[3x20; Do Not Go Gentle]
"You haven't spoken to Elena since Monday?"
Lucy shook her head. "She hasn't spoken to me," she corrected Caroline as they both walked through the cafeteria. It was only hours before the dance, so they were scrambling to finish the cafeteria. "Stefan said that everything was mutual but I'm guessing that's not exactly true."
"Okay, so," Caroline grabbed the clipboard out of Lucy's hand to check off the champagne fountain which did have to be rebuilt just like Lucy feared. "have you tried locking her in her room with you until she talks?"
"No, but that's my next step," Lucy laughed, her eyes scanning over the room.
Everyone on the dance committee had shown up to do some last-minute decorating, including some of the volunteers. It warmed Lucy's heart to see Jeremy and Matt joke around while hanging the black and silver stars from the ceiling. She broke out into a grin when she saw Stefan standing by the table that held the last of the decorations.
Lucy and Stefan weren't official yet because they both wanted to be discrete in case there were any lingering feelings on Elena's part but there were kisses shared here and there. She loved Stefan before but it was amazing to be able to be with him.
"Anything else I missed when I was trying to calm Tyler down about Klaus?"
"I guess Ric is leaving town for a couple of days," Lucy sighed, her eyes still on Stefan, who was sorting through the rest of the stars that still needed to be hung up. "Are you sure Tyler's okay?"
"He's fine," Caroline dismissed. "So, Alaric is trying to pull himself together, huh?"
"Yup."
"Why is that a bad thing?"
"It's not but I wish he would do it here so I know he's okay," Lucy sighed as they reached the table where Stefan was standing. "I'm surprised to see you here," she acknowledged Stefan with a smile. "I don't think you stepped foot in this school since the first day."
"I've come to support to my kickass girl boss," Stefan informed her, grinning. "Isn't that you two call each other?"
"It's badass, actually," Caroline teased him.
"Ah, sorry," he picked up the chandelier that Rebekah had picked out. "Where do you want me to hang this?"
Caroline sighed in annoyance, taking it from him. "You know what, if Rebekah wanted to hang this monstrosity, she should have shown up to do it herself."
Lucy rolled her eyes as Caroline handed off the chandelier. "She hasn't answered any of my calls."
Caroline hummed. "Shame."
Lucy giggled and nudged the blonde before turning around to make sure things were still going smoothly. Her amusement disappeared when she saw the horrible job that Jeremy and Matt were doing with the stars.
"Matt, Jere, you can't just hang them!" she called across the cafeteria. "They're supposed to trickle down."
Caroline and Stefan shared an amused look as Lucy raised her hands, flickering her fingers as she moved them down, showing Matt and Jeremy how she wanted the stars to be hung.
Lucy shook her head in amusement as Matt and Jeremy laughed at her and went back to work. She turned back around to face Caroline and Stefan, seeing the amused looks on their faces.
"What?"
"Nothing," Caroline said before glancing at Matt and Jeremy. "Look at them being all bromance-y."
"Elena asked Matt to help Jeremy readjust," Lucy informed her. "I guess Matt got him his old job back at the Grill."
"That was nice of him," Stefan commented.
Lucy nodded. "Jeremy's been quiet since he got home. I think everything with Ric is stressing him out," she looked back at Jeremy and Matt and sighed, "I'll be right back."
As Lucy marched away to personally instruct Matt and Jeremy how to hand the stars, Caroline turned to Stefan. She observed him as he fiddled with the red table cloth.
"Have you asked Lucy to the dance yet?"
"No," Stefan scratched his chin. "Should I have? I mean, should I?"
"Yes!"
"Would she even say yes?" Stefan worried uncharacteristically.
"It's you, Stefan, of course she would," Caroline rolled her eyes at him. "I mean, even when she had her fling with Matt, all she could think about was getting you back home and—"
"She had a fling with Matt?" Stefan interrupted her, eyebrows raised curiously.
Caroline mentally cursed herself for spilling the beans before Lucy could. It wasn't really any of her business and she knew Lucy wanted to tell Stefan herself. She hoped she didn't just blow everything.
"Yes, but there were no feelings attached," Caroline hurried to assure him. "They broke it off when you got back to town."
"Oh."
"Are you mad?" Caroline winced. "She was going to tell you, I promise."
"I'm not mad, Caroline," Stefan told her honestly. "We weren't together and at that point I hadn't really expected to come back to Mystic Falls."
