𝟏𝟒

☆═━ 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍 ━═☆

Of pain, you could wish only one thing: that it would stop. Nothing in the world was so bad as physical pain. In the face of pain, there were no heroes.

Charlotte had thought that the pain of starving to actual death was the most wretched thing she would ever feel, who could blame her? From a girl with nothing as painful as her monthly blood sacrifice to a vampire starving to the point where she was decaying underground; it was too much.

Then vervain came in to prove that even back in modern times, and even with all the safeties; vampires are no invincible creatures.

Charlotte's body was aching, she was in so much pain, it felt as though someone was peeling her skin off and her screams had gone on for hours that they were barely audible then, "Please....stop!" She begged with all she could but to no avail.

"You see, doll, I have never been your biggest fan," She felt one of the vampire's hands on her cheeks, his thumb moving along it. Oh, how she wanted to slap his hand off or spit in his face but Charlotte was drained, the vervain and tight ropes that held her up made her feel as though she was nothing.

"...I never did anything to you," Charlotte breathed out, coughing, the vervain cloth around her mouth made it seem as though every breath to stay alive was another chance for the vervain to enter her system in the most painful way possible, "Just... Let me go."

"Oh, but that's no fun," He chuckled, shaking his head as she groaned out in agony, her arms were hung up as she felt them about to fall off, Charlotte didn't know long she had been there or enduring that excessive torture. All she remembered was going out of the Boarding House to make her way to school when she had seen Stefan getting jumped by a couple of strangers and Charlotte knew she had to help, forgetting her nonexistent fighting skills as a vampire.

Stefan.

Charlotte squeezed her eyes shut, biting her lips until they bled to contain her pained screams as she turned her head to face Stefan, he was just as bad as her then if not worse, "Vervain on the ropes," Fredrick explained the unimaginable torture both of the vampires were going through.

Stefan groaned out a scream as Charlotte winced, shutting her eyes immediately, "That's gotta sting. Speaking of...," Fredrick trailed off, pulling out his eyedropper before he put down a few drops in Stefan's eyes, doubling the screams.

"This isn't right!" A dark-skinned man, that Charlotte could hardly remember his name, came in screaming at Fredrick after his eyes fell upon the ex-lovers' state.

"He killed Beth-Anne. One of us, Harper. And don't you think for a second he wouldn't kill you if he had the chance," Fredrick stated, pointing at Stefan with a knife before his eyes darted to the brunette girl, "And she...with all the indignation and vampires' hatred became one of us just to betray us, we allowed her to live among us."

He neared the girl, muttering lowly, "We gave you life; an eternity and if we wish to pluck you out...," Fredrick trailed off, dragging the knife across her neck as she gulped in fear, a few tears escaping her eyes, "Then we shall."

"No...," Stefan murmured, panting as he spoke up, "Don't hurt her...whatever vendetta you have, it's against me...I was the one who killed your girlfriend."

Fredrick nodded, suppressing a chuckle, "You know that's very heroic of you," He dragged the knife across Stefan's bare chest as the Salvatore yelled out, biting his tongue for the veins under his eyes had grown out.

Harper shook his head, clutching Fredrick's hand harshly, "This isn't right!"

"You're gonna want to let go of me!" Fredrick sneered out.

Harper stated as if threateningly, "Miss Pearl will be home soon."

"Miss Pearl is no longer in charge," Fredrick scoffed, turning to order the other vampires, "Tie him up! And then stake him down."

✵ ✵ ✵

Stefan, Charlotte, and Harper were still trapped in the cellar as the youngest brunette tried to take her mind off the skin peeling off her hands or the fact that she can no longer breathe without feeling like her lungs were on fire. She tried to think of gardens, colorful flowers, and a shining sun.

"Charlotte?" Stefan calling out her name pulled her out of the sunny heavenly dream as she winced.

"Yes, still here and kind of alright," She mumbled, exhaling sharply before she started coughing, "That is if I could define alright anymore."

"Don't worry, we will be fine," He tried to assure her, mostly himself, "Uhh...," Stefan groaned, trying to make out the words right as he turned to Harper, "Thank you. For trying to help us."

"They just needed somebody to blame," Harper muttered quietly, "Someone to punish."

Suddenly, Damon and Elena bust through the doors as the human quickly ran to Stefan and Charlotte, looking for a way she could help either of them down.

"Elena...You shouldn't be here...," Stefan murmured out as Charlotte found it hard to keep her focus, her eyes landing on Damon about to stake a helpless Harper.

"She was supposed to stay in the car⁠-"

"⁠-No, not him, Damon," Charlotte coughed out, cutting him off as he backed away from Harper.

"Whatever. Let's get you two down," He rolled his eyes, heading to the brunette vampires' tied up.

