All of SM's characters are hers, but they are my puppets and I make them play with mine.

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"All I'm saying is that she hasn't changed much at all, it's not as drastic as Sarah's transformation."

"Sarah was at deaths door and she was at her prime. There wasn't much to improve on I guess."

"Where do you suppose she's been. It only takes three days. It wasn't him that did it either, he never left after they came, not even for a second."

"No idea but do you don't think Sarah bit her?"

"No. She wouldn't have returned without her. She's not here, do you think they did away with her? But look, aren't those the two children that they sent after them that she brought back? "

"No, she's still around I think, they'd let us see her final death if they suspected any wrong from her. She must have done them in. Wish I could have seen it. At least he's better now that she's back. It was so sad seeing him like that."

"How do you think they spent last night, h'm?"

"Shush, don't be so forward. She showed up looking like hell and he wasn't all that well ether, I'm sure that that's not important, not yet anyway.'

There was giggling and Jacqueline then felt Vladimir's fingers enclose slightly around her hand and then release. "I almost wish I couldn't hear them now. They really don't know much about anything."

Vladimir wasn't listening, at least not actively to the chatter; his mind was more happily engaged watching Jacqueline and her adaptation to this environment. "No, but they keep trying and given their limited time on earth they do get better if they so choose to." Stefan was still off doing something and Vladimir guessed Sarah was with him. "If you'd like to go there's nothing keeping you. I don't want you to feel uncomfortable being around them, on any level." He knew she hadn't fed, not since her return and he personally didn't care if she slaughtered the lot of humans before them even if it meant that it'd cost them their comfortable home; he would even lead the way for her.

"I'm fine, I don't wish to go just yet." Jacqueline, in truth, didn't like the short time they were apart; when he had left her to go get changed and she could get herself dressed. The time she had spent in his arms were the safest she had felt since she had left months ago and she was hoping that this viewing of sorts would pass quickly so she could be with him alone soon. There was more that needed to be said and she was somewhat remiss that that they didn't talk more the night before. She just wanted, needed, to be held and that took precedence. Jacqueline laced her fingers with his and looked about; more humans were coming in as were the town's officials. All of them took a good hard look at her and then broke off into their own conversations. "When we do go, you will need to show me where they are kept, I can only manage three days at best. Two is better to keep the fire at bay."

A slow smile threatened to creep on to Vladimir's features but he could sense the seriousness of her tone despite her efforts at being passive about it. "Three days is quite good. Advanced I'd say. Sarah is clearly the exception to what it is to be a newborn. Her lack of feeling the need to... seems to be more diminished than what is expected." She nodded slightly at him but still watched the crowd. He was worried. Was she planning to leave as soon as she fed; was this only to be a brief visit? He squeezed her hand again, this time not letting it go so quickly. Stefan came in, as did Sarah who quickly returned to her corner still fearing for her fate. He gave them both a slight nod with a smirk and sat down.

"Are they all here?" Stefan looked over to his companions and then to the people.

Vladimir raised his hand and signaled the crowd. "The full council is here. If the traitor could be brought in we can finally put this all behind us." Christian took his cue and went away in a flash. Soon the sounds of chains could be heard as well as weeping and soft pleas for mercy. Jacqueline's features remained unchanged, even when her mother came into view. Vladimir looked between them, seeing that Jacqueline was unmoved by the sight of her chained up mother and then spoke. "You may proceed brother." His hand still cradled hers and the ring that it still held.

Stefan gave a nod, he was the more charismatic of the two of them, at least he thought so, and given the mystery still surrounding his brother he did think it was best to play that up for the humans; they loved the drama of it all. "Friends. We have been though much in these past few months and should be thankful that only one very brave and thoughtful young lady was killed in this attack. Her death was not in vain and she will never be forgotten by any of us." His eyes found the woman in chains. "Her death, our broken peace and the months of being watched by our enemy were all because of this one. A traitor." Stefan allowed the boos and hisses interrupt his speaking. "We gave her a place under our roof, fed her and her other daughter and protected them both but she didn't think it was enough." There were several more hisses from the crowd, they had been waiting for this trial and her execution for months. Stefan raised his voice. "We would be remiss to proceed without knowing the fate of the one person she tried to sell to the devil himself." He looked back at Jacqueline who was a picture of calm. "There is a slight problem. Neither I or the others want to tarnish ourselves with her blood, such a foul creature, and I'm quite sure my brother and her daughter feel the same."

