Dig up her bones but leave the soul alone
Lost in the pages of self made cages
Life slips away and the ghosts come to play
These are hard times
These are hard times for dreamers
And love lost believers
2015
Caroline sighed as she sat her bags down in the living room. She had been working as the librarian in Mystic Falls for two years now, ever since coming home with her "daughter". So many things had happened in the two years since returning from Richmond, and she didn't know how to keep track of them all in her mind. Elena was still here, recovering from her bad breakup with Damon. She didn't want to see him, or even hear his name spoken in her presence. Caroline didn't really mind- she never really supported the two of them.
Elena was working as a preschool teacher's aide at the local elementary school. Caroline's mother was still the sheriff, and still working days and nights. Caroline and Elena were able to make themselves look older with the use of hairstyles and makeup, but they didn't need anything drastic at the moment. But they knew they would need to move on soon. As for Sarah, she had been blossoming; Caroline only wished Bonnie were there with them, to teach her magic. Sarah had already set the tablecloth ablaze twice before her third birthday.
Caroline's mother loved Sarah more than words could say. It didn't matter that she was Klaus' daughter, nor did it matter that she drank a medicine cup of blood mixed with her milk every morning. This was her life now, and Sarah was her granddaughter, no matter what. She often expressed her pride in Caroline for taking on such a big responsibility and doing her best. Caroline loved Sarah more than words could say- it was clear for anyone to see that.
That evening was a lazy Saturday, and Caroline decided that she needed a girl's night- along with Sarah and Elena of course. Since Elena burned down her house, she was staying with Caroline. They would just order some pizza and pig out on junk food while watching Disney princess movies. Caroline had everything set up. She had the nail polish on the table- cupcake pink, Sarah's favorite color- and they all had curlers in their hair.
The pizza and paper plates were all laid out, and they were all wearing their snuggliest pajamas. For a moment- just a moment- Caroline could pretend that this was normal. She could pretend that Elena was really her sister, visiting for the night. She could pretend that they weren't supernatural creatures, and that Sarah was really her daughter. She could pretend that Klaus was her husband, and he was away on business, and she could expect him to walk through the door at any moment. But then reality would set in when she saw Elena take a sip from her blood bag, and she would be right back in the real world.
Caroline shook off the melancholy feeling, and reminded herself that they were supposed to be having a happy girl's night. She would not let her worries get in the way of this. Any moment now her mother would walk through that door, and the girls would make her put on comfy pj's as well and join in their fun. Caroline put The Little Mermaid in the DVD player and pressed play. This was always Sarah's favorite- she loved the singing crab- but tonight she didn't seem to be as into it as she normally was. She was just sitting there, and every few seconds she'd get a blank look on her face.
"Sarah, are you okay?" Caroline asked.
She was staring off into space, looking out the window in the living room. "Sarah?" Elena asked, putting her hand gently on the girl's shoulder.
Sarah shook her head and focused her attention on Caroline. "Mama, I don't feel good," she said.
"What's wrong sweetie?" Caroline asked, feeling the girl's forehead for a fever.
"Something's wrong… something happened," she said in a detached voice.
Before Caroline could reply, there was a knock on the door. Elena left to open it as Caroline began taking the curlers out of Sarah's hair. Sarah was rubbing her temples like she had a headache, and Caroline was beginning to worry. A million scenarios began running through her mind as to what could be wrong- was it Klaus, or Stefan… did Marcel win?
Elena came back into the room followed by Kevin, the newest deputy to sign on with the Mystic Falls police force. He never ceased to flirt with Caroline and Elena both, and Caroline didn't think highly of him, but his expression was no longer carefree as it has always been before. It was grim, and possibly angry.
"What can I help you with?" she asked.
"Caroline, I'm sorry to inform you of this, but something has happened to your mother. She was on a case when she was… shot. I'm sorry, Caroline," he said.
Caroline wasn't hearing these words- it was impossible. Her mother couldn't be… dead. No, she refused to believe this. She froze where she was standing, and didn't speak. She couldn't even move. She was a vampire, which meant her emotions were heightened. She was feeling so many things at once, and she didn't know how to sort them out. She wanted to grieve for her mother, but at the same time she wanted the blood of those who killed her. The monster inside her wanted to go on a rampage and kill, but there was the other part of her that wished to remain human. She had to stay strong for her daughter- Sarah was the most important.
She looked at Elena, who had tears in her eyes. Liz wasn't just the sheriff- she was a friend, and she had helped Elena so much when her parents had died. Caroline looked to Sarah, who wasn't sad or crying. Perhaps she just didn't understand what this meant- Caroline envied her innocence. Caroline thought to the last moments she shared with her mother. It was yesterday, actually, when her mother had fallen from the ladder that went to the attic. She had tipped backwards, losing her balance- and Caroline had…
Caroline's tears stopped and her eyes snapped to Elena's. The deputy had long since left, and Caroline didn't know how long they'd been standing there like that. "Elena, we need to get to the morgue," she said.
"Caroline, I don't think that's such a good idea," Elena said, nodding to Sarah.
"You don't understand. Yesterday, after she fell, I gave her blood to heal her," Caroline said.
"Oh my gosh," Elena breathed.
Caroline took the curlers out of her hair while slipping on her flip flops, and noticed Elena doing the same. They didn't even bother with changing out of their pajamas- there was no time. She picked Sarah up off the sofa and sat her in the carseat. They drove as quickly as they could to the hospital, hoping they would get there in time.
