When Bonnie Sheila Bennett died, really and truly died, it was unexpected.
Between stopping hellfire from burning through Mystic Falls, breaking the link between herself and Elena, the Bennett witch had had one helluva night. So it came as no surprise that when she finally made it back home, sleep was the only thing on her mind. After drawing herself a bath to soothe her aching body, Bonnie was ready to put the entire day behind her.
Her head had barely hit the pillow before she slipped away into dreamland….and found herself sitting on a porch swing overlooking a field of what Bonnie guessed was lavender.
"Hello child." The voice was one that always brought comfort to Bonnie. Her head snapped to the left to see her grandmother. Dressed in a peasant shirt and a loose flowy skirt, while her hair was dancing in the slight breeze, Sheila Bennett radiated peace and calm. She opened her arms and engulfed Bonnie in a tight hug. Tears welled in Bonnie's eyes, no matter how much time passed, she didn't think she'd ever get used to the fact that her Grams was dead. Towards the end of his life her father had tried to make up for his constant absence, and her mother showing up to help her deal with her grief over losing Enzo was touching, but her grandmother had been her rock.
"Do you have any idea how proud of you I am?" Sheila pulled back to cup Bonnies face lovingly. "Because I am. I am so very proud of you. You have grown into such a beautiful, compassionate, and strong woman, and I am so glad I get to call myself your grandmother." Bonnie blushed and lowered her eyes. But Sheila wouldn't be deterred. "You have far exceeded all of our expectations as a Bennett, even though I know I didn't do you any favors by keeping you in the dark."
Bonnie started to protest, but was cut off, "hush child, let me say this. I should have to you about your heritage, and I should have made sure you were learning magic the right way. Maybe if I had prepared you for what could happen, we wouldn't be here right now."
"Grams, its okay, we won." Bonnie cut in, "The gate to hell is closed, the hellfire is contained, I even figured out how to undo the spell that linked me and Elena." At this, her grandmother's face fell and Bonnie regarded her with confusion. "That is good, right?"
"Baby, you didn't break the link."
"What are you talking about? Elena is awake, I know she is. I spoke to her, I SAW her reunite with Damon and Jeremy. I'd understand if it were only Jeremy, because of his ability to see ghosts, but Damon is a vampire, he doesn't have that ability. She's not dead." Bonnie argued.
"I'm not saying she's dead, she's awake and has the rest of her life ahead of her. I'm saying the reason she's up is not because you broke the link." Grams explained gently.
Bonnie shot up off the swing, "So what are you saying? Because we were told the only way she'd wake up is if I were dead, and I'm not dead."
"Child…" Her grandmother got up from the swing and tried to take Bonnie's hand, but she snatched her hand back and snapped, "I've become kind of an expert on dying, so I think I'd know if I died." Bonnie paced the length of the porch going over everything in her mind.
"Bonnie…"
"NO!" Bonnie yelled. "No! This is not happening, I did everything right this time. I drew from the entire Bennett line to stop the hellfire. I didn't even feel that tired when it was all said and done, all I had was a damn nosebleed."
Sheila's heart broke watching her granddaughter break down. While the elder witch knew there was a solution to this predicament, it would still require Bonnie to accept it. Bonnie collapsed to her knees, crying, "I can't….not again…IT'S NOT FAIR!" The last part was screamed to the sky.
Sheila gathered her sobbing granddaughter in her arms and rocked her back and forth. Neither woman knew how long they stayed locked in each other's embrace. Eventually Bonnie cried herself out and just lay limply in her grandmothers arms. Sheila thought Bonnie had fallen asleep when the girl started chuckling, first softly then progressing to full maniacal laughter.
"What are you laughing at, child?" This was a response Sheila hadn't been prepared for. Bonnie collected herself before saying breathlessly "I guess I'm more like you than I thought." At Sheila's questioning face, Bonnie elaborated, "Both of us passing in our sleep." Her grandmother gave a little hum before resuming rocking back and forth.
