Okay, not all of my updates will be this fast. LOL. But I wanted to get the first episode out of the way, so you guys could kind of see what direction this is going in. Rebecca has revealed a little more of her backstory about her life, what with the two boyfriends and all.

Anyway, I have a few alerts but not many reviews. I mean, I'm gonna continue updating either way, but I need to know if you guys like it or not or what you think about the characters and whatnot.

Enjoy!

Chapter Two

The next day school was, well, school-like. The teachers were over the rule-giving and so now the students really had work to get into. In history Mr. Tanner humiliated half the class by asking some stupid question about something that had happened about 150 years ago. Elena said he'd asked the same in her class and only Stefan had gotten it right. It turned out he was distantly related to the original settles here.

At lunch Rebecca sat with Bonnie, Caroline, Elena, and Stefan. Again, throughout the day she got that uncomfortable being watched feeling. She decided if it kept going on she'd have to tell her friends about it, maybe they had felt that way at some point and there was a perfectly reasonable explanation.

Stefan basically reiterated what Rebecca had found out from Caroline the night before. The only new thing she found out was that his parents were dead. Leave it to Caroline to leave out something like that.

"I'm really sorry," Rebecca said sincerely. She was sympathetic, but she still had one of her parents so she didn't really know what it was like. "That must be awful."

Stefan's green eyes became guarded. "It was a long while ago."

That was that; no more was said about that subject. She was not one to go on and on about painful subjects.

After school Bonnie pulled her aside and said, "Grams asked me to give you something."

Bonnie's Grams was a professor at a nearby college - she taught occult or something like that. What could Bonnie's Grams possibly want Rebecca to have?

"Look," Bonnie began apologetically. "It's a book. You don't have to read it if you don't want to. It's a little strange."

"Um . . . Okay."

Bonnie handed her a leather bound book titled 'Vampire'. The letters were a golden yellow. She took the book even though she had no clue what Bonnie's Grams was trying to tell her with this.

"She said . . . she said you'll know and to come to her when you're ready."

"Ready for what?"

"That's what she said you'll know. Don't ask." Bonnie rolled her eyes. "She was drinking again."

Bonnie's Grams had a habit of drinking a few glasses of wine and then telling tall tales about different supernatural things. Hence the psychic thing with Bonnie, and now this book she was giving Rebecca.

"Um . . . Okay. I feel like I should say thank you or something but . . ."

"But it's crazy, right? I get it. But I did my job and gave you the book, so . . . Yeah." Then onto another subject. "Is your dad gonna let you come to the party tonight?"

Rebecca shrugged. "I dunno. Haven't asked yet. I don't even know if I wanna go."

"Oh, you have to come! Even Elena's coming. It'll be us three together again, y'know?"

"A'right," Rebecca said, smiling softly and giving into her enthusiasm. "Well, I'll ask."

"Cool, if you need a ride give me a call, okay?"

"Sure."

Rebecca nodded and Bonnie walked away. She put the book Bonnie had given her in her shoulder bag and then went off to an afternoon tutoring session where she was the tutor. Rebecca didn't really care about school, but she just so happened to be good at it. She didn't mind helping others who actually did care and wanted help. She'd started doing that during the summer, only with younger kids, which had been more a big sister type thing. She'd been able to take Chelsea along and the younger kids had loved having a baby around, so . . . She and Matt Donovan had been assigned the same group of children and that was how Rebecca had gotten to really know him. She'd been there for him after Elena had broken up with him, so they were close.

Matt played football so he couldn't do the tutoring thing anymore, but it had been a way to make money over the summer, now it was just a volunteer thing.

In the present, Rebecca was tutoring high school students, most in lower classes. Some were striving to skip a grade, others just wanted to know what to expect from the grade they were in.

"Hey, people," she said as she stepped into the library. Rebecca could recognize the freshmen right away; they were the younger, nervous ones. The ones who were wondering whether or not they had a bitch for a tutor. She was so not a bitch.

"Okay, so . . . You guys come with me. I like to do my thing outside, so if it's not raining or too cold I meet out in the schoolyard near the picnic tables."

It was about seventy-five today, too nice to be cooped up, so it was good enough for her. She watched as her group gathered their things, and then they followed her outside.

