Summary- Stefan's human, he has a fever from getting stabbed by the women he almost killed and well, Damon takes care of him. Episode tag- 08x12

Disclaimer- I do not own The Vampire Diaries! All rights to the rightful owners/creators.

Warnings- Slight Cussing- Episode Tag for 08x12 following that episode. I just wanted to have a moment between Stefan and Damon. I love Damon's soft side an I wanted to see more brotherly feels during these recent episodes :( This is just a short moment between them, at least on Damon's side that is.

All mistakes are mine! Might be misspellings, errors, etc, will fix later.

I will be making more Damon and Stefan brotherly stories cuz I love them!

A Moment To Realize

Damon twirled the yellow liquid in the glass, watching as the alcohol seemed to form into a small twister. His fascination was lost, however, because it wasn't the bourbon that held his interest at the moment or had him wearing a frown. Even though he watched the contents swirling into a perfect circle, his thoughts were going into a completely different direction.

Disaster seemed to follow him wherever he went and dire consequences was always a resulted in everything he came in contact with, with everything he touched. It never really fazed him- getting shot by a speeding bullet that unkindly pierced his skin, burning and tearing flesh, or getting his neck repeatedly snapped- never once affected him. It was a feeling he was used to. The only thing it did get out of him was anger and thoughts of revenge that usually satisfied him in the end. Getting even was one of the most intriguing aspects to someone pissing him off. Bodies wracked up, and killing was something that never bothered him. It was fun, even.

Damon never felt guilt. Hell, he didn't care who was unlucky enough to meet him only to realize to late that their fate was sealed. He ravished the idea of the light burning out of their eyes; the fear of dying shinning brightly in teary irises. Eyes, that, were wide and filled with confusion at first before realization struck them of how much danger they were really in. He never felt more alive the moment that light faded into darkness and they took their last fragile breath.

The hatred he felt was real. Hatred for humans and even for Stefan. It was the only thing driving him and it was his mission to cause pain to everyone and everything in his way. It was the only thing he knew. His undead heart breaking everytime he thought back to that day. The day that their lives ended and they were thrown into the world of vampires. The day that the woman he loved was taken and sentenced to death. The moment their own lives were ended because of their infatuation with Katherine.

Bitterness and sorrow fueled his decision of making Stefan's life a living hell. A lifetime, and more, of misery.

Even though he blamed Stefan for Katherine's death, he realized that hating Stefan was a lot harder than he thought. They were brothers and before Katherine, before becoming vampires, their bond was something unbreakable. Brothers. Best friends. They were family until they let one girl come between them. It dawned on him that he would never actually hate his brother. If anything, the promise of an eternity of misery gave him an excuse to be closer to Stefan. Of course, he would never admit that. It would stain his bad reputation. He had to be the bad brother, right? Suited him way better than it did Stefan.

Damon blinked. The crackle of the fireplace seemed immensely louder than usual. His gaze shifted from the glass to the dancing red and orange flames making his blue orbs seem a little lighter and a bit more deeper. He stared into them. Fire was fascinating, if not cruel. It's image terrified most as they brought about death and destruction but to Damon? They couldn't be more beautiful. It may be a painful and slow death, to burn by hell fire, but for someone like him, it could be a justified way to go.

The front door creaked, knocking him from his ravine of thought, and he turned to see Stefan walking in. "Back so soon." He gave a lop-sided grin that quickly faded once he took a good look at him.

Stefan's stride was slow. His shoulders were raised with tension and his hands were hidden in the sleeves of his coat almost like he was cold but it was the way he hugged the jacket to his body that made that even more obvious. Sweat glistened on his forehead and the light from the fire place gave him a perfect view of Stefan's face. His skin was pale, too pale, and Damon realized that this was human Stefan. No longer a vampire, no longer immortal and the wound he received- Damon doesn't know the full details- was probably the cause of Stefan's apparent distress. It also reminded him if how fragile he was now that he wasn't a supernatural being and how he could have easily died if not for Caroline.

He would have to thank her for that one.

When Bonnie told him about forcing the cure in Stefan, Damon could have swore his heart stopped. Well at least, it would have if it were beating. He was frozen, his mind going blank as soon as the words left her mouth.

Stefan's human.

Confusion. Mind blown. So many emotions came at him at once but there was one stronger than any other feeling he could have felt at that moment and that was unmistakable tingle of concern. It didn't matter that Stefan threatened Elena, that he killed dozen of people thanks to Cade or that he almost killed Bonnie. Sure, it was enough to seriously want to kick his ass several times over but, the only thing that he thought at that moment was that Stefan was Human. Stefan was vulnerable. Stefan could die by something as simple as the flu and Damon needed to find him before anything bad could happen.

