A/N: Sorry it has been so long guys, I've been going through some hard stuff in real life. I bring to you the awaited chapter (sort of long, because you guys waited so nicely) with our favorite villain Klaus.

P.S. My writing skills live off reviews. ;p


CHAPTER NINE

Damon had wished he had just let the blonde vampire go to the hospital and try to get the bags of blood now instead of informing her that he had been the one to completely refocus the council since Jeremy's death. He might have been young, but maybe that's why he was so much more single-minded then the other members with jobs and kids (not that he didn't have his own to watch over). He had gotten Mayor Lockwood to agree to put vervain in the entire town's water supply. He had made sure that all the stored blood of hospitals was kept locked away, vervain laced in the lock. Cameras were everywhere for anyone that dared to walk in. Records were kept by patrolling policemen of which citizens were only out at night. Guisseppi may not have trusted him with much, but Damon and his father had an understanding when it came to protecting their own.

He and Caroline were currently arguing over his future blood source now, Caroline having determined that Stefan was the best candidate. He continued, demanding to know, "Why can't Elena-,"

"Because blood-lust is dangerous enough when you don't want to bone the person. Sexual attraction and blood-lust blend together when you're young. You can't just-,"

"Well why not you then?" He snapped, earning a gross look from the blonde.

"Because blood-sharing is personal." She replied, her cheeks turning just the slightest shade of pink and Damon could tell she was thinking of his brother, "and I really think you'll be the safest with Stefan. He's family. I'll be here if something goes wrong."

Damon mumbled something along the lines of "incest" as he walked out of the room, pointedly ignoring Elena and what had to be a terribly upset look. He had seen Stefan walk over to the kitchen out of the corner of his eye and so he went upstairs. The path to the roof had been locked all of their childhood after their Uncle Zach had jumped off and broken several bones on a dare. Damon had been seven when he had learned how to pick it correctly, and he had always found it easiest to think up here, out of range to hear Guisseppi's shouting or Stefan's crappy music choice.

It was dark now, the stars out and beautiful as ever. Damon wondered briefly if he was ever going to be able to see the sun again, or if it would feel the same. He was interrupted as he heard Stefan climbing up the stairs, a kitchen knife in hand. Damon's gut clenched a little, and he joked, "You know for the brilliant kids we were, we really didn't think of a comfortable hang out spot, did we?"

Stefan didn't respond or smile, and Damon looked over as he saw the pained expression on his brother's face. "I know I asked you to do this, but-,"

"Oh stop being so self-centered, Stefan." Damon cut through, trying to ease his guilt, "There are vampires coming after my girlfriend. I'm not just going to die and leave you two behind."

Stefan did sort of half smile at that but became quiet afterward. Damon thought of all the times they had spent up here on this roof growing up, the talks about girls and Elena. Talks about their father and their future. A lot of talks about their father's death. He sighed, caught up in a bitter nostalgia. "If she wasn't in danger I'd still stay for you, you know."

Damon saw the slight surprise in Stefan's brown eyes. They were never the type of family that could openly say "I love you" and things like that, but Damon wanted to say something before his human life ended. Stefan seemed touched, but still asked, "Not Elena?"

"Not Elena." Damon agreed, looking off into the surrounding woods. "She may not want me in twenty years when she's wrinkly and I'm... not. And even then she deserved better when I was human, let alone now."

"You're too hard on yourself." Stefan responded, shaking his head. He had laid the knife down for a moment, sitting awkwardly on the tiles.

Damon shook his head, replying, "You're too much like Mom."

He tensed after he said it, just like Stefan did also. They never talked about their mother, just as their father never had. Damon had been four when she died, just old enough to remember the things that Stefan couldn't. Stefan didn't know the countless arguments that Damon had with his father, begging for more details that a grieving Guisseppi had refused to give. It had put a wedge between them deeper than the disagreements about his future. When it seemed that Stefan was willing to let the comment go, Damon continued after eyeing the knife. "I'm going to train you and Elena. You need to know how to kill them, just in case. Father left weapons."

