Damon and Cynthia had been waiting for hours, and Cynthia was past bored. Her sugar high had come to a skidding crash landing forty five miserable minutes ago, and now each second was an agony. She had found Damon's uncreative hiding place at the front of the bar, and promptly climbed the nearby stool to sit on the countertop itself. Bree was off tending to patrons, and Damon wasn't the sort to chide. He just gave her a 'what are you doing here?' look, and that was that.
Please. As if he hadn't been the one to drag her across the country. And taken away her sugar. He claimed that was all Bree, but Cynthia had her doubts.
"Any luck converting the star to your cause, hot shot?"
She met his stare confidently until the vampire crumpled with a smile, her antics must have qualified more as entertaining than annoying. Cynthia wasn't sure if she considered that success or not right now, but she could roll with it.
"She's making me work for it," Damon shook his head in mild disappointment. "It seems that she cares for Lexi more than me."
Cynthia kicked his knee lightly with one dangling foot. "Don't look so sour, gorgeous. It doesn't suit your complexion."
Without any warning the girl could perceive, warm hands pulled her first by the offending foot and then by her hips to rest sideways in Damon's lap. "Most people know better than to tell me what to do." He growled into her ear, a softness to it that almost sounded like affection.
Not true, Cynthia thought. Plenty of people tried to tell Damon what to do. It just didn't work well. Lucky for her, she didn't mind sitting in his lap. It gave her better access to his food.
"I'm looking out for you, and you love it." The petite brunette teased, pretending her pulse had not just spiked at his sudden move. "If you look green, people will think you are wicked. And then how will you ever win and take home a pretty girl?"
"And here I thought you wanted my fangs all to yourself," Damon smirked, managing to somehow ooze charm with his ridiculously cocky attitude. Of course, then he noticed Cynthia's sly attempt to steal his fries, and added mildly. "I was eating that."
Naturally, the girl responded by chomping down on another fry. "Suck it, 'cause it's mine now," she chirped, leaning against him trustingly. Damon looked like he was bordering on vamping out, but he must have sensed any attempt to scare her would fail. So instead he simply pushed her off his lap to fall gracelessly to the floor.
A vaguely recognizable female voice cut across the room, just as Cynthia was trying to get her feet back underneath her.
"Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in. I could have been happy never seeing you again."
From her position on the floor, she could just make out Damon swiveling partway in his seat to face the newcomers to the bar – two long sets of well-dressed legs and feet to her eyes just now – and shrug.
"We don't all get what we want. Do we, sweetheart?"
Cynthia stood, immediately stole another fry, and watched the growling man next to Lexi warily as she whispered under her breath to Damon, "How did she know I'm a cat?"
The blue eyed vampire gave her a look, perhaps contemplating telling Cynthia it was just an expression, but he left well enough alone. Because it did diffuse the tension a bit.
The beautiful blonde vampiress that Cynthia had asked after was now staring at her. She suddenly felt terribly self-conscious about the Tinkerbell shirt and general state of disarray she was in. This was why she needed soda. But someone – naming no names, Damon – had to go and ruin all the fun in life.
She was going to be bitter until she got another fix. Or finished his fries.
"You must be Stefan's BFF!" Cynthia bounded over to greet the blonde with enthusiasm. "Lexi, right? Does that make you... Lee?" She asked hesitantly of the still stiff male.
So she didn't remember the episode involving Elena saving Damon's arse very well. So sue her. At the time, Cynthia didn't know that paying attention to her sister's favorite show might affect her life. The man only appeared like once.
Maybe she should have said 'Mr. Branson.'
But she wasn't a hundred percent on Lexi's last name either. Much less what Lexi was short for. Probably Alexandria or something of the like, but precision really meant a lot when winning people over.
Much to the brunette girl's relief, the male nodded in confirmation, and she clapped happily.
"It's so nice to meet you! Lexi, Stefan's been missing you horribly. He hasn't said anything, but the brooding lines on his face have gotten deeper. You could excavate for fossils. Except when he's being all lovey-dovey with my twin, but that's something I try not to be around too much. It's too sweet, like an ice cream headache or... or, I dunno. The US version of CapriSun?"
Cynthia kept a bright smile up as she babbled to the elder vampiress, grasping at one of her wrists gently and tugging to bring her and her love, husband, mate, whatever to the bar with Damon.
"I'd ask how you know Stefan, but considering your company, I guess that's obvious," Lexi said dryly, but there was a hint of a smile there that was wonderfully encouraging. "The Salvatores are sharing twins, huh? Man, did you lose out."
The human girl hopped into Damon's lap and made herself comfortable before he could say anything that might ruin the moment.
"Damon and I are just BFFs," she informed Lexi. "We don't make googly eyes and make out like Elena and Stef do. But I didn't ask Bree to get you here for Damon and me really," maybe her a little bit, or a lot. "We learned some things, and I want to look out for mine."
"Bree didn't exactly say why it was so important that we come," Lee spoke this time, his voice gruff but not hostile.
Said witch snagged Lexi in a hug, ignoring much as Cynthia did, all of the 'I wish I could kill you' vibes between Lexi and Damon. "That's because I want to hear what story they spin for you. The girl said she wanted to speak to Elijah."
"A specific one," the human girl interjected. "I didn't just wake up this morning with a craving."
Very suddenly, the only sound Cynthia could hear was her own munching and her heartbeat within their immediate circle. Two blank stares met hers in the wake of this pronouncement, and the previously delicious fries turned to ashes in Cynthia's mouth. Lexi was one of the oldest vampires the Salvatores knew, certainly that they kept up with. Not counting Sage, of course, but she was both much harder to track down and less likely to ally with her besides.
Lexi stared at Cynthia a little longer, then looked to Bree.
"I think I'm going to need alcohol. A lot."
