Hello, my lovely readers. This is usually a Thursday story but people begged so… Before we begin this chapter I must say that killing Caroline was necessary. It broke my little writerly heart to do so when she was having such a wonderful day. But this moves us forward into some more interesting territory in the story or at least I think so... So, sit back and enjoy the next chapter and say hello again to our young heroine in her new life…
Chapter 11: Life After Death
Caroline's eyes snapped up and she sat bolt upright on the floor. Her head was still pounding. Her body ached. And she was starving. Of course, she was. They hadn't even taken the time to eat. She pushed herself to her feet. Turning the light on, she blinked at the harshness and turned it off. Somehow she could still see her reflection in the mirror. Weird. It must be the surgery. She had heard of night vision. However, she didn't know it would be this good. Running her hand through her hair, she heard Klaus snoring through the door. Wow! He was loud.
Standing by the door, Caroline could also hear the sound of his heart pounding away in his chest. It was like music and she wanted to be closer to it. Slipping the lock out of place, she walked across the floor soundlessly. Seeing Klaus, lying there, sleeping peacefully with the sheets pooling around his waist; she wanted to wake him up.
Moving over to sit beside him on the bed, Caroline leaned down taking in his woodies' smell like tress and earth. Sucking a breath, she smelled something else. Something under his skin. Staring at the veins in his neck, Caroline forced herself to her feet and fled the room.
Running in the night with only Klaus' shirt on, Caroline felt terrified as she felt her teeth beginning to protrude, she stumbled and knelt down. "Miss, are you alright?" A young man asked her and Caroline stood up slowly.
"Don't make a sound," Caroline growled at him.
The man nodded. "I won't make a sound."
"Great," Caroline said before she was running with him. Stopping in the woods, she shoved him up against a tree. Trying to stop herself but not being able to, Caroline wrapped her arms around the man pulling him to her in an embrace that should be reserved for her lover. Although she would never do this to Klaus. 'Never,' Caroline swore to herself as she sank her teeth into the man's neck feeling the sharp metallic taste of his thick blood trickling into her mouth.
Drinking deeply, Caroline wanted to drain the man. She wanted to suck every drop dry. That was what every part of her body screamed at her to do as he sunk to the ground and she straddled him with her fangs in his neck. Pulling them out, she sucked in a deep breath and then she remembered.
Caroline saw herself on the ground. She was dying. She had been shot. Stefan forced her to drink his blood. He had said he loved her and to drink. Looking at the man and then her wrist, Caroline bit in and forced her wrist to his mouth. As he drank she remembered what happened next. "Caroline, you need to forget what I told you. You need to forget what Damon and I are," Stefan words echoed in her mind. She vaguely remembered Damon compelling Rebekah and Bonnie.
"Damn you, Stefan," Caroline muttered before she grabbed the man's face in between her hands. "Forget me." Running away through the woods, Caroline found a place to rest. She couldn't go back to her room while Klaus was there. However, she needed clothes and a phone. She had phone calls to make. She tried to think of a plan.
Hayley and Rebekah had probably stayed at Klaus and Kol's. She couldn't just speed over there in a shirt with no underclothes on and compel one of them to get her clothes. Cursing, Caroline ran back to the dorm. Picking up a stone, she threw it at Elena and Bonnie's window and then cursed when the stone shattered the glass. "Shit."
Then someone appeared in the window. Stepping backward, Caroline jumped slightly when Damon came to stand before her. "Didn't anyone ever tell you to not throw rocks through people's windows?" Damon asked and then he cocked his head to the side. "I can see and smell that someone had a little sleepover."
Caroline glared at Damon. "That is none of your business," she snapped at him.
"It wouldn't have been if you hadn't thrown a rock through my girlfriend's window. What? Was it not all that you expected? Did he do it wrong? I tried to tell you to go for Stefan. But you just didn't listen," Damon told her and Caroline was getting fed up.
"Look I need clothes. Like now. And I would really love it if you could get them so I can go talk to your brother," Caroline hissed.
"Oh, so now that you've taken lover boy for a spin, you want to try my brother out? Well, you know what, Caroline, you don't get to play with both of them," Damon snapped just as Caroline lost her temper and grabbed him by the neck shoving against the side of the building.
