*Flashback, 1864*
Stefan Salvatore walked quickly to the entrance of his home, placing his hands behind his back as the carriage of his family's guests pulled up in front.
First, a dark-skinned woman was helped out of the carriage and she nodded her thanks. Then, Stefan's heart stopped at the next woman.
She was an elegant beauty. Her olive skin was flawless with rosy cheeks, her dark hair was pulled up and pinned perfectly with curls framing her beautiful face, and her brown eyes were mysterious and deep. She looked Stefan up and down, seeming to like what she saw since she smirked a little. The footman helped the third, and final woman out of the carriage and Stefan didn't think that she would ever be able to top the one he was currently staring at. He was wrong.
The third woman was significantly more petite, but just as beautiful if not more. Her round blue-green eyes were large and held a childlike innocence, her skin was pale and as flawless as the second woman, she had rosy cheeks, and her full lips were as red as roses.
Stefan finally stepped down the stairs and began walking toward the ladies. He bowed to them slightly, looking at taller woman.
"You must be the Pierce sisters," he said.
"Please, call me Katherine," she said, holding her hand out to him. He took it as she curtsied to him, then he looked at her sister.
"And I insist you call me Elizabeth," she smiled, doing the same as her sister and curtsying. "Mr. Salvatore."
"Call me Stefan, please," he smiled.
In that moment, Stefan's heart was already torn in two. Both the girls held his heart from the moment he looked in their eyes. And thus began a very complicated, dangerous love story.
*Present Day*
I knocked on the door of the Salvatore boarding house. It had been a while since Elena left this morning. She said she was going to talk to Stefan about what he told her last night. Vampires, I thought. I never thought they actually existed. Elena was going to get some answers about the whole vampire thing from Stefan and she didn't take me with her because she didn't want me to get hurt, but I wanted to get some answers of my own and I didn't want to have the information passed on to me through Elena. Besides, it's not like Stefan would hurt me. I trusted him.
I knocked again when no one answered, this time the door opened a little like it had the first time I came over with Elena. I shivered. This creepy feeling just came over me and what was I doing? Stepping inside the house. This would be the part of a movie where everyone in the theater stands up and screams for me to not go in. Here I go anyway.....
"Hello?" I called.
"Samantha!" a voice said happily.
I whirled around and there he was. Just like the first time.
"Damon," I breathed. "What uh- I um...I-I thought Stefan and Elena would be-"
"Yeah they're not," he said. He smirked knowingly at me. "You know our little secret, don't you?"
I shook my head.
"No," I denied quickly.
He leaned forward, his face coming dangerously close to mine.
"Your heart beat just picked up," he whispered.
"I should go," I said fearfully.
I turned around to walk away, but he gripped my wrist and pulled me back.
"No, stay a while," he said. "I've come across an issue with my dear little brother and I'm stuck in this boring house all day until he gets me what I need. I could use the company in the meantime."
He brought me into the living room, where I saw someone on the couch looking less than their best.
"Aw, don't get blood on the couch," he complained.
I gasped.
"Oh my god, Vicki!" I said, ripping my wrist away from Damon and running over to her.
She had a very bloody cloth pressed on her neck where I could only assume Damon bit her. She was still breathing, thank god, but she was fading fast. Damon...tried to kill her. I brushed some of her hair back before turning to Damon.
"You did this to her," I said. "How could you do this to her again?"
"Ah, so you do know everything," he smirked as he came over and sat on the table in front of Vicki. "Please, not with the blood again."
He peeled away the cloth and looked at her neck.
"I got you good, didn't I?" he said.
"How can you act like this is a game?" I asked, staring at him in horror.
"Simple," he said. "Because it is."
He looked back to Vicki from me. I shook my head at him.
"This isn't a game," I said. "She's a human being, she-"
"She's a walking blood bag," Damon argued heartlessly. "And with the way she is right now, she's not going to be any fun today and neither are you."
He walked around the couch, staring down at Vicki as he did.
"I am so gonna regret this later," he said as he bit down into his wrist.
