I wake to knocks on my door. It startles me and I sit upright so fast it makes my head spin.

'Just a minute...' I mumble in my unattractive morning voice. I peel the covers off me and run my fingers through my hair before quickly walking to the door. As I open it, I jump.

'Shit, Stefan...' I say. I place my hand on my chest to get my heart to slow. '...You scared me.'

He smiles. 'Sorry I didn't mean to.'

'I thought you were Sierra.'

'No, I actually don't know where she is. I tried knocking but no one answered.' He looks over at her bedroom doors. I shake my head.

'She's probably still sleeping. She sleeps like a sloth.' I laugh awkwardly. Why did I say that... that's so stupid Eleanor...?

I smile awkwardly at him, even though he laughs a little at my stupid reference. He looks down at me slowly, and I follow his eyes where they go. Startled, I quickly fold my arms in front of my chest. I didn't even think to put a dressing gown on. Shit. He shakes his head quickly; unaware of what he was doing.

'So, um... get dressed, there's a lot we have to fill you in on today.' He smiles, trying to forget what just happened I imagine. He's probably embarrassed like I am.

I nod. 'Okay, just give me a few minutes?'

'Sure thing.'

I quickly close the doors on him and take a deep breath. I run over to my wardrobe and quickly search for something to wear, hoping it fits. I opt for a plain white singlet top and jeans. Hopefully this will make me blend in. I slip on a plain black pair of heels too; i wont wear anything but heels. I quickly change and head for the bathroom. I manage to find a brush and quickly pull it through my hair. i pause for a moment to consider just how weird all of this is; my room is fully stocked with clothes that fit a female my size and hygiene items. It's like they knew i was coming... I quickly brush my teeth and head back to Stefan. I receive a friendly smile when i open the doors.

'You look good.' He says, looking me up and down again.

I think i blush a little. 'Oh. Thanks.' I say awkwardly as i lock the doors behind me.

We walk side by side down the corridor towards the stairs.

'I'm supposed to give you a tour of the school. Its quite confusing at first, but most of the students will be nice enough to help you out.' He says as we step down the stairs.

I smile at him questioningly. 'Most of them?'

He chuckles. 'Yeah. We have a couple of students that are... not so welcoming. But you shouldn't worry about them; their hierarchy probably wants someone like you anyway.'

As we reach the lobby i frown at him. 'There are school cliques here too? Arent you all, like, too old for that sort of thing?'

He shrugs at me 'Well, most students here aren't more than a decade old. They were turned and instantly transferred from normal human high school to here. Aria tries to let it run how a normal school would. I dont know much about it...' He says. I kind of understand. They're trying to maintain their humanity. I was like that once; but it nearly got me killed. I was fast to accept what i had become. Sierra on the other hand, not so much...

I follow Stefan out the same doors we came in yesterday and into the yard. My eyes have trouble adjusting to the sun at first; I'm not used to being up and at it so soon after waking up. The sun is high in the sky, and i realise it must already be midday.

'This is the East courtyard. Most academic classes happen in that building...' he points to four grey bricked adjoined rooms across the yard. Each is fairly small, with a single door and a few windows. '...You know, history, English... that sort of thing.' He continues as we keep walking across the grounds. There are students everywhere; several are at their lockers which line the walls of the classrooms, sitting at lunch benches scattered around the yard. I notice a lot of them staring and whispering, so i pull my hair around the edges of my face.

'Hey dont worry about them...' Stefan says as he places a hand on my shoulder. '...They'll adjust to it soon enough.' I look up at his smiling face. God he's cute. I'm pulled from my daydream by Daniel running towards us.

'Hey! Eleanor!'

I smile at him. 'Hey. What's going on?'

'Sierra is out in the west courtyard playing basketball with some juniors. You gotta check this out...' he says, gesturing for us to follow him. I look at Stefan and he looks just as puzzled as i am. Sierra is not sporty at all. We follow Daniel under a bricked archway that connects the main building with another. Stefan tells me that its the mens' dorms. I try and draw a map in my head.

We reach the basketball courts in the West courtyard and sure enough, Sierra is running around dribbling the ball. I laugh in astonishment; i cant believe my eyes.