"Sure, honey," Bree swung herself over the counter, knocking over the rest of Damon's food with a false apology. He looked every inch an angry kitten, but it had relaxed both Lexi and Lee some.
Cynthia was not in the mood to stop or be kind and hold people's hands gently, particularly not while they were being so rude to her only real ally/friend. She'd stood just as Damon did, clenching one of his hands tightly from her own impotent anger.
"When you say Elijah," Lee broke the silence, looking between the couple and his mate.
The petite brunette tossed her head – really attempted to toss her hair, but that never worked as dramatically as she wanted – took a deep breath, and replied. "So tall," she used her free hand to gesture quite a bit above her, "killer hair, slight accent maybe English maybe Kiwi, sharp enough to cut your tongue on in a suit, and incredibly noble and old fashioned. Ring any bells? He's been chasing at least three vampires for the past... oh... five hundred years. I had hoped the odds were you would know something or someone who could benefit."
In point of fact, Cynthia was near sure of it, because all the people who could have prevented chaos and destruction died early. The Gilbert parents. Sheila Bennett. Lexi fit the profile. The girl pointedly ignored Damon's mutterings about 'what kind of person licks a suit.'
"Seriously? What do you want with him?" Lexi ordered as she leaned against the bar, not quite willing to sit down next to Damon, but intrigued enough by the insane little human. One with a death wish.
It wouldn't occur to Lexi until later to wonder how the small girl knew what Elijah looked and sounded like, when the Salvatores didn't.
Said human was getting real tired, real fast of being questioned in scenarios where lying gave no net benefit. It wasn't as if she were suicidal, no matter what they thought. That would take far and away less effort than provoking an Original.
"To help me find my lost cat," Cynthia snapped sarcastically, "I want to make a deal of course. And more relevantly, I have a gift for him." By the end, she had recovered to an almost pleasant tone, reminding herself that she liked Lexi and did not want to drive her away.
The blonde vampire and her mate were staring at her intently still. Damon looked bored. What splendid back up that man made.
"What we're all wondering, sugar, is why you think contacting him is going to end well for anyone involved." Bree spoke easily, cutting down Cynthia's tension even further just from how non-confrontational she was.
The girl grinned to her audience, spreading her hands out like a magician who was about to reveal a great trick.
"Because family is always and forever." Not that she expected her current audience would appreciate the statement. It didn't hold as much history to them. "He'll understand."
She hoped. She really, really hoped. It wasn't like Cynthia was having to make this all up as she went along.
"Speaking of family reunions," and ignoring the looks that comment garnered. "And moving right along!" Cynthia bounced off of Damon's lap. "You three should totally come visit us this weekend. There's going to be a ball, and you can meet the lovebirds. Oh... Damon, may I pretty please have my phone? I should show y'all – Lexi especially – Stef and Elena."
Damon was not swayed by her puppy dog eyes. "I already told you, I'm not a delivery boy."
"If you're thirsty, all you have to do is say so," Cynthia retorted sweetly. The way to a man's heart is through his stomach and all that.
The baby blue eyed vampire shook his head in good natured amusement before downing the rest of his current drink and pushing the brunette girl further out of the way so he could stand as well.
"I'm just going to start keeping track of favors for you at this point," Damon called out. "Back in a minute, don't have too much fun without me, kids."
.
.
Despite the fact Cynthia was the crazy one wanting to reach out to and interact with an Original, near immortal vampire, Damon's departure made the two visiting vampires much more comfortable. Bree was still stiff, but Lee relaxed enough to order a drink and claim a chair at the nearest table to the bar.
"So how'd you get stuck with him?"
Cynthia finally realized she had been keeping her arms out, spinning a little when she'd bartered with Damon, but not fully retracting. Her muscles were starting to ache and informed her how not cool this situation was. So she tucked her arms behind her back, clasping her hands to keep her arms nice and still for a bit.
"We're friends. He's fun, and he keeps me distracted from all the mess I seem to have found myself in," Cynthia replied with complete honesty. "Kind of like how my twin feels with Stefan, I guess. Which would make things weird if Damon and I were dating probably. That's weird, isn't it? Twins dating brothers? Or is it not?"
She wasn't exactly versed on twins! It was not a thing that Cynthia normally had to deal with when there was such a large age gap between siblings in her family.
"I wouldn't say so," Lexi said easily, taking the neighboring seat now that her Salvatore semi nemesis was temporarily gone. "I'd say it would be a stupid decision, but if you fall in love you should hold onto it regardless. What's your sister like?"
"Elena?" No, Cynthia. Lexi wants to know about your actual sister. OF COURSE SHE MEANS ELENA. "She's very compassionate, the sort of person who draws people to her. Doesn't always see the forest for the trees, but she means well. She really likes Stefan, just not his secretiveness. Which is kind of amusing, considering she wants to date a guy she basically met in a graveyard, whereas Damon and I met under a comet. You'd think that the wanna be lovers would be the ones getting all star crossed. I guess romance is undead."
Cynthia bit her lip to forcibly stop herself from babbling, hard enough to leave a temporary imprint although not to bleed. How hard did one have to bite oneself to bleed anyway? It seemed to happen often enough in stories, but Cynthia wasn't sure she wanted to try it.
Lee tried to be supportive considering how interested Lexi was in everything Stefan, bless his heart. "She sounds like a nice person."
"Not a raging bitch like his ex, anyway," Lexi agreed with a knowing smile.
She had to fight not to laugh at that. It was a close thing.
Damon returned with all of the force and attention grabbing of a hurricane. Cynthia wanted to get him a trench coat so he could swirl properly when he walked, but suspected the leather loving fiend wouldn't agree. He strode right into the middle of their discussion with a grave expression that made Cynthia's stomach and intestines twist.
"I have bad news."
