Summary: When Irina Petrova sets foot upon Mystic Falls, she bargains for more than she expects...Hearts are broken and lives are taken. Alliances tested and games are played. Somewhere in the midst, love violently lashes out in many more ways than one. Does Damon Salvatore really want nothing to do with Irina, the sadistic killer who caused them all grief? Does Klaus Mikaelson want more than her blood? And will his brother Kol eventually unlock himself through her? Follow Damon, Klaus, and Kol's struggles, and their affection for this one girl.

A story of the unknown abilities and heritage of doppelgängers, dark magic, sibling rivalry, a love triangle, and, at the heart of it all, a lethal, beautiful vampire with quite a past: Irina Petrova

The Plot So Far (SPOILERS): Irina Petrova has only one goal in mind: to wreak havoc in Mystic Falls. She begins her reign of chaos by killing Caroline Forbes, in order to restore Elena Gilbert's humanity. Little does the Mystic Falls gang know, Irina has ulterior motives...in the meantime she slaughters a bar-ful of victims for her own enjoyment, while Klaus is still mourning Caroline's death. At Caroline's funeral Irina appears to the group, snapping Elena's neck for the second time and causing Damon to attempt to hunt Irina down, in which he is unsuccessful. Later on he is sitting in front of the fire in the Salvatore Mansion, contemplating his problems, when Irina decides to play mind-games with the brothers. Meanwhile a certain Kol Mikaelson decides to return to Mystic Falls. Katherine tags along with Irina, but secretly plans to make a deal with the devil himself. Kol returns to Mystic Falls with no apparent agenda (his reason for returning being boredom). Katherine confronts Klaus about Irina, but he violently ends their talk by biting her. Katherine runs into Irina, and all but begs her to save her. Irina needs Katherine in her plans and therefore spares Katherine, by feeding her the mysterious Petrova blood. Damon finally realizes a huge mistake and leaves Mystic Falls, but not before an encounter with Irina and Elena. Irina then threatens April Young to sympathize Elena, as they've both lost all their family. Meanwhile Klaus is starting to lose his mind. He's seeing strange symbols on the stake that killed Caroline. He decides to torture Caroline's killer, when he finds them. April follows Irina's command, which causes Elena to snap by attacking April. Stefan manages to stop her in a time, and they leave quickly...

Main Characters: Irina Petrova (OC), Klaus Mikaelson, Kol Mikaelson, Damon Salvatore, Katerina Petrova...

CHAPTER 8 SOUNDTRACK: Lana Del Rey's "Born To Die"

Previously: Elena withdrew her hand as if she had been branded. She threw Stefan a look of pure fear. She wasn't in control of her actions or herself. "Get me out of here," she gasped. Elena was scared. Shaken. She needed to calm down. With a final look of worry given to April, Stefan carefully escorted Elena out of the Mystic Grill, leaving April Young distressed and shaken.

Darkness Stole Her Heat

8

On Both Ends


April blinked, blue eyes rapidly scanning the Mystic Grill. After a few tense moments she relaxed, slumping back against her seat. Irina was nowhere in sight.


Damon tunelessly hummed, absentmindedly tapping his fingers across the rough bark. As he sat up, he noticed the victims laying around him. Damon smiled sardonically, his blue eyes uncaring, his legs outstretched before him without a care in the world.

When he had left Mystic Falls, halfway away from his living hell he had flown into a rage. Yelling, hissing, slamming, then dragging whomever he could find to the forest where he could kill them like a true animal.

Now, the morning after, Damon's heart felt as light as air, the same way it felt when he turned his emotions off. So...free. He was free.

With his back to the tree he lazily ran his eyes over his victims, taking in their appearances. Rivulets of blood ran down them, soaking into the earth, their flesh maimed and gouged. Damon hadn't only killed them, he had tortured them.

He stood up from his slouched position, blurring quickly to regain his balance. He kept the same smile, the other Damon's, the one that Stefan knew; not the one that Elena knew.

One thought ran across his mind.

Irina.

He didn't even know why he still thought of her; she was yet another vampire who preferred to live life on the edge, to its full potential. To have fun.

And yet...What was it she had said to him? That he never had anything in the first place. Perhaps it was true. His mother, taken from him, dying in childbirth, his brother, the golden boy, always praised and worshiped, and his father, who would have liked to see Damon dead rather than alive. And Katherine. Always choosing Stefan. And finally, Elena. Causing Damon to feel conflicted, to feel again. Nothing but trouble. And still, always choosing Stefan.

Damon was, after all, always the second choice. He'd gotten attuned to it over the years, gotten used to the metallic bitter taste he tasted in his mouth when he would be second best yet again.

Why was he thinking about her?

