Mystic Falls, VA September 1, 1864
"Miss Warren?" Hattie, Jessica's maid entered her bedroom. Seeing Jessa sitting at her vanity looking forlorn, she waited to be acknowledged.
After a sniffle, Jessa fully noticed Hattie's presence. "Hattie? Is something wrong?"
"No, Miss Warren. Mr. Salvatore is requesting that you come downstairs." Hattie turned away, and was muttering something under her breath.
Jessa was far too sad to pay attention. She was already dressed for the day, refusing to wear her corset when she had no plans to leave the house. She still felt as though a darkness was coming and the fear for her best friend was overwhelming. She looked at her reflection and told herself that now was not the time to concentrate her energy on negativity. Making sure that her hair and her dress were in order, she left her room to answer her summons.
She could hear voices as she descended the stairs. Her guardian and Stefan's voices, with the addition of a feminine tone. It wasn't one of the servants, of that she was sure, their tones, even Hattie's was harsher. This was not just gentle sounding, it was also breathy and flirty.
"I cannot thank you both enough, taking in a poor orphan such as me." The voice was saying. Jessa grew worried, because this voice, while sounding feminine also sounded wrong to her.
"Well, Miss Pierce, we couldn't leave you alone and at the mercy of the world, now could we?" Mr. Salvatore's voice intoned, and Jessa felt another wave of fear. Something about this situation wasn't right, but she couldn't stay out of sight on the stairs, so she kept moving.
"Ah, here's our Jessa." Mr. Salvatore said, his eyes twinkling at her. "She's our first orphan, though, honestly Jessa has been more like a daughter to me than I ever expected."
Jessa felt uncomfortable to a degree she'd not known before, which only intensified when the stranger turned around. Her dark hair and eyes held no warmth for Jessa. She was calculating, Jessa could tell, and if her smirk was any indication, she found Jessa wanting.
"Mr. Salvatore, Stefan," Jessa greeted her guardian and her newer friend. "Hello, Miss?"
Jessa pretended she hadn't heard the newcomer's name and she was feigning her welcome. This person, wasn't who she was pretending to be, it shouted to her as loudly as if she could hear the words.
"Katherine Pierce," the new, beautiful woman said, offering her hand. "It is SO nice to meet you, Miss Warren."
Taking the offered hand, a chill ran through Jessa. Her eyes widened and she looked into Katherine's face to see she felt it too. "Welcome to Mystic Falls, Miss Pierce. I hope you find it to your liking."
Jessa wanted nothing more than to return to her room and contemplate what she felt. The chill of death coming in waves off this woman like that of the ocean. The fact that Katherine felt something too did not bode well for Jessa, of that she was sure. Unfortunately, Jessa could see that Mr. Salvatore expected her to play lady of the house.
"Hattie?" She called. "Allow me to have my maid set up your room." Jessa said, offering an olive branch to an unknown enemy.
"Actually, Miss Warren, I have my own servant. Emily?" A light-skinned and lovely young woman came around the corner. "Miss Warren's maid is going to show you to our room, help her set it up to my liking."
There was a harshness to her eyes when she looked at Emily, as though warning her. Hattie arrived from the back of the house and Jessa told her what needed to be done, and asked her to also relay to the kitchen staff that a more interesting lunch menu may be needed, and that Jessa would be back to go over it with Jenny. She smiled at both servants as they left, hoping to smooth over the coldness that Katherine showed her own maid.
Jessa was asked by Mr. Salvatore to attend to Miss Pierce's acclimation to her new home, while he took Stefan back into his office for another of their conversations. Looking up into Katherine's eyes, she knew that the young woman wanted to spend time with her as much as she did with her.
"Perhaps, I could show you to your room? Then you and your maid could rest until lunch is ready?" Jessa offered, hoping beyond hope that the interloper would take the offer.
"That seems the best option." Katherine agreed, "However, I think I can find my room on my own, you did say you needed to take care of the lunch."
Jessa nodded and started off for the kitchen, happy to be rid of the woman's company for the time being. She had no idea why Katherine Pierce was here, nor why she felt so wrong about her presence, but something wasn't right with her.
