"It's okay to love them both. I did."

Katherine's words kept ringing in Elena's head. She heard them when she left Damon's room. She heard them when she drove home. And they were the last thing she thought when she fell asleep. But did she love them both? She knew she loved Stefan, that was a given. And she had feelings for Damon, sure. But were they strong enough to be love? She didn't want to think about it. So, she did what she did best - avoid. Damon had called her and left a voicemail when she woke up, but she just hit ignore and got ready. She had texted Bonnie and Caroline and they agreed to have breakfast at the Grill with her.

Half an hour later, she was seated at an outside table with her best friends.

"So, Damon is okay? Were you able to get the cure from Klaus?" Caroline asked, frowning.

"Um, yeah. He was starting to recover when I left last night. I'll check on him later." Elena said, not sure how to bring up the specifics.

"I'm sure Stefan will keep you updated, won't he? You should take it easy, it's been a rough couple of days with everything." Bonnie said, concerned.

"Stefan's gone." Elena decided to just come out with it, they'd find out eventually.

"WHAT!?" the witch and vampire shouted in unison.

"What do you mean he's gone?"

"Where did he go?"

Elena hushed them both, looking around to make sure they weren't being watched.

"Stefan had to agree to work with Klaus to get the cure. Katherine delivered it last night, and she said I wouldn't be seeing him for a long time. I texted him several times, but he never responded. All I can assume is that he's run off with Klaus who knows where. But Katherine was wrong, he won't be gone for long. I will keep calling him, and Damon will help find him. I know it." Elena bit back the heavy stream of emotions she was feeling. She had been so preoccupied with everything that had happened that she was still not processing Jenna's death and Stefan's deal with the devil.

Caroline and Bonnie squeezed Elena's hands, not sure what to say. What do you say to a 17-year-old girl who lost her parents (both adopted and biological), her aunt, and the love of her life in just over a year? Add vampires and doppelgangers and toxic werewolf bites in the mix, and it's impossible to know how to handle it.

"What can we do? Is there anything? Whatever it takes, we're here for you." Caroline smiled supportively.

"Thanks, you two. It will be okay. Ric is staying with us right now, although he refuses to sleep anywhere but the couch. And Jeremy and I still have one another, and Damon is still here. And of course, you two. So, don't worry, I'll be fine." Elena smiled forcefully, determined to put on a brave front. She didn't want to worry her friends, she knew everyone was concerned about her but really, they had bigger things on their plates. Like where did Klaus go and was he coming back? And where was Stefan, and what exactly was the deal he made with Klaus?

They ate and Elena said her goodbyes, promising to keep in touch. Bonnie was about to leave for the summer to go to her family's, but Caroline wasn't going anywhere and Elena knew she would be hounding Elena to make sure she was okay.

Elena pulled up to the boarding house and tried calling Stefan one last time. To her shock, he answered.

"Stefan! Where are you? Are you okay? Where is Klaus? When are you coming home?" Elena asked in a flurry of questions, desperate for more information.

There was a long pause and then, "Elena, I'm sorry."

"What?" She choked out, trying to keep her voice even.

"I won't be coming home. I made a deal with Klaus, I'm with him now. It was the only way to save Damon." His voice sounded different, void of emotion. Elena didn't understand, how could he have agreed to that?

"Stefan, please. You-you can't…there must be a solution. There is a solution. Bonnie will find something, Damon and I will work on getting you back. This won't be forever. Just tell me where you are, Stefan." Elena was openly crying at this point, desperate to get her boyfriend back or at the very least, get more information on what he was going on.

"No. Don't come looking for me, Elena. I mean it. I'm glad Damon is okay, but I'm a done deal. I'm back on human blood and I don't want you or Damon to look for me. Don't waste your time."

"No! No Stefan, I refuse! I -" Elena started to protest, but Stefan hung up.

