Colorblind

by girlthehellup

Partially set in S3, Damon decides to undo all the hurt he's put Elena through.

13. Fade Away

A/N: Oh gosh… "Break On Through" was so intense. Was I the only one screaming "TAKE OF THE RING YOU IDIOT!" at Jeremy when Elena called him? Seriously, he has one of those stupid "don't die" rings or whatever they're called and HE IS GOING TO TURN INTO A PYSCHPATHIC KILLER! I can't believe Elena didn't tell him to get rid of the stupid ring. And then next week there was "The Murder of One" and OH MY WORD of course you can't kill Originals. That would just be too easy, wouldn't it?

Rants are fun. Also, to anyone who watches Secret Circle… did you find "Curse" really really really maddening? I can't believe John Blackwell would stoop so low, even if it meant basically putting his daughter in a depression. Poor Cassie. And poor Faye. I can't wait until she just gives up on all the annoying "bad" boys and realizes she had to be with Diana. (FAYANA!)

Yeah… and then there was "Sacrifice". Well… was I the only one that thought John Blackwell would pull a Bonnie and give the demon dude a headache? Because I did think that… until demon dude exploded. Oh well.

This isn't beta-ed this time, so… you've been warned. Sorry for any mistakes.

Damon's POV

The four witches were clearly irritated, and it had only then started to occur to me that I shouldn't make them angry. The one with golden eyes—Faye—was poised as though she would strike at any moment. "Cassie? Diana?" I called again, a hint of panic in my tone. I reprimanded myself internally, remembering the headaches Bonnie used to give me.

After a minute there was a grumpy, "What?"

"Your psychotic witch friends look ready to hurt me." I called back. "Please come down. Now would be preferable."

Cassie shuffled down the staircase, yawning and rubbing her eyes. They widened when she saw her friends. "Oh. I thought you were messing with me."

"Cassie." Adam said. He looked like he wanted to throw himself at her, but he didn't. I wondered what exactly the "curse" between them entailed.

Cassie blushed and looked away. Faye's eyes widened.

"Hey… wait a minute…" she said.

"Faye…" Adam warned.

"There's something going on here." Faye said. She watched as Cassie finally came to Adam and took his hand hesitantly.

"It's nothing." Cassie said. Diana had just appeared at the top of the stairs, but she stopped when she saw everyone else and heard what they were talking about. I felt a pang of sympathy for her. It was never fun to see someone you loved with someone else. I may not have known much about the odd group of witches, but already I could tell Diana either liked Adam a lot, or she had been with him at some point.

Adam sighed. "They should know." He said. "Look, there's this curse between our families, the Conants and the Blakes. We… we activated it the night before last night, before Cassie disappeared."

Faye gasped, smirking and covering her mouth with her hands. "Oh, so you finally got past the hand-holding stage of your relationship?"

Diana made a little sound like some had stabbed her in the gut. I winced.

"Diana?" Faye asked, looking up and spotting the brunette witch. "Diana! Your arm, it's in a sling, and a cast, and—"

"I know." Said Diana quietly. She made her way down and stood next to Faye. She opened her mouth to say something when Faye impulsively threw her arms around Diana, an action that had the rest of the group raising their eyebrows. "Faye, are you alright?"

"Of course I am." Faye snapped. She was using the sarcastic tone she had before, rather than the softened, sweet one she had used when she saw Diana.

"So, this curse," Diana said, even though I could tell the subject pained her, "What does it do?"

"Kill crows. They were just lying on the lawn yesterday when I walked outside," Said Adam. "There's also a chance that someone in the Circle might die. Blackwell thinks it might be Jake."

I glanced at the tall blond boy, Jake and noticed that he was sweating a lot more than a normal person. "So fascinating." I said. "Will it be much of a problem? There still is the whole Klaus and Elijah thing…" I trailed off, letting them remember last night. Diana paled considerably.

"Adam?" asked Cassie.

"There's a potion that he gave me." Adam said. "It'll only take a day, and then you can do whatever you need to."

"Perfect." I said. I started to herd them all out. "Now leave, please. Your incessant chatter is starting to make my head hurt." Truthfully, I wanted to find out where Elena had gone, and I had no desire to leave six witches snooping around the boardinghouse.

"We won't leave town." promised Cassie, knowing how much it would kill Elena if her friends got hurt.

"Like hell you won't." Faye said, linking her arm through Diana's good one. "I'm not letting you stay in some psychotic town where there are vampires." She glared at me. "By the way, the vampire thing; so not sexy."

"Hey!"

"We can't leave, Faye." Diana said. She had a lot of patience for Faye. "If we do people will get killed, and then Klaus and Elijah will come after us."

Faye grumbled angrily under her breath, but I decided not to bother anymore. I said, "Just don't leave town." and promptly slammed the door in their faces. Whatever drama they had to deal with, they could do it themselves.

I went upstairs, looking through the rooms. Elena wasn't in Stefan's room, which could have been a possibility, much as I disliked it. Luckily she wasn't there. Stefan was alone in bed, snoring softly. I held back my laughter as I went to check on Lexi.

