It was one of those days when the only thing that felt possible to do was lay in bed all day. Hear my stomach growling with pain, the period cramps draining the energy from me. All I wanted to do was watch a movie, eat chips dipped in chocolate and ignore the outside world.

But work had other plans for me. So, it was time for me to put my acting skills to good use!

"Welcome to Mystic Grill! How may I help you?" Thankfully, I didn't catch Bella. She would've seen – or heard, I suppose – right through my act. But Roberta, the big boss of the Grill, as nice as she was, might be more easily fooled…

"Yes. Hi–" I began, just about to fake a cough when I decided against it. Roberta, unlike Bella, one could reason with. "My period hit me hard. I don't know if I'll be able come to work today." With a little politeness thrown in there, I felt confident enough to – for once – speak the truth.

"Oh. I understand completely," Roberta replied. "You take this day off and I'll see what I can do with your shift." Easy!

"Thanks."

Free for the day, I slammed my clamshell phone shut and slumped back in my couch, reaching after a blanket. Tending to my cramps and cravings could wait for a minute.

The day went on smoothly, meaning Elena only disturbed me twice.

The first time to tell me she and Stefan were planning on going on a double date with Caroline and Matt. Good that those two kids had worked things out, but I was more happy that I wasn't working tonight. Truth be told, I was far from keen on seeing my sister on a double date with her ex, just thinking about it gave me shivers.

The second time my dear little sister called me was later that evening, to then fill me in on how everything had gone.

"So let me get this straight," I began with my brows furrowed, laid on my couch with my head upside down and a heating pad resting on my stomach as I watched some crappy action movie. "You guys had a sorta awkward meal at the Grill, but still pretty okay. Then you went to the Salvatores to fix up Stefan's car?"

"Yep."

"And saw Matt's mom make out with Damon?"

"Yep."

"Man!" I laughed, readjusting my position to sit up straight since I'd almost slipped off the couch entirely due to the amusement. As well as felt the blood shift dangerously within me. "I almost wish I could've seen that!"

"Trust me, you didn't miss anything." Elena sighed, probably shrugging at the memory. "Not a pretty sight."

"Figures," I chuckled, reaching for the remote to turn off the crappy movie. It had gotten all the facts wrong; cars couldn't drive over such a wide gap! Trust me. "So now what? A whole day without any vampire drama? Was it possible?"

"I think we succeeded." Elena – by the sound of it – beamed.

"Okay… But it might come back to bite you," I warned, getting up from my couch to put the empty bowl with chips crumbs and residue from melted chocolate on the kitchen counter.

"Trouble for another time," Elena waved off.

"I'm serious. Enjoy your happy, trouble-free moment as much as you can while it lasts. It rarely sticks around for very long. It's like there is someone writing trouble into our lives for the sake of entertaining the masses. Hmm…"
"What on earth are you talking about, Parks?" a bemused Elena inquired.

"Huh? Oh, never mind." I shrugged off the conspiratory feeling. "Just keep it in mind."

"Yeah, okay… I'll talk to you tomorrow. You think you'll feel better then?"

On my way to the bathroom, I stopped, placing a hand on my stomach. "Probably not," I stated.

"I think I might have some chocolate left over," Elena mumbled.

"Oh, you are so welcome here!" I empathized, getting a chuckle.

I'd barely woken up, dreams of clashing blades clinging, when I heard a hard knock at the door. Slowly, I sat up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. A glance at the clock on the wall above the kitchenette informed me it was rather my sleeping schedule than my visitor that was off.

"In a minute!" I called, standing up without thinking. The blood within me shifted, and I laid a hand to my growling stomach. Cursing, I glanced at the couch where I'd rested, but thankfully saw no stains of blood.

Making my way to the cabinet filled with all kinds of first aid things, I popped out a pill and swallowed it with a quick mouthful of water to ease the pain of the cramps.

Another hard knock at the door demanded my attention, so with a huff I moved to the door.

"Okay. What is so– Hey!" My sister hurried past me without as much as a nod of greeting, pushing a bar of chocolate into my arms. I was left to stare at the empty hall that had been behind her. "Okay… What's up?" I closed the door, passing her pacing across the floor to head for some clothes, dropping the chocolate off on the kitchen counter for later.

