Author's Note: Two updates in two days! Mostly because I knew this was going to be a rough chapter to write and I wanted to get it over with... And I'm not gonna lie, there were a lot of moments when I just kinda stared at my laptop, wondering what the hell I was doing with my life... But oh well. It's here. Just uh... Promise not to hate me when it's over with? Reason's Why I Don't Reveal My True Identity Number 1- Because you WILL get cliffhanger hate on public forums.
And with that thought, I'll leave you to enjoy...
Disclaimer: Nothing you recognize is mine.
Soft golden light came streaming in through the window the next morning, illuminating everything in the room. The two sleeping figures in the bed were peacefully dreaming, Damon's arms wrapped protectively around Caroline. To anyone else, the gesture would have been sweet.
But to Stefan, it was revolting. He knew coming with them would be a mistake. He had been perfectly fine killing people in America, feeling nothing and caring even less. But Damon just had to play the older brother card, forcing Stefan to abandon his carefree life of murder and sex.
Speaking loudly, Stefan disrupted the two vampires peaceful slumber. "Holy shit," he said pointedly, watching Damon blink awake. "I knew I'd have to see the aftermath of Daroline sex."
Caroline sat straight up in bed, instantly alert. She had always been a light sleeper, and the six years alone had heightened her reflexes.
"Stefan," Damon practically growled, hands scrubbing at his eyes. "What do you want?"
"Don't worry guys, just one thing and I'll be out of your hair." Stefan gave the two one last look, then made his way over to the blood stocked mini-fridge. Grabbing a blood bag and sucking through the straw, his face turned from one of enojyment to disgust.
"What the hell is this?!" He asked, swallowing the blood distastefully. The blood tasted weak and stale, like it had been tapped from the vein months ago.
"Your new diet," Damon said, throwing the covers off him and grabbing his phone from the bedside table. "Animal blood."
With the click of a lock and the slam of the hotel door, Damon left Caroline to deal with his little brothers inevitable tantrum. Stefan glared at the baby vampire, ready to stake her. Caroline just glared back, not prepared to handle one of his tempramental, emotionless vampire bitch fits.
"What the hell, Caroline?"
"Oh come on, Stefan," the blonde said, following Damon's lead and getting out of bed. "You had to expect this. You know Damon wants you regain your emotions."
Stefan just glared, throwing the rest of the animal blood into the trash can. He didn't say anything else to Caroline, instead grabbing a pack of cigarettes from the table and stomping his way outside on the balcony.
"And another thing," Caroline yelled to his retreating back. "I am not sleeping with your brother!"
She barely heard his snort of disbelief before she slammed the bathroom door, fuming on the other side.
Out in the hallway, Damon was dealing with a bitch fit of his own.
"Honestly," Klaus said from the other end of the phone. "I don't know what is so difficult about this favor. I delieverd 100 percent when you asked me to save Elena's life, but you can barely handle this simple task."
"Klaus, she was going through a lot last night. I didn't have time to call you."
There was a pause while Klaus registered what the other vampire had just said. Damon barely supressed a groan, knowing that the hybrid would be more worried than ever, which meant more frequent phone calls.
"What do you mean, 'going through a lot?'"
"Stefan is here. And I had to tell her about Elena. She's just kinda... fragile right now. It's nothing I can't handle."
"Stefan is with you and you expect me to believe you're keeping her safe?" Klaus asked, disbelievingly. Damon was positive he was getting ready to hop the next flight to Italy, and chose his next words more carefully.
"Look," he said calmly. "Stefan and I are the only real ties she has left to Mystic Falls. If we're here with her, it might bring her comfort. We're only trying to help her. I'm not going to let anything happen to her."
There was a pause while Klaus seemed to deliberate his words. "Fine. But if the Ripper does anything to harm her, it'll be both of your hearts across the room."
With a click and a dial tone in his ear, Damon let out a sigh. He would have to be even more careful from now on. He found himself wanting to protect Caroline not only because of Klaus' threat, but also because of a natural instinct. Damon felt his throat constrict at the thought of something bad happening to the blonde, and banished the thought from his mind. He would make sure she was safe. No matter what.
The next few days were a blur of tension. With Stefan back on the animal diet, he was increasingly more snippy and less willing to deal with Damon or Caroline.
However, Damon was extatic. The more insults Stefan threw at them, the better. He had achieved angry, with full blown rage coming any day now. After that, everything would be easy.
