A Few Good Men - Part 3

Damon first heard the telltale footsteps of Elena Gilbert (or, as he liked to call her, McJudgey; not to be confused with Judgey, aka Bonnie Bennett) entering Stefan's domain (read: bedroom) when he had just finished brushing his fangs. He smirked into the mirror and grabbed his shirt that was lying on the bathroom countertop. He threw it in a bundle over his shoulder. He found great pleasure in messing with her. She just made it too easy. He found that while she bore a striking resemblance to his once and former true love, there was something in her essence that was lacking. That little spark that really stood out to him. Truth be told, she was boring. She didn't strike Damon as all that interesting. It was way more fun to rile her up and get her red-faced and upset. Of course, he would probably be warranted a stern-talking to from Victoria, but it'd be worth it.

"Stefan?" Damon heard Elena call out for his brother. She must have thought that Stefan was the one in the bathroom. Made sense; Damon was taking over his bathroom, after all.

"Better," Damon replied, striding out of the bathroom with a confident swagger. Elena took one look at him and frowned, eyeing his shirtless torso with something akin to disgust and repulsion. It had a similar appearance to the look that Victoria used to give him. However, even Damon knew that Victoria looked at his body with some respect in regards to his rather fine collection of muscles. Another reason why he liked Victoria better. He gave Elena his signature smirk, as Victoria liked to call it and accented his next statement with a little pump of his eyebrows. "Me."

Elena cleared her throat and it seemed as though she was trying very hard to keep her eyes up and on his own. Damon had to mentally applaud the effort. He knew he was an impressive specimen. "You look...um..."

"Dashing?" Damon suggested, a slight slur in his words. It wasn't that noticeable unless you looked for it. That was to be expected anyways when one drank as much bourbon as he had since Victoria left with the teenager earlier that day. He wondered where she was right then. He would rather take his Mama Bear's company over McJudgey's any day of the week. "Gorgeous? Irresistible?"

Damon stalked forward, getting all up in Elena's space. The air of awkwardness that radiated around Elena grew and her heart picked up its pace. There was a scent of fear in the air and a malicious smile came into Damon's face. It had been a bit since he had had blood straight from the vein. It was rather tempting. He looked down at her and licked his lips. That action alone sent Elena's heart fluttering even more and she pushed him back. He smirked. He was apparently "too close" to her.

"Wrecked," Elena corrected, clearing her throat. She sent him another look of disgust. "You look wrecked."

"No reason why," Damon snorted, staggering off to stand in front of Stefan's wardrobe. He flicked the door open, revealing the mirror hidden away on the inside of the door. He slipped his arms through the shirt sleeves, adjusting the shoulders of the button up. He sent Elena a glance through the mirror. "Do you know that I am one of Mystic Falls' most eligible bachelors?"

"Huh."

"Yep."

Very faintly, from far down the hall (closer to Stefan's side of the upstairs), he heard Zach snort in amusement. "You're not the only Salvatore going to be there, Uncle Damon. Stop being a special snowflake."

Damon flipped around and glared towards the door, as if Zach could see him. His nephew had been thoroughly convinced that he was to attend the raffle that night as a bachelor as well. Apparently, the town of Mystic Falls couldn't get enough of the Salvatore energy.

Elena seemed confused as to what Damon was looking at and turned to look between the door and Damon. She raised a hand to ask what he was doing, but Damon just rolled his eyes, so she dropped it.

Instead, she asked, "How are you doing?"

"Never better. Yep," came Damon's lame reply.

Damon turned back towards the mirror and started to button up his shirt. Which, for the record, was a lot harder than it looked when everything seemed to be appearing in threes. "What can I do for you? I'm a barrel of favors today. It's my newfound purpose: how can I help people?"

"I'm just meeting Stefan," Elena answered, folding her arms across her chest. "We're going to the fundraiser together."

"Neat," sniffed Damon, cursing under his breath when he couldn't get all the buttons lined up correctly. He muttered some crude words in Italian that would have made his Mama Bear blush and unbuttoned all of them. He tried again once they were all done, this time slower and with a more precise touch. "Mama Bear probably would be my non-official date to this thing if I knew where the heck she was."

"You haven't seen her?" Elena questioned, her eyes widening. Damon took note of that reaction and hid it away.

Instead, he answered shortly, "No. She left this morning; said she had to run an errand."

"She came with me and Caroline to Grove Hill," Elena muttered, swallowing heavily. Her hands clenched up, hidden away in her arms, and Damon decided he didn't like that reaction. It did not bode well. "I-I was looking for information about my mom. S-She made us leave. I thought she would have been back by now."

Damon froze. Those were not words that he wanted to hear.

In one quick second, he was as sober as sober could be. He turned around slow, his body a mirror image of a predator who had just found his prey. He was unable to keep the murder and anger from his voice as he asked with gritted teeth, "What?"

Elena's eyes widened with worry and fear even more when she head the ferocity in Damon's voice. She threw her hands up in a feeble, weak attempt to shield herself from her boyfriend's brother. "Grove Hill is only twelve minutes away! She said that Lee was close to getting her and that she had been practicing with her powers! I trust her abilities! She said she hasn't died in a month!"

"So you left her somewhere where she felt like she might use her powers?" Damon growled. "And not dying in a month is not a standard that we should just readily accept. Zach!"

The vampire was up in Stefan's doorway in a moment. He was dressed in a deep red button up, wearing a charcoal gray vest with a black tie. His shirt had its sleeves rolled up to his elbows and his hair seemed curlier than usual. He had trimmed his facial so he looked more suave than wildlife hunter and preservationist that he portrayed for the rest of the town. He had dark lines under his eyes; he looked tired. He also looked like he would rather do anything else than talk to Damon, despite the fact that the two of them had grown closer since the tomb fiasco. Damon was utterly convinced that he was now the favorite uncle.

