Huge thanks and credit to PorkChopSmall for her work on this chapter as well as ideas.

Even though the story is fictitious, don't even think for a second that human abuse and forced prostitution are just stories. That being said, I'd like to dedicate this story to all those who have suffered from any kind of abuse.

Back to Vampire Diaries: I cried so much during last week's episode of TVD. She was about to tell Damon that she loved him and Katherine took over her body JUST. 2. SECONDS. BEFORE. SHE. COULD. SAY. IT. I swear to God, my heart couldn't take it. I was so upset.

Anyway...On with the chapter.

Elena's entire body turned around at the sound of the familiar voice. She opened her arms wide as the girl hurried into her arms, her face bright red with excitement. Apparently, Damon had compelled the family to drive her here. He remained in his seat in the parlor, watching her carefully, but no words were spoken.

Elena picked up the girl and placed her on the table, glancing at Damon occasionally, to watch his every move. She didn't trust him with her sister even though he was the one who saved her. She placed her hands on either side of Emily and made a funny face, causing the girl to laugh.

"Are you alright? Do you love your new mom and dad?" Elena cooed.

"Yes!" Emily screamed excitedly, "They have a puppy! I called him Marbles!"

"That's wonderful, honey!" Elena said, kissing the girl's cheek, "I'm glad you're happy."

"I still wish you lived with me though. Why can't you?" She asked innocently.

Elena bit her lip, unsure of what to say. "I have to work, sweetie, so that I can buy you biiiiig presents," She tickled her sides softly and Emily giggled. "Therefore you need someone else to take care of you when I'm at work."

"Oh, okay," Emily said, tugging at Elena's hair. "I still miss you though. I love you more than I love dolls and teddy bears."

"Oh, sweetie," Elena replied, fighting tears as she hugged the little girl. "You have no idea of how much I love you."

She hugged her tightly and placed a kiss on her head.

Meanwhile, Damon was watching Elena like a hawk. He was amazed by her, by her kind heart and spirit and by her determination. When he had first walked into that club, all he had seen was some kind of slut, dancing for money, but now he knew that Elena was far from that.

"Elena!" Emily suddenly said with a gasp, "What is w-wrong with your f-face?"

Elena raised her hand to her face, where her bruise was still throbbing and as purple as ever. What was she to say? That Damon had hit her? That she was living with a monster? Emily's bottom lip was wobbling as she looked at the mark, carefully reaching out with her small and delicate fingers.

Damon twisted uncomfortably, all of this suddenly becoming a heavy load on his heart. He was already dying with guilt, he didn't need any more comments to remind him.

"Oh, I…I f-fell," Elena stammered, "You know me, I'm sooo clumsy." She tried lighting the mood.

"Does it hurt?" She asked.

"Not anymore, sweetie, I'm okay."

Emily looked at Damon and then back to her sister. "Did that man kiss it better?"

Elena flushed red and looked away, but she could feel Damon's hardened glaze on her. "I…um…n-no…"

"Oh," Emily sighed. "That's what my new mommy does. When I fall, she kisses it better and it doesn't hurt anymore."

With that, the little girl reached up and kissed the side of Elena's face before wrapping her arms tightly around her neck. Elena held on to her as well, stroking her back.

"Thank you," She whispered. "But I'm okay. I promise. Come on, let me get you some chocolate."

At that, Damon's guilt wasn't eased at all. In fact, he was feeling so ashamed of himself that he was starting to feel sick. He considered leaving the house for a while and down his guilt and sorrows in some bourbon, but decided against it. Instead, he kept reading the newspaper as if he wasn't listening to anything they were saying.

Thankfully, Elena decided to take Emily to the kitchen for some chocolate, and he was finally left alone at peace. He sighed, throwing the magazine away roughly before taking out his phone, finding one text message.

Meeting at 11:00 am tonight with the board-please be on time. –Klaus

I'm assuming the Guardians aren't invited? Damon texted back.

No. Vampires only. See you tonight. –Klaus

He scoffed, deciding that it was the right time for that drink now. He poured twice the amount he usually drank and leant back against the couch, enjoying the drink and thinking how fucked up all of this was.

He was laying there, with his eyes closed, when he felt something hit his leg with a full speed. Startled, his eyes shot open, only to find the little girl with the pigtails there, looking at him with frightened eyes. She looked down at the ball and then back at Damon, her cheeks bright pink.

"I-I'm sorry I hit you," She said, her lip wobbling as she took hesitant steps towards her ball.