After one of Stefan's tantrums which involved him yelling over the lack of 'good TV' in Italy, he stormed out of the hotel room, leaving Damon and Caroline alone.
Damon could barely contain his glee, something which had begun to increasingly annoy Caroline.
"Will you please at least attempt to control your happiness?" Caroline snarled, shooting Damon a dirty look.
"Come on, Blondie." said Damon, drinking decidedly non-animal blood from a bag. "This is a good thing. Just because he's taking shots at your ego doesn't mean I'm going to undo the progress we've made so far."
"He called me a bloodsucking parasite who didn't even deserve the girft of vampirism!"
"So?" Damon asked, raising his eyebrows. Caroline nearly screamed with frustration.
"So?! So he's being ridiculous! I shouldn't have to deal with this!"
Damon had just opened his mouth to retort angrily when a bloodcurdling scream was heard from the street below. In a flash, both vampires left the room, screeching to a halt on the pavement in front of their hotel.
If Caroline was not already dead, her heart would have stopped from the sight before her. Stefan stood in the middle of the street, holding an unconscious girl with her neck to his lips. Thankfully, other than the four, the street was deserted.
In less than a second, Caroline had flashed over to the two, ripping the stranger from Stefan's grip. Biting into her wrist, she quickly held it to the girls lips. Forcing the blood down her throat, she realized it was futile. She didn't have a pulse, and Caroline couldn't hear her heart beating anymore.
Caroline gently lowered the stranger to the ground, staring up at Stefan. His eyes glinted gold, blood dripping down his chin. She was getting ready to lay into him, yell about the unnecessary loss of life when she caught a glimpse of Damon's smirking face out of the corner of her eye.
Looking back at Stefan, she realized he was no longer looking at her. His eyes were glued to the dead human on the pavement, her blood staining the grey concrete a dark maroon. He sank down next to Caroline, gently moving the girls hair away from the wound on her neck.
His eyes flashed with regret, then closed off once again. "Leave," he growled to Damon and Caroline.
"Stefan..." Caroline said gently, reaching out to put a hand on his shoulder. He just shrugged away, avoiding her gaze.
"I said leave!" Stefan yelled, his fangs protruding. Damon grabbed Caroline by the upper arms, flashing them away from his brother. In a second, he had her almost 6 blocks away, pressed up against a building in a dark alley.
"What the hell, Damon?" she yelled, fighting against his hold.
"Blondie, calm down."
"I will not calm down! What is this Damon, what did you do?"
"What no one else had the guts to do, Caroline!" Damon yelled. He let go of the younger vampire, instead punching the wall next to her. He stalked off down the alley, away from Caroline. He had not grown violent with her in the weeks they had been together, no matter how much she provoked him. The sight had Caroline flashing back to Mystic Falls, and the way he terrified her at the tender age of 17.
She stayed silent, sinking into herself against the wall. Despite everything she had been through as a vampire, an angry Damon still had the ability to put the fear of God in her. She heard him take a few deep breaths from down the alley, then he came walking back towards her.
"Listen Blondie, I know you think that- Caroline? What's wrong?"
He found her with her arms tightly crossed over her chest, avoiding his gaze. When he caught her eye, he saw an expression in them that he hadn't seen since he first arrived in Mystic Falls; fear. Fear of him.
"Hey," he said, drawing closer to her. Caroline looked down at the pavement, refusing to meet his gaze. "I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm sorry."
She wasn't crying, but he knew she needed comfort right now more than ever. So Damon slowly drew her into his arms, realizing she was trembling. He felt terrible for scaring her, and hugged her even tighter. Slowly, Caroline wound her arms around him. Loosely, but it was enough.
He drew back, making sure to keep his face calm. She was still in his embrace, but her eyes had never seemed so distant.
"I had to let him do it, Caroline. Do you know how many emotions he experienced just now? Happiness. Euphoria. Regret. Shame. I knew what he was going to do."
"But that girl..."
"Was collateral damage."
When she didn't respond, Damon pulled farther away from her. He sighed, knowing the human part of her wouldn't accept his explanation.
"You just don't get it, Caroline." Damon started to walk away, assuming she would follow him.
"No, I don't think you get it."
When Damon turned back around, he realized Caroline hadn't made any more to follow him. Instead, she was glaring at him with her arms crossed over her chest.