"Okay, first thing's first. Each of you separate into your own grade. I meet Tuesday's and Thursday's, but I'll make exceptions if you have a schedule problem. I know some of you have other school activities that get in the way of my schedule, so if that's the case . . . please make me a list of the times on those days that you're available. I will be checking with the office to make sure you're telling the truth, so please don't lie to me. That would make me cranky and I'll have to assign you to someone who is not as pleasant as me." The last part was a joke, sort of, but she would reassign them. She was nice but she didn't let people take advantage of it.

"Okay, so today I want each of you to write down what you're strengths and weaknesses are. Also, sophomores and juniors, I need you guys to tell me the name of last year's teachers. I like to get records and such."

She was very thorough. Sometimes she worried that taking care of a baby had turned her into an obsessive compulsive person.

After the tutoring session was over, Rebecca had thirty minutes to get to the Grill. She brushed her hair before she left the school and then she began the ten minute walk to the restaurant. She was oddly nervous. Part of it was because she barely knew Damon - one reason she'd accepted to meet him in a public place; there would be other people there - but the other part was because he'd really made an impression on her.

He had strong yet delicate features for a guy, and his skin had appeared flawless; it had made her want to touch him to see if it was as perfect as it appeared. His jaw line was well-defined, and his lips . . . looked perfect. Very soft and kissable. And he'd kissed her hand. She hadn't known guys did that anymore, but she'd liked it.

By the time Rebecca reached the Grill she had butterflies in her stomach, which beat the now almost constant vibes she seemed to be getting lately.

Jeeze, get a grip, Becca. He's just another guy, she told herself. He's just an absurdly handsome guy with piercing blue eyes. It was the eyes that did it for her. They were so intense, they were almost hypnotizing. She bet he could get anything he wanted with one glance at whoever he wanted something from.

When Rebecca actually stepped inside the Grill she almost turned back around. Caroline was there; if Caroline saw Rebecca there with a guy, it would be all over the school tomorrow. Caroline couldn't help it; she just didn't know how to keep a secret. But, no. Rebecca had told Damon she'd meet him there, so she was going to meet him there. She didn't want him to think she was a flake. Or a liar. Or that she blew people off.

She chose a seat by the window facing the street and waited patiently for Damon to show up.

Damon Salvatore was on a fact finding mission; the mission being Rebecca Stone. He'd met her the day before - he'd let her run into him on purpose. There was something a little . . . off . . . about her. She vibed at him; she had a very powerful aura and he wanted to know why. Maybe she would be useful in getting Katherine back. Point was he didn't know what Rebecca was capable of or what she was, period. He'd finally found something he hadn't seen before.

The whole electric shock thing had been a bit of a, well, shock and he didn't want to overanalyze that, but she'd obviously felt it too. And her honesty was a breath of fresh air. Her 'word vomit' as she called it was, dare he even think it, adorable. And she blushed, which was a novelty in this day and age.

He hadn't been lying to her; she was a lovely girl. She had waist length honey-blond hair; it had just enough wave to it to make it look fashionable. She was maybe 5'5" or 5'6" and she was shaped the way a woman should be; not a stick-figure Barbie. She had striking green eyes, lighter than Stefan's but darker than a lime. There were sparks of sun-gold around her pupils that gave them a strange but alluring affect. Her skin was clear of all the cosmetics females seemed to think they needed these days; she had a sort of natural beauty that even Damon could appreciate. Hopefully she never pissed him off; it would be a shame to rid the world of someone so genuinely beautiful.

He'd followed her home the night before to find out where she'd lived and then he'd kept an eye on her after she'd gotten out of school that day. She had done some tutoring thing, which proved she had a brain at least. Then he'd followed her to the Grill after that where she was now waiting.

Time to do the fact finding, he guessed.

"Hello, Rebecca," she heard as Damon sat across from her. "I'm sorry if I kept you waiting long."

"Not at all. I just got here."

She looked at him and almost forgot to breathe when she saw he was smiling at her. He really was a very beautiful man.

"Well . . . since it's late, how about dinner? Or have you already eaten?" Damon put on his most charming smile. "My treat?"

"Oh, um . . ." Rebecca was taken aback. "You don't have to -"

"Please, in exchange for the pleasure of your company, I'll buy you dinner. I insist."

