You caused my heart to bleed

"Yeah, they tend to get themselves into a lot of trouble, don't they?" Jeremy asked, though his question was purely rhetorical. Anybody who knew the Salvatore brothers knew how much trouble the two tended to get into and it was usually to protect his sister, Elena. And, in turn, it usually got the rest of them, including himself and Belle involved and in danger, too - which he was sure the brothers didn't quite like. It was a little obvious that they wanted to avoid letting Belle get in the line of any danger, but it wasn't like they could really stop it in a town like Mystic Falls. Even he wished that there were better ways to keep Belle from getting in danger, and the best he could do was stick with her. There wasn't really anything else that he could do, when it came to them being stuck in Mystic Falls, which was pretty much a cesspool for supernaturals. "Good, I'd feel terrible if you ever forgot," he joked lightly.

He nodded to her suggestions of things that they could do. "Sure, we could go watch some movies," he said, because it was definitely the most normal thing that they could do. And, in a town like Mystic Falls, it was always better to take any chance that they could to do something normal before everything became hectic again. "Do you want to leave now?"

---

Letha grinned in response to his words and tilted her head to the side. "As tempting as it might be to cut your hair off, it'd be more as a surprise haircut to make you angry than it would be to make a bracelet from your hair," she drawled, though she thought about his suggestion of a poetry class. It was actually a little surprising that he would suggest it to her, but she couldn't say that she wasn't intrigued with the idea of it. With how much she adored poetry, she actually thought about going along with the suggestion, but she didn't tell him that. Instead, she nodded when he suggested going to get them drinks and she moved to lean against the pool table. She heard the door open not too far away and she glanced over, curious to if the newcomer was somebody she knew, maybe Stefan. It wasn't, but the moment the newcomer caught sight of her, he was on his way over to her.

It was easy to tell that something wasn't quite right; this guy looked like he was on a mission. Before she could even open her mouth to greet him or anything, though, she felt him grasp her arm tightly and before she could fight or push him off, he was shoving a needle into her arm.

"They always get into trouble and expect me to come help them," Belle didn't mind though because they were her brothers and she'd do anything for them, just like they'd do anything for her if she needed them. The only times when her brothers don't get her involved is when something is dangerous, although sometimes she finds out anyway and goes to help them. She can't lose either of her big brothers, they are all she has and the last of her family. She nodded her head at Jeremy's question, "Yeah. Let's go now," She stood up from her chair as her eyes landed on Letha, she was about to walk over to her best friend but movement caught her eye. She turned to see Connor's back exiting the front door of the Grill, she looked back over to Letha who had gone pale. "Jeremy stay here, get Damon to take Letha home." She told her best friend before she followed the hunter outside, she hated going at human speed when other people were around.

But once she was outside, she moved at her vampire speed and found Connor easily. She grabbed the back of his shirt and dragged him into the alleyway behind the Grill, her fangs were already bared and her blue eyes had darken as black veins appears under her eyes. "What did you do to her?" She snarled as she started to fight the hunter and overpowered him, she was pissed off and was going to teach him a lesson. She broke the syringe and smelt it but quickly threw it away as it was disgusting to her, she went to attack him again but gasped in pain when a small wooden stake was pushed into the side of her neck.

---

Damon handed over the money for the two drinks when he heard rushed footsteps coming up behind him, turning he frowned when he saw Jeremy. Belle wasn't with him and he couldn't see her anymore, his body became tense but he still listened when Jeremy said that the hunter just left and that Letha wasn't looking good anymore. Leaving the drinks on the bar he rushed over to Letha and looked at her, "What happened?" He asked and noticed a red dot on her arm, he turned to tell Jeremy to stay there but the boy was gone. Damon didn't have time for him anyways, he wrapped his arm around Letha's body so he could support her. "Let's get you home, yeah. If you wanted my full attention, you should have just asked." He tried to keep things light as he helped her outside and into the passenger side of her car, he found the car keys and begun to drive back to the boarding house.

He wasn't sure what had happened but if Connor was involved than Letha's life was in danger, he wouldn't tell her that as he didn't want her to worry. If she was injected with a poison than he wanted her to be as calm as possible, he didn't want the poison to spread in her body. Once he had parked her car, he lifted her body up into his arms as at vampire speed he carried her inside and laid her down on the bed in the room she had chosen to stay in. "Stefan!" He called out to his brother, "We're going to need help in here," He didn't even look back at his brother, he was much too worried about Letha.

Jeremy had done what Belle asked him to, but it wasn't like he could just let her go after Connor alone. He could hear Belle snarling and he tried to follow the voice, wanting to get there as soon as he could because he wouldn't ever forgive himself if something happened to her. He found them just in time to hear Connor simply say, "Werewolf venom," but that wasn't what caught Jeremy's attention. What caught his attention was the stake in Belle's neck, and he was quick to rush over. "Get away from her!" he yelled out as he knocked Connor off his feet in a practical tackle. Connor wasn't even fighting him back - which probably had more to do with the fact that Jeremy was supposed to be the next hunter than anything else - and that only made Jeremy angrier. It didn't stop him from punching him, but he tried to avoid killing the man. As angry as he was, he didn't want to risk becoming the next hunter.

Glancing over his shoulder, he called out to Belle. "Are you okay?" he asked, but his distraction seemed to have cost him, because Connor had gone on the offensive. He had knocked Jeremy down and started hitting Jeremy's face and he was pretty sure he would end up with a black eye, but that was the least of his worries. Jeremy was more concerned about trying to avoid getting into too much danger with this entire thing. Two bloody hunters with a vampire nearby, no matter how tame Belle was, wasn't safe.

