Disclaimer: Don't own; don't sue. Story title comes from the Marianas Trench song "Haven't Had Enough". Photo credit is currently unknown. Please message me if you are the creator/know who it is.
Summary: Immediately following the events of Season 3. Caroline's got a grand plan to fix everyone's problems, but since when did plans ever work right in Mystic Falls? Ensemble, Caroline-centric. Features Damon/Caroline, Stefan/Elena, and mild Bonnie/Jeremy.
Spoilers: All aired episodes. Everything else is just speculation/AU.
Author's Notes: Thank you so much for the wonderful response! The most common question is "where is Damon?!" and I totally get that. However, based on where we left off at Season 3, Damon and Caroline wouldn't just jump in bed together (or if they did, it wouldn't be emotionally healthy and conducive to a forever love, which is totally how I want them to be). So I'm going REALLY slowly to get their characters to the point where it works. And I want to incorporate as much of the rest of the cast as possible, because they are incredibly important to both Caroline and Damon, and to this universe as a whole. Lastly, as this is my first serious piece of work for TVD, I want to do my best in getting into the characters' heads, which is why there is so much thought-process going on. Please let me know if you do feel as it's excessive! I'm running without a beta, so things might be a bit messy (unless someone wants to apply for the job!).
THANK YOU again for all your lovely reviews, favorites, and follows. :)
CHAPTER 3: JUST LIKE DISNEY
After her less than successful trip to the boarding house, Caroline thought that it wouldn't be remiss if she took a few days off from working on The Plan. She hadn't been lying when she had complained to Elena about their schoolwork. Despite the dumb blonde cheerleader persona she liked to put on, Caroline did very well in school, and the current craziness had really pulled down her GPA. She threw herself back into academics, taking time to bring her mom lunch (and sometimes dinner), half to help convince the Council that she was human and safe, and half to make sure her mom actually ate, texted Bonnie and Elena (although only Elena ever responded), and even played a video game or two with Matt and Jeremy. After their rocky start, she and Jeremy were getting along a lot better, and she was pleasantly surprised that their humor often lined up perfectly. She could easily see why Bonnie had fallen for him (not that she was even thinking along those lines, no sir). Life truly was looking up. Besides Tyler, a traitorous voice inside her whispered. They continued to fight, usually about the same topic: leaving town. But it also seemed as if every time they were together, they found something annoying about each other. He would say something rude about his mom, she would defend her. She would visit Matt at work, and he claimed that she was still in love with him. He refused to return to school, and she was concerned about her flagging GPA. They couldn't even agree on what movie to watch or what house to stay at. Caroline felt tears collecting in her eyes and blinked furiously to get rid of them. Despite being home alone, she hated to cry over Tyler yet again. Just give it time, she thought angrily at herself. Once we leave, it'll get better. Or hell, if this spell really works, we won't have to leave. She took several deep breaths, trying to calm herself. Suddenly, she was distracted by the sound of a key turning in the lock of the front door.
"Mom?" she called downstairs.
"Hey, Care," she heard her mom's voice faintly. Liz always sounded exhausted lately. If it wasn't Sheriff business, it was Council business. Alaric's body had been transported to Mystic Falls, and the Council had seen for themselves that he was a dead vampire now. But that only prompted more questions. How long had he been a vampire? Was a vampire teaching their children? Would they have to put vervain in the water supply for the town? Did they have enough for that to be viable? Not to mention that Liz and Carol's integrity had been called into question by the dead vampire just hours before his death. As far as Caroline knew, no one had out and accused either woman of killing Alaric to protect their children, but the suspicion was certainly there.
Caroline dashed down the stairs to greet her mother. "I didn't expect you home until after dinner. I was actually just thinking of what to make you for lunch. Any preferences?" Caroline tried to be as positive as possible, lacing all their interactions with gratitude for all the work her mother was doing to keep her safe.
Liz smiled weakly. "Anything's fine, Care. I took the rest of the day off. My deputies can handle it."
"So I've got you for the whole day? Wow, that definitely requires something special." Caroline turned to the kitchen cabinets, opening and closing each one. She sighed, "Unfortunately I totally forgot to go grocery shopping. How about I pick some stuff up from the Grill?"
"Sounds good. Do you need me to come with you?"
