CHAPTER NINETEEN
SIMPLY SIMFUL

Isobel's white teeth glinted in the dim lights of the Mystic Grill as she smiled widely at her ex-husband. "It's good to see you. You look good – I hear that you're a high school history teacher? How – How is that?"

"Where have you been, Isobel?" Alaric asked. He kept his eyes on her, but refused to move an inch from his spot at the bar. He was afraid that she would take the smallest of movements as a sign that he was actually glad to see her. Isobel never had a problem stretching an inch into a mile when necessary.

She didn't seem fazed by his question. "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."

Alaric snorted. "It's that simple?"

Isobel shrugged. "Yeah, you were supposed to mourn me and move on."

"You were my wife," Alaric said, staring at Isobel with anger filled eyes. "And I loved you. How could I not search for you?"

"Because I wasn't lost, Ric," One side of Isobel's mouth quirked up, "I understand that you know my daughters, Elena and Elektra." She began to explain, grabbing a napkin from the bar before scribbling something down upon the surface. "And I hear that they've been looking for me. So, I want you to arrange for a meeting with us."

Alaric took the napkin in his hands. "You want me, ahem, to deliver a message?"

"Yeah."

Alaric dropped the napkin back on the bar before he turn to fully face Isobel, anger radiating off of him as he stared at his undead wife. "Screw you – you selfish bitch."

✥ ✥ ✥

"I'm supposed to help build the Miss Mystic float for the Founder's Day Parade," I began to explain, holding my cell phone in my left hand as I started to fold some spare clothes. "If I don't, I get the wrath of Caroline. But I wanted to check in first."

"Well, I'm doing great. Thanks for asking." Damon said on the other line.

"Check in on Stefan – that's why I called his phone, if I wanted to check in on you, I would've called you directly." I replied, zipping the zipper on my makeup bag. "Hold on, why do you have his phone?"

"Doesn't matter," Damon waved off. "But he's terrible."
​
A surge of worry coursed through my chest. "What's wrong with him?"

​"He's just back to boring, strait-laced, off the junk. You've successfully cured him of anything that was interesting about his personality."

​"Don't forget who helped me."

​"I hate myself," Damon said in a sing-song voice. "Hey, did Uncle John mention anything to you or your sister about my field trip with the history teacher?"
​
I shrugged to myself. "No, we've still be avoiding him. Why? What's he up to?"

​"I don't know, but I'd love it if you could find out for me."
​
I glanced over at the alarm clock on my night stand, inwardly groaning as I spoke: "I gotta go – I'm late."

​"Have fun with the Mystic Queen, I know I did."
​
I rolled my eyes with a scoff and hung up.

​
When we had arrived at the high school, casually walking into the cafeteria where all of the students were preforming their own projects for the Founder's Day Parade, we were immediately pulled out of the cafeteria by Alaric. Elena, Stefan, and myself all shared confused glances as we followed Alaric into his classroom where he instantly began to explain his experience with Isobel the night before.
​
After he went through all of the details, we quietly waited for the eldest Salvatore brother to arrive before we made out next move. And when the sound of Alaric's classroom door opening, all of our heads lifted to lock eyes with the raved haired vampire entering the tense room.
​
"Damon, thanks for coming," Alaric greeted casually, crossing his arms over his chest.
​
Damon's mouth twisted, a grimace of distaste. "Sorry I'm late. The dog ate my, uh – never mind. What's with all the furrowed brows?"​

​"I saw Isobel last night."
​
Damon looked up in surprise. "Isobel's here? In town?"
​
Alaric nodded.

​"Did you ask her about Uncle John? Are they working together?" Damon shot question after question at Alaric.

​"No."

​"No, they're not?"

​"No, I didn't ask." Alaric clarified.

​"What about the invention?"

​"Didn't ask."

​"Does she know about the tomb vampires?"
​
Alaric shrugged. "I don't know."

​"Did words completely escape you?" Damon asked angrily.

​"I was a little too distracted by my dead-vampire-wife to ask any questions," Alaric practically shouted in Damon's face as the two men squared up to each other.

​"What's she want?"
​
I took a deep breath, trying to let everything sink in before I spoke: "She wants to see Elena and I, Damon."

