If you recognize it, I don't own it! OCs are mine, though why you would want them, I don't know.

TW: Brief violence in the month of May.

JANUARY

"We need to move."

Miriam looked at Baahir, who sat on the other end of the couch. It was a couple of days after they had visited the witch Hera. Baahir had been gracious enough to let Miriam stay at his place, though they now alternated who had the bed and who had the couch. He had also taken her shopping. She was now the proud owner of three pairs of pants, six tops, two additional pairs of shoes, two pairs of pajamas, a jacket, a new bra, a new scarf, a package of socks, and a small collection of functional, non-lacey underwear. He had also bought her necessity items, like a brush of her own, deodorant, and her preferred hair products. She hadn't realized how many items she relied on to just be there before losing them all. Hair ties, lotion, tampons, nail polish, it was all gone. The only thing she had from her original life was the clothes she came in, and her satchel bag full of momentos. That bag's contents were now her most prized possession.

"Why?" she felt lazy. They had ordered a large pizza. She had eaten most of it while Baahir snacked on the poor pizza delivery boy. He fed on the teen before healing him, compelling him to forget his encounter, and sending him on his way with a large tip.

"We can't keep switching from bed to couch. I don't know about you, but it's getting old. We need a place with two bedrooms."

She sat up, suddenly serious. "You… you want to stay with me?"

"Of course," he looked at her face, and sat up as well. "You know how I was telling you about vampires having mates?"

"Yeah. You said you haven't found yours yet."

The concept of 'mates' was a new piece of information to Miriam. The universe she now resided in had small changes. Mates hadn't existed in the original source material. She wondered briefly if the changes were due to her presence. Regardless, she was determined to not let the changes phase her.

"Correct. But I did find something just as valuable: a sibling bond," at her confused look, he added, "You got into my car with minimal prodding from me. Isn't that strange? You are a small woman who got into a car with two males who might have meant to harm you."

"But you didn't," she pointed out.

"No, I did not, sweeting, because I felt the bond between us. It is obviously not romantic. You are not my type."

Miriam laughed and lightly punched his shoulder.

"I am serious, Miriam," he grabbed her hands to angle her body towards him. His brown eyes were sincere. "I can feel the sibling bond developing, and I want it. I want you. So I am staying with you, until you don't want me there anymore."

Her heart swelled with affection. It wasn't love, not yet, but it could be. "Okay. Where do you want to move to?"

FEBRUARY

"I need to get a job."

It was 2008, a full year before the events in the Vampire Diaries started. It was two years before the Mikaelson family even became an issue. Miriam had to do something before shit hit the fan. She also had to contribute to the apartment bills. Baahir had moved them to an apartment only an hour from Mystic Falls. Their city was the closest one to the rural town. The proximity made Miriam both ecstatic and anxious.

The apartment was small, but functional. The bedrooms were the same size, but Baahir's room had a bigger closet and an en suite. They both agreed that he deserved the extra space, mainly because he paid for the apartment, and he had more stuff than Miriam did. The living space was small; Baahir's ugly, beat-up couch and dinged up coffee table barely fit. There was no designated space (or room) for a dining table, but there was enough room for two barstools at the counter facing the kitchen. All in all, the place was nice. The apartment was on the fifth floor, in a slightly better neighborhood than Baahir's other apartment building. It wouldn't be their forever home, but it was good for now.

"That's going to be hard," Baahir pointed out. "You don't have a social security card here, nor any valid ID. Or a bank account."

"There's got to be jobs that just pay cash," Miriam insisted. Baahir immigrated to the US from Canada only three years ago, and had only spent ten years in Canada. He had already explained to her that only a small amount of vampires were wealthy. Others, like him, had to make due with odd jobs. Though they could compel people, it was getting harder and harder to slide under the radar. Banks could track money more closely. Cameras in stores and banks were catching vampires in the act of compelling poor workers, so the vampire population had to adapt.

"There are, but they are not very reputable," he looked thoughtful. "I don't have any contacts in the US yet. I have spent most of my immortal life in the Old World. Good forged documents are expensive… we will start saving up money for your documents. In the meantime, try cleaning services. I will ask some of the homeless and immigrant peoples living in the city."

"Good. I want to help out around here," she insisted.

"Then you will," he promised. "If that's settled, do you want to go get lunch?"

"Real lunch, or I eat while you suck the blood out of some poor waiter?" Miriam asked slyly.

