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

Epilogue - Dimitri Balescu

Day of Adam and Zara's wedding

Border of NC and VA

It was a fine day for a wedding... and an even finer day not to attend one. Not that Dimitri had been invited to the wedding, or wanted to be.

The Halfway House was empty, so he'd used the time productively and took advantage of what it had to offer him. His plans had very nearly been scuppered by Zakariah who suggested it as a location to host the reception. However, Zara had informed him---in much less polite terms---that she'd rather host their wedding reception in a sewer. She had quite a savage tongue, that little viper. But whatever she did with that tongue to reign over her now-husband the way she did, it managed to secure her a reception at a luxurious Gilded Age hotel far enough away for Dimitri not to be disturbed.

He left the rear door open for his guest to enter. He imagined she was still hovering beyond the doorway, wondering why a stranger was offering her refuge in a lakeside fishing shack---and why the inside of that shack appeared mysteriously un-shack-like. She was the suspicious type, but her curiosity would soon get the better of her. Plus, she needed a place to hide after everything she'd just been through.

The fire at Fell's Church had been nothing short of spectacular. Had he not known the history, he would have joined the celebrations as the apprehended vampires burned, unaware they had a means of escape. No matter. He couldn't draw too much attention to himself anyway. He needed to fit in just enough to convince the guard to free her, which was easier than he anticipated since the man already seemed infatuated with her. After that, where else could she go but here? It wasn't like she'd be welcomed back in Mystic Falls... not during that time. Not after all the effort the townsfolk put into killing her.

Come to think of it, she wouldn't be welcomed back into Mystic Falls now. Not after all the effort the Salvatores put into killing her.

But that was just part of the fun.

So, Dimitri sat down on one of the stools at the bar, poured himself a vodka, and waited for her. He was sure it was excitement that simmered in his stomach, and not misgivings for what he was about to do. He had plenty of reasons for choosing this path. Firstly, with the death of his little Vampette, he needed a new one. It was always handy having a vampire at his beck and call. Secondly, he needed someone cunning, someone who was able to disguise herself well, and equipped to break into Morelli Manor, where his son was being held. He could think of nobody who could pull off such a convincing disguise as her. Finally, and probably the most simplistically, he just wanted revenge. They had turned his son into a vampire, which meant he no longer had a son.

The moment he swallowed back his drink, Dimitri heard the swishing of her underskirt across the floor and the light patting of dainty footsteps.

She had finally crossed the threshold.

He didn't get up. She would find him. They would talk, and she would agree. She had been a difficult one to research---very wily at her ability to cover her tracks---but there were certain things he had found out about her that were to his advantage. The rest he would need to learn extremely quickly. She would not be an easy one to read, but he did enjoy a challenge.

The footsteps stopped just beyond the hallway, along the edge of the bar, and remained there for a few minutes as she took in the peculiarity of the interior design. He didn't turn his head towards her, even when he could sense she was looking at him. She was free to run away if she wished. She wouldn't survive for long, not with the knowledge he possessed.

But she wouldn't run. Not this time. Not without hearing what he had to say.

Slowly, her footsteps proceeded closer, until Dimitri finally heard a stool scrape backwards along the floor, three seats away from him. Very wise. It didn't pay to get too close to strangers, particularly not supernatural ones.