A/N Thank you all for reviewing!

"I'm not much of a talker."

The Salvatore casually shrugged, watching Klaus cradle his jaw with a smug smirk, the feeling of his fist meeting the Original's face replaying in his mind. He watched as Klaus gathered his bearings, recovering quickly, his eyes trained on Damon, the look of shock still on his face.

There was a brief moment of complacent pleasure Damon at Klaus' startled expression, it obvious he'd been caught off guard.

It felt good.

The smirk quickly faltered, however, as a rush of pain soared up Damon arm, lingering in his hand. It felt like a million needles were constantly jabbing into his skin, aside from the painful blow to Damon's ego, it hurt.

Really hurt.

"Oh, that, uh, that stings a little."Damon furled and unfurled his fingers, trying to abate the pain in his hand."I forgot you're, like, a billion."

Damon swallowed the pain, attempting to shake off the after-affects only to ground his teeth when the pain remained. And, as he felt a mix of regret and pleasure committing the attack, he failed to notice a pair of blue eyes flash amber in rage as Klaus straightened up to his full height.

"You have the audacity-"

Looking utterly affronted, the Original cut himself off and stepped into Damon's personal space, his eyes trained on the younger male with such vehement loathing that he could feel his heart thumping against his ribcage because of it.

But, despite that, he made no move to lunge at him and it was the last straw for Damon.

"Does she know that you get a kick out of her pain?"Damon casually enquired, fingers wiggling by his side as the pain subsided."'Cause if she's in pain, if she's angry with us, then she's all yours, right?"

Damon mimicked Klaus' movements and, although being close to an incredibly vexed Original was the equivalent to walking into a starving lion's den, approached Klaus almost lazily.

"And you just love being the centre of everyone's universe, don't you?"

Klaus forced another mocking smile and didn't respond which was unusual considering the hybrid's short fuse was part of the reason many feared him. But, the more Damon spoke without consideration for his own safety, the Salvatore noticed Klaus' fingers curling into his palm, unfurling then repeating the same action.

He was trying to control himself.

Damon couldn't have that, he wanted to hurt Klaus where he'd been hurt himself. He'd lost everything while Klaus, the enemy, had gained everything.

So Damon did what he did best. He hit where it hurt.

"I get it, I do. Mommy turned her back on you, kept a big Jerry Springer secret from you, and daddy just hated you."Damon held a hand over his heart with a heavy sigh, offering Klaus a sardonic mask of sympathy."I mean, he hated the sight of you, didn't he? That's gotta leave a mark-"

The Original blinked slowly, jaw tight and clenched fist shaking and Klaus saw red as he lost the shredof control he had.

Damon won.

Damon had no time to react to Klaus' swift movements, he barely had time to register what was happening because, suddenly, there was a ringing in his ears and a stinging sensation that made his eyes water. The blow Klaus served to his cheekbone caused Damon's mind to spin and him to lose his footing.

Damon caught himself before he hit the ground, stars dancing in front of his eyes. He casually stretched without showing any pain, something that was guaranteed to irk Klaus.

"Looks like that's a touchy subject."Damon groaned with a ridiculing laugh, wincing as he stood straight to meet Klaus' eyes, wiping blood from his lower lip with the back of his hand."Or you just don't like the truth, huh?"

He saw the next punch coming as an outraged snarl ripped from Klaus' throat but made no move to dodge the hit. Instead, Damon calmly stood, bracing himself by shutting his eyes as Klaus' fist met his jawbone, where Damon had punched Klaus first. And, as expected, a cracking sound followed and, this time, Damon couldn't keep himself on his feet.

Even if he wanted to it would've been no use because, as tried to roll over and sit on his knees, a foot met with his ribs and he found himself on his back.

"You should've done as you were told."Klaus calmly said as he circled Damon, slowing his pace as he looked down at his bloody hands, grimacing a little once he noticed a small red splatter on his shirt."A thousand years roaming this earth and I have yet to control my temper."

"Believe it or not, mate, I have no time for quarreling. I was more than willing to letting you be on your merry way, but here we are..."Klaus wiped a hand down his face in exasperation, coming to a stop just at the side of Damon's head."Let it be known that I did try."

His eyes narrowed as Damon offered him a thumbs up, baby blues blinking up at the hybrid slowly as he collected himself.

"Ever considered anger management?"Damon breathily enquired, sitting himself up on his elbows and squinting to get a better look at Klaus."If we're gonna be a family now, chances are you're gonna be hosting Christmas; you might want to learn some breathing techniques."

The Original lowered himself so that he was just hovering over the other man, gaze flickering over the fading bruises on Damon's face triumphantly, a callus twinkle in his eye.

"Nonsense. I find my ire only shows itself if provoked these days."Klaus murmured with a small chuckle, sounding somewhat pleased with himself."Such as when the contentment of my family is being threatened."

