Author's Note: Here's a new Bamon fic that popped into my head. I actually hadn't planned to even post any of it until I had completed it, but some news forced my hand and made me want to get it out now. I hope it is all cohesive and makes sense as I never watched TVD from season one, didn't really start to watch it religiously until season 6. When we got some Bamon good story lines and we got Kai, need I say more :D Anyway, I hope you enjoy the read. I know I still have Redemption I need to update and I am also working on that. Stay tuned and please read and review. Thank you.


He opened his eyes with a start. His wide eyes quickly scanned the room before settling onto the fire blazing in the fireplace. It took him a few seconds to take in his surroundings before he realized he was home, in his study. But it had been the pressure on his chest that had made him snap his eyes down to the face of a sleeping Elena Gilbert, who was curled on the huge leather couch wrapped around him. He jerked a little and as if she were waking from a fright filled dream, Elena's eyes shot open and she abruptly rose up and stared down into familiar eyes.

"Stefan, what happened?" She spoke out as she sat more upright upon the couch along with Stefan.

"Elena," He replied. "How did you get here?"

"Uhm … you invited me over," She replied confusion clear on her face as she tucked a lock of her long hair behind her ear. "For movie night, don't you remember?" She self-consciously rubbed her hand along her bare arm.

"This doesn't feel dead," He spoke lowly as his brow furrowed. "And I know because I was dead for a long time, here waiting for… Wait, where's Damon?" Stefan questioned as he slowly stood from the couch and stepped towards the doorway. And as if the sound of his name had conjured him, Damon suddenly flashed into the room.

"Okay, little brother, what's going on?" Damon asked as he looked between his brother and Elena whom he didn't feel as overjoyed at seeing as he would have thought. "Weren't we just hugging at the front door? Then it was like I blacked out, woke up, and I found myself at the Grille with a drank in my hand."

"So, you felt it too and remembered what happened?" Stefan questioned and Damon nodded his head a bit as he looked at his little brother with enlarged blue eyes.

"If you mean dying, and I mean the dead and buried kind. Not the undead with a need for blood, kind. Yeah, I remember it," He then turned a little and looked around the room as if he were expecting to see something out of place. "This doesn't feel like death to me and if this is my afterlife, you shouldn't be here," He pointed to Elena who stood from the couch and took steps closer to the Salvatore brothers. She frowned at the brother's interaction and conversation.

"What are you two talking about?" Elena questioned as she looked from one brother to the other for an explanation.

"I think I can explain," A female voice interrupted them. Stefan, Damon, and Elena all turned surprised eyes to the woman now standing at the entrance to the study.

"Sheila?" Stefan said and he and the others watched as Sheila Bennett entered the room, moved to the bar, and began to fix herself a shot of whiskey, which she quickly downed and then started to pour herself another.

"Okay, this might be the afterlife because I know for a fact, she's dead," Damon said as he pointed to the woman standing at the bar.

"Grams?" Another female voice called out from the foyer and Damon shot excited eyes to the entrance just as Bonnie Bennett appeared through the door.

"Bon-Bon?" He spoke out joyfully and she looked at him with her face scowled up.

"Don't start with me, Damon, this day is already weird enough without your mind games," Bonnie huffed out as she rolled her eyes from Damon's confused ones over to land on her grandmother. "Grams why are we here and oh my God, are you getting drunk?" Bonnie questioned the older Bennett witch who was finishing her third shot.

"Child please," Sheila Bennett replied as she rolled her eyes slightly. "I don't even start to feel a buzz until after 10 shots," She declared and Damon arched an impressed brow as he regarded her words briefly before focusing back on Bonnie.

"Okay, wait," Stefan ever the voice of reason cut in. "What is going on, Bonnie, how did we get here?"

"I don't know," She sighed out and she hugged her arms around herself. "One moment I'm standing in Grams' kitchen making us breakfast and she rushes in panicked and saying we had to leave, then we were here … like I blinked and then we were here. How did that happen exactly?"

