After the incident with Mason in the woods and the fight with her parents, Riley spent the next three days at the boardinghouse. She skipped school, claiming that she needed rest for her wounds. One of the deputies had made up a story that she was attacked in the woods by a wild animal. No one in town questioned it, remembering the animal attacks earlier in the year. She did not want to face her parents, still angry with them about keeping secrets from her. While Caroline was at school, Riley would watch over her mother, giving her meals and attempting to help her see that her daughter was no different. Her mother proved difficult to persuade since she had years of vampire prejudice put in her head by her own parents. When she was not taking care of her, Riley was getting to know Damon and Stefan better. She warmed up to Stefan, seeing how much he loved Elena and learning about his struggles with drinking human blood. Her friends were more surprised by her friendship with Damon.

She had to admit that they were very much alike in personality and sense of humor. They bonded so quickly that it felt like they knew each other for years instead of a few days. Elena disapproved of their close friendship, warning Riley that Damon used people for his own benefit. She had been so determined to break them up that she told Riley's father that she had been living at the boardinghouse. Just hearing that Riley was alone with two vampires sent her parents into a panic. It led to a small argument late last night where Riley refused to let him into the house or speak with him outside. She was annoyed that Elena would go behind her back, especially after Riley insisted her that the issue was between her and her parents. Deep down, she knew that Elena had good intentions but she was too stubborn to talk about it with her.

Riley was laying on a couch in the living room, doing her calculus homework. Damon entered the room, carrying a cardboard box. He looked at the calculus book on her lap and shook his head.

"What a waste of time. Who needs math?"

"Its only purpose is to torture kids in school by being impossible and complicated. What's in the box?"

"Council records that contain notes from every meeting held in the past twenty years. I told Carol that I wanted to brush up on some vampire history and thought the records would give me some insight"

She tossed her book aside, taking the box from him. Doing math problems was the last thing on her mind. As she sifted through the stack of dusty journals, which were filled with dates and notes on supernatural attacks, she heard a knock on the door. Damon left to answer it. Riley hoped that her father had not come for another visit. She started to look at journals with dates that ranged from her year of birth to the current week. Her name was mentioned during a meeting that occurred a few days after she was born, circled in red marker. She grabbed her notebook and copied down the date for future reference. Reading the other journals, she found an interesting connection. On every meeting that happened within a week after her birthday, up to her fifth birthday, she was mentioned in the notes. Hearing Damon return to the room, she glanced up and saw Jeremy.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm helping Damon. I know that you and Elena don't want me involved but by definition of being a Gilbert, I am involved in this mess. I told Damon that Mason is looking for a moonstone"

"I knew that already. It's connected to werewolves. Tyler has it"

Damon crossed his arms. "How long have you known about that?"

"Since my first night back"

"Didn't bother to tell me about it?"

"Kind of busy trying to keep Caroline's mom from just running out of here and telling everyone that you and Stefan are vampires"

"Well I'm calling Ric to get Isobel's research. You two behave"

Jeremy sat beside her on the couch. He looked at her with a concerned expression as if she was about to jump off of the Wickery bridge to her death.

"Stop staring at me like a wounded puppy, Jer"

"Your parents are really worried about you. They stopped by last night, asking Elena how you were doing since you're ignoring their calls. Are you ever going home?"

"When they stop lying to me. Considering these old notes, I don't think that's happening soon"

"Well you could stay with us. Jenna wouldn't mind. Elena and I don't usually see eye to eye but on this, I have to kind of agree that it isn't safe. Damon's not exactly the person to go when you're in a bad mood"

"I heard that" she heard Damon say from the hallway.

Riley assured Jeremy that she was in no danger at the boardinghouse. She and Caroline had been keeping each other company at night, bonding over the problems with their parents. He questioned her about the journals. She pointed out her name being mentioned at least once during a meeting close to her birthday. The journal that corresponded to her being five years old had the most notes. Mr. Lockwood, who was the writer of these records, was furious about her parents' decision to tell her about the supernatural world. He had written that he would have deputies keep an eye on Riley to ensure she did not blab these secrets to her friends. While they waited for Alaric, Jeremy helped her with the journals. She noticed that after her fifth birthday, her name popped up more frequently.

