Wow…it's been two years since I've written for this story. Lost motivation for a while. Got busy with work. But hey, at least it's finally updating.


14


Bonding in the Oddest Way


Clara drew a straight line in her Grimoire with a ruler and frowned at the drawing she was adding for a creature. She was carefully adding diagrams and pictures for her vampire section. It was being done in pen and she needed to make sure her hand didn't shake or slip. A soft gust of cold air brushed against her neck and face. She looked up to see Luci standing next to her desk, red eyes dancing in amusement. The fallen archangel leaned against the mahogany desk and a soft smile appeared on her face

"I knew I'd find you hard at work," Luci commented as they looked at the professional ink drawings in the Grimoire, "so, how was your first date?"

"It wasn't a date," Clara denied as she ignored her body's initial reaction to blush, "it was a hunt, and it ended in a way I don't like."

Clara could still feel the power rushing through her veins, crawling under her skin. She felt, uneasy. The raw amount of power she could wield was terrifying. She hadn't been that strong in hell, but she had somehow become so. What changed? What brought forth that much power? She looked towards Luci, who was looking at the Jane Austen book Damon had let her borrow and wondered if her friend had done something. They would, if only to get back at Michael. She rubbed the back of her neck in thought before putting her pencil down.

"Your hair is starting to get long again," Luci observed as they played with one of the bouncy curls, "it suits you."

"Thank you, but I'm never letting it get longer than my shoulders," Clara quietly said.

"Things change," Luci winked, and Clara frowned slightly, "you've noticed that."

"Yes, but I'm not a big fan of change," Clara admitted before looking towards her window, "sometimes change isn't the best thing."

Change could also mean death. It wasn't the best thing in a hunter's life. Luci gave her an apologetic smile before vanishing. Her door opened and she slowly closed her Grimoire. Jenna stood in the doorway with her arms crossed and she raised a brow in response. She hadn't done anything, so why was Jenna giving her that look for?

"How was your date?" Jenna asked in a light tone as she moved to sit on the large bed, she closed the door behind her.

"It wasn't a date," Clara immediately groaned, giving her an annoyed frown, "he was chaperoning the dance and I ended up dancing with him to make sure he didn't bother anyone."

"Did you stab him or something?" Jenna asked, "Because he looked like he was in pain at one point."

"I have two left feet," Clara answered with a quiet sigh, "I'm a menace to society, and toes."

Jenna cracked a smile at that before picking up the old teddy bear and resting her chin on its head. She wanted to ask so many questions. One of them was about her grief filled change, but she didn't want to chance her falling back into her bad habits. She was seeing a healthy bond between brother and sister form. She noticed that Clara was growing taller than her sister, finally breaking that "identical twin" motif that they've had since adolescence. She had grown into her own person, and she was proud of the teenager.

"We're having family night," Jenna said, she wasn't going to question a good thing.

"Mazel tov," Clara muttered.

Jenna looked at the sulking teen before springing off the bed and pulling her to the kitchen. Maybe with a second pair of eyes they could make some edible food. They also had plenty of time before Elena came home. What Elena didn't know didn't hurt her. Clara pulled out some tomatoes and slowly diced them for a homemade sauce. They'd go with a lasagne, something simple and easily made. Jenna was gently removed from the kitchen and she went to grab some of their nicer bottles of wine. Just as she was about to pull the cork from one a knock sounded at the door.

"I'll be right back," Jenna informed Clara.

"I'll open the bottle for you before starting on the pasta itself," Clara informed her.

Jenna smiled at that and Clara let out a quiet sigh before putting the sauce on low and moving to open the wine bottle. She grasped the cork and easily pulled it out. She filled a glass and placed it on the counter before getting the ingredients down for the pasta. She even grabbed an egg. She looked up when she heard Damon's voice. A snort came out of her. Of course, he invited himself to family night, she wouldn't expect anything else from him.

