I sighed as I turned my car on, mentally preparing myself for the twelve-hour car ride I was about to have to endure. The summer camp in southern Maine where I have been a counselor for the past three summers is exactly six hundred ninety four and a half miles from my home in Mystic Falls. The camp used to be my solace from all of the drama at home. At camp, none of the mattered. It would all sort of, slip away. Consumed by the seemingly insignificant drama that always accompanies summer camp with middle school kids. This year, though, was different. It was my first year back after my parents died in a car accident, which only my identical twin sister, Elena, survived. I wouldn't of even gone to camp this year, if Elena and my Aunt Jenna, our new guardian, didn't practically push me out the door.
Truth be told, I was happy to try and let my grief slip away, and let it be overshadowed by a new romance with a boy from the neighboring cabin, or maybe some of the drama some of my cabin mates dealt with. Some of those girls really loved to gossip, and some of it was pretty interesting. Although, all summer I found myself thinking of my parents. I thought of them whenever I passed the spot where they would pick me up, or one of my old cabins I gave them a tour of once.
Some of my friends were sympathetic, which was an entirely different problem. They would ask me how I was doing, and I would nod and say "Better, thanks for asking." I would try to put on a smile. I fooled some of them, but not the ones who really knew me. Eventually, they stopped asking. It got a little better then I guess.
All in all, I was happy to be getting home. This was the first year I drove myself to camp, so I was driving myself home, too. It was a long drive, but I didn't mind. I had decided I was going to use this time to figure out how to not just survive without my parents, but thrive. This was my Junior Year. I need to have some fun this year, before all of the stress of college overwhelms me. I already missed back to school shopping, which was one of my favorite things to do each year. I was not going to let any other milestones pass me by.
Three hours into the drive, I pulled over at a rest stop to get some gas, and a snack. I bought a bag of Starburst, a King Sized Kit Kat, a bag of mini Oreos and a coffee. Weird combo, I know, but you have not lived until you make a Kit Kat-Oreo sandwich, and Starbursts are just plain awesome. I planned to stop at a motel near New York City, so I was going to need to coffee because that was another 4 hours away, at best, and it was already 8 o'clock.
Finally, I pulled into an only semi-shady looking motel about half an hour past the city. I got the cheapest room I could, and basically ran to the room. I took my first real shower in over a month, and went to sleep the second my head hit the pillow, despite the coffee.
I woke up to a gasp.
"Katherine?" I heard a voice say through my half asleep very foggy brain.
And then I was across the room, pinned up against the wall across from my bed. I looked up at my attacker and say the most beautiful pair of icy blue eyes I have ever seen. The contrast between his hair and his pale skin made him all the more handsome. And then he was leaning in to kiss me.
I screamed and tried to get out of his grip. "Who are you?! Get away from me! Somebody help!" Then my attacker did something I didn't expect. He sniffed my neck and put his hand on my chest, almost like he was checking for a heartbeat.
"You're human? How is this possible?" He said, almost like he couldn't believe I was human. What else could I be? I thought.
"What are you talking about? Of course I'm human! What else could I be?" I was starting to get really pissed off with this guy.
"God! You come into a cheap motel for a snack on your way to Mystic Falls, and your entire world-view is turned upside down! I need a drink."
"What are you talking about?! Who are you? Why are you going to Mystic Falls! Are you following me! Why are you even in my room! You can see where I'm staying so you obviously know I don't have any money!"
"Please, allow me to introduce myself, Damon Salvatore. And you are?"
"I'm not telling you my name until you give me some answers!"
"Fine. One bit of information about me for one bit of information about you."
"Sounds fair. I'll play along. Although you did just break into my room so I would feel safer if you stopped pinning me up against the wall."
He let me go, just seeming to realize that I was still pinned. "Now, what's your name?"
"No, you first. Why did you seem surprised that I'm human? And why did you call me 'Katherine'? And why are you in my room? And why are you going to Mystic Falls?" I had a million more questions and that was just the tip of the iceberg.
"Like I said, my name is Damon Salvatore, and I called you 'Katherine' because you look exactly like someone I knew in 1864."
"Haha, very funny. 1860's. I'm not as dumb as you seem to think I am. You broke in here, so now you're going to tell me the real reason."
"Listen very closely, little bitch, I am the one giving orders around here. I gave you some info, now you're going to give me some. What's your name?"
"Why do you want to know?"
"Because you look exactly like the girl I've been in love with for the past 150 years! And now, mere weeks away from when I can free her from the tomb she's been desiccating in since the Civil War, I find a girl who looks EXACTLY like her! Now you are going to tell me about yourself or I will feed on you until you die! Or, I'll just turn you. I've haven't made up my mind yet. So many choices for torture."
"Suck my dick. I'm not telling you anything! Get out of my room!"
