so for years he persued her to marry her and she was his granddaughter all this time, for vladimir that was sickening. he wanted to marry his own descendent to gain access to a gift he gave to her from a sick ritual that he and his family had done. " what kind of sick bastard wants to marry his own grandchild" talia shrugged "the kind that kills babies to give people powers, may i speak with Catarina? does she know any of this?" Vladimir looked to the side and stepped back in shock "i...i..." he could find the will to spill the words from his mouth, she didnt know he knew she didnt know how could she have she didnt even know the truth of her heritage. he just shook his head as he backed in to a wall had he been a mortal man this whole situation was enough to make him vomit.
talia nodded "i didnt think she would, the gypsies didnt know were the babys came from, but they knew they were not the product of anything good...see they all had this birthmark- "she searched the scroll and found it. a small star on the bottom of the childs foot that was encircled in sigils "this one. it was on all of their feet right on the heel. its small and hardly noticeable, but on the opposite foot they had a small knick cut in to their heels. it is a symbolic thing one the gypsies knew better than the birthmarks. these small knicks identify witches children and what coven they are from. needless to say the gypsies kept them despite that "
stefan absorbed all this information with his hands folded calmly infront of his mouth, he would glance up at talia " okay, lets get her ready soon than. i seen her foot earlier when she came back, her shoe was off i thought the mark was odd but i also know gypsies to be fond of body art and henna. now i know that isnt the case its more of a brand. he would stand and bow "i am going to ask you all to retreat to our ballroom where you will be provided feeders and beds if you so wish. for the mean time i think by brother and i need a moment to process this information. we will see you at dawn if catarina makes the choice to go with you"he said respectfully going to vladimirs side. he knew his brothers humanity was off but he also understood how overwhelming this all must be for him. neither of them had any idea how big this whole situation really was, and to find out natalie was alive all this time was truly something would through vladimir off.
talia would nod and snap to the gaurds to exit with her, she of course knew her way around this palace as at one time aribella and vladimir had become quite close, though she knew stefan knew nothing about vladimirs spicy affair, she didnt think anyone did. she was pleased she had convinced him to listen, she wished aribella had been there as it would have been easier to get vladimir to listen. and maybe if she was here she could help him with all that stress he kept building up over all these years.
vladimir was happy to see her leave. he couldnt have been more releived that aribella wasnt present, that being said he didnt like that numon had her either. he didnt like her because of what she did to stefan and even to himself however, he still cared for her. "stefan, i have to tell you something that i need you to swear never to speak of." he said sitting down tucking his knees to his chest. stefan looked down as he leaned against the wall"does it have anything to do with you hot nights with aribella in the desert" he said with a half grin. vladimirs head snapped up to his brother "you knew?" stefan laughed"your my brother, of course i knew " vladimir sighed "look i know its gross, given her age of imortality but realistically she is over 300 yrs old. "stefan laughed "your worried that i would think it was gross because she was a teenager when she was changed! no not at all, she is a woman now, she isnt a child anymore and she wasnt then. i didnt know because of your actions. she told me, i dont know why she did maybe it was part of the torture or maybe its that she couldnt tell anyone else. if marcos found out, he would be devestated. that much i did know, but i also know she genuinly liked you. so much so that i know she is the one who made the move on you. as i said i know my brother"
vladimir raised a brow "you think i wouldnt make the first move? hardly, she was...a thing. just a girl to pass the time i suppose...but i grew to care for her that is true."
stefan looked genuinly shocked at the statement "i am surprised marcos never saw the connection"
vladimir sucked his teeth "oh i think he knew. i also think its why he hates me so much, he knows that if i wanted i could take her from him. i also think he knows that with catarina i have no need of her services...i just cant help but think that he may have spoken to natalie and that she has been watching from afar, what if she is doing this out of jealousy? to get back at me...i did cheat on her after all.." he closed his eyes and laid his head against the wall "you think? i mean its possible...but you have bedded many in your years brother. perhaps they werent all significant to you but..."stefan shrugged.
