Hello, my lovely readers. There might be too many people trying to play hero and no one seems to know what that means anymore. On with the show…
Chapter 5: The Company We Keep
There were things in the dark. They had fangs and claws. They ripped and shredded. They feasted on the blood of men. They had eyes that were bottomless pits and gateways to hell. Their thirst never ended. Their reign of terror only stopped with a piece of wood through their hearts. A blade arcing toward a neck and a head flying through the air. A man or a boy's body shaking with the intensity of battle. His body marked from the war he fought. It was a just cause. However, he always knew that there would be a price: that price would be his life.
"Jeremy?" Jeremy's eyes popped open and his hand went around his older sister's throat.
Elena's eyes widened as she began to choke. "Jer-Jer-Jerrreeeemmmmyyyyy!" she cried, her nails cutting into his flesh. He barely felt a thing as his eyes narrowed and his breath came out in a soft pant. "Let gooooo!" Elena gagged out. Her human desire to breathe kicking into overdrive and she fell down, forcing Jeremy's body to the floor and on top of hers. Her legs went into his mid-section and she pushed upward. But he would not let go. He could not. This was not his sister. This was one of the monsters from the never-ending-darkness.
"Hey, now! It's not nice to play with girls like that," Damon's voice filled Jeremy with further rage. His eyes ticked up to the male vampire and he saw the knee coming toward his face but did not have time to defend himself.
~0~
"Jeremy?" Elena's voice, again. Her face came into his line of sight and Jeremy inhaled slowly. "Hey." His eyes flicked to the swollen flesh around her neck. What an unattractive necklace. Shaking his head, Jeremy felt shame erupt inside him along with a deep-seated desire to attack her without remorse. The two feelings battled with each other.
"Jeremy?" Damon's voice.
Jeremy turned his head to look at Damon. "Hey there, Buddy. Want to explain to me why you felt it necessary to attack your sister like that?" Damon demanded, his hands hanging in front of his knees. His posture spoke of a creature who did not fear the human before him but Jeremy could sense the vampire's willingness to tear the human's throat out; if need be.
"You chained me up?" Jeremy glanced down at the chains. The instant he woke he'd felt the heaviness of his limbs. His ankles locked between wood and metal. The shackles chaffed at his skin through his PJ pants and his bare wrists gave a slight jerk, and a rattle of the chains answered.
Damon nodded. "Well, yeah. That is what we do when we try to kill our friends and family. Isn't it?" He glanced at Elena, his eyes wide and a little humorless smile played on his lips. "Ask Stef sometime about how many times we've played this little game. I like to call it: Dry Out Time. But you're not a vamp. Are you, Jer? So, you're not high on bloodlust. Or maybe you are? What have you become?"
"Damon!" Elena's voice came out as sharp as a butcher knife and her look meant to cut through whatever thoughts Damon was working through. "He's not the enemy."
"Huh." Damon stood up. "Seems to be he tried to kill you. Or was that just some good, old-fashioned sibling rivalry?" His blue eyes met Jeremy's and Jeremy just stared back. "Seems like your little friends say Jer's having some aggression issues. Tried to attack Caroline. Won't talk to Bekah. Who do you plan on going after next, Jer, the mail man?"
Elena let out a quiet scoff. "Alaric is working on figuring out whatever is going on here."
"Fine. Then Jer can go live with Ric. As long as Bon Bon can find a nice little 'Keep out the Hunter' spell so we don't wake up on fire." Damon snapped, glaring at Elena.
Jeremy shook his head. "I don't care about the two of you."
Both vampires heads whipped around to take him in. "What?" Elena cried. "What does that mean, Jeremy?"
When Jeremy refused to answer, Damon darted over and took hold of Jeremy's chin, forcing Jeremy to look Damon in the eye. "What does that mean Buff, the Boy Slayer?"
Jeremy chuckled. "I don't have to tell you anything."
"Great. I think he's lost his freakin' mind." Damon let out a groan of disgust.
There was a knock on the door and Elena went to answer it. "Come in," she said.
Alaric Saltzman came in with his girlfriend, the doctor lady. "Hey. Hear there's been a problem this morning."
Jo moved to check Elena's neck. "I'm fine," Elena tried to say.
