AN:
UPDATE: I am SO SORRY, had to make a quick update and repost, I'm going through and refining the next chapter, and realizing I left out a little chunk about Toni's heritage, which adds to the discussion towards the end of the chapter. It is easy to get mixed up with continuity, but when I see it I correct ASAP. The first line of the Atlanta setting to Toni wondering how Kol into her room, is what I had to add. So sorry, hope that it makes better sense now, again dis my first time!
Kol begins to explain Esther's demise
BB meets TT, whose presence charms everyone. Both notice their powers continue to expand, though that may be dangerous for Bonnie.
Damon figures out exactly what the root of the earlier prophecy actually meant and Elena works out her frustrations over the loss of her pregnancy.
Had to hurry and post this before I keep changing things which will make the next chapter harder to complete!
I'm still explaining what happened to Esther and Elena's pregnancy through flashbacks which will continue next chapter. (Don't worry, the babies are fine! Hint, hint)
So we are delving deeper into what actually is and isn't ok in the supernatural world. Turns out there are rules and consequences!
Songs:
The Weight of the World -by Evanescence
Pet -by A Perfect Circle
Last week when Kol reunited with Bonnie
Bonnie and Kol's POV
"So how did it go with Esther?" Bonnie asked as they dined on fast food in her home, Bonnie sitting on a stool at the bar, Kol sitting at the table to maintain the distance for the intimacy spell. Kol initially insisted the lady should have the table seat but Bonnie wouldn't move from her spot, since he couldn't come any closer. She was adamant that he was a guest in her home.
"Oh, it was a team effort, most definitely. My long lost sister, your mother, Hayley, even little Hope, along with-"
"A rude little wench whom we will not name, right?" Bonnie said, nodding her head suggestively until Kol agreed.
"Of course! That individual. Hayley and I also had an opportunity to wield magic once again.
Bonnie's face lit up. "You have magic?"
"It's gone now," Kol said, regretfully. "But it was as marvelous using magic as it was a millennium ago. And it made me feel connected to you once again. I kept thinking what a rush it would be to practice with you. Since we do not have that opportunity, I thought I'd at least memorialize that moment in time. In there, the coffee table, you'll find a gift." He gestured with his hand and waited for Bonnie to go check.
When Bonnie left the room, he used his vampire speed to switch their dinnerplates and took a seat at the bar. There, that was better. It didn't sit well with the gentleman in him that the lady of the house couldn't sit at her own table. Bonnie walked back in and stopped suddenly when she saw Kol at the bar. She clicked her tongue.
"Dammit, Kol," she said as she took a seat at the table, placing a medium-sized box on it.
"I'm a true gentleman," he laughed. "Open it,"
Inside the box, under the tissue paper and wrapped in the glass paper, was a single but fully blossomed gardenia in a tall, rosy transparent vase, with a deep magenta ribbon wrapped around it.
"After you put it in water, it will go through the natural life cycle as a flower, but as the gardenia dies, it will immortalize by solidifying into partially silver, for you, and partially gold," he explained. "Undying like our love,"
"You remembered I preferred silver. But I thought you were most fond of orchids because they remind you of the old days,"
"I'm more fond of you,"
Bonnie blushed. She wished with all her heart she could jump into his arms at the moment. Remembering she couldn't made her heart drop and she bowed her head. "This is such a beautiful gesture, Kol. I'm gonna put it in water now," she made her way to the kitchen as Kol stepped back so they'd maintain the needed distance. "I didn't even know there was a spell like that,"
She turned on the water faucet and filled a glass with water.
"It didn't until I created it. Just for you,"
Her eyes widened. "You're quite fond of me, aren't you?" she asked with a bite to her lip. Dammit! She didn't mean to make that automatic gesture.
"You could say that," Kol said softly and seriously as his eyes washed over her. He needed to hold off on those bedroom eyes, it would cause emotions in her that Kol would pick up on and he would be affected by the spell, albeit agonizingly.
Bonnie put took her vase to the table and sat down with an air of prim posture. "So, Esther. You all teamed up?"
Kol attempted to stifle a grin as he reclaimed his seat. "Right, so as I was saying,"
Two days ago
Collectively fighting against Freya was a much more difficult feat to overcome than any of them had initially expected. She was under the impression they were all evil, threats to humanity and society with all the lives they'd taken and fed upon. Kol wondered how it made her any different, having her life preserved for all these years as he'd only ever known the blood of the innocent to be the one sacrifice that would allow one's life to be extended. Esther was channeling another witch family, but with every death she'd met, it would take the life of a witch when she resurrected. Fifteen witches had already died since 2010 in order for Esther to continue coming back to finish what she started.
To Kol's fury and dismay, he'd found out that the hex she'd placed on him was active whether or not she was alive. In order to rid himself of the hex, he needed to occupy the life Esther currently had, which couldn't be done unless he was able to wield magic. He would meet a temporary death after he took over her life and the hex would be linked to the magic in him, each destroying each other before he would reanimate as a vampire. The only thing getting in the way was Freya.
"I haven't killed anyone that wasn't necessary for my own survival in years," Kol said, while he was a magical tug of war with his eldest sister. Drops of blood drizzled down each of their noses, as well as Hayley's and Davina's.
"And I don't feed on anyone! I drink the blood of people who've donated it! I'm trying to set a good example for my daughter!" Hayley added.
Good on Hayley for adding in the part about Hope. Kol got the feeling Freya was very sentimental when it came to children.
"How much blood have you spilled just to ensure you stand before us today? Is that not the same, all your sacrifices to preserve your life is what enabled you to be here today!"
"You know nothing of me! I never meant to hurt anyone, I just wanted my son!" Freya shouted, slightly lowering her upraised hand. Ahh, there it was. The reason she was so particular concerning children. She had lost a child.
"You had a son?" Hayley asked.
"I did," Freya nodded. "Until Dahlia took him away from me,"
Esther frowned. "Freya, your aunt took away your young, just as she took you away from me. She's tried to fashion you into a monster like herself, but you are the purest of hearts, my dear. Do not be corrupted as your siblings have become! Finish them!" she cried, eagerly.