vladimir rolled his eyes "none of them were, natalie was because she was a part of my past, aribella was a part of this life, but catarina is now...and i must not have loved either of those woman stefan because i cheated on natalie with aribella and while sleeping with aribella i was also sleeping with three of her ladys...but when i am with catarina i cant even think of another woman, just thinking about another woman nude beside her makes me sick." stefan whistled a bit as he sighed"boy oh boy someone has tamed the beast within.."vladimir rolled his eyes at stefans comment "i dont know what its going to be like without her stefan...i could make the same mistakes, i dont want to but i could. i cant say i would fuck aribella again if she were to get naked in front of me" he said bit annoyed.
stefan chuckled"you wouldnt, that i know. one her very presence makes you want to kill her now and when you close your eyes who do you see unclothed? is it aribella?"
vladimir couldnt help but laugh at his brothers candid statement "no, gods no. i see catarina but not nessecerily unclothed. for me it isnt about that with her, its the way she dances in the middle of town like no one is watching. the flawlessness she carrys herself with, without even trying. i love her for her not for what she has under her dress. her eyes are like two deep emerald pools so deep if i dive in i fear i may drown, when she smiles...aphrodite herself hides in jealousy of catarinas beauty...for me stefan she is perfect in a plutonic way."he looked to the ground with a faint smile..
stefan raised a brow as his lips parted "brother..." vladimir took a breath " i love her stefan, and i am the reason she is in danger. i am sure of it, if there is one thing i know about natalie, she is possessive and will not stop till she hurts me or i kill her. catarina has to go, and i have to let her...and if she finds a human that she adores and wants to be with then i have to accept that too...but i do it out of love for her...id do anything to protect that smile."he said softly his voice carried tones of determination and sadness.
stefan kneeled down beside him " vlad, i dont think she is going anywhere..." he pointed at the door where catarina stood her hand on her chest. she was dressed in one of calliopes white night gowns that extended to the ankles with thin staps that held it up over her shoulders. her eyes were filled with pain and hurt, but it didnt seem that she was upset for herself.
"catarina..." vladimirs eyes widened unsure of how much she had heard. he would quickly scramble to his feet and flew to herside. "please, i dont know what you heard-"catarina would place a warm finger agaisnt his lips feeling their cold marble surface as if she was tracing their shape to memorize every curve. the heat that came off her finger radiated through his skin warming it at the point of contact" i heard about aphrodite"she giggled "but i also heard everything else, now i need some explainations. you want me to leave to be safe that is what i need...but there is something you should know about me vladimir. i dont want to find some guy in another country and ride off in to the sunset with him. I have a choice, you told me i did. it may not happen now or in 5 years but i realize to not become an immortal means letting you go and that,...just isnt something that i can see myself doing. as a human i see my reality of my mortality before me every day, and the man i have found myself quite fond of has no such thoughts. i wish to be a part of something bigger, and i want that with you." her voice was soft and kind as she placed a hand on the side of his face. vladimir smiled softly "a part of me wishes that i could feel right at this moment, everything you just said would have made me grin from ear to ear. im glad that i am your choice...but i dont know how long you will be waiting for me or how long this fight is going to last, and i may not come for you till your old and grey and id perfer if you were happy and i could watch ur lifespan from a distance if that is the case. even if i were to ask another to go and change you within 10 years i would feel conflicted, the pain from our bite is unlike any pain you have ever felt" he placed his hands on either side of her face, his long cool fingers settling themselves around her neck as he pressed his forehead to hers. she would look up at him her eyes full of desperation as if she was begging him to change her right there where they stood. he couldnt, he wanted to, god how he wanted too...but he just couldnt. he slid his hand down her knecks and bare shoulder, gliding it gently down to her hand. he would take her by the hand and sit her down next to stefan who had made himself comfortable at the table with his feet on its surface. stefan would smile at the interaction knowing this side of his brother only existed in the presence of catarina. it gave him nostalgia as the way he treated Catarina was the same as he used to treat Natalie when they were humans. he knew his brother didnt need his humanity to be a gentleman let alone show that he cared for someone, he was glad that after everything that had been done to him he still had a heart for others. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ9JI19O7CG
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoZBl9YnVKk
