Caroline's recent texts about her brother had MJ reacting in two ways.

1. She could relax.

He was playing nice, i.e. he was a problem she could ignore for a day or two until she'd come up with the perfect cover story for being back in town.

2. Her brain kept screaming, 'LIAR.'

She didn't think Caroline was a liar; she just thought the final text had been an interesting one.

- And kinda really like you

Seeming like MJ was a good thing to Caroline – it wasn't to MJ.

She was a shady person who knew how to present herself, and if her brother was like that, they needed to be wary. And she knew he was like that. Ryos was a liar. And a good one.

Or MJ was just letting the Mikaelson paranoia rub off on her.

Coming all the way to Mystic Falls and lying about the reasons was so much work. Ryos had to know she would find out, and he had to know she'd interrogate him given how on edge she'd been during their first run-in during the summer.

The summer.

...Maybe he was being genuine.

Their time in Hangzhou had given her peace of mind about their relationship; she'd had faith in them to get back to a good place.

Then she'd learnt about their dad.

If he'd kept up the lie after their lovely day, maybe the guilt had brought him to Mystic Falls?

Maybe they'd meet, he'd own up to everything, and the skies would be blue.

Maybe.

MJ didn't make any stops in town since Caroline had run into him there, driving straight to the Salvatore House.

"Kol?" She called out carefully, "I have no idea if you know - "

"Caroline called you from Mystic Falls," His smiling face was in the passenger side, "What's the agenda for the day?"

"I need to see Katherine and Stefan."

"They're sleeping together, by the way."

MJ felt her heart jump, "What?"

"Your brother's here - but Caroline told you that, and while she was talking to him, Stefan and Katherine started having sex."

"Of course they did."

"Jealous, darling?"

No response.

Kol straightened up, "You are?"

"No."

"Mira!" His face was slack, "Which one?"

"Neither!"

His momentary offence turned teasing, "Be honest."

"I am."

"You say as if I can't tell that you're lying."

"...It doesn't matter."

"Mira," Kol's voice softened, "I think you need to know something."

"Okay?"

"Katherine's dying."

"She jumped off a building. I'm aware."

"Yes," His cold hand graced over hers on the wheel, "That's what I meant."

MJ glanced around, slowing the car down to pull over despite not being at the house yet.

"Mira?"

"That's not what you meant."

The moment the car stopped, she turned in her seat to face him.

"Kol?"

"Silas drained the cure from Katherine - you know that, but I don't think you've been told that her age is now catching up with her."

"...What?"

"She's going to die. She told Stefan when he saved her from the clock tower."

MJ's fingers started to tremble.

He shuffled closer, "...I guess that answers my question..."

"Katherine," She started to shake her head, "No - I - that's - "

His arms moved around her shoulders, pulling her into his body. Everything about the gesture was off, from its lack of firmness to the shivers it sent through her body.

None of that was Kol's fault, but it did wake her up a little, pulling back.

"I'm sorry."

"I can fix it."

"Mira - "

"Why am I learning this from you!"

She could list several people who should've told her that information - if it was common information.

"I can - " MJ took a long breath in, "She's not dying."

Kol scanned her face.

"I don't need to be sad. I'll fix it."

"My sweet, sweet Mira," His jealousy slipped away, "You - "

"I can't lose her too."

Silence.

"I refuse to."

"...You do have Qetsiyah's Grimoire."

"Exactly. I can stop this."

Kol knew he couldn't talk her out of it without seeming massively hypocritical or somewhat sabotaging the situation.

"Since I've only been gone like, two days, I haven't exactly had time to look at your list yet."

"I already told you, macushla," He was trying to be careful, "Take all the time you need."

She still felt bad about it, but Katherine was alive. MJ needed to stop Katherine from dying, not really prepared to have to perform two resurrection spells considering she was already going to be pushing the universe's buttons with one (and possibly Ric - if he hadn't found peace).

"Macushla?" She decided to distract herself, "What does that mean?"

"It's an Irish term," He settled back in his seat, "Mo chuisle, recoined macushla by a song in 1910."

"You get to fact check me for once."

"It is nice to know there are things left for me to teach you."

"There are many things left for you to teach me," Her eyes relaxed, a smile on her lips, "The translation?"

"My pulse."

Every feature on her face softened as they stared at each other.

"Seemed fitting considering the situation."

"I can't wait for you to have your own one back."

"I'm pretty sure you'll always be my true one going forward."

They were close to the House, MJ entering the drive.

"Considering I did see you only a few days ago...I guess I should leave you to your babble."

"You don't have to."

"I get jealous enough simply watching you and Stefan - now I know where your feelings truly lie?"

MJ felt somewhat embarrassed.

"Who would have thought that you and Elijah would have the same type."

"It's not like I'm in love with her. It's a small crush that comes and goes as she does."

He gave her a look.

"It's complicated."

"Most things seem to be when it comes to you and relationships."

"Wow, okay," She laughed, slowing down in the drive, "That's a fair call-out."

And they came to a stop.

"Though, it's not like you defined our relationship either."

"I have an excuse," Kol reasoned, "Societal's relationship definers change every decade, and I'd missed nearly ten of those."

She tried not to smile.

"In my eyes, I should have been meeting you in your house's front room under the eyes of a chaperone - something that would have continued until I'd proposed."

"Klaus was really trying to be that chaperone."

"Klaus is the peeping-tom of the family, hence why he can't land a long-term date to save his life."

"You can judge?"

"My revolving door was a choice!"

Her smile broke out, "Whatever you have to tell yourself."

"The graves are out there as proof."

"Not the thing to boast about."

"But my kill count's impressive," He pouted, "Don't you think?"

MJ couldn't do anything other than let her hands come up to cup his face, "You are so cute."

"I'm a psychotic murderer."

"You're adorable."

He smiled in her hold

"I think there are children in your kill count, and that's not impressive..."

The smile faltered.

"But I also think there's something wrong with me because I'm just thinking about how pretty your eyes are."

God, she needed therapy.

"And now that I know that behaviour is wrong, I probably won't be doing it."

"Don't we love gaining humanity?"

"I think your eyes are prettier."

"Neither of us are as pretty as Katherine."

He glared, "Cruel."

"Teasing."

"I don't believe you."

"And that's a trust issue you are going to have to work on," She laughed, "Because you're not alive to kill her in jealousy."

"I wouldn't kill her," He shook his head back from her hands as the grip started to flicker naturally, "You'd hate me if I did that."

"Low-key true, but let's not act like you're not smart enough to make it seem like you had nothing to do with the death while still being the one behind it."

He bit his lip.

"Case and point," MJ didn't need to know about his original plan for Ric to know it was true, "But now I need to talk to her."

"Have fun."

"Come and narrate."

"Mira," He forced a smile, "I'm trying incredibly hard to act like your complicated feelings towards your dying friend don't bother me. You don't want my commentary right now."

"Fair enough."

"I'll see you later."

"Definitely."

"And I will require much attention to nurse my ego."

"Your ego will be humbled by the experience. Something it could probably benefit from."

He feigned offence.

"And you know I'm happy to give you attention," She had a sudden thought, "My brother?"

"He called me an-a-thousand-year-old perv!"

MJ laughed

"Mira!" He scolded the reaction, "That's a completely inaccurate representation of our relationship!"

"That's the thing that bothered you the most out of whatever you heard him doing?"

Kol blinked twice, reigning it in slightly.

"You can defend your honour later, but did you see anything odd?"

"I found out he was here when he broke into your apartment...I'm somewhat camping out there."

"Feel free to - what do you mean 'broke in?'"

"As in, magic click, he takes a look around. He didn't go through any drawers, more, just, stepped inside, then left, locking everything back up."

She didn't react.

"Mira, that's abnormal behaviour."

"Duh," She agreed, "But Ryos is the guy who did a tracking curse from afar to keep me at my Uni tours, and who told me he always had some kind of tracker on me."

It wasn't okay but,

"I gave him Ric's address forever ago - as 'not okay' as him breaking in is, it's not surprising. It's his weird way of getting involved with me."

Kol's face contorted a little, think through that information.

"Did you follow him?"

"As if I could resist."

"Thank you."

"He got a coffee, ran into Caroline, then helped them with PTSD."

"...Did he seem...you know...genuine?"

Kol paused.

"You can say no."

"Everything he said made perfect sense."

"But?"

