Lost Girls - Part 3
It was as if time just froze. Victoria couldn't feel her body, she couldn't even feel her mind. She couldn't feel the cool wood under her feet and she couldn't feel the warm air in the house that was beginning to chill.
All she could do was stare at Vicki's helpless body lying on the floor, Damon cradling her in his arms. Vicki's lifeless body. Vicki's dead body.
She was dead. Everything that Victoria had been striving for. Everything she had been trying desperately to prevent for the entire two days she had been at the boarding house had been worthless. She had trusted Damon to keep his word, to keep her safe. Damon had broken his promise.
Victoria saw red.
"Get your hands off of her!" Victoria shrieked, flying down the hall. She fell to her knees on the other side of Damon and shoved him as hard as she could. Damon fell to the side, scrambling to catch himself before he collapsed onto the ground. Victoria reached out and grabbed Vicki before she could fall onto the ground too. Her neck flopped around, lifeless. There was such an utter look of fear in her eyes. Victoria's eyes watered as she adjusted the dead girl's body in her arms. "Vicki...Vicki, please wake up."
"Victoria..."
"Don't talk to me!" Victoria screamed, whipping her head around to glare at Damon. His expression was carefully guarded, but there was a tiny crack in his armor. She saw regret, she saw sadness, she saw pain. "You have lost any hope and chance to ever receive my help ever again. You are dead to me, Damon Salvatore. I trusted you. I trusted you, despite every worry I had and despite the fact that everything in me screamed to not leave you alone with her, and you killed her!" Her shoulders heaved as she panted. Her heart was pounding her chest. Was the room starting to swim? She couldn't tell. Vicki's body was still warm in her hands. Body. That's what she had been dwindled down to. She wasn't a person anymore, just an object. That made Victoria's blood boil. She let out a breathy sob as she clung to Vicki's body. "Vicki, Vicki, it's going to be okay now, okay? I got you."
"Victoria, it wasn't me."
"I said shut up!" Victoria yelled, squeezing her eyes shut. Damn it, tears. Tears and tears and more freaking tears. Would she ever stop crying? Would she ever be successful in her life in saving someone and it actually meaning something? "Why won't you just go away, Damon? Leave Mystic Falls. Everything has just fallen apart because you came here. Find some other people to mess with and just leave us alone."
"Victoria. It. Wasn't. Me." He enunciated each word clearly and stated them with such force that Victoria winced at the ferocity in his voice. "Someone broke in and killed her. I tried to stop it."
"Shut up."
"No, you need to know this. It wasn't me; it was -"
A loud gasp from Vicki cut him off, and it shocked Victoria so much that she flinched at the noise. Vicki's eyes, her beautiful green eyes, flashed around frantically as she tried to get reoriented. She tried to scramble out of Victoria's arms, and Victoria let her. Since Vicki was transitioning into a vampire, that meant that she was much stronger than Victoria, and she couldn't control her strength. Victoria had just gotten better, she didn't need to get reinjured.
Surprisingly, Vicki didn't make any moves to get that far away from them. Instead, she just scrambled out of Victoria's arms far enough that she could see both Victoria and Damon in her line of sight. "W-What happened? We were just t-there, and then..." She looked towards Damon for an answer, opening and closing her mouth fearfully. "W-What happened?"
Victoria noted that; it was odd and the dialogue from this particular scene (which she did remember because it was a very important scene in the show) was different than usual. And why was Vicki looking towards her killer for answers rather than Victoria? She couldn't help but feel slightly offended and worried about that.
"You're dead," Damon told her, his voice monotone and void of emotion.
Vicki's forehead scrunched in confusion and her gaze swung between the two people in front of her. "What?"
"You're dead."
"I-I'm dead?" Vicki gasped, shaking her head. "T-That's not possible. I-I was just fine and then that..."
"It's okay, Vicki," Victoria interrupted, holding her hands up gently in a non-threatening manner. Vicki's eyes swung back towards her and her gaze darkened a little. It was the bloodlust. Her blood smelled sweet but tasted nasty. It was tempting Vicki, but Victoria could see she was subconsciously holding back. Victoria was grateful for that, at least. "It's okay. I'm going to help you. This process is weird, I know, but I need you to trust me."
"You don't wanna be out there all alone," Damon added in, and Victoria swung her head around to glare at him. He didn't look at her, but instead kept his whole face focused on Vicki. "You're about to get really freaky, and it's dangerous."
"I just wanna go home," Vicki whispered, her eyes beginning to water. "I-I just wanna go home." Vicki rose to her feet and Victoria and Damon followed suit.
Victoria moved to offer her hand out to Vicki, to help her along, but Damon was at her side in a snap, his hand holding her wrist. Victoria snarled and tried to yank her hand away from him, but Damon held tight. Not tight enough to hurt, but enough that she wouldn't be able to move.
"You're gonna start craving blood, and until you get it, you're gonna feel very out of it," Damon snapped, yanking Victoria to his side. She growled at him and used her free hand to try and push herself away. It wasn't working, due to the fact that she was human and he was a freaking vampire! "You have to be careful, Vick."
"Let go of me, Damon," Victoria snapped, pulling even harder.
"I wasn't talking to you, Victoria," Damon spat, not looking down at her. His tone softened noticeably as he talked to Vicki, who looked like she was about to break down crying and punch something. Victoria hoped she would punch Damon, not like the baby vampire would be able to do much against Damon. "Vick, you have to control yourself. Everyone is going to start looking like a snack. You're going to want to drain them dry of their blood, and while that is going to satisfy your stomach, you're going to wake up from your bloodlust and realize what you've done. And then the city is going to come knocking down your door, wanting to stake you in the heart."
"Just let her go, please," Vicki whimpered, and her eyes grew slightly darker. The veins on her face were beginning to turn dark as well and she started to shake. She was having a hard time keeping herself under control. It must not have helped to see her murderer holding on to her friend.
"See? You're already starting to fall apart."
