Do you even know who you are? {{Open/Alaric}}

[Annabeth Halie Smith]

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Mystic Falls Virginia. now THAT'S where she wanted to be. Here she was little old her, sitting at a buss station, strapped over her back was a bright pink back back, that had seen better days. Inside that pack was her life. She lived out of that thing, god forbid anyone tried to touch it, or worse search it. Can you just imagine, a cop stopping her for one reason or another, then asking to search her bag. If they somehow managed to get her away from her bag and searched it. Well they would find enough stuff to not only get her arrested, but locked away in some asylum for the rest of her life. In that dang bag, she had knifes, stolen ID's and credit cards, she had a gun, bullet's, holy water, a wooden piece of wood she was caring and mass amounts of rock salt. Not only that, but she had new paper clippings about the most random of things, she had notes on super natural creatures, and she had a little vile attached to a string, that held this weird black goo. Yeah... crazy right.

Sitting at the buss stop, her back pack attached tightly to her back, laying out in front of her had been a map, a map that was well used, many notes were written around the map, pictuers taped to it, sticky notes, the fold marks were so faded it was taped together in many place. But right there in the middle of the map a huge circle was draw, most of which could not be seen by the folds. Mystic Falls. Yep... there it was. Over the last year, AnnaBeth had started tracking a small group of vampires. There had been three in the group that she knew about. Over the last YEAR She has been planning on leaving her hunter captors, and going on her own. If she could kill a skinwalker by herself, she could kill a few vampires. It's nothing she has not done before. Sure she had her parents close by. But she never needed that much help.

So she had a plan. She was finally away from her pesky Hunters who felt like they had to babysit her. God she was 14, not 6. Anyway, she was on her own for months before she officially found out her parents had died and she's been on her own for a few months now. She's even gone on like 6 different hunting trips alone, and she's doing just fine. She had a nasty cut on her leg a few weeks ago, but she took great care of it, and the skin was pretty much closed already.So that there should be enough for anyone.

A mans voice came on the overhead, interrupting Annabeths plotting. He announced the buss going to West Virgina, passing though Mystic Falls was leaving. Last call. That was her cue. Folding up her map, she got up, as she stuffed it in her bag. All the bottom compartments on the buss had been closed and locked. Without a ticket she could not get on the buss. But she had a plan. She'd hitch a ride with the suit cases. Once she was sure she was close to her destination of Mystic falls, she'd cause a little trouble down below, get the buss drier to pull over, then she'd be home free.

That's just what she did. They were passing though Mystic Falls close to midnight. Lucky for Annabeth, and unlucky for the creatures of the night, she was pretty nocturnal. She slept during the day, and was out at night. Things were easier that way. Getting off the buss, as soon as it came to a stop, she ran, not bothering to stop. She hoped her timing was right. 10 minute too late or early, would cause her a long long walk, and her plan might not work so well. She had one shot at this. She had gotten word that the three vampires she had been tracking where to meet at a cemetery in Mystic Falls at 12:30. It was pushing 12 already. Now she just had to find the place, set up and wait.

Annabeth had studied that map pretty well, she recognized the street signs, and just hoped she was going the right way. At least she was dropped off right where she needed to be. Lucky break. Her first and only one for the night. But off she went, running down the street in the middle of the night, the knifes she had strapped to various parts of her body, tickled her skin in her frantic movements. She could not miss this. Maybe if she killed the three she had been after, she would get some more respect in the hunter world. Apparently killing a skinwalker at 12 by yourself was not enough. Most people did not believe her, but that's why she carried around her prize, the goo with her.

She made it just in time. She was able to dive under a large tombstone that had began to settle a bit. Just in time too, the voices got louder and louder, and there she saw 3 pairs of legs walking towards a crypt a few feet away. She was still quite. But they walked in, she smiled. Just where she wanted them. Too bad she did not get a chance to check out the inside of that place. But she figured it was like the rest.

she managed to shimmy out of her backpack, leaving it safe under the tombstone. She started to unload a few of her knifes, replacing them with homemade stakes soaked in holly water, just to add to the burn. Once she was sure she was ready to go, she wiggled her way out from under the headstone. It was go time.

