Cursed Blood and Bound Fates

Chapter 7

Renfri came into one of the large studies of the boarding house, intent on finding the prized first edition of Pride and Prejudice that she had read numerous times already, in search of a good comfort read to bring to school. Instead, she walked in and stopped short due to a book flying past her nose and clattering to the floor. She turned to see Damon grabbing books off the shelves and skimming through them, only to toss them over his shoulder haphazardly.

"What are you making a mess for?" she asked her uncle dryly.

She was not happy that he was possibly damaging valuable old books. She, like Stefan, appreciated classic literature and historical pieces of writing. Damon didn't really give a damn unless it was useful or practical in some way…shocker.

The dark haired man looked over his shoulder at her briefly, then looked past her, and turned back to his task without answering. She was a little annoyed that he basically ignored her until she heard Stefan step up behind her from the doorway as well.

"Yes, what are you looking for, Damon?" Stefan asked, following the trail of books left across the floor over to his brother.

"None of your concern," he replied distractedly, still searching through the bookshelves. He was digging through them as if he would find Emily's spell book among the shelves, though that was extremely unlikely, so she had to wonder what exactly it was that he thought could lead him to it.

"No, but putting Elena and Renfri in harm's way, that is my concern," Stefan responded.

"What are you talking about?" Damon said absentmindedly, but of course he was fully aware.

"I'm talking about Atlanta."

"Oh, yeah, Elena had a blast," Damon said, clearly trying to irritate his brother into leaving him alone.

Stefan smiled and let air out through his nose, "I get it, you're just bitter because one of us gets to be with the person that we love while Katherine is just out of reach—"

"Damn, Stefan," Ren interrupted, crossing her arms, "you're sounding as rude as him, except he's funnier when he insults people." The older Salvatore couldn't help but grin a little as he continued his search while the younger only frowned at her before continuing.

"Unless, there's another way for you to get into that tomb. Is that what Bree said?"

"You're pathetic when you're fishing," Damon jabbed.

"And you're transparent when you're deflecting," Stefan immediately retorted, making the youngest Salvatore sigh and throw herself onto a plush leather chair at their childishness. Stefan turned to raise an eyebrow at his niece questioningly, who put her hands up in surrender.

"Hey, I was an innocent bystander! I just got drunk and enjoyed the ride until Lexi's boyfriend crashed the party. I did find it interesting to have met another witch that isn't Bonnie. Although she didn't seem very witchy, she didn't even do any magic," the girl pouted in disappointment. Stefan eyed her unncertainly before turning back to face his brother who had a retort waiting.

Before his brother could get another word out, Damon asked, "Don't you have school?" and Stefan only smiled. At that, Renfri sprung up out of the chair.

"Motherfucker, I'm going to be late. You petty assholes distracted me!" She spied the Jane Austen book she had been looking for on a side table by the couch and snatched it up, running from the room.

"Language, young lady!" Damon called after her playfully, chuckling as she ran down the hall, still cursing. Stefan shook his head and followed her at a slower pace, offering to run her to school at vamp speed to help her avoid being marked tardy.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

That afternoon, the redhead approached her history classroom on her way to her next period, hurrying to turn in her essay that she'd been given an extension on for her absences a few days ago. She popped her head through the doorframe, trying not to interrupt his conversation, when she realized Mr. Saltzman was talking with Jeremy Gilbert.

"I'd really like to see that sometime," the teacher said.

"Really?" Jeremy asked as he rummaged through his backpack to find a worn looking leather book with weathered pages and closed with leather string.

"Ha, a first person account of the civil war? That's like, uh, porn for a history teacher."

"Well, that's a weird way to put it."

The two jumped a bit as Renfri stepped fully into the room, approaching the teacher's desk.

"Sorry to interrupt, I just wanted to drop off my essay quickly, I had to print it in the library during my lunch period," she said somewhat apologetically.

"Oh, no worries, thanks for getting it to me," Mr. Saltzman said a bit awkwardly, and took the papers she handed him.

