Thank you for the awesome reviews on the prologue! Here's chapter 1! And remember, some parts of this story will only make sense if you've been watching the recent episodes. : )

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Chapter One: Mornings

The warm golden light shone through the half open curtains, stretching across the floor and touching the blankets on the bed. My eyes squinted against the sudden brightness, and I closed my eyes again, seeing the dull yellow color behind my lids. The heat traveled up my arm and stopped at my shoulder, half of my body engulfed in the sunlight.

The arms around me lightly squeezed, pulling me closer to the body beside me. I smiled, feeling the fingers trace patterns on my bare stomach.

"Good morning." I whispered, letting him know that I was awake.

He shuffled over a little with a happy sigh."'Morning." he murmured, kissing the back of my neck.

Mornings like these made me never want to get up; mornings where I woke up in his bed; mornings where I felt his body pressed against mine; mornings where I always felt so safe and loved. My mornings with Stefan.

We didn't speak again; just spooned underneath the sheets and breathed in and out in relaxation. He carefully turned me around to face him, and my heart faltered slightly like it always did when I saw that familiar, handsome face. The face that always held the most beautiful smile meant just for me.

No words needed to be said. Our expressions said it all, showed the love that we felt for each other. He leaned forward and pressed his lips against mine, and there was also no words needed to describe how amazing it felt to kiss him. The tingles that erupted on our open mouths were enough.

When he pulled away, his thumb gently caressed my cheek and his warm breath blew through his slightly parted lips.

"We have school." he whispered, and I groaned teasingly, burying my face in his collarbone.

He laughed, his hand pressing against the back of my head and holding me there. "You know we have to go."

I sighed, pulling away and looking up into his eyes. "Let's get ready then."

I touched my lips to his once more and then slid out of the bed. My bare feet hit the warm hardwood, and I pulled myself up, stretching my arms up and popping my joints. I walked forward and grabbed my overnight bag from beside his dresser. Of course, I had only just started unzipping it when his hands knocked mine lightly away so he could do it. He was already dressed; a green button down and a pair of jeans. He pulled out my bra and carefully wrapped it around my chest, clipping into place. My underwear was next, and he picked me up to cradle me in his arms as he brought them up my legs and set them where they needed to be.

"Is this necessary?" I laughed as he set me back down and pulled out my jeans. "I mean, I can dress myself."

"I know." he replied with a smile, lifting me up again to pull my jeans up my thighs. "I just like it. I can touch you for a longer period of time."

I giggled and he helped me put on my white tank top and blue v-neck sweater over it.

"You can touch me whenever you want." I said, winking.

I almost yelped in surprise as he pushed me back onto the bed and pulled my feet into his lap, socks ready in both his hands. He tickled my toes and my heels, a smile on his face.

"Hah, ew, you have a foot fetish!" I teased, playfully flinching away from his fingers.

"I do not!" he laughed, slipping the socks onto my feet and sitting me back up. "I just like making you laugh."

"Sure you do, Stefan. Sure you do." I mocked him, grinning from ear to ear.

He shook his head and growled playfully, the red veins popping underneath his eyes and his fangs sliding out of his gums. His eyes turned red, and unlike anyone else who would have screamed and ran away, I smiled wider and touched my index fingers to the veins.

"Oooo, scary!" I said sarcastically.

His fangs disappeared into his gums as quickly as they had come, and his eyes went back to normal. I smiled and kissed him sweetly.

"I love you." he sighed, his arms wrapping around my waist. "So much."

"I love you too." I replied, pressing my forehead against his.

We sat like that for a moment, and then he spoke again. "We really do have to go to school."

"Ok." I murmured, hugging him tightly one more time before getting up and heading downstairs.

"Look who's finally coming down the stairs! It's Brave Heart and Foot Fetish!" Damon appeared at the bottom of the stairs, a smirk on his face.

I rolled my eyes, walking down the stairs and past Damon. I entered the kitchen and poured myself a bowl of cereal and a glass of juice. Of course, Damon followed behind me.

"Well you look lovely this morning, Elena." he teased, pulling up a chair beside mine.

I ignored him, knowing that he was mocking the fact that I hadn't brushed my hair or teeth yet. I chewed on my cereal, trying to block him out.

"Elena, when are you going to give this thing a rest? I know you don't want to be my friend, but you could at least... say something." his smile was gone, and it was all anger and frustration now.

"You killed Jeremy. I think that draws the line of why I don't want to talk to you." I said, swigging down the rest of my juice.

"But he's alive." Damon protested.

"Yes, but if he hadn't been wearing the ring, he would be dead right now." I snapped, getting up and putting my dishes in the sink.

"Everything ok?" Stefan's voice came from the doorway and Damon groaned.

"Everything's perfect." Damon mumbled, getting up and leaving the room.

Stefan walked over to me, arms open, eyes concerned. I accepted the hug and buried my face in his shoulder.

"I'm sorry about Damon." he whispered into my ear. "You don't have to talk to him if you don't want to."

I pulled away. "That's good. Because I don't want to."

In the hallway, the door slammed.

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"So where is the gremoire now?" I asked Bonnie as we headed to 4th period.

We had gotten to talking about Emily again, and that had led us to discuss the spell book.

"At home, hidden." she replied, winking at me. "And no one's going to find my hiding place."

"I agree with that." I laughed, reaching my locker and grabbing my books. "So did you figure out how to do any more spells?"

"Yes!" I was surprised that she sounded so excited. "There's a revealing spell. Harry Potter totally ripped it off."

We both giggled, closing the locker and starting the walk to class. "So, what does it reveal, exactly?"

"Words. Like, if something's been written in invisible ink or lemon juice, you know? There's a blank page at the back of the gremoire and I think it might have another spell on it. You should come over after school and we'll reveal it together."

"You really think it'll be that easy? I mean, why would there be a spell in the book about how to reverse a spell in the same book?" even to me that sounded confusing.

Bonnie just laughed. "Crazy witches, remember?"

"Right." I replied, smiling.

We entered the classroom then, so we ended our conversation.

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"I'm going to Bonnie's okay?" I said to Aunt Jenna over the phone. "I'll be home later tonight."

"Gotcha. Have fun." she replied.

I hung up and walked out into the parking lot. Stefan was standing by his car, a smile on his face.

"Hey." I said, walked up to him and leaning up to kiss him.

He kissed me back for a moment and then pulled away. "To Bonnie's house?"

I nodded, smiling. We got in the car and began driving.

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Byee! (:

-Catherine-