「 . 𖦹˙-⋆ 𝐒𝐈𝐗 𝐅𝐄𝐄𝐓 𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑 」
⤿ 𝘛𝘖𝘞𝘕'𝘚 𝘍𝘈𝘝𝘖𝘙𝘐𝘛𝘌 𝘚𝘖𝘕🪦 ˖ ࣪. ࿐
𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 ┆𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘯𝘦
❪ ﹆ ━ 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘭 ⋆⭒˚.⋆ ❫

MUSIC BLASTED FROM the speakers of the stereo in Stefan's room as he does pull-up using a bean from the roof in his bedroom, Anastasia standing in front of him with a worried look on her face.

After her moment with Jeremy last night, she came back home, only to have her dad tell her about Elena feeding Stefan her blood the night they saved him from the house full of tomb vampires as her cleaned up the mess Stefan had left around his bedroom.

"Could you turn it up a little bit?!" Damon called as he walks into the room, a cup of blood in his hand, "It's not annoying yet."

"Sorry." Stefan grunted as Damon walked over to turn the stereo off.

"When are you going back to school?" Damon asked his brother, looking over at his daughter, "And shouldn't you be on the way to pick up Baby Gilbert?"

"I don't want to go if Uncle Stefan isn't go-,"

"Eloise." Stefan looks up at her from his position on the floor as he dropped down to do push ups, "I'll be fine. Go get Jeremy and go to school."

Anastasia stared down at her uncle for a few seconds before letting out a sigh, and quickly leaving the house.

彡☆

"COME ON, JEREMY! Going to school!" Elena called out to her little brother as she walked towards the front door, "Walking out the door now!"

"Forget this." Jenna rushed over to her niece, putting the thermos in her bag.

"Thank you." She opens the door, coming faced to face with her Uncle John who was just about to knock on the door.

John smiled at his niece, "Elena!"

"Uncle John! Hi!"

"Jenna." John looks towards the girl.

"John, you made it."

"I said I'll be here at noon." He says, walking inside the house.

"Oh, what you say and what you do are typically two very different things." Jenna says as Jeremy comes down the stairs.

"Uncle John, what's up?"

"Hey."

Jeremy tapped the man on the shoulder as he walked out the front door just as Anastasia was walking up to come inside to get him.

"Elena, you want a ride to school instead of driving?" Anastasia asked, only to get pulled away by Jeremy.

"No, she doesn't." He says, "I'm driving."

"Oh, no buddy." Anastasia shook her head, moving around him to get into the drivers seat, "Not this time."

Jeremy looked down at his girlfriend with his jaw dropped, only for her to raise an eyebrow at him before he signed and walked around to get in the passenger side of the car, "I'm driving after school."

"Hmm, we'll see."

彡☆

JEREMY AND ANASTASIA sat in the stoners pit of the school, her sitting above him on the table where they were sat as Tyler joins them and hold out a joint towards Jeremy.

"Nah." Jeremy shook his head, leaning back into Anastasia more.

"What's your problem?" Tyler questioned the Gilbert boy, handing the joint over to Anastasia who happily took a puff before handing it back.

"I just don't want any." Jeremy tells him.

"Alright." Tyler pauses for a moment, "They say she OD'd."

Anastasia tensed up slightly, knowing exactly who they were talking about.

"That's what I don't get, she was doing okay." Jeremy says.

"Apparently not."

"How did she end up buried in the woods?" Jeremy asked, "That's what I don't understand."

"By whoever was with her when she OD'd." Tyler answered.

"Yeah, but you leave her, you don't take the time to bury her."

"Maybe she saw something and....hell man, I don't know."

彡☆

DAMON WALKED INTO the Founder's hall where the new council meeting was being held.

"The coroner's office has officially ruled Vicki Donovan's death a drug overdose." Liz spoke to the member, "Her family had been notified, the truth will stay in this room and we can put this behind us."

"Thank you, Sheriff." Mayor Lockwood spoke as he walked over to take her place in front of everyone, "And onto a more pressing issue, John Gilbert has asked to say a few words."

Damon looked surprised at the man that was standing next to the Mayor.

"Hello, everyone, it's wonderful to see you, I wish it were under better circumstances." John says, "As a founding family member, I find it my duty to report some very distressing news."

"He's a Gilbert?" Damon asked Liz.

"Elena's uncle. His name is John but I call him jackass." Liz tells the vampire.

"A hospital blood bank is the neighboring country of Amherst reported several break-ins in the past two weeks. 7 hunters and 4 campers and 2 state employees have been reported missing as well. All of this within a 75 mile radius of Mystic Falls." John says.

"Okay, okay. No need to get alarmed right at this moment." Mayor Lockwood interrupted John.