​"Alaric is supposed to arrange a meeting," Stefan said to his older brother. "We don't know why or what she wants."
​
Damon's bright blue eyes glanced between me and Elena. "You guys don't have to see her if y'all don't want to."

​"We don't really have a choice," Elena mumbled, speaking out for the first time.

​"She's threatening to go on a killing spree." Alaric explained to Damon, who was glancing around the room wildly as if searching for something.

​"Oh," Damon mused breathlessly, raising his eyebrows. "I take it that's not okay with you guys?"

​"We wanna do it – we wanna meet her. If we don't, I know we'll regret it."

​​​

​After our little Scooby-Doo gang summit in Alaric's classroom, we conjugated a plan; which was why Elena and I were now sitting at a table in the bustling Mystic Grill awaiting the arrival of our biological mother. I had a small knot in my stomach, every time the bell on the front door would chime the knot would tighten.
​
​I looked up from cold hands that were wrapped around the mug of coffee in front of me to meet eyes with Stefan, who was standing next to the pool table on the other side of the Grill. "Can you hear me?"

Stefan nodded in confirmation.

​"Thanks for coming," I whispered, twirling the cup of coffee around in a circle.

​"We're nervous." Elena added, placing her unoccupied hand atop of forearm ceasing my anxiety filled movements.
​
He smiled and nodded in understanding.

​"But, we're happy that you're here," I said softly as I held my coffee cup in my hands, not affected by the heat coming off of it.
​
Suddenly, a woman dressed in all black stepped into our view of Stefan. Her dark hair fell in loose curls just passed her shoulder, dark brown eyes glistened in the dim lighting. She swiftly moved toward us, taking off her jacket and setting it on the back of the chair before taking a seat.​
​
She leveled a direct stare at us. "Hello, Elena," she greeted my sister sweetly before turning her stare toward me, an intrigued glimmer shining in her eyes as she stared at me. "Hello, Elektra. You two look just like them – it's eerie."
​
Elena's jaw fell slack, "You've met Katherine and Beatrice?"
​
Isobel's mouth twisted. "They found me after I turned. Genetic curiosity, I suppose. Katherine would be fascinated by you, Elena." She pointed out, looking up at Elena. "But, I do believe that Beatrice would take more of a liking toward you, Elektra."

​"Why?"
​
My question went unanswered as Elena began to ask her own: "Is that–" she gestured to the necklace around Isobel's neck, the black iron casing holding the exact same stone that Stefan and Damon had in their rings: Lapis-Lazuli, "–how you walk in the day?"
​
Isobel kept her eyes on us, "They helped me obtain it."
​
I cleared my throat. "Who's our father?"

​"Not important – he was a teenage waste of space." Isobel stated smoothly.

​"A name would be nice," I bit back.

​"It would, wouldn't it?" Isobel pondered. "You ask a lot of questions."
​
Elena clenched her jaw out of irritation. "Why did you compel that man to kill himself after he told us to stop looking for you?"
​
Isobel shrugged. "Dramatic impact – wish it would have been more effective."

​"Human life means that little to you?" I questioned through gritted teeth.
​
Isobel smiled, pearl like teeth shining in the light. "It means nothing to me. It's just part of being what I am."

​"No, it's not." I spat in anger and detest. "I know other vampires, that's not true."

​"You mean y'all's boyfriend over there by the pool table?" Isobel mocked me. "Stefan Salvatore. Why Stefan? Why didn't either of you go for Damon? Or do you two enjoy them both...like Katherine and Beatrice did?"

​"Shut up," I growled lowly.
​
Isobel smirked, knowing that she was getting a rise out of me. "I'm only stating the truth."

​"Why did you want to meet us? It can't be to just catch up." Elena said after a few moments of an uncomfortable silence.
​
Isobel set her eyes upon me, tilting her head to the side as her black eyes examined my entire being. "Because I'm curious about you." I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could even get a word out she continued: "But the real reason is I want what your uncle wants: Johnathan Gilbert's invention."
​
Elena let out a sharp exhale through her nose, "How do you know our uncle?"

