Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

He is dead… Tyler is dead... The thought echoed relentlessly in Caroline's mind as Bonnie hesitantly revealed her plan—one she had executed without fully understanding the spell. In just a single day, Tyler had died twice, and this time, it felt irreversible. Caroline felt the urge to scream, run, cry—but instead, she shut down, instinctively bottling up the emotions surging within her. She always did this when the pain became too much. Though Tyler had changed after becoming a hybrid, he was still her first love. He was the first boy who cared for her without treating her like a second choice.

A few hours earlier:
Caroline sat alone in her home, mourning Tyler. Only yesterday, she had been planning to leave town and see the world; now, she felt lost.
“Caroline, dear, what are you doing here? You need to run, baby. Why are you so sad?” Liz asked, stepping into the living room.
“He’s gone, Mom. He’s gone,” Caroline whispered, her voice trembling.
“Who’s gone, baby?” Liz asked, her worry deepening.
“Tyler, Mom. He’s dead. Klaus… Klaus died last night.”
Liz hesitated for a moment before walking over and hugging Caroline tightly. “Oh, baby. Come here.”
“It’s not just about Tyler, Mom. I’m sad about Klaus too, but I can’t tell my friends. He hurt them so much. Still, I always felt something for him—a strange attraction. And a part of me wanted him to change, to feel, to live. That guilt is tearing me apart,” Caroline confessed, her voice barely audible.
 Liz gently stroked Caroline’s hair. “Baby, sometimes we feel something for those who value us or show us attention. That happened to me once, but that’s for another time. You always want the best for people—that’s part of who you are. Don’t feel guilty about it. But right now, you need to leave. The council is after you. I know your heart is heavy, but you must go.”
Caroline nodded slowly. “Okay, Mom...”
Before she could say anything more, Pastor Young and his men stormed into the house.
“We know you’re in here, Caroline. You can’t save her, Sheriff,” Pastor Young said as he walked in.
In an instant, he shot Caroline with vervain. The sheriff’s protests went unheard as Caroline was dragged away, unconscious.
When she woke up, Caroline found herself bound tightly with vervain ropes, the burn searing her skin. She struggled instinctively, though the ropes didn’t budge.
“Don’t waste your energy—it’s pointless,” a voice said from nearby.
Caroline glanced over and was startled to see Rebekah bound beside her. “Rebekah! What are you doing here?”
“Taking a lovely vacation on the beach. Obviously, I’ve been captured too. Your history teacher ratted us out,” Rebekah said sarcastically.
“What are they going to do to us? Are they going to kill us?” Caroline asked, her voice shaking slightly.
“They can torture me, but they don’t have the means to kill me. You, however, are a different story,” Rebekah replied matter-of-factly.
Before their conversation could continue, an explosion rocked the van they were in, flipping it off the road. Gunfire erupted outside, and suddenly, the van’s door was wrenched open. Caroline gasped in shock as she saw a face she never expected to see again.
“Tyler! You’re alive!” Caroline cried, her relief overwhelming.
“How are you alive?” Rebekah asked, her suspicion clear.
“Care, let’s get out of here first. Then I’ll explain everything,” Tyler said, freeing her from her binds.
Once Caroline was free, she started untying Rebekah.
“Come on, Care! We don’t have much time!” Tyler urged.
“But we can’t leave Rebekah behind. The council is after us, and sticking together is our best option,” Caroline insisted.
Rebekah smirked faintly. “Thanks, love. It’s nice to see someone rooting for unity,” she said, her gratitude hidden behind sarcasm.
Tyler sighed. “Fine. Let’s hurry.”
Together, Caroline and Tyler freed Rebekah, and Tyler urged Caroline to go ahead. “I’ll catch up.”
“Don’t worry too much, sister. I’ll tell you everything at home. You head there,” he says to Rebekah once Caroline is out of earshot, before heading after Caroline.
He goes in the direction of Caroline when he is suddenly pushed towards a tree and felt her lips on his lips ravaging him. After their passionate kiss the temperature starts to increase and they start to shed their clothes in full passion.
“How it is that you are alive?” She asked him, trying to get him out of his T-shirt.
“Well, its just I am hard to kill luv.”
“Oh really. Don’t fool me you're gonna tell me everything about it but right now we need hot hybrid sex.” said Caroline trying to kiss him again after successfully getting rid of his Tshirt and her top.
“Wait a minute. Did you just call me ‘love’ just now?”
“I don’t know. Did I, love?” Klaus replied, raising his hands in mock surrender.
“Klaus! What are you doing in Tyler’s body? And where is Tyler? Oh gosh, I was kissing you! Now I need to sanitize my mouth,” Caroline exclaimed, her voice filled with disbelief and disgust.
“Oh, I’m entirely innocent in all of this. It was you trying to have... well, a moment in the middle of nowhere. Not that I object, of course, but I’ll gladly take you up on the offer when I’m back in my own body, love. As for Tyler, I’m simply borrowing his body, much like I did with your history teacher’s body back then. And, for the record, this was all orchestrated by your best friend,” Klaus said with a smirk, just as his phone began to ring.
“Speak of the devil, and the devil appears. Hello, Bonnie. How are you? I was just telling your dear friend here how you saved my life—quite impressively, I might add—by transferring my soul into Tyler’s body,” Klaus said smoothly.
“What’s going on, Bonnie?” Caroline asked, her voice frantic.
“I’ll explain everything, Care, but right now, Klaus, you need to come to me. There’s something odd about this spell,” Bonnie replied, her tone urgent.