"You know I don't trust him - his entire attitude had me fuming bloody murder!"

MJ accepted that.

Kol wasn't exactly a non-biased spy, "He spoke to Caroline with just enough resistance to seem like he was trying to keep his personal feelings to himself, then still answered all her questions."

She just looked puzzled.

"If he was actually filled with regret, he wouldn't have wanted to practise the sob story on her. He would've saved it for you."

"Sob story?"

Kol grinned, "Let's see if he gives you the same one."

"He's not learning that I'm here," MJ shut down, "I don't wanna talk to him until I know how I feel."

"Mira - "

"No," She wasn't about to let Kol talk her into a game of ghost-stalker truth detector yet, "Just tell me what he said."

"Some drivel about fearing you'd end up dead if he stayed with you, out of guilt surrounding your mother's death."

MJ stilled.

Ryos had had something to do with the grimoire. She knew that now. She knew he hadn't given it to the witches, but she knew from their China day that he felt responsible for the mess by interacting with the covens to begin with. He'd given them other spells.

"He told me that too. He blames himself for the entire situation."

Kol didn't seem to like that, "Hm."

"But until he tells me about my dad?" MJ took a long breath in, "I don't care what he has to say...Where is he?"

"Mystic Falls Hospital. Been there all morning."

"Working?"

Reluctantly, Kol answered, "Yes."

"Is he just working there or?"

"His laptop calendar indicates that he alternates shifts there and at the town I can't see."

Whitmore.

She felt her shoulders relax slightly.

"Just because that part of his story is true doesn't mean he's worthy of your forgiveness."

"That means he passed his US licensing exam...and is probably doing a transitional residency..."

"I don't know what that is, MJ."

"He got his PhD in the UK. To practise in the US he must've done a whole other set of exams, passed them, then applied for a residency to help get him his qualification here."

Which meant he was busy.

"If he's working today, he's not important - and I feel sick when I think about him."

Kol backed off, "We can discuss the plan for him later."

"Again, thank you."

"A spy mission at least makes me feel like I have a purpose until you resurrect me."

"We'll add 'international spy' to the role play list I know you're keeping."

Kol grinned.

"I wish I could kiss you goodbye..."

"I'll be holding you to that."

One last lingering look, then he was gone.

Focus.

MJ could focus rather than freak out too much.

Stefan and Katherine.

Her first check-ins.

Well, there were, until MJ saw a battered and bruised Damon Salvatore on the front steps, dry blood going from a spot on his head down to his neck.

She snorted, "What the hell happened to you?"

He froze, turning to look at her.

Black veins momentarily appeared around his eyes until he shook them away, trying to stay in control.

"MJ."

"Crap," She lost the taunting tone, "You're, like, actually hurt."

Rushing forward, four fingers on one hand out, two on the other, sliding together before pressing Damon's temples before he could even react.

The reading told her that he had a dislocated shoulder, a bullet in his head, and a lot of vervain in his system.

The bullet flew right out, Damon crying out as the hole properly closed up, the healing magic taking over.

"Sabrina – " He croaked out, the veins flickering back in.

"One moment," She pointed a thumb to the left, drawing down, giving him control over the bloodlust.

The dark features vanished.

"Here," Her hand waved, blood flying out of her bag.

Damon ripped it open, downing it as quickly as he could while she chanted. The shoulder clicked back into place, and the odd injection like marks on his arm vanished too.

That was when the front door opened, Katherine behind it, dressed for a run, tucking her hair into a baseball hat.

She took one look at Damon then her eyes went wide at MJ.

"M – "

"You chucked yourself off the bell tower?" MJ hugged her, leaving Damon to get fixed up.

Katherine tensed, surprised, but then accepting it.

"And you didn't even tell me?"

"I..."

MJ shoved back, hands-on Katherine's shoulders to scan her face, "The Travellers aren't just gonna show up and kill you, and if you're really going to end it, I would quite like the chance to say goodbye and talk you out of it!"

"Sweet moment and all," Damon interrupted, unamused, "But, Elena's not here by any chance, is she?"

"I haven't seen her," Katherine exhaled, getting out of MJ's grip, "Not that I've been looking."

"Stef!" Damon yelled, walking inside, "You awake?"

"You know," Katherine saw an opportunity, "He hasn't seen her either...I would know...because we were together all night."

"Look - I've had a really crappy couple of days, okay?" He disgustedly scanned her, "If you're implying what I think you're implying – "

"Why?" She prompted, "What were you thinking? That our hot, naked bodies collided in one unforgettable night of passion?"

"You had to phrase it that way?" MJ was rolling her eyes a little.

"I'm gonna barf."

In MJ's opinion, neither Stefan nor Katherine were in a place where they should be having sex with each other. It wouldn't end well. And then...the slightly green monster in her gut.

"Don't be jealous," She winked, tapping MJ's cheek, "You know it could've been you."

MJ tried not to let her body react.

"And you know I'd make it mind-blowing."

"I'm sure."

"If our kiss is anything to go off..."

That caught Damon's attention.

"...Mind-blowing."

"Stefan can hear you say that."

"Part of him probably wishes it was you too," Katherine was acting like nothing meant anything, "He's just too shy to admit it."

Meaning MJ was officially suspicious.

Katherine had been obsessively in love with Stefan for centuries. There was no way she would've been okay with him thinking about someone else while they were having sex. There was no way she'd joke about it.

She was hiding something.

And, thanks to Kol, MJ knew what it was - but Damon clearly didn't.

"And I'm officially uncomfortable," He clapped.

"Great," Katherine smiled, "Then my work here is done. Toodle."

"No, it's not," MJ caught her wrist, "I'm not done."

She raised an eyebrow.

"When were you going to mention the other reason you were willing to jump?"

Silence.

Katherine glared at the air around them, "Snitches end up in ditches."

"Kat - "

"It's not nice to spy, Mikaelson Number Four!"

"Katherine!"

"We're not talking about this," She stomped to the door, "I'm fine."

"You're not."

"I am."

The door slammed shut behind her.

MJ wanted to chase after her, but Katherine clearly needed a cool-down, which meant she'd need to wait to ambush her later.

Damon shuddered. "Ugh."

"Jealous?" MJ looked at him pointedly.

"Never."

"You sure?"

His turn to roll his eyes, "Are you?"

"None of your business."

"You kissed Katherine?"

"She kissed me."

"Fun rephrase," He challenged, "What was she trying to get out of you?"

MJ didn't respond, looking around and waiting for Stefan to appear.

He didn't.

"No shame for falling for it," He muttered, "We've all been there."

MJ felt her jaw clench, "She wasn't using me."

"I've said that before too."

"She was trying to make a point."

"Exactly. Using you."

"For me," She corrected.

Damon paused, confused.

He thought through all the information Katherine had technically just unleashed.

"...Mikaelson Number Four...yelling at the air..." His hand lifted towards her, "And you could see ghost-Bonnie."

She didn't bother responding.

"Kol's here?"

"No," MJ knew he probably was, just not pulling back, "Not right now."

Damon vamp-sped closer to her, "But you're talking to him?"

"Sometimes," She sighed, "It's nothing. Whatever."

"But Katherine found out and kissed you?"

"It's Katherine logic. Don't try and understand it."

Thankfully, Damon let the topic drop given the irritation on her face, looking down at his much healthier looking state.

"Need more blood," She pulled another bag out of her hers.

"And look at that," He took it, "I actually kinda miss you floating around with your bag of weird things."

"Because we only see each other in small doses," MJ cracked a smile, "Tricks us into thinking we don't hate each other."

"Maybe."

"Trust, by the end of the day, you'll be kicking me out," She was so over fully wood interiors, "Where have you been to end up like that, and why are you looking for Elena?"

"Run in with Augustine – if you've kept up to date?"

"I have. I gave Elena the info on them."

"I wish you'd given it to me," He headed up the stairs, "I didn't realise it was Augustine until I was already back with them."

MJ followed him up, "You know them?"

"I have a fun history with them."

They were heading to Stefan's room, where he was dressed and collecting his clothes from the floor, a shirt over his shoulder.

MJ put her hands out, "Guess who's back?"

"Hey," He smiled, "You've only been gone like four days?"

"Caroline called."

"About your brother showing up?"

"Yeah."

"He seemed nice," Stefan shrugged.

She tried for a smile.

