I stepped out of the cabin of my truck hesitantly. My fight or flight mode wanted to kick in so badly, and I had a feeling this time around it would be flight. As my feet hit the pavement I scanned the school. It was pretty big, and the school grounds were admirable. Overall it gave off that normal high school vibe. With a deep breath I pulled my unusually nervous self together, and began the journey towards the front office. I could almost hear the death march song from Star Wars accompany me as I crossed the parking lot.
I noticed the odd stares from a large portion of the student body and inwardly grimaced. I knew that I wasn't going to be subtle, but this was just ridiculous. Hoping that they would quiet down soon, I ducked my head down and avoided all eye contact. My job here would be a lot more difficult if they kept this up.
After the stare-filled trip across the grounds I ended up in the admissions office. The secretary looked through the well forged transfer documents and skimmed through my fake school records before smiling up at me.
"You're all set. Here is a school map," she handed me a piece of paper, "and your locker number and combination is written on the top."
"Thanks," I smiled back at her.
"Good luck," she offered before resuming tapping her fingers across the computer's keyboard.
Turning away from the desk I daringly stepped into the mass of people flooding the hallway. It took me a while to get out of the crowds, but when I did I found myself in the general area of where my locker was.
Reading the number again, I saw that it was only a few feet to my right.
I tested the combination, but the metal door refused to open. The second time ended up with the same result. Finally, with a bit of frustration I banged on it with the side of my fist. The door shakily flung open, and I smiled in triumph. No puny locker could get the best of Cori Chayse!
I dropped one of my bags in the locker, the one that held my weapons, just as the warning bell rang.
Adjusting my other bag, which I had bought the day before, on my shoulder, I began the search for the History classroom. I found it just as the tardy bell went off.
As I stepped in the door every single face turned towards me. One in particular looked slightly shocked, like he didn't think I should be here.
"Ah, you must be Miss Corrine Smith," the teacher said from his position leaning against the front desk.
"I prefer Cori," I corrected him, but also said it loud enough as a sort of introduction of myself.
"Alright. Well, I'm Alaric Saltzman. It's a mouthful, I know, so you can call me Rick."
His name suddenly sparked a surprising sense of recognition in me. I had heard his name somewhere else before, but where? It was such an uncommon name that it couldn't be a coincidence.
"How about you take the empty seat over there, by Stefan," he suggested as he pointed to student who had been surprised by my presence.
"Sure thing, teach," I drawled out with a two-fingered salute.
Making my way towards the empty seat, I noticed something about the student he had pointed out. He had a lapis lazuli ring, the ring of daywalking vampires.
That explained the shock. He had probably talked with the vampire from the bar. I didn't know how he knew that I was in fact the same girl, as I looked unremarkable and indistinguishable from the masses. But he did know, somehow, that I was the girl who staked his vampire buddy.
Reluctantly I lowered myself into the uncomfortable plastic seat and pulled out a notebook and pen. As "Rick" spoke about the history of whatever, I jotted down notes unconsciously. Though I didn't like the prospect of high school, I did still enjoy learning. Might as well make use of the time I would be spending in Mystic Falls.
Class ended with the loud ringing of the school bell, and I hurried to get out of the room. Any talking to people was what I wanted to avoid at the moment. Unfortunately I barely made it out of the door when I felt someone approach me. Turning around I saw that it was a girl with olive toned skin and long, straight, brown hair. She seemed like the type who was really sociable, nice, and overall way too perfect.
"Hi, I'm Elena Gilbert," she said as she offered a perfectly white smile. I took note of her last name which indicated that she was most likely was part of the founding families' line. Earlier I took the liberty of skimming through the town's history, and the name "Gilbert" popped up quite a few times.
"Cori," I supplied, "but you probably heard me at the beginning of class." I held out my hand for a handshake, which she accepted.
"So, this is your first day of school here, right?" She shifted her books back into her right arm after having moved them to shake hands.
"Uhm, yeah, I just rolled into town last week actually."
"Oh, where from?" I thought back to my cover story and recalled some of the false identity which I had studied intensely.
"Canaan, Connecticut. It was a lot smaller than here, believe it or not."
