For pictures, soundtrack and more for this story, visit my tumblr blog - see my profile for link.
Many thanks to my wonderful Beta reader xxxMrsSalvatorexxx who took the time to read these 2 first chapters and aid my poor english.
I hope you'll enjoy the story :)
The morning came to Mystic Falls with cautious warmth and brittle sunlight. Lea woke but didn't stire for half an hour, savouring the peace and quiet.
The event from the previous night seemed to be nothing but a bad dream and the man with murder in his eyes was a shadow fleeing before the sun. Now that her mind was calm and clear she lay wondering why he had decided against hurting her. It had been obvious that he was no ordinary man and his deliberate show of long sharp teeth brought to mind the countless vampire movies she had seen over the years.
Lea had always believed there was truth to the old tales, but frankly she had hoped to meet mermaids or unicorns, not blood thirsty bats. The encounter was far from her romantic idea of fantasy creatures and she briefly considered just packing up and driving away. But it seemed sort of ridiculous, not to mention cowardly to run.
Whatever he was, he hadn't hurt her in spite of his instinct. She felt curiosity worm its way in, overshadowing her concern. Lea still really wanted to visit the excavations and if he was such a night creature she would only need to get home before sunset. Why was she such a sucker for a mystery?
Peeking at the alarm clock, she realised that the hotel breakfast buffet had already closed and scrambled towards the bathroom. Lea was determined to face Mystic Falls. Besides she wasn't particularly afraid of death.
She had no regrets in her life, and death was merely a kind of train station that would carry her onto new destinations. Pain was harder to handle but she knew that if the mystery guy wanted to kill her, she wouldn't have time to think before her neck got snapped.
...
"Damon?" Sefan knocked on the black door.
"What?!" a sleepy voice sneered.
"Me and Elena are meeting Bonnie for brunch. Wanna come?" Stefan wasn't keen on letting Damon and Elena be in the same room considering their history but his brother had seemed even more bad-tempered and scheming lately.
It had been a long time since Elena had finally chosen between them and Damon had accepted his defeat with his usual dark grace. Stefan felt blessed every day for her love, and could afford to be the bigger man. He saw how Damon returned to his mean old habits and numb heart and couldn't help feeling responsible.
"I might join you later, if I have nothing better to do," Damon answered and Stefan left him to his groggy misery.
The bedroom was dark except for a single ray of light sneaking through the heavy curtains. It graced the glass of Bourbon on the night stand and he reached lazily for the drink to wash down the blood from last night.
He rose to throw on the usual black T-shirt, dark jeans and leather jacket. Even if this was a crappy morning it might be fun to stir things up at Stefan's perfect picnic brunch. It really wasn't his idea of a swell sunday: to eat mini muffins and playing the spectator to Elena and Stefan's face sucking.
Still he could drop by the café and offer his specialty - a bit of awkward insolence. He slightly enjoyed watching Elena and Stefan squirm while they battled their guilt over her choosing Stefan against telling him to shut the fuck up. It was far better than those nauseating pity glances.
Damon was a big bad vampire and their compassion made him sick to his stomach. Sure Stefan had won Elena, the woman he had desired even more than Katherine. But it had given him a welcome reminder as to why he didn't allow himself to feel anything for anyone. He wasn't human, he didn't have no beating heart to listen to.
...
Elana sat nipping at her scone, listening to Bonnie's worried voice.
"I am telling you, something strange is about to happen. My dream last night was literaly exploding with weird omens." She leaned in close and added: "when I woke up my drapes were on fire!" she showed them a burned lock of hair as a testament to her story.
Stefan looked concerned and Elena didn't want to listen. Mystic Falls had been trouble-free for a while and she had really enjoyed the peace and quiet. Bonnie often had wild dreams and though Elena knew how powerful her friend was she wished that these dreams did not bear the significance Bonnie ascribed to them.
"What kind of omens are we talking about?"
The witch shook her head. "I don't know. I keep dreaming about sparks setting everything in the town alight. But I am not sure whether the fire is a friend or foe yet."
"Anything else?" Elena asked, hoping that was the end of it.
