CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT: Seeing dead people & finding the moonstone
WARNINGS: matt, stefan, damon, mason, mentioned/implied grooming, threats of violence (sorta??), violence, snakes

"ANYTHING?" LORELEI ASKED FOR PROBABLY the twentieth time in the last 45 minutes. Athena looks up from her mother's grimoire and at her daughter who is looking through three books at once. Athena stares at her for a moment before looking back down at her book. "Ma?"

"Nothing since the last time you asked, my darling," Athena sighs, flipping to another page, "two minutes ago."

"A lot can happen in two minutes," Lorelei grumbled, sitting down in her chair. Athena hummed, not answering. They've been up since six in the morning. Lorelei had woken Athena and dragged her out of bed to begin research.

Athena guessed Lorelei would've gotten to her earlier if Elena hadn't gone all koala again.

"We're not going to find something in a day, sweetheart," Athena said as she looked up at her daughter.

Lorelei frowned. "We might," she argued, frowning.

Athena scoffed a bit, smiling.

"Does nobody answer the door in this house?" Asked a familiar voice, one that Lorelei hadn't heard in years and one Athena had missed a bit. Both of them turned to the entrance where one Luna Everhart.

Athena raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps if you had called, I would've set up a parade for your arrival," she deadpanned.

"Har, har." Luna rolled her eyes at her friend. She turned her attention onto Lorelei. "My, my, haven't you gotten gorgeous, darling," she said, walking down the library steps and holding her arms open, "give your aunt a hug?"

Lorelei smiled timidly and stepped into her arms. She did remember Luna, she was there that day when hell broke loose. Not much else other than the fact that she was around a lot as a kid.

"You've gotten so big," Luna said as she hugged her niece tightly. Lorelei coughed a bit, laughing.

"It has been 8 years or so," Lorelei grunted as she stepped back after Luna held onto her for an uncomfortably long 30 seconds. She was not used to affection.

Luna hummed, smiling. "Have your mother's snark, I see," she teased, glancing over at her best friend.

Athena smiled back, leaning against the table. "Darling, could you give me and Luna a couple of minutes to speak?" Athena asked her daughter who looked about to protest, "please?"

Lorelei nodded then, leaving the room after snatching one of the grimoires from off the table.

Luna raised an eyebrow at her friend as soon as the door closed.

"Where have you been?" Athena asked curiously, tilting her head, "it's been a long time since you told me you left New Orleans."

Luna smirked a bit and sat down on one of the chairs. "I went to go see Elijah in Pennsylvania for a bit, then I went back to London to check in on some things."

Athena narrowed her eyes a bit. "Are you lying?" She demanded, her voice holding an edge to it. She knew Luna was lying. Bianca had confirmed it when she saw her in New Orleans.

Luna tilted her head curiously, slightly surprised by the question. "Why would you think that, honey? I know you don't like Elijah, but that doesn't mean I can't go visit him—"

"I couldn't care less what you do in your bloody free time. I don't care if you go see Elijah. You're lying to me. That's what I care about," Athena shook her head, giving the woman a hard look. Luna was her friend—her best friend—but she needed to know what the hell she was doing in New Orleans. And why she felt the need to keep it a secret.

Luna sighed heavily, combing her fingers through her hair. "You're right. I apologize," she said, raising her hands in surrender and standing up. She walked over to the small table behind the couch and poured herself a glass of whiskey. "I did go see Elijah for a little while... but then I went back to New Orleans."

"Why lie about that? Why not tell me?"

Luna shrugged a bit. "I don't have to tell you everything I do, where I am 24–7. I'm not your girlfriends, darling. You can not control me—"

Athena scoffed loudly, pushing off the table and walking a couple of paces to the right. "Control you? Control them? I don't bloody control my girlfriends. I trust them, actually. They usually tell me where they're going and if they don't, they tell me in time. They do not tell me everything they do and that is just bloody fine to me. I am not their whole life. Do not ever insinuate that I would try and take their freedom away from them," she spat, glaring at Luna.

Luna took a sip of her drink and leaned against the couch. "You expect everyone to bend to your every whim merely because you are Athena Castillo," she said, rolling her eyes slightly. "You are as bad as Klaus is."

"Okay, where is this coming from?" Athena sighed, rubbing her eyebrow. She just wanted to know what Luna was doing in New Orleans.

Luna scoffed a bit, tossing back the rest of the glass and then setting it down. "I was in New Orleans because I've been helping Davina. She's going through a rough time right now, alright?"

"What's happening?" Athena demanded, stepping toward her friend.

"I can't tell you that," Luna shrugged.

Athena felt anger stir in her chest. "Why the fucking hell not? You are talking about my child—"

"Your child?" Luna laughed, staring at Athena with astonishment.

Athena blanched a bit. "Yes! Davina is my daughter. My youngest actually. In case you've bloody forgotten."

"You abandoned her! You left her to fucking New Orleans witches instead of taking her somewhere safe!" Luna shouted.

Athena frowned. "I thought it was safe. I didn't know that they'd turn on me. That they were the ones who cursed my memories away. I thought I could bloody trust them, but instead, I find out that my daughter got booted because she did Dark Magic and my other daughter was kept from her grandmother."

"You should've thought of a better plan," Luna snapped.

Athena stared at her silently. No emotions could be read on her face. "I did have a plan. My daughters were supposed to go to Crystal's at 8 o'clock that morning. I was supposed to drive them and say goodbye. To leave them in the care of the grandmother, one woman I was positively sure would protect them the way I did. I was supposed to have that time—I didn't."