Jacqueline felt her head shake and noticed Vladimir do the same. She had suffered and wanted nothing more to do with her mother; not even the thought of cracking her neck herself brought her any foreseeable pleasure. She thought back to when she was taken away, her transformation, and then the hardest time came when she was alone, wandering. The longing for her lover had hurt the most and then to see him, how she found him; devastating. "Burn her." Stefan looked back at her and she saw Vladimir's head turn towards her. "Burn her slowly. I want her to suffer for what she did to me and all of us." The woman's chains hit the stone floor and there was heavy weeping. Jacqueline couldn't recall who it was that feared being burned, her father, sister or mother but by the sudden outburst she suspected it was her mother. Jacqueline felt nothing; no regret, no satisfaction, nothing. She wasn't sure if she should or not but not having any interactions with anyone for months she wasn't even sure what she should be feeling. Her eyes found Vladimir's, "I have a sister, where is she?" Her voice lowered significantly from speaking the moment before.

Vladimir wasn't sure if he should laugh, or remain motionless when he heard her speak but his fingers remained laced with hers. "Your sister is quite safe." Physically Jacqueline was immortal perfection, but her mind was another matter. "We can send for her if you wish." He thought, had she woken in their midst they could have impressed on her what they wished; as they did with Sarah and countless others. She was truly a being of her own making and in a little way Vladimir liked the thought of this but the uncertainty was upsetting him. He was ready to give her anything she wished at this point, for now.

"No, not yet. I'm not safe enough." There were few humans, now that she thought about it, that she truly cared for. Her sister was the one human that she would kill for. Vladimir and his brother, she now considered her new family and their guards she held in high regard. The townspeople before her, she guessed that they deserved some elevation above outsiders. The list in Jacqueline's mind was formed and it seemed that being here was where she belonged, where she had the most. She didn't need to hide anymore. Stefan's voice brought her attentions back forward to the task at hand.

"You were nothing but a vessel and as such should be disposed of quickly as you have outlived your usefulness." Stefan raised his hand and signalled forward the Chief Justice. The human looked upset, there hadn't been a public termination of life in decades. "There is a clearing not too far off, away from any prying strangers eyes. We will bring her there to carry out the sentence. If you'd be so kind as to nominate three witnesses to observe?" The man visibly went a little more grey and he pointed out two others and himself. "Very good. Before sundown tomorrow night be here." The human nodded and stepped back. The woman was send back down to the cells below. He turned to cast his gaze on his brother and Jacqueline then back to Vladimir. "I found the item you sought." He raised his hand and beckoned Sarah over. She presented a small flat box to him; worn with time. He handed over to his brother silently.

Upon seeing it Vladimir recalled the contents. The hairpin it held, an intricate weave of fine golden threads laced with precious stones was the finest piece of its kind. His freed hand opened the box to find it and it sparkling in the light. "A welcome home gift my beloved." Her hand quickly reached for it but fell short of touching it.

"Its beautiful, thank you." There was no material expectation within her when she came back, all she wanted was to be reunited with her love. The thought of refusing the gift lingered but besides the obvious insult there was the more persistent fear of her damaging it and embarrassing herself and him along with her. She wanted to accept the gift, badly, but was also then thinking of a way to make amends with the immortal woman who was once her friend still standing nearby. "Sarah, could you?" Only the three that were near her heard her speak but the statement was profound.