Rebecca shook her head, but accepted nonetheless. "Fine, fine."

She told him what she wanted and he went to order. He flashed her a smile when he came back.

"So, Damon . . . are you from around here, or . . ."

"I was born here. Moved away, now I'm back, obviously. Were you born here?"

"Yeah. So . . . What made you come back?"

"I needed some quality family time." He smirked deviously. "After all, home is the place where, when you come by they have to take you in."

"Okay, then." Rebecca wasn't too keen on family at the moment, but if he felt that way, more power to him.

"Once more with even less feeling?" he teased, smirking.

"Um . . . Daddy issues. Nothing to worry about. I'll just be happy when I can get away from him."

"Mm. Dads. Don't they suck?"

"You too?"

"Long time ago, not anymore."

When their food came they talked in between bites. She found Damon was very good company. He was nice and he could make her laugh. Yeah, he could be sarcastic, almost snaky even, but it was in a good way. He also had no problems stating his opinion. Like he'd said about her honesty, it was refreshing.

In the middle of dinner, Caroline came over to ask if she needed a ride to the Falls. That was her cover story anyway. Rebecca was sure Caroline was just curious.

"No, I'm good," Rebecca answered.

"You sure? Bonnie's coming to pick me up."

Rebecca shook her head. "No. Uh" - she looked at Damon and bit her lip - "Caroline, this is Damon. Damon, Caroline."

"Hi." She gave him a come-to-bed-with-me smile and Rebecca had to resist the urge to roll her eyes. Caroline could at least try to be subtle about it.

"Hi." Damon barely glanced at her; he was too busy watching Rebecca. She felt a little smug about that.

When Caroline realized Damon wasn't going to her the time of day, she gave up and turned her attention back to Rebecca.

"So, uh . . . Are you even coming to the party?"

"I told Bonnie I'd be there, Care."

"See you there then."

"Yup."

Then Caroline walked out of the restaurant. Rebecca placed her face in her hands and felt herself flush. God, sometimes Caroline really got to her.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just . . . Caroline is going to tell everyone that I'm going out with an older guy. She's a gossip queen. The whole school will know about my dinner with you by tomorrow morning."

"Does that bother you?"

"Not really," she said honestly. "I just wish people would mind their own business." Rebecca smiled softly. "You know, the damage is done already, so why not make the most of it? I did promise to be there . . . Would you like to come? A lot of girls know older guys, you'll blend."

"Well, ya know, since you asked so nicely . . ." He shrugged and did his weird eye thing - seriously where did he learn to do that? "I'll go pay the bill and then we can go."

Rebecca picked up her book bag, which Damon then took from her. Again when their hands touched she felt that weird current flow through her.

"Let me get that for you."

"Um . . . Thank you." Then, "Are you sure you don't wanna split the bill? I mean, it's no problem if . . ."

Damon shook his head and his black hair fell into his eyes. "What kind of gentleman would I be if I made a lady pay for her own dinner?"

"Okay, but can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"No insult intended, but just how gullible do you think I am? I mean, I don't know how you deliver some of your lines with a straight face. Don't get me wrong, I like it, it's sweet, but do they ever actually work?"

Her voice was amused because she found him amusing.

"Well, damn." He stopped walking and smirked at her. "You weren't supposed to figure that out for another couple of weeks. Sweet talk doesn't win you over, huh?"

"They're just words, Damon. But, you know, you can continue. It's still flattering."

"Well, maybe I say the things I do because I like seeing you blush."

That, of course, made her blush; she'd known he did that on purpose. Jeeze.

"Well, I blush a lot, so you'll become immune to it."

After he paid the bill she led her outside to an old electric blue Camaro. Wow.

"Nice car. Going with the classics, gotta respect that."

He then opened her door for her so she could get in. He'd smirked at her comment on his car and then, "Anything breakable in your bag?"

"Nope."

So he tossed it in the backseat unceremoniously. She giggled at the indifference he had for the school stuff. Then he hopped in the front seat.

"So, should I be worried about your other friends? Are they as obvious as Caroline?"

"No!" Rebecca laughed. "There aren't two of those in our group. Thank God. I'd go insane."

She proceeded to tell him a little about Elena and Bonnie. She left out the fact that Elena's parents had recently died, and that Bonnie thought she was a psychic. Best friend code, she didn't blab about personal things like that.

