Miss Mystic Falls - Part 1
Damon should have seen the punch coming.
But given that it came from a hysterical supernatural creature who happened to be his best friend who gave no notice that she was going to punch him, he gave himself a pass.
Victoria's fist connected with Damon's jaw, and the feel of her fingers colliding with his jaw hurt. Bad. Damon let out a handful of curses in Italian as he felt the bone in his jaw snap and his head whipped to the side. He collapsed onto the ground, his hand moving to instinctively cradle his jaw. Shit. Let it never be said that Victoria couldn't punch. She was dangerous when she wanted to be.
Zach, who was stationed right behind her, saw the punch happen and moved to wrap his arms around Victoria's torso, hoping to pin her arms and restrain her. Victoria did not like that, it seemed. Her eyes turned their iconic black and white and she twisted around, using her arm to backhand-slap Zach right across the face. The vampire let out a hiss of pain as her magic added extra weight to the slap. He was sent sprawling onto the ground, and it seemed that Alaric knew better than to try and intervene while Victoria was acting that way.
Victoria turned towards the steps of the Founders' Hall and, in a loud voice, growled, "You are not going to hurt me." She flipped around and was gone in a flash. She did not seem to slow down even though she was wearing some pretty tall heels.
"Where the hell is she going?" Alaric demanded, rushing to the two Salvatores' sides now that Victoria was gone.
Damon slammed his palm on the opposite side of his jaw, realigning the broken bone. He let out a yelp of pain and gritted his teeth as his healing kicked in. It was a good thing he had binged a lot of blood bags before he came to the party. He grabbed Alaric's outstretched hand and tugged himself up onto his feet. "Away from Raphael, apparently." He rested his hands on his knees and took a deep breath, trying to force the pain out of his jaw. "Zach, any ideas?"
"She almost just bitch-slapped the life out of me, Uncle Damon. Give a man a damn minute," Zach grunted, taking Alaric's hand as well. He stumbled to his feet and moaned, swaying dangerously on his feet. "Damn it all. That sucked."
"We have a rogue Immortalis who only started going crazy after John walked away," Damon stated, pushing himself to an upright position. "We need to find her, now."
"I'll go grab Kelly, Lexi, and Lee," Zach huffed, staggering away from Alaric and Damon. "Send a text to Noble."
"On it," Damon agreed, grabbing his phone. He sent a rapid text to the mysterious Scotsman-sounding vampire, keeping it in character.
DAMON:
Mama Bear's gone crazy. Need ur help. Search forest.
He got a reply within twelve seconds. It was sweet, kind, and caring, as was Noble's way.
?:
You are useless.
"I have obviously not been brought up to speed on things," Alaric began, shaking his head in disbelief. "Who the hell is Raphael and why is Victoria having such a hard time with him?"
"I'd give you the long version, but that would take too long, so here's the short version: Raphael used to be Noble's second-in-command. Raphael killed Vicki and turned her into a vampire, also scaring said newbie vampire so much that she kidnapped Victoria and kept the two of them hidden away in the old logging mills for a week in a poor attempt to 'protect' the both of them. Raphael tried to hurt Victoria during Stefan's birthday party at the Grill. She got shot because of him. He would have killed her if it wasn't for Zach. Apparently, he already thought that she was the Immortalis, or so Lee and Zach guess, so it wouldn't have done much in his mind, but she didn't gain her powers until the Decade's Dance really, so she would have been dead-dead. Zach stabbed him," Damon monologued, spreading his arms out in a dramatic fashion as he finished his tale. "Moral of the story: one of the few guys that Victoria would rather never see again."
"Great," Alaric moaned as Zach, Kelly, Lexi, and Lee all came into their line of sight. "That's reassuring. Are all my students who know about vampires as traumatized?"
"Oh, we only talked about Raphael," Damon huffed. "We didn't even get into Noah, Ben, Frederick, or the week with Vicki. Trust me: she's gonna need a lot of therapy later in life."
"Fantastic."
"You lost my daughter?" Kelly growled, marching in between the two men.
She raised her hand as if she was going to slap Damon, but he was pissed off. He caught her wrist before she could even get close to Damon and he tugged her forward, knocking her off-balance. In a low tone, he hissed, "Kelly-Beans, I respect you, so now is not the time to piss me off. Help me find Victoria." He dropped her wrist and took a step back, ignoring the way her eyes flashed angrily.
"Where did she run off?" Lee asked, to which Zach pointed. "Do any of you guys have something of hers?" They all shook their heads. "Damn it. Something she touched, then?"
Damon held out his elbow since Victoria had placed her hand in it. Lee just gave a little disappointed sigh, but he leaned over enough to take a big deep breath in through his nose by Damon's elbow. His brow furrowed and crinkled, as if he was deeply thinking, and then something clicked and his eyes widened in triumph. "I got it. Lexi, with me."
The two bolted the direction that Zach had pointed towards, each decked out in a suit (Lexi had decided she wanted to be very fashion-forward and wear a pantsuit. Turned out to be a good idea; not that Damon would ever tell her that).
"Okay, so while the Wonder Twins are off trying to physically find Mama Bear, let's talk about what the hell John did to her to make her see Raphael," Damon announced. He glanced towards Kelly. "Zach catch you up to speed on that?"
"Raphael apparently coming back from the dead, but only my supernaturally powered daughter being the one to see him? Yeah. Zach filled me," Kelly grunted, folding her arms across her chest. "Never personally met the guy, but I've been told he's a real piece of work." She paused and then her eyebrow twitched up. She slowly turned and looked back towards Damon. "Why did you ask to figure out what the hell John did to her? Did John do something?"