As she walked out the door, she caught a glimpse of Jeremy handing the old book to the eager teacher before she turned to go down the hall.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Elena and Bonnie sat across from Renfri at a table in the Grill, having just revealed Elena's discovery of not actually being her parent's biological child, but was adopted as a baby. Stefan had revealed this to her after looking into the public records regarding her family due to her resemblance to Katherine but hadn't gotten further than finding that details surrounding her birth had been falsified by her adoptive father, Grayson.

"I can't believe you're adopted, I never saw that coming," Bonnie said sympathetically.

"And it gets weirder," Elena said, "I looked at my birth certificate, it lists Miranda and Grayson Gilbert as my birth parents; none of it makes any sense."

"Why haven't you asked Jenna?" Renfri questioned pointedly, "She would probably be able to fill in some of the gaps in knowledge. I understand why you're mad that your parents didn't tell you, but that's not Jenna's fault. They might have specified how they wanted it handled in their will or something, or not and maybe she didn't know when to address it."

Elena looked away, still reluctant to confront her aunt.

Bonnie added, "The Elena I know would always want the real truth, good or bad. Also, you just found out your boyfriend is a vampire, so unless your birth parents are aliens, how bad could it be?" Ren grinned, Bonnie really knew how to call shit how it was and properly put things into perspective.

"Uh, okay look, I have to go to the store; my outfit is severely lacking accessories," Elena said, avoiding admitting her friends were right. Renfri sighed as Bonnie went to pay the bill. The redhead started for the door with Elena, since she was her ride home. She paused when she saw Damon get in Bonnie's path to the counter, but relaxed when the girl stayed strong and the bartender, Ben, stepped up to support her. She shook her head, not knowing what her uncle thought he would accomplish with that interaction, and hurried to catch up to Elena.

As she crossed the dark parking lot and saw Elena answering her phone while getting her keys out, Ren felt a little uncomfortable. As she began to glance at her surroundings, Elena froze in place, then started to look around the lot. Ren spotted a man in a black hoodie, like the one that had caused the accident, across the lot holding a phone to his ear and walking in their direction.

She grabbed Elena's arm and shoved her forward, "Get in and start the car, now!"

Elena finally saw the man and yanked the driver's side door open as her friend scrambled to get around to the passenger side and jumped in, slamming the door and locking it behind her. They peeled out of the lot, Renfri watching as the man let the phone drop from his ear, face hidden in the shadow of his hoodie, watching them leave.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Elena and Renfri had told the Salvatore brothers about the vampire continuing to follow the brunette. They were unsure if Renfri was also a target or if she had just happened to be with her when going after Elena and he didn't care if she was collateral damage. Stefan gave Elena the vampire compass that Damon had stolen off of Logan Fell's body so she'd know if any vampires were nearby. Renfri wondered how he had gotten that away from Damon. She had questioned how useful it would be since there were at least two vampires, namely Stefan and Damon, walking around town that Elena saw regularly that would mess with the compass' readings, but he insisted if they communicated well enough it would give them a bit a of a warning and a chance to find out who was after Elena.

Renfri had finished getting ready for the 50s Decade Dance, satisfied with her outfit. She'd found a red vintage cocktail dress with white polka dots. The bodice was trimmed with black silk that led into thick straps that tied back behind her neck and a black ribbon tied with a bow at her waist. Her hair was carefully parted to one side and held back from her face in large, tight curls with a lot of hairspray and pins. She had a pair of black strappy pumps with a somewhat thick heel that weren't quite era appropriate, but she chose comfort over style in this case to avoid her feet killing her from wearing new shoes. She finished the look with a vibrant red lip, eyeliner with a winged, cat-like edge, and mascara.

She tucked her phone away into her bra and grabbed her wallet, intending on leaving it in the car when she got to the dance. Renfri made her way down the stairs, followed closely by Ash. With time to spare before Stefan was ready to go pick up Elena, she wandered from room to room in order to harass her oldest living relative until it was time to go. She found him in the largest of the studies sitting at a huge desk, scribbling onto a notepad. He glanced up at her as she strode over and the dog went to lay in front of the warm fireplace.

"Well, aren't you the most beautiful pinup model ever to adorn a teenager's bedroom wall," he drawled, adding to the paper.