vladimir sat down across from her and gave a sigh as he sat back placing his palm agaist the cool wooden surface " as it turns out, my ex is alive. valhalla felt the need to come here personally to announce this to me. but that isnt the reason this issue is so urgent. it seems that she has collected a mutual being to her ranks. numon. she has cleected aribella of valhalla and betrayed them which was a grave mistake on her part she was better off with them as her allies but as we know nothing of numon and his allies. he is more dangerous than we anticipated as u are a distant relation to him, so to keep u safe valhalla wants to take you and hide you away till we handle this." he said softly being as transparent as he could be without telling her to much. it was a lot for him to take in and a humans mind wouldnt be able to handle such situations mentally at least thats what he felt. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj87rrMcFJk
catarina looked down at the table her eyes concentrated hard on its surface, she appeared lost in thought before she responded " he wants to marry his own kin, that is gross...how are you feeling?" she would ask vladimir glancing up from the table. his mouth twitched a little as he tried to conceil is laughter, he would clear his throat and smile a little "your more worried how i am feeling and less about the fact tha my ex wants to use you for your gifts and marry you to your kin?" he raised a brow in amusment. she would smile softly "i suppose, there are things far more dangerous to me then her. for example, i am sitting in a dining hall with two vampires one of which has a constant desire to kill me." she wasnt wrong, just as she had mentioned it vladimirs hand touched his throat realizing the burn that was always creeping up his throat burning him with the intensity of a thousand white hot suns. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD0lADf6pbo
he would swallow the vemon that had been collecting in his mouth and sighed "that is true, there are much more dangerous things. which is why it is a good idea for you to go with talia, if i were to go in to battle the last thing i need is the distraction of thirst from the scent of you" she raised a brow and leaned back crossing her arms in a rather stubborn yet sexy way, "hmm. i suppose you are right, but if she does show up with numon and he doesnt smell me near than wouldnt it be wiser on their part to track the location of my scent? " the dining hall door swung open as a woman stepped through, you could hear the pounding of the ballroom door as valhalla tried to break through them as it seemed they were trapped. the woman had long body curls of chestnut brown hair and pale skin, her eyes were a vivid ruby color pairing themselves with her thick but slimmer frame. vladimirs lips parted in shock as he looked upon the woman who was once his queen. how...so it was true, every word... there his past was standing before him dressed in satin blue. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡssPpyYXjX5
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu5RXDWrixk
stefan stiffened in his chair, this was rather unexpected. he made an attempt to move only to feel the hand on his shoulder slamming him back in to the seat. he turned to look at his assailant, his eyes burned in to stefans soul burning in to him. within moments his body began to ache in the shoulder the man was touching, SNAP! stefan hwoled in pain as his bones in his arms began to shatter without ever being more then touched. who was this man and was this his gift?74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl0O922pIKI
Talia spat upon the face of the ginger who stood infront of her as his lackys held her arms back behind her, how the hell did they get the drop on them? what was going on. the girl was in danger, she could do nothing but hope that vladimir could handle them on his own. she envied his strength without his humanity,it was a dangerous side, one she hoped to never encounter but knew one day she might. the man wiped his face of her spit and flung it on to the floor. his face screwed up in anger as the back of his hand whipped across talias face with a loud smack! he then gripped her jaw and made her look him in the eye " i am under orders not to harm you or marcos, but keep in mind if you choose to defy me...accidents happen" he said with a menecing tone. talia gritted her teeth in anger, she didnt want to die not like this...74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN88doHd420
although pain was shooting through stefans arm and he felt as though every bone in the left body was breaking, no sound came from his mouth he could make no movement to stop this he could only look in to the mans eyes. vladimir looked over at his brother entranced in this mans gaze as he heared the tapping of heels heading across the floor gripping his attention from his brothers immobilized frame. he would look at the woman he once loved someone he would do anything for. she still looked as she did the day he changed her, flawlessly 15. his head started to hurt from his mind filtering through his murky human memories...that wasnt who she was anymore she wasnt his sweet natalia anymore, she was a monster and a threat to his family. he would stand up and meet her gaze, hoping she would try and attack him. he would take a deep breath as his upper lip twitched "natalie."
