Part 12
Bonnie looked up as she heard the door close, and Jason came into the lounge. "Did you find Raquelle?" she asked.
"Yeah, but she wouldn't talk. I think there's something going on between her and that friend of yours." Jason looked at her meaningfully.
Bonnie groaned, ready to kill Damon already. Why did everyone have to assume just because they'd been seen together they were dating? It was infuriating. *He* was infuriating. Ugh. Jerk. "What'd you mean?"
"I don't know. I thought maybe they used to go out or something and he dumped her, or hurt her or something, but when I asked, she said something about whatever happened between them was a very long time ago." Jason sounded confused.
Bonnie couldn't blame him really. This was all very, very weird. She doubted Damon was used to girls looking at him and suddenly running. "You like her?" she suggested.
Jason sighed. "Yeah, I do. She's cute, and something new...there's something *different* about her..." His expression had turned almost dreamy, and then he shook his head. "But she's hiding something. She..."
"Daphne's not happy?" Bonnie said. Daphne had looked rather jealous when she'd come over briefly before.
Jason laughed sourly. "Daphne's jealous alright. She actually said Raquelle was a *vampire*. She swore she saw her with pointy teeth and that she killed someone." Jason snorted in disgust. "So I ditched her." He sighed. "I have some homework." And he left then.
Bonnie sank back into the couch cushions. Raquelle was a vampire? Maybe Daphne wasn't making it up. And Raquelle had seemed so afraid of Damon.
Unless...an idea was beginning to form in Bonnie's mind as she put two and two together, guessing what had happened. Oh that asshole! How could he have done that? She grabbed her coat and her keys and stormed off to go look for him. He deserved to be taught a lesson.
But on her search for Damon, she found the other girl, Raquelle. Maybe she could get Raquelle to talk to her. The girl was sitting at a table outside the coffee shop, and Bonnie joined her. "Raquelle?" she asked. "Look, uh...hi. I'm Bonnie, Jason's sister."
The girl looked up at her, eyebrow raised. "I'm not Raquelle."
Bonnie blinked. "Huh?"
The girl smiled. "I'm her sister, Seraphina."
Bonnie flushed. "Oh God, I'm sorry. You two look really similar." The girl was the same height, with the same golden hair and blue eyes. What was it with Damon and blue-eyed blondes?
She opened her mouth to speak, and then noticed something that made her words die on her tongue. Seraphina didn't reflect in the metal table. She looked up at met the girl's jewel blue eyes.
Seraphina sighed, slightly annoyed. "Yes, yes, I'm a vampire, and Damon made me."
Bonnie was surprised at the girl's sudden bluntness. "I..."
"I read your friend's diary up in the local library," she answered.
"Oh." Bonnie had forgotten about that. In that case, if this girl was a vampire, then...
She was right. Damon was going to be so dead when she found him. What was the matter with him? You'd have thought after what had happened with him, Stefan and Katherine he'd have learned about changing people who hate each other. But then again, did...
Oh this was a pain. It wasn't even any of her business. But she was still pissed at Damon.
"You're Jason's sister?" Seraphina asked.
"Uh, yeah," Bonnie said. "You know Jason."
The girl smiled, and something about it was oddly chilling. No wonder Damon liked her. She seemed like he did. Arrogant and annoying. "Yes, we met about twenty minutes ago. He seems nice." Seraphina's eyebrow raised. "Does he have a girlfriend?"
Bonnie frowned. "No. Not anymore. He just dumped her."
"How convenient." Seraphina stood up. "I have to go now. It was nice meeting you." And with that, she practically vanished.
Bonnie shook her own head in confusion. This was getting absurd. Where did all these weird people suddenly keep coming from. A loud screech sounded above her head, and she realised it was coming from the crow that was watching her, perched on the branch of a near-by tree.
The crow flew into the shadows, and a second later Damon emerged. Bonnie walked up to him, and slapped him hard. "You asshole!" she snapped.
Damon's eyebrow raised. He looked mildly amused. "What was that for?"
"You made two sisters that hate each other vampires. What the hell is the matter with you?" she hissed, trying to keep her voice down, despite how mad she was. She didn't want to be overheard and have people think she was insane.
"Maybe we should start calling him Katherine," a sarcastic voice behind her said.
Bonnie turned. "Meredith!" Her friend stood there, dressed in an elegant wine-coloured business suit. Her dark hair hung loose to her shoulders, her dark eyes were shining warmly at Bonnie. Bonnie hugged her friend. "What are you doing here?"
"Coming to visit you?" Meredith said, an eyebrow raised. "We arranged this last week. I was on my way to your house, and I saw you here."
"That's not funny," Damon said, sounding a little annoyed. Wow, he actually could show some emotion, Bonnie thought. She sighed, and they sat down at one of the tables.
"What's going on?" Meredith asked. "Seriously."
Bonnie sighed, and glared at Damon, who just shrugged. "Don't ask me," he said.
"It's your fault," she snapped.
"I didn't know they were sisters!" he snapped back.
"That's no excuse!"
"You two want to let me in?" Meredith asked.
Bonnie sighed and told her what was going on. Meredith listened, face expressionless. No change there. Bonnie sighed again.
"A case of history repeating itself, again," Meredith said finally. She didn't sound too happy.
Bonnie hadn't thought about that. But now she did, it seemed that Meredith was right. "Oh God," she muttered. "We have to stop this."
"How?" Damon asked. "You don't know what's going on." He sounded, if anything, almost peeved.
"I don't know," Bonnie whispered. "Both Seraphina and Raquelle like Jason. And he doesn't know who they really are. We have to do something. I don't want him ending up like Elena."
No one said anything.
* * *
Part 13
Jason couldn't get Raquelle out his mind. There was something she was hiding from him. She had looked like she wanted to talk, but was afraid of what he might think.
He didn't care, he decided. He wanted to know, to help her. Whatever it was, he would get her to talk. He knew she was staying at old Mrs. Flower's boarding house. The drive over there took ten minutes.
Mrs. Flowers wasn't around, and the door swung open when he knocked. He found Raquelle's name and room number on a board in the hall. She was in the attic room. He made his way up the creaky old stairs, and for some reason, suddenly felt afraid.
His skin was prickling and the hair on his arms and the back of his neck was standing on end. He didn't understand why he suddenly felt like this.
He knocked on the door to Raquelle's room. No one answered. "Raquelle?" he called out. "It's Jason. Look, I need to talk to you." He tried the door handle. It turned. He wondered why no one was bothering to lock the door. Where was everyone?
He went inside Raquelle's room. All that was there was the bed, an antique dresser and a chest of some sort in the corner. And something else that seemed weird. A small fridge. He sat down on the bed, waiting for Raquelle.