Her nerves had anxiety plummeting straight through her feet now. What could possibly have happened? The Gilberts didn't have some sort of tracker or GPS installed on her phone, did they?
Stupid, stupid, stupid. Of course there would be something. Cynthia Gilbert must not have the same reputation of trust that Elena Gilbert did. The only question was who had followed them. No, there were more questions. What did they know? How far away were they? Why were they being tailed?
Cynthia tilted her head to meet Damon's gaze, waiting without words for him to explain.
"We both lost the bet," Damon continued, making Cynthia promptly wish she were tall enough to punch his pretty face more easily. Not that he'd let her, or that it would necessarily be wise to take a swing at the man. But boy, was it ever tempting, the more so the longer he spoke. "So neither of us will be wearing maid outfits tonight."
Making a grabbing motion to her phone, the petite brunette retorted, "How do you know?"
"Because no self-respecting alien would impersonate Caroline Forbes."
"Maybe they're just masking the signal," Cynthia had started to retort when Bree cleared her throat behind them. Damon and Cynthia both turned to look at their audience.
Bree did not look amused. Lexi was frowning. As for Lee, Cynthia wasn't certain what that expression was.
"If you two girls are quite through," Bree deadpanned, causing Damon to make a choked sound. Or was that her? Cynthia wasn't sure. Regardless, she took the interruption and censure for what it was.
"Right, sorry," The petite brunette shuffled a half step away from Damon, her phone now firmly in her grip. She'd have to read Caroline's essay later.
Cynthia tried not to dwell on the possibility of the text stream having been a cry for help that she'd selfishly ignored. It was a school day, and the current year's Big Bad had just reverted to playing a frighteningly polite gentleman in front of her. A furtive glance around the group had her suspecting Lexi was as discomfited by this as she was.
Or maybe it was just the general flash bang in a keg of gunpowder feel engendered by so many of Damon's past acquaintances?
Instead, she flicked through to her photos and pulled up one of Stefan and Elena.
"Meet my younger 'until I see a birth certificate that proves otherwise' twin."
Cynthia turned the phone so the guest vampires could see the - poor megapixel quality - photo. She didn't have vamp hearing, but that didn't stop the girl from knowing that the blonde had just said Katherine's name like a stunned curse.
"Creepy, isn't it?" Damon chuckled. "But no, Elena, while looking absolutely delectable -"
"Isn't in the least aware that humans are not the top of the food chain." Cynthia interjected quickly, her cheeks puffing slightly. She wasn't feeling miffed or rejected, the girl told herself. Shut up. "Unless one counts viruses."
"Such flattery."
"Stef… how do you get into such trouble?" The blonde vampiress was asking, to no one in particular. Lexi had lifted Cynthia's phone, scanning through the photos saved therein.
Hoping to win this bid, the only theoretically completely human person in their group looked appealingly to Lexi. If she could convince the blonde, Lee would surely agree. And Damon was being his normal flirtatious self with Bree who had no reason to be homicidal so….
Please, let this work.
"Exactly. He needs you, Lex. Come interrogate my twin if you want -"
There was a disbelieving sound that might have been an indignant 'that's not my style at all!'
"- plus, did I mention the party? Full of stuffy people, I know, but also alcohol. And Stefan? And, if you could be parted from your bar for a night," Cynthia fluttered her eyelashes at Bree. She didn't think it worked as well as Damon's smarmy smiles, much less a sincere one. "There's a good number of and insane vampires that need slayage before they try to cause mayhem. And endanger everything."
Oops. Was that insensitive?
Now was an excellent time to excuse herself the heck out of here and away from the more and more curious looks Bree was throwing Damon.
If she stole herself some soda, then at least they should be glad it wasn't something expensive like alcohol.
.
.
When Caroline Forbes set her mind to a task, she got things done. That girl had more executive function than Cynthia thought she'd have her entire life. It was honestly more incredible for Cynthia to wrap her mind around Care being real than vampires.
She had to be Pepper reincarnated. Or the spiritual daughter of either Iris and Barry or Linda and Wally. Given that Linda's actress played a fifteen year old here? Wasn't it? Hopefully Iris and Barry. Or maybe she was evolving to become Kara Danvers.
Cynthia swatted at the gnat cloud hovering around her, swinging her dangling legs to hopefully drive more away. Not that the girl really thought it would help. It was a hot summer night; the colors of sunset fading slowly away. She'd moved away from the doors to not block the exit. It made her feel a little less awkward too.
But perhaps even more fatalistic.
What if she never found an answer to what had happened to her? What if there was no way home for her? Except in cruel snippets post near death experiences. *If* that hadn't just been DMT showing her what she most wanted to see.
At least, Cynthia thought to herself, Caroline finally took her bait to research the animal attack problem. Even if she'd chosen to do so the one day Cynthia wasn't up there to enjoy watching her facial reactions herself. It was better to focus on the positive.
It wasn't like she was that upset the cheerleader extraordinaire had set to work without her. It was hard to be when there were so many texts asking where she was, why she had ditched school, and that wasn't accounting for the missed calls.
Cynthia could have sworn she'd given some sort of excuse out. But maybe not.
Caroline had tried pinning the locations of all the attacks first. But they zigzagged through so much relatively dense populated areas it made no sense.
Wouldn't a rabid animal be easier to spot? Not harder? Caroline had texted four hours ago.
Maybe not rabid but the little I saw in the morgue before Guillermo kicked me out says they weren't made actual meals.
If only sick animals attack humans for food. And if what's attacking these people isn't using them for food, then why would an animal be attacking?
Territorial?
But then wouldn't be larger groups be driven away too?
For someone who said she help make a PowerPoint, you're awful quiet.
Did you know this isn't the first time we've had animal attacks like this here?
This is ridiculously weird. Like beyond weird. It has to be a coincidence, right?
