Catalyst
"You're a petty bitch, you know that, Tyler?" Caroline hissed.
"Look, I'll be the first to admit that this Klaus and Bonnie thing was a reason for calling Jeremy. But it wasn't the only reason. Elena is his sister. Do you really think he shouldn't be involved in this?"
"Yes!" Caroline cried, her eyes flashing. "Bonnie doesn't need Jeremy's shit right now, Tyler. None of us do."
"That doesn't change the fact that Elena is awake and alive and he had a right to know, Caroline!"
"If this was all about you trying to do the right thing, then why didn't you tell anyone he was coming?!"
Tyler thought for a minute. "Ok, that part was petty," He smirked.
"Damn it, Tyler!" Caroline growled, lunging for the wolf only to be stopped by Stefan.
"Look I'm not going to lie and say that I'm ok with Klaus getting his claws into Bonnie. You two can't see what's going on the way wolves can. If Bonnie doesn't hurry up and come to her senses fast, she's going to be stuck with that asshole for the rest of her life!"
"She doesn't need to come to her fucking senses, Tyler! She's in love with him!" The blonde raged.
"If Bonnie Bennett is in love with Klaus Mikaelson, then she's out of her fucking mind." The wolf gritted out. "You two don't get it because when he wasn't trying to bromance you," he said, pointing to Stefan. "Then he was trying to sleep with you!" He finished pointing to Caroline. "You don't know what it's like to have him swoop in and take everyone and everything that means anything to you and then laugh about it."
"Ok…ok…" Stefan said raising a hand and turning to Caroline.
"Tyler's right. Elena is Jeremy's sister and he has right to know what's going on with her."
He turned to Tyler and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Now generally, I keep quiet when it comes to Bonnie. For years it was because it was in my best interests. Keeping quiet meant she was less likely to be talked out of whatever reckless, horrible thing we needed her to do. Now I keep quiet out of respect. More than me, more than you, more than any of us…Bonnie has earned the right to her choices. And she's earned the right to have those choices respected."
"Stefan…It's Klaus."
"You think Klaus is my first choice for Bonnie?" Stefan asked. "Hell no! But it's not up to me, ok? Now I don't know what it is you wolves can see, but what I see is something that's working. And it's working in a way I haven't seen in either of them before. They love each other. If you're going to see anything, see that. Because Bonnie doesn't deserve you trying to swoop in and take this away from her."
BKBKBKBK
"He's right, you know," Marcel said, stepping out of the shadows. "He's right to worry about you."
Klaus snorted, "Of course he is. I'm worrisome." He'd been listening to Tyler prattle on about his relationship with Bonnie from the balcony above.
"Stefan's right too," Marcel continued, "You're different with her. Disturbingly so."
Klaus laughed. "Disturbingly…in what way?"
"In that if I didn't know any better I'd swear you had a soul," the vampire answered with a light chuckle.
They were quiet for a few moments and Klaus found himself at a loss. This was the first time he'd been alone with the vampire without the bitter sting of anger and betrayal coloring either of their words.
"Did you really burn down the Abattoir?" The hybrid asked, finally.
Marcel nodded. "Yep. After we put you in the Garden, we looted the place and set it ablaze. You have a problem with that?" The question was asked simply yet full of genuine curiosity.
"It was destroyed seven years ago," Klaus said. "I suppose I don't see the point in being angry about something so far removed."
"And the looting?" Marcel pressed, almost wanting to needle him into a reaction. Wanting him to show some sign that his words would not reflect his actions.
The hybrid turned and faced him. While he was no longer the willful human boy he'd happened upon centuries ago, somethings never changed. The faint crease that appeared in the vampire's brow now, always appeared when there were questions Marcel was hesitant to ask.
"Is that really what you want to ask me?"
The vampire sighed. "Fine. After Bob's taken care of, what happens next? Are the Mikaelsons going to darken my city's doorstep again? Are we going to tear New Orleans apart again?"
Klaus turned the question over in his mind. He'd come to his decision after his first exchange with his childe weeks ago. "I will not speak for my siblings, but I believe my business in New Orleans is done."
Marcel's eyes widened slightly. "It is?"