"Ri, what happened with Mr. Tanner in 3rd grade? You're both mentioned in a meeting right before Christmas and Tyler's dad drew an arrow from you to him"

"I don't—I think I remember him going to the hospital for a concussion. It happened during recess. He was blaming me and Jayden for this prank that we didn't even do and a tree branch fell and knocked him pretty bad in the head. I was so mad at him that I didn't even care. He was out for like a week"

"Why would the council talk about him getting hit by a branch?"

"No idea. Does it mention Jay too?"

"No, just you. There are a lot more incidents too. It's like they think you caused all of them. The last time you're mentioned in this one is right before you moved. There were suspected vampires in the town and...Mr. Lockwood wanted some of your blood. He doesn't say why but it's weird"

Riley could not remember vampire attacks occurring before their move from Mystic Falls. She wrote all of it down in her notebook. The only other mention of her was in a more recent journal. Her name was mentioned a dozen times on the night that she returned to town. Damon waited for Alaric, pouring himself a glass of whiskey.

"Have you heard them talk about me?" she asked.

"I haven't been to any of the recent meetings. I know when John stopped by to help with the tomb vampires, he was having a pretty tense conversation with Liz and he said your name. Liz got pretty pissed at him"

He glanced at the notebook, which had been filled with two pages of notes from the journals.

"Hmm, I take it that you're still mad at mommy and daddy Gilbert"

"Mad doesn't even begin to describe it. Mason was right that the council talked about me at the last meeting before our move"

Alaric interrupted the conversation, entering the room with a box. He did not look pleased to see Jeremy and Riley at the boardinghouse. Jeremy explained that he wanted to help and had been the person to tell Damon about the moonstone. Riley merely shrugged and told him that she was resting from her injuries.

"Your parents have been worried sick. Do you know that?"

"He's trying to make me feel bad, right?" she asked Damon.

He nodded. "It's him being the adult"

"Riley, you should at least talk to them. Whatever is going on won't be fixed by hiding out here"

"Fine, I'll go see them tonight. Can we focus on the bigger problem right now?"

Alaric showed them his ex-wife Isobel's research. She had all kinds of information on vampires and werewolves. The moonstone was used to bind the werewolf side of the sun and moon curse, meaning that it could be used to break the curse and allow werewolves to transform at will. He suggested that Mason wanted the moonstone for that purpose.

"Who has the stone now?"

"Tyler" said Jeremy.

"Can you get it?"

"Yea"

"See? Now your life has purpose"

Damon was not going to take the curse likely since the research had evidence of werewolf bites being lethal to vampires. They planned to get the moonstone from Tyler before Mason found it. Riley drove them to the Lockwood mansion in her car. Everyone was busy setting up for the annual masquerade ball. Elena carried a box of masks and Damon snuck up on her. After exchanging a few words, he went to find Stefan. Riley spotted Tyler putting up paper lanterns with Matt. Before she could bring Jeremy over to them, Elena blocked their path. She crossed her arms, shooting them both a disapproving look, and questioned Jeremy about his involvement with Damon.

"There is no Damon and you. There's Damon and whoever Damon is using…and those people end up dead. Whatever is going on, Jeremy, I want you to stay out of it"

"I don't really care what you want. I'm in this mess because of you"

"Riley, please don't get involved. I know you're mad at me for telling your dad about you staying at the boardinghouse but I"

"I'm not mad at you. I get why you did it but it wasn't necessary. It's between me and them. Jeremy is fine. I'll make sure he stays okay"

"But"

Riley grabbed Jeremy's arm, taking him outside the mansion. Tyler was under a tent, setting up tables with silverware and fancy napkins. When Tyler saw her, he lifted her up in a hug.

"Ri, here you are. You haven't been answering my texts or calls. How are you doing since the animal attack?"

"I'm feeling better. I should be good to go to school tomorrow. Listen, Jer and I did some research on that moonstone. It might be part of some weird Aztec legend but we're not sure. Could I have it and I'll give it back to you later?"

Tyler apologized to her, admitting that he gave the stone to Mason. He did not want any part of the werewolf curse. Damon and Stefan were watching their conversation. She was sure that they heard every word.

"Want to help me with these tables?"

"We actually have to help Elena. Maybe later" said Jeremy.

As they returned to the mansion, she handed her keys to Jeremy. She told him to return to the boardinghouse. Jeremy began to protest until he saw the small glare on her face. She promised to call him with any news and searched for Damon. He was talking with Stefan and Bonnie. She hurried over to them, worried that Damon and Bonnie would get into a fight.

"Here you are, shorty. Where's the other Gilbert?"