​"I used to spend a lot of time here when I was younger. John had a crush on me for years – he was the first one that told me about vampires."​

​"So, what made you want to be one?" Elena asked.

​"It's a very long list of reasons, Elena, all of which I'm sure you've thought about." Elena shook her head. "That was your first lie." Isobel reprimanded. "It's inevitable. You two are going to get old, Stefan won't. Forever doesn't last very long when you're human."

​"Sorry," I suddenly snapped, preparing myself to stand from my seat to storm out of the Grill. "We don't have what you're looking for, so, have a nice day plucking wings off insects."
​
I began to rise up from my seat, but stopped when Isobel hastily grabbed my forearm. "Sit down," Isobel demanded. "And tell y'all's boyfriend to walk away." I glanced up to see that Stefan's body had become stiff, mentally preparing himself to come over and intervene.

Elena reluctantly nodded toward Stefan, while I challenged the vampire in front of me.

​"No."
​
Isobel didn't seem too pleased by me challenging her, seeing as though she only tightened her hold on my forearm. A loud groan escaped my lips, slowly submitting to her demands as I sunk back into my seat.

​"So, you're able to resist compulsion – without vervain. The rumors are true." Isobel mused, removing her hand from my arm. "I want the invention."

​"I don't have it."

​"I know that," Isobel replied. "But Damon does. And you're gonna get it for me."

​"He's not gonna give it to either of us," Elena explained.

​"Then the blood will be on your hands," Isobel announced, standing up from her chair and grabbing her jacket. "It was nice meeting the two of you, but I would consider what I said."
​
Elena and I immediately reached out for each other, tightly holding each other's hands as we tried to calm ourselves down from the very revealing first meeting with our biological mother.​​​
​
But before either of us could say a word to one another, Bonnie entered the Mystic Grill. She stood there; starting at Elena and I for a long moment as we slowly began to stand up. We were both choking on our tears as Bonnie glanced behind us, something she saw making her eyes widen. I looked back over my shoulder to see that she had been looking at Stefan, but when I turned back she was gone.
​
The next school day, Elena and I found ourselves pushing through the multiple crowds at the school trying to get to an empty chemistry classroom at the back of the school. Bonnie had told us to meet here there earlier saying that she needed to tell us something. When we reached the classroom we instantly barged in, seeing Bonnie sitting at a lab table flipping through a dusty grimoire.

​"Hey, thanks for meeting me." Bonnie greeted with a smile, Elena and I making our way over to her. "I wanted you guys to see this."

​"Is that Emily's spell book?"
​
Bonnie nodded. "I've been going through it since Grams died. Check this out," she instructed, pointing to a page with a drawing of a compass on it.

​"That's the vampire compass," I said, my voice laced with confusion.

​"Yeah, according to Emily, Johnathan Gilbert never actually succeeded in inventing anything. Emily secretly spelled them all with magic. Compass," Bonnie explained, pointing to the picture again before turning to the next page. "Rings," a drawing of Alaric's ring was on the top corner and then she turned it once more, "The mystery device you told me about."

​"Yeah, that's it – well, part of it." Elena said, glancing up at Bonnie. "Damon only has the one piece."
​
Bonnie pursed her lips. "Emily pledged her loyalty to Katherine and Beatrice. But she couldn't just stand by and watch innocent people get killed. This was the only way she could think of to help, to let Johnathan Gilbert believe he'd actually invented these devices."​​

​"Does it say what it does?" I asked, looking down at the page with a slight glimmer of hope.

​Bonnie leant down beside us, eyes locking onto the scribbled writing on the pages. She slowly began mumbled under her breath as she read what the "mystery device" was actually used for.

​"Are you sure this is what Isobel wants?" Bonnie question, glancing between Elena and I in confusion.

​"Yeah, we're sure. Why?" Elena asked, furrowing her perfect brows.

​"This is a weapon – against vampires."

I was frantically walking around the campus of the high school, in a desperate need to locate Stefan so I could tell him what Elena and I had discovered from Bonnie. I was weaving through the large crowd surrounding the ever-growing float just outside of the school, the students making it even harder for me to find Stefan.

​"Elektra!" I heard a familiar voice call out, I glanced to my left to see that Jeremy was walking toward me.

