Kol fixes his gaze on the girl's eyes. "Forget you ever saw me. You were bitten by a dog." He admires the gaping wound he's left in her flesh for a moment longer, then releases her and she wanders off. Kol's a little rusty at compulsion, he doesn't have to use it that often; dead people can't talk. That, and he's unbelievably handsome and charming.

It's a filthy habit to feed and not kill but unfortunately, for the time being it's necessary. If he wants to stick around Mystic Falls for a while, it won't do to go racking up a body count. This is a compromise he can live with because he won't, repeat won't, take blood from a plastic bag. It's a terribly vulgar thing to do and he won't lower himself to it. It'd be like eating cold, congealed soup that's been left out for days and smells kind of off, when everyone knows you're supposed to eat it when it's hot and fresh. Oh well, at least he can take some comfort in the fact that he inflicted some pain on his latest meal and that she'll have an ugly, big scar in the bend of her arm for the rest of her life.

xxx

Should he tell Elijah and Rebekah about Nick? Elijah? Yes. But Rebekah? Maybe not. Not yet anyway. She's taken a liking to Tyler's friend Matt and he can't trust her. Kol hasn't forgotten the number one rule.

"Elijah?"

"Yes Kol?"

"It's Nick. He's alive, I've seen him."

"I know."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Elijah gives Kol an isn't-it-obvious look. Apparently Elijah hasn't forgotten the number one rule either.

AN: I'm sorry this chapter is so short. I struggled with it and the next one but I have written 8 or 10 of the later ones, which I really like. Please bear with me and hopefully you will find them worth the wait. Also I just want to warn everyone that later on there will be strong violence and character death (not Jeremy or Kol). Thanks for reading.