So this chapter is super long lol

And dark, so warnings.

Other than that, I hope you enjoy! :)

Damon's POV

I don't remember the last time I moved this fast in my life.

Maybe when we'd finally found Elena, in that town square, and I'd rushed to have her in my arms again.

But that relief and joy was an echo of motivation, compared to the sheer panic that gripped me now.

We'd found a scent, a werewolf, crossing the border of Mystic Falls.

Now, if I believed in happy coincidences, maybe I could have convinced myself that this was a random stray, who happened to stumble upon our town, but I knew better.

The only reason a wolf that the Pack wasn't expecting would be in Mystic Falls was for Elena.

And I'll be damned if anything was going to get to her.

I threw my wolf body forward with as much effort as I possibly could, and Mason struggled to keep up with me.

On an average day, he wouldn't have been able to.

But I wasn't the only one with a female at the house that could be in danger, and his desperation to get back to his witch propelled him on enough that he did manage to keep at my flank.

The others however, had no chance, and would just have to come in a few seconds behind us, because it wasn't as if we were about to stop and wait for them.

We hadn't bothered following the scent, too desperate to get back to the Manor for that, but as we reached Pack land, it was there, a sharp sting to my nostrils.

I growled deeply in anger.

The Mutt had made it this far.

Had he gotten to the house?

I pushed harder, running even faster, and didn't stop until I had reached the clearing of the Manor's back yard.

Throwing myself into the Change, I continued forward as my four legs became two.

The pain was hardly even a bother at the moment, and it was completely gone by the time I'd entered the back door.

The Mutt's scent was here as well, but the kitchen wasn't empty.

"Damon," George called, having turned at my entrance.

He and Elena's human were at the stove, cooking something that wasn't strong enough to dilute the Mutt's smell from my nose.

"We caught a scent," I began, walking over, and I must have looked as angry as I felt, because Caroline took a full step back, "Followed back here, and-"

George held up a hand, as Mason came into the room, having completed the Change, "Yeah, we know. We found the Mutt."

My eyes flared, "Is everyone alright?"

He nodded, and relief filled me as Mason let out sigh, the tension leaving him.

"Yeah. Ric had Stefan and Klaus take the guy to the cage. They're watching him. Figured you'd want the final call."

He was damn right about that, but first, "Where's Elena?"

He motioned with his head, "In the study, with Ric and the witches."

I gave him another nod, before heading that way, Mason following close behind.

A fire was blazing in the study, and Elena was sitting near it on the couch when I entered the room.

Her head shot up as I did so, and all of her earlier frustration with me was gone, "Damon!"

There were others in the room, but I paid them no mind as I hurried over to her and pulled her to her feet.

My arms wrapped around her, and I buried my nose in her hair, breathing deeply.

"I'm okay," she promised against my chest, but even knowing that wasn't enough for me to release her yet.

God, we'd prepared for this.

We'd known that something would eventually happen, and that Giuseppe was going to come for her.

But knowing it was going to happen, and experiencing the reality of it were two very different things.

What if they hadn't found the Mutt in time?

What if she'd been taken again?

I cringed at the thought of losing her.

Why did it feel so damn inevitable?

Because surely, if Giuseppe didn't manage to rip her from my arms, this pregnancy would.

The only difference being that I could fight the one.

I pulled away carefully, and took Elena's face into my hands.

The fire next to us danced in her brown eyes, reminding me of the night I'd first met her.

God, I couldn't bare the thought of having them close forever.

"I'm okay," she whispered again, bringing a hand up to mine, which still cupped her face.

I kissed her.

Hard on the lips, with everything in my body, I kissed her, and didn't stop until we were both lightheaded.

She swayed into me, and I held her tightly.

"I love you," I told her.

She closed her eyes, "I love you too."

I swallowed then, looking up around the room.

Mason was with Bonnie, having finished their own reunion, and Alaric was standing with Jo near his desk.

"The Mutt was alone?" I asked him, lifting my chin.

