AN: I'm guilty so I'm giving you two chapters in 24 hours!

Shinichi POV

He'd scrapped the first plan. It was taking far too long. But, he had a new plan, a better plan. This one would work for sure. He supposed the previous plan would have worked, but Misao would be dead before it did. No, he needed speed. The humans had a vampire on their side! What on earth was taking them so long? On the other hand, he'd effectively broken Damon Salvatore. That was definitely a plus. Yes, doing away with the younger brother had worked very well. Shinichi hadn't thought things would fall into place so soon. But, the humans were more determined than ever and Damon was effectively out of the picture. Not to mention the fact that the humans were minus one, albeit very weak, vampire.

Shinichi made his way down the corridor towards Damon's cell. He walked with purpose, head held high. This was for his sister. Misao was not going to die. Shinichi simply wouldn't allow it. Reaching a door that wasn't actually there, Shinichi stepped through into Damon's cell. The door was, in fact, another one of his little tricks. He was quite pleased with himself thus far. And, at Salvatore's blank look, Shinichi grew even more pleased. Face drawn, eyes closed, the man sat in the chair, rigid. This was how he had looked for the last day and a half. Shinichi smiled again.

"Poor, poor Damon. Whatever will you do without ickle Stefan-kins?" He taunted. Damon went white. Suddenly, he was struggling against the chains, howling with rage. Then, just as suddenly as it had started, the screaming and fighting stopped. Damon sat, face blank once more. Shinichi laughed maniacally and left the room. He pulled aside one of his many servants.

"He's ready."

Elena POV:

It had been a day and a half. Thirty-six hours without Stefan's warm embrace. Two thousand one hundred sixty minutes without his soft voice or his green, green eyes. Elena felt as if her heart had been ripped out of her chest. He was gone. There was no one she could turn to anymore. Sure, Bonnie, Meredith, and Matt were around, but Damon wasn't. She could tell Damon anything and he wouldn't judge her. But, she just couldn't describe most of her feelings to her human friends. She wasn't just human anymore. She was…more. Now, anyone who could help her with that comfortably was gone. Sage, she thought. Sage could help her. But, how well did she know him? What if Shinichi's words had a ring of truth? Was he not who he said he was? More importantly, did she want to risk it? No. She just wanted Stefan.

She stood. It was the first time she'd been up for a day and a half. Her muscles were stiff and aching, but she made her way to the living room anyway. Now that she thought about it, she was rather hungry. As she got closer to the living room, she could smell things from the kitchen. Were they making waffles? Elena's stomach growled. Then, she stopped, thinking of Damon. He'd been so worried because his stomach had growled. He barely knew what to do with himself, yet he was locked away in an undisclosed location no doubt guarded by the kitsune twins and their demonic friends. Involuntary tears ran down Elena's face. Her vision was blurry, but she pressed on, now headed for the kitchen. As she turned the corner, she ran right into someone.

"Elena? Elena, are you alright?" In her state, the first person who came to mind was Stefan. But, when Elena looked up, she was met with Matt's bright blue eyes. He looked worried.

"Yes," She sniffed. "I'm fine." Elena wiped at her eyes. Gently, Matt pulled her into an embrace. It felt nice, leaning on someone. For the last day and a half, Elena had forced herself into solitude, mourning with everything she had. But, she knew they had things to deal with. She couldn't be selfish just because her fiancée was…she couldn't think the word. No, she had to help defeat the kitsune. She would have her revenge. If nothing else, it would keep her mind occupied. It was a good thing, coming out of her bedroom. She had to face the fact that it was just her bedroom now.

"Are those waffles?" Elena felt she should smile, but couldn't force her muscles to make it happen. She moved into the kitchen, craving food.

"Yeah, do you want some?" Matt asked her, surprised. She hadn't been eating. Of course, this was a good thing. Elena knew she was human and had to eat. She couldn't shut down just yet. Smiling at her, Matt placed a large plate of waffles on the table, gesturing for her to sit down. She complied, needing to rest her aching limbs.

