A/N: This chapter has very dark violent themes. Just wanted to give a warning before you read any further. I did include a lighter memory that many of you requested.
Thanks again for all of the alerts and reviews.
Chapter 6
I squeal into the parking lot and jump out seeing Alaric already entering the hospital. I blur next to him.
"Damn it, I hate it when you do that." Alaric growls. "So who are you looking to kill?" Ric is getting to know me too well.
"It's one of the fucking nurses. She's been in Elena's room every few days since she was admitted. She's been there under our fucking noses the whole time. A room full of supernaturals and we all missed it."
"Which one?"
"The red head that usually draws her blood for all of tests."
"Shit! So she's a hybrid?" Alaric looks at me with wide eyes.
"I don't know, but she's somehow involved in what happened to Elena. Once she gives us information on who did this and why it happened she's dead." We arrive at the room to see Jeremy and Matt sitting peacefully with Elena.
"Alaric, stay here. Any hospital personal come in here, call me and don't let them leave. I'm going to search the hospital."
After searching for an hour I head to back to the room. "Nothing." I drop into a chair extremely frustrated.
"I talked to a couple of the nurses while you were searching. Turns out she's new. Surprise, surprise she started the day after Elena was admitted. Her next shift isn't for a couple of days. I managed to get an address for her and I had Liz check it out. It's a fake. I also got a look at Elena's medical chart. The doctors haven't ordered any new blood tests since they couldn't find a find reason for the coma. That's well over a week ago."
"So she's been doing something with all the blood she's been drawing then. So we basically have to wait for her to come back to work to find her?" I can't hide the frustration from my voice. Did I mention that patience is not my strong suite?
"Looks like it." Alaric admits.
"If we have a couple of days before we get to talk to naughty nurse, then make sure Bonnie is here first thing in the morning and send me back in. We need as much information we can get from Elena's memories." I run my hands through my hair.
"I'll talk to her tonight." Jeremy volunteers.
"Let's go Matt, Jer. Visiting hours are just about over and you guys need to eat something since you have been here all day." Alaric turns to look at me. "Do you want me to stay as back-up?"
"Nope, Stefan will probably be by at some point." I respond.
"See you tomorrow, Damon." Alaric ushers Jeremy and Matt out the door. I pull a chair up next to Elena's bed.
"What have you gotten pulled into now Elena?" I stroke her cheek. "I'll figure it out, Elena. I'll figure out how to fix whatever is going on. I promise."
I lean back in my chair holding Elena's hand with my feet propped up on the bed facing the door. I close my eyes briefly listening to the steady rhythm of Elena's breathing and heartbeat. Sounds that make me feel comforted and keep the hope alive that she will come back to us.
I hear footsteps outside the room. "Hello, brother" I say slowly opening my eyes.
"Brother" Stefan replies pulling a chair up to the other side of the bed.
Everyone has been obsessing how Stefan is holding up while Elena has been in the hospital. I don't want to join the throngs of Stefan's fans ensuring he doesn't brood too much; but I also don't have the time for him to fall off the wagon. "You're not a child, so I won't belittle you by asking if you're okay, but we can't afford a ripper meltdown. You need to come to me if you feel things getting out of control. We need to be here for Elena" I warn.
"I got it Damon. I have it under control" Stefan replies with an acerbic tone.
"You and Elena seem to have gotten….closer" Stefan says hesitantly.
"Well, I may lack the hero hair, but I decided to try being the good guy for a while. I'm happy to turn the reins back over to you, brother." I smirk at him.
"I appreciate everything you're doing to help Elena and bring her back." Stefan stares at me, his body tense.
"Why do I sense a 'but' in there somewhere?" I drop my feet to the floor and lean forward staring at him across the bed.
"I know you love her" Stefan starts.
He is not pulling the jealous boyfriend card on me now is he? "I have no ulterior motive Stefan and I have no grand illusions of me riding off into the sunset with her" I interrupt beyond pissed.