"After he was done monologuing about how much smarter he was than the four of us, he had a special message for Victoria," Alaric explained gently. "It was something along the lines of 'Say hi to Raphy boy for me'. He turned around, walked away, and the next thing we know, Victoria's a hysterical mess because she's seeing someone that Zach apparently killed over two months ago. Why are you asking about John?"
"Because John was the reason why Victoria had a wyrmwood reaction this morning," Kelly replied. Damon's frown deepened and Kelly sucked in a sharp breath. "She didn't tell you that, did she?"
"She said that wyrmwood somehow got into the flour."
"Yeah, because it was John's flour and he likes to add this little herb mixture to all of his foods," Kelly parroted, rolling her eyes. It did sound ridiculous. "You don't think -"
"- That he would try to poison her with wyrmwood again to see if it was just a fluke?" Zach finished for her. He caught eyes with his uncle and their frowns mirrored on each other. "Yeah, I would not put it past him given what I've seen from him tonight. Though I'm interested in how he even knew about Raphael. Noble, Raphael, and Victoria kept the knowledge of their existence close to their chests; Raphael and Noble were nothing if not cautious."
Damon's phone chimed with two texts before anyone could answer Zach's question. He slipped his phone out and quickly scanned both messages. One was from Noble and the other was from Lee, but they both said the same-ish thing.
LEE:
Found her. Lakeside, north of you. She looks like she's shadow-boxing something with literal shadows. Need backup.
?:
Lakeside. Caution. She is violent.
"Lee and Noble found her," Damon announced to the group. He caught and held all their interests in the fastest moment. "They're at her lakeside, the one that became her place of peace."
"That's only a few miles away from here," Zach said. He turned towards Kelly. "Do you want to come with us -"
"- Don't you dare finish that sentence, Zachariah Salvatore," Kelly spat, giving him a stink eye. "This is my daughter we are talking about. Of course I am coming -!"
"- or do you want to get there yourself," Zach finished lamely, holding up both hands in protest. "Just trying to know if you want to be supersped. That's all. No sexism anywhere near this topic."
"Oh," Kelly said, taking a moment to swallow awkwardly. "I could do with a ride, yes."
"Alright."
He grabbed Kelly, sweeping her up into his arms and the two of them were gone in a quick flash. Alaric looked towards Damon and Damon wiggled his eyebrows towards the history teacher, holding his arms out.
Alaric shook his head, taking a step back and raising his hands. "Not today. I'm not going to be any help against someone who can rip me apart without batting an eyelash. I got Elena and Stefan. You can call me once everything dies down."
Damon nodded his head and twisted, running off. The pounding of his feet filled the forest as he used his senses to follow behind his nephew and Kelly. Zach was speeding along nicely; all that vampire training seemed to have done him well.
It took a while to get to the lakeside; too long, in Damon's mind. They heard the fighting long before they ever got to the clearing.
Once they entered the meadow, Damon wished that what he was witnessing was a nightmare.
Victoria was locked in combat with Lee, of all people. Lexi was off to the side, clutching her side and breathing heavily. Noble was more shadow than vampire, darting in and out to try and sneak up on Victoria's blindside; except, it didn't seem as if she had a blind side. One moment, she would be striking out at Lee with a lightning-quick punch, and the next, she would be throwing a ball of dark chaotic magic towards Noble, who would only dodge it by hitting the deck.
"Zach, back up!" Kelly ordered.
The Salvatore dropped Kelly and immediately jumped back a few steps. Kelly's eyes started to glow and little lightning bolts arced in the white of her eyes. Damon had only seen that expression once: the day that Victoria was reborn as the Immortalis. Kelly's hands flexed towards the ground and electricity shot up, grounding her to the earth. Kelly threw her hands up in the air and shouted, "Lee, Noble! Move!" She pulled her hands down as if she was pulling down the sky.
Lee followed Kelly's instructions blindly and to the letter. He threw himself to the ground as far away from Victoria as he could. Damon watched as a literal bolt of lightning came from the seemingly cloudless sky, heading straight towards Victoria. A bright flash of light filled the meadow and a boom of thunder echoed only a millisecond later. Damon brought his arm up to block the light; he could heal fast, but that didn't mean that he wanted to go completely blind.
And then he heard Kelly just murmur, "Well, shit."
Damon dropped his arm and looked back towards Victoria.
Well, shit indeed.
Victoria was now facing Damon, Zach, and Kelly. She had one hand outstretched lazily above her, her palm facing the sky. A black circle of magic was crafted right above her hand, running parallel to the ground. It reminded Damon of the white magic shield that Victoria used when she had first started training with Kelly. There was a twisted grimace on Victoria's face as she stared down the trio, completely unsinged.
"Scatter!" Damon shouted, rushing Kelly. He swooped her up in his arms and booked it, just as the spot that Kelly had been inhabiting became a burnt mess. Damon dropped Kelly and shouted back to his nephew, "Keep Kelly safe!"
Damon sprinted towards Victoria, moving to hit her head-on. Victoria's grimace dropped into a growl and she jerked one hand up, a move that was reminiscent of a certain Sith Lord. Damon felt his body come to a jolting halt and he let out an animalistic growl as he thrashed around in the invisible hold.
Victoria stalked towards Damon with narrowed black-and-white eyes, spitting out with anger, "You died."
"Whoever you think I am, Mama Bear, that's not true. I'm Damon Salvatore. You know me."
"Stop with these stupid lies!" Victoria screamed, her hand starting to squeeze into a fist. Damon let out a gurgled choke as he felt his body start to crumble in on itself. "I tore you in two myself. You. Are. Dead."