"Seems a little naïve." Stefan said, glancing up, "I mean you saw how fast they move, how-,"

"It's all in the preparation." Damon reassured. "They're fast and strong, but they have weaknesses. Vervain, sunlight, stakes..."

Stefan looked down at his knees, frowning, then back up, "You're not talking about those other vampires, really. You're talking about Caroline. And you."

Damon nodded shortly. "Even if I didn't hurt you I could get out of control. You need to be able to stop- it."

"I don't know if I can, Damon." Stefan said, looking tense and sad and so terribly young. Damon understood. Damon had already been exposed in an impersonal way. Stefan was caught directly in the middle with people he loved.

"You'll have to." Damon snapped. "If I hurt you or Elena- take care of it, Stefan. Promise me."

Stefan's jaw set and he looked away as he said, "Fine."

He hoped his little brother understood, that he was able to take most of the severity of the situation in so that he could be safe. He couldn't imagine finding Stefan in the same murdered state they had found Jeremy in, couldn't fathom Elena's pain at losing her little brother like that. It made him feel so much more protective than he usually would have and he half wanted to go downstairs and kill vampire Barbie so Stefan was just a little safer.

It seemed that his brother was thinking about Caroline as well, although in completely different context. "How do I know everything wasn't just her compelling me, or whatever they do?"

Damon sighed. While he could easily just lie and say that it was, which he was sorely tempted to do, he chose to give his brother honesty. "As long as you were wearing that watch Dad gave you last Christmas, it's real. Behind that face there's a pinch of vervain. Not that I condone any sort of vampire-human relationship. Frankly I'm still tempted to kill her while I have the chance."

"Tell that to Elena," Stefan responded smartly. Damon always regretted being sarcastic around Stefan at times like this when it showed his brother picked up on his snark. Stefan sobered a little, saying, "I don't know, Damon. She saved Elena from Katherine earlier-,"

"She was the reason Katherine was here!"

"She almost got killed trying to save all of us today-,"

"Well she sucked at it cause news flash, I still died. And that poker stick is metal, it wouldn't have-,"

"I'm insane for trying to justify this, aren't I?" Stefan finally asked, looking up at the sky in a sort of resignation.

Damon replied firmly. "Batshit crazy. However you're my brother and despite all of that you will still probably ask her to prom or something equally embarrassing. Let's get this over with so I am fully able to kick her ass before that happens."

Stefan shook his head while smiling, picking up the knife. Suddenly Damon was hit of the reality of everything and he almost told Stefan to put it back down- that he didn't want it. Which was true. He didn't want to be alive forever anymore than he wanted to be dead. He didn't want to be the horrible monster driven by blood that he had heard about over and over in stories from both his father and the council. He didn't want to watch all of the people he loved age and die, he didn't want to watch Elena leave him when she realized he was no longer someone she could start a family with or someone fit to be a father. He did want, however, to take the knife from Stefan and stab it through his own heart one final time.

"You washed your hands, right?" Damon asked dolefully as Stefan began to slice his palm with a stern and sober expression.

"Oh come on, Damon, it's not like you're going to get the flu."

But before he could even respond he started to smell the salty scent of blood. He started to hear the veins in Stefan's hand as they leaked the liquid out. He felt his gums explode with pain as what he was sure were fangs started to come through. He used all the strength inside him, all the self control that he had hardly used in his twenty years to not lunge at his brother. He looked at Stefan's alarmed expression and that tempered him enough. He heard Elena downstairs say something, heard the sound of Caroline coming up the stairs in a flash and then waiting. He heard Stefan's quickened heartbeat, and then somewhere found Elena's. It was a little fast and from where he was it was quiet, but it calmed him down. He grimaced before taking Stefan's proffered hand and drinking, practically shoving it back when he was sure that if he didn't stop he wouldn't. And then he moved with speed he didn't know he had down the ladder and past Caroline, down the stairs once and then another time, and forced himself into one of the dungeons.


