The Vampire Diaries – Every End Has A Start   von Asu91
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                           Kapitel 44: Closer To You
                           -------------------------


Okay. Ich warne euch vor. Es ist LANG! Fast das Doppelte von dem, was ich sonst
als Kapitel hochlade. Ich wollte unbedingt, dass die Geschehnisse rund um den
Founders Day in Kapitel 45 vorkommen. Fragt mich nicht warum - und deshalb
musste ich alles, was mit Isobel zutun hat in dieses Kapitel quetschen. Ich
hoffe das macht euch nichts aus, und dass ihr nicht auf halber Strecke
aufgibt...

Das Kapitel enthält leider auch viele direkte Zitate aus der zugehörigen TV
Episode. Einiges aber hab ich erweitert, verkürzt oder umgeschrieben, damit es
nicht ganz langweilig wird. Viel Spaß!

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As you walk my way
Do you see my face?
Sad behind a smile
Fake it for awhile
Tell me what should I do?

Can I get closer to you?
Tell me the truth
Can I get an answer from you?
Show me a sign
Here I stand with my heart in my hands
And all I do to get closer to you


It was Friday night. School was over for this year. Tomorrow night was Prom so
he wouldn't have to teach until the beginning of September. He would have a lot
of free time... to do what he liked but also to do some research. On the device
Elena had told him John was after and... on his wife.
Truth be told, he couldn't just stop searching for her. Theoretically yes, but
not in practice. Not after he had found out that she was alive. She wasn't gone
from this world. He could still talk to her and that was what he wanted to do.
He wanted to see her and talk to her. He probably wouldn't like the answers he
would receive but he wanted them no matter what. So he could he finally move
on...
"Hello, Ric," an all too familiar voice greeted him and Alaric froze. Slowly he
turned his head to the side and was shocked to find no one else but his wife
sitting next to him.
"Isobel," he croaked.
"It's good to see you, Alaric," Isobel said smiling. "You look good." Alaric
simply stared at her, contemplating if this was real of if he might have drunk
too much. "I hear you're a history teacher at the local high school. How is
that?"
Alaric shook his head in disbelief. "Where've you been, Isobel?"
"I don't have any reasons that would make sense to you as to why I left or
explanations that are gonna satisfy you. I wanted this."
"Is that so?" Alaric asked.
"Yeah. You were supposed to mourn me and move on," she explained.
"You're my wife and I loved you. How could I not search for you?" he said
sadly.
"Because I wasn't lost, Ric." He nodded and averted his gaze. Isobel took a pen
and wrote something on a piece of paper. "I know you know my daughter Elena.
Apparently she's been looking for me. So..." She got up and passed the piece of
paper to him. "I want you to arrange a meeting with me. "
Alaric didn't even look at the message he was supposed to deliver. He met
Isobel's gaze with icy eyes.
"Screw you, you selfish bitch," he said and left the Grill.
He went straight to his car, hoping that ignoring Isobel who was following him
would do but it didn't. She attacked him, pinning him against the car and bared
her teeth.
"You will do as I say," she ordered menacingly. "Or I'll kill the town's
citizens starting with your history students, do you understand?"
She let go of him and left without another word.


As he had no choice Alaric asked Elena and Stefan to meet him in his classroom
the next morning. The teachers and students were at school to decorate the halls
for the upcoming Prom. The last person who joined them was Damon.
"So, what's up?" he asked everyone after he noticed that they weren't in a good
mood.
"I met Isobel last night," Alaric said.
"What? Isobel's here?" Alaric nodded. "Why did she come? Because of John? Are
they working together?"
"No, I mean I don't know if that's the reason she came."
"Does she know about the invention?"
"Didn't ask."
"Did words completely escape you?" Damon said annoyed.
"I'm sorry, I was a little too distracted by my dead vampire wife to ask any
questions," Alaric replied irritated.
"What does she want?" Damon asked.
"She wants to see me, Damon," Elena told him.
"Alaric is supposed to arrange a meeting," Stefan explained. "We don't know why
and what she wants."
Damon looked at Elena with concern and a trace of empathy in his eyes. "You
don't have to see her if you don't want to."
Elena sighed. "I don't know if I want to see her or not. Alaric said she'd
changed. That she's cold and brutal... But I don't really have a choice."
"She threatened to go on a killing spree," Alaric said.
"Oh..."
"But part of me does want to meet her. I want to form my own opinion. If I don't
I'll forever regret it."
She could see that all of them had rather she wouldn't met Isobel. They were
worried about her. But she had to do it. She couldn't let anyone get hurt.


