Founder's Day

*AGE CHANGE FROM 12 to 14*

Emma came downstairs after waking up. She walked into the kitchen where she noticed something off. Her parents weren't there. That's weird, they're always up before, especially her mother. She wakes up early to start making breakfast for everyone.

Emma turned around and went back up the stairs and to her parent's room. She knock twice. "Momm- ahem- Mom? Dad?" she said. No answer. She knocked again. "Mom. Dad. Wake up."

Silence. She twisted the door knob and opened the door. Their bed was empty. Where could they be? Emma walked out and went into Jenna's room to see that she wasn't there either. What's going on? She heard the front door open which made her run downstairs with a smile. But it was replaced with confusion when she only saw Jenna and Elena at the door.

"Jenna, where's Mom and Dad?"

The two looked at the young girl with tearful eyes. "Em, I think you need to sit down." Jenna said, motioning to the couch.

Emma furrowed her eyebrows but sat down anyways. "What's wrong?"

Elena left the room, tears falling down her face. That only made Emma more confused. What's happening? "Honey, your mom and dad were in an accident." Jenna began.

Emma's eyes widened. "What? Are they okay? A-are they in the hospital? Can I see them?" she frantically asked.

Jenna closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She opened them again and looked at Emma. "They're- they're gone, Em."

"What do you mean gone?" Emma asked slowly, scared of where this was leading to.

"They didn't survive the accident." Jenna said.

Tears flowed out of the young girl's eyes. They didn't survive? But they're her parents, they are supposed to live forever. "No, no, no, no. Jenna, where are they? Where are they?" she asked.

Jenna shook her head. "I'm so sorry."

Emma let out a sob. They're gone. She'll never see them again. They won't be able to see her off to school anymore. Won't be able to hug her or kiss her or tell her goodnight. She won't be able to see they're smiles or hear their laughs. She cried even harder. Jenna wrapped her arms around Emma and brought her into a tight hug. They're gone. They're gone.

~♡~

Emma woke up with a gasp. She lifted her hand to her face and felt wetness. She had cried. Who wouldn't when they dream about something like that? Emma got up and went to her mirror. Today is going to be a good day. There is absolutely nothing that is going to bring her down. It had to be a good day. It just had to.

It was Founder's Day, and everyone in the town was going to be in town square celebrating it. She was going to make the most of it and try to enjoy it as well. Emma got ready and went downstairs to the kitchen. Though she was surprised when she heard loud voices.

"Happy Birthday!" Jenna, Jeremy, and Elena shouted.

Elena was already dressed it her costume for the Founder's Day parade and Jeremy looked like he was half way done getting ready.

Emma smiled and crossed her arms, leaning against the counter top. "My birthday already passed, guys. Like, I don't know, back in August?"

"Okay, yes. That may be true, but we weren't there to celebrate with you properly since John was, well, John." Jenna explained. "Whatever! Now, come on, come on. We have birthday pancakes made and ready for you to eat." she said, guiding the girl to the dining table where a plate of steaming pancakes with syrup poured on top sat.

"Thanks. You really didn't need to do this." Emma said, scooting in her chair and picking up a fork. She cut into the stack and took a bite, an 'mmh' sounding from her mouth in delight. "Wow. This is really good. You've really out done yourself, Jenna."

Jenna laughed. "Why, thank you. I couldn't have done it without the help of these two who are going to clean up the mess." Jeremy groaned while Elena chuckled. "Okay so eat your food and I'll be right back." Jenna said, before leaving to go upstairs.

Jeremy handed a fairly sized box to Emma as she began to eat the pancakes. "Happy Birthday, baby sis." Emma grabbed it and opened it. She smiled and hugged Jeremy.

"Oh, my god. Thank you, Jer." What Jeremy got her was what she's been asking for for a while now. It was a book she wanted to read called, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. She heard a lot about it from some people she knew. "This is the best."

"Glad you like it." Jeremy said. Elena went to stand next to him but he moved out of the way, giving her a look.

Elena cleared her throat, pretending not to see it and turned to Emma. "Here, Em, something to wear on your special day." Elena gave her a box and when Emma opened it, she smiled big. The clothes she got was a beautiful light blue laced dress that would go up to her knees and light blue flats to match.

Emma hugged Elena. "It's so pretty! Thank you."

Jenna came back into the kitchen, holding a small box. "Okay, my turn." Jenna held out the box. "Happy Birthday."

Emma grabbed it. The box was small enough to hold a type some sort of jewelry. She slowly opened it and gasped at what was inside. There lay a locket that belonged to the late Miranda Gilbert. Tears formed in Emma's eyes, flashbacks of her nightmare last night coming back to her.

"She would have wanted you to have it." Jenna said, putting a hand on Emma's shoulder. Emma nodded and opened the locket. There was a picture inside of their parents.

"Thank you." Emma hugged Jenna tightly. When she pulled away, she put the locket on and stood up. "Okay, don't we have somewhere to be?"

Jenna gasped. "That's right! Okay, you," She pointed at Emma. "Quickly put your outfit on. You," She pointed at Jeremy. "Once Em's done, we are going to go. You have someone to ride with, right?" Jenna asked. Jeremy nodded. "Alright, hurry." 

