So, I keep having this idea of where the vampires came from and the whole backstory of Katherine/Elena and the town. Please note I have NOT read the books, I don't know if this is explained or not, but this is my backstory. I wrote this pre Episode 22, but added a little note to keep it in tune with Canon.

Please please please read and review, my muse lives off feedback and she'll die without it.

Thanks.


Stefan froze as he crossed the threshold into the boarding house. The air was like ice and there was a presence there, something very old and a force he instinctively knew wasn't to be trifled with.

"Elena," he turned to his girlfriend, his voice no more than a whisper, "maybe we should call it a night?"

"But why?" she whined, "I wanted to play!" She finished, leaning into him for a kiss, but he pulled away quickly.

"Seriously Elena," he said sternly, "I think you need to go, something isn't right here,"

"Well come with me," she replied, suddenly alert, her eyes searching the darkness for the danger Stefan obviously felt.

"No, I need to figure out what is going on."

"Well, come with me, wait for Damon and check it out together."

"No need to wait," Damon's voice sang out from behind them, "I'm right here, no need to get your pretty little knickers in a twist," he smiled at Elena as she rolled her eyes, "just had to finish up with a nice little shopkeeper." He finished, smiling and licking the last trace of blood from his lip, but his smile quickly faded as he entered the hallway. "Yeah Elena, time for you to go home." He agreed with Stefan.

"Yes Elena," a voice came out of the darkness, "time for you to leave, at least for the moment."

"No!" She answered defiantly.

"Yes!" The voice replied with so much force it felt as though it could shake the ground under their feet.

Elena turned to Stefan, ready to start fighting, asking all the questions in her head, and determined not to leave her lover or her friend, but before a single word could leave her mouth she found herself lifted by the arm and deposited beside her car, the large front door to the old boarding house shut firmly behind her. Who had moved her, whether Stefan or the unknown voice was a mystery. She banged on the door to no avail, so too to sitting in the car, still determined not to leave without answers.

Meanwhile, back inside the house the brothers ventured forward, slowly.

"Can we help you?" Stefan asked, trying to keep his voice calm as his stomach did somersaults, if this feeling was what he thought it was, it could bring nothing good.

"I gave you two one instruction," the voice started, "how idiotic are you that you cannot follow one instruction?" It was no more than a whisper, but a powerful whisper. The voice was very calm and the words spoken in a very even tone.

Neither of them spoke. There was not many people in the world they were afraid of, but this voice was one of them. No emotion was betrayed in the eloquently spoken words, which made them even more chilling.

"Did you think I warned you out of concern for you two?" The voice continued, "you were warned there would be consequences if you did not let Katherine go or if you returned to this place, did you think I was kidding? Am I someone to be ignored?"

"Come on," Damon started, trying to portray his usual careless bravado, but his voice faltered slightly, betraying his wariness of the voice in the dark. "You can't warn us of consequence, give us no more details and expect us to list..."

His words were cut short as ghostly white hand closed tightly around his neck. His back connected with the wall and his feet dangled slightly as she lifted him.

"Do not mess with me little boy!" She hissed, "You have no idea what you are dealing with."

"Please Helena," Stefan interjected quietly, "we're sorry; what can we do to fix it?"

Without loosening her grip on Damon, she turned slowly to face Stefan, her black hair flowing down her slender back, framing her pale features. Her emerald eyes shone brightly in the darkness and were the only feature to betray her emotions.

"You will leave, tonight." She replied, "And if you disobey me again, I will have no problem in killing you both."

"Helena, I know we didn't listen to you and I understand, but I love Elena, I can't leave her."

"That is precisely why you should leave," she answered, "Your being here only puts her in more danger."

She finally let Damon go with a resigned and tired sigh. He gasped for breath that he did not need as he fell to the ground, rubbing his neck where her hand had been.

"I swore a long time ago to protect her, to protect the entire line. I set up this town for them, a place they could be safe, where we were never meant to be. If you two had just left well enough alone, Katherine would never have resumed her interest in this place and Elena would be safe."

"I don't understand," Stefan began, "Katherine returned months ago, killed John Gilbert, told Elena it wasn't time yet and left again,"

"It's not your place to understand," she snapped at him, before softening slightly, "I will fix your mess, I will keep her safe, but you must leave."

"I can't leave her, I love her."

"Stay and not only will you die, but she will join you along with most of this town." She said, her voice back to a calm but threatening whisper, "go and I'll save her, it's your choice."

"We'll go," Damon piped up from the floor, "Just keep her safe," he finished, avoiding his brother's eyes.

"Wise choice." She said and with a last, measured look at each of the brothers, she turned and left.

"I never thought we'd see her again," Damon said quietly, his normally pale skin was now chalk white.

"I don't understand this," Stefan said, thinking aloud, "What does she have to do with Katherine, what does she mean about creating this place for Elena and her line? Why does she care about Elena's bloodline, what the hell is going on?"

"I don't know," Damon answered, "but we have to make a choice." He stood, looking his brother straight in the eye. "Stay and fight one of the oldest, most powerful vampires in the world, a fight we probably wouldn't win and Elena might die in the process, or leave, never know the truth, but keep Elena safe."

The brothers stood, staring at each other in the darkness, unsure what they should do next.