DAMON'S POV-(8 HOURS BEFORE)

Damon kissed her frantically, his fingers running through her chocolate brown curls. He was so caught up in the heat of it all he couldn't keep his eyes open. Katherine brushed her fingers down his back, leaving burning spots of desire.

Damon deepened the kiss and Katherine somehow managed to wrap her legs around his waist, even in her billowing skirts. Katherine leaned away from his kiss and Damon sighed in disappointment.

She started to seductively undo his shirt buttons but soon stopped. She'd cocked her head to the side and was listening, a pout on her perfect lips.
"Why'd you stop" he breathed. Katherine shook her head and unwound herself from him. Damon moaned, as if her lack of touch pained him.

Katherine got of the bed and moved over to her mirror. She immediately started lacing up her corset and doing her hair.
"Your father is looking for you. He's out in the garden.I don't want him catching us together" Katherine explained, making eye contact with Damon in the mirror.

"What would be so bad about that, then i could be with you always" Damon said. Katherine frowned. Damon knew what she was going to say, it was always the same thing.

"Damon, i love you, but i also love Stefan. And if you love me, you will let me take all the time i need to decide who i need" Katherine said. Damon nodded. Katherine smiled and walked over to him, kissing him quickly on the cheek before exciting the room. Damon stared after her for a while.

Until a shout from down stares knocked him from his trance. "DAAAMON!" Giuseppe roared. Damon leapt up, buttoning his shirt frantically. He quickly made sure he looked appropriate then walked down stairs to face his father.

"Damon there you are, what took you so long?" Giuseppe demanded. Damon shrugged.

"Hello father" he said, ignoring his question.

"I've sent Stefan to accompany Miss Pierce and her maid to town, where they will get your sister and Katherine dresses for tonight. I don't want anything messing this night up. It's your sister's pre-birthday celebrations, council meeting and her coming out party. Tonight will let people know i'm ready for my daughter to find a suitable suitor."

Damon frowned at the last bit. "Doesn't Madeline already have a 'suitor', Zachary, Delilah Dawson's son."

Giuseppe gave Damon an almost disbelieving look. When Damon still didn't seem to understand he sighed impatiently.

"Damon, you must understand, the Dawson's may be a kind family, and Delilah has our deepest condolences. But they are not the respectable people i want to make a part of my family. Madeline needs a man who can actually look after her and her future children. Zachary may be kind, but he doesn't have nearly enough wealth."

Damon gaped at his father, all the while fighting back harsh words. Zac was a good kid, around Stefan's age, Damon couldn't believe his father could speak so poorly of him. Well he could believe it but he hated to hear the Dawson's be thought of so poorly.

Giuseppe ignored Damon's look of disbelief and continued. "Either way, that isn't important. I need you to watch your sister, make sure she doesn't run off-again."

"What do you mean?" Damon asked.

"Just keep her distracted, but don't be too obvious, you know she has a temper" Giuseppe explained impatiently before storming out. Damon sighed. He had to entertain Madeline until the party started, like that would be easy.

His sister was a very complicated person. She was very patient, and didn't get angry easily. But when she was mad, she had a frightening temper. And one of the few things that would set it off was treachery and lying. Which is also why Madeline had a keen eye for lies.

Damon moaned. He was going to have to play this smart. "Madeline!" he called out, trying to keep his voice casual. Madeline appeared instantly at the top of the stairs.

"Yes brother?" she answered. Damon smirked and walked towards her.
"Happy pre-Birthday" he said jokingly. Madeline smiled.
"Happy pre-Birthday to me."

"Sister, i am bored and troubled, care to spend time with me and listen to me whine" Damon asked. Madeline rolled her eyes.

"I can't think of anything i'd rather spend my time doing" she replied sarcastically. Damon smirked.

"Excellent" he said, "To the gardens?" Damon offered Madeline his arm and she curtsied before taking it.

They wandered around in the garden for a while. Damon pretended to just be enjoying Madeline's company, which wasn't too hard seeing as he really did enjoy spending time with his sister, but all the while was thinking of something to talk about.

"So, what is it you wanted to complain about brother. Oh wait let me guess, please please please!" Madeline said after a long drag of silence. Damon smiled.

"Take a guess" he said. Madeline mock frowned, sticking out her bottom lip into a big pout.
"Hmm, well let's see. It's probably something you're constantly obsessing over, and it's probably something you spend a lot of time with, also it's most likely something you are competing for. So, if you add all these things together you get-" Madeline paused, taking in a dramatic breath "your obsession with Miss Pierce."

Damon chuckled, she really did know him too well. Damon hadn't really realised it, but Katherine had been worrying him. "All too correct dear sister, if i didn't know better i'd think you were a psychic" Damon joked.

Madeline visibly tensed and looked down at her feet. Damon stopped and she stopped beside him.

"Are you okay?" he asked cautiously. But when Madeline looked up she was smiling her dimpled smile.

"Never been better" she said "I'll listen to your Katherine problems after you catch me." And then she was off, running through the garden, surprisingly fast in her billowing skirts.

Damon laughed, waited a couple of seconds, then set off after her. He let her run a head for a while, almost, but not quite catching her. Madeline's joyous laughter could be heard echoing through out the garden. Finally, as Damon began to get out of puff, he caught her.