Luna shook her head, smiling sarcastically. "So much for being the most powerful being in the universe. Taken down by a couple of witch bitches."

"Oh, sod off," Athena spat, grinding her teeth together. "What were you doing in New Orleans? What is going on with my daughter? Tell me now, Luna!"

Luna shook her head, leaning back and crossing her arms. "Marcellus needed some help. I was doing him a couple of favors. When I could I would check up on Davina. Some kids in school are picking on her, that's it."

Athena sighed and looked away, frowning a bit. She paced slowly.

"It's sad, isn't it?" Athena looked over at Luna, her frown deepening. "That I know more about your daughter than you do," Luna cocked an eyebrow, "that she actually wants to talk to me. Not her mother."

Athena raised an eyebrow right back. "How do you know about that?"

"You mean the letters?" Luna scoffed a bit, "again, she talks to me. I watch her send them back. Who knows if she even reads them."

Athena narrowed her eyes slightly. She had started writing and sending letters to Davina as soon as Lorelei explained what happened. The first couple, she had gotten a letter back. It wasn't much, but it was enough. Davina was worried it wasn't actually Athena. They had stopped being responded to after Luna was sent to check on her.

"What did you do?" Athena asked, standing up straight. "What are you doing to my daughter?"

Luna looked offended and angry. "Pardon you. I'm the only one actually there for her. I see her almost every day—"

"I was trying to bloody get in touch with her, but the second you were sent there to check on her, she stopped responding to my letters. What did you say to her? What did you do?" Athena demanded, taking a few steps toward Luna.

"Oh, you sure are something, Athena! Accusing the person who is taking care of your child, helping her, and being there—"

"You were never this interested in Lorelei," Athena cut off. Luna frowned, confused. "You were never interested in Lorelei the way you were interested in Davina. I didn't see it then, not with everything with Cassidy going on... but right here, right now..." Athena took a step closer. "Why are you so interested in my daughter?"

Luna stared at her for a moment. "What are you talking—"

"You know exactly what I am talking about."

Luna scoffed, outraged. "How dare you? How dare you. You're out of your mind, Athena." The woman shook her head, heading for the door. "Screw you."

"You did," Athena said. "Luna." The woman paused in her step. "If I find out... that you are doing anything I don't like with my daughter... best friend or not, I will kill you."

Luna walked out, slamming the door behind her.

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

LORELEI TRIED TO listen in on what they were going to be talking about, but a silencing spell was placed around the room. She frowned and went to the living room. People were milling about, but not paying attention to her.

She plopped down on the couch and looked at the grimoire she grabbed. Her mother had told her it was filled with spells Esther created—the first dark spells.

She opened it up and began to look for a spell that could potentially help them with their problem. If Esther had created the binding curse then there had to be a way to reverse it, especially if Esther wanted to after they got rid of Mikael.

She read through the spells thoroughly, getting an insight into her grandmother's mind. She'd never be able to meet her, but she could at least try to understand her. She wasn't, by any means, a good person, but she cared about her children more than anything.

There were a lot of murder spells, some spells that threw people through the ground (awesome), and a love spell.

For the children NOT blessed by Aphrodite (Yes, Athena, I'm talking about you, dear).

Lorelei grinned at the little note. There were a couple of warnings, but otherwise, it looked safe enough to try.

She wondered who she'd be blessed by when she was finally of age. If she'd be blessed by multiple or just one. Her mother had been blessed by Hades and Aphrodite. Hayley was blessed by Athena. Caroline was blessed by Zeus. Esther was blessed by Hera and Alix was blessed by Poseidon. Uncle Nik was blessed by Ares (figures).

"When am I going to wake up next to you?"

Lorelei's eyes flicked over toward the woman, shaken from her thoughts as Elena sat down beside her.

"Pardon?" Lorelei chuckled a bit, closing the grimoire and setting it on the table so she could give the woman beside her, her full attention.

"We've slept together for the past couple of days and I have not woken up next to you," Elena said without realizing how it sounded.

Lorelei leaned her head back against the couch, tilting her head toward Elena and smirking at her.

Elena's cheeks immediately flushed as she realized what she said. "Shut up," she snapped, crossing her arms and looking forward.

Lorelei snickered a bit. "I apologize for not waking up beside you, my love," she said mockingly. Her smirk had turned teasing. Elena's cheeks darkened and she stared at Lorelei with a look that the hybrid could not make out.

Only that it made her own cheeks flush.

"Next time you come to wake up your mom," Caroline said which forced the two to look away from each other quickly, like they were caught doing something they weren't supposed to, "please don't yank her out of bed. I felt the whole room shake."

"The bed shook, honey, not the room," Hayley murmured, kissing the side of Caroline's head as she took a seat beside the blonde.

"Sorry," Lorelei smiled, amused.

"What were you two doing up so early anyway?" Caroline asked, tilting her head in confusion. Elena looked to Lorelei as well, wanting to know.

Lorelei shook her head, shrugging. "Bonding," she replied. Which was true. They were bonding... just also trying to find a solution to their little problem.

Hayley looked like she didn't believe her but didn't say anything. Caroline seemed to be sharing the sentiment. Elena on the other hand was convinced, changing the subject.

"What's this?" Elena asked, reaching for the grimoire. She grabbed it, flipping it open carefully since it looked very old. "I... do not understand a word this says."

Lorelei hummed. "They're written in Latin, Elder Futhark, and Italian. Very old Italian. Mostly from my mom. The rest is from my grandmother," she explained.

