I love it when the chapter's start to flow, and I can write 4,000 words in one night lol.
(Who needs sleep?)

This chapter my seem a little "jumpy" but that's because I wrote it at 3 am.

But I like it, and I think I caught any grammar mistakes.

If not...oh well.

Don't judge me.


Elena's POV


"Twins?" Damon's incredulous voice reached through the stunned haze I'd fallen into.

I forced my mouth to move, "How is that-"

"Are you sure?" Damon demanded, as I shook my head.

Alaric pointed to the monitor, "Here," his finger slid across the screen, "And here. There's two fetuses. Clear as day."

I saw the shapes he pointed to, realized the truth in his words, but was having difficulty wrapping my mind around it.

"Twins?" I swallowed, and remembered the irregularity in the heartbeat I'd been listening to.

Maybe it hadn't been irregular after all, maybe it wasn't that it had been beating too fast.

Maybe it had only seemed that way, because there were, in fact, two heartbeats.

With a burning focus, I stared at those two little black and white blobs.

And cried.


My hand shot to cover my mouth as the tears ran hot down my cheeks.

A million different thoughts ran through my mind, each so fast, it nearly gave me whiplash.

Most of them were spanned from anxiety.

What happens now?

How are we going to protect two children?

Everything we'd had to worry about is now doubled, with two lives at stake, instead of one!

But one there was one thing stronger than every little doubt my brain was spitting at me.

And that was the feeling of love that clenched my heart so hard, I was having difficulty breathing.

I was sure that it was the effect of knowing that this was real.

Seeing those two little shapes made it real.

Knowing what they were, what they would be; it put everything into a clearer perspective.

All my worries were heavy, but this love that had overcome me was the strongest thing to ever run through my body, and I felt it to my soul.

These were my children.

My children, with the man I loved.

My family.


"Damon," I breathed, tearing my eyes from the screen long enough to search for his.

When his gaze found mine, I could see my emotions reflected in those blue orbs.

"I know," he whispered.

And he kissed me.

He kissed me hard, his hand burying in my hair, and I was left breathless.

It was a new kind of touch for us; more than love, or passion.

The kiss he laid on me was born of reverence, and adoration.

It was a thank you without words, for this gift, for these lives that now existed because of what we shared.

And even when he released my lips, his forehead stayed pressed against my own, his arms now around my body, pulling me into his chest as tightly as possible.

A throat cleared from beside me, and with a great reluctance, I looked over at my Alpha.

"We'll give you two some time alone," he promised, "But afterwards, come find me...we need to talk about this."

I nodded, offering him a watery smile, "We'll meet you in the study."

He gave a nod, then motioned for Bonnie to follow him.

He pecked the side of my head, and clapped Damon on the shoulder, before leading her from the room, and closing the door behind them.


The second we were alone, Damon's hands moved back to my face.

"You're crying," he observed, pushing my hair back.

I chuckled lowly, "I'm overwhelmed...we're having twins."

His smile was the only answer I needed to find out how he felt about the situation, "I know."

My gaze fell back to the monitor, which was blank, now that the stick was no longer on my stomach.

I pointed to where Alaric had set it down, "Will you hand me that?"

Damon nodded, and moved to grab it, putting it in my hand.

I placed it back against my skin, where Ric had been moving it around, and watched the screen.

I found the fetuses pretty easily, now that I knew what I was looking for, and was once again overcome by the same feeling of awe.

Damon sat beside my feet on the bed, also facing the monitor.

"Wow," he murmured, a little distantly, and I looked over at him.

He was also staring at the screen, but his expression made me feel as though he were seeing something else entirely.

"You okay?" I asked, reaching over for his hand with my free one.

He nodded as his blue eyes shifted to me, "Yeah."

"That wasn't convincing," I teased halfheartedly, and he smiled a little.

"Sorry, kitten, I'm...worried."

I nodded, "Me too. But we can handle this Damon. We can handle anything."

"We always survive," he chuckled, "You said that to me in the car, the night I almost died from being tortured by the Mutts in that warehouse."