Victoria saw her opportunity. She brought her hand back away from Damon's chest and slipped it around her back. She slipped her hand into the waistband of her pants, grabbing the small tool she had kept hidden there. The moment she had heard Damon yelling from downstairs, Victoria had armed herself with one of the most effective weapons she could find in ten seconds. Victoria's fingers coiled around the cold and smooth object, and with a loud grunt, she whipped her arm around, slamming the number two pencil up into his neck.
Damon let out a bloody gasp and he let go of Victoria to stumble away. His hands moved to his neck and choking noises filled the room as he started to claw desperately at his neck. The blood that came pouring out of the wound and his mouth coated his fingers in blood, which made it ten times more difficult to grab the pencil.
"I told you I would stake you," Victoria snarled. She ran to Vicki and offered a hand out to her. Vicki grabbed it and Victoria began to pull both herself and Vicki out and away. On her way out of the boarding house, Victoria grabbed two umbrellas that was hanging in the entryway to the house and also a pair of sunglasses too. She tightened her hold on them the moment she and Vicki were outside of the door. "Vicki, I promise I will explain everything, but right now, we need to leave here. You can move really, really fast now, so I need you to take us somewhere where you feel safe."
"Where I feel safe," Vicki murmured, blinking her eyes softly as she rubbed her tears away. She nodded, and Victoria could see an idea forming in her eyes. "Okay, yeah."
Faster than Victoria anticipated, Vicki grabbed Victoria around the waist and Victoria found herself rapidly running through the sun, down streets of pavement and woods. Over the loud rush of the wind, Victoria could hear Vicki's skin sizzling from the sunlight, her whimpers getting louder and louder the closer they got into town. Victoria tried to whisper her condolences and words of encouragement, knowing that Vicki would hear her over the loud noises.
Vicki skidded to a halt on the sidewalk and Victoria was quick. She snapped open both umbrellas and brought them up, angling them so Vicki was casted in a large circle of shade. Vicki sighed in relief the moment the sun stopped shining on her, and Victoria offered out the sunglasses to Vicki. The younger teen slipped them onto her face, cooing appreciatively.
Victoria looked up and couldn't help but smile softly. They were in front of the Gilbert house. Jenna's car seemed to be gone from the driveway, and Victoria noticed that Elena's car was missing as well. She knew that Jeremy was still inside the house; Victoria had a plan for that. She knew from others' personal experience that the calmer a vampire was during the transitional phase, the less likely they were to lash out. If Vicki felt safe, then that would mean there was a lower chance of her eating Jeremy. Well, if she tried, Victoria would step in. She'd been eaten by one vampire already; what was another? She reached out and gently nudged Vicki, "Ooooh."
"Shut up," Vicki murmured. She whimpered lightly and pawed at her ears. "I-It's so loud."
"I know, honey," Victoria murmured. She nudged Vicki's waist and gently began to lead the girl up towards the Gilberts' house. She kept changing the angle of the umbrellas so Vicki would be ensured shade until they reached the porch. "Keep going, you're doing great."
They go up to the front door and she gestured for Vicki to knock. As she did that, Victoria checked to see that no sunlight was anywhere on the porch. They appeared to be safe so Victoria pulled the umbrellas away from Vicki, just as she heard Jeremy yell from inside, "I'm coming!" Vicki didn't flinch or burn, so Victoria quickly shut the umbrellas just as Jeremy opened the door.
"Hey," Vicki said, sounding kind of breathless. "The sun is killing me. My eyes are on fire."
"Where have you been?" Jeremy asked worriedly, looking over her.
"It's good. Everything's good."
Vicki surged forward and kissed Jeremy and Victoria twisted away. It was a private moment and she didn't need a show. She stayed there waiting until she heard Jeremy say, "Did something happen?", then she turned around. "Oh, Victoria, hi. Is everything okay?"
"It's a long story, Jeremy," Victoria said, wincing in an apology. "I swear I will tell you more about it later. Could you invite us in? I think that Vicki really needs somewhere dark and quiet to be."
"O-Of course," said Jeremy, still apparently shocked at their sudden appearance. And their appearances, given that Vicki kind of looked like she was hungover and Victoria was wearing a man's shirt that didn't belong to her. He stepped to the side and added, "Come on in."
Vicki was inside of the house in a flash (not a vampiric flash, just a normal human one) and she headed down the hall towards the kitchen, murmuring, "I'm hungry. What do you got to eat?"
"You're high?" Jeremy asked incredulously. He looked back towards Victoria in shock, who stepped inside the house and shut the door. She hung both umbrellas up by the front door and shook her head. Vicki wasn't high, at least she didn't think she was. Who knows what Vicki and Damon had done while Victoria was asleep? She didn't want to think about it. "Vicki, it's the middle of the day."
"Could you just not talk so loud?" Vicki pleaded, bringing a hand up to paw at her head. "My head, it hurts. I-I need quiet." She staggered off, disappearing from sight into the kitchen.
Jeremy was at Victoria's side in a moment. "What the hell is going on with her?"
"I found her passed out," Victoria explained, adding just enough truth to make her lie sound believable. "When she woke up, she was having such bad light sensitivity and everything was hurting. I gave her some spare sunglasses I had on me and I brought her here because she said she felt safe here."
"She...she feels safe here?" There was something that sounded like hope and awe in Jeremy's voice. Victoria smiled softly and nodded and Jeremy blushed, reaching up to scratch the back of his neck sheepishly. "O-Oh."
"Do you have Matt's number? I want to call him over. I think Vicki would feel better if he was here. Oh! And can I borrow your phone? I left mine at home."
"Of course, here. It's programmed in back from the days that Elena and Matt were dating." He tossed her his phone and headed down towards the kitchen. Victoria assumed to see how Vicki was doing.
Victoria scrolled through the numbers until she got to Matt's, and then she clicked the call button. She held the phone up to her ear and sighed with relief when she heard a click followed by, "Hey, Jer. What's up?"
"Hi Matt, it's Victoria."
Matt sounded slightly startled as he slowly said, "Hey, Tori, how are you? Why are calling me from Jeremy's phone?"