Vladimir's lip quirked; he was pleased. What Jacqueline didn't realize, by asking for assistance and honouring the girl she also sent a very clear message to those that were observing; Sarah served her. Jacqueline's young age didn't dictate her placement beneath Sarah; what did was her sitting beside him and she claimed it now. Vladimir watched Sarah approach pick up the gift and carefully secure it in Jacqueline's hair with her head slightly lowered for her.

"When my sister returns I'd like to sit as we once did with her." Sarah only nodded to her, she still looked grim. "There is no tarnish against you as far as I'm concerned so please settle yourself in that respect." Jacqueline was rewarded with a little smile and curtsy. She looked to the brothers who were not pleased but not angered. "She was outnumbered and I was her crutch in the battle. No. The blame lays with those two children and the one that sent them to capture me as a trophy." She had time to think about the events that lead up to her being infected, time to recall and put reason ahead of the anger and hurt of what had happened to her.

Stefan mumbled to himself as she sat back and finally spoke. "The library, you should see it my dear. Brother if you would accompany us I'd like to show it to her." He had been debating taking her off alone but her timidness at the number of people around and her staying latched on to his brother had him question the thought. It wasn't openly visible but the brothers could see it and Vladimir was up and guiding Jacqueline away quickly. Stefan followed behind the two and watched as she drifted into his side and his arm drew her into him further. They were still both hurting from the separation Stefan concluded, and only time could cure it. Once they were through the door Stefan closed it and walked around to face them. "The library, we keep the books here, that's it." He sat down and motioned for them to do the same. "You've been through much my dear and I wished to impart something very valuable to you, knowledge. I appreciate you clearing Sarah of any blame to your current state and I hoped that you could show the same wisdom for us as we want you to know, without any question in your mind, that we only acted in your best interest." Stefan sat back and took in the scent of the ancient books. "Do you still have your human memories?"

Jacqueline quickly saw through Stefan's ruse of getting them out from under the public eye where they could talk. "My great aunt Ileana was murdered. You slept and then were woken. Yes, I remember most of it." Jacqueline glanced between the two, there were some things that were still faint in her mind and she would make a point of asking if they knew about them later.

Stefan was pleased, this would advance things much. "After our kingdom was attacked and we were woken some time afterward, I set out to find out what we could of our enemy. I had hoped that during our slumber that they would have been challenged and fallen but alas, that wasn't the case. They only grew in power during our slumber and we only grew in our hatred of them. You see; for all their greatness they still do what we didn't, hide. That is why they attacked us we believe. They couldn't stand the notion that we were more accepted by the humans than they and they didn't want our power growing faster than theirs as a result. Our army was larger than theirs but we lacked what they had, talented immortals. The two that were sent after you were such individuals. Tell me, if you would be so kind, what you felt before… Sarah ended them."

'Eloquently put.' Jacqueline thought. "There was lightning first. It burned my mind and body equally. Then, it cleared from my mind a little so I could see again, but my body was still in pain and I was crippled." The two didn't make sense to her, not together anyway. She looked to Vladimir whose expression was grim. It was paining him to hear of her ordeal but she knew that his brother did have a point to make to her.

"Fire and Ice were the twin's talents. The girl could impart pain, real pain, to whomever she wished and her brother could cripple the strongest of man or vampire at whim. The two together were what defeated us but they do, did, as their Master commanded them to." She nodded at him in understanding so he continued. "They have others who are talented that do as the Masters desire. The leader of that coven is Aro, his gift is the reading of minds by touch so when boy crippled their enemy he'd read their every thought and then fire would kill them. Knowing this, we selected Sarah to take you and for her alone to decide where to go. The reasoning simple, if Aro touched us, your location would be safe." She nodded again, Stefan was pleased. "Another in their group is the tracker, or as I like to think of him, their hunting dog. He only needs to be in your presence and then your location is always known to him. Vladimir and I have no recollection of him at our kingdom's destruction and we were uncertain if he 'visited' us in our slumber so if either of us escaped with you we couldn't be certain that he'd be the one sent to find us and you. Sarah, being so new would have been unknown to him so that again proved to be another asset in her favor; as well as her strength." Stefan glanced to his brother and he shook his head, understanding the next point he was coming to. "You see my dear, Sarah; along with yourself are the strongest two immortals here for about one year after your waking. You hesitated with your gift and rightly so, it would have crumpled under your hand if you lost a moment of focus with it. Learning to handle things carefully takes great mental discipline at first." He listened to her mumble about taking two weeks to dress herself and the look of longing in his brother's eye hearing her. Stefan wanted to laugh out but there was still much to say. "So, if you could be so kind as to not damage my brother we would greatly appreciate it, well, he would I'd make fun of him for decades." Stefan was silent for a few moments, deciding where to continue his lesson. "There are others in that coven with gifts that I'm still gathering information on thought the stories we hear from the travelers though this region. Many that the Italian's put off come here seeking us out so we can get the vengeance that they themselves may never get. Over the years many have pledged themselves to our side should a war break out but until now we were all powerless against the Italians, not until their two most powerful weapons lost their heads."