Narrowing his brow, Damon eyed Klaus with contempt, speaking through gritted teeth.

"Am I threatening you?"

"Me? Of course not."Klaus shook his head, dismissing Damon's words with a wave of his hand, sounding a little amused."But I do not wish Skylar's newfound happiness to be ruined by your petty jealousy."

Damon's false cherry smile wiped from his face, and he drew in a harsh breath, body language stiffening.

"Petty-"

Klaus' eyes skimmed over Damon's face, as if he wanted to capture his expression before he rose to his feet towering over Damon once more. Damon remained on the ground, face contorted into disbelief, a rare moment of his mask dropping, leaving him unguarded.

He, however, was quick to recover and his default emotion was what he carried on with. Anger.

"It's not enough to have someone for you, isn't it? For them to just love you and have their own life."Damon rolled back his shoulders as he spoke, pausing to crack his arm back into place before he got to his knees, eyes fixed on Klaus again."Y-You need to be the center, to consume every moment of their life."

Ignoring the flash of amber in Klaus' eyes, Damon's upper lip curled up into a disgusted sneer, tension growing thick in the foyer once again.

"Like a leech."

As if Damon had physically struck him, Klaus' head snapped to the side, eyes wide and vision blurry as angry tears pooled, jaw clenching. He ground his teeth together, unable to look at the Salvatore. His fingers itched to pluck Damon's tongue just to make him stop talking because his usual tactic of threats accompanied with a beating didn't seem to have worked.

"There can't be anyone else because if there is then, you're just terrified that not only will you have to share their love but that they might realize..."Damon clicked his tongue as he paused, teeth clenched, shaking his head in disgust."that you can't love them back as they love you."

As she loves you. Damon silently added but, as Klaus' angry snarl curled into a deep frown and he turned back at Damon, momentarily distracted, the Salvatore found he didn't have to.

Klaus knew.

Eyes scanning the Originals' face as Klaus composed himself, Damon's eyes lingered to soak up the glimmer of vulnerability on the hybrid's face before it disappeared.

"You know."Damon muttered through clenched teeth, pausing as Klaus' eyes snapped to his."You know she's in l-"

Hatefully baring his teeth at Damon, Klaus forcefully blinked his tears away and, before Damon could process it, Klaus was in front of him. Damon jumped as he was suddenly grabbed by the forearms and his ears barely caught the sound of a growl before Damon found himself swept off his feet.

Klaus, hit with the fleeting sense of sadistic satisfaction as Damon cried out in shock, breathed in a large amount of air to placate himself as he watched Damon propel through the air.

He was unraveling.

"No bonding. Just enemies. Got it."

Damon let out a long, drawn-out painful groan as the force of Klaus' throw heavily impacted when he hit the wall. It knocked the wind out of him, making his vision go a little hazy before he greeted the floor with another thump.

I'm gonna feel that tomorrow.

He refused to remain down, though and forced himself to endure the almost paralleling pain he was in.

And, although speaking felt like he was attempting to chew rocks, Damon wouldn't allow himself to renounce his most valuable power. He'd always had a wicked tongue, it was his most deadly weapon, especially against those older than him who held the power of strength.

Even the most lethal of creatures could be torn apart by their weaknesses being targeted. Exploited. Those who yearned for power, to be adamantine, were usually the most damaged, the most insecure. All one had to do to break them was divide them from what drove them—which was mostly their pent up anger—which would ultimately end up triggering something that made them unravel.

Damon knew that better than anyone.

"You're scared they'll see that you're just a frightened, insecure, paranoid little boy who, because he was never shown love, doesn't know how to love."Damon gasped out, spitting out more blood that had pooled in his mouth, shoulders shaking as he let out a mocking, painful snicker."And I thought I was messed up. Maybe-"

He didn't see Klaus approaching this time and, just as a gust of wind greeted his face, Damon swallowed his words, as well as fresh blood when Klaus delivered another blow but this time to his ribs, the kick sending Damon back onto the ground. Head hitting off of the marble ground as he slumped down, Damon's nails sliced crescent moons into the skin of his palms in an attempt to stop a whimper threatening to spill from his lips.

Ignore the stabs of pain he felt whenever he breathed in; he forced himself to attempt to roll onto his side and try to get up.

"Okay, that one was-"

This time, he saw Klaus raise his foot and curled into himself, bracing himself for another strike, teeth almost slicing his lip as he bit down to stop his cries of pain. And, while it was a valiant effort, it didn't do much good considering his attacker saw nothing but red.

"ENOUGH!"The Original bellowed, emphasizing his demand with another kick to Damon's ribs, his words barely audible because of the grinding of his teeth."Stop talking."