"Yeah, dark butterflies bleeding a lake in the town square."
"Wow I don't know how you ever get any sleep with dreams like that," Elena said and Bonnie replied with a tired glare.
The café door slammed closed and Stefan turned his head with a predator wrinkle on his nose. A blond girl entered and strolled past them heading for the counter.
"Who is that?" Elena asked.
"Don't know," he mumbled.
Bonnie was too occupied with her dream to even look up, and sat playing unconsciously with the flame. Usually she wasn't so careless with her powers in public, but it was a reflection of her worry.
"That's a neat magic trick," The blond girl spoke spooking them all. The candle flame crackled startled and Bonnie's face turned red. "How do you do that?" Bonnie considered lying, but somehow figured that the truth might throw the girl off.
"Just a bit of witchcraft," she smiled nervously.
"Really cool, you must be the centre of attention at parties. I am Lea."
Bonnie smiled relieved that her forwardness had paid off and shook her hand.
"You're not from around here," Stefan said and Elena kicked him under the table.
"No I am not," she replied, "I am visiting from Europe, Denmark to be more specific."
"Why come to Mystic falls? Not much happening here," Stefan said and both of the girls had to stop themselves from snorting sarcastically. With all the supernatural activity over the last couple of years they wouldn't exactly characterise the town as dull.
"I think it's fun to see the small towns when I travel, and there's an archaeological excavation in town that I really want to check out."
Bonnie's face lit up. "Yeah, I've seen that. The paper wrote that they had found a house or something?"
"I heard that too, so I can't wait to check it out," the stranger spoke.
Elena smiled at her eagerness. "You're a historian?" Elena questioned. There wasn't a lot of academic types i Mystic Falls, but Elena loved when people had an intelligent story to tell. That was also one of the things she loved about Stefan. Unlike the average teenage boy, Stefan liked reading books and discussing them with girl in front of her had a scholar charisma but with hints of a wilder side, like her red leather jacket, messy hair and intense green eyes.
"No I am an archaeologist," Lea replied and started telling them all about the places she had visited in the last month on the road.
The friends sat spellbound when Lea described her visit to a Native American reservation and her meeting with a famous shaman. Lea thought it was great to share her adventures with someone. It got kind of lonely traveling by herself and as long as she could focus on the amazing trip, and skip any deeper conversation - like why she had left Denmark in the first place - she enjoyed herself imensely. None of them heard Damon enter the café.
Damon noticed her right away. He was baffled to see her in eager conversation with Elena. Oh, how curiously different they were.
Last night he had been so focused on her scent and eyes that he hadn't really seen her. Elena was slim and elegant like a house cat, and dark with her brown hair, brown eyes and tanned skin. She had a constant mixed look of secrecy and vulnerability on her face. A look Damon had come to love.
Lea was different. Everything about her was light. Even last night when she knowingly faced a most likely death, she had light in her eyes. Her hair was blond from the sun, but red brown underneath and skin so pale it was almost transparent. She had an expression on her face of complete openness and a strength in the way she carried herself, like a wild lioness.
The girls were deep in conversation about American nature. Apparently the foreign girl had a passion for hiking in beautiful forests. He waited a while by the door, pondering on these two women. That new girl still smelled and looked like something he would enjoy biting into, whereas he would never touch Elena.
After Stefan and Elena had found each other all he really wanted to do to women, was kill them. And he had. Only last weekend he had gone on a killing spree in a nearby town. If he took too many lives in Mystic Falls Stefan would try to stop him, and though he had small nagging desire to kick his little brother's ass - just for an hour or two, he felt that their new sense of brotherhood should be protected. He didn't feel like being on his own again.
Elena was the first to notice his presence. "Hey, it's Damon," she waved at him and turned to Lea and added: "He's Stefan's brother." The blond girl raised her chin to look in his direction and immediatly lost her relaxed stature.
Lea felt a chill crawl down her spine. The dark creature had returned underneath the bright sun. Suddenly she didn't feel like chit-chatting and got up with an apologetic smile.
"It was so nice to meet you all, but I think I better go now."