"The latter, you brat."

MARCH

"Happy birthday!"

She was awoken to her curtains being yanked open and sunlight streaming in. Baahir stood over her, a tray of breakfast foods in his hands.

"You remembered!" Miriam exclaimed, and sat up in bed.

"Of course I did! What kind of best friend slash pseudo brother would I be if I didn't?" He placed the tray on her lap, but not before snagging a piece of bacon for himself.

She was too excited to care about the missing bacon. She beamed at him. "Thank you for remembering my birthday. It means a lot to me."

His eyes became watery. "Aww. Don't say things like that if you don't want me to cry!"

She laughed and happily dug into her birthday breakfast. She even shared the food with Baahir.

Later, after they had both dressed, he retreated to his room and reappeared with several presents.

"Baahir! You shouldn't have," she gushed.

"But I did. This is your first birthday in an alternate universe, and as such, you deserve presents," he grinned.

The first present was a black dress. It was simple, but elegant and versatile. She loved it. The second present was a phone. It was old, to her 2021 eyes, but she knew that it was probably a middle-of-the-road for 2008.

"I am paying for the cell phone plan, so even if I leave you for a little bit, you won't have to worry about paying for it."

"It's too much," she resisted.

"I think not. I want to be able to talk to you, and I do not want you to worry. Please, do not argue with me."

"Okay," she relented. Miriam was content with her dress and her new phone, but Baahir pulled a third present out from behind his back. "No! What you gave me is enough."

"Humor me," his eyes twinkled as she reluctantly accepted the bag.

Miriam was fully prepared to resist the gift, especially if it was something frivolous, like shoes, but when she pulled the objects out of the bag she gasped. "Knitting needles?! Yarn?!"

"I remember you telling me that you learned how to knit from your grandmother. I thought you might like to have the means to continue the hobby," here he blushed, looking nervous.

"I love it!" She gently placed her new favorite present on the coffee table before launching herself at Baahir. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"I have one final present for you," Baahir said when she finally pulled away from their hug.

"What else could you possibly give me?" she asked, completely blissed out.

"We are going to Easter service tomorrow," he announced. "I know you are not very religious, and my parents were Muslim, and I am a vampire, but you said your grandparents were religious, and that you always went to mass with them. And I notice that you always wear the cross necklace your abuela gave you. I know you would feel guilty not observing Easter- why are you crying?"

"You're so sweet and thoughtful," she wiped away tears. "I was fully prepared to spend the day all gloomy, missing home, but you've made today so special. Thank you."

"Now I am going to cry," he laughed wetly. "Come here, sweeting."

They hugged again. Miriam clutched at him, so incredibly thankful that she had him. A stray thought floated into her head, and she chuckled.

"To think, if I hadn't been hit by your car, we wouldn't be here."

"Sweeting, if we had not hit you, I would have gotten lucky that night," he said teasingly.

Miriam laughed and snuggled closer to him.

APRIL

"Alright, you've moped enough. Explain your dilemma to me," Baahir demanded.

"You wouldn't understand," Miriam grumbled from her hunched position over half a dozen notebooks. She was physically exhausted from cleaning houses all day and mentally exhausted from trying to figure out what events to change.

"I am 800 years old. Try me," he deadpanned.

"I just…" she sighed and pushed her hair back. "I'm not naive. I know people are going to die, no matter what I do. I just want to keep the body count down."

"A worthy goal. What's the issue?" he nudged her to the side of her bed and sat down next to her.

"If I change too much too early, I can't predict what will happen next. That means the knowledge I possess becomes worthless. The knowledge I have is my only tool, and I can't let it be taken away so soon," she vented.

"I understand. What is your current obstacle?"

"I don't want them going after children," she admitted. "Or innocents. The children thing is bothering me, though. The story is centered around high schoolers… when I was young, I didn't see anything wrong with a sixteen-year-old having sex with a man a century older than. But when I re-watched the show several months ago, it was hard to watch the sex scenes. I know I can't shelter the entire cast of characters, but there are some events I want to alter."

"That's fine. Do what you think is best," he encouraged. "Save whoever you think is worthy. Kill whoever is guilty in your eyes. Sweeting, you have the power to change so many lives, either positively, or negatively. It is your choice."

"I'm going to save the Mikaelson family," Miriam had to whisper it. She felt like saying the name was synonymous with summoning Klaus or Elijah, and she wasn't ready to meet either.