She was also curled up in bed, her legs held to her chest. She looked like she had a fever, sweating but shivering at the same time. It was one of the mysteries that I still hadn't figured out yet: how she was still alive.

It wasn't possible, it just wasn't. I could remember how quickly the werewolf bite had taken over me, and how easily it killed Rose. Lexi may not have been in the best shape, but it was as if she had a cold. She wasn't hallucinating, she wasn't wracked by excruciating pain… it wasn't that I wanted her to suffer. I just had no idea why she was still alive.

I moved on, shaking my head. It didn't matter. Stefan needed Lexi and there was no way I would let anything stop that from happening.

Eventually I went downstairs and proceeded to day-drink, but a knock sounded at the door. When I answered Bonnie was standing there. "Hello."

"Hi." I said.

"We haven't had much time to talk." She said, walking in. "Ever since you gave me that note on the first day of school I haven't been able to find you. Have you been spending all your time with Elena?"

"I… no…" I mumbled. I followed her into the main room and poured another glass of bourbon. "Not exactly. I was hiding, mostly, because I was supposed to just stay out of everyone's way and make sure I didn't screw up everything."

"Like alternate universe Bonnie said you did?" Bonnie said. She sat on the couch, oddly calm even though I was sure the Bonnie I had known would have enclosed a list of awful things about me in that letter.

I nodded. "But Elena was in a car crash, and I had to make sure she was okay. Then it slowly spiraled into… this."

" 'This' being what, exactly?" asked Bonnie.

"I don't know." I sat across from her and took a sip of my drink. "I've always loved her, but here it's different. When I'm here she's my friend because here I didn't kill her brother or kill Lexi or kidnap her and make her go to Georgia with me. Actually, that was fun." When I added the last part Bonnie glared.

"You killed Jeremy?" she asked, her tone dangerous and icy.

I said, "Yes, but he came back because he had a ring like Alaric's. As for Lexi, Elena was only mad at me because it hurt Stefan."

"You still killed them." Bonnie said. Oddly enough, there wasn't as much anger in her voice as there could be. I knew very well what a truly angry Bonnie looked like, but she only looked annoyed. It was probably because no one was actually dead because of me, at least not in this universe.

I sighed, shifting in my seat. "I did. However, they're not dead here."

"No." she agreed. "Look, I trust you. I don't know alternate universe Bonnie, which means that I don't know if she's biased. I can't judge you on a letter from someone who's most likely suffered at the hands of a vampire, or who has an obvious hate for you. I just think that you should give Elena some space."

I was taken back by her confession that she trusted me, but my hope deflated when she finished talking. I didn't mean any harm by staying near Elena. Elena made me feel wanted, she even made me feel safe. After the first few lonely weeks in Mystic Falls I had welcomed the company. "I—"

"Don't." Bonnie interrupted. "I'm sure you're not trying to hurt her."

"I'm not."

"No, but you have that look in your eyes."

I felt yet another headache coming on. "The look mentioned in the letter?"

"Yes." She said. She was sympathetic but resolute. "I know you care for Elena and want her to be safe, but I don't think you're good for her." I was about to protest but she silenced me with the wave of her hand. "Listen, I'm sure you would treat her like a princess in one of those Disney movies, but you can't be with her. Stefan has been her rock ever since she her parents died. He's one of the only good things in her life. She depends on him, Damon, and you shouldn't get in the way."

"I'm not trying to." I said.

She shrugged. "I know, but it's so obvious. I don't want you to confuse Elena. She's too nice for her own good. I don't want her to dump Stefan and then regret it because she thought she might have liked you."

I nodded, defeated. "Fine. This doesn't mean I'm leaving, because things are far from over."

"Good. You owe alternate universe Elena for what you may or may not have done, so you should see whatever you started through to the end."

I felt numb, dead. I just kept nodding as Bonnie talked and then left. I drank more bourbon but still the feeling wouldn't leave.

I should have seen it coming. Bonnie had probably seen Elena and I briefly hold hands when Elijah was threatening me and started to realize what was happening. I had assumed that because Bonnie didn't hate vampires in this universe she wouldn't suspect me. It was only now occurring to me how creepy and stalker-y I might seem to be. Besides, Bonnie would never let Elena get hurt if she could help it.

The day only proceeded to get worse when Katherine showed up.

Katherine's POV

I was too tempted at the idea of a visit to the boardinghouse. Elijah had refused to speak to me, only turning me away with the warning that if I screwed anything up he would end me in an unpleasant way. I guessed that it didn't matter that he had liked me before.

"Damon." I purred, sliding through the doorway so my body brushed against his. He wasn't amused. "Good to see you again."

"You were a no-show at the ball." Damon said. He looked like he had a migraine.

I slid onto the couch. "I was, but Elijah said he made it there instead. I guess he doesn't trust me as much as I thought he did."

"I wonder why." Damon snapped.

"Mmmmm… because I'm a psychotic bitch, remember?"

