[𝐈] 𝕽𝖊𝖘𝖘𝖚𝖗𝖊𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 | 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗩𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀

𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝕿𝖍𝖎𝖗𝖙𝖞: 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗔𝘁 𝗗𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀

  "What brings you, Marie? You rarely care for history." Elijah inquires, walking primarily beside me in a hushed enough tone so Jenna didn't accidentally hear us.
  "Alaric here offered to pay for my next few rounds at the Grill, you know me Eli, can't keep my claws off the expensive whiskey." I jested, poking fun at Alaric's next bill at the Mystic Grill.
  "Damon mentioned you two were buddies," Alaric commented, joining in on the slow stroll towards Jenna's car to rejoin with her.
  "Ninety years certainly constitutes for a title higher than 'buddies'." Elijah states before giving Jenna a large smile as we regroup, taking a look at Jenna's scribbled across list.

-- -------- --

Alaric leaves us soon enough, allowing me to introduce mine and Elijah's already founded relationship to Jenna, it was far from the truth however it did seem to work.
  "I read a lot about Elijah's work, followed it for a while whilst on the road before settling here with my uncle, he was taking suggestions and I suggested here; Mystic Falls, a land of wonder, white picket fences and an uncannily high death rate." I joked, taking Jenna by brief surprise as she brushes off my comment to Elijah, who seems equally as lowly amused.

We finish up at the Grill, running into Damon, Andie and low and behold: Alaric Saltzman - their spy. You couldn't say Damon wasn't a complete moron in his doltish ways, he thought I couldn't see the silly little game he was playing. Stefan had let slip of a dinner party to me whilst we sat on the pier, he was so relaxed by the water the words effortlessly tumbled out. So when Andie suggested a dinner party, I wasn't amused. It had been planned from the beginning, their plan to take down Elijah. Nonetheless, I wouldn't divulge Damon's game, for now, to Elijah, to keep everyone safe, especially Stefan.

Arriving back home, I started to prepare myself for dinner whilst Damon, Jenna, Alaric and Andie were downstairs chattering away whilst they waited for Elijah. The slam of the front door was enough to alert me to the vampire's presence, that and the intrusive aura that surrounded him, it was practically suffocating me with its power. Wandering down the stairs, I catch Elijah's eyes as Damon invites him into the house. Klaus' morganite necklace hung across my neck as it matched the rest of my flush pink getup, paired with shining silver across my eyes, fingers and wrists.
  "Marielle, ravishing as always." Elijah complimented as he leaned in for a kiss on the cheek, which I accepted, leaning to return it.
  "Dinner's this way." Damon broke in between us as he took charge, guiding us into the heat of the party whilst another knock sounded from the door behind.
  "I've already confronted your brother about any ill-advised attempts tonight, however, you have a better ear for your brothers. A professional opinion?" he inquires as we saunter through the long corridor.
  "I'm unsure. However, never trust a serpent's tongue." I conclude, referencing to Damon before welcoming him into one of the large dining spaces of the house, joining Andie, Alaric and Jenna at our table as we are soon joined by John Gilbert. An unwelcome surprise.

To survive this night, I reach for the bottle of red toxin, untouched by anything but the air around us.
  "Aren't you a little young to be drinking?" Alaric critiques, making it more apparent to me that a sixteen-year-old heavily drinking at a dinner party would set off the wrong tone.
  "I'm a Salvatore. Drinking is what we do." I snarked back, refilling my glass as both Andie and Jenna let out an amused chuckle.
  "An underage Salvatore, who's been put on the Mystic Falls Sobriety Campaign. Put the bottle down." Damon chimed in, catching me by surprise at the certainty of his rudeness, also concerning both Jenna and Alaric.
  "Low blow," I fakely warned, slightly joking as I turned to Damon with nothing but vexation. Though his face returned with the same stance, he's guilty, but his every move had been calculated to every decimal place. I'd just have to roll with the punches. For now, at least until I was able to shove this steak knife into his back. He'd always know about my issues with alcohol, maybe it was the only thing I got from our father, every other problem was because of Lillian.
  "How about we move on?" Alaric butts in, diverting the conversation to somebody else in the room, deflecting my argument with Damon. John was being particularly pushy towards Elijah, hinting at his vampiric nature at the dinner table before two unknowing humans.