AN: Thank you so much to all of you fab readers and for everyone who has followed/ favourited and reviewed. Hope you all had a very happy Christmas and a great new year! So sorry it's been a long wait, a stressful few weeks would be an understatement…
To guest no 1: Thank you so much, I'm always try to update as fast as I can, basically because I have so many ideas about this story!
To Misskymm: Yeah I really don't like Katherine haha do you think it showed? I've kind of portrayed Stefan as already being totally in love with Katherine and maybe a little bit compelled? The scene in which they first met kind of looked to me that they definitely seemed attracted to each other straight away. No no it's all happening continually, like in a linear timeline unless otherwise stated like the flashbacks (Which are in italics)…I'm really sorry if I confused you though. I decided to write it in the third person so I could give different point of views and give the story a few more elements. Hmm I do have a plan for Kara and whether she will be turned or not….:) Thank you so much, and thank you for your continual support and reviews. I really do appreciate them.
To Soph: Thank you so much, I'm so glad you like it! Yes it will be very interesting when they meet! :]
To guest no. 2: Thank you so much! I really love it when people like to read this story as much as I enjoy writing it! Thank you so much for reviewing, I really love hearing all feedback and to know people are interested in the story.
To guest no. 3: Sorry for keeping you waiting for so long!
It was very early when Kara awoke the next morning. The sky was still a darkened blue and only a faint hue illuminated the things in her room. The curtains were opened and the window slightly ajar leaving a refreshing morning breeze into the room. She always slept with the window slightly opened. Her father would kill her if he knew but she could not abide stuffiness in the air, especially when she was trying to sleep. She pulled her bed cover further over her body as if to relieve the small goose-bumps that had appeared there. She was about to roll over and try and get a few more hours sleep when a shrill laugh echoed through the window from the courtyard below. It was female, that was as much as she had determined but as she tried to place the voice onto any of the female servants that worked here she could not.
It was only when she heard a male voice shushing the female did her interest peak. Climbing out from underneath her covers she grabbed her shawl from the bottom of her bed and stealthily made her way to the window making sure to hide her figure behind the half draped curtain. She didn't see anyone at first, her eyes trying to adjust to the natural light. It was when she squinted into the near distance that she saw the two figures. Male and female both smiling and leaning on one another as they made their way towards the house. It was only when they got to the corner of the courtyard that Kara could see, to her shock that it was Stefan and Katherine. They were still in the clothes that they had worn the night before but both looked askew and both clearly inebriated. Kara had come to expect this type of thing from Damon, she had even helped him time after time when he had come back at an hour when none of the servants had yet awoken to let him in before their father had found out but Stefan had never done anything like this before, especially not with a woman he had only known for a couple of days. Stefan was clearly infatuated with this woman and Kara couldn't help but feel a little bit sorry for Rosalyn Cartwright. Their engagement had only been announced a month ago and he was already being unfaithful. Kara watched as Katherine said something that made Stefan laugh as they continued their walk to the house. She watched as Stefan dipped his head to catch a kiss from Katherine which she stealthily dodged and ran through the gardens to the side of the house giggling. Stefan followed, a broad smile on his face and he too was soon out if view. Kara sighed to herself wondering what kind of situation her brother was getting himself into. How much did he really know about this Katherine woman? She only prayed that Damon would make a stealthy trip home so she could talk to him on the matter.
Knowing she wouldn't be able to fall back to sleep she tightened her shawl more securely around her and picked up the unlit candle stick from her bedside table. She made her way to the hallway outside of her door and lit the candle from one of the many gas lamps hanging from the wall illuminating the upstairs corridor. She was heading towards the attic, a safe haven of hers that she found a calming balm in. The attic was on the level above the floor in which the servants slept. It was often cold, extremely dusty but filled with a treasure trove of memories of the time in her life when her mother was alive. On the way she passed Stefan's unoccupied room along with their father's in which she could hear him snoring away.
The door to the stairs of the attic was somewhat concealed on the third floor. It lay between a statue of an old American war of independence soldier which had long since been broken and of which Giuseppe had put up in the servants quarters as he could not bear to part with the object and a vase of a large indoor tree plant. Kara did have to admit that the two objects did seem to brighten up the corridor in which they were placed but she often wondered why the two decorations had been placed so close to one another when there was a whole unfurnished corridor to decorate. She had come to the theory many nights ago that perhaps it was to deter any of the staff to venture up into the loft space.