Damon would've guessed he'd lost too much blood and was beginning to imagine things, but he would swear to his last moments that he heard a lace of despair in Klaus' voice.

Damon didn't fight as Klaus forced him onto his back, finding himself in the same situation he was just minutes before, Klaus hovering over him with an arrogant, fiendish smirk, forcing himself into Damon's personal space which gave the Salvatore no choice but to stare back at the hybrid.

"I've heard quite enough from you."

Drawing out the last word, Klaus' reached out and clasped Damon's throat, forcing out a laugh when the younger man sucked in as much air as he could before Klaus tightened his grip. The hybrid bowed his head, bringing Damon up closer as he did and when he opened them Damon's stomach fell, and his heart lurched in his chest.

Oh.

His blue orbs—a mix of green in the right light Damon had noted during their brawl and long bouts glaring—were nowhere to be seen. Instead, Damon found himself locking eyes with glimmering a mix of yellow and gold, flickers of black around the sclera as spider veins protruded from underneath his eyes.

"I suppose I should have disposed of you a long time ago."Klaus drawled almost nonchalantly, but there was a grim undertone, something that was accentuated when he bared his fangs."But I allowed you to continue breathing because you are dear to her and dear to your brother but I will not be made sport of by the likes of you."

As a snarl ripped from Klaus' throat, Damon's mind refused to work with his mouth, and instead of a taunting jibe, he found himself going a completely different route with his words.

"What would you have done if our roles were reversed? If it were your sister, huh?"Damon breathily asked as he wheezed, the repartee he'd been carrying with him throughout the fight nowhere to be seen.

He stared up at Klaus, bloody, battered and candidly repeated."What would you have done, Klaus?"

Caught off guard and not expecting the tone Damon used, Klaus froze and his grip instantly loosened on Damon. He inhaled a shaky breath, his eyes going wide as he processed what had happened, how Damon had easily triggered him and gotten a reaction.

Despite his hesitance, Klaus opened his mouth to hurl back either a threat of what was coming or a retort, Damon could never be sure what was to come flying out of the hybrid's mouth. But, once again he cut himself short, and the Original said nothing at all before snapping his mouth shut.

His brows furrowed, amber eyes darting around as if he were either trying to remember what he'd been going to say or if was struggling with something internally.

It was gone as soon as it appeared.

Damon didn't bother to fight the startled yelp that escaped him as the Original wrenched him upwards once more, making Damon's own eyes go wide in alarm. As Damon struggled against him, showing fear for the first time during their encounter, Klaus tightened his hold around his throat and forcefully yanked Damon's head to the side, lips parting and fangs on full view.

Finally resisting when he realized that his strength was nothing compared to Klaus', Damon swallowed the lump in his throat and clenched his fists to keep the tears that were threatening to spill at bay.

If there were a time for you to make your entrance, Stef, it would be right about now.

He waited. He waited for the harsh puncture of fangs sinking into his throat, and he waited for the stinging sensation of werewolf venom, already picturing the symptoms he would soon suffer.

He waited, but nothing came. There was no angry snarling, no stabbing sensation as fangs pierced his skin, no reeling from being poisoned.

There was just nothing.

You really gotta draw this out, don't y-

Damon's mind went blank when he was pushed away from Klaus and slumped onto the ground when hands released him. He sucked in a much needed air, hand quickly reaching up to massage his throat, fingers touching the skin where Klaus' fangs had been hovering over.

There was no bite.

"The hell?"

Frowning to himself, Damon's eyes sought out Klaus when he heard the sound of heavy footsteps.

Paced as far from Damon as he could be, Klaus was walking back and forth in front of the door, stepping over a fallen painting each time he turned. His hands were loose at his sides, bloody fists clenching and unclenching, face contorted into an unreadable expression that was slightly alarming.

He looked like he was itching to do something but, at the same time, he seemed to be resisting. He was resisting tearing Damon limb from limb despite the fact that his bloodlust yearned to be sated.

He'd been lenient, and Damon wasn't sure how to feel about it.

"Why?"Damon quietly demanded, hissing to himself as he embarked on getting himself into a sitting position but, when his still broken bones and many wounds protested, he decided that remaining on the ground for a little longer was the better choice."Why?!"

Klaus slowed his pace, pursing his lips as he pondered Damon's demand before he reluctantly turned his head to look at the other man, amber eyes, and fangs still on show.

"You're alive became I allow it. Keep that in mind."He brusquely replied, collecting his composure long enough to send Damon his signature smirk—double fangs and all—but it was obvious how forced it was."The mercy I show is not for you."

Rolling back his shoulders and gasping in relief when he felt how bones healing, it was Damon's turn to scoff derisively. He rolled his eyes, wiping his bloody hands on his jeans, slowly nodding slowly, feigning understanding.