'Wow. Shes doing well...' Stefan says, watching her. I look at him, and see that his face has lit up. My heart sinks a little but i ignore that. I do not care... I here Sierra laugh as she darts around the men shes playing with and take a shot. She sinks it. She victoriously punches the air as the men applaud her. Daniel laughs lightly as he runs towards her.

'Eleanor!' she shouts as we walk to her. Shes puffing, her face damp from sweat.

'Since when can you do anything physical?' i ask, pointing at the ball in her hands

'I'm very good at a lot of physical activities...' she looks over at the men on the court, then wiggles her brows at me suggestively. I snort, and i hear Stefan chuckle from behind me. 'Are you coming with us?' i ask her.

'Nah...' she says breathlessly. '...I already know my way around. I've been up for hours. I'm gonna keep playing...' She quickly darts back onto the court and starts playing again.

'Anyway, we've still got more to see.' Stefan gets my attention again. He points to another large building. 'This one is the female dormitories. There's generally 2 people to a room, sometimes more.' I look up at it. I'm suddenly very thankful for the room i have. Being thankful isn't a feeling i have often. What is happening to me, i growing weak.

Stefan and i keep walking and head around behind the girls dorms. There is a huge green oval, with students sitting on the grass in little groups. To one side of the oval if a white wooden rotunda, with bushes lining the bottom and vines climbing up the columns. It's beautiful out here.

'This is out oval. Occasionally we have carnivals and football games out here, but generally its just a place people sit and relax.' He says. Without even thinking i walk straight over to the rotunda, ignoring the people staring at me. Stefan follows me up the stairs to it. I look up at roof from where I'm standing in the middle. There's something about it that I'm drawn to.

'its nice isn't it; Its one of only two things on within the grounds that receives regular upkeep.'

I look at him. 'What's the other one?'

'A fountain in a small courtyard between the dorms. Ill show you later' he smiles. God his smile is overwhelmingly attractive. I cant help but smile back. Stop it stop it stop... I break my gaze away to look around the oval.

'Where are the boys?' i ask, without looking back at him.

'Probably where they always are. Are you coming?'

I look behind me and see he's already started to walk away. I quickly catch up to him. We head back towards the courts towards the front fence of the school.

'Where are we going now?' i ask as we head into the tree line.

'There's an amphitheatre down here, its where we have gym classes. Theyll be down here.' He says. We follow the track through the trees when we come to some large stone steps. Stefan follows them down with ease, and i follow along behind him a little more carefully; id rather not break an ankle in these really nice stilettos. As we get closer to the bottom i hear voices. It must be the pack.

'Guys...' Stefan calls out as we make it to the bottom. The steps went on for a lot longer than i expected. I look around, there is terrace seating surrounding us, which is all surrounded by trees. Its set up like an outdoor theatre stage, without seats or tables. Sure enough, the pack is here. Marco and Louis sit in the middle of the terrace; roman is standing beside them looking at something over their shoulders. Daniel is here now, and he is sitting cross-legged on the stage area.

'Hey!' Marco calls out from his spot.

'Hi everyone' i say. Suddenly i hear rustling in the surrounding trees, and my eyes dart upwards. I see Damon perched in the branch of a large pine tree.

'I'm surprised she survived walking across the courtyard...' he says aggressively. Ignore his tone. He jumps from the branch and lands on the ground perfectly. He's done that before...

'Damon, cut it.' Stefan says sternly. Damon rolls his eyes at him.

'what are you all doing here?' i ask quickly, hoping to stop any chance of a fight beginning.

'This is our crib' Daniel says, trying to sound cool. He fails and everyone laughs; except Damon.

'We have this class next; but we generally hang out here anyway. Its quiet.' Stefan says.

'What do you even learn in "vampire gym class"' i say, mockingly.

Daniel stands up. 'its actually one of the most fun classes on offer. We have combat lessons, climbing, running, hunting, archery...'

I frown. 'Surely you guys already know how to do all that though...' i interrupt Daniel.

'Yeah we do. But the professor has different ways of doing things. Plus, other students have zero idea of what they're doing. We just attend because we can.' Daniel continues. I nod, i kind of understand this. When you know everything there is to know, re learning it a different way could be entertaining.