Then he looked at his brother, leaning on the door frame, "Where the hell you been?"

"Aw, you know, being held against my will," He replied bluntly, "Shot in the head."

The two were still not in a good place post-Silas/Summer/Elena breaking his heart situation.

MJ had only been gone a few days. It would've been a miracle if they'd somehow managed to find some common ground that quickly when Stefan didn't want to spend time with either of them.

"I can't find Elena," Damon came into the room, "How was your evening? Anything out of the ordinary happen?"

MJ gave him a stern look, "Really gonna do that now?"

"What do you mean you can't find Elena?" Stefan's head moved between the two of them.

"I mean, she's not picking up her phone," Damon inspected the slightly messy bed, "She's not in her dorm. She's nowhere in this house. Which leads me to believe that Dr Creepy Ken-doll has her somewhere."

"Wes Maxfield," MJ was going over her notes in the Mystic Falls side of her brain.

She could feel herself about to be roped into a rescue Elena Gilbert mission, and after what had just happened with Davina...she was surprisingly okay with it.

She needed to save someone after that mess.

Stefan put the last shirt away, "Are you two talking about the Whitmore bio teacher?"

"Yep," Damon nodded, "The one that operated on vampires during business hours? That one."

"Put your hero hair on, Stefan," MJ motioned to the door.

Damon patted him on the back, "Let's go get Elena."

"You just said you don't know where she is."

"I don't, but we have a witch with her blood."

"Actually," MJ pulled a face, "I don't carry her blood around anymore, so unless you've still got the supplies that I left here?"

Damon sighed, "I gave all your witchy things to Caroline."

"Which she then sent to me. I.e. in New Orleans."

"Whatever," Damon continued walking out, "Just means we're gonna have to find us some leverage. So, come on."

"We can call Liz to track her phone."

"I'll do that; you get the brother-cousin."

Jeremy.

They drove to the Whitmore Campus since Jeremy wasn't answering his phone for a blood donation. He'd been spending a lot of time there with Bonnie, more than some of the actual students in the group. MJ also texted Bonnie to ask where he might be while they checked out the science lab.

The part of MJ that had been obsessed with chemistry loved the lab. Running around and inspecting all the creepy viruses stored in the fridge had her feeling quite bitter. The cool ones Damon had mentioned seeing had been moved.

No personal belonging for her to use in a spell either.

Her plan to track Elena's phone didn't help because it had been left in her empty dorm room.

When MJ hadn't then been able to find any secret doors to lead to an underground research dungeon, they gave up. Damon had an idea for someone else who could lead them to Wes, a new search mission.

Walking through the dorms house, Damon suddenly paused, pointing at a guy with blonde hair sitting in one of the student mingling areas. He was on a couch, earphones in and writing in a notebook.

"Leverage."

"Wait," MJ put a hand forward to stop him, "That's Aaron Whitmore."

Damon rubbed his hands together, "Exactly."

"Wait - no - "

He was gone.

Not gone, just sitting next to the guy and pulling one of his earphones out.

"Pop quiz."

Aaron looked terrified.

"Your girlfriend's taken by a mad scientist," He pitched, "Now, do you: A, get a new girlfriend."

The human glanced around, praying for someone to notice the situation.

"B, call the police; or C, kill someone close to the mad scientist?"

Aaron went to run, Stefan appeared in front of him, "Sit."

Damon patted the spot on the sofa for extra intimidation points.

"Does being a vampire just make you inherently dramatic?" MJ asked, approaching the group and confusing Aaron even further, "We've never met in person, but Mira Jung."

She held her hand forward as Aaron slowly sat down again, "As in...?"

"Victoria's Voices Outreach program," She nodded, "And dated your brother for a hot minute."

He was completely frozen in his seat.

"Yeah. Odd way to meet, and I will start by saying thank you for running the Whitmore section of the program over the past year."

The Whitmore support had gotten Elliot and she volunteers from other High Schools and more people donating money.

"But then...sorry?"

Aaron looked between the three of them, "You're with the vampires."

"Little bit."

"I've been helping vampires?" He looked horrified, "My - "

"No, no, no," MJ stopped him, "Well, actually, today you are."

Damon took over, explaining how they were looking for Elena, assuming Aaron had had something to do with her disappearance now he was in-the-know. Wes was his guardian, and it was Whitmore family money funding the vampire torture ring. He was leverage, and he was leverage that apparently had some kind of motivation to wanna hurt Damon and-or Elena.

"I have no idea where Wes took her," Aaron promised them.

"Well, they're not at his lab," Stefan sounded bored, "Where else could he hide a vampire?"

While Damon sat on Aaron's left, Stefan had taken a place in the opposite chair, MJ still standing up behind them, leaning over the sofa back.

"I'm sorry," Aaron looked at him, "Am I supposed to know who you are?"

"That's my brother Stefan," Damon put an arm over Aaron's shoulder, "But I'd watch your tone with him. He's kind of in the midst of a psychotic break."

Stefan blinked twice, "I'm what?"

"Oh, come on," Damon huffed, "You don't think I know about you and Katherine?"

"Oh, I see!" He mused, "You're jealous."

"That's what I said," MJ's voice was high, eyes focused on the ceiling.

"I'm not jealous - she's jealous."

Stefan wasn't sure where to look.

"I'm disturbed," Damon glared at both of them, then returned to Aaron, "See? He's off his rocker."

Stefan continued to nod, sarcasm radiating off the gesture.

"He's losing his mind, teetering on the brink of insanity."

"How are you not dead?" Aaron was holding himself very tensely, "I shot you."

"Well," Damon glanced around like he was checking for eavesdroppers, "Because you went for the head."

An explanation for the bullet she'd pulled out.

"You gotta go for the heart," He smacked the guy on the back of the head, "Go for the heart next time."

"It's a rookie mistake," MJ somewhat defended, "Everyone makes it. Damon included."

"Have not."

"Stabbed Klaus where at Homecoming?"

"The stomach - but you'd rigged it so he couldn't die anyway!"

"Ya still missed."

"Wait," Aaron shook his head, "You're a vampire too?... But – But you do charity work!"

"Not a vampire," MJ put her hands up, "Though a lot of the money has come from them."

"Vampires give money to charity?"

"Not all vampires suck as much as Damon."

"Hey!"

"You knew him already," MJ pointed at Aaron, "Most people you know, you've tried to kill. Ergo, you suck."

He couldn't deny that, "Have you not tried to kill several people?"

"I suck too," She then answered Aaron's question, "I'm a witch."

His eyes went wider, "A – a witch?"

"W-i-t-c-h. Witch."

"But you - you were dating - "

"Whit, yeah," MJ cleared her throat, "He doesn't know. He's not been lying to you this entire time."

Or maybe she had a liars complex thanks to her brother, so assumed anyone that seemed smart and nice was a good and honest person she should entrust with her emotions.

...She'd never been properly attracted to any guy the same age as her...

Nope.

MJ wasn't going to let herself think about that, or she'd start thinking about similarities Ryos had with –

"And this would be a lot easier," She forced herself to stay on topic, "If you told us where Wes might be."

"I have no idea," Aaron's voice made him sound like a tired teddy bear, "Wes told me to go about my life as usual."

"We're gonna call Wes," Damon put a friendly smile on his face, "And you're gonna tell him that if he doesn't give us Elena, the next experiment he conducts is gonna be sewing your arms back on."

Aaron quickly pulled his phone out and dialled a number, letting it ring, putting it on speaker for the group.

He didn't know about the super hearing yet.

MJ started to feel a little bad.

Aaron was clearly a noob with no real control over the situation, and he didn't deserve to die because of his family history.

She couldn't let him die.

Whit had told her about his 'family curse' theory, and he'd been the person she'd called post-Jeremy and Kol's death...and he'd been wonderful. She couldn't have a hand in his brother's death.

He'd helped her with grief; she couldn't create his.

"Aaron, hey," The man on the other end answered.

"Do you have Elena?"

"Aaron," He said suspiciously, "What's wrong?"

"Uh," He managed to sound relatively calm, even if he was shaking, "Stefan and Damon Salvatore are gonna kill me unless you give them Elena."

"Damon Salvatore is locked in an impenetrable and inescapable fortified cell."

"Or he's in front of me," Aaron stared at him, "Imagining what my kidney would taste like."

There was a pause.

"Fine," The Wes guy sounded upset, "Meet you in my classroom. Once I see you're safe, tell them I'll give them Elena."

