Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or copyrighted names or items described below. I only borrow them to have a lot more fun with them than anyone who DOES own them would ever dare.

It had been months since he remembered and weeks since he cared.

He just couldn't bring himself to do anything about it.

The past few months had been filled with revelations of various kinds. The fact that he had met Klaus decades ago and had actually created many of the Original's more heinous tricks had been a blow to the stomach.

This had been a stake through his heart.

He had always known he was a monster. It was something he carried like a second skin on top of his real one. But until he had remembered – and cared, he reminded himself – he had always managed to be convinced by everyone around him who told him he was worthy of love and trust anyway. Now he knew that would never be true.

He wasn't exactly sure what had pulled him out of his emotional stupor enough for the resolve to develop. It might have been the way Elena looked at Damon these days – the good brother after all – and the realization that neither of them would be alone. They would have each other and they would deserve each other.

And he would set his ring on his nightstand and lay in bed while the sun crept closer and closer.

He knew what sun felt like. He'd been tortured with it before, and on occasion had dipped unprotected fingertips into pools of sunlight out of a kind of morbid curiosity about what would happen.

It wasn't fun.

But it would be over soon. His eyes closed gently at the thought, breathing out a sigh of relief.

"Stefan!"

His eyes flew open.

This was not the plan. He didn't want her to see this. The whole point of using sun was that it left so little trace. Just dust that, with a little imagination, could be nothing more than dust bunnies. Nothing for her to mourn, nothing to make her cry or give her nightmares. Come on, just a little closer!

"Stefan! Olly-olly-oxen-free!"

Shit. Damon was the last person he wanted to be a part of this. Which was ironic, since the whole thing was really about him. But Damon was the only person who was capable of stopping him, of saving him. And Stefan didn't want to be saved.

He held his breath, becoming deathly still, not letting even the slightest shift of his hair produce any sound that would alert his brother. Just a few more inches.

Damon found him just as the sun's rays were sliding over his right arm and foot. He let out a strangled yell and launched himself over the bed to knock Stefan to the floor. Damon had him in a firm headlock by the time Elena made it into the room.

"What's going on!?" Her voice was panicked. It broke Stefan's heart to hear that note in her voice.

"Suicidal Steffie was having a barbeque and didn't invite us," Damon explained. He nodded his head towards Stefan's ring sitting on the nightstand and Elena rushed to grab it and force it onto Stefan's finger again.

Once he felt his ring slide on, Stefan felt all of the resolve leach out of his body. He slumped against the side of his bed, listless and dejected. He'd tried so hard to do this right, MAKE this right, and he couldn't even do that.

"Pathetic."

Stefan jumped as Damon's voice echoed his own thoughts. He turned to look at his brother and closed his eyes against the wild fury and fear he saw there.

"What the FUCK do you think you're doing?" Damon stood and loomed over him. "What is it now, huh, St. Steffie? You need to die for our sins? Is that it? What the HELL did you think you would accomplish? WHY IN THE HELL –"

"BECAUSE I REMEMBER!"

The words were out of his mouth before he could stop himself. They tumbled out in a frantic, anguished shriek that stopped Damon cold. Stefan met his eyes to make sure Damon would understand what he meant.

"Because – I – remember."

Damon's eyes widened impossibly. He sunk down to the floor and Elena was left looking between them, panic written large on her face. Stefan forced himself to look at his brother, watching as he took on a look that Stefan had never seen on him before. He looked . . . broken.

Shattered.

Elena moved to kneel between them, reached a hand to either one of them as if trying to make a bridge between them. Stefan batted her hand away.

"Don't touch me, Elena." She looked hurt. "I can't take it right now."

Her mouth firmed. She sat back and watched them. At first Stefan wondered if she would leave – hoped she would leave. But instead, she settled back against the wall, determined to wait until they came back to themselves enough to explain.

They sat in silence for several minutes. Finally, Damon lifted his head.

"I forgave you."

Stefan snorted.

"Of course you did. That's why you chased me across the earth, tormenting me for decades afterwards." But Damon was shaking his head.

"I didn't know then. About compulsion on vampires. I thought . . . I thought you KNEW . . . and that you had somehow . . . chosen to . . . and then . . . forgotten . . ." Elena's head shot up as Damon's voice broke a little. Still, she stayed silent, watching. Stefan wanted to stake himself right then and there.

"No. No no no, Damon, I swear, I would never."

"I know." Stefan jumped as Damon laid a hand on his leg. "I know that now. I saw Klaus compel you, and then . . . something he said to me . . ." Damon had a far away look in his eyes, as if he were trying to remember Klaus's exact words. "He was there, too. He must have compelled ME as well." He gave a short, mirthless laugh. "It finally all makes sense."

Elena had remained silent and still up until this point, but clearly she could no longer contain herself.

"What . . . are you talking about?"

God, he hadn't wanted her to know about this. He had wanted to just die, to fade away without her knowing anything, so she could mourn him and then move on. With Damon. And be happy together. The grief that welled up in him was expected, but the rage was not.

"Why did you have to save me?" he ground out. "I wanted to die. I wanted to die before you could find out."

"But WHY?! Stefan, please, this isn't the answer. Whatever it is you think you've done, I can forgive you, and since it seems like Damon can as well –"

"You want to know what I did?" He was nearly screaming in her face at this point. His heart was breaking from that terrified, hurt look on her face, but he couldn't stop. "You wanna know the WORST thing I ever did?" He could feel Damon pushing on his shoulders, trying to draw him away from Elena, or maybe trying to stop him before he told her something that really should have been Damon's to tell. He took a deep breath.

"I raped him."

Silence fell between them like cold iron. Damon's hands dropped from his shoulders, and out of the corner of his eye, he could see Damon curling his arms around himself. If his heart had had any pieces big enough to break again, it would have done so. Elena just stared at him blankly, not even breathing.

Several minutes passed as the weight on Stefan's chest just got heavier and heavier. After a point, he felt tears leak out of his eyes. He started when he realized that Elena was crying too. Completely silently, completely still. Clearly Damon noticed it as well.

"Oh, no, no, no." Damon crooned, scooting over to her. "No, don't cry. Please don't do that. I can't take it when you cry." He wrapped his arms around her, and Stefan was startled to see his shoulders tremble a little. Even for all these years afterwards, Stefan had never seen Damon shake. He moved to go, to finish what he had set out to do this morning and leave them alone to heal. Before he could move, one of Damon's hands shot out and clamped around his ankle in an iron grip, trapping him with them.

"I don't . . ." Elena's voice was barely above a whisper. "I don't understand."

"I know you don't," he whispered back. "It's ok." Stefan wondered whether that last bit was to her or to himself. She pulled back just enough to look into Damon's eyes.

"Will you tell me?"

Damon looked at her for a long moment. Stefan pressed his lips together, denying the urge to explain and spare his brother the pain of living through it again. It was Damon's to tell.

"What you have to understand," Damon began, "is that this happened during what I consider the absolute worst period of Stefan's career as a ripper." Stefan's head shot up.

"Damon, no –"

"Stefan –" Damon's voice warned him.

"NO! You can't make excuses for me –" Stefan jumped as Damon exploded.

"DON'T YOU DARE TELL ME WHAT I CAN AND CAN'T DO!"

Stefan swallowed thickly. Nodded. Damon turned back to Elena, a flinch of pain crossing his face as he realized that his roar had scared her. But he pressed on, pausing only to stroke his free hand down her damp cheek.

"I . . . didn't know at the time what was going on. Who was there. I . . . found Stefan in Chicago. I went to his apartment. We got into a fight. I was just starting to learn to enjoy all the power that comes with being what we are, but I wasn't . . . really comfortable with it yet. I couldn't shake the guilt."

Damon fell silent for a moment. Elena waited, never taking her eyes from his, and raised one hand to rest against his chest. The gesture made Stefan smile.

"I went to Stefan's apartment one night." Damon's voice sounded far away. "I found him there with two people, a man and a woman –" Damon stopped to clear his throat. "They were in bed together, all three." He tried to look away, but Elena stopped him.

"Please, Damon, don't hide from me." Stefan closed his eyes to hear her repeat words she had once said to him. She continued, softening her words, realizing that they weren't quite right. "Or . . . you can, if you want to. If you need to. But I want you to know you don't HAVE to. I'm right here and I won't leave you."

