“Sebastian,” I mutter quietly, only so that he could hear me. “You need to get out of here now.”
He nods in understanding and takes off out of the bar immediately. I take a chance and I slide into the seat right beside Alaric.
“Hi Mr. Saltzman, fancy meeting you here!”
“Was that guy your friend?”
“Do you always come here for a drink?” I continue to babble on.
Alaric slams his glass on alcohol down on the table, hard and glares at me. “That was the man that killed my wife.”
“He’s only nineteen so technically he’s not a man yet.”
Alaric glares at me one more time before he stands up and leaves without another word. I sit there, hoping I bought Sebastian enough time to run away and leave this town. Since I had nothing better to do and had practically wasted the entire day by sleeping, I went over to Elena’s house to see how she was dealing with all this. I hadn’t spoken to her in a while and everything had gone crazy in between.
Jeremy opens the door when I arrive and he invites me in straightaway.
“Hi Jer, is Elena home?”
“Yeah she’s upstairs in her room. Go on up!”
I find Elena and Stefan both looming over a box of jewelry on in room. I jump onto the bed with them and the bed bounces slightly.
“Has Stefan turned feminine?” I gasp.
“This stuff is all filled with vervain,” explains Stefan. “I’m giving it to Elena so that she can give it to all the people she wants to protect. There’s a new vampire in town and until we can figure out who it is and what they want, we all need to take extra precautions.”
I deliberate for a second, deciding whether or not I should tell them who the vampire that attacked Elena is. I sigh. “His name is Matthias.”
“What?” Stefan furrows his eyebrows and Elena gives me a look of confusion.
“Matthias Verone, that’s the vamp that attacked Elena,” I repeat.
“Who is he and what does he want?” asks Elena.
“He’s a very, very old vampire. He’s malicious, vindictive and completely heartless and from what I gathered, he wants to open the tomb to free someone inside. Also, he’s Sebastian’s younger brother.”
A spark lights up in Stefan’s eyes. “I remember him now. He was in Mystic Falls, year 1864 with a couple of others. They claimed to be the Verone family but after the church was burnt, they all disappeared. I didn’t see Sebastian with him that year. Will he know what he is up to?”
“Matthias claims there is a significant someone in the tomb that he wishes to release,” I state. “And no, him and Sebastian were never close.”
“Just like how Damon wants to open the tomb,” Stefan concludes.
We both give each other a look. “We need to prevent these Damon and Matthias from crossing paths,” I say. “Although knowing Matthias, he already knows what Damon wants and he’ll be using that to his advantage.”
“We need to keep an eye on them both,” Stefan agrees.
“Now Stefan, please leave,” I demand.
He gives me a confused look.
“I came here to spend some quality girl time with Elena so unless you are secretly a girl, you should leave.”
Stefan gives Elena a helpless look but she just laughs and shoos him away. He fakes a hurt expression and glares at me while speaking to Elena.
“I see how it is. You pick her over me.”
There is a sudden shout coming from downstairs.
“ELENA, I NEED THE MONEY,” Jeremy calls out.
I look at Elena quizzically. “Money?”
“We ordered pizza!” she smiles as she climbs off the bed.
Stefan and I are quiet while Elena is gone.
“Stefan, please go,” I beg. “I want some girl time with Elena and I don’t need you around to ruin things!”
“Ruin things?”
“You aren’t a girl, you would not understand.”
Stefan finally gives up and reluctantly leaves. I follow him down the stairs while Elena is just shutting the door on the pizza delivery man.
“It’s hot and fresh,” she grins. She carries the pizza into the kitchen and we all grab a slice, including Stefan, who was supposed to leave. I scowl at him and he just smiles back. Elena catches the exchange between the two of us. “Stefan, I’ll see you tomorrow,” she smiles knowingly. Stefan groans and I fist pump in triumph.
The minute Stefan walks out the front door, I turn on Elena.
“So, how’s it going with you two?” I say, teasingly. Elena has the decency to blush.
“Not in front of Jeremy!”
Jeremy just laughs and walks off with his pizza to resume whatever it was he was doing before. We both watch his retreating figure and the minute he is out of sight and earshot, I glance at Elena expectantly.
She sighs. “I love him. He’s different from all the guys I’ve ever dated and he seems to understand me. I really love him, Aly.”
“Aw that’s so adorable,” I gush. I knew the feeling. Once upon a time, I had a love like that too. “So did you have sex yet?”
Elena blushes a deep crimson red. “Uh…”
“Hm, I’ll take that as a yes,” I grin. “You two are so cute together, it’s like perfect!”
“What about you?” Elena asks suddenly. “Anyone you interested in? You seemed to be getting along great with Matt and your old friend Sebastian seems to like you. Heck, I think Damon has a crush on you too.”
