——- MADDIE WOKE UP FEELING DREAD deep in her stomach. Before she went to sleep, she had a voicemail from Bonnie, stating that Grams had died. Bonnie told her she didn't blame Maddie, nor did she blame Lily. She blamed Damon and Stefan. Bonnie had explained that she could understand if Maddie didn't want to talk to her. Maddie was feeling guilty and remorse. Of course Bonnie knew that Maddie was concerned for Grams, but Bonnie explained that Bennett's were stubborn. "Maddie.." Maddie felt someone playing with her hair as she laid in bed. "Come on love.." Maddie opened her eyes, seeing Isaiah sitting across from her, giving a gentle smile. "Grams died, Isaiah and I feel horrible. I should hate my brother's for even dragging her and Bonnie, but... I can't, they're my brothers, my family. I can't and I feel so guilty for Bonnie. Bonnie's with her dad and I don't.. I don't know if she'll forgive me." Maddie yelled in frustration, with tears falling down her cheeks, standing and pacing in her bedroom. Isaiah watched her, not saying a word.  Haley stood by the doorway, after hearing Maddie's voice rise in volume. "Maddie.." Haley started. "No, aunt Hales, it's MY fault that Grams died, I asked repeatedly that she didn't need to, but she insisted. But I should've said or done something." Maddie had tears falling. Haley walked toward her niece, grabbing Maddie into her arms, hugging her. Isaiah stayed sitting on her bed, watching the aunt/niece hug it out. Maddie sniffled. "It's my fault." Maddie cried into Haley's shoulder. Haley glanced over toward Isaiah in concern and worry. Isaiah glanced at Maddie, worried and concerned for her as well.

A few minutes later, Maddie had calmed down by Haley and Isaiah, as Jenna and Elena walked into the house. "Maddie!" They heard Jenna call from the kitchen. Maddie nodded, wiping her eyes. "Come on." Maddie turned around, walking toward the doorway. Haley and Isaiah shared a worried glance, but followed her downstairs. Maddie's eyes furrowed as she heard Elena and Jenna talking. "Pregnant teenage runaway with a toddler and another in the way?" Jenna asked. "Probably not. First name? Maybe. But where'd she get Peterson?" Classmate? Best friend? So I Binged it." Jenna pulled up the internet, typing in a name in the search engine. "I searched for all the Petersons in this area born the same year as Isobel." She typed in 'Petersons' 'Grove, Hill, Virginia.' "I found three. Two men and a woman, Trudie, who lived in Grove Hill, Virginia." Maddie widened her eyes. "That's not far from here." Maddie told Jenna. Jenna nodded. "Well, watch this." Jenna told them. Jenna types in 'Trudie Peterson' 'Grove Hill High School.' Jenna hit one of the options, revealing a picture, among a lot, that had two girls in it. One was brunette, the other was blonde. 'Trudie Peterson and Isabel Flemming.' Elena smiled. "Isobel." She looked at Maddie smugly. "She was a cheerleader." Maddie rolled her eyes, but smiled. "It says Trudie still lives there." Haley commented in, glancing at the screen. Jenna handed Maddie a post-it note. "That's her address." Maddie glanced at Elena. In one way, Maddie was nervous of meeting her mother, but in another, she was hurt and angry that Isabel gave her up along with Elena. "What about Isobel." Haley asked. "I couldn't find anything about her." Jenna told them. Maddie looked disappointed, whilst Elena seemed disheartened, sitting down at the table. Jenna hesitated. "Listen. There's something else. Mr. Saltzman, Ric, his wife was from around here, and her name was also Isobel." Maddie noticed the past tense, apparently as did Elena. "Wait." Elena told her. "'Was', as in..." Jenna hesitated sadly. "She died." Maddie frowned, tracing a picture on the screen of Isabel. Maddie had a feeling that 'she died' was a cover up, along with the realization of why Mr. Saltzman was there. She had to tell Jeremy.

