A throbbing pain is what registers in Murphy's mind. An ache so sharp that a ringing begins in his ears and he lets out a guttural groan. His eyes blink open blearily, the bright light from the window burning his eyes.

"One more thing. Come closer, please." A man's voice beckons, tone sinister, gaining Murphy's foggy attention immediately.

He sits up, gasping at the pain in his head. It feels as if a bowling ball had been swung repeatedly at his head while he was unconscious and then left to rest on top of him, weighing down on his skull.

"Closer." The voice comes again from behind Murphy.

He spins around and gulps harshly as he notices he's in the trunk of a car - an SUV to be exact. His mum had the same one, with the same tinted windows and soft grey interior.

A movement to his left catches his attention and he notices a body resting beside him, with blood on the sleeve. Murphy gulps, recognising the straight brunette hair. Elena.

He rolls her over onto her back and checks her for major injuries. After a cursory glance, Murphy shuts his eyes in relief when he sees her only injury is a bump on the head. She was okay.

He peeks over the backseat head rest, heart racing as he sees an unknown man drinking the blood of the masked one - vampire. They needed to get away from him.

Murphy glances around wildly, knowing he needed to act fast to get them both out alive. Elena wasn't awake to help, so he was on his own for the time being. His eyes seek out the emergency handle attached to the boot door. It was built into newer models incase of situations like these, Murphy believed.

Without a second thought, he grabbed Elena's arm with one hand, slinging it over his shoulder and popped the boot with the other. He could hear commotion behind him but paid no attention to the ever present danger. He just needed to get them out.

Murphy stumbles out of the boot and limps away half dragging and half carrying Elena - his injuries and dizziness making it harder than usual.

A loud thump echoes behind him before a gust of wind follows. Murphy gulps and speeds up, knowing his efforts were futile considering he was a human going against a vampire.

"Oh, I'm not done with you yet, boy," the man's voice from before growls and a sharp punch hitting the back of his head knocks him to the ground.

Murphy falls down, taking Elena with him in his grasp as he is once again, knocked unconscious.

--

Murphy wakes up to find himself staring at an off-white ceiling with a sore neck and pounding head. It feels like he's lying on a couch, but he doesn't remember going home. The last thing he remembers was... those men!

He shoots up into a sitting position crying out softly as his head pounds harder and he goes to lift his hand up to his head to hold it, but he can't. His arms are bound by rope and tied behind his back with his feet also bound. Must be why he was so uncomfortable.

His vision clears a bit and he notices a shiny liquid coating the ropes, a liquid that suddenly burns his skin like acid. He recognised the blistering on his skin as a vampire's reaction to vervain and Mason's to wolfsbane but he was human. Did they actually put acid on him?

"Ahh," he cries, his throat aching in protest.

He wiggles his arms a bit to see if the ropes would loosen like in those action movies, he watches but all it does is add more pain to the injury.

He hears a door opening and two voices. One male and one female. He glances around the room to see Elena shaking from fear beside him on the couch. Murphy has a sudden urge to jump up from the couch noticing the thick layer of dust and grime, ew.

"Elena?" he calls softly, wondering if his friend was alright. Elena turns to him and offers a shaky smile at the sound of his voice, although it's croaky and broken from lack of use.

"What's- where are we?" Murphy questions looking around only to see a man hiding in the corner of the room. The same man from before. "Who's he?"

"His name is Trevor," is the response he gets. Murphy frowned wondering what was up with his friend. He understood they were in danger but he didn't understand why she was acting cold towards him.

Elena's hand twitches as she steps in his direction, only for the Trevor guy to release a feral hiss at both teenagers, "No moving."

Elena stares at the doorway again and begins straightening up. Murphy does a double take, where are her restraints?

He lets out another whimper as the ropes break his skin and the clear substance mixes with his blood. "Fuck, please take them off."

Trevor hushes them as a woman with a pixie cut and a suit-wearing male enter through the doors of the room. Elena turns her head to them and the new man seems surprised. Murphy clenches his jaw, recognising the reaction from many vampires who've see his doppelgänger friend. This man was not a good guy if he knew Katherine.