“Oh please, Matt is completely smitten with Caroline,” I say bitterly. Saying it out loud still kind of hurt but I was over Matt. There wasn’t really anything there to begin with anyways. “Sebastian’s just a friend now, whatever we had in the past should just stay there as good memories. And Damon?! You’ve got to be kidding me, Elena. Damon just has eyes for Katherine.”
“I see him checking you out all the time.”
“How often have we all been in the same room together?”
“Uh... Once?”
“Exactly!”
“Whatever,” Elena smiles.
“Do you mind if I sleepover here for the next couple of days or so?”
“Uh yeah, I don’t mind, I just need to check with Jenna first,” says Elena. “Does this have anything to do with the new vampire in town?”
“Possibly,” I answer. “And it’ll be more acceptable to have your friend sleepover and watch over you rather than your boyfriend.”
For the rest of the night, we gossip about people from school and I explain to Elena more about our supernatural world and vampires. She learned the mechanics of being turned into a vampire and she told me how Stefan told her she was adopted and how Jenna’s reactions confirmed it. We didn’t talk much on that subject since Elena seemed a little iffy with it and soon, we were both tired.
I fell asleep in Elena’s bed with her and it felt nice to have an actual friend for once. Life gets a little lonely when you’re wandering around alone.
***
The next morning, I woke up before Elena did and got ready for school. When I come out of the bathroom, I’m dressed in the same clothes I wore yesterday. I find Elena packing all the vervain filled jewelry into her bag. She smiles at me.
“If you don’t want to wear your old clothes, you can pick something out from my closet.”
“Thanks Elena but I doubt I’d fit your stuff.” I motioned towards her hips. Elena was a bit curvier than I was and I was at least a good two inches taller than she was. She was probably around 5’5 while I stood at 5’7.
She shrugs. “Then let’s go. I’ll drive.”
Once we arrive, we head our separate ways. Elena goes to find her friends so she could distribute the vervain jewelry and I just wander around the school. Unfortunately, I bump into the person I least wanted to see.
“Hey Aly!” Matt greets me.
“Oh, hey Matt,” I continue to walk by him, desperate to get away.
He grabs my arm. “Is something wrong?”
“Uh no,” I mumble. “I need to go.” I hurry away from him as fast as I could, leaving him staring at my back with a confused look on his face.
I hastily bump into someone and I apologize, only to realize it was Caroline.
Oh what a wonderful morning this was turning into.
“Watch where you’re going,” Caroline snarls at me.
“Excuse me for not having a blonde bitch radar installed,” I say sarcastically.
“You know what? You’re the real bitch here. You come to town as a new girl and you act all high and mighty. Meanwhile, you’ve done nothing to deserve any of the attention you’re receiving from everyone. You act as if you could care less what anyone thinks, but all the guys here are all smitten by your good looks already. If only they knew how much of a bitch you were,” Caroline spits at me.
“Gee Caroline, I’m not the one that displays my inner ugliness in public all the time. Maybe if you actually tried to be nice, people would actually like you. You’re just a really dumb and really fake girl.”
“Fuck you!” Caroline shrieks before attempting to take a swipe at me.
I manage to dodge her strike easily and I grab her wrist and twist it painfully. She gasps in shock, all the anger and rage at me turning into an expression of fear and pain. I feel pleased when I see the tears start streaming down Caroline’s face.
“Hey! What are you doing?”
Matt comes out of nowhere and yanks my arm off Caroline. The stupid bitch has the nerve to whimper and cling onto him. Just the sight of the two of them makes me so angry that my vision turns red.
“What the hell is your problem?” Matt asks outrageously.
“My problem?” I say in a deadly quiet voice. “I don’t have a problem. It’s not my fault if your girlfriend is a bitch and snob.”
“You hurt her!” Matt yells at me. He didn’t even bother to deny that Caroline wasn’t his girlfriend.
I suddenly felt very drained of energy and emotion. “You know what? I don’t even care anymore. This is a waste of my time and I am leaving. Goodbye and good day to you all.”
I start to walk away from them but Matt grabs my arm again and looks me right in the eye as he speaks to me, “I was wrong about you Alayne. I thought you were cool and different but you’re just a bratty little child. I regret ever seeing you differently.”
When he said that, I felt like bursting into tears and running off. His words actually hurt so much, I honestly thought he understood and cared about me, guess I thought wrong. Instead of crying like I wanted to, I pull my arm roughly from Matt and I turn and walk away without another word to either him or Caroline. I would be the better person here and just walk away and let it go.
I was so distressed that I decided to once again, skip the day of school. I head to the Grill and sit there, probably moping for the next couple of hours.
“Can I help you?” a waiter asks me politely after I had been there for three hours.