"I do hope that you don't have an aversion to chicken?" Jessa said, taking her place at the table. "It seems that the staff had little to fall back on as it's market day."
"Chicken is fine," Katherine said, barely taking her eyes from Stefan. "After all, it's been days since I've had a homecooked meal."
Stefan looked saddened by this, but then again, he knew what the hell Katherine was talking about. No one, not Stefan, nor his father had thought to discuss it with Jessa. Apparently, she was not necessary to this particular story.
"I'm sorry, I haven't a clue as to what misfortune has befallen you, Miss Pierce, but I do regret that it's caused you harm." Jessa said, as was warranted by her place as the lady of the house.
She watched as Katherine worked up some tears in her eyes, it didn't look hard to Jessa, but it did look manipulative. "My family was massacred in the Atlanta fires. Emily managed to save me, but we're all that's left." She gave a light sniffling and Jessa felt like she was watching a play.
"You have my sympathies. My family died by fire, as well." Jessa said, tucking into her lunch with hope the discussion had ended. She didn't share that Hattie had rescued her. She also didn't share the fact that the Salvatores were picked by her parents to take care of her should something happen to them. She knew that information was power for the "orphan" sitting across from her.
"It's terrible," Katherine carefully whined. "Thank goodness for good men like the Salvatores." She looked up and batted her eyes at both men.
"Yes, thank goodness." Jessa said, not noticing her slight snark. She heard Stefan clear his throat and looked up. He was giving her a slight glare and she gave him an apologetic smile.
"Miss Pierce," Giuseppe said, looking carefully between her and Stefan. "You may stay here until more permanent arrangements can be made for you."
Jessa gave an internal sigh, thanking heaven that Mr. Salvatore was nothing if not shrewd. She could feel Stefan's glare at his father, it carried so much heat. Hoping to diffuse the tension, she asked Mr. Salvatore how the Founders' Party was coming along.
"Mr. Lockwood and his wife are being rather picky about the venue, menu, and other little details, unfortunately. You know how they are, Jessa." He gave small chuckle. "Mrs. Lockwood keeps mentioning how wonderful your event planning skills are, I think she's LOVE to have your help."
She smiled indulgently. "And you know that attending is the limit to what I am willing to do." He chuckled louder. "However, if you'd like I could offer my aid."
He smiled at the girl he'd watch grow into the young woman before him. "Jessa, I'd suggest nothing that would make you uncomfortable. If you want to get out of the house a bit, however, you have my blessing."
She smiled down at her plate. "I'll consider it."
During this, she'd noticed the sly glances between Stefan and Katherine. Jessa contemplated writing to Damon, letting him know that his little brother had found a love interest. She reconsidered when another chill ran through her. That fear of darkness and now a feeling of impending death.
"Jessa, are you feeling alright?" Mr. Salvatore sounded worried.
She shook off the chill and what must have been her face paling. "I'm fine, I just feel a little tired."
"Are you still not sleeping well?" Stefan asked, tearing himself away from visually flirting with Katherine.
She smiled at the two Salvatore men. "I'm fine, although, if none of you mind I think I may retire."
Katherine smiled triumphantly at the knowledge that Jessa was leaving their presence, but Jessa couldn't find it in herself to care. The exhaustion she was feeling was extreme.
"Go rest, Jessa." Mr. Salvatore said, nodding. He must have seen how drained she felt, because he also asked, "Do you want Hattie to help you to your room?"
She smiled reassuringly. "No, I'm fine. Dinner has been arranged, so if I am unable to attend you, I think you'll be fine."
"We'll survive," Stefan assured her. "Go, rest."
"Have a nice nap." Katherine said, smiling in her getting Stefan and his father to herself.
Mystic Falls, VA June 20, 1860
"Little Miss Jessa?" Hattie's voice sounded near, yet so far away. The smell of smoke was all around and over her. Then she felt a shake. "Miss Jessa!"
Jessa slowly came to. She could hear the crackle of flames and smell the insistent scent of smoke. The flames danced on her periphery vision and she thought maybe she'd sleepwalked downstairs to the large fireplace. Then she remembered it was summer.