"Go. Sit. I'll be the judge of that." Jo ordered Elena who went to sit on the couch like a good little patient. Her eyes went to Jeremy. Jeremy just stared back at his sister. He wished he did not feel this overwhelming desire to drive a stake through her heart. He hadn't felt this way last night.
While Jeremy had wanted to stake Caroline the moment he saw her walking around as some kind of a nightmare version of the Slayer, his feelings of aggression toward his sister built over time. He'd been able to say "Pass the potatoes" last night without adding, "you undead bitch." Right now, he just wanted to rip her heart out.
"Hey, Jeremy," Alaric moved in front of Jeremy. "How ya feeling, buddy?"
"Like I want to kill them," Jeremy replied.
"Yeah?" Alaric glanced at Damon and Elena.
"He was fine last night." Elena said as Jo examined her neck. "It'll heal," she muttered to the doc. "I just need to wear a scarf for a day or two."
"Just like your last meal," Jeremy quipped with an eye roll.
Damon shook his head. "Everyone said letting a teenager live with us was a mistake. Did I listen? No. Anti-social loner seems like an ideal person to live under my roof with occasional homicidal tendencies."
"Speak for yourself, Damon. How many people have you sunk your fangs into and ended without a shred of guilt?" Jeremy demanded, he jerked at his chains. "How many men, women and children have you feasted on? How many? Tens? Hundreds? Thousands? You act like we could be friends? Family? Until you feel the urge. Then 'Oops. It's dinner time.'" Jeremy continued to jerk at his chains. He pushed up with both his feet and knocked the chair backward.
Feeling the chair break, Jeremy let out a laugh as he found his legs and arms were free enough to fight. "But I'm not going on your list of snacks, buddy." Jerking one of the pieces of wood from the broken chair, Jeremy twirled it before he tossed it at Damon's heart.
Damon's eyes widened as the piece of wood went into his shoulder. "Ouch. Missed!" he grunted as he pulled the wood back out.
Growling, Jeremy knelt down and gathered a number of pieces of wood and began to toss them at anything that moved. Alaric knocked Jo out of the way and Elena dropped to the floor.
Feeling disgusted, Jeremy ran toward the window and flung himself through it. He felt little pieces of glass embed themselves in his body but he was free. That was what mattered. He had a mission. Those who had come before him told him what he must do. He could not allow the mission to be compromised. Caroline must die.
~0~
"Could you calm down? Just a little bit?" Tyler cried.
Hayley inhaled and shook her head. "Can't," she replied in between punches to the protective pads Tyler wore over his hands. "Got. To. Be. Prepared." Sweat pooled along her hairline and she could feel how wet the back of her shirt was becoming. She'd been training with Tyler for the past two hours without so much as a five minute break. Tyler might need one. Hayley did not. What Hayley needed was revenge.
With that thought in mind, Hayley whirled in a circle, her leg coming out to slam into Tyler's unprotected side in a roundhouse kick. Letting out a cry of shock and pain, Tyler fell back on the library floor, "Damn it, Hayley!" he cried, his padded hand going to his side.
"Sorry," Hayley muttered. She was bouncing up and down on the soles of her feet. She felt a pinch of guilt but her overwhelming desire to find and end Klaus Mikaelson drove her. He'd almost killed her. Poison. That would not have been a death worthy of a Slayer. If Hayley were to die, she wanted to die getting the shit kicked out of her.
"What in the world?" Rebekah Mikaelson came strolling in and tutted at Tyler. "Trying to train the Slayer Junior, Lassie?" she inquired with a cruel smile. "Whoever sent a dog to do a vampire's job I do wonder what they could be thinking." Her eyes went to Hayley. "Hello, love."
"What the hell are you doing here?" Hayley demanded.
"Your little mentor had to type a report for his boss. Or Skype with him?" Rebekah pursed her lips and then shook her head. It was clear she was not invested in the subject. "Anyhow, I thought I'd stop by and see how things are progressing here. Seems I came in good time before you sent Tyler to the doghouse in the sky."
"Enough with the dog jokes," Tyler snapped, pushing himself to his feet. "Don't you have a boyfriend who wants to kill you to help track down?"
