Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

When Stefan came to his mind at first, it was foggy and he din’t remember anything. Everything was peaceful for a moment, the sun softly beaming on his face, the soft grass he was laying on…

‘Don’t be afraid’

‘Oh god please no-‘

‘I do not want too-‘

‘Please stop-‘

‘I do not like this-‘

‘Why can I not scream-‘

Stefan heard the shot before he saw his brother lying on the floor, now bleeding…

His mind kept screaming yet he couldn’t make a sound…

It din’t take long for Stefan to follow his brother on the ground

When Stefan came to, he started screaming. Screaming like someone was witnessing their worse nightmare, someone suffering their worse pain. Stefan screamed and cried, cried for when he physically wasn’t able to because he was told not to be afraid, scream for all that he’d be denied off. Stefan din’t hear the sound of someone running, din’t register the voice screaming until arms came to hold him that Stefan started fighting like a mad man for his release.

“Brother it is me! It’s Damon! We are okay-“ Stefan body stopped fighting against his capture, who now registered his brother’s comfort and voice. The tears and screaming din’t seize though, Stefan din’t think they would for a long time. The arms tightened around him, a hand sneaking to push his head to the crook of Damon’s neck. “Stefan breath please, I know this is terrifying but I need you to breath” Stefan could make sense of Damon’s pleas, he wasn’t crying because he died, his crying because he was forced to do things he din’t want to from someone he thought he loved.

Damon had been contemplating by the river, waiting for his brother to wake up when he heard the screaming. Damon hadn’t heard Stefan scream like that in years and his instinct went haywire. In a mere moment Damon found himself kneeling on the ground and pulling Stefan into his arms, who din’t seem to realize Damon was holding him because he started fighting against him. It took Damon a moment to try and calm down his little brother, who seemed to register his voice as he had stopped fighting against him.

Damon din’t know why Stefan was in such a panic, he was scared when he woke up as well but not in the same state as his brother, who could barley breathe with how much he was crying. “Stefan please talk to me, what is going on…” Damon was worried as wet tears where Stefan’s face was hidden in his neck stained his skin, as he was still shirtless from his moment in the river before he came running. Stefan shook his head against him, stuttering breaths coming in as Stefan tried to calm down his emotion.

Damon, worried this could lead into a panic attack if it hadn’t already, gripped Stefan’s face with his hand and forced him to look at him. Stefan’s eyes held so much fear that it terrified Damon. “ This cannot be from being shot, something else happened ” he thought to himself. “Stefan I need you to breath, your scaring me here” he lowered his hand to grabs Stefan, pulling it up to his bare chest and held it flat against it. “Feel my breathing brother? I need you to copy it, can you do that?” Stefan took a moment, staring at his hand and his brother before giving a shaking nod.

It took a minute before Stefan was matching his breathing, tears never seizing but his breathing calming down enough that Damon din’t worry. The entire time Damon never let go of his hand, and when he was satisfied he lowered it down and gently pushed Stefan against his neck again. Stefan hand grabbed onto Damon’s again, clutching it so tightly as if he was afraid of Damon leaving. “Are we?…” Stefan din’t finish the question but Damon knew what he was asking. “We are in transition, we have to drink human blood to finish it” Damon kept his voice low and looked around. Nobody was around for miles, Emily Bennet had been earlier to explain things to Damon but it seemed like she left before Stefan woke up.

Stefan moved his head to look at his brother, the scared look had never left his young face. “Are you?..” “No, I would rather die” Damon looked away from his brother and onto the sky, the sun that he once enjoyed basking in now burning his eyes. “It was all for Katherine, but she is gone now so there is no point” Damon tried to keep the hurt out of his voice as he remembered Katherine. Stefan’s breathing hitched again and when Damon turned to look at his brother again he saw the frantic look returning. “Hey- hey, Stefan what is wrong?!” Stefan’s breathing picked up again slightly and worried overtook Damon again.

“ What happened? He was fine a moment ago. Was it something I said? I only mentioned Katherine- “ concern filled Damon as he went over his thought, now fretting asking Stefan the question on his mind. “Is it Katherine?…” the panic breathing was the answer Damon hadn’t wanted to hear. His body tensed as he somehow pulled his brother closer, dreading the truth of his brother’s distress. “Did she do something to you?…” it was a innocent question, but as Stefan hid his face again and Damon felt the tears and his body shaking, he knew the answer was far from innocent and it seemed like Damon’s fear was coming true.

“ Katherine what the hell did you do to my brother… ” Damon once painful thoughts about the vampire turned to anger. Stefan was someone emotional and empathic, yet he never broke down, not with their father watching their every move, the last time he’d seen his brother so distraught was when their mother died, so for Katherine to have done something to lead to his brother breaking down so badly angered Damon beyond believe.

