CHAPTER 15: THE RETURN

Mystic Falls Hospital

"Natalie, how's Caroline?" Bonnie sighed as she ran towards the other brunette.

"She's not good, Bonnie." Natalie said, stopping the sob from building up in the back of her throat as her face twisted into a sad grimace.

"What happened?" Bonnie frowned in concern, placing a hand on the hunter's arm.

"I think the device might have affected Tyler." Natalie admitted bluntly.

"What?" Bonnie asked, her eyes widening.

"Well, Matt told me that Tyler was complaining over some noise, like he was getting a migraine or something. That's exactly what happened to all the vampires, and the mayor was also affected, and, as you know, he's Tyler's dad." Natalie explained quickly.

"You blame me, I know." Bonnie rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"No, I don't." Natalie smiled shortly, despite the situation.

Bonnie frowned at her words wondering what she was talking about.

"I see you're confused, the tomb vampires were a threat to not only us, but also everyone in town. Plus, Damon's kind of an asshole." Bonnie laughed slightly at her new friend's words.

"Thank you for understanding." Bonnie smiled.

"Well, Caroline's not here to try to make us friends, so I thought I'd do it on my own." Natalie chuckled.

"I'm glad to have someone on my side in this. Elena's too in love with Stefan to even notice." Bonnie said, her expression suddenly becoming sad.

"Try being her sister, who has to hang out with him sometimes. Only for her to be all possessive for no reason, whatsoever." Natalie laughed.

▹▹▹

"Bonnie, Natalie, how's Caroline?" Elena asked as she walked up to the two, who were trying to pick up each other's moods.

"Weak. They're not sure if she's going to make it or not." Natalie sighed, but keeping a small smile on her face, as if forcing herself to maintain a happy image, which she was.

"Is there something that you can do? Like a spell or something?" Elena asked as she turned around to look at Bonnie.

"She doesn't know how, do you?" Damon asked as he walked over to stand by the three brunette girls.

"No, I don't." the witch admitted, almost like she was ashamed over it.

"No, you don't because it took Emily years to learn a spell like that." the vampire said, bringing up Bonnie's ancestor, Emily Bennett, from the 1860's, who was Katherine's handmaiden.

"Well, I can take down a vampire, that spell was easy to learn." Bonnie retorted angrily at Damon's dissing.

"I can give Caroline some blood." Damon suggested as he turned to Elena.

"No, no way." Elena protested, the idea bing absurd in her mind.

"No, just enough to heal her. She will be safe in the hospital and it will be out of her system in a day, she will be better, Elena." Damon tried to convince her.

"It's too risky, I can't agree to that." Elena shook her head in disagreement.

"Do it. "Natalie broke into the conversation. When she noticed Elena looking between her and Bonnie with the same shocked expression, she realized that Bonnie said it too. "Elena, this isn't just some random car crash. This is Caroline. We can't let her die."

"If I do this, you and me, call a truce?" Damon asked, looking solely at Bonnie.

"No. But you'll do it anyway," Bonnie said, and as she noticed the three confused looks she got, she decided to elaborate. "For Elena."

Elena and Damon exchanged awkward looks as Natalie just stared down on the ground whilst Bonnie walked away smugly.

"I know this is probably the last thing you want to do right now but we should talk about what happened tonight. Preferably without Natalie." Damon said to Elena, but then glanced over at Natalie cautiously.

"Yeah, one of the tomb vampires got into the house and almost killed John. And I know we didn't tell you yet, Natalie and I'm sorry!" Elena rambled as she looked at her sister.

"John was almost killed?" Natalie's eyes widened as her mind forgot to pay attention to anything after the revelation.

"What? When? What are you talking about? After I left?" Damon frowned.

"You were there?" Natalie raised an eyebrow at him.

"Elena knows." Damon smirked to himself.

"No, I don't. What are you talking about? When were you at the house?" Elena asked, her tone of voice laced with confusion.

"Really? Earlier, on the porch, we were talking, all cathartic, feelings exposed. Come on, we kissed, Elena." Damon revealed.

"You did what?" Natalie yelled, a little too loud, so everyone looked at her. "Nothing to see here, keep going with your day." she said awkwardly.

"Okay, I don't have time for this Damon." Elena said, before turning to her sister. "It didn't happen."

"If you want to forget what happened, fine, but I can't." Damon said, grabbing her arm, looking deeply into her eyes. Totally forgetting that Natalie was there.

"Elena, I came as soon as I got your message. How is John?" Jenna sighed as she walked towards Delena and the awkward third wheel.