"Oh. You know…" Nervously, she scratched the back of her neck. Her gaze couldn't seem to be still, flashing all over the place to be everywhere at once. Whatever had her clearly freaking out, I was too tired to get involved in this so soon after waking up.

Since I found that I'd – for once – hadn't left dirty clothes laying around my living room area, I went to retrieve something other to wear than my current old, oversized t-shirt from my walk-in-closet.

Noticing me move and breaking out of her thoughts, Elena was quick to follow me. At first, I didn't mind her sticking to my back like glue – a little annoyed by it, yes, but I could live with it for a moment or two – but as I threw a glance ahead of me at the closet, I stopped dead. She crashed into my back, and I spun to face her.

"Elena." I smiled tightly. "A little space, will ya?"

"Right." She took a step back, her gaze directed into the wooden floorboards. "Sorry."

Sighing, I moved again, and this time she kept her distance. She even stopped in the doorway, eyeing the room with big eyes. Casually, I moved to block her view of one particular open closet.

"Nice renovation," she commented with a nod at the baby blue walls, the open cabinets and the furry, light-blue rug beneath a big, matching sitting pouf in the middle of the rectangular room.

It could have been very luxurious, with its great potential for organization thanks to all kinds of nifty hanging constructions and many compartments, hadn't it been for my inability to keep things tidy. Instead, the room was a mess with clothes thrown all over the place, barely any pieces making it into the new blue closets following the theme of the room.

Honestly, it looked a bit as if a hurricane had roared through the closet. Hurricane Parker. It sounded rather dramatic, yet fitting.

"Thanks…" I trailed off. But my attention laid focused on what I was trying to block my sister's view of; a conspicuous, dark wooden chest near the door to the bathroom, usually covered by my long dresses – actually kept hanging on hangers – but now very much visible. And open. "Did you want something?" I asked, trying to keep Elena distracted from the wooden coffer.

"Yeah, well, I…" she began, but seemed unable to find the right words to follow up with. If my sister – the ever poetic and amazing writer – was having problem expressing herself, then something was seriously wrong. "Could I have some water?" she finally settled on.

"Sure…" I replied, cautiously.

Being as fast as possible, I headed to my tiny kitchen to fix her request, listening intently for her movements beyond the wall as I filled up a glass with water from the tap. Abruptly, her pacing steps seemed to halt. When I returned with her drink, I realized why, and cursed silently.

"What is this?" Elena exclaimed as she noticed me. Accusingly, she pointed at the contents of nothing other than the wooden chest. In a matter of seconds, I moved across the room, almost spilling the water on the light blue floor – yes, I painted it too.

"What did you think?" I slammed the lid to the box shut with a bang. "That I was just gonna sit around and sip my vervain coffee, hoping that I wouldn't be attacked by a vampire?"

Elena made a fleeting attempt to remove my firm hand from atop the lid.

"What… How– Where did you even get all that?" Her eyes were big and round as they met mine. Reluctantly, weighing my options carefully, I opened the box again and allowed my sister to peer inside.

Wooden stakes, wooden bullets, gadgets and guns loaded with vervain filled darts. Basically, anything you would needed to take a vampire down; and I was showing it all to the girlfriend of one. But she was my sister. She needed to know where she could find these things, would she ever be in need of them, for whatever reason.

"Don't think about it too much." I slammed the box shut once more, causing Elena to quickly retrieve her fingers to not have them squashed by the heavy lid. Receiving a hurt look from her, I only ignored by shoving the water into her hand.

When I walked out of the walk-in-closet, Elena stayed behind for a moment, simply staring at the box.

"Parks…" she began, but her voice faded quickly. She scratched the back of her head, her lips pressed into a line. Now what? "Do you think… Would it be…. Could I, ehrm, borrow some of these stuff a little?"

"For what?" I asked and crossed my arms, leaning against the doorframe. Had Elena grown tired of her vamp-boyfriend already?

