Okay, this picks up where the last one left off. Sarah was just found at the hospital and Rebecca took it upon herself to help her. Pearl and Anna had visited Damon and it didn't end too well for Damon.
Enjoy!
AN: To Moonfang. I know you reviewed as a guest, so I don't know you're real name. LOL. I'm not rude to people who take the time to read and review. Everyone has a right to their own opinion and I respect yours. That being said, if you're not a fan of the story . . . don't read it. It's as simple as that. I didn't set out to make Rebecca faultless or flawless, and if that's how she appears to you, I'm sorry. The only reason she thinks Stefan is a hypocrite is because he acts like he's never done anything wrong even though he was the bad one in the beginning. In my version Damon didn't kill Vickie. She fell down the stairs and broke her neck accidentally. Rebecca was right to defend Damon because he didn't kill Vickie. Rebecca is not perfect; in fact, one of the faults you say she doesn't have is the fact that she illogically protects Damon and defends him the way she does. She's illogically, insanely, blindly in love with him. She loves him unconditionally. That's why they work so well together.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
At the hospital Rebecca had stayed with Sarah, the thirteen-year old girl who didn't know she could become a vampire. And, as Rebecca asked her questions, it seemed the girl didn't know much of anything at all. She knew her name and her numbers, the alphabet, who was president . . . But nothing really personal. She knew Rebecca, knew that she'd known Rebecca before, but she didn't know how she'd gotten to Mystic Falls.
While questioning Sarah Rebecca got a sudden case of blindness and searing pain around her eyes. No, in her eyes. It felt like . . . like her eyes were being gauged out. Then she saw why. Pearl had gone to visit Damon, she wanted something from him. Damon had refused and Pearl had reacted violently.
The only thing that kept Rebecca glued to her seat, kept her from going to Damon because he needed help, was because she saw Pearl leave and she felt Damon getting slowly better. Her headache, however, remained.
"Are you okay?" the girl asked.
Right, there was also Sarah keeping her there.
Sarah was someone Rebecca had known very well once. Chase Carson, Rebecca's ex-boyfriend - abusive ex-boyfriend at that - was Sarah's brother. Rebecca was sort of waiting for him to show up now, and dreading it if he did. Out of everyone in Rebecca's life - ever - Chase had been the only one to ever make her feel like a victim. He was the only one that had ever made her feel like she had to be a victim.
It made Rebecca's head hurt worse just thinking about it, so she stopped. She wouldn't worry anymore about it until something happened. If something happened.
Rebecca checked on her aunt a few times and had been relieved to see she was sleeping, getting the rest she needed. Her dad said the baby was as healthy as could be. Robert was impressed with the fact that Rebecca had taken on the responsibility of helping the little girl down the hall, even if he didn't understand the reasoning behind it.
Rebecca just told him it was because no one should be alone in a hospital. It wasn't good for the healing process. But as the day went by, Sarah became more agitated and Rebecca knew it was because the girl was hungry. She just didn't know how to explain it. Not to someone so young. Rebecca wasn't sure what to do, so she got up, told the little girl she'd be right back, and went outside the hospital. For the first time, she needed Stefan's help instead of Damon's. Stefan could break it to Sarah gently instead of just blurting it out with no thought to how it would affect the girl.
Stefan seemed surprised to hear from her but he listened to her nonetheless. After she was done explaining there was a brief silence on the other end, but then . . .
"A thirteen year old?"
"Yeah," she said softly, placing her hand on her head as another wave of pain went through her. "She doesn't know what's happening to her and I need you to smuggle her out before she hurts somebody."
"I told you my compulsion doesn't work right."
"Try anyway. Please? Worse comes to worst, you can jump her out of a window."
Another silence, but not as long this time. "I'll try. I'm not making any promises."
"Okay." She relaxed. "She's on the same floor as my aunt; just find me and we'll think of something."
She went back inside and a few minutes later Stefan appeared. Rebecca assured Sarah he was a friend and was there to help. Then she asked if Sarah wanted to get out of there. The girl's eyes lit up like the lights on a Christmas tree.
Stefan had had the presence of mind to bring clothes - some of Elena's things since he didn't know any thirteen-year-olds - and Rebecca helped Sarah while Stefan went to persuade Sarah's doctor to release her. The shirt was too big and the pants had to be rolled up several times to even remotely fit but they would do for now.
Stefan came back with the release forms and Rebecca breathed a sigh of relief. They weren't out of the woods yet but she could see the opening. She told the girl to act natural and Sarah did her best. Rebecca went with them mostly to alleviate any fears Sarah had but she only stayed with them until they reached a patch of woods.
Sarah seemed even more agitated now, though she seemed to like not being trapped in a hospital. She kept running her hands over her arms and face.
"Ugh! The sun is killing me," Sarah almost shouted. "What's wrong with me?"
Rebecca looked at Stefan and gestured to Sarah with an "I don't know what to do" shrug. She was unofficially handing Stefan the reigns on this one - for now anyway.
"I'll explain everything," Stefan promised. "But you're gonna have to come with me, okay?"
Stefan took his jacket off and handed it to Sarah, who slipped it over her shoulders and was surprised when the burning sensation from the sun went away.
"Better?" Rebecca asked cautiously.
"Yeah. Weird. I'm hungry."
"Uh . . . We'll get to that in a minute," Stefan said. "How do you like speed?"
"You mean, like, in cars?"
"Something like that."
Stefan held his hands out so he could pick Sarah up, but she backed away into Rebecca and glared at the brown haired vampire.
"You're not one of those guys who attack little girls, are you?"
