A/N: I apologize for the delay, I haven't felt inspired to write this at all, but I didn't want to keep you guys hanging. There's a very brief Klonnie moment, but it doesn't last long. This isn't my favorite chapter, but I hope you guys enjoy it anyway!
Disclaimer: These characters are the creative property of LJ Smith and The CW. I am not profiting in any way from their use. The only thing I own is my plot.
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CHAPTER THREE
The view from the bleachers wasn't that great, but Caroline had insisted that Bonnie stay after school while she was at cheerleading practice so she wouldn't bump into Kol without backup. So here Bonnie sat, feeling both bored silly at sitting around with nothing much to do, and awkward, since Elena had decided to stay as well.
Neither girl really knew what to say to the other. Even though Elena had stepped up for Bonnie earlier when Kol had approached her, there were still a lot of things they needed to discuss, and Bonnie didn't know how to bring any of them up, or even if she was really ready to talk things out. Yes, Elena was one of her two closest friends, and the doppelganger hadn't meant to be the cause of so much destruction in Bonnie's life, but unfortunately, she was, and Bonnie was uncertain how to move forward with their friendship.
They sat there in an uncomfortable silence, staring down at the practice field, where Caroline was drilling the cheerleading squad. At one time, a couple of years back, both Bonnie and Elena had been on the squad with their friend. But once Elena's parents died, and the Salvatores had come into their lives, both had become so busy they no longer were willing to make the time to cheer, unlike Caroline. Neither of them felt like they had much to cheer about anymore, even though Caroline tried to convince them cheering would distract them from their other woes.
Bonnie let her mind wander back to her encounter with Kol. What had the handsome Original meant when he'd said he had plans for her? Had he really thought she'd just abandon her friends and join forces with him? The only things she really knew about him were that he'd broken Matt's hand during the Mikaelson's ball, that he was just as brash as his siblings, maybe moreso, and that Damon had snapped his neck.
The single thought about Damon burned her good mood. It was too bad that Kol hadn't snapped D-
"So..."
Bonnie almost jumped when Elena broke the stillness. She'd been lost in her dark thoughts, and she'd briefly forgotten the girl was sitting to her right.
"So..." she answered, unsure what Elena wanted to say. It was better to let Elena lead, since she still wasn't quite ready to bring up certain things.
"So, how are things going with Abby?" Elena asked, glancing up to meet Bonnie's eyes.
Bonnie looked away. She could hear the effort in Elena's words, she knew her friend truly wanted to know, but Bonnie wasn't ready to discuss her mother yet. However, she knew that avoiding Elena's question would only bring more questions, or more apologies, or both, and she didn't want that. Better to answer now than to fend off an endless string of apologies.
"Slowly," she answered after a minute, keeping her eyes glued to the cheerleaders, who were being led through a routine by her blonde friend. "Though at this point, I think she's a bit more comfortable with the idea of living forever than I am."
"I'm-" A loud ringing cut Elena off, and the girl looked at her phone. "I'm sorry, Bon, I have to take this."
Bonnie nodded, suppressing a sigh of relief as Elena stood up and walked down and off the bleachers. Bonnie watched as the other girl disappeared around the end of the metal seats. Alone with her thoughts again, she couldn't keep her mind from returning to Kol and his deep, dark eyes. What did he want with her? And why? What was wrong with the Originals, trying to convince someone who didn't like them to work with them? Surely there were dozens of witches out there who would be willing to work with them. Greta and her family, Maddox, they couldn't be the only ones. Why come after the unwilling one?
She didn't know what possessed her to stand up, but a minute later, she'd climbed down off the bleachers. She glanced out at the field, where Caroline was too focused on practice to pay attention. She looked around for Elena, but she didn't see her anywhere. With a little nod to herself, she hurried away from the field.
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She didn't know what she was doing here. She had to be crazy, she knew it, she could admit that much. It was madness, what she was planning. No sensible person would be here, at the home of her enemies, confronting them on their home turf. Taking a deep gulp of air, she opened her door and stepped out of her car before she could talk herself out of this. She studied the building in front of her as she walked up to what she assumed was the front door.
The mansion was huge, probably the largest estate in the area of Mystic Falls, with more than enough room to house half a dozen original vampires. Luckily for her, there were only half that many, but it was still more than she wanted to face.
Which was exactly why this was a bad idea. She lifted her hand to ring the doorbell and stopped, her finger hovering over the button. This was a bad idea. Yes, she wanted answers, but did she really think she'd get anything resembling the truth from any of the Originals? Or, maybe it was the truth that scared her.
Her finger remained poised above the buzzer, her muscles locked in a war with her mind. She should just turn around and leave, no harm no foul. But still, she didn't move, her internal battle leaving her immobilized.
