Disclaimer: I don't own VD-neither the books nor the TV version. I don't gain any profits from this. This writing is just for fun. The amazing characters are from L.J. Smith, CW and Alloy Entertainment.

A/N/Warning: This story has my favorite pairing Bonnie and Damon and of course Elena and Stefan. I don't know yet if the rest of the gang will be part of this story, but it will have original characters. So it is my take to what happens after Midnight. It will be completely AU. The main characters could possibly be OOC. So please bear with me a little.

I want to say a big and huge THANK YOU to the responsible ones for including this story to the The Best of The Vampire Diaries Community. You made me happy! =)

Enough with my babbling I'll let you read the chapter now. ;) I'm so sorry for the delay... =(

Chapter 9: Forgetting problems, having fun and a problematic heart...

"Don't ever let your mind keep you from having a good time." ~ Jason Mraz, musician

"Love distills desire upon the eyes, love brings bewitching grace into the heart." ~ Euripides

"The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up." ~ Mark Twain."

Damon

The chilled air danced with her fiery hair. She was so silent, her brooding mood created a strange atmosphere between us. The meeting had been useless and a waste of time. There was only one thing we had learned from the meeting: Bonnie is the next one for the scorned demon, spirit, thing, monster or whatever it is, and the reason it's after her is probably related to her blood. I could understand that part, because Bonnie's blood was addictive and intoxicating. It was really hard to stop drinking it. Her druid blood is magical and untainted. Maybe that was the reason that thing was trying to kill her. There are very few pure and untainted things out there.

I wondered why hadn't I drunk Bonnie's blood before? What was I thinking? I glanced at her face. She was worried. She's too young to bear that much on her shoulders. I scolded myself for thinking like that. I had just thought like my brother, or worse - like my father.

"Little Bird?" She looked at me as though I had just woken her from a dream.

"Damon...?" We walked down the street towards her place. I kept silent. I was recalling the earlier events and I couldn't stop to relish the previous tension. I liked to toy with my brother and Elena's attentions toward me were a bonus, but at the end of the night I felt my Little Bird's sadness and I didn't like it at all. In fact, I hated it.

We were just steps from her door when she blurted out a magical phrase. "I don't want to go in... not yet." I understood the hidden meaning of those words. We turned around and continued walking with no apparent destination.

"Red Bird, if something is bothering you, you should let it out?" She snorted a little.

"Really." Her voice was filled with sarcasm. It annoyed me, but at the same time it amused me. She could stir quite contradictory feelings within me. I didn't know what to think about it. That was one of my unanswered questions.

"Yes, Red Bird."

"Why? Why do you like to play with us so much?" I stopped walking. I was unprepared for that question, especially from her. I gave her my usual smirk. That was my way to hide my surprise.

"It suits me."

"You hurt people doing that, Damon."

"Not my problem." I felt her uneasiness. It was fun poking fun at her and watching her reactions.

"Stop it, please..."

"Stop what?"

"Stop being a jerk." A laugh escaped from my lips. I couldn't remember the last time I'd had a good laugh. I'd surprised her with my reaction and I loved our banter.

"You're unique, Red Bird. You're unique and puzzling."

"What? Why do you say that?"

I closed up the distance between us. It was easy to see her blush. " I can count the creatures that are still alive after calling me jerk on one hand." She flinched at my words.

She stammered, "Do I ... Do I know... any of the... survivors?" Another laugh. She was really entertaining me.

"I think you can guess them."

She didn't say anything. She just kept looking at me. I grabbed her hand and pulled her along. We re-started our leisurely pace toward no particular direction. "Go ahead, Kitten. Guess a name."

"Mmm, Maybe... Stefan."

"Obvious answer, but you're right about him. Another guess?"

"Sage."

"Another right answer." I waited for her next answer. Her aura changed. She had forgotten the awful meeting and hopefully her sadness too.

"Elena?"

"Right! I'm proud of you, Kitten. And you already know that the last survivor is you."

"Well, I guess I'm in good company."

"If you say so."

"Yes, why not? They're my friends." This time I was the one who snorted. She drifted her eyes towards a local on the street. Young humans were in front of it; they looked like they were having a good time.

"Let's go in there." She pulled me and I let her. I was strangely content. I liked her company... maybe too much. My gums were itching already and I had already taken too much from my Kitten. It was time for me to feed and she had just chosen the place where I would find my next meal.