Lip curling into a sneer, he opened his mouth to retort only to be hushed when he heard an appalled third voice announcing their presence.

"Then who is it for?"

Heated glares abruptly ceasing, both men's heads swiftly turned in the direction of the familiar voice, their eyes slowly widening as they landed on the female vampire. Skylar stood at the top of the grand staircase, looking just as outraged as she did incredulous, fingers wound tight around the railing, knuckles white as she tried to comprehend what was happening.

Stefan was at her shoulder wearing the same expression albeit a little less surprised but a lot more chagrined.

While Damon remained stunned, Klaus' eyes flickered to their usual ocean blue at the sight of his bedfellow before they quickly returned to amber, sentiment instantly being replaced with suspicion as tried to read the situation.

"Damon!"Stefan ground out through clenched teeth, everything he wanted to rant about and scold him for all said in a simple utterance of his brother's name.

"Oh, my-"Skylar trailed off with a horrified and slightly exasperated sigh and, quickening her pace with each step, she hastily descended the staircase."what the hell?!"

Stefan was at Skylar's heels as they practically leaped off of the last few steps dramatically, parting from his sister to make a beeline for his beaten brother. Frustration directed at his brother instantly faded from his expression and was replaced with worry as his brother reached for him when he was close enough.

"About time!"Damon raised his voice with each word, glowering up at Stefan before clasping his brother's hand in order to pull himself up."You didn't hear the sound of my bones snapping and my body being tossed into walls? Hmm?"

Klaus retreated as Skylar approached them, crossing his arms over his chest somewhat defensively, shoulders stiff as he scrutinized his bedfellow with a careful gaze, trying to read her. And, as she processed the scene before her, Klaus found that he wasn't able to read her at all.

He then felt the urge to grab Skylar, escape into her mind and remain there until he was able to understand what was going through her mind.

He needed to know how he should react.

Eyes glassy at the sight of her elder brother struggling to remain on his feet, Skylar's face paled when she saw the gash on the left side of his face and lingering imprints of finger tips on his throat.

"Damon Brother."Skylar's voice with void of anger or endearment, her tone was impassive as she studied her brother, frowning at the bloody mess he was in."You good?"

"I'm good, Sky. Just fine."Damon stiffly replied, despite the fact he was unwillingly slumped against his brother in order to remain standing."I've had worse from scorned one night stands. I'm all good."

Her gaze shifted from her brother to the disarray of the foyer, eyes narrowed in confusion as she tried to piece together what had taken place.

Skylar's eyes flickered between her bloodied pummelled brother and visibly distressed lover who was also sporting bloody bruises, gaze never settling long enough for either of them to gauge her reaction.

Then, finally, Skylar's attention settled on Klaus her head tilting when the second her eyes locked onto him he instantly turned his head, unable as well as refusing to meet her gaze. Eyes scanning Klaus from head to toe, lingering as she studied his body language, Skylar attempted to meet his eyes but to no avail.

He still wouldn't meet her gaze.

"What the hell-"Skylar slowly ground out through clenched teeth, eyes still focused on Klaus as she watched him closely, her blue hues softening despite her curt tone."did you do?"

The Original didn't offer up any sort of response, but he did finally raise his head and let himself meet Skylar's eyes. The amber in his eyes glimmered as Skylar studied his features, searching for something he couldn't decipher, which almost instantly made him bare his double fangs defensively as he crossed his arms over his chest as if to put a barrier up between them.

But, in spite of that, he gave no sign of having the intention to strike.

Klaus was well aware that—considering the situation she'd walked into and how beaten her brother looked—he was deemed the guilty party no matter the circumstances.

What was the point in defending himself?

"Where should I start?"Damon, grimacing as he attempted to turn when he thumbed at the crushed wall behind him."First, he broke my cheekbone—which hurts like a bitch, by the way—then he basically tossed me into that wall. And...and...i'm pretty sure he was gonna bite-"

"No!"Skylar sharply interrupted, her strident tone hushing Damon instantly before a heavy silence fell upon the trashed foyer."Not him."

Throat tightening and mouth opening in incredulity, Damon found himself unable to process her words properly let alone voice a reply. Skylar slowly turned around to face her brother, placing herself in front of Klaus—who, for a brief moment, looked almost as surprised as Damon—almost defensively.

"Not him,"Skylar repeated, holding up a hand just in case her brother cut in, extending her pointed finger to point at her brother.

Crossing her arms over her chest, Skylar's gaze switched to Damon who found it impossible to break their stare as his sister shook her head at him, looking a mix between enraged and crestfallen.

"You."

Thank you for reading, I hope you liked it!

I'M SO SORRY THIS IS SO LATE. WRITER'S BLOCK HAS BEEN SERIOUSLY TORMENTING ME. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please tell me if you did by reviewing!