Worth It

Stefan knew exactly what had led him here. But he had no idea what made him stay there. The need of saving his brother had driven him back to Katherine, the only connection they had to Klaus in the moment. He figured that she could probably know where Klaus would head next and finding him was the priority right now. Only Klaus knew how to save Damon's life.

Stefan had been willing to give everything to cure his brother's fatal werewolf bite. And everything was exactly the price that Klaus demanded. Stefan's life for Damon's. It seemed reasonable in that moment for Stefan. Anything for the cure. Anything for Damon's survival.

And the price for the cure was the creating of a monster. A monster that was going to take so many lives and that was created just to save one life. It may seem unfair to people. It didn't for Stefan. But in the moment there was nothing left to think about for Stefan. He was completely absorbed by the smell and taste of the human blood. It robbed his very soul, his logical thoughts, even his emotional thinking. The blood directed his every movement. It made him tear open one blood bag after another, the count of them was already lost.

The exhilarating feeling of the sweet blood in his mouth was all that Stefan needed at the moment. It made him fell complete, it made him forget everything around him. Nothing mattered anymore; not Elena who was God know where right now, not Klaus who eyed him with a pleased expression on his face, not Damon who was lying dying at home.

No, that was not true. Damon mattered, he was the sole reason why Stefan was doing this right now. "… over to Damon and come right back." His brother's name made Stefan snap out of his delusional state and stare at Klaus's back that was turned to him. The Original had grabbed Katherine's chin and looked her deep in the eyes while compelling her.

Katherine stared back at Klaus, the promise of the near freedom lighting her dark eyes up instantly. "You want me to leave?" she asked, taking the offered bottle of blood. She kept looking up at Klaus, waiting for his redeeming response.

"No!" breathed Stefan, eyes wide, staring in utterly shock at Klaus. But Stefan was bluntly ignored by Klaus who nodded at Katherine and released his grip on her. "Yes" said Klaus and Stefan could almost hear the smug smile in his voice. "And if I were you…" added Klaus but he was cut off by a flash of air and Katherine was gone, getting as far away as she could get from the Original. Klaus's eyebrows rose when he spoke to thin air "… I'd hurry."

Stefan moved forward and ended up bent over and staring at the open door after Katherine. Just seconds ago he had been so close to get the cure. So close to save Damon. And now everything was gone. Katherine wouldn't care, she would take off, never looking back at what arose out of her actions. And Stefan would end up with his dead brother, having been seconds away from saving him.

Seconds, it was ridiculous. They didn't count in a vampire's life. Why would you care about seconds when you had an eternity? But in the end it always came down to seconds, didn't it? It took only seconds to drive a stake through your heart. The end came quick. As soon as the stroke was executed, the affected vampire was dead in the matter of seconds. They wouldn't have time to think about the consequences. They hadn't the time to think about their lives and mistakes. They didn't lie dying. Those seconds ended everything.

Just as a few seconds in this very moment had ended everything for a young vampire. Not his own life but his hopes and struggle. He looked over to the thousand year old vampire, eyes full of betrayal and heartbreak. But Klaus didn't react to the look of pure agony. He let himself sink into the chair, a light smile on the lips when he turned over to Stefan and waited for his accusation.

"She will never take it to him!" exclaimed Stefan. The corner's of Klaus's mouth twitched up slightly and raised his hands in a gesture that clearly showed how little he cared. He loved playing this little game and it was incredibly amusing how you could destroy one of the most dangerous men alive with such a small action. Letting Katherine take the only possible way to save the life of one pathetic vampire, smashed the powerful ripper to the ground. But one thing would get him up again. A small amount of human blood and Stefan would stay tall again, ready to revenge his brother's death by the hands of Katherine. Two birds with one stone, Klaus was satisfied.

"She will never take it to him." Stefan's head sunk down, leaving him staring at the floor. His chest was rising with heaving breaths. His mind screamed at him.

He will die. It will kill him. She will abandon him. You failed him. He'll die! Your fault.

His head sunk into his hands and he couldn't stop the sobs from escaping his throats. His attempts to prevent his brother's death had no effects at all. He would die anyway. And Stefan couldn't even be by his side in the moment he would go. But he wouldn't have been worth Damon's last breath anyway. He failed him.