The door in front of her opened, and she looked up, startled. She'd forgotten that the vampires had such finely tuned hearing that they had probably heard her the moment she'd pulled into the driveway.
"Bonnie Bennett," Klaus greeted. He was surprised to find the young witch at his door, though not disappointed. He enjoyed when his antagonists came knocking, it always created an interesting diversion from an otherwise boring day. "What a pleasant surprise."
Bonnie hadn't expected the pleasantries. She got right to the reason she was there. "Is Kol here?"
"No," Klaus answered, as surprised by the question as he'd been to see the Bennett girl at his home. She was looking for his deviant of a brother? Odd. "He's gone out." Klaus studied Bonnie's face, watching in amusement at the irritation warring with relief on her face. He'd known that Kol had wanted to recruit her to Team Original, but surely she wasn't ready to sign on already. "Why might you be looking for my younger brother?"
"You need to keep him on a shorter leash," Bonnie answered, unwilling to share his brother's apparent interest in her with him. "He threatened to kill Elena earlier."
"Did he now?" Klaus asked, his voice deceptively quiet, but Bonnie could hear the anger in his soft words. She took a nervous step back as Klaus's jaw clenched. She'd just upset him, and an upset Original was an unpredictable Original. She mentally prepared herself for his next move, but she wasn't expecting the reaction she got. "I can assure you, Bonnie, that will never happen again."
Bonnie swallowed and nodded, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear as she turned. She jumped back a foot, startled to find Klaus standing in front of her again. Damn these Originals, she thought, they seemed to like doing that to her.
"You are more than welcome to come inside," Klaus invited, "and wait for Kol, if you wish." He watched as a multitude of emotions flickered across her face, fear, curiosity, temptation, more fear. He realized, in that moment, just how pretty she was with her guard momentarily down, but then determination returned to her eyes, and he shook his head, ridding it of any thoughts of impropriety. This girl wasn't simply indifferent to him, she hated him, she'd tried to kill him, she was dangerous to him. He couldn't go there, and after the disaster that had been him chasing recklessly after her friend, he wasn't in any hurry to chase after any other eighteen year old girls any time soon.
What Bonnie heard was, come into my parlor, said the spider to the fly. What she saw in his deep blue eyes scared her more than his words, however.
"No, thank you," she blurted out, hightailing it around him and heading for her car. She was relieved that he didn't chase her down. She climbed in and drove away.
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Kol had barely stepped foot inside Casa Mikaelson before he was slammed to the wall, a death grip on his throat, his brother's furious face mere inches from his.
"Niklaus," Kol greeted with a smirk. He had a good idea what the hybrid was upset about, though he wasn't sure how he knew about the incident. He didn't really care, however. They all had fairly decent sources of information, even if Kol hadn't made contact with any of his in a hundred years.
"You will never threaten the doppelganger's life again," Klaus said, his eyes glowing yellow in anger. He squeezed his brother's throat and released him.
Kol, twisting his neck from side to side to work out the kinks from Klaus's death grip, laughed and shoved his older brother away from him. He straightened his shirt as Klaus regrouped. He gave his brother a moment to calm down before speaking.
"I wouldn't have threatened her in the first place if she'd have stayed out of my way," Kol informed his sibling. "The idiot girl stepped between me and my prey." He had no use for the Gilbert girl, just as he'd had no use for the previous doppelganger, or the first of the Petrova line. His tastes in women had always run different from his brothers', and all of the Petrovas had been far too willing and easily won for his tastes.
"And what prey might that be?" Klaus asked, reigning in his fury. Bonnie had left some details out of her story, but nevertheless, his brother had threatened the life of his hybrid-making blood source, and he couldn't allow that.
"The Bennett witch, of course," Kol answered, smirking as if he thought the answer should have been completely obvious.
Klaus snickered. "Of course." It explained a little bit more why Bonnie had stopped. Elena must have cut short whatever interaction his brother was having with the little witch, and she'd been curious to find out more. "So what exactly happened?"
Kol explained the events earlier in the day.
"And you say she looked intrigued?" Klaus said after Kol had finished speaking.
Kol shrugged. "Intrigued, apprehensive, same difference, right?"
Klaus lifted an eyebrow, debating on whether or not to tell Kol that the girl had stopped to see him. He was half tempted to say nothing, but another part of him just wanted to stir the pot a bit.
"She came here, you know," Klaus said, carefully watching his brother's reaction. "Earlier."
"Looking for me?" Kol asked, a small smile flickering to his lips.
Klaus noticed that his brother wasn't certain about it, but that he sounded hopeful. Klaus felt a surge of irritation at his brother's excitement, though he wasn't sure why. "She probably came here to set you on fire."
