Post "As I Lay Dying"

A continuation of the scene between Damon and Elena after Katherine showed up. This is what could've happened.

They looked at each other in stunned silence. If they could read the other's mind, it would read the same. Stefan had given himself t Klaus.

"Damon, no! You're in no condition yet to help Stefan. Elena rushed to his side with the bottle of blood that Katherine had tossed to her moments earlier before she disappeared to parts unknown. "I'm feeling a little a better", he struggled to get the words out. The room was spinning and he still felt weak as a kitten. His voice betrayed him as he was still having trouble breathing. He tried to push himself to get up.

She took a look at his arm. It looked better, but the bluish mark was present though it was fading. Elena repeated again that he still too sick to go after Stefan. "Come on, lie back against the pillows", Elena said coaxing him not to try to get up just yet.

"Stefan…has gone… and gotten himself into a mess because of me and I'm the only one who can save him from himself." He told Elena after attempting to down the remainder of the contents of the bottle. "Hey, hey, easy…slower" Elena tried to take bottle away, but was met with resistance. "You're getting well and we'll find Stefan. Ok?" His eyes were closed, but he nodded his head in agreement.

Elena was scared for Stefan, but at the same time she found peace knowing that Damon wasn't going to die in her arms. She didn't believe in miracles any more, if she ever did, but one did happen that night. One bottle of blood from the evil that now had Stefan saved the man that also loves her and who she had just kissed. A warm relief rushed over her that the man beside her was going to be okay. "Damon?" She turned to him. "Hmmm," he muttered. He was sound asleep against her. His arm now draped across her. Elena tried to extricate herself from his embrace, but he pulled her closer in his slumber. She had to admit that he looked so at peace next to her. She reached over and turned the light off. She would just close her eyes for a few minutes.

The sun casting a glow to the rom woke her and the sound of running water aroused her senses of where she was and whose bed she had slept in. Elena focused her gaze on Damon who was in the shower. The position of his bed had a direct view of the shower and him. The steam fogged up the glass, but she could see the outline of his body as he washed his hair. A lump formed in her throat and she gulped hard. She shouldn't be here now, looking at his naked form, but she couldn't take her eyes off him. A certain angle revealed even more of him. Her body was starting to tingle with desire. "No", she said to no one but herself. She shouldn't be feeling desire for her boyfriend's brother especially when her boyfriend is probably in mortal danger.

The spray of warm water felt good cascading down his body. As Damon washed his hair, he thought about the night before. He never thought he'd ever see another sunrise nor did he expect to find the woman he loves sleeping in his arms when he woke up. Of course, it was probably by accident that Elena was snuggled up next to him, but after hearing the words that she likes him now just the way he is brought a slight smile to his face. It was offset by the fact that he knew it will always be Stefan for her. Still, there was the kiss. He remembered thanking her and she said "You're welcome." How could he dare think that maybe her feelings for him have grown beyond the friendship they shared. The last time he tried to push her, he ended up snapping her brother's neck when she rejected him. She has forgiven him and he got something more. He can just be who he is. As he washed the remainder of the soap from his body, he knew she was watching him from his bed and it made him grow hard knowing she was watching. Not that he was trying to put on a show for her. It was a natural response to the desire that he has for her and wanting to make love to her in his bed.

As an excuse to get out of his bedroom, Elena decided to make a trip down to the basement for blood bags. Surely, Damon will need to replenish all of his strength in the aftermath of the werewolf bite. At least that's what she told herself as she descended the stairs. The truth was her arousal at seeing Damon showering and seeing him almost fully hard made her feel guilty. Guilty because she couldn't avert her eyes elsewhere. She wanted to see how far he'd go in the shower, but she bolted when she saw him touching himself. "Four should do it", she told herself as she took the blood bags out of the refrigerator.

When she returned to his room, he was already half dressed except for his shirt. His hair was still damp. "How are you feeling?" she asked. "I brought these from the basement . I figured you'd needed blood more than coffee."

"Thanks, honey." Damon smirked. Sensing the impending awkwardness between them he tried to head it off with just a little bit of humor.

Elena walked over to him. "Damon…", but before she could continue he interrupted. "Thank you for staying with me last night", he told her as he took the bags from her. "But now I have to get to work at finding Stefan."

"Not just you, Damon, I'm in this with you, as well," Elena corrected him. "Where do we start?"

"The last place that I saw Klaus – Ric's apartment.

"Elena, promise me that you'll stay behind me. I don't know what we'll find in there, but you'll be safer." Elena nodded in agreement as they approached the door.

There were no sounds coming from the apartment. Damon turned the knob not knowing what he'd find. He let the door swing open before entering. No one was on the other side of the door. As he walked inside with Elena following close behind, he saw the evidence strewn all over the floor.

Elena stepped aside and saw it, as well. Empty blood bags littered the table and the floor. The floor was smeared with traces of blood. She gasped in horror. "Oh, my god. What did he do to Stefan?" she asked.

"It's not what he did to Stefan, but what he made Stefan do to himself, Elena." Damon walked further into the apartment. There must've been close to a dozen empty blood bags on the floor. In his minds eye, he could see Stefan feeding ferociously from those bags. This terrified him more than if he had seen his brother tortured because for Stefan it meant his brother had lost control again. Klaus had pushed his brother over the edge for reasons he didn't yet know.

