"Heh, remember my name , Ron Mills." Ron sneered back at Damon's mocking tone.
He slowly unclasped the silver cross necklace from around his neck, holding it tightly between his index and middle fingers. Activating the Rabbit Sigil, he sprinted forward at lightning speed, driving his fist straight into Damon's forehead ,the cross stabbing deep into his skin. Damon was sent flying, crashing into the rooftop railing with a loud thud.
Ron wasn't worried about losing to both brothers at once , he just didn't want them to escape. So he struck first to take one down.
"Sorry, Stefan, but I'm guessing all the recent deaths around town were your brother's doing, right?" Ron's tone was calm but sharp ,more of an accusation than a question.
Before Stefan could respond, Damon — who should have been incapacitated, ripped the silver cross out of his forehead with his bare hands. Ron's eyes narrowed. Without hesitating, he kicked Damon hard in the gut, sending him sliding across the roof, then grabbed a bottle of holy water from his pocket and smashed it over Damon's head.
But the liquid ran down without effect. Damon's skin didn't even sizzle.
Frowning, Ron crouched down, grabbed Damon's hair with one hand, and shoved a clove of garlic into his mouth with the other. Then, for good measure, he pulled out a silver dagger and stabbed him once more.
(For context: Normally, the Rabbit Sigil boosts Ron's speed but not his strength. However, combining it with the Horse Sigil, which dulls pain and enhances endurance, allowed him to strike full-force without restraint. So while he wasn't as strong as Damon, his accelerated attacks packed much more power than any normal human could manage.)
"What the hell are you people? Real vampires? Why does nothing work on you?" Ron asked, irritation dripping from his voice.
"Those are myths," Stefan said, glancing at his battered brother in disbelief. "Probably old lies spread by ancient vampires themselves."
Even Stefan was stunned — Ron's speed was far greater than that of any vampire he'd ever encountered, even those who'd lived for centuries.
"You bastard, I'll kill you!" Damon spat out the mashed garlic and growled.
"He literally just tried to kill me and you're not going to help?" Damon glared at Stefan.
"Ron," Stefan said calmly, "since you can't kill us, how about we talk this through?"
But his stance — slightly forward, protectively between Ron and Damon — showed exactly where his loyalty lay.
"Talk?" Ron barked a laugh. "Your brother's been murdering people. You can't tell me you don't know that."
He pulled Vicki slightly behind him as he spoke, shielding her.
"Silver, crosses, holy water — none of that works, fine. But Damon bleeds, doesn't he? Don't make me test how much of him I can burn. Cut off a head, torch the body — I doubt even you could survive that."
Ron knew it wouldn't be easy to kill both brothers tonight. Still, Stefan didn't seem inherently evil — at least, he hadn't hurt anyone. That made Ron hesitate to push further, but he needed leverage to protect Vicki.
"Maybe," Stefan admitted softly. "I know my brother's done terrible things. I've been avoiding him for years. But if you try to kill him, I won't stand aside. And you wouldn't want your... supernatural identity exposed either, right? Vicki can't be controlled without compulsion, and Caroline's on her way here too."
Ron cursed under his breath. "Damn it. Forgot the excuse I gave Caroline was to go get help. She and Matt will be here any minute."
"Fine," Ron said finally. "I'll let you off — under conditions. One, erase Vicki's memory. Two, if you need blood, take it from a hospital. If I ever find out either of you fed on a human again, I don't care who it is — you're dead. You won't always be together, and when I find you, I will figure out how to kill you."
He stepped closer, pushing Vicki toward Stefan, muscles tensed in case either of them tried anything.
"If you want to stay here, watch your brother," Ron said coldly. "Now, fix her memory."
"I'll do it," Damon said, stepping forward. "Stefan's too weak. He hasn't fed on human blood in years."
Stefan nodded reluctantly. "He's right. I can't do it properly anymore."
"Then hurry up," Ron said. "They're almost here."
By the time Matt and the others arrived, Damon had already finished the compulsion. The new story: Vicki had gotten high, wandered to the rooftop, and nearly fell — until Damon heroically pulled her back.
It all sounded perfectly reasonable, especially with both Stefan and Ron backing the tale. Damon, ironically, came out of it with a "good guy" card.
"Thank you," Matt said sincerely before taking his sister away.
"Hey, have you seen Elena?" Stefan asked Caroline and Bonnie.
"She said she had to go home early," Bonnie replied.
"I can give you her number and email," Bonnie added, noticing Stefan's disappointment. "She prefers texting — tell her I said it's okay."
"Thanks," Stefan said, taking the note.
"Alright, girls," Ron said, turning to Caroline and Bonnie. "It's late. Let me drive you home."
"Thanks," Bonnie said warmly.
"No problem." Ron flashed an OK sign, leading them to his car — thankfully a four-seater sports model, just enough room for everyone.
"Goodnight, Bonnie. See you tomorrow," Ron said after dropping her off.
"So," he turned to Caroline with a grin, "heading home tonight?"
"Not tonight," Caroline smirked teasingly. "Let's try your place."
Ron laughed. "No complaints here."
He slammed the accelerator, speeding back home.
Downstairs, things were calm — Sarah was still up in her room. But the moment they reached the second floor, everything changed.
The night was wild, sleepless, and full of heat.
By morning, they almost missed class. Grabbing a few quick bites from Sarah's rich breakfast spread, Ron rushed Caroline to school.
Inside the classroom, Bonnie, Elena, and Stefan were already there. Ron found an empty seat nearby.
It was obvious now — Stefan and Elena were officially together. Their little interactions during class had become bolder and more frequent, much to the teacher's frustration.
And once again, it ended the same way — another "Stefan vs. Teacher" showdown, with Stefan victorious as usual.