2.18 Do Over

Adrienne [re: Stefan's character sheet]: "So basically, you're a him-bo."

PeanutGalleryStefan: "That bastard. He just proposed to you."

PeanutGalleryGabe: "It's just like killing Kenny. I have to be a vamp at least once a season."

PeanutGalleryStefan: "I'm trying to figure out how to do this without killing you."

Geoff: "So, I heard you're at Chapel Hill."
Chase: "Yeah. I heard that, too."

Rachel: "Unpriestessify. Is that a word?"
Stefan: "I don't know. English is your language."
Rachel: "Right. So unpriestessify."

Chase: "Actually, in my version of all of this, you and I are getting an apartment together ... for reasons that, for your sake, I won't get into."

Rachel: "Stefan says 'hello'."
Deaver: "Well, tell him I said L-O back."

Chase: "Sorry. Articulation. Not go so well this evening."

Stefan: "Don't do anything ... you know ... rash."

PeanutGalleryChase: "Insert suitably bitchy comment here." [half an hour later ...] PeanutGalleryStefan: "Insert witty banter here." [pattern, much?]

Chase: "I wish I had never come to this damn town."

Chase sits in an airport coffee shop, waiting. She takes a quick look at her watch, finishes her cup, and heads for the baggage claim.

* * *

Geoff deplanes at the airport, his nose buried in a book. He looks relaxed, and a little more like his beach-bum alter ego. He stops in front of the waiting area to the side of his gate, struggling to get his coat on without interrupting his reading. He hears laughter near him and looks up. A pretty girl is watching him with amusement. She offers to help, and laughingly holds the book at eye level for him while he gets his coat on. Finally finished with the page, Geoff reaches out and closes the cover. There is a little small talk. When she offers him the book back, he tells her she can keep it if she's interested - he just finished. She smilingly tells him that if he'll put his phone number in it, she'll be sure to return it to him when she gets back to town. Geoff stammers a bit, dumbfounded (as usual where girls are concerned).

* * *

At the baggage claim Chase gives a big smile and a cheerful "Hey!" and hugs ? a pretty blond girl. "Nina! It's so great to see you!"

* * *

Deaver is holed up in the fifth floor library, where's he's been for almost two weeks. Surrounded by books, he is still searching for a way to get Raveena back. Bethany wanders in and greets him with a smile before hitting her usual Tibetan lore and ritual section and settling in to read. Stefan comes barreling in to the library, having decided that someone needs to get Deaver out of there. After a charming apology to Bethany, he escorts Deaver to the door, dragging him to the Lone Star for some much needed social interaction - besides, Chase has a cute friend in town who bears checking out.

* * *

Chase, Nina, Rick (who also knows Nina from his L.A. days), Jessie, and Rachel meet up at Lone Star for mid-afternoon drinks and chattiness. Nina has been studying in Tuscany for a semester, and decided to stop in and see Rick and Chase on her way back to L.A. A casual acquaintance that also frequents the bar, Elise, joins in the conversation. Stefan shows up with Deaver in tow, and Gabe joins them shortly thereafter - he went by the library looking for Deaver, and Bethany directed him to the bar. With introductions made and conversation greased by the fact that Nina and company have been here a while, Chase excuses herself and makes for the bathroom.

On her way back, Chase bumps into someone and ends up with a drink spilled all over her. Stammering out an apology, she looks up to find herself face-to-face with Geoff, carrying a bottle of beer and a now-messy screwdriver. There's an awkward moment. He tells her he stayed in Hawaii a few extra days and just got back. She mentions that her friend is in town, and offers to make introductions if he feels like joining the usual suspects at the bar. Taking it the worst possible way, Geoff gives a short laugh and tells her he already has a date for the evening. He excuses himself, and Chase watches as he makes a beeline for a table where Simone Boyd-Townsend is patiently waiting.

Rejoining the group, Chase tries to involve herself in the conversation, but can't help casting glances at Geoff's table. Rachel follows her gaze, and the conversation quickly turns to men-bashing. Sensing the way this is going, Rick, Deaver, Stefan, and Gabe quickly excuse themselves. There is a lot of story swapping, and Elise can't help musing that sometimes, you have to just wish they'd all disappear or something. Everyone chimes in with her variation on the theme. Chase looks over at Geoff's table again before muttering, "I wish I'd never come to this damn town." Rachel and Nina give her sympathetic pats, and Elise looks over at her with a twisted smile, her face strangely deformed.