She thinks you're Frederick now, Damon's thoughts shouted at him. Somehow, their fight had changed between Victoria and the fake Raphael to Victoria versus Frederick. You need to get her back into her right mind, right now!
"Frederick did die, Victoria," Damon rasped, his throat so tight that his words came out as a wheezed whisper. "You killed him. He's gone and he can't hurt you anymore. Please, Mama Bear. It's Damon. You know me."
"You buried me alive -"
"- That wasn't me; you know I would never do that to you -"
"- I choked on dirt -"
"- I'm sorry, I'm so sorry -"
"- I couldn't breathe. I suffocated to death! It went into my eyes, my nose, my mouth -"
"- I know, I know, but Tori, you need to see that Frederick was -"
"- Stop saying that! You are Frederick!"
"I am Damon Salvatore!" Damon shot back.
Victoria jerked her hand forward, and she grabbed the front of Damon's button up. She pulled both herself closer to Damon and Damon closer to her. Even with her heels, she had to stand up taller to be nose-to-nose with him. She took her free hand and brought it up, cupping the back of Damon's neck. She hissed, her voice a low, deadly whisper with malicious words, "I ripped you in half once, Frederick. I will do it again."
"DAMON!"
Damon's brow crinkled.
He knew that voice.
He recognized it.
How did he know...?
"Any last words, Frederick, before I tear you apart again?" Victoria purred, her face twisting into a sadistic grin.
"The water, Damon! Get her in the water!"
Damon was not one to listen to the weird voices in his head. They usually told him to do really stupid shit (which he wasn't opposed to, but the voices usually told him to do it at the worst of times). But for some stupid reason, Damon was desperate enough to listen.
That, and Noble was creeping up behind Victoria silently, something clenched hard in his hand.
"Just two words," Damon rasped, keeping his eyes trained on Victoria's face. She nodded her head at him, telling him to start speaking. "Now, Noble!"
Noble lunged at Victoria and slammed whatever substance was in his hand up against her vulnerable neck. Whatever it was, it hurt Victoria.
Badly.
She let out a scream of pain and the magic that was holding Damon still released him. She staggered off to the side, her hands clawing desperately at her neck. She tossed something away from her body, and Damon could spot the tiniest bit of...green? Like a leafy plant that was more herb than flower. Wyrmwood.
Damon didn't wait for Victoria to get a second wind. He rushed her, grabbing her by wrapping his arms tightly around her waist. He ignored the confused shouts from Victoria's mother and his nephew and headed straight for the lake. Victoria let out a confused grunt as the two sped closer and closer to the lake. Damon could feel her pounding angrily with her fists against his back but she wasn't using her powers. The wyrmwood that was probably in her veins, in addition to the mess that Noble had smeared onto her neck and her anklet, was keeping her powers suppressed and Damon was grateful for that.
"Please don't hate me," Damon grunted as his shoed feet hit the sand. "Please don't hate me."
He leapt towards the water and the two went splashing into the lake, Damon still holding onto Victoria. He went first into the water, so when she went in right after him, she was closer to the surface. Victoria was thrashing the moment her head went under the water, her eyes casting an eerie glow of black and white into the clear water. Damon kept his hold tight, but he kept a close ear trained on her internal organs. Even though Victoria started to punch him, trying her hardest to make him hurt and to keep from breathing, Damon did not let anything deter him. The moment that he heard her internal organs start to seize up, he would get them out...
There.
Her body was starting to jerk, but not from rage or desperation. Her heart was starting to stutter and Damon could hear her lungs begin to seize up, as if they were having a seizure. Her shoulders bobbed unnaturally and Damon decided that that was enough.
The two had not gotten so far into the lake, so Damon was able to easily orientate themselves upright. Damon pushed off of the bottom of the sand floor and they shot up through the water.
They broke the surface of the water and Victoria was immediately gasping, clutching to Damon to keep her afloat. Her shoulders were shaking and her breaths came out more as quick, fluttering gasps. Her hands clawed at Damon's back as she hung to him. She tucked her head into the corner of his neck and it was only then that Damon realized she was crying and sobbing.
"I-I can't swim...I can't swim! Please don't drop me," she sobbed, holding tighter to Damon.
Damon wrapped one arm tightly around her waist and guided her legs with his other arm so she was wrapped around his body like an octopus. He leaned over to start to swim his way back towards the shore when Victoria let out a panicked shriek and he froze, leaving the two of them bobbing in the water. "P-Please...please don't let go."
"I need to move us to get us out of the water," Damon said gently, trying to keep his voice soft and airy. He used just his legs to try and keep the two of them bobbing in the water and he brought his other hand up so he could place it comfortingly on the back of her head. "If we stay here, you're going to catch a cold. You're already shaking like a leaf."
"I-I'm going to drown!"
"You're not going to drown, Mama Bear. You're going to be fine."
"I-I'm not. I'm not going to be fine. P-Please. P-Please don't drop me."
"Shh, shh," Damon cooed, taking the hand that was against the back of her head and carding his fingers through her damp and tangled locks. The beautiful updo hairstyle she had been wearing the entire night was now wrecked, hairpins floating in the water beside them. He used his fingers and massaged the back of her skull and upper neck. "Shh, I got you, Mama Bear. It's okay. You're okay."
"I-I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
"You have nothing to be sorry about, Mama Bear," Damon comforted. "You were doing what you thought you had to do in order to keep yourself safe." He glanced over her shoulder to peer at the water. "Though I am curious why water seemed to work."
"I-It worked earlier," Victoria piped up, though her voice still sounded like she was in the middle of crying. She held onto him tighter and he just whispered soft words to her in reassurance.