"I've been the collateral damage, and it sucks. Do you know how bad it feels to know that no one in the world gives a shit about you? To know that you're not worth saving?"
Damon drew closer to her, realizing his choice of words were not the best. Klaus had made it perfectly clear the first time he made Tyler bite her that she was disposable, and she had lived her entire life believing it.
"Okay, bad choice of words. But Blondie, I'll do anything to get my brother back. And if it takes a few dead bodies... Then so be it."
Caroline glared at him, but Damon wasn't finished.
"But let me be clear, Caroline. I'll never do anything to put you in danger. Not because Klaus told me too. Not because I feel like I owe you. But because... Because you're my friend. And your friendship means more to me than any 'collateral damage' that may come along."
They were barely a breath apart now. If she wanted to, Caroline could count the number of eyelashes he had.
"So we're gonna fix my brother. And I'm going to keep protecting you. Okay?"
For the first time ever in his presence, Caroline felt completely safe. She knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he wasn't going to hurt her, and that he would protect her no matter what. She couldn't decide if this blind trust was foolish or not, but she was prepared to let Damon prove that what he said was true.
Caroline took a deep breath, and fell even farther into the rabbit hole.
"Okay."
When they got back to the hotel a few hours later, neither expected to find Stefan waiting in their room.
"I wanna leave Italy." He announced as soon as the duo walked through the door.
"What about the girl?" Damon asked, pulling an animal blood bag from the fridge. He took a big enough sip to quench his thirst, but immediately passed it to Caroline with a look of disgust on his face.
"I... I took care of it." Stefan answered, remnants of remorse clear on his face. "But I want to leave. This country is boring."
"Yeah, that's it." Caroline mumbled, sipping the blood.
Stefan just gave her a withering look. She considered this progress. Four hours ago he would have called her a hybrid seducing scumbag with no real appreciation for vampirism. Maybe Damon's plans did have some merit to them after all.
"Okay, fine." Damon said. "We'll leave first thing in the morning. Where do you want to go?"
Stefan hesitated before answering. "California."
"The United States? You must be out of your mind, brother. You're wanted in at least three states."
"Then what was the point of putting me on an all animal blood diet? Look, I know I screwed up. But I know for a fact that I passed your psychotic test. I felt something. Don't you think you can give me this one satisfaction?"
"It's out of the question. Not only because of you... But because of Caroline too. Klaus would neve be okay with it." Damon said, distracted by his ringing phone. "I have to take this. Blondie, while I'm gone, please try to talk some sense in him. I'm feeling somewhere in France."
Lifting his phone to his ear, Damon strode from the room. Stefan turned to his old friend, puppy dog eyes already in place.
"Caroline, come on. I know we haven't been in the best place lately. But you're both getting what you want. I'm starting to regain my emotions. Can't I just have this?"
She looked at him suspiciously. Caroline didn't believe for one second that Stefan just randomly chose California. There had to be another reason. But she'd be lying to herself if she said she didn't miss the States. It had been a long time since she had been there... too long.
"Don't worry," she said, shooting Stefan her trademark Caroline Forbes smirk. "I know exactly how to handle this."
Out in the hallway, Damon was arguing with Klaus once again. He was so caught up in his conversation, he barely registered the quiet click of a door signaling another presence in the small corridor.
"I know Klaus... I got it."
In a flash, the phone was taken from Damon's grip. Whirling around, he realized the small blonde vampire was staring straight at him, smirking with the phone at her ear.
"Klaus," she said into the reciever. "It's been a while."
There was a pause. Damon could practically feel the inevitable stake in his heart, and if he hadn't just assured Caroline he would never hurt her, there would be a Blondie shaped hole in the hotel wall.
On the other line, there was a pause. "It sure has, love."
Caroline smiled triumphantly. She knew when she had a man wrapped around her finger, and even Klaus wasn't immune to her. And in this case... she wasn't afraid to play a little dirty.
"So listen... I need a favor." She continued, darting away from Damon. "I've been experiencing a bit of cabin fever. And since you're the one who locked me up with Damon of all people, the least you could do is tell him to chill out a little bit with the over-protectiveness."
"I fail to see your point, love. What exactly do you want?"
"I want to come home." Caroline ignored Damons gestures of pretending to stake himself, instead turning her back on him. "Well, not home home. Just back to the United States."
There was a pause. "Where?"
