Katherine was feeling weak, her eyelids felt heavy. She was lying in a bed, and not any bed. It was Damon's bed in fact. She remembered his preferences for the softness of silk sheets all too well. But why was she here? Oh yeah...her tongue was too occupied in a battle for dominance with his, and then things were getting steamy and then… he bit her hard in her neck. The bastard saw through her façade of Saint Elena Gilbert. The sudden realization hit her like a truck. She needed to convince him somehow that she was still Elena. She was alone with Damon in the mansion, who was still instable, Stefan long ago gone, and now that she was human, she couldn't protect herself like she used to in the past. She missed so much having the perks of being a vampire. She hated being a fragile human. And God knows what Damon would do to her, if the evil creature inside of him woke up again. She had to keep trying, giving her best shot, gaining some time before Stefan returned.
Suddenly her face was abruptly hit by cold water, making her open her eyes, gasping for air. Blinking a few times, she tried to wipe away the water from her face and noticed that she couldn't move her hands. They were inmobilized, tied with rope to the bedpost. What the hell? She thought to herself. She couldn't move her legs either. They were tied too to the end of the bed. Panic started to grow inside of her. Turning her face around, she spot Damon. He was sitting in a chair, in front of the bed, looking at her with amusement, but beyond that, there was anger. He was furious with her. She had to think fast and keep pretending that she was his precious Elena. She decided to go for the indefense damsel route first.
"Damon? Why did you do that to me? You know that before I sacrificed years of my life for Bon..Bonnie I took the cure and I'm human now Damon. I could get a cold. I don't want to be sick" she said in a defensive tone, and in front of his inquiring look, she added in a softer tone "What's wrong? Why would you be so harsh with me? Don't you still believe I'm Katherine right?"
Of course the first concern of the bitch would be about the possibility of her getting sick. Predictable. Rolling his eyes, he said "Time to stop with the game Katherine. Faking Elena's innocent face and the warm of her eyes, it doesn't suit you at all. But you know what does suit you? Gray hair. I miss how old and unattractive it made you see, for my pleasure"
Katherine glanced hard at him, but she recovered quickly. Giving him a look of uncertainty, and concern now. "What happened to the Damon who would never do anything in purpose against me?"
"Do you mean to a manipulative bitch like you Katherine? Because that Damon died a long time ago" he replied, still not buying her act.
Katherine was getting frustrated, but she was not going to let him have the upper hand. She was the Queen in mind games, manipulation and survival. And right now, so much was in game. She wondered what gave her away before, that made him bit her hard and then tie her to the bed. She was still weak from the loss of blood, but he won't be giving her his blood any time soon. Damon hated being tricked, after all the times he had been fooled in the past, especially by her.
Before giving her the chance to talk again, he tried a different approach "So how is that you are still planning a betrayal with Stefan, behind my back, considering that he was the one who killed you so to speak?"
He knew he caught her off of guard. She flinched for a second, before giving him a weird look. For a moment, he thought that she was about to confess, until she once again masked her expression, trying to imitate Elena. The bitch was a good actress, he could give her that.
"Damon, Stefan was just trying to bring me back. You know I became a host inside my own body and Katherine took control over me" she tried as much as she could, to add more sadness to her tone of voice "It was like a nightmare, being trapped inside myself but you already know that. I can imagine for how much you've been going through since the moment you went into the vault".
And there it was, the same look of pity she gave him moments before. Anger flowing throw his veins once again, making Sybil excited from the inside. He tried to calm his temper; he could still have fun playing her same game.
"Now I'm wondering if all the things you told me were true. How you were looking up for me all those years you were looking up for Stefan too. Or how you felt jealousy of seeing me displaying my affections towards Elena when you came back to the town and that's why you told me you never loved me, that it was always going to be Stefan, or how you didn't want Elijah to kill me" He said, in a mocking tone.
She knew what he was doing, trying to get a reaction out of her, reaction that he wouldn't get. Even if it hurt her seeing him diminishing the confessions she made to him some months before in a moment when she let her walls down, she didn't want to give him that satisfaction. Instead, she used that emotion against him, from Elena's perspective.
