Chapter One

Dear Diary; Finally Gone.

I finally did it. I feel proud of myself to finally take control of my life and finally do something for me. Tennessee wasn't for me any more. I would miss Levy, but I knew that she would be ok and taken care of. With my life packed in my car I was ready for the life was out there waiting for me. Whatever it might be.

Looking up towards the flickering lights of the diner in front of me as I wrapped the leather strap back around the worn leather bound journal. I rolled my neck slightly and sigh softly as a the crick in my neck loosened slightly. I had arrived in the small town of Mystic Falls no more than an hour ago, the over night stop from my long drive from Knoxville. My only problem was that I didn't have much money left and not a clue where to stay.

After slipping my journal into my messenger bag, I double checked my truck was locked, before walking into the nearly deserted diner. When I stepped inside I quickly walked towards the bar and took a seat and looked over the menu.

"Hello, dear." I looked up and saw an older woman smiling down towards me. Her long curly red hair pulled back from her smiling face. "How can I help you?"

I looked up towards her for a moment, before looking back towards the menu and blurting out the first thing I saw. She walked back towards the kitchen leaving me alone in my thoughts as I grabbed my phone and started looking up hotel prices as I waited. A heavy sigh left my lips as I saw that nothing was in my price range. The waitress returned quickly with my food, causing me to set my phone down, and greedily start eating.

"Wow" She laughed softly "You must really be hungry."

I nodded my head and took a large gulp from the ice water sitting to the right of my plate. "Yeah. Sorry. Have been driving for nearly twenty four hours and this is the first place I've stopped to eat."

"Had a feeling you weren't from here. I nearly know everybody." the waitress moved to start wiping the counter beside me. "You from far?"

I shake my head. "Only a state over." I hesitate and bite my lower lip before asking. "Do you possibly know where a girl could get a room for cheap?"

She paused for a moment before nodding her head. "There is a manor not too far out from town. Salvatore Manor. The man that lives there, Zach, he's a good guy and would welcome you for a good price I'm sure."

She grabbed a napkin from the back of the bar before walking back over and quickly wrote down directions before sliding them towards me.

"Thank you." I spoke with a genuine smile, before replacing the napkin with money with food before walking out of the diner.

Walking quickly back towards my car, I sat down in the drivers seat for a moment to look over the directions, before starting it up and heading back towards the road. I drove along the road slower a I was quickly was surrounded by woods and enveloped in darkness. My eyes looked back down towards the napkin in my lap before I made the final turn towards the Manor the waitress was talking about. My truck slowly crept up the gravel driveway before a large colonial estate came into view – it spread across the large yard, it's tall windows causing the moonlight into the aged home. On the front lawn I saw a sign in elegant writing with gold lettering that read; Salvatore Manor, so I knew that I was in the right spot.

I parked my car and slowly stepped out, and shut the door behind me, before slowly walking my way towards the large dark wood door that stood tall before me. I reached up to the large gold door knocker and hit against the wood, before stepping back to wait. Around me I could hear the soft noises of the woods, an almost calming feeling coming over me as I listened. No more than five minutes later the sounds of locks unlocking broke the sound of the woods before the door opened. Turning around quickly I came face to face with a man. He towered over me with his confused brown eyes and curly brown hair. He stood before me in only a t shirt and seats with a pair of slippers on. Fuck, I'd woken the man up from bed.

"May I help you?" He spoke with a thick voice from sleep.

I laughed nervously before speaking. "Yes. A woman in town told me to come here to look for a room? She sort of highly recommended you."

A kind smile spread across the mans face before he nodded his head and took a step to the side, allowing the front hall of the home to come into view.

"Please, come in."

I took a tentative step forward, my eyes wandering around in wonder at the extravagance of the home. The dark wood floors, the detailed wood paneling along the walls, and the stain glass chandlers hung from the high ceilings. The sound of the door closing behind me snapped me out of my trance, causing me to turn back around towards the man that opened the door.

"I'm sorry if I woke you up."

"It's quite alright." He smiled gently. "You're in luck, we do have a room available if you are in need of one. Just my nephew and I are here tonight. We don't really get visitors through town anymore."

