East of Eden

by TheOriginalSuccubus

After leaving Forks behind, Bella hopes that her new life in Mystic Falls will be free of the supernatural and drama. Her plans at a normal life is shattered when the ghost of Katherine Petrova appears. An unlikely friendship forms between a broken human girl and a selfish ghost. Will their friendship survive as their own lives are turned upside down?

1. Sacrifice

Summary: Bella Swan leaves Forks in the rearview mirror. Her new life at Mystic Falls is not all it was cracked out to be. All she wanted was a normal last year but her wish is shattered on the floor when she is toe to toe with a ghost that is none other than Katherine Petrova.

Alternative Universe/ Alternative timeline

Crossover: Twilight and Vampire Diaries

Rated: M

Pairing(s): I am open for suggestions and will consider doing a multi-mate fic.

Warning: Sexual content and language

Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire diaries or Twilight.

Third POV

(Three weeks prior)

Bella Swan looked out her bedroom's window for one last time. The moment was bittersweet. She would deeply miss her friends but this place held the memories of him. Bella could now see so clearly and felt angry why she couldn't see the truth right in front of her. Edward and his family had manipulated her and they used her like their own personal doll. She was now free of from their control but when the incident had first occurred she thought the world was ending. The day she had tried following Edward into the woods, her heart had broken into a million pieces. She had loved Edward. She felt so special and important when she was with him. Her self-esteem was already low because in her old school no one paid attention to her. The only reason she was even noticed at school was because she was the "new toy" as Jessica had said. That's all she had been, a toy.

Victoria was out there somewhere waiting for her chance to strike. The pack had said they would protect her from Victoria's wrath but there was always a possibility Victoria could slip through the pack's fingers and come after her. Bella couldn't live looking over her shoulder forever. She also felt enormous guilt for putting everyone in danger. What if Victoria attacked Charlie or one of the pack members? She couldn't live with herself if that happened because she was the reason they got hurt. That is what upset Bella the most. The Cullen family had introduced her into the supernatural world and left her to fend for herself when she was only a human. It was plain selfish on their part and a huge oversight. Had they not expected for Victoria not to get revenge? They couldn't have honestly believed that she would have gone after them. Victoria knew it would have been a suicide mission which is why she bided her time. Besides she wanted an eye for an eye. She wanted to kill her because she was Edward's "mate" even though it was proven by him leaving her that she indeed was not his mate.

She didn't want to leave her friends. She did not want to be selfish and keep them in constant danger because no matter which way she looked at the situation, she was the reason they were in danger. Sometimes she wondered if Victoria would leave them alone if she turned herself in to her. She didn't want anyone to be hurt by the deranged vampire.

She grabbed her last suitcase before bringing it to the moving truck. Charlie was talking with Billy. Bella knew it would be hard on her dad to leave his best friend but they both needed a change. She needed to forget about Edward and his family. Her dad needed to let go of the memories of Renee. Charlie had gotten a good job offer in Mystic Falls. Maybe this was fate's way of saying it's okay to move on.

Her friends crowded the driveway. Jake was the first to hug her. Bella felt nothing but love from her best friend. Angela Weber and Eric Yorkie let each other's hand go before smothering her into a hug immediately after Jake let go. When they let go, Bella said goodbye to Leah and Seth. Leah and Seth were the only ones in the tribe besides Jake that could come here. Sam could spare those three but the rest of the tribe was busy with getting ready for a tribal meeting and patrolling.

"The rest of the pack wish they were here." Seth informed her. Leah nodded her head in agreement.

"Sam just knew those two would whine the most about seeing Bella." Jake smirked, pointing at Leah and Seth. His smile faded. "If there's anything werewolf related…"

"Magic related…" Angela drawled.

"Or any funny business going on in that town. You know who to call right?" Jake finished. Bella nodded.

"Yes, ghostbusters." Bella then looked at Eric. "It seems we are the only humans anymore."

"It would seem so." He wrapped his arm around Angela or as they call her "the neighborhood witch".

When she was with Edward she had wondered if there were other beings but he always avoided the topic. After Sam had rescued her, Bella knew something was off. All she could remember was a wolf looking at her not a human. She, at the time, blamed hypothermia for the "hallucination". Her curiosity had not been sated and she sought the answer out herself when she could no longer convince herself that it had been a hallucination. She had remembered back to La Push when she had gotten Jake to talk about the cold ones. He had unintentionally told her werewolves were real as well. She put all the pieces together and did what any sane person would do. She ran right up to Jake and told him she knew about werewolves. For the record, Jake hadn't even changed yet but he had the signs pointing to him that he was close to transforming. This forced Billy to tell the truth to both of them. Sam hated that a human knew but Bella did rub it in his face that she had found out about their secret pretty easy. Bella had made herself a part of the pack and eventually even Sam had a soft spot for the know-it-all. Besides, Sam couldn't handle Paul and Jake the way Bella could. Embry would even call Bella the werewolf whisperer.

When she found out about Angela it was by pure coincidence. She had seen Angela reading books about the Salem Witch Trial and witches in general. Bella had observed Angela distancing herself from everyone but Eric. Bella had barely talked to Angela due to the craziness in her own life but it didn't mean she wasn't watching. The incident that had given Angela away as a witch was when Lauren tried flirting with Eric while the school was doing a carwash for a fundraiser. Angela had set the water on fire. Bella had seen Angela's eyes turn dark and her palm was pointed at the water. A fire had suddenly appeared. Bella had dragged Angela away from the scene and talked to the girl behind the school. Angela had admitted to being witch after Bella had asked if she was. The only other person that knew beside Bella was Eric.

Bella felt as though she had some orb that just attracted trouble. The supernatural kind. Her friends constantly teased her about that and that she could not walk on a flat surface without falling. She hoped that at least her orb that attracted trouble would disappear once she left the town. She did not have hope that she would be able to not trip every twenty minutes.

"I'll miss you guys."

"Kind of goes without saying, right?" Bella patted Seth's cheek.

"You sound too much like Embry."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." She gave Seth a look. He chuckled. "I hope your year goes well."

"It should. I expect the rest of my senior year to be the most human and mundane of all my high school career."

"Time to go, Bells." Charlie walked over. Bella bite her lip nervously. Was she really ready for this next step of her life? Bella shook the thought away. No, she couldn't back down now. There was too much at risk. She was ushered into Charlie's car. She looked through the window and smiled.

"BELLA! BELLA! BELLA!" They chanted. She laughed along with her father. She could still hear the echo of her friends even as the car passed the city limits.

-X-

(Present)

Her death was quick. It was how Katherine always imagined she would go. Quick and painless. That was all she had felt throughout her life, pain. Klaus, that bastard, was thankfully not the one to shove that stake through her heart. Elena Gilbert, her doppelganger, had been the one to end Katherine's life. It was a surprise but it shouldn't have been. Elena was slowly becoming corrupt. Many of her friends could not see it but then again they would refuse to believe their darling Elena was becoming another Katherine. Katherine knew there was no hope for any doppelgangers. They were all the same. The ones before her and the one after her. Elena had proved that.

Katherine wasn't as cruel as people led her to believe. She did do things that were horrific. Evil. Everyone did. Katherine did what she had to do to live. She was a survivor until the very end. Besides, the supernatural world was gruesome. No one could show any weakness or they were culled out.

The darkness devoured her and she thought, this is death. Katherine soon felt warmth surround her body. She felt so light. Did this mean she was going to heaven? Impossible, she thought. She didn't deserve it and she knew that. Her eyes snapped open. Katherine was in a forest. Where was she? This wasn't heaven and sure wasn't hell either. Did she somehow live? She looked down at her feet and saw she was on top of a grave, her grave.

"If I'm dead, why am I here? How am I here?" Katherine then heard footsteps. She saw Bonnie walking along side Elena Gilbert and Caroline Forbes. She felt her anger rise. "You—!" She went to smack the girl but instead her hand went right though her. Katherine gasped and looked at her hand. Did this mean what she thought it meant? She couldn't be a ghost yet here she was standing beside her grave. How did this happen?

"So she's finally dead." Caroline spoke. "I almost didn't believe you when you told me."

"Good riddance." Bonnie spat.

Katherine gasped when the scenery changed before her eyes. She was suddenly in a bedroom that she didn't recognize. Where was she now? She then sees the door open and in walked a girl. A girl she had never seen in her life. The girl was only wearing a towel and was holding it securely around her small body. The doe eyed girl came to a halt and her eyes widened.

"What are you doing here, Elena?"

