Family Ties - Part 1
This is going to serve as a mental reminder to never doubt anything that Noble and Raphael say ever again.
Because hot damn, that elixir worked. And when I mean worked, it worked well.
After the party had wrapped up, I went to bed feeling better than I had since I woke up from the coma. When I woke up the next morning, I was healed. Perfectly. My head didn't ache, all the bruising was gone, and when I laughed so hard at a joke Kelly told at breakfast (that even went as far as to make me choke on my hot chocolate), my ribs didn't hurt.
Kelly seemed shocked to see the bruising go away completely, so I came up with the lie that I must be a fast healer. To my surprise, she actually helped reinforce that idea by telling me stories of when I was younger and scraped my knees, only to be healed the next day. I laughed at that notion, but secretly I'm wondering just how long Noble and Raphael have been watching over me. Raphael pretty much confirmed that the two of them were vampires (well, at least, he was; I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Noble is one too), so it could be for my entire life and I wouldn't know.
Catching up on schoolwork has pretty much taken over my entire social life. Being out of school for these few days has really screwed me over. Thank goodness for note-taking friends, i.e. Stefan Salvatore. He's been by the house a couple times, bringing over the notes he's taken on the different lectures. They've been as detailed as I needed them to be and I told him multiple times that I would never be able to thank him enough.
Yesterday, I finally had the courage to ask him why Damon didn't just bring the flowers himself. Not like I wanted an excuse to see him or anything, but given that he has full access to the house, I figured he would want to make an appearance to piss everyone off. That's is his MO, after all. Stefan explained to me what happened at the Night of the Comet celebration after I left.
Damon had apparently taken both Vicki and the girl he attacked as a distraction, Leah Hastings, and brought them both to the roof of the Grill. Stefan followed them. Damon made Stefan choose which one he wouldn't feed from and Stefan chose Vicki, given her strong connection with me. Damon didn't drain Leah, but he took a lot of her blood and then made her believe that Stefan was the one who attacked her.
Stefan wiped all memories of that night from Vicki, but he wasn't positive how long the compulsion would last. He asked if I knew, and I told him the truth: Vicki was the only one supposed to be attacked and that night was supposed to be Damon turning Vicki against Stefan. I didn't know what was supposed to happen with that little timeline.
Anyways, we have the Founders Ball tonight, being held at the Lockwood Estate. I managed to convince Kelly to attend and when I tried to convince her to come as my date, she rejected and said that she was going with Jenna. I was really confused as to why she wouldn't be my date (you know, her daughter) when she said that she thought someone had already asked me.
Yeah...cuz that's not sketchy at all.
I don't believe anything major is supposed to happen tonight, especially now that I've successfully kept Caroline from Damon. Who knows? Maybe I'll actually have a night off!
Yeah, I doubt it.
Ooooh! Before I forget! Kelly and I are heading to the Gilberts' house this morning to have breakfast with Jenna and Elena. I got to talk with Jenna a little bit at the Welcome Home party for me, but she stayed close to Kelly's side most of the time and I had to play the little hostess, saying hi to everyone (since they did come from me). Elena and me haven't really talked much since the party, but I don't believe there's any hard feelings between the two of us.
Time to go diss some "Scum" Fell!
"To repeat, the animal terrorizing Mystic Falls has been caught," Logan "Scum" Fell announced across the Gilberts' TV. Victoria was seated at the dining room table, scoffing at the TV set with Jenna and Kelly standing behind her.
"Scum ball," Jenna growled aggressively.
"Scum bucket," Kelly added, her voice equally filled with disgust.
"Scum face," Victoria mused, shaking her head.
The soft padding of feet entering the kitchen caught Victoria's attention and she looked towards the sound. Elena was carrying a small box of things in her hands. If Victoria's recollection was right, they were filled with the Gilbert artifacts, from wedding rings to John Gilbert's vampire hunting watch. Elena followed all of their gazes towards the TV and furrowed her brow in confusion. "Who are you three talking to?"
"Him," Jenna grumbled, pointing towards the TV.
"The news guy?"
"Also known as Logan "Scum" Fell," Kelly sniffed haughtily, rolling her eyes. "It's been years since I've seen him and I still can't stand the look of his face."
"Did your mom ever tell you why I moved away from Mystic Falls?" Jenna asked Elena, finally daring a glance towards her.
Elena's mouth dropped in disbelief and her head jerked as she looked towards the TV, then back to Jenna, then back again. "Oh, no way. You and him?" Jenna gave a small nod, seeming disgusted with herself. Victoria giggled at her, and Jenna reached forward, gently ruffling Victoria's hair. The adult-turned-teen swatted Jenna's hand away from her hair. "He's cute."