"Sarah? If I thought he would hurt you I wouldn't let him have you," Rebecca stated, turning the girl around to face her. "I promised to keep you safe, didn't I? I keep my promises, Sarah. You know that. Or you used to."
"You'll come with me?" Sarah asked.
"I, uh . . ."
Crap. She needed to be here for her aunt, but this little girl needed her. And . . . her aunt was asleep, so . . .
"I'll be there shortly. I have to get my car . . . Or, well, my dad's car, and I can't leave without making up an excuse."
"See you at the house?" Stefan asked.
Rebecca nodded distractedly and headed back the way she'd come. Things were good now. She just hoped Damon wouldn't overreact.
At the boardinghouse Damon was still in the basement nursing his wounds and planning how to kill Pearl - he wanted it to be as painful as possible. She'd taken his eyes! Granted, he healed quickly enough, but his eyes were still sensitive, damn it!
He'd gone to get the shrieking Chelsea from upstairs and had found that the living room was too bright for his healing eyes and that was why he was back in the basement. He'd wondered if he should be careful about the drinking blood thing around Chelsea since she wouldn't know not to say anything about it but he needed the blood.
She had grabbed for the bag a few times and at first he hadn't said anything but then he'd told her it wasn't for her - because, really, it was not a juice bag - and she'd stopped quickly enough. He was surprised. He shouldn't have been, he realized, because Rebecca would have taught Chelsea to listen as soon as she'd been able to comprehend the idea of listening.
Damon heard his brother come in upstairs but didn't move at all. Not until he heard a semi-excited voice. Then he didn't hesitate to move. The voice was young and female and what the hell? He picked Chelsea up and raced upstairs, smiling when he heard Chelsea squeal in delight.
"Stefan?"
Damon stopped in front of his brother, who was holding a little prepubescent girl. Blond hair, brown eyes, and, again, prepubescent.
"Uh . . ." For once he was speechless.
"Don't ask, just help me."
"Help you what? Are you kidnapping people now?"
"No - just help me set up a room for her. She's gonna have to stay here for a while."
"Why?"
"I'm hungry," the girl said to Stefan. "I want something to eat."
"I know, let's just set you up a room first."
Damon followed Stefan and the girl upstairs, Chelsea in Damon's arms, where the girl was put to bed, and then outside the room he grabbed Stefan's arm.
"What the hell? Why is she here?"
"She's in transition, Damon. She doesn't know what's happening."
Damon glanced in the direction of the girl's room. Transition, her? A little girl? She'd be a little girl forever if she changed. Even he hadn't done anything that cruel to anyone.
"She's prepubescent!" he said emphatically. "What are we going to do with a prepubescent almost-vampire?"
"A what?" came a shriek from inside the room. Then the door was jerked open. "I'm a what?"
Stefan glared at him. "Nice work, Damon."
Damon shrugged because, hey, at least the girl knew what was going on now. For the first time, Damon realized the girl was wearing some of Elena's clothing. They were huge on her. She hadn't even had the chance to fill out the way a girl was supposed to. With a jolt of unbidden sympathy Damon realized she never would. Whether the young girl turned or not she would never be a woman.
"He didn't really mean that," the girl said. "Did he?"
"Uh . . ." Stefan didn't answer.
"Oh, a lot of help you are," Damon quipped, and then looked at the girl. "What's your name?"
"Sarah . . ." she said, glancing at Damon with distrust.
"Well, Sarah . . . Is your throat burning? The sunlight hurt your skin? Your body ache like you have a bad case of the flu?"
"Damon . . ." Stefan said, trying to warn him to back off because they were dealing with a child.
"Shut up, Stefan. She needs to know."
"This is not the way to tell her. If Rebecca had wanted her to find out like this she would've called you instead of me."
Damon knew - knew - Stefan was just saying that to get a rise out of him, just to take a dig at him, but it worked anyway. It worked because it stung a little that Rebecca hadn't called him with this. Granted, he wouldn't have been able to help because not even ten minutes ago he'd barely been able to see, but . . . it was the principle of the thing. And Stefan was Stefan; Rebecca should've called Damon first and not his brother. So, yeah, he decided to let it bother him.
"Hello," Sarah said, and Damon heard the slight hysteria in her voice. "Can we focus on my problem, please? How am I a vampire? Why am I a vampire? Vampires are . . . They're not supposed to exist. And more importantly . . . How do you know they exist? Are you gonna hurt me just because I am one? And, hey, I'm still hungry!"
Holy hell, does she ever shut up? Damon wondered. And he'd thought Caroline was a chatterbox. Jeez. He knew it was because she was freaking out, but couldn't she do it silently?
A look came over Sarah's face. Her eyes dulled a bit and she gasped. "Only I'm not hungry, am I? If I'm . . . If what you say is true, then it's not food I want. I want blood . . . Don't I?"
Sarah made a face and turned to go back in her room and shut the door. Damon heard as she went to the bed and started sobbing. The sounds were heart wrenching even for him. He hated seeing or hearing people crying - unless, of course, his intention was to make someone cry - because it made him remember that he cared a lot more than he liked to admit.
"What now?" Stefan asked. "Since you broke it to her so eloquently."
"No other way to do it and you know it. Now get out of here. I'll . . . take care of it. And take Chelsea with you."
"Well, you're not gonna kill her . . ."
"Nobody's killing anybody. I'm just gonna talk to her."
"Yeah, 'cause that worked so well last time." Stefan rolled his eyes. "Rebecca will be here shortly, so whatever you're gonna do, do it fast. And be careful. She didn't like being pressured at the hospital, she became violent."
Stefan took Chelsea in his arms and Damon watched his brother go downstairs. He was surprised there hadn't been any further argument, but whatever, it made his job easier. He went inside the room and saw the girl - he called her "the girl" because if he used her name it became too personal - curled up on the bed, knees drawn up to her chest.
