Happy holidays, everyone!
So, those canon differences from the beginning? Really starting to compound now. Here are the ones that will affect this chapter:
- Since Damon wasn't bitten by Tyler during the Sun and Moon ritual, Stefan didn't make a deal with Klaus, never left Mystic Falls, and that whole "oh no, Stefan's a ripper" thing is null and void.
- Stefan has no memory of his time with Klaus and Rebekah in the 20s.
- Elena has not started waffling between brothers… as much… yet.
- Currently, no one but Klaus knows his blood is the cure for a werewolf bite.
Cool? Cool. Let's get into it, then.
So what if Caroline threw a giant birthday party for Elena to cheer her up and it didn't seem to be working? It wasn't like anyone could blame the poor girl for not feeling like prancing after her guardian and surprise biological parents all died one after another. Heck, Caroline would literally bite anyone who did.
And who cared if the first time Matt actually spoke to Caroline since the night of the ritual was just to accuse her of spending too much time with Tyler? It wasn't like he was the one who broke up with her or anything.
And it definitely didn't bother her that immediately after Matt huffed off because she reminded him of that very fact, all she could think about was going to see exactly who he was talking about at the Lockwood manor because Tyler didn't feel like he should be at a party for Elena this soon after accidentally killing her aunt. Friends could worry about friends!
That was all. Caroline and Tyler were friends. Just friends. No matter how sweet he'd been recently, especially with everything going on with Matt, he was still a werewolf.
Dammit, I'm at a party! Quit with the egocentric stressing and mingle! For Elena! But the more Caroline tried to force a smile, the more she wasn't feeling it. Was it just her, or was this night a complete cesspool of teenage angst?
She scanned the room. Actually, it seemed like almost all of the other guests were having fun. There was a pretty serious game of beer pong going in the center of the room, and something off to the side on the couches that might be Kings. A sudo-dance floor had formed in the next room, and oh my God is Tess seriously making out with Evan?!
So maybe not such a bad party. Just her then.
Elena finally made her way to the giant cake that definitely took more than a few donations to pay for and both Salvatore brothers to carry back.
"Speeeeeeech!" some drunk boy near the front of the room yelled through cupped hands, and Elena winced when a few others started a chant. She didn't like public speaking on a normal day.
After catching her friend's pleading look, Caroline shoved her way up to join her. Yes, she was fully aware that the open and mostly demolished bottle of tequila she held with one hand while she wrapped her arm around Elena gave off the impression of a girl gone wild, but, seriously, who cared? Tonight, it just added to the ambiance. "Thank you, everyone for joining us to celebrate Elena's 18th birthday!"
Some clapping and whistles accompanied a "Whooooooo!" of unknown origin.
"Even though I know for a fact some of you crashed without an invitation for the free booze," She pointedly eyed Renee, who was completely smashed on the loveseat with Ben, "it still means a lot to see pretty much the whole teenage population of Mystic Falls showing their support. Right, Elena?"
"Yeah. Uh, thank you so much for coming! I'm having a really great time."
Some more cheers punctuated the announcement.
Caroline turned to Elena for a direct address. "So now that you're legally an adult, what's the first thing you're going to do?"
Elena tilted her head. "... Make a wish and blow out these candles?"
"Wrong! Underage drinking!" A few drunk girls screamed their approval. Caroline raised her bottle dramatically. "Everyone, raise your… whatever you have right now and join me for a toast!"
Solo cups, beers, and assorted bottles were produced.
"Happy birthday, Elena Gilbert!"
"Happy birthday!" the more sober kids chorused, while the drunker ones tried their hardest.
After taking a swig herself, Caroline passed the bottle to Elena, who gave her an apprehensive look.
"Come on," Caroline goaded. "It's for the toast. You don't have to finish it."
Tequila and Elena didn't mix in large quantities. It was more Caroline's thing.
