HAUNTED

Beep. Beep. Beep. The alarm sounded, waking me up. "Uh," I groaned, reaching around lazily and pushing the "off" button. I sat up, and plucked my phone off of my nightstand. It was October 31st today; Halloween.

I found Stefan's phone number easily from the call list, and sent him a text:

How are you? Did you find Vicki?

The response was almost immediate:

I'm good. We were able to find Vicki, she's here at the boarding house.

Thank god, Vicki was alright. But what did Stefan mean by "we". Was Damon helping us? No. I should know by now that whatever Damon does always ends up benefitting him, one way or the other.

I rubbed my eyes, and stood up, stretching out my entire body. I changed into a long-sleeved blue shirt, black jeans, and grey leather high-heeled boots. I then stumbled to the bathroom, and found someone else already occupying it.

"Sorry," I told Jeremy.

"Oh no, it's cool, I'm done." Jeremy said to me. He was going to walk back into his room, when I asked;

"Are you going to school today?"

"No," He answered, "Police station. They're organizing that search party for Vicki."

I did admire how much Jeremy cared for Vicki. But considering Vicki was currently not missing, but actually at the boarding house - learning to be a controlled vampire, it didn't exactly help. Also, Jeremy needed to be focused in school, he's missed so many days - sometimes consecutively - for the last few months.

"Oh," I said in reference to his last answer, "That's nice. I hope you guys find her, but I'm sure she's okay," I pretended to be enthusiastic.

"Yeah, I hope we do." Jeremy said, then he walked back to his room.

I sighed, the fake smile falling from my face. If Vicki was able to become controlled, then I wouldn't be so against her being with Jeremy. If Jeremy wanted to become a vampire for her - if she were to ever tell him - then... I guess that would be his choice to make. I just don't want Jeremy to have to go through what happened when mom and dad died... never again.

3rd person POV:

Stefan, Damon, and Vicki were all in one of the dining rooms of the house. Damon and Stefan had just saved Tyler from Vicki trying to, well... eat him. Damon sat in the chair by the table near the window. One streak of sunlight was streaming through the window, casting light on the newspaper Damon was reading.

Damon was complaining about people covering up Logan's death, when Vicki suddenly stated she was hungry. Standing up, Stefan walked over to the high table, grabbing a cup filled with animal blood.

"Here," he said, handing the cup to Vicki.

She took it, and smelt it. "What is it?"

"It's what you're craving."

"Hah," Damon piped up, "Don't lie to the girl. It's so not what you're craving, but it'll do in a pinch, right, Stef?"

"What is it?" Vicki repeated, looking at the blood, somewhat confused and grossed out.

"Yeah," Damon smirked. "what is it? Is it a skunk? Saint Bernard? Bambi?"

Stefan ignored him, and said to Vicki, "Go on. Give it a try?" Stefan had to at least have hope, for Jeremy, Ariana's brother. Vicki took a sip. It wasn't exactly disgusting, but it wasn't very satisfying either.

"She's new," Damon said, "She needs people blood. She can't sustain on that stuff."

"Yeah, why can't I have people blood?" She asked Stefan, taking a bigger gulp of the blood.

"Yeah," Damon smirked.

"Because it's wrong to pray on innocent people, Vicki." Stefan said, annoyed at Damon.

"You don't have to kill people to feed," Damon stated in an obvious tone, "Just find someone really tasty and then erase their memory afterwards. It's so easy."

Vicki smiled and giggled at Damon.

"No, no, no." Stefan objected, bringing Vicki's focus back towards him, "There's no guarantee that you can control yourself, okay? It takes years to learn that. You could easily kill somebody, and then you have to carry that with you for the rest of your life, which, if I hadn't made clear, is eternity."

Damon just rolled his eyes, and said to Vicki, "Don't listen to him. He walks on a moral plane way out of our eye line. I say: snatch, eat, erase."

Vicki was staring at Damon in awe, as if he just opened that gateway to an endless freedom. "Hey, look at me." Stefan said, trying to bring Vicki's attention back to him. "We choose our own paths. Our values and actions, they define who we are."\

"Okay," Damon said, rolling his eyes again, "Count deepak. I am outta here." Damon stood up, and walked downstairs. While he was in the main hallway of the first floor, the doorbell rang.

Damon perked up as he realized who it was. He swiftly opened the door, revealing the beautiful girl standing there.