Bonnie saw how Lea sent Damon a nervous glance and wondered what the dumb vampire had gone and done now. Honestly sometimes he was just too much of a jerk. She really liked this Lea, and hoped to bump into her again soon.
Elena was confused with the sudden departure too. "Why don't you meet us tonight, there's Open Mic at the Mystic Grill?" Elena asked and quickly scribbled her cellphone number down on a napkin. Lea grabbed it and almost ran past Damon who was watching her hurry with amusement. As the door closed behind her Elena turned to Stefan. "Do you think something is wrong?" she asked and he gestured Damon who smoothly slithered after Lea.
...
"Leaving so soon?" he humored letting her know he was walking right behind her.
She paused slightly but didn't turn. "Stalking me again?" she asked, and Damon let out a brief laugh. "So your name is Damon then.. very suiting." Lea turned very suddenly and faced him. Damon searched her eyes for any fear but to his surprise he found nothing. The heart-beat was happy but calm. Did his evil appearance really have such a vague effect on her, that the day after he almost attached her, she felt nothing? Lea inspected his mouth. "Does your kind walk in the daylight now?" she spoke as-a-matter-of-factly and turned to walk again.
"Darn, what gave me away? It's the black leather jacket right?" he sighed sarcastically as if he was upset with himself. She just kept walking, waiting for his answer.
Lea felt strangely curious and not nearly as frightened when the sun was shining. Besides, she hated when people tried to scare her. Damon tried to read her silence. "Since you ask, besides my vicious charm, I posses a little trick that allows me to bask in the sun." He opened his arms upwards and smirked as she glanced back at him.
"And now you have decided to stalk me?"
"Don't flatter yourself, I was meeting my brother and his friends at the café."
She resisted a smile. "Didn't figure your kind had friends, and as far as I can see they're still at the café and you are here, chasing me." Damon would have snapped some poisonous response, but she continued. " Trying to scare me senseless or do you just want a hug?" his temper flared and with a harsh push he pinned her to the wall.
"Do you have a death wish girl!?" He hissed and heard a rush of blood wash through her veins like a tidle wave. Lea looked at him with scientific amazement and felt his chilled breath on her lips.
"I have no regrets. Do you?" she asked a challenge written on her face. "And if you are indeed my dark death, then at least you are.. well slightly handsome." She sighed.
"Slightly!?" Damon released her in disbelief. "I am the Brad Pitt of vampires!" Demonstratively he lifted the t-shirt to reveal solid abs and knocked on them with his fist.
"Wow, yeah, excuse me. You are just a dashing reaper, " she said without a smile.
Damon placed his hand beside her head on the wall and gave her a furious look. "You've got a quick mouth, don't you? I might actually let you live."
Stefan came out of the café followed by Elena, to see why Damon and Lea had acted so strangely. "Damon, what are you doing?" Stefan's voice rang in his ears.
Elena ran to them and pushed Damon away from Lea. "Control yourself," she snapped at him and sent Lea an apologetic look. "Sorry Lea, he's mental. Let Stefan handle him while I buy you a cup of tea or something?" Damon still hadn't broken eye contact and Lea refused to let him win. Finally Stefan yanked him around the corner and the girls stood alone. "Did he do anything to you?"
Lea shook her head slowly and noticed that her hands were suddenly shaking. "He.. surprised me last night. I thought he was going to kill me. I am not sure why he didn't. Oh my god, I never thought I'd ever meet a vampire!" Lea tilted backwards to seek the support of the brick wall and Elena gripped her arm in support.
"You're safe now. We wont let him have you." Elena promised and guided the shaky girl back to the café. Lea didn't understand where all her sassiness had come from but she thought she had seen a glimpse of amusement in his otherwise cold eyes, when she stood up to him. Whether it was the amusement of the cat playing with the mouse or a genuine interest, she couldn't tell.
A few minutes passed while Bonnie and Elena exchanged bewildered looks as Lea sat very still on a chair and muttered thoughtful words. When she spoke again her voice sounded gloomy.
