CHAPTER EIGHT; ROSE

❝ there are some people born into the world with the soul purpose to die and be the spark for another's story ❞

 ･ ｡ﾟ☆

❝ virginia woods ❞ 

MAYA HAD FELT THE car she and her sister laid in the trunk stop fifteen minutes prior. She hadn't moved an inch other than to see the still unconscious body of her sister; someone had taken them but Maya couldn't move to find out who. After sometime she heard the window roll down, "Where are they," a voice asked.

The man in a monotone voice answered, his voice the type of dry that made Maya's stomach sink, "In the trunk, I did exactly what you said."

When he was ordered to put them in the trunk Maya was quick to close her eyes as her kidnapper opened the trunk. As he walked away with Elena in his arms, Maya took her chance to look around and her surrounding seeing nothing but miles of woods for all her eyes could see. It was daylight so the man who had done the kidnapping hadn't been a vampire, that much she could tell before he came walking back.

The man opened the SUV trunk then going into his car, opening the trunk. Elena and her sister laid in it, unconscious. He took Elena first putting her in the SUV trunk before he went back grabbing Maya. She felt her every muscle ache as she was placed back down resisting the urge to groan from the sensation.

"Thank you for your help."

The man in return wondered, "Is there anything else?"

Whomever they had been given to simply said, "One more thing. Come closer, please." The man complied moving closer only to be told, "Closer." The man moved in more until the other was able to take him in grasp allowing a frenzied feast to be had on their kidnappers neck presumably. All hopes a vampire hadn't been the one to take them faded in an instant leaving only the gut twisting truth she and Elena were on their own.  

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·

❝ abandoned mansion, virginia ❞ 

Once more Maya had pretended to be unconscious as she was carried in from the new SUV she had been moved from.  She felt him untying her ropes while Elena, who hadn't thought to fake sleep, asked, "What do you want?" 

The man hushed her as he continued to undo the knots. Elena still continued to plead with him despite the dismissal, "Please, I'm hurt. My sister, she's hurt too."

"I know," he said looking at the younger, sleep like doppelgänger as if she was food. Which she was to him in all fairness, his mouth watered her steady heartbeat acting like the sizzling of meat. "Just a taste," he said his fangs growing. This was it, the moment Maya had readied herself for. All while Elena spoke her sister was reaching for her dagger resting inside her corset safely strapped.

Apparently whomever had taken the hadn't bothered to check them for weapons when he did. However, stopping her from ever having to grab hold of it, was another's booming voice commanding, "Trevor! Control yourself."

Trevor, as he had know been named mumbled pulling away from the younger doppelganger, "Buss kill." As soon as he had moved, Elena slid down to Maya stopping cold when she saw her eyes slightly opened and her finger silencing her twins urge to speak.

"What do you want with us," she asked as Trevor walked out leaving the twins with the doppelgängers with the woman who'd entered. Elena wasn't sure what possessed her to keep speaking other than the desperate attempt to avoid them taking note of Maya. 

The woman ignored everything that came out of Elena's mouth and only responded back with, "Oh my god, you look just like her."

"But I'm not. Please, whatever you..."

"Be quiet," she interjected her tone sharp enough that Maya had finally used the distraction to grab hold of her dagger.

Elena persisted while closing the distance between her and their kidnapper, "But I'm not Katherine, and she's not Samara. Our names are Maya and Elena Gilbert; you don't have to do this." Hearing how foolish her offer sounded the brunette attempted, "I will stay -- let my sister go."

"I know who you are, I said be quiet."

"What do you want," pushed Elena only to earn a very hard slap with the back of the woman's hand across her face. 

Her sheer strength had knocked Elena out cold yet the woman still taunted, "I want you to be quiet." All plan to wait to escape had disappeared with MJ's dagger that cut the curtain against the window the couch had been left near. With the seconds that had been granted from this act she had wasted none of it. She sprinted across the floor ignoring how her heels caused her to slip before she reached her sister.

Maya dragged her back towards the protection the sun offered holding out her poisoned blade as the vampires face healed from her burns. The man returned taking one look at her injuries before starting in towards Maya and her sister only to feel the same singe against his own undead skin. 