Ariana POV:

Elena and Jenna were still sleeping, so before going to school, I made a stop at Stefan's house. I wanted to see how they were doing with Vicki, and if she was okay.

I knew that Damon was somehow involved in the "situation", so I wasn't surprised when it was him whom answered the door. "Why, isn't it Ariana." Damon smirked at me. "Here to give me another one of your 'speeches'."

"Mm," I smirked right back, "Unfortunately, no. I'm here to see Stefan and Vicki."

Damon placed a hand on his chest, above his heart, pretending to be hurt, "You wound me, Gilbert."

I scoffed, "I wish. You're practically indestructible."

He grinned, "Of course I am. I'm a vampire."

I shook my head, and asked, "Can I come in?"

"Of course, you may," He held the door wide open.

I walked and said politely, "Thank you."

"You're more than welcome." He said, "As much as I'd love to stay, I need to be somewhere." Then he winked at me, "I hope to see you later." The door closed behind him. I heard none of his footsteps as he left the property. At least Damon was acting less dangerous than usual. Oh, he was definitely dangerous, but that air around him was less. Though, he was still acting strange.

I walked further into the boarding house. "Ariana?" Stefan's voice came from mid-way up the staircase. He looked partially confused, and partially glad, to see me.

I beamed at him. "Hey, Stefan." He quickly stepped down the staircase, stopping right in front of me.

"Hey," He said back, giving me a hug."Sorry. I didn't realize you were coming."

"Oh, no, I'm sorry," I said, as we pulled away. "I should've texted, but I wanted to see Vicki in person. She's okay, right?"

He hesitated, "I - I'm working with her, but it's gonna take some time. She's a very volatile and impulsive personality. She's a drug user. I mean, all that's gonna play a part in how she responds to this."

I nodded understandingly. Vicki as a vampire didn't exactly paint the most serene scene. But we had to try. For Matt, for my brother, and simply, for Vicki.

"Alright," I said, "We'll just have to wait. But with time, she can learn to control herself, right?"

He nodded. "Yes, with time. I don't know how long it's gonna take."

"I don't care," I said, "As long as we try." I smiled at him.

He smiled back, "I'm gonna keep her here with me until I know that she's safe."

Before I could respond, another voice said, "How long is that?" I looked up the staircase to see Vicki standing there. She looked really bored, as if she couldn't wait for the sun to go down so that she could run around. Crap. I had totally forgotten about that. How was Vicki supposed to go to school? Or see Jeremy?

"Vicki," I smiled at her, "How are you?"

"How am I?" She asked as if I had offended her. I didn't think I had. "You're kidding, right?"

I wasn't sure if her answer was supposed to mean that she felt good, or bad.

Once we were all seated in a dining room, Stefan tried to explain to Vicki about drinking coffee and animal blood instead of human blood. The dining room, like the rest of the house, was very old and beautiful. Why couldn't I live here? Stefan got uncomfortable as he started talking about how he wasn't proud of his past behavior. But, I didn't worry about that. It isn't matter who he was before, what matters is who he was now.

Then, after making an awkward speech about her having to go pee, Vicki left the room.

Stefan turned to me, and said, "I'm going to...uh...get her some more," He showed me the empty cup which was filled with animal blood before Vicki drank it all. "I'll be quick."

"'kay." I said. He kissed me, then vampire sped away. I wished I could do that...

I stood up. I couldn't take another minute of sitting. That's when Vicki came back in. She babbled, referring to the "needing to go pee" part of her speech, "False alarm. My body's feeling really funky. It's a good funk, but it's weird."

I smiled. "How're you doing Vicki? Is Matt okay?" I asked her.

"Well, I feel like myself, just... it's kinda weird to explain." She said, tilting her head to the side. "Oh, and um... Matt's fine. You know how he is, the good kid and all."

"Is he happy?" I asked her. Matt and I had been practically together since we were kids, and I'm always worried about him. But I guess I'd said something I shouldn't have, because Vicki snapped. Her eyes flashed in anger, and she rushed towards me.

I couldn't even let out a scream, as her hand pinned my throat to the wall, cutting off my air almost completely. I gasped at the pain, shock, and fear. "Happy? Happy?!" She shouted in my face, laughing and smiling humorlessly like a psychopath. Then, her eyes turned hard, "Let's get one thing straight, you perky little bitch." She sneered, looking me up and down. "You had my brother whipped for fifteen years. Fifteen years. Then, you dumped him. And I thought your sister was a bitch, but now all I see is you as one. I won't think twice about ripping your little head off. You got it?"

