GILBERT HOUSEHOLD

"He what?!"

Aella rolled her eyes at Bonnie's exclamation, pouring her third cup of coffee that morning. She hadn't had the best night's sleep after watching her favorite teacher come back from the dead.

"Imagine being there," Aella grimaced as she took a sip of the liquid gold in her mug. "One minute he was just lying there and I'm mourning the fact that the only teacher who ever believed in me is dead, and then bam! He wakes up, saying his ring is this all-powerful resurrection stone."

Caroline gasped, "Like Voldemort."

Aella rolled her eyes, "What?! No, C, that's ridiculous!" Elena nodded in agreement until Aella continued. "Nicolas Flamel created and used the resurrection stone, Voldemort just wanted to take advantage of its properties that would make him immortal."

Caroline frowned, "I thought that was Professor Quirrel?"

It was Bonnie's turn to roll her eyes, "No. Professor Quirrel was just a patsy for Voldemort, he only needed the stone to get Voldemort from out of his head."

Elena couldn't believe her ears as they compared Harry Potter to their situation and how serious they were all being. Aella she could imagine, but Caroline and Bonnie too?

"God!" Aella shivered as a thought came to her. "Could you imagine if Quirrel met a witch he wanted to get frisky with, and he's got Voldemort riding along for the journey."

Caroline and Bonnie's noses pucked at the thought until Elena clapped between the three girls, "Hello! How did we get from Ric being dead then alive to Voldemort having a ménage à trois with Quirrel?"

The three girls looked to the floor and mumbled out their own sorries, as Elena ran her hands through her hair, "It'd just be nice if we could get through one day without having to deal with any of it. No vampire mother or crazy brothers."

It was awkward as the three girls looked between themselves. This was why they had hesitated to tell Elena about the supernatural world; she had only been in it for a few weeks and was already needing a break.

Bonnie seemed the brave one to speak up next, "Speaking of crazy brothers. Damon actually killed Mr. Saltzman, even if he didn't die, Damon's main focus was killing a defenseless man."

Aella remembered the stake that Damon had used to kill Ric; she knew that Stefan and Damon didn't have stakes lying around the house. Ric had gone to the Boarding House with one intention, to kill Damon, but he had underestimated the emotional vampire.

Elena turned to Bonnie, "Do you think he's still trying to find Katherine?"

Caroline scoffed, "You mean the chick that happily abandoned him for 145 years? I'm gonna say that's a negative."

Bonnie shrugged, "Well, Katherine or no Katherine, what happened to Mr. Saltzman shows that Damon is a livewire, and everyone needs to be careful around him."

Aella drank the remaining liquid in her coffee, "Couldn't agree more, cuz." She shouted up to Jeremy that they were going to be late before turning to Caroline with a sly smirk on her face, "So how's Gemma Tellar Morrow?"

Caroline gathered up her stuff as Bonnie smirked at the Sons of Anarchy reference as Elena silently questioned Aella with a brow raised. When Caroline answered, she emphasized on the correct name to whom Aella was referencing, "Matt's Mom, didn't say much after the incident."

Elena's elbow met Aella ribs as the smirk grew on the brunette's face at Caroline's answer, "What did you do?"

The witch only shrugged, as she rinsed out her mug and placed it in the dishwasher, "What any good friend would do."

They heard Jeremy coming down the stairs and made their way to the door. Aella frowned when she realized they would have a substitute in History, and hoped to God it wasn't Mrs. Halpern - her idea of fun was Trigonometry Bingo.

Jeremy's eyes met her frown as he moved towards the door, and jokingly asked, "Who died?"

"Mr. Satzman," Aella answered without thinking. When Jeremy's eyes widened at the death of his favorite teacher Aella was quick to correct her mistake, "But now he's alive again."

Jeremy was perplexed, and Elena rolled her eyes, "We'll explain in the car."

Aella strolled after them, frowning softly again, "You know, I was so close to calling the Ghostbusters line, but Stefan wouldn't let me."