"Back at the boardinghouse. What's going on?"

"Tell her" he said to Bonnie.

Bonnie informed her that she had a vision when bumping into Mason. She saw him and Elena kissing but it was actually Katherine. They figured out that Mason was working with her to get the moonstone. She did not understand why Katherine would want to break the werewolf part of the curse. Elena constantly called Stefan, wanting answers. He walked away, leaving Riley to handle Damon and Bonnie by herself. Damon wanted Bonnie to touch Mason again to see if he handed the moonstone to Katherine. She argued that her visions were not that simple. He asked her about magic she used on him at the carnival. It made him feel like his brain was on fire. She said that the spell gave him an aneurysm and it would work on anyone with a fast healing ability.

"We could use that. Werewolves heal quickly" suggested Riley.

"I'm not going to help you hurt him"

"Mason and Katherine are the enemies here. Don't go all morality police on me. Let me put it this way. They're a threat to Elena so you are going to get over yourself and help us"

Riley nudged his side. "I'll translate for you. He meant that as a question as in…please help?"

"Riley, I don't"

She pouted, making puppy eyes at Bonnie. After a few seconds, Bonnie groaned, unable to resist it.

"I hate that thing. Fine, I'll help you get Mason back to the boarding house and figure out where he has the moonstone"

Riley devised a plan to get Mason. She and Bonnie pretended to move a large table from the back of a truck while Damon waited behind a tree.

"How can you trust him?" whispered Bonnie.

"Well Damon isn't the one who stabbed me a dozen times and left me for dead. Bonnie, you know I don't trust just anyone. If I can give Damon the Riley Gilbert stamp of approval, you can give him a chance too"

"You haven't been around for all the trouble he's caused"

Mason was leaving the mansion. He chuckled, seeing Riley struggle with the table.

"How did you get stuck with this, munchkin?"

"All the guys bailed. Something about draft picks" lied Bonnie.

"Let me help. You shouldn't be doing this, especially you, Riley. How are you feeling since that animal attack?"

Riley's fists clenched against the table, wanting to bash him in the face. Mason seemed to think that she was compelled to forget about the incident in the woods. She feigned a smile, acting like she could barely remember what happened that day. As he grabbed the table, Bonnie used her magic to hurt his head. He fell to his knees in pain. Riley hit him over the head with a candlestick, knocking him unconscious. Damon placed him in the back of Mason's truck and they drove back to the boardinghouse. Riley and Bonnie laid down a tarp on the living room carpet. Mason was placed in a chair and while Damon chained him down, Bonnie placed her hands on either side of his head, searching for information on the moonstone. She eventually saw a well. Mason, still unconscious, grabbed Bonnie's wrist. Riley smacked it away.

"There's a well on the edge of the old Lockwood property in the woods"

"Are you coming with me?"

"I'll stay here to make sure Damon doesn't do something stupid"

"Be careful"

Riley and Damon waited for Mason to wake up, going over questions to ask him. She could not help smiling when she saw Bonnie leave the house with Caroline. Ever since Caroline's transformation, Bonnie had been avoiding her and Riley hoped that this was a start to repairing their friendship. Damon heated a fire iron in the fireplace. Mason began to stir, immediately struggling against the chains. He looked between Riley and Damon.

"Riley, what are you doing?"

"You're not the one asking questions today, Mason. Just sit there like a good boy and everything will be fine"

Damon stuck the poker into his chest. Mason cried out in pain. Within a few seconds, the wound healed.

"Please untie me. Riley, don't let him do this…you know me. I was your babysitter. I care about you. We're friends"

She crossed her arms. "Really? I guess I have the wrong idea because I've never heard of friends stabbing each other. Is this some special friendship thing?"

"I was going to take you to the hospital"

"Don't lie. You told Liz that I was a vampire…you were going to let me die, Mason. I am the last person to ask for help. You're working with someone who wants to hurt my cousin. You are right about one thing. We know each other well and you know that I will always protect my family"

Mason refused to give them any answers. As they questioned him, Damon would hurt him with the iron. They used a good cop/bad cop act with him where Riley acted sweet and Damon was more violent with his questions. Mason kept trying to plead with Riley, assuring her that he cared about her. Jeremy showed them sprigs of wolfsbane in the box containing Isobel's research. Searching the plant on the internet, he found out that it could be toxic to werewolves. Damon shoved a handful into Mason's mouth. Mason spit it out, blood dripping from his mouth. He told them that he was getting the moonstone for Katherine so he would no longer need to turn on the full moon. Riley rolled her eyes when he insisted that Katherine loved him. She was not surprised that Mason fell for her charms. From what Damon said about her, Katherine was very manipulative.

