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The Last Year: An Original Story

"The Beginning of the End"

Lyn sat up and gasped desperately. Where was she? All she could see around her was a room with its walls splattered in paints of all colors. "Hello?" Lyn whispered, trying to catch her breath.

"Hey, there," responded a familiar voice. Lyn's head snapped to the source of the sound. Standing only a few feet away behind her was a girl who looked just like her. "Y-you…"

"Yeah, me. Long time no see," the girl smirked. Lyn was confused, for she had not passed out so deeply in ages to see the physical embodiment of her memories in her mind. Lyn, who was merely a physical representation of her true self, started walking around the borders of the room and began examining the walls. "Looks like you're in more of a mess than the last time we met, Evelyn. And surprisingly, I'm still here," the memory told Lyn. Lyn stood up as she thought to herself.

"Vervain!" The memory and Lyn cried out together. "Yes, vervain is what allowed us to meet again," the memory spoke up. Lyn was yet still bedazzled, "How? Vervain hasn't existed in centuries!"

"I guess the denizens of Mystic Falls should have been watched over more carefully. Particularly the Lockwoods, don't you think?" The memory retorted. Lyn's eyes got wide, "Lockwood! I was in Mystic Falls…and there was a sound."

"Yes, you and Dean were captured. You were knocked out by vervain, which is why we don't have much time to discuss about your memories. Look at the paint on these walls, Evelyn. The vervain allowed me to get through once more. Me being here is proof that you can get those memories back, but the only way to do that is by connecting with your power again." The memory explained. As soon as she heard the word 'power', Lyn shouted, "NO! Then he'll find me – you know this."

"Hey, I'm just telling it like it is. You have to face the inevitable, dear. Your power is the reason why we're in this mess in the first place, or have you really forgotten? The job, the manor, the ball….the kiss?" the memory asked. Suddenly a muffling sound could be heard. The two girls looked to a corner of the room. "Huh. I guess we had less time than I estimated. Just remember the original mission: find the doppelganger and all this can end," the memory firmly told Lyn. "What? Doppelgangers? You know I was never able to find one," Lyn responded in confusion. The memory smiled deviously as all faded to white.

o.o.o

Lyn awoke again, but for real this time. Things were still muddled and hazy. Doppelgangers, Founder's Day, loud noise, Dean.

Lyn was lying on her side. She could see other bodies on the floor around her, but she was still weak to not be able to get up.

"…Let's finish this." Those were the words Lyn heard coming from behind her. Soon, a sound of sloshing and liquid pouring was heard. Lyn scanned around the room to try to find Dean.

"…I'll take it from here," the same voice spoke to someone else. Footsteps were heard going up the stairs. "Please…" a female voice whispered. Lyn turned her head to find the source. "No…" a dark-haired girl quietly cried as the man staked her in the heart. The man, Lyn recognized, was John Gilbert, Elena and Jeremy's uncle. Lyn had only met the man once in the previous week.

"No!" Lyn cried out. Her voice was returning to her rapidly, but her body movement was not. Unfortunately, John had heard the cry and immediately met his gaze with Lyn's. "You…" John muttered as he took out the stake from Anna's chest and began to make his way to Lyn. Suddenly John tripped and fell down. John fiercely turned around to see a man holding onto his leg. "You stay the hell away from her." the man told John. Lyn recognized the voice as Dean's. "Dean, no!" Lyn felt the tears falling down her cheek. She could see John turning around to make a move on Dean. Lyn began to pull herself towards Dean. Her arms were gaining strength again, but not yet her legs. She reached out in the direction of John. "S-sta…stake," Lyn tried to call out.

It was too late. John had turned over and staked a weakened Dean. "NO!" Lyn screamed. Lyn managed to make it a few inches closer to John, but it was already too late. John gave Lyn a dirty look. "You vampires stay away from my family," John told her before grabbing a gas canister. He began to toss the rest of the gasoline in the canister on Dean's body and made his way up the stairs. John lit the fire at the top and left.

Most of the bodies had begun to burn. Lyn was in emotional turmoil, but was trying to take control of the situation. "F-fire…f-fire!" she shouted, but nothing came from her efforts. Suddenly, she heard another voice.

"Mayor, is that you?" a man's voice asked. Lyn could see behind her was Stefan's brother, Damon, and the mayor. It seemed that both had just regained consciousness. "What are you doing here?!" the mayor asked Damon. "I-I'm a vampire. What's your excuse?" Damon stammered. "The vervain didn't affect you. You're not a vampire. What the hell are you?" Damon kept on talking while the mayor tried to get farther away from him. Unfortunately for the mayor, he backed up into the vampire bent on killing the founding family. "Stop!" Lyn shouted.

"Mayor Lockwood," the vampire said through his teeth as he took a hold of the mayor. The mayor struggled against the vampire's grip. "RICHARD!" Lyn cried out. The vampire snapped the mayor's neck. That did it for her. Lyn managed to sit up. She concentrated her mind on the stake in Dean's chest. Before Damon could blink, the vampire near him was plunged in the heart by the same stake that killed Anna.

Lyn opened her eyes and the tears streamed down her face. She had already lost two loved ones. "I thought you were a vampire," was all Damon could say. "I'm both," Lyn whispered. "Well, that means you have powers. Let's both get out of here before we end up as kebabs," Damon muttered. Lyn was able to stand up, even if weakly. She dragged Damon towards the edge of the fire closest to the stairs. "Fire," Lyn whispered, concentrating one hand on the fire before them. The fire grew weak, but not enough so that they could cross to the other side.

