Whatever It Takes {Two | Alaric Saltzman}

One Way or Another

Alaric pulled into the parking lot of the Wildwood Motel off Route 70. His passengers, Abigail in the front seat and Valerie in the back, would stay. He, on the other hand, would meet Damon at an Arkansas hospital not far from there where Marty's survival had been ensured through a combination of compelling and threats before heading to the University of Memphis where Ambrose, the vampire inhabiting Stefan's body, was holed up in a frat house.

He parked the truck right in front of the office, Valerie got out to reserve a room, and Abigail, after her first sleepless night for reasons unrelated to her children, stared straight ahead. A nightmare. The first one in a year and a half. The one that was always the same.

"The sooner this is done, the sooner the girls can come home," Alaric reminded her. "The sooner we can get back to our life."

Taking off her seatbelt, she turned her head to look at him. "I know."

He took her hand before she could reach for the door. "Hey, Bea, you're doing better than you think you are."

It resembled a smile, the way her lips stretched, but her eyes filled with tears as she leaned forward. His lips met hers halfway, pressed so gently against them that the lightness with which she pulled away left a sensory memory. There was a moment, just as Valerie walked out with two keys, where she pulled him closer. She didn't say anything, even though she felt like she should've, but the way her hands released him said enough.

Not long after they settled into the room, it came into focus. Well, not long was Abigail's guess, she didn't actually know how long they had been there. All she knew was that her family was separated, and it was the only thing she could think about.

"You're quiet."

She was sitting at the table, Valerie was sitting between the beds, and they were looking at each other with something that had only been made possible in that diner. "I just don't want to get in the way."

Valerie shook her head. "There's more to it than that."

"I'm realizing a lot of things at once," she admitted. "Things that I guess I've always known."

"Well, thank you for being here with me. I know you would much rather be with your family."

She shook her head as she looked around the room. "Is there anything I can do to help you prep for the spell?"

"I have everything I need. I just need to gather strength."

Her eyes found their way back to Valerie's as she approached her. "What do you mean?"

"Gemini spells usually take two witches. In order to ensure that I can actually get him back into his own body, I have to have at least that much power." Valerie sat down across from her, continuing in a splintered voice, "But everyone I've ever loved in this entire world is gone. Stefan is the only thing I have left. I'll do whatever I have to do to get it done."

"Valerie?"

Valerie looked up at her. "Yes?"

"I know I have no right to ask anything of you, but I'm not asking for myself. I'm asking for my girls. H-How old were you when the siphoning really started?" She did not give her time to answer, not yet, not until she offered her the story that warranted the question. "Alaric had to work the other weekend, so Caroline offered to go with me to the twins' friend's birthday party. I was saying goodbye to the other parents as she put them in the car, and, uh, Lizzie took Josie's goodie bag. Caroline took it back from her and she grabbed her arm and she siphoned her. She didn't mean to, she didn't know what she was doing..."

"But you weren't expecting it to start so soon," Valerie finished for her. "I don't know when it started for me. Just that I could always do it. That I was different from everyone else."