*oOo*

Stefan watched Klaus closing his brother's coffin. He had been listening to Klaus's last goodbye to his older brother, but truly he didn't even register the words that the Original spoke to the dead. His mind was with his own brother, thinking about his last breath, about his last words and his last thoughts. Did Damon register his absence, did he wonder about it? Would he blame him in his last moment for not being there with him?

Stefan blamed himself, Damon didn't have to waste his last strength on that. Elena would probably be with him, he should concentrate on that. Stefan would be able to blame himself for the rest of eternity. Which he would do for sure. Once again he was the reason of his brother's death.

Not Tyler was to blame for biting him, not Katherine for making sure that she would survive first, not Damon himself for being so incredibly stupid and throwing himself on a transforming werewolf. No, it was Stefan's fault. He had been the reason why Damon died 146 years ago. His father told him to stop Damon but he only followed him, even helped him. Had he stopped Damon in time, he would have never come in the situation of losing him to a fatal werewolf bite. And now he had been able to save him, yet screwing it up once again, letting the cure being snatched away under his nose.

The buzzing of his phone in the pocket brought his thoughts back into the warehouse. He tensed, realizing what the message would be. He didn't want to see it, didn't want to have his worst fear confirmed. But seeing Klaus approaching with a mildly curious expression on his face made him pull the phone out of his back pocket. The screen was already enlightened and showed the incoming message.

His eyes trailed over Elena's name, and over the rest of the message. The information that her message implied wasn't directly processed by his brain. He kept staring at those two words flashing on the screen.

Damon's okay.

And slowly it sank in. He was okay. He was alive. He would survive. Katherine had brought the cure in time. More importantly, she had brought it at all. Stefan had been sure she would take off and didn't waste any thought with Damon. Well, obviously she cared enough about his older brother to make sure he'll be saved. Or she cared enough for him to save his brother. Or she didn't want to risk having Stefan in her back, craving for her blood in revenge. Either way, she saved Damon.

"So, did Katerina make it in time?" Klaus had reached him and waited now for any acknowledgement of Damon's state. Stefan lifted his chin but avoided eye contact with Klaus. He didn't say anything about the condition that Damon was in. To be honest, he had no idea either. Damon was okay. That could mean anything. He would never deliver his brother to Klaus.

"You won't be seeing her again, you know." said Stefan, leaving Klaus's question unanswered. And surprisingly Klaus took the bait and dropped the topic.

"Because she's on vervain. I've been around a long time, Stefan, I rarely get played for fool." Klaus again smiled that unnerving smile at Stefan when he saw his furrowed eyebrows. "Besides, she won't get far. You'll help me see to that." Something weird sparkled in Klaus eyes. Stefan couldn't point out what it was but it made shiver run down his spike. But still he stepped away from the pole and approached Klaus.

Klaus cocked his head to one side and eyed Stefan when he stepped closer. "What is what you really want from me?" asked Stefan almost annoyed. The blood was rushing through his head and he had no patience for Klaus's little games. But he just grabbed his shoulder and smiled at him. "Will be explained in time. Once we leave this tragic little town."

Stefan's eyes searched in Klaus's face for any sign. But the Original's face was hard as stone and didn't show anything other than seriousness. Carefully Stefan lifted his chin and asked "Then are we done here? Can we go?" He was rewarded with another cruel little smile.

*oOo*

Never in his life had Stefan felt as good as he felt now. All his senses were sharpen to a point where he would notice every slightest movement from either animal, human or vampire. He could smell the metallic scent of the animals that used his distraction to get as far away from him as possible. The humans were not as smart. They continued on their ways, greeting him or giving him a quick smile before rushing on their way back home, unaware that they just escaped death narrowly.

And they only did because Stefan's whole focus had shifted. About half an hour ago, all he could think about was the blood, running through the veins of the young woman right in front of him. He knew he killed her. But he didn't care. His emotions were turmoil, his thought were spinning.

He saw the picture of the woman who was running from the monster, from him, in front of his eyes. She was unimportant, but still he couldn't forget her frightened face when he sunk his fangs in her neck. She had been the first casualty in the period of his new blood thirst. And doubtlessly she wouldn't be the last. Klaus planned an eternity of a ripper for Stefan.

