A/N: Thanks to abby102030405060708090, sweetsweetsacrifice, Darksoul, DarkAngel1864 and Dean Winchesters Baby Girl for reviewing, and thanks to the people who put this story in their faourites, alerts!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. If I did, I'd be writing new scripts, not fan-fiction about it.

Brooke's pov:

It was... Strange, to say the least.

I rested my head on the palm of my right hand as I thought back to last night's dream, completely confused as to why I had those thoughts swirling around in my head as I slept.

I was stood in a building that seemed to resemble my first home. We'd moved out of there quickly after my mother died; my father was too pained, distraught and haunted by the memories of her. I on the other hand always thought differently. That house felt like a part of her, like her presence still lingered in the air, comforting me during such a tragic time.

But I wasn't confused as to why I was stood inside this house. I was confused as to why I was stood there, chatting and laughing away with the other person in the room.

My father.

We never, got along after my mother passed away. I can't remember one day after her death where the two of us went out and did something together, or had a light hearted conversation. Those kind of bonding moments between father and daughter never existed in my world.

But they did last night.

I can't even recall what we'd been talking about. All I remember was that Johnathon Gilbert was smiling, and it was directed towards me. There used to be a time where I'd have killed to be on the recieving end of one of his smiles. When I was little, he used to have a special one reserved only for me, and it made me feel like the luckiest girl in the world. Most of my friends had absent parents, and the ones who were lucky enough to have both parents together argued all of the time. My family used to be perfect, until the accident that changed three lives forever.

I tore myself away from that thought. No use in living in the past, you might just miss the present.

Shaking my head I went back to what I was originally thinking about. Me, and dad, getting along? That sounds too good to be true.

At least I dreamt about someone other than him. For the past week and a half, he's been consuming all of my thoughts during the day and all of my nightmares during the night. They're terrifying. Sometimes, they weren't even about me. They were about Elena, Jenna, Jeremy... The people I care about... Being drained. By him. It's hard enough being scared for my own life, but my family's? It tears me into two. Unfortunately, that's not the worst part.

Sometimes, before he... bites me, we get a little... physical. It'll start out great. It's beautiful, amazing and oh so pleasurable. But eventually, things always take a turn for the worst. His teeth protrude, his eyes turn darker than the midnight sky, and he turns into a monster. A monster with only one thing on it's mind: Blood.

Maybe that's why my father was in my head last night. What if that's a sign? Like a cry for help. He was right, all along, yet I'd called him a liar and bolted out of the door the second I had the chance.

I slipped my hand into my jean pocket and retrieved my cell phone, scrolling down the list until I found 'Abomination' not too far from away the top of my contacts. Should I call him? There's so many things I want to say to him, so many things I need to apologize for. One finger hovered over the green light, and another over the red. He can help. He knows what to do in this situation, he'd know how to handle this. But... What if he can't forgive me? What if he never wants to speak with me ever again?

"Brooke! Are you slacking on the job? And is that a phone in your hands?" I gasped and jumped back, startled by the interruption to my internal dillema. I looked up through my eyelashes to see Keith stood beside me with his arms crossed and a look of fury written all over his face. I regretfully pressed decline, before tucking my cell phone back into my pocket. Looks like I'll never find out. I looked at Keith sheepishly.

"I'm sor-"

"Don't start with your apologies, I don't have time to waste speaking to you. Don't take a break today, in fact, don't take one for the entire week." My jaw hit the floor as I began to object.

"But Keith-"

"Actually, it's Sir to you Brooklyn. Do you want this job or not? Any more complaining or idleness from you, and I'll cut your salary." He exited the grill before I could so much as mutter jerk, and I was left behind the bar feeling astounded. How can he do that? Ugh! He's the worst employer I've ever had.

"Why such the long face? Don't tell me, it's because I'm here, isn't it?" My eyes widened and I took a step back from the bar. Well, at first it wasn't, but now is an entirely different question.

Damon's pov:

"We never, should have trusted that Logan." Richard Lockwood hissed at his wife, whilst I sat across the other side of the grill, listening intently. They know how to cover up. There was nothing, absolutely nothing about that Logan dick I drained last night. Not in the slightest.

