Bonnie awoke, curled up in luxurious sheets. She breathed in a sigh, and could feel the sun on her face. Stretching out, the aches of actions past emerged in her body, but she felt she could easily stay here for a few more hours, curling up with a soft down pillow. But something was different, the scent of these sheets…she opened her eyes. This room was not hers. The large poster bed, the antique paintings, and several mirrors. Once her eyes adjusted to the morning light she saw a forest through the latticed window, sprawling over the surrounding acreage. Slowly she sat up, realizing she wasn't wearing her uniform anymore, but an oversized plain t-shirt clearly made for a man. She got up and went to the full length mirror. There were no marks on her neck. She hesitated as she rolled up the hem of the t-shirt, looking at her inner thigh. Nothing. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"You'll find, you are completely intact." Startled, she turned around, Damon stood in the doorway. Holding some clothes in one hand, "Here," he tossed them to her and she fumbled to catch them. "Elena left some clothes behind in Stefan's room. Make yourself decent and come down stairs."

Bonnie fiddled with the buttons of Elena's shirt, while coming down the stairs. Elena's closer fitting shirts took some getting used to. Lingering at the foot of the steps, she looked into the living room. He was sitting on the couch turned slightly away from her, holding a small glass of scotch and reading.

"I won't bite," He said without lifting his head from the book. Bonnie held herself and walked to stand in front of the fireplace facing him. He placed his glass on the side table and shut his book, "Unless, of course, you want me to."

Her cheeks flush as she looks away embarrassed.

He gets up to stand, grasping something draped on the arm of the couch, "Before I forget, this belongs to you," he says dangling her cheerleading skirt before her. She grabbed it from his grasp immediately, "Where's my shirt?" She asked tersely

"I don't think you're going to want that back." He says smugly. Suddenly Bonnie blanched at the memory, massaging just below her collarbone. Her shirt was ruined as a result of a 'second act' but really it was Damon letting her know that the second largest artery wasn't enough. Her chest tightened and she sat down on a side chaise. How could she let him do any of that? What was she becoming? Was she so scared of losing to a death she couldn't control, that she was willing to trust him with her life to do as he pleased just as long as he didn't take her too far? Does this not qualify as too far? Bonnie became distressed, there had to be a reason as to why he was keeping her 'intact'. At first she was grateful that he didn't leave blatant territorial marks like scars and bruises, but this was almost worse, held hostage to a memory, a place where the marks ran deeper. She kept her eyes down, and asked quietly, "Why are you doing this?"

Slowly, a rueful smile emerged, "You have something I want."

That rankled her immediately, "And what's that?"

Appearing to ignore her question, he asked, "Haven't you ever wondered why Emily was so loyal to Katherine? I mean the Bennett's are a virtuous sort, all moral and you know, good. Basically the opposite to everything Katherine stands for. And yet Emily was always ready to do Katherine's bidding."

"I don't know," Bonnie responded, not bothering to hide her frustration, taking a seat. "Emily was probably manipulated, coerced, threatened maybe?"

"Probably all those things, but why didn't Emily ever stop Katherine? She was certainly powerful enough. Historically speaking Emily was safe from persecution under Katherine's care but Emily could have easily overcome any reprisal and defended her freedom with absolute ease. Their relationship would almost suggest something far stronger than a mutually beneficial situation, perhaps something bigger that kept them together."

He wouldn't dare ask me to do that.

Bonnie gripped the arm of her chair, and closed her eyes. "You mean bound them together." She begrudgingly corrected.

"So you know?" the light delight in his tone prickled in her ears.

Bonnie massaged her temple. Grams tried to hide portions of Emily's grimoires, even the parts that only hinted at an unio malum or funem sanguine. But she wanted to know, wondering why Lucy did the same as Emily, and the way Lucy spoke about getting involved with vampires it felt like something more. Like it was a compulsion not a choice. The benefits were clear, access to a level of power unheard of by normal witches. But one passage she came across, after many nights of translation, spoke of it as a deformation of nature, where uniting with a vampire comprised your soul. Bonnie glared at Damon. Hatred flickered within her hazel eyes, her words lined with utter repulsion. "What makes you think I would ever agree to that? It only works if it is in fact mutual and not one part of me even respects you." Bonnie stood, her voice wavering with restrained anger. "I am telling you with absolute clarity that I would rather die than be tied to you."

Unfazed, Damon drew closer, speaking deliberately, "I am offering you a life of control, a domain of possibly limitless power. A life where your family and friends are protected, and people like Klaus and Elijah, will be adversaries we can challenge."