"Listen, I need you to come over to the Gilberts' house right now. It's Vicki."
"Where is she?" was the first thing that Matt said when Victoria opened the door to the Gilbert residence. Victoria stepped to the side and held the door open, gesturing for Matt to come in. "Tori, where is my sister?"
"Come this way," Victoria said softly, keeping her voice down. She had spent the past fifteen minutes trying to keep Vicki calm, and Jeremy had been helping some. Vicki had made her home in the kitchen, buried by the refrigerator. She claimed that it was the 'coolest spot in the house and it made her feel less warm'. Victoria had offered to go and grab some clothes from her house that Vicki could change into, but Vicki had started to mildly panic when she left her sight. The only reason Victoria had been able to answer the door for Matt was because she had told Vicki that she was answering the door for Matt.
"What's she on?" Matt asked in exasperation.
Victoria shook her head. "It's not drugs, Matt. As I told Jeremy, I found her passed out and I brought her here because she said that she felt safe here. I figured it would help her calm down."
She led Matt down the hallway and into the kitchen, gently rounding the corner so she wouldn't startle Vicki. Vicki was sitting with her back pressed up against one of the bottom cupboards, holding onto her knees for comfort. Jeremy sat beside her, giving her some space but still close enough that she could reach out and touch him if she wanted to.
Matt's whole persona softened when he saw his sister and he knelt down, putting himself at her level. Victoria followed suit, dropping down to her knees so she wasn't looming over the three of them. Matt reached forward gently and tapped Vicki's knee. Vicki flinched violently and her head whipped up. Tears came to her eyes the moment that she realized she was safe and that it was only Matt. Victoria's blood began to boil. How dare Damon. Did he honestly have no shame, no ounce of honesty in him? When she saw him next, she would be aiming straight for his heart. Screw Elena and his 'epic romance' he was supposed to have with her; Damon Salvatore was going to pay for what he did to Vicki.
"Hey, Vick," Matt cooed gently, setting his hand fully on her knee. Vicki shifted uncomfortably and Victoria frowned in sympathy. Her senses must have been going wild. It was like the worse sensory overload anyone could ever have. "How you doing?"
"Not good, Mattie," Vicki cried softly, reaching up to paw at her face. She moaned and her fingers trailed down from her eyes to her lips. "I hurt."
"Ok, where's it hurt?" Matt asked, keeping his voice low. It warmed Victoria's heart to see his interactions with his sister. He was so sweet and caring towards her.
"My gums," Vicki replied, pushing past her lips to finger her gums. Her pointer fingers trailed right where her vampire canines were hidden under her gums and she cried harder, "My jaw hurts. My gum...there's something in my gums and it hurts so badly." Victoria's heart ached hearing her cry.
"Ok, well -"
"- No!" Vicki snapped, leaping to her feet. Victoria, Matt, and Jeremy all fell backwards, taken aback by Vicki's sudden mood swing. She stomped past Victoria and Matt and started pacing by the dining table, her hands moving to tug at her hair. "Just leave me alone!"
"Come on, Vick, don't be like that," Matt insisted, jumping up. He offered a hand out to Victoria and she took it gratefully, murmuring a thank you as she directed her attention back towards the pacing baby vampire. "Let's get you home."
"Just turn it off!" Vicki cried, her hands moving to cover her ears. Jeremy and Matt looked at each other worriedly. Victoria couldn't blame them. Vicki, to the average person, seemed to be really tripping out.
"Turn what off?"
"The TV," Victoria ordered, pointing to the TV in the other room. "Vicki's having a sensory overload. We need to cancel out things that could aggravate her."
Jeremy nodded and raced towards the remote, which was sitting on the dining room table. Just as he scooped up the remote and went to press 'off', the man on the TV's voice caught all of their attention.
"...horribly. Three bodies were found dead in what is believed to be a drug deal gone awry. The bodies have yet to be identified. They were discovered earlier today over at the old Mystic Falls cemetery."
Jeremy's shock was evident as his body tensed up. He swiveled slowly where he was standing. His gaze flicked up to Vicki. "That's where we were last night."
Victoria did her best to block out the memories of that night, and she did pretty well. The smell of burning bodies still haunted her senses, but she was able to cover that up by turning away from everyone but Vicki. Vicki seemed so stressed, and her body shook as she looked at the TV. Like she couldn't believed what had happened. Her gaze whipped back to Victoria and Victoria wished she could do more to comfort Vicki. The baby vampire was volatile, though, and Victoria had just come back from near death. She wasn't interested in actually reaching death. Well, now that she thought about it, not like she would. Damon's blood from yesterday was still running through her and probably would for another few hours or so.
"What happened, Vic?" Matt breathed.
"...homicide, and are fast under way looking for suspects. They're asking anyone with information..."
"I'm calling the cops," Matt decided, and Victoria moved to catch his wrist. Vicki moved and caught his other one, and the two girls trapped Matt from moving.
"No, don't!" Vicki pleaded, and Victoria nodded her head in agreement.
"Trust me, Matt, it's not worth it."
"What happened after I left last night?" Jeremy demanded, moving to grab Vicki's other hand.
Vicki flinched and turned, shoving Jeremy away. However, she didn't take into account her newfound strength. Jeremy went flying backwards, slamming into the far wall inside of the living room. Matt tugged his hand out of Victoria's grip and raced towards the fallen Gilbert, dropping to his side. Victoria moved quickly, grabbing Vicki's wrists and tugging her so the teenager was looking at her. "Vicki, look at me! It's okay, I swear, it's okay. Jeremy's okay, I need you to take a deep breath and calm yourself."
"I-I don't know what happening to me," Vicki whimpered. Her tremors were getting stronger and stronger and Victoria had a feeling that she was close to passing out. Odd, yes, considering she was now a vampire with speed healing, but still. It must be a quirk of transitioning. "I-I was fine and t-then you were there and Damon too and..."
"Shh, I know, honey, I know," Victoria cooed, lowering her voice. Vicki seemed to relax a little at her lowered volume. "It's so scary and everything's overwhelming you, but I need you to breathe and to try and relax. Remember: you're safe here. He can't hurt you. I won't let him."