Throwing open the door to the crypt.... she as in trouble. One... Two... Three... Four... Five... Six... Seven.... Eight... pairs of eyes looked at her... There she was standing just about five foot one inch a wooden stake in her hand, cross on her neck, ready to fight the three she knew would be here... but the others.... they must have gotten here early. She never knew.. she..... She was in trouble. As luck might have it, a few of them just laughed at the site. "Ain't she a cute one... Can I keep her?" Once howled in laughter. Another commented on her age, her height, everything. But her parents taught her not to hesitate. To kill first, ask later. To do what she had to do. So that's what she did.

When Annabeth launched herself at the closest vampire, they just giggled harder. It was only when that space was replaced with dust that they began to get angry. They did not feel they wanted to waste their time on a little girl. They could take her out easy. But not before Annabeth could get to another two. With three taken out, the other five got pretty mad. Five on one... this was not going to be good. Let the battle begin.

And so it did.

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[Alaric "Ric" Saltzman]

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Alaric was driving to the Gilbert residence late at night. He glanced at the clock and knew it was close to midnight. He was at his apartment, grading papers and had a little to drink. Alaric wasn't drunk enough that he shouldn't be driving however, he just had one beer. Jenna called him, asking him over, he hadn't really been with her since she came back and was a little nervous.

Alaric having a vampire Girlfriend freaked him out a bit, he would admit. Still, it was Jenna, he knew her, and she was the love of his life, and he knew that Jenna was good, even if she was what she was, Alaric had been much more accepted of vampires recently, since a few of his best students were vampires as well as his best friend Damon was one to.

Alaric couldn't help but wonder what it would be like, spending the night with a vampire. The thought barely crossed his mind when he saw a teenager, someone probably younger then his students, follow some men into the local cemetary and he instantly put on his breaks and rubbed his eyes. "That's it Alaric, you have to lay off the whisky." He said to himself.

Never the less he got out of his car and checked to make sure his arm cuff stakes were locked and ready to use and grabbed a few extra stakes and a couple of vervain grenades from his trunk. Alaric followed the kid who was following the men, he didn't know if they were vamps, but he suspected they were and he couldn't let anything happen to the kid.

He watched her jump down into the crypt and spotted as the vampires surrounded her. He was surprised to say the least when she was able to take out a few of them on her own. Who was this kid, finally, the vampires seemed to be getting the upper hand on her and he knew he couldn't sit back and watch. He through the vervain grenade at three of them and it exploded. He jumped out of his hiding spot and staked two of them.

Finally, he punched the the third one and his arm cuff stake went straight through its heart. 2 on 2 now a much more fair fight, even if one of the ones on his side was a kid. One of the remaining ones tackled Alaric making him hit his head on the ground. A little groggy, Alaric had enough sense to punch at him with the untriggered arm cuff stake and watched as he turned to dust.

Alaric knew the kid could handle the last one on her own and looked at her as they were the only two beings left standing in the tomb. Alaric really didn't know what to say at first, his eyes just looked her up and down. He couldn't tell her age before they entered the tomb, but now as they were standing face to face he could tell she was no more then 15 years old.

Alaric's head began to pound from where he hit it on the floor and he gasped in pain, probably feeling it for the first time. He rubbed his temple and noticed a little blood on his hand, he was use to the site of his own blood, the bigger concern was the kid vampire hunter that stood in front of him. Alaric looked at her with a smile.

"I'm Alaric, whats your name?" He asked her, he used the same tone he would use when talking with his students. He knew teenagers and preteens didn't like being talked down to, so he didn't talk down to her, he just wanted to know why she was here and what she was doing, she could of got herself killed and Alaric was just glad he could help.

Tags: Annabeth Smith
Words: 648
Notes: This is gonna be fun.

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[Annabeth Halie Smith]

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Could she run? Could Annabeth really just throw her hands up and run. Sure she would not get very far, but they might not chase after her. She was just a kid...right? It's not like she'd be a meal or anything. Maybe a snack... But still.. could she run? would that help. NO. No she'd never run for a fight. She got herself into this mess, she'd get herself out of it. As one of the Vampires advanced towards her she threw a kick, right in the middle of his chest, he stumbled back, not expecting it from her. That gave her enough time to back away. Putting more space between her and the vampires. That's what she needed. She froze for a second as something went flying over her head. Instantly she covered her nose and mouth. She had no idea what was in there. She could only guess, but she did not know. Of course now she'd be fighting one handed, but that was enough for her. A wooden steak slid from her sleeve, and into her hand, dripping with what looked like water. She flipped it in her hand, before throwing it into the back of a vampire going after whom ever was helping her... The vampires seemed more concerned with this mystery guy then her.