He could still feel the broken glass, the shattered shards embedding themselves into the palms of his hands has he crushed it, out of fear and anger of not knowing where Stefan was and if he was alright.

Then Cade said Stefan only had till midnight and Damon wasted no time in getting that book even though he had no idea why Cade wanted it so bad. It was pretty obvious that whatever was in its pages held some kind of answer to ridding themselves of the devil, if burning it after he got it was anything to go on.

Luckily Damon got it in time and Stefan was safe. For now.

Now, Stefan was here but he was mortal and they were in the middle of a war with Cade, who, wanted their souls on a silver platter. The things that could go wrong, the possibilities of Stefan dying were very real and that scared the hell out of Damon.

Damon could see the exhaustion wearing down Stefan's body. His eyes were slightly dark, that with the corpse like skin, making him look like death warmed over and Damon winced in sympathy. "You sure you're human?" He couldn't help but ask, grimacing at Stefan's appearance.

Stefan gave him a look of annoyance. "Pretty sure the wound in my stomach can answer that."

Damon nodded. "Right. How'd things go with Bonnie?" He doubted it went well and by the look of guilt swirling around on those moss green eyes, it was a given answer.

"What can I really do? Say i'm sorry and expect her to forgive me for killing Enzo?" Stefan answered, his eyes meeting Damon's and the emotions he saw in them was enough to sink a dozen ships.

Damon was never good at these kind of things. Being a 'saint' never fit well with him. It was always Stefan who came in and swept away others worries or fear, saving anyone who was a damsel in distress. He was always better at playing the hero but Damon? It could never really sink with him. The whole 'comforting a friend in need' routine. Except, this wasn't some random person trying to talk about their feelings or a friend he's come to accept as so. This was Stefan. This was his brother and right now Damon didn't have to know what all was going on in his little brothers mind to know how much he was hurting. It was as plain as water as he started into those pain filled eyes.

The cure not only granted Stefan humanity, but it also damned him to the unforgiving acts of killing innocent people. Something Stefan was highly against and something that placed more guilt and regret on him than anything else could.

"It's a start. Like I said. Until you say it. Give her time." Damon stepped towards him and placed a hand on Stefan's shoulder.

Even through the clothes, the warmth he felt was almost immediate. The coldness of being dead was long gone and replaced with body heat that neither of them have had since they died almost 170 years ago.

He squeezed. A sign of reassurance on Damon's part. "It'll be okay little brother. Right now I think you should get some sleep."

Stefan nodded slowly. "Yeah. Yeah, okay. Its weird. Feeling tired, feeling pain. I almost forgot what it felt like." He admitted, his voice low.

Truth was, Stefan missed the human side. The pain of stubbing your toe, the shivers of being cold and sleeping when you're on the verge of collapsing. Right now, his entire body felt heavier than it has since he was alive and the wound in his stomach still ached, a painful throb that sent tiny knives throughout his torso everytime he moved. It hurt but it was a sign that he was alive and that the heart that had ceased beating that night was now functional. The steady 'ba bump' was proof of his existence.

He also knew that if he didn't lay down he was going to be greeting the floor. With his face. Plus, he was ninety percent sure he was feverish. He hadn't taken the medicine Caroline got for him. He was starting to think he should have.

"Being human had its upsides. Though, the super strength and fast speed is more appealing." Damon dropped his hand and pointed upstairs. "Bed. Now."

Stefan eyes Damon curiously, his brows raising at the command to go to his room. "I'm not five Damon and just because I can no longer keep up with you in a fight doesn't mean you can tell me what to do."

"My vampire abilities say otherwise." Damon remarked and started gently pushing Stefan toward the stairs, he didn't want to reopen Stefan's wound by being rough.

Stefan rolled his eyes but allowed Damon to guide him to the stairs. Half way up, he turned. Damon was carefully watching him with calculating eyes, probably trying to make sure Stefan didn't fall down the stairs and break his neck. That would be ironic considering before it was something that couldn't even hurt him. "Thanks Damon."

Damon shrugged. "Just because its Tuesday." He grinned.