MYSTIC FALLS HIGH SCHOOL

Matt and Caroline walked down the hall of their school, their entwined hands swinging to their own beat. Matt was thinking of a way to make it up to Caroline after his Mom's behavior the previous night,

"We can watch a movie at my place?"

Caroline looked to him uncertainly with a brow raised, "With your mom and a six-pack as she glares at me between sips?"

Matt wanted to argue with that statement, but deep down knew his girlfriend was speaking only the truth, "Well, how about we go out somewhere?"

Caroline was just about to answer when she saw Stefan greet Aella at her locker with a soft kiss on the lips. She couldn't help but smile softly at the couple as she saw the stress on Stefan's face ease as soon as he was with his girlfriend. Then an idea came to Caroline, and she turned to Matt, smiling widely, "How about a double date?"

Matt's eyes followed Caroline's devious ones, and he couldn't help but snort when he saw who she had picked as the second half to her double date idea, "Aella and Stefan?" Matt turned back to Caroline, "How the hell are you going to get Aella to agree to a double date?" 

"Em, excuse me?" Caroline looked at him, astounded, "You do know she's my best friend, right?"

"Right," Matt nodded with a grin. He loved it when Caroline got in these moods.

"It is explicitly written that our BFF pact states that we cannot marry without the other dating to avoid that awkward third wheel!" The blonde exclaimed, "Therefore, how can we know if as couples, we can hang out while one is married if we don't test it out beforehand."

Matt was super confused, "Care, we're only 17, we're not getting married..."

"Yet!" Caroline poked at his muscled bicep. "We've only just started dating so we have no clue, but those two-" she nodded her head at Aella and Stefan, who held each other close as they spoke between themselves "-if they don't marry there is seriously something wrong with this world!"

Matt pulled Caroline into him and kissed her crown, "See, you do have feelings."

Caroline hit his arm at the tease, and he pulled back, laughing, "I gotta go see Ty about a move we're working on for the next game."

"Okay," Caroline murmured as he kissed her lips.

"Good luck with Lia," he waved, and then he was gone.

Caroline leaned against the random locker as she stared over at the loving couple, a mischievous smile on her lips, "Oh, she'll go on this date."

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"And then she bought me a burger... a burger Stefan!!"

Stefan watched amused as Aella paced in front of him from his perch on the outside picnic tables. Ric had, of course, called in ill, and as a substitute teacher wasn't available, the class had been given a study hour. It was ten minutes into the fifty-minute lesson, Aella was still ranting about her blonde best friend; most of the curses he was sure he could only hear thanks to his vampiric hearing.

"And it wasn't just a normal burger, Stefan," Aella pointed at him accusingly, "It was the Grill's Clocktower Burger. Caramelized Onion, Smoked Applewood Bacon, Cheddar Cheese, and extra Onion Rings..." Aella glared down at her stomach, "UGH! Why did you have to betray me!?!"

Stefan was about to finally ask what Caroline wanted when Aella's finger swung to him again, "And what did she want, I bet you're asking..." Her hands covered her eyes as she scoffed at the thought, "She wants me and you... you and I... to go... " Aella's eyes met his, and she swallowed her disgust, "... on a double date."

A grin began to form on Stefan's face, and Aella was quick to run over and cover it, "Don't you grin Stefan Salvatore! I am not a normal teenage girl, you are certainly not a human teenage boy! We. Do. Not. Do. Normal!"

Stefan's laughter filtered through the gaps between Aella's fingers, and she pulled away, glaring at her boyfriend. He smiled innocently at her, "Apart from us not being normal, what's so bad about going out with your best friend? Plus, you'll be with another one of your friends because she just so happens to be dating him... something, I must point out, you plotted to happen?"

Aella just stared at him, Stefan's grin widened at a speechless Aella, who scowled at him as she realized she had no argument. Instead, she jutted her hip out and crossed her arms, "Have you ever even been on a double date before?"

Stefan nodded proudly, "I have."

All emotions dropped from Aella's face as well as her arms as she immediately questioned, "When?"

Stefan loved a jealous Aella, it was a comical as it was humbling, "'72, Hef and the twins."

"What?" His girlfriend's eyes widened at the familiar name.