Mother was so damned insufferable with her false words of praise. The fact that she'd led everyone to believe that Freya died as an infant, that Nik was Father's son; Kol wasn't buying it one bit. "Enough of your lies, Mother! You couldn't even remain loyal to your own husband. That Freya died in infancy was probably another of your tall tales, was it not?" he demanded of the wench who called herself a mother.
"Be quiet Kol, your lies have no merit here. Don't listen to them, Freya, they're all abominations! You must finish this!"
Davina was the first one to falter, likely due to the fact that she was the youngest and her magic was already holding most of the weight of various protection spells.
"That's not a lie!" Hayley cried. "Klaus and Rebekah told me the same thing, they said it's known throughout the world as their history! You died, you were a baby and when her youngest son Henrik died, she couldn't stand to lose another child, they never heard about any kidnapping!"
Freya then glowered at Esther, who looked visibly worried as her magic was already muted. "Dahlia said you gave me up!"
"My elder sister is the mother of all lies, Freya. You've always been my most favored child, my firstborn. I share in the grief of child loss with you, my daughter. But we must end this!"
Freya, panicked and confused, looked to Kol. With imploring eyes, he regarded her in hopes she would understand. Esther was not who she claimed to be. "She means to rid the world of abominations, dear sister. That you and I both live and breathe when we should be long dead, means you're considered an abomination too. She undoubtedly did give you up to her unequivocally vile sibling, letting us all believe infant death held you. Only this time, you will meet your death, if you continue to stand with our mother!"
"That's harsh Kol," Hayley said as she began to falter.
"But true,"
Freya turned another glare on her mother. "You lied to me,"
Esther shook her head. "I have always done what was necessary to protect my children, to the detriment of humankind, as it turns out," she turned to Kol. "You are a wretched, vulgar beast! A curse on this world once you ceased to be my sweet boy. My greatest regret is refusing to let nature take it's rightful course with your human lives. Maybe then, a mother's love and greatest sacrifice would not have been transformed into a deep hatred for what you've become,"
Kol just glared at her, her venom no longer affected him, but they clearly affected Freya. She yelled something in Latin before Esther fell backward, unconscious. At the same time, she released the magic that was grappling with Davina, Hayley, and Kol. Hayley immediately recovered and rushed to check on Davina.
Freya stepped around her fallen mother, glaring at her. "I would never speak to my little Erik that way," she snapped. Then she looked at Kol. "It's clear that she has ceased to be a mother, long ago,"
"Was that the name of your young one?" he asked.
"It was going to be. Dahlia incited a premature labor and he was stillborn. But the love I have for my baby is undying, to this day," Freya's voice was strained.
"Then you're already doing a hell of a lot better than her," he said with a nod in Esther's direction.
"What are you planning?
"To remove a hex she's placed on me. And then, destroy her for good."
"I'm willing to help you on one condition," Freya decided. "I want to meet my family. All of you,"
Atlanta present-day 2013
Kol and Toni's POV
While Toni slept that night, her dreams consisted of things that she learned from Kol about her fae lineage and ancient rituals that were foreign to her.
Kol had informed her that her blood was royal, only it had been diluted with human blood. How this was possible since the fae usually kept to themselves in California was that some faeries ventured out on their own out into the world. Her mother was supposed to rise to power to be part of the faerie council, only she declined the opportunity to live life as close to a human life instead.
What Kol needed Toni to do was to distract Kai long enough so Bonnie could use her magic against Kai in a final execution the way Kol took out his mother when he wielded magic for the first time in a thousand years; therefore it was not an intervention, it was within the boundaries of what she could do without inciting the wrath of the Summit Leaders. It was really quite simple and along the way, Kol would help usher Toni into her ultimate power so she'd be full on fae and no one could ever hurt her again.
Through a light ritual called a blossoming and some sort of sacrifice- Kol wasn't clear but she guessed giving up the human part of her life had something to do with it- she would harness all the powers of the fae, which were rumored to be teleportation, telepathy, telekinesis, curative and purifying powers, conjuring, and various forms of hypnosis, among other things. Defending herself with her faerie light already came naturally to her, though there were different ways to channel it.
The only thing he still needed to figure out was how he would get her there, the fact that Kol was training Toni to aid him likely meant he wouldn't be welcomed on fae territory. She needed the assistance of her fellow faeries to aid in her ritual.
Toni woke the next morning and there was a glass of red wine on her bedside table. A little note was attached that read This will help your inevitable hangover. She realized it was vampire blood.
First of all, how the fuck did he get in here?!
"Gee thanks, Kol. I think I'll cure it the normal way." She got up to head towards the bathroom when an arm pulled her back into the bed.
"You running out on me?" Bryan's voice murmured.
"Relax, you won't remember anything that happened last night." She groaned as she squirmed out of his hold and slipped into her undergarments.
"You kidding me? I'm never going to forget you, girl. Last night wa-"
The room suddenly brightened to the point Bryan had to cover his eyes.
Once the lighting returned to the normal morning glow, the three faerie sisters stood in the center of the room, radiating their respective color glows.
"Sister!" They all said at once.
Bryan looked hopelessly confused as he took in the sight of the glowing women, glowing in each of their respective colors which were red, lavender, and green. The woman in green was winking at him. "What the f-"
Toni rushed over to them. "In case you ladies haven't noticed, I've got company!"
Summer stepped forward and blew a whoosh of air in Bryan's direction. "Sleep," she said right before he fell forward into her arms in a slumber. "Oh my. Can I take him? He's quite gorgeous. Are you done with him, Toni?"
Toni put her hands on her head, rubbing her temples. "Where have you guys been? You call yourself my sisters and then you're just MIA, who the hell are you people?"
"We could not reach you until now. What with you consorting with the Harvest witch, siphon witches and vampires and such. You should be glad it is only us, if it was the council you would-" Dawn began scolding but was interrupted by Autumn.
"First things first, Dawn. We are here to warn you Toni. Do not get involved with the vampire/witch business. You cannot trust Kol Mikaelson."
"Like I can trust you three? I'm helping Kol save his girlfriend. And he's the one who told me what I am. Why would I listen to you?"
"You have not come into your powers yet Toni," Autumn ticked a strand of red waves behind her ear and leaned in to Toni. "they are only just starting to manifest. Who better to help you than your fae sisters?"
