King Hurcole's reaction was precious. He had clapped his hands together like a little child's and ordered for his guest to be put in a nice chamber so he could rest.

Oh, he was in a nice chamber alright, one with a lock on the outside. Damon bared his forming fangs at the wooden barrier to the outside. He needed to wait until nightfall. It seemed that his powers grew during that time. He had been able to enter Calisandra's room without notice.

Calisandra....

Just thinking of her reminded him of last night. He hadn't been in his right mind then. He didn't know what had come over him. But the image of her in her bed, alone had been too great of a temptation. He had been so angry that he had wanted to lash out at anybody. It just didn't work out that way.

His powers had intensified as each passing hour grew into night. Damon had felt his vampire's blood surge with life and course through his veins like a powerful drug. The effects were awe inspiring. Once the guards escorted him to his mini prison, Damon very easily twisted the door knob and left the room. Getting out of the room wasn't a problem, it was trying to escape the palace with guards at every corner. Damon had managed to find himself in a dark corridor, nobody in sight. Then he had heard her.

He had heard her crying. Not great wrenching sobs in a room, but soft little whimpers of pain echoing in his head like pinpricks of needles. It hurt. It had hurt like hell. A thousand needles stabbing at his heart would have been less painful than to hear her cry. Damon had tried to ignore it, but how could he ignore a knife being twisted in his gut? He couldn't. So what had he done? He had found her room.

He didn't know if that was a mistake or just fate. Damon didn't believe in fate. But there he had been, in front of her and wiping away her tears.

Damon sighed, listening to its sound echo in the room. His plan had been so simple when he had first formed it. Wait till his vampire powers were at their fullest and get out. Even the simplest of plans seem so complicated. His vampire powers were taking awhile to develop and when they did, they went up like smoke in the daylight. The glint of his ring caught his eye.

Katherine. Even the mentioning of her name brought back bright hot surges of fire through his chest. His anger hadn't simmered, it only seemed to intensify with each day. A sardonic smile slid over his lips. Damon wondered how his brother was coping with their beloved's demise. Poor Stefan. A bitter laugh escaped his lips and mocked his soul. Damon's hand curled up into a tight fist. He hoped his baby brother was in as much agony as Damon wanted him to be. No one deserved to escape his wrath, no one. He hoped his father was begging God for forgiveness. Begging Him to bring his son back.

He walked over to the window. The birds seemed to be happy and cheerful. Damon wished he could twist one of their necks off. Maybe it would shut the rest of them up. His mouth tasted like he had just swallowed acid and his lungs were beginning to protest at the loss of oxygen. He was going to need to feed soon. He could feel it in his stomach. His skin was tightening and his blood was nearly suffocating him. Damon didn't relish feeding on a rabbit or dove but he had no choice. Anything would do.

A nice pale throat came into his thoughts and Damon grinned at the image. An olive skinned throat rushed forward and Damon scowled. He wasn't going to feed off of Calisandra, he just wasn't. He small code of ethics kicked in. He didn't feed off of innocent young girls.

He stopped staring at the birds and blinked. Did he just tell himself that he didn't feed off of innocent young girls? Was he totally losing his mind? He was Damon Salvatore, he could do whatever the hell he wanted. If he wanted to feed off a pale olive throat then he would.

The door opened and a guard entered the room. Damon turned and faced the tall, skinny man. He could have easily taken him down. The guard shifted nervously from foot to foot, unnerved by Damon's penetrating dark stare.

"King Hurcole, umm, said that you can, umm, be allowed to go into the gardens."

Damon smirked, "Oh, he did he? How kind of him. Please do send my thanks." The nervous guard waited until Damon was in front of him. Damon shook his head and just kept on walking. He didn't know where exactly he was going. The guard seemed to be in a stupor of some sort and was only half paying attention. He continued to remind himself that he could easily knock this idiot unconscious but then he knew that some other guard would be right behind him and his vampire powers weren't strong enough. A growl sounded his frustrations. He felt like a child being led to receive a spanking for something he had done wrong. Damned frustrating. The guard stopped at the entrance to a virtual tropical forest. A tropical forest inside of towering stone walls. The white wired gates held this garden of Eden in its confines. The guard extracted a key from his pocket and unlocked the gates and waited till Damon entered the garden. Shutting the gates behind him, Damon heard the key turn in the lock and the sounds of the guard's footsteps clanging on the stone pathway.

Those damned birds were chirping still and the bees were buzzing around the heavily perfumed flowers. It made him sick. There were flowers everywhere. Red, blue, orange, purple... Any color he could have thought of they had a flower. Damon spotted benches in the middle of the garden. They circled a massive fountain exhibiting the mythical mermaids. A bright blue robin was happily chirping on its perch atop the stone basin. Damon had found his target.

Slinking towards the bird, Damon inched his way around his prey. Just a few more steps. That's it bird, come to your master.... One more inch and......

"What are you doing?"

Damon's hands were still around the bird, who was squirming and squawking in protest. Snarling in reluctance, Damon released the bird and turned around.

Calisandra was standing there with her hands on her hips. Looking like a goddess about to wreak vengeance on him.