Aaron hung up.

That was a lot easier than MJ had been expecting.

The bad guys didn't usually just hand people over. Usually, there was a tantrum. Then again, Wes was just a human scientist. If he was smart enough, he'd realise throwing a tantrum would only make everything worse.

MJ doubted Damon was gonna let him walk away from the situation alive no matter how cooperative he was though.

Heading across the campus meant they needed to seem somewhat normal, other students floating about on paths and across the grass. Lots of cars were parked outside all the buildings, groups heading to classes with books in their hands, pairs sitting on benches chatting.

It was all a little dull.

MJ kept checking her phone, waiting for a message to tell her something had gone wrong in New Orleans, but it never came.

Klaus was trying to get everyone back to business as usual, Marcel was around but not getting involved, and Hayley had just been texting MJ about the werewolves.

Elijah and Rebekah had found Klaus's line, something he'd told MJ about almost instantly. She was the one that could fact check for them. The North-East Atlantic Pack that MJ had told Klaus about before their trip to Italy.

Klaus had made a deal with Kieran about them.

The Church would act as a momentary shelter, Klaus sending food there every few days.

Hayley had just found out, taken aback by Klaus doing a kind thing, texting MJ to see if she'd forced him into it or if he'd genuinely done a good deed.

'Wolves are pack animals, Hayley.'

'Duh, he's keeping them safe. He's a wolf too.'

- Yeah, but he's Klaus

- And he did order the slaughter of my group

'Did they actually die?'

- No. Because of Elijah and Rebekah.

'True, though it's not like the order's been given again.'

- He also gave me some surprisingly helpful advice about Elijah.

'He does have some redeeming moments. It's not melodramatic screaming twenty-four-seven.'

- It can feel like it.

'Also true.'

'But if you can justify the horrible and horrendous things Elijah's done, you might wanna realise the world ain't 'rules for some, rules for others' kind of place, and give Klaus the same chance.'

- But has Elijah really done anything that horrible?

- Or has Klaus caused all of those things.

'You barely know him.'

- Klaus or Elijah

'Both.'

'Elijah had me shaking out of my skin when we were first met.'

'Ripped off heads and hearts and made sketchy deals he didn't even keep.'

'He's just as much an Original as Klaus is.'

'You just met them under different circumstances, and Elijah is more likely to be kinder on instinct.'

"You want to give me a little back story as to how you know one another?" Stefan asked Damon, bringing MJ off her phone as they walked.

"Aaron is Aaron Whitmore," Damon said, the brothers behind Aaron and MJ, "He comes from a very long line of vampire-probing, blood-testing, organ-removing freaks called Augustine."

"Wait," MJ interrupted, "What?"

Damon nodded.

"Back-up! No."

"Your ex not mention that?"

"No!"

Whit was too good of a person to be a part of something like that...wasn't he?

He was studying medicine.

But MJ knew he wasn't even at Whitmore College anymore, transferring to a more specialist degree in a different city.

He wasn't a mad scientist. He was her human escape.

Stefan raised a hand, "Why do you know this?"

"Because," Damon grimaced, "I was their test subject in the '50s."

MJ growled, "'Test subject?'"

Damon had been with them for a few days, she knew that, but a full-on test subject?

She...

She hated to think about that.

She didn't like Damon, but that didn't mean she wanted to think about him getting tortured in a cage for being a vampire.

For being an awful person?

Sure.

For being a vampire?

No.

No one deserved to be tortured for something they couldn't control.

"I donated my body to science," He said cheerily, "Except I was alive, and it was against my will."

"Hold on a minute," Stefan stopped them all from walking, "How do I not know about this?"

"Don't get all guilt-ridden, Stefan, on me," Damon shrugged, "We were on the outs back then."

Their family relationship was a cycle of fallouts.

"And by the time it was over, you know..." He picked up the pace to get ahead of them, "It was over."

"Why don't you finish the rest of the story, Damon?" Aaron called after him.

"I don't recall saying that you could talk," Stefan caught up with Damon, "Did I say that he could talk?"

"I don't remember anything."

"I didn't think so."

They were back in a rhythm.

"See," MJ tried for a smile, walking faster too, "This! You two getting along and not being on the outs!"

The brothers shared a look.

"Isn't life so much better when you prioritise your family and support each other?"

No answer.

"Fine," MJ waved at Aaron to get him to catch up, "Can I ask how the story ends?"

"You really wanna know?" Damon tutted.

"I'm an info-consuming freak. Yes, I'd like to know what feud I'm getting dragged into."

He seemed almost nervous for a second, deliberately not looking at Stefan, "The story ends with me killing off every Whitmore I've ever met, bar one – so they can continue the line, meaning I can start it all over again."

She whistled, processing that.

Then MJ realised something.

"Whit..." She panicked, "Wait - no, no, no."

"Whit's still alive," Aaron answered.

"I'm aware. We text."

When he'd decided to switch colleges, he'd come to her about advice about moving, and they'd always had things in common, so they were genuinely just friends now.

"He thought their family had been cursed by a witch."

Damon paused, "He told you about his family dying off?"

"I needed to know why he believed in the supernatural," She justified, "I checked for magic, and there wasn't any - I thought it might be a vampire, but I didn't realise it was you."

He smiled a little.

"He came to Elena's eighteenth! We literally had sex in your house!"

Stefan straightened up, "You had sex in our house?"

"And I contemplated killing him then and there," Damon's reaction to his name back then suddenly made a lot more sense, "Very tempted to encourage Ric's plan to murder him."

"In the big picture," MJ glanced down at her necklace, "He should've just gotten on board with the college boyfriend phase."

"Yeah, you really took the whole 'don't date older guys' to heart."

"Let's get this straight," She shook her head, flipping back to her questions, "I know he's okay - why is he okay if you only leave one alive?"

Silence.

"Damon - you can't - "

Dilemma.

Whit had said he hoped Aaron was the one who got to live when they'd talked about it. He'd wanted his little brother to have time to process his grief and live, if their family was genuinely cursed.

But - but Whit was her friend.

But he might be part of a vampire experiment that she was fundamentally against.

"Are you gonna kill him?"

The living shouldn't be punished for the dead.

That ideology was what created family feuds that lasted centuries.

But didn't Damon deserve some revenge?

Still no response.

"Does Elena know about this?"

"She does now."

"And she's okay with it?"

He went straight to defence mode, "You were okay with your Original still doing his thing,"

"Yeah, but I'm morally questionable, and I was fully aware of what Kol was up to – saying Elena 'knows now' implies she didn't."

No response.

"Damon?"

Stefan was looking ahead, determined not to get involved with the conversation.

"Your ex is safe."

Her turn to stop.

"Found out he was leaving the state. Flipped the coin to see if it was time to end it," He announced, "Got heads."

"...Which means he lives?"

"Which means I rip his head off."

Her hairs stood up.

"Decided that he got to live anyway."

MJ felt her mouth open, unsure what else to do.

"Seemed unnecessarily cruel to kill two of your boyfriends off in under a year."

Stefan looked between them too, studying the confliction on MJ's face.

Damon let himself stop, too, turning back and huffing.

"Anyway," He gestured out, "Elena."

"Um," MJ shook her head, "Thank you?"

A beat.

"I mean, not killing people I care about is the bare minimum, but..."

The same conversation she'd had with Klaus when Tyler had shown up.

"Uh...thank you..."

"Yeah, well...I owed you a few."

Incredibly true.

"And he doesn't seem to have anything to do with any of this."

If Damon, the Whitmore Stalker, said Whit wasn't involved, MJ really hoped he was right.

They entered the next building in silence.

MJ took the space in; lecture halls, all with very large windows to let in lots of light, yet she still felt bored.

Wes's lab had been fun, but other than that, the campus felt sleepy.

Damon pointed around to all the doors, "Which one is it?"

"Right here," Aaron led the way.

Entering through a door, there wasn't a creepy bio teacher for her to psychoanalyse. Instead, they were greeted by a dark-haired man with a square jaw sitting in the back row of the raised seating, feet propped up on the chair in front of him.

"21051!"

She processed the English accent.

"Enzo?" Damon's jaw dropped.

The guy stood up, eyes locked on him.

"It's been a while, mate."

Mate.

Mate.

She rubbed her eyes and really looked at him.