Elena raised her eyebrows, intrigued. She flipped through the pages, seeing the different markings and words. It was fascinating even if she didn't understand it. "Can you read it all?"

"Most of it, yeah," Lorelei grinned, "I was speaking more Spanish, Italian, Latin, and Elder Futhark than I was English when I was young. Cassidy hated it. Ma and my uncle loved it."

Caroline smiled slightly at the excitement and nostalgia in Lorelei's tone.

"If I find out... that you are doing anything I don't like with my daughter... best friend or not, I will kill you." Lorelei's ears perked up a bit at her mother's voice. Athena must've taken down the spell. The door to the library slammed closed a second later.

Lorelei shot up, intercepting Luna before she could exit the house. Luna sighed irritably, "not now."

Lorelei stared up at her for a moment, searching her face. "Non approfittarti della mia sorellina." [Do not take advantage of my little sister.]

Luna's face tightened for a moment before it smoothened out. "She's family. I'm not gonna hurt her," Luna said softly. Lorelei watched her for a moment before stepping out of the way. Luna disappeared out the door.

Athena walked over. "Nice," Lorelei shot her a look. Athena merely shrugged. "Can you see who people are in love with?" Her mother had told her what she could do as a blessed child of Hades, but never said what she could do as a blessed child of Aphrodite.

Athena paused in her steps down the stairs. She then spun on her heel and walked away.

"Ma!" Lorelei called indignantly. She flicked her wrist and Athena went flying backward, landing in the common room. Athena grunted and just laid on the floor, staring up at the ceiling. Lorelei walked over to her, staring down at her. "Can you?"

Athena glanced at her, frowning. "Certain people," she said.

"You can see who people are in love with?!" Caroline shrieked, jumping onto the chair and staring down at her girlfriend. Athena moved her head to look at Caroline for a moment.

"I can see who they end up with. But I can tell when someone's in love with someone," Athena drawled, scrunching her nose. "Nobody bloody listens to me, but I can see it."

"Can you see mine?" Lorelei asked, tilting her head.

Athena's face grimaced. "Unfortunately," she replied.

Lorelei gaped. "WHAT?!"

"Wait—can you see ours?" Hayley asked curiously.

Athena got up, dusting herself off. "I don't know how to answer that question," she said, almost robotically, like it was rehearsed. She blinked and shuddered a bit, scrunching her nose.

"Are you okay?" Caroline asked, reaching for her.

"I'm alright," Athena sighed.

Lorelei snorted, "Probabilmente dovremmo parlarne." [We should probably talk about that.]

Athena looked confused. "What do you mean?"

Lorelei tilted her head, staring at her mother. When she realized her mother was being serious, she gaped. "What do you mean what do I mean? Erano benedetti! Nessuno dei due appartiene alla linea di sangue Castillo." [They were blessed! Neither of them are of the Castillo bloodline.]

Caroline and Hayley shared a look. Elena shared a look with Hayley. They had no idea what was happening.

Athena's brows furrowed. She looked like she was about to retort, but whipped her head to the side with a startled look in her eye. "What?" She demanded, staring open-mouthed at the wall.

Lorelei sighed heavily, dropping her head in her hands. Athena used to do this when she and Davina were little. Talk to someone who they couldn't see. "Hi, nonna. Wherever you are," Lorelei said, raising her hand in a wave.

"She says 'hello, little one'. But seriously what?" Athena said, staring at where Lorelei's grandmother probably was.

"I'm sorry—back up," Hayley said, standing up, "your mother is here? What."

Caroline looked bewildered too, stepping off the chair.

Athena grunted, pointing at the far right wall as if that'd help them at all. "Ma can see dead people who haven't moved on," Lorelei explains at the confused looks Elena, Hayley, and Caroline were sharing.

Hayley whistled, looking slightly weirded out but also impressed.

Esther smiled slightly. Athena was still staring at her, confused. "They're pretty," Esther said, nodding toward Hayley and Caroline, "they're good for you."

Athena blinked hard. "What?"

Esther gave her daughter a dry look then. "Is that the only bloody word in your vocabulary?" She deadpanned.

Athena frowned. "You just popped up and said that I'm being 'too emotional'."

Esther's face didn't change. "You were. You were going to cause a bloody earthquake and we already have enough shit happening over here."

Athena looked bewildered. "Where did you learn 'shit'?"

"Lexi," Esther shrugged.

Athena opened and closed her mouth a couple of times before shaking her head. Esther smiled, walking past her daughter and toward the grimoire on the table.

Caroline automatically stepped back, feeling her presence—not that she noticed. She just looked confused at her own actions.

Esther picked up the grimoire. "Pen," she said as she held out her hand to her daughter. Athena snapped and a pen appeared between her fingers. She handed it to Esther. The blonde flipped toward one of the blank pages—she was never able to finish it.

She quickly wrote something down as she walked to her granddaughter. The four of them could only see a floating book and pen, but Athena could see Esther.

The Original Witch finished and turned the book around, holding it out to Lorelei. The girl took it, reading what it said. Esther went back to Athena, patting her cheek gently. "I love you all... tell your siblings that for me," Esther murmured before disappearing.

Athena frowned. Tears burned the back of her eyes, a heavy feeling in her chest. She loved that she was able to still talk to her mother, but it hurt to know that she'd never actually be able to hug her or feel her again. That, as soon as Athena and Niklaus unlocked their werewolf sides... she'd be gone forever.