When Vicki finally let me go, there was lots of pain in my throat. I started coughing, feeling as if I'd throw up. But, at least I could breathe again. When I looked up, Vicki was gone, probably on the third level of the house.

I knew that Matt was still trying to get over the break up, but I didn't know how bad he was really hurting. And Vicki, had been trying to hide her anger for me. But then, with her becoming a vampire, and my asking, she finally couldn't hold it in anymore, and she attacked me. So I did understand her point of view, but, I mean, who likes to be threatened by an uncontrolled vampire? Who can, more likely than not, kill me before I even realized what she was trying to do.

After a few minutes of rubbing my neck to try and subdue the pain, Stefan rushed back into the room, asking me what happened.

"Vicki..." I started uncertainly. Stefan suddenly turned, as if he was about to bolt to find Vicki. "No," I lied, "It's fine, it doesn't even hurt that much. She was angry, that's all."

He was angry, I could see it in his eyes, and the way his shoulders tensed. "Let me see," He said. His fingers skimmed across my neck gingerly, like a feather. I could barely feel them. "Your neck seems fine. You might just get a faint bruise."

I nodded unsuccessfully, "Yeah, no, I'm fine. She just wasn't able to control her anger."

He nodded, still looking worried. He explained, "She's on edge. Every sense in her body is operating at super speed. It could take months before she even begins to control it."

I nodded. Months? And that would only be the beginning? Geez, I'd be dead by then.

Stefan continued, "She needs to stay away from Jeremy." That's when I realized that if Vicki was to continue this thread of uncontrollable feelings, she could hurt Jeremy. "When you're new, it's hard to separate your feelings. Love, lust, anger, desire... it can all burn into one urge, hunger."

Which meant that Vicki couldn't be around other people, not until we knew for sure that she wouldn't hurt them. Because, although she may deny it, Vicki could accidentally hurt her brother or mine, and that... I'm not sure if I'd be able to forgive her.

"Okay," I said to Stefan. I looked at the clock in the room, and my eyes widened. "Shoot! School starts in five minutes." How was I going to get there on time?

Stefan's worry momentarily subsided, making him smirk, "I could carry you there... it's a lot faster."

I smiled. Stefan was offering me a ride to school, on his back! I wondered how fast we would be able to go. Wouldn't someone see us? I immediately dismissed that question, like how would people be able to see Stefan when he's practically just a blur, a change in someone's peripheral vision. But then, my smile faded. "What about Vicki."

Stefan just shrugged, "It's light out, she can't go anywhere."

Oh, right. Vicki didn't have a daylight ring. I looked into Stefan's eyes, making sure that he was serious. He was. I could see his certainty. I felt a little jump in my heart, having no doubt that he could hear it beating.

"Alright," I smiled at Stefan, "Show me what you got."

Stefan's look was mischievous as he pulled me towards him. It was all a blur, as I felt myself in the air, and then, I wound up on Stefan's back. His hands rested under my thighs where my legs were wrapped around his hips. My arms rested on his shoulders. I could feel heat radiating off his body, and I snuggled into his back, my lips on his neck.

Then, he took off. I gasped at the exhilaration. Everything was a blur, and, somehow it didn't make me feel dizzy. I could feel Stefan, and it was as if he wasn't a person, but just an object. I could barely feel any bumps. It was like a roller coaster ride, without the turns and the banging.

I was excited the whole way to school. Gosh, if only I could ride like that to school everyday.

Stefan came to a stop (after only like a minute!) near the back entrance to school. Nobody besides Jeremy and Vicki - who were conveniently not coming to school - ever used the back entrance. It was secluded, and it could be, sometimes, a bit scary. But with Stefan there, I couldn't think of a more wonderful place.

I hopped off his back, while trying to fix my tangled hair. "Thanks," I beamed at him.

"No problem," he said, then his expression changed. "Maybe I shouldn't have done that."

"Why?" I asked, worried. It was my hair, wasn't it. How bad did it look?

"Your hair looks..." He started. Dang it, my hair was messed up, "Really sexy."

"What?" I asked, not believing what I was hearing. He thought my hair looked sexy? Before I could question him further, he kissed me passionately. I lost track of all thoughts, giving myself to him, freely. He caressed my face, as I wound my hands into his soft hair. Then, the stupid bell rang.