-X-

Bella found Mystic Falls terrible. The only positive thing that has happened so far was that Charlie had bought her pearly white Ford Focus. She had been so happy to receive it the night they had arrived to the new house which was a lot bigger than the one in Forks. It went downhill from there… All her hopes of the future squashed as soon as she stepped foot into Mystic Falls high school. It was like she had stepped into a stereotypical high school movie. When she had first arrived at the school it felt the exact same as the first day of school at forks. People saw her as the new toy. The excitement of a new student wore off after the first few days. Thank God. She let herself become invisible to the school.

She was also forced to talk to Elena Gilbert because she was her next door neighbor so escaping the girl was easier said than done. Elena still tried talking to Bella even though Bella was actively avoided and rejecting her offer for friendship. When Elena had asked if Bella was busy, she usually made an excuse about homework. Thankfully, Elena had given up about a week ago but she knew Elena was not happy about Bella's rejection of her friendship. Bella couldn't have been happier though. She loathed the girl but it wasn't due to her cheeriness or any reasons Elena thought of. Bella could sum up Elena Gilbert after being around the girl for five minutes. She was a whiny brat and felt as though everyone should worship her at the altar. Bella knew that Elena's behavior could be partially blamed on the people around her that enable such behavior. Elena still tried talking to Bella. She usually made an excuse about homework. Thankfully, Elena had given up. Bella couldn't have been happier. She didn't want to be involved with the drama and had a sneaking suspicion being Elena's friend would bring nothing but drama. All Bella wanted was to be left alone in peace but it seemed as though fate had other plans.

She had just finished her shower and had forgotten to take her clothes into the bathroom with her. She wrapped the towel securely around her body before taking off to her room. She already had her night planned out. She was going to watch a movie on her computer and then scout out the public library. Her father had gotten her a library card already but she had yet to see the library for herself. She opened the door and sauntered in. Bella stopped in her tracks when she saw Elena Gilbert in the middle of her room. Bella was jarred by this. Why the hell was Elena in her room and why did she look so different? She was used to Elena's preppy aura but the girl before was much more sinister.

"What are you doing here, Elena?" The brunette looked as shocked as she felt.

"You can see me?"

"Why wouldn't I be able to see you?" Bella inched slowly to her closet. She had her bat in there and felt it was a good time to use it. She didn't know what Elena was capable of.

"Wait," The girl was in front of Bella in a flash. "I'm not Elena. I may look like her—"

"A lot like her." Bella pretended to follow along with the maniac. She kept inching towards her closet hoping she had enough time to grab it.

"I am not her. I'm her doppelganger."

"Aren't doppelgangers a bad omen or something?" Before she could open the closet, the girl grabbed her or more like went through her. Bella let out a scream.

"Shh!" The girl hushed her.

"You're a ghost!" Bella couldn't believe it. She was staring right at a ghost.

"I noticed." The girl rolled her eyes.

"Who are you?" Bella asked. Was this really a doppelganger of Elena? She was sure Elena was still alive. If this was a doppelganger, she was in a much bigger problem. She was warned by Angela that doppelgangers were a bad omen. Angela had also said ghosts usually appeared because of their need of revenge so Bella was doubly screwed.

"I told you. I am the doppelganger of Elena."

"I noticed." Bella laughed bitterly. What had she done to deserve this? She promised herself that this year was going to be a normal year! She had been through enough drama to last her until her next life. "I was asking what your name was. You do have a name don't you?" Katherine narrowed her eyes at the human girl. She was displeased at how the girl talked to her. It made Katherine wonder who this girl thought she was.

"I go by many names but you can call me Katherine." She replied. "What is yours?"

"My name is Isabella but everyone calls me Bella." Bella then asked, "So Katherine, how did you become a ghost?"

"It's a long story."

"How about this, my story for yours?" The brunette crossed her arms. Katherine didn't have much of a choice. This was the only person that could see her so far.

"Deal."

-X-

Bella wanted to bang her head against her desk. Multiple times. Maybe then she would wake up from this hellish nightmare. It hasn't even been a full month yet but she's already met a ghost. A doppelganger ghost to top it off. Mystic Falls was apparently a hotspot for supernatural beings. She didn't mind that supernatural beings were in the same town as her but the supernatural that lurk here aren't the best company to be around. This didn't help Bella's anxiety.

The ghost that was now looking through Bella's closet was a prime example of the worst company to keep. Katherine had been a selfish being in her life and Bella even called her out on it, but there wasn't much to do about the situation at hand. Bella was a human girl that attracted trouble while Katherine was an ex- psycho—ex-vampire now turned ghost. Bella didn't have much choice in letting Katherine stay. She was a ghost and Bella couldn't exactly send her away. Bella did see the good side of this crappy situation she was put in. Katherine was ghost that could warn her if something's up seeing as she was kind of omnipotent.

Katherine had shed light on who was supernatural and who Bella should avoid at all costs. She also gave her a rundown on what has happened so far. Elena Gilbert was a doppelganger that was meant to be sacrificed in a ritual that would turn Klaus into a hybrid. The ritual had happened and Klaus, who was also an original, became a hybrid. Elena did not die though which later caused even bigger problems.

Bella found the dynamic of Elena's group just plain weird. Caroline (a vampire turned by Katherine) and Elena had both dated Matt. Tyler (who was a hybrid) was Matt's best friend but now was dating Caroline. Stefan (vampire also turned by Katherine) and Elena had dated but now she had feelings for his brother Damon (who was also turned by Katherine). Bonnie (a witch) was currently dating Elena's brother (actually her cousin) Jeremy. She didn't see the group's future turning out very well due to all the implications.

Bella was not prepared to be introduced to new supernatural species. Well, not really new but new to her. Apparently there were two species of vampires and werewolves. The Cold Ones and werewolves that Bella knew were created by witches to fight the other vampires and werewolves off. It didn't work out that way in the end. The Cold Ones were too bloodthirsty and did not look remotely human. The werewolves that Bella knew at the reservation were considered shapeshifters because they do not need a full moon to shift. She would tell the pack about this but she knew how they would react. They would drag her back home. It did make her wonder if Angela or the pack knew this o they too were oblivious to the other supernatural beings.

Bella still couldn't wrap her head around one tiny fact. She glanced at the ghost that was complaining about her choice in clothes. Why was Katherine sent here? Katherine and Bella had no possible connections. They had never met each other before. It would have made more sense if she was sent to haunt Elena. Also why did Bonnie not sense Katherine at all? It made Bella uneasy as to what it could mean but she had no leads.

"You should really change your wardrobe, it's atrocious."

"They are comfortable." Katherine walks away from the closet and scans her. Bella shrank under her gaze. Why Katherine hadn't noticed it before?

"I didn't notice until now but we do look alike."

"Not really, no." The only resemblance Bella could see was their hair, eyes, and pale complexion. That's where the similarities ended or at least in Bella's eyes.

"Hmm, maybe you could be distantly related to me." Katherine didn't really think they were related but she didn't totally dismiss the thought.

"Oh god, I hope not. It would also mean I am related to Elena." Bella shivered at the thought.

"I'm not saying it's true but I am making an observation." Katherine then suggested, "Maybe that's why she wants to be your friend. I mean she is pretty vain." Bella could agree with the last part.

"If we are following that logic, wouldn't she have wanted to be your friend? You are the exact copy of her, then again, you did try to kill her and take Stefan." Bella shrugged. "I still can't believe she killed you."

"Me either, I didn't think she had the balls."

"It's not that. I just don't imagine her as a murder. She seemed more the homewrecker type then again doppelgangers have a trend of being homewreckers." Bella gave Katherine a pointed look.

"Will you get over that?" Katherine hadn't gone into details about her relationship with the Salvatore brothers or the Mikaelson brothers mostly due to Bella glaring at her throughout those stories. Bella had sympathized with Katherine at first but only at the beginning. The rest of the story Bella either gave Katherine the death glare or told her to skip altogether.

"No." At least she's being honest, Katherine thought. "I do, however, know that the world is rarely black and white. It's mostly grey areas especially when it comes to the supernatural. I am not saying what you did is right because it isn't and that's just my opinion. I will say this though, the good guys here aren't as good as they seem from what you've said. They seem willing to endanger everyone else if it means they save Elena."

"Doesn't it scare you?"

"What?"

"Klaus and everything else. The supernatural beings that have infested this town. That doesn't just scare you a little?" Katherine was confused as to why Bella hadn't already started packing. There was basically a supernatural war going outside and Bella didn't seem to care. The only thing that seemed to bug the girl was Katherine herself.

