04|FAMILY TIES

Gemma trails up the stairs, her vision blurring as she blinks tiredly. She peeks into Stefan's room for a quick second— checking on her little brother being her sisterly duty for the day— and comes to an abrupt stop at the sight of Damon. He sits at Stefan's desk, his legs propped up. "What are you doing?" She folds her arms over her chest, leaning against the door frame.

He shushes her, his eyes never leaving Stefan's sleeping form.

Stefan jolts awake, a yell escaping his lips as he sits up.

"Bad dream?" Damon goads.

Gemma smiles dryly at the oldest Salvatore brother, her eyes studying him.

"Do you know how easy it was to get into your head just now?" He taunts Stefan, his eyes amused.. "You really need some human blood. It might even the playing field. Football reference." He pauses, "Too soon."

Stefan uses his speed to grab the knife on his bedside and launches it at Damon, a self satisfied look gracing his features when it gets lodged in Damon's abdomen.

"Here we go," Gemma muses.

"All right, I deserved that," the raven haired man nods to himself. He stands and turns to his brother, pulling the knife out of his stomach without a single grimace. "But I just wanted to let you know, they caught the culprit. The animal responsible for killing coach Tanner and all those people."

"What are you talking about?" Stefan straightens up.

Her eyebrows raised, Gemma shuffles further into the room. "We're gonna love this," she mutters to Stefan.

"It was a mountain lion," the oldest Salvatore emphasizes, cocking his head ironically. "Really big one. It attacked a hunter this morning. It's all over the news. Deadly beast captures, all's well in Mystic Falls."

"Wrong beast," the female Salvatore mutters, glaring at Damon when he shoves her.

"Enough with the antics," Stefan snaps. "Take this seriously. Why would you cover your tracks?"

"I've decided to stay a while," Damon hums. "And I'm just having way too much fun here with you and Elena."

Gemma frowns, "just because she looks like Katherine doesn't mean she deserves to be screwed with, Damon."

Damon cuts into Gemma with his eyes, his lips twitching into a smirk. "Since when have you cared about what happens to a human?"

The dark haired girl furrows her eyebrows, glancing at her younger brother. "Since she started dating Stefan,"

Speaking of their younger siblings, he aims a smug look toward Damon, "Can't touch her now."

"Well, the vervain keeps me out of her head." He sighs, "Maybe that's not my target. Believe it or not, Stefan, some girls don't need my persuasion."

"Just Bourbon and a high tolerance for arrogance, right?" Gemma says.

Damon ignores her, "Some girls just can't resist my good looks, my style and my charm and my unflinching ability to listen to Taylor Swift." He trudges to Stefan and stabs him in a swift movement, patting his shoulder sympathetically. "This is John Varvatos, dude." He frowns down at his shirt, "Dick move."

"Come on," Gemma grabs Stefan's arm and hauls him up. "We've got a party to get ready for."

•••

Gemma sits on the arm of the couch, rifling through shopping bags that Elena had dropped off for her. She side eyes Damon, watching as he snoops through Stefan's homework folder. "Does he actually do the work?" She asks curiously.

Damon snorts, "yes."

"Never would've thunk it," she says dryly.

Damon spares his sister a fond glance, pursing his lips when she looks at him.

"I didn't know you were here, Damon," Zach enters the room, his eyes holding a fearful look.

"Just going through Stefan's homework," he chimes. "Boy, this country sure has dumbed down in the last hundred years. Why he wants to go to high school is beyond me. I mean, in the seventies, he went Ivy League."

Gemma makes a face.

"Harvard, I understood. Actually, no. I didn't get that either."

"Zach," Gemma drawls. "It's obvious somethings bothering you. Don't tell me it's brother dear over there."

"Go ahead, purge," Damon mocks the man. "Get it out. What's on your mind?"

"Why are you here, Damon?"

"To spend time with you, Zach," he says cheerily. "Family's important."

"I know you," Zach snarks. "You always have a motive. So tell me, what is it this time?"

