Hello there everyone! So I recently finished writing Together & Alone for The Originals and I've had the inspiration of writing a new story. This one has elements of The Vampire Diaries as well as The Originals but I decided to publish it on the VD story page. I only just started writing this story recently and belive me I had an author's block and it was terrible because I wanted to create something completely new but I'm not sure how well I did that. You are the only ones who can tell me if I've met your expectations. Tip: the story is set in the year 2018 but it does have flashbacks of previous years. Special thanks to SupernaturalRomanceIStheBest99 for such a lovely comment on my previous story. Here's the first chapter of the new one:

A Battle Called Love

Prologue:

Mystic Falls, 2018

September

"Hey, have you seen Stefan?" Her voice lacked actual interest but the fake concern mixed with it made it sound convincing enough. The ghostly moonlight shone down on her, causing her flawless skin to glow in the dark as she waited for an answer. A pack of nerves built in her gut due to feeling anxious about certain tasks she had to carry out. She listened at the upbeat music playing in the loudspeakers from inside the grand Lockwood mansion, while tapping her foot impatiently but not noticing it because it made no noise against the freshly trimmed lawn beneath her Gucci heels. Now that she thought about it, she started to regret wearing them at this party, especially if she had to run. It was going to be a long night. One perhaps too long and tiring, in fact like most nights for her. The troubling thoughts and worries that chased her mind would never come to an end, not until it got to where she considered was a safe point to stop worrying.

"No, I haven't." Tyler replied as he handed her a plastic cup of cheap beer then blended in with a crowd of people. Good, she thought to herself. Without Stefan around it would be easier to escape. She scanned her eyes around to make sure no one else who knew her was in sight. Clear. She glanced down at the golden liquid in the cup and wrinkled her nose. Beer was nowhere near her favourite alcohol drink; it made her sick and also it brought back a very crazy memory. She tipped the cup over and let the beer pour down on the ground and once it emptied she threw the plastic cup out of her hand and started sprinting down to the car park.

It was several minutes till she finally reached her black Audi. Her plan was working so well that it seemed really easy. Perhaps too easy. As she searched her handbag for her car keys a strange sound came from the bushes. She froze. The sound came again, only this time it was louder. It sounded like leaves crumbling. She tried not to be scared, although it was difficult. She was alone in the car park and the clock was nearing midnight. It wasn't safe. However most of the supernatural beings of Mystic Falls were her friends, so unless there was a human serial killer out there, she was not in much danger.

"Hello?" She called. She clacked her heels down the pavement and through the entry of the woods in curiousity. "Hello?" She called again. "Whoever you are you better come out now!" It was a party after all, there could be a drunkard at any corner waiting to pull a prank on her.

"Mikaela." An airy and somewhat cold voice whispered from the trees. It tickled at her ears as it penetrated. It sounded distorted and not very distinct, but felt familiar. Panicking, she turned in hope to find somebody behind her but underbrush and oaks were the only forms of life in the surroundings. A crack of a twig rung out and suddenly something big and heavy landed by her feet from the sky. She winced back at the site of a dead corpse lying in the dirt. A woman with a remained look of fright on her face. Her eyes were wide and still. Blood coated the side of her throat and strands of her amber hair were stuck to the wound.

"Mikaela." The voice came again, goosebumps flashed on her skin. She let out a histerical scream and emerged out to the clearing, her shoes not working in her advantage under this circumstance, slowing her down which only built up the tension. With all of her urge, she leaped out to the car park and rushed into her vehicle, and once the engine started she did not look back.

Chapter One: Return

Mystic Falls, 2018

October

The Audi drove swiftly down the road which led to the boarding house. The sun rays reflected off its perfect black frame, showing off the wealth of its owner, who sat in the driver's seat with eyes hidden behind dark shades and focusing on her driving. The radio played aloud, but little of her attention was drawn to it, she was exhausted. After twenty-five hours she eventually reached this bland place, the home of creatures out of the ordinary. Hello again, Mystic Falls, her mind said. She wasn't too fond of this town. It was shelter for beings like werewolves, vampires, döppelgangers, witches, all sorts of things. She could thank her interest in Occult Studies for all of that knowledge, even though that was not from where she knew of this place. One of the main reasons she moved into it was to find what she was looking for, alongside other things that she refused to think about. The smell of leather from the car seats infused into her lungs, distracting her from the thoughts that piled up at the back of her brain. She was nervous about the consequences she had to face once she arrived at the Salvatores' doorstep. All the explanations that they'd demand her to give, all of the excuses and apologies, the lies. It was all too much for her. How she wished she could change history. But her motives in the present day already meant far more to her, so even if she wanted to she couldn't turn around now.

Once her car entered the driveway she turned the radio off; she didn't want vampire ears to know that she was there yet. She sat inside for a few moments after she parked, running a scenario in her head and gathering her courage. She exhaled and gracefully pulled one leg after the other out of the vehicle and strode into the mild air of the late October morning. She walked over to the front step and tugged at the rope of the doorbell. This was it. There was no going back. She startled as the wooden door creeked open and a pair of suspicious blue eyes caught hers. They widened at her site and a smirk crossed the one's face.

"Now that's a surprise." He spoke in a casual voice. She expected him to open the door a little wider, just enough for her to slip through but he didn't. Instead he held a tight grip on the handle.

