Rebel Just For Kicks: Kol Mikaelson [1]

10: The Turning Point

MJ hadn't left with Elena and Bonnie. She'd let Elena and Stefan talk before going to talk to him herself. She didn't mention the fact Damon was alive, it wasn't the time, and well, killing your sibling? That was dark, and he shouldn't be expected to do that. She just gave him a hug, and he knew what it meant. 

A hug for Lexi, and hug to let his guard down. 

They ended up sitting in the graveyard, him resting against the tree Damon had been staked to and explaining the story of the vampire tomb to her too. The story of Damon and Katherine and Stefan. How she'd compelled Stefan to love her, and compelled them to drink her blood, but now Damon was saying he hadn't been compelled. Compulsion wore off after you died so if Damon felt that way, it was the truth. Stefan ended their chat with the announcement he was leaving town, but if she ever needed help from someone with super speed and strength he was a phone call away.

She'd gotten home and the words 'Vampire Tomb' kept replaying in her head. T

he chances of Mystic Falls having the same vampire Nightwalker group as New York were so slim that she had no reason to be stressed. No reason. None at all.

After tossing and turning for several hours she made herself a very special tea to knock her out.

She would only do it for a few days, to clear her mind and get her into a healthier sleep schedule, and until she reached that point, she'd focus on Jeremy. The fact he was genuinely excited about his history essay was a breath of fresh air that she needed.

"I found this journal by my ancestor."

She'd met him in the school corridor,

"From the 1800s, and it's crazy, like, listen to this," They were walking and talking, "I live in fear. It consumes me. In the early evening when I see the sun begin to fade, the fear comes, because I know that the night brings death."

"Dark." MJ loved it.

"I don't know if this is really messed up to say," Jeremy closed the book, "But reading all these stories kinda inspired me. I know I want my essay to be about history connected to my family in that time period, but I'm still trying to get a focus."

He was smiling, which made MJ really happy to see.

"And specific dates?" She asked, "I could see what topics I could find about the civil war period."

"I don't know if I wanna write about the war itself," He shook his head, "But maybe the effect of it on people? Like, Johnathan Gilbert wrote about demons and people getting slaughtered, there's got to be a metaphor in there somewhere."

"Like it," MJ nodded, "Now, as interesting as that all sounds, you have to remember this is a history essay, not a psych one, and not a piece of writing about one journal, you have to stay rooted in facts, more than one source, find exactly how the community responded to people dying, how the town changed, maybe look at why the Founder's Council was formed and if that has any connections to it."

"Okay."

They were at her locker, and when she opened it, he could see the two sketchbooks she was alternating between inside.

"You do art?"

"Yep."

"I thought you were a nerd?"

"The two things aren't mutually exclusive."

"God," Jeremy started to joke, "You're one of those annoying kids that do everything, aren't you?"

"You're only just noticing?" She winked

"Lemme see," He pulled the first sketchbook out and started flipping through it, "I mean, your charcoal could use some work," He teased, "But you're actually good?"