Damon turned back to her, and there was a light in his eyes that Stefan hadn't seen there since before they were turned. He nodded, and Stefan felt his hand tighten on his leg. Nope, Damon wasn't letting Stefan hide anymore either. The shattered bits of his heart ground a little more into dust. Damon took a deep, shaky breath.

"Considering some of Stefan's . . . bloodier . . . habits when he's a ripper, they weren't doing anything terribly distasteful." Stefan thought he could see Elena relax a little bit at that information. "But it wasn't anything that I had ever done, and it wasn't anything I was comfortable being exposed to yet." Elena nodded, understanding. Damon looked over at Stefan as he continued. "Stefan knew that and invited me to join in. I . . ." Damon's forehead creased as he tried to decide how best to explain. "I guess I just . . . got defensive. I started yelling, and I attacked him first."

"Please don't make excuses for me." Stefan hadn't even known he was going to speak. "Don't make it out like it was your fault."

Damon looked at him with wary eyes, and Stefan realized that Damon had needed to hear that. Badly. The words seemed to give Damon the courage to continue.

"We fought. I was yelling about how disgusting he was, and yes he was debauched and awful, but really at that moment I was angry because I was uncomfortable with what back then was way out on the fringe of sexual experimentation." Damon's expression turned slightly resigned. "And he knew it. He knew what was making me crazy right then. So, he decided to push." Again, he looked conflicted. He looked up at Stefan.

"What is it, Damon?" Stefan tried to project as much tenderness, contrition, and above all, submission into his voice as he could.

"I'm not really sure what happened next." Stefan raised his eyebrows incredulously. "I mean, I know what HAPPENED, but clearly some OTHER things happened as well that even now I'm only guessing at." Stefan nodded. Damon turned back to Elena. "The details aren't important. The fighting turned physical, the physical turned sexual, and . . . he got the better of me physically and . . . raped me." Elena's face crumpled, and Damon once again rushed to comfort, holding her against him and rocking slightly.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, trying to control her tears. "You shouldn't be the one taking care of me right now. This isn't about me." Damon only shook his head in response, wiping the tears off her cheeks.

Stefan wanted nothing more in that moment but to get away. He tried to pull away, so he could leave them alone, but Damon yanked back on his ankle, making him sit down again with a hard thud.

"Damon . . ." he tried, but his brother steamrolled over his soft entreaty.

"The problem is, that's not all that happened, is it, Stefan?" Damon looked at him, desperation in his eyes that compelled Stefan to answer. His brother deserved – no, NEEDED to know.

"No. No it isn't." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "The people in bed with me were Klaus and Rebekah."

Elena's soft gasp felt like the slash of a knife. Damon's eyes were wide with realization when Stefan opened his. Finally, the pieces were falling into place.

"He . . . compelled you to do it, didn't he." It wasn't as much a question as a statement. Damon said he had already figured this out. This was just the details becoming clear. "And then he compelled me to forget. Forget HIM, but not . . . you."

Stefan only nodded. Elena watched him with a soft expression. He could see it in her eyes: she forgave him. But she wouldn't say anything, wouldn't openly offer it to him yet. It was not for her to forgive, and they both knew that. Still, he didn't deserve it, and she needed to know that.

"It doesn't matter." His voice was hard and low. "I still did it. I still . . . HURT you like that. I will NEVER forgive myself. I don't care about the whys, it doesn't matter to me."

"Well it does to me!" Damon's exclamation startled them all. "It matters to me to know that my little brother didn't do that to me because he WANTED to! It matters to me that that didn't come from you, but from some sick, twisted, thousand-year-old jackass who got off on using people like puppets!" Stefan watched in awe as a tear welled up in Damon's eye, the first he had seen since Damon had been a 12 year old human boy. "I spent DECADES thinking that. And each time Lexi brought you back to yourself, you were so sorry for everything you had done . . . except that. You NEVER . . . never showed any sign that you . . . even thought about it. And I thought it was because you didn't . . . care. And now I know the truth." He took a deep breath. "And it MATTERS." Another breath. "And I forgive you."

The world crashed into the sun in that moment, the stars exploded, the seas boiled and overtook the land, and all Stefan could see was his brother's face. All he could hear was his brother's voice. All he could feel was his brother's hand on his leg . . . keeping him from leaving.

"H-how?" he stuttered, nearly sobbing. Elena was switching her gaze between him and Damon, proud and full of love for both of them. It was inconceivable. How could they forgive him?

"Because it is my choice to forgive." In this moment Damon looked calm, resolved. "I have had over 80 years to understand what happened to me. At first I was damaged. But I healed." He chanced a glance at Elena, who petted his chest again. It seemed to give him some strength. "It's not something you ever 'get over,' but I'm better. I'm not afraid of you, or anyone else because of this. You didn't break me."

Stefan felt tension relax in his body that he hadn't known was there. He didn't even know how long he'd been holding it. Damon continued.

"All I want, now, the only thing that will make me feel better . . ." he swallowed ". . . is to have my baby brother back."

At Damon's admission, the grief Stefan had been holding down bubbled up and a wild sob escaped his throat. Hot tears came pouring out of his eyes, and Damon crossed the distance between them to wrap his arms around him. Stefan cried quietly against his brother's chest as Damon held him, quiet except for the occasional whispered repeat of his forgiveness.

Elena watched the interaction quietly, not wanting to intrude on this moment between them. Stefan noticed her sitting quietly, watching them with a smile on her lips and tears in her eyes, and almost held out his arms to her. He stopped before the gesture was complete, still not quite strong enough to ask for affection that he wasn't quite convinced he deserved. Damon, however, was convinced, and he held out his arm to Elena, strong and sure. Her smile deepened and she moved into their arms, holding them both and letting them hold her. Stefan felt warmth rise in him as she dropped a kiss on his chest, over his heart, which for her was face level. The smile on Damon's face when she did the same to him was beatific.

Stefan wasn't sure how long they sat together, just giving and taking affection, basking in each other. But soon Stefan couldn't ignore the ominous presence of time creeping forward.

"What now?" he asked softly.

Damon tightened his grip around his shoulders and curled his other hand further around Elena's waist.

"I'm not sure." He answered honestly. Elena punctuated his admission with another soft kiss for each of them. Once again, they couldn't help but smile. Stefan was surprised by how good that felt, and how much he didn't care that Elena was showing him and his brother affection – love – equally. He didn't feel jealous. He just felt happy at seeing his brother receive the love that he knew he deserved. Sitting here with the two of them just felt so good.

And right.

But he wasn't about to suggest that they try to maintain this. To make it official somehow, or give it a name. He didn't have the right to do that, and it echoed in his conscience a little too much like the setting that Damon had walked into all those years ago – not to mention the train wreck that was Katherine. And he would never ask Damon to put himself in a sexually charged situation with him again, even if they weren't the objects of each other's desire. Damon's sharp exhalation drew him out of his reverie.

"I've wanted to say something to you ever since I realized that you must have been compelled." Stefan shifted to face his brother. He felt a curl of amusement as Elena tried to slip out from between them to give them a moment alone, and he and Damon simultaneously moved to keep her where she was, then focused back on each other. "I was the intended victim in Klaus's game that night." He paused. "But I wasn't the only one." Stefan didn't breathe for a moment.

"Damon, what are you saying? Was someone else there that night?" Damon was shaking his head. He shared a look with Elena. Elena understood what he was talking about, he could tell.

"No Stefan." He moved closer. "I spent a lot of time dealing with this, including trying therapy, support groups, philosophy classes on the subject, yoga – all participants compelled afterwards so no one remembered me, of course." Of course. "A person is sexually assaulted when they are forced, coerced, or threatened by another person to participate in, perform, or endure some kind of sexual act. There were two people that night who met that description."

Stefan's blood ran cold.

"No."

Elena was watching him with a heartbroken expression. Damon's was sympathetic, but firm.

"Stefan, listen to me." He did. "I have spent eighty-five years, three months, and eleven days thinking about that night, and about all the factors and implications of what happened." The precise measurement of time shocked and humbled Stefan. Elena registered surprise, too. "I may have been the one to suffer, but there is no doubt in my mind that you were raped, too. Klaus may not have done it with his physical body, but he took your free will away and forced you to do something you didn't want to do. That's rape."