Hayley placed a hand on Athena's back and the redhead blinked, looking over at her girlfriends who were staring at her in concern. She gave them a sad smile.

"Ma," Lorelei muttered. Athena walked over to her, looking down at the writing.

It was in Elder Futhark.

It was Tanya.

"How the fuck did she do that? We were just talking about it, like, 45 minutes before Luna got here," Lorelei said.

"I don't try to figure it out," Athena shrugged. "I'll be back." She disappeared.

"What just happened?" Elena asked, getting up and walking over to Lorelei.

"You just witnessed one of the many weird things about my family," Lorelei sighed. "She just told us who the traitor was. Obviously, someone had to have been working on the inside. They got inside with no issue. Took the notes..."

Athena appeared, wiping her hands with a towel. She smiled at the four of them, "we have things to do today, ladies." 

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

THE MASQURADE BALL was slowly coming together with all the volunteers. Elena and Bonnie were working together outside. Tyler and Matt were inside. Jenna was helping with the decorations. Lorelei was being bossed around by Jenna not that she minded.

Caroline was at home, hovering around her mother's cell and trying to take care of her. Hayley and Athena were upstairs, trying and failing to act like they weren't worried about the blonde who had snapped at them twice already (not that either of them blamed her).

Caroline unlocked the cell door and pushed it open. She smiled at her mother, slipping into the room and closing the door behind her. Liz sat up, not looking at her daughter and wiping her hands on her pants.

Caroline's smile dimmed to almost nothing when she saw that her mother hadn't touched the tray of food and water at all. "You didn't eat much," the vampire said, laughing nervously.

Liz didn't respond, just stared off to the side.

Caroline tried to push down the hurt in her chest. "Good news! Dr. Atty said the vervain's almost out of your system," the blonde tried to lighten the mood, "so with any luck, you'll be freshly compelled and back in your own bed by tonight." She grinned at her mother, laughing a little.

Liz still didn't acknowledge her.

Caroline felt a bit angry, but mostly just defeated. "Are you really just gonna pretend like I don't exist?"

Liz looked up at her, disgust clear as day in her eyes. "Yes. So please go," she said with zero remorse.

Caroline scoffed and rolled her eyes. She picked up the tray, shaking her head. "As usual, you don't care. Got it. Just like before I was a vampire." She walked over to the door, pulling it open. She glanced back at her mother slightly, "it's not like I died or anything," she spat.

Liz looked up, tears in her eyes. "Are you... are you really dead?"

Caroline hesitated to answer, glancing outside the cell. "Yes and no."

"How is it possible?" Liz asked.

Caroline inhaled deeply, letting it out slowly. She closed the door and walked back over to the chair.

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

"I KNOW BUT Mason Lockwood?" Damon asked, his face pulled in a grimace. Athena was sitting on the couch as she watched Damon and Stefan pace back and forth, opposite of each other. "Werewolf thing aside, the guy's a surfer."

"An attractive surfer," Athena said, resting her elbow on the back of the couch and leaning her head against her hand.

Damon and Stefan both nodded reluctantly.

"She's gotta be usin' him. Has to be," Damon thought aloud, glancing behind his brother.

"Using him for what?" Stefan argued.

"Mason Lockwood's looking for a moonstone that allegedly can break the full moon werewolf curse," Damon told him.

Athena cocked an eyebrow. She knew he was looking for it and she knew Katherine was looking for it.

"Maybe Katherine wants it as well," Damon continued, unaware of Athena's inner turmoil.

"Why?" Stefan asked.

"Well, uh, no idea," Damon snarked, "it's the beauty of Katherine. She's always up to something."

Katherine was trying to stop Athena and Klaus from breaking the curse. Shit, that sneaky little minx, Athena thought. She knew Katherine was up to something of the sort, but she thought she was trying to find a way to save Elena. Not stopping the ritual as a whole. That's her fault, for not realizing her friend's intentions.

"Jeremy's getting it from Tyler," Damon shrugged.

Stefan looked annoyed suddenly, walking towards his brother. "Why would you involve Jeremy?" He demanded. He smacked Damon's shoulder as he walked past.

"He's playing Indiana Jones. He involved himself," Damon argued, frowning. Stefan waved him off and Damon looked over at Athena incredulously.

Athena shrugged at him, standing up. "Come on," she said. 

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

"NOPE, GAVE IT to my uncle," Lorelei heard Tyler tell Jeremy. Her eyes widened at that, whipping around to face the two boys.

"You did what?!" She hissed. The two boys looked at her, startled. "Why—why the fuck would you do that?"

Tyler didn't really know the girl well. She's seen her hang around Caroline recently and Elena. But he didn't know her personally. "I'm done with legends and curses. I don't want anything to do with it, yeah?" He gave Jeremy a look.

Lorelei clenched her jaw and looked over at her mother who was standing next to Damon. Athena muttered a 'fuck' under her breath.

Lorelei rushed up to her mother, yanking her arm and pulling her to a secluded spot. "What the fuck are we going to do now? We need that stone and knowing Katherine, she's gonna do everything in her fucking power to keep it away from us." She ran a hand through her hair, pacing in front of her mother.

Athena grimaced a bit. "I know, honey. I'll handle it."

"You've been saying that a lot but nothing is getting done," Lorelei spat, her anger growing.

Athena sighed, knowing the girl was just upset. That she didn't really mean it. "I'm sorry, Rory, but I've got a lot of shit going on."

"We all do," Lorelei argued, glaring slightly at her mother.

Athena nodded sadly, "I'm sorry."