"Oh, that." Damon said. He went over to the table where he and Stefan stashed all their alcohol.

"So you're a day drinker now?"

"No." He said. "But any more visits from 'friends' and I think I might be reduced to it."

I held out my hand and a second later he placed a drink in it. "Sounds like you and Stefan aren't getting along very well."

"No, but there are a few people here that don't care for me." He said. I wondered who it could be but didn't dare to ask. "What do you want, Katherine?"

"Oh, nothing." I said. "I was bored. I didn't get to see you at the ball, so I figured I might as well come here."

He sighed wearily and downed his drink in a gulp. "I'm not in the mood. If that's all you want, get out."

I didn't budge. Instead I sat there and stared at him for a full five minutes before he finally stood.

"Katherine, get out."

"No." I said. "I think maybe I'll stay here for a while, perhaps until your new friends Sabrina and Glinda come back."

"No."

"Please?" I whined, batting my eyelashes. It was odd how Damon seemed unaffected by me. From what I had heard, he had been hell bent on getting me out of the tomb for years, but for some reason it abruptly changed when he got to Mystic Falls. It became about protecting Elena. Still, I didn't see how my resemblance to her didn't affect him.

Someone knocked at the door before I could keep harassing Damon. "Great, just great." He complained, slamming his drink onto the table. "I swear if it's another person coming to be helpful or hang out I'm going to lose it."

I half expected it to be Elijah, or maybe Isobel. They would want me to get out of the boardinghouse, even if Stefan wasn't there.

"What?" Damon snapped at someone. "If you're selling cookies I don't want any." Oh good, just some annoying girl scouts.

"Please, I came to see someone." I heard a tiny voice say. My stomach felt like it was plunging down, farther and farther until I thought I would be sick. What the hell? Had Damon drugged my drink?

"Who?"

"A girl."

I heard Damon snort. "You should be more specific."

"Katerina Petrova."

Oh no. I gulped and curled up, holding my stomach. This had to be some trick of Elijah's.

"Fine, come in." I could hear a note of suspicion in Damon's voice, and rightly so. How many people knew my real name?

Damon walked in first, grabbing his glass and slumping back onto the couch. "There's a girl scout here to see you." He said.

I glanced up at the figure in the doorway and realized why my stomach was doing loop-the-loops like it was the end of the world. A little girl stood there, no more than ten or eleven. She had olive skin, curling brown hair, and deep-set olive-gold eyes. She smiled at me. I couldn't speak, but she only had to say one word.

"Mama."

Cassie's POV

I sat, legs jittering nervously as I waited for the potion to take effect. The recipe for it that my father had given Adam had been rather unspecific as to what it did, but he had texted me to explain it. When Adam and I took it, it would make our love for each other disappear. No more love and a destiny written in the stars, no more of the Circle members dying.

Adam was sleeping peacefully next to me. We had made the potion at an abandoned building. Once Adam had realized what the potion would do he refused to take it. He said that he could never stop loving me no matter what the potion did. After we had finally taken it he and I had cried ourselves to sleep while the rest of the Circle tactfully snuck out. Not even Faye had any snarky comments about the curse being "abstinence education at work".

I couldn't stop thinking about every moment I had ever spent with Adam. Ever since that day in the woods when we did the spell with water… "A drop of water, as light as air"… I had known. We just made sense. Adam and I being together was like the sun rising in the morning, except now the sun wasn't going to rise anymore. I desperately hoped that the potion would take effect soon, because the feelings still stirring in my chest were the same as they'd ever been.

Adam shifted, yawning. I watched with bated breath as he groggily pulled himself upright and blinked, seeing me. "Hey."

"Hey." I repeated, still waiting for the turmoil in my gut to vanish. "How are you?"

He shrugged. "I feel… different."

"Different how?" Maybe it would happen soon for me. I prayed that the nauseous feeling I had was just a side effect of the potion, not because I was starting to realize what was going on.

"I'm not nervous." He said. He smiled just the slightest. "I feel good."

"Why would you be nervous?" I asked, even as I was thinking, oh no, oh no, this isn't happening… no, no, no, no, no! Why do I remember if he doesn't! Why do I still want to kiss him?

He laughed a little, saying, "Whenever I'm around you, I always get nervous because I might not be good enough for you, or I might hurt you. I don't feel that anymore. What about you?"

Don't cry. I ordered myself sternly. "Yeah, I feel the same." I took a breath to steady myself. "It's like I can remember all the things we did, but as someone else's movie. It's not us."

"Exactly!" Adam agreed cheerfully. He stood and grabbed his jacket. "That's what it feels like for me too."

"Mmmm-hmmm." I managed.

"So I'll see you later?" he asked. "I know you and Diana have to stay here, but I should catch up with the others."

"Yeah, see you later." I said. I was balling the blanket on my lap in my fists to keep from crying or screaming.

I kept myself collected and calm until he walked out of the door. Then I gasped for air like I was drowning, clutching onto the blanket for dear life as shuddering sobs wracked my body. He was gone. I curled up into a ball and let the deep, overwhelming despair take over.