He stayed by the door more for her sake than his, to give her the distance he expected she needed. From what Rebecca had told Stefan, Sarah didn't like feeling trapped.
"You don't have to turn. If you don't feed on human blood you won't turn."
The girl took a pause in the sobbing and looked at him with watery, red-rimmed eyes. "But I'll die, right? It's not like I'll just go back to the way I was. Right?"
"No. If you don't feed, then you'll die."
The girl sat up and wiped the wetness from her cheeks. "You mean I have to kill someone or I'll die?"
"You don't have to kill anybody. We have blood bags - full of human goodness."
The girl - alright, Sarah - scrunched her nose up and shook her head. "This is too weird."
Sarah's movements were shaky and even jerky. Damon knew she had only maybe a few hours left, but he wasn't about to tell her that.
"If I'm a vampire . . . does that mean I'm evil?"
Wow, such deep questions for a young girl.
"I think you can make out of it whatever you want."
"Are you evil?" she asked in the innocent way only a child could.
"Well . . ." That was a loaded question. "I'm not good, but I'm okay. Things aren't so black and white when you're a vampire. There's this whole gray area that would take way too long to explain right now."
Sarah was quiet for a whole minute and he thought maybe she just didn't want to talk anymore, but then . . . "May I see?"
"What?"
"Well," the girl was shy all of a sudden. "I know vampires are strong and obviously fast, but may I see?"
"It's not like in movies," Damon warned. "It's a lot more grotesque, and I don't sparkle."
"Darn," Sarah said softly, but smiled a little too. "Okay."
He moved forward and sat on the bed beside her and then he took a deep breath. He felt his canines elongate and the skin under his eyes tighten and he knew that now Sarah was seeing the vampire part of him.
Because she'd been warned Sarah didn't flinch or give any negative reaction. All she said was, "Hm."
Sarah brought her hand up, but right before she made contact she drew her hand back and asked for permission to touch him. Damon didn't care, of course, though he was a little suspicious of the fact that she wasn't scared. Her fingers ghosted over the veins he knew were protruding, and it kind of tickled but he let her continue.
"Thank you for being honest with me," she said, dropping her hand down to her side. "I appreciate it."
His vampire appearance faded back to human and he shrugged, pretending that the fact that she wasn't scared of him didn't affect him at all.
"Do all vampires do that?"
"When they feed. Or like that if you can control it. Or if your emotions are out of whack."
"Hm."
Damon, who had been caught up in doing the semi-nice guy thing, suddenly became aware of Rebecca's heartbeat at the doorway. She was looking at him with a small smile. He noticed that she was pale, like something had happened to her, and the small smile was actually a small grimace.
"Wow. If I had know you could handle this so well I would've called you instead." She gave him a knowing glance and shook her head. "I didn't know you still knew what finesse was, but . . ."
"I think I was around when it was created," he quipped, choosing to not be bothered anymore over the lack of a phone call because he realized it was stupid.
"Right." Rebecca focused on the girl. "Uh . . . do you know what you wanna do?"
"I know I don't wanna die," Sarah said softly, sadly.
Rebecca's throat tightened and she couldn't breathe for a second because, while she didn't want the girl to die either, everything about this felt not right. As if their lives didn't have enough mystery in them, here the little girl was adding another one. Many more another ones, actually.
Rebecca's life . . . Man, she couldn't get a break. She couldn't catch her breath from one problem before another one hit.
"Wait here, we'll get you something to drink," Damon said. His expression was clear; he wanted to talk to Rebecca without the child around.
Damon stood up from the bed and, with one glance back at the girl, he walked out and Rebecca followed him. He put a finger to his lips and gestured to the girl's room. Even though the girl wasn't a vampire yet she still had better hearing than a human
So Damon didn't speak until they were downstairs.
"She has amnesia?" Damon said. "Stefan said that you told him she doesn't know how she got here."
Rebecca shrugged. "I figured that would go away if she turned. Maybe someone compelled her to forget or something and her mind hasn't healed itself."
Damon wasn't so sure, because the fact that Sarah was so far into the transition already should've meant that she'd already recovered from any maladies she'd had. The only way the girl wouldn't be able to remember everything and still not remember after beginning to transition was if somebody had royally fucked with her mind. And if that was case, who knew how long it would take for her to remember everything.
"Hm."
"What?"
"She knows something. She has to, or no one would've made her forget. I think she was sent here. She just doesn't know it."
"Sent here?" Rebecca shook her head to show her confusion and then winced like she was in pain. "Why?"
"I don't know." They had made it to the basement now, and Damon opened the cooler and grabbed a couple of blood bags. He had noticed Rebecca's pained expression but he wasn't going to mention it now. "But it can't be a coincidence that someone found her and she just happened to be at the hospital when you got there. I think . . . I think someone's been here the whole time reporting to whoever's higher up on the food chain. They're testing you to see what you'll do, how you'll react to things. In other words, they're making you their prey."
Rebecca looked down at the basement floor, taking that in. Was Sarah playing her with her little girl ways? Was she faking it, trying to get into the Slayer's inner circle? Was Rebecca being sensitive and stupid, taking a risk she shouldn't?
She suddenly knew she didn't care. The girl deserved a chance and, even if she was faking, she might change her tune if Rebecca was nice to her. Sarah hadn't been manipulative like that when Rebecca had known her the year before, so she hoped she wasn't misjudging the situation completely.
"There's something you should know," Rebecca said, and Damon raised a brow in question. "I know her. She used to live here until she and her family moved."
"Oh," Damon said. "That just adds more credit to my theory."