A chuckle escaped from her cocky grin when Maya tautned them, "We can't leave, and you can't come near. Unless you want to keep testing the strength of the sun for us all?" Maya was certain her grip on the blades handle was leaving an impression into her hand, but she wouldn't lower it. Not until the pair disappeared into the safety of their shadows allowing Maya a moment to breathe.

Crouching down she shifted her sister upright against the wall shaking her unconscious face. Something familiar had taken over for Maya, a drive pushing her every next move. The next being finding a way out into the sun, the sooner the better. The more time they had to put distance between them and their kidnappers the better. Too close to sundown and they wouldn't truly be stuck with their kidnappers.

Maya had doubted no one noticed the twins hadn't been around by now but sticking around to find out how they would be harmed this time was still of no interest. Without any other method to wake up she lifted her hand deciding how much force she should hit her with when Elena's eyes began to flutter.

"You don't know how lucky you are," Maya sighed hugging her sister a weightlessness finding her chest seeing her moving again.

"W-where are they," Elena wondered looking around at the empty room.

Pulling away Maya glanced over her shoulder replying, "Hiding from the sun -- for now." Turning back to face her twin she placed her finger before her mouth silencing any further discussion. Careful as ever Maya mouthed, "Follow me."

The older Gilbert nodded watching as Maya was diligent in taking off her heels without sound. Once they were in hand she snapped off the bottom half of one handing it to Elena. The hesitant bewilderment was easy to read, but Maya didn't allow her to doubt her.  

For all her strength these were vampires -- of unknown age. They could kill them both before Maya even blinked, Elena needed to have something to save herself. Jamming a heel in a vampires eye and running like hell was better than being their helpless meal.

When Elena still refused to accept it, Maya was swatting her hand back forcing it into her sisters pockets. Once she had it, May had reached for her dagger once more using it to point to the door.

Each step they took was quieter than the last attempting not to creak any of the old broken floors. Down the hall they could hear the echoing of the man asking, "Did you called him? Let him deal with the pesky little knife."

The creaking of the vampires footsteps covered any slight noise of the twins. The woman's voice returned, "No, I called one of his contacts. You know how this works."

"Did you or did you not get the message to Elijah," Trevor hissed at his companion.

Finally being able to peering into the room without being seen Elena was stuck. Her sister had continued forward unable to focus on anything other than simply getting out. Elena on the other hand wanted to know more about the woman crossing the hopeless room she organized bit back, "They say he got it."

"Wonderful and what," Trevor returned pacing from the other side of the room.

Her back was to him as she reminded exhaustedly, "So that's it Trevor. He either got it or he didn't. We just have to wait."

"Look, it's not too late. We can leave them here. We don't have to go through with this," the man offered his voice betraying his lack of confidence.

This much Maya herself could hear while returning to grab her sister. The older girl in turn silenced her before pointing to her own ears. For better or worse Maya wouldn't leave without her sister, nor her sister without information.

They were at a stalemate just as their kidnappers evidently were. They didn't care to lower their voices saying, "I'm sick of running."

Trevor threw his head back a little challenging, "Yeah? Well, running keeps us from dying." What little patience she had required died almost as fast. Maya grabbed her sister by her hand once more attempting their escape.

"Elijah's old school. If he accepts our deal, we're free," the woman said hearing the creaking of the  boards from the old floor. Her head spanned to look at them, "You two!" Maya had been quick to step in front of her sister as they were told, "There's nothing around here from miles. If you think you're getting out of this house, you're tragically wrong. Understand?"

"Then who is Elijah," she asked bringing their attention to the younger twin.

The older woman looked to Trevor who shrugged walking out of the room. He didn't care what she told them, he just wanted them to leave. The woman was careful to say, "He's your worst nightmare."

She as swift to turn away from them and leave as she had been since the moment they awoke. The twins locked eyes and after a moment Elena followed her inside asking, "Why are we here?"

The vampire ignored her as she continued fixing the room up, a fruitless endeavor in Maya's belief. "Are you deaf or are you dumb," hissed the younger twin.

Her remark made the vampire glare back at the younger twin grinned using her knife to warningly move another curtain. "God, you're just like her," her statement sent a silencing chill Maya's way as she stiffened up. "You keep asking me these questions like I'm gonna answer them," she shook her head turning her back to them.

"Why won't you answer," returned Elena unrelenting. Maya wasn't sure why Elena expected her to be honest, wasn't as if vampire they new were know for truth why would these ones be different.