One other thing, he noticed, was there were no mirrors. That was strange. Raquelle was beautiful, and from what he knew, beautiful girls loved looking in mirrors. Then again, Raquelle wasn't like any other girl he'd ever met.
He waited, tapping his fingers impatiently. He kept glancing over at the fridge. He couldn't understand why he was getting a very, very bad feeling about it. It was just a refrigerator for God's sake. What was inside, a dead body?
Suddenly he had to see. He yanked the door open. There was no dead body there. But something almost as bad. He reeled back in shock, horror coursing over him.
Inside the fridge, were packets and bottles of something dark red. He frowned, doubting it was tomato juice. He unscrewed the cap on one bottle, and took a tiny, medicine size sip. He spat it out.
Blood.
It was blood.
He dropped the bottle, and turned to run. He didn't see what was behind him until he bumped into it. In a movement too fast for him to see Raquelle had grabbed the bottle of blood and the cap before it hit the floor.
Great reflexes, he thought vaguely.
Raquelle put the cap back on the bottle and put the bottle back in the fridge. She closed the door and eyed him. Her expression was one of sadness and guilt combined.
Blood? She drank *blood?* There was only one thing he could think of that did that, and that didn't like mirrors either. "You're a vampire," he said bluntly.
Raquelle flushed. "Yes. I didn't actually *ask* to be one. It wasn't my fault. It was your sister's friend. I thought he loved me, but I guess he loved my older sister Seraphina more. He dumped me and went off with her." She sounded sad, almost lonely.
Jason was surprised. "Seraphina's your sister?" He'd wondered what she'd meant when she'd said, "wrong one."
Raquelle frowned, and looked even unhappier. "You know Seraphina?"
Jason nodded. "I met her after you ran away from me."
"Did you like her?"
Jason was surprised at the sudden bluntness of the question. He wasn't sure. Seraphina had given him the creeps, particularly when she'd told him he could count on seeing her round. He sighed, not even sure if he liked Raquelle anymore. The girl was a *vampire.* She drank *blood.*
Daphne was right, he realised. He eyed Raquelle warily, wondering if she was going to do anything. But she didn't. She just folded her arms and stared at the floor. "Maybe you'd better go," she said.
"Yeah." And for the second time that night, Jason couldn't wait to get home where he would be safe from the monsters. Yet, he was somehow having trouble convincing himself at the truth of this.
* * *
Part 14
As it turned out, Jason's relief at beating the monsters home was short lived. When he got home, Bonnie and her friend Meredith were sitting on the couch. The creepy guy who had scared Raquelle was sitting in one of the armchairs. They were obviously waiting for him.
"What?" he asked. "It's late, I'm tired. I've had enough weird stuff for one day."
"Sit," Bonnie ordered, pointing to the other chair. Jason groaned and sat. Would this day *never* end? It was beginning to seem like it. He looked around.
"Raquelle and her sister are vampires," he said flatly. "I know. She told me. And I'm guessing he's got something to do with it." He threw an angry glare at the creepy guy, who's name he didn't know.
"Yes, Damon changed them both," Bonnie said, equally angry.
The creepy guy - Damon - looked rather bland about it. He just shrugged. "I didn't know they were sisters," he said. He stood up. "There's nothing to do about it." He stood up and left then before anyone could say anything.
"I'm gonna kill that guy in a second," Bonnie growled, chin lifted, face determined.
Meredith sighed heavily. "Let him go, Bonnie. He's not worth your effort."
Jason sighed. "What has all of this got to do with me?"
Bonnie and Meredith exchanged glances. "I don't know what you've heard about what happened during our senior year, but we're going to tell you what really happened, and you'd better listen, cause it looks like it's happening again, to the next generation," Bonnie said.
Jason opened his mouth to protest, but gave up. He sat and listened as Bonnie and Meredith told him the whole story about Stefan and Elena.
All he'd heard were rumours, they were supposed to have been the town's sort of Romeo and Juliet, a tragic love story, involving vampires, a white kitten, a white owl, a black crow, other weird things, stolen diaries...he'd seen Elena's diary up in the town's library, but had never bothered to read it.
You weren't supposed to read other people's diaries, even if the person was dead. Besides, it was old news. It had never concerned him before. As far as Jason had been concerned, vampires were just myths.
Now, as it turned out, he'd been proved very, very wrong. And now, it seemed, the whole thing was happening again. Raquelle, a mysterious new girl had shown up, hiding something. And she was a vampire. Then Raquelle's even more mysterious older sister Serephina had shown up, the bad vampire. And they both liked him.
He attracted all kinds of girls to him, and he'd never really had a problem with it before, until he'd started attracting the walking undead.
This was a disaster.
"How do we stop this?" he asked.
Bonnie and Meredith shrugged. "Last time there was another power controlling everything, and she was insane, but I don't think there's anything like that this time." Bonnie paused. " At least, I hope not."
"There's Daphne," Jason said, suddenly remembering. "You've seen what she can do when she's pissed off." Oh great. He'd totally forgotten about Daphne.
"There's no way to know how to stop this," Meredith said finally. It was the right answer, but not the one Jason wanted to hear. "What happens is up to you."
"I was afraid of that."
Now what?
* * *
Part 15
Meanwhile, Daphne was pondering the ideas of vampirism. Was the whole concept really that bad? Okay, the only downside was the blood thing, but maybe it was something she could get used to. She thought of Raquelle, who was pretty, young, smart, and immortal.
It was that that her mind focused on. She would live forever. She would be physically perfect without effort. She would have powers she hadn't dreamt of. She had read Elena's diary for a second time, carefully, focusing on the things Elena mentioned about being a vampire.
Daphne shut the book and put it back. It was the next day, and Daphne hadn't bothered with school, there were more important things on her mind. She would find Raquelle, force the girl to change Daphne, and then once Daphne was a vampire, she could kill Raquelle.
And Jason would be all hers again. She could change him too, and they could be together, forever.
Living forever...to never die...she could see what the world of the future would bring...that fascinated her...thinking about what the world would be like in the year 3000. She would live that long if she were a vampire.
Right. Decision made.
First thing was find Raquelle. Raquelle was probably in school right now. If she went and demanded that Raquelle change her into a vampire, everyone would think she was insane. What would it do to her reputation?
Once she was changed, and Jason, then maybe she could bring Abi and Beth over too. Then they would all be together, and never be separated.
She decided to wait for Raquelle at the boarding house she was staying in. She hurried out the library, and realised she was getting a stroke of luck. She could see Raquelle sitting at a table in a small café.
She marched over and sat down without being invited. Raquelle looked at her, a slightly amused expression on her face, her blue eyes twinkling.
"Let's get one thing straight," Daphne said. "I don't like you. I never liked you. And you're going to pay for stealing my boyfriend. Second," she leaned closer, hissing, "I know what you are Raquelle."
