Try {One | Alaric Saltzman}

Kill or be Killed

The long-lost Gilbert family photo album that Alaric found boxed up in Isobel's office had been opened more than it had been closed by Abigail. The keepsakes that were stuffed between the pages gave her a look into the lives of her family members from so long ago, she was almost certain every Gilbert had something in common. They weren't all that different from her, she would catch herself thinking, but they wanted things for the town that she never did.

Elena plopped down on Abigail's unmade bed. "Where did you get that?"

"It was in Isobel's things," she explained without looking up. "Alaric gave it to me the other night."

"Hmm." Elena followed her eyes to the portraits. "Wow, look at them all. So serious."

Pointing to the woman whose necklace she was wearing, she said, "That's Samantha."

"The one that went crazy?"

"The one that went crazy," she repeated the question as the statement.

"She looks so normal." Elena tilted her head back to meet the wall. "Apparently that's a family trait."

"Samantha Gilbert probably wasn't even crazy. I mean, you should have heard dad trying to-" Abigail cut herself off as she studied her sister's expression, picking up on the subtle crease between her brows and the way she stared at the ceiling. "What's wrong?"

Elena sank into the mattress. "Stefan and I are fighting."

Jeremy slipped into the room, closing the door quickly behind him before whispering, "I can't believe Tyler Lockwood is a werewolf."

They looked up at their brother.

"We're not sure about Tyler," Abigail reminded him. "But Mason... He's a werewolf alright."

He shrugged. "It should be easy enough for us to figure it out."

"There is no us," Elena said harshly, quickly unsettling the room.

Abigail looked to her with furrowed eyebrows. "We said that we wouldn't keep things from him anymore."

Elena's furrowed eyebrows were not confused like hers; they were angry. "That doesn't mean that he should be involved in it."

Jeremy scoffed. "By definition of being in this family, I'm involved."

"This is dangerous, Jeremy." Elena stood up, taking the few steps to her room. "You have to stay out of it, okay?"

He turned back to Abigail at the slam of the door. "You don't agree with her, do you?"

"No." Now that he knew, Abigail didn't see a reason to try to keep him out of it all. Not after Damon killed him, not after Anna. Besides, he had the ring. And if she wanted to change the family legacy, she knew she needed help. "Just don't take off the ring, okay?"

His surprise could not be masked. "I won't."
The Mystic Falls Historical Society was Miranda Gilbert's fourth child. There wasn't a time that Abigail could remember missing an event that had any ties to it, so it was not a surprise that they were among the first of the citizens to arrive at Volunteer Day.

"This is all part of the Historical Society's continuous efforts to give back to the community," Carol Lockwood announced. "Thanks to the generous donation of the Fell family. We are now standing at the sight of our newest public park. Thank you to everyone who has shown up today to lend a helping hand."

Abigail, Elena, and Caroline were assigned to paint the veranda. They had grown frustrated an hour into the project, finding not much progress made. So, they took to talking, moving their brushes only when Carol looked their way.