Was some really helping her? Gah! As much as she might have needed the help right now. SHE WAS NOT A CHILD! She could totally handle herself. 100% she could do it. She could have killed them, she was sure she could have. She would have gotten a little beat up, but a broken bone hurt no one.... in fact it gave her more of an edge. No one would think to go for a helpless little snack with a broke arm. It was just too easy. Of course with Annabeth it was far from easy. If you wanted to take a bite out of her neck, she was not going to just let you have it, you'd have to work dang hard to make a meal out of her.

With a small sigh, she returned her weapon to it's place, and whipped her hands together, cleaning them in a sense. She did not even bother to look over at the man. She was planning on just walking away. She did what she had to do. She killed whom she tracked. No thank you was in order, she as sure she could have gotten out of it. If she can kill a skinwalker, she can kill a group of vampires. It's what she does. It's what she will always do. Help was for the weak and unprepared.

When he gasped, she had to look. Oh great. He got hurt. A likability. Figures. Of course he'd go and make himself bleed, that would surly mean more would come, if they were near and they got a whiff of his fat head, then her job would continue. Annabeth had exploring to do. Really. She had just woken up so she was ready to get her day... or night started. But really... he had to go bleed all over her fun.

"Ugh! Come here!" She groaned stomping over to him and taking his arm by the wrist. "Let me get you fixed up." She said ignoring his question. She'd give him her name when she was dang good and ready to do so. You can just show up, kill a few vampires, bleed and ask for someones names. Taking care of his cut would be most important. At least given the area she was in. An area she figured she'd stay in, just for the exercise at least.

With one good tug, she started dragging the man behind her. She lead him outside the small battle zone, and to her little hiding space. "Sit." She commanded giving him a small push, in encouragement to sit on the head stone. She got down flat on the ground, before shimming half way under the stone, she pulled out a very warn pick backpack with her, which was now covered in a small layer of dirt. Brushing off the dirt, she opened the pack, pulling out a black plaster case with a lager cross on it. She stood up, placing the plastic bin next to the man.

"Why did you have to go and get yourself hurt." Annabeth said, sounding oddly annoyed. Not that she did not mind fixing him up right. But dang. It put a damper in her hunting skills. She opened the case and hit her hands with a good amount of hand sanitizer "Now hold still while I fix your head." She added, digging around for some alcohol pads. "This might hurt.... just a little." She continued on, pressing the pad to his cut, whipping it around, making sure she got it reallllly clean. No one wanted a dirty wound.

Pulling out one of those big old baind-aids, she ripped it open, and placed it over the wound that was hardly bleeding. But it was better to cover it then let it go. "Alaric huh? Never herd of you... Your clearly a hunter. But what were you doing here? " Annabeth questioned. Yep, she was surly a feisty one. "I was in the middle of kicking some ass when you butted in. I totally could have taken them." She continued on her chatty ways, as she cleaned up her little kit, picking up her backpack and using the mans lap as a table. She opened it up nice and wide as she worked on shoving the kit back in the back. But of course her pretty little ipod was in the way, and her array of knives stuck out from every angle, of course most have covered on them, but some were just sharp as any waiting to cut something that got to close, like say Annabeth's hand. But she knew her knives, and she worked around them. "Your lucky you walked away with only a little scratch." She commented closing up her bag and swinging it over her shoulder. "Names Annabeth, but you can call me Annie... for now." She commented, noticing her bag left some dirt on her pants. "Sorry 'bout the pants." She added, hands on her hips, in a very sassy stance.

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[Alaric "Ric" Saltzman]

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Alaric was a little taken back by her force full tone. This was a girl? A 12-15 year old? She must of seen a lot more in her short life then Alaric would of ever guessed. "Its fine..." He said, his protest's were clearly going ignored by her as she pulled him behind her. She was quite strong for her size, but Alaric felt a little dizzy from the bump on the head, so he didn't struggle as much as he should of.

