The autumn air was crisp, bordering on a winter chill, as she walked the long, dark, winding highway towards the sleepy town of Mystic Falls. She'd been travelling for weeks now and she was weary, dirty, and in desperate need of a warm bed and an even warmer meal.
The streets were practically deserted as she entered town. She skulked through the shadows, dodging streetlights where she could. The town hadn't changed much. Somehow she'd expected that it would have. The sound of approaching footsteps gave her pause. She tilted her head to the side and listened while the long shadow of a figure moved towards her. Not wanting to chance discovery, she spun on her heels and began running.
"Stop!" a female voice called in the darkness. She heard the distinctive click of a gun's safety being turned off. Frustrated, she came to a stop, held up her hands, and slowly turned into the light.
The woman's eyes widened in nervous surprise. She immediately lowered her weapon, clicking the safety back into place.
"What are you doing out here?" she asked breathlessly, the concern evident in her voice.
"Oh, you know, I'm just… looking around..." the girl evaded.
The woman cautiously closed the space between them; her sheriff's badge glimmered in the streetlight. The girl met the sheriff's eyes, "You should forget that I was here." Her pupils dilated.
The sheriff furrowed her eyebrows. "I'm afraid I can't do that, sweetheart. There's a curfew in place for a reason. These streets aren't safe."
The girl dropped her eyes to the dark pavement in an effort to hide her confusion. "Vervain," she whispered to herself when the realization hit her.
"What's that?"
She shook her head. "Nothing."
The sheriff looked the girl over carefully. She knew just about every person in Mystic Falls, but she didn't know this girl. This girl was new. "What's your name, sweetheart?"
Thrown off-guard, the girl replied, "Um. Ariana. Ariana Salvatore."
"Salvatore?" The sheriff seemed surprised. She looked the girl up and down, stopping when her eyes met piercing blue ones. "Any relation to Damon Salvatore?"
Now it was the girl's turn to be surprised, though she did well to mask it. "He's, um, he's my father."
The sheriff let out a small sigh. "Come on, kid. Let's get you home."
Ariana's shoulders slumped as she adjusted the strap from her backpack and followed the sheriff to her car. It was a silent, yet familiar ride to the Salvatore boarding house. She rested her head against the glass and watched the street lights grow few and far between. Finally, the sheriff turned onto the familiar dark, tree lined driveway. Ariana's stomach twisted in nervous anticipation. This was not how this was all supposed to play out. Soon, an enormous house came into view, lit up from the inside. The sheriff stopped the car and the two sat in silent for a moment. "You know, you don't have to walk me to the door, Sheriff, really."
The woman's smile wasn't unkind. "Your father is a friend of mine. I think he would appreciate it if I made sure that you got inside safely."
Ariana said nothing. She waited for the sheriff to open the car door and trudged miserably behind her. The sheriff gave her a comforting smile and knocked on the door.
They didn't stand there long before the door swung open. "Sheriff Forbes, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Damon asked smoothly, leaning against the half-opened door. His eyes quickly flicked in Ariana's direction, but the smile never left his face. In fact, if he was surprised to see her, he didn't show it.
"I found her skulking around downtown. You are aware that there is a curfew in place for all minors, on account of… you know?" The last bit she whispered.
"I'm aware." Damon said dryly, looking the young girl over. "Thank you for bringing her home safely." He turned his eyes in the sheriff's direction and smiled, once again. "I assure you that we take personal safety very seriously in this house."
The sheriff put a reassuring hand on Ariana's shoulder before turning and walking to her car. Damon gave a small, friendly wave in her direction, and put his arm around Ariana's shoulders as the two watched the taillights fade in the distance.
She barely registered the click from the door closing when she found herself in Damon's grasp, being pushed, none-too-gently against the far wall.
"You're not supposed to be here," he stated simply, his eyes flicking between hers.
"Neither are you." she retorted.
"Why aren't you in school?"
"Did you know that the sheriff drinks vervain?"
"Who do you think gave it to her? Now, stop changing the subject."
"Which is?" she asked, trying desperately to hide her intimidation.
He tightened his hold on her arms. "What. Are. You. Doing. Here?" His voice was clipped and controlled, which only increased her nervousness.
"Ariana?" Stefan's voice sounded from the entranceway.
Ariana turned her head and tried to return his greeting, but it only came out as a squeak when Damon shook her.
"I'm not going to ask you again."
"I came looking for Stefan!" she cried. Damon tilted his head and eyed her carefully.
"What?" Stefan interrupted. "Why me?"
"Because she knew that I would be pissed." Damon stated calmly, not taking his eyes off of her.
- FLASHBACK 1910 -
"I won't go!" she declared stubbornly, throwing herself down on her bed with her arms crossed.
Damon smirked and continued packing her belongings into the oak chest. "You're acting like a child."
"I am a child."
"Which is precisely why," he stated simply, not pausing in his task, "you are going to school."
"I don't see why I have to go away to go to school."
"We've already had this discussion, Ariana. It isn't safe for you here. You'll be protected there."
"But I am safe here. With you." She pouted.
"Don't pout, Ariana," he chided. "Think of it as a holiday."
"I don't want a holiday. I don't want to go." She glared angrily at the ceiling.
Damon sighed. He was growing tired of this particular argument. "You're going and this will be the last that I hear of this."