I smile at him. “Can you just bring me a black coffee?”
“Yup, one black coffee coming right up!” The waiter leaves and returns with my coffee momentarily.
After another couple hours, my phone beeps unexpectedly, signaling that I have a new text message.
From: Elena Gilbert
Hey Aly, I heard about what happened at school this morning and I haven’t seen you all day. Where are you and are you OK?
I texted her back.
To: Elena Gilbert
I’m at the Grill.
Elena texts back, saying that she and Bonnie were heading over right now and I mentally prepared myself on socializing with people again. I had tuned out the world for the past six hours and since Elena and Bonnie were coming, I would have to use my social skills. They show up in fifteen minutes and spot me in my booth immediately.
“Aly, are you alright?” Elena’s expression is one of concern and Bonnie’s expression mirrors her.
I force at smile at the two of them. “I’m fine.”
“That’s a lie,” Elena says. “Trust me, I would know. I practiced saying that to people for months.”
“I’ve practiced my entire life, lying to people,” I point out.
“What actually happened?” Bonnie questions.
I sigh. “Caroline’s just a bitch, I can’t handle her anymore.”
Elena and Bonnie both share a look. “It’s typical Caroline, she really is just a harmless soul.”
“Harmless?” I say bitterly. “You didn’t hear some of the stuff she said about me. She doesn’t even know me.”
“That’s just Caroline,” Bonnie sighs. “She’ll warm up eventually.”
“I don’t need her to warm up to me,” I grit my teeth. “She’s just lucky I haven’t snapped her neck yet.”
“Don’t do that!” Elena says quickly. “You don’t want the town council getting any more suspicious than they already are.”
“Elena, you act as if I care what this stupid little town does,” I smile sweetly.
“Don’t get snappy, we’re only trying to be nice,” Bonnie snaps.
I sigh. “At least someone cares enough to be nice.”
They both give me reassuring hugs. “You’re our friend Aly, we’ll be here for you.”
Neither of them brought up Matt, which I was grateful for. We settled for talking about Elena’s adoption instead.
“I honestly can’t believe you’re adopted,” Bonnie says. “I never saw that coming.”
Elena just shakes her head, clearly still in disbelief of her newfound status. “It gets weirder,” she says. “I looked at my birth certificate and it lists Miranda and Grayson Gilbert as my birth parents, none of it makes any sense.”
“Did you talk to Jenna?” I ask.
“First of all, the Elena I know would always want the real truth, whether it’s good or bad,” Bonnie comments. “And secondly, you just found out your boyfriend is a…” She says the next word quieter: “vampire. So unless your parents are aliens, I don’t know why you are so freaked out.”
Elena just laughs lightly before standing up. “Look, I have to go to the store. My outfit for the dance is severely lacking accessories.”
“Dance?” I question.
“I gotta go, Bonnie can explain,” Elena rushes out of the Grill. Bonnie and I stand up to leave as well but Damon is suddenly there in our faces.
“What do you want from me?” Bonnie asks.
“Hey Damon,” I greet him.
“Aly,” he smiles at me before turning back to Bonnie. “I think we need a fresh start.”
“You tried to kill me.”
“But I didn’t, and if I wanted to, I would’ve. Does that not count for anything?” Damon was trying to be charming. The sight was so distracting and hilarious, I almost forgot about all my problems with stupid bitches from school. I know, I was a thousand year old vampire and I was having issues with petty teenagers in high school. What on earth was my life becoming?
“You know I can start fires with my mind,” Bonnie says threateningly. “Fires kill vampires, right?”
Damon doesn’t say anything and Bonnie continues.
“Just stay the hell away from me.”
“Everything okay over here?” a voice asks out of nowhere. I look over to see the waiter that had served me coffee earlier.
“Everything is fine,” Damon answers.
“I wasn’t talking to you,” the waiter replies. Damon just smirks before he smartly decides to turn away.
“Thank you,” Bonnie says to the waiter after Damon leaves.
“Any time, Bonnie.”
“Wait, you remember me?”
The waiter laughs. “I didn’t graduate that long ago. You’re making me feel old.”
That makes Bonnie laugh to. “Sorry I didn’t… I didn’t mean that. I just didn’t think you knew me.”
“I always know a pretty face.”
That causes me to crack up while Bonnie is blushing. What a lame line. The waiter guy turns to me. “I don’t believe we’ve met before.”
“Alayne Mikaelson,” I say. “And sorry to be rude but I have to leave now.” I look at Bonnie. “Elena’s going to be my ride home, I’ll see you tomorrow.” She nods and I run outside to see Elena on her cell phone and there is a panicked look on her face. “Elena!” I call.