'Besides, even someone of your age wouldn't know everything there is to know...' Daniel says. I glare at him for indirectly calling me old. I grin at him.

'I mightn't know everything; but everything i do know and can do, i can do it better than everyone else.' I wink at Daniel, before quickly launching myself into the tree Damon just came down from. I'm sure i was fast, so fast that not even they could see what was happening. Daniels mouth hangs open.

'Kudos for doing that in heels' he says without blinking, and i laugh at his surprise.

'I dont know...' Marco says. 'I mean, Damon holds a lot of records in this class...' He says, looking at him. Damon doesn't react, standing still like before with his arms crossed. '...if Damon doesn't have the record, one of us will.' He adds quickly. Louis nods in agreement next to him. I look at Stefan.

'So why do only you guys have records then?' i ask him.

He grins. 'Because we're the best of the best. Thats why we're warriors.'

I frown. 'What?' i say, extremely confused.

'Its just a name...' Daniel begins to explain. '...We're more like a security team for the school. Or... like prefects or school captains.'

My eyes widen. I'm in with the school captains... the popular ones... it catches me off guard and a nearly slip from my branch.

'wait wait wait, so you guys, are like, in charge?' I'm shocked

'Aria doesn't have time to do everything. Everything that happens in the school comes through us first.' Daniel says proudly. I press my fingertips to my head trying to process this.

'well, actually, technically Damon decides...' Roman begins, but quickly stops when he is hastily elbowed in the knee by Louis.

I glare at Damon. 'Why are you in charge? Why cant the Headmistress do it herself? She is the principal...' Damon says nothing. He always looks angry, i cant tell if he's actually angry; or its just his face.

'She's got a baby to care for.' Stefan says lightly. I look at him in awe.

'She has what?'

'She's a mother.' He says again.

I tilt my head. 'Okay, I guess that makes sense, huge workload and all...' i say. I almost feel bad for waking her at midnight now. I walk over to the bottom steps of the terrace and sit down. I lean against my knees.

'So, what... she died during childbirth?' i ask, looking at everyone.

'Have you honestly never heard of Aria Lestiva before?' Damon says. He looks angry now. I shake my head.

'No, i haven't.'

Hes frustrated, he waves his hands at me. 'Do we actually have to spoon feed you information youre basically already supposed to know? Cmon!' he yells, thrusting his hand towards me. '...Youre practically as old as the bible, you should know who she is by now!'