"How? I mean, how is it that she could defeat them without falling victim to their talents?"

Stefan chuckled, "Sarah is gifted herself." He clapped his hand as if a victory was won, "At first I thought it was a resistance to pain when we first observed her reluctance to feed. I initially had thought it was a natural tendency because of the illness she had suffered with but after hearing of her ability to ward off the girl and boy's gifts I'm thinking it's to all gifts." Stefan paused for a moment, desperately wanting to question her of her talents but it didn't seem like the right moment to ask. "I think, if their tracker had met her that even he might not get a lock on her," he waved his hand about. "whatever he senses. I'm tempted to send her off to spy on them but to lose her would be tragic. No. We will not do what they do to those that have sworn to serve them." Stefan paused again to watch as Jacqueline nestled herself into his brothers side. A sign that meant that there was no ill between them he hoped. "Ileana was precious to us, her own gift, before we knew such a thing was possible in our kind, was what stopped us from attacking the Italians back then. It was a shame that Aro didn't know that his salvation from our attack was the one thing, one person, he took from us. We were ready to strike within a year but then she came along and," He sighed. "there was no point. Her calmness, her ability to sedate anger and aggression gave us what we were lacking; a moment to reflect on what our ultimate goal was. We realized that a couple of brothers couldn't possibly rule a planet of wild humans and the fact that Aro is still trying to rule over a few hundred vampires to this day is telling. Well. It's a nice idea but as we have seen though history watching the humans, those that don't want to be governed, won't, and they will fight back. Our humans in this town are not ruled by fear by us. They do fear us but their want for a peaceful existence is greater than their fear. My brother must have told you about our coming here?" She nodded. Stefan recalled Valdimir's earlier plan of documenting her human life and being useful to her was now falling to pieces; she remembered a great deal but she did love him it seemed, so it might have not been all a loss. "When we came we brought not only our protection but our amassed fortune. All of the buildings in this town were built with our money that they earned from us. They exist here because we came here or else this place would have been abandoned several hundreds of years ago."

"So you aren't going to attack the Italian's, ever?" Crimes needed punishment, that she knew, it was ingrained in her. They looked between each other. "Their weapons heads sit at the foot of your throne, they are helpless. They need to answer for what they have done to me." The idea of revenge was growing in her quickly. She knew her feelings could leap in any direction as fast as she could run so she tried to calm herself only to feel Vladimir slump slightly at her side and she noticed Stefan smirking at him. "I'm gifted but you already knew that." She sighed and focused on lifting the effect from him.

"I did but I'm glad you mentioned it. When Sarah returned with their heads we knew that the war was won, but it was an empty victory because the prize was lost, you. You see, our enemy doesn't want to kill us, their greatest opponents, they wish to make us suffer. When they set out to come here they wanted to send us back into a state of slumber so they could boast of their victory over us once again. If they wished us destroyed they could have easily found us, as that witch did who revived us, and struck us down in our sleep. I'm guessing if they did visit us, they wished they had now killed us because as it stands, they are helpless. No one knows of the twin's deaths; the Italians would like to keep it that way for as long as possible. We wish to be left to our region of the world and if they should encroach on it we let all their enemies they've ever made and allowed to escape their demise know and they will attack them for us. What better way is there to defeat a centuries old enemy than to make them know and feel that they completely helpless?"