She turns around quickly and nearly drops her phone. A look of relief flashes across her face when she realizes it’s just me. I walk up to her slowly.
“You okay? You looked really freaked out.”
“I’ll tell you about it later,” she says, breathing heavily. “Are you staying over tonight?”
“Yeah, I still need to keep an eye out on things.”
“Ok, good.”
***
The next day, we went back over to the boarding house. Elena told me on the way home how she had received a mysterious phone call from the man she had hit with her car. We were all sitting in the library while Elena voiced her concerns.
“Why me? What does he want with me an–and if he’s trying to kill me, why call first?”
“It’s because we’re predators, Elena,” Stefan says.
I agree. “We hunt, we stalk, it usually the anticipation and build up to the excitement of the kill.”
“I want you to take this.” Stefan hands Elena a large, golden pocket watch.
“This is Jeremy’s, how did you get it?”
“I took it from Damon, who took it from Logan who must have stolen it from Jeremy.”
“What happened to it?”
“It’s not just a typical antique watch,” I explain. “It’s a sort of compass that homes in on vampires.” Sure enough, the compass pointer keeps switching between Stefan and I.
Elena’s eyes widen. “Why did my grandfather have it?”
“The Gilberts were one of the founding families and back 1864, he was among those who sought to eradicate the vampire species. This compass was used to find us.”
“Did you know them?” Elena asks Stefan, clearly meaning the Gilberts of 1864.
“Yes,” Stefan nods. “I want you to keep this. In case you are ever in any danger.”
Elena smiles at him as Stefan reaches over to cup her cheek. The two of them share a passionate kiss before I cough loudly, letting them know I was still in the room.
“PDA is so gross,” I mutter.
That just results in them throwing cushions at me.
***
“So what is this dance thing going on tonight?” Stefan asks me.
I shrug. “I didn’t even know there was a dance going on until yesterday. Apparently it’s 1950’s themed. Are you going to show up?”
“I don’t know, I don’t exactly go to school anymore.”
“Me neither, I skip more classes than I am actually there for. Surprised I haven’t been expelled yet.”
“I’m curious to see what you’re going to wear to the dance since its 50’s themed,” Stefan smirks.
“Maybe I’ll just dress in some of my old clothes.”
I go upstairs to my bedroom to get ready for the dance. After a quick shower, I walk into my wardrobe. I tend to keep a few bits of clothing as a reminder of all the decades and centuries I’ve lived through and throughout the years, I had accumulated a lot of clothes. I finally located the small rack of 50’s clothing. After pondering for a long time, I finally select one of my old dresses. The top was black and the design of it was like a blouse and the skirt of the dress was high waisted, crimson red and came up just above my knee. I curled my hair so that it hung down my back in ringlets. I knew my hair was exact 50’s style but hey, I was supposed to be a small town teenager. What did I know about the 50’s anyways?
I went back downstairs to find that Stefan was all dressed up for the dance too. Damon sat at the desk in the office, scribbling away. He looks and Stefan and grins.
“You got the hair right.”
As a response, Stefan throws an old, brown book onto the table.
“Why are you bringing me dad’s journal?” Damon inquires.
“Cause you were looking for it,” replies Stefan.
Damon looks up at him. “And why would I want it?”
“Gee, I don’t know Damon. But you should enjoy it, read it. I have. Nowhere in it does it say anything about Katherine or the tomb or how to open it.”
“I’m not surprised,” says Damon. “The old man could barely spell his own name.”
“I’m really, really sorry it won’t be of any help with your diabolical plan: the sequel.”
Damon just smiles coyly at Stefan.
“You know, I could help you,” continues Stefan.
“You, help me?” Damon asks mockingly. “I don’t know about that, it seems a little unnatural.”
I watch the exchange between the two brothers, curiously wondering what either of them are trying to accomplish. Stefan places his hand on the table in front of Damon.
“I’ll do anything to get you out of this town, even release Katherine.”
“What about the other twenty six vampires?”
“No, no, no, they can’t come. They have to stay put.” Stefan clearly has Damon’s attention now. “But Katherine, I would consider that.”
Damon gives Stefan a calculating look before he speaks. “What are you doing? Hm? What is your angle in this?”
“Think about it.”
Damon smirks and shakes his head. “Why would I trust you?”
“See Damon, that’s your problem. You just imply all those crappy characteristics of yours on everyone else. If history is any indication, there is only one liar among us.”
Damon points his finger at me. “Aly is a liar, too. She didn’t tell us she was a vampire when we met her. But the funny thing is, I still trust her more than I trust you.”
I flick out my hand and Giuseppe Salvatore’s lifts from the table and smacks into Damon’s face before falling to the floor. I glare at him. “That was for calling me a liar, but thank you. I know I’m a very trustworthy person.”