They flopped down on the ground under a shaded tree, both out of breath and red faced.

"Feel free to tell your story brother, i'll just sit here and catch my breath. Maybe listen every now and then" Madeline said between gulps of air. Damon chuckled, but it was more of a wheeze because he was so out of breath.

Damon leaned back and closed his eyes. It took him about a minute before he could start talking.
"I want her to be mine. I hate having to compete with Stefan, he's clearly the better choice and i'd hate to loose her to him" Damon said, his voice husky.

"I hate fighting with Stefan, i know we aren't as close as we used to be, but i love her Madeline" Damon said, he eyes fluttering open. Madeline stared at him, her expression impossible to read. Madeline was always impossible to read, especially when it came to Katherine. Damon could never be entirely sure Madeline liked Katherine.

Although he was almost certain Katherine didn't like Madeline a lot. Madeline's gaze was intense and made Damon nervous.
"Are you sure you love her?" Madeline asked. Her voice was flat and emotionless. Damon nodded.

"Then give her the space she needs to decide, if she loves you back, she will pick you. If she keeps stringing you and Stefan along, it's only going to tare you and Stefan apart" Madeline said blandly.

Although Damon thought he saw a flicker of distaste in her expression. Damon swallowed. What Madeline said made sense, but the thought of distancing himself from Katherine made him sick. What if he pushes her away and she picks Stefan?

"But you don't want to be away from her" Madeline said, realisation dawning on her. Damon nodded. Madeline sighed.

"Well, then i can't help you brother. All i can say, is that i hope Katherine makes her decision soon. I'd hate for you and Stefan to grow even further apart from each other and me."

"What do you mean even further from you?" Damon asked immediately. He hadn't thought he and Madeline were growing apart.

"Stefan hasn't spoken more than four words to me for weeks. At first he'd come to me, talk about how he thought he was in love with Katherine. Then, suddenly, i was completely shut out. You also stopped talking to me as much. Until recently you and i talked almost like we used to though. But now you only come to me to talk about her." Madeline stared a head as she spoke.

Damon blinked, genuinely shocked. Now that he thought about it, he really had grown apart from his siblings, who were once his closest friends and only family.

"I'm sorry" he said. Madeline shook her head and visibly forced a smile.
"It's all right" she said. For someone who hated lying so much she seemed to do an awful lot of it. Damon shook his head.

"It's not, i'm sorry I've given all my time to Miss Pierce. You are my sister and i should be paying more attention to you" he said, looping and arm around her shoulder.

MADELINE'S POV

Damon wrapped his arm around Madeline and she tried to convince herself it was okay. But it wasn't, and she knew it, couldn't forget it. Her brothers thought they were in love with this monster. Just the thought of it made Madeline feel un well. But there was nothing she could do.

She didn't have any idea's, and confronting Katherine would just provoke her, make her a bigger threat. If she continued to live un noticed, she would have more privacy to plan.

Madeline stood up. At least he had his attention on her for now. Damon stared after her for a moment before reluctantly standing up.
"What should we do now?" he asked. Madeline smiled.

"Riding?" she asked. Damon shrugged.

"Of course, anything for the birthday girl" he said.

"It's not my birthday yet" Madeline pointed out. Damon nodded in agreement.

"Okay then, anything for my favourite sister" he said. Madeline rolled her eyes.

"I'm your only sister."

"So?"

"So i have to be your favourite" she said.

"But what if you were ridiculously annoying and were my least favourite sister?" Damon asked, a grin spreading across his lips. Madeline frowned, considering this then sighed.

"For once, you are correct brother" she said.

"For once? I've been right before" Damon exclaimed in mock offence. Madeline nodded stubbornly, although she was grinning.

"Shall we ride through the forest, or the paddocks?" Madeline asked, changing the subject.

"Paddocks, it's a nice day to be out in the sun" Damon said. Madeline nodded in agreement and Damon let out a victorious yelp.

"Look, i was right just then! See, i'm always right" he teased. Madeline laughed and shook her head, walking towards the paddock.

"You can be quite childish brother" she said, casting him a quick look over her shoulder. Damon followed her, falling in line beside her.

"Would you rather i be more like Stefan, grown up, sophisticated. Studying poetry and art?" Damon asked.

"Well no, it's nice to have a childish brother and mature one" Madeline decided.

"Looks like i was right, again" Damon said. Madeline raised her eye brows at him, smirking.

They arrived at the stables and Madeline rushed over to a slick black stallion. Mustard. Damon never understood why his sister had named the ivory black horse Mustard. He and Stefan had named there horses after things that related to their horses colour.

Madeline had despised the idea of giving her horse a generic name.

Madeline swung up onto Mustard as Damon started saddling up his horse, Chestnut. Madeline hadn't bothered with a saddle and was already taking off out of the stables. Damon let out a shout of protest but she was off. He quickly swung up and galloped after her.

Hey guys, sorry i've been gone a while. Schools back so, home work ftw. Anyways, the story shall continue next chapter. Thanks for following and liking, would love some more reviews as well though. If i dont get any i'm just going to assume everything is going well.

Cheers!