He nodded, "Yeah. Stefan, Klaus, and some others were on patrol. They caught him before he even got to the yard. We did another sweep, but it was just him."

I made a mental note of appreciation to the males, "Alright. They're in the basement now?"

Another nod, "Waiting for you. I figured if Giuseppe was behind this, the male would know something. You have the best chance of getting it out of him."

Our gazes held, and I knew what he meant.

My hands were about to get dirty.

And if that wasn't just fine by me.

I kissed Elena deeply one more time, and brushed back her hair, "You stay with the witch, okay?"

She nodded, and Bonnie walked over, "I won't leave her."

"Good," I said appreciatively, before looking back at my mate, "I'll be as quick as I can, but I need to find out what he knows."

She nodded, and squeezed my arm, "Do what you have to."

I forced myself to let her go, then walked toward the hall to do exactly as she'd said, my anger growing with every step.

For years, my instincts had ruled where my emotions lacked, but I'd never really viewed this as an issue.

As a child, empathy for humankind had been lost somewhere between the pain of the Change and hunting for survival, unable to stop myself from killing whatever crossed my path.

It had been easier, especially back then, just not to feel anything, and I'd come to rely on that numbness.

Letting the wolf take control had come naturally, and whatever humanity I'd had left inside was buried in some place far enough down that I could no longer reach it.

Not even the years that followed, with Alaric and the others, growing up with the Pack and coming to understand what I was, could erase the primal nature that the wolf had released in me by means of survival.

I'd gone through life half dead, aware only of my duty, my blood soaked hands often detached from thought or conviction.

I didn't care that Giuseppe had used me, I didn't care that Alaric loved me.

It hadn't meant a thing to me.

I lived for the moments I could release the wolf, that I could run, protect, punish…

Until I'd met her.

Even in the beginning, that fated, cold night by the falls, I'd sensed a difference in Elena Gilbert.

There was something about her that grabbed every bit of my attention, in a way that was entirely new to me, and I'd wanted her.

The fact that she hadn't wanted me just made the desire to claim her that much stronger.

I'd targeted her like I would any prey I'd ever hunted, calculated and planned, until the execution had her agreeing to a date with me.

Just one, she'd said.

But the one had been enough.

I lied to myself about what I was feeling for a while after the fact, having convinced myself that it was her body I was drawn to.

She was so fiery, so stubborn, that my wolf was aching to make her submit.

But taking her to bed hadn't stopped my attraction to her.

In fact, if anything, it made it worse.

I found myself wanting her even more than before, getting pissed any time another male even looked at her, and constantly needed her under me, being covered in my scent, because nothing could stop me from feeling like she was mine.

I fell in love with her.

And somehow, by some universal miracle, she'd loved me back, and things were good.

Being with Elena brought me a peace I'd never known before, and she made happier than I could ever remember having been.

In her, I'd found my humanity.

But now, as I entered the basement and looked into the cellar's cage at the Mutt who'd come for her, I lost it.

"Careful, Damon," Stefan warned me from his spot beside the cage, catching my expression as my feet carried me forward, "We need him alive."

"I don't plan on killing him," I assured him, keeping my gaze locked on the Mutt as I stalked over and unlocked the cage door, "But he'll be begging me to by the time I'm through."

I'd make sure of it.

My brother knew better than to argue, though be that because he understood it was pointless or because he wanted this bastard in pain just as much as I did, I couldn't tell.

Hell, I could even feel the anticipation rolling off of Klaus, who was across the room.

We all needed someone to punish.

The Mutt had a brave face on, as I entered, and I smiled, thinking of how that would soon change.

His arms were secured above his head, the angle set so that his arms would rip out of their socket if he tried to Change.

But Stefan and Klaus would have already explained that much to him, and I wasn't in a patient mood.

"You know who I am?" I verified.

The Mutt scowled, his eyes sizing me up, "The Pack's Enforcer. There aren't many who haven't heard of you."

Fear may not have been evident in his face, but the stern fleck of his voice was a little too forced, and his body was leaking enough tension to snap a steel pipe.