It had been four days since Damon had "turned" and Stefan could tell he was going stir- crazy. For one, his older brother had systematically cleaned the entire three floors of the old boarding house in a cleaning-frenzy the first day. After that he had alphabetized every bookshelf in the house, which by Damon's count was thirty two. Stefan was starting to get tired of the "whooshing" noise of Damon flitting around anxiously and it seemed that Caroline was too, although she was too kind to say anything. This morning Damon and Elena were upstairs practicing being alone together, which from the look on Caroline's face didn't exactly involve talking.

She and Stefan were sitting in the parlor trying once more to brainstorm ideas on how to get Damon a daylight ring while Caroline listened for any sign that Elena might be in trouble. While Stefan had been both confused and upset with Caroline after everything, he couldn't help but value the help that she was giving. He laughed as she her nose scrunched up once more in disgust. "I was always told if you make faces like that, they'll stay."

"Yeah, I'm not big on the whole 'porn noises from people you know' thing." She replied, slightly laughing. "I think he is safe with her, for the most part, but I just can't trust-,"

"I know." Stefan nodded, "Thank you."

She nodded in return, going back to the computer and research. They both knew it was probably futile, what could be found about vampire curses was generally fiction, but they still tried. Stefan looked up after a moment. "Did you ever hurt someone you loved? After you turned?"

Caroline looked up, her expression turning guarded as she said, "Someone I loved? No. My parents were here in Mystic Falls and I was in Chicago when it happened. I didn't really have anyone close to me to hurt. That doesn't mean I wouldn't have though."

"Have you ever killed someone?" He asked once more, and her expression fell at that. She looked vulnerable, disappointed, and broken as she answered, "Once."

He was surprised by her blunt honesty, surprised at the answer. He knew what he had wanted her to say, that she would never and could never hurt someone like that. He knew that it was a stupid notion, that he should be grateful it was only once. A lot of emotions ran through him then- fear, disgust, worry for his brother, and sadness. Sadness that she had been turned into this out of nowhere just like Damon.

He finally nodded silently, accepting the answer. She spoke again, "When you're a vampire, every part of your personality becomes obvious, especially when you've just turned. I used to be this little girl obsessed with being better than all the other woman around me. I was shallow and vindictive and when one of the woman in the city told me I was a slut because her husband wanted me, I snapped. I killed her, even though she was a wife to someone and a mother. And every day since that- ninety two years later- I have dealt with the guilt. It keeps me in line."

Stefan couldn't help but think of Damon and his impulsive personality, but Caroline looked up and Stefan saw Damon coming downstairs looking pissed and Elena following behind, saying, "We'll get you a ring, Damon, it's not a big deal-,"

"It is a big deal, actually. I don't want my little brother taking my girlfriend on a date." He snapped back, finally reaching the bottom as he came into the parlor and went directly for the alcohol.

"It's just for the Miss Mystic Falls pageant, you hate that sort of thing anyway-," Elena argued, looking at Stefan for support.

Damon wheeled around angrily, "Yeah, the pageant I took you to last year where I dressed up in some stupid tux and danced with you and we got together. It's where we started dating, Elena, in case you forgot, and I don't want someone else taking you!"

Elena looked like she was both touched and about to burst into tears, but she was unable to respond as Damon's cellphone started ringing and he moodily answered it as if he was saying the conversation was over. "What Nick?"

Caroline looked up a little as Damon listened to the phone, saying, "I think you should go," before Damon responded. Damon glanced over at her with a hint of surprise on his cross expression and he said in return, "Yeah, that's fine. What time?"

Both Stefan and Elena looked at Caroline curiously as Damon continued, "Is it okay if my brother comes? Yeah. Alright. See you then."

"What was that about?" Stefan asked him before Elena could, and his brother smiled thinly. "Triple date sort of thing."

"Are you sure...?" Elena started to ask Caroline, but she nodded in return. "Yeah. He needs to be around other people. Being locked up is just going to make everything worse."

Damon gave Elena an irritable look before turning around and going back upstairs, bourbon in hand. Elena turned back to Caroline, her eyes closed and breathing steady as she demanded, "Is he going to be this irritable all the time?"

"I can hear you." Came a shout from upstairs, and Stefan felt slightly sympathetic. He knew how Damon could be when he got stressed. Elena simply rolled her eyes as she glanced up at the ceiling.