"What are you doing?" I asked panicked.
"Shh," he said to me, pushing his bloody wrist in Vicki's face. "I'm healing her."
"Healing-"
I stopped when I saw Vicki start drinking greedily from Damon's wrist.
"Don't drip," he told her. "Good girl. That's it."
And just like that, the wound on her neck was gone. I stared at it before looking to Damon.
"How did that just happen?" I asked.
"Vampire blood has mystical healing powers," he said. "It healed her neck right up."
I took deep breaths before sitting down slowly on the couch by Vicki's feet. She was laying still, probably sleeping now.
"Well come on," Damon said, leaning back on the couch opposite me casually. "You must be buzzing with questions as I'm sure your sister is."
"Um..." I started. "You said you ran into some problems with Stefan..."
"He took my ring," he said.
"Your ring?"
"My daylight ring," he said pointing to the finger I'm assuming he wears his ring on. "It prevents the sunlight from harming me."
"So you can walk in the sunlight?"
"Yes. Without it, I'm just your boring average vampire."
That was helpful to know for later. All I had to do was wait for Vicki to wake up and we could get out of here, knowing he couldn't come after us because of the sun.
"What about..mirrors?"
"I love them," he said. "I get to see my beautiful face."
"Figures," I said. "What about...garlic? Crucifixes? Holy water?"
"Great flavor, decorative, and drinkable," he said.
"Do you sleep in coffins?"
He laughed at that and I ended up smiling myself, though I wiped it away as soon as he stopped laughing.
"I prefer beds," he said. "You'd like mine."
"So does drinking vampire blood turn you into a vampire?" I asked, ignoring that last comment.
"No, you have to die with vampire blood in your system and feed on human blood. THEN you turn into a vampire," he answered. He saw me glance at Vicki then. "She's safe if that's what you're getting at. She'll still be human when she wakes up."
"You're not going to kill her?" I asked with disbelief.
"Well...I might," he admitted. "Depends on how bored I get. Although, these questions are doing a great job of keeping me entertained."
I stared at him for a moment before quickly thinking of more questions to ask him.
"Are there more besides you and Stefan?" I asked.
"Not anymore," he said. "This town used to be filled with vampires and the council knew all about them."
"The council? The founder's council knows about vampires?"
"Well I don't know about now, but back then they sure did," he smirked.
"When you say back then...."
"Call me an old man, but back in my time," he said. "1864."
"So that's why Stefan's so good in history," I said out loud by accident.
He chuckled and nodded.
"Living it does give him a boost," he said. "You ever need help in history class, you can always go to him. Of course, you could always come to me too."
It didn't sound like he was planning on killing me, and that relieved me. Although I still didn't feel comfortable in his presence. Not with what he's done to Caroline and Vicki. The thought of Caroline angered me then.
"How could you do that to Caroline?" I demanded. "Why would you do that to her? Torture her like that? Hurt her?"
"I compelled her to forget everything," he said carelessly. "She didn't know what was happening to her."
"Compelled?"
"A mind control type thing," he explained. "Every vampire can do it. Of course my compulsion compared to Stefan's is significantly stronger thanks to his diet."
"He doesn't drink human blood," I remembered. "But you do."
"Guilty," he said holding up his glass of...whatever.
I didn't want to talk or even think about him drinking human blood. The thought disgusted me, so I switched the topic.
"You said 1864 was back in your time," I began. "And you said the Founder's council knew about vampires then."
"Yepp."
"So the names on the registry at the Founder's party....those were really yours and Stefan's?"
"Yes and yes," Damon sighed. "Stefan and I were born here. Though, we didn't have this house at the time. I should take you where we used to live."
"You and Stefan were born here?"
"Indeed. The Salvatore brothers. Best friends."
*Flashback*
"Wait, where did you learn this game?" Stefan asked Damon as they ran outside, in front of their home.
"Camp outside Atlanta," Damon answered. "One of the officers picked it up at Harvard. Catch."
He threw the football to Stefan and charged at him after he caught it.