Her mind was made up and so she went to the Grill where she was supposed to meet
her birth mother. At least she wasn't alone. She was glad Isobel had chosen a
public place. Plus, Stefan was with her, connected to her via a microphone that
was pinned on her clothes, hidden under her hair. She was nervous so she started
to talk to him, holding his gaze until a person stepped into her view and sat
down opposite of her.
Isobel had arrived. Elena held her breath, eying her mother from head to toe.
Her appearance hadn't changed much since the time that only picture she had of
her had been taken. She looked exactly like she had described herself in her
journal.
"Hello, Elena," Isobel greeted her with false friendliness. "God, you look just
like her, still today. It's eerie."
"Wait, you met Katherine?"
"She found me after I turned. I suppose I never really got rid of her but you
know that, right?" Isobel answered, took out a book and put it on the table. It
was Elena's journal.
"You had it?" Elena burst out.
"I think it's only fair to read yours after you read mine. I just got back
what's mine."
"You left it with Alaric."
"Yes, but for everyone to read."
"I'm your daughter," Elena pointed out angrily.
"I know," Isobel replied calmly. "Now we're even. You know my secrets and I know
yours."
"I don't know everything about you," Elena clarified. "What happened to you
after you met Damon? Did you stay with Katherine since then? And who's my
father?"
"Not important," Isobel waved it off. "He was teenage waste of space."
"I don't care. I want to know him. What's his family name?" Elena demanded.
"You should hold yourself back a little. You do ask a lot of questions. We're
drifting off-"
Elena ignored her remark. "Why did you compel that man to kill himself after he
delivered your message?"
"I had to get rid of him. He was done. I just wished his efforts would've been
more effective."
Elena swallowed hard. Alaric had been right. She was cold. "Human life means
that little to you?"
"Means nothing to me." Isobel gave her a cold smile. "It's being part of what I
am."
"That's not true. Not all vampires are like this."
"You mean your boyfriend over there by the pool table? You clearly don't have my
taste. Why Stefan? Why didn't you go for Damon? Or do you enjoy them both like
Katherine did?"
Indignantly Elena opened her mouth but no sound escaped it. She was speechless.


"We should be with her!" Damon said strained. Ever since he and Alaric had seen
Isobel enter the Grill which they were observing from the distance Damon had
been pacing around, not keeping his mouth shut about that it was wrong to let
Elena get so close to Isobel without enough back-up.
"Isobel's orders were clear," Alaric reminded him. "She wants to meet her alone.
Posting Stefan inside is already the grey area. And could you please you please
stop pacing? You're driving me crazy!" the teacher added irritated. "You'll stay
here."
"It's not like I'm gonna kill her in a restaurant in front of a bunch of
people," Damon said.
"You're not going inside. Period. And you're not gonna kill her."
"Why not? Don't you want her dead?" Damon asked. "She ruined your life. You
still want to protect her?"
"Yes, I do," Saltzman answered. "She's my wife." Damon gave him a look. "Was...
She was my wife. I looked for the one I married but she wasn't there. She was
replaced by that monster that looks like her. Now she's cold and...
unattached."
"Humph. Of course she is. She's a vampire. She's given up her humanity."
"That's the part I don't get," Saltzman said. "Stefan has his humanity." Damon
rolled his eyes and looked away. "He's a good guy. What did you do to yours?
Locked it up under a Swiss bank account number?"
Damon sighed. "Something like that."
"Even though you're a dick and you kill people I still see something human in
you," Alaric went on. Damon looked at him, his brows furrowed. "But with her
it's just... there's nothing," Alaric concluded sadly.
"You can turn it off," Damon explained. "Like a button you can press. It's
actually very easy. I mean, Stefan's different. He wants the whole human
experience. He wants to feel every episode of How I Met Your Mother. The problem
is as a vampire your instinct is not to feel. Isobel chose the easier road. No
guilt, no shame, no regret. I mean, come on, if you could turn it off, wouldn't
you?"
"You haven't," Alaric reminded him.
"Of course I have, Ric. That's why everybody loves me," Damon replied and
resumed observing the Grill.