The brothers don’t exchange another word to each other and Stefan stalks out of the room, his shoulders stiff. I look at Damon and he just smiles a fake smile at me. Exasperated, I throw my hands into the air and walk out to my car. It had been a while since I drove my Lamborghini and I had to say, I missed my baby. I drive over to Elena’s house since I told her I would pick her up and Jenna lets me into the house as she is leaving.
“Hi Jenna, you’re going to the dance too?” I ask, seeing her all dressed up.
She shrugs her shoulders. “Alar– Mr. Saltzman asked me to chaperone.” She smiles and waves goodbye as she leaves.
I walk into the Gilbert house, lock the door and run up to Elena’s room, where I know she’ll be getting ready. I hear the hair dryer going off in her bathroom so I sit on the bed and wait. The vampire detector compass is going mad, twisting and turning. Elena comes out of the bathroom eventually and she jumps when she sees me sitting there.
“Jenna let me in,” I explain. I take in her appearance. She was wearing a 50’s styled shirt in the colour purple with tight black pants and her hair was pin straight, the whole look tied together with a purple hairband. “You look amazing!” I tell her.
“Thanks,” she smiles. The vampire detector is still spinning like mad and Elena just looks at it. “You’re making it crazy aren’t you?”
“That’s not possible,” I state, standing up and pulling Elena back protectively. “I’m sitting still right here, it should be locked on me and not moving around. There’s something wrong here.”
“Jenna? Jeremy?” Elena calls into the hallway. She is answered by silence.
“That thing isn’t going to point at the other vamp if I’m around,” I say frustrated.
“Then leave, just for a little bit,” Elena says.
“No, that’s too risky. Stay here, I’m going to check the house.”
I leave Elena’s room and start walking down the empty hallway. I open the door to Jeremy and Jenna’s room but they’re both dark and I can tell that they have been untouched since Jeremy and Jenna were last there. I slowly start creeping down the stairs and make my way into the kitchen. Not finding anyone in there, I make my way to the living room.
Elena runs down the stairs with a phone in her hand. “I just called Stefan and Damon said he left his phone at home but that he was on his way over here already.”
All of a sudden, a black figure swings down from the ceiling and grabs Elena.
“Elena!”
She screams and he is about to rip out her throat but I get there first. I grab the mysterious man by the throat and yank him away from Elena, throwing him over the couch. The guy shoots me a furious look and lets out a roar before he runs out the door.
“Elena, are you okay?” I run to her.
“What’s going on?” Stefan walks into the room.
Elena clings to him, gasping for breath and Stefan comforts her.
“I didn’t know that vampire,” I say numbly. “That wasn’t not the vampire that you hit Elena, that was not Matthias.” But who was he and how had to gotten into the house?
Damon shows up ten minutes later along with Sebastian, who I also called.
“What is he doing here?” Damon glares at Sebastian, evident dislike on his face.
“I called him here to help us,” I say firmly. “I figure the more friends we have on our side, the better.”
“Okay wait, let me get this straight,” says Sebastian. “Elena hit a vampire with her car, and that vampire was identified as Matthias. Now suddenly, this other vampire wants to kill her as well?”
“Yes, but how did he get in?” Damon questions.
“He was invited in,” Elena mumbles weakly. “He posed as a pizza delivery guy last night.”
“Clever,” Sebastian comments.
“I’ve got to give him points for that,” Damon says at the exact same time. They both glare at each other and I roll my eyes.
“Did he say what he wanted?” asks Stefan.
“No he was too busy trying to kill Elena,” I reply.
Stefan gives us all a hard look. “And none of you have any idea who this is?”
We all shake our heads. Stefan glares at Damon and Sebastian.
“Don’t look at me like that, I told you we had company,” says Damon.
Sebastian nods. “And don’t give me that look. I’m only here at the request of Alayne and I don’t have a problem killing any of you.”
“Sebastian, shut up,” I growl at him.
“You think there could be even more of them?” asks Elena worriedly.
“Who knows,” I shrug.
“Guys,” Stefan says definitely. “He was invited in.”
There was a hidden meaning behind his words. This mysterious vampire had been invited into Elena’s house. That meant he could keep coming back to get her, over and over again. We only had one option.
“Then we’ll get him tonight,” Damon says firmly.
“You up to it, love?” Sebastian asks Elena.
“What do I have to do?”
“Let Stefan take you to the dance and observe the crowd. See who shows up,” I instruct. “Damon, Sebastian and I will be there too, monitoring the crowd.”
“That’s a bad idea,” argues Stefan.
“I think it’s a perfectly fine idea,” says Damon. “Until we get him, this house isn’t safe.” Knowing his next comment would get Elena on board, he continues, “or anyone who lives in it.”