Bonnie

As soon as we entered the local diner, Damon left me standing there. I could only guess why he had disappeared. It was better to let him do his business; the probability of him killing someone is fewer if he's not hungry.

The dinner had a whole range of menus. On certain nights the clients could dance all they wanted. I loved it. It was where students, including myself, went to forget about tests, reports, etcetera. It was the local hang out. I needed to forget everything so badly. I was stunned that Damon had accepted the invitation to come with me, but I honestly didn't care because I wanted to have a bit of fun. The first face I saw was Monica's. She scowled at me a little because I'd left her alone earlier. She'd forgotten our friendly discussion, obviously. Because suddenly her face changed as her eyes wandered back towards the door.

I turned around and understood Monica's reaction. It was Michael and he looked great. It was strange that he was alone. No one of his friends were with him, not even Steve. For a fraction of a second I hoped I would see Steve here, but I scolded myself immediately. It was safer for me and everybody else if Steve wasn't here. Damon had already given me his particular warning about Steve. I hadn't decided what to think or do about it.

"Oh my God! Bonnie, he came."

"Monica, come on. Calm down a little."

"I'm happy, Bon. He's here. At least I got to see him."

"Monica... Does Michael have any idea about your feelings for him?"

"Nope"

"Wait... you constantly scold me because I'm not living my life, and you're doing the same!"

"What can I say, Bon? I'm a good adviser, I'm not a good practitioner."

"That's crap."

"I know and I don't care." She playfully smiled and went directly towards him. She never ceased to amaze me. I was smiling like I always did when I got to spend some time with my friend. I kept watching her. She was already talking to Michael. I wondered what they were talking about. At that moment Damon returned, looking satisfied. He singled me out and came to stand by me. I smiled a welcome at him.

"BONITA!" recognizing the voice, I turned around with a big smile plastered on my face.

"Hi, José. How are you doing?" He was the owner of the and he was constantly saying that I looked like his late wife. José was a Latino man with an effervescent personality and I'd grown to care about him. He easily gives his smile away. He was like a parent figure to me and he always knew when I needed a huge bear hug. I was receiving one now.

"Bonita, you never came to your class."

"May I ask which class?" I had forgotten about Damon. When I looked at him his eyes reflected amusement.

"Come on Bonita, introduce us." I reluctantly did what José asked.

"This is my friend, Damon Salvatore."

"I'm José, the owner of this 'antro'. You're not messing with Bonita, right?"

"José!"

"What? You're too pretty and naive."

Damon looked almost happy. He was having fun. How I ended up being the center of José's jokes and Damon's amusement, I had no idea.

"Anyway, are you messing with her or not?" Damon didn't answer. He stood silent. José kept watching him. He was analyzing Damon like any father would do. Apparently José detected something in him because he extended his hand and offered it to Damon.

"Nice to meet you young man."

"The pleasure is all mine."

"Oh... a youngster with manners. That's a new one." I smiled because I sensed Damon's annoyance. This night had been full of surprises and Damon's tolerance to my requests was one of those surprises.

"Damon, José was talking about..."

"I want to teach Bonita how to dance to Latin music. A beautiful girl, like you should know more, and that includes dancing."

Damon smirked. "I agree with you sir." At that moment Monica and Michael came over to us. Damon stiffened. Something was not right because he took my hand and pulled me towards him. At that moment one of Jose's employees walked over to us.

"Hey, Pedro por favor pon música. Quiero salsa, algo de Marc Anthony o de Gilbertito."

"What are you talking about?" I began to panic a little. José had his mischievous face on.

"Nothing, I was requesting some music."

"Oh, no!"

"Why not?"

"Monica, don't help him please. You know I'm totally uncoordinated."

"Well that's why it's fun to watch you." This was a nightmare. Everybody laughed at me. Well, except the handsome vampire behind me. When I turned around to look at him I notice his eyes looked alive. He looked content. I lost myself looking at him.

The first notes of the chosen melody began to invade the space. The Latin rhythm took over and slowly couples began to dance to the hypnotic notes. The ambience changed dramatically in mere seconds.

"Let's go, Bonita." José took my hand and pulled me to the dancing area. I was doomed. I had to dance in front of everybody.

"Don't worry. Let me lead the way. You're going to love it, I promise." I gave him a weak smile. We began to dance.