Standing up and walking to the door I pause. "This is not 1864 and Elena is not Katherine. For once wouldn't it be nice for the girl to bring us together instead of tearing us apart? Don't we owe it to Elena to act like brothers for once? I'll leave you so you can have some time alone time with her." I blur outside to go for a walk.
The next morning Bonnie arrives with Alaric, Jeremy and Matt. "Caroline and Stefan are supposed to be here in a little while. Are we ready to do this?"
"Ready as ever" I give a smirk.
"You know the drill, Damon." Bonnie opens the grimoire and closes her eyes while I grasp Elena's hand.
Opening my eyes I am in my bedroom at the Boarding House. The memory version of me emerges from the bathroom drink in hand while Elena leans against the doorway to my room.
"Ugh. Look. Klaus had to think she was dead. Your reaction had to be real." Ah, the night we pretended that Bonnie died.
"I understand why you did what you did. Klaus was fooled, and Bonnie's alive." Elena walks into the room.
"Here's to duplicity." I see myself mockingly raise my drink.
"But let's get one thing straight, Damon. Bonnie will not die for me, I will not let that happen." Elena is a real spitfire. She stands up to me, ignoring the fact that I could snap her like a twig. That girl oozes passion and stubbornness.
"We need to kill Klaus, Elena. Real Klaus. Who will probably be coming to pay you a visit soon now that he knows that Bonnie is dead. She's the only one who can do it." At least I make attempts to give as good as I get with her.
"We'll find another way." Elena's determination to protect and save her friends and family is palpable. You can't help but be drawn to it and want to help no matter what her cause. It's what makes all of us so fiercely want to protect her as she would do anything to protect us.
"I hope so."
"Look, I shouldn't have hit you." Elena's says quietly and there is an air of regret coming at me. Give him a real apology Elena. He doesn't even like Bonnie yet he put that aside to help her.
"Apology accepted. Let me be clear about something. If it comes down to you and the witch again, I will gladly let Bonnie die. I will always choose you."
How do I respond to that? Why, why would he choose me? I'm his brother's girlfriend. Damon never ceases to surprise me. No one gives him credit for his loyalty. He could easily have walked away from me, from Stefan, from all of us, but he has stayed. We won't survive this without him. He makes things so confusing. I should hate him for all he has done, but I just can't. It's actually really humbling to know he cares so much for me.
"Good night, Damon."
"Good night."
At least I know I get to her on some level.
The scene quickly changes and the Lockwood mansion appears. Looking around, there is a crowd of people all dressed up. I can see myself in the crowd in a suit.
"Miss Elena Gilbert, escorted by Mister Stefan Salvatore" a man announces. I see myself moving through the crowd as Elena descends the stairs in a blue dress in the Lockwood foyer. Elena is searching the crowd and her eyes land on the memory version of me with a confused look on her face. I reach out my hand and she accepts it with a small smile.
"Where is Stefan?" She whispers. I can feel the worry and confusion bubbling inside of her.
"I don't know" I admit as I lead her outside to join the other Miss Mystic Falls candidates and their escorts.
I can hear whispers from the crowd as we emerge out into the courtyard. "What is she doing with Damon?" Jenna ponders.
"I have no idea" Alaric answers in confusion.
Elena steps forward and curtsies while I bow at her. "What are we going to do?"
"Right now we just have to get through this" I answer before each of us steps back to start the dance.
I hope he knows all the steps. Wait, he was alive when the dance was probably invented. Of course he knows the steps. Wow, he is actually really good at this.
It's interesting to see us dance together. As we come together as a couple I can hear comments from the crowd about how nice we look together. Elena is excited and surprised during the dance.
He's a great dancer. Why does it feel so good and comforting being in his arms? His eyes are really blue and as cliché as it is, for some reason I can't stop staring at them. It's like I'm seeing him for the first time. He seemed so concerned for Stefan, the brother he is supposed to torment for eternity, when we were upstairs a little while ago. I'm not always nice to him and he just rescued me from total humiliation since Stefan's bloodlust is more important than me at the moment.
