Author's note: This is my very first Vampire Diaries story. I was very reluctant to post this because this is such a popular fandom with strong opinions about Stefan and Damon. I'm going to put it out there. I am a Stefan fan, but I don't hate Damon. I want more of Stefan and Damon's relationship as brothers. I have no problems with Delena. In fact I rather it over Stelena. This is my stance on the subject and everyone can take it as a warning for the story if they like. Anyway, that's my spiel. Hope you like the story.

Warning: un-betaed. I apologise for grammar and spelling mistakes.

Timeline: After Stefan kills Enzo. Episodes after this hasn't happened. My memory about the Travellers and what they did is very hazy so I am sorry about all the wrong details.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters. They belong to the CW.

Three months ago…

Stefan Salvatore packed his bags from the Salvatore mansion, currently owned by Jeremy Gilbert. His brother hated him…again. It's been a good run…Damon not hating him. For almost five good years, Damon didn't hate him. It felt good to have his big brother back but now that he's killed Damon's friend, Enso, the hatred returned. Stefan could still feel the stake in his chest, only a millimetre from his heart. If it wasn't for Elena calling out to Damon, Stefan would not exist. "By the time I get back, you better be out of Mystic Falls." Damon growled at him before yanking out the stake. Elena had knelt down next to him with sympathy in her eyes, but that was all she could offer before taking off after her boyfriend. Stefan took one last look at his home, for over a century, before leaving. That day was the last day anyone had seen or heard from Stefan for three months.

Present day…

Caroline Forbes left message number 342 on Stefan's cell phone. She didn't understand why Stefan wouldn't return his calls. Ignoring Jeremy, Matt, Tyler and anyone else, she understood, but Caroline is his best friend. She's been his confidante since he returned from his watery grave. Even if everyone in Mystic Falls turned their backs on Stefan, Caroline would not. In fact, she had made that very clear to Elena and her boyfriend the day Stefan left by ignoring them. "Stefan, when I find you, you better have the world's best excuse for why you haven't returned any of my messages!" She threw her phone on the passenger seat of the car and started to head home for the day.

Caroline inserted the key to her house just as her mother, the sheriff, opened it, letting her in. "I take it you didn't find him."

Caroline shook her head, worried, "I have bad feeling, mom. It's not like Stefan to make me worry like this. I mean, the last time he disappeared he was drowning over and over and over…"

"Hey, hey, hey…" Sheriff Forbes soothed her daughter, rubbing her back as she led her to the lounge room. "I'm sure he's fine and you have a visitor."

Caroline stopped when she saw who it was. "Elena." She said, not impressed at being ambushed.

Elena stood, hesitantly, from the couch. "Hi Caroline." She gave Caroline an awkward smile.

The sheriff looked between the two of them, "I'll leave you two to talk." She rubbed her daughter's arm and whispered, "Give her a chance."

Caroline rolled her eyes, "Fine." She mumbled and plopped herself down, opposite Elena. "Talk."

Elena sat back down, "Um…sooo…how have you been?" She knew it was a lame start but it was all she could come up with. "I've missed you, Caroline." Caroline picked up a magazine and started flicking through it. Elena sighed, "Come on, Caroline, you can't keep ignoring me and Damon. Mystic Falls isn't very big."

Caroline didn't look up, "I've done a pretty good job so far."

"Caroline, Enso was Damon's best friend…"

"And Stefan is his brother!" Caroline slammed the magazine down on the table, "And if you've just come here to make excuses for your boyfriend, then you can just leave!"

"Caroline…"

"No! Don't even try, Elena." Caroline stood and shook her head at her in disgust, "You know, if it was you or Damon that had gone missing for three months, Stefan would've turned the whole country upside down, trying to find you. Instead you're having sex with his so-called brother, just like you did when he went missing last time!"

"That's not fair…I…"

"No, what's not fair is Stefan spent the last five years loving and protecting you and what has it got him?" Caroline glared at her former best friend, "NOTHING!" She stormed out of the room with that, leaving Elena alone and feeling very guilty. Was Caroline right? Was she being selfish?

Deep in the woods of Mystic Falls…

Stefan laid chained to a stone slab deep under the forest ground. Not long after leaving his home three months ago, he was ambushed on the road on the way out of Mystic Falls. He remembered feeling as if his head was about to explode and then nothing. He woke up here in the cave, in this exact same spot and he remained here since, never seeing light. They were travellers and they wanted the location of his doppelganger. They needed him dead. They tortured him daily, almost frying his brain each time, searching for the location, but Stefan wouldn't give in. He held on. He didn't know what the travellers had planned but he knew he couldn't allow them to succeed, so he fought them, every time. He fought as hard as he could, but it's been three months and between the torture, the vervain and the draining of his blood, he was finding it harder and harder to not give in. The door to his cell opened. It was time again.

"We're going to try something different today." Stefan couldn't help the stab of fear he felt at the tone of the voice.

Above ground, a chilling scream could be heard, if anyone was around, "NNNNOOOOOOOOOO!"

Forbes's residence…

Caroline bolted up in her bed. Sweat ran down her neck. She was shaking. Something woke her up. A feeling. A deep cold reaching down into her very soul. If she had any doubt that Stefan was in trouble, those doubts had just been erased. Stefan was in trouble. Caroline reached for her phone and dialled a number. The person on the other end picked up. "I need your help."

Salvatore Mansion…

Caroline slammed her fist against the door of the Salvatore house. It was the middle of the night. "Open up, Damon!"

The door opened, revealing a very irate vampire and a very sleepy one. "Caroline?" Elena rubbed her eyes to wake herself up, worried about her friend, "What's wrong?"

"Can I come in?" Caroline asked as she pushed between the couple to get past.

Elena may be feeling guilty about Stefan, but Damon was not. He was still angry. "Listen here, Barbie." He grabbed her by the arm and spun her around, "I've given you a lot of slack the past months because of Elena, but don't push it!" He hissed in her face.

Caroline didn't even flinch, "And I've ignored you, instead of trying to kill you the past months because you're my best friend's brother, but said best friend is in trouble now, so I don't have the luxury of ignoring you anymore. I need all the help I can get to find him."

Elena put a hand on Damon's, telling him to let her handle the situation. "Caroline, how do you know this?"

Caroline sighed, "I have a very bad feeling…"

Damon laughed, "Oh well then let's go break out the cavalry because little Miss Caroline Forbes has a bad feeling!"

Caroline glared him before continue, "Elena, you said you were dreaming about Stefan when Silas locked him in that safe at the bottom of the quarry." Elena nodded, "This is the same thing."

Elena looked sceptical, "Caroline, no offense but Stefan and I, we have a connection that…"

Caroline shook her head at her, "Get over yourself, Elena. You're not the centre of his world anymore. If he is in trouble and needs to reach out, you and Damon are the last people he would reach out to." She closed her eyes, calming herself down. Stefan needed all of them right now. "Please. I need your help in finding him."

"Even if it's true. Where would we start? It's been three months."

"Come on, Elena. We are not entertaining her!" Damon was about to shove Caroline out the door when she slapped him across the face.

"Wow," Caroline smiled, "I've needed to do that for so long!" Her smile faded when Damon's expression turned deadly. He was about to launch at her when a voice from the door made his blood run cold.

"Touch her and I'll start targeting your little girlfriend again." The English accent was unmistakeable.

"Klaus." Damon growled as he turned his attention to the door. Not only was it Klaus, but his brother, Elijah as well.

"Nikklaus, we're here on Ms Forbes request. Please don't turn this into a doppelganger blood situation again. That was so last year." Elijah smiled at his brother's expression. He turned back to the residents. "May we come in?"

"Even if Jeremy was here to invite you in we wouldn't!" Damon rolled his eyes at how stupid Elijah thought they were.

Klaus shrugged, "Fine, we'll leave."

"Please, Klaus. I really need your help." Caroline walked up to the door and step over the threshold. "Please."

Klaus could not refuse the beautiful Caroline Forbes. "I've done as you asked. One of the witches from the coven in New Orleans casted a location spell, endangering herself, by the way. She said Stefan's life sign is very weak. She could only narrow it down to an area in the woods."

"Apparently, she also sensed a power she hadn't felt in decades." Elijah continued, "The Travellers."

"Oh no…" Elana gasped from inside. "They have Stefan?"

"No thanks to you and your boyfriend, apparently." Klaus loved taunting people, especially Damon but it had no effect this time. Damon was too focused on something else.

"Where in the woods?" Damon asked, a sudden fear for his brother's life taking over.

They all looked at him. Caroline smirked, "Do I actually hear concern in your voice?"

Damon glared at her, "He's my brother."

Caroline had a few choice things to say to that but she held her tongue. Stefan needed them to work together. She turned to Klaus, "Where?"

Klaus nodded, "Get all the gear you need."

The woods…

Stefan was drowning again. The Travellers had chained him in a tank full of water. It's been a day now. He was broken. He would give them what they want the next time they let him out. He couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't do this anymore. Stefan wasn't going to fight them. He had no fight left in him. His eyes closed as his lungs filled with water again.

Above ground…

Elijah lifted his hand to stop everyone, demanding silence. Out of all of them, he was the most objective, experienced and level-headed. It was a unanimous and silent agreement that he would lead them. They were getting close. He nodded to Klaus. Klaus understood. He pulled out a pouch and a candle. Damon frowned, "We don't have time to create ambiance!" He hissed. Klaus ignored him and lit the candle. He stood and sprinkled whatever was in the pouch over the flame. They waited. Damon was about to walk ahead when a glowing trail appeared leading from the candle, deeper into the woods. "I take it we go that way." Damon whispered.

Elijah stood aside and gestured in the direction of the light. "After you."

They followed the trail until it disappeared into the ground. Damon frowned and knelt in the dirt. He felt around and realised the ground was actually a wooden board. He quickly brushed aside all the leaves to reveal a wooden trap door. He looked up at the others. This was it.

Below ground...

Two men dragged Stephen out of the tank. Stephen coughed up the water that was in his lungs, taking in the air he needed. They threw him onto the slab that had been his bed for three months and chained him down. He didn't know why they bothered. Stephen was in no shape to make an escape. The woman in the room dipped her fingers in blood and stood at Stephen's head. Stephen knew what was coming and this time, he wasn't going to fight. It still hurt though.

Damon's blood froze when his brother's scream echoed through the tunnels underground. "Stefan." He breathed.

"Stefan!" Caroline started running but Klaus caught her around the waist.

"We need the element of surprise my dear." Klaus whispered to her, "Remember what we told you." Caroline calmed herself and nodded. She remembered. The travellers could incapacitate them with a few words. They couldn't be given the chance to utter a word, meaning they had to take them by surprise. "Stealth and speed are our ally." Klaus said to all of them. They nodded and continued down the tunnel.

The travellers had no chance against two Originals and three vampires. There were only three of them. Klaus and Damon took out the two men while Elijah snapped the neck of the woman torturing Stefan. Caroline and Elena ran in as soon as the room was clear. "Stefan!" Caroline took Stephen's face in her hands, "Stefan!" She called again, but Stefan didn't respond. "What's wrong with him? Are we too late?"

Elijah shook his head. He was standing at the head of the table. "He's unconscious. I don't know what they did to him but I can ascertain by the items in this room that it was not pleasant." He frowned at the tank of water behind Caroline. Caroline turned to look at what Elijah was looking at and froze.

"No." Caroline turned and saw her expression mirrored in Elena's face. "They drowned him." She only just noticed that Stefan was soaked. Elena turned away and leaned into Damon. Damon was too shocked to even comfort her. This is the second time in a year that Stefan suffered because of his inactions. Caroline started crying, "He didn't deserve this." She turned on Damon, glaring daggers at him. "This is your fault. You drove him away!" Klaus pulled her away from Damon and into his arms.

"He's going to be okay, darling." Klaus rubbed his hand up and down her back as she sobbed into his shoulder. Stefan may have been a pain in his existence but he has also been one of the few people he would call a friend. He nodded for Elijah to take care of the boy.

Elijah lifted Stefan's head and bit into his own wrist. He pressed the open vein against Stefan's lips, smiling when he felt the man suck, weak as it may be. "He's weak. I would hazard a guess that they fed him the bare minimum. They wanted something from him. Something we won't know until Stefan wakes up. My blood should be enough until you can get him home and provide him with more sustenance." A groan from the man on the stone table drew all their attentions.