Caroline could barely contain her squeal of glee. "California."
"Out of the question."
"Better be careful Klaus... Or I may start to experience Stockholm Syndrome. You wouldn't want that, would you?"
There was another pause. "Put Damon back on the phone," the hybrid growled. Caroline threw Damon the phone, ignoring his look of rage. He put the phone back up to his ear, prepared for the hyrbid tantrum that was sure to follow.
"Give her what she wants. But I swear, Damon... if she comes to any harm, I will make sure your death is as drawn out as possible."
"So... we can come back to the United States?"
"Yes," Klaus continued, taking deep breathes. "I'll work on having Stefan's warrants lifted. You should be free to travel by tomorrow."
"Okay."
"And one more thing, Damon... If you so much as touch her, I'll rip all of your fingers off. Put Caroline back on the phone."
The older vampire practically threw his phone back to Caroline, immediately turning away and stomping down the hall. If she had to guess, Caroline would wager he was going to the hotel bar.
"Yes, Klaus?" Caroline said stubbornly.
"Everything is arranged."
"Okay."
"And...?"
"And... thank you. I guess."
"You're very welcome, love." Klaus said patiently. It felt so good to talk to her. He hadn't heard her voice in too long.
"This doesn't change anything, you know." She said after a beat.
"Of course it doesn't."
"I still hate you."
"You'd be a fool not to."
She sighed. Caroline had expected him to be angry, not entertained. The fact that she had to even ask his permission to do anything already pissed her off. Now he was just being too... too nice.
She was just about to hang up the phone when she heard the hybrid continue.
"You do know I'm doing this to protect you, right? I don't want anything bad to happen to you. If something did... I don't know what I would do."
She paused for a beat, breath caught in her throat. "I know, Klaus."
He sighed defeatedly. "Goodbye, Caroline. Take care of yourself."
She hung up the phone without saying goodbye, staring at the now dark screen. Caroline slowly turned back into the room, gingerly opening the door. She was immediately faced with a grinning Stefan.
"Stockholm Sydnrome, huh?" he smirked at her, almost kindly. She could still see the closedness of his eyes, but still... there was hope.
"Oh shut up." she answered, suppressing a smile.
Caroline was sleeping soundly that night when Damon came stumbling back into the room. It was past four o'clock, and he had been gone for nearly eight hours. Caroline guessed he had consumed most of the bars alcohol, but she highly doubted he was actually drunk.
She watched him change shirts fluidly and surmised that his basic motor functions were still intact, which meant he was buzzed at worst. Caroline had just let her head fall back on the pillow, intending to sleep another full six hours when she felt the bed shift.
Damon was sitting on the edge, staring at the blonde intently. "I know what he said..." Damon mumbled. "But I just can't seem to stay away."
Caroline just looked at him confusedly. There seemed to be a silent battle happening in the older vampires head. After a few moments, he just sighed and laid down next to her. Damon curled his arm over her waist, pulling the blonde closer to his chest. Caroline snuggled into him, glad for the warmth.
Neither spoke for a few moments, perfectly intent ot stay silent. Caroline had just started to drift back to sleep when she heard Damon start to speak.
"You know I'm sorry, right?"
"Sorry for what?" she sleepily replied, eyes still half closed.
"For what I did to you in Mystic Falls. Compelling you, feeding on you... It was wrong."
"It's in the past, Damon."
"I know... I just wish I hadn't done it. You didn't deserve it. If I could go back and change my actions, I would do it in a heartbeat."
Caroline raised her head up to meet his eyes. "What brought this on, Damon?"
"It's something I've been feeling guilty for for a while now... I just wanted you to know I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I was a stupid human. I'm over it."
"But still... You didn't deserve it." Damon sighed, drawing her closer to him. "You're beautiful, and amazing. I didn't see it then, but I do know. And..."
He trailed off. Caroline thought he fell asleep until he continued almost a full minute later.
"And Klaus doesn't deserve you."
When Caroline met his eyes, Damon was looking at her in a way he had never looked at her before. Like no one had ever looked at her. As he inched toward her, she decided this is what true, pure need felt like. That fire in her belly, one that could only be extinguished by him. It felt like she was being burnt from the inside out, a delicious shade of desire she had never even known to exist.
He kissed her, hungrily and roughly. Like nothing even mattered, nothing except her and what she was doing with her lips. He kissed down her neck, teasing the one spot under her ear he knew she loved.