Lorelei paused, her anger flushing out of her. She shook her head, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—I didn't mean any of that. You do have a lot of stuff going on, especially with seeing Nonna this morning... Are you gonna be okay?" Lorelei asked hesitantly, scared of what the answer could be.

Athena smirked at her, but it didn't hold the usual playfulness to it. "Depends on how Caroline and Hayley react to the news," she joked but it fell flat.

Lorelei frowned a bit. "Did you really not know?"

Athena's face smoothened out, her whole body sagging against the wall. She looked older now, stretched thin, and exhausted. "I'm a bit dense," she laughed dryly, "I just... didn't make the connection. There is a million things going through my brain, it's running faster than I can make sense of any of it. I knew subconsciously, but no. I didn't."

Lorelei gave her mom a sad half-smile. "I didn't mean to add anything more—"

"My love, you are just fine," Athena smiled back, this time sincerely. She kissed Lorelei's forehead. "Look, I gotta go search for Katherine. You—"

"I'll go with Stefan and Damon."

Athena clenched her jaw. "I don't think—"

"Damon won't hurt me," Lorelei said and it seemed like she believed it.

Athena gave her daughter a look. "Caroline thought that too," she murmured.

Lorelei nodded, "I'll be careful."

"Alright," Athena whispered. "They try anything, bite them."

Lorelei's canines sharpened as she grinned, winking at her mother.

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

LORELEI GOT A text message from Elena as soon as she walked away with Damon, Stefan, and Bonnie.

bella

Everything OK?

w demon and 'peaches'. bonnies
here too. fill you in later.

She clicked off her phone and walked after the two boys and Bonnie. She smacked Damon's hand off of Bonnie. "You never learned how to treat a lady? Bloody hell, man."

Damon frowned down at Lorelei before ignoring her.

"What do you want?" Bonnie asked Damon.

"A favor," Damon replied.

Bonnie raised her eyebrows. "Like that's gonna happen," she said mockingly.

"So predictable," Damon said through his teeth, tilting his head back for a moment. "That's why I brought these two." He gestures to Stefan and Lorelei.

The hybrid smiles at Bonnie. The witch's cheeks flushed a bit and she quickly looked at Stefan.

"I know how you feel about helping us out," Stefan said softly, wanting Bonnie to know none of them were a threat. Well, he didn't really know about Lorelei. He doesn't even know why she's here. "But since you're the one that linked Mason with Katherine, we finally have an opportunity to get an upper hand on both of them."

"Hear us out," Lorelei sums up.

"Pretty please," Damon adds, smiling sarcastically.

"I will punch you again," Lorelei threatens.

Damon blinks slightly. "I mean... that was kinda fun," he shrugged. The hybrid snorted at that, rolling her eyes at the man.

Lorelei's phone began to ring and she took it out of her pocket, looking at the caller's I.D. Bella. "Dammit," she muttered.

"I'm listening," Bonnie said, looking mostly at Stefan and Lorelei.

"I have to—to fill Elena in on what's goin' on," Lorelei said as she walked away from them without giving them an actual goodbye. "Damon, be nice." She answered the phone. "Ciao."

"One, how the hell do you know about 'peaches' and two, what the fuck is going on?" Elena demanded, "since when are you buddy-buddy with Damon, Stefan, and Bonnie?"

"You and Caroline are not as discreet as you think. I am not buddy-buddy with any of them, we just ran into a fucking snag that mom and I need to sort out. She's doing recon, I'm handling the wolf."

"What snag? What are you two doing that we can't know about? You've been weird all morning."

"Elena, I need you to trust me, okay? Unless you want to deal with..." Lorelei glanced back at Damon and Stefan who were trying and failing to act like they weren't listening. "...you-know-who."

It was silent on the other end. "I want to know. I don't care. You're doing something and I want to be a part of it."

Lorelei rubbed her forehead. "Yes, ma'am. Just... hold on." She turned toward the boys and Bonnie. "I'll be right back," she told them then walked away without waiting for a response. She put up a silencing spell. Then she filled Elena in, at least, with most of it. Not the part where Katherine was hiding the moonstone from Athena and Lorelei nor why.

Once she was finished, she started walking back over. Elena seemed to be taking it well, mostly talking to herself aloud.

"If we don't see each other, I'll see you tonight, alright?" Lorelei asked.

"Am I gonna see you in the morning too?"

Lorelei rolled her eyes, smiling slightly. "Sure, love." They said their goodbyes and then the hybrid tuned back into the conversation.

"That was cute," Damon side-eyed her.

Lorelei smiled sarcastically at him. "Bite me," she snarked.

"I'll let Elena do that for me," Damon smirked back.

Stefan awkwardly coughed, his cheeks flushed a bit from annoyance. Bonnie raised an eyebrow at the exchange. Lorelei just punched Damon's shoulder.

"OW!" Damon yelped, rubbing the spot as he shot Lorelei a glare.

The hybrid ignored him, turning back to Bonnie. "Are you helping?" She asked. She wasn't psychic, so getting a vision from her was out of the question. She could try to look into his mind, but Lorelei didn't have enough practice with that to know what she was looking for. Bonnie was their best bet at the moment even if it was hard for Lorelei to admit.

"With a please at the end," Stefan added.

Lorelei rolled her eyes at him. "Absolutely," she and Damon said together. 

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

MASON WALKED DOWN the steps, asking the guy to move his van so he could leave. He noticed Bonnie trying and failing to get a table out of the back of a movers truck. He laughed a bit, jogging toward her.