The older female just chuckled moving her books around, "That's another one."

"You got us, okay? It's not like we can go anywhere. The least you can do is tell us what you want with us," Elena offered having decided to completely abandon her sisters plan altogether.

Caving only slightly in her response the vampire returned, "I personally want nothing; I'm just a delivery service."

"Delivery to whom? Elijah," Maya asked remembering their conversation from earlier.

The vampire smirked to herself, "Two points for these ears dropper."

"Forgive us, we figured it wouldn't matter with the active kidnapping you. Wouldn't want to be throwing so many stones in your glass house," said the Gilbert girl. This time when the woman looked back it was not in anger but amusement. "Who is Elijah," Maya repeated herself. 

Their capturers attention turned to her books flipping through its pages, "He's one of the vampires, the originals. Not people you want to mess with."

Looking her sister before she spoke up Elena asked her, "What do you mean 'the originals?'"

"Haven't the Salvatore's been teaching you vampire history," the female in front of them asked genuinely curious if she knew anything about vampires as she salvaged through the books still.

"You know Stefan and Damon," Maya questioned.

"I know of them. A hundred years back, a friend of mine tried to set me up with Stefan. She said he was one of the good ones. I'm more a sucker for the bad boys though but I digress."

Elena stepped forward repeating the question, "Who are the originals?"

Finally giving them her actual attention, the woman placed the books down turning towards them as she said, "Trevor and I I've been running for 500 years. We're tired, we want it over. We're using you to negotiate ourselves out of an old mess that Katherine and Samara got us into."

"But why me," Elena inquired the vampire desperation clear in her voice, "Why Maya?"

The vampire finally stopped moving standing still, "Because you are a Petrova doppelganger. You're the key into breaking the curse, and Maya? She's just cursed. People cursed can be very useful to men like them."

Cursed? The idea hadn't seemed completely unplausible when Maya thought of the misery life brought her -- yet the words didn't seem real. Everyone had bad things happen. Even perfect people like Elena eventually had something bigger like death come for them.

 "The curse? The sun and the moon curse?"

The vampire's face lit up from sarcasm within, "Oh, you do know your history," she stated tilting her head.

Pushing away from the window Maya abandoned the safety of the sun to look the woman directly in the eyes to ask, "What do you mean Elena's the key and I'm just cursed? The moonstone is what breaks the curse."

"No, the moonstone is what binds the curse. The sacrifice will breaks it," she corrected them.

Elena narrowed her eyes, "The sacrifice," she repeated.

"The blood of the doppelganger," her voice trailed out but when she was meat with nothing but puzzled eyes she realized these girls had no clue. They had no idea what danger they were being taken to. "You are the doppelgangers. Which means, in order to break the curse you are the one who has to die Elena."

"What about me," Maya persisted.

It wasn't until then the vampire had realized just how much of a girl stood before her. For all her bluster and strength, Maya was terrified.

The woman had to step forward and tell her of the danger to come, "Doppelgangers like you, and Samra are ones of pure wrath." Her answer left Maya swallowing hard. "Born with instincts sharper than average human, as well as better senses, rage like an animal, and a killer like any other wild woman."

Maya stepped away her head furiously shaking, "No. That's not me, it's just some stupid story."  The look of pity on the woman's titled face left Maya's stomach twisting with truth.

"You can hate your story all you want it won't change it though," her kind English accent offered. Stepping forward until it made Maya recoil the woman stopped and said, "Apparently whatever created the doppelgangers themselves hadn't intended to give you all that strength."

"What are you saying," Elena spoke up her throat having run to dry to do anything but croak out.

Looking between the pair she said, "Meaning nature made the power something that could be taken. It would kill you though, the only way to take whatever power you have is by taking all your blood. But I doubt that will be their plan."

Scoffing Maya challenged, "And why not?"

Reaching into her jacket pocket the vampire pulled out multiple drawings. On one was a small portrait of who looked like Elena, obviously made for Katherine. But the other three pages were drawings of face much like Maya's, Samara.

Almost reading her mind, the vampire corrected, "That's not Samara." Her words brought Maya's eyes to her instead, "These drawings have been given out long before Katherine and Samara found the originals. This was how Trevor knew they even wanted them. They want Elena, she's a means to an end for them. But you? You I believe are the beginning of something new for us all."