"Stefan?" Klaus let Caroline go. Elijah drew his wrist away and stepped back, allowing her some space. "Stefan." She called again softly, smiling when Stefan finally opened his eyes. "Hey." She caressed his cheek, "You know a girl could get offended when you don't return her 300 calls." Stefan didn't even register what she was saying. His eyes were focused on the tank against the wall. It was Klaus that noticed the panic that was starting to creep into his eyes. He quickly pulled Caroline aside and grabbed Stefan's face in his hands, tearing his line of sight from the tank.

"You're safe. You're really tired. You just want to go home." Klaus waited for the tell-tale sign of the pupils expanding to make sure his compulsion was working.

Stefan relaxed, no longer on the verge of panic. "I'm tired. Can we go home?" Klaus nodded and turned to Damon. "Make yourself useful and get those chains off him." He ordered. Damon didn't even flinch at being ordered around by Klaus. He searched the bodies for the key to the chains and released his brother. Klaus lifted Stefan up so that he was sitting on the table. "Let's get you out of here, shall we?" He was about to swing Stefan's legs over the side when Stefan stopped him.

"I can do it myself. Don't need anyone's help." It was obvious to everyone Stefan was slowly returning to his old self, but it was even more obvious he was far from it. They watched as he painfully swung his legs over the side of the table and slid off it, but he didn't have the strength to keep himself standing.

Damon launched over at vampire speed, catching him under the arms. "Easy there, little brother." He pushed Stefan back and leaned him against the stone table when he felt Stefan get his legs back under him. Stefan looked at him, confused. Damon looked worried.

"This is a dream." Stefan pushed Damon away and started heading towards the door when he saw Elena.

"Stefan, I'm so glad you're okay."

Stefan was just as confused to see Elena. "Definitely a dream."

"Stefan, it's not a dream." Elena grabbed his hand and put it against her cheek. "You can feel me. It's not a dream."

Stefan yanked his hand back, shocking Elena, "Why are you here?" It was Elena's turn to be confused, "Shouldn't you and Damon be having the best time of your lives without me?"

"Stefan," Elana shook her head, a tear rolled down her cheek, "We didn't know you were missing."

"You never do." Stefan pushed her aside as he stumbled past. He didn't make it very far, when Elijah caught him and pulled his arm over his shoulder. Stefan frowned, "This doesn't make any sense."

"To what are you referring to?"

"Why are you here? Why are any of you here?" Stefan was barely walking on his own, so Klaus stepped up to his other side, taking the rest of his weight. "Why are you saving me?" This time the question was directed at Klaus.

"Because Caroline asked for my help, so here I am." Klaus answered him.

Stefan smiled, his eyes were slowly closing. "That's the only thing that's made sense since I woke up." With that he lost consciousness. Caroline, who was walking behind them, heard what Stefan had said and couldn't help but smile. At least Stefan knew he could always count on her.

They arrived at the cars they had driven; Damon's mustang and Elijah and Klaus's four wheel drive. Caroline jumped in the back seat as Elijah and Klaus gently eased him in next to her. She put her arms around him and leaned his head on her shoulder. "Go back to my place."

"What?" Damon, who was about to head over to his car, objected, "He's my brother. We'll take him home."

"And whose home is that? You kicked him out, remember?" Caroline didn't even looked at Damon as she spoke. "Anyway, Klaus and Elijah can't enter your house."

"All the more reason why we should go there." Damon gave them a smile, as if to say, no offense.

"The Travellers could come for Stefan. I want him protected. Klaus and Elijah can come in my place and I trust them to protect Stefan a hell of a lot more than his brother right now." Caroline glared at Damon.

Damon didn't like it, but he couldn't fault her logic. At least the part about Elijah and Klaus's protection. Caroline was wrong about Damon. Right now, Damon would give his life for Stefan. "Fine!"

Forbes's residence…

Klaus and Elijah lowered Stefan on the bed in the guest room. Caroline was down stairs with Damon and Elena, explaining to Sheriff Forbes why there were two Originals in her home. Elijah looked down at Stefan. He was never close to Stefan, not the way Klaus was, but they had a connection. They both would do anything for the people they loved and for that, Elijah would always respect him. "You know, when you asked me to come along, I didn't know I was signing on for protection duty as well." Elijah gave his brother a mirthless smile.

Klaus sighed, "Neither did I?"

"We cannot extend our stay for too long. Our absence may put Hayley in danger."

Klaus rolled his eyes, "Rebekah is keeping an eye on her and she has the protection of the wolves. No one is going near her." Elijah nodded, though he still wasn't completely convinced, "Besides, I want to find out what the Travellers want with Stefan Salvatore. Anything to do with the Travellers can't be good for Vampires or werewolves."

"Travellers cannot conjugate in one area. They are a force in numbers which is why they were cursed." Elijah frowned. He could feel the storm ahead.

"The strange thing is, even the witches in New Orleans are scared."

"There's nothing we can do until Stefan wakes up. We need to know what he knows." Elijah turned to Klaus and gave him a curious smile. "You dealt with him quite well in that cell."

Klaus rolled his eyes, "I was doing it for Caroline."

"Of course you were." Elijah shook his head. It was hard to get his brother to admit he cared for anyone but himself.

Klaus looked down at Stephen. "Did you see the look on his face? In all the years I have known him, he has never shown fear. At least, not for himself. He feared for the lives of others but never his own." He turned back to his brother. Elijah has seen that expression before. The three travellers are fortunate they are dead. "What I saw in his eyes was pure fear."

"You've compelled him to relax and it worked." Elijah had a feeling he was wrong, even as he said it, "but the fear is too strong for compulsion to completely overcome it."

"And Stefan is too strong to allow my compulsion to completely control him. His love for Elena was too strong for it." Klaus was impressed. Elijah could hear it in his voice. It was at that point that Caroline entered the room with Elena and Damon. "But obviously his love meant nothing to our dear Ms Gilbert." He gave Elena the smile that irritated her so much.

"How is he?" Caroline sat on the edge of the bed, combing her fingers through Stefan's hair, affectionately.

"He'll be fine for now, Darling." Klaus reassured her, "But I can't guarantee how he'll react when he wakes up."

"Looks like we're about to find out." Caroline said nervously as Stefan stirred. Her hand kept combing through his hair, hoping to give him a feeling of safety and comfort. It didn't work. His movements got more irritated and jerky. "Stefan?" Caroline took him by the shoulders and shook him hard. "Stefan! Wake up!"

Damon watched on. He's seen this before. Not long after Stefan regained his memories, courtesy of Qetsiyah or Tessa or whatever her name was, Damon witnessed a panic attack that resulted in Stefan destroying his favourite reading chair. "Barbie, you need to stand back."

"Like hell I will! You may have a habit of abandoning your brother but…"

"Caroline, you should do what he says." Klaus warned. Damon grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her away just as Stefan bolted up in the bed, his hand launched forward at the place Caroline's throat would've been. The veins around his eyes were showing. A second later, Caroline's head would've been ripped clear off her neck. Elijah was a blur as he moved to push Stefan back against the bed.

"You're safe, Stefan." Elijah spoke in his usual calm and reasonable voice. Stefan fought against the hands. It didn't seem like anything was going to get through to him.

Damon moved Caroline towards Elena and stepped towards his brother. "Stefan. You're okay." He sat down on the bed where Caroline was, a minute ago. Stefan was still fighting against Elijah's hold. "Listen to me, little brother. You're safe." It seemed those words got through the panic. Stefan stopped his struggles. The veins around his eyes disappeared. "That's it." Damon soothed.

Stefan looked around the room. He frowned when he noticed Elijah had him pinned to the bed by the shoulders. Klaus was standing to his left while Caroline and Elena were near the foot of the bed. The biggest surprise was Damon sitting next to him. "So it wasn't a dream after all." He looked up at Elijah. "You want to let me go?"

Elijah took his hands back, "Of course. Apologies."

Stefan put a hand to his head. He felt as if someone had taken to hammer to it. He pushed himself up against the headboard. "How did you find me?"

"It seems you and Caroline have grown close in my absence." Klaus narrowed his eyes at him.

Stefan couldn't be bothered with fending off Klaus's wrath. "Jealous?"

Klaus scoff and leaned back against the window sill, "Please."

Stefan looked over at Caroline and smiled, "How'd you know?"

Caroline looked like she was about to cry, "I felt you in a dream. You were scared."

"Thank you." Stefan voice was barely a whisper as he looked into the distance, the memory of what he went through coming back to him. The chains, the pain, the water…

"Stefan!"

Stefan jumped, pushing himself up against the headboard. For a moment he couldn't recognise if the people in the room was friend or foe. When he finally worked it out he calmed down. Everyone was staring at him. "What?" He didn't notice he was trembling and sweating all over.

"Where'd you go, brother?" Damon asked.

Stefan turned to him, "Why do you keep calling me that?"

"What? Brother?" Damon shrugged, "Because you're my brother."

Stefan shook his head, "That's not what I remember."

Damon looked down at his hands. He was hoping he didn't have to have this conversation with Stefan yet. "Listen, we should talk about this later."

"Yeah, sure. Whatever you want, Damon." Stefan turned away from him, but that meant looking at Klaus. He sighed, "Thank you all for getting me out of there, but you can go now. I don't need babysitters."

"We would love too, Stefan, but it seems the Travellers are planning something big and we need to know what it is." Klaus gave him that fake smile he loved giving people.

Stefan closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. The headache seemed to have just upped its intensity. Just thinking about the pain he went through made him want to throw up. "They needed to find the last doppelganger. All of Elena's are dead, so that just leaves one of mine."

Elijah's eyes narrowed at that information, "Do you know why?"

Stefan shook his head, "No…just...that…" Suddenly he lost all his senses except for pain. His head exploded.

"Stefan!" They watched, helpless as Stefan curled in on himself, his head protected within his hands.

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"

"Someone do something!" Caroline called as Elena tried to hold her back. "Let me go!"

"Caroline, there's nothing you can do." Elena told her.

Caroline suddenly spun on her, "Why are you so quick to abandon Stefan? After everything he's done for you!"

"I'm not abandoning him, Caroline." Elena defended, sad that her best friend thought that of her.

Caroline shook her head, "You're not the same girl, Elena. You're selfish. You're happy with Damon and that's all you care about. You don't care how many people are hurting around you anymore." Caroline stepped away from her. "Get out of my house."

"Look Barbie…"

"Both of you. Go!" She stepped around the bed and knelt in front of Stefan. "Stefan, listen to my voice. Focus on it." She put a hand to his cheek. "Listen to me, Stefan. You're my best friend. You taught me how to be a vampire. You showed me how to control my hunger. I know that it hurts, but you have to beat it. You're the strongest person I know and the best person I know. You would do anything for your friends and your family, despite how much you're hurting. It's time you do something for yourself." She wiped away her tears, "You have to fight. Please."

Stefan felt like someone was hacking his head with an axe. There was so much pain that he couldn't focus on anything else. Then something happened. A voice broke through. "Stefan, listen to my voice. Focus on it." Caroline. It's always Caroline who is there for him. He focused on her voice and let it guide back to from the pain. "You have to fight. Please." Slowly, the pain faded to a more bearable level.

Caroline felt Stefan relax. She smiled when he lowered his hands from his head and opened his eyes. "Hey there." She said softly.

"Hey." He was exhausted. Pushing back the pain took a lot of energy. "I'm tired."

Caroline nodded and gently caressed his cheek. "Then go to sleep." He slowly closed his eyes and fell asleep. She waited until she was sure Stefan was comfortable before standing and pulling the covers over him. When she was finally satisfied that Stefan was indeed asleep, she turned to the others. "I thought I told you to leave." She demanded of Damon and Elena.

"Despite what you may want, Stefan's my brother. I'm not leaving him unless I'm sure he's safe." Damon folded his arms and dared her to kick him out.

"He doesn't even know why you call him that." She grilled out, getting a little satisfaction at Damon's flinch at those words.

"I'm staying." Damon insisted, stubbornly. "You want me out? Stake me." He pointed at his chest where his heart is, "Don't miss." They stood there staring each other down. It didn't look like any of them were going to back down, but Caroline saw something in Damon's eyes…fear…regret…guilt. Caroline took a deep breath and backed off.

"Fine. Stay." She looked him in the eyes. "But when he wakes up you better fix this."

"He'll need blood when he wakes up." Elena spoke up.

"I keep a supply of animal blood in the basement."

