Sarah Nelson

📷 ― She wasn’t expecting that. It wasn’t a surprise answer, not after digesting it for what it was, but she posed the question to anticipate his proud acknowledgement. So much for that. “I don’t know about being a villain,” she thought aloud. “But, I’ve pretty much had it with being the victim.” Sarah couldn’t put her finger on it, but something about his ‘damsel in distress’ comment tickled her; a smile broke its way through. “Yup. You turned out to be a real softy.” As stark of a contrast that comment was... it had some truth to it. The one-eighty. He was a ruthless, big bad vampire, with the attitude and ego to match. And yet. “Well?  I’m ready for my rescue.” 

📷 ― “My father was a Salvatore.” Correcting him. “Look where that got him..” she added, exasperated. Her whole bloodline, dead, all except Damon. Despite growing up with the feeling of something was missing.. learning all she had about who she really was?  There was no connection she felt to this boogeyman title. It was merely the tragedy she always, deep down, knew to be true. Feeling more than a little vulnerable and backed up in a limbo corner: “Isn’t that why you have to play the villain?  If this is their story, where does that leave the rest of us if not stuck in the background?” 

📷 ― Her head was hung loosely in her hands before it was picked back up and whipped over to stare at him. “What?” she asked, genuinely confused by the question. “No!” The temptation to roll her eyes was strong, but she held firm. “I’m thinking. As much as I would love to pretend this is just another ‘side character’ related problem for me...” Sarcasm aside, it would have been easier ― it wouldn’t be her fault, now would it?  That they were stuck here. “... this feels bigger.” Maybe she felt bad, maybe the way he sounded when he asked if she gave up, but it compelled her to fess: “Maybe it is torture but, I'm glad I’m not alone.”

📷 ― “So they keep telling me.” The way Sarah had her arms crossed in front of her was a telltale sign she wasn’t convinced. Joking or not, Enzo still pulled the blonde’s name out of the hat for this torment, and using the secret Salvatore niece as a plaything, which was also on brand. “Like you used me to protect Bonnie.” It wasn’t a question. It was a statement, a disappointed and solemn reminder that she was.. well. And if she could feel one way about what Enzo did, how could she hold onto how she felt about Caroline?  Her feet brought her to a quiet bus stop, illuminated by a single street lamp, and she sat herself down. 

📷 ― “Right. Fun.” Sarah is unfazed. Hell, the reply almost calmed her. It was the likely answer, and surely was the least upsetting. Her dying was cut and dry, coming back was a mystery, and that was the part she hated. The unknown. “Bonnie?” she asked, but she didn’t expect a response. It was just.. the way he said it. And she didn’t agree with what he said. She wouldn’t want him to be alone― and Sarah was far more willing to forgive that explanation that anything involving Caroline. “What is her deal with me?  You don’t think it could be about Stefan too, do you?” But she couldn’t help it. She laughed, looking at Enzo, “And what lesson is that?” 

📷 ― “Uh―” Okay. Perhaps, she had not anticipated that question. Or it being so direct, a yes or no. Sarah stared at him, and unreadable one (she felt like) and let out a nervous scoff. “A-and?” Terrible start, clumsy start. “Wouldn’t we just desiccate?” The word still felt weird on her tongue. Then she caught his smirk and dug her heels back in. “You said it yourself, it’s not up to us.” With the crisis seemingly averted, the young vampire crossed her arms over her chest, though she felt no wind. Her words come out soft and wary. “Where the hell are we?” 

📷 ― “Sorry for the intrusion.” It took working up the courage to even approach the school, let alone seek out the people she had actively put in danger. Maybe to no fault of her own, but she digressed. “I’m looking for Lizzie Saltzman.”

📷 ― “Hi, my name is Sarah. I caught you on film.. and was wondering if you’d give me permission to publish it?” It wasn’t uncommon for her to catch strangers in her photos, but they were usually deleted, or kept private. This photo in particular, Sarah liked. “I can show it to you first.” 

📷 ― she didn’t know how she felt about that. revenge only ever seemed to drive perfectly good people into insanity. “that’s.. really nice of you,” she said warmly, a nervous but genuine smile gracing her lips. she believed davina really would tear the sorry saps to shreds if she could. “but we don’t know who did it, or even why. what i wouldn’t give to know just that much.” 