"Indeed," Klaus nodded. "I returned there intending to reclaim what I'd been forced to relinquish. I wanted things to return to the way they used to be and only succeeded in making them worse. I find I no longer want that now. I don't want things to go back to the way they used to be. Not when what could be is so much more intriguing."
Marcel studied the hybrid carefully "I hope you mean that," he finally said, quietly.
Klaus could hear the hesitation in the vampire's voice. He couldn't fault him for it. Far too many times Marcel had come to him in good faith-believing that the bond they shared was made of more than platitudes-only to have that faith ripped apart repeatedly. Far too many times had he knowingly backed Marcel into a corner and used his love and need for acceptance as leverage against him.
"Well, there's really only one way for you to know, isn't there?" He asked. "Words are meaningless between us now, aren't they? However, we are both creatures of action. Perhaps one day our actions will return meaning to our words."
Marcel stood silently, not knowing how to respond. Frustrated that after all this time-after all the lies, betrayals and death-the boy he used to be; the boy he'd said goodbye to when he plunged Tunde's blade into his sire's chest, wanted to believe his words.
"As long as I live I don't think I'll ever understand you," the vampire said, shaking his head ruefully.
Klaus chuckled, "Would you believe that I'm only now beginning to understand myself?"
"Is that the witch's fault?"
"Fault? No, but I would say that she has certainly been a catalyst," the hybrid mused.
"She seems to be that a lot," Marcel snorted.
"Indeed. It is a rare thing to effect change in others simply by being yourself and yet she does it effortlessly."
"So who's the idiot down there with her?" Marcel asked, motion toward the witch and the human who walked beside her.
"The doppelganger's brother cousin."
Marcel looked at the hybrid quizzically.
"It sounds more interesting than it actually is, I assure you," Klaus said dryly.
"So what does he want?"
"He's a Gilbert and she is a Bennett. Most likely he's expecting her to drop everything and assist him in freeing his...sister cousin," the hybrid explained. "And because he's a Gilbert, he's quite capable of attempting to use their personal history as leverage."
Marcel quirked an eyebrow. "Personal history?"
"Jeremy Gilbert is Bonnie's first love," Klaus replied.
Marcel's head whipped back to the pair walking across the grounds and frowned in disbelief. "That guy?"
"That guy," the hybrid confirmed.
Marcel shook his head. "Doesn't matter what century...teenagers are always full of hormones and bad decisions."
Klaus nodded, "I should know. Your teenage years were extremely taxing."
"Oh no...I'm proud to be the exception."
"Funny, I seem to recall a rather smitten fifteen year old boy, a very lovely but frightfully dim girl named Clara and some of the most god awful poetry known to man," Klaus said mildly.
Marcel's eyes widened, "You still remember that?"
"I remember everything that pertains to you," Klaus said, evenly. "And considering that I have countless lines of that dreck you two wrote to one another permanently burned into my brain, Tunde's blade really was a bit of overkill."
Marcel could only smirk in reply. The tension between them hadn't lessened, but it seemed to be mutating into something a bit more bearable for the moment.
"Burned it down, did you?" Klaus asked, remembering the Abattoir again.
"To the ground," Marcel said, smirking. "It felt good."
The hybrid chuckled, "I'm sure it did. I'd have done the same were I in your place."
BKBKBKBK
"So she's being held prisoner inside the boardinghouse?" Jeremy asked. "When do we leave?"
Bonnie stopped walking and braced herself. "We don't. We're making our last stand here."
"But what about Elena?" He turned to face her when he was met with only silence.
"I can't save her, Jeremy," the witch replied quietly.
"What do you mean you can't save her? This is Elena we're talking about."
"I know that and my answer's still the same. I can't do it."
Jeremy's face hardened when he saw the resolve in hers. "I can't believe what I'm hearing. You're going to just leave Elena to this monster?"
"No. I'm leaving Enzo, Damon and Elena to him," she answered firmly. "You think I haven't tried to think of another way?"
"Well I don't know Bonnie, what have you been doing? I'm finding it hard to believe that you would just leave your friend...your sister to rot."
"You're not listening to me. I didn't just do anything. Trying to rescue her is a risk I just can't afford to take, Jeremy."