Liz awoke in the morgue of Mystic Falls Hospital, gasping as she sat up on the table. There was no one around, and she couldn't hear anyone. She looked down the collar of her hospital gown, and saw that her wound was completely healed. They had been called in on a robbery at the gas station, and the perpetrator had shot her. She had been killed over one hundred dollars from the cash drawer.
She didn't understand how she had survived the gunshot wound, and healed from it, until she remembered what had happened the night before. She had fallen, and Caroline had insisted on healing her. She couldn't stick around for the mortician to find her… she had to leave. She hopped off the table and walked outside, trying to avoid blood as much as she could.
She didn't want to go home and face the girls, so she just walked. She couldn't show her face at the station- that would cause a panic. Wouldn't it be funny though, to see their faces? There was only one place she could think of to go- her mother's house. When Liz was a girl, she lived with her mother in an old, Victorian-style mansion in the middle of the woods. Her mother loved her privacy, so they kept to themselves. This is where she felt most at home, but she hadn't been in quite some time. Caroline would always run away to the old house as a child. It seemed to bring them both comfort.
She walked as quickly as her legs would carry her. So far she didn't feel too different. She was achy and her pulse was racing, but there was no super speed. She did have better hearing, though. She could hear everything, and she could also smell everything. She could smell that there was a skunk nearby, and she could hear the tires driving over the road a mile away. Her gums were aching from the fangs forming within them, and even the blood of animals was beginning to get to her.
She finally made it to the house in the woods and tried to turn the handle, only to find that it was locked. "Great…" she said. She sat on the front porch, waiting for the dawn to break.
Caroline had been all over Mystic Falls searching for her mother. Elena had finally taken Sarah home because she had fallen asleep, but Caroline couldn't stop searching. They went to the morgue first, but Liz wasn't there. After raising nine kinds of hell with the hospital staff about losing a body, she realized that her mother must have left. She was glad that Damon had gotten the town off vervain before he left, because it allowed her to compel the staff at the hospital. She had then searched the house, and the grill, and every single place she could think of.
It was finally daybreak, and she had yet to find her. She had to find her before nightfall, or her mother would be dead either way. Elena was checking in with phone calls every ten minutes, and Caroline was about to throw it out the window. Suddenly, she knew where her mother might be. She drove her car to the end of the pathway through the woods, and got out. She took a few blood bags from the cooler in the back, just in case. She checked her surroundings before flashing to her grandmother's old house.
That's where she found her mother, sitting on the porch, wringing her hands together from nervousness. Caroline felt so bad seeing her like that, and she knew that she was going to lose her mother the same way she lost her father.
"Mom?" she said as she walked up the front porch steps.
"Caroline," her mom said in a relieved voice. "I tried to get in but the door was locked."
Caroline took the keys from her pocket and unlocked the door, and they both went inside. Caroline closed the door and looked around the foyer- it was dusty. Caroline used to clean the house periodically, whenever her parents would fight, but she hadn't been here in over five years. She laid the blood bags on the kitchen counter and followed her mother to the living room. They both sat on the plastic-covered sofa, and looked at each other.
"Mom," Caroline said, "I am so sorry. This wasn't supposed to happen… it's all my fault."
"Caroline, this isn't your fault. Don't be silly. You didn't pull the trigger," Liz said.
"I know, but if I hadn't fed you my blood…" Caroline protested.
Liz interrupted, saying; "I would be dead permanently right now, or at the very least have permanent back damage. Caroline, you did nothing wrong. You were trying to help me, like you always do."
"I just love you so much, mom. I wasn't thinking… and now I'm going to lose you, and I don't think I could handle that," she said.
"Who says you're going to lose me?" Liz asked.
Caroline blinked in confusion, and stared at her mom like she had a second head. "But… I thought… Mom, you hate vampires? I have no question that you're strong enough for this life, but… how can you become something you hate?" she asked.
Liz smiled at Caroline and said; "I was doing a lot of thinking while I was sitting on the porch. I had given up, resigned myself to the fact that I was going to die. I thought it would be the right thing to do. But, then I had memories of my childhood in this house. That lead me to memories of you in this house, as a child. That's when I realized that, I haven't really spoken to you since you were… eight years old. I haven't really spent time with you since you were ten, and I divorced your father. And I thought, how unfair would it be if I couldn't make it up to you?"
"Mom, you were doing the best you could, and I didn't treat you right either," Caroline said.
"But I'm not finished. After that, I thought about Sarah. I know she isn't yours biologically, but that doesn't matter. She is my granddaughter, and I'm not going to miss out on her life. I won't make the same mistakes with her, as I did with you. I swear it's by sheer luck alone that you turned out to be such a perfect daughter," she said with a laugh.
Caroline gave a laugh through her tears as well. "So, what are you saying?" Caroline asked.
"I'm saying that I feel like I've been given a gift, Caroline. The best gift you can give someone is time. And who knows, maybe I can make old lady vampires a fad," she teased.
Caroline laughed. "Mom, you're not that old," she said.
Liz sighed and said; "Maybe not, but at least I won't get any older."
"You can do this mom, I know you can," Caroline said.
Liz smiled at her. "You'll help me, right?" she asked.
"Absolutely," Caroline said.