Author's Note: The first part of this chapter was inspired by Stranger Than You Dreamt It from Phantom of the Opera, so that's where the italicized lyrics came from. Enjoy!

There he was, her raven haired angel. Standing behind a tomb stone in the graveyard, a crow perched on the top. Crystal blue eyes stared deeply at her as he emerged from the shadows and offered his hand.

I remember there was mist. Swirling mist upon a vast glassy lake.

There were candles all around and on the lake there was a boat.

And in the boat there was a man.

Who is that shape in the shadows? Whose is the face in the mask?

She walked toward him, not knowing who this mystery angel was or what he wanted but she felt drawn to him like a magnet. She placed her hand in his and he pulled her close to his body, baring sharp incisor teeth and grazing them along her neck. Be left a trail of kisses before releasing her to grab something from the top of a coffin sitting at an unmarked grave. It was a silver goblet filled with a red liquid as mysterious as the stranger. He gently placed the goblet to her lips and tilted her head back with his hand, pouring the liquid into her mouth. The taste was unmistakable, but she could not find it within herself to flee.

"My blood." He explained as he forced another sip into her mouth. He placed the goblet back on the coffin lid and titled her neck, running his icy fingers down her vain, making her shiver. A low groan escaped the angel's lips.

"Yes, I do believe you'll make an excellent mate." Fear shot down her spine, crippling her. She could neither scream nor run, but there was part of her, the part desperately attracted to this beautiful predator, that didn't want too.

Fear can turn to love.

You'll learn to see to find the man behind the monster.

This repulsive carcass who seems a beast but secretly dreams of beauty.

Secretly…

Secretly…

Elena awoke with a jolt and a shrill cry. She looked down, her stomach had healed but there were sharp pains shooting through it. She was in the hospital and Damon was wiping her sweaty forehead with a damp cloth. His eyes were red from where she assumed he'd been crying and worry was plastered on his face. He looked sadly down at her.

"Bad dream?" She shook her head.

"Not exactly bad…just…ugh!" She yelled through the sentence as there was another sharp pain in her abdomen. She shot Damon a panicked look.

"Why am I in so much pain? My body healed itself…" Damon's eyes looked tortured and his eyebrows furrowed.

"You're in labor, Elena. When Stefan bit you…he tore through the amniotic sac around the baby and your water broke." He meant for it to come out louder but his voice was nothing but a broken whisper. Tears sprang to Elena's eyes and she looked up to find Dr. Fell and Bonnie and Adriana.

"Will he make it?" She choked out. Meredith shook her head.

"If your labor progresses and he's born today…no. Not many children would survive birth at five months. That's why Damon called in the Bennett Twins, they're trying to find a spell that will reverse the breaking of your water and if they can do that your labor will stop." Adriana and Bonnie were frantically flipping through their grimoires and Damon got up, crawling into the hospital bed and cuddling into her side. Elena could sense his worry, and she instinctively ran her fingers through his hair to calm him down. He gently caressed her belly as she had another contraction.

"Sebastian, you need to listen to Daddy. Mommy isn't ready for this right now, you need to stay put for a little while longer, okay?" He leaned down and kissed the bump tenderly, allowing a single tear to roll down his cheek.

"I can't lose you." Damon was breaking on the inside. This had been his shot to have a family again and he'd failed. He'd failed as a husband for not getting to Elena quicker and most of all he failed as a father. He failed because he let his brother cause harm to the most precious gift he'd ever been given. Damon blanched as Elena let out another blood curdling scream and his hands gently gripped the baby bump.

"Sebastian please…you can't be this early." Damon knew Sebastian couldn't hear him, and he knew it would do no good even if he could, but the begging was escaping his lips anyway. Despite the pain, Elena held Damon tightly too her, trying her best to sooth him, it was killing her to see him in so much anguish.

The dream drifted back into her thoughts and she briefly wondered if her subconscious had been trying to reassure her that after everything that had happened, Damon was her mate and he always would be. Part of her had been half scared when she passed out that their relationship wouldn't survive if Ian didn't.

"Please don't leave me." Damon whimpered to her stomach, pulling her from her thoughts. Those words were all the reassurance she needed. He loved them both with all his heart.

"I found it!" Bonnie screamed, causing Damon to shoot up excitedly. She laid her hands on Elena's tummy and concentrated very hard. Her nose began to drip blood and her knees went weak.

"Adriana…h-help me." Adriana channeled her energy to Bonnie and the two closed their eyes, chanting loudly and causing the lights in the hospital to flicker. Both sisters collapsed to the floor and Dr. Fell and Damon carried them to the chairs in the corner of the room. Dr. Fell used the ultra sound device to get a better look at the baby and sure enough, the amniotic sac was back in tact ad Elena's contractions had stopped. Damon smiled shakily.

"I-Is that it? He's okay?" Meredith nodded.

"He seems to be perfectly fine…except he has a fang wound in his left arm but that should be healed by the time he's born…he'll probably have a scar. Other than that your baby is going to be just fine." Elena let out a sigh of relief, not realizing she'd been holding her breath.

"Thank god." Damon picked Elena up out of the hospital bed and hugged her tight to his chest.

"I love you so much!" Damon nuzzled his face down into her sweet smelling hair.

"I love you too." Bonnie and Adrianna sat up slowly, their heads spinning.

"Thank you." He said with a grateful smile, his eyes twinkling with utter relief and happiness.

Later that evening when Damon took Elena home he helped her into the house very carefully, and walking her to the chair in the living room.

"We still need to finish Christmas." He said gently, turning on the fireplace.

"Let's save that for in the morning Damon. I just want to revel in the fact that my child isn't dead tonight." Damon pulled her into his arms and began to sway the same way they had earlier in the kitchen.

"You have no idea how happy I am that he's okay…when I thought we were losing him I—" His voice cracked and Elena laid her palm against the side of his face.

"Shhh, he's fine. We're going to be a family in four months and everything will be perfect. I promise." He twirled her around, pulling her into a heated and needy kiss when he pulled her back into him. He raked his teeth across her bottom lip and she moaned, gently pushing her tongue into his mouth. When they pulled away she smirked at her for the first time in what felt like ages and she sighed.

"What would you like to do now, Mr. Salvatore?" He rubbed her back gently and looked as if he was contemplating something before his grin returned.

"I want to throw you in my bed and never let you leave." Her breath hitched in the back of her throat and she snaked her leg around his hip.

"Then do it." Damon's eyes glazed over and he stared into her brown orbs with more love and longing than she'd ever seen there before. He kissed the back of her hand gently.

"As you wish, Princess."