"Kol! And he's been helping me prepare for the light ritual."
"A better way to put it, is that only your faerie sisters can help you through it properly, otherwise the ritual will be tainted and your powers will be weakened and become finite."
Toni had heard enough. Her blossoming was coming up and Kol was going to help her through the light ritual, just as he had been training her on all things fae related.
"I can't just abandon him, he's compelled me to do as he says, and I can't lie to him either since he's compelled my loyalty as well."
"So he will be present for the ritual," Dawn surmised, twirling a strand of silvery lavender hair around a finger. Autumn gave her the side-eye and shook her head. She and her sisters whispered among themselves for a moment.
"You need our assistance with your light ritual. Unfortunately the Original Vampire won't let you out of his sight and any action we take against him would be seen as an act of war, breaking our pact with the Vampires to stay out of witch and vampire business." Dawn went on to say, "Therefore, he may be present during that time as long as the ritual is done on neutral grounds, I very much doubt he would be welcome on fae territory. He'll be bringing you to us soon, the ceremony will commence at that time."
Autumn clapped her hands together. "Bravo, Dawn. So diplomatic you've come to be, sister,"
Summer marveled as well.
Dawn smiled closed her eyes and hummed a moment before Toni heard, "You've got company."
In a whirl of gold smoke (or was it dust?) the three faeries were gone as a quick rapping sounded at the hotel room door. Toni could've sworn Dawn wasn't speaking at all but she clearly heard her make the comment about having company.
Kol, we still have three fucking hours! She sighed and stomped over to the door, grabbing her robe along the way.
"Now, now Toni. I know it's dreadfully early but haven't you ever heard that the early bird gets the worm?" Kol called through the door.
Toni opened the door to see Kol standing there smirking his usual grin. She quickly stepped into the hall. "What did you say?"
"The early bird gets the worm. Really, I've heard it dozens of times this century."
"Did you hear me when I said we still had three hours?"
Kol appeared annoyed as he always did when he perceived her to be asking foolish and unnecessary questions. He tapped his ears in a lofty way. "Obviously. Vampire hearing, darling."
Toni turned her head to give Kol the side-eye. "I didn't say anything."
"Of course you did, I heard you." He sighed in frustration. "What are you getting at?"
"No, I didn't speak those words, Kol. I thought them!"
His brows shot up. "So the legends are indeed true?" How long have you had this ability? Kol questioned in his mind.
"I think I just developed it. You didn't know this was going to happen?" Toni spoke her answer to Kol's second question.
So we can read minds and implant thoughts now? Kol thought.
Toni rolled her eyes and opened the door, stepping aside. If you want to stare at each other and have a silent conversation, we should take it inside.
Kol agreed and gave her a wide grin as he stepped inside. "Bollocks, you reek of that commoner. Had fun last night, didn't we? I suppose you have me to thank for that."
Toni was certain her eyes would be permanently lodged facing backwards with how many times Kol made her roll her eyes. It annoyed her how Kol found glee in making her feel awkward. She noticed him inhale deeply.
"I just need to shower. My date is probably-" she had turned to gesture towards the bed but she was suddenly pinned against the wall by Kol, black scleras and veins writhing under his eyes.
Instead of blasting him away, Toni placed her hand on Kol's cheek and slowly burned him with the white-hot heat of her faerie essence. He yelled in agony and fell to the floor.
"What the hell is wrong with you? I thought we were allies!'
Kol's chest heaved and he panted as the burning sensation faded. He glared up at Toni before rising to tower over her. She glared right back at him, making Kol's face turn from a glare into that knowing smirk. He was proud the more he pushed Toni, the less she was willing to take his shit. She was indeed becoming a formidable opponent and Kol was just glad he had her on his side. He strolled over to the window, pretending to examine the candles that were strategically placed on the sill.
"Allies? Am I wrong to believe that you were not going to tell me about your visitors? I can smell the fae in here."
"You literally didn't give me a chance! And why or how could I even keep that from you? I'm forced to tell you the truth about anything you ask of me."
"Let me guess, your fae sisters ceremoniously showed up, ensuring not to make themselves known in my presence of course, and then it was the age-old spiel of don't get involved with vampires or witches, don't trust Kol, only the fae can help you with the light ritual, lest your powers start waning. Sound familiar?"
Toni nodded. "Hammer right on the nail. I'm confused though, why won't they come around you? From what you've told me, they can take you out as easily if they need to?"
"Most of the ancient fae are very selective about who they do business with, they are devoutly aligned with werewolves so naturally they wouldn't want to consort with the natural enemy of their allies."
His face was disgusted at mentioning wolves, then he grew serious. "They're lying to you Toni, trying to pit you against me, as if they don't have lecherous ways in how they conduct their own affairs."
Toni was growing weary of all the cryptic ways Kol continued to explain faerie business. She knew he was holding back the finer details until after her powers fully manifested. Still, she didn't want to risk her powers being at a disadvantage if the ceremony wasn't done the right way. What was he trying to keep from her? She figured it's something she wouldn't be ok with, but would have no choice to back out at the last minute.
"Unfortunately, you're not wrong darling." Kol interrupted her thoughts. "But it will be up to you. I'm willing to give you a choice, I can't say the same about your faerie clan,"
Toni ran her fingers through her hair, from her crown to the back of her head.
"This isn't going to work, Kol. Not like this. I'm starting to feel crazy and I can't even be alone with my thoughts now!"
Kol gripped her shoulders. "Toni darling, I need you to hold it together. We have someplace to be, remember? But we're running behind schedule and you still need to clean yourself up."
He looked into her eyes, not with compulsion but with confidence.
"Your powers are expanding rapidly. Will it to happen."
Toni realized the look was hope. Kol nodded encouragingly as her mind wondered what he meant. Iridescent rose gold dust sparkled in the air a moment before Toni looked down and saw she was fully dressed.
Kol grinned. "Mighty impressive." Then he looked over her laced up the front leather pants and her leather halter top under her leather jacket. "May I suggest-"
"I'm not your doll, Kol. I let you pick my outfit last night but if you don't like how I dress, you should've found another human/fae hybrid." Toni interrupted, clearly uninterested in his fashion sense. Then she had an idea.