"But only as your indentured servant," She interjected, "For a term that lasts until death. You do realize I can't stand you..."she swallowed, pausing to look at the skirt in her hands. "And I can't stand what I become around you."

She stormed out of the living room. "I'm not doing this." She uttered bitterly, making her way to the foyer.

"You walk out that door, you are dead." His bluntness halted her. "You'd be lucky to make it to the end of the week."

Languidly he approached her, considering his words carefully, "When I walked in that locker room, I could smell burnt blood and overwhelming fear. You would go through that all, all over again, instead of having the ability to protect your friends? You would willingly choose a slow agonizing descent towards death, over the safety of your family? That doesn't sound like a choice a Bennett would make." She could feel him behind her; she cringed but did not move. Her clenched fists tightened as his feather light touch skimmed from her shoulder and down her arm. "I'm also willing to bet," he whispered delicately, "that your concern for Elena and Jeremy exceeds any amount of hatred you may feel towards me." Aggressively he squeezed her arm suddenly, and his casual tone became chilling, "Think about this carefully, Bonnie."

Bonnie looked to the door. Hopelessness led to her actions in the locker room, lack of control caused the burning lake. Even though Bonnie was alive right now, her situation was still the same as it was yesterday, and as it was when the spark in her first flickered. And it sunk in, she couldn't leave; there was no one else out there who could help or understand, nor was there any more time left to find someone.

She looked down, holding on to her defiance, "How do you know that I won't burn you alive as well? Every day 'it' gets stronger."

"'It' getting stronger is the part that makes you valuable. The part that makes us strong."

The thought of an 'us', and the thought that she would have any part in making this sociopath stronger sickened her. "I can't allow that." She asserted firmly.

Amused, he responded, "Do you really have a choice?"

Every fiber of her being coursed with pure acidic hatred, "No," She agreed, tearing her arm away from his grasp, turning to eye him wearily, "No, I guess don't."

Bonnie sat alone in the Salvatore library, she was staring at this line written in latin, reading it over and over again. She was instructed to wait here while Damon got the last ingredient for this potion. There was a bit of a rush, since this ritual had to be done during a half moon and there was one tonight. Damon offered to wait, but they eventually decided who knew what would happen a few weeks from now, to Bonnie or otherwise. Bonnie stood and walked over to the cardboard box housing more books, perhaps there was something clearer on how to seal the bind. Keeping focused on the research prevented her from dwelling on the situation. She picked up a red leather bound book and sighed. Still, those racing thoughts and glaring issues still had a tendency to creep in. For instance, she would be his for a lifetime. Her life from now on will somehow involve Damon Salvatore. Lucy said power like this was rare, but was the cost to keep it too high? She didn't even know how being bound would affect her, would she blindly agree to all of Damon's demands or still have some semblance of free will? Would she still even be Bonnie? The books didn't offer much in documentation of the aftermath. But there were plenty of warnings and cautions, pages of insisting that this was not normal, that this could change the witch and possibly the vampire, and if your bond is rejected there was a price for that too. She also knew she would not be able to harm him, no more seizures, no more setting him on fire, no more making things right since the death of her Grandmother. She was the only one in her group of friends who didn't believe somewhere deep down inside that he had a scrap of humanity left. She was the only one who saw how he used that hope to his own ends. But when she binds with him - there will be nothing she can do to stop him. It was all happening so fast, she wished that there would be something or a sign that would tell her what she was doing was right. As she absently sifted through the books, Bonnie noticed an engraved piece of ivory at the bottom, she reached down to pull it out and realized it was a knife. Studying the details she deduced it was an ancestral sacrifice knife. She ran her finger across the side of the blade; something about it emanated power and history. A familiar history. She closed her eyes, there was a whisper, not like before, this was gentler, she could barely make out the words.

"What are you doing with that?" Damon asks flatly.

"Listening,"

"With a knife?" He asks.

Bonnie placed the knife on the table; unable to take her eyes off of it "Some objects have history, something to say, it was like it knew me."

"When you're done communicating with the cutlery, maybe we can finish the potion?"

"I just need the last ingredient,"

"Here," He handed her a flask, bloody prints smeared on the side. Grasping it, the fawn's blood was indeed fresh, and tacky to her fingertips. She unscrewed the cap and poured it into the distilled mixture. The red blood blossomed in the otherwise clear liquid, gradually darkening, turning pitch black. The end product was thick like oil, she noted the consistency as she poured it in a portable thermos.

This was really happening.

"And it's done." Damon said, "We have a couple hours so you should rest up - witchy rituals tend to be exhausting." He grabbed the thermos depositing it into a nearby duffle bag.

