Everything is dark around Stefan. He can't see anything, he can't hear anything. Everything is black. It has been for nearly five days now. He knows that Damon's is on his left side, but he hasn't seen him and whenever they try to speak, pain curses through their bodies. Stefan knows that Elena is somewhere inside the tomb too. He hears her screaming at times, they're torturing her. And him. The witches have made sure that the brothers hear nothing, nothing but Elena's screams. It's worse than the pain, it's worse than everything. At least Caroline's alright, he thinks. As he has about a million times these past days. Thank god that Caroline left. Thank god that Caroline's safe. It's the only thing that keeps him sane down here, knowing that Caroline will live. Because it's clear that he won't. And that Damon won't. And that Elena might not either. They'll all die in this place, at the hands of revengeful witches. But Caroline will be safe, Caroline will live on.
…
"It's easy" Katherine smirks.
Caroline doesn't think it's that easy, but she doesn't object.
"It's easy" Katherine continues. "All we have to do is compel him to take one of us down into the tomb, as his prisoner. Then we attack, the person in the tomb kills the human and the rest of us go in."
"Katherine" Joseph says carefully. "The human might be protected."
"Then we kill the head witch, the old lady."
"Just like that?" Brad asks sarcastically.
"We'll surprise them."
Joseph shakes his head.
"No, it's too risky. The person going into the tomb won't get out."
"I'll do it" Caroline says.
They all turn and look at her. Joseph looks pained, Brad concerned, but Katherine is smiling.
"Yes" she says. "Barbie will do it. It's more believable. She escaped, but he found her."
"No" Joseph says. "No."
"She's just a child, Katherine" one of the others says.
"Don't underestimate her" Katherine snaps.
Caroline never thought she'd have Katherine backing her up.
"She'll die" Brad says.
He doesn't seem to upset about it; he's just stating the facts.
"I'll do it" Caroline repeats.
"It's a suicide mission" Henry exclaims.
She doesn't care.
"It's our only hope" Katherine says.
And they can't argue with that.
...
"I compelled him" Katherine says.
She sits down next to Caroline on the bed.
"Good" she yawns.
"We'll be set whenever you're ready."
Caroline nods. She'll be ready soon. Very soon. She just has to wash her face.
"You know, Blondie" Katherine begins. "I don't regret turning you, but I'm sorry that I did."
Caroline meets her eyes. Katherine's gaze is so like Elena's. Not only because they're identical, but they have the same steely determination.
"If I was a human I wouldn't be able to try to save them" she says.
Katherine smiles.
"I guess."
Caroline stretches her limbs. It's three AM. They're trying to use the element of surprise.
"You used to remind me of me" Katherine says.
"Ouch."
"Don't be like that. I wasn't always like this you know. Once upon a time I just a normal girl. I liked boys and dressing up and getting their attention."
"I grew out of that" Caroline sighs.
"I've realized that" Katherine says. "The new you suits you."
"Thanks?"
Since when did Katherine hand out complements?
"Well, come outside when you're ready" she says and gets up.
Caroline nods. Katherine walks towards the door.
"Katherine?" Caroline asks.
She turns.
"Yes?"
"Why did you turn all those boys?"
Katherine furrows her brow.
"What boys?"
"Those outside. Joseph and Henry and…"
"I didn't turn them."
"You didn't?"
"No. When Brad called me and told me that Stefan and Damon were in trouble, I recruited."
"How?"
"It was easy. I've been along a long time, I have connections."
"And they all wanted to come?"
"Stefan is very popular guy."
Caroline couldn't help smiling.
"And Damon?"
"Well, Damon… He has enemies, but his enemies have enemies too and they support him."
"So they all volunteered?"
"Yes. The Salvatore Brothers are something special apparently."
"Apparently" Caroline breaths.
…
She dresses in the pair of jeans that she left in the closet in her room. They are a bit too tight (that's why she didn't bring them to New York) but it doesn't really matter. Her shirt is dirty and sweaty, but that doesn't bother her either. Her job, for once, isn't to look pretty.
"Caroline?"
She turns. It's Joseph. His eyes are still pained.
"Hi" she says.
He stands in the doorway, she's inside the house. He can't touch her, he can't make her change her mind.
"Caroline" he begins. "I knew Stefan."
Even though she shouldn't, she wants to know more. She wants to know everything about Stefan.
"You did?" she asks, softly.
She exits the house and stands beside him in the night. It's chilly out.
"Yes" Joseph says. "We met in Georgia in the 1960's. He helped me with my transformation. He even tried to make me eat rodents, but it didn't last."
Caroline smiles.
"He tried that with me too."
"He's a man with honor, Stefan. He is not a monster, he is a gentleman."
Caroline nods, but she can't look Joseph in the eye. She feels her throat grow thick, her eyes sting. He might already be dead. Stefan.
"I didn't know him for that long, only about a year. After that I moved away and I didn't hear of him again. But when Katherine told me about him being in trouble, I wanted to help."
"He has that effect on people" she whispers.
"Caroline, I didn't know Stefan for that long, but I know that he wouldn't want to you to risk his life for him."
She swallows and meets Joseph's gaze. Does he know that she loves Stefan? How does he know?
"It's not just Stefan in the tomb" she says.
"Would Damon or Elena or Bonnie want you to die for them?"
"They would die for me" she whispers. "They're my family."
Joseph bites his lips. He sighs.
"Stefan will never forgive himself if you die and he lives" he says and Caroline knows it's true.
"I will never forgive myself if I never try to save him" she replies and that is true too.
"I wish you wouldn't."
"I know."
...
Get inside the tomb, kill the human, wait for backup, kill witches, get the others out. That's the plan. It's not a very complicated one. At least not on paper. At least not when you're not the one trying to execute it.
