Santa Monica's on the way, so we're coming to you? But, you need to be there in person with the new vampire, right? She's up in Beacon Hills. It's in Northern California. Any chance we can pick you up on the way?
And shortly after he hangs up, he'll get a text with a pin for where they should meet.
Caroline passes on the phone number for Jenna to Jeremy before moving over to Ryan with a sigh. She's going to have to do a big apology tour when all this is settled, but it's fine. It's a problem for future Caroline.]
Jeremy's handling his mom and Jenna. Did you get ahold of Serena?
[She knows he was talking to someone but she wasn't actually listening.]
Your friends have nothing to forgive, because they know that along with Jenna and this second werewolf, your mom is also waiting in Beacon Hills, alive. And they've known you all their lives, so they can hear it in your voice when you've gone into Fix-It mode and you're pushing away how you really feel to help them. Which is a long and convoluted way of saying: you can feel it. Unless, that might delay things and you want to keep moving. Keep moving down your checklist.
If I feel it, I'm going to be a mess saying goodbye to your parents and I don't want them to worry.
[Because how is she supposed to explain that her mother was recently resurrected to someone they haven't even come out of the vampire closet to. She's not sure she can. And she doesn't thing vague platitudes will explain it away if she looks like a mess.]
So let's go say goodbye first and we'll work on feeling it once we're in the car on our way to Serena.
( He pulls her in for one more, quick hug, before turning around.
Ryan lets his parents know that something's come up and they have to drive up north for work, but that they want to be back by Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. He hugs little Sandy, Seth, and Summer and then he and Caroline return to one of the guest rooms to quick-pack.
( He nods, opening a different drawer. He thinks the two of them can fit their needs into one carry-on and his backpack in this case. And her purse, and then turns. )
Yeah, way above vampire purview. Seth, you're either in or out.
( If he wants to keep talking, it won't be in the doorway.
So, Seth comes in, leaving the door ajar and he plops down on the bed.
"What's actually happening?"
Ryan looks over to Caroline, to see if she wants to tell him as he goes into the adjoined bathroom and grabs their toiletries bag. )
[It's so complicated and weird, she's not really sure if she can explain it. But Ryan trusts Seth and she trusts Ryan, so she'll ... try.]
Something is happening right now where people who were previously dead are somehow ... resurrecting. Not as zombies, or anything like that, just ... alive, again. A few of them popped up in Beacon Hills and one of them is my mom.
[She won't get into the Jenna of it all because that's important but it's not as important as her actual mother.]
( Seth nods, thinking about it. "It's crazy you're both in Cali, though, right? What are the odds."
Seth is right, but Ryan's not going to quite acknowledge that. Also, Seth gets the clue that, maybe, it's not his time to be a part of this. He's just tryin to be a friend.
"Hey, you have nothing to worry about down here. I can totally smooth things over with the Cohens." Kirsten, specifically. He moves to the door, opens it and Summer is standing there, having accidentally eavesdropped.
"Hey, babe. Just... squaring away Ryan and Caroline's last minute arrangements, wishing I could do something," he tries.
But her face is pretty clear, stepping inside as Seth swerves. She closed the door as her back pushes against it.
[Caroline looks to Ryan, raising her eyebrows like is this a good or bad thing? These are his family, she hasn't really spent enough time with them to know whether or not she's doing or saying the right thing.
And they also really don't have time for Vampire 101 right now.]
("Cohen won't stop saying you're vampires, but I thought he was just not telling me what was going on. Like, it was bro-code or something," Summer says, looking between everyone.
"Bro-code with a plus-one?" Seth asks.
"I don't know! I was giving you space for when you were inevitably going to let me in on Ryan's crazy vampire life, apparently." Except for the vampire part. She sighs. "You Taylor's like super mixed up in all this, too?" she asks.
"Taylor Townsend?")
I haven't talked to Taylor in years.
("Well, I have. She helps people. And, I took her at face value because she had to vent about everything. I guess her boyfriend is also in on it, too.")
She has a boyfriend.
("Can we focus? You're not freaking out or wanting to commit your husband or his brother or his brother's girlfriend?"
"I'm not close-minded, Seth."
"I'm not - that isn't what I'm saying. Or, trying to say.")
How about you two deal with Sandy and Kirsten and I promise when we come back, I'll answer both of your questions. Brutal honesty.
("Brutal, Atwood." Summer says. "Because I am not being left out of this.")
You won't. Anymore. Right, Seth?
( He kind of liked that there was one thing he and his wife didn't share, but, yeah, that works for him, too.
"Hey, yes. I don't... know everything either. And it's not like I was hiding it well.")
[Caroline just watches this ping pong of back and forth and for a moment fiercely misses her friends. She knows she's seeing them in a week but there's the kind of shorthand here that comes with people who have known each other a long time.
She'll see her family soon, but she's glad that Ryan has this too.]
Yes. We will answer all the questions. But right now we really have to go.
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praevaricatio) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
everyonelives2025-10-11 07:15 am
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( Nice, but business. He already thanked you for the contribution to his finger that keeps him not burning to a crisp. )
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[More inclusivity would make the world a better place. She doesn't skip a beat at the question though.]
Today is your lucky day. I'm in Santa Monica. What can I do for you?
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( And it's very cool and very sweet. )
I think Caroline's trying to connect to get a new vampire a daylight ring.