"You drink animal blood?" Elena was surprised.

Caroline looked at her as if she was stupid, "I keep it for Stefan. Believe it not, despite how much he looks okay with you and your boyfriend. Staying at home isn't always an option for him."

Elena winced in embarrassment, "Right."

"I'm tired." Caroline turned to Elijah and Klaus. "There's another room just next door."

"I'm happy to stay in your room." Klaus smiled at her, cheekily.

"In your dreams." Caroline smiled back, sweetly. Then she stopped, "You will protect him, won't you?" Klaus raised his eyebrows at her. "I mean, I know Stefan and you haven't really seen eye to eye and you've tried to kill each other and all that, but you'll still protect him."

Klaus tilted his head, looking very unsure, "Well…when you put it that way…"

"No harm will come to Stefan as long as we are here. I give you my word." Elijah smiled at Klaus.

Klaus rolled his eyes, and slapped his brother on the shoulder, "My brother's word is golden." Then he said more seriously, "You have my word as well."

"Thank you." Caroline left the room, exhausted.

Damon turned to Elena and took her by the shoulders. "I need you to get a hold of Bonnie. Call Jeremy and tell him he and his girlfriend are needed back here yesterday!"

"That's right. Your hunter brother and his anchor girlfriend should be quite useful." Klaus shrugged, "Well, his girlfriend anyway. She can get information on both sides of the veil."

Elena barely offered him a glance, "I'll call them." She rubbed Damon's arm. "You'll be okay?"

Damon turned to Stefan. The tell-tale frown told Damon his brother's sleep wasn't a restful one. "I'll give you an answer later." Elena nodded and gave him a kiss before leaving the room to make the calls.

Damon grabbed a chair from the corner of the room and sat down next to the bed. For the past three months he believed his anger over Enso's death was warranted. He didn't believe he over-reacted. Enso kept him sane during the five years he was imprisoned by the Augustine society. He was experimented on, tortured beyond recognition just to heal and go through the process again. Enzo kept him from hating his brother for not coming for him and Stefan killed him. It wasn't right. There could've been another way. There should've been. For three months, Damon has justified his almost killing and kicking his brother out of Mystics Falls on these reasons. He slept fine for three months, but seeing the tank of water, the chains and his soaking brother made his blood freeze. Stefan almost went crazy the last time he was drowned. Damon wasn't sure Stefan could get through it a second time.

"Don't think too hard, Damon." Klaus grinned at him, "Your head might explode."

"Shut up, Klaus." Damon groaned, not in the mood for the man's ego.

"You know, Caroline asked us to protect Stefan. She didn't say anything about you." Klaus gave a half-warning.

"Nikklaus, this situation is delicate as it is. Please refrain from adding oil to the fire." Elijah eyed Damon, who was ignoring them. The boy was feeling guilty, but refused to acknowledge it. He's seen it in his own brother plenty of times. "We should leave you alone with your brother." He grabbed Klaus by the arm and dragged him out before he could object.

Damon leaned forward in his seat, his elbows resting on his knees. "If you'd have just given me a chance to talk to Enzo." He was still justifying his behaviour but seeing Stefan in the bed, in pain, is making it harder to maintain those justifications. Stefan started tossing in his sleep. Damon could see the sweat beading across his forehead. He waited to see if Stefan calmed on his own but he only got more violent. "Damn it." Damon cursed. He stood, getting ready for what was coming. Stefan shot up from the bed in a panic. Damon pushed him back down and held him there, but Stefan fought him like a mad man. Despite that, Damon easily restrained him given that he was weak from lack of blood. Damon frowned when he realised Stefan wasn't breathing. "Stefan! Stefan! You're not underwater. Breathe!" Stefan didn't hear him. He couldn't. His lungs were burning. "Breathe, Stefan!" He winced at what he was about to do. "Sorry brother." He punched Stefan in the stomach forcing him let out a breath. It was only small but enough to shock Stefan out of his panic. The sound of Stefan taking a much needed breath was a relief. "That's good. That's good." He released his hold and sat back on the bed when he felt his brother relax a little. "Hell of a nightmare."

Stefan groaned as he looked around the room and pushed himself up, confused. "What the hell was that for?" He asked rubbing his stomach.

"Sorry, you weren't breathing." Damon grimaced apologetically.

Stefan smirked, "You don't have to act like you didn't enjoy it." He didn't let Damon reply to that. "What are you doing here?"

Damon sighed. This is going to be a bad conversation. "Pulled babysitting duty." He answered, hoping to lighten the mood but knew it wouldn't work.

"I'm fine. You can go."

"You make me feel so welcomed, brother." Damon said, deadpanned.

Stefan glared at him. "Stop calling me that!"

Damon sighed, "Stefan, you're my brother."

Stefan folded his hands under his arms to stop their shaking. He leaned back against the headboard and turned away from Damon. "I stopped being your brother a long time ago, Damon."

Damon raised his eyebrows, "Three months isn't that long."

Stefan scoffed but didn't turn to him, "We haven't been brothers since we turned."

"Ah…come on, Stefan, you're being a little melodramatic."

"I'm tired, Damon, I'm so tired of you hating me. You should've just killed me." Stefan looked out the window, "If you had just killed me that day…"

"Stefan…"

"You just needed a millimetre to the left. I could feel it…just a small movement." Stefan's spoke as if he was in a dream.

"I was angry." Damon tried to explained, not liking the suicidal thoughts his brother was having, "Enzo saved my life. I owed him. You owed him. You didn't have to kill him."

"He threatened to destroy you. He wanted you to suffer." There was no force behind the words. No expression that told Damon he really wanted him to believe his words. It was spoken as if he was reciting lines.

"We already knew that. Enzo wasn't a bad person I just needed to talk to him!"

Stefan nodded, "You're right. I'm the one that's bad. I'm the one that should be dead."

"That's not what I meant, Stefan!" Damon wasn't getting through to his brother and it was driving him mad.

"I really should stop caring." Damon froze at that. "Sometimes I wonder why I fight so hard to keep my humanity when it's so much easier just to turn it off."

"No, no, no, no, no…" Damon sped to the other side of the bed and took Stefan by the shoulder. "Look at me!" He shook Stefan hard. "Don't you dare!"

"Why the hell do you care?" Stefan shoved Damon's hands off him.

"Of course I care. You're my brother! I was angry. Hell, I get angry at you all the time. Why is this time such a big deal!?" Damon asked, exasperated at this conversation.

"Because I thought we got past it all. For a moment I started thinking we could go back to being brothers, to you not hating me anymore. That's why I didn't want you to find out I killed Enzo. I didn't want you to hate me again." Stefan smirked, "Should've known better. You never stopped hating me."

"I don't hate you, Stefan. I was angry. You killed my best friend." Damon was starting to sound like a broken record.

Stefan glared at him, "And you killed Lexi!" Damon flinched at that, "I killed Enzo to protect you but Lexi died for your convenience!" Stefan shook his head. "Don't you see, Damon? This is never going to stop. It doesn't matter what I do. You'll always hate me.." Stefan threw off the covers and moved to get out of the bed.

"Where are you going?" Damon stopped him from standing.

"I'm leaving. I'm done. You won't see me again." With that Stefan shoved Damon aside and burst out the door.

"STEFAN!" Damon followed. He was faster and caught Stefan on the front lawn. He wrestled him to the ground and pinned him on his back.

"What the frack is going on?" Caroline demanded. She, along with Klaus, Elijah and Elena were out on the lawn with them.

"Stay out of this, Barbie. This is between me and my brother." Damon dared her to come closer. Elijah stopped her when she tried.

"Let this play out."

Damon returned his attention to his brother. "You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?" He held down one of Stefan's wrists while his other arm pinned him down across the chest.

"Why wouldn't I?" Stefan growled at him, "You sent me packing, brother!"

"And I was wrong!" Damon finally admitted. "I was wrong." He said again more softly.

"Get off me!" Stefan struggled against the hold on his wrist and chest. "GET OFF ME!"

"Stefan, listen to me. I'm trying to apologise."

"I don't need it!" Stefan screamed at him. "Why now? What's so different this time? You've spent over a century making my life miserable. Why apologise now?"

"Because this time it's bad." Damon answered him. Stefan stopped his struggling for a moment. "This time you're scared."

"You don't know what you're talking about." Stefan denied, but it lacked conviction.

"What Silas did to you was worse than anything I've ever put you through. It shouldn't have happened again. If I didn't throw you out, the Travellers wouldn't have got their hands on you. You wouldn't have been tortured. You wouldn't have been put in that tank." Damon made sure Stefan looked him in the eyes when he said the next words, "I saw your eyes when you woke up and saw that tank. I can see it in your eyes now. You're scared and it's my fault. You're right. We've been doing this for too long. Let me help you."

Stefan wanted so much to believe Damon's words, but he's let himself hope before, it only ever led to more pain. "Just let me go, Damon. I'm tired. Let me go and we'll never have to see each other again."

Damon shook his head in frustration, "Damn it, Stefan. You usually forgive and forget so easily."

"Do you know what I was thinking about when they had me?" Stefan asked him. Damon wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer to that question. "I was thinking…maybe this is why Damon didn't kill me. He wanted me to suffer…like how you and Enzo suffered."

"Stefan, I would never…"

"Do you see how screwed up we are, Damon?" Stefan was defeated. "It's better for everyone if you just let me go and forget I ever existed." Damon hung his head. He really screwed up this time. Stefan was hurting so badly he would rather leave behind everybody he cared about. "Please, let me go." Stefan's voice was soft. He was begging Damon. "Please, Damon. I can't do this anymore."

Damon slowly loosened his grip and got off his brother, rising to his feet. He couldn't stand the pain in Stefan's voice. Nothing Damon was saying was getting through. Making Stefan stay was only hurting him even more. Stefan got to his feet, shakily. "Thank you." He looked at Caroline on the porch. He knew how much it would hurt Caroline if he left but for his own sanity, he had to leave. "I'm sorry." Caroline shook her head, crying as Stefan turned to leave.

Damon allowed Stefan to walk all of three steps before he gave in to his big brother instincts. Stefan couldn't comprehend what was happening. Damon had his arms around him, hugging him so tight that he thought his ribs would crack. "Damon…"

"No, Stefan." Damon whispered in his ear. "Just listen to me one more time." Damon closed his eyes as he spoke. "Do you remember what I said to you at mom's funeral?" Stefan felt himself losing control of his emotions. He tried to break free of his brother's arms but they were like steel frames. "I told you that I would always love you and protect you. I told you that as long as I'm alive you will never be alone."

Stefan was shaking now. "I don't remember." He lied.

"Yes you do."

Stefan angrily pushed and pulled as he tried to break Damon's hold. "What does it matter? You broke that promise a long time ago! You didn't want to live when Katherine turned us! You wanted to leave me alone for the rest of my existence!"

"I know." Damon had tears in his eyes. "I know, but I'm making you a new one now." He took a shaky breath. "I promise no matter what happens between us, I will never hate you. No matter what happens, we will always be brothers."

Tears were running down Stefan's cheeks. He wanted to believe Damon. He really did, but he was too scared to hope again. "Why should I trust you?" But even as he asked he knew he already did. "I can't do this anymore. I'm going to lose my mind, Damon."

Damon heard the cry for help. He pushed Stefan back but kept his hands on his shoulders. "No more fighting. No more running. This is it. You and me. Brothers."

This time, it was Stefan that pulled his brother in. He hugged Damon as tight as he could, savouring this moment of getting his brother back. The same brother that protected him his entire human existence. Damon closed his eyes in relief. "We're gonna be okay, Stefan. I promise."

The feelings going through Stefan at those words couldn't be described. He's been waiting for Damon to say those words for so long he almost forgot how they sounded. The relief he felt took him over and suddenly he could barely stay awake. "Damon…"

"I'm here, little brother."

"I'm really tired."

Damon frowned and pulled back to take a good look at Stefan. Stefan was struggling to keep his eyes open. He shook his head to clear his head but that aggravated his headache. "Let's get you back inside." Damon pulled Stefan's arms over his shoulder and half dragged him towards the house. Caroline quickly stepped up and supported him from the other side.

As they passed the Mikaelson brothers on the steps, Elijah nodded his approval.

"Nice speech." Klaus agreed. "I was so sure Stefan was gone for good."

Damon just ignored him and continued up to the room with his brother.