“It’s worth a shot,” Sebastian shrugs.
“I’ll do it,” Elena approves.
Stefan shoots us all glares but he finally sighs in defeat.
“Fine,” he says. “Tonight, we eliminate that vamp.”
Elena grabs his hand reassuringly. “I’ll be with the four of you’ll, I’ll be safe.”
“Then we’ve got a dance to get to!” I holler and jump up. I grab Sebastian’s arm and drag him to my car. “You can pretend you’re my date for this stupid dance.”
“I’m not even dressed in old clothes.”
“Who cares?!”
Elena and Stefan both get into Stefan’s car and Damon climbs into the backseat of my Lamborghini.
“What are you doing?” I ask him curiously.
“I’d rather ride with the fake couple than the real couple. Plus, Stefan is really getting on my last nerve…”
I laugh at that and start up the engine. When we get to the school, the dance is already in full swing. Old 50’s music is blasting from the speakers and everyone seems to be having a good time. Our group must have looked like some strange cult or gang. Damon, Stefan and Sebastian were all wearing black and extremely menacing. I hope that vampire knew what he got himself into. Elena spots Bonnie and Caroline in the crowd and drags me over to them, leaving the boys behind.
“Having fun?” Elena grins.
“No,” Caroline says snobbishly. She points at her hair. “But this took about two hours so I’m staying at least half of that.”
“What’s Damon doing here?” asks Bonnie.
“And who is that hunky guy standing with the Salvatore brothers?” Caroline smiles suggestively.
“He wanted to come. I promise, he’ll behave,” Elena answers. “As for the other guy, that’s Sebastian. He’s a friend of Alayne’s.”
“So is this like a threesome now?” Caroline asks rudely. “You and the Salvatore brothers?”
“No but if I’m going to be with Stefan, then I’ll have to learn how to tolerate Damon. Besides, it’s not like I can kill him.”
“Here’s a thought,” Bonnie says.
“Mm, I’ll help,” Caroline agrees.
They clink their little cups of punch together. Elena just shakes her head at them and I feel annoyed.
“You know what? I think I’ll go get some punch, it was lovely talking to you ladies,” I say before I walk off.
“She didn’t even talk to us,” I hear Caroline say when she thinks I’m out of earshot. I just roll my eyes at nobody in particular.
I walk around the crowd for a bit, keeping an eye out for Matthias, the new guy or any other vampire that might show their faces. While a slow song is playing, I look over to see Damon trying to talk to Bonnie and Caroline. Both of them storm away from them and walk off. Elena and Stefan join the now alone Damon and I walk over to them too. Sebastian was nowhere to be seen, but I knew he was still around the place.
“Where did they go?” Elena is asking Damon.
“I don’t know.”
“What did you say to them?” Stefan smirks.
“I was perfectly polite,” Damon smiles. “Elena, would you like to dance?”
Elena smiles back cheekily. “I would love to.”
Damon holds out his hand and smirks at Stefan, whom Elena is smiling sweetly at.
“May I have this dance?”
Damon’s smile drops off his face as Stefan holds out his arm Elena. She grabs on to it and they head out to the dance floor.
“That was a horrible way to get rejected,” I say to Damon.
“Shut up. You don’t have a dance partner either.”
“I didn’t get rejected though and no one asked anyways.”
Damon gives me a smoldering look and I laugh. His look turns into a glare. “I was going to ask you to dance with me.”
“Is that offer still pending?”
He smirks and holds out his arm which I take. We head out to the dance floor where I put my arms around Damon’s neck. His hands are gentle at my waist and we start swaying back and forth to the music.
“What the fuck are we doing?” I ask Damon abruptly.
He just smiles at me. “We’re having fun for once.”
“Us two? Fun? Really,” I say sarcastically.
I had to admit though, dancing with Damon could almost be described as fun. It certainly relaxed me a little and took my mind off all the other crap that was going on in my life. Plus, Damon wasn’t bad looking and actually quite easy on the eyes.
“You know, you aren’t bad company,” Damon says offhandedly.
I just smile as a response, not believing him.
“I’m serious,” he argues. “I think we could be really great friends. Besides, I don’t think its fair you have to take sides with Stefan all the time. He isn’t exactly fun you know.”
I let out a laugh and Damon smiles, satisfaction written all over his face. “I pick my own sides for my own purposes Damon. You just remember that.”
Damon chuckles quietly and it is a musical sound. As the slow song ends, it transitions into a more upbeat song. Unexpectedly, someone taps on my shoulder. I turn around to see Sebastian with a smile on his face.
“May I have this dance?” he asked politely, holding out his hand.
“Hey, you can’t steal the only girl that is willing to dance with me!” complains Damon.