"Done."

* * *

Nina, Chase, Rick, and Jessie are hanging at the bar. Stefan and Rachel are on the dance floor, and Geoff and Simone seem to have disappeared. Rick turns to Nina and asks how long they are going to be in town. Despite the amount of beer she's had, Chase picks up on the "they" part, and gets even more confused when Rick starts blatantly flirting with her and asking how she likes North Carolina. Convinced that something is up, she excuses herself and squeezes her way out to where Stefan and Rachel are dancing. They look startled at the interruption, and neither one appears to know who she is. Rachel's eyes are back to normal, no longer the strange glittering silver that they have been since Gabe brought her back to life. Nina comes over and collects her, apologizing for her drunken friend. She ushers Chase out of the bar, and they start walking back towards the hotel where they are (apparently) staying. Chase keeps trying to convince her that there's something wrong, but Nina doesn't seem to think so. The full moon comes out from behind some swiftly moving clouds, lighting their path. Nina suddenly buckles over in pain. Concerned for her friend, Chase immediately asks what's wrong. Ignoring the question, Nina asks Chase what day it is with an intense expression. When she tells her it's the third of January, Nina, who thought it was the second, gets wide-eyed and tells Chase to run. Chase pays her no mind as she gasps in pain a second time, insisting that they get her to the emergency room.

Suddenly, Nina's form changes and her face elongates. She becomes a werewolf as Chase looks on in horror. She runs. Nina chases her. Chase cuts back towards the Lone Star hoping to get over the back fence, but Nina is too fast and cuts her off. Changing direction quickly, she turns towards the nearest tree, calling for help. Wolf Nina pounces, landing squarely in the middle of Chase's back. She tries to get out from beneath her, but Nina bites down hard on her calf with a vicious snarl. Managing to roll over under the growling wolf, Chase launches Nina off of her with both legs before getting up and stumbling towards the tree, using her arms to pull herself up onto the lowest branch. Nina is right behind her, clawing at the tree and snapping at Chase's heels. Suddenly, a soft voice with a Spanish lilt calls out from the darkness. "Puppy!" Nina immediately calms and trots toward the sound, wagging her tail and panting. She sits down at the feet of ? Nikki? Nikki looks up at Chase and tells her it is all right to come down. Cautiously, she does, absolutely shocked to see her old friend. She asks Nikki what happened with Zolor, and the smile on Nikki's face disappears as she haughtily tells Chase she doesn't know what she's referring to. Hesitantly, Chase reaches out a hand towards Nikki and touches her, thinking the entire chain of events that led to Zolor's defeat the previous winter, knowing it will be more persuasive than speech and hoping that Nikki somehow managed to escape Zolor's grip unscathed. Nikki's gaze turns cold as she tells Chase that if she thinks that she would do something like that, then she doesn't know her at all. There is a sudden sound from the bushes behind Chase, and she spins around to see Gabe and Jade emerging from the shadows. They trade barbs with Nikki and she leaves. Chase moves to follow her - she still has Nina - but Jade reaches out and grabs her arm, telling her she should stay a while. Stefan and Rachel approach, seeing the trio as they are leaving Lone Star. They too trade one-ups with Jade and Gabe, who go game face - both are now vampires, it seems (since Chase wasn't here to stop VampGabe from drinking blood at the BYOB party last year). Chase tries to knock Jade's feet out from under her and fails. Rachel and Stefan call to her to get down and away from the action, since she's injured already. Her leg throbbing, Chase complies. Rachel and Stefan have the look of a duo that has been fighting together for a while. The four exchange blows and spells for a bit before Gabe and Jade escape into the woods.

Stefan and Rachel turn to help Chase with her leg. She takes over binding it as they ask who she is and where she comes from. Deciding she only wants to explain this once, she asks them to take her to Deaver. Surprised that she knows him, since he never leaves the lab, they agree. On the way, she asks them if Jade and Gabe are Alumni. This surprises them too - further conversation convinces them that she must be a member of some secret organization that is feeding her information, and she's probably crazy to boot. But they take her to Deaver anyway.

