CHAPTER ONE : DEAD PARENTS AND FIRST DAYS
❝ R. QUINN ❞

♪ woodland by the paper kites ♫

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      ROSEMARY QUINN WAS NOT INEXPERIENCED WITH THE MOURNING PROCESS.  Just three years ago, her beautiful mother had passed away because of breast cancer.  The Quinn matriarch knew it was coming and so did her family, so they soaked up the last few weeks they had with one another. 

      Rosemary would bake her mother's favorite desserts and spoil her with all the junk food she'd missed out on throughout chemotherapy.  Rosemary's sister, Samara, would practically smother their mother in the only way she truly knew how to love, expensive gifts and tear filled farewells.  Emery Quinn, their father, would whisper sweet words and press kisses on her hands while they both recalled their life together.  Samara's daughters, Beverly and June, were distraught most days leading up to Marjorie's demise.  There wasn't an hour spent that they wouldn't be quietly crying in the hidden corners of the family's farmhouse.

      Marjorie Quinn left this world peacefully.  She had one hand in her lover's and the other petting her beloved golden retriever's head.  Her daughters and granddaughters were piled into the house's sunroom where she had wanted to have her hospital bed placed while she drifted away.  Rosemary had a hand stroking her mother's greying hair and the two youngest Quinns sat at their grandmother's feet.  Samara stood by the room's entrance with tears streaming down her face and a hand on the door knob, ready to flee.  (When things got too much, she ran away.  She always had.)

      It was just as the sun was rising in the sky and the family's rooster crowed that the revered Quinn matriarch took her last breath.  She had a smile on her face as she closed her eyes.  For a minute, she looked as though she was simply sleeping but Samara took one look at her mother's still chest and ran.  (She's never been back and part of Rosemary resents her for it.  All of Beverly does and June just goes quiet at the mention of their mother's name.)

      As she gazes at Elena Gilbert immersed in conversation with her best friends near her locker, Rosemary Quinn's mind floods with memories of her mother's wrinkled hands and the yellow dress she wore in her mahogany coffin.  Then she felt both anger and empathy flood her bones.  Angry at God for taking away the parents of two high schoolers she'd had the privilege of watching grow up.  Angry at Him for not giving them the peace or chance at goodbye He had given her.  Empathy for the beautiful brown eyed girl she'd coached for two years who had never done anything to deserve such pain.  Empathy for the artistically inclined Jeremy Gilbert who needed the guidance of his mother and father.  Empathy for Jenna Sommers who was forced to become a mother to children that were not her own, just as she herself had.

      She swallowed her emotions and put on a remarkably bright smile as she journeyed down the high school hallway that was slowly becoming crowded.  She sported a new hairstyle, long brown locks now being cut to her shoulders.  The decision to cut it had been out of practicality rather than stylish reasons.  Longer hair often got in the way of the farmwork that took up most of her summer so she just chopped it off with some kitchen scissors.  Luckily, it didn't look like a trainwreck.

      She sent Bonnie Bennett and Elena Gilbert a polite smile as she moved past where they stood near the entrance to the main entrance.  They returned the gesture, one more genuinely than the other.

      It didn't surprise Rosemary to see the room mostly empty.  The small town of Mystic Falls rarely got new students and if it did, school schedules were given out by the counseling department near the nurse's office anyway.  What did surprise her was the unfamiliar figure standing in front of the main desk.

      He stood at a decent height─ easily towering over her─ and had broad shoulders hidden underneath a faux leather jacket with a grey hood attached.  He had light brown hair styled neatly but she couldn't see his face so she couldn't really gauge if she'd seen him before.

      The teacher's sudden appearance seemed to interrupt the exchange the new kid and the school staff member were having, as they both turned to her.  The endearing secretary named Gina looked to be in a haze which made the art teacher raise an eyebrow but she didn't say anything. 

      A wide grin appeared on the older woman's face, "Good morning, Rosemary!  This is Mr. Salvatore, our new student.  He's a junior!"

      Rosemary finally looked the young man in the face, a small smile on her lips.  He had forest green eyes and a tan complexion with thick eyebrows.  She was sure that she'd never seen him a day in her life.

       The Quinn reached her hand out to the taller boy, the kind smile still engraved on her face.  He took it in his own to shake.  "I'm Rosemary Quinn.  You can call me Miss Q or Miss Rose if you like."

      "I'm uh, Stefan Salvatore." His lips were turned upward slightly in the corner.

       She hummed, eyebrows furrowing for a second.  Salvatore, huh?

       "Well, I'm sure you haven't been giving Mrs. Gina here any trouble, have you?" She walked to the corner of the room where a coffee maker rested.