Sebastian pulls me out of Damon’s arms and just smirks. “I just did.”
We leave Damon there as we sway and dance to the music, Sebastian constantly twirling me and me just having a blast. We leave half way through the song to grab some punch. Being a gentleman, he got the drinks and headed back over to where I was standing at the side.
“Thank you,” I smile at him.
My history teacher chooses that moment to approach us and Sebastian’s eyes widen at the sight of him. I could feel his body tense up beside me.
“Hey I don’t recognize you, how’d you hear of this dance?” Alaric strikes up a friendly conversation.
Sebastian stares at him warily and Alaric holds out his hand.
“Alaric Saltzman. I’m the new history teacher here.” Sebastian takes his hand but the wary expression never leaves his face.
“Oh I see,” Sebastian says cautiously. He takes another moment before saying his name. “Sebastian Verone.”
“Mr. Saltzman, what do you want?” I hiss at him, placing myself slightly in front of Sebastian.
Alaric laughs lightly. “I just wanted to meet your friend.” He gives Sebastian a warm look but I can tell it’s fake. “You two have yourselves a nice night.” And just like that, he’s gone.
“That’s the guy,” Sebastian speaks lowly.
“I know,” I reply. “I’ll deal with him but we have bigger issues right now.” I had felt a disturbance in the area and I wanted to go investigate. “Stay here and keep an eye out for your brother,” I told Sebastian. I disengage myself from him and walk out of the school gym. There were low voices coming from out in the hallway and I picked up on words such as “sticking to the plan” and “leave the girl alone”. I crept into the corridor and saw two shadows at the far end. Using my powers, I made myself undetectable.
“I like her, she looks like Katherine,” a male voice says.
“She not Katherine, okay? Katherine is in the tomb.” That one was female.
“I know, but, until we open that tomb, I’ve got her to play with,” the male voice retorts.
“Don’t be stupid, that girl is with the Salvatore brothers and they’ve got two older vampires on their side.”
“The Salvatores don’t scare me, they never have,” argue the male. “As for the other two, I’m pretty sure we could take them.”
“Please Noah, don’t do this,” begs the female. “You’re going to ruin everything.”
“You’ve got nothing to worry about, I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” Noah says. “You will get what you came for. Just let me have my fun.” I hear him take a step past his female friend. “She looks like Katherine.”
So obviously, these people wanted to open the tomb as well and they knew Katherine. But did they know that Katherine was not in the tomb?
I quickly run back to the dance to find the others but they’re all preoccupied. Sebastian was missing, Elena and Stefan were still on the dance floor and even Damon had found some random chick to dance with. Elena has a freaked look on her face all of a sudden so I make my way over to them. Stefan runs off before I get there so I grab Elena for information.
“What’s wrong?”
“I saw him,” she says.
“Where did he go?”
“Stefan’s gone after him. I need to go get Damon. Where is Sebastian?”
I look around and Sebastian is nowhere in sight, meanwhile, Damon is still dancing with his girl. My phone beeps and I take it out quickly.
From: Sebastian Verone
Sorry! I had to leave; the vamp hunter was shooting me daggers. I’m sorry but I value my own life over your friends.
- Sebastian
I swore under my breath and Elena glances at me curiously.
“That bastard ditched because he chickened out!” A string of profanities followed my comment.
Elena gives me a sympathetic look. “Ignore that for now, Stefan needs our help. Let’s go get Damon.” She pulls me through the crowd with her. At that moment, Elena’s phone rings and a terrified expression presents itself on her face.
“Hello Elena.” I hear the male voice that belongs to Noah on the other end. “Here is what you’re going to do. There is an exit door behind you and you have five seconds. Ditch your little friend and come play with me.”
“No,” Elena says harshly.
“Or your brother dies.”
We both whip our heads in the direction where we last saw Jeremy.
“I could snap his neck so fast I bet there wouldn’t be a witness.”
“Don’t you dare touch him,” Elena says angrily.
“Start walking and keep walking.”
I make a move to follow Elena but Noah sees.
“Nu uh, tell your friend to stay put if you don’t want to see your brother die.”
Elena gives me a pleading look. “Please don’t follow me.”
I nod my head once and turn to glare at Noah, who just smirks at us. Elena quickly runs for the exit and soon, Noah disappears after her. As soon as he is away from Jeremy, I follow them. I hear Elena’s running footsteps pounding away and Noah, slowly stalking after her. When I finally find the two of them, Elena is sticking Noah with pencils. Normally, it would have been a funny sight but it just made Noah angrier and more terrifying. Before he can do any permanent damage to Elena, I flick my hand to the side and he is thrown over a table. He stands back up and glowers at me but I just smile back. He makes a move to grab Elena again but this time, I am in front of him, ready to stop him. I pick him up and throw him across the room, where he slams into the wall and slumps down. I stand protectively in front of Elena.