"I know. And I don't care. She should be given a chance."
"Okay. Now I have to know what happened at the hospital. You're pale and you're shaking and seem like you're in pain."
Rebecca looked down at the ground guiltily. Damon tilted her face back up so he could see her face.
"There's something else you should know," Rebecca said. "And please don't be angry with me."
Uh-oh.
"I'll try.
"You know how we have that bond? The one that let's us know when the other is in trouble?"
"Yeah . . ." Damon said hesitantly.
"Well . . . I can actually feel when you're in trouble. I know Pearl was here, Damon. I know what she did to you because I felt it."
Damon blinked in surprise. She had felt what had happened to him.
"Is this the first time that happened?"
"No. When Stefan stabbed you . . . after Lexi. And then when Logan shot you. And now this." Rebecca began rubbing her head. "I still have the headache from it."
"My eyes are still sensitive," Damon said, automatically making the connection of why Rebecca still had the headache. "Why didn't you tell me this? This . . . whatever it is between us . . . is causing you pain."
"Because I didn't want you to know. I didn't want you to blame yourself or get any ideas of leaving me for my own good. The good outweighs the bad, okay? And I'm okay. Just a little headache."
Damon took a deep breath and let it out, and then he noticed the blood bags that were still in his hand. "Okay, we're gonna have to talk about this, but right now there's a hungry almost-vampire upstairs."
When Damon took Sarah the blood he did warn her that the first few sips would be painful because her canines had to grow. If she hadn't been so young she would've had to find out on her own, because he wouldn't have told her.
He half expected her to change her mind, but she was still adamant about not dying, so . . . There was more crying, but he got that. He remembered how much it hurt when one wasn't used to it.
He was still on the fence with this. He knew Rebecca thought everyone should have a chance, and the choice should've been the little girl's. But the little girl didn't know what she was getting herself into. How could she? And for her not to remember much . . . Something had to be wrong with her.
Rebecca, who was behind Damon, grabbed his arm and whispered his name. She almost couldn't watch the young girl as she truly turned. Rebecca's heart beat faster and she bit her lip so hard it hurt. She felt like crying but she wouldn't let herself. Not in front of Sarah. Rebecca knew kids sometimes reacted to emotions around them, so she wanted to appear calm.
"Um . . . I'm gonna have to leave soon," she said to Damon. "Hold down the fort for me?"
"Your wish, as always, is my command," he quipped.
She smiled and jokingly batted her eyelashes at him. "Of course it is." She kissed him on the cheek and said, "I love you. And I really do appreciate this - all of it."
"I know you do," he said, returning her smile. "Which is why I don't mind doing it. I would walk you out, but, uh . . ." He gestured at Sarah.
"Got it."
Rebecca left the room and Damon listened as she went downstairs, said a loud, "Thank you, Stefan!" and walked out the door. He knew Chelsea was still here because he hadn't heard Rebecca take her.
Sarah was still on her first blood bag but it was going fast. Damon was already fixing the second on for her so she could get enough to last a little while, at least, but when she went for it he held it just out of reach.
"Ah, ah, ah! I have a few questions for you. The first being . . . are you for real?"
Sarah didn't stop looking at the bag in Damon's hands. "I'm not lying if that's what you mean."
"So you really don't know anything?"
"No. Now give it!"
Sarah didn't seem to give a second thought as to what she was wanting, which was just as well, Damon thought.
"Say please," Damon teased, holding it out and yanking it back.
Sarah didn't say please. She leaped off the bed and, in an obvious display of frustration, went straight for Damon's jugular. Damon had her pinned to the ground before she blinked. Sarah fought and she even scratched Damon's arm with her fingernails, but he had strength and years of experience on her.
"Calm down and you can have the blood. I promise. Now breathe and focus on calming down."
Damon couldn't believe he was doing this. How the hell had he let himself be pulled into this one, really? He should have killed Sarah instead of letting her turn. No one deserved to be thirteen for all of eternity. She'd been in the beginning of teen life and she would stay there. Letting her live was more a punishment than an act of mercy. And she snapped even more quickly than he did, but she was brand new. That might have been the reason. New and hungry.
It took a few minutes for Sarah to calm down but she finally did. And, as promised, he gave her the blood.
"Did you feel that? That mindless need to destroy? When people make you angry you're gonna feel that from now on. You're gonna have to learn to control that, learn to decide when it's worth it and when it's not."
Sarah took the second bag of blood in slowly because Damon told her she couldn't have anymore until night came. She probably resented the fact that she was given a limit but she didn't say anything. It was just as well, because Damon wouldn't budge on that. He didn't want to be doing this but he was, so he was going to do it right.
And giving her a limit would make her get used to not going rampant when it came to blood.
"Good. Now . . . Just so you know . . . If you're lying to us, this will not end well for you. Rebecca wants to give you a chance because you're so young and that's the only reason you're still alive right now. You got it?"
Sarah nodded but seemed a little more interested in the blood she was drinking.
"Hey! Are you hearing me?"
"Mm-hm."
"Well, good. Because I mean it. If you're here for Rebecca, I will kill you."
That got her attention, at least, and she looked at him. He locked eyes with her and she didn't say anything. She just nodded. Feeling he'd made himself perfectly clear, he walked out of the room and left her to it.
Rebecca had gone back to the hospital and was spending time with her aunt, who was awake now, and her dad, who was glad Sarah was okay. Rebecca's cover story had been that Sarah's parents had come and released her from the hospital, and Rebecca had gone with her to make sure she was okay. It made sense because Robert had known Sarah's parents and would've been completely fine with Rebecca leaving with her or them. It wasn't suspicious because, back when Sarah had lived here before, Rebecca had babysat her. It had been before Chelsea had even been born; it had been before her mom had even become pregnant.