She halted in front of the desk and crossed her arms, "God, you really had to make it weird, didn't you?" He chuckled, still staring at his notepad with pen in hand. She came up to his side and looked over what he had written. It was a list of people, all with the surnames of founding families. She narrowed her eyes, wondering how it was relevant to opening the tomb or Emily's spell book. She tapped his shoulder and pointed at the ceiling then her ear with a questioning look, to which he paused then shook his head and put a finger over his lips, indicating that Stefan was listening.

He flipped to a new page in the pad, tore it out, and began to write as he said mockingly, "Is Fido over there going to the dance with you since you don't have a proper date? Stefan doesn't count." He shifted the pad to face her slightly and she read it quickly.

Emily was burned at the stake by the founding families. Whoever did it would have taken her spell book or known what was done with it. The founders tended to keep journals, find them to find out the book's location, subtly.

Ren raised her eyebrows but nodded silently before taking the sheet. She moved to drop it in the lit fireplace as she replied with over the top dramatic flair.

"You know I'd love to bring Ash, he'd be the perfect gentleman compared to the absolute dogs that roam the streets today. Alas, males of the canine persuasion are barred from entering the dance," she declared in a wispy trans-atlantic accent. The evidence of their silent exchange burned into ashes as she gave a big sigh of despair while throwing an arm over her forehead, causing Damon to snort.

"Okay, Marilyn, tone it down a notch," he retorted, shaking his head just as Stefan entered the room. Damon's eyes shifted to him. "Well, you got the hair right," he remarked before going back to the list in front of him.

Ren did a twirl for her other uncle while grinning, "How'd I do?"

Stefan smiled and nodded at her, "You look great, a regular Lucille Ball," at her blank look he raised his eyebrows and continued, "from I Love Lucy?"

"Oh, nice, I guess. You're showing your age, Uncle Stefan," she teased.

He just sighed before removing his hand from behind his back and dropping a worn leather journal on the desk in front of his brother, who paused but didn't move.

"Why are you bringing me Dad's journal?" he asked.

"Because you were looking for it," Stefan replied easily.

Damon looked up, "And why would I want it?"

"Gee, I don't know, Damon. Maybe you wanted to do a little posthumous bonding?"

Renfri sighed, "You have a weird sense of humor, Stefan." He only shrugged and nodded at the journal.

"Go ahead, enjoy. Read it, I have," Damon hesitantly reached for the worn pages, "Nowhere in it does it say anything about Katherine, or the tomb, or how to open it."

"I'm not surprised, the man could barely spell his own name." Damn, Renfri realized her oldest uncle really hadn't had a good relationship with the man he called 'Dad.'

"I'm really sorry that it won't be of any help with your diabolical plan…the sequel," Stefan remarked mockingly, only causing his brother to smile dryly at him.

He tried a new angle, "You know, I could help you–"

"You? Help me? Eeehh, I don't know, it seems a little…unnatural," Damon snarked.

Renfri's eyes darted between the two brothers, observing the interaction curiously as they bantered.

Stefan leaned forward on the desk, "I'll do almost anything to get you out of this town, even release Katherine."

"What about the other 26 vampires?" Damon asked curiously.

"No, no, no, they can't come, they have to stay put, but Katherine? I would consider that."

Damon narrowed his eyes at his brother and tilted his head, "What are you doing? What's your angle?"

Stefan shook his head and continued to stare back, "Think about it."

Damon did, for all of two seconds, before scoffing, "Why would I trust you?"

"See, that's your problem, Damon. You apply all of your shortcomings to everybody else. If history's any indication, there's only one liar among us." Damon only stared back distrustingly.

It was Renfri's turn to scoff, drawing her uncle's attention.

"Stefan, I love you, but the holier-than-thou act is a bit much. You can't seriously expect me to believe that out of the one hundred sixty something years you've been alive together, you've never lied to your brother? You've never done something to hurt him?" Stefan shifted but said nothing. She shook her head, "I'll go wait out front, check your attitude and ego at the door, please." She didn't wait for a reaction and strode from the room, grabbing her sweater from the banister and patting Ash's head as he followed her, then walked out the front door to wait in her car.