Damon

I watched Red Bird dance with the old man. The other bothersome humans began to dance too. I stood there watching the crowd, scanning the area for possible threats. I swore I had sensed someone with power seconds earlier. I diverted my eyes towards Little Bird. She was smiling. She looked happy and that made her aura more noticeable. Soon something supernatural would come to find her. Again, I sent another power surge scanning the area. I sensed a familiar power. A growl escaped from my lips. I was annoyed because I couldn't sense the power I detected earlier and instead I sensed him. He was too near for my liking.

"Hello, Brother. Did you leave your love alone and helpless?"

Stefan moved from behind me noiselessly "No, Damon. Elena is well protected. She is with Meredith and Sage."

"It's that tension I'm sensing from you?" Stefan didn't say anything. He was looking at Bonnie.

"Why are you here?"

"Damon, I can have free time too."

"I don't believe that."

He let out a sigh and ran his hand through his hair. "Bonnie's aura is calling every supernatural being near to this place."

"You knew it was her?"

"I know her power rather well, Damon. I've drunk her blood too." I growled and grabbed him.

"Be careful, St. Stefan. You're treading on thin ice."

"I'm always treading on thin ice, especially if it's related to you." A pretty blond walked toward us.

"I'm sorry for interrupting, but... do you want to dance." She asked Stefan, and he, as the eternal gentleman, accepted the offer. He picked a spot near my Red Bird. I guess it was his way to annoy me, or to protect her.

I kept watching the people dancing. It was almost impossible not to watch my Red Bird move. At the beginning of the song she had looked a bit clumsy, but now... her movements were almost hypnotic. I hadn't noticed when my hands become fists. I knew the old man didn't have any bad intentions, but I didn't like him touching her. It wasn't my first time listening to this kind of music. I knew they were dancing it correctly. It was harder for me to not move. I was the one that had come here with her.

The song ended and I was beside the couple. Another song began and I interrupted them.

"May I cut in?"

The old man smiled and agreed with an inclination of his head. I took my Little Bird's hand a pulled her towards me. We stood there for some seconds. "The idea of dancing is to move the bodies with the music."

My Red Bird blushed and I looked at the old man. He was smirking. I was beginning to consider the consequences of I killing him. "Damon."

The melody of my Red Bird's voice snapped me out of my deathly thoughts. I paid attention to the music. It was still Latin music, but it was slower, inviting and sultry. I embraced her. The distance between us disappeared completely. Her body fit perfectly with mine. Now my hands were enclosing her waist. Her enticing heartbeat was now part of the music. I began to move accordingly to the slow rhythm. She let me lead her. Her blushed face was incredibly beautiful. She was trying not to look at me. I liked the challenge.

I lifted her shin. I wanted to look at her. We created our own little world where only the captivating notes of the slow music mixed with us. I watched how her eyes reflected her emotions. It was easy to feel and see her powers swirling inside of her. Her eyes were the perfect windows into her mind and soul. I wasn't sure if she was aware of that. At moments her eyes were greenish and without warning they would change to bluish. I got lost in that continuous dance of colors within her eyes. Now they were more like honey, then the color of rich chocolate appeared. With the final notes I had the chance to look at her normal eye color. She was sad and it was a surprise for me to discover that I was sad too, because our little world was about to break.

I leaned over and kissed her. This time it wasn't a reminder of who she belongs to. This time it wasn't part of my seduction to get her blood. This time I just wanted to feel her lips on mine. This time I wanted to feel the childish joy of kissing her. It was strange, because somehow I associated this moment and the emotions in me with home.

I could swear she reminded me the feeling of peace. She helped me to remember what it was being in love in an unselfish way. She made me remember the feeling of... home. That was unsettling and new for me. She had been the only human that had made me want to go back to my true home.

Later, with the dawn of the new day upon us, and after I had left my Red Bird secure in her room, I noticed that I had totally forgotten my Princess. Little Bird had made me forget about, Elena. How could this happen? How did I let it happen? Did she bewitch me? Or was it more accurate to ask myself if I had let her bewitch me...?

Bonnie

After a surprising night and a day full of classes, I'd returned to the dorm. As usual, I was alone. I hadn't any clue why Monica spent so much time out. It was probably because I was scattered between college, my old friends, my new friends, trying to survive the new threat, controlling my powers and my problematic heart.

I smile at the recollections of last night. It had begun with a lot of stressful situations and information, but it had ended in a pleasant and delightful surprise. It was the first time I had felt something different from Damon. I felt that, in his strange and peculiar way, he cared about me. He didn't treat me as an object. He made me forget everything and everyone. The only other being that mattered to me was Damon.

