A/N: So yeah… I apologize for basically torturing you in the last chapter, but I promise it'll get better in this one.

Elena's POV

The week after Damon's death was nothing but a blur, one of endless pain and sorrow. I stayed in my bedroom the whole time, refusing to leave or eat. In the end I managed to leave, only because Matt's and Tyler's funerals were on the same day, one after the other. I owed them both, and Stefan had promised we could go visit Damon's grave. I also knew that I had to live, if only so I would live. I wouldn't let all Damon's work to keep be alive be for nothing, because if I faded away then he would have died in vain.

Matt's and Tyler's funerals were heartbreaking. Tyler's death was brushed off as an animal attack, and Matt's was called suicide. There were no flowers for Isobel or the little nameless girl, but after the service I set some flowers under a tree for them.

Damon's "funeral" consisted of Jenna, Jeremy, Stefan, Caroline, Bonnie, and the Circle. All the Chance Harbor witches had mostly recovered over the week. They were all battered and bruised with their fair share of broken bones, but they were okay.

I looked at the simple dirt mound that signified Damon's grave. One by one, people walked by silently and placed flowers on the grave. It was the first time I ever saw Stefan cry, and the feeling shook me to the core.

Caroline and Bonnie both left flowers. Bonnie also placed a small piece of paper on the grave, saying it was a spell that would give him "peaceful dreams". Jenna sat silently with Jeremy, just staring. Jeremy left a drawing of Damon, one where Damon was laughing like he'd just said something especially snarky.

Then the Circle went. Faye and Diana knelt at the grave. I heard Diana whisper, "Thank you so much. I… I just wish you could be here to see how much you helped me." She smiled sadly at Faye and squeezed the dark-haired witch's hand.

Cassie said something too, leaving a note. I had no idea what it was, but I didn't care that much. Jake and Adam both left some sort of crystals, blue as Damon's eyes. Melissa talked about how kind and gentle he was, then cried.

Finally I walked up. My whole body was trembling wildly. The whole time I had stayed dry-eyed, through Matt's funeral, Tyler's funeral, and all of the exchanges I had just witnessed at Damon's grave. I made it to the grave and sunk to my knees, but my voice caught in my throat. I had no idea what I would say anyway, and I didn't see what difference it would make. Damon was gone. After a long time I set down a single rose, spelled so that it was black, and I got up and walked away.

Eventually all the witches from Chance Harbor left. They had other stuff to deal with, and in the aftermath of everything they were all a little shell-shocked. Faye and Diana explained to me what Damon had done, saying that he had helped Diana realize she liked Faye. I found it incredibly sweet, but after ten minutes of talking about what Damon told her I couldn't take it and had to leave before I started to cry.

After everyone had left and everything was over, I retreated to the safety of my room. I didn't lock myself in like before, I merely stayed unless there was food. After a few days I went back to school.

Only a day later Stefan broke up with me.

"I don't understand!" I said tearfully for the hundredth time. He had come to my house after school and just dropped the idea on me like a bomb.

"I brought this on you." Stefan said. "It's my fault that you got involved in the supernatural. If I had stayed away maybe you would have lived. Maybe my brother would have lived."

"But I love you." I cried. "I've lost so many people, Stefan, I can't lose you."

Stefan shook his head. "I know you'll never love me like you loved Damon."

"Is that what this about?" I asked. I knew he was right, but if Stefan left I would surely die from loneliness.

He sat for a long time, just watching me with nothing but love in his eyes. "No, it's not. I just want you to be safe."

I couldn't find anything to say. After a while he got up, kissed me, and left. When I went to the boardinghouse later he was gone. Zach told me that Stefan had left for good, saying that he probably wouldn't be back for at least eighty years. I cried myself to sleep that night.

Stefan's POV

I couldn't forget that empty, dead look in her eyes when I told her I was leaving. I knew that it was for the best and that eventually Elena would get better and find someone human, but it still hurt. I knew that when—and if—I came back years later, she would probably be married, with children and grandchildren that adored her. I would just be the creepy guy watching from the bushes and wishing that I was the man sitting next to her, enjoying my last few years in her arms.

After that thought I decided not to come back until I was sure she was dead, or maybe not to come back at all. There wasn't anything for me in Mystic Falls.

I sighed, leaned against the side of my car. I was watching the sun set from the boardinghouse driveway, preparing to leave. Memories of Elena, haunting every corner of the building, were all that kept me there.

"Hey there, handsome." I heard someone say, thinking for a split second that it was Elena. When I turned I was greeted by a curly-haired brunette that had on her usual high heels and low-cut shirt.