Kol picked up on this, being able to hear her thoughts. His eyes widened.
"Don't you dare-"
"Teach me how to control it and I won't." She grinned resolutely.
"I have taught you, tiny sprite. It's akin to expression magic, your light manifests with your desires and emotions. If you'd been paying any attention you'd have realized by now. It's the same way you do anything with your powers. You have to want it and will it into fruition. As your powers grow they will manifest unpredictably unless you can control it. You have more control than most witches have over expression magic,"
"I thought you said Bonnie could control hers," she snapped with a pout.
"Bonnie is not most witches," Kol said with a fond, far away look in his eyes.
Toni concentrated and suddenly Kol was clad in biker garb, complete with a leather jacket and spiked collar and… guyliner. Kol looked down at his new outfit then glared at Toni as black veins began swirling under his eyes. Toni could hear what he was thinking and she shut her mind's eye instantaneously. Suddenly it was quiet in her mind. Relief flooded her and she threw her hands around Kol's waist.
"It worked!" She said against his chest. She heard a low growl in his chest.
"Unhand me, you puny little-"
Toni quickly pulled back. "Sorry! Are you ready to go?" She asked as she grabbed her belongings.
Unfortunately, there was no time to waste so Kol couldn't even give her a chance to take that stupid fucking question back before he was rushing her out the door, still looking like he belonged to a biker gang.
"The car is waiting out front."
Bonnie's POV
At the boarding house, Bonnie was playing referee between Damon and Elena. It was almost hard to believe that Damon had once been borderline obsessed with Elena, the way they now fought like cats and dogs. Killing your brother and turning you into a vampire against your will was the definite way to Elena's shitlist.
"It's my turn." Said Elena.
"I'm stronger and faster than you Katherine-faced, baby vamp!" Damon shouted at Elena.
"You're one to talk Damon, you're a spoiled toddler vamp and instead of making yourself useful with your strength and speed by sticking to the plan you act like a cocky mother fucker. You'll get us all killed! And how many times have you gotten Bonnie kidnapped and yourself killed? You're more likely than Kai to get Bonnie killed at this point!"
Damon's eyes raged and he flashed right in front of Elena's face. She bared her fangs at him.
"This isn't the time to pick a fight with me, little Gilbert. Put your fangs and your little vamp balls away and take a seat."
"I think you should take your own advice." Elena snarled. "I'm not the one who spends his life wanting what he can't have."
At that, Damon grabbed her by the throat. With vamp speed Elena thrust his arm up and elbowed him in the face with her other arm, sending him stumbling backwards. Bonnie had to hand it to her, Alaric taught her well. Even so, this wasn't helping anything, they needed to be training for the Kai takedown.
Bonnie sighed. "Enough!" She yelled as Damon charged at Elena. A silent spell brought them both to their knees.
"Can you guys cool it long enough for us to get some work done? Kai's the enemy here, that's what we need to focus on."
"You know what, I have to get ready to go meet Liam anyway. But Bon, we really need to train together. Soon. I don't want to miss the action when we finally take out Kai." Elena said.
"We will," Bonnie assured her. Elena didn't move.
"Bonnie, I'm still in the spell."
"Oh right sorry, I didn't even realize."
She released Elena who bade her farewell and sped out of the room, then released Damon. She was glad her magic was back, three days without it was anxiety-inducing, wondering if Kai was lurking nearby. In the two weeks Kol had been gone, her magic seemed to be expanding far more than she could ever imagine, the downside was that she could still feel Kai. It wasn't fair, he should've been frozen solid on loop, but somehow he was still out there. His power was likely expanding too.
"Your powers are growing again. Normally that'd be a good sign, Witchy, but not in the case of this siphon problem." Said Damon. "That mean he's getting closer?"
"I know. Elena didn't realize but I don't want to tell her yet. Not until we have to. We don't need her worrying for me anymore. She was about to snap your neck for the 5th time this week."
"I can take the baby vamps blows. Her running her mouth is another story. I think I need to shove my hands through her chest and squeeze her heart to teach her a little compassion."
Bonnie giggled and slapped his arm. "Don't put it past her to sneak up on you and actually take you out if you piss her off enough. Her life has been flipped all around this week, losing the babies. You forget, she asked me to help her kill you before she abandoned her emotions. She's tolerating you for me, Damon."
"Aww well, ain't she sweet?" Damon gave her a sardonic smile. "But seriously, we're in need of a secret weapon. When is your Original psychopath getting back with said secret weapon?"
"He should be back tomorrow," Said Bonnie, assuredly.
Stefan walked into the room with a giftbox. "Bonnie, this was on the doorstep and it has your name on it."
"Who's it from?" Bonnie asked, dreading the answer.
"I think you know.." Stefan said quietly.
"Well throw it the hell outta here! It could be a siphon-style Trojan horse!" Insisted Damon.
"Wait, I can check if it's been tampered with magically. I'll scan it." Bonnie said.
Just then a knock at the door interrupted her before she could begin. Stefan went to answer it.
Stefan's POV
When he opened the door, a young woman with long pink wavy hair was standing there. She was drenched with what smelled like rainwater. With perky cleavage glistening on full display, Stefan had to catch himself as a disrespectful glance nearly swept over her form. Something about her scent and her presence was so damn alluring. He found he couldn't resist that he wanted her, body, blood- everything.
"Hi," she said in a husky voice. "I got caught in the rain and now I'm all wet," she leaned against the wall, looking up at him seductively. "Can you help me?" she asked breathlessly.
Stefan licked his lips and swallowed hard. "What are you?" He asked, stepping forward as his fangs dropped, the aroma that made up her essence sweetly tormenting him. The woman's expression changed from seductive to amused.
"You were right," she laughed.
Kol suddenly appeared out of nowhere, grabbing Stefan by the throat. "You are predictable, Stefan Salvatore." He compelled him. "You will not feed on her, ever,"
The woman grinned sheepishly as Kol released him. "Sorry. It was supposed to be a joke,"
God, she smelled amazing! It was a vaguely familiar scent, though he couldn't place it.
Bonnie and Toni's POV
Damon went to stand next to Bonnie. He put a supportive and protective arm around her waist.
"If you need me to vamp you out of here, Bon," he said, eyes glued to the box.
