FRANCESCA. ( the vampire diaries)

Chapter Thirteen

We were walking outside of the Grill, and I immediately heard something from far away. I put a piece of my hair behind my ear to listen better and I realized I was hearing Vicki...and someone else.

"No! No, please!"

"You really have to stop screaming."

Damon. He was the one who had her. I looked cautiously at the girls who were walking in front of me, and left the place quickly before they saw me. I ran around, trying to find the place he was keeping her and noticed two figures on a rooftop. Damon was holding Vicki over the edge with a smirk and Vicki was crying in fear. I quickly ran up there before he could do anything else.

As soon as I got on the rooftop, I noticed Stefan was already there, and Damon smirked at both of us.

"Look at you. Wonder Twins."

"Let her go, Damon." I said, softly approaching the two. Vicki was staring at me in fear, and I tried to reassure her the best I could.

"Really?" Damon asked. "Okay." Then he tried to let her go so she could fall off the roof. The girl began panicking, trying to grab his jacket, and my eyes widened in panic.

Damon scowled at us and threw the girl at our feet. I immediately leaned over and grabbed her arms, bringing her closer to me while Stefan walked towards Damon.

"What's happening?" Vicki cried and grabbed me tightly, trying to get as far away from Damon as possible.

"Shhh," I reassured her. "You're okay."

"Relax," Damon told Stefan, "I don't need her to be dead, but you might." He smirked at him and looked down at Vicki who was still holding onto me. "What attacked you the other night?"

Vicki looked up at him in fear. "I don't know. An animal."

"Damon, leave her alo--" I told him but he cut me off.

"Are you sure about that?" He crouched next to her. "Think. Think about it. Think really hard."

"Damon." I seethed, but he waved me off.

"What attacked you?" He asked her once again.

Vicki thought about an answer, and then her eyes widened in realization, leaning away from Damon. "A vampire."

Damon glared at her and raised his voice. "Who did this to you?"

"You did!" Vicki shouted.

"Wrong. Stefan."

"Damon!" I yelled at him.

"Or was it Francesca?" He turned to look at me with a glare.

"Don't." Stefan shook his head, trying to stop Damon from doing whatever he had planned.

Vicki turned to look at both Stefan and I, the fear in her eyes now directed towards us. She leaned away from my touch and I realized she was growing scared of me now. Damon took advantage of the moment to take her out of my grasp and make her stand up once again. He grabbed her head and made her look at him in the eyes.

"Stefan and Francesca Salvatore did this to you," he compelled her.

"Stefan and Francesca Salvatore did this to me," Vicki repeated his words.

"They're vampires." Damon continued and I looked at Stefan in worry. "Vicious, murderous monsters."

"Please, Damon. Don't do this," Stefan pleaded.

Damon released the girl and turned to us. "You couldn't fix it before. I don't know what you're gonna do now." He then grabbed Vicki once again and took the bandage off her neck, revealing her bloodied neck to us. The girl cried out in pain and Damon grabbed her by the neck, pushing her towards Stefan who immediately grabbed her before she could fall on the floor.

I looked at Stefan in worry and then at Damon. He was trying to make Stefan drink human blood again, even though he knew what happened to Stefan the last time he drank. "Damon..."

"Stefan's choice of lifestyle has made him weak, Cesca," he told me.

"Our choice of lifestyle is our business, Damon." I seethed.

"Couple of vampire parlor tricks is nothing compared to the power that you could have!" He shouts. "That you now need. But you can change that. Human blood gives you that."

"Shut up!" I looked over at Stefan and noticed the veins under his eyes had grown darker, and I knew he was fighting the urge to drink her blood. Stefan began breathing heavily and threw Vicki on the ground instead, fearing that he'd kill her. I immediately fell down next to her and tried to cover her wound with the same bandage Damon had ripped off.

"You have two choices," Damon said to Stefan, "you can feed and make her forget or you can let her run screaming 'Vampire!' through the town square."

"That's what this is about?" Stefan growled. "You wanna expose me? Expose Francesca?"

"No!" Damon shouted. "I want you to remember who you are!"

"Why? So we'll feed? So we'll kill? So we'll remember what it's like to be siblings again?" Stefan seethed at him. "You know what? Let her go. Let her tell everyone that vampires have returned to Mystic Falls. Let them chain us up and let them drive a stake through our hearts. Because at least we'll be free of you."

I was still holding onto Vicki when I was watching both of my brothers fighting. Damon chuckled at Stefan's words and shrugged before walking towards Vicki and I, grabbing the girl from my hands once again. Vicki was grabbing my arms, not wanting to let go but I couldn't do anything.

"Come here, sweetheart," he told her.

"Damon, leave her alone." I got up on my feet and watched him carefully. Vicki sent me a worried glance but I could only give her a hopeless look. I watched as Damon leaned in to speak in her ear, and I saw Vicki's panicked emotion turn into a confused one. She looked around and glanced at Stefan and I.

"What happened?" she asked. "Where am I?"

I sighted softly, realizing he had uncompelled her. I threw Damon a glare  and grabbed her by the arms, making her stand up on her feet. "Come on, I'll bring you to Matt."

She groaned as she got up and rubbed her neck. "I ripped my stitches open."

"We'll get you a new one," I reassured her. She gave a confused tilt.

"You're the new girl, the one who Tyler flirted with, right?" She asked with a little bitterness in her voice.

I sighed and gave her an awkward smile. "Don't worry about it, let's go."

"Are you ok?" Stefan asked her in worry.

"I took some pills, man." She chuckled. "I'm good."

She grabbed my arm and began following me, and I threw both of them one last look before I left. Let Stefan deal with Damon.