That’s how they ended up at an abandoned house, where Bonnie transferred Klaus’s soul back into his body and tried to revive Tyler. However, she wasn’t able to locate Tyler’s soul.
“I’m sorry, Care. I know this is my fault. Before transferring Klaus’s soul to Tyler’s body, I should have bound Tyler’s soul inside his own body. But I didn’t have enough time. It’s like... Tyler’s soul isn’t in this plane anymore. I think he’s on the Other Side now,” Bonnie said, her voice heavy with guilt.
“No! You can’t give up now, Bonnie! You have to try harder to bring him back. He’s not desiccating yet, which means we can still save him, right?” Caroline pleaded, her emotions raw.
“Care, I can’t be certain. But I think his body will start desiccating soon,” Bonnie replied hesitantly.
Before Bonnie could say more, her phone rang. She glanced at the screen—it was Damon calling.
“Hello, Damon. What do you want? I’m busy right now,” Bonnie said, her frustration apparent.
“You can finish whatever you’re doing later. Right now, we need to save Elena. She and Stefan have been captured, and we need to rescue them,” Damon said urgently.
“Okay, I’m coming to the boarding house,” Bonnie replied.
She turned to Caroline, her expression apologetic. “I’ll see what I can do, Care. But right now, I don’t think there’s much else I can try. I’m sorry. I need to go. Elena needs me now. Take care.” Bonnie hurried off to the Salvatore house, leaving Caroline alone in the abandoned house with Tyler’s lifeless body.

Chapter Text

At Pastor’s Farm:
“My friends, this is a necessary deed we must carry out for the sake of our loved ones. Are you ready?” Pastor Young asked, his voice steady as he piled branches of vervain and turned the gas valve.
“We are ready,” replied the eleven council members in unison. With that, they carried out their grim plan, sacrificing themselves in a fiery act of devotion.

“Hey, Care. Are you okay? Sorry I couldn’t call yesterday—I was caught up in everything with Elena becoming a vampire and then her being captured. Hope you understand,” Bonnie said as she picked up the phone.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Where’s Elena? I tried calling her, but she didn’t answer,” Caroline replied.
“Oh, right. She’s with Stefan; he’s trying to get her to feed on animal blood. Hey, why don’t we meet at the Grill?” Bonnie suggested.
“Alright. See you in fifteen minutes,” Caroline agreed.