Both Tina and Robert were impressed that she could care so much about someone that she would do that. That was Rebecca's curse, she thought. She cared about everything a little too much - it wasn't her fault, really; it was just the way it was.
"So, did the doctor say anything else today? About your condition?" Rebecca asked.
"Just that I need more rest," her aunt said.
"And that her blood pressure was a little high," Robert added. "Um . . . that's easily fixed, though."
"Oh, well, good."
"I should be able to get out tomorrow night as long as I don't get worse," Tina said.
"That's good too." Rebecca sighed. After the long day she'd had, she really didn't feel like bringing anything stressful up, but it made sense to do it now when they were all together in one room. "I wanna talk to you guys about something."
"Okay," Tina said. "What?"
"What did Grandma and Grandpa mean when they said you decided to stay with Mom? Were you not going to? Or was I just unexpected?"
Robert shifted in his seat uncomfortably. "Becca, there's something you have to understand about me and your mother."
"Okay . . ."
"I wasn't in love with your mother when I married her. I only married her because I got her pregnant and it was the right thing to do. I grew to love her over time, but . . ."
"If you didn't love her, why did you get her pregnant?" Rebecca asked naively.
"Honey, people have sex all the time without having love in the equation."
"I know that, but . . ."
"To make a long story less long . . . I was in love with Tina."
Rebecca's mouth dropped open and she glanced at her aunt. "Tina . . ."
"We were together, baby. Your dad made a mistake one night. He and Jess were drunk and it just happened. I forgave him a long time ago. Right around the time he married my sister to right the wrong he'd made."
"And now . . ." Rebecca asked, her voice shaking.
"Now . . . Tina's pregnant," Robert said. "And I'd like to make that right, too."
"Oh, I . . . I don't know why you didn't tell me this before. It would've made everything make more sense. I'm happy if you're happy, but . . . I'm gonna need some time to get used to this."
Inside everything fell into place. The arguments Jessica had had with Robert when she'd been alive. The feeling that Robert didn't want to be a dad - he probably hadn't then, not with Jess as the mother. She was proud that her dad had offered marriage as an option for Jess, though. Times were hard on a single mother.
It would still take time to get used to the idea that her dad had been with her aunt. That Tina's baby was her father's. Tina had specifically told Rebecca that the baby had nothing to do with Robert, but . . . Rebecca guessed that had been a lie. That was really the only part of the whole thing that really pissed her off. Yes, she was upset that they hadn't told her sooner, but she guessed that went both ways. She could've asked and she never had.
Neither Robert nor Rebecca stayed that night because Tina told them there was no need. She'd be fine. Rebecca felt bad about leaving her there, but her aunt was insistent so Rebecca left.
It was just as well because Rebecca needed to ask Jeremy for Anna's number. Anna had been young, too, when she'd been turned. Rebecca had never really asked for the story because she hadn't felt it her place, but Anna looked only about fifteen. Rebecca thought maybe Anna could help Sarah. It would take the stress load off of Damon and help the new vampire adjust to her new life.
So when she and her dad got home she walked over to the Gilbert residence. She'd promised her dad she wouldn't stay out too late and she'd be quiet when she got home so she wouldn't wake him up. That was if she came home; she had to go back to the boardinghouse to get Chelsea.
Jeremy let her in and asked about her aunt; she told him all that she knew.
When Rebecca mentioned Anna Jeremy said she was supposed to come over that night anyway, so Rebecca could talk to her then. Well, after, anyway, when Jeremy wasn't around. Elena was there, but she was getting ready to go to Caroline's so they didn't talk for long. At least Elena didn't seem suspicious about leaving Rebecca with Jeremy anymore. Rebecca guessed that meant Elena trusted her not to say anything that could lead to vampires or anything else that was supernaturally related.
She and Jeremy talked for a while since they hadn't spent much time together in the recent past. She felt sort of bad about that, but if Elena insisted on keeping her brother out of the loop, Rebecca couldn't hang around him a lot because she hated having to lie to him.
"I didn't even know you knew Anna that well," Jeremy said.
"Oh, well, yeah. We're friends." Sort of, Rebecca added silently. At least we're not trying to kill each other.
"Yeah? Good." Jeremy offered her a soda and she accepted. "So, we're finally selling Dad's old office building. Or at least we're trying."
Dr. Grayson Gilbert had had an office in Mystic Falls for his medical practice. It was one of the original buildings of the town. It had belonged to Pearl, Rebecca remembered, and it had been an apothecary.
"You're okay with that?" she asked.
"Yeah. It was kind of depressing, it just sitting there and all."
When Anna got there Rebecca was amused at the way Anna seemed surprised that she was there, but she got over it pretty quickly when she realized Rebecca wasn't there to cause trouble. Anna talked about her mom getting a business opportunity. Pearl was going to open up a store.
"I'm thinking about going to high school, so you'll be seeing a lot more of me," Anna said to Jeremy.
"Oh, yeah?"
"Enough of home schooling. I'd like to be a normal teen for once. But I'll have to ask my mom first. She'll have an opinion."
Rebecca recognized the sadness and sincerity in that statement and had to look down at the ground to avoid looking guilty. Jeremy would read something into it if he saw her face. He would know she was hiding something.
"Well, I wish you were there now. I actually have to write another paper." Anna looked curious. "I was thinking about squeezing one more out on the vampires of Mystic Falls."
Rebecca choked on her soda and Jeremy looked at her with concern.
"Sorry! Uh, swallowed wrong." She coughed a few more times. "Vampires, huh?"
"Haven't you exhausted the subject?" Anna asked, and Rebecca noticed Anna was uncomfortable too.
