CHAPTER 1

Year 3909

He was sitting in his study at his desk writing his memoirs. The fire was lit in the fireplace behind him. Not that it was needed to stay warm, he just liked the coziness of it and so did she - his only reason for still wanting to live, after not just hundreds of years, he could now say that he had lived thousands of years. And he would be tired of it all if it weren't for her. His only reason for existing.

"Where was I?" He mumbled to himself after pulling his eyes away from the female body laying asleep on the sofa near his desk.

"So, for centuries my brother and I had searched for them and whenever we got close, they had somehow slipped through our fingers. My Brother and I were not getting along at the time when I got the information that a girl very similar to Her was living in a quiet little town called Mystic Falls and her best friend happened to be the doppelgänger. Do coincidences exist? If so, that was one big coincidence and the beginning of another big story. No, not just a story, a fairytale, a dark fairytale that could end only one way. A triumph for one of us and a tragedy for another."

Year 2009

"Mom, I'm leaving for school. See you later." Caroline said to her mother as she ran past her in the kitchen, grabbing a store-bought pastry roll with her. Store-bought, because her mother never baked anything and she herself didn't have time for it either. Especially now that the school was starting again.

"I'm at work later and won't be home before tomorrow morning."

Caroline stopped cold for a moment, taking in the fact that it was her first day of school and her mother was at work. Yet again.

"So what else is new." She muttered and her mother could hear the front door close with a bang as Caroline left the house.

"His name is Stefan Salvatore and he's transferring…well I don't know from where exactly, but it doesn't matter, what matters is that he's hot." Ashley Green who worked the principal office was telling Caroline the first thing she saw Caroline entering the school building in the morning before first period.

"You saw him already?" Caroline's interest was piqued. It was so rare, to have new blood in the mix in a small town high school like Mystic Falls High so she had to use every chance she got to try and get the guy.

"Just about 5 minutes ago. He was wearing sunglasses, but he took them off for a moment and I made sure, he is as hot as they come."

"Hmm. Can't wait to meet him." Caroline smiled excitedly. They were just passing by Tyler who was walking in the opposite direction, "Hi, Tyler."

"Hello, Caroline. I see you have gotten over the end of the summer celebration hang over and have made it to school." He joked walking past her.

"It was three days ago, Tyler." Caroline giggled and continued on.

"And that's not all I learned this morning." Ashley continued, when they got to their lockers that weren't far from each other.

"What could top the news that we have a hot new guy in our class?"

"How about a hot new English teacher?" Retorted Ashley

"If he's not like 20 years old, then I'm not interested. I'm not into oldies, doesn't matter how hot they are."

From the corner of her eye he saw Tyler laughing when talking to his best friend Matt. She was sure it was about something they talked about, but the way Tyler peeked at her when he laughed, made her think that maybe he was laughing at what she had just said. It couldn't be possible, as the hallways were full of students and very noisy, but it was still eerie how much it seemed like that.

"He's 30 something."

"Whatever, I'm putting my sights on this Stefan guy."

She, Ashley and Tyler had English for first period. Most of her friends had Tanner for History. Caroline hated history and she hated Tanner even more, so she was happy not to be there.

Just as she was about to leave for class, she saw him, Stefan Salvatore was walking the hallway like he owned the place.

Caroline couldn't deny the attraction and he was already trying how Caroline Salvatore would sound like. It sounded great, she thought.

Walking into the classroom for English, the 'hot new English teacher' as her friend Ashley had described him was already at his desk. Standing there and shuffling some papers, wearing a suit, he looked like he was on his way to a business meeting, not about to start giving English to a bunch of high school students. But he was hot for a thirty-something-year-old. Still, Caroline decided he wasn't going to go there, having hots for a teacher was a bad idea, if you didn't want to get expelled, everyone knew that.

The school bell rang and she got to her seat. She saw Tyler entering too and giving this long glance at the new teacher.

'What's that all about?' Caroline wondered. But she didn't have time to wonder for long as the new teacher closed the door and then started talking.

Magically his name had appeared on the board and he was referring to it now.

"Elijah Mikaelson, that's my name. I'm your new English teacher. Always refer to me as Mr. Mikaelson and we will get along fine."

She listened as he spoke about his credentials and how he didn't do this for money as his family had money, lots of it. That it was more of a calling. Caroline noticed that he was American but he spoke like he was from another time. Many Old English words in his vocabulary. All in all she thought he was interesting, not just visually pleasing for the eyes. Now she thought that it sucked that he was a teacher.

When she was leaving the class after the lesson, he called her name.

"Miss Forbes?"

When Caroline stopped, turned around and walked up to him, he asked, "You are Caroline Forbes right? Your mother is the Sheriff in town?"

"That's me, the Sheriff's daughter." Caroline replied a bit sarcastically, but still with a huge smile. She had been living with the fact that her mother was who she was all her life and it was tiresome that outsiders always thought she had to be like her mother, all moral and uptight. She was the opposite of her mother and when people learned that, they were often disappointed. She thought that Elijah would not be an exception to the rule.

"Well, aren't you just a ray of sunshine." He seemed to genuinely smile at her.

"I can tell you that I'm nothing like my mother. If you expect me to be, then you are in for a huge disappointment."

"I'm not expecting you to be anything." He looked at her and she felt a bit uncomfortable under his gaze. Then he coughed and said, "Besides doing well in my class. That's the only thing I expect from you."

Caroline couldn't help but smile, that was very little he expected from her. She was a straight A student anyway and she wasn't about to fail at English either. But it was refreshing to meet an adult who wasn't expecting her excel in everything.