"He is not cute. There's nothing cute about him," Jenna huffed, folding her arms across her chest. "You wanted cute back in my high school days, you would have to fight Kelly tooth and nail for her guy. Well...cute might be a light term. More like hot and sexy."
Victoria looked at her mother, who blushed a furious color and seemed to try and look anywhere else than at her daughter. "You had a boyfriend? Are you still dating now? Is he my dad?"
Kelly's blush darkened even more and she spluttered to come up with an answer. "W-Well, yes I did have a boyfriend. It's complicated, and um...well..."
"What are you doing with that?" Jenna interrupted. Victoria gave her mother a look that said they would be discussing that topic more later on. Kelly nodded, albeit rather grateful looking at the fact that she had dodged the topic. Victoria mentally put it on her checklist of things that she would get answers for.
Victoria turned towards Elena, who had taken a seat at the head of the table. She had set the box down and was pulling out different objects, using a towel to rub at the various metals. "I went yesterday and got it from the safe deposit box. Mom had told Mrs. Lockwood she would loan it to the founder's council for their heritage display."
"Shit, that reminds me," Kelly cursed, patting each of her pockets. "I got to make a call to Mrs. Lockwood. I'll just be in the other living room." She whipped out her phone and was dialing as she strode from the room. Elena looked at Victoria curiously, and Victoria just shrugged. It was clear that for the most part, Kelly and the Lockwoods didn't get along, aside from Carol and some other mysterious person. Victoria did her best not to press the issue.
"Is that Grandma Beth's wedding ring?" Jenna asked in amazement, leaning over Victoria's shoulder to pick up a little ring that had been stowed away in the box. It was beautiful; simple and yet, elegant. Grandma Beth had style.
"Originally, it was great-great-Grandma Mary's wedding ring," Elena corrected, snatching the ring back away from Jenna's fingers. Correction: Grandma Beth and Mary had style.
"How much do you think this stuff is worth?" Jeremy interrupted. Victoria jumped, not expecting him to appear just out of thin air. Jeremy sent her an apologetic look before leaning over to snatch up the Gilbert watch, fiddling with it as he looked at his sister. "You know, like on eBay?"
"You're not gonna find out," Elena snapped, reaching over and stealing the watch back.
Jeremy rolled his eyes, mumbled an official hello to Victoria, before wandering over to the refrigerator. He opened the door lazily as he said to his sister, "That stuff is Mom and Dad's. You can't just give it away."
"I'm not giving it away," Elena sighed, shaking her head in exasperation. "It's called a loan, Jeremy."
The doorbell rang and Victoria got up, offering to get it. Elena thanked her with a mumble as she focused on cleaning a pendent necklace. Victoria wandered down the hall, glancing into the other living room. Kelly was pacing with the phone pressed tightly against her ear. Her teeth were biting her lower lip and she looked stressed out. What that woman needs is some rest and relaxation, Victoria thought to herself as she opened the door to the Gilberts' house.
Outside of the door, like she expected it to be, was Stefan Salvatore. However, he obviously didn't suspect Victoria to be on the other side of the door, given the height his eyebrow reached. "Victoria. What are you doing here?"
"Me and Kelly came over to have breakfast with Jenna and Elena, and it ended up with me, Jenna, and Kelly dissing Jenna's ex-boyfriend from her high school and college days," Victoria said, giggling. Stefan smiled and chuckled along with her, and Victoria pointedly ignored the warm feeling she got in her stomach. "You come for Elena?"
"Yes. Yes I have," Stefan admitted, blushing lightly. Victoria laughed and reached forward, giving him a friendly shove.
"You two are so freaking cute, I hope you do realize that," Victoria told him as she stepped aside, allowing him entrance. Stefan thanked her and stepped inside. "Here's a helpful hint from a friend: say 'yes'."
"Yes to what?" Stefan asked, blinking in slight confusion. Victoria shrugged good-naturedly.
"You'll find out," she teased. Leaning down the hall, she shouted, "Elena, your boyfriend's here!" Moving towards Kelly, Victoria said, "Hey Kelly, should we head out? You still need to help me figure out a dress for tonight's celebration."
"One second, baby girl," Kelly said, pulling the phone away from her ear. She covered up the speaking part and rolled her eyes at Victoria before moving to talk with Mrs. Lockwood again.
Victoria snickered and looked back to Stefan, who was watching her with a curious expression. She tilted her head to the side as she studied him in return. "What's with the face?"
