A/N: The Spring semester has officially begun and I have decided to simply give up sleep. It's a necessary sacrifice.

Disclaimer: I only own Lacey.

Bloodlines Bonus: Elijah's POV

I let out a sigh, disappointed that another lead has fallen through. This house has been empty for decades. There is no evidence that my brother has ever been here.

After centuries without my family, the only thing I seek is revenge against Niklaus.

There is some honor to be found, I believe, in vengeance. Niklaus has made a mockery of our promise, "Always and Forever," daggering each of our siblings and throwing them to the bottom of the ocean.

My fist clenches in response to the thought.

That is precisely why I've found myself in Georgia. I keep a witch on stand-by, constantly listening for any chatter of Niklaus' whereabouts, but it has just been another dead end. He refuses to show his face, knowing that I would go after him the first chance I get, in the name of our family.

I meander past the dusty, broken furniture and leave the deserted house.

I grow tired of this lonely existence. A thousand years walking this Earth, and Niklaus has taken my one source of steadfast comfort, the most important thing to me. All because his temper still resembles that of a toddler a millennium later.

As I drive out of Atlanta, a small bookstore catches my eye. "One Book a Day," advertising rare and vintage editions as well as freshly brewed coffee and tea.

The day has already been monumentally disappointing; I see no reason why not to stop in and be even more disappointed by the shelves that will no doubt be filled with less-esteemed copies of books I already own.

A bell jingles as I enter the store, causing a lady, whom I assume is the owner as there are no other employees around, to look over with a smile.

"Welcome to 'One Book a Day,'" she says. "I'm Amanda. Let me know if I can help you find anything."

"There's no need. I'm just browsing."

She nods, turning back to the shelf she had been organizing.

As I walk through the rows of books, I take note of the familiar titles. Anna Karenina, Tom Sawyer, Jane Eyre, Persuasion. As expected, all copies of books I own first editions of.

The bell jingles again, announcing that someone else has entered the store. I tilt my head to the side listening for footsteps, but none reach my ears.

Curious, I make my way to the end of the aisle and peer around the shelf to see a wide-eyed girl in strawberry printed pajamas and yellow rainboots beaming towards the coffee counter. She twirls up to it, greeting Amanda with a wave.

"Hello!"

"Good afternoon," Amanda waves back with a laugh. "Welcome to One Book a Day, I'm Amanda! What can I get for you?"

"An Earl Grey tea, please," the cheerful girl replies.

I smile to myself at her choice. It's not the usual preference among the young individuals of today, but it's one of my favorites.

I turn to walk back to where I left off browsing the shelves, hearing the girl walk between the shelves an aisle over. Hearing her inhale deeply, I walk to the end of her row and find her face buried between the pages of a book.

She looks up, eyes meeting mine as I try not to smile. The longer she stares, the more I struggle to hide my amusement.

Shaking her head, the girl blinks and holds her hand up to me in some type of unfamiliar greeting with her fingers spread apart. "Greetings," the girl says.

At my look of confusion, she attempts to give an explanation. "You know… Star Trek? Ya know what, never mind," she remarks, holding one hand out to me and pointing to herself with the other. "Lacey Galileo," she introduces.

I reach out my hand to gently take hers.

"Do you always introduce yourself so readily to strang-" I begin, but before I can bring her hand to my lips, she clutches mine back tightly and vigorously shakes, making my eyes blow wide open in disbelief. Truly, what an odd girl.

"As a matter of fact," she starts, offering me a warm smile. "No. No, I do not. Call it your lucky day."

I'm intrigued by her, such honest innocence is rare, but she appears to be completely sincere in her warmth. For the first time in a very long time, I find myself desiring to get to know someone – this slight girl who quite literally twirled into my life.

I follow her to the counter when her tea is ready and watch her furtively slip a 20-dollar bill in the tip jar when she thinks nobody is looking. She is generous, as well, then. The knowledge brings a smile to my lips.

Lacey turns around, only to suddenly halt in surprise when she sees me there. "Whoa, you're super quiet. I wish I were that quiet. That's like a superpower. People always hear me coming. My friend Jeremy says that it's because of my breathing. He says I breathe loudly, like wheezing and stuff."

I listen to her ramble wordlessly while studying her. How is it that this young girl can so easily disregard any worry of judgment or normality, in both her choice of clothing and character?

For a moment, I wonder if she is actually as young as she appears, but I quickly dismiss that idea as I watch her take a large gulp of her tea, making her eyes water as she visibly struggles to swallow the scalding liquid.