"No…" she cried as she let her head fall forward against the wheel. She was relieved he was alive, but she was even more worried. He wasn't himself. Her Stefan wouldn't be so stoic, so cold. He didn't sound like he had shut off his humanity, so that was a good sign. But he was drinking human blood again, which was really bad. What were she and Damon going to do? How were they going to fix this? She banged her head against the wheel as she started to sob. Everything came rushing to her at once-her aunt just died, the only parental unit she had left. John died and while she was never incredibly fond of him, he was still her biological father. And now Stefan was really gone.

Her car door opened and she jumped, startled, and looked to see who was interrupting her meltdown. Damon pulled her out of the driver's seat and gathered her in his arms.

"Elena, calm down. You need to breathe. It will all be okay, I promise." He murmured in her ear, as he ran his hand through her hair, trying to calm her.

"He-he's gone, Damon. He's drinking human blood and he won't tell me where he is and I'm scared and he was so cold and-" Elena hiccupped, her body begging for air through the sobs that were wracking her body.

Damon wordlessly picked her up and carried her inside as her sobs continued. He set her down on the couch and sat beside her, allowing her to cling to him for comfort. He shushed her and rubbed her back until finally, her crying let up and all you could hear was the occasional sniffle.

"What do we do, Damon?" Elena whispered.

"We will get him back, Elena. What did he say to you? Did he give you any clue?" He asked, hoping she could answer his question without breaking down again. He hated to see her so upset. He loved her more than he had loved anyone, even Katherine. He understood that she was wildly in love with his brother, and that the kiss they shared was a "you're dying" pity kiss, but that didn't stop him from wanting to stop her pain. If bringing Stefan home was the only thing that would accomplish that, then Damon would make it his life's mission to bring him back.

"No. Just that he was with Klaus, but they can't be too far, it's only been a matter of hours. But Damon…. he doesn't want to be found. Even if we did manage to find him and make a deal with Klaus, he's drinking human blood again. How do we bring him back?"

"Fuck what he said, Elena. I know my brother. He's not gone. This is my fault, he did this to save my life. I will bring him back." Damon swore as he placed a soft kiss on Elena's head. He didn't know what his plan was just yet, but he would come up with one. He would fix this.

"So, what's the plan?" Caroline asked anxiously as Damon sat down in the booth across from her.

"I need you to get your mother to keep an eye on any animal attacks in the area. Klaus and Stefan can't be far, and knowing my brother and his ripper tendencies, they'll leave a nice little trail of heads."

Caroline grimaced, not wanting to think of the utter destruction that Klaus and Ripper Stefan were capable of. She hadn't been in their world during his previous binge at the Miss Mystic Pageant, but she'd heard later from Elena what Stefan was like when he was consuming human blood. "And what are you going to do?"

"Keep Elena from falling apart. And from doing anything stupid, like always. The last thing we need is Klaus finding out his human blood bag is still alive."

"You really think you're the best person for that?" Caroline scoffed.

It was no secret she and Damon weren't best friends or anything above civil. But her insinuating that he couldn't handle Elena incensed him. Yes, he was an asshole and yes, he's done a lot of bad things – to Elena's best friends, even – but it was his fault she was in this mess and he'd do anything for her and fuck anyone who tried to say otherwise. The only other person who loved her like he did was dicking off with Klaus, so it fell to him and he was happy to do it. And if it meant more time with Elena, well that was just a happy accident.

"Says the one who is too involved in her boyfriend drama to notice her best friend spiraling." Damon sneered as he stood up. "Talk to your mom, let me know if anything comes up."

Damon stormed into the foyer, still seething from his meeting with Blondie. She acted like was so great, but he remembered how awful she was when he first came to town. Her vapid and shallow nature is what made her an easy target for compulsion. Becoming a vampire was the best thing to ever happen to her, but that didn't make her a damn saint. And it definitely didn't put her in charge of Elena's well-being. That was his job, and the witch's, until his brother came home.