"Try Pack Alpha," Klaus corrected from his perch on the far wall.

The Mutt's eyes widened, and I smirked.

"You would have known what awaited you here," I taunted, "Yet, you were still stupid enough to come onto Pack Land on our enemy's orders…and don't pretend like it wasn't Giuseppe who sent you. I think we all know better than that."

The Mutt swallowed, "I haven't threatened the Pack."

A growl shook through my chest, "The hell you haven't. Your very presence here is a threat. Did you honestly believe you wouldn't get caught?"

He didn't answer.

And wasn't that just so fucking perfect for me.

"Stefan," I looked back to where he was leaning against the counter, watching us, "You want to hand me one of the carving knives?"

He didn't hesitate before asking, "The bigger one?"

"Nah, let's make it the short blade," I turned back to the Mutt, "I want this to last a while."

A moment later, the knife was in my hand and I was sliding it across the intruder's flesh.

He gritted his teeth together, eyes closing tightly, but he didn't scream out.

Probably best, seeing that Elena was still upstairs.

"I can't believe Giuseppe would actually think you could succeed in doing his dirty work," I shot, dragging the knife down his stomach, light enough that there was only the smallest cut following its wake, a taunting sting, "He had to know that Elena would be better protected than that."

The Mutt flinched against the pain, and rushed, "He didn't send me here for her."

I paused, then grabbed his face roughly, getting all up in the guy's grille, "I don't like liars- "

"It's the truth!" he insisted, "He only wanted information, nothing else! I wasn't to touch the female!"

My lips pulled back from my teeth, as I straightened, letting him go.

He sagged against his binds, momentarily relieved.

I moved out of the cage, and over to the counter that had the weapons splayed out.

I placed the knife back in its holder, before asking, "What information were you sent to gather?"

Silence followed my question, and I gave Klaus a look.

He nodded, and entered the cage.

The sound of fist on skin met my ears, as my fingers floated over the utensils available to me.

I paused on a spiked clamp, and the Mutt spit out a mouth full of blood.

"Now, do you want to rethink that answer?" I asked, turning back towards the cage.

The Mutt glared at Klaus, then at me.

"It would be easier just to answer," Stefan assured him, "My brother gets moody when he doesn't get his way."

Our prisoner seemed to ponder this, then sighed, "If I tell you, Giuseppe will kill me."

"And if you don't, I will kill you," I promised, and reached now for a long necked lighter.

Klaus moved out of my way as I entered the cage again, and ignited the thing.

A small flame flickered at the end, and the Mutt eyed it warily.

"Here, we'll try again," I spat, then placed the flame against the tip of his fingers.

His hand curled away, but had nowhere to go to escape the heat.

It only took a second for the smell of burnt flesh to fill my nose, and the Mutt was crying out, "Okay! Okay, Okay!"

I let the fire die, and looked at him expectedly.

He took a heavy breath, then another, before answering, "He wanted intel about the Pack's female...he wanted to know if she was…if she was pregnant."

My expression hardened, and Stefan's whispered voice filled my ear, "He saw her on the way in, Damon..."

"I knew the truth the moment I was in her vicinity," the Mutt admitted, "I could hear the heartbeats of the children inside of her. Both of them."

Stefan frowned, "But if Giuseppe is sending scouts to look for Elena, and this one doesn't return, it's only a matter of time before-"

"He just wants the girl," the Mutt urged, "Please. There's no quarrel with the rest of the Pack. He just wants her."

My eyes flashed at the words, and Stefan sighed, "You shouldn't have said that."

"No, you really shouldn't have," Klaus agreed, motioning toward me, "The children she carries inside of her are his."

Panic flashed on the Mutt's face, and he opened his mouth to begin blubbering an apology.

I lifted a hand, cutting him off, "Enough."

If Giuseppe wanted information, I would give it to him.

And I would make sure the message was one he would understand loud and clear.

Stefan was right, it was only a matter of time, and we couldn't hide Elena, or the babies, forever.

All we could do was show Giuseppe exactly what would happen if he chose to come for her.

