he came onto you.'

'No.'

Why does he think that?

'Oh. Maybe he didn't tell Elena.'

'Why would he keep it from her?' Matt looked at us as Caroline looked at him.

'How are you doing?' Bonnie asked, putting her hand on Elena's.

'I just can't believe my parent didn't tell me.'

'So, are we still doing the thing?' Bella asked. 'I'm curious to see what you have in store for me.'

'How do you tell someone their entire life is a lie?' Bonnie murmured.

Elena sighed as Caroline excitedly told Bella, 'I'm going to give you a complete makeover. First, a haircut-'

'Absolutely, not.' Bella replied hotly. 'No cutting, no dyeing.'

'Talk to your aunt.' I insisted

'No, cutting, no dyeing.' Caroline repeated.

'Isabella Swan, please report to the principal's office.'

The voice made Bella jump, causing her to knock over her drink. Luckily, it was empty.

'What'd you do?' whispered Matt.

Bella shrugged and she stumbled up and out the door.

'She forgot her bag.' Caroline murmured as she grabbed Bella's backpack, then she and Matt raced after.

'I wonder what she did.' Elena groaned.

I, too wondered, then an unsettling idea popped into my head.

What if it's Damon?

'Excuse me, I have to go take care of something.'

'Do you need us to come with you?'

'No, just stay here.'

Why was I being called to the principal's office?

I do all my homework.

I don't get into trouble.

Well, not the normal kind.

What could I have done?

Maybe it's because I hung out with Vicky and they, like Mr. Tanner thought I'm a drug abuser.

I barely take the prescriptions I have.

I sauntered up to Principle Weber's to find the Guidance

Councilor, Ms. Douglas with Mr. Saltzman and a man.

Ms. Douglas and Mr. Saltzman appeared to be having the usual teacher chit-chat.

The other guy, a man I'd never seen before, only stared at me.

He was about 5'10, tall, with an average build and average-looking. His long blond hair was tied behind his neck like a ponytail, and he only wore a set of dark jeans dark shirt, and a dark leather jacket and boots.

He cocked his head to the side as I approached.

'Isabella.' Ms. Douglas and Mr. Saltzman turned to me.

'Bella.' I corrected as Ms. Douglas walked up to me.

'How are you doing?

'I'm fine.'

'You haven't been by to see me.'

I shrugged. 'I haven't had much to talk about.'

'Havent had much to talk about?!' she repeated. 'You were attacked by a mountain lion, died, came back, and comatose for a week!'

Both Mr. Saltzman and the man turned their attention to me, making me feel like I had something hanging out my nose.

'I was told to come here.'

'Right.' she motioned to the man. 'This Dr. James Francis-'

'Is he-' I turned to him. 'Are you a psychiatrist?'

'Yes.'

Slighter than Mr. Saltzman has regular features, very nondescript, with a cat-like gait and vigilant brown eyes.

His voice was tenor, pleasant, generic.

'I don't need a shrink.'

'Isabella,' Dr. Francis stepped between us, 'can, I call you that?'

'Bella.'

'Bella. Ms. Douglas told me about your history. You watched your parents die, your friend was attacked by the same animal that broke your neck.'

'So you read the Bella Swan Wikipedia page-'

'Isabella-'

'Bella.'

'If I may,' Mr. Saltzman stepped between them and me, 'Maybe we should let Isobel come talk to you when she's comfortable.'

'Bella.'

'I'm only here as a friend.' he hands me a card. 'PTDS can cripple even the strongest soul.'

'Great.' I took the card.

'Bella.' Caroline's voice called.

I turned to find Caroline and Matt walking up with my backpack, I rushed towards them.

'I left something in my locker, it was nice meeting you.'

'What did you do?'

'They think I'm crazy.'

'Crazy?!' she repeated as Stefan rounded the corner.

'How are you crazy?' asked Matt.

I shrugged.

'Hey, everything ok?' Stefan ambled over to us.

'I have to go.'

I briskly stumbled away.

'Did you have a good day at school?' asked Gran during the drive home.

'Ms. Douglas thinks I'm nuts.'

'Oh. How come?'

'My life.'

'You're not very talkative, people tend to worry about you.'

'I'm not overly fond of strangers poking around in my head.'

'My Beau was the same way.'

'Hey Gran? Did Beau have a girlfriend?'