"Nothing special," she spoke hastily. Lying. Her gaze did everything to avoid mine, her posture stiff and her hands fumbling on the hem of her navy blue sweater; Elena could practically have been the poster girl for signs to tell when someone was lying. But if she wasn't going to let me know what was going on, then I wasn't going to push the matter any further. I had a feeling I would find out about it soon enough, one way or another.

"Okay." I shrugged. Instead of meeting her chin dropping in surprise, I moved around my bed to close one of the large windows, which had been slamming due to of the strong winds outside for a good few minutes now. The rain had soaked the wooden floorboards right under the sill, I noted with a curse. Yet another thing I had to fix in this bloody apartment! Like the bathroom wasn't enough already.

The storm was roaring outside, making the badly isolated windows whistle a high, off-pitched and very creepy tune.

"Okay?" Elena double-checked, sounding surprised. That I had agreed so easily and not asked any more questions about her agenda? Probably.

"Yep." I struggled with the window, fighting the wind that refused to let me close the damn thing. "Just bring them back in a relatively clean state–" I won and the window finally slammed shut. "–and I'll be happy." I brushed off some dust and splinters from my large t-shirt and bare legs, compliments from the old, cranky window.

"Okay…." My sister's gaze flew between me and the box filled with weapons, as if deciding if I was really being serious. "Okay!" she repeated with more force, a new frown forming amongst her features. "Do you have a bag or something I could borrow too?"

That, I had. And half an hour later, I waved off my sister in the door, telling her that whatever she was up to, to try not to get herself killed. Her response echoed from the stairwell, assuring me she'd be fine. I wasn't convinced, but I was too busy for the day to be able to shadow her and find out what was going on.

With my day off yesterday, Roberta had given me a shorter shift today, waitressing. All I had to do was drag my ass down to the Grill, seem somewhat present and smile, and I'd be good to go home in just a few hours.

"Wipe off the tables." A wet cloth was shoved into my hand. As I'd suspected, Bella wasn't as understanding with my absence yesterday as Roberta had been.

"Look, I agreed to waitressing, despite being a bartender, but–"

"This is part of the job," Bella cut me off. Tightening my fist, I imagined stroking her jaw. Hard. "It shouldn't be too difficult for you. Just clean. The. Tables." Her platinum blonde bob flicked me in the face when she stormed off, having been standing that close, her whole being boiling with anger. If I'd had the energy, I would have started coming up with a plan to get me back in her good graces as soon as possible, but…

My stomach was cramping, my energy drained and my muscles felt sore and swollen from all the hormones rushing around. So instead, I decided that it was a problem for later.

Due to the ongoing storm, the Grill was fairly empty. Not that I minded, since it meant less work for me. Muffling my muttering, I got to work with my new assignment.

When I started wiping off a booth table Matt had just cleared of dishes, he gave me a weird look.

"Don't ask." I shook my head, and he let it be. Good boy.

Soon enough, I'd kept up the act for an hour, all whilst throwing longing glances back towards the bar, only to be met by a red-faced Bella squinting her eyes at me with the same unyielding fury. However, each time I turned around, her gaze and features seemed to have softened a teensy bit. It wouldn't be long now… I knew how to look both miserable and guilty at the same time. Just as anticipated, soon heavy footsteps approached me from behind.

"Fine!" Bella sighed and threw a black apron at me. "You can stop that." She pointed at the cloth, which I dropped immediately. My fingers had turned mushy after all the scrubbing. "You can move on to take the orders instead."

"Great." I accepted the apron and tied it around my waist, scouting the venue for any newly arrived customers.

Over by the slightly higher level, where the bar was also located, I spotted my brother was sitting by a long table stretching along the railing that separated the two levels of the room from each other. How hadn't I noticed him before? Jeremy's gaze was fixated on something by the entrance, and with a twirl of my head, I saw who was consuming his attention. Typical.

Anna. As in the vampire who had thrown me into a stonewall before rescuing her mother from the tomb. At the moment, she was chatting with a tall woman whose raven black hair and features were frighteningly similar. So that was what the mother must look like when she hadn't been starved for over a century. Big improvement. But what were they both still doing here? Shouldn't they have bailed town by now? I would have.