"So, what have I missed?" She asked, tucking in. Had they done any research? Had they found her fiancée's body? Though, that gave her a sliver of hope. If his body was nowhere to be found, he could be alive! Maybe he'd been taken, too. Maybe he was with Damon right now! Or, maybe the kitsune were so evil they couldn't stand to let him have a proper burial. Elena's face fell once more.

"Unfortunately, not much. We had an idea, but we were waiting for you. See, Mrs. Flowers and Bonnie say witches can trace magic. Obviously, that note was sent to us with some form of magic. But, Mrs. Flowers is too old to do it because it takes a lot of strength. She's been teaching Bonnie the spell. Today, I think they're going to try it out. If it works, we can find out where the kitsune are and, through them, where Damon is!" He grew excited as he spoke. Elena was confused. Didn't he hate Damon?

"You seem awfully excited to find a guy you hate…" She told him bluntly.

"Well, he makes you happy. And, I can't hate anyone who does that." He replied. At this, Elena gave her best impression of a smile. How could Matt be so good to her after all that she'd put him through?

"Matt? Matt, where'd you go? Mrs. Flowers says I'm ready and we're going to-" Bonnie called, stopping dead as she entered the kitchen. "Elena! How are you? You're eating? That's good. Matt, do you think she's okay enough to come into the living room to watch?"

"I don't know, why don't you ask her? She's right there, Bon." Matt chuckled. Bonnie blushed and turned to Elena, opening her mouth to ask again.

"I'm okay. And, I would like to watch." Elena cut her off. Shoving the last bit of waffle into her mouth, Elena followed Bonnie into the living room, Matt at her heels. When they arrived, Elena found everyone else in a circle around the note. Bonnie moved to the center of the circle and took the note in her hand. Elena realized, as she and Matt joined in, that they had completed the circle. Then, Bonnie closed her eyes.

Elena watched, waiting for a telltale spark or gust of wind. She received nothing. There was no sign that Bonnie was doing anything at all. Elena frowned. Something was supposed to happen, was it not?

Damon POV:

Damon awoke to find himself in a strange room. He was tucked into a king-sized bed. Startled, he sat up. Suddenly, the room was spinning. Damon clutched his head. Where was he? Then, another thought: Did it matter? He sighed and lay back against the pillows, surprisingly fluffy compared to the hard wooden chair he'd grown so used to. Stefan was gone. His little brother was dead and, ultimately, the blame lay with Damon. There was a statue across the room. Damon's gaze fell on it and stayed there. Staring into space felt better. When he cleared his mind, it was easier. He didn't have to think about anything. Damon blocked it all out and shut his eyes once more.

He heard a noise. A key turned in the lock on his door. Footsteps. Someone had entered the room. Damon opened his eyes. A maid. A maid? Since when did he get service? Last he checked, he'd been locked up. He sat up taller, realizing for the first time that he was without a shirt. His chest was bandaged. Great. Bandages everywhere. I'm a mummy, he thought, looking at his wrist. The maid came towards him, carrying a tray. Breakfast. Damon's stomach rolled. When the maid set the tray down in front of him, he knew he was going to throw up. Leaning over the side of the bed, he lost whatever had been in his stomach. Groaning, he sat up, glaring at the maid. Quickly, she took the tray and left. So much for breakfast. Damon sighed and sank back into the now-familiar stupor. It was hard to believe it had only been a day and a half. Oh yes, Damon was counting the minutes. And, with each minute, the heaviness in his heart grew more painful. He wanted to forget. He wanted to block Stefan's memory out of his consciousness, but he couldn't. Damon was having trouble believing he was now an only child. Stefan was Stefan. He couldn't be gone. With that thought, he dropped off into sleep.