Curling my lip back over my teeth, I met the Mutt's stare, "Here's the deal, I won't kill you. But you're going to deliver a message for me."

He swallowed thickly, and I lifted my hand in front of his face, focusing on my pointer finger, until the nail turned into a thick, sharp claw.

"Now, hold still," I grabbed his face, and well, he just wasn't still at all.

Not that it really mattered, as I curled the thing into his right eye.

He screamed, words pouring out of his mouth, "Stop! Please, stop!"

Another scream, "I'll do it! I'll give him the message, please! Stop!"

My other hand moved to his throat, squeezing until his words became nothing but huffs of air.

"You are the message," I growled, then ripped his eye from its socket.

Half an hour passed before I was finished.

The Mutt was unconscious now, having passed out from the pain, or the morphine we'd given him to keep the Change at bay, and was laid out on the cot, dripping blood to the ground.

I appraised my work, and sighed, "When he wakes up, take him outside, and follow him until he's out of town."

Klaus came up beside me, looking down at the male, "Do you think he'll be able to find his way out, seeing as you took both of his eyes."

I shrugged, "He still has his nose. He'll manage."

"He'll go back to Giuseppe," Stefan said, swallowing thickly.

I nodded, "I'm counting on it."

"But he'll tell him-"

"Tell him what exactly?" Klaus smirked, "Damon ripped out his tongue."

I looked over at the male, "You almost sound as though you approve."

"He's threatened your female," Klaus pointed out, "I do approve."

Speaking of my female…

"The two of you can handle this?" I asked, and they nodded, "Good. Then I'm going back up to check on Elena."

"I'd shower first," Stefan suggested, "Unless you don't think she'll mind all the blood."

With a frown, I glanced down at myself.

He was right; there had been quite a splatter.

I'd pulled on a pair of shorts before having come to the basement, but my bare torso was stained red, and I imagined my face looked similar.

"Noted."

I went up to the first floor of the manor, and instead of turning towards the study, I went up the stairs.

Elena was under enough stress already, and I doubted that seeing me like this was going to help her any.

I entered our room, and closed the door behind me, pausing for a moment as I leaned against the thing.

I looked down at my hands.

The blood, the torture, it was all so normal to me.

It had been such a big part of my life before Elena, and falling back to it in order to protect her was all too easy.

But then, I imagined my children, resting in my palms.

The same palms that were stained red from the pain I'd inflicted.

I closed my hands into fist.

What kind of father was I going to turn out to be, when all I had to offer was blood and death.

Elena seemed to have faith in me, but there was a good chance she wasn't going to make it through the birth.

And I was going to have to figure out how to make it without her.

At the very least, for our children.

It burned my heart, but at that moment, I hated them as much as I loved them.

These innocent beings that would both take Elena away from me, and at the same time, be all that I had left of her.

And God help me if they looked like her…

My eyes stung, and I realized that they were pooling with tears.

With a sigh, I forced them back, and cleared my throat.

There was no use in meditating on what I couldn't change.

I would do what I needed to do.

I would keep Elena safe, make sure her children survived, and keep my own emotions out of the way.

For her.

I went to the bathroom and started the shower, before stripping down.

When it was warm enough, I stepped inside, and let the steaming spray wash away my transgressions.

Blood trickled down my body, to be swallowed by the drain near my feet.

I leaned an arm against the shower wall and closed my eyes.

If only fears were as easily cleaned.

There was no telling how long I stood beneath the water, voiding my mind of anything but the rise and fall of my chest with each inhale, but soon, the door was opening.

I could smelled her before she had even said a word, and let out a sigh.

A second later, the shower opened, and Elena stepped in.

My eyes ran down her body, unable to help myself, and she stepped closer to me.

If it wasn't for the fact that she had lost more weight than what I was comfortable with, the sight of her swollen with my young would have really done it for me.

She was so beautiful.

At least half way through her pregnancy now, her stomach was well rounded, her breast larger than ever, and my body missed hers.

"I heard you come up," she whispered, and I forced myself to nod.

