Chapter 1

The warm sea breeze was refreshing as it blew her brunette hair around like a string through the open bay window of her cabin. Elena Gilbert sat in her room upon her father's ship, the Sea Mermaid, writing in her new journal. Her quill was scratching delightfully, and she was lost in her own thoughts. The crossing from England had been a tiresome one, having to spend weeks on end in the same boring cabin. The ship would occasionally make port to restock on valuable materials, but Elena's father was strict when it came to allowing her to leave the ship.

Grayson Gilbert was a noble-born merchant, whose wealth was rumoured to be the greatest in all of England, second only to the King himself. She led a life of incredible wealth and privilege, and, as a result, was incredibly lonely. After her mother's death from the plague, Elena's father had decided it would be better for them to start life across the sea and rebuild what the once had. It wasn't her first choice, but there was nothing she could do about it now. They were only one port away from arriving in Mystic Falls, a new town settlement.

"Ma'am?" A voice said from beyond the door.

Elena looked up to see the handsome face of Matt Donovan. He was second in command of the ship and her father's right hand man. His blonde hair that fell across his forehead was also blown about in the wind. His foggy green eyes seemed sharper than usual. As she squinted up to get a better view of his features, her heart started to pound. She was surprised he didn't hear the dull thuds that felt like her heart was hitting the wall of her chest.

"Oh, Mister Donovan!" She said, a bit flustered as she stood from her desk, straightening out her dress. "May I help you?"

He smiled. "No Ma'am, I came to inform you that we will we not be leaving his port until tomorrow now. Your father has been asked to join the Governor for dinner and he has requested your presence."

"Of course." Elena nodded, knowing that she now had to fulfill her duty. "Would you please get Pearl for me?"

She watched Matt leave and sighed. Elena had known him since they were children and she always knew it would be their duty to marry one day. The Donovan family was also very rich and owned a lot of land back in England. Matt's father was a member of the Great Council, having many governing rights in towns, including laws. Even though Elena cared about Matt deeply, she never truly loved him. It was difficult, but she knew it was her destiny to follow in her mother's footsteps and marry an important nobleman.

A few moments later, Pearl entered the room carrying several different materials in her arms. She was Elena's governess growing up and had since moved on to become her lady in waiting. She was honest and blunt at times, but her personality helped Elena to see things clearly.

Pearl pulled hard on the strings of Elena's corset, cinching her waist in even further. She gasped in surprise at how tight it was. Surely she was expected to be able to breathe? However, her maid seemed unconcerned at the problem she was causing her. She then turned Elena to the mirror, brushing her hair out and fastening a hairpin to the hold her fringe in place.

"We've got to have you looking your best tonight, Miss," She said, while scrutinising Elena with a critical eye. "There will be a very important announcement."

"Oh, and what might that be?" Elena asked, suddenly curious.

"I though you knew?" Pearl raised her eyebrows. "Mister Donovan plans to ask for your hand in marriage."

"Excuse me?" Elena gasped. "I don't want to get married!" She argued. "There's no way I'm throwing my life away like that! Matt and I…we do not love each other. I'm waiting for the right man, one I'm in love with and who is my choice."

"Why do you have to be so difficult?" Pearl snapped. "This is what your mother would have wanted."

"It's not your place to tell me what to do." Elena spoke clearly, trying to control herself.

"Well, regardless of what you really want, Miss, you have to get married." Pearl pressed.

"I'm nineteen years old!" Elena retorted. "I am an adult, not a child! I know what I want and I know what I don't want. And what I don't want is someone telling me what to do."

The governess sighed, rubbing her eyes. "I'm afraid you have no choice in the matter."

"What about me!" She cried, throwing herself back into her writing chair. "I've had enough of this argument. I'm not marrying anyone. The end. Now, leave me."

Pearl sighed in annoyance. "You have to stop being so spoiled. You're marrying him."

"Leave me." Elena repeated angrily.

"As you wish," Pearl said, moving towards the door.