"Thank you so much. You have no idea how much you just saved me."

"Don't worry about it." He stepped forward with an outstretched hand. "I'm Zach Salvatore, and my nephew is Stephan. You'll meet him at one point I'm sure."

"Iris. Iris Ashby." I stepped forward to gently shake his hand.

"Nice to meet you, Iris." Zach smiled before taking a step away. "Come with me, and I'll show you to your room."

I held tightly to my messenger bag that hung on my shoulder as I followed behind him up the long flight of stairs towards the second floor. My eyes wandered along the walls and looked at the various art pieces along with what seemed to be family photos. We passed only a few doors before Zach stopped at a door and gently pushed it open. When he opened the door, I stepped passed him and took in the room, my eyes widening slightly. It was just as over the top and elegant as the rest of the house. The large four poster bed pressed into the wall, flanked by tall bookcases, and adorned with a light blue plush duvet and matching pillows. The size of this bedroom was larger than my home back in Knoxville.

"The bathroom is the door on the left, it's connected with my nephews I hope you don't mind." Zach spoke before continuing, "Please feel welcome to walk along the home and enjoy it as if it is your own."

"Thank you." I smiled as my eyes continued to wander along the room.

"You're welcome. I'm right down the hall on the left if you need anything. Please don't hesitate to ask."

Zach grabbed the door knob and closed the door gently behind him. I set my bag down on the floor beside the bed. I quickly slipped off my jacket and threw it over the back of the back of the chair that sat in front of the small fire place. I fell back against the bed with a happy sigh as I felt the bed sink down around me. I closed my eyes and relaxed against the bed and closed my eyes, hoping the dreams wouldn't catch up with me tonight.

I abruptly sat up in bed, my hand reaching up quickly to my throat as I felt the scream sitting at the base of my throat forcing it's way out. The cold sweat made my t-shirt stick to my back as I felt my heart hammer hard against my chest.

"You ok?" a voice sounded from the door, causing me to gasp and jump slightly from the surprise.

I couldn't speak. It felt as if my voice was stuck in my throat like the scream that wanted to come out earlier. My mouth opened and closed multiple times as I looked to the side of the bed to see a tall frame looming over me. It wasn't Zach. The voice was different. Smoother. Huskier. My visitor took a step closer and turned on the lamp on my beside table, causing me to jump back slightly and squint from the harsh light.

"Sorry," He whispered softly, dimming the light settings on the lamp.

When my eyes finally adjusted my eyes landed on the boy around my age. He was just as tall as Zach, maybe taller by a few inches, and his brown hair quaffed back from his face. His green eyes bored into mine, and slowly my body began to relax, and my heart calmed down.

"I-I'm sorry." I whispered softly. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's alright. Are you ok?" He asked, and I simply nodded my head "You sure? Cause I could hear the screams."

I closed my eyes and looked down in embarrassment. "Y-Yeah. Thank you."

The expression on his face changed from concerned to a small smile, I was sure he was reading my body language and could tell I wasn't too comfortable. He stood up to his full height.

"I'm Stefan."

"Iris." I looked back up towards him and smiled awkwardly.

Stefan nodded his head before slowly walking away from the bed and back towards the door. My eyes seemed to be glued on him as he walked back through the door, stopping in the door way, before looking back towards me.

"Goodnight, Iris." He nodded his head before ducking through the door and closing it tightly behind him.

I reached over and grabbed my phone to quickly check the time, seeing how early it is, and seeing no point in trying to fall back sleep. After getting out of bed and stretching slightly I walked towards the bathroom and searched for towels for my shower. Something deep within me was telling me that stopping in Mystic Falls was going to be a good thing for me.

AN: New/Old story. Wrote this a long, long time ago and found the old chapters and decided to rewrite/redo them and post them again. I loved the Vampire Diaries when I was in High School and thought "why not". Please leave a review! I love knowing readers thoughts about each chapter. I have 7 redone so far, so let's see how this goes - went well the first time. ps: this chapter is in first person and the rest will be in third. thank you ~CB