A strange dream woke Damon from his slumber. But, now that he was awake, he couldn't seem to remember it. He found that he was once again tucked into the large bed. But, the room was dark. Had they turned off the lights to allow him peace? No. Impossible. Damon wouldn't believe it until he could see it with his own eyes. The people holding him hostage didn't care for others. They didn't care for feelings and they certainly didn't care about their prisoners' comfort. Damon was at the bottom of their list of priorities, assuming he was on it at all. That brought him back to his original question. What did they want with him? What could he possibly give them? He was weak and human, worthless prey. Damon was surprised at himself. This was the most thinking he'd done for a day and a half. He didn't want to think anymore. Once more, he closed his eyes and shut everything out.

Almost as soon as he'd managed to forget, the door opened. He cursed loudly. There was laughter from the direction of the door. Shinichi. He tensed. Damon wanted to kill the kitsune, to murder him in cold blood to avenge his little brother. But, he didn't have the strength. Muscles relaxing, he sighed.

"What do you want?" Damon kept it short and to the point.

"What do I want? Oh, Damon, I'm glad you asked." Shinichi replied, ghosting across the room. Now, he stood next to the bed, a grin plastered to his face. "I want to help you."

"Bullshit." Was Damon's only response.

"Clever, but I have an offer I don't think you can refuse." Shinichi stared at Damon with his strange golden eyes. It was as if the kitsune was staring through him. Damon shuddered.

"What kind of offer?" He asked hesitantly. It would have a catch. These things always did. There was no way Shinichi suddenly wanted to help him.

"If your friends bring me what I want, I promise to let them go unharmed." Shinichi explained.

"What's the catch?"

"Catch? Why must you always assume there's a catch?"

"Because there's always a catch. If you're going to sit here and play ridiculous games, you might as well go. I'm not in the mood."

"You forget that you're my prisoner. I can kill you very easily."

"Go ahead." Damon looked at the kitsune. Shinichi wore a shocked expression, but Damon knew he'd been counting on this. Truthfully, his offer sounded good. It all depended on what he'd have to do to get it. At this point, he wasn't sure he cared. If Elena would be safe, everything would be okay. Well, almost okay. He'd still be a pathetic human.

"The catch, Mr. Salvatore, is that you would have to stay with me." Shinichi crooned. It was almost as if he were trying to seduce Damon.

"That can't be it."

"Well, you'd have to do what I say, of course. But, that's all." Damon looked at Shinichi. If Elena brought the kitsune his sister's soul, she would be safe. Sure, he would have to stay. He would never again have the pleasure of kissing Elena, holding her. But, it was all worth it in the end. He was doing it for her. If his torment meant she was safe forever more, he would accept Shinichi's deal in a heartbeat.

"I suppose it's a lot to consider. I'll leave you to think." Shinichi stroked Damon's cheek once, making him shudder, before moving toward the door.

"Wait!" Damon yelled as Shinichi moved away. The kitsune turned to stare at the dark-haired human.

"Yes?"

"I'll do it. Just don't hurt Elena."

Shinichi POV:

"You have my word." He shut the door as a malicious smile twisted his face. As he made his way back to Misao, Shinichi began to giggle. He laughed all the way back to his master bedroom. His sister lay on the bed, pale and un-moving. Still, he went to her side, brushing her hair away from her face and planting a kiss on her forehead.

"We've got them, Misao. This time, we've got them."

Stefan POV:

He was…hovering. He looked down to see the ground miles and miles away from him. It was unnerving. He'd never really been a fan of heights. From here, he could see the boarding house. The lights were on and his friends were inside. He wasn't dead. Or, he didn't think he was dead, anyway. He concentrated, trying to bring himself to the ground and failing miserably. Stefan groaned, frustrated. Oh, Elena, he thought, I'll be with you again. Just as soon as I figure out how to get down…

AN: And, Stefan returns! I couldn't kill him... I love him too much. This story is about to get darker... I thought I should give you fair warning. Anyway, as always, review!