I broke away, before the kiss went any deeper. "I gotta go."

He nodded, and smirked. "Fix your hair before guys have another reason for trying to..."

I rolled my eyes, "Will do. I'll text you later, okay?"

"Okay," he agreed, then he disappeared. I found myself running to Homeroom. And in heels, it's not exactly fun. I didn't have time to pat my hair down, so when I entered my classroom, I wasn't surprised to see a bunch of people looking at me. Many of their stares lingered. Well, mostly the guys, that is. Hmm... maybe Stefan was right. I wonder what my hair really looked like right then.

I was sitting in the living room couch after school, thinking about the Halloween carnival that was starting. Should I go? Apparently, Damon "lost" Vicki, meaning she ran off. Hopefully, she'd go to the carnival, so that we could find her.

Jeremy was in the kitchen, leaving a voice mail to Vicki at this moment, "You gotta call me, vic. I don't get it. What's going on with you? Just... just call me, please."

He hung up, and I watched him as he stared at his phone, annoyed yet worried. Elena strode into the room, looking back and forth between us.

"I'm bored," she announced, "Let's go to the Halloween thing at school... I found a costume." She smirked.

"Uh...yeah," Jeremy said, rolling his eyes.

"Sounds fun. Where'd you get the costume from?" I asked her.

She smirked again, and her eyes twinkled. "I bought it online."

"Yeah..." Jeremy said, uncomfortably, "I don't even want to know what it looks like."

"You probably don't." Elena agreed, then she turned to me, "I got you one too."

Oh no. What is Elena planning. "Can't I just wear my costume from last year?" I pleaded with her. I knew that wearing my nurse's costume would probably be better than whatever Elena was going to make me wear. But, then Matt would see me wearing it, and the whole reason to buying that costume in the first place was to match Matt's.

"Nope." Elena responded, "I already bought it. And come on, haven't you broken Matt's heart enough already. No need to bring back unwanted feelings."

I sighed. She was right. And anyways, I didn't want to be rude and not accept it. I mean, she bought it for me. I just don't really wanna know why. "Alright, I'll wear it." I said.

She grinned and then ran back up the stairs. Jeremy gave me a questioning look, and I just shrugged. "Vicki's going to the carnival," Jeremy spoke up, from where he was now looking at his phone. "So, I guess I'm going too."

Now I felt better, yet uneasy. We can finally find Vicki, but, is it really okay for a new vampire to be running around a school with a bunch of humans filled with blood? Yeah, I didn't think so. I was going to have to keep an eye on my brother, so that he didn't run off with her. She could hurt him, whether it's voluntary or not.

Elena ran back down the stairs, wearing an angel costume. It was white and long, with wings and a headband halo. It was a very modest costume, but what she was holding in her hands... was definitely not.

My mouth popped open. I heard Jeremy say, referring to me, "No way is she wearing that!"

"Oh yeah," Elena smirked, "She is."

After unsuccessfully trying to talk my way out of wearing the so called "costume", Jeremy, Elena, and I went to my car and drove to school. The whole time, Jeremy was muttering, "I can not believe you're wearing that." Jeremy, himself, didn't wear a costume. He was lucky.

Elena was sitting in the front with me, smiling like a crazy person. God, I wanted to smack her in the face for buying this outfit.

So, if I must, I'll explain what I'm wearing. Of course, since Elena was wearing an angle costume, I wore a devil costume. I was wearing a red strapless, heart-shaped corset mini-dress that ended near the top of my thighs. Black lace was weaved through the outline shape and made a sort of flowery pattern on the ends. The "dress" hugged my entire body, showing my curves and everything. On my back were barely visible black bat wings. To match it, on my head were a devil's ears' head band. I had on sheer lace black high thighs, and black platform stilettos.

Yep, I know, I definitely looked like a prostitute. "Elena, if you don't stop smiling, I'm gonna throw you out of the car." I threatened, half-serious. She tried ti stifle her giggles, but failed. Yeah, sure, I was the devil.

Once we arrived to school, everywhere I went, people stared. I heard many whistles from guys, and had to restrain Jeremy from going over to them, and beating the crap out of them. Though, Jeremy did have lots of fun scaring little kids, for which I playfully smacked him. Great. Thanks a bunch, Elena, for making me wear this costume. Some kids here were barely five years old. There were even babies! Damn, I was gonna scar them for life...

