"Where the hell are you?"
"I'm close! Turning a corner onto the main street right now. Jeez, relax woman."
"What's taking so long then?"
"It's crowded, okay!"
"Well, HURRY UP!"
Cursing loudly, I removed the phone to rub my ringing ear. What was with Elena and screaming – at me – through phones all the damn time? How could she even be calling me right now anyway? She was supposed to be standing on a float waving at the crowd as a part of the Founder's Day Parade thingy. Modern day technology and classy southern 1800s clothing – the theme of the Miss Mystic float – didn't exactly mix and match. Caroline's hawk eyes probably wouldn't have allowed the usage either.
When I finally zigzagged into the heart of the little community, the music from the parade exploded. Yet another reason to shield my poor ears! Elbowing my way through the thick crowd of gleeful townspeople, all cheering like crazy at Mrs Lockwood presenting the different themes of the floats barely reached my ears, mainly because of the group next to me, screaming at the top of their lungs when a float with the theme 'The Battle of Willow Creek' slowly drove by. I just managed to glimpse Jeremy and Tyler dressed in plain, gray uniforms with old, fake rifles in their hands, smiling and waving at the loud crowd before them. At least Jer looked happier today, although I still made a mental note to talk to him about his recent frosty behavior towards Elena later, when the chance presented itself.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our stunning Miss Mystic Falls Court and their handsome escorts," Carol voiced over the noise. Tip-toeing, I barely got a glimpse of my sister in an uncomfortable dress she'd called to complain about earlier this morning.
Instantly, I gravely regretted my decision to wear flats today; I would have needed my old, reliable boots to see anything over this tall crowd. But, for once, I'd chosen comfort over fashion; along with a pair of loose-fitted, ripped jeans and a black, comfy sweater under my brown leather jacket, with a pair of matching sunglasses acting like a headband to keep my messy hair out of my face.
When I'd finally fought my way to the street where the carriage were passing, I realized that I was on the wrong side of the road. Shoot. Even though the couples dressed in vintage clothing swirled around to wave at both sides of the street, they clearly favored the other one, since an even bigger crowd had gathered there. Retreating back, I elbowed my way through the cheerful families once more, until I reached a stand were a grumpy-looking dude was selling hot dogs.
"Don't mind me," I excused and jumped up onto the counter, finally getting a better view of the scene. I ignored the hot dog guy's protests about me staining his shiny counter, which already had greasy spots before I stepped up onto it, might I add.
The decorated float with the Miss Mystic court passed by, and Stefan quickly noticed me up on my little platform, alerting Elena by poking a finger into her side. She turned around to face him whilst giggling, waving rapidly as she spotted me.
Through the gaps between the couples, I could hint Bonnie not too far away, standing in the middle of the other crowd. Once the carriage had driven past us, I waved to the dark-haired curls surrounding the cocoa-skinned, heart-shaped face as well. Bonnie returned my wave a little hesitantly – maybe thinking I'd still be pissed at her after her interference with Stefan's blood freak-out at the Miss Mystic thing – even adding a shy smile. I was just about to return it, when I noticed another familiar figure in the crowd stretching out between me and Bonnie. Jäklar.
The wry smirk looked even more smug than usual as Damon raised his hand to wave at me.
"För i helvete…"
The marching orchestra's music rang in my ears, their trumpets growing louder and the beating of the many drums intensifying. I knew this encounter was inevitable, yet I had still hoped to avoid it a little bit longer. But maybe I still could. Jumping down from my creative podium, I glimpsed Damon turn around to peer at Bonnie instead of attempting to follow me; good, that would give me a head start.
With the hot dog guy's complaints ringing in my ears along with the deafening music, I spotted the Miss Mystic float and hurried after it. Elena would be able to protect me from any confrontation with a certain smoking vampire; she was like an efficient shield when it came to repelling Damon.
My stalking of the float lead me to turn a corner into a much more quiet street, the orchestra's music finally dying down behind me. Eventually, the float stopped and its passengers abandoned it. Elena and Stefan were discussing something just beside it as I closed in on them.
"I'm here! Everybody chill," I declared, resting my elbow on Elena's shoulder. My sister's face was a shadow of her previous smile as she rolled her eyes at me, shrugging me off. Stefan lightly grazed her elbow in a comforting gesture. "What?" I questioned with a frown.
"New update: John's my biological father," Elena informed with a sigh. The signs of her freaking out were all still very visible; cuticles plucked at and curls twirled into tight strings of hair, I noticed now up-close. This was news how…?
"Duh," I spoke with a shrug.