---

Letha wasn't entirely sure what all had happened. One moment, she was just standing around, trying to comprehend what was happening. Then next, Damon was next to her asking what happened, too, and she didn't know how to answer. She felt a little panicked and she hated the feeling and the fact that Damon looked so worried didn't help to ease her worries all that much. But, then, he mentioned something about his full attention when he was helping her to her car and she couldn't help but to laugh quietly. "I did try to get your full attention before," she reminded quietly. But that was in the past. Why was she suddenly even talking about the past? She could almost see all of the images from the past happening in front of her, the good times, the bad times, the heartbreak, the fear and bloodlust. Even the memories of when she lost her humanity were becoming vivid and it scared her.

Before she knew it, they were back at the Salvatore home and he had carried her up to the room, but her body was hurting. The mark where she had been injected was getting worse, making her arm look raw and disgusting and she barely comprehended Stefan's voice when he entered the room, asking, "What happened?" It surprised Stefan to here how worried Damon sounded, but, when he got to the room, he could see why, and he moved over quickly.

Damon knew he wasn't making this situation any better for Letha, he was worried about her as he couldn't lose her again. She wasn't going to die and he'd make sure of that, "The hunter must have escaped from Klaus. I think he'd injected her with werewolf venom," He wasn't going to hide it from Letha, she'd want to know what was going on anyway so he mind as well tell her and Stefan at the same time. A deep growl sounded in his throat when he knew what they needed to do in order to save Letha's life, it wasn't something that he wanted to do but he had to. It had to be done when Tyler accidently bit his forearm in a fight, he had lost Stefan to the original hybrid once before. He was nervous as to what Klaus would want from them this time, but that didn't matter to Damon because he would do anything for Letha. "We need to call Klaus, only he can make her better." He spoke mostly to his younger brother that time, Letha was getting weak and sick so she wouldn't be leaving the bed.

He turned his eyes back onto her and sighed quietly, "How are you feeling?" He asked her softly as he gently ran his fingers through her silky dark hair, it was something he had done a lot when they were human. It still felt nice to him but he wasn't thinking, he was so worried about her that he wanted to comfort her like he had done before. He knew he shouldn't or at least wait to see how Letha felt about him being so close to her, but right now he couldn't care less about that as she needed them.

---

Pain quickly filled Isabelle's body from the wood that was piercing her skin, she was struggling to think straight from the pain and from the anger she was still feeling over Letha getting harmed. She felt herself stumble back into a brick wall, she then heard Jeremy and looked over only to see him fighting the hunter. "No," She murmured to answer Jeremy's question on whether she was okay, but it seemed that Jeremy had been distracted by her and Connor took advantage of that. She grabbed the end on the small wooden stake and pulled it from her neck, she made a small noise before a furious growl escaped from her lips. Within a split second she was standing behind Connor, she easily ripped him away from her best friend and threw him against the brick wall of the building beside the Grill. "You touch him again and I will kill you," She snarled at him as she slammed Connor's head against the bricks, she watched him fall to the ground and she wanted to kill him but she didn't.

Her blood had now stained the fabric of her shirt, but she was more worried about Jeremy. She calmed herself down just enough so her eyes went back to normal, she moved over to Jeremy and helped him stand up. "Are you okay?" She asked but saw that there was a bit of blood coming from his nose, her eyes focused on the blood and she hadn't gotten around to drinking a blood bag recently which was stupid of her. She stepped back from him, "I'm sorry," She whispered to him as she hated being this way around him.

Jeremy stared at Isabelle after the entire thing had ended and he tried not to pant from how much energy he had exerted in fighting Connor to keep him away from Isabelle. It was only when Isabelle apologized that Jeremy noticed the pain he felt and he lifted his hand to wipe at the blood, shaking his head slightly. "You don't have to apologize," he assured her after a moment before moving over once he was sure that his blood wasn't too noticeable. "I'm fine. Let's get out of here before somebody sees all the blood on your shirt and wonders where it came from." They didn't need the suspicion, not now when they had just beaten a hunter up. Of course, Isabelle had done most of the damage and he supposed that it was due to her anger for what the man had done to her friend. "Come on. Let's get back to your house. Damon's probably gotten Letha there by now," he told her quietly, knowing that she would probably want to check on her friend.

Considering that Connor had mentioned something about werewolf venom, he wasn't sure how long Letha would survive with Klaus' blood. They hadn't ever let the werewolf venom run the full course, because they always got the original hybrid's help. There was that Rose vampire, but he had never actually met her; Elena had just spoken about her and said that Damon put her out of her misery.

---

"How ironic. The first time I come back to Mystic Falls, I get injected with werewolf venom. My luck, huh?" Letha murmured quietly, though it was a little more than difficult to concentrate on Damon's words at all. She knew she had heard something about Klaus and she hated the thought that they needed his help - honestly, the thought of her friends asking for help from that jerk for her sake made her feel terrible, because she knew he'd probably want something in return. Stefan, however, nodded slowly to Damon's words. "Do you want to make the call or should I?" he asked after a moment. But, seeing as Damon was busy trying to comfort Letha, he figured it was up to him. "Never mind, I'll handle it," he decided with a slow nod before he pulled out his phone and dialed the original hybrid. He wasn't sure if Klaus would agree to coming there or if he'd have to go get it - another reason that it was best for him to call Klaus instead of Damon, because he was sure Damon wouldn't leave Letha's side.

When Letha managed to register what Damon asked, she stared at him for a moment, but her concentration was mostly on the familiar way his fingers ran through her hair. "Scared," she answered after a moment, chewing on her lower lip because she hated admitting it. She felt weak and vulnerable and it wasn't something she had felt since the day she turned off her humanity when she left Mystic Falls. "I'm so scared, Damon."