"What are the rules?" Stefan asked laughing. He asked again after dodging Damon's attempted tackle.
"Who needs rules?" Elizabeth spoke up as she stepped outside, her sister and handmaid at either side of her. Katherine smirked at the brothers.
"Mind if we join you?" she asked stepping down the steps.
Stefan and Damon walked in front of the sisters.
"Uh, well, you could uh- you could get hurt," Stefan said, looking at both sisters in awe. "My brother likes to play rough."
Elizabeth giggled as she stepped down, joining Katherine at her side. She smiled at Damon before switching her eyes over to Stefan.
"Nothing wrong with getting a little rough now and then," she said. "And something tells me you like to play rougher."
She smiled mischievously as she snatched the ball right from Stefan's hands and ran off. Katherine laughed.
"Very smooth sister!" Katherine said running after Elizabeth.
Elizabeth tossed the ball gracefully to Katherine and Katherine caught it with ease.
"Why thank you sister!" Elizabeth said.
Damon and Stefan watched the girls run off with smiles on their faces. Damon looked at Stefan.
"Why are you just standing there?" he asked. "Those are girls who clearly want to be chased."
They stood there for just a while longer before Damon looked back to Stefan.
"If you don't do it, I will," he said as he took off running after the girls. Stefan laughed and joined his brother in the chase, but he didn't know which sister he was going for.
*Present*
"You knew Elizabeth and Katherine in 1864?" I asked. "The way you talked about them made it seem like it-"
"Wasn't that long ago?" Damon asked. "When you're a vampire, the years sort of blend together. It doesn't seem like long ago to me."
"But it was one hundred and forty......five years ago," I said. "And you're still torturing Stefan over them?"
Suddenly Vicki gasped and started coughing. I jumped to her side and helped her sit up.
"Vick," I said softly. "You okay? How do you feel?"
"I'm fine," she said almost sounding surprised. "I just feel wasted."
"You might be," Damon said. "Why don't you head upstairs and freshen up? Take a shower or something."
"Yeah," Vicki nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'll...take a shower."
She stood up, obviously still feeling dazed, and made her way up the stairs slowly. I sat back down, wanting to go up to help Vicki but at the same time, I wanted to know more. About Damon, about Stefan, and about Katherine and Elizabeth. Damon cleared his throat, earning my attention again.
"Like I said, it doesn't seem like that long ago. Besides, they weren't just your average girls, especially not Elizabeth. She was very, very special."
*Flashback*
Damon chased Elizabeth through the maze on his father's land, laughing as she giggled and looked over her shoulder every now and then to make sure he was still chasing her. She reached the statue at the end and laughed victoriously.
"I won!" Elizabeth exclaimed as Damon ran the rest of the way up to her. "What's my prize?"
"Whatever you would like it to be," Damon smiled.
"Brother," Stefan's voice sounded.
He and Katherine walked up to Damon and Elizabeth, Katherine with a smirk on her face as usual.
"They extended your leave?" Stefan asked Damon.
"I was simply having too much fun to return to battle," Damon replied with a smile.
"Your commitment to the Confederacy is inspiring," Stefan said walking up and greeting his brother with a hug.
"Well this works out perfectly for us," Katherine spoke up.
"How is that Miss Katherine?" Damon asked her.
"Now we'll have both of you here to keep us entertained," Elizabeth smiled, walking to stand beside her sister. "First and foremost, we'll need someone to escort us to the Founder's Ball."
"I would be honored," Stefan said.
"With pleasure," Damon said at the same time.
"The smart and kind Salvatore brothers both coming to our rescue," Katherine smiled.
"How will we ever choose?" Elizabeth asked, sharing a secret smile with her sister.
They linked arms and walked back to the house together, sending teasing smiles over their shoulders to the brothers who were still watching them both in awe.
*End Flashback*
"Katherine chose Stefan," Damon said. "But not before Elizabeth chose me."
"Is that the truth?" I asked reluctantly.
"That is the truth," Damon said looking me straight in the eye. "Sam, I know that things I've said and done before may make you not trust me as much, but right now...you can ask me whatever you want and I will give you nothing but the absolute truth."
