Rebel Just For Kicks: Kol Mikaelson [1]

13: Children of the Damned

MJ's day started off badly. She'd left her apartment to go to work, happy to have a weekend off, while Stefan and Elena dealt with Damon, then she'd spotted a ghost next to the Town Square. The last thing MJ wanted to do was talk to another spirit, especially when she had other things to do, specifically, she had a History Teacher to cyberstalk, so she'd kept her head down and kept walking.

When she'd arrived at the bookshop, Tobias had been sitting in the office after just opening up, a wide smile on his face.

"MJ."

"Morning," She put her bag in the back with him.

"Any interesting assignments to share with me today?"

"Personal history project actually," MJ picked up the coffee pot he always made, "We have until Winter Break to do a research project based on a culture, or an event connected to family history."

He nodded, "Most people will be doing the Civil War Era then?"

"Yeah," She smiled to herself, "Kinda assumed it was a sneaky way for the school to do something for a Founder's Event."

He clicked his teeth, "You might be right – what's your focus gonna be?"

"I'm thinking of leaning towards my mum's family history. Do a thing on the history of Travelling Cultures, see how they've evolved to into what they are today."

"You're related to gypsies?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Ish – distantly," There was a massive difference between human wanderers and witch ones, "I just thought it would be interesting, and it would give Mr Saltzman a break from Mystic Falls things."

He chuckled, "If it's a slow day, feel free to use the till computer."

"Thank you," She beamed, taking her coffee cup and heading straight to the desk.

Tobias opened the shop, closed it, and occasionally popped in and out during the day if there were some management things to do, but other than that, he left MJ and whoever else was on duty to do their thing, and MJ kinda loved him for it. He was one of the chilliest bosses she'd ever had.

She wasn't actually doing her history homework on the computer though.

She'd opened up a few tabs for her homework stuff, then she'd opened up an incognito tab and started researching her potential vampire hunter history teacher.

He'd had a stake hidden in his desk.

And his draw had smelt of something she recognised, which meant it smelt of a herb, and though Damon had compelled him to forget about seeing them with a dead vampire, if he was a proper vampire hunter, he'd be taking vervain, and he'd be smart enough to fake compulsion when confronted by a vampire at an unideal time.

By the time it hit lunchtime, she was pretty sure she'd found out everything she could about him online, legally anyway. She could always go poking around the police station if her nerves didn't shut up. She was forced to stop considering that idea when Tyler rocked up, the pair of them having arranged to get lunch while comparing maths and chemistry homework. 

They ate on the grass opposite the shop, and he'd let her ramble, having seen the computer screen before she'd closed the search tab.

"He told us his family moved to Texas but that he grew up in Boston," MJ explained as she read through Tyler's Chemistry, "And I was able to find out that he went to Duke University, and there was a local news story about him."

Ty perked up at the information.

"He got into a fight with some guys and got arrested."

"So, you've gone full crazy stalker," Tyler nodded.