She took a deep breath before she spoke. "Damon. It's good to see you too." She greeted him naturally, sliding the shades off her nose and dropping them in her handbag. "May I?" She asked impulsively as she stared at him.

Damon sidestepped uneasily and watched her as she darted inside confidently, disguising the nerves that she actually felt. "So what brings you back?" He asked.

"Life." She answered simply as she flung herself onto the couch. "Obligations, friends, Stefan."

Damon raised his eyebrows once she mentioned his brother's name. "Oh really? Then why the hell did you disappeear last month without telling him anything?"

And it started. Interrogation was on. She hesitated for a second, searching her sea of excuses for a convenient answer, but she couldn't reach to the bottom so quickly. It was already hard. "I had to go to Denver and finish off my studies." She replied tartly, hoping that he'd believe her.

"Oh yeah? Then why didn't you tell him before you left?" Damon was not one who settled for vague answers.

"It was last minute."

"Why didn't you call?"

"Lost my phone at Tyler's party that night."

"Of course."

"Come on Damon, believe me. You know I love Stefan, because if I didn't I wouldn't come back." She tried to sound as sincere as she could but Damon just shrugged.

"Yeah, try telling him that. The guy was so pissed when you left that he shut his humanity off. He took the blame for it."

She rose from the couch as her chin dropped. "He turned his emotions off?"

"Was I not clear the first time?" Damon said irritated. His concern for his brother was very noticeable.

"Where is he? I want to see him." She uttered as she came closer to Damon.

"He doesn't wanna see you. You don't think that as soon as he sees your pretty, innocent face his emotions will just magically snap back on, do you?" He countered as he picked up a bottle of Scotch from the table that settled by the couch and took a mouthful.

She folded her arms over her chest. "No, but the least I can do is try and get him to feel something again."

"The only thing that he'll feel is the need to pluck your head off your shoulders, and trust me I'm not in the mood of sweeping blood off the floor." He stated while sipping the alcohol out of the bottle. His expression not showing as much approval as she'd hoped.

She rolled her eyes at his useless comment. "I just want to apologise." She insisted, setting it in her mind that she would not let Damon kick her out until she got the chance to speak with Stefan.

Damon frowned, and took a moment to think. "Fine. He's upstairs in his room, but I'm warning you, he's vicious."

She gave him a satisfied look and brushed past him as she started for the stairs. She knew the risk she was taking, but she didn't mind, spontaneous was her middle name. However Stefan abandoning his humanity for her seemed a little too exaggerated. She never considered he cared about her that much; she didn't give him a reason to. When she got to the top of the stairs she turned left for the door of his bedroom and she strode in without knocking. Inside, Stefan sat on the edge of his bed with his back facing her and unsurprisingly he had a bottle of Scotch in his hand. He wore a white vest top and dark blue jeans and to her he looked completely normal. Anxiously, she cleared her throat in order to catch his attention. She saw him take a gulp of alcohol before he twisted his head around. And then she saw it. His eyes were emotionless and dull and his expression did not change at her site, he was neutral. Although it was difficult to gather enough strength for her voice, she was ready to say something but he suddenly broke in.

"Mikaela. You're back." He said uninterested then returned to his Scotch.

"I'm back." She took a step closer, trying to mask away her fear. "Listen... It's a long story why I left-"

"Don't bother explaining. I already heard it all while you were chatting to Damon." He cut her short.

"I'm sorry Stefan. I'm so sorry."

"Yeah yeah, well I don't really care if you're sorry or not." He stood up and walked over to the window.

Mikaela shook her head abruptly. "You keep telling yourself that, but I don't believe you. I know you're still in there and a part of you is happy to see me again. I'm sure of it."

"If you think this emotional talk can bring my humanity back then you'll be disappointed to hear that you drove all the way from Denver for nothing."

With those heard Mikaela grabbed his arm, causing his face to turn to her. "Stefan, I'm back. I am back. Forget what happened and turn it on. I know you're in there." She hated doing this to him. She hated making him care for her when she didn't feel the same way, but she needed him for a while longer. Then his pupils suddenly dilated and his eyebrows jerked up. His hands rose to touch both sides of her face and his lips curved into a smile.

"Mikaela." He whispered with joy in his voice. It sounded like hope flooding into him and she smiled as she clasped his hands, feeling a little discomforted but stunned. Could he feel something already? It seemed too easy, but she went with it.

"Yes, that's it Stefan. Let it in." She encouraged him as he wrapped his arms around her. She rested her chin on his shoulder and squeezed her eyes. She felt remorse for this pretense and wished she could handle it differently but it was too late. She fooled him too bad, he was falling and she wasn't sure if she'd be there to catch him. She tried to make it feel as real as possible, so she put her arms around him, helping him through the moment. His nose touched the side of her neck slightly but she ignored it.

"You're so naive." He whispered in her ear, the words were sharp and unexpected.

She flew her eyes back open with panic. "Wait, what?" Her heart started pounding and a thousand outcomes swam inside her head. She could not understand what he meant but whatever it was it didn't affect her not even the slightest. She wasn't in love with him, because only someone as such could hurt her with words like that. Stefan stared ahead while his nose still touched the side of her neck, taking in the scent of her skin. He pushed her dark brown hair aside slowly, smirking with no emotion. His eyes calmly turned bloodshot, his mouth drew back and his sharp fangs revealed.