"What are you doing?" He asked her when she produced a first aid kit it finally sank in. "I'm fine, I don't need any medical attention." He tried to protest again, but she clearly ignored him. Alaric decided to let her do it if it was so important to her, he had bumps on the head before, cuts and scrapes and everything you can think of. He would be fine, he would of put a band aid on it when he got to the Gilbert house and that would of been the end of it.

"Well, it kinda comes with the territory of killing vampires." Alaric said as she went to work on his cut. He decided it was no good arguing with her over it. He winced a little as he felt the alcohol touch the cut. He was use to it by now, though he usually used scotch. He grinned softly to himself, he really didn't expect a thank you, but he didn't expect her to play doctor on him. She was actually skilled at it to.

Still he didn't expect her to be that ungrateful. Alaric knew the situation was grim for her and she most likely wouldn't make it out alive, and if she did manage to, she would of needed some serious medical attention, not just a little cut on the head. Alaric could tell she was prideful and stubborn. Which he knew most hunters were. He decided not to argue with her, if she said she was gonna be fine, then he would let her believe that. But he saw, they had her where they wanted her.

"Yeah, lucky I have such an amazing nurse to fix up my booboo." Alaric said, he couldn't help but say it a little more condescending then he should of. Alaric didn't expect any gratitude at all, but a little acknowledgment would of been nice. He frowned. "Hi Annie, how old are you, where are your parents?" He asked her, changing his tone to what he was using before.

He honestly didn't mind about his pants. "Its fine, I have a clean pair at Jenna's." He said to her with a smile. "Thanks for fixing up my cut." Alaric said, he hoped she would answer his questions. He didn't like that she was out here by herself, she could of and would of gotten hurt, no matter what she said.

Tags: Annabeth Smith
Words: 485
Notes: None

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[Annabeth Halie Smith]

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Annabeth just smiled her little sweet smile, which hid her true intentions. She was going to do whatever she wanted to do. If he did not like it, to dang bad. She clearly knew what she was doing. She was raised in this life. Any kind of blood produced a smell, and Vampires could smell it for miles. Kind of like a shark in a sea of fish. One drop of blood, and the sharks come a swimming. At last if it was covered it would mask some of the smell. He continued his protest. But Annabeth just ignored it. She was gonna put a band-aid on that dang cut, even if she had to fight him to do it.

Oh course they had her corned. Of course she was surly going to die. But Annabeth always had a plan. Of course it might give her a few more minutes of life. But she would have not made it out, had he not shown up and distracted them, well she would have been in trouble. But with his presence, they figured she was just a helpless snack waiting to happen. It gave her the chance to do what she did, without getting hurt. Lucky for her. At least he only got a little bump on his head. Though she wondered if he had a concussion. It was not that bad, at least he was alive. Maybe a little confused. In her mind, she was totally fine, and when he bumped his head, he twisted the story in his mind, and went a little crazy. Whatever he said happened must surly be a result of the concussion.

Annabeth stopped what she was doing to raise a brow at him. booboo? Really... She just blinked at him. Really. That's what he had to say? Kidding or not.... she was not sure she wanted to hear the word booboo out of his mouth again. She took in a sharp breath, and let it out quickly, before continuing her work. She'd ignore that comment. If she did not react to it, he would not do it again. Most people did things to get reactions out of their fellow humans. So no reaction would mean a negative effect, witch means he'd be less likely to do it again.

She took a step back, admiring her quick easy work. At least he was all cleaned up, might have gotten some blood on his shirt or something. But eh, a little baking soda will get that right out. "Arg!" Annabeth said, pretty much throwing her hands in the air in frustration. "Always the parent question." She said, shaking her head. "I'm a teenager, NOT a child." She protested. "I don't need anyone holding my hand. I've been on my own my whole life." She went on. "I'm not a weak little girl." She continued on, swimming the backpack on her back, before turning around, and just kind of started to stomp away. "Oh.... and if you must know, my parents died a few years back. So no, I don't have a curfew. And no they don't care what I'm doing right now. " She added. "I might be 14, but I can take care of my self. You adults always want to coddle me." She added. "But my parents prepared me for their death. By the time I was five, I was renting my own hotel rooms and finding my own food." She informed him. Not that he needed to know her life story. But really. Come the heck on.