"Especially with the watch." I smirked slightly. Finally, now we're getting somewhere. The old Gilbert pocket watch. There didn't seem to be anything special about it, it just looked like some old, outdated peice of crap that could probably make a fortune on Antiques Roadshow. And I'll admit, I have thought about flogging it to make some quick money, but I can just compel people to give me what I want, everything is free to vampires. The beauty of mind contol.

No, I have better reasons than that. That pocket watch was made by Johnathon Gilbert, back in the day when I was... human. I shuddered at the thought. It was the device they used to locate the vampires in eighteen sixty-four, and by the looks of it, the present founders council are up for round two. There's no way they're getting it back. Over my undead body. They want it bad, which means that I want it even badder. As if I'd be stupid enough to give them a device that could potentially lead to my death. I'm not Stefan.

"How many are we dealing with?" His wife asked impatiently. You only need to brush by those two in the street to see how troubled their marriage is. You know how they say you can cut the tension with a knife? Well, this is one of those times.

"The coroner thinks one. Something about the wound radius and the jaw pattern-"

"Are we in danger? I mean, if it found the watch then it knows we know. Could it come after us?" Already thinking about it sweetheart. "And should I even be saying it? Or is it a he, or a she-"

"If it has any historical knowledge of the town, then it'll know where the watch came from. So yes, we could very much be in danger." I held back a laugh. Of course I know about this town's history, I've been alive for a century and a half. I'm glad they're afraid. They should all be afraid. Because I will slaughter every single person in this town without a second thought. Anything to get Katherine back.

"So, what do we do?" I took a few moments to examine her. Not exactly my type, I don't go for... Old. I like fresh, young meat. Preferbly with chocolate tainted hair, creamy skin, emerald green eyes... Wait. Katherine doesn't have green eyes or milky skin. Who the hell am I thinking of? I snapped myself out of my thoughts, re-attaching my attention to Carol Lockwood.

If I want to find out more, I'm going to have to target her. She's all over the place at the minute and she's totally losing it. She'll spill easily. Like taking candy from a baby. And if that fails, there's always compulsion.

"Just keep it quiet. We can't have the entire town finding out about this, we have to find it, and fast. Otherwise, it'll find us." It's a bit too late for that. I tuned out of their conversation after that. Looks like Carol and I will be having a good chat later, I thought slyly.

"Brooke! Are you slacking on the job? And is that a phone in your hands?" Some moody brat interrupted my train of thought, causing my head to swing in the direction of the bar where the abrupt squawk had came from. My my, is that Brooklyn Gilbert being given a good telling off? An amused smirk spread across my face. I haven't seen her in about a week. She's been avoiding me like the plague.

I can't say I'm surprised. After all, I did scare the living daylight out of her. If you can't stand the heat then get out of the kitchen. I stared at her for a few moments, unable to tear my eyes away from her. There was something about the way she looked when she was angry. I couldn't deny that it was hot. Such a turn on. The way she'd gnaw on her bottom lip, tugg on the roots of her mahogany locks, huff and puff in aggravation... It just made me want to slam her up against the bar and take her right here, even in front of Mystic Fall's locals.

Unfortunately, I doubt they'd be too impressed by the show, and I don't think Brooke would exactly be up for it either. Oh well, a man can dream right?

I chuckled before slipping out of the booth, walking straight up to the bar. Brooke seemed to be unaware of my presence, but that wasn't going to last for much longer.

"Why such the long face? Don't tell me, it's because I'm here, isn't it?" I watched as she hastily stepped back, trying to get as far away from me as possible. Her eyes turned cold but there was a slight tint of fear lying within them as she glared at me.

"It is now." She moved to walk away but I grabbed her hand, holding her in place. She clenched her jaw and immediately tried to pull out of my grip, but she stopped the second she realised it was pointless struggling to get free from my grasp.

"Let. Go. Of. Me. Now." She spat venomously as she started digging her nails into my flesh. I swept my tongue along my bottom lip and laughed at her pathetic attempt. That doesn't hurt me in the slightest.

My thumb moved in a circular motion against her knuckles, and I momentarily felt her tense muscles relax. Something flowed between us, something indescribable. The only words I could link the feeling with were electricity and warmth... An emotion it seemed only she could evoke. I don't understand why this happens whenever we touch. Sometimes I feel it when we're not even physically connected, just in her presence.

The charge only lasted for a brief few seconds before she managed to yank her hand out of mine, glaring hotly into my blue orbs.

"Leave me alone."