The second she left, Elena threw herself onto the bed, tears streaming down her cheek. She couldn't marry Matt; not when she didn't love him! She was already scared of becoming a wife. A submissive would've been a more appropriate word and having to marry Matt just added to her distress. It wasn't that Matt was a bad guy, because he respected her and he cared about her too. However, she only saw him as a friend.

She wiped away her tears, asking herself a dozen questions, and right at that very moment she cursed her life. She wished that she was born into the middle-class family, at least she could choose whom to marry. However, she knew that this was all in vain. She was going to be a Mrs. Donovan soon and there was nothing she could do about it.

He could see her now. Through the window panels, of course, he could see her. She had long brown hair with natural highlights that curled at the ends. She had very good form and long legs. She was clad in a very elaborate and lace dress. She was extremely beautiful and he started to wonder who she was… Nevertheless, he had a plan in motion and he wasn't about to screw it up by drooling over some girl.

He'd already scaled the side of the ship to the window, and now all he had to do was creep inside and silence the girl, now that the other woman was gone. Maybe he could play with her a bit before his men arrived as well…

Elena stood by the mirror, brushing out the knots in her hair, finally cooling down from her outburst. She knew she'd taken it a little too far, but she was old enough to make her own choices in the world. But she knew it would never be that simple.

Just then, she caught movement from the corner of her eye. She turned around and gasped in surprise. She stared at the stranger in her room, smirking at her as he took another step forwards.

Elena mouth opened to scream, but his hand clamped over her face with bruising force, muffling any sound that escaped her. He pulled her against him, her back pressed to his chest as his other hand wrapped around her waist, pinning her arms to her sides, making it hard for her to swallow.

"It'd do you best not to scream, darling." He warned her. She stayed silent, frozen in fear. "Now, I want you to lock the door and keep quiet, or I'll have to hurt you. Savvy?"

Panicked, Elena nodded her head slowly, and reached for the lock, twisting it in place and leaving her trapped with this man. His hand slowly moved away from her mouth as and pushed her back towards the centre of the room. She thought about making a dash for the window, but stopped completely when she noticed the pistol pointed directly at her.

Elena backed up, until she hit her bed, and fell over on it. This man was very off looking. He had jet black hair that curled around his structure face. His hat covered a high forehead, and shaded dark blue eyes. He had some slight stubble and several small cuts marking his cheeks and chin. His clothes were a bit ripped and torn, and he carried himself in such a way that suggested arrogance or cockiness, unafraid of anything. Elena swallowed as he smirked at her.

"Please, take whatever you want, but don't kill or rape me…." She begged in a weak voice.

"Darling, I wouldn't ever touch a woman like that." He took a few steps towards her, and when he saw her flinch, he checked himself. "The name is Captain Damon Salvatore; I suppose you've heard of me?" He asked proudly.

She remained silent, her body shaking. This couldn't be happening, not to her! She tried to think of something, anything, that would get her out of here and away from here, but Elena came up blank. There was no escape.

"I asked you a question." He said, his face slowly turning sour, from his happy mood.

"N-no…" She whimpered, her chest heaving up and down uncontrollably.

He sighed, annoyed. "So, tell me who you are? I'm dying to know." Damon smirked, coming closer to her until he was sat next to her on the bed.

She shifted uncomfortably. "I'm, er…Elena…and I…erm…" She stuttered, eyes on the pistol, too afraid to lie. "I'm…Grayson G-Gilbert's daughter…"

Damon's eyes widened. "I've never knew Grayson had a daughter. Enchanting name, by the way. Elena…" He purred, the name rolling of his tongue.

He reached out for her, using his knuckles to rub her cheek. Elena drew a shakily breath, not daring to move in case it angered the man. He tucked her hair behind her ears as his icy blue eyes looked deep into hers. He was studying her as much as she was studying him. Damon gently ran the back of his hands along her cheeks, studying her delicate features.

"Such an exquisite creature…" He murmured, more to himself than her.