Jacqueline grinned softly. The brothers were brilliant and she could appreciate the beauty of their revenge. It satisfied her deep wish of inflicting a fitting sentence on them. "I didn't blame either of you then and now, you should know that. Sarah said that you would stall them so we could get away." She felt Vladimir lift her hand to kiss it. "Knowing that the person that made them come is paying with her life is enough for me and I hope that my sister will not be upset by her execution. Where is she?"

Vladimir finally decided to speak up. As much as he knew his brother enjoyed talking it was his turn. "We gave Christian that great weight of responsibility and he accepted it without any hesitation. He was told to bring her to a safe place, ideally with a relative and not to tell us where or who she was with. If things were to go poorly here he was told to either stay and helps save the villagers, or get away. Under no circumstance was he to be touched by Aro. He knew, in either case that it would mean his death or his family death." Jacqueline allowed him to kiss her hand again, he grinned. "You see, those that choose to stay and serve us do so by their own free will. Sarah, whom you have absolved, is now free to go as she wishes. She has done more for us that we have ever expected and if she does go, she will be greatly missed. Christian has left us on several occasions but has always returned. We don't keep or collect immortals as our enemy does, that is even too arrogant for us. Instead, we have learned by watching the humans that when one chooses to be loyal they will do so more steadfastly. Stefan and I suspect that those that served the Italian's, now that their power is diminished, will be attempting to escape their hold as they were there primarily out of fear."

"Well there was that rumor of the binder but I'm not so certain about that." Stefan sat back and let his eye wander up the several stacks of books. "Is there anything you'd like to know further? Can you let us know if you are going to stay with us?" It was a bold question but he was sure that his brother needed to know, it was the one thing that concerned him when he was revived and was waiting to go see her. "I am, but one day I want to see more of the world," She looked over to Vladimir. "with you I hope." He gave her a quick nod and she grinned up at him. "I liked traveling, before but I didn't like doing it alone." She looked back at Stefan and could tell he wanted to know more about her gift. "I had forgotten about it, my gift, at first, but I was once discovered waiting for nightfall. The human was hysterical and I didn't want to flee, sparkling as I do, so I told, willed, them to calm down. Their heart slowed and then it suddenly stopped. I had thought it might have been out fear but it didn't make sense to me as they were too young to have such a fragile heart. So I then tried again when I needed to feed, to stop them from screaming." She frowned. It still bothered her for some reason; it wasn't her fault she kept reminded herself. "Their hearts stopped too soon and it was an awful mess trying to get enough out of them so I didn't have to find another. I did figure slowly how to control it and now I can put them into a slumber that they never wake from. I can show you if you'd like to see."

Stefan watched his brothers' eye glaze over and knew his imagination was taken over with the visions of what his half dressed mate covered in blood looked like. He chuckled again and let the man stew in his dream for a few moments and curbed his own want to tease him. "Well we know it works on immortals but to what extent? We have no hearts to stop but you seem to be able to put my brother into a kind of slumber. I wonder if it's just as lethal to us if you were to fully focus."

"I can't. No." her head shook and she clutched Vladimir's hand tightly.

Stefan frowned. "An enemy perhaps? You wouldn't hesitate to protect yourself I trust? Believe me madam, many of our kind aren't as civilized as ourselves and would strike you down without any hesitation." He could see that that made her think. He sighed. It wasn't what he'd hoped she'd say but he was glad for his brother that she wished to stay with him; at least for now.

Vladimir too took the moment of silence to think on what was said. In his heart Jacqueline's gift was nothing to him but an added bonus for their coven; she was all that he cared about. "Do you think one day you'll come to peace with what you are?" She hesitated in her reply and only then nodded slowly. "I had settled myself in the thought that it should have been your choice." His fingers caressed her hand carefully. "The alternative scenario from the encounter that resulted in your changing would have been a greater tragedy." Her eyes were still lowered but he could tell that there was a lightning in her ora.