"Why not?!"
"Why—are you serious right now?" the witch snapped, frustration beginning to give way to anger. "Look around you. These people aren't just twiddling their thumbs, Jeremy. Bob and his entire goddamn army are going to be right where we're standing in less than 72 hours."
"Even better. If he's bringing everyone with him then he'll more than likely bring Elena here too. We can get her out then."
"Jeremy-"
"What? Why isn't that an option?"
"Because I don't think she's making it out of Mystic Falls, that's why. I think that before they make their way here, those witches are going to drain her of every ounce of blood to use against us. And if you go down there, you're only going to succeed in getting yourself killed."
"Better that than just leaving her without even trying. I thought you loved her, Bonnie."
"I do love Elena! In spite of everything, I love her. But this isn't a game, Jeremy. I'm here, these people are here because we are fighting for something that is actually bigger than Elena. We aren't opening tombs or breaking curses or hunting for stupid fucking cures. We're fighting for all of us! And I'm not jeopardizing that for anyone. Not for you and not for her."
Jeremy's eyes pleaded with her. "There has to be another way. I can't just leave her…not when it's my fault she's there in the first place."
Bonnie sucked in a breath as he confirmed her suspicions. "They found her using your blood. How?"
"I was at a bar in Nebraska. Her name was Amanda. We had drinks, we talked...she was cute," he explained with a shrug. "I took her back to the motel. One thing led to another..."
"And when you woke up the next day, she was gone," Bonnie concluded.
"Yeah...and my hand was bandaged but I was so drunk I thought I hurt it myself. It didn't dawn on me that she might have been a witch until a few weeks later when Tyler called and said Elena's coffin was missing.
Bonnie nodded, "I figured as much."
"If I'd said something when it happened. If I'd called you or Tyler, we probably could've figured out what they were doing and moved her someplace safer."
"Why didn't you? Where have you been Jeremy? What have you been doing?" Jeremy had never been one to keep in contact, but over the past couple of years, the only person he'd made any effort to talk to was Tyler.
"Same thing I always do, I guess...running. It's easy to do when you're always so out of step with everything."
"Jeremy..."
"It's true, Bonnie. I never figure things out before it's too late. I focus on the wrong things, the wrong people for too long and by the time I figure it out..."
Bonnie's heart ached for him. In a lot of ways he was still that little emo stoner kid from long ago. The world stopped for all of them back then, but it never started up again for Jeremy. He never grew...he never changed. He just kept repeating the same mistakes over and over again and not just with their disaster of a relationship but with everything.
"You're still going to Mystic Falls, aren't you?" she asked quietly.
"Like I said, she's my sister. I got her into this mess so I have to try to get her out."
"But they'll catch you—"
"Maybe they will, maybe they won't. My luck's got to change sooner or later, right?" He placed his hands on her shoulders and smiled sadly when he saw her eyes brimming with tears.
"You save the world, Bonnie. I'll go save my sister." He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly, his chin resting atop her head. There was so much between them that hadn't been said, and it is only now that he realize that it doesn't need to be. He would always be her first love and she would always be the love he'd never been ready for.
Bonnie hugged him back. "Please be careful," she murmured into his shirt.
BKBKBKBK
"So Gilbert the Younger is going to Mystic Falls alone?" Klaus asked, walking up to Bonnie as she watched the motorcycle Jeremy arrived on disappear into the distance.
"I tried to talk him out of it but I couldn't. She's his sister."
"That doesn't make it any less of a fool's errand, I'm afraid."
Bonnie smiled sadly. "Damon trapped Katherine in the tomb with the moonstone once. We didn't know how important it was at the time. But when we found out, we needed to get it back without releasing Katherine. The last time we dropped the barrier on the tomb, my Grams died. I was getting nosebleeds and passing out from overexertion. So Jeremy went behind everyone's back and entered the tomb to try get the moonstone away from Katherine himself. It was dangerous and it was stupid, but he did it because he didn't want me to hurt myself.
