Time may not heal all wounds, but it soothes them, Klaus realizes. He's still overcome with the feeling of emptiness when he finds a misplaced picture of Bonnie in one of his drawers or when he goes down to the cellar, looking for the perfect bottle of wine (he can appreciate a good red from time to time) and sees the bottle of Krug Rosé champagne Bonnie liked so much.

In those occasions, he gives in the hectic energy that quickly fills him up to the brim. Goes out with some of the nightwalkers who are still yearning for a daylight ring and creates havoc on the other side of the lake. He has to hear it from Elijah afterward ("Niklaus, you must stop being so inconsequential and start acting like a leader for once!"), but his chest is not tight anymore, so he takes the lecture with remarkable patience.

However, as time goes by, it gets easier to pretend the eight years or so of his life are nothing but a figment of his creative imagination. It gets easier to look at the letters on his wrist and pretend they're a tattoo done after an alcohol-fueled night.

Camille, sweet Camille who patiently listens to him and tries to understand his demons in their weekly sessions, objects to his strategy.

("This can't possibly be healthy for your mental welfare," Camille comments after he's done explaining his latest method to keep him from submerging into despair. "Klaus, you can't rely on ignoring your feelings and sweeping things under the rug."

"Au contraire, Camille. I believe my technique is precisely what's been keeping me in such a jolly mood," he argues. The sarcasm dripping from his voice show exactly how jolly his mood currently is.

"Twenty dead vampires in Metairie doesn't exactly spell jolly to me, but then again, I'm not a thousand-year-old hybrid," she mutters under her breath as she scribbles on the notepad, fully intending for him to hear her.

Klaus has come a long way from the guy who made her sit through his hour-long rants and compelled her afterward. Now, he will listen to her even when they have differing opinions without pulling the 'I'm the Original hybrid act'. He actually looks like he's absorbing her words when they talk about the abuse suffered at Mikael's hand.

But, every single step forward he takes seems to come undone when the subject is his soulmate, Bonnie Bennett. It takes Cami all of her expertise acquired at Clemson University to even begin to understand Klaus' mind on Bonnie.

"That was a small misstep, Camille. No need to worry your pretty head," he says with a hand wave and enjoys seeing Camille scoff at his words. "I am fully committed to being the nice boy you and Elijah want me to be, so don't despair."

"It's only been, what? Eight months? You've been with Bonnie for years, you two shared a house and a life. Having emotional outbursts is not unusual. Keeping these emotions bottled up is what going to hurt you in the future."

"Must we keep discussing these matters? Bonnie has made her choice and I've accepted it."

Cami looks at him. At first glance, he looks like the epitome of indifference. One may look at him and believe the act he's trying to pull, but Cami can tell otherwise. 80 percent of communication is nonverbal and his nonverbal cues- anxious tapping his fingers against his leg, cranking his neck to relieve tension every ten minutes- tell Cami a different story from the words coming out of his mouth.

It's all an act. )

It doesn't matter, though. The issue of his seemingly unhealthy way of coping gets pushed to the side when his very first progeny comes strolling around town, carrying a dangerous prophecy with him.

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Bonnie Bennett-Taylor's lost her heart. Again.

She's six years old the first time it happens. Benjamin Waters, her next door neighbor gives her a small sunflower ripped off Mrs. Mulvaney's garden and plants a wet kiss on her cheek, and she's gone. Her heart breaks when he joins pee-wee football a month later and stops talking to her, but she recovers.

One may think the second time she lost her heart was to Jeremy Gilbert, but even though he did bruise a part of her heart, it was never his to begin with. No, that honor belongs to Niklaus Mikaelson, her soulmate.

She hands Klaus her heart with a rushed kiss; blood staining her cheeks and hands after he saves Grams' life. It reads like a scene straight from a horror movie, but it couldn't be more perfect.

Years later, he walks out of their home and chooses a throne in New Orleans over their relationship. Bonnie wonders if her heart, which is really his, will ever not be a shattered mess again.

But Bonnie Bennett is nothing if not the most resilient of them. It takes her some time, countless pints of Ben and Jerry's, but eventually, she recovers again. As does her heart.