Her other messages weren't nearly as entertaining. Elena was being a hypocritical bore about her skipping school today. Jeremy had apparently gotten a non-answer from Vicki. Which probably meant he was going to be getting drunk and moping again.
Good luck with that one, Jenna.
"Mind if I join you?"
Jolting, one of Cynthia's hands flew to her chest with a terribly undignified squeak. She jerked her chin up rapidly, trying to discern the owner of the voice.
"Don't do that!" She chided Lee breathlessly. Several breaths later, Cynthia managed to nod and gesture the space next to her. "Sure. It's a free country. Right?"
"So they say."
Cynthia didn't hear or see Lee sit down; he just gracefully blurred into being next to her.
"It's not my business why you want to get tangled up with Originals," he spoke, seeming to address the night air more than Cynthia herself. "But if I were you, I'd be sure there were no other options before going down that road. Not many survive their attention… alive. How many casualties are you prepared to face?"
It depended on how many of those casualties were abstract fiction to her. She didn't want to be party to murder. ('It's wrong!' Her inner voice chanted. 'We don't imagine sacrificing people! Or killing them ourself!') But controlling the Mikaelsons was so far out of her abilities. They struggled to control themselves. Some strange human had no business trying to issue demands of them.
"Making deals with the fae is always dangerous business," Cynthia acknowledged. Her breathing had calmed by now, more even and in tune with her now somber mood. "Dire circumstances call for dire measures. Wouldn't you agree?"
"Are those circumstances yours? Or the Salvatores?"
Cynthia thought of all the possible upcoming deaths of authority figures. All the torture and betrayal. Causing more and more problems with each attempt to fix them.
You aren't meant to be here
Always seeing the wrong face in the mirror. Whenever she imagined Cynthia Gilbert the First, Cynthia pictured her wearing her engagement ring and her real face. Fooling her partner, her friends, wearing her body like a coat with evil eyes only Cynthia could see.
"Bit of both."
The girl scanned the parking lot for fireflies and finally tugged a few sips from her possibly purloined soda. Lee didn't push her though. They sat in silence for a while. Long enough for anxiety to swirl up Cynthia's esophagus and be pushed back down through careful breathing.
"It's normal, you know. Find yourself in a brave new world, where none of the rules are the same. So you latch onto someone." Lee's voice was soothing. There wasn't any censure in it; he might as well have been talking about the sticky weather or tragic lack of fireflies. "Just be careful you don't lose yourself."
Too late.
The girl finally looked over at her sort of companion, fingers tightening around her drink again as she asked sardonically, "And inviting monsters into town counts, does it?"
"As you say. Playing with fae, demons, djinn... Vampires. It's tricky business."
Cynthia studied the stranger's face. She wasn't sure why he was reaching out to her. Perhaps, like in the show, he assumed Damon's companion must be in love with him. Perhaps he just identified with a human tagging along with a vampire since he had been in those shoes once. Regardless, his expressed care was heartwarming.
"Dark things are coming. Things that will affect everyone in this world. I'm not too good for any ally I can trust."
There was another blur to Cynthia's other side, and she turned to see Lexi holding a basket of fries and somehow balancing a line of shots on one arm. Show off vampire. It still had her grinning in surprise and amusement.
"Well, I don't know about all of that. But we could possibly be convinced to go to your little ball. It'd have to be in the evening, obviously, but I'd like Lee to meet my kid brother."
Cynthia stole some of the fries, her expression brightening.
"What if I told you that you could arrive in the morning with us?"
The couple exchanged glances over Cynthia's head, then Lexi answered. "We're listening."
.
.
The night was young and full of terrors. The explaining that the 'nifty little daylight ring' spell was known to Emily Bennett was… actually not something Cynthia had chosen to do. She attempted to wriggle her nose and magic her way out of it. Which was ridiculous. She was human with no wish granting capabilities. But in the end, it didn't seem that big of a deal. It wasn't like Bree wasn't already being loaned the grimoire before they returned it to the Bennett family.
(Cynthia assumed they were. If they were lucky, they might be able to not traumatize Bonnie and keep her Grams alive. The more living responsible adults around, the better in Cynthia's eyes.)
"So how many tourist traps do you think we could check out before those two resurface?" She asked them idly. Knowing Damon was a womanizer was one thing. Having to wait around for him to stop either arguing, flirting, or making out with someone was not her idea of a good time. "We could go swimming with sharks! And pet their smooth, smooth skin." The brunette smiled winningly at the now doubtful looking couple.
"Lee, didn't we sand one of our tables with a shark skin?"
"The one Enrique supposedly out wrestled?"
"That's the one."
So many memes that didn't and may never exist yet. Tiny ones that Cynthia hadn't realized she might ever miss.
"Belugas or dolphins then?" They didn't look particularly convinced. She sighed. "It's a shame the World of Coke is closed. We need to be sure to be at the party earlier than later."
A hand squeezed the dejected looking teenager, giving Cynthia a hint of hope.
"Oh ye of little faith."
It took a teensy bit of coaxing, an itsy reminder that she had uncovered the spell that could free them from the sun's deadliness. And then, then Cynthia was flying between Lexi and Lee, both of them holding one of your hands. Rollercoasters were never going to be as exciting again.
The highlight was the aquarium. Even beyond the adrenaline of sneaking into places they shouldn't. Trying and tasting different things in the most light-hearted adventure that Cynthia had found herself stranded in a fictional dream world. It would have been perfect if she'd had her boyfriend with her, but even without, it was an exciting bit of derring-do.
Unlike in her favorite book series, the dolphins weren't telepathic. At least, not that she could perceive. But Lexi did let her actually swim in one of the aquariums. They'd then gone downtown - hair still utterly drenched - in hand-wavingly paid for merchandise and searching for the hidden bars in downtown. Finding secrets was way more fun than Cynthia would have given it credit for, and she was glad that they'd convinced her to give it a go. They never stayed long, but her purse was now full with an array of coasters (signed by confused but willing bartenders).