~♡~

  "Ow. This dress hurts." Elena said, as she and Emma walked around, looking for Stefan.

Emma rolled her eyes. "Quit being a baby." They continued to search when they finally found Stefan, who was standing next to Damon. The two vampires couldn't stop staring at Elena, probably because of how much she reminded them of Katherine. Elena did a small curtsy. They met each other half way.

"Hi." Stefan greeted, mostly looking at Elena in awe.

Elena smiled. "Hi." They stared into each other's eyes while Emma and Damon shifted uncomfortably.

"Well, we are going to go." Damon said, grabbing onto Emma's wrist and taking her away.

Emma furrowed her eyebrows. "Wait, Damon. What are you doing?" He took her towards the floats.

Damon sighed. "Listen, we need to let Stefan and Elena have a private moment. He's going to tell her something important."

"Like what?"

Damon stopped walking and turned to her. "It would appear that Uncle John is really Daddy John." Damon said.

Emma's eyes widened. "What?! As in, Elena's dad?!" she exclaimed.

"No, as in the Cookie Monster, yes, Elena's dad." Damon said, rolling his eyes at the same time.

Emma looked over at where Stefan and Elena were at to see her distraught look. "Is it even possible?" she asked.

"Well, yeah. They dated when Isobel was a teenager and he took her to your father's clinic for delivery. It makes sense." Damon explained.

Emma huffed. "That's so strange. I mean he's my uncle. That would mean Elena's technically my cousin." She put her hands on her head. "This is crazy." she said.

Damon looked at her and where Elena and Stefan were, then back at her. "I think Elena's taking this better than you are."

Emma rolled her eyes and turned away from him. She spotted Jeremy. "I'm going to go talk to Jeremy." She left before he could say anything. "Hey, Jer." she said when she got to him.

"Hey, Birthday Girl. How's your day so far?" he asked.

Emma shrugged. "It's alright." They walked in silence. "Jer, are you still mad?"

Jeremy sighed and stopped walking. "Not as much towards you, mostly Elena."

"Jeremy, you know Elena didn't really want to take away your memory. She was just trying to protect you." Emma defended.

"I don't need protecting, Em. I can take care of myself." Jeremy said.

Emma crossed her arms. "Just talk to her, okay? There has to be someway for her to fix this."

Jeremy shook his head. "You can't fix something like this that easily. Something like this doesn't just get fixed." he said. He turned around and let Emma standing there, watching after him. 

~♡~

Emma stood next to Bonnie as they watched the parade.

Carol Lockwood stood on a stage. "Let's give a big hand for Mystic Fall's High School Marching Band!" Emma and Bonnie cheered and clapped with the crowd. "And for a little local history, Mr. Saltzman's students have recreated Virginia's battle of willow creek." Emma laughed when she saw Taylor pretend to shoot Jeremy. And now the best part of the parade was coming. "Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our stunning Miss Mystic Falls court and their handsome escorts." Caroline, Matt, Stefan, and Elena waved at the crowd from the float. "This is Caroline Forbes, Miss Mystic Falls." Everyone cheered. Emma managed to catch Elena and Stefan's attention and waved at them. They smiled and waved back.

Emma looked at Bonnie. "Hey, I heard that you deactivated the device. Who knows what Isobel would do if it really worked."

Bonnie looked at Emma with a sad expression. "Yeah." They didn't talk for a bit till Bonnie spoke again. "Oh, my gosh. Happy Birthday, Em!" Bonnie said. She opened her arms out and engulfed the young girl in a hug.

"Oh, no. They roped you into this, too?" Emma questioned, chuckling and accepting the hug.

"Yes, they did. But, I completely forgot your present at home. I'll give it to you tomorrow, I promise."

Emma smiled. "Thanks, Bon." As they pulled apart, Damon appeared, making Emma roll her eyes. "What do you want, Damon?" she asked in an annoyed tone.

"Nothing that concerns you, pipsqueak." Damon said turning away from the girl to Bonnie. Though Bonnie began to walk away. "Wait, where are you going?"

"Away from you." Bonnie said.

'Oh, please don't leave, Bonnie." Emma pleaded.

Damon caught up to the witch. "I need to say something to you."

Bonnie turned around. "Just leave me alone."

"Thank you." Damon said. That caught Emma by surprise. It's not everyday that Damon goes around and thanks everyone for what they did for him. "The device that Emily spelled could have killed me. I don't take what you did lightly, so. . . thank you." Damon said.

"I did it for Elena and Emma." Bonnie said. When the witch found out that Emma had been taken by Isobel, she was quick to do the spell to get the young girl back.

Damon looked down. "I know that, but I'm still very grateful. And. . . I owe you." Emma watched Bonnie's reaction to see she looked kind of. . . guilty. "Enjoy the parade." Damon said, walking off.

Emma stared after him. Damon really is changing. "Let's cheer for the Mystic Falls high school football team. All right! Let's show them our support everybody." Carol cheered. Emma turned back to the parade, and clapped. 

