AN: Welcome back! I used to have this story up on this site a few years ago, but removed it because I lost all interest in it, and I didn't like the format it was written in. Now it has undergone some editing and rewriting, and currently I have 9 chapters.
I hope I'll be able to continue the story further, but we'll see. I can't promise you anything.
If you discover any mistakes, or have any suggestions please DM me, or leave a comment :)
Please enjoy!
- Pernulli
Chapter 1:
Do you ever get the feeling of meeting a kindred spirit?
That moment when you look into their eyes and you get the feeling that just know what they've been through. That the person before you has had the same fucked up live you've had yourself.
That's the exact feeling Damon got when he looked into the eyes of the young woman before him. His first thought was that she was even more fucked than he was.
He could see her eyes screaming their hopelessness at him. This was a girl that had given up.
Damon can tell, because he has the exact same expression in his own eyes. He knows that look too well. It is, after all, the same crap he sees in the mirror every fucking morning.
That look that will tell any other person not to bother with you because it doesn't matter. It's the same look that makes people want to save you.
Damon clearly doesn't know this girl's story, hell - he doesn't even know her name, but he knows that look. His look is different from hers in one simple way. He has added anger to his. A deep all-consuming anger that makes his dear brother name him as one of the bad guys. An anger that made her give up on him. An anger that has been slowly eating him from the inside as long as he can remember.
The girl's eyes, on the other hand, have hopelessness and a whole lot of sadness. That's the biggest difference between them. He's angry, she's sad.
But then again. Damon has had the last 150 years to channel his hopelessness into anger. By the look of her, he's say the reason behind her mental state has happened recently.
Damon keeps on having an inner monologue while he watches her fall apart.
They're in a meadow in between the city of I-just-don't-care and fuck-if-I-know. Though when he thinks about it, they're probably somewhere in the state of Washington. He has driven around the country for the last month, not really caring enough to notice where he's been anymore.
Damon came across the girl while he was out hunting. Since he left Mystic Falls he was behaving much more impulsive, so when the hunger hit him while on the road he decided not to wait for the next city and just take a page out of Saint Stefan's book and hunt for some animals. The area was supposed to have some big game and a fight with a bear or a cougar was right up his alley at the time. While he was running through the woods a new smell hit him.
An intoxicating scent of a human being mixed with some sort of flowery scent and artificial strawberries from a shampoo. He changed directions immediately because that was all he wanted. A human for his next meal was so much better than boring animals.
When he caught up with her she was already in the meadow. A small part of his brain found it funny that there was a meadow filled with wilted plants in this place of eternal green.
The girl, or young woman really, was standing in the middle of the meadow having some sort of breakdown.
And what a glorious breakdown it is. Tears are streaming down her cheeks and her entire face is folded into a mask of pure agony with her mouth open in a silent scream. One of her arms is around her midsection trying to hold her body together while her other hand is in hair seemingly trying to rip it out by the roots.
If anyone was to ask Damon what a completely sincere and hopeless breakdown looks like, he would point them right in the direction of this scene.
Damon's so lost in the beautiful representation of agony that he can't help but twitch slightly when her scream suddenly pierce the silence of the forest. Not that he would ever tell anyone that. He can't help but mentally cringe at the sound of it.
He's startled when he feels his ever present anger slipping away to make room for an emotion he hasn't felt since leaving Mystic Falls. He feels the need to comfort and protect her from whatever gave her a reason to become this broken person in front of him. Before he can react however, he can see her trying to get up. Tears are still streaming down her face but it looks like she's trying to pull herself together and a small sense of pride fills Damon.
Suddenly his head whips towards the other end of the meadow when a nasty too sweet smell hits his nose. It's a smell he hasn't smelled for years - the smell of a Cold one. While he's wondering what the hell one of those creeps are doing here, the man - and African American man with long dirty dreadlocks - stops not far from the girl.
"Bella" he says with a slight French accent. Damon makes a mental note of the girl's - in his opinion very fitting - name. The girl truly is a vision to behold. Even in her trekking outfit her slim figure looks inviting and her long brown hair shines as the water drops reflect the light around her. Her deep brown eyes that used to hold so much agony just moments before, now shines with a strange determination.
When Damon hears her addressing the Cold One a small part of him thrives at the sound of her voice; so clear but yet so soft at the same time.
"Laurent" she says. Damon mentally recoils as he realizes the girl knows this freak of nature and he can feel his anger showing its face.
Damon moves a little bit to the right so the shadows cover him more completely. He will stay to see how this plays out because he's so fucking bored and this is the most entertainment he's seen for at least a forthnight.
"I didn't expect to find you here - and with such a strange companion" Laurent's eyes flash to the shadows where Damon is standing and he responds with a slow smirk playing on his lips.
"I went to the Cullens, but their house is empty" Laurent continues as Damon files away the name for later use. Laurent is starting to circle the girl, Bella his mind reminds him.
"I'm surprised they left you behind. Weren't you a sort of pet of theirs?"
A small growl tries to climb it's way of Damon's throat at that statement, but he manages to keep it down. He doesn't want the girl to know he's there yet.
The girl wipes the tears from her cheeks with an angry swipe and Damon perks up at the fight she seems to have left in her despite what he witnessed earlier.
"Does the Cullens visit often?" Laurent asks and Damon can tell where this is going.
Damon needs to make sure she knows how to play this to her advantage so he stretches his mind in hope of communicating with her. As his mind reaches her he hits what seems like a wall made of steel and a small gasp escapes the girl's lips. He keeps pressing against the wall and tries to channel his need to keep her safe into the request to enter her mind.
Her shoulders relax a bit as if she can feel my intentions and a minimal crack forms in the wall that he slips through.
Once Damon is inside her mind he hurries to press the words Lie to her. She needs to convince Laurent. The slim girl squares her shoulders and the determination in her eyes is even more fierce than before.
"Absolutely. All the time!" she says but even Damon can tell it is a badly performed lie.
Lie better princess. And for good measure he projects some confidence into her mind as well.
A bit of nonchalance shows in her features when she tells Laurent;
"I'll tell them you stopped by"
The small success she achieved with the small lie is ruined by her next statement.
"I probably shouldn't tell …" she halts before the next word, and Damon can tell it causes her pain to even say it, "... Edward, 'cause he's pretty protective".
Well then at least Damon knows who caused her pain. Some douche named Edward fucked this beautiful girl up, and just like that his anger is back at full power and he has to force his attention back to the conversation.
"But he is far away, isn't he?" The smugness is almost radiating of Laurent.
Damon simply can't hold back anymore and he confidently leaves the shadows to join the others in the meadow.
"But I'm not" he says with the usual cockiness seeping into his voice.