"No, I wanna go deeper, you know? I wanna understand why people were labeled as vampires back in the day. I mean, maybe there is such a thing as vampires; they're just different from the way we always thought they were."
"What d'you mean?"
"Well, maybe they're normal and good, just outsiders, you know? Um . . . Misunderstood."
Anna and Rebecca shared a glance, and then the former said, "You're kidding, right?"
"Don't you think it could be possible?" Jeremy asked. "You did give me all that info."
"Jeremy." Anna shook her head. "I made it up, okay? I mean, you were all cute and floppy and I wanted to make a good impression."
For some reason, Rebecca didn't think Jeremy believed Anna. It made her wonder how much Jeremy knew exactly and whether or not he thought Anna was a vampire, and, if he did know everything, how he had found out.
A few minutes later Jeremy went into the kitchen and Anna was left in the living room with Rebecca.
"I take it from your reaction that you didn't know he was digging into vampires," Anna whispered.
Rebecca shrugged and shook her head. "Nope. Anyway, I came over here to get your number from Jeremy."
"Why?" Anna was genuinely surprised.
"I need you to do something for me, but we can't talk about it here." Rebecca gestured to the kitchen where Jeremy was. "So . . . tonight after we leave here you can, uh . . . come to my house. Okay? Um . . . Use my bedroom window and you can go on in."
Anna smiled softly. It was like she was surprised Rebecca would even think of letting her in. Speaking of . . .
"That will work, right? I mean . . . I don't have to be in my house to invite you in, right?"
"Go on in is a pretty direct invitation; it should work fine. And, uh, I need to talk to you too."
Uh-oh, Rebecca thought. Something was wrong.
"Hey, guys, come on. Don't make me pig out alone," Jeremy's voice drifted in from the kitchen.
"He beckons," Anna quipped and stood up. "You coming?"
"Um . . . I think I'm gonna go, actually. Your number would be nice, though."
Surprisingly enough, Anna accepted her number, too.
"Like I said, just come through the bedroom window, okay? And Anna? As far as I'm concerned, we're good. I don't have a problem with you. I actually think you're a pretty awesome girl and I think we could be friends. When you threatened my friends you were in a bad place and you were desperate, and I get that. So . . . Friends?"
Again that small smile played over her lips. "Sure. Or we could try, anyway."
"Well, good. But put a leash on your mom, okay? No more going after Damon." Rebecca stood up then and said, "See ya later, Jer!" loud enough for him to hear in the kitchen.
"See ya," he responded back.
Rebecca watched Anna go in the kitchen and she wondered if Anna and Jeremy were a relationship in the making. She wouldn't mention it to Elena because she knew Elena wouldn't like it. And, even though Elena was dating a vampire herself, she would try to get in the way of Jeremy's happiness if she knew about Anna still hanging with Jeremy.
Right before Rebecca walked out the door she heard a thump come from the kitchen and then, "What're you doing?" Anna had said that, and then there was silence. Rebecca felt the need to make sure everything was okay so she made her way to the kitchen.
"Jer?" she said hesitantly.
What she found was Jeremy shoved up against the refrigerator with Anna, in all her vampire glory, feeding from Jeremy. Jeremy didn't seem to mind it; in fact he seemed to be enjoying it.
"Anna!" Rebecca said. "Stop it!" Really, this shouldn't have been done in the kitchen - anyone could walk in.
Before Rebecca could grab Anna, the girl took off out the back door. Rebecca looked from the door to Jeremy, who was looking at the blood on his hand, and she decided Jeremy needed her more. Besides, Rebecca had seen Anna's face - vampire or not, Anna had been distraught at the fact that she could've hurt Jeremy.
Rebecca grabbed Jeremy's hand and saw that not only was there a bite mark but there was a semi-deep cut there as well. She eyed the teen suspiciously and grabbed a dish towel from one of the drawers.
"You cut yourself on purpose," she said, only with a hint of uncertainty in her voice.
"I notice you're not freaking out." His tone was steady enough that she knew what he was implying. "You know. I knew there was something going on with you; you were acting too weird."
She grimaced and pressed the towel to his hand harder than was necessary. He winced and she let up a little.
"Sorry. Yes, I know, and what you just did was extremely stupid. A lesser vampire would've killed you. Some aren't as in control."
"How long have you known?" Jeremy asked seriously.
"The beginning of the school year."
"Yeah, that's when you started acting really weird." He grinned the grin that he knew she thought was adorable. "No offense."
She almost grinned back but chose not to because this was a serious situation. "You know you can't tell anyone, right?"
"Like anyone would believe me."
"In any other town, I'd say "Yeah, really," but not here. You'd be surprised what people would believe."
"I won't tell," he said. "I wouldn't do that to Anna. But . . . why haven't you?"
"Uh, I have my reasons." She pulled him by the arm and led him to the stairs. "Let's get you cleaned up. And watch the carpets; blood's a bitch."
Jeremy chuckled as they went to the bathroom and Rebecca got the first aid kit.
"Since when are you a nurse?"
"Since I found out about vampires I've had to administer first aid a lot. Mostly on myself."
"Why?"
"Uh . . ." She looked around nervously. "I can't talk about it here. Someone could walk in. But soon, and somewhere not here, I'll explain everything, okay?"
"Yeah." He cuffed her on the chin gently and smiled. "Hopefully we can be close again after this."
This time she smiled back. "Yeah, hopefully." Then she shook her head. "Not hopefully. We will be, because I won't have to hide things from you anymore."
