Author's Note: This is my very first fanfic so please don't hurt me! Reviews, please :)

Chapter One

There is a girl with strawberry blonde hair jogging down the trail of an unworn path. She had only started running so she wasn't sweating yet, but it was about time. It was extremely hot today and it was only morning. Katherine Pierce watched her from behind an oak tree. She could feel her blood pumping through her veins. She hadn't fed in almost a week, considering the fact she had tried to put as much distance allowed between her and Klaus. There was no time to stop for a quick snack.

The girl stopped suddenly and bent down to tie a shoelace that had come undone. This is my chance,thought Katherine. She sucked in a breath and sped over to the girl, standing behind her. She jumped up and backed into Katherine. When she turned, a sort of relief crossed over her face as if she was expecting some sort of threat. Idiot.

She couldn't resist any longer. Katherine grabbed the girl and sunk her teeth into her neck. The warm liquid passed from the girls veins and into Katherine's mouth and she tried to savor every ounce. The taste of blood was so refreshing to her that she could barely control herself, but she stopped just in time. The girl stumbled back, holding a hand to her neck, her eyes wide and terrified. Katherine went up to her and looked into the girl's eyes.

"You will not remember this. Run back to where you came from."

There was a second of silence and then the girl was jogging back down the trail. Katherine wiped the blood that was on the side of her mouth on the back of her hand. The blood still hung on her tongue and she tried to make it last. She would never allow herself to get that hungry again. The last time she hadn't fed for so long, she had been stuck in that damned tomb. Yes, that girl Elena had given her some blood but it passed. The hunger was unbearable. Never again.

She made her way out of the forest and into the small city she had begun to settle in. There was no doubt that she would move soon, but that would all happen in time. Now she wanted to stop running. She had done her fair share of it over the past centuries.

"Good morning, Veronica." Katherine glanced up at the name she had started to go by since she had found herself in this unnamed place. She recognized the man from the apartment across from hers. He always tried to strike up conversation with her.

"Hello." She forced out the greeting, but it came out polite. She couldn't for the life of her, remember his name. It started with a 'M' or something.

"Are you doing anything this afternoon?" He wore a hat and adjusted it twice as he asked the question. Katherine turned her head slightly to roll her eyes and then looked back over to him.

"I'm sorry to say that I am. A lot of business to attend to." She shrugged her shoulders and slightly smiled, then side stepped him walking toward the direction of her apartment building. She could hear him muttering to himself, even after she had gotten twenty feet away. It was pitiful.

As she climbed the two flights of steps to her floor and down the hall to her door, Katherine felt something in the air that made her stomach turned. She couldn't directly pin point it, but she knew better than to blatantly ignore the feeling. Instead, she gently pushed it to the back of her mind for now. She fished her key out of her jean pocket and opened the door; closing it behind her once she got inside.

The walls were white and bare. The living room had nothing except a pullout couch and a small, wooden coffee table. The kitchen had a package of bread and stale cookies. It wasn't like anybody was invited over and she didn't have an appetite for food. Katherine made her way to the bedroom that had nothing in it except a wooden cabinet and a small stereo. She opened the doors of the cabinet and took out a bottle of whiskey, a small glass and a small vial of vervain.

She poured the whiskey into the glass and mixed it with the liquid vervain. As she gulped it down, the taste only slightly stung her throat. Katherine turned on the stereo to some radio station she didn't know the name of. It played a loud, rock song from the eighties and she started to swing her hips to it as she sipped what was left of the whiskey and walked out of the room.

Her neighbors would probably complain about the noise later, they always did, but she didn't mind them. It was just music. It wasn't like she was murdering anybody.

Before long, there was a banging on her door. She rolled her eyes and went to turn off the music. When she opened the front door, the man who had stopped her earlier was standing in front of her door. She internally groaned and leaned against her door frame.

"Hi."

"Hey, so I thought, since you're doing something this afternoon, you're not doing anything this evening, right? Please, I really want to take you somewhere." His eyes were pleading. Katherine sighed, knowing that he would not stop until he got what he wanted. Well,she thought. I don't stop until I get what I want either.

"Sure. Meet me in the front at eight." She closed her door before he could get out another word.

At exactly eight, Katherine watched the man step outside and pace the front of the building. She shook her head and stalled for a few minutes before leaving her apartment and meeting him. A smile appeared and he held out his hand.

"Let's pretend we're meeting for the first time." He seemed eager. "My name is Matthew." That was the name.Katherine would soon forget it.

"Veronica," was her only answer. He held out his arm, but she ignored it and began to walk ahead. He caught up and led her to a small bar five blocks ahead. It consisted of many people who were all crowded around the bar, looking at the flat screen on the wall.

"It's the game," Matthew announced. It wasn't as if she had cared. They were seated at a table near the front and ordered quickly. None of them spoke and Katherine crossed her legs and drummed her fingers across the table. She didn't want to be here. She absentmindedly took a lock of her curly hair and wrapped it around her finger. Matthew watched, entranced by her actions. Their food came and they ate in silence. She was hungry even at the end of the meal. The food didn't fill her. Her body knew what she really wanted.

She glanced at the clock and saw that an hour had passed when they had first entered and she was getting restless. "Let's go," she whispered to him from across the table. He instantly stood up, leaving some money on the table and followed her outside.

Only one or two people were outside on the street and they weren't paying attention. Katherine smiled to herself and pulled Matthew into an alley. He instantly pushed his lips on hers and she pushed him against the wall. She pressed her lips on to his lips hard and sensuous. Her hands gripped his shoulders as she kissed him all over, following a trail until she was just at his neck. She kissed the soft, tender skin softly.

Before she did anything, she pulled back and looked Matthew in the eyes. "Do not scream. You won't remember a thing and you will never speak to me again." Then she plunged her teeth into his neck. She held his body up with her hands as he started to go limp in her arms. The flavor of his blood didn't remind her of the sweet taste of the girl's blood earlier, but it was enough for a filling meal.

When she finally resurfaced, she put up the collars of his shirt to cover the neck bite. Then she pushed him out onto the street and leaned against the wall, wiping away the blood. At least I'll never have to interact with him ever again.

"The poor boy. Was it necessary to use him like that, Katerina?"

Katherine jumped at the voice that spoke the name she had tried to disown. She spun around and watched as a figure emerged from the shadows and into the light. He kept his hands behind him and he wore a clean, pressed black suit. His brown hair was sliced back and he cocked his head to the side.

"Elijah," she whispered. He was the last person she expected to see.

"It has been awhile since our last encounter. I see you have settled here. A bit unlike you, Katerina. The last time you settled, there were a few causalities." His voice was monotone and she looked away. She knew he was referring to Mystic Falls in 1864.

"What are you doing here?" She was honestly curious.

"I was going further north but made a pit stop here. I was a bit hungry. Who knew I would cross paths with you. Now, I think I'll have to stay a while longer." He took a slight step forward.

Then he was gone and Katherine knew she had to leave as soon as possible.