now…

“I’m going back,” Stefan shouted. “I’m going to find him!”

Meredith said quietly, “With or without Elena?”

Stefan stopped. He looked up at the stairway, and his eyes met

Elena’s.

Elena…

We’ll go together.

“No,” Stefan shouted. “I would never put you through that. I’m not

going after all. I’m just going to murder you!” He swung back on his

brother.

“Been there, done that. Besides, I’m the one that’s going to kill

you, you bastard! You took my world away from me! I am a vampire!

I’m not a”—some creative cursing—“human!”

“Well you are now,” Matt said. He was just barely not laughing out

loud. “So I’d say you’d better get used to it.”

Damon leaped at Stefan. Stefan didn’t step aside. In an instant

there was a ball of thrashing, kicking, and punching, and cursing in

Italian that made it sound as if there were at least four vampires fighting

five or six humans.

Elena sat down helplessly.

Damon…a human?

How were they going to deal with this?

Elena looked up to see that Bonnie had carefully made up a tray of

all sorts of things that tasted good to humans, and that she’d undoubtedly

done it for Damon before he had worked his way into hysteria.

“Bonnie,” Elena said quietly, “don’t give it to him yet. He’ll just