"So where do you live, Damon?"

"At the boardinghouse with my uncle and my brother."

"The Salvatore boardinghouse? With Stefan?"

"Yup. That's my brother. You know him, I take it?"

"Uh, I've met him. We didn't talk much. He was with Elena. Um . . . He seems sort of quiet. Guarded."

"Yup, that's him. Uh, Elena, brown hair? He was with her at the Grill last night?"

"That's her. She's nice, in case you were wondering. Stefan's in good hands." Then, "Have you ever even been to the Falls?"

"A few times when I was younger."

Rebecca then remembered something Stefan had said earlier that day. "Um . . . Stefan said that your parents died. I'm sorry. I don't know what happened; I don't need to know, but . . . For what it's worth, I'm sorry."

He looked at her and his expression was unexpectedly vulnerable and open. He even swallowed like he didn't know what to say.

"Stefan said it happened a while ago, but if it's a sore subject . . . Just tell me to shut up and I will."

"No, it's okay. It's just, we're almost there."

"Oh."

So they parked and then walked toward the group of kids gathered in the woods. Now that she thought about it, though, probably not the best place to party since there had been animal attacks nearby. Oops, and she hadn't let her dad know where she'd be. Guess it didn't matter now. She'd deal with the consequences later.

She and Damon reached Elena just as Bonnie was walking away. She'd looked spooked.

"What's her deal?"

Elena jumped when Rebecca spoke and turned around quickly. "Becca, don't do that!"

"Sorry," she said and laughed. "Uh, this is -"

"Damon," another voice filled in. "What're you doing here?"

It was Stefan, Damon's brother. Only Stefan seemed even more on edge now. And Damon had his patented smirk on his face, and he kept glancing at Elena with the strangest expression; Rebecca couldn't quite place it and after a few seconds she stopped trying.

"Hello, Stefan."

"Why are you here?" Stefan asked, voice hard.

Rebecca looked between the two brothers and then at Elena. She could tell she and Elena were thinking the same thing: These two had serious issues they needed to work out, but here was not the place to do it.

"I missed my little brother," Damon said. Then he gestured to Rebecca. "I was invited. Pretty girl asked me to go somewhere, not gonna turn her down."

"You hate small towns," Stefan said, ignoring Damon's previous comment. "It's boring. There's nothing for you to do."

"I've managed to keep myself busy." Damon smirked again.

"Okay, um, I'm gonna go get a drink," Rebecca said. "Elena, come with me."

"Sure, we'll be back in a minute."

As soon as they were out of earshot Elena said, "What's up with them? I didn't even know Stefan had a brother."

"I learned on the way here," Rebecca said. "I don't know what happened, but there's definitely tension." Then kind of hopefully, "Did Jenna say she was staying with Chelsea at my house? I know -"

"Yes, Chelsea will be fine."

Rebecca got an unopened bottle of beer and popped the top off. She didn't drink a lot - mostly because she had to be the responsible one since her dad did drink a lot - but on occasion she could throw a few back. She just wished it didn't taste so nasty.

"How do you know Damon?" Elena asked.

"Um, I met him yesterday. We had - we had dinner tonight." She blushed remembering what happened. "Uh, Caroline was there and, uh, the whole school will know tomorrow so I wanted you to know first."

"Any sparkage or are your hormones still on hold?"

"I like him. He's sweet, but . . . Not sure on his end. I'd rather not move fast, ya know? Take it slow. Make sure."

"Yeah, you're she-of-the-level-head."

Rebecca had her reasons for that and Elena knew them so she let the comment slide. She'd had exactly two boyfriends and both had turned out to be jerks. Tyler Lockwood was a typical red-blooded American teenage boy - horny all the time. She hadn't been into it at all. Then there was a guy named Chase, who didn't live in Mystic Falls anymore so he didn't matter, but he'd been . . . evil.

But Damon . . . "He . . . makes me feel not level-headed." And it kind of terrified her.

"Who makes you feel not level-headed?" Damon's voice startled her. "Do I know him?"

Rebecca got her face under control before she looked at him. "Nope, don't think so. You want one?" She gestured to the beer. "Oh, wait, you have to drive."

"I think I can handle one beer."