"Hattie?" Her voice sounded harsh, and she could feel the dryness in the back of her throat. "Hattie, what's happening?"
"Miss Jessa, the house, it's burning down." Hattie said, terror and wonder in her voice. Jessa fought to focus on her surroundings. She was laying on the front lawn, watching as her house, the one she was born and raised to the age of ten in burned to nothing. Suddenly a new fear gripped her.
"Hattie, where are my mother and papa?" She fought the urge to scream, and knew that if they were safe, it would have been them who woke her.
"Oh, Miss Jessa." Hattie cried, feeling as powerless as her young employer.
Jessa woke with a start. It had been years since she dreamt of the night her parents died. She choked back a sob. Her parents, especially her papa, were forever gone and here she was in the Salvatore house with a woman claiming the same. Why dream this now? It's been four years. She's fourteen and practically an adult. Usually if she dreamt at all, it was about the war. She'd seen Damon, fighting and scared, dirty and worried about his place in the world many times. This dream of her parents, it wasn't the same as that. In dreams of Damon, she comforted him, and reminded him of home so he wasn't so scared that he couldn't react fast enough to the violence that raged around him. The dream of her parents' death made her feel powerless.
Looking around, she realized that she slept from lunch until dark. She could hear no house sounds, meaning she was, once again, the only person awake.
She wasn't hungry, so she sat up in her bed and pulled out the latest book she'd started reading. After lighting a lamp, she settled against the pillows to escape into a world and story that wasn't her own and that she could pretend for a bit the real world didn't exist.
As she started to read, a feeling passed over her. She was being watched. Not raising her head from the book, she glanced up assessing the room. Nothing, on first simple sweep, was out of place. A second look, however, showed her that the window was open. She never left the window open at this time of year or any really. She watched, her head still bowed as though reading, as the curtains danced slightly in the breeze. She was waiting for the person hiding behind to show themselves, and she was fairly certain who it was.
Getting tired of pretending, she put her book down and said quietly. "Miss Pierce, if you have something you wish to discuss with me, I suggest you do so before I am loud enough to have you removed."
Katherine stepped from the open window, and glared down at this scrap of a girl. She'd learned that Jessa was 14 years old and that somehow she was the favorite of the Salvatore house. That just wouldn't do.
"What is it about you that all these people love?" Katherine hissed. "You're not that pretty. You're far too small all the way around. And yet, they give you the position of lady of the house. It doesn't make sense."
Jessa watched as Katherine stepped closer to the bed. She felt a surge of fear, this woman meant her harm, but she couldn't run away. As Katherine said, she was very small of stature, and Katherine looked fast. Regardless, she refused to answer Katherine's questions.
"You know, I can make you tell me." Katherine whispered, and Jessa heard the warning. She still refused to answer. She wanted to know just how far Katherine would take the warning. Jessa watched as Katherine sat upon her bed and looked deeply into her light green eyes.
"Tell me why you are so important to the Salvatores." Katherine whispered. Jessa laughed. She hadn't meant to, but the look, the seriousness, the warning. It just struck her as funny.
"Don't laugh." Katherine ordered, a little less sure, but still maintaining eye contact.
Jessa giggled more, and said, "Does that ever work?"
Katherine stood and clenched her fists. "Yes, unless, are you on Vervain?"
Vervain, Jessa knew was an obscure herb that grew nearby, but she also knew that she herself got hives from it. "No, I'm allergic."
Katherine sucked in a breath. "You're one of us?"
Jessa looked at Katherine like she'd lost her senses. "Am I insane? No. I'm not whatever the hell you think you are. I just happen to get hives when I'm near Vervain."
She watched as Katherine paced her room trying to make sense of what had occurred so far. Coming to a solution, she watched as Katherine stalked toward her. "Fine, I didn't want to have to do this so early in the game, but I suppose your death will give me a better foothold here."
