(act one, chapter twenty: Isobel)

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I skipped episode 20 'Blood Brothers' since it was like 90% flashbacks and Elena and Damon getting Stefan to drink blood sooooo here's the next chapter mwah x

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"Isobel." Alaric greeted as his ex-wife sat down next to him in the grill.

"It's good to see you." She replied, sitting down and taking off her coat. "You look good. I hear that you're a high school history teacher? How is that?" She asked him just so that there would be conversation.

But Alaric had other plans.

"Where have you been, Isobel?" 

"I don't have any reasons that are gonna comfort you. I don't have any explanations that are gonna satisfy you. I wanted this." Isobel told him, finally turning to look at him. She had wanted to become a vampire ever since she found out they were real. She became one. Even if it meant leaving her husband, who she once loved very dearly, behind without a goodbye.

"It's that simple?" 

Isobel nodded. "You were supposed to mourn me, and move on." Oh yes, that had been the plan as soon as she found Katherine and found a vampire to turn her.

"You were my wife and I loved you. How could I not search for you?" He asked her. Had she really thought he would let her go without a second thought? After he saw Damon suck the blood out of her until she was dead? After she gave him that ring that would always protect him from dying because of a supernatural.

"Because I wasn't lost, Rick." She said, taking out a paper out of her jacket, which hang on the chair she sat on, and wrote something down on it. "I understand that you know my daughter Elena and I hear that she's been looking for me, so." She handed the paper to Alaric. "I want you to arrange for a meeting with us. "

Alaric looked down at the paper with a frown plastered on his face. "You want me to deliver a message?" He asked her confused. She came all this way back just for that? A daughter she abandoned?

Isobel smiled while nodded.

Alaric scoffed before throwing the paper down on the bar. "Screw you. You selfish bitch." He got up and left the Grill in a quick pace. Wanting to get as far away as possible from the person he once called his wife. 

Once on the parking lot where Alaric was going to his car, Isobel arrived and stood behind him. He turned around, having heard her arriving because of her vampire speed.

"What do you want from me?"

"I told you." Isobel answered.

"I'm not gonna do anything for you." Alaric said, turning back around so that he could get into his car and drive away to his apartment.

But Isobel had another plan in mind, she sped over to him, strangled him and pushed him against his car, the veins under her eyes clearly showing. "You better tell Elena that I want to meet or I'm gonna start killing the citizens of this town one by one and I'm gonna start with your history students. Got it?"

She threw him on the ground and gave him the paper from inside. 

"Or maybe I should start with your daughter. Isn't it just ironic that you had a daughter as well before we met?" And with that Isobel left him. She left him more angry than he ever was before.

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Buffy was making her way into the cafeteria and the minute she was even inside the room, Alaric was making his way over to her. "Come with me. We need to talk." And he was already walking away.

"Actually I can't. I'm really busy with the Miss Mystic Float with Bonnie and Caroline, so whatever vampire crap is going on, is just gonna have to wait. But Elena and Stefan are over there maybe you can tell them more you ever tell me. Bye now." She waved at him before walking over to Bonnie and Caroline.

"What's going on with Buffy?" Alaric asked as he want over to Elena and Stefan.

"I don't know. She's been acting weird for a few days now." Elena answered. "I think she has just been busy with Miss Mystic Falls and now with the float. I wouldn't know what else could be wrong." She then realized something. "Has she been acting weird towards you as well?" She asked him as the three of them started to leave the cafeteria. 

"I told her I needed to talk to her and she told me that whatever vampire crap is going on right now, should just have to wait." Alaric replied to her question.

"Is it possible that she knows?" Elena asked him.

"Knows what?"

"That you are her dad." Elena answered and Alaric looked surprised at her.

"How do you know?"

"Jenna told me." Elena explained.

"No, it's not possible. Jenna and I we're gonna tell her together and as far as I know, she hasn't done that yet." 

Elena nodded.

Meanwhile with Buffy, Bonnie and Caroline, Caroline was talking about the float and how they wanted to make it this year. "Let's reference last years Miss Mystic float." She typed the words 'Mystic Falls Founders' Day" into Bing on her computer and she picked the most clear photo between them and showed it to Buffy and Bonnie. "This is what they did last year and this is exactly what we don't want to do."

"Okay! So, what are we doing?" Bonnie asked the blonde.

"Southern classic elegance." Caroline answered, happily.

"Gone with the Wind?" Buffy questioned her.

"How'd you know?" Caroline gasped at her.

"You channel Scarlett, daily. Just like me."

"So true!" All the three girls laughed together until Caroline started looking around. 

"Where's Elena? She's supposed to be helping."

"I don't know." Bonnie replied. 

"She's with Mr. Saltzman." Buffy replied with the roll of her eyes.

"Okay, what's the deal?" Caroline asked while looking at Bonnie.