The entrance had double doors but Kara knew that only one of them properly opened. Walking over to the rusty door knob she clutched it hard and moved it the entire circumference around before the door was able to be pulled open. It did so with a loud imposing creak and Kara only opened it enough for herself to slip through and then closed it behind her yet leaving it unnoticeable ajar. The wooden stairs towards the attic were her least favourite part of her journey. They had not been very well maintained even when her Mother had been alive and she had to move the candlestick fairly close to the stairs to see which ones could hold her weight and which ones would buckle under the strain. She had determined many weeks ago that the stair second last at the bottom was one that she had to avoid completely as half of the wood had broken off and fallen to the floor when she had steadied her foot on it in her first trip to the attic. Thankfully she had only managed a small scratch on her hand from breaking her fall when the incident had happened and no other injury. Placing her left foot on the first step she made to ascend the staircase when she heard it. She paused, one foot on the stair and the other hovering above it straining her hearing to listen deeply.
It was a type of chanting, almost like singing and it was in a language Kara had only recognised from her dreams as a child. It was only now that Kara was looking up the staircase did she notice the small faint glow of a single candle. She moved her own closer to her and made sure it did not cast any shadows on the wall above. The chanting continued and when it did Kara noticed that a strong breeze filled the room rustling her hair and making the flame on the candle move about uncontrollably. Deciding that her curiosity was outweighing her nervousness she determined that she wanted to find out who was up there. She tried to recognise the voice but it was unfamiliar to her. She only knew that the voice belonged to a woman. Blowing out her own candle and hiding herself in a cloak of darkness she placed her candlestick on the bottom step and made her large step towards the third, skipping the unsafe second one on her way. The chanting continued, the same phrase over and over again.
Latin maybe. It sounded vaguely similar to the prayers she sang out every Sunday at church but Kara was not fluent and so had no idea what the chanting meant. Her footing was silent, stealthy like a lion stalking its prey. She exited the staircase at the top and emerged behind a stack of boxes and a torn portrait of Giuseppe's late Grandfather. It had not survived the trip to Mystic Falls but her father had not wanted to part with the object. Now Kara could use it as camouflage as she knelt behind it and crawled to the tear in the canvas to peer out.
The light from the candles made it hard to see anything solidly for a moment or two, everything seemed to be cast in a shadow or silhouette. The woman who was chanting stopped and for a minute Kara had thought herself discovered but this was not the case. The woman, unseen in silhouette then stopped chanting, her eyes shooting open unseeingly. The flames that ignited the many candles suddenly shot up further into the air, the air in the attic suddenly becoming very warm with the extra heat. Wind gushed through the attic and a noise like of which Kara had never heard before infiltrated her eardrums. She grasped at her ears trying in an unsuccessful effort to deafen the noise somewhat. It seemed like forever but it was only a miniscule amount of time had passed when the flames diminished and the candles burnt out completely. The noise stopped, the attic was now eerily silent and only the sound of the woman breathing as though she had just run miles over rough terrain filled the room. Strong smells of the smoke along with the pungent smells of burnt herbs began to fill Kara's nose and it took all that was in her not to cough at the smell. Kara went to peer more opening out of her hiding place when a solitary candle illuminated the attic once again. It was a lantern, an oil lantern. The type of which lined the walls of the servants quarters and the kitchens.
She watched as the figure gathered up the excess candles before placing them in a box in the corner of the room where they would inconspicuously stay until this woman, this witch decided to return for them. Turning from the box the woman lifted the lantern above her to be able to see the room more clearly. It was then that Kara spied the woman's identity. It was Katherine Pierce's personal maid Emily. Kara couldn't help but feel a little shocked. She didn't know who she had expected it to be, maybe some intruder but not someone in which whom their father had welcomed into their home with open arms. It was then when Kara thought of Katherine. Was she too a witch? Did she practise magic as Emily had been doing? It was then when a fear washed over her. Did she have Stefan under some sort of spell. What was her agenda? The shadows cast by the lantern hopped around the room giving Kara a clue as to where Emily was positioned. Kara furtively moved to the other side of the portrait to remain unseen as Emily passed. The canvas was rough on the skin of her palm as she edged her way forward to peer around the edge of the portrait. Emily was standing at the top of the staircase wrestling with the ruffles in the skirt of her dress in order to move down the staircase safely. Kara watched as she descended, the light from the lantern Emily held on the staircase becoming more and more diminished as Emily moved further and further away. As she heard the door to the attic close, Kara bided her time. A million thoughts raced through her mind.
