After an incident at one of the Zeta parties involving the alchemy club and some spiked punch; Carmilla, Laura and the rest of the dimwit squad found themselves stuck in a rather cramped broom cupboard.
4 hours previously...
'Could the vampire look anymore grumpy?'
'Oh shush Lafontaine, it's rather sweet that she's here for Laura.'
'Totally whipped'
They stood watching Laura chirp on to Danny whilst a very angry Carmilla downed yet another glass of ridiculously expensive champagne. They still needed to ask where she got it from.
Carmilla felt eyes watching her, looking up at them she glared before waltzing off to refill her glass. Laura watched as her girlfriend stalked off to get another drink, sighing she excused herself walking over to where Carmilla was stood.
'Okay Scrooge McVampire what's wrong?'
'You've been flirting with Xena all night and I don't appreciate it.'
'You think I've been flir...with Danny, flirting?' Laura looked confused laughing at the accusation which only seemed to anger Carmilla more. Scowling Carmilla stalked off leaving Laura alone, oblivious and confused.
For being stuck in a confined space everyone seemed to be doing okay, well everyone except for Carmilla. The vampire had been irritable throughout the party, constantly snapping at Laura for forcing her to spend time with these lackwits and almost starting a fight with Danny after she brought Laura a drink. Laura had chosen to ignore her for the rest of the night so for once Carmilla was awfully quiet. Laura had softened when Carmilla had helped ward off some very annoying teenagers who had proceeded to chase them through the corridors pretending to be zombies. That was when Danny found the cupboard and they all piled in, the door locking behind them.
It had been half an hour since they realized that they were stuck inside and Carmilla had taken the news worse than the rest. Her shoulders slumping she slid down the wall curling herself in tightly as she sat in the corner. Her body was trembling as she tried to remain quiet, hoping no one would notice. Her eyes searching frantically for a way out and her body tensing as she felt another wave of panic hit. Her eyes squeezed tightly shut as images of coffins flew through her mind. It was too much.
The room was too loud and Carmilla was getting worse. Her palms were sweaty and she felt nauseous. She thinks she remembers hearing someone ask her whether she was okay but at this point her surroundings are rapidly vanishing. Her eyes fly open as she feels the coffin closing around her, the blood is pouring in and she's thrashing around trying to escape and she can't. The blood is drowning and she's screaming out, begging her Mother to release her. The tears are running down her face and all she can do is whimper as she feels the familiar pain of the memory clouding her mind. She can hear her Mother laughing and she can so clearly see her face and feel her hands against her arm, punishing her for her disobedience. The scar on her stomach dripping with blood as her Mother pierces her skin, throwing her into the emptiness, leaving her alone. She's fighting against it, flinching as she feels another set of hands clawing at her skin.
Carmilla had nightmare like this, each one more vivid than the last. The memories engraved in her brain, always creeping up on her and leaving her defenceless. Laura had helped, many times during the night she would wake up to Carmilla screaming and crying when she would then cross the room to embrace her and stroke her hair softly until her body would relax and she'd fall to sleep in the smaller girl's arms. This is not like her nightmares; it feels as though she's never left the coffin. She feels numb and full of emotion at the same time. Her body is frozen as her screams pierce the room. It's all too clear, all she can do is watch as she sees the blood staining the coffin, the nails scraping against her skin and she can smell her sweat pouring down her face. She can feel the rope binding her wrists, she wants to run, she wants to break free but she can't.
At one point she thought she could hear Laura calling her name but it was an illusion. Hearing Laura's voice couldn't be happening, how could Laura be stuck in her coffin? Why would Laura just watch her drowning in the sea of blood?
Carmilla grew frantic again and all they could do was watch as the vampire broke down in front of their eyes. Wide eyes looking around at one another willing each other to do something before Carmilla got worse. They all turned to Laura watching as she looked in terrified, their hearts breaking as they heard her call out Carmilla's name only to hear harsh sobs echoing around the room.
Danny stood watching, feeling a pang of sadness for the broken vampire before wrapping an arm protectively over Laura. Pulling the shell shocked girl in closer she repeated calming phrases as she signalled Lafontaine nodding her head towards Carmilla. Lafontaine just stared back equally as gobsmacked .They glanced at Laura then at Carmilla and finally their eyes fell on Perry. After sharing some looks and an unspoken agreement Perry nodded at them before moving slowly closer to Carmilla.
She heard footsteps getting louder and the panic rose again, her breathing shallow and uneven as she tried to move back cowering away from the approaching figure. When a hand lightly touched her shoulder, the vampire attempts to throw it off. Carefully opening her eyes, Carmilla sees a figure crouched infront of her and she can hear people whispering behind it. Blinking her eyes focus on the face of Lola Perry crouched infront of her a concerned look on her face.
'Carmilla, it's okay. It's me Perry; you're on the Silas Campus.'
Her voice is soothing and Carmilla immediately feels relaxed as she looks into those warm eyes. Perry smiles slightly moving closer to the vampire, rubbing her back softly. Carmilla closed her eyes, her head lay on Perry's shoulder as she felt her breathing regulate. Perry looked around at the others shocked at the vampire's vulnerability. Her eyes met Laura's, smiling when Laura whispered a thank you before moving towards her girlfriend.
Sensing Laura's presence, Carmilla shifted moving to curl into Laura's tiny frame. Laura gave the others a reassuring smile before placing a kiss on Carmilla's forehead. Feeling reassured Perry motioned for Danny and Lafontaine to follow her. Moving to the door they were all relieved to see that it was now unlocked. Sighing happily Danny left the room telling Laura to text her later. Lafontaine looked at Laura attempting to move forward and ask her some questions but after a stern look from Perry they were promptly marched out of the room leaving Laura alone with Carmilla.
Walking back to their dorm was slow, Carmilla never uttering a word as her hand grasped Laura's tightly. Laura removed her hand to open their door and watched as Carmilla ran to her bed, curling up as she cradled the yellow pillow. Closing the door she made her way over to the bed climbing in beside Carmilla to lie behind her. Placing chaste kisses on her shoulder blades as her arm hung loosely over Carmilla's frame. The contact was open but it was enough to put Carmilla at ease.
They lay in silence for a long time before Laura realized that Carmilla was asleep. She moved some hair away from her face before running a thumb over her girlfriend's cheek causing the vampire to shiver. Carmilla's eyes fluttered open, smiling softly as she saw Laura staring back at her.
'If you wanted to stare at me, we could've just skipped the party Cupcake?' her voice layered with sleep, a slight smirk playing on her lips.
Breathing in a sigh of relief, Laura scooted closer to the vampire placing a soft kiss on her cheek whilst reaching out to gently squeeze her hand. Carmilla ducked her head bringing Laura's hand closer to her mouth before kissing it softly. Her features were soft and she looked so fragile, Laura just wanted to kiss away her pain. They lay like that for another 10 minutes before Carmilla finally spoke.
'I'm so sorry Laura'
Laura's heart broke as she heard the guilt and sadness in Carmilla's voice. Shaking her head she moved closer to cup Carmilla's face.
'Carmilla Karnstein you have absolutely nothing to apologize for. You have baggage but that doesn't make me love you any less. I am not going to leave you, I won't leave you like she did and I will never hurt you like she did. I love you Carmilla, my grumpy, stupid, strong vampire.'
Carmilla was lost for words, choosing to kiss Laura softly whispering 'I love you too' resting her forehead against Laura's and for the first time that night, she felt almost safe.