Damon sighed, grabbing the ball and gently rolled it on the floor towards her. She caught it, whispered a small thank you and turned to leave, only to crush into Elena.

"There you are," Elena said. "I told you not to come in here with the ball."

"Sorry, Elena," Emily replied, hugging the ball closer to her chest.

"I w-wasn't letting her playing with it in the hallway," Elena stammered, turning towards Damon. "But she just wanted to play and-"

"Just go away, both of you," Damon snapped suddenly, not liking this at all. It wasn't because of the damn ball, but he was feeling so mad over everything.

"I'm sorry," Elena whimpered, taking Emily's hands in her own as they scurried off.

"Oh, Emily!" Elena said a bit angrily as Emily once again kicked the ball towards the parlor. "I told you, no kicking!"

"Is it because of the big man in the other room?" Emily said, her lips wobbling. "He told us to leave him alone. I'll go get it and say sorry."

"No, I will," Elena insisted, scared of the mood Damon was in.

However, there was no need for arguments as Damon suddenly walked towards them, the ball in hand. He kicked it slowly to Emily's direction. She beamed and picked up the ball, turning it in her hands before she took a step towards Damon.

"Do you want to play?" Emily asked suddenly, rolling the ball towards him again.

"Emil-" Elena started to protest, fearing his reaction.

She watched his face, his usual cold expression, his lips pursed into a tight line. Then, to her surprise, he picked up the ball and threw it in Elena's direction. She caught it effortlessly, and without any words whatsoever they started to play: Rolling, kicking and throwing the ball to each other, taking turns.

And the weirdest thing in all of this was that they were all secretly having fun.

Emily had to leave a few hours after that, and naturally, Elena was devastated. She hated watching strangers pick Emily up as she had to stay there helplessly. However, she didn't say anything, instead she opened the freezer and took out a packet of minced meat as she prepared the sauce for spaghetti Bolognese. She experimented with a variety of herbs and was about to throw eighty five grams of pasta, when she decided against it, doubling the amount. She waited patiently and then served the pasta. Two dishes, one for her and one for…Damon.

She ate quietly, enjoying the incredible taste of the dish she really liked. Damon was having a shower, and this gave her time to relax for a little. When she felt full, she cleared the table and put his dish on the table, feeling embarrassed that she had actually cooked for him. Not wanting to face any unwanted questions and knowing that his pride would probably keep him from eating what she had prepared anyway, she decided to disappear back in her bedroom.

Damon, on the other hand, emerged from the shower with a white towel wrapped around his waist. He threw on a pair of jeans and a black shirt, suddenly smelling something delicious and mouthwatering, even for a vampire. He turned around, realizing that it was coming from the kitchen, his kitchen, and he saw a plate full of spaghetti there. This puzzled him, as Elena had never cooked for him and he never expected her to. This made him smile, even though he knew that he was probably going to hurt his vampire ego. However, at that point, he didn't want to be mean, after all she had prepared him dinner, something that he found…not unpleasant.

He sat around the table, giving it a taste. He nearly let out a moan. It was so good. She was perfect in every way, even her cooking showed perfection.

He ended up eating it all, and then he returned back to his room to prepare the suit he was going to wear. He hated all of this, but he had no choice, he depended on them.

If years ago anyone would've told him that Damon Salvatore would depend on others, he would've labelled them crazy.

He sighed, taking out a formal black suit and placed it on the bed, and a pair of shoes that he rarely used. Since the drive was long, he had to leave as early as possible. He went back to Elena's bedroom, knocked and entered without even hearing her give him permission.

"I'm going out," He told her. "I'll be back very early in the morning."

"Okay," Elena nodded, turning to face him.

"Good," He continued indifferently and turned to leave. "Elena?" He asked, stopping for a second.

"Yeah?" She asked him weakly.

"Dinner was great." He shot her an embarrassed smile and left, not noticing Elena's own lips curling up to a genuine smile.

Damon kept his cold face on as he got out of the car, taking small steps towards the huge mansion. It was decorated with lights, like in every meeting, and there were two human males guarding the place. He was greeted by two of the poor guardians, those who had no idea what they were.

"Mr. Salvatore," One of the board members greeted, shaking Damon's hand firmly. Damon gave him a polite smile as he gestured him to sit down. There were many other vampires around the table, and in front of them was a glass of blood-Not just any blood-The blood. Damon scoffed.

"Welcome," Wes Maxfield, the head of the board, started with his usual, stern voice. "Welcome to our first official meeting. I really do hope that so far, you have achieved great results."