Stefan was shaking his head. He wasn't a victim. He was the aggressor. Damon may have forgiven him, but that didn't give Stefan the right to be a victim. That logic made his head hurt even as he thought it, but he still couldn't accept what Damon was telling him.

"Damon is right, Stefan." Elena's voice was soft and sad. "If we could take this to court, the American legal system would classify you as Klaus's victim as well, without a doubt."

"DAMN the American legal system!" Stefan's sudden yell made Elena jump, and he was glad to see Damon's grip tighten around her. She deserved to have someone who would comfort her like that. Not him. Never anymore. "I know what you're trying to do, and it won't work."

"What are we trying to do?" Elena's voice shook a little from adrenaline, but she persisted.

"You're trying to make me let it go." Her eyes widened. "You're trying to make me release my guilt. But you don't understand, I NEED my guilt. I never want to let it go. I NEED to feel it."

They finally understood. He was terrified of not feeling, of turning off his emotions again. That was part of what had allowed him to do this horrible thing in the first place. Part of how Klaus had . . . raped him.

"Then keep your guilt, brother." Damon's voice was soothing but firm. "If you want it, it's yours and we won't take it from you." Stefan felt his hand smooth down his arm. "But let us help you bear it."

Stefan didn't know what to think. What exactly was Damon suggesting? From the look on his face, it seemed like he wasn't sure himself. The verbal sentiment was genuine enough, but that didn't explain what the actual plan here was. While he was thinking, Elena moved closer to him without his realizing it. It was the soft touch of her mouth against his that brought him back to reality.

The kiss was soft and gentle, soothing and sweet. He made a soft sound as he raised his hands to cup her face. Not even a moan. A whimper. Through the kiss he vaguely registered Damon's hand stroking his shoulder and his other hand on Elena's back. After a moment he came to his senses and pulled back, searching Damon's face. Damon's only response was a soft smile.

Maybe he was over-thinking this. Maybe what they were really searching for here wasn't a named state of a relationship, but just comfort. And love. That made more sense, and a small stirring inside him answered it, confirming his desires. But something also drew him back, still not ready to accept the affection he wasn't entirely sure he deserved. An idea formed.

"I want you to have control." Damon didn't move for a second, registering that Stefan wasn't speaking to Elena, but to HIM.

"What . . . what are you implying, Stefan?" Damon looked wary. Elena watched them silently; Stefan could tell she wasn't surprised. She knew him too well.

"I'm saying, I want you . . . to be in control of me." Stefan forced the words out. They were starkly honest, but even he wasn't completely sure what exactly he wanted or expected. But that was the point, he realized suddenly. He wanted what DAMON wanted. And Elena, but specifically Damon. It wasn't for him to expect anything. Damon blinked hesitantly.

"Stefan, I don't want to . . . do anything . . . with you . . ." Stefan shook his head.

"That's not what I'm suggesting. I'm only saying . . ." He struggled to find words. "I want what you want. You told me earlier that I don't get to tell you what you can or can't do. I'm saying, you're right. I don't. You get to tell ME that."

Damon sat like a statue, still not understanding.

"Dammit, Damon, beat me up, have me watch while you kiss Elena all night, tickle my feet, rape me back – it doesn't matter. I want to give you control." His voice dropped. "You deserve it." Damon's face was dark as a thunder cloud.

"'Rape you back?'" Stefan hurried to correct his ill-advised and insensitive statement.

"Or don't. That's not the point." He took a deep breath. "Just now, Elena kissed me, and you were touching us both." Elena blushed and Damon looked away, overwhelmed by what was happening. "We can't deny that something is happening here, and maybe it would have been better if I hadn't addressed it, but I'm just saying, something is happening, and I want you to be in control."

Elena, at least, got it. She looked at him seriously, and then nodded almost imperceptibly. Damon still struggled to understand. Elena, angel that she was, stepped in to help.

"Damon," she murmured, laying a hand on the side of his neck, "did you like seeing me kiss Stefan?"

"Yes," he admitted, turning his gaze down to her.

"Why?"

"Because there was nothing but love there. And we need love. Both of us. Fighting over you makes me think of . . . what happened, and all the years I spent hurting him after. It feels good to watch you with a smile on my face." She gave him her own smile at the admission.

"And what about you?" she pressed. "Do you want to kiss me too, or just watch?"

Damon answered her ridiculous question with a kiss that stole her breath away. Stefan watched in awe as her toes curled and a flush rose up her neck and face. When he released her mouth after long moments, her breath came in harsh pants. Stefan smothered a chuckle and a twinge of lust at seeing her so worked up. Damon laid his forehead against hers.

"Does that answer your question?" Elena nodded, still not trusting her voice. Finally, she pushed her hair out of her face and addressed them both.

"Then that's the answer. Damon, you and Stefan both want to be with me right now . . . though, not each other?" She looked to them for confirmation, and they both nodded vigorously. "And you both want to see that happen. And, Stefan wants you, Damon, to direct where this goes." She ran a hand down his arm to tangle her finders with his, then did the same to Stefan. "He wants to trust you with control."

And that was it. That was their souls laid bare, and after Elena finally got the words in the correct order, Stefan and Damon both felt kinda stupid that they hadn't been able to just communicate that before. She made it seem so easy. It occurred to Stefan that they had overlooked something.

"Elena, what do you want?"

Damon turned to watch her with Stefan – both feeling idiotic that they had let the question go unasked for so long. She smiled up at them lovingly, if a little timidly.

"If . . . if I'm honest with myself, then what I want is both of you." She looked down at her lap. "I never thought it was something that could be possible . . . because of what Katherine put you through." She looked up again. "I never want to do that to either of you, and if protecting you from more pain meant I never got exactly what I wanted, well, I thought that was a fair price to pay."

They both reached for her at the same time, Damon to stroke her hair, Stefan to caress her jaw. It would have been funny had the moment not been so emotional, and they shared a look over her head. Here they were, all on the same page, but still holding back because they were all afraid of hurting each other. Stefan gave Damon a significant look. Damon simply looked back for a long moment before his mouth firmed and finally broke out in a wicked smirk.

"Stefan," he said authoritatively, "get on the bed." Elena's head jerked up to look at Damon as Stefan returned with a slow smile. "I want you to make Elena moan."

Stefan was so startled that for all of two seconds he didn't react. Finally, after his brain caught up, with one quick look at Elena to ensure that his order was okay with her, he scrambled to obey. When he had himself settled, he watched as Damon gallantly, tenderly, lifted Elena to her feet and kissed her hands, gazing deeply into her eyes.

"Is that okay with you?" His voice was anxious and pleading for her to understand. "I'm okay with ordering Stefan around, but I don't want to do anything you're not okay with. If I order him around, you order me around, alright?"

Stefan smiled at that. It was actually perfect. Elena blushed prettily and smiled nervously.

"I don't know if I'm comfortable . . . ordering you around, Damon." She swallowed and looked up. "I could try . . ." Damon laughed at the earnestness in her face and hugged her to his chest briefly.

"You do whatever you want to, Elena," he told her, "I just want you to know that if I order Stefan to do something that YOU don't like, you tell me immediately and we'll stop." She nodded emphatically at him, warming to his laughter and gentle caresses. "Now, I would like to see Stefan please you. Is that something you're okay with?"

Elena smiled slightly in response and nearly blew Stefan's head off by climbing on top of him to straddle his hips. He looked up at her smiling face and felt his heart give a little flutter. So did the area below his belt. From the look on Elena's face as she gazed down at Stefan, she could feel it too.

They just sat for a moment, Stefan running his hands softly up and down her thighs, running just barely under the hem of her dress, caressing her soft skin. Then, he moved his hands up to draw her down for a kiss. He started it out chaste and gentle, and then gradually coaxed her mouth open until he could delve into her mouth. While she was distracted by his searching tongue, he snuck his hands up to the buttons on the bodice of her dress, undoing them deftly. She broke the kiss at the feel of his hands skimming over her upper chest and shoulders, pushing the dress down her arms to bare her lacy yellow bra.

Damon watched enraptured. His brother and his girlfriend – well, their girlfriend, let's get real here – were a picture of innocence and sweetness. He was already hard in his jeans, and all that had happened was some fairly tame kissing and Elena's bra being revealed. The delicate eyelet lace of her sunny yellow bra made him feel weak with longing. Here was not some jaded femme fatale, but their sweet Elena, innocent and full of sunshine. He resisted the urge to dive onto the bed with them and make her scream. He settled instead for ordering Stefan around more.

