A/N: Sorry this took so long to get out. Had a writer's brain fart and couldn't think of what to put next. Figured out some things that would make it a very interesting chapter, and the rest wrote itself. Hope you enjoy!

Elena and Elijah walked into The Howler arm in arm. The place wasn't quite as full as it had been when she went with Caroline, but there were still enough people there to make it a fun environment for the night. Elena tugged at the short, black dress she had on. As soon as she had told Caroline about the date, the blond had insisted that Elena borrow something from her closet. Luckily, they were the same size. That didn't make the dress any longer unfortunately. It had already brought her unwanted attention from the lowlifes hanging around outside. One had attempted to speak with her, but one look at Elijah silenced him.

"I know I haven't told you tonight, but you look absolutely stunning," Elijah whispered in her ear.

"Thank you, you look quite handsome yourself," she whispered back.

Elijah wore a tight, long-sleeved, black shirt with light blue jeans. The ensemble was simple but suited him nicely. He had more muscle than she had originally given him credit for too.

He took the two of them to a booth in the back and in the corner. The music was just as loud as it had been the first time she'd been here. She wasn't sure why Elijah's brother couldn't have picked a quieter place for a double date. Maybe they would be going somewhere after this. Elena didn't want to ask too many questions for fear of sounding high maintenance.

"What does your brother look like?"

"About my height, blond hair, blue eyes, nice smile. He's a year older than me, but that won't help you spot him of course. I think you'll like him, Elena."

"I'm sure I will if he's your brother."

"Well, we aren't the same precisely. I think our personalities are fairly different."

"Still, I'm sure-"

"Elijah! I see you come bearing excellent company."

That voice. Elena knew that voice. She turned to the men coming to the table, looking at the one who she was sure had spoken.

"Stefan?"

"You two know each other?" asked the man standing next to Stefan.

"She's the lovely girl from Italian, dear." He smiled, him and the man scooting into the seat across from her and Elijah. Wait…if Stefan's brother was Damon…then did that mean…

"You're Elijah's brother?"

"That would be me, sweetheart. Klaus Mikaelson is the name."

"Pleasure to meet you…small campus though."

"Unfortunately so," Elijah chimed in. He gave Elena a knowing looking, figuring out exactly why she had asked him about his sexual orientation earlier. Thankfully he kept this new revelation to himself.

"I'm quite fond of the size to our campus. Then we get to have little surprises like this that just make my day." Stefan grinned widely. His tone always remained the same, leaving her unsure of whether he was genuine or sarcastic half the time.

"Well, now that we are all acquainted with each other, shall we decide what we're going to eat? I'm positively starving." Elijah chuckled and browsed the small menu for the club.

Elena smiled at their little group. Not even a week at school and she had already made quite a few friends. She looked at the small menu, deciding to just get a glass of water and steal food from Elijah's plate. First date jitters told her to hold off on the pigging out until she observed the behavior of her friends first.

For the first time, Elena got a really good look at the popular club. Despite the scumbags that were outside, the inside looked fairly classy. If it weren't for the people, she might actually enjoy coming here more often. The only reason she could deal with it now was because of the company she was keeping. The entire room was tinted a dark pink from the lights. There was an open dance floor in front of the bar, which happened to be fairly long. Booths and tables surrounded the dance floor on all sides. The DJ was set up off in one of the corners, and speakers were scattered throughout the place. The place had potential, but it was in a bad part of town. The only time Elena would be coming here was if she was with her friends.

"Elena, would you like to dance while we wait for our drinks and food?" Elijah offered, noticing that she was looking around the room.

"Oh yes, that does sound fantastic,' Klaus added.

Elena wondered why Stefan had been so quiet in class about his relationship with Klaus if they were so open about it in public. She made a mental note to ask him about it in class.

"Um, sure. Why not?" Elena shrugged. Honestly, it was like history was trying to repeat itself, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. College was supposed to be a fresh start, but it seemed she kept being coerced into her past at this place. Maybe that was the reason she really didn't like it. Not just the people, but what the place reminded her of.

Elijah smiled and got out of his seat, offering his hand to Elena. Stefan and Klaus had already left at the mention of dancing, and were currently out on the dance floor. Elena's heels clacked on the wooden surface as her and Elijah walked out to the open area in front of the bar. The place had gotten considerably more crowded since her arrival, and just as before when she had been here with Caroline, people were bumping and grinding to the music. She spotted Stefan and Klaus facing each other, dancing a little out of rhythm to the music playing, but they seemed to be in their own little world. The image made Elena smile. They seemed so happy.