'No, not really. He was painfully shy, besides,' she lowered her voice, 'I believe he was a homosexual.'

There goes the girlfriend theory.

'Why are you whispering?'

'When I was your age that was not as accepted as it is today.'

'Was gramps accepting?'

'No, but in the end Beaufort realized a homosexual son is better than a dead one.

Elena and I were snuggled up spooning in my bed. Elena awoke and I did shortly after and kissed her on the cheek as she pulls my arm tighter around her.

'Mmm. Good morning.' she grinned.

'I could get used to this.'

Without warning, Damon burst into the room. 'Rise and shine, sleepyheads.'

Elena and I sat up, startled at Damon's presence at the end of my bed. We pull the sheets up to our chins.

'Damon! Please!' Elena huffed.

'What are you doing?' I demanded.

'Oh, stop being smutty.'

I pulled the sheets further up on Elena, I didn't want to peek. 'Seriously, get out of here!'

'If I see something I haven't seen before, I'll throw a dollar at

it. Now listen, we have some very important business to discuss.'

'And it has to be right now?' Elena flared.

'Well, we have lots to do, now that we're all friends and working toward a common goal.'

Elena and I exchanged looks as Damon out up from the end of the bed and turned to us.

'So, to open the tomb, we need to find the journal to get the grimoire to undo the spells. First things first-since you are Elena Gilbert, you're on journal duty.'

'Since when am I helping?'

'Well, Stefan's helping, and you've taken up residence in Stefan's bed, ergo...'

'You don't have to do anything that you don't want to do.'

'I'll look for it tonight.' she sighed.

She laid back down in the bed and pulled the sheets over her face.

'Good.'

'How do we know that this journal will hold the location of the grimoire? We're really going to take the word of this vampire?

He seemed like a bit of a dimwit.'

Damon shrugged in agreement. 'In lieu of any other options.'

Elena pulled the sheets down and sats up suddenly. 'OK, what exactly is a grimoire, anyway?'

'It's a witch's cookbook.'

'Every spell that a witch cast is unique unto itself, so every witch would document their work.'

'Yeah. Cookbook.'

'What about our mystery vampire?' I questioned. 'Dimwit obviously wasn't working alone, so whoever's out there knows who we are.'

'And I don't like that disadvantage, so...' clapped his hands together. 'Chop, chop.' he started to walk out of the room, turns around, and continues to walk backward out of the room while talking to us. 'You know, I really like this whole menage a threesome team thing. It's got a bit of a kink to it. ' He chuckles. 'Don't screw it up.'

Damon finally left the room, after a second, she glanced over at me.

'He doesn't-' I placed my finger to my lips and pointed to the door then my ear. 'Oh, right, yeah.'

I grabbed her hand and kissed it, then began to get out of bed.

'OK.'

Elena pulled me back into bed. 'Oh! No, come here.'

I kept catching Mr. Saltzman staring at me, I did everything to not notice him.

I buried my nose in my copy of Wuthering Heights, did my work, and I even socialized.

It was a random girl in front of me, the one who was surprised I came back to school after Vicky's attack.

She also voice her thoughts on my coming back after my attack, she told me I should sue the city.

She talked about boys and clothes, it got nonsensical after a while, but even she noticed.

'Mr. Saltzman is staring at you.'

'No, he's not.'

'Yeah, he is.' Jeremy pointed out.

'What?'

'It's true.' the girl, blonde, beautiful. 'At first, it was funny, now it's creepy.'

I looked at the notebook on her desk, I saw R. Hale written in the top right-hand corner.

'You'd better watch yourself.' Hale's voice cut through my thoughts. 'Your luck is bound to run out.'

'He probably found out about you being attacked.' Jeremy glared at her. 'Not many people survive a mountain attack.'

'Vicky Donavon did.' Hale stated flatly as the bell rang.

Jeremy hurried out of the room as Hale packed her things, I started after him.

'Isobel Swan.' Mr. Saltzman stood. 'May I have a word?'

How hard is it to remember Isabella?

At this point, I could welcome him calling Isabella.

At least it would be the right name.

I glanced at Hale as she shot me a look that said, I told you so, before heading out of the room.

'Sir?' I edged closer door.

'How are you doing?'

'Fine.'

'Ms. Douglas and that doctor haven't tried to ambush again, have they?'