"It's like the projection spell I've been having you practice, but next level," Sheila began to explain as she stepped away from the bar to face them. "You're not skilled enough to do teleportation yet, but he is, which is why we're all here now. I never should have sent you to that prison world," She spoke the last part lowly but Damon and Stefan both heard her clearly and knew what she was referring to.

"Kai," Damon hissed out.

"But how, I thought Bonnie locked him away in some other prison hell world," Stefan interjected.

"Wait, what?" Bonnie exclaimed as she looked at Stefan and then to her Grams.

"She did, but she used Gemini magic from children who were too young and weren't powerful enough at the time to make the spell powerful enough. The magic likely degraded in time and allowed him to break free. And, Bonnie, I know this is all confusing for you, babygirl," Grams spoke out as she moved to her granddaughter and grasped her hand. "I wish we had more time where we could sit down and I could explain things in more detail, but we don't have the time. Just know this, none of us are supposed to be here, we're all dead," She began and Elena and Bonnie's eyes enlarged in fright. "Don't worry, you both lived a long and happy life before you died," Sheila assured them both. "Bonnie, you and Damon died once before and I cast a spell that would stop 'you' from being blinked into oblivion when the other side collapsed, sent you 'both' to an alternate world where I thought you would be able to live the life, I always wanted for you. I didn't know then that where I was sending you was actually some prison hell world, a place designed to keep a very dangerous man. I know it all sounds unbelievable but just trust me and go with it," She said and Bonnie silently nodded as she waited for her Grandmother to continue. "This bad guy is named Kai, and you were able to stop him by trapping him in another prison world, but he was able to escape that too. Then Damon killed him…"

"So, we thought, I mean one would think decapitation would do the trick, but noooo. He's like a cockroach," Damon tossed in and Sheila nodded in agreement.

"True, so he was able to get out that time too, but Bonnie, you were able to defeat him and trap him once more, but now he's managed to get out again," Sheila continued. "This time he's decided to come to the past and try to change things before they happened. This world has already been affected by the things he's done. He's already found his twin sister Josette and killed her, but then his family's coven was able to stop him before he could claim any more of them. They're now in hiding and won't be able to help us. So, we won't be able to trap him again with any Gemini magic."

"This all sounds crazy," Elena spoke.

"You're dating a vampire sweetie, but you didn't find that crazy?" Sheila questioned and Elena clamped her mouth closed quickly.

"How do you know this, if these things happened in all of our futures? How could you remember it when I don't?" Bonnie asked.

"I don't either," Elena added.

"You're not a vampire yet," She said as she looked at Elena who instantly paled from fright at her words. "And now you may never become one. And as for you," She then turned to Bonnie. "You're not a powerful enough witch yet, I think that's why you weren't affected. It seems that only true supernatural beings retained their memories. I've already gotten plenty of calls from some witch friends of mine asking me if I knew what was going on, but I played dumb to protect you, Bonnie. Witches, vampires, werewolves, whatever, we all remember everything we've experienced 'before'. That is also why things are being changed now, some are doing things differently than they did before, which is changing the outcome of the future that was."

"Is that a good or bad thing?" Stefan asked.

"I don't know and I don't think it matters, we already lived that other future life and we know how it ends. At least as far as how it ends for ourselves. This is all a redo. A chance to do things differently, live another life if we want to. And I can tell you right now I don't plan to die the way I did before, using my powers to the point it completely drains me. I've already taken care of that problem to make sure it never happens."

"What? Grams?" Bonnie's hold on her grandmother's arm tightened as her fears heightened and worry etched across her face.

"Don't you worry, baby. Like I said, 'that' death is not gonna happen again," Sheila assured her. I don't plan to leave you now, especially not while there's danger out there looking for you. And you," She then turned to Damon. "I know you and Bonnie developed a very strong and loving bond between you, but don't think any of that wins you any favors with me," Bonnie's mouth fell open a bit at this news as she shot stunned eyes onto Damon. "That was then and this is now. So, if you want to get on my good side 'now', you protect her and help me to keep her safe," She declared.