Did she not just prove herself. She stood in front of a bunch of vampires, and even took a few out herself. No normal 14 year old could do such a thing. "I don't need a parent. I'm just fine on my own." She ended. Yeah. Dang. But now he got her all frustrated and flustered. As braggy she is, as much as she wants to boast about her life and her kills. She's not normally just so out with information. She's normally.... well she makes up a lot of stories about where her parents are and what not. But she just kind of had a little verbal vomit. So now he knows her whole story... that was not a very smart thing on her part. As strong and educated as she was, she was still a kid, and she messed up. This might have been a mistake, but she hoped it would not effect her too much.

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[Alaric "Ric" Saltzman]

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"Thanks." Alaric said, though he really didn't need his head fixed up by a 14 year old. Still, if he was going to see Jenna tonight, which seemed like a long shot now, he really shouldn't be bleeding around her, considering that she was a vampire that still really had a little trouble controlling her blood lust from time to time.

Alaric knew there was something off about this kid. She was alone in a graveyard at night trying to take on 8 vampires. So she either had a death wish or she didn't know any better, and he figured it was the didn't know any better one. Yeah she was smart, and brave, and she could kill a few vampires, but he wasn't really shocked to find out her parents were dead.

"Take it easy, Annie." Alaric tried to calm her down, he was just worried about her. Alaric could tell she was very independent, that didn't mean she had to be alone. "You know the great thing about being alone is... your always lonely." Alaric spoke to her looking at her. Annie was stubborn, as were a lot of hunters he knew, including himself.

Still, she may of felt like she can take care of herself, which was fine. In fact the sooner people learned to take care of themselves now a days, the better in Alaric's mind. But she acted like she didn't want anyone to even care about her. If that was the case, Alaric just felt bad for her, he didn't want to coddle her or smother her, he just wanted to show her that having people care about you, not for you, but about you was a good thing.

"I was alone for a long time to. I drank a lot, didn't really care if I lived or died, then I met people that care about me. They are my family now, and they do care if I live or die, yet I still take care of myself, if anything, I take better care of myself now, because I have people who want me to be around." He told her truthfully.

"Its fine that you want to be independent. But not having anyone to care about you, that just makes you reckless, like you were tonight." Alaric spoke to her truthfully, she may not want to admit it, but she would of died tonight if he didn't step in. He smiled at her. "Look, I am a hunter to, and I was going over to a friends house tonight, Jenna, Jeremy, Elena, they are good people." Alaric spoke to her calmly.

"We can get you a warm bed and a hot shower and some home cooked food in your stomach for the night. If you decide you don't want to be around us anymore, you can leave any time you like." Alaric said with a smile, he hoped he wasn't coming off as creepy and hoping that he mentioned two other girls would ease her mind. He really just wanted to see her open up and not be so mad at other people who just want to care about her.

Tags: Annabeth Smith
Words: 526
Notes: The end of this post took me forever, I didn't want him to come off as a creepy old pervy guy, lol

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[Annabeth Halie Smith]

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"Ugh!" She commented at the whole chill out comment. She did not want to chill out. She hated talking about her life. It sucked. Really it was not a life she would have picked for herself. Who wanted to live in a world where demons were real, where things that went bump in the night hunted you, as your parents hunted them. She was alone often, and had no friends what so ever. She hardly was able to talk to anyone, god forbid she wanted to play at a park. She'd almost always have to run away and find a place to hide when the other parents realized she was alone. So she lived a suckish life. But she as making the best of it. Her hope was, if she could kill them faster then they could procreate, then maybe in the future, there would be no Vampires, no wolfs, no monsters, just humans. Maybe a few demons, but she'd leave them mostly to the Angels. Or she'd try to. She hated doing dealing with daemons. For there was a person trapped in there some place, who was having a really shitty week.

She's never really had anyone care for her. Just take care of her. While she was with her parents, that was great. Thought they were almost always talking about something or other supernatural related. But still, she was always happy to have them home, to not have to worry. Yet when they left she was totally alone. Living in hotel room to hotel room, no friends, no family, not knowing the area. It was hard. But she manged to find comfort in herself. Realizing that no one was out to help here. Even when she was placed with outer hunts, they treated her like a small child, keeping her locked away in her tower, or hotel room. They saw her more as a burden then anything. She could see it. She could just tell. It's not that they did not want her... but it's just that, they did not want her. She was just a drifter. That clearly caused some major attachment issues. And now, in her mind, she was nothing but a burden to everyone she meet. So does she have a death wish? No not really, but if she died a warriors death, maybe it would be all worth it in the end.