"You just look...different," Stefan said after a moment. "It's different. You have this...glow about you."
"Well, that's what happens when you aren't bogged down by pain and bruises gifted by a good friend's older brother," Victoria replied, shrugging her shoulders lightly.
"By the way, you still haven't told me what happened. It wasn't vampire blood?"
"Nope," Victoria reassured him. She glanced over her shoulder. Elena was now making her way towards them, setting down the piece of jewelry she had been cleaning. "Listen, I gotta go. I'll talk to you at the Founder's Ball tonight, alright?"
"Wait, they're still doing that?" Stefan asked incredulously. Victoria just laughed, patting him on the shoulder as she slipped around him to go wait outside for her mother.
Victoria wandered down the Gilberts' front lawn, aimlessly making her way towards the car. It was parked a little ways down the street so she took to the sidewalks, enjoying the beautiful morning. The sunbeams fell through the foliage, casting beautiful warm rays onto Victoria's skin. She was glad she had chosen to wear a thick-strapped tank top that morning. She was able to soak up all the beautiful sun before the cold season took over.
"A Mama Bear without her cubs, huh? Somebody call the Discovery channel."
"You can tell I'm in a good mood, because even your presence isn't ruining it for me, Damon," Victoria said, pausing in her walk to turn around. Damon was standing behind her, his hands in his dark jean pockets. Seriously, did that man own anything that wasn't in the shades of white, black, and gray? "What is it that you need?"
"Besides a bite to eat? A date," Damon said, a smirk coming to his lips. Victoria's happy mood threatened to fall, but she forced it to stay up. Damon will not be ruining my good mood today.
"And why is it that I'm your first choice when it comes to needing a date?" Victoria asked, genuinely curious. "You know you could probably compel anyone else to be at your side."
"Yeah, well, it helps to have an ally with you," Damon said, shrugging his shoulders.
Victoria's eyes widened slightly. "Y-You think of me as an ally?"
"On probation, but yes," Damon corrected. He took a few steps forward, leaving little space between he and Victoria. "You are my ticket to getting what I want. I am your ticket to surviving this world from my dangerous temper. So therefore, we are allies. Temporarily. And as allies, I need a distraction at the party tonight. I'm assuming you already know about the crystal, given your Seerness." He did a funny motion at the end of his sentence, as if to accent the fact that he had called Victoria a Seer. Again.
"Again, not a Seer," Victoria grumbled, shaking her head. "A Seer implies that I am from this world and that I have gained magical powers. I don't have magic. I'm just a normal human being who happened to die in an alternate universe and ended up in this one."
Damon didn't seem convinced. Victoria honestly couldn't fault him. "So what, are you supposed to be a lost soul or something?"
"Lost soul, dead soul, wandering soul," Victoria listed off, using her fingers as she counted off the many names. She could be called anything, really. "Pick whichever you like; they all mean the same thing. I died and now I'm here."
"So was that a yes or a no to the date?"
Victoria sighed. "Are you going to murder anyone if I say no?"
"Probably."
"Then I guess the answer is yes."
Victoria brought out another dress from deep inside of her closet, holding it up against her body. She stepped in front of her mirror, just over her bed, and modelled it. It was nice, but not necessarily her color. It made her face seem too pale and it didn't make her hair stand out.
"No yellow. Jaundice. Go for blue or red."
Victoria rolled her eyes and barely looked over her shoulder towards the door. Damon stood there, his leather jacket in his arms. They were folded across his chest and he was watching her with that stupid smirk of his that he believed to be sexy (it wasn't. It really, really wasn't).
"I think I could've figured that one out myself," Victoria stated, tossing the yellow dress onto the bed in front of her. She moved back to her closet, biting her lower lip. She flicked through a couple more dresses. She groaned and looked to Damon in exasperation. "This is ridiculous. Why did I want to come to this thing in the first place? I can't find a dress!"
"You're getting rather frustrated for a woman looking for a dress," Damon commented, sauntering into her room. He ignored the pile of dresses at the foot of her bed and flopped down across it. It looked miniscule compared to his large frame. He grabbed one of her many pillows and placed it on his lap, holding it tightly against his chest.
Victoria glared at him, turning back to her closet. It wasn't that she couldn't find a dress; it was more along the lines that she couldn't find one that fit her particular style. She was from 2021 after all and fashion in dresses then was waaaaay different from 2009.
