The Vampire Diaries: Alternate Season 7
Episode 1: The Heretics
Part Three
Salvatore Boarding House...
A few days had passed since they voted as a group on how to take out the Heretics. It was also early in the day, early enough that the sun was still hanging high in the sky. Damon and Stefan were finishing the bomb at the kitchen table when Caroline walked into the room and approached them. "So there's five Heretics, two boys, three girls. And your mom isn't home so now would probably be as good of time as any," Caroline said.
Damon and Stefan both looked up from the bomb for a minute to look at Caroline. "Enzo?" Damon asked.
"He's not there either. I actually have no clue where he is," Caroline replied.
"Ditto. No worries, I imagine he'll turn up eventually."
Caroline walked over to the table and picked up the bomb, tossing it in her hands, Stefan's eyes widening as she did while Damon merely rolled his. "Whoa, whoa!" Stefan said to Caroline in a cautious tone.
"Show me how this works," Caroline ordered.
The three of them sit down at the table, Caroline sitting to Stefan's right while Damon sat on Stefan's left, Stefan preparing to explain to Caroline how the bomb worked. "That there is the timer. The plan is to set it for sixty seconds," Stefan explained, programming the timer on the bomb, Caroline and Damon watching intently.
"Sixty seconds. Got it."
Stefan gave her a look of concern. "Are you sure you want to do this? Because you know, Damon or I could still do this-"
"I have to do this. They lived in your house for a hundred years. They've seen your pictures. They'll recognize either one of you immediately."
"I'm just saying... If you think this is a crazy plan, now's the time to speak up."
Damon smirked. "Is there any version of this plan where you're not overly concerned about Caroline?"
Stefan and Caroline looked at each other awkwardly for a moment before looking away, to Damon's mild annoyance. "I don't see what the problem is myself. Vampire boy likes vampire girl, vampire girl likes vampire boy, can't you two just hurry up and get together and... I don't know not make babies or something?" Damon asked. "Because acting all awkward around each other and ignoring the rather obvious elephant in the room... doesn't seem to be working out well for anyone. Just saying."
"And I don't see why we can't make a muzzle for you," Caroline replied, Damon glaring at her. "Other than the fact that Elena would probably object."
Probably," Stefan added. "Though I'm inclined to do it anyways right about now."
"Alright let's focus on our real enemy here. Mommy's replacement children and how we're going to kill all of them in one fell swoop," Damon paused. "We need a more detailed plan, or is the plan literally just Caroline walks up to the door, knocks three times, leaves the bomb and runs like hell?"
"It's... not the worst plan in the world," Stefan answered awkwardly, Damon throwing him a look as he did. "I suppose we could make just adjustments."
The Heretics' Home...
Caroline rang the doorbell at the Heretics' current home. After a moment, Nora answered the door, only to find an extremely perky looking Caroline standing on the other side, carrying a vase of purple orchids in her hands.
"Welcome to Mystic Falls! I'm Caroline," Caroline said cheerfully.
Nora stared at Caroline blankly for a moment. "We're not interested," she replied, going to shut the door, only for Caroline to stop her. Nora sighed, annoyed while Caroline maintained her perky smile.
"Oh. Oh, no! Don't worry, I'm not selling anything. I'm your neighbor from down the block!"
"So?" Nora asked unimpressed. "And what do you mean welcome we've been living here for.. I don't know, around five to six months now."
A little nervous, Caroline ignored Nora's statement, unable to think of a good response and slipped past Nora into the house before Nora could stop her, entering into the foyer and looking around. Nora sighed once more, Caroline was really starting to irritate her. "Wow! Great place. Love what you've done with the floors. Is this the original hardwood?" Caroline asked, knowing that by now Matt was somewhere in the house as well, getting the bomb ready.
Beau, Mary Louise and Valerie were in the living room, looking at Caroline warily from where they were sitting. Mary Louise was playing solitaire on the coffee table, while both Beau and Valerie were reading books. "It's a gargantuan hell-hole. No one gives a damn about the floors," Valerie said, sounding just as irritated as Nora looked.