"Of course it does, but I have almost died too many times in this life. If I die, then I die. My future shouldn't be determined by my inability to control my fear. A little fear keeps you cautious but too much fear makes you act upon those fears. It controls you." Bella argued. "I won't let a few lunatics stop me from having a life, graduating, and doing who knows what after that. Besides there are worst things than death."

"What could be worse than dying?"

"Being stuck with you for one." Bella was more so stuck with Katherine than Katherine was stuck with her. Katherine could leave when she pleased while Bella couldn't exactly send Katherine away. The only reason Katherine was kind of stuck with her was because Bella was the only one that could see her. Katherine knew she'd be all alone without Bella. She saw no other ghosts and no one, not even the witch, could see her. It did raise questions as to why Bella could see her when the Bennett witch couldn't but Bella was an odd human. She was immune to mental attacks from magic or the Cold Ones. It made her wonder if Bella was also immune to compulsion. It would definitely be handy if she was.

Katherine looked confused as the girl grabbed a pill bottle from a drawer in the nightstand. It was empty except for one pill. Bella snatched her bottle of water. She popped the pill into her mouth before swallowing with water.

"Anxiety pills," Bella answered. "There is a full bottle in one of the kitchen cabinets. The only reason my father let me have this one in my room was because it was almost empty. Not enough to overdose."

"Why do you take those pills? Aren't the side effects terrible?"

"The side effects aren't pleasant but it helps. I have had a very hellish year so I would think me taking these were justifiable."

"Do you take them all the time?"

"No, I take them when I feel a panic attack coming or stressed." Bella set the water bottle back on her nightstand. She laid back in her bed and exhaled. Her panic attacks had gotten worse as of late and now strikes with little warning.

"You have anything planned for the day?"

"I was planning on watching a movie and reading at the library but I don't quite feel up to it anymore."

"Well, seeing as I am going to be stuck with you for god knows how long I don't want to be stuck with someone that doesn't have a fashion sense. I think it's time you upgraded your wardrobe."

"Thanks, but I'm fine with my clothes actually."

"Come on, try on even a few. I think you're over do for a makeover anyway."

"Will you stop whining about my clothes if I let you?"

"Maybe, come on it'll be fun. You do remember what fun is?"

"Your definition of fun is way different from mine."

"Live a little. It won't kill you." Katherine pouted. "I just had to end up with someone that would rather sit in bed all day then be out with people.

"Shut up. I'm getting up."

-X-

When the Cullens were still around Bella had always dreaded shopping with Alice. The seer barely even took Bella's comments into consideration when they had shopped. It always made Bella feel as though her thoughts didn't matter to Alice at all. She was just some doll to dress up in the most ridiculous, uncomfortable clothes ever. Bella hadn't originally hated fashion but after her nightmarish experience with Alice, it became something she couldn't even stand. She mostly bought things online now. She had actually hoped that Alice would give her a makeover but this was before she ever went shopping with her. She always wanted a big makeover similar to the ones in teen movies. The dream died when she actually went makeup shopping with Alice. The makeup Alice gave her looked either too heavy or clownish. Shopping with Katherine was different. She took into consideration what her preferences were and the comfort level. She did pick a few pieces that were iffy but nothing compared to what Alice would bring her. Katherine then pointed at another leather jacket.

"You have to have at least one."

"You can't be serious." Bella eventually caved in. It was a nice black jacket and the price was a steal. She bought the jacket and carried the rest of the bags to the car.

"You should buy some more."

"You may have not had to worry about money in your life but I have to. I don't want to get into debt."

"I got it! Seeing as I'm dead, you can use my debit cards."

"Last time I checked, you were buried six feet under in some part of the forest."

"I have spares in my house that isn't far from her."

"You don't think it would be dangerous to go over there?"

"No, I didn't tell anyone about the house. I can give you directions to there and you can grab everything before nightfall." Bella glanced at the setting sun. She didn't particularly care about driving at night. She got into her car and started it up.

"If anything jumps out at you while you're driving, I give you permission to run it over."

"Has that actually happened before?"

"You'd be surprised." Katherine replied. The answer had not at all calmed Bella's nerves.

-X-

Katherine's house laid twenty minutes outside of town and was surrounded by woods. The house reminded her of the Cullen's. It was expensive and made Bella not want to touch anything. When houses were this extravagant, it made Bella wonder how people could live in them. She would be afraid of breaking anything.

"Expensive."

"You aren't going to start trashing my house, are you?" She raised her eyebrow.

"I now regret telling you that story." After the anger had kicked in, Bella had trashed the Cullen house alongside Jacob. Well, Jacob watched more than he participated. It was her catharsis. It was better than any therapy session could give her. If the Cullens ever did come back, they will find their beloved home trashed. "It was a one-time thing." Bella walked in and kicked off her shoes before Katherine directed her through the house. Katherine had hidden a wallet full of debit cards in a tampon box. Bella gave Katherine points for creativity.

"You were creative, I'll give you that." Bella took the wallet out of the box. "It still feels like I'm stealing though."

"I gave you permission to use them and I don't know if you had noticed but I am dead. They are no use to me."

"Yes, I'm sure that will hold weight when the police are arresting me for stealing." Bella put the wallet in her back pocket. She couldn't help but be snarky around Katherine. Something about her made Bella say snippy comments. "Thank you." Katherine nodded.

"I'm surprised you haven't called your friends yet."

"I know they'll freak out if I do." Bella knew her friends would freak out at the first sign of trouble. She didn't want them to come here just to drag her back to Forks. Bella would have loved that but her father… Charlie loved Mystic Falls. She hadn't seen him this happy since she had first arrived in Forks. She didn't want to take that away from her father. No, she couldn't. She would deal with whatever trouble laid ahead. "Besides I have to fight my own battles sometimes."

Katherine almost scoffed at the girl. This wasn't some battle between bullies that she needed to overcome. She walked to her bedroom while Bella decided to head towards the kitchen. Bella had wondered if Katherine had any food in the refrigerator. Bella opened it but immediately closed it when she heard Katherine's voice.

"Bella!" Katherine rushed into kitchen. "Someone has been here." This put both girls in high alert.

"Who?" Bella asked. Katherine shook her head. She didn't know who had been there but someone had definitely had been there. She had left her bedroom neat and orderly but now it was trashed. She didn't know if someone had just trashed it out of revenge or was looking for something. The latter made much more sense because the rest of the house seemed to have been untouched. What could the person have wanted though?

"Let's go." Katherine said. Bella nodded, not wanting to argue. She walked to her car and entered. Was it a bad idea to have come here?

-X-

(Forks)

Paul followed after Sam but were stiff as they entered the house. They did not want to be in the den of Cold Ones but they didn't have much of a choice. They left most of the pack to patrol La Push. It originally was going to be just Sam and Paul but Jake refused to stay at the reservation and Angela didn't want to stay home. The small group stayed near the door trying to stay away from the leeches. Sam hadn't come here willingly. The Cullens had come back but he was willing to turn a blind eye. That was until they had requested for a meeting. All of the Cullens were there expect one, the empath. Paul scanned the house and wasn't surprised to find it in perfect shape. As if Bella had never hit everything with a baseball bat.

"What is she doing here?" Rosalie hissed. Angela stiffened but didn't back down. She wanted to kick Rosalie in her perfect teeth but knew it wouldn't hurt her. She couldn't stand the blond Barbie. Rosalie had been the most hateful to Bella and never told her why.

"I'm a witch and live here so I deserve to know what supernatural beings decide to live amongst us."

"She is with us. What do you leeches want to say? We are busy at the moment."

"I wanted to make sure that the treaty between us is still good and standing."

"It is. I know your intentions were not to ask about the treaty but about Bella."

"No one knows where she's gone and we were worried what happened to her." Esme spoke.

"She is fine. She has moved away from this town and is happy with her new life. She's moved on with her life."

"She could be in danger!" Alice blurted out.

"If she was in danger, she would call us." Paul said. "Bella is living a normal human life. I thought that was what you wanted? I didn't think you actually cared what happened to her seeing as Edward broke up with her in the woods."

"What?" All the Cullens asked except Edward and Alice.

"You didn't know? Your son left Bella in the woods after breaking her heart. She didn't know where she was and it became dark. Sam found her but the hypothermia was already setting in. If she had been left for a few hours, she wouldn't have woken up from her frozen nap." Paul continued. "He said some pretty awful things about Bella. How she was just a toy and a distraction for him. It took a while to get her out of that funk but Bella's a survivor."

"Edward, is this true?" Esme stared in disbelief at her son. Edward stayed silent.