There was a splashing noise beside them and Damon turned his head enough to see Zach wading his way through the water towards them. The look of concern on his face was enough to send an invisible punch to Damon's stomach. Damon had only seen that look of concern on Zach's face maybe four times in his entire life. First, when the doctors at the Mystic Falls hospital had come in and told fifteen year old Zach that his brother probably wouldn't make it through the night. Second, the night with...yeah. Third, the night of the Decade's Dance while he was trying to stop Victoria from bleeding out, and then the fourth instance was when Victoria was bleeding out during the tomb escapade. Zach's face now seemed to make the total five times.
"Victoria, are you okay?" Zach immediately asked as he got closer to the duo.
Victoria's shaking didn't falter in the least bit, and she shook her head violently against Damon's shoulder. Damon just turned to his nephew and gave a small 'no' head shake.
"Okay, lemme rephrase that: are you in any physical pain?"
"M-My head hurts," Victoria whimpered. Damon did not enjoy the wheezing sound that her poor lungs made. "P-Parts of me feel n-numb. It hurts to breathe."
"I'm assuming a repeat of your symptoms from this morning?" Damon questioned, to which Victoria gave a limp nod. He twisted as best he could in the water to face his nephew. "We need to get her out of the water."
"Lee took Lexi and Kelly back to the Founders' Hall and they're grabbing the cars," Zach explained, swimming to come up to Victoria's back, so she became one with a traditional Salvatore sandwich. "Victoria, I'm going to touch your back. Is that okay?"
"Y-Yes."
Zach placed his hands on her hip and shoulder and both men pretended not to notice the violent flinch she gave at the sensation. Together, the two Salvatore men slowly, but surely, brought Victoria over to the shoreline. The moment that Damon's feet touched the sand bottom, and he had a good, grounded stance, Victoria flew from his arms like a missile. She staggered out of the water, letting out frantic gasps of air until she was curled up into a miserable, wet ball on the shoreline. She was on her side, her arms wrapped around herself, as she tried to breathe past the panic.
Damon was still exiting the water when Noble came skidding to Victoria's side. He placed a large, dry hand on Victoria's cheek and just whispered, "Peace, Victoria. Peace." Did it make her stop her panic instantly? No, but it helped to calm her down. And as much as it frustrated and hurt Damon to see Noble being the one to provide her that feeling, Damon would sell his soul just to see it happen. Because Victoria deserved to have comfort, and damn it all, if Damon had any say in it, she would get that comfort. No matter what it took.
A week passed.
One week.
One week since Victoria was not dosed once, but twice, by John Gilbert with wyrmwood, making her hallucinate.
One week since her terrifying dreams of Vicki trying to kill her, and Henri's voice replacing Noble's. One week since she saw Raphael in front of her, saw him chasing her, saw him fighting her, and then his face had dissolved and replaced itself with Frederick's. Then she was in the water and it was like someone had opened her eyes to the truth. It hadn't been Raphael, it had been Lee fighting her. It hadn't been Frederick that she had come close to killing again, it had been Damon. Damon. She had almost killed Damon.
She only went two places in the week since that time: home and school. She refused to eat out, seeing every dish that she or Kelly didn't make personally as some sort of scam. There was no way that Victoria could tell what food was laced with wyrmwood and what was not. She refused company from any of the vampires, even Noble. She didn't trust herself around any of them. She stayed away from her human friends as well; the only person she allowed herself to be around was Kelly, because she knew Kelly would be able to really stop her if need be. Kelly had thought that Victoria's reasoning was ridiculous, as she had not been able to stop Victoria that night (given what she had said to her daughter). Victoria then brought up that Kelly had stopped Victoria the night of her rebirth, and that was all the justification she needed.
When she went to school, Victoria kept to herself and greeted her friends from a distance. She tried her best to keep away from everyone, but Caroline was insistent on keeping close to her. And, much to her surprise, so was Jeremy. The teenager kept close to her side, glaring at anyone who dared to give her an odd look for her more-than-raggedy appearance. When she got to Mrs. Landstrom's biology class, Stefan sat beside her and took her hand in his, trying to press comfort into her as their class continued.
When it came time for Alaric's class, Victoria hurried inside and took her place at her seat. Everyone else filtered in more languidly, including Stefan, Elena, and Matt. Matt gave her a questioning look, taking in her appearance with a raised eyebrow. She gave the human boy a little wave and a look that she would explain everything later. He didn't seem too pleased by that, but he nodded anyways. Now Victoria had all of Alaric's class to come up with a decent excuse she could tell Matt.
Alaric walked in just as his last student settled down at their desk. He set down a large stack of papers onto his desk and then clapped his hands together, drawing the attention of all of his students. "Okay; this week, we're gonna set outside our regular curriculum for a lesson in local history as we approach Founders' Day. Apparently, the community leaders feel it's more important than World War Two, but hey, what do I know?"
There was a gentle knock on the classroom door and Victoria sat up straighter when Bonnie entered, looking sheepish and slightly disheveled. "Sorry I'm late."
"Well, it looks like we will be at full occupancy today," Alaric commented, a warm smile coming to his lips. Quieter, he added, "Welcome home, Bonnie."
Bonnie nodded at Alaric and walked down the rows of desks until she got to her own. She twisted in her seat enough to smile at Elena, but her smile dipped into a frown when her gaze landed on Stefan's. She turned away from the duo and Victoria noticed the two look at each other in worry. Bonnie twisted in her seat and gave Victoria a small smile, one that hid the pain and yet, some joy at seeing Victoria. Victoria returned the same look towards Bonnie.
The lesson about the Founders' Day was actually pretty intriguing, and Victoria even heard mentions of her great-great-great-something-or-other-grandfather witch, Piero LeBlanc. I should really see if Kelly has a book or diary about him. That would probably come in handy. So would Octavia's journal. I just need all the books.