Elijah waited for her to make the first move, both of them suddenly very aware of the inappropriate way the people were dancing around them. Elena couldn't say too much though…she knew exactly how to dance like they were. It's not like it was that hard, but it was how she had danced before when she came to places like this. With Elijah, it seemed wrong to dance with him in such a way. She would just have to try and incorporate the provocative dance style with something more reasonable as well.

She placed her arms around his shoulders and began swaying her hips to the beat of the music. He caught on quickly and placed his hands on her waist, bee-bopping along himself. It was better than having her ass against his dick and shaking it accordingly. She had danced like that before, and there was no connection between the two who shared such a "dance" together. This way, she was looking right at Elijah, smiling brightly as she did. He returned the smile, but something seemed off. The sparks weren't there like they had been earlier. At least to her…she didn't know what was going through his mind or how he felt.

The song changed and soon, everyone in the room was jumping and pumping their fist in the air to go along with the song. Stefan and Klaus had somehow gotten over to where her and Elijah were and the four joined the rest of the room. Elena laughed at how much fun she was having with the three.

"We're going back to the booth!" Stefan shouted to Elena and Elijah.

The two nodded as Klaus and Stefan made their way through the crowd, zigzagging through the people until they were off the dance floor. As Elena watched them leave, a line of people walked between her and Elijah, separating them momentarily. That's all the time it took for a guy to come up behind her and wrap his arms around her waist tightly. She tried to wiggle out of his grasp, but he managed to hold on firmly. The line of people vanished and Elijah appeared in her view once more. She mouthed a "help me" to him and he understood immediately. The expression on his face showed he thought the situation was slightly humorous. The guy behind her must have looked drunk out of his mind. Elijah came up to Elena and addressed the guy attached to her backside.

"Excuse me, if I may cut in?" Elijah asked politely. Although something in his voice let Elena know he was agitated at having to ask to dance with his date. It was an understandable frustration in her point of view. He was trying not to make a scene though, and Elena was grateful for that.

"Find your own chick!" He shouted, slightly slurred.

"Well, I did, but you have her in your hands right now," Elijah countered.

The man gave a grunt and practically shoved Elena into Elijah's arms. It didn't matter to her how she got there, she was just happy to be in his arms.

"Thank you," she mouthed to him.

The two walked off the floor, heading back in the direction of their booth. Elena didn't sit down immediately though. The guy had kind of shaken her up a bit.

"I think I'm going to the bathroom. Need to freshen up after that," she chuckled, trying to lighten the mood and not show how much it had scared her.

"Is everything alright, darling?" Klaus asked. His voice was laced with concern.

"Elijah can explain. I promise I'll be right back." Elena smiled and grabbed her purse before heading in the direction of the bathrooms. She kept away from the dance floor, walking by the tables to get to her destination on the other side of the building. The less chance she had of bumping into that man again, the better. Elena rounded a corner and reached the restrooms. She turned right into the women's bathroom, sighing with relief when she saw that they weren't disgusting like she had pictured.

The walls were red, and the stalls were black. A long gray counter stood opposite the stalls with white sinks. She went to the farthest end of the counter and looked into the mirror. Nothing too bad, her hair was just a little ruffled and she could stand to retouch her lip-gloss. As she got her tube of gloss out, another girl walked into the empty bathroom. She had short brown hair and really light green eyes that were apparent as soon as she stood by the lights in front of the mirror. Her dress was short, tight, bright red and with long sleeves. Elena was a little jealous of her beauty. Something about her tickled Elena's memory. The girl met her gaze and smiled. Elena returned the smile and waved.

"Sure is crowded out there," the woman said, a slight accent to her voice.

"I know what you mean. I needed a break," Elena said. The other woman chuckled softly, nodding her heading in agreement.

"I've been here for most of the night, but it wasn't that bad when I got here."

"Yea, it got worse while I was here too."

"Do you visit often?"

"It's only my second time," Elena confessed.

"Ah, a newcomer. I'll tell you now; this place is almost always packed. It's one of the nicer hangouts, even though it's still not the best. I would prefer coming to this place for drinks than any of the other clubs or bars."

"I'll be sure to remember that, thank you. I'm Elena by the way."

"Rose, and it's a pleasure." She smiled and went to fluffing her hair while Elena reapplied her lip-gloss.

While the two women were primping themselves, the door burst open, but instead of another girl coming in, a man staggered through.