Damon gave a slight nod of his head when Stefan volunteered to call Klaus, it made sense as Damon wasn't going to be leaving Letha's side for any reason. "Maybe if you had returned earlier than this wouldn't have happened," He was only joking or at least he was trying to, he couldn't really think of anything funny to say right now to her. There wasn't anything funny about what happened to her, but he also didn't want her to continue to worry about this. He stopped listening as Stefan spoke with Klaus, he would rip the originals head off if he refused to save Letha's life. "I know darling, but you don't have to be scared. I'm right here and I'm not going to let anything happen to you," He promised her even though it was a stupid promise to make, if Klaus didn't want to help then there was nothing else that would save Letha. He'd have to watch her go crazy like he did with Rose, then he'd have to kill Letha so she wouldn't be in anymore pain. That wasn't something that he would let happen, he wouldn't even think about it because it would never happen.

His fingers gave her scalp a little massage as he stroked her dark hair, "You're too strong to let a little werewolf venom affect you. If you can beat me at pool, then you can do anything." He lowered his voice as he didn't want to speak too loudly, he leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead for a sweet kiss. It was a way he could comfort her but he was also able to feel if she was getting a temperature without her knowing, she was a little warmer than normal but he wouldn't tell her that.

---

Isabelle had to focus herself to stay as calm as she possibly could, she'd never start drinking Jeremy's blood. Not even if he offered it to her, she wasn't going to put him through that. She was more than happy sticking with blood bags, even though fresh blood from a human always did taste so much better. She ignored that thought as she looked at Jeremy, "You aren't fine. I can handle him, but thank you for helping." She reached her hand up and gently ran her thumb over his cheek which was becoming red, he'd develop a few bruises from the punches that he took from the hunter. She didn't even know how she was holding herself back from killing the hunter, he had poisoned Letha and attacked Jeremy. She wanted to kill him so badly but knew what would happen to her if she did, it would drive her crazy and she'd end up killing herself.

She nodded a little as she did want to get home and check on Letha, but then she bit down onto her bottom lip. Damon probably took Letha home in her car, so they'd have to walk. "Did you want me to carry you?" She asked as she could carry him and run at her vampire speed so it wouldn't take them as long, she wasn't going to leave Jeremy's side. Connor was out although he was still knocked out and Klaus was still out there, she needed to keep him safe.

Jeremy let out a slight chuckle and he lifted his shoulders in a shrug. "I am fine, trust me," he assured her quietly, though he couldn't help but to enjoy the feeling of her running her thumb over his cheek. At least it didn't hurt, as he didn't want to cringe away from Isabelle when she was trying to make sure that he was okay. "And, of course I was going to help. He's dangerous, Belle, and I don't plan on losing you any time soon - especially because some hunter like him taunted you," he told her quietly, nodding slowly. It made his blood boil, thinking about how the man could have ruined everything for them so easily. He could have killed Isabelle if he had really wanted to - he had staked Isabelle in the neck. He could have easily staked her in the heart instead. Trying not to think about that, he instead tried to let himself stay calm, as he didn't want to get angry enough with the thought of losing Isabelle to just end up killing the man right then and there.

But, then he heard her question about carrying him and he couldn't help but to laugh, because he wasn't entirely sure how to react to the question. "Um, sure," he decided, lifting his shoulders in a slight shrug. "I mean, I'm sure you want to get to Letha quickly and I don't want to slow you down in getting there. And, it may shake away my masculinity a bit, but I can handle it."

---

Or she could not have come back at all. Letha thought that, but she didn't mention it - it wasn't like she regretted coming back, not when it meant being reunited with people she cared about. That didn't mean that she was fond of the fact that she had werewolf venom in her right now. She closed her eyes in hopes of calming herself a bit, but she could hear Stefan talking to Klaus on the phone and she wasn't entirely sure what was going on. "I don't think that's in our control, Damon," she pointed out quietly and, when she opened her eyes, she was a little worried to find a hallucination of Katherine leading Damon away and she quickly closed her eyes again. "Beating you in pool was easy," she mentioned quietly, barely aware of the feeling of him kissing her forehead. It helped to remedy the hallucination, ridding it a bit, and she couldn't help but to feel a little relieved. With her being certain that she probably wouldn't survive this, she really didn't want her last images to be Katherine and Damon together.

That was when Stefan spoke up, looking to the other two. "He's on his way. He'll probably take his time, though," he told them with a sigh. At least Klaus hadn't asked for something too difficult - though he knew it wouldn't have mattered even if he had. He didn't plan on letting Letha die, not when it would hurt all of them, though it would probably hurt Damon more.

Damon was watching Letha very closely and when he noticed her eyes looking pass him, he knew she was having a hallucination already. Which only meant that the venom was beginning to take a hold of her, it seemed that the venom was working quicker on her and his thought was correct when he checked her arm. Her skin was so red and raw, it was spreading a little and looked to be so painful. "Maybe when you feel better, we can have another game of pool. I think you were just lucky today," He told her softly knowing that she hadn't been completely lucky, he shouldn't have left her to buy the stupid drinks. He had plenty of alcohol there at home, he should have been there with her and none of this would be happening right now. She wouldn't be slowly dying or in pain, he should have been watching her and he would have seen the damn hunter. How he even escaped from Klaus was a mystery because no one ever escaped from Klaus, apart from Katherine but even then it only took time and Klaus found out where she was.

"Thanks," Damon spoke quietly to his brother and he really meant it, if he had called the original then he would have lost his cool and shouting would have happened. He didn't even care what Klaus would ask for after saving Letha's life, he'd do whatever the hybrid wanted because he would do anything to keep Letha alive. "It won't be long and you'll start to feel better," He assured her as he felt useless, he couldn't do anything but stay by her side and be there for her.

