Chapter 12

Damon stood in the woods, surrounded by darkness. The trees above him whispered as the wind softly caressed the trembling leaves.

He walked a little ways until he came to a patch of dirt. He could still see his mother, lying there in pain. He could see how helpless he had been to do anything about it. And he could still see the sliver daggers of the wolf, walking up to them slowly with his teeth barring at them, about to claim his midnight snack. He clenched his eyes shut as the sound of bones snapping and his mother's last screams echoed in his mind as if they were happening right now. "Why, why did you leave me?" asked Damon to the sudden still woods.

Damon felt a presence behind him so he slowly turned around and saw no other then his brother standing there. "What do you want?" asked Damon bitterly.

"Why did you storm off earlier?" asked Stefan.

Damon glared. He didn't need to explain things to his younger brother. "I don't need to explain anything to you!"

Stefan sighed. "Please Damon. Tell me what I did wrong."

Damon shook his head. "It happened along time ago Stefan. Do I really need to explain myself?"

Stefan threw his hands up. "Seriously, Damon? You're mad about Katherine? Well, that's nothing new, considering you hate me for it every single day."

Faster then Stefan could blink, Damon had him by the throat and lifted him up in the air. "You just think it's always about Katherine, don't you? Well, it's not!"

Stefan sucked in air as Damon tightened his grip. "Then what about?"

"It's about Mother!" Damon nearly yelled, seething now. "You have no idea what I went through when she died. Nothing!"

Stefan coughed as he gasped for breath. "I know. She was attacked by a wolf in the woods."

"So, that's what Father told you huh? What else did he tell you?"

"Well nothing much, except that it was your fault that she got killed."

Damon slammed Stefan up against a tree, hate pouring out of every fiber in his body. "It was not my fault! It was yours! You wouldn't shut up for one minute so the wolf found us and killed her!"

Stefan's eyes widened. "I-I never knew that."

"Of course you didn't! Father wanted to make me out as the bad guy!"

"But Damon, that happened along time ago. You have to let the past go and move on. I know it hurts-"

Stefan was cut off by Damon ramming him into the tree. "Let it go? Let it go?! I can never let it go! As long as you're still here all I see is Mother's killer. And that isn't gonna go away. It's never gonna go away!" For the first time in his life, Stefan saw his brother have a meltdown. He was angry beyond belief but behind that anger Stefan could still that little kid who yearned for his mother. Something Stefan never had.

Stefan looked at his brother tenderly and softly said, "I'm so sorry for what happened to her Damon. What can I do to make you feel better?"

"There's nothing you can do." rasped Damon, releasing his brother from his hold and walked away from him.

Stefan regained oxygen in his lungs even he really didn't need it. He watched his brother walk away and called after him. "Damon."

Damon turned angrily around, facing his brother. "What?"

Stefan sighed. "Listen, I may not know what happened when Mother was killed but I know that no one is at fault. It may seem that it was me who got her killed but it really wasn't anyone's fault. We just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"You don't remember anything Stefan." Damon glared daggers at him.

"I know, I know." Stefan replied, "But I know that deep down underneath all that anger and hatred is a boy that was blamed for something that wasn't his wrong doing and wants nothing but his mother right now. He needs somebody to be there for him."

"Just shut up Stefan, SHUT UP!" Stefan flew a couple of feet from Damon's impact but quickly recovered and caught Damon's fist. Damon's eyes glowed bright red and his fangs were clearly visible.

Stefan had never seen his brother so upset ever since Katherine died. He had no idea how much pain his brother carried with him, but never let anybody in because he is too proud and arrogant to show it. "Damon, please; let me help you."

"I don't need your PITY!" screamed Damon as he shook free from his brother's hold and relentlessly punched him in the face.

Stefan blocked most of them and managed to get free. He dodged the rest of Damon's assualts and grabbed both of his hands so he wouldn't be hit again. "Just let me help you Damon." He looked at him with pleading eyes.

Damon struggled to get free but Stefan's grip was too strong. "Let me go!"

Stefan shook his head. "Not until you calm down."

Damon kicked and thrashed in Stefan's hold, but eventually gave up and went still. There was a long slience between them, neither one saying a word. Finally, Damon spoke, in a voice so softly it was like he wasn't speaking. "I miss her."

Stefan watched in amazement as the walls surrounding his brother for centuries came crumbling down. He finally showed his pain, fears, and tears to his brother. Pain of losing his mother, Katherine and being alone for the past 145 years, tears of sorrow and regret for treating his brother the way he did for years and the fear of losing the most important person in his life, his brother.

Stefan said nothing to his brother. He had all he needed to know by the look on his face. Wordlessly, the two brothers had their first embrace for the first time in years. Damon's tears soaked Stefan's shirt, but his happiness shone through the water like sunlight.

In the corner of the black sky, a speckle of light shone through. The light got bigger until it swept over the blackness and filled the empty void with light; the light showered the brothers in a glowing gold shower of rain, destroying the darkness that hung over them.

The lock that encased Damon's heart was broken by the light of his brother and the truth setting him free from his chamber of loneliness, and forever his heart will remain pure as long as he had Stefan by his side.

The End

A/N: Thank you all so much for reading! I couldn't have done this without your help! *hands out baby Stefan and little Damon dolls to everyone* Thank you again! :)