"He won't tell you the truth." Paul spat. "Now that we are done here. We have a little warning just in case you leeches didn't get it through your think skulls. Do not go after Bella. Don't even ask where she lives now. It is none of your business. If you do not heed your warning and you do go after Bella, it will not end well for you."

"She's my mate!"

"Mates do not leave it each other regardless if the mate is human!" Angela yelled. "You would still want to protect her and never want to leave her. It doesn't matter if Bella is a human, it would still activate your mating instincts. I don't know who put such a crazy thought in your deluded head but she is not your mate."

"She has to be! I cannot read her thoughts."

"That doesn't mean anything!" Angela argued. "We have bigger problems than to convince you that you are not Bella's mate. Victoria is out for blood."

"We can take her." Emmett dismissed the topic which only made the group angrier.

"I would say go ahead but you aren't her target. Due to Edward's stupid decisions, Victoria is after Bella. Edward killed her mate so Victoria is after Edward's mate even though it has been proven she isn't. An eye for an eye. She is now in danger because of your stupidity."

"That isn't our problem." Rosalie rolled her eyes. "She chose this life."

"You left a human girl that had knowledge of the supernatural world with a vindictive vampire out on the prowl. You say she chose this life when this dick basically dragged her into it!" Paul growled. "She thought you were her friends—her family but you left her without a second thought!"

"We thought the breakup was mutual." Esme said.

"Well, that's just another lie your son told you." Jake replied.

"This meeting isn't going anywhere good. We will take our leave." Sam spoke.

"Bella is in danger! Victoria will find her but we can stop her if you tell us where Bella is."

"Did you have a vision of her being in danger?"

"Yes."

"Bullshit!" Paul screamed. Sam and Jake dragged a struggling Paul out of the house. Angela threw one last glare at the family before following after her friends.

"Calm down, Lahote. That's an order!" Paul wheezed at his Alpha's command. "I'm taking Paul to the woods and changing. Jake, take Angela home and report to my house when you're done."

"Alright, boss." Sam pulled Paul to the woods and disappeared from eye sight. Jake turned to Angela.

"Ready to go?" He asked. Angela nodded. The two of them go into the car. Jake drove off from the driveway and felt as though he could breathe again. Angela stared at Jake wondering why he had been so quiet. The silence went on for about five minutes until Jake asked,

"Spit it out, witchy. What is it that you want to ask?"

"I don't know if you'll answer." Angela bit her lip. It's now or never. "Do you love Bella?" It had been a question that had been bugging Angela lately. She saw the way he looked at her but it confused her why Jake never acted on it. She thought Jake and Bella would make a good couple.

"Yes."

"Then why—"

"As much as I love her, she only sees me as a friend. It has always been that way and besides I have not imprinted on her. I cannot claim something that is not mine. Even if she did accept my love, what would happen if I imprinted on someone or she found a mate? It would devastate either of us."

"Do you really think Bella will end with someone who wasn't human?"

"I'd be surprised if she didn't." Angela chose to drop the topic.

"I had bad vibes from Alice."

"I got bad vibes from all of them."

"Yes, I guess—JAKE WATCH OUT!" Angela shrieked as a figure suddenly appeared in the road. Jake stopped the car and put his arm out so it would stop Angela from hitting the dashboard. The car came to a screeching halt. The figure barely a feet away from the car.

"Vampire—"

"It's Jasper! What is he doing here?" Angela whispered.

"I guess we're about to find out." They both exited the car. Jake had ordered Angela to stay in the car but he knew she would ignore his demand.

"What do you want leech?"

"I came here to apologize." Jasper said. Angela and Jake shared a look. "I'm so sorry for attacking Bella. There is nothing I can say to tell you how guilty I felt. I never wanted anything to happen to her. It's just—"

"You slipped up." Both had been told about Bella's birthday accident. They had to plea with Bella to get anything out of her. The girl hated people worrying over her and they found it maddening at times.

"There was more to that story though. I wanted to tell Bella how sorry I was but they wouldn't let me talk to her. Next thing I knew the family was leaving. Alice wanted us to be alone but Rosalie wanted to go on a shopping spree with her—"

"Get to the point." Jake said. Jasper sighed.

"I had been skeptical of Alice's behavior before we even left. I didn't want to be alone with her at all so when she went with Rosalie, I could finally think clearly without being influenced by an outside source. I think Alice saw me attacking Bella."

"What do you mean?"

"I think Alice saw a vision of me attacking Bella."

"What could she possibly gain by you attacking Bella?" Angela questioned.

"I'm still figuring that out but it would explain her behavior. She said I wouldn't need to go out and hunt even though I felt as though I needed to. She said everything would be fine but it obviously didn't work out that way. She seemed so sure but her emotions were off. I didn't pay any mind to it but, boy, did I wish I had." Jasper paused. "It raises a red flag now since she had complained about barely seeing Bella's future after James' attack. After she had said that, she stopped the topic and changed it to something about clothes. She acted as if she had let something slip that she shouldn't have."

"Thank you for telling us." Angela then asked, "But why tell us this?"

"Me and Bella are pawns in whatever game Alice is playing. I have been set free because I divorced Alice and moved out. Bella won't be freed from Alice's grasp as easily. As for everyone else, I do not believe all of my family is evil. Emmett and Rosalie will walk away if something happens. Carlisle and Esme will try their hardest for their favorite daughter and son but they won't hurt Bella intentionally. Edward is a wild card. I do not know if he is acting on his own or he too is being controlled by Alice. Please do tell the pack this."

"I'll tell Sam this after I drop Angela off. I must warn you that if it comes down to Bella or them, we will choose Bella every time."

"I'm fine with that. They have made their decision as I have made mine." Jasper nodded. "Goodbye, I hope we meet again on better terms."

-X-

(Mystic Falls)

Katherine had left Bella hours ago. She didn't know where the ghost had gone but she probably didn't want to know. She watched Teen Spirit on her phone in an attempt to forget about reality. She had stopped watching after the first twenty minutes. She usually enjoyed the movie but she was too creeped out by the eerie similarities between Lisa Sommer's life and her own. Bella glanced at her homework. She was thankful she only had to deal this for one more year. Bella could hardly believe she was already a senior. It seemed almost unreal and the semester was almost over. Next month was December.

She was brought out of her thoughts when her cell phone had rang. She grabbed it from the night stand and swiped the screen. The caller was none other than Paul Lahote. What did he want? Paul wasn't known for calling her to chat. She answered the call expecting the worst.

"Yes?"

"Bella," Paul began, "We have a problem."

"I was afraid you'd say that." Bella sighed. She couldn't get a break could she?

"It's Victoria. She came back and with a friend too."

"Was it Laurent?"

"Yes, it would seem so. The guy matched your description."

"What happened? No one got hurt did they?"

"We are all fine. We couldn't catch the redheaded bitch this time but her friend, Laurent, was not that hard to catch. He is nothing but ashes now." Paul paused. "Victoria is still out there... She knows Bella."

"Knows what?"

"They were scooping out your house. The two vamps seemed to be planning on attacking the house. We were able to chase them off into the woods before attacking. Victoria seemed to know something was up. We weren't as careful as we usually are and we rarely patrol the house anymore seeing as there was no need to. She must have caught on that you guys no longer lived there before disappearing into the water."

"Water?"

"We chased her a long ways, Bella. Half of the pack was destroying Laurent and the other half was chasing her. She jumped into the sea and that was the last we saw of her."

"She doesn't know where I am though…" Bella knew sending Victoria on this goose chase would end eventually but she hoped it wasn't now.

"No, she doesn't. I just wanted to let you now that she was on the loose so watch your back." Bella knew that wasn't the only thing Paul had to tell her. She knew Paul. He didn't call except for emergencies.

"Spit it out, Lahote."

"You know me too well. They're back Bella." Paul exhaled. "The Cullens." She froze in her spot. Their name brought back the memories she had desperately tried to cover up. It was surreal. Why were they back?

"When?"

"They came back to town a few days ago. They were looking for you."

"Why were they looking for me? Did they miss their toy?" Bella spat out.

"We had a meeting just a few hours ago. Carlisle had asked for us not to mention to you that they were back. Sam said that there was no need and that you had left. Fuckward had asked where you had gone. We told them it wasn't their business since they were so eager to leave you in the first place. We did give them a not so subtle warning that going after you will only end with their deaths."

"I doubt they'll listen."

"One can only hope."

"Goodnight, Paul."

"Goodnight, Swan." Bella rolled her eyes before hanging up. She sunk into her bed but didn't let the thoughts sink in. She blasted her music in her ears and let sleep carry her off.