He poured himself a healthy double shot of bourbon before heading into the study to do some digging. As much as he had told himself in the past that the second his brother fucked up, he'd be all over Elena he couldn't bring himself to do anything now. Stefan the eternal martyr had run off with Klaus to save Damon's life. Elena was suffering because of him. Stefan was off the wagon because of him. Eventually, Stefan would listen and stop saving his life, but until then he was stuck saving his brother and not getting the girl. Again.

He had a news alert set up for any animal attack or violent attack in the tristate area so he would find something eventually. Stefan and Klaus could only remain hidden for so long, especially with Stefan's track record. Damon was 3 pages into results when his phone rang.

"What's up Ric?"

"It's Elena. She um…. she's packing and she's frantic."

"What do you mean she's packing? The fuck is she packing for?" Damon said through gritted teeth as he grabbed his keys.

"She's just talking incoherently, something about Jenna, and Stefan. I think she lost it, bud."

"Yeah, I'm on my way." Damon sighed, already in his car. What the fuck. It had been less than 24 hours since he last saw her. He knew she had spent the night there, he was the one that had carried her to bed after she fell asleep on the couch, but she was gone by the time he left to meet Caroline the following morning.

He walked into the Gilbert residence to Jeremy shouting over Elena. "Stop, Elena. You're not going anywhere!" he was standing in her doorway and Damon pushed him aside to see Elena throwing articles of clothing haphazardly around the room, the floor and bed littered with her wardrobe.

"Elena, stop." Damon grabbed her by the shoulders.

"No. I need to find Stefan." Elena said distractedly, not even bothering to look at Damon. It was like she was in a trance, not even aware of the 3 men staring at her, bewildered. Damon had been around for nearly a year and he had yet to see Elena like this, but he knew just the thing to get her attention.

"Oh, well, why didn't you say? How dare I stand in your way? Here, let me help." Damon mocked, letting her go as he walked to her open suitcase. "Well, this certainly won't work." He pulled a pair of plain cotton panties up. "If you're going to go get Stefan, you better take the big guns. Gotta be better than the trashy women Klaus is probably supplying. Take these instead." He held up the red lace boy shorts he loved so much, wiggling his eyebrows in the way he knew she hated.

"Dude!" Jeremy complained, disgusted.

"Stop it, Damon! Just let me be. If you want to come with me, fine. But if you're going to be in my way then you can just go to hell." She snapped as she ripped the clothes out of Damon's grasp.

"Okay, well then what's the plan? Where are you going to go? What about school? You're not even 18." Damon crossed his arms.

"I-I don't know. I'll start in Virginia and there's only a month of school left, anyway. And then I'll have all summer. Plenty of time to find Stefan." Elena raised her brow, challenging Damon. As if she had the answers to everything. Sure, she had been through more than your average 17-year-old but that didn't mean shit.

"Okay, I'll give you that. If you find Stefan-and I do mean if-what next? Klaus will be right there with him, and what happens when he finds out you're still alive? The only reason you're safe right now is because he thinks he won. You really want to put everything at risk? He'll kill you! Use your damn head, Elena!" Damon rose his voice in irritation.

"I'll figure it out, Damon! Just stop, it's your fault he's gone anyway, you don't get to-" Elena broke down as she fell to the floor and wrapped her arms around her middle.

Damon felt as if he had been staked in the gut. He knew it was his fault, he had felt that guilt since Katherine brought the cure. But to hear Elena-selfless, sweet Elena-say that was a new low. He took a step back, clearing his face.

"You're right, Elena. Stefan got the cure for me, and he is god knows where with a sociopath because of me. But you know what won't be my fault? Your death. Do you want all of this to be for nothing? Jenna's death? John's?" Elena's fist connected with Damon's jaw, interrupting his abuse. It was harsh, but she needed to hear it. She hadn't thought things through, hadn't realized the implications of what she was planning.

"Damon," Ric started, but Damon held up his hand to stop him.

"Screw you, Damon. Don't act like you care. Everyone is expendable to you, and you can't deny it."