As Maddie walked into Jeremy's room, knowing Stefan was there for Elena, she decided to explain what just happened. "Jer, I found something." Maddie sat on his bed, watching Jeremy turn around with his sketchbook on the desk. Jeremy raised an eyebrow. "I think we found my mother, well, I assume she's dead." Maddie fiddled with her shirt. Jeremy's eyes widen in shock. "Dead?" Jeremy repeated. "Well, I have this feeling that dead is another term as a vampire." Maddie whispered the sentence so Elena couldn't overhear. Jeremy's eyes softened, moving toward his bed, grabbing Maddie into his arms. "What did Elena say?" He asked. "Elena has the address for her friend, Trudie Peterson. She wants to go see her, but.. I-I can't. I'm not ready to face the reality that my mother may be alive and she left me and Elena. She didn't want us, and now that I know I'm adopted, I'm confused." Jeremy kept Maddie in his arms. Tears fell down Maddie's cheek as she buried her head into his shoulder. Jeremy raised his head to see Stefan with a sad expression. Jeremy nodded silently, letting him he's got her. Stefan nodded, walking back to Elena, leaving the younger Gilbert siblings alone.

After Maddie calmed down slightly, she laid on Jeremy's bed, thinking over what she had told him. Jeremy was a bit freaked hearing that Alaric's wife could've been her mother, but in all honesty, Jeremy had told her that Alaric was technically another family member, her stepfather, which cheered Maddie slightly. Maddie confessed that she didn't want to see Isobel or anything related to her, she wanted to remain clueless, and oblivious to everything around her, but she always gotten dragged in, and sometimes she wishes she could disappear. "If I die young, bury me in satin..." Maddie sang, closing her eyes. Haley stood by the door, watching her niece, lost in her own musings.

Maddie heard music as she walked into the boarding house, with a duffle bag on her shoulders, she furrowed her eyes as she wondered what's going on. Maddie walked into the library, seeing Damon dancing and drinking the blood of several compelled sorority girls in the room. Maddie dropped the duffle bag, leaning against the railing, confused and watching him. "Having fun?" Damon pulled away from the sorority girl's neck. "Ah, baby sister, welcome." Damon gave her a rare true smile only reserved for his sister. Maddie raised an eyebrow once more. "How much did you drink?" Maddie asked wearily, causing Damon to smirk. "A lot." Damon answered drunkenly. "And not just of alcohol." Maddie groaned. "Damon.." But she was cut off by a sorority girl. "How do I taste?" Maddie closed her eyes, keeping her gag reflex at bay. "Oh, so much better than your friends." Damon answered. "But, shh. Don't tell them. They might get jealous." Maddie groaned once more, her head falling into her hands. "Damon, I may be human, and blood tastes disgusting, nevertheless the smell." Damon turned around, seeing his sister. He frowned in concern, eyeing the sorority girl on his right. The lights were suddenly turned on. Stefan stepped into the room, crossing his arms. "I see you're doing better." Stefan glanced at Maddie who had her eyes closed. "Much." Damon agreed. "Maddie, not so much." Stefan sighed, turning off the stereo. "Greetings." Damon told him. Stefan looked at Damon. "Can we talk?" Maddie raised her head, walked toward the kitchen. Damon and Stefan watched her. "Yeah." Damon answered. "Without the Tri-Delts?" Stefan asked. "Anything you have to say to me, you can say in front of them." Damon told him. "They're really good at keeping secrets." Stefan looked at him seriously. "Damon." Maddie warned, with a bowl of fruit in her hand. Damon watched her, and shrugged.