"Play with her nipples through her bra, Stefan."

Stefan happily complied, reaching up to circle Elena's left nipple with the tip of one finger. She gasped into their kiss at his subtle touch, arching her back to press her body more fully into his grasp. He acquiesced to her demand by palming her breast in his hand and kneading it softly. She sighed again, tilting her head back to expose her throat. Stefan took the hint and dropped a trail of kisses down towards her breasts.

Damon took a quick step forward to stand beside the bed as Stefan's lips touched down over Elena's pulse. He looked up at Damon, but Damon merely looked back at him, wanting to be within arm's reach as Stefan kissed her in this vulnerable spot. Silently approving of Damon's vigilance, Stefan returned to his task, finally reaching Elena's breasts with his mouth. He gently suckled one pebbled nipple through the lace of her bra, causing her to let out a shuddering gasp as she ran her fingers through his hair, holding him to her body. Stefan smiled around her breast – as if he would ever want to move away!

Damon watched them with eyes made dark and sparkling by desire. He wanted to touch Elena so badly, to be the one making her gasp like that, to have her body rubbing up against his like that. But actually, he was having kind of a good time watching, and rushing had never gotten him anywhere he wanted to be before. Also, he was loath to admit it, even to himself, but the idea of voluntarily climbing into bed with his brother, even to please Elena, made him . . . uncomfortable. As in, noose-around-his-neck uncomfortable. Yeah, for now he'd just keep offering up suggestions and commands.

"Come on, Stefan, make her moan. I know you can do it."

It was Elena who answered his goading comment with a look just as hooded by desire as his own.

"I know he can do it, too, Damon. Your brother has very talented hands –ohhhh . . ." She broke off mid-sentence as Stefan went to work in earnest on her breasts. He pushed the cups of her bra down, which left her hardened nipples lifted and exposed to his questing mouth and fingers. Slowly, methodically, he teased her breasts with his mouth and one hand, using the other to gently ghost tantalizingly light touches around the edge of her underwear. Soon, Elena was squirming on his lap, trying to grind her hips closer to his hand while holding his head to her breast. After a time, he switched his mouth to worry at her other breast, switching the tasks between his hands as well. When his fingers returned to the spot right next to the edge of her underwear in the crease of her thigh, she finally made the winning sound.

"Ooohhhhh, Stefaaaaaaaaaan . . ." There, he'd done it, he'd made her moan. It was music to his ears, and he cast his eyes sideways to meet Damon's hungry gaze.

Damon watched Stefan work Elena into a frenzy, teasing her until she moaned his name in a way that made Damon yearn to hear his name on her lips in just that way. His cock was hard in his jeans, straining his zipper as his hands twisted in his shirt from the effort to keep them from joining the activity on the bed. Finally, when Elena turned to watch him with naked desire in her eyes, he could stand it no longer.

"Stefan, lay Elena down on the bed. You take her top half, I take the bottom." He met Stefan's eyes with determination. "Now we're going to make her scream." Stefan grinned like a kid at Christmas and plucked Elena off of his lap, laying her out on the bed crosswise. He curled up around her head and stroked her hair, waiting for Damon to get in position.

Elena let out a little shriek as Damon grabbed her thighs and pulled her over to the edge of the bed. Kneeling between her spread thighs, he draped her legs over his shoulders to give him better access to her body. He glanced up at Stefan to make sure he was ready, and gave a little nod. Let the games begin.

He began by using just his hands, running his fingers up and down the silken skin of her inner thighs. He could feel her tremble under his touch, doubtless confused and disoriented by the feel of two pairs of hands caressing her body. At the edge of his vision, Damon could see Stefan's hands roaming Elena's upper body as he bent over her to press upside-down kisses to her mouth.

Moving his face closer to the juncture between her thighs, Damon pressed butterfly light kisses around the edges of Elena's underwear, echoing the touches Stefan had laid there earlier. Finally, when she was squirming continuously, he hooked his teeth over the waistband of her panties and dragged them down.

Finally laid bare to his tender mercies, Elena tried to close her thighs, a pretty, rosy flush blossoming on her skin. He laughed at her modesty and held her thighs open, kissing from her knee up to the edge of the carefully groomed hair over her sex. He paused there for a minute, smelling her arousal and letting her feel his breath so close to her. A quick peek at Stefan revealed that he was working full time to keep her distracted from whatever Damon was up to, running his hands up and down her stomach while he kissed her deeply and energetically.

Finally, Damon inched forward and laid a soft, gentle kiss at the apex of her thighs. Elena moaned into Stefan's mouth, and Damon took that for a sign that she wanted more. Using his thumbs to spread her open, he moved just a little lower and slowly, softly, delved his tongue into her folds, already slick with her desire.

"Oooohhhh, Damon . . ." her voice floated down to him, muffled slightly by Stefan's kiss, and she ran her fingers through his hair. Stefan smiled against her lips, continuing to caress her body with slow, smooth strokes while Damon dragged his tongue up to circle her clit. "Oooohmygod –" her voice cut off suddenly on a gasp as he dipped his right index finger into her wet heat. He met Stefan's eyes over Elena's supine form at that noise, and by some silent agreement, both bent back to their respective tasks, determined to make her do that again many, many times.

Stefan kept his eyes on Damon as he bent down to press upside-down kisses along Elena's throat and jaw. He palmed her breast with one hand, while the other went to the button on his jeans, which was straining against his erection. If he didn't relieve some pressure now, things would quickly become very uncomfortable indeed.

He let out a fast exhalation of relief as his pants loosened somewhat, while Elena simultaneously let out a little squeal and fisted her hand in his shirt, keeping him close to her. He looked down to see Damon pumping two fingers out of her pretty little pussy while his mouth worked furiously over her clit. Elena's body was tense under him, her back arching to press her breasts up towards him. He returned his attention to her nipples, causing her to keen deep in her throat.

"Stefannnnnnn . . ."

Stefan knew he could never get tired of hearing her say his name like that.

Suddenly, Elena's back bowed dramatically, every muscle in her body tense and quivering. Her eyes snapped open in shock. Stefan looked down at Damon, and he immediately knew from the look on Damon's face that his brother had pushed his smallest finger into her ass, penetrating her in two places, each magnifying the feeling of the other.

Stefan knew she would come soon. The few times they had tried anal play over the course of their fraught relationship, Elena had responded beautifully to his efforts. They had never managed to get more than two of his fingers into her before her anxiety caused pain to outweigh pleasure, but until that point, Elena could reliably come from anal stimulation alone.

Stefan decided to scale down his attention to her breasts, letting her focus on what Damon was doing to her without distraction or risk of over-stimulation. Instead, he curled around her, holding her tense, shaking form against his chest and stroking her hair as he laid gentle kisses against her temple.

"That's it, love," he murmured, "let it come. Come for us. Feel what Damon is doing to you, and let go. Come for us."

Damon looked up over Elena's body at Stefan, and Stefan could tell that he approved of Stefan's actions. Elena clung to him as if she were afraid that if she let go he'd disappear. He tightened his hold on her, reassuring her of his presence.

"I'm right here, love," he whispered to her. "I'm right here, and Damon and I love you so, so much. Let go for us. Come."

Finally, almost right after his last few words to her, Elena's entire body tensed, nearly arching off the bed with the strength of her orgasm. Her thighs locked around Damon's head and her hands clenched spasmodically, one in Damon's hair, one in Stefan's shirt.

"AughhhhgooooooodddDamonnnSte faaaaaaaaaaaan!" Elena's shout mingled their names before her voice gave way in a broken sob. Her eyes clenched closed and Stefan watched as a single tear squeezed out of the corner of one eye and ran into her hair. He continued to hold her as tight as he dared, stroking her hair gently and whispering sweet nothings.

Damon, meanwhile, slowly decreased the pressure of his mouth against her so as not to shock her with a sudden change in sensation, and then gently reached up to unlock her legs from the death grip she had around his head. He smirked as she fought against his grip for a moment, then relented as she started coming back to herself a little more. When he was finally standing upright beside the bed, she extended her shaking arms to him, wanting to feel more of his body against her.