Gagging a little after the quickest of mouthfuls, Elena handed it back like it would burn her hand if she touched it any longer.
Caroline gave her a quick pat on the shoulder. "Okay, now you can do the cake."
"Thanks for the save, Care."
With a nod and a smile, Caroline retreated back to the outskirts of the room and out of the spotlight.
Some of the partygoers turned back to their regularly scheduled activities when Elena closed her eyes to make her wish, but Caroline found herself enraptured. I wonder what she's wishing for? Sometimes she thought it would be nice to be one of those people who could read faces really well. She couldn't tell if her friend looked sad, or hopeful, or just introspective. I just hope it's for something nice, like a happy life with Stefan or all of us being together next year and not something really sad like that people stop dying or turning into vampires left and right.
Whatever it was, it didn't matter because Elena sucked at blowing out candles, apparently. She ended up going after them one at a time, until Stefan stepped up to help. When he accidentally blew right on a random boy's face, Elena actually laughed! And the smile stayed on her face! She looked happy!
Yes! Operation one good night is still a go! Not a complete flop after all!
Well, at least Caroline's wish came true.
She smiled to herself until she noticed Damon sulking in a corner watching the happy couple. Alone.
Where was that news reporter girl who seemed to be Caroline 2.0? Caroline had been meaning to do something about that ever since she noticed a few days ago, but- No, wait, Stefan complained when he opened the door today that Damon "dumped" her to pine after Elena some more.
… Ass.
White-hot vitriol exploded through her entire body as she thought about the whole Damon/reporter/Elena situation. And he had the nerve to keep telling Caroline to stay away from Tyler.
It didn't matter. Caroline 2.0 was safe. Elena was with Stefan. Smiling. Everything was fine. Deep breaths.
That bottle of tequila Caroline had now completely downed wasn't nearly enough to deal with this night.
As though summoned, Damon approached with that infuriating grin of his that usually preceded some kind of snark. Ugh. Why did I ever think he was hot? "Gotta admit, Blondie, this isn't the worst idea you've ever had. I haven't seen her smile like that in a while."
Well, she hadn't been expecting a compliment. It threw her off a little.
"Oh, uh, thanks. I-"
A short, squeal-like scream caught their attention. Stefan had apparently tried to feed Elena her first bite and somehow missed. Now he was wiping icing off her nose with his fingers while she giggled, a pretty blush giving her more color than she'd had in weeks. Aaaaaw. They're so cute! Definitely an epic love right there! Caroline wondered if she would ever have someone like that.
Damon rolled his eyes. "Gross. Looks like we'd better grab our cake before they start some kind of lovey-dovey two person food fight."
The use of the word "we" was not lost on Caroline. Oh, gag. No, they were not going to be oh-shit-I'm-single party buddies tonight. "Actually, I think I'll pass. I'm on my way out."
"Hold on, won't everything fall apart without you?"
Carroline honestly couldn't tell if he was mocking her or serious, so she just stood up straight and looked firmly into his eyes. "Tag." She thrust her tequila bottle into his hands (and he surprised her by actually taking it)."You're it."
"What's that supposed to-"
"You're so obsessed with Elena? Be productive and finish running her awesome birthday party for me, since you're stuck here anyway. All that's left is making sure no one burns the house down or something."
She could tell he was trying to read her from the way his eyes narrowed. "You'd better not be running off to play fetch with Fido again."
As annoying and insensitive as Damon's frequent warnings had been, he was right and she knew it. A vampire getting too close to a werewolf was a bad idea, if not suicide. Just one pissed-off pack member or slip of the fang, and oops, you're permadead.
Besides, Mrs. Lockwood had been staring kind of a lot at Caroline recently and it was really weirding her out.
"I'm just feeling kind of off," she evaded.