Zach just sighed when he saw the livid fire in Damon's eyes and asked wearily, "Yes, Uncle Damon?"

"Where is Victoria?"

"With Lee, at the Mystic Grill," Zach replied automatically, slipping his hands into the front pockets of his nice slacks. He propped himself up against the doorway. "He texted me about fifteen minutes ago that he had just picked up Victoria. She's fine. A little shaken up, given circumstances, but okay." He turned towards Elena and an apologetic look came up to his eyes. With a softer, gentler voice, he said mournfully, "I'm sorry, but Trudie Peterson was under compulsion. Victoria managed to get the guy who was approaching the house to leave, but Trudie was compelled to commit suicide if the other guy did not kill her."

"No," Elena whispered in disbelief, her hands moving up to cover her mouth. Her eyes watered and she pulled her hands back down to her chest. One of her hands slipped away and moved to tug gently on the locket that had been a gift from Stefan. "D-Did...Did Trudie die right in front of Tori?"

"Given what Lee can wrangle out of her, Victoria rolled out of the way and didn't have a direct look at the body," Zach informed them, raising his voice back to its normal volume level. "Not that much talking has been going on. Noble apparently told Lee that Victoria needs a crap ton of her calories because her powers are like an additional metabolism. He said that the food he ordered for the two of them would make any Thanksgiving look silly."

"And we're just going to trust the stalker to tell us all this information about Mama Bear?" Damon grunted, folding his arms across his chest. "Cause that makes perfect sense."

"He's the one who knows her better than any of us," Zach retorted, giving his uncle a stern look. "Plus, I thought you two were friends again. Didn't he get you a Christmas present? Something shiny to win you back to his good side?"

"One Christmas present does not make up for him being a douche at times," Damon shot back, rolling his eyes. He reached over and grabbed his phone off the top of the dresser. He stomped past Zach and Elena and headed down to the living room. He found Victoria's contact in his phone and hit call, holding the phone up to his ear. The click that alerted him to her answering the phone had barely happened before he started talking. "Did you die?"

"Um...hello to you too, Damon," Victoria said, drawing out her words. Damon could already imagine the cute way her brow furrowed when she was confused. "I'm doing good, thanks for asking. What about you?"

"Answer the question, Mama Bear."

Victoria sighed from the other end of the line. "No, Damon, I did not die. I did, however, have a woman commit suicide right in front of me, nearly on top of me, so obviously, I am not doing swimmingly."

"Alright, now that that is out of the way, would you like to explain to me why the hell you stayed behind and sent Blondie and McJudgey back to Mystic Falls without you? Oh, and why you didn't tell any of us where you were going?" Damon growled, stomping into the living room. The nerves that had been bounding under the surface ever since Elena had told him the news rose to the surface and he started to pace. "Because I like to assume you're a smart individual, but recent events have started to prove otherwise, Mama Bear."

"Damon insert-middle-name-here Salvatore -"

"- It's Francesco -"

"- well then, Damon Francesco Salvatore. I had to listen to an innocent woman's neck snap not even thirty minutes ago when she was only a few feet from me. Check your attitude and try speaking to me again like an equal and not your responsibility. You know, maybe add some tact for extra flavor," Victoria growled, her voice low and filled with a tenacity that wasn't usual for her. Damon clocked that. She had been rather feisty all day. He wondered what that was about.

He also wanted to growl, throw something, shout at the top of his lungs. Make a mess. But instead, he flopped over onto the couch and raised a hand up to his face to rub the stress out of it. In a more relaxed voice, he tried again, through slightly gritted teeth, "Mama Bear, I am sorry about what happened to this Trudie woman. Could you please explain to me why you stayed behind, even though I personally feel like that was not the right call?"

There was a little hum of approval on the other end of the line. "That's better, thank you. I accept your apology, by the way. I stayed behind because I thought that I could easily get the man to leave. He would have no direct compulsion to hurt me, that much I figured out from the show, and I thought it would be easy to persuade him to leave Trudie alone. I did, mind you, get him to leave. He left the two of us alone, but then...that shit with Trudie happened."

"Did someone help you after?"

"I had been talking with Noble on the way to Trudie's house and he started heading our way as soon as I hung up. He got to me just a few seconds after Trudie passed. He stayed with me until Lee got there, and when we had to pass through the front door, where her body should have been, she was gone. I assume that he took it to take care of," Victoria explained. "It was much appreciated and needed."

Damon leaned back against the couch and made a contemplative noise. "You going to this fundraiser tonight?"

"I promised Caroline that I would help her with selling tickets and I have to convince Zach to be a part of the raffle, so yeah. Why? You want to go as each other's dates even though you are going to be sold to someone else?" Victoria snickered.

"Zach's already going as the stunning bachelorette that he is. He said he got a call from Blondie earlier saying that he was to attend or 'else he would face the powerful rage that was Caroline Elizabeth Forbes'. Not sure that those were Zach's exact words, but close enough."

"Sounds like something that Caroline would say," Victoria chuckled. "Now, I have to, according to Lee, finish this whole buffet he's set up for me and then head home and get ready for the evening."

"Wear red. You -"

"- I look hot in red. Yeah, got that. Thanks for the fashion advice -"

"- Uh, I was going to say that it brings out the newly added red tinge in your hair."

"Oh...my bad. You know, I have run out of red dresses, so you'll have to deal with what you get and don't throw a fit."

"When do I ever deal with the hand that life had dealt to me in a positive manner?"

"Good point. Please don't make a scene."