"Yeah well being lonely is better then being hurt." She countered. Not that it was any better. At least when she was alone, she could not disappoint herself. If she wnated to do something she did it. There was no waiting for your parents to get home, no missing birthdays, no pain, no being sick with worry that your parents died. Now it was just her. That was it. Yeah she got really lonely, but at least she was protected. She did not have to feel that pain, that heartache, that worry. On the same note she can't feel the love and affection from a friend. But you can't miss what you never had, or in Annabeths case, what she can't remember.

Then he started to talk all crazy. Well no it made a lot of sense. And she got that, she could really relate. Has she thought about turning to the bottle. Heck yes. But has she yet, no. She did not want to take away her inhibitions. She wanted to be free and clear when she went into whatever she was doing. It might provide her with a temporary high, but she was smart enough to see what it did to people. She kept it at a safe distance. She never planned on trying it. For she knew if she liked the feeling she'd turn to in it her time of need. She did not want to be that way. She did not want to be a drunk, but boy was the temptation there. Still she did not want to open herself up to any kind of attack.

What he said was hitting home, but Annabeth was trying her best to push it away. But she did not want to go through what he was going through. She wanted to live. She wanted to chose life. But could she honesty think she could continue to pick life when she was doing stupid shit like tonight. Sure it was a little unexpected and more vampires showed up then she originally thought. But she could have gotten out of it. She could have ran, but no she stayed. Was that her way of telling herself she was not picking life anymore... but she was just letting fate handle her life. That's not something she wanted.... Was it time for a chance? Would it really hurt to just... let go this once, and just see good in people again.

"I can leave any time?" She questioned, turning around just enough to see him. God help him if he was lying to her. "You wont be mad, and you wont try to stop me?" She questioned, turning around a little more. It sounded okay... for now. Better then sleeping on a park bench in the middle of the day. She usually slept during the day, so that was always super awkward, and she always got woken up by the cops, if she could not get herself a hotel. Like today, she did not have a hotel limned up, so until she could get herself some free WiFi, and a homeless man who did not smell like feet, she'd be stuck sleeping outside. Not that she card so much. But it was hard to sleep when the world was living around you, while you protected their families. But yeah, if she could get a shower, she could wash her clothing, get some food, recharge. Once she got what she needed she could leave. Maybe take a few hour nap or something, so long as her door was locked and her knife collection was close at hand. She loved those things more then anything. If truth be told, her knifes had names, personalizes, and stories... they were kind of her friends. Even if they were inanimate objects.

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[Alaric "Ric" Saltzman]

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Alaric knew where she was coming from about not wanting to get hurt, and when his wife died, he felt the same way. He threw himself into research and vampire hunting and alcohol and didn't let people get close very easily. He has been a little like that recently as well after the death of Jenna, he began drinking heavily to hide his pain. "The good thing about having people that care, is that when one of them lets you down, the others are there to bring you back up." Alaric said to her truthfully.

And that's what happened with him. Elena and Jeremy helped him, even Damon helped him out, even though Damon would probably never admit out loud anyways that he cared about Alaric, Alaric knew the truth, and the two were buds, and stopped him from giving up completely. They probably helped him more then he could ever hope to help them himself. He really wasn't that great of a role model or legal guardian, and in fact, at one point, decided they were better off without him.

But they wouldn't let him go. They wanted him around, and so he stuck around, and he was glad he did, he felt like they were his family, even if they weren't really related, they still cared for each other and Alaric still would do almost anything for them, for Elena, Jenna and Jeremy. So he wasn't the best guardian, what really mattered was love and caring, and he loved them and told Jenna that every day since she returned, and the words still went unspoken to Elena and Jeremy, he knew they knew, but he didn't want to embarrass them by saying it out loud.