Stefan couldn't help but tease her, "Yeah... playmates. I got Miss June."

"Mi..miss Ju..june?" Aella stuttered out. "Are you serious?"

Stefan's hands encircled Aella's waist and pulled her onto his lap, "Miss June was a redhead and had blue eyes. Not the brunette with hypnotizing green eyes that took me over one hundred years to find and realize nothing was going to be the same without her."

As his lips pecked the top of her hair, Aella wined into his neck, "Fine. I'll go on the damn date."

GILBERT HOUSEHOLD

Aella getting ready for a date with Stefan:

"It'll be fun, he said. A drama-free night, he said," Aella muttered to herself as she scrolled through her phone reading Stefan's encouraging messages. "Well, you're not hiding in your own closet from the glam squad!"

And that's where she was right now, hiding in her closet 'looking' for a dress Caroline wanted her to wear.

"Aella! Get your ass out here and stop hiding!" Caroline shouted, causing her to stick her tongue out at the door, to where she knew Caroline was sitting.

And probably grinning.

Widely.

"I still can't believe you're all here for this," Aella muttered to her friends, as she walked out with her phone and dress in hand. She gestured to Caroline, annoyed, "And why are you even here, you have a date too!"

"Oh, shut up!" Bonnie rolled her eyes, chewing on a twizzler.

"We had to be here!" Elena giggled, taking a mouth full of M&Ms.

"Aella in a dress that's not for a ball or dance? I had to be here!" Caroline smiled brightly, holding her camera, ready to take a million pictures of her best friend.

"Why am I dressing up?" Aella raised her brow. "He's seen me naked, do I need to dress up?"

Caroline grinned, "Well, if you really want to surprise Stefan, you can have my 5-inch heels on and nothing else when he walks in the door?"

Elena gasped at the suggestion while Bonnie just giggled.

It was quiet as Aella looked down at the dress and the heels, Caroline had brought over, before she opened her mouth, "Ca-

"-don't even ask if you can do that, Aella Bennett!" Caroline commanded, not looking up from the camera. "You will be wearing a dress tonight, and I will be taking pictures."

Aella glared at her blonde best friend, then walked back in the closet and slammed the door.

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"So how much did she hate you all being there?" Jenna smirked over at Elena and Bonnie; they had both decided to have a girl's night while Caroline and Aella went on their double date.

"Oh, she was fuming!" Bonnie exclaimed, laid out on the couch with a bowl of popcorn on her lap. "It was awesome."

Both Jenna and Elena raised their brows at Bonnie as she continued to eat the popcorn. Both were uneasy at hearing the glee in the dark-haired girls' voice... especially towards her cousin.

Elena decided to answer with a more diplomatic approach, "She whined, she argued, she suggested going naked... typical Aella. She and Caroline headed over to C's house so she could finally get ready, and it would be easier for the boys to pick them up."

Jenna decided to ignore Bonnieks harshness and looked to her niece, "Yeah, I suppose it would be awkward for Matt to pick up his new girlfriend at the home of his old girlfriend."

Elena frowned, "I never thought of it that way."

Bonnie scoffed, "Try telling that to Kelly Donovan... I'm pretty sure she'd kill Caroline just so you and Matt would have a chance again."

Jenna's brow raised even higher, and she leaned closer to her niece, "Is she okay?"

Elena leaned a little closer to her Aunt, "She and Aella are not at their best. Potential future boyfriend used her and kidnapped her. And she's been Sheila's carer for the last few weeks after bunking off previous visits and leaving all of them to, A... so no."

"Okay then..." With a nod, Jenna stepped away from the girls and called for Jeremy. "I've got to meet someone about your dad's clinic-" Jeremy stepped into the room, "And frowny here is joining me."

Jeremy looked to his Aunt, confused, "What?"

Jenna pushed Jeremy to the door, "I'll tell you in the car-" she pointed to Elena, "-and you keep me updated with Aella."

Jeremy only huffed as they walked out, "What's with telling me things in the car with this family?!"