"With my last breath," Damon promised not that it has ever been a question in his mind. He always protected his family and those he held dear. He had deemed Bonnie family long ago and through all the trials and tribulations of their long relationship she had become the one most-dearest to him.

"Good," Sheila said with a nod. "Because I will need your help to stop Malachai."

"Oh, I insist on first dibs at killing him," Damon said as a deadly gleam flashed in his eyes. "This time I won't just decapitate him, I'll also rip out his heart, set him on fire, and then I'll scatter his ashes in the wind," Damon spoke it as a promise. "I won't let him get the chance to hurt you ever again, Bon-Bon, I swear," He added and she continued to stare at him with a stunned look as her face scrunched up in more confusion. She thought his words and definitely the way he was looking at her held endearment. When just the day before those same eyes held contempt and murderous intent towards her

"And I'm gonna hold you to that, Damon. You keep her safe no matter what," Sheila declared and Damon nodded. "Because he is coming for you, Bonnie."

"But why me?" Bonnie said as a new fear filled her. "If he's out now and I have no way to send him back again why would he even bother with me?"

"Probably because you've already imprisoned him twice, so he wants to take you out and make sure there's no threat to ever sending him back," It was Stefan that answered.

"No, I'm betting it's because she destroyed hell, with a little help from her ancestors," Sheila said as she smiled proudly, as Bonnie's eyes bulged out of her head and her mouth fell open in shock. "What you did elevated you to levels of power I never even knew existed. You might just be the most powerful witch to have ever lived. So, Kai is probably very scared of you and the power you will one day wield."

"Both good guesses, but both wrong," Damon stated and all eyes fell to him. "He's coming for you, Bonnie, because he's in love with you. He's demented and a complete sociopath, so his idea of love is warped and twisted, I'm sure, but he does love you in his own way. He'll probably first start to woo you to try to get you to come over to the dark side with him and when you refuse, 'then' he'll try to kill you."

"Okay, that's creepy as hell," Bonnie said as she instinctively wrapped her arms around herself.

"You don't have to worry, Bonnie, we're going to protect you," Sheila proclaimed. "That's why we're gonna need to stay here until we can find Kai and stop him once and for all. I've already put a Kai proof spell over this house. He shouldn't be able to break it, and if he tries it will syphon his power and energy for a short time," She said as she looked to Damon and then to Stefan as she spoke this.

"Of Course, you're both welcome to stay here as long as it takes," Stefan replied as he folded his arms across his chest. "But do, you know how to find him and stop him?"

"I haven't been able to find where he's hiding out, I started looking the second I was rebirthed here back in the past," She answered. "He's got help or he's syphoned from a very powerful witch and attained their powers and skills. He's cloaking himself, but he's not so good at it. I can catch glimpses of him from time to time, but before I can fully locate him, he discovers my spell and moves again," Sheila replied and then again focused onto Bonnie. "So, you and I will have to do a lot more practicing. We need to get your magic skills up. You turn out to be the most powerful Bennett witch, babygirl. It took some time for you to get there, time we don't have now. So, with a little magical persuasion from me and a lot of practicing from you, I think we can get you there more quickly."

"But I thought you always said that I can't rush my magic," Bonnie questioned.

"That was before I learned that some evil guy would come back across time just to get to you. All the rules I told you before will not apply now. Now, it is all about keeping you safe."

"And we will keep you safe," Damon declared. The words and the look on his face convinced Bonnie that he believed what he was saying to her, though she didn't trust him at all.

"If you wouldn't mind, Stefan, could you take me back to my place so I can pack up some things for Bonnie and myself?" Sheila asked and Stefan hurriedly nodded. "When I realized what was happening I panicked and we left in such a hurry I couldn't grab what we'll need."

"Of course," He unfolded his arms.

"Yeah, and could you take me home on the way," Elena spoke out. "I don't fully understand what all is happening but I need to check on Ric and Jeremy. Make sure they're okay."