Damon hesitated, not entirely sure he was ready to join Elena on the bed when his brother was already there. Stefan lowered his head and slid backwards, off the bed to kneel beside it in a mirror image of Damon's earlier pose. He kept one hand stroking her hair while the other tangled with her fingers, trying to reassure her that he was only leaving room for his brother, not leaving her.

Damon looked at his brother in gratitude, scooping Elena up towards the head of the bed so there was more room for them before wrapping his body around hers. She sighed in relief at finally feeling him against her, but still yearned to feel Stefan pressed against her too. Still dazed and recovering from their attentions to her body, she reached for Stefan again, whimpering. He moved up to kneel by the head of the bed taking hold of her questing hand and stroking her hair gently.

"Hey hey hey, I'm right here, Elena." His voice was soft as he looked into her liquid eyes. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm just giving you and Damon some cuddle time, too." He offered her a crooked smile.

After a moment, Elena seemed to come back to herself a little more, and she nodded, remembering the circumstances for how this had all started. Still gripping Stefan's hand tightly, she turned to Damon to give him some attention as well. She tried to reach his lips, but being shorter than he and farther down on the bed, she settled for pressing her lips to the tip of his chin before nuzzling her head underneath against his throat.

Damon swallowed hard. He didn't like denying her anything. He tightened his arm around her, burying his face in her hair as he squeezed his eyes closed.

"I'm . . . I'm sorry. I don't mean to-" Elena's head popped up at his first words, stilling him with soft fingers against his lips.

"Don't you dare apologize for doing what you need to do to be comfortable, Damon," she said sternly. Behind her, Stefan smiled proudly. "I'm fine. You just kinda . . . well, you kinda blew my head off . . ." She blushed deeply, still not entirely balanced after the incredible height he had driven her to. "I'm just not . . . used to having two people that I . . . love . . . SO much . . . in bed with me at the same time." Her voice got softer and softer as she went, frantically trying to sort out these new emotions and sensations. Her expression firmed and steadied before Damon could start fussing over her. "But I'm ok. I really am. And you are NOT ALLOWED to compromise on what will make you feel comfortable and safe. Do you hear me?"

Damon smiled warmly at her while Stefan held back a laugh at Elena's fierceness. The image of her tiny little figure snuggled up with his brother while she shook her finger in his face, scolding him soundly, was absolutely adorable. Damon took it like a champ, answering her with a tongue in cheek smile and nod on the surface, but Stefan could see the gratitude and relief in his eyes. Clearly their relationship with Elena had evolved, and Stefan hoped that one day, they could share her bed together without any anxiety. Until then, it was enough for Damon to finally feel secure.

Stefan, meanwhile, was inwardly shocked at how hearing Elena admit to loving his brother, as well as himself, did NOT bother him. Huh. That bore some further consideration.

His thoughts were interrupted as he watched Damon reach down to adjust his burgeoning erection, which was putting an impressive amount of pressure on his zipper. This reminded him of his own situation, slightly less urgent than Damon's since he had already opened his pants, but still . . . present. He also moved to make himself more comfortable, and this time, Elena's gaze followed his hand.

Her mouth opened into an 'o' as she saw his arousal, and then flipped her gaze over to Damon. The flush on her face deepened to crimson as she realized that she was in bed with two wildly aroused vampires. Well, she was almost in bed with Stefan . . .

"Maybe . . . I should go . . ." Stefan couldn't quite meet Damon's gaze as he spoke. He wanted more than anything to make love to Elena now, but in all honesty, he thought it was only fair he step aside for Damon, at least this time. After all, he and Elena had never been together before, and Damon was in far more need of physical comfort at the moment.

"No!" Elena's voice was sudden, almost panicked. "I mean . . ." she gulped, torn between the two of them. "I'm sorry, Damon, I just . . ." she looked away.

"Hey, remember what I said?" Damon held her jaw to make her meet his eyes. "We do whatever you want. Don't be sorry."

Her gaze steadied after he spoke. She looked back at Stefan, her eyes speculative now instead of worried. She turned back to Damon.

"Damon . . . I want you to be absolutely honest with me right now." Her voice was firm and steady. Damon nodded seriously. "Would it be ok if – I mean, would you feel comfortable if – if you and I had sex," she took a breath, "while I went down on Stefan?"

The room was so silent that you could hear a pin drop.

Stefan was fairly sure his heart had completely stopped at hearing her soft query. He was also fairly sure that, had he still been wearing pants, his erection would have torn them because of how hard he got at her words. He waited with baited breath to hear Damon's response.

Damon looked at her quietly for a moment. He flicked his gaze to Stefan again.

"Damon, if you want, I could stay on this side of the bed. I mean, if – if that would help you." Stefan didn't want to pressure his brother, so he tried to keep the note of eagerness out of his voice. Well, he tried.

"I think . . . I think that would be ok." Damon gave her a little smile, which contorted into a smirk shortly. "I mean, I was kind of in a tight spot before," he gestured to his hard-on nestled between him and Elena, "and now I think I'm in serious danger of destroying my pants, so if that doesn't tell you something . . ."

Elena smiled and pressed a kiss to his lips as she slipped the button on his jeans out of the buttonhole. Damon breathed an audible sigh of relief as she lowered his zipper, which turned into a rough gasp when her hand slipped under his boxers to touch his turgid length.

Stefan watched for a moment, surprised at how turned on he was by the sight of his girlfriend – maybe 'their girlfriend' was more accurate now – stroking his brother. Another moment later he decided not to worry about it and shucked off his pants, sitting back to enjoy the view while he slowly ran a hand up and down his length.

After a moment of paralysis from the delicious feeling of Elena's fingers on him, Damon captured her mouth in a passionate, open-mouthed kiss. Rolling her beneath him, he pulled off his pants and underwear, pressing his hard flesh against her. She moaned into his mouth and spread her legs, cradling his hips between them.

He reached between them to feel her, still soft and liquid from her orgasm. She moaned at the touch of his fingers and wrapped her legs around his hips, pulling him closer. He gave up trying to delay the inevitable and positioned himself at her entrance, then slowly pushed inside her.

"Ooooooooohhh, GOOOOOOOOOOOOODDDDDDDD!" Elena's moan got louder and louder the farther he pushed inside her. Damon could feel his eyes crossing at the feeling of her wet heat gripping his hard cock.

"God, Elena," he panted, "you're so tight, so hot, mmmmmmmmm . . ." He waited for a moment after seating himself completely inside her before raising his hips to start up a steady but gentle rhythm.

Stefan watched as Damon penetrated Elena with wide, enraptured eyes. He knew full well how good it felt to be inside Elena's soft, tight body. He was happy that his brother was getting to feel that pleasure, and watching Elena's face as he pushed inside her was astonishing. His hand moved on his length a little faster.

They stayed like that for several minutes, Damon stroking in and out of Elena's sweet little body, her hips rising up to meet his with every thrust, and Stefan slowly jerking himself off beside the bed. Soon, though, Damon felt Elena's hands pressing against his chest, pushing him away from her. Stefan's brows knit together in confusion. He'd been watching so carefully, but had Damon hurt her in some way? Was she uncomfortable with Stefan there with them?

"Elena, what's wrong?" Damon asked her, backing up off her and withdrawing from her wet heat. He ran his hands down her arms. "Are you alright? Did I hurt you?"

"No, not at all." She smiled at his worried face before glancing over at Stefan. "I want you to take me from behind, is all. Is that okay?"

Damon looked like his jaw might just fall off his face at that statement. Stefan imagined that he must look the same.

"Abso-fucking-lutely." Elena giggled at Damon's response before getting onto her hands and knees on the bed, her head facing Stefan and her ass pressing against Damon. She reached over to grab one of Stefan's thick pillows, putting it on the floor in front of her. She gestured for him to kneel on it in front of her.

Damon, meanwhile, had moved behind her and was teasing her wet folds with the slick head of his cock. She moaned and pressed back against him, and his throbbing cockhead slipped inside her once more. Slowly, teasingly, he sunk into her until he was buried up to the hilt in her heat.

"God, yesssssssss . . ." Stefan remembered that this was actually one of Elena's favorite positions, which explained her enthusiasm. He knew it was because of how it made his cock hit her g-spot when he fucked her. Damon winced at the heavenly feel of her, pausing to take a breath before he resumed his steady rhythm inside her.