​"Hey, Jer, um, have you seen Stefan? I need to find him."
​
Jeremy shook his head. "No, not lately. Listen, uh, do you have a second?"

​"Uh, yeah, what's up? What's going on?"

​"Well, it's Anna." Jeremy began, pushing his dark hair out of his face. "I've left her all these messages and she hasn't gotten back to me – not even a text."

​"Anna?" I repeated, not liking that Jeremy had gotten so close to her. "I didn't know that you guys were still friends."

​"Yeah, we're more than friends." Jeremy clarified. "Look, something could be seriously wrong. And if you know anything, you gotta tell me."
​
I shook my head. "I haven't talked to her, Jer."

​"Are you lying to me right now?"

​"Why would you say that?"

​"Because that's what you do," Jeremy stated harshly, eyes and voice becoming hard as he stared down at me. "You lie. 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?"

​"No – but Jeremy, we need to talk about this. Just you and me and I promise that I'll explain everything." I called out to him just as he began to walk away from me.
​
He looked back over his shoulder. "No, Elektra, we can't talk about this because you lied to me."

​"I was only trying to protect you, Jer."

​"It doesn't matter why you did it, Elektra, you still lied to me about everything." Jeremy snapped, turning his back to me and finally walking away.

​"Jer – Jeremy, wait!" I yelled after him. "Jeremy!" I sighed, turning back around only to come face-to-face with a familiar figure. "Isobel," I grimaced inwardly at the taste that her name left on my tongue. "What are you doing here?"

​"I'm your mother, Elektra," Isobel states simply. "I want to be more involved in your life."

​"Well, guess what? Elena and I don't want you in our lives."

​"I understand that. You already have a lot of people you care about. But I've been studying; let's see if I got this right." Isobel replied with a smile, eyes roaming around the campus. "There is the witchy best friend Bonnie. Gonna stay away from that one."
​
Bonnie shoved her hands in her pockets as she walked passed us.

​"Oh," Isobel glanced over my shoulder. "The sad little brother, Jeremy – and there's Caroline. Obnoxious Caroline. I got all of my info from her, by the way. She had no idea who I was, and she just wouldn't stop yapping."
​
She then looked to my left; Tyler.

​ "Ah, Tyler, a Lockwood – your ex, who I heard cheated on you with Vicki Donovan. Must've been quite the relationship." Isobel mocked with a smirk. "Awe, and there's Matt. Friend, sissy's ex, Yappy's future ex. Lots of connections there."

​"Matt's not involved in this."

​"He's involved with Elena, isn't he? And I can tell that you care about him as well." Isobel explained, staring at Matt as he worked on a nearby float.
​
I bit the inside of my lip, daring to step closer to her. "You need to leave."

​"No," Isobel said simply. "I have some friends here too, look." I glanced over to where she was pointing, seeing a man inspecting the float. "See that man over there, standing next to Matt by the float? His name's Frank. He's very handsome. And he's also quite handy, he noticed that the axle is kind of rusted, which is very dangerous. So all you have to do is apply a little bit of pressure and–"

​"No!" I shouted, watching in horror as Frank jumped on top of the float causing the float to drop onto Matt's arm. At this Matt began to scream and holler out in pain, the float pinning his arm to the ground underneath all of its weight.
​
I made a move to advance forward, but before I could even take a step, Isobel caught me by my elbow and held be back. I looked over in panic, seeing Tyler running toward the float to try and lift it up off of Matt's arm, a few other guys joined in but it wasn't budging. And that's when I saw Stefan emerge from the crowd, quickly running over to the float to help – seeing as though Stefan has supernatural strength, it lifted off the ground easily and Matt's arm was freed.
​
I turned back to Isobel, my eyes narrowed into slits as I stared at the despicable woman. "What the hell is wrong with you? Why are you doing this?"

​"I'm showing you how easy it is to hurt the people you care about."

​"You're doing this just because of Johnathan Gilbert's invention?" I asked through gritted teeth as I tried to yank my arm out of her grasp.

​"Hand it over and the fun will stop."

​I pulled once more. "I told you, Damon's not gonna give it to me."