Any further musings were interrupted by Mayor Lockwood and his son Tyler entering the Grill behind the mother and daughter, instantly beginning to exchange some words. Swearing, I realized waitressing meant that I had to take their orders too and tend to the spoiled brats culinary needs. Dammit.

Grinding my teeth against each other, I approached the pairs, forcing a tight smile when I neared them.

"We'll make do," I heard Anna's mother answer the Mayor with a polite smile, similiar to mine in its strained nature.

"Mayor Lockwood, your table is right this way." I made a gesture in towards the heart of the Grill. If he'd noticed how my tone dripped with bitterness, he chose not to comment on it.

"Great."

"Mayor… Lockwood, is it?" The black haired woman suddenly sounded noticeably more interested as the man in question twirled back around to face her. "I suppose it is treacherous outside. My name is Pearl."

"Hi." Lockwood and the vampire Pearl shook hands.

"This is my daughter Anna," she continued with a gesture towards the girl who had been staring at me for a good few seconds now. Discreetly, I made a gesture and raised my hand to stroke away the hair from the back of my head, flinching when my fingers moved the bump she'd given me. After that, Anna withdrew her accusing gaze from me. "We've just recently moved to town," Pearl informed the Mayor, now with a considerably much more warm smile.

"Welcome. Richard Lockwood. This is my son Tyler." An awkward nod from the teenager. "Please, join us." Was he flirting? No wonder Carol Lockwood enjoyed Damon's attention so much! Her husband clearly wasn't the most faithful one. Not that I was surprised.

"It would be a pleasure." Pearl followed me to a table in the middle of the room, Lockwood and his son not far behind us.

Unlike me, I was sure Pearl listened to the trailing pairs every every word using her heightened hearing. I, on the other hand, only had my imagination at my disposal. But one look at Tyler's tired face as I handed his father a menu said it all: he was enjoying his dad's flirting about as much as I was.

"I'm gonna go shoot some pool," he declared and left. Lucky guy, he could leave.

Keeping the strained smile on my face, I exchanged some polite words, which mostly consisted of anecdotes about my parents, of course topped off by a 'sorry for your loss' from Lockwood's part. That never failed to amuse. Not. However, I noticed how Pearl seemed to tense up a bit at the mentioning of 'Gilbert', and I couldn't help but wonder why. Either way, it was with relief I left them when they'd finally made up their minds about food and drinks.

The bar was, aside from this duo, otherwise nearly empty, probably due to the roads being flooded as usual; another proof of this town's useless infrastructure. With people most likely having decided to stay home instead of coming here, it meant less work for me. So yay!

One of the chefs, Chase – a good friend of mine from way back when in high school – happened to be working this very evening. Lingering in the kitchen, I chatted with him for as long as possible, not wanting to face the new duties of being nice forced upon me. But, of course, Bella found me sitting on the counter as the dirty blonde, young man chopped tomatoes, smiling at something I'd just said.

"Aherm!" Bella threw a pointed glare at me, her accusing finger gesturing back towards the double doors.

"Duty calls," I muttered, jumping down from the silver counter. With a light clap on Chase's shoulder as I walked around him, I whispered, "Back to the slaughter."

"Always so dramatic, Parks." He laughed with a roll of his green eyes. Sticking my tongue out at him as answer, I picked up the food for Pearl and Lockwood on the go and opened the double doors leading out into the bar by pushing my back against them.

A polite smile there, another mannerly conversation here, my mom would have been proud! I tended to a few other guests before I saw something that made my courteous smile waver, to be completely erased when I did a double-take.

Jeremy and Anna – my baby bro and the bitchy vampire – openly eye-fucking.

They weren't too far apart from each other either, Anna playing darts by herself as Jer sat by a table a few feet away. Reaching his side, all it took to snap him out of it was a crushing hand being laid atop his lower arm. And it caught Anna's attention in the process. I slipped my other hand into my pocket, in case…

"What do you think you're doing?" My jaws were so clenched that the fact that my words were even comprehensible was an amazement in itself.

