Chapter 10

Damon paced back and forth, the leafs and twigs snapping underneath his feet. His face was contorted in an all-consuming anger; his nostrils flaring; his eyes flashing and closing into slits. He could hear the animals around him, but they all stayed away, disappeared deeper into their habitat. They could sense danger and considering Damon was already dangerous under normal circumstances, it was wise of them to keep a safe distance now.

His mouth quivering, Damon's hands closed into fists. It had been a few hours now since he'd learned about her past, learned her story and during those hours, he'd gone through an array of emotions with one taking center stage: rage.

Pure, undiluted rage.

He hated feeling powerless, worthless and that's exactly how he felt now, because no matter how desperately he wanted to take action, make it right, fix it for her, he couldn't do anything until he got what he came to the woods for.

And what he came for, kept him waiting.

"Oh, come on!" Damon yelled. "Hurry up, God damn it!"

"Oh, blasphemy. I like it."

Damon turned on his heels, for the first time glad to see those pitch black eyes.

"Finally," he snarled. "Took you long enough."

"I have an afterlife, Salvatore. One I'd like to get back to, so could we hurry this along?"

Damon's jaw set as he gave the God a tight nod, spitting out, "Give me a name."

Hades frowned, tilting his head to the side. "I'm just guessing here, but you don't mean just any random name, do you?"

Damon just glared at him.

"Oh," Hades whispered, a hint of surprise in his voice. "She told you."

"Give me his name." Damon snarled.

"Did you ask Elena?"

"Once. In a Wendy's. Over pancakes."

"What did she say?"

"That it didn't matter," he spit out. "For some reason, she's protecting this guy."

A corner of Hades' lips pulled up for a split second, a sparkle appearing in his eyes.

"Don't screw with me, Hades. Not today. Tell me who tortured her. Who killed her."

"Give me a moment, Salvatore. I'm revelling in your ignorance."

"I swear to God, Hades−"

"I'm not giving you his name. No matter who you swear to."

"Why the hell not?"

"Because I'm not going to betray her trust like that."

"You're the fucking god of the Underworld! You're fucking Death itself! Fuck trust!"

"And even after those very eloquent arguments, I'm not helping you."

"Oh come on! You know what he did to her! You know how he made her suffer! You were there! Why would you protect this asshole, Hades?"

"I'm not protecting him, Salvatore," he said calmly. "Trust me, no one wants to see this guy go down, literally, more than me."

"So tell me his name, Hades and I'll send him your way, asap."

"If only it was that easy."

"Hades−"

"You keep saying my name like it will make a difference."

Damon bit his tongue, a stream of curse words wanting to break free. But he needed something from Death and cursing him out wouldn't help his cause.

"Tell me, Salvatore," Hades said after a long, tense moment of silence. "Did you ever wonder why our girl would protect the man who killed her? Repeatedly?"

"Because she doesn't want his death on her conscious," Damon said, sniffing. "She's too good, too pure to be a killer."

"Damon," Hades said, his brows pulled together. "Come on. You don't actually believe that, do you? She's good and all, but if you truly think she doesn't want this guy dead, you don't know what he did to her. Not really."

"But if she wants him dead why wouldn't she tell me who he−" he cut himself off when he figured out the answer to his own unfinished question.

Off course.

It was so obvious now.

Off course she wouldn't want him to go after her killer.

"Oh and by the way," Hades said, realizing he was no longer needed. "I do not enjoy being summoned by one of your victims."

Damon glanced at the dead man behind him, not a trace of remorse mixed in with his newfound emotions. "He was a disgusting excuse for a human. He won't be missed."

"Oh, I know," Hades said, smoothing his hair back. "And it was my pleasure to send him to where he belongs, but what wasn't pleasurable was taking orders from a rapist. So, please, next time you want to speak to me, use a witch to relay the message." Hades walked away, but changed his mind after one step, turned and added, "Actually, just don't summon me again. I've been seeing way too much off you over the past few days and I'm really not a fan. Not of you, not of this world. So, unless it's an emergency and that emergency involves Elena, I better not see you again until you finally get staked and face judgment."