Realizing the bottle he was holding was, in fact, completely empty, Damon chucked it on the nearest flat surface. "What, was it someone you ate? I know we've never had 'the sire talk' or anything, but try to pay a little attention to who you go after at scenes like this or you'll end up playing hallucinogen roulette by accident. Trust me, it is not as much fun as it sounds. Oh, and BYOH to music festivals and concerts."
BYOH? Bring Your Own… H...Human. Ugh! He would!
With a scoff, and a quick "I'm not you, Damon," Caroline flicked her perfectly curled hair over her shoulder and saw herself out. Because if there was one surefire way to kill a party, it was by being that person causing all the drama, and she was honestly afraid tonight that person was her. Elena deserves one good night.
She thought about driving home for about two seconds before years of my-mother-is-the-Sheriff indoctrination made her shake her head and put her keys back in her purse. She might be a vampire, but at least she could try not to disappoint her mother even further with a DUI. Liz had even feigned ignorance about the underage drinking tonight and just asked Caroline to make sure she and whoever she was with stayed wherever they were.
So, no need to head home, either. Caroline breathed a sigh of relief at the realization. No Damon, no Matt, no maybe-homicidal Mom. Just a night off. Now where to go?
Tyler opened the door. Thank goodness. Caroline wasn't sure how to handle parents right now, since her breath definitely smelled like a margarita minus the mix and her dress screamed "skank" because she'd really needed the ego boost tonight. Hot skank with good taste. But skank.
"Hey." Okay, that was definitely an appreciative body-raking glance. But then, he caught himself and opened the door a little more. "What's up?"
Caroline rolled her eyes. "Matt's being annoying and I can't handle Damon right now."
"Matt?" He crossed his arms. "Do I have to beat him up? Because if he's still being a dick about you being a vampire-"
"No." Caroline cut him off. "I mean… I don't know how he feels about me being a vampire. I think kind of the same as where we left off? But it was more about us."
Tyler's eyebrows jumped up. "Us?"
"I know, right?" She walked into the entry hall. "Oh. Your mom?"
"Out."
"Cool. Right, so… us. Right. Um…" She was doing that thing again. That brain/mouth disconnect. Either nothing came out or it all did, and she definitely wasn't going for the all option right now. All was dangerous.
So was Tyler shutting the door behind them, effectively enclosing them in the same space. Complete privacy. No, wait, they'd done this plenty of times before. It was fine. Deep breaths.
Tyler was still watching her. She should probably change the subject. "What?" Dammit, Caroline! Brain/mouth.
"Is there something to talk about?"
"Um…"
He looked good tonight. Not a drunk mess. And the way his muscles stood out against the arms of his shirt....
Despite herself, Caroline was getting turned on. Horny was the a default setting for vampires, and dammit, she had eyes.
Tyler almost smiled. "I don't want to misread things here, but you're kind of giving off some signals."
"What kind of signals?!"
"Other than the stuff Matt probably noticed? I can tell you're getting worked up right now." His nostrils flared slightly and his eyes seemed to darken.
Aaaaaaaah! He can smell me?! Why is this my life?! No point denying it now, so time to downplay. "It's kind of a vamp thing. High sex drive. And, well… I'm single, so..."
"Huh."
"What?"
"It's a wolf thing, too."
Oh, now that was just a delicious bit of infor- No! No hot werewolf sex! Bad idea! But I'll bet it's really differe- NO! God, has it been that long since I got laid?!
"That's not what I'm asking, though." He made direct eye contact and all Caroline wanted to do was run, but actually she also wanted to jump him, but they were friends. "Is there an us, Care?"
She opened her mouth. Squeaked. Tried again. "Not like that. There can't be. I'm a vampire."
"Yeah?"
"And you're a werewolf."
"I won't bite if you don't." The unusually playful look in his eyes and that friendly smile was the breaking point.