At the lab, Chase tells them as much as she can figure out about what's happened - they were talking at the bar, she mentioned she wished she'd never come to McKennit, and then this girl, Elise, looked at her all freaky and said "Done", and then all of the sudden it seems her wish came true, since none of them know who she is. Deaver tells her that it is a well-known fact that wishing is a dangerous thing, and that he can do some research to see what Elise might have had to do with it. He too is surprised at the number of personal facts she knows about all of them. She reveals the story of Zolor as she knows it, leaving out the names of the priestesses. They explain that someone did attempt to free Zolor, but the slayer Raveena stopped it at the cost of her own life. She has been dead for almost a year, and they never learned who was involved in the attempt. At that point, Chase haltingly asks after Geoff. The trio fills her in - Geoff had a debilitating accident about a year ago and it messed with his head a little. Still brilliant, he consults for the hospital now, and lives at the Arbors. When Chase asks Deaver if he is still involved with Nikki, he brightens at the mention of her name. He is. Chase then goes on to explain them the story of Nina's transformation, and when they realize that a werewolf has bitten her, there is sudden intense concern over getting her cured or secured as quickly as possible. Rachel thinks that Rowan, one of the priestesses of Cernunnos Grove, may have an idea on something that can cure Chase of her impending werewolf-ism, but it would have to be done in the first 24 hours after she was bitten. Rachel escorts Chase to see her while Deaver goes to the library and Stefan returns to patrolling.

Rowan puts a poultice on Chase's leg and gets the ingredients gathered for a potion she'll need to drink. Rowan explains to her, however, that this is essentially a poison - they have to maintain a delicate balance between killing the beast within without killing Chase. And there's a chance it won't work, since Rowan tends to err on the side of not killing the person. It will take her out of commission for about 12 hours. Chase foregoes the potion, deciding that she doesn't have time to be incapacitated that long. She and Rachel leave, and Chase tells Rachel that she wants to go and see Geoff. Since it is a visit she'd rather make alone, Rachel tells her to be careful and to give her a call when she has a chance for an update on the research. She's startled once again when Chase says that she already has her number. The girls part ways.

Chase gets the address for The Arbors from the phone book and heads out. The Arbors is an assisted living community for young people, and it is unusually large (not surprising, given this is McKennit). At the front desk, Chase asks after Geoff and gets a room number. The place really creeps her out - it is filled with men and women her close to her own age, wandering the halls with IV stands or in wheelchairs. She finally reaches Geoff's room and knocks. Owen answers the door. Chase gives him her name, and he retreats briefly before coming back and letting her in.

Geoff is sitting in an oversized, comfortable chair, gazing out the window. He slowly turns his head and smiles at the sight of her. Chase quickly realizes that he never recovered from Strella's attack, since she was the only one who knew how to undo the damage, and she wasn't here. Their conversation is a little awkward, since Chase really can't figure out what to say. Just like the first time they met in McKennit, Geoff accepts Chase's wild story, this time about the wish come true, as quite likely given what he's run in to in the last two and a half years. Chase gives him a sad little goodbye before leaving, even more determined to fix the mess she's apparently made.

* * *

Deaver gets a call at work from Nikki, who asks when he's coming home - she has a new puppy for them. Well, a puppy for three days, anyway. Deaver tells her the story of Chase, and that he has been doing research. Nikki is a little surprised (unpleasantly) to hear that Chase is still human and not a vampire. Upon learning this, she tells Deaver that they have plenty of room and he should invite the poor girl to stay with them. He agrees to do so.

Rachel and Stefan meet up and finish patrolling, at which point they call Deaver for an update on the plight of the insane-sounding blonde. From his lab, he tells them what he's learned - it could very well be that Chase ran into a vengeance demon. Vengeance demons chose to become such, and grant the wishes of those who have been somehow maligned. But they do so with a bent towards chaos and no consideration of the potential consequences. They have a physical power source that, if destroyed, will make the demon human again and undo every wish the demon has ever granted, changing who knows what. Conversely, the person who made the wish can unmake it if they can get a hold of the power source. The power source is a unique item that the demon has on their person at all times. Deaver also extends the invite from Nikki to have Chase stay with them - when Rachel and Stefan hear from her, would they please let her know she has a place to go, and escort her to the manor? Thrilled at the possibility of finally seeing the inside of the mysterious house, they cheerfully agree.