-X-

It was Thursday morning and the school was buzzing with excitement. Next week was Thanksgiving break which meant a whole week of doing completely nothing. A teenager's dream. Bella planned on reading up on ghosts next week. Maybe her research would shed some light on the situation at hand. She was tempted to ask Angela but her friend would have asked too many questions. Bella was stuck with finding the answers herself seeing as Katherine had been gone since Sunday night. Bella was lying if she wasn't the tiniest bit worried about Katherine but she also knew that Katherine would be able to handle whatever it was.

"Alright, seeing as the Christmas party is not that far away, we will need volunteers—" Bella drowned out Caroline's jabbering. The girl was too preppy and cheery for Bella's tastes. She also found the blond infuriating because she never shut up. Not everything in life had to be celebrated with a party.

"You didn't wear any of your new clothes!" A feminine voice hissed. Bella turned to see Katherine standing next to her desk scolding her. She was about to reply with a snarky answer but stopped herself. She was in a classroom full of students and the last thing she wanted was them asking who she was talking to. She didn't want to be known as Bella, the schizophrenic chick.

"I will." Bella whispered. She spoke loud enough for Katherine to hear but not enough to draw attention to herself. She had forgotten that Caroline was a vampire and had supernatural hearing.

"Really? Give it up for our first volunteer, Bella!" Bella stood frozen as the class turned to her and clapped. Caroline gave Bella a beaming smile. "Who else wants to join?" Bella turned to the ghost she hated with a passion. She threw the ghost a glare but it didn't stop the smirk that formed on Katherine's lips.

-X-

Bella wanted to run out of the school. Caroline was basically joined to her hip and would babble about her plans for the Christmas party. She just wanted to yell at the girl to shut up. When lunch had hit, Bella was forced to sit with Caroline's friends. Elena sat on the opposite side of her, thank god. The doppelganger made it clear she did not like her presence but stayed busy on her phone. She was on her own with the bubbly blond. Thankfully, a girl came to the table and sat next to Caroline. The girl's name was Bonnie Bennett. The only sane person at this table. Bella would have enjoyed to being friends with the girl but she was heavily involved with Elena's and Caroline's life so the wish died straightaway. Two more people joined the table after her. Tyler Lockwood and Matt Donovan were jocks. Jocks and cheerleaders were Bella's least favorite type of people but she seemed to be surrounded with them as of late. Katherine was currently surveying the group and would say something spiteful about them but Bella mostly ignored her comments. Caroline had chatted with Bonnie after she had filled Elena in on why she was here.

"Have you ever been to a party?" Elena probed. "You don't seem the party type."

"I have been to junior prom, if that counts." Bella tried not to scold the girl. "Forks just wasn't a party kind of town."

"What are you good with? We need decorators—"

"I'm good at art." She said, interrupting Caroline. Katherine raised an eyebrow. She didn't see Bella as the artsy type then again she didn't see Klaus as one either.

"I didn't know that." Katherine and Elena had said simultaneously. Katherine glared at her doppelganger. Bella's laugh was masked by her fake coughing which earned her a scowl from Katherine.

"Need something to drink?" Bonnie asked.

"No, I think I'm fine." Bella cleared her throat. "I should go. I have a project for my business class that's due Friday."

"Okay, I will let you know when the first meeting to set everything up for the Christmas party will be. It will probably be a few days after we come back from break." Caroline informed. She nodded before grabbing her things and darting off to the library. Katherine did not follow after Bella. She instead stayed back to observe the group.

"You were right. You two do look related." Bonnie agreed with her friend. "Not uncanny like you and Katherine though." So it wasn't just Katherine that saw the resemblance.

"Don't even say her name." Elena gave an annoyed sigh. "If we talk about her, it may just jinx our luck." Too late, Katherine thought.

"Now all we have to deal with are the Originals." Caroline's lips formed a tight line. "Starting with Rebekah preferably." Wait, were all the Originals awake? It made Katherine wonder exactly how long she was in the darkness before she had become a ghost. She thought it was maybe a day but now she wasn't so sure. This also made her worry. She would have to tell Bella so she could watch out for them. The last thing Katherine needed was Bella to become their next meal.

"Are you sure we should let her help with the Christmas party? She isn't very social." Elena muttered.

"She is new here so maybe she's just shy." Katherine roared with laughter. Katherine knew better. When it came to Bella, what you see is what you get.

"You wanted to befriend her not so long ago. What changed your mind?"

"She is so boring." Elena whined. Katherine felt offended on behalf of Bella. "All she does is read and do homework. She probably doesn't want hang out with us because she thinks she's too smart for us."

"Fine, I will tell her tomorrow that we have enough volunteers so she wouldn't have to do it." Caroline said, finally caving into Elena's demands.

"Thank God!" Elena thanked Caroline.

-X-

Bella was utterly exhausted. The nightmares had started again last night. She didn't get a wink of sleep. She was surprised she hadn't fallen asleep on her homework. She had lied about needing to finish her business project. She had finished that project days ago and the homework she was doing wasn't even due until they got back. She just wanted to relax next week and besides, if something did come up, she would rather not be worrying about unfinished homework. She finally closed her notebook knowing she wouldn't be able to get anything done in the noisy library. She sat back in her chair and let her body relax. Bella glanced around the library and found her eyes drawn to one spot. A guy was sitting by himself at the farthest corner of the library.

He was reading a worn book and from what Bella could tell, it was foreign. As if sensing her gaze, the guy looked up. His brown eyes met hers but Bella did not cower under his eyes. He was beautiful, his feature angelic. His smirk told a different story. Bella turned her attention away. Who was he? She hadn't seen him before and he was someone she wouldn't have overlooked. Bella briefly turned back to see the guy still staring at her. He raised an eyebrow as if challenging her. She felt heat creep up on her cheeks. Look away, her thoughts screamed. She reluctantly turned away. She need to keep herself busy so she decided on putting her earphones in and listening to music on her phone.

A hand had suddenly slapped itself on the desk, right in front of her. Bella jumped at the sudden movement. Her heart had skyrocketed and the poor girl felt the air had been knocked out of her. She looked up and saw one of the old librarians.

"The bell is about to ring," The old lady scolded her. Bella wasted no time gathering her things but as she rushed to the exit. She couldn't help but glance one last time at him. The guy had vanished.

-X-

Bella sat on the floor of her bathroom waiting for the timer to go off. The dye made her hair feel itchy and she had half the mind to just wash it off. It was Katherine's idea after all. Bella didn't care about her hair color but Katherine had somehow convinced her to dye it fully auburn. Bella didn't like the fact that Katherine was able to convince her to do things she generally would not do.

"Stop pouting. You only have a few more minutes to keep it in."

"I don't see how I let you convince me to do these things."

"Persuasion is my specialty." Bella let out an unladylike snort. "Besides this will make you look less like Elena."

"We don't have that much of a resemblance."

"You know, denial isn't just a river in Egypt." Katherine retorted.

"So what is we look similar? It doesn't seem to matter."

"Let's just say, looking like a doppelganger isn't a good way to stay alive besides they are curious as to why you two look similar."

"Do you really think we are related?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" Bella hissed.

"I don't know. Isobel and Elena are the only descendants I knew of and Isobel is dead. It is possible but even I'm not sure." Bella rubbed her temple. This ghost was so much trouble for her and to think she wanted a peaceful life here. Silly her, Bella forgot she could never have a peaceful, stress free life.

"I think I'm going to have a headache."

"Go take a shot of tequila if it hurts that much."

"Alcohol isn't the solution to everything."

"You'd be surprised." Bella's phone went off. "Now go shower and we will see how it turns out." Katherine, thankfully, left the room. Bella stripped her of the old pajamas. The dye was all over it and she knew it was time to throw it away. She got into her shower and washed the excess dye off.

Bella sauntered into her room with only a towel on. Katherine sat on her bed waiting patiently. She got off the bed and examined her. Bella had been instructed to blow dry her hair before she left the bathroom so they could see what the color would actually turned out.

"Much better," Katherine said approvingly. She raked through her hair with her hand. She had loved her dark brown and missed its dark tresses already. "It makes you look more alive."

"Well, I was going for the vampire pale look. Undead is the new sexy I heard." Bella smirked. Katherine rolled her eyes before looking into her closet. She was apparently picking out Bella's outfit for tomorrow because she couldn't trust her to dress nice. Bella clenched her fist. "We've kind of danced around this topic… What are you going to do?"

"What do you mean?" Katherine turned away from the clothes and stared directly at her.