Raquelle sighed in annoyance, and Daphne backed away. "Maybe I should wear a name-tag or something," the girl muttered. "For the fourth time, I am *not* Raquelle. I'm Raquelle's older sister, Seraphina."
Daphne blinked, feeling embarrassment rush up her cheeks. "But are you what Raquelle is? As in..."
"Undead?" Seraphina asked. "Yes. But don't worry, I don't like Raquelle either."
"Oh, good, then maybe you can help me," Daphne said, brightening. Maybe this girl wasn't so bad. "I hate Raquelle cause she stole my boyfriend. But I want to be...you know...too, so I can kill her and make her pay." Daphne looked around, seeing a few other customers sitting outside the café. She didn't want to say the word 'vampire' in front of them.
Seraphina looked at her. "Who's your boyfriend?"
"Jason McCullough."
Seraphina's expression darkened. "No deal. He's mine. I want him."
Daphne frowned, not expecting that. But of course, who was she kidding? Ever girl wanted Jason. Jason was gorgeous, what did she expect? But she never had to worry about competition up until now.
Seraphina's eyebrow raised. "Tell you what, I have an idea. I have a friend you might like."
"Oh?" Daphne was interested. There were other vampires besides Raquelle and Seraphina. There had to be. Stefan had been one. Now, she realised, the whole story in the book was actually true. It had really happened. But still...
Seraphina lifted a hand and pointed across the street. Daphne turned, seeing the really hot guy who had been talking with Jason's sister Bonnie that day Raquelle had freaked and run away from him.
But if he'd made Raquelle run...
"That's my friend Damon, you'd like him," Seraphina said. "We'll swap; I'll have Jason, and you can have Damon."
Daphne's eyebrow raised. She remembered reading about Damon in Elena's diary. Damon was the bad guy. But he was really, really gorgeous. Even hotter than Jason.
"Okay," she said. "You've got yourself a deal. But we need a plan"
Seraphina smiled. "Way ahead of you there. I have a plan."
Daphne smiled back. "I think you and I are going to be good friends."
* * *
Part 16
Raquelle was leaving. It made sense to go now. Everything had gone wrong. She should have known Jason wouldn't be able to accept her for who she really was. Seraphin and Damon were in town too. That just made everything more awkward for her. Seraphina wanted Jason. Raquelle didn't stand a chance.
She threw her things into suitcases. How could she have been so stupid? She wasn't human, and would never fit in among humans.
What would happen now that Jason knew? Would he go around telling everyone? Then everyone would run screaming when she walked by.
Or worse, what if they chased her with stakes and torches to burn her? She shuddered at the thought.
She could feel tears beginning to bead in her eyes. She had never asked for any of this.
It was all Damon's fault.
Because he was so sexy and charming she had fallen for him, and he had given her a living hell. Had he even recognised her? Probably not. He wouldn't give a damn about her.
She had loved him, and he had bitterly betrayed her. She shook her head, and the tears spilled over. She hadn't thought of Damon in so long. But now he was here...all her memories were stirring again. His touch, his kiss...how thrilled she had been that he had wanted her...
Which made the betrayal all the worse. He had never even *said* anything to her. He had just gone. Just left. Well, a not exactly. She had seen him with Seraphina and *she* had fled. Had that actually affected Damon in any way? Did he ever even think about what he had done to her?
No. Probably not.
And now Jason was abandoning her too. She had thought he would be her friend. But now he knew the truth he couldn't deal, like most humans.
And of course, he was right in thinking she was a monster. She was. She was a killer. She had killed that boy.
A knock on the door startled her out of her unhappy reverie. She blinked, coming back to reality and went to open the door, getting a surprise.
"Damon."
* * *
Damon stood there on the doorstep, Ever since she had run away from him, Raquelle had been in his thoughts. He had always wondered what had happened to her, why she'd run away from him. No girl had ever done that before. Most girls fell at his feet and would do whatever he wanted.
She stared at him, a look of complete shock on her face. He stood there, and for probably the first time in his life, he couldn't think of a single thing to say.
Raquelle stood back. "I suppose you want to come in," she said finally.
He shrugged. "Yeah, I guess."
Raquelle frowned. "All right. Come in."
Damon stepped into the attic bedroom, cleared now of any traces of showing that someone lived there, two suitcases were on the bed. He moved them to the floor, and sat down on the bed without being invited.
"Why are you here?" she asked.
It was a good question. "I'm not really sure," he admitted. "I guess I..." It took a lot of effort for him to get the next words out. He never regretted anything he did. He lived for now, in the moment, and didn't care who he hurt. But still...this girl was having a very strange effect on him. "I guess because I wanted to say...I'm...sorry." There. It was out. And yet he didn't really feel any different, worse or better. He felt...neutral.
Raquelle stared at him, her eyebrow raised. "It's a little late for sorry," she said.
"I know, but it cant hurt to say it anyway," he said. He frowned, it had taken him a lot of effort to actually apologize, but she didn't seem to realise that. Studying Raquelle, he thought maybe there was a definite resemblance to Katherine, Raquelle had the same long golden hair, the same jewel blue eyes, a sort of wonderful innocence about her...or she had when he'd first met her.
But he'd changed that. He hadn't actually *meant* to change her. It had just sort of...happened. It had been exciting for her, to exchange blood. But then...she had woken up...a vampire.
But by that time he'd already met Seraphina, who had seemed much more his type. But Seraphina had actually left *him*. She had run off with some snotty French shapeshifter.
"How do you feel about me?" he asked Raquelle rather bluntly.
Raquelle blinked, obviously surprised by the question. She opened her mouth to speak, then stopped. "I don't know," she admitted.
"Raquelle?"
Damon glanced over at the door, irritated to see Bonnie's baby brother there. He really was not in the mood for dealing with annoying little human brats right now.
"What the hell is *he* doing there?" Jason demanded, glancing over at Raquelle.
Raquelle didn't say anything. She looked uncomfortable.
Damon sighed heavily. "Run along, little boy. This isn't something for children to get involved in."
"I'm not going anywhere," Jason snapped. "I want to talk to Raquelle."
Damon looked over at Raquelle, who looked confused. He couldn't really blame her. "Raquelle?"
She looked from one to the other, her mouth open but no sound coming out.
"Choose," Jason said bluntly.
Raquelle shook her head. "I can't...I need time...both of you have to go away now." She turned her back on them. Damon was annoyed, but didn't do anything. He turned around and left.
* * *
Part 17
Daphne frowned, wondering why Seraphina was leading them to Jason's house. She doubted Jason would open the door and immediately and meekly give into Seraphina. Jason had an annoyingly strong will.
"What are you doing?" Daphne asked, finally breaking her vow of silence. Seraphina had already said she had a plan, so Daphne had left it up to her to be the brains. Once strong and powerful and immortal, being the smartest person in the world certainly wasn't the most important thing. She would be young and pretty forever. That was what mattered.