Victoria was milling around the front of the Grill, about an hour after she and Lee had been there eating up a storm. She had decided to keep the dress simple, since the raffle was about the men of Mystic Falls (also because she couldn't find a red dress that she hadn't already worn out somewhere else). In the end, she ended up with a creamy light blush pink dress with a swirling skirt that ended just an inch or two above her knees. The fabric was unbelievably soft and the criss-cross halter top displayed her strong shoulders. The beautiful dark purple flowers that decorated the dress weren't hindering the look either. She had found some cute cream peep-toe heels that she added to the dress, and all-in-all, she felt hot (and not very grandma-like). She kept her hair simple as well: slightly curled and pulled away from her face. Light makeup completed a perfectly natural look.

She had made a beeline straight for Caroline when Victoria entered the Grill, who was thankfully beside Elena and Matt. Keeping her tone light, she had informed both girls that she was alright without directly telling them that, since Matt was there. But the three were smiling and looked happy, which warmed Victoria's soul. Scattered throughout the rest of the Grill, she could spot different members of the Mystic Falls gang. Lexi and Lee were eating (how the hell could Lee eat more after that ridiculous amount of food the two of them had shared earlier?), Zach was dodging cougars left and right who looked like they all wanted to take a bite out of him (funny considering he was an entirely different species who liked to munch), Damon and Stefan were yet to be seen (or maybe they were hiding from her, who knew?), and Kelly was chatting with Carol and Jenna off in a booth.

Caroline's voice jerked Victoria back to the conversation at hand. "He's already been hit on, like, thirty-five times." She gestured towards Matt and wiggled her eyebrows at him, making him smile. "He's total cougar bait."

"Impressive," Elena giggled, and Victoria joined in, adding a baby cat-call to mix things up.

Matt's face flushed in embarrassment under the lights of the Grill and he coughed, shaking his head awkwardly. "More like embarrassing."

Caroline laughed. She turned towards Victoria to say something, but then her whole demeanor changed. Her body tensed up and the joyful look that was the Caroline Forbes signature (trademark pending) passed out of her eyes, leaving only an awkward indifference. Victoria followed her eyeline, trying to spot what had caused such a drastic change in her. Her blood ran cold and a flush of anger hit her when she spotted who Caroline had been looking at.

Kelly Donovan.

Oh hell to the no.

"Hi, Mrs. Donovan," Caroline managed to croak out, her voice slightly weaker than before. Matt and Elena didn't seem to notice the change in their friend, but Victoria picked up on it instantly. It could have been an advanced senses thing, but Victoria liked to think it was because they were best friends. She subtly reached out and grabbed Caroline's free hand, giving it a squeeze. She had forgotten how bad Caroline felt around Mrs. Donovan. Not that Mrs. Donovan was the kind of person who didn't elicit that sort of response in everyday life, but Caroline had special reason to feel that way. It didn't seem like the adult women of Mystic Falls really appreciated her all that much.

As one could see, Kelly LeBlanc was not the only LeBlanc who didn't like Mrs. Donovan.

Kelly Donovan barely spared Caroline a glance, and when she did look towards the blonde, her face was covered in distaste. Mrs. Donovan then turned to look towards Elena and the disgust in her eyes faded away to playful indifference. "Elena, honey."

"Hi, Kelly," Elena said in a friednly manner. Victoria didn't like hearing her mother's name be directed towards Mrs. Donovan. It just felt wrong.

The two women shared a hug and Mrs. Donovan pulled back, scanning Elena quickly before saying, "Long time, no see."

"How are you doing?" Elena asked cordially.

Mrs. Donovan gave a nonchalant shrug. "Oh, same old." Her eyes widened momentarily as a thought raced past her eyes and her lips fell into a telltale smirk. "Oh. Matty tells me you broke his heart."

"Mom -" Matt interrupted, but Mrs. Donovan was quick to cut him off.

"- Just kidding," she snickered, rolling her eyes. "Calm down. He found his rebound girl."

Caroline flinched and Victoria felt it through their connected hands. She bristled and before anyone could stop her, she hissed out, "Caroline is not a rebound girl!"

Mrs. Donovan then seemed to finally acknowledge Victoria's presence, and oh boy. If the look she had just sent Caroline had been chilly, then the look Victoria received was downright artic. There was not a single trace of happiness in Mrs. Donovan's eyes as she gazed upon Victoria; in fact, she looked like she would rather be anywhere else with anyone else. "Oh. I didn't see you there, Victoria."

Victoria decided in that moment that she hated hearing her name fall out of Mrs. Donovan's lips. From somewhere deep inside of her soul, a level of snark and sarcasm that she wasn't known for erupted out. "Wow, I'm surprised you can remember my name. I would have figured by now that your brain was so scrambled from all your bad decisions that you couldn't remember anything."

Oh snap. That was sassy. Not at a Katherine Pierce level of sass, but it was more than Victoria ever gave. And it seemed like Mrs. Donovan did not like that, and her lips curled back into a sneer as she retaliated, "And I see you are still the image of your mother: a goody-two-shoes who lives inside of a prudish life. How's the amnesia going?"

"Mom!" Matt gasped, shocked at how his mother was talking to Victoria.

But oh, something in Victoria didn't want to back down and she planted her hands on her hips, pulling out a power pose that would have made her dance instructor proud. "It's going rather well, thank you for asking. I mean, it obviously is, considering I don't remember you." She mirrored a shrug that Mrs. Donovan had given Elena moments before. "Guess you weren't that important."

Mrs. Donovan then turned a lovely shade of crimson and she took a dangerous step forward. Victoria matched it. The two were the same height, even with the addition of their heels. Mrs. Donovan may have had age on Victoria, but the adult-turned-teen held the power between the two, both literally and figuratively, in the conversation. Mrs. Donovan kept her voice low. She pulled out a haughty expression that probably was supposed to make Victoria feel small as she peered down at her from over her nose. "You think you're so cute, sweet, and innocent, but I can see behind that facade. You're just someone who is small, insecure, weak. A true bitch."