Caroline was impressed with Stefan's answer but not shocked. He was one hundred and sixty-three years old and even then, he was pretty mature for his age. It was nice to know that her best friend was with someone so understanding.
"Thank God," she sighed. "You're still jealous, though, right?"
"Of course I am."
Caroline smiled in satisfaction.
"What are you guys talking about?" Lucy joined them again.
"I was telling Caroline how I was going to ask you to the dance," Stefan informed her. "I was thinking something with a thousand flowers or maybe an edible arrangement."
Lucy made a thoughtful face. "Well, I do like edible arrangements but I guess you just asking me right now will suffice."
Stefan grinned at her. "Lucy, will you go to the dance with me?"
Lucy smiled back. "Of course."
-
Lucy tapped her black t-strapped heels to the beat of the music flooding the gym, watching as people did the Charleston and other dances from the twenties that she hadn't had time to research. The dance was going beautifully but if things happened as they usually did, there'd be a disaster soon enough.
She looked around the gym for her friends; Matt and Jeremy were guarding the punch bowl, Caroline and Bonnie were dancing with their dates—Tyler and Jamie—and Elena was being twirled around by Damon, who was smiling happily. Seeing everyone have a good time brought a smile to her face. They all deserved to have a little break from the supernatural.
"You look beautiful."
Lucy blinked and spun on her heels to face Stefan. He looked so handsome with his navy suit and patterned tie that made his forest-green eyes pop. The collar pin he wore just elevated his look and intrigued Lucy in a way that made her want to grab his tie and kiss the hell out of him.
"You look great, Stefan," Lucy breathed, brushing a couple fingers over his tie. "Wow."
Stefan smiled gratefully. "I got something for you," he held up the corsage made out of a red rose.
"Thank you," Lucy grinned at him. "Just don't poke me, okay?"
Stefan rolled his eyes, amused, and assured her that he'd try his best not to prick her with the needle. He easily attached the rose to the front of her silver flapper dress. He couldn't resist enough not to give her a quick kiss, so he pressed his lips to hers in a sweet peck.
Lucy smiling lovingly at him. "Come on, let's go do the Charleston."
Stefan wordlessly held his hand out for her and, when she took it, led her out to the dancefloor.
-
"If Ric's sick then we need to do something to help him," Lucy declared as she fiddled with her bracelet, her eyes darting to Stefan, Joel, Elena, and Damon.
Lucy and Stefan had only had time to dance to two songs before Joel purposefully walked into the gym and gathered them and Elena and Damon. He drug them out into the hallway and informed them that Alaric wasn't taking Bonnie's herbs like he told them he was.
"We tried medicine, we tried magic," Damon reminded her, eyebrows furrowed anxiously.
"Why don't we get him off vervain and compel him?" Elena spoke up thoughtfully.
"So he can pretend to be Alaric?" Joel shook his head.
"The guy we know is gone," Damon stated. "We're talking about someone who not only hates vampires but vampire sympathizers, which makes some of his most obvious targets—I don't know—you two?" he pointed between Elena and Lucy.
"What?" Stefan asked, stepping forward slightly. "You think he'd go after them?"
"Of course not," Lucy answered him, even though she wasn't so sure. "We just have to do something."
"What, though?" Elena turned to Damon for answers. "What do you think we should do?"
Damon was quiet for a few seconds before he answered. "I think we should put him out of his misery."
"He's not a dog, Damon!" Lucy immediately protested as Elena gaped at him and Joel shook his head.
"No way in hell!" another voice agreed with her. They all turned to see that Jeremy had followed them out of the gym and had listened to their conversation about Alaric.
"Oh, come on," Damon defended himself. "It's what he would want. It's a mercy killing."
Jeremy's eyes narrowed into slits. "You are out of your mind."
He turned and walked away; Lucy gave Damon a warning glare before following him, calling his name. Elena kept pace by her side, both of them worried about their younger brother. Jeremy was quick, though, so they only caught up to him as he left the school.
"Jere, stop!" Elena called as they passed by people hanging around the entrance.
Jeremy stopped walking and turned to Lucy and Elena. "This is Alaric we're talking about," he reminded them. "You know, he looked out for us and we need to do the same for him."
"I won't let anyone hurt him," Lucy vowed. Jeremy scoffed and turned to walk away again but she grabbed his arm to stop him. "Jeremy, I swear, okay? I promise, we'll find a way to save him."