"Meaning he doesn't want to cancel the Founder's Day kick-off party." Liz said to Damon.

"You think all of your problems are solved, but I'm here to tell you, nothing's been solved." John says as Damon starts to become uncomfortable.

彡☆

"I MADE A copy of the paper Jeremy wrote for me. I think you should take a look at it." Alaric says, handing Elena the paper Jeremy had given him weeks prior for extra credit.

' FACT OR FICTION - THE TRUTH ABOUT
VAMPIRES IN MYSTIC FALLS '

"Jeremy wrote this?" Elena asked.

"He's very clear that he didn't think it was real." Alaric said.

"I really hope you're right because I've done so much to protect him from all of this." Elena handed the paper back.

"So, how do you deal with it?" Alaric asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, all the lies and secrets. You have to lie to everyone who's important to you."

"It's not safe for them to know the truth. So, yes, I keep it from them, because I love them." Elena said.

"I think Stefan is a good guy." Alaric says after a long pause, "But at the end of the day he's still a vampire. And so is Anastasia."

"I know it's hard to believe but Stefan is different. He would never do anything to hurt me." Elena tells him, "And Anastasia might be scary at times, but she's just like him. He raised her."

彡☆

"I HAVE NO interest in the Founders' Day kick-off party." Jeremy says as he, Jenna, John and Anastasia sat in the kitchen, the latter making sue she stayed far away from the uncle seeing as her father called her to tell her to be careful around him.

"Sure you do." John said, sitting his glass down. "It's tradition."

"It will be our role to break the tradition." Jenna tells him, earning a nod in agreement from Anastasia who hated Founders parties.

She hated them when she was four and she hates them still to this day.

"The Gilbert's have been a part of this town for a hundred and fifty years. We're one of the founding families and with that distinction comes certain obligations, including going to the party. One day, when you can appreciate the significance, I'll tell you all about your heritage." John tells Jeremy, eyeing the teen that stood next to his nephew.

"Hmm, the Gilbert family legacy. I forgot hot sacred it was. I'm not a Gilbert so I was never cool enough to hear it." Jenna says.

"Why does she hate you?" Jeremy asked his uncle.

"We used to sleep together."

"I'm standing right here." Jenna threw a bag towards John.

彡☆

"YOUR UNCLE DOESN'T like me." Anastasia tells Jeremy as she sat down in his lap while he was still eating.

"Uncle John is an ass, he doesn't like anyone." Jeremy wrapped his arm around her waist, "But I love you so it doesn't really matter what he thinks."

"Hmm, is that right?"

Jeremy grinned, pecking her lips, "That's right."

"I love you, too."

"No, Elena, I will not go to your bedroom with you." Damon's voice cuts in loudly, making the two look at each other before Jeremy moves his head to look in their direction as Elena's pulling Damon up the stairs.

"Oh, I overheard Elena and Alaric while I was going to the bathroom earlier at school." She made sure he voice was low enough that her dad couldn't hear her talking, "He showed Elena your paper, the one about vampires in Mystic Falls. Remember to play it cool if she questions you about it."

"Baby, I have it under control." Jeremy says, "I've been lying to Elena since before I could talk. I'm a pro at it."

"Okay, you keep believing that."

"I'm serious."

"Sure. Whatever you say."

彡☆

JEREMY SAT IN his bedroom alone, Anastasia have left with her father, when there was a knock at his bedroom door.

"Hey." Elena speaks.

"What's up?" Jeremy asked her.

"Do you have some time to talk?" Elena asked her brother.

"Uh, yeah, sure." Jeremy spun around in his chair to face her.

"Not here. Come on. Let's get out of the house."

Jeremy looked at his sister for a second before a smile appeared on his lips. He stood up, grabbing his jacket and his phone before he grabbed his jacket and phone, following her out of the house.

彡☆

"I JUST CAN'T believe mom and dad never told you that you were adopted." Jeremy says as he and Elena walked near the lake, one of his hands stuffed in the pocket of his jacket and the other swinging freely by his side.

"I'm sure they would have eventually."

"Why were you worried about what I thought?" Questioned Jeremy.

"Because...I don't know. It's weird." She shook her head, "Going your whole life thinking you're related by blood to someone."

"Does it bug you that we're not?" He asked.

"No, Jer...you're my brother, that's all that matters."

Jeremy smiled.

"So, Mr. Saltzman said you've been doing great in history now." Elena brought up, deciding to ask him about his knowledge of the vampires he had written about.

Jeremy tensed, knowing what she was getting at. "Yeah, yeah he's really been helping me out. He gave me some extra credit and stuff. And Anastasia is a big help too."

