Note: I'm still alive...

Chapter 11

"Conrad"

Stefan and Damon stood outside what was left of their home. The fire and smoke were gone but the ashes still puffed into the air whenever the wind blew. Stefan had his hands on his hips and Damon's arms were crossed. Both of their heads tilted to the right.

"We can probably just ignore the burnt parts," Damon said as he squinted at the scene. "Buff out the furniture…"

"You burned down our house..."

"Technically, Evelyn burned down our house." He corrected.

Stefan glared at Damon before tackling him to the ground. Stefan punched his brother until Damon broke his nose and the skin on his knuckles cut open from the bones From Damon's nose. In a lot of ways, the house was all Stefan had left and he couldn't even go home to it anymore.

Finally, Damon found the resolve to hit Stefan back. They threw fast punches at each other for several minutes before they tore apart from exhaustion.

"We don't have a house anymore!" Stefan shouted as he gestures towards the ruins.

"It was a small price to pay for Bonnie's safety." Damon shouted back, realizing then that there wasn't a thing he wouldn't sacrifice in the name of her. He exhaled. He wasn't giving up but his shoulders were stiff and he knew he was running out of options.

"Except Bonnie's not safe is she? She's right where she's been for damn near two months now. Nothing's changed, Stefan pointed at him, "including you."

"What's that's supposed to mean?"

"I mean we're gonna do this my way, brother."

Stefan's way required patience, the one thing Damon had little of. Stefan's plan of action was to simply wait for Laurent and strike a deal with him. Evelyn for Bonnie's body and Consciousness.

And since they'll be waiting for Laurent, Evelyn won't see it coming. As far as Stefan understood, this man Laurent is probably the only one on their side of the world that could be stronger than her.

Fortunately, it was only another two days before Laurent arrived.

"Name?" Matt asked the man who attempted to drive into mystic falls. He and his men have combed through anyone who tried to get into mystic falls for over a few days now. It was a favor to Stefan and a debt he owned to Bonnie.

The man smiled curiously. "I've never needed identification to enter a small town like this before."

"Yeah well, times are changing."

The man nodded. "Of course." He handed Matt his ID and patiently waited for it to be returned to him. However, the officer hesitated to return it. "Is there something wrong?"

The officer looked up and shook his head. "No, none at all. Have a nice day Mr. Sewell."

The man's smile never left him. "Thank you, I hope you have one as well."

"I can only be so lucky," Matt replied dryly before signaling to his men to let the driver through.

He considered briefly that if a magical being wanted in, there was no way he and his men would be able to stop them. How does someone spot a hundreds year old witch?

The man, Mr. Sewell, drove through mystic falls and took in its small town sceneries. He wasn't impressed. He was surprised anything was still living here.

He drove by a mansion; it had burned down, and wondered how it all happened. How unfortunate for the residents. He then leisurely made his way to a lesser grand home. It seemed to be right in the center of town, front water fountain, perfectly manicured grass, glossy exterior, the works.

His heart raced as he approached the front door, he could hardly keep from smiling. He would see his beloved again. He rang the doorbell, as he waited; he adjusted his tie and brushed off his suit.

"May I help you?" A blonde asked when she swung the door open. He could tell immediately that she was a vampire and fought off the urge to suck his teeth.

"My name is Conrad Sewell, you're housing a witch friend of mine and I'd like her to be returned to me."

Caroline's eyes darkened. "You must be Laurent."

"I have very little patience for your kind so if you don't mind..." He raised his hand and Caroline felt like her head was spilling in half.

Stefan, hearing Caroline scream, flashed to the front door. He could tell right away what happened.

"Mr. Vygotsky I assume?"

He released his power on Caroline. "I go by Conrad Sewell now, but yes. Now, about my dearest Evelyn." He looked around the room. She was definitely there, he wouldn't mistake it.

"She's resting," Stefan answered seriously. Whatever Lucy had put her through the day of the fire had out her and Bonnie to sleep. They were on day two of rest.