The rest of the school day passed by pretty quickly, and it ended ceremoniously with her phone ringing as soon as the last bell of the school day rang. She packed up her things quickly and glanced at the caller I.D. Damon. Surprise surprise. It was only just the eighteen hundredth time he had called within the last week (that was a little bit of a lie; it was more like twenty-seventh time, if she was being really accurate). She really didn't want to talk to him, but something compelled her to answer the call anyways. "I thought I made it obvious that I didn't want to talk to anyone."
"Yeah, for the past week after a traumatic situation. Trust me when I say that I know you shut down after a bad experience, but you also like physical affection after something bad, so you're hurting yourself more than anyone else. That's not why I'm calling, though."
"Anna was just there?" Victoria asked as she sauntered down the halls, keeping away from the crowds of people. "The whole 'my mom doesn't do apologies' thing?"
"Uh...sort of."
"Sort of?" Victoria echoed, stepping outside into the bright sunlight. She immediately made her way towards a tree that was off to the side on the front lawn of the school. She nestled down onto the grass, leaning her head back up against the tree. "What do you mean by 'sort of'?"
"Anna apologized for what happened to you and Stefan; I told her that I don't do forgiveness."
"Okaaaay. So?"
"She said her mom doesn't do apologies to me. She never said anything about you."
"Alright...aaaaand?"
"I think what Mr. Salvatore is trying to say, in his own eloquent way, is look up."
Victoria's head shot up and she immediately tensed. Pearl stood in front of her, her hands clasped lightly in front of her body. She wore a dark blue business suit with a matching blazer and skirt and a white buttoned up blouse. Her dark hair was wrapped up into a tight bun and pinned behind her head, and the front section was decorated more like a bouffant. Victoria relaxed marginally when she saw Harper standing just off to the side, wearing a dark maroon Henley with jeans. Harper gave Victoria a small nod and a large, warm smile.
"Pearl," Victoria gulped, giving the older woman a nod of respect. She leaned over and smiled brightly at Harper. "Hi, Harper! How are you doing?"
"I'm doing well," Harper replied, nodding once in return. "Thank you for asking."
"If I may, Ms. LeBlanc," Pearl began, her fingers tightening a little in their joined clasp, "perhaps the three of us could have a word together?"
"I'm going to assume that the three of us does not include me," Damon grumbled over the phone. Victoria had completely forgotten that the Salvatore was still on the line. "I don't like this, Mama Bear."
"Good thing no one asked for your opinion then," Victoria spoke before her mind could catch up with her mouth. She winced, but added with some reassurance, "Don't worry, Damon. Harper's here too. He won't let Pearl hurt me."
"Pearl was hundreds of years old when I met her. She is more than capable of taking him out before heading towards you."
"Yeah, and I was able to hold off you, Lee, Lexi, Noble, Zach, and Kelly when I was pushed too," Victoria retorted gently. "Don't worry. I don't think she'll hurt me." She shot Pearl a tight glare. "After all, that would be very rude after I died to help her escape from the tomb."
"The moment you are done talking to her, you call me; do you understand?"
"Yes, Dad," Victoria groaned, rolling her eyes. "I'll talk to you later, Damon."
She hung up on him quickly and shoved her phone into her pocket. She pushed herself up to her feet. Even with her heels only, Pearl only just reached Victoria's height. Meanwhile, Harper still towered over the two of them.
"Will you take a walk with me, Ms. LeBlanc?" Pearl asked, tilting her head to one side.
Victoria shot a quick look towards Harper, and the Civil War vampire gave her a short nod, telling her that she would be okay. Victoria turned back towards Pearl and held her arm out as if she was a gentleman asking for a dance. Pearl's small smile widened at the gesture and the older woman looped her arm through Victoria's before the two turned and started to make their way across the lawn towards the main parking lot, their stride a slow walk. Harper trailed behind them, like an invisible shadow that looked at everyone with distaste and displeasure, especially whenever they looked towards Pearl and Victoria.
"Before we begin, Ms. LeBlanc, I just want to say that it is truly an honor to finally meet you, properly," Pearl began, resting her free hand on Victoria's bent elbow. She gave it a little squeeze. "I never got to thank you for the part you played in saving me from the tomb, so thank you. For that act, I shall forever be indebted to you."
"I think that's a little dramatic," Victoria snorted, shaking her head. "I just did what any decent person would do."
"You shed your blood to give all the vampires in the tomb a chance to escape," Pearl sniffed. "That is not something any 'decent' person would do. You are a woman of caliber. I appreciate it."
"Well then, thank you."
"I should also like to humbly apologize for what the vampires under my command did to you and Mr. Salvatore," Pearl continued, tensing up as she spoke. "Know that it was never, and would never be, my intention to put you or Stefan in so much pain. We all knew the risk of living in Mystic Falls as the creatures that we were. No blame should have been placed, and yet, it was. Words cannot express the sorrow that I feel when I think of what they did to the two of you. All I can simply say is I'm sorry."
"It wasn't your fault," Victoria immediately stated, turning her head to look towards Pearl. Pearl turned her head so the two were looking at each other as they walked forward. "If you didn't command them, then you had no control over what they did. You just wanted to live in peace. I can't blame anyone for that. You are only in control of your own actions. You didn't torture me; Frederick did. Therefore, the blame lies on Frederick and not on you."
"I see," came Pearl's humble response. She turned her head back towards where they were walking and Victoria did the same. "I see my assumption that you are a woman of caliber is accurate."
"Thanks."
"How much do you know about the supernatural being that you are?" Pearl questioned suddenly, and Victoria stiffened up.