Victoria didn't even flinch. "Might as well add a 'bad' to the start of that," Victoria replied, matching her volume and tone with Mrs. Donovan. "And you don't see a bitch. You see someone who is finally coming into their own skin. An equal, and you don't like that. It's called self-confidence, sweetheart; something that you are obviously lacking in, otherwise you wouldn't be hitting on men who are your son's age."

"How dare you!" Mrs. Donovan screeched.

"No, how dare you," Victoria snapped, her voice rising in volume, "come back here after all this time and try to pretend like nothing's changed. Mystic Falls didn't need you then, Kelly, and it doesn't need you now. Good luck with Bachelor Three. I heard he dated down the totem pole in high school."

Victoria flipped around, ready to stalk off to find Damon or Zach or someone who wouldn't make her want to punch Kelly freaking Donovan in the nose. Or maybe someone who would enable her to punch Mrs. Donovan. Gah. That woman just made her so mad and frustrated! However, she didn't get very far. A hand latched itself onto her wrist before she could take any more than two steps, and the grip kept her from moving any farther.

The moment that hand came into contact with her wrist, Victoria flinched. Hard. The hand on her wrist felt cold...like it was solid. Metal. Steel. It anchored her into the ground. She couldn't move, she couldn't bring her hands together at all. She was powerless. Defenseless. Pain. Pain, fear, blood. Screams. From her friends, from her family, from her closest allies. Pain, fear, blood. Her breathing picked up as the scenery around her changed.

No.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no.

She was back in the tomb.

She couldn't move.

If she screamed, would anybody hear her?

Her whole body was held down.

They were going to kill her.

They were going to kill her.

Nonononononononononono...

"Get your hand off of my daughter, you bitch, or I will kill you in front of this entire restaurant without the slightest ounce of regret."

Her voice.

Her mother's voice.

The real Kelly; no...the better Kelly.

Victoria let out a gasp and whipped around to stare at the group, her panic shattering in an instant.

Kelly, her Kelly, was standing in between herself and Mrs. Donovan. Mrs. Donovan had a firm hold on Victoria's wrist, but Kelly had an equally firm grip on Mrs. Donovan's wrist in return. Victoria couldn't see what look her mother was giving her name doppelgänger, but it must have been frosty because Mrs. Donovan looked like she had just smelled the world's smelliest piece of cheese.

"Kelly," Mrs. Donovan murmured, eyeing up the other woman who shared the same name as her.

"Kelly," Kelly replied, her voice succinct. "I believe I asked you to release my daughter."

"We were just having a friendly little chat, Kells," Mrs. Donovan huffed, rolling her eyes. She did, however, release Victoria's wrist. The adult-turned-teen yanked her hand back to her chest and cradled it close. She took a subconscious step behind her mother. She needed the physical defense from Mrs. Donovan while she was busy trying not to fall totally into a panic attack. "No need to get uppity."

"I believe that my restraining order against you is still in effect," Kelly stated simply, but firmly. "The one that specifically states that you are not allowed within fifty feet of myself or my daughter, isn't that correct?"

"Kells, it's been literal years since that incident. Don't tell me that you're still hung up over it."

"You nearly killed me and my daughter," Kelly growled, her hands tightening into fists. Victoria's eyes widened in disbelief and she shot a look towards Caroline. The blonde seemed equally as confused. Elena didn't know what was going on, but Matt...Matt looked like he was embarrassed and feeling guilty. Was it secondhand guilt from his mother? Embarrassed and guilty for her actions? Kelly kept speaking, drawing Victoria's attention back to her. "You nearly killed us because you drank too much, went out and partied too much, and when all was said and done, you tried to twist the situation to make it seem like it was our fault that we had nearly been killed. so yeah, Mrs. Donovan, I am still hung up over it, so get out of my sight before I call the Sheriff over and she takes care of you for me."

"Oooh, old Lizzie is still the big, bad Sheriff in these parts, huh?" Mrs. Donovan redirected. Victoria, while she definitely still hated Mrs. Donovan, had to give the woman a little bit of credit: she redirected conversations and gaslitted like a pro. "I didn't think she'd still be allowed the badge, given the number of kids who like to party in this town getting away with it all. Speaking of which, have you seen my daughter recently? I hoped she'd swing back into town and she'd stop by for a little chitchat with me."

Victoria couldn't help but flinch. It had been nearly a month since she had last talked about Vicki with Jeremy, but the topic was never made easy to speak about, no matter how long it had been. It didn't matter that New Year's Eve had been the two month anniversary of Vicki's death. Victoria didn't think she'd ever be okay with what had happened.

"Oh, I wasn't aware that you had children," Kelly commented randomly, and Victoria just blinked. Just...blinked. She just looked at the back of Kelly's head in shock.

Victoria knew that Kelly knew that Matt and Vicki were Kelly Donovan's kids. Not only was she a Wanderer, but she had also written it down in her personal journal that Victoria had read. And she had grown up and taken care of Matt and Vicki. Where was Kelly going with all of this...?

Kelly continued, "Because you see, I have one wonderful adopted daughter and these two kids I foster named Matt and Vicki. I like to think of them as my foster kids, considering they were at my house more than they were ever at yours. I parented them more than you did."

"Now that is a load of bullshit -!"

"- Oh, really?" Kelly shouted, interrupting Mrs. Donovan. She jabbed a finger aggressively towards Mrs. Donovan. "Who went to Vicki's first rehab session, huh? It wasn't you; it was me and my daughter! Who taught Matt how to drive? Tell me, Kelly, was that you? No, it wasn't. Matt learned to drive by me, and I taught your daughter my daughter how to drive at the same time. Who taught Matt how to cook? Who helped Vicki when she first started her period? Who had to give both of them the birds and the bees talk which was so awkward that Matt choked on his soda during the discussion and Vicki couldn't look at the boys for a week?" She held a finger up when Mrs. Donovan tried to retort. Kelly LeBlanc was on a roll and she was not about to be stopped. "I can tell you who. It wasn't the Kelly that they were born to. It was the Kelly that they needed."

