A/N: Thank you so much for Blue-Kool-Aid's and Andiely's reviews! This chapter fills in the backstory of chapter one and focuses on Damon's thoughts. Each chapter is going to be from someone else's mind. Please read and review :)

Damon drank scotch at ten in the morning, never locked doors, and liked to say snarky things when he felt like it, which was pretty much all the time. He didn't like having his ex-girlfriend trying to listen in on his conversations, or read civilly next to him in the parlor, or drape herself over him in bed with a face he now connected more with Elena than her selfish ancestor. If he was Stefan, he might have tried to question when he started thinking Katharine looked like Elena, when it wasn't worded the other way inside his head, when he wanted to kiss Elena not because she reminded him of an ancient vampire who bit him in her four post canopy bed while wearing a corset and claimed she loved him, but only because she was Elena. He wasn't Stefan. He was Damon. He needed to think of a plan to get Katharine out.

"We need to piss her off." He was sitting on Elena's bed, slouched against the headboard with her teddy bear in his lap.

The manor was as good as bugged, so all serious discussions had been moved to within the four walls of Elena's room. Stefan was sitting next to Damon, body slightly turned to the window. Elena was at the foot of the bed, chin on her knee.

Stefan straightened his posture, because he apparently didn't look serious enough. "We need to do something drastic."

"Let's kill her," Damon said. If he was going to be called a sociopath, he might as well brainstorm like one. He even prided himself for the way he could make his brother roll his eyes. "What? It would be drastic."

Stefan scratched the back of his neck in a way that let Damon know he was anxious. "Yeah, and knock down a lot of dominoes that we really shouldn't touch right now. I was thinking of something a little less permanent."

"How about we shoot her up with enough wooden bullets, call up teen wolf, and have him drag her into the woods for a moonlit dinner?" It was supposed to be a joke, but neither Mr. nor Mrs. Serious seemed to be in the mood for sarcasm. He tried for outright vulgar. "We could always have a ménage à trois right in the parlor for Katharine to see."

"A what?" Elena shifted her ponytail to the side, looking to Stefan.

"It's French for a threesome." Stefan seemed to be giving her one of his apologetic looks, like his face was trying to tell her to just ignore Damon. He hated when Stefan did that.

Damon glared at Stefan. "Try not to be so condescending all the time."

Stefan stared back.

"Can," Elena said, her voice shaky, "Can I ask you guys a question?"

She was the only one who could prevent a fight between the two of them. They both turned to her. Damon could tell she was uncomfortable, a nervous smile flitting in the corner of her mouth as she eyed her comforter.

"Did you…did the three of you…were you ever together…you know, like all together?" She faced Stefan again.

He looked to the ceiling, almost as if the question stung. "Ask the one she didn't compel."

"No," Damon said. He kept his answer short, because he liked where Elena was going.

She absentmindedly pinched the skin on the top of her foot. "What if we…pretended to? I mean, it would probably hit a nerve, right? Seeing me with the two of you? We could go through some of the motions, have her watch, and she'd probably leave before anything major happened."

"That's insane," Stefan said.

"But, it would work." Elena sounded so determined; Damon could feel her words in his stomach.

Stefan stood up, sighing. "But…."

"If you go through with it, I'll leave Elena alone." Damon didn't enjoy what he was saying, but it seemed necessary. And if he was going to have to watch his brother probably spend the rest of his life with the woman he loved, he might as well try for a free pass at first base.

"Promise?" Stefan crossed his arms over his chest.

"Sure," he said. His tone had enough finality in it to seem sincere without having to lower himself into saying something mushy. Instead of dwelling on anything serious like losing even the chance of being with Elena, he smirked. "I'll even get you liquored up beforehand."

"I might need a little too." Elena took her teddy bear from his lap.

And it was the playful smile on her face that got Damon through a week of Stefan asking if Elena was sure this is what she wanted to do, and questioning his sincerity in keeping his end of the bargain so often that Damon jokingly pinky swore on it. It was what he was picturing in his head as they pretended to get along in the boarding house, thinking how nice it would be if it was real.

The night that everything seemed to be in place, they had one of their many fake conversations, this one near the quest bathroom where they knew Katharine was showering. They made up something about letting loose and heading to The Grill, which was true. Elena even dressed up for the occasion, and it made him feel sloppy in his black t-shirt. He was worried Stefan might change his mind in the time it would take him to change, so they went to straight to The Grill for some greasy food and a few pre-party drinks. It worried Damon when Elena drank as much as his undead brother. But, she only assured him over her third cocktail that her tolerance was nothing to fret over. He didn't want to be contradicting her before what they were planning, so he didn't mention how he had to steady her as she picked a pool cue from the wall, Stefan busy buying a bottle of scotch at the bar. Thirty minutes later it was a little harder to ignore.

