Dreamin' Demon Chapter 3, a vampire diaries fanfic

Author's note: Okay, I thought the last chapter for me was hell to write. No, THIS one was a pain! Not to mention it's longer than my previous two chapters (almost twice as long as Chapter Two). I only hope you readers are sticking around for the ride :) Again, I can't stress this enough - thank you all who have taken the time to review/send PMs/offer C&Cs for this story and my other VD fics. Forgive me for any OOCness that may occur.

Important note: I had just added this on my first chapter because I forgot to do so originally - this story takes place long after the events of the Return trilogy. I have no idea what the ghost writer for L.J. Smith has in mind for the upcoming new trilogy but for the sake of story-writing, Bonnie and Damon are indeed a couple.

"Dreamin' Demon"

Chapter Three

Damon tore through the goblin units like a man possessed. His cunning speed and callous strength made him almost impossible to catch, let alone pierce. With each monster brought down, two more took its place. From the corner of his eye he saw them emerge out of thin air and all of them were armed with crude spears. His goal of reaching Bonnie was strained due to the fact that the army appeared to be driving him away from the house.

Little Redbird, if you can hear me, I'm on my way, Damon sent out, unsure if she could even hear him, as he leaped into the skies and unleashed a tremendous wave of Power. It vibrated through the air and plowed through his enemies without mercy. Some of the unfortunate were agonizingly crushed by the intense blow. Still air-bound, Damon made a sweeping gesture and smiled perilously as many of the goblins were decapitated by the raw energy released. The McCullough's property quickly transformed into a bloodied battlefield but Damon could care less. His only concern was for Bonnie. For a fleeting moment, he thought it was strange as to why none of the nearby humans were reporting seeing a bunch of supernatural monstrosities fighting on their neighbor's yard. Was someone or something masking the incident from outsiders? Or were they simply too fearful to do anything?

Just another day in Fell's Church, Damon thought cynically.

As more goblins poured through their gateway, the vampire landed on the ground with characteristic poise and retrieved the nearest spear. With uncanny expertise, he spun around and drove the tip of the weapon through the nearest soldier's stomach. The creature unleashed a dreadful screech as Damon ran forward and pinned it against the side of the house. A spiderweb of cracks formed from the impact, scarring the once lovely home. The goblin squirmed in mid-air for a few seconds before it fell limp from the blood loss.

Damon turned around and saw that the rest of the army was hesitating for the first time since the battle started. They seemed to finally take notice of the high number of dead strewn about. With the gruesome display of their fallen, they could only stand there, dumbfounded.

"I will only ask you once," Damon said callously as he brushed aside flecks of green blood from his leather jacket. His fangs were visible against his curled lips and his Power radiated erratically that it threatened to destroy anyone who dared to set foot toward him. "What have you done with Bonnie?"

None of them said a word. All were petrified to make a single move.

Lifting his seething black eyes, more thunder and lightning crowded the dark, unstable skies.

One goblin's knees buckled and he finally sobbed, "M-Maaama! Mama Narcisa! HELP!"

The bedroom was bathed in darkness except for slivers of light from the streetlamp that peeked through the window blinds. In the middle of the room, Bonnie was vulnerable in her own bed as she struggled to escape her nightmares. Tormented by the sight of her friends as the living dead and trapped by elusive bounds, there was no way for her to escape. The Old Hag made sure of it.

Narcisa steepled her index fingers in front of her dry, cracked lips as she literally sat on her heels on top of the petite redhead's chest. She was dressed in a brown robe that covered her stocky, plump body except for her face, hands, and limp white hair that fell past her shoulders. Her face was leathery and unremarkable with liver spots, an old woman in her seventies or eighties who just happened to be a demon with magic to aid her.

"How lucky I am," Narcisa hissed as she tipped forward and pressed her knees forcefully against Bonnie's ribcage. Through her mental contact with Bonnie, she could hear the girl's anguish outcries inside her mind. She narrowed her slitted red eyes and grinned as Bonnie's physical body showed no signs of struggle. "Most fortunate indeed. I picked a powerful mortal with such delicious fear. It's been ages since I've been able to feed myself so well!"

She shifted in her seat and giggled some more as she experienced the strain Bonnie was feeling. Narcisa clapped for joy because she knew it was only a matter of time before the witch was completely paralyzed in both mind, body, and soul.