"Okay." So she opened one for him too. "Um . . . Did Stefan leave?"

"Nah, he'll be back. He'll brood for a few minutes and he'll be fine."

Brooding . . . Rebecca didn't get the point of brooding. Although brooding was probably healthier than ignoring things until they went away, which Rebecca was good at.

Rebecca was vaguely aware of Vicki and Tyler going into the woods - probably to make out. God, didn't they knew there was more to life? She saw Jeremy looking after them with a puppy-dog expression. She really felt sorry for him. He was always there for Vicki and she dropped him every time Tyler came around. One of these times Jeremy just needed to not be there and then see how she liked that. She might learn to appreciate him more.

Rebecca hated girls who couldn't see what a good thing they had when they had it. Especially when it was right in front of their faces.

The now familiar current that Rebecca knew had something to do with her new blue-eyed friend shot through her arm as he brought her out of her reverie.

"You okay?"

"Oh, uh, yeah. Thinkin'. Were you saying something?"

"Just that I was gonna go find Stefan. But I'll be back. Promise."

"'Kay."

He let his hand trail down her arm to her hand and he squeezed. From the twinkle of amusement in his crystal blue eyes, she could tell he'd done that on purpose; she was blushing again. Then he tapped her on the nose with his finger.

"You are so fun to play with. I'll be back."

As he walked away Elena giggled. "Ooh, he wants to play with you."

"Shut up!" Rebecca whispered. "He didn't mean it that way." She didn't think he did, anyway.

Rebecca steered clear of Caroline, who was drunk, and went in search of Bonnie. The last time she'd seen Bonnie was before the Stefan and Damon incident; Bonnie had been freaked and Rebecca wanted to know why. Bonnie was hanging with a few of her cheerleader companions. Rebecca had no problem pulling her away; some of the less pleasant cheerleaders had issues with a brain hanging with the popular kids. Bonnie and Elena liked her because she was nice; Caroline liked her because Caroline was desperate for attention.

"Bonnie, are you okay? I saw you earlier with Elena . . . What happened?"

"Nothing. I saw . . . I thought I saw something. It's happened before with you, but it can't . . . be possible. I'm just drunk.

"What did you think you saw?"

"You were fighting . . . something. There was a . . . man. He looked human, but he had fangs. Red eyes and there were veins under his eyes."

Rebecca was a little surprised, but she also had a normal explanation. "Bonnie, could this have anything to do with the book your Grams gave you? It was called 'Vampire'. Maybe that's what caused the thought to pass through your head? Power of suggestion."

Bonnie looked uncertain, but relieved that Rebecca had come up with a rational explanation. But, come on, people didn't have fangs and red eyes. Vampires weren't real.

"Somebody help!" was what got Rebecca's attention.

Elena and Jeremy were coming out of the woods, and Jeremy was holding an unconscious Vicki in his arms. Bonnie and Rebecca rushed over, mostly because Elena was freaking out.

"It's her neck. Something bit her. She lost a lot of blood. It's bad."

Rebecca, Elena, Bonnie, Caroline, Matt, Jeremy, and Tyler were circled around Vicki. Like Tyler even cared; he shouldn't have left the girl in the woods by herself. Rebecca noticed that Vicki had bite marks on her neck. A human bite mark with puncture wounds on either side.

Too much vampire talk, she told herself.

Rebecca flashed back to Bonnie's talk of fangs and her hands started shaking; she felt lightheaded. She couldn't believe she was thinking what she was thinking. She was a rational - as Elena had said, level-headed - person. She didn't believe in anything she couldn't see. But she was seeing it now.

Rebecca reached into the back pocket of her jeans. "I'm gonna call an ambulance."

She walked away to a quieter place and dialed 911. She wasn't freaking out yet and she would probably wait until she got home. Not freaking out in a crisis was something she was good at.

Once she gave the police the information they gave her the estimated time it would take for them to get there and also said they were sending an animal control unit to the area.

"They'll be here in about fifteen minutes," she told Matt. "They said to keep pressure on the wound."

Tyler tore the end of his shirt off and Rebecca whipped it away from him to tie it around Vicki's neck. "Keep it there," she told him, noticing Bonnie and Elena had stepped away.

She went to be with them. "You guys okay?"

"Yeah," Bonnie said. "Me and Caroline are gonna go mainline coffee, wait for some news."