"I promise Annie, you can leave at any time." Alaric said truthfully, he wasn't gonna try to hold her as a prisoner, all he wanted to do was show her that people were worth caring about and having them care for you in return. His parental instincts were really kicking in when he began staying with the Gilbert's and Jenna, he wasn't much of a parent, but he was there for them and they knew they could come to him for anything, and he wanted Annie to feel that way about someone to.

"I promise I won't get mad, in fact, I will drive you wherever you want to go when you decide to leave, though I must warn you, we will probably get attached to you." Alaric said to her with a smile. He honestly didn't know how the others would react. He hoped that Elena wouldn't be to jealous, or Jenna wouldn't be to pissed at him. They were pretty understanding under circumstances like this, they were all in a similar situation to Annie.

So Alaric hoped they would welcome her with open arms. And if they had any questions or concerns, then he would talk it over with them, Alaric would explain why this was important to him, why Annie was important to him, and that she was important, that didn't make them any less important, they were still his whole world to him, and they could still trust him and come to him with stuff, but he had to do this, and they would understand and accept it, or at least he hoped so.

Tags: Annabeth Smith
Words: 555
Notes: None

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[Annabeth Halie Smith]

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Yeah... That was not something she believed. When one person let you down, the others tended to follow shortly after. Sure they might be there for you in your time of need, but everyone will always let you down. Always. No one is there for you every time you need them. You need to learn to be on your own. That's how she was raised. No one was going to do anything for her. No one was going to help her. She had to be totally self sufficient. If she wanted something done, she had to do it herself. If she got in trouble, she needed to rely on herself only. She's seen it the last few years. Someone would help her for a time, but they grew tired and just stooped caring.

What more could she do. She really did not have a place to go. So she might as well take advantage of his home. At least for a little while. She could set up a hotel room, and go from there. She narrowed her eyes for a moment, just looking at him. Her back still mostly turned towards him. But she was starting to turn back around. She was still not so sure about this whole thing. Trusting this guy might be a big mistake. At least she knew he was human, he did bleed after all, and he bleed blood. So that was a good sign. But still.... what if he was trying to trap her?

Her parents warned her about people like him. Trying to lure her in, only to cut her up in little pieces and eat her for breakfast. Not that she could not take him. She saw a bit of how he fought.... she was small and quick, she could get away. That was her biggest strength, being small. She could fit where not many could, and she was hard to catch, quick on her feet, and slippery little thing too. But still.... her parents had said a lot of people, or things, would not show her mercy just for being a child, if anything they would make a show out of her, use her to frighten others. They would go harder on her. But they would surly underestimate her. As seen today, she'd use that to her advantage. But was this a trick... or was he just trying to help her out... Was it because she was a female? Because her mother could kick her fathers ass, her dad had the brains, mother had the strength. Annie inherited half of each. She was strong, not as strong as her mother, but she was strong, and smart, again not as smart as her father. But she was the perfect mix of the two.

Her eyes narrowed as she moved to fully face him. Drive her where she needed to go? She could walk. She did not need anyone to drive her. Annie just kept her mouth shut. What could she say? She could yell at him for thinking she'd need a ride. But at the same time, it has yet to happen. She'd throw a fit when the time came if it came. "Well... don't get too attached I wont be staying long." She cautioned. She never stuck to one place for very long. The longest she's been in a place was a month, at that was her waiting for her parents to come home from a trip, only they kind of died, so she was waiting for nothing. She usually sticks to one place for no longer then a week. After that people get a little worried seeing a kid waking around alone at night.

Annabeth crossed her arms over her chest, leaning back slightly, just thinking things over. Really what could hurt. She could still feel the cold of her blade pressing into her legs, and her stomach. She always had at least one knife on her. It was her comfort, it was her weapon of choice. She was an expert in knifes. Not so great with guns. But she could throw a knife like a boss. AT least she had her knifes. That would keep her safe. If he got to close, she'd whip it out, and make him back up. She liked her space. she was used to being on her own, so she generally had quite a bit of space to herself. "Well...." Annie said letting her arms drop, grabbing the straps to her back pack. Where they going to go? or just stand here and wait for more vampires to show up. Not that she would not mind kicking some ass... But it was still early. She had alllll night.