Just then, Malcolm walked into the living room, a cup of blood in one hand, joining the rest of the Heretics. "Well, I brought you guys a housewarming gift. Mystic Falls tradition!" Caroline replied cheerily.
"Valerie's allergic to nature and as I implied earlier, we're in no need of a bloody housewarming gift," Nora added.
Caroline gestured toward the nearby table and walked over it to with the flowers still in her hands. "I'm just gonna put this here, then..."
Caroline then heard the beginning of a loud squeaking sound. Matt made that sound. Impulsively, Caroline knocked over a ceramic deer figure off the table she was in front of, the deer falling to the floor and shattering it, Caroline hoping that the shattering ceramic would distract from the sound Matt was making, which she suspected was him playing with the gas line. "I am so sorry!" Caroline said to the Heretics in an apologetic tone. "Clumsy."
Beau and Mary Louise gave Caroline a death glare, making her that much more nervous and anxious. "So, um... where are you guys from?" Caroline asked them, trying to make small talk as she awkwardly scrambled to pick up the pieces of the shattered ceramic deer. Caroline then put the pieces on the table door and faced Nora again, Nora looking her up and down.
"I do love that jacket," Nora said.
"Thanks! I got it for my birth-"
But Nora cut Caroline off, looking at Mary Louise who was now standing a few feet behind Caroline, Nora gesturing to Caroline's jacket. "Don't you just love what she's wearing?"
Mary Louise shrugged. "It's fine. Though it would look entirely better on you," she replied with a growing smile on her face.
The conversation was interrupted by the sound of footsteps. They all turned to find Matt standing in the threshold of the front door, a pretty apparent nervous look on his face. "Hey, Caroline- we should really get going to that barbeque," Matt said, looking over at Caroline.
"And you would be...?" Mary Louise asked.
"Her ride," Matt replied politely, before throwing Caroline a look. "Care, we should really go."
"Care isn't leaving just yet," Nora snapped. Both Matt and Caroline visibly panicked as Nora walked over closer to Caroline, staring deeply into her eyes, as if she were trying to compel her. "Give me your jacket," Nora ordered.
Without hesitating, Caroline smiled brightly and stripped off her jean jacket, handing it to Caroline. "Here! Take my jacket."
"Thank you," Nora replied smugly. "How sweet you are!"
Nora put on the jacket, Caroline turning to Mary Louise. "See you!" she said cheerfully, turning around to leave, only for Mary Louise to swiftly grab her by the shoulder. Caroline was sweating now, Matt growing even more anxious, knowing that was maybe 15 seconds left to spare, maybe a little more than that if they were lucky.
"Wait," Mary Louise said sharply, spinning Caroline around so she could face her, staring deeply into her eyes as well, trying to compel her. "You forget to tell her how good she looks."
Caroline turned to look at Nora. "It looks amazing on you!"
Nora smiled. Suddenly, Valerie stood up, a concerned look on her face. "Does anyone else smell that?" she asked.
The fake smiles on Matt and Caroline's faces instantly faded. Thinking fast, Caroline used her vampire speed and ran out of the face, grabbing Matt as she ran past him. Just as they practically fell off the threshold and into the front yard of the Heretics' home, the house behind them ignited in flames, exploding. Had she waited a second longer, her and Matt would've been burnt to a crisp. Caroline and Matt looked back at the house as it went down in flames, both of them now looking more relieved than anything else. They then got to their feet and made a run for it, not sticking around to see what happened next.
Kai's House in Mystic Falls...
Kai came to the front door of his house after he heard knocking on the door moments earlier. He opened the door, only to see Bonnie standing on the other side, to his surprise. "Bonnie, hey, what are you doing here?" Kai asked.
"I came to see if you planned to live up to your end of the deal we made six months ago. The deal where you helped me take out the Heretics and then you walked out of my life, for good," Bonnie replied, her arms folded. "The Heretics are gone now, as far as we know, so I think you can safetly move back to Portland, Oregon now."
Kai sighed. "Don't worry, I was just packing my bags. I'll be out of your hair before you know it. You won't ever have to see me again and be reminded again of the horrible things I did to you."