Suddenly, a dress from the back of her closet spoke to her. She reached in and pulled it out. Immediately, it stood apart from the previous options she had. It was a cherry red, the color that Victoria dubbed "Taylor Swift" red. It was strapless, very fit around the bust before it flared out. The skirt was swishy, and Victoria couldn't help but coo at that. She had a thing for swishy skirts. Call it the dancer in her.
She turned back to the mirror and modelled it. She could already tell that this was the one. Damon raised an eyebrow and made a small hum of approval. Victoria shook her head. "I don't need your approval."
"Whatever you say, Mama Bear."
Victoria set the dress on her bed, swept the other ones back into her closest, and went to her shoe drawer to hunt down some red heels to match the dress.
"Hey, since you refuse to tell me the meaning of 'fanfiction', can you at least explain what's so special about this Bella girl I've been reading about?" Damon suddenly asked. Victoria couldn't help the loud laugh that came from her mouth. She had completely forgotten that in that episode, Damon began reading Twilight. "I mean, this Edward dude is so whipped."
"What book have you started on?"
"New Moon."
Victoria clicked her tongue. "You gotta read the first book first. It won't make sense if you don't."
"Ah, I miss Anne Rice. She was so on it," Damon sighed, leaning back on Victoria's bed.
Victoria pulled out a pair of tall red heels with peep-toes and cutesy red bows on the ends. She placed those by her dress and placed her hands on her hips. She looked at Damon curiously. "So my mom just randomly invited you inside?"
"Kelly and I are BFFs now, Mama Bear," Damon purred, sitting up in her bed. He smirked and raised an eyebrow, tilting his head to one side. "What's wrong? Jealous?"
"Call it concerned," Victoria shot back. She bit her lower lip and looked around the room. She couldn't help but feel like she was forgetting something. "I can't help but feel like I'm forgetting something."
As if on cue, her phone began to ring loudly. She grabbed it before Damon could even have a chance and saw that the caller I.D. read 'Bonnie'. Victoria held up a finger to Damon to tell him to be silent as she answered, "Hello my favorite Bennett. What can I do for you?"
"Well, I wanted to invite you, Caroline, and Kelly to Elena's house later tonight to get ready for the party tonight. Well, Jenna's inviting Kelly so the two of them can get ready together," Bonnie said and Victoria grinned.
"Of course! That sounds like a blast! Did you manage to get a date?"
"That's what you and Caroline are for," Bonnie replied with some sass. Victoria laughed awkwardly, biting her lower lip. Bonnie was not going to be pleased... "Tori? What's wrong?"
"W-Well...I already have a date and I'm not sure if Caroline found one or not," Victoria admitted, grabbing a piece of her hair. She fiddled with it as she began to pace around her room. Damon watched her curiously. When she caught his eye, he mouthed 'I wish I would've brought popcorn'. She flipped him off and he laughed at her.
"What do you mean you have a date?" Bonnie asked in disbelief.
"Well...you see, I'm going with Damon."
"You're taking Damon to the Founder's Ball?" Bonnie gasped. "What about me?"
"Is Elena available?"
"She asked Stefan and he said yes." Victoria pretty much knew that was going to happen.
"Okay, then, ask Caroline. If she has a date, go by yourself."
"Gee, thanks. What about your mom? Is she okay with you bringing Damon?"
"Kelly was actually in on it. Damon apparently asked her for permission seeing as I'm a minor," Victoria reluctantly admitted. That was what Kelly had meant by 'she thought someone else was taking Victoria'. Damon had cornered her outside of her hospital room after the hefty Tyler punch situation and put on a good show of being generous and courteous and asking for Kelly's permission to ask Victoria to be his date to the party. "And he's a decent enough guy."
"He's older sexy danger guy!" Bonnie shouted.
Damon's smirk only grew wider as he mouthed 'older sexy danger guy' at Victoria. She flipped him off again.
"Damon's not that dangerous," Victoria lied, sticking her tongue out at Damon. He gave her an exasperated look. "You know, he just has a lot of issues with Stefan. You know, like major, deep-rooted drama that I will not go into because he's really sensitive to that sort of thing."
"Stefan?"
"No, Damon," Victoria teased. Damon grabbed her pillow and cocked his arm back, as if threatening to pelt her with the pillow should she continue. "Anyways, Bon-Bon, I gotta jet. Getting ready for getting all dolled up and pretty tonight is going to take some time. What time do you want me and Kelly at Elena's?"
"Probably around four. We can all eat some takeout and then get ready for the party, which starts at six."
"You have such confidence that six women will get ready and be able to eat in less than two hours," Victoria commented.
There was a pause on the other line and Bonnie corrected herself by saying, "Let's make it two."