Jeremy searched Lucy's face for any sign of dishonesty before turning to Elena. She nodded, silently promising the same as Lucy.
"Luciana."
Lucy blinked at the familiar voice and spun around to face Esther. She was shocked to see her first mother—Klaus had told her that she had died in Rebekah's arms because her link to the Bennett line was gone.
"Esther?" she breathed.
"If you wish to help your father, Alaric, I suggest you both come with me."
"Jeremy, go inside and get Damon, Joel, and Stefan," Elena ordered her youngest sibling. "Now."
Jeremy only looked at Esther for a second before he took off, running back into the school.
"I mean you no harm," Esther promised them. "but willingly or not, you will come."
Lucy stared at her, speechless. The last time she had seen her mother, she had knocked her out and attempted to kill her, along with the rest of her original siblings. Her heart raced as she thought about what Esther was planning now.
Elena gently nudged Lucy and grabbed her hand, pulling her along as they followed Esther away from the school.
It was only a short time later that they arrived at the cemetery, heading straight toward the Salvatore tomb. As she followed Elena and Esther through the various headstones, she tried to figure out what Esther wanted from them.
It was obviously another plot to kill Klaus, Elijah, Rebekah, and Kol—maybe even her—but how would she even do it? The last of the white oak was gone and they were no longer linked.
"You'll forgive me for taking you from the dance this evening," Esther apologized to Elena. "That's the burden of being the doppelganger. I'm afraid your blood is a potent binding agent for a witch's spell."
Lucy didn't bother asking Esther why she had insisted that she come with. It wasn't important—besides, she had a feeling that Esther had a spell creating chaos for their friends back at the school that she didn't want Lucy to siphon away.
"Just please don't hurt Alaric," Elena pleaded.
"She's not hurting me," Alaric walked out from beside the Salvatore tomb, his face hard.
Who even knew how long he hadn't been himself. Probably since Stefan beat the crap out of him.
"Ric," Lucy breathed in relief and turned to Esther. "What's going on? What are you going with him?"
"I'm going to remake him," Esther declared.
"Remake him?"
Esther nodded at Lucy. "Make him strong and fast like your siblings. Indestructible," she made her way to Alaric's side. "For one final time, I'm going to tap into the dark magic I used a thousand years ago. Like your father, Mikael, before him, I will make Alaric into a true hunter, the vampire to end all vampires."
"You can't create another Original," Elena objected. "What if he turns out to be an even bigger monster than your children?"
Lucy nodded in agreement, gesturing toward Elena. She wouldn't call herself or her siblings' monsters but they had done evil things. What if Alaric did the same? Esther didn't really have the best resume of turning people into helpful Originals.
"He won't," Esther stated. "Now that he's embraced his darkest aspect, his hatred of them will become more pure and uncompromising. In death, that hatred will be magnified."
"Don't speak as if you know him," Lucy spat at her, her heart starting to race from anger, fear, and desperation. "You don't know anything about him."
"That is where you are wrong," Esther disagreed. "Each time he died with that ring, during his brief journey into death, I was there on the Other Side. I spoke to him. I nurtured him, knowing that every death brought him closer to his true self. Vampires took everything from him and now, he's getting his vengeance."
Lucy grimaced angrily and looked at Alaric, seeing the resolute look on his face. Even if she wanted to object and tell him that he hadn't lost everything, it wouldn't matter to him. Alaric was gone and someone else had take his place.
Having stunned Lucy and Elena speechless, Esther led them into the Salvatore crypt and began preparing to cast her spell. While she began lighting candles, Lucy hung back by Elena and stared at Alaric, wishing that he wouldn't go through with this.
"Ric, this isn't what you want," Elena began quietly, glancing back at Esther to see if she was listening. "It's not who you are."
"Neither of you know who I am," Alaric's voice was hard and unwavering. "You only know the weakest parts of me. A man who lost his way, befriending vampires instead of killing them."
Lucy tightened her grip on Elena's hand, trying to draw more comfort, and shook her head. "You don't mean that."
"They're all monsters," Alaric said firmly. "The blood of their victims is on my hands. Jenna's blood is on my hands."
Lucy pressed her lips together, more protests on her lips. Jenna's blood wasn't on his hands anymore than it was on hers or Elena's or Joel's. They couldn't help Jenna and neither could Alaric; that wasn't his fault. As for the rest of the people killed by vampires, how was Alaric supposed to rewind a thousand years and stop the Originals from killing or turning more vampires? None of this was his fault—Esther had twisted her way inside his psyche and turned him into someone who he, himself, wouldn't be able to recognize.