"Hey, all I wanted was to order something. I think someone needs to take a chill pill." She rolled her eyes before flashing me the fakest smile she could muster.

"Of course. What would you like to order, you jackass?" My lips curved upwards into a grin at her snappy tone. Geeze, someone's PMSing...

"An espresso, please." The last word rolled of my tongue bitterly, causing her eyes to narrow before she went to follow through with my order.

"Oh, and hold off on the spit please! I'd rather not have saliva swirling around in my beverage thank you." I heard a pause in her movements before they restarting again, and she appeared in front of me holding my drink in her hand.

"Here's your espresso, that'll be-"

"Excuse me, I didn't order this." She placed a hand on her hip as she swallowed deeply, taking a deep breath before re-opening her mouth.

"What?" Her icey tone rang throughout the air. Time to piss her off just a little more.

"I ordered a latte. Latte, not an espresso!" I stressed the words as my voice took on a mocking tone, patronising, almost as if I was talking to a child.

"Actually, you ordered an espresso-" I waved my finger in front of her face and tutted, ignoring the hard glare she threw my way.

"I don't think that employees are allowed to speak to customers in such a harsh fashion. You've already called me names, and now you're implying that I'm a liar? The customer's always right Brooklyn, you should know that. I'd like an apology please, unless you'd rather I filed a complaint against you? But, oh no, you wouldn't want that, not when your boss is already annoyed with your behaviour. You never know, any more slip ups and he might... Fire you." Her mouth opened wide enough to catch flies; she narrowed her eyes at me.

"Listen Salvatore, leave me the fuck alone. There is no way in hell that I'd ever apologize to you. I'd rather die." She spoke quietly, so that no-one around her other than me could hear. Her vicious tone didn't do anything to frighten me. I'm Damon Salvatore, the man without feelings. You have to try a little harder than that to spook me honey.

"Well, that can be arranged." I spoke lowly, leaning in close so there was hardly any space left between us. Our expressions had the same emotion plastered over them: Fury. Hate. And finally, I grinned as I noticed a slight pinch of lust. I knew she wanted me.

"So. About that apology then?" My breath fanned over her face as I whispered the words, but she didn't respond. I could hear her pulse rate rising and her blood rushing to her cheeks, creating a faint blush. She looked as if she was having some internal argument with herself. Over what, I can't be bothered to find out. I leaned away, watching as she blinked hastily with a satisfied smirk resting on the edge of my lips. She so wants me.

"No? At least give me my correct order - I mean after all - it's the least you can do." She glared at me once again, something I find her doing a lot in my presence. She span around and within a minute or so she was back with a latte resting in her hands. She opened her mouth to say something but I held up my hand, stopping her before she could let the words fall out of her mouth.

"You know what, forget it, the service is terrible here." I didn't stop to see her reaction, speeding out of the door at human speed. Honestly, I would have loved to have heard what she had to say - because I'm sure there's a truckload of things she wants to tell me - but I have bigger fish to fry right now. Newbie vampire must be going off the rails. I bet Stefan's having a ball of fun with that.

Brooke's pov:

That infuriating, diabolical, revolting, arrogant, pompous-

"Earth to Brooke! What's wrong? You look a little... Agitated." Elena intruded on my internal rant by snapping her fingers in front of my face as her facial features sported a concerned expression.

"A little is an understatement." I muttered in a tired, worn down voice. It's settled, I've found someone I hate more that my father. I never thought I'd see the day. How could he do that to me? Why am I asking? This is Damon Salvatore, the reason he exists is to piss people off.

"What's wrong Brooke? You can tell me?" She stared into my eyes reassuringly, but I could see a twinge of something else. Dread. Like she was desperately hoping that it wasn't anything serious. My stomach twisted in every direction; I hate lying to Elena. But... She's already worried enough. She just found out that her boyfriend, no ex-boyfriend is a vampire. I can't dump all of my problems on her - It's not fair. I'm the older one, I'm meant to be the more mature one. I need to deal with this by myself. I can't be looking to her for comfort. If I cry on her shoulder, she won't on mine. She'll think that I can't handle this, and I can. Not well, but I can do it for her.

Besides, I shouldn't be letting Damon Salvatore - of all people - get to me. He doesn't get to mess with my mind or push me around. I shouldn't be afraid to step outside of my house because I have no idea if he's waiting for me, lurking in the shadows. Ready to pounce like a predator, and sink his teeth into the sensitive skin of my neck.