Bonnie bit down on her tongue for a moment and nodded at him. She didn't want to give him the impression that she was starting to acknowledge that he had genuine feelings of remorse now. She was still worried if she did that Kai would take advantage of it, because she knew the old him, the him that stabbed her and kidnapped her and left her for dead in the 1994 Prison World was still in there somewhere. "Good."
"Yep. So is that it? You just came to see if I was actually leaving?"
Bonnie shrugged. "More or less."
Kai smirked bitterly. "Well now you have your answer, so you can go about the rest of your day," he replied, trying to close the door on Bonnie, only for Bonnie to stop him at the last minute. He sighed again, this time a little more frustrated. He opened the door back up.
"Kai wait-"
"What do you want from me Bonnie? I've said I'm sorry, I've taken—magical drugs to suppress my violent urges, drugs that I might add make me tired, and more thirsty, and headachy, and you know why I was taking those drugs? To make sure I didn't hurt you, or any of my coven, or any of your—stupid friends ever again. So you could feel safer around me. But sure enough you... you don't. Because I'll always be the man who nearly drove you to the point of ending your own life, and I can never hope to make up for that, as hard as I try. I don't even know how, but I... I know I want to. I still do. But I can't. So... just let me be on my way. Forget about me."
"Kai-"
"What?" Kai asked, exasperated.
Bonnie hesitated. "I... I know you tried, Kai. I know you want to be better, because merging with Luke actually did change you, as much I hate to admit it... I really didn't want to say it to you, because... you're one of the most unpredictable people I've ever met, along with Damon of course. But... I do, honestly believe that there's a sliver of good in you now. And maybe... maybe I should've given you credit for how much you have tried earlier, but—I couldn't. I just... I just couldn't."
"I can't tell you just how frustrating that is, how frustrating—all of this is. I'm not Kai anymore, not the old Kai at least. I'm not Luke. I'm just... some guy caught in the middle of both. And I don't want to be. But... it's what I deserve isn't it? I... I killed him," Kai said, tears starting to form in his eyes, to Bonnie's surprise. "I killed Luke. I killed... Joey. I killed five of my siblings. I.. I killed my dad too. I caused so much pain, so much suffering to everyone around me. I'm sorry I can't do anything about that. I'm sorry I bring more pain still. But it's... it's in my nature, it's in my very soul. I was never meant to be good, even if—I wanna be good now. I was always meant to be evil, the sociopath, the—the abomination, the freak, the monster, the black sheep, the—defective twin."
"Kai..."
"Don't—don't say anything more. Just.. I don't want to have this conversation anymore. Go, go back home, live your life. And once again, I'm sorry, for everything I ever did to you, ever awful thing-"
"Thank you. For trying," Bonnie interrupted, a surprisingly sympathetic look on her face, Kai only becoming more vulnerable.
"...What? You're—you're thanking me?"
"Yes. I am. Because you did try."
Kai nodded slowly. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"For the acknowledgment. And for changing my life."
Kai and Bonnie just stared at one another for a long moment, Kai still teary eyed, Bonnie still sympathetic, before Kai closed the door on her, walking away.
Salvatore Boarding House...
Stefan was standing in a room of the Salvatore Boarding House, wearing a black suit and plain dark red tie, standing before a mirror, his cellphone up to his ear. "To what do I owe this rare pleasure?" Lily asked over the phone. From the sounds of it, she was in a moving car somewhere.
"I hope you weren't too attached to that house. We blew it into a pile of ash with your so called family inside," Stefan replied coldly.
"I'm sorry, you did what?!"
Stefan continued to stare blankly at the mirror, unphased by Lily's reaction. "They killed two people, high school students, a boy and a girl, in cold blood, and left there bodies out in the open for us to find. They broke the peace, we didn't have a choice. So we plotted their downfall. And then we killed them. They're gone, Lily. And you have until tonight to get out of Mystic Falls, or we come after you next," Stefan explained.
Stefan waited for Lily to respond, noticing she was pausing on her end. "Uh, centuries-old Heretics, world-weary survivalists, wise-beyond their lifetime, eviscerated from the planet in one fell swoop?" Lily asked sceptically, Stefan starting to grow worried. Caroline told him she saw the house go up in flames. There's no way they could've escaped with their lives but yet.. Lily seemed so certain they did. "My son, if I may offer you some motherly advice? Run. Because when they recover from whatever you did, they will come for you, and they will be merciless when it comes to getting their vengeance."