"I didn't know that Katherine and you had a conversation like that one" Damon saw the hurt across her face, and it seemed genuine. He was surprised for a few seconds, until he remembered that the same Katherine could say something like that. Elena would be surprised yes, but she would still trust him, because she knew that his heart only belongs to her.
"Until when are you going to keep with the farce Katherine? I thought you knew I'm smarter than that"
Katherine almost let out a growl in frustration, but she restrained herself of doing so. She was tired, uncomfortable for being in the same position, since she was still tied. Hungry, because she hasn't eaten since the morning, and she could feel a headache coming. She was starting to feel dizzy. "I don't know what you want me to tell you Damon…You know, this wasn't the reunion I was expecting" She said breaking the silence, in a whisper, that only a vampire could hear, and she knew Damon could hear her loud and clear. Now it was time to improvise. "When I was sleeping, I was all alone" This gained Damon's attention now.
She saw the change in his expression. It was gentler now and it was all the push she needed to continue "All I could see was darkness surrounding me. There was no time, and I had no manner to know how many days were passing, or if it was only minutes, hours. I lost track of time. It could drive anyone insane. And the only thought that could keep me going was thinking about you, about the moment when my eyes were finally open again, to meet yours, because you would be at my side and…" her voice failed in that moment for dramatic effect, her eyes were teary.
Damon's heart was constricted with pain now, imagining his girl having such a terrible experience. He never allowed his mind going to that place. It was too hard. And then he couldn't help but wonder…no, Elena was sleeping peacefully. In all the researches he've made about how the sleeping beauty spell works they never mentioned what she was describing. It only made the person in question sleep and that was it. But this was Katherine who he was talking about, and of course she'd make up that story. Even after she put in display her best acting so far, there were already so many hints pointing out that she wasn't Elena. He knew his girl, and the impostor in front of him wasn't her, of that he was sure. His eyes darkened and he used his vamp speed to get closer to her, just inches away from her face, frightening her in place, not that she could move anyway.
"Don't test my patience Katherine" he yelled at her, sending an angry look into her direction, turning darker witch each second passing. It sent a shiver through her spine. He could hear her heart beating faster now. "You know I can be very creative with my ways of torture. I could easily make you almost drown repeatedly times by pushing your head in a tub full with vervain, like you did to me once remember?" a devilish smile now taking place on his face. "But since you're human now, I can replace the vervain for regular water and it'd work just fine. If just throwing cold water on your face was of concern for you, it's going to be very entertaining submerging you in my bathtub until you confess. If I'm lucky you can even catch pneumonia or I can make you drown to death. I'm fine with either way"
With a shaky voice, she was determined to make him change his mind "Damon please, it's me. You need to believe me". But he wasn't listening to her anymore. Instead, he whispered into her ear with a cold tone "Or, want to know what would be even better?" He went silent, saying no more just staying there, prolonging the silence, making her grow anxious. Lowering his voice, he continued "Delivering you to her. Did you know that Miss Evilness is finding you intriguing? she says your flesh looks delicious, you wouldn't be opposed to donate a couple of pounds, would you?"
Her heart was racing in fear now. He wouldn't do that, would he? He wouldn't but the beast inside of him would. Her eyes grew wide in panic and she was shaking now. Was he being controlled again? Or was he just bluffing? She couldn't be sure now and she didn't want to take the risk.
"No, no, no, Damon ple-please. Don't do this… Fine, I'm not her. But please I don't want to die" suddenly she felt very aware of her vulnerable position and started to try to untie her hands in desperation. She didn't want to end up like all the victims she heard about.
Getting away from her, and going back to his chair, Damon lets out a dry laugh.
"Finally the Kitty Kat is out of the bag"
Katherine lets out the air she didn't know was holding back. Her fear replaced now by anger. He was playing with her all this time. But for a moment, for one single moment, she really saw a hint of darkness that she never saw in him before, when she was under his intense gaze. Or it was in her imagination? Product of how scared she was? She couldn't be sure.
"It was exhausting trying to impersonate my boring doppelganger again". She said, in a boring tone. "Took you less than a few days to figure it out this time" she said in annoyance.