Kelly grabbed Victoria's hand with one of hers and then Caroline's with the other. Caroline even reached over and grabbed Matt's hand, who looked confused at what was happening. Kelly pulled the three of them close to her sides and stomped away from the table with Mrs. Donovan and Elena; not that any of them tried to pull away. Victoria caught Caroline's eyes and she just looked back to her with an equally confused expression. She didn't seem to know where Kelly was taking them either.

Victoria was the first to be dropped off, being deposited right beside Zach Salvatore, who seemed to finally find a moment of rest from all the cougars. The man in question looked towards Kelly with a silent, confused, and slightly frightened question, but Kelly didn't say anything. Instead, she took Caroline and Matt and dragged them off to a different part of the restaurant, towards a free table that wasn't being used.

Zach and Victoria watched them as they went, unable to take their eyes off of Kelly. After the three got settled down at the table, Zach glanced down at Victoria. There was confusion riddled deep within his eyes. "Uh...I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do or how I'm supposed to respond to this situation."

"I'm not sure either," Victoria answered honestly. She looked up towards Zach. "I mean, I knew that Kelly didn't like Mrs. Donovan, but damn...that was brutal."

"I was more speaking towards what you said to her," Zach amended, and Victoria winced, remembering her harsh and sharp words. "You weren't...brutal, per say, but honest. However, it was definitely not how you would normally speak the truth."

Victoria bit her lower lip and wrapped her arms around her torso, stepping closer to Zach as a couple tried to squeeze past her in the overcrowded diner. Victoria watched Zach noticeably tense up the closer she got and Victoria's brow furrowed. What was that about? "Yeah, I've been noticing that recently. All of today, honestly. It started this morning. I just seem to be more confident with my words, I guess? Brave? The best way that I can describe it is that I seem to be more bitchy and I don't care how people respond to me."

Zach let out an awkward sigh and he reached up to scratch the back of his neck as he began, "I don't want to be totally sexist, but could it potentially be..." He trailed off, waving his hand and silently asking Victoria if it was her time of the month.

"Maybe...?" Victoria supplied, shrugging weakly. "It's been a while since my last time and I haven't really been keeping track all that well. Maybe before I became the Immortalis was my last one? Heaven knows the stress of this last month would have been enough to push it off. Are you just asking because I've been more bitchier recently?"

Zach shook his head and his face seemed to fluster under the faint lights. Victoria frowned and took a step closer to Zach to ask what was wrong. However, before she could do that, Zach took a noticeable step backwards and he coughed, clearing his throat. Victoria felt a pang in her chest and she couldn't help but ask with a hurt expression, her voice soft, "Zach? Are you okay? D-Did I do something?"

"Victoria," Zach said sternly, but not unkindly. He kept his voice low in volume, his hands twitching at his sides. "I need you to keep your distance."

"But why?"

"The reason I asked you about that is because your blood is smelling like a Sunday potluck after a hard day of work and it is taking everything in my willpower to not jump you and suck your blood dry."

Victoria's eyes widened in disbelief and she did take a step back. A few, to be exact. The tension in Zach's shoulders dropped and he seemed to relax. Victoria tried to angle herself to be as far away from him as she could be without the situation looking awkward to an outsider's perspective. She cleared her throat and whispered, dropping her voice down so it would only be heard by the vampires of the room, "Is everyone experiencing this, or is it just you Zach? Are you guys trying to not be on me like a pregnant woman on chocolate?"

"Pretty much," she heard Lee comment. She swung her head around and saw him and Lexi on the far side of the restaurant. They looked like they had just finished their meal and were now waiting for the program to start. Lee caught her eye from across the room and kept talking, pretending he was speaking his words to Lexi. "The rest of us have been vampires for over a hundred years, so we're used to the smell of menstruation. Our sweet little baby Zach, however, has only been a vampire for a few months, sugar. He struggles with the smell a little more. In your case, though...let's just say I'm surprised Damon hasn't secreted you away to have his dirty little way with you."

Victoria's face flushed red with embarrassment and she spluttered, "W-What? What the hell does that even mean?"

"Your smell or Damon's horniness?"

Lexi reached over and slapped Lee, rolling her eyes as she did it. "Her smell, obviously." Lexi turned towards Victoria now. "You are the Immortalis now, remember? Your blood smells amazing. I'm not surprised that you going through menstruation would make you smell all the more attractive to vampires. You are a walking, living vampire poison. It's like Venus flytraps; you secrete a smell that tempts people into your grasp, and then in your case, your blood kills them."

"B-But...I was around Stefan and Damon this morning and they were both fine!"

"Damon wasn't at all handsy?"

Victoria frowned and her brow furrowed. "He's always handsy."

"Alright, fair point," Lexi conceded. "But more than usual?"

"He was drunk."

"On the smell of your blood, maybe," Lee snickered, wincing as Lexi slapped him again. "Hey!"

"Shut up, Lee. Stefan's been resisting human blood for a long time, so I'm not surprised if he seemed more normal. But I'd be willing to bet that you didn't smell like this this morning."

"Fantastic," Victoria huffed, folding her arms moodily across her chest. "So I'm now more vampire bait than I usually am."

"Unfortunately," Zach murmured. His fists tightened even more until they were white-knuckled and Victoria heard one of his digits pop angrily.

"Executive decision," Victoria sighed, shaking her head. She unfolded her arms. "There's too many civilians here to risk any indecent exposure of vampires. I'll head home. Someone find Kelly and Caroline and tell them what's going on. And please, for the love of everything good in this world, find Damon before he makes a mess of the evening and tell him not to mention North Carolina or Isobel in his speech tonight. Oh, and someone give Kelly a ride home tonight."