I don't have long to relish in a touching memory between the two of us before I am thrust back into the darkness. Looking ahead I see Elena. She is standing perfectly still, he back to me. Vicki, Caroline, Anna, Jenna, John, Isobel, Jeremy, Alaric, Bonnie, Stefan and I form a semi-circle around her. All of us are staring blankly at her. Behind her are two bodies, they look like a middle age couple. I'm about one hundred yards behind her unsure what I am looking at.
"So many lives destroyed because of me." Elena says. She motions to the bodies behind her. "First my parents."
"Then Vicki, Caroline, and Anna." Her hand is full of stakes and she throws a stake at her girl's heart and Vicki, Caroline, and Anna collapse to the ground skin grey and veined.
"Then Isobel." She pulls a lighter from the front pocket of her jeans, igniting it and throws it at Isobel's feet. Isobel goes up in flames the ashes falling quickly to the ground.
I take off running to her. "Elena. Stop!"
"Then Jenna and John." A sword materializes in her hand. Elena lifts the sword and slits each throat in quick succession. They each drop to their knees before falling face forward on the ground.
I skid to a stop behind her just as Jenna and John hit the ground. "Elena!" I grab her arm and spin her around to look at me.
"How long before I take the rest?" Elena aims the sword at everyone still standing. She wiggles free and pulls something from her back pocket. In rapid succession she throws a dagger at Jeremy and Alaric. "Each of them has died and only magic has kept them alive. How much longer will magic protect them being that they are involved with the doppelganger?" Elena hisses.
"Elena, look at me." I look in her eyes and see grief and guilt. "You didn't kill any of them."
"I kill or destroy everyone that loves me." Elena whispers dropping to knees.
"Elena, your parents dying was an accident. I killed Vicki and Caroline is still with us. The rest was Klaus. You can't help you were born the doppelganger. You have tried to sacrifice yourself more than once to try and save all of us."
The cold feel of steel is pressed against my throat. "I already destroyed Stefan. Leave me before I kill you too." Elena pleads.
"Not going to happen. I promised I would never leave you and I intend to keep that promise." I wrap my hand around the sword pushing it to the ground. "You did not destroy Stefan. Klaus tried to destroy him but because of you he has his life back. You've saved all of us. We've all become better, stronger people just by living in your shadow trying to live up to the example that you set."
Elena stands stepping back a few steps.
"Come back to us Elena. You need to wake up."
"It's better this way." She continues to walk backwards raising the sword to try and keep me away from her. "You don't belong here. Please leave." Elena lingers looking into my eyes. She scans the bodies of her fallen loved ones and disappears.
I know Elena is fiercely loyal and desperate to protect those she cares about. We have had many arguments over my desire to protect her verses her desire to protect everyone else. But I didn't know how responsible she felt for all of the recent deaths. The rest of us all blame Klaus for the pain and misery we have been put through, but she doesn't see that. She thinks it's her fault that all of this happened. When she wakes we need to help her get over this fear. Besides half of those deaths are somehow linked to me either directly or by me making some rash decision that resulted in someone dying. Damnit, how do I continue to hurt her?
The Gilbert House develops into view and I am standing on the sidewalk in front of the house. I approach the house and see Jeremy and Elena sitting on the porch swing.
"What did you want to talk about?" Jeremy looks sideways at Elena.
"How would you feel if I left town for a bit?" Elena asks hesitantly staring at her shoes.
What? She was thinking of leaving?
I can sense Elena's feelings of disappointment and apprehension as she continues, "Not for long, Jer. Maybe just for a few months or until the fall" she says quickly.
"Oh, why?" Jeremy settles down.
"Klaus is gone, you are all safe, Stefan's back on animal blood. We have been living in constant fear and danger for well over a year. I just need to be away for a while and let Stefan stand on his own two feet. I also need to figure out the rest of my life."
For so long I never thought I would have a future to plan for, now I need to figure out what to do with the rest of my life. Figure out what I want and what I want my future to be.
"Obviously you're not going with Stefan. Are you going to take Caroline or Damon?"
Damon is always fun on a road trip, but no, stay strong Elena. He can't go with you. You need to do this on your own.