"Then save them. I will support you however you need," he kissed her forehead. "Now, explain the entire plot to me."

She raised an eyebrow at that. "It's three TV shows, each with multiple seasons and plot lines. Explaining it all will take hours."

"We will stop for lunch and dinner, then," Baahir smiled at her cheekily. She laughed and shook her head.

"Settle in, then. It'll all begin 1,000 years ago…"

MAY

Cleaning houses wasn't a glamorous job, but it helped pay the bills. With both Baahir and Miriam working full time, they were able to maintain a pretty good life. Baahir spent his weekend at gay bars and Miriam's extra cash went to her knitting. Their days were quiet and simple. Miriam knew that her life wouldn't stay so calm, but she was determined to enjoy it.

Maybe she had become complacent. Maybe she still didn't fully believe that she was in a world full of vampires, werewolves, and witches. Besides Baahir and Hera, she hadn't met any supernaturals. Sometimes, if Baahir and Miriam were walking during the night and they passed someone, he would tighten his grip on her hand and let out a growl. That was her only indication that whoever they passed by was a vampire. There were never any fights.

She was walking to the supermarket one cool night in May. Miriam was making dinner for them, but hadn't bought enough cheese for the lasagna. The supermarket was only a block away, so she left Baahir in charge of prep. Round trip she would be gone for twenty minutes.

Miriam was on her way back, a plastic bag swinging on her arm. She had bought the cheese, along with ice cream for dessert. Humming a happy tune (I Kissed a Girl by Katy Perry had come out two weeks prior, and Baahir still complained that Miriam's happy screech had damaged his ears), Miriam was completely oblivious to her surroundings.

One minute she was walking down the sidewalk, and the next she was being shoved into a brick wall. Her gasp was covered by a dirty hand. A similarly dirty pressed itself against her.

"Shhh, pretty girl," it was a he, and he had bad breath. From what she could make out, he was filthy. His clothes were ill-fitted, like they had originally been someone else's. His light brown hair was in disarray. Black veins were pronounced around his crazed eyes.

Vampire.

She tried to struggle, to scream. He didn't allow either action to bear fruit. His hand tightened on her face, and his other hand came up to grip her throat.

"Struggling won't help," he laughed hoarsely. His grip was bruising. "I just want something to eat." He lowered his face to her neck and sniffed. "You smell odd, but that won't stop me."

"Maybe I will stop you, then."

The vampire startled and pulled away. Baahir charged forward faster than Miriam could see, and before she could blink the dirty vampire was lying on the ground, a gaping hole where his heart should have been. Said heart was currently being crushed in Baahir's palm. He let it drop to the ground with a wet squelch, and turned to Miriam.

"Are you alright? Did he injure you?" he sounded more mature and serious than she had ever heard him. "Miriam? Answer me, Miriam."

"I'm fine," she gasped out. "He just grabbed me, nothing more."

"Okay, that's good," he nodded to himself. "I am going to take you home now. Once you are safe I will return to dispose of the body. Can you walk?"

"Yes," she pushed off the wall, but wobbled forward. She heard Baahir curse. He picked her up and vamp-sped to their apartment. He deposited her onto the couch and tucked a throw blanket around her before leaving.

She stayed under the blanket for a couple of minutes before throwing it off and stalking to the kitchen. Somehow her grocery bag had survived the entire trip, though Baahir had just left it on the counter. She put the ice cream into the freezer, then turned on all the appliances Baahir had turned off.

Mechanically Miriam finished prepping for dinner and started to make it. By the time Baahir had returned, the lasagna was baking in the oven. Miriam was sitting on a barstool, knitting. He joined Miriam, sitting on the other barstool.

"It's real, now," she said without looking up.

"It was always real," he pointed out.

"Yeah, I know."

That night they ate in silence. Later that night Miriam crawled into Baahir's bed. He hugged her tight as she sobbed.

JUNE

"What are you making now?"

"It's a surprise," Miriam grinned up at the man. They were at a park under a shaded tree, families with children and pets surrounded them. It was loud, but the day was beautiful.

"I think I can guess," he said confidently. He had a book of word puzzles in his hands. It was almost finished. Miriam had a fleeting thought that she needed to get him a new one. He loved crossword puzzles.

"Oh?"

"It is a scarf."

"It's got two arm holes!"

"It is a scarf that doubles as arm warmers," his tone remained confident.