The eldest Salvatore gets off the couch, easily grabbing Zach by the throat in a threatening manner. Gemma straightens up, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You are in no position to question me," Damon grits out.

"I didn't mean to upset you," their nephew chokes out.

"This is not upset, Zach."

"What's going on?" Stefan looks panicked as he walks through the foyer threshold. "Gem?"

"He's having another fit," she says boredly.

"No," Damon drops Zach from his grasp. "Having a family moment, Stefan. Spending some quality time."

Gemma grabs her shopping bags, flashing a sad smile to Stefan and Zach as she follows Damon out of the house.

•••

Gemma's heels click against the floor as she shuffles into Stefan's room, fidgeting with the bracelets on her wrist.

"Wow," Damon muses. "Who knew little Gemma Salvatore was under all that brooding?"

The said girl flicks her eyes up to Damon, giving him a wry smile. "Brooding is Stefan's job,"

He hums and turns to look at himself in mirrors. "Do they still wear ties at this thing?"

"Why are you even going?" Their younger brother questions the raven haired vampire.

"It's only fair," he cocks his head to the side. "You invited Gemma to go and we were at the very first one together, remember?"

"I think it's better if we don't draw attention to ourselves,"

"So you should stay here," Damon smirks. "I'll see to it Elena has a good time."

Gemma rolls her eyes, moving to the other side of the room to pour herself a drink.

"My goodness, I've driven you two to drink." Damon taunts.

Gemma spares her brother a glance.

"Can't seem to rid myself of you," Stefan says. "What else am I supposed to do, besides go about living my life?"

"Go about living my life," Damon repeats. "See, therein lies your eternal struggle. You're dead, dude. Get over it."

"I personally like death better," Gemma pipes up.

"You would," Damon snickers. He holds up a shirt to his chest. "What do you think?"

"It's not really your color," Gemma tells him after grabbing her drink.

"It's cool not growing old," the eldest Salvatore says after shrugging on a black button up shirt. "I like being the eternal stud."

Gemma crinkles her nose.

"Yes, being a 150-year-old teenager has been the height of my happiness," Stefan retorts.

"You cracked a funny, Stefan," Damon chuckles. "I should have a drink to celebrate." He pours himself a drink and struts over to the desk, picking up a picture of Katherine. "1864. You and Katherine were the perfect couple. It was hell watching you dance with her."

"My happiness was short-lived, as you well know."

"I remember," Damon sighs. "I left the party early, I was waiting for her. The night you dropped her off, I was waiting just inside. You were such a gentleman, gave her a kiss on the cheek. And what she really wanted was..." He pauses when Stefan turns, his eyes dark. "Oh, well. Here's to history repeating itself, huh?" He lifts the cup to his mouth to mock drinking it, only to pour it out in front of him.

Gemma's eyes widen and she brings the cup up to her nose, inhaling deeply. "Well," she coughs slightly as she puts the drink down. "That's quite scandalous of you, Stefan."

Damon cuts into Stefan with his eyes. "I admire your effort, Stefan. Pouring yourself a drink then spiking the bottle with vervain. I'm not some drunk sorority chick. You can't roofie me. But I can't help but feel a little used. I thought we were having a moment."

Gemma looks at the clock, "it's time to go."

Damon smirks, fixing the lapels of his jacket. "I have to go to the party angry," he huffs. "Who knows what I'll do?"

•••

Gemma stiffens when Elena pulls her into a tight hug. "You look really good," the Gilbert holds her ar arms length to see her outfit.

"Thank you," Gemma says awkwardly as she glances at her brother, her fingers twitching when Elena squeezes her arms before letting go. Her eyes travel to the display Elena was looking at, a small smile gracing her lips. "What is this?"

"Hm?" Elena follows her line of sight. "Huh, I don't know. Let me—" she leans forward to read. "The founding families in Mystic Falls welcomes you to the inaugural founder's council celebration. Wow, look, it's the original guest registry. Look at all these familiar names—Sheriff William Forbes, Mayor Benjamin Lockwood." Her eyes narrow, "Is that Damon Salvatore? And, Stefan Salvatore? Look..." she looks at Gemma. "Your name is there too."