"Are you so desperate to be like Elena? Green is not the best color on you Katherine" he snorted back, reminding her of the dynamic they are used to have. She felt relieved by that.
"Not really. I can't even imagine an existence more pathetic and sad. But why don't we talk about your jealousy instead?" making him raise an eyebrow. Now she was pouting "Come on Damon, admit that you are still jealous of me and Stefan". Like an act reflex she was about to raise her hand to curl her hair, but remembered she was still tied and groaned audibly.
Damon rolled his eyes again "Do I need to remind you that I love Elena and I despise you?"
She glared at him.
"I'm bored"
"What's your game Katherine? Why were you doing this?" he asked her instead, ignoring her complaints.
"Untie me. I'm getting bored. I can barely feel my gorgeous body and I need your blood if we are going to keep this conversation going"
Damon sent her a suspicious look "Fine, but you're still going nowhere, you owe me some answers"
Getting closer to her again, he started to untie the rope around one of her hands, while Katherine took advantage of his proximity to run her free hand through his hair, their faces mere inches apart, "You're so hot" she breathed those words. She was back to her playful tone. Damon ignored her and ended his work with the other hand and feet.
He went back to his closet to put the rope there. When he turned around, Katherine was already stretching her legs and arms, but barely could stand on her feet. Now he could notice that she was pale, the color drained from her face. He cursed himself for what he was about to do, but he still wanted answers.
"Sit" he said in an authoritative tone.
"You are so sexy when you want to be in control" she said in what she expected was a seductive voice. Her throat was dry.
"Can't let you faint before getting my answers" he said nonchalantly.
Katherine was about to argue but still feeling dizzy, she went back to the bed again.
Damon then directed his steps toward her, but remained on his feet. He didn't want to be closer than necessary while he was feeding her, knowing her she'd probably jump on his lap and make space to position herself between his legs. He bit his writ and lowered it to her mouth. She grabbed his arm, closed her eyes and started to drink.
Katherine felt blissfully euphoric. For a human drinking from the vein was different, it didn't have the same intensity for a vampire. For them drinking blood was gross, as it should be for her. But this was different. It was Damon's blood after all. His blood was exquisite, it was so unique. Contrary to Stefan's. Not that she'd ever admit that to him. Before when she bit his lip, it was just a taste. But now, she could savor him and lose herself in the experience. For a moment she felt a connection and her thoughts carried her away to the past, when she was used to feed from his neck. And her sweet and innocent Damon let her willingly; she didn't have to compel him, like she did with Stefan. It's been years since those stolen moments that she still miss, if she has to be honest with herself. She let out a moan and the connection was broken too soon, when Damon started to pull his arm away from her. "Hmmm just like I remembered" She licked her lips and stared at his direction. His vision was unfocused and she wondered if he felt the same.
"Now that you are merely decent again, let's go straight to the point" Damon said, while going to pour a drink for himself. When he looked back to her again, she was in front of the mirror, checking her appearance. Damon bit back a laugh.
Facing him, she looked at his drink and asked for hers.
Damon knew she was trying to annoy him on purpose "Right away Miss Pierce". He prepared another one and handed her the glass.
This time she smiled, remembering the last time he said similar words to her not long ago.
"So tell me Damon, what do you want to know?"
He gave her his you gotta be kidding me look but replied anyway. The sooner he could be done with her, the better.
"I'm just going to ask you again for the last time Katherine. Don't test your luck. Why were you trying to save me? What were you expecting to gain from this? The Katherine Pierce I know wouldn't be this foolish, you knew what I was, what is in control of me, I thought you had more survival instincts than that"
Katherine's smile returned, a genuine smile "I wouldn't have done it for just anyone"
"For Stefan, I could believe it. But not for me. There's something you must be hiding" After all Katherine always had ulterior motives.
Groaning in frustration, she approached to him "Are we doing this again? Or did you already forget when you were dying, and I brought Klaus's blood for you huh?"
Damon ended his drink and placed the glass on the nightstand.
"No need. I also remember that Stefan gave his freedom away in exchange for my life. It was the least you could do for him. Not buying it Katherine. You need a better and more convincing argument"
Katherine crossed her arms, bothered by his lack of trust in her. Not that she could blame him.