The man moves to Elena, incredibly fast. Vampire, Murphy shrinks back a little at this realisation. He hadn't been frightened of them when Stefan told him but then he met the one and only Damon Salvatore. Long story short, he went on a rampage after a fight with Elena and would've drained him if it weren't for Bonnie giving him an aneurism.

He liked Stefan because he was kind and understood the value of human life, unlike Damon. Murphy squeezes his eyes shut tightly; they were all vampires except for him and Elena. Breathe in, Murphy. Breathe out, he repeats to himself.

"Human. It's impossible," the man exclaims, leaning down to sniff Elena's neck. Murphy flinches back in shock. This man couldn't possibly be a friend of Katherine's if he's surprised with Elena's existence but that didn't mean he wasn't any less dangerous. "Hello there."

Elena is staring at him wide-eyed and Murphy is on the verge of a blacking out from the pain and panic coursing through him. His heart is pumping faster than a bullet train and his breath is non-existent. The unknown woman connects eyes with him and he shrinks back further into the couch despite the horrid germs he's most likely going to collect from it.

"Not only did we collect the doppelgänger, but we thought you'd be hungry after travelling. We brought you a peace offering of sorts, a meal," the woman speaks up, her eyes never leaving Murphy's. The man looks at the said woman before following her gaze to the teary, blue-eyed boy. He freezes, rage building in his eyes as he connects eyes with Murphy.

Before Murphy could blink, a strong hand is crushing his windpipe and his whole body is lifted from the floor and shoved against a wall. He gasps for breath, eyes bulging and tied hands struggling relentlessly behind his back despite the burning flesh. His blazer lay abandoned on the dusty, tipped over couch which the blonde missed terribly compared to his new position.

"What game are you playing Rose? What witch have you conjured to create this illusion?" The man barks, his figure a blurry blob of rage as Murphy feels his body go limp against the man's grasp.

Murphy's eyes begin to droop as his lungs burn from the lack of oxygen when the grip against his throat is removed. Murphy drops to the ground, sobbing and spluttering for breath. His hands yearn to clutch at his aching throat but to the blonde's frustration, he can't.

"Who are you?!" the vampire growls, standing above Murphy's fallen figure.

Murphy opens his mouth to respond but only a wheeze escapes. The man before him slams his hand against the wall in outrage.

"Murphy has nothing to do with this. It's me you want -take me and leave him out of this. Please, I beg of you," Elena's panicked voice reaches Murphy's ears and he snaps his gaze towards her, shaking his head at her from his crouched position.

"Tell me Rose, why Murphy shares the same face of Langston? Hmm. You knew what he looked like, I shared this information with you. What game are you playing here?" he hisses, stepping towards the unknown woman threateningly.

"H-how d-do-o y-you know my na-ame?" he asks, his voice small instead of strong like he had intended.

The man before him frowns in his direction, rage swirling in his brown eyes. "I beg your pardon?"

"M-my name is L-Langs-ston Mu-urphy."

The hand is attached to his throat again seconds after the sentence escapes his quivering mouth. Choking against the hand, Murphy swings his legs at the man's shoes in a desperate attempt to be free.

"You are in no place to lie to me, wolf," the voice growls over Murphy's wheezing.

"He couldn't be a doppelgänger, could he?" Rose's soft voice speaks over his pained whimpers. "He is a wolf, you can smell it."

Through the fog of pain, the word wolf stands out to Murphy and he lets out a strangled noise of object. He was human, born and raised.

"Doppelgängers only occur when an offspring is born but that was not possible for Langston, not when he was with K-" Elijah's gaze turns sharp, voice cutting off abruptly.

It was almost as if a lightbulb turned on above the furious man's head. He dropped Murphy enough to allow his feet to touch the ground but instead of letting him fall, the man spins Murphy around and kept him upright by the back of his neck.

Using his other hand, the man pulls down the back of his shirt, the thin cotton material tearing. Murphy's eyes widen and he curses under his breath, struggling more against the vampire's hold.