Stefan groaned as Damon lowered him onto the bed. "Sleep." Damon pulled up the sheets to cover his brother's trembling body. He sighed. Something more than just exhaustion was causing this.

"You haven't tucked me in since I was eight." Chuckles sounded around the room. Stefan frowned and opened his eyes to find Damon grinning at him and the others standing around his bed.

"You must be feeling really bad to say that out loud." Damon laughed.

"I feel like crap, Damon." Stefan admitted, "Leave me alone." He paused and lifted his head up to look at the others. "Are you all going to stand here and watch me sleep?" They would've laughed at that if it wasn't followed by a pain filled groan. He dropped his head back and closed his eyes, hoping it would ease the headache. For three months the Travellers have been frying his brain in an effort to find his doppelganger. It seems the effects of the torture still lingered. "God, my head feels like I'm a thousand feet underwater." He was so tired but the headache wouldn't let him sleep.

"They do what Qetsiyah did?" Damon asked him. He saw how much pain Stefan was in when Qetsiyah got to Silas through Stefan.

"Yeah." Stefan rested his arm over his eyes, "Yeah, same thing."

"How long?"

"What?"

"How long did they do that for? I heard you scream. If they got the information earlier, they wouldn't still be torturing you today."

Stefan sighed and pulled his arm down. He looked at Damon. "It doesn't matter."

"It does to me."

"Let it go, Damon." Stefan was over his anger but Damon's guilt was still there.

"How long, Stefan?" Damon asked again, not letting go as he was asked. He glared at his brother, telling him he wasn't going to back off.

Finally Stefan gave in. "Every day since I left here."

Damon could feel his blood boiling, but he didn't know if he was angrier at himself or the Travellers, "You should've just let them have it. They only want your doppelganger dead."

"And be responsible for the death of an innocent person." Stefan shook his head, "I saw him. He's a good person. A paramedic. He saves lives. If one of us has to die, it should be me, not him."

"Do you really think anyone in this room would let that happen?"

Stefan pushed himself up on his elbows and looked around. He smiled at Caroline before looking at the others. Then he dropped back down. "Maybe Klaus."

Klaus laughed at that, "I always said you knew me best."

"Did you give them what they wanted?" Elijah asked.

Stefan didn't answer that straight away. He turned onto his side, away from everyone. "Yeah." He felt the bed sink as someone sat down. "Don't try to tell me it's okay that I broke. It doesn't matter. You came in time. Killed them before they could do anything with the location."

"I'm sorry I didn't come earlier." Damon said softly.

Stefan turned back around. "It's not like they kept me in that tank for three months. They changed tactics last night."

"That's when you reached out to me." Caroline stepped forward, shivering at the chill she felt when she woke up.

"I didn't know I was reaching out to anyone. Guess it's instinctive."

"You reached out last time as well." Elena spoke up. She hasn't said much since Stefan woke up.

Stefan looked at the girl who use to be everything to him. Never in his life did he think his feelings for her would change. Never say never. "Yeah. A lot of good that did."

Elena looked down at her feet, feeling guilty. "Hey, it wasn't her fault. She didn't want to hurt me by…" Damon drifted off after realising he wasn't helping the situation.

Stefan sighed, frustrated at the situation. "I'm sorry. My headache's put me in a really bad mood. It's water under the bridge, Elena. I'm not angry at you…" He closed his eyes. "Just angry."

Caroline held out a bottle of blood, "This should help."

Stefan opened his eyes and grinned when his sights locked onto the bottle. "Rabbit?"

"Tortoise." Stefan paused at that. Caroline burst out laughing at his expression. "It's deer." Stefan shook his head. He really did miss Caroline. He took the blood and drank it down in one go. Caroline took the bottle back. "Better?"

"Better." Stefan dropped back onto the bed. He was about to close his eyes when he sensed something. He sat up, looking towards the window. "They're here." Stefan got off the bed and stepped up to the window, pulling back the curtains. Two Travellers were standing outside looking up at him. Stefan's hand came up to his temple as the pressure in his head increased further. Damon caught him as he stumbled back in pain. He lowered Stefan to the floor. Stefan bit his lips to stop from making a sound.

Damon could feel his brother trembling from the effort of trying to control the pain. "Sons of bitches!" He growled. He was about to jump out the window and pull their hearts out but Elijah stopped him.

"Let us handle it. Stay with your brother." Elijah turned to his own brother, "I believe this is where the fun begins."

"This is the Elijah I know and love." Klaus grinned and followed Elijah out the door.

"Don't kill them. We want information." Elijah ordered.

"I take it back. You take the fun out of it." Klaus complained.

"Did you miss the part about information?" Elijah asked, giving him a knowing smile.

Klaus grinned and rubbed his hands together, "Interrogation, my favourite pastime." He smiled at the horror on Sheriff Forbes's face. "I'm going to need plastic bags to line your carpet." He couldn't help himself.

Damon's arms tightened around his brother when Stefan moaned. He pulled at Damon's arm that was wrapped around his chest, his body tensed. Stefan tried to find an anchor. Anything he could focus on instead of the pressure in his head. "Damon, make it stop." Stefan voice was soft, but Damon heard it. It transported him back to the days after their mother died. Stefan was only five at the time and their father was too busy wallowing in his own grief to take care of them. His little brother had nightmares every day for a week. Finally, Stefan came running into his room one night crying. "Damon, make it stop!" Tears ran down his small face. "Please, make them stop. They keep coming!" Damon, who was ten, quickly got up and gathered his brother in his arms, carrying him back to his bed. He tucked him under the covers and sat there with his arms around him.

"Stop what, Stefan?"

"The nightmares. I keep seeing mother in the coffin." Stefan sobbed in his arms. "I want her back. I want her back!"

Damon cried with his brother. "I know. I want her back too." From that night onwards, Damon would let Stefan sleep in his bed until the nightmares faded. He eventually went back to his own room but every now and then Damon would wake up and find Stefan tucked at the foot of his bed.

Damon was pulled from the memory when Stefan went limp in his arms. "Stefan?" He pulled back a little and tapped Stefan's cheek. "Stefan!" But Stefan didn't respond. "What the hell is taking those two so long?" Damon lifted Stefan and laid him on the bed. "If you want something done…" He stormed towards the door when Klaus appeared.

"Easy, cowboy. It's done." Klaus told him. "They're in the basement with Elijah."

"What took you so long?" Damon demanded, "Any more of that crap and there's not going to be anything left to fry!"

"Well then I suggest you keep a better eye on him." Klaus glared at him. "And to answer your question, we had to make sure we were only dealing with two of them. Now. I have two Travellers to interrogate." He turned to leave when Caroline called out to him from the bed.

"Klaus! Keep it down. My mum is Sheriff. Tortured screams from her basement isn't good for her career."

"My dear, what do you take me for? I'm a vampire not a monster. Compulsion is our weapon." Then he smiled a deadly smile, "Of course, I'm not ad versed to dealing out the same amount of pain they have inflicted on our friend."

"Good." Damon's voice was deadly, "Do your best."

Klaus nodded his assurance and left.

Elena walked up to her boyfriend and wrapped her arms around his waist. "He'll be okay. I got a hold of Jeremy. They're on their way back."

"Good." He took her by the shoulders, "Listen. Tell Jeremy to go back to our place. Go there and wait for him. Call me once he arrives." He kissed her on the top of the head. "Be careful. They could be staking out our house." He thought about that. "Actually, Blondie. Do you mind?"

Caroline looked up at them, not happy, then she looked back down at Stefan. She knew Stefan would want Elena safe. "Fine, for Stefan's sake. He wouldn't forgive himself if anything happened to Elena."

"Thank you, Caroline." Elena gave her a small smile.

"Thank Stefan." Caroline rolled her eyes at Elena's expression, "Let's go."

Damon sat down in the chair after the girls left. He was tired. Emotionally. Stefan had that effect on him. He's never been a good brother since he and Stefan became vampires. Stefan was right. These past years were good. Really good. For a time he forgot about his vow to make his brother miserable. He almost destroyed that. "No more." He whispered as he sat forward, "I'm done being a bad brother. I will protect you. No one will hurt you again as long as I'm alive." Damon frowned when he noticed the trembles growing more violent. "What's going on? What the hell did they do to you?" He put a hand to Stefan's head. A fever? Damon was confused. Is this an effect of the torture or something they did to him? "I'll be right back." Damon ran out of the room. "Sheriff!" The Sheriff came out of her room. "Keep an eye on Stefan." The Sheriff nodded. She was confused but she learned a long time ago not to question her daughter's friends.

Damon stomped down the steps to the basement. He found two travellers tied by the wrists to the beams in the ceiling. Damon scoffed. "You've obviously lost your touch, Klaus. Your sister does a better job. I should know." Damon walked around the two travellers. Looking them up and down. "There's not enough blood." He walked over to a work bench and picked up a utility blade. "You have all these tools down here and you haven't touched them!"

Klaus and Elijah looked at each other and just shrugged. "I believe we said we would use compulsion."

Damon enjoyed the fear in the woman's eyes as he waved the knife in front of her face. "And what have they revealed?"

"It seems they have cast a spell to deflect our compulsion." Elijah admitted.

"So all this time you have nothing." Damon waved the knife in front of the man's face. "Have you two heard of the Augustine Society?" They shook their heads. "It's a society that brought torture to an art form. I'm going to show you what I've learned. Starting witfh the eye." Damon smiled at the woman. "You know, it's a shame you're not vampires. I recovered. You won't be so lucky." Damon moved the tip of the knife so that it was only a couple of millimetres from her pupil. "Last chance. Tell me what you did to my brother and I'll leave the torture up to these two gentlemen."

Elijah frowned, "What's wrong with Stefan?"

"He's got a fever. He's shaking all over. Reverse whatever you did or I will make sure you feel his pain ten folds!" He smiled, "Who's going to talk first?" Damon waited all of one second before he sliced the knife down one of the man's eyes. He screamed and so did the woman.

"It won't last! It won't last. We only used a spell to weaken him for when the others come. It's easier to get information out of him if he's weak."

"How long will it last?" Damon asked.

"Twenty four hours."

Damon took a breath as he glared at the woman, "Is he in pain or just weak?"

"He's…he's…it's the pain that is making him weak." She said, shaking.

"Reverse it." Damon ordered, "Or I will turn you just so I can torture you for eternity."

"We…we…we can't. It's not reversible." The woman drew away from the deadly look Damon gave her. "But it won't kill him!"

"Fever and tremors. What else will happen?"

The woman shook her head, "It'll be like he's got a bad flu."

"Great! I don't even remember how that feels." Damon growled. "Now. How many are coming and what do they know?"

"Just where he is. We were ready for vampires and maybe a hybrid, but not two Originals." She turned her heads towards Elijah and Klaus.

Klaus smiled at her, "Well…well…well…looks like we still have the element of surprise."

"How many?"

"Ten."

Elijah didn't like this, "Travellers can't conjugate."

"We found a way. It's temporary…"

"But you know of a way to make it permanent and you need Stefan." Elijah put two and two together. "Stefan just made the top of our protection list." Elijah moved in closer. "As long as we are alive, you will not get your way." With that Elijah pulled out their hearts. He dropped it to the floor and shook out his hands, looking disgusted. He pulled out a handkerchief and wiped away the blood. "We need to get Stefan to a somewhat safer place."

"Jeremy is on the way back. We'll take Stefan back home. We're better equipped there." Damon's cell phone rang. "Elena. We're on our way."

"Jeremy and Bonnie are back. Time for Stefan to come home." Damon made his way back up the steps, then paused. "Someone is going to clean this up, right?"

Elijah looked at his handy work, "I will make the call."

"Good." Damon wasn't sure who Elijah would call and he wasn't sure he wanted to know. Though, it would be nice to have a clean-up crew.

Stefan woke up as Jeremy and Damon were getting him out of the car. His head was so foggy he couldn't make anything out. He could feel someone pulling his arm over their shoulders. "What's going on?" Stefan asked. He tried to get his feet under him but he couldn't get them to work. "What's wrong with me?"

"The little voodoo the travellers did on you gave you more than just a migraine. They gave you the flu."

Stephen lifted his head and looked at Damon like he was an idiot. "I'm a vampire. I don't get sick."

"You're not actually sick. You're feeling the effects."

"I've seen people sick with the flu. They don't look as bad as I feel." Stefan stared up at the stair case. "I can stay on the couch."

"That bad, huh?" Stefan turned to the new voice. It was Jeremy.