"Where have you been?" Natalie asked.

"At the fire department, I had to fill out a report. I told Elena earlier." the strawberry blonde told her niece/kind of daughter in law (without the marriage).

"No, you didn't." Elena broke into the conversation.

"Yes, I did." Jenna said.

"No, Jenna, you didn't."

"Yes, I did."

While Elena and Jenna were having their mini-argument (but not really), Damon was deep in thought. Elena couldn't remember their moment, their kiss. And she was wearing different clothes, her hair was curlier, and he couldn't hear a heart beat, well, he didn't really notice earlier as his thought were on the fact that he kissed Elena Gilbert. But now he remembered. And it gave him the realization.

The bitch was back.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." he groaned,

As he saw the three confused faces gazing up at him, he realized that he said it out loud. But he didn't say anything, he just walked away.

▹▹▹

The Gilbert House

"Did she say what she wanted?" Damon asked his Brother, as Katherine was back and decided to push Stefan down a notch. Literally.

"No." Stefan simply responded.

"Woman certainly knows how to make an entrance." Damon hummed.

"Well, now we know where you learnt it from." Natalie quipped, making Damon respond with a sarcastic look.

"She said she fooled one of us, at least. What does that mean?" Stefan asked his brother, ignoring Natalie's statement.

"She pretended to be Elena too when I showed up earlier tonight." Damon quickly explained, leaving out the kissing part.

"I told Jeremy, I can't lie to him anymore." Elena sighed as she walked down the stairs.

"Are you alright? Stefan asked his girlfriend as he walked to stand beside her.

"No, I'm not alright. I thought that with all the tomb vampires gone things would get better." Elena sighed, enjoying the feeling she got when Stefan was around.

"We all did." Natalie broke into the lovey dovey conversation that was about to take place.

"Katherine was in this house, that means she's been invited in, what are we gonna do?" the female doppelganger asked.

"Move." Damon said sarcastically.

"Helpful as always, Damon." Natalie smiled sarcastically at him.

"Katherine wants you dead; there's zero you can do about it; you would be dead but you're not. So clearly she has other plans." Damon said, ignoring Natalie and looking straight at Elena.

"Right, and we need to find out what those other plans are and not provoke her in the process," Stefan proposed before looking at Damon jealously. "What happened tonight when you thought she was Elena?"

"To risk another frown line encroaching on a very crowded forehead. We... kissed." Damon smirked.

Natalie and Elena exchanged worry with only looks over what Stefan's actions were going to be.

"And you thought it was me?" Elena's eyes widened at the realization of how Damon felt about her.

"What do you mean, you kissed?" Stefan raved.

"Well, you know, when two lips pucker and they go:" Damon said before imitating some kissing noises.

But he was cut off by Stefan speeding towards him in vampire speed. But lucky for Damon, he had sharper senses then his younger Brother and he sped on the other side of him and, probably not by coincidence, he ended up next to Elena.

"Don't be obvious, Stefan." Damon smirked crookedly.

Stefan's glare grew even harsher and took a step forwards, as if to jump Damon.

But a hand grabbed his arm and the bunny hunter turned towards the vampire huntress who had a glare on her face.

"If you take one more step, I'll shove an arrow up your ass." Natalie threatened.

"Stefan, he kissed Katherine, not me." Elena reassured her boyfriend before turning over to look at Damon."I wouldn't do that."

As Damon's facial expression became one of hurt, Natalie decided to stop this petty argument. "We don't have time for this!"

"Later." Stefan glared at his brother.

"Maybe John knows something. Katherine must have had a reason to try to kill him." Natalie said, trying to get them back on track.

"John? Seriously?" Elena scoffed.

"She's Katherine. She loves to play games and you're fooling yourself if you think you're going to find out what she's been up to before she wants you to know." Damon told Natalie.

"No, actually, Natalie's right, John could know something through Isobel," Stefan said, and Natalie smiled at him for his support. "Your mother, she was in touch with Katherine so maybe we can go to the hospital and get him to talk."

"I've got a better idea." Damon broke in.

"What's that?" Elena asked, clearly more interested in his words then Stefan's.

"I'm just gonna ignore the bitch." Damon smirked bluntly. "See you."

"Is that smart?" Elena asked innocently.

"If Katherine thinks she's been ignored it will lure her out, she'll make a move." Damon elaborated.

"What are you going to do then, huh, Damon?" Natalie raised an eyebrow at him.

"Stake her, rip her head off, something poetic. We'll see."

▹▹▹

Mystic Falls Hospital

"Ready for this?" Stefan asked Natalie as the two of them stood outside of John's hospital room.