"You okay?"

Another nod.

"You don't seem like it."

I pulled her into my arms, ignoring my primal urges in favor of seeking her comfort.

"I just need you," I told her, my voice barely louder than hers had been, "I just need to hold you."

She understood this, and rested against me.

I closed my eyes as her stomach pressed into mine, and I was once again filled with the knowledge that my children were in there.

This was my family.

"I love you," Elena pressed her lips against my chest.

I returned the gesture to her hair, "I love you too, kitten."

We didn't bother going back downstairs after our shower.

Instead, I made a fire in our fireplace, and we crawled under the blankets and wrapped our bodies around each other.

I would have been content to hold Elena all night in silence, but of course, she wasn't having it.

"You're upset?" she asked, though it came out as more of a statement.

I shook my head, "I'm fine."

"You're lying."

I opened my eyes to look at her.

She'd lifted her chin up at me, and in the dimness of the fire, I could see the emotions in her gaze.

"You need to rest," I told her.

Those brown eyes narrowed, assuring me that that wasn't about to happen.

"And you need to stop shutting me out."

I sighed, "Elena-"

"Don't Elena me," she scolded, "I told you earlier that we were going to finish our talk."

"There's nothing to talk about," I insisted.

She shook her head, "I disagree."

"Well clearly I can't change what you think," I pointed out.

Her eyes narrowed, "What's that supposed to mean?"

I fought the urge to roll my eyes, and flattened myself out, onto my back.

Everything in me was wanting to answer her question.

To tell her exactly what was on my mine.

That she'd chosen death over staying with me and that I was never going to be okay with it.

That I was terrified at the thought of her not surviving, and afraid that I wouldn't be able to stop myself from resenting our children for it.

I wanted to beg her to reconsider her decision; to live.

I wanted to tell her how this was my fault; how I should have just kept my damn hands to myself and never put her in this situation.

So badly, I wanted to break and hold her, and feel like things were going to be alright.

But I couldn't.

I wouldn't.

Because she didn't need that, despite how much she asked for it.

My pain was my own, and I would deal with it alone.

She had enough to worry about without my fears adding to the guilt she already felt over her choice.

"Well?" she demanded.

I shook my head, biting back the anger that burned hot with my panic, "Nothing."

"Don't do that," she begged.

I looked over at her, "I'm not doing anything, except trying to get you to rest. That's what the babies need you to do."

"As if you give a damn," she muttered, and turned away from me, rolling to her side.

Her words stung, like I'm sure she intended, and damn it, but I couldn't let us end the day like that.

Biting back my retort, I rolled too, until my chest was against her back.

She flinched as I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her tightly against my body, so that we were spooning.

I let my hand rest on the span of her belly, and brought my lips to her ear.

"It's not that I don't care," I said quietly.

The scent of salt touched my nostrils, and I closed my eyes.

She was crying.

"I know," she whispered, "I know why you hate this...I just wish you didn't see it the way you do. Like it's me or them."

I swallowed, "But it is."

She turned now, her wet face looking up into mine, "No, it isn't. How does anyone expect me to stay positive when you're all convinced that I'm not going to live through next month?"

I set my jaw, refusing to acknowledge the fact that that was all the time I had.

A month or so.

"This is hard for me too," she continued, more tears in her eyes, "I don't want to die, Damon. I don't want you leave you, or our babies right after they're born. It isn't fair, but this risk is all we have. And I need you. I can't do this alone."

"You aren't alone," I assured her.

"When you shut me out, it feels that way," she argued, "I just need you to talk to me. About what you're thinking, about the babies, about the fact that you've decided I'll be dead soon. You can't just ignore those feelings and hope they go away, because they'll destroy you...they'll destroy us."

I bit my lip, losing my resolve as I held her body against mine.

God, I wished I could just tell her everything.

She was my rock, my compass, and I was feeling more lost than ever.

But it was so selfish, pushing all of my baggage on her when she already had so much going on with her own body.

It was selfish to need her comfort, when I should be the one giving it to her.

