Disclaimer: Vampire Diaries and everything you recognize belongs to CW. No copyright infringement intended.

AN. This story begins where season 2, episode 16 (aka The House Guest) ends.

True love part I

Bonnie was introduced to this new power, channelling elements or other witches. And she was grateful to Lucca for that. She would never have managed on her own with her grams gone and all. But now it was time for a greater task – finding the mark of the 100 Salem witches, and for that she would need help. Bonnie headed off to Dr. Martin's apartment to see if she could find anything in any of those grimoirs.

Damon and Katherine where playing hide and seek with their emotions. And now that he had Katherine and Elena under the same roof, it was impossible for him to keep ignoring his feelings. Katherine had made it clear that Stefan was the one, and Elena… Elena had made more than clear that her heart belonged to Stefan too. And him? Who would become his one love? He laughed slightly at the idea of one love. His thoughts turned to Elena. How could he even try to begin letting her go?

Damon: "It's not possible!" He said to himself, flashing a crooked smile.

As he turned around he found Katharine lingering by his bedroom door.

Damon: "Oh! It's stalker girl! This is getting pretty tiring!"

Katherine: "Well, you could just give in…"

Damon: "I'd sooner eat animal blood…"

Katherine: "Come on, Damon, I am bored! What? I can play nice… I can pretend to be boring and sweet, like Elena. That way we both get what we want!"

Damon: "You wish! I've got to go anyway: I'm meeting the witch. Another issue has come up! Stefan will tell you more about it."

Damon left Katharine rolling around on his bed. She had this bored but naughty look on her face. As she lay back on the bed, he watched her. He found himself feeling pity for the woman that once was his life, his whole world!

At the entrance Elena was kissing Stefan goodbye. He watched them, wishing it was him, and at the same time he found himself correcting his thoughts. Stefan is better for her. He thought and tossed a smile their way.

Stefan: "Going somewhere?"

Damon: "Bonnie called." He said and glanced over to the staircase to see if Katherine was lingering around. "Something about Jenna." He lied.

Elena tilted her head and gave him a stare. He shook his head as if to tell her there was nothing to worry about.

Stefan: "Maybe Damon can give you a ride home." He said to Elena.

Damon grabbed Elena by the arm before she had a chance to ask what was going on.

Once outside he gave her a look and opened the car door for her. She got in the car and followed Damon with her eyes as he went around to the other side.

Elena: "What's going on? And don't lie to me!"

Damon: "Bonnie found the place we're looking for."

He flashed his smile of success that always made her smile back whether she wanted to or not, and he knew it.

Elena: "Let's go then!"

Damon: "Easy there, tiger, YOU are not going anywhere!"

Elena: "Damon… WE said no more lies."

Damon: "I am not lying. I need to secure this place your witch friend is talking about, and besides, Stefan wouldn't like me risking your security."

Elena: "Well, there is no risk of that," she said with a pout. "Ok, I have to go home anyway."

Damon: "Mommy dearest and all…" He added

Elena gave him an angry stare. He was just impossible. She figured she was better off not answering, so she rolled her eyes slightly as if to tell him off, and looked out of the window.

After a while she started talking again.

Elena: "Do you think that Katherine knows Isobel is here?"

Damon: "I wouldn't put it past her."

Elena: "You don't think she's honest, do you?"

Damon: "Nope!"

Elena: "I wonder what she wants."

Damon: "To get you away from us!"

Elena: "Katherine? Well, that figures!"

Damon: "Your mom. Katherine told me. She and John want both me and Stefan away from you."

Elena: "What?"

Damon: "Well yes. She made some sort of deal with them…"

Elena: "WHAT? Why didn't you tell me?"

Damon: "I just did! And with Katherine playing the horny milkmaid at every chance she gets, it's kind of hard to get you alone."

Elena fell deep in thought. She just couldn't believe that on top of everything, parents coming back from whatever hole they had crawled out of, friends coming into powers of their own, and a family to protect, she now had to deal with Katharine too! She didn't like the thought of her and Stefan alone!

Damon: "Are you okay?"

Elena: "Yes, it's just that everything is so… so…"

Damon: "It's going to be okay! We'll figure all of this out, and then I'll just kill her! Simple as that!"

He smiled at her with an understanding look. She glared back at him. She knew that she could trust him. If anyone were to be trusted, it would be Stefan and Damon. Damon, she thought. He had grown so much in her eyes. Sometimes she forgot how he used to be. She wished him only happiness: he deserved it.