Seraphina grabbed the door handle and turned it, opening the door. "Invite me in," she told Daphne.
Daphne blinked. "Huh?"
Seraphina sighed with impatience. "I can't come in unless you invite me."
Daphne stepped inside the house. "I...uh...invite you in."
"Good enough," Seraphina said, pushing her out the way. She stood still in the hall for several minutes, her nose moving as if she was sniffing the air.
"He's not here," she said, looking slightly annoyed.
"What the hell is going on?" Bonnie came into the hall then, an annoyed expression on her face. Meredith was behind her, frowning a little.
Daphne didn't say anything. She looked over at Seraphina, who sighed again. Seraphina waved her hand, as if slashing something in the air. Bonnie and Meredith fell down unconscious.
Daphne's eyebrow raised. "How'd you do that? And why?"
Seraphina just smiled. She was really begging to get on Daphne's knees. "Don't worry, it's all part of my plan."
* * *
Bonnie woke up, her head throbbing and her throat dry. She wondered vaguely where she was. Her mind was spinning and her vision was blurry. Her arms hurt, and were in a strange position behind her back against something hard and cold.
Finally, her vision seemed to steady, and she focused, frowning. She glanced over at Meredith, seated next to her. "Meredith?" she muttered.
"I'm awake," Meredith said in a soft voice. She looked around the room. "Oh God," she whispered.
Bonnie didn't understand. What the hell was going on? Where were they? Candles were lit at intervals, she could see two stone lids, broken in half, things scattered along the floor...
"Oh no..." Realisation hit.
They were in the crypt beneath the ruined church. A sudden shiver ran through her, and she knew without question someone was going to die down here, again. History was repeating itself.
"Not again," Bonnie whispered. "Not again."
"Not again what?" Meredith asked.
"Someone's going to die down here," Bonnie whispered. "I had a premonition."
Meredith frowned. "Well it's not gonna be us."
"We'll see," a cheerful voice said.
Bonnie turned, not sure she was seeing right. "Daphne? What are you doing?"
Daphne shrugged. "Don't ask me, this was *her* idea."
Bonnie looked over to where Daphne was pointing to a tall girl, in a flowing black dress, a mane of golden hair cascading down her back.
"It's Seraphina's plan," Daphne said.
"What's the plan?" Meredith asked Seraphina.
Seraphina looked at him, as if eyeing something revolting. "I want Jason, Daphne wants Damon. You two are the bait to get Jason down here."
Meredith was amused. "And how exactly are you planning on getting *Damon* down here? Damon won't care about saving us. He doesn't care about anything that isn't Damon."
"When Jason comes down, we're going to hold him prisoner too, of course," Seraphina said tiredly, as if explaining to a five year old. "Then we'll get that idiot little sister of mine who'll race to come and save him. Damon has...a soft spot for her. He'll come to save her."
Bonnie and Meredith exchanged glances. If only there was some way she could warn Jason. Bonnie wished she had a vampire's telepathy.
"So what happens then?" she asked.
"I don't know," Seraphina said. "That's as far as I've got with the plan. We'll have to wait and see, I suppose."
* * *
Part 18
The minute Jason approached his house he knew something was wrong. All day he'd been getting an uncomfortable sense that something was wrong. He hadn't been able to exactly ell what, but he was certain something *was.*
The girls at school had been all over him, ever since they'd learned he'd broken up with Daphne. Daphne herself had been absent all day. He wondered vaguely where she'd been. Was she actually sick? Or was it just because she couldn't stand the humiliation of knowing everyone had dumped her?
Raquelle had been at school, which had surprised him. Considering the state she'd been in last night he would have thought she'd stay at home, but she hadn't. She had kept her distance from him, but several times he had caught her looking at him, with a distant longing, her eyes shining wetly.
He sighed, still unsure how he felt about her. She was a *vampire.* She drank *blood*, for God's Sake. But did that mean she was a bad person? She had never done anything to hurt him...
He shoved thoughts of Raquelle to the back of his mind, looking around his empty house. Something he couldn't identify was hanging on the air.
The door had been wide open. Bonnie would never leave the door open. Where was she?
"Bonnie?" he called out.
Silence answered him.
He hurried into the kitchen. There was a piece of paper on the kitchen table. He snatched it up, wondering if it held some sort of clue.
Anger sparked inside him as he read it, deciding whoever this was was going to pay. The note instructed him to come to the crypt beneath the ruined church in the graveyard. A trap of some sort, he was certain of it.
He couldn't go alone. And there was only one person he could think of who could help him.
* * *
Raquelle was surprised when she found Jason on her doorstep. She frowned, really not quite ready to be confronted with him again. But from the first moment she actually looked at him, she realised something was wrong.
"What's happened?" she asked.
Jason handed her a piece of paper. Raquelle took it, and read it, recognising Seraphina's curly, loopy handwriting.
"Your sister and Daphne have Bonnie and Meredith and they're planning on doing something terrible unless we both get to the crypt and stop them," he said flatly.
"This is some sort of trap to lure us both there," Raquelle guessed.
Jason nodded. "I need your help."
"I'm not strong enough to defeat Seraphina," Raquelle said simply. It was the honest truth. Seraphina was stronger, more Powerful, completely in control. Raquelle herself, tried to deny who she was, burying her power instead of harnessing it. "But I can think of someone who is."
Jason didn't look happy, obviously guessing she was referring to Damon. He shook his head vehemently. "No way," he said stubbornly.
"Oh come on," Raquelle snapped, annoyed. "You know, and I know, he's stronger than both of us and we need to convince him to help us."
Jason sighed heavily. Raquelle guessed he was realising he was guessing there wasn't any other choice. She opened the door, and stepped back suddenly, gasping in surprise.
Damon smiled at her from where he stood leaning against the doorjamb. "You rang?"
Raquelle stared at him in amazement. "How did you..." She trailed off and shook her head.
Jason scowled silently.
Raquelle told Damon what was going on. Damon listened, and then just shrugged. "So? Why should I help you? What's in it for me?"
Raquelle tried to control the rage she felt stirring. He was so infuriating! He showed up when he obviously knew she needed him, then refused to help? Bastard.
"You're the most annoying person I've ever met," she snapped.
Damon smiled. "Lots of people seem to think that."
"Gee, I wonder why," Jason snorted.
"But still, why should I help you?" Damon asked.
Raquelle groaned silently. Then an idea struck her. She smiled at him. "Because we need you," she said, putting a sort of desperate tone into her voice. "You're stronger than we are, more powerful. We need you..." She hated sounding so whiny and pathetic, but if all else failed, try flattery.
Damon sighed heavily. "All right, all right."
Jason glared at Raquelle, who just shrugged helplessly. At least he was helping. Even if forced.
"Let's go."