"I need to do this on my own. For once no protection detail, I need time away from the supernatural so I can figure out what I want and where my life goes from here. Plus Damon needs to stay and be here for Stefan."
Having Damon with me won't let me focus on sorting through all my feelings, issues and baggage.
What does that mean? What does she need to sort through?
"I'll miss you, but I understand why you need to do it. Just don't stay away too long and don't get dead." Jeremy pulls Elena into a hug.
"Don't say anything yet. I want to break the news to everyone. I better start with Damon. He's probably going to freak out and talk me out of it or try and convince me to let him come." Elena laughs.
There is a rustling in the bushes near the porch.
"Did you hear something?" Elena asks.
"No" Jeremy answers looking around. Elena shrugs.
Well, I think I know why she was attacked. Someone was trying to keep her from leaving town. The thing we still need to figure out is why hybrids were stalking her and taking her blood and why she needed to stay in Mystic Falls.
The hallway comes into view ahead of me as I am pondering the last memory. I move forward to the first door. Locked. No surprise. I kick and then slam my shoulder into the door. It won't budge. I slam my shoulder into the door over and over. Nothing. I feel like giving up when something clangs at my feet. A crowbar? I must be making some progress with her subconscious. I wedge the crowbar into the door and manage to get the lock loosened. I slam my shoulder into the door again and it finally gives way. I fall inside barely keeping my feet.
Fresh air, the smell of grass after a rain hits my nostrils. I walk forward seeing rows of headstones. Elena must be at the cemetery visiting her family. I walk the familiar path and see Elena sitting in front of her parent's graves. I recognize the jacket she is wearing. She just brought it a few weeks ago on a shopping trip with Caroline. Whatever was compelled away happened recently.
I watch Elena talk to her parents telling them about Homecoming, the struggles to get Stefan on the straight and narrow. The loss of her parents is still fresh for her and it brought up reminders of losing my mother. Perching on a headstone near her, I am shocked when Elena is suddenly tackled and pinned to the ground. I jump to knock the person away but pass right through. All I can do is watch whatever is about to happen unfold.
I circle them trying to see who this person is, but they are entirely enshrouded in shadow, not a single detail is visible. My heart again feels like it is being crushed, the weight of Elena's fear drowning me as her hatred did before. I can't bail this time. I have to see this through so I can help her.
He let go of one of her hands to run his hands down to the hem of her shirt. Elena took advantage punching him in the throat, drawing her knees up and managed to buck him off. The adrenaline is coursing through her as she takes off running but he catches her from behind. He pins her arms behind her with one hand while the other maneuvers her belt off using it bind her hands behind her back.
My breaths are coming in rasps and I am pacing back and forth desperate to help her but powerless to do anything.
"Please don't do this. It doesn't have to be this way. Please let me go." Somehow Elena manages to keep herself outwardly calm but her thoughts are panicked and unfocused as she tries to think of an escape, to talk herself out the situation, retreat to a place where she could pretend none of this was real.
He had her on her back again one hand holds her down while the other moves to the button on her jeans. He slowly undoes them while she continues to plead with him. He slides her pants down then just hovers above her and he leans in and whispers in her ear.
"Thank you so much for your previous donation, love. It has started us on a wonderful journey. Now I need another taste. A taste straight from the source to tide me over." The voice sounds so familiar. No accent . I rack my brain, but I can't place the voice.
He gropes his way down as she continues to struggle against him. He runs a finger lightly across the top of her lace panties and she whimpers. I drop to my knees fighting to breathe as her fear increases ten-fold.
A horn beeps in the distance . "We'll save this for another time when there are no interruptions and you're mine" he says running a hand down the length of her body. Elena struggles harder then he bites into her inner thigh. She screams in pain. He drinks for a few minutes and pulls out.
"You do taste divine" he chuckles before sinking into a new spot. Elena struggles less, and I can only assume it's from the blood loss. With lighting speed she was fully dressed and back on her feet.
"You will forget this encounter. You will forget who did this to you." Then Elena is left alone. She looks around confused for a moment before leaving the cemetery staggering a bit.
