I never had been able to resist an accent.
By the time that I had relived everything, I was drifting off into another deep sleep, completely oblivious to the dangers that could still be lurking around right outside my door.
"Rise and shine, pixie, pixie" Jonathan's thick accent lilted from the doorway. I groaned and tossed in the sheets, sitting up to scowl at him.
"I'm not full pixie, you know"
Jonathan appeared offended "Thank heavens not, those pixies are simply intolerable. With their green flesh, arrogant attitudes, and insatiable lust. I swear, those things are either killing something or fucking something; which is good in combination…but still, they take it too far"
I recoiled from Jonathan, raising an accusatory eyebrow as my face pinched up in distaste.
"Ew, necrophiliac" I shot out, before I could stop myself.
Jonathan just smiled amusedly at me, raising his own eyebrows "You are aware that we vampires are dead, right? So what's the difference of one dead thing having a sexual desire for another dead thing?"
"Jonathan, there are so many things wrong with that sentence that I'm feeling a tad nauseas, suddenly" I admitted, my nose crinkling.
Jonathan laughed, the sound like wind chimes on a warm summer day.
"Relax, Chloe, it was a joke. No need to go puking on my carpet" He replied airily, carrying in a tray of eggs and pancakes with an orange on the side and a glass of apple juice.
Suddenly, I didn't feel so nauseas anymore. I smiled at him appreciatively, and lifted a forkful of pancakes into my mouth.
"You'll never believe who visited me last night" Jonathan started casually, as he sat beside me on the bed, watching me eat with calculating eyes.
I could certainly guess who gave him a visit last night…
"Damon?' I offered.
The corner of Jonathan's lips twitched as he stared idly at my bedroom door and shook his head.
"No, I'd imagine, he's locked himself away somewhere, overcome with the realization and grief that I've been alive all this time and haven't uttered a word of it to him. He probably feels a great deal of betrayal by my blithe remorselessness about this whole thing" Jonathan said to himself quietly, shrugging his shoulders lightly. "Serves the impertinent brat, right"
I shook my head disbelievingly at the vampire, and waited for him to get to the point.
Jonathan smiled at me and leaned in close to murmur "It was Nathaniel"
Jonathan slowly receded and scowled at nothing in particular "It still puzzles me how he managed to find me at all. And here I thought, I had hidden my whereabouts fairly well…Ah, well. The point is, he came here, demanding to speak to you"
"What did you tell him?" I asked curiously, slightly annoyed that he hadn't let me talk to Nathaniel and assure him that I was okay.
"Oh, I just cleverly replied that you were indisposed, and probably would remain so for quite sometime…" Jonathan trailed off as I glared at him.
"You're upset with me" He ventured, quietly.
"I want to go home" I seethed. "I'm tired of playing along with your little game. Nathaniel, Gabriel, and Damon mean something to me- and I will not stand by and let you hurt them. Now take me home to them, right now"
Something flashed behind Jonathan's eyes but he quickly composed himself, returning to his light, airy self.
"But my dear, it's far too late for that. The plan has already been set in motion"
I started before narrowing my eyes "What are you talking about? Jonathan, what have you done?"
He just stared at me, looking pleasantly amused and charming, even if he was being a royal asshole.
"Would you like to see?" He whispered conspiratorially, snickering like a sociopath child.
I felt the blood in my veins freeze before starting up suddenly, boiling.
Jonathan wrapped his cold fingers around my wrist, and roughly pulled me from the bed. I let out a small shriek, realizing that I still had no underwear on! Jonathan only paused momentarily, gazing at me slowly, before turning and dragging me along behind him.
He led me down the stairs to the entryway of the castle, as we approached, I could make out the figure of a girl, nude, and lying motionless on the stone floor.
It wasn't until we were standing directly above her that I actually saw her.
Pale, smooth skin framed by a head of wavy blonde hair, a small heart-shaped face and all around tiny frame. The girl was me. She was the spitting image of myself, right down to the small birthmark by her/my bellybutton.
She looked…there were no words for it. Her throat had been ripped out much like mine had been, her lips were the blue color of death and her blue eyes were glazed over by a milky film. Her body was ravaged by dark purple and black bruises, and there were visible areas where her bones had been snapped.
"What have you done?" I demanded again, my voice cracking as I forced the vomit back down my throat. Tears welled up in my eyes as I stared at Jonathan. He just stared at me, the amusement never leaving his eyes. Ignoring my question, he replied:
"I'm going to send her back to my brothers. It's a really hard thing to come by, a shifter who is skilled enough to mimic even the smell of the person with whom they're resembling. This one, did an excellent job" He sighed airily.
I wanted to hit him. No, I wanted to hurt him. I hated him.
"You are a monster" I said slowly, bitingly.
Jonathan leaned in close raising my chin with his fingers so that I was forced to look into his eyes.