That's when she meets Edward Taylor, a civil rights lawyer who actually has an extreme distaste for wearing suits and only does it while he's in court.

They are so different that somehow it works. He loves all things baseball, would've turned pro if it wasn't for an injury. She hates it. He's a human with no known ties to the supernatural world. She's a witch belonging to one of the most powerful and ancient magic lines in the world. Yet, they both know the pain of a lost soulmate and at times, it seems like his main objective in life is to make her laugh.

She hands him a part of her heart, her mangled put together with duct tape heart, months after their first date when she realizes that life without him is bleak and colorless. He robs the other part when he gets down on one knee.

This time is different from the other times, though. Bonnie is powerless, but she doesn't even want to fight. All she knows is that she's lost herself to the tiny squirming bundle in her arms, and she wouldn't have it any other way.

Born on a Sunday morning, five days before the due date, Julian Dominic becomes the love of her before he even opens his eyes.

Bonnie's never thought the soulmate bond would allow her to love someone more than she's loved Klaus, but she's wrong.

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Conceived during their two-week dream honeymoon in Santorini, Julian is the surprise Bonnie never saw coming. Bonnie's always been religious when it comes to taking the pill and hasn't had one slip up in years. Apparently, the warm Grecian breeze, the infinity pool overlooking the Aegean Sea and the privacy of their villa caused Bonnie to be lax with her birth control.

Seeing the positive sign on the white plastic stick just eight weeks after getting back home is nothing but a shock to her system. While she has no regrets about her marriage to Teddy, there's still some hesitation in the back of her head.

She's hesitant at first. A child, her child, deserves the best from her. And Bonnie isn't sure if she can give her absolute best just yet. Part of her is still a bit distracted and a bit distraught by her own confusing feelings. Getting over Klaus, wiping him from her memories, is much more difficult than Bonnie's ever anticipated. She loves Teddy, she does. It's hard to think of what her life would be now if it weren't for him. But there are moments she's cooking dinner and Klaus fills her mind. She wonders if she's happy, wonders how he's doing. Sometimes, she wonders where she would be if she had taken him up on his proposition; if she had called off the wedding and ran with him to New Orleans. These small moments are what make her hesitant and a little afraid.

What if the bond manipulates her mind so she doesn't love this child with her all because it's not her soulmate's?

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Her ambivalent feelings on babies slowly wash away as Bonnie sees everyone's excitement around her, and as she hits each goal in the pregnancy.

Teddy, who has the tendency of being a little crabby around other people, reveals his marshmallow interior whenever he feels the flutters inside her stomach.

("That's our person right there, sweets," Teddy whispers to her one night while they're cuddling on the couch; a wide grin on his face as he keeps his hand splayed on her expanding stomach.)

Grams, still vibrant and active in her advanced age – lotus root juice may have something to do with it- takes to spoiling Bonnie rotten. She makes weekly trips to Charleston and spends most of her time in the kitchen, making mac and cheese and biscuits and gravy, some of Bonnie's favorites.

Caroline gets so excited it's almost like she's pregnant herself.

("It's not a creepy thing, okay? I don't want to cut this baby off you or something like that," Caroline assures her as they wait for the technician to come perform the ultrasound. With Teddy swamped with court days, Caroline jumped at the opportunity to help her in the last weeks of the pregnancy.

"O-kay. I wasn't considering that scenario, but it's always nice to know," Bonnie says with a smile.

"I just…" Caroline looks a little self-conscious for a moment.

"I know, Care. Thank you for everything. Even the Dior booties.")

Even her dad, who has never been the most emotional man she knows, has shiny eyes – he blames it on these damn allergies – when she tells him he's going to have a grandson.

By the time her belly has expanded to the point Bonnie can place a bowl of cereal on it, she feels no more hesitation. Only expectation of what's to come.

When she holds the squalling, red baby, she's not disappointed.

0000

Klaus Mikaelson is restless. Inside what's supposed to be his palace, the beautiful Abattoir, he feels like a wolf trapped in a cage; almost crawling out of his skin.