I remembered that moment too well. It was also the first time I'd admitted out loud to him that I still loved him.

"I did say that," I told him, "And it's true. When I'm with you, sometimes I forget about every horrible thing that's going on around us. And when you tell me we're going to be okay, at that moment, I can believe it. You make me feel invincible."

He kissed my knuckles, then rested his head on them, "God, I wish you were, baby. I wish we didn't have to worry about all this shit coming down on us. More than anything, I want you safe and happy, and I want that for these babies. But with Giuseppe out there…"

I nodded, "We have to end this. For them."

"He has to die," Damon agreed, "If he finds out there are two of them...I want him dead."

"I do too," I assured him, "And it will happen. But for now, we're as safe as we're going to get. And we have a machine that is showing us our children. The bad stuff can stay outside of this room for a while, okay?"

Damon smiled at me, "Of course...you're right. Sorry."

I reached out for him, and he leaned forward, dropping another kiss against my lips.

"I love you, kitten," he said again, "I really do."

"I know," I promised, "And I love you."


Another hour had nearly passed by the time we were through in the infirmary.

I never wanted to stop looking at my babies, and thankfully a printer had come with the machinery, so I didn't have to.

I stared at those two perfect shapes in the picture through the entire meeting with Alaric, where I let Damon do most of the talking.

My mate had done exactly as I'd asked, and not mentioned anything about Giuseppe again while we were upstairs, looking at our children.

That moment was for us.

But now that we were in the study, and reality had settled back in, he was in full Enforcer mode.

More patrols.

Running the town.

No one goes anywhere alone.

Elena stays close to the house.

Calling the Alpha council to have them interrogate Mutts in their areas for information.

Plans for the protection of our children rattled back and forth, and the hum of familiarity was comfortable.

How many times had I been apart of conversations like this.

How many trips had been planned, orders carried out, over the years I had been with the Pack?

There was security in the familiar, as I thought about the hunts we'd been on.

And then an odd thought struck me.


"Wait, what about the Change?"

Both men stopped talking and looked over at me.

"What about it?" Alaric asked.

I frowned, crossing my arms as I stood from the sofa I'd been occupying, "Is it safe for me to Change, while being pregnant?"

Damon paled a little, and Alaric blinked.

Obviously, like me, they hadn't thought this far ahead.

Ric's brows pulled together, "When's the last time you went through it?"

"In Giuseppe's lair," I answered, "When I escaped. That was my last full transition."

"You think you can hold it off another week?" He asked.

I nodded, "Yeah. In New York, I tried to Change as little as possible. Once a month, maybe, but longer if I could push it. Another week shouldn't be too hard."

He nodded, "Okay. Then try to wait, and we'll ask Bonnie's witch doctor friend about it, after she examines you. I don't think it would be an issue. Technically all of your...insides would still be there, even in wolf form, but there's no reason to take any chances."

Damon's expression was still hard, "Is there a way where she wouldn't have to Change?"

I sighed, "If there were, don't you think we would know already?"

"I meant a spell or something," he explained, "We didn't know about witches before, but now that we do, maybe they know something. I'll talk to Bonnie. Maybe she knows a way to at least postpone the Change until the babies are born."

"Worth a shot," Alaric nodded.


It didn't take long to find Bonnie, who was outside with Mason, near the forest's edge.

They seemed to be waiting for something.

"Hey," I called, before Damon could jump start into demands.

"Hey," Bonnie smiled.

Mason punched Damon's arm when he was close enough, "Heard you two are trying to have a whole litter."

I rolled my eyes and smirked, "Nice to know I can always count on you to cheapen the moment, Mase."

He grinned, "Anytime baby girl. For real though, congratulations. That's pretty awesome."

Damon stepped in after I thanked him.

"We're increasing the town runs, and putting the other packs on Mutt duty from their home bases. Full interrogations," he said, then looked at Bonnie, "We don't want to have to involve your people in our business any more than is necessary, but I need you to put word out. Anyone with knowledge of Giuseppe, any knowledge at all, needs to speak up. Might also want to mention that he's using witches to do his dirty work. You've got connections, so can you find out who else might be working with him? Besides the siblings Elena said he was blackmailing."