But maybe keeping her in the dark was worse.

I didn't want her to feel isolated from me.

Fuck.

The lines of my morality were obscured when it came to my mate.

I didn't know what was right or wrong here; I didn't know what to do.

"Talk to me," Elena pleaded, and I wavered.

She needed this; she needed me.

I nodded, "Okay...I'm sorry. It's not that I'm trying to freeze you out, but I don't want to give you more to worry about."

"You aren't a burden," she promised.

I sighed, "I know. But the thing is-"

I cut off as she winced sharply, her body jolting against mine.

Her brows pulled together and she sat up, her hand dropping to her stomach.

I leaned forward as well, "Are you okay? What happened?"

She didn't answer right away, and I couldn't read her expression.

"Elena!"

Her hand moved across her skin, and suddenly she smiled, "I'm okay…"

Her features melted into a look of wonderment.

"They're moving," she said finally, "I've been feeling little things the past few days, but this is the first real time that…"

She reached over quickly and grabbed my hand, pulling it to her skin, "Here."

I was still trying to calm my mind's flare of panic, when I felt what she had indicated.

A tiny push against the skin of her stomach, from the inside.

Something was definitely moving around.

"He's kicking," Elena was tearing up now for a different reason, "Did you feel it?"

A little awed myself, I nodded, "I felt it...how do you know it's the boy?"

She moved my hand across her stomach, to the far side, "Feel where it's harder here?"

I nodded.

"Skylar likes to stay there, right under my ribs. Sometimes she'll moved more toward the middle, but she favors this side."

I stared at her stomach now, and watched as the bump rolled.

Elena chuckled, "I've never felt him move like this, though."

Her elation was effective, and I couldn't help but smile too, as I rubbed her belly.

Her eyes closed and she laid back against the pillow, "That feels good."

I kept up the steady motion as she relaxed, but still felt as if I owed her something.

Biting my lip, I tried to think of a way to close the gap between us.

She wanted to talk about the babies.

But thinking about them meant thinking about her dying.

I couldn't go there.

But this moment had been nice, almost normal, and maybe I could at least give her that.

Some normalcy.

"I like Daniel," I murmured.

Elena's eyes opened, and she looked over at me, "What?"

"For the boy," I smiled, brushing the back of my fingers across her cheek, "It was on that list you rattled off that day in the woods."

A grin broke her lips, and she seemed pleased that I'd remembered.

"Oh, right….Daniel, huh? Any particular reason?"

I dropped my gaze to where my hands rested on her bump, over the son we were discussing.

"It's biblical," I explained, "For a boy who chose his God over the king of the land, and was sent to the lion's den for it."

"You've never struck me as the religious type," she said, and I looked up with a soft chuckle.

"I'm not. But in the story, Daniel was loyal, so his God saved him from his fate. I guess I just hoped that, if this all works out, our son might be saved from his as well. And that he might become like that boy in the story...willing to face lions for what he believes in."

"Or wolves," Elena offered.

I nodded at her, "Or those. Anything, really. But yeah...loyalty like that, bravery, faith...those aren't bad traits to have."

Elena smiled at me, then snuggled into my arms.

"I like it," she said with a yawn, "Daniel Salvatore, our little lion fighter."

I kissed her head as those brown eyes closed in contentment.

As her breathing mellowed out and sleep finally overcame her body, I laid awake, thinking about our conversation.

When the thoughts could no longer be held by my head, I spoke to my unconscious mate, comfortable telling her anything, because she wouldn't actually hear it.

"They will be fighters," I smiled at her peaceful face, "With a mother like you, how can they not be?"

I swallowed thickly, "But you have to live, baby. They're going to need you. You're so good, and strong, and beautiful. There's so much that I just can't give them alone."

I ran my fingers across her face, "So you have to make it, okay? You can't leave them...you can't leave me."

Tears stung my eyes, and I didn't bother trying to stop them this time.

"Please, baby...don't leave me."

A little sadness at the end, but also, the boy's name! :)

Hope ya'll liked it!

Let me know what you thought :)