"Smaller than Mystic Falls?" She laughed softly, and I released a half-chuckle.
"Yeah, it's definitely a huge change between there and here."
"I can't imagine how small it would have to be to make this town seem big."
"Yeah." I awkwardly laughed, not knowing how to continue the conversation. Honestly, I was surprised that it had gotten as far as it had.
"What class do you have next?"
"English."
"Oh, I have that class too. I can show you where it is, if you want."
"Sure." I knew that I was not flying under the radar at all, and by the looks of it this girl was pretty popular too. I just hoped that eventually she would forget about me and we would go our separate ways.
Unfortunately that did not end up being the case. As the day progressed she refused to leave my side. At some points I was afraid that she would come to class with me even if she didn't have it herself. But no, in those classes that I didn't have with her I had with her best friends, whom she told to make me feel welcome.
Oh, and guess what? The vamp in our history class was her ex-boyfriend! Elena's friend, Bonnie, pointed it out to me in a later class. That's right, out of all the possible guys that she could have dated, she perhaps chose the most dangerous type of guy. I mentally questioned what had caused them to break up. Maybe murderous tendencies? But no, by the longing glances and secret filled smiles that they cast to each other ever so occasionally read that they were anything but broken up.
And not only was Stefan a vampire, but I also spotted her other friend, Caroline, dawning a similar daylight ring.
Though her relationship with both vampires could give me an advantage hunt-wise, I didn't want Elena, or any civilian for that matter, to be caught in the potential crossfire. I couldn't help but wonder if she knew that her ex-boyfriend/secret-boyfriend was a sun-hating blood-sucker? I would figure that out eventually, but I knew that it would require getting close with Elena. Like, extremely close, which was not something that I excelled in.
But some stress was relieved at the moment when Elena asked me to come to the Lockwood mansion with her to set up for the upcoming Masquerade ball on Saturday. The opportunity offered might be enough for me to both form a stronger bond with Elena, and dig up some information on the current vampire situation.
With the invitation and a quick goodbye I exited the school building. As I hurried back to my truck I tried to think up a plan for the upcoming week and masquerade ball, but my thoughts were cut short by the figure leaning up against my car.
"Hey Stefan," I tried to sound as friendly as I possibly could without giving too much away.
He nodded with a small smile on his face. His eyes darted back and forth between each of mine, trying to figure me out, looking for some answer as to who I really was. "How do you like it so far?" He referred to the building behind me.
"It's a big change," I supplied truthfully.
"I can imagine. I heard you're from Connecticut?"
"Yup, I am." I could tell that he was going to prod me, looking for a skip in my heartbeat, something to tell him that I was lying.
"Why'd you move here?" he questioned me further.
"My dad got a job offer at the hospital," I lied through my teeth. It was a job opportunity that brought me here, but not for the dad that I didn't have. "He's a cardiovascular surgeon."
Stefan narrowed his eyes at this. By gauging his response I decided that I was being a little too mischievous. It wouldn't do for him to figure out who I was just yet, so I backed off from the array of blood related jokes that I had stored in the back of my mind.
"Well, thanks for your warm welcome. I've gotta get going, so I guess I'll see you tomorrow."
"I guess you will."
I pulled open the door of the truck and hopped into the cab, while Stefan stepped away from its side. With a small wave I backed out of my parking spot and pulled onto the road leading back to the motel.
I turned up the volume on my radio, blasting rock music that would probably label me as a disturber of the peace. My plans rolled around in my brain, coming into focus more and more as I thought over the information that I already had.
This breed of vampires was extremely strong, Flash-fast, and excellent in the hearing department. They would be harder to beat if it came down to fighting. Almost no human would be able to get them with a blitz attack, so I knew that taking an alternate route would be required if it came down to killing one. The least dangerous way of analysing the threat they posed, and potentially killing them, would require getting closer than just being acquaintances. It looked like I would be stuck in Mystic Falls until I managed to do so.
I also knew that these vampires could retain their humanity. Though some with their humanity could be as dangerous as those without it, I had to recognize the possibility that they could continue living here without harming others. This case would require a lot more open-mindedness than most hunters were used to. But I would manage.