"I think you need to stay here to be safe," Damon said and Elena scowled at him, but he directed his gaze to Stefan. "He used her as bait before, she may not remember why but Kai does," He added and Stefan nodded in agreement.

"He's right, Elena," Stefan said. "But I don't know if we should even tell you why…"

"In the original timeline, in a couple of years from now you get turned into a vampire," Sheila quickly started to explain and both Damon and Stefan looked at her in confusion. "Yes, I was dead by then but I still kept an eye on all things going on here, particularly when it came to Bonnie." She answered their unasked question. "Anyway," She focused back onto Elena. "You break up with this brother," She pointed to Stefan who stood quiet with a stoic look on his face. Elena turned to stare at Stefan as she listened. "Then you get with this brother, and you two lived happily ever after, more or less," Disgust fell across both Elena and Bonnie's faces at hearing this. Elena shook her head in disbelief. "Look, I already told you we don't have time to be delicate about things. Also, none of that has to happen now, we in particular," She pointed to Stefan, to Damon, and then to herself. "We know all that will happen and so we have the power to change things and prevent things," Both of the Salvatore brothers nodded their understanding. "Kai learned how obsessed Damon was with you and that you were Bonnie's oldest friend and he used you before to get to them," She continued to explain to Elena. "And there's no reason for him not to try that same tactic, because it worked really well the first time. So, you would be safer here with all of us, Elena."

"Wait, she really goes from one brother to the other?" Bonnie interjected as her face screwed up in horrific disgust.

"Geez, thanks Bonnie, but allow me a moment to take in the fact that I will apparently become a slut before you rub it in my face," Elena huffed out as she settled hurt eyes upon one of her closest friends.

"Oh no, Elena, I didn't mean it like that, though that is kind of skanky … But I just meant, well, it seems you have a thing for vampires," Bonnie corrected. "And that's kind of ewww,"She said as she made a twisted up face.

"Oh, baby, so do you," Sheila said to which both Damon and Stefan nodded their heads. Bonnie looked to each of them in shock. "So, don't be so quick to toss around rocks when the house you will live in someday is made of glass."

"What, who? No, I don't want to know," Bonnie held up a hand and shook her head. "Because it will never happen, not now, not ever … Well, ever again. Now that I know, I can and I will stop it from ever happening," She proclaimed as she folded her arms across her chest.

"Sure, you will baby," Sheila replied with a knowing smile that suggested she didn't fully believe what Bonnie had said. "Let's go, Stefan, I want to get back before nightfall."

"I … I still need to make sure my family is safe," Elena stated.

"We'll stop by and check on them, make up some excuse as to why you need to stay here for a bit," Stefan said as he reached out and grasped her hand to reassure her.

"Thank you, Stefan, and I…" She felt the need to apologize if she had hurt him in some future that she had no knowledge of and which now just might never happen.

"It's all right Elena, I forgave you a long time ago and I even found love again," He confessed. "We both got a happily ever after with other people," He added a lie to help set her mind at ease, but his words only made her a bit jealous.

"All right, let's do this mushy stuff later," Sheila cut in. "I need to get my Grimoire and other things, we'll need all the help we can get to fight Kai," She then moved to the exit. Stefan gave Elena's hand a slight squeeze, tossed her a kind smile, and then followed Sheila out. After a few moments of silence Damon spoke out.

"Can I get you ladies something to drink or eat?" He offered courteously.

"Do you even have food?" Bonnie asked as she scowled at him, he simply gave her a kind smile as he regarded her.

"Yes, we keep food in the house in case we have guests," He answered honestly. "It's easier to keep up the pretense that we're human if we live that way for the most part. Also, we can still eat human food. I quite enjoy food actually. Yes, we need blood to live and not desiccate but there's nothing to prevent us from eating like you do."

"You know, I did wonder about that. I've seen Stefan eat but how do you digest it, I mean, technically you're dead or undead, right?" Elena asked and in reply Damon flashed to Bonnie and grasped her hand before she could react. He placed her hand right inside the top of his unbuttoned shirt and against his left breast. She looked up at him in slight fright before she realized what his intentions were.