      "No ma'am."

      The reply made her heart melt.  Rosemary had a good feeling about the teenager in front of her and she decided right then that he'd become one of her kids.

      Rosemary stirred a little bit of sugar and cream into her mug, "Good answer.  I'll fight tooth and nail for Mrs. Gina here."

      The middle aged woman waved her off with a flattered expression, "Hush now, Ro."

      The Quinn chuckled as she took a sip of her coffee, not caring about the piping temperature and leaned over the secretary's shoulder.  "What's his schedule?"

      She let her chocolate eyes scan over the computer screen.  "Ew, you have Tanner for history."

       Gina playfully smacked her hand as she scolded, "Girl, don't talk about your coworkers like that."

      She took a glance at the light haired boy still standing in the front office who looked at her in amusement and she mouthed, "He's terrible."

      A smile fought it's way to the teenager's lips.  He quite liked the shorter, cheery woman he'd just met.

      "But I have you for last period!  Yay!" Rosemary cheered genuinely, doing a little dance.  "You good at art, Stefan?"

      Said boy trailed off, "Uh..."

      The brunette waved him off, "You'll learn.  Just ask Lockwood."

      He raised an eyebrow.

      "You wouldn't care to show him around before the bell rings, would you, sweetheart?"

      There was no way she could tell a sweet woman like Gina no, so she hummed with a nod. 

      The secretary handed the new student a packet and pointed a finger at the seventeen year old, "You better not cause any issues for Miss Quinn, you hear me?  I'll drag you out by the hair on your head."

      A genuine smile made its way onto the Salvatore boy's lips.  He found it amusing how the older woman had threatened him, oblivious to his existence as a vampire.

      "Understood, Mrs. Gina."

      Rosemary made her way to the entrance with a curious Salvatore following behind.  "Have a nice day, Gina!"

      "You too, honey!"

      Stefan gave the secretary a small smile and waved, suddenly feeling bad about compelling such a sweet woman.

      The two continued down the hallway, Stefan closely listening to the mindless rambling the teacher let fall out of her lips.  He genuinely liked the twenty three year old woman.  She had an aura of kindness that infected everyone in a fifty mile radius and her soft country accent was very soothing.  It even made the likes of a filthy vampire like himself feel safe.

       He learned that she had a particular distaste towards Mr. Tanner─ called him misogynistic and pig headed.  He also found out that she was a member of one of the Founding families after she questioned his own relation to the small town.

      Their chatter was interrupted by the door to the boy's bathroom nearly hitting Stefan in the face.  Rosemary's jaw dropped at the sight of one of her cheerleaders exiting the restroom. 

      "Um, isn't this the men's room?" The new Mystic Falls student questioned, slightly confused but his expression soon turned starstruck.

      The art teacher was forced to watch in agony and second hand embarrassment as the two stammered in conversation.  Neither really made an intelligible statement.

      "I'm not gonna ask, not my business." Rosemary muttered underneath her breath, eyes wide as she looked at the floor.

      "No!" The dark haired girl exclaimed exasperatedly.  "No, uh, it was just something with Jeremy."

      Stefan Salvatore watched the two in amusement.

      Rosemary nodded, her own cheeks turning slightly pink before she cleared her throat.  "Jeremy?  What's wrong?  Can I help?"

      It was no secret to any of her students that Jeremy Gilbert tended to be her favorite out of any class she had him in.  The Quinn was his babysitter from when he was a toddler to just before sixth grade so it needed no explanation as to why she loved him so.  It also explained why there was a newfound worry in her eyes.

      The Gilbert girl sighed, shaking her head.  "Is it okay if I tell you after school, Miss Q?  I don't really feel comfortable to right now."

      Rosemary nodded seriously, patting the beautiful brunette on the shoulder in a comforting manner.  "Of course, just know you can tell me anything."

      Elena Gilbert smiled.

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      It was later that evening and Rosemary Quinn found herself sitting in a booth at The Grill.  She wanted to reward herself for getting through the day without pulling her hair out. (She hated freshmen.)

      She sent her waitress a small smile after receiving her order of fries and a chocolate milkshake.  She shoveled a handful of fries into her mouth before she saw Jeremy Gilbert trailing behind Vicki Donovan through the restaurant.

      Her brown eyes narrowed noticeably at the sight of the high school senior considering the newfound information Elena had given her just hours ago.  She hadn't had any issues with Vicki Donovan prior to then.  Sure, she talked a lot in her art class and caught an attitude every once in a while but she was Matt's older sister, so she was tolerable.  Now, though, Rosemary had a particular distaste for the girl even though she also held sympathy for her, too.