"Where did you come from?" Stefan asked, sounding a little annoyed.

"Nice to see you too." Jeremy grunted as he and Damon hauled Stefan up the steps.

"Sorry, not feeling too good."

"Yeah, you look horrible." Jeremy agreed, "You know, I've had the flu, Damon and this is not the flu."

"Look, that's what I was told, okay?" Damon said exasperated. They finally reached Stefan's room. Elena and Caroline had already got the bed ready for him. Damon sat him on the bed and eased him onto the pillows so that he was propped up. Stefan closed his eyes, exhausted even though he didn't do anything. Damon sat down on the bed. "Come on. Let's get you comfortable." Damon helped him out of his shirt and jeans, leaving him in just his boxers. "How's the head?"

"It hurts."

"I can help with that." Bonnie said from the door, holding a cup. "I may not be a witch anymore but gran left me her book. There are plenty of remedies for humans, vampires and werewolves." She handed the cup to Stefan. "It's so good to see you."

Stefan smiled at her and reached out but his hands were shaking uncontrollably. "Here, let me help you." Damon took the tea and held it to Stefan's lips, "Slowly." He took it away and handed it back to Bonnie. "Thanks." Bonnie gave him an amused smile and nodded before walking over to Caroline. Damon turned back to his brother and saw that Stefan wore the same amused smile. "What?"

Stefan chuckle, "You don't say thank you."

"I do too." Damon shrugged, "It's just rare that I have to."

Stefan rolled his eyes and shook his head at his brother. "You're…" He winced as the headache intensified. He groaned, "I'm getting tired of this."

"We should leave you to rest." Elena was about to take Caroline's hand but she pulled away.

"You can leave." Caroline walked up to the other side of the bed and sat down.

Stefan looked between Caroline and Elena. Caroline was angry. She has been since he woke up. Elena looked guilty. These two were best friends. "You guys have work to do." He reached over and gently took Caroline by the wrist. "Do you mind staying with me?" He asked softly.

She smiled sweetly, "Try and keep me away."

Stefan turned back to Damon. "Go do whatever you have to do to stop these guys. I'm really sick of feeling like my body is trying to kill me."

Damon reassured his brother. "Don't worry. They're not getting anywhere near you again."

Stefan nodded, "Have fun."

Damon laughed as he walked out the door with the others, "Oh I fully intend to."

Stefan chuckled then turned his attention to Caroline. He pat the spot next to him. Caroline wasted no time in tucking herself against his side. She missed him so much. They sat there comfortably in silence for a while before Stefan spoke up. "How many calls do I owe you?"

Caroline giggled, "343."

"Wow you must love me." Stefan laughed when Caroline gave him a smack on the chest. "I'm sorry I worried you."

"Don't be silly. You didn't ask to get caught."

"What's going on between you and Elena?"

"Nothing." Caroline sighed when Stefan didn't say anything. She sat up on her knees and turned to face Stefan, "Ever since she and your brother got together all she cares about is spending time with him. She doesn't care about you. She didn't defend you when Damon kicked you out. She didn't look for you. She didn't care at all. You've done so much for the both of them and this is how she repays you. She's selfish and I can't stand being around her right now."

Stefan always found Caroline cute when she got this way. He remembered how amusing it was when Caroline found out her personality was heightened after she became a vampire. "Thank you for looking out for me."

Caroline narrowed her eyes at him, "But…"

Stefan smiled, "But I don't expect Elena to repay me for what I do. I do it because it's what friends do for each other. As for Elena being selfish. You know she's the least selfish girl we know. She deserves to be happy and Damon makes her happy. Is it so wrong for her to want that?"

Caroline pouted. "I guess you're right." Then she pointed at him, "But I still think she picked the wrong brother and I'm not letting her off the hook yet. She should've learned from last time that if you don't answer your calls, then you're in trouble."

Stefan shrugged, "I'm fine with that. Anything to stop them from being so loud in their bed."

"Ew!" Caroline smacked him again.

"Ow. Careful. I'm sick."

Caroline snuggled up against him again. "Are you feeling better? You sound better."

"I do feel better. I think Bonnie's tea is working."

"Get some sleep, Stefan." Caroline yawned.

Stefan smiled when he felt Caroline relax against him. She must be tired as well. He closed his eyes and slowly let sleep take him.

Damon, Klaus, Elijah and Elena were sitting in the lounge room bringing Jeremy and Bonnie up to speed. Bonnie had also spoken to some ghosts on the other side.

"They're scared over there." Bonnie finished, "They said their side is falling apart and it has something to do with the Travellers."

"That's all they know?" Damon asked, "It's not much."

Bonnie winced, apologetically, "That's all I have."

"Then we must focus on the immediate threat." Elijah moved on. "The Travellers will be arriving soon. Ten of them will be hard to handle. They are powerful in numbers."

"What do you have in mind?" Damon had no allusions as to who should be leading this defence. Elijah is the most experienced.

"We divide and conquer." Elijah said simply. "One hunter, four vampires and one hybrid should be more than enough to deal with ten travellers if we divide them. Take them out one by one." He turned to Damon, "They will attack Stefan as soon as they are in range. You need to stay focused."

Damon shook his head, "We don't let them get in range. You saw what two can do. What do you think ten would do to Stefan?"

"Damon's right. Stefan can't take much more." Elena agreed.

"How do they do it?" Damon slowly paced in front of the fire place. "If they are that powerful, why don't they attack all of us? Why only Stefan?"

Jeremy shrugged, "Stefan's their target."

Damon rolled his eyes, "Yes, we know that."

"They target your brother because they are limited to him alone." Elijah understood what Damon was asking. "They must have something of his that allows them to attack him from a distance."

Klaus looked thoughtful. Something came to mind. "When we found Stefan in that hole and then when we caught those travellers, there was one thing in common."

"What?" Damon asked.

"Blood on their fingers." Klaus revealed as he rubbed the tips of his fingers together.

"More specifically, Stefan's blood." Elijah caught on.

"Great! So what can we do?" Damon spread his hands in question. "Ask them to wash their hands?"

Klaus raised his eyebrows, "We could cut off their finger?"

Damon was about to smile at that idea but Elena stopped him, "NO! That's barbaric." She smiled at the pout Damon gave her. "There's got to be a way to take them out without a massacre."

"Elena, you don't seem to grasp the seriousness of this situation." Elijah folded his arms and stood in front of the fire place to address the whole group. "If the Travellers are to succeed they will have the means to wipe supernatural existence from Mystic Falls."

"What does that mean exactly?" Elena asked.

"It means aside from Matt, we're all dead." Bonnie told them, "And there won't be the other side to go to. That's why everyone, including the dead are scared. They are a part of the supernatural as well."

"Well done, Ms Bennet." Elijah nodded, his approval.

"So there's no choice. We kill the Travellers." Elena sighed, not happy about having to kill.

"Not all of them. I would like one alive to take back to New Orleans. Sophia may be able to get information from him or her."

"Who's Sophia?"

"A witch in which I despise but am willing to tolerate." Klaus smiled a deadly smile. He will not forget how she held his unborn child as ransom.

"So our plan is to kill all but one. How?"

"Elena, my poor naive little doppelganger." Elena wanted to wipe that condescending smile off his face. "You are a vampire now. Use the power that comes with that to its full advantage." Elena just narrowed her eyes at him. "We can hear two crickets mating from a mile away if we concentrated hard enough. Do you really think we won't be able to hear the Travellers coming? I've said it time and time again. Speed and stealth are our allies."

"Where do you think they will attack from?" Jeremy asked.

"Behind the house. They will use the trees as cover to get as close as they can without being detected." Elijah deduced. "We will wait for them there."

"Bonnie, you need to stay here. Nine dead Travellers are going to pass through you." Jeremy worried for his girlfriend.

Bonnie smiled to relieve his worry, "I know. I can handle it."

Damon grabbed a map from the book shelf and spread it over the coffee table. It was a map of the Salvatore Estate. Klaus whistle, "You Salvatores were indeed affluent in your days."

"Still are." Damon boasted. He pointed to the area at the back of the house. "How close do you think they need to get?"

Elijah pointed to the map, "With the power of two, they needed to be right outside the house." He moved his fingers about 200 metres into the forest. "With the power of ten their radius will be around here." He ran his fingers along an imaginary arc on the map.

They all looked at each other. "Gear up." Damon ordered, "And keep your ears peeled."

They laid out their weapons on the large dining table. "There's enough here to start a small war."

Damon smiled at Klaus, "As long as you're alive, we're always ready for a war." He looked at the rest of them, "Make a choice and use it. These guys don't touch Stefan!" They all nodded determinedly. They were about to start nutting out their plan when Caroline called out from the landing outside Stefan's room.

"Bonnie! There's something wrong with Stefan."

Damon had sped up stairs as soon as Caroline opened her mouth. Stefan was convulsing on the bed. His eyes were rolled back. It took a lot of effort for Damon to hold him down. He turned to see Bonnie just standing there. "Do something!"

Bonnie shook her head, crying, "I can't. You're already doing it. You have to wait it out. I can't stop seizures."

"Fine! Someone want to help me out then!?" Jeremy ran over and held down Stefan's legs.

"I'm going to make more tea."

What felt like an hour later, but was only a minute, Stefan's body went slack. Damon stopped breathing and quickly put an ear to Stefan's chest, sighing in relief when he felt the rapid heartbeat.

"What are you doing?" A weak voice asked.

Damon lifted his head and grinned, "Can't a brother have a hug?"

Stefan groaned, "Not this brother." He frowned when Damon moved and saw Jeremy still holding down his legs. "And what are you doing?"

Jeremy pulled his hands away, quickly, "Nothing." Then he took a closer look at Stefan. "You look terrible."

Stefan was about to push himself up, but his whole body rebelled. He groaned and curled on his side. "What's happening to me?"

Damon put a cool hand on Stefan's shoulder. It felt like his brother was on fire. "You had a seizure."

"That's why my body feels like it's being torn in different directions?" Stefan grunted out. He was breathing heavily.

Bonnie came back into the room with a cup. "Here."

Damon glared at the cup. "You really think tea is going to help him."

Bonnie glared back, "You have a better idea?"

Damon hated that he didn't. He lifted Stefan up and rested him against his chest. He winced as Stefan tensed at the pain the movement caused, "Drink up." Damon held the cup to Stefan's lips. Stefan lifted a shaky hand to the cup, but he couldn't grasp it. "Just drink." Stefan did as he was told, draining the cup of its content. "That's good." As soon as Damon laid him back down, he immediately turned onto his side again. Damon put a hand on his shoulder, keeping it there as he turned to Klaus and Elijah. "You better do a better job of torturing the bastard, because you sucked at it last time."

"Torture? Aren't we just going to kill them all?" Caroline asked. Her rage at seeing her friend in constant pain was almost overwhelming her now. "None of them survive. They all die. Slow and painfully!"

"Caroline…" Bonnie took her hand but Caroline snatched it back.

"No. Don't try to tell me that Stefan wouldn't want that. What he doesn't want is to be in this much pain again and the only way to ensure that is if they are all dead. Every. Single. One of them!"

Damon heard her anguish and then looked down at his brother. Stefan's eyes were open. He heard what Caroline said and he could see how much it was hurting him to hear Caroline say those words. Damon could tell that Stefan wanted to get up and comfort his best friend but he couldn't get past the pain. "Don't worry little brother. I've got your back." He gave Stefan a gentle pat before walking over to Caroline. He took her by the shoulders. Her first instincts was to shake them off but Damon held her firmly. "Stefan and I…we don't see eye to eye when it comes to you. I think you're useless and annoying…" Caroline looked at him deadpanned, "while he sees you as beautiful, considerate and his closest friend." She couldn't help but smile at that. "There is one thing we agree on though." She frowned, not sure she wanted to hear it. "You are a really good vampire. You haven't killed any human since that first time. You. Don't. kill." Tears ran down Caroline's cheeks. Damon wiped them away. "Let me tell you what Stefan doesn't want. He doesn't want that to change because of him. He would rather go through 10 times the pain then see you turn into a killer." Caroline started sobbing. Damon pulled her into his arms and comforted her for his brother. Then when he felt her calm he whispered in her ear, "I will cause more than enough pain for the both of us."

Caroline pulled back and looked him in the eye, "You promise." Damon nodded. "Good." She wiped away her tears and stepped around Damon to Stefan. She knelt down and put a hand to his cheek. "I love you." Stefan opened his tired eyes and gave her a small smile.