Katherine's POV

I held tightly to my daughter, close to hyperventilating as I mumbled, "You're safe, you're here, you're here."

I didn't care why she was here or how she was alive, just that she was. I had never felt safer or surer about something than I did in my life. It was like the void in my heart was full, so full that I could barely breathe or do anything but hold her.

"Mama, it's okay." The little girl cried. She pulled away and smiled at me so widely that I was sure there was nothing brighter.

"I'm sorry." I bit out harshly, my voice ragged from emotion. Tears were streaming down my face. "I'm so sorry, I never wanted to abandon you. I swear I didn't. I tried to find you but so many people had children, young ones. In my village there so many that I couldn't find you and I was forced to leave before I could."

"I know you didn't mean to leave me, Mama." She said. She reached up to wipe the tears off of my cheeks and eyelids. "Please don't cry."

"What's your name?" I asked. "What did they call you?"

She said, "Tabitha. Most people call me Tibby or Abby."

"Tabitha." I repeated. It was a beautiful name, perfect for my beautiful little girl. "You have your father's eyes."

"But your hair and skin and beauty." She said. "My father wasn't worthy of you if he left you to lose me."

I started to straighten her rumpled hair, composing myself. I was only then remembering that Damon was still in the room, probably completely confused. I turned to look at him, but he seemed amused rather than puzzled. Of course, he was probably on his seventh or eighth glass of bourbon.

"Who's that?" Tabitha—no, Tibby—asked, pointing at Damon. "He looks drunk."

"He is." I hesitantly took her hand and led her to the couch with me, unsure how I should act around her. I'd never had much time to care for someone like a child. "Sweetheart," Damon scoffed at my use of the term and I glared at him "How are you alive?"

"Like you are." She answered simply. "Some man named Niklaus found me and turned me. He said I reminded him of a dear friend. Do you know someone named Niklaus, Mama?"

My heart dropped to my stomach. "Yes."

"Is he your friend?"

"No." I was starting to panic. Was it really a coincidence that Tibby was here when Elijah was? "You can't ever go near him, Tibby, he'll hurt you. I've been running from him for years."

"I saw him yesterday." She whimpered, scared. "He was talking to his brother. Are they going to kill us, Mama? Why would he even have a reason to kill you?"

"It's a very long story, isn't it, Katherine?" Damon interrupted. "Look, I hate to intrude on your moment, but if Klaus is in town we're in trouble. I haven't seen Elena all day. She could be captured by him somewhere, and the witches are out too. And Caroline!"

He jumped from the couch and started dialing a number on his phone. "Damn it, Elena, answer your phone!"

Elena's POV

I grumbled as my phone rang for what had to be the billionth time that day. As much as I loved having Damon near me at all time, hovering like he did, the feelings I was starting to have scared me. Besides, after I left the boardinghouse I had texted Stefan, telling him to meet me. He had shown up at the Grill half and hour ago, and I was enjoying myself.

"What could he possibly want?" I complained, finally picking it up and answering. "What, Damon?"

"WHY WOULDN'T YOU ANSWER YOUR PHONE?"

I held it away from my ear. "Because I'm out with Stefan and it would be rude. What's wrong?"

"Klaus is here and the witches are gone. They left to do some spell—something about Cassie and Adam having sex and activating a curse—but they haven't come back."

"What?" my heart started to pound. "This can't be happening."

"Is Caroline around anywhere near you?"

I glanced around the Grill. "No, she's not. I haven't seen her all day, and the same goes for Tyler. Do you really think—"

"It doesn't make sense!" Damon growled. "There's not even a full moon tonight, so why would he go after everyone? Why is he here?"

"Maybe he's not." I reasoned. "You're just panicking, okay? If he needs a full moon then it must mean that everyone is just out somewhere." As I finished speaking I saw Caroline walk into the Grill. "Caroline just walked in. Calm down Damon, it's fine."

"Then how can you explain Klaus coming into town today?"

I shrugged even though he couldn't see me. "Maybe he just thought he should keep an eye on all of his sacrifice ingredients."

There was a long silence. I could have sworn I heard a girl talking in the background. "I hope so. Klaus rarely does anything without a reason."

"So what was that about Cassie and Adam and a curse? Is Adam here?" I could remember Cassie mentioning Adam last night.

"I don't know. Apparently Adam's alcoholic father said they were 'written in the stars' and then Adam and Cassie got a little too horny, so now Cassie's lawn is covered with dead crows."

"Is that bad for us?"

"Nope. It only affects her witchy little Circle. They came here today and took Cassie and Diana to make some potion to fix it."

"Good." I said. "Look, can I call you later, or come over there after Stefan and I are done eating?"

"Of course."

I bid Damon goodbye and relayed everything he had said to Stefan. "So, should we head over there?" I asked. "He sounded worried."

Stefan got that serious look, the one that said he didn't like what was going on. "I thought that you two decided Klaus wasn't going to hurt anyone until the full moon."

"No…" I said. "It's just that I thought I heard some girl with Damon, and she sounded like me."