After Rebecca had taken care of Jeremy's hand she left and realized she had restless energy to spend, so she decided to do a patrol through the town square. During the day, there were food vendors on the street and merchants with flower carts. Sometimes there were even musicians or dancers or jugglers or magicians or, to her amusement, mimes. It was all small town fun.
At night, though, everything changed. People died mysteriously and, most of the time, the locals ignored it or chalked it up to wild animals. But . . . Rebecca hoped that that was just a front. They must've realized after a great many mysterious deaths that something was wrong.
Given the effort the sheriff put in to keep the town calm, the people didn't stay in at night, which was usually why they died. Most people in Mystic Falls were not killed in their homes.
Rebecca was aware that she shouldn't be doing this alone. Damon would not be happy if she got hurt because she was taking an unnecessary risk by patrolling by herself. But he was on Sarah duty, and Chelsea duty, because she'd asked him to help out, and Stefan would be about as useful as a . . . as a bunny rabbit against other, stronger, vampires. He would just be in the way was her opinion.
There had been a girl found in some bushes in a park the day before. Rebecca hadn't seen the body, but she had seen the crime scene photos. The girl had had wounds on her throat, arms, wrists, and legs. There had been a feeding frenzy. Probably more than one vampire, which meant there was a new vampire gang in town. The thought had occurred to Liz too but she hadn't put it the way Rebecca had.
Then someone screamed and Rebecca took off running in that direction. Rebecca had subconsciously made her way to the park the girl had been killed in. And now someone else was being attacked there. She ran until she heard a whimper. She wasn't sure who it belonged to until she came upon five or six vampires and two humans. One was dead, the other almost dead.
Rebecca grabbed the nearest vampire from behind and dug into the flesh of his throat. Within seconds she had broken off a piece of wood from a nearby park bench and had shoved the sharp edge through his back to reach the heart. The vampire died without a sound.
The other five were in shock and, before they could act, she spun a high kick and pushed a vampire backward. He fell over the dead body, which was ironic since the body was there because of the vampires. Then they were pouncing. She turned and grabbed another piece of wood from the bench. She met the first vampire with a sharp jab to the heart and then there were four.
One of the vampires, this one a girl, snarled and ordered, "Kill her!"
They attacked and Rebecca brought all her pent up frustration to the surface so she could feed on the fire it brought her. She grabbed the nearest vampire and they fought. He was good at fighting. She almost enjoyed trading blows with this one. She just wished they were only sparring so neither of them would have to die.
She tried to kick him in the stomach but he caught her foot and flipped her onto the ground. Before she could roll and get back on her feet, he dropped on top of her and forced her harder onto the ground. Rebecca tried maneuvering her stake but the girl vampire - God, she looked familiar for some reason - stomped on her wrist and Rebecca cried out in pain. Needless to say, the stake had fallen from her hand.
The vampire on top of her slammed her head against the ground and pain shot through her. As if she didn't already have enough of a headache. Then his fingers closed around her throat. He was choking her, killing her. She wanted to hurl him off of her or use her legs to flip him over and onto his back, but she couldn't breathe and her lungs were screaming for oxygen. And he was laughing at her. It pissed her off and she knew she had to throw him off, do something to just prove she could. To shove him off his high-horse. But . . . she couldn't.
She felt a burn in her arm as the girl vampire bit into her wrist. As her world was slowly falling away she saw a long thin wooden stake poke through the vampire's chest. The one on top of her was dead now and falling toward her, and so was the sharp wood. God, it was going to impale her.
Only it didn't. But the vampire did fall on her. She could breathe now, and she yanked her hand away from the one who had been drinking from her. That one was quickly disposed of, too.
The other two had run away and the girl they'd been feeding from had died. A shadow fell over Rebecca and she quickly prepared herself to fight even though she was weak. She wasn't just going to roll over and play dead.
She grabbed for her stake but stopped when she found she couldn't move her wrist. Fuck!
"You won't be needing that," a male voice that she vague recognized said.
She looked up from the ground. "Mr. Saltzman?"
"Miss Stone? What're you doing out here?"
"Almost dying, apparently," she said dryly. "And getting rescued by the most unlikely person."
She realized her voice was weak and she sounded kind of drunk; she hoped he didn't get the wrong impression.
"Ah."
He helped her up and she looked around at the carnage. "What a mess."
"Yeah, you're telling me. What happened to the first two?" Ric grabbed her wrist gently. "May I?"
She shrugged. "Sure. Careful, it hurts. I think it's broken. And I happened to the first two."
Ric shook his head. "But you're so little."
He seemed stunned and she laughed a little. It made her head rush.
"But also deadly." She looked around again and sighed. "I should call this in. You should go."
"Call it in?"
"Um . . . the sheriff. I work with her; if one can call it work because I don't get paid."
And now that she thought about it, she was going to talk to Liz about that. She was out there risking her life and she wasn't getting money for it. That wasn't fair. If she was going to die by the hands of a vampire, she was going to benefit from it, damn it.
"The sheriff knows about vampires?"
Rebecca looked at him steadily. "Who do you think covers it all up?" Then it occurred to her . . . "What the hell are you doing out here?"
Ric shrugged. "I don't know. Heard about the attack on the girl, thought I'd come check it out. Seems the vampires have found a new feeding ground."
"Hm. Well . . . you still should go. And . . . thank you. I would've been killed had you not shown up."
"No problem."
She watched Ric walk away and sighed again. Then she called Liz. Then she thought of Damon. Assuming their connection was still there for him . . . he was probably freaking out. She was probably looking for her right now.
So she called him. She could tell by the breathlessness in his voice that, yes, he'd been worried, and, yes, he'd felt she was in trouble. He hadn't known where she'd been so . . .
"Well, where are you? I'll come get you."
