A.N: Got to be quick, meant to be packing, leaving in about 15 mins. So I will sort out A/N later. Here it is will respond to reviews later but thought you would prefer a new chapter and time is short.

Disclaimer: I don't own the show etc.

So on with the next chapter...

Chapter 4

Elena chased outside after Damon. She was lucky that he hadn't actually gone far, whether that was because he was planning on coming back in or whether it was because he had yet to decide where to go she wasn't sure. Caroline had crossed a line. One they had all been blissfully ignoring. They were all well aware that Damon was still grieving his best friend, that he still wouldn't let anyone sit in his seat and that it was probably unhealthy that he still wouldn't let anyone sit in that seat, that he still ordered at extra drink. But they were all ignoring it. As though if they didn't acknowledge it, it wouldn't be real; they wouldn't have to worry about it. Thinking back now she couldn't actually recall anyone being there for him when he lost his best friend, everyone was too busy helping her with her transition, not that he would let anyone be there but that didn't mean he didn't need anyone. She still remembered his reaction to Rose dying, and he had been friends with Ric for longer.

Still, she couldn't waste anymore time reflecting on the past, she needed to get Damon back inside so they could continue working out the future. He looked tense, she noticed, as she walked over to him. He would probably never admit it but what Caroline had said had got to him.

"Hey, are you alright?" She asked gently as she reached him.

"I'm fine, go back inside Elena." He answered as he turned to her, his flat.

"I'm not going back in without you." She refused. "Caroline went too far in there."

"I don't care Elena." It was a line she had heard before.

"You know I know that's not true."

"Because you know me so well." He said sarcastically.

"Yes." Her answer honest, "I do, please, just come back inside. For me." She pleaded. She knew it was a little unfair, this was the second think she was asking him to do 'for her' but she needed him to come inside.

"Elena," he sounded pained. She stepped up to him and put her hands on his face to turn him to look at her.

"I know I'm asking a lot, constantly, but I need to figure this out, then we can all move forward." She did her best to hold his gaze, she wanted nothing more than to kiss him in that moment but she forced herself not to, it would only complicate her choice. She was supposed to be looking at her potential futures to help her choose, kissing Damon would only confuse things further, especially if she did then pick Stefan. I wasn't fair.

"What if I don't want you to." His voice was quieter now, his eyes trained on her face, her hands had now slipped down to rest on his chest and she found her eyes involuntarily moving to watch his lips instead as they so often did.

"Why?" She breathed.

"So far we've seen you choose Stefan, I flip the switch and neither you nor Stefan see me again." He sounded almost angry as he said it. It wasn't only that he hadn't been there, it had been that she had still been used by Klaus. Stefan hadn't been able to stop it, and he hadn't been around to even try to help, he hadn't cared to. He probably didn't even know.

"What if I choose you?" She countered. He had sounded so sure it would be Stefan, she wondered if he would ever believe her feelings for him, even if she picked him. "Please, just come back inside," she asked again gently, forcing her eyes back up to his. She felt his muscles relax in defeat and she felt relief wash over her. "Thank you." She whispered before she turned to lead the way back into the house. She could see and feel him tense up again in preparation for going back in, his mask slipping back on to his face. As they got in he headed straight for his bottle again and she slid back into her place on the couch.

"Alright, let's begin." Bonnie said once they had both returned. Elena knew it was possible that Caroline and Stefan had been listening to her and Damon, being in a house full of vampires meant that there was no such thing as a private conversation as long as anyone else was home. She hoped they hadn't. Before the atmosphere got any worse the next scene appeared.

Once again the living room of the same house appeared. It was only seconds before they heard raised voices.

"I can't believe you did that!" Came Elena's voice as she came into view. She looked furious . She appeared to be in her 60s now.

"I didn't have a choice!" Stefan argued back. It appeared that he wasn't going to avoid this argument as he had the others and he didn't even seem to be trying. In fact he too looked angry.

"I wonder what this is about." Elena pondered out loud.

"Why are you guys fighting, you guys don't fight." Caroline seemed upset at the turn of the events.

"If you shut up maybe we'll all find out." Damon pointed out. They all turned back to the argument.

"You killed her!" Elena accused.

The room fell deathly silent, not even the sound of breathing could be heard, this only being a problem for Bonnie. That was unexpected. No one would have thought Elena and Stefan would be arguing about him killing some girl.

"I had to! I thought you of all people would understand that!" Stefan wasn't backing down.

"I know that! But you didn't even think about it! You didn't take 10 seconds to decide that was the only way! You could have at least tried to find another way!" Elena wasn't backing down either.

The whole room waited with bated breath, hoping that they would find out what this argument was about, apparently they both were fine that she had died but Elena wasn't happy that Stefan didn't even try to find another way.

"They were going to kill him! I didn't have time to try to think of another way Elena!" Stefan stood his ground.

"Sounds like my baby bro finally got some back bone." Damon broke the silence.

"Who do you think was going to be killed?" Caroline asked.

