𝟑𝟖

a/n: Lottie's ( new nickname, wink face ) outfit for the chapter is above!

☆═━ 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘 𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 ━═☆

Charlotte skipped school and chose to dedicate the whole day to Cassie and Serena, it was, after all, Cassie's eighth birthday. She turned off her phone before turning to her littlest niece, "All free, what are we doing today?"

"Anything...?" Cassie shrugged her shoulders, giggling.

"Anything?" Charlotte raised an eyebrow, smiling inwardly.

"Everything!"

The brunette vampire's grin mirrored Cassie's as she rose to her feet, lifting the girl in her arms, "Well, then we will do everything! We will get ice cream, we will go to the movies, play at the park, have milkshakes at the Grill, and we will do everything you wish to do because you are the birthday girl," She poked her nose, finishing.

Cassie giggled once again, wrapping her arms around Charlotte's neck. Her eyes were lighting up with excitement as she turned to her older sister, "Are you coming, too? Please say yes."

"I wish I could, Cass," Serena pursed her lips in a straight line, rubbing the back of her neck, "I tried to cancel my shifts today but Matt bailed at the Lockwood's and I have to go and—"

Noticing how upset Cassie was getting, Charlotte chose to cut in, "It's fine," She paused, stating, "Cassie and I will do the classics, not very fun-ish things. Until you are free to join us."

"Alright, Cassie?"

"Will you let me sleepover at CJ's today? It's my birthday."

"Nice try," She petted her head, still holding her in her arms as she walked to the door, "But not going to happen, ever. If CJ wants to sleepover then it's at our house."

Cassie huffed out, "But—"

"Uh uh, no, nope. Not going happen, sweetheart."

✵ ✵ ✵

Charlotte held Cassie up so she could take a full look at all of the flavors at the ice cream shop, "I want this...this one, too. And that one, yes, over there—"

The brunette vampire chuckled, shaking her head, "Calm down, sweetie. The shop won't go away tomorrow, leave room for the rest of the day's food."

Cassie furrowed her eyebrows, pulling out her best convincing pout, "But Seerie is never free to take me here."

"Well then I will take you, whenever you want," Charlotte placed a kiss on her niece's forehead, tickling her sides before suggesting, "Why don't we both take a double? I am definitely having chocolate."

The birthday girl giggled, claiming, "I love chocolate, too! We should have it with a mango ice cream on top of it."

"I like how you think," She chuckled, nodding enthusiastically.

Charlotte took a look at their ice creams in the employer's hand, almost feeling the cold sweet substance on her tongue as she left his bill and put Cassie back on the ground.

"Okay, what's next?"

"Hmm...," Cassie licked her ice cream, accidentally taking a bite before jumping up as the freezing cold ice cream got to her senses, "Oh...that felt good but it...was freezing!!"

The older Bernard shook her head, laughing aloud before an idea popped into her mind, "Oh, we should go to the kids' park! They brought in a new swing!"

Cassie frowned, looking up at the supposedly seventeen-years old girl walking next to her, "How would you know that?"

"Just because I am in high school doesn't mean I don't get to hang out in the kids' park. I have actually made a friend out of the security guy there," Charlotte shrugged her shoulders, nonchalantly, further surprising the youngest Bernard.

"How are you not the coolest teenager to ever live?"

It was Charlotte's time to giggle, then, sitting down to match Cassie's height. She poked her nose, claiming, "Because the title is already taken out by," She paused, mimicking a drum roll, "You, in five years from now."

"Really? So, I won't go through that phase where teens are all...life is depressing and stuff?" Cassie raised an eyebrow before asking, "What does depressing mean, by the way?"

Charlotte knitted her eyebrows, contemplating how to put it, "Depressing means...sad, really sad but people who go through that kind of sad...they are alone. You are not and you never will be."

"Did you ever go through that?"

"I think, at some point," She nodded to herself, admitting.

Cassie stood still for a few seconds before lunging at the vampire, embracing her as tightly as she possibly could, "Well, you will not again. Because I am here for you, too."

She smiled, hugging Cassie back. God, and did it feel nice for once in her life to do something good. Around Cassie, no matter how dangerous it could be sometimes, Charlotte was happy. Charlotte was honest with her, she liked how Cassie viewed the world in her eyes when she was just a human.

She liked how overprotective she found herself around that little girl who was presumably her niece and she felt something that vampirism took from her a long while ago. Charlotte felt like...a mother.

Such an odd yet warm feeling. Being responsible, worried, and paranoid 24/7 but having those moments where she can just hug Cassie and feel like she is doing something right, that she is good at one thing.

✵ ✵ ✵

She took her to the kids' park, pushing her off on the swing as Cassie's giggles and excited laughs rung through the empty park. It was twelve and Monday, all of the kids were at their schools, except for one, extremely happy, birthday girl.

"C'mon, it's your turn," Cassie got off the swing, standing aside as Charlotte smiled, taking her place, "You know...Serena never took me here, not at least one time."