Stefan thought about Elena. His sweet, lovely Elena. Whom he had let down, failed her when he chosen his brother's life over their happiness together. He had no idea how Elena would take it. But at the same time he felt this irresistible urge to not let himself feel at all. To just cut of all the feelings that he felt for the young human woman and to embrace this new self. Or this old self, if you will so.

But in the back of his mind there was a voice, that didn't let him take this step, didn't let him shut of his emotions. He asked himself if it was his conscience that was talking to him. But it sounded so different, a voice that recognized. A voice that he hadn't heard in like forever. It repeated one sentence all the time in a husky voice.

You know you care, Stefan, don't give up.

It infuriated him. He didn't want to feel. Because if he did, all the guilt would come crashing down. And guilt wasn't something that he took well. Guilt had made him to the monster that he once was and now had become again. The only upside of this whole mess was, that as a monster Stefan didn't feel the guilt. But right now this voice was keeping him from turning the switch.

And so he marched through the town, blaming himself for everything that happened. Guilt once again directed his every move. But Love did too. Without his emotion, without his love, he wouldn't do what he was going to do now. When he was done, then he could turn off everything, his emotions, his guilt, his love. But first it had to be done! So just get it over with.

But the point was that he didn't want it over. It just started, he couldn't let it go now, after all that had happened. He didn't want to leave, but he knew for sure that after this last human act he had to leave this town and everything it held for him behind.

The ground under his feet turned into gravel and indicated that he had reached his destination. He looked up from his shoes and over to the dark house in front of him. He couldn't see a single light having been turned on, everything was dark and quiet. But after all he knew that they had to be here. And after a few seconds he could hear a steady heartbeat, indicating a human in the house. It must be Elena. His mouth corners twitched. Of course she would be here, would take the place that actually belonged to Stefan. Well, it once belonged to Stefan. He should be the one sitting next to Damon in his last moments, he should hold him and reassure him that it wouldn't hurt much longer.

But he hadn't been the one. It had been Elena. And only because Stefan had been stubborn enough to go out there to look for a cure that everybody was sure didn't exist. And now, where did this get him? He found the cure. He found it against all odds. But he paid an extensive price. And he had no idea if it had been worth it. But he was about to figure this out.

He had rounded the house, his feet unintentionally directing him in the right direction. But when he looked up to the dimly lightened room of his brother, he stopped dead in his tracks and could only stare up to the window from where the light shone down on him. He knew why he was here, but he had no idea how to go from here. He had to see him but he wasn't sure if he could bare the sight of him. He hadn't thought about the consequences of the cure and of his actions. But now they came crushing down.

He felt alone, with no help from anyone. Guidance lacked, the guidance of someone older than him. He felt still young and unable to make his own decisions. He waited for someone to tell him that what he was doing was right. But the assuring didn't come and he felt unsure. So unsure, so weak, so in need. And the need had brought him here. The need of seeing that what he did was right.

He took one deep breath and made his way up to window. Stefan found his balance on the small ledge and crouched down to see but not to be seen. He had a perfect view on Damon's large bed and the two persons that had made themselves comfortable on there.

Elena was sitting next to Damon's unmoving form and was gently caressing his cheek. Her face had a soft expression and her eyes were fixed on Damon's face. Stefan could see how she moved her right hand up to brush the dark curls out of his closed eyes. Every single movement of Elena was gentle and soft, carefully placed to not disturb Damon's sleep.

And Damon for once seemed completely in peace. His body was fully relaxed, Stefan couldn't see one tension in his face or shoulders. But the way Damon's body had sagged into the mattress showed that he wasn't relaxed at all but completely exhausted. Damon had been closer to death than Stefan would have ever wanted him to be. And obviously the sickness had taken a greater toll on Damon's body than expected.

Elena continued to stroke Damon's right hand with her thumb while looking worryingly down on him. Stefan wondered how long his brother had been unconscious since he lost his sense of time a long time ago. But Elena's reaction indicated that it had been quite a while, if not already too long.

The ringing of a phone made both Elena and Stefan jump in surprise. Damon however didn't even stir when his cell phone next to him made noises that could have brought the dead back from hell. Stefan's worries rose when he watched his brother's reaction, or better his lack of reaction to the phone call. 'Damon's okay' clearly were not the right words to describe the older Salvatores condition.