Esther finished preparing her spell. Walking past Lucy and Elena, she held out her hands to him. "Whenever you are ready."
"No, Ric, please don't," Lucy begged, tears stinging her eyes. "Don't do this."
Alaric wasn't swayed by her pleads; he took Esther's hands in his own.
"I won't help you," Elena spat toward Esther. "I'm not gonna give you my blood. You're gonna have to kill me."
"Elena," Lucy inhaled sharply; she couldn't stand to lose Elena, too. Not when Alaric was facing death and transitioning into an enhanced vampire with none of his personality.
Esther looked at Elena calmly. "That' won't be necessary."
She held out a fist toward Elena; Elena began to gasp sharply, pain spreading through her body as she fought to breathe.
"Elena?" Lucy worriedly grabbed her arm and started siphoning, focusing on the spell that Esther was casting on her. Her eyes cut to Esther, narrowing dangerously. "Stop!"
With her other hand, Esther waved it toward Lucy. Lucy flew away from Elena to the wall of the crypt, unable to move. It was like she was stuck to the stone with the strongest glue on Earth and her body was taking its sweet time to siphon away the magic. Meanwhile, Esther had Elena's bloody hand under the metal bowl that she had prepared, Elena still gasping in pain and squirming in her grip.
"Drink it," Esther told Alaric as Lucy dropped to the ground, the magic that Esther cast on her siphoned away. "and let it be done."
As Lucy stumbled to her feet and rushed back to Elena's side, Elena pleaded, "No, Ric, please don't."
Alaric took the bowl and drank Elena's blood and whatever ingredients Esther needed to make an enhanced Original. He set the bowl down and looked at Esther in anticipation. "Is it finished?"
"Not just yet," Esther replied and thrust her hand forward, stabbing Alaric with a wooden stake. Lucy cried out and Elena gasped loudly in shock as he slumped to the ground, temporarily dead.
Lucy dropped to the ground next to him, cutting the skin of her bare knees, and pulled the wooden stake out of his chest. She shakily wiped some of her tears, not noticing the blood she smeared on her face, and looked up at Elena with sad eyes.
Elena shook her head, still in shock at the sight of Alaric's body.
"He'll wake soon," Esther told them. "When he does, he may, for a time, be his old self. If so, you can say your goodbyes before his transition is complete."
Elena gritted her teeth and turned to the Original Witch, her eyes cold and angry. "You said you wanted to undo the evil you created but this is just as evil."
Esther wasn't bothered by her accusation. "Alaric will never be what my children became," she stated. "I have granted him enough power to complete his task. Then, when the time is right, he will die."
"He's immortal," Lucy pointed out thickly. "How would he even die?"
"All you need to know is that when this is over, we will have rid the earth of vampires once and for all."
"Yeah but you'll be killing the good along with the bad," Elena objected as she helped Lucy to her feet. "You're not better than Klaus."
Lucy let out a whimper as she was reminded of what the Originals being dead would really mean. Her original siblings would be dead and so would Caroline, Damon, Joel, and Stefan. She'd lose almost everyone she knew and loved.
"Am I not?" Esther asked innocently. "I desire a world where you and your loved ones will not suffer at the hands of vampires—like your Aunt Jenna did."
Lucy couldn't believe that Esther was bringing up Jenna when she wouldn't have died if it wasn't for the fact that Esther placed the hybrid curse on Klaus in the first place. Esther was the root of almost all the tragedy in Lucy's life and she was taking none of the blame for it.
"How dare you use Jenna as an excuse for what you've done," Lucy spat at her original mother. "This is all your fault. From the very beginning, this has all happened because of you."
Esther didn't deny Lucy's claim. "You two may draw comfort knowing that your aunt is not in the place I was," she told them. "She doesn't know the torture of the Other Side. Though made a vampire, she remained pure and she knows peace...which is all any of us can hope for."
It did comfort Lucy a little bit that Jenna wasn't on the Other Side. Henrik had told her how lonely it was and she never wished that for her aunt. She was glad that Jenna was at peace, even if everyone missed her so much.
A twig snapped outside the Salvatore tomb, drawing all of their attention. Esther stalked out of the crypt to see who had come to rescue Elena and Lucy; the sisters following right behind her.
