CHAPTER 4

"Ey slowass get your ass in the car it's time to go to school I got practice"

That was his first real interaction with Tyler Lockwood, not counting the several clearly forced introductions where Richard practically breathed over both of us as we talked. This was his first day of school, transferring mid semester was weird, but considering his family in this world was gone, not like he had much of a choice in the matter.

He had to say he wasn't surprised. Tyler was certainly a douche, even if he didn't always mean to be.

"One second gotta find my glasses" I said plainly.

"NAH bro Bag then car, I don't got time for this shit" Tyler yelled, aggression evident.

UGGGH, screw this place he thought as he grabbed his bag and headed towards the car.

He was following mason for quite a bit farther and farther away from the Lockwood's house, He had an idea where he was going at least. Though it didn't stop his heart from beating at the speed it was. Every time Mason stepped on a twig it beat harder.

Initially, he wasn't worried Mason would do anything to him, though he was beginning to reevaluate that stance. Mason was very quiet, not that he expected him to be chatty when he know doubt strongly suspected he knew his secret. Though the change to this compared to his earlier demeanor concerned him.

"Where are we going?" He asked hoping his unease didn't creep into his voice

"Where do you think we are going?" He replied with aggression evident in his voice

"The Lockwood slave quarters"

Mason did not nod or shake his head; he simply continued on as I followed behind. It only served to make him even more on edge. Was Katherine gonna be there? What if in some bizarre turn of events Damon or someone else is watching and decides to interfere?

Its an unlikely turn of events but there's certainly a chance… thing have changed already, unsure if it was anna and Lexi being alive or just his mere presence or something indirect but the Salvatores were not watching Mason's arm wrestle like in cannon, and Caroline came into contact with him, Tyler, and Mason at the fair. That didn't happen… Things were changing.

Mason suddenly slammed him against a tree.

"What do you want with my family?" He said with pure anger

"Nothing, "

He felt his hold increase his strength.

"I'll ask again what do you want with me and My family?"

He wanted to scream at the increase in pain he felt but he couldn't

"Nothing…I PROMISE YOU I'M NOT AGAINST you." He whelped at the end of that. The pressure on his back and arms was getting to him.

"Then Why?"

Mason seemed to dial back his strength back, as the tree no longer felt like it was a sentient being tearing into his back. His heart still beat hard but he appreciated the respite. He had a choice to make…

"I did what I did to help you and your family, people are sniffing around?" He said the truth at least a part of it. Part of his current goal was to help the Lockwoods, and part of that was his desire to make up for what he did to this very man's brother, but he didn't have to know that.

"THEN WHY, are you sneaking around? Why does Carol know nothing? Who is sniffing around?"

"Because it's easier to do this at my age if no one knows. You're one to talk considering you are not telling Carol or Tyler anything yourself. You seem to have been sniffing sound yourself…" Mason's eyes flicker with a revitalized rage at the final comment. He shuddered.

"Though if you must know town vampires are sniffing around, but you already knew that."

Mason seemed taken aback by the comment.

"You know what I know." He said with an offended tone.

"Well, I know you know about the vampires. I know you are with Katherine and I know you are trying to break your curse"

Mason let his hold go

"You're a witch? Who are you?"

"I'm Adam, nothing more or less, no big family name well unless you count the fact I'm kind of a Lockwood"

"You're not a Lockwood, Richard never went through with the adoption, he died before then" accusation seemed evident in his tone

The comment admittedly stung more than it should've but it was true nonetheless. Even if Richard did adopt him he never would've been a Lockwood. Despite Richard and Carol's best efforts of trying to change his mentality. He scoffed a bit at the memory.

"Then I suppose I'm not anything, I'm not a witch either by the way, I simply know things… a great many things. "

Mason paused I could tell rage bubbled within him still, but he held himself back. He was thinking about what he said. He no longer giving in to his rage immediately.

Before he could answer I decided to add more.

"I understand your skepticism and concern. Believe me, I don't like to tell people these things for this exact reason, you're trying to break your curse, for not only you but your pack and family. All your kind… i'm an unknown factor in that I get it."

Suddenly he felt pain spike in his backside again as the tree's bark stuck into it. And his arms had a great pressure upon them.

"Why me? I'll give you Tyler and Carol you've known them, but why would you help me i'm little more than a stranger to you?"

He felt Mason's grasp slack a bit. He opened his mouth but shut it, felt Tyler should've been the first person he told, that, of course, was already out of wack with Anna and Jeremy knowing and possibly even the very people he didn't want to know by this point. He could say some moderated version of what he knew…

"As I mentioned before I know a great many things, I know a little about you, and even if I didn't I can tell you have Tyler in your mind at least some of the time, if there's any Lockwood I care about it's him." He said fully meaning it. Tyler became a friend, the only real friend he had in this world, granted he was hiding a good portion of his life from him, but so was the werewolf in front of him.

Mason's rage seemed to melt a bit at that, and a faint smile crossed his face if only for a second.

"I care about Tyler too, but if you truly know everything like you say how do I know you are not just Bullshitting me"

"Well first off I don't know everything. In truth, Lately I've known less and less. But all I ask is you use your best judgment of matters. Now as for the question you haven't yet asked. How?"

"Yes, How?" He said directly

"In truth, I don't fully know I woke up in the hospital several months back with a story I gleamed more of overtime in town… a story of a council hunting vampires as one terrorizes the town right under their nose, of a sacrifice to allegedly cure a curse, a story of a recently triggered werewolf coming into town with an ancient doppelganger. A story of a dangerous vampire families resurgence"

Mason's rage seemed to bubble up but there was something else there.

"So you're claiming you have visions but are not a witch?"