"And what, may I ask, little lovey-love, gave you any idea otherwise?" His lips brushed against mine, before he kissed me more forcefully, it would probably bruise.
Then, Jonathan, released me and disappeared.
Leaving me to cry over the dead girl's body.
Somewhere, in the back of my mind, a small voice called out to me.
How are you so sure this will not be your fate? It asked. When I realized that I couldn't find an answer, my sobs became more desperate.
Third Person POV
Gabriel slammed his fist against the door again.
"Damon!" He snarled "This is serious. Nathaniel never returned last night, we need to talk!"
"Leave me, brother. I do not wish to speak with you- much less see you, your very presence sickens me" Damon's silky voice called back from the other side of the door.
Gabriel pounded against the door again, this time unleashing his full power against the thing. "Damon!" He yelled
A few seconds later, the door was flung open, and Damon appeared in the doorway; his eyes red, and his hair messy, a thin trail of blood dripping down his chin.
"Jesus, Gabriel, is it too much to ask for a bit of peace- I'm trying to sleep!"
Gabriel was about to cop out a snide reply before he froze involuntarily. Damon had just used his name. Damon never called Gabriel by his name, it was always the stupid, condescending little nicknames- never Gabriel.
"What's happened to you?" Gabriel whispered, looking his brother up and down slowly.
Damon, was always the stoic one, the one who wasn't bothered by anything- and he was always the one who prided himself on never, never looking disheveled- unless on purpose. This was not the Damon that Gabriel had come to know and hate with a deep passion. This was something that Gabriel couldn't understand.
Damon growled lowly under his breath, the smell of alcohol thick on his breath
"Brother, just because I choose to ignore your thoughts, doesn't mean I can't hear them. I don't need you reminding me of how awful I look. Now what do you want?" Damon snapped.
Gabriel glared coldly "Nathaniel is missing"
Damon rolled his eyes, wiping the blood from his chin "And Nathaniel is a grown vampire, older than both of us, and able to handle himself. Now I'm going back to bed. Don't bother me for another fifty years"
Gabriel's hand slammed down on the door as Damon attempted to close it. The brother's stared at each other balefully, while they each put their weight on the door.
After a few minutes of nothing happening, Damon snarled and ripped the door from its hinges, easily throwing it into the darkness of the east wing.
"Have it your way" Damon snarled, as he took the other door in his hands.
Gabriel ducked just in time as the door was swung right where his head had been.
He glared at Damon before launching himself at the other vampire- his concealed anger coming to the surface at last.
Each time his fist connected with Damon's face, Gabriel screamed at his brother mentally.
It isn't fair!
Why do you get Jonathan back, while I remain with nothing?
It's your fault.
I hate you.
I wish it had been you who I'd gotten rid of, not Jonathan.
And now, Nathaniel is missing, and that's your fault too. He was going to reason with Jonathan. He was going to get Chloe back- and now he's missing!
Finally, when all of his energy had been drained, Gabriel collapsed to the ground beside Damon, and stared at the ceiling.
"If it's any consolation, I'm not as big a fan of myself as I let on" Damon said softly.
Gabriel chuckled softly.
Damon's confession didn't help the familiar ache in his heart when he thought of his wife, it didn't help at all.
Nathaniel Felling stared dubiously at the scene in front of him. For a fraction of a second, he was sure that his eyes had deceived him. He was sure that he had seen Chloe, lying naked and dead on the front entry of the castle, with a small look-a-like crying over her.
Then, Nathaniel quickly realized that it had been the other way around, it was the look-a-like who was dead. The real Chloe was very much alive.
He let out a small, relieved sigh before hopping gracefully to the ground in front of the two girls. Careful to make his footsteps as silent as possible.
As if sensing she wasn't alone anymore, Chloe glanced up at him- her facing lighting up like a sunrise in the dead of winter, before falling again.
"Are you another one of those shifters?" She demanded coldly.
The corners of Nathaniel's mouth twisted up into a small smile as he scooped Chloe up into a hug.
"No, it's really me. I'm getting you out of here" He claimed, brushing through her hair comfortingly.
"I wouldn't be so quick to jump to conclusions, Nathaniel" came a familiar British accent from directly behind them.
Chloe jumped in Nathaniel's arms as they both turned to face Jonathan, whom was looking very smug at this point. Jonathan was twirling a very sharp, very threatening, wooden stake in his hands, and he took a step towards the two. As he approached, his eyes turned that eerie red color, and his fangs elongated
"But I am, very glad that you've decided to grace us with your presence once again. Perhaps this time, I can send you off with a more-" Jonathan pricked his finger against the pointed stake "lavish departure"
And before, their eyes, Jonathan raised the stake and sent it downward, flying directly towards Nathaniel's chest. Directly towards Nathaniel's heart.
Hehe. Cliffy! Review, and I promise to update sooner next time!