I am on my hands and knees trying to control my breathing, control the anger that threatens to make me shut my emotions off so I won't feel my anger, my feeling of helplessness, her fear, but this is about Elena. I have to feel these things for her. Share with her what she experienced. He didn't rape her, but he violated her nonetheless. She is beautiful and pure. No one should ever be able to touch her and hurt her. I wish that memory could have stayed locked away forever. Whoever did this will die slowly and painfully.
The idea pops into my head that maybe this was a fear and it didn't really happen. I'm ignoring the part of my brain that reminds me that since what I say was behind a locked door it guarantees it was a memory. I desperately want this to be just a fear, but I know better than most that wishing things to be true usually doesn't equate to reality. I grip the talisman tightly and growl Bonnie's name and find myself chest heaving next to Elena's bed.
All eyes are on me, looking hopeful waiting for answers. I have to know. I have to know if what I just saw was a real memory or one of her fears. The anger is so close to the surface.
"Alaric, Jeremy, Matt get out." I know Elena would never want them to see what had happened to her.
"Damon, no. What did you see?" Jeremy asks.
"Caroline, get them out now. Carry them, compel them. I don't care. Get them out into that hall then get your ass back in here."
Caroline for once didn't fight me but jumps up grabbing Alaric and Jeremy's hands and drags them out as they protest but she is too strong for them. Matt follows obediently, with a confused expression on his face. She shoves them into the hallway and closes the door standing in front of it so they can't get back in.
"Okay, Damon I did what you asked. Now are you going to tell me what the hell happened in there and why did you kick them out of the room?" Caroline demands. Don't snap her neck becomes my mantra as the anger is threatening to boil over and her bossy tone is grating on me.
"Where the fuck is my brother?" I finally notice he isn't in the room but he was supposed to be there for protection while I was under.
"You were in Elena's mind for hours. He said he needed to feed and to call him if we made any breakthroughs or ran into problems otherwise he would stop by later." Bonnie answers. "Damon, what did you see?"
My hands are shaking, but I had to know. Taking a breath, I reach out pulling down the blanket that is covering Elena from the waist down.
"Damon, what are you doing?" Caroline hisses.
Grasping the bottom of Elena's hospital gown, I pause. Get it together Salvatore. Bonnie reaches out and grabs my hand. "Damon, stop. What are you doing?" Bonnie tries slapping my hands away but I just glare at her. Suddenly my head feels like its going to explode. Damnit with the witchy migraines. I fight the pain.
"Bonnie, stop it!" Caroline yells.
Rotating her leg out slightly, Bonnie and Caroline gasp confirming my own fear that what I saw in the cemetery was a memory. Two sets of scars are evident on her inner thigh from where she had been fed on. They must have been mostly healed before I gave her my blood since the scars are still there. The pain in my head stops.
"I'm sorry Damon. I didn't know what you were doing."
"So you just assumed the worst, right?" At least she looks a little bad for exploding aneurysms in my brain.
"Did he, was she" Bonnie looks up at me tears in her eyes.
"Not in the memory I saw, but he promised he would save it for another time. I don't know if there is another memory locked away where she was or if she was spared that hell. The pain of this memory will be bad enough." I sit back down and put my head on the edge of the bed.
"What do we tell the guys?" Caroline asks.
" We need to tell Stefan." Bonnie looks from me to Caroline and I watch with sadness as she places the hospital gown back in place and pulls the blanket to cover her again.
"We can just tell them I stumbled into a memory of the three of you. You were pillowing fighting and kissing each other in your underwear. I don't care what you say." Normally I would give a sexy eye roll with this comment but I still can't even lift my head from the side of the bed.
"I'll let them in." Caroline opens the door. I sit up and I see three very pissed men walk in the room.
"Damon, what the hell is up with kicking us out of the room." Jeremy glares at me.
"Damon, you owe us an explanation." Alaric demands blocking the door.
"Caroline and Bonnie can fill you in. Move."
If I stay in this room, someone will die.
A/N: Please review