For a while, neither spoke, each caught up in their own thoughts. Bonnie finally pulled away to face her grandmother, "So what happens now? Is this why you're here? To escort me to-" She waved her hand airily, "wherever we go now that I destroyed the Other side, and there aren't any more prison worlds to fling me into." At this, Bonnie side-eyed her grandmother, "there aren't any more prison worlds, right?"
Sheila let out an inelegant snort, "No, at least none that I had a part in making. There may have been some, but with the Gemini wiped out, that knowledge died with them."
"Thank God." Bonnie relaxed a bit.
"But you do have a choice to make." Sheila took both of Bonnie's hands in hers. "You deserved so much more in your short time here on this earth. You should have had the chance to grow old, get married, and make some great grandbabies for me to visit. But you never got that chance, partly due to my shortsightedness. So we want to give you another chance."
Bonnie yanked her hands back, "I thought you said there were no more prison worlds? I'm not risking getting stuck somewhere else just to-" Bonnie broke off, "wait, who's we?"
"Hello Bonnie." Bonnie turned around to see Emily Bennett standing" next to the porch swing.
"Emily?" The witch who once possessed her body just smiled and slid her eyes to the right. Bonnie followed her gaze, where once there had been an empty expansive field, now was dotted with women of all ages. Bonnie recognized Qestsiyah as well as her cousin Lucy.
"Okay, I'm guessing you're all Bennett witches, but what is going on?" Bonnie hated feeling like she was the last one in the know. One woman in particular stepped forward, in her hands was a very innately carved wooden box. Sheila moved to aid her climb up the last few steps. Once she was settled into the swing, she placed the box next to her. Sheila gestured for Bonnie to come closer. "Bonnie, this is my great grandmother Ms. Pearlie Mae." Bonnie was unsure of how to address the woman, so she stuck to the manners that grams had drilled into her from birth. "Nice to meet you ma'am."
At that, the woman let out a joyous laugh, and reached out to pat Bonnie's cheek. "None of that, my child, we're all family here. I'm simply grand-mere." She tugged Bonnie down to sit next to her on the swing, keeping the wooden box between them. "You haven't had the easiest time here, have you baby?"
Bonnie almost snorted, that was an understatement.
There was a gleam in Pearlie Mae's eyes as she leaned over, "How would you like another chance?"
"Another chance? What, like, reincarnation?" Bonnie's mind raced with possibilities. Just how powerful was her line if they could manipulate nature like that?
Although….. if were possible, she could come back as the next Beyonce! Bonnie shook her head to forcibly clear her thoughts, silently admonishing herself, this was no time for fantasies.
Pearlie Mae shook her head. "No not reincarnation. I'm talking about a new life…..in a new world." At Bonnie's skeptical look, the elder witch picked up the wooden box. "Our bloodline is known for making many magical objects, this is one of them. When I started building this, I was looking for a way to get my family to safety." She gazed at the box wistfully while running her fingers over the polished wood. "I never got a chance to finish it, though. When they came for me, I gave it to my eldest to complete it. I wanted them to find a world that would treat them….us…. kinder. Understandably staying alive and providing for the family came first, so it was lost to time."
"Until my mother found it" Lucy spoke up. "Just chilling in some random wiccan store. They never could get it open, so they kept it as a decorative piece. I walked in, and it just sang to me, know what I mean?" Bonnie nodded. "How much were they selling it for?" She asked curiously. Lucy rolled her eyes, "When they saw that my mother was interested in buying it, all of a sudden it was so special to them, and they kept increasing the price. I walked in one night and took it." Lucy bristled at the looks she received from a few witches. "What? It's ours, it belongs to the Bennett line, I was just bringing it back to where it belonged!"
"Okay, but this isn't the 'real world'" Bonnie stressed the last two words. "So how'd you get it over here?"