Miriam laughed. She kissed his cheek, then frowned. She couldn't focus on his features. Her eyes seemed to skip over them. Was his hair brown? What shape was his jaw? What color were his eyes?

He smiled down at her. "I love you."

Automatically, but truthfully, she replied, "I love you, too."

Miriam woke up to her alarm, feeling more lonely than normal.

JULY

"Do you want some extra cash?" Carmen, Miriam's co-worker asked.

"Yes," Miriam narrowed her eyes. Carmen fidgeted. "What's the catch?"

"The family is rich, but weird. The company never sends cleaners to their house unless they promise extra. You will be safe, but it might not be worth it."

Miriam thought about the stack of bills on the desk in Baahir's room. He had taken on extra shifts at the warehouse recently. He said they were fine, but she wasn't sure she believed him.

"I'll do it once," she decided. "Who is coming with me?"

"I will," Carmen said.

The two women went later that week. The house was a large colonial-style house. The grounds were immaculately kept. Every bush seemed to grow perfect roses. The entryway of the house was spotless. Miriam wondered what they needed to be cleaned.

The home owners approached them.

"Welcome," the husband smiled tightly. He was handsome, in a bland, Hallmark love-interest sort of way. His wife was prettier, but was acting just as odd. "We need you for only the upstairs."

"I've been here before, Mr. Williamson. I'll show Miriam here the ropes," Carmen said.

Mr. Williamson's smile stayed tight and plastic. "Good, good. We will come and check on you soon."

The Williamsons left to an adjoining room. Carmen motioned for Miriam to follow her upstairs. When Miriam went to open a door, Carmen shook her head.

"It's just this one room."

Slightly freaked out, Miriam followed. Carmen knocked on the closed door.

"Come in!"

They entered a small room only big enough for the two women and their cleaning supplies. It was completely dark. Carmen set her stuff down, urged Miriam to do the same, then closed the door they came in from. After a moment, the opposite door opened.

A perky blond teenager was holding open the door. She was thirteen, maybe fourteen. She smiled widely at them. "Hi! My name is Ashley. Thank you for coming."

"Hi, Ashley. You might remember me. I'm Carmen. This is my friend, Miriam. She'll be helping you today."

Carmen and Miriam fully entered the room. Ashley closed the door behind them.

The room was probably the envy of all of Ashley's friends. The walls were painted a faint pink, which complemented her white furniture. She had her own TV, an awesome stereo system, and the largest, plushest bed ever. There were thick blackout curtains over every window.

"I'm glad you came. I was starting to get hungry," Ashley grinned. Dark veins appeared around her eyes, and her fangs popped out.

Miriam gasped and tried to step backwards, but Carmen pushed her forward.

"Don't worry, I haven't killed anyone in months!" Ashley promised. Without asking, she grabbed Miriam's right wrist and bit.

Miriam hissed in pain. It hurt! Ashley wasn't gentle with her teeth, either. She pulled mouthfuls of Miriam's blood, hungrily gulping the red liquid down. Miriam was afraid to pull away and do further damage to herself.

After several minutes, Miriam became woozy. Luckily Ashley decided to pull away. She lifted her hand to her mouth and pricked her forefinger on one of her fangs. She spread her own blood onto the bite marks. Moments later the wounds were gone.

"Thank you!" Ashley beamed. "You tasted kind of weird, but it was still good."

Not knowing what to say to that odd statement, Miriam left. She and Carmen picked up their cleaning supplies, then met Mr. Williamson in the entryway again. He gave each woman five times what they would have made for a normal job, but he couldn't look them in the eye when he handed the cash to them.

In the car Miriam demanded, "Why didn't you tell me?!"

"You wouldn't have gone if you knew she was a vampire," Carmen rolled her eyes. "You aren't hurt, and you made a lot of extra money. Be grateful. You could be Mr. and Mrs. Williamson, having to live with that thing forever."

"What happened to her?"

"Mrs. Williamson broke down and explained the entire situation to Clara, our boss, one day. Clara relayed the story to me. Apparently two summers ago Ashley's friends convinced her to go to a party held by seniors at the high school they were supposed to go to in the fall. Ashley was turned by accident by one of the seniors, who was also a vampire. She had just turned fourteen. She can't go out in the sun, so they light-proofed her room. They hire people so she can drink their blood. They pay handsomely, as you've seen."