Rebekah's look hardened and Hayley moved between the two. "Alaric's on that. Said I would be…what was the phrase…oh, yes: 'In the way.'" Again, Rebekah did not look pleased. Not that Hayley believed she'd seen what a pleased Rebekah Mikaelson looked like nor did she care to.
"You could go hang with your new vamp buddy: Caroline," Hayley suggested. "You can paint each other's nails or something."
"You don't like me. Do you?" Rebekah moved closer to Hayley.
Hayley refused to show that Rebekah's advance made her nervous. She didn't feel that way before her fight with Klaus. Just the thought made Hayley's chin stick out. He'd taken her fire. She wanted it back. Maybe training with Caroline would help. But Hayley felt a prickle of fear when she thought of Caroline.
Everything that Hayley had been taught in the Hunter's Council confines told her that a Vampire Slayer could never become a Vampire. It was against all things in nature. Whatever the creation would be would be an abomination. When Hayley had seen Caroline in the graveyard, she'd thought that Klaus had given her a concussion and she was having a hallucination. Upon waking, Hayley found that Caroline was really and truly a vampire. How. No one seemed to know. Yet. It was Hayley's job to find out. And to end her predecessor.
"Why don't you just go? I've got my wind. Come on, Hales. Round ten," Tyler said. He held up his padded fists but his elbow went over his injured side.
Rolling her eyes toward Tyler, Rebekah's expression became amused and her eyes lit up with something close to genuine amusement. "Come now, Hayley. You must be looking for a worthier partner?"
"You offering?' Hayley asked. Her hands clenched into balled fists and she moved closer to The Original Vampire.
"Not me." Rebekah shook her head. A smile appeared on her face as she folded her arms over her chest. "Him."
Hayley frowned. Looking toward the doorway, she found a be-suited vampire coming through the door. She thought he looked familiar. The man who'd hovered over her upon waking. "Who the hell are you?"
"Elijah Mikaelson, at you service, Miss Marshall." Elijah's lips turned upward in a crooked smile.
Sighing, Hayley recalled the vampire she'd saved because Caroline—human, Vampire Slayer Caroline—had asked her to. They'd been in the midst of the fight with the Original Mama and Papa. Hayley's instinct had been to let the vampire die. Isn't that what she was born to do? End them all. But Caroline asked her to help this one—for some reason—and Hayley had complied. She hoped she did not live to regret her decision.
"Elijah? Huh?" Hayley looked him over. "Are you like Klaus? Some kind of vampire—werewolf hybrid?"
"No. There is only one," Elijah said as he unbuttoned his jacket. He folded it and laid it on one of the tables. "There is also only one of me."
"You think you're special?" Hayley inquired. It made her smirk as she watched him move across from her.
Rebekah walked over to the counter and hopped up. "Tyler," she called, waving for him to join her. "Don't want to damage you anymore, now do we?"
"What do you care?" Tyler snapped.
"I don't. But you might be useful as a shield one day." Rebekah pushed Tyler into the counter and he groaned. "Perhaps not."
Hayley's attention zeroed in on Elijah as he rolled his sleeves up. "You don't have a problem with getting your ass whooped by a girl? What will your fan-base think?" She felt good mocking this creature who had more than a thousand years on her. Rolling her shoulders, she fell into the stance she'd been practicing since she was ten.
"No." Elijah's smile fueled Hayley's desire to kick his ass. His fingers waved her forward and she threw herself into the fight with relish.
Hayley's fists went back and forth as Elijah blocked each blow. The more blows he blocked, the more she expected one of his hands to come flying her way or a leg to come up to connect with some part of her body.
"Hit me!" Hayley snarled. She felt annoyed that Elijah was simply defending himself. "I'll heal!"
Elijah shook his head. "You might heal. In a week," he retorted.
"Ahhhh!" Hayley felt fury course through her and she threw herself into the air, her whole body aimed at Elijah. She expected him to whirl out of the way or to toss her aside. Instead, his arms came around her, holding her arms at her sides while she kicked him in the shins until his legs caved and they went falling on top of one of the tables.