"What do you mean?" Bonnie asked her, even though she already knew what Caroline meant.

"Don't play dumb. You and Elena are fighting. Spill!"

"It's nothing." Bonnie shrugged.

"You know this whole float is supposed to be about friends creating something together and everyone is fighting. Matt and Tyler hate each other, Buffy and Elena are fighting even though Elena doesn't know that and you and Elena are on the outs and I don't like it! And I can't fix it if I don't know what's wrong.""I can't talk about it, Caroline, I'm sorry." 

"Fine." Caroline went back to her research and when she was to busy to even notice, Buffy started talking to Bonnie.

"She knows, Bon."

"Knows what?" Bonnie asked her.

"About the Salvatores, the tomb vampires, Anna. She knows everything except for what happened between you and Elena and Stefan. I didn't tell her since it's your thing to tell. You don't have to tell, like I said it's your thing, but now you know that she knows and-" Buffy looked at the exit of the cafeteria to see a woman looking at her. More like staring at her. "I need to go to the bathroom."

"Buffy what-" Bonnie said but Buffy was already walking away, after the woman.
"Yoo-hoo miss who we all thought was dead, but isn't."

"Buffy." Isobel greeted from behind her.

"If you are looking for your husband or daughter. They're in there." She pointed at Alaric's history classroom.

"I know." Isobel said to her while listening in on the conversation that was happening inside that very room right now. "I want you to make clear that she needs to have a meeting with me."

"Go tell her yourself." Buffy said, walking away again but this time Isobel sped in front of her. 

"You should do it. I'm afraid that Alaric won't get my daughter convinced to meet me and I really need something from her, you see? And I think as her cousin you'll have a much better impact on her."

"Yeah, I still don't think so."

"Maybe some motivation? The blonde girl you were with? Caroline, that's her name right? Well, maybe-"

"Has anyone ever told you that you are a gigantic bitch?"

Oh, well, I guess I did now.

"Tell her to meet me, or I'll just have to kill Caroline or maybe Bonnie." Isobel's voice harder now.

And before she knew Buffy slapped her. Harder than she had hoped she could. And Isobel hand't seen it coming either.

"Maybe I don't even need Caroline or Bonnie, maybe I just need to kill you."  Isobel vamp sped over to her and bit her neck, reviving her head back earlier than expected. 

"Oh, so your not just a bitch, you're also a dumb bitch." Buffy said to her. "I am drinking vervain like it's fucking water. Did you really think that Damon wasn't going to give vervain to me when they're is a whole town full of vampires roaming around free after more than 100 years? Well now that they're gone, I guessed I didn't have to do that anymore but you proved me wrong. Oh, so wrong." 

Isobel sped forwards again, but this time Buffy was thinking quicker.

"HELP!" She yelled while smiling sweetly at the woman in front of her and as expected Isobel made a run for it while the four came storming out of Alaric's classroom.

"Buffy!" Elena yelled. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just a bug on my hand." She said turning to the four. "Are you going to meet with her. Isobel?"

"I'm not sure, B."

"Well you should."

"You think so."

"Well, I can't make that decision for you. Unlike you." She whispered the last part before going back to her friends.

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"Have you seen Anna?" Jeremy asked her as soon as he saw her at the back of the school where everyone was for the parade.

"No, why?" Buffy asked him.

"Because she isn't responding and I am getting worried." 

"I'll help you look." Buffy offered and Jeremy nodded in appreciation. "You take that side, I'll take this one."

But after ten minutes of looking they still hadn't found anything. When they crossed paths, Jeremy saw Elena and called her over to him and Buffy.

"Hey, have you seen Stefan? I need to find him." Elena said the moment she stood next to them.

"No, not lately." Jeremy answered. "Listen, do you have a second?"

"Yeah. What's up? What's going on?" Elena asked.

"Well, it's Anna. I've left her all this messages and she hasn't gotten back to me, not even a text." "Anna? I didn't know that you guys were still friends." Elena spoke with surprise.

"What? Can't they be?" Buffy asked and Elena looked at her bewildered.

"We're more than friends. Look, something could be seriously wrong and if you know anything you've got to tell me." Jeremy said and Buffy could see that he was seriously worrying. What if really something serious had happened to her?

"I haven't talked to her, Jer." Elena answered.

"Are you lying to me right now?" Jeremy asked her with anger. 

"Why do you say that?" The older Gilbert asked her little brother in confusion.

"'Cause that's what you do, Elena, lying. You lie about everything. I know what Anna is and I know that you know. So tell me, do you have any idea where she is?" He asked her once more, speaking more slow from his anger.

"No." She said, shaking her head. "But Jer-" Jeremy started to walk away from her. 

"Jeremy wait! Jeremy!" Elena called after him but the Gilbert just kept walking.

"Did you tell him?" Elena asked Buffy, turning back to her.