"I love you too." He let his eyes close as the herbal medicine and exhaustion took him over.

Caroline took a deep breath before she stood and turned around. She had gathered her composure and was now ready to take on anyone who tried to hurt Stefan. "How are we doing this?"

"We'll…"

"Ssshhh…" Elijah put his finger to his lips and concentrated. Klaus did the same. The others waited.

"No time to plan. They're here." Klaus told them. "Use your ears. Get behind them and attack. Short and simple. Don't let them see you. They are only limited to Stefan at a distance. Up close, they can be formidable."

"Bonnie, watch him. Call out if you need us. We'll hear you." Damon walked out the door, "Let's go."

Jeremy gave Bonnie a quick kiss, "Be careful."

"You too."

Bonnie stood at the large windows in Stefan's room, looking out into the trees. She couldn't see that far and she wasn't a vampire so she couldn't hear it either. It has only been ten minutes since the others left, but it felt like she's been waiting a life time. She didn't know why she was looking out the window. It's not like she wouldn't know when one of them died. They would be appearing before her as soon as they did. The thought had barely entered her mind when the first of them appeared. "Your friends won't win, you know. There are more of us than you can imagine."

Bonnie shrugged, "After tonight there will be fewer by ten." The man looked over at Stefan and Bonnie walked over and blocked his view. "He's off-limits to all of you."

"You can't protect him forever. The Originals will have to return to New Orleans one day." The Traveller threatened.

"Just pass through and let us worry about Stefan."

The Traveller stood and waited. Bonnie frowned. What was he waiting for?

Another traveller appeared, this time an older woman. Then another and another. It wasn't until the seventh one arrived that they started passing through her. The pain was excruciating but Bonnie had come to terms with the pain. However, she realised she was careless. One of the travellers weren't dead. In fact, she had entered the room and was now straddling Stefan, her bloody fingers on his temple. "NOOOOO! STEFAN! Get away from him. DAMON!" Everything happened so fast after that. The last of the travellers passed through her. The woman on Stefan was thrown across the room. Her skull cracked against the wall and she fell to the floor in a heap. Caroline arrived with an unconscious but alive one, and dumped him on the floor. Elena, Jeremy, Klaus and Elijah started returning one by one.

"Is he okay?" Bonnie asked Damon, who was tending to his brother's restlessness.

Damon placed a hand on his brother's cheek, "It's okay little brother. They're gone." Stefan groaned in his sleep. Sweat beaded across his brow and neck. "I've got your back." It seemed those words were all Stefan needed as he calmed. Damon put a hand on Stefan's shoulder and turned to face the others. "What now?"

Klaus rolled the one Caroline brought in with his feet. "We'll take this back with us to New Orleans." He walked over to the woman that almost got to Stefan. "You can have this one. Do whatever you want with her."

"My suggestion would be to send her back home." Elijah advised. He put a hand up to hold off the objections. "Use her to send a message. Come after Stefan and they will have the vampires, werewolves, witches and hybrids of Mystic Falls and New Orleans to contend with." The woman on the floor groaned. Elijah knelt down and moved right above her, looking her straight in the eyes. He could see the fear in her eyes. "Do you know who I am?" The Traveller was visibly shaking at the man's presence. She nodded. "Good." Elijah smiled at her. "You're lucky to be alive. Damon Salvatore is the bad brother." He looked up at Damon. Damon just shrugged. It's true. "You tried to hurt the good one. From what I know of him, the only person that can hurt his brother is he himself." Damon rolled his eyes. "Are you ready to die?" She shook her head. "I've got a message for your acquaintances. My family don't like it when others try to kill the people we are protecting. We take it very personally. Tell your people; Stefan Salvatore is off-limits." Elijah let the veins around his eyes show. "They've targeted the wrong vampire. Stefan Salvatore is under my family's protection. Come near him and suffer the wrath of the Original family." Elijah's eyes returned back to normal as he hauled the woman to her feet. "Get out of here and never set foot in Mystic Falls again." The woman spared one glance for her unconscious friend before running out the door.

Elijah turned to the others. "I'm sorry I took that into my own hands. I hope you are not displeased with my dealings of the situation."

"I would rather be burying her body in the woods." Damon growled, then admitted, "But I guess your way is more productive."

Elijah nodded, impressed, "Thank you."

Damon sighed and turned back to his brother. "Is that it?"

"Most probably not, but they will think twice before attacking Stefan again." Klaus knelt down and hauled the unconscious Traveller over his shoulder. "We'll be on our way now." Caroline walked up to him and he could see by the look on her face that she was still worried about Stefan's safety. "Listen, darling, you called us because you didn't think you could rely on Damon and Elena. I think that issue is moot now and we have our own problems in New Orleans. As soon as I get information out of this man, you will be the first person I call. Until then, watch over your boyfriend."

Caroline laughed, "He's not my boyfriend."

It was Klaus's turn to laugh, "Not yet." Klaus and Elijah left the room, leaving Stefan in good hands.

Bonnie left the room with Elena not long after Klaus and Elijah left. Elena sat on a kitchen stool while Bonnie made more tea for Stefan. She poured herself a glass of red wine but didn't drink it. Instead she ran her finger over the rim of the glass. Bonnie gave her an amusing look. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Huh?" Elena looked up confused.

"You know, Stefan's going to be fine." Bonnie assured her, "He'll start feeling better tomorrow."

Elena smirked and shook her head. "Caroline's right. I am selfish."

"What?" Bonnie scoffed, "Elena, you are the most selfless person I know."

"That's why you assumed I was thinking about Stefan, but I wasn't. Stefan's been in hell for the last 3 months…AGAIN. He's upstairs in pain and I wasn't thinking about him. I was thinking about me." She was desperate for some reassurance, "Have I changed since I started being with Damon?"

Bonnie sighed, "I'm not going to lie. You have changed." Elena groaned and covered her head with her hands. "But I don't think it's a bad thing. I've never seen you so happy for a very long time." Bonnie put her hand out to stop Elena's objection. "I know you loved Stefan. He was good for you but you've moved on and so has he. You're in a really good place now, Elena and when Stefan gets past this, he will be too."

Elena smiled, sadly. "Thank you, but that doesn't change the fact that Caroline spent the past months searching everywhere for Stefan while I did nothing."

Bonnie winced. "If it makes you feel any better, I wasn't out looking either." She shrugged, "And neither was Jeremy, Matt or Tyler."

Elena shook her head, "It doesn't make me feel better. It just tells me we all let Stefan down, but me and Damon, especially."

Bonnie sighed again and took Elena's hand in hers. "In that case, we're all selfish. We've all been happy these past few months. Caroline was the only one who fought for Stefan when Damon kicked him out. After everything he's done for all of us…" Bonnie went back to making the tea. "There's nothing we can do about it now. Stefan needs us to take care of him and that's what I'm going to do. This guilt trip leads us nowhere but misery."

Elena was even more miserable now. Not only did she feel guilty but she made Bonnie feel the same way. "I'm sorry."

Bonnie stopped what she was doing and turned around. "We all went through hell last year for you Elena. We brought back Jeremy so that you didn't feel like everyone in your life died." She walked around the bench and hugged her best friend. "You repaid us by having the best summer of your life." She pulled back. "Please don't feel guilty about that."

"And what about the past three months?" Elena asked, shrugging. "He'll never feel like he can count on us again."

"Let's deal with the last three months, one day at a time." Bonnie smiled at her, "Together. We'll show him that he can depend on us the way we depend on him."

Jeremy appeared at the door then. "Hey. I'm heading out to hunt down some poor deer. Damon says there are no supply of animal blood in the house."

Elena blew her hair out of her face. Just another reason to feel guilty. She had helped Damon throw out Stefan's supply the day after he left. She sculled the last of her wine and jumped off the stool. "I'm coming with you."

Jeremy rolled his eyes at her. "Elena. I'm not your kid brother anymore. I can handle Bambi."

Elena raised her eyebrows at him, "Jer. One, you will always be my kid brother." She held up two fingers. "Two, we are not hunting Bambi." A third finger popped up as she walked passed him. "And three, I am doing this for Stefan."

Jeremy watched her walk past him then turned back to his girlfriend, who was grinning at him. She just shrugged. He shook his head before following his big sister.

Damon and Caroline had been sitting in silence since the others left the room, watching over his brother, her best friend. They sat on opposite sides of the bed. These two have never gotten on and Damon wasn't sure they ever would, but they had one thing in common and that was the man sleeping in the bed. "Thank you, by the way." The words felt foreign to the speaker and the receiver. "For not giving up on my brother."

Caroline looked up at him. "You want to repay me?"

Damon raised his eyebrows at her. "I was hoping the thank you would suffice but I'll humour. What would you like?"

"Stop punishing him."

"What?"

"Isn't that what you promised him? Eternity of misery?"

Damon waved that away. "Pfff…that was over a century ago."

"Everything he does, he does for you and Elena."

"I know that and I already promised him that we'll always be brothers no matter what happens." Damon was getting annoyed now. "What else do you want from me?"

"I've seen more humanity in you in the past 24 hours than in the past five years I've known you. I can see the big brother Stefan tells me about before you were turned." Caroline sighed and got off the bed. She walked around the bed and pulled Damon up from his seat, turning him so she could look him in the eye. "I want him to be happy, Damon. Can you do that?"

Damon took her by the shoulders and dipped his head so that his eyes were levelled with her. "He is always laughing when he's with you. You make him happy, Caroline." Damon chuckled and shrugged. "So my job is to not do anything that'll make him miserable again."

Caroline smiled at that. "Then can you promise me that?"

Damon nodded, "It's already done. I told him his big brother is back and I meant it." Caroline hugged him and Damon hugged her back.

"Hey." They looked down at where the groggy voice came from. "Stop hitting on the girls in my life." Damon and Caroline grinned at him. "Hell must've frozen over if you two are smiling about the same thing." Stefan tried to push himself up but talking alone seemed to sap his strength. Damon helped him up while Caroline went to the other side of the bed and adjusted the pillows behind him. "Did you get them?"

Damon nodded, "Yeah, they won't be bothering you for a while."

"We made sure of it." Caroline slipped her hand into Stefan's, then smiled at Damon, who nodded back.

Stefan frowned at the look they were sharing. "I'm not sure I like you two being on the same page. Feels weird."

Damon laughed, "There's no pleasing you, is there?"

Stefan shrugged, then grimaced. He closed his eyes and leaned back against the pillows. "Do you remember how it felt to be sick?" Damon shook his head. "I don't either, but I'm pretty sure it never felt this bad."

"Bonnie's making more tea."

"No." Stephen complained. "It just makes me drowsy."

"What's with that tea anyway? We've been vampires for over a century. How is it we haven't heard about an herbal tea?" Damon queried, distastefully.

Bonnie walked in with the said herbal tea in hand. "Believe it or not, Damon, we witches don't tell you vampires everything."

"Bonnie, that tea just knocks me out." Stefan pushed himself up further. "AAAHHH!" He threw his head back as pain lanced through his abdomen. Damon put a hand on Stefan's shoulder.

"Easy there." Damon winced, "I think the tea might be a good idea."

"I'm fine." Stefan objected, "I can handle the pain. It's just a day, right?"

Damon wasn't sure about that. "Considering how wrong they were about how you would be feeling. I wouldn't bet on it."

"Doesn't matter. I wake up confused every time I take it." Stefan closed his eyes. "I can wait…" Suddenly he felt as if his lungs were constricted. He tried to take a breath but it wasn't enough.

"Stefan!" Damon could see the panic in his brother's eyes. Stefan grabbed onto him. "What's happening?" He cradled his brother's head between his hands.

"Can't…"

"He can't breathe." Caroline gasped. "He can't breathe!"

Damon took a breath to calm himself. He's done this before. "Okay…okay. Focus on me." Damon grabbed Stefan's hand and placed it on his own chest. "Breathe with me." Stefan was trembling now. Damon let his hand go and gave him a harsh shake. "Come on! Breathe!" He grabbed Stefan's hand again. "Take a breath with me. Remember?" Stefan felt his hand on Damon's chest expand as Damon took a breath. He did remember. He closed his eyes and tried to take a breath in time with Damon's. "Let it out slowly." Stefan let it out shakily. "Good. Take another one." They continued like this until Stefan could breathe on his own. Finally Stefan relaxed onto the pillow, exhausted. Damon felt like he had just run a marathon himself. "Let's not do that again." He turned around and saw everyone looking at him strangely. "What?"