Hayley head-butted Elijah and freed one of her arms to throw a punch into his ribs. Nothing. It felt like hitting a brick wall and she screamed in pain, almost certain she'd fractured her wrist. But she couldn't stop. She still felt so angry. Falling on top of another table, she pushed herself to her knees with her good wrist and then stood up.
"Enough!" Elijah said. He stood on top of the table across from her.
"No!" Hayley shouted. She ran across her table and flew through the air. This time when they landed on top of a table, it groaned and then the legs went out from under it. "No! No! No!" Hayley screamed, pummeling Elijah with both fists until her right wrist made a terrible cracking sound like the table and she fell onto the floor, crying and holding it to her chest.
"You've experienced your first, real trauma." Elijah said. Hayley found him in front of her. He knelt on one knee. His hand on her shoulder. "You will heal. We will train. You will be stronger."
Blinking back furious tears, Hayley opened her mouth to find Elijah was gone.
~0~
Practicing a winning smile in the mirror; Caroline Forbes felt like a fraud. She'd agreed with her mother that it would be the best thing for everyone if she returned to Mystic Falls High. Of course there would be people who would be freaked. Who wouldn't be freaked if you'd just gone to a classmate's funeral and a couple of months later they come strolling down the hallway like nothing happened.
This is why Caroline was practicing her smile. She never spent that much time being incredibly social in her human life. Well, that wasn't true. She liked hanging out with her little group of friends and had once dreamed of being a cheerleader and Miss Mystic Falls, but somewhere along the line it felt like fate had a different plan for her. And as it turned out…
Sighing, Caroline pulled her hair into a high ponytail and lifted her chin. "Watch out world; it's my time to shine." It sounded like a positive motto, or read under the wrong circumstances, something someone with a desire for world-domination would say.
"Enough stalling. Let's go," Caroline coached herself. She grabbed her bag and left her room. She felt like a nice walk would help clear her head.
Opening the front door, Caroline only paused to lock it before she turned and let out a scream. "Stefan! What are you doing!" she shouted, slapping his chest and glaring at her friend.
"Jeremy's still on the loose. Damon ran into your mom and heard you're going back to school today. I thought I'd walk you," Stefan said, shoving his hands in his pockets and he tried to look casual.
Caroline tossed her keys into her purse. Like she wanted to get into why she and Stefan hanging out might be awkward. They'd never really talked after he told her he "loved her." Of course everyone knew that Caroline loved Klaus. She couldn't say the feeling was mutual, at the moment. However, hanging out with Stefan might be a little weird. Or maybe Caroline was making it weird. She was nearly a legal adult. Time to act like one.
"Alright. If Jeremy comes at me, I'll just wait for him to attack us. When he does, I'll toss you in a bush, fight him off and collect you before the bell for first period rings. Deal?" Caroline watched Stefan shake his head.
"I missed you, Care," Stefan said.
"Me, too," Caroline bumped into his shoulder as they walked down the sidewalk. She might be a newly minted member of #Team Vampire but that did not mean she had to lose her sense of humor.
"You heard anything from Klaus?" Stefan just had to say it.
Caroline blew out a breath. "You mean since he tried to kill me…again?" She tried to breathe humor into the moment but Stefan had put on his broody cap and refused to take it off.
"Nope," Caroline sighed. "Seems he's determined to know what I am before I get a chance to figure it out."
"I could help." Stefan ducked his head and peered at her. "With the figuring out what you are part."
"Oh? Yeah?" Caroline let out a nervous giggle. "Sure. Why not?" She could think of a billion reasons why not. Let's start with her being a demon. Did Stefan know any other demons? Did they attend a meeting? Was there a calendar? A scented candle? A Secret Santa? Did they believe in Santa? Too many questions. Caroline just wanted to get back to high school.
~0~
Stepping inside her high school, Caroline tried out her winning smile on one of the freshman who smiled back and plowed into a senior who turned to glare. However, it took two seconds for the senior to catch sight of Caroline and to then do a double-take.
Caroline watched as the senior turned to another student. Lips moving close to an ear, the senior whispered. "Holy shit. It's the dead chick." Soon the same whisper traveled from ear-to-ear until all Caroline heard was "She's alive" and "the dead chick."
"Looks like news is traveling fast," Stefan whispered under his breath.