* * *

Sobered up and exhausted, Chase calls Rachel to see if there is any news. Rachel fills her in on everything she heard from Doc. The mention of a power source jolts Chase's memory - every time she's ever seen Elise, she has been wearing a necklace shaped like a little canary, that sports a topaz gemstone in the center. She once told an amusing story about a friend who thought the necklace was a parakeet. And that revelation sparks another memory - Lorne's creamy voice telling Chase, "? when they offer you the parakeet, take it."

Rachel tells Chase that Deaver has invited her to stay at the Boyd-Townsend manor, but she quickly declines, having a pretty good idea that Nikki is behind it. She tells Rachel that she has a place to stay already. Rachel is bummed that she won't get to see the house, but accepts Chase's response. They agree to meet at Lone Star tomorrow at 4:30 (they need to be sure Chase is indoors before moonrise, just to be safe), and Rachel says she'll keep an eye out for the girl with the funky necklace, although she doesn't sound too hopeful. Deciding she'll be better armed to find Elise after some sleep, Chase heads to the hotel to crash.

* * *

The next day, Chase first calls Deaver, to get any more info she can firsthand from him regarding vengeance demons. They talk for a bit, and Chase finally tries to break Nikki's treachery to him, concerned for his safety, the safety of the town at large, and her friend Nina, who is still staying with Nikki. He doesn't appear to believe her. She continues to throw out fact after indisputable fact, until Deaver suddenly hangs up on her. Alone, Chase wanders McKennit, but has no luck finding Elise. Out of desperation, she stops in at Curas to see if the demon community has seen her and ask Lorne if he can give her any more insight on the "parakeet" thing. Lorne invites her to sing for him, and figuring that no one will remember this in 24 hours if she is successful at finding Elise, she agrees and halfheartedly belts out a little Joan Jett. Lorne takes her aside and, after telling her she'd be pretty good if she'd just open up and sing, he goes oracular.

"I can tell that you've lost something important, and you want it back. Just take it from me, sugar; things are going to get worse before they can start to get better. And don't worry too much. Trouble will find you when it's ready. Trouble always does. And we've talked before - you have what you need to know to fix it when it shows up."

At 4:30, Chase reports to the Lone Star, as promised. Taking a stool at the familiar bar, Shannon approaches her with a smile, but the professional kind, not the best-friend kind. They chat a little and Chase orders a Shiner Bock. Shannon's smile gets even warmer as she comments that not too many people know about that brew up here, and Chase tells her with a pensive little laugh that her best friend back home is from Texas. She orders some munchies as well, and Shannon gets the order in before disappearing down the bar to tend to her other customers.

* * *

Stefan and Rachel approach Lone Star on time to meet with Chase. Out front, Gabe and Jade are loitering in the shadows. They scuffle, Stefan running Gabe through with his sword before Jade drags Gabe off and makes an escape.

* * *

As Chase sits nursing her beer and watching the crowd, she gets tapped on the shoulder. She turns to find herself face to face with ? Kevin Black. He gives her a sexy smile and asks her to dance. She turns him down cold with very little grace. He changes tactics, telling her that he has a friend who really wants to meet her, but Chase still blows him off. Suddenly, there's another hand on her arm, this one a lot smaller and a lot stronger. It's Strella. She and Kevin escort Chase out the back door. Behind the bar, they meet up with Gabe and Jade. Gabe is griping over an impressive but already healing sword wound. The four of them force Chase into a car and they take off for the Boyd-Townsend manor. Strella explains that Nikki is just dying to see her ?

* * *

Deaver goes home from the lab early, his conversation with Chase still replaying in his head. He holes up in the study to do some reading. He hears the front door open, but it is too early to be Nikki. Listening at the door, he realizes it is Gabe, Jade, Kevin, and Strella. And they have Chase. Strella jokingly tells Chase that if she plays nice, Nikki might not kill her. Overhearing all of this, Deaver is hopelessly confused. Strella is Nikki's friend, so it makes sense for her to be here. But the vampires? They're evil. Some part of his brain tells him that it is fine for them to be there. But he knows they're bad. And who invited them in? He stays hidden in the study, deciding not to alert them to his presence. And he pulls out his phone and calls Rachel and Stefan. He tells them what's happening, and they agree to come at once. They tell him to distract Nikki when she gets home - she trusts him. They'll take care of the rest.