      Vicki Donovan was both a victim and an abuser, that's what made the situation so difficult.  She and her brother both grew up in a loveless home with a flighty mother and a strict grandmother.  Matt turned to burying himself in sports practices and a temporary relationship with the most popular girl in school and Vicki turned to illegal substances.  She did anything to get rid of the hole she had in her heart where her parents should have been and the next high seemed to make it nonexistent.

      Vicki Donovan needed help but there was only so much a high school art teacher could do, as pathetic as that excuse sounded. 

      But despite her trauma and her addiction, she had no right abusing Jeremy Gilbert.  Elena had revealed the details to her of the rendezvous the two had been involved in over the summer.  Vicki had preyed on the fifteen year old's youth and vulnerability following the death of his parents to get a drug and sex buddy all in one.  It disgusted Rosemary to no end and she genuinely wanted to have a discussion with Jeremy about his safety and manipulation but she knew it was not her place.

      She dipped a french fry into her shake and watched as Vicki waltzed her way to the table that her brother, Tyler Lockwood, and Rosemary's very own niece sat at together.  The art teacher snickered as June got a sour look on her face at the sight of the eighteen year old waitress flirting with one of her best friends.

      June Quinn has not liked the Donovan girl since she caught her trying to steal some of Matt and her own grandmother's medication some time last year. (June knew what it was like to depend on medication to function properly so she was pissed more than Matt was, even.) She didn't hide her contempt either─ it seemed that Rosemary was the only Quinn woman that was capable of putting on a facade for the sake of avoiding confrontation.

      Rosemary flicked her gaze back to the paperwork laid out on her table, signing her signature on the dotted line at the bottom of a random sheet.  She hated all the paperwork the most of all things at the beginning of the school year.  She dreaded it, actually.

      She returned her gaze back to the trio of high schoolers and a small smile came to her lips.  June Quinn was a tiny, pale girl with chestnut hair and a habit of feeling cold even in the summer. (For that reason, one of the boys' letterman jackets swallowed her whole.) Matt Donovan was bulky, tall in stature with ebony skin and a shining smile.  And Tyler Lockwood was pretty much the stereotypical jock but he had an affinity for watercolor painting and a soft spot very few saw.

      The two boys were immature and at times, reckless, but they were good to June Quinn.  They'd take a bullet for her if need be and Rosemary was grateful that her youngest niece had such people to care for her. (Even if she wanted to strangle them for eating her out of house and home whenever they came over.)

      Rosemary's paperwork and people watching session was interrupted by a familiar, raspy voice reaching her ears.  "Hey honey, how was your day?"

      A blinding grin automatically appeared on the art teacher's face at the sight of her father's aging face and faded CO-OP baseball cap.  Emery Quinn was the definition of a high quality Southern gentleman.  He had an Appalachian drawl that made Rosemary automatically think of home and a compassion for all those around him.  He was always willing to lend a helping hand and held true to the Christian philosophy of loving one's neighbor unconditionally.  He was just good, thoroughly good, and Rosemary considered herself lucky to call him her father.

      She stood to her feet, taking her father's arm and helping him into the booth beside her.  "My day has went just fine, Daddy.  How was yours?"

       Emery resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the way his daughter helped him sit down.  He was one of those older men that refused to accept help from others.  He knew he wasn't a spring chicken but he didn't need his daughter helping him sit down for goodness sake!  He wasn't dying, he just had bad knees! (And a bad back and a tendency to overwork himself.)

      "This old geezer tried to climb his way on top of the roof again!  Took a century for me to get him to come down." Rosemary's attention turned to her other niece upon hearing the raspy yet feminine voice that was like music to her ears.

      Beverly Quinn had the same chocolate hair and hazelnut eyes that all Quinn girls seemed to have.  However, she was much taller and lankier than the rest. (She took her height after her multi-millionaire athlete father that hadn't been in the picture except for a birthday card in the mail since she was six.)  She was a true chaotic neutral and had an affinity for mechanics.

      The art teacher narrowed her eyes at her father once Beverly's words set in, "You did what?  I told you not to be doing stuff like that anymore."

      "Well, somebody's gotta clean out the gutters before they get clogged up." The ornery sixty-three year old snarked and Rosemary let out a sound of disbelief.

      "Well, Papaw, I can do that.  You don't need to be doing all that by yourself at your age." Beverly told her grandfather seriously, sliding into the booth across from the two.

      "I'm sixty three, I ain't dying!" He muttered under his breath, shaking his head.

      His youngest daughter gave him a side eye, "I heard that."