"I mean so far I am the only one that can see you but that's going to get old fast. We aren't exactly the best of friends and there are a lot of things about you I don't agree with. Why am I able to see you anyway? Bonnie is a witch so she should be at the very least able to sense you and what happens if they find out I can see you?"

"You're overthinking this. Did something happen?"

"What do you mean?"

"I heard you screaming the other night. Charlie woke you up before I could do anything." Katherine admitted. Bella felt herself become fluster. Katherine had heard her pathetic screams? She wanted to lie so badly. It was so easy to lie because it didn't require the cold hearted truth but she knew Katherine would see right past it.

"It's Victoria and the Cullens."

"What about them? Isn't that pack full of dogs dealing with the redhead? Also didn't you tell me the Cullens are gone?"

"They were but they came back. The pack was able to kill Laurent but not Victoria and it seems she figured out that I've left. I don't know what to do. If Victoria finds me…" Bella paused. "I mean who's going to stop her? You're a ghost and the pack may not be here in time to save me if she strikes. They already have to worry about their lands and the Cullens. Besides, Victoria is skilled at escaping so it will take almost the whole pack to try and take her down. I already know that will fail because half the pack has to stay in La Push to patrol. She could hurt Charlie…"

"Hey, I know you could care less if I disappeared right now and never came back." Bella opened her mouth to argue but Katherine shushed her. "This situation was not what either of us planned but we have to make due of the situation. If you die, I don't know what will happen. We both could be stuck on this plane. I don't think either of us want to be stuck with each other forever. This means we have to come up with ideas to keep you protected from Victoria."

"The only think I could think of was becoming a vampire but it's too risky. I can't exactly ask to be turned."

"Dammit! If only I knew where my body was, then you could have drank the blood and changed. I would suggest just start searching the woods but I'm sure they hide my body well."

"That doesn't leave me with many options does it?"

"There are a few but you would never consider them."

"I refuse to manipulate men for my own gain."

"Fine, women it will be."

"Katherine!"

"This is survival, Bella. There is no room for being nice when your own life is on the line."

"No, I refuse. I can survive without manipulating or hurting people." Bella knew how it felt to be used and she refused to do that to someone else.

"If you truly believe that then you are already dead." Katherine hissed before disappearing before her eyes.

-X-

Katherine had acted as though last night had not happened. Bella wanted to bring it up but she knew it would do no good. It would only make both them angry at each other again so she too pretend that last night had not occurred. Katherine had pointed at which clothes Bella should wear for the day. Bella took them off the hangers and set them on the bed. She then went to the bathroom to freshen up. Bella took her time in there because she couldn't face Katherine. She so badly wanted to talk about last night.

She emerged out of the bathroom and then slowly sauntered back to her room. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw that Katherine had disappeared. Bella took this opportunity to dress herself. She didn't know when Katherine would pop back in so she quickly put on her outfit. When she was finally dressed, Bella went back to the bathroom to see how she looked.

It was jarring seeing her not only in an outfit more suited to Katherine's taste, but also her newly dyed auburn hair. She raked her hand through her soft locks. She was wearing dark denim jeans paired with a red shirt and a black leather jacket.

"See? You look good without those button downs." Bella jumped at the sudden appearance of Katherine. The doppelganger seemed proud of her work.

"It looks like something you would wear." Bella thought the outfit made her very provocative. Something she wasn't use to labeling herself. The outfit covered her body but it hugged her curves and the shirt empathized her breasts. She felt guilty for wearing it. She could hear Edward's disapproving tone but she blocked it out.

"Don't start moping. You look nice."

"Bella?" Charlie called for her behind the door. Bella opened the door and saw her father in his police outfit. Bella hoped he hadn't heard her. "Were you on the phone?"

"Yes, actually." She lied. "I was talking with a friend from school."

"I've never seen you wear that outfit before. Did you go shopping?"

"Yes, I went shopping on Sunday while you were gone. My friend told me to try something new so I did."

"Well, that's nice that you've found a friend. I just came to tell you that I won't be here until late. There have been some animal attacks so no going off into the woods, 'ya here me?"

"Yep,"

"Have a good day at school, Bells."

"Have a good day at work, Charlie." Charlie nods and heads down the steps.

"That was close." Katherine said.

"Too close," Bella agreed with the doppelganger.

-X-

Bella could feel eyes on her before she even walked into the school. Katherine walked beside the girl and gave her advice as she walked down the hallway. Bella wanted to go hide somewhere. She did not enjoy all this attention on her, actually she detested it. Everyone was openly gawking at her and it made her tremendously uncomfortable. Couldn't they just mind their own business? Didn't their mothers tell them staring was rude? It also didn't help Bella's case when people actively made a path for her.

"Stand up straight." Katherine warned Bella. "Remember to walk with confidence. Give them something to look at." Bella would have replied with something snarky but went against it. Several students were watching her and she didn't want to appear as some madwoman. She wasn't ready to head to an insane asylum just yet.

"Bella!" Caroline ran up to her. Katherine had warned Bella of the conversation that had happened after she left the table yesterday. It wasn't a surprise. Elena was probably still bitter by Bella's rejection for friendship. "You look good." Here goes nothing, Bella thought. She gave the best fake smile she could muster.

"I thought I needed a change. Is there something you wanted to speak to me about?"

"Yes…" Caroline drawled. "The Christmas party—"

"Oh, yes, I had a few ideas for it." Bella then spoke softly. "I was excited about it. I was going to give you some ideas I had yesterday but I felt unwelcomed. Elena was giving me these looks so that's why I was so quiet. I really do want to help. It hasn't been easy making friends here you see. I love books, if you couldn't tell, not many people here share my love for it. This school is very different from my last one so it has been very hard adjusting." This left both Katherine and Caroline speechless. Bella held her dazzling smile.

"I'm sorry that Elena treated you that way. If I had seen her doing that, I would have told her to stop. I have to go to class but I would love to hear your ideas today at lunch."

"Do you think she'll mind..?" Bella's smile faded and her gaze dropped to the ground. "I really don't want to be a bother."

"Elena and Bonnie are busy with a history project so you have nothing to worry about." Caroline gave Bella a hug which made the girl become stiff. "I am so sorry again for the way Elena treated you."

"It's fine. I'll see you at lunch." Bella's smile appeared again. They both parted ways. She looked at Katherine, whose mouth was wide open.

"You played the sympathy card." Katherine said in disbelief.

"I can't just let Elena get her way, can I?" Bella smirked. "That chick needs a reality check."

"You know if I didn't know better, I would say I was rubbing off on you."

-X-

Caroline had cancelled last minute saying that Elena had come down with a cold. Bella knew it was probably a lie but it meant she had more time to come up with party ideas. She went straight to the library. She wasn't all that hungry and besides she wouldn't be sitting by anyone anyways. She sat at a table furthest away from the students. Thankfully there wasn't all that many. She opened up her French book.

"Hello, beautiful." Bella turned to see the guy from the other day standing beside her. His accent wasn't what she pictured of. The English accent fit him though. "May I sit?"

"Of course," She nodded, a little too franticly in her opinion. The guy sat beside her and put his book down.

"Russian, nice."

"You know Russian?" He asked, surprised.

"Sadly, no. My mother wanted my childhood emerged in different cultures and languages. I am only fluent in French and Italian but I spent enough time in my childhood to recognize other languages." Bella smiled fondly at the memory of her eccentric mother. "She loved Italy which is why I have an Italian first name: Isabella. I prefer Bella though. What's your name?"

"Kol," He answered. Bella stilled at the name. No, it couldn't have been Kol Mikaelson, one of the Original sibling. Katherine said he was still asleep in some coffin somewhere. "Your mother must have been a nice woman. You smile when you talk about her."

"She is. I miss her so much. I still can't believe I haven't seen her in over a year."

"Why is that?"

"My parents are divorced."

"I'm sorry."

"It's fine. They've been divorced since I was little and their separated on a good note too." She went on, "Me and my father came here from Forks, Washington. We both needed a change and he had a job offer here so that's why I'm here now."

"That's quite the story you have there. Mine is much more boring. I was dragged here by my older sibling. I didn't think I'd stay here for very long but it seems all my siblings want to stay here now."

"I hear siblings are a handful." Kol gave her you-only-know-the-half-of-it look.

"You're a single child I take it?"

"Yes, I count my blessings every day." Bella chuckled. "Do any of your siblings go here?"

"Yes, Rebekah is in the same grade as me." The answer confirmed her suspicions. She was indeed talking to an Original vampire. The fact should make her shake in her chair but she didn't. Kol, despite Katherine's vivid description, did not appear as a deranged vampire.