Elena waved her Aunt and brother off, and when she heard the car pull away from the residence, she looked to Bonnie. Her best friend remained eating and ignored Elena, her focus on the TV that was only showing the local news.

"So, are we going to ignore the giant elephant in the room?"

Bonnie's continuous movement of her hand to popcorn, popcorn to her mouth, paused only for a second until it resumed, and Bonnie just shrugged, "It's not worth talking about."

Elena only raised her brow, and that's when Bonnie turned towards her.

"I can't just pretend that everything's okay, okay? Everything my Grams did was to protect us from those vampires in the tomb, and she nearly died," Bonnie suddenly snapped. "It was so close. Still, the tomb vampires looked to have escaped, the first guy I like in a long time turns out to be a vampire, Damon is killing people that we know. Yet, it feels we're only dipping our toes into the supernatural world."

Elena sighed sadly, "I'm so sorry, Bonnie." She scooted closer, "What can I do to make it better?"

"That's just it, there's nothing you can do," Bonnie shrugged helplessly. "I want to blame Stefan and Damon, but that's not fair to Stefan, who has done nothing wrong. Damon, I don't care what happens to him."

Elena was relieved that Bonnie was talking to her and broached the subject that she knew was touchy with her best friend, "And Aella."

Bonnie's lips thinned, and she looked away, so Elena decided to go a step further. "There is just me and you in the house, no Jeremy, no Jenna, and definitely no Aella. Talk to me, what's going on with you and Aella, no judgment."

That seemed to be the incentive Bonnie needed, and she rolled her eyes, "Let's discuss the all great Aella Bennett, the strongest witch of my entire bloodline. Aella, the one person who wasn't looking for a boyfriend; was able to snag Stefan, who is just the kind of boyfriend we all want..." she glanced up to Elena "-and don't tell me you don't want what they have. Aella literally is the all perfect, nothing goes wrong, girl that we should hate... but how can we when she's not only one of my best friends but also my cousin."

Elena was taken aback and decided to summarise Bonnie's words, "So you're angry with Aella because she is a good friend/cousin/person." No reaction. "She fell in love with Stefan, and he with her." A little twitch but nothing substantial. "And she's more powerful."

Bonnie turned on Elena, "She's not more powerful! She's just had longer to practice her magic."

Bingo.

"Bonnie," Elena sighed heavily. "I'm not going to even imagine what it was like, not only to find out you're a witch, and you have these amazing powers... Then you also find out that everyone seemed to know except you." Bonnie nodded hopefully at her words, but that quickly turned around when Elena continued, "But, that's not Aella's fault. Her parents and grandparents and great grandparents had magic, that was a natural environment for her to learn and use her magic. If anything, she was always the one championing for you to learn about your magic."

Bonnie scowled, her jealousy overtaking all of her common sense, "You're just like the rest of the Aella Bennett fan club!"

"I'm not!" Elena shook her head, furiously, "I'm looking at this from a third party view. I know how hard it is for you to learn just the basic magic while Aella can take Damon down with just a look, that has to be hard, but it's not her fault."

Bonnie crossed her arms furiously, but before she could say anything, Elena held up her hand to her, "Just think of what you have in common, rather than what you don't."

When Bonnie didn't speak, Elena took this as a metaphorical nod to continue, "If it wasn't for you, Aella, and Caroline; I wouldn't have survived since the accident. You're both fiercely protective of your friends and family. You are both strong, independent women. And you both have these amazing powers that should be celebrated, not compared."

Bonnie was quiet, and Elena hoped her words helped Bonnie with her unusual anger towards Aella. But when Bonnie turned back to the TV and began eating her popcorn again, she knew that her stubborn best friend had decided to no longer listen.

Bonnie sighed tensely, "Look, Elena, I'm not gonna put you in a situation where you have to choose sides, but just know I'm just having a hard time with it, okay? I have to figure out myself. Now, what are we watching?"

Elena was able to mumble it was Bonnie's choice, and could only watch her best friend as Bonnie searched for a DVD to watch. She now knew this tension between Aella and Bonnie was terrible; moreover, it needed to be sorted out before it got any worse.