"It's not worth it. It hurt," Miriam rubbed her wrist."

"Maybe, but if it's between a little pain and making your rent, which would you choose?"

They were quiet the entire ride back as Miriam pondered that question.

AUGUST

Miriam was sitting on a pile of cushions, pillows, and blankets. A blanket, one she had made, was wrapped around her and her partner. She was sitting in his lap, content as he read to her. The words, not in English or Spanish- both of which she knew- floated over her. The current passage was one about love. She knew because he recited it often to her. She didn't know the original language, but she knew the English translation:

"When I saw her eyes I was transfixed

They are two cups of wine, both of them ablaze

Are these eyes, or two doors to a winehouse

Shall I call them eyes or dreams

When the eyes looked down, they became shyness itself,

When they looked up, they became a prayer.

When they looked down after looking up, it was her style.

When they looked up after a downward glance, it became a punishment.

Eyes, in which the sky and earth are captured,

(eyes) like the flower of nargis,

grey, like the eye-kohl.."

"I love that verse," she whispered.

"I love you," he countered, his voice smooth like honey.

"I know," she felt him snuffle the space between her shoulder and neck. "You prove your love every day. I found a new ring in my underwear drawer, by the way."

"Did you?" he sounded distracted. He lightly nipped her neck.

"Querido," she gently scolded.

"You smell amazing," he groaned.

She laughed and turned to kiss him… and then the neighbor's dog woke her up.

SEPTEMBER

"Get dressed, we are going clubbing!" Baahir announced one day in early September.

"We are not," she countered, not looking up from her notebooks. She needed to remove certain obstacles, like Wickery Bridge and the Wickery Bridge sign that were made from the white oak tree, from the equation. Miriam wanted to accomplish this before they became potential weapons. The less things she had to deal with later would be nice.

"It's my birthday," he added.

"What?!" She gaped at him. "You told me it was in October!"

"I lied, because I knew you would try to get me something," he said, looking very proud of himself. "Get dressed. I put clubbing clothes in your closet yesterday."

Begrudgingly she got dressed.

The night was a blast. Baahir was more energetic and friendly than usual. Every person in the club gravitated towards him. And he was sure to talk to everyone. He flirted with men as well as women. His jokes made everyone laugh. His dancing, a mix between funny and sexy, drew the eyes of every creature in the building. Despite this, he looked sad in his eyes.

He had told Miriam that he was slowly giving up on having a mate. He was 800 years old. In all his years on Earth, he hadn't met anyone who had sparked any lasting feelings of belonging. He wasn't celebate by any means, but he was going out less and less.

They were quiet on the drive home. They were quiet as they rode the elevator to their floor. Baahir started to head for his room once they got into their apartment, but Miriam stopped him with a gentle hand on his arm.

"Happy birthday," she pulled him into a tight hug.

"Thank you," he returned the hug with equal intensity.

Miriam hesitated, not sure if she wanted to bring up the sore topic, but then forged on: "You will meet your mate someday. And he will love you and treasure you like you deserve."

"Thank you, Miri."

They shared his bed that night. Though there was nothing sexual about sleeping next to Baahir, Miriam treasured the closeness that sharing a bed brought to their relationship. It probably wasn't what normal people with siblings did, but she wouldn't have it any other way. She big-spooned Baahir, mentally pouring all of her love towards him. He needed the closeness, and she could provide that closeness.

The next day Baahir was back to his usually cheerful self, but before going to work he kissed her forehead in thanks.

OCTOBER

The early morning light streamed in from the open window. The floor-length curtains swayed gently in the breeze. Miriam stretched leisurely on the bed. She was comfortable, something she wasn't often. The reason for her lack of comfort was currently pressing down on her bladder.

"You've got maybe two more minutes before your kid makes me wet myself," she alerted her lover. He had his easel and paints out and he was set up near the open window. Based on his clothes and the alertness on his face, he had been working for a solid hour. He looked up from his work and smirked at her.

"Why is she my child when she irritates you?"

"She will be your child when she takes the car for a joyride at age fifteen. She will be my child when she comes home with a boyfriend or girlfriend that is the very definition of a rogue," she said cheekily.

"Are you saying I'm a rogue?" he asked, laughter barely suppressed.

"No. I'm saying I'm attracted to rogues," she giggled as he frowned playfully at her.

"That's not too nice, Love. I'm prone to jealousy, you know."