"Why did you want to meet me?" Elena asked Isobel. "Definitely not to catch
up."
"That's not true," I'm curious about you," Isobel contradicted. "But the real
reason is I want what your uncle wants. Jonathan Gilbert's invention."
"How do you know my uncle?"
"John had a crush on me for years. He was the first one who told me about
vampires."
A terrible hunch was emerging in Elena's head. Could John Gilbert be her father?
The person named John who Isobel mentioned in her journal? She quickly pushed
that though aside.
"What made you want to be a vampire?"
"It's a very long list of reason, Elena. All of which I'm sure you thought about
considering you're in a relationship with a vampire." Elena shook her head.
"It's inevitable. You get old. Stefan won't. Forever doesn't last very long when
you're human."
Elena's world was breaking down before her eyes. So Isobel hadn't chosen to
become a vampire to be safe from Katherine's wrath but because she had been
seeking power? She seemed to get along well with Katherine, too. It was time for
Elena to leave. She needed to get out of there.
"I'm sorry but I don't have what you're looking for," she told Isobel and wanted
to get up but Isobel grabbed her arm and forced her back on her chair.
"I know you don't," she said. "But we both know who does. You're going to get it
for me."
"Or what?" Elena challenged.
"Or this town's population will decrease dramatically," Isobel threatened and
got up. "It was nice meeting you, Elena," she added before the left the Grill.
Elena stared after her. Tears were welling up in her eyes. The moment Isobel
exited Bonnie entered. Their gazes met and Bonnie seemed to make a step toward
her but then Stefan appeared at Elena's side and Bonnie left. Elena turned to
Stefan and buried her face into his chest, sobbing.


If Damon knew one thing then that he knew how to collect information. Earlier
that day he had seen John Gilbert. He had looked nervous because he had
constantly turned around to see if someone was following him. Damon of course
had followed him... to a mansion on the outskirts of town. There he had waited
for John to leave the building again which he did some minutes later with
Isobel. As he wasn't in the mood to follow either of them wherever Damon had
stayed, taken a look around in the mansion and then waited for Isobel to return
which she did after an hour.
"Ah, Isobel. Good to see you," Damon greeted her.
"Did you bring the device?"
Damon ignored her question and posed one himself. "I found your mansion when I
was following John Gilbert. What are you doing with him?"
While he was talking to her he applied his flirty little tricks and she went
along with her own. They wouldn't have slept together if they hadn't found each
other attractive.
"We dated when we were teenagers. He was a little bit in love with me," Isobel
answered.
"Of course," Damon said, caressing her face. "So... what do you want with the
device?"
"Personally, I don't want anything with it. I'm just getting it for someone
else. But don't worry, Damon," she answered, leaning in seductively. "We're on
the same side."
"And what side is that?" Damon inquired, teasing her.
"Katherine's. She wants John to have the device. John failed that's why she sent
me. You know you can't control her. She does what she wants and she always gets
what she wants."
"So do I," Damon said and kissed her hard, just to confuse her. Once her guard
was down he pinned her to the ground, choking her a little. "Now that I have
your attention, listen up. You do not come into my town and threaten the people
I care about. Going after Elena? Making her cry? Bad move. You leave her alone
or I'll rip you to bits, got it? And if Katherine wants something from me tell
that little bitch to come get it herself."
With that Damon let go of Isobel and left.