"Oh. My. God." I heard a familiar voice breath from behind me.

I turned around, to see Matt staring at my costume. I was still feeling a bit guilty from the "talk" with Vicki about him. He was wearing the same costume from last year; a surgeon. I, however, was obviously not. "Yeah," I said, trying to distract Matt from him looking me over, "Elena bought it." I narrowed my eyes at my smirking sister.

"I'm not sure if I should thank you, or kill you." Matt said to Elena, not taking his eyes off me.

"You're welcome," Elena said smugly.

"Oh," Matt said, as if he just figured something out, "Now I get it. The devil and the angel." His eyes furrowed, and he smirked, "Shouldn't it be the other way around?"

Elena glared at him, "Shut up." She said.

Matt then turned to Jeremy on my other side, "And you're going as ... you?"

Jeremy huffed, and walked away. "Yeah," Elena said, "He's still mad that I made Ariana wear the costume."

"I'd probably be if I saw Vicki wearing that. I'm still deciding whether I should kill you or not." Matt said, his jaw straining then slacking.

"Is Vicki here?" I asked Matt.

"Yeah, you can't miss her," Matt smirked, "She's a vampire." Oh, the irony. I needed to find her, and get her out. A crowd like this could end up with her killing someone.

"It was really nice to see you, Matt, but I need to go find her." I said, already taking a step.

"What's wrong?" Matt asked me in concern.

"Nothing," I lied, "I just wanna say 'hi'." He scrunched his eyebrows. Yeah, I really did suck at lying. But before he could say anything, I walked away from him and my sister. I walked deeper into the school. Wow, whoever designed this - probably Caroline - must have put a lot of work into it. I could barely recognize the school. Ultra-violet rays shone in all directions, illuminating the hallways. Fake webs, spiders, ghosts, and other monsters were found in corners and hanging from the walls and ceiling. There was a table filled with chips and soda along each wall.

When I turned a corner, I finally spotted Stefan and Vicki. Stefan's eyes widened when he caught sight of me, while Vicki just sneered in disgust.

Stefan was speechless, but when he finally saw my worried look, he asked, "What's wrong?"

"I was looking for you guys, and I lost track of Jeremy." I said.

Then, I think that Matt had followed me or something, because his voice sounded from right behind me, "What's going on?"

Before either Stefan or I could give an answer, Vicki suddenly decided to play the "victim", "I though I told you to quit bothering me." Vicki exclaimed to Stefan. What was she doing? We were trying to help her, and now, she was bringing Matt into the picture. Was she trying to get her brother involved? This would only end in hurt and heartbreak.

"Vicki..." I tried pleading with her, but Vicki cut me off.

"Matt, he won't leave me alone." Lies. Well, actually, not technically, but we were trying to help her. And without Stefan's help, she would have probably eaten half the school by now. Her vampire costume did look very stereotypical, unlike the real vampires.

"You need to back off, man." Matt said, angry at Stefan.

"Matt...it's okay." I said to him.

Matt's eyes flashed to me, and then back to Stefan. "No, it's not okay. What the hell is your problem?" Matt stepped closer to Stefan, and Stefan looked just as tense as they had an intense stare off. I stepped in between them, facing Matt. There was so little space between them, that I was almost touching both of them.

"Matt-" I tried to say, but instead, he grabbed my arm, and pulled me towards him, and away from Stefan.

"Look," Matt said, as he faced towards Stefan's cold gaze and glare. I was placed slightly to the side and behind him. I tried pulling out of his grip, but Matt pretended not to notice, and simply tightened it. "I have no idea why you're bothering my sister and my girl- I mean, Ariana." My heartbeat quickened at his mistake of wording, "But I swear to God, if this continues, I will not hold back."

I thought that they were going to start a fight right then and there. Matt's jaw was clenched, and Stefan looked like he wanted to rip me out of my ex-boyfriend's grasp.

I looked around for a distraction, anything. But it was dark, and people weren't really paying attention. Then, I realized who was not there. Vicki had gone off, she was no longer present.

"Guys," I said, "Vicki's gone." Matt's hold on me loosened, so I pulled my hand away, and moved to Stefan's side. Matt's eyes narrowed, as I whispered to Stefan, "We need to find Vicki." His angry gaze softened, and he nodded.