"Have fun with Elena and Bonnie, baby girl!" Kelly called out as Jenna came rushing down the stairwell. Jenna let out a happy squeal, pulling Kelly into a tight hug before grabbing her hand and rushing the two of them up the stairs. Victoria smiled as she watched the two adults rush into Jenna's bedroom. She hadn't seen her mother hang out with anyone close to her own age that she considered a friend; it was usually just Victoria, one of Victoria's friends, or the Demon Advisor. And she had been so stressed recently, what with Victoria's trips to the hospital and her amnesia. It was good to see Kelly let loose. She deserved it.
"Tori!" she heard Bonnie cheer triumphantly. Victoria grinned and headed towards the dining room/kitchen, where Bonnie was seated at the head of the table. Bonnie had a whole nail polish station set up in front of her on the table. Elena was wandering around, finishing up some last minute chores before getting her nails done.
Victoria walked into the kitchen and dutifully at Bonnie. "Hey Bon-Bon. You sound excited to see me."
"Because I am," Bonnie stated. She leaned forward and a serious expression came to her face. "I need your help." She helped up two different nail polish bottles, each the same color, only varying shades. "Delicate flower versus naughty vixen."
"Oooh, that's a hard decision," Victoria hummed in amusement. She pretended to think about it seriously before giggling, saying, "Why don't you just mix them."
Bonnie rolled her eyes. "That's what Elena said."
"Great minds think alike then," Elena commented, pulling Victoria into a quick hug before taking a seat. Victoria rounded the table and took a seat opposite of Elena.
"Look at the two of you," Bonnie chuckled, glancing between Victoria and Elena. "Getting all pretty for your dates." To Elena, she added, "You seem happy-ish." To Victoria, she narrowed her eyes slightly and stuck out her tongue in concentration. "I'm not really getting a read off of you."
"You have a date?" Elena gasped, looking at Victoria in shock. Her shock soon shifted into a sly smirk, one that reminded Victoria too much of Damon. "So, did that dress from the bonfire and those 'otherworldly' legs actually help you find a guy?"
"More like someone just wants to crash the party and he somehow convinced me to be his date," Victoria corrected, rolling her eyes. "Damon can be pretty persuasive when he wants to be."
Elena's face pinched in worry and Victoria held up a finger, silencing her. "Listen, I get that he's kind of a handful, but trust me: he won't hurt me." Anymore, she added silently. "And if he does, I know I have six badass chicks who would beat him up, plus two pretty decent dudes."
"And who are these eight members of the 'Damon-Shovel-Talk' group?" Bonnie asked curiously as she worked on stirring the two colors together.
"Well, obviously there's you, Elena, Kelly, and Jenna, and then add Caroline and Vicki Donovan. Plus, I think Matt would take my side, though I haven't talked to him enough, and Stefan."
"Oh, Stefan would definitely take your side," Elena agreed immediately. "He really enjoys hanging out with you."
Victoria's eyes widened in polite surprise. "Really? That's sweet of him. Did he tell you that?"
"Yeah, we were chatting about it this morning after you left," Elena explained and Victoria hummed. That was a rather odd conversation to have either before or after making out with each other. "I asked him to the dance, he said yes, by the way, and he asked if you had anybody you were going with. He said that you were one of the first people who really talked to him and he appreciates that."
"Well, he's been really kind to me," Victoria admitted truthfully. "Hell, he helped me down from a panic attack, multiple times, and we've only known each other for two, maybe three weeks. Stefan's a keeper, Elena. Don't forget that."
"I won't," Elena promised.
If only that was true.
To Bonnie, Elena answered Bonnie's old comment, "To seeming happy-ish, I am...ish. Tonight's going to be a good night."
The doorbell rang and Victoria rose to her feet. "I got it!" She jumped to her feet and jogged towards the door. When she opened it up, she called out, "It's Caroline!"
The blonde smiled widely at Victoria and the adult-turned-teen stepped to the side to allow Caroline inside of the house. She shut the door once Caroline was inside. The two of them hugged quickly and made their way to the kitchen table.
"Alrighty girls, what are our options for nails?"
The girls all had a fun time, painting nails and talking about guys like it was a normal day. It made Victoria feel all warm and fuzzy. Everyone teased Elena for her date with Stefan, gasped in shock when they learned that Caroline was going with Matt to the ball ("Platonically, ladies. I do understand in Girl Code that you can't go for the friend's ex"), and joked around at Bonnie's single self ("Please, I'm the strongest out of the four of us because I am okay going by myself...are you sure nobody can think of someone who doesn't have a date?"). Elena and Bonnie unintentionally kept from mentioning Damon around Caroline, which Victoria was silently grateful for. She didn't need Caroline going off on how Damon was just using and abusing her.