"I like that I don't shiver in the cold. I feel it but it's not something that can harm or slow me down." She looked up to the men who made no hint of wishing her to stop speaking. "Being able to see in the dead of night, even when there is no moonlight; the dark isn't terrifying anymore. Neither is being at a great heights. From the top of a mountain to its valley is but a small step." Both men smiled yet remained silent. "I never swam before, never at great depths but I can now. Lake bottoms are not anything special, I'd like to see and swim in the ocean and find a shipwreck to explore." Vladimir nodded to her. "The stars sing at night and when I was still I could feel their song pulling me up towards the moon. It was breathtaking. There is so much detail in a leaf even when it has been detached from its tree for months. Snowflakes are so delicate..." She let her mind drift off to when she first saw them. "There is so much wonder in the world I wouldn't have ever been aware of as I was before. I'm not pleased that I was forced to flee and then attacked but as it is the alternative was, now, unimaginable." She still had the vision of first seeing Vladimir solidified and she thought, what if she'd have never returned, died, his torment would still be continuing. A soft knock came at the door and both men said 'enter' in a quiet unison. She had thought she smelled someone but she wasn't definitely sure. Sarah stepped in partially and gave them all a slight nod and fixed her eyes on Stefan silently.

Stefan rose and gave his attire a little adjusting. "I have a pressing matter to take care of if you would excuse me." He didn't care if the answer was negative from either of them, his distraction was in a better mood and he had been waiting months for her waking. They had an understanding since her changing; no strings, no feelings, just a mutual exchange to fulfill a common need. He swiftly was at her heels as she lead him back to his private room. Once the door was closed his teeth were at the back of her neck biting down carefully; she froze. She had a particular taste to how she wished to be taken and he, never having a lover request it from him before now, was eager to please. His hands went to where her dress was laced up and undid it in a fury as she continued to hold still and started whimper softly. No words, just actions, abrupt and heavy handed. He had her stripped down in a moment and was working on freeing himself first and then pinning her arms behind her back and forcing her up against the closest wall. He bit into her neck a little harder and she nearly came undone before he had a chance to enter her. He growled deeply, displeased, he needed the release just as badly as her. Roughly entering her his motions were quick and animal like in every way. He tightened his hold of her pinned arms as he lost himself while nearly shattering the wall she was up against. He felt her body tremble and heard her finally cry out. He released his hold of her and removed his teeth from the back of her neck. He often wondered why she preferred the roughness, it was out of sorts from all of his past lovers that wanted to at least have some semblance of love even if they knew his heart couldn't easily be touched. Back when he asked her for her secrets he was quite setback when she asked him for this. Her hand fished up to where his mark was on her, it was quickly fading due to its lack of depth. He could make it permanent on her, mark her as his but the placement would always be covered by her hair. She didn't wish to be claimed and he wouldn't let himself be attached to another again. He watched her slowly turn to face him, her fingers started working off the remainder of his clothes. "Again, my way?" His presumption was as sound as was his shirt hitting the ground. There was a little nod and he had her up and flung around so her back was on the ground behind them. He pushed back inside of her and pinned her hands down as he started to pump her slowly. He would have her like this for the next few hours; working her up to several releases before he'd have his own. They only had until the following nightfall and then who knew, she might not wish to have him again for days if not weeks. She quickly came undone beneath him and his ego grew. "Let me hear your struggles little one, fighting your desires so I'll be forced to continue to work you over." Her soft groans filled his ear as his lips found where he had first bit her to kiss the mark. Sarah was satisfying, more so than Clara or the few before her and he enjoyed pleasuring her. She could still over take him he thought, he'd let her, but she chose to stay down and only struggled slightly as she came undone again as he continued to push in and out of her. "Good girl Sarah."

I've got Ch 13 brewing in my head and yes, there will be sex between the other two you pervs.