The Bourbon Diaries ✢ The Vampire Diaries FanFiction ✢ TVD FanFic ✢ TVDU FanFic

Chapter Fifty-Eight - Stefanie Salvatore

Eight years ago

Mystic Falls, VA

"Are you sure you want Miss Perfectionist carrying out the rest of Stef's swim lessons?" Gabe muttered, leaning into Damon. "I mean, she's brought a damn stopwatch with her."

Caroline halted her pace along the edge of the pool, stopwatch in hand, whipping her head around, tuning in to the conversation behind her. She narrowed her eyes at the only two figures sitting in the otherwise empty spectator seats. "I heard that!" she hissed up at them. The lesson was nearly over---almost two hours after Stef's original lesson was supposed to end---and Caroline wasn't going to quit without a new lap speed under Stef's belt. "If that soon-to-be sophomore bitch thinks that she's going to get ahead in high school by pushing Stef out of her lessons, she's in for a big shock next semester."

"Caroline," Gabe groaned, "Stef's doing this to face her fear of water, not to face an Olympic judging panel."

"Well, when she's in front of that Olympic panel one day, you'll know exactly who to thank, won't you?" Caroline raised both her eyebrows and the corners of her lips boastfully, then turned back to the pool, where Stef was continuing her laps. "Elbows, Stefanie! Elbows! Form is speed!"

Gabe sighed and leaned back in his seat. It had taken him and Caroline the best part of an hour to find and compel all the staff necessary to allow them to use the Mystic High swimming pool after hours. Unlike Caroline, who had already started before he arrived, he hadn't heard the full story yet. "So who's the 'little bitch' Caroline now has a vendetta against?"

Damon rolled his eyes, tutting, like the whole thing had blown out of proportion. "An older girl who was a sore loser in the hundred meters. She stole the bangle I got Stef from out of the locker room and attempted to drop it into the deep end of the pool."

"Attempted?"

"It never hit the water."

"I see," Gabe said, now understanding. This was becoming a problem. "So, you pulled her out of lessons?"

"No, the girl called her a freak, so Stef pushed her into the pool. Then the swim school kicked her out." He locked his hands together, his elbows on his knees. "Not that it matters. Everyone saw; I would have had to pull her out anyway."

Gabe nodded, but not without some misgivings. "It's not exactly a long-term solution though, is it? Keeping Stef away from others whenever she generates a little magic?"

Damon tilted his head back, sighing heavily towards the ceiling. "I don't want her attracting unwanted attention. We saw the signs for years; I should have dealt with this sooner."

Gabe knew exactly what he meant by that. "Microdosing her with vampire blood isn't the answer, Damon," he scolded. "The amount required to heal even minor injuries makes her incredibly sick. It does her more harm than good. I'm certainly not going to offer her small doses just to supress her magic."

"Not even if it's what she would want?"

Narrowing his eyes, Gabe checked, "You haven't offered it to her, have you?" He waited with his breath held for an answer, and when Damon finally shook his head, he let it out in relief. "Good, because it's not an option, and I don't want to be the one to have to tell her that. It's training she needs, not a cure. If she still refuses to speak to Bonnie about it, I'd highly suggest you reconsider my offer of getting Gideon involved."

"The guy leading that new council?" Damon protested with a loud groan. "You know Bonnie voluntarily pays into that shit? It's like a damn mafia for the supernatural."

"We think of it as more like a union," Gabe corrected. "It's worked in other states. There are certain standards to abide by and we just help to... maintain those standards. You've got to admit, the amount of vampire attacks has decreased."