Who were they exactly and why were they here? Decided it was safe to move she stood to her full height. She gazed around the attic forcing her eyes to adjust to the now dark vastness of the space. The box that Emily had used sat in the corner of the room looking open and inviting and Kara couldn't help but let her curiosity overtake her. Her bare footsteps were silent on the dusty wooden floors as she tiptoed over to the other side of the room. Pulling at her shawl to make it sit more securely on her shoulders she moved to dislodge the half open lid of the box. As she gazed into the depths she could clearly see the candles that had been used moments ago at the top. There weren't many items in the box. Candles, a few small velvet bags and right at the bottom lay a large, brown leather covered book. Being careful of the things on top of it she lifted the book into her arms. Not surprising, it wasn't dusty but did smell old. A long green wool tassel hung from the centre of the book and obviously acted as a page marker. The tassel did not indicate anything now that Emily had obviously performed her spell. Leafing through the book she saw many fearful things, words portraying some mystical creatures as fact rather than fable. Werewolves, vampires something called a doppelganger. She knew she must reread her German folklore for that one. Some passages even had small sketches in the corner of the pages to show the fearsomeness the writer was trying to portray. She had never once thought any of these things factual. They were like the monsters and the giants she used to read in her fairy tales as a small child. But thinking about it, witches also seemed quite fanciful and she had seen evidence of such a being right before her very eyes moments ago. She must watch Emily and even Katherine very closely if she was to know the truth.
She placed the book, the self-titled Grimoire back into the box and placed everything back into the position she had found it. Moving across the attic, passed the stairs and into the west part of the attic which had been her original destination she paused and gazed around at the sheet cover objects. In the corner was a large, rectangular object, concealed from view with a white sheet but which had one side of the corners folded down as if it had been removed before. She moved closer, already the air of familiarity gave her a warm, safe feeling. The floor around the object was dustless, it had been walk upon many times before. She reached up and removed the barrier and stood back to admire its beauty properly. It was the portrait of her mother. It has been painted in the time after Stefan had been born but before she had been born. Georgianna had become ill after having Stefan and when she recovered she pledged to have a painting commissioned of herself so her boys would have something to remember her by in case anything was to happen. Little did she know that her legacy would be hid away in the attic to spare the feelings of her promiscuous widower. The painting was immaculate. In the painting she wore a light blue dress, one of Kara's favourite colours to wear and had her hair pinned back like it was a halo shining in the rest of the dark painting. The picture had been painted in the library so while Georgianna stood serene, colourful, bright and beautiful the rest of the painting had only darker colours such as browns, blacks and burgundy's to portray the back shelves in the library. Kara pressed her hands to her lips, kissed and then touched it to the frame around the portrait.
"Love you Mama, please help me with this task" she whispered before throwing the sheet back over the cherished memory.
She sighed and walked down the attic stairs once again. She often thought to herself how different her life would be if her Mother were still alive. She had confided this to her Father once on a day she was feeling quite sentimental but he had told her that she shouldn't think of such things as they would only hurt her feelings and that she should live in the world that is real and not the her mind should make up. Now that Katherine was here however, she found herself wondering it more and more. Would Damon be less rebellious? Would Stefan be more his own man and not a carbon copy of their father. She supposed Stefan was having his own rebellious streak now with Katherine. If he was actually in his own mind while making that decision. If so then Kara was in some ways glad but she wished he would do it in a way that would hurt anyone, especially someone as nice as poor Rosalyn Cartwright.
Lost in thoughts and not looking where she was going Kara suddenly walked into someone straight on. The force was not big but the presence of someone else walking around at this hour did make her jump. She was about to spout a bout of apologises when she stopped to look at the person she had walked into.