Stefan, Maddie and Damon were speaking alone. Damon had a bottle of booze in hand. "You're all worried about me. That's nice. Don't be. There's no need. I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be? I spent the last 145 years with two goals. Get in that tomb. I succeeded. And along the way, I have my sister back. Granted, Katherine wasn't in there to be rescued, nor is Alissa here alive, but why dwell? I'll find Alissa, if she's alive. You know, it's liberating not having a master plan, because I can do whatever the hell I want." Maddie looked at Damon in sadness and worry. Damon turned to her, giving a look, with a sad smile. "That's kind of what we're worried about, Damon." Maddie softly told him. Damon's eyes softened. "Relax." Damon told her. "I haven't killed anyone in..." He paused. "Too long." Maddie raised an eyebrow. "Those girls?" Stefan asked. "Will end up in their dorm with headaches." Damon answered. "Think they blacked out. Business as usual." Damon looked between Maddie and Stefan. "Maddie looks like she's about to tell me something I do not like. And you Stefan." Damon looked at Stefan. "You look like you want something. Predictable. So drink up." He pushed the bottle into Stefan's chest. "Spill it, brother." Stefan grabbed the bottle, placing it to his side. "There was a woman you may have known a few years back name Isobel in North Carolina at Duke." Damon raised an eyebrow. "You seriously wanna talk about that right now?" Maddie looked at Damon. "You killed her." Stefan told him. "What's your point?" Damon asked. Maddie raised from her seat and walked towards Damon, and slapped him. Damon's head turned as a stinging pain against his jaw. He rubbed it, looking at Maddie in shock. Maddie turned around, and walked out of the parlor. Stefan stayed silent. Damon turned to Stefan, confused. "Well?" Damon asked. "I just—I just wanna know if you remember anything about her." Stefan told him. "Oh, it's like a needle in a haystack, Stefan." Damon mocked Stefan. He looked at Damon. "Think hard, it's important." Damon grasped Stefan's shoulder, whispering in his ear. "Nothing is important, not anymore. Well, Maddie is." Damon clapped Stefan in the shoulder, pulling away, grabbing the bottle. "Good chat. I have to go and pick up a bag of ice for my jaw, and exploit some women in the name of grief, which I'm sure you understand with my Tri-Delts. Heh." Damon walked out of the room, leaving. Stefan sighed, knowing why Maddie had slapped Damon.

Maddie sighed as she and Stefan mulled around in the Town Square. Alaric approached them. Alaric was surprised to see Maddie, but Stefan had explained how Maddie was related to him. "Thanks for meeting me. Something's come up." Maddie gasped in realization. "Aunt Jenna told you, didn't she." Stefan glanced at Maddie then at Alaric. "Yeah." Alaric answered her. "So, it's true." Stefan asked. "Your wife Isobel was Elena And Maddie's birth mother?" Maddie inhaled. "What does Elena know?" Alaric asked, knowing Maddie would've been told by Stefan. Stefan sighed, crossing his arms over his chest. "About your wife?" Maddie glanced at Alaric nervously. "About everything." Alaric answered. "About you, your family. Maddie." Maddie's eyes furrowed. "She knows what I am, and she knows that you know about the vampires." Stefan answered. "I've already told Maddie everything about her past, and her being adopted." Alaric turned to Maddie, who nodded. "I have journals too, from my first three lives." Alaric nodded. "Does Elena know about Damon and Isobel. It seems Maddie had figured it out." Alaric nodded in her direction. Stefan glanced down at Maddie. "She slapped him. But no." Stefan answered. "I couldn't tell her, not until I was sure." Maddie smirked a little bit, but quickly frowned. "You said you'd help me." Alaric told him. "Wait, what?" Maddie asked in confusion. "I asked Damon without saying too much." Stefan told him. "He doesn't remember." Maddie realized that Stefan was trying to gain information from Damon. "Ask him again." Alaric told him. Maddie shook her head. "Damon is not stable at the moment, Ric." Maddie told him. "You know, he murdered my wife, or at the very least made a meal out of her." Alaric told them. "When has he been stable." Maddie's eyes furrowed. "I'm telling you not to push this." Stefan told him. "Give me a reason not to." Alaric told him. "Your survival, Ric." Maddie cut in. "How's that for a reason? Stefan will handle it, but for now, we need you to let it go." Stefan gently grabbed Maddie's arm, pulling her backward as she didn't notice stepping forward. "Is that what you'll tell Elena?" Alaric asked her. "Let it go?" Stefan stepped closer as he pulled Maddie behind him, until they were merely inches apart. "Leave her and my sister out of this." Stefan's sibling protectiveness comes to a fold. Maddie noticed. "I need to know what happened." Alaric told him. "I think you would, too." Stefan and Maddie both exhaled, Stefan backing away. "I need something more than just your wife's name. A picture, something I could show Damon." Maddie's eyes furrowed. Alaric retrieved a photo of Isobel from his wallet, handing it to Stefan. Stefan took it, walking away, but paused waiting for Maddie. Maddie glanced up, looking at Alaric. "I'm sorry that she died, I'm sorry that we put you through this." Maddie wrapped her arms around Alaric's waist, hugging. Stefan gave a sad smile, knowing how compassionate Maddie could be. Alaric slowly wrapped his arms around her. Maddie let go, turning around, walking toward Stefan. Alaric watched them go.