If I were still questioning her naivety, her next statement proves it is not artifice.

"One should always wait for their tea to cool before guzzling it down like a parched donkey."

The sheer, random absurdity of her statement causes me to laugh out loud before giving my agreement.

When she beams a smile at me, I feel my heart soften. In every respect, it is like a ray of sunlight has shone directly into it and thawed the ice frozen there from centuries spent embittered.

I cannot help but accompany her as she browses the shelves. "Are you looking for anything in particular?" I ask, wanting to offer my assistance and refrain from seeming improper for trailing after her.

She rambles once more, seeming to struggle to find words as she rolls her head, cracking her neck.

I raise an eyebrow, expecting her to make some expression of pain from the sound of it, but she simply names the book she wants.

I'm both pleased to hear she is looking for "Jane Eyre," a book that I noticed earlier and can help her find, and impressed that she shares my interest in 19th-century literature.

"I think I saw a copy in the next aisle. You are a fan of the classics, then?" I ask while leading her to the copy I spotted earlier.

"I like to say I am, but I haven't read that many. I have read all of Jane Austen's novels, though," she brags.

My lips turn up at the fact she would find her reading of classic novels to be bragging material. "As have I," I reply while handing her the copy of "Jane Eyre."

"Wow, thank you so much, suit man."

My brows come down in confusion before I realize my impropriety. In my enthrallment with her, I've forgotten to introduce myself.

"I apologize. I've forgotten to introduce myself." I hold out my hand for her, bringing it to my lips before she can start zealously shaking it again. "I'm Elijah."

Lacey stares for a moment before removing her hand from mine. I'm disappointed to lose her warmth.

"Well, it was a pleasure meeting you. I should, uh, get going probably," she says quickly. "And you should, too. You look like you have somewhere to be. And I… I have my friends to get back to."

"Your friends? They are nearby, then, I presume."

When she nods, I feel a stab of disappointment go through me, knowing that I won't get to spend more time with her. Of course, someone as radiant as herself would have no shortage of company, all no doubt eager to bask in her warmth.

I pay for her book, eager to leave a good impression on her, though it doesn't come close to matching the one she has made on me.

I watch her walk down the street after waving goodbye before she enters a bar. Walking unhurriedly back to my car, I get in and place my hands on the wheel, but don't go anywhere. My eyes focus on the empty lot.

Lacey. I test out the name, not being able to help my chagrin over having to let her walk away without learning more about her.

My thoughts are interrupted when I hear someone calling her name. I snap my gaze up, focusing on the dark-haired man that just exited the bar.

He bends down, picking up a familiar-looking book. It takes a moment before I realize it's the one I bought Lacey.

In an instant, I am out of my car, eyes narrowed in his direction when his eyes darken, veins appearing around them, and he disappears around the side of the building.

I take off after him, mind racing. Is this one of Lacey's friends? Does she know he's a vampire? I am immediately suspicious, worried that she is being compelled.

Coming around the corner, I see Lacey running towards the dark-haired man while he is attacked by another vampire. She trips and starts to fall, but I rush over to hold her up.

She looks up to me, startled as I stare into her eyes, silently trying to compel her to tell me her companion's name. When she doesn't respond, I feel relieved to know she must be wearing or ingesting vervain, thus not being compelled by the other vampire.

My gaze turns inquisitive. She knows about vampires, but she isn't afraid. Her heartbeat remains steady. My intrigue only grows for this wonderful ray of sunshine who doesn't hesitate to embrace the dark.

"Who are you?"

I turn to answer Lacey's companion but find him talking to the other vampire instead, who answers quite angrily.

"That's perfect! You have no idea. You killed my girlfriend. What did she do to you, huh? What did she do to you?!" The vampire shouts.

"Elijah," Lacey whispers, causing my eyes to darken at the sound of my name so sweetly falling from her lips. "You have to get out of here," she continues frantically, pushing me towards the end of the alley. "You could get hurt."

Once again, she brings a wide grin to my face. I haven't smiled this much in centuries. That she is so concerned about my well-being brings up stirrings of emotions I long believed to be dormant.

I bring my hand to her cheek, gently stroking her soft skin while I study her eyes, bright and untroubled earlier but now dark and pleading. The last thing I would let happen is someone to put out the light that makes up her very being.

Stepping away from her as the attacker lights a match, I appear in front of him, ignoring the dark-haired vampire on the ground behind me. With one swift movement, I'm ripping his heart out before he can drop the match.

I spare one last glance at Lacey, memorizing her image before I retreat into the night.

A/N 2: Short but sweet:)