Magically Created Room~ Date Unknown

Abigail sat at a vanity that looked almost identical to the one in the bedroom she'd occupied in the Salvatore house. Almost.

Her vanity had a nick on the right hand side, right where the drawer met the top. She'd accidentally created it with her silver hand mirror during an argument with Damon when she was fifteen. What had that argument been about? Ah, yes, because she was in midst of her courses and he didn't understand the necessity of knocking before entering her room. She'd grown so angry that she'd attempted to put away her mirror and slammed the drawer shut at the same time.

There had also been a burn mark on the top left side near the standing mirror. Sallie created that scar during an ill-fated attempt to create more tamed curls. She'd left a borrowed "curl" iron in the fire too long, and the upon the vanity even longer. Abigail hadn't thought she'd ever get the burnt wood smell out of her nose or clothes.

There were other inconsistencies, little telltale signs that the room was simply a slight of hand and only done by someone with the briefest glimpses of her real domain. The stack of books by the bed, she had been quite relieved to see were real books, just not the ones she had picked. The clothes that were hanging and the shoes offered were also similar, but not quite the same. They were more closely what Katherine had found attractive than what she would have chosen, but since Emily Bennett had put all of this together it made some sense.

She was still replaying her conversation with Damon through her mind. Although technically this room was her mind, so where was she really replaying his conversation? Just trying to figure out that puzzle was enough to make her dizzy. She sat back in her chair and contemplated their discussion, if you could call it that.

He had answered her questions. About the room, and as much as he could understand about being in the room with her. They discussed Stefan's obsession with taking her to wed. Damon told her about him carrying her to Steven's Quarry and using her to help push him to turn. They spoke about the bracelet she now wore, and how it would help her stay in the carefully constructed room, keeping her safe from Stefan and her own pain and grief. Allowing her to come to terms with it at her own pace. As he readied to leave he told her something that terrified her more than finding him in this place asking her to allow him access to her one sanctuary.

"I don't know when or if I can come back, Abigail." He said, meeting her eyes across the length of the room. "He will rage when he learns you're gone. And he'll watch me for signs I have taken you or that I know where you are." He let that knowledge settle on her. "I will try, but I cannot make a promise I have no way of knowing if I can keep."

She realized that this room, a poor imitation for the one she'd lived in for five years, surrounded by nothing would be her prison. And she may never learn of a way out of it on her own. If she couldn't find a path through her pain and loss, if she couldn't learn to control her overwhelming fear of the man in front of her and his brother, then would leaving matter? However, learning that the only person that she knew for certain could communicate with her may never come back, that drew her anxiety ever nearer. She knew he was right though, Stefan must not know where she was.

She nodded, not trusting her own voice. Abigail couldn't say goodbye, not even to her attempted murderer. Not when it may be the last thing she ever said to anyone. She turned away to face the fireplace, and as Damon released her hand, he would swear he heard her thank him.

Mystic Falls, VA October 1864

Someone had outed Emily Bennett as a witch. While Mayor Lockwood and Giuseppe Salvatore had witnessed her locator spell during Abigail's time in the crypt, they had an understanding about keeping it quiet. Both had reasons to keep the young witch as an ally, and neither would have allowed anything happen to her, regardless of her otherworldly talents.

With Giuseppe's disappearance and the mayor having more fires to put out than the one in Fells' Church, the whispers grew until a mob mentality formed and the calls for her death were deafening. It was too late by the time the news reached Damon for him to concoct a way to save the young witch, and so, on a horrible day in October, she was burned for her alleged crimes. He watched from the shadows, feeling increasingly like a failure.

He couldn't save Emily. He had hidden Abigail, but couldn't find a way to visit her again. His brother was still manic with his obsession for Abi, and he spoke of nothing besides finding her and feeding. He couldn't see a way past his brother's thirst, for either Abigail or blood and revenge. And so, daily he felt like the tally of his failures was multiplying.

He had taken to walking the boundary of Mystic Falls, daring nothing more than a skirting of Abigail's house. He knew that Stefan watched him, even if he couldn't see him. Stefan made cryptic comments, about how beautiful the leaves looked turning so orange and burnt near the cemetery, after Damon had been that route just hours earlier. Or when he mentioned how the caretakers of the Fells' homestead were slacking, since the fence line was broken on the eastern border. That was mentioned when he'd taken a shortcut on the way home, taking him past the Fells' property on just that side. The warning was clear. He was being watched.

He couldn't chance another trip to Abigail's. It didn't matter that he yearned to check in and be certain that her new lodgings were doing her well being better than before. And he needed to say goodbye, because he would find a way to get Stefan to leave the town. His revenge and blood lust were going to get them both hunted down.

Respite came in the latter part of November. Her name was Lexi Branson. Stefan had come across her during one of his many hunting trips. She had expected a larger vampire population in Mystic Falls, the news of the burning of Fells' Church not being widespread. Instead she found the population of two, Damon and Stefan Salvatore.

Lexi, not so different from Damon, was appalled by Stefan's feeding practices. She agreed that he seemed to have obsessive tendencies, but while Damon cleaned up the messes and goaded with words and irritation, Lexi went a different route. Soon Stefan was distracted by Lexi and Damon found time to visit Abigail for a second time.

He'd barely touched her hand and said hello before Abigail had inundated him with questions. She wanted to know the date. She was curious about the things she'd missed, if Emily had given him any hints or clues to the lock that kept her in her new world. He considered her questions and tried to answer them as best as he could.

"As a vampire," he noticed her flinch at the distinction of his new species. "The days blur, but it's the end of November, 1864."

As for what she had missed, the list was vast. He admitted it had taken so long between visits due to Stefan's rage, not only because of her disappearance but also in reaction to Katherine's treatment by the town and his father. He'd already killed the Fells and attempted to kill Johnathan Gilbert, Damon wasn't entirely sure why Johnathan wasn't dead.

Keeping his eye on the rug by her bed, because what he was about to share, he admitted that Emily Bennett had been burned for a witch by the townspeople. Before she'd died, while they were creating a way to keep her safe from Stefan, all that she'd told him about Abigail's situation was that she could leave when the time was right. Unfortunately she'd given him no way to gauge that time. His tone was apologetic and she tried to keep hers light when she asked him if there was anything else.

"Stefan's made a friend," he offered, looking up. "She's like us. Although I think you might like her, if you'd had a chance to meet her under normal circumstances."

Her sniff in answer told him different. He contemplated how long he'd been gone. Even with Lexi as a distraction he couldn't afford to be missed. She sensed it because her next question shocked them both.

"Are you coming back?" She asked in a tone of fear mixed with hope.

He had to admit to not knowing again. "It depends, Abigail. Lexi distracts him, but he's still obsessed with you. I can't chance he'll follow me."

She nodded, not looking up. And once again he left without either saying goodbye.