"Hey, how'd you get stuck doin' that by yourself?" He asked.

"All the guys bailed," Bonnie replied, her voice tight from strain. She stumbled a bit when the table slipped forward. "Something about draft picks. I don't know, I don't speak that language."

Mason stepped up beside her, grabbing the table from her. "Here, let me give you a hand."

Bonnie begins the aneurysm spell and Mason groans. His hands instantly go to his head, his face scrunching from pain. He stumbles back a bit, sounds of pain coming out of his mouth. He falls to his knees, digging his fingers into his skull to try and make it stop. He screamed.

"Sorry," Bonnie whispers to him, grimacing.

Lorelei comes from behind her, kicking Mason in the face. He falls backward, landing in a heap on the ground, knocked out. "That's for my mother, dick," she muttered.

Damon opened the passenger side door for Bonnie, nudging his head in its direction. The witch begrudgingly got in. Lorelei dug the keys out of Mason's pocket, tossing them to Damon. She then helped Stefan throw Mason into the back of his truck.

They all got in after that, Stefan and Lorelei in the back with Damon and Bonnie up front. 

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

"SO, I MAINLY drink from blood bags. It's not as good as the fresh stuff but it beats the animal blood that Stefan drinks," Caroline said with a shrug.

"So you steal the blood from the hospital?" Liz asked, her brows furrowing.

Caroline shakes her head. "Damon does. Athena has some imported. She has suppliers everywhere. It's so cool. All the vampires get free access whenever they want," she smiles.

"As long as you have blood, you don't need to kill?" Liz asked to make sure. To understand.

Caroline hesitated. She looked at her mother for a moment before deciding to be truthful. "I want to," she admits quietly, "it's my basic nature now. But on a healthy diet, I can control it. I'm getting better at it. Athena said I'm one of the most controlled baby-vamps she's ever seen. I'm better than Stefan and he's been alive for a century and a half. Athena's really good at controlling herself too. She could be surrounded by pools and pools of it and still be calm and collected. Hayley wants to kill too, but that's mostly just when she's a wolf. She's good at controlling herself as well." She smiles at the thought of her girlfriends.

"I don't want this for you," Liz said quietly, looking at her daughter sadly.

Caroline nodded, "I know. But when life gives you lemons..." Her head tilted a bit, looking up at the ceiling. She grinned, "Lori's home." As soon as she says that, the door opens and Lorelei comes in.

"So much shit is happening. Okay," Lorelei said and Caroline snorted. "Ma's looking for Katherine, Damon, and Bonnie are trying to find the Moonstone—"

"Moonstone?" Caroline questioned, confused.

"It's what ties werewolves to the moon and vampires to the sun," Hayley supplied as she walked by with a half bottle of water.

Lorelei snaps and points toward Hayley, nodding. "I think Stefan's jealous of me, Jenna is obsessed with Masquerade balls for some reason, Damon is totally gonna torture Mason b.t.w., and for some fucking reason, I can't find my necklace!"

Caroline holds out said necklace with the Mikaelson and Castillo crest on it. Lorelei clears her throat and takes it.

"Thank you," she said and Caroline nods.

"Stefan's jealous?" Caroline prompts.

Lorelei stares at her for a moment. "Out of all that, that's what you're settling on? Not the torture or anything?" Caroline raised an eyebrow. The hybrid grunts, "okay, okay. I was talking to Elena, and then after we talked, I went back over to Damon, Stefan, and Bonnie, right? And Damon's being an imbecile as usual and he was alluding to Elena and I—" she waved her hand around and Caroline just nodded, understanding what she meant "—and Stefan's just like 'subject change'!"

Caroline hummed, not looking surprised. "I could've told you that," she said with a shrug.

Lorelei frowned, confused. "What?"

"You and your mother are two of the most oblivious people we've ever met. And that's coming from me," Hayley said as she appeared at the entrance.

Caroline nodded in agreement with that statement. "It's cute though so it cancels out," she added.

Lorelei groaned a bit, running a hand through her hair. "I gotta go. I'll see you later," she waved to the two.

"Don't do anything stupid!" Caroline called after her.

"Okay!"

Hayley looked over at Caroline. "She's totally gonna do something stupid."

Caroline huffed. 

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

ELENA WAS STANDING cross from Matt, sorting masquerade masks into different boxes and piles.

"So, where's Caroline?" Matt asked. Elena raised an eyebrow, not looking up from what she was doing. "This is, like, her thing. Can't believe she's not here."

"She's busy," Elena dismissed.

Matt hummed, nodding. "Is she still seeing—"

"Yes."

Matt cleared his throat, nodding once more. Lorelei walked in with a box in her hands. She set it on the table and glanced over at Elena who smiled at her in greeting.

"Anyone seen Mason?" Tyler asked as he walked in.

Lorelei shrugged, "he took off. Said he didn't know when he was comin' back."

Tyler sighed, shaking his head. "So weird!" He walked away.

Lorelei's phone dinged and she glanced down at it.

Bennett

Look in well. Old Lockwood property.

She tapped her fingers against the table, nodding. She glanced over at Elena who tilted her head, moving to walk over. Lorelei shook her head a bit, winking at her. She disappeared out the doors and Elena huffed a bit.

Matt has a small smirk on his face as he looks at Elena. "What?" The brunette demands.

"I'm not even gonna ask."

Elena rolled her eyes. She glanced back at where Lorelei disappeared and made a decision. "I'll be right back," she told him and then rushed off after the hybrid.