      Emery smiled innocently before patting his daughter on her hand, "Now, how were the kids?  You have to put it to 'em straight yet?"

      The art teacher failed to notice the subject change but Beverly shook her head in amusement as Rosemary chattered on and her grandfather sent the nineteen year old a discreet wink.

      Beverly nearly jumped out of the booth when she felt someone sit next to her but a soft smile appeared on the girl's lips when she realized it was her sixteen year old sister.  Beverly wasn't much of a softie but when it came to her little sister, she'd do absolutely anything.  There wasn't much Beverly treasured in life other than her vintage Plymouth Belvedere and greasy pizza, but her family was at the top of the list. 

      She practically owed everything to her grandparents and aunt.  Even before her mother officially ditched them when Mamaw Marjorie died, Rosemary had been practically raising she and June every summer.  She had even gotten into a university in Nashville just so she could be closer to her nieces, even though her heart longed for the comfort of Virginia.  In all aspects but blood and law, Rosemary Quinn was a parent.

      Beverly wrapped an arm around the younger girl's shoulders, laid her head on the top of hers, and gave her a squeeze, "How you doin', dummy?"

      "My lungs still hate me but life is so-so." The scrawny girl replied and Beverly hummed.

      The older Quinn sister waved one of the waiters down that she knew from high school with a smile. 

      Across The Grill, a green eyed vampire stared at the family of four with an intrigued look in his eyes as they all laughed together.  He leaned down to the teenage girl that looked straight from his past and asked, "Who are they?"

      The blonde girl who had introduced herself as Caroline Forbes answered instead of the doppelganger.  "Oh, well you already know Miss Quinn.  Well, we get to call her Rosemary outside of class!"

      Stefan Salvatore viewed the peppy, somewhat shallow teenager as very amusing and actually listened to her intently.

      "The old man beside her?  That's Emery Quinn, her father.  He owns a family farm near the old boarding school and you've probably passed it, just didn't know it."

      Stefan's face lost all its color as guilt began to flood his veins.  He had killed one of their chickens trying to avoid consuming human blood last night.

      "Miss Quinn looks really young and he's..." Stefan trailed off and Caroline, of course, got the jist.

      "Oh yeah!  Ro was a surprise, her parents had her in their late thirties."

      The light haired brunette nodded with a hum.

      "The girl across from Ro?  That's Beverly, Rosemary's niece.  She graduated a year ago and works at the mechanic shop just down the street."

      He listened before saying, "She mentioned her nieces today when she introduced herself, but never mentioned a sibling."

      Caroline bit her lip, "Well there's Samara─"

      Both Bonnie Bennett and Elena Gilbert interrupted the cheerleader, "But we don't talk about Samara!"

     "Oh, yeah! Sorry!" The chatty blonde said briefly before continuing her spiel.

      "The girl beside Beverly?  That's June, the youngest niece.  She's in our grade!  She has a ton of spirit and fire for someone in her condition, I could never─"

      Stefan raised an eyebrow, "Her condition?"

      "She has cystic fibrosis."

      "CAROLINE!" The Bennett girl scolded for her blunt answer.

      "What?" Caroline raised her hands up in defense, "Everyone knows it!  Hell, June makes jokes about it with everyone!"

      The bickering of the three teenage girls faded into the background as Stefan turned back in the direction of the happy family.  He was surprised to see the Quinn patriarch staring right back at him with narrowed, knowing blue eyes.

      The eternally seventeen year old shuffled in his seat and broke eye contact.

      He was definitely intrigued by the Quinns now.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE !

hey guys!!  the first chapter is here and i'm so so happy that it is!!  i have worked so hard on this and have rewritten this chapter a million times!!

i absolutely adore the quinn family, they are so wholesome yet dysfunctional at the same time.  they're perfect tbh, at least in my head.  also, emery knows something?  hmm??

also, a few disclaimers before we get into the heat of the plot :

- tyler lockwood does not sexually assault vicki donovan, he's just an arrogant jock like he normally is in canon (why? it never made sense and was never revisited in canon except for that fight with jeremy then it was never discussed)

- damon salvatore never becomes romantically involved with caroline forbes (why? because that's pedophilia and it makes me uncomfortable because i ship steroline & klaroline.  also, the ways in which he sexually and emotionally manipulated caroline were never revisited, therefore it was lazy writing and i hated it.  it could've been such a source of character development─ negative or positive─ for both caroline and damon but j*lie plec sucks and wanted to have a supernatural love triangle with no sustenance to fulfill her y/n fantasies.)

- also,, vicki donovan is now played by zendaya in this poc!adaptation because of her phenomenal job as rue in euphoria

- and finally, this is unedited lol