"Are you two seniors?"

"Yes," Kol nodded. "What about you?

"I am a senior as well and glad to be one. I don't think I could stand to be with some of these people for another year. I would resort to online schooling if that was the case."

"Yes, the teenagers here are a very rambunctious lot.

"Lot? You really are British." Bella giggled. "Are you going to say rubbish next?"

"Kol!" A feminine voice pierced the quiet room. Kol sank into his chair which made Bella laugh.

"The she devil is here."

"I take it that is your sister?"

"Unfortunately," Kol responded. Rebekah came to the table and had her hands on her hips seeming ready to demand something. Rebekah, unlike Kol, had stunning blue eyes and blond hair. The girl reminded her of Rosalie. They were breathtakingly beautiful but Bella did not know yet if Rebekah had a personality similar to Rosalie's. Despite her supermodel features, Rosalie's attitude made her an ugly being. Her core was rotten and cruel. "What do you want?"

"That blasted blond bimbo said I couldn't help out with the Christmas party planning even though it is open for volunteers. I have half the mind to knock her down the stairs."

"What do you want me to do?"

"I have an idea. Caroline said something about a meeting for the volunteers about the Christmas party. They'll be bouncing ideas and stuff that day. Caroline expects me to be there and she said nothing about not bringing people. You could come with me. If she complains, I'll just tell her she didn't make it clear that I couldn't bring people with me." Bella suggested.

"Really?" Rebekah seemed so surprised by her offer then again she was probably not use to people doing things for her without a price. It was sad in Bella's mind. She felt that people shouldn't always have a price for helping someone out.

"Yes, just promise me that when you finally decide to push Caroline down the stairs make sure Elena goes down with her." Rebekah grinned.

"Deal. My name is Rebekah by the way."

"My name is Bella." Bella gestures to the empty seat beside her. "You can sit down with us if you want."

-X-

It was after school when Bella began her search for books about interior design, decoration, and parties from the local library. If she was going through with this, she had to be able to give some great ideas to Caroline. Bella knew Caroline would already not be a happy camper letting Rebekah come and she knew Elena would jump at the opportunity to kick her out if she messed up. The pressure was on but Bella believed she could pull it off.

"I can't believe you are actually trying. I would think by now you would have told Caroline that you couldn't help plan the party. I must say I am a little proud." Katherine spoke.

"I'm not one to step down from a challenge. Besides, I told her I was doing it and I intend to do just that."

"You are a real schemer you know that, Isa?"

"Isa? Is that my new nickname now?"

"Well, I know you hate to be called Isabella."

"It does have a certain ring to it." Bella agreed.

"Now are you going to tell me what happened during lunch? Don't say nothing happened because you had that look on your face. You know I hate surprises."

"What look?" Bella asked, innocently.

"Don't act all innocent."

"I'm not." She then decided to ignore Katherine. She knew Katherine would disapprove of her contact with Kol and Rebekah. They were the siblings of Klaus. Rebekah and Kol were not Klaus and didn't pose a threat to her, yet. Bella tried to reach for the book on the top shelf but her efforts were fruitless. She huffed in annoyance. She put her books down on the nearest table before snatching one of the table's chairs and dragging it to the spot. She stood on the chair and reached for the book. You better be worth it, Bella thought. She did not take into consideration that all her weight was on one side of the chair until it began tipping towards the books. In an effort to reclaim her balance, she shifted her weight to the other side of the chair.

"Bella!" Katherine yelped.

"Ah!" She let out a scream when the chair tipped the other way. She lost her balance and knew what was coming next. She mentally prepared herself for the impact. The impact never came. Instead, a pair of hands grabbed her and stopped her from falling to the ground. Bella opened her eyes and saw a blonde, blue eyed man staring back at her.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, thank you." The man helped her onto her feet. Bella let out a breath when she regained her balance. "Thank you." She repeated. She looked towards Katherine but the brunette woman was not looking at her. Katherine stared at the blue eyed man with an expression she had never seen on her before. Katherine looked absolutely terrified. Bella had an idea as to why Katherine was horrified but she did not want to admit it.

"My name is—"

"Bella!" A feminine voice squealed. Bella saw Rebekah walking over to them.

"Hey, Bekah." Bella said, surprised. What was Rebekah doing here? "What's up?" Rebekah glanced between her and the blue eyed man. She then noticed the fallen chair.

"Did you fall?"

"Um, yeah. He stopped me from falling though."

"How nice of you, Nik." Yep, Bella thought, this is Klaus. She had expected the man to be menacing or look out of place. He seemed normal. He was wearing a faded white shirt with jeans. It was almost surreal seeing such an old being to look so modernized.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to get my library card. I hadn't come around to doing it but I had time today." Rebekah smiled. "You got a decoration book, can I see it?"

"Of course," She handed her the book. "I have some more books you can look at. I put it on the table over there." Bella was about to pick the chair up from the ground and take it with them but Klaus beat her to it. She instead followed behind Rebekah awkwardly. She passed Katherine whose facial expression was now unreadable. She knew as soon as they left, Katherine would have some words to say to her.

"These books do look interesting."

"We can split them. That way we both can study them carefully without the need to rush though the books and we can talk about them to each other. Bounce some ideas off each other."

"That's a good idea. How will we talk to each other? We won't see each other until after next week. I would suggest coming here but I don't know if Elena and her followers will show up. I know they'll give you a hard time if they see you talking with me."

"I don't care what they say. I decide who I befriend and they aren't exactly the best company to keep around. I mean have you seen what they wear?" This made Rebekah chuckle. "I can give you my phone number so we can chat."

"I don't have one right now—I dropped it. I am about to go get a new one." Bella knew it was a lie but didn't say anything. She wrote her phone number on a piece of paper and handed it to Rebekah. "Right, brother?"

"If we go now, I'll take you to get one." Klaus said. She then handed her books to Klaus and gave him her library card. He headed towards the check out. I guess behind every scary man is an equally scary sister that they will do anything to keep her happy, Bella laughed mentally.

"I guess that's a benefit of having an older brother. They're your personal chauffeur." Bella told Rebekah. The blond grinned.

"If only that was the case," She replied. "I had to beg him to take me here. Kol left because he was all grouchy and Elijah was busy moping in the corner. Nik had been also complaining about the girl he fancies not returning his feelings."

"I thought men didn't have periods." Rebekah roared with laughter.

"Good one! I always think they are PMSing."

"Who does Klaus like?"

"Oh trust me you wish you hadn't know. He fancies Caroline."

"Caroline Forbes?" Bella could not see Caroline and Klaus being in the same room together let alone being a couple. She was a very superficial person.

"My exact reaction!"

"Isn't she dating Tyler?"

"Yep," Rebekah sighed. "Nothing stops my brothers from achieving their goal even if it will not end well for anyone involved."

"I checked out your books." Klaus handed Rebekah back the books. "We can go get your phone unless you want to keep gossiping about my love life."

"No, I think we're good." Bella said. She wouldn't let Klaus scare her off that easily.

"See you later, Bella. I will call you when I get my new phone and we could talk about the party plans over dinner?"

"I'd love that." Rebekah waved bye before exiting out of the library with her brother. Bella searched for Katherine but could not find her. She checked out her book and headed towards her car. Why did she feel so guilty? She knew Katherine hated Klaus because she swore he was the devil but Katherine wasn't exactly an angel. The whole situation was so messed up. Katherine had fucked up a lot of people's life but so did Klaus and his family as well as every other supernatural being in this damned town. Her phone's ring pulled her out of her thoughts.

"Yes?"

"Your werewolf pets may have hid you for now but do not worry your time is almost here." A feminine voice growled. "Tell me how does it feel knowing your death is on the horizon?" She wondered how the bitch got her cell phone number but she doubted the woman would answer. Even if she did, Bella doubted she wanted to know the answer.

"I forgot all about you, Victoria. Tell me how is Laurent doing?" Bella heard an animalistic hiss through the other side of the phone.

"You will pay for what you've done."

"You keep saying that and yet I'm still alive. Besides the only one paying will be you. You do realize Edward isn't even my mate, right?"

"It doesn't matter. You were the reason my James was killed. You will pay with your pathetic excuse of a life after I have had my fun with you."

"I'd love to see you try. You don't even know where I could possibly be. This was a nice chat but I have to go." Bella hung up her phone and threw it in the back. Her hands hit the steering wheel. She was now being backed into a corner and had no way of escaping.

If you truly believe that then you are already dead.