As Maddie was standing in front of the mirror, sighing after Elena had explained about Trudie. She knew she'd had to tell Elena that Damon was the one that killed their mother, but Maddie felt that Isobel wasn't dead in someway. She felt if Isobel faked her death.  Maddie sighed deeply, hearing a knock on the bedroom door. "Come in, by the way it's your bedroom after all." Stefan walked in, giving a smile. "I know, but I'm being modest." Stefan told her, hands in pockets. Maddie turned around. "I need to tell Elena." She told him. "She's going to eventually find out, and I—I don't know if she's gonna forgive me if I didn't tell her." Maddie looked at Stefan. "And, plus, I'm so infuriated with Damon at the moment. Yes, I had a thought.. what if? What if I met her? Actually see if she's alive? But then I think, she gave me and Elena up. She gave me away to my aunt, and now? How am I supposed to feel?" Maddie had tears. Stefan walked closer. "I don't—I don't want to know." Maddie wrapped her arms around Stefan's neck, when he wrapped his arms around her waist. Maddie's sobs were heard through Stefan's room, with Damon standing outside the door, a tear fallen down his cheek.

As Maddie and Isaiah, who she met up at the boarding house were standing by the bar at The Grill, watching Carol Lockwood, talking into a microphone. "Tickets for the raffle are now on sale. All proceeds benefit the annual Founder's Day celebration." Maddie noticed both her aunts approaching Alaric, who had a drink in his hand. "That's a good look for you." Alaric turned around, seeing Jenna and Haley. "What?" Alaric asked. "Embarrassed and uncomfortable?" Jenna smiled awkwardly, Haley seemed amused. "Yep. That's—that's the one." Alaric nodded. "I'm gonna go.. to Maddie." Haley pointed at Maddie talking to Isaiah. Alaric and Jenna turned toward them, seeing them smile. Alaric narrowed his eyes at the vampire, but stayed silent. "Hey, look, um, I'm, uh, sorry about earlier." Alaric told her after a moment. "It was just kind of a—a shock." Jenna shook her head. "No, I'm sorry for dropping it on you, but I felt like you should know." Jenna told him. Haley smiled to herself, as she walked toward her niece and Isaiah.

As Maddie, Isaiah and Haley stood with Elena, Caroline and Matt by the bachelor raffle ticket table, Caroline was complaining to them. "He's been hit on, like, thirty five times. He's total cougar bait." Maddie smiled, shaking her head. "Impressive." Haley smiled amused. "More like embarrassing." Matt told them. "Nah." Haley told him. "It's cool that even the old ones fall all over you." Matt chuckled in embarrassment. Caroline looked past them. "Hi, Ms. Donovan." Haley turned around, surprised. "Kelly?" Matt's mother, revealing as Kelly, smiled at Haley, Maddie and Elena, wrapping her arms around them. "Hi guys." Maddie smiled wide. "I should've brought your favorite, I forgot." Elena smiled. Kelly shook her head. "It's fine, sweetie. Next time though?" Kelly asked. Maddie nodded. "Of course." Kelly turned to Elena. "Matt told me that you broke his little heart." Kelly told her. Maddie looked at Matt. Matt blushed. "Mom!" Maddie smirked. Haley laughed. "I'm just kidding, calm down." Kelly told him. She looked at Caroline. "He found his rebound girl." Caroline looked down, hurt. Maddie narrowed her eyes, grabbing Caroline's hand. "Oh." Kelly handed the money to Caroline. "How many that will buy. I just hope I don't get Bachelor Three. Dated him in high school. Not impressive." She looked past Maddie, Haley and Elena. Kelly grabbed the tickets from Caroline as she walked away. Maddie and Haley turned to see Alaric standing further in the crowd. They looked hesitant. Alaric walked away. Maddie sighed. Haley and Elena exchanged a disappointed look.