* * *
Bonnie looked up as she heard the door close, and Jason came into the lounge. "Did you find Raquelle?" she asked.
"Yeah, but she wouldn't talk. I think there's something going on between her and that friend of yours." Jason looked at her meaningfully.
Bonnie groaned, ready to kill Damon already. Why did everyone have to assume just because they'd been seen together they were dating? It was infuriating. *He* was infuriating. Ugh. Jerk. "What'd you mean?"
"I don't know. I thought maybe they used to go out or something and he dumped her, or hurt her or something, but when I asked, she said something about whatever happened between them was a very long time ago." Jason sounded confused.
Bonnie couldn't blame him really. This was all very, very weird. She doubted Damon was used to girls looking at him and suddenly running. "You like her?" she suggested.
Jason sighed. "Yeah, I do. She's cute, and something new...there's something *different* about her..." His expression had turned almost dreamy, and then he shook his head. "But she's hiding something. She..."
"Daphne's not happy?" Bonnie said. Daphne had looked rather jealous when she'd come over briefly before.
Jason laughed sourly. "Daphne's jealous alright. She actually said Raquelle was a *vampire*. She swore she saw her with pointy teeth and that she killed someone." Jason snorted in disgust. "So I ditched her." He sighed. "I have some homework." And he left then.
Bonnie sank back into the couch cushions. Raquelle was a vampire? Maybe Daphne wasn't making it up. And Raquelle had seemed so afraid of Damon.
Unless...an idea was beginning to form in Bonnie's mind as she put two and two together, guessing what had happened. Oh that asshole! How could he have done that? She grabbed her coat and her keys and stormed off to go look for him. He deserved to be taught a lesson.
But on her search for Damon, she found the other girl, Raquelle. Maybe she could get Raquelle to talk to her. The girl was sitting at a table outside the coffee shop, and Bonnie joined her. "Raquelle?" she asked. "Look, uh...hi. I'm Bonnie, Jason's sister."
The girl looked up at her, eyebrow raised. "I'm not Raquelle."
Bonnie blinked. "Huh?"
The girl smiled. "I'm her sister, Seraphina."
Bonnie flushed. "Oh God, I'm sorry. You two look really similar." The girl was the same height, with the same golden hair and blue eyes. What was it with Damon and blue-eyed blondes?
She opened her mouth to speak, and then noticed something that made her words die on her tongue. Seraphina didn't reflect in the metal table. She looked up at met the girl's jewel blue eyes.
Seraphina sighed, slightly annoyed. "Yes, yes, I'm a vampire, and Damon made me."
Bonnie was surprised at the girl's sudden bluntness. "I..."
"I read your friend's diary up in the local library," she answered.
"Oh." Bonnie had forgotten about that. In that case, if this girl was a vampire, then...
She was right. Damon was going to be so dead when she found him. What was the matter with him? You'd have thought after what had happened with him, Stefan and Katherine he'd have learned about changing people who hate each other. But then again, did...
Oh this was a pain. It wasn't even any of her business. But she was still pissed at Damon.
"You're Jason's sister?" Seraphina asked.
"Uh, yeah," Bonnie said. "You know Jason."
The girl smiled, and something about it was oddly chilling. No wonder Damon liked her. She seemed like he did. Arrogant and annoying. "Yes, we met about twenty minutes ago. He seems nice." Seraphina's eyebrow raised. "Does he have a girlfriend?"
Bonnie frowned. "No. Not anymore. He just dumped her."
"How convenient." Seraphina stood up. "I have to go now. It was nice meeting you." And with that, she practically vanished.
Bonnie shook her own head in confusion. This was getting absurd. Where did all these weird people suddenly keep coming from. A loud screech sounded above her head, and she realised it was coming from the crow that was watching her, perched on the branch of a near-by tree.
The crow flew into the shadows, and a second later Damon emerged. Bonnie walked up to him, and slapped him hard. "You asshole!" she snapped.
Damon's eyebrow raised. He looked mildly amused. "What was that for?"
"You made two sisters that hate each other vampires. What the hell is the matter with you?" she hissed, trying to keep her voice down, despite how mad she was. She didn't want to be overheard and have people think she was insane.
"Maybe we should start calling him Katherine," a sarcastic voice behind her said.
Bonnie turned. "Meredith!" Her friend stood there, dressed in an elegant wine-coloured business suit. Her dark hair hung loose to her shoulders, her dark eyes were shining warmly at Bonnie. Bonnie hugged her friend. "What are you doing here?"
"Coming to visit you?" Meredith said, an eyebrow raised. "We arranged this last week. I was on my way to your house, and I saw you here."
"That's not funny," Damon said, sounding a little annoyed. Wow, he actually could show some emotion, Bonnie thought. She sighed, and they sat down at one of the tables.
"What's going on?" Meredith asked. "Seriously."
Bonnie sighed, and glared at Damon, who just shrugged. "Don't ask me," he said.
"It's your fault," she snapped.
"I didn't know they were sisters!" he snapped back.
"That's no excuse!"
"You two want to let me in?" Meredith asked.
Bonnie sighed and told her what was going on. Meredith listened, face expressionless. No change there. Bonnie sighed again.
"A case of history repeating itself, again," Meredith said finally. She didn't sound too happy.
Bonnie hadn't thought about that. But now she did, it seemed that Meredith was right. "Oh God," she muttered. "We have to stop this."
"How?" Damon asked. "You don't know what's going on." He sounded, if anything, almost peeved.
"I don't know," Bonnie whispered. "Both Seraphina and Raquelle like Jason. And he doesn't know who they really are. We have to do something. I don't want him ending up like Elena."
No one said anything.
* * *
Part 13
Jason couldn't get Raquelle out his mind. There was something she was hiding from him. She had looked like she wanted to talk, but was afraid of what he might think.
He didn't care, he decided. He wanted to know, to help her. Whatever it was, he would get her to talk. He knew she was staying at old Mrs. Flower's boarding house. The drive over there took ten minutes.
Mrs. Flowers wasn't around, and the door swung open when he knocked. He found Raquelle's name and room number on a board in the hall. She was in the attic room. He made his way up the creaky old stairs, and for some reason, suddenly felt afraid.
His skin was prickling and the hair on his arms and the back of his neck was standing on end. He didn't understand why he suddenly felt like this.
He knocked on the door to Raquelle's room. No one answered. "Raquelle?" he called out. "It's Jason. Look, I need to talk to you." He tried the door handle. It turned. He wondered why no one was bothering to lock the door. Where was everyone?
He went inside Raquelle's room. All that was there was the bed, an antique dresser and a chest of some sort in the corner. And something else that seemed weird. A small fridge. He sat down on the bed, waiting for Raquelle.