"He figured it out himself. He is not stupid, you know?" Buffy said. "And he is kinda right Elena. The only thing you do the last time is lying. Oh, and compelling because apparently you suddenly have the right to decide what we know and what we don't." She said to her sister, it was as if Jeremy's anger was inside her now. "We were supposed to be in this together. Of course it was stupid of us to think that holding it back from him was for his own protection. Well you know what Elena? I'm glad he found it out.  That at least let me see that we should've told him from the start. Even Bonnie found out too late, Elena. What if it had been Jeremy who got to know that vampires existed like Bonnie had back then? What else have you fucking lied about, Elena, huh?"

"Are you talking about Mr. Saltzman right now?" Elena asked her confused.

"You knew about that too?" Buffy asked her, not believing what she was hearing.

"What else are you talking about?" Elena asked her. It was too much at the moment. Jeremy knows about vampires. Buffy is mad at her for something she had no clue for. Then there's Isobel who wants that device.

"You knew that he was my father and you didn't tell me?"

"I thought it was better if Jenna told you."

"Oh my God, Elena, you should hear yourself right now." Buffy scoffed, leaving her cousin standing alone.

"Buffy-!" But this time she had no time to keep yelling for Buffy to come back since Isobel stood in front of her, ready for trouble.

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There was a knock on her door, and thinking that it was Jeremy since they were the only one at home, she allowed the person inside.

"Oh, never mind." Buffy said, putting her book aside as Elena walked in. 

"We need to talk."

"No, we really don't." Buffy replied, turning her back to Elena.

"Listen-"

"No, I think your journal and the conversation from a few hours ago pretty much covered it."

"You read my journal?" Elena asked her.

"And save me the speech about invasion of privacy because I read a section about Damon erasing mine and Jeremy's memory about what happened to Vicki that night."

"B, you don't understand. The night that Vicki died, it was like mom and dad died all over again. It was all over Jeremy's face and it hurt so much to see him like that. I just wanted to take away his pain." Elena explained to her.

"Well, you had no right to do that, Elena. Not with Jeremy, not with me. Why did you even remove my memories?" 

"Because she attacked you and-" Elena was cut off.

"And so? We got attacked at school with that vampire. You didn't remove my memories then?"

"Because you had vervain around your neck."

"And if I didn't? Would you still have done it?"

Elena stayed silent.

"Oh, wow, Elena. I thought we were closer than that." Buffy said to her. "Now if you don't mind, leave." 

"Buffy."

"Leave!" She yelled at her sister and as soon as Elena was on the hall, she slammed the door shut. Buffy picked up her chair and sat it down in front of her closet so she could stand on it to take her bag off it and stuffed it with stuff she would need for the next few days. 

When she was done packing, she knocked on Jeremy's door.

"Yeah." Jeremy said as he opened the door. 

"I'm going to stay at Caroline's for a few days. I just can't face my mom anymore, Jer. And now with Elena, the only person I can stand to look at in this house is you." She said as she hugged Jeremy. "If you want to stay here, that's okay. If you don't, I'm sure Liz always has an extra room, okay?"

"Thanks." Jeremy smiled at her before she walked off the stairs and he went back inside his room to comfort his girlfriend about her mother.  

And her day got even worse when she came downstairs and opened the front door.

"Sweetheart, where are you going?" Jenna asked as they all stood still and noticed the bag over her shoulder.

"Would you look at that? Everyone's favourite lovey dovey couple." Buffy replied, passing right next to them to get outside.

"Buffy, what's going on?" Jenna asked her even more confused.

"Oh, that's funny."

It's actually not funny at all

"Buffy-" Alaric started but Buffy cut him off as soon as he started speaking.

"No, you need to shut up. What makes you think you even have the right to even talk to me right now?" She snapped at Alaric and both parents were taken back by her outburst.

"Honey, I'm sure that we can talk about what's wrong." Jenna tried again.

"Cut the crap. You know exactly what's wrong."

"No, I don't." Jenna said, but she knew this wasn't good either. Well, she had an idea, but she was praying that it wasn't that.

"You what's even better. Keep your lies, mom, I don't need to hear them anymore. I'm going to Caroline's and don't you dare to follow me." She said, before walking away. "You know, now I understand how easy it is to leave." She turned to Alaric. "Maybe you should do it again." And this time she stepped in her car and drove away. 

"She knows." Elena said as she stormed downstairs to hear the fight.

"You think?" Jenna asked her with sarcasm. "How? Did you tell her? You were the only other person who knew." Jenna asked her angry. 

"No, she found out. I don't know how."

"Shit!" Jenna screamed as she walked inside the Gilbert house.

"Have you really no idea how she knows?" Alaric asked Elena.

"No. She just knows. That's why she's been acting strange for days."

"Dammit! I should've told her straight away." 

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Be sure to comment. I love reading them and it keeps me motivated!

Words: 2882

Posted: June 26, 2024