1990 - Atlanta
"Baby, I have to go!" I giggled as James tried to pull me back down on the bed.
"Just 10 more minutes!" he said, kissing me repeatedly.
"I don't have 10 minutes, I'm already late. Do you want me to get fired?" I was one of 6 employees working at the Maxwell Photography Studio. We were a small company, but we got a few regular customers and were getting more and more popular as time went on. I'd been working there for 3 years and was loving every minute of it.
"They wouldn't fire you, they need you," he said, his face buried in my neck.
"Even so," I said, laughing and pushing him away from me. "If I'm late again, it'll be my last warning."
"Fine, go," he said, standing up and taking my hands in his. "Have an amazing day," he kissed me softly. We'd been together for 25 years, since 1965, and his kisses still made me swoon. At 60, he thought I'd be sick of him by now, that I'd want to be with someone young, fit. Someone that I could make a whole new life with. But I would have given anything to never have to be apart from him, no matter what age he was.
"I love you," I replied, kissing him again and leaving the house before he could persuade me to change my mind and stay home.
As I shut the front door, the same way I did every morning, something felt different.
"Hello Serena," someone said. I looked around and saw someone standing by the side of our house, not looking at me.
"Do I know you?" I asked, walking towards him.
"Not yet."
It was then that I got a good look at him. I was hoping that seeing his face would give something away, but I got nothing.
"Can I help you with something?" I asked tentatively.
"You are Serena Salvatore, yes?" he asked
I nodded my head. The guy had a British accent, it made him sound scarier than his face and frame would suggest.
"You don't know me, my name is Niklaus. Klaus Mikaelson."
"OK..." I said. Clearly he was crazy. The only thing stopping me from walking away from him was the fact that he knew my name.
"I know your secret Serena," he said.
"I don't have any secrets," I dismissed. "Nice to meet you though."
"So you want the people at your little photography studio to know that you haven't aged a day in three years? Or why they tend to end up with mysterious bites on their wrists and necks?"
I stopped in my tracks, my blood running cold.
"What are you talking about?" I tried to play it cool but my heart was racing.
"You really want me to say the word Vampire? I thought you were trying to be a good suburban housewife?"
"How do you know...?" I asked, trying not to show how scared I was.
"I was friends with your brother Stefan back in the 20's, he told me a lot about you."
"You're a...?" I trailed off. Of course he was a vampire. If he was human, he would have already given my secret to the authorities. "I was with Stefan in the 20's, he never mentioned you."
"It's amazing what a bit of compulsion does, isn't it?"
"Vampires can't compel other vampires," I said.
"That's right. Luckily, I'm not your average vampire. I'm a different kind of monster."
"Look, what do you want?" I glanced towards the house. One of the reasons that we'd moved to Atlanta was due to the lack of vampires. At least, the ones that I knew about.
"Nothing, yet," he said. "I'm just laying the groundwork."
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked. Although he hadn't said anything bad, my body told me that I was being threatened, that this guy was a lot more dangerous than I thought he was.
"In a few years' time, I'm going to need your help. To break a curse."
"What kind of curse?" I asked.
"Right now, that doesn't need to be explained. I need a witch, a vampire, a werewolf, and a doppelganger."
"Do doppelganger's even exist?" I asked.
"They do. Or, they will again."
"And I guess I'm the vampire in that part of your plan?"
"No Serena, you're more special than that," he said, smiling a twisted smile.
"Then, what do you need from me?"
"I need your Bennett blood," he said. Freaked out, I turned to walk away quickly, but within seconds he was in front of me. "Don't be scared. Don't run."
I knew he was compelling me, but I had no choice but to obey his commands.
"Why do you need Bennett blood?"
"That's something that will be explained at a later date. But I need you to do some things for me Serena."
I didn't say anything, what could I say? He was compelling me, he'd get what he wanted no matter what.
"I need you to be around when the new doppelganger shows their face. So don't do anything to put yourself in danger, ever."
"OK," I said.
"Next, I want you to forget this conversation, forget that you met me, just like your brother has. But, when someone says the name 'Klaus Mikaelson', I want you to remember. And when you remember, you need to come to me. Even if this happens in 100 years and I'm on the other side of the world. You're the only part of the plan that won't change. So when you hear 'Klaus Mikaelson', you come and find me. Understood?"
"Understood."
I was standing in front of the house alone. I looked at my watch and saw that I was even later than I realized.
'Yep, I'm definitely fired,' I thought to myself, walking quickly to try and get into work. I didn't know what was wrong but, for some reason, I just couldn't piece together the last few minutes. It was like they had been wiped from my memory...
...
"Klaus?" I said, my voice barely a whisper. Even though I'd never remembered, I'd never purposefully put myself in danger. Was that because of Klaus?
Rebekah Mikaelson smiled, twisting a strand of blonde hair around her finger, her eyes fixed on mine.
"Is everything OK Serena?" Steve asked me, looking back and forth between Rebekah and I. As my conversation with Klaus flooded back into my mind, the weight of his command hit me like a ton of bricks.
"He found me?" I asked Rebekah.
"He never lost you," she responded. "It's time; you need to come with me."
"Time? Time for what?" Steve asked me.
I looked up at him. For a second, I hadn't even remembered that he was there.
"Klaus needs me," I said. "I have to find him."
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