After the meeting Elena went home. She needed to be alone to think about what
had just happened at the Grill and what she was going to do.
Not long after she got home the doorbell rang. On her way to the front door she
wondered who it was because Jenna was still working and everyone else was still
at school, doing the preparations for Prom and the Founder's Day parade the next
day.
She opened the door and was surprised to find Bonnie standing in front of her.
"Bonnie," Elena whispered weakly and her eyes were watering again.
"I know you're upset about something and... I'm here for you," Bonnie said.
Elena couldn't contain herself anymore. The tears were now streaming
uncontrollably down her face. Bonnie stepped forward and hugged her tightly.
"What's wrong Elena? What happened?"
When Elena had calmed down she told Bonnie everything. That she had just met her
evil mother. That she only came back to get the mystery device her uncle
wanted... Bonnie then suggested checking the Grimoire for any information about
the invention. Elena agreed gratefully. And they were lucky. Emily had indeed
mentionsed the device in her book.
"Here we go. According to Emily Jonathan's devices were useless. They only
worked in the end because she placed a spell on them."
"So what does this thing now?" Elena inquired.
Bonnie read a little more and gasped. " Are you sure this is what Isobel
wants?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"It's a weapon... against vampires."


Once they knew that they immediately went back to school. Elena told Bonnie to
wait in the classroom and then went looking for Stefan. She found him eventually
but couldn't get to him because Isobel appeared out of nowhere.
"Isobel, what are you doing here?" Elena asked a little stressed out.
"I'm your mother. I want to be more involved in your life," Isobel answered and
Elena knew she was lying.
"You don't know anything about my life."
"Oh, I do, Elena. I'll prove it to you," Isobel said. "For one thing I know who
your friends are because I've been observing all of you for a while now. Over
there is your little witchy friend Bonnie. And there's Caroline. She's really
dumb. She told me everything I needed to know. Over here's Matt, your ex. Lots
of connections there."
"Fine you know my friends but that's nothing. Excuse me, I gotta go and you
should, too," Elena retorted and started walking away but Isobel's next words
made her freeze.
"I hope you remember my words from earlier. I want the device or..."
Suddenly someone pressed the metal plate the boys in Elena's class had been
working down and it crushed and clamped Matt's arm. Elena gasped in horror.
"Stop it, please!"
"The man who just crushed Mattie's arm is my friend and he does everything I
tell him to do. Hurt your friends... kidnap your brother..."
Frantically Elena spun around, looking for her brother.
"Jeremy? Jeremy!"
"I want the device," Isobel repeated.
"Damon won't give it to me," Elena replied desperately.
"Oh yes, he will."
"He'll kill you before giving it up."
"Is that before or after I kill your brother Jeremy?" Isobel said and vanished.


Together with Stefan Elena entered the classroom where Bonnie was already
waiting for them.
"Where's the device now?" she asked at once.
"Damon has it. It's gonna be difficult to get it," Stefan answered.
Elena was frantically pacing around. Her brother had been kidnapped by Isobel
who had made herself very clear. If Isobel wouldn't get the device soon Jeremy
would die.
"We'll...we'll go to him. I'll talk to him," Elena said.
"He's not gonna hand it over, especially not if it's harmful to vampires,"
Stefan pointed out.
"What if it's not?" Elena asked looking at Bonnie who nodded.


Jeremy had definitely imagined this day differently. He still hadn't heard
anything from Anna who seemed to have disappeared without a trace and then he
had gotten kidnapped by some creepy vampire woman named Isabol who he knew was
Elena's real mother.
And as if that wasn't enough his uncle who was apparently working with Isobel
had appeared the next moment and ended up being held hostage as well. At least
he wasn't alone...
"What's she after?" Jeremy asked when Isobel had left.
"Something your ancestor invented. A device that's extremely harmful to
vampires. We've been trying to get it."
"Why?"
"Because the vampires are evil and pose a threat to this town. We have to
destroy them," John answered.
"Not all vampires are bad," Jeremy objected.
"You mean your girlfriend Anna?" John replied. "Yes, they are. All of them.
Sometimes we don't think so because they fooled us well."
"I don't believe that," Jeremy refused.
"Well, your dad did," John said. "And he wouldn't want you to get involved with
them."
"Dad knew about vampires?"
"Why do you think he kept Jonathan's journal?" John replied.


