Disclaimer: I don't own The Vampire Diaries, and I don't make any money off of this story. I do own Lucy, who is the main character in this (she's also my cat, I just like the name!)
When it came to his brother, there was one name Stefan knew never to mention. Lucy Gilbert. Over the years, Stefan had actually seen his brother flinch twice when the name Lucy was mentioned.
Lucy Gilbert. Oldest daughter of John Gilbert, best friend of Damon, pseudo sister of Stefan. Until, of course, it had become Lucy Salvatore, wife of Damon and sister-in-law to Stefan. It hadn't been a surprise, everyone had expected it to happen. Of course, no one expected what happened next.
Katherine was already living with them when Damon arrived home from school. Hell, Katherine had been a guest at the wedding. But Stefan saw how Katherine would watch Damon and Lucy when they were together. Back then, he had thought it was just because she wanted a relationship like the one they had. The kind that you knew the other person would love you no matter what.
Now he knew it was because she wanted Damon.
They were happily married for two months- well, as happy as the two of them could be. They fought. They fought constantly, but that was the way their relationship had always worked. As kids, Damon Salvatore and Lucy Gilbert had fought constantly, usually resulting in injury to one party, or both. Father had taken a strap to Damon more than once over it, and Stefan knew Lucy's mother had been livid with her daughter. As they got older, the two of them had become inseparable, friends, but the arguing had never stopped.
It was after one of their many arguments that Lucy had disappeared.
It was like any other argument. Later, when you asked Damon what it had been about, he wouldn't be able to remember. It had started out over something stupid, as they all did, and had ended with Lucy going to see her family for the afternoon.
Only she had never arrived. The town searched for weeks, only to never find any sign of Lucy Salvatore. And the people turned on one person. Damon.
Wherever Damon went, he was subjected to whispers and accusations. Everyone believed he was involved in Lucy's disappearance. No one cared that Damon was a complete wreck over his missing wife. No one believed it was real.
And then, when it got to be too much, Damon left to join the Civil War. Which only made everyone even more certain that he was to blame.
Damon returned after a few months. It didn't take Stefan long to realize his brother had changed greatly. Stefan never knew if it was the war, or losing Lucy that had changed him. He didn't think he would ever find out.