"How about that time when Klaus could have you killed at the Homecoming party? If it wasn't for me, you'd be dead by now"
Damon smirked now "For Stefan again. You weren't just saving my life, but his humanity too. You wanted the old Stefan back… and you were scared of Mikael coming after everyone, well after you, since your safety goes first. And Katherine Pierce, eluded death again. There's always a selfish reason behind your so" he moved his fingers, drawing an imaginary quotation mark "good act".
She let out an exasperated sigh.
"You know that after we came back from the prison world, I left the town. The only reason I came back was because Stefan asked for my help. He wanted to save you, but I'm not doing this for him. Especially not after he was the one who daggered me, before I ended up in that boring world, until you showed there too and made me some company" she said the last part with nostalgy.
Damon remained silent, and she took it as a good sign to continue.
"I'm not doing this for Stefan. Believe it or not, I don't love him anymore" She was letting her walls down again, and she hated him for this.
Damon chuckled "Who would have thought? It ended before or after he killed you? Do you remember when you found your daughter and instead of spending more time with her, you were after him like a dog with a bone?" he couldn't let pass the opportunity to make fun of her.
"I thought I made myself clear when I talked to you about Nadia" she said bitterly.
"But still it doesn't explain why you were acting like a desperate woman" Damon was enjoying this too much; finally he was getting a reaction out of her. He was still pissed at the fact that they tried to fool him, making him believe that Elena was back. Making him hopeful again. There was nothing he wished more in the world that having his girl with him. Oh how much he missed her. He missed her smile, the way she crunched her nose, the way she said his name, the way she looked at him with all the love and adoration only her eyes could transmit, the way she reprimanded him because of some dirty joke he made but still ended up laughing anyway. The way her face light up when he told her how much he loves her. He misses everything about her. Nostalgia was really a bitch. And since the last time he was tricked, this felt like a low blow.
Katherine drank the bourbon in one gulp and placed the glass next to his.
"I did it because I was jealous and hurt okay?" she said next. Her words came out hurriedly, as if she didn't want to say them out loud. But she still managed to show some pride moving her head up and staring at him, as if she was challenging him to laugh.
Damon was taken by surprise "Well I wasn't expecting this turn of events" was all he said. He was curious about where this was going.
"After your precious Elena drove the cure down my throat, I had to adapt myself to be human again. When I told you that it had been a long summer I meant it. Which is why I came here and asked you for…help" she said the last word in disgust. Damon chuckled. He knew that she hated depending of someone. She wasn't used to it, her ass never wanted it to show any sign of weakness. "Then you let me stay with you…"
"Boring" he interrupted her.
Katherine sent him a death glare "Like I was saying before an arrogant asshole interrupted me"
Damon pointed at himself in a 'that's me' gesture.
She continued, annoyed now "I had to tolerate seeing you mopping around every time that Elena was back to college. It was insufferable. Well, nothing different from when we were stuck together in 1994 now that I think about it. Elena turned you into a whiny man" The disgust clear in her voice.
Damon rolled his eyes.
The next time she spoke, her tone of voice was softer somehow "During all those weeks, the days when she was here, then I had to see you displaying your affection towards her, and it was worse this time because you two were actually a couple" Damon frowned, surprised by what she said. He never thought that she was paying attention to them. In fact he didn't even register her presence so much; he was too focused on Elena. When she was here on the weekends, nothing else existed besides her. Both of them lost in their own world. Katherine's words dragged him out from his thoughts "and for the first time I was thankful for being human and not a vampire. I've had enough even without the vampire hearing I lack now" She lowered her gaze for a moment, before speaking again "And it hurt". Damon was speechless. He remembered another time when she was opening up with him, letting him know how hurt she felt after experiencing his tenderness that belonged to her once, when he kissed her in the cheek, on the Gilbert's porch, thinking it was Elena.