"I don't want that," Maya refused her eyes falling to her sister, "I want to go home." Her words were revelation to even Elena, Maya wasn't the strongest person in every room. The world was growing bigger and she was growing smaller in its presence.

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·

Elena had swiftly followed behind Maya getting there just in time to see her sister sit on the couch they awoke on. The motion of which making a crunching sound that stopped each in their track. 

Maya was quick to dig under their abandoned stuff finding a piece of paper. Furiously she uncrumpled it reading the most revealing words Maya ever known; 'Stefan and Damon are coming.'

Holding it out for her sister to take Elena breathed a sigh of relief seeing it. As Elena joined her on the couch the silence of what they'd been told filled them again. "Even if she was telling the truth," Elena suddenly began, "You're not evil Maya. No matter what people try and make out of you, it isn't who you are. Only you know who you are."

Everything in Maya wished to tell her sister she had the same certainty in herself that she did, but she didn't. She couldn't because most days Maya didn't think she knew who she was at all. Instead of telling her that, Maya simply offered her should for her sister to lean on.

They sat there all the while Maya preparing herself for doing what Elena very may need her to do. The hard thing. The ugly thing. Someone might have to leave with the today, and it wasn't going to be Elena. "He's here! This was a mistake," Trevor yelled running up to his friend making the two girls stand. They hadn't even realized the woman had found them where they sat until he spoke.

"Don't do anything, and for once in our lives I need you to please listen to me," Maya begged grabbing her arm forcing Elena to stand perfectly behind her.

Elena didn't have anything left to argue with her sister, instead she clung to her arm. They watched as the woman insisted to Trevor, "No, I told you I would get us out of this. You have to trust me."

But the man knew better, he shook his head in a panicked shout telling her, "No! He wants me dead, Rose!"

"He wants them more," Rose, as she had finally been named, tried to comfort him.

Trevor still refused her swatting her hands back, "I can't do this. You give them to him, he let you leave but I need to get out of here!"

"Hey! What are we," Rose asked gripping him once more.

The male paused for a moment taking deep breaths not being able to answer her. "We're family, forever," Trevor admitted just as someone knocked on the door.

The way they flinched Maya pieced together, "You're scared of him, of them..."

Her words made the vampires snap their head in their direction. "Stay here with them and don't make a sound," Rose warned them all exiting the room. With the few moments they had Maya made sure to grab her blade once again. It probably wouldn't be the most helpful but it was better than nothing.

And she hadn't had much longer to think about it before Rose, and a man, bathe in shadow and dressed in a perfect suit. In all honestly Maya doubted she had ever seen a better one in her life, and she had met a couple lawyers before.

Before he had entered Maya had planned to not even look his way in hopes they would be ignored into oblivion. A fools errand but she was one girl before a room of three much older vampires, what chance did she stand? 

However all her thoughts fled her mind when she caught a glimpse of him. A stoic yet commanding man who'd cut through the air in a second leaving almost no space. The twins recoiled with Elena yanking her sister who was too frozen to move, back.

She was locked in on his hazel eyes that examined her so intensely she was sure he was seeing things she hadn't want him to know. He lowered is head until he was at the base of her neck listening to panicked human heart in her chest.

She hadn't known what possessed her to do so, but May found herself readying her blade. The fault of vampires was they always forgot humans could fight, and though it seemed pointless, stalling was her only course of action.

It wasn't longer than a second after the realization occur Maya shoved her laced blade into the mans ribs. When she attempted to pull the blade out from him, his hands had found her wrist.

Lifting his head to look Maya in her spheres of darkened eyes, "Human." Elijah squeezed her wrist his face telling her to let go, but Maya refused to drop her blade. It was all she had now, she was not allowing her last defense to be taken. When this much was known he snatched it from her. His eyes fell to Elena to state in full amazement his grasp still on the younger twin, "Impossible."

Despite his initial grip, Elijah rather gently released Maya once he had her knife. Her wound hadn't even done anything but create an annoyance for him with a now ruined suit.

"We have a long journey head of us. We should be going," he told the pair of them.

Elena looked to Rose with pleading with the woman, "Please, don't let him take us."

Her words were left to die when Elijah turned his attention to the vampires who had called hm there to begin with, "One last piece of business and we're done."