Bonnie nodded, "I can try. My grandmother is our coven leader, and she knows every other witch coven out there, or has at least heard of them. She doesn't like wolves much, but she'll look into it for me."

"Good," Damon assessed, "And there's one more thing I want you to do-"

"Damon," I touched his shoulder, halting him, until he looked at me in confusion.

"She's not a Pack member," I reminded him, "And polite inquiry will probably go further than harsh demands."

He took a breath, "Right."

Bonnie waved it off with a hand, "What is it you need?"

Damon shifted his gaze back to her, "A spell. Or potion, or whatever your witchy juju can work up to stop a werewolf from going through the Change."

Her eyebrow arched, then she looked at me and realization replaced the surprise, "You think turning would hurt the babies?"

"Don't really want to find out," Damon reasoned, "There's a chance that it wouldn't make a difference, but there's no way to be sure. With the way our bodies shift, it could very well dislodge the placental sacs and force a miscarriage."

I flinched at the words and understood why he'd gone so pale when I'd mentioned it before.

Apparently he had thought further ahead than me.


"I don't know of anything off the top of my head," Bonnie bit her lip, "Hell, I don't even know if such a thing exists-"

"But you'll look into it," Damon pressed, then sighed when I shot him a look, "Please?"

Bonnie nodded, "Of course...but you have to know that acts of magic come at a price-"

"We'll pay whatever the delivery charge is," Damon snapped, "We just need to-"

"That's not what I meant," she interrupted, "It's not about money, it's about sacrifice. An average amount of natural magic is one thing, but something like this...it'll require a balance. Magic always does. It's a push and pull method, a yin and yang. There's always a price."

"No price is too high for this," he insisted, "Nothing I wouldn't sacrifice to keep Elena and the young safe. If you figure out a way to make this work, let me know. I'll deal with the consequences."

"Alright then," she caved, "As soon as I find something, if there's even anything to find, I'll tell you.

Damon nodded, "Thank you."

I frowned at the exchange, not liking the idea of this balance thing.

I would give up anything for the children that grew inside of me, I knew that without a doubt, but with Damon, the word "sacrifice" took on a whole new meaning.

And he'd sacrificed himself plenty for me already.

I could only hope that the end result wouldn't come to anything too bad.


A sharp howl cut through the trees then, and Mason straightened, "That's my cue. You need anything before I go relieve Stefan?"

Damon shook his head, "No, we're cool. Just watch the border, yeah?"

Mason nodded, "Nothing's getting past us, Damon."

He turned to Bonnie then, kissing her cheek quickly, "I'll be back in half an hour."

She nodded, and he took off to the woods.

I smirked and Bonnie caught the motion. "What?" she blushed a little, and to my surprise, Damon answered her.

"You treat him right, witch, and nobody here is gonna have an issue."

Bonnie flushed deeper, but nodded, "He told me about your law...what it means for outsiders to know. He did that that's why you bit-" she cleared her throat, "That that's why Elena was turned."

I shrugged, "You're supernatural anyway. Kinda nulls the risk factor."

She nodded.

"And it's a stupid fucking law," Damon muttered.

I looked up at him, wanting to further the subject, but Stefan had just cleared the woods and was walking up to us.

"Hey brother," he greeted, then glanced between Damon and myself, "So is it true? Twins?"

I nodded, and pulled the sonogram picture from the pocket of my jeans, "See for yourself."

He took the picture and smiled softly after a second, "Nice. Well, congrats again, then."

He gave the picture back to me, as Damon asked, "Everything still clear out there?"

Stefan nodded, "Crystal. Not a scent out of place. Elijah, Malcolm, and Jamie are circling the town. They should be back soon, and Mason's just taken point with Tyler and Luka."

"Let me know when the ones running the town get back," Damon instructed, then he gave Stefan the same new precautionary information he'd given Mason.

"Sounds good," Stefan said, brushing a hand over his head, "But speaking of security, we should probably head in. I want to show you how to access the swivel on the camera stand, in case the motion sensor catches something in the other direction."

