The J Sequence

Grievances

It was four days after their funeral that the social worker came. Stefan had left with Klaus two days before and Alaric decided to stay with Elena and Jeremy. All the death surrounding them had them a little out of their right headspace.
It was explained that there was no Will to determine custody of the two minors, seeing as how the deceased weren't exactly planning on dying any time soon. They agreed Alaric would take temporary custody of the two and that they could meet again in 2 months if plans changed due to Elena's adulthood.

Alaric had always wanted to be a father, he of course hadn't expected when the time came that it would be to two grieving teenagers when he himself was also grieving. Still, he signed the necessary papers and agreed to all the regulations that came with it. He could tell that being their guardian wasn't going to be easy.

Three days after he had officially been designated as the Gilbert's legal guardian, he had received some concerning news regarding Elena.

"Hello?"
"Ric? This is Liz Forbes."
Alaric felt his heart drop. "What can I do for you Liz?"
"I wish I was calling under different circumstances, but I just picked up Elena at The Grill; somehow she's managed to get served, she's very drunk, and had been causing a disturbance."
"Is she under arrest?" he asked with his eyebrows furrowed.
"No, but she'll need to be picked up. I understand what she's been through lately."
"Thank you, I'll be there in ten minutes."

After calling Damon to cancel their plans and being teased on how awful a guardian he was, he rushed to the Police Department to retrieve his drunk ward.

With the awkward encounter over and promising to speak with a very pissed of Elena about her actions, they made their way home. She was quiet the entire drive back and when they finally arrived home, she kicked off her heels and headed to the kitchen. Alaric inhaled deeply and braced himself for the conversation they were about to have.

"Elena, we need to talk."
She pulled a water bottle out of the fridge and shook her head. "No, we really don't."
"Elena-"
Steaming with anger, she slammed the fridge door shut and whirled around with fury burning in her eyes. "You are not my dad, so stop treating me like I'm your daughter!"
With his temper rising and the frustration from the past week fueling him, he burst. "No! But am I the guy that picked you up tonight and saved you from spending the night at the station!"
After the recoil from his words she looked back at him, the fury simmering only very slightly,"Are you seriously going to lecture me?"
"Yes!", he snapped, stepping into her personal space," Why can't you see that I care about you?"
"Well, don't!" She screamed with mixed emotions as her eyes fled with tears. He gathered her into his arms and let her collapse, crying into his shoulder as he rubbed her back soothingly.

Everyone has different ways of coping.