Perhaps because of her beauty. He'd never seen another like her, Damon was sure of that.

Her destructive flare, her icy rage? What did it remind him of? Himself? Why did he revert back to his old ways? Because of her.

Irina. Irina. Irina. He couldn't get his mind off of her. She was everywhere.

There was just something about Irina that...he wasn't even sure, and thinking too hard about it made him hungry again. Damon wasn't supposed to think too hard. He was just supposed to live life as he always had been; causing mischief, grief, and bloodshed wherever and whenever he wanted to.

No boundaries.


Irina watched April Young leave with faint amusement. The girl clasped her bag tightly to her side, glancing cautiously around her as she exited the Mystic Grill. She decided she would stop playing games with Elena and April...for the moment. She vaguely wondered what Katherine's explanation would be to Klaus.

She smirked to herself as her mind was taken off of the manner. A tall blonde with crystalline blue eyes and a cold glare had just walked into the bar. And she certainly looked familiar.


Katherine flashed into the house, the pale hue of her skin gone, replaced with the natural rosiness of her cheeks, now flushed from her task. "Klaus," she said carefully, "I need to tell you something."

"Katerina." Klaus sat before the fire, tossing papers in as he spoke, and watching them burn. "Have you come to say goodbye before the last moments of your death?" Katherine managed to smile almost triumphantly, in a bitter fashion.

"I'm alive and kicking, thank you."

Klaus inclined his head towards her. "My hybrid blood is the only thing that will do the trick."

"There are other ways," the doppelgänger reasoned, stepping closer. Klaus waved his hand at her to continue, while he threw in another drawing of Caroline to the hungry red flames.

"Her name is Irina. She's new in town. And I suggest you go find her." Katherine was gone in an instant, having fulfilled her duty to her sire.

Klaus had finished burning all of the drawings. Staring into the fire, the blue shards of his icy eyes meeting the hot, hungry engulfing flames, he whispered her name. "Irina..." He would find her. Find her and discover what powerful blood she had to cure Katherine of the hybrid bite. He would challenge her for power...and he would defeat her, ensuring that he was still the most powerful creature on the planet.

It was the only thing left to do. With Caroline gone, nothing seemed as important as it had before. As Klaus settled his mind over his new infatuation, regaining power and control, his mind involuntarily flashed to the coffin downstairs. He gritted his teeth, and strode out of the mansion. He still remembered what he had done, clear as day. He didn't regret it.


Klaus had stood in front of them all. He eyed the doppelgänger that had fallen to the ground, her neck at a gruesome angle. Bonnie was tending to her, propping her up and holding her head in her lap while tears fell down her face as she watched her life unravel before her.

Smiling sardonically while unsettling the group, he walked over to break through the circle they had formed. In the midst of it all...Caroline. She lay on the ground like she was peacefully asleep, ready to spring to life at any moment. Klaus still believed she would. When he spoke, his voice was rough. "I give you all my best." He nodded towards her. "She'll be safest with me."

"Klaus..." Stefan trailed off, his voice uncharacteristically cracking. "She's dead."

The hybrid simply smiled in response, looking over to Caroline. "And whoever said there is no way to reawaken the dead?" No one stepped up to face his challenge. Whether they were that desperate to have their number one enemy lend a hand, or they were too beaten down to protest, he didn't know. Gently he had gathered her in his arms, as if she were a fragile doll made out of china. But Caroline was anything but that. Much time spent around her had taught Klaus that. He left the group standing there in the muddy rain, mourning for the loss of Caroline.

When he arrived at the mansion he had lain her body carefully in a coffin, one of the resting places he had used for his daggered siblings. Yes, perhaps, yes, Caroline was like them now, her heart still beating but her mind asleep. He'd just need to find the hidden dagger in her and pull it out and she would breathe again. Very soon.


Rebekah Mikaelson had just entered the bar, searching for a certain familiar human boy. As she spotted the mess of dark blonde hair, she made her way over to him. Seating herself at the bar, she ordered a bottle of alcohol, while giving him a long sideways glance. Matt, noticing the look, sighed and took the stool next to her. "Look Rebekah, I'm not really in the mood for this right now..."

"I know. I heard about Caroline." She played with the bottle in her hands, staring absent-mindedly at it. "Nik's been moodier than usual." She took a swig then set the bottle down with a loud clack.

"He said he was keeping her in a safe place. Is he really?" Matt questioned evenly, his eyes suddenly latched onto a certain someone.

"If my brother cares for her, he'll keep her safe. We'll have to wait and see." She glanced up to see Matt's reaction, only to discover a look of pure hatred on his face. But his eyes were staring past her.

Rebekah turned, and was met by an old, familiar sight.

"Rebekah. Fancy meeting you here."