.
.
Damon found them just as they were typing in a code at a phone booth. One moment, Cynthia was laughing against Lee while Lexi picked plant life from her wet hair, and the next she was trying to catch her breath as she was slammed against the alley wall opposite. Brick was not comfortable to get up close and personal with in such an unexpected manner, and Cynthia was certain she'd have bruises from it. The girl opened her mouth to scold the force of nature – or force against nature, given Damon was every inch a vampire – and promptly forgot whatever it was she'd planned to say.
"And what are you doing with Saint Stefan's conscience?"
The question was a dark purr Cynthia could feel to her bones. Lexi answered before she could form words again herself. "You have a problem with pipsqueak having fun?"
"Alone? With you? Yes."
"I do so hate when we agree, because that's precisely how I feel about leaving her in your care."
Cynthia struggled against Damon's hands now, trying to get Lexi's attention. "Hey, that's no fair. Damon's my BFF!" She could feel his mood lighten just a tinge, but whatever had spat in his cornflakes was still bothering him. They stared at each other for a few moments until Lee made a comment about seeing bruises form under his hand, and Damon summarily released his grip. Cynthia fell to the ground with a soft oof. It wasn't often that Damon Salvatore served as a buzzkill, but tonight he fit the bill. The petite brunette rested her forehead against his knees, ignoring the impatient scoffing. He wanted to be a jerk just because Bree couldn't or wouldn't do whatever spell he wanted, that shouldn't be on her!
Plus, she could do without seeing them argue below her hearing range.
She did get to her feet, clinging to one of Damon's arms now and ignoring whatever posturing the vampires were giving each other.
"You have my phone number now, Lex. You should let me know when you come to town. We'll find someone to invite you to the party. Or some way to convince Mrs. Lockwood anyway. I bet she'd go for a nice sappy story. Hopefully."
"Probably should have thought of that before inviting them to town."
That smug voice could only be Damon. Cynthia pushed him lightly. "Shh, your logic has no place here. If we can get them invited in the morning, the Lockwoods won't think a thing of them. Allies are GOOD to have, Damon. No matter what we find in the tomb."
L squared – er, Lexi and Lee – were giving the human and vampire duo very strange looks that Cynthia did her very best to ignore.
Damon cleared his throat and addressed the others in a volume she could hear (for once!), "I'd suggest stocking up on the bagged stuff before you drop by. The townsfolk are a little titchy."
Lee rolled his eyes as Lexi crossed her arms in a very unimpressed fashion.
"Yeah, I would bet. Probably because of you. Running around and slaughtering people for kicks. You're all the worst parts about being a vampire."
Shouting over whatever Damon might have tried to say, Cynthia was determined to be heard instead, and hopefully prevent another fang measuring contest. "Not just kicks! And not just him! Now, Damon, can we pleaaaaase go home?"
Riding passenger with a pissed off Salvatore in the driver's seat was not a comfortable place to be. The ride down had been fairly jovial, but Damon was still irritated. Cynthia knew that Damon could run hot and cold, particularly early on, but this was getting really old. She wasn't sure if he was frustrated or just emotional (was that possible? Weren't his emotions turned off?)
It was like dealing with an erratic, slightly less suicidal Zachariah Gray. Which... was actually a worrying thought. She didn't remember as much about the Austin family, but Zach's storyline was not what she wanted for her serial killer BFF.
Adrenaline tore through her system, washing away her vague reminiscences. Cautiously, Cynthia reached out a hand to brush along the smooth skin above the vampire's jaw bone. There was no sign of angry, inflamed veins, but that didn't mean much of anything from someone who could stake his brother looking cool as a cucumber. They'd been sitting silently in the car for several minutes now, and it seemed Cynthia would have to be the one to break the strange silence.
"Did you not appreciate the private time?" It was hard to force the words out. If anyone should be upset, Cynthia rather thought she had the right. She'd been consistently faithful and just as consistently distrusted. The girl might not regret her decisions regarding the dark haired Salvatore, but that didn't make the events she'd lived through in this fictional realm any less frustrating. "I know how much you like being the immortal stud."
Damon made a disgruntled sound and Cynthia withdrew her hand slowly. Yes, she had run off with Lexi and Lee, but it had only been to give him time alone with Bree. She distinctively did not want to know whether or not Damon had rekindled his tryst with the witch. She wasn't sure if Bree was interested after all this time, but it wasn't as if she had any particularly reason to want to kill him now. And Damon, he enjoyed women, in the biblical sense as well as an eye candy or nomnom sort of deal.
She withdrew the hand slowly at Damon's disgruntled sound.
"I am capable of restraint," he told her, teeth gritting together with what Cynthia thought might be annoyance. "Particularly when I have a master plan to accomplish."
Cynthia clasped a hand to her chest in faux surprise at his claim. "Damon Salvatore possessing restraint? And choosing to exercise it?" She didn't see the head slap coming, but the girl wasn't surprised by it either.
.
.
Preparing for the Lockwood's ball was more involved than Cynthia had bargained for. She hadn't been to a school function in almost a decade, and while she had gotten dressed nicely every now and then it had been rushed in the bathroom at work or in the car as her sweetheart drove. She wasn't accustomed to having a twin and 'childhood friends' making bubbly comments or trading gossip.
The smallest of the group had been sure to apologize to Caroline for not calling her back immediately. She was doing a lot of apologizing lately, but at least this time it was for something she had been responsible for.
"Your text – that came five hours late, by the way – was pretty cryptic. Where were you, anyway? I couldn't find you at school."
