PART 1

CHAPTER 20

Stefan opened the door to their home before she could do it herself. Rose scoffed a nasty smirk pulling at her mouth, "I see you discovered clothing in the time I was gone." Rose stumbled past Stefan pushing him out of her way. "What happened to you?" Stefan's voice was gentle and somewhat concerned. Rose searched the cabinets for Damon's best liquor before sinking into the couch with the bottle, drinking from the dark amber liquid. "Some bar, somewhere. Not sure what I did after I was drunk… I woke up in some frat house. Blood… Everywhere."

Rose chugged the bottle, only getting a mouthful in before it was ripped away from her hand. Stefan opened his mouth to speak but the words were stopped by Rose's hand squeezing his throat, crushing the windpipe. Rose stared at Stefan blankly before throwing him down to the floor. Stefan caught himself and held his throat gingerly as it healed slowly. Fear and shock struck him as he followed Rose's movement unable to speak.

Rose's eyes which were staring at him so coldly, once again looked hungover and tired like they did when she walked through the door moments ago. The raven-haired vampire was back in her seat the bottle of amber liquid against her lips and raised in the air and she drank the alcohol as if it was water.

"E-Elena's missing." Stefan pressed out, clearing his throat. He moved away from Rose, weary of her. It didn't take much for him to figure out why she had reacted like that to him.

Rose had spoken to him silently, telling him that whatever they had been becoming was over. Stefan knew it was his fault, he couldn't have them both and he had made his choice. Rose made hers very clear to him.

The flow of amber stopped and the bottle was lowered. "I thought you guys were fine now." Stefan hesitated to speak, Rose had already injured him and he hadn't even spoken about the night before, but she was bringing it up herself. "Katherine. Elena found her picture." Rose sighed, "And she took off? Well, that was going to blow up in your face sooner or later."

Rose regarded Stefan for a moment before she rolled her eyes at him, "Damon was right you're pathetic." Stefan bristled and glared at her. "It's always Damon with you isn't it!?" He raised his voice, "Once again your sister's in trouble and you're not even worried about her. I thought you had changed but that lasted all of a minute didn't it? Really you're the pathetic one! Don't you see how you're Damon's little toy and he's using you? Don't you see how you're becoming just like him! Why would I want to be with someone like you!"

Stefan regretted it the moment he began but it was too late he couldn't stop his words. He was angry at himself, for choosing the wrong person to love. He was angry that Damon had Rose's love, he was angry that Elena had run off without asking for an explanation. He was angry that he couldn't have Rose because it wasn't who Stefan was. He wished he was the other Stefan because he would have chosen Rose without hesitation. Stefan knew the things he was saying were not true. Stefan knew he was the one who had pushed Rose back to who she had been turned into.

Rose had changed after she turned her humanity back on, and he had changed her back again.

Rose watched Stefan's chest rise and fall and he breathed loudly. She sat unmoving, expression unchanging. Stefan wiped his face, running his hands through his hair gripping its strands and pulling harshly. Rose's phone went off and she reached for it.

"Might want to give your brother a call."

Rose had said nothing to Stefan after his rant, and when he had begged for her help to find Elena she had agreed. Damon hadn't told her where they were, so they were heading to the school, to find Bonnie.

They found Bonnie at the school, the witch's eyes nearly bugged out of her head when she Rose with Stefan. Bonnie was smart and it didn't take much for her to figure out Rose was a vampire. She got the same feeling of death she had with both Stefan and Damon, but there were undertones of… earth to her. Something familiar. Stefan confirmed her suspicion when he began mentioning her run-in with Damon. Rose simply gave Bonnie a playful grin, which unsettled the girl, her fear of vampires making her skin crawl.

They were with Bonnie only minutes before she ran away, providing no clue as to where Damon had taken Elena. "I'm assuming we're going to visit Sheila Bennet now."

Stefan nodded, "If Bonnie can't do magic it's probably because she's scared. The only person she can go to for help is her grandmother. We'll need to prove that she can trust us."

When Rose held out her hand to Sheila like Stefan had told her to, the woman showed visible shock, "Hi, Sheila, I'm Elena's older sister, Rose." The woman nodded, righting herself. "Yes, I know who you are." Rose tilted her head, something about Sheila felt familiar… Like she had known the woman her whole life.

Stefan's voice broke her concentration on the older woman. He was still tense from his conversation with Elena earlier. "Do you know where Bonnie went?" The witch turned to Stefan a knowing look in her eyes. "No. But you do." Stefan was confused, rightly so, Rose was starting to think Bonnie's grandmother was as crazy as the young Bennet witch always complained.

"I told her to face down her fear. And I'm sensing now that you know exactly why she was so scared. You know what I am. And yet you offered me your hand, which means you wanted me to see that I can trust you." Sheila stared Stefan down. "Can you?" He asked softly, pleading. "I trust you'll keep her safe. You'd better be on your way, then. I'm not going to invite you in. I'm sure you understand why." Sheila smirked at Stefan. He nodded and turned away from the witch's home, before Rose could do the same the old witch reached out and grabbed her arm.

Sheila said nothing, but she smiled at her with wet eyes before letting the girl go and closing her door.

Stefan frowned as Rose walked ahead of him, "What was that about?" He asked following behind her. Rose rolled her eyes at him, coming to a stop. "I don't know Stefan. She didn't say anything, you would have heard her." The bite in her voice didn't go unnoticed and Stefan was reminded of his attitude this morning. He promptly stopped whatever he would have said, instead he steered the conversation back to their search for Elena.

"She's at the tomb. It's where Damon attacked her."

Sheila watched as the vampires sped away. She didn't look much like her mother, but Sheila could feel it, could see it in the subtle shape of her eyes, could see it in her attitude. The child she had thought dead was alive and was someone who had been in her presence before.

Sheila's mind was jumbled, how was it possible that she hadn't felt the girl's power at all before? How did Rose still have that ability now… as a vampire?

It was impossible, there was only one explanation and that provided even more impossibilities.