He took a step forward, glowering down at her, close enough to feel her angry energy radiating around her. "You're. Not. End of story. Now, I'm doing all I can to track Stefan down and that's got to be enough. I will lock you in the basement if I need to, go ahead and try me."

She met his glare for several moments before giving out a huff of air and throwing herself down on the bed, arms crossed. "Fine." She mumbled, giving Damon a petulant pout.

"There. Crisis averted." Damon turned around to Jeremy and Ric. "You think you can handle it from here?"

Ric and Jeremy nodded-the latter a lot less confidently than the former-and Damon took that as his cue to leave. He was going to go home, drink some bourbon, and pray no one needed him for the next 18-24 hours.

"You have news?" Damon asked as he strode into Sherriff Forbes' office.

"Yes. There have been 2 reports, both in a small town on the southern border of Virginia, in Danville. The houses were burned down, which isn't the pattern for vampires, but investigators are treating the cases as arson. I know you said your brother was a ripper….is it possible he is up to old habits and he and Klaus are burning the houses to hide evidence?" Liz stood up and walked around her desk to show Damon the files.

He flipped through them, looking for any clues or hints that Stefan might leave behind. "It might. That's not usually his M.O., but he also usually has his humanity off during a binge. His humanity could be covering his tracks, or Klaus could be behind it. If it's not in his agenda to be discovered, they won't be discovered. Listen, do me a favor and don't tell Elena about this. If it is Stefan, this will just upset her. When were these attacks?"

"One week ago."

Damon had a sinking suspicion that Stefan and his new BFF, Klaus were one hundred percent behind these. But what Damon didn't know is if Stefan had his humanity on or off. If he was covering his trail, then he guessed that it was on. Regardless, Elena would lose her shit if she found out about his extracurricular activities.

"They can't be far then. I'm going to take off for a few days, see what I can find. Get Caroline to keep Elena distracted, would you?" Damon asked with a tight smile, his phone out and dialing Ric before he had left the police station.

"Hey bud, I need a favor."

It had been 2 weeks since Elena had heard from Stefan. 2 weeks and one day since she had kissed Damon. 2 weeks since she tried to be a hero and go find Stefan herself.

Ric and Jeremy had been watching her like a hawk. They both made sure she woke up and went to school every day-they even made her drive with them like she was a child, it was ridiculous-and then forced her to do some kind of "family" activity afterward, until she could steal away to her bedroom under the guise of being exhausted. In the few moments of reprieve she got from her brother and pseudo-stepdad, Caroline was chattering on about her drama with Tyler and Matt, and what project she was going to dedicate her summer toward, and what road trip they should take this year. None of it mattered. How could something as insignificant as high school matter when Stefan was off the grid and no one knew where he was or when he'd be home – if he'd even be home. Elena knew Damon had told her friends and family to keep her distracted while he was off doing whatever it was he did in his free time, and she was going to murder him for the radio silence he had been giving her over the past week. Meanwhile, she spent half of her nights when everyone thought she was asleep scouring the internet for clues as to where Stefan could be. She was running on caffeine and adrenaline at this point, but at least she was running at all.

She was motivated by the extreme guilt she felt about her goodbye kiss to Damon. She thought he was going to die and he was alone and he deserved more. It didn't mean that she didn't love Stefan, because she did. More than anything. But she'd stopped hating Damon months ago when he helped her with Stefan after the tomb vampire escaped. He wasn't so bad once you got to know him. A lot of his bitterness and sarcasm was a front to protect himself. Katherine had broken him and Elena could understand why, even if she couldn't understand his feelings for her. He had spent over a century mourning her, only to find out that she may exist. Elena didn't know what she would do if she'd been in Damon's shoes and it had been Stefan that she thought was locked in a tomb for decades, go through all that effort to release him, and then find out he didn't give a damn about her.

Elena turned around the corner to head into the kitchen for a quick snack before she headed to school when she nearly ran into Damon.