Her expression one of pain now "It hurt believed it or not, seeing you that way with her Damon. It made me miss what we had. What we had was real and you know it. It made me very aware of all the things I lost because my preservation has always been more important to me. Not matter what I wanted, my feelings couldn't get in the way of my plans. But seeing you with her… awoke in me feelings that I thought were buried. I was resentful. I couldn't believe that the only man who showed me devotion and love for more than a century, dared to fell in love with someone else. I couldn't believe that I could be replaced in your heart. I wanted to feel loved and worshipped again. Even if it meant I was getting the leftovers of Elena. I knew that I lost you, so I turned to Stefan"
Damon would've never imagined in a million of years that the reason behind her chasing after Stefan was out of spite. He gave her an incredulous look "Are you telling me that you became more obsessed with Stefan than you already were because of me?"
She looked away. The vulnerability noticeable in the softness of her voice "Yes Damon. My pride was hurt, and I wanted to prove myself that I didn't need you. That it wasn't you the brother I was in love with. I wanted to convince myself that he was the one I wanted. I wanted to convince myself that like I told you once, it was true that it was always going to be Stefan"
Damon groaned and let out an exasperated sigh "I wish I could believe you, but you know what they say, once a liar always a liar…"
"I'm not lying Damon. I don't lie to you anymore when it comes to my feelings for you" She was looking at him intently, and he could see the truth in her eyes.
"You didn't tell me any of this when we were stuck together on the prison world" Damon said softly.
"Would it have made things different?"
"You know the answer to that question" Back at time when he still loved her, he'd give everything for hearing those words coming from her lips. He was never the chosen one, always the second choice. Until the day Elena changed his life forever. He sent a prayer every day because of it. But with Katherine… he knew that she loved them both, hell the woman had some weird fantasy of travelling around the world with him and his brother, before she was captured and had to fake her death. When he was convinced that she was only checking up on Stefan during all those years they thought she was in the tomb, she convinced him that she was checking up on him too. He didn't doubt that she loved him, but she never loved him more than what she loved Stefan. And now she was telling him that this time Stefan was her second choice because she couldn't have him. Not that it mattered anymore. He was glad for knowing this part about the story but still it didn't change anything. He doesn't have eyes for another woman that isn't Elena Gilbert. She was the love of his life. "I don't love you anymore Katherine" he said, holding her gaze.
He could see the exact moment when her walls cracked, she was doing her best to hide her hurt but he had already seen it, she hardened her voice and with a more monotone voice continued her side of the story, their story.
"I couldn't stand seeing the devotion in your eyes that once belonged to me. She wasn't only responsible of my new condition, but she was also responsible of owning your heart too. I spent so many years trying not to feel again, and yet here I was, jealous and hurt over my dear doppelganger. I wanted to hurt her so badly for having everything while I had nothing" anger filling her voice. "I didn't know I was going to miss the so called obsession I used to say that you had over me. Ironic huh? The brother who loved me too much now didn't love me at all. Which is why, after I took possession of Elena's body, I tried to hurt you back."
"So this why you tried to ruin my relationship with Elena? Saying it was over? Making me believe that she lost her faith in me and that I was a monster, that not even her could change?" His anger was rising again.
"The truth hurt isn't? I just wanted to remind you who you really are and that it was a lot of pressure for poor little Elena, having to carry with your bad decisions, with you lashing out every time that something goes wrong. You should be thanking me Damon. Sooner or later you will end up lashing out again and she will dump you. Your relationship is doomed"
Damon knew that she was trying to hurt him. She was doing this because her pride was hurt once again, but he didn't care. She was trying to use his own inner demons against him, it wouldn't work, there was nothing she could say to him that he wouldn't have said to himself already in the past few months, since he played hero and went inside that damn vault, a place where he lost everything, Elena, and the future they had planned together. He tried to quiet the voice telling him that he already had the devil inside. She was still lurking around, waiting her best opportunity to take over and chain him again. He took a deep breath and tried to control his temper.
"Careful, Katherine. Your bitterness is showing. What affected you the most? Knowing that you can't even wake my interest now or that your feelings for me won't ever make me stop loving Elena?" he said with a sarcastic smile. Then, because it was true and he knew it would hurt her, he added "You were wrong in your assumption before. I love her more than I ever loved you. In all my life I've never loved a woman in the way that I love Elena"
For a second Katherine clenched her fists. Her devious smile gone. It just lasted a second, imperceptible for anyone, but not for him. He knew he got to her.