Once Damon had started, Stefan moved in front of Elena, the height of the pillow placing his hard, twitching cock at the perfect level for her to suck him off. Stefan reached out his hands to help support her shoulders as she in turn reached out to touch his hardness. Her hand ran down to the base of his erection, pulling his skin taught as she brought him into her mouth.

"Dear god, Elena . . ." The feel of her mouth as she engulfed his length made his legs weak. He continued holding her shoulders for her as she bobbed her head up and down on him, one hand still holding the base of his cock while her other massaged his balls. His head dropped back and he saw stars behind his eyelids. As the sensations flowed over him, another image formed behind his eyelids, one that he couldn't drive away, even as Elena's sweet mouth worked him up and down.

Elena was moaning continuously around Stefan's cock. The feeling of Damon pumping in and out of her – god, this was her absolute favorite position, it felt so fucking good. He was long and thick, filling her perfectly. Every few strokes he made a little circle with his hips that sent his balls crashing against her clit, making her jump and gasp. His very presence was powerful and overwhelming, and her intuition told her he would always feel like that, even when he was trying to be gentle.

Elena sucked Stefan harder, squeezing her hands around the base of his shaft and balls, and suddenly he let out a strangled moan and pulled away. Damon paused his rhythm, watching as Stefan held himself up on the floor with shaking arms, drawing in harsh breaths.

"If you keep that up, love," he said between pants, "I'm gonna come. Hard."

Damon pulled out of Elena and she sat back on the bed with a moan, missing the feel of him.

"And that's a bad thing, because . . . ?" she asked, honestly confused. Stefan just shook his head.

"Not in your mouth." Elena furrowed her brow. "Just . . . not in your mouth."

Elena was stymied. That had never been a problem before. She had brought him off with her lips and tongue dozens of times. Sometimes she swallowed, sometimes not, but nothing about it had ever bothered Stefan before.

As soon as she saw the look on Damon's face, she knew what the problem was. That must have been something he'd forced Damon . . . suddenly she saw herself in her mind's eye from Stefan's perspective: his cock in her mouth, and Damon taking her from behind. If she put Damon in her place, then could Klaus have . . . ? Oh god. She shook herself, determined to salvage this situation. With one final look between the two of them, she took Damon's face in her hands (for she knew Damon was the one she had to ask to do this, not Stefan).

"Damon," she said, her voice heated but sincere, "I want you to fuck me . . . I want you to fuck my ass."

Damon's eyes nearly bugged out at her statement. Stefan's jaw really did hit the floor this time, due to his position. He got to his knees quickly and moved to look into her face.

"Elena, are you sure?" His voice was urgent through the flood of desire that rose at the thought of her doing this, knowing that she had never been able to accommodate anything nearly as large as one of their erect cocks inside her like that before. She turned to him and nodded firmly, a sultry smile creeping onto her face. She was actually really excited to finally try this. Damon recovered enough to contribute.

"Don't go trying to do anything you aren't sure about just to make us feel better, Elena." Damon's voice shook slightly. "It isn't worth it, and we won't thank you for it." Elena turned back to him and held his face in her hands.

"Firstly, you two are worth ANYTHING." She gave his face a little shake to emphasize her statement. "But that's not what I'm doing. I want this." She watched his face carefully as she spoke. "Damon, do you think you can take me from behind while Stefan takes me from the front? Is that something YOU can do?"

Damon looked uncertain, at first. Stefan stayed very still and quiet, wanting his brother to make this decision free of any distractions, especially from him. Elena stayed still as well, not moving her hands from his face. Not letting him hide. Finally, he swallowed hard and gave a tiny nod, putting on a little bit of his usual sarcastic nonchalance.

"Oh, I think I can manage," he drawled, finishing with a smirk.

Smiling sweetly into his face, Elena stretched up to place her lips softly against his. Damon's eyes drifted shut for a moment as he leaned into her kiss before he pulled away. He stood beside the bed, taking a moment to pull off his shirt, and moved to the foot of the bed.

"Stefan," he said, his voice steady, "Lie down on the bed."

Stefan stood to comply, taking off his shirt as well. Once he was situated as Damon had commanded, Damon held out his hand to Elena, bringing her to stand at the foot of the bed with him. Once again taking her hands in his, he pressed them to his lips, holding her there for a moment. Then, with an almost predatory deliberation, he reached down to the hem of her dress and pulled it up over her head. Standing before him in nothing but her bra, with him gazing down on her with eyes full of lust and his rock hard erection tapping against her stomach, Elena had no doubt that he wanted this.

"Elena," he said, his voice husky and rough, "I want you to get on top of Stefan and put his cock deep in your pussy."

Elena shuddered at his words and moved to obey. She found she rather liked Damon telling her what to do, in bed at least. Thinking of his earlier entreaty that she be the one to order him around, she wondered if she could come to be comfortable being the one in charge. The thought sent a smile to play around her mouth, and she straddled Stefan's hips and pressed down on his returning hard-on, trapping it between her wet center and his stomach. She rocked her hips back and forth for a moment, making him moan as he got even harder, before lifting off of him to position him at her entrance. He steadied her with his hands on her hips as she slowly slid down his length.

Feeling Stefan push inside her felt like coming home. It was so different from Damon, where she felt like she was being tossed helplessly in an ocean squall. Even at his most passionate, most aggressive, Stefan felt warm and safe, like stepping out into warm sunshine. She sighed at the feeling, and slowly began to move up and down.

"Aaaahhhhhhhh, Elena . . ." Stefan's moan made her melt. He ran his hands up and down her sides as she rode him, the look in his eyes pouring over her like warm honey. She slid her hands up his stomach to massage his pectoral muscles. Stefan responded with a strong upward thrust of his hips, lifting Elena off her knees.

"Mmmmm, Stefan, yes . . ." Elena leaned forward to press a kiss over his heart. When she looked up, she found Damon standing next to the bed, stroking his hard cock as he watched them together, a bottle of lube in his other hand. Elena watched him, her mouth practically watering from the sight of him.

A moment later, Damon disappeared out of Elena's field of vision and she felt the bed dip behind her. Stefan passed a pillow over her head, and watched as Damon laid it over Stefan's legs to sit on while he prepared Elena. Stefan slowed the motion of his hips, gripping Elena to still her so Damon could get her ready. He maintained a tiny pulsing thrust up into her, but other than that, they became almost completely still.

Damon settled himself behind Elena, his hard cock tapping against her lower back. From this vantage point, he was above all of them, the most in control. If he wanted to, he could tilt his head to the side and look around Elena at Stefan, on his back, pushing up into her warm, wet body in tiny little thrusts. Or, he could bury his face in her hair and breathe the scent of her shampoo and skin and not look at anything at all. He had been worried that this might be too much for him. That the old feelings of anxiety and panic might rear up when he got into bed with them. But sitting here behind Elena and over his brother, about to push himself into her tight opening where no one, not even Stefan, had ever been before, he felt powerful and hungry. He bit his lip when Elena gave a little shimmy of her hips as his brother's cock brushed her g-spot, smirking against her skin. He had a job to do, here.

Damon tipped some lube onto his fingers, rubbing them together to warm it, and set the bottle aside to plant kisses along Elena's shoulders. Once the chill had gone from the liquid, he gently rubbed his slick fingers against her back entrance.

Elena gasped at the contact, grasping Stefan's hand tightly. She gulped mouthfuls of air as Damon again slid his little finger inside her, sliding it in and out. She felt hot everywhere, sensitive, and anywhere Stefan or Damon touched her felt amazing.

Stefan watched, enraptured, as Elena's eyes slipped shut. She had a death grip on one of his hands, but the other wanted to touch her. He started by running a finger softly over her lips, moaning low as she captured it between her lips and ran her tongue over the tip. He withdrew the digit from her lips, drawing a wet line down her throat to circle one of her nipples.

"Oooooooohhgodddddyeeeeeeeess ssssss . . ." Elena moaned as Stefan began torturing her breasts, again. Dear god, the man had talented hands. Between those hands and Damon's mouth, currently pressing open mouthed kisses to the back of her neck and shoulders, Elena wasn't sure how much longer she'd last before they made her explode from sheer sexual frenzy. Damon's finger continued to move in and out of her gently, and then withdrew. Elena moaned at the loss, only to have Damon upgrade to his index finger.