And that is the last thing I remember. I woke up in the bed, and I felt very… strange. I slowly woke up, and checked out my surroundings, my memories slowly coming back until I shot out of bed, remembering Damon Salvatore and his crazy story about someone named 'Katherine' who looked just like me, and the 1860's and something about 'turning me'.
"What happened? What time is it?" I said.
"You didn't take as long as I would have guessed. Rise and shine, newbie. Welcome to immortality." Damon said from across the room.
"Immortality? What are you talking about?"
He walked across the room, and stared with his icy blue eyes into mine, and said, "You are now a vampire. I wouldn't try going outside. Although I did bring you a snack. I would eat it sooner rather than later. Although do try and save some for me."
"What are you talking about!" I was starting to get really mad. Like, really mad. More mad than I have ever been. Why was I so mad! I was obviously stuck in a hotel room with a mad person. Although there was something about him that I liked. Maybe it was the confidence, or the wit, but whatever it was, he didn't really strike me as someone who had just escaped from the looney bin.
Then I noticed the man from the front desk sitting on the chair across the room. That was when I smelled it. It was the most intoxicating scent that I had ever smelled. It was impossible to describe. It was like a combination of all your favorite foods, multiplied by 100. I was suddenly starving. It felt like I hadn't eaten in weeks. I needed food, like now. And I had a splitting headache.
"Damon, tell me what is happening to me! Why am I so hungry! And angry! And homesick! And sad! And energized! Why are all my emotions heightened!"
"Fine, I guess you're gonna need the long explanation. First of all, you're a vampire. And you will get rid of that hunger, for now, by feeding on a human, which I am not, so don't even think about it. I should also mention that if you don't feed, you will die."
"Okay, just for a second, let's pretend you're not crazy. How am I a vampire?"
"I gave you my blood and then snapped your neck. And you are now in transition. Maybe I turned you a little impulsively, but I like you. None of my meals have ever yelled at me before. It was… I would say refreshing, but… Anyway, now I have about 12 hours before the sun goes down to question you however I want."
I tuned Damon out, all I could focus on was the man sitting on the couch as still as a statue. He wasn't even blinking. As I walked over, I could hear his blood rushing through his veins. Holy shit, how could I hear that!
"Damon, how can I hear his blood pulsing from over here?"
"I think you know. You are starting to get really boring. Just feed. Then maybe this will get interesting."
I walked over, and before I knew it, I was sniffing this complete stranger's neck. And he wasn't even moving. Like, at all. The next thing I did, I'm not that proud of. But, I would later find out that it changed my life for the better. I bit into his neck. The second his blood hit my mouth, I wanted more. But, at the same time, I was aware that I didn't want to kill this man. I knew that if I drank from him enough, he would die. I stopped myself with minimal effort. I looked in the mirror that was behind the chair. My face was… terrifying, but sexy in some way. There were lines going from the bottom of my eyes to near the middle if my nose. They looked like they were etched into my skin. My eyes were so blood shot, it looked like I didn't have any more white left in them. And… I had… fangs. Like, real fangs.
"Holy shit, I'm a vampire."
Damon was standing next to me in a second. "Calm down, and breath and the scary face will go away. I like to call it 'vampire face' but you can come up with anything you want." How did he know that's what I was thinking about? Probably because you're staring at yourself in the mirror, I thought. I did as he told me, and the face went away.
"Now, there are certain perks that come with being a vampire. And there are certain… disadvantages. Perk #1, strength. Perk #2, speed. Perk #3, compelling. You can now just look someone in the eye, tell them what you want them to do, and they will do it. Perk #4, healing. You can't be hurt, except with wood. If you get hurt with wood, you won't heal. Your blood can also heal humans. And perk #5, immortality. You will live forever, unless you get stabbed in the heart with a wooden stake, or someone rips your heart out, or cuts your head off, or you burn in the sun. Hm, upon further reflection, there are a lot of ways for us to die. Side note, this isn't Twilight. Newer vampires aren't stronger, they're weaker. The older you are, the stronger you are, and I have 150 years on you. So don't even try it. Disadvantages: the sun, vervaine, houses and hunger. The sun and an herb called vervaine can burn you. You can't enter houses that are owned by humans unless you're invited in. Also, your emotions are all heightened; so don't go all weepy teenage girl on me. Now, I answered a couple of your questions, now it's your turn, and we have all day. Now, what's your name?"
"What the hell? My name is Ally Gilbert."
"Okay, Ally. Now how do you look exactly like Katherine?"
"How the hell would you think I know!"
"How do you know Mystic Falls?"
"I live there dumbass, why else would I be headed there! Now, can I leave!"
"You can try." He smiled in a way that made me think that something would happen to me if I tried to leave. Right, the sun. Vampires and sunlight, bad combo.
"How can you be in the sun?" I inquired.
"What makes you think I can be?"
"Because you got the clerk. Hotel front desk workers don't generally go into people's rooms. So, you had to have gotten him by walking through the sun.
"Very good, Sherlock!"