"You! You owe me a dance!" The man slurred in a deep voice. Elena recognized that voice with horror. It was the one who had grabbed her by the waist earlier. Being able to see him now, Elena could see how much he dominated in size and muscle. No wonder his grip had been so tight! She shot Rose a terrified look, trying to convey to her that she did not want to be near this man. The other woman seemed to pick up the hint, and nodded her head before quickly sliding past the ogre in the bathroom and leaving. Hopefully the lady didn't just run off and leave her there. Elena hoped with all she had that the woman had gone for help. Where were the bouncers at when you needed them? Shouldn't they have kept the guy from entering the girl's restrooms in the first place?

"I don't believe we've ever met before," Elena tried to say casually, but inside she was frightened to the core. She was no weakling, but compared to his brute strength, she would be no match for him.

"Don't play coy with me! I know you remember," he drawled as he moved closer. Elena backed up so that she was farther away from the man, but the bathroom was certainly not that big. She soon bumped into the wall inside the handicapped stall, the one farthest from the door. Great.

"I'm afraid I don't." Of course she wouldn't have pepper spray in her purse either. Shit, shit, shit. At least she had heels on, that had to help her, right?

"Come on, princess. Let me show you," The man moved closer and soon was the only thing she could focus on. The man was a giant compared to her! As his hands touched her waist, she stomped on his foot with her heel, causing a yelp to escape his mouth. Elena went to bolt, but he recovered quickly and grabbed both of her arms tightly.

"That wasn't nice!" He shook her, hard. His grip was iron tight and no matter how much she wiggled, he wouldn't budge.

"Let go!"

"Not until you give me my dance!" The man snarled. She was shaking from fear at this point, and while her arms were unmovable, she tried to swing her legs. That's when he pinned his body up against hers. Now she wasn't able to move anything. Her brain worked overtime to try and think of something that would get her out of this mess. The man was beyond reasoning with, his alcohol intake had obviously been high this evening. She was realizing that her best chance of this turning out well was for her to agree with him and try to get him to go back outside the bathroom, where people were.

But then events began to happen so quickly; she wouldn't have to worry about her next move.

A man dressed in a black shirt and leather jacket jumped the man from behind, grabbing him around the neck and pushing his feet against the wall to take the two backward. Elena toppled forward a little, but was caught just in time by another set of hands before she went face first on the floor. The hands that had saved her from falling seemed to stay by her, as if protecting her, while she watched the two men in front of her fight. The man in the leather jacket was throwing punches left and right, dodging every now and then. The ogre was quick though, and even in his drunken haze was able to land a hit on the other man's face that was so hard, he fell backward on the floor, unconscious by the entrance to the restrooms. As her assaulter hobbled toward the stall again, his face bruised and with probably a broken nose, the man who had been beside her stepped forward. His hands grabbed either side of the stall's doorway and lifted himself up high enough to kick the ogre with both his legs. The blow was straight to the head, but somehow made him only stagger backward. Then, her protector performed the smoothest roundhouse kick she had ever seen, sending another blow to the drunken man's head.

He was out before he hit the floor.

Elena stood wide-eyed, taking in the scene before her. Rose was in the room, kneeling over the man in the leather jacket, who was now regaining consciousness and rubbing his head. As she took a closer look, she realized that it was Damon Salvatore. Elena couldn't forget the man that had been dancing on the bar top only two nights ago. It also answered her earlier question of why the girl had looked so familiar. Rose had been the one dancing with him. Elena made her way to the couple, but stopped as the brute who had caused all this blocked her path in the floor. She looked down at him with anger burning in her eyes. How could such an idiot completely ruin her night? As she thought of what could have happened, had Rose not gotten help, her legs wobbled underneath her. However, just like before, a set of hands grabbed her elbows from behind and steadied her.

"Easy there," whispered a familiar voice.

Elena carefully lifted her feet up to take her heels off. That would be a huge help. She didn't need four-inch heels with her already lacking balance. The protective hands never once left her elbows as she removed her shoes. She slowly turned herself around, placing a hand on her savior's chest to keep stable. Elena was slightly stunned by who she saw.

"Hey," Alaric said tenderly, his hands still placed on her arms for fear of her falling.

It shouldn't have been a big surprise, considering Damon was on the other side of the restroom. If both Rose and Damon had been in the bathroom, she should have suspected the third person was her teacher.

"Hey," she said quietly.

Elena watched as Alaric checked her over for any wounds from the oversized man on the floor. Satisfied with the fact that she looked unharmed physically, he sighed with relief and brushed a strand of hair out of her face.

"Why did you have to go and be the badass, Ric?" Damon questioned from across the room.