"Katherine." I greeted her, not particularly caring why she was there.

She came over and stood next to me, looking in the same direction I was. "Mmm, that's beautiful, isn't it?" A hint of seduction was in the undertones of her voice. I hadn't heard that in forever.

"It is." I said. I glanced sideways at her, looking for any signs of emotion. "You feeling better now?"

Katherine shrugged. "I think the spell wore off. I mean, I was devastated at first. It felt like I was drowning or suffocating, but a few hours after that girl died it started to go away. Now I feel like I never knew her."

Despite the obvious uncaring, I could hear just a hint of sadness. "Feeling pity for that girl, Katherine?"

"No." She said, casually examining her nails. "I just feel bad that all those years I was a vampire I never thought of looking for my daughter."

"But you told Tibby you did."

"Yes." She said. She laughed bitterly. "That was the sickening devotion and love swelling in my heart that was talking, not me. I never went to look for her, and it never even occurred to me long after she would have died."

I nodded. "I suppose it happens that way sometimes. My mother was dead for years before I knew about it."

Katherine slid closer, pulling the cars keys from my hand. "Why don't we go somewhere?"

"Why?" I asked. "And where?"

"I was thinking Bulgaria, first." Katherine said. She started to steer me around the passenger seat and opened the door. I got in, reluctant. "I want to see my daughter's grave, just once. I want to know if I ever felt anything for her."

"And then?" In my mind I imagined wandering endlessly through the world, always haunted by Elena through Katherine's big brown eyes and occasionally Elena-like voice.

She shrugged. "Who knows? Hell, we could go anywhere we wanted to. No more Klaus, no more running."

I thought about it, and found myself liking the idea. I could visit all the places I'd been missing lately. I could go visit Lexi and her boyfriend in Georgia.

"Let's go."

Elena's POV

Exactly a month later I was still as depressed as I was when it had only been a week. At least it had gotten better. Jeremy and Anna—who never actually freed any tomb vampires because she couldn't find a tomb—were getting along well. I did remind him that their relationship wouldn't last forever, but eventually I decided to just let them be happy. They still had a lot of time before Jeremy got old.

Jenna and Alaric had also found love, though I'd run into them several awkward times. I didn't mind that much. Jenna hadn't looked that happy for years.

I was sitting on my bed, legs crossed. Jenna was out that night, with Alaric. Anna and Jeremy were at Anna's apartment, "doing homework". I was staring at a textbook but I couldn't find it in me to study. All I could think of was Damon, Tyler, Matt, and the little girl. I wished that I could just repress the memories like victims of horrible accidents could sometimes. Unfortunately every detail was still imbedded on my brain. The nightmares only made them more vivid.

I finally gave up, shoving the book off my bed and lying down. I stared at the ceiling, trying to decide if I wanted dinner or if I would just stay where I was. I decide on the latter, just staring at the pale paint on the ceiling and wondering what I would do once I finished high school. It had never crossed my mind before, but now I felt like my options were open. There wasn't anything keeping me in Mystic Falls. After all the deaths that had happened, starting with my parents, the place haunted me. I had memories everywhere. They were threatening to overwhelm me. I could barely go anywhere without suffocating, and even at home it was hard to breathe.

Finally I decided I would go somewhere far, far away. Maybe I could find a college in California. That was at the opposite end of the country. It would be perfect. I decided to stop in Chance Harbor in Washington State on the way and see how the Circle was. It would be fun, checking out a town with only witch-related roots. Also, I missed the presence of the witches, as annoying as they'd been.

I was nearly asleep when the doorbell rang. It had to be Jeremy. He kept losing his key for the door, even though I was constantly reminding him to keep it in his wallet. I groaned, forcing myself up. I was going to kill him for making me move.

I opened the door with a grumpy, "Again? Really?" on my lips. When I saw who it was I couldn't speak.

He was standing there, looking so real. Blue eyes, dark hair… I was sure I was hallucinating. "Damon?" I whispered. I was afraid if I spoke he would be gone.

He nodded very slowly, as though I was a deer that could bolt at any moment. He stretched out a hand until it was mere millimeters away from my face. Very, very slowly, he cupped my cheek. I could feel the tension in the tips of his fingers, but mostly I felt how real he was.

As soon as I knew he was real I dove into his arms, crying more than I ever had in my life. Damon buried his nose in my hair, soaking it with his own tears. "Elena." I heard him mumbled. "I love you, Elena."

We staggered to the couch, melting into each other as we both cried. It took hours to calm down, hours for me to believe that Damon was real.