"Whoa, pull your eyes away from your phone for a second, will you?" he chastised.

Elena rolled her eyes. "I was texting you. I haven't seen or heard from you in like, a week." She held up her phone as evidence.

Damon gave a nonchalant shrug. "I've been around."

"Doing what?"

Damon turned his back on her, going back to whatever task had him in her kitchen in the first place.

"Are you…making breakfast?" Elena asked in astonishment, looking at the spread sitting on the island counter. Eggs, toast, bacon, and pancakes were covering the surface, with orange juice and coffee in jugs, waiting for her.

"You'd starve if I didn't."

"I would not! I survived before you, you know."

"Yeah, back when your parents were alive. I experienced Jenna's cooking, and you're not much better."

Elena rolled her eyes but took a seat at the bar and stole a slice of bacon as Damon turned around to place a plate in front of her.

"So, are you going to tell me where you've been?"

"I told you."

"No. You evaded. I know you had Alaric keep an eye on me, I'm not an idiot. I'm also old enough to take care of myself."

Damon snorted. "That's doubtful. Eat." He motioned towards her plate.

Elena backed off on the interrogation and dug in. It was good, she had to admit that she wasn't the greatest cook. She was still better than Alaric and Jeremy though. Alaric's cooking consisted of Stouffer's meals and a box of cereal, while Jeremy's diet was full of hot pockets, pizza rolls, and chicken nuggets. Suffice to say, she had missed Damon's cooking while he'd been gone, although she'd never admit it to him.

"I had a lead on Stefan." Damon admitted as Elena poured a glass of juice. The glass slipped from her hand and Damon moved with vampire speed to catch it.

"Did you see him?" she gasped, her eyes widening in shock.

"No. I didn't." he pressed his lips together in a thin line as he observed her reaction. Her face fell and her eyes fell back to her plate as she slowly lifted a fork full of eggs up to her lips, chewing methodically.

"Elena, are you okay?" Damon asked after the lack of response from her started to worry him. Elena was never quiet and contemplative like this, not after bad news. Fiery, obstinate, and self-righteous to a fault, but never without words.

Elena allowed her eyes to flit to his face for one second before returning to her meal. "I'm fine."

Damon crossed his arms and leaned against the counter, feeling the cold marble dig into his hips. "Try again."

"I am fine, Damon. You followed a lead, it was a dead end. It happens." Elena shrugged as she pushed back from the counter and stood, carrying her plate to the sink.

"I'm going to have a talk with Ric about his parenting skills."

Elena turned around and looked at him quizzically. "What are you talking about?"

"Obviously, aliens abducted my brother's girlfriend and you are merely an imposter. Elena would never be this calm." Damon said as if it was the only plausible explanation.

"I have to go to school, Damon." Elena mumbled as she picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder. Damon grabbed the strap and pulled her towards him.

"I'm not buying it. Try anything while you're supposed to be at school today and I swear to God, I will lock you in the boarding house cellar right before I stake Vampire Barbie." He threatened, his nose a mere inch from Elena's as he towered over her.

"One, you're not. Two, I dare you to try to touch Caroline – she'll kill you. Third, I. Am. Fine. Believe what you want, I don't really care." Elena shrugged Damon off before she hurried out of the kitchen, and out the front door.

Damon stared in the direction she had disappeared for several moments, not buying her act for a moment. But he had strict orders for Caroline to keep a close eye on Elena all day, and to call him the second Elena tried to pull one of her infamous stunts. He'd find out soon enough if she wasn't as okay as she said she was. Until then, Damon had other things to worry about.

A/N: So I'm still working on Hunger, but I've had this plot in my head for months and have been slowly working on it. This will be pretty much AU from the finale of season 2 onwards. I will probably incorporate a few ideas/scenes from season 3. Originally this was just going to be a short thing detailing what happened in the few weeks (month?) between Season 2 and 3, but I felt too tied down by the timeline so I decided to go full AU. Let me know what you guys think!