As the original slowly turned on his heel to face Trevor, his breaths almost instantly became ragged. "I've waited so long for this day, Elijah. I'm truly, very sorry," Trevor tried as Elijah circled him like any predator circled its prey.

Hardly missing a beat he said, "Oh, no need to apologize." 

Trevor kept his body perfectly still, it made May wonder what he'd seen the original do. "Yes, yes it is. You trusted me with Samara and Katerina and I failed you."

The young vampire could not see, but Maya could see how Elijah smirked from behind him. That was not the smirk of a man who had come to forgive. Elijah briefly placed his hand upon his shoulder telling him, "Oh yes you are the guilty one and Rose helped you because she was loyal to you and that now I honor. Where was your loyalty, when you took her," he ended coming around full circle facing Trevor.

"I beg your forgiveness."

"So granted," the original seemingly agreed giving breath back to Trevor and Rose both. They couldn't see what what before them, Maya noted, how meticulously he spoke. It was clear as day, Rose was free not Trevor.

Proving Maya every bit as right as she thought, Elijah raised her blade using it to sever Trevor's head from the rest of his body. An act in which had coated Maya in a spraying of blood. It wasn't much, but enough for a stroke to land across her dress. 

All the while the twins were frozen, Rose had let out a guttural cry as Trevor's body fell. "You," Rose hissed from whatever breath was left in her lungs getting up as if to charge at him.

"Don't, Rose, now that you are free," he warned his eyes falling the two girls walking over to them after cleaning the blood off his hand. "Come," he ordered the girls paying more mind to his dirty hands than anything.

When he reached for Maya the next words out of her mouth were the most impulsive she'd ever been, "Take me leave my sister." They left a defeating silence that made Elijah wait. "You guys want a power source more than you want to break a curse that no longer affects you. And I have the moonstone and I will make sure it stays hidden so you can even use it to kill Elena."

Every word that flew out of her sisters mouth seemed like more and more of a thoughtless act and instead a desperate one. And desperate just as her sister, Elena commanded the room, "No."

Maya shot her a look using the power of her voice to speak over her and she didn't know what possessed her but she reached for the man. It stunned him how she was willing to do so, even more so it shocked her. 

"Elijah," Maya began with a lightness to her voice she almost never had, "Please, she's my sister. You guys don't need the curse broken anyways, you want power so take whatever I have and leave her." Gesturing furiously to her sister she plead, "She doesn't deserve to die."

"And you do," returned Elijah with raised brow and while Maya didn't feel she deserved it, she felt like the ripple caused by her loss wouldn't be as painful. Too many other loved Elena for Maya to feel like she herself should walk out of the room over her.

Maya's own life didn't seemed to start until she met her sister and wasn't willing to learn about a world without her again. When she couldn't answer Elijah, almost seemingly taking her up on her plan asked, "What do you know about the moonstone?"

Elijah tilted his head at the defiant girl before him refusing to answer. "Would you like me to ask her," offered the original his hand slightly pointing at Elena

Elena swallowed hard attempting, "She's lying to buy time, don't separate us." Her whole existences felt as if something had been missing, a piece of Elena drifting out there without here. When he didn't speak Elena added to her offer, "I know where the stone is I can help you get it. Just...don't take my sister. I'll die, I'll behave just let us be together."

He stayed silent for a moment weighing the offers of the pair. "Tell me where it is," Elijah demanded without confirmation.

Elena shook her head refusing hm, "It doesn't work that way. You agree to either deal or no stone."

The original gave a surprised smirk glancing back at Rose practically laughing, "Are you two negotiating with me?"

Rose, still standing there with tears streaming down her face managed, "It's the first I've heard of it." In their brief interaction Maya had slipped her way back to her sister.

When he looked back to the joined pair Maya was barely controlling her breaths. His eyes dilated for the shortest second before they fell upon Elena's neck seeing the silver pedant around her. The smell of the vervain slipped through the air.

And Elijah could smell it well enough to grimace, "What is this vervain doing around here?" Before he could be stopped he snatched the necklace off throwing it across the room. 

Instinctively Maya reached up to her neck for her own protection. Caroline herself had picked out a golden vintage locket with a small red gem in the middle. It was beautiful and timeless, just like Caroline herself. Yet the seemingly unassuming necklace stunk of vervain all the same probably. 