"So, are we finally getting some family stories from you, Mr. Salvatore?" Jenna asked as Damon followed behind her with his signature smirk.

"Maybe," He answered, and Jenna smiled slightly.

She raised her brows up and down at her niece and got a shake of the head from the teen. Clara was simply making the pasta, her hands easily kneading the dough on the marble counters. Jenna leaned against the counter and watched as her niece made a quick dough from scratch. She thought she had heard the food network one night, but she hadn't been so sure. Damon joined her in leaning against the counter and he was given a glass of wine.

"So, have any parental issues?" Jenna asked and Clara made a strange sound in the back of her throat.

"My father never approved of anyone I dated," Damon answered, "which only made me want them more. What about you?"

"There were a few guys," Jenna answered, "Logan wasn't the only loser I've dated."

"Did they ever find him?" Clara asked as she began to layer the pasta, and sauce.

"Yeah, I heard he went missing," Damon added before sending Clara a look.

She rolled her eyes at that and added some cheese to the middle before continuing to layer everything. She was too focused on making the dinner that she wasn't properly paying attention. She looked up for a few seconds and watched as Jenna took a long sip out of her glass. Well, that was one way to enjoy a glass of wine.

"He's not missing, he's in the Bahamas working on his tan," Jenna told them, "very entitled that one, marches to his own drum. Makes sense seeing as he's a Fell. They're all snooty."

Jenna heard Clara laugh at that as the lasagna was put into the over to bake and she washed her hands before pouring herself a glass of wine. She should step up as the adult, but a single glass of wine wasn't going to hurt the teen. Her parents had allowed her to have a glass of wine occasionally. If she was at home doing some underage drinking, it was all right. She wasn't blind to the fact that her nieces and nephew drank. She had gone to the same high school; she knew all the little gatherings involved alcohol. That also included the Lockwood special.

"I swear you two are so similar," Damon said, trying to butter Jenna up.

"Me and Clara?" Jenna questioned and she got a nod. "It's always nice to hear that the cool aunt was able to influence one of the kids."

A loud thump above them made Jenna groan before she went to check on it. Clara simply sipped at her wine before it was gently grabbed from her hand. She sent Damon an annoyed look before steppling her fingers to wait for him to speak. It seemed like he had questions, and she would choose whether she wanted to answer them.

"Am I able to trust my brother?" Damon asked and she was slightly surprised by that, "This new little brotherly bond he's trying to recreate, can I trust it?"

"Normally I would say yes, but you pissed off a lot of people," She answered, "my best guess is probably not."

"You always give me your honest answer," He muttered, "so blunt."

"Of course, I do," She said with a frown as she reached for her glass of wine and he pulled it back a bit, watching as annoyance appeared on her face, "I like being told the truth, so I extend that courtesy in hopes that others will do the same. Elena would call it "trust builds trust"."

Damon hummed at those words and she couldn't help but agree with him. The saying had a bit of weight behind it, but it didn't mean much to either of them. Clara was used to people being liars and always counted for that possibility, Damon just didn't care. He gave her the glass back and she tilted it in thanks. Her expression seemed a bit distracted before she quickly vanished it. She was thinking deeply about something. He smirked and leaned onto the counter and waited for her to lay it on him.

"I did some digging about that Grimoire," She informed him, "apparently it was buried with one of the founding family members from your time. There wasn't a name listed, know anybody that might fit that description."

"Anyone from Johnathan Gilbert to my own father," Damon answered, "that narrowed it down more than I thought it would."

"Be thankful that hunters keep good track of our information," She muttered, "we like sharing it around for others, y'never know when it comes in handy."

She went back to drinking and Damon raised his brows in thought. He found himself leaning against the island counter, watching her just move about the kitchen with practice movements. She liked to clean up as she went about, and he slowly moved to help. It wasn't like he had anything better to do.

"There was a time when I trusted him more than anyone," Damon informed her.

"And then it was destroyed," she said, following the story with ease, "to get that trust back, you have to give some first."

