Chapter Six: The Bad Brother

《Run and hide, it's gonna be bad tonight,

'Cause here comes your devil side

It's gonna ruin me》

Athena had just got done straightening her hair since Elena had dropped it off for her to borrow. The evening with Stefan had gone quiet well and once Elena had gotten back from her errand, the three of them had chatted amicably over pizza and coffee. Athena had learned some of the history between the Salvatore brothers, but it wasn't anything Stefan had gone into much detail about and Athena didn't pry. She learned Elena had a brother named Jeremy who was currently living in Mystic Falls with a friend named Matt. She was trying her best to keep up with all the names being dropped. That night, they hadn't seen or heard from Damon and his human again. Athena was relieved.

Tonight the three of them were going to the Mystic Grill and she was going to meet Caroline, Jeremy and Matt. Elena and Stefan had filled them apparently on what was going on and she could hear Elena whispering fiercely to the girl, Caroline, about being polite and welcoming. She didn't like being the new girl like this, but she put on her brave face and applied a light amount of make and a swipe of apricot colored lipstick to her lips. Once she was done with the straightener she turned it off and went to her closet. Tonight she chose a pair of dark blue skinny jeans and a purple shirt that was flowy on the ends. She paired it with her leather jacket and black boots. It was simple and perfect for kicking ass if she needed to.

She paused at her doorway for a moment, looking back into the mirror at herself for a brief second. She saw a strong girl, someone that was rolling with the punches and just trying to survive. Athena also saw a girl that was tired of running, hinting at the small black rings that you could see only if you were looking close enough. The wearied look in her greenish-yellow eyes was only something the most observant would be able to catch. With one last glance at her appearance she headed down stairs, but stopped as no one was there. The fire was on and the bottle of bourbon on the end table was uncapped. She quirked a brow before walking around the sofa of the grand living room and following a certain scent that had piqued her interest since coming here.

The smell got stronger as she approached another room that opened up into a sitting room. Books. She had smelled books. And yes, they had a peculiar smell if you were like her and read for pleasure for her entire life. Half the room was lined with bookshelves and it wrapped around quite a ways before stopping to a large antique case that housed many items upon it. Some old, some new. There was a rich mahogany banister that lined the room and a small stoop of stairs lead to a sitting area. How many freaking rooms did they have?

Athena swallowed thickly as she hesitated in the doorway before considering the fact that Stefan had told her to make herself at home. So, she did. She walked into the room, her boots making little noise on the floorboards. Her fingertips traced the spines of a row of books, only stopping briefly to pull one out and look at its contents before placing it back where it had been. Her eyes were alight with curiosity, she loved books. There was something about sinking into another person's story that made her own problems sometimes seem miniscule.

She continued on at this pace in awe and fasciation. They had a lifetimes worth of books, decades of published writers that lined these shelves. She wondered if they had read any or all of these books. Her nose twitched at that thought and a moment too late she felt the brief gust that hit her back, as if someone had opened a window. Athena recognized the smell and momentarily froze.

"Not really nice to be sneaking around someone else's home." A familiar, condescending tone came from directly behind her. She closed her eyes, breathing in and taking a brief millisecond to compose her nerves at wanting to throttle Damon. She had to remember that she was a guest and this was not her family. That was Stefan's job to handle him. "I was told to make myself at home." She responded before whirling around casually and leaning up against the book case with ease. Damon was wearing a nice dark black button down with a pair of dark blue jeans and a sinking feeling came across her mind.

Was he going to the Mystic Grill too?

He made a face and upturned his nose at her, his forehead creasing in distaste and clear annoyance, "Stefan tell you that? Sounds like something he'd say." Athena parted her lips, shaking her head at him and clearly rolling her eyes at him, "He also told me he had an annoying brother." She returned her attention to the books, walking further until she felt his eyes boring into her back and she got the distinct feeling he might indeed want to kill her.