One other thing, he noticed, was there were no mirrors. That was strange. Raquelle was beautiful, and from what he knew, beautiful girls loved looking in mirrors. Then again, Raquelle wasn't like any other girl he'd ever met.
He waited, tapping his fingers impatiently. He kept glancing over at the fridge. He couldn't understand why he was getting a very, very bad feeling about it. It was just a refrigerator for God's sake. What was inside, a dead body?
Suddenly he had to see. He yanked the door open. There was no dead body there. But something almost as bad. He reeled back in shock, horror coursing over him.
Inside the fridge, were packets and bottles of something dark red. He frowned, doubting it was tomato juice. He unscrewed the cap on one bottle, and took a tiny, medicine size sip. He spat it out.
Blood.
It was blood.
He dropped the bottle, and turned to run. He didn't see what was behind him until he bumped into it. In a movement too fast for him to see Raquelle had grabbed the bottle of blood and the cap before it hit the floor.
Great reflexes, he thought vaguely.
Raquelle put the cap back on the bottle and put the bottle back in the fridge. She closed the door and eyed him. Her expression was one of sadness and guilt combined.
Blood? She drank *blood?* There was only one thing he could think of that did that, and that didn't like mirrors either. "You're a vampire," he said bluntly.
Raquelle flushed. "Yes. I didn't actually *ask* to be one. It wasn't my fault. It was your sister's friend. I thought he loved me, but I guess he loved my older sister Seraphina more. He dumped me and went off with her." She sounded sad, almost lonely.
Jason was surprised. "Seraphina's your sister?" He'd wondered what she'd meant when she'd said, "wrong one."
Raquelle frowned, and looked even unhappier. "You know Seraphina?"
Jason nodded. "I met her after you ran away from me."
"Did you like her?"
Jason was surprised at the sudden bluntness of the question. He wasn't sure. Seraphina had given him the creeps, particularly when she'd told him he could count on seeing her round. He sighed, not even sure if he liked Raquelle anymore. The girl was a *vampire.* She drank *blood.*
Daphne was right, he realised. He eyed Raquelle warily, wondering if she was going to do anything. But she didn't. She just folded her arms and stared at the floor. "Maybe you'd better go," she said.
"Yeah." And for the second time that night, Jason couldn't wait to get home where he would be safe from the monsters. Yet, he was somehow having trouble convincing himself at the truth of this.
* * *
Part 14
As it turned out, Jason's relief at beating the monsters home was short lived. When he got home, Bonnie and her friend Meredith were sitting on the couch. The creepy guy who had scared Raquelle was sitting in one of the armchairs. They were obviously waiting for him.
"What?" he asked. "It's late, I'm tired. I've had enough weird stuff for one day."
"Sit," Bonnie ordered, pointing to the other chair. Jason groaned and sat. Would this day *never* end? It was beginning to seem like it. He looked around.
"Raquelle and her sister are vampires," he said flatly. "I know. She told me. And I'm guessing he's got something to do with it." He threw an angry glare at the creepy guy, who's name he didn't know.
"Yes, Damon changed them both," Bonnie said, equally angry.
The creepy guy - Damon - looked rather bland about it. He just shrugged. "I didn't know they were sisters," he said. He stood up. "There's nothing to do about it." He stood up and left then before anyone could say anything.
"I'm gonna kill that guy in a second," Bonnie growled, chin lifted, face determined.
Meredith sighed heavily. "Let him go, Bonnie. He's not worth your effort."
Jason sighed. "What has all of this got to do with me?"
Bonnie and Meredith exchanged glances. "I don't know what you've heard about what happened during our senior year, but we're going to tell you what really happened, and you'd better listen, cause it looks like it's happening again, to the next generation," Bonnie said.
Jason opened his mouth to protest, but gave up. He sat and listened as Bonnie and Meredith told him the whole story about Stefan and Elena.
All he'd heard were rumours, they were supposed to have been the town's sort of Romeo and Juliet, a tragic love story, involving vampires, a white kitten, a white owl, a black crow, other weird things, stolen diaries...he'd seen Elena's diary up in the town's library, but had never bothered to read it.
You weren't supposed to read other people's diaries, even if the person was dead. Besides, it was old news. It had never concerned him before. As far as Jason had been concerned, vampires were just myths.
Now, as it turned out, he'd been proved very, very wrong. And now, it seemed, the whole thing was happening again. Raquelle, a mysterious new girl had shown up, hiding something. And she was a vampire. Then Raquelle's even more mysterious older sister Serephina had shown up, the bad vampire. And they both liked him.
He attracted all kinds of girls to him, and he'd never really had a problem with it before, until he'd started attracting the walking undead.
This was a disaster.
"How do we stop this?" he asked.
Bonnie and Meredith shrugged. "Last time there was another power controlling everything, and she was insane, but I don't think there's anything like that this time." Bonnie paused. " At least, I hope not."
"There's Daphne," Jason said, suddenly remembering. "You've seen what she can do when she's pissed off." Oh great. He'd totally forgotten about Daphne.
"There's no way to know how to stop this," Meredith said finally. It was the right answer, but not the one Jason wanted to hear. "What happens is up to you."
"I was afraid of that."
Now what?
* * *
Part 15
Meanwhile, Daphne was pondering the ideas of vampirism. Was the whole concept really that bad? Okay, the only downside was the blood thing, but maybe it was something she could get used to. She thought of Raquelle, who was pretty, young, smart, and immortal.
It was that that her mind focused on. She would live forever. She would be physically perfect without effort. She would have powers she hadn't dreamt of. She had read Elena's diary for a second time, carefully, focusing on the things Elena mentioned about being a vampire.
Daphne shut the book and put it back. It was the next day, and Daphne hadn't bothered with school, there were more important things on her mind. She would find Raquelle, force the girl to change Daphne, and then once Daphne was a vampire, she could kill Raquelle.
And Jason would be all hers again. She could change him too, and they could be together, forever.
Living forever...to never die...she could see what the world of the future would bring...that fascinated her...thinking about what the world would be like in the year 3000. She would live that long if she were a vampire.
Right. Decision made.
First thing was find Raquelle. Raquelle was probably in school right now. If she went and demanded that Raquelle change her into a vampire, everyone would think she was insane. What would it do to her reputation?
Once she was changed, and Jason, then maybe she could bring Abi and Beth over too. Then they would all be together, and never be separated.
She decided to wait for Raquelle at the boarding house she was staying in. She hurried out the library, and realised she was getting a stroke of luck. She could see Raquelle sitting at a table in a small café.
She marched over and sat down without being invited. Raquelle looked at her, a slightly amused expression on her face, her blue eyes twinkling.
"Let's get one thing straight," Daphne said. "I don't like you. I never liked you. And you're going to pay for stealing my boyfriend. Second," she leaned closer, hissing, "I know what you are Raquelle."
