Author's Note: Hey guys! So this is my second fanfiction in English so if you find some mistakes don't be too hard on me. I made several changes in my story:

1. Katherine didn't inject Elena with the ripper virus
2. Elena remembers everything
3. Stefan wants nothing to do with his brother at this point (I know I love Defan too, but in this story I took a different direction)
4. The other characters will be more hostile towards Damon too.

I'm a huge Delena fan so this story is entirely about them, but mostly I want to represent a more gentle, caring Elena towards Damon, which might get a little too fluffy, but I promise it will be good :) If you're a Damon stan then you know that feeling when you just want to hug him so tightly that he forgets all the horrible things that happened to him in his life. So in this story, that's what I'm trying to unwrap. Let me know if I should continue! And reviews are always appreciated. :)

Also, give a try to my other story "Finding Our Way Back" it is after 5x22. s/10730816/1/Finding-Our-Way-Back


It was a late evening at the Salvatore boarding house when Elena finally woke from being possessed by Katherine. She needed a few moments to realize where is she but then she saw the familiar faces. Caroline, Stefan, Bonnie, Tyler, Jeremy and Matt all hovered over her. Except Damon. Where was he? Then the memories hit her. All the things Katherine did while she was a passenger in Elena's body came rushing back. It was like being in a cinema. She heard and saw everything but couldn't do a damn thing about it. She watched as Katherine broke Damon's heart all over again, watched as her lover's face fell when Katherine said all those horrible things to him. She had to go through as Katherine seduced Stefan in that motel room. She saw as Katherine stepped over that old house's doorstep just to tempt Damon with her blood. Elena saw his struggle, his tortured expression as he tried to push her out the door because he knew he couldn't take it much longer. But Katherine had other plans, and Elena knew it. She just trusted that Stefan would find another solution to save her. And he did thank God. But Elena also knew what other things happened. Aaron was dead, thanks to Damon and Enzo almost killed Jeremy, again thanks to Damon...

But Elena wasn't angry or disappointed. She didn't know why, though. She just knew she had to find Damon and tell him that she never gave nor will ever give up on him. He had to know that it was all Katherine. He had to know that despite the things he did after that fateful night she still loved him.

"Elena," she heard Stefan, as she sat up on the couch in the parlour. The room was lit by the fireplace, as usual, giving the room a comfortable sensation. She didn't know how long was she passed out but it felt like hours. She was still a bit groggy but she was determined to find the elder Salvatore. Though she had a few questions. "Elena, you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine. How long have I been out?"

"An hour, give or take," this time it was Caroline who spoke to her. Elena remembered what she heard at Tyler's party. She didn't know if Caroline regretted it but after that action, Caroline has no right to say even as a bad word about her feelings or relationship with Damon. Maybe she has to have a talk with her blonde friend about it some time. But first...

"And how long did Katherine possessed my body?" it was the question that was nagging in her brain since the moment she woke. Even though she watched and heard everything she just seemed to lost her sense of time. She couldn't tell if it was just a few days or a week, but she hoped it wasn't too long till the others found out that she was in fact not actually her.

"Well we only found about it yesterday so it takes...about three weeks," said Caroline with a hesitant voice. What? Three whole weeks? How come they didn't guess it wasn't me for three weeks? Do they not know me at all or was Katherine such a good actress?

"We know we should have figured it out sooner, but...Katherine was really good," spoke Bonnie for the first time. Being the anchor to the Other Side has taken its toll on her, realized Elena. Her figure seemed somewhat more fragile and there were light bags under her eyes too. They have to invest in a girls night along with Caroline so Elena can have a few words with her too. Two birds with one stone.

"Okay guys I understand,... I mean I'm a little disappointed that Katherine could fool you all for weeks but I know how she can be so... Let's just enjoy that she is gone forever okay?" said Elena hoping that now she can proceed to the task at hand, which is finding Damon. But before she could say a word, Stefan pulled her from the couch and looked at her seriously.

"Elena, you need to know a few things. While Katherine was in control of your body, some stuff happened. And they weren't particularly good," Elena wanted to interrupt him, but a thought struck her. She was curious as to how will they tell her all the things that happened in those weeks. Will they stretch the truth at the expense of Damon? Elena knew that only her and Stefan could understand Damon and his actions, but after Stefan told Damon that didn't bother coming back, she was sure she remained the only one who could see right through Damon. And the others didn't really like him, especially Caroline. Maybe Jeremy started to see him as a possible big brother he never had instead of the guy who broke his neck, but Elena was sure that feeling was long gone. If the things they going to say will be any different from the truth, Elena would know why Damon was not here right now.

"When are things good when Katherine is involved, right?" chuckled Elena nervously. She really hoped she wouldn't have to be even more disappointed in her friends.

"Right. So after Katherine took over your body, the first thing she did was broke Damon's heart. And that is where the events started. After that Damon gone completely off the rails... He killed Aaron," Stefan trailed off, and Elena assumed he wanted to give her time to process. She then heard something, a strange noise coming from downstairs. But her mind was still a bit foggy therefore she didn't give too much thought to it.