​"And I think you underestimate how much Damon cares about you." Isobel snapped right back as she stared at me with her cold dead eyes.

​"He'll kill you before he gives it up."
​
Isobel cocked her head to the side. "Is that before or after I kill your brother, Jeremy?"
​
My eyes widened with horror, turning around to look where he was just standing by a red truck, and much to my dismay, he was gone.

"Jeremy?" I muttered under my breath. "Jeremy!"

I turned back to see that Isobel had vanished.

"Jeremy!"

✥ ✥ ✥

​"Where's the device?" Bonnie asked, the four of us all sat in Alaric's classroom after I had explained that Isobel had taken Jeremy.

"Damon has it." Stefan said with a sigh, "He will be difficult to reason with."

"Then we'll go to him." Elena said taking a break from her frantic pacing. "I'll talk to him."

"He's not just gonna hand it over, especially if it's harmful to vampires." I said, Stefan nodding his head in agreement.

"What if it's not?"

And suddenly, all eyes were on Bonnie Bennett.

"Absolutely not," Damon disagreed immediately, once we told him what had happened and what we wanted to do.
​
Elena held her hands out. "Just hear me out."

​"I'm not gonna give the device to Isobel so she can give it to John, who's gonna turn around and kill me. I like being a living-dead-person."

​"But it'll be useless," Elena argued. "Bonnie can take its power away."

​"I don't trust her."

​"I can remove the original spell," Bonnie announced with a slight shrug as she stood next to the fireplace in the Salvatore's living room.

​"John and Isobel will never know."

​"No," Damon shook his head. "No, I'll get Jeremy my own way."
​
From beside me, Stefan spoke out: "Really? How are you gonna do that? Hmm? Because Isobel is a vampire and Jeremy could be dead the second you walk in the door."

​ "Are you even up for this?" Damon asked looking over to Bonnie, "I mean, no offense. You're no Emily Bennett. And Emily knew what she was doing."

"I've been practicing." Bonnie said as she held her head high, feeling the need to prove herself to Damon.

Damon rolled his eyes, "It's not piano lessons, honey."

"What's your favorite book?"

"What?" Damon asked.

"Name a book, any book." Bonnie clarified.

"Name a book." Damon repeated as he looked around the room where hundreds of books were, "How about, Call of the Wild, Jack London."

Bonnie then closed her eyes and concentrated, all of a sudden a book in front of her came flying at Damon. Damon caught it with ease and looked at it. "Jack London." He mused, "Great parlor trick."

"We're doing this, Damon," I insisted, speaking out for the first time. "And we're gonna do this my way. Now give me the device." I held out my hand but Damon didn't move. "We're wasting time, Damon." I said looking up at him with pleading eyes.

Damon looked passed me to Bonnie, "I don't trust you. I tried to kill you."

"Mm-hmm, you're right." Bonnie answered giving him a bitter look, "You can't trust me."

"But you can trust me," I stated, feeling Stefan's eyes on me.

Damon stood there for a moment. His eyes were piercing my own as he made his decision, I could feel my heart pounding, as we stared at each other. He then took the hand that I was holding out for the device in his own, putting the device in my hand, and closing my fingers around it.

"Thank you." I said.

Elena, Stefan, Damon, and I stood out of Bonnie's way as she prepared to deactivate the device. She took out the center piece of the invention and set it on the table as she stared intently at the book.

Damon then began to hum, causing me to look over at him and roll my eyes.

Bonnie put her hands over the center piece that she removed and began to levitate it off of the table. The lights flickered a little as she raised it higher, the fire of the candles in the room and fire place behind her the flames grew. The sudden jump in flames caused me to flinch back, my shoulder bumping into Stefan's bicep. I felt my face heat up in embarrassment as he smiled down at me.

Bonnie jolted forward a little as the device fell onto the table, "Done."

I stepped forward and grabbed it from her.

"Great, now what?" Damon asked from the corner where I once was.

"We give it to Isobel."

Elena and I were now in town square waiting. There was an unnatural breeze of cold air and I knew Isobel was here. "Where's the device?" Isobel asked us as her brown eyes shifted between Elena and I several times before settling upon me.

