AN: It's like 12:10am but I don't care. HaHa. It's not like I have to sleep or anything… I'll post the thanks reviews later in the chapter… Somewhere… Possibly… I guess we'll find out. Disclaimer: I'm just a fan of the series. Not the owner of it. Oh, this chapter will have some nice Alaric/Damon scenes. :D

Alaric's Point of View

Alaric had been driving with Elena for about an hour and a half now. Both were getting anxious as the time went by. They had no idea what was happening to Damon or who he was with.
"We'll be there in about an hour," Alaric said to Elena who was clearly getting impatient. "Damon's strong. He can pull through."
"Not at the moment he's not," Elena reminded him. "It hasn't been that long since he got cured. He still hadn't regained all his strength."
Alaric looked ahead at the road. "I know," he said quietly, finally facing reality. No matter how much he didn't want to admit it, Alaric knew Damon was in trouble.

Damon's Point of View

Damon woke up to the feeling of someone kicking him hard in the side. With a groan, he opened his eyes. Memories of what had happened earlier flashed through his mind. He looked up at his so called brother. "Stefan," he groaned. "What the hell?"
"Don't worry. Looks like Elena and Ric are on their way to save you," Stefan spat. "They chose you. After everything they chose you!"
Damon looked at Stefan in confusion. "What are you talking about, Stefan?"
"It doesn't matter. You'll be out of here soon enough. I'll be with Klaus and everything will go back to the way everyone wants it to be."
"No one wants this for you, brother," Damon said, still not understanding why Stefan was saying what he was.
"Shut up," Stefan hissed. His foot connected with Damon's side and Damon rolled, clutching it. The pain was unbearable. Then again, Stefan was after all, stronger than usual.
"Stefan, you need to hear me out. This isn't you. Try to remember what you used to be like."
Stefan kneeled down next to Damon. "Never talk to me about what I used to be like ever again," his tone was dangerous and cold. Without warning, Stefan jabbed another stake into his body. This time though, it was a little under the heart. But something was wrong. It burned more than usual. That's when he realized it: Vervain.
"Burns, huh?" Stefan asked with a cruel smile on his face. "Better get used to it. You're only mine for another hour or so."

Stefan's Point of View

Damon had hurt him too much. No matter what, Elena will always love him. It made him so angry. He wished he could just cause him enough pain for the amount of time Damon had hurt him. However; that would take years. Stefan only had around an hour. Klaus' orders were to specifically let him go once his rescuers where there. He said it was how their game worked but honestly, Stefan was getting tired of playing. It frustrated him. So, he took that frustration out on Damon.

Alaric's Point of View

"Just about ten more minutes," Elena said eagerly. "God, I hope he's okay, Ric."
What Elena had been saying to Alaric was sort of a blur. For the past three hours or so in the car, Elena had been nervously talking to him but he would only hear a word every now and then. His thoughts were completely elsewhere. He thought about Damon and the first time he saw him. It was at the bar and he instantly recognized him as the murderous monster that killed his wife. Little did he know that the man responsible for his wife's death would become someone that meant so much to him. How did they become friends in the first place? When did Alaric even start to see the other side of Damon?
"RIC!" Elena said.
Alaric glanced over to her. "What?"
"I've been talking to you for the past three minutes. Where have you been?" Elena asked.
"Just a little trip down memory lane," Alaric explained.
"You are worried, aren't you?" Elena said.
"You're not going to let it go until you hear me say yes, are you?"
"No," she agreed.
"Yeah, I'm worried," Alaric admitted. "I know he's not the strongest right now." Elena just nodded and Alaric-keeping one hand on the steering wheel- reached his arm across and put it on Elena's shoulder.

Damon's Point of View (Sorry, I'm sort of going back and forth)

Damon was sitting up against the wall of the cave, holding his side which now had a stake sticking out of it. He wanted to pull it out but he found he just didn't have the energy. He was getting more and more weak and the vervain that Stefan would coat the stakes with wasn't helping.
"Getting tired, brother?" Stefan asked, using Damon's nickname against him.
"Not at all," Damon lied. He didn't want to give Stefan the glory of knowing how much pain he had caused him.
"Bummer," Stefan said, shaking his head. "Looks like I'm going to have to try harder."
"What is wrong with you?" Damon asked only to be ignored. Instead Stefan just pulled out another stake.
"I'd watch it if I were you," Stefan warned. "Before I ram this into your heart."
"You can't. Isn't that against your master's words?" Damon asked, mocking him.
Stefan snarled. He shoved the stake into Damon's leg and Damon had to hold back a cry of pain. Suddenly, Stefan's head jerked up towards the entrance of the cave. "Sounds like your rescue party is here," he said bitterly. "That's my cue to go." Then Damon watched as Stefan sprinted out of there.

Alaric's Point of View (Last switch, I promise)

Alaric had pulled up to the cave and was instantly out of the car when he saw something flash by him. It must have been a vampire, but he was unable to tell who it was. It didn't matter, though. The identity of the vampire was the last thing on his mind. Not even checking to see if Elena was behind him, Alaric sprinted toward the cave's entrance.
"Damon?" he called once he was inside. There wasn't an answer.
"Damon?" this time Elena was the one who called. Alaric turned and saw that she had made her way into the cave as well. "Damon, are you here?"
Alaric moved into the cave a bit farther and saw Damon lying on the ground. Without hesitation, Alaric sprinted to his side. "Damon!"
The vampire was unresponsive and Alaric saw all the blood that was around his body. "Damon?" Alaric took off his own jacket and was about to press it up to Damon's chest when he saw the stake poking out of it.
"Oh my, god," Elena whispered, kneeling next to Alaric.
"I have to get the stakes out of him," he explained to Elena. She nodded and looked at Alaric as he gripped the stake with both hands and pulled. The sound of the stake coming out of the flesh made Alaric wince and he looked down at Damon sympathetically. He eventually got it out, and he tossed it to the side. "One more," he whispered to Damon. The second one was in his leg so it was much easier to get out. He tossed it to the side with the other one.
"We have to stop the bleeding," Alaric told Elena.
"Shouldn't his body be doing that on his own? He's a vampire."
"Yeah, it should," Alaric said. "But there's too much vervain in him. He's not healing properly." Alaric took the jacket and pressed it up to Damon's chest.
"Do you think he'll be okay?" Elena asked.
Alaric didn't have an answer.