---

Belle knew that her offering to carry Jeremy would be strange and something he'd probably never hear again, but she needed to be at home for Letha but at the same time she wasn't leaving Jeremy alone. "Nothing will happen to your masculinity, I won't tell anyone that I carried you. But I'm not leaving you here alone," She told him as she was worried about Connor, he had taunted her and had gotten under her skin. He could have easily killed her already, or she could have killed him and that would drive her to kill herself anyway. But she was still worried about Connor getting to Jeremy and convincing him that vampires are monsters, she wasn't ready to lose her best friend to a hunter who took pleasure in killing her kind. She turned around so her back was facing Jeremy, she felt him climb onto her back and she held onto his legs so he wouldn't fall. It was slightly awkward but it wouldn't be for long, "Hold on," She told him before she took off running, she loved the times when she could run at her top speeds because it felt freeing to her.

It only took a few minutes before the boarding house came into view, Belle stopped running and carefully let Jeremy down. Once she made sure that he was okay, it can be a lot for a human to be moving at that kind of speed. She walked inside with him and rushed upstairs, she stepped into Letha's room and saw her laying on the bed. Tears instantly filled her eyes when she saw the state that her best friend was in.

Jeremy instantly frowned when he saw Belle's eyes filling with tears. Without much warning, he wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug and pulled her close. "She'll be okay, Belle," he told her quietly, though he wasn't really sure how bad things were - he had never actually seen the effects that werewolf venom did on vampires. But, he wanted to comfort and assure Belle as much as he could, because he was sure that she needed it. Stefan nodded to Damon's words, offering a quick, "You're welcome," before he noticed Belle and Jeremy. Quickly making his way over, he lightly touched his sister's cheek and told her, "It's okay, Isabelle. Klaus is on his way, so she'll be fine in a little while, I promise." It hurt him to see his sister crying, to see their friend in pain, to see his brother look so useless. He had done what he could to make sure that everything would be okay, though, and he could only hope that it would work.

Even Jeremy was a little relieved to hear the news. As long as Klaus got there in time, then everything would be okay. "You hear that, Belle?" he told her quietly, looking down at her as Stefan made his way out of the room, probably to call Klaus to see where the hell he was. "She's going to be fine, so don't cry, okay?" He wished there was something that he could do to abate his best friend's tears, but all he could really do was be there for her. Maybe that would help, even a little, until Letha was better.

---

"I'd still be able to kick your ass at pool in this condition," Letha drawled, trying to keep the tone lighthearted, but it was difficult when her arm and body hurt as much as the hallucinations did. She had seen vampires get bitten by werewolves before, but she couldn't recall how fast it took effect - she supposed that the venom worked quicker with it being injected into the bloodstream. At least she wasn't dead yet, which she supposed was as good a thing as any. She was a little grateful to hear that Klaus wasn't asking for anything too outrageous, that he wasn't asking for a slave or a chance to bed somebody - she wasn't even sure how the hybrid worked, but she pretty much hated him already, so she assumed he was probably rotten and wicked in his suggestions of debt.

She closed her eyes, then, and tried to focus on Damon's voice. She wasn't even fully aware that Belle and Jeremy were there now, really. "If he takes his sweet time, I'm going to kick his ass," she told him quietly, though it sounded more like a joke than anything. It was almost like a coping mechanism at this point, a way to keep her from thinking the worse. No, if she was going to die, she wasn't going to die moody and crying - she would die joking, because that was how her friends knew her.

Klaus had made his way to the Salvatore boarding house just before Stefan could call him again, he did take his time because why should he rush? He didn't even bother knocking on the front door, he simply walked straight inside and saw Stefan coming down the stair case. "Here I am, Stefan. Now before I heal anyone, I did a little something in return." He spoke smoothly in his accented voice, even though he was fuming on the inside that the hunter had escaped from him. It was one of his hybrids fault and he was still furious about it happening, he was even surprised that he agreed to come save the new vampire in town. He had actually refused Stefan when he called but eventually gave in, he knew the Salvatore siblings were strongest together and would be powerful if he ever needed it. It was best for him to have them on his good side, although he doubted any of them liked him right now but hopefully if he saved their friends than it would change their minds about him somewhat.

"What do you want, Klaus?" Stefan asked as they didn't have time for this, Letha was upstairs slowly dying. "I would like all the help I want in finding the cure, it's simple really." Klaus stated and smiled when Stefan agreed without a second thought, he followed the vampires up the stairs and into a room where the girl was laying on the bed. She was much paler and Damon was whispering things to her, "I really don't need to do this." He commented as it was true, he didn't have to even be there but he was there on his own free will.

---

Isabelle was quick to move her body so she was fully leaning against Jeremy, just having him there with his strong arms around her made her feel a tiny bit better. She just had to think positively and wait for Klaus to arrive, Damon was telling Letha that she would only be kicking Klaus' ass when she was completely better. She looked at her brother when he tried to comfort her as well, she inhale slow deep breathes in hopes that it would calm herself down. She wiped her tears away with her fingers when she overheard voices downstairs, Klaus was finally there and better save Letha or all hell would break loose. She stayed in Jeremy's arms when she watched as Stefan lead the original hybrid into the bedroom, she wanted to stay close to her best friend as he was the most vulnerable amongst the vampires. She wouldn't let anything else happen to him, he had already gotten into a fight with a vampire hunter and it scared Belle more than it should.

"Just hurry up, already." She snapped lightly at Klaus as he was taking much too long for her liking, she knew he'd be fuming about losing the hunter but at least he was there and was willing to help. He watched as the hybrid moved over to the bed and sat down on the edge, he bit his wrist and held it out for Letha to take. She had to drink his blood so she would be healed, yes they drank human and animal blood. But it was weird watching a vampire drink the blood of another supernatural creature, but it had to be done and she knew that.