"I made it, it responds to my call." Pearlie Mae answered simply. "Never has the Bennett line been so decimated that I felt compelled to use it. We recognize that we put an enormous amount of pressure on you to toe the Bennett witch line, and you've far exceeded our expectations. But that pressure will not lessen, controlling hellfire is not something most witches are capable of. Once what happens here is known, people will come to test you. The fact that you are now officially the last Bennett that stems from this particular line makes you and everyone you love a target. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life constantly on guard? There is so much more to life than being a witch and setting aside your happiness for others. We've watched you for years put everyone's feelings and safety above your own. Are your shoulders not tired from all that strain?"
Here she took a deep breath, "This line was always destined to end, honey. It was foretold by many a seer, we just didn't know when. It was decided by all of us that the time would be now. There are other Bennetts, yes, but they are mostly mundanes living ordinary lives. Whatever magical abilities they possess is not enough to register, they will be free to live as they have always done."
"What's the catch?" Bonnie asked warily. "Because if there's one thing that I know, is that magic requires a balance. You can't do this without some major blowback." Bonnie had been let down by her ancestors before, no way would she just outright agree without know all the details. Pearlie Mae nodded in approval, "Smart of you not immediately agree." She paused to gather her thoughts.
Sheila stepped forward ,"Two things. One, we are powerful yes, but creating a whole new world, and having it function like the world you left behind is extremely difficult. The Gemini were the experts on that particular ability, and still needed help from the Bennetts as well a celestial event to create theirs. But that was just a shell of a world. Nothing aged, death was meaningless, it really was just an elaborate holding cell."
Bonnie was confused, "Okay so it's not reincarnation, it's not another witch made world. What, am I just gonna switch places with another me in a parallel universe?" She had meant it as a joke, but from the looks on everybody's face, she had guessed right.
"No!" I'm not gonna hijack some other Bonnie, just so you can ease your guilty conscious! Grams, how can you even suggest that?" Bonnie was horrified at the thought.
"She's dying." Qetsiyah snapped. Bonnie side-eyed the other woman, knowing her penchant for being dramatic and telling half-truths.
"Don't believe me, huh?" She briefly stared out in the open field nodding her head slowly, "Yeah, I guess I had that coming. Whatever, believe me or don't, but your counterpart is a piece of work. I mean, I thought I held the monopoly on crazy things people did for love." Qetsiyah started giggling to herself.
'Okay, crazy witch is still crazy' Bonnie thought to herself before redirecting her attention back to her grandmother. "I don't understand, if she's that close to dying, why not intervene and save her? Is it because she's in a different universe?"
"That's the second thing, the world she's in has no magic. You won't be a Bennett Witch, you'll be just Bonnie again." Her grandmother revealed.
The statement was like a body blow. Bonnie had just gotten to the point where her magic didn't overwhelm her, she was finally starting to become comfortable with it, and now they want to take it away again?
But what was the alternative? She was dead. There was no more Other Side, no more Prison Worlds to get tossed into. It seemed as if she was finally out of second chances. Was she really ready to throw in the towel?
Snippets of her life prior to vampires arriving to town flashed before her eyes. Cheerleading and slumber parties with Caroline and Elena. Spending summers lifeguarding with Matt. Listening to old Motown records with her father back before he left every week. Gardening with her grandmother, while only half listening to her inebriated rambling. Bonnie realized she wanted more of that life. She wanted to only worry about being late for work, instead of being too late with a spell. She wanted dark circles under her eyes due to staying out all night clubbing, not staying up all night reading grimoires because another big bad waltzed into town. She wanted to fall in love, get married, and possibly have a kid or two. Lastly, she wanted to grow old, she wanted to look in the mirror and be horrified by the gray hair that seemed to have popped up overnight.
Opening her eyes, she looked at her grandmother and said her last words as Bonnie Sheila Bennett. "Yes."
When Bonnie Elise Bennett-Hopkins died, it wasn't exactly a shock to anyone.