"Because she wasn't your damsel to rescue," Rose answered. It was low enough for Elena to tell that she wasn't supposed to have heard that.

"You were kind of unconscious, buddy," Alaric mocked, "I had to do something."

"I helped, just so you know," Damon shook his head smugly.

"I know. Without you, I would never have been able to take him." Alaric winked, getting a laugh from Damon.

"And don't you forget it."

"I don't mean to interrupt this 'who kicked more ass' contest of yours, but I think the poor girl would probably like to leave before this dick wakes up," Rose interrupted. Elena was grateful for it too. She owed this girl so much.

"Of course, I'm sorry. Would you like me to drive you back to your dorm?" Alaric offered.

"Actually, I would love that. I'm not in the mood to stay here any longer," Elena confessed.

Before she knew what was happening, Elena was being scooped up into Alaric's arms. She put her arms quickly around his neck, unprepared for the gesture.

"You are in no state to be walking, Elena. So before you start to argue, don't." He gave her a knowing grin before stepping over the man on the floor.

"Fine."

"Don't be a stranger, Elena. It was a pleasure to meet you," Rose said sweetly.

"I won't. It was a pleasure to meet you too. Oh! Damon?"

"Yes?" He finally stood up from the floor with Rose's support and turned to her.

"Could you find Stefan and tell him and the friends that he's with that I'm alright? Tell them I wasn't feeling well. I don't want them to worry."

"Will do, madam."

"Thank you. I owe both of you so much."

"We'll discuss payment for our services the next time we see you," Damon replied with a wiggle of his eyebrows and a smug smirk.

"Damon!" Rose hit him in the arm, causing him to wince at the pain.

"I was joking!"

"Goodbye you two." Alaric rolled his eyes and pushed the door open with his back, taking Elena out of the building through the back door. The warm air rushed across her face as they walked to his car. A sense of safety washed over her, a feeling that told her nothing could harm her while Alaric carried her. Her head slowly found a place on his shoulders, nestling into his neck. They remained like that until they reached the parking lot that housed his car. Alaric carefully opened the passenger door and slid her inside.

"Watch your head," he warned.

She fit in easily and he closed the door, going around to the driver's side and entering. The drive back to campus was short, but it was also silent. Elena caught the quick glances he would get of her, but nothing was exchanged verbally between them. Once Alaric pulled into the parking lot, she turned to thank him for everything he had done, but saw him getting out of the car. He came around and opened her door for her. Elena gave him a confused look as she stepped out of the car with her purse and shoes in hand.

"You don't have-"

"Yes…I do." Alaric's tone said there would be no discussing the matter.

The two walked into the building and went up the elevator to her floor. Elena was sure Caroline would be in the dorm, so at least she wouldn't be alone tonight. Otherwise Alaric might have insisted on staying there as well.

"This is my room," Elena said as they arrived to room 4726.

"Are you going to be alright?"

"Caroline should be in there. She didn't say she had plans tonight."

"Alright…then I suppose I'll see you in class Friday. I would understand of course if-"

"Thank you."

Alaric looked at her kindly, a small smile on his face.

"I hope anyone would have done the same for you."

"Maybe," Elena shrugged. For some reason, she didn't think anyone else would have succeeded. Which brought something else to her mind…

"How did you two know how to fight so well?"

"We take martial arts classes. Have been for about five years now."

"Would you teach me?"

"Martial arts?"

"Yes…I want to know how to protect myself."

Alaric seemed to think about it for a minute. Several expressions passed over his face while he made his decision. Uncertainty. Pride. Shock. Acceptance. He finally nodded his head, bringing a smile to Elena's face.

"We'll start after class on Friday, ok?"

"Ok."

The two looked at each other for a long time, unsure of where to go from here. How did a student say goodbye to their teacher outside of the student's dorm room? And after he had just saved her life? Elena thought of the only reasonable one, which was to hug him. She wrapped her arms around his waist tightly. Alaric hesitantly put his arms around her, placing both hands on her back. They staid like that for a while, Elena's head resting close to his shoulder. She finally pulled away, and walked into her dorm room with one last look at Alaric. He smiled once more at her before walking toward the elevator. She closed the door, leaning against it after. Caroline was on her bed, reading some girly magazine. She looked at Elena leaning against the door and scrunched her brows together.

"Did your date go alright?"

Elena sighed.

"We have a lot to talk about."

A/N: So, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. We needed a way to see Alaric being his badass self, since he won't be killing any vamps in this story. Obviously, my characters won't be exactly like they are in the T.V. show, but I'll try and get as close as I can =)

Reviews are always lovely my dears!