Bonnie and Elena's chatter quietened when Caroline asked that; they even paused their makeup application. Mascara in Elena's hand and lip gloss in Bonnie's. Given the circumstances, Cynthia grins broadly at the three. She might frequently find the 'moral superiority' shtick to be annoying, but in this instance, Cynthia is thrilled. She's changed something, far more significant than how and why Coach Tanner left. Papa Salvatore was exhumed and the grimoire was retrieved. Bree is still on Damon's side, ish. Lexi and Lee both know about Elena being Stefan's girlfriend, and she might, might even convince them to contact Elijah for a far more deadly game.
"Well," she starts slyly. "Damon and I were working on a project together."
"A project," Bonnie said slowly. "With sexy danger guy."
Looks were being exchanged, and Cynthia cheerfully ignored them. "Yep," she nodded. "He and his brother have been fighting for so long. Too long." Her focus was still mostly on Caroline, aka the one who'd actually asked the initial question. The cheer captain was also helping her with her makeup (this was not her face! Originally, anyway, and she didn't want to look hideous.) As such, it was Caroline who saw the smirk on Cynthia's face at Elena's groan.
Her not twin capped her mascara and leaned against the sink while staring down at Cynthia. She pretended to be unfazed by the pleading disgruntlement. "Tell me you didn't get involved." The girl wasn't shamed like Elena might have wanted. This was one of those times that Cynthia simply disagreed with Elena's stance. She'd sided with Damon, and that meant going all in. Besides, it wasn't like she was pretending to be trustworthy just to stab him in the back like she vividly remembered Stefan and Elena doing.
There was a reason she'd decided to grab the Bennett grimoire early. Betrayal was not something that Cynthia took lightly.
"We may have come up with an appropriate gesture? Damon's really concerned for him after what happened."
"With their ex?" For all her protestations, Elena was clearly curious. Not that Cynthia blamed her. Stefan was probably being obnoxiously tight lipped right now.
"Yeah, they both just kept lying to each other about her. She treated having both of them worship at her altar like it was a game. I know Damon's not completely over her, but he doesn't know about Stefan. He doesn't think that Stefan _actually _ loved her, but that certainly doesn't seem to stop him from acting like Katherine chose him over Damon. Just because it wasn't real for him." She huffed angrily. "But in the interests of peace and brotherly loyalty, he wanted to give Stefan a peace flag. So maybe he'll stop turning into a glaring statue whenever they're around each other."
"That is putting it mildly," Bonnie agreed, finishing up her own makeup quickly. Elena shook her head in disagreement. "That sounds like just Damon's side of things. And it's in the past so it's not really my business."
Caroline had finished selecting the products she thought Cynthia should wear to match her complexion and dress of choice, and had turned to finish her own look when she heard that comment.
"Please, Elena. If Stefan is the sort to date a woman his brother is in love with, when he isn't himself..."
"He sounds like a womanizer," Bonnie concluded. "Possibly a manipulative liar too. And that's something you absolutely deserve to know."
They shoot; they score. Cynthia did so adore Caroline Forbes and Bonnie Bennett. She didn't think future Elena deserved their loyalty and friendship, but love was a choice. Their choice, not hers.
"I still want to know Stefan's side of things," Elena was resolute. Cynthia couldn't understand why. "If he is a manipulator, you realize his story will only paint him in the best of lights. As far as I see things, I know Damon's side and we aren't even dating. Yet you and Stefan are... orbiting each other... but he leaves you in the dark. I don't like it. You should have all the relevant facts."
Speaking of, she would need to talk to the Gilberts – er, her family – about vampires. Once she'd figured out a way to prove it to them. Damon might agree, but not until he knew Katherine was the backstabbing bitch Cynthia claimed her to be. Lexi and Lee barely knew her, and getting Elijah's attention was enough of a favor. Sheila was considered a drunk by even her to mention she had told Stefan that the Salvatore's wouldn't be outed.
Hopefully, Caroline would put it all together soon. Jeremy had, right? Mostly? Surely Caroline could discover enough to confront her mom with. Cynthia wasn't above sacrificing an unknown to get Caroline to believe her (and the Sheriff on their side). She just didn't want to let Damon use Lexi again.
And now, he couldn't, she thought with a happy grin. Lexi and Lee had both been invited in during daylight hours as Stefan's friends. If he went after 'Stefan's conscience' as he'd called the woman, then he'd be shooting himself in the foot with wooden buckshot.
Anyway, she could worry about that after the Founder's party. If she tried broaching the subject now, Cynthia might find herself having to listen to her 'friends' well-meaning gossip about how she'd gone round the bend.
"Why aren't you dating him? Have you seen him? He's gorgeous." Caroline wiggled her eyebrows, breaking Cynthia's serious mood.
It was to be a different sort of gossip, apparently.
"I've seen him, Care-bear," she giggled. "But he's in love with someone else." And so was she. "He needs a friend more than he needs someone to claim to love him again. Besides, he's older than me."
Bonnie shook her head good-naturedly, "Not by that much."
"And you're spending almost all your time with him," Elena pointed out. "She was gone all day yesterday practically, then she was off with him at the crack of dawn this morning."
Cynthia determinedly tugged detangler through her curly hair. "We were finishing up our present for Stefan."
That wasn't even a lie. Early in the morning, Damon had picked her up to visit the Lockwood s with their hastily planned sob story. Cynthia had to introduce the three vampires, and also explain how Damon had discovered that Giuseppe's grave had been utterly vandalized recently. Something that they both knew Stefan would take hard; the boy might be young but he was such a history buff. Something anyone who had heard him go toe to toe with Coach Tanner could attest. It was hard work keeping him in the dark about the truth of the town's animal attacks.
Admittedly, that had been said in confidence to Mrs. Lockwood while Cynthia directed Lexi and Lee to help set up for the upcoming party. 'It was the least they could do,' she had insisted. Never mind there was a large enough staff to take care of things, with the temper all the Lockwoods possessed, she was intent on helping. And seeming innocent and helpful. Cynthia didn't know what the original version of her in this plane was like, but Mrs. Lockwood had seemed surprised and pleased to see her.