Maya released it when she watched Elijah grab her sister by the back of her head. His hand firmly gripping her hair to hold her in place as he compelled, "Tell me where the moonstone is."

A voice of no emotion spoke out the answer without hesitation, "In the tomb, underneath the church ruins."

"What is it doing there?"

The answer known to both sisters, Maya shut her eyes in grimace. He was stealing all the information they had to stall, her knife had done nothing to him, and there was no sign of the Salvatore's still. They were both leaving with Elijah, he wasn't taking any deal and he made sure they didn't think so. "It's with Katherine," she answered before he released her head.

"Interesting," Elijah said just a moment before a loud clanking came from upstairs.

They're here, Maya thought with a smile. One of the best things she'd found coming to Mystic Falls was the Salvatore's. They didn't trust each other instantly but over time they changed. Now, two vampires coming to her aid brought relief, not more fright.

"What is that," asked the original looking to Rose for a moment.

"I don't know," replied the woman swallowing hard losing all sight of anything beyond survival. Rose understood her survival and new freedom was very much conditional on her still aiding the original. 

Rephrasing the question as if to change the answer Elijah demanded, "Who else is in this house?"

"I don't know," Rose bit back as Elijah's eyes fell upon the knowing smirk of the youngest twin.

He bit down on his angular jaw reaching forward grabbing the barefoot girl. "Let's go," he ordered the woman who knew to grab Elena and follow behind him. 

He dragged Maya from the room and out to the front of the house. The door they had seen earlier was just in sight, if only they would've made it through. 

They barely made it to the door before someone blurred pass them and Maya was almost certain it had been Stefan. The wind he created from his movement left the familiar scent of his oakmoss cologne. 

Coming behind Rose and Elena she figured it must've been Damon. The sounds of being circled spun Elijah to face the woman questioning, "Rose?"

"I don't know who it is," Rose shook her head making sure to keep her own firm grip on the older twin.

Elijah had kept his hold on Maya until they could hear the echoing voice of Damon's from upstairs mocking, "Up here." 

With a huff he handed May back to Rose who then had hold of both twins. There was not a word that Elijah said before speeding to the top. Just as he had another voice, perhaps Damon again, May thought, "Down here."

Just as the original turned one of Maya's very own arrows flew into his hand. She'd recognize them anywhere. Her brief smile was short lived when Elijah pulled the arrow out as if were nothing at all.

But none of that mattered, in blur of her own vision Maya was against a new wall with familiar piercing blue eyes silencing her. Damon's hand was clamped over her mouth.

Stefan must've grabbed Elena and Rose because Elijah, now alone, began to announce, "Excuse me. To who may be concern, you're making a great mistake if you think that you can beat me. You can't."

Their was an air of arrogance to him that was all to certain to be doubted. Maya could hear the sound of wood being torn, probably Elijah readying his weapon. "Do you hear that," he asked waiting his answer, "I repeat, you cannot beat me. So I want the girls, I'm gonna count to 3 or heads will roll. Do we understand each other?"

Keeping his movements silent as possible Damon handed the Gilbert her own carbon bow. "You know what to do," he mouthed to her. There wasn't a better shot than Maya, and she knew how to make it count.

As Maya was nocking her bow she could hear her sisters voice creating distraction, "I'll come with you but just please don't my friends, they just wanted to help me out. They'll take my sister and go."

Elijah sped up the steps making Elena flinch yet she stayed her ground. She clung to herself though, almost as if she were scared but she wasn't. There was something else in her eyes, a plot. Elijah knew that look in her face better than Elena knew it herself. "What game are you playing with me?"

There was no time to waste, Elena pulled out the pin of the grenade Stefan had given her.  With a moment spare before it would explode on her, she threw it at the original instead. But all it did was momentarily burn him and intensely enrage him.

He stood to charge Elena but when he got close Stefan appeared shooting him with Alaric's compressed air sleeve until it jammed.

Elijah barely had a moment to process before Stefan was forcing them down the stairs. Just when it seemed he had the upper hand, Elijah stood over him.

Yet before he could act again, with his face perfectly lifted, her arrow flew through the air and into his eye. Finally the original registered real pain as he tried to pull the arrow out. However he never got the chance before Damon was driving the very weapon Elijah made into his stomach.