"I gotta take Jeremy home," Elena said.

Bonnie took a deep breath and then, "Elena, there's no way I'm psychic. I know that. But whatever I saw or I think I saw . . . I have this feeling that it's just the beginning."

Rebecca took that in because she remembered what Bonnie had said about fangs and vampires. Maybe she hadn't just been drunk. Maybe there was something to Bonnie's revelation after all.

"I'm - I'm gonna stick around," Rebecca said. "Elena, if I can't find Damon, do you think Jenna will give me a ride home?"

"Yeah, sure. I already called Jenna. She's on her way."

"Okay, well . . . I'm gonna go look for Damon, call me when she gets here."

"'Kay. Call me if you find him."

"Will do."

Rebecca looked through the crowd and then when she didn't see him right away she went toward the picnic area where other people were. He wasn't there either. Damn. He still had her book bag with the 'Vampire' book in it. He'd probably think she was a freak if he went through her things, and he seemed like the type who would.

Rebecca watched as Matt got into an ambulance with his sister and then as Elena walked over to a still drinking Jeremy. Bonnie and Caroline pulled away in her white car and then she saw that Damon's car was still in the lot. So she'd just go get her bag and if he didn't find her before Elena and Jeremy left, she'd leave with them. But she really wanted to know if Damon was okay. With what had happened to Vicki she was kind of worried. She'd brought Damon here, so if he got hurt it would be her fault.

She stayed near the car and actually got in because it started raining.

"Come on, Damon, where are you?" She really didn't want to have to go in the woods to look for him, but she would if she had to.

Now that Rebecca was alone she couldn't stop shaking. She felt dizzy and sick. She hoped she didn't get sick in the car. She also felt like she wanted to scream, but she covered her mouth to muffle the sound if it came.

But it didn't because suddenly Damon was there in the car with her.

"There you are," he said. "I've been looking for you." He took her in and moved her hand away from her face to hold it in his hand.

"You have blood on your hand. Did you hurt yourself?"

"It's - it's not my blood." She swallowed and then . . . Then she realized she felt like she couldn't breathe. Too much had happened in so little time and now, now she wanted to freak out. Well, her body obviously did, but she told herself she wouldn't do that. Not yet. She needed to distract herself.

"You know, when you wanna cry you really should just let it out."

If she 'let it out' she'd probably hyperventilate. She did that when no one was watching. Full out shaking, sobbing can't breathe hyperventilating. It hadn't happened in a long time, but she remembered a time when it happened a lot.

"I can't. Not with you watching." She got her cell phone out and texted Elena that she'd found Damon and all was fine. "Take me home?"

"Sure. Where would that be?"

So, she gave him the address.

When they reached her house she reached into the back to get her bag and she cursed as her books fell out. It was just one of those days. She got out and opened the back door; Damon was already reaching over the backseat to help her. He picked up the 'Vampire' book.

"Um . . . That's an interesting book." He eyed it and then her suspiciously.

"Yeah, it's not mine. A friend gave it to me. I don't even know if I'm gonna read it."

"Even after what happened tonight?"

"Especially after what happened tonight." She sighed as he helped her put her books back in her bag.

"Rebecca, come in the house, please."

Her shoulders slumped when she heard the hard tone in her dad's voice. "Damn it." He sounded like he disapproved.

"Gotta go. Thanks for the ride."

"You're welcome. See you around?"

She smiled softly. "Count on it."

Once in the house her dad started in on her. "Where were you? It's after - is that blood?" He grabbed her hand. "Are you hurt?"

"No, I . . . I was at the Falls with Elena and Bonnie, a bunch of other people from school. Vicki Donovan was attacked, bitten by an animal."

"You did this without asking?"

"Someone almost died, Dad! I don't think my not telling you everything is the point right now." She withdrew her hand. "I'm going to bed."

"Who was that guy you were with?"

"Just a guy. His name is Damon. He was at the party; he gave me a ride home. I'm going to bed."

He actually let her go this time.

Okay, I was a little iffy about Damon's parts, but I was like he can be charming when he wants to be and that's what he was trying to put off in this chapter. Plus Rebecca didn't do anything to piss him off, like I put in the small Damon's POV section.

Let me know what you guys think. Please? :)