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11.

Everything We Hold Dear

THE ONLY thing going through Florence's mind was What the hell? After the events of the night before, she wasn't quite sure what to do. And what, pray tell, happened that night? Well, she wasn't exactly sure. The Elena look-alike, whose name she learned was Katherine, was earnestly seated on the couch in her living room, cup of coffee in hand. If anything, Florence had been extremely hospitable to the psychopath in her house. And, as she looked in the mirror located above the sink in the bathroom, she saw her eyes glisten with unshed tears.

I didn't want this. But, again, she wasn't sure what this was. Katherine Pierce hadn't explained much to her, and it didn't help that Florence couldn't walk into the living room without turning into a pile of ashes. As if her situation couldn't have gotten worse, her head was pounding with visions of what seemed like the past. The thing is, she couldn't remember experiencing any of them.

It wasn't long before Katherine joined her in the bathroom, the cup that was in her hand discarded into the kitchen sink. She watched Florence slowly break down, and there was a hint of guilt in her gut. An innocent, eighteen year old girl, cursed for eternity. There was something poetic about the way she looked at herself in the mirror-Katherine Pierce, the nefarious Petrova doppelganger. Of course, Florence had no idea what that meant, either.

"You're awfully calm for a girl who's been told that everything she's ever believed in is nothing but a hoax," came the voice of a vindictive vampire. Florence turned her head to face her. The older woman leaned against the doorframe, head tilted to the side. "There isn't much to it, really. Vampires, werewolves, witches-they're all real. But, of course, you figured that out already. You're smart, I'll give you that."

"This is insane," Florence breathed out. She looked at her with an incredulous look on her face. "I've got to be on some drugs. How can these things be real?"

"You're one of them now," she replied with a smirk, eyes glistening with mischievousness. "I've been watching you for quite some time now, Florence Allen. Now that friend of yours, the boy with the scruffy stubble-"

Her ears perked up. "Ryan."

"Right, yeah, Ryan." His name rolled off her tongue as if she was trying it for the first time. A fond smile graced her lips and she twirled a lock of her curled hair in her fingers. Florence didn't miss the evil in her eyes. "He's a handsome one, isn't he? It's a shame he hunts vampires."

Her eyes widened. She turned to face the vampire, who now held a proud expression. "You're telling me that, all this time, Ryan's known of. . ."

"If I'm going to teach you anything about this life-what's left of it, anyways-you've gotta stop asking questions, and start answering them. Starting with what the hell my name's doing plastered on your walls."

°

"'KAY, NOW I'm the confused one."

"Welcome to my world," Florence said with a sigh, slouching in her chair.

The two girls were sitting in the blonde's bedroom, the newly turned vampire crumbled in a corner. She watched Katherine's face morph into one of puzzlement, her fingers playing with a necklace she'd taken from Florence's vanity.

Katherine shrugged. "Well, you don't have to worry about all that anymore. Since you're a vampire now, anything you were before that is gone. Shame. If I'd known, I would've put you to better use. You'd make a great witch."

"So I don't have to worry about it anymore?"

She pressed her lips together. "I wouldn't jump to conclusions so fast. You could be cursed. Seems highly improbable, though." Her eyes lit up and she turned to face the girl. "Maybe, with all these supernatural creatures buzzing around in Mystic Falls, you were just a human with visions. It happens. Now, however, you've got potential to be more than that."

She furrowed her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

Katherine smirked and stood up from her chair, advancing towards her. She plopped down beside her and leaned closer, the same evil in her eyes. Florence could feel her breath on her skin and bit her cheek, which only made her smirk grow wider.

"Wouldn't you like to be on the winning team for once?"