"Katherine?"

"Duh."

He rubbed his fingers in circles next to his eyes. "We shouldn't be there if she is."

"I guess not." I didn't want to admit it, but I wanted to go there just because Damon was there. I didn't want Katherine trying anything to him Besides, I felt guilty for just leaving and causing him to panic. Unfortunately feeling all those things meant I also felt bad because I knew I shouldn't have feeling like that when Stefan was my boyfriend.

"So how about we go out somewhere? Just you, me, and a normal date?"

That was tempting, considering how hectic my life had been lately. "That does sound nice."

He leaned forward, gently kissing my cheek. "So is it a yes?"

"Yes."

Damon's POV

It was hours later and still Elena and Stefan were MIA. Elena had texted me, saying she was going to see a movie with Stefan and would come as soon as she could, but the movie couldn't have been that long. Eventually I accepted the fact they were probably at Elena's house. I also accepted what they were most likely doing considering that it was nearly ten-thirty.

Katherine had left me alone after Tabitha, or "Tibby" as Katherine called her, had arrived. She asked about the girl's childhood, and her adoptive parents. She braided Tibby's hair, got her new clothes that were less dirty, hugged her and held her hand. She sprinkled the little girl's face with kisses, affectionately tapping the tip of Tibby's nose whenever she said something funny. I found it surreal to see Katherine that way, mostly because it was like I was watching Elena. In Katherine's eyes I saw the gentle, motherly caring that was in Elena. Much as I distrusted Katherine I knew she would do anything for Tibby.

I had stopped drinking around three, when Katherine threatened me after saying I was a bad influence. Then I just retired to the couch in front of the fire and observed Katherine and Tibby.

At that particular moment Katherine and Tibby were spinning around, half dancing and half tripping over each other's feet. I couldn't tell what dance Katherine was trying to teach her daughter, but it looked like the one people did at the Miss Mystic Falls event.

Katherine glanced up at me. "Brooding again?"

"No."

"Elena's not going to come back tonight." She said. I knew it was true.

"Great. I'm going to bed."

I trudged up the stairs. Why did I care anyway? Bonnie had made it clear that I was supposed to stay away from Elena unless I absolute needed to see her. She clearly wasn't in any immediate danger. I also knew she was right when she said that Klaus was merely here to make sure no one for the sacrifice tried to run. That, and I still had the suspicion that he had sent Tibby to mess with Katherine's head. It wasn't a coincidence that Tibby had shown up when Klaus did.

I heard a knock at my bedroom door. "What, Katherine?"

A blonde head peeked in. "It's Cassie, not Katherine."

"Oh." I said, relieved that at least she was back. "Is Diana here too?"

"She's sleeping." Cassie said. "Something happened between her and Faye, and she cried herself to sleep."

She stepped into the room, the light casting shows on her face. When I looked closely I saw Cassie had been crying too, presumably for hours. Her eyes were red and puffy, with mascara smeared all over her face. Her hair was damp and rumpled.

"What happened?" I asked.

She had her arms wrapped around her middle as she came to sit on the edge of the bed. "Nothing."

"Oh, so crying is a pastime for you?"

"Shut up." She didn't sound like she was kidding, but I pressed on anyway.

"What happened with the potion?" Realization hit me. "Did Jake die? Did it not work?"

She shook her head. "No, he's fine. Adam and I took the potion, so Jake's fine now."

"You took it?" I asked. "Um, normally the dying person takes the potion, not the people who caused the dying."

Cassie said, "Yeah, it doesn't work that way. The potion took away the feelings Adam and I have for each other, which made Jake get better." She said it bitterly, remorsefully.

"And that means…?"

"He doesn't love me anymore." She stated. "But… I love him. I still love him."

It was the saddest thing I'd ever heard. "It didn't work on you?"

"No." she said. Her voice cracked and I saw how broken she was. "He doesn't love me. My magic is too strong for me to forget."

She sat there, clenching her fists in the bed sheets. Suddenly her face crumpled, giving way to the tears and the despair. I gathered her in my arms, vaguely remembering how I'd done the same for Elena.

"He doesn't love me anymore." She moaned, heartbroken. Her seemingly frail shoulders were trembling. "He d-doesn't love me."

"Shhhhh…" I soothed, rocking her back and forth gently. Her fingers were digging into my back as she cried. "I'm so sorry."

I don't know how long I held her, but eventually Cassie's sobs slowed until she was breathing evenly. She pulled away, hiccupping and rubbing her eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"It's okay." I said. "I know what it's like to love someone who you can never have."

"Elena?"

I nodded. "I used to think that maybe I could make her see that she should be with me, but it never would have worked."

"I think that she's a fool if she doesn't realize what she's missing." Cassie said. Her hands slipped down until they reached mine, entwining our fingers.

"The same goes for Adam."

We sat there, Cassie absently rubbing her fingers along the palms of my hands. The gesture was sweet. It was like she was trying to thank me but didn't have the words. Impulsively I leaned forwarded and planted a light kiss on her lips. She was different than Elena; small, delicate… she smelled like some old scent I recognized as a southern flower.