Victoria understood that Damon was just using her. That wasn't a shocker. Season One Damon cared only about two things: himself and Katherine. If it didn't benefit one of those two things, he didn't do it. The only, and she honestly meant only, reason that Victoria was still kicking was that she had information on Katherine. The moment that became irrelevant, she was dead.
Which meant that Victoria had to keep that information relevant. She didn't like that that was the basis of their friendship, but she understood that it was.
Her phone buzzed and Victoria subtly pulled the phone out of her pocket, keeping in mind that her cherry red nails were still drying. It was a new text from Stefan.
STEFAN:
I need your help taking down Damon.
"Do they still wear ties at this thing?" Damon commented curiously as he wandered into Stefan's bedroom. He was shirtless, wearing only his dress pants. Stefan, who was seated at his desk polishing his dress shoes, looked up at his brother in exasperation.
"Why are you even going?" Stefan asked, honestly wanting to know. There couldn't be anything that important to Damon at the dance. Despite Elena. Stefan was always going to be on edge when his brother was around Elena; Damon was too intrigued by her to stay away and he knew how well that turned out last time.
"It's only fitting," Damon insisted, turning to look at the tall, floor-length mirror. He grabbed a couple of ties from Stefan's dresser, posing them against his body. "We were at the very first one, remember?"
"I think it's better if we don't draw attention to ourselves," Stefan argued, throwing his polishing rag down onto his desk. He leaned back in his chair, shaking his head.
"So you should stay here," Damon agreed, turning to smirk at his brother. "I'll see to it Elena has a good time. I'll even keep the good old Mama Bear entertained."
Stefan hated it when Damon talked about Victoria. Maybe even more than he hated the way he talked about Elena. There was something...possessive in the way that Damon talked about her that made the protective side of Stefan roar up in discomfort. Damon's talk of Elena was easier to dismiss; it was just Damon's stupid jealousy and lust talking. With Victoria...it was something deeper. Something darker. Something way more sinister.
Stefan grabbed his glass of bourbon and sipped. If he was going to get through the night with his brother attending the same ball as him, he was would need to have some liquid courage to do so.
"My goodness, I've driven you to drink."
"Can't seem to rid myself of you," Stefan huffed, glaring at Damon. "What else am I supposed to do, besides go about living my life?"
"Go about living my life," Damon mocked, rolling his eyes before turning back to look into the mirror. He fiddled with the ties some more. "See, therein lies your eternal struggle." He paused and looked at Stefan through the mirror. He deadpanned, "You're dead, dude. Get over it. So, which one do you think?"
"Whichever one will be easier to choke you out with," Stefan replied immediately, throwing back the rest of his drink.
Damon's face crinkled with disgust. "You must be friends with Victoria. You're starting to talk like her already."
"She gives you death threats regularly?"
"It comes up in almost every conversation we have."
"Well, sounds like she is a smart girl after all."
"I like to think she's actually a mother grizzly bear that's been trapped inside of a twenty-one year old's mental state that's trapped inside a seventeen year old's body," Damon commented with a chuckle. He slipped on a black button down shirt and started buttoning it up. Once it was all done (minus the last few buttons), Damon took a moment to study himself. "It's cool not growing old. I like being the eternal stud."
"Yes, being a one hundred-and-fifty year old teenager has been the height of my happiness," Stefan snorted, shaking his head. He grabbed his own button down, recently ironed (thanks, Zach), and started buttoning it up.
"You cracked a funny, Stefan!" Damon cheered, turning around. The smirk was back on his face. "I should have a drink to celebrate."
He walked over to Stefan's desk, which held the only alcohol in the room. Damon paused over Stefan's desk, gently fingering a portrait of Katherine that Stefan had accidently left out. Stefan tensed and anxiously waited for Damon's smart-ass comment.
"Eighteen-sixty-four," Damon murmured. His eyes looked like he was a lost inside of a memory. For a moment, he almost seemed...normal. Human. The older brother that Stefan remembered.
The next moment, that was gone and Damon the vampire returned. His cocky attitude, his smirk that Stefan wanted to rip off of his face. The look that he owned the whole world and that everyone else was beneath him. "You and Katherine were the perfect couple. It was hell watching you dance with her."
"My happiness was short-lived, as you well know," Stefan growled, turning his back to his brother.