Victoria was not pleased; not at all. In fact, the moment that she got home, she stepped through the doorway, slammed her front door shut, and then took her heel and chucked it as far as she could across the front entryway with a loud, growling shout. She heard the heel slam into the staircase railing and she flopped back against the doorway. She dropped to the ground like a stone.

It felt just like the day of Vicki's death, the Halloween festival.

The helplessness that, at times, felt like it was permanently etched into her body. The way that she couldn't control herself.

"So I guess PMSing as the Immortalis sucks, huh?" Victoria called out to no one in particular.

"I've been told it's not pleasant," came a cheerful reply.

Victoria suppressed a groan and she folded her hands up against her face. She shook her head and replied, "Vicki, I love you, but now is not the best time for any of your sarcasm."

"When is it ever? I've got what some would call special timing. Henri insists its a nuisance, but I like to think of it as a blessing in disguise. I come when you really need me."

"Where even are you?" Victoria asked, pulling herself up.

"Downstairs bathroom, right down the hall!" Vicki called enough. Sure enough, when Victoria wandered down to the bathroom in question and looked inside, Vicki was standing in the mirror, looking almost as dolled up as Victoria was. Her hair was straightened and she wore a deep purple halter top dress that fit her curves and ended right above her knees. Victoria felt as though she had seen that outfit before...but where, she didn't know. Vicki gave Victoria a warm smile and Victoria crossed her arms and leaned up against the doorway. "I tried getting closer, but this was the best place I could find."

"You really like reflective surfaces, huh?" Victoria mused, giving Vicki a once-over. "You look cute."

"The better to see you with, my dear, and thank you!"

Victoria chuckled weakly and set her head against the doorframe. She shifted, trying to get more comfortable and she slipped out of her other heel. The two women contemplated each other in silence; Victoria's breathing and her heartbeat were the only things that could be heard echoing throughout the house.

"Are you okay?"

"Are you?" Victoria laughed skeptically. "You're the negative side of my brain, which can be hard to believe at times with how bubbly you are." She waved her hand around as if to lamely demonstrate Vicki's attitude. "Kelly Donovan's words couldn't have been the loveliest balm to wear. I figure you must be taking it just as hard, if not worse, than I am."

Vicki was silent for a moment and then, she spoke tentatively. "It's...hard. At times, I feel like I am your perfect extension. And then, there are other times when I feel like I am my own person. It's not helpful when we receive criticism like the ones we received tonight. Do I feel shame for what happened to the real Vicki or do I feel no remorse because I was not the one in control or -" Vicki cut herself off, biting her lower lip worriedly. She added after a moment of silence, "I can't think straight and it's making me sound all fancy like Noble and Henri."

"Those guys are really fancy-smancy, aren't they?" Victoria hummed. She pushed herself off of the door and yawned. She was already feeling really sleepy. "I think we should table this for the morning and -"

She cut herself off when she heard a single footstep coming from outside the front door. It wasn't a footstep she recognized. Her body reacted to that information instantly.

Victoria threw her hands up as she jumped into the hallway, her gaze landed heavily on her front door. The already darkened world fell away into a world of black-and-white.

STOP MOVING.

The footsteps paused. Victoria heard a little grunt as if the person she had stopped had tried to move, but failed to do so. Victoria narrowed her eyes and with swift, quiet feet, approached her front door. She bent slightly to peer through the peephole of the door. Her shock at who she saw on the other side of the door caused her magic to sputter to a halt. The world returned to its normal color, and she threw the door open. Victoria looked to the person standing on her porch in shock.

"Harper?" she gasped, looking at him with wide, wild eyes. "What the hell are you doing here?"

The man in question seemed just as shocked as she was. He wore what Victoria knew was his outfit in the beginning of the show: jeans, reddish-gray Henley, a gray button up with a plaid jacket over on top. He licked his lips and looked Victoria up and down in confusion. "M-Ma'am, how do you know my name?"

"You fought in the Civil War," Victoria supplied, openly staring at him. Why was he at her house? How the hell did he even know who she was? But wait, he didn't know her, otherwise he wouldn't have been surprised to hear that she knew his name. She shook her head. "I-I'm sorry, this must be really confusing for you right now. I'll explain how I know your name later. I'm Victoria LeBlanc. How can I help you?"

"LeBlanc?" Harper questioned, his eyes widening. He recognized her last name apparently. The second person of the day to do so. "Like Piero?"

"I'm an indirect descendent of his, yeah," Victoria confirmed, nodding her head. She smiled gently and asked, "Did you know him?"

"He was a friend," Harper told her, looking more at ease after making that connection between her and Piero. "He helped me alongside Ms. Pearl when I was first turned. Mighty fine man for a witch." He blinked, and then added quickly, "Ma'am."

"There's really no need for formalities with me, Harper," Victoria reassured him, her smiling widening. "You must be looking for Pearl and the rest of the tomb vampires, right?" Harper gave her a hesitant, shy nod. "I can't give you an exact location because I honestly don't know, but I know that they're in a house in the woods, or on the edge of the town. That would be the first place to look, but don't worry; you'll find them."

"Thank you, Ma'am," Harper said in appreciation. He took a step back away from the door, as if he was about to turn and leave, but then he paused. He glanced over his shoulder towards Victoria hesitantly. "Ma'am, if I may..."

"Of course. And please, call me Victoria. Times have changed a lot since you were last awake."

"Are you like Piero?" Harper asked, tilting his head curiously. "With information that seems too impossible for words to fully comprehend, it rather seems like it."

Victoria laughed at that explanation. "I definitely like how you worded that. Yes, I am, so I know that if Piero trusted you enough to tell you that, then the two of us should get along great. You better get going now. The Sheriff isn't too friendly around people who stay out late. She likes to assume things about them."

"Of course, Ms. LeBlanc," Harper said, nodding his head once towards Victoria. "Thank you. I'll be sure to tell Ms. Pearl that you helped me tonight."