I crossed my arms, "Where's Jeremy?"

"This isn't a negotiation. Where's the invention?" Isobel asked, her expression unwavering.

"Where's our brother?"

"Do you really think that I came alone?" Isobel muse as Frank and another woman walked up behind us.

"Do you really think that we came alone?" I shot back with a smirk, Damon and Stefan walking up behind Isobel.

"For God's sake call home, Elena and ask to speak to your brother, Jeremy – while I wish to speak with Electra alone."

Elena looked toward me, unsure of what to do.

I smiled slightly, "Go stand by Stefan and Damon, call the house, I'll be fine." I whispered to her. She nodded slightly and then walked to go and stand beside Stefan and Damon. She called the house as I waited for her answer. "Is he all right?" I asked Elena.

"Yeah, he's okay." She smiled back at me, one that I returned.

"You were never going to hurt him." I said to Isobel as I took a step forward.

"No." Isobel said, "I was going to kill him. Don't look for any redeeming qualities in me. I don't have any." Isobel continued as she stared me down.

I shook my head, "But you took a risk with Damon. How did you know he was gonna give it to me?"

"Because he's in love with you – him and Stefan."

I furrowed my brows, taking a step back enough so that I could see over Isobel. Stefan and Damon were both avoiding my eyes – could Isobel be right?

Isobel then held out her hand. Pursing my lips I reached into my pocket and pulled out the device. I walked towards my biological mother and slammed it into her hands. "Thank you." I whispered to her.

"For what?"

"For being such a monumental disappointment; keeps the memory of my real mother perfectly intact."

"Goodbye, Elektra." She said staring at me, examining me one last time, "Although I must say you would have been one hell of a daughter to keep, perhaps turn the feisty, smart, beautiful girl into the perfect vampire."

"Goodbye, Isobel." I spat back at her but as I turned around she spoke again.

"As long as you have a Salvatore on each arm, you're doomed. Katherine and Beatrice were smart, they got out. But we all know that your sister's not Katherine or Beatrice, but you–"

I turned back to face her.

"Are as close as they get."

I gritted my teeth together, "What do you mean by that?"

And with that Isobel left me to my thoughts. I took in a deep breath as I turned back to my sister and the Salvatore's. I felt tears well up in my eyes as I stared at them.

I am not Katherine.

Elena then wrapped her arms around Stefan. He watched me as he pulled Elena close to him, while I stood there letting the tears fall.

I am not Beatrice.
​
Suddenly, I felt a hand place itself on the middle of my back and that was when I realized that I was staring. I blinked several times, tearing my eyes away from my sister and Stefan.

​"Hurts, doesn't it?" Damon asked softly.

​"Damon," I sobbed, looking up at him with puffy eyes. "Am I like them?"
​
Damon hesitated, but shook his head nonetheless.

I was now at home, in the doorway of Jeremy's room. I needed to talk to him about, how he knew about vampires. "Jeremy we have to talk about this." I said coming into his room.

Jeremy didn't turn around, "No, we really don't."

"I don't know what Anna told you, but I want to tell you some things that you really do need to know." I said coming closer to my little brother.

"Yeah?" Jeremy asked, "Because I'm pretty sure your journal covered it."

I took a step back, "You read my journal?"

"Don't even give me the speech about invasion of privacy, because I read a section about Damon erasing my memory and what happened to Vicki?" Jeremy asked.

"Jer, you have to understand, the night that Vicki died, you were so upset. It was like mom and dad died all over again, it was all over your face, and it hurt so much to see you like that - we wanted you to forget."

I sighed, taking a breath.

Jeremy furrowed his brows, "You guys wanted me to forget?"

"Yes, but we were just trying to protect you."

"Just get out." Jeremy whispered.

"Jeremy..."

"Elektra!" Jeremy yelled at me before whispering: "Just get out, please."

I sighed and walked into the bathroom which connected our rooms. "Jeremy, if you ever want to talk or need something I'll be here for you." I said in a whisper to my little brother, "Always."

Jeremy didn't respond, he just shut the bathroom door in my face – locking me out of his room and out of his life.

✥ ✥ ✥

not edited.