Nothing was working, and it seemed as though all hope was lost. Suddenly, a voice shouted from above, "Damon!" Coming down the stairs was the figure of Stefan, Damon's younger brother. At first gaze, Stefan was surprised to see both Damon and Lyn in the basement. "Take your brother, now," Lyn managed to speak. Stefan was hesitant for a second. "I can walk. I'll be just behind you," Lyn added. Stefan nodded and put one of Damon's arm around his neck and raced up the stairs. Lyn followed suit.

"Bonnie, what is it? Are they going to be okay?" Lyn heard Elena's voice as she made it out the door. Damon started coughing, causing Elena to notice their presence. Lyn was still near the door, trying to make sense of what had happened moments before.

"Oh, my god," Elena was heard saying. Lyn looked up to meet the gaze of the niece of her best friend. There Elena was, along with another girl. All four people were staring at Lyn. "I-I think we should head to The Grill first, then get everything sorted out," Elena suggested. Lyn nodded without giving word.

o.o.o

Lyn sat in the booth by herself, sipping on her chamomile tea. "All this time, I had no idea," Elena stated in shock. Lyn couldn't help but to eavesdrop on the conversation the others were having regarding the newly required information of her identity. It turned out that Elena's boyfriend and his brother were vampires, and Elena knew that they were. Did Jenna know as well? In truth, Lyn didn't care that one of her secrets was found out; she couldn't regain her true memories, couldn't save Dean and the mayor…nothing else mattered anymore. Why did she agree to have a chat after all that had happened? Lyn finished her tea and made her way to the door.

"Wait, Lyn! Where are you going? We still need to talk," Elena called out. Lyn turned around to face the teenager. "Look, I get that you want chat, Elena. But too much has happened tonight for me to be able to sit still have a 20-questions session. Call me in a few days. We can talk then. I promise. And please don't tell Jenna about me," Lyn told Elena before walking out. She didn't even have the thought to drive the car back home. Tonight she would use her vampire-speed to get home.

o.o.o

9 a.m.

Knock knock. Bzzzz. Knock knock.

"Lyn, are you home?" Elena's voice could be heard yelling from the front door. "Your car is still in the same spot back in Mystic Falls, so I figured you used your speed to get back home," Elena spoke through the door. She sighed, "Look, it's been two days and I wanted to see if you were doing okay. Also, I came to ask you a few questions. Lyn, please," Elena begged. It only took moments for Lyn to get up from bed and change before opening the door rapidly.

"Oh, thank god," Elena whispered before hugging Lyn. It was strange because it was the first time Elena hugged Lyn since Lyn was more close to Jenna, rather than the niece. After a few seconds Elena let go of Lyn. All Lyn could do was motion her head for Elena to come inside.

"How are you?" Elena began to ask. "I'm dealing with it, Elena. It's been over a century since I lost someone close to me," Lyn answered as she sat down on her couch. Elena followed suit. "I'm sorry to barge into your home to bombard you with questions suddenly, but a lot has happened in the last two days. Bonnie, my friend, is a witch…she needs another witch to talk to, to relate to," Elena explained. Lyn nodded before speaking up, "How was the funeral? Did a lot of people come?" Elena was surprised. "You mean for Mayor Lockwood? Practically the whole town came to pay him their respects," she answered. Lyn's eyes met with Elena's. "And his son, Tyler, was it? Was he doing okay?" Lyn continued to ask. Elena nodded, "Yeah, I think so. Honestly, I don't talk to Tyler a lot. But I did notice that his uncle showed up." Lyn was surprised to hear that the mayor had a brother, but did not say any more regarding the subject. "What were your questions, Elena," Lyn whispered.

"What other creatures do you know besides witches and vampires?"

Lyn stared at Elena for a while. "You mean, like, the lycanthrope?" Lyn asked. Elena looked confused. "They're an older term for werewolves," Lyn explained. "So, other mythical creatures exist…right?" Elena asked to make sure. Lyn nodded, "Yeah, so many more than you can imagine, but I think it's best to keep those untold for now." Elena wasn't sure why Lyn hesitant to share, but she would take what she got. "Then, have you seen any werewolves before?" Elena wanted to know.

"More than I can remember, but that was long time ago. They're hard to meet nowadays. Rumors had it that a werewolf bite would kill a vampire, but none of my werewolf friends ever bit me, so I couldn't say," Lyn answered simply, "Now, tell me more about your friend Bonnie – she's a witch, right?" Elena nodded, "She's been having issues using her magic." Lyn frowned, "What about her family? No one's there to help her through the transition period?" Elena took a deep breath. "Bonnie's mom left when we were young. Bonnie's grandmother was the only person who could help her with the magic stuff, whereas her dad has no clue. Few weeks ago, Bonnie's grandmother passed away and now Bonnie has nobody again," Elena explained briefly. Lyn looked at the floor for a minute, as if to think. "I think it's time for you to go," Lyn told her. Elena sighed and got up from the couch. She was at the door when Lyn called out, "Thank you for not telling Jenna about me." Elena met Lyn's eyes and nodded. "And tell Bonnie to visit me tomorrow," Lyn added, to which Elena gave a small smile before walking out the door.