"He liked your vampire paper."

Jeremy glanced at the ground before looking back at her, "He thought I had a clever angle."

"What drew you to that subject matter?"

"I don't know, boredom or maybe I'm just as nuts as the long line of Gilbert crazies." Jeremy shrugged, lying through his teeth.

"Gilbert's aren't crazy."

"Easy for you to say, you're not one." Jeremy teased.

Elena stopped walking, "Ouch."

彡☆

"OH GOD! I shouldn't be here." Stefan says as he, Damon and Anastasia walked into the Founder's Day kick-off party for it's 150th anniversary."

"Come on, don't be a downer, it's a party of the founding families!" Damon walked into the house, the other two Salvatore's following behind him, "That would be us. It would be rude to skip it."

"I really liked you a whole lot better when you hated everybody." Anastasia mumbled, looking around with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Oh, I still do." Damon tells his daughter, "I just love that they love me." He laughed, looking at Stefan, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm good. I'm fine."

"No craving? No urges?" Anastasia questioned her uncle, eyebrow raised. "Is that whiskey you've been drinking all day doing its job?"

Stefan let out a laugh, ruffling his niece's brown hair.

"We are who we are, Stefan. Nothings gonna change that." Damon tells his little brother, wrapping his arm around his daughter's shoulders.

"Ah! Nothing will make you happier to just see me give up hein, Damon?"

"Whatever, it's inevitable."

"Well, I'm gonna find Elena." Stefan said.

"Don't embarrass me, young man!" Damon called after his brother in a teasing way, "Come one, you're stuck with me for the night."

Anastasia rolled her eyes playfully, "Just what I wanted."

"Oh, you love your old man."

"Old is a little short, don't you think?" She asked, raising an eyebrow, "You're more like ancient."

"Oh, ha ha." Damon grinned, "You don't embarrass me either."

"Me? Embarrassing?" She placed her hand over her heart, "Never."

彡☆

DAMON STOOD ON the balcony, staring out into the night sky before a grin made its way on his lips as he heard the footsteps behind him.

"Damon, right?" John Gilbert moved to stand by him.

"John."

"We didn't get a change to meet at the council meeting." John tells him.

They turned to look at each other, "Yeah. It's a pleasure. Are you enjoying the, uh, kick-off?" Damon asked.

"Oh yeah, I forgot how much fun these small tow celebrations can be."

"Yeah. When was the last time you were here?" Damon asked.

"Hasn't been that long, my brother's funeral." John tells him, "How long have you been in town?"

"Well, not long at all."

"So, what do you think, Damon? You know this vampire problem is real, right?" John questioned, "It's a potential blood bath."

"I wouldn't overreact, John." Damon tells him.

"Oh, I think it's like 1864 all over again, vampires running amok. I guess we're just gonna have to hunt them down, throw them in a church and burn them to ash."

"That's the story, huh?"

"Part of the story, yeah." John nods.

"Oh, there's more?" Damon pretended to be shocked.

"Oh, there's a lot more." John said, "See, it seems there was a tomb under the church, where vampires were hidden, waiting for someone to come along and sent them free. But you already know that, didn't you?"

Damon looked uncomfortable.

"I mean, you're the one that did it."

"And you're telling me this why?" Questioned Damon, wanting to go back to spending time with his daughter.

"I just thought we got the introductions out of the way."

"You know that I could rip your throat out before anyone would notice?" Damon asked him.

"Yeah."

"Yeah, okay. But you probably ingest vervain, so..."

"Why don't you take a bite to find out?" John asked.

Damon smiled, "It's not worth my time."

John smirked as the vampire went to walk away, "Maybe, I'll start with your daughter. The one that's attached to my nephew's hip? Wonder what that would do to him? To you?"

Damon paused, anger rushing through as the Gilbert male talked about his daughter. He rushes to John, snapping his neck and throwing him off of the balcony, "Don't threaten my daughter, dick."

彡☆

"JER?" ELENA WALKED into the room that Jeremy sat in on the couch, her sitting next to him, "I heard about your conversations with Sheriff Forbes."

"No one is trying to figure out what happened to her. They all want to believe that she OD'd." Jeremy tells his sister. He knew some of what had happened to Vicki thanks to Anastasia, but he didn't know everything about it.

"The coroner's office confirmed it. If that's what they sat happened then..."

"Is that what you believe?" Jeremy asked.

"What do you think happened?" Elena asked, not noticing that Anastasia was not standing in the doorway.

"I think somebody killed her and buried her body and I don't think we should write it off just 'cause it's easy." Jeremy tells his sister.

"They're just doing what they can to move on."

"The truth is the only thing that's gonna help people to move on."