"Get. My. Clothes. Now," Caroline growled, her teeth protruding and her eyes turning black.
Damon's eyes widened. "Damn it. God damn it. Caroline, did that little dick up there get rough with you and things went wrong? Damn it. I'm going to rip his fucking head off."
Calming down slightly, Caroline held Damon in place. "I was sick. I had a tumor. That is what the doctor told me when he removed the bandages. My days were numbered."
"So, when Stefan feed you his blood the other night you were dying anyway. And you must have died before the time limit. This is bad. Stef is going to freak." Damon was talking to himself now.
"Really? Stefan is going to freak?" Caroline questioned Damon scornfully. "How about me? I'm a freakin' vampire? You know what happened this morning? I had the best night of my life. And Klaus is good. No! Klaus is astounding in bed! And then I wake up and I want to suck him like a milkshake on a scorching day."
"Okay, Blondie, I don't care to hear about your preference in the bedroom," Damon told her, pulling her hands off his jacket. "Watch the jacket, Baby Vamp. This is imported leather."
Caroline seethed. "Can you, please, just go upstairs and get me some clothes, Damon?"
"Why? Are you cold?" Damon asked, wiggling his eyebrows. "Because you look like you might be. Although vampires don't really feel cold. So, you must just be happy to see me."
"Ew. And. Go, like yesterday, before someone sees me like this," Caroline ordered, turning him around and shoving him toward the entrance.
"Okay. Okay. I'm going. But do you have any specific type of underwear you want. A thong or something see through and lacy?" Damon called over his shoulder and Caroline growled in response. Seconds later Damon appeared with a duffle bag filled with clothes, she hoped, and her bag for school. "Hate for you to get behind on your studies." He informed her while holding out a pair of her panties on the end of his finger and a bra on his index. Damon grinned widely, "And I thought you might want these."
Snatching her underclothes away, Caroline yanked her underwear up as quickly possible not caring what Damon saw at that point. She stuffed her arms inside the shirt and pulled her bra on hooking it just as quickly. "Let's go," Caroline snapped.
"You should take it easy on Stefan. This isn't his fault, you know?" Damon informed Caroline as they walked over to his car. "He was trying to help you. I could have told him that this was a good idea. But what do I know." Shrugging, Damon got in the car and waited for Caroline to get in beside him.
"Yes, I know," Caroline muttered, staring out the windshield; then she turned to Damon. "So, why don't you tell me how you got to be a creature of the night?"
Damon smirked, "It's a boring story. I doubt you care to hear it."
"But I do. I want to know everything," Caroline replied.
Damon looked at her and then sighed. "Okay. Can't say I didn't warn you. It was the 1980's, Stefan and I were teenagers. Living the dream. We got detention with some of these kids we didn't know that well. But we became great friends after we learned that we were all different. But that we had unique experiences to share. It ended with me in the middle of a football field with the girl kissing me and my pumping my fist in the air like this." Damon raised his fist and pumped the air.
"That was The Breakfast Club," Caroline snapped.
"Yeah," Damon nodded. "We really should have sued the writers for that one."
"Come on, Damon. Tell me the real story." Caroline coaxed him.
"It's boring," Damon complained. "I don't want to be bored."
"Tell me," Caroline begged. "It's a long ride and I'm bored just looking at you."
"Fine," Damon snapped. "I was a geek in high school. Hard to believe, right? With my movie star good looks now?" He grinned before continuing. "Anyway, my mother became ill. With cancer, like you. One day she was there. The next she was gone. So, while I forced myself to hide behind my books -"
"You read?" Caroline asked, shocked.
Damon turned to glare at her and Caroline made a zipping her lips gesture. "Yes, Blondie, I read. I read a lot then. I wanted to make movies because of my wonderful imagination. Think Dawson Leery with better hair and who was not stupid enough to follow some chick around who was always sniffing at some other guy. God, I hate that show. I hate Dawson. I should find James Van Der Beek and eat him. Or I should eat the writers. Or the producer, that Kevin Williamson guy, for being associated with such a bunch of pap teenage drivel. Where was I?"
