A little of Katherine's thoughts when her and Damon "get the hell out of dodge" lol.

Disclaimer: I don't own TVD, sadly.

"The Damon I remember wouldn't have been that stupid."

"I wouldn't have done it for you."

That conversation continued to play in Katherine's mind, long after Damon had left.

As had the kiss he'd returned in the car. Staying aloof and cold was a tactic she had perfected, so how is it that she now felt as if tears were about to pour down her face. Damn Salvatore's! She moved to sit on top of the car, as the Gilbert boy was sitting in the back seat, awkwardly staring at her. Pulling her knees to her chest, Katherine tilted her head back to watch the sky and think.

Things were changing. So many years ago, she had everything under control. She was safely hidden from Klaus, had manipulated her way into a likable status, and had landed in a quiet little town, blissfully unaware of her true nature. And had won over the affections of the two beautiful human brothers, whose family had taken her in. Damon had loved her first, and she did love him, but Stefan. Stefan was the one whose love made a difference. The one she felt like she didn't deserve. He'd brought out feelings in her that she had thought she'd burried long ago. But even then, feeling this, she had needed Damon too. Because he loved her in a way she had known Stefan never could. Fully, and completely, with everything he had, or at least, he would have, had she let him. But honestly his intensity had scared her. A love like that means she'd have to let her gaurd down, trust someone, be vulnerable. Stefan was safer, better. Yet she had wanted them both. And they, with some compulsion, let her have what she wanted. She was the prize, the heiress, a goddess that they were lucky to touch. What happened to that?

"I wouldn't have done it for you."

That bothered her, mostly because it may be true. At one time, Damon might have believed he'd give up his life for her, but without the compulsions, with the truth on the table? No way. She'd trained him too well for that. Self above anything else. So it astounded her that he would act this way for a human. Her doppleganger.

What was it about this Elena girl that had everyone so wound up? First with Stefan, which actually kind of made sense. He'd have noticed the resemblance, then would have been comforted by the fact she was human, and sweet, innocent, kind, and boring. Yeah, Stefan would find that appealing, but Damon too? Hadn't he loved her, Katherine, simply for what she was? He'd liked that she was dangerous, liked that she could control him if she wanted. He shared her willingly, knowing that some of her attention was better than none at all. Except now he was no longer under her spell, now he saw her as nothing more as a cold heartless bitch. And she didn't like that, at all.

Perhaps she'd gotten over Stefan. She'd compelled him to accept her as a vampire, and then forcefully changed him. There was no going back from that, and she knew it. But she couldn't shake Damon off. She never could. But he'd changed too. She hadn't checked in on him as much as Stefan, and if she had, perhaps she would have noticed. Her sweet, innocent, Damon, wasn't so sweet and innocent anymore. If anything, he'd turned into a male version of herself. But not with Elena. He was trying for her, as she'd tried for Stefan. Only Damon wasn't her. He couldn't just cut the tie when it got too deep. When he loved, he loved. And as much as she wished otherwise, Damon loved Elena, but worse, Elena loved him back. She just couldn't admit it, even to herself. Katherine had kept a close watch on the town now that Klaus was around, though doing her best not to stay in it too long, personally. But through her observations, she'd caught enough to see the story unfolding here. This time, Damon was going to get the girl, it was just a matter of time. Stefan had made his mark on Elena, she'd loved him, and all was good. But he'd left. Klaus had brought out Stefan's most inner self, and Elena had still loved him, yet Damon had always been his bad self. Elena accepted that in him, and with Stefan gone, she'd gotten to see all the good things in Damon, the things she could love. He'd let her in just enough it seems. And even Katherine knew that Elena wouldn't be as foolish as she'd been. She'd see the strength in Damon's love. Only Stefan's return has stopped her from persuing it. But Katherine knew Damon, and Elena wasn't going to be able to just shrug him off. She would see soon enough.

This also conflicted Katherine. Damon was her's. She didn't want him to love anyone else the way he'd loved her. She didn't want to accept that Elena could claim his heart if she so desired, while Katherine no longer could. She'd given up that choice in the name of survival. But she also felt as though Damon might finally deserve this happiness. She knew her actions had hurt him. There was nothing for it now, it was done, and she would admit that she couldn't love Damon the way he wanted. But Elena could. Poor human Elena could be the oldest Salvatore's redemption. Yes, after everything he'd lived, Damon deserved that. Stefan faired at least, he was able to become a form of happy, or at least content. He didn't need Elena's love like Damon did. He hadn't paid the price for that love like Damon had. Couldn't he see that?

Katherine sighed. This was pointless. What did it matter? Neither Salvatore loved her anymore; she should just move on, continue with her life, far away from Klaus, but things just weren't that simple anymore. Maybe it was closure she needed. Maybe it was to know her boys would be okay. Hell, she didn't even know why she felt the urge to stick around, and why the Salvatore's mattered at all. She jumped off the top of the car, causing little Gilbert to jump.

"Oh lighten up!" she exclaimed. "I'll be back, don't go anywhere, and don't do anything stupid," she warned him, before starting walking down the dark road. If she had nothing better to do then sit around and mope about leftover feelings for Stefan and Damon, then she'd have to find something to keep her occupied. And she swore Damon had driven pass a truck stop earlier.

The End. Review Please :)

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