(1) The Phoenix (D. Salvatore)

Chapter Nine

A/N – So I did a little more digging and planning and have a couple more ideas.

1. The first one is to do with Daphne's first death. Tbh, I like the idea that it will happen after she and Damon share their first kiss and sleep together. Just so that bond has really been forged between them.

- Klaus (Who won the vote) (I'm thinking episode 12. After Damon hides the witch coffin from Klaus. Like right at the end of the episode before Klaus goes home and finds Elijah undaggered)

- Connor (In episode 5 of Season 4. Manipulated by Shane into doing so; this is a link to the whole Phoenix expression connection)

- Dark!Alaric. (Season 3 final episode. After Esther creates vampire Alaric. Maybe whilst Damon and Rebekah are running from him in the storage centre. He finds Daphne and uses her as hostage bait to draw out Damon, who by then, I think does know that he truly and deeply cares for this girl. Damon offers himself in trade, but Alaric just shrugs and then snaps Daphne's neck. It would be parallel to Elena who also dies in this episode. That they both come back to life but in very different ways.)

2. Elena's sire bond. So I don't want to sire her to Damon, as I am doing that in another story already. The only person I think it can work with is Stefan, but much of the early episodes of Season 4 revolve around Elena not coping well with the whole human/animal blood thing. So I think I have a solution. Daphne gets her hands on Ripper!Stefan's blood, likely to do some form of experiment on it, and that blood somehow ends up in Elena, so she is technically sired to Ripper Stefan and not Stefan Stefan. Which gives her a craving/liking of human blood instead of being okay with animal blood. (If that all makes any sense at all)

Daphne is considered a little eccentric, even by wizarding standards. She's the bookworm with a filthy mouth and a can-do attitude. She's brave and forward and yet loving and kind. She's a lot of different things. Contradicting things. But she is also very inquisitive and curious. Which is why she doesn't really see something wrong with the fact she is in Damon's bedroom and perusing his belongings whilst he is asleep. She should probably wake him up. But curiosity is getting the best of her. So she snoops. She opens a bottle of something smelly on the dresser and tests it out before setting it back. Pulls open his draws and actually rifles through his clothes. A lot can be read about a person by the clothes they wear. The scent they rub on themselves. The person they try to be. She draws her finger over the dresser as she moves past it and towards the bed where he is. She climbs onto the bed, resting on her side. She glances over him as she leans onto her elbow. She knows he's attractive. Anyone with eyes can see that. But that jawline. That is something else. She wiggles her fingers and the blankets rise a little as if by magic, she tilts her head, intending on taking a look.

"If you wanted to take a peek, just ask" He teases, she lifts her eyes to his face to find him awake and watching her back, amusement in his eyes, she drops the blankets and smirks.

"Where's the fun in asking permission?" She counters as she leans closer to him. His eyes flicker to her lips and she smirks as he actually leans closer to her. "Get up, we got things to do" She pushes him back and he huffs a little before he does actually get up to get dressed.

"What things?" He asks as he grabs his jeans from the floor to pull on before he seems to realise that he is just taking instruction from her. He shakes his head a little and continues to get dressed.

"Oh, you know..." She waves her hand and shrugs. He frowns a little. Because no, he does not know, that is why he asked her. But she doesn't seem to be in a rush to explain things to him. He moves to his dresser and finds a shirt to wear as she gets comfy in his bed, leaning against the headboard. "Okay....so I found him" She starts, he frowns and looks at her.

"Found who?" He asks, she cocks her head and shrugs a little.

"Stefan" She answers and then stands from the bed when he fully turns to look at her surprised. She could have started with that.

"What?" He counters, she moves closer to him and straightens his shirt, doing the buttons up herself, his eyes watching her as she hums away to herself.

"Yeah, I used that hybrid blood to track the source...Klaus...." She explains. "Stefan is with Klaus ergo.......I found him" She pats his chest and then takes a few steps back with a smirk. "Road trip?" She asks him. He still seems surprised. And she can read that on him. "Please" She teases. "I told you....more powerful and all-around more awesome"

"Really loving the level of modesty you seem to have" He teases as he grabs his jacket and following after her.

"Don't forget your shoes, Hotstuff" She points out as she leaves, he frowns and looks down at his feet, which are bare, he almost did forget his shoes. This girl is something else. She reminds him of all the things he liked about Katherine, just without the side of vampire bitch. Confident. Forward. Mysterious. Beautiful. Flirtatious.

"Where are we even going?!" He shouts after her. All he hears back from her is her laugh.

.......

Damon leaves the boarding house and instead of just finding Daphne. He finds her standing with Elena next to his car parked up. He lets out a breath. A little disappointed that it isn't going to be just her and him. Not that he hates Elena. She is a friend. He thinks. That's not really his area of expertise. But he classes her in his very small bubble of friends. But he kind of liked the little road trip thing he had with Daphne, she's far more interesting than anyone warned him about. Damon closes the door behind him and gives the two of them a look.

"Not that I don't love the idea of the three of us doing something together" He teases making his way towards them. "This isn't what I had in mind."

"Let me guess, we'd be naked?" Daphne asks him with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, yeah" He agrees.

"Yeah, I bet you would love that" Daphne comments as she flicks her hair over her shoulder.

"I would, I really would" Damon agrees. Elena rolls her eyes with a smile.

"Okay," She states. "As hilarious as the two of you are....can we go?" She asks and then climbs into Damon's car. Damon gives Daphne a look.

"You invited her?" He points out.

"I had no choice" She argues as she folds her arms over her chest. "She walked in on me doing the locator spell, I tried to talk her out of it but she's as stubborn as I am...." She shrugs a little. "We'll just find somewhere to hold up in the city and...we can go searching for Stefan whilst she's there" He hums a little and nods, pulling a face of agreement.

"Where are we going anyway?" He asks her.

"Windy City"

"Stefan's in Chicago?" He counters, she nods and climbs into the car, Damon rounding it to get in the other side. "I think I know of somewhere" He adds, looking at Daphne who sets her feet up on his dash again. "Seriously?" He asks, she just smirks back at him, sliding her sunglasses over her eyes. "I just cleaned your filthy boot marks from the last time" He motions with his hand, she rolls her eyes and drops her boots to the floor.

"Fine..." She agrees and then sticks her tongue out at him. But then does appear to sulk in her seat. Damon fights a smirk, he really tries, but that is just too adorable on her. He starts the car and turns on the radio. Daphne gives him a dirty look but he just smirks wider at her.