"Yea trust me; I don't understand it either" Though he embellished he honed in on his thoughts on his existence here his understanding of why or how he was here was moot, for all he knew it could have been a practical joke by the cosmos, and he was actually meant to smoke ample amounts of vervain laced weed with Jeremy and was going against his divine quest by trying to save/change peoples lives. but it felt right to him and gave him an actual goal to strive for in this world. Which is more than he could say for the last.

"So its visions based on the town?" Mason asked seeming skeptical but entertaining the idea.

"Yes well mainly, the town and things associated with the town as well as.- " He stopped himself he didn't need to explain this in depth certainly not New Orleans.

"As well as?" Mason asked sternly

Shit, … what to say? Oh well knowing this shouldn't make things any worse.

"This town and New Orleans, there's actually a wolf pack there the crescent pack. They are wolves throughout the month and only change to a human on the full moon."

Mason scoffed at that and glared at him.

"Wait your serious?" a hint of a chuckle came at the end of his question.

"Yes, it was a curse placed upon them a few centuries back, something they've been dealing with for a long while unfortunately."

Mason took a deep breath and seemed stuck in thought for a moment after learning of the crescents, a smile returned to his face again.

"So what you want to help them?"

I shrugged "Eventually at the moment I don't really have the means."

"Why are you so interested in werewolves?" Mason asked in his accusing tone that was becoming all too familiar.

"Well it's not specifically werewolves, it's just any life, in general, that doesn't deserve the cards they've been dealt, whether you believe that or not is up to you… Listen, man I don't know why I have these visions, why I happened to end up under your families roof, It happened I'm here and I've done what I could about it, what I feel safe doing anyways"

"I can't say I fully believe you… though you seem like you care. " Mason said voice genuinely softening and he released him.

"But I'll be keeping an eye on you" It seemed mason was ending the conversation he was thankful for that, but there was something else he definitely should tell him. It would be dangerous to leave him with only part of the story, he'd for sure go to Katherine with it.

"Don't you have another question to ask me, Mason?"

Mason's eyes reignited yet he said nothing.

"The sacrifice to allegedly cure a curse… The sacrifice is a lie Mason, it does something close to what it says but not in the way you believe it too. The legend is a sham created by vampires.

The truth of it is that the sacrifice requires 3, not 1. It requires a doppelganger, a vampire. And a werewolf… and when it unlocks what it does it gives the capacity to turn werewolves into vampires thus giving them the choice not to shift, but at the cost of their mortality."

Mason went full force against him again.

"YOUR LYING, you expect me to believe some high school kid… my pack has been following the prophecy for a long time… I assure you it's real." Mason said, as his face got closer to his.

"Calm down, I'm simply telling you what I know you can choose whether or not to believe it. I assure you I believe what I just said with my whole being,"

"Have you considered what you see could be inaccurate"

He's considered that it's inaccurate now considering things have changed, but his canon knowledge has proven relevant even still. But mason did not need to hear about the certainty of his vision he needed to decide for himself.

"Of course I have, but they've always proven their worth to me. You can choose to believe me or not but this is what I believe is the truth of things all I ask is you consider."

Mason seemed to consider, but he ultimately nodded at that. This would be a good cutoff point for their conversation, he said the majority of what he knew relevant to mason, but there still was a strong possibility he'd tell Katherine so he had to make sure

"Mason, can I ask you not tell Katherine?"

"WHY?"

"I just don't trust her mason, that's why. Can you at least give it some time?"

"Kathy has been there with me for all of this, I'm not just gonna break our trust like that"

What could he even say to this Mason seriously deluded himself into believing this garbage, Katherine couldn't know though, no doubt she'd find out in not too long with the Lockwoods being a part of her plan and not to mention Jeremy possibly telling the rash decisions squad already, but the longer he could prevent it the better and safer he would be.

"Kathrine pierce may love you but does she love you more than she loves herself? Remember what I said the sacrifice requires a Werewolf, a Vampire, and the Doppelganger." He said it as more of a rhetorical question than anything but Mason seemed to not be having it at all.

"If what you say about the sacrifice is even true? Katerina, stood by me each moon ready to help me the morning after, I've never felt this way about anyone else in my life your telling me she doesn't care and this isn't love?"

"I'm telling you it's your love, not necessarily hers, she doesn't think of you the same way."

Mason seemed to go through a flurry of emotions at that comment. He waited expecting Mason to come forward with more retorts perhaps even a revelation. He instead was greeted by Mason suddenly gripping his head, he swore he saw a white flash in his eyes, and then he was out…

He woke up with the sensation of something crawling on him, and a wet feeling concentrated on the back of his head. He raised moved his hand towards the spot, and lightly touched it…

"Ow,' it stung a bloody bruise no doubt the source of his forced slumber.

Bringing up Kathrine was no doubt a mistake but it was either bringing up Kathrine or having mason tell Katherine possibly this very night. Of course, given how things turned out Katherine pierce probably would still receive word from Mason

Out of all the people who were Love Drunk on Katherine Pierce he didn't expect mason to react that way…

What the hell was he gonna do. If he went to the Lockwoods, Katherine either already had a way in or would get one. Mason, why do you gotta be a Lovesick idiot?

A.N. Hope everyone liked my direction with this chapter. I also hope it feels in character for Mason, I know he isn't in the story long but I tried my best to match his energy. As for why this chapter is a bit shorter I was not entirely sure where I wanted to go after this. It's either the Lockwoods, Jeremy, or Matts place. Perhaps a new idea could come up in my head. I overall have a plan for this story but the little steps get me.

Critique, and thoughts appreciated as always. ALSO I've edited the last 3 chapters a bit changed some words, and fixed up the grammar a bit