"No." Caroline said gently, "He's just new. Every single emotion he has is on overdrive. Being a vampire does that. Go home and give him a chance to cool off and get ready for tonight. They're meeting at the fair around seven."

Elena nodded, smiling a little bit at Caroline as she said, "Thank you."

Stefan watched Elena leave and then turned back to Caroline. She caught him watching her and tensed a little. She was so human around him and Elena that it was easy to forget that only a few days ago he had watched her pull a poker stick out of her abdomen, that he had seen her unnatural fangs and been afraid of her. He thought of his brother and how giving him blood to drink had all but lost the taboo feeling around it. It was still weird and definitely gross but it wasn't as horrible as it had seemed at first. "You're coming right?"

"If you want me to." She said shyly, her brown eyes hard to read.

"Well someone needs to watch Damon," He said, before realizing how that sounded, and then amended, "And I'd like you to."

She nodded carefully, not showing the excitement or happiness that she had only a few days ago. It was clear that she knew to respect the fact that things had changed between them, that he couldn't see her quite the same now that he knew she could rip his neck apart on a whim. And yet a part of him wished that they hadn't.


Caroline hadn't bothered going home the past few days, too busy with trying to both babysit and train Damon. She was worried about him, a lot more than she would let on to Elena and Stefan. He was impulsive and hot-headed and she knew from her talks with Elena that he had previously been a little self-destructive. In fact if those aspects hadn't been tempered by his fierce love for both Elena and his brother she would have advised him not to bother turning.

The house was quiet, she had released Teresa from compulsion awhile ago now that there wasn't really a point to keeping her- it seemed as though everyone in Mystic Falls was parent-less anyway. She put together an outfit, showered, and changed all while thinking of how she was possibly going to protect everyone. It seemed impossible and suicidal to even try, just as Katherine had said. Even if all four of them had been vampires, Caroline knew that those after Elena were ancient and ten times stronger and faster than even Katherine who was one of the oldest vampires Caroline knew.

There was a knock on the door, and she opened it to find Stefan waiting. He smiled slightly when he saw her, making her melt. That was the thing about Stefan, she thought. As much as he was cautious and guarded, he still gave her a chance. She wondered how much of that had been Elena-influenced. The small brunette had started confiding in her more and more while Caroline stayed at the boarding house. They had become friends, maybe because Elena had no one else to go to, and Elena had quickly become Caroline's advocate in the arguments she and Damon had. Caroline could see the compassion that the girl had for everyone around her and she was glad that Damon had that in his life, considering he would need it.

"Hey." She greeted softly, wishing things were like before so they could kiss and hold hands. He nodded in return. "Hey."

Damon honked the horn of the car waiting in the street and Stefan rolled his eyes, saying, "I wish I could still punch him to get my point across."

She laughed a little, shutting the door behind her. "I wouldn't advise it."

They walked over to the car, getting in the back. Elena sat up front looking a little happier than she had been last. They arrived at the fair with little to no arguments except when Damon turned on music that Stefan hated and Elena had promptly shut the radio off altogether. Caroline couldn't help but laugh when Damon had looked to Caroline for back up- "Tell him his music sucks."

"You're asking me?" Caroline asked, laughing a little as they got out of the car, "Really?"

"Yes." Damon said firmly, now looking as though he realized his mistake.

"I think all of your guys' music is fake and auto-tuned. You have no idea what real talent is." Caroline replied as Elena laughed and Stefan smiled. She turned to Stefan and teasingly added, "And it keeps getting worse, Mr. Kanye."

"I like Hendrix too!" He defended jokingly.

"And that one Miley song," Elena giggled, jumping in.

"Remind me not to tell you anything," he said, shaking his head in embarrassment.

Both Elena and Caroline laughed, and when she looked up to see Damon he had a slight smile on his face but nothing more. She needed to get him distracted, she thought, and she quickly suggested they ride the Ferris-wheel before they caught up to the ticket line and what seemed to be Damon's friends.