"When he found out that I'd die if I killed you, he did the only thing he could do: he told Stefan in hope that someone would stop me and find another way. And when I was in the prison world…when I was at a point so low that I locked myself in the Salvatore garage with Damon's car running and a video camera full of goodbyes, it was Jeremy Gilbert who opened the door. Remembering what my Grams said made me change my mind, but I saw Jeremy save me when I couldn't save myself. He can be childish, self-absorbed, stupid, passive aggressive and a lot more, but I know why I loved him. And I know why I think better of him than most."
Klaus drew her into his arms, feeling her relax against him. "If Jeremy Gilbert's existence contributed in any way to your being here, then we are all the better for it."
Bonnie smiled as they began to walk in silence.
"Sun's almost down and we have a wolf dinner to go to," she said after a while.
"I think it's just called dinner, love."
"Yes, but it's the first time I've had dinner with a werewolf pack and I suspect it's your first time too. So it's a wolf dinner," she replied as they veer off the path back to the house and headed into the woods and in hand.
"I spoke to Marcel, earlier," Klaus said finally.
"You did? How was that?" the witch asked, eyebrows raised.
"Better than you might expect, actually."
"He didn't try to kill you?"
Klaus smirked, "No.
"That is better than I expected."
"It was a simple chat. Made more so by the lack of animosity. Perhaps the first in an attempt to begin anew, rather than pick up where we left off. Or perhaps I'm making too much of it and it was merely an attempt at civility."
"Hmm…my money's on the former."
"And why is that?"
"Because deep down Marcel still loves you. You're his father. That kind of love doesn't just go away regardless of the damage done. All you can do is wait for him to work through it and be there when he does. It's what I would have liked for either of parents to have done instead of always being the one trying to reach out. I think you no longer being in his Garden is exactly what he needs in order to heal because keeping you there certainly didn't."
"Perhaps," Klaus mused. "Though I suspect it will take a remarkable effort for him to do so."
"Of course it will, but he's your kid. If he's anything like his father, being remarkable comes naturally," she said, raising their joined hands to kiss his knuckles.
BKBKBKBK
Before long Bonnie saw firelight in the distance and they came upon a pathway lined with torches.
The wolves had created their own temporary world. She assumed the RVs she saw scattered about belonged to the alphas. The rest was a field of tents of varying sizes and shapes. A monstrous fire pit had been dug in the center of their encampment. The trees that had been taken down to clear the space, were used for seating around the roaring blaze.
People milled around them, taking brief notice of their arrival as classic rock blared through speakers that had been strung up to hang from trees.
"I see you two made it," Frederick called, striding up to them. "Hope you don't mind what we've done with the place."
Bonnie smiled brightly, "No! Not at all. I think it's great. Probably should have something like this out here permanently anyway."
"Well come on, I'll show you two around."
Frederick's tour of the encampment eventually brought them to a secondary fire pit that was being used to roast deer on multiple spits. Neil stood closest to fire, bare chested, his bright blue hair damp and plastered to his head. He was armed with a large bottle of elderberry wine in one hand and had an unlit joint dangling from his lips.
"Hey, Bonnie…Klaus…" He called after lighting the cigarette and taking a drag.
"Wow, finally on a first name basis, huh?" the witch quipped good-naturedly.
"You've been invited amongst our packs. Kind of goes with the territory," the alpha shrugged, watching as the witch fidgeting beneath the multitude of gazes that fell on her.
"Don't mind them. Most of them are still a little mind-blown where you're concerned."
"Mind-blown?"
"Well, yeah. I mean there you are, living breathing proof that the Great Healer not only existed, she fucking lived here with our ancestors. I mean what's next? We're gonna find out the fucking Blue Fairy's legit too?"
"And here I thought that's who you were," Frederick smirked, grinning when the younger wolf flipped him off.
Neil took another drag before passing the joint to Bonnie and proceeding to splash the roasting meat with wine.
Bonnie took two quick hits before passing it off to Klaus. The hybrid took a long drag before passing it to the judge.
"Lambsbread?" Klaus asked, upon exhaling.
"They say Marley used to smoke it," Neil answered, nodding. "I believe em."
"You should," Klaus and Frederick said in unison, catching them both off guard.
Frederick clapped the hybrid on the shoulder. "Come on, we've got tons of coolers over there, let's get you two something to drink."