"I remember," Damon snapped back. "I left the party early, I was waiting for her. The night you dropped her off, I was waiting just inside. You were such a gentleman, gave her a kiss on the cheek. And what she really wanted was...Oh, well. Here's to history repeating itself, huh?"
Stefan heard the clink of glass and waited anxiously. He doubted that his technique would work, but he was silently hopeful, nonetheless. Zach had supplied him with the vervain, and had guaranteed that putting it in Damon's favorite bourbon was the way to go. Damon wasn't that gullible, though, and he knew of Zach's distrust and Stefan's distaste.
The splash of the drink came a moment later and Stefan kept his composure. Damon had figured it out.
"I admire your effort, Stefan. Pouring yourself a drink then spiking the bottle with vervain," Damon spat, marching around so he was facing Stefan. His body was the picture of composure, but his eyes were livid. He was angry, he was filled with rage. "I'm not some drunk sorority chick. You can't roofie me. But I can't help but feel a little used. I thought we were having a moment. I have to go to the party angry now. Who knows what I'll do?"
He turned around to march off, but paused, glancing over his shoulder. There was the look that made Stefan know positively that Damon had no humanity left. The look that was pure evil. "Whatever happens to Mama Bear tonight...that's on your hands."
Damon disappeared the next moment, running off to who knew where.
Stefan grabbed his phone immediately and texted Victoria.
STEFAN:
I need your help taking down Damon.
To his surprise, she responded almost immediately.
VICTORIA:
Gib me 1 sec.
It was officially thirty-seven seconds before Stefan's phone began to ring. He answered it immediately, knowing exactly who was on the other line. "Can you help me?"
"I don't know how much help I can be, but yeah, I understand what needs to be done," Victoria said over the phone. She was speaking in a low whisper, and the sound echoed a little. Stefan's best guess was that she was hiding away in the bathroom where the girls wouldn't find her. "I got a few minutes to talk before the girls start taking over the bathrooms for hair and makeup. Okay, listen, you talked with Zach and found out about the vervain, yeah?"
"Yes."
"Did Damon try to drink the bourbon just yet?"
"He just left. Says that he's going to the party angry and that whatever happens to you tonight will be on my head."
He heard Victoria curse on the other line. "Damn. Well, that's not good, but I can handle it. I'll just stay in public places with him, won't let myself be cornered. Damon's smart; he wouldn't risk getting exposed that publicly for revenge. Most he can do in public places is hold my hand or arm too tight. Ok, here's what I know was originally supposed to happen with spoiling anything: you all go to the party. Everyone has fun, Damon's basically on his best behavior. You originally spiked Caroline's drink with vervain, and Damon later fed off of her, which made him ingest the vervain. B-But I don't think that's going to work now."
"And why not?"
"In the original plot, Damon..." Victoria began. She was silent for a moment. The next time she spoke, her voice came back weaker, as if she was trying to hold back a swell of emotions. "Damon was using Caroline as a pet. For sex. For blood. He was compelling her to do horrendous things. I-I stopped that from happening. The night of the bonfire, when Vicki and I were attacked. Caroline was supposed to be intrigued by Damon and then that set off a whole chain of events. But since I stopped them from ever meeting, I-I don't know how you can vervain him now."
"And I can't use you either," Stefan growled angrily to himself, getting up and beginning to pace.
"Why can't you use me?" Victoria asked incredulously. "I am the perfect bait. I can piss him off and then once he drinks from me, you can take him back to the cell."
"There are multiple things wrong with your plan, Victoria," Stefan said. "First off, you don't like vampire blood, which means that you would have to deal with two puncture wounds in the side of your neck for days, weeks! And secondly, Damon won't drink your blood. He said it doesn't taste good."
Silence.
And then an indignant, "WHAT?!" screech over the phone.
"Stefan whatever the hell your middle name is Salvatore, are you telling me that Damon has drank my blood from me, unknowingly?"
Ooooh, she sounded pissed. That must be the Mama Bear side of her that Damon always talked about. Stefan had personally yet to see it. It sounded dangerous. That was also probably the side that threatened Damon with death the most.
"The night you stayed over at the boarding house, Damon said he got a little drop of blood from one of your cuts," Stefan admitted slowly, not wanting to risk pissing her off even more. "He said that you smelled amazing. But when he tasted it, it was like he got catfished. At least, I think that's how you would describe it in modern slang. It tasted bitter and bad, like he couldn't handle it. It didn't burn, like vervain in the system, but he said it wasn't natural. That even I wouldn't want to take a taste."
"I honestly don't know if I should feel offended or relieved at that statement," Victoria hummed. Stefan could imagine her shaking her head. "Ok, come up with a plan for Damon tonight. I'll steal you away later for a dance and you can explain it some more to me then, okay?"