"Excuse me?" Elena's eyes widened as she put her hands on her hips; they were extremely highlighted by her poofy dress in a leaf green and bleak yellow color mix. Oh. Wait a minute.
"I never told you that he was the one who brought Isobel to Dad's clinic, did I?" I checked with a careful frown, my forefinger pointing at her.
"Must have slipped your mind," Elena replied through gritted teeth.
"Whoops! Well, he did. I was eight, but I do still remember." I knocked my fist against my skull with a wink, as Elena shook her head.
"Clearly not everything," she muttered and threw me a stern glance. Okay, message recived; no time for jokes.
"On another note, you look striking in that dress," I commented, hoping to get back in my sister's good graces.
"Thanks." A quick smile passed over her tired face. "Now I'm getting out of it. Care to help me?" Elena turned her head to ask Stefan with a flirtatious gleam in her brown eyes.
"Euw. Go away. I don't wanna know that shit." I waved the loving couple off with a disgusted face, catching Elena's smug smile as she looped her arm with Stefan's to lead him away.
So, with a sigh, I reluctantly made my way back to the crowded Town Square. At least the music had died down now and people were only walking around and socializing with their fellow citizens. Not my thing, but still better. A gray hoodie passing me reminded me of my little brother. And sure enough, when the owner of the hoodie bumped into someone and twirled around to send a glare after them, I was faced with none other than the person occupying my mind.
"Hey! Jer!" I called, only to see my baby bro's eyes widen, before his brows furrowed and he took off in the opposite direction. Nice. Thankfully, the crowd was now on my side, as it seemed to thicken around Jeremy's long, scrawny appearance and thus preventing him from disappearing out of my sight. "Okay!" I grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back from another escape attempt. "You and I need to have a little chat."
"About all the vampires crawling around in this town, you mean?" Jeremy fumed and tried to roughly rip himself free from my grip. I tightened it.
"Keep your voice down," I warned. "I don't think that one family over there by the barbecue quite heard you." I cocked my head towards the people in question, all the way on the other side of the huge park, which was as busy as a beehive during spring.
Thankfully, Jeremy obeyed; in the process looking like a five year old whose toy had just gotten confiscated, but still.
"Okay! I'll admit, I agree that compelling away your memories of what happened that night might have been a rash decision without too much thought behind it from Elena's part. And too little protest from me," I reluctantly gave, sighing, as my brother stared back at me defiantly, adding a sulking pout. "But a necessary one. Don't fight me!" I told Jer when he opened his mouth to protest. "I promise, neither I nor Elena will ever do the same again. Okay? But she did it for you, Jer. All of it." There! A clear and reasonable monologue without any fighting or childish name-calling. Elena would have been proud of me! However, Jeremy still didn't seem convinced.
"What do you mean?" he questioned with a frown.
"Like Elena, I just want you to be happy, Jer," I said, stating the obvious for him. "Don't you feel better, lighter, after what happened?"
"Emptier," was his only answer.
"Fine. I won't try to convince you that it took your pain away," I sighed and threw my hands out in a surrendering gesture, finally releasing my tight grip on Jeremy's shoulder. "But it did. And, honestly, it was probably for the best." Admittedly, bad move. At least given the fact of Jer's softening face closing up and turning into stone.
"Well, neither of you will get a chance to do the same again. Ever! Go to hell, Parks. And stay there this time."
I simply rolled my eyes at my baby bro's dramatic outburst as he bumped into my shoulder when moving past me. I could easily have grabbed his arm and twisted it into a locked position behind his back, but physical violence wouldn't exactly help my case here. Backing off it was, then.
And I would've. Hadn't it been for a certain smoldering vampire with jet-black hair and gorgeous blue eyes who just had to intervene.
At first, I only hinted Damon emerging from the crowd to follow Jeremy, who turned a corner to continue down another path between the many stands selling stuffed animals and other family appealing objects. Since I couldn't exactly leave my baby brother to fend for himself – well, I could, but it would be a bad sisterly move from my part, ending with Elena having my head for it – even if it meant that I could dodge Damon for a little longer, my choice was quite obvious.
With a sigh, I rubbed my very tired forehead before making my zigzagging way towards the last place I had hinted the two annoying guys.
Apparently luck was still on my side, since I found them just in time to see Damon forcefully pull my brother back by his arm – clearly, not Jer's day today – in a threatening manner. I wasn't too good at lip-reading, but I could still guess Jeremy's response to the rough arm-pulling.
"Let go of me before I cause a scene."
"You'll be unconscious before you even got a word out," I heard Damon respond. With a last quick but still deep breath, I went to force my arm in-between the two to push them apart.
"And you'll end up with a stake in your heart if you hurt as much as a hair on his bushy head."