As she shut the car door, she took a second to calm herself. Ren didn't normally get so worked up over things like this, but she felt oddly defensive of her oldest uncle who she'd grown closer to. She knew he wasn't the best person in the world, far from it, but seeing one of the only family members you had left in the world talk to the other like he's always the villain and in the wrong just rubbed her the wrong way. Stefan hadn't been like that until Damon came back to town, so it was strange seeing him act like that; they must not have a good history. She mentally scolded herself for potentially stepping over the line, she didn't know everything that had happened between the two, but she hadn't been able to help herself and let her temper get the better of her.

She jumped when the passenger side door opened and Stefan let himself in, closing them into their little box of awkward silence. She sat for a few seconds, not knowing what to say and feeling conflicted, before she sighed and started the engine. She pulled onto the driveway and headed through the woods and towards town. They sat in silence for a minute before Renfri opened her mouth.

"Look, I'm sorry," she glanced at Stefan before returning her eyes to the road, "I get that I don't know everything that's happened between you guys over the years and probably never will. But, I hate seeing you guys treat each other like that. You acting like he's the devil for doing everything he can to get back the woman he loves and him having to be so suspicious of your intentions because you openly mock him before offering 'help' so you don't have to see his face ever again. You guys act like you hate each other, not like you're brothers, and it's fucked up."

She huffed a bit, taking a breather from her rant, feeling his eyes on her.

"I'm fully aware Damon's done some garbage things but you're no angel either." She paused, "I like having both of you around; you're the only family I have left and I don't want to lose that because of some shit that happened in the past or whatever. I know you guys aren't sticking around forever, but I want to enjoy it while I can; not spend it being a mediator in your petty disputes in order to keep the peace."

She breathed for a few moments, glancing at his pensive face as she drove closer to Elena's house.

"Alright," he finally said quietly, "I'll try to get along with him, for you. I won't guarantee anything, but I won't try to make him leave and I'll try not to fight with him. You deserve that much."

She let out a sigh and muttered, "I would have preferred that you do it for the sake of your brotherly bond as well, but I'll take what I can get."

She pulled up to the curb outside the Gilbert home and killed the engine. Stefan gave a small smile and nodded, opening the door before freezing, his face dark, and flashing away inside just as a scream pierced the air. Ren turned to look at the house in a panic, but a second later, another figure fled from the front door and blurred past her in the blink of an eye. Her heart kicked into high gear and she wrenched the car door open before running inside to see if Elena was okay.

She walked in the open entrance to see Elena hugging Stefan desperately, fear plain on her face. Renfri breathed a deep sigh of relief to see she was alright, despite the scare.

The vampire that had been hunting her finally tried to end it tonight by attacking her in her house, but she and Stefan had gotten there just in time. Renfri quickly pulled out her phone and called Damon, who came straight over.

"How did he get in?" was his immediate question.

"He was invited in," Elena said quietly, still in shock a bit.

"He posed as a pizza delivery guy last night," Stefan filled in for her.

Damon tipped his head to the side, "Well, he gets points for that—"

"No, no points for creativity," Ren interrupted, "what idiot invites a random pizza guy into the house to wait while you grab your wallet these days?"

"Jeremy," Elena mumbled.

"Well, your little brother's an idiot then; did no one teach him about not inviting strangers in? Moron," she grumbled, making Damon shake his head in exasperation as well.

Elena just shook her head, too overwhelmed to admonish her friend for insulting her brother, and she couldn't help but agree a bit.

Damon continued his questioning, "And he didn't say what he wanted?"

"No, he was too busy trying to kill me," Elena responded snidely, and rightfully so.

"So you have no idea who this is?" Stefan asked him skeptically, making Renfri roll her eyes at him.

"Don't look at me like that, I told you we had company," Damon retorted.

Elena paused, processing that, "You think there's more than one?" Renfri raised her eyebrows at that thought.

Her older uncle looked at Elena and shrugged, "We don't know." He sat on the arm of the sofa as his brother looked at him intently.

"Damon, he was invited in."