"None of your business." Jeremy's tone was as threatening as mine when he tried to rip his arm away, but only caused himself to flinch in pain when my hand pressed down harder. Somewhere behind me, I could practically feel Anna debate whether or not to move closer, meaning her mother probably didn't know about her thing with Jeremy. Interesting.

"Let's try that one more time, Jer. What the hell are you doing?" I felt a light tap on my shoulder, and I knew it was Anna even before I'd turned my head.

"He didn't do anything," she defended. But before she could add something else, I had twirled around completely and placed the tip of a dart filled vervain from my pocket to threateningly press into her stomach. Thankfully, Jeremy's corner of the bar was too dark for any of the few surrounding to notice the scene.

"Parks!" Jer exclaimed from behind me, rubbing his aching arm as he stood.

"Sit," I ordered. Surprisingly, he obeyed. Probably due to my cold voice. Anna only stared at me, just as Pearl did from her table far over on the over side of the Grill, but I still had a clear view of her when I forced Anna to turn a bit by gripping her shoulder firmly.

"There's no need to cause a scene," I began in an ice-cold and collected tone. "But unless you two vampires get the hell out of here right now, I'll jab a vervain dart into the little sweet daughter, drag her outside and stake her. Good luck pretending to be human then," I spat out the last part, causing Pearl to flinch. Lockwood, who was sitting across from her and yapping away – not noticing a thing – seemed to be the last thing on Pearl's mind right now.

"Parker, stop–"

"Not now, Jer!" I barked over my shoulder. "Well, what will it be, Pearl?" The vampire seemed to think that I was bluffing, but as I twisted around Anna's shoulder slightly, earning a whimper, Pearl changed her mind and nodded. It was a deadlock anyway; if I dragged an unconscious and vervained Anna out of here, it would cause a scene. But if Pearl flashed over and snapped my neck, which I could see that she really wanted to do, she would reveal her true form.

Carefully, I observed Pearl as she excused herself to Lockwood, getting up to leave. He made a few persistent attempts to make her stay, but eventually decided the effort was too much. I didn't release Anna until her mother was over by the front door, holding her light-gray coat in her hand.

"Pleasure doing business with you," I told Pearl as I backed away from her daughter, removing the vervain dart. Liz and the town's council would have been proud. "We're even," I added for Anna, whose gaze traveled between me and my brother, before she reluctantly turned to leave. As she headed for the door, I could see her pulling up her phone from the back pocket of her black jeans, typing something. A suspicious tone sounded from Jer's phone a second later as he received a text. Just barely, I managed to catch a glimpse of his satisfied smile, before it faded away due to him noticing my sharp gaze.

"What the hell, Parks!" he wheezed in a hushed tone and shot to his feet. "What was all that about?"

"I'm guessing you already know," I told my brother frankly, taking a step closer to force him to sit back down in his chair; I didn't like it when the towered over me.

"Are you trying to ruin my life?" he exclaimed. Dramatic much? Although he was Elena's brother – aka the queen of all drama – so there was a fairly reasonable explanation for it. Nevertheless, Jeremy needed to be taken down to earth a bit.

"Look, Jer. I'm not gonna have this conversation with you. I'm not your legal guardian and I don't care what you know or don't know, or how you know it, for that matter." Jeremy only frowned, but I refused to spell out the vampire-thing for him, in case my growing suspicion after his long glances with Anna was wrong; that would be an awkward conversation. However, I wanted to have this said. "But promise me one thing, Jer. You can continue to fool around or date Anna if you want, but don't make any drastic or stupid decisions. Okay?" I held out my pinky for him.

He still seemed a little confused, but reached out and grabbed my little finger with his, entwining them with a nod. "Deal."

If I were a good older sister, I would have found out just how much he knew about vampires, what his relationship with Anna was about, and overall how he was doing. But, honestly, I didn't have the energy for it. My mind was too occupied with the fact that Bella seemed to be bent on keeping me waitressing, Elena's suspicious behavior earlier, and, sadly, the whole Damon drama.

So, I left Jeremy with that vague urging slash warning pulling at me, which was still easy enough to ignore.