-X-

Jeremy Gilbert wanted to puke when he saw his sister and Damon flirting on the couch. He shut the door to announce his presence but they didn't care. They were so caught up with each other Jeremy was sure they wouldn't have noticed a serial killer walking in. He shook his head. Despite all the mayhem and destruction Damon has caused, Elena forgave him in a blink of an eye. It made Jeremy sick to his stomach. Damon mistreated everyone and had even killed him yet his sister could not see how evil Damon really was. He felt betrayed. He walked passed them and ignored them as best he could.

"Jeremy," Anna spoke. "How did it go with, Bonnie?" Jeremy followed Anna to his room. He was still getting used to seeing Anna's ghost but her sudden appearances didn't startle him anymore.

"I let her go. She was sad at first but we both felt it inside us that we needed to leave each other. We are still friends though." Anna smiled. Anna did not want to hurt Bonnie to get to Jeremy so she had stepped back. It turned out much better this way. Bonnie was still a friend of his and there was no hard feelings. The last thing Anna wanted was Bonnie, a Bennett witch, to have a grudge on her.

"I'm happy. Bonnie is a nice person and I didn't want to come between you two. It's nice that both of you will still be friends."

"I just wish she wouldn't let Elena manipulate her into doing things she didn't want to do. Bonnie may be a witch but she is still human."

"I'll keep an eye out for her." Anna assured. She saw past Elena as well. Elena was manipulative and has caused several deaths so she could live another day. She was probably a good person at first but it's gone to her head. She thinks she is so important that no one in their right mind would kill her seeing as Klaus would have their head. Anna prayed that someone would come and knock that girl off her high horse.

"Thanks."

"So I heard Elena whining about this Bella chick." Anna hadn't meant to listen in on Elena's conversation with Damon but she was curious when the girl was mentioned.

"She's a new student." Jeremy explained. "She is just mad because Bella didn't want to be her friend." Anna couldn't blame the girl for not wanting to be Elena's friend.

"Who would?" Anna snorted. "I would prefer being friends with piranhas."

"Bonnie did say that she got an odd vibe from Bella. Elena asked Bonnie to shake Bella's hand when she could. She think Bella may be dangerous."

"Do you think she is?"

"No, she seemed fine or at least from what I could tell." Jeremy shrugged.

"Well, I should warn you that Elena was complaining about her earlier to Damon and I am afraid he may take matters into his own hands."

"The only person that could stop him is Bonnie seeing as Stefan is who knows where but Elena could convince her that Bella is bad news."

"I could watch over her. It would give me something to do."

"Would you?" Jeremy didn't want to send Anna to do something she wasn't comfortable with. She nodded. "How about tomorrow? I don't want to her those two." Jeremy knew if he was left alone with Damon now he would just grab a stake and pierce his heart.

"So, how was your day?"

-X-

Bella found herself in a forest at dusk. The forest was painted in red. She screamed as she saw the bodies of her parents and her friends. Their bodies mauled with multiple bite marks. The image tormented her even though she knew it was not real. Victoria walked on their bodies as she went up to Bella. Victoria's clothes were soaked in blood.

"It's all your fault. You should have just died." Victoria smiled sinisterly. "You are the true monster, Bella. Here you are putting all these people's lives at stake so you won't be alone. If you just had handed yourself in, they would have been spared. I guess no life is worth more than yours?"

"Shut up!"

"The sadness, the loneliness it's crippling you. This madness that has infested your mind is ripping you from the inside out. You poor broken girl. Your heart and soul may be free but your mind is not. Your mind is tormented by the past. You will always be someone's caged bird. It may prettier and a little bigger but it is still a cage, a prison you cannot escape." Victoria walked passed the dead bodies. She looked further into the forest. Bella followed her gaze and saw a younger version of herself.

"Do you see that naive girl? She doesn't know what will happen to her once reality sets in." Bella didn't know what came over her but she ran to the image of her younger self.

"Go!" She yelled. The girl stood there, frozen. "You aren't safe here."

"Your childhood was so innocent. The only thing you feared were the monsters under your bed." Victoria whispered behind her. "You were a pretty little thing too. Your mind was begging to be destroyed. Don't you find it funny? Your mind may be safe from outsiders but it is not safe from those inside." Bella reached out for the child.

"Monster! Monster! Get away from me!" The girl shouted before taking off. Bella touched her face.

"Monster? I'm not a—"

"You are the monster. You refuse to see the truth rotting underneath! Take a good look in the mirror, darling. What do you see?" Victoria grabbed her hair and had her face a mirror that was mounted on a tree. The woman staring back at her was barely recognizable. She knew it was her but the being that stared back at her was twisted. Her once soft chocolate brown eyes were replaced with cold dark ones. Her hair was curled to perfection. The mirror image was wearing a black dress. The woman smirked.

"I look like…"

"Katherine?" The mirror image's velvety voice echoed. "A better version I hope. We did kill her."

"I wouldn't kill someone." Bella hissed. "I will never be like Katherine."

"It can't be helped. It runs in our veins." She smiled with her fangs showing. "All that follows us now is a trail of blood and broken hearts."

"It's so pathetic that you hide behind that bravado when in reality you are just a girl that wants her mother to come save her from the monsters under her bed." Victoria hissed.

"We killed all the monsters under our bed." The vampire Bella laughed. "But in the end, we became the scariest monster."

"I'll never become you."

"It's too late. You are already becoming what you fear." The vampire Bella paused. "If you are the innocent one, why are you the one covered in blood?" Bella didn't dare look down. She already knew what she would see. Victoria's nails dug into her skin. Her screams fell on deaf ears. The pain unbearable.

"You cannot escape your own mind, your own insanity!" The vampire Bella then reached out to grab her from the mirror but it was too late. Her mind was already waking up.

Bella woke up screaming as she usually did when she had a nightmare and her bite mark burned. Her tears were streaming down her face and her body covered in sweat. Her heart was beating a mile an hour and she couldn't stop her body from shivering. She knew a panic attack was about to occur. It was just seconds away.

"Katherine…" The panic evident in her voice. The panic attack slowly seized her body. The room was spinning and she could barely breathe.

"I'm here. I'm here." Katherine tried calming down the distressed girl. "You will be okay. You'll get through this."

"I'm so sorry." Bella choked out. "I fucked up… I always fuck things up…" If Katherine was still alive, she would have felt as though Bella was going to be the death of her. She had never before felt sympathy for someone other than her. The feeling foreign to her as she comforted the girl.

"I don't belong here… Everyone is in danger because of me." Bella cried. "I should be dead!"

"Shh… It's okay." Katherine whispered. She tried to soothe her but Bella whimpers only grew louder. Bella could no longer control her heart rate. Her body twitched sporadically.

"I need my medicine!" Bella crawled out of her bed. She held onto the wall. Her legs trembled with each step. The only thing Katherine could do was watch. Bella finally reached the staircase and had a death grip on the stairs' railing. Nothing could have prepared either of them for Bella's fall. Bella felt her body cave in from the pressure and her hands slipped. Her body swayed forward and she was in no condition to regain any sort of balance. Bella's arms went to her face to protect it from the impact. Her body then bashed against the ground and her body tumbled all the way down the stairs until the back on her head smashed against the wooden floor. Blood began to pool around Bella's head forming a halo. Katherine rushed to the girl's side but felt utterly helpless.

"Stay awake!" Katherine's screams fell on death ears. Bella's eyes were zoned out and her heart was slowly becoming faint. Katherine then sees headlights pouring into the room from the window. Katherine turned and saw a police car coming into the driveway. "Please, come here quick! Bella, listen to my voice!"

"I'm so sorry," Bella breathed. "I left you all alone."

"Bella—"

"I never wanted to be alone so I know how it feels. I hope you can forgive me for leaving you." Bella coughed. "I forgave you."

"Bella!" Charlie yelled as the door swung open hitting the wall. Charlie rushed to his daughter. All Katherine could do was watch. A woman then rushed into the house.

"Call 911!"

"We can drive to the hospital faster. The emergency car will take too long." The police officer, Carol Forbes, shook her head. "I'll fix her up enough to survive the car ride. A medical kit should be in the passenger compartment. We'll carry her out." Katherine watched as Charlie grabbed the upper part of Bella while Carol had her by the feet. Bella turned her head slightly. She was looking straight at her. Bella reached out a trembling hand before it went limp.

A/N

Please remember to review! I would have updated earlier but has been having problems uploading. Also, this chapter/story has no beta yet (I actually haven't had one before). I am currently on the search for one but if any of you guys are betas that have an interest in this story just let me know! :)