How he came towards them, a casual enjoyment of how Damon's face became increasingly concerned, like he was expecting to be attacked.

Brown air, dark eyes - a smirker, not a smiler.

"Who the hell are you?" Stefan asked, noticing the lack of will to move in his brother's body.

"Lorenzo," He introduced himself, "But my friends call me Enzo."

A glare at Damon.

"Ah. Kidding. I don't have any friends."

"Oohh," MJ put a hand up and turned to the door, "I'm tapping out."

Screw the universe.

"Have fun saving your girlfriend."

He was in front of her, "That's a little rude, love."

Vampire.

"No introduction?"

"Nope," She laughed nervously, "Not doing this."

Enzo sent a sparkling smile at Damon, taking a step towards her.

MJ instantly stepped back, unintentionally returning into the room, determined to stay an arm's length away. Distance didn't stop her brain from overreacting to the voice, the looks, or the way he held himself.

"Enzo's another Augustine vampire," Damon explained, somewhat enjoying MJ's reaction, "Our cells were next to each other."

"Do you have a name?" Enzo asked, somewhat tauntingly.

MJ spun to Damon, voice quiet, "He was trapped with you? By evil scientists."

He nodded.

"Seriously?" She sighed, sympathy kicking in, hand going towards him incredibly forced and slowed, "MJ."

He took it, kissing her knuckles.

MJ yanked the hand back, officially hating everything, "We're here to meet somebody."

"Wes Maxfield," Damon agreed, "You know him?"

"That's your first question?" Enzo stalked back towards him, "Not 'How are you? How'd you survive that fire I left you to die in?'"

MJ smiled falsely at the vampire she was referring to, "Damon's never good at asking people if they're okay."

Doing one thoughtful thing for her didn't mean she wasn't going to fire shots at him for the past.

"Uh," Aaron reminded them that he was there, "Does somebody want to tell me what the hell is going on here?"

"I'd love to," Enzo nodded, gesturing to the lecture hall, "Have a seat."

He hopped onto the teacher's desk, sitting and waiting for them to move.

"I've been waiting seventy years to tell my story."

MJ's eyebrows creased, "Seventy years in captivity?"

He nodded.

Out-of-time. Cute English accent. Dark features.

Obvious damage.

Out-of-time damage specifically?

"I hate everything," She tugged on her necklace, taking a seat and trying to ignore the warmth in her gut cueing her brain to memorise the nice details of his face, "I hate everything."

"I'm calling Wes," Stefan took Aaron's phone, exiting the classroom.

"You didn't stop him," She complained, "Not fair!"

"He's not of any interest to me."

"And I am?"

"It's my first time talking to people outside of Augustine!" Enzo shrugged, "I wish to appreciate a beautiful face during my limited freedom."

Kol.

Kol Mikaelson.

MJ wanted to see his face.

She wanted to see his beautiful face, and hear his voice, and be reminded of absolutely everything about him that made him-him until her brain stopped trying to make a list of similarities.

She'd literally spoken to him a few hours earlier.

She was fine!

One vampire making her heart tug didn't mean she wasn't doing just fine.

It just meant she missed him, and that was a perfectly valid way to feel about someone who'd died!

"Damon and I had been locked in those cells for years."

Aaron was sitting too, hands over his face as he realised just why Damon hated his family.

MJ could see the self-hate kicking in, despite the fact it wasn't his fault.

He hadn't known – he hadn't even been born, so he couldn't have done anything to stop it.

"Tortured. Beaten. Humiliated."

Damon was standing, looking at the floor.

"But we weren't gonna let them break us, no!" Enzo knew how to speak like he was addressing a crowd, "We decided that if we were going to escape, we needed to work together."

Damon squirmed a little at the sentiment.

"We needed each other."

And Stefan was back, "He's not sending her."

"Tragic," Enzo didn't care, "Can I continue my story now, please?"

"Doesn't he know we have Aaron?" Damon ignored him.

"He doesn't care. He's willing to risk it."

"What?" Aaron rushed to them, "Let me talk to him! He'll listen to me."

Enzo jumped off the desk, then noticed that MJ was still watching him.

She couldn't stop.

She was just hyper-analysing him in her head.

MJ held his gaze, then glanced to the three arguers, a bored expression on her face.

Back to the vampire, all it took was one challenging eyebrow raise from her, and Enzo was smirking.

"What part of 'he doesn't care' are you not registering?" Damon glared at Aaron.

Enzo ripped a chair from the end of a row, chucked through the window.

The sound of glass flying everywhere was atrocious, but it certainly got everyone's attention, MJ covering her mouth to hide her smile.

"Where were we?" He clapped, "Uh, ah, right. I was telling my story, and you were all politely listening."

She laughed.

"Correct?"

They all shut up.

"I'd given Damon all of my blood rations," He headed back to the centre of the room, "So he'd have the strength to escape and save me in the process."

MJ really felt her insides turning.

"Our plan began perfectly," His wistful tone didn't match his hateful expression, "Didn't it?"

Damon's mouth opened a little, but he didn't say anything.

"I was waiting in the cage for him to release me, waiting for my friend, my cellmate."

Stefan was staring at his brother, face unreadable.

"The only soul with whom I'd connected with in all those years of captivity."

And MJ wanted to give him a hug more and more with every sentence.

"Then a fire starts – burns out of control, and Damon just can't get the damn cage open."

Her eyes shut.

He'd been trapped and alone.

"He looks me in the eye as if he doesn't even recognise me," Enzo pointed two fingers at him, "Turns around and saves himself, leaving me to die."

Silence as they all looked at Damon.

"Well," Stefan swallowed, "You didn't die, obviously."

MJ tilted her head to the ceiling, voice quiet and tired, "Not the point, Stef."

"No," Enzo agreed, "Unfortunately, I lived."

A feeling she could relate to a little too well.

"I was spared by one of the scientists, spending another fifty years on a table being opened and closed."

She was replaying every moment MJ had ever used science to justify stupid choices, even if most of her 'experiments' used herself, not others.

"Now that we've all been acquainted," Enzo turned and headed out the door, "I'm gonna find something to wet my whistle."

"I don't think I wanna know what that means," MJ murmured.

"You didn't tell me about him," Stefan's voice was calm

"It was the 1950s," Damon reasoned, "I'm supposed to remember every moment of my life?"

He was faking the lack of guilt. MJ could tell.

"Do you want to kill Aaron, or should I?"

"This guy was your cellmate for five years," Stefan tried to force him to talk, "You left him to die. He comes back, and you're completely unfazed?"

"Fine," Damon ignored him too, still talking about Aaron, "I will."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Aaron rushed out, "Hold on!"

He'd been holding something back...

"Wes gave me a bunch of files on my family history. They're in my dorm, okay?"

MJ was a little impressed. He'd had his own leverage the entire time.

"Maybe there's something in there you need – a name? Another lab?"

"That's a timely revelation," Damon growled.

"Yeah. Well, you know," Aaron shook his head, "He's not gonna help me. Why should I help him?"

"Smart instincts," MJ nodded, "The only problem? Damon's a dick who will probably still kill you..."

Speaking of, he was walking threateningly towards the guy, "I don't like you – "

"I can't let you kill him," MJ was holding him in place.

His fuming expression became targeted at her.

"If he's lying, I'll deal with him," She forced herself to wear her New Orleans smile, "Gouge his eyes out."

Aaron couldn't tell she was bluffing.

Luckily, neither could the Salvatores.

"But you don't touch him."

"Fine."

She released him.

That was when Enzo waltzed back in, holding two bottles of alcohol

"Ah," He held them out, "It's frightening what you can find on-campus these days."

"Knock yourself out," Stefan dismissed, "We're going with plan B."

"Damon's not," He started to pour a glass, "Damon's staying right here."

About to protest.

"He knows all my secrets, so he knows how ornery I can get when I don't get my way."

Silence.

"And considering you brought a human girl here – "

MJ laughed, "Oo, I wouldn't threaten me."

He scanned her up and down.

"Just 'cos you can smell the mortality doesn't mean I'm human," She finally stood up from her seat, "And it doesn't mean I'm anything even remotely close to defenceless."

He straightened, eyes narrowing.

"Call me if you find anything," Damon realised he was gonna have to stick around.

"Let's go," Stefan nodded to her.

"Nope," MJ had gone from wanting any excuse to leave to knowing she had to stay, "I think it might be best if I stick around to make sure no one ends up dead on this end."

