Although the main events take place after Katherine's "death", we have to start from the beginning.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Vampire Diaries or any of its characters (obviously).

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The Beginning

There she stood. She had hair like a golden waterfall, flowing down her back. Her eyes were bluer than a clear sky on a summer afternoon, and even though the sun was setting, her translucent skin still seemed to glow. Stefan Salvatore stood in awe of the beauty before him.

He knew her name to be Katherine. Guiseppe, a friend of her father, had invited her and the Baron to stay with them in Italy for holiday. Guiseppe had also told Stefan that Katherine had been sickly as a young girl and was still frail from her former illness. Because of this, he hadn't expected to be smitten with this maiden as he was now. He was both ashamed of and happy for his misjudgment.

As their fathers exchanged greetings, Katherine gazed at Stefan for a moment. She took in his wavy dark hair, and his forest green eyes, and smiled. This alone caused something in his heart to flutter. That was when Katherine's father stepped in.

"Guten Abend, Stefan Salvatore!" he bellowed.

Stephan bowed slightly and replied, "The Baron Von Swartzchild. I hope that your journey to my home was everything but unpleasant. I welcome you." Stephan's eye shifted to Katherine. She extended her hand and Stephan held it gently in his and kissed it. "You must be Katherine," he said in a voice barely above a whisper, still holding her hand but staring in her eyes. You could see Katherine blush even in the fading light as she sheepishly nodded her head yes. The fathers exchanged knowing glances.

"Come," spoke Guiseppe turning to the Baron. "It is getting late. I shall have servants fetch your bags and show you to your rooms. You must be tired after your trip."

They all walked single-filed into the massive structure that was the Salvatore estate. It was during the Renaissance and the Salvatores were members of the elite.

Guiseppe and the Baron walked in front and Stefan followed Katherine from behind.

This summer was going to be one of bliss, Stefan thought to himself. And I can only be glad that my rash brother isn't here to spoil it all.

Despite the pounding in his head, Damon Salvatore couldn't help smiling at what little memory that he could grasp from the previous night. There was a woman wrapped in the sheets of his bed that Damon had never recalled meeting. He sat up and gazed at the mystery woman with his midnight black eyes in amusement. She had brown hair, pale skin, and full lips. Whatever lack I have in memory, he mused inwardly, I could never say that I lacked taste in women. A smirk crept across the defined features of his face.

He then began to wonder what color the woman's eyes were and reached to wake her. As he did this, it dawned on him that he was exceptionally late for his classes, forcing him to forget about the woman. His father had shipped him off to University the prior year and had regretted it ever since. Almost the moment he stepped foot into the place, Damon built up a reputation as a womanizer and a gambler, and all this reflected on his father who saw him as a disgrace.

When Damon finally arrived, his tutor was nearly furious. He barely heard a word the small man said as thoughts of his turbulent relationship with his father floated through his mind. These thoughts led to those of his younger brother, Stefan.

My little brother wouldn't dare go against the will of our father, much to his delight, Damon thought. The Salvatore brother that everyone loves. I wonder what he's up to. He has probably been in the study with his head in a book since the moment that I left for this wretched establishment. Maybe I will surprise my useless brother and his proud father with an early homecoming.

At dinner that night, Stefan couldn't take his eyes of her. Never had he felt this way before, and all he wanted to do was talk to her. He wanted to know her.

"Stefan, you are not eating. Are you well?" Guiseppe eyed his son curiously.

Stefan, his focus on Katherine momentarily broken, replied. "No, father. Just tired is all. But I'd hate to be so rude as to excuse myself in the middle of a meal when we have such guests present." His gaze shifted back to Katherine.

"Papa, I am tired also. May I go rest now?" said Katherine.

"By all means, love, and dream sweetly." The Baron was very fond of his daughter and never denied her a single wish. Besides the fact of her once failing health, Katherine reminded him of her mother, his dear wife, who was deceased. It was for that reason that he could never find it in his heart to make Katherine unhappy, even in the little things.

Katherine looked Stefan in the eye for just a fraction of a second before leaving the table. Stefan knew, although he didn't know how, what this meant. He turned to his father and the Baron. "If you both will excuse me, I'd like to turn in for the night as well."

"You may," replied Guiseppe. Stefan thanked the men and left the dining area without another word. Although he had been tired, Stefan was more energized now than he had ever been in his life. He wasn't going to his room to sleep. He was going outside. He was going to the garden to meet her.

Stefan walked outside and stopped. Katherine sat in the distance under the lemon tree. With her back to him, he could see her hair shining pale in the moonlight, and he was almost afraid to approach her. Finding this thought absurd, he pushed it out of his mind as quickly as it had entered. He touched her shoulder. She rose to face him and smiled.

"You came," she beamed. Her blue eyes were almost child-like to Stefan.

"I knew that I could find you here." He stroked her silky hair.

"I thought that you needed rest."

"How could I when you wanted me here with you? This has been the only thing that I've wanted since the moment we laid eyes. No flower in this garden could compare to your beauty." Katherine's now serene expression made Stefan, mesmerized, take a deep breath. "But shouldn't you be resting, love? I've been told of your condition."

Katherine giggled. "Oh, but Stefan! I've been well for some time now. You'll understand soon enough." Katherine was beaming again despite the apparent confusion that overtook Stefan's features.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Do not worry yourself with it, Stefan. You will know when the time is right." Stefan had only a moment to puzzle over this before Katherine sat back down under the tree and held his hand, motioning him to sit with her. Who was he to refuse? Stefan sat and once more gazed into her eyes. There was something peculiar about her eyes. Not only did they seem to dissect the most inner thoughts of his mind, but they also seemed to stare at his soul. This gave Stefan an odd feeling.

"Why are you suddenly so uneasy?" asked Katherine. "Have you changed your opinion of me already?"

"Never! It is just that when you say that I'll know certain things when the time is right it seems as though you have something to hide. Please, do not be hurt! My feelings for you have not and will never sway," Stefan added hastily as Katherine's eyes began to mist. He then hated himself for ever causing her any distress. He knew a way that would make up for his trespass.

Stefan took Katherine in his arms and stood, standing her up with him. He gazed at her longingly before bringing his lips down to her cool ones. One short, soft kiss was all it took to make Katherine smile at him again, and that was all Stefan wanted.

It was at that moment when the sun began to rise. "Oh Stefan, I hadn't realized how much the time has passed. I must go to my room now." Without another word, Katherine hurried inside and left Stefan standing there with their shared kiss still tingling on his mouth.

In his room, Stefan sat on his bed and ran the events of the previous night through his head, one by one. When he first laid eyes on Katherine. When they met under the lemon tree. When they kissed for the first time. All in one night. That was when he heard the shouting.

In his parlor, Guiseppe was raging. "What do you mean when you tell me this?"

"I mean what I said." replied a velvety voice. "I have kindly excused myself from the establishment that you chose for my education, and I will not be returning. I am sure I know much more than what those so-called instructors could teach me anyhow."

Guiseppe pointed a crooked finger. "Do you know what it took to keep you in that school after all of the trouble you have caused there? You have been a waste of my time before, but now you are a waste of my money!"

"What is this shouting I hear? Is everything as it should?" When Stefan entered the room, the tension was oppressive.

Guiseppe went on. "No! Not as long as he continues to deliberately embarrass me and bring dishonor to the Salvatore name!"

Stefan didn't know what his father meant until he saw who was standing there with him.

"Damon."

"Saluti little brother." Damon smirked.

Don't you just love it when Damon shows up out of nowhere?

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