Raquelle sighed in annoyance, and Daphne backed away. "Maybe I should wear a name-tag or something," the girl muttered. "For the fourth time, I am *not* Raquelle. I'm Raquelle's older sister, Seraphina."
Daphne blinked, feeling embarrassment rush up her cheeks. "But are you what Raquelle is? As in..."
"Undead?" Seraphina asked. "Yes. But don't worry, I don't like Raquelle either."
"Oh, good, then maybe you can help me," Daphne said, brightening. Maybe this girl wasn't so bad. "I hate Raquelle cause she stole my boyfriend. But I want to be...you know...too, so I can kill her and make her pay." Daphne looked around, seeing a few other customers sitting outside the café. She didn't want to say the word 'vampire' in front of them.
Seraphina looked at her. "Who's your boyfriend?"
"Jason McCullough."
Seraphina's expression darkened. "No deal. He's mine. I want him."
Daphne frowned, not expecting that. But of course, who was she kidding? Ever girl wanted Jason. Jason was gorgeous, what did she expect? But she never had to worry about competition up until now.
Seraphina's eyebrow raised. "Tell you what, I have an idea. I have a friend you might like."
"Oh?" Daphne was interested. There were other vampires besides Raquelle and Seraphina. There had to be. Stefan had been one. Now, she realised, the whole story in the book was actually true. It had really happened. But still...
Seraphina lifted a hand and pointed across the street. Daphne turned, seeing the really hot guy who had been talking with Jason's sister Bonnie that day Raquelle had freaked and run away from him.
But if he'd made Raquelle run...
"That's my friend Damon, you'd like him," Seraphina said. "We'll swap; I'll have Jason, and you can have Damon."
Daphne's eyebrow raised. She remembered reading about Damon in Elena's diary. Damon was the bad guy. But he was really, really gorgeous. Even hotter than Jason.
"Okay," she said. "You've got yourself a deal. But we need a plan"
Seraphina smiled. "Way ahead of you there. I have a plan."
Daphne smiled back. "I think you and I are going to be good friends."
* * *
Part 16
Raquelle was leaving. It made sense to go now. Everything had gone wrong. She should have known Jason wouldn't be able to accept her for who she really was. Seraphin and Damon were in town too. That just made everything more awkward for her. Seraphina wanted Jason. Raquelle didn't stand a chance.
She threw her things into suitcases. How could she have been so stupid? She wasn't human, and would never fit in among humans.
What would happen now that Jason knew? Would he go around telling everyone? Then everyone would run screaming when she walked by.
Or worse, what if they chased her with stakes and torches to burn her? She shuddered at the thought.
She could feel tears beginning to bead in her eyes. She had never asked for any of this.
It was all Damon's fault.
Because he was so sexy and charming she had fallen for him, and he had given her a living hell. Had he even recognised her? Probably not. He wouldn't give a damn about her.
She had loved him, and he had bitterly betrayed her. She shook her head, and the tears spilled over. She hadn't thought of Damon in so long. But now he was here...all her memories were stirring again. His touch, his kiss...how thrilled she had been that he had wanted her...
Which made the betrayal all the worse. He had never even *said* anything to her. He had just gone. Just left. Well, a not exactly. She had seen him with Seraphina and *she* had fled. Had that actually affected Damon in any way? Did he ever even think about what he had done to her?
No. Probably not.
And now Jason was abandoning her too. She had thought he would be her friend. But now he knew the truth he couldn't deal, like most humans.
And of course, he was right in thinking she was a monster. She was. She was a killer. She had killed that boy.
A knock on the door startled her out of her unhappy reverie. She blinked, coming back to reality and went to open the door, getting a surprise.
"Damon."
* * *
Damon stood there on the doorstep, Ever since she had run away from him, Raquelle had been in his thoughts. He had always wondered what had happened to her, why she'd run away from him. No girl had ever done that before. Most girls fell at his feet and would do whatever he wanted.
She stared at him, a look of complete shock on her face. He stood there, and for probably the first time in his life, he couldn't think of a single thing to say.
Raquelle stood back. "I suppose you want to come in," she said finally.
He shrugged. "Yeah, I guess."
Raquelle frowned. "All right. Come in."
Damon stepped into the attic bedroom, cleared now of any traces of showing that someone lived there, two suitcases were on the bed. He moved them to the floor, and sat down on the bed without being invited.
"Why are you here?" she asked.
It was a good question. "I'm not really sure," he admitted. "I guess I..." It took a lot of effort for him to get the next words out. He never regretted anything he did. He lived for now, in the moment, and didn't care who he hurt. But still...this girl was having a very strange effect on him. "I guess because I wanted to say...I'm...sorry." There. It was out. And yet he didn't really feel any different, worse or better. He felt...neutral.
Raquelle stared at him, her eyebrow raised. "It's a little late for sorry," she said.
"I know, but it cant hurt to say it anyway," he said. He frowned, it had taken him a lot of effort to actually apologize, but she didn't seem to realise that. Studying Raquelle, he thought maybe there was a definite resemblance to Katherine, Raquelle had the same long golden hair, the same jewel blue eyes, a sort of wonderful innocence about her...or she had when he'd first met her.
But he'd changed that. He hadn't actually *meant* to change her. It had just sort of...happened. It had been exciting for her, to exchange blood. But then...she had woken up...a vampire.
But by that time he'd already met Seraphina, who had seemed much more his type. But Seraphina had actually left *him*. She had run off with some snotty French shapeshifter.
"How do you feel about me?" he asked Raquelle rather bluntly.
Raquelle blinked, obviously surprised by the question. She opened her mouth to speak, then stopped. "I don't know," she admitted.
"Raquelle?"
Damon glanced over at the door, irritated to see Bonnie's baby brother there. He really was not in the mood for dealing with annoying little human brats right now.
"What the hell is *he* doing there?" Jason demanded, glancing over at Raquelle.
Raquelle didn't say anything. She looked uncomfortable.
Damon sighed heavily. "Run along, little boy. This isn't something for children to get involved in."
"I'm not going anywhere," Jason snapped. "I want to talk to Raquelle."
Damon looked over at Raquelle, who looked confused. He couldn't really blame her. "Raquelle?"
She looked from one to the other, her mouth open but no sound coming out.
"Choose," Jason said bluntly.
Raquelle shook her head. "I can't...I need time...both of you have to go away now." She turned her back on them. Damon was annoyed, but didn't do anything. He turned around and left.
* * *
Part 17
Daphne frowned, wondering why Seraphina was leading them to Jason's house. She doubted Jason would open the door and immediately and meekly give into Seraphina. Jason had an annoyingly strong will.
"What are you doing?" Daphne asked, finally breaking her vow of silence. Seraphina had already said she had a plan, so Daphne had left it up to her to be the brains. Once strong and powerful and immortal, being the smartest person in the world certainly wasn't the most important thing. She would be young and pretty forever. That was what mattered.