Stefan went to say no.

"I've got this."

"You sure?"

"Trust," She put her hands up, "Top of my game atm, I got this...and it's been a while since I've seen Damon get punched. Kinda in the mood too."

"Love you too, Sabrina."

~***~

Matt had told Nadia about Katherine texting him for help. At this point, Stefan knew she was dying, Nadia knew she wanted to be dead, Kol had clearly told MJ, and she'd had to explain her sudden interest in keeping fit to get Matt to agree to work out with her. That was where Nadia had found her, slapped her for trying to kill herself without even saying goodbye, then dragged her away to talk.

Katherine had been forced to explain how, without the cure in her system, she was rapidly ageing, grey hairs constantly appearing no matter how much dye she used to cover them.

Nadia had taken to looking out of the window in the Salvatore kitchen.

"I get it now," She commented as Katherine returned to the room, "If I was living here, I'd want to kill myself too."

"It was a moment of weakness," Katherine was holding a green smoothie, "I'm over it."

"In a moment of weakness, you eat chocolate or kiss the wrong boy. You don't jump off a clock tower."

"Do you see this?" Katherine motioned to the cup, "This is raw kale."

She mimed gagging.

"In what universe would I put this inside of my body unless I actually wanted to live another day."

She pulled a face with every sip.

"Okay," Nadia accepted the answer, "What changed your mind?"

"It's not so much a matter of what as it is who," She poured a second glass and offered it to Nadia, "Can I ask you something – absentee mother to mildly abusive daughter?"

Nadia took the glass cautiously, "I'm listening."

"Do you think that after all the horrible things that I've done, it would be possible to be forgiven?"

"Of course I do," Nadia stood up tall, "That's actually why I'm here. I may have an idea that will keep you alive longer."

"I'm listening."

That was when Nadia explained how they could use Katherine's new status as a human to tap into their witch heritage. Their Traveller Status. She could body jump to someone who wasn't dying, and she could live on safely since Nadia had ended up with the Traveller knife after they'd killed Gregor.

"You didn't just propose spirit possession with a straight face?"

"You said my grandfather was a Traveller," Nadia said confidently, "Which means your father was a Traveller. Therefore, you are a Traveller."

That was how genetics worked.

"We just need to find one who can teach you how to do the Passenger Spell."

"Hang on," Katherine shook her head, "I'm hardly a Traveller, okay? My father banned us from doing magic."

She sat down in front of Nadia.

"He said it was the devil's work or something dramatic that terrified us, and then I became a vampire and never thought about it again until..."

Nadia hoped the pause was a good thing, "Until what?"

"Until I met a Floare with a pretty major fear of them, which only added to my distaste."

"Well, get over your distaste," She huffed, "Because it's a way for you to live. It's in your blood."

Katherine sighed.

"You can keep living inside someone else's body," Nadia tried to reason with her, "Gregor was a Traveller. I have a number for one of his friends."

Nadia put the number on the table.

"He put his spirit inside Matt so that even after his body died, he lived on."

"Yes!" She nodded falsely, "He lived on, in a busboy. Good idea, Nadia. Let's put my essence in some nobody."

Nadia frowned.

"Thing is, Stefan actually likes this body."

"What are you talking about?"

Katherine smiled, "Stefan and I may have rekindled an old flame last night."

"I see," Nadia was disappointed but not surprised, "So when you asked me about forgiveness, you were asking about him, not me?"

"Look. Maybe I don't want to die a sad, lonely 538-year-old," She could barely get the number out, "If I have to bow out, knowing that Stefan still cares might not be the worst way to go."

"No," Nadia nodded, standing up, "You had it right the first time. Go kill yourself."

She marched to the door.

"See if anyone misses you."

Katherine looked down, torn.

If she was going to die as Katherine Pierce, it might be better for Nadia to hate her. That way, she wouldn't miss her or waste time mourning her. But then her eyes looked to the number Nadia had placed on the table.

She recognised it.

Taking the card to the fridge, she compared it to a note Caroling had left for everyone the previous day.

'Ryos said we could call him for magical assistance.'

Followed by the exact same number.

Katherine dialled it instantly.

"Hello?" His voice answered.

"You lying, undeserving – "

"Katherine Pierce?" He stopped her.

"Correct."

"And what have I done to deserve this rant?"

"I was just given the number of a Traveller, and it was yours."

He scoffed, "I think you've got some wired crossed?"

"I told you yesterday – don't try and out lie a liar."

The smug expression on her face wasn't about to back down.

"I've been doing it for far longer than you have, so I'm far better at it."

"I'm not lying," He sighed, "If you got my number off a Traveller, it means you were asking for a way to get out of the country?"

Nadia's initial plan for them.

"For someone to get a kid somewhere safe?"

Katherine pulled a face, "What?"

"Travellers call me when they need to get out of unfair situations fast," His dry tone had her intrigued, "And I'm happy to help considering my people cursed them."

"Your people were slaughtered by the Travellers," Katherine had done her homework post-apartment with MJ, "Why would you help them?"

"Because the kids are innocent."

"Oh, woe, look at you – "

"Forced to move, month after month," He spoke louder than her, "Not practising magic because trying to will get them cursed too, separated from parents who can't support them."

He could keep listing.

"And, before you jump to 'traitor brother' mode, MJ knows."

"I'm sure – "

"She made a donation to one of the halfway homes over the summer."

Katherine frowned.

She didn't have supernatural hearing anymore, unable to listen for any heartbeat changes.

"Someone called Nadia phoned me earlier to ask about teaching body jumping. How to tap into magic," He lost the attitude, putting on a more welcoming voice, "If I'd known it was you, I would've just come and found you myself so we could avoid the leaps in judgement."

"I..." She pinched her nose, "Why would I want to be anywhere near Travellers. Apparently, they want to kill me."

"Travellers want doppelgangers," He sounded amused, "If I was with them, I could've sent them to Mystic Falls over a year ago, when my sister told me she was friends with two of them."

That did have her pausing.

"I'm a contact, and I use that status to get their favour. That way, they're not looking for my sister," He spelt it out, "You want to learn body-jumping?"

"I don't want to," She still didn't trust him, "It was Nadia's idea, and I'm not interested."

"And if you change your mind, I'll be happy to help you ditch your body."

"I like my body."

"You probably like being alive too."

~***~

Enzo took a shot.

He'd been asking questions about the years he'd missed, and MJ was basically using it as a way to test her pop quiz knowledge, Damon growing increasingly bored by the fact he wasn't rescuing his girlfriend.

"What about cricket?" He was looking out the broken window, "That ever become a thing here?"

"No," Damon answered.

"Oh, shame. Fun sport," Enzo thought about it, "Not that I can play."

"The Ashes are still a pretty popular thing for England and Australia," MJ tried.

"Hm. Good to know," He smiled a little, "I took up drawing for a while. Of course, I had no pencil."

Pouring himself another drink.

"So I'd just prick my finger and paint the cell wall with my blood."

"What do you want?" Damon finally snapped, "For me to feel guilty?"

Enzo simply shrugged.

"I couldn't save you! Now, where's Elena?"

"Wrong priority, man," MJ shot him a look, "At least try and sound genuine."

"Not the wrong priority. I love her, and she's in danger."

"And we'll save her," She wasn't worried, "We always manage to."

Couldn't argue with the numbers.

"But, right now, you gotta trust Stefan to handle it."

Enzo started to cough, hunching over to the point where he needed the table to stay upright.

MJ inspected his paler looking skin.

Damon's worry popped out, "What's wrong with you?"

"Wes injected me with poison that will stop my heart."

MJ took a step closer, "He did,"

She'd picked up several supernatural poisons while she'd been travelling, as well as a few normal ones – buying antidotes too so she could experiment with them. During all her studying of wolf venom, she'd gotten a little too into the ways a supernatural body could be affected; but she'd never test any of them out since she wasn't completely crazy.

Not on anyone but herself, anyway.

"I'll desiccate if I don't return for the antidote," He summed up.

"All the more reason to tell me where he is," Damon stood up, "You get the antidote, I'll save my girlfriend, we'll kill Wes together."

"Did you even think about it after you left?"

A heartbreaking silence.

"The experiments? The cell," Enzo made his way weakly towards Damon, "Or did you just go out and live your merry life to its fullest?"