Maddie noticed Stefan when he walked in. Carol was introducing the Bachelors on the stage. Maddie waved her brother over. "And what you do, Bachelor Number Three?" Jenna, Haley, Elena and Maddie were sitting at a table, smiling. "Yeah, I'm a plumber." Bachelor Number Three answered. Haley tried not to laugh. Maddie shook her head. Stefan smiled as he gazed at Maddie, seeing her smile. Carol looked at Bachelor Number Three. "Well, that's wonderful. We could always use more plumbers." Carol gave a timid smile. Maddie wince at the thought of someone marrying a plumber. "Moving on." Carol interrupted Maddie's inner musings. "Bachelor Number Four. Alaric Saltzman. Wow, that's quite a mouthful. What do you do, Alaric?" Maddie gave a encouraging smile as Alaric looked over the crowd. "I'm a teacher at Mystic Falls High." Alaric answered. Maddie and Haley both winked at Jenna. Jenna smiled, shaking her head. "Oh, beauty and brains." Carol told. "Ladies, this one's a keeper." Carol looked at Alaric. "What do you teach?" Maddie glanced at Stefan. "History." Alaric answered. "History." Carol repeated. "Oh, give us a fun fact about Mystic Falls. Something... crazy." Maddie noticed Damon was standing next to Alaric, putting a hand to his ear, taunting Alaric. Maddie widened her eyes, tugging Stefan on the arm. Stefan followed her gaze. "Uh, well, uh..." Alaric trailed off. Carol saved him. "He's probably saving the best stories for his date." She moved along to Damon. Maddie groaned. "Why me?" Maddie whispered, glancing up at the ceiling. Stefan shook his head, amused. Haley and Elena smirked. "And last, but not least, Damon Salvatore. We don't have much on you." Stefan glanced at Maddie, then looking at Elena. Elena smiled, waving. Stefan smiled, waving, looking back at the stage. "Well, I'm tough to fit on a card." Damon told them. "Do you have any hobbies." Carol asked. Maddie widened her eyes. "Elena.." Maddie whispered urgently. Elena ignored her. "Do you like to travel?" Maddie closed her eyes. "Oh, yeah." Damon answered. "LA, New York." Damon took a deep breath. "Couple of years ago, I was in North Carolina, near the Duke campus, actually." Maddie sighed, shaking her head. "Damon, stop." She whispered, knowing Damon could hear her. Damon looked at Alaric. "I think—I think Alaric went to school there. Didn't you, Ric? You know, 'cause... I know your wife did." Stefan became instantly alert, as well as Maddie as she began to inch closer toward Stefan. They both looked at Elena. Elena's expression started to falter in confusion. Stefan and Maddie made their way towards them. "I had a drink with her once." Damon told them. "She was..." Haley seemed to be realizing what Damon had done, in shock. She turned to both of her nieces, seeing Maddie looked toward Elena in worry and fear. Haley realized that Maddie knew all along. Damon exhaled. "She was a great girl. Did I ever tell you that? Cause she was... delicious. Mm. Mm-mm-mm." Maddie stopped as she felt tears were coming as she stared at Elena, who's mouth were slightly open in surprise, she looked at Damon. "Elena..." Haley turned to Elena, who shook her head. "Are you okay?" Jenna asked. "I need some air.." Elena told them in a shaky voice, grabbing Maddie's hand, standing, walking away. Stefan had been standing behind Haley, following the sisters. Haley watched them go with sadness.