All of a sudden, he stopped. Caroline froze, her ragged breath the only sound in the room. His eyes locked on hers, and she could see regret already present.
"But I don't deserve you either."
All of a sudden, he was up out of bed. Briefly looking back at her, he strode out the door. Caroline knew he was most likely going to his brothers room, preferring to spend the night with a practically emotionless vampire rather than having to deal with the aftermath of a mistaken kiss.
She relaxed all of her muscles, letting out a long breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Caroline had just started to feel the white hot pang of rejection when she heard something vibrate from her suitcase.
Crawling over to the overflowing bag, she started searching for her phone. Caroline was surprised. The only person who ever called her was her mother, and it was ten at night in Mystic Falls. Liz would either be on duty, or sleeping off another long shift.
Finally digging her smart phone from an inside pocket, Caroline quickly pressed send to the unfamiliar numbler.
"Hello?"
"Caroline," the voice on the other end of the reciever was one she hadn't heard in a long time. "Hi."
"Bonnie?"
"Yeah," Bonnie said. Caroline could hear her sniffling. "Caroline..."
"Bonnie, what is it? What's wrong?"
"It's your mom, Care... she's... she... I think you should come home."
Caroline looked around her hotel room. In that second, her worst nightmare had come true. Three years ago, Caroline had told Bonnie she would not return back to Mystic Falls unless someone was dead or dying. Bonnie had just scoffed at the time, but took the words to heart.
"I can be home in ten hours." Caroline said, tears already filling her eyes.
"I'll pick you up at the airport."
"Bonnie..." Caroline said, tears escaping her eyes. "Am I too late?"
There was a pause that seemed to last years. Even to a vampire, the second that Bonnie hesitated seemed like too long.
"Yeah, Care. You are."
Caroline hung up the phone, too broken to respond. She didn't stop to think about the Salvatore brothers, or the hybrid who would be furious she left Italy alone. All Caroline could think about in that moment was her mother, her last flesh and blood left on this earth... gone.
Barely stopping to put jeans and shoes on, Caroline ran out of the hotel room. She made it to the nearest airport in less than twenty minutes, and compelled herself a seat on the next flight to Virginia.
It was only when she allowed herself to think about her situation that she broke down. As she sat waiting in the airport, Caroline felt something in the pocket of her sweater. Pulling out the bulky weight, she realized it was Damon's phone.
Caroline put it back into her pocket, not caring that she had just abandoned the two brothers.
She had to get home. She had to go back to the one place she couldn't wait to escape. And this time, Caroline wasn't sure she would get out completely intact.
Back in Italy, Damon hadn't slept a wink. He was too consumed with thoughts of the blonde vampire, and how stupid he felt walking away from her.
Getting up from the armchair he had used as a makeshift bed, he stretched his muscles. Stefan was still sleeping in the bed, but Damon knew he would be up in about fifteen minutes anyway. Even as an emotionless vampire, the guys internal clock was impeccable.
Leaving his brother, Damon headed for Caroline's room. He felt like an ass. He had just kissed her then left; no explanation or anything. Damon doubted she would even want to hear his explanation, but he had to at least try.
The second Damon entered her hotel room, he knew something was wrong. There were clothes everywhere; it looked like someone had ripped the room apart. Flashing to the bed, then to the bathroom, Damon slowly realized Caroline was no where to be found.
With his dead heart pounding and his throat constricting, Damon ripped his hands through his hair. With a strangled moan, he collapsed onto the bed.
"Damon?" he heard a voice say from the doorway. He looked up. Stefan was standing there with a confused expression on his face. All of a sudden, fear flooded his eyes.
"She's gone, isn't she?"
"Yeah, Stefan." Damon answered defeatedly.
Stefan stepped over clothes and cosmetics thrown haphazardly around the room, coming to rest next to his brother. Unsure of himself, he put a hand on his brothers shoulder. Damon just sat there, staring off into nothingness.
"You know what we have to do, right?"
"Track her down?"
"We have to call Klaus."
At first, Damon just stared at his brother in shock. But as he thought about it, there was no debate. Klaus was the person who cared about her most in this earth. If anyone could find her... It was him.
"Okay."
The next few days were a complete blur. Caroline learned her mother had been in the line of duty, by a man who had been just passing through town. He had robbed a local convenience store, and shot her mother when the police showed up to apprehend him.