“I did not want to…”

Damon almost din’t hear his brother, the cries having quiet down significantly but never leaving. “What did you not want?…” Damon tried making his voice reassuring, trying to keep it calm and supportive even with his anger and worried. Stefan shook his head and took another stuttering breath “I was so scared…” Damon squeezed at their linked hands, trying to give some more comfort to his brother. “She…” Stefan took a moment. “Damon I did not want to do anything with her! Anything! Yet she forced me to be with her and I hated it! I could not do anything against her! I could not say anything!” The sudden outburst came as a surprise for Damon, as Stefan had barely been able to make a complete sentence a moment ago, but it din’t overshadow what Stefan had just revealed to him.

“I did not want to do anything with her”

“She forced me to be with her”

“I could not do anything”

If Damon had been mad before, he was livid now. How could Katherine do that? How could Katherine do something so horrible to his little brother after she promised an eternity of adventure for them? How could she violate Stefan and act like everything was fine? Damon felt like he would be sick. His little brother who Damon loved so much went through such a horrible experience and Damon was too love sick after Katherine to even notice. He should have noticed, it was his little brother and Damon was too blinded by jealousy to realize what was actually happening.

Damon couldn’t say a word as he tightened his grip on Stefan, whose breathing had somehow calmed a little. “He was finally able to say what has been in his mind for so long, is probably a relief” he thought. Damon was sure the world was cruel for making them suffer through this. “Stefan I am so sorry” the only thing that could come out was an apology, but an apology won’t make everything better. Stefan shook his head, tears still leaving a trail on his pale skin.

“You did not know”

“I should have”

“She would have made you forget”

Damon wanted to kill Katherine, make her feel even an ounce of the pain she caused Stefan. But she was gone now, and maybe that was better. Still, Damon just kept holding onto Stefan; the young man who in Damon’s eyes will always be a child, the child who suffered so much yet couldn’t ever make a sound. Not finding the words to say, Damon tilted his head down slightly and pressed a lingering kiss onto Stefan’s curl, a gesture he hadn’t done in years after Stefan was deemed ‘too old’. “ Ti amo, Fratellino ” Damon could feel his own tears falling, he could feel Stefan too cold skin against his. “ anch'io ti amo, Grande Fratello ”

How could Stefan still loved him after he failed to protect him? Damon vowed that moment to make their last day the best it can be for Stefan.

Damon din’t expect what happened next though…

Chapter Text

“I wish to see father..”

Damon certainly din’t expect those words to come out of Stefan’s mouth. They had spent the evening talking, and admittedly crying, about what had happened with Katherine. Damon was still livid and if she wasn’t already dead he would find a way to kill her all over again. They sat by the quarry, shirts wash from their blood in the clear waters. “ Fratellino , I don’t think that’s a good idea…” Damon admitted, though it was more so he wished for Stefan not to be anywhere near their father, especially since Damon is pretty sure Giuseppe was the one who pulled the trigger and ended their lives.

“Damon, per favore ” Stefan pleaded. They’ve been slipping a lot into their Italian, maybe it was just natural to fall into something that was comfortable for them, they mostly spoke Italian to each other as their father wanted to fit in and barley spoke their home language anymore. “Stefan, why do you even wish to see him?” Damon had no idea why Stefan would even want to see Giuseppe, sure they got along a lot better than him and Damon did, but Damon knew Stefan still slightly despise the man. “To say goodbye, because in one way or another he technically helped salvami”

Damon almost cringed at the word. He hated the fact that is was true, by Giuseppe guessing that Katherine was a vampire and feeding Vervain to Stefan, it lead to them to trying to save the vampire lover and dying in the process, saving Stefan from his compulsion. “Fine, but do not take long…” Damon sighed, turning to look towards the quarry once more, but he quickly noticed that Stefan had yet to leave. “Come with me, please…”

Damon bit his lip and closed his eyes. He did not want to see their father, less talk to him, but Stefan was asking him to come, and the protective part that had been re-activated quickly when he heard Stefan screaming a few hours ago was begging him to follow him. “ Fratello per favore ” Damon turned to look at his brother once more and saw the vulnerable look painting his face, how could he ever say no to him?

“Fine, I will go” Damon began, noticing how Stefan brighten slightly at that. “But, I will not speak to him. I will stay out of the way, for I do not wish to see him either” he explained his wishes. Stefan nodded along, understanding Damon’s refusal to see their father as they never got along, but was willing to come with him. “Let us go now, it is late enough that the servants should be resting” Stefan stood up, extending his hand towards Damon who took it and stood along with him, starting their walk towards the Salvatore’s Estate.

A few minutes later, Stefan and Damon stood outside their home, both seeming to hesitate going in. “What do you think he will say?…” Stefan asked, looking at his brother as he had every answer in the world. “ No lo so …” Damon glanced at the house once again, wishing now he had stayed at the Quarry. Still, as Stefan grabbed his hand and pulled him in, a childish gesture they hadn’t done in a long time, Damon couldn’t find it in himself to pull his hand away and stay outside.