"Alaric? Hey." Elena had answered the phone in a quiet voice and had lifted herself from the huge bed to leave the room. She looked back at Damon when she made her way to the door while replying to Alaric's panicked reaction to her answering the call. "No, no, he's not. He's …" another look was shot over to Damon before she continued to describe Damon's condition to his best friend "…recovering. Look, do you mind coming over here because I need some help …"

Stefan listened to his girlfriend's fading voice before opening the window to flash inside. It only took him seconds to reach his brother and to drop down next to him. The unhealthy pale skin and the still sweaty forehead were the first things that Stefan noticed when he skimmed over his brother's limp form. He reached out and brushed the thick black strands out of Damon's face before resting his palm against the clammy forehead.

The heat emerging from Damon was abnormal for vampires and increased Stefan's worries even more. A low moan escaped Damon's lips when he felt his younger brother's cold finger graze over his hot skin. Stefan grabbed Damon's hand and bent forward slightly to whisper softly in his brother's ear.

"Shh. You're okay. It'll be okay. I'm here, I'm with you." Stefan continued to caress Damon's hair while trying to calm him down. He wasn't sure if Damon was still in pain or if his body was shutting down on him so that he couldn't comprehend what happened and hallucinate the pain. He really hoped it was latter. He couldn't stand seeing his brother in anguish. That was why he had taken off after he locked him in the basement, to not see his strong big brother be taken down and to an end by the bite.

But when he looked down on Damon now, he realized how selfish he had been again. He had left him alone when his brother needed him the most. He had run off to save him, not even caring if he wanted to be saved. And he did it out of selfish reasons: so that he wouldn't be alone for eternity. Because he couldn't let him go. He loved him.

But loving meant to respect the other's choices. Elena had made that perfectly clear to him. And he said that he understood. But looking back onto his actions showed clearly that he understood nothing. He had made the same mistake all over again: denying Damon his death. He ignored everything that his brother said or did and took the choice away from him. The last time, it backfired. Damon hated him after that.

But he didn't care. He bluntly overlooked the fact that Damon hated him. He loved Damon and he believed that his brother loved him deep down. And he was naïve enough to believe that their love would be enough to save their relationship. But oh, he had fallen out of that dream fast and the impact had been hard. Suddenly he saw what Damon really meant when he said that it would be an eternity of misery for him. Damon really hated him. And that meant Stefan had to hate him too. Because Damon was his brother, his best friend and his idol.

But once in his life he couldn't follow Damon. His brother went a path that he couldn't take. He never was able to hate Damon. He pretended he did, he always believed he did. But you can never outrun the past. It catches up with you and all those buried feelings overthrow your entire emotional feeling. Damon coming back to him, teasing him, hurting him, that was all it took for Stefan to realize how much he missed him. But it took Damon being hurt, physically as well as emotionally, and him almost dying to show Stefan that after all he still loved Damon.

Because he always would love Damon. No matter what he would do, no matter how often he tried to get himself killed, no matter whom of them would shut off their emotions. They still were brothers, best friends, family.

And now Stefan was leaving all this behind. To go on rampage with Klaus, to kill thousands of people, to spat into his friends face how stupid they were to trust him. But he did all this for his brother. He would do everything for Damon. And he would sacrifice everything for him, even his own humanity.

Because it was worth it. Damon was worth it.

He bent down and placed a soft kiss on Damon's forehead. He heard him sighed lowly and when he looked at the relaxed features, he couldn't help but smile slightly but truthfully happy. "You're worth it." he whispered.

The door was slowly pushed open and Elena's head peered into the room. When she saw Damon still sleeping she quickly flashed inside, closing the door quietly behind her. She made her way over to the sleeping vampire when the sound of a in the wind flashing curtain got her attention. Frowning she went over to the window, wondering when it had been opened. She looked into the dark night but when she wasn't able to see anything, she just shrugged and closed the window before making her way back to the bed. Little did she know what had just happened in the bedroom and who was standing outside of the house under the window and had watched her cutting off their last connection by closing the window.

A/N:

Just a little one-shot.

Because I'm getting overwhelmed by those many Delena Fics! Yeah, I know! I loved the last episode too, but does anyone care where the relationship of the Salvatore Brothers is going from the end of 2x22?

Well, I do!

So here it is...

LaLaina