"Jer, just let it go, okay? Whatever it was, she's gone now." Elena said, "You have Anastasia now anyway."

"Whatever it was? So you don't think it was an overdose?" He asked.

"Yes...I do."

"Is there something you're not telling me?" Jeremy asked, noticing the way she sat uncomfortably on the couch next to him. "Why aren't you looking at me?"

"Stop it, that doesn't mean anything."

"If there was something else you would tell me, right?"

Elena took a long pause, "Of course I would."

Jeremy looked at her suspiciously for a second before glancing up at his girlfriend who bit her lip and walked away.

彡☆

"DO YOU WANNA hear the bad new or the really bad news?" Damon walked over to his daughter and brother.

"Actually, I don't wanna hear any news, Damon." Stefan tells him, looking around as he pushed his glass towards Anastasia and letting her have a sip before he pulled it away, hoping that no one would notice.

"Alright, let me rephrase. Do you want to hear how the council is back in vampire mode or how I just killed Uncle John Gilbert?" Damon asked.

"What?" Both Stefan and Anastasia questioned.

"Great party by the way, huh?" Damon asked, grabbing his daughter's arm and pulling her with him, "You. Stay with me."

彡☆

"DAD. DAD!" ANASTASIA slapped her father's shoulder as she noticed John Gilbert walking into the house.

"What?" Damon looks in the direction where she was pointing, "You gotta be kidding me."

The father and daughter listened to Mayor Lockwood speaking before he introduced John who moved to stand up next to him.

"One hundred and fifty years of community, prosperity, family. We take care of each other, we look after each other, protect each other." John looked straight at Damon, "It's good to be home."

"Come on." Damon pulled his daughter so they were standing next to the history teacher, "Look at his right hand."

"Whose?" Alaric asked.

"Town's favorite son." Anastasia crossed her arms, "Look at his ring."

"Well, it looks like mine." Alaric says as he notices the ring looks like the ring Isobel had given him.

"Yeah, and that would be a big coincidence if he didn't just come back from the dead five minutes ago." Damon tells him, "Where the hell did you get that ring?"

"Isobel, my wife." Alaric tells him.

"Who gave birth to Elena, under the medical care of the esteemed Dr. Grayson Gilbert, John's brother!"

"Do you think John new Isobel?" He asked.

"I think John knows a lot of things." Anastasia mumbled with a glare on her face, "I hate him."

"I'm sure you do, honey." Damon pats the top of her head.

彡☆

"GOING SOMEWHERE, HM?" Damon asked as John was leaving, Alaric and Anastasia following him since she couldn't find Stefan or Elena and Jeremy wasn't there anymore since he had gone home.

"I've never liked to be the last one to leave a party. It's too desperate. You're going to kill me again, or you're gonna let Mr. Saltzman do your dirty? Maybe even your daughter?" John asked.

"You don't want me to be the one to kill you." Anastasia glares at him, "I don't think a magic ring will put your heart back into it's body."

"Okay, you obviously know who I am." Alaric said as the four stopped walking, the history teacher keeping Anastasia behind him just in case.

"I do. Alaric Saltzman, a high school history teacher with a secret." John tells him.

"Sure know a lot for someone who just got to town." Anastasia tells him.

"More than you can imagine, Anastasia. My knowledge of this town goes beyond anything that you." He looked at Damon before looking at the history teacher, "Or you, or the council knows. So, if you're planning on some clever high speed snatch ring vamp kill move, know that I die, everything I know goes to the council including the fascinating little tale of the original Salvatore brothers, one of their daughter's and their present day return to Mystic Falls."

"How did you get that ring?" Alaric asked.

"I had inherited one, my brother Gray had the other. This was his," He showed the ring to them, "And I wouldn't have given mine to Isobel if I had know she'd hand it over to another guy."

"So, you did know her?" Anastasia asked.

"Who do you think sent her your fathers way when she wanted to become a vampire?" John asked.

"You sent her?" Damon asked.

"Guilty. Why? Did you think someone else sent her?" John asked, "Maybe Katherine Pierce?"

"How do you know about Katherine?" Damon asked.

"How do I know anything, Damon?"

"What do you want?" Questioned Anastasia.

"So many questions. It was a pleasure meeting you, Ric. I've heard so much about you."

"I know a very old vampire that could make him disappear and no one would find him." Anastasia tells her dad as she glared at John while walking away.

"Let's leave that for another time."

彡☆

DAMON SAT IN his Anastasia's bedroom after talking Stefan, running his fingers through his daughters hair as she slept.

It angered him to no end that John Gilbert had threatened his daughter that night.

Because if there was one thing that anyone did to get on his bad side, it was threatening his daughter.