His words cut deep. I try not to care, but i really do. I cant do anything but stare at him. I dont know why I'm hurting, i mean, I'm not really that old. I really am going weak. He runs his fingers through his tousled hair. 'Dea dammi la forza' he says before disappearing into the surrounding forest. Ive lived on every continent in my life, i know Italian; Goddess give me strength. I sit there in astonishment. Stefan sits down beside me. 'Ignore him. We wouldnt expect someone who does go to this school to know about her. But its a story for another day, class is about to start...' he goes to stand up but i grab his arm. 'No. Tell me now.' He looks at me for a moment before he sighs. 'Aria arrived here only a year ago. She was human. One of the previous students, who was also a warrior, had attacked her and the previous warriors brought her here.' He looks at me sadly. 'She lived here as a human for a few months with our previous headmistress. She was under the constant protection of the warriors, but none of them knew who had attacked her. Anyway, shit went down and there was a battle she got caught up in and she was turned to save her life. She fell in love with one of the warriors and they had a child.' I look at him. 'Thats not possible.' He nods 'so we thought. Turns out shes a distant decendant of our goddess Isabella; an original. As strange as this sounds, she has powers. A gift that allowed her to have her daughter.' I cant believe it. 'oh my god' i say breathlessly. Goddess? What nonsense. Religion amongst vampires doesn't exist. 'its weird huh?' Daniel says, noticing my bewilderment. 'absolutely' i say. I knew as a vampire i could never have a child; no matter how desperately i wanted one. I gave up a long time ago. Hearing this story has tugged on my heart strings. 'Have you seen her? The child?' i look at stefan who smiles. 'yes. Shes beautiful.' I have to see it for myself one day. It gives me so much hope. I smile to myself. Suddenly the amphitheatre begins to fill with students coming down the steps. i notice they all stare at me as they find a place to sit down. I look at Stefan, hoping he'll help me. 'Here...' he says as he stands and offers me his hand. I take it, and he leads me up the terrace to the very back step, stepping carefully on each ledge so i dont break a heel. The pack is already there and we sit next to them. I can hear the students talking about me, but i choose not to listen in closely. A girl sitting in front of me turns to look at me. She gawks at me for a long time, before i get annoyed and address her. 'Can i help you?' i ask her, getting annoyed. 'Youre Eleanor Deveroux.' She makes the statement. 'uh-huh...' i mumble. 'i cant believe youre...' 'A vampire? I know...' i cut her off. '... you'd think someone would've called it after 635 years; but i guess not. Oh well.' I shrug as i glare back her. She turns to the front really quick after that. The pack chuckles from beside me, and stefan smirks trying not to. An older man is standing on the stage area, waiting for everyone to be quiet. The noise goes down and he begins talking. 'thank you. Glad to see we've got almost a full class today...' he begins. 'Thats Professor Thatcher. Hes been here for years...' stefan whispers in my ear. It sends a shiver down my spine. God damn i need to stay away from him. 'alrighty, lets get to it...' the professor continues to address the class. He looks around, and when his eyes meet mine, i know things are about to get real. 'Ahh, one of the new students. Are you meant to be here, miss...?' he asks me, waiting for me to introduce myself. 'Eleanor Deveroux, sir.' I say, politely as i can. 'Miss Eleanor. Welcome. The headmistress has told me all about you. Pleasure to meet you in person.' He smiles. 'thanks.' 'She hasnt received her schedule yet, shes just sitting in for now.' Stefan says from beside me. 'Okay then. I hope you'll find this interesting, Miss Eleanor.' Professor thatcher says. Most of the students are looking at me by now. Oh im sure i wont... 'Today, were going to be playing cat and mouse...' He continues. You have to be kidding me, what are we, 5? 'I want everyone to pair up, please. Boys, were is Damon?' he asks as everyone begins to move and talk again. 'He took off a while ago.' Marco says above the noise. The professor must have heard him, he shakes his head. 'That man has the tendencies of a child' he says clearly annoyed. Stefan and i snort. Im not the only one who cant stand him... Stefan looks at me. 'You dont have to do this if you dont want to.' He says. 'What are we actually doing?' 'You partner up, and its basically like human cat and mouse. You both go into the arena and using vampy skills you try not to get caught.' I laugh. 'Vampy?' He gives me his lopsided smile. 'Yeah. Anyway, it sounds childish, but its quite fun.' Suddenly Damon appears from the trees behind the stage. 'Ah damon...' the professor says. 'im glad youre finally back. Class, shush.' He gets the class to quiten down. Damon still looks mad. 'i think its time for a challenge...' the professor says looking at damon. His frown deepens. '...For once, me might have someone that can beat the cat and mouse record...' oh no... My stomach drops. I know hes talking about me. 'Eleanor, you and Damon will go first.' 'What!' i say a little too loudly. Everyone looks at me. 'Professor, i think its probably best if she just watches...' Stefan says as he stands up. 'Nonsense...' The professor says, '...She is the perfect contender. She might teach Damon a thing or two...' 