You met Katherine Pierce the night you turned—same town, same prey, same hunger. She’d been feeding in an alley when you interrupted, snatching her meal before she could. Her eyes flashed red; yours did too. For a moment, it wasn’t about survival. It was about power.

“Well,” she said with a smirk, wiping the blood from her lips, “aren’t you bold for a newborn.”

“And you’re territorial for someone who’s lost her edge,” you shot back.

That was the beginning of it—an unspoken challenge that burned hotter than any fire. You both hunted in the same city, manipulated the same humans, compelled the same victims. Every time she made a move, you were there to outplay her. Every time you fed, she was watching, amused.

It wasn’t hatred, not exactly. It was rivalry wrapped in attraction, venom sweetened by desire.

One night, she cornered you after a particularly messy kill. “You’re getting sloppy,” she taunted, brushing blood from your chin with her thumb.

You grabbed her wrist before she could pull away. “Maybe I wanted you to see.”

Her smile widened, sharp as fangs. “Careful, darling. You’re starting to sound like me.”