Suddenly, she was kissing him, and then he was kissing back, and she could already tell how much easier it would be than Matt because she didn't have to worry as much about snapping him. And oooooh boy was this an awful idea, but then he hefted her against a wall with awesome werewolf strength Matt definitely didn't have, and her legs were wrapped around those athletic muscles, and he had better not bite her. Then again, there was seriously a chance this sex might be worth it. Was it just sex, though? It kind of sounded like it wasn't just sex. Did she want it to be?
He pulled back. "What are you thinking right now?"
"... Uuuuuuh, tough answer."
"Bedroom?"
"Mm-hmm!" Caroline didn't even have to walk the rest of the way, because Tyler carried her like she weighed nothing.
She giggled, he smiled, and she couldn't for the life of her remember why this was such a bad idea.
Caroline woke up in some kind of castle dungeon chained to a chair with what felt like a killer hangover.
Huh? What happened?
Wait. Right. Awesome werewolf/vampire sex. Awkward sneaking out the morning after to avoid "the talk." Tyler's mom vervain-darting her back.
Son of a bitch. Oh! Sorry Tyler. She thought about that for a second as she tested her restraints. You know what? Actually no, I'm not sorry. He is a son of a bitch! Caroline found it a little sad that she'd gotten so used to this kind of thing she had the presence of mind to be proud of her little pun.
Ok, so she was definitely stuck to this chair no matter what. And those looked like iron bars at the exit. And the walls were either actually stone or some kind of convincing art project. "Mrs. Lockwood?!" She called out, but nothing moved and no one responded.
I wonder if Mom will notice I'm gone.
Who was she kidding? Liz was either on shift, or worse, part of this.
What about Tyler?
Caroline snuck out the morning after crazy supernatural sex instead of talking about their relationship like he'd asked her to.
Matt?
Hardly even on speaking terms.
Elena or Bonnie?
Party.
Ric?
MIA.
Stefan?
Elena.
Damon?
Oh God, same answer.
No one's even going to realize I'm missing! At least no one who cared. Suddenly, wherever the hell she was didn't seem to matter. What really mattered was that she was completely, inarguably alone.
The door swung open.
"Mrs. Lockwood?!" Caroline yelled, not exactly sure what she thought she could do to get out of this. Maybe pity.
Nothing could have prepared her for who actually came through that door.
He seemed perfectly composed, but it took her forever to be able to speak.
"... Daddy?"
"I have to fix you so I don't have to kill you."
That was what her father told her between hours, days, what felt like years of searing pain and all-consuming thirst.
How long had it been since she'd fed?
At least she was so used to blood bags it wasn't his neck that called to her.
But it didn't seem to matter to him. He wanted Caroline to learn how to not be a vampire, even though she was one. How to not just hide the fact that she was a monster, but completely reject it. Or else, he would kill her.
In the end, neither of those things happened. Liz and Tyler rescued her. They noticed she was gone, they teamed up, and they fought for her.
Caroline's mother held her father at gunpoint while Tyler, her not-even boyfriend who should totally be mad at her right now, carried her home.
Liz stayed with her daughter and fed her blood bags like it was normal, then let Tyler take over, even though it was probably a shock to her how close they'd gotten lately.
Most of what Caroline remembered from that night was her mother's obvious remorse, Tyler's arms, and her own tearful voice saying "Daddy hates me," over and over again while he stroked her hair, doing his best to soothe her all night.
… If that wasn't boyfriend material, she didn't know what was. Screw Damon.
Just a quick heads up; since I'm trying to cover a large span of time with an overall focus on Klaroline, it's safe to assume that any events/scenes from the show I haven't mentioned in either the beginning notes or the narrative happened more or less the same as in canon (kind of like between last chapter and this one). Let me know if that's working out, and if it's not, I'll see what I can do differently!
Thank you so much to everyone who's favorited/following this story! It makes me really excited to keep things moving.
Getting to hear what my readers think (good and bad) is one of my favorite parts of fanfic writing, so please do leave a review! Your feedback will help me grow as a writer, especially since this is a bigger story than I'm used to posting. =)