Humans called such a condition "sleep paralysis" but Narcisa knew that it was because of her kind, the Old Hags, that they were able to get away with paralyzing their victims by sitting on top of their chests as they were sleeping and making them all too aware of being trapped in their own bodies. Throughout the centuries, they sat and fed through the terrifying experiences the humans felt; completely powerless while their minds went into a frenzied panic; teetering between dreamland and reality, it was the absolute fear that made the demons stronger. If they were patient enough, they could even devour the ill-fated mortal's soul like their cousins the incubi and succubi (without the unnecessary intimacy), leaving nothing more than an empty husk. For the most part, the Old Hags found comfort in frightening their victims.

Not Narcisa. She wanted more.

Craning her neck, Narcisa listened to the sounds of the night and heard some commotion coming from outside. A storm made its way into the area and she could see an occasional flash of lightning and hear the rumbles of thunder now and again. Her babies, her personal army, were acting rather loudly. She heard frantic movements and the clash of weapons. Perhaps they were restless and they were sparring, or they felt the power she was drawing from of Bonnie and were hoping she was willing to share with them.

"My noisy little children," Narcisa admonished as she shifted her gaze back to the unfortunate redhead. "They sure enjoy fighting amongst themselves. How are you fairing, my dear? Can you hear me? Or are your nightmares still consuming you?"

A ghastly screech, followed by the cries of one of her children caused Narcisa to jerk her head in the direction of the nearby window.

Bonnie felt like she was wearing an invisible straight jacket.

Hunched over and submerged into the darkness once more, she couldn't move her arms and legs, and her body felt chilled to the bone. Her breathing was rigid and restricted. Her muscles ached and she wanted to fall asleep, to allow her body rest, but her stubborn nature refused to let her give in. Her mind told her to stay awake and remain alert. Tears were no longer running as freely as they used to. She did enough crying in a lifetime.

A nightmare… It was all a nightmare… Who was doing this to her? Why? Why her?

Little Redbird…

She almost choked as a bubble of laughter rose from her throat. Great, she was hearing things now. It sounded like Damon but it couldn't be him, she told herself through half-closed eyelids. The Damon she saw abandoned her at the mercy of the undead.

… if you can hear me…

That voice again, but this time it sounded much stronger. It sounded so very close.

Willing what strength she had to offer, Bonnie straightened her back and she thought wildly, Is this it, then? The last voice I'll hear is Damon's before I…

She felt something loom over her head but of course she couldn't see anything even if she tried.

"Damon?" Her voice was so weak that she could barely hear herself. She cleared her throat and called out to him again, this time deciding to use her rapport. What else did she have to lose besides, well, practically everything? Damon? Is this really you?

After she finished those thoughts, the violence of her fears slipped away as she saw, for a brief second, the sight of Damon outside of her home. His lean black form was caught in mid-flight, disposing of little green beasts armed with spears with what looked like his display of Power. The sheer looks horror on their faces was irrefutable, especially on the ones in the line of fire. Damon could be quite the unfeeling monster, a statement too true for many of Bonnie's friends. Bonnie knew better, though. She'd always known there was more to him then even he cared to admit.

Then the image evaporated to Bonnie's horror. The only source of light, her beloved Damon, had been snatched away. On the other hand, the fact that she saw him fighting for her created a second wind.

With excitement filling every fiber of her being, she impatiently called out to him. She waited for his response but even when she didn't hear anything further, she knew she felt the faint but undeniable connection had been re-established. It felt like he was just a few feet away, his aura strong and impenetrable. No phony-baloney copycat could replace the real him.

Well, except for the time Shinichi manipulated him and used him to get Elena… But that didn't count! It was technically him but at the same time it wasn't…

Bonnie vehemently shook her head. Stop it, stop it, stop it, she chided herself. Damon's here, he loves you, and he's going to get you out of here!

After those thoughts went through her mind, a familiar voice spoke out loud to her: "You can't have Damon help you until you help yourself, Bonnie."

The girl screamed and toppled over, having landed on her side, red hair spilling in front of her face. She felt her heart beat like a jack hammer about to break through her ribs. It was as if that loud, boisterous voice replaced her own thoughts. It must have been the thing she felt hovering over her earlier, but now it was inside of her. She couldn't help but think that the voice sounded awfully familiar.

"The monster may have paralyzed your body but a part of you is preventing your escape as well."

With much difficulty, she managed to sit up, her arms once again feeling the restraints. Bonnie desperately searched for the source of the voice, hoping she hadn't truly gone insane. Blowing away bits of her hair that fell against the corners of her mouth, she responded, "I am? I mean, a part of me is…?"

"There's no doubt you are easily frightened. Time and time again, however, you have shown true courage and helped your loved ones during their times of need. You have great powers and untapped potential just waiting to be unleashed."