"You think," Caroline whispered back. She continued to smile although it was beginning to feel frozen as she made her way down the hallway and toward her locker. She felt relieved when she caught sight of familiar faces.
"Caroline, back so soon," Kol mocked her. His arms were wrapped around Bonnie's waist, his chin rested on Bonnie's shoulder and for some reason that Caroline could not put a name to, she felt like Kol's look was…predatory.
"I am." Caroline nodded and she turned her attention to her locker. Opening it, she frowned. A poster for a recent zombie movie hung inside.
"Real funny, guys!" Bonnie called. She looked around, shooting death rays in every direction.
"Bon, its fine. They're just a little freaked. And they should be." Caroline muttered the last part to the confines of her locker.
"Elena," Bonnie called.
Head popping around her locker door, Caroline took in the sight of a weary-looking Elena Gilbert. "Hi, everyone," Elena's fake smile made Caroline feel proud of her own. No one would really believe that expression.
"Hey, Lena," Tyler called, coming to join them.
"Hey," Elena said. "Where's…you-know-who?"
"Who's you-know-who?" Caroline inquired, remembering she did not have books for class in her locker and closed the door. Her eyes traveled around the group.
"Oh. Uh… You know…" Tyler looked at his feet.
Caroline rolled her eyes. "No. I don't. Otherwise I wouldn't be asking."
"New girl!" a senior cried out. "Nice napkin. Can I use it during lunch?"
"You know what? Grabbing a girl's ass without saying 'Please' first is a big mistake," Hayley's voice filled Caroline's ears followed by the sound of someone crying out in pain.
Sighing, Caroline marched down the hallway, pushing people out of the way until she found Hayley smirking down at the school's linebacker—a boy twice her size—whose arm was currently hanging above his head. Five seconds from now, it would break. Twenty seconds later, it would snap out of its socket.
"Hayley, play nice with the jackass," Caroline said. "And Reggie, I thought we talked about your manners last year."
Reggie glanced up at Caroline. Horror dawned in his eyes. "You're dead."
Caroline nodded. "Technically speaking: Yes, I am. Now, go away before I eat your brains!" Folding her arms, she glared at Hayley until Hayley let go of her new toy with a groan. "Tell your friends!" Caroline called as Reggie ran away, cradling his arm. "You. Me. Library. Now!" Caroline snapped. She took Hayley by the elbow before Hayley could protest.
"You're not my mom. Hell, you're never going to be anyone's mom," Hayley snarled as Caroline shoved her through the doors.
A group of students looked up from a table where books were lying in front of them and notebooks were full of scribbled notes. Caroline frowned. "Seriously! What does this look like, a library!" she demanded.
The students scrambled to gather their things while they muttered "dead girl' and then fled the room.
"Cute nickname," Hayley said, turning to face Caroline with a sneer. "Think it will stick?"
"You want to stay alive?" Caroline snarled out.
"Are you threatening me?" Hayley retorted, puffing her chest out and moving close to Caroline's face.
"Not today," Caroline retorted. She moved to lean against the counter. "You need to understand that you're not invincible. Your role here, it means more than pushing your weight around. It might feel good to bully the bullies but do you want to be one?"
Hayley shrugged. "Sorry, Barbie. Where I grew up, you show weakness you're screwed and I am not weak. I learned how to fight back young. And no one's putting a muzzle on me, let alone whatever it is that you are." Hayley shook her head at Caroline.
"So, what? You plan on going out and facing all the Big Bads and becoming the Big Dead?" Caroline snapped, losing her temper quickly.
"I've got help." Hayley nodded to their left.
Caroline looked at Tyler. Tyler shrugged. "You've got a wolf. What else do you have?"
"Bonnie can help. If she wants," Hayley said, glancing at Bonnie. "Or I can put out an ad on Craig's List. Wanted: Experienced. None-psychotic witch. Must love dogs and have flexible hours."
Rolling her eyes, Caroline shook her head. "And you think that's all you need to stop Klaus from ending you?"
Hayley nodded. "Seems like a lot. What else could I need?"
"Me." Caroline watched Hayley frown. Yup. This would be one of those fights. Good thing Caroline intended on winning.
Thank you for reading, faving, following and reviewing.
Peace,
-J