Ever since Lucien, along with Tristan and Aurora, stepped into New Orleans, the tenuous peace that's reigned over the city was dismantled, as was his own sense of self.

It starts with Lucien, his bloody witch, and that prophecy. That damn prophecy that supposedly spells out the doom of his family.

At first, he thinks it's nothing but hogwash, a tale crafted as an attempt to intimidate him and make his enemies bolder. Yet, the words of the prophecy echo in his head every time he closes his eyes.

Fallen by family, friend, and foe. Every single one of them.

Klaus refuses to believe this ludicrous prophecy, but he has to admit that it messes with his head. His paranoia, a trait that he's been trying to curb during his therapy sessions, returns with full force. Is there any remaining white oak that he doesn't know? Are his siblings plotting his downfall behind his back?

In those moments, when Klaus doesn't know what is real and what is fantasy, he wishes he could call Bonnie. His witch has always been able to calm him down, to make him see reason.

On top of the prophecy lies the matter of Aurora. Beautiful Aurora with soft ivory skin and dark red hair. She looks just like she did hundreds of years ago when they were lost in their love and filled with hopes and dreams. Before his soul became jaded; before she broke his heart with a few words.

Despite everything – a jealous brother, a yearning suitor in Lucien, her own broken heart after their bitter parting and the cursive initials on his skin- she still desires to rekindle their relationship.

("Oh, Nik. We have always been so good together, haven't we?")

Klaus fails to feel the same, even when she reveals Elijah to be the architect of their pain years ago, even when she kisses him with newfound desperation, even when he inhales her scent – lilies with a hint of sandalwood.

He falters, returns her affections a time or two, but his past feelings for her remain dormant. That bright flame that consumed him years ago had burned out.

At least that's what he thinks until he catches a glimpse of a picture in Rebekah's open email. It's Bonnie. Donned in a pink hospital gown, face shimmering with sweat and a bright white smile, she embodies the definition of happiness as she holds a newborn baby.

A child. She's a mother to her husband's child.

Before that can sink into his mind properly, he's falling in bed with Aurora.

0000

"Mama, ma!" Julian squeaks as he plays with the rubber toys floating on the water.

Sheila Bennett smiles as she continues to bathe the eight-month-old with the special lavender and herbs soap she's crafted herself to prepare the baby for his long awaited Blessing.

The ancient ritual, which bestows a layer of protection over the blessed individual, has been performed in the Bennett family for centuries now, and Sheila is relieved Bonnie finally agreed to have the ritual performed.

Even though Sheila understands her granddaughter's motives for wanting to distance herself from magic, she doesn't want Julian being vulnerable to other supernatural threats that may appear some day. Besides, her grandson may have powers of his own, even though the Bennett line has only produced witches.

"You miss your mama, my darling?" Sheila asks in a soft voice, smoothing his light brown curls. Julian's eyes, green just like Bonnie's, widens when he hears the word mama as he nods. "Oh, sugar pie, you are just too smart! You think you got that from your mama?"

An idea hits Sheila as soon as the words leave her mouth. Even though it's not possible to determine whether or not Jules will go on to exhibit any magical abilities later, there's this tiny spell that will satisfy her curiosity for now.

"Oh, Bonnie," Sheila whispers in sorrow when she finally understands what's in front of her eyes.

As the old saying goes, curiosity killed the cat.

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A/N: Thank you for your lovely reviews, guys. I'm back with a new chapter and I just want to clarify something. This is a Klonnie story and I'm not doing the bait-and- switch. I hope you can trust me!

I saw that you liked teenager Bonnie, which made me really happy because writing that young, tentative relationship between them in the early days is really pleasing. This chapter has some elements of The Originals, like the prophecy and some characters, but that's about it. I have no intention of following canon. On the matter of canon, I can't even say I was disappointed with the ending of TVD. To be quite honest, I'm just relieved they didn't kill Bonnie, which seemed quite likely after all the shit they threw her way. Oh, well. Fanfic will always be here to give Bonnie the love she deserves.

Let me know your thoughts here or send me a message on tumblr at lilac17, I love discussing fics! Hope to update soon!