Jessa felt her eyes go round. Katherine was going to kill her. One day in this house and this woman was prepared to murder her. She didn't stand a chance to get away because in the short time those thoughts ran though her mind, Katherine was on her, ripping at her neck with her teeth. As she felt the pain of teeth cutting through her throat and her blood gushing, she heard a gasp, and then a gag.
Katherine fell back as Jessa clutched the tear in her throat. Glaring at Jessa, she began throwing up black bile, and cursing the young girl laying upon the bed. "What are you?" She gasped as the last of the bile came out.
"Jessica Warren." Jessa whispered, unsure. Katherine rose, slightly unsteady, but with death in her glare. A flash and Katherine was upon her. And then she felt the hands of her enemy clasp her neck and a snap, then darkness.
Mystic Falls, VA June 21, 1860
Jessa sat in the corner of the Salvatore parlor looking distant and not seeing. She was lost in her own mind, thinking of the night before, when her papa put her to bed and said goodnight. The very last time she was ever to see him. The tears welled up before she could will them away. She felt like the weight of the world was on her shoulders as she considered the servants that felt that they owed her some sort of fealty. The three that survived that is.
Sighing, she thought about Mrs. Salvatore and how she had rushed to her side. She'd seen the fire from her bedroom and had woke Mr. Salvatore. They had found her sitting on the front lawn being comforted by Hattie.
"Come, little one," she'd said, having Mr. Salvatore scoop her up. "Let's take you home."
Home. Jessa thought. What was home? Her house was nothing but embers. The new home her parents had contracted was barely past foundation stage. This, she thought looking around the parlor, was Damon and Stefan's house. Not hers.
The Salvatore adults had let her know this afternoon that her parents had designated them as her guardians should anything happen to them. They had mentioned that the same deal had been struck for Damon and Stefan with her parents. Jessa wasn't sure why it mattered. Everything was over. Her papa would never scoop her up and give her nose nudges again. Hearing the word "Princess" out of anyone else's mouth would hurt her. Even her mother's presence, though more correcting, would be missed. She felt a tear slide down her cheek.
"Jessa?" The voice came out of the silence of her corner. She looked up and saw Damon standing uncertainly at her side. "I'm so sorry, Jessa."
A sob escaped and she turned into him and he held her as she showed her heartbreak in all its upset. He felt completely at a loss, but knew, from how she clutched him that he was offering her some comfort.
Jessa came to in her bed, wondering if she had dozed off and dreamt that Katherine had attacked her. She felt the side of her neck and knew it wasn't a dream. The dried blood was there, but no wound and she clearly didn't have a broken neck. Curious, she stood and walked to her full length mirror, now dappled in the early morning light.
She looked like a wraith. Blood had stained her shift and clotted in her light brown hair. Turning to the side and leaning in, she could see no sign of what caused the blood, nor were there any bruises where Katherine had clutched her throat. How could that be? Her blood, that Katherine drank, had caused the attempted murderer more discomfort than it did herself. Knowing that Hattie would lose her mind if she came into the room and saw the blood and black bile, Jessa knew she had to clean up and discard anything ruined.
That meant her shift was definitely going to have to go, as would the bedding and at least two pillows. The small rug that had the misfortune of being a receptacle for Katherine's vomit needed to be removed as well. As she went about the room gathering things, she grew angry. How dare Katherine Pierce assume that she could harm anyone under this roof. Not just that, but she had attempted to compel Jessa to tell her things or do what she wished. What type of creature did these things?
Undressing and pouring washing water into her basin, she carefully cleaned all the blood away. Perhaps, helping the Lockwoods with the Founders' Party would be a good idea, as would asking Mr. Salvatore if she could set up her own household at the home her parents contracted before their first had burnt. It was completed now, as per her parents' request. As one of the wealthiest heiresses in Mystic Falls, it seemed time. Plus, she could escape the horror of Katherine Pierce. A twinge of leaving Stefan and Mr. Salvatore in her clutches gripped her, but her own safety was paramount. She knew, without a doubt, that Katherine wouldn't stop at one attempt on her life. Katherine saw Jessa as a threat, and Katherine seemed the type who wouldn't stop until she was the only one left standing.