"The original Salvatore siblings," Damon says from behind them. "Our ancestors. Tragic story, actually."

"We don't need to bore them with stories of the past," Stefan says tensely.

"It's not boring, Stefan," Elena shakes her head. "I'd love to hear more about your family." Her lips rise, "especially if it tells me what Gemma's keeping in that vault of hers."

Gemma laughs amusedly, "you're always surprising me, Miss Gilbert."

Caroline rolls her eyes, "Well, I'm bored. I want to dance. And Damon won't dance with me." She pouts.

"Mm-hmm." He shakes his head.

Caroline's eyes brighten and she turns to Elena and Stefan, "Could I just borrow your date?"

"Oh," the Gilbert says in surprise. "Uh..."

"I don't really dance," Stefan politely declines.

"Oh, sure he does." Damon waves his brother off. "You should see him. Waltz, the jitterbug, the moonwalk. He does it all."

"You wouldn't mind, would you, Elena?" Caroline urges.

"It's up to Stefan,"

"Well sorry, but I'm not going to take no for an answer." Caroline takes Stefan's hand and leads him to the dance floor, leaving the two Salvatore siblings alone with Elena.

"Well," Gemma shifts. "I'm gonna go—" her words die in her throat when Elena gives her a subtle look of panic. "Nowhere," she blurts. "I'm gonna go nowhere."

Damon sends her a taunting look before turning to Elena with a faux apologetic face. "I want to apologize to you for being such a world-class jerk the other night when I tried to kiss you,"

Gemma's anxiety spikes, her jaw clenching in a last resort.

"There's no excuse," Damon continues. "My therapist says I'm...acting out, trying to punish Stefan."

"For what?" Elena asks softly.

"It's all in the past," he shrugs. "I don't even want to bring it up. Let's just say that the men in the Salvatore family have been cursed with sibling rivalry. And it all started with the original Salvatore brothers."

"No drama from the women in the Salvatore family?" Elena peers at the girl, her eyes searching her face.

Gemma smirks, "you're not getting any of the juicy details from me, Elena."

Elena hums with a sly smile, looking back at Damon. "What were you gonna say?"

He clears his throat, "The Salvatore name was practically royalty in this town. Until the war. There was a battle here—"

"The Battle of Willow Creek," Elena cuts him off.

"Right," he nods.

"I know, we talked about it in class. Confederate soldiers fired on a church with civilians inside."

Gemma grabs champagne off a tray next to her, taking a large gulp.

"What the history books left out was the people that were killed," Damon says. "They weren't there by accident. They were believed to be union sympathizers. So some of the founders on the confederacy side back then wanted them rounded up and burned alive."

"Quite tragic," Gemma pipes up. "Let's move along."

"Stefan and Damon had someone they loved very much in that church," Damon's eyes turn solemn. "And when they went to rescue them, they were shot. Murdered in cold blood."

"Who was in the church that they wanted to save?" Elena questions.

"A woman," the female Salvatore grips her glass tighter. "Doesn't it always come down to the love of a woman?"

"Look, I'm sorry that you and Stefan have this thing between you, but I can't get in the middle of it, Damon." Elena smiles tightly, "I just...I hope you two can work it out."

•••

"What'd we miss?" Damon asks Stefan as he, Elena, and Gemma trudge up to the pair.

"We were just chatting," Stefan says. "Drink, Damon?"

"No, thanks, I'll pass."

"I'll take one," Gemma says. Stefan hands her a glass off the champagne tray, giving her a small nod.

"Stefan, do you have another dance in you?" Elena wonders.

"Absolutely," he smiles. He grabs her hand and softly pulls her to the dance floor, the two looking comfortable in each other's grasp.

"They look so cute together," Caroline sighs wistfully.

"Don't talk, please." Damon tells her.

