Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. Just Anita, she's my lil baby.

The Masquerade

Anita stared at the piece of paper in her hand, hardly believing what she was reading.

To whomever takes my place,

I have seen what is to come and it wasn't pretty. I couldn't deal with it, so I took the cowardly way out. The spell used was supposed to bring someone worthy in my place. Someone who had nothing to live for in their previous life, so they'd live their new life at full potential. I hope you fulfill those requirements. Enclosed is a journal of the past two years that has everything I think you'll need. Please read it and familiarize yourself with it. The witch who did the spell for me said you were going to be special, so I hope you're special enough to bring about great change. I wish you the best of luck and hope that someday, you can forgive me. Oh! When you next sleep, you'll gain all the memories I had so you'll fit in better. It'll be a little disorientating at first, but I'm sure you can handle it.

I hope you enjoy your life here in Mystic Falls,

Anita Joy Fell

Anita pinched herself again, nope still hurts, which means this isn't a joke. Mystic Falls, where had she heard that before? It sounded vaguely familiar. Oh! It was in show she'd watch now and then, Vampire Diaries. If the note was to be believed, she apparently took over this girl's life. There wasn't an AJ Fell though, was there? The only Fell she remembered was Logan, and he was killed. Anita sat on the bed and decided to read through the journal before doing anything else.

She learned her mother, Monica Clearwater, died when she was ten. After her mother's death she was sent to live with her father, Logan Fell. He didn't know what to do with her and sent her to a boarding school in New York, they saw each other on Christmas and during summers when she'd come to Mystic Falls. Her closest friends in Mystic Falls were Tyler Lockwood and Caroline Forbes. After she got an email from her dad saying he was taking a working vacation in the Bahamas, she moved back to Mystic Falls feeling something was off. She never did figure out what that something was, still getting the occasional email from her dad saying he's having a good time. The last page held passwords for all the accounts she had.

Anita put the journal down and began to pace. She knew from her memories of the show that vampires, witches, and werewolves existed and that her dad was not in the Bahamas, he was dead. There was so much to think about, but first she needed to get ready for the masquerade party that was happening in a couple of hours. Hopefully tomorrow, after she slept and got this girl's memories, things would be easier.

-1-

Anita made her way to a mirror, to check out her new body. She was around 5'4" and her hair was a golden brown that framed her heart shaped face, but it was her eyes that lifted her spirits. Her eyes were the same bright blueish teal that they had always been, thank goodness they didn't change. They were her favorite part of herself, they say the eyes are the window to the soul after all.

After looking through the closet, she finally decided on a strapless floor length rose colored dress with a daring slit. It went perfectly with the nude heels she found earlier. She showered and got herself ready, styling her long hair into an updo with a sparkly headband. Since she didn't want to have to carry a purse, Anita grabbed some cash and stuffed it into her bra, you never know when you'd need a couple bucks. Checking her cell phone, she found that Matt was her date for this event and she was supposed to meet him at Tyler's house twenty minutes ago, oops. Grabbing the car keys, she made her way out of the house. Parked right in the driveway was her new car, a cute silver VW beetle. She left out a small squeal and made her way to Tyler's house via GPS.

-1-

Lockwood Mansion was massive and the long winding driveway was full of cars. Oh well, better late than never. Anita made her way up the stairs where a smiling Mrs. Lockwood was greeting everyone.

"Anita darling! It's good to see you, shame you weren't feeling well enough to help out today! Matt and Tyler should be around here somewhere." She said happily, giving Anita a hug. "I'm so glad you could make it. You look lovely, dear."

"Thank you." Anita said with a bright smile, making her way inside.

Looking around the house, she could plainly see that Mrs. Lockwood spared no expense for this event, everything was richly decorated. After walking around greeting various people, she finally found Matt. He was by the snack table talking with Tyler and some other sporty looking people, probably other football players. She made her way toward them, hoping to not make a fool out of herself.

"Hey AJ." Matt said smiling brightly. "Glad you could make it!"

"I almost didn't, but I just had to wear this fabulous dress." Anita said, giving a twirl to show off her dress.

"Looking good there Fell." said Tyler, obviously checking her out.

"Thanks Lockwood." she replied, returning the favor. "You're looking pretty good yourself."

Tyler and Matt laughed. Anita held out her hand to Matt, "Dance with me?"

He grabbed her hand and led them to the dance floor. They danced for a while, Tyler eventually making his way toward them as well. The trio danced until Anita finally had to call it quits, she was desperate for some water and fresh air. Leaving Matt and Tyler to their own devices, she grabbed a glass of water and made her way outside. It was a bit cold, but it felt nice on her overheated skin.

Anita decided to take a walk around the house, the fresh air would do her some good. By the time she made it to the front to the mansion, it was nearly midnight. She texted Matt that she was going to head home, getting an ok in response she made her way to her car. She was nearly to her car when she caught sight of someone she recognized.

"Elena?" Anita called out tentatively, hoping that she wasn't making a mistake talking to her.

"AJ. Hey!" Elena said with a small smile. "How was the party?"

"Better question, what are you wearing? Is that blood?" asked Anita incredulously.

Elena was wearing a pink long sleeved shirt, but there were some suspiciously blood looking stains on her back and sleeves.

"It's a long story." Elena replied, giving a strained smile in return.

"Did you kill someone? Oh my god, you did. Am I going to have to help you bury the body? Who am I kidding, of course I'm going to help you. No friend of mine is going to jail." Anita said quickly, waving her arms about.

Elena grabbed her arms, "There are no dead bodies and no one is going to jail. Calm down."

"Then how on earth did you get that blood on you?" Anita asked, raising an eyebrow at Elena.

Elena was about to reply when a man appeared out of nowhere, threw Anita towards a car and made a grab for Elena. Anita, head now spinning from being slammed against the car, got up and attacked the guy that was trying to kidnap a struggling Elena. She was successful in making him loosen his grip on Elena, but he slammed her against a car again, making her fuzzy brain feel even fuzzier. Oh dear, she might have a concussion. The last thing she saw before blacking out was the mystery man shove a rag in Elena's face before falling limp in his arms.

A/N: Thanks for all the favs, follows, and reviews!