"She is just always busy, kiddo," Charlotte shrugged her shoulders, excusing her other niece.

Cassie wrapped her arms around herself, "She is so busy that sometimes she forgets that I am right here."

The brunette vampire, realizing where that conversation was going, stopped swinging back and forth to be able to have an actual conversation with her niece. "Serena will always love you and care about you, unconditionally. She is your big sister, your second mother."

"No, you are."

She shook her head, pursing her lips in a straight line, "I love you a lot, I do but that place is strictly reserved for Serena."

"I don't care," Cassie shrugged her shoulders, "I gave it to you because you deserve it more. You deserve a lot of things," She folded her arms over her chest, recalling, "Our teacher, Mia, told us that the good people deserve every good thing. And you are good, you could win the good people competition if there were any."

Charlotte chuckled, "Well, thank you for that kind nomination, Cassie."

"Your welcome, anytime, Char."

She chuckled once again, poking her niece's nose before lifting her up and spinning her around as the little girl laughed aloud, "Weeeee!!!"

✵ ✵ ✵

Charlotte returned back to the Salvatore Boarding House, smiling from ear to ear as she looked over at the pictures she took with Cassie all throughout the day and all of their selfies, laughing at Cassie's duck pose, or attempt at.

Her smile subsided as she took a look at Elena, crying at the staircase, "Lena? What...what happened?"

"Isobel is dead."

Charlotte frowned, she didn't even know Isobel was back in town. She sat down on the staircase beside Elena, "I am...uh...I am sorry." Part of her didn't know Elena would be that devasted over the loss of someone like Isobel Flemming but she guessed, that no matter what, she was still her mother. The same mother that gave her away and threatened her adoptive brother.

"Is that Isobel's?" Stefan came in, asking as he took a look at the necklace in his girlfriend's hands.

Elena sighed, looking up at him, "I never thought I would feel bad about her being dead, and yet..."

Charlotte shrugged her shoulders, "I don't get it either but she was your mother, you don't need an excuse to feel sad about her death."

She nodded, changing the topic, "Why did they let me go?"

Charlotte scratched the back of her head, "What exactly happened today? I am a bit lost."

Elena started with Isobel turning up at her door and informing Jenna that she was her biological mother, in retaliation, Jenna left to stay on campus. Katherine, as expected, betrayed them by stealing the moonstone and pretending to be Elena with Stefan while Isobel kidnapped Elena.

Only to tell her a sad story about her past self before taking off her daylight necklace and burning to death in front of Elena. Finalizing it with a high chance of Klaus knowing that she exists.

"Woah..."

"He knows I'm not gonna run," Elena shrugged her shoulders, pursing her lips in a straight line.

Damon walked in, stating, "Which is why we need to take some precautions, 'cause we got played, all of us," He put some papers in her lap.

"What's this?"

Charlotte skimmed through the papers as Stefan answered, "It's the deed to our house. It's in Zach's name. As soon as you sign it, it'll be in your name."

The brunette vampire raised her eyebrows as Elena questioned with widened eyes, "You're giving me your house?"

Stefan crossed his arms, saying, "Isobel had the right idea with the safe house," He shrugged, ever so simply, "You'll just stay here till it's all over. That way, you can control who gets invited and who doesn't."

"Cool, I will give her a list of who deserves to be in and who deserves out."

"Although I'll be super pissed if you lock me out," Damon claimed.

Charlotte shrugged, giving him a one-sided smile, "Damon, you are the first one on the list of 'not allowed to come in, under any circumstances'. You are even before Klaus in that list."

He chuckled, shaking his head at her before John Gilbert gasped awake, frightening Charlotte as she just realized he had been lying there on her favorite couch ever since she walked in.

Damon rushed over to him, lifting him up by his collar, "I swear I had no idea what she was gonna do. I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry!" John babbled aloud.

"Damon, let him go. He and I need to talk."

"Wow...now, I know why my uncles were so careful with their actions around me but whatever you have cooked up, that lying ghost of a father deserves every part of it."

✵ ✵ ✵

Charlotte was standing with Damon and Stefan in the library as Elena talked with her uncle slash biological father, running over the events of the day, "So, the spell worked?"

"Yep," Damon popped out the 'p', "She's locked and loaded."

"At least something went right today," Charlotte crossed her arms over her chest, "I mean...with you guys. Today was awesome for me."

"Katherine has no idea that Bonnie got her powers back?"

"Uh-uh," Damon shook his head.

"And Isobel had no idea what you and Jeremy took Bonnie to do today?"

"No to that, too," Charlotte nodded, exchanging a look with Damon.

"We're the only ones who know."

Damon claimed, crossing his arms over his chest, "That literally makes Bonnie our secret weapon."

"Hey!" Charlotte hit Damon's arm, "That's a person and a very close friend of mine."

✵ ✵ ✵

this chapter was so effortless but it was actually my favourite, I love writing charssie scenes!!!