"What are you—"

I shushed her. "I think it's time we both moved on."

"I can't." she said brokenly. "Not anymore than you can."

I stroked her cheek. "Okay."

She surprised me, reaching out for my face and kissing me deeply. "But maybe we can try." She whispered.

I agreed silently, kissing her back and letting my hands roam under her shirt. Maybe she was right. Either way, I badly needed a distraction from everything.

I needed to get Elena out of my head.

Elena's POV

It was early in the morning when I checked my phone and saw Damon had texted me twice while I was at the movies with Stefan and then home with Stefan.

So, Katherine's daughter just showed up. Thought you should know. ~Damon

Seriously, get over here. Maternal Katherine is scary. ~Damon

I was confused, not sure he was actually serious. I was considering waking Stefan, but he looked so peaceful. I had woken with him pressed up to my back, instinctively curled into my human warmth. Now he was doing the same, but lying in place I had been for warmth rather then lying behind me. I decided to head over to the boardinghouse and see what was really going on without Stefan, letting him sleep.

On the drive there I wondered what it would mean if Katherine's daughter was really here. I hoped it would make Katherine be a better person, but in my heart I knew she would be even more protective and dangerous. Protective Katherine would kill us all to keep her daughter safe. At least that's the impression I had gotten from what Damon had told me.

When I reached the boardinghouse all was silent. I crept in and saw Katherine sprawled across the couch. On her lap was a little girl, only ten years old or so, with dark curling hair and olive skin like mine and Katherine's. I tip-toed past them. Damon had to be in his room.

Damon's POV

I was watching Cassie sleep. I'd always found it so peaceful to do the same with Elena, but lately I'd felt like it was morally wrong. Back in the universe where I did watch her sleep I had wanted her for more selfish reasons, and I'd hurt her.

Cassie was smaller, blonder, and paler than Elena, a complete contrast to the beautiful dark locks and olive skin Elena possessed. On the inside both girls were the same; broken and alone. Elena had lost so many people, and I had a feeling that she was slipping away from Stefan. As for Cassie… her whimpering as she dreamed and how she loved someone who couldn't love her back—she was just as broken as Elena. I wondered if it was why I'd slept with her.

"Morning." I said, leaning over and brushing her bare back with my hand. "You should probably wake up."

"… hmmmm?" Cassie stirred, rolling onto her side so that she could see me. "Oh. Hi."

"Hi." I said. She yawned. "So…?"

"What?" Cassie asked, pulling the covers up further so I'd look her in the eyes, and not somewhere else. "Something wrong?"

"Nope. Of course, this is Mystic Falls, so don't count on the peace to last." I said.

Despite the sleep Cassie looked twice as tired as she had last night. Her eyes were still puffy and swollen from crying, and they had dark circles under them. "I didn't think it would last long." She sighed, sniffing. "Nothing ever does."

I could sense tears on the way. "Hey…"

"I'm fine." She said. I laid a hand on her arm, rubbing gently. "Sorry. It's just that he was with me and he loved me, and now he doesn't."

"You should tell him." I said. "It's the only way you'll be able to move on, at least temporarily. You can go back to crying and ice cream eating when you're safely in Salem."

She snorted at "safely" and pulled her arm away, getting up and looking for her underwear. "It's Chance Harbor, and I doubt we'll ever be safe there."

"Same goes for Mystic Falls, yet I stay." I said. I gently took her arm and pulled her back into bed. "Where are you going, anyway?"

"Out?" She suggested. "You know, so that no one will walk in and start to lecture me."

"So you mean Diana?"

"Yeah." She said. "I have a feeling she knows the elixir didn't work."

"What does it matter what she thinks?" I asked, raising my eyebrows suggestively. "After all, if the elixir did work then you wouldn't mind being in my bed, now would you?"

"I guess not." Cassie said. She pulled closer, lightly kissing me. "She would be happy to think I'd moved on, even if it's with you."

"Hey, hey, I'm a decent guy." I said. "Most of the time, that is."

She laughed when I rolled on top of her, kissing her nose and forehead before I went down to her neck. I was leaving a trail of kisses from her pulse point to her collarbone when I heard a gasp that wasn't coming from Cassie.

I only had enough time to look up and see Elena's hurt face before she ran.

Elena's POV

I didn't know why I was upset. All I knew is that when I went into his bedroom, Damon was on top of Cassie, kissing her neck and her face, while she laughed and smiled. It made me furious and I had no idea why.

I ran downstairs, waking Katherine. I didn't care. Katherine shot me a venomous look as I stormed out, into the backyard. I stumbled along until my legs finally stopped functioning. I curled up underneath a bush—some kind with flowers—and started to cry.

Part of me knew why I was upset; I liked Damon. He was sweet, gentle, and kind. He treated me like the most beautiful girl in the entire world. He was only here because he wanted to protect me. Damon, in short, was probably the most perfect guy I'd ever met in my entire life. He was willing to die for me even though he barely knew me and even though he knew he couldn't have me because I was Stefan's.