"As you can see," Another member of the board joined in, "All of you men have a guardian or two in your possession. As the board, we are here to make sure that you are doing everything we tell you-The steps that have to be taken in order for our mission to be successful. Therefore, you, Mr. Smith, can start telling us the steps you've successfully completed."

A vampire in his thirties rose.

"Tell me, Mr. Smith. Start from the very beginning."

"I found one of the Guardians after I felt the immense power, attraction to her," He started, "She worked as a waitress."

"Good," Maxfield continued. "What else?"

"I slept with her, claiming her as mine and kidnapped her. She is currently under compulsion, in my own house. I had brought her here on New Year 's Eve, where she passed her first test. I'll be keeping her captive for six months where I can study her further and report her progress to you, and then I'll bring her to the board, as in six months' time she will surely blossom into a Guardian."

"Good job," Maxfield continued, "What kind of 'studies' have you done? Any experiments that we should know of?"

"I performed a lot of experiments on her when she is under my compulsion," The vampire stated, "Nothing proves that she is not normal. She's just a normal Guardian. She also has no siblings."

"Excellent," Maxfield smirked. "What about sex?"

"Of course," Smith said with an evil laugh. "The most important experiment of all. Like every other Guardian, she becomes weaker everytime we have sexual intercourse. On the other hand, I get stronger."

"Things are working out quite perfectly for you, Smith," Maxfield said, "Congratulations."

He then turned to Damon, who had been fiddling around the entire time.

"I've heard you've had a few problems with your Guardian, Damon."

"I do," He said, knowing that he couldn't lie.

"Purge, get it out," Maxfield invited him.

"I met her in a club, she's one of Mason's dancers. She isn't like the others, so I had to take some…different routes to sleep with her. I did, I claimed her as mine, kidnapped her and everything was perfect until she accidentally discovered my true identity on New Year's eve, when she was attacked by some of your men."

"Why didn't you compel her?" Maxfield yelled.

"I tried. The girl is immune to compulsion."

"Have you performed any experiments, research or study to figure out why?"

"I haven't."

"Any strange, mixed feelings around her? Sudden anger, hate? The need of being physically abusive towards her?" "Yes."

"Then why won't you?" Maxfield barked, "Have you had sexual intercourse again?"

"No," He admitted.

"Then what the fuck are you waiting for!"

"I don't want to rape her." Maybe honesty was the way to go.

"You're going to have to," He barked again, "You can't back off now just because for once there is a girl who managed to control herself. We need answers, Mr. Salvatore. And I don't think you'll survive without us paying you, which of course, we will if the job is done properly."

"I know," He said through clenched teeth.

"She's a Gilbert," Maxfield said. "She's special. You have to get more information. Does she have any siblings?"

"No."

"Are there any other signs or symptoms that make you think that we are right to believe that Miss Elena Gilbert, aged seventeen, is more than a Guardian?"

"No, sir," Damon stated robotically. "For now, the only two things I know is that Elena cannot be compelled and even though she obviously felt the intensity between us, as I said before, she hasn't been in sexual contact with me or any other vampire."

"What about any visible Guardian powers?"

"Nothing so far."

"Make sure it stays that way," Maxfield hissed. "I'm afraid that the girl blossoms into one of them quicker than the other girls."

"That's what I thought," Damon replied, "Don't you think it is dangerous then, for me to keep her with me for a year? She'd become uncontrollable."

"Look," Wes said sternly. "We know the procedure. You keep the girls with you for six months, as that marks that half the year has already passed. Your research and experiments should imply that the girl is unaware of her true nature, and then you send her to us for us to make sure it stays this way. With Elena, there is a problem, as many of my friends here can feel, and I know that you can too, that Elena holds a large quantity of Guardian powers inside her. Now, this could either mean that there is another Gilbert out there who is semiconsciously sharing the power, in that case, you'll have to bring them to us both, or that Elena's Gilbert bloodline is stronger than we thought. I am not pleased that you'll be spending a year with her, but that's my final word. I need the information that you can get. I'm sure you can tame the girl down if you realize that the girl's becoming a danger."

"Fine," Damon said. "A year it is then."

"Damon, I won't have you ruining what we have all worked hard for," Wes continued sternly. "We have to keep them in the dark. You do know that we can only live on them-They have to be close to us. You know what you have to do, Damon. Weaken her, break her…Do what you have to do."

He nodded his head, hating being bossed around, yet unable to say anything because he depended on these people.

"I'll be asking you to bring Elena to the club so that we can observe her," Wes said, "In fact I'll be sending for you anytime soon. As you all well know, Elena had passed her first test on New Year's Eve when you brought her to the party, so we too can proceed."