Damon just snorted, shooting Hades a sarcastic smile.

"Say hi to our girl from me, Salvatore."

And with that, the god vanished.

A giant, thin, white tent stood in the middle of the large clearing, a warm, orange light illuminating the crowd underneath. Damon could hear a big band playing, a saxophone taking the lead and-even though he could appreciate Jazz-he found himself cursing under his breath. He'd forgotten all about Lexi's wedding. Not that Lexi would be upset in any way about him missing the ceremony but he'd hoped to return to a quiet house, not to an extravagant party with a bunch of strangers. How was he going to talk to Elena in private like this?

Sighing, he made his way to the tent. Many voices he recognized drifted to him, but it was the voice he didn't hear that made his stomach clench.

Where is she?

He picked up his pace, sharpening his senses, desperately searching for that light, warm voice.

But it was nowhere to be found.

Did she leave?

Had she left when he had?

If she had, she was out there...

On her own...

At night...

Klaus.

He reached the tent and immediately, his eyes scanned the crowd on the wooden dance floor, at the tables, by the glass bar.

But she wasn't there.

Elena wasn't there.

His mind raced as the panic rose, tightening his chest.

She was gone.

She'd left.

She couldn't have gone far, Damon thought, already forming a plan. If I ditch the car, use vamp speed, I can find her before−

"I'm not good with crowds."

The second he heard her, it felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders, his chest, his very soul. His heart taking the lead, he followed her voice, finally spotting her a few yards away from the tent, standing dangerously close to the edge of the cloaking spell. Still, even with the shroud of darkness enveloping her, he could tell she was looking absolutely stunning for the occasion.

"Yeah, me neither."

It was only when he'd spoken that Damon noticed Elena wasn't alone.

Stefan, he thought, jealousy rearing its ugly head. He hadn't been gone for a day and already his brother was moving in on her.

Why wasn't he surprised?

Quietly, Damon ducked a little deeper into the dark, going against his instincts. His very being wanted nothing more than to go to her, wrap her in his arms and tell his brother to get lost...but there was another part of him that trumped that want. The part that was curious to know how Elena was going to handle his brother's charm offensive. After all, although he hated to admit it, in the past, Damon had often lost when a woman's had the choice between him and Stefan. He didn't understand it, but it had happened on multiple occasions. What if Elena was confronted with both options as well? Would she still choose him? Would she still choose the Dark One over Mister Perfect?

"Come on," Stefan smiled. "Dance with me."

"I told you, I don't dance, Stefan. Sorry."

"One dance won't kill you."

"No, but it might kill you. I have no coördination whatsoever."

"I'm hard to kill."

"But not impossible."

"Elena-"

"Please, Stefan," she broke him off, smiling kindly. "I'm really not in the mood."

There was a long moment of uncomfortable silence between the two-that made Damon smile from ear to ear- during which he focused on admiring the girl he loved. The black, lace dress she was wearing hugged her perfect figure and her hair was pulled back in a messy bun, a few curly strands tickling her cheeks. She looked amazing, breathtaking, and yet, she looked different. She looked paler and somewhat sad. She was trying to hide it, but he could see.

And he had the gut wrenching feeling it was his fault.

"Look, I can't force you to come back to the party," Stefan broke the tension. "And I'm not even saying you should, I just want to make sure you're not here, in the dark, for the wrong reason."

"What's the wrong reason?"

"My brother."

Elena's face fell for a split second before she turned her back on Stefan…and Damon, showing off the delectable open back of the dress.

"You don't know him, Elena," Stefan continued. "Not like I do."

"Maybe you're the one who doesn't know him."

"I've known him for centuries. I think I have him figured out by now and trust me when I tell you, you should forget about him. I mean, look at you, Elena. You're a beautiful, young woman who belongs in the light and yet, you're here, in the dark, because of him."