"H-Hey! I'm not a b-blood bag!" he objects and the hold on him tightens immensely.

"Please, let him go! I'll go with you freely but if you hurt him, I'll - I'll make your life hell. Just ask Rose, I've been nothing but difficult-" Elena begs, her voice nearing before her pleas are cut off with a choking sound.

Murphy's eyes widen in fear for his friend's life and he wiggles in the vampire's hold, desperate to save his friend.

"Release her, Rose."

The request is uttered in an exasperated tone, as if their mere presence was causing more effort than the vampire desired.

A thumb brushes against the skin above Murphy's right shoulder blade, tracing his birthmark. Murphy tenses, gritting his teeth in frustration at his helplessness.

The birthmark was an unusual shape according to his mother whereas Caroline, ever the saint, said it just made him more attractive. It was in the shape of a crescent moon and the maroon tone stood out against his alabaster skin.

The grip is released suddenly and Murphy's bindings are suddenly free.

"Shit," Murphy groans spinning around, shoving the vampire away with both hands and to his surprise, the older male steps back involuntarily.

Murphy keeps his eye on the male in front of him as he tenderly presses against the raw skin on his wrists, biting his lip to hold in pained whimpers.

The vampire doesn't make a move towards him or Elena which Murphy counts as a win. All he does is study the blonde with watery eyes and a deep frown, as if Murphy had upset him with his behaviour. This thought bewildered the boy considering the vampire was the one who was kidnapping them.

Murphy moves his eyes to seek out Elena and sighs shakily as he finds her unharmed and standing alone with nothing but a restraining grip on her shoulder.

"Where did you get that scar?" the eldest vampire growls, his voice brittle.

"W-What one?" Murphy's response is sarcastic without a second thought.

The vampire steps forward, causing Murphy to shrink against the plasterboard only for Elena to clear her throat. "He's had it for his whole life. It's just a scar."

The man chuckles bitterly to her statement and waves a hand in the direction of Murphy's slouched form. "That scar is from a vampire bite and a fatal one at that."

Trevor steps forward shakily out of the shadows. "I didn't feed from either of them."

"Not from a lack of trying," Elena rolls her eyes and smiles shakily at Murphy's confused expression.

Elijah spares Murphy one last contemplating glance before turning to Elena.

"We have a long journey head of us. We should be going," he announces and watches as the doppelgänger turns to Rose in panic.

"Please, don't let him take us!" she begged, and this causes Murphy to look up from his bloodied wrists in terror. Where were the Salvatore brothers when they needed them?

The vampire turns his back to the two humans, facing Trevor. The younger vampire trembles but manages to look him in the eye. "I've waited so long for this day, Elijah. I'm truly, very sorry."

Murphy perks up at the newfound knowledge of the intimidating man's name. Elijah, he ponders over the name, sounds fancy.

"Oh no, your apology's not necessary," 'Elijah' waves Trevor off in mock nonchalance.

Trevor knows better and gulps. "Yes, yes, it is. You trusted me with Katerina and I failed you."

Elijah advances towards Trevor like a predator and its prey. "Oh yes, you are the guilty one and Rose aided you because she was loyal to you and that, now, I honour. Where was your loyalty?" Elijah tilts his head to the side in faux curiosity.

Murphy shivers at his actions, the unforgiving tone in his voice and actions frightening him to the core.

"I beg for your forgiveness."

Elijah tilts his head to the side, hair flopping heavily which makes Murphy yearn to go at it with a pair of scissors, "So granted."

Elijah's hand swings forward and smacks Trevor's head clean off his shoulders. A startled scream escapes Murphy's mouth as he watches the scene in front of him unfold.

Murphy blinks and time seems to speed up while Murphy is left in the past. He's vaguely aware of Rose's cries over her lost friend and Elijah's commanding voice demanding answers form Elena but the voices aren't registering in his brain.

He feels frozen to the spot as he stares at Trevor's decapitated body lying limp against the dusty floor, and his head. Murphy gulps down vomit as he connects eyes with Trevor's lifeless, unblinking ones.