'Sir, for once, Stefan is right. I dont want to participate.' Damon says angrily, but politely. Thatcher looks mad now. 'I said, you and Eleanor will go first. Damon, you will be the cat. Go...' he points towards the trees. That must be where the arena is. Its probably fenced... 'Sir, I'm not wearing the right shoes...' I begin, trying to work my way out of this. Thatcher waves for me to come to the front, and i reluctantly oblige. When i reach the front he takes my hand. 'Eleanor. I know enough about you to know that you dont need shoes to go long distances.' He pats my hand before dropping it. He mustve heard how i arrived here. I groan inwardly. I look at Stefan whose sat back down again. He looks worried. Frankly, so am i... I look at Damon; his expression unchanged. 'Go!' the professor says. There's no way I'm getting out of this, so I'm going to have to take it on the chin. I slip off my shoes and leave them on the stage, before following Damon into the trees. We come to a small gate, which Damon opens. 'I know how much neither of us want to do this; so during your headstart, just find somewhere to stand and ill find you within a minute. Then itll be over and we can all go...' he says grumpily. He thinks i cant beat him... he is wrong. I decide in that moment, I'm going to give him a run for his money. Once we're in the arena, he closes the gate behind me. 'Eleanor, you get 10 seconds worth of a headstart, ready?' The voice of the professor comes from nowhere, and i jump. 'There are speakers and cameras in here.' Damon says, unimpressed. I take a few steps forward and ready myself. I nod, hoping the professor will see it. 'Go!' I'm gone. I run and full speed to wherever my legs will take me. I dart in and out of trees, my feet barely touching the ground. My hair flies behind me like a cape. My ears twitch, and i hear the sound of other footsteps behind me. They're a long way away, but i hear them. I keep sprinting forward, barely making a sound. Suddenly i see a fence in front of me and i throw on the brakes. 'shit' i say, looking around me for another way to go. The steps behind me quicken, and my heart begins to beat faster than it should. I launch myself into the air and into a tree, climbing it as quickly as i can. I climb high enough so i can still see the ground and then i stop. I stop breathing. Suddenly, Damon is beneath me. He spins, he can probably smell me but cant see me. I'm surprised he hasn't looked up... He darts of in another direction in an instant. I jump from one tree to another close by, then another. I launch myself from tree to tree, in the opposite direction to where Damon is running. The record is how long someone has stayed uncaptured in here, so i just have to hold it out and teach him a lesson. I keep jumping, landing as lightly as i can. I adjust my hearing; i cant hear him anymore. I jump back to the ground. I have no idea where i am, or how far away from the fence i am... but I'm kind of having fun. I start my sprint again along the dirt ground. I can run for hours on end and never get tired. I smile. I can totally do this... I gasp and slam on the brakes. He's in front of me; and he's seen me. I see him smile, his veins hardened beneath his eyes, the whites of his eyes pitch black. I turn on my heel and sprint off again, knowing that Damon is only a few meters behind me. There's no point climbing a tree if he knows; he's probably better at it than i am... I panic. I want to win! My brain ticks over, searching for a new plan; another way to stay "alive". I hear a loud deep growl from my left, and instinctively i look towards it, but i regret my decision instantly. Damon charges toward me from the side, i try to face him to take him on but I'm not fast enough. I didn't hear him coming because my brain was busy. He slams into me, sending me flying backwards several meters, i hit the ground hard. In a heartbeat, I'm pinned beneath him; his weight on my stomach and his hands holding my arms into the soil. I extend my fangs, snarling at him, as i buck beneath him, trying to throw him off so i can keep running. He snarls back at me, his face only inches from mine. I swear my heart stops beating. The look on his face; the pure vampiric look of hunger and need on his face knocks the wind out of me. I cant breathe, and i dont know if its because I'm scared... Or because i want him... He lunges toward me, to fast for me to see. He sinks his fangs into my neck. I cry out; not in pain, but in surprise. I struggle beneath him. He cant do this without asking what the fuck is going on... He draws more and more blood into his mouth, and i feel it begin to spill down my neck and onto my shirt and hair. I squirm. He bites down harder. 'Damon!' I yell, trying to break free of his grip. He responds with a moan against my neck, swallowing more and more of my blood. It doesn't hurt; and yet am not repulsed. Blood sharing is generally a special thing between lovers; a greater, truer connection than sex. I haven't experienced it in a long time. It feels... Good. But it shouldn't. Its Damon. Arrogant, rude, aggressive Damon. I try to push him away, but i dont know if thats really what i want. 'Damon... Stop...' I say, growing weaker from the lack of blood in my system. He is in a sort of frenzy. He doesn't stop. I lay beneath him helpless, for what seems like hours. Drifting in and out of consciousness, i hear a growl from somewhere in the distance. Suddenly, Damon is torn off me and tackled to the ground. I hear skin connecting with skin, but I'm too weak to get up.