It was also because for some reason I thought I was the only girl he had eyes for. It was stupid and childish for me to think that I was the only girl Damon liked. He was only human, dead or undead. Cassie was pretty and she was heartbroken, if what I'd heard about the curse was true. They both deserved to be happy, even if it meant they were happy together. Besides, I was with Stefan. I had to keep telling myself that.

Finally I slowly pulled my legs and arms away from my chest, wiping stray tears from my cheeks. I wasn't going to cry or make a big deal out of Damon and Cassie, because it wasn't something that mattered at the moment. Right now I had to deal with the aftermath of Katherine's daughter being here and I had to help Damon figure out how we could stop the sacrifice.

I walked back inside to find a red-cheeked Cassie rushing to her and Diana's room with one of Damon's shirts on. Damon was walking downstairs behind her. He glanced at me, and I ducked my head, choosing to sit across from Katherine. Right now, she was the lesser evil of the two in the room.

"Umm… she's cute." I managed awkwardly. Katherine drew protective arms around her daughter. "Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean it in a creepy way."

"Don't get any ideas." Katherine warned. The little girl stirred, yawning and rubbing her eyes. "Morning, Tibby." She said brightly to the girl.

"Good morning, Mama." The girl—Tibby—responded cheerily. I found it unsettling.

"So…" I trailed off. "You have a daughter that's not dead."

"No, she's dead." Said Damon. "You know, undead."

Tibby nodded.

"Umm, okay." I said. I refused to look at Damon. "So what do we do?"

"Ask the witches." Damon said. "Or… witch. Whoever stayed here."

That meant that he didn't have a plan yet, but I wasn't worried. Mason was far away, and the next full moon wouldn't be for a while. Even the "werewolf bites are fatal to vampire" didn't have me worried. Last time I had seen Lexi she looked like she had a fever, but she didn't look like she would die.

"Elena?" Damon asked.

"What?" I said. Of course he noticed how weird I was being.

He gestured to the next room with his head. Katherine was completely ignoring me, too absorbed in Tibby to care what I was doing, so I reluctantly got up and followed.

"Are you okay?" he asked once he had shut the door.

I shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because Cassie and I were kind of indecent and in the same bed. You can pretty much figure out what happened."

I lied, saying, "I'm fine, Damon. I was just a little freaked. I mean, last time I walked in on someone mostly naked it was Alaric and Jenna, so that tends to leave bad memories."

"I would imagine it would." He said. He knew I was lying, I was sure he knew.

I kept playing with the ends of my hair, trying to distract myself. "Is it okay if I just go home for a while? Cassie and Diana obviously won't be ready to do anything for a while."

"Of course." Very suddenly his hands were on my face, cupping it gently so I had to look at him. I gulped. "But are you okay, Elena?"

"Yes."

Something flashed across his expression, almost like regret, but it was gone so fast I thought maybe I'd imagined it. "Go home, then. I'll call you."

I breathed a sigh of relief as he let me go. I could go home and figure out whatever I was feeling, rather than having to be stuck in the same room as Damon for hours.

I reached my car when a hand touched my arm and someone said, "Excuse me."

I turned and put on my best "I'm fine" smile for the stranger. "Yes?"

Cassie's POV

I was such an idiot. The very day I made Adam not love me anymore I went and slept with a guy who clearly liked someone else. I knew that Damon and I could never have anything real, but I wished I hadn't ruined it for Damon and Elena. I didn't care that she said she was with Stefan; it was painfully obvious that she loved Damon.

Damon arrived in the bathroom at that moment, seating himself at the edge of the tub. "Hi."

"Is she mad?"

He sighed. "I don't know. She ran outside, and I thought I heard crying, but when she came back she was fine. She said so, anyway."

I said, "People lie, Damon. She was lying."

"She loves Stefan."

"She loves you."

He didn't seem to be getting the message. "She can't. I always screw things up for her."

"As far as I've seen you're one of the best people in her life." I said. It was true. I could see the way her face lit up when she was around him, and how she always was just the slightest bit deflated when he left. "Maybe you made a mistake last night, but it's not all your fault. I practically threw myself at you."

"You were hurting. It's not your fault either." Of course he would be one of those annoying chivalrous types.

I groaned, eyes rolling. "Please. Like that's any excuse."

"Regardless, she's at home, and she's with Stefan. She should be with him anyway, he's safer than I am."

"Safer?" I snorted incredulously. "Damon…"

"What?"

"You. Are. Exasperating." I said. I pulled a light blue shirt over my head, tired of the drab grays and blacks I usually wore. "You're a freaking vampire, and so is Stefan. 'Safe' isn't really something that either of you can be, yet she still loves you."

"She loves Stefan."

I shrugged. "Maybe you don't want to admit it, or maybe you're as stupid as you're acting right now, but she does love you."

Whether my comment hurt him or struck a nerve, I couldn't tell. He just nodded and left me in peace. I felt bad about saying what I did, but it was true. I didn't want what he had with Elena to fall apart just because I was standing in the way.