Fifteen minutes later, the two were seated at the Grill, ordering their usual.
“What’s Damon doing here?” Bonnie asked, lowering her voice.
“Nothing—just gloating about his life, as usual. Anyway, tell me about Elena,” Caroline said.
“It’s just... she’s adapting. She never wanted this—she never wanted to be a vampire. And after everything she’s been through, losing her parents and fighting to hold onto a normal life, this feels like just another heartbreak for her. She wanted so badly to live as a regular human, but now she’s just... Wait. What is your mom doing here?” Bonnie suddenly interrupted.
“Well, it looks like she’s here to meet him. She’s asking if he was the one who killed all those people at the Pastor’s farm.” Caroline stayed silent, her thoughts swirling. Nobody chooses to be a vampire—she hadn’t either. It had been forced upon her, leaving her to face the terrifying transformation alone, without a single hand to hold. The loneliness of it all still haunted her, and yet now wasn’t the time to dwell on her own pain. Instead, her mind circled around what lay ahead: telling Mrs. Lockwood about Tyler’s death. The weight of it pressed heavily on her chest, but she felt nothing now—just an aching hollowness. She’d cried until her tears had run dry, but the sorrow still lingered, cutting through her like a blade. It wasn’t just Tyler she had lost. It was another piece of herself, stripped away and gone forever.
“Okay, I need to go and finish my homework. Did you inform Mrs. Lockwood about Tyler’s situation?” Bonnie asked.
“No, I’m heading there now. I also need to hand Tyler over to her so she can make the funeral arrangements,” Caroline replied, her voice steady despite the burden she was carrying.
“Call me if you need anything, okay?” Bonnie said, her tone filled with concern.
“Yep, Bonnie. You take care of yourself too.” With that, Bonnie left.
Caroline thought briefly about asking Bonnie to come along, but she decided against it. Bonnie had her hands full with Elena, and after last night—when she had to leave Caroline alone midway through everything—it felt likely she’d end up doing the same again. This time, Caroline chose to face it on her own.
“Can I join you, love?” Caroline suddenly heard a familiar voice, pulling her out of her thoughts.
“Klaus, I don’t have the energy for this. Please, leave me alone right now,” she replied, her voice heavy with exhaustion.
“Listen, Caroline, I just want to say I’m sorry you lost your first love. But I’ll always be here if you need a shoulder,” Klaus said softly before heading to the bar to order his drink.
“A bourbon for me, love,” Klaus said to the bartender.
“Same for me,” Caroline said from behind, taking a seat beside him. Klaus’s face lit up with a smile as bright as the sun.
Silently, they nursed their drinks, the air between them heavy with unspoken words. Suddenly, Caroline broke the silence.
“I want to ask you something,” she said, her voice steady but tinged with vulnerability.
“Anything, love,” Klaus replied, his gaze unwavering.
“Can you tell me what happened yesterday? I need to explain everything to Tyler’s mom, and I want to understand what went wrong with the spell. Please, start from the beginning,” she asked.
“When Alaric stabbed me with the white oak, I felt the pain, but before I could fully process it, I was pulled out of my body and found myself in a wolf’s form. It wasn’t my wolf—I could feel the difference in power. I transformed back, and there I found your witch friend waiting for me. She told me she had been forced to do this to save her mom and friends, or she would have let me die. That’s all, love,” Klaus explained.
“So how did this lead to Tyler’s death? You’ve body-jumped before, and Alaric didn’t die. Why Tyler?” Caroline pressed, her voice trembling.
“I think she didn’t bind Tyler’s soul to this plane. When I entered his body, his soul must have been lost. Without a physical body or something to anchor his soul, it likely traveled to the Other Side. I hate to say it, but it was the work of an amateur witch. Tyler was the easiest option available, which is why she transferred me into his body—because I was his sire,” Klaus admitted.
“So you’re telling me you could have been transferred to anyone else, but she chose Tyler because it was easy?” Caroline asked, her voice defeated. Klaus didn’t answer; he simply shrugged, leaving her to wonder why her happiness never seemed to matter to anyone—not realizing the man beside her would tear the world apart for her.
“Do you want me to come to the Lockwood Mansion with you?” Klaus offered.
“Will you?” Caroline asked hesitantly.
“I’ll come with you. Just call me whenever you need me, love,” Klaus replied.
“Okay. I don’t have the energy to go tonight. I’ll call you tomorrow. But don’t you dare think that Tyler’s death means you have a chance now,” Caroline said, pointing a finger at his chest with a commanding tone.
“Duly noted, love. But I’ll wait for you. Good night, love,” Klaus said, raising his hands in surrender.
With that, they parted ways, heading to their respective homes.

After them, a tall, muscular man entered the bar, his expression thoughtful as he reflected on his recent survey of the Pastor’s farmhouse and debated making a phone call.
“What can I get you?” asked Jeremy, who had just started his shift at the Grill. He hoped the work would help distract him from the turmoil in his life—his sister’s transformation into a vampire. The thought of her living an eternal life, while someday he would be forced to leave her side, weighed heavily on him. On top of that, his worries about Bonnie added to his unease.
“Just a glass of bourbon,” the man replied.
“Coming right up,” Jeremy said, turning to prepare the drink. As he walked away, he added casually, “Nice tattoo, by the way,” leaving the man stunned by the unexpected observation.