"No, no, no, no, no, no," Vicki mumbled continually under her breath. Her shaking got worse again and Victoria tightened her grip on Vicki's wrists, trying to ground her to the reality.
It did the exact opposite, however.
Vicki's eyes flared red momentarily and the back of her hand jerked, slapping Victoria across the face. Take back what Victoria had said about being punched by Tyler. Vicki's slap was much worse. Victoria hadn't anticipated how strong she would be. Much stronger than a human male she considered to be "strong" could be. The momentum from the slap sent Victoria through the air. How the hell the physics lined up to accomplish that, Victoria didn't have much time to ponder. One moment she was flying through the air away from Vicki, the next she was slamming into the top cupboards of the Gilbert house. The wind was knocked out of Victoria and she let out a strangled gasp as she fell to the floor. Her head smacked against the ground and she gritted her teeth as stars filled her vision. The spacey and achy feeling that she was too acquainted with returned and Victoria stared up at the ceiling, feeling dazed. Her body felt numb, momentarily, and it was almost like she was too aware of her head. Like she could feel every single hair in her scalp and she could feel muscles twitching in her forehead even when she wasn't moving her face.
She thought she heard Matt yell something at Vicki, but the noise was muted in her ears. There was a creaking noise and something that sounded like keys jingling. It was hard to tell. She let out a moan as her head began to ache something fierce. Welp. That sucked. Mental reminder to never get thrown into a kitchen cabinet again. Not worth it.
"What was that?" Victoria heard someone ask. Her heart skipped a beat and she let out a little sigh of relief. Stefan. He was there. They would be fine. Vicki would be fine. He would keep the two girls safe from Damon. She had missed him so much in the two days she hadn't seen him. If she wasn't feeling so spacey, she might have cried. "Jeremy, Matt, who else is here?"
"Oh shit! Victoria!" she heard Matt yell, and there was a pounding of feet as multiple people entered the kitchen. She tilted her head up, watching as two people came into her view, although they were both upside down.
She managed a smile and whispered, "Hey Elena. Stefan. How was your weekend?" The obvious look of relief on Stefan's face when he saw her made Victoria's chest flush with heat and she felt as though she blushed. She couldn't really tell. Everything was still fuzzy (though it was getting better). "Now, I'm pretty sure I'm concussed, so it would be wonderful if you two could help me up. And maybe get me a trash can?"
Elena rushed out of sight and Stefan came to her side, dropping down to his knees beside her. He grabbed her by her shoulders and helped her to sit up. He angled her so her back was up against the bottom cabinets. He held a hand behind her head so she would have somewhere comfortable to rest it and she gave him a look of gratitude.
Quietly, Stefan whispered to her, "Are you okay? Besides the obvious, I mean."
Victoria's heart skipped a beat, and she bit her lower lip. She wasn't sure she could answer that question without crying. Because she didn't need to cry. She needed to be strong for Vicki. She had cried enough. Victoria could cry tomorrow. Today was about Vicki. So, to answer Stefan's question, she just shrugged.
Elena came around Victoria's other side, a small trash can in her hands. She placed the can in front of Victoria and Victoria murmured a thank you to the Gilbert girl. Victoria closed her eyes momentarily, her body relaxing as her headache calmed itself.
"Victoria, what happened?" Stefan asked. Victoria forced her eyes open and her head flopped a little towards Stefan's side, so she could look at him without really having to turn her head. "What is going on?"
"Vicki started to panic," Victoria admitted, shaking her head. "I tried to calm her down and in the end, I think I made it worse. She hit me. Well, slapped me is more accurate. She wasn't in control of her strength, which is why I'm over here when I started over there." She jerked her head gently towards the other side of the island. Victoria flopped her head back to the other side and gave Elena a remorseful look. "Sorry about your cabinets."
"We can get them fixed," Elena reassured her, reaching a hand out to gently place it on her knee. "Don't worry about it." She sat back against the island and looked at both Stefan and Victoria, her eyes blinking owlishly as she just took the two of them in. "I-I just can't wrap my head around it all. And you've known? All this time?" That last part was directed towards Victoria, who gave a little nod. "Why didn't you tell me? Does anyone else know?"
"No, just me," Victoria said, swallowing heavily. Her bones were beginning to ache and she shifted where she was sitting, trying to get comfortable. "A-And there is a very complicated reason why I haven't told you, but we can't focus on that right now. Right now we have to worry about Vicki." She looked back towards Stefan, nodding for him to give the explanation.
Elena followed her gaze towards her boyfriend. "You know what's wrong with Vicki?"
"Yeah."
"What is it?"
"She's transitioning," Stefan admitted.
"Transitioning into what?" Elena demanded.
"A vampire."
"What?" Elena all but shrieked. Victoria gave her a look that told her to quiet down, and Elena gritted her teeth, taking a deep breath and restating in a quieter, yet still fierce, "What?"
"Damon got to her," Victoria said. She sucked in a shaky breath and blinked rapidly to keep herself from crying. "I messed up and he said that he would keep her safe and he lied and then he had the audacity to try and lie to me about that..." She shook her head, hissing when her head began to ache. Stefan tugged lightly at the tips of her hair, doing his best to draw her mind away from past events. Victoria sent him a look that said thank you before she looked back towards Elena. "She's new to everything. She hasn't finished her transformation yet."
"Well, how does Vicki finish it?"
"She has to feed on human blood," Stefan interjected.
"And what happens if she doesn't?"
"She'll die," Stefan hummed, glancing towards the entryway to the kitchen. "She may only have a few hours." He turned back to Victoria. "How long ago did she die?"
"I don't know the exact timing," Victoria admitted. "I was exhausted and Damon promised to watch over her while I slept. I only woke up to him shouting and when I got to living room, he was holding her dead body in his arms. We've been here at the Gilbert house for a while now, best guess would be a couple of hours."