As if inspecting her, Damon's eyes lingered down her body, clad in a long dress her mother had made for her. The dark crimson silk material that dragged on the floor and hugged her curves in all the right places and lace was used as the sleeves and used as trimming to highlight the main areas on the dress. Not able to restrained himself, Damon circled her waist with his arm and as if she was custom made for him, she was perfect for his touch.

Elena tried to move away from him, but Damon won't allow it, pressing his pistol against her stomach. She stopped squirming almost instantly, a tear escaping her as the man continued to touch her. Elena held in her breath, making her body rigid. A light whimper escaped her, fearing for some unknown sort of physical assault that might happen. But Damon merely turned his face into her hair, burying his nose in to the crook of her neck and inhaled her intoxicating scent.

He pulled back and gazed at her. "Hmm…"

Elena's lips began to tremble as his face inched closer and closer to her own. She tensed her shoulders, trying to look for any escape from him. She could feel his breath on her skin again as his eyes lowered to gaze at her lips and then back up to her eyes. He slowly cocked his head to the side and a sinister smirk rolled across his lips.

"I've decided..." He finally spoke in a low tone. "I think I'm going to keep you."

Elena gasped and didn't move a muscle as his eyes burned back into hers. "W-what do y-you mean?"

"You know, I'm going to take you with me."

"What!" She exclaimed, just as his hand pressed to her mouth again, roughly.

"Shh!" He hissed, narrowing his eyes. "Look, this is an opportunity for me to make quite a bit of money here. So I'm going to have to hold you for ransom. And, trust me darling, this is the nice way, but things can change in an instant, so don't test me."

Elena swallowed thickly. Damon quickly undid the belt on his trousers and Elena started to panic, thinking the worst. What was he going to do to her now? Was he going to rape her? Was he going to beat her with it? However he simply processed to bind her wrists together tightly, making her cry hard at the force. She knew that her skin was going to probably be raw later.

In that moment, a sudden crash and the sound of men's shouting brought Elena abruptly out of her own nightmare. A few gunshots went off, and a voice she didn't recognize was yelling something. Damon chuckled a little and yanked Elena to her feet, locking his hand around her throat as he pushed her towards the door. With a swift kick of his boot, the doors flew open, and Elena's eyes bulged from her head.

Chaos was everywhere on the main deck, as a group of pirates climbed from their ship onto her father's and fought their crewmen sailors fiercely. The Jolly Roger flew ominously over their ship as countless amounts of men swung over to the ship, outnumbering the sailors easily as they battle. Her fathers mew were not fighters or trained with swords as Elena watched a few men fall to their knees at the mercy of the murders.

Suddenly, Elena caught sight of her father on the opposite side of the boat, seeming to be scanning the mass of bodies for her. She screamed and kicked until Damon put something cold and round on her temple and she knew right away that it was a gun. She stopped mid-scream, fearing that any sudden movement would set it off.

"Nobody move!" The pirate who was holding her yelled. "Drop all your weapons and don't move!"

The fighting seemed to have stopped instantly. Elena could see her father in the crowd staring at her, and then looking at the pirate, seeming like he was about to faint. He kept looking from her, to the pirate, back to her again. She just stood there, watching as his face shifted between a look of shock, fear before finally setting on a look of pure hatred. Damon chuckled behind her, carefully brushing some of the hair sticking to her temple with the end on the gun.

''Well, well, if it isn't Mister Gilbert himself, here in the flesh. Fancy meeting you again! What's it been? Seven years?" Damon sneered, nonetheless menacing. This gaze dropped to Elena as he took another step forward. "Well, I don't intend on harming the darling Miss Gilbert here if, and only if, you and all of your crew do exactly as I say."

"What do you want?" Grayson shouted, rage feeling him at the slight of that dirty man holding his daughter.

"I want everything in the hold, Gilbert. And I mean everything. That should be quite a fortune, if I remember correctly."