Once they arrived at the house, she smiled goodbye to him and went to the front porch. She got a hold of the door handle and let out a sigh. She pushed the door open with determination, thinking that she would put Isobel in her place. Inside she found Jenna sitting on the stairs, sobbing.

Damon arrived at Dr. Martin's apartment. The smell of burned flesh lingered in the air. The stench of his last kill was still there. He found Bonnie on the floor over the spot where Luka had been lying when he died. Her hand was placed over the empty space. She was speaking a language he didn't understand. Bonnie opened her eyes. Satisfaction flashed in them. She looked over at Damon.

Bonnie: "I'm ready!"

Damon: "Let's go!"

Bonnie: "Damon? There is more…"

Damon gave her a worried look, while quirking his eyebrow.

He knew this wasn't just another predicament on the way. He knew because Bonnie's face was full of pain. He wanted so badly to ask what she knew, but the thought of Elena's life being in danger again was more than he could bear. He hated this, he wanted to take Elena out of this world of pain and hold her tight in his arms. But he had to know why Bonnie's expression was so sad. He had to ask in order to save his love.

Damon: "Elena?"

Bonnie: "No, Damon, not this time."

He grew more worried. What was the big deal if it didn'tinvolve Elena? To him Bonnie was nothing. If she had to die for Elena to live, he was fine with that.

Damon: "Tell me then. What? My patience is running out!"

Bonnie: "Fine! I found this letter in Dr. Martin's papers. It's about Emily and the 100 witches."

Damon: "Get on with it, Bonnie!"

Bonnie: "It basically says that as soon as we call upon them, the awakening of the spells cast over the grounds will start."

Damon: "Awakening? I don't speak witch... so…"

Bonnie: "It's one of Emily's spells."

Damon: "So break it!"

Bonnie: "It's a spell on YOU!"

Damon: "So break IT!"

Bonnie: "I can't! It can't be done!"

Damon: "Okay, so what is it? I die? And I wake up again? Done that before, let's GO! We're wasting time here!"

Bonnie: "Damon! It's a spell on your heart! It awakens your true love! Emily saw what Katherine did to you: she saw that Stefan was all Katherine wanted. She knew about Katherine's plans, and she helped her with everything, except for one thing – leaving you confused and heartbroken. Emily cast a spell with the blood of a child over the graves of those who perished: no matter how many years it might take, as soon as the magic of the Salem witches is lifted, the spell comes to life. You can't play with love. Not true love anyway. So she needed more power."

Damon: "That's it? So, I'll tell her I don't want her and send her on her merry way! LET'S GO!"

Bonnie: "You will never love another! The pain for Katherine's loss that you have inside will disappear and…"

Before Bonnie could go on, Damon understood. He lifted his hand to stop her from speaking and turned to the window. He could bear anything, even his own death, for Elena. But to not have her in his life? To be stripped of those feelings that kept him going, that had changed him forever? Lexie had told him to stay and learn how to handle all these emotions, but he spent his life pining over a woman that never loved him, only to find himself in love with a woman that loved another, the same other as his first love.

Damon: "I will multitask! I've been with more than one woman before!"

Bonnie: "Damon, please! Stop! I know…"

Damon: "You know what, Bonnie? What can you possibly know! Witches and your damn spells! Never make anything a clean kill! Always conspiring!"

Bonnie: "You love her!"

The silence from Damon grew bigger. It filled the room. It intoxicated her with its fumes.

Bonnie couldn't believe that Damon would love her best friend so much. Not Damon, he was a monster to her. But now she could feel his fury.

Bonnie: "Should I continue?"

Damon turned his head. He looked like half the man he was. He didn't stand tall anymore.

Damon: "Please."

Bonnie: "It says that as soon as I lift the magic from its resting place, every spell attached to it will come to life. There are some minor spells that are mentioned in a couple of these grimoires, but this letter was kept in our family. Dr. Martin must have stolen it. It has all my ancestors' names on it, from all the generations that kept it safe. It makes Emily's spell even more powerful. It's bound with the blood of a child: it doesn't say from which family that child was, but since she cast it here, my guess is that it's a descendant of someone who lived here. It binds your heart to their bloodline."

Damon: "So it's just a spell. I mean, it isn't real, right? The … euhm… love…"

Bonnie: "It's real. To bind with blood means that your heart belongs, and if it wasn't meant to be, Emily could never have finished the spell. She found a match for you. She sought her out with your blood and then she made sure that it all fit together. She did this to mend your heart."

Damon: "Lovely! What is it with chicks and my heart?"