Stefan nodded, processing the information. "More time than I originally pinned for her, but if you add in other factors, like exposure to sunlight, stress, she may only have a few hours."
Elena's eyes widened dramatically and her head snapped to the side as she looked towards the kitchen entryway. She looked back at Stefan and Victoria and the adult-turned-teen could see the growing panic in Elena's eyes. "She's upstairs with Jeremy and Matt right now!"
"It's okay," Stefan cooed, moving away from Victoria to comfort his girlfriend. Victoria immediately missed the heat from Stefan's hand as she watched the Civil War vampire calm down Elena. "Vicki doesn't know what's happening to her yet." He glanced at Victoria for confirmation and Victoria gave him a sharp nod. She hadn't told Vicki anything yet; she figured it would be better if she and Stefan tag-teamed her. "Okay, so Vicki is still fresh."
"When is she gonna know?" Elena asked, turning to Victoria for an explanation.
Victoria took a deep breath. "Right now, she doesn't remember much of anything. The transition from human to vampire can be like that sometimes. Vicki's still part human now. As the transition continues, as she becomes more and more like a vampire, the memories from before her death will start to come back. Then, she'll have to make the choice of whether she continues the transition or she dies."
"Is that the same choice you made?" Elena asked to Stefan, and Stefan gave her a short nod.
A sharp crack filled the air, and Stefan and Elena leapt to their feet. Stefan raced out of the kitchen, at a more normal pace, while Elena helped Victoria to her feet. Victoria hissed as the room tilted dangerously, but thanks to her firm grip on Elena's arm and the island, she was able to remain standing. Stefan came marching back into the room a moment later. "Vicki took off. Matt's going out to search for her, Jeremy's upstairs in his room. I can track her."
"No need," Victoria grumbled, blinking rapidly to see if the room would stop moving. It finally did, much to her surprise. I guess that old wives' tale of blinking your eyes a lot will help stop dizziness. Who'd have thunk? "I know where she's heading."
"How the hell do you know that?" Elena asked incredulously. Victoria waved her off.
"Yeah, that's the thing I have to tell you about later. Stefan, as much as I hate to say this, I'm going to need some of your blood."
"Excuse me?" Elena shrieked. It was loud next to her ear.
It was going to be a long night.
Victoria and Stefan ended up taking Elena's car (with her permission, of course). Stefan's blood, which he had kindly offered up to her in a glass, was doing wonders for her head and she felt right as rain five minutes after they started driving. It also helped that she was finally wearing clothes that fit her (Elena had been so kind as to offer her a pretty dark blue sundress for Victoria to borrow). Victoria mentioned the old cemetery to Stefan once they were on the road, and Stefan nodded, saying, "Yep. I know where she's heading."
The two drove in silence for a couple of minutes afterwards, before Stefan let out a sharp sigh. Victoria glanced over at him worriedly. There was tension in his shoulders and he was gripping the steering wheel as tightly as he could without breaking the machinery. Victoria bit her lower lip in empathy and reached out, gently laying a hand on Stefan's shoulder. He tensed up even more for just a moment before his body began to relax. He let out another sigh, but this one was longer and deeper, as if he was releasing all of the tension in his soul.
"I was so worried about you," Stefan revealed in a sharp whisper. There was such raw emotion in his words that Victoria's eyes widened in disbelief when she heard him speak. "I-I came home and there was just blood...everywhere. And you weren't there, a-and Zach hadn't seen you."
"Is Zach alright? Did he choose to transition?" Victoria asked fervently, sitting up straighter in her seat.
Stefan shot her a glance of confusion before he looked back towards the road. He nodded. "Yeah, he's fine. He found blood and drank it. I'm hiding him at one of the old Salvatore logging mills hidden away in the forest. Most people have forgotten about it, so I'm hoping that Damon is the same way."
"Whose blood did he drink? Don't vampires need to drink human blood in order to sustain their transition...?" Stefan shot her a look and Victoria's brow furrowed before her eyes widened suddenly. "Oh."
"Yeah, oh," Stefan repeated. "Definitely wasn't his first choice in meals, but the smell of your blood is...rather intoxicating."
"T-Thank you?" Victoria stammered, but it came out more of a question. "Okay, so Zach's good. That's good. I wasn't able to see him after...events went down. Damon kept me up in his bedroom while he searched the house for his ring." She eyed Stefan. "You did get that, right?"
"I have read Lord of the Rings, thank you," Stefan snorted, rolling his eyes. "It's in my pocket."
"Good, because as much as I want to stake Damon in the heart, the more we can put him at ease, the better," Victoria huffed. She leaned back in her seat and folded her arms across her chest. "If he's calmer, than he's less likely to kill us all."
"What happened, Victoria?" Stefan questioned, his voice softening as he turned the car towards the wood. Trees and bushes began to pass them, the light outside growing darker and darker. The day had been moving much faster than Victoria had anticipated. Had she been at the Gilbert house that long? Really? "There was no way you could have possibly survived being drained off that much blood...and you said you didn't change."
"I messed up," Victoria admitted quietly, leaning her head tiredly against the headrest of her seat. "I forgot that Caroline was supposed to come in and set Damon free. I wasn't prepared and because of that, Damon killed Zach and then he drained me of blood because he was so thirsty. He..." Tears sprung up to Victoria's eyes and she growled angrily under her breath, swiping at her eyes aggressively. "I'm so done with crying. It's not cool, universe!" She shouted that last part up at the ceiling. More gently, she added, "I thought I was dead until I woke up in Damon's bed. He had a towel with water for me and my shirt was different, because the last one had gotten bloodstains. He kept me upstairs until it got dark outside and then he took me to the old cemetery, where there were a bunch of druggies with Vicki. H-He...he forced me to watch them and then we started getting angry and he stormed off and I was taking care of Vicki. But then he came back and suddenly he was fine. Almost...repentant. He helped me get Vicki back to the boarding house and he washed off the blood that I gotten on myself. He helped me convince Kelly that I was fine and then he seemed like he was honestly going to watch over her while I slept." She let out a frustrated shout, which Stefan seemed to anticipate because he didn't swerve at all. "Damn it all, I should have used my stupid favor!"