"Just don't hurt Elena, please..." Grayson felt heat rise in his cheeks, but to everyone's surprise gave the orders without question or protest. "You heard him!" He shouted. "Everything below deck! Everything we have, just bring it up. "

The crew looked very puzzled at the strange behaviour of him, but followed orders like cattle and went below deck to retrieve the cargo. Elena wished for them to move faster, hoping that she would be in the arms of her father again soon. She'd never been this close to a man, ever, and the feeling of some cold bloodied criminal holding her made her want to heave. Meanwhile pirates and crew were bringing all the load up from the belly of the ship, placing it all along the wooded plank until it was all settled on the pirate vessel. There was the entire luggage, as well as a full shipment of wine from England and food from around the country. Profit. It was always about profit with her father. It was why he was so successful.

"That is everything." He spat. "Now, return my daughter. Please."

But instead of releasing her, the pirate chuckled, "Gilbert, you and I both know that that there is more beneath your ship than what your letting on."

Now Grayson was looking strained, his jaw clenched. "See for yourself, I promise you there's nothing left."

Damon took a deep breath and pulled back on his gun, making a ominous click as the metal burned against her skin. Elena let out a whimper and her heart was pounding, and she could barely breathe from sheer terror. She braced herself for the shot, knowing that as much as her father loved her, he wouldn't give up a whole supply of goods to anyone.

"Oh, come now, what's more important, your business or your only daughter?" The pirate challenged, tightening an arm around her waist, anchoring her to his body causing her to let out a squeal. "You see, Grayson, I don't think you're in any position to bargain with me." Damon mused, giving him a lopsided smile.

"D-daddy…please…" Elena begged, tears streaming down her face now.

Grayson just stood there speechless, never taking his eyes off the pirate and Elena. She was beginning to think this was all a horrible dream. It was ridiculous to think that there were really pirates. Not like the ones that Elena had once read in her story books. The were real...and they weren't about to spare the blood of an innocent, it would seem. It was so she would have found humor in it, if she couldn't feel the cool pressure of the pirate's gun against her temple, ready to shoot.

Damon growled under his breath, pressing his finger to the trigger and standing straight. "Fime...have it your way."

Elena couldn't hear anything or move. Time seemed to slow and each second dragged by. She watched as her father's eyes filled with tears and the way her brother was being held back up with a sword at his throat by another pirate. She heard Damon's heavy breathing behind her as he squeezed her harder, pushing the pistol firmly to the side of her head. She closed her eyes and held her breath, preparing herself. Was it going to be quick? Or was she actually going to feel the bullet entering her head?

And then she heard the shot.

Elena wanted to scream, but no sound left her. Her heart was in her throat and she waited for the pain to echo through her body. She waited for the white light that everyone spoke of and she waited for the moment she would be reunited with her mother again…but she wasn't.

Ever so slowly, Elena opened her eyes and immediately felt her blood run cold in her veins. She watched as Matt fell to the floor, clutching his abdomen as red liquid seeped through his clothing. Her stomach jerked and she felt the need to throw up as she saw Damon pointing the pistol in that direction. There was a sadistic smirk on his face as he blew the smoke away from the barrel, watching as the body collapsed to the floor.

"Matt!" Elena screamed, and tried to reach him, but Damon refused to let go.

"Tell you what, Grayson. I know you're heading to Mystic Falls port, so I have a bargain for you. You bring everything else you're keeping below deck and at your new home to me in two weeks. I will meet you at the port where you will hand over all your goods and I will hand Miss Gilbert back to you." He backed up slowly, still keeping his gun to her head and his arm around her, heading for the side of the boat. He shouted to his crew, "Back to the Crow gents!"

Suddenly coming to the realization of what was going on, Elena started to scream, twisting and turning which ever way she could. "No! Let go of me! Daddy!" She struggled to breathe as she was dragged across an unstable bridge plank that linked the ships together and on to the pirate vessel. "NO!"

"Set sail!" Damon roared loudly.