"Nah, I'll be fine. Be right back!" Caroline grabbed her purse and made her way out of the house. It was hard to not be worried for her mother. She had never taken a day off in her life, even when Caroline was in a play or had a teacher conference. Caroline knew that the Council had been pushing for both Liz and Carol to step down from their positions, but both the Deputy Mayor and Liz's second-in-command refused. They were on the Council as well, and didn't agree with such a radical change in power if there really was a vampire and werewolf threat to be taken care of.
The Grill was packed when she got there, but she managed to wave Matt down and beg for her food. Puppy dog eyes and just a little bit of a whine, and Matt was off like a shot to help her out. She smiled fondly at his retreating back. Though their break up hadn't been amicable, it had ended up being for the best. Matt deserved the most "normal" life possible, and that wasn't with her. He would always have a special place in her heart, but only as a friend. A best friend, she amended to herself. Barely ten minutes later, Matt came back out with her food, dodging people and avoiding their glares. She gave him a tight hug and whispered thanks in his ear, refusing to listen to the "what could have been's" echoing around her head.
As she walked up her front porch, she thought she heard a strange sound coming from inside. Instantly on high alert, she cursed the amount of vampires that had access to her home. Stefan and Damon were still taking care of Elena, and would have contacted her if they were stopping by. So would Tyler. Which left Klaus and Katherine, neither of which seemed logical. Or my imagination is getting the best of me, and it's a really dumb human, Caroline thought ruefully.
As quietly as she could, she opened her door and made her way into the living room. Despite her mind coming up with more and more ridiculous situations, nothing could have prepared her for what she saw.
Liz was hunched over herself on the couch, crying brokenly into a tissue that had seen better days. Her back was to Caroline, but she could see every tremor, hear every gasping breath. Caroline placed the food on the table and slowly made her way to her mother, trying not to startle her.
"Mom?" she whispered.
Liz looked up at her daughter in surprise. Her eyes were rimmed red, still overflowing with tears.
"Oh Caroline. I'm so sorry. I didn't hear you come in," Liz immediately began swiping at her wet cheeks, reaching for a new tissue.
"Oh Mom," Caroline murmured, falling onto the couch to hug her mother to her. Liz continued to snuffle into her daughter's shoulder for a few more minutes, before finally pushing away and giving Caroline as big a smile as she could muster.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Caroline asked gently.
Liz sighed. "Just more of the same. Council problems, town problems, rinse, repeat. Also, the Department of Land and Natural Resources wants to send us a special ranger to help us figure out all these "animal" attacks. It's very hard to diplomatically tell a government organization that we don't want help, but we really can't afford any one else snooping around here. And I'm really concerned for Carol. Has Tyler said anything about her?"
Caroline looked away. "Tyler and I haven't really been talking. But I know whenever he brings up his mom, it's to complain."
Liz looked at Caroline carefully. "We'll discuss that Tyler comment later. That's what I was afraid of. Every time I speak to Carol, it's almost as if she's afraid of Tyler, but she won't say why. But I get the feeling that she wants him out of town for more reasons than the Council."
Caroline tried to process that information. She could tell that Tyler's relationship with his mom was strained, but she never would have thought that Carol wanted to be rid of him. She opened her mouth to tell her mom just that, when her stomach growled loudly.
Liz's eyes widened before she began to giggle. "I can take a hint. What did you get us?"
Caroline got up to grab the food, bringing it back to the couch. "Grill food. So cheeseburgers, salads, and of course, curly fries."
"Excellent," Liz replied as she reached for her food. Despite her still splotchy face, Liz looked infinitely better than when she had first come home. Maybe a good cry was all she needed. They ate in companionable silence, the huge pile of food quickly disappearing.
Caroline was still slowly munching on her curly fries when her mother broke the spell. "So, Tyler?" she said carefully.
Caroline sighed out a gust of air. "It's not going so well, Mom. We're just not agreeing on anything. And he has such a one-track mind! All he wants to do is leave town, but I can't yet. He just refuses to see my reasons. And he keeps making all these comments about the "humans"; like they're not his friends! Or were his friends, at least."
Liz considered her daughter's words intently before responding. "Not to encourage you to leave, because you know that's the last thing I want, but what are your reasons for staying in town? I know school is important to you, and I'm grateful for that, but is there something else? Is there a danger I should know about? How are Elena and Jeremy coping?"