"Favor?"
"Night of the comet, Damon was trying to get back into my good graces and he...he asked what he could do that would make me give him a chance. I told him to give me one favor; he couldn't fight me on it. Whatever I asked for with that favor, he had to do."
"Why didn't you use it?"
Victoria sighed and looked away. She couldn't say it to Stefan's face without getting even more emotional. "It's saved for some time else. Someone else. I-I...I just had to trust that Damon would fulfill his promises. Guess...Guess I screwed up there too."
Stefan didn't say anything else as they finished up the drive. Whether he was too busy thinking about what Victoria had said or was silently blaming her, Victoria didn't know. What she did know was that she blamed herself. She blamed herself that she hadn't stayed strong in Damon's presence. That she hadn't resisted her need for comfort. That she had fallen prey to Damon's wicked schemes. Well, no more. She was going to save Vicki, because that girl was worth it.
And she was going to stake Damon in the heart. Because he deserved it.
Stefan threw the car into park and hopped out. Victoria followed suit. However, before she could say or do anything, she found herself enveloped in the arms of Stefan Salvatore. His face was pressed tightly against her neck and his arms were wrapped firmly around her waist. Victoria blushed furiously, but returned Stefan's hug. Both Salvatore brothers were great huggers. Stefan let out a large breath and Victoria reached up with one of her hands, rubbing her thumb against the baby hairs on his neck. He seemed to relax even more under her touch. Tenderly, Stefan murmured against her skin, "I'm so glad you're okay."
His lips would occasionally brush against Victoria's neck when he spoke, and Victoria silently pleaded with the universe that her heart wasn't beating at an embarrassing rate. She replied in a breathy voice, "M-Me too." You know, because she's an awkward idiot. Stefan pulled out of the hug, his chest rumbling as he laughed, and he offered out his hand to her. Victoria grabbed it and she allowed Stefan to lead her to the cemetery. The moon provided the only light in the darkness, as Stefan had turned off the car so he wouldn't scare Vicki off. Victoria kept a firm grip on Stefan's hand so she wouldn't end up lost. The vampire led her quickly through the woods, but took time to warn Victoria if there was a branch or a rock that she should watch out for. She was grateful to him for that.
They reached the familiar clearing where the burning bodies had been, and Victoria was grateful that the police department had taken the bodies away. There were still charred marks on the ground; ashes of people and leaves were scattered across the clearing. And sitting on the steps of the Salvatore crypt, looking ready to run off and panic before running off again to panic once more, was Vicki.
"Vicki," Victoria breathed, and Vicki's head snapped up, looking towards Victoria. The girl's body relaxed once she connected eyes with Victoria.
"Blankie," she sniffled, her eyes beginning to water again. "I-I'm starting to remember things. W-What he is," she jerked her head towards Stefan, "what he said. I-I remember you and S-Stefan. The hospital, the...the rooftop, the house. It's all coming back to me."
"I'm so sorry," Stefan stated. He tugged Victoria with his hand and led the pair closer and closer towards Vicki. Vicki didn't show off any signs of aggression, which made Victoria's heart warm. Maybe things were going to be okay. "Damon had no right to do this to you."
Vicki's brow furrowed in confusion and she looked between Victoria and Stefan. She stammered, "D-Damon what?"
"Damon was the one to turn you," Victoria explained gently. She reached the steps and let go of Stefan's hand, kneeling down so she was in front of Vicki. Vicki watched her with disbelief. "At the boarding house, while I was asleep."
"No, he didn't."
Hold up, what?
Victoria blinked and tilted her head to one side, shooting Stefan a look. Stefan returned her look with one that said 'I-have-no-idea-what-she's-talking-about'. Looking back towards Vicki, Victoria said slowly again, "Yes, Vicki. Damon was the one who attacked you in the woods the other night. He healed you when I was asleep and then he attacked you. Remember? I was there when you woke up this morning."
"Damon didn't hurt me while you were asleep," Vicki insisted, and Victoria shook her head in slight exasperation.
"You're hurt and transitioning. This hazy confusion is going to wear off soon, so we'll come back to this discussion later -"
"- B-But Damon said that I needed to feed," Vicki interrupted. She looked at Stefan with wild eyes. "What will happen if I don't?"
Stefan's answer was honest, but not unkind. "You'll fade quickly. And then...it'll all just be over."
"I'll be dead," Vicki clarified. It wasn't a question; it was a statement. Stefan nodded and tears erupted in Vicki's eyes. Victoria shot up to Vicki's side, wrapping an arm around the girl's shoulders comfortingly. She didn't pull the girl inside her side, like she might have done if this was Bonnie, Elena, or Caroline. Victoria didn't want to tempt Vicki in that way. She was human, and given Stefan's, Damon's, and she guessed Zach's indirect, statement towards how delicious her blood smelled, she didn't want to risk being attacked by a vampire again.
"Hey," Stefan whispered, coming up a few steps. He rested a hand gently against Vicki's knee as the girl continued to cry.
"I don't want this," Vicki cried, bringing her hands up to cradle her face.
"I know, honey, I know," Victoria cooed, rubbing Vicki's back soothingly. "And I know this really freaking sucks. But you know what? It'll all be okay. You're going to be okay. I'm here to help you and Stefan will help you. Stefan's one of the best fixers I know."
The two of them caught each other's eyes and Stefan mouthed a 'thank you' to Victoria. She nodded in response, ducking her head back behind Vicki's to hide the blush that was gracing her cheeks. She really needed to stop having this reactions around him. It was starting to get embarrassing.
"Is it better?" Vicki demanded, looking towards Stefan once again. "Is it better? Will I be better?" When Stefan couldn't answer, Vicki sniffled, "I-I wanna go home. Can I just go home?"
"Of course," Victoria agreed, pulling her head away from Vicki's. She reached up and gently ran her hand through the younger teen's hair. Vicki seemed to enjoy that and her eyes fluttered shut. "Stefan can take you right back to your house."