She wanted to learn more about her supposed potential when she recalled what the voice said about her body. "Wait a sec. What exactly did you say was paralyzing me?"

"A monster."

"A WHAT! You're telling me a monster is the cause of all this? Like the ones Damon's fighting right now? How is that possible if I'm right here?"

"A monster," the voice repeated, followed with a strained laugh. "You saw monsters earlier. Remember?"

Sluggish footsteps rebounded through the darkness. Turning around in her seat, Bonnie's skin turned as white as a ghost as she saw zombie Elena and zombie Meredith making their way to her, guided by an unseen light. Their skeletal arms were stretched out in front as their maggot ridden bodies from the grave were all too visible even from the great distance between them and her.

Frozen in her spot, unable to utter a cry, Bonnie couldn't help but think about how much she hated movies that dealt with zombies She'd only seen them with her last boyfriend, Raymond, who was a horror movie fanatic. Half of the time her face was buried against his shoulder whenever the walking dead appeared on screen or when the actors screamed for whatever reason. Bonnie remembered, through hearing the movie's dialogue, about how zombies only had one purpose: to consume the flesh of the living. It was all they did. They thought about nothing else but eating. Even when they were done eating, they would go and find something else that was alive to eat. Kill, eat, kill, eat - it was predictable but alarming every time.

The same thing over and over again, she thought as she took in an unsteady breath, almost like she'd forgotten all about the two monsters making their way toward her. It's the same old routine… but what does it have to do with me…?

"The only person holding you back is yourself."

"I'm holding myself back," Bonnie repeated in a trance-like state. "I'm… I'm…"

The noises stopped. She came out of her stupor and found nothing. Once again she was in the dark.

"Umm… Hello?"

"You have to wake up, Bonnie."

"Who are you?" Bonnie finally asked anxiously. "Are you saying this is not real at all? It's like a dream? It has to be a dream because this is just too much! A monster is paralyzing my body, my friends coming after me from beyond the grave even though they're alive thank you very much… I don't understand!"

Silence. Bonnie gritted her teeth and used every ounce of her will power to not start weeping. She couldn't stand the mind games anymore. As she stiffly positioned herself to stretch her legs out, she sighed miserably.

"Who are you?" she asked again, this time with a twinge of sadness. "What do you want with me?"

"I'm You."

She decided to go along with it because there was nothing else she could do at this point. "Okay, fine, you're me. So I'm talking to myself here? Am I going nuts?"

"I'm a possibility to come. I'm your hidden potential, a layer yet to be revealed."

Oh boy. Well, Bonnie thought, at least it's not a zombie or someone trying to kill me for once. I hope.

"In order for the demon to completely possess your body, she needs full control over your mind, body, and soul. There's no doubt she has you trapped in your own bed."

"She's in my room?" Bonnie shuddered. Some time during the night, this monster came into her room, without her realizing it, and decided to paralyze her and cause havoc inside her own head. That was just great. "No matter how hard I try, I can't wake up. My body refuses to listen to me."

"Which brings us to the mind and soul part. The monster is distracted and her hold on you has weakened. She'll be back soon enough."

Distracted?

… I'm on my way.

Damon! That wonderful, wonderful god-like man and his strength. He was nearby, their rapport flourishing once more, because he was right outside her home. The monster must have sensed him and that's how she was able to at least hear him. It - She- Whatever couldn't concentrate on Bonnie if they're going after Damon.

"Your mind's clouded with fear," the voice stated gravely. "So much fear that you can't hope to reach into your soul and banish the darkness."

Bonnie bit her lower lip as she squeezed her hands into tight fists. "You mean, Damon can't help me?"

"He can help but you have to focus on not being so afraid. You've shown your friends what you could do for them in the past. Your strength is without doubt as well as your compassionate nature.

Bonnie's hands unclenched and she slowly closed her eyes. After a silent count of three, she opened her eyes and discovered her exact twin squatting in front of her. She was bathed in a gentle light that didn't hurt Bonnie's sight. She was clad in the same nightgown attire that she was wearing, same strawberry colored hair, but her face - no, it was her eyes - looked older, much more serious. Those brown eyes were filled with wisdom far beyond her years, like they've seen hundreds of lifetimes gone by. Bonnie wasn't scared, only curious, as her double rested her hands on her shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze. Her hands were warm and comforting and as they pulled away, Bonnie felt her muscles loosen.

"My arms…" She carefully bent her legs and she gasped, "I can move again!"

She shook her arms weakly as her twin took a seat on the ground in front of her. She propped her chin her hands as she inclined her head slightly, trying to show sympathy.