~♡~

Emma was walking around when she saw Stefan, Damon, and Jeremy talking to each other. But to the young girl, it didn't look like a happy conversation.

"You shouldn't have made me forget." She heard Jeremy say before he walked off.

"What happened." she asked, crossing her arms.

Stefan shook his head. "Nothing. Jeremy's alight. I'm going to go find Elena. Oh, and Emma, Happy Birthday." he said with a smile before walking away as well.

Emma turned to Damon, arms still crossed. "It's your birthday?" he asked.

"No, and you're changing the topic." she responded with a hard expression on her face.

"What? Look, your brother was being a punk." he argued.

"That's none of your business, Damon. Just let Elena and I handle our brother. Okay?" Emma said, trying to reason with him.

Damon thought for a minute before sighing and nodding his head. "Okay." Once he said that, he saw Stefan come back. "Ugh, great. Looks like brother dear isn't done lecturing me. Scram." Damon said, waving his hands as to shoo her away.

Emma scoffed but left nonetheless, clearly annoyed that she is still treated like a little girl. 

~♡~

"You won! Congratulations! This is for you." the guy working the bean bag stand said. He handed Emma a small stuffed animal.

She smiled, mumbling a 'thank you' before walking away.

As she walked, she heard booms and saw that fireworks were in the sky. She smiled and watched with everyone else. Then, in the corner of her eye, she saw someone fall to the floor, clutching their head. She went to go to him but was pushed aside by some police officers. Though, when Emma fell, she hither head against a rock that was circling around a tree. She groaned and brought a hand to her head, feeling the pain pounding inside. Her vision was blurred because of tears forming from the pain. She felt people stop next to her.

"Another one." One of them said.

"Hey, isn't this a Gilbert?" A different voice asked.

"Doesn't matter. We have orders to get all of them."

She felt a light pinch on her arm but remained the same. Then, she felt herself being picked up and moved to who know where. After about a minute, she was set down. The smell of gasoline filled her lungs. When the people walked away, she knew she wasn't alone. Blinking multiple times, she looked around.

There were many bodies scattered around, all moaning and trying to get up. Not far from her, she saw Damon laying in the middle of the room and Anna next to him. But when she looked closely, she saw a stake plunged into Anna's chest. And then she heard splashing on the stairs. That's when the flames formed.

Emma gasped when she saw fire spread all around the room. She slowly crawled towards Damon, careful not to the vampires. "Damon." she breathed out when she was a foot behind him.

His head snapped in her direction. "What are you doing here?" he asked, shocked and worried that Emma was in there.

Emma coughed, the smoke from the fire made it difficult for her to breath. "I hit my head on a rock. I think they miss took me for a vampire." she responded, only to cough even more.

Damon reached an arm out and pulled her closer to him, to protect her from the flames. "Small breaths, small breaths." he instructed, glancing up at the basements stairs. Stefan, where are you?, he thought.

Emma tried her best not to breath so much but it was not easy. She looked around the room again, only to spot the Mayor's dead body not far from her. She gasp at the sight but that made her start to cough uncontrollably.

"Come on, Em. Breath slowly." Damon said, rubbing her arms. Just then, a beam from the ceiling fell next to them, making Damon pull Emma closer to her. Damon looked around, trying to find some way to get Emma out of there.

"Emma! Damon!"

Damon turned to see Stefan standing at the bottom of the stairs, staring at the two. He ran over and lifted Damon up to stand. "Come on." Stefan said and he sped out of there with them, using his vampire speed.

Emma took in a deep breath and coughed when she felt cool air. She looked up to see Damon already staring at her. "Are you okay?" he asked, his face covered with worry. Emma nodded in reply and hugged him, which he generously accepted.

"Oh, my god, Emma." Elena said, when she saw the state her sister was in. She went up to the young girl and pulled her into her arms. "Are you hurt? Anything broken. How'd you even get in there?" Elena frantically asked, checking Emma to make sure she was alright.

Emma slowly nodded, her head still hurting. "I'm fine, Elena." she said, in a small voice.

"I'm so sorry this happened to you, Em. I'm so sorry." Elena apologized, bringing Emma into a hug.

Emma hugged back, tightening her arms around Elena's waist. Emma looked around her sister as they hugged to see Bonnie standing behind them, looking down at the cement, ashamed and guilty for what she had gone. The Gilbert just shook her head and closed her eyes, feeling safe.

Elena ran her hands in Emma's hair, only to feel wetness. She pulled her hand away to see blood on her finger tips. "Emma, you're bleeding!" Elena said, catching everyone's attention.

Emma touched the spot Elena did and saw the blood on her fingers. "Oh, yeah. I, uh, hit my head." The more she thought about the pain, the more it hurt. She closed her eyes, her face showing how much it hurt.

Elena looked desperately at the Salvatores. "We need to take her to the hospital."

Damon walked forward. "I'll take her." He bent down and held Emma bridal style. He began to walk away but stopped when he made eye contact with Bonnie. Bonnie looked at Emma, feeling worse. Damon tightened his hold on Emma and left, using his vampire speed to get to the hospital.