Under normal circumstances, Jeremy would have found Belle's snappiness to have been a little amusing, but he was a little worried about how Klaus might react to it. Thankfully, Klaus seemed to have disregarded or altogether ignored the snappy tone from Belle, and Jeremy felt more than a little relieved with it, as it meant that Belle might not get hurt while Klaus was there. Still, he kept his arms around her, running his fingers through her hair and doing whatever he could to keep her calm. Her friend would be okay and that was what mattered, since it would make Belle feel better. He didn't want her to be upset or sad or to have to face whatever mourning she would have had to deal with if Letha had died because Klaus refused to help her. None of that was the case, though, and he figured that it was something they could all breathe a breath of relief about.

He only loosened his hold on her when he saw Letha start to drink from Klaus and he looked down at Belle. "See? She'll be fine, I told you," he told her quietly, offering her a small smile in hopes of helping to ease her worry. Her friend would be okay - and he was sure that was something that the Salvatore siblings were all grateful for. But, he was sure Klaus' demands for payment would be annoying.

---

Letha would have laughed at Damon's mention of her only being able to kick Klaus' ass when she was fully better if it weren't for the fact that she knew it wouldn't do much. Kicking his ass would only make him want to kill her himself - and, well, as she said before, she didn't really want to die yet. When she heard Klaus' words and then Belle snapping at Klaus, she was almost amused. She tried to stay calm and concentrate on the fact that Klaus was offering his wrist out to her. Though she wasn't entirely sure over it, she pulled his wrist to herself, her eyes and the veins under them darkening, before she sank her teeth in, wasting no time in drinking his blood. It wasn't necessarily good (probably because he was a hybrid, part werewolf) but she could already feel the effects of it.

Pulling away, she let go of his wrist. And, though it was clear that she hated him, she did say, "Thank you," just because he had pretty much just saved her. But, if it weren't for her friends, he wouldn't have saved her at all - she reminded herself to thank them later, when she was sure that Klaus wouldn't try to rip their heads off for receiving gratitude when he might think he was the only one who was worthy of it.

Damon would have shooed Klaus away if he hadn't just saved Letha's life, so instead he focused completely on her and watched as colour came back to her face. He took a few moments to let Klaus' blood work on healing Letha, he did check her arm and was relieved to see that the wound was becoming smaller and most of the redness had vanished already. He was glad to see that Letha was healing just as quickly as she had gotten sick from the poison, at least she wasn't suffering now and she wasn't in anymore pain. He nearly did have a heart attack when he heard Belle snapping at the original, it was obvious to everyone that she was upset and scared to lose her best friend. But he knew Klaus never really cared about people's emotions or what they were going through, he could have easily hurt his little sister or refused to help Letha. Although he did neither and Damon let out a small sigh of relief, he looked at Letha and gave her a small smile.

"See, I told you that you'd be fine. But now I want a rematch at pool, I know that you cheated." He teased with a smile, he knew she didn't cheat and that he'd have to get onto buying her the poetry book. She never liked to wait when it came to poetry and he had learnt that the hard way, he also knew that he should thank Klaus but right now he couldn't bring himself to look away from Letha. She was pretty good and safe now but he felt like if he did look away than something might happen to her.

---

Isabelle watched as Klaus moved away from Letha after she was finished drinking his blood, it only took a few short seconds before she begun to look better and look like herself. She continued to watch to make sure Letha was getting better, before she looked up at Jeremy as he was a little taller than her. "I know and I know that I should listen to you more, but I was scared." She told him as he often told her that she should listen to him more, because he was apparently always right. They often joked about that but Belle didn't feel like joking right now, she was still angry that she let Connor get that close to her best friend and she was still worried about Letha. She was trying not to show it but her only true weakness was the people she loved and cared about, she'd do anything for her family and Letha and Jeremy were apart of her family now.

But she did inhale a deep even breath in hopes that it would help keep her calm, although having Jeremy's arms around her and with his fingers running through her hair was also helping a lot. She could really get used to having him stroke her hair and hold her, she'd be very happy if she was allowed to get used to it.

Jeremy nodded slowly to her words, but he didn't let go of her. He understood what she meant, of course; she had every right to be scared, considering Klaus could have easily declined the request to help Letha, after all, and he was certain that would have torn Isabelle apart. "You can relax now," he assured her quietly, unable to really help but rest his head atop hers. Part of him wanted the contact for her sake, to comfort her as much as he possibly could. The other part just wanted the contact, because maybe he was a little selfish, maybe he just wanted to be close to her because it could have just as easily been her who had gotten attacked by Connor and he hated the thought of losing her. Letting out a sigh, he closed his eyes for a moment, figuring that he could enjoy the contact while it lasted, though he soon released his hold on her and offered her a small smile before gesturing to Letha.

"You can go talk to her, if you want," he told her quietly, figuring that she would want to check on Letha. But, considering Damon was at Letha's side, he wasn't entirely sure that Isabelle would want to interrupt them; he figured she would still want to check on her friend, though. "If not, we can go hang out downstairs until you decide it's a good time to check on her or whatever. Or we can just stand here and wait for Damon to get done talking to her," he told her, having quieted down a little, then, because he didn't really want Damon to hear, in case it earned him a glare.

---

Letha laughed, then, only a little, and arched an eyebrow as she looked up at Damon. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you just want to get your ass handed to you at pool again," she told him quietly, letting out a sigh of relief once Klaus moved away. She figured he'd probably leave soon, which she was hoping he would quicken the process because his presence was more than a little unnerving. But, despite herself and despite knowing that it was probably a ridiculous thing to believe, she did feel a little safer with Damon around. She wanted to chastise herself for even thinking that, considering everything that had happened between them in the past, but... Well, things felt almost normal again, almost back to how they used to be and she actually kind of wanted that, almost needed it. But she didn't mention any of that, worried about whatever consequences it might bring.