"Don't move!" Matt walked into view, aiming a gun at her. Jeremy appeared across from Matt, holding a crossbow that was also aimed at her.
"Where are Elena and Lucy?" Jeremy demanded.
"Jeremy, don't!" Elena warned him cautiously.
Jeremy took a couple of small steps toward Esther. "Let them go."
"How foolish of you to risk your lives in defense of those who will kill you," Esther looked at Jeremy and then at Matt. "but, if that is your choice..."
She raised her hands—one in Jeremy's direction and the other in Matt's—and clenched her fists. Jeremy's arms shook with force as his crossbow was slowly turned in Matt's direction; on the other side of Esther, Matt was shakily aiming his gun at Jeremy.
"Matt, drop your gun!" Jeremy shouted.
"I can't! I'm not controlling it!"
"Esther, stop!" Lucy shouted at her mother, reaching for her; Esther shrugged her off. "Stop it!"
Jeremy and Matt dropped their weapons as Esther gasped loudly. Lucy looked on in shock as Alaric appeared behind her and stabbed the stake—the one that Esther had killed him with—through her chest. She let out a long breath as Esther dropped to the ground, dead for good.
Alaric reached for Lucy and pulled her into his side before grabbing Elena's injured hand. "Oh, God," he breathed, looking down at the stake in his hand. "Where's my ring? Tell me what happened."
Lucy didn't speak. She buried her head into his chest and burst into tears.
-
Lucy's knees touched her chest as she hugged them, curling in on herself as she stared at Alaric and Elena. She couldn't believe this was happening. She was losing him, just like she had lost her parents and Jenna.
It seemed like she was cursed; so many people that she had loved died. How many more were going to lose their lives because of her?
Alaric wasn't going to complete his transition. He decided that himself and Lucy wasn't going to protest, knowing that all he had left was his choice. If accepting his death was going to help Alaric, Lucy would do that. She'd do that for her dad.
Jeremy and Joel walked into the crypt, side by side.
"Klaus took Esther's body," Joel informed Alaric, Elena, and Lucy.
"Does he know about the stake?" Alaric asked.
"No, only that she tried to turn you into a weapon and failed," Jeremy informed him. As Elena and Alaric exchanged glances, he asked, "What's going on?"
As Joel put a comforting hand on Jeremy's shoulder, having heard the conversation Elena and Alaric had when he arrived, Alaric explained, "Listen, Jeremy...I'm not—I'm not gonna complete the transition. My dark side was dangerous enough as a human. I can't be a vampire."
Lucy squeezed her knees tighter against her chest.
"So, what? We're just gonna lock you in here and let you die?" Jeremy bristled and looked to Elena, who had tears in her eyes, and then Lucy, who seemed to be totally out of it. "No. No, we can't."
"Jeremy, it's the right thing to do, okay?" Alaric tried to get through to him. "After everything that's happened. After all that I've done, maybe I had it coming."
Jeremy pressed his lips together and went to leave. Joel grabbed his arm. "Jeremy, stop," he turned to Alaric once he was sure Jeremy wasn't leaving. "Ric, none of this was your fault."
"Please, you guys, let's not make this any harder than it already is," Alaric's voice broke. "You guys should go. Damon's here and he'll make sure it will all go down the right way."
Jeremy started to leave again but Alaric stopped him. "Hey."
"Don't," Jeremy shook his head. "Don't give me some crap speech about I need to be strong."
"Okay," Alaric nodded and pulled him into a hug. "I won't."
Jeremy squeezed him back, closing his eyes for a couple of seconds, before he let Alaric go and strode out of the tomb. Joel stepped up next, holding his hand out for Alaric to shake with tears in his eyes.
"I'll take care of them," he promised Alaric. "Ric..."
"I know," Alaric shook his head and squeezed it for a few seconds. "I know, Joel."
Joel gave him a sad smile and nodded at Elena before leaving the tomb to let Alaric say the rest of his goodbyes.
"This is all my fault," Elena cried softly as Alaric turned to her. "You moved out. You—you gave me your ring back. You didn't want any part of this and I forced you to stay and take care of us."
"Don't do that," Alaric chastised her quietly. "I don't regret any of this. I don't regret you or Jeremy or Joel or Lucy. Okay? You guys are my family."