"How is this possible?" I asked. "I saw you die. I was at your grave."

"I don't know." Damon said. "I woke up, trapped in the dirt. Luckily there were some small holes to the surface because I couldn't breathe."

"You don't need to, remember?" I said.

Damon shook his head. "I do, actually. That's the thing… ever since I woke up, or came back, I've had to breathe, and eat, and I have a pulse."

"You…" I had no words, but in my mind a thousand beautiful images were forming.

"I'm human." Damon said. "I have no idea how or why, just that I'm human again."

If I had been happy to see Damon before, I was speechless at his words now. I kept looking at him, unable to tear my eyes away. College in California was a thing of the past in seconds, instead replaced by late nights at the lake house, a pale blue house, a picket fence, and the smiling faces of children.

"I love you." I said. It was short, simple, and true. There were no other words for what I felt but those three.

"I love you too."

Ten years later

Elena's POV

I shifted in my sleep, grumbling when I reached out for covers and found none. "Damonnnn…."

"Mmmm?"

"Give them back!" I ordered. I tugged insistently at the sheets but was met with resistance. "Damon, give them back now! My feet are like ice!"

"Mine too." He complained.

I heard soft cried from the next room. "Damon!" I whispered shrilly. "Look what you did!"

Leaving him half-awake, I stumbled out of the bedroom to the nursery, stopping at the edge of the pale pink crib. In it lay the most important person in my life, along with Damon; Miranda. "Hey, baby girl." I cooed. A smile spread on my face, and I instantly forgave Damon for sheet-hogging.

Leaning over, I scooped up my baby and held her close, backing up until my legs bumped into the rocking chair and I could sit. I gently rocked back and forth, humming under my breath.

Behind my I heard the bed creak, and Damon appeared at my side. "Is she hungry?"

"Nope, you just woke her."

Damon knelt next to the rocker, gazing at his daughter like she was the most precious person in his entire world. The adoration in his eyes made my heart melt.

"You two are my favorite girls." He stated, kissing Miranda's head before coming up and kissing me. "How did I get so lucky?"

"You deserved it." I said simply. "And hey, don't forget about your favorite boy."

"Never!" he said, faking a shocked expression. When I got up to put Miranda back in her crib he stopped me and kissed my stomach lightly. "How is my favorite boy?"

"You mean little Stefan?" I asked. He nodded. We had agreed to the name together, just like we had picked Miranda in honor of my mom. "He's healthy."

Damon scooped me up in his arms and carried me back to bed. "I can't wait until July."

"Mmmmm…" I agreed. I stretched lazily. "That's because you don't have to push a baby the size of a watermelon out of your—"

"Please stop while you're ahead." He said. "That image is putting me through serious physical pain."

"I never finished. You don't know what I was going to say." I pouted.

"Yeah, but I can guess."

"I'll bet you can." I teased.

"Before you fall asleep…" he murmured, making me open my eyes.

"What?"

He held up a crumpled piece of paper. "Bonnie gave this to me today, when we ran into each other in town."

I sat up. "What is it?"

"It's the note Bonnie from the other universe wrote to prove to the Bonnie here that I wasn't a physchpath."

"Oh." I took it from his hands, carefully unfolding the creased paper. "Why did she give it to you?"

"It peels apart." When he saw my quizzical expression he took it gently and parted the paper at the top edge, peeling it away until he revealed that it was really two pieces of paper glued together.

"So…?"

"Read this."

I looked at the faint words he pointed to, ones that would have been previously hidden:

Bonnie,

I don't know if you'll ever need to know this, or ever find it, but I feel like you should know. Damon thinks I only did one spell, the one to send him back. He's wrong.

I did another spell, one that will bring him back one time if he dies. Unfortunately (or fortunately) it will only be able to bring him back as a human. I'm hiding this part of the note because I'm afraid that if he reads this he might try to kill himself so he could be human and be with Elena.

I hope that if he does die and come back, it will be for Elena. That way he won't have died for his own selfish reasons. He will have died for her.

I blinked back tears at the letter, not knowing why I was crying. "So it was that Bonnie's spell that saved you, and she hid this so you wouldn't kill yourself to become human?"

"That's the theory." He said, gently removing the thin paper from my hands. "I guess she felt that if I became human, I had to earn it. It had to be because I died for you."

I laid back down and sighed, wiping the dampness from my cheeks. "I'm glad she did."

"Me too."

I snuggled closer. "G'night."

"Goodnight, Elena." He kissed my head. "I love you."

"I love you too."