Instead, she offered a small smile to Damon and lifted her shoulders in a shrug. "If you're so adamant about getting beat again, though, I definitely won't pass up on the opportunity to do so. Who knows? Maybe Stefan and Belle will want to watch this time, too - and maybe even Belle's friend," she joked lightly, though she knew she had no intention of playing another game of pool any time soon. Maybe some other time, when she was certain that the hunter wouldn't come around to try to kill her or any of her friends again.

Isabelle really did calm down when Jeremy rested his head on top of her's, she had closed her eyes so she could enjoy the contact that she was desperate to feel constantly from him. She hadn't even noticed Klaus leaving the room as she was completely focused on Jeremy, she was listening to his heart beat and his breathing which always put her in a great sense of relaxation. Something that she hadn't actually hadn't told him or anyone else, for that matter. She opened her eyes when she felt Jeremy's arms loosen around her and she didn't want him to let her go, but it would probably be weird if he didn't. She glanced over to Letha and she did want to check on her, but she wasn't biting Damon's head off and everything seemed to be calm between them. She didn't want to ruin that just yet, "Let's go downstairs. I'll check on her a bit later," She told him quietly as she looked at her best friend once again before walking out into the hallway, "Does this mean that I actually have to thank Klaus now? After what he did to you this morning, I'd rather do everything other than thank him." She knew that the original didn't have to heal Letha and he had done it willingly, without any complaining.

But Belle would never forget how he threatened Jeremy's life today and had taken off his ring, Klaus really needed to think about the people he decided to piss off. After this morning, Belle wasn't a fan. (Not that she was a fan of his beforehand.) She made her way downstairs with Jeremy and waited until he had sat down on a couch, before she sat beside him and brought her legs up while she leaned into his side. She wasn't ready to stop their contact just yet, "I wish Connor wasn't a hunter. I would have killed him for doing this to Letha," She was going to be angry for a long time to come, she didn't forget a lot of things and could hold a grudge for a very long time.

---

Damon raised an eyebrow at her, "What makes you so sure that you'll win the next game? I could have gone easy on you today, I didn't want to hurt your feelings." He looked at her and moved so he was sitting on the bed beside her, he still had his boots on the bed but he had just cleaned them a few days ago. He just wanted to see if Letha would tell him off for it, he rested his back against the headboard of the bed while Letha was still laying on her back. He didn't want to move her so quickly in case she still needed time to heal, although when he was bitten and was given Klaus' blood to drink. He healed within seconds and was back to his old self within minutes, it was a vampire thing but he was still going to be cautious because this was Letha and he never wanted anything to happen to her again. "Now you're bringing my siblings into this, how dare you. That really hurts," He placed his hand over his heart as he pretended to be hurt over what she said, "Stefan would be on your side but I'm certain that Belle will stick by me." He wasn't sure through and he didn't really care.

As long as Letha was feeling better and was getting back to her old self, than he was happy with that. She could tease him all she wanted, it was a good sign that she was indeed feeling better. But he couldn't stop his eyes from rolling, "Jeremy would do whatever Belle did." He grumbled as it was obvious how close those two were, Damon was never happy when a guy was interested in his baby sister, even if they were just friends. He couldn't stand it and often thought he'd lose her one day to a guy, "We'll buy a pool table if you want to play again. I think The Grill is out of bounds for a little while." He wasn't going to be comfortable with Letha going back there anytime soon.

Jeremy nodded to Isabelle's words as he moved to follow her. It was probably best to leave the two, anyways, because Damon had obviously been worried about Letha, enough to make a deal with Klaus (and, though Jeremy hadn't been around to hear about a deal, he knew Klaus would want something in return - that was just how Klaus was.) But, he arched an eyebrow at her question and shook his head. "I don't think so," he told her after a long moment, "I mean, it is kind of Klaus' fault that all of this happened. Plus, I'm pretty sure that whatever favor he wants is going to be all he gets as gratitude." And, really, Klaus didn't even deserve that - but he had helped Belle's friend and he was sure that, if they didn't help Klaus, the original hybrid would just as quickly end all of their lives. It was the cruel truth, but it was truth nonetheless. "Try not to worry about that, though. He's gone, anyways, so I doubt he even expected formal gratitude."

Once he sat down and she was sitting next to him, leaning against him, he couldn't help but to wrap an arm around her, drawing her closer and resting his head against hers. "She's okay now," he reminded quietly after hearing how she spoke about Connor. "Any of us would have killed him, I'm sure, but that doesn't matter. What matters is that your friend is safe now," he reminded her quietly, rubbing her arm as he kept her close. He was hoping to comfort her, but it was very clear how angry she was. He couldn't say that he blamed her - it was even expected, considering the circumstances, but they didn't have much of a choice.

---

Letha blinked several times when she noticed just how close he was to her. She remembered when they were human and she had fallen ill, he had stayed by her for days, even at the risk of getting sick himself. It almost felt like that, now, and she couldn't help the small smile that fell on her lips, because she wished times like that hadn't changed, that Katherine hadn't ruined it all. "You've never gone easy on me, Damon. In fact, I recall you winning most of the time, but you always seemed to feel a bit bad afterwards, because I would be upset," she hummed out, sticking her tongue out at him momentarily before she let herself relax, turning on her side to face him and resting her head down on her pillow. "And, you and I both know that Belle would be on my side, too - she's my best friend, after all." Or, at least, she assumed Belle would take her side. She couldn't ever really be entirely sure, because Letha wasn't family - and, well, blood was thicker than water.