"I'm getting a lecture?" Damon asked, moving to put a hand on his hip as she finished wiping the counter with a clean rag.

"Do you need to be lectured?" She questioned, raising a brow at him.

"I just want her back," Damon said and she felt her heart drop at the longing in his voice, "I'm sure you can understand."

"I can," she admitted.

Every hunter had at least one person they would do just about anything to get back. He moved to sit at the island counter as Clara started to make a salad. He needed the distance, her scent didn't bother him as much as it used to. It had to be because it still filled his car from their impromptu road trip. It made the most sense.

"Then you understand what I will do if anyone gets in my way," Damon's statement made her stop in her actions of cleaning some romaine lettuce.

"And you already know what will happen if you hurt my family, threats are understandable," she informed him.

"Relax, artemis, I won't hurt your baby brother or aunt," Damon rolled his eyes.

"And my sister," She added, shooting him a look.

Just because they didn't like one another it didn't mean she wouldn't look after her sister. It was a hunter thing. She finished the salad and brought the bowl to the table. They would all have dinner before anything else. Jenna came down the stairs with Jeremey and the teenager sent the vampire a look. It was the dick that hurt his sister's feelings, sue him if he wasn't too pleased to see him.

"You're not here to hurt her are you?" Jeremy hissed at him as Jenna came into the kitchen to try and help Clara.

"Not intentionally," Damon shrugged, "like she wouldn't give as good as she gets."

Jeremy wasn't too sure about that. His sister protected her heart a lot more than people thought. She had let him and Jenna in without too much of an issue, and she was incredibly fond of her friends. Caroline wasn't something his sister had previously liked to be around, but now the blonde had a good friend in her corner. Someone that would stand up for her, and cared about her feelings. Same with Bonnie. It had to have created some whiplash. Elena returning marked the start of dinner.

Clara tried to ignore how awkward dinner was. Elena refused to speak to both her and Damon, choosing to glare instead. She sipped her second glass of wine as dinner finished and Jenna moved to get clean up. She shooed the teenagers, and one vampire, out of the kitchen. It was how Jeremy found himself playing a game against Clara and Damon. He chanced a glance at the two and wondered if his sister knew how they acted around one another. Clara was sitting on the ground in front of the couch, leaning against Damon's legs. The vampire didn't seem too upset by it, his hands were close to her hair as he sat forward to rest his elbows on his knees.

"Are we both seeing this?" Jenna whispered to Elena.

"It's unnerving," Elena whispered back as Clara snickered as she took out a player in Halo.

"I thought you two had never played this before," Jeremy stated as he respawned and got taken out by another player that then got taken out by Damon.

"I'm a fast learner," Damon stated, "quick reflexes."

He felt Clara's quiet laughter as she continued to absolutely dominate the game. He shifted his leg a bit to try and mess up her spree and it didn't seem to do anything. She had grown too comfortable when she was buzzed. He liked this version of her, the version that wasn't too worried about anything. The one that relaxed around him with ease. He didn't see this Clara that often, and she had a reason for it. The round ended and Clara grinned as she gained first place. She leaned a little further into Damon's legs as Jeremy's phone went off and he checked it. He quickly tossed it to the side, ignoring the call.

"Who are you dodging?" Damon asked as he nudged Clara and got a roll of the eyes out of her.

"This girl Anna," Jeremy answered as their drinks were handed back to them by the veteran hunter, "she can be, uh, persistent."

"Is she hot?" Damon questioned and he got a smack out of Clara. "No need for violence, Artemis."

"Yeah, but she can be weird," Jeremy stated.

"I'm weird," Clara pointed out, and he raised his brows.

"One, you're my sister and you have every right to be weird, second you've got a reason," Jeremy stated.

"And three, you're a hot weird," Damon pointed out and the siblings both turned to look at him.