He nodded seriously, considering it, before he said simply, "Then we go get him tonight."

"Tonight? You think he'll try again so soon?" Ren asked.

Stefan answered this time, "I wouldn't be surprised, it's in our nature to enjoy the chase. The more challenging it is, the more enjoyment we get out of it," you could see the shame in his eyes as he spoke of his vampire nature.

Damon looked to the brunette, "You up for it?"

She stared back grimly, "What do I have to do?"

"Let your boyfriend take you to the dance, we'll see who shows up."

Stefan immediately shook his head, "It's a bad idea."

"How else would you be able to lead him into a trap tonight?" Ren interjected, "If you take Elena someplace isolated away from people, it's too obvious it's a trap. If she goes to the dance, he'll think he can lure her away from the crowd. If he thinks he's outsmarted you, he'll make a mistake."

Damon nodded, "She's right. We need Elena to be bait, and the school works because anyplace outside the gym will be empty and away from the public eye. It's perfect." When Elena still looked unsure, he said, "Until we get him, this house isn't safe, for anyone who lives in it."

That decided it for her and she nodded firmly, "I'll do it." At Stefan's worried look, she added, "I'll be with the two of you, I'll be safe." Elena looked between the two vampires, reassuring herself as well. Stefan glanced at his brother, not looking comforted, but nodded nonetheless.

Renfri let a breath out of her nose, "Good, this guy's been a pain in the ass."

Damon got up to throw an arm around his niece's shoulders and grinned, "Looks like you get a date after all."

She threw her head back and groaned, "Joy," making Elena smile just a little.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The group entered the gym that was decked out like a cheaper version of a 1950s high school movie set with a projector showing videos to go along with the music playing, adding to the atmosphere. Elena held onto Stefan's arm while Renfri and Damon came up right beside them, scanning the room. Renfri spotted Caroline and Bonnie standing together and made a beeline for them with Elena right behind her and the brothers following at a distance.

"Having fun?" Elena asked the other girls.

"No, but this," Caroline gestured to her intricate outfit, "took about two hours, so I'm at least staying half of that."

Bonnie leaned over to look past Renfri and Elena, "What's Damon doing here?" They all turned to see him looking around the room and talking with his brother.

"He asked to come, I promised he'll behave," Elena said unconvincingly.

"Actually, he lost a bet with Stefan and we thought making him chaperone a high school dance like a responsible guardian would be a good punishment," Renfri interjected, hopefully making it more believeable. Thankfully, Caroline and Bonnie to smiled a little at the thought of punishing Damon.

"What, is this a threesome now? You and the Salvatore brothers?" Caroline asked the brunette and Ren scrunched her nose up.

Elena sighed, "No, but if I'm gonna be with Stefan, then I have to learn to tolerate Damon. It's not like I can kill him."

Caroline hummed, "Hmm, there's a thought."

"I'll help," Bonnie added and they clinked their cups together, making Elena and Renfri smile. Elena soon decided to find Stefan and wandered off in his direction by the punch bowl.

Damon, possibly sensing his death being plotted, soon sauntered over, looking mischievious.

"Hi Bonnie, want to dance?"

"Ugh, I'm outta here," she said without actually addressing him.

"Please give me another chance," he pleaded, getting in her way.

"At what, making her hate you more?" Renfri asked mockingly. Bonnie walked off, quickly followed by Caroline after snapping at him to back off; good for her.

Elena returned with Stefan in tow just as their friends departed, "Where'd they go?"

Damon turned around and shrugged with false confusion, "I don't know."

"What'd you say to them?"

"I was perfectly polite," Damon responded but Renfri held up a hand in a 'so-so' gesture. "Elena, would you like to dance with me?"

Renfri jumped in, "I'll save you the rejection, let's get some punch," and she dragged him off as Elena giggled and asked Stefan to dance with her.

Damon groaned as he was pulled over to the drinks table, where she snatched a cup before finding a table for them to stand at, "You guys are so mean to me."

Renfri shrugged, "I saved you from getting rejected by the girl who has the same face as your love. That would have hurt, whether you admit it or not." He crossed his arms and hummed, not deigning to respond as he returned to sentry duty, his eyes combing through the crowd.