* * *

Stefan and Rachel approach the Boyd-Townsend manor as stealthily as possible. They circle the house on opposite sides, trying to get a feel for where the baddies are and what's going on. Stefan looks in the study window and sees Deaver hiding under the desk. He taps on the glass, and Deaver looks up with a start. He comes over and opens the window. In hushed tones, he tells Stefan that the group is in the next room. Stefan runs around to the back of the house where Rachel has finished her half of the circuit, and they go back to the study, sneaking in through the window.

* * *

Kevin and Gabe have a grip on Chase as Strella throws barbs at her. They are clearly waiting for Nikki to show up. Suddenly, Stefan and Rachel burst through the study door, weapons ready. Chase is released as chaos erupts. Stefan stakes Jade in the back, dusting her immediately. He turns to deal with Strella while Rachel goes after Gabe. Kevin vamps out and heads towards Stefan as well.

Deaver slips out of the study and heads for the front door. He steps outside as Nikki pulls up. He smiles as he approaches her, asking her for a dance. He turns up the car radio. She agrees, confused but pleased. They spin in lazy circles as she laughs delightedly.

* * *

Inside, Chase hears a girlish laugh from behind her. Spinning around, she sees Elise, standing by the window. She looks delighted at the mayhem. Chase moves for Elise, but Kevin grabs her arm again. She dodges out of his grasp and makes an unsuccessful swipe for the demon's necklace. Elise laughs again, telling Chase she got exactly what she wanted. She can't undo the wish. The clouds in the night sky part and moonlight streams in to the room, catching Chase in the glow. She doubles over as pain rips through her stomach. Behind her, Rachel watches with a satisfied grin as Gabe explodes in a cloud of dust. Strella gets Stefan by the neck and places her other hand on his head. His body goes rigid with agony as she drains the strength out of him. She releases his shriveled form, and he falls in a heap on the floor. Strella and Kevin both turn on Rachel, advancing towards her. Elise is still grinning at Chase, who is gasping for breath as her back starts to feel out of alignment and the pain in her gut grows more intense. Elise cheerfully tells her that if there is something else Chase wants, she'll give her anything, but what's done is done. Remembering Lorne's message, Chase looks at her. Teeth gritted against the pain, she spits out, "Fine. How 'bout the necklace?" With a pout, Elise takes the necklace off and hands it to her. "I get it back, though." She grips the necklace in her hand and whispers, "I take it all back." As she finishes her sentence, her face elongates and she collapses on the floor with another groan of pain ?

* * *

Deaver and Nikki are still outside dancing, whirling around in the moonlight, her head on his shoulder.

* * *

Chase looks up with a start as laughter surrounds her. Nina, Rachel, Elise, and Jessie are giggling over a joke that she obviously missed. Reaching for her beer with one hand, she looks down and realizes she's holding Elise's necklace in the other. "How did you get that?" Elise reaches for the necklace. Chase admits she has no idea, pays the necklace a halfhearted compliment, and returns it to its owner. Rachel looks at it with an intense expression. She looks at Nina oddly, and mentions to her that CG is having a Full Moon Esbat that night if she wants to come. Chase loudly complains that she never gets invited to this stuff. Rachel laughs, and tells her she's always welcome. Nina gives Rachel a startled look before asking if she's SURE the full moon is tonight? Rachel tells her it is. Nina sits up and tells Chase that she's feeling a little jetlagged and should be getting back to the hotel for the night. She excuses herself from the group, says goodbye to Rick (who is hanging out with the boys at a far away table), and leaves. Returning to the previous conversation, Elise turns to Chase and asks, "What about you, Chase? Sometimes, don't you just wish ??" Still wearing a resolute expression, Rachel takes Chase's arm and announces that while most boys suck, they just need to start looking for some that don't. Stealing another peek at Geoff's table, Chase sees him leave, holding the door for Simone. Sidetracked from Elise's question, she gives a grim laugh at Rachel's statement and agrees. With a shrug, Chase scopes out the dance floor, where Deaver is gliding across the floor with Bethany Caldwell.

* * *

A few minutes later, Chase is dancing with a new boy and Elise and Rachel are at the bar alone. Rachel turns to her, eyes glittering. "I may have some work for you."

* * *

[Insert Geoff and Simone scene]