"You have a heartbeat," She gasped out as he removed his hand from hers, but she kept her hand against his warm flesh.

"Yeah, human blood keeps our bodies working pretty much the same as it did when we were alive. Our hearts beat and our digestive system still works. Just another way we can blend in better."

"Except no matter how you might pretend, you're still just a murdering vampire," Bonnie spat out at him as she snatched her hand back and Damon flinched as the hate, he could see in her eyes and hear in her tone struck him. It had been a lifetime since he had felt that from Bonnie and it cut him deeply.

"That was in the past," He began but she cut him off.

"Actually, that was a week ago when you nearly killed me," She hissed back at him. He looked at her in confusion as he tried to recall a time so long ago to his recollection when he had harmed Bonnie. "Thankfully, Stefan was there and he saved me."

"When you destroyed the Bennett Talisman," He finally recalled as he averted his eyes to the floor in shame and nodded his head slightly.

"Right, it technically wasn't even me that did it, but that didn't stop you from nearly ripping my throat out."

"I'm sorry," Damon said softly to her.

"Apology not accepted," She replied gruffly back to him.

"Okay, you two," Elena finally spoke as she wanted to end the growing tension in the room. She could never understand why Bonnie always felt the need to antagonize a vampire like Damon. "If what Sheila said is true-"

"Every word of it is the truth and you two need to accept that," Damon said as he looked at the brunette in the room.

"All right, then we need to work together to stop this Kai guy. So, you two need to call a truce. At least until this is over."

"Not, likely," Bonnie mumbled under her breath and Damon quietly chuckled as he recalled the time, he had asked her for a truce and she flat out told him no.

"And it's not necessary," Damon spoke out again. "You only know the old version of an angry, vengeful Damon Salvatore. The me before I changed, before 'you' helped me change. Before we grew to become friends, very best friends," He said this while he looked directly at Bonnie. "I can only recall you as my best friend. Someone I love dearly and for who I'd do anything to protect, as you've done countless times for me," These words made her feel uncomfortable as she fidgeted a little in the spot where she stood gazing into his dazzling blue eyes. "I haven't had the Judgey, 'I hate you Damon', Bonnie Bennett around for a long while, so long I had forgotten how much I actually enjoyed that side of you. Man, I used to do stupid things just to rile you up, even when I knew you'd end up giving me an aneurysm. It was worth it though because when you are that angry and full of power, you're intoxicating to behold," He ended and both Bonnie and Elena were stunned quiet at his words, which sounded a lot like a come on.

"You're ridiculous," Bonnie finally said as she dropped her head a bit and tried to shake off the feelings his words had invoked in her. Warm feelings she didn't even want to acknowledge and never wanted to examine. Damon's robust laughter made her jump a little as she raised her wide eyes back up at him.

"I've missed you, Bon-Bon," He spoke this softly as he reached up and cupped at her face. Bonnie stood there too stunned by his words to even swat away his hand. "I'll go make us some drinks and snacks while we wait for Stefan and Sheila to return. You ladies make yourselves at home," He spoke over his shoulder as he walked out of the room.

"Okay, that was super weird," Elena stated as she moved to stand right before Bonnie who nodded her head in reply. "And you and Damon becoming besties in the future…"

"A future that won't ever happen," Bonnie quickly added as she shook her head to the idea. "I don't know what kind of fucked up things happen to me in his version of the future, that would ever cause us to become besties, but I don't plan to relive it. I'll find out what happened and then, I don't know. I'll do the complete opposite."

"And exactly how do you plan to find out what happened between you and Damon?"

"I'll ask my Grams, she seems okay with letting it all out anyway, to hell with what consequences it might have on the future."

"Or, you could just ask me," Damon offered as he flashed back into the room carrying a tray with a couple of canned sodas and a plate of assortments of meats, cheeses, and crackers. He settled the tray on the table closest to the couch. "I think I can tell you about 'our' relationship much better than Sheila can."