Elena, Maddie and Stefan walked out of the Grill. "Elena..." Maddie started. "He killed her?" Elena asked incredulously. "Damon was the vampire that killed our mother?" Maddie glanced down. "I don't know what happened." Stefan told them. "Alaric said that they never found the body." Elena widened her eyes. "Oh, my God. And you knew?" Elena turned to Maddie, hurt. "Lena, I tried to tell you.." Elena shook her head, holding her hand to her head, overwhelmed. "Stefan..." Elena trailed off painfully. Stefan nodded. "I know, I'm sorry. We wanted to tell you, but I just wanted to know for sure.." Maddie nodded in agreement. "It's true, I was with Stefan when I found out, I slapped Damon." Elena's lips twitched. "I was feeling sorry for him." Elena told them. "Hoping that this Katherine thing would change him." Elena looked at Maddie, shaking her head. "Or Maddie, but I'm so stupid." Maddie had tears in her eyes. "I thought about confronting him, but he's so on edge—." Stefan started. Elena turned to face him. "Why are you protecting him, Stefan?" Maddie cleared her throat. "Because you're not the only one hoping that he would actually change, Elena." Maddie answered for herself and Stefan. Elena took a moment to consider this, nodding, looking away. Elena turned around to see the man that had killed Trudie down the street. "That man.." Maddie and Stefan followed her gaze. Stefan slightly stepped in front of Maddie, due his brotherly instinct kicking in. Maddie grasped Stefan's arm. "I saw that man outside of Trudie's." Stefan grabbed Elena's shoulder, leading the way inside. "Get back inside. Come on." Maddie nodded, walking back inside, a bit frightened of the man.

Carol was standing in front of the stage, pulling a ticket out of the big bowl of red tickets. "And Bachelor Number Three goes to 37458." Maddie looked around, finding Isaiah as he was sitting at the bar with a brunette she didn't recognize. "Isaiah.." She breathed. Isaiah turned to see Maddie's expression. "What is it, love?" Isaiah asked, standing up. "There's a man outside, Elena said she saw him standing outside of Trudie's house." After Elena had explained about the visit to Trudie's, Maddie had called Isaiah and informed him. Isaiah gazed over toward Stefan, who nodded. "Stay with your aunt, I'll go to Stefan." Isaiah nodded toward the brunette, and kissed Maddie's forehead. Isaiah walked toward Stefan, as they both started talking. Maddie turned around, seeing the brunette gone. Maddie furrowed her eyebrows, until her phone rang. Bonnie. Maddie sighed in relief, answering. "Oh my God, Bonnie Bennett, finally you answer my phone calls." Maddie walked towards the bathrooms, ignoring Haley and Elena's stare.

Maddie was on the phone, smiling as she giggled. "I miss those times with Grams, Bonnie. I can't tell you how much I'm sorry. Grams meant a lot to me." Maddie had some tears falling down. "No, Maddie, it's okay, it's not your fault, I don't blame you. But I'm sorry that I'm blaming Damon and Stefan." Bonnie told her. Maddie sniffled. "No, no, I get it Bonnie. I understand, I'm not mad, I promise. Stefan understands, he feels guilty and upset that Grams died. He wanted to apologize. I know Damon won't." Elena walked into the bathroom, stopping when she saw Maddie. "Oh, hey, Elena. Talk to you later, Bon-Bon." Maddie hung up, wiping her tears, facing Elena. Elena seemed surprised and hurt. "Bonnie's talking to you?" Maddie squirmed a bit. "Yeah." Maddie answered, putting her phone back into her pocket. "Elena, Bonnie..." Maddie trailed off. "You have to understand, she lost her grandmother, I lost her..." Maddie started. Elena shook her head. "Don't, I get it." Elena exhaled guiltily. "Are you okay?" Maddie asked, noticing she still had her cheeks stained with tears. "Yeah, just getting over the shock of it all." Elena lied. Maddie nodded slowly. "I'm gonna go find Stefan and Isaiah.." Elena's eyebrow raised. "Isaiah?" She asked. "Yeah, I told Isaiah about the man, so he's with Stefan." Elena mouthed an O and nodded. Maddie stood, silently. Elena sighed, and walked out of the bathroom, down the hall. Maddie sighed, leaning against the wall.

