Disclaimer: I don't own The Vampire Diaries, and I don't make any money off of this story. I do own Lucy, who is the main character in this (she's also my cat, I just like the name!)

Lucy had been dreaming of Mystic Falls since she was eleven years old. She dreamed of things that she shouldn't know about, of people she had never met. She always knew that one day she would end up here. Even if she didn't want too.

She was twenty when she finally realized she couldn't put it off any longer. The dreams were becoming more frequent, more intense. And she wanted them to stop.

She knew it was crazy – her parents had sent her to enough therapists for her to know it wasn't normal. Bi-Polar, Delusional Disorder, Stress – they always had a different diagnosis, a different type of medication for her to try. None of them ever helped.

She had hoped that by seeing the town, she would be able to convince herself that there wasn't anything to it. It would be completely different than she dreamed, and that would stop everything. But as she drove through town, there were familiar buildings, landmarks. And when something wasn't familiar, she knew what should have been there. A field, or an old bakery.

Great, just what she needed. To come here and become even crazier.

With an aggravated sigh, she quickly pulled into the first hotel parking lot she saw. If she was going to be here awhile, and for some reason she thought she was, might as well find a place to stay.

"Hi, can I help you?" A young woman asked brightly the moment she walked in.

"I need a room."

"And how long will you be staying with us?" The woman asked with a bright smile, quickly looking down at her computer.

Lucy paused. How long did she plan to be here? Until she could convince herself that dreams were not real. "Uh, that's undecided."

The woman stopped typing for a moment, looking up at Lucy with a frown on her face. "Well, it shouldn't be a problem… are you looking for something? I've lived here all my life. Maybe I could help?"

And with that simple question, a name flew into Lucy's head. It seemed to echo, making it impossible for her to think of anything else. Her mouth opened and it slipped out before she could stop herself. "Salvatore."

The woman's smile grew fixed. "Salvatore? There is the old Salvatore Boarding house. It's now the personal home of the Salvatore family."

Lucy nodded, her throat growing tight. Salvatore? Where had that come from? Maybe she had seen it on a sign or something driving in? She was grasping, and she knew it, but there had to be a reasonable explanation to why she knew that name. "So, are you looking for Stefan or Damon?" The woman asked, her eyes narrowing as she studied Lucy's face.

The names seemed to ring around in Lucy's head, much like Salvatore had done only a moment before. She swallowed hard, forcing herself to respond to the question. "Uh, I don't know."

The woman's frown grew more pronounced as she handed Lucy the room key. "If I were you, I would find Stefan. He's the nicest of the two. Damon is – well, just stay away from Damon."

Lucy nodded, quickly taking the room key from the woman's hand. "Thanks for your help."

The woman nodded, her eyes still narrowed. Lucy quickly made her way toward her room, not wanting to deal with the woman's odd behavior anymore.

She settled into the room quickly before leaving once again. Maybe if she walked around town, she could find some hint to why those names sounded so familiar. Plus, she didn't want to ask the woman for directions to the Salvatore house.

The walk was harder than she thought, having to stop several times to stare at something that seemed to be eerily familiar. It was during one of these moments that a man in his mid-thirties stopped beside here. "Are you alright?"

Lucy turned to the man quickly, a blush staining her cheeks. "Sorry, I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, just a little lost."

The man seemed to relax at that, smiling down at her softly. "Did you just move here?"

"Just visiting," Lucy replied with a smile.

"Ah. Well, do you need directions?"

Lucy hesitated, remembering the woman's reaction at the hotel. What the hell, it wasn't like she ever had to see these people again. "Actually, could you tell me how to get to the Salvatore house?"

The man froze completely, his eyes darkening. "Why would you need to see the Salvatores?"

"Not the Salvatores," Lucy corrected quickly, "just the house."

The man studied her for a moment with a raised eyebrow. Slowly, he nodded. "Alright, and why is that?"

Lucy shrugged, suddenly tired of the questions. Might as well tell the truth. "I have no idea."

The man fought back a smile as he pulled a cellphone from his pocket. "Alright, hold on a moment."

Lucy briefly considered running away when the man put the phone up to his ear? What if he was calling the police? "Damon?" The man asked, making Lucy's eyes widen. Wasn't that the name of the man the woman at the hotel told her to stay away from? "-I know I can't just bring anyone to your house – no, I don't think so. Normal." Normal? What the hell? "No! Come on, Damon!" A moment later, the man placed the phone back in his pocket and motioned to a nearby car. "I'll drive you. It's too far to walk."

Lucy followed the man, for some reason trusting him. Somewhere in her mind, a voice was screaming Stranger Danger! But she didn't listen to it. Hopefully she wouldn't regret it. "I'm Alaric, by the way."

"Lucy."

