Who: Tyler and Caroline What: Caroline wakes up a vampire When: April 16th - early in the morning Where: Tyler's place Ratings/Warnings: Fairly low - some vampirism Status: Complete
Caroline woke up in the hospital. Or at least her dreamself did. She was feeling a lot better. The doctors said she was healing quickly. Of course she was. You couldn’t keep Caroline Forbes down for long. Her friends came to visit her. Bonnie even teared up, probably relieved that Caroline was going to be okay. She fell asleep again only to be woken up by Elena. Only it wasn’t Elena. It was Katherine. She had some message to give Damon and Stefan - ‘Game on.’ Next thing Caroline knew she was being suffocated with a pillow.
That’s when the real Caroline’s eyes opened, gasping for air. She sat up in the bed a rush of emotions washing over her at once. Confusion - where the hell was she? Sadness - Her mom was dead. And then there was the hunger. Caroline was pretty sure this was the most hungry she had ever been her entire life.
That was when she realized where she was. Tyler’s place. The memories of the night before (or what she assumed was the night before) came rushing back to her. It almost brought a smile to her face. But that overwhelming grief wouldn’t allow it. She saw him though. Tyler. “I really hope you have some food,” were the first words out of her mouth. Because man, she was hungry.
The last couple of days had been Hellish. Tyler wasn't sure what was going on with Caroline, and neither had the doctors, so he brought her back home where he could keep an eye on her. He hadn't known what he could do that the doctors couldn't, but it just felt right to keep her where he could keep an eye on her.
When she spoke, his head whipped around and he was at her side as fast as he could without using his vampire speed. “Caroline?” he asked, running to the bedside. “Oh thank God you're awake.”
Caroline’s brows furrowed together in confusion. Why did Tyler seem so relieved? Of course she was awake. “Did I oversleep?” Caroline questioned. She wasn’t really the type to sleep in. “I guess that explains why I am so hungry,” she shrugged trying not to think about how hungry she was but it was like impossible to ignore. Red veins formed underneath her eyes. Not that Caroline could see or even knew it was happening. She was just hungry.
She climbed out of the bed wrapping the sheet around her before she realized she already had clothes on. Weird. She didn’t remember getting dressed. Just falling asleep in Tyler’s arms. Whatever. She couldn’t think about that now. She walked down the stairs to his kitchen in search for food.
Tyler looked at Caroline’s face, and immediately knew what had happened. She was obviously in transition. There was a small part of him that was dismayed by that, but a larger part of him that was glad for it. She’d be nearly as strong as him once she turned, and he wouldn’t have to worry about hurting her anymore. And she was someone who vampirism suited well. She’d really come into herself once she’d turned.
“I do have food,” Tyler said, frowning a little. “But I don’t think it’s food that you want. What’s the last thing in your dreams that you remember?” he asked her.
“I don’t care if it’s burnt soup! I just need something!” Caroline growled surprising even herself by how angry she sounded. Man, she really did turn into a bitch when she was hungry. Hangry was probably a better word for it.
She took a breath to try and calm herself. “Um Katherine came to visit me in the hospital” She paused frowning as she tried to remember it all. “Oh my god! I think she suffocated me with a pillow!” Caroline gasped, her anger coming back. “Did that bitch kill me? HOW COME YOU DIDN’T TELL ME I DIED IN THE DREAMS?!”
She really was never going to let him live down that soup thing, was she? He sat down on the edge of the bed, and let her yell at him. “Because you don’t die,” he said, and then paused. “Well, I guess technically you do. But you come back. As a vampire. I think that’s what’s happening now. You need to drink blood in order to complete the transition, or else you’ll die for real.”
“I’m a what?!” Caroline exclaimed. How the hell was Tyler so calm about this? But even as she protested it, the idea of having some blood did sound rather appealing to her right now.
“A vampire,” Tyler repeated, though he knew that she had heard him the first time. “Or you’re becoming one. Come on, follow me,” he said, and turned to head down the stairs of his bedroom so he could get her a blood bag from the kitchen.