Damon nodded, and we all went back up.


As the boys drifted off towards the living room, Damon placing a departing kiss on my neck, I took Bonnie's hand and led her to the second floor.

"Not sure I'll ever get used to the nudity thing," she commented, as we entered the room I shared with Damon.

I smirked, knowing that she was talking about Stefan, who had come out of the woods naked and had remained that way until we'd came back inside.

"It's second nature to most of us," I explained to her, sitting on the bed, "We have to strip for the Change anyway, so it's easier to just not have the hindrance to worry about."

"That must've been weird for you," she mused, "Being the only girl and all."

"At first," I admitted, "But the guys respected my privacy for the most part, and Damon probably would have removed their eyeballs personally if they hadn't."

Bonnie laughed, "Now that I could believe...he does seem to have a way about him."

"What do you mean?"

The dark girl shrugged, "I get that this has a very different meaning for werewolves, but Damon's kinda an alpha male, you know? Strong, demanding, doesn't like being told what to do. In fact, I'm kind of surprised that he isn't the Alpha of the Pack."

I set my jaw, trying to think of a good way to explain my mate to her.

It was difficult, because she was both wrong, and right.

"It's complicated," I decided as she joined me on the bed, "Damon's complicated. You see, with born wolves, there's this biological drive, this nature, or instinct; whatever you want to call it, that makes the Pack work. I mean, look at Mason, Tyler, Stefan, any of them. They respect their Alpha, and do their duty to the Pack from loyalty. Whatever's needed, they give. It's why we can hunt and track effectively. But Damon…."

I sighed, "He was bitten when he was really young."

Bonnie crossed her legs, "Mason told me that...and that he was on his own for a while afterwards."

I nodded, "Yeah. No one knew he survived, so he was left to figure out the Change on his own. Giuseppe had murdered his mother, so he had nowhere to go but the woods. He killed anything that came across him, didn't matter if it was an animal or a person. He was practically feral when Alaric brought him here."

Bonnie frowned, "That's so sad."

"It is," I agreed, "But it's why Damon's so in tune with his wolf, his instincts. Giuseppe trained him to be the Pack's Enforcer, and you've heard of the things he's done since then. He was never given the chance to be normal. All he knew was blood."

"Until you," she guessed, "I'm assuming there isn't much he wouldn't give for your happiness."

I exhaled, "Probably not. And he's given plenty...but the point is, Damon was that way for a long time, in that wolf mindset. But his humanity looks for ways through it. I'm that outlet. His feelings for me are the only things stronger than his reasoning or instincts. But our emotions are driven by our instincts. Damon could become Alpha if he wanted to, I have no doubt...but he loves Alaric, and wouldn't challenge his position because of the respect he holds for him."

"Unless his instincts drove him to," Bonnie finished, remembering the sparring match.

I nodded, "And that's where emotion comes in. Damon's instincts were overruled because he saw me with Stefan. It changed his priorities."

"I'm guessing that's what they meant when they said he was too trigger happy?" she asked.

I laughed dryly, "Probably. He doesn't always think clearly when his emotions and instincts work against his reason. Alaric's better with that."

"I think love can make a fool of anyone," Bonnie shrugged, and I leaned back on the mattress.

Damon's scent rose to meet me from the pillows, mixed perfectly with my own, and I smiled.

"It's a complicated thing."


By the time the sun had began to set, Bonnie and I had moved from the bed to the floor, to practice learning control a little more, and I'd actually managed to light a candle with my mind.

It was only once, and the effort had exhausted me, but it was progress none the less.

Then we decided to take a break in favor of finding something to eat, and locating our men.

The first was easy, as George was just pulling a truckload of spaghetti off the stove when we entered the kitchen, but Mason and Damon were missing from the group ensembled.

"Patrol," George offered, catching my eye, "They should be back soon."

"I thought Damon wasn't running," I asked, a little surprised that he hadn't at least came up and mentioned it.