Since the Salvatore brothers entered his life, he was surrounded by murder but he would always have the chance to look away or close his eyes. Elijah didn't give him that chance and thus, Murphy witnessed his second murder before him in less than twenty-four hours.

A hand gripping his forearm startles him from his daze and the urge to vomit his stomach contents overwhelms the boy. He bends over at the waist and gags, vomiting on the dusty floor and a shiny pair of black shoes.

"Time to go, Langston," the voice belonging to Elijah mutters and he's tugged around the vomit, a jacket being shoved in his arms.

He's dragged out of the room quickly and is left stumbling over his feet. He wipes the remaining vomit off his lips and jerks his head to his left. He sees that its Elijah holding him and Elena.

The bravado from Murphy's earlier act of defiance seems to have been smacked out of him along with Trevor's head.

A familiar gust of winds rushes past Murphy and he glances around, hoping to see Caroline or Stefan. He just wanted to see a safe face but is met with Rose's confused one.

"Rose," Elijah warns, pulling Murphy closer and releasing Elena into Rose's arms.

"I don't know who it is," Rose exclaims, her voice pained and sore from her sobs despite her vampiric healing.

"Up here," Stefan's voice taunts from the top of the stairs and Murphy closes his eyes briefly as Elijah drags him along.

"Stay behind me," Elijah's voice is low and warning as he glances around, releasing Murphy's arm from his bruising grip.

A blur of golden curls dashes across Murphy's line of vision before he's whisked away once more. Murphy jumps on his saviour, hugging her to his chest with dry sobs.

"Murphy, we're not out of the clear yet!" Caroline's hisses urgently in his ear, covering his mouth with her hand firmly.

Murphy nods in understanding, silent tears cascading down his face. He strains his ears but couldn't hear anything over his pounding heart and muffled hyperventilating so instead he stares at Caroline.

He watches the confident way she holds herself up, more open to her new being after the events with Mason took place. He stares into her cerulean blue eyes as they stare back at him, finding comfort in her fierce gaze. Lastly, he watches her shoulders rise and fall calmly.

He matches her movements and settles his heart and breathing to a quieter and calmer rate. Caroline was here, he would be okay. Caroline wouldn't let anything happen to him.

A loud commotion erupts from a few rooms over and Murphy flinches at the sound. "Care-"

A firm shake of the blonde's head stops him mid sentence and Murphy gulps down his question. The sound of a body falling down a staircase is a familiar ringing in Murphy's ears.

His eyes fill with a fresh wave of tears and guilt clouds his chest like nicotine smoke.

"It's okay for us to go to Elena now, Murphy," Caroline's soft whisper breaks him out of his self-pitying state.

Murphy glances up and notices her bloodied wrists waiting patiently in front of his mouth. He blinks drowsily before leaning forward, latching onto his best friend's wrist without a second thought, sucking enough blood to heal his injuries.

Pulling away with a rough cough, Murphy whispers his thanks to which Caroline wiped away his tears with the pads of her thumbs in a soft manner.

"I- Can you stay at mine with me?" Murphy mumbles, not moving out of Caroline's embrace.

"You couldn't get me to leave you even if you tried," Caroline smiles back, eyes concerned. "I'll carry you like Superman."

Murphy snorts despite their situation and allows Caroline to lift him into a bridal style hold. "Care, d-do I smell like a wolf to you? Elijah - the vampire - said I did."

Caroline pauses mid-step. "Tyler has more answers than I do. He's like you, we can meet with him tomorrow morning if you'd like, unless you want to go now?"

Murphy takes a moment to think over answer before shaking his head. "We both need sleep, and food."

"As you wish," Caroline sends Murphy a playful wink before tightening her grip and running out of the mansion of doom at her inhuman pace.

Murphy shuts his eyes, burying his face in her neck to shield himself form the sharp, cool wind biting at his cheeks. For the first time in a day, Murphy feels safe and it is all thanks to the strong, blonde vampire carrying him home.

Caroline was and always will be his safe place.

( N O T E )

Please let me know if you liked it or not. Feedback is appreciated.

I hope you are all staying safe during this pandemic.

Love you.

(02/08/21)