"That's so sweet of you to say and don't worry I'm as committed to learning English as I am committed in everything else I do in this school. I'm an overachiever."

Elijah laughed at that and then turning back to normal, he said, "That's good to know. I'm going to give you group assignments this week and I'd like you to be the head of one of the groups. Don't worry you'll get extra credit for it."

Caroline gave him another huge smile, "Thank you, Mr. Mikaelson. Can't wait."

He smiled and said, "See you tomorrow, Caroline."

"Until tomorrow, Mr Mikaelson."

With that she left the his classroom feeling a little weird. He was so nice to her and she didn't know why. And that made her feel a bit uncertain. Still she brushed it away and seeing Bonnie and Elena at their lockers, she beelined to them. She needed to check on Elena, the poor girl had such a hard time after what happened to her parents. Actually, both she and her brother Jeremy were going through a hard time but at least Elena wasn't smoking it up behind the school with losers like Vicki Donovan.

The rest of the School day was pretty boring, she didn't get to talk to Stefan, just eye him from a far.

When the school finally let out and she made it to the parking lot, she was approached with the main bad boy in their school- Tyler Lockwood.

"Hey, Caroline, are you coming to the Grill, everyone is coming, Elena, Bonnie, Matt etc."

"Yes, Tyler, that's the master plan for today." She sighed.

"What's wrong?" He asked, leaning against her car. The expression he wore told her that he was genuinely worried which was very unlike him.

So she smiled at him and said, "That's very kind of you to ask, but I'm fine. Just… do you sometimes think that's it, that's our life until we graduate. Just school, then the Grill, then home and then rinse and repeat? Aren't you getting tired of it?"

"You want more excitement in your life." It was more of a statement than a question. And it was very insightful for a shallow bad boy like Tyler Lockwood.

'Is it possible that he has grown and matured over the summer?' She wondered.

"What are you thinking about, Forbes?" He asked with a little smile.

There it was, her nickname for people at school who weren't close to her.

"Nothing. Just nothing. You're right, I would love more excitement in my life, but it is what it is, right?"

Now he stepped closer to her, getting into her personal space and said, "It doesn't have to be like that, Caroline!"

Caroline giggled and pushed him away. "Tyler, we talked about this. We have known each other since forever and I know what you think of me and there's no way, I'm gonna ruin our friendship, no matter how shallow it is, for one good night in your bed."

He stepped closer to her all serious again and said, "Well, we could do this in your bed and who says it has to be just one night."

Now she was dumbfounded.

"Are you serious right now, Tyler?"

"Dead serious."

Caroline was shocked to the core. There had never been anything other than friendship between him and Tyler and now he was suggesting something else, something like dating and she didn't know what to say to that.

"Wow, that's sudden, I don't know what to tell you. I mean we've been friends since kindergarten."

He took one of her locks in between his fingers and swirling it, he wondered, "Maybe it is time to change that."

When Caroline was again speechless while his mere presence so close to her was doing things to her, he finally stepped back and said, "Think about it, I'm not going anywhere. Just know that I'm patient, but not a saint."

Caroline opened the door to driver's side and giggled, "Yeah, you're more like the firstborn son of the devil."

That made him laugh and he nodded, "You have no idea. See you at the Grill, save me a game."

"A game?" Caroline raised a brow at him.
"A game of pool, Caroline." He smiled and left for his car that was at the other side of the parking lot.

'What is up with him?' Caroline wondered out loud and got into her car.

She was just in the middle of a game of pool with Tyler, when they walked in side by side and Caroline's face fell. Elena was with Stefan Salvatore and he looked like he had eyes only for her. Still, she decided, she wouldn't give up just yet.

"So, you were born in Mystic Falls?" Caroline asked Stefan flirtatiously when she, Elena and Bonnie were all circled around Stefan at a table at the Grill.

"Mm-Hmm. And moved when I was still young." Stefan politely replied, to Caroline's horror he continued to gaze at Elena.

'So much of my flirting abilities' Caroline thought to herself but still, she was not giving up.

And she didn't, she tried to flirt again and again. At the back to school party at the falls the next night she tried again until Stefan flat out told her, "Caroline. You and me, it's not gonna happen. Sorry."

Leaving Caroline standing there, baffled and miffed.

'Unbelievable,' she muttered and decided to look for Ashley to tell her that the new guy was off-limits to anyone whose name wasn't Elena Gilbert.

"Keep drinking. I gotta get you home. I gotta get me home." Bonnie told her. She was a bit nervous about the curfew but Caroline couldn't be bothered. She was miserable and needed to vent.

"Why didn't he go for me? You know, how come the guys that I want never want me?"

"I'm not touching that." Bonnie was resolute.

But Caroline ignored her, "I'm inappropriate. I always say the wrong thing. And...Elena always says the right thing. She doesn't even try! And he just picks her. And she's always the one that everyone picks, for everything. And I try so hard, and...I'm never the one."

"What are you talking about, Caroline.?e this school. You are the queen bee in Mystic Falls High. And this thing with Elena, it's not a competition.

Caroline thought about it for a moment and realized that Bonnie was wrong. Everything in life was a competition. Someone always won and someone else lost.

"Yeah, it is."

That just earned an eye roll from Bonnie.

"I'm gonna use the ladies room and when I get back, be ready to leave."

Caroline was left alone at the table and then she noticed a hot guy across from her, a stranger to her, was looking shamelessly at her way. And he smiled at her cockily. Caroline just smiled back.

And Caroline was so carried away by that moment that she didn't notice that Tyler Lockwood was looking at the guy with a murderous stare.