In front of the mirror, Tyler splashed his face with water. The mirror reflected his shaved face, with a prominent vein on his forehead, creating a masculine look. In the background, a part of his room was visible, with sunlight streaming in.
He had already done his workout. He was already seeing newbie gains from the transformation. He previously feared he physically peaked, but it wasn't true, and this relieved him. He didn't know how strong he could become by continuing like this, but he had to push himself to the maximum until the next full moon if he was going to take on those vampires in the tomb.
He also had Damon to worry about. In the first week of school, he would act recklessly and attack many people, including Caroline and Vicki.
Today was Sunday, and tomorrow was the first day of school, September 7th. The day after that, Tuesday, was the day of the school party.
He left the bathroom to put on a shirt, and then he went to the first floor.
He saw his father at the head of the table wearing casual gray clothing. Even on the weekend, his father didn't wear such clothes. This style was unexpected. His mom was still in her usual clothes.
"Tyler, come sit," his father called.
"Sure." He moved to the table and sat opposite his mother and to his father's right.
His ears picked up the sound coming from the opposite side of the house.
He asked, curious, "What's going on there?" There was no activity half an hour ago.
His mom, wearing a happy smile, said, "Your father made a call first thing in the morning to set up the gym. Richard, why not tell your son the details?"
Tyler and his father came face to face. A lot of emotions went through the man's face. He knew that his son wasn't completely human anymore. He also knew they weren't one to begin with. But he at least knew the reason for his aggression.
"Your specifications are hard to meet. 2000 lbs is the maximum that a bar can hold thanks to the thin iron plates. Anything more, I don't think it's possible other than creating ones that don't need to adhere to competition standards. I had also looked it up and bought machines that can hold 3 rows of weights, and cable machines."
His father started eating. Tyler, seeing this, said, "Thanks, Dad."
His father just made a hand gesture and his mom smiled. He was suddenly more hopeful for the future.
Compound moves were easy yesterday. He had done 1200 lbs, but it was just what was available. He should be able to do more because he felt like he could throw a person across the room. TV rarely showed scenes of lifting things, but power speaks for itself. Putting it into perspective, Klaus gave the vibes of being able to lift a school bus and throw it. Imagining him being able to do it means he probably can. Not showing the feat in a scene doesn't mean they weren't that powerful.
Tyler felt a little depressed now. Werewolves weren't given a chance to begin with. As for speed, he was helpless. There's no way he can reach the level of disappearing and reappearing with practice without partial transformation or in wolf form. Only a few werewolves reached that amount of power in the complete series while in human form, and they had to be alphas and marry a hybrid for unification of powers. He was not an alpha, and also didn't have those people who do the rituals in his pack.
If his Lockwood family had more members, it would have been so much easier.
After they had their breakfast, he opened his contacts and called Bonnie.
It was picked up after a few seconds, "Good morning, Tyler. What can I do for you?"
"Hi, Bonnie," he answered, "There are some town matters my father left for me to handle. One of them involves your grandmother. Is she available today?"
Bonnie said, "Wait a second."
In the background, he heard them talking, and Sheila said she was free today.
Bonnie said, "Did you hear that?"
Tyler answered, "Yeah, thanks, Bonnie. I will be there in half an hour."
"Oh," she said, "I won't be home then. You guys can handle it."
"Thanks, Bonnie. See you tomorrow at school."
"Bye." She hung up the phone.
Tyler wasn't sure how Sheila would receive him. Was she as hateful of werewolves as vampires? He didn't know. He should be okay. She had known him for his lifetime.
He picked up his mom's car keys and told her that Caroline would come tonight. He didn't need to tell her what would happen for her to understand. She told him that he could be at ease as they would also not be home after noon.
…
In ten minutes or so, he parked outside the Bennett house. He went to the door and knocked on it.
Footsteps sounded from inside, making his heart race. Once the door opened, he saw Sheila Bennett. She looked nicer to him face to face.
Tyler greeted her, "Hey, Mrs. Bennett. Can I come in?"
She didn't speak, but turned her body, seemingly leaving the choice in his hands. Was she that paranoid?
He stepped through, and a smile blossomed on her face. "How's Carol doing? I didn't expect them to send you to handle any work."
"Ah," Tyler handed her the files they borrowed, and searched for words as they went to the sitting room and took a seat. "Actually, I also came here for one more reason, Mrs. Bennett. It's about vampires."
She looked like she was trying to see if he was fishing for words from her, but as he looked at her seriously, she said, "Go on."
"You must have heard about what happened a century or so ago, with your ancestor and the vampires, right? Her name, I suppose, must be Emily. You see, I had chanced upon certain details about our history, including my own family's, and now vampires seem to come into town to search for and free those… 26 vampires."
She looked disturbed at the numbers. Good.
Tyler continued, "It was supposed to be 27, but it seems one of my ancestors had a thing for werewolf and vampire romance. The taboo of it all. Another one of her victims who she sired also thinks that she is inside that tomb, and he's already here. He has a daylight ring."
"Say no more," Sheila said. "Are you…"
"Yes," Tyler admitted. "I made my first transformation yesterday. And the thing is, I had to make it. Our town is in danger, Mrs. Bennett, and I need your help to have the strength to protect it."
Sheila didn't so much as twitch. She seemed to want to hear his pitch.