It was a short drive, though it would have been a long walk, and soon enough Lucy found herself sitting in front of the Salvatore Boarding House. She frowned as she looked at it. She felt a faint sense of recognition, but it wasn't as strong as some of the others she had seen in town. Somehow, she had expected it to be… bigger. Like a breakthrough or something.

She slid out of the passenger seat, following Alaric to the front door. "Just – be careful around Damon." Alaric warned before knocking.

The door opened quickly, not giving Lucy enough time to ask Alaric what he meant by that statement. "So, who is it that wants to see-" The man started, only to meet Lucy's eyes and freeze.

Lucy took the moment to study the man in front of her. He was extremely handsome, with shaggy, dark hair, and light eyes. Lucy felt her breath hitch slightly as she stared at him.

That wasn't all. That feeling of complete recognition, the one that she had thought was missing when she saw the house? She just got it. With this man. A man she had never seen before and couldn't be that much older than her.

"Damon?" Another voice questioned from inside. Lucy's eyes snapped to the side as another young man came to stand beside the first. "What-" He also stopped talking, only to look at Lucy with his mouth hanging open.

The first man- Damon – had broken out of his daze and was now staring at Lucy with a completely closed off expression.

"Uh, this is Lucy. She was interested in seeing your house," Alaric said, looking from the two Salvatore's to Lucy with narrowed eyes.

"Lucy?" The second man asked softly, taking a small step forward.

Lucy stepped back, suddenly feeling panicked. No! This was supposed to help her – not make here worse! "Uh, I don't think I want to see it anymore," She said softly, swallowing hard.

"Lucy what?" Damon demanded, his jaw clenched.

Lucy cleared her throat, suddenly not knowing how to answer the question. "Uh-" Gilbert. Salvatore. No – those weren't right – what the hell! "Gilmore. Lucy Gilmore."

There was a pause as Alaric and the other man – who had to be Stefan – stared at Damon. Alaric in confusion and Stefan – well, Lucy wasn't sure what the expression on his face was. "And why did you want to see this house?" Damon snapped.

Lucy shook her head slowly, "Uh, the woman at the hotel mentioned it."

There was silence once again, only to be broken from yet another voice from inside the house. "Stefan? Everything okay?"

A pretty girl with dark hair and eyes appeared beside the men, a frown on her face. Lucy instantly felt like running, like she desperately needed to get away. She must have made a sound, because everyone's eyes snapped to her once again. Lucy saw Damon and Stefan trade a quick look before looking at the girl once again.

"Elena, this is Lucy," Alaric said quickly, obviously trying to ease the tension. "She's passing through town."

Elena. No, that wasn't right.

"Hello-"

"How long will you be here?" Damon cut in, his jaw clenched once more and his hands in fists.

"I'm not sure."

"What will you do here?"

"I don't know."

"So, you just showed up in Mystic Falls without any reason, with no idea how long you'll be?"

Lucy felt her eyes narrow and her hands come up to rest on her hips. "Sorry, I didn't know I had to clear by schedule with you."

Instantly, Damon's eyes flashed. Lucy saw Stefan blink in surprise. "Nothing you have said explains why you're so interested in my house."

"It isn't your house, it's the Boarding house. Shouldn't you be at the Manor?" The words flew out of Lucy's mouth before she could even think them. She blinked in surprise as Damon and Stefan's mouths fell open once again. "I'm sorry, I have no idea why I said that."

"The Salvatore Manor burnt down over a hundred years ago," Stefan said softly, his eyes calculating. "How did you possibly know about it?"

"I don't know why I said that." Lucy repeated, backing away from the people staring at her. "Anyway, I think I should just go."

"I think we need to know why you have appeared in Mystic Falls and why you felt…compelled to see the Boarding House in the first place." Damon replied instantly, a scowl on his face.

Lucy glared. "Trust me, this isn't anything new. Call my therapist."

"Therapist?" Elena asked cautiously, moving behind Stefan.

Lucy rolled her eyes. Maybe if she just told them, they would leave her alone. They would think she was crazy, but that certainly wasn't anything new. "I'm not going to take a knife out and stab you," she snapped, unknowingly rubbing a spot on her chest that suddenly hurt. "They call it a Delusion Disorder."

"A Delusion Disorder." Alaric repeated slowly.

Lucy shrugged before answering. "Dreams of places I've never seen, people I've never met. I felt like I needed to come to Mystic Falls, so I did. I was at the hotel when the name Salvatore popped into my head and the woman said to go to the Salvatore Boarding House. So here I am."

Now they were all staring at her with wide eyes. Elena was the first to look away, her eyes looking from Stefan to Damon quickly, as if she was waiting for them to make the first move.

Finally, Stefan spoke, "I think you had better come in."