Title: Love's Fool

Summary: Elena made her choice and Damon kept up his end of the deal. He left Mystic Falls more than a year ago and he hasn't looked back since. Now the Original stake has gone missing and suddenly they need him again. But Damon has no intention of playing their whipping boy anymore and this time he has a powerful ally on his side.

Spoilers: Everything through the S3 finale.

Pairings: Delena.

Disclaimer: If I owned Vampire Diaries there would be a lot less of Damon getting left to die heartbroken and alone. As it is, I can only hope to vent my frustration by punishing those characters responsible.

Note: I couldn't bring myself to cover it as it went down. I would have ended up making it turn ugly just because I could. I hope this does it justice. I'd love to know what you think.

Chapter Ten

"So you broke up with him, right?"

Elena tried to shake the eerie feeling walking down her spine. She was imagining things, she had to be. It was a beautiful Saturday morning. The sky was clear and the sun was shining. She was staring out her bedroom window at the empty front lawn. There was nothing sinister there; nothing to fear. So why did it feel different? Why did it feel…wrong?

"Elena?"

"Oh," she spun to face Caroline with a sad smile, "sorry. I've just had this weird feeling all morning."

Caroline made a face. "It's not regret, it is? Because I really think you did the right thing Elena. Sometimes you can't go back." The perky blonde stood up from the bed where she was sitting and walked across to stand in front of her best friend. She took Elena's hands in hers. "You and Stefan are different people now. You're not those sweet innocent high school kids anymore. You have to accept that and move forward."

Elena took in Caroline's serious compassionate expression and couldn't help but snort with laughter. "Can I tell Stefan you called him a sweet innocent high school kid?"

Caroline frowned confused. "You two are still speaking?" Then she put her hands on her hips irritated. "Oh god you wimped out, didn't you? You didn't break up with him."

"I didn't wimp out," Elena rolled her eyes and walked toward her dresser. She picked up her brush and started pulling it through her hair. "We broke up and it was sort of a mutual decision."

"How'd you pull that one off?" Caroline asked.

"We both knew it was coming, Care," Elena said. "We've been a mess for a long time. We were stuck." She put the brush back down and shrugged. "It was only a matter of time until one of us spoke up and forced the issue."

Nodding, Caroline walked back over to retake her seat on the bed. "So what did you tell him?"

Elena leaned back against the dresser facing her best friend. She grimaced as she thought about the night before. "The truth," she finally answered.

Caroline's eyebrows show up, "The whole truth?"

"Yes."

"And you're sure you two are still speaking?" Caroline said. At Elena's frown she continued. "I just mean…you told him about the shirt and everything?"

Elena's mouth fell open. "How did you know about…"

Caroline snorted. "Please, you're not nearly as good at sneaking around as you think you are." Elena cocked her head to the side and Caroline smirked. "Remember when I borrowed your shoes for the last Decade Dance?"

Elena tried to wrap her head around the idea of Caroline keeping that secret for over six months. She couldn't believe the blonde hadn't confronted her and demanded some explanation.

Seeming to read her thoughts, Caroline smiled gently. "Give me a little credit, Elena. I'm your best friend. I've watched you struggle to cope since you got turned. You were barely hanging on back then. The last thing you needed was me getting in your face and acting all offended on Stefan's behalf."

Unable to meet those knowing eyes anymore, Elena buried her face in her hands and sighed. "I told him everything. I told him I believed I was making the right choice for everyone that night, but I was really being a coward. I was afraid of loving Damon. He scared me because I couldn't control how he made me feel. I thought Stefan was the right choice for me because he made me feel safe, but then when Damon left nothing made sense anymore."

Lifting her head again, Elena stared at nothing as memories played out in her mind. "I never realized how much I depended on Damon. I always knew he would be there." Tears welled in her eyes and Elena didn't even bother to fight them back. "I might have talked a good game and railed at him about his obsessive drive to protect me even against my will, but the truth was I counted on it. I knew that even if I was spewing hatred at him, Damon would be there to keep me going. I knew he would never stop fighting for me. He would never give up."

"It's hard to ignore that kind of devotion," Caroline acknowledged.