Elena had called Damon on his cell and asked him to meet them at the boarding
house. There they told him they needed the device in exchange for Jeremy.
"Absolutely not," Damon refused.
"Just hear me out," Elena begged.
"I'm not gonna give the device to Isabol who will give it to John who will turn
and kill me. I like being a living dead person."
"Bonnie can take its power off," Elena argued.
"I can remove the original spell," Bonnie confirmed.
Damon huffed. "No. No, I'll get Jeremy my own way."
"Really, Damon?" Stefan said. "Dead or alive?"
"We're doing this, Damon," Elena declared.
"I don't trust her. She still blames me for her grandmother's death."
"But you can trust me, Damon," Elena insisted and added "Please."
Damon was torn. She was asking him to trust her with his vampire life which was
huge. Those pleading eyes didn't accept any objections, either...
After a minute of hesitation Damon sighed, took the device out of his pocket and
put it into Elena's open palm. He grabbed her hand firmly and his piercing gaze
said "I'm trusting you."
Elena said thank you and passed the device to Bonnie who started her magic.


When Bonnie was done Elena went to meet Isobel, accompanied by Stefan and Damon.
Isobel appeared out of nowhere, immediately demanding the device.
"Where's my brother?" Elena inquired.
"Home."
"You're lying."
"God, call him, then," Isobel groaned. "But hurry, I don't have much time."
That was what Elena did. She called home and talked to Jeremy who confirmed that
he was safe. Relieved Elena hung up.
"I know you wouldn't hurt him," she said to Isobel.
"No, I would've killed him," Isobel corrected.
"You took a risk with Damon," Elena replied. "How did you know he was going to
give it to me?"
Isobel huffed. "Because he's in love with you."
Silence. Dead, unnerving and meaningful silence followed her statement. Elena
glanced over at Damon who glanced over at his brother who was standing next to
him and looked like he had just been slapped in the face. Elena waited for a
snorty remark by Damon that denied this completely ridiculous assumption... but
it never came.
Elena couldn't stand the awkwardness anymore so she slammed the device into
Isobel's palm.
"As long as you have a Salvatore on each arm you're doomed," Isabol went on.
"Katherine was smart. She got out. But we all know that you're not Katherine.
Goodbye, Elena," she added before disappearing into the night.
Elena stared at the point where she had vanished, shaking her head in disbelief.
Stefan walked over to her and pulled her into a tight hug. Elena glanced over
his shoulder at Damon who seemed to be taken aback, before burying her face into
Stefan's chest. She didn't even notice Damon walking away...
They could hear teenage voices from the distance. She had been right all along.
She wouldn't got to Prom tonight...


Elena wasn't the only one who wasn't attending Prom. Neither was Alaric. After
seeing his wife for the first time in two years he had needed a drink so much
like now. So he stepped outside and closed the front door. Then he turned around
and stopped dead in his tracks when he found Isobel standing only a few feet
away from him.
"So, got what you wanted?" Alaric asked. Isobel nodded. "And now?"
"Now I'm saying goodbye."
"I don't need to say to say goodbye to you. My wife didn't return last night."
Isobel let her gaze wander around, letting it linger on the school building in
the distance. "I'm glad you found something here. I know you're a good
teacher."
"What the hell are you doing?" Alaric asked annoyed. "One moment you act like
you don't care and the next you're glad I found something here?"
"You hate me. Good," Isobel said.
"Does that make it for you? Why bother?"
"After years of searching me what did you expect you would find?" Isobel asked.
"The woman I married. The woman who gave me this," he said sadly, holding up his
ring. "You cared enough to protect after you left."
"I was a different person back then," Isabol argued.
"And that person's is gone, of course," Alaric replied. "The woman I married,
the woman I loved just gone? You really expect me to believe that?" Isobel was
silent. He threw his ring over to her and she caught it puzzled. He also took
the vervaine he had hidden in his pocket out and dropped it. "I'm ring-free and
vervaine-free. So either you kill me or compel me because... I don't believe
it... not for a second."
Isobel hesitated for a second, indecisive about what she should do. Finally she
walked over to him and stroked his face while staring into his eyes. He didn't
leave her any choice. She had to compel him.
"I wanted this. And I'm gonna regret it forever. It wasn't your mistake but
mine. You're not gonna remember I was here. All you know is that even if I'm
gone I loved you. Your hearts free of me as of now. You are free to start over.
It's easier that way. Goodbye, Ric."
Isobel finished the compulsion and slipped his ring back on his finger. She
kissed his cheek and then she walked away... out of his life again.