Bonnie nodded and started her scanning. Damon was suddenly thrust from Bonnie's side and thrown into the wall. Bonnie looked to where Damon had landed and then to where he was standing next to her and in his place was Kol.
"Damon!" Bonnie called.
"I'll take it from here, mate." Kol said, ever so chipper. He embraced Bonnie but she squirmed out of his arms-well she attempted to but Kol wouldn't let her go, he held her firm against his chest and she turned towards Damon- and tossed a healing spell to Damon so he could recover quickly. She regarded him with her eyes, silently willing him to not make a scene.
"That's from me. It was supposed to arrive yesterday,"
"Kol, that was rude," she said as Kol embraced her from behind. "And Damon's my friend, stop being mean to my friends."
"I'm just making sure he knows his place, little love." Kol directed, nuzzling Bonnie's neck with his nose. She left out a soft giggle, reaching her hand up to his cheek. Damon rolled his eyes as he climbed to his feet.
"Damn, Kol," a feminine voice chuckled. "Is that how you treat all your peeps?"
Bonnie looked over to see a young woman about her age standing next to Stefan at the entrance to the living room. She was a petite caramel beauty with hazel eyes and long cascading rose-gold colored beach waves. She was smiling a winning smile and her perfume was absolutely fucking intoxicating. She looked like a badass in her motorcycle jacket. Bonnie noticed Stefan shifted uncomfortably next to the woman, as if being in her presence pained him.
"Toni, do not insult me. I've but one person in total and she's in my arms." He turned to Bonnie, nestled in his embrace. "Bonnie love, I'd like you to meet Toni Topaz. She's going to help us with our siphon problem. Toni, this is my beloved, Bonnie Bennett."
Kol released Bonnie from his embrace and led Bonnie by the hand to Toni.
"It's great to meet you, Toni." Bonnie said. Kol didn't say his secret weapon would be so fucking gorgeous!
"Pleasure's all mine, sweetheart," Toni crooned as she grabbed Bonnie's hand and brought it up to her lips and began to press a gentle kiss. And she was charming too! Before her lips could make contact, Kol snatched Bonnie's hand away.
Bonnie let out a nervous, breathy laugh. "Why do you smell so good?"
Toni noticed Kol frowned at Bonnie. She smiled smugly, reasoning that it wasn't her fault she was smooth enough to make any woman swoon. It was more of a personal problem Kol needed to work out on his own.
Damon flashed in front of Toni. "I'm Damon. Why the hell do you smell like sweet maraschino cherries in the springtime? And what's it doing to my brother?" Damon could smell her too, and he also noticed Stefan's pained expression. Toni frowned and gave Kol an 'is he serious?' look.
Stefan motioned for Damon to join him in the hall. Kol flashed Toni a knowing smile and joined them as well.
"Nice to meet you too, Damon." Toni scoffed and turned to Bonnie. "It has to do with what I am. Kol is the one who schooled me on it, actually. Is it safe to talk here?" Toni asked.
"Let's go into the study, I can spell us a private conversation." Bonnie said. Toni nodded and followed her.
~~~
Damon's POV
Out in the hall, Kol was explaining that Toni's scent and blood was intoxicating to all supernaturals and even humans but that they were not to feed on her as she is important to their cause in order to protect Bonnie. He Informed them they would also be compelled to temporarily forget some details after they learned it that day. He had already compelled Stefan to refrain from feeding on her, as the Ripper nearly vamped out when he answered the door. He compelled Damon not to feed on her either and for added measure, he also compelled him to suppress any feelings of desire for Toni. Stefan smirked at that.
"You are not to feed on Toni under any circumstances. Her scent and her blood is intoxicating but you will control yourself." Kol ordered Damon, pupils dilated.
"Give me a little credit, I'm no Ripper." Damon murmured.
"As long as you understand that her blood is the key to subduing the siphon. That should take priority over any bloodlust you both may have."
"Got it, bloodlust in check." Damon said with an obvious amount of mischief in his eyes.
Kol regarded him a moment then caught his eyes again. "You will also keep your lust in check. We don't need her distracted. This is about Bonnie. If you care an ounce for her, you'll remain focused as well."
Damon's eyes glowered. "Understood."
"Dick move, Kol." Stefan said, but he still laughed.
"I know. Gentlemen, shall we?" Kol smirked as he gestured the duo towards the library.
Damon wanted to wipe that shit-eating grin off his face but instead, he followed his fellow vampires into the study where Toni was explaining her experience with Kai and how he tried to siphon her power by becoming increasingly violent in order for her powers to manifest. She used her powers to ultimately subdue him enough so she could flee.
~~~
Toni's POV
"So you're the Bennett witch that the psycho drainer guy was obsessed with. Don't take this the wrong way, gorgeous, but I can't blame him for being attracted to you. Beautiful, banging body, you ride or die for your loved ones, and the power I can feel coming off of you. You're everything good and beautiful, no wonder he'd want to corrupt you." Toni eyed Bonnie carefully.
God, she was a freaking goddess! An inner struggle began to take hold the moment she laid eyes on Bonnie because of Kol's compulsion and the fact that she was drawn to Bonnie. It wasn't just the magic, she could admit that only to herself. But Kol, who would no doubt kill Toni if she tried to step in on his love, she would need to play it coy, unless he compelled it out of her. Still, she didn't think it should matter because she would only blame him for compelling her loyalty in the first place. Maybe it was because she was loyal to Kol's cause, which was Bonnie. It would seem that the power that magnetized them was paled in comparison to Kol's compulsion.
Toni was no fool, she knew Bonnie felt it too. The same way Kol tried to feign the art of seduction to recruit her. Except here with Bonnie, it was a genuine, mutual attraction. Welp, that was Kol's problem. He couldn't kill her, not yet at least. She was destined to be a powerful fae and the only fae he knew personally. Any harm done unto her and her clan would surely take him out, no white oak stake needed.
Bonnie blushed and grinned a coy smile. "Have you ever met another witch?"
Inside, Toni's heart leaped at how Bonnie reacted to her compliments.