"AaaaaaaaaughDAMOOOOOON!" Elena's sudden yell took Damon by surprise. Stefan looked a little more sanguine, Damon assumed because he had seen this reaction before. That gave him some comfort. Elena was breathing hard, each exhalation expelling a little cry. Her head was thrown back, resting on his shoulder, her eyes squeezed shut. She scrabbled back towards him with her free hand, the one not gripping the life out of Stefan's, searching for his. He gave it to her and she seized it in a death grip.

The force of her grip startled him. Mortal state aside, he never expected that level of force from her small form, simply because it wasn't in her to be forceful. He instinctively moved to press against her back, circling her waist with his arm, whispering words of comfort in her ear

"It's okay, Elena, you're okay. Just relax, I'm here, Stefan's here. You're okay. Shhhh." Damon continued to slide his finger in and out of her, gently but firmly. He held her against him, supporting her as she trembled in his arms. Finally he felt her relax around his finger. God, if she was this worked up over his index finger, what would she do with his cock inside her? He laid a kiss against her temple and let her enjoy a more relaxed experience of his finger for a moment before introducing his middle finger as well.

Elena's eyes flew open at the feel of Damon pressing another finger inside her. Her initial reaction was one of panic – she was too full, too stretched, she couldn't take in anymore. Right then, all she wanted was Stefan, who made her feel so calm and safe.

"Stefan!" The hard edge of panic in her voice made Stefan sit bolt upright, soothing his hands up and down her sides, across her cheek.

"Hey, I'm right here," he soothed, "I'm right here. And Damon's here too, you're ok." He looked into her eyes as he reassured her, watching the panic ebb from her. "You're ok."

She nodded back at him, her eyes wide, her mouth gasping for air. She tried harder to relax, and Damon's finger slipped smoothly in and out of her. After another moment her expression softened as she started to just feel the pleasure.

"Damon," Stefan whispered, "touch her. Caress her. She calms down more and relaxes faster when you touch her. Let her feel that you're there." Stefan punctuated his words by stroking his hand though Elena's hair, making her sigh in response. Damon met his brother's gaze over Elena's shoulder and nodded. He pressed against her back, reaching down to kiss her throat, lingering there and sucking on the delicate skin. The hand wrapped around her waist stroked her there gently, letting her feel as much of his skin against hers as he could manage with one hand busy sliding in and out of her.

Now was the big moment, Elena knew. This was the most she had ever had inside her in that way, and now they would find out if this was actually going to work. Damon started scissoring his fingers open and closed inside her, stretching her further. Each movement of his hand elicited a little moan from Elena's throat, and each noise made Damon's cock throb against her. Stefan was a rock inside her and below her, holding her safe and steady as Damon worked his magic inside her.

Finally Damon withdrew his fingers from within her, satisfied that he has stretched her and spread the lube as much as he possibly could. Wiping his fingers on a discarded t-shirt, he positioned his cock against her back entrance and leaned his head against hers, puffing air against her ear and making her shiver.

"Alright, Elena, I'm going to push into you. Okay?" She nodded, holding his arm around her more tightly and gripping Stefan's hand with renewed strength. Then, slowly but firmly, Damon started to thrust into her.

Stefan watched as Elena caught her breath, her beautiful face frozen in a rictus of pleasure and pain. For a long moment, no one spoke, no one even breathed. Damon held himself perfectly still, the head of his cock and mere inch inside Elena's tight hole. Elena could feel him throbbing wildly inside her, twitching slightly with the effort of restraining himself. Stefan's hands were white-knuckled on her hips, transfixed by the vision of her taking Damon's cock up her ass. Finally, after a minute to adjust to his girth, Elena was ready for more.

"Ok, Damon," she gasped, "I'm ready."

"Yeah?" he breathed into her ear, nuzzling his nose against her temple. "You sure, sweetheart?" Elena nodded.

"I'm ok." She looked down at Stefan, who ran his hands up her thighs to stroke her stomach under where Damon's arm was wrapped around her. "I want you – BOTH of you – to move." Stefan released a shuddering breath. "Now. Please!"

"You heard the lady, Stefan." Damon was nearly growling his voice was so heavy with lust. "Let's make her scream."

And as Stefan and Damon both gently pressed up further into her writhing body, that's exactly what she did. Damon held her against him while Stefan continued to caress her thighs and stomach with soothing strokes as Damon pushed his cock further and further inside her. Stefan's short, pulsing thrusts sent shockwaves through her body, and the pressure of both of them stretching her, filling her, rubbing at the thin, sensitive skin separating them made her mind white out. Her voice tore out of her throat, filling the room over the sound of Damon's harsh gasps and Stefan's low moans.

"Ohhhhhhhh, god Elena . . ." Damon's eyes were squeezed tightly shut, and his arm was shaking from the effort of keeping his thrusts gentle and shallow. The feel of her body gripping him so tightly was indescribably good, and every time Stefan thrust in at the same time, the pressure was almost unbearable. They set up a pistoning sort of rhythm: Damon would thrust in, then Stefan. Damon would pull back, then Stefan. It was indescribably good.

That realization, that this was that good, brought a sense of relief to Damon, even as he struggled with his control. He had wanted this, had known it was the only way the convoluted relationship between the three of them could resolve, but he had been so scared of the potential outcomes. He hadn't had a panic attack in years, but the thought of having sex in the same bed as his brother, at the same time, with the same girl . . . and yet, here they were. And all he felt was the unbelievable pleasure of Elena's body squeezing him, tighter still when Stefan was inside as well, and the pride of hearing her coming apart riding his and Stefan's cocks.

Stefan was absolutely entranced by Elena's enraptured face as she rode his cock. He was fairly sure that this was the single most erotic experience of his life, and that included losing his virginity to Katherine. No, making love to Elena while she writhed and cried out over him, riding his brother's cock blew anything he had ever previously experienced out of the water. Even the contrast of his brother's pale arm wrapped convulsively around Elena's tanned waist made his mouth water.

But he wanted more. He wanted to feel more of her, do more to her, give her more pleasure. He ran his hands over every inch of skin he could reach, careful not to touch his brother so as not to interrupt his own experience, and finally settled in the creases where Elena's thighs came together. Gently he massaged her hip bones and pubic mound, stroking through the little bit of hair he found there. Her hand skimmed up his stomach in response, searching for more of his skin to caress.

'Mmmmmmmmm . . ." Practically purring under Elena's touch, Stefan brought his right hand to his mouth, wetting the pad of his thumb. Moving slowly so as not to give her any warning, Stefan brought his hand back to the juncture of her thighs and started polishing her clit with his slick thumb. Elena's eyes flew open.

"Ooooooooooooohhhhgoooooooaaa aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!" Elena's plea to the divine bottomed out into a wordless scream once more as Stefan's thumb tortured her clit. The feeling of both of them filling her to the limit of her endurance PLUS the external stimulation was too much. Her hands clenched around Stefan's wrist and fisted in Damon's hair as her inner muscles started to spasm, throttling their cocks which were currently buried inside her.

Damon jerked uncontrollably into her ass as he felt her squeeze down on him with incredible force. His control was starting to unravel, and it was so good he didn't even register her hand pulling on a handful of his hair. The only thing he could feel was her warm skin against his and her tight passage spasming around his cock. His thrusts became faster and faster, a little bit rougher and harder each time, and he could feel the skin over his cheekbones getting hot, his fangs pushing out of his gums.

Stefan watched in awe as Elena screamed and pulsed around his cock. The wild flutterings of her pussy were driving him closer and closer to the edge, but he was determined to make her come first. Moving his thumb faster on her swollen clit, he leaned up on his other hand and captured one of her hard nipples in his mouth, rolling his tongue across her sensitive flesh.

Elena jerked at the feel of Stefan's mouth on her breast, whipping her hand from his wrist to tangle in his hair. She was mere heartbeats away from the most earth-shattering orgasm of all time, and she whimpered breathlessly, searching for one last thing to send her tumbling over the edge.

"Damon – Stefan – I love you . . ."

That thing came in the form of Damon's hand on her other breast. Searching for something to hold on to, to anchor him while the waves of pleasure dragged him under, his hand came up to clutch her soft breast in his hand, rolling her nipple between his fingers as he pressed himself further against her.