"I'm done talking"

"Yes, you are. Time to take a walk, Jeremy"

"I'm staying. He's had enough"

Mason begged Jeremy and Riley to help Tyler. He seemed to realize how this situation would end for him. Jeremy was about to ask Damon to let him leave the boardinghouse. Damon moved in front of Jeremy, gripping his neck.

"Damon" said Riley, warningly.

"Riley, please. Just let me go" whispered Mason.

She walked over to him, holding onto the wolfsbane. "Tell me the truth. Were you planning for me to die that day in the woods?"

"Y—yes"

"Why? What did I ever do to you?"

"K—Katherine saw you as a threat and I couldn't let you get involved in this. I needed Liz to see how dangerous the Salvatores were and if she saw them feeding off of you, she'd definitely kill them. I—I'm sorry"

Her eyes narrowed. Riley was furious that Mason would choose some vampire that he met a few months ago over her, a girl who he had known since she could barely say one word. She imagined herself setting him on fire. Suddenly, flames shot out from the fireplace. She ducked out of the way and watched the flames burn his face. Mason screamed, nearly toppling the chair to the floor. She glanced around the room, checking for Bonnie to see if she had used her magic. Damon returned to Mason while Jeremy left the room.

"You know, I look at you and I see myself…a less dashing, less intelligent version"

"I love her" replied Mason, tears in his eyes.

"Oh, I know. I've been where you are. Katherine will only rip your heart out. Let me do it for her"

Damon reached into his chest and pulled out his heart. He tossed it onto the floor. Riley received a text from Caroline, telling her that they found the moonstone.

"They got the moonstone from the well. I'm taking Jeremy home then I'm going to my house"

"Hey, be careful. Katherine could be anywhere. Stefan and I will take care of the lone wolf here"

She put a couple council journals into her bag and left the boardinghouse. Jeremy was sitting on the ground, looking anxious.

"Did he"

"Yea. Let's get you home. Don't tell Elena that you were here for…any of this. You tell her that I took you to the grill"

They got into Riley's car and she drove him home. After giving him a quick hug, she returned to her own house. Her parents were in the kitchen, making dinner. Seeing her, her mother dropped the salad bowl.

"Riley, are you all right? We've been"

"Yea, worried…I've heard. I'm not staying unless you tell me the truth"

She took out her notebook, showing the notes from the journals. "What is this?" asked her father.

"Every single mention of me at a council meeting. Why were you talking about me?"

"Riley, how did you—Damon gave you the records, didn't he?"

"Answer my question. Why were you talking about me so much? You have my name with all these weird incidents that happened when I was little. Do you seriously think I caused them?"

Her father made her sit down at the counter. He explained that other council members, including Mr. Lockwood, thought she had been involved in the incidents. The one common connection between all of them was Riley, whether she was there or had an argument with that person before anything happened to them.

"You believe them?"

"Of course not. We defended you countless times. It's why we left Mystic Falls. Some of the council thought there was something—wrong with you. They were just being paranoid"

"What if there is something wrong?"

He put his hand on her shoulder. "There isn't, Riley. When we were leaving, there was a lot of turmoil on the council. Richard asked to have samples of your blood to handle a vampire gang. One of the vampires had sniffed you out and asked for you in order to leave the town. Richard was going to make that deal but we couldn't let him do that. You're our daughter. That's why we left Mystic Falls. I wish I could tell you why vampires seem to get so attracted to your blood but in all honesty, I don't know. If I did, I would tell you"

"Does the council still think I'm...dangerous?"

"No. When we went to our first meeting after returning, we told them straight away that if any of them harmed you, they would deal with us. If any of them harass you, you need to tell us. We'll always protect you"

Her mother offered her dinner. Riley shook her head, wanting to get rest after such a long day. She went up to her room and sat on the floor. Popping open one of the floorboards, she found a stash of her grandfather's belongings. She took out a small lighter. Flipping it open, she watched the flame. She closed her eyes tightly and felt something warm on her skin. The flame had transferred to her palm. She closed her hand, seeing the flame extinguish into thin air. For the rest of the night, she kept playing with the lighter…

Thanks for reading :)