"You don't know me, Stefan, so stop acting like you do. "

"Maybe I don't, but I know him."

"People change."

"People, yes. Damon, not so much."

She sniffed.

"What?"

"Nothing," she mumbled. "I'm just starting to see where your brother got it from."

"Got what from?"

"These ideas about himself."

"What ideas?"

"That he's worth nothing. That he's a monster."

"He is."

Elena spun back around, her eyes spitting fire. "He saved me. He didn't know me and yet, he saved me."

"And then he attacked you!"

She swallowed hard as Damon's heart sunk to his stomach.

"How do you know that?" Elena whispered.

Stefan snorted. "I didn't. Not until you just confirmed it. I had my suspicions when I noticed there were two overlapping bite marks in your neck. I knew one was Emilio's, but I wasn't sure who the second vampire was. How can you still care for him after what he did to you?"

"It was an accident."

"He tripped and his fangs accidentally bore themselves into your neck?"

"He couldn't control himself."

"And yet he had enough control to first sample your arm."

She wrapped her hand over the wound above her wrist, a move that actually made Damon ill. She was trying to cover up, protect him, defend him when in reality, there was no defense. Not for what he'd done.

Still, she tried.

"It wasn't like that. He wasn't himself."

"Oh, he was. That was Damon in his purest form."

"You weren't there!" she snarled. "You don't know! It wasn't his fault!"

"Said every abused woman ever!"

"Hey!" she screamed, her nostrils flaring. "Don't you dare say that! I was abused once! Really abused! And I would never make up excuses for that asshole! I would never make up excuses for anyone who lays a hand on a woman! There is no excuse!"

"And yet, here you are, pining for the vampire who drank from you, not once, but twice!"

"First of all, I don't pine! And secondly, The Foreboding were right behind us! He couldn't fight! He was dying! And I'm sure as hell not strong enough to keep us safe! If he hadn't drank, The Foreboding would've killed us both, right there, on the spot! I chose to give at least one of us a fighting chance! And before you say Damon could've chosen not to drink, let me ask you: if you had lost nearly every drop of blood in your body and there was a woman there, basically shoving her blood down your throat, would the darkness in you let you walk away, Ripper?"

Shock took over Stefan's face.

"Yeah, Damon told me about that," Elena hissed. "So don't sit there on your high horse, telling me vampires can always choose! That they can always fight the evil and win! Sometimes, the dark is too strong and you have to fold! You don't choose to, you just get taken over! Damon didn't even recognize me by the time he finally gave in! He didn't know what he was doing and yet, he's still beating himself up over it every single day! Every time he sees me, the first thing his eyes go to are the bite marks! I don't think he realizes that himself, but he does it every single time! He hates himself for what he did! A real abuser, feels no remorse! Not really! He will always do it again! And if there's one thing I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, it's that Damon will never hurt me again!"

Stefan sniffed, his brows furrowed. "How can you have this much faith in him, knowing what he is?"

"How can you not, being what you are?" she threw back, her voice kinder. "You were The Ripper once, but look at you now. You turned your life around. You have friends who trust you, who love you and who you love in return. Why is it so inconceivable that Damon could have done the same? That he's changed since you saw him last?"

"Actions speak louder than words."

"He brought me here to keep me safe from Klaus."

"And then he left."

Her eyes dropped.

"Okay," Stefan concluded. "I'm going back to the party. Last chance to join me."

Elena answered by turning her back on Stefan again.

"Alright," his brother mumbled. "I'll save you a dance anyway, just in case you change your mind."

And with that, he walked away.

It took Damon another five minutes before he could muster up the courage to move out of the darkness and make his way towards her. He had no idea what he was going to do or say to her. He had no idea how he was going to make it right. But he had a feeling he wasn't going to figure it out any time soon and he couldn't be away from her any longer.

He'd missed her.

"God, give it up, Stefan," she snapped, when he halted right behind her. "I don't want to dance with−"

She cut herself off when she finally turned around and saw him. In one second the expression on her face went from angry, to happy and then back to angry as she crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him.