"Um...I would say enough. Not as much as I'd like, but I'm learning through experience."
"Not a good experience, so I've heard."
"N-No...not much of it has been pleasant, but I'm making do with what I do know. Did you ever know an Immortalis while you were alive?"
"One," Pearl said, humming as she nodded. "She was magnificent. Floated on her feet with a grace I haven't seen duplicated. She was also strong. Immensely so. I once witnessed her take on a whole pack of werewolves by herself and she came out with only one scratch on her person. She passed very early on in her life as the Immortalis. Still transitioning, but her power far surpassed any strength I have heard from an Immortalis that was that young, well, until you, that is."
"I have her level of power?" Victoria spluttered, raising an eyebrow in disbelief. "I highly doubt that."
"She, too, was able to destroy an entire clearing while bleeding to death," Pearl chuckled lightly and Victoria flushed red with embarrassment. "You two are more alike than one would have thought. She had your hair color; called it her statement piece. Back in that era, red hair was seen as a sign of moral impurity. You were more mistress than wife material, as she once put it. Still, she stood up to the sneers of the populace with a smile and a kind word. Never let them get to her."
"Glad people aren't like that nowadays," Victoria sighed. "I don't think I could put up with any more jeering than I already do."
"What jeers are you experiencing, Ms. LeBlanc?"
"There are people in town who blame me for the deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert," Victoria explained. "Mr. Gilbert was a descendant of Johnathan's. They crashed their car into me on Wickery Bridge last May and we went into the water. Elena came out unscathed, but I drowned and was resuscitated into a coma for four months before waking up with no recollection of memories that involve my personal life and input."
"Before you became the Immortalis, I would assume you were a LeBlanc witch?"
"A broken one," Victoria admitted, reaching up with her free hand to scratch the back of her neck awkwardly. "I didn't have access to my powers after I woke up from my coma. My mom and I think that drowning disrupted some synapses in my brain, little connectors that make up brain chemistry, and that somehow prevented me from having a good access to my powers. I didn't even know I had been a witch until the night of my rebirth as the Immortalis."
"Are there any other jeers?"
"More like spiteful people who don't know how to take an obvious hint of displeasure," Victoria clarified, shaking her head. "It's fine. We'll handle it."
The trio reached the edge of the lawn, with Elena, Caroline, and Bonnie just a handful of yards away from them. Pearl gently took her arm out of Victoria's and turned the girl so she was standing face-to-face with Pearl. Pearl spoke softly, keeping her voice low and sounding very motherly, "Thank you for taking care of Harper. You and Kelly are kind women."
"It's our pleasure, honestly," Victoria admitted. "He's a joy to have around the house. It's like I have a younger brother, even though he's a hundred plus years older than me." She stuck her tongue out at him playfully after that and he just chuckled at her audacity.
"I believe this is where we will part ways for now, Ms. LeBlanc," Pearl stated. She reached out and grabbed both of Victoria's hands, giving them a gentle (human standard) squeeze. "I will see you around. If you have any questions, perhaps we can meet for lunch or dinner."
"I'd love that, Pearl, and trust me, I have a lot of questions," Victoria answered honestly, shrugging awkwardly. "Can...Can you promise me something, though?"
"Of course."
"Don't have dinner with John."
Victoria nodded her goodbyes to Pearl and Harper before Pearl could question what the heavens that statement even meant and sauntered her way over to the trio of human girls (well, human, witch, and doppelgänger). She greeted them warmly, shooting playful finger guns towards Caroline. "Afternoon, ladies."
"Someone seems way better than this morning," Caroline commented, narrowing her eyes semi-suspiciously at her best friend. They widened the next moment as if she was in a cartoon. "Oh my gosh! Did you lose your virginity?"
Victoria spluttered, not at all expecting that as a reaction. "E-Excuse me?"
"Well, you're kind of glowing, so I just assumed -"
"- Caroline, I am still a virgin through and through," Victoria argued, feeling an indignant blush rushing to her cheeks. "Oh my gosh, how could you even just say something like that? No, I talked for a little bit with Damon and with Pearl and Harper and something about that conversation helped me out a lot. I'm sorry I've been so distant recently. That wasn't fair to any of you guys."
"Well, my grandmother died and I left town for a whole ass month, so I don't think anyone can blame you for taking a week off from supernatural drama," Bonnie replied, reaching over to pat Victoria's shoulder reassuringly. "It's a good thing you're here, though. Caroline was just about to go hunting for you."
"Oh, really?" Victoria asked, turning towards the perky blonde who looked like she was about to pop out of her skin in excitement. "What for?"
"Well, as I already told Elena and Bonnie, I have a major wardrobe problem. You guys need to help me pick up the perfect dress for the Founders' court."
"The Founders' court? Did I miss something?" Elena asked, glancing towards Victoria.
The Immortalis sighed and said, "The Founders' court as in Miss Mystic Falls. They announced the candidates for the court today and you and Caroline are on it."
"And you!" Caroline cheered, clapping her hands together happily.
Victoria froze.
Then blinked.
Then blinked again.
And then, finally, spoke, "Exsqueeze me?"
"You're on the Founders' court too," Caroline explained. "I mean, it makes sense; you signed up and you are a member of the Founding Families..." She trailed off when she spotted Victoria's confused expression and Caroline's face fell as the realization hit her. "Oh. The other Victoria signed up, not you. You don't remember that."
"Unfortunately not," Victoria admitted, biting her lower lip.
"We all signed up for that way back in April of last year," Elena sighed, a look of wonderment in her eyes. "I completely forgot."
"So, are you dropping out then?" Caroline asked, jumping on the opportunity to ask.
"I can't," Elena whispered.