Elena tilted her head back and blew out a loud breath. "Stefan was like this ideal I had built up in my head. I had this shiny picture of the way things used to be. I fought so long and so hard to bring Stefan back and I thought if I just chose him I could be happy again. I thought we'd have back this perfect love I remembered, but what I've realized is…"

"That love was never really perfect to begin with?" Caroline's expression turned rueful and she acknowledged her own part in the triangle drama. "It probably didn't help all of your best friends were pretty hard-core Team Stefan, either."

Elena shook her head. "It didn't matter Caroline. I was chasing a dream. I was trying to rewind my life and my heart to where they used to be." She smiled even as her eyes welled with more tears. "I wanted that old feeling back. I was so tired and so broken inside and all I wanted was to be happy again. And in my head I had this picture of Stefan with the word happy stamped on it."

Pushing away from the dresser in agitation, Elena walked toward the window again. She crossed her arms over her chest and ran her hands up and down them trying to rub away the cold she could feel deep in her bones. "The truth is it was never Stefan I was choosing." She frowned. "I mean, I did love Stefan. I really was in love with him once. But what I wanted was my life back. I wanted to be that ignorant innocent high school kid again. And Stefan can't give that back to me. No one can."

As she blinked tears trailed down her cheeks in lines. She took a shuddering breath and gritted her teeth. "Stefan can't bring back Jenna. He can't bring back Alaric. He can't erase the nightmares of watching them die, of dying myself, of being strapped down with tubes shoved in my veins as Klaus drained my life away to make his pathetic ass some friends. Stefan can't fix me and it wasn't fair of me to expect him to. I have to fix myself."

"And Damon?" Caroline asked.

Now Elena's smile was genuine. "Damon never would have let me pretend. Damon wants it to be real. He's stubborn and messy and he pushes me to be stronger and to fight for what I want. Back then Damon's love scared the living shit out of me. He was this crazy force of nature I couldn't control. He crawled his way underneath my skin and into my heart with me fighting him every step of the way. I didn't want to love him, but he didn't give me a choice."

"Sounds like Damon." Caroline walked over to stand by Elena at the window. She wrapped her arm around the brunette's shoulders and the two stood in silence for a minute before Caroline spoke again. "So no more epic love?"

Elena's face twisted into a snarl. "Do you have any idea how much I HATE that saying?"

Caroline giggled and leaned her head against Elena's. "Yep, about as much as we hate 'newborn rage'."

Elena joined in her laughter and shook her head. "If I could go back in time I'd kick my own ass."

"Oh wouldn't we all."

Elena gasped in surprise and turned to look at Caroline. The blonde realized how her words sounded and giggled again. "I meant I'd kick my own ass, Lena. We all make mistakes."

Elena nodded. "Sure." She looked back out the window again and her laughter faded away. She thought of Damon's cold demeanor toward her the night before. She remembered how casually he stroked Katherine's hair and the fond affection in their shared gaze. Her heart clenched with a mix of fear and pain. "What if I'm too late, Care? What if I've really lost him for good?"

Caroline snorted. "PLEASE! You have not lost Damon for good." Elena looked at her and Caroline squeezed her in a one-armed hug. "Damon Salvatore has always and will always be completely gone on you, Elena. This is a fact of life. The man is head over ass for you. He loves you inside and out, upside and down."

"I chose Stefan, Caroline. I broke his heart."

"Then you tell him what you just told me," Caroline said, "and you show him you mean it. You said Damon pushed you to fight for what you want, so fight for Damon." The blonde made a pained face. "I can't believe that sentence just came out of my mouth. It didn't taste right. I need mouthwash."

Elena laughed and turned to hug her fully. "Thank you, Care. Thanks for putting up with me and all my crap."

Caroline hugged her back and smiled. "I'm your best friend. It's in the job description. I fully expect you to listen to me whine about Tyler and his annoying bitch of a mother later." Stepping back, she tilted her head to the side. "We're supposed to head to the boarding house. You think you can handle seeing the Salvatore boys right now?"

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Elena nodded. "I have to face my problems. I'm done hiding."

Caroline flipped her blonde curls over her shoulder and turned toward the door. "You go girl!" She'd just reached it when Elena called her to a stop.

"What made you decide Stefan and I needed to call it quits, Care?" Elena asked curiously. "I mean, I would have expected a pep talk on working it out and saving our relationship."