Damon sipped at his drink. He said what he said. His heart may belong to Katherine, but he wasn't a blind man. She was making that scrunched nose face at him too. He had to ignore that face. It was too dangerous.

"Hot trumps weird, trust me," Damon stated, wanting to move past the awkward silence.

Jeremy smiled and laughed a little. Okay, maybe the guy wasn't too bad. He sat back a little and they started up another game. He was going to try to keep up with the two. Clara went back to leaning against Damon's legs and brought her knees up to place her hands on her thighs to keep her controller steady. Damon smirked a bit and shifted his legs to try and break her concentration.

"He is ridiculously hot," Jenna whispered to Elena as they watched the three.

"Shh!" Elena shushed her as Damon's smirk grew a bit more. "He's an ass."

"She's not wrong," Clara muttered as she shot someone in the head.

He rolled his eyes in response and focused a bit more on the game. Elena had a box in the dining room and was searching through it, trying to find something about their birth parents. Truthfully, Clara didn't really care all that much. What little she remembered of their adoptive parents was enough for her. She had good father figures, and a decent head on her shoulders. She would rather have that than bad memories of a parent that didn't want her.

"She's kicking both of your asses," Jenna commented as she came to watch their new match.

"I don't know how you ended up on the opposite team," Jeremy grumbled as she came through and took him out.

"No clue," Clara stated as she started going after Damon next, "but you two are my top two kills apparently."

"Stop looking at our screens," Damon stated, moving his legs when she started to shoot at him.

"Funny thing is, I'm not," Clara pointed out as she grinned.

A part of her, a very tiny almost unnoticeable part of her, would like this to never end. Playing games with Damon and her brother, no supernatural creatures, nothing trying to kill them. It was peaceful. She knew it would never happen. Once Damon got Katherine back he would leave, and most likely go no contact. At least she had Lexi to talk to. Said vampire getting a text and she smiled at the one she got back. She had finally gotten married to her boy friend, and she was happy for them. The doorbell rang and she grunted as Damon got up, he had pushed her forward with his knees before he had done so. It had given her time to fix her posture. Jeremy gave him a look as their team suffered from Damon's character being killed.

"Dude!" Jeremy called.

"Hey, it's car-bro," Clara stated as the door opened, "sorry, but I'll join the conversation in a few minutes."

Jeremy was glad that she'd see it through. When the round finished she got to her feet and ruffled his hair before heading to the door. She slowly slipped out and joined the three outside. The cool air bit at her legs, her choice in shorts and tank top bothering her a bit.

"Who took it?" Damon asked, reluctantly shrugging out of his jacket and handing it to Clara.

"I don't know," Stefan answered, a perplexed expression on his face at his brother's actions as Clara put on the black leather jacket given to her.

"It has to be that teacher," Damon stated and Clara couldn't help but agree with him, "there's something really off about him."

"He's a discount hunter," Clara stated, "he isn't really the culprit in this, Jeremy made sure the man wouldn't be able to leave the school with it."

"So it has to be someone else," Stefan stated, "someone got there before me."

"Another vampire?" Elena asked.

"Has to be, only a vampire would have need of the gilbert journal," Clara agreed, "meaning we have more contenders, and more vampires want into the tomb."

"Who else would know?" Elena thought out loud.

"Ask Jeremy," Clara stated, "but don't threaten him."

"So needy," Damon sighed at her, and she rolled her eyes in response.

"Leave him out of it," Elena warned.

"He's already a part of it," Clara reminded her, "keeping him in the loop."

Elena shot her a slight glare and her twin sister trailed after Damon. She would make sure nothing too bad happened. Granted, Damon wasn't going to hurt her brother. He wouldn't admit it, but he was fond enough of him to play a game with him. Granted, she was there too. Maybe it was just her. She gave a mental shrug and sat down inbetween the vampire and her brother.

"I heard you found a really cool journal from back in the day," Damon stated, "who else did you show it to?"

"Oh…just Anna," Jeremy answered, frowning a little.