"Not Stefan," Damon opened, knowing full well it was a ridiculous way to start the conversation and yet not being able to stop himself from adding, "And I'm a little insulted."

"You are insulted?" she hissed.

Wrong thing to say.

"YOU are insulted, Damon?! I tell you about my past and you run!"

"Technically, I drove."

She huffed, shaking her head. "Stop it! I know these idiot jokes are some stupid defense mechanism, but right now, I need you to be serious and talk to me!"

He swallowed hard. She knew him too well.

"You've been trying to catch a glimpse of my past since the day we met," Elena continued. "And when I finally let you in, when I finally tell you, you just take off."

"I know. I−"

"You assured me a thousand times that I could tell you anything and that it wouldn't make a difference and yet, you ran!"

"I didn't−"

"Do you have ANY idea how that made me feel, Salvatore?"

He just stood there like an idiot, lost for words. He wanted to say so many things, explain everything and yet, in the end, all he could say was, "I'm sorry."

"That's it?" she shrieked. "You're Damon Salvatore, master with words and all you can say is sorry?"

"I don't know what else I can say."

"You could tell me why you did it," she said, her voice trembling suddenly. "I can take it. I know it's a lot to handle. I'm a lot to handle. You could've just told me it was too much. You could've just told me you didn't want to get involved with some mess of a girl who−"

"Stop!" he barked, finding his voice again. "You're not a mess! And I didn't leave because I couldn't handle what you told me! "

"Really? So, it was just a coincidence that you decided to go for a drive right after I poured my heart out to you?"

"I didn't just go for a drive...I went to see Hades."

She blinked wildly, taken aback. "Hades? Why?"

"I couldn't just let him get away with it," Damon growled.

"Let who get away with what? What are you talking−" she cut herself off as comprehension dawned on her face. "You went to see Hades to find out who hurt me?"

"Who killed you," he rumbled." And I know now why you wouldn't tell me his name back at Wendy's, why you told me it didn't matter."

She let out a deep breath, her eyes tearing up. "Hades told you? I can't believe he would do that."

"Actually, he didn't."

"He didn't?"

"He refused to betray your trust."

She smiled weakly.

"However," he added, her smile dropping immediately. "He did make me realize something."

"And what's that?"

Carefully, Damon reached out for her. He wasn't sure whether his touch would be welcome already, but he couldn't help but try his luck. He had to touch her. So, slowly, he ran his fingers over her warm cheek…and she let him. In fact, she more than let him. As soon as his fingertips touched her soft skin, her eyes fluttered shut.

"The reason you don't want me to go after this guy," he whispered, marveling in the vision that was Elena Gilbert. "Is because you want him. For yourself."

Her eyes snapped open and then dropped to the ground. Clearly, she wasn't proud of her intensions, but Damon wouldn't let her feel ashamed, not over this, not over wanting to kill the monster who'd taken everything from her, who'd tortured her. So he curled a finger under her chin and tilted her head up, forcing her doe eyes back on his.

"It's okay to want justice. It's okay to want him dead."

She sniffed.

"It doesn't make you a bad person, Elena."

"Doesn't it?" she snapped, shrugging off his touch. "I'm not the woman you think I am. There are things you need to know about me. Things−"

"I don't need to know anything," Damon said, determined. "I already know everything I need to. You are the kindest, most accepting, most stubborn and annoyingly smart woman I ever−"

"I want him to suffer!" she screamed, cutting off his flattery. "I don't just want him dead. I want to do to him what he did to me and I want him to know every step of the way that it's me who's doing it. I want to hear him scream and beg. And when I finally kill him, it won't be fast and clean. I'll make it so he'll feel his life slipping away slowly, painfully. And in the end, I want to be the last thing that arrogant, smug son of a bitch sees before that evil flicker in his eyes fades." She paused, breathing heavily. "Now, tell me again I'm the kindest person you've ever known. Tell me I'm good."