Damon nodded, suppressing his anger.

"And you have to bed Elena again," Wes insisted. "I'm starting to think that you actually care for the girl."

"What are you doing alone out here, Damon?" Klaus asked his friend as Damon sat on a bench, a drink in hand.

"I just need to think," He said grumpily, downing his bourbon.

"You care about her, don't you?"

"I don't."

"Can't you see what she's doing to you, Damon? She's controlling you, when it should be the other way round. She's already stronger than you yet you refuse to weaken and break her."

"I don't want to talk about it," Damon snapped.

"You'll going to have to do what Wes told you to," Klaus said. "Turn off your humanity, tie her up, I don't know…but you're going to have to start your research. You knew this when you signed up."

"Did I have a choice?" Damon said bitterly.

"There was. Some chose death," He sighed, "it's still a choice."

Klaus then proceeded to take out a small packet from under his jacket. "I managed to convince the board to pay you anyway. Take it."

"Klaus…"

"Take it," He insisted, "We all know you need it. But the board isn't going to be forgiving anymore, you have to start doing your job."

Damon kept thinking about all of this on his way home. His brain was about to explode:

SixMonthsAYearTwoYearsGuardiansGilbertsDancing.

Pity.

He had to shut his humanity off. He had to start seeing her as the enemy, as his project. Why couldn't he? If he just shut his humanity off, things would've become a lot easier. He wouldn't have to feel guilt when she looked him in the eye as he flipped her on her stomach and took her, or when he'd restrain her to a bed and start his 'research', as Wes very nicely put it.

But how could he do that, when the enemy didn't even know that she was an enemy? How could he hurt such innocence?

When he returned home, it was about five in the morning. He nearly tore the clothes off himself and settled in for a cup of coffee, trying to calm his nerves. He sighed, lighting up a cigarette as he focused on Elena's breathing.

He took a deep breath, the nicotine and caffeine making him feel slightly better, and then he found himself walking towards her bedroom. She was sleeping lightly, covered entirely by thick blankets. In fact, she was covered in a way that she was merely visible, making her look like a small child.

He gently stroked her cheek; feeling comfort in her soft skin. It was the only time where he could touch her without showing her the cared. Inspecting her a little more, he felt like he was a failure. How could he believe that she, a child, could hurt him? Was he right to obey Wes after all because everytime he looked at Elena, he didn't even imagine that she could possess power inside her that hurt him, because she seemed too weak.

The mark on her cheek was still there and he lightly brushed a finger across it, watching as she flinched in her sleep, a soft moan from the sudden aching escaping her lips. He pulled back, gently brushing the hair away from her face before his face came down to her level. He remembered what Emily had asked early…

"Did that man kiss it better?...When I fall, she kisses it better and it doesn't hurt anymore."

Damon took a deep breath, leaning down by Elena's ear. "I'm sorry."

With that, he gingerly placed his lips on her swollen skin, hovering there for a few moments longer that necessary before pulling back. He knew it won't help and would of made no difference, but somehow he felt a little better, more so when he saw a hint of a smile pull at her soft lips.

Someone like her…could she really hurt him?

Yet he had had previous experiences with guardians, and they were all the same-innocent, until they blossom to ones. Sometimes he hoped that Elena would be 'special' in a positive sense, in the sense that she wasn't like the others, she wouldn't hurt his kind once she blossomed.

Then, he suddenly laughed silently. Why the fuck was he thinking all of this when there was no other way? He needed his payment, so all of this was irrelevant. He would still have to obey Wes, she'd still have to start performing again and he'll have to start his 'research' anytime soon.

And this time, Damon didn't even have the strength to stay he's sorry.

Hmmm so we saw a little bit of everything in this chapter. As you can see, Damon is being bossed around by a kind of committee, and in return, they are paying him with something he clearly needs and is maybe 'addicted' to. I plan for this story to be a long one, so there will be a lot of answers AND mysteries! I am very pleased with the response, you guys are really the best and I LOVE this story so much. Thank You so much for your kind reviews!

I can't mention you all but I would like to thank PorkChopsmall, throughmysoul44, kaybaby1127, Yasmin V, Kfulmer7, 4evrMrsAcklesLevineSomerhalder, AlwaysElisabethian, xELinneax, jairem, Rasha007 and MANY MANY other awesome reviewers, guest reviewers, Favorite/alert people, and anyone who believed in me.

I LOVE YOU. xxxxxx