📷 ― He bites back at her but the energy in the room changed, and she was already starting to calm down. At least her fists began unfurling. Then he confirmed her suspicions, that there was a caveat to this cure. It wasn’t what she expected, but a downside nevertheless, and one he was certainly taking seriously. Sarah knew better than to underappreciate the effects of vampire blood ― even if it was the reason they were having this conversation in the first place. He said he cared too much, and it made her feel guilty. Something about the way he said it had her stomach in knots. “I know you blame yourself for my death, but I.. I don’t.” The admission surprised her. It was written all over her face, as she hadn’t thought she found closure yet about everything she learned. Of course, she was speaking of her original death, her more so permanent one before they all started coming back. “What do you mean better as?  Okay, I’m sturdier. What else is there?  All anyone’s ever told me about being a vampire is the bad stuff.” Her eyes rolled, and despite feeling a chill down her spine at the thought of being used in another one of Enzo’s schemes... it made her feel less frazzled. An easier focal point, simpler. 

📷 ― She was still sorting out what that meant. It seemed, from the very get go, there were conflicting opinions on what was best for her now that she was a vampire. “Why?” she asked, abruptly. “Why me?  He hates Stefan, and Damon, and for a while I thought he was just using me to get back at them, but I..” It was complicated now, it didn’t make sense now. Her lungs fill. “Is it because of you?” Sarah hated the words as soon as she said them, but they came from a place of real anxiety. It hurt, and it made her want to crawl into a dark hole and never come out, but what else did she have?  His motivations had to come from somewhere ― even if it was something as trivial as her and Bonnie sharing a few features. “Because I’m not you. Helping me isn’t going to fix whatever happened between you two... He has to know that.” 

📷 ― The biggest hint of all as Enzo’s lack of conversation, mostly the lack of complaint at the fact he didn’t know more about it. He was an intelligent man, vampire. A clear wealth of knowledge and his own brand of patience.. but when it came to matters involving him, or those he thought should, he had a certain attitude toward them. A lack of interest on his part was the first red flag. Avoiding the subject?  Another nail in that coffin. His harsh tone made her jump. She wasn’t expecting the sudden shift, and with her heightened senses (and emotions) she wasn’t prepared for the change. What she was prepared for, however, was the continued retaliation. It was where she pulled her strength from. “I knew it. You’re hiding something from me. Why?” she pressed. “Because I’m not getting at anything, except the fact you haven’t been. Shouldn’t the first thing someone should tell a girl whose turned into a vampire is how your ex-friends turned back?  If it’s impossible, if it’s dangerous, you could just tell me instead of whatever it is you’re doing now!” Her voice had raised somewhat, and she could swear she was starting to shake. Her heart beat so hard it was hurting her chest. “I’m asking you, Enzo,” she added, quietly. “I could go to either one of them but I want to hear it from you.”

📷 ― That irritated her, brow furrowed. “No, no, we’re not playing games. I’m a vampire now. That’s the big reveal.. and I’m trying to figure it out. This is my life. You know, the one I’m supposed to be stuck with now, forever?” Her head gently shook. “I don’t even know what that means. The sun can kill me. What else can kill me?  How much blood do I need daily ― what happens if I don’t get enough?  A hundred questions wouldn’t cut it, so don’t act like there’s just one single riddle I need to solve.” Unless he really was hiding something from her, for whatever purpose. Sarah’s eyes narrowed and she stood her ground. “You’re fine with not knowing?  What about Damon?  He’s human now, too.” 

📷 ― “Yeah I, I think I need one.” Drinking helped. She’d figured that one out pretty quickly. It made little sense to her but she wasn’t going to argue. “Thank you.”

📷 ― Her jaw dropped slightly, caught off guard. This, it felt rare, and if she knew how stubborn Enzo was ― she was right about that. Admitting he was wrong in any capacity.. even something as small as this... “Twenty questions.” She repeated the words aloud, which startled her. She hadn’t meant to. This showed on her face right before images shuttered through her mind. Past compulsions, lifting. Her eyes twist shut and she focused on centering herself again. “Sorry. I, um. I don’t―” That wasn’t true, now was it?  Maybe she didn’t have twenty, ready to go, but she had one. “How is Elena not a vampire anymore?” 

📷 ― Sarah knew she was just defending her friend, but it made her feel.. well, invalidated, for starters. Her arms drape across her chest and pull in tight. “I’m not― I don’t know what to do.” In a nutshell, she was lost. Faced with responsibilities and identities she was never prepared for. “Can he do that?  Is he setting himself up for failure?” She didn’t even care about her part in it all, safety-wise. “If this, me, is a lost cause, waiting to give him the excuse...” She didn’t know what she could do about it. “I’ll be honest, I’m a little tired being a chess piece.”