"We're gonna go find Vicki." I said to Matt. Grabbing my arm, Stefan led me away. Matt just stared after us, in regret and longing. My heart broke for him, but there were way more important things at hand. First, I needed to find my brother and his girlfriend.

I've looked everywhere. The only place next was at the back entrance of the school, where buses and big trucks were usually parked at.

I started feeling a bit cold as I walked through the heavy doors of the school, being met with the dark and mysterious night. The buses, as predicted, were lined up and looked almost neon in contrast with the gloomy surroundings. Stefan walked a little in front of me, tilting his head to the side, trying to pick up any sounds with his super hearing. I walked closer to a bus, and found Vicki. She was kissing Jeremy. Wait. No. She was sucking his blood.

"Vicki, stop!" I shouted. I knew this would happen. She would lose control, and now she was attacking Vicki. But at the sound of my voice, her demonic face turned towards me in anger. She looked more like a devil than I did.

Vicki then blurred towards me, and the next thing I knew of, was pain. She had threw me onto a pile of wood and garbage. I felt the wood pierce the side of my stomach. I gasped. I felt warm, thick liquid soak into my dress. Red on red.

Stefan was there in an instant, helping me up, and telling me to get Jeremy and myself out of there. I groaned and stood up, pushing Jeremy towards a shed. Vicki was nowhere to be seen. My heart was beating a mile per minute, and I was panting out of the fear and pain. I needed to get my brother safe. Jeremy seemed to be unscathed, besides the small cut on his lip where Vicki had seemingly bit him.

Stefan was looking around, trying to find Vicki.

Then, the back doors to the school opened again, and out stumbled Elena. No! She was going to get hurt if she didn't get out of here. "Hey, so this is where you guys are." She said. And before she could question why our faces were a mixture of shock, pain, confusion, and fear, Vicki suddenly blurred right in front of her.

"Well," said Vicki, tauntingly, "If it isn't the original bitch." Before any of us could react, she bit into Elena.

"No!" I yelled. Ignoring the protests from jeremy, I flung myself onto Vicki, pulling her off Elena. Elena dropped to the floor, her eyes were shut, and I had no idea whether or not she was okay. "No..." I whispered brokenly.

I felt a sharp and excruciating pain suddenly explode from my shoulder. I screamed. Vicki was biting me, and it hurt like hell.

Then, she stopped.

Stefan was behind Vicki, and her face had gone pale and grey. I looked to her chest, and saw a long, wooden stake sticking out. Oh no. Vicki was dying. Stefan let go of his end where he had staked her, and she fell to the asphalt, greying veins covering her entire body and face.

"Elena! Vicki!" I heard Jeremy shout. He was looking down at the two girls, his eyes tearing up. Jeremy... No. What was going to happen now. Vicki was dead. Matt...

"Are you okay?" Stefan asked me. My eyes looked to where Elena was, and I started crying.

"No!" I shouted, "Stefan! Please, save her." I dropped to my knees, and my hands flew to Elena's neck, where blood was spewing out.

Stefan nodded, and he knelt down beside me. Biting into his own flesh, he drew blood, and placed it above Elena's mouth. Blood dripped into her mouth, and I saw her wound start to close up. I sighed in relief. Elena would be okay.

"Please," I looked into Stefan's eyes, "Take Jeremy and Elena home."

Stefan understood. Without a word, he touched my shoulder - the one without blood on it - and blurred away, along with my unconscious sister and heartbroken brother.

I crawled over to where Vicki was, and started to sob. I touched her shoulder; it was freezing. Her skin was grey, and her face was in a mask of horror. They say when people die, they look peaceful. If that's true, then it doesn't apply to vampires.

How would I explain this to Jeremy, to Matt? How could I tell them that the girl they both love in different ways, is now dead. Like, dead-dead.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. I jerked back, frightened for a moment, before I saw Damon there, he's face was worried. "It's okay. It's just me." He said softly.

I still kept my distance. He did this. He's the one who turned Vicki, and now... now she was dead. "How... how could you." I choked out, trying to see through my tears. "People die around you, yet you pretend not to care."

"I don't." He stated. I knew he was lying. I could see through his facade.

"Yes you do. Don't try to deny it. You care, you're just afraid to show it. Why?" I asked.

Just when I thought that Damon would show...something, his eyes hardened, and he said, "Your wounds are bleeding. You should go home."