Damon smiled and greeted them, introducing everyone. "This is-,"

"Nick," the guy interrupted, directly looking at Caroline. He reached for her hand and kissed it, ignoring Stefan who had been in the way. Elena gave her a knowing "girl" look out of the corner of her eye as she sort of laughed. Caroline withdrew her hand immediately, not amused by the flattery of some frat kid that flirted in front of his date, even if he did have a nice accent. "Caroline. And this is Stefan, my-,"

But then she floundered, not wanting to implicate Stefan when their unofficial relationship was testy. He was watching Nick with a tense smile as he finished, "her date."

"Ah, yes, Damon's little brother." He said, a bright smile on his face despite the meaningful lingering on the word "little". "I've heard about you. Big quarterback at your high school, right? You must love the attention."

"Nick. Don't be an ass." Damon snapped at the 20-something boy. Caroline reached for Stefan's hand and squeezed. He looked irritated at Nick's assault but didn't say anything further. For a teenage boy, Stefan certainly had patience.

The blonde laughed a little, saying, "Just joking of course." For all intents and purposes he did look like was just joking, but Caroline had enough experience with men to know otherwise. They all lightened up after Elena asked Nick about something, eventually joking and talking about all the college pranks he and Damon had pulled already this year. Some were as humorous as they were elaborate, and Caroline finally felt herself relax for the first time since Katherine had come and left town despite Nick's constant looks over to her. Luckily it seemed the girl with him didn't seem to mind, if that was any consolation.

"Who wants to try and beat me?" Nick asked, half boasting as he stepped up to the bottle toss. "Come on, Damon?"

Damon shook his head, busy telling Elena a story a few feet behind them, and Nick grinned at Stefan. "Quarterback?"

There was something in the way he said it, Caroline thought, that managed to make it an insult instead of an accomplishment. Stefan smiled thinly, stepping up. He went first after Nick motioned at the softball, hitting the top two rows off after his second try. Nick's grin turned into a smirk, and in all three turns he hit every bottle. Damon looked up at them as the gamekeeper handed Nick the extra large teddy bear, saying, "Sorry, brother, Nick here is the best pitcher on the college team."

Stefan laughed lightly, saying, "That would have been nice to know."

"Don't worry, Stefan, you can't win them all." Nick smiled and then handed the bear over to Caroline. "Here you go, darling."

Caroline glared at him, shoving the bear back into his arms as snapped, "Give it to your own date."

He grinned, looking at the slender brunette as she shook her head, speaking for the first time that night, "I don't like bears."

"I'll take it," Elena said diplomatically, taking the teddy away from Nick and handing it to Damon who took the bear, saying, "Hello, papa teddy."

"Is anyone hungry? Dana and I can go fetch some popcorn or corn-dogs." Nick asked, and Caroline was both surprised and enthusiastic about Nick leaving her sight for a moment so she quickly responded yes, earning an amused look from Elena once more.

They left briefly after Nick denied everyone's money, and Stefan turned to Damon. "Why are all of your friends assholes?"

Damon smiled a bit at that, replying, "Have you met me?"

Apparently it was a fair answer because no one seemed to argue as they found a table among the booths and sat down. Damon was sitting next to Elena, who was pinned in the middle between him and the big stuffed bear while Stefan and Caroline sat on the other side, leaving only enough room between them to look natural. Caroline resisted the urge to scoot closer, simply trying to judge what Stefan was feeling by his heartbeat alone.

It was then, as she listened, that she heard Damon's heartbeat quicken and she looked up to see him angrily looking at a guy who was staring at Elena. Caroline quickly said, "Lets move to another table," and they all willingly stood and began walking once more, with only Stefan questioning her motive. She heard the person following them and tensed, heard Damon's breathing get heavier and heavier as he became more annoyed. Elena struggled carrying the teddy bear at this point and stopped for a moment to readjust, causing the guy to walk within range of Damon. "How about you stop staring at my girlfriend." He snapped angrily, causing Elena to pause and turn around in surprise.

"Sorry- I-," but he walked closer, eyeing her eagerly, "she's so hot."