She had to admit that it brought her a good deal of amusement how many people would end up aware that Stefan's best friend was in town with her new husband. Carol Lockwood did not strike Cynthia as the type to keep quiet about such things.
The four had escaped party preparations when Cynthia had been asked to fetch the Gilbert heirlooms for the heritage display, sparing Tyler the job. He didn't particularly acknowledge any of them; Cynthia would be quite happy for things to stay that way with him. Her last impression of the potential future hybrid was of him having started out as a bully, potential rapist, womanizing asshole who grew into a jealous, cheating dick. While things could change, Cynthia only had so much forgiveness in her. Right now, her stock was being directed elsewhere.
"Methinks the lady doth protest too much." Caroline's voice snapped Cynthia out of her musings and into a shocked pout.
She couldn't believe Caroline was betraying her like this. After all the fun she'd had saving the girl and everything! Cynthia grimaced at the trio before flouncing out of the shared bathroom. She did not need this sort of negativity in her life.
.
.
The Salvatore brothers showed up at the same time, looking criminally dashing. Elena was clearly a fan of Stefan in a suit. Cynthia, however, did not take the time to give either of the pair elevator eyes. She happily ran out the door and straight into Damon's arms. He caught and dipped her instead of allowing the hug, murmuring a soft compliment of how well the navy dress looked on her into her neck.
"You look positively delicious," he had added as he returned her to her feet. Damon's eyes were on a very stiff Stefan for several long moments. Then his blue eyes turned towards her mockingly, although he gave both Cynthia and Elena a perfectly charming smile. Cynthia didn't quite manage one back.
Get the crystal. Open the tomb. Find a way to convince Elijah. Hope he knows how to cross dimensions back home.
It was a strange, conflicting set of priorities that she found herself in. Cynthia was related to Elena, a girl she hadn't thought much of (at best), but it felt wrong to just betray her to her death because of it. Even if she did know that Niklaus would need her alive after the ritual to be happy. It was going to be a very fun conversation, whenever she did convince the surviving Gilberts vampires were real.
'Hi, my BFF uses me as a snack bar, but I don't particularly care. Also, Elena, you're what's called a doppelganger, and you have to be sacrificed. But don't worry, you'll come back to life, somehow. Maybe as a vampire, but suck it up. You're the one who fell in LOVE with a vampire.'
That would go over so well. Particularly given the fact Cynthia was reasonably hopeful even Elena wouldn't call her feelings for Stefan 'love' yet.
Damon's arm pressed against the small of her back, directing her down the driveway and somewhat out of her musings.
"See you at the party, brother. Don't do anything I wouldn't do." He sounded all stern and responsible in Jenna's hearing, but Cynthia could almost hear the 'don't brood or worry about keeping your bunny diet. Enjoy your undeath a little!' in the subtext.
'Eternity of misery' sounded just about right.
Damon did at least chat normally with her on the short ride to the Lockwood mansion. Stefan had been naughty, as it turned out, and had tried to spike Damon's alcohol with vervain. (Which was just as well; it wasn't like he hadn't been working on building his tolerance.) The sip he took had made him gag, Damon told her. But he had played it off as if he was impressed Stefan had found a strong liquor, and praised him for whatever he'd added.
"You should have seen his face, kitten," Damon reminisced as they arrived. "Somewhat shocked I drank it. Even more that I was thanking him for what he and I both know is a poison." His teeth flashed, looking over to the girl in his passenger seat. "I promised to give him a gift in return today."
Already having been invited in, they mutually agreed to dodge the receiving line. Instead, they'd brought Carol a drink after Damon had swept Cynthia off her feet – literally – for the entirety of a dance. Her surprised but pleased expression was almost as good as seeing Stefan's face further down the line. (Damon still hadn't actually let Cynthia down. She was standing on his feet instead of the floor.)
He'd led her away again, this time to greet Bree. Cynthia did stand on her own this time, as Damon made use of both of his hands to grasp one of Bree's, which was amusing. She knew that Damon had gone with her as a friend, but watching him kiss Bree's hand made her feel like she should probably be jealous? Her partner in crime might leave her for... well, no. Romance wasn't Damon's thing right now. Never mind.
"Would you like a dance?" Cynthia asked the witch, but Bree shook her head. "With our mutual Walk Away Joe? I think he has his eyes on a different prize."
Damon kissed the witch's cheek, eyes sparkling with amusement as he grabbed one of Cynthia's hands. "She knows me so well," he cooed even as he started dragging the teenager away. "C'mon, killer. Time to play guard dog."
The crystal talisman was easy, if tedious, to collect. Cynthia spent the time teasing Damon about how he couldn't keep her species straight. First she's a cat; now she was a dog.
She's impressed more than she should be he doesn't immediately quip back that at least she isn't dead. (Knowing the vampire, he isn't even listening.)
.
.
Because the universe - this version anyway - hates her, she and Damon make it back to their slowly touring siblings in time for the 'Original Salvatores speech'.
"Is that... Damon Salvatore? And... Stefan Salvatore?"
Elena, Elena. You do get worked up over the strangest things.
"I can't believe the sheriff was William Forbes back then. And now the sheriff is formerly a Mrs. William Forbes. The times, they are a-changing." Cynthia bounced in between Elena and Stefan, ignoring whatever expression was on Stefan's face regarding her. "Not to mention that a Lockwood was a mayor then. I mean," the girl dropped her voice to a harsh whisper, "I know Mystic Falls likes to keep things within the 'Founding Families', but for elected positions, you'd expect a bit more variety!"
"The original Salvatore brothers. Tragic story, actually," Damon smirked down at the girl on his arm. "So glad to know you find our ancestors creepy, kitten. I'm feeling a little attacked. What about you, Stef?"