"Tell her I look forward to meeting her," Victoria told him, gesturing playfully towards him with a finger. "Oh! And Anna really needs to relax a little. She'll understand what I'm saying."

"Thank you, Ms. LeBlanc, and I will."

"Of course, Harper. I'll see you soon, I'm sure."

"Have a goodnight."

"You too...oh wait!"

Victoria quickly rushed inside and went straight for the cupboards in the kitchen. She ripped one of them open and grabbed the nearest, unopened bag of chips she could find that were in her favorite flavor. She ducked back into the entryway and reached the door in record time (for a human that is; no Immortalis powers were used in the obtaining of the chips). She presented the chips out happily to Harper, who looked at them, and then at her, and then back to the bag. He reached out hesitantly to grab them, his fingers skimming the back of her hands as she passed the bag to him.

"They're chips; practically a staple in these times for the fastest go-to food," Victoria explained, giggling at Harper's weird expression after he sniffed the bag. "Figured you might want something other than blood to tide you over. The flavor might be a little more flamboyant than you're used to, but that's alright; you'll get used to it."

She sent Harper a playful wink and stepped back into the house, shutting the door before Harper could say anything. She knew that if she didn't make the first move to end the conversation then Harper would be standing out there on the front porch the entire night. He was a gentleman, that one. Very sweet, and very easy on the eyes. There had to be someone single in the Mystic Falls gang that would thrive in a relationship with Harper, wasn't there? That was a little task to add to the old mental task list.

Victoria locked up the door tight and headed upstairs, taking the stairs two at a time. She made it to her room and slipped inside. She shut the door behind her and rolled her shoulders. She let her head flop around in a circle, wincing when her neck cracked loudly. Victoria yawned. She was exhausted. And her stomach was cramping. She quickly changed out of her dress into a pair of sweatpants and a deep red thick-strapped tank top and flopped over onto her bed. She reached her hands up and rubbed her face. It was time to sleep.

She went to grab her blanket but she paused. She sat up slowly and squinted. There was something...at her closest...

That was as much as she was able to do.

A moment later, her back hit her bed and she let out a strangled gasp. Two strong hands were on her body: they started on her hips but quickly moved to pin her wrists down on the bed beside her head. The perpetrator's body was pressed up against hers and she could feel every contour of their body. It was definitely a man, given the width of his shoulders and the way his body loomed over hers. Victoria was about to lash out with her powers when a scent hit her. A warm, spicy smell jumped into her nose and coated the back of her throat in a delicious way.

She let out a sigh and her body relaxed into the sheets. She recognized the scent. Given, they had never had this kind of interaction before, but she knew she was safe. "Noble. Want to tell me why you're pinning me to my bed?"

"He touched you."

Victoria's brow furrowed and she squinted through the darkness of her room towards his face. She knew she couldn't be able to see him through the darkness, but still. The hell...? "Who? Harper?"

A low growl echoed throughout her room, coming deep from within Noble's chest, at the mention of Harper's name. His chest vibrated against Victoria's torso and Victoria couldn't stop the shiver that raced down from the top of her spine to the bottom of her toes. It was the oddest sensation she had ever felt but oh, did it make her feel unbelievably warm.

Noble dipped his head down. Victoria feel the tip of his nose trace the edge of her forehead, right past her bangs, and he moved, barely tapping his nose to the top of her ear. She swallowed hard. Her heartbeat, which was the only noise in the entire house besides her noticeably heavier breathing, sounded like a symphony with how aggressively it was pounding.

When Noble spoke, his lips brushed on the shell of Victoria's ear. Her face felt like it was on fire. Another shiver racked her body and something that Victoria could only akin to a squeak tore itself out of her throat. Noble whispered low, his voice raspier and the accent thicker, "He is not allowed to touch you."

"N-Noble," Victoria squeaked, her voice cracking embarrassingly. "W-What are you doing?"

"No one is allowed to touch you," Noble growled. The hand that had been pinning Victoria's right hand to the sheets moved up her arm, settling on the curve of her neck. He cupped the back of her neck and his fingertips played with the baby hairs on the back of her head. He nudged her jaw with his nose and planted a wet, open-mouthed kiss just underneath her ear. Victoria couldn't hide the gasp that escaped from her lips, a mixture between a moan and a sound that she didn't know she could make, even if she tried.

Noble continued his journey upwards, his nose brushing along the underside of her jaw. Victoria's voice shook as she stammered out, "N-Noble -"

"- Shh," Noble whispered, and his thick accent caressed Victoria like a full-bodied massage. Noble ducked his head enough to press another kiss to her chin. "Peace."

It was so close. Just up a little more and then he would...

Victoria's free hand shot up and she grabbed onto Noble's shirt tightly. It was another t-shirt and it felt so unbelievably soft underneath her fingertips. She didn't know why she grabbed onto him; to push him away or to pull him closer. She couldn't trust her body. Everything was running on high-alert and she didn't understand what was going on or what she was feeling. She spoke again, her voice stronger than before but still as weak and confused and disjointed as it had been before, "N-Noble, what are you doing? P-Please answer me."

Noble's voice sounded dark and husky and raspy and oh-so-sexy. "Something that I should have done months ago."

And with that, Noble lifted his head just an inch and pressed his lips firmly against Victoria's.

A/N: So, fun fact: the original chapter was 6.4k words, but it was rough and crumbly so I switched things around and fixed it up in this chapter and it ended up being over 8.6k roughly. How sweet is that? Also, WE HIT 400K WORDS! Whoo! I'm so proud of us! One hundred thousand more words and then we'll hit half a million! That's super fun! We've also hit over 60k+ views. Whoo whoo!

AND YAY! THE FIRST KISS OF THE STORY! Did anyone predict the first kiss would come between Victoria and Noble? Huh? Who wonders why he did so? He seems very domineering. Maybe something happened?