Perhaps it was because for the last week, her health had been steadily declining. The doctors couldn't figure it out, while the nurses whispered amongst themselves that the poor girl was simply giving up. There wasn't a person in Mystic Falls who was unaware of the circumstances that may have led to the young womans accident.
Currently her grandmother was sitting vigil next to her bed. Sheila Bennett-Brand had been to the hospital every day just to spend time with her granddaughter. People passing by could hear her talking softly, sometimes singing, but always talking. When asked why she simply answered, "she needs to hear the voices of those that love her. It will be the light to guide her back to us." Although Sheila was known around town for being a bit kooky, no one would ever deny that she loved her granddaughter. Sometimes she brought in homemade salves and would be seen massaging the concoctions onto Bonnie's non-responding arms and legs.
On the fateful day, Sheila had been in her usual spot when the machines suddenly started going crazy before emitting that noise that she had been dreading. Doctor Logan Fell and a few nurses rushed in, pushing her towards the back of the room. She stood in the corner silently praying to whoever would listen to spare her grandbaby. But it seemed like nobody was listening because, the doctor eventually put a halt to all lifesaving procedures.
Sheila collapsed in a heap, her grandbaby was gone. She could vaguely hear the doctor call time of death. All she could focus on was the fact that she would never hear her granddaughters laugh, or see her smile ever again. Sheila wanted to lay down next to Bonnie and never wake up.
Logan walked over to try and console the distraught woman. He knew Sheila had had issues with her heart in the past, and was worried about her having a heart attack. He didn't need to lose two members of a family in one day.
He had just reached out to help her up when the lights flickered once, twice, then went out completely. There was a rumble of thunder before all the lights came on again. The heart monitor that had yet to be disconnected from Bonnie's body started beeping erratically. "Can someone please disconnect that?" He tossed over his shoulder, not wanting to step away from Sheila. Mystic Falls was a small town, and he'd known her all his life.
The sudden silence that came from the disconnecting of the heart monitor seemed to be louder than the monitor itself. Until a gasping breath came from the bed. Everyone in the room froze for a second before jumping into action.
"Is there a heartbeat?"
"Reattach the monitor!"
"Get that crash cart out the way."
"I have a pulse!"
Right as the doctor was leaning over to check if Bonnies pupils would respond to light, her eyes shot open and she gasped again.
"Oh my God." One of the nurses made the sign of the cross.
"Bonnie can you hear me?" Logan asked. Bonnie continued to take deeps gasping breaths as if she had just run a marathon. He reached a hand out to try and get her to calm down, but that just seemed to aggravate her more. She batted his hand away and tried to scramble out of his reach, but spending a month in a coma had weakened her muscles considerably.
"Bonnie, I need you to calm down. You've been in a coma for the past month, I don't want you wearing yourself out." Logan tried to soothe her, but the words seemed to fall on deaf ears as she continued to struggle, all the while gasping for breath.
"She's going to hyperventilate, give me a sedative." After the sedative started to take effect, and Bonnie had seemingly nodded off the staff tried to figure out what exactly happened. Sheila moved from her place in the corner to creep closer to the bed. "Thank you Jesus for sparing my Bonnie." She reached out to smooth a lock of Bonnies hair when her eyes popped back open. It took a bit for her to focus, but when she did, she gave a tiny smile and breathed out "I missed you Grams" before fully succumbing to sleep.
"Me too baby." Sheila choked out before bursting into tears.
A/N: This came about because of a post I read by kingcobrakai1972, which basically states that it seems as if canon Bonnie and Kai were never meant to be together, but are inexplicably drawn together. And how in another life, they'd probably (most definitely) be drawn together again. I happened to be doing a rewatch of Eureka at the time. If you've never seen it, some of the main cast gets sent back to the 50's,they make it back to the present, but there are changes. Which put a little plot bunny in my head. What would Bonnie's life be like if she wasn't a witch? How would her relationships change? And would Kai and her have a fighting chance?