"Hey!" Jeremy protested to my comment, but I shoved him back in behind me and locked Damon's gaze with mine. The air surrounding us seemed loaded with electricity as Damon's eyes went from surprised to see me, to looking smug that I'd stopped ignoring him, to finally land on sternly staring me down. By squinting my eyes, I warned him not to do anything stupid.
"You alright?" I tilted my head to ask Jeremy over my shoulder, my gaze never leaving Damon's.
"Yeah."
"Look, Jer. What I'm guessing the Walking Fuckstick here is trying to tell you–" Jeremy's snort, occurring when he tried to smother a laughter, interrupted me. But I carried on nonetheless, pretending like nothing when Damon's look hardened. "–is that acting like a brat towards your family is stupid. Elena definitely doesn't deserve it, but I guess I kinda do."
Jeremy frowned as Damon parted his lips slightly, probably to tell me to shut up. I ignored him and turned around to fully face my brother instead.
"Damon turned Vicki into a vampire, but I was the one who killed her. She was going after both you and Elena and I will never let anything happen to either of you. So be mad all you want, but know the truth. I'm sorry that it happened, but it did and there's no changing it now."
If Jeremy was knocked out of balance by this new information, then he hid it well. His still cold gaze traveled between me and Damon.
"You shouldn't have made me forget…" Jeremy delivered shortly, before simply walking away. I didn't even know to whom that was directed to.
A tired feeling filled my limbs as I watched Jer's back melt with the crowd and disappear. He wasn't even fun to fight with! Not as long as he stuck to his cold, passive anger crap. A reaction, some screaming or another little 'Go to hell!' was really all I was asking for here! Was it too much to hope for? If the conflict was going to continue like this, then I might as well just figure out a way to fix the relationship and stop trying to start fights; Elena would be overjoyed. But my backing off strategy wasn't going to work out if the older Salvatore brother kept sticking his nose into my business to defend my honor; or whatever the hell he was doing! I swear, it was like Stefan's knighthood shone through Damon sometimes, but taking on a much more violent form. Speaking of which:
"Was that really necessary?" I sighed and swiveled on my flat heel, facing Damon with my arms folded over my chest.
"He's being a punk," Damon retorted with a scoff.
"'Cause he is one! He's fifteen, for crying out loud!" I exclaimed. "Plus, my relationship with my brother is none of your business. So stay out of it!" I bit off. Damon winced, almost not even detectable, but kept in whatever respond he had in stock by clenching his jaw. I, determined to get at least one reaction out of someone today, decided to poke the dragon a little harder. "You're a jackass!" I spat at him. Sadly, my attempted provoking comment had the very opposite desired effect.
"A jackass that you slept with," Damon smirked, every previous sign of wanting to explode wiped away from his face completely. "Don't you have any better nasty Swedish words to insult me with?" he added teasingly, cocking his head to the side.
"Oh, you asked for it…" I rolled up my imaginary sleeves and prepared to unleash my hurricane of words. But I never got the chance.
"Parker!" FOR THE LOVE OF–! Stefan was met with a glare that should have made him drop dead, but being undead and all he just kept on walking towards us.
"Bad timing, Stef," I grunted out through clenched teeth. Stefan's gaze flew between me and Damon, the rusty wheels behind his green eyes turning as he put two and two together. I could only hope that he hadn't just heard what Damon said. But maybe the sex was no news to him, with him dating Elena the trusting, sharing little rascal.
"Well, a certain person is requesting your presence," Stefan informed me while eyeing his brother cautiously. Oh, no. Not this again! Enough with the hero crap already!
"Tell Elena that I'm not her guard dog that comes whenever she calls," I spoke, my insides as chilling as my tone.
"Tell her yourself," Stefan retorted. Oh! Was that sass? From Stefan?! Had I gone so long and misjudged the guy? Well, regardless of the new, liable side, the timing could have been better.
Stefan's gaze was pinned on Damon, seeming to await the very moment I would leave the two of them so he could start scolding his older brother. What was it with men and this defending crap? Really, I was just so sick of it.
"You're not back on my list of trustworthy people just yet, Stef." Finally, I managed to avert his attention back to me, Damon's amused gaze following. "But if I am to find my dear little sister in this crowd, then you better hope that the conversation that is to follow," my finger flew between the two brothers, "doesn't get back to me. 'Cause I am SO done with people fighting my battles for me. And if I were to find out that that's what you've been up to here…"
Damon's smirk was erased, whilst something that could only be described as intimidation moved within Stefan's green eyes. Good.
"Have fun boys," I finished with a sweet smile, leaving the two gaping vampire brothers behind me in the middle of the crowded square.