Seraphina grabbed the door handle and turned it, opening the door. "Invite me in," she told Daphne.
Daphne blinked. "Huh?"
Seraphina sighed with impatience. "I can't come in unless you invite me."
Daphne stepped inside the house. "I...uh...invite you in."
"Good enough," Seraphina said, pushing her out the way. She stood still in the hall for several minutes, her nose moving as if she was sniffing the air.
"He's not here," she said, looking slightly annoyed.
"What the hell is going on?" Bonnie came into the hall then, an annoyed expression on her face. Meredith was behind her, frowning a little.
Daphne didn't say anything. She looked over at Seraphina, who sighed again. Seraphina waved her hand, as if slashing something in the air. Bonnie and Meredith fell down unconscious.
Daphne's eyebrow raised. "How'd you do that? And why?"
Seraphina just smiled. She was really begging to get on Daphne's knees. "Don't worry, it's all part of my plan."
* * *
Bonnie woke up, her head throbbing and her throat dry. She wondered vaguely where she was. Her mind was spinning and her vision was blurry. Her arms hurt, and were in a strange position behind her back against something hard and cold.
Finally, her vision seemed to steady, and she focused, frowning. She glanced over at Meredith, seated next to her. "Meredith?" she muttered.
"I'm awake," Meredith said in a soft voice. She looked around the room. "Oh God," she whispered.
Bonnie didn't understand. What the hell was going on? Where were they? Candles were lit at intervals, she could see two stone lids, broken in half, things scattered along the floor...
"Oh no..." Realisation hit.
They were in the crypt beneath the ruined church. A sudden shiver ran through her, and she knew without question someone was going to die down here, again. History was repeating itself.
"Not again," Bonnie whispered. "Not again."
"Not again what?" Meredith asked.
"Someone's going to die down here," Bonnie whispered. "I had a premonition."
Meredith frowned. "Well it's not gonna be us."
"We'll see," a cheerful voice said.
Bonnie turned, not sure she was seeing right. "Daphne? What are you doing?"
Daphne shrugged. "Don't ask me, this was *her* idea."
Bonnie looked over to where Daphne was pointing to a tall girl, in a flowing black dress, a mane of golden hair cascading down her back.
"It's Seraphina's plan," Daphne said.
"What's the plan?" Meredith asked Seraphina.
Seraphina looked at him, as if eyeing something revolting. "I want Jason, Daphne wants Damon. You two are the bait to get Jason down here."
Meredith was amused. "And how exactly are you planning on getting *Damon* down here? Damon won't care about saving us. He doesn't care about anything that isn't Damon."
"When Jason comes down, we're going to hold him prisoner too, of course," Seraphina said tiredly, as if explaining to a five year old. "Then we'll get that idiot little sister of mine who'll race to come and save him. Damon has...a soft spot for her. He'll come to save her."
Bonnie and Meredith exchanged glances. If only there was some way she could warn Jason. Bonnie wished she had a vampire's telepathy.
"So what happens then?" she asked.
"I don't know," Seraphina said. "That's as far as I've got with the plan. We'll have to wait and see, I suppose."
* * *
Part 18
The minute Jason approached his house he knew something was wrong. All day he'd been getting an uncomfortable sense that something was wrong. He hadn't been able to exactly ell what, but he was certain something *was.*
The girls at school had been all over him, ever since they'd learned he'd broken up with Daphne. Daphne herself had been absent all day. He wondered vaguely where she'd been. Was she actually sick? Or was it just because she couldn't stand the humiliation of knowing everyone had dumped her?
Raquelle had been at school, which had surprised him. Considering the state she'd been in last night he would have thought she'd stay at home, but she hadn't. She had kept her distance from him, but several times he had caught her looking at him, with a distant longing, her eyes shining wetly.
He sighed, still unsure how he felt about her. She was a *vampire.* She drank *blood*, for God's Sake. But did that mean she was a bad person? She had never done anything to hurt him...
He shoved thoughts of Raquelle to the back of his mind, looking around his empty house. Something he couldn't identify was hanging on the air.
The door had been wide open. Bonnie would never leave the door open. Where was she?
"Bonnie?" he called out.
Silence answered him.
He hurried into the kitchen. There was a piece of paper on the kitchen table. He snatched it up, wondering if it held some sort of clue.
Anger sparked inside him as he read it, deciding whoever this was was going to pay. The note instructed him to come to the crypt beneath the ruined church in the graveyard. A trap of some sort, he was certain of it.
He couldn't go alone. And there was only one person he could think of who could help him.
* * *
Raquelle was surprised when she found Jason on her doorstep. She frowned, really not quite ready to be confronted with him again. But from the first moment she actually looked at him, she realised something was wrong.
"What's happened?" she asked.
Jason handed her a piece of paper. Raquelle took it, and read it, recognising Seraphina's curly, loopy handwriting.
"Your sister and Daphne have Bonnie and Meredith and they're planning on doing something terrible unless we both get to the crypt and stop them," he said flatly.
"This is some sort of trap to lure us both there," Raquelle guessed.
Jason nodded. "I need your help."
"I'm not strong enough to defeat Seraphina," Raquelle said simply. It was the honest truth. Seraphina was stronger, more Powerful, completely in control. Raquelle herself, tried to deny who she was, burying her power instead of harnessing it. "But I can think of someone who is."
Jason didn't look happy, obviously guessing she was referring to Damon. He shook his head vehemently. "No way," he said stubbornly.
"Oh come on," Raquelle snapped, annoyed. "You know, and I know, he's stronger than both of us and we need to convince him to help us."
Jason sighed heavily. Raquelle guessed he was realising he was guessing there wasn't any other choice. She opened the door, and stepped back suddenly, gasping in surprise.
Damon smiled at her from where he stood leaning against the doorjamb. "You rang?"
Raquelle stared at him in amazement. "How did you..." She trailed off and shook her head.
Jason scowled silently.
Raquelle told Damon what was going on. Damon listened, and then just shrugged. "So? Why should I help you? What's in it for me?"
Raquelle tried to control the rage she felt stirring. He was so infuriating! He showed up when he obviously knew she needed him, then refused to help? Bastard.
"You're the most annoying person I've ever met," she snapped.
Damon smiled. "Lots of people seem to think that."
"Gee, I wonder why," Jason snorted.
"But still, why should I help you?" Damon asked.
Raquelle groaned silently. Then an idea struck her. She smiled at him. "Because we need you," she said, putting a sort of desperate tone into her voice. "You're stronger than we are, more powerful. We need you..." She hated sounding so whiny and pathetic, but if all else failed, try flattery.
Damon sighed heavily. "All right, all right."
Jason glared at Raquelle, who just shrugged helplessly. At least he was helping. Even if forced.
"Let's go."
* * *