"Do you mean Klaus made Stefan drink all this blood?" Elena asked. Her mouth was still slack jawed at the sight in front of her.

"That's exactly what I'm saying." The anger was welling up in him. Hatred for Klaus and anger that Stefan sacrificed his humanity for him.

"DAMN IT, STEFAN!" He shouted. "You should've let me die." Damon tried to fight the rage within him.

Elena ran to Damon, grabbing his arm. "No, don't say that. What do you know that I don't?"

Damon looked her straight in eye before proceeding. What he was about to tell her about his brother was going to be painful, but it had to be said. "Do you know what a ripper is?"

"I…I think I have some idea from the journals." Elena replied confused and scared about where this was all leading.

"A ripper is a vampire that revels in stalking and killing. He gets an intense high and euphoria from draining his victims. Whatever you read in those journals is true. Stefan took pleasure in toying with and killing those girls in 1864. I tried to get him to stop, but it was only after he met Lexi that he saw that he needed to stop. Before I left Mystic Falls, I asked her to stay with him – to help him get it together because no matter how angry I was, I didn't want to see Stefan eventually end up dead.

Damon wiped away the tear that rolled down her cheek without thinking about it. "But, but…Stefan got that under control because of Lexi," Elena said trying to make sense of it all.

"He has also had times where he fell off the wagon, too." Damon continued. "We got lucky last time. He didn't kill that girl, but he would've had we not got to him in time."

Elena broke the eye contact with Damon to let it all sink in.

"Klaus must want use Stefan's nature for his benefit. Stefan is a danger to everyone when he loses control – even to you."

"We have to find him, Damon." The tears had started to flow in earnest. She let Damon comfort her when he took her in his arms. While she feared for Stefan's life and sanity, she was also being held by his brother and it felt good. She beat back the little voice that said this is wrong because to her it felt so right.

There was no resistance as he embraced her to comfort her distress. There had been times in the past where Damon had wanted to comfort her, but he never thought she would allow it or accept it until now.

GILBERT HOME

When Elena and Damon walked into the house, they found Ric and Jeremy having a discussion about something. They both turned to see them together. There was a look of surprise and relief at seeing Damon alive and well, along with Jeremy's surprised, but also worried look.

"How?" Ric asked.

"It was Klaus's blood that saved me," Damon said getting to the point.

Ric was still stunned. "But it came at a huge price," Damon continued. "Stefan bargained with Klaus."

"Is he…?" Ric started to ask the question.

"No, he's not dead and, in fact, it's worse." Damon explained.

"I'm going to go shower and get some things together before we leave." Elena told Damon. "You can tell him what we found."

After Damon filled them in on what they discovered at Ric's apartment, Ric wanted to help in any way he could and so did Jeremy.

"Elena sent a text to Stefan last night but didn't get a response."

"If his phone is on, there is a way to pinpoint his last location and I know how to do it." Jeremy offered up.

Elena interrupted them when she came down the stairs with a small suitcase in hand. Jeremy excused himself so that he could go get his laptop.

About an hour later, he had pinpointed a location which was a warehouse on the edge of town.

There was a security guard at the gated entrance to the facility. Damon took care of that minor inconvenience so that they would be allowed admittance. Once inside, there was nothing out of the ordinary except for the blood on the ground. Damon ascertained just through his sense of smell that it was human. No doubt Klaus or Stefan disposed of the body so as to cover their tracks. There was no question in his mind that Stefan had killed. The question still remained as to why they had been in the warehouse in the first place. What had Klaus been storing here?

"It's human." Damon said as if to read Elena's mind before she even asked the question.

Elena shook her head in disbelief that the Stefan she knew could've done it. Yet, she has found out that there was so much that Stefan left out about his past. She understood why, as well. He is ashamed of who he is. Why couldn't he trust her to love him in spite of his past?

"Lets get out of here." Damon said as he walked toward the door.

"Yeah, lets." Elena echoed as she followed him out.

Once back in his car they plotted their next move. "I say we try neighboring towns." Elena suggested.

"And I'm going to play devil's advocate and say they headed for a bigger city," Damon countered.

"Why?" Elena questioned.

"More prey to hunt for one, and because it's easier to blend within a larger city such as Richmond." Damon explained.

"You're really good at this profiler stuff, aren't you?" Elena turned to him as she said it.

"Well, it's not like it's rocket science to think like a vampire since I am one ", Damon said returning her gaze. "And if you're suggesting that I become a profiler, no thank you."

"I wouldn't think of it." Elena half smiled.

Damon was about to turn the key in the ignition, but paused. "Time for ground rules."

"Huh?"

"When we're searching for Stefan no putting yourself in danger. Klaus got what he wanted during the sacrifice, but that doesn't mean he's not above killing you now. The other is be careful around Stefan. He's not going to be the Stefan you knew. That's all."

"Aye Captn." Elena mock saluted him.

Mock me all you want, Ms. Gilbert, but I'll always choose you. He was deadly serious, but her humor made him smile. They are good together on road trips in the best and worst of times and he knew it. He could feel this would trip would be one of the good times just like their first trip.