Natalie didn't respond for a moment, she just moved her arm closer to his, and slowly entertwined their fingers. She acted like she wasn't doing anything, but he glanced down at their hands. She just needed his support in more then an emotional way, she also needed it in a physical way, and the fact that they were linked through their hands made that easier.

"Now, I'm ready." she smiled at Stefan slightly.

He smiled back and opened the door for her as they walked through, their fingers still entertwined.

"John?" Natalie asked as the two stood by his bed.

"Natalie." he sighed tiredly, showing he was awake.

"We know- we know Katherine did this to you," Natalie stated bluntly. "All we need is a reason why."

"Where is she?" John asked, but you could see that the question was directed to his daughter and not the vampire next to her.

"You tell us." Stefan retorted.

"I don't know." John responded, before trying to sit up, but just getting pushed down by Stefan.

"You're a little too weak to play tough guy. Why don't you just sit back and answer a few questions?" Stefan asked harshly, only calming down when he felt Natalie squeeze his hand in warning.

She used her free hand to take his Gilbert ring out of her pocket and place it in her biological father's hand. "John, everything will be so much easier of you tell us why she's here or what she wants."

John just stared up at his brunette daughter silently.

"She'll try again; we can't help you if you don't confide in us." Stefan continued.

"In you?" John asked incredulously.

"In your daughter then."

"My daughter should have driven a stake through your heart by now." John snapped.

"She tried." Stefan shrugged.

"I just shot you!" Natalie defended as she slipped her hand out of his, something he realized.

"At least you had some sense," John said. "But I never spoke with Katherine directly, she never trusted me," he looked over at Stefan hatefully. "So either kill me or get out because I can't stand the sight of you with my daughter."

"And you wonder why Elena doesn't like you." Natalie spat distatefully.

She was about to leave but John grabbed her wrist, and she turned around with a glare.

"Keep the ring." John said tiredly.

"What?" Natalie frowned as she questioned what he was talking about.

"Keep the ring," John repeated. "I don't know anyone I'd rather want to have it then you."

Natalie hesitated for a moment before nodding and taking the ring out if John's hand before walking away.

▹▹▹

Stefan was quickly out of the room, after threatening John to get out of town.

"Hey." Natalie said softly as she saw him, pushing herself away from the wall she was leaning on.

"Hi." Stefan responded.

They just stood there for a moment, staring into each other's eyes passionately. You would have thought that the two of them would have had completely different thoughts in that moment, seeing as Stefan has come to terms with his feelings for Natalie, but Natalie hadn't come to terms with her feelings for him, but at that moment, the two of them could only think about how happy they were to have one another. It wasn't that long since the two of them became friends, but for them, it felt like they've known each other forever and as they could be count on one another already.

Natalie was about to stop their stare with some awkward remark when Stefan decided to take the matter into his own hands, literally, by grabbing both of her hands with his, putting them between the two. Natalie glanced down at their hands, a small smile gracing her face.

"You know, we haven't really talked about it." Stefan commented as he looked at the shorter girl.

"Talked about what?" Natalie frowned.

"The whole John being your father thing. The whole Isobel turning out to be evil thing. The whole Elena being your sister thing." Stefan elaborated softly.

"There's really nothing to talk about," Natalie shrugged. "Just something that will change my life forever because it turns out that everything I ever thought about my life was built on a lie. It's no biggie."

"I take the ability to use sarcasm as a sign of that you're going to be okay." Stefan smiled.

"It always is." Natalie smiled brightly at him.

Stefan slipped his hands out of hers before wrapping his arms around her in the same way he did after Natalie's reunion with Isobel.

Except, this time Natalie smiled as she put her hands on his back.

And mirroring the last time, one of the two realized their feelings.

And Natalie couldn't feel guiltier.

▹▹▹

Once the two were outside of the hospital, in parking lot, by Natalie's car, Stefan decided to speak up.

"Wait a second." he said, grabbing her arm, stopping her from walking on.

"What is it?" Natalie asked.

"Take of your bracelet." Stefan commanded her, referring to her vervain bracelet.

"Why?" Natalie questioned cautiously.

"Just trust me."

Natalie complied and slipped her vervain bracelet off, putting it on her car.

Stefan put his hand on her cheek carefully, his mind drifting through the possibilities of what this might lead to.

"Stefan, what are you doing?" Natalie asked, alarmed.

"I don't think we'll get to be alone anytime soon so I need to say. You need to hear it." Stefan said, putting his other hand on her other cheek softly.