Caroline whipped her head over to Bonnie, looking for clarification. "No?"
"Her mom is the one who wanted her to enter," Bonnie explained softly, shooting Elena's concerned looks.
"What about you, Tori?" Caroline demanded, turning towards her best friend. "Are you dropping out? Because the two of us have been dreaming about entering this competition together since we were seven."
"Well, with that kind of motivation, how can I say no?" Victoria giggled, and Caroline cheered, clapping her hands together.
"Perfect, because the interviews are in an hour and we need to get looking presentable! To the bathroom, ladies!"
A/N: So sorry this wasn't posted yesterday. I got hit suddenly with a terrible sickness and I literally couldn't leave my bed or look at screens without intense migraines. We think that maybe I got some sort of COVID variant again because it honestly feels like COVID. It's a honest miracle I got this out today. I'm still hoping that I'll be able to get the next chapter of my Regency AU out by Friday. If I am COVID positive, then maybe, because I won't be going to work. If not, then eek. We'll have to push it out to next week again.
On a side note: Child of Dreams totally pointed out in a review like 5 hours ago that LeBlanc is actually French, not Italian. Yeah, I didn't know that when I picked out this name. We'll explain why Victoria and Kelly believe it's Italian later in the series, but thanks to Child of Dreams for pointing that out.
We got some Pearl and Harper, we got some angsty Datoria moments, and more! It's such a diverse chapter. And y'all, Team Datoria is on the verge of breaking 50 votes. Eek! The first half of this last weekend was totally in favor of Team Vilijah and then Team Datoria snuck in and retook the lead.
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} (49): 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, Guest (23), garbolaughs39, Angel, Guest (24),
Team Vilijah {Victoria/Elijah} (46.5): 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, TheLadyO, jjaejjae, Guest (21), Guest (22), NovemberSagittarius, RandomRivers, Frida Claire
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
Team Vioble {Victoria/Noble} (1.5): Shiro7, Child of Dreams
New Followers!: ToriTayTaco (hehe, nice), Silvertongue42, Remebear2, Goodboiii, Child of Dreams
New Favoriters!: Silvertongue42 (you're the 300th Favoriter! Congrats!), KEZZ 1, Remebear2, Goodboiii, Child of Dreams
Onto reviews (there's a lot!):
jenniferchase2402: Thanks for voting!
Frida Claire: Awww thank you! Sorry it was late this week. I can't wait for the Originals to make an appearance too. Got it. Your vote has been added!
Brookeworm3: I'm pretty sure that John is not going to survive. I don't really have a plot for him other the canon stuff.
Elyse1821: Awww, you know me so well! I hope this chapter helps to answer some of your questions (if not to give you more ;p). Cool!
DBZFAN45: Just hallucinations! Raphael's not back (not yet, at least ;p). I like teasing y'all. You make it so easy. I feel like Jenna was definitely a hellion, but Kelly might have been the designated mom friend. Damon doesn't like anyone calling Victoria Mama Bear except then him. He definitely still thinks that she's a White Witch, but maybe he doesn't know about the Immortalis just yet. I totally forgot that she would be wearing a time period dress. Oooh. I love that. Here's your Pearl and Tori first conversation! It was long overdue. I don't get what's up with the site's glitching. Hopefully it gets better soon. It glitched out on me a while ago and I just had to wait.
Guest: Thanks for voting! You are Guest (23) if you ever want to change your vote!
garbolaughs39: Almost missed your review! Thanks for voting!
KEZZ 1: Thank you so much! Here's this chapter for you!
Angel: Got it! Your vote has been added! Fun fact: "Angel" becomes a nickname for Victoria later in the story by a person we have yet to meet.
Guest: He really does have her best interests in mind. Aww, your review is so sweet and yes, all the things that you say are true. Your vote has been added! (You are Guest (24) if you ever want to change your vote).
Lime: The Britney Spears conclusion will be located down below for you to check out. You're welcome ;). Yeah, Victoria probably would agree that "safety is sexy" in situations like these. I love protective Jerebear. Fun fact: only two men on the entire TVD cast (including Originals and Legacies) make me blush and flustered and make it so that I can't speak properly when they're on screen, and those two men are Elijah Mikaelson and Jeremy Gilbert (mostly Season 2 forward). It's a really odd occurrence that it's just those two. But remember, John kind of knows everyone and everything. It's really creepy like that. No worries!
Goodboiii (Ch. 34): Thanks for reviewing and binging the story! Yeah, it's a lot so I appreciate it. Yay! That's what I wanted! Yeah, moral of the story is I am being very ambiguous about a lot of things involving this story. Yay, that's what I was going for! I sat down and wondered, "How can I make this story different than all that other 'I got transported into a tv-show' fanfics?" and this was the solution I came up with! Here's your chapter! Much love in return.
Child of Dreams: As you found out, yes, Team Vioble is an option (but oooooh, I like Notoria as a shipname too). I'm glad you think that Noble is perfect! He's definitely boyfriend material. And yes, you're totally right, LeBlanc is a French name, not an Italian name. I have no excuse for that except that I never looked it up to see if it was actually an Italian name. Your vote has been added! Thank you!
Now, in honor of Lime, who has been wondering and pondering this question for a solid week now...
What was Zach's results on the Britney Spears Best Song conundrum?
This takes place during the week after Christmas and before New Year's Eve in 2009.
Victoria knocked gently on the door to the library of the Salvatore boarding house, sighing when she only heard mumbling on the other side. She knocked again, this time a little more insistently. Still, more mumbling. Finally, Victoria got fed up and pounded on the door, shouting, "Zachariah whatever your middle name is Salvatore -!"