"Okay, but me first," Elena began and Damon sighed softly as the offer had only been for Bonnie. He then inwardly laughed because he should have known Elena would be Elena and find a way to make it about herself. "Did you turn me to make me choose you over Stefan?" She asked in an accusatory tone as she crossed her arms and glared at him.

"No, but my blood, which had been stolen unbeknownst to me was used on you and then you died sometime afterwards. That's how you were turned. I didn't personally do it," He answered. "And yes, your being turned, maybe even being sired from my blood, it did cause your feelings for me to be heighten. But those feelings were already there, Elena."

"And I just bet you used that fact to manipulate me and the situation," She added as she glowered at him and he nodded.

"Yup, I was a selfish bastard back then, and I was determined that I would get the girl that time, instead of Stefan. I believed I loved you so much that I was willing to do anything to have you," He spoke these words as he regarded her, subconsciously eyeing her from top to bottom before settling on her outraged face. "Oh, don't worry, been there done that, and I assure you it won't happen this time around," She blinked and looked if his cold and calloused words had literally smacked her across the face and knocked the air from her.

"Now, what about you, Bon-Bon," Damon then turned and gave the young witch his full attention. "What would you like to ask me?

"To please stop calling me that?" She asked irritated at the tingles stirred in her at hearing that nickname fall from his mouth.

"Nope," He answered with a smirk. "I started calling you that because I knew how much it irked you, then over the years it became a true term of endearment. Honestly, I don't think I could stop myself from saying it even if I really wanted to, which I don't. Next question?" He moved to the bar and poured himself a glass of bourbon.

"What exactly happened between us that made us so close, that I stopped detesting you and we became such good friends?"

"We died together, holding hands as we faced down death together," He replied and then took a sip of his drink be for continuing. "Except, instead of blinking into nothingness your Grams sent us, well it was intended for only you, to Kai's prison world. Though I don't think she knew that's what it was. Hell, I wouldn't put it passed that motherfucker to have had something to do with us ending up in his world," Damon growled out a little as his grip on the glass in his hand tightened some. He took in a deep breath to calm himself. "Anyway, we were there for months repeating the same day over and over, May 10th 1994. That day may have been a great day for someone but for us it was literal hell. As time went by, we gained a comradery, trust, and eventually friendship. At the time we thought that world was all we would ever see and all we had in that world was each other. Yeah, we still fought like we always did and one of us would storm off promising never to return, but we always did. And you and I created a moderately happy little life right here in this house together. That is until you noticed that we weren't alone. Soon after Kai made his presence finally known saying he knew how to get us out and back to our real world alive. In the end we discovered he was a sadistic asshole who murder several of his family members because he was power hungry, and the remaining family sent him to that prison world."

"Knowing that we still helped him escape?" Bonnie asked in disbelief.

"That was mostly me," Damon confessed and Bonnie rolled her eyes slightly not at all surprised by this news. "I was more than willing because like I said before, I would do anything for the love of Miss. Elena Gilbert, and I wanted to get back to her," He said around a humorless laugh as he locked his eyes to the fire still roaring in the fireplace. He then gulped down the rest of his drink. "In the end, the plan got shot to hell. While working on the escape plan where you were determined to get us out and leave Kai behind, you were hurt, stabbed by Kai. But you had enough strength to send me back. I didn't want to leave you, I told you to stop but you, always the sacrificial lamb when it comes to people you care about. You sent me anyway because 'I' had become someone you cared about. And probably because you got tired of all the moaning I was doing about Elena, Elena, Elena," He added on with a smirk that widened into a smile when he noticed Bonnie trying to keep in the laugh that wanted out.

"Screw you Damon," Elena threw at him unamused. His dismissive attitude regarding her had started to irk her.

"Yeah, been there done that too," He mumbled out knowing they both could still hear him, and got the result he had intended which was an embarrassed Elena shutting her mouth. "Anyway, I was so angry with you for sending me back, because for all of my moaning about coming back to Elena I realized that I didn't want to be back without you here. I spent every waking moment trying to find a way to get you out of there. Knowing that you were there with Kai gave me nightmares. Then when I learned that he got out and left you there that just made it all the worse for me."