"No, I have to wait for Liz. I'm in the park, but you don't have to -"
"I'll be there in a minute. Do you care if I leave Chelsea with Stefan?"
"As long as she's safe with him, no."
She was glad Damon was coming because, as always when things were going wrong, she wanted to be with him. He needed to hurry because Ric had bandaged her wrist as best as he could given there were open wounds there but she was sure the vampire had hit the vein and she was still bleeding out. She was keeping pressure on it, but . . .
To keep her mind off of her wrist she texted Anna to ask if she would meet her at the boardinghouse instead. Damon appeared within minutes - he had run faster than she could've driven.
Damon, of course, had smelled her blood before he had seen her. Looking at her, it registered in his brain that she looked like she'd been through a hell of a battle. She was favoring her right wrist, which was bandaged with what looked like a strip of cloth from a shirt, and there were bruises all over her neck where it looked like she'd been choked.
"What happened to you?" Stupid question, but he asked anyway.
"Fight," she said simply. She wasn't going to tell him how bad it had been for her, apparently. "Liz is coming and she's going to take care of it. Two people died. Four vampires died."
"I can see that for myself, thanks." She was in a mood, apparently. "You shouldn't have come here by yourself."
"I heard someone scream. I didn't really think about it. God, I have a headache. I need some aspirin."
"Your wrist is bleeding," Damon observed after a few seconds. "What happened?"
"Hurt myself."
"Obviously. Let me see."
Something was obviously bothering her, and it wasn't the fact that two people - human people - had died. He'd seen her bothered by death and she didn't act this way about that. So it was something else.
Rebecca let him take the makeshift bandage off. He almost growled when he saw the bite mark there. She yanked her hand away and he realized he'd been squeezing too hard.
"Ow! My wrist still hurts, you know." She placed her hand back in his. "Don't spazz out on me."
"They don't usually bite you when you fight," he said, sort of explaining and sounding apologetic.
"I think these were more experienced vampires. They weren't after me. They were feeding and I interrupted them. They pounced. One of them bit me while the other tried to choke the life out of me."
Damon was getting a serious word picture in his brain, and he was not happy. He didn't like her patrolling alone, and it had nothing to do with her being a woman. He'd underestimated women before and had gotten his ass kicked. It had to do with him caring. She shouldn't fight alone because she could die. She could've died that night.
And . . . that was the problem. Not the two people who the vampires had killed. The problem was she'd almost died. She wasn't used to almost dying. Yes, she'd had some close calls, but it had been a while since the last time, and she was scared. Rebecca didn't like feeling scared.
Rebecca was going to end up driving him crazy, he was sure of it.
He used his vampire senses to make sure no one was anywhere near them - and no one was - and he bit into his wrist so she could drink and heal herself. There was a selfish reason in there too. The only bite mark he wanted on her was his. Possessive vampire crap, yes. But he didn't care.
"Anna may me coming to the boardinghouse tonight," Rebecca said, wiping her mouth. "I asked her for her help with Sarah. Anna was young, too, when she was turned."
"Right." Since Rebecca obviously wasn't acting like herself right now he just went with it. "Speaking of . . . She wouldn't stop crying today."
It had driven him to drink. It was either that or kill her, and Rebecca wouldn't have liked that. Not so soon after the girl's transformation.
"Be more careful next time, okay?" he said, changing the subject back to her. "I know you can take care of yourself, but you put too much on yourself at one time. You're just one person, Becca."
Rebecca was surprised Damon hadn't just outright told her not to patrol alone again. He probably knew it wouldn't do any good. She couldn't wait for him to patrol with her, and it wasn't his job anyway.
It was late-ish when Damon and Rebecca got to the boardinghouse. Rebecca was still a little woozy from blood loss but she was on her way to feeling better since Damon had given her some of his blood.
Anna had already arrived at the boardinghouse and when she saw Rebecca she apologized for Jeremy as Rebecca led her upstairs to the little girl's room. Sarah was probably asleep, but it wouldn't hurt for Anna to introduce herself.
"I've never heard of anyone turning someone so young unless there was a reason. Like me. My mom was turned and then I got sick. She turned me so I wouldn't die."
When they got to the room Rebecca stayed outside because she didn't know if her presence would make it worse or not for Sarah. While Anna was in the room Rebecca tried calling her dad but got the voice mail, so she just told him she was staying at the boardinghouse because of a vampire problem. Liz would fill him in in the morning if he wanted her to.
Rebecca listened in at the door and realized Sarah was crying because she couldn't shut out the noise and it was too much. She wasn't used to it and she could hear everything. It was driving her insane.
"Breathe," Anna whispered. "Just breathe, okay? It'll get better, I promise."
A waft of air hit Rebecca in the face and then Damon was there. Rebecca saw he was as concerned as he'd let himself appear.
Damon grabbed her arm and they went to his room. She flopped onto the bed and groaned. It had been a very tiring day. There was her aunt and her dad, Sarah, and her job. Not to mention the fact that she'd almost died.
"I think I made a mistake," she said. Her voice was low so the new vampire wouldn't hear. "With Sarah. She's terribly unhappy. I shouldn't have left it up to her. There was no way she could've know what it meant."
"She attacked me today," Damon said. "Though it was what I wanted. I needed to know her snapping point. She has a very short fuse."
Rebecca didn't say anything; she just laid there. Damon began untying her shoelaces and she looked at him gratefully. She was too tired to move and he knew it. He was taking care of her.
Rebecca was asleep as soon as she was underneath the covers. She'd even forgotten to ask about Chelsea.
Okay, so here we see the beginning of a new edition to the story. Sarah! Do you like her, do you not like her? Keep her around, get rid of her? LOL
Anyway, read and review!