It takes Caroline a few days to wrap her head around the fact that Stefan has feelings for Katherine and that he really seems over Elena. Many times she tries to dissuade him to have a relationship with Katherine, and each of these times he tells her that he knows that things will be different this time. They hang out a lot, but never where they could be seen. Caroline knows that Elena and Bonnie are wondering where she's disappearing every day after school. She still hasn't spoken to Elena since she threw in her face that Damon was wrong for her. Speaking of Damon, she hasn't seen him a lot lately. He hangs out with Elena and she's pretty sure that they are secretly dating. Bonnie won't say a thing about it, but there are days when Elena comes to school with that "just fucked" look.
"Caroline."
The blonde vampire turns round and stops walking down the street when she hears her name. But she doesn't see anyone.
"Caroline, up here."
It's barely a whisper but her vampire skills allow her to hear it and she looks up only to find Stefan sitting in a tree above her. She would laugh if there wasn't anyone around.
"What are you doing, Stefan? It's broad daylight. Couldn't you just give me a call?"
"Oh I was hungry. Plus, we're getting a bit restless in that house. I swear Katherine's driving me crazy."
"Still haven't had super vampire sex?"
"No," he says, clearly frustrated.
"Well, what can I do for you?"
"I've heard that Klaus is out of town, is it true?"
Caroline's smile fades at the mention of the hybrid's name. He keeps trying to ask for a second date and she keeps politely telling him to fuck off, but he won't budge. It has taken a toll on her relationship with Tyler. Lately, they don't see each other very often. Both are busy doing their own thing.
"Yes, it's true. He left this morning and he told me that he wouldn't be back for weeks. Something about the cure."
"Great."
"Why?"
"I think it's time for us to confront Damon and Elena."
"Wait, Stefan! Before you do that, there's something I have to tell you. It's just a theory but…"
"What is it?"
"I talked to Tyler about it and he agrees that it is possible… I think Elena's sired to Damon."
Stefan pushes the entrance door of the house a while later, his mind full of Caroline's theories. Katherine is not in the living-room or in the kitchen so he goes up the stairs. The water is running in the bathroom; she's probably having a shower. Stefan tries really hard not to think of Katherine in the shower. It's like he can't control his thoughts now. His mind is always filled with images of her. It doesn't help that she enjoys parading in the house with very little clothing. When he hears that the water has stopped, Stefan knocks once on the door.
"Katherine?"
There are a few seconds of silence and then the door unlocks. Stefan's jaw almost hits the floor as his eyes take in Katherine's body wrapped in a small towel. Clearly she knew that he would react like that because she wears her trademark smirk on her face.
"See something you like, Salvatore?"
He forces himself to focus and clears his throat.
"Get dressed, we're going home."
"What?"
The game is over. Katherine follows Stefan as he walks toward the bedroom.
"What do you mean we're going home?"
"It's time for closure. I've had enough."
"But Klaus—"
"Is out of town. We can leave before he comes back."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
Katherine watches him for a few seconds, then she nods and returns to the bathroom to get dressed. When she comes back in the bedroom, Stefan is feeding from a blood bag.
"Care to share?"
He hands it over to her without a word.
"Thanks. So, you're sure you want me to come with you? It could—"
"Yes, you're coming with me. Let's go."
He takes her by the hand and Katherine barely has the time to throw the blood bag on a table downstairs before they're out of the house.
Damon is at the boarding house with Elena and they're drinking in the living-room while listening to music when the entrance door opens. At first, they don't notice Stefan leaning against the wall. Katherine is nowhere in sight but Stefan knows she's just waiting to make her entrance. He has to clear his throat so that his brother finally looks up and sees him. As if he had been burnt, Damon suddenly pulls away from Elena who was in his arms. Confused, the young vampire glares at Damon but she quickly follows his glance and she turns her head toward Stefan as well. Stefan tries to ignore the small pang in his chest at the sight of his ex-girlfriend in his brother's arms. Even though he knows that his feelings for Elena are gone, it still hurts when he thinks about how they used to be together.
"Stefan," she whispers.
"You're back," Damon adds.
"Looks like I am."
Stefan keeps his tone cold and detached. He is not pleased to see how things have turned out between the three of them. Damon takes a tentative step towards him.
"I see things are pretty cozy between the two of you. How long have you been sleeping together? Did you even wait a whole day before jumping in bed with each other, hmm?"