"I see," Conrad nodded. "It's about time she rose from her slumber. If you can step aside," he tried to walk by him but Stefan stepped into his path. Conrad sighed. "Is a fight what you want?" He asked in a bored tone. Before he could say anymore though, he was shot in the back with a tranquilizer.

His body dropped instantly to the floor. Stefan looked up to see Damon holding a gun. Caroline found satisfaction seeing his body on the ground however; shooting him wasn't a part of the plan.

"What the hell did you do?!" Stefan yelled.

"Oh come on, he was going to kill you. Look at how much he hesitated with a pretty blonde like Caroline," Damon groaned as he picked up the body and dragged it to an arm chair.

"We don't know if he would have helped us and now he definitely won't."

"Damon's right," Caroline quickly added.

"He is?" Stefan questioned.

"I am?" Damon said with an expression that matched his brother's.

"Yes. You saw what he did to me. Damon's right, Laurent is just going to blow through this place, take Evelyn and leave. We can't let that happen." She helped Damon sit Laurent properly on his seat. "Let's tie him up..."

"How is this going to help Bonnie?" Stefan said, assuming that both Damon and Caroline had effectively lost their minds.

"He helps us or we kill him," Damon answered simply.

"Yeah, because your way has worked so many times in the past."

Stefan and Damon argued over Laurent's unconscious body until he began to stir.

"Well that was fast," Damon muttered uneasily. He was sure he shot Laurent with enough juice to pout an elephant in a coma.

Laurent's eyes were glassy when he opened them.

"Wakey wakey," Damon said as Laurent's vision focused on him. Part of him was glad that witches were still human, that they could still be broken with enough force.

"Vampires are a rash breed," he managed to say with eyes fighting to stay open.

Stefan walked up to the witch. "My name is Stefan Salvatore."

"So you are? You've had quite the reputation Mr. Salvatore; there are corners of the world that still fear your return... Stefan the Ripper." Laurent spoke calmly as he got to his feet. He was nothing short of irritated with his vampire acquaintances though.

"My brother's pretty popular. Now back to the point. You want Evelyn right? We give her to you if you separate her from the body she's occupying."

"Give her to me? That's to say you've trapped her here?" He knew well enough that it was impossible. The only thing stronger than witches were gods themselves.

Damon smirked. "We've given Evelyn a run for her money. She's currently unconscious upstairs. She has been of two days now."

It was then that Conrad's eyes darkened. Without warning, the sliver knifes in the kitchen came speeding through the air and sliced Damon's right arm and leg off. His body tumbled to the ground in a bloody pile.

Caroline screamed and Stefan flashed forward to break Laurent's neck but Laurent saw him coming and used his magic to throw him across the room.

Laurent quickly turned to Caroline, set on finishing what he started when he met her only an hour ago when the scream of a woman caught his attention.

Conrad looked at the girl who had tortured eyes. "Please stop!"

"Who...?" Conrad started but wasn't allowed to finish his question.

"Can't you tell just by looking!?" Her green eyes were intense and cut right into his soul.

"Evelyn..." He breathed a sigh of relief. She had different body now but Evelyn's old soul was unmistakable.

"Stop what you're doing."

"Evelyn," he said again, and rushed to hug her. Evelyn allowed this but only to make her point clear, one that Laurent understood as soon as he touched her. "Whose body is this?" He hated that she resorted to taking someone's body, it was high stakes magic.

"The last Bennett's of course."

He smiled a bit. "Of course." He'd have to scold her on the ramifications of magic this extreme later.

She freed herself of his hold and moved to help Damon reattach his limbs. "You were always dramatic," she said with a quiet voice. "If vampires weren't so resilient, this would surely be a massacre." Damon was unconscious by then, blacking out from shock and extreme blood lost in losing two appendages.

"They said they trapped you here. An obvious lie should be punished," his voice was grim. However it wasn't the lie that set him off, it was simply the idea of Evelyn being trapped in a room he hasn't built with his own hands. She was his after all.

Evelyn didn't bother checking on Caroline or Stefan; Damon got the worst of it after all. Bonnie had done nothing less than lose her mind seeing what Laurent had done to Damon when they'd finally awoken and reached downstairs. Bonnie's emotions had torn Evelyn up inside. If she hadn't stopped Laurent, Evelyn wasn't sure what else Bonnie's emotions were capable of.

