"You know I'm going to figure it out sooner or later." Her brow raised at the sound of the witch's voice. She was wondering when she was going to say something. She'd walked up minutes ago. Eyes boring into her back. She had her attention a lot these days.
With a breeze of a turn, she regarded Bonnie feet away with her arms crossed, an unreadable expression. "And what are you babbling on about?" It was her usual snark but without the bite. At least not with her. Not these days.
Keeping her stance, "You helping us."
"Damon's paranoia is rubbing off on you." She says causally, though she knows, she has every right to be paranoid.
"It's not paranoia," Bonnie says easily, walking up, arms still crossed with a challenging expression. "I just know you."
Her heart always did weird, annoying things when the witch said things like that. "Oh?"
She gives her an unimpressed look. "I know you enough by now to know I'm missing something here. You're hiding something from me."
Katherine wanted to laugh. She was hiding some things from Bonnie but they were far from an evil plan, though public opinion might declare otherwise. "How are you so certain I'm hiding something?" She needed to know what tell she was exposing to the witch. That needed to be corrected immediately. She didn't survive this long to revert back to amateur behavior.
Bonnie's face grew serious and thoughtful. "It's your eyes." She murmured. "When you look at me sometimes…even the feel of your energy in the room…I can tell you're holding something back. Holding something back from me."
The vampire bit her lip, turning to look over the balcony. "I'm not hiding anything."
Bonnie watched her. "I'm used to you being a better liar."
Katherine's head whipped to her. "And is that what you'd prefer then?"
The witched breathed out a breath. "I just want transparency between us."
There Bonnie goes again. Using words like us.
"You make me nervous sometimes." Her eyes closed as she shook her head. "That stunt with Jeremy…you almost-
"I didn't kill him." Katherine rolled her eyes at her incident with the Gilbert troll being brought up when they were talking about them.
Bonnie scoffed. "Is that suppose to make it better?"
She clicked her tongue on the roof of her mouth. "Considering he's not dead…yeah."
The emerald eyed girl exhaled incredulously."You know I really don't want to do this with you."
That statement peaked her interest, making her subconsciously lean into her. "And what is that?"
"Spend the next weeks trying to get out of you what the hell you're really doing. Why you are helping us. Helping Elena." Her face became slightly guarded. "Just to find out why when you've royally screwed us over."
Katherine's face turned in genuine irritation. "Now you really sound like Damon."
Her hand reached out and grabbed her. "Katherine..our friendship has been..unexpected." The vampire's lips quirked just so. Bonnie's never regarded their little acquaintance as a friendship before. "And definitely not welcomed.." Her mind immediately went the uproar of the Scooby gang when they realized the two of them didn't hold much or rather any resentment toward each other anymore. She can still remember the dumbfounded, hurt look on her doppelganger's face. Shamelessly, that was her favorite part. "But it's still fragile."
"Fragile?"
Her expression read as if it was obvious. "Yes..You know I haven't forgotten everything that you've done to us."
"But-"
"But," She interrupted, "I gave you a second chance." Her eyes shifted down to their hands. "Because you trusted me enough to show a different side of you." Her eyes lifted, serious. "But we have to keep that trust Katherine."
"Bon Bon, I haven't done anything. You're the one with trust issues."
"I just.." She paused. "I don't want us to be on opposite sides again." She chewed on her bottom lip. "I care about you, Katherine. More than I ever thought I would."
"Who said anything about opposite sides? I'm here to help you, Bonnie." She wanted to tell her that she cared about her more than she ever thought she could care for another person but those words didn't come out.
Still unconvinced, "Katherine..I don't want any surprises."
"Look, as annoying as my human doppelganger was…she's an even bigger annoyance as a vampire."
A look of surprise crossed Bonnie's features. "Really? I thought you'd like her as a vampire."
The taller brunette snorted. "One, I will never like her. Two, the only reason I want her human again is because of you."
The witch blinked. "Me?"
"You're more worried and preoccupied with her more than you ever were. All of you are. You've barely slept in the last couple of weeks."
"I didn't realize-
"That you were completely wrapped up in the princess' drama to even think of yourself? Yeah-"
"I was going to say I didn't realize you were paying that much attention to me."
Katherine went quiet. She didn't know how she wanted to respond. Laugh off that she's just a perceptive person, always has been. Or show Bonnie that she pays attention to everything that she does now. It's second nature. Thankfully, she didn't have to make that decision because at that moment Stefan walked up, eying their clasped hands.
"We're about to discuss the plan."
Bonnie nodded, letting go of Katherine's hand, almost forgetting she even had it in the first place, before heading toward the living room. Stefan lingered, which was his tell that he wanted to say something to her. She just wasn't sure if she wanted to hear it.
"Yes, Stefan?"
"Bonnie cares about you, Katherine."
Her eyes immediately rolled. She was tired of everyone cornering her with the same old speech. Out of everyone in this house, she's the only one who hasn't directly hurt Bonnie. This house full of her so-called friends.
"And I care about her." Her tone filled with snark and bite.
Stefan seemed like that wasn't what he was expecting to hear or what he wanted to. Either way, he just seemed slightly irritated by her response. "Just, remember that, Katherine." Then he walked away, leaving her to wonder was all of this worth it.
However, when soft, green eyes flashed through her mind..she decided it was.