He shouldn't have taken human blood before coming. It was a mistake. Stefan realizes how unfair he's being but he can't help feeling bitter.
"Stefan…" Damon begins.
"No, it's okay. I actually came to talk to you, Damon. Alone."
Damon nods and follows Stefan outside. Elena takes that time to regain her composure. There is something inside of her that has awoken when she saw Stefan and she's not sure to understand what it is.
"Okay, what is it?"
"I want you to ask Elena to drink from a blood bag."
"What? She can't! Her body rejects it! Why would I do that?"
Stefan sighs and wishes he didn't have to say what he's about to say.
"I've had some echoes about Elena's strange behavior. I've heard some theories and I'd like to see if they happen to be true."
"Spill it, Stefan."
"Elena is sired to you, Damon."
After long minutes of arguing and threatening each other, Damon and Stefan walk back into the living-room. They find Elena sitting on the couch, biting nervously her fingernails. She stands up as soon as she sees them enter the room.
"Hey Stef, I know you aren't on human blood, but I feel a bit hungry so…"
"Actually, pour me a bit from a bag."
"Seriously?"
"Yes."
"Okay… Elena, why don't you join us? I know it didn't go well last time but now that you've been a vampire for a few months, I'd be happy to see you try again."
"You think so?" She asks hesitantly.
He smiles at her and, using his vampire speed, he grabs two blood bags from the fridge and comes back. He hands out a glass to Stefan and takes another one for himself. Then, he gives the second blood bag to Elena.
"Go ahead," he says with a smile. "I'm sure your body will keep it down this time."
And it does. After a few seconds, Elena smiles when she doesn't feel like she's going to throw up. Damon's face crumples and Stefan frowns. Caroline and Tyler were right.
"I can drink from the bags! I don't have to hurt people anymore!" Elena says happily.
She hugs Damon and immediately steps back as if remembering that Stefan is also in the room. Then she notices how unhappy they both look and her brown eyes go back and forth between the two brothers.
"What?"
When Damon and Stefan appear to be at a loss of words to explain the situation to her, Katherine struts into the room and stands beside Stefan. Damon and Elena don't react at first, like they haven't seen her yet.
"Isn't it obvious? You've become Damon's little lapdog, Elena. You're sired to him."
Chaos ensues. Elena wants explanations; Damon wants to know what Katherine is doing here; Stefan tries to keep Katherine's hands off of him, and Katherine keeps silent. Finally, Stefan manages to calm everybody and make them sit on the couch. Katherine is by his side and they're facing Damon and Elena.
"I think we all have a lot of explaining to do," Stefan begins to say. "I left town with Katherine a couple of months ago."
"You were with her all this time?" Elena spits with a disgusted face.
Katherine only smirks and Stefan ignores her comment.
"While we were away, Katherine helped me take control of my blood lust, which is why I asked you to share your blood bag with me, Damon. I haven't drunk animal blood for a month and a half now."
"Maybe we could skip all these things that they don't need to know and get right to the point," Katherine intervenes. "I mean, Elena is sired to Damon, hello?"
On the outside, Katherine seems confident and even mocking, but it's a whole other story in her mind. There is something that they don't know about her. And she will have to tell them.
"Yes, about that… Caroline and Tyler have been observing you for weeks and they've come to the conclusion that Elena might be sired to you, Damon."
"That's nonsense! Damon, tell them!"
But Damon looks down at his hands and refuses to meet Elena's gaze.
"You couldn't drink from a blood bag, remember? Now you can. Caroline told me some other things about you practically always agreeing with Damon. And… your feelings about him have been magnified when you turned, but your feelings for me haven't. The only reason to that is because you're sired to him."
"What I feel for Damon is not due to a sire bond."
"No, it's not," Katherine finally says much to everyone's surprise.
She gets up and turns her back on the other three.
"The sire bond can happen when the blood turning a human is the blood of the vampire this human has feelings for. At this point, I believe that if it had been Stefan's blood in Elena's system when you turned, you might as well have been sired to him."
"Wait, how do you know all that?" Stefan asks.
Katherine's eyes meet Damon's for a brief second and she knows that the elder brother has understood what she means.
"I know it because it happened to me. In 1864. Damon was sired to me."
Further explanation in next chapter! Haha. I'm evil.