"- It's Joseph -"
"- Zachariah Joseph Salvatore, open this damn door right now or so help me, I will use that training Kelly insisted on giving me and blast it open myself."
There was silence for a few seconds and Victoria clenched and unclenched her fists, getting ready to open the door at whatever means necessary. A moment just before she was about to unleash hell on the door to the library, there was an audible click and the door swung in. Victoria sighed in triumph and shook her hands out as she sashayed her way into the library.
"Holy shit, Zach," Victoria murmured, her eyes taking in the mess that consumed the library. Books were everywhere, as were random papers. Little multicolored tacks were pinned in various places on bookshelves, walls, and even (gasp) the occasional book. Bright colored strings in various colors (some red, some blue, and even a green and yellow one) connected the tacks like an overwhelming spider web. She ducked underneath a spider string and let the library door shut behind her, tiptoeing around a large stack of papers that looked like crumpled pieces of newspapers. "What the hell happened in here?"
"No time to talk," Zach stuttered, fluttering about to and fro like an anxious pigeon. He grabbed a piece of dangling red string and walked quickly towards Victoria, pushing her out of the way so he could get to the wall. "T-Too much to research, not enough time."
"Zach, you're freaking out the rest of the boarding house," Victoria scolded, planting her hands on her hips. "Damon says he hasn't seen you since Christmas, Lexi's not sure if you've even left the library in order to feed, and Lee's working up a plan to break in, knock you out, and force-feed you blood so you don't desiccate as a result of your own foolishness. When's the last time you slept?"
"I don't need sleep, I need answers," Zach retorted, flipping around to continue his anxious pigeon walk.
Victoria squeezed her eyes shut and whispered, "Oooh, that's a good Big Bang quote and you don't even know it." She opened her eyes and sighed, gesturing towards the room. It might be better just to get him to explain what everything was. "What are you even researching? Is it something to do with the Immortalis and that journal that you got from Noble?"
"No Immortalis," Zach murmured, shaking his head back and forth. "No, no, no, no. Much bigger. More important."
"Something more important than a supernatural creature who can reincarnate who is living in your teenage friend's body?" Victoria asked skeptically, and when Zach nodded rapidly, she just sighed again. "And on a side note, how much bourbon have you had to drink within the last seventy-two hours?"
"Only three -"
"- That's not bad, honestly; like a glass per day -"
"- every hour."
"Yeah, that's what I thought," Victoria groaned. "Zach, you're killing me here. Just take a moment and tell me honestly: what is this research even about?"
"What Britney Spears song is the best?"
Victoria was taken aback by the sudden question and her brow furrowed as she thought up an answer. "Uh...I've never really thought about that. I guess I really like Til the World Ends, but that doesn't come out until 2011...um...if we're doing songs that are already out...I guess ...Baby One More Time?"
"New information to add to the data pile," Zach muttered, grabbing a random pen and a sheet of paper and making scrawling notes on it. "Fan of the classics, but likes some of her more modern work. Interesting, interesting."
"Wait, have you seriously gone days without sleep and eating just because you're trying to find the best Britney Spears song?" Victoria asked incredulously, blinking her eyes in surprise. "Zach!"
"Didn't start that way, no, no, no," Zach continued, sticking the pen cap in his mouth so his words came out a little more slurred. "No, no, no. Started with research on Immortalis, then hit wall. Needed break. Toxic came on the radio. New thought project, haven't stopped."
"How long, then, have you been working on this Britney Spears project?"
"Forty-eight hours."
"Two days, Zach? You worked on the Immortalis stuff for like, a day and a half, and then immediately transferred to doing this diabolical research?"
Zach flipped on her, spitting out the pen cap, and pointed a dramatic finger towards her face. "That is my Queen, Britney Spears, you are speaking about. She does not deserve any hate!"
"Easy, Sherlock!" Victoria cried out, raising her hands up by her head as if he was pointing a gun at her. "I'm a Britney stan too, but would she really be wanting you to throw away your health in order to figure out something that I'm sure you could have looked up on the internet?"
"Unreliable narrator, the internet," Zach shushed, flipping around to stomp towards a wall. It was covered in papers and surrounded on either side by a bookshelf filled to the brim with books. On it were multiple printed out photos of Britney Spears and labels of her songs. "Too many opinions. Don't need opinions, just need facts."
"Zach, I think you are extremely sleep-deprived and way too drunk for this," Victoria sighed. "Please, just take a break. Get a snack, take a nap, something. You're going to end up killing yourself over this."
"One final equation," Zach demanded, taking the pen in his hand and scribbling on the wall. "One more equation and then I'm..." He trailed off and his eyes widened suddenly. He threw his hands up in the air triumphantly and let out a loud, rowdy cheer. "I did it! I figured it out!"
"Wonderful, Zach. Now just tell me so you can go to bed."
"O-Of course! The best song of all time is -"
And he immediately dropped to the floor, dead asleep.
Victoria had to drag his unconscious body out of the living room and up the stairs (with some help, of course, from Lee who had been waiting patiently by the door. He had been the one to call her and plead that she try talking Zach out of his ridiculous research binge). When she got Zach up into his bed, and Lee left to tell the good news to Damon, Lexi, and Stefan, Zach managed to regain consciousness for about a minute.
"V-Victoria?"
"Shh, shh, shh, Zach. Just go back to sleep."
"P-Please don't tell anyone what happened. Just burn it. All the research."
"Of course, Zach, now go back asleep."
Victoria did not burn the research.
Instead, it was well-hidden deep within the library of the boarding house. That would be a fun Easter egg for someone to find later on in life.
That's all for now, folks!
Until next time,
Stay healthy (unlike me) and stay safe!
BecomingFearless1F