After a few minutes of sipping a drink and watching Stefan dance with Elena among the students in the gym, Renfri's history teacher ambled over on Damon's other side.

"Hey, I don't recognize you, how'd you get roped into chaperoning?" Her uncle looked at him, then the crowd, then the stranger again, clearly wondering who he was and why he was talking to him.

"Oh, I'm Alaric Saltzman, the new history teacher," he added, going to shake Damon's hand.

"Ah, the cursed faculty position. Damon," he took the man's hand, eyeing him, "Salvatore."

Renfri popped out from her uncle's other side, clearly surprising her teacher who hadn't seen her standing behind the young man.

"Hi Mr. Saltzman, nice jacket."

He looked startled and glanced between the two, "Hello Renfri, uh, you look great too. So this is your…?"

"Older cousin and guardian," she smiled up at him innocently.

Mr. Saltzman glanced at the crowd and they followed his gaze, "And Stefan?"

"He's my little brother. I'm legal guardian to him and my little cousin here, hence the chaperoning," Damon responded, putting on the typical responsible guardian act for the teacher.

"Renfri's very bright, and I've heard Stefan is too but I haven't had a chance to see it fo myself," the teacher commented.

"Well, their attendance records' are a little spotty; family drama," Damon looked at him and shrugged before turning away.

"No parents?"

Renfri's smile dropped and she stepped back, closer to Damon's side as he shifted to stare at the man with steel blue eyes.

"No, it's just the three of us now," her uncle said, scanning the man up and down.

"You, uh, live here your whole life?"

"On and off, travel a bit."

"Really, where? Around the states?"

Damon stopped scanning the room to look at the teacher with marked suspicion in his eyes, making Mr. Saltzman realize he was asking too much and he immediately laughed it off.

"Oh, I'm sorry, nosy. I don't mean to pry," though Renfri had a feeling he did, "enjoy the rest of the dance." Then he wandered off into the crowd.

She tapped the rim of her cup, "I'm not the only one who thought that was weird, right?"

Damon's face was skeptical as he tracked the teacher through the crowd.

"Nope."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The dance had been in full swing for a while now, and they hadn't noticed anyone suspicious or that looked like the vampire who had gone after Elena. Damon decided to blend by dancing with some of the girls, but it really only made him stand out more. Elena had laughed and made a comment about not being able to take him anywhere, when he appeared right in front of them and dragged his niece out onto the dance floor.

"What's the point of dressing up if you're not gonna dance?" he asked, pulling her through the crowd as a new song came on.

"Fine," she rolled her eyes, "I would have danced with my friends but you chased them away and Elena's busy with Stefan."

He scoffed, "I did no such thing, but I would be glad to show you how it was done in the 50s." He wiggled his eyebrows at her, making her snort, then started teaching her different popular dance moves starting with the twist, moving to the lindy hop, and even attempting to jitterbug with her. She couldn't help laughing at the unabashed swagger he demonstrated as he showed her each move and when she attempted to copy them. She managed well enough until they tried to jitterbug, which was more difficult than she thought and turned into him just twirling and swinging her around to the music, making her laugh wildly.

Just as she was being pulled in from another twirl, Damon froze, the smile falling from his face as he tilted his head in another direction. Then, he grinned in excitement, startling his niece. He grabbed her tight around the waist then all Renfri saw was a blur of colors until they stopped inside the half-lit cafeteria. As soon as he let go, Renfri turned to where he was facing and saw the vampire they'd been looking for get thrown across a lunch table by Stefan away from a flustered Elena. As he rushed to his feet again, Damon stepped forward, having grabbed a broken broom handle from the floor, ensuring Renfri was behind him. He called out to the other vampire, drawing his attention away from her friend briefly.

"Hey, dickhead. Nobody wants to kill you, we just want to talk," he stated calmly, though he was holding a sharp piece of wood that was resting casually against his shoulder, implying otherwise. The vampire just grinned then rushed at the other two again, jumping over the table. Before he could even land, Damon had tossed the broom handle to his brother, who then sank it into the stranger's chest as he came down over the table, making him groan loudly and drop to his knees.