“You’re stronger than Matthias said you would be,” Noah groans out and he tries to stand again.
“Obviously Matthias doesn’t know me very well,” I say sweetly. “Either that, or he lied to you.”
Noah lunges at me again but this time, Stefan is the one pulling him away and throwing him across the room. I grin at him as Damon shows up also.
“Alright, the entire team is here, minus Sebastian who chickened out,” I shout.
“Hey dickhead,” Damon is holding up a wooden stake. “Nobody wants to kill you, we just want to talk.”
Noah ignores Damon’s warning and jumps across the table, attempting another attack on Stefan, Elena and I. Damon tosses the stake over to Stefan, just in time for him to stick Noah with it. Noah is down on his knees, gasping for air. The stake had penetrated his chest but not through his heart.
“Now you feel like talking?” I ask him.
“Screw you,” Noah mutters and Stefan pushes the stake further into his body, causing immense amounts of pain. Elena has a look of disgust on her face, as if she was seconds away from vomiting.
“Wrong answer,” growls Stefan. “Why are you doing this?”
“Because it’s fun.”
Stefan jabs the stake harder and Noah gasps out.
“What do you want with Elena?” he continues.
Noah wheezes, “She looks like Katherine.”
Both Salvatore brothers share a look and Damon is the one to speak.
“You knew Katherine?”
“Oh?” Noah pants. “You two thought you were the only ones. You don’t even remember me.”
“Tell me how to get into the tomb, hm?” Damon asks.
“No.”
Stefan takes a jab at the stake again and Noah cries out.
“The grimoire,” he huffs.
“Where is it?” presses Damon.
Noah glares at Damon but does answer him and Stefan makes another move to twist the stake in Noah’s body. I grimace a little.
“Stefan, is that really necessary?”
I get ignored. At this point, Elena has already turned away in disgust.
“Check the journal, the journal. It’s in Jonathan Gilbert’s journal.”
“Who else is working with you? Who else is there?” demands Stefan.
“No,” Noah says. “You’re going to have to kill me.”
I have to admire him for this. He was willing to throw away his life, even though he was working with someone else. But obviously, he already knew Damon and Stefan were going to kill him, regardless whether he told them or not. I took pity on this pour soul.
“No, don’t kill him,” I hear myself say. I receive looks of absolute disbelief. “He already told you everything!” I defend.
“Alayne, he was invited into Elena’s house. We have no choice.”
Noah gives me a sorry look. “Nice try there. But Matthias was right after all. You are weak. You’re too nice and compassionate for a vampire, no wonder why he doesn’t take you seriously.”
I smile sweetly at Noah before I make a grabbing motion with my hand and twist. Noah’s entire body tenses up and he lifts off the group a little, screaming in agony. At the moment, Elena was covering her ears and scrunching up her face. Even Stefan looked a little distressed.
“You forget who you’re talking to, Noah,” I say calmly. “Do not for one second mistaken my emotions and compassion for weakness. I still have no problems killing.”
“Then you’ll kill me,” he says.
“I will,” I answer and I reach in to pull out the stake. Noah lets out a yell when I pull it out and quick as a flash, it has pierced his skin but this time, right through his heart. His skin immediately turns the grey colour that vamps turned when they died and the veins bulged.
Elena starts hyperventilating and heaving. “B-but how are you going to find the other ones now?”
“He had to die,” Damon says simply.
“Elena, he’s been invited in.”
There is a knocking sound and we all look over to see Alaric Saltzman walk away from the door quickly. Stefan nods at Damon and he runs off after him. I stare at the body of Noah on the floor. I didn’t really want to kill him, but it had been an honorable way to die. He didn’t want to give up his friend’s secret and instead chose death, since it was pretty much inevitable anyways. I respected him for that.
Damon comes back, telling us he already compelled the history teacher but I had my doubts, even though I didn’t voice them. I burn the vampire’s body right then and there with my magic and he turns to ashes. RIP Noah.
A/N: I actually liked Noah a lot from the TV series, wish he didn’t have to die. I have to kill him off in my story too because I can’t keep everyone alive, otherwise the story would be quite boring. Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I’ll try to update as often as I can but seeing as school’s started, I don’t have much time to write. Anyways, thanks for reading! :)
Edit * Hey guys, I'm so sorry to say: I lied to you. I won't be able to update once a week since school has been very busy so far, and is bound to get even worst. I have so many assignments due already. Senior year has been awful so far. I'm not going to make any promises on how often I update but I will every time I finish writing a chapter! Please bear with me! Thank you to all those who are reading this story :) Love you all!
- Sam