Slowly, Stefan pressed the end call button. He still had Matt's graduation to go to and he didn't intend on missing it. Although, if by some chance the Heretics did actually survive and were looking for revenge... the graduation would probably be where they would strike. As he already learned, they had no worries about drawing attention to themselves.
Town Square, Mystic Falls...
Several citizens of Mystic Falls had gathered outside in the town's square to watch the most recent students of the police academy graduate, who were officially becoming deputies. In the audience was Elena, Damon, Caroline, Tyler and Liv. Among the graduates, was Matt, who was wearing his sheriff's deputy uniform.
"Please join me in recognizing our graduating class of new deputies as I read their names and they receive their badges," the Sheriff announced, standing centre stage.
The graduating students stood and walked up to the stage in a single file line. Unbeknownst to anyone, Mary Louise and Nora were standing behind the back row of seats as they took in the crowd, both of them wearing devious smiles on their faces. "What a happy little town this is. I bet they have the most darling funerals," Nora said snidely.
Mary Louise giggled. "Nora, I swear your heart must be made of pure arsenic!"
Nora smiled at her. "Admit it. You love me more for it."
Mary Louise looked at Nora lovingly. "You know I do."
The two reached over and held hands, lacing their fingers together as they smiled at one another. "Deputy Cornell Willis," the Sheriff announced, shaking a man's hand on stage and handing him a diploma, Mary Louise and Nora too focused on another to pay attention. After a moment, Mary Louise got uncomfortable and let go of Nora's hand, to Nora's confusion.
"Mar... it's the twenty first century. We can hold hands now," Nora assured her. Nora took Mary Louise's hand in an act of defiance, holding it tightly, Mary still looking just as uncomfortable. Suddenly, the pair were interrupted by Malcolm.
"Oh my god, is this your first date in public? How adorable," Malcolm mocked. "Not that I would know, I don't exactly follow you two around. You know most men today actually find the idea of two women kissing arousing? I don't understand it myself, I mean the whole point is that men aren't involved."
"Ever the crude one," Nora replied, a slightly annoyed look on her face. "You would think a century in a Prison World would've taught you some manners."
"Surprisingly no."
"How about we just focus on revenge?" Mary Louise added, Malcolm grinning.
Kai's House in Mystic Falls...
Hearing knocking on the door again, Kai reluctantly went to answer it, wondering who it could be now. At this rate he'd never get done packing. Slowly, Kai opened the door, only to see Valerie standing on the other side, a somewhat angry look on her face, to Kai's surprise. "Hey Valerie... what brings you to my neck of the woods?" Kai asked nervously.
"Your bloody friends tried to kill me and my family. With some kind of bomb no less. Tell me, did you play any part in it?"
Kai gulped. Normally, he didn't fear anyone. In fact, before going to the 1903 Prison World, he didn't fear anyone, except maybe his parents. But after the Prison World... to say he was scared of the Heretics was any understatement. Maybe not so much Valerie because she was the most compassionate of the Heretics but he knew if she was here, it more than likely meant the others weren't far behind. "I, uh... I had no idea. And what do you mean friends? Do I look like the kinda guy who has friends?"
"Caroline. Matt," Valerie replied bitterly, gritting her teeth. "I'm certain you know them. I know you've wanted us gone ever since getting out of that damn prison world. The moment we break that little deal the Salvatores made with us, an attempt is made on our lives. Coincidence? I think not. And something, mainly your blatant hatred of us, has made me suspect you played a role in all of this. Right now what I want to know is, what role you played exactly?"
A/N: And the latest chapter ends here. I hope you all enjoyed, I had a lot of fun writing the Bonnie/Kai scene in this chapter. I apologize that the Heretics are getting focused on so much in this chapter and the last two chapters... and the next chapter, but I named the episode "The Heretics" for a reason, introducing my villains, except Valerie, she's one of the good Heretics in this story. They won't be as heavily featured later on, but still featured obviously.