Title: Below the Belt

Disclaimers: I don't own any supernatural powers or anything else to do with TVD. If I had, Delena would happen a lot more often! Genre: Please be aware that this story's main genre is hurt/comfort and I'll be concentrating on that side of things even more than usual.

Rating: PG

Summary/Set: Bonnie would not leave the events of 3x15 unpunished.

Pairing: canon

Damon was not the slightest bit surprised when he woke in the middle of the night to a splitting headache and agonising cramps all over. He did kill Bonnie's mother after all, even if that state was only temporary. The vampire struggled to look around for the witch, try to reason with her somehow. The little witch would normally see sense and his genuine intentions behind his lamentable design and execution in the end, but not before giving out punishment as she saw fit. Of course her powers were getting stronger now and that meant she didn't actually need to be present to utilise this sort of magic and Damon had to deduce that was actually the case. He tried to consider how long the witch's anger could last in a way that channelled her emotions into the spell, more hoping, than assuming she was at least a bit like her ancestor Emily, in which case her irregular and unpredictable penalizations would be severe, but brief.

All sense of time gets distorted during such times of intense pain, so his reasoning mind had to presume it was only minutes that have past and not the hours it felt like while he bit his lips bloody in an effort not to cry out, but slowly, though surely his control slipped away from him and his escaped moans became groans and his groans became screams. It didn't really register with him that the light went on and Stefan came in, it was only when his brother grabbed him and turned his head towards him that Damon's eyes focussed on the younger Salvatore.

Stefan's senses didn't register danger, nor did he smell vervain, so he was at first at a loss at figuring out what could've been wrong. He sat on the bed urgently and held onto his brother by the arm, squeezing gently to attract his attention from whatever had him in its grip, "Damon! Damon, what happened?"

Damon gritted his teeth to be able to stop himself screaming and hiss out a few words, "feels like..witchheadsplit."

The slurry words didn't make it easy for Stefan to make out the words and the fact that his brother was not holding his head, but was curled up around his midsection confused Stefan further. He shook his head, "not werewolf bite, is it?"

Damon indicated a no and Stefan breathed a sigh of relief before focusing on the older vampire's scrunched up face again, urgency flooding through him, "you need to tell me how I can help. Blood?" He frowned, insides churning in sympathy as if that could take some of Damon's pain away.

"Call Elena.." And ask her to talk to Bonnie for me, Damon wanted to say, but it was way too long for him to manage. His fists dug into his stomach deeply in vain effort to try to break the spasms.

Stefan hesitated a second. Sometimes he still found it hard to take in that Elena and Damon took great comfort out of each other's friendship, or their relationship or whatever it was they had. "I need to go get my cell, I'll just be a moment," he leaned closer to Damon to assure him. At the little acknowledging nod his brother gave him, Stefan vampire sped away and back. He pressed speeddial at the same time as instinctively reaching out to rub his brother's arm as the older vampire struggled determined to keep his mouth shut and not alarm Elena with his inarticulate screams. Stefan would've wanted to give more comfort, but its not like they were on hugging terms. He almost forgot he had the phone in his hand till..

"Stefan?" Elena's slightly sleepy voice came through the ether, more alert by the second cause why would either of the Salvatores call her at that time of night if it wasn't something serious?

"I don't know what's wrong with Damon."

"Do you think I don't feel guilty enough that people always end up dying on my behalf?"

"It's not about that Elena. He's in a really bad way, lying in bed rigid with pain and I could think of only one thing that could cause this. If Esther wanted to retaliate, wouldn't she have had to do her spells on both of us? After all, she could have no idea which one of us severed the Bennett witchline, or could she?..Elena?" He pressed as there was a long pause at the other end.

"How long has he been like that?"

"I don't know, it could've been hours, I just came in. Why?"

"I think..I think it could be Bonnie. I can't talk to her, she doesn't want me around cause I had a role in what had happened, so I'm gonna call Caroline, she was with her. Hang on, I'll call you back."

"Bonnie has to be the answer. Even if she's not causing this, she must be able to break the spell. Just please hurry up Elena. I can't watch him suffer like this," Stefan could only stand helpless as Damon resorted to a low moan, not being able to keep quiet anymore.

Elena shivered at the other end, not needing the audible incentive to spring into action. If anything, the sound Damon elicited froze her into spot for a moment and she bit into the inside of her lips before springing into action, getting clothes out from her wardrobe as she spoke, "I'm gonna go, the sooner I can contact Caroline, the better. Stefan...just try to keep him comfortable..it'll be ok. Bonnie always comes round to help us, you know she does," Elena encouraged her grim sounding ex boyfriend, then hung up. The way her worried heart was going, she wondered for a moment if he could hear it over the phone.

Stefan could've exploded. The fact that there was nothing constructive he could do at that moment, was driving him crazy. He rubbed his own forehead in frustration and ultimately decided at least to try something. Running round the bed, he knelt on it so he could reach Damon's back easily, drawing strong, reassuring circles on it, disregarding how the rigidity of his brother's muscles alarmed and pained him. He had no idea if it was helping in any way, but he kept doing it, calling his name out sometimes, trying to catch his attention and divert him from suffering. The younger vampire didn't feel like he could tolerate the sight any longer, but a certain thought kept him grounded. Whoever did this, was gonna suffer the equivalent, or worse.

Tbc