"There's vervain on the ropes," Stefan revealed before Damon motioned to Elena to help them out, she pulled the ropes off Stefan's hands as Damon helped him stand up, she moved on to help Charlotte who was barely able to stand on her own feet.

"All right, let's go," Damon quickly headed to the door with Charlotte as he threw a jacket on her for the girl was only in a thin shirt before he ordered Elena to do the same for Stefan, "Clothes on."

"Wait," Stefan stopped, looking down at Harper who had two wooden stakes stabbed in his legs.

"What? Guys, come on," The elder Salvatore rushed them as he lead Charlotte down the corridor of the cellar before he got back to Elena and Stefan, the human had pulled the stakes out of Harper's legs, "We have to get out of here."

"Can you get them both in the car?" Damon asked her as she helped Stefan, heading to where Charlotte was leaning against a wall, too drained to even walk or open her eyes.

"Yeah," The human nodded, assuring him.

"All right, go," Damon ordered as Charlotte tuned out on the rest, merely getting that Damon was the distraction as they escaped.

Elena was barely able to help either of them as she was an only human, Charlotte had fallen by a tree as Elena stopped, resting Stefan's back against that tree, "Charlotte? Stay with me, okay? Can you make it?" She asked, lightly slapping the vampire to wake her up.

"I can't...I can't feel anything," Charlotte shook her head, coughing out as she groaned out, "Everything hurts...it hurts so much."

Elena shook her head, picking up a rock, "Look, I can't carry you and Stefan back like this, you will have to feed," She cut her hand on it, placing her palm on Charlotte's mouth, "Stefan might not be okay with this but I trust you, okay?"

Charlotte nodded as her fangs grew out, veins appearing under her eyes. She bit Elena's palm, drinking up quickly, she knew she had no time to enjoy the new fresh taste of her tongue or wonder about how it was her first time drinking straight from the vein.

Before it would be too much, Charlotte pulled back, rubbing her mouth with the hem the oversized jacket she was wearing, "That is enough, c'mon...Let's go," Despite feeding, she was a little dizzy as she stood up and helped carry Stefan along with Elena.

It was starting to feel like forever before they arrived at the car, "Come on, it's right over here," Elena guided the two vampires, she opened the door before Charlotte seated Stefan in and opened the door to the back seat. Elena went around to the driver's side and she didn't get to start the car as she realized the ignition had been removed.

Charlotte didn't get to let out a breath of relief as Elena muttered quietly, "Stefan..."

Frederick busted the window on Stefan's side out and dragged him out as Charlotte gasped out, practically jumping out of the car. She tried to pull Fredrick off Stefan as he continued to beat him up.

However, when Fredrick turned to face the shorter brunette, determined to punch her, Elena came up behind him, stabbing his back with a vervain syringe. Charlotte caught him before he could fall on her and threw him away from her.

Unfortunately, Fredrick had already stabbed Stefan with a tree branch. Elena pulled it out quickly, cupping his cheeks as she kept calling his name out, "Stefan...Stefan...No, Stefan. Stefan, Stefan. Stefan! Stefan!"

Charlotte looked down at him, her heartbeat suddenly speeding up as she exchanged worried looks with Elena. Yes, she might have momentarily disliked him but Charlotte could never wish pain or death upon anyone, even if they wished it upon her first.

✵ ✵ ✵

Elena was shaking Stefan, trying to get him up as Charlotte watched the human, momentarily frozen, "Stefan, please. Stefan! Oh, Stefan, please get up. Get up, Stefan. Stefan!"

Charlotte shook her head at herself, bending down beside Elena, "Feed him your blood...now!"

Elena nodded, noticing Fredrick was getting up as she quickly placed her palm on his mouth for him to drink, "Here."

"Elena, please run," Stefan looked desperate as he asked her, turning to Charlotte, "I am begging you, please get her out of here."

"Neither of us is leaving you," Charlotte snapped at him, looking back at Fredrick's body starting to regain his consciousness, "Drink...the sooner we all get out of here, the better."

After enough convictions, Stefan had finally drunk up some blood as Fredrick regained his strength. Charlotte, noticing Stefan has yet to regain his full strength, rose to her feet, facing Fredrick, "What do you think you could do to me?" He slurred out, chuckling as he grabbed a branch.

"Hopefully speaking...," Charlotte trailed off, sighing, "Distract you?"

The Bernard's nonexistent defense talents don't get to be put into question as Stefan got up suddenly, vamp-speeding by her as he pinned Fredrick to a tree. He took the branch from Fredrick and repeatedly stabbed him in the heart as Charlotte backed away from him, barely recognizing him anymore.

Elena, though, was much braver as she tried to make Stefan stop, "Stefan!" He turned to face her, his face still in vampire form and upon the fright, he saw on both girls' faces, he backed away from Fredrick, looking visibly horrified.

✵ ✵ ✵