I wake up on the first day of junior year and got dressed. Then I groaned and lay down on my bed.

I'm going to school and I'm not going to be the girl who lost her parents. I will start fresh, be something new. It's the only way I'll make it through.

You okay, 'Lena? I asked my twin telepathically. I think it's a twin thing since we could always do it.

Honestly, I don't know, but we've got to try. What about you Alyssa? she replies.

Same.

I head downstairs and right after me follows Elena. We both go into the kitchen with Aunt Jenna.

"Toast. I can make toast," Jenna says.

Elena replies, "It's all about the coffee, Aunt Jenna."

"Is there coffee?" our younger brother, Jeremy, asked.

"Your first day of school and I'm totally unprepared," Jenna offers us money. "Lunch money?"

"I'm good," Elena and I say. Jeremy takes it.

"Anything else? A number two pencil? What am I missing?"

I asked, "Don't you have a big presentation today?"

"I'm meeting with my thesis adviser at… now. Crap."

Elena and I said, "Then go. We'll be fine." Jenna leaves and Elena asks Jer if he's okay.

"Don't start," Jeremy scoffs. Then he walks off, and we sip our coffee.

Bonnie is driving us to school and says, "So Grams is telling me I'm psychic. Our ancestors were from Salem, which isn't all that, I know, crazy, but she's going on and on about it, and I'm like put this woman in a home already! But then I started thinking. I predicted Obama and I predicted Heath Ledger, and I still think Florida will break off and turn into little resort islands."

Elena was looking out the window… at the cemetery. I sighed.

"Elena! Back in the car," Bonnie said.

"I did it again, didn't I?"

"Yep," I say from the backseat.

"I'm- I'm sorry, Bonnie. You were saying that…"

"That she's psychic now." I say then I look at Bonnie. "Predict something about us."

"I see…" Bonnie starts but doesn't get to finish because a bird or something hits the windshield.

We gasped and Bonnie stopped the car. I leaned back and took a deep breath.

You okay, El'?

Yeah. You?

Yeah

"What was that?! Oh my god! Elena, Alyssa, are you okay?"

"It's okay. I'm fine," we both said.

"It was like a bird or something. It came out of nowhere," she said.

"I can't be freaked out by cars for the rest of my life," my twin reassured.

"Seriously Bonnie, We're alright."

"I predict this year is going to be kick ass. And I predict all the sad and dark times are over and you both are going to be beyond happy."

We all grin and Bonnie starts to drive again.

When Bonnie, Elena and I stop at Bonnie's locker, we look over and see Matt. Elena waves and Matt shuts his locker.

Matt is that cute boy who has been Elena and my friend for forever. Then Matt and Elena start to date, but after our parents died, she needed space.

"He hates me," Elena said.

"That's not hate-," I start.

Bonnie finished, "That's you dumped me, but I'm too cool to show it, but secretly I'm listening to air supply's greatest hits."

"Elena, Allyssa. Oh my god." Caroline comes up and hugs both of us. "How are you? Oh it's so good to see you." Then Caroline turned to Bonnie and asked, "How are they? Are they good?"

"Caroline, we're right here," I say.

Elena continues, "And we're fine. Thank You."

"Really?" she asked.

"Yes," I say. "Much better."

"Oh you poor things," Caroline says and pulls us together tightly.

"Okay, Caroline" I mutter. Caroline lets go and says, "Ok, see you guys later?" Then walked off.

"Don't comment," Elena told Bonnie

"I'm not going to say anything. Hold up. Who's this?" Bonnie asked when we see a guy in the administrative office.

My twin says, "All I see is back."

"It's a hot back," Bonnie says and we chuckle. "I'm sensing Seattle, and he plays the guitar."

I comment, "You're really going to run this whole psychic thing to the ground, huh?"

"Pretty much."

Then Elena and I see Jeremy go into the boys' bathroom.

"I'll be right back." Elena says and she follows Jer. I follow close behind.

Elena grabs Jer's cheeks. "Great," she says letting go. "It's the first day of school and you're stoned."

"No, I'm not."

"Where is it? Is it on you?" my persistent sister questions.

Cool it Elena. No matter what you say, he won't stop.

I can try she replies.

"Stop, alright. Chill yourself, alright?"

"Chill myself? What is that, stoner talk? Dude, you are so cool."

"Look, stop! I don't have anything on me. Are you crazy?"

"You haven't seen crazy, Jeremy!" Elena said. "I gave you a summer pass, but I am done watching you destroy yourself." Jeremy starts to walk to the door, but El pushes him back.

"No, no, no, you know what? Go ahead, keep it up. But just know I'm going to be there to ruin your buzz every time, you got it?"

Elena sighs and continues. "I know who you are, and it's not this person. So don't be this person."

Jeremy turns toward me. "You gonna help a brother out?"

I sigh, "Jeremy, I get it, a distraction. We all need one. Your's are drugs. But you know Elena. She is persistent. I can't stop her. Plus I don't want to see you get hurt. Sorry Jer." Jeremy walks around us and leaves and I follow close behind.