"I really didn't expect to see a vampire in the States. Some skyscrapers, maybe Las Vegas and some celebrities - not a vampire." Elena was concerned that the girl might get hysteric though the voice was low and dark. Lea continued, "and Stefan is this Damon's brother, so he's a vampire too?" Bonnie nodded before Elena could prevent it.
They didn't know this girl yet, and always guarded the secret of the Salvatores, because only few understood that not all vampires are evil. Revealing their nature to the wrong people could start a vamp-hunt hysteria in the town, and though Lea had recognised Bonnie as a witch with nothing but a smile, she probably wouldn't be as kind to the vampire race when Damon was the only representative she had encountered.
"But Stefan is a good guy and Damon is too, in his own bad way," Elena explained but was met with a skeptic frown from Lea. "He's just kind of lost right now."
"Witches and vampires," Lea whispered, "is this not an intricate world?" she asked without really expecting an answer.
"Damon would never hurt you, if I told him not to," Elena reassured her, and patted her shoulder. Lea forced a grateful smile and wondered if this was the beginning of a fairytale or a nightmare. Either way she had always loved reading the stories with princes and monsters, but now that it was all so real she wasn't certain she could handle it. She was drawn by the possibility of learning more, about magic and beasts, and looking into the eyes of death always made her feel utterly alive.
Stefan returned and Elena went to talk to him, while Lea started asking Bonnie about spells, specifically those for protection. The sudden change from shock to action baffled the black witch but she wanted to help Lea. It was a rare thing to talk openly about her crafts and Lea seemed to listen with every fiber of her body.
"How is she?" Stefan asked as he kissed Elena on the forehead.
"I am not sure. I mean she's such a nice person, but I don't like the way Damon scared her. She might go to the Sheriff," Elena replied. "Can't you use that jedi trick on her?"
Stefan smiled. "It's called mind compulsion, and I think that's a good idea to just make her forget. Less trouble for all of us. She has got Damon all worked up. I usually don't interfere when he feeds, but a foreigner and in broad daylight, what was he thinking? Next thing we know he kicks of an international vampire killing spree. I don't know why he is so interested in her."
Elena shook her head. "Me neither, although she does smell good." He looked at her questioningly. "Well, she does. Don't think I didn't notice how your nostrils vibrated when she first entered."
He leaned forward and kissed her. "You smell good too," he said and she giggled as he gently bit her neck.
"Just go do your magic," Elena said and pushed him softly away.
Lea was more relaxed as they returned. Bonnie and her were engaged in eager conversation about spell-making.
"Lea?" Stefan interrupted. As she turned towards him he grabbed her shoulder and stared into her eyes. "You'll forget about Damon. You will get your things and travel onto your next destination. You will lose interest in the excavation." His pupils dilated and she sat for a while considering his words.
"I don't think I will just forget about a vampire's attempt to jump me. And I have dreamt to see an excavation like that." The friends gawked. Stefan's ability to manipulate thoughts had helped keep their secret many times. Even though Damon was far better at it, Stefan had never failed once, and then came this strange girl, who smelled like ice and earth and rejected his attempt with the wink of an eye.
When she continued to glare at him he realized that they were all silent in disbelief. Bonnie was the first to break the awkward moment:
"Then why don't we take a walk down to the dig site?" Elena and Stefan nodded slowly trying to figure out how to deal with the unusual event.
Lea however was beaming with joy. "I would love to. Just the thing to get my mind off Damon." They paid the waitress and Bonnie and Lea made their way to the exit. Elena and Stefan lingered at the table and looked at each other.
"This has never happened before," his voice was almost apologetic.
"I am sure it hasn't," she replied. "She's got vampire tantalizing scent, drives Damon nuts, and resists you when you compel her mind. Maybe it would be wise to watch her? Do you think she has got magic?"
Stefan shook his head. "She doesn't smell like a witch, but a spell might be protecting her. Hopefully she's leaving town soon."
"If Damon doesn't drain her first," Elena added.
"We've got to keep her safe then?" Stefan asked her, and Elena smiled at her protective boyfriend.
"It's the right thing to do. She's a nice person," Elena concluded and Stefan hugged her. He felt strange, like the calm before a storm.