"Ready?" Katherine asks.
Caroline nods.
"Ready."
…
"Mary-Ann" Ken shouts.
The young witch turns and peers through the darkness. Caroline doesn't recognize her. Is she new?
"Ken?" Mary-Ann shouts back. "Is that you?"
"Yes! I brought the last one, the blonde vampire" he shouts.
Mary-Ann comes closer. She's not older than Bonnie. Caroline stares at the ground.
"Good work" she says. "Let me get Nadia."
"Can't you just let us in?" Ken asks. "I've traveled for days."
Mary-Ann looks uncertain.
"Have you filled it with vervain?" she asks.
It. Caroline is an it.
"Yes" Ken says.
"Fine. Let me get Bailey then."
She disappears down into the tomb. Caroline acts like she's weak, like she's full of vervain. Actaully, she is weak. Weak with fear.
"Ken!" a girlish voice screams.
A young girl, maybe thirteen or fourteen runs out of tomb. She's the female version of Ken. This must be his sister.
"Can we leave now?" the girl asks. "Ken, can we leave now that you brought that?"
It suddenly dawns on Caroline that Ken isn't doing this out of free will. He is doing this for his sister. She's trapped with the witches. He tried to get her out. That's why he worked with them.
"Not yet, sweetie" Mary-Ann says calmly. "Invite the vampire in."
Bailey sighs.
"Come in" she says in a flat tone.
Ken drags Caroline inside. The witch power is so strong that Caroline falls the ground. She can't open her eyes.
"What's wrong with her?" Bailey asks.
"Too much vervain" Ken says.
Caroline realizes that she won't be able to kill Bailey now. She's too weak, the power is too strong. She faints.
…
"She failed" Brad says.
No one says anything. It's dead quiet. Katherine paces. Joseph stares into the night.
"She failed" Brad repeats.
"Shut up" Katherine snaps.
…
Stefan wakes up not knowing why. It's quiet as usual, the witches are blocking all sounds from the outside, but he can feel that something has changed. And then he hears it.
"Crap" she whispers.
Her voice is barely audible, but he recognizes it.
"Care?" he asks.
Pain shoots through his veins. He swallows a scream. Every time they speak, it hurts.
"Yeah" she replies.
"Are you okay?" Damon asks.
"Yes. Are you?"
"Yes" Stefan answers.
The pain is back.
"Why are you here?" Damon asks and then lets out a grunt revealing that he is also in pain.
"Trying to help" she replies.
She doesn't sound hurt. She sounds fine.
"Where are you?" Stefan asks.
Ouch. Crap. He has to close his eyes to get through it.
"Here" she replies. "There's a wall on my left."
He hears her feet on the floor. Tap, tap, tap. They can't touch. They have already tried that, there is an invisible wall between their cells.
"This wasn't the plan" she says.
She's closer now. Her voice is louder. How is that possible? And then, he can smell her. Sweat and dirt and the wonderful smell that is Caroline. And then, he feels her hands on him.
"Caroline?" he asks.
"Yeah" she says.
"But we can't into each other's cells" he says.
"Oh" she says.
"Are you okay?" he asks again, just to make sure.
"Yes. There's just a lot of power here. It makes me dizzy."
"Power?"
"Witch power. It has this crazy effect on me."
"Shut up" Damon hisses from his cell. "Save you energy, the pain drains us."
It's only then that Stefan realizes that he doesn't hurt anymore.
…
They're all huddled together. Caroline touching Damon's knee and holding Stefan's hand. They can't get to Elena; they don't know where she is.
"You're freak" Damon whispers. "How come you're not affected by their power?"
She frowns at him.
"I am affected. It messes with my brain, makes my head to fuzzy."
"Yes, but you can break through spells."
She shrugs.
"And when we touch you, we're breaking the spell too" he continues.
"Damon, I don't know."
But she isn't annoyed. She's happy. She's with her two favorites. She's holding Stefan's hand. She can die now, it wouldn't matter.
"Can they hear us?" she asks.
"Probably not, or they would have come to see why we aren't dying with pain."
"We have to get out" she says.
"You don't say" Damon snorts. "Great idea, Barbie."
"You and Katherine have to come up with new nicknames" she sighs.
...
"We're going to die" Damon yawns.
"You shouldn't have come" Stefan says to her.
"I had to try and save you."
"No, you didn't. You needed to run away and be safe."
He's frustrated, she can tell. She squeezes his hand, he pulls it away.
"You can't die, Caroline" he says.
The pain of talking comes back if they aren't touching her. She grabs his hand again, he tries to fight himself loose but she's stronger. It has been days since he fed.
"Neither of us is dying" she says, trying to sound confident.
She can't see anything, the tomb is pitch black, but she can picture their faces. Damon, fake-bored and smirking and Stefan, frowning and biting his lip. She loves them so much.
"I missed you" she whispers.
"Don't get sappy" Damon replies.
She giggles, finds his head and kisses his cheek. She grabs his hand too. She wonders if she is one of the few people who have ever held Damon's hand.
...
"Hey" she whispers. "I know it's hard."
Stefan sighs next to her. She holds his hand tight between both of hers. Damon is sleeping, so he doesn't need her.
"You don't understand" he replies, his voice frail.
"I know that they have been torturing her. I've heard it, I've felt it."
She carefully strokes his cheek. His jaw is set.
"The only thing keeping me sane was that you were safe" he whispers.
"But I'm here now. I'm here."
"You will die, Caroline."
"I don't care."
"I care."
His voice is so full of sorrow and pain that Caroline wonders if her touch isn't helping.
"I'm sorry I left" she says.
"I'm sorry I left you with no choice but to leave."