Silence filled the room as he was driven into wall to hang and the grey veins of death covered his skin. As he slipped into death Maya could've sworn his eyes were locked on hers until he couldn't hold them open anymore. There was something in her beyond normal empathy that made her feel for the sight before her. Something inside that said it was wrong.

When May finally pulled her eyes from him it was just in time to see Rose returning. THe woman took one sight at her odds and vanished before anyone could stop her. Damon attempted to go after her until Elena's voice spoke up, "Just forget her."

Elena had stopped Damon cold, the man was locked on her eyes believing the smile she bared was for him. Even the opening of her arms as she came down the steps was for him, until she ran straight into Stefan's arms instead.

And over her boyfriends shoulder Elena mouthed 'thank you,' to the vampire and her sister both. Damon could only offer a tight lipped smile her way leaving the couple to it. He turned his back trying for the door when Maya's hand had forced him to stop. Stunning the Salvatore to his core, Maya had thrown her arms around him giving him the hug he had clearly craved.

Perhaps she wasn't the person he wanted, but it wasn't until he felt her presence Damon knew how much he needed her. "Thanks for coming Dracula," she mumbled to him.

Damon finally cracked hugging the human girl back saying, "Who else is going to get you out of trouble, Buffy."

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·

❝ maya's apartment ❞ 

"She should've been here by now," Caroline said pacing back and forth across her girlfriends living room. The Salvatore's had called her and Alaric to tell her they found the twins and were bringing them home but it had been nearly four hours.

The salt and pepper haired man was sat on Maya's couch calmly insisting, "She's on her way Caroline. Try not to panic." The sentence immediately made the blonde shoot a look at the man that could've killed him. He held up his hand slightly correcting, "Okay, maybe try panicking less."

"How are you so calm," Caroline wondered as she resisting biting at her manicured nail. Instead she twirled the ring given to her to protect her from daylight and chosen by Maya. The Gilbert said she wanted for better but the Salvatore's had a limited supply of rings with the correct stone. Nevertheless it made the ring mean more than just magics protection from the sun, but almost like it was Maya's protection alone.

Like the magic wasn't what was really stopping the sun from burning her, it was Maya stopping it. Maya was her moon always protecting her, she had to come back. The blonde had never felt so sick, and she had woken up dead.

Clenching his fist reaching for his drink Alaric replied, "Compartmentalization." 

Caroline rolled her eyes reminding him, "That doesn't even make sense. You travelled with her for months before she got to town, signed for her to have this place, you care about her."

"Of course I care about her," the older man returned, "But I also saw her before you ever knew her. She knew how to survive bad things then. She learned how to shot not just as her ticket out but to keep herself safe. She knows how to fight because she's had her ass beat by adults and bigger kids, sometimes not even bigger ones just too many for her to take alone. I am worried, but I also trust that she can survive."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Maya's voice announced from her doorway. The pairs head snapped over in her direction seeing her in her same dress as the masquerade only it was tattered and bloodied now. And her shoes had long since been destroyed, she had gotten out of Damon's car not caring to wait or replacements when she was so close to home.

Caroline rushed to her throwing her arms around the brunette, "Thank god you're okay," she said.

Finally back in the one person whose arms she wanted most Maya almost collapsed into them. "I had to make it home. We had plans," Maya told her as Caroline lead her to rest on the couch that Alaric removed himself from. 

"I going to run your shower," Caroline said her mind already planning a thousand ways to take care of Maya. The blonde didn't wait to be told anything leaving the pair alone a moment.

"How you feeling," Alaric asked sitting on the coffee table in front of her.

Maya offered a soft smile, "Tired, desperately wanting that shower," she joked. The older man tilted his head raising a knowing brow at her. Huffing Maya elaborated, "I was scared, and now I'm tired Ric. I just want to sleep. Can we do this tomorrow?"

Alaric nodded his head patting the Gilbert on her shoulder, "Glad you made it back kid," he told her. And once and for all, Maya was alone for the first time in two days. Left with only one thought, she may very well be born to die. She was the one they threw away, she wasn't meant to find her way home, and now she was literally meant to die for someone else to have her strength. But the sound of Caroline calling her name stopped whatever thoughts Maya wanted to creep through.

maya's outfit next chapter

maya's locket from caroline