"Denial land," Caroline leaned against the door frame and answered her. "Stefan lives there, and he wasn't going to pull his head out of his ass until he faced reality and stopped pretending he was living out his happily ever after. Both of you have been unhappy. Also, he can't deal with your hissy fits and depression. They freak him out." She paused and threw Elena a knowing look. "Besides, when was the last time you two even had sex?"

Elena winced and fidgeted awkwardly. Caroline smirked. "Exactly and that's not normal. You're a vampire, Elena. It makes you horny."

"Tell me about it," Elena muttered. Her eyes unconsciously darted to the wall by her dresser.

Caroline's nose wrinkled up in disgust. "Eww…I don't want to know." She gave a dramatic shudder and sped from the room.

Once she was dressed and gathered everything she wanted to carry with her, Elena left her room and headed downstairs to join Caroline. It wasn't until they'd opened the front door that she remembered the eerie sensation from earlier. It struck her again now full-force as they stepped out onto the porch. Her heightened senses went wild and she sniffed instinctively at the air. It smelt wrong.

Caroline frowned as she looked around as well. "Elena…"

"Stop," Elena said. "We need to stop."

Caroline shivered. "No arguments, but what…"

Her words trailed off to a surprised gasp as both girls watched a form rise slowly up out of the ground. It was a boy, late teens, with brown lanky hair wearing a torn navy blue shirt and faded jeans. His clothing, skin, and hair were covered with dirt and all manner of nastiness. His skin was grey and sagged unnaturally from his bones. His head was tilted down and to the left side. The strange angle highlighted the gruesome wound where his right shoulder met his neck. Skin and tissue were missing. Ripped muscles, tendons, and a shocking white flash of bone were clearly visible.

Caroline stared in horror as she took a step closer to Elena. "That is just…"

"Wrong," Elena finished for her.

As they watched him, the boy staggered one step forward and slowly lifted his head. His eyes were solid liquid black. They focused on Elena. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up and her blood freeze in her veins. Her trained human reaction was one of fear, but Elena wasn't human anymore and she was done playing the victim. With a sigh of part pleasure, part relief, she gave in to the anger always buried just beneath the surface and slid loose the latch to the monster's cage. A growl escaped her throat as the human mask peeled away and she stared down the threat.

The boy seemed to pulse with hatred, with darkness. He opened his mouth and a piercing wail filled the air. Then he dove forward toward the porch and the two vampires. Just as Elena and Caroline moved to meet him, he crossed the line of salt Bonnie laid down the night before. They watched stunned as he burst into flames and burned away disappearing without leaving behind so much as a spec of ash.

The girls stood shaken on the porch for a minute as both tried to get themselves back under control. Finally Caroline shuddered and looked at Elena. "What the hell was that?" Elena struggled to find an answer, but Caroline wasn't waiting on one. "Did you see his neck? Someone did that, Elena. Someone killed that boy and sent him here after us."

Elena jerked her head from side to side. Her mouth was dry. "No, Care."

"Elena, that wasn't natural. That was witchcraft," Caroline said. "He couldn't pass the salt. That's why he burned."

Elena gritted her teeth and dug her nails into her palms. "I know."

"We need to get to Bonnie," Caroline muttered. "They're killing people now. This isn't just stupid symbols burned into the lawn anymore."

"They didn't kill him, Caroline." The blonde froze. She turned and looked at her best friend. Elena's eyes were huge and empty. "I did. I killed him. He was my first slip."

Caroline's mouth dropped open in a silent O. She took a second to digest the revelation and then pushed it away. Taking a deep breath, she stepped forward and pulled Elena into a hug. "Okay, we're going to head back inside and you're going to pack some things and then we're going to the boarding house. You and Jeremy are not staying here until we end these bitches. Understood?"

Elena shook her head. She felt sick. She stared across the lawn and she could still see him standing there, staring at her, accusing her. "I did this, Caroline. I killed him."

"Elena," Caroline shook her hard and glared, "you did not do this. You made a mistake. You slipped. It's horrible, but it happens. We do not have time for a pity party right now. Those stupid witches did this and we have to stop them before they pull something else."

Elena shuddered. She thought about the last year and her lengthy list of sins. The taste of bile filled her mouth. "They could go after the others, Caroline. I've slipped four times. There are three other bodies out there."

Caroline rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Three bodies? Elena, if they start calling up all of Damon and Stefan's victims it's going to start looking like a Walking Dead episode around here."

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