A soft knock on my door made me return to the real world. I opened my door and the person standing in front of me surprised me. I had felt a strong aura near the dorm and I had honestly thought it was Damon, that he had returned for some crazy reason. I was alone again and I didn't have a clue where Monica was. Sometimes I thought that she had more secrets than me. I stood there watching and shamefully enough I was studying him. I was trying to read him, since his aura looked like a tornado of colors. I was worried, because this kind of situation in a normal human it meant trouble. The kind of trouble where one can lose the mind and go berserk on everyone that crosses their path. The person standing in front of me wasn't human... not at all. He had more than five hundred years of life experiences and a huge load on his shoulders.

He cleared his throat making me to snap out of my thoughts. "Bonnie?"

"Oh! I'm sorry. Come in, Stefan."

He nodded gratefully. I let him pass through. I kind of felt sad for him. He was fighting internally and my first impulse was to comfort him and to help him. I didn't know if that was what he wanted, though. I didn't know if that was the reason for him being here and not at the house with Elena.

"Stefan?" He turned around and kept watching me. His steady stare was a bit unnerving. It was like a silent cry for help. He was struggling between the emotions of finding out his brother was alive and what that could mean to him. Sadly enough, I pondered those same questions.

"I'm sorry for coming unannounced and uninvited."

"Don't be silly. You're my friend. Why would I be bothered with your visit?" He gave a faint smile.

"Come on, Stefan! You're brooding more than usual." I walked toward him and grabbed his hand. I pushed him a little towards the old couch. He understood and he let me push him. There was no way I would have had the strength to push him or pull him. We sat down and an awkward silence floated between us.

"Bonnie, are you all right? I know Damon..." I suppressed my question about how he knew.

"I'm fine. He didn't hurt me, Stefan." He stood up and walked to the window.

"Rain is coming."

"I know. Stefan, why are you here?"

"Honestly. I don't know."

This time I stood up and walked towards him. I touched his hand. He looked at me. "Let's go."

"Where?"

"Just trust me. Come with me."

He did trust me. We walked a bit and ended up at the park near the campus. We found a place with some privacy. I sat down on a bench and he mimicked my actions. We didn't say anything to each other. We had a lot on our minds and the peace of the park was good for us.

"Bonnie."

"Huh?"

"Are you happy that Damon has returned?"

"Yes, Stefan I am. It's a relief to know he's alive and... between us, I mean... I..."

"Don't exert yourself. I understand."

"Stefan, please tell me what's wrong?"

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I'm worried and..."

"You're worried because of Damon and Elena."

"I don't know what to feel. Sometimes I want to get out and other times I just want to kill him... but I know they are in love..."

"Stefan, I think... I believe you should let Elena in." Now he was watching me. He was surprised by my words and to be honest I wasn't sure why I had told him that. So I let myself to continue rambling without thinking properly about what I was saying. My heart did the talking.

"I know the vampires feel everything ten times stronger than a mere human being. Your love is consuming, your hatred is destructive and all of you have the ability to shut down every emotion, every feeling. I could only imagine that or relate to those feelings to my fear of not understanding what I am or to my eternal fear of if I ever will be able to control my powers." I let out a weary sigh. He thankfully didn't utter a word.

"Because of your nature you can see everything more defined, brighter and you can see the truth of it. Just imagine how I felt when I was a little girl and began to see strange things. Saw that the shadows began to move differently, that apparently colors were surrounding the people, or that the monsters under my bed or outside in my backyard were real, and so on. Imagine the reaction of my friends when I told them. Children can be so cruel. That was the moment I decided to become the fragile Bonnie, the one that needed to be protected, the not-so-smart-or-strong girl who is crazy about boys. But it was hard to ignore what I'm able to see or feel. It was hard to play the psychic who wants to die young. Grams told me that much. I saw my dead, Stefan. By then I had watched my death several times already. You know that I read Elena's hand and saw you in her life. I saw the crow in her life, but I also saw her death. I was so scared that I didn't tell her that and I felt so guilty now."

"Bonnie, you didn't do anything wrong."

"I know now, but I've lived with those regrets for some years now. I knew both Salvatores were bound to meet Elena. Both of you were bound to fall for her. However, both of you had made a huge mistake. Both of you thought that Elena was the one entitle to make the choice. The choice is not hers, it is yours and Damon's."