As Bonnie fished around in a cooler she could have easily fallen into, Klaus turned when he found Tyler at his elbow.
"What is it, Lockwood?"
"Can I talk to you for a minute?"
Klaus glanced over at Bonnie, who'd now been drawn into a conversation with several others, before moving off with the werewolf.
Tyler placed his hands on his hips and sighed. "Look, I hate your fucking guts and I don't see that changing."
Klaus folded his arms across his chest. "You say that as though I'm supposed to care."
"Yeah, I know you don't. But I do care about Bonnie and according to Stefan and Caroline, so do you."
"Your point?"
Tyler gritted his teeth. "The point is that Bonnie's chosen you for some god awful reason that's not my business. I just…" He struggled to find words that fit. "Just please be good to her. If there's anyone who doesn't deserve the hell you can bring…it's her."
The werewolf then moved off quickly before Klaus could respond, stalking off to an area of the encampment where many were gathered around what appeared to be a makeshift fighting ring. He watched as the werewolf snatch off his shirt and tossed it aside before disappearing into the crowd.
BKBKBKBK
"Bonnie, if I didn't know any better I'd swear you were going to shift tomorrow night. You eat like a wolf," Neil remarked with a laugh.
"I can't help it. It's so good," the explained, cutting into the tender meat on her plate. She and Klaus sat on stumps with the alphas. The classic rock that had been piped through the speakers was gone, replaced by a group of werewolves near the fire pit bearing musical instruments of their own. They filled the night air with strains of folk songs, coaxing people from their perches to dance.
"Red meat and root vegetables," Neil explained, popping a morsel into his mouth. "Standard issue pre-shift fare."
"And likely the last time any of us will have it prepared by Neil here for a while." Chloe pointed out. She sat next to Tyler, sharing a plate.
"Why?" Klaus asked, drinking wine out a metal cup.
"Neil's probably choosing a mate tomorrow night," Erik explained.
"We don't know that," Neil muttered.
"You will if you want to be on Top Chef," James pointed out from her seat next to Frederick.
"Shut up, Jim."
"I'm sorry…what does mating and Top Chef have to do with one another?" Bonnie asked.
Chloe chuckled, "It isn't very often that all five packs have the opportunity to meet under the full moon. When we do, we call it the Wild Hunt. It's the only time we're able to come together as one pack as the Great Alpha intended," she explained. "Our wolves roam free but it also give us the opportunity to handle wolf business."
Bonnie's eyes widened, "Wolf business?"
"A few of the wolves here are still loners. Tomorrow night they may choose to submit to an alpha. If there are any pack members who wish to submit to a new alpha, they may do so as well. And it also happens to be the night that alphas choose mates, which is where Neil comes in."
Bonnie turned to the wolf in question, "You're choosing a mate so you can be on Top Chef?" She was trying hard to make sense of this and was still coming up empty.
"One of the obligations of an alpha is to be with his or her pack during the full moon. If he or she can't be there, then their mate stands in their place," Frederick said.
"And a season of Top Chef films for three months at least," James added.
Bonnie's mouth dropped open. "Are you saying that you're taking a mate tomorrow night so you'll have someone to fill in while you're on Top Chef?"
Neil nodded.
"But…but…don't wolves mate for life? I mean that's an awfully big commitment, Neil."
"Top Chef's worth it," Neil shrugged, causing the group to erupt in laughter.
When the mirth quieted down, Klaus asked, "What are you going to do during those three full moons you'll be living with unsuspecting culinary artists?"
"Once I became alpha of my pack, I commissioned a ring from a witch. It's not as powerful as the one your mother made for your father, but it does a good job of keeping the wolf under wraps when necessary," Neil answered.
"Speaking of which," James interrupted. "You'll want to make sure that both witches and vampires are safely indoors tomorrow night."
Bonnie nodded, "I'll speak to Marcel tomorrow. As for the witches, we're all going to be down in the caves for most of the night. I need to get them used to directly accessing the ley energy down there."
"The caves," Frederick mused. "Part of me still can't believe it. Here we are, descendants of those who lived on this land with your ancestor. Tomorrow night we will roam as they did a thousand years ago. And the night after that, we will help you finish the Great Healer's work. The spirits annoy, but they do appreciate symmetry."