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

LORELEI WALKS THROUGH the forest, looking for the well Bonnie was talking about. She hadn't really been around the old Lockwood property before so it was a bit of a struggle.

She smirked when she saw what she was looking for, walking over to it. Stefan appears a second later, having been looking for it as well. "If it isn't Ripper," Lorelei sighs as she looks down into the well through the holes.

Stefan ignores her, looking through the holes as well.

Lorelei looks up when she hears someone approaching, frowning when she sees that it's Elena. "What's going on?" The Doppelganger demanded, a little out of breath.

"I told you no which means you shouldn't be here," Lorelei sighed, reaching her hand out to keep Elena from tripping on the uneven ground in her heeled boots.

"I know, but I am," Elena says. She looks between Stefan and Lorelei. The werewolf was looking back in the grate while Stefan was staring at Elena. "What's going on?" She asked, mostly to Lorelei since she was trying her best to avoid meeting Stefan's eyes.

"Bonnie thinks the moonstone is down here," the hybrid explained. She grabbed the metal lock and ripped it off, tossing it aside. She then grabbed the grate and tossed it onto the floor.

Stefan picked up his flashlight and turned it on, looking down into the hole. Stefan sighed, glancing at Elena before hopping up onto the side.

"I really wouldn't—and there he goes." Lorelei rolled her eyes. Elena and her both peer over the side down at Stefan.

He groans, sounding like he was in pain. "ELENA!" He yelled, panic and agony in his voice.

"What?" Elena called back, her heart starting to beat faster.

"Elena?!"

"What's happening?" Lorelei yelled. She sniffs the air and understands immediately. "Vervain. It's burning him."

Elena's eyes widened. "What?" She looked down into the well, "Stefan!" She looked at Lorelei, panicked. "What are we going to do?"

Lorelei looked around as Elena jumped up onto the side of the well, looking down. The hybrid saw the chains and instantly went to grab them, a plan forming in her head.

"Stefan!" Elena called again. She couldn't see him, but she could hear him moving around a bit. She just needed him to respond.

"Elena!" Caroline said, appearing beside her friend who almost fell in from being startled. Caroline grabbed onto her, pulling her down as Lorelei began to hook the chain through the ring.

"Caroline, Stefan's down there," Elena explained. Caroline went to jump in, but Elena pulled her back. "No, no, there's vervain."

"Caroline, help me," Lorelei said and the blonde quickly did as she was told. 

┍ ∞ ○ ∘ ɹǝʌǝɹoɟ puɐ sʎɐʍlɐ ∘ ○ ∞ ┙

LORELEI HOOKS THE chain around her waist, tugging on it a bit to make sure it's sturdy. Caroline holds onto the other end of the chain, ready to begin lowering her down.

"Lorelei—"

"I'll be fine, Elena," the hybrid told her with a small smile and then she focused back on the task at hand.

"I got you, okay?" Caroline said seriously as she looked at Lorelei. The brunette looked at her, the two watching each other for a second. Lorelei felt her heart constrict a bit.

She nodded. "I know."

Caroline nodded back.

"What's going on?" Bonnie asked, out of breath as she looked at her two friends and Lorelei. Hayley was right behind her. "You just took off in a blur!"

"I heard Elena screaming," Caroline said. She then looked at her girlfriend. "Help her. Now." Hayley grabbed Lorelei's hand and guided her into the well. The hybrid nodded to Caroline and the vampire slowly began to lower her.

She was lowered into the water where she saw Stefan lying face first in the water, only the back of his head and part of his back still showing. She grabbed him, pulling him up. She grimaced at the sight of his skin.

Blistered and burned.

"Bloody hell," she muttered. She undid the chain around her waist and wrapped it around Stefan.

"Lorelei, what's going on down there?" Caroline demanded as she looked over the side.

"Pull him up," she called back, knowing she didn't have to speak very loud and Caroline would hear it. The blonde did as she was told. Hayley grabbed onto Stefan, pulling him up onto the side and letting Bonnie unclip him.

Hayley and Bonnie laid him down on the ground.

"Lorelei!" Elena shouted as Caroline lowered the chain back down, "we're ready for you."

"Hold on!" She shouted back. She had grabbed Stefan's flashlight and was searching the surrounding walls for the moonstone. When that was no use, she began searching the water.

"Lorelei, hurry up," Hayley said, concern lacing her voice. Caroline and she were sharing a look, their anxiety increasing.

Lorelei grinned when she picked up a buoy. "I think I found it!" She pulled it up, a box emerging. She sighed in relief.

Something slithered onto her arm and she screamed, flinging the reptile away from her. Another snake slid up her arms onto her shoulder causing her to scream once more.

"LORELEI!" The three women screamed together.

Lorelei quickly linked the chain around her waist, her hands shaking. One thing that she could never get over was snakes. She thrashed a bit, panic in her screams. She grabbed onto the box, uncaring of the flashlight.

"Bring me up! Bring me up, please!" Lorelei screamed, terror clear in her voice.

Caroline was yanking on the chain as soon as the first word left Lorelei's mouth. As soon as Hayley could, she grabbed Lorelei, pulling her onto the side and ripping the chain off.

Lorelei grabbed onto her, her grip bruising. Hayley didn't mind, hugging to girl close to her. Caroline's hands were checking everywhere for injuries, careful not to make the girl feel uncomfortable. She didn't even care that her hands were burning up from the vervain she was covered in.

"What happened? Why were you screaming?" Caroline asked, holding the girl's face between her hands. She wiped away the girl's tears a bit.

"Snakes," Lorelei grunted, clinging to the two women.