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[Alaric "Ric" Saltzman]

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Alaric nodded, Annie finally decided to at least give it a shot and in fact she seemed a bit impatient and just wanted to get out of that cemetery already. Alaric began walking to where he left his car motioning for Annie to follow him as he lead the way. He finally got to his car and opened his trunk, taking off his weapons and such and placing them back in the trunk where he took them from earlier.

"You want me to put your bag back here or do you want to hold onto it?" Alaric asked her, having a feeling that it was a stupid question and that she would probably want to hold on to it and not let it out of her site, still he offered anyways. He opened the door for her and then went over to the drivers side of the car and got in waiting for her to get in.

"You know, its not to late to back out if you want. I won't force you to get into the car." Alaric said to her with a smile. There had to be someone somewhere that missed her, Alaric just couldn't believe that no one cared about her, that no one really bothered to look for her. If she were his daughter, he would look for her, he would care, but Alaric knew not everyone was like that.

Once she was in the car. "Buckle up please." It wasn't really an order, it was a request. The last thing he wanted was to get pulled over by a cop and get a ticket. Alaric would be the one that had to pay the fine, not Annie, and besides that, Alaric did have a few drinks, and with the stuff that happens in this town every day, it would surprise him if he had to slam on his breaks all of a sudden and he didn't want Annie's head to fly through the windshield.

Alaric began driving to his prior destination of Jenna's house. He could just imagine the conversation he would have when Jenna or Elena or Jeremy opened the door for him. It would be a rough conversation, and it would be something they all have to talk about, in truth Alaric really didn't know what to expect from the people he called his family.

Tags: Annabeth Smith
Words: 394
Notes: I guess your reply can end this? We will have to start a thread sometime in the near future, whenever the other characters involved, Jenna, Jeremy and Elena, have the free time. Its up to them when they want to start it.

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[Annabeth Halie Smith]

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Okay... so they were on the move. That would ease her nerves a bit. At least when she was moving about, she felt better. Staying in one place always creeper her out. It was amazing she was able to sleep for a full 6 and a half hours and not wake up in some weird place. The more they walked the more Annie would relax... only they were not walking to where they were going. They soon came to a car. Not good. Nope... not good at all. How dumb would she be to really get herself into that car. An older man, luring a pretty little young women into a car. Pst. She can see it on the news now. Of course Annie would cut off his hands if he ever got to close. But still.... could she really trust him with her life? Cars always freaked her out. To many things can go wrong in a car, anyway, if she's not driving she not in control... and that means her life was in his hands. Could she really give him that power? Was it worth it?

She just kind of stood at the front of the car, as he moved around back. When he asked about her bag, she shook her head, brining it around to hang on her shoulders in front of her. She clutched it tightly to her chest. No no... she'd keep it with her. Again too many things can go wrong in a car. She'd rather be safe... well as safe as someone can get. Still she just stood there watching as he pulled the car door open for her. Still she was still. Only when he got in and motioned for her to follow, did she step to the car door. "Can we walk?" She questioned, leaning into the car, but still far enough away that it would be a fight to get her in. She was very clearly being cautious. Annie did not like cars. She did not trust them, or people. By getting into that car, she'd be giving up a lot of control, she'd let someone call the shots. She'd be a helpless little girl really. That made her want to run.

When he spoke, she took it as more of a challenge. "I'm not backing out!" She spat, as she quickly climbed into the car, and put her belt on, still clutching her back pack to her chest. Yeah this would stay where it was, safe on her lap. She glanced over at him, still not sure. But she was not going to back down from that challenge, even if he did not mean it as one. She took it as a challenge and only the weak backed out of such things. Annie was too prideful to back away from this situation, even know, on paper it looked really really dumb.

She just kind of narrowed her eyes, as her hand grabbed the wrist on her other arm. Her fingers toying with something inside the hem of her sleeve. It was a knife of course, her weapon of choose. It was clear she did not trust him. He never said she had to. But for now... in this tinny car, where he could kill her with a simple turn of the wheel. She waited. Watching, ready reach out and take the wheel if needed or even kill him, if that meant saving herself from death. Annie was not ready to die. She still had so much she wanted to do, to see, to kill. She was determined to not die in this car... not today. If she was going to die, she'd be in her element, she'd be in a battle, thats for sure.

((I'll send out a PM to everyone linking to this thread, and see what yall wanna do. ))

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[ADMIN BRITT]