Present Day
"And she's been acting completely normal over the past few days?" Matt's pacing is jarring all of the living room furniture, but Elena doesn't have the heart to tell him to stop. If she weren't holding tightly to her three-year-old, she'd probably be doing the exact same thing. The past few hours have been a complete blur.
Damon's voice crackles as he clears it from the corner of the room, pouring himself a generous portion of his finest scotch. He doesn't drink much anymore, but desperate times call for desperate measures, and Elena has to admit that the man has devised some of his best plans under the influence of alcohol, so she chooses not to comment. "She asked me a very strange question a few weeks back and I haven't stopped thinking about it since…" His voice trails off as his eyes lock with his wife's piercing gaze. Only when her brow furrows does he realize he completely forgot to tell her what happened.
"Well?" Her voice slices through the tension in the room and he convinces himself that her tone is laced with fear rather than indignation. These days, though, he never knows.
"I went into her room to tell her good night and she was still up at her desk scribbling in her notebook. I jokingly asked if she was nocturnal and told her it was time for bed. Then, she looked up at me with this intense curiosity and asked me how many vampires I knew…"
"What's your name?"
"Sarah." The lie slices through her teeth before she can reign it back in, her heart hammering in her chest. She hadn't come here with the intent of being deceitful, but she was raised to trust her instincts, and right now they're screaming at her not to let her guard down. "Sarah Sterling."
Nothing about her plan is turning out the way she'd hoped. All she'd wanted was answers to the questions her parents refused to give her, and that seemed like a pretty simple task at the time. After all, the Salvatore School couldn't deny Stefanie Salvatore anything, could they? She'd woken up at 3 a.m. and slipped out her window into the wooded area behind her home that had always been off limits for her and her siblings. When she was little, the thought of disobeying her doting parents never crossed her mind, but as she grew older and they installed a tall security fence at the back of the property, her curiosity started to run wild. It was only a matter of time before she realized that an elusive boarding school with her family's own namesake was at the other side of the property, and the desire for answers had been gnawing at her soul ever since.
Dr. Saltzman looks perplexed, more curious than angry, and she finds it strangely comforting. Deep within his gaze there is an unraveling. "So how did you find your way to us, Sarah?" he ponders aloud as more of an observation than a question, tapping a pen on his solid wood desk, "And why are you here?"
She knows she isn't obligated to answer his question, but realizes it might help her case if she is able to give him the finest of reasons to trust her enough to stay, if even for a short time. It won't be long before her parents are hot on her trail, she's sure of that, so she intends to find out as much as she can in the meantime. The lie that falls easily off her tongue, a tale of childhood trauma and vampirism, surprises her more than anyone.
"We don't usually accept students who find their way to us of their own accord, but your story has struck a chord with me and I can't help but think the mission of this place is to help kids like you find their place in the world. I'll give you one chance and we'll meet again at the end of the term to discuss further plans. Now, one more thing…"
The door opens and a tall teenage boy in a sweater vest comes her way. She knows he's a vampire, but she isn't sure how. "You won't remember any of this," he says sternly, holding her gaze. "You'll go back to wherever you came from and forget about this school and everyone you met while you were here."
She blinks, a look of confusion on her face as she scans the room, all eyes on her. And it's the strangest thing because she remembers.
"She was asking about vampires and you just forgot to mention that to me?!" The glint of indignation in Elena's gaze turns ravenous. "We agreed long ago to tread through these murky waters together, Damon. How dare you hide this from me!"
Before the fight can turn physical, Matt interjects, bringing the couple back to the reality of the situation. "Regardless of his reasoning, Elena, what's past has past. We can only hope that he can recall enough details to help us determine if what happened that night is even relevant to the case at hand."
The silence that settles around them is loud enough to clear the air. They're all on the same page. Not only is the information relevant, it is the dawning of a living nightmare. Sweet Stefanie, who still has to launch herself onto her bathroom counter to reach the towel rack, knows enough about the little secret they've been keeping to ask a matter-of-fact question about it, and she could be in grave danger because of it.
Elena stands and shifts Grays to her hip as the little girl starts to rub her eyes. It's her nap time, so it's only fitting to put her to bed, but Elena can't seem to fathom the thought of letting her out of her sight for even a moment. "Just let her nap on the couch," Damon catches her gaze and holds it knowingly. It's been a long time since they shared a connection so deep and it is filled with aching nostalgia, but Elena is grateful for the moment that she doesn't have to voice her fears aloud.
Once their daughter is fast asleep on the sofa, Elena finds her way to Damon's chalice of bourbon and downs the rest of the glass, the liquid courage clearing her mind enough to launch her from flight to fight. "Well," she offers, when it's clear no one else will make a move. "Go get her desk and bring it in here. We can search through her things and see if we find anything suspicious, and then we'll go from there."
It's a feeble plan, one that doesn't involve spells and visions and supernatural aid, but right now it's all they have.
It's only when Elena begins to flip through her daughter's journals that she realized just how significant it might turn out to be.
Author's Note: I apologize for the delay in updating! I had surgery a few weeks ago and haven't had the time or energy to put into writing. Nevertheless, here we are… Back to the land of the present and drowning in unanswered questions! I am still working out many of the details in this storyline and so, as always, I'm open to any plot suggestions or critiques!