"So, how did you finally get me out?" Bonnie asked, her toned a bit softer than it was before.

"Oh, not me, that was all you baby," He said as he raised his fresh glass of bourbon in a toast to her. Bonnie found herself now being flattered by the endearing term he used, and she side eyed Elena who seemed visibly bothered by it. "It may be hard for you to believe right now, Bonnie, but someday you will become one helluva witch. The likes I've never seen before and I've been alive for a very long time and have dealt with my share of witches. None could hold a candle to your powers not even those in your own bloodline, like Emily or even your Grams."

"Now, 'that' is hard to believe," She huffed out as she took in a deep cleansing breath, raked her hands through her hair, and then wrapped her arms around herself in a comforting manner as she walked over to the fireplace. Damon followed her with his eyes and made it a point to ignore the questioning gaze Elena had locked onto him. He knew he would have to deal with her at some point but right now keeping Bonnie safe was all he would allow himself to focus on. "This Kai guy, you say he's in love with me," Bonnie spoke out again as she let her eyes lift from the crimson blaze up to Damon's ice blue eyes. "So, when you and I were locked in that isolated world with him did he and I have a romantic relationship?" Damon's face frowned up in a disgusted mask.

"God, no," He groaned out. "Oh, he flirted a lot and I know that was where his mind was most of the times. I mean, he was trapped there as a teenager and probably never got any experience with girls before then. But I was never gonna let that happen," He started and both Bonnie and Elena regarded those words curiously.

"Well, what about after you got out and I was stuck there alone with him?"

"No," Damon shook his head and clinched his jaws as he recalled the time, she physically shared all the pain she experienced at the hands of Kai. "You shared with me what he did do to you, but it was never anything sexual or romantic. He tormented you and tortured you. Then once he figured out that he could use your blood to get out, he stabbed you and left you for dead. Had I'd known he done those things to you before I decapitated him, I would have taken my time and killed him slowly. Even let you get some licks in."

"No thanks, not my thing," Bonnie said as she frowned up at the thought of it.

"You may not think so now, but what he did to you in that world changed you, and you had no issues with giving him his comeuppance, a couple of times. Unfortunately, neither lasted and here we are."

"Well, I have Grams to help me now," Bonnie said as she rubbed her arms again. "She'll figure it out and find a way to stop him once and for all."

"And you have me too," Damon tossed in and she once again locked her eyes with his. She could clearly see his sincerity. "I won't let Kai or anyone else harm you, Bonnie. You're my witch and no one will ever touch you."

"I am not your anything," She spat back at him. "I don't know what head damage happens to me in the future that would cause such a huge lapse in judgment to make me think of you as a friend…"

"Your very best friend," Damon interjected cutting off her words. "You told me once that I was at the top of the totem pole with Caroline in second and Elena third," This made Elena instantly cast disbelieving and hurt eyes to her friend. "It didn't happen overnight, and I admit I did a lot of shitty un-best-friend-like things, but you never once gave up on me. Not once. And I never got the chance to tell you or show you just how much I appreciated your friendship and loyalty to me, Bonnie. Now, I have a second chance and I won't blow it this time. And it doesn't matter that you don't trust me now, that you dislike what I am and how I've behaved thus far. It doesn't even matter if you make it your life's mission to hate me forever, just to spite me. I'll still love you, you'll still be 'my' very best friend, and I will always be there for you whether you want me to or not," Bonnie stood silently staring at him in slight awe. She had to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat at his words of love and devotion towards her. Though she doubted she'd ever admit it out loud, what he had said made her feel safe and terrified her all at once.

"But I thought 'we' were married," Elena said as her brows furrowed in confusion.

"We were for 40 relatively happy years," He confirmed.

"Well, the way you sound it's as if you wished you had married to Bonnie."