The last chapter only got 4 reviews, which has been a major dip in reviewers given how long the wait was between chapters, but I understand. We're getting into finals for some (especially all your smart uni people) so take some time to take care of yourselves. Eat some fruit and get yourself a drink of water. Have an imaginary milkshake on me. Hope to hear from you guys soon! Stay healthy.

Also, Shiro7 made a very fair point in their last review: y'all can totally vote for Vioble (Victoria/Noble) as a ship for the Shipping Wars. I know most of you assume that Elijah is Noble so are therefore voting for Vilijah, but if you aren't one of those people, you can totally vote for Vioble.

THE SHIPPING WARS! (feel free to keep on voting (you can vote for more than one ship!); 1 full point for if you choose one ship, two half points for two separate ships, more than 2, smaller decimals. Anything that is not a full point will be italicized. This will not decide the final pairing; I already know who Victoria will end up with, I just want you all to be able to guess):

ROMANTIC:

Team Stetoria {Victoria/Stefan} (17.5): insert name here XD, sammyleann's dad, TikiKiki, Maistryia, Don't-Say-It-Feel-It, another guest, Lime, herewegoagain, K, emma, just another guest, heyyeah, Guest (3), guest4ithinklol, Guest (6), Guest (9), guest (1), theappleseed, Anaidiana, Hayden, Takinginspiration1, Serena Salvatore, Prometo, Lolita, MoonlightMiracle-SakurianaHime

Team Datoria {Victoria/Damon} (45): Sciave, Guest, ArganRose, CrystalAris, Marine76, Assenavira, CarlaPA, Guest (1), Maistryia, emma, just another guest, Freeshavacahdoh, Guest (3), Guest (4), Guest (6), sabrinaannpierson, Guest (7), Guest (8), Guest (9), guest (1), hfgfgfrdr, lillen20, Yolo, theappleseed, Guest (10), Juko, Bulma, Ellay, V, Ghest, charlievini, Guest (13), Guest (14), Guest (15), TrembleB4DietCoke, dhariti, Hayden, Guest (17), Elyse1821, Dannn, Yukihino-Sama, Dede, 4day, jazica, Guest (20), Unnisa, MoonlightMiracle-SakurianaHime, Tik, 00esoteric00, Hariana Halone, jenniferchase2402

Team Vilijah {Victoria/Elijah} (40): guest, Guest, SoraLover987142, insert name here XD, sammyleann, Orange keys 25, LoyalElijahFangirl, Hinata Megumi, A. G Herz, Aryabloodlust, ferallahey, AngelColdHeart, BlueDragibus, dreamwalkerlisa, Guest, Stachelbeere, Guest (1), jocillyria, Guest (2), BookwormStrawberry, Ieviheichu, Teghan-Potter1370, karenc0r, Hachiko33200, Guest (11), Anaidiana, Dalia2009, wolfcorgi, Nia, Rory, Teghan-Potter1370, Guest (12), Shiro7, alessandra92, Guest (16), Guest (18), Karina, Serena Salvatore, xrysatsan, Lolita, jazica, Guest (19), MoonlightMiracle-SakurianaHime

Team Klatoria {Victoria/Klaus} (6): Tayla141, TikiKiki, Guest (9), Mythology216 the Beard King, thisIsNotATest, Guest (10), Tris Hart

Team Koltoria {Victoria/Kol} (2.5): DreamerPop, MelissaMorningstar, Guest (11)

Team Vinn {Victoria/Finn} (1): silentmayhem

New Followers!: Taravey, Amy Ruth, Cocolita 1804

New Favoriters!: schafferer, Goddess-of-the-Forest1013, Amy Ruth, Cocolita 1804

Onto reviews!:

Shiro7: Mostly because no one has voted for Noble/Victoria. A lot of people assume that Noble is Elijah and so they are voting for Vilijah. You can totally vote for Noble/Victoria if you'd like! They are totally an option.

DBZFAN45: Yeah, the Immortalis blood is like wolf venom, only a teeny-bit more deadly. This whole episode has just been Noble cameo after Noble cameo. My favorite kind of angst is the guilt of the OC when they can't save someone. I just adore it. I hope you enjoyed the Kelly vs. Kelly showdown!

Stachelbeere: Hmmm, what makes you think that way? I'm curious to hear. Is it just the introduction of the mysterious woman? I can understand that. Yay, I like mysteries. Haha XD. The actual person who is Noble is tan in some pictures I can find of him and like a normal usual Caucasian in others, so it's hard to tell (spoiler, I guess XD). Whoever he is (and I'm not telling ;p) he's a little bit of both. Yay!

Lime: Ayyyy! Have you heard of the musical Six? That's a great show about King Henry the 8th's six wives and Anne's and Katherine's songs are fantastic! Vikings are fun. I know, right? How would you go about explaining fanfiction? She'll do it eventually, but it'll probably be a random fluffy chapter. Tori can say some of the funniest things. Raphael might have been under the impression that she was the Immortalis. Not much is known about the choosing of the Immortalis. Perhaps we'll learn more later...We have so many bears now in the gang (Grandpa Bear: Zach, Papa Bear: Damon, Mama Bear: Victoria, Carebear: Caroline, Jerebear: Jeremy). I have a feeling we'll get more bears soon. Remember, the Immortalis can do anything that they put their minds to. True about Elijah, but he does occasionally wear other outfits in his fashionable defense. Who knows? Ah yes, the mysterious woman. She actually does have a name, but it won't be revealed until Season 2, so until then! I get that. Opening night and this first weekend of shows went wonderful! We all had a great time and we didn't mess up too terribly. We got our show recorded for us to buy on Sunday and it was probably our best show (at least for my ensemble, so we were happy). Until next time!

I hope everyone is feeling healthy and is staying safe. I'm watching you all. No sick human-beans on my watch.

Stay healthy and stay safe!

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