She didn't bother replying to his comment about Jeremy; she wasn't close to the kid and barely knew him, so whether he was on her side or not didn't really matter. But, it was obvious that Damon wasn't too pleased with how close Jeremy and Belle were and she offered a smile before rolling her eyes. "You've got to let her grow up at some point, Damon," she whispered. But, it was probably best not to speak too much on the subject, so she arched an eyebrow at the mention of a pool table. "Oh, so you'll buy a pool table to get your ass beat again but you won't buy a stripper pole?"

Damon knew that he should probably let Belle spend some time with Letha, but he knew that if his sister really did want to be with her best friend than she would pushed him aside already. "Of course I felt bad, I always feel horrible when you're upset. But I usually gave you chances where you could win, you just never took them or didn't see what I was doing." He defended himself even though he knew that he didn't have to, he was just glad that she was relaxing and was getting back to her normal self. "We don't know that, I've been there for her longer." He teased her although he couldn't really say what Isabelle would do, he knew she'd do anything for her family but Letha was her best friend and was pretty much family. She'd probably just stand back and not get involved which she has done many times before, he honestly wasn't bothered if Belle didn't take his side because she'd always be his little sister.

Damon had refused to let Belle grow up a very long time ago, he was stubborn and didn't want his sister to grow up or find someone she loved more than him. He was terrified of losing her to someone else, he even knew that Stefan felt the same way. "What is it with you and a stripper pole? If you want me to strip for you, all you have to do is ask and I will." He spoke as a smirk formed onto his lips, he actually wouldn't mind stripping for Letha although it would probably make her laugh. Although he'd love it if she stripped for him.

---

Isabelle couldn't help but smile when Jeremy wrapped his arm around her body when she leaned into him, she rested her head against his shoulder as she was more than comfortable like that in his arms. "I know she is, so much for our movie day." She had actually been looking forward to hanging out with Jeremy and watching as many movies as they could in a single day, but now she wasn't sure if she should leave Letha although she knew that her best friend was going to be just fine now. But there was still a little uncertainty in the back of her mind, but if Damon was there with her than nothing would be happening to Letha. But she felt bad because she hadn't been close enough last time to stop Connor was injecting Letha in the first place, maybe if she had been there than she could have stopped her best friend from going through all of this in the first place.

"Thank you for being here, I really needed you." She whispered to him as she wanted that to stay between them, if he hadn't been there than Stefan would have comforted her but it was different with Jeremy. She wanted to stay in his arms for as long as she could, she had this warmth that flowed through her body whenever Jeremy touched her or even when he was close to her and she never wanted that to stop.

Jeremy nodded slowly as he kept her close, resting his head above hers when she leaned against his shoulder. "We can have a movie day some other time. Or we can just have it later," he assured her quietly, though he wouldn't mind if they went ahead and had it now. She probably needed a distraction, something to keep her mind occupied from the fact that her friend had nearly died. He wished there was more that he could do to keep her mind off of it, but he wasn't particularly good at things like that. Still, he rubbed her shoulder gently, in hopes that the small gesture might provide some sort of comfort, though he wasn't entirely sure if it would or not. "At least you can relax now. Everything's okay. We can just enjoy ourselves, get our minds off of everything that happened today." Because, he could have easily lost Belle when Connor attacked, too, and that thought frightened him more than he cared to admit.

Hearing her thank him, though, surprised him, and he stared at her for a long moment before smiling slightly. "You don't have to thank me," he assured her quietly, giving her a gentle squeeze as he held her slightly closer to himself before. "I'm always here for you. I plan to keep it that way, too. You should know that by now."

---

Letha had to refrain from pointing out that he hadn't seemed like he felt horrible when she was upset about what had been going on between him and Katherine, back then. But, she didn't want to ruin the light-heartedness that they had fallen into, so she instead rolled her eyes slightly. "You would not. You'd just kiss my forehead and tease me," she complained childishly, pouting slightly as she looked up at him for a moment. This almost felt normal, almost felt like the past, before Katherine had invaded their lives and ruined everything. Maybe that was why she was in such a good mood, despite having nearly died just minutes ago. "You and I both know that Belle adores me." Not that it would raise her chances of Belle picking her side, but she liked to think that it would have.

She laughed, though, at Damon's later words. "If you stripped for me, you'd probably want me to strip for you, too, as payback," she pointed out with amusement. "And as much as I'm sure you'd enjoy that, I'm not entirely sure that watching you strip would be worth the sexual tension that I'm certain you would try to start."

Damon chuckled when he saw the pout that had formed on Letha's lips, "I only teased you so you'd smile again. Well that and I actually really liked teasing you, you'd always get so defensive and you were always so cute when you pouted and crossed your arms." He smiled as the image of her doing those things formed in his mind, that's the main reason why he did tease her so much because she always gave him the most adorable reaction ever and he'd never grow tired of seeing it. Although he doubted he'd see it anytime soon, sure being there beside her did feel like the old times. But that was it, it felt like the old times but really wasn't. He ruined the chance of them ever being together or being close when he thought he fell in love with Katherine, she had him wrapped around her little finger and he couldn't see anything other than her. He's surprised that Letha was even letting him be this close to her and talk to you for so long, "She does adore you." He murmured under his breath because that was very true, "Belle tried to follow you when you left so many times. She never got far until Stefan found her," He remembered how his own sister had pushed him away at that time, because he was the cause of Letha leaving.

He nodded his head firmly, "I would want you to strip for me in return. I mean that's only fair, and I would enjoy it so much." He grinned before he scoffed at her, "I'd try to create sexual tension? Please, we'd both have sexual tension for each other. I wouldn't have to start anything, I know how badly you want this body." He teased her although if she did want him, he'd be there for her in less than a second.