All of his men swung back on to the main ship, some positioning themselves near to the cannons and preparing to fire if anyone made a move against them. Elena continued to jerk around in Damon hold, screaming until her throat was sore, watching as her father's ship slowly started to shrink into the distance. Another man came to Damon's side, unbinding Elena's wrists as he gave her a toothy grin.

"That's right, miss, you're our insurance. We know that they won't fire on us." He growled, a small cackle coming after.

"This is insane!" She cried, trying to pull away from Damon's grip on her body. "You cannot do this! It's against the law!"

"Listen Missy," Damon snapped, grabbing her forearm, and giving her a rough shake. "We are pirates. We do whatever the hell we want to do. Who cares if it is against the law. It just makes it more fun somehow." He grinned at her, licking his lips. "So, cooperate and you will have a better chance of survival."

Elena looked around wildly, hoping that some sailor on the merchant ship would cross over or do something to help her. However, any hope of that was shattered as she saw her ship, her life, disappear over the horizon. She watched, panic-stricken.

Elena wrenched her hand from his grasp and remembered the hairpin. She pulled it out and plunged it into whatever happened to be in her way. It happened to stick into Damon's upper arm. He yelled in surprise and pain. She took a split second to gather her thoughts and headed for the edge of the ship. She was just going to jump off and swim back to the father's ship if she had to. At least she'd be away from the pirates. Just as she reached the ship's railing, Damon caught her arm and pulled her back onto the main part of the deck by her hair.

"That wasn't very nice." He sneered. Elena cried out due to the grip on hair, making her scalp burn. "You're certainly causing me quite a bit of trouble, darling. I'm beginning to wonder if any ransom is worth any of this. Do you plan on being this troublesome all the time?"

"You vile scum!" She screeched. "Let go!" She attempted a punch at his chest but it did not seem to faze the pirate captain. If anything, his grip tightened.

Elena stared bravely and spat at him, her saliva landing on his cheek. It was incredibly un-lady like, but she was infuriated by this man! Who the hell did he think he was? He wiped away the spit with his finger, his eyes ablaze.

"Bloody wench!" He growled, gripping her chin harshly with bruising force. "Mason?! Ric?! Take her to the brig for now. I think Miss Gilbert here needs a time out." Damon said, and suddenly she was seized by strong arms and lifted into the belly of the ship. With that, he rounded towards the helm, shouting orders at crewmen as he passed.

"You behave now, miss." One of them admonished, looking mockingly serious.

When they reached the brig, Elena blanched at the stench that reached her nose. The one man dragged her into the cell as the other pirate, held open the iron-wrought door. Elena caught herself on her hands and knees, a cry escaping her lips as her knees collided with the cold, hard wood, turning to look back at the pirates. The dark haired one, Ric, gave her a sympathetic look. He said nothing, though, as he turned and left the brig. Mason stayed, the key to the cell in one hand, locking the door swiftly. When he saw that Ric had left, he tossed the key in the air, catching it with ease. As he looked over Elena's drenched body, her dress ripped and clinging to her skin, an evil glint began to form in his eyes. He licked his lips and he reached for the lock again, wanting to touch her.

"Mason!" Another pirate shouted. "We need you on deck, now!"

Mason growled, staring at Elena intently before a smirk form on his features. "Welcome to your new home, sweetheart."

Hey everyone! New story! I know I have a few stories on the go at the moment but one of them, 'Give Me Love', will coming to an end very soon. It is because of this that I felt the need to have a new story started and prepared! So, as you can tell, this will be a Delena pirate story! I haven't seen may of these on FanFic, so I thought I might give it a go :)

This is a test chapter just so I have an idea of who is interested in the story. If you want me to continue then please drop a review and let me know what you think!? Thanks guys!

Oh and thanks to my beta, Amy (LiveBreatheVampires), for your help polishing off this chapter :)

Next chapter: Elena comes to the reality of her situation, learning that pirates aren't the drunken, jolly sailors that she used to read about in her story books... Stay tuned ;)