"You were going to tell me how you became a vampire," Caroline informed him.
"Oh, yeah. It was Stefan's fault. While I was hiding in my room, rising to my academic potential, he was all, like Jude Nelson with the leather coat and the long hair. He even had an earring. Then he met this exchange student. Her name was Katerina Petrova. She was gorgeous. And she sucked the life right out men. Literally," Damon told Caroline.
"So, she was a vampire," Caroline said, feeling hooked on the plot.
"Who's telling this story? You or me?" Damon shook his head. "Yes, Katerina was a vampire. A smoking, hot vamp. Who decided that she was into my brother. It ended badly when she decided to try to eat me. Fortunately, for me, Stef liked me better than Kat and she was no more."
"So, how did you become vampires?" Caroline asked feeling like there was something missing.
"Huh. Oh, well, Stefan and I went to a convenience store later that night and, lucky us, someone was robbing the joint. Unlucky us, the guy decided he didn't like the idea of witnesses and he shot us both." Damon finished.
"How did you become vampires? You would have had to drink a vampire's blood before you died?" Caroline said, shaking her head.
Damon sighed, "Kat, was a little bit paranoid and she had been having us drink her blood for some time. Just in case."
But why would she want you to drink her blood?" Caroline continued, staring at Damon as he rolled his eyes.
"Don't know, Care. Kat was crazy like that. Maybe she thought if something happened to Stef she would have a spare Salvatore. I really don't know. We're here," Damon got out of the car. "Let's get this straight. You're not going to go in there guns a blazing with your super anger and feminine wiles, right?"
"Yes," Caroline said calmly as Damon picked up her bags.
When they walked up to the door, Damon opened it and they stepped inside. "Yo, Stef. We have company and it's not the milkman," Damon yelled up the stairs. "Fix your super hero hair and get your butt down here. Pronto."
Stefan appeared at the top of the stairs and looked confused. "Caroline? Is everything okay?"
"Yeah. Everything is great," Caroline told him, her smile forced as she walked toward the Great Room. Stefan came down to walk beside her as Damon disappeared up the stairs. Caroline kept her ears perked until she heard Damon was too far away. Then she leapt on top of Stefan and growled. "Actually, it's not," she hissed, baring her fangs.
"Caroline?" Stefan replied, placing his hand on her cheek. "How did this happen?"
"You're kidding, right?" Caroline scoffed. "You're the one who fed me the blood. You're my sire. I was supposed to have a few moments of human happiness and then die. I was supposed to be at peace!" Caroline growled. "Now, I want to drink my boyfriend's blood. Do you have any idea what that's like? I love Klaus. Now, I can't think about him without thinking about how many pints I indulge myself in before he loses consciousness. This is just unbelievable!"
"Hey, Blondie. I said you don't get to test drive my brother until you've been tested." Damon snapped before he jerked her up and sat her on the couch. "Can we play nice while we're all stuck in the same room or do I need to give someone time out?"
Caroline glowered at Damon and then glowered at Stefan. "You know one of you could have told me earlier."
"Yeah, sure. Hey, Caroline. Stef likes to munch on Thumper and Bambi. Personally, I prefer the people diet. Unfortunately, Stef just doesn't seem to know how to control himself. Hopefully, there's hope for you but we can try the bunny diet until it fails." Damon gave Stefan a pointed look.
"We can't just let her go around eating people," Stefan snapped at his brother.
"She's going to feed on a human at some point. She just needs to learn how to control the urges," Damon argued, folding his arms and giving Stefan a pointed look.
"I'm right here," Caroline yelled at them.
"Yes, you are," Damon replied, turning to look at Caroline. "So, do you want try his methods or mine, first?"
"Stefan's," Caroline retorted instantly. She still felt bad about attacking that guy on campus. "I drank from someone this morning. I almost killed him," she told them quietly.
"What?" Stefan looked concerned as he came to sit down next to Caroline. "Did you kill him?"
Caroline shook her head. "No. I didn't kill him. I wanted to. I really, really wanted to kill him," she said quietly as she looked at her hands folded in her lap.