Hayley sighed, kissing the girl's forehead. She leaned her head onto Lorelei's.

Elena leaned against the well, breathing heavily and trying to calm her racing heart. She doesn't think she's ever been more terrified in her life than in that moment. Maybe with the exception of when she and her parents drove off the Wickery Bridge.

"Here," Lorelei muttered, sitting up and making a motion with her hands. A blood bag appeared between her fingers and she held it out to Caroline. "It's animal blood," she explained when she saw the look the blonde was giving her, "for him." She nodded to Stefan who was still on the ground, his body barely healing.

Caroline nodded and took the blood bag, moving over to Stefan. She ripped it open, forcing it into Stefan's mouth.

Hayley took a step back from Lorelei who was shaking her hair out. She set the box down beside her, sighing. She turned to look at Elena but her vision was obstructed by dark hair as the doppelganger crushed her in a hug. She almost fell backward back into the well from the force if it weren't for Hayley placing a hand on Lorelei's back.

"Oof! Hello to you too, Elena," Lorelei muttered, holding onto the girl and burying her face into the doppelganger's neck.

"You scared the shit out of me," Elena whispered, breathing shakily.

Lorelei huffed a bit, "apologies."

Hayley smiled at the two of them, moving over to her girlfriend who was dragging Stefan to a tree so he could sit up. Bonnie was hovering around, unsure of what to do.

Elena stepped back, her cheeks flushed when she realized how long she was holding onto her friend. Lorelei smiled a bit at her then focused her attention on the box. She picked it up, unwrapped it, and flicked it open.

She grinned when she saw the little moonstone. She picked it up, weighing it in her hand as she set the box aside. They were one step closer. "We got the moonstone," Lorelei said, slipping down from the well.

As soon as her feet touched the ground, Katherine appeared. The hybrid startled a bit and Elena gasped, stepping away from her lookalike. Lorelei stepped in front of Elena, staring at Katherine with a hard look in her eye.

Caroline, Hayley, and Stefan were on alert the second she appeared. Bonnie caught on, ready to help if need be.

"Lorelei," Katherine said, her focus solely on the hybrid who was clinging to the moonstone like it was her lifeline.

"You're not getting it," Lorelei said.

"Lorelei, give it to me," the 500-plus-year-old vampire demanded.

Lorelei shook her head. "I can't," she said seriously. Her mother's life was on the line. "You know I can't."

Katherine frowned a bit. She did know. She understood where the little girl was coming from. But Lorelei also knew why Katherine needed it. Her eyes flicked to Elena who was holding onto Lorelei's arm that didn't hold the moonstone. She looked terrified of her. Katherine ignored the ache in her heart.

"Lei sa?" Katherine asked, her gaze flicking back to Lorelei who didn't respond. "Sa che vuoi sacrificarla?" [Does she know?... Does she know you want to sacrifice her?]

Lorelei's knuckles turned white, swallowing hard. "Non voglio che nessuno dei due muoia," Lorelei argued, frowning at Katherine. "Stiamo cercando di trovare una soluzione. Non ha senso dirglielo ancora. Non finché non ne avremo uno." [I don't want either of them to die... We are trying to find a solution. There's no point in telling her yet. Not until we have one.]

Katherine gave her a sad smile. "I know you think that," she said softly like Lorelei was five again and had scraped her knee while playing at the woman's house, "ma se ci avessi creduto davvero, glielo avresti detto." [but if you truly believed that, you would have told her.]

Lorelei's nose scrunched in an effort to stop the tears from falling. How was she supposed to choose between her mother and the only person besides her family who had cared for her? How was she supposed to live with herself with either decision? She just wanted her mom. She wanted her little sister. She wanted her family. And Elena was part of her family now.

"I can't give you the stone," Lorelei whispered, shaking her head.

Katherine sighed, closing her eyes for a moment. "Lorelei, please do not make this harder than it has to be," she gave the girl a pleading look.

Stefan was stunned at seeing any emotion other than smugness, mischievousness, or anger from the woman.

Lorelei gave Katherine a sad look in return. "You're going to have to kill me," she said, her stance shifting just a bit and her hand going to her dagger.

Caroline appeared in front of Lorelei. "No way in hell," she snarled, glaring at Katherine who hadn't moved, "don't even think about it."

"I wasn't," Katherine said back, sighing. She gives Lorelei a look over her shoulder. "Non ti farò mai del male... ma farò qualsiasi cosa per proteggerla." [I won't ever hurt you... but I will do anything to protect her.]

Lorelei's fingers tightened around Elena's that had slid into her hand. "Stessa." [Same.]

Katherine nodded, taking a step back to show she wasn't a threat. She cast one last look at Elena before disappearing into the trees.

Caroline turned to look at Lorelei. "What was that about?" She asked, "what does she want the moonstone for?"

Lorelei didn't respond. Her eyes flitted to the side, but not quite looking at Elena. Hayley and Caroline made eye contact.

"To break the curse, I need... to drain Elena of her blood. A werewolf, vampire, and the doppelganger have to die. And I need a specific moonstone that tied the curse of the Sun and Moon."

That was the moonstone that Athena needed to break her curse. Which means Katherine was trying to stop the ritual from taking place. But why? Not that Caroline wanted her friend to die, not at all. She just doesn't understand why Katherine would want it stopped. 

AN: ooo katherine trying to keep the moonstone away but failing. then trying to get it back. hope you enjoyed!! thank you for reading.

edited:
finished: 01/19/24
wc: 8398