Author's Notes: This is a future scenario I could see playing out, a way for Elena and Damon to come together. Kind of puts Stefan in the position of the bad guy, unfortunately, but hopefully not to the point of character-bashing.

Title is from 'All I Need' by Within Temptation, also known as the song Damon and Elena dance to in the Miss Mystic Falls episode.

This is a oneshot, split in two chapters for ease of reading. There might be a short epilogue forthcoming, though, we'll see how that goes...

Her hands pressed over her mouth to keep from making a sound, to keep from breathing, she backed away through the trees and the thick brush. Through the shock, some small part of her told her to preserve her safety, and that meant being quiet. It meant not screaming, or crying, or doing anything but moving away with quick, light footsteps.

The rational part of her not concerned with survival told her he had to have known she was there.

Stefan, he hadn't shown it, but he must have known, on some level, that she was watching as he... But he didn't stop, didn't push Katherine away, didn't call to Elena, rush to her side to protect her, didn't run after her when she turned and fled.

No one was coming after her, she decided after a few minutes barely daring to breathe as she picked her way through the dark woods. Steadily she made her way away from the ruins of the old church where she had gone to find Stefan, to get to him before Katherine did. The proof of her failure was now burned into her retinas, the image of Stefan and Katherine twined around each other inescapable.

Suddenly she stopped being careful, her path through the trees taking her in the general direction of where she'd left her car, but other than that she could have been going anywhere, running from anything. The tears welling in her eyes weren't helping, obscuring her vision as she crashed through the undergrowth unmindful of the noise she was making or the branches that caught at her clothes and hair.

She should have seen it coming. He'd changed recently, he'd started hiding what he was thinking, what he was feeling. She'd felt him pulling away from her, but she had attributed that to his desire to protect her from Katherine. It had honestly never occurred to her that it might be because he was being lured away. That he might be letting himself be lured...

Stefan had been her rock. She didn't know what she was going to do, and at the desolate thought she choked on a sob, not letting it past her lips. She refused to cry because at least she knew what she was doing in the here and now, and that was finding her way back to her damn car, and not getting lost in the middle of the woods in the middle of the night. Especially on this night, she reminded herself, sparing a glance up at the full moon just visible through the leaves overhead. Great plan, Elena, she thought, trying to focus on not falling on her face rather than the scene she had just witnessed. Or her broken heart.

Blinking her eyes clear was an effort but she managed it, and as she peered ahead through the darkness what she saw stopped her cold. Someone was there, she could see movement through the trees and could hear the footsteps now that her own had halted. Whoever it was was almost on top of her already.

She sucked in a breath ready to scream, sure it was her, Katherine, come to finish her now she had what she wanted. But then she blinked in surprise and what came out was, "Damon."

"Elena."

He rushed forward, taking her by the shoulder. He somehow managed to look pissed and relieved at the same time. Her emotions mirrored his, her relief at seeing him instead of some nightmare competing with anger at having to deal with him right now.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, pulling back from his touch in order to continue on her way.

"Are you kidding?" He chased her steps. "Elena have you chanced to look up at the sky this fine evening? Who knows how many members of the esteemed Lockwood Kennels pedigree are roaming around off-leash tonight? Plus, you know, Katherine." The flippancy dropped from his voice suddenly. "You're going to get killed."

"No, you are going to get killed. Any werewolves out here aren't going to be chasing me. And don't worry. Katherine's got her hands full right now."

"Well I can be out of here and back home sipping a nice hot toddy in under a minute, while you're still wandering around out here in the dark like some moron who couldn't find her own ass with both hands. Your car's that way, in case you care."

She took a breath but held back the retort, mutely angling the way he was pointing. She hadn't been that far off, she would still have hit the road. Eventually. It was hardly dark at all actually, the full moon was bright, even through the thick foliage.

"You still haven't said what you're doing out here," she reminded him.

"I argued with Stefan. Told him he was on his own if he went after Katherine like an idiot, so obviously a trap, but -"

"You knew what he was doing?"

"You didn't?" She didn't reply and he shrugged. "Anyway. I had one of those annoying little moments where I, what do you keep insisting on calling it? Oh yeah, 'caring'. I couldn't let him storm off all frowny-faced like that. When I found you out here I kind of assumed you had the same half-assed plan as me. What'd I miss?"

She looked sideways at him, reluctant to tell him. Better that he know, she decided grimly. "I got a message, I thought it was from Stefan... now I assume it was from her. It said he was going to meet her out here, she was ready to make a deal. I wanted to catch Stefan before he got there, but I was too late. Way too late. I saw him - them - I saw them..." She couldn't bring herself to finish.

"What, together?" The look on her face was apparently all the confirmation he needed. "I - well, gross, for one thing."

"Shut up, Damon. I don't need your stupid jokes right now."

"Come on, you know he was just playing her. All part of baby bro's master plan."

"Do you know that? I don't. We did not discuss him screwing that evil -" This time she cut herself off deliberately. "Why are you defending him? You know what, I don't care. Look, there's the road, I'm fine. You can go."

"A gentleman always sees the pathetic, helpless chick back to her car. Come on, it might prefer me, and who wouldn't, but you'd still make one tasty little morsel for the big bad wolf."

"You'd know."

He just laughed; her heart hurt to hear it. This was just another night of mayhem and excitement for Damon, meanwhile her whole world had fallen out from beneath her feet. But she couldn't cry yet. When she got home, she told herself, then she could cry. And scream, and rage, and throw things. But mostly cry.