Regaining her composure again, she started to curl her hair, a playful smile on her face. The next time she talked, he could detect the mockery in her voice. "Aww now that I remember you've already pictured a future with her. Stefan told me about how you two want to start a family. What were you planning? Adopt… kids?" the disgust noticeable in her voice "And then what? leave them without a father because they can't see how their mother gets old while their father stays the same? Because newsflash Damon, you're a vampire and she's human now. It'd never work. Besides, she'd want to have her own children. Knowing Miss Compassionate Gilbert, she probably felt sorry for you and didn't want to crush your fantasy, where you are part of it. But her future probably doesn't even include a reckless vampire like you. She will have… children yes, but with another man. Probably with someone like Matt Donovan. Damn, his eyes are so blue and pretty too. They will probably live in some boring place. At the end she will grow old and then she will die. You are so desperate for her to wake up, but you can't even have a future with her. You can't give her what she wants Damon, you know is true"
So this was her pathetic attempt to get to him? She didn't know the best part yet, which was how wrong she was. She didn't know that he didn't want to be a vampire anymore. He didn't want to have a future that doesn't include Elena in it. He couldn't picture it in another way. He and Elena living happy together in a lot above a bar he'd own, having the kids they wanted. There was a time when he couldn't even imagine being human again, now he can't even imagine an eternity without Elena. Katherine had no idea. Not that it was any of her business, or anyone's for the matter.
Damon started to laugh taking her by surprise "That was desperate, even for you Katherine. What you don't know is that as soon as I'm free from being Miss Evilness's bitch, I'm going to give up my eternity for her" her eyes grew wide in response. He bet she didn't see this coming. "I, Damon Salvatore, the eternal stud, gave up on vampirism because of her. When she wakes up, I'm gonna become human to be with her, I'm going to spend the rest of my days with her"
For once she was at loss of words. She just stared at him in disbelief.
"The Damon I knew would never do that"
"I wouldn't do it for anyone, just for Elena Gilbert" he said with a satisfied smirk.
"You are forgetting one thing Damon. Your reckless tendencies won't just disappear" She was the one laughing now "You'll probably be like one of those alcoholic husbands who made the life of their wife a living hell. I will give you hmm 2 years of marriage before Elena ask you for the divorce" she told him with a triumphant smile.
The bitch knew that this time she got to him. The visions that Stefan gave him were still vivid in his mind. Katherine couldn't know about it, but anyone who knew about his insecurities could've used the same argument against him. It wasn't a secret that his destructive tendencies could destroy the future he wanted to build with Elena. What if he ended up ruining everything again? What if he hurt his girl by disappointing her again? He couldn't allow that to happen. They've been through hell and they've survived every bump in the road. This time he wasn't going to be the one destroying their own happiness. In that moment he promised to himself that he would make it work. He'd do it for him, for Elena and for the future they had ahead. He would be the better man she knew he could be. But first, he needed to get rid of the devil. He could feel her protesting, trying to get out. He ignored her and focused for the first time in a long time what it should be when Elena wakes up and he's free, on the thought of being reunited with his girl soon, and living the life they wanted before she was taken away from him.
He was done with this conversation. But first, he was going to give Katherine a taste of her own medicine. It has always been like this with them. A battle for dominance, a battle to see who would relent first.
"I'm going to make it work" he simply said with determination. Then, approaching to her, he cornered her into the wall and said with venom in his voice "But do you want to know something funny? You are the one forgetting one thing Katherine. You're human now. Soon wrinkles are going to be visible in your skin. Your hair will turn gray. You had the better example of it when your 500 years were catching up on you. You won't be able to use your figure to your advantage anymore. Goodbye to Miss Hell in heels. Such a pity" he smiled now after the look of hate that Katherine sent in his direction. "But the best part is that you are going to die alone, because no one will care enough to make you company in your final moments"
He saw the tumult of emotions flickering through her face. Satisfied with his work, he gave her one final look, his lips curving into a smirk, and walked away from her.
"Not more funny than Elena's coffin being empty" she said, stopping him in his tracks.