"Emily" she rasped trying to steady her voice. She would pretend she didn't see anything.
She forced a smile at the guest maid.
"Miss Salvatore, my you're up early" she said her voice strangely monotone and her eyes smiling somewhat suspiciously.
"Yes I am" Kara stuttered "I heard voices outside and I couldn't sleep". Well it wasn't really a lie.
Footsteps behind her introduced the presence of two more people. For a split second Kara seemed relieved until she saw the smile that Emily now bore.
"Problem?" Katherine's voice asked from behind Kara's back.
Kara went to answer thinking that she was talking to her.
Emily however was the one to respond.
"She saw me in the attic, how much I don't now but she was there" she said holding up the candlestick from Kara's room. Kara's eyes went wide. She had forgotten all about it and elft it on the stairs. She turned to not only see Katherine standing behind her but Stefan also.
"Stefan I…" she began but stopped when she saw that he wasn't even looking at her but instead staring at Katherine lovingly. His eyes were glazed and his hand stroked her arm where she linked it with his.
"What did you do to him?" Kara asked fearsomely.
"My my" Katherine taunted her voice slightly impressed "Does the littlest Salvatore have a backbone after all?"
Kara was about to argue when without warning Katherine suddenly sped to Kara at in human speed and using her body, pinned her to the wall of the corridor. Stefan remained inanimate while Emily followed her friend over.
Kara gasped as her head hit the wall and her vision blurred.
"What are you?" she managed to rasp out "Another witch?"
Katherine smirked.
"Something you could never even fathom little one"
In one swift move Katherine tore into the side of Kara's neck, one hand still pinning Kara down and the other muffling her screams. Pain rushed through Kara's head, more painful even than the bite that Katherine was preforming. Katherine looked up suddenly from drinking and gasped. She began spitting out the blood she had in her mouth and retching.
"What is it?" Emily asked "Vervain?"
Katherine shook her head but it took her a minute to answer.
"No" she said staring up at Kara from her position kneeling on the floor "It just tasted, awful. Like it burned as it went down".
Kara sunk down the wall. Blood trailing on the wall behind her as she fell. Her eyes were close but she was still listening to everything they were saying.
Kara could feel someone coming closer as if to inspect her. She assumed it was Emily.
"She feels, different. There's a strange aura about her" Emily said airily, as if sensing something that wasn't visible to anyone none magical.
"Yeah will she certainly tastes strange" Katherine said standing up and spitting some blood onto the floor. She was annoyed. She wanted to assert her dominance over the smallest Salvatore but couldn't as there was an unexpected obstacle in the way.
"What is she then?" Katherine asked grabbing Kara by the neck and forcing her into a standing position against the wall once again.
Emily studied her for a moment.
"I have no idea" she concluded "I'll have to do some research".
"Look at me" Katherine ordered Kara. Kara opened her eyes as much as to stare Katherine down as to obey her request. Katherine bit into her own wrist and shoved into Kara's mouth she a split second and suddenly the bite at the side of her neck was gone. Her headache, however intensified.
Suddenly Katherine's pupils got large and black and Kara couldn't help but stare at them.
"You will forget all that you have witnessed her tonight. You stayed in bed and did not get up. Understand?"
Kara nodded.
"Good" Katherine said "Now get back to bed".
Kara obeyed and walked the short journey back to her room. Once inside she closed the door and lay against it. The onslaught of tears appeared in her eyes and rushed down her face unrelentingly.
She didn't know what Katherine was or what she was trying to do to her nor to her family but she certainly wasn't going to forget what happened tonight. Somehow, she would stop them both.
What did you think guys? Kara is immune to compulsion? Her blood tastes awful? What do you think Katherine is going to do? Or what will Kol do? Hmmm….:) So this will be my last post from the Emerald Isle…(Ireland) for a while. Moving to Australia TONIGHT! Highly stressed at the moment so would really really appreciate some feedback. I am bringing my laptop with me so will update as soon as I can. I am NOT abandoning this story J. Any ideas or suggestions you know I am all ears! Thank you so much for reading! xxxxxx