---

Isabelle needed a distraction more so now than ever before, she wasn't as worried about Letha as she was before. But she was still so angry at the vampire hunter for trying to kill her best friend, first Connor tries to turn Jeremy against her and now he tried to kill Letha. If she didn't know about the curse that she'd receive for killing a hunter, then Connor would have already been dead. She didn't even know if he'd actually haunt her if she killed him but she wasn't going to risk that, not when Jeremy was around her so much as there would be a high chance that she'd hurt him by accident. "Okay, maybe later. But we still have to get your assignments finished, as well." She told him knowing that would keep her mind focused on something else, even though being wrapped in his arms and having him rub her shoulder was doing a very good job at keeping her calm. She did tend to be over emotional at times, mainly when something happened to the people that she loved. She was also great at holding grudges and never forgetting about something that someone did.

She tilted her head back slightly so she could look at Jeremy, "I know all that. But I want to thank you for being here, so just take it for once." She smiled at him as she wanted him to know how much she truly appreciated him, which she already knew that he did know but she liked to remind him every now and again so he wouldn't forget.

Jeremy let out a loud, exaggerated sigh at the mention of his assignments, though, honestly, it was more so to amuse Isabelle than it was actually serious. "Ugh, assignments are going to be the death of me, I'm certain," he complained, almost childishly, but he was still trying to amuse her. That didn't mean that he was excited, even in the least, about having to do the homework assignments, though. In fact, he really did dread it. But, at least he had Isabelle there to help him, so it wouldn't be as difficult. It would still be annoying and still be a problem, he was certain, but knowing that Isabelle would help eased his mind quite a bit. "Can we put it off for a couple more minutes?" he asked, quirking a brow and smiling down at her, because he was definitely in no rush to get the homework done. Hopefully, it wouldn't take too long to finish, either way, but he seriously just wanted to hang out and relax with Isabelle for a little while longer, considering the long day that they had both had. "Let's just relax, for a bit longer."

Leaning back, he made sure to keep his arm wrapped around her, his hand still rubbing her shoulder in hopes of comforting her still. He wasn't sure if it was working, but he was trying, at least. Hearing her, though, he glanced down. He would have told her that it wasn't necessary, but, instead, he smiled and lifted his shoulders. "Fine, fine. I'll take it. You're welcome," he told her, figuring that he wasn't going to win this one, anyways.

---

Letha rolled her eyes with so much gusto that it was surprising they didn't fall out of her head. But, then, maybe if she had only been human, they might have. "Well, I'm absolutely thrilled that you thought it was cute. I just wanted to kick your ass for not being gentlemanly enough to let me win," she hummed out, a teasing smirk appearing on her features, replacing the slight pout that had been there before. It didn't entirely matter anymore, though, the fact that he had often beaten her and she would pout afterwards, to which he'd tease her or try to cheer her up. None of it mattered, because it wasn't how things were, anymore - and she was doubtful it would ever be that way again, no matter how normal this felt, now. Chances were, the moment Katherine decided to show up, things would shatter all over again and she didn't want to let herself risk that. But, then, he was talking about Belle and she listened quietly. "Do you think she's upset with me, for leaving?" she asked quietly, admittedly worried about it.

But, then, the topic was back on the silly topic of stripping, and she quirked a brow as she stared up at him. "As confident as ever. You're seriously tempting me to tease you, maybe with a strip tease, then remind you that, oops, it's not going to happen." She stuck her tongue out, then, almost childishly. "Just because you want my body, Mister Salvatore, does not mean that I'm even tempted by yours."

Damon couldn't stop himself from laughing, "I was always a gentleman to you. I helped you in and out of carriages, I lifted your dress up when you didn't want it to get dirty, I waited without complaining when you had to get ready. I just wanted something for myself and that meant not letting you win," He grinned knowing that he had been nearly a perfect gentleman back in the day when he was human, he couldn't say much for now but he had once been and that was good enough for him. "Besides I enjoyed seeing you pout more than I enjoyed winning," He commented knowing that isn't something that Letha would ever want to hear from him, he had given up his right to say things like that when he decided to chase Katherine rather than stay with Letha. In that time, he never thought straight because Katherine had him wrapped around her little finger and he hated himself for being like that. He looked at her and shrugged his shoulders lightly, "She's always been upset with you for leaving. But I never told her why you left, if I did than I'd have to tell her everything and I was trying to protect her from the whole vampire thing. She's okay now," He spoke as he had been so selfish.

He didn't want his sister to hate him so he never told her why Letha left town so quickly, but he had always been rather selfish and that hasn't changed. "I have always wanted your body and I'm sure once you see mine, you'll want me. Or I could just dream about us together, I already do." He let his usual charming smirk appear on his face, his smirk always worked on women but Letha was different. She knew him so well and had always ignored him when he tried to be charming with her.

---

Isabelle laughed softly to herself as she tilted her head upwards slightly so she could look at Jeremy, "The assignments aren't that bad and school work isn't going to kill you. But their due soon and I'm not letting you fail classes, then you'd get held back to repeat a year and I'd be all alone in class." She smiled at him knowing the school and homework was the last thing he wanted to do, he has been so busy with everything supernatural in this town that school seemed like a waste of time. She felt the same way but Jeremy was still human and needed to do as well as he could in school, hopefully he won't be surrounded by all of this forever and he could actually do something with his life. Which is why Belle was always on him to make sure that his homework was done in time, "Fine. We can wait a little longer, but I'm not forgetting that you still need to finish them." She told him but she would also much rather them get to work later on in the day, because right now she never wanted to move again.

She was more than happy to stay this close to Jeremy for a very long time. She smiled when he took her thank you, with something like that she always knew that she'd win, not that she used it against him very often but there were times when she did.