"Stefan, what...?" Natalie trailed off, her eyes widening.

"Natalie, I like you," Stefan said shortly. "I like you romantically. I have feelings for you. Feelings that you'll probably never return. I know it's wrong. Elena's your sister, and my girlfriend and I know that. I know that we'll probably never be together and I do love Elena. A lot. But something about you... it just draws me in. You're probably the opposite of my type. Just like I'm probably the opposite of yours. And you're human. You're so beautifully human. You have flaws, you have issues, you've made mistakes and you'll probably never stop with these things. The question is: why does that make me like you more? Because you're real, Natalie. You're probably the most real person I've ever met. And I like that. I love that. Even if I'm not sure how deep my feelings are yet."

"Stefan-" Natalie was cut off by him. "I know what you're going to say. This isn't right, I'm not supposed to feel this way. But you can't choose who you fall for."

He didn't know that he predicted Natalie's response wrongly. He didn't know that she'd tell him that she just realized that she felt the same. That no matter how wrong it might be, or how much they try to suppress those newfound feelings, they'd still be there.

Stefan looked deeply into Natalie's eyes. "But, since it's not right, that means you can't remember this. Maybe you didn't need to hear it, but I need to know that I said it. But that doesn't mean you need to remember it."

Stefan sighed before leaning forward and kissing her forhead, letting his lips linger on her skin.

Natalie stood quietly, completely speechless. But then Stefan looked into her eyes again, his pupils dilating as he compelled her. "But you can't remember this."

Seconds later, the whole confession had been erased from Natalie's mind.

And Stefan hated it.

"So, ehm, are you ready to go to the Lockwood's mermorial?" Stefan asked her.

"Hmm, I think I'll just go home. The whole John thing has screwed me up enough for today." Natalie shrugged.

"That's too bad," Stefan sighed. "I thought I might have the great huntress of Mystic Falls there to protect me against Katherine."

Natalie's only response was her face growing into a large smile.

▹▹▹

The Gilbert House

Natalie missed the Lockwood memorial. She wasn't there so she missed Katherine's declaration of love for Stefan, before stabbing him with a pole.

She had been home a little, talking to her dad, seeing as they have been getting more distant lately. She couldn't shake off the feeling that there was something she'd forgotten, something she was supposed to remember. And she'd spent the last ten minutes staring at the Gilbert ring John gave her.

Finally, she just decided to slip it on for the night. Just for the night, to see how it feels.

And she decided that it was probably time to go home to her dad.

So, she ended up walking past Elena's room, where she heard the commotion.

"Elena, what's going on here?" Natalie asked as she saw Damon, looking incredibly drunk, and Elena, looking incredibly freaked out, standing way too close together.

"Nothing, Natalie, it's okay, just go." Elena sighed, wanting Natalie out of there.

"No, it's not okay, Elena." Damon said, looking between the two twin sisters. "She's hurting, right?"

Damon sped quickly towards Natalie, holding her up against the wall by her throat. "You want to shut out the pain? It's the easiest thing in the world. The part of you that cares just goes away, all you have to do is flip the switch and snap!"

And that's when Damon snapped Natalie's neck.

▹▹▹

Natalie awoke with a gasp.

For a moment, she didn't remember what happened or where she was. She quickly noticed Elena holding her tightly as she was on the ground. Elena's face was stained with tears.

"Is she okay? Stefan, is he okay?" Elena asked Stefan desperately, having just found her sister, not a long time ago, and not wanting to lose her already.

Stefan leaned down to look deeply into Natalie's eyes, trying to see if she was okay, ignoring the pit in his stomach that was so worried that she might have been dead for good. "She's okay. Shhh, you're okay."

Natalie's eyes widened as the realization of what happened. "Oh my god! Damon killed me! Damon killed me!"

"It's okay. Oh God." Elena smiled in relief as she embraced her sister tightly.

▹▹▹

A/N: That probably set Damon and Natalie's friendship back a bit.

But, oh my god, I loved Stefan and Natalie in this chapter. I originally was going to make Natalie realize her feelings for Stefan later, but I couldn't wait. And, the reason why Stefan didn't tell her he loved her was because he doesn't know it yet and I know when and it won't be for a while.

On another note, it would be great if you followed voidallydia and checked out the story "Mirrors" because I'm one of the writers, along with Void_Malia and it's our other user, and it's a TVD and TW crossover. That would be great.

Also, I'm really torn between a theme song for Statalie. Either I Found by Amber Run or Clarity by Zedd. So, please tell me which one you think fits better.

Votes and comments are very much appreciated.