Tangled Affair

The New Deal

September 26, 2010

"I feel like I'm going crazy." Elena confided to Louise and Bonnie as they sat around a table in Grill. "Totally paranoid all the time."

"You have a right to be." Louise agreed. "Klaus is still out there and he knows you and Damon tried to kill him."

"Why hasn't he made a move?" Elena asked, throwing her hands up. No one had an answer, however rhetorical her question might have been, and that frightened them more. "There has been no sign of him. Nothing." She touched her forehead and closed her eyes. "Just my slow spiral into insanity."

"Join the club." Bonnie retorted. "Every time I close my eyes, I have that nightmare. On repeat."

"The same dream?" Louise asked with furrowed brows, referring to Bonnie's reoccurring dream about Klaus' coffins.

Bonnie grimaced. "Yeah! Four coffins, Klaus is in one of them. It's weird."

"What if it's not just some dream? What if it's like...you know...witch dream?" Elena suggested, taking a sip of her coffee.

The witch shrugged. "It's just stress. I'll figure it out." Her eyes darted between the two brunettes. "And what about Stefan? Has there been any sign of him?"

Elena flinched internally before she shook her head. "He betrayed us Bonnie." She let out a heavy sigh. "The Stefan that we know is gone."

Bonnie turned to Louise. "How is Damon handling it?"

"Damon is...Damon." Louise answered nonchalantly before looking in Damon's direction, smiling when she caught his gaze. The expression faded quickly as she registered his obvious displeasure. A slight frown appeared between her brows as she began to rise to her feet. Bonnie's hand on her wrist halted the movement, however.

"Are you going somewhere?"

"Yeah, I, um..."

"Louise, wait," Bonnie said pulling her friend's hand and keeping her in her seat. Damon was relieved to see her sink back to her seat. Reluctantly, she tore her focus from him and back to her friends. "I've been meaning to ask you something."

"Okay...what?" Louise asked after Bonnie hesitated. The witch cast a wary look in Damon direction, still not realising he was watching, and spoke so quietly he had to strain to hear her.

"Has Damon...I mean are you still..." she swallowed and looked down at her hands for a moment before drawing a fortifying breath and squaring her shoulders. "Has he turned you into a vampire yet?"

Louise's jaw dropped and she reeled back as if she'd been slapped, but it was nothing to the metaphorical sucker punch to the gut that robbed Damon of breath. Time seemed to stop as Bonnie's question crashed over him, pounding against his brain like a jackhammer. Had he turned her? Goddadmit. Leave it to the witch to assume the worst of him. He was still the bad guy, still incapable of being trusted with Louise.

And what's this yet bullshit? he wondered bitterly, clenching his jaw. Had Louise been discussing it with her friend? Turning her was none of Elena or Bonnie's business, it was between him and Louise, nobody else.

Reigning in his anger, he caught Louise staring at him with trepidation as he realised he'd missed her response.

Shaking his head, he looked away and abruptly slammed his glass on the bar. "Oh man I can't believe you're making me drink alone."

"I'm busy." Alaric responded, not even bothering to look up from the paper he was currently grading.

Damon scoffed. "It's the eve of Klaus-ageddon. You're doing homework?"