"How did you know how to do that?" Bonnie asked. Damon was showing a side no one has ever seen.

"I used to have panic attacks after our mother died." Stefan answered for Damon. Damon turned back to him and smiled. "Damon coached me to breathe." Caroline smiled at that. Damon was true to his words. He was being the big brother he was before they were turned.

"You should reconsider the tea." Bonnie held up the item in her hand, looking a little smug and very concerned.

"Bonnie, I'm…"

"You say 'fine' and I will slug you so hard that it'll may your headache feel like a brain-freeze." Damon held his hand out for the cup without taking his eyes off his brother.

Stefan glared at him, "You may be older than me but we've existed long enough to make those 5 years difference negligent."

"Says the vampire who asked for his big brother back." Damon gave him a smug smile.

"Starting to regret it already." Stefan groaned. He frowned at the cup Damon was holding in front of his face, then turned the frown onto his brother. Damon raised his eyebrows. Stefan knew he wouldn't be able to get out of it. "Last one." He negotiated.

"We'll see." Damon answered. He kept a steady hand on the cup as Stefan drank. He handed back the cup before putting the back of his hand against Stefan's forehead, much to Stefan's distaste. Damon frowned, "Fever's still high." He sighed, not liking the pain he could see on Stefan's expression. "Starting to wish we didn't let that last Traveller go." A groan from Stefan drew him away from his murderous thoughts. "Hang in there, brother."

"I'm trying." Stefan screwed his eyes shut as the pain in his head intensified again. "Damon!" He grilled out his brother's name as the heels of his hands pressed against his temple. "AAAAAHHHHH!"

"Stefan!" Damon watched on helpless as his brother writhed in pain on the bed. He arched off the bed as he tried to get away from the pain within him. Caroline sat on the bed unsure of what to do. She wanted to hold him but she was worried she would hurt him further. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to find Bonne standing beside her.

"There's nothing you can do." Bonnie pulled Caroline into her arms and cried with her.

Damon balled his fists. For someone who enjoyed over a century of inflicting emotional pain on his brother, you would think Stefan's pain wouldn't affect him this way, but it did and Damon didn't know how to handle the emotions raging through his body. He stormed over to the wall and slammed his fist straight through it. It wasn't enough so he picked up an antique chair and smashed it against the same wall. Bonnie and Caroline looked on in shock and sympathy as he continued his rage on the wall.

Elena and Jeremy returned home to the sound of destruction in Stefan's room. "What the hell?" They looked at each other in horror before Elena disappeared up the stairs at superhuman speed. She was shocked when she entered the room to find Damon destroying it. "Damon!" She looked at Stefan in the bed who had his sheets tangled around him as he fought the pain in his head. She grabbed Damon by the shoulder and turned him around. "Damon, this isn't helping Stefan!"

Damon gave her a murderous glare but Elena didn't even flinch. "Nothing is helping Stefan, Elena. That's the problem!"

Jeremy arrived then and took in the condition of the room in shock. He looked over at Bonnie and Caroline. Bonnie shook her head to tell him to stay out of it.

"Destroying his room won't make you feel better." Jeremy turned his attention to his sister and Damon.

"Yeah, well, Klaus took the Traveller I want to do this to and Elijah sent the other one home so that leaves this room!" Elena threw her arms around her boyfriend when he tried to return to his rampage. "Stefan needs you, Damon."

Damon pulled her off, his anger driving his actions. "There is nothing I can do for him!" Damon walked up to the wooden antique cupboard housing Stefan's clothes. He reached behind it with both his hands and pulled it until it tipped forward and smashed against the wooden floor boards. Everything went quiet as the last wood cracked and the dust settled. Damon stood there breathing heavily. "He's my brother and I can't do a thing to help him."

Stefan couldn't see or hear anything beyond the pain. Not even when Damon destroyed his wardrobe. However, his brother's voice did. "He's my brother and I can't do a thing to help him." Stefan didn't like the guilt he heard there. He fought past the pain until he got it to a bearable level. Finally he got control of his body again. He pushed himself up onto his elbows. "Damon." It was barely a whisper but in a room of beings with superhuman hearing, it was heard. Damon sped over and helped him the rest of the way up, lifting him from under the arms to sit him against the headboard. It didn't go unnoticed that Stefan had sweated out a small swimming pool after that pain session. Stefan tilted his head to the side to get a clearer view of his room. "What happened to my room?"

Damon winced. "You needed a change?"

Stefan chuffed at that, then grimaced at the pain it caused in his chest. "You okay?" He asked, jokes aside.

"Pff…shouldn't I be asking you that?" Damon scoffed.

"I'm not the one killing an innocent wardrobe that's been in our family since before I was born." Despite the words, Stefan was worried about his brother's mental state.

"Like I said, you need a change."

Stefan sighed, "I'm serious, Damon."

Damon rolled his eyes, "I'm fine. Just really, really frustrated." He took in Stefan's trembling state. "You on the other hand are not okay and should be resting not worrying about me."

"You destroyed my room, Damon. I'm not worried about you I'm worried about what else you're gonna do if I close my eyes." Damon looked at him, deadpanned. Stefan smiled. "I'll be fine, Damon. I'll even drink more of Bonnie's tea if it makes you feel better."

"Yeah, that really helped." Bonnie bit her tongue at the sarcasm in Damon's voice.

"She can make a stronger one, can't you, Bonnie?" Stefan and Damon turned to her.

Bonnie sighed and nodded, "I'll get on to it." She left the room with Jeremy.

Damon turned back to his brother, "You must really be worried about me if you're willing to drink more of that stuff." He frowned when another reason came to mind. "Or you're still in more pain than you're letting on."

Stefan closed his eyes and laid back. "Just tell Bonnie to make it strong enough to knock me out for a day."

"That bad, huh?" Damon could see the effort it was taking Stefan to hold back the pain. He turned to Caroline. "Why don't you two go help Bonnie?" Caroline wanted to protest but Damon gave her a short shake of the head, telling her he was doing this for Stefan's sake. He knew Stefan didn't want to worry the girls any more than he already has. "Go." Caroline nodded and followed Elena. They stopped when Stefan called out to them.

"While you're at it…you two should talk." Caroline turned and glared at him. "Please." He smiled when Caroline stormed out the door.

Elena smiled at him. "Thank you." She mouthed before leaving.

Stefan laid back again, smiling at himself. "Ahh…Saint Stefan is back in our mists." He heard Damon say in a theatrical voice.

"Shut up, Damon and keep an ear out. Caroline's so angry and worried right now, she's liable to kill your girlfriend."

"My girlfriend can handle herself."

Stefan peered at him through one eye. "A protective and angry Caroline can take you on, Damon."

Damon rubbed his face where Caroline had slapped him. "Maybe." Stefan raised his eyebrows at him. Damon nodded, "I'll keep an ear out." Stefan chuckled and closed his eyes.

Downstairs in the kitchen…

Elena and Caroline sat at the dining table, opposite each other. The room was silent aside from the sounds of Bonnie making the extra strength herbal tea. Jeremy nervously eyed the girls as he helped Bonnie grind the herbs. "It's so weird." He whispered to his girlfriend.

"What is?" Bonnie asked as she grabbed the mortar from Jeremy and poured its contents into the small pot of boiling water.

"The two of them!" Jeremy whispered harshly, "They're so…quiet."

"That's because they're not talking." Bonnie explained as if her boyfriend was five years old. "And you do understand that those two are vampires. They can hear you."

Jeremy shivered, exaggeratedly. "It's not normal." He eyed his sister and best friend. "It's the calm before the storm. I'm getting out of here before it hits." He kissed Bonnie on the cheek before running out to the living room.

"Coward!" Bonnie called out before turning off the stove and letting the herbs settle. She grabbed and towel and wiped her hands before taking a seat between her two best friends. "Okay, this is getting ridiculous. Start talking."

"She can start." Caroline glared at Elena.

Elena sighed, "I don't know what you want me to say Caroline. I can't talk without you biting my head off."

"That's because every time you open your mouth it's to defend your boyfriend." Caroline returned.

"That's because you never give Damon a chance."

Caroline sat back and fold her arms. "Fine. You're right. Damon does have a heart. He does care about Stefan. I'll give you that but that doesn't excuse your behaviour."

"My behaviour?"

"You let Damon kick Stefan out of Mystic Falls. When Damon killed Lexi you convinced Stefan not to kill him and you hated Damon then, so why didn't you defend Stefan? A man you supposedly loved at some point in your life."

"Caroline…" Elena sighed, "I stopped Stefan from killing Damon that day because I knew how much Stefan would hate himself if he did. I didn't do it for Damon. I did it for Stefan." Caroline seemed to accept her explanation. "As for three months ago…I'll never forgive myself not speaking up. I thought the time apart would help the situation. If I knew…" Elena closed her eyes as the sound of Stefan's cries of pain haunted her. "I never wanted to hurt him."

Bonnie reached over and took Elena's hand in hers. "We know you would never intentionally hurt Stefan." She turned to Caroline. "No one anticipated what happened that. None of Stefan's friends would've let him leave if we knew he was in danger."

"He didn't deserve this." Caroline wipe away a tear. "I should've looked harder."

Bonnie and Elena sat up at that. Caroline felt responsible for this as well when the truth couldn't have been further. Elena walked over and hugged Caroline from behind. "We got to him because of you, Caroline. You're the only one that can make him smile after what he went through. You make him happy. You're his best friend." Caroline lost her composure then and started sobbing. The three girls sat their together crying for the pain Stefan suffered.

Damon smiled. The girls would be okay. He looked down at his brother who had his eyes closed. The pain seemed to have eased of a little but not enough for Stefan to rest properly. The previous dose of the tea must have kicked in a little. "Hey." Damon whispered in case Stefan was asleep. His brother opened his eyes. No such luck. "Thought you'd want to know the girls talked it out." Stefan smiled and nodded before groaning as he curled into a foetus position.

"I'm going to get the little anchor." Damon went to stand when a hand shot out and grabbed him by the wrist.

"Don't go."

Damon frowned at the grip on his wrist. "I'll be five seconds."

"Just stay, please." Stefan kept his eyes closed tight the entire time. Damon slowly sat back down. It's been a long time since Stefan sought Damon's presence. "I…just…"

Damon nodded, understanding what Stefan was asking. He's been keeping a brave front for everyone but now that the threat was over, what happened to Stefan was catching up with him. "It's okay. I won't let anything happen to you."

Stefan finally opened his eyes. "Thank you."

A knock on the door drew their attention. It was Jeremy. "Bonnie asked me to bring this up." He held up the cup.

"About time!" Damon growled as he took it off Jeremy. "What took her so long?"

"You know it takes time to make." Jeremy defended Bonnie even though he knew Damon was only concerned for his brother.

"Yeah, whatever." Damon lifted Stefan's head and held the cup to his lips as Stefan swallowed the concoction.

"Thanks." Stefan closed his eyes and waited for the herbs to kick in.

Damon put the cup on the bedside table. "Let's hope this dose is much stronger."

"Bonnie said Stefan's body may have gotten used to the previous one, so this is a different tea. It's stronger." Jeremy explained.

Damon was pleasantly surprised when he noticed Stefan's breathing had evened out. "Quite a lot stronger." He turned to Jeremy. "He's asleep…finally."

"I'll go down and tell the girls." Jeremy was relieved as well. Stefan always seemed so strong to him. It was unnerving to see him so weak and vulnerable.

Damon sat back in his chair, ready to keep vigil over his brother as he slept. "Rest easy, little brother. I'll be here when you wake up."

The next morning…

The sun shone through a gap between the curtains as it rose above the horizon. Rays of light streamed across the room and lit the sleeping form on the bed. As it moved later into the morning the rays moved until it hit Stefan's eyes. He groaned as he opened his eyes, raising his hand to shield it from the bright light. He pushed himself up and looked around after his eyes adjusted to the light. The room was empty and still looked a mess after Damon's temper tantrum. He scanned the room further until it came to his brother, asleep in an armchair next to him. Stefan smiled. He couldn't remember the last time Damon slept in his room to watch over him. Pulling of the sheets, Stefan moved to the other side of the bed to get up, not wanting to wake up his brother. Judging by the fact Damon wasn't awake already told Stefan that he hadn't slept much last night. Stefan stood up and was immediately hit by a wave of dizziness. He sat back onto the bed to wait out the moving room.