She didn't speak, holding everything in so tightly she couldn't risk letting anything out, not even to tell Damon to get lost again. They reached the road in silence, and there was her car. Damon had led her straight to it. Funny she hadn't doubted that he would, just as she'd known he wouldn't leave her alone out here no matter what she said.

"Thank you," she bit out. "Now I guess you can go check on your brother. Make sure she hasn't... ripped his head off after mating." She was going for dry sarcasm but what came out was a shaky little child's voice on the verge of tears.

"Hey," he went to touch her arm but she sidestepped, moving quickly to the car while digging in her pocket for her keys.

"Don't. Just, please go, okay?"

"You first."

She rolled her eyes and pressed the remote button, unlocking the car. Her hand was on the door handle when it happened. She whipped around in shock as an inhuman streak stirred the air behind her, the sound of two bodies impacting reached her ears before she could even register what her eyes were seeing.

A good fifteen feet away from where he'd been standing Damon was rolling to his feet, eyes locked on those of the wolf that had ploughed into him at supernatural speed.

Elena stared in horror as the vampire and the werewolf stared each other down. The wolf was between her and Damon, and she could tell he was trying to circle around towards her, but the wolf was advancing, driving him further away. She was too scared to move, to speak, certain at any moment the animal was going to lunge at Damon and any action on her part might spur him on.

That was when she realised the werewolf's low, menacing growl was reaching her ears in stereo. An icy fist of dread closed over her pounding heart as she turned to see another wolf rounding the back of the car on huge, silent paws.

"Damon!" Her voice high with panic she called for him instinctively, knowing even as she did there was nothing he could do to help her.

She wondered briefly and perversely if it was Tyler or his uncle who was going to tear her throat out, as she stood there frozen against the side of the car.

"Get in the car, Elena," Damon said. How the hell could he sound so calm? "Now."

She couldn't. She couldn't move. Her hand was already fumbling behind her for the door handle, though, so apparently she could. She had to try. "What about you?"

"We both know it's me they want. I'll lead them off."

Feinting to one side, he used the second's distraction to grab a fallen branch off the ground which he hurled over the wolf that was stalking him, catching her wolf in the side of the head, demanding its attention. "Fetch, doggy," he snarled, as if feeling no fear.

It was an act. She could always tell, and right now he was every bit as scared as she was.

"Now would you kindly get in the freaking car Elena."

The wolf stalked past her so close she whimpered as its fur brushed her legs. But Damon was right, it was only interested in him. He was backing away from both wolves now, moving faster away into the trees, making sure their attention was on him alone.

She pulled the door open and in a panicked scramble dove inside and shut the door. In the relative safety of the car, she looked up in time to see Damon for the half-second it took to meet her eyes through the window. Then he was gone, and the wolves were gone, and she was alone.

She let out a ragged breath and looked down at her shaking hands. Her keys were fisted so tightly in her hand her palm was a mass of red indent marks - it might have hurt but she was running on adrenaline and felt only the need to escape.

A moment of clarity struck her as she looked back out once more to the woods where Damon had disappeared - Katherine had planned this. That Elena would arrive in time to witness the two of them together, with two werewolves loose in the woods, maybe even Damon's part in it all.

Damon. There was nothing she could do for him.

She couldn't follow them, and if she somehow did she couldn't help in a fight against two enormous, bloodthirsty werewolves.

She could find her way back through the woods, maybe, find Stefan and tell him Damon was in trouble. No, that was something else she couldn't do for numerous reasons. Besides, Katherine was smart, and though it was now obvious she had picked this night and this location for a reason, she wouldn't risk herself further once she'd got what she wanted.

It was out of her hands. Steeling herself against the sinking pit in her stomach, it still took her three tries fit the key in the ignition, unable to keep her hand steady.

She took calming breaths as she drove. The funny thing about fearing for your life was how it didn't last. The adrenaline always faded, the fear drained away, and an exhausted numbness took its place. By the time she pulled into her driveway the shaking had stopped and her heartbeat was back to normal, just as expected. She was practically a pro at this whole surviving life-threatening situations thing.

She turned the key, killing the engine. It was late, all was quiet, and she looked out at the house with the porch lights on, waiting for her return. She was safe. Between one breath and the next she was crying, and it was then a pathetic struggle trying to control gulping, heaving sobs as she climbed out of the car and made her way up to the porch and round to the front door.

Damon had saved her again and now he was probably dead somewhere - there was no way he could survive against both Lockwoods at once, was there? And Stefan could be out in the those woods, too, only it was more likely he was somewhere safe with her. She found herself fighting a sudden, brutal war against her better nature, wishing the wolves would find them.

Her mind shied away from Stefan's betrayal, returning to Damon and the danger he was in, leading the wolves away from her, making sure she escaped unharmed. She might never see him again. That could actually happen. Turning from the door, she stumbled over to the steps instead, hand clutching the railing as she sank down to sit. She wrapped her arms around herself, leaning against the bars.

Stefan-Damon, Damon-Stefan, the two brothers twisted through her thoughts, spiralling together with hate and love, loyalty and betrayal, safety and danger, they had become interchangeable, the one layered with the other till she could barely tell which was which.

The crying had long subsided and for a time she simply breathed, slowly, tearfully, and just... waited. The night couldn't last forever.