"No," Vicki said, her eyes shooting open. She shook her head firmly and looked towards Victoria with innocent eyes. "That's not my home. I wanna be with you and Kelly."
Gunshots. Loud banging noises that echoed throughout the silence of the woods interrupted whatever thoughts, feelings, or words Victoria would have said to Vicki in that moment of heartfelt love. Stefan let out shouts of pain as he stumbled away from the two girls, his hand moving to cradle his chest. Blood poured out of the small hole, making his already dark shirt appear even darker. Vicki let out a shriek of shock, and Victoria flinched, not anticipating the gunshots.
Once again, her memory was failing her. First, she forgot about Caroline coming to set Damon free. Now, she had forgotten about Logan Fell and his stupid quest from the Council?
Speaking of Scum Fell...
The man in question stepped out of the tree line, a pistol pointing down towards Stefan's chest. The barrel was smoking in the little light that Victoria had. Logan's eyes seemed wide, as if he couldn't just believe that he had done that, and he holstered the gun, moving to wrap his fingers around the crudely built wooden stake in his far side pocket. Stefan grunted on the ground, his breathing labored as he stared up at the man above him. The man who was about to take his life.
Not if Victoria had anything to say about it.
"No!" she shouted, leaping to her feet. She let go of Vicki and found herself flying towards Logan. Victoria knew that she was relatively strong; dancing did do some glorious things for her legs and abs. However, she knew she wasn't stronger than Logan. But she was lighter and she did know a thing or two about balance.
Victoria jumped onto Logan, her legs wrapping themselves around his waist. Her hands grabbed the front of his jacket, and once she was securely on him, Victoria threw herself to the side. Adding her oddly shaped mass to Logan changed his center of gravity, making it easy to send him falling. And fall he did. Victoria was able to keep her body momentum moving enough that Logan fell, twisted, and ended up with his back to the ground, Victoria standing above him triumphantly.
Victoria stepped off of Logan, knowing she only had a few moments before Logan would be up and moving again. She had winded him, that was all. Victoria took a step towards Stefan, but something grabbed her ankle and pulled. Victoria, not anticipating the surprise attack, let out a yelp of shock as her legs were pulled out from underneath her. She slammed into the ground, gasping as the wind was knocked out of her. Sticks, rocks, and the horrendously random pinecone cut into her skin and she hissed as the burning feeling that scattered throughout her body. She pushed herself up onto her elbows, doing her best to try to take deep breaths. Logan was on his knees now and he reached out for Victoria again. She scrambled backwards, and his hands ended up catching her anklet. He tugged and Victoria hissed as a gentle snap echoed in the clearing.
Logan didn't even spare a glance towards the anklet he had torn off of Victoria's ankle. He tossed it to the side without a care in the world and Victoria found herself watching the anklet arch through the moonlight before disappearing. That moment of distraction was all the time that Logan needed to grab her ankle again and to pull. She let out a shout as she was pulled quickly against the forest floor. Logan jumped onto Victoria, straddling her to keep her from moving around. What is it with grown men and trying to kill me in this exact position? Victoria growled to herself. She flailed underneath Logan, but the reporter simply batted her hands away from her.
She managed to sneak past his arms and her fingernails caught on the man's cheek. She yanked down towards herself and Logan let out a yell of pain as four bright scratch marks appeared on his face. The look that he gave her was murderous and Victoria screamed as Logan grabbed her wrists tightly in his hand. He pinned her arms up over her head and the situation was so eerily like the moment she had had with Damon the day before that Victoria found herself beginning to hyperventilate.
"And here we thought there was only one vampire in this town," Logan sneered. Using his free hand, he lifted the wooden stake high in the air. Victoria could hear Stefan yelling at Logan to stop, that she wasn't one of them. Victoria just continued to struggle against Logan, her eyes watering with fear as she waited for Logan to slam his stake down.
Logan let out a gurgle as Damon suddenly appeared, his canines slamming dramatically into Logan's neck. Damon's arms wrapped around Logan's chest, yanking the older man off of Victoria's body. Victoria let out a sobbing gasp, scrambling away from the scene as she watched Damon drain Logan of his blood. It was a horrid scene to observe, but Victoria couldn't find the strength to look away. Damon's eyes glowed a shade of evil red as he drank from Logan, and he didn't show any signs of stopping. Just as quickly as it had begun, it ended. Damon let go of Logan and pushed him to the ground, a bloody mess surrounding the bite mark on his neck.
Victoria turned her gaze away from the body and looked into Damon's eyes. The red was fading away into icy-blue, and his veins were disappearing as he hid his vampiric features. He looked at her, his gaze holding a strong emotion that Victoria couldn't identify. He looked away quickly and moved to his brother's side. He knelt down and made quick work of the wooden bullets embedded deep into the younger Salvatore's chest. He also pointedly ignored the cries of pain from Stefan as he did so, even though the noises made Victoria cry harder. "It's wood. They know that you're a vampire. If anyone's gonna kill you, it's gonna be me. Now, where's my ring?"
Victoria spotted Vicki at the last second, moving around the outsides of the clearing to get to where Logan's bloody body was. Victoria opened her mouth to try and deter the young girl from drinking, but it was too late. Vicki was the huntress and Logan was the prey. Within seconds, Vicki was on top of Logan's body, her vampire canines buried deep where Damon's had been only a few moments before.
Stefan spotted this too and cried out, "No! Vicki, stop!"
It was in vain. Vicki drank as much as she wanted and when she finished, she pulled her head up and observed the chaos of what she had just done. The shock of it all caused her vampire features to disappear. Her eyes widened in fear and she panted, her shoulders heaving up and down. She sucked in a sharp breath in through her nose and her vampiric features flashed back up onto her face. And her gaze turned slowly, like a snake's, until her eyes were staring straight at Victoria. More specifically, the cuts that had little droplets of blood on her arms.
"Shit."