Bonnie set her plate aside, taking Klaus's hand. She looked up at the night sky and felt the heat from the fire on her skin. The wolves' presence made the woods come alive in a way she hadn't experienced in the all the time she'd lived here.
"You all should come back," she said finally, earning confused looks all around here.
"This place means as much to you as it does to me. I know your packs are settled elsewhere, but you should come back here for your Wild Hunt at least. You're more than welcome, whenever you want." Bonnie hadn't planned to make such an invitation, but the rightness of it settled within her so quickly that she wondered why she hadn't thought of it sooner.
The alphas looked to each other, silently consulting on her offer before nodding their assent. "We would be honored," James said quietly.
"Which brings us to you…Klaus," Chloe announced.
After his conversation with Tyler, the Klaus had been more than cordial throughout the night, engaging in casual conversations with those curious enough to approach the Original Hybrid and son of the Great Alpha. Bonnie was right, he'd never spent so much time amongst his kind before. And while their level of scrutiny bothered, the wolf in him felt an ease he'd never experienced.
"What about me?" Klaus asked.
"Despite the fact that you have been…augmented by vampirism, you are still of our kind. Your father forged the path that we walk. And yet your crimes against our kind have been numerous. But it is as you said earlier: we are at a watershed moment; and no wolf is turned away from the Wild Hunt. You are welcome to join us and in so doing perhaps begin to begin again." She extended the cup to him.
"Honor the moon with your father's pack, Klaus."
Klaus stared at the cup held out for him and was reminded of the night he'd first kissed Bonnie. The night she convinced him of the ways in which he'd neglected a very integral part of himself. A part of himself that felt the witch squeeze his hand gently as he reached out and claimed his place among them.
A/N: So this chapter, as well as the next one are really about moving characters into position and planting certain seeds for the final bit of this story. The resolution of several story elements begins next chapter and needless to say, Klonnie is going to be very busy both separately and as a unit. And the next chapter will be huge for them on a lot of levels leading into the final three chapters of this fic. I still can't believe this thing is almost done and I just started writing it four months ago. YAY!
On another note. I just want to say that the Klonnie fandom is pretty small and as a result, we're all reading each other's stuff. Considering how little we have to work with canonically with Klonnie, it makes sense that there's going to be overlap in what we write. I think that's where our creativity comes in, to take that commonality and express it in our own way. I also think that we can and often do become inspired by the original story elements of others, and that's fine too. I have and had zero problem saying that a scene in one of my chapters was inspired by a drabble written by another Klonnie writer. I think that by doing that, I'm not only acknowledging her work but also maybe providing encouragement to keep producing more. Which is something fic writers need, especially in fandoms our size. I just think that's the right thing to do as creatives and I don't think that acknowledging that takes away from anything I'm doing.
So I would just ask that the writers among us take that into consideration because the more we encourage and support each other as Klonnie writers, the more content that's likely to be produced. For instance, I was extremely hesitant about posting a fic at all because I've heard the horror stories about people having elements of their stories lifted and how it's driven people to start writing on more secure platforms or stop writing for fandoms altogether. But I decided to do it anyway because I was encouraged to do so by another Klonnie writer. And I continue to be encouraged by other Klonnie writers and writers in other fandoms as well and it means a lot to someone that's putting their content out there, especially for the first time. This isn't a popularity contest and it shouldn't be. We're all just producers and consumers of art that celebrates a ship we love. And as a producer, there's nothing wrong with acknowledging the producers to the left and the right of you when appropriate because we're all in it for the same reasons. Right?
Anyway, that was my moment on my soapbox.
Thank you all for your reads and follows. I really appreciate them and hope that you're enjoying this story as much as I'm enjoying writing it. By the way, there's another Klonnie fic on the horizon (the first chapter is almost done) after Truth Teller is complete. I really didn't want to start another fic before finishing this one because I don't like keeping multiple balls in the air. But I think this story is really cute and my muse wouldn't leave me alone about it. So if that first chap gets finished before T T is complete, I may or may not post it early. It's going to be a Klonnie AU AH and decidedly lighter as far as tone and I doubt that it will be as long so keep an eye out for that if you're interested.