I kept his gaze for a few more seconds, then I stood up, trying to ignore my wounds. I walked away from him. From Vicki's dead body. From the school. If only it were that easy to walk away from my life...

"Ariana!" Matt's voice sounded from behind me. I was walking on the pavement in front of the school, and I groaned as he caught up with me. He was the last person I wanted to see right now. "Are you... whoa," he caught sight of the blood, "What happened. Was it-"

I cut him off before he could say "Stefan" as I knew he would. "Nothing. I just got some fake blood thrown at me."

"Oh," He relaxed, "Have you seen Vicki? You guys were looking for her, right?"

I shook my head, and lied, "We couldn't find her, I'm sorry."

Matt looked disappointed. "Is this what I'm in for, a lifetime of worrying about her?"

I smiled sadly, and said truthfully, "You're a good brother Matt. A good person."

"Apparently, not good enough for you," Matt retorted. I looked at him confused, and then finally caught on. "What's he got that I don't? Is it the money? Or the mystery?"

"Matt," I said, "I like Stefan for who he is. Not because of anything else. He's who I want to be with." I couldn't believe that Matt thought I was in it for the money or whatever. Did he really think so low of me?

Matt looked away, as if I'd slapped him. To hide his hurt, he suddenly said, "Well, I'm gonna go home and... wait for Vicki. Bye." He turned and walked away with his shoulders hunched.

I couldn't hold it in anymore. I ran to my car, and got into the driver's seat. After five minutes of trying to fit the key in, I started the call and pulled out of the school's driveway. Tears streamed down my face the entire way back to my house.

On the front porch was Stefan. He was sitting on the wooden bench, waiting for me. I let out a cry, and ran up to him. He enveloped me into his arms, and stroked my hair, as I cried into his chest. I pulled away, to see Stefan on the brink of tears, as if he was sharing my grief, "Where are they?" I asked him.

"Inside," He answered softly.

"I- need to go talk to them. Excuse me." I said. Pulling out of his arms, I staggered into the house, and up the stairs. I approached Jeremy's room, slowly. What I saw, broke my heart.

Jeremy was sitting on his bed, with his legs curled up against him. His arms were wrapped around his knees, as he continued to bawl out his eyes.

"Jeremy..." I said, as knew tears arose in my eyes. I ran over to him, sat on his bed, and hugged him. I felt his own arms wrap around me, and we cried in pain. Jeremy had just lost Vicki, the girl he had loved. It was as if our parents had died all over again. The lump in my throat was unbearable. What did he do to deserve this? He was fifteen years old. He was too young to be having to feel this kind of pain.

"Vicki's dead. She's dead," Jeremy said next to my ear.

Another round of sobs took over me, "I'm so sorry. I- I tried to help her. I did. But-" I couldn't say anymore. I couldn't stop crying.

"She was trying to kill you and Elena." Jeremy said, "But, she still didn't deserve to -to-" He started to cry again too. "Why does everybody have to die on me."

"Jeremy. I'm sorry." I whispered. First mom, dad, and now Vicki. There was just no end to his pain, was there. "I really don't want to leave you, but I need to check on Elena."

Jeremy just nodded silently. He was staring ahead of him, as if there was something out there he was focusing on. But I knew there was nothing. He was just trying to cope with the pain.

I left his room, feeling like the worst sister ever. But, I really did need to see if Elena was alright. She wasn't.

She was no longer unconscious, and her position was practically identical to Jer's. There was blood on her white dress, but no wound. She wasn't crying. Instead, she stared at the wall beside the door as if she'd just seen a ghost. She shook violently, and a look of pure fear covered her features once I stepped into the room.

"Get away from me." She bit out.

"Elena... I'm just here to-" I said, stepping closer to her, but then she cut me off.

She staggered back, further to the head of her bed, as she said, "I said, get away from me. Don't touch me."

My heart sunk. How could this happen? Both my siblings were scarred mentally. Who knew how long it would take before they could get over the pain and shock. I needed to talk to Stefan. I knew it was wrong, but they couldn't go on living this way. Elena looked as if she were a second from grabbing her bedside lamp and flinging it at me. Her look was one of a predator.

I slowly back away from her room, and walked down the stairs. Stefan was sitting on the bench again when I got back onto the porch. There were tears in his eyes. "You okay?" I asked him, brokenly.

"I should be asking you the same thing." He got up and walked towards me. After looking at my wounds, his face transformed. He held up his wrist, and bit into it, offering me his blood. I looked up at him in question, and he nodded in confirmation.