Like you're doing now?

'No.'

'I notice that you hang out with Jeremy Gilbert.'

'We're neighbors, yeah.'

'Did you help him with his paper?'

'No.'

'He mentioned help-'

'Are you trying to figure out if Jeremy cheated?'

'No, I don't think Jeremy is a cheater-'

'Good, and I can't fathom why an educator would think the daughter of one would help a cheater.'

'Daughter of an educator? Thought the guy who died was ga- childless.'

'My mother was a teacher.'

'Retired?'

'Deceased.'

'Sorry.'

'Is there anything else, sir?'

'So, I hear you're quite the survivor-'

'I guess.'

'You guess? Do you know what you survived?'

Do you, Mr. Saltzmam?

Why was he so interested in me?

Is he a vampire too?

'A car crash?'

'And a mountain lion.'

'I have a mental block about it.'

'Mental block?' he stepped back. 'Has there been anyone who wouldn't normally be around you, lurking by?'

'Yeah, the entire school.'

'The entire school?'

'I'm the new kid.'

'Oh.'

'I gotta go.'

I rushed out of the room, around the corner, and into a girl.

She was about 5'5, with brown hair and eyes, she didn't look familiar.

'Sorry.'

'It's ok.'

This girl didn't - did she go to school?

'What's your name?'

'I have to get to class, I can't be late.'

'Ok.'

'I like your perfume.' she called after me.

I wasn't wearing perfume, maybe it's my shampoo.

'What did Mr. Saltzman want?' I heard Jeremy's voice ask Bella.

Elena and I were making our way to them, she was walking slowly because we were talking about her conversation with Jenna.

During this, she learned that her birth mother was a teenage runaway. She gave birth to Elena and left her with Gilberts a few days later.

'I wonder why she left me.'

'Well, you said that she was sixteen, maybe she was wise enough to realize she couldn't handle the responsibility of a child.'

'Then why have me?'

'A girl in a small town getting an abortion, maybe she was afraid she might be judged.'

'I just can't believe this.'

'At first, it was about your essay,' Bella mumbled, 'but I think it was a ploy.'

'I was abandoned, thrown away like trash.'

'That's not true.' I interjected, taking her face in my hands. 'Your mother knew she couldn't give you the life you deserved. She chose you over herself and that's why she left you with the Gilberts.'

'A ploy?' Jeremy's voice cut through my thoughts. 'A ploy for what?'

'To talk about my attack.'

'Ha, I knew Rosalie was trying to stir the pot.' Jeremy scoffed. 'She's not the type of girl you should be friends with.'

'People used to tell me the same thing about Vicky.'

This made Jeremy pause, then look away. 'Yeah, me too.' he turned back to her. 'Has she reached out to you?'

Bella turned to him and saw us, Elena and I, she, Bella, and I, locked eyes for a moment, then looked away. 'No. I'm going to try to leg it.'

'We can leg it together-'

'Your sister may disagree.'

'Bella.'

'Bella.' Mrs. Higginbothanm's voice called as the truck pulled up.

'I'll talk to you later.'

Bella rambled over to her grandmother, they exchanged pleasantries, then left.

'Jeremy.' called Elena. 'Are you catching me?'

'Have you spoken to Matt? 'He asked as he turned to Elena. 'Has he spoken to Vicky?'

Elena paled at the question. 'N-No. Jeremy, she's with her mother.'

'Winter break is coming up, maybe we could drive up there to see her.'

'What? why?'

'What do you mean why? To see Vicky! To make sure she's ok!'

'I'm sure Vicky's mom would let us know if-'

'The same mom who didn't rush back home after her daughter was attacked by a mountain lion!'

'Did Bella mention this to you?'

'What?'

Elena turned in the direction Bella and her grandmother drove off in.

'I saw her talking to you,' Elena turned back to him, 'did she upset you?!'

'What does she have to do with Vicky? I want to see her.'

'Jeremy, it's time to move on.'

'Like you and Damon?! Do Caroline and Stefan know that you and Damon were shacked up for two days?' he stomped away. 'I'll find my own way home!'

I guess Bella told Jeremy about Damon and Elena being in Georgia.

'What did that weirdo say to him?' she turned to me. 'What did she say to him?'

'They were talking about Mr. Saltzman.'

Elena rolled her and shook her head. 'We can't do this forever.'