Bonnie: "Damon. We have to tell them."

Damon knew that Stefan would not hesitate to do this anyway, nor would Katherine or anybody else. It would all mean a happy ending for them, for everybody but him. Her love was all he knew. It would be like dying. Elena meant everything to him. Her smile, her skin, and the way she moved and talked. Her eyes. How could he look at those eyes and never feel that way again? Those were the feelings that kept him alive. And now, in order to save her, he had to lose her. Forever!

~o~

Elena walked up to Jenna, tilted her head and sat down beside her with a grim look on her face.

Elena: "Aunt Jenna? What is it? Are you okay? Is it Ala...?"

Jenna: "It's you! And your brother, and Alaric! And this lady Isobel! What's going on? You're all keeping me in the dark. How could you, Elena? You found your mother and never even told me?"

Elena: "Jenna..."

Jenna: "NO! Alaric had this look on his face the other night, but he told me that Isobel was dead. Now she's alive and apparently your birthmother! And John your dad? How..."

Elena: "Please, Aunt Jenna, I will explain everything, but you need to be patient and it would probably a good idea to keep an open mind."

Elena started talking. The more she said, the more terrified Jenna looked, but when she mentioned the doppelganger deal, Jenna became protective, almost like a lioness protecting her cubs. Jenna stood up and she said that she wouldn't have any of this. She would do anything in her power to protect Elena. They made a deal that it would be best for Jenna to seem oblivious to the fact that Isobel was a vampire and all that was going on. That way she could be the secret weapon they could use if needed. She would accept Isobel as Elena's mother and milk any information out of her! It actually gave Jenna new hope for her and Ric, and it even gave her a smile on her face knowing that soon John was going down along with his vampire girlfriend!

Elena took some clothes and drove over to Stefan's house.

When she came in, she found Katherine strolling around in her tight black pants and a very revealing black top. She was bending over Stefan reading over his shoulder, whispering sweet nothings in his ear.

Elena walked in with confidence. Stefan greeted her with a hug lifting her of the ground and as he sat her down, he kissed her intensely, almost as if to make a point to Katherine, who was staring at them with black eyes.

Katherine: "What did mommy dearest have to say?"

Elena: "She wasn't in. I grabbed some clothes and came back here."

Katherine: "I thought Jenna was not well?"

Elena: "She is fine, I talked to her, it was more about the shock of me having a mom, and Alaric. She is fine now."

Katherine turned and walked towards the fireplace. Elena took the opportunity to make a gesture to Stefan that there was more to that story.

Stefan: "Should we take your stuff upstairs?"

Elena: "Yes, I brought some clothes for Katherine as well."

Katherine: "Oh! Yippee! Country fashion! Can't wait!"

Stefan: "Behave!"

Katherine whispered 'sorry' into the air, blowing him a kiss as soon as Elena had turned her back and was heading up the stairs. Stefan shook his head and went after Elena up to his room.

Elena had written a note that said: "She knows everything! All is okay! No problems. She will act as if she knows nothing!"

Stefan nodded. Then he flexed his ear towards the downstairs door.

Stefan: "Damon and Bonnie are here. Let's go."

Elena seemed confused. They went downstairs, only to find Damon and Bonnie in despair.

Elena looked over at Damon and then at Bonnie, who looked as if she was going to burst into tears.

Elena: "Bonnie?"

Stefan: "Is everything okay?"

Damon: "Peachy!"

Elena looked over at Damon and then at Katherine. He gave her the same look as earlier that morning, as if not all would be revealed.

Bonnie: "We found a letter. It doesn't say anything about the location." She said looking over to Damon.

Damon: "Well it's a tricky little letter. It turns out I have a soul mate after all!"

Katherine stared at him, petrified.

Damon: "Don't worry, it's not you! Thank the heavens…"

Katherine smiled a sarcastic smile and Damon looked over at Stefan who was looking at Elena.

Damon: "It's not her either. So... relax!"

Elena couldn't take her stare of Bonnie. She was terrified. She gave Damon a sad gaze, not realizing that all eyes were on her.

Damon lowered his head towards the floor. He went over to the whiskey bottle and poured himself a drink. He turned around and looked at Elena, then shifted his gaze to his brother.

Damon: "Apparently our little witch Emily has been busy. She cast a spell on me with my blood." He said looking over to Katherine. "She took some poor child's blood and bound it with mine. That child's descendant, or she herself if this would have happened back then, is my one and only. Ain't life a bitch!"