"Now you feel like talking?" Stefan mocked. Renfri followed Damon over to Elena's side to watch as they interrogated the vampire that was now impaled on the floor.

"Screw you," he managed.

Renfri sighed, "Pride will only get you killed."

Stefan dug the splintered wood deeper into his flesh, twisted it, and growled, "Wrong answer."

Renfri whistled and clapped, "I like bad cop Stefan for once," getting a roll of the eyes from her older uncle, who apparently had the capital on playing bad cop.

"Why are you doing this?" Stefan asked.

"Because it's fun."

Another twist of the broom handle and a moan, "What do you want with Elena?"

The vampire looked up at the girl and gave a creepy smile, "She looks like Katherine."

Damon and Stefan looked confused while Renfri just threw her hands up in the air in exasperation, "Jesus fuck, another one?!"

"You knew Katherine?" the older brother asked, surprised.

"Aw, you thought you were the only ones," the brothers shared a look as the wounded vampire taunted them, "you don't even remember me."

Damon ignored his comments and leaned over with his hands on his knees, "Tell me how to get in the tomb."

"No."

Stefan, surprisingly, shoved the stake in further. Renfri thought Damon would have taken over the torture part at this point if he thought he could get info on the tomb, but the little brother took the initiative it seemed.

The vampire let out a pinched, keening sound like his throat was slowly being squeezed shut until Stefan let go of the wood again, allowing him to gulp in air.

"The grimoire," he finally gasped.

"Where is it," Damon snapped impatiently. The vampire only gave him another look. Renfri wondered if he was seriously willing to die over this.

Another twist of the stake, holding the pressure this time.

"Check the journal! The journal, use Johnathon's journal. Jonathan Gilbert's." Elena had looked away at this point, having a hard time watching the violence, but Renfri felt no such compunction. This guy had almost killed her and Elena for sport, she didn't mind seeing him receive his karma. The Salvatore brothers seemed to be having a silent conversation of sorts, relying only on looks and subtle head movements.

"Who else is working with you?" Stefan asked.

When the vampire stayed quiet, Damon jumped in, "Who else is there?"

"No," the vampire denied steadily, "you're going to have to kill me."

Renfri watched as Damon looked at Stefan and rolled his eyes, waving a hand at the vampire on his knees. Stefan's lips thinned but didn't say anything.

Stefan stepped forward and yanked the broom handle from the man's chest before plunging it back in, this time into his heart. Renfri sucked in a short breath in surprise as Elena loudly gasped. They all watched as the vampire's skin quickly turned gray, veins protruding all over his body, as he collapsed to the ground, dead.

Elena struggled to put her scrambled thoughts to words, "What–but–ho–how are we going to find the others now!?"

Stefan looked at her grimly but Damon answered, "He had to die."

The brunette spun to face him, "But–"

"Elena," Stefan interrupted her, "he'd been invited in."

Renfri stepped to her friend's side and put a hand on her shoulder, "You, Jenna, and Jeremy wouldn't have been safe, it had to be done." Elena reluctantly nodded, though she still looked upset.

Ka-thunk.

All four of their heads shot up when they heard a door slam shut in the hallway, then a shadow passed over the small window of the cafeteria door.

Stefan looked to his brother, "Go, I got this." Damon sped away to deal with whoever had passed by.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Renfri had gotten Elena settled in the car while Stefan dashed away into the night to dump the body somewhere no one would find it. Renfri headed back inside to look for Damon, hoping to find him quickly. She was so over this dance.

She found him at the end of the corridor leading from the cafeteria back to the gym with Stefan also leaning against the wide door frame across from him, talking.

"When the founding families burned her, they took her things and you were hoping that Dad's journal would tell you where it is."

Damon gave him a condescending smile, "Look at you, putting the pieces together. Good for you." Stefan just smiled back until the older brother dropped the act, "I was half right. Well it's out there now, let the games begin." His blue eyes flicked over his younger brother's shoulder to his niece as she came up to them and stopped to stand facing the two with her arms crossed. Stefan glanced at her before turning to Damon again.