Damon grunted as he woke from his slumber in the uncomfortable position on the chair. He shot into full consciousness when he didn't see his brother in the bed where he was for the past 24 hours. "Stefan!" He called out as he jumped up from his chair.

Stefan put his hand up but kept his eyes closed. "Here."

Damon looked towards where the voice was coming from and sighed a breath of relief. "Don't do that!" He walked to the other side and knelt down in front of his brother who was slumped over with his head in his hands. "You okay?" He ducked a little to get a better look at Stefan.

"I'm fine. Just got a little dizzy."

"You should've woke me up."

Stefan opened his eyes and took a good look at his brother. "Damon, no offense, but you look worse than I feel."

"Pfff…that's not possible. I always look good." He gently pushed his brother by the shoulder so that he could get a better look when he asked the next question. "How are you feeling?"

Stefan smiled and nodded, "Better. Headache's gone."

Damon sighed, relieved, "Good."

"I'm really hungry." Stefan complained.

"You should be!" Damon stood. "Elena and Jeremy went hunting yesterday. I'll get you some." He was about to speed off when Stefan grabbed him by the arm. "What's wrong?"

"I'll go with you. I want to get out of my room for a bit."

Damon nodded, "Okay." He was about to go get Stefan a pair of jeans and a shirt when he saw the broken wardrobe. "Ahhh…" He winced and scratched his head. Stefan jumped when he smashed his leg into the back of the wardrobe and started pulling apart the wood until he could reach in and pull out the items he wanted. Damon shook out the dark blue jeans and grey t-shirt. "Here you go."

Stefan laughed and shook his head as he slipped on the shirt and then stood to put on the jeans. "You're cleaning all this up and getting me a new wardrobe."

"Yeah, yeah." He swung his arm over Stefan's shoulder. "I will completely renovate your room. Okay?" Anyone looking at the man would think he was being casual, but the arm over the shoulder was to reassure himself of his brother's health as well as to keep Stefan steady.

"I like my room."

Damon led him over to the dining table in the kitchen before going to the fridge for the blood they kept there. "Just let me worry about your room."

Stefan rolled his eyes. "Forget it. I'll fix it myself."

Damon placed the glass of deer blood in front of his brother. He put a hand on his heart. "I'm hurt. Don't you trust me?"

Stefan sighed as the blood ran down his throat and into his empty stomach. He stared at his brother, deadpanned. "Just fix the hole in my wall. I'll do the rest. We don't need adjoining rooms."

"After everything I've done for you…" Damon looked wounded.

Stefan laughed as he drank the rest of the blood, but he sobered as soon as the cup was drained and looked at the glass in his hand. "Thanks, Damon."

Damon frowned at the glass. "Thank Elena and Jeremy."

Stefan gave him lopsided smiled. "Not for the blood. For watching over me. Protecting me."

Damon smiled sadly. "Better late than never, right?"

"For immortals…" Stefan shrugged, "What's considered late?"

Damon laughed and nodded. "True."

Elena had heard the boys come down from upstairs. She and Caroline had fallen asleep on the couch while Jeremy and Bonnie slept in his room. Elena got up and stood at the doorway to the kitchen listening to the boys talk. She's never seen Damon and Stefan talk like this. Their normal conversation usually consisted of sarcasm and jabs. This morning they were brothers. The brothers Elena never really got to meet and it was beautiful. She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't realised the boys were looking at her.

"Eavesdropping?" Damon smiled at her embarrassed expression at being caught.

She shook her head, "Looking at the side of the Salvatore brothers I've never seen." She walked over to them kissed her boyfriend before taking a seat next to him. "How are you feeling?" She asked Stefan.

"Good now that I've got some sustenance."

"I'm glad. You had us worried there."

Stefan rubbed his temples with the heels of his hands. "Sorry about that. Those travellers really did a number on me. Still a little foggy." He frowned at them through tired eyes. "Any news from Klaus?"

Damon shook his head. "It's only been a day." He looked thoughtful. "They don't have very effective torture methods. It may take a week."

"Can't they compel the guy?"

"They have some sort of compulsion resisting spell." Damon said distastefully.

"Handy." Stefan pushed himself up from the table. "I'm going for a walk."

Damon and Elena jumped up from their seats. Damon knocked his over. "Like hell you are!"

Stefan chuckled and gave him a pat on the shoulder as he walked past him. "It amazing that you think you can tell me what to do." He slowly made his way to the back door. A walk through the woods would help clear his head.

"Stefan, you're only just recovering."

"I'll be fine, Elena." Stefan said, exasperated. He stopped at the door when he didn't hear any more objections. Curious, he turned back to find two very worried faces looking at him. Stefan rolled his eyes and turned around. "You coming or what?" He called back.

Damon grinned and gave Elena a quick peck on the cheek. "Be back in an hour or so." He said quickly before running after his brother. Elena smiled after them.

Stefan and Damon trekked through the woods in silence. Stefan, as much as he wouldn't admit it, was still hurting a little from everything he's been through. Damon was keeping a close eye on him as they walked, making sure Stefan didn't over tax himself. Stefan turned to look at him. "You know, it's weird."

"What's weird?"

Stefan gave him a cheeky smile. "You not talking."

"Haha…" Damon said, deadpanned, but he couldn't help but smile at Stefan's expression. It's been too long since he's seen Stefan this relaxed and happy. "What's got you so happy anyway?"

Stefan shrugged, "What's not to be happy about?"

"Oh I don't know. Maybe the fact that an old magical cult that wants to fry your brain is out there or that you were almost killed or how you just spent a whole day in excruciating pain."

"Yadda…yadda…yadda…" Stefan clapped his fingers together at Damon like a hand puppet. "That was yesterday. Today's a new day." He threw his arm over his brother's shoulder. "No more brooding Stefan and no more angry Damon."

Damon looked at him suspiciously. "I think I like the brooding Stefan better."

Stefan laughed and dropped his arm. "I think angry Damon is more fun."

"You're the one who wanted your big brother back." Damon grinned at Stefan's groan.

"You're never going to let me forget that, are you?"

"Not in your lifetime." Damon slapped his shoulder. "Which incidentally is eternity."

"I should've let those Travellers kill me." Damon slapped him over the head. "What was that for?" Stefan complained.

"Don't even joke about that. They almost did kill you." Damon was more shaken by everything than he cared to admit and Stefan would've called him on it if he didn't hear the guilt in his voice.

"Well, they didn't, thanks to you." Stefan didn't turn to Damon when he said it, he just wanted his brother to know how much he appreciated having him around. He stopped when he heard something ahead. Damon did the same, worried it was another attack. Stefan smiled at the buck. "Dinner." He grinned at Damon before he sped off.

"Stefan…" It was too late. Damon chased after his brother, but he didn't have to go far. Stefan lost his strength just as he was reached the buck. His legs buckled, sending him to his knees. "Damn it."

Damon knelt down next to him. "I was going to say you weren't strong enough yet but I guess you had to experience it for yourself." Stefan was bent over his knees as he waited out the nausea. He felt Damon's hand on his back. "I think you've had enough fresh air for the day."

Stefan lifted his head. As much as he wanted to deny it, Damon was right. He was beat. He nodded, exhausted. "Yeah, let's go back." He got to his feet, unsteadily, with Damon's help, wincing at the aches in his body. He really did overdo it.

"Can you make it back?"

"Are you going to carry me if I say I can't?"

Damon shrugged. "If that's what it takes."

Stefan smiled, touched that Damon would admit it. "I'm good. Just tired." He answered as a wave of dizziness came over him. Damon caught as stumbled forward.

"Alright, little Brother. Let's go." He waited for Stefan to get him bearings before turning in the direction of the house.

They were half way to the house when Damon picked up something with his hearing. He's been keeping an ear out just in case the Travellers didn't get Elijah's message. He smiled when he heard Caroline mumbling to herself. Stupid idiot. Doesn't know what's good for him. He's awake for what…fifteen minutes and he thinks he's invincible again. Stupid…stupid… Damon couldn't help but laugh.

"What's so funny?" Stefan asked him. He obviously didn't have his super hearing tuned in.

"So what's going on between you and Caroline?"

Stefan stopped and pulled his arm out of Damon's grip, taking a step away from his brother cautiously. "What do you mean?"

"I mean…she really cares about you and when you were in trouble, you reached out to her."

"I told you that was instinctive." Stefan didn't like where this conversation was going.

Damon smiled as Caroline got closer. "She likes you."

Stefan shrugged. "And I like her."

"No, no, no, no, no…" Damon shook his finger at him, "She likes you."

Stefan thought about that. He never thought of Caroline in that way. She's always been there for him and he for her but that's because they are best friends, right? "She's just worried about me."

"So are you saying you don't like her?" Damon asked. His smile was too smug for Stefan's liking.

"Yes…I mean no….I mean…" Stefan breathed out in frustration. "I…" He scratched his head, not quite understanding why he couldn't get his words out.

Damon laughed softly, "You do like her."

"No…" Stefan was confused now. "Do I?"

This time Damon burst out laughing. "Are you asking me?"

Stefan opened his mouth to answer before he closed it again. "Why am I talking to you about this?" He shook his head and started walking again. "I can't believe I get you back for one day and all of sudden we are sharing! Seriously, Damon…" Damon followed him, surprised at the pace Stefan was setting but he was more worried.

"Stefan, slow..." He almost walked right into his brother when Stefan suddenly stopped and spun around. "Down."

"We need to set some rules." Stefan was breathing heavily but Damon knew he had something to get out. "I already have to listen to you and Elena…" he waved his hands around.

"Have sex?"

Stefan glared at him. "Yes."

"You know you're over 150 years old. You really should be comfortable with saying the word sex." Damon was having too much fun.

Two can play at this game. Stefan learned a long time ago that you have to throw a little Damon back at Damon to put him in his place. He fingered an area behind his ear. "Does Elena still giggle when you kiss her…"

"Alright! I got the message. We don't talk to each other about our love lives." Damon shook himself of the image of his brother and Elena. "I'll never be able to kiss her there again."

Stefan grinned and folded his arms, smugly. "You know, I can tell you a few more secret…"

Damon covered his ears. "I get it! No more talk of love life or sex life. Got the message loud and clear!"

Stefan laughed and turned to head back when someone called out his name. "Stefan!" A very worried Caroline was running up to him. He had to brace himself as she threw her arms around him. He was shocked and was about to push her back when he felt her shaking. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm sorry I worried you." Stefan whispered. He rubbed her back until she calmed down.

Caroline finally pulled back and wiped away her tears, then she slapped him on the arm. "Don't do that again." She turned to Damon. "And you should know better than to take him out when he's barely recovered."

"Caroline, I'm fine."

Damon gestured to Stefan, "You heard the man. He's fine."

"Does he look fine?" Caroline glared at Damon.

Damon winced at Stefan's pale complexion. It was pale even for a vampire. "Not right now." He admitted, "But he did until about fifteen minutes ago."

Caroline looked like she was about to have an aneurism. Stefan turned her by the shoulders to redirect her wrath. "Come on. I'm tired. Help me back."

"And whose fault is that?" Caroline asked even as she pulled Stefan's arm over her shoulder and wrapped her arm around his waist.

Damon grinned as he followed behind them. They liked each other alright. Now to just get them to admit it and the four of them could go on a double date! Damon frowned at that thought. "There is something definitely wrong with me. I'm turning into a girl."

Stefan smiled at Damon's mumbling behind him. Caroline wore an amused smile when she caught Stefan smiling. "What are you so happy about?"

Stefan turned to her and shrugged. "I'm just really happy. I've got my brother back. I've got my best friend." He gave Caroline's shoulder a squeeze. "I've got Elena, Bonnie and Jeremy. Hell, I even have Elijah and Klaus watching my back. How much better can life get?"

"You still have Travellers after your doppelganger." Damon reminded him.

Caroline rolled his eyes, "You are such a ray of sunshine, Damon."

"And you are just a ball of fuzz." Damon returned in an exaggeratingly bubbly voice.

Stefan laughed. "I knew it couldn't last."

"What?" They both asked, annoyed.

"You two not arguing." Stefan sighed happily. "Everything is back to normal." Damon may be right. Travellers are still after him but it doesn't matter because they were all working together; the vampires, anchor/witch, hybrid, hunter and humans. They're a team and anyone who came up against them will lose.

The END!