𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐍𝐀 | 𝐬. 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞

63

Those observations, while helpful in the past, were entirely useless now, and Mikael had just found out why.

There was a girl. A dark-haired, expensively-dressed, loud-mouthed girl. One that Niklaus seemed to confide in, and that Rebekah befriended. The rest of them followed blindly like she was some sort of deity.

She wasn't a vampire like he originally had thought. If that were the case, he'd have killed her already. There was no daylight ring, no vervain intolerance, no apparent worries of anything being a true threat. He'd almost say she wanted a fight with the way she carried herself. That sort of ego was an innately human trait. Testing the boundaries of every person around you, just to see who would snap first. But no one ever would, at least not in this case, because she was intelligent enough to use her looks and her charms to distract everyone from the things she was doing right under their noses.

She reminded him of Katerina. That comparison didn't waver when he realized she had the Salvatores and his children wrapped around her finger. Like their token human, or something.

Mikael knew she was the key to weakening the group. If he got rid of her, the rest of them would all scramble around desperately searching for some sort of replacement. All he had to do was take care of her.

──────

"Hey, sweetheart, a black tie will match your dress for tonight, right?" Stefan's voice called out, echoing through his bedroom as he held up different ties against his white button-up.

The click of her heels follows his question like their own response, but Stefan only looks up when he hears her voice.

"Black is perfect, baby,"

Green eyes widen, and his eyes rake down the vision that she makes in the reflection of his mirror. He blinks and turns swiftly, ties long forgotten at the sight of her tan skin confined into the tight, black dress.

Athena smiles knowingly, her long hair straightened down her back along the soft material of her dress. "Do you like it?"

Stefan nods as he meets her eyes, his gaze significantly darker. "You know I do,"

She simpers, shrugging as she grabs the black tie from his hand and drapes it over his neck, already tucking it under his collar. "I know, I just like to hear it."

Stefan smiles softly, eyes drifting across her face as he sears her features into his mind over and over again. His eyes run along her sharp jawline and then drop to her neck, and a brief furrow twitches at his brow when he sees the dainty gold chain around her neck.

Carefully raising his hand as she ties his tie, he taps the gold necklace lying on her chest, eyeing the engraved rose and the faint scent of vervain coming off of it. "You still have this?"

Athena looks at him, shrugging at his question. "Of course I still have it, you gave it to me,"

Something soft gleams in Stefan's green eyes, and his smile widens slightly, his gaze upon her turning earnest. "Yeah, but you don't need it anymore. You can't be compelled,"

"I like it," She shrugs again, pulling his tie taut. "It sounds kinda stupid, but it makes me feel safe even if I technically don't need it anymore,"

He flickers his gaze along her face, shaking his head as he slides his hands around her hips, squeezing them reassuringly. "It's not stupid. And it looks better on you than shoved in a box somewhere to be forgotten about for another century,"

She huffs, resting her hands against his chest. "You know, I never asked you where you got it from. I'm not wearing another doppelgänger's necklace, am I? Because I can barely deal with the ones we have already,"