"You're right, sometimes I wished I had married Bonnie," He confirmed calmly as he stared directly back at Elena. He had heard the gasp of surprise fall from Bonnie's mouth but found that he was just as cowardly now as he was then at her ever learning that truth. But At least now he had said it to them both, which had been something he never had the courage to confess before. "I loved you Elena. I always loved you even when I wasn't in love with you anymore. We built a wonderful life together and even raised a daughter together," Her eyes widened at hearing they had a daughter.

"Wait, we're going to have a daughter, but how?"

"No, we raised a daughter together, past tense," He corrected. "That's not going to happen now. But you can still go on to have a litter of children if you want to, and I hope you do. You were an amazing mother. It just won't be with me."

"But…"

"No, we have already lived that life," He continued cutting off her words while he shook his head. "It's done and there's no reason to try to do it again. Besides, at this point in our relationship you are falling for my brother and you don't like me at all. And I don't plan to obsess, stalk, and impose myself upon you as I did before. You're free to fully explore things with Stefan, but it will save you a lot of heartache and headaches if you find yourself a nice human guy to settle down with."

"Right," Elena mumbled out as she bowed her head a bit and averted her eyes from his. It was obvious to both Damon and Bonnie that Elena's feelings were hurt. "Excuse me, I need to use the restroom," She announced and moved to the exit. Bonnie waited until her friend had disappeared before she moved her hard eyes to Damon.

"That was harsh," She hissed at him in a lowered voice. "How can you be so cold towards her and so easy to dismiss that life you shared with her. You two had a daughter, what about her? Doesn't she deserve a future?"

"She wasn't my biological daughter, Bonnie," Damon said with a sad sigh. She could see that this was something that pained him. "I loved her dearly and I never treated her as anything other than my flesh and blood."

"Right, sorry, you're a vampire so of course she wouldn't be yours biologically," She stated with a nod.

"No, I was human and Elena told me she was mine," He continued and Bonnies eyes enlarged at this. "In that other future things happened, things that I can safely say will not happen this time if I can help it. But I end up becoming human again as does Elena and we live a normal 'human' existence. But one day she will start an affair with one of the doctors she works with and she will get pregnant by him. She'll lie and tell me it's mine but I will find out when our daughter is 5 years old and breaks her arm, that she's not actually mine. I do some digging and that's when I learn of Elena's infidelity. I also discover when I confront the guy that he knew from the start that our daughter was really his, Elena had told him the truth when she found out she was pregnant. But he and Elena had decided it was best to pass her off as mine. He told me that as he had told Elena he didn't want to marry her or have any kids. So, she settled and stayed with me."

"My God, I'm sorry, Damon," Bonnie spoke gently to him, genuinely sympathetic to his plight and disturbed to learn of her friends conniving behavior.

"Don't be, I wasn't always available when Elena needed me to be," He said dismissively. "I got involved in some charity work that I found very fulfilling and which took me away from home a lot."

"That's no excuse for Elena to cheat and then knowingly pass another man's child off as yours. That's despicable actually," She shook her head as she said this. "You never told her you knew the truth, did you?"

"No, what would have been the point? It had already been years and in that time, from the time our daughter was born she had sparked a renewed love between Elena and I. We grew close again. I handed over the work of the charity to someone else and I stayed home more. I started loving my life again."

"Because of your daughter."

"Yes, she was amazing and she was my everything. She was also your goddaughter and you loved her and spoiled her rotten. In fact, you often gave me a lot of competition in the whole spoiling department," He added with a smile which Bonnie returned.

"Well, you could still have a happy life and a daughter…"

"Yes, I could and really hope I will," Damon interjected. "But it won't be with Elena," He said and the way he stared at Bonnie made her shiver a bit. His eyes alone told her that she was going to play some part in a future with Damon whether she wanted it or not. Her mouth became suddenly dry as she tried to muster up words to reply, and was saved as Elena reentered the room.

"What did I miss?" Elena asked as she looked between Damon and Bonnie, who stood on opposite sides of the room silently staring at each other.


To be continued...