As they made their way towards what they knew was their father’s office, Stefan finally let go of Damon, turning to him as if asking what he’ll do. Damon leaned against the wall beside the entry, he wouldn’t go in but he’ll stay near enough to hear and be able to grab Stefan if anything happened.

Damon closed his eyes as Stefan walked into the office, he could hear Giuseppe stand up from his desk in surprise. “Dear God!” He heard him gasp. “You’re one of them now” but Stefan, his ever empathic brother was quick to assure. “No. Father, I came to say goodbye” he heard Stefan walk in further into the office, and a feeling of dread took over Damon’s body. “I watched you die” Giuseppe said with such certainty that Damon had a feeling his speculation from earlier was correct. He could practically hear Stefan’s gears turning as he asked “You were there when we were shot?” “I pulled the trigger myself” Damon could hear Stefan small gasp at the admittance, and he gritted his teeth in anger. “You killed your own sons?” There was a hint of anger in Stefan’s voice.

“You were both dead to me the moment you sided with the vampires. I only thank God that your mother isn't alive to see the disgrace you've become. You should be lucky that I told Jonathan to write you both down as victims of this battle so you would not be remembered for your shames!” Giuseppe practically yelled at Stefan, and Damon couldn’t ignore it any longer. Maybe Damon did side with Katherine because he was blinded by love since he barely felt it from anyone but his brother, but Stefan definitely wasn’t, and here was Giuseppe accusing him of such. Pushing himself off the wall, Damon walked inside the office and stood beside his brother, relishing the look of surprise that came onto their father’s face, who definitely hadn’t expected him here as well. “Even in our dead, you only feel shame?” He couldn’t help but ask with a grin, of course Giuseppe would only see their mistakes. But Stefan beside him cried out “We have not turned yet! We do not want to. We are going to let ourselves die, father, Please”

“Yes, you are”

Damon barely registered what happened, only that Giuseppe had broken a wooden rod into two and was aiming to Stab Stefan. Without a thought, Damon pushed their father away and threw him into the wall, watching with a surprise as the stake impaled him. Stefan let out a horrified gasp as Giuseppe fell onto the ground, but Damon could only stare in shock at what he had just done. Stefan started to run over but Stefan stopped him in his steps “Damon-“

Damon stared at the blood staining his father’s clothing where the staked was impaled, his painful gasp for breath sounding far away as all Damon could focus on was the blood. It was calling him, like a beautiful melody that Damon wanted to loose himself in. He din’t even register Stefan calling his name as he walked towards Giuseppe and knelt down, ignoring his “Get away from me!” cries as Damon grasped the stake and pulled it out, the blood staining his fingers. Without a second thought, Damon brought the fingers into his mouth and licked the blood, his senses exploding as the blood entered his system.

“Damon no!-“

Damon hadn’t even noticed Stefan kneeling beside him, trying to grasp at his hand before it was too late. Damon dropped his hand as pained surged in his mouth, he could feel the sharp fangs growing and the venom surrounding his eyes. It din’t last long, but all of Damon’s senses were heightened to their extreme and he wanted to feed, but when he saw the look of fear in Stefan’s eyes once again it brought him back to reality. “Stefan…” “Damon what did you do?…” Damon look at their father’s dying body, his breathing was labored and it won’t be long before he joined their mother in the world of the dead.

“You need to leave” Damon quickly said to Stefan, who looked at him confused. “What?” “You need to leave now, Fratellino !” Damon was almost desperate now, if Stefan left there was a chance he wouldn’t feed and he’d be able to die human like he had wished too. “I’m not leaving you!” Stefan cried out, seemingly horrified at the idea. “If you leave now then you have more of a chance of not feeding and die human, is that not what you wanted?” Damon wanted to grab Stefan and take him far away; away enough from the town so he wouldn’t try feeding from anyone or get caught. “Who said that is what I want?”

Damon froze as he stared at Stefan’s face, noticing the tears falling from his eyes. “What?…” “We were supposed to die together, and now I am not going to let you spend a eternity alone” Stefan barley let Damon process what he said before he was grabbing some of their father’s blood and sticking his fingers in his mouth, much like Damon had a moment prior. He could only watch as Stefan dropped his fingers and moaned in pain, hands clutching at his head and the transformation began.

“ Oh Dio. Cosa mi sta succedendo? ” Damon’s own hand shot up to cradle Stefan’s pained face, watching as the fangs grew and the venom rushed around his young eyes. “ va bene, va bene ” Damon reassured his now eternally young little brother, never letting go as Stefan’s own hand clutched his wrist. After a minute, Stefan finally calm down, but never let go of Damon’s wrist. “Why did you do that Stef?…” Damon still cradled his face between his hand, and was surprised by such love and adoration Stefan stared at him with. “I could not leave you alone, is a eternity of us, you and me together”

Damon could almost cry. And as they sat, clutching onto each other beside their dying father, Damon had a feeling it was now the start of something new…

“ Un'eternità di noi ”