"What are you trying to say, Bonnie?" He wasn't brooding anymore. He looked quite surprised by my unexpected speech. I relished the moment and continued talking.

"Elena knows Damon completely. He let her in. She knows how he functions and how he feels. She knows his flaws and his strengths. But you, my friend, had only shown her a part of yourself. Stefan, she needs to know the real you. She needs to know your dark part too. You have to let her in. You need to let her in, the same way you let Katherine in."

He kept looking at me. We stared at each other for some time. By now the sky was gray and the rain began to fall. I closed my eyes, cherishing the water falling from the sky. I concentrated on the water running over me. When I opened my eyes Stefan was looking at me curiously. I stood up and grabbed his hands. I pulled him a little. He understood my intentions. He now stood in front of me.

"Come on Stefan, cherish the rain and the nature surrounding us."

"Vampires don't like the water too much, Bonnie."

" I know, but this isn't running water. It's not a river or anything remotely like that. This water is falling down. It is washing everything... including us." I opened myself a little and let my powers and aura free for a bit. I felt Stefan's reaction. I wanted him to feel how much I cared for him. He was my friend and I loved him as a brother. What he did next surprised me. He hugged me. We stood there just feeling the environment and relishing this moment. It was like a renewal for us.

Stefan broke our embrace a little and stood still for some seconds. That's when he leaned and kissed me gently. At the same time I heard his voice in my mind.

"Thank you Bonnie. You're a truly good friend and I like to think of you as a little sister." I was stunned by his actions. I reacted in the same telepathic way.

"What the... why did you kiss me? You just told me that I'm like a sister to you."

He then let me go and turned around. He left me there dumbfounded, but not before I heard his answer.

"After all my dear Bonnie, I am Damon's brother." I heard his laugh. I felt his renewed determination. I knew he had heard my words and that he was going to fight for his love. I was so happy for him that I didn't feel the two people approaching us.

"Bonnie!" I turned around and saw Monica and Steve standing there. Monica had this mischievous look on her face.

"Hi, guys." Steve turned around and began to retrace his steps. He left us. It was easy for me to feel his anger and disappointment.

"Bon... I thought he was..."

"Did you... both of you saw the...?"

"Yes, we saw you kissing him. Steve is really pissed off."

"I should... I need to talk to him, Monica."

"Not now, Bonnie. He's really mad. You know, he really did care about you." I felt horrible. I'd hurt him and the irony of the situation was that I hurt him with Stefan. For a moment I thought that Stefan had done that on purpose. But the truth was that I didn't know why he had done it. Secretly I was relieved that he had. Not because I didn't like Steve, but because I was afraid that something would happen to him if he was too near me.

"Monica, he's your friend. Go to him. He needs you."

"But Bon, you're my friend too."

"Go, Monica. You've known him longer than me. Please... I'll be okay."

"Okay. But we need to talk."

"I know, I'm sorry."

She gave me a sad smile before she left. This was definitely too strange. Too much had happened and I still didn't know what or who wanted me dead. The unnerving part was that I didn't have a clue when the next attack would be. I began to walk out of the park when I heard another voice.

"Having fun?"

I stopped walking and watched how he walked towards me. My heart was beating so fast that I had to place my hand on my chest. I was trying to calm down. I wasn't scare at all. I was happy to see him again. That was the simple truth. I was happy to see him. My traitorous heart was telling him how I feel. I knew it because he smiled at me before he uttered his next words.

"Hello, Red Bird."

Translation:

Bonita= Pretty (We all know what's the meaning of Bonnie's name.)

"Hey, Pedro por favor pon música. Quiero salsa, algo de Marc Anthony o de Gilbertito."= "Hey, Pedro get some music on, please. I want some Salsa music maybe from Marc Anthony or Gilbertito"

A/N: I want to say thank you to my betas Bookwormgrl101 and TheLightIsMine. Girls your feedback and corrections are so important to me.

This is Chapter 9. Interestig moments and I think Damon is getting closer to Bonnie. ;) What do you think about the chapter? What do you think will happen next? Please leave me some love and review the chapter. You could give me suggestions or you can guess what will happen next. I need some feedback - It's the only way to know if I'm on the right path with the story. So, come on! It is just one click and some seconds to write something. =)

Oh! The horrors, errors etc. are totally mine. =(

PS: You should visit this forum your contributions will be really appreciated: www(.)romanceluvers(.)proboards(.)com. I think you will like it. (Just write the address without the parenthesis)