That one added element of stimulation was all Elena needed to send her in a swan dive over the edge of awareness into bliss. One more twist of Damon's fingers on her breast, one more draw of Stefan's lips, and then their cocks pressed into her body at the same time, just as Stefan's finger rolled over her aching clit –

"AaaaaaaaaaaaaaaauuuuAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Something primal and male in Damon keened in triumph as Elena came, screaming incoherently, her limbs jerking helplessly as wave after wave of pleasure washed over her. He wanted to bite her so badly, wanted to sink his teeth into her and draw on her sweet blood as he spilled himself into her body. He let out a roar of ecstasy as his cock spasmed, emptying himself into her, and brought his mouth down to her skin.

Stefan was close, so so close . . . he looked up at the expression of bliss on her face . . . and saw Damon over her shoulder, his eyes pure red, fixated on the tender skin of Elena's shoulder, and his fangs long and sharp. With a dexterity that would have been impressive even had he not been seconds away from the most explosive orgasm of his life, Stefan jerked his body up against Elena's, sliding his arms around her shoulders over her exposed skin, and offered his arm to his brother to bite.

Damon barely noticed when the flesh he encountered was not Elena's, but Stefan's. In the back of his mind, the small part of him that was still functioning out of the lust-fueled frenzy that currently clouded his vision was grateful to his brother. Maybe someday he could bite Elena and share that intimacy with her, but with Stefan (who could not be trusted around Elena's blood) right there, and without having warned her beforehand, he knew that now was not the time. Letting go of any reservations still remaining, he sunk his teeth into his brother's arm and let his blood flood his mouth while his orgasm carried him away.

Stefan gave one last gasp at the feel of Damon's fangs tearing into his arm before he, too, let himself give in to his release, secure in the knowledge that Elena was safe between them. His last vague thought before his mind blanked out was how much he loved them both.

They sat there in the middle of the bed, completely frozen in a tableau of passion for some ten minutes, just breathing in harsh pants and hearing each other's heartbeats. At some point, Damon realized that one of his arms was wrapped around Stefan's back, holding them together as Stefan's arms still held Elena fast. Damon's other arm remained around Elena's stomach, between her and Stefan. It was more intimate contact than he and his brother had engaged in since that fateful night eighty-five years ago. And it didn't bother him one bit.

Finally, Damon let out a long, shuddering sigh, stroking the hand around Stefan down his back and pulling his fangs out of Stefan's arm. Stefan slowly moved is arm from its place guarding Elena's flesh to wrap around her ribs above where Damon's arm held her, pressing a kiss to the uncovered skin. He moved back a fraction of an inch and groaned at the feel of his softening cock slipping out of Elena's body.

"That was . . ." Stefan's voice was weak and trembling.

"Yeah. Yeah it was." Damon's didn't sound much stronger. Still not minding the contact with Stefan, he tightened his arm around them and nuzzled Elena's hair. "Whaddya say, sexy girl?"

A moment of silence followed Damon's question, and Stefan sat back a little to look at her face. Her head drooped when he pulled away the support of his shoulder, and when he placed his hand under her chin and raised her head, he found her completely unconscious.

"Damon!" The alarm in his voice broke Damon out of his post-coital bliss. He moved to flip her around, but Stefan stopped him.

"Damon, no!" Damon was surprised at the strength his brother used to keep him still. "You can't just rip yourself out of her like that. You'll really hurt her."

Damon nodded in understanding and reached down to slowly, carefully slide his softening cock out of her, leaving Stefan to check on her.

"Elena?" Stefan felt himself almost on the brink of tears as he cradled her head in his, patting her cheek. "Elena, are you alright? Wake up, sweetheart, please wake up." Slowly, almost painfully, Elena's eyes fluttered open.

"Stefan? What . . . ahhh . . ." Her voice broke off in a little moan as Damon slipped fully out of her body.

Stefan's body went limp in relief, cradling her against his chest. She tried to push back a little so she could look at him, but her supernova of an orgasm had left her weak as a kitten and shaking uncontrollably. She tried again to push herself back, and this time Damon's hands reached out and did the work for her. She let herself be lifted over to lie between him and Stefan as they each stretched out to one side of her. Stefan reached down to pull the blanket over them from where it lay crumpled at the foot of the bed.

"Thank god you're alright," Damon murmured against her ear.

"Wha-at happened?" she asked breathlessly.

"You passed out, sweetheart," Stefan told her softly, bumping his nose against hers.

"I – I did?" She turned to look at Damon, who greeted her dazed eyes with a smirk.

"Yep, I guess we were just too much for your puny mortal body to handle." Elena was still shaking so much that she couldn't even muster the strength to slap his chest. Instead she looked at him in wonder.

"Damon." Her voice was soft, hesitant to bring up what she feared might cause him anxiety. "You're here."

"Uh, yes?" Damon didn't seem to know what she meant. "Yes, I am . . . ? I know you came hard, sweet thing, but if you think back to a few minutes ago, we DID just have some fucking amazing blackout sex, of which I was a large part . . . "

Stefan buried a smile in Elena's shoulder. He knew what she meant, but he knew that it wasn't his place to bring it to Damon's attention.

"No, Damon, I mean, you're here," Elena gestured between them. "In bed, with us."

Damon was silent for a long moment. He knew in the back of his mind it had registered that he really ought not to be comfortable being snuggled up with his brother on the other side of the mattress like this. But nevertheless, when he searched, the only things he felt were warmth, love, and the luxurious exhaustion that followed truly amazing sex.

He looked over at Stefan all but trying to disappear behind Elena's slight form. Making a note to tease his brother about being delusional if he thought he was skinny enough to hide behind Elena's little body, Damon only smiled. Not even a smirk this time, but a true smile.

"Yeah. I am." He settled down against the pillows a little more. "Right where I should be."

Elena smiled softly and kissed him, slow and lingeringly. When she pulled back, Stefan's eyes over her shoulder were full of warmth and love. In that moment, Damon felt a little part of himself heal that he didn't even know had needed to.

Suddenly Elena was pushing herself upright with a hand against his chest. He helped her, steadying her waist, as she clambered over him and started staggering towards the bathroom. Stefan zipped over to her to catch her hands.

"Where are you going, love?"

"Just the bathroom. I need to drink some water and get cleaned up. In case you haven't noticed, I'm making a puddle on your bed." Damon grinned at the opportunity to tease her.

"Well, I noticed. It's kinda hard to miss, actually . . ." Elena just stuck her tongue out at him.

"And whose fault is that, bub?" Cocking a hip at him, she turned and tottered off to the bathroom again, leaving the two brothers alone for the moment.

Stefan turned to look at his brother lying on his bed. His heart was fluttering with the hope that something may have truly shifted between them, but he still couldn't bring himself to approach the bed. He knew that trust and feelings of safety were fragile, and he was determined not to do anything that might jeopardize that for Damon. He was doubly surprised and gladdened when Damon reached out a hand to draw him back to the bed. Stefan approached on shaky feet and sat near Damon's hip.

For a long moment they just sat in silence, listening to the sound of running water in the bathroom. Then, Stefan felt Damon's hand come to rest on his shoulder. He turned to regard his brother who was wearing a contented expression.

"Are you really ok, Damon?" Stefan's voice was soft, as non-threatening as he could be. "You're really ok with this? With what we just did?" Damon looked into his eyes.

"I really am." His hand fell to rest against the blanket. "I didn't think I would be, but . . . yeah, I really am."

"And . . . do you think we can make . . . this . . . work?" Stefan gestured to the bed to indicate the new relationship between the two of them and Elena. Damon paused for a moment and then nodded, slowly and deliberately.

"Yes. I think we can make it work." He shrugged wryly. "It won't be easy, of course, but what is?" Stefan huffed in agreement. He looked up as Damon continued. "Stefan, I have no idea why this is the way it is, because god knows I never want to experiment with you sexually ever again, under any circumstances." Stefan nodded quickly in agreement. "But somehow, this . . . whatever it is, with Elena between us . . . it's working for me."

The words were a balm on Stefan's broken heart. He sympathized with Damon's confusion; he didn't understand Elena's capacity to heal them any better, but he was damned grateful for it.

They sat in silence for another minute until they heard the shower start up. Damon extended his hand to Stefan.

"C'mon little brother," he said with a smirk and a spark in his eye, "let's go help Elena find the soap."

Stefan shook his head in exasperation, but smiled and took Damon's hand. Together, they went to join Elena.