And I certainly shouldn't be having these moments where I feel... Attracted to him. No. They have to stop immediately.

"Just some whacko customer, it's nothing." I said. Elena sent me a look that screamed 'Sure, that's all it is'. Lena always calls me out on my bullshit. I've never managed to perfect lying, I think that the other week with Jeremy proves as much. Thankfully, I managed to distract Elena by pointing to the free space next to me on my bed when my straighteners bleeped, signalling that they were ready. I'm helping Elena get ready for the halloween party at school.

Halloween. What a perfect time to become aware of the existance of vampires.

"Are you okay? You seem a bit... Jumpy." I asked as I separated her hair into two sections, sighing in relief as I the spotlight was diverted away from me. Her posture became frozen and stiff whilst her breath caught in her throat. I dropped the straighteners to the side and moved my hands to rub her shoulders soothingly.

"Elena, tell me." I whispered gently.

"I went to see Stefan earlier," I nodded and motioned for her to carry on, though in my mind I thought back to mine and Damon's encounter earlier. Why couldn't I have bumped into the other Salvatore? Sure, he's not exactly in my good books, but at least he doesn't piss me off.

"I was only going to see how Vickiwas doing and to ask Stefan about how long it was going to be until she could return back home again. Jeremy missed school today because he wanted to go find her, but I can't let that carry on, his grades are bad enough already." Noticing her muscles beginning to relax, I picked my straighteners back up and began working on her hair.

"So I was there with Stefan and Vicki, and we were sitting at a table talking about her... Thirst. She was... hungry again, so Stefan went out to get her some animal blood to drink. Suddenly, she's texting Jeremy and I told her that it had to stop. I don't want her hurting him, and she's not in control of her instincts yet. She's not ready to see him, or anyone for that matter. All she talks about is blood, and how much she wants it. Then she..." Elena trailed off.

"Then she what?" I asked in a hard voice.

"Threatened me. She said that she was going to see Jeremy whenever she wants, and if I say otherwise she'll... Rip my head off." I paused briefly, before I realised that I was about to burn Elena's hair and began moving again, clearing my throat. That little bitch. Yeah, I get that she has problems, it'd be weird if she wasn't flying off the handle right now after what she's going through. But you do not threaten anyone I care about and get away with it, and I agree with Elena, I don't want her near Jeremy either.

"Elena, don't listen to her. I'm sure Stefan wouldn't give her the chance, and besides, she'd have to get through me first." I said teasingly in an effort to lighten the mood, backcombing the roots of Elena's hair to give her some volume. I wafted a bit of hairspray and I was finished. I uncrossed my legs and set my feet on the ground, heading towards my bathroom until I was stopped mid stride when a hand latched onto mine. I rotated slowly, my eyes softening as I stared into Elena's russet tainted orbs that glistened with unshed tears.

"I don't want her to go through you. And I definitely don't want you throwing yourself into protection mode when danger strikes. You're like the big sister I never had and... I don't want to lose you." I reclaimed my former seat, brushing away the tears that slid down her cheeks as I smiled at her.

"You're not going to lose me, I promise. I know we haven't exactly... Talked much, about this... Vampire thing." I murmered, and she nodded in confirmation.

"But, whenever you want to talk about it, my room's only down the hall. I don't care if it's three in the morning, just hollar. I won't even get mad if you have to chuck a bucket of water over my head because I won't wake up." She cracked a smile before her expression became serious once again.

"That counts for you too. I know you're feeling the same as me right now, but just because you're the 'older' one you think that it's your responsibilty to be the strong one." My composure temporarily slipped, and I felt a warm moisture developing in the rims of my eyes. Damn Elena for being so observant. She smiled at me encouragingly.

"It's okay to cry about it. Trust me, it's all I seem to do at the moment." I nodded and took a deep breath as the droplets of water finally fell over the edge, cascading down my cheeks like a waterfall. I rested my head on her shoulder and sighed as she stroked my hair, giving myself a moment to just let go and pretend that everything is normal. That this is all just some terrible nightmare.

But as always, reality comes crashing down on you. I pulled back, and mine and Elena's positions switched back into place. Why pretend that this is all fake? I only get disappointed when I remember that it's real. It's not imaginary, and it's not a nightmare I'm waiting to wake up from. This is as real as it gets.