"Wait."

Damon sighed, "What is it now?"

"Are you sure about this?"

"Of course I am," he responded impatiently.

"If this doesn't go right, you will not be able to walk away from this unscathed. You risk not being able to protect anyone. This is as much a gamble for you as it is for me."

"I'm well aware of the risks," the menace and impatience dropped from his expression, his tone softened, it sounded almost…honest. "This is the only way to even the playing field. I need to be stronger than my age."

"For Elena's sake?"

Exasperation came back to his demeanor, and he turned away to leave.

"You would do anything for her, she doesn't even ask, but you would risk everything to keep her safe. Why?"

After a beat, he offered, almost resigned, over his shoulder. "Because you know she would do the same, for either of us."

It was harder to get to the lake; the County officially condemned it since the fire. The woods were silent, and unnaturally so. Bonnie held herself as they approached the shore. Looking up to the darkened sky she gazed at the half moon. She noted the tree line; the previously lush overhangs that once dangled above the surface of the lake were now singed and brittle. There was a light breeze. She unscrewed the thermos poured half of the mixture into the cup, offering it to Damon.

"We have to drink it at the same time. To let Gaea know who we are."

"Bottoms up."

The acrid mixture made her want to gag, but she forced herself to swallow, covering her mouth. Bonnie started to undress, hesitating briefly before taking off her shirt. Nothing he hasn't seen before. She heard him unzip the duffel bag; in it there was a first aid kit and a sports drink for Bonnie, and two packets of blood for Damon. There was also the ivory sacrifice knife. Bonnie walked slowly towards shore, keeping her eyes averted - and trying to tell herself walking around in her underwear was just like being in a bathing suit. He went in the water first, holding the knife, his pale muscled back disappearing gradually into the depthless dark waves. He turned, "Are you coming?"

Bonnie sighed, and touched the water. It was freezing, she paused, also realizing this was her last chance. Who knows what life holds for me once I step into the water.

Gradually she waded into the lake, shivering at first but soon adjusting. She met him in the middle.

"Raise your arm."

Holding her arm by the wrist, he says to her "The important thing in all of this is not to let go. And don't pass out."

Bonnie nodded, and he slashed her arm. She grimaced at the pain, and then he slashed his own arm.

"Ready?"

Bonnie nodded and swallowed, her muscles tensed and the fear in her rose sharply.
This was it.

She grasped his hand; their fingers entwined, their wounds pressed together as their blood combined. For a while she could only hear the drops of their blood into the darkened surface of the water. Bonnie began the chant and Damon joined after her third round. The air became warmer, and the familiar crackle sparked the air around them. The lake became warmer, the steam making a fog that seemed to roll and surround them. She kept chanting and focused on Damon. She could feel something reverberate under skin, as if a frequency pulsing through the lake was now flowing through her. The water became palpably hot, and the air thicker still. A flicker seemed to emerge beneath the surface of the water, like a flash of a coin suddenly hit with light. The light continued to dapple below, and gathered to form one strong beam of amplified light surrounding them in the water. She felt the heat rise within her skin, her vision turned red, the blood in her body felt like fire. Once again she feared that the fire might consume her but something this time was different. He gripped her hand tighter and she focused on those ice blue eyes - it anchored her somehow. And weirdly, she did not feel scared. Together they managed to chant, with a great amount of effort through clenched teeth. Her flesh started to burn, and his hand grew colder, as if the supple nature of his skin turned to cement. Tension ripped through both of them, emanating from their shared wound. She felt the fire surge through her to him, and in turn something cool and heavy seeped into her, something foreign, something not quite right - it felt like her insides were hardening and yet still inflamed. It was suffocating. The light became so powerful she could barely make Damon out. Although she could not see him, she could feel him, holding onto her hand for dear life and now the essence of him lurking inside of her.

A whisper.

And then a sonic boom broke across the lake, with such force that it leveled trees within a five mile radius. Trying to figure out what exactly happened next was difficult. When pointedly confronting, the memory in her mind - it felt heavily blurred, static ridden. The last certain thing, Bonnie could remember, happened after. She was lying on the shore. Wet sand, once again cupping her face, her wet underwear coolly sticking to her skin. She could hear the waves of the lake and feel them lightly wash over her body from the waist down. And she could feel that Damon was still holding her hand.

A/N - It's been a minute! Every once in awhile I would return this and this chapter was just sitting there. Anyway this is just post season 2 of Vampire Diaries era (as I dropped off shortly there after, but still Bamon beckons sometimes). I have an idea where to go next with this...and thanks for reading!