"I see it doesn't even surprise you that Damon was the one who killed somebody, again. I mean who would've thought, right?" said Caroline in a sarcastic tone. Way to go Care. At least now I know where you are still standing.

"It's not that, I just... Please, go on, Stefan,"

"Killing Aaron was just the beginning. He then went after Wes, we don't know why exactly. So in order to find him, he had to find a witch to do a locator spell. Therefore, he went after Bonnie to find him a capable witch and threatened her with Jeremy by kidnapping him-"

"He was so smug about it, you should've seen his face, like he had every intention of hurting you with this," interrupted him Caroline. Elena remembered that moment at the ball, indeed saw that smirk of his on his face, but there was something in his eyes that didn't match his mouth. Only Elena knew what it was. Hurt and heartbreak. And yes he lashed out, on her nonetheless, but how can anyone expect a 170 something-year-old vampire to change? She knew she wanted him to stop acting on his feelings when he was hurt, but somewhere along the way she accepted this side of him and loved him all the same.

"We managed to find Jeremy at Whitmore House with Enzo, who nearly strangled him to death if it wasn't for Katherine. I don't know if Damon gave him the instructions but he didn't seem to care whether he lived or died. Then just walked away and we didn't see him for a few weeks. It turned out Wes injected him with a serum that makes him feed on vampires... without stopping. So he feeds until he kills them, by ripping their heads off," Stefan again had to stop because of Caroline's interruption. Elena mentally rolled her eyes.

"So instead of killing humans now he kills vampires. But if you ask me he deserved what he got," Elena had to refrain herself not to say something back to Caroline. She was beginning to have her fill with the blonde's hatred for Damon. But there was that again, that noise, like someone was struggling with... chains? Elena couldn't put her finger on it.

"Anyway, Sheriff Forbes managed to find his trail which lead to a road trip with Katherine and me. We stayed in a motel and... she kissed me... but I stopped it the second it happened I swear. I knew you only just broke up with Damon and I didn't want to complicate things. Then we went to find Damon and found him in a farmhouse which had a sealing spell on it. It meant that once you're in you can't get out. You... I mean Katherine went inside to prove her point, but Damon attacked her-you. He didn't even fight the urge, Elena," Liar, Liar Stefan. You let Katherine kiss you and Damon tried with everything he had not to bite me. So what does it say about him? It's not like he changed something big about the story, but it feels like he wants Elena to also give up on wants to represent Damon as a completely hopeless case. But why?

"So where is he now?" finally Elena asked the question that burned her insides the most.

"After he attacked you I had to figure out something fast. Katherine kicked a wooden stick at my way while Damon was still feeding on her-you. I don't know if it was a conscious move or not, but Damon is convinced that you essentially wanted me to kill him. I didn't so instead I snapped his neck and brought him back," finished Stefan with a distant voice.

"And is he here or..." Elena trailed off.

"He's in the basement...I chained him up,"

"W-what? Why?" Now it was perfectly clear. Those noises from downstairs... It was Damon. Elena didn't quite understand why is he kept in the basement all chained up like an animal.

"Elena his urge to feed on vampires is uncontrollable. We don't know when he will snap and he is much stronger than us. This serum provided him Original like strength so if he attacks either of us, we can't fight him off," Stefan said as Elena started to pace in front of the fireplace. They have to find a cure for this, they can't let Damon live like this any longer. Contrary to popular belief he didn't deserve this.

"But you said Enzo was with him, and last time I checked he is still a vampire. Which means he can control his bloodlust on some level. So he doesn't need to be locked down there, right?" asked Elena hopefully.

"Enzo may have mentioned that if he drinks all the blood from a vampire, he manages to keep his bloodlust at bay for about eight hours," Caroline piped up in a low voice. It was clear she didn't want Damon out of the basement cell.

"But Elena it's better like this. Until we find a cure-"

"Have you even started to look for one? I mean do you know where Wes is? Or is there even a cure for this? Anything?" Elena's voice held a slight desperation. She was sure no one bothered to start looking for clues that can help Damon's problem. They think it's an appropriate punishment for him. Well, Elena has other plans.

"We wanted to take care of Katherine first, but..." started Stefan, but Elena interrupted him in a furious voice.

"It's been days, Stefan and none of you even bothered to, at least, find Wes for answers? I mean I know he did some horrible things but he is still our friend and Stefan he is your brother," Elena said in a bit accusatory tone.

"Elena it's not like he would die if he stays like this for a few days. It would make him think about what he did," again Caroline managed to piss Elena off but she was determined to speak with Damon now.

"I'm going down to see him. I need to talk to him,"

"Elena, I don't think it's a good idea-"

"No Stefan! I'm going down there and you can't stop me. He thinks I gave up on him, that I want him dead. He needs to know it was all Katherine," Elena said in a heated tone and headed towards the basement.

"He probably heard us, there's no need for you to go down there..." Why do they want her to not see Damon?

"I don't care I still need to talk to him," Elena said then disappeared from the parlour, leaving the others behind with an angry sigh.