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[Mostly the jewelry portion of the spell as she did not bring her lapis lazuli collection on this particular job.]
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( Now he's trying to fix everything. )
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[A beat.]
Which sounds very weird, but I'll tell you about it as we go. I'll track down some lapis lazuli jewelry and drop you a pin for where to pick me up.
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( Anything as incentive. )
I'll tell Caroline. Thank you, Serena.
( He hangs up, waiting for her to finish. )
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And shortly after he hangs up, he'll get a text with a pin for where they should meet.
Caroline passes on the phone number for Jenna to Jeremy before moving over to Ryan with a sigh. She's going to have to do a big apology tour when all this is settled, but it's fine. It's a problem for future Caroline.]
Jeremy's handling his mom and Jenna. Did you get ahold of Serena?
[She knows he was talking to someone but she wasn't actually listening.]
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Serena's in Santa Monica.
( His smile falters, though, coming forward to hold Caroline again. Her priority is the project. His priority is her. )
What can I do? What's the most important thing right now.
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[Because she's feeling like she is right now and she trusts Ryan to either tell her her brain is lying to her, or lie to her to get her on the road.]
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[Because how is she supposed to explain that her mother was recently resurrected to someone they haven't even come out of the vampire closet to. She's not sure she can. And she doesn't thing vague platitudes will explain it away if she looks like a mess.]
So let's go say goodbye first and we'll work on feeling it once we're in the car on our way to Serena.
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( He pulls her in for one more, quick hug, before turning around.
Ryan lets his parents know that something's come up and they have to drive up north for work, but that they want to be back by Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. He hugs little Sandy, Seth, and Summer and then he and Caroline return to one of the guest rooms to quick-pack.
He starts to take out a few shirts, but stops. )
Are we going up today and coming back tomorrow?
( A few days?
Seth knocks on the door and lets himself in.
"Hey uh, this isn't vampire business, is it?" )
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[But they're distracted by Seth's appearance and she pauses, because technically no?
But also kind of technically yes?]
I think this falls more under the banner of generic supernatural business?
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Yeah, way above vampire purview. Seth, you're either in or out.
( If he wants to keep talking, it won't be in the doorway.
So, Seth comes in, leaving the door ajar and he plops down on the bed.
"What's actually happening?"
Ryan looks over to Caroline, to see if she wants to tell him as he goes into the adjoined bathroom and grabs their toiletries bag. )
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Something is happening right now where people who were previously dead are somehow ... resurrecting. Not as zombies, or anything like that, just ... alive, again. A few of them popped up in Beacon Hills and one of them is my mom.
[She won't get into the Jenna of it all because that's important but it's not as important as her actual mother.]
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Yeah, so, generic, but personal.
( Seth nods, thinking about it. "It's crazy you're both in Cali, though, right? What are the odds."
Seth is right, but Ryan's not going to quite acknowledge that. Also, Seth gets the clue that, maybe, it's not his time to be a part of this. He's just tryin to be a friend.
"Hey, you have nothing to worry about down here. I can totally smooth things over with the Cohens." Kirsten, specifically. He moves to the door, opens it and Summer is standing there, having accidentally eavesdropped.
"Hey, babe. Just... squaring away Ryan and Caroline's last minute arrangements, wishing I could do something," he tries.
But her face is pretty clear, stepping inside as Seth swerves. She closed the door as her back pushes against it.
"You're all pranking me, right?" )
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[Caroline looks to Ryan, raising her eyebrows like is this a good or bad thing? These are his family, she hasn't really spent enough time with them to know whether or not she's doing or saying the right thing.
And they also really don't have time for Vampire 101 right now.]
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"Bro-code with a plus-one?" Seth asks.
"I don't know! I was giving you space for when you were inevitably going to let me in on Ryan's crazy vampire life, apparently." Except for the vampire part. She sighs. "You Taylor's like super mixed up in all this, too?" she asks.
"Taylor Townsend?" )
I haven't talked to Taylor in years.
( "Well, I have. She helps people. And, I took her at face value because she had to vent about everything. I guess her boyfriend is also in on it, too." )
She has a boyfriend.
( "Can we focus? You're not freaking out or wanting to commit your husband or his brother or his brother's girlfriend?"
"I'm not close-minded, Seth."
"I'm not - that isn't what I'm saying. Or, trying to say." )
How about you two deal with Sandy and Kirsten and I promise when we come back, I'll answer both of your questions. Brutal honesty.
( "Brutal, Atwood." Summer says. "Because I am not being left out of this." )
You won't. Anymore. Right, Seth?
( He kind of liked that there was one thing he and his wife didn't share, but, yeah, that works for him, too.
"Hey, yes. I don't... know everything either. And it's not like I was hiding it well." )
Or, hiding it at all.
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She'll see her family soon, but she's glad that Ryan has this too.]
Yes. We will answer all the questions. But right now we really have to go.
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She did sound terrible.
( Summer's new mom. Her dad did not pick great the second time around. )
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[Caroline, sadly, has no stepmonster experience. Stephen was great, and her mom never dated (though Caroline told her she should!)]
We can totally unload all of that when we get back.
[Now that they're all in on the vampire secret, does this mean she's part of the gang now???]
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She is probably a part of the gang now! It's been the trio for so long.
Summer drags her husband out, though, because they have places to be. Sandy just tells Ryan to be careful and Kirsten says she'll see them soon. )
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