Stefan placed a hand on her shoulder. "You shouldn't have had to go through that by yourself. How did you die?"
"I was sick, Stef, I found out I had a tumor and I didn't want to tell anyone. I just wanted to spend as much time with all of you and give you these great memories of human me. You wouldn't have to see me sick and have that be the only thing you thought of before I died. But I guess I don't have to worry about that anymore since I'm going to live forever." Sighing, Caroline stared into the fireplace. "Why do you have a fireplace?"
"Because it makes the place homey," Damon snapped. "I have to get back to campus to check up on my girl."
"What did you tell her about the rock?" Caroline asked, feeling worried. She was just glad she didn't hit Elena of Bonnie with it.
"I didn't," Damon retorted with a shrug. "I just compelled her to think she was having a bad dream."
"And what happens when she steps on a big piece of glass or sees the hole in the window?" Caroline questioned him with a glare.
"I compelled her to ignore the hole and I cleaned up the glass. No big deal." Damon told her waving his hand and pouring himself a drink. "Want one? It'll help with the cravings." Caroline nodded and he poured her a drink and handed it to her.
"Ugh," Caroline stuck her tongue out making a face after taking a sip. She didn't drink that much. "That is awful."
Damon rolled his eyes. "You'll get used to it. And you think that's awful, try it with a little Bugs Bunny chaser." Damon rolled his upper lip back over his teeth to imitate the infamous rabbit and then leaned over to stare at Stefan. "What's up, Doc?"
"Damon, stop being an ass," Stefan told his brother as Caroline giggled.
"So, I guess, Blondie will be living with us for awhile. I threw her stuff in the room across from yours, Stef, you know in case you two need to talk… or something late at night." Damon told them. "I'm off see my girlfriend. The wonderful girlfriend from Oz. Or some creepy little town that sounds like you're cursing when you make it into an acronym" Damon sang as he headed out the door.
"I guess it's just us then," Stefan said and Caroline nodded not sure what to say.
"Yeah, it's just us," Caroline murmured not knowing what to make of being stuck in a house, possibly for the entire weekend, with her best friend who was in love her. Things could go wrong very quickly.
Ouat-in-vampirediaries: I would love to post updates sooner but I have no idea when I will start to write new material for this story. So, I prefer to give all of you a new chapter every Saturday rather than make you wait for like six months. Although I have had to do that with other stories and I really do not want to do that with this one.
Rose: Thank you for reminding me. Duh, I can't believe I forgot that. And you reminded me that I need to take care of some of the details of Caroline's experience between having sight and not. There are times in the story that it might feel like I simply forgot that she was blind in the beginning of the story but that's because her attention is becoming more focused upon her new challenges that are part of becoming part of the supernatural world.
Ilkawin: You're good at spotting details. Yes, Caroline is now a vampire or I forgot what this chapter is about.
MissDK: Oh, yes, she did. I have my Klaus smirk right now. It was probably shocking but I had to find a way to keep Caroline alive but that would include a twist in the story and like the writers of TVD I like Caroline as a vampire. So, yes, she died on what was supposed to be a night filled with joy and beauty but she still got to experience a wonderful night.
GreekLia: I know. I felt the same way. I almost turned into a big pile of mushy teary mess when I wrote that chapter. It was really hard to write but it works into the next phase of the story and there are more twists to come.
AnimeWhoLockDiaries: I know. I started to cry when I wrote it and I knew what was about to happen. However, there is a reason that Caroline had to die. So, I hope you like the twist because there is another large twist involving Caroline that will happen sometime soon.
Ilyreid: I know but Caroline knows that there is nothing that Klaus can do for her. So, she believes that this is the best thing for both of them.
WeasleysGroupie: Yes, damn me for the cliffhanger. I am a bad, horrible person.
Klaroline Always: Yes.
Thank you for reading, faving, following and reviewing: Ouat-in-vampirediares, redbudrose, ilkawin, MissDK, GreekDia Nati11729, AnimeWhoLockDiaries, ilyreid, lltulgestke, WeasleysGroupie and KlarolineAlways.
Until next time… Peace,
LL