"Look at me," Damon genuinely seemed upset, "If you go back, we go back together. We finish this for good."

He offered out his hand.

"Come on."

Enzo did take it, just to pull Damon closer.

"You're not gonna see your girl again, Damon," He began to crush the hand, "Because I want the antidote."

His other hand started to strangle his former friend.

"Wes told me not to come back until you were dead."

And Damon was thrown through the broken window.

MJ nodded, momentarily impressed.

Then she forced herself to actually look at all the shattered glass around the room.

"As much as this is scratching my 'watch Damon get his ass kicked' itch, I'm gonna have to intervene eventually."

Enzo looked her up and down again, "And how exactly are you gonna do that, love."

She hated how he said it.

It was too close to the way Klaus said it, and she'd finally stopped finding it weird, and she didn't want to start finding it weird again. If it had her panicked, she'd overthink about why she felt that way, and she didn't want to do that when it came to Klaus.

"I could just offer to heal you here," MJ suggested, "Or I could just stop you."

Then the worst option.

"Or I could watch Damon kill you the way he kills all the emotional baggage from his past."

He was in front of her again, eyes dark.

"The choice is yours."

"You want to test a blood deprived vampire?"

She pushed on her toes to get a little in his face, "You want to test a temperamental witch?"

The air in the room shifted, droplets of moisture becoming visible and humming with power, tiny sparks jumping between them, catching his eyes and making them go wide.

Static was everywhere.

Enzo spun, following it.

"I'm gonna give you two minutes to kick Damon's ass for abandoning you," MJ decided, "Then, I will cure you, and you will tell us where to find Elena."

He just laughed, pulling his shirt down a little so MJ could see lines of desiccation starting to form.

"My want to live isn't as strong as my want to make him suffer."

"I don't believe you," She challenged, "I think you wanna live – you just don't wanna live under Wes."

Hope for something better kept you going.

"And I think you don't actually want Damon to hate you forever, which is what'll happen if Elena dies before Stefan finds her."

"The water trick's nice, but I have revenge to achieve and limited time."

He was out the window, and she didn't try and stop him.

MJ had offered him two minutes, and she intended to deliver on her promises, even if Enzo hadn't officially taken the deal. He was in captivity and being manipulated, and she would be setting him free...the way she'd freed almost every other accented vampire she'd met. It wasn't her fault she had a type!

His story meant he was dumped straight into the 'deserving of sympathy and second chances' pile in her mind.

Damon had landed on a car hood, having pulled himself up during MJ and Enzo's conversation, healing quickly.

"I imagine you just broke your clavicle," Enzo came towards him, limping, "Probably a few lumbar and thoracic vertebrae."

MJ had decided to exit the building through the normal way since she would break her legs if she jumped down to the road.

"It's funny what you learn about your body when it's taken apart like a bloody automobile right before your eyes!"

"I'm not gonna fight you, Enzo."

Enzo just punched him in the face, "What are you gonna do then, run?"

Another hit.

"You're good at that."

Damon caught the third hit, crushing the bones of his fist.

"I want to find my girlfriend."

He tossed Enzo onto the nearby grass, causing him to momentarily roll before getting back onto his feet.

"While you were out running wild," Enzo smiled, "I had one single thought."

He vamp-sped forward to grab Damon by the neck.

"That I'd have the pleasure of killing you."

But before he could do anything else, the desiccation started to overwhelm him, meaning Damon could easily pull away.

He went to attack back, only for Enzo to collapse in his arms.

"Enzo, look at me."

"Bloody poison," He spat.

"Where is he? Where's Elena?" Damon held him up, "Tell me where she is!"

"Or what?! You never see her again?"

He groaned, head lulling.

"It might be good for you to know what it's like to miss someone for the next sixty years."

"Enzo, look at me," Damon wrapped an arm under his back, "Hey! Enzo! Where is she!?"

Nothing.

"Where is she?"

"Mulaf Bala Maledi," MJ raised her arms up, coming out of the building, and on odd light momentarily shrouded Enzo, "Mulaf Bala Maledi."

Enzo's skin was pale, but it wasn't grey – bumpy instead. Covered in thick and poking out black veins.

"Pain reduction mixed with a resistance spell."

He was a moment away from being forced into a state of desiccation.

Damon looked at her carefully.

"We need to get to Wes's lab."

"Why?"

"An Augustine Vampire killed the roommate – meaning Wes lets him out on campus."

Deductive reasoning.

"You never have one dose of poison or antidote," She explained while walking past them to go back towards the room, "You have multiple. Positioned in multiple locations. So you can manipulate your vampire prisoner no matter where you are."

Damon was by her side in an instant, friend in his arms.

"He wouldn't let Enzo out on campus unless there was a poison and a cure on campus."

"What if there's only a poison?"

"Then I'll find a cure."

"What if he dies before then?"

"He won't."

The best thing about Wes's lab was that it was clean and organised.

MJ scanned the fridge's shelves, clocking each label and pulling out the three vials she thought were most likely to be the answer to their problem. Wes wasn't using a supernaturally made poison, so she couldn't just siphon the bad stuff out. She needed to use science and work out the poison.

While she tried to be smart about it, Damon got the call from Stefan.

He'd got Elena away from Wes, alive.

Everything was sorted.

"Can't we just jam him with all of them?" Damon put his phone away.

"I mean, we can," MJ nodded, "Trial and error."

One way to do it.

"But if some of these things clash and somehow mutate the poison into something super deadly – "

She looked at the sheets in a draw Stefan had flicked through earlier, cutting herself off.

It wasn't anything relevant to their search for a cure, but it sparked something in her as she picked it up.

"Sabrina?" Damon held up one of the syringes, about to jam it into Enzo's arm.

"Wes knows about witches."

"And?"

"He's been trying to make poisons stronger than magic."

Damon just continued prepping the needle, "Don't you use a chemistry set in your magic?"

"I do," She mused, "But Wes thinks he's done it."

She held up an entry.

"He thinks he's created a poison stronger than a desiccation spell."

"And as much as I'm sure your little witch nerd brain wants to get distracted by that," Damon used the needle to point to Enzo, "Focus."

"I wanna try something."

"Sabrina – "

She smiled sweetly at him, watching him groan as he lost control of his body, forced to stand as still a statue.

MJ forced his teeth out, pricking her finger on his fangs, not trusting a single utensil in the room. Who knew what Wes coated them in when he wasn't on campus?

She wasn't about to get infected with some super virus.

Then, MJ's hands were placed on Enzo's chest, eyes closing as she chanted.

"Sin Vaca Arugas Heniga. Sin Vaca Arugas Heniga."

The poison was stopping his heart.

It may not be magic, but that didn't mean she couldn't heal it.

Wes had written so confidently, so sure he'd found something stronger than magic, without magic, and she just didn't believe him. In fact, she wanted to prove him and his twisted scientific method wrong.

"Sin Vaca Arugas Heniga."

MJ believed science and magic could be used together to create unstoppable things, but he couldn't have created something that couldn't be fixed with the click of a finger without the assistance of magic.

If he'd been assisted by magic, she would've been able to siphon it.

"Sin Vaca Arugas Heniga."

The veins began to sink back into his skin.

MJ then let her blood drip into his mouth, smiling.

She let Damon free.

He blinked slowly, "Since when have you been able to do that?"

"Do what?"

"Overpower me?"

"Always?"

"That easily," He shook his head, "You've done it twice today – and it used to be a battle of wills."

"Oh," She realised that was a fair point.

Damon had always been one of the hardest people to face off with because his anger was as strong, if not stronger, than her own. He could hold a grudge better than her, anyway. He'd always been able to fight her unless she'd siphoned something.

"Like I told Stefan, I'm kinda at a peak in my magic at the moment."

"So, you can just stop me like that now?"

"Pretty much," She'd been able to rebuff Davina.

If Davina had actually been trying to kill her, she would've succeeded. The Harvest was the power of every witch who'd died in New Orleans for around three hundred years. Yes, MJ could siphon that much power and survive – Qetsiyah as proof, but that didn't mean she had that much power on her own.

Still...MJ was strong enough to at least stand a chance, which was something.

Enzo slowly sat up, colour back in his face.

He looked between the pair, "What did you do now?"

"Like I told you," MJ answered innocently, "I let you have your fight, then I cured you."