After a moment, Elena comes out and bumps into the new guy. They both step the same way and then do it again. Then he moves to the wall to let her through. I almost burst out laughing.

We were in History with the new guy. And I saw him looking at Elena.

New guy staring at you I tell my twin while she's checking a text.

After school, Elena and I were in the cemetery in front of our parents graves. Elena had out her journal and I had out my sketchpad. I drew what people saw me as after believing me about what I said vs what I really felt. I feel sad, not mopey, just not what I used to be like.

A crow flew onto their gravestones. "Hi, bird," Elena said. "That's not creepy or anything."

Fog comes around us, Elena puts down her diary and shoos the bird away.

"That's what I thought." Then she turned around and stumbled back. I look behind me and jump up, seeing the crow again, and I grab my sketchpad and bag. Elena grabs her bag and runs out the cemetery. I look back and see a man. I can't make out what he looks like, just that he is wearing dark clothes. Then I follow Elena.

When I catch up to her, she is talking to the new guy.

"I'm Elena,"

"I'm Stefan,"

"I know, we have History together,"

I hold back a chuckle. Elena, it sounded like you said you two have a history together.

Shut up.

"And English and French."

I step next to my twin to introduce myself to Stefan. "I'm Allyssa."

"Nice ring," Elena says.

Stefan holds up his ring and says, "Oh…um… It's a family ring, yeah. I'm kind of stuck with it. It's weird huh?"

"No, no. It's just, there are rings and then there's that,"

Stefan smiles and then he has a look of confusion. "Did you hurt yourself?" he asked Elena.

"Oh uh," she says. "I don't know."

She rolls up her pants leg to see blood. "Oh! Look at that. That is not pretty. You okay?" she asked Stefan who had turned away.

He said, "You should go. Take care of that."

"Really. It's nothing." Elena rolled up her pants leg. He was gone.

"We're meeting Bonnie at the Grill," Elena and I told Jenna later that night.

"Ok, have fun. Wait I got this. Don't stay out late, it's a school night."

"Well done, Aunt Jenna," we both say.

When Elena opened the front door, she gasped. Stefan was standing outside.

"Sorry, I was about to knock. I wanted to apologize for my disappearing act earlier. I know it was… strange."

I stepped back and went into the kitchen.

A few minutes later, I hear Elena ask Stefan if he wanted to come and I took that as my cue to head over there.

When we got to the grill, Matt came and introduced himself to Stefan. Stefan, Elena and I sat down with Bonnie and Caroline.

Basically from 20 questions on Stefan, I learned that he was born in Mystic Falls and moved when he was young. His parents died. He has no siblings that he talks to. He lives with his uncle. Caroline told him about the bonfire and he asked Elena if she was going.

"She'll be there," I tell him.

The next day I learned that his last name was Salvatore. He told Mr. Tanner to brush up on his facts after not knowing an answer to his own question.

At the bonfire Bonnie, Elena and I were discussing Stefan, and Bonnie asked, "Where is he?"

"I don't know," replied Elena. "You tell me. You're the psychic one."

"Right. I forgot. Okay, so give me a sec. Grams says I have to concentrate."

"Wait you need a crystal ball," I said. I looked around and grabbed a beer bottle. "TaDa."

Bonnie reached out to grab it and touched my hand. She had a weird face and pulled away.

"What?" asked Elena.

Bonnie said, "That was weird. When I touched you, Lyssa, I saw a crow."

"What?" Elena and I asked.

"A crow. There was fog. A man. I'm drunk. It's the drinking. There's nothing psychic about it. Yeah? Ok, I'm going to get a refill." Bonnie walks away.

That was weird, I thought.

Yeah, it was.

Then Stefan came up to us.

"Elena, I gotta go. See ya." I walk off.

Thanks I hear as I leave.

Later I see Jeremy heading to the woods and Elena following. I catch up to see Jeremy fall.

"Vicki? No! Oh my god, it's Vicki!"

Vicki was there practically dead with blood on her neck.

"Oh, my god!" El and I say.

Vicki gasps. Jer, El, and I carried her out of the woods.

"Somebody help!" El and I screamed when we were out of the woods.

Tyler, Matt and everyone else panicked. They rushed over to her. Someone called an ambulance.

"It's her neck. Something bit her. She's losing a lot of blood," Elena said.

After the ambulance got her, Elena asked Jeremy if he was okay.

Dumb question, Elena. Oh course he's not alright.

"I called Jenna. She's on her way," I said.

I made my way elsewhere because I don't want to listen to Elena lecture Jeremy.

"Hey," Bonnie said. "We're gonna go mainline coffee, wait for news.

I nod and say, "I gotta take Jeremy home."

"Allyssa, there is no way I'm psychic. I know that. But whatever I saw, or think I saw, I have this feeling…"

"Bonnie, what?"

"That it's just the beginning."

I sit on my bed, tonight, drawing Vicki. I can't stop thinking about what happened today. Vicki being attacked and almost killed. Then I thought about what Bonnie said. When she touched me, she saw a man, a crow, and the fog. It was just like at the cemetery. I wonder who the man was, and what did Bonnie mean about it just being the beginning?

I drifted to sleep.