Part 9

I have never bought Stefan being the tortured soul of the Salvatore brothers…He was the first to change, to feed…He brought a young girl to Damon so that he would change, feed off of her…So that Damon would be just like him…I think also that Katherine did not compel Stefan…I believe that he would have done anything to be with her to keep her away from his brother…The Stefan that immerges in the following chapters is the Stefan I think he has always been, evil and treacherous.

Stefan searched the woods for Damon. He knew in his dead heart that Damon had gone to meet Katherine. To perhaps run away with her, to leave him behind. The hate and anger had been eating at him for the last hour. It was almost driving him insane.

He had finally picked up Damon's scent just beyond the outer woods. It took a few more minutes before he was standing in the shadow of the lone tree by the ridge. What he saw only made him even more furious.

Damon's face was a kaleidoscope of emotions. His eyes bright and full of , hope. Hope, he had not seen in Damon's eyes since the night they both were shot trying to help Katherine.

His hand was stretched out towards the sky, as if he was beckoning Katherine to come to him. His mouth moving silently. Was he calling out to her somehow?

Stefan could not stand it any longer, he lunged straight at Damon knocking him to the ground. His hands were wrapped tightly around his brothers neck. The attack was so sudden and Damon was so lost in his own thoughts that he did not have time to react.

"Where is she? When will she be here?" Stefan screamed at Damon, his face contorted with rage. "I know you are meeting her here. You thought you could slip away with her, but I wont let you steal her away from me again."

Damon realizing that Stefan had lost all control, began to fight back. He managed to throw him off and to stand back up. "What are you screaming about?" he barely managed to get the words out before being thrown into the tree. Damon screamed as the branch slid all the way through his body.

Stefan knew that Damon was not going anywhere now. He walks slowly to the bottom of the tree and looks up at Damon hanging there bleeding. He jumps to the closest branch to his brother and takes his lapis ring. The quickness surprises Damon and he is in no shape to fight him for his ring. Stefan steps off the branch and lands with a barley audible thump.

"You have a few more hours before the sun begins to come up, maybe Katherine will show up and save you", Stefan snarls at his brother. He turns to walk away when Damon begins speaking to him.

"I don't know why you think this is about Katherine or you for that matter", he rasps out with blood dripping off of his lips. "This had nothing to do with you or Katherine, it was about me alone", he knows he will not stay conscious too much longer.

"I don't know what the hell is going on in your mind, but everything I do does not revolve around you or that bitch either. I met a beautiful creature here tonight who asked something of me. Me, Damon Salvatore. Not me and you, but just me." The words spoken with the last bit of energy he had left.

Stefan stood at the bottom of the tree and watched as his brother's head began to sag down to his chest. He almost believed him, almost that is but not quite. He knew how much Damon loved Katherine and would do anything to be with her.

"Well brother, it seems I could almost believe you, but I know you better than you know yourself" he tells Damon as he walks away and then runs back to the boarding house.

Damon watches as Stefan leaves him hanging in the tree with no means to escape. A hoarse laugh escapes his lips as he thinks of the offer tonight. I knew I could not make the right choice, I never have and now it seems as if I will not get the chance…

With everything that is left inside of him, he screams out in frustration and fear..The great Damon Salvatore does not want to die...