"Besides Davina? There aren't a lot of witches where I'm from, but after my experience with Psycho Sucker, I realize I've come across a handful, with the feeling they gave me. Couldn't identify it of course besides thinking it's some form of voodoo and those people tend to keep to themselves, guess they don't want to be involved with witch business. Apparently, it comes with vampires."
"Kinda comes with the territory. Resident witch here." Bonnie smiled sheepishly, raising her hand.
"Don't be silly, you're so much more than that. Kol took every opportunity to sing your praises, not just about how powerful you are, but your beautiful soul. I've never felt anyone as powerful as you. Or met anyone as crazy as the psycho siphon and your boyfriend. That has to mean something,"
"I could say the same about you." Bonnie continued after Toni gave her a perplexed look. "About the power thing. I've met a lot of witches in the last few years. My Grams used to be a powerful witch, and my cousin is a witch. Kol used to be a warlock, now he's one of the Originals Vampires thanks to his witch mom."
"Right, he filled me in on all the Mikaelson family drama."
Bonnie giggled. "That chapter was far too long for this witch! But it also led to my own mom becoming a vampire. She was powerful enough to take down an Original Vampire, but now, thanks to Damon she's…"
She trailed off.
Both women rolled their eyes at that.
"Yeah, you can add him to the list of crazy supernatural men in my life. But your energy is different, a new kind of power I've never felt before. So Toni, what are you? And what happened with Kai? I haven't learned anything about you. Kol said he couldn't tell me anything that might put me at more of a risk while he was away, since Kai doesn't know either, he can't get the info out of me."
Toni lowered her gaze. The prospect of going over what Kai had put her through and having to discuss it did not appeal to her. Especially feeling so vulnerable in front of Bonnie. This was way too intimate for their first time meeting. She thought they'd have time to get more acquainted. "I'm sorry," she said.
"It's ok," Bonnie assured her. "Did he tell you what Kai has done to me?"
She shook her head. "Not in great detail, just that he's from some old school prison world because he killed his family and has a sick obsession with you. Kol thought it would be best if we heard it straight from each other."
"I have a better idea. It's not easy to talk about, Toni. Hell, it hasn't been easy to live through. And I don't want you to pity me, I want you to get pissed. For what Kai has done to you, that he's probably doing to some other poor girl until he gets to me."
Bonnie looked so confident, considering everything she's been through with all this supernatural shit. Toni figured it must come with the territory of being the town witch. Toni was new to this all and she was off her game of the little witchy woo she did know. It made her feel strangely overwhelmed but Kol and Bonnie had expressed faith in her abilities and even the younger vampires in the boarding house were affected by her power. Add to the fact that Bonnie made her feel so at ease.
"Do you trust me, Toni?"
"For some inexplicable reason, I do trust you, gorgeous." she nodded.
"Give me your hands."
Bonnie reached for Toni's hands and gently held them. "You ready?"
Toni nodded. What transpired next was a psychic exchange of memories and emotions of their respective experiences with the siphon maniac.
No words could be spoken for what they felt at that experience, but it left them with an innate understanding that they have to protect each other and anyone else that Kai might get his hands on.
"He killed my fiancée/ex-girlfriend. We were going through one of our periodic break ups but she wanted to make amends that week to try to talk things over. Then, I met Kai." She paused for a moment. "After I got away from him the first time, I reunited with Cheryl, only we broke up again because of the whole Archie and tensions with the Serpents,"
Bonnie raised a brow. "Archie and the Serpents? Who's that?"
Toni turned around and showed her the back of the leather jacket she wore which had the Southside Serpent emblem on it. "Those are my guys,"
Bonnie laughed. "Oh wow, you're a tough one. No wonder you went up against Kai," Bonnie looked to the door. "I guess being with a Mikaelson is sort of like being part of a gang. Just as dangerous."
"It really is life or death, in either case," Toni said. "She wasn't supposed to be at my house that day,"
"She didn't deserve her fate, Toni." Bonnie shook her head and grasped Toni's shoulders. "We're going to get his ass, believe that." Toni nodded. "How did you get away from him?"
"Your hands," Toni flexed her hands in a come hither motion, as Bonnie took her hands again. "Do it again, it's ok."
Once again Bonnie performed a silent spell that allowed her to see in Toni's mind. She watched herself in Toni's place discovering her dead girlfriend and then throwing lightning at Kai in a rage.
"Toni, Toni, Toni! The Pink Witch. Have you missed me?" he asked.
"I told you… I am not a witch!"
Toni turned around, eyes blazing pink. She opened her mouth in a banshee-style scream when she saw Kai and a stream of lightning came beaming fron her mouth, electrocuting Kai. He was all but burnt to a crisp. Toni figured he was dead. She began packing her things to leave town, she knew she needed to see Davina about her abilities and what just transpired. Suddenly the room lit up as if the sun was high in the afternoon sky, burning so bright she had to shield her eyes from it. When the room returned to normal lighting, there were three women dressed like wood nymphs standing before her.
All of the women standing before here had ass-length cascading curls in electric red, lavender, and emerald green. They each wore intricate cutout dresses in the colors of their respective hair colors. The woman in red wore a dress with one long sleeve on her right arm. Standing in the middle was the woman with lavender hair and the same colored strapless cutout dress. The woman in jewel-toned green was to the left of them, wearing a similar fashioned green dress with thin straps. They looked like the goddesses of nature, with each other their eyes and hair glowing hues of their respective colors. Toni figured they could explain her lightning mouth. It was obvious they were connected to her in some way. They all stared at her in a sort of awe as she did them before the one in the middle wearing lavender spoke, after their hues dissipated.
"Toni Topaz. I wish it were under better circumstances that we finally meet."
"Oh my God am I dead?!" Toni began to freak out. "I fried his ass and I killed us both! Oh my God. I just wanted him to pay for Cheryl. He killed Cheryl!"
"You are not dead Toni!" Red spoke.
"You are awakened! Ready to serve the-" the green one chimed in.
"Not now, Summer. She has been consorting with witches." The lavender one interrupted.
"What the fuck? I haven't been consorting with witches, this witch dick came after me and I don't even know shit about anything except what happens when I get scared! And who are you anyway? If you're the supernatural 911 that's been hanging around behind the scenes not helping me my whole life, you can just fuck off! I think I just proved I can take care of myself, check my barbecued friend over there!" She gestured to Kai, still a burnt crisp on the floor.