"The hot, weird one?" Damon asked, frowning as well.

"Yeah," Jeremy confirmed.

"Wait, who is Anna?" Stefan asked.

"That's what I want to find out," Damon muttered.

"I want to meet this girl," Clara stated, startling Jeremy.

"Oh no," Jeremy groaned.

"I'll drive," Damon offered.

Jeremy had no choice, and he soon found himself trapped between his sister and her vampire. He would never say that out loud, he liked his peace and he knew his sister would give him hell. He took a seat in the back of the camaro as Clara sat up front. The drive to the grill was nerve wracking for Jeremy and he fought the urge to bite his nails. He had a protective older sister that could kill with her mind, and an obviously curious vampire. It was the worst combination he could think of. The car parked and Jeremy headed into the grill. Anna was there. Clara studied her. For a vampire, she seemed sweet.

"She's small," Clara muttered, accepting a drink from the bartender.

"That's what you choose to focus on?" Damon asked, watching as she sipped at the bourbon.

"I'm not a white man from the nineteen fifties, I don't give two shits that she's Asian," she told him, "I'm a little more worried about her being a tiny vampire."

"You Gilberts seem to be into that," Damon pointed out and she shot him a look, "it's a joke."

"You're jokes are terrible sometimes," Clara informed him, polishing off the drink, "other times genuinely hilarious."

He flagged the bartender down for another drink, adding on a second one for him. He noticed how close they were sitting and he moved his chair a bit. She was more focused on watching her brother, watching him play pool against the vampire. Anna was watching Jeremy with an appreciative look on her face. Jeremy was so glad that his sister kicked his ass every week if those were the looks he got from girls. He looked up and met his sister's eyes. She gave him a tiny smile before turning back to the bartender that brought her a new drink.

"We'll follow," Damon informed Clara.

"You trust me enough to allow me to join?" Clara asked, picking up her drink and taking a sip.

"Yes."

The honest answer from him made her pause. She put the drink down and frowned a little. It shouldn't make her happy to hear that. Luci would've been cooing at the sight of them. Luci was more of a hopeless romantic than they liked to let on. Damon drank some of his bourbon and put it down. All he knew was that he was better off giving her that jacket at this point. It would smell so strongly of her at this point she had practically claimed it by scent alone.

"What kind of films do you like?" Clara asked and he raised a brow. "Small talk, to seem less conspicuous."

"I have a personal favorite of Wizard of Oz," he admitted and it was her turn to raise her brows, "but I won't say no to a snuff film."

"That sounds about right," Clara stated, finishing off her second drink.

"You get mean when drunk," Damon pointed out and she rolled her eyes again.

"Whoever said I was nice was clearly lying to you," Clara countered and he couldn't help the smirk on his face, "she's been thinking about a motel, it's what little I can gleam from her mind at this distance. When she disappears it's our time to move."

Anna headed to the bathroom and he quickly finished his drink. It was time for the two of them to head out. They headed to the motel, one that was relatively cheap but in a very safe area. It was always full, especially during their tourist season. Damon sarcastically motioned for her to go first. She moved and headed up the stairs. Silent footfall, he'd never noticed it before. She stood by the door to the room and had her hand hovering above it. The nob twisted for a few seconds before the door slowly swung open.

"So, mind powers have more use than squishing organs," Damon commented and she swayed a bit before shaking her head.

"Yeah, useful," she muttered.

She decided to sit on one of the beds. He watched as she simply stared ahead, getting lost in her own head as usual. One of her curls was in her eyes and she tucked it behind her ear. He slowly closed the motel door and locked it, taking a seat beside her. It was the waiting game for both of them. He was surprised that she hadn't tried to give his jacket back yet.

"Plan on keeping my jacket?" He asked, clearly amused.

"Yes."