Caroline wordlessly followed Tyler. She had so many questions. But right now she just wanted to eat. And she had a feeling Tyler was leading her to food. At least she hoped he was.
Tyler opened his fridge, and tossed her one of the blood bags from within.
Caroline ripped into one of the bags, drinking it all within seconds. It wasn’t until a few seconds after she finished that she realized what she had just done. Had just consumed. And enjoyed it.
Her eyes filled with fear. Fear of herself. What was she becoming? “What did I ju- Why did I- A VAMPIRE?”
Okay, this clearly wasn’t going as smoothly as Tyler had hoped it would. He hadn’t been there when Caroline had transitioned in the dream, and he hadn’t known what to expect. But she’d been so great as vampire, it was hard to remember that she had probably gone through a lot of the same stuff as he had when he turned into a werewolf.
He placed a comforting hand on her back, and steered her toward the couch. “Yeah, a vampire. We dream about vampires, and witches, and werewolves.” And other things. “But Care, you’re a great vampire in the dreams. You have nothing to worry about.”
It was a lot to process. Too much. Caroline didn’t even know where to begin. “So what? I have to live off blood now?” She didn’t even know what being a great vampire meant. Which she was about to ask when something else dawned on her. “Why do you have blood bags?! You’re a vampire?!”
“Yeah, kind of,” Tyler answered. Caroline probably didn’t need to hear about hybrids right now. It might have been a little much for her. “It’s not as bad as you’d think,” Tyler tried to assure her. “Now that you’re a vampire, you’ll be able to compel yourself blood bags from the hospital so you don’t need to hurt anyone. And you can still eat normal food.” It wasn’t as tasty as it was when Tyler had been a werewolf, but again that was something Caroline could learn for herself.
This was not okay. Not okay at all. She didn’t want to be a vampire! She didn’t want to have to drink blood for the rest of her life. But before she could say anything else the rising sun shone through the window hitting Caroline on the arm. “OW!” she cried out pulling her arm away as it began to sizzle.
Nearly all the dreams Tyler knew in the dreams, and every one he knew in real life, had a daylight ring. Tyler himself had never needed such a thing - hybrids were able to walk into the sun without a problem. Which meant that he hadn’t even thought about Caroline’s weakness to sunlight until the early morning sun started to filter through his large window and the smell of burning flesh filled his apartment.
Quickly, he gathered Caroline in his arms and with his vampire speed, he rushed her to a shaded corner of his apartment before rushing, still with his vampire speed, to close the curtains. “Sorry,” he apologized, turning to her. “I should have remembered that.”
“What just happened?” Caroline practically whimpered eyes filling with tears. “I can’t go in the sun now? How am I going to go to work?!”
“It’s one of the downsides to being a vampire,” Tyler said softly. “But it’s okay. There are these Daylight rings. You might get one from your dreams. Or I might know someone who can make them here.” Though, as decent as Freya seemed, the idea of going to a Mikaelson wasn’t one that he looked forward to. But he’d do it for Caroline.
Caroline just nodded her head taking in what Tyler said. A way to show she heard him. But now that the tears had started to fall she couldn’t stop them. With everything that was happening to her, the overwhelming emotions, there was just one person she wanted and it wasn’t Tyler. “I want my mom,” Caroline sobbed before she could stop herself.
For a moment, Tyler wondered why Caroline was bringing up her mother. But then he remembered that the process of turning into a vampire meant that any past compulsions were forgotten. Immediately, he felt guilty. He should have known better. Of course she would have turned into a vampire at some point, and at that point all her emotions would be kicked into overdrive, and what a terrible time to remember that she missed her mother?
He was at her side in an instance, and wrapping his arms around her. “I’m sorry, Caroline,” he said quietly.
She had so many questions. So much to still ask Tyler. But for now all she could manage to do was cry in his arms.