To Be Or Not To Be » Stefan Salvatore

Prologue - The Awakening

Innocence. A word often used to describe something—or someone—untouched by malice. The absence of ill intent. A soul that simply exists, drifting through the world without a single wicked thought. A presence so pure, so light, that harm seems impossible.

For many, Skye Mikaelson embodied that word. Some even called her harmless. Fragile.

How could they not? There wasn't a single cruel bone in her body.

At least, that's what they believed.

From the moment she could walk, people sought to shield her from the wrongs in the world. They whispered about her purity, her softness, and how the weight of the world should never touch her shoulders. She was something to be protected.

But then, she became a creature of the night.

And everything changed.

⋯

Her first kill was a simple one. A young boy, wandering through the woods.

Skye had been exploring, testing the limits of what she thought was a gift—what she would later realize was a curse—when she saw him. He wasn't much older than her.

She wondered why he was out here, surrounded by towering trees and tangled undergrowth. Few dared venture this deep, knowing what lurked beyond the village's edge. Even she wouldn't have, if not for the newfound strength humming in her veins.

She had only been picking flowers—an innocent task she had done a hundred times before—when she caught sight of him. He was stumbling, unsteady. Lost.

At first, she thought nothing of it. He posed no threat, not to someone like her. So she took a step closer. A twig snapped beneath her feet.

The boy whirled around.

That was when she saw it.

His pale face, the crimson soaking his clothes, the copper staining his dirty blond hair. Jagged bite marks marred his skin, deep and vicious.

He had been beautiful once. Now, he looked like death.

Skye parted her lips, about to speak—to ask if he needed help, or maybe to scream—but before she could make a sound, the scent of blood hit her.

And it was intoxicating.

Something inside her stirred. A hunger so raw, so powerful, that it swallowed her whole.

The boy's panic eased when he saw her. Maybe it was her soft curls, her delicate white dress. Maybe it was the way she seemed to glow in the dim light.

She looked more like an angel than a monster.

But he couldn't have been more wrong.

The moment the scent flooded her senses, everything changed.

Black veins webbed beneath her porcelain skin. The whites of her eyes bled red. The gentle smile she once wore twisted into something unrecognizable—something filled with desire.

Before he could react, she lunged.

Teeth met flesh. Blood filled her mouth, thick and warm, easing the hunger that had clawed at her insides.

The boy screamed. Writhed. His fingers tore at her dress, his body convulsing beneath her grip.

But Skye was far gone.

His life drained away, and only when his body stilled—his glassy eyes staring, empty—did she finally let go.

Silence.