"I'll tell you something Lena, it's a good job neither of us are wearing any make-up right now." I joked as I hastily wiped my tears away, relishing in the sound of Elena's giggle. I jumped up from my bed, darting into the bathroom and back into my bedroom with my make-up bag in hand.

"C'mon, we still need to finish getting you ready, and I have to at least look presentable. I've got another shift at the grill."

"But you've already been to work today." She commented confused.

"Yeah, well lets just say that my boss is an A class jerk. He rang me earlier telling me that I had to do tonight's shift, otherwise I can say goodbye to my job." I replied in a voice that almost sounded emotionless, but there was a twinge of annoyance laced into it. I quickly did Elena's foundation, moved on to applying subtle eyeshadow and then smeared on some bright, bold red lipstick.

"What? Why would he do that?" Elena exclaimed.

"It's a long story, one probably best not to get into." I informed her, rolling my eyes as Keith's orders played on a loop in my head. 'To make up for sleeping on the job, you're going to work tonights shift, no exceptions. And before you say anything else, just know that if you don't do this, you can consider yourself jobless.' He's going to hold this over my head forever, isn't he? I only had my phone out! It was almost time for my break, and It's not like there were any customers waiting to be served! Well, until he came along. He better not have reported me that foolish, childish, heinous, deranged, physcotic-

"Brooke! You're zoning out again. Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" I bit the inside of my cheek.

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"So, how do I look?" Elena asked when she waltzed into the kitchen, doing a twirl as she did so. I gave a whistle of approval whilst perching myself on the counter.

"Amazing Lena! As always." We smiled at each other and Elena opened her mouth to say something, but closed it the second Jeremy walked into the room holding a phone close to his ear.

"You've got to call me Vick, I don't get it what's going on with you? Just... Just call me, please!" Jeremy spoke in a desperate tone of voice, putting me on edge. Elena said he was missing school to go and search for her, he must really be going out of his mind. But he can't keep doing this, not when she could potentially hurt him, or even worse - kill him. I won't allow it. The problem with Jeremy is that he doesn't like to be ordered around and told what to do. He's so stubborn. A trait both him and I seem to share.

"Hey, so do you want to hang out tonight? I'm going to the halloween dance, you can come with me. C'mon, it could be fun."

"Yeah that sounds like a good idea Elena. I would have offered to do something Jere but I'm working tonight..." I said as I realised what Elena was doing. Subtlety is the best way to go about this thing, otherwise he'll just get annoyed with us.

"Cool. Sounds fun, can't wait." He said as he poured himself a glass of water, trying to escape the room as quickly as he could.

"Look Jere, I know you're upset about Vicki..." Elena started, ignoring the glare I sent in her direction. Elena, this is only going to tick him off! I cringed a little as he stopped dead in his movements, praying to God that he wasn't going to blow up at us. I've only just got back on good terms with him, I don't want anything to ruin that.

"I heard that she called Matt, but you can't be with her she needs to get better, the best thing you can do for her is let her go." His jaw tightened as he turned around, and I noticed that there was this weird glint in his eyes... Defiance. Oh boy... This isn't going to end well.

"What is that supposed to mean, let her go? Okay yeah, since us three are all such experts on letting people go right?" My stare switched from one cousin to the other, and I hopped off the counter top, laughing nervously at the two. I don't want it to look like I'm choosing sides, and I know that Jeremy's going to take this the wrong way but... He can't find out about what's really going on around here. It would break him.

"What I think Elena is trying to say is that, we all like our alone time, and that maybe it would be easier for Vicki to recover if she was... On her own." I said softly and moved to stand in front of him, hoping to convey something within him that would make him understand. This really is for the best. He may not see it right now, he might never see it. But we're looking out for him.

"Why? Because that's how you deal with things? Alone. Well you know what Brooke, that's your way of coping. You two know that after mom and dad died I felt like crap, like nothing really even mattered crap. But then I'd begin to have these moments where everything began to feel okay, good even. And Vicki was in every single one of them. I don't care what either of you two think, because keeping me away from her isn't for the best." I turned to Elena when he left the room.

"Now I feel like a major bitch."

A/N: Okay guys, I know there wasn't much action going on in this chapter, but there was some Damon and Brooke, and we also got a glimpse into how her and Elena are coping with the new knowledge of vampires.

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