"I do know. I find it very sexy," Miriam laughed as he vamp-sped over to her and began kissing her face. "S-stop! You're going to make me wet myself!"

"I'd never allow that to happen to my beautiful wife, mother of my child, lover of rogues," he gentled his kissing attack, pulling back enough so that she could read the seriousness on his face. "I love you, you know that, right?"

"I know, and I love you too," she kissed him, slow and sweet. Before he could get too encouraged, she pushed at his chest. "I've really got to pee now. Help me up."

Miriam shot awake in the middle of the night, the need to use the restroom very great.

The next day she started to knit a pair of baby boots in a pale yellow.

NOVEMBER

He 'kidnapped' her for a weekend away. Miriam had been feeling low recently, and he wanted to cheer her up. The weekend started Thursday night, when he secreted away with her after dinner. Laughing her questions away, he drove them to the airport. Before long they were in California. He rented a hotel in the happiest place on earth, and didn't even complain when small children in the hotel were too loud. He waited on her hand and foot. Anything she looked at twice he bought her. He indulged her inner child as she ran around the park, taking pictures with characters. They both consumed too much park food.

Their final night there the couple watched the fireworks show from their hotel balcony. Miriam sat in his lap, content.

"Thank you, for this weekend," she said softly.

"Anything to make you happy, Miri," he held her tighter. "I love you."

"And I love you. I hope you had fun, too."

"It was fun to watch you. It was also fun to intimidate those annoying parents."

She laughed. "I'm just thankful you didn't start anything that was noticeable to the news."

"I was on my best behavior," he said, playfully affronted. She just rolled her eyes.

She was almost asleep when he nudged her fully awake. He switched them around so he was kneeling in front of the lounge chair they had been on. His face was serious, but she couldn't focus on it for long. It was trying to look at the sun, or zooming in too closely to something.

"Listen to me, Miri. These dreams aren't real, but they could be. You need to find us, and let us out. You also need to wrangle my idiot brothers. You're our only hope for unity, and for happiness."

"I… I don't understand," her eyes started to droop.

"Stay sleeping, angel. Don't wake up yet. I'm betting that you don't fully remember the dreams when you wake up, but you need to start remembering them. Remember me. What's my name, Miri?"

"I… don't… know…"

"No, don't wake up!"

"Are you okay?" Baahir was standing over Miriam. She blinked and looked around. It was still daytime, and she was spread out on the couch. She must have taken an accidental nap. "You were repeating the word 'fireworks'. What was your dream about?"

"I… was at Disneyland," Miriam sat up. "I was watching the evening fireworks from a hotel balcony."

"Sounds fun. Were you with anyone?"

"No. I was by myself."

DECEMBER

The two of them were in their apartment, an assortment of snacks and drinks on the chipped coffee table in front of them. Baahir was wearing his flashiest, goldest clothes. Miriam wore her only dress, the simple black one she had received from Baahir for her birthday back in March. She dressed it up by layering beads around her neck (though the effect was slightly ruined by the fact that she was wearing fuzzy pink socks instead of heels). They were both slightly drunk, though the holiday called for it. If two friends couldn't get drunk on New Years Eve, then when else could they?

"2009, baby!" Baahir crowed.

"It's not for another half hour, you dummy," she laughed. They had the music turned up and were dancing to hits from 2008.

"Close enough," he argued, before taking another shot.

"Close enough," she agreed, and also took a shot.

After a half an hour of dancing around to hits like So What, I Kissed A Girl, and Single Ladies, the ball finally dropped.

"To a wonderful new year!" Baahir raised his cup in the air like it was a goblet and not a cheap red solo cup. "May it be as fun as the last one!"

Miriam clinked her cup against his. "God willing!"

They both drank deeply, ignoring the fact that the next year would be filled with many trials.

AN: Me: promises infrequent chapter updates. Also Me: updates several times within a couple of days.

I completely understand now when authors would say that reviews were encouraging. I got a handful of positive reviews, and wrote two chapters in a twenty-four-hour period.

Honestly, though, don't expect this pace to continue. Real Life includes grad school, folks.

SO, I wanted to show Miriam's year before TVD starts, but I also didn't want to devote multiple chapters to the year, so we've got this collection of drabbles. It was fun to write, but I'm looking forward to getting to the meat of the story.

P.S.: Poem in the month of August is a poem in Hindi called aafreen aafreen by javed saab. Super romantic, y'all.