"Now tell me, how can you walk in the sun! No, wait let me guess." Now I was just showing off, I knew how he did. It was fairly obvious. A guy like Damon doesn't wear a ring like that unless he has to. "It's the ring."
"Ding ding ding! You just won yourself a daylight ring! I called a witch half an hour before you woke up."
"A witch? Witches are real, too. Hm, why am I not surprised."
"Probably. I have to say, you're handling this, better than I expected. Most people freak out about turning."
"Why? From the way I see it, there are more pros than cons. And the bloodlust isn't that bad. I barely notice that there's a human with us."
"Really? Most newbies would have killed him already. Hell, most vampires would have killed him. I've seen vampires who are hundreds of years old who can't control themselves around blood. It seems like you were meant to be a vampire."
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in, Bree."
"Damon, you are so lucky that I was visiting family in…" She gasped as her eyes caught mine. She looked me over, and said, "Katherine?"
"Nope, just a look alike."
"A doppelganger."
"I guess. It's creepy, right. Exactly like the girl in the photo I showed you. And the girl I was in love with."
"Ok, well I'm not confused at all! What's going on?"
Bree started before Damon could, "I'm a witch and I'm going to make you a quick daylight ring because for some reason, Damon likes you."
"Try not to faint. I know I have that effect on woman." Damon said with a smirk
"Why me! Why turn me? Why not just feed on me and go!"
"Because you look like Katherine, and that just might come in handy in my plan to get her back."
"Ok, I am going to get a full explanation later, but right now I wanna get some fresh air, so can you please start on the daylight ring? Please, Bree?"
"I like her, she's polite. Unlike some people in this room."
"That'd be me. In case you were wondering."
"No shit, Sherlock." I said.
"And sassy. I'm starting to see why you turned her. Although you should have given her a choice."
"If I had, would you have chosen differently?" He said, turning to face me.
"I don't know, ask me in a week."
"Don't think I won't. Now let's get started. I believe that Ally here is late for her first day of school."
"Shit, he's right. What am I gonna tell Jenna? Oh, damn, what am I gonna tell Elena?!"
"You'll think of something."
"How did you know it's my first day of school?"
"I make it my business to know my brother's business when he could interfere with my business. He's enrolled in your school."
"Ok, we'll put a pin in that situation. Right now, like I said, I want fresh air."
"She's right, first things first. Do you have any jewelry you always wear? A ring or a necklace?"
"I have this." I took off the ring my mother gave me for my 16th birthday. That day feels like a lifetime ago. I guess it was. I thought and chuckled internally. I handed the ring to Bree and she did some sort of witchy spell, and the ring rose up in the air and then came back down.
"Here you go. I have to leave before my family realizes I ditched them."
"Bye, sexy." Damon said and then kissed Bree, and she left.
"Can I get some air now?"
"Fine, but if you run, I'll rip your heart out."
That gave me an idea, and I had to act quickly. I banked on my new speed and strength, both of which I had not tried yet. I crossed the room in a matter of seconds, pinned Damon up against the wall, and thrust my hand into his chest and held onto his heart, without ripping it out.
"Now you're going to tell me why you turned me, who Katherine is, and why you're going to Mystic Falls."
"Fine. Just take your hand out of my chest." I did, so he could talk.
"I was born in 1840. I grew up in Mystic Falls with my brother, Stefan, and our Dad. Our Mom died when we were young. A few months before I was to join the Confederate army, Katherine Pierce came to live with us. She was a vampire, and my father was on the town council, a council of founding family members dedicated to hunting down and killing vampires. Both my brother and I fell in love with her. She compelled Stefan to love her, but not me. It was always real with me. One day, Stefan wanted to tell my father about Katherine's little secret, hoping he could protect her from the rest of the council. I convinced of how terrible an idea it was, and he eventually agreed to not. But that didn't stop him from bringing up his sympathy for vampires to father. My dad fed him vervaine, and when Katherine fed on him later, she was exposed. They captured her, and took her to burn alive in a church fire with the rest of the vampires in town. My brother and I tried to save her, but our father shot and killed us instead. Luckily, or unluckily, depending on your view, we both had Katherine's blood in our system. They found the vampires because this idiot witch, Emily Bennett, who worked for Katherine had helped your ancestor, Jonathan Gilbert, create a device that could point to wherever the nearest vampire was. I made a deal with this witch, and she protected Katherine, and, unfortunately, the rest of the vampires. Some of them were so winey! Anyway, now I need this gem that I hid in Mystic Falls, and a witch who will help me open the tomb after the comet next week. That's where you come in. You are going to get me a witch and the gem. You know that this if for a good cause: love."
"But, why turn me? I could be of just as much use human, and you could compel me."
"Like I said, I'm impulsive. You'll thank me for it later. The ladies always do, even if I don't turn them." Then he gave me his signature smile. I had a feeling he used that smile a lot.
"You should get something to eat. And some rest. We're going home. Soon"