George shrugged, "He wanted to. I think it makes him feel like he's playing a bigger part in your safety, since he can't actually go hunt Giuseppe down. But he left with Stefan and the others about an hour ago, so he should be back soon."

I forced a smile of appreciation and thanked him, but my stomach felt uneasy.

I didn't like not knowing where my mate was.

"Come on," Bonnie patted my arm, "Let's just get some food. I'm sure they'll be back soon."

I nodded, "Yeah, you're probably right."

And dinner did look good.

And I was technically eating for three now.

With a sigh, I caved, and got a bowl of the pasta before sitting at Alaric's giant wooden table.

Some of the others were gathered around, talking and enjoying the food, but I didn't pay them any mind.

"Worrying won't change anything," Bonnie murmured, and I knew she was right.

But I was used to being out with Damon, watching his back.

This whole "being benched" thing was going to be a pain in the ass.


I took a few bites of my food, hoping that it would help settle my nerves.

But unfortunately, the opposite happened.

Seconds after I swallowed, my stomach jerked, nausea stronger than I'd ever felt crashing over me, and I barely made it over to the trash can before throwing up.

The acid burned my throat as I tried to breathe through each heave.

George was behind me, holding my hair back, and Bonnie was at my side.

Someone was talking to me, but I couldn't hear what was being said over the pounding between my ears.

"Damn it," I groaned, after dry heaving a final two times, my stomach having nothing more to offer.

"You okay?"

I realized it was Alaric who had been speaking, and that he was standing in front of me.

I straightened, and a paper towel was put in my hand, followed by a bottle of water.

Hopefully the nod I offered expressed my appreciation well enough, as I wiped my mouth and then downed the drink.

Thankfully, it stayed down.

"I'll be fine," I insisted, after I was through, "But apparently morning sickness isn't limited to just the morning."

I sighed, as he nodded, "Do you know when Damon will be back?"

Before he could answer, the door on the other side of the table opened, and my mate entered, followed by his brother, Mason, and Tyler.

"I'd guess about right now," Ric mused.


Damon looked over at us, and paused.

I figured I probably looked about as good as I felt, with a thin sheet of sweat on my skin and my face drained of color.

"What happened?" Damon demanded, storming over as concern flooded his features.

"Nothing," I promised, as he pulled me into his arms, "Dinner just wasn't sitting well."

He frowned, "You got sick again?"

When I nodded, he sighed, "I'm sorry, kitten."

"It's okay," I said, reassuringly, "I guess your kids just aren't big on pasta."

That brought a small smile out, and the worry faded some, "Well maybe we can find something they'll let you hold down. You need to eat."

"I will," I said, "But first, I'm going to go brush my teeth, before my own breath makes me puke again."

He nodded, "I'll help you."

"I don't require an extra hand to clean my mouth," I smirked, "But thanks for the offer."

He sighed, "Fine. I'll try to find something that will be easier on your stomach, how about that?"

"Okay."


Upstairs in the bathroom, I rinsed my mouth out as well as I could get it, cursing werewolf senses with every fiber of my body.

Sense of smell, and taste.

God, how many weeks did this first trimester thing last?

For once, I was glad for the speedy pregnancy.

"You two are gonna have to chill," I muttered to my stomach, after I put my toothbrush back in its place, "Mommy doesn't like puking, okay?"

Of course, there was no answer, but I smiled anyway, placing a hand on my stomach.

Surprisingly, I could actually feel the little bump there now.

I lifted my shirt curiously, once again checking out my reflection.

Holy shit.

There was actually a bump, swelling from between my hips.

It was small, but no werewolf vision would be needed to notice it now.

It was obvious that it was a baby.

Or two babies.

Man, how big was I going to end up getting?

I smiled again, imagining it.

"You're gonna be worth turning into a whale for," I told the bump, "You'd be worth anything."

And unfortunately, I wasn't the only one who thought so, about the last part, at least.

But they were protected.

Even if I had to stay on Pack property until they were born.

I wasn't going to let anything jeopardize the safety of my children.

I loved them so much, already.

"We're going to be just fine," I whispered, "That's a promise."


Let me know whatcha think! :)