"Too late for that," Kol answered, lifting his eyebrows suggestively. He'd been on fire for the Bennett witch since the moment she singed his fingers at the Grille. She was pretty and sassy, and from all he knew about her, not afraid of facing off with an Original or two. He liked that in a woman. Add to that fact she was a witch, and one with much potential, and she was like catnip for him.
It didn't take a genius to figure out his brother had a thing for the pretty witch, and Klaus was far from an idiot. "Well," he said, laughing softly, "you do like a challenge."
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"What were you thinking?" Caroline asked as she took the seat opposite Bonnie. She'd finally caught up with her friend at the Grille, once practice was over and she realized that her witchy friend had ditched her. "How am I supposed to protect you this way?"
"I appreciate it, Care, I do," Bonnie told her. "But there was something I had to do."
"What something?" Caroline was just as annoyed that Elena had bailed, as she'd thought the other girl would help keep something of an eye on Bonnie after the incident with Kol in the hallway earlier.
"Beautiful," Kol said, surprising Bonnie. She hadn't seen him enter the restaurant before he spoke. He walked over to the table and bent down, closing the distance between himself and the witch. "If I had known you were dropping by earlier, I'd have made certain I was home."
"Don't call me that," Bonnie said, glancing over at Caroline, who reacted to Kol's words as she would have expected, giving Bonnie a confused, what the hell is he talking about?, look. Something was going on, something she knew nothing about. Had Bonnie gone to the Mikaelson estate looking for him?
"Why not?" Kol asked, his eyes locking onto hers. "That's what your name means, isn't it? Bonny?"
Bonnie flushed, torn between anger and embarrassment. Vampires, other than Caroline, only ever wanted her for her magic; she wasn't used to having one trying to flirt with her. They usually reserved their attentions for Elena and Caroline. But Kol hadn't looked at Caroline since he'd arrived at the table, and his selective attention was making her uncomfortable.
"What do you want with me?" she asked, finally managing to move past her discomfort enough to speak.
"What does any red-blooded male want from a beautiful woman?" Kol answered.
Bonnie bit back a disbelieving laugh, and it came out sounding somewhat like a snort. "Right." She could count on her one hand the number of times a male other than her father had called her beautiful, and those had run mostly to Jeremy, who had cheated on her with the ghost of his ex-girlfriend. His actions had invalidated his words, as far as she was concerned.
"Have you looked in a mirror lately?" Kol asked, leaning down and running a finger across Bonnie's cheek. He was surprised that she allowed him that much contact, but he could hear her heartbeat picking up speed, and he knew she was either scared, or excited, or perhaps a bit of both. "Do you not see what I see? The passion etched in every line of your face? The maturity and wisdom in your emerald eyes? The sorrow in the way you purse your luscious lips?"
Bonnie sucked in a stunned breath, surprised that Kol could possibly see her this way. He was a thousand years old; surely, he'd seen plenty of women more attractive than she was. Of course, he had a thousand years of practicing his charm, as well. He was a vampire, a heartless and soulless killer. The enemy. She refused to entertain any ideas about his sincerity.
"Wow," Caroline said from the other side of the table. She'd seen how Bonnie was reacting to the vampire, and she knew that her friend wasn't likely to fall for his sweet words, but he was definitely pouring on the charm, and she could see the confusion clouding her friend's eyes. She trusted that Bonnie wouldn't fall for the Original's charm; nevertheless, no words were forthcoming from Bonnie's mouth, so she decided to break the silence. "Laying it on pretty thick there, aren't you?"
"A beautiful lady won too quickly is nary one I deem worth having," Kol answered, not taking his eyes from Bonnie's.
"What?" Caroline asked, confused by his quick answer.
Bonnie, shaking off the effects of Kol's poetic words, finally found her voice. "Well, you might as well quit now. I'm not interested." She finally tore her eyes away from his.
"You don't find me handsome?" Kol asked, not surprised by Bonnie's reaction. He was well aware of, but completely undeterred by, her aversion towards vampires. He was stubborn, and he liked a good chase, and Bonnie was definitely going to give him that.
"No, of course you're handsome," Bonnie answered, "for a thousand year old homicidal dead guy."
Caroline couldn't keep back a laugh. She knew how Bonnie felt about vampires in general, especially now that the Salvatores had destroyed all the trust she'd placed in them. Caroline knew that she was a rare exception to her best friend; unlike the other vampires Bonnie had met, Caroline would never betray her.
"So, my being a vampire is a fatal flaw?" Kol asked, determined to win her over, or at least to get enough information to be able to plan his next course of attack.
Bonnie raised an eyebrow at his casual use of the word fatal, an ironic word coming from a vampire. "Yes."