After the shock Damon helped himself with the mini bar. He had a couple of
drinks before Stefan came home. He didn't look happy. Rather as unnerved as
Damon was. The difference between them was that Damon could hide his emotions
whereas Stefan could not.
"What's on your mind, little brother? Just spill," Damon encouraged him.
"About what Isobel said... Well, I know you and Elena bonded while I was gone or
out of it. And I know she cares about you and you uh, care about her." Damon
smiled, patiently waiting for his brother to go on. "I'm just concerned about
Elena getting hurt. She considers you as a friend."
"Same here," Damon agreed. "Elena's a very good friend. Actually... she's my
only friend. Is that a problem?"
"History will not repeat itself where Elena is concerned, right?"
Damon was still smirking. "Sure, sure."
But Stefan wouldn't let it go. He stepped closer to Damon, threatening him now.
"Do you understand what I'm saying?" he said emphatically.
"Yeah, whatever," Damon replied, walking over from him. "We're friends. And as
her boyfriend it's better if you tell her the truth anyway."
"What truth?" Stefan asked.
"John. Isobel. Hello? Am I the only one who can put two and two together?"
"You mean John's Elena's father? How would you know?"
"Call it a... pretty good hunch. And I know how well you deal with these big
bombshells. She'd rather hear it from you." He walked toward the stairs but
turned around once more. "Oh, and when you do tell Elena and she needs a friend
to talk about anything, I'm here for her."
Damon enjoyed the look on Stefan's face and walked upstairs. He entered his
bedroom, closed the door and slumped on his bed.
Despite the awkwardness of the situation he could still pretend that Isobel had
lied to cause a stir. And anyway he wasn't sure of the truthfulness of her
words, either. Up to that moment he would have never thought about his feelings
toward Elena but now he would have to thanks to Isobel. He should've killed her
all along.


Jeremy decided to go to bed early today. He had just heard Elena coming home and
the last thing he needed after having been kidnapped was her endless rattling
about how sorry she was. He was fine after all.
He stepped out of the bathroom and turned off the light. In that moment
something appeared in his room.
It was Anna. She was standing by the window.
"Anna, where've you been?" he asked and then he noticed that she was crying.
"What's wrong?"
"My mother," Anna told him. "She was killed."
"Oh my God," Jeremy said. "I'm so sorry."
"I know I'm not supposed to be here," Anna sobbed. "But... I don't have anywhere
else to go."
Jeremy walked over to her and pulled her into a tight hug. "It's okay," he told
her. "You can stay here. For as long as you want. I'll be with you."

_________________________________________________________________________________

Vielen Dank an alle, die bis hierhin durchgehalten haben, um meine
wahrscheinlich komplett überflüssige Autorennotiz zu lesen ;) 

Founders Day näher sich sehr schnell. Wie im Kapitel erwähnt, wird das
nächste Kapitel komplett diesem besonderen Tag gewidmet sein. Danach werde ich
dann meine eigenen Ideen einbringen. Ich werd wahrscheinlich sogar eine neue
Person reinbringen. (Eine die, für die Schreiber von TVD wohl als unwichtig
gilt). Ich verrate schon mal, dass die Person männchlich ist.

Ihr dürft euch also auf Chaos, eine neue Person und viel Delena freuen :)

Bis dahin
eure Asu

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