Vicki was flying through the air towards her in a moment. In the next moment, she saw Stefan and Damon beginning to move, but they were too far away. The following moment, she felt Vicki's arms around her torso, picking her up. In a flash, the two of them were running through the woods, hearing the cries of "Tori!" and "Mama Bear!" coming from the Salvatore brothers.
A/N: This chapter feels a little clunky, but I wrote it a little too quickly, so oh well. I hope you all enjoy it; Victoria blames Damon for what happened to Vicki even though it was Raphael's fault, and why did Vicki grab Victoria and run? We'll find out in the next few chapters, where we will get to see some original work between this episode and the fateful Halloween episode.
Just a friendly public service announcement: I know y'all are super sweet and would never do this (no one could love Victoria so wholeheartedly and do this), but just a friendly reminder to always be kind to any worker who is serving you. I know they're paid to do so, but if they're serving you with a positive attitude, don't be snasty. My first "official" day working at my second job (aka two days ago), I had a lady call me a bitch because I asked her if she wanted a receipt. Like, that's not cool y'all. So, make sure to always be kind. Compliments never hurt nobody :). Think of it like this: WWKSTY (What Would Kelly Say To You)? Do you wanna make Mama Kelly-Beans upset with how you act? No? There's your answer ;)
THE SHIPPING WARS! (feel free to keep on voting; 1 full point for one ship, two half points for two separate ships. Half pointers will be italicized):
Team Stetoria {Victoria/Stefan} (2): insert name here XD, sammyleann's dad, TikiKiki
Team Datoria/Viamon {Victoria/Damon} (3): Sciave, Guest, ArganRose
Team Vilijah {Victoria/Elijah} (11.5): guest, Guest, SoraLover987142, insert name here XD, sammyleann, Orange keys 25, LoyalElijahFangirl, Hinata Megumi, A. G Herz, Aryabloodlust, ferallahey, AngelColdHeart
Team Klatoria {Victoria/Klaus} (1.5): Tayla141, TikiKiki
Team Koltoria {Victoria/Kol} (1): DreamerPop
If it so pleases any of you, I have found theme songs for each of the ships that I feel really connects with the characters involved in the ships, so please feel free to listen to them to get in the mood; if you have any song recommendations for the ships, please leave a review. Maybe we'll have our own playlist!:
TEAM STETORIA: "Unconditionally" by Katy Perry (the acoustic version)
TEAM DATORIA/VIAMON: "Animals (Epic Trailer Version)" by J2
TEAM VILIJAH: "Be Here For You" by Sam Tinnesz
TEAM KLATORIA: "Can You Hold Me?" by NF feat. Britt Nicole
TEAM KOLTORIA: "Dear Future Husband" by Meghan Trainor
New Followers!: avimingers, AndrewJS, liamrodhudson331, NotMyBurden, Jordankim482
New Favoriters!: Diksha Tolani, liamrodhudson331, Megallina
Y'all, we've also have hit 126 Reviews, 148 Followers, 105 Favoriters, in 1 Community, and over 13.2k+ views! We are rocking this story out!
Onto reviews (there's a lot)!:
LoyalElijahFangirl: Aww shucks, thanks ;). I hoped you didn't see that coming. That was my biggest plot twist so far. I guess he kind of does have an overprotective parent vibe. You are romanticizing it just a touch; there's a far more insidious reason behind it all, but there is some elements you've mentioned still there. Just remember the words: En el nombre del Cruxifijo.
Guest: Hmmm, that would have been a good idea XD. Nah, no guardian angel business (or avenging angel. Avenging Angels, assemble! XD). Hmm, I wonder too. You won't know about Noble's connection until the next chapter, if he does know or if he doesn't. Aw thank you!
DBZFAN45: AHH! You reference Buffy so much that I honestly do need to sit down and watch it so I'll understand more, cuz I feel like I would understand the connections so much better. Yeah, he wasn't able to explain it very well, obviously. The heavy conversation with accusations from Elena haven't happened yet (aka her being upset that Victoria knew) as they were under pressing circumstances. We'll get there. Yeah, Damon is definitely more of an anti-hero rather than an actual villain (that would fall to people such as Katherine). 2nd Amendment: Oh my gosh, that little tidbit at the end sounds so much like a conversation those two might actually have XD. Tori and Klaus will have some awesome interactions, but I cannot say if there will be some romantic elements or if it'll all be platonic. Gotta stay tuned ;)
ferallahey: Ugh, I love Teen Wolf. Papa Derek is my favorite, followed by Pack Mom Stiles, and sweet little Baby Isaac. Hmm, guess you'll have to wait and find out! Both reactions are pretty reasonable. Hmmm, yeah, a vow seems more likely in this kind of story. Once again, just wait ;)
sammyleann: That was my intention! Now you don't know how to feel! Mwahaha!
BookwormStrawberry: Hmmm...is he or is he not? Just gotta wait to find out.
Megane: Aww thank you so much! That is so sweet of you! Thank you so much for doing that. You are so sweet :)
AngelColdHeart: Your vote has been taken into account!
Lime: No worries! Oh my gosh, I love that line. I totally forgot about it. His nicknames are my favorite part in writing his character. I kind of see Kol as being late teens (like 18 or 19, yeah). Oh, that couple is so random but I absolutely adore them. It's gonna be great :). Hmmmmm...interesting. Feel free to see how things play out before you vote (also, you can change your vote or rescind your vote at any time). A lot of people are between Stefan and Elijah (a character who hasn't even come into this story yet XD. Y'all make me laugh so much). Yeah, a couple of people have mentioned wanting that relationship with Damon. Yeah, what will good old Raphy say to Victoria? Oh trust me, Lime-a-bean, I got plenty of more nicknames in me. It's the Damon in me (the nap was actually kind of iffy cuz I had nightmares. Like, nightmares. in a nap. is that even possible?)
This author's note is kind of rushed cuz I really have to go get ready for rehearsals but I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Next chapter will be up next Saturdays (once a week is how we'll be doing things for a while until this show ends).
Love y'all and please leave a comment, question, concern, or conspiracy theory if you so desire.
Stay safe and stay healthy!
BecomingFearless1F