"I wasn't trapped." Evelyn was exhausted still. "But you knew that."

"Then you were waiting for me after all?" There was no reason for lies between them. For everything he wanted from her, he had always been sincere.

She glared. "No."

"Were you tired of running?" He stepped closer to her. Evelyn isn't a fair skinned, blue eyed beauty anymore. The Evelyn before him had warm brown skin, red wine hair, and brilliant forest green eyes. She was still the woman he loved. It wouldn't matter to him what she looked like or whose body she took over at this point. Evelyn was Evelyn. "They were going to give you to me in exchange for this body and the soul I can tell is still attached to it."

"I'd rather die than have my fate decided for me." She hissed and Laurent didn't doubt it.

"Ah, so you steal the body if a young witch with legendary blood and decide your fate along with hers?" He questioned has he paced the room, the bodies of vampires decorating the hardwood floors.

Evelyn smirked. "Are you calling me a hypocrite? I hate being called anything but beautiful."

"Did you miss me?" He stared at her lovingly but there was a long moment before she responded.

"No," she said as she looked away. She spent a hundred years running from him. There was so way she would miss him.

"Evelyn, I can sense how weak you are right now. I have to wonder who put you in this shape. Maybe I should thank them..." He voice got lower and Evelyn's defenses piqued.

Conrad threw her against the wall with his magic. He was sure not to use so much force that it would kill her but this was his only chance. He'll have her, no matter what.

It was hard getting from the floor, Evelyn's vision was spotty. She blinked hard to clear her vision. From the other side of the room, she could see Laurent hang Damon, Caroline, and Stefan on the wall. She wasn't sure right away, what he was thinking to do.

She finally got to her feet and tried to use her powers to choke him but Laurent was right, Lucy had done more damage than she expected. Her powers were considerably weaker.

"Oh Evelyn. You're so precious. But like I said, whoever got to you before me is working to my favor."

It was then that Stefan had regained consciousness. He couldn't move to help Bonnie but he also wasn't sure what was happening to her, or Evelyn.

"Stay... Away from… me," Evelyn tried to put up a barrier between them but Laurent easily broke through it.

His hands seized her face, his thumbs pressed hard on her temple. He chanted quickly as Evelyn struggled against him.

Evelyn's world went dark and when the light shone again, she was exactly where Laurent wanted her, trapped inside of Bonnie's body.

The whirlwind of physical and emotional trauma all seemed to settle for a moment. Bonnie was looking up at Laurent with her own eyes.

"We haven't been properly introduced. I go by Conrad Sewell. Please forget the name Laurent."

It took him a single day to overpower Evelyn. Just that was terrifying enough. Bonnie was speechless.

"I don't plan to hurt you," Conrad started casually. "That's a promise. However, I don't intend to leave quietly. While this town—Mystic Falls—isn't in my or my sweet Evelyn's taste, but it'll have to do for now."

Bonnie shut her eyes tight and then slowly opened them. She had to get it together. Take care of Evelyn, get rid of Laurent, it was all up to her now.

"Speak," Conrad insisted.

Bonnie's throat tightened in resistance. She didn't want to talk. She wanted to eat something, sleep for a day—talk to Damon—and then sleep for another day.

But this was Laurent—Conrad. If Evelyn was strong, Conrad was invincible.

"My name..." She choked, "is Bonnie."

He stepped closer to her. Examining her face. "Bonnie? Bonnie Bennett?" He didn't need a response though, she looked exactly like her. "How's Sheila?" His face was oddly warm.

"She died," she answered coldly, hoping not to betray her heart in making it obvious that grams' death still affected her.

Conrad frowned. "She was a good woman. Righteous to a fault with the sharpest tongue I've ever come across. Evelyn was right to find you," he reached out to touch her cheek but Bonnie quickly tilted her head away from his hand. He smiled still. "Prepare yourself Ms. Bonnie Bennett. I plan on making you my wife."