I took his wrist, and let the blood flow into my mouth. It tasted good. Like sweet wine, but with a twinge of coppery taste. It still tasted amazing to me. I felt the pain go away, and I reluctantly let go of his arm. "Thank you,"

"Your welcome," He said. "I - I wanted to help her." He was referring to Vicki. "But instead... How're they doing."

"I- I don't know." I replied honestly. How did I know how Jeremy and Elena were doing. Terrible; heartbroken; angry; sad; a mess. Yep, that doesn't even begin to cover it. "They shouldn't be going through any more pain. Jer's just a kid, and Elena was beginning to have some fun. And - I - I-"

"I'll do anything, to help." Stefan said, "What can I do?"

I wasn't sure he could do anything. "I just wish they could forget." I told him. "I know that it's wrong, and that they should be able to choose what they want to do, but- He's only fifteen years old. Elena's in some sort of shock, because she's definitely not acting okay. And I know that you can't do it, because of the animal blood. But, really, I just want them to forget. I want them to be able to live their lives without the sorrow and horror of what they've been through. To be able to finally be happy..."

I trailed off, not knowing what else to say. Stefan stared at me. It was obvious that he wanted to help me and my family. But he didn't know how. He couldn't risk taking human blood, for fear of not being able to control his hunger.

Then, a voice behind me said, "I can do it." I turned around, and saw Damon. He stepped onto my porch, as he looked into my eyes. "If this is what you want... I'll do it."

I knew Damon cared. Stefan was standing behind me, his expression unreadable. I didn't have to ponder long over my answer.

I nodded, "It's what I want." My siblings deserved a better life. Not one filled with vampires and death. They deserved to be happy.

"What do you want them to know?" Damon asked me.

"For Jeremy, tell him that Vicki left town, and she's not coming back. That he shouldn't look for her or worry about her. He's gonna miss her, of course, but he knows it's for the best."

Damon nodded.

I hesitated first, and then continued, "Tell Elena... that she went to the Halloween party, and that she had fun. There were no vampires, except for the ones in costumes. She had fun, watching me wear this," I gestured to my outfit, and Damon smiled, "And she got to be happy. She knows that Vicki has left town, but she doesn't worry about that either."

Damon nodded and went inside. Gosh, I hoped this worked. I couldn't bear to see my sister and brother like that ever again. It hurt more than any pain I could ever receive.

I sat beside Stefan, and allowed him to place his arms around me. I rested against his chest, finding comfort in him. "Do you wish to forget too?" Stefan asked me softly.

Yes, actually, I wanted to forget. To forget Vicki's death. Now that she's dead, how is Matt gonna cope? I mean, he wouldn't know that she was actually dead, but he would never see her again. And I've been through that pain. The pain of knowing when you'll never see a loved one ever again.

"Sometimes, I do," I told Stefan, truthfully, "But... what I feel for you, I could never wish to forget this." I looked up into his eyes. Stefan still looked like he was in grief, but he bent to kiss me. The electricity made me feel better, as if he were healing me with his touch.

I heard the front door open, and I broke out of the kiss to see Damon back on the porch. "It's done," He said. He looked a bit hurt by the kiss between me and Stefan, but I ignored it. I had many other things to worry about. I stood up, and walked towards him.

I stopped a few feet away, and said, "Thank you. What you did... that was kind of you. So thank you."

Damon looked at me surprised, as if he didn't believe what I had just said, "You're welcome," He finally said.

I nodded, and smiled slightly. I turned to see Stefan's questioning look. "Goodnight, Stefan," I said to him. I had no idea why, but I felt weird saying more to Stefan with Damon there, "I'll see you later." I turned to Damon, "Goodnight, Damon."

I walked back into my house, leaving the two brothers. I felt a bit more relieved, knowing that hopefully Jeremy and Elena were okay.

3rd person POV:

Stefan and Damon stared at each other from Ariana's porch. There was more going on between Damon and Ariana that Stefan wanted to admit.

Damon didn't like how Stefan had Ariana. Because, he himself secretly wanted her. The reason he had done what he did was because he couldn't bear to see Ariana in so much pain. But, it was that sort of humanity, that he wished he didn't have. But he did, and Ariana knew it.

Hopefully, once Katherine was out of the tomb, he'd be able to forget Ariana. But, even he thought of it as unlikely...