"My offer still stands."

"Yeah, with some hidden caveats, no doubt."

"No, nothing hidden about it," Stefan stared into his brother's eyes, urging him to go with it, "No lies, no deception. I'm there when you open up that tomb, you and Katherine go, and the other 26 vampires die." Renfri's eyes flicked back and forth between the brothers, the tension mounting.

"And if I agree?"

"I'll help you."

"Why should I trust you?"

"Because I'm your brother."

Both Renfri and Damon audibly scoffed at that, "No, that's not gonna cut it."

"Because I want you gone." Renfri shook her head in disappointment at this.

Damon tilted his head a bit in acknowledgement of the reasoning and stared at his little brother for a few more seconds in silence. Finally, he said, "Okay," in a hushed voice and Stefan nodded as well, satisfied.

Renfri eyed them both cautiously, "Sooo, truce? No more infighting?"

The brothers looked at each other and both raised their eyebrows and pursed their lips in consideration. Then Damon smiled and said, "Sure, truce, now that we're working together and all." He clapped his hands on Stefan's shoulders before walking past him and down the dark hallway, in the opposite direction of her car.

Renfri huffed, "I guess he's getting home on his own." She turned to Stefan, "Elena's in the car, I'll drop you guys off at her place before I head back, I'm exhausted." Stefan nodded and they made their way to the parking lot, eager for the night to be over.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Renfri was in her bathroom and standing at her sink vanity, pulling bobby pins from her hair carefully, creating a pile on the emerald green marbled counter. She paused when she felt something shift. She turned slowly to see her oldest uncle leaning against her the door frame a few feet away. She sighed and turned back to the mirror to complete her task.

"You don't believe him, do you," she said glumly.

"I'm not sure. We don't have the best history of getting along ever since we transitioned, so I doubt he actually wants to help me."

Renfri glanced at him, "But didn't he say it was because he wants you gone? Which, by the way, I don't entirely believe. It feels like something he keeps saying as an excuse or that he's trying to convince himself of, not like he actually wants it."

Damon shrugged, "Who knows, Stef's always been all up in his head about feelings and brother bonding or whatever, but then he has emotional whiplash where he blames me for everything that's ever gone wrong in his life."

Renfri raised her eyebrows at him accusingly.

He raised his hands up, "Sure, I actually did some of those things, but not everything is my fault. Stefan's never been a good liar, though, except to himself. So we'll see whether he actually follows through or royally screws me over." He paused and waited for her to turn to him again, "But, I don't intend to wait around for it to happen. I'm finding that grimoire first so he doesn't get the chance." Renfri stared at him for a second, contemplating what he said as he watched for her reaction. She realized briefly that he was watching to decide if he could trust her to side with him over Stefan, and her heart tightened in her chest a little. She wished her uncles had a better relationship, wished she didn't have to take sides.

But she did in this instance.

She stopped and let her hands drop from her hair, now hanging in loose, copper curls with the pins removed.

"I'll do what I can to help you, Uncle Damon," she said, "I already tried to talk to him about not fighting with you so much and being standoffish, but I don't think he'll equate that to helping you open a tomb full of vampires and Katherine. I doubt he'll cooperate if he gets his hands on the grimoire first."

Damon nodded, clearly in agreement, so she continued her thought process.

"He's been so focused on protecting Elena and it's sort of become his main focus, so I think he views the tomb being opened as too big of a threat to her and the life he wants to live here with her; too much of a risk for something to go wrong. Elena might actually want to help, she's just kind and caring like that, but Stefan will low-key try to sabotage you. I'll think you'll need me on your side with him playing a double agent."

Damon huffed a laugh, "You're right about Stefan, he and his hero hair will probably do anything he can to get in the way." He pushed off the frame to stand up straight.

"I don't need you, I could easily find the spell book on my own."

He turned to go but paused and tilted his head to the side.

"But it'd be fun to have a junior partner in crime, Little Red."

He smirked at her mischievously before walking away, but Renfri just smiled, knowing it meant that he was deciding to trust her.

She silently resolved to not break that trust.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

**Please review, it's much appreciated!