"I'm sure we'll find out." Elena answered absent-mindedly, her concentration on the scene.

"I can only think of maybe two people that Stefan would kill for without a second thought. And he's arguing about it with one of them, and only one of those people is a 'he'." Bonnie put in.

"They gave you an hour Stefan, you could have spent more than 10 seconds, 9 of which you spent finding and killing her! She was innocent." Elena protested.

"They wanted her dead. They would have killed him if I hadn't!" Stefan seemed to be getting more worked up about it.

"I know she had to die. I was a vampire for a few years, I remember how you see human life, but you didn't think." She was adamant on this point.

"He's my brother Elena!" Stefan shouted.

The room went silent. Most of them had already worked this out but hearing it from future Stefan's mouth made it all the more real.

"And if he didn't want you to save him?" Elena asked.

"Don't turn this around on me. What, did you want me to let him die?" Stefan asked incredulous.

"You know I didn't. I would never want that! But answer the question Stefan." Elena persisted.

"That's not his choice. He's a vampire Elena. He's supposed to live forever. He would never choose to die." Stefan's voice level dropping as he said it.

"What if he did?" Elena seemed determined to win this argument, even if it was no longer the same one they started with.

"Never?" Damon called Stefan out on his lie.

"You weren't thinking straight." Stefan defended.

"I was dying Stefan."

"But we found a cure."

"What if you hadn't?"

"We did!" Stefan argued back, he wasn't playing what if, he couldn't imagine what if, he didn't want to. He couldn't even begin to consider a world without his brother in it.

"What did you think he'll say?" Caroline interrupted.

"I know." Damon answered but kept it to himself.

"He wouldn't."

"What if he did?"

"He can't!"

"He can't what?"

"Die, he can't die."

"Can't, or isn't allowed to?"

"Elena..." Stefan sighed.

"So his choice doesn't matter then?"

"I never said that!"

"But you just said-"

"No, I didn't. You're trying to put words into my mouth."

"I'm trying to get the truth."

"If he did this you wouldn't think twice." Stefan deflected.

"I wouldn't question his motives; I wouldn't dislike them any less."

"Why? Because it's Damon?"

"It's how he is! It's not how you are!" Elena argued her point.

"Maybe it is, maybe you don't know me!"

Elena felt a strange sense of déjà vu having just heard the same thing from the elder Salvatore brother. For all their differences, when it came to each other they had similar views. She glanced sideways at Damon, she saw the corner of his mouth twitch slightly, he had obviously caught it too.

Stefan wasn't enjoying this scene. It was perhaps a little too revealing. He knew the answers to Elena's questions but he also knew how they would sound, he hoped his future self wouldn't reveal them. Damon knew the answers too but he knew his brother wouldn't tell. His older brother had been there his entire life, whether they were fighting or not, he would never get the sight of Damon that night their father shot them out of his head, he knew he couldn't see it again. A glance at Damon told him he knew exactly what was going through his head. After 165 years they knew each other better than anyone, although neither would willingly admit it, the only time they didn't was when one of them had their emotions switched off, then all bets were off.

"I do know you, when it comes to him you go by a different set of rules." Elena's voice was calm now. She looked well for her age but she was visibly tiring now and she moved to sit on the couch.

"And you don't with Jeremy?" Stefan asked as he moved over and sat down next to her. They weren't touching, Stefan looked wary to set her off again should he try to show her affection just yet.

"My older little brother..." She mused.

"You have different rules for Damon too." He pointed out now she was calmer.

"Please, don't." She sounded almost upset.

"You mean we can't even say my brother's name in a normal conversation?" Stefan sounded a little put out but at the same time resigned.

"You know why." Elena responded in a tired tone. She reached her his hand as a peace offering, her silent way of saying the fight was over. He seemed to relax. "I look old." She sighed as she compared their hands.

"You still look beautiful to me." He assured her his tone soothing.

"I guess that will have to do." She said quietly, has tone almost teasing but Stefan seemed to take it that way. She yawned. It seemed to have been a long day for her.

"You're not used to this life anymore." Stefan noted.

"No, I guess I got used to the peace." She smiled softly at him.

"I'll make you a-"

The scene faded before the sentence was finished. In many ways the scene had been enlightening, although it had very little to do with Elena and Stefan's relationship, not directly at least.

"Aww. You two can never stay angry for long." Caroline seemed happy with how the scene had ended for the couple.

"Yes, apparently the only time we ever fight is when it's about Damon and he's not even around to cause it himself." Stefan didn't seem particularly happy with the situation. Still, they had implied that he and Elena had had a long time of peace. No life threatening situations. It was still strange to see her grow old while he never aged. He wondered if he had gotten the chance to take the cure along with her and turned it down or whether he just hadn't had the option.

"So the last Stefan scene?" Bonnie asked. Everyone took a collective deep breath before they all nodded in agreement.

See you soon, hope you enjoyed it. let me know what you think.(*smile*)