Damon was washing Kahlúa off his arm after some chick spilled it on him. He left the men's room to pass the women's, glass of bourbon in hand, when someone pulled him inside. Elena locked the door behind him and ran the sink. With the water on, she braced herself against the porcelain, back to him.

"Any particular reason you dragged me into the ladies room?"

"Shh, not so loud, I don't want him hearing any of this," she spoke slowly.

He walked close enough to see his reflection in the mirror, whispering in her hair, "Okay."

She turned around, and he noticed how she didn't back away from him, even with him being so close. "This is probably really stupid, but…but, you and I've never really done anything before, and I don't want to choke up in front of Katharine…and I thought, I thought…." She seemed to sneer at herself, not making eye contact.

"What, are you having second thoughts?" It came out harsher than he intended. "Elena, don't tell me you've never thought about it." Damon's voice was soft, fingers dancing on the side of his glass.

She raised her face to him. "Kiss me."

He did. He held her, kissing her right on the mouth, loving the noise she made when she breathed against him. She didn't sound anything like Katharine. Then they were against the wall, and he was seriously considering making this a twosome.

She was the one to stop him as she grabbed his wrist and pushed. "That's enough," she said, flushed, still touching him.

And the feel of her hand on his skin reminded him he was going to need a lot of restraint for the rest of the evening. Unlike his company, he'd been nursing the same drink the whole night. He wasn't even working a buzz.

But, it was what needed to be done. He was the one to drive them home. Mystic Falls was a small town, meaning small town cops liked to patrol those dimming evening hours, just hunting for someone swerving in a lane or missing a stop sign. So, he drove. The two of them were in the back seat, Elena caressing Stefan's arm in a soothing way that Damon wouldn't admit looked kind of cute, while Stefan downed the rest of his scotch. The second he started to turn the key to park in the driveway, Stefan put a hand on his shoulder.

"Keep it running," Stefan said.

Damon cocked an eyebrow in the rearview mirror. "Are we having a warm-up round in the car?"

Stefan ignored him. "There needs to be a safe word."

It pleased Damon when Elena looked a little taken aback. He couldn't tell if it was because this was real for her now, or maybe she'd made the obvious connection that this wasn't his brother's first time in a threesome. Damon wasn't absolutely sure, but there had been a dark-Stefan period with harems of half-dead female blood bags. And when you're serially ramming your teeth in people's throats, polygamous sex kind of pales in comparison. Regardless, a safe word seemed a little extreme.

"Stefan, are you planning on punching me or something? This isn't S & M, and no one's getting out of their pants. I think a simple no, that's enough, I'm done will do. You can even throw some Italian at me if you want." He shut off the car and stepped out without waiting for a response, because he couldn't wait anymore.

Once they got out, he slung an arm over each of them. Elena looked ahead. Stefan didn't pull away. Damon took it as a victory. He even found their nervousness slightly adorable, herding them through the front door like trembling sheep. It was a silent walk to the parlor, the only communication being a slight nod from Damon indicating he could hear Katharine in the cellar. When they finally got there, Elena switched a few lamps on before she practically sank into the couch.

Damon ran a hand through his hair, feeling weirdly anxious. "Music?" There was no response. Stefan looked stony and very introspective next to him, which of course meant he needed to lighten up…like immediately. He reassuringly grabbed Stefan's arm. "Just think of it as a drinking game."

He collected a few shot glasses and the same brand of Scotch Stefan was enjoying earlier. He poured one for himself and Stefan. He was surprised when Elena asked for one too.

"Umm…that may not be a good idea," he said. It felt way too weird being the responsible one.

"Damon, I'm fine." Elena reached to him, still sitting.

"She's fine," Stefan said. He gave Elena his own glass, and poured one for himself.

Damon raised his drink. "To getting to know each other better."

Predictably no one else joined in on the toast.

Damon just rolled his eyes. "Who wants another round?"

That got two yeses. And two yeses dribbled into over an hour of more drinking. Damon was seriously shocked Elena wasn't passed out with the way she was doing shots, because this had reached a point that even their stint in Georgia didn't come close to.

"I'm cutting you off after this one, Miss Gilbert," he said.

Elena smiled, throwing it back to have half end up leaking from her mouth. She wiped it away sheepishly. Damon laughed. And that's when they could hear Katharine coming up the stairs.

"Damon," Stefan said.

It was a warning he didn't need, so he mocked him. "Stefan."

"Stefan?" Elena spoke cautiously. "I think…."

It was too late for that kind of out loud thinking. "Shh," he whispered. He walked leisurely walked across the carpet to sit next to Elena, turned sideways so his back was against the armrest, grinning when he heard Katharine reach the top step.

A/N: Again, please review!