He followed at a steady gait and she so happened to turn and look back at him. Damon's eyes were narrowed in a calculating way. He was either trying to figure her out or he was trying to intimidate her. Probably both. "Pft, typical Stefan. Always being the good guy." Athena couldn't help but chuckle at his arrogance on being the bad guy, "You don't even deny it, do you?" He shrugged, nonplussed at her accusation. "Nope." He dragged out the no on nope and popped the p at the end. "Don't mistake this little chat at me being nice either. I'd like nothing more than to rip your heart out and deliver it to Klaus." Her eyes widened, but this time she didn't feel so frightened by him. His threat was empty. "Why's he so whipped by you anyways?" He looked completely perplexed that Klaus had taken a liking to her and it was a little funny how, in a way, he sounded..jealous.

She huffed indignantly and turned to face him, "He's not whipped." Athena would always defend Klaus, truth be told. He had done more for her than any other person ever had. "Klaus might not be your favorite person, but he's done more for me than anyone ever has." Damon smirked, as if he knew something she didn't, "Klaus doesn't do anything out of the kindness of his heart. Newsflash, he doesn't have one." Damon looked to her with wide eyes as if she was deranged in her kind words about Klaus. She paused and leaned against the book shelf. "You would know, right?" Her quip back to him made his head slightly jerk back, but it was so small you'd have to be a supernatural being to catch it. And she had.

Athena knew Klaus had caused a lot of chaos while he was in Mystic Falls last and whatever it all had been had not ended well. People had died and there was a bitter mutual understanding between everyone, despite ones like Damon that still wanted to wring Klaus' neck. "Don't talk like you know me, you've been here for all of what, five minutes?" Damon's voice had gone up an octave and she could hear the shower upstairs still running. Elena and Stefan must have been…busy because that shower had been running for quite a bit. She wanted to bite her lower lip as her cheeks got heated at the mere thought of intimacy. She popped back to the present and rolled her eyes at Damon's comment, "It only takes five minutes to spot a narcissistic, heartless vampire that drowns himself in booze and blood."

Damon snarled at this, actually snarled and lifted his lip at her. Athena was impressed. She had hit a small nerve, but a nerve nonetheless. "You're either really stupid or you've got a death wish." His comment was laced with an unsaid threat. A threat for her. She noticed he was alone and realized his human hadn't been down here yet. She seemed like a puppy dog type that would follow him around everywhere, so she was either upstairs or back on the road. Athena hardened her eyes at him, "Where's last night's dinner?" She returned her gaze to the shelf and picked it out before flipping through the pages of a book about the different kinds of art in history.

"Had my fill. She had to go." Athena knew Damon was shrugging without even looking at him. "What a life, coercing drunken women to sleep with you." Athena knew her comment was a mild low blow and somewhat bitchy considering she didn't even know him. But, he had irked her, tested her nerves and Athena decided to speak before thinking. "You sound jealous." He quipped back with a stupid smirk. "Not in the slightest." Athena responded blandly, lifting her eyes to meet his.

Her eyes bore into his bright blue ones and it struck her as odd that he had such beautiful eyes for such a dark man, "I look forward to tonight." His words held a more…sinister meaning and she realized he was dressed to go out. Like out-out. And she frowned, "Great, buzz-killington is coming along." Athena rolled her eyes, her whole stomach sinking as she hated the idea of Damon being there with them..being an asshole. "Don't worry, I'll be at the bar. Drowning in booze and flashing this impeccable smile to those women I'll be coercing to my bed." His snarkiness made her want to scream, but instead she opened her mouth to retort. However, he spoke first and quickly. His smirk disappeared and he looking menacing.

"Let's get one thing straight. Stefan is the one that owes Klaus a favor, not me. Any dealings I have with this from here on out are not from the warm depths of my heart. It's purely so I can assure that my brother doesn't get killed in the crossfire. Got that, kitty kat?" Athena narrowed her eyes at Damon, their color changing in annoyance. He must have noticed because he quirked a brow at her and smirked.

The thing about cats..they weren't sloppy like dogs. They were cunning and precise.