"Who are we?" The lavender woman thundered. "We are your sisters and we only wanted to help you but you must take care the company you keep! For we cannot intervene with any type of witch magic!"
"What kind of sisters are you, you don't even know what the hell you're talking about!" Toni yelled again.
Red spoke this time. "Perhaps we should try this again. I am Autumn."
"I am Dawn." Lavender said.
"I am Summer." Emerald said as well. "And we need to leave. Now Toni!" Summer demanded.
"I'm not leaving Cheryl." Toni shook her head.
Summer smiled. "Behind you, sister."
Toni looked behind her to see that Cheryl was no longer where she found her. She also noticed in the mirror that her eyes and her hair now glowed a pinkish hue. It would seem she found her people!
"We've already acquired her. We need to move, quickly!" Dawn eyeballed Kai, whispering loudly. "He's coming to, he's under a resurrection spell!"
"Damn witch magic!" Autumn murmured. Toni noticed that Kai's crispy bits were beginning to morph back into healed form.
"Holy shit!" She cried.
"Autumn, we should just-" Summer began.
"We cannot, it's forbidden!" Autumn cried before all three of the goddess sisters turned to Kai as he got up and using their hands shot lightning at him again. Toni couldn't blast with her hands but she realized she was still glowing and opened her mouth and lightning blasted Kai as well.
"Toni, go! Find Archie! We will subdue him, this parasite doesn't stand a chance against us. He can't penetrate our magic." Autumn's thought formed in Toni's mind. These women were just full of surprises, they're telepathic too?!
"Go now, Toni, leave and don't come back here!" Dawn added.
Toni grabbed her shit and some sunglasses- her eyes might have still been glowing- and she was out the door.
Bonnie snapped out of the vivid memory with a gasp. "That was intense! Your sisters?"
Toni shook her head. "Your turn first, gorgeous."
Bonnie, still holding onto Toni's arms, activated her magic once again. When Toni was finished reliving Bonnie's last siphon experience through her memories she nearly fell over. Bonnie held her arms firm, steadying her.
"I know that was a lot, I'm sorry. Will you be ok?"
Toni wanted to say she'll never be ok, considering what Kai has done to both of these women, what he did to Cheryl and what she suspects he's done to Archie, who was still missing. But she opted to change the subject instead.
"Bonnie, I don't know where to even begin to find my friend Archie. They didn't have a chance to tell me what they are, what I am, they won't show up around witches or vampires. But then Kol came to me and that guy has apparently been around forever. He knows about different types of magic and apparently I come from an even older ancient line of faeries. Those women, they were my faerie sisters."
"And that's the type of magic Kai couldn't siphon? That's amazing.." Bonnie gasped.
"Yeah, I didn't even know I could be that powerful," Toni said with a hearty laugh. "As a coven leader Kai's very powerful but he's erratic. His powers are untamed, I'm guessing that's why he put that on you?" Toni released her grip on Bonnie's arms and gestured to the magic tattoo on Bonnie's ring finger.
"Yeah. This is bad but it was worse when Kai spelled Kol so he couldn't even come within five feet of me without being in pain."
"He just keeps coming up with new ways to fuck with you, doesn't he?"
"Yeah so don't underestimate him. We've already made that mistake."
"So Kol's plan," Toni said as Kol and the younger vampires entered the room.
"Is where you come in, Toni dear." Kol stated. "It's now been about three weeks since your encounter with the siphon right?"
"Right." Toni said.
"Kai was drawn to you because of your resemblance to Bonnie, whom he's obsessed with but more than that, your magic that had yet to be tapped into. Toni is from an ancient and royal lineage of faeries. That's why her scent, her aura is so potent to you all as supernaturals. All faeries harness a power called light."
Damon scoffed.
"So she's a Tinkerbell? That's your big secret weapon to protect Bonnie?"
Toni fake smiled at him. "This is coming from the guy who is clearly as mature as Peter Pan?"
That made Stefan and Kol laugh. "I like her already." Stefan said.
"Careful Tinkerbell, I'll show you how grown up I am." Damon warned.
Stefan sighed as everyone else rolled their eyes.
"Parker can't siphon me. He can sense me but he can't siphon me." Toni continued. "The man went postal trying, terrorizing me into using my light."
"Yeah yeah, we all know what you faeries do, sprinkle pixie dust here and there. And in case you didn't know, postal is Kai's default setting. What are you gonna do, piss him off to death?" Damon was talking again. Why, Toni wasn't sure. She just scowled at him.
This time Kol continued. "The fae were known as succubi in the early days. That's why Toni can't be siphoned. A part of her is still a succubus and that part can suck the life force of any supernatural. Think of fae as a supernatural black hole. You can try Toni but that would be a mistake. She would drain not only your magic but quite literally suck your soul."
Bonnie beamed at Toni.
"That's equally horrifying and amazing! Have you ever?"
"No, just practice with Kol. My light only manifested the last night I saw Kai. But I was blasting him with my light, I didn't think to try to eat his soul."
"Why haven't I ever heard of faeries? I mean we've had vampires, witches, werewolves, but I've never even heard of the fae. Only in fairytales." Stefan said.
"Since my siblings and I were created, faeries have made themselves scarce to vampires. The first generation of vampires after us drained a few faeries to be immune to all natural vampire weaknesses. They were able to harness faerie powers, day walk, ingest vervain, they didn't need blood for some time nor invitations to a human home. Unfortunately, they abused that power and went rogue, draining humans to satiate their bloodlust as the faerie blood intoxicated them."
"And let me guess the pixies retaliated by offing the vampires." Damon mused.
"Precisely, they killed just about every first-generation vampire that was created. Only a select few vampires that exist today were sired by Originals after the faerie massacre. Vampires and other supernaturals still roam globally except for in the state of California. That's fae territory. My siblings and I made a pact with the leader of the faerie clan, the Luminary. All vampires were to stay out of the territory that is now known as California lest they be soul sucked and any fae that entered New Orleans was fair game to be drained for vampires. Everywhere else is neutral ground. There have been some battles but vampires and faeries have largely steered clear of each other to avoid further bloodshed. The fae have largely been sequestered from any supernatural company, save for werewolves, the natural enemy of vampires."