Stefan: "So how will that work? I mean…"

Bonnie: "If we find the sacrifice ground and I lift the magic, all spells cast over the grounds will come to life. There are some minor spells, but this is the huge one."

Elena: "So in order to get the magic so that we can kill Klaus and save, well, all of us, Damon would have to sacrifice his heart."

Elena spoke the words, but she felt like cussing. How could she ask that of him? Give up his heart, all it ever felt? Good or bad? But then again, how could she ask anybody to sacrifice themselves? She knew that her original plan was looking better and better. Stefan had called her a martyr. Was she? It didn't feel like that. Not now. Damon interrupted her thoughts.

Damon: "Before you go all suicidal on us again, we have to find the ground first."

Elena looked at him. She stared! Her eyes were becoming wetter with every passing second.

Katherine: "It all sounds good to me. Damon finally gets someone of his own. And you and me," she turned to Elena, "can fight over this one!"

Stefan: "Katherine! Enough!"

Elena: "Damon?"

Damon looked at her. She needed to look into his eyes, see that everything was going to be okay, like he had said to her that morning.

Elena: "How sure is this?"

Bonnie: "It's absolute."

Elena ran upstairs to Stefan's room. Stefan darted after her, but Bonnie stopped him.

Bonnie: "Let her be. I need your help at Dr. Martin's."

Stefan gave Damon a look. Damon finished his drink and went out the front door. Katherine stared into the fire that was burning in the fireplace.

Stefan: "Okay. Let's go. The sooner we find an answer the better."

Bonnie nodded.

They left and Katherine saw the opportunity to finally talk to Elena.

Katherine: "Hey…"

Elena turned around with tears running down her cheeks. She gave Katherine an agonizing look.

Katherine: "Are you okay? I mean, this is good, I think. He needs…"

Elena: "What do you know about his needs? You used him and tossed him to the ground. You could have helped him all these years. You knew he was looking for you!"

Katherine: "And now he's looking at you! You! You want him too, why can't you just admit that?"

Elena: "I love Stefan."

Katherine: "I loved him first. I loved him! I love him! If I did something pure in my life, that was it!"

Elena: "And Damon? He was just your toy? This man worshipped the ground you walked on. His feelings were just as true as yours are for Stefan if I can believe what you say. Now he must forget it in order to save us all. Including you! He tried saving you out of the tomb all these years. And now he must sacrifice his heart again for you!"

Katherine: "For you! If he'll do this, and he will, it will be for you. Make no mistake."

Elena turned around and stared out of the window. Tears came fell from her eyes and she felt more doomed than Damon ever was.

Elena: "I know!"

As she turned around she met another pair of eyes.

Elena: "Damon!"

Katherine turned and headed down the stairs. She felt she had no place in that room.

Elena ran and hugged him. In her arms he let out a sigh.

Damon: "It will be okay. Hey, I promised!"

Elena didn't let go. She had no idea why she just couldn't. As if Emily's plan would begin then and there.

Damon took her hands from his shoulders and held them to his chest. He looked deep into her watering eyes.

Elena: "I'm sorry."

Damon: "What for? You didn't do this. If anyone is to blame..."

Elena: "Don't mention her. She doesn't deserve anything more from you, not even your anger."

Damon: "Elena…"

Elena: "I went on and on about your heart. About your soul and now…"

Damon: "I took something from you, a memory. Before I gave you back your necklace. I erased the memory where I told you how much I love you. It didn't help. Even if I blocked it from your head, it didn't do us any good."

Elena: "No. You could never block that. I see it in your eyes every day. I have been a fool to think otherwise."

Damon: "Forgive me. Elena. We know where the ground is."

Elena looked at him with fear. That was what Damon and Bonnie needed to say but couldn't because of Katherine. Now what? The ground opened up underneath her. She felt like she was falling.

Damon: "I am going through with this."

He stopped her from speaking.

Damon: "You have given me everything. Katherine is in the past because of you. I am a better person because of you. My heart is safer than ever because it loves you. You are my all. But you are Stefan's all too. And you are that to your family and friends too. This new person that I am supposed to love, we don't know what will happen. But I know this. My love for you will never disappear and I will make it easier for you. I can't wish any heartache upon you. You know this, even with me not remembering, if that's how it will work out."

Elena: "Make it better? Make me forget? That's not, that's not the way. It didn't work last time! Besides, you will forget. You will go on. And everything that you have built inside will have been in vain!"

Damon: "My love for you has never or will never be in vain! No witch, no true love creature can do that! Not even Katherine! My heart is set! Set on YOU!"

To Be Continued…