Caroline was beside Damon in seconds, grabbing his wrist tightly enough to break it. Damon paid no attention to her, or Elena who had looked uncomfortable at first, but alarmed once she saw the look in Damon's eyes. She moved towards him, her hand reaching to touch his chest as she said, "Damon, just ignore him, it doesn't matter-,"

"Elena," He warned testily as she came near him, causing her to back away in fear. Stefan was already moving in front of her, shielding her from whatever might happen.

"Such a pretty name. Why is she with you?" The man that couldn't have been much older than Damon looked confused and as though he were trying to walk away. She had thought he was drunk at first, but Caroline recognized within minutes that he was compelled. Before she could say anything he spoke again, "I bet she's good in bed, that tight ass-,"

Damon tore from Caroline's grip, probably shattering every bone in his wrist as he did so, and had snapped the man's neck in seconds. Elena screamed and Stefan was already converging on the body to hide it as Caroline was desperately searching the area to see if anyone had caught sight of the murder. When it looked as though the coast was clear, Caroline growled, throwing Damon at the table they had only just sat at. "Are you an idiot? He was compelled-,"

Damon got back up quickly, shoving her back. "I'm not letting some small girl boss me around-,"

She snarled as she pinned him in only a few seconds, her hand going directly to his throat. "I am eighty nine years older than you, little boy. And I am stronger. You better not forget that."

He was choking, fighting against her stone hard grip on him as she glared, able to force out an insult of, "Pedophile," before Caroline tightened her grip angrily.

"You want to joke? You just killed someone in front of Elena and Stefan. Look at her." She snapped, forcing his face in her direction coldly, knowing that Elena was crying as she watched them from Stefan's arms. Damon's face shattered, and he stopped fighting completely. Caroline released him, getting up and looking to Elena. It was Stefan that stepped forward this time, helping his brother up as he said, "Come on, we're going home. Elena-,"

"I'm coming with you." She said firmly, trying to catch Damon's eye as he looked in the opposite direction of her. Stefan didn't argue, but looked at Caroline pitifully. "He needs to be with us for awhile. I don't think you should be there, it'll just put him on edge. Can you take care of- of him?"

She nodded as he motioned to the body awkwardly, trying not to take it personally as the bottom of her stomach fell out anyway. He looked as though he wanted to smile but didn't know how anymore, and Caroline was surprised when he stepped forward, kissing her on the forehead. "I'm sorry. I'll keep you updated."

"You're sorry?" She asked rhetorically, a bitter guilt in her voice. His face fell even more at that, but he hurried after Elena and Damon who had headed to the car.

Caroline spent a good five minutes trying to find an employee that didn't have vervain in their system- luckily for her the twenty-first century loved water bottles- and compelled them to take care of the body. It was only minutes after that that Nick found her, corn-dogs in hand. "Where did everyone go?"

"Elena had a family emergency." Caroline said mildly, coming up with an excuse easily enough. "What happened to your date?"

"Oh, Dana? She fell ill. Went home." He responded, looking as though he couldn't have cared less. "Did you need a ride then?"

"No." She said, fully intending on walking the four miles instead of getting in a car with him. He smiled at her, folding his arms after handing her one of the corn-dogs. She didn't even pretend to be polite before throwing it in the trash. He grinned. "You're lying. That's fine, I'll just follow you along in my car then."

"I'm pretty sure that's stalking." She snapped back, starting to walk away. He caught up to her easily, laughing. "Yes, well, where I come from we practice this thing called chivalry-,"

"And where I come from woman have spent years trying to prove they don't need men to do things for them, so get over it." Caroline responded, making him laugh once more. It drove her crazy that her irritation amused him, but she was able to keep her control. Although she had to admit, the idea of ripping his heart out was getting more and more appealing.

"Oh, come on," He said easily, "one ride, that's all. I promise I don't bite."

She eyed him warily at the statement, even though it was a common phrase. She remembered how apathetic Dana had seemed, how easily Nick had shot down the bottles, and even more how as soon as he was gone the compelled man had shown up. If there was one thing Katherine and her had agreed on, it was that there was no such thing as coincidences.

He smiled more and more as she studied him before she finally agreed, "Fine."