On My Own (TVD Series)

Strange Introductions

A sliver of sunlight cuts across my face, pulling me reluctantly from sleep. My limbs feel heavy—drained from the weight of last night's secrets still clinging like smoke to my skin. The room is too quiet, the air too still, as if even this house is holding its breath.

I drag myself upright, wincing at the dull ache behind my temples—proof that none of it was a dream. The clock mocks me with cheerful numbers: 7:03 AM. Too early for reality. Too late to pretend yesterday didn't happen. As I sit here on the edge of the bed, uncertainty warring with the desire to slip back into the comfort of sleep. I pause, just listening. Noting the sudden laughter from outside my window.

The sound is faint but clear, voices carried on a light breeze, drifting in from the garden below. From somewhere in the garden downstairs, voices are raised in cheerful conversation, a contrast to the heavy quiet of my bedroom. I pull back the curtain just enough to peek through the glass. Down below, under the morning sun, Gaia jumped over a pile of pulled weeds, skipping to a hunched-over Valerie as she fixes the fresh soil.

"I found more soil!" Gaia yelled, keeping her hands tight.

"Pack some in here..." Valerie smiled, showing Gaia with her gloved hands.

Everything was in order. Plants growing in rows along a dirt path that leads out to a sturdy wooden fence. Lettuce, spinach, and tomatoes grew healthy and fruitful near the fence, while the scent of basil and thyme lingered in the air. The bright sunlight bathes everything in a soft golden hue, almost as if the garden itself had been designed with careful planning and precision. It's a peaceful sight.

"Okay, do it again!" Gaia smiled, scooted a few inches back as Valerie, with her eyes closed, held her hands out, palms facing down. 

There is a gentle glow to her skin, as though the very air around her hums with some unseen energy. Slowly, the ground beneath her begins to shift. Earthworms rise from the soil, their slimy bodies wriggling to the surface in response to her magic. They emerge one by one, drawn by an invisible call that only she can hear.

"Look at them dancing!" Gaia laughed, leaning in closer.

A reluctant smile tugs at my lips as I watch them from the window. Valerie is orchestrating her little earthworm ballet while Gaia cheers like it's the grandest performance she's ever seen. One worm arches backward in an almost theatrical bow, sending Gaia into a fit of giggles. Valerie grins, flicking her fingers to make another rise in syncopated rhythm.

The sight is so ridiculous, so them, that before I realize it...I'm laughing too. Quiet at first, then louder when Valerie dramatically declares one particularly wriggly worm the "star of the show." The morning doesn't feel heavy anymore, just golden and light for this tiny moment where nothing exists but their joy and mine, mirroring it back.

The laughter fades from my lips as I glance at the clock on my wall, 7:45 AM, much later than I realized. Then I remembered Lilian and the chaos I had left behind the night before. My thoughts suddenly darken, the lighthearted moment in the garden replaced with worry. With the window open ajar, I shiver as the breeze brushes down my arms and back, like the world was pulling me back to reality.

And it did. Because soon after, my phone buzzes against the windowsill, pulling my gaze toward the bright screen. It's a photo from Enzo, with no caption, just a single image loaded with quiet urgency, as he's never messaged this early. 

In it, Beau is mid-lunge in some grand estate's courtyard, his court sword flashing under morning light as he duels a man whose back is turned to the camera. The screen blurs for a second before I force myself to focus. Because that silhouette, the set of those shoulders, isn't just anyone. And if he's here already...then the countdown has started.