"That sounds like a plan," Stefan agreed. He paused, then asked rather tentatively, "Victoria?"
"Yeah, Stefan?"
"Why are you doing this? I thought you had some sort of weird agreement with Damon."
"Damon's a decent guy when he wants to be, but that doesn't excuse the fact that he's attacked Vicki and me, and he's killed multiple people. I can't explain anything else without spoiling, but trust me: this is not the worst thing that can happen to him."
Stefan nodded. He couldn't help but comment, "Victoria?"
"What's up?"
"My middle name is Antonio, by the way."
A/N: It's a Monday, let's celebrate! How is everyone doing? Here is the next episode (which will also only be 2 parts) and I hope you all enjoy it. It's more heavy on the Datoria/Viamon then it is with Stetoria, but don't worry, we get a cute moment in the next chapter! I'm so happy everyone's been enjoying this book; it makes my days to read your reviews and how passionate some of you get.
IMPORTANT!: If you leave a review, please let me know who you are shipping with Victoria, as like the main ship. I wanna make a list and see who's Team Stetoria (Stefan and Victoria), Team Datoria/Viamon (Damon and Victoria; for this one, also tell me which ship name you prefer), Team Vilijah (Elijah and Victoria; which is so weird cuz he's not even in the story yet), or any other ship team (examples include Vioble [Victoria and Noble], Klatoria [Victoria and Klaus], etc.). Thank you!
New Followers!: QueenOfGiraffes, monkeey76, sheepinkgirl
New Favoriters!: Lugm58
Welcome to our little group! Enjoy the story!
Onto reviews!:
guest: Mhmm. Sometimes love triangles (or in rare cases, love squares) are the worse. I tend to steer away from them when I can, but I can make no promises for this story. Ooh, we have another Vilijah shipper! I'll mark that down. As for the Lockwoods, I can answer some of your questions: No, it has nothing to do with Victoria's biological family. Victoria is not a werewolf. As for the rest, I can say you're kind of close. Maybe this chapter will help a little in that department.
kafo521: Aww thank you! I feel like Damon is that kind of guy, like "Imma choke you out cuz you didn't help me" and then gives flowers with a weird note like "Glad you ain't dead :)". I felt like Caroline was better as a vampire as well; she really matures into it while Elena was just a big baby about it. Literally, Season 4 was basically "Let's save Elena because she can't handle being a vampire". Like girl, get over it. You get to spend eternity with your man.
DBZFAN45: Here's another Elena-style journal entry for you! There won't be some more for a little while (you'll understand why). Oh yeah, those digs make me giggle. To be honest, all of your little commentary makes me giggle (to just quote one part in your last review: "what a kinky girl you are Tori". I just about lost it there XD). Oh my gosh, "Schway" as in Batman Beyond? Are you a Batman Beyond fan too? Hmm, let's see, the EPS squad would probably be: Matt, Bonnie, Stefan, and Jeremy. Jenna would take on the same role as Kelly does for Victoria. Stefan would do double-duty. Oh yeah, Klatoria will be an amazing best friend duo (I have some sweet plans for the two of them) and I can't wait until Camille makes an appearance. She is so lovely and I'm sad to see that fans treated her so rudely. I am a Klaroline shipper, but still, you can fall in love with other people. I have some interesting things to say about the whole "Camille-Hayley-Caroline" romances with Klaus. Alaric and Tori will get some training done, but who will be training who and why? (And no, this is not a romantic ship either; just feel like I need to state that for safety purposes XD).
Guest: Your review is one of my favorites just cause you ship Victoria with a character who hasn't even arrived yet XD. I love gaining some Elijah fangirls. It rounds out the Salvatore brother fangirls real nicely. Oh, Victoria will have a lot on her plate. We haven't even gotten close to how much she's gonna have to deal with. And yeah, neither family is sunshine and roses. Both sets of children have made a crap ton of mistakes and have terrible issues to deal with. However, the Salvatores (primarily Damon), like you said, don't experience the consequences of their actions, while the Mikaelsons are forced to almost every waking moment when they're in Mystic Falls (even when they try to settle down and not cause trouble. Who causes trouble? The Mystic Falls Gang). So don't worry, everyone will be dealing with the consequences of their actions, whether that's through mental trauma and guilt or through actual consequences. And thank you!
I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Have a great week and I'll see you all on Friday. Please feel free to leave a comment, question, concern, or conspiracy theory in the reviews if you'd like!
Until next time!
BecomingFearless1F