"I had found records dating back thousands of years ago, talking about the Original family. And how the Original witch had cursed one of her children with the blood of what would be the bloodline of Elena Gilbert, who is adopted. They will come, Mrs. Sheila. And there are only a few things that can stop the Original family."
"I would like to hear what it is, Tyler." Now her hands were gripping the seat, and the entire room started shaking.
"Numbers, unity, and strength. With them I believe I can protect this town. But for this, only a witch like you can help me. Otherwise, it would take decades for me to create new lines of werewolves."
He felt like drowning as pressure boiled around him, his skin prickling. Thankfully, he was beyond human. And she wasn't that violent with him.
Sheila said, "You expect me to create more werewolves? Torture innocent humans, leaving them with trauma and responsibility that they don't deserve?"
He wasn't a vampire. That ringing sound will last for half an hour at least. "Who said anything about you doing this, Mrs. Sheila? I want you to give me the ability to do so."
"Oh." The pressure left as if it didn't exist. "To make that kind of change, young man, you think too highly of me."
Tyler knew that it was now or never. "Maybe not by yourself."
"Bonnie is out of the question!"
Tyler rubbed his head. So frustrating. "Please let me speak."
Seeing her nod, "Vampires could transform others. So why not werewolves? Both are entities created by witches. You just have to take the ability from, let's say, 26 vampires and adapt it to me. You just need to channel it."
She laughed. "Just? JUST?"
"Yes. You, nor Bonnie, will have to go against what's coming. I will be the first line of defense. I will be the one who will go against a thousand-year-old lunatic family that actually originated from this very land all those years ago. I will be the one that will kill the enemies, though original ones can't be killed so I need to numbers to go against them. If you think you can do all this, be my guest. But don't expect me to continue living here. I, nor my family, am planning to die anytime soon. Will you do it?"
"Even if I managed to do it, you will still be weak. Even now, against a new vampire, you probably can't fight."
"I know how rituals work, Mrs. Bennett. That's 26 vampires. With one alone you should be able to achieve the result if you put your mind to it. With 26, I believe it's enough to do so much more. Please be creative. Some resources said the Bennett family was a long line of witches, and one of them was said to be at the level of the Original witch. Just make a list of what's possible and what's not, and leave the choice to me."
Sheila's fingers tapped her knees as she probably thought of the probabilities. He let her. Honestly, he wasn't sure what could really be made. He just knew magic was powerful. Powerful enough to do anything in the right conditions.
26 vampires, that was a big number. There's even a 500-year-old one inside. If he captured her, he could use her endlessly. But he preferred just killing them. He was ready for that sin.
"Tyler." Sheila's gaze paused his thoughts. "I need to know. How can you guarantee I won't regret this?"
Tyler smiled. "I've never seen a witch who doesn't backstab or outright cheat. Need I say more? I am sure you are thinking of a fail-safe more than the ritual itself."
Tyler got up. He had said enough. "I believe the vampire will contact Bonnie or you. He's a lunatic. He would do everything to retrieve his sire, who isn't even present. I will leave it to you to lead him by the nose if you don't plan to help me - the one who would be dealing with all of this. Oh, besides him, other vampires have begun digging. I'm sure you'll need to arrange something if you don't want to deal with the upcoming hoard of vampires. I have done my part. It all depends on you whether you help me or choose to do it alone."
He gave her the number he had previously written on a paper. "I have gone through all this pain to do what I should be doing, Mrs. Bennett. I hope you will be a partner in all our troubles and contact me before it's too late."
He left without looking back. He guessed Damon would force her hand to choose him. That lunatic would not believe unless he saw for himself that Katherine wasn't in the tomb. When they arrived here, it would be the day she summoned him.
Perhaps it might be sooner than expected.
…
Tyler pulled the car a block away from Caroline's home and called her.
After the ringing, an energetic voice came from her. "Yes, Tyler?"
"I was thinking," he looked at the sky for a moment. The sky wasn't that clear, but clear enough for the sun to get through. "Why not spend some time in my pool while the weather is good? Are you okay with it?"
"But I was doing my hair," Caroline's voice sounded troubled.
"A bikini would be far better than any preparation you might have made for tonight. I am outside. Just get your things."
After a few seconds of silence, "Alright. I will be fast." Then she ended the call.
Tyler got comfortable in his seat. After ten minutes he saw Caroline in a white skirt that reached the middle of her thighs and a loose shirt over blue bikini tops that were visible below. She had minimal makeup, with enough done so that it wouldn't be bland, and had a large brown bag strapped on her shoulders.
His eyes shone. He pressed the horn just a tiny bit so that it wouldn't be irritating. Once she turned towards his car, she moved with quick steps in her white sandals.
Once on the other side of the door, she opened it and gave a look before jumping inside.
He closed in and gave her lips a quick kiss. He took her bag and put it in the back. His eyes were going to be on her every possible second, and he didn't want anything to hide her from his sight.
"Your look great. I should've invited you to swim a lot more." He complimented her, not rushing to start the car. He had called his parents to notify them. He had the house to himself until 7 pm and asked them to make arrangements to clean the pool water.
"Thank you." She looked at his clothes. It was on a whim that he came so early, so he still wore a t-shirt and pants. She must have noticed the circumstances.
"What are you waiting for? Let's go." She batted her eyes and pulled the safety belt over, flashing her cleavage just enough for him to get excited.
He started the car and took off, all thoughts of waiting for the pool to get ready were out of his mind.