Cynthia rolled her eyes, muttering, "You love it," under her breath before sharing a long suffering look with Elena as the brothers once again stared at each other. And stared. Like angry, petulant statues. Again.
"I'd love to hear more about your family," Elena tried to get Stefan's attention, the sweet optimist she was right now. "You're named after them? Is that Salvatore tradition? Or is it just coincidence?"
"You can say that," Damon cut in smoothly, interrupting Stefan's attempts to claim the conversation was boring. (And helpfully distracting Elena from Cynthia glaring at the younger Salvatore. What was so hard about 'tell the girl you are dating the truth'? She'd told Damon she was from a different dimension! They weren't even an item!) The dark haired vampire squeezed her elbow lightly, and Cynthia sighed, "Maudlin, isn't it? This town is so obsessed with its history, it keeps bringing it back up to repeat over, and over."
Stefan's eyebrows were doing a great job of imitating worried, fuzzy caterpillars right now. Elena looked between all three of them and shook her head slightly. Damon hadn't actually answered her question, but given the staring contest still going on, it didn't seem like she'd get her answers anytime soon. "Are you sure you're okay, Cynthia?" Stefan was going to give himself worry lines. Quite the feat, Cynthia thought.
"Actually, can I borrow you for a moment?" She glanced towards her not twin for permission as well. "I'll fill you in later, Scout's Honor." Not that she was now or ever had been a scout of any kind. "It's about the thing I told you about earlier?"
Elena's expression cleared somewhat at that, and she rested her hand on Stefan's arm briefly. "Go on. It's best to humor her when she's like this."
Damon's smile could cut ice as Cynthia hooked her arm around one of the paladin's and began to lead him away.
"Any chance we can go out again?" The girl asked hopefully after they were out of (human) earshot. She politely pretended not to notice that Stefan, already quite stiff, seemed to grow even warier. Instead, Cynthia just pouted. "What? I thought we had a good time!"
Stefan visibly brooded at her, 'I'm attempting to be patient' in every line of his torso. "What is Damon having you tell Elena?"
Cynthia decided that if he wasn't going to answer her question, then she didn't have to answer his. She looked around for Lexi instead.
"Cynthia," the green eyed vampire tried again, gentler this time. "I need you to help me here, okay?"
Finding her target, Cynthia pushed Stefan to their left. "You worry too much, Paladin. It's just a surprise! We thought you needed help turning your frown upside down." She tried on an innocent smile. Cynthia wasn't sure if it went with her dress. However modest, it was an adult style more than a child's cut.
"The only gift Damon could give me that I want is for him to leave here. I somehow doubt you'd be so happy that he's leaving you behind. "
A warm voice interrupted Stefan before he could say anymore hurtful things. "Ouch! Here I was thinking you'd be happy to see me." It would be a lie to say Cynthia was anything less than pleased to witness Stefan turn around faster than her eyes could actually process. "Lexi?"
"The one and only. Our mutual friend there thought we should catch up. It sounds like we have a lot to talk about."
As softly as she could, Cynthia extricated herself to go find either Bonnie or Caroline. She'd even take Jenna. No one should have to be flying solo at an event like this, and her work here was done.
At least, until Damon decided dancing was in order again.
.
.
A/N: SURPRISE!? I have risen from the dead. I am so sorry for being away so long. Life happened, and well… it didn't stop coming. I've had to deal with multiple forced moves, suicidal loved ones, two funerals, and a disgusting amount of work and money issues, but dangit I want to finish this story!
I won't lie and say I know everywhere where I'm going next, but hopefully we'll have fun figuring it out together. ;) I really, really tried to make it reasonable for Elijah to show up sooner, but… unfortunately my better half made a pretty good case that he should wait another chapter at least. There was just too much else going on in this chapter.
IF YOU WANT SOMETHING TO HAPPEN, PLEASE SUGGEST IT. I'm trying to kickstart my muse again. I am really enjoying tweaking events and creating a divergent timeline to explore. ^_^
I am so, so sorry that I neglected to reply to all of your lovely reviews. I'd like to hit a few things now, and in the future I'll try to stay on top of them again!
First, thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, followed, and/or favorited, because you convinced me that I could and SHOULD come back and continue this story. I feel so blessed my OC is so well received.
Dattlebasa1 and Vitruvia: Cynthia is predisposed to give the Mikaelsons a chance. We'll just have to see what they decide to do with that. I don't imagine Klaus is going to be pleased that Cynthia thinks he should clean house before creating a new species, or that she thinks – read: knows – more about his curse and his mother than he does. Kol, however… well, at least she's not currently interested in waking Silas? –shaky thumbs up?- (I'm trying to get them here soon; I SWEAR. My plot bunnies keep running away from me!)
Cassandra-Jayne: I'm really glad you liked the story so much (and I hope if you continue to read, you still will). I'm not positive what you meant by timeline, probably because I'm reading way too deeply into it. Did you mean posting schedule? Or planned series of events? So far, I'm keeping to what's a definite schedule from the show (for instance, the Founder's Party was scheduled by the Lockwoods and happens more or less around the same time every year, so I didn't move that around. But I obviously moved up the trip to Bree's.) I have a nebulous plan of events, but not a solid timeline just yet.
As for her name, Cynthia calls back to the goddess Artemis, and it sounds enough like a twin name to Elena to me. (Rather than have the Gilberts be jerks who named their twins names that start with a similar sound, they both end in –a, which really is not the worst fate to have.) Given Artemis is the goddess of the moon and the hunt, she felt particularly appropriate for dear Cynthia and what she's willing to do to fulfill her own plan of going home. Plus, I like the name. And I like torturing my OC by calling her Cyndy or Sinful and other plays on her name that make her want to break kneecaps. :D