He ducked his head back in. "Oh, Cassie?"

"Yeah?"

"You should really think over your situation with Adam before you can judge mine." He said. "If love Adam and the potion didn't work on you, doesn't he deserve to know?"

I stood motionless for a long time after he left.

Damon's POV

About three hours later I was on my third cup of bourbon. Elena was gone, Cassie was locked up in her bedroom, Diana was crying—why, I had no idea—and the rest of the witches were no where to be found. I was sure they had long since left Mystic Falls, and it was for their own good. They were only sitting ducks here.

I checked my phone several times, wondering if Elena was going to keep ignoring me.

Elena, where are you? Are you sure you're okay? ~Damon

Still nothing, not even after hours of texting over and over again.

I heard a soft noise, a little girl's laughter. It was followed by the more surprising sound of Katherine's laughter. If I had been worried about Tibby's arrival before, I wasn't now. Katherine was overly protective and did snap at anyone that got near Tibby, but she was so absorbed in her daughter that she left everyone else alone. If only Tibby could have shown up while I was in a different universe. She would have been the perfect distraction.

Then again, Klaus sent her. That meant that she was either somehow evil, or she was leverage. I made a mental note to kick Katherine to the curb when I wasn't drunk.

A puffy-eyed brunette seated herself across from me, sniffing. "Hi there." I said.

She gulped, looking just as miserable as I felt. "Hi."

"What's wrong, dare I ask?" I said. "Last time I bothered caring it managed to make Elena cry."

"You and Cassie?" she asked.

"So you heard us?"

"Ewwww, no!" she giggled, brightening a little. "You're disgusting. What I meant was that Cassie told me."

"Oh." I said. "Of course she did. Anyway, I can promise that if you tell me what's wrong I will not jump all over you."

Diana laughed. "I appreciate the thought. It's just that…"

"What?" I prodded patiently. It wasn't like I had anything better to do.

"It's Faye."

"She can be bitchy." I agreed. "She reminds me of the old me."

Diana sighed. "No, not that. It's just that lately we've been hanging out a lot together, and she never wants to talk to anyone in the Circle but me, and—"

I realized what was going on when I saw the softness in her eyes, her gentle tone. "You like her."

"I—what?"

"You like her." I repeated. "It's not that uncommon."

"I… I don't think t-that…" she stammered, blushing. "We're friends."

"She called you when you were here even though everyone says she only cares about herself. She practically murdered me when I wouldn't let her in the house, saying she needed to find you. Whatever she might have said to you that made you so upset, I'm sure she didn't mean it."

"She wanted me to go home with her." Diana admitted. "And then, out of nowhere, she was yelling, I was yelling, there was a lot of crying, and I guess she ran out. I didn't know why she was so upset."

"She likes you too." I said. I leaned forward to offer her a drink, but she shook her head. "She wants you somewhere safer."

"I want to go home, but I know I can't." She said.

I got up, dropping the crystal glass I held carelessly on the table. "Here's a thought; ask her to stay here with you. Clearly the two of you have a lot to work out."

She nodded and whipped out her cell phone. She was texting wildly when I left.

If only I could take my own advice, Elena might be walking back to the boardinghouse. Instead she was at home.

Elena's POV

I shivered in the man's tight grip. "P-Please, I just want to go home. I don't even know who you are."

The man outside the boardinghouse had quickly revealed himself as a vampire, whisking me away to some remote location. He had no desire to hurt me at the moment, as he already stated twice, but clearly he wanted me for something.

"Do you know who I am, Elena?"

"No."

He chuckled, his sinister grin an arc of white in the darkness of the abandoned building. "Do you know Elijah?"

I breathed in sharply. "Yes."

"He has a brother."

"Klaus." I mumbled. Suddenly I understood. "You're Klaus."

"One point for the doppelganger." He said.

"But there's no full moon for at least three more weeks." I said. "Why would you need me now?"

He shook his head. "You naïve little girl." I glared fiercely but was ignored. "With seven witches in Mystic Falls I don't need a full moon."

"Seven?"

"Bonnie, Cassie, Diana, Faye, Adam, Jake, and Melissa." He said. "I know that you thought the last four would only be here temporarily, but I think I will… convince them to stay."

I shuddered. I should have known something was happening, something Damon didn't suspect.

"Now I think it's a good time to get a werewolf and a vampire, don't you? How about you do me a favor and call Aunt Jenna."

I stared at him, blinking like a deer in the headlights. "What?"

"I thought it would be poetic, to have her death as part of the sacrifice. Don't you?"

I felt a silent scream building up at the back of my throat.

Help.

A/N: Yup. I really am going to stop there. By the way, I just wanted to thank all of the people that reviewed the last chapter. I hadn't gotten a lot of reviews lately, and I was feeling kinda neglected, so… it made my day :)

Edit: So what did you guys think of "Heart Of Darkness"? Because… that kiss was just *fangirl scream*

There are no words to describe my happiness.