He stared at me for a while and I stared right back, deciding if I should trust him or not. My mind was screaming at me not to, but my heart was telling me that I could. I always was a sucker for the heart.
"You escorted Elizabeth to the first founder's party," I said questioningly. He nodded.
"At the original Lockwood mansion," he said.
"And Stefan took Katherine because he didn't have a choice or because Katherine didn't?" I asked.
"Both," Damon said. "Elizabeth....was everything you could ever want a girl to be. She lured you in with one smile, one laugh. Katherine was very jealous of her little sister at times, but she loved her nonetheless. When Elizabeth chose me, it made Katherine angry but she accepted and agreed to go to the ball with Stefan. Of course, at the time, Stefan had no idea that Elizabeth had already chosen and when he did find out, he wasn't very happy but, well, you know Stef."
"Just a little," I said. "But I can imagine he didn't show how unhappy he was."
"Of course he didn't," Damon smiled. "He was the perfect gentleman to Katherine. He had a genuine good time with her, but that didn't stop him from yearning for Elizabeth."
"So..what happened?" I asked.
"Elizabeth's selfishness," Damon said a bit sadly. "Although she was a very different girl than Katherine, she did have her moments where she was almost the same as her. Elizabeth...wasn't satisfied with just one of us. And Stefan sure as hell didn't stop her."
I absorbed that information. Elizabeth betrayed Damon with his own brother. Not only that, but she betrayed her sister. How could she do that to them?
"What about Katherine?" I asked.
"Katherine was upset, of course," Damon said. "But she didn't very much mind being the distraction when she needed to be. I, unlike Stefan, didn't allow her near me much."
"So because of that, you were upset with Stefan?" I asked.
"Very," he said. "But I don't believe in just getting mad."
"You get even," I deduced.
He just looked at me, his face answer enough that I was right.
"Oh man, that shower was so great," Vicki said as she came down the stairs in a tank top and her underwear, a towel in hand.
"Hey, you feeling better?" I asked her as I stood up and walked over to her quickly.
"Yeah, much better," Vicki answered. She ruffled my hair. "Thanks for caring, kid. You're the best."
She stopped suddenly when she walked past the mirror, looking at her neck in shock, noticing her wound was gone. She looked from the mirror to Damon- who was now standing up against a wall, then back to the mirror, and then Damon again.
"What did you give me?" she asked him with wide eyes.
"Some blood," Damon said simply. "You loved it."
"I did?" Vicki asked, looking to me for confirmation.
I opened my mouth, but closed again. It looked like she did, but....it felt too crass to tell her. Besides, I didn't know if she really did or not.
"Wait...I'm confused. How did we get here?" she asked looking around and walking to stand in front of Damon while I stayed where I was. She must have been really out of it when she first woke up.
"We met in the woods," Damon told her. "You were drunk, I attacked you, then I killed all of your friends, and brought you here. Gave you some blood. You loved it. And now, we're gonna party till the sun goes down."
Vicki seemed to be staring at him in a trance the whole time he spoke and I watched them, confused.
"Okay," Vicki said agreeably. That's when I knew Damon did something. "Um, but first, can I have another hit? That blood was so good."
She smiled and closed her eyes while Damon smirked at her.
"Only if I can," he said.
"Wait- what-"
Before I could finish my question, Vicki held out her wrist to Damon and Damon bit into his own wrist before latching on to Vicki's. She did the same to his and they stood drinking each other's blood. I had to blink a few times to make sure I was really seeing this.
"What the hell?" I managed to get out. "Damon-"
"Relax, Sammy," he said, the Damon I had been talking to earlier disappearing. "I didn't forget about you. Want a hit?"
He held out his other wrist to me with blood dripping down the side of his mouth, Vicki still drinking from his wrist. I shook my head. He groaned.
"Come on, have some fun please?" he begged.
When I didn't move, he just shrugged and went back to drinking from Vicki. What the hell was I supposed to do now?