"Same old routine, Bonnie. Like those zombies in those movies? They do the same thing. Same thing, same thing…"

"It's the same old routine," Bonnie added thoughtfully. Then she thought about her dearly beloved friends: protective and iron-willed Elena; graceful and confident Meredith; fiercely loyal and kind-hearted Matt; noble and humble Stefan; arrogant and charming Damon…

She was always relying on her friends. Naturally she loved them to death and would do anything for them. Even with her numerous psychic powers, she was often too afraid of what would happen if she performed them because she was always unsure of herself. So she did whatever she could without having to use her magic. Sometimes her ploy worked and sometimes she got hurt, but she wouldn't care as long as her friends remained safe. Her friends usually had to persuade her to use her magic. There were only a handful of times where she willingly used her powers, but even then she was hesitant. She remembered the time she was in the Dark Dimension, when Shinichi was about to have her thrown out the window because he thought she was lying to him about the Star Ball. She'd fought her hardest without her magic, even if the kitsune's magic outclassed hers, she could have used something against him.

She often hesitated… Always scared…

It's the same old routine…

Bonnie paused. Like the zombies, I'm mindlessly doing the same thing over and over again. I'm holding myself back because I'm afraid.

She was on her feet in an instant and her twin joined her at her side. It was time to listen to herself and bring forth light. She couldn't do it alone, though. She needed strength from Damon and she needed it fast. Pushing aside any lingering doubts she normally would have had reserved in spades, she placed the palms of her hands side by side before her and focused.

Her twin rested a hand on the side of her arm and said, "Banish the darkness."

Damon faced the remains of the shattered goblin army and he ignored the blubbers for their "mother." He went on the offense once again and using another spare weapon, he forged ahead. Gripping the pole-arm, he swung his blade and sliced a row of soldiers half. With speed that could outmatch the wild winds of Mother Nature's fury, he finished off anyone else who stood in his way. It look little effort this time to temporarily end the battle.

As he tossed his weapon aside, a shock of Power bolted through his mind: a warning. A dark plume was starting to form in the middle of the yard, just a stone's throw away. As usual, more goblins were appearing through the gateway but before Damon could prepare himself for what was to come, he heard Bonnie's sweet voice speak to him through the long abandoned rapport.

Please hang on, Damon! I'm bringing you to me!

A curtain of white light closed between him and the army and when it drew open, he found himself standing in a dark void. Even with his sharp eyesight, he saw nothing but darkness. No earth, no sky, just absolute nothing. He concentrated on maintaining equilibrium before he searched for any sign of life. It took mere seconds to detect the familiar aura, a fluttering wave of Power whose owner he could not have mistaken for anyone else. As he turned, he found Bonnie McCullough, surrounded by a serene pale light. Her hair and the hem of her nightgown flowed gracefully from a mysterious updraft. Her hands were cupped together like she wanted to catch the first snowflake of winter and her eyes were closed tight.

"Is it really you?" she asked feebly, refusing to look at him. She was visibly trembling and Damon couldn't help but wonder if she thought she would have brought anyone else to this strange world.

"Look at you, my bedraggled Little Bird," he remarked distantly. He kept his guard up in case it was a trick. But when Bonnie fluttered her eyelids open, she saw him for the first time and her face fell into utter shock. They stood apart, each analyzing the other, wondering if this was real. He reached out to her with his mind and upon contact he discovered much suffering and apprehension. Yet in front of all of this he heard the mantra, "Push aside your fears and banish the darkness" over and over again.

It was Bonnie who closed the distance. She stumbled at first, nervously laughing at her own clumsiness, then threw her arms around him. She buried her face into his chest and clung to him like a koala. There were no tears but her entire body quivered and Damon embraced her tiny form and simply held her.

I'm sorry I let this happen to you, he apologized using their rapport and feeling much relief that they were finally together.

Her face still concealed in his shirt, Bonnie replied, I'm sorry I'm always such a damsel-in-distress... but I've figured out a way to wake myself up. I have to banish the darkness that's keeping me here. I need your help. I need to borrow your strength.

Wake up? Damon decided to hold off the questions for later. My strength is yours to keep, Red Songbird. Tell me: how were you able to take me away from the fight?

Bonnie blushed as she raised herself on tip toes to meet his inquisitive stare. I just concentrated. I wasn't scared and I knew I could do it. I didn't hold myself back. I don't know how long I can keep us like this, though.

Damon caressed the side of her face and flashed his infamous bright smile. Carefully keeping her guarded in his arms, he dipped his head and his lips met hers. Their kiss quickly melted into a need filled with security desperate passion. Alas the moment couldn't be contained for long.

They needed to escape.