Then it was time to return to the hotel and to go to the meeting rooms. Holly and Mel went straight to Damon, Jess went to Bonnie first.
Bonnie was with Matt and they answered questions together, yes, they were an item, no, they weren't married yet. She wouldn't read anyones' palm or tell them their future, but she was able to tell a couple of people something no one else in the room knew. "Okay, Cheryl. You went to Ibiza last year and your boyfriend pushed you in the pool with your clothes on and you were so mad at him that you pulled him in when he went to help you out."
"Oh my god! It was just the two of us, not even my parents know about that and we split up after we came back!" Cheryl was amazed and wanted more, but it was time to move on. This time she went to Damons' room, he said nothing to her or implied anything. He regaled them with a couple of stories about how he had met Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn in England and had become the Queen's champion in a small tournament, but having heard Henrys' jealous thoughts about him getting too close to Anne, he quickly fled the court.
Then there was the time he was begged to pose for a painting by someone claiming to be a court painter for the Medicis. Damon didn't quite believe him, but liked his paintings so agreed. He later found out that the man really was a court painter but he didn't know where it was currently, only that it was still around.
Yes, he was still looking for his queen of darkness and no he didn't care about humans. Jess suddenly realised that she knew the painting Damon was talking about.
When your History teacher is in a relationship with your married Art teacher at secondary school, the only way they could have a holiday together was a school trip to Paris so they could learn about Art History and the impact of the French Revolution on Britain. There was a painting in the Louvre that had made a big impact on her. In the style of 'Mannerism' an almost arrogant young man holding a statue by a Florentine artist called Agnolo di Cosimo, known as Brozino. She had loved Brozinos' paintings and had bought a postcard of that one that she had long since lost.
The trip had been eventful because both teachers were women and their Art teacher's husband had turned up at the youth hostel one evening and started yelling at his wife. Police were called and then went away as he had been Jess' French teacher. Major scandal and all three teachers were sacked.
Jess took a deep breath and asked him if he posted in the message boards at all, a lazy smile spread slowly across his face. "I am not allowed to post on message boards or forums, in case I give my identity away. It's part of the deal I have with the publishers for doing this. Does anyone have any other questions?"
"Can I ask one more question?"
"Please, do."
Jess could tell he was enjoying this and that some people in the room didn't understand what was going on, it was a private conversation between the two of them and she was enjoying it. "Are you a fan of Poe at all?" He laughed and she couldn't stop grinning the whole time.
"As a matter of fact, I am."
The session ended and as she went to walk out he caught her arm and pulled her back. No one saw and she found herself alone in the room with him.
"I've thought of a way you can pay me back for my tutoring."
"Oh?" Jess didn't like the sound of this.
"One night with me and then you are free of your obligations." Jess' eyes went wide and her mouth opened and shut.
"One night with you?" Damon smirked at her, his dark eyes full of lights.
"Yes, just one night, that's all I'm asking. It's just I've heard they're going to be showing Bram Stokers' Dracula at the Prince of Wales Theatre in a couple of weeks."
Jess suddenly felt the air rushing into her lungs again, Damon was laughing at her. "You utter...!" She slapped him hard on the arm just as Stefan walked in. He was definitely surprised to see her slapping his brother, he gave her a questioning look but she just shook her head "just don't ask." she said as she walked past him.
"What did you do?"
"I asked her out on a date."
"Do all your potential girlfriends slap you when you ask them on a date?"Damon laughed again. "I told her she could pay me back for my tutoring session by spending one night with me and afterwards she would be free of any obligations."
Stefan frowned, not understanding, but Damon didn't elaborate.
She was in Stefan and Elena's meeting next, still looking a bit pink. She'd obviously told Holly who was trying to recover from an attack of the giggles.
"I want to know, has everyone had a good time? Have you enjoyed meeting us?" he asked. They all murmured yes. "Good. Because I have as well. I'm sure it's an open secret that this was Damons' idea, not mine. I want to live with my wife in Fells Church for a bit longer before we do some travelling. I don't want the whole world to know about us and neither does my brother, but we wanted to say thank you to a few of you."
Everyone went aww and Holly sighed heavily next to Jess who couldn't help but grin at her. "Does anyone have any burning questions they want to ask me?"
"Have you ever posted on the message boards?"
Virtually everyone else gave the girl an annoyed look which did not go unnoticed, "it's a fair question." Stefan said, "Damon found out about the websites and forums first, then he read the books and told me about them. I was furious at him for what he did to Elena at first, but when I eventually calmed down I started to explore the online communities, but I didn't post anything or join." People started to relax, it was weird. It was like the whole group was protecting Damon, the girl who had asked the question just didn't realise it.
"Now I have a question for all of you" he grinned, his eyes were sparkling and he seemed amused by the whole thing. "What is being said on the message boards that is causing all this tension in the room? Everyone seems to be closing ranks when I ask them." As if to confirm this, the group seemed to be staring at the girl who asked the question originally, but she at least knew when to shut up.
"Jess." Jess looked shocked when he called out her name. "I'm hearing your name a lot this weekend. When people talk between rooms we can hear them, people are asking who Poe is because you asked Damon if he was a fan. So why don't you explain to everyone why you asked my brother that question? To clear the air, because I'd like to know as well."
"Because I think he's been posting on the forums under the screen name Quoth."
"He's not meant to be posting on the forums though." sighed Elena, clearly exasperated.
"Since when has that ever stopped him? It's like a red rag to a bull as far as he's concerned and I knew he'd do it anyway," said Stefan with a wry smile as he leant back in his chair. He seemed to be taking it all in his stride. "You know, if no one has any questions, why don't we all go and get ready for tonight?"
There was a sudden stampede to the door that had Stefan laughing very loudly .