As Maddie walked out after using the bathroom and taking a breather, she walked toward where Isaiah and Stefan were, as they seemed to be coming from outside. Carol was standing on stage, reading another ticket. "37649." Maddie gasped as she noticed Jenna raised her hand. "That's me." Maddie smiled as she noticed Alaric was smiling at her. "Congratulations." Carol told her. Jenna walked up to the table, taking her ticket from Carol, walking toward the table with Caroline and Alaric. "And Bachelor Number Five, Damon Salvatore." Carol went through the tickets in the bowl, picking another ticket. "37552." Jenna handed her ticket to Caroline. Alaric approached them. "Oh, would you look at that? 37552. What are the chances? Me." Maddie chuckled at Alaric, but noticed Haley rolling her eyes at Carol. Maddie noticed Damon was gone. Alaric looked at Jenna. "I'll call you later." Alaric turned to leave. Maddie stepped up beside Haley and Jenna, watching him leave.

Maddie sighed as she walked through the Salvatore house, shrugging off her jacket. As much as she's very upset with Damon, she felt the need to comfort him, after the incident with the tomb. She noticed Alaric on the floor. Maddie gasped as she ran toward him, kneeling next to him, checking for a pulse. Maddie looked at Damon. "What happened? What did you do, Damon?" Damon turned to his sister. "Do what?" Damon asked innocently. "He attacked me." Maddie sat up, moving Alaric's head into her lap. She looked at her brother. "Damon." Damon sighed. "All I did was tell him the truth." Damon told her. "It's not my fault he couldn't handle." Maddie sighed. "Like you've been handling Katherine?" Stefan walked into the parlor, leaning against the doorway. "I'm handling it just fine, Stefan." Damon told him. Stefan sighed, unconvinced. Stefan glanced at Maddie, who was moving Alaric's hair out of his eyes. He smiled softly. Damon leaned forward. "You know what? Isobel came to me. She found me. And if she's related to Maddie and Elena, that means she's related to Katherine. Maybe Katherine sent her to me." Maddie's head rose when she heard that part. "Stop it." Maddie told Damon. "You don't have to keep looking." Damon sighed. "Can't be a coincidence Isobel sought me out." Damon told them. "Mm-mm. Can't." He stood, pointing at Alaric. "I'm assuming you'll take care of this." Maddie widened her eyes. Damon walked out of the room. Stefan sighed. Maddie had tears, cradling Alaric's body closer to her. Alaric's fingers started to move. Maddie tilted her head up in shocked confusion and curiosity. Stefan came closer to Maddie. Alaric came back to life, gasping, sitting up. Stefan walked closer in confusion. "What happened?" Alaric asked. "What's going on?" Maddie gasped, looking at Stefan. "You were just..." Stefan trailed off. "Did Damon turn you?" Maddie swirled her head toward Alaric, who gazed at Maddie. "No." Alaric answered. "I—I went for him, and then he, uh, he stabbed me." Maddie shook her head. "No, no, no." Maddie told him. "You must have vampire blood in your system. Somebody slipped it to you. Believe me, that's incredibly easy to do as far as I've seen in my dreams." Alaric shook his head. "No." Alaric told them. "It, uh, something else." Stefan kneeled down beside Maddie. "Then what?" Maddie looked at Alaric. "I, uh..." Alaric trailed off, looking at the ring on his finger. "Isobel." Maddie and Stefan glanced at one another in surprise and confusion. Alaric looked at Stefan and Maddie. "This ring protected me." Maddie shook her head. "That's impossible though?" Alaric nodded. "I know." Maddie sighed, letting go of Alaric's hand. Alaric sighed, confused.

Later that night, Maddie laid in the bed at the Salvatore house, contemplating the events that happened earlier that day. She sighed, as she turned over facing the window, seeing the moon bright in the sky. "Isobel.." Maddie whispered, confused, conflicted, and hurt all at the same time. "Alissa..." Maddie murmured at a thought of her sister in law. Maddie closed her eyes, unaware that Stefan and Stefan were both watching their sister asleep, their eyes dim in sadness. Damon felt guilty, he knew he had a lot to make up for, and he'd do it for Maddie.

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• Another chapter is up! Halfway there guys!
• Maddie discovered a lot in this chapter, things will become intense as the story progress.
• I noticed that both Stefan and Damon are a bit out of character, but this is their sister, they have a soft spot, especially Damon. Their moods will change drastically sooner then the show.
• Stay tuned for There Goes the Neighborhood!