Stefan laughed. It was the same response he gave him before he left to see Bonnie. It was good to know some things never change even though Stefan knew that he gave Damon plenty of reasons to hate him or at least be angry with him for his actions the past couple of months. Instead, Damon's eyes, hard as usual, also held a fondness in them that only Stefan could point out. Damon could be downright scary, and to many give the impression of a cold hearted asshole, but, he was also a good person. "Night."

Damon held up the glass in response and watched Stefan climb the rest of the stairs before disappearing into his room.

Now that Stefan couldn't see his expression, he let his brows come together in concern. Stefan didn't look good. Something was definitely wrong and by the heat he felt earlier coming through his clothes, he was sure there was a fever. Considering he wasn't there, he didn't know just how much damage was done and how good it was treated. There was a chance of infection if the bandages wasn't changed and the wound wasn't properly cleaned. Suddenly there was so many what ifs going through his mind that he decided he would wait until Stefan was asleep and he would go and inspect the wound himself.

-TVD-

An hour later and Damon wasted no time speeding up to Stefan's room. The door was slightly jarred and light was coming through the cracks but he knew his brother was asleep by Stefan's breathing pattern and the steady beating of his heart. He paused at the door, just listening to it beat. It was new to him but also something that sent a warm feeling through him. He never thought Stefan would ever be human again and now hearing that slow beating organ pumping blood through Stefan's veins was one of the most wonderful sounds he's ever heard.

Damon opened the door, quietly and slowly as to not make its henges' squeak in protest and wake Stefan up.

Stefan laid on his back with his head tilted to the side and one arm slung lazily over his chest and the other near his side. His face was smoothed out, void of any pain, and looked unnaturally peaceful.

Damon took careful steps into the room until he was standing beside the bed looking down at his sleeping brother, relieved to see that sleep was kind enough to take him.

Damon reached down and placed his hand on Stefan's forehead. The heat was immediate. He had a fever. Sighing, Damon proceeded to take his hand away only to freeze when Stefan turned into his touch. Whether it was because of the coldness of his skin easing Stefan's, or because it was instinctive, Damon didn't know. He pushed back Stefan's unruly hair. An action that visibly soothed Stefan's mind and he let out deep breath.

For a moment Damon thought he was going to wake up and catch him in the act of showing 'affection' but was relieved to see that it was just Stefan's way of showing he was comfortable even if he wasn't awake.

Damon went to Stefan's bathroom, grabbed a rag and soaked it in cold water before returning to Stefan. "This should help." Placing it on Stefan's forehead, he put slight pressure on it so that the water would drain enough wet the tips of his hair.

"Now. Lets see the damage." Damon, with more care that would even surprise Caroline, lifted up Stefan's shirt, grateful that Stefan had taken his rather large coat off before he laid down, and covering his torso was white bandages deemed of any scarlet coloring that told Damon the wound had not opened and was no longer bleeding. "Give the docs an A for knowing what they're doing." He smirked, pleased with the handy work.

He pulled the shirt back down.

The bandages wouldn't have to be changed until tomorrow. Damon just hoped that Stefan didn't somehow rip the stitches out in his sleep before then. That would complicate things.

"Damon." Soft, low but loud enough for Damon to hear.

Damon's attention went back to Stefan's face to see that he was still very much in a deep slumber. Stefan's face was turned towards him, the rag had fallen down to the sheets and was already staining the material with water. Damon grabbed it and placed it back on Stefan's forehead.

Damon didn't know what was going to happen in the days to come. He didn't know how they were going to deal with Cade or if they could even kill the king of hell. It was looking pretty grim for them but he did know that right now it didn't matter. All that mattered was that Stefan was safe and he would figure out the rest later. For now, his only worry was getting Stefan's fever down and hoping that he didn't get sick on top of being injured. That was a nasty combination.

His thoughts went to Stefan's previous question that night. Damon didn't believe in a lot of things and most of the time he didn't give a damn but when Stefan asked if there was a chance at redemption, all Damon could think was that maybe its exactly what they both needed. To forget all the crap that seemed to tear them apart since the day they died and start over with what was right in front of them. To focus on what's really important. Being brothers.

"Lets focus on that, Stef." Damon tilted his head to the side.

Stefan didn't hear him, to far gone in unconsciousness, but his head moved again and a breath escaped his slightly parted lips. That's all the answer Damon needed.

Damon smiled, pushing away a strand of Stefan's hair out of his face. "Good thing you're asleep otherwise this would be really awkward." He realized that Stefan were awake he'd never let him live it down.

Damon would never let Stefan know that he stayed at his side all night wetting and placing a rag on his head or how fast he left the room when Stefan finally did wake up.