Gemma studies Stefan and Elena, giving the Gilbert a weak smile when she looks over Stefan's shoulder and meets the female Salvatore's eyes.

•••

Gemma feels it before she sees it. The panic, the worry, the fear. She lifts her eyes just as Elena rounds the corner, her gaze locked on Gemma.

"Did you know?" Elena asks firmly, her expression hard.

"Did I know what?" Gemma looks down at her.

"About Damon and Caroline,"

"You're being irritatingly vague, Elena."

"There are bruises all over Caroline's body," she bursts. "Bite marks, and he has her all confused and messed up in the head."

Gemma raises her eyebrows, the gears in her head turning.

"You don't look surprised," Elena folds her arms.

Gemma feels a hand press against her shoulder, Stefan's voice ringing out from behind her.

"We're handling it," he reassures the girl.

"Handling it?" The human repeats incredulously. "Stefan, you should be having him arrested."

"It's not always that simple," Gemma tells her.

"Of course you'd say that," Elena cries out. "You and Damon are like two peas in a pod, Gemma!"

"There's a difference between doing what's safe for everyone and acting on emotion," Gemma tells the girls, her voice harsh. "The fact that he's my brother means nothing when he's acting like this."

"Gemma," Stefan hushes. His eyes dart to his girlfriend. "Elena, please. I...I don't expect you to understand."

"I don't understand anything, Stefan." She glares, "So why don't you just clear it up for me?"

"Look, there are things that you don't know, okay? Things that I want to tell you, but I can't. And I may never be able to. And I just need you to trust me."

"Trust is earned," she says. "I can't just magically hand it over."

Gemma tenses, her eyes zeroing in on Damon dragging Caroline out into the yard. Stefan obviously sees the same, his grip tightening on Gemma's shoulder.

"Elena, I—" he looks between the Gilbert and his sister. "I have to go somewhere. Is it alright if Gemma stays with you?"

Elena nods wordlessly, watching Stefan rubs off to God knows where.

"Come on, Gilbert." Gemma huffs. "Let's go find something harder than champagne."

•••

"Was it really so bad?" Elena asks Gemma as they walk along the lake.

Gemma looks at her, her gaze questioning.

"Your childhood," Elena specifies. "You clam up at any mention of the past, so I—"

"Yes," Gemma cuts her off, her gaze forward.

"Do you...want to talk about it?"

"No," Gemma replies. "It, uh, it doesn't haunt me so much anymore, but there are things that you wouldn't understand without context and I'm—" she sighs. "I'm not willing to give context. Not yet."

"My parents died a few months ago," Elena clasps her hands together. "I'm not trying to compare traumas or anything, but I— I thought it might help if you knew that not everything is as perfect as it seems."

"My father was a horrible man," Gemma tells her. "A drunk, and mean, and downright cruel at times." Her eyes meet the brunettes. "I was relieved when he died."

Elena stops, staring at Gemma with a gentle gaze. "That doesn't make you a horrible person."

Gemma's eyes widen, her breath catching in her throat. "What?"

"Being relieved that he died," Elena tilts her head. "It doesn't make you a bad person, Gemma."

Gemma's lips part in surprise, but her attentions quickly drawn away by a groan of pain. "Is that..." she squints.

Elena gasps, "it's Caroline!"

The Gilbert rushes to her friend, falling to her knees beside her. "Caroline! There you are. Are you okay?"

"Yeah," her breathing is labored. "I'm fine."

"Caroline, what happened?"

"I'm fine," a strangled sob escapes the girl.

"No. You're shaking. Caroline—"

"I'm fine!"

Gemma moves closer to the girls, bending down in front of Caroline with sympathetic eyes. "You're not fine, Caroline."

The girl collapses into Elena's arms with a loud cry, her body wracking with sobs.

"Gemma," Elena looks up at the older girl tearfully. "Can you help me bring her home?"

Gemma swallows thickly, "of course. Anything you need, Elena."

•••

NOT EDITED