Elena pulled him into a hug, crying the whole while, and then left the crypt. Lucy looked up from her knees as Alaric slowly walked toward her. A sob left her throat when she saw the tears in his eyes.
"Lucy..." Alaric reached for her.
"I'm so sorry, Dad," Lucy cried as she leapt forward, wrapping her arms around him. "I'm so sorry. I didn't—I didn't..."
"Hey," Alaric cooed soothingly as she choked on her tears. "It's okay. You're gonna be fine, Luce. You're gonna be fine."
"No," Lucy shook her head as her body shook. "All this time, I kept you at arms length and now...Now..."
"No, you didn't, Luce."
"Yes, I did," Lucy said as she pulled her head back so she could look at him. "and I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Dad. I wish we had more time."
"I know..."
"I love you," Lucy promised, burying her head into his neck. "I love you, Dad."
"I love you, too," Alaric kissed the top of her head. "Finding you, knowing you, loving you...it's been the best part of my life."
Another sob left Lucy; it shook her whole body and she was pretty sure that she had soaked through his shirt with her tears but she couldn't stop herself. She was losing her dad when she only had him in her life for a year. There was so much regret, sadness, and love that it threatened to drown her.
"You should go," Alaric was the first to pull away from the hug.
"No," Lucy protested, shaking her head. "I'm gonna stay with you."
"No, you're not," Alaric said firmly. "You're gonna walk out there and you're gonna be strong, Lucy."
Lucy's chest shook with the force of her sobs as he wiped the tears from her face.
"You're the strongest person I know, Lucy Gilbert," Alaric smiled sadly. "Never forget that."
Lucy pressed her lips together as she squeezed her eyes shut. She gathered all the strength she had left in her body and nodded. "Okay," she breathed, pressing her hand against her racing heart. "Okay..."
"Okay," Alaric nodded and wrapped an arm around her shoulders to start guiding her out of the crypt. "It's gonna be okay."
Lucy nodded, unable to speak, as they exited the tomb. Her breath caught in her chest when she saw the candles lit up around the area in front of them, all of their friends and family lined up to silently say goodbye to Alaric.
Stefan stood to the far right, watching them sadly, as Damon had Elena wrapped up in his embrace. Caroline and Tyler stood on the other side of them and Matt leaned against the tombstone next to them. Jeremy and Joel stood together next to him and Meredith stood in front of them, tears in her eyes.
More tears gathered in Lucy's eyes as she looked toward Alaric, knowing how much this would mean to him. They all loved him so much and it was tearing them apart to know that he was leaving them.
Alaric gave Lucy a weak smile and she returned it before inhaling sharply and leaving his side. She was in Stefan's arm within seconds, turning back to look at her father.
Her vision went blurry as Alaric nodded once and walked back into the tomb.
-
Lucy unlocked the door and stepped into Alaric's apartment, a breath escaping her lungs. Even though she had been crying for the last hour, more tears welled in her eyes as she breathed in the scent that permeated Alaric's belongings.
"Lucy," Stefan whispered as she slowly walked further into the apartment like she was autopilot. "We should go home."
"No," Lucy shook her head and continued onto Alaric's bedroom. "No, I want to stay."
Lucy reached Alaric's bed and pulled back the covers before getting in. She wrapped the blanket around herself and curled into a ball, her breathing starting to quicken. When her eyes landed on one of the two framed pictures on the bedside table, a sob wracked through her body.
In the plain black frame was an old photo. Alaric was young, around Joel's current age, and he was smiling as he looked down at the baby cradled in his arms. It didn't even take a second for Lucy to recognize that it was her in the picture. The first time she and Alaric met almost seventeen years ago when she was born into the Saltzman family.
Stefan crouched down next to the bed and took one of Lucy's hands; Lucy squeezed it tightly as she cried into the pillow, her face screwed up in pain.
"I'm so sorry, Luce."
"He's gone," Lucy whimpered between sobs. "He's gone."
When Alaric first popped into her life, she didn't know how to react. She was cautious because she didn't know him and she was hesitant because he wasn't the dad who raised her; he was the dad who gave her up. He wasn't Grayson Gilbert; he was Alaric Saltzman.
It turned out that Lucy still needed him, though. He had protected her since birth when he gave her to Grayson and Miranda and when he came back into her life sixteen years later, he still protected her. He had given her space and had been patient. He loved her and she hardly ever told him that she loved him too. She wasted so much time with him.
And now he was gone.
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[Lucy's Outfit]