His smirk set her off and she lunged, grabbing his neck with her right hand and shoving him against the wall directly behind him with inhuman speed. Her voice became a menacing hiss, "Rule number one, don't ever call me that again. Got it?" His bright eyes lit up in surprise for the briefest of moments before he was body slammed against the wall. However, Damon used his vampire agility to flip her around against the wall, turning the tables on her quicker than she anticipated.

Maybe she did have a death wish.

Her hand still gripped his throat and his own hand mirrored hers. She felt his hand constrict around her ivory white skin. Despite the unfriendly exchange, his large hands were warm against her throat. She could see every hue of his eyes as they tightened in contemplation and maybe even a little curiosity. This in turn made Athena snarl, curling her plump lip up at him in fury. His voice was slightly hoarse from her grip on his neck, but it was threatening all the same, "I wonder..do you cats really have nine lives?"

Athena could hear every rhythm of his breathing and it faltered slightly as she smiled up at him wickedly, "Go ahead and find out. I dare you."

Before he could respond, a new smell had wafted into the air and she crinkled her brow in confusion. It was another vampire. "Helloooo." A high pitched voice that sounded kind and a little annoying came through to her eardrums. Damon's hand was still on her throat and she hadn't let her hand off of his either. A curly headed blonde rounded the corner and she stopped abruptly, "Uh, hello, Damon. Can you not? She's your guest!" Her voice sounded like she was annoyed and she threw her hands out as she spoke. It was quite cute and a little funny.

Athena felt a rush of relief that another blonde was amongst the group. She was not the only one. Damon rolled his eyes heavily, "Cool it, Blondie. We were just talking." Caroline came marching into the sitting room and gave Damon a peculiar look, as if she didn't believe him. "Why do you always want to kill the new person in town?" She asked and Damon finally let his hands off her throat and the intense moment between them was over. Her chest was heaving up and down and she arched a brow towards the girl, "He was just leaving." Damon looked between the two blondes and Athena lifted her lip at him in a warning.

When he finally made his way out of the room and up the stairs Athena breathed out a sigh of relief she didn't know she'd been holding. Caroline glared at his retreating back and then faced Athena, "You must be Athena." Athena nodded, smiling lightly, "You must be Caroline Forbes." The girl flashed a toothy grin, but she didn't get all dark eyed on her, nor did she try and attack her. The blonde girl stood for a moment, clasping her hands together before pulling them apart and mutually they walked to one another and they shook hands.

"Sorry about Damon, he's a jerk." Athena couldn't help but laugh aloud to this and rolling her eyes, "Yeah, seems he gets around." Caroline shrugged, "Yeah, don't worry about him. Elena told me she'd have Stefan keep him in check." The girl's eyes stared at her for a long moment, taking in her scent, "I must smell different, huh?" Athena asked, smiling lightly. Caroline shrugged lightly before adding, "What's Mystic Falls without adding another species?"

Athena chuckled and then added, "Guess you're not the only blonde in the group anymore." Caroline cocked her head to the side for a brief moment, digesting this before adding with a small smirk, "You know what they say, there's strength in numbers." She flashed Athena a smirk and she nodded her head to Caroline as they both looked upstairs as Damon's footsteps could be heard.

Athena had a feeling she was going to like this Caroline girl.

Elena and Stefan could be heard taking the stairs two at a time, whispering amongst themselves. As they rounded the corner Carole turned to face them and everyone greeted one another. "Are we all ready to go?" Elena asked while hugging Caroline. She nodded and Athena agreed. As they got their things, Damon came downstairs silently and Stefan and Elena exchanged looks. "What? I'm not banned from the only bar in town now, right?"

Stefan sighed before getting the keys to Elena's vehicle, "Can I count on you to, ya know, not be such a dick?" Damon smirked and threw a glance Athena's way, "No promises, Stefan. I'm the bad brother, remember?" Damon simmered on out and everyone paused for a moment to look at each other.

This was going to be an interesting night out.