"I will eat my teachers." she threatened.
Damon snorted, and folded the navy blue dress that he held in his hands. "You will not."
"I will so!" she challenged, sitting up angrily.
Before she knew it she was across the room with Damon's strong grip on each of her arms. His voice was low and threatening. "You listen to me carefully, daughter. If you so much as step a toe out of line, I will find out and I will make sure that you have a very, very bad day. Do we have an understanding?" Something in his eyes told her to back down.
"Yes, Father." she whispered nervously. His eyes flicked between hers once more before he released her to finish packing. Ariana turned her head and wiped the tears from her eyes.
- END FLASHBACK -
The girl's face went from nervous anticipation to anger. "I TOLD you that I wasn't going to stay there."
"Yes, but you say that every time." Damon challenged, almost teasingly.
She ignored him. "I told you that this was going to be the LAST time that I would let you send me to that stupid school." She was yelling now. "If you weren't such a stubborn ass–"
"Careful, daughter." He tightened his grip and lowered his deceptively calm voice. "You forget yourself."
"Damon!" Elena shouted, moving towards the pair, only to be stopped short by Stefan.
Glaring blue eyes met glaring blue eyes. "This discussion isn't over." he said, letting go of the girl, who spun on her heels and ran up the stairs. Seconds later, there was a loud slam of a door.
Damon closed his eyes. "I'm going to kill her."
"What's going on?" Elena asked, moving to stand in front of the older vampire.
"Nothing," Damon said, brushing past her and Stefan and moving towards the sitting room where he poured himself a generous drink.
"It looked like you were hurting her. Who is she? Why is she here?"
"Let's just say there's a reason that children are supposed to grow up and move out," Damon said, curtly. "It's to prevent their parents from killing them."
"I don't understand."
"Elena," Stefan interjected. "That was Ariana. Damon's daughter."
The look on Elena's face would have been comical if Damon wasn't so pissed off.
"Daughter? But I thought that vampires couldn't have children."
Damon drank the amber coloured liquid in one smooth gulp and poured himself another drink. "We can't."
Seeing that his brother wasn't going to explain any further, Stefan moved from where he was leaning on the door jamb. "Ariana was conceived before Damon was turned."
"Wait? That was like 145 years ago."
"Someone gets an A in mathematics." Damon added, pouring himself a third drink.
"You mean, she's a vampire?" Elena asked, ignoring him. Stefan nodded. "I didn't know there were child vampires." She said, more to herself than to them.
"There aren't. Which is why she shouldn't be here and she knows it," Damon spoke the last part a bit louder, knowing his young charge could hear him.
"I don't understand. Why haven't you ever mentioned her? Where has she been all this time?"
"My, aren't we full of questions." Damon said sarcastically, sitting down on the sofa while downing the rest of his drink.
"Damon," Stefan warned. Damon ignored him and contemplated the empty glass in his hand.
"Come on, I'll take you home." Stefan said, as he pulled Elena towards the door.
"Stefan, wait!" She turned to face him, concern evident in her eyes. "Are you sure we should leave them alone together?" she whispered, nodding her head in Damon's direction.
"Oh please," Damon called from his spot on the sofa. "She's a hormonal pre-teen stuck in an infinite loop of being a hormonal pre-teen. If I haven't killed her in the last 145 years, I'm certainly not about to start now."
"She'll be fine." Stefan assured her, shooting a glare in Damon's direction. Elena nodded and allowed Stefan to lead her out. "Goodnight, Damon."
Damon waved his fingers from around his glass.
Stefan pulled up in front of Elena's house, but she made no move to get out of the car.
"I can't believe that Damon has a daughter. I can't believe that Damon is a father."
Stefan shrugged.
"I mean, he's not exactly what I would call paternal."
Stefan snorted.
"What?"
"Damon loves Ariana, Elena. You, more than anyone, should know that Damon is fiercely protective, and dare I say paternal, of those he loves. Besides, Ariana is probably the strongest link he has to his humanity."
Elena opened her mouth to argue with him, but she couldn't. As much as it pained her, pained them both to admit it, she knew that he was right. Damon spent a lot of his time protecting her and trying to keep her out of danger.
"Where has she been all this time, Stefan?"
"There's a boarding school, of sorts, protected by a very old spell. Usually, she spends a few decades with Damon and then she goes to school for another decade or so, where he knows she will be safe."
"Safe?"
"Child vampires are very rare and can be very unpredictable, especially in their early years. They're often hunted and killed early on. Damon, being Damon, wouldn't let that happen. He's spent too much of his life protecting Ariana."
"But how did she become a vampire, Stefan? Catherine didn't –"
"No. Catherine was long gone before anyone even knew about Ariana."
"Then who?"
Stefan sighed. "Damon."
"Damon? How?"
Stefan took a deep breath. "It's not my story to tell, Elena. I'm sorry."
They sat in silence for a while. "She looks a lot like him."
Stefan snorted in response. "She also inherited nearly all of his less than desirable personality traits."
"Wonderful. Just what the world needs, two Damons."
Stefan laughed and pulled her close, kissing the top of her head.
Damon stood, leaning in the doorway, watching his daughter sleep. He wasn't surprised when Stefan appeared beside him; he heard him coming.
"So, she's home."
"She's home."
"What are you going to do?"
"No idea," he said, closing the door with a soft click, and walking to his room.