As far as Caroline was concerned, the bastard was as good as dead.
Bonnie had been great throughout the entire ordeal. Even though the two girls hadn't seen each other in almost seven years, their friendship was deeper than any separation.
By the time Caroline got to Mystic Falls, a funeral had already been planned. A little more than a week had gone by since Liz had been shot, but with Bonnie in charge of preparations, all other celebrations had been put off in favor of the sheriff's funeral.
So that's why Caroline found herself in a black dress left behind from her high school days, standing in her old bedroom. All of her tears had run dry, instead replaced with a gnawing, aching feeling in her gut. She stared at herself in the mirror, looking her own expressionless eyes.
"Caroline," Bonnie said, poking her head into the bedroom. "We're getting ready to go. Are you ready?"
Caroline forced herself to smile at her oldest best friend. Even though she was a witch, Bonnie couldn't stop the aging process. She had let her hair grow out, and her face had filled out more in the six years Caroline had been gone.
But it was more than that. Bonnie carried herself with a confidence that hadn't been there when Caroline left. She was older, wiser now. Caroline wondered if she would be the same had she been human.
"Yeah Bonnie," Caroline glanced at herself once more in the mirror. This was not the girl who had left Mystic Falls. "I'm ready."
"In what world," Klaus said angrily, storming into the brothers hotel room. "Is me telling you to 'keep Caroline safe at all costs' a set up for her getting kidnapped again?"
After much deliberation, Damon and Stefan had agreed it was a better idea for Klaus to come to Italy. With the hybrid in Switzerland, the trip had not been long. And with Klaus' connections, there was a better chance of tracking Caroline down before she even left.
"We don't think she was kidnapped." Damon explained, attempting to calm the hybrid down. "We think she left of her own free will."
"And what makes you think that?"
"Caroline is smart. If she were being taken, she would have alerted us somehow." Stefan interjected.
"Well, why would she leave? Why wasn't there someone in the room watching over her? This was your job! I helped you save your one true love, and you put mine in jeopardy."
Klaus was getting more frustrated by the second. He couldn't believe Damon had screwed this up. Moreover, he couldn't believe his own stupidity. How could he have trusted Damon with this? Klaus regretted leaving Caroline that day. If he could do it again, Klaus would take her with him and never let her leave his side.
"-doesn't mean she's gone forever!" Damon finished. Klaus hadn't heard a word he said, instead fantasizing about shoving a stake through his heart.
"Okay," Klaus said, attempting to calm down. "Did anything happen last night that would cause her to leave?"
Both brothers paused a second too long, each avoiding the hybrid's gaze. Running out of patience, he took matters into his own hands. Grabbing a glass from the table, he threw it against the wall. Glass shattered everywhere, and the brothers were up in an instant.
"Tell me now or you're both dead!"
Damon sighed, but then stepped forward to face the fuming hybrid. "We kissed, okay?"
There was a moment of stunned shock before Klaus had Damon pinned against the wall.
"I thought I told you not to touch her." Klaus growled, constricting the other vampires airways.
"It was a mistake," Damon managed to choke out. "I didn't mean for it to happen."
"Remember what I said would happen if you couldn't control yourself?"
Damon had the good sense to look scared, but only for a moment. Stefan came between them, tearing Klaus' hand from Damon's windpipe. Klaus was just about to screw it and slaughter both of them when he noticed the cell phone in Stefan's hand.
"You two don't have to kill each other yet. Caroline is in Mystic Falls. Bonnie just texted me... She said she called Caroline last night, and that she just picked her up from the airport."
"Why would she go back to Mystic Falls without us? Or at all? She hates that place." Damon asked confusedly, walking as far away from Klaus as he could.
"Liz is dead."
There was a pause. The three vampires knew Caroline and Liz's relationship had never been the best, but they were still family.
"So Caroline is safe?" Klaus asked, breaking the silence.
"Yes. The funeral is in two days, according to Bonnie."
The three men looked at each other despite their previous arguments, they all knew Caroline would be grieving. It would be best to put their differences aside and be there for her.
"One of you call Bonnie and tell her we'll be at the funeral. I'll get my private jet ready." Klaus said, already taking out his phone to make arrangements.
The brothers just stared at him, neither fully understanding how he went from murderous psychopath to control freak in a matter of about six seconds. Maybe he and Caroline were more suited for each other than anyone thought.