"So, if I were human, would you still feel this way about me?"
Bonnie nodded, sighing softly before speaking. "If you were human, you'd have died a thousand years ago, and we wouldn't be having this ridiculous conversation." She glanced at Caroline and rolled her eyes.
"Has there never been a vampire you've liked?" Kol asked, persistent in his quest for information on the Bennett witch's weaknesses. There had to be one somewhere; he'd find it and use it to his advantage.
Bonnie was quiet for a moment, and Caroline could almost read the thoughts running through her, just based on the expressions on her face. "There used to be one," Bonnie admitted, "but he betrayed me." Then another face popped into her mind. "And there's Finn, of course."
"My self-sacrificing big brother?" Kol asked. "You wound me. You should just stick a dagger in me than tell me you prefer Finn to me."
"I'm sorry, I don't have one of those daggers," Bonnie answered. "But if you give me some time, I'll see if I can find one."
Kol laughed, amused by her sass. No, this wasn't going to be easy. That was good. He didn't like easy.
Caroline could sense that Bonnie had reached the limit of her comfort zone, and she wasn't sure what would happen if Kol kept trying to push her friend. She stood up, catching the attention of both of them.
"Okay, Baby Klaus," Caroline said, putting an end to the Original's flirting. "It's time for Bonnie and me to go."
"Baby Klaus?" Kol asked, clearly insulted by the nickname. He was offended that anyone would think him to be anything like his older brother. "You haven't even ordered yet."
"That's okay," Bonnie said, standing up to second Caroline's move. She needed to go before she lost all patience and set the Original on fire, or before his gentle wooing could have any effect on her. "I've lost my appetite."
Kol stood back without speaking as the girls walked out the Grille. When she reached the door, Bonnie looked back and found the youngest male Original still watching her. He nodded, and she scurried out the door, escaping his overwhelming presence.
Kol smirked. Despite her brave words, he knew he was starting to get under her skin.
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Bonnie was just locking the house up for the night when she heard footsteps on the porch. She closed her eyes and leaned her head against the wall, wishing everything and everyone would just go away and leave her in peace for a while. She listened as whoever it was knocked on the door, and she waited, hoping the person would just go away. After a minute, the knocks were repeated. Again, she hesitated, not really wanting to deal with anyone.
"Bonnie! I know you're home!"
The young witch sighed. Elena.
"Please answer the door," Elena yelled.
Bonnie sighed. She knew Elena well. The Gilbert girl would not go away until she got what she wanted, which apparently was to talk to Bonnie. Unfortunately, Elena knew her just as well. She walked over to the door and unlocked it, pulled it open, fought hard to keep the irritation she felt from showing on her face.
"Bonnie, hey," Elena greeted. She looked a little bit winded, her cheeks were flushed, almost like she'd run there. Something was clearly up.
"What's going on?" Bonnie asked, her voice flat. If it was something to do with the Salvatores, they were out of luck. Nothing on the planet could convince her to work with them again.
"I need you to come with me," Elena said, motioning to the black Jeep Cherokee sitting in the driveway.
"I'm not helping the Salvatores with anything," Bonnie told her. She knew it was too much to ask that Elena stay away from the two vampires for any amount of time.
Elena shook her head. "This isn't about them."
Not about the Salvatores? Elena hadn't gone running to them? Bonnie was curious. "So what is it about?"
"Just come with me, Bonnie," Elena said. "Everything will be explained when we get there."
"When we get where?"
"A small apartment across town," Elena said. She could see Bonnie hesitating. "I promise you, Bon, it's safe."
A small part of Bonnie wanted to tell Elena that she wasn't afraid, she just didn't want to get sucked into another crazy scheme that would get someone she cared about hurt or killed. But curiosity was getting the better of her. She just hated when people refused to give her the information she wanted, often the information she needed.
"Fine," she answered, grabbing her jacket from the coat rack next to the door before she could change her mind. "Let's go."
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Bonnie held her breath as Elena knocked on the door. They were standing on a second floor landing in one of the older houses in Mystic Falls that had been renovated into apartments in recent years. The light above the doorway had burned out, and the only visibility she had came from the moonlight streaming through one of the windows on the landing.
She heard the shuffling of feet approaching the door, and then it opened. There was a dim light in the room, back lighting the man who opened the door and casting his face in shadows. He was tall, however, and muscularly built. Still, she couldn't place him until he spoke.
"Elena, Miss Bennett," he said, in a deep, somewhat accented, voice that Bonnie placed just as he shifted enough in the dim light for her to recognize his face. "Please, come inside."
Elijah.
The vampire who'd forced the Salvatores to betray her.
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A/N: Reviews are love. Any ideas what Elijah wants from/with Bonnie?