"Sweetness," Damon whispered. "That asshole locked you in a basement and did God knows what to you for God knows how long," he trailed off, grinding his teeth for a moment as he pushed back the horrible images that crossed his mind. "Why in the fuck, would you spare him?"

Her eyes softened as he listened to her heart gradually returning to its normal pace. "How do you do that?" she whispered, frowning.

"Do what?"

"Still look at me like that after what I just told you?"

"Like what?"

"Like you looked at me when we met, when you still thought I was just a normal girl."

Damon smiled. "I never thought you were normal, Gilbert. I've always found you to be special. Extraordinary"

"You're just saying that because−" she trailed off, her eyes dropping again.

"−because I love you?" he finished for her, flashing her a dazzling smile. "I know, it's a scary four-letter word, isn't it. Love. "

She sighed. "Damon−"

"Oh, don't worry," he said, waving a dismissive hand. "I meant as a friend, off course."

"So you're okay with that? With just being friends?"

He flashed his brilliant white teeth, wiggling his eyebrows as he rumbled. "A-okay."

"Friends," she sang, smiling mischievously as she added, "BFF's?"

"Don't push it."

She laughed, the sound echoing in his ears, in his heart.

"Now," he said, moving to stand beside her, resting his hand on the nape of her back. "How about a dance? Unless off course you're too uncoordinated."

She snickered. "You eavesdropped? Why aren't I surprised?"

Damon could hear people whispering when they reached the tent. Those who hadn't been staying in the Safe House the day before were clearly shocked to see him. Especially with a girl. A living girl. A girl he clearly wasn't intending to kill.

Right before they reached the dance floor, Damon caught a glimpse of a very ticked off Stefan. Now, in the past, Damon would've rubbed his victory in Stefan's face, would've relished in the fact that his brother had come second in the fight over the girl's heart, but the moment he held her close and he could feel that same heart beat against his chest, nothing was more important than holding her tight.

It was strange how comfortable they already felt in each other's embrace. Her hand instantly cupped his neck as if she'd been dancing with him like that for years and his own hand lazily stroked her back, up and down. She shivered, but didn't pull back. On the contrary, he felt her nails softly scratching his neck in response.

After a while, he found himself unconsciously tracing the scars on her bare, warm back. She stiffened when she realized what he was doing, but only for a moment. When he felt her relax again, she whispered, "Hades hid them the last time. He said they didn't match my dress, so he put some glamor on me to cover up the damage, as he so eloquently put it."

"Hades isn't known for his tact."

She let out a sharp puff of air that hit the skin behind his ear, making it prickle expectantly.

"I know," she whispered. "He once told me I should give up and die already, because blood red wasn't my color."

"Charming," Damon growled.

As she buried her face deeper in his neck, Damon could feel her smile. "Do you want to know a secret?"

"Always."

"I like them."

"Who?"

"The scars."

Damon pulled back a little, looking her in the eye, intrigued.

"They're my war wounds," she explained. "They remind me off the fact that I survived something I wasn't supposed to. And whenever my world gets too big and I'm ready to just give up and surrender, I look at them and I remember that I'm strong. That I fought and won, against all odds. Is that weird? That I like the most hideous part of me?"

Damon shook his head, having to rely on sheer willpower not to close the distance between them and kiss her like he wanted to. And he wanted to, desperately. How was he ever going to be just friends with her when his entire body was reacting to her in a way friends' bodies should not react to one another.

"There is nothing hideous about you, Elena. Not one single thing."

"Come on, Damon. I−"

"Sssshh," he shushed. "Enough talking. Take the compliment and dance with me, Gilbert."

She just smiled and let him take the lead again. And they stayed like that, swaying slowly, until the sky turned a lighter shade of blue.

So, what did you think? I LOVE hearing from you guys (although last time, you amazing peeps actually crashed my inbox with your reviews and PM's...AND I LOVED IT)! So, let's try to do that again :p :p! You keep me writing!

xoxoxoxox LustAndLove