Kol looked at Bonnie gravely.
"We need to go to California." He said.
"Out of the question! You'll just get Bonnie's soul sucked and then we'll still have a siphon problem." Damon protested loudly.
"Would you like to join us, pumpkin? The more the merrier." Toni snarked at Damon, who in turn sneered at her.
"Just say you want more of my company Tinkerbell."
"Please, your presence is hardly tolerable."
Stefan put his face in his palm and Toni guessed that Damon was the kind of guy who just made friends everywhere he went. Not! By the look of annoyance on Boonies face and mirth on Kol's she could tell it was a usual thing for Damon to behave in this manner.
"The faeries won't welcome me, I'm a witch and you're a vampire." Bonnie was confused. "What's in California for us?"
"Right, little love but Toni is fae royalty but she has yet to come into her powers on faerie territory. I also have some contacts on the way who may be affiliated with the fae and they've found a way to imbue powerful witches with fae magic. If we can harness Toni's full powers since as royalty they'll be the strongest, we can imbue you with it as well. Though it would have to be a last resort,"
"I don't understand," Stefan said. "If fae magic can literally suck Kai's soul, why can't Toni just take him out? What am I missing here?"
"Because Stefan," Toni rubbed her shoulders. "Kai's using witch magic to do terrible things, even against his own kind. Think of the faeries as regulators of the most ancient and strongest magic in existence. They don't want to intervene on other supernatural species issues, so they let them govern themselves for the most part. You don't want them to intervene. If they have to, they won't just take out the siphon, they'll want to take out all witch magic."
"And witch magic is what created vampires," Bonnie murmured.
"As a fae, I can't intervene. I'm just going to distract long enough for Bonnie to work her magic on him, getting him back in his prison. If I use my powers on him unprovoked, the witches will see it as an act of war." Toni explained.
"Unprovoked, it's to help save lives!" Bonnie exclaimed. Toni didn't get it either.
"She's right, love. The fae have long since made it clear to vampires and witches, any fae intervention is only permitted if the other party casts their stones first. A war would be a losing battle for servants of nature. If witch magic is gone, we shall all perish. And you would remain human. If distracting him doesn't work, Toni can come into her powers and imbue you with them so you can deal with Kai without any further faerie intervention, it's our best shot at avoiding an all-out supernatural war. And keeping you safe." Kol said as he wrapped his arms around Bonnie. "Each faction is stronger, more calculated each meeting. They have been preparing for a war, should it come down to that."
Damon scoffed. "Am I the only one connecting the dots here?"
All heads turned towards the eldest Salvatore.
"What do you mean?" Stefan asked.
"The prophecy the faerie in red gave you when the Original fam first blew into town. I bet she smelled like this one," Damon nodded to Toni.
As the realization hit Stefan, it hit Bonnie and Toni as well. "A red faerie? Real chipper like she's on happy pills?" Stefan nodded. "That's Autumn," she said to Kol.
"Are you sure?" Kol asked while Toni nodded vigorously.
"There are other faeries in red, but none with her rank to go way out of her territory. Right, Kol?"
"No, no, no. This doesn't make any sense, Toni. She said if Mikaelson falls, all vampires will fall. That doesn't have anything to do with witches," Stefan kept shaking his head in disbelief.
"She can't intervene but obviously she foresaw something going down with vampires. Witches are the only ones who can do something about it. Unless," Toni looked at Kol. "We wake up Elijah. He can call an emergency summit on behalf of vampires,"
"A what?!" Damon asked, shocked. "Are you telling me there's some supernatural hierarchy courtroom?"
"Sort of," Bonnie supplied. Damon glared at her. "I was sworn to secrecy! And I figured it might not even happen in my lifetime, so I just kinda forgot about it." Curiosity had gotten the better of Bonnie when she found out Kol was her soulmate and she'd charmed the details of The Summit during their stay at Marcel's.
"Anything else you're not telling me, Witchy?"
"Only that Elijah is the Vampire King. It's a meeting between all the supernatural leaders that occurs once every five hundred years, unless there's an emergency. I've only attended two so far, no emergency summits yet." Kol beamed at Damon as he wrapped his arms around Bonnie from behind, pulling her close.
He was clearly enjoying Damon's distress. This must be the vampire Kol told Toni about, who pines for his girl. This didn't make much sense to Toni, Damon was fucking gorgeous, even if he did act like a douchebag, he could have any woman he wanted. Still, it was clear to see he cared about Bonnie in a way that he was hurt by the fact that Bonnie could not disclose some things to him and was masking it as anger. Toni was well versed in that.
"Of course it would have to be that fucking two-faced Original," Damon grumbled as he stormed out.
"Damon!" Bonnie called but he ignored her and kept moving. Kol smirked and began kissing Bonnie's hand, making a trail up her arm.
"I'll go… Um. Yeah," Stefan sputtered as he left to track Damon.
"I'll help you. Excuse me," Toni added while Stefan waited for her to join him before they both left the room.
Kol turned Bonnie to face him. "Finally, alone at last," he murmured before he pulled her chin and met her lips. "If we have to separate once, I just might absolutely go mad,"
Bonnie wrapped her arms around him and squeezed.
AN:So the lady in red that has popped up here and there. She is Autumn and she knows exactly what's going down! I've sort of modeled them after the Charmed ones, so Autumn is sort of like Prue, Dawn like piper, and Summer like Phoebe. Only no Power of Three, just faerie light.
Also, in the previous chapter Bonnie tells Kai he hasn't heard of the existence of the fae and she teases it's because he can't be trusted with it; she was only mocking him but that is exactly what's happened and why no witches who do know won't give him any info. It could also be said that Esther can't be trusted with magic anymore either!
(I love a jealous Kol) Toni has to grow more power to be able to help Bonnie, which is why they need to go to California to try and harness her full fae powers. That should work so they don't need to cause a war among all supernatural species. What could go wrong lol
Forgive me for any typos or other errors, I will hunt them down as I read this back. Please let me know if you are enjoying, I know it's getting hectic! One more chapter until the crossover between Mine, Closer, Got Your Back, and- oh wait I can't tell you the other one yet ;)