As Damon turned away to look for his phone, he caught the hybrids eye.
"Don't think this means I've forgotten about you and Caroline. I will make you suffer."
Oh yes, Damon thought, grimacing. They're perfect for each other.
At the funeral, Caroline was barely able to keep herself together. Liz was not supposed to die, she didn't deserve it. She was such a good person. Caroline had heard all the condolences she could bear.
As the coffin was lowered into the ground, Caroline finally allowed a tear to escape. Bonnie rubbed her shoulder, worriedly looking at her friend. The two were so caught up in their own grief that neither one of them noticed three late comers join the crowd.
After a short ceremony, the crowd disperesed. Many feared an impending storm, and chose to take shelter in their cars. There was to be a wake at Bonnie's, but Caroline could barely fathom the thought of attending. She stood motionless by her mothers still unfilled grave, staring into the ground.
She hardly noticed the presence of three people next to her until one of them cleared their throat.
"Caroline," she heard. Snapping her head up, Caroline was simultaneously aware of the soft rain that had just begun to fall, and of the three vampires staring at her with mixtures of pain and pity.
"How did you find me?" She asked, lips dry and voice hoarse.
"Bonnie called," Damon answered after a beat. "She told us what happened. We came as soon as we could."
Caroline just nodded, her gaze slipping back down into the grave. She didn't have the energy to care they were there. She barely had the energy to wrap her arms around herself out of instinct because of the cold. She smiled to herself, a smile which turned into a full blown laugh.
Klaus, Damon, and Stefan looked at her as though she were made of glass. None of them could understand what was funny about the situation, and their quizzical looks just caused Caroline to laugh harder.
"I'm not even cold. It's raining and it's April, but... I'm not cold."
"That's because you're a vampire, love." Klaus said gently.
"I know," she said, the smile dropping from her face. Her eyes filled with tears, and they overflowed onto her cheeks almost at once. "I know."
Stefan stepped forward, wrapping his arms around the small vampire. He looked towards Damon and Klaus, nodding his head toward the car. Both nodded, understanding his meaning. Only after they were a safe distance away did Stefan look down at the sobbing girl in his arms.
"Caroline..." He said, locking eyes with the baby vampire. "Turn it off."
"What?" Caroline said, wiping at her eyes and drawing back from her old friend.
"Turn it off. Your emotions. You don't have to feel any of this. You don't have to feel anything bad ever again."
"Why? So I can be like you?"
"No. So you can be like you. You're never going to be the same person again. So why even try? Just turn it off, Caroline."
Caroline seemed to deliberate his words for a moment, then shut her eyes tight. When she opened them again, Stefan couldn't find any trace of emotion. She had finally given herself over to her vampire side, succumbing to the allure of heartlessness.
When Damon and Klaus returned with the car, Damon knew right away something was wrong. It was like that moment two days ago when he entered Caroline's room. Something was not right.
As they drew closed, Damon begged to whatever God that actually existed that his instincts were wrong.
"Brother," Damon said slowly, looking from Stefan to Caroline. "What did you do?"
"You know Damon..." Stefan answered, walking slowly towards the duo. "I knew one day I'd be able to repay you for taking Elena away from me. I just never knew it would be this soon." He stopped in front of Damon, staring him straight in the eye. "Revenge is sweet, isn't it?"
"What. Did. You. Do?" Klaus growled, taking Stefan by the throat.
"It's nothing she didn't want in the first place." Stefan managed to answer, a sick smirk playing on his lips. "Isn't that what you said to me when Elena wouldn't drink Klaus' blood, Damon?"
Damon just stared at his brother in horror. Klaus had had enough, and snapped Stefan's neck out of pure fury. Flashing over to Caroline, Klaus grabbed her by the upper arms, forcing her to meet his eyes.
There was nothing in them but unshed tears. No pain, no fear. No hope. Nothing. Just the dead eyes of a dead girl.
The Caroline they knew was gone.
AU: Haha. Ha. BRB crying. Yeah I suck a lot. Tell me just how much I suck in the reviews! Maybe it'll get me back on track for next chapter...
Oh, and side note- Stefan forced Caroline to turn off her emotions in order to 'get back' at Damon. He was just pretending to be cool with him. However, what (or who) could be in California...? :)
Next chapter! I promise!
Until then, please remember to favorite, follow, and review!