Clara was blunt as usual. He appreciated the honesty. He sat back a bit on the bed and watched as she leaned forward to watch the wall a bit more. Her hands were relaxing on her thighs. There wasn't anything really significant about her, and she barely ressembeled Katherine. In a physical sense, but mentally she could be similar. Well, he'd think that if it weren't for the fact that she was honest with him. Brutally at that.

"Where did you go in that head of yours?" Damon asked.

"New York, but don't worry about it," Clara quietly stated, she slowly got to her feet, "she's coming."

He moved to stand by the door and she crouched in the corner. She went still, like a statue. He had never seen her during a hunt, and he gathered that was a good thing. They both heard the door unlock, the key grinding a bit due to overuse. The door slowly opened and Anna walked in, a frown on her face. Clara shared a look with Damon as the door closed. He grabbed onto the shorter girl's throat and she grabbed onto his. He ended up trying to knock her loose. Clara stood up and watched in amusement. She couldn't help it, it was ridiculous looking.

"Ok, I give," Damon said after a minute or so of them trying to choke one another out, "damn, you're strong for a little thing."

"I was wondering how long it would take you to find me," Anna stated and Clara raised her brows.

"Blame it on artemis over there, thanks for the help by the way," Damon said, motioning towards Clara.

"Unless you both want liquified organs, it was best that I didn't," Clara pointed out, putting her hands into the pockets of his jacket, "I just want to know why you're here, Anna."

"And how long," Damon tacked on.

"I arrived around half-past comet," Anna informed them, shooting Clara a look, "watching you screw up every chance you had to open that tomb."

"How did you know about the spell?" Damon asked, moving forward and he found himself being kept back by Clara.

"I didn't say much back then, which means I heard everything," Anna pointed out.

"Sounds about right for the eighteen hundreds," Clara said before looking at her, "why are you being so helpful?"

"Because I also want the tomb open," Anna informed her, "why do you want it open."

"It'll return peace to Mystic Falls," Clara answered, "I'm like most hunters, I like my base of operations to be quiet."

Anna moved back a little at the mention of Clara being a hunter. No wonder she felt on edge around the teen. Her dark eyes flickered to the side for a few seconds. Damon was watching her, the expression on his face a very familiar one. He quickly lost it when Anna looked back at Clara. Her "boyfriend's" sister, the one that he had told her all about. Well, minus what he had left out.

"So, was it you who changed Logan Fell?" Clara asked.

"Logan was an idiot," Anna stated and Clara snorted.

Understatement of the century right there. Damon's hand brushed against the small of her back, pulling her a little away from the conversation. He didn't want any rising tempers. He needed answers, and Anna was the best person to get them from.

"Johnathan Gilbert doesn't have the grimoire," Clara stated, "but he did know who did."

"And it's right here," Anna sighed, pulling the journal out of her bag, "he gave it to your father."

Damon looked at the page that Anna had pointed out. The grimoire had been given to his father. He bit the inside of his cheek in annoyance, his brows raising a bit. Well, he would just have to go dig up a grave. It was what his father deserved. He quickly glanced towards the one person he could call a friend in mystic falls. His father would've made sure she burned in that church, or tried to recruit her into the circle. The council's own personal hunter. His jaw clenched at that thought.

"Sorry, I work alone," Damon stated, moving away from the journal.

"We're working adjacent to one another," Clara shrugged.

Anna watched them leave in disbelief. Clara found herself trailing behind Damon again and he quickly unlocked his passenger door and opened it for her. She slipped into his car and wondered when she had gotten so comfortable with him doing things for her. Maybe their "date" had been good for her. She felt her eyes growing heavy as he got in and started the car. Damon went to ask her something and looked over. She was asleep. Seriously? He let out a sigh and stopped at the boarding school. It was an odd move for him, but he took her inside so she could stay out of his way.

Clara woke an hour later and looked around in confusion before noticing she was at the boarding school. She shook her head and rolled onto her side and went back to sleep. She could deal with everything the following day. For once, she wouldn't step into the family issues of the Salvatore brothers.

She didn't have the energy at the moment.