Everything Will Change
The full moon shone ominously down on the town of Mystic Falls. The streets were empty, every other building shut down for the night. In her bed, Caroline lay awake, her thoughts on Tyler and his transformation. Caroline rolled over on her back, and closing her eyes, folded her hands over her stomach. Tonight`s the night, she mused, a muddle of thoughts swirling around behind her eyelids. Caroline squeezed her eyes tightly, hoping he was okay- hoping that there would be no lone souls wandering around in the woods, no vampires making the mistake she and Stefan had made the last full moon. "Oh please", she whispered to herself, "Please be okay, please be okay." Taking a deep breath in, she mouthed the words slowly as she drifted off to sleep.
A cold wind blew harshly through the woods, the trees' branches swaying violently back and forth. Tyler shivered as paced back and forth, his teeth chattering. Panting, he stopped and, bending down to place his hands on his knees, let out a growl. Tyler strained forward, and there was a loud crack as the chains holding him to the tress broke. Oh God, he thought, it was happening. Shutting his eyes tightly, his brows furrowing, Tyler dropped to the floor of the woods and curled himself into a ball, his hands around his knees. Swallowing harshly, he let his mind wander to more pleasant thoughts – his best friend Matt, his new friend Jeremy, and his even newer friend Caroline. Caroline – the girl who helped him more than anyone else, the girl who meant the most to him. And Uncle Mason, the werewolf. Oh shit, he thought, there it was again. Werewolf… full moon and Uncle Mason, the man who had told him how to activate the curse. Letting out another growl his eyes flew open. They weren`t his human eyes, but his wolf eyes, deep orange and black. His body heaving as he began to change, Tyler threw his head back and let out a deafening inhuman cry.
Caroline shot up in her bed, her eyes flying open as she glanced wildly around the room, her head spinning. Tyler, she thought madly. Jumping out of the bed, she grabbed a pair of jeans and a jacket and, throwing them on, she climbed out the window and disappeared into the night. Dashing through the woods, Caroline followed the sound her superior hearing was picking up – panting and growls. It was only when she heard the sound of crunching leaves coming from close behind, did she stop in her tracks. What am I doing, she thought suddenly. Turning around, she saw a dark figure hidden the trees. Slowly the figure walked out from its hiding place and into the clearing. It wasn't human, but instead a wolf. Caroline gasped, her breath hitching as she realized it was Tyler in his wolf form. He was beautiful and terrifying all at once. Caroline stared in awe at his bright orange eyes, such contrast between them and his black velvet-like fur. The wolf growled, it sharp teeth bared as it circled her.
"It's me", she whispered, only her eyes moving as she followed his movement. "It's Caroline," she said, trying again. "Your friend," she added nervously. The wolf stopped, raising its head as if it had suddenly recognized her. Caroline nodded slowly, trying for a small smile. Yes, me. The wolf stood there silently, not moving as it studied her. Then it nodded. At least, that`s what it looked like it did. And so they stood there, vampire and werewolf, staring respectfully at each other.
Matt sighed as he put up the last of the chairs in the Mystic Grill. Ripping his apron off, he grabbed his coat and, turning off the lights, he locked up the Grill. Walking slowly home, Matt turned onto the street and, stuffing his hands in his coat pockets, he breathed deeply. Nice night, he thought, the full moon shining down brightly above him. As he turned the corner, he heard a howl coming from the woods. Odd, he thought, wolves, in the woods? Curious, he glanced around hesitantly, then turned in the opposite direction and walked into the woods. Halfway in he saw the wolf, its unnatural orange eyes glowing in the dark. Matt's eyes widened as he followed the gaze of the wolf and saw what it had found – Caroline.
Caroline stood, her eyes locked on the wolfs', an expression of awe glowing in her eyes. Suddenly there was a loud snap of a twig coming from directly behind her. Oh no, she thought, as she saw the wolf's eyes narrow and its teeth bared once more. It was only after the wolf had jumped and she had let out a piercing scream did she realize that the wolf had not been looking at her before it had attacked.
Matt stood frozen, staring at the wolf and Caroline face off. Every now and then he saw her lips move, but he couldn't tell what she was saying. But it didn't matter. What use was it trying to reason with an animal, he thought. They were dumb, and violent. Matt crept forward silently, glancing down at his feet to make sure he wasn't making any noise. I need to get her out, he thought. His sister had been killed by and animal. He was not going to stand by and let yet another person he loved get hurt. His mind set on what he wanted, Matt took two defiant steps forward, and accidentally stepped on a twig, snapping it in two. Snap. Matt looked down, muttering curses under his breath. When he looked up, what he saw terrified him. The wolf was staring straight at him, its eyes slit and teeth bared in anger. The wolf leaped, there was a high-pitched scream, then Matt saw a tangle of human and wolf in the clearing in front of him. Instinctively, Mat jumped out from his place in the trees and tackled the wolf to the floor. There was another scream – Caroline – and then everything went black. The last thing he saw was the wolf's eyes and a human-like expression of remorse in them.
Caroline sat up and whipped her head around in time to see Matt and Tyler the wolf in a tangle next to her. The wolf was clawing at Matt, while Matt was throwing punches at the wolf. There was a cracking sound then Matt was still under the large black wolf.
"No!" she screamed as placed her hands over her mouth and nose. The wolf looked over at her, his eyes almost sad. It was still for a moment then the wolf turned and ran off into the woods. Caroline crawled over to Matt, her hand over her nose to stifle the smell of Matt's blood. He was lying on his back, his eyes shut. His hand was lying on the ground next to him, palm up and Caroline could see his chest rising and falling, a slow but steady motion. Caroline breathed a sigh of relief and, leaning over, kissed him gently on the forehead. Tears forming, she attempted to pick him up. Weak and unable to do so, she called for help before slowly standing up and leaving him in the care of one Salvatore.
Tyler slowly opened his eyes. Sunlight filled the nicely made-up room, the gold light streaming through a crack in the blinds and across the bed and floor. As Tyler sat up in the bed, the door to the room creaked open and Caroline's voice filled the room.
"Are you up? Can I come in?" Tyler smiled.
"Yeah," he croaked, throwing the sheet off and swinging his long legs over the side of the bed. Caroline came in smiling and carrying a full glass of whisky in her hand.
"I'm surprised your mother let me in with this," she said, grinning widely. Tyler chuckled, his deep voice echoing in the small room. "How are you?" Caroline continued.
"Fine," Tyler smiled and, pointing at the glass, raised a brow. "That for me?"
"Yeah," Caroline said, nodding as she handed Tyler the glass.
Taking a sip of the whiskey, Tyler closed his eyes and felt the bitter liquid burn the back of his throat. Opening his eyes, he turned to Caroline who was busy fiddling with the hem of her sleeve. Gulping, he asked, "Is Matt okay?"
Caroline looked up at him, her eyes wide. "Yes," she said simply. Tyler nodded then took another sip of the whisky. "I didn't think you remembered," Caroline whispered as she studied him. Tyler stared down at the glass in his hand.
"I'm sorry." Caroline shook her head then leaned over and rested it on his shoulder. Tyler smiled, and turning in, pressed his lips softly to her forehead.
"Hey, Caroline…" he said slowly.
"Yeah," she answered.
"Did I do alright last night?" Caroline smiled and leaned back to look at him. His eyes were no longer the unnatural orange colour, but back to their regular hazel colour.
"You did just fine last night," she whispered as she tilted her head up to lay her lips on his.