"Jeremy and Elena are doing okay. Stefan and Damon are helping Elena, and she seems to be doing well. Matt is helping with Jeremy. School is important, yeah, but that's not exactly it," Caroline took a deep breath, trying to keep her voice steady. "It's actually Bonnie. She said she's done with the supernatural. She refuses to talk to any one, including Elena. And only Matt, Jeremy, and I know this. I had to lie to Elena so that she wouldn't be hurt. I'm trying to figure out a solution, but Matt and Jeremy don't really know how to help, and with Elena so emotional from transitioning, and Stefan and Damon only focusing on her, I feel like I don't really have any one to turn to. I'm trying, Mom, I'm trying so hard but I'm so scared that it's all going to fall apart!" With that one last sentence, Caroline burst into tears. Between sobs, she continued, "Then there's the Council and who knows what they're going to do, and the fact that Tyler is so different that I don't even know how to talk to him, and I haven't even really thought about how Alaric is gone, really gone!"
Liz opened her arms and pulled her weeping daughter to her. She hadn't even noticed that nobody had come to see Caroline since Alaric's announcement. She had been so wrapped up in trying to keep Carol sane, stopping the Council from hunting down her daughter, working with Meredith on how to fake Caroline's and Tyler's humanity, and balancing her Sheriff duties that she was rarely home. When she was, it was usually just to sleep or grab a change of clothes, and it was back to the office. She felt like she was failing her daughter all over again, just like when Bill had first left and Liz's only comfort was in her work.
"Oh sweetheart. I am so sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?" Even to her own ears, Liz's words sounded hollow.
Caroline continued to sniffle as she rested her head on her mother's shoulder. "Thanks Mom, but there's not really much. I have an idea of using this spell, but I have to be able to find it first. And that's proving to be really difficult. Just being here is good enough," Caroline sighed.
Liz felt tears pricking her own eyes. If she had her way, she would have packed up Caroline and taken her somewhere far, far away, long before she was ever embroiled in this vampire and werewolf business. Instead, she had been too determined to live up to her father's legacy of Sheriff, to be just as important as her ancestors had been to the town. Now, her daughter was a vampire in danger of being hunted, losing nearly everyone she loved to some sort of supernatural threat. And all she wanted was her mother to be there for her.
"Would you like me to talk to Bonnie for you? You know, human to human?" Liz tried to joke.
Caroline laughed softly. "If I thought it would work, I'd say yes in a heartbeat. But you know Bonnie. Once her mind's made up, nothing can change it. Besides, I don't think she's wrong. Nothing that we've been through for the past year and a half has been fair, or okay, in any way. No one should have to experience what we've gone through."
Liz ran her hand over Caroline's hair. "That's true. I never would have wished this on you. But you know what? I'm still grateful for what I've been given after all this."
Caroline peered at her mother's face. "What are you talking about? Your daughter became the thing you've hunted all your life, your ex-husband died… and now you're super stressed every second of your life. What is there to be grateful for?"
Liz gave her a genuine smile. "You, of course. Before all of this happened, I felt like I was losing you, and I had no idea how to stop that. Even though I'm not happy you're a vampire, I'm happy that we have this. I'm happy that you feel you can turn to me. That we can trust each other now. No matter what, I'll always be grateful for that."
"Oh Mom," Caroline whispered. Her mother had never been good at expressing her emotions, and this meant more to Caroline than she could say. "I'm grateful for that too."
"You've grown into the most remarkable young woman, Caroline. Even now, putting yourself in danger to look out for your friends; they're lucky to have you. I know you don't want me interfering, but if there is anything you need, let me know, alright?"
"Of course, Mom." Caroline hugged her mother one more time before getting up to stretch. "What are your plans for the rest of today?"
Liz thought of the stack of medical reports Meredith had dropped off, the "animal" attack reports they were planning on sending to DLNR, and her comfortable bed before ignoring all of it and grinning up at her daughter. "How about a movie? I know a few good ones have to have come out since the last time we watched something together."
Caroline couldn't stop the surprise from showing on her face. "Sure. You haven't seen 'The Princess and the Frog' yet, have you?" When Liz shook her head, Caroline continued. "You'll love it. It's adorable. I'll go get it." Caroline fairly skipped up to her room while Liz began to clean up their lunch. Yes, she would always be grateful for times like these.