"I was just going to inject you with a bunch of the vials labelled 'antidote'," Damon waved the syringe, "But, turns out, having a witch on call has its perks."

"If this is some attempt to make amends," Enzo stood up, "It's a bit pathetic, mate."

Good on him for not instantly forgiving him.

MJ wasn't convinced the anger would last long; it never did with Damon, but still.

"Got the girl to do all the work."

"I made him let me do the work," MJ felt the need to correct.

"And I don't care about amends, mate," Damon dumped the needle he's been holding back on the table, "My girlfriend's safe, so technically, I'm not suffering, and it'd really suck if you desiccated in vain – "

Enzo rushed at him again, but Damon just grabbed him by the heart.

"And I'm gonna tell you my side of the story."

Enzo gritted his teeth to not give him the satisfaction of screaming.

"You asked me if I thought about you after I escaped? The answer is no."

MJ rolled her eyes.

"And I sure as hell don't feel guilty about leaving you because, for me to save myself and leave you, I had to shut off my humanity, damn it."

The admission was spoken towards the hand in Enzo's chest, not Enzo, Damon unable to look at him.

"So I flipped the switch, and then I felt nothing – no remorse, no regret, no pain."

"And what do you feel now?" Enzo didn't seem scared of dying, "Remorse, regret, pain?"

Damon's entire arm tensed, squeezing the heart harder.

"Even if I forgave you, Damon, would that make you less of a horrible person?"

"Damon," MJ's threat was in her eye.

"We're even, Enzo," He released him, staring at his bloody hand.

"You were the most important person in my life," Enzo glowered, "And you ruined me."

Was this bromance somehow more overdramatic than Klaus and Stefan's 'love' affair?

"But that's just who you are. That's who you'll always be."

Now he was cured and free, he was heading straight to the door.

"You'll always be a monster."

Once Enzo was gone, MJ smacked Damon on the back of the head.

"Can I lecture you now?"

"Lecture me?"

"Stefan may not realise what you're doing, but I do."

"Oh, so wise, Sabrina! So sure you have the key to everything."

"We both know that I know the real reason you killed Lexi."

He'd told it to her during their sire-bond humanity switch session.

"Stefan still doesn't, but I do."

Silence.

"Lexi came to you in the 70s, you had your humanity off, and you'd had it off ever since that moment. And it was because of that switch, you didn't care about almost killing her until she showed up again. After the emotions were back on."

Still no retort to try and shut her up.

"Your emotions are on, Damon, and your response to seeing Lexi – to feeling guilty, was to kill her."

They were not about to repeat history.

"Here is the very reason you flipped the switch, and what are you doing again?" She called out, "Ignoring the guilt and acting out in the typical only 'me and Elena matter' fashion."

Not something she was willing to put up with.

"You're acting like the Damon that makes me want to rip him to pieces."

"But you never do," He taunted.

"Because Stefan loves you."

Familial love, not because of any loyalty to Elena anymore.

"Because you've been trying to be decent to Jeremy, for Elena. You've been trying to be decent to me because of Ric!"

His eyes dropped to the ground again.

"You are finally trying, Damon!" MJ groaned, "And when presented with an opportunity to really make up for a choice you made, to show that you care regardless of Elena's opinion, you wrap your hand around his heart and make him feel like he doesn't matter!"

"He doesn't," Damon snarled, "He was keeping me from finding her – Elena could've been poisoned, or killed, or trapped and – "

"Except for the fact we always save her!"

"I – "

"Stop!" She put her hands out, "Right now, I'm looking at you, and I'm seeing the guy who I actually feel bad about being somewhat short with. I'm letting myself think that maybe I'm too harsh. Then you pull this crap! It's Lexi all over again!"

She rubbed her forehead.

"If Elena is soooo good for you, why are you making the same mistakes two years in!"

Silence.

"No growth. No development."

"I – "

"And if you're still making this one, what's there to give me faith you won't pull what you did on Caroline with some other innocent High Schooler?"

"Because I'm a monster, I get it."

"You're not a monster!" She hit her hand on the chair, "You're just refusing to grow! To take the easier option!"

"Of?"

"Just letting yourself care for you!"

Why was she even bothering with him when she could be headed back to Mystic Falls?

She'd come to help Katherine and Stefan.

...But Damon had deliberately let her not talk about talking to a ghost, and he'd let Whit live as an indirect way of apologising to her for the previous year...

"Care about the mistakes. Acknowledge them!"

Admission proved you understood what you did wrong.

"Apologise and admit you did a shitty thing! And not in a way that demeans the situation, not in a way that you had it worse – or that his feelings about it all don't matter!"

Marcel's apology to Davina had been so much better than any she'd seen in a long time that it had momentarily restored MJ's faith that vampires could actually apologise for things.

And it hadn't been perfect either.

It had just been better.

"Show that you mean it by not acting out when you don't get automatic forgiveness."

Another thing Marcel had done right, trying to get Davina to eat while she attacked him.

"You acted out like a child. Oh, boo hoo, you had to flip your switch! He had to rot in a prison cell for fifty more years as a science experiment!"

Damon swallowed

"For god's sake, just apologise!"

It felt good to yell at him.

"Genuinely. Apologise and do better!" MJ took a breath, dropping the volume, "Because you're not a monster, Damon."

He shot up to look at her.

"You can do better, but your stubborn refusal to ever take real responsibility without making it into a flaunt or a sympathy ploy are always going to hold you back – and aren't you sick of being held back?"

Nothing.

"Whatever," She sighed, "That's my judgement-rant of the visit. Hopefully, for once, you'll actually listen to me. I'm gonna go find Bonnie or Caroline or something."

Walking back through campus, MJ actually found Enzo waiting right outside the lab building, smiling up at the sky clear.

She paused and looked at him.

She offered him a smile, "Happy freedom day."

"You," He pointed, "Have quite the temper."

"And you're an eavesdropper," She nodded, "Good to know."

"Was it the dashing good looks that had you happy to defend me?"

"It's my natural need to yell at Damon," MJ began to walk, him coming up beside her, "Whenever I'm presented with the opportunity to."

"You must care about him quite a lot."

She laughed a little, "If you're on some kind of revenge mission, I warn you, Damon and I have a very live-and-let-die relationship with each other...not that you'd get that reference."

A quick throat clear.

"Sorry – we don't like each other at all, and he will not come to my rescue if you take me, not that you'd be able to actually hurt me."

Enzo gave her a careful look, "What exactly are you?"

"A witch."

"I forgot witches were a thing," He mused, "Last time I saw one was when I was in the army."

"Army lad," She made a note of that for future reference, "What exactly are you planning with your newly granted freedom."

"I have a small list."

The devious smile on his face was not to be trusted.

"Well," She matched the expression, "I warn you to stay out of trouble, or I will be called in to deal with you, and that's just not fun for anyone."

"I imagine that being dealt with by you could be quite fun."

She snorted, "Depends who you ask. I have a habit of torturing emotions out of people."

"There's a dirty double meaning in that."

She winked unintentionally.

He laughed, and MJ hated the universe even more than she already did.

"But do heed the warning, I'm in and out of town, but that doesn't mean I won't come back swinging if you prove to be wasting this new life on murdering people I care about."

He stopped, letting her walk a little bit off.

Then he called after her, "Damon called you Sabrina, but you said your name was MJ."

She turned to walk backwards, "Mira Jung Floare-Ruiz, MJ Ruiz."

"And Sabrina?"

"It's a Damon-thing."

"It was nice to meet you, MJ Floare-Ruiz."

"You too, Lorenzo St. John."

His name sounded fancy, and MJ liked saying it.

"Enzo."

"Implying we're friends?" She lifted her hand to wave goodbye, turning from him, "See you around, Enzo."

As she quickly ducked into the dorm building, MJ found herself tugging at her ring again, trying to suppress the smile on her face and the light feeling in her steps.

a/n: do/did people have alternate ships for MJ besides Kol?

I get comments in P1/2 about Stefan (Mifan) being cute, and Klaus/Katherine...but the moment I wrote Stefan making a move everyone hated it lmao so I'm nosy

P.S. Kora ghost cuteness is fine but I miss writing 'tension'/Kol acting on his impulses and being a chaotic lil shiz - but he needs to be alive to do so properly aaaa

Courseworks gotta be done by Tuesday so I might do double updates every two/three days to get to P6 quicker but I'm worried that'll get less votes/reads