Chapter 11
All This Way Too Much for Me
Klaus' return was highly inconvenient. Bonnie stumbled into the gym on senior prank night the same way she had before, and he put her on a timer to figure out how to make his hybrids live before Tyler died in transition.
She took his arrival in stride, and in between the threats and posturing, there was a moment for her where time stood still, where she considered just telling him that Tyler simply needed to drink Elena's blood and that all of this was unnecessary.
She wished she could save Tyler and prevent him from becoming the first hybrid. He didn't deserve what he went through, but this was one of those moments that had to happen or things would spiral into unpredictable territory, so she chose to follow her memories instead.
They weren't clear, but she remembered enough to know that Matt was supposed to be the key. He was the one who got the answer from Vicky, wasn't he? Bonnie could remember the fear of finding him chained to a weight at the bottom of the pool, the desperation she felt to save him. But something about that didn't feel right. No, Vicky had relayed a message from Esther, but the message had been the opposite of what Klaus wanted and he, knowing his mother, was able to figure out the truth. But Matt had died for all of that to happen, and her heart ached a little just thinking about it.
As Bonnie walked through the school with him, one of her best friends since she was a child, she worried for him. Their talk earlier that night about how he felt was on her mind. He'd sounded so dejected about the way life in Mystic Falls had changed for him, and she sensed he was struggling to keep his head afloat in the wake of a new supernatural normal. She didn't blame him. It had been hard even for her to keep it together during this time. She'd only managed because she had to, because everyone had been relying on her and she didn't want to let them down.
"So what are we going to do?" Matt's unsettled voice drew her attention, his eyes large.
"My grimoires won't have a solution. They're not old enough, so we need to contact the dead," Bonnie said. If Matt wasn't in contact with Vicky, there was only one other person who could do that.
Matt followed her line of thought. "We need Jeremy."
Bonnie pulled her phone from her back pocket and dialed him, but he didn't pick up. He was still with Katherine, and they were supposed to be looking for a way to stop Klaus. She tried again, but there was still no answer. If she had Katherine's number, she could just call her, but she didn't. Damon was also MIA, and scrolling back up in her phone, she pressed his number, wondering if he somehow ended up with Katherine as well. Her suspicions were somewhat confirmed when he didn't answer either, so she texted Jeremy and tried him again.
"Is he not answering?" Matt reached for his own phone, but it was back in the school's weight room where he left his bag. "Look, I'm going to head back to the weight room to get my phone and keys. We should go by Jeremy's house to see if he's there."
He turned, and Bonnie grabbed his arm, stopping him. "Jeremy's with Katherine," she told him. The last thing she wanted was for him to separate from her. If she couldn't save Tyler, she was going to save Matt. She was not letting him drown himself in that pool again.
"What?" That news had thrown him off.
"They're looking into a way to defeat Klaus, but as for why he isn't answering, I don't know."
"Then what are we supposed to do?"
Bonnie chewed her lip, trying to think of an alternative option when her phone rang. Seeing who it was, she sighed in relief. "Witchy, what's the issue?" Damon answered.
"Are you with Katherine and Jeremy?"
"I am."
"Good. I need you to get Jeremy to ask Anna to talk with the original witch and see if she'll tell us how to make Klaus' hybrids live."
"Whoa, slow down. Say that again."
Right. He wasn't aware of the situation. "Klaus is back. He has Elena in the gym and Tyler in transition. If we don't figure out how to make his hybrids live, Tyler dies. And since Jeremy can talk to the dead, he's the only way we can figure out how. Anna should be able to get in contact with the original witch."
He repeated what she said to Jeremy.
"Anna says it doesn't work like that." Jeremy's voice came through the line.
"Tell her to try." She looked at the clock on the wall. "We have less than fifteen minutes left."
On the other side of the phone, Jeremy mumbled something unintelligible. Bonnie assumed he was speaking with Anna. Then a moment later, he was back on the phone. "She said she'll do her best to help out and disappeared. I don't know how long it's going to take her."
"In the meantime," Bonnie heard a car door slam as Damon spoke. "We're on our way there."
He hung up, and Bonnie leaned against a nearby locker, staring up at the clock on the wall. She would rather not have to pretend to conjure information out of thin air in a situation like this, but if Esther didn't speak to Anna in the last few minutes, Bonnie was just going to act as if she was contacting the dead witches and that they gave her what she needed. She was almost sure Klaus was watching them, and if it came to that, she hoped he would buy the charade. In any case, it was as good a plan B as any.
Beside her, Matt began to pace. "Should we check on the others?"
He was talking about Elena, Stefan, and Tyler. "No. No need to ruffle Klaus' feathers. Let's wait until we have what he wants."
Matt shook his head. "How did things end up like this?"
Bonnie shrugged, and her phone rang again.
Matt turned to look at her as she answered.
It was Jeremy.
"Was she able to contact her?"
"She was, and she said that Elena has to die in order for a hybrid to complete the transition. There is no other way."
"Got it. Thanks," Bonnie hung up.
"What's the word?" Matt asked.
Bonnie told him Esther's message about how Elena had to die, and Klaus appeared out of nowhere behind them. He'd heard Bonnie, and he came to the same conclusion he had before— that his mother was lying. He took some of Elena's blood and fed it to Tyler, completing his transition to create the first hybrid.
Bonnie could've stopped that too if she'd handled Klaus sooner. Tyler wouldn't be dead and he wouldn't have to deal with the sire bond, but so it went and so it would happen. If he didn't die, it would've changed too much. She was still a passenger to her past. Though at least she managed to keep Matt from drowning himself.
Later, after everything was said and done, Damon returned and scared Klaus off with the mere mention of Mikael, rendering Mystic Falls crisis free for a time. But as always, the next one was right around the corner.
After the disaster that was senior prank night, the first day of senior year started off as all first days usually did, with welcomes, introductions, and drama. Bonnie was prepared to ignore the latter and throw herself back into the routine of things, and she'd been doing just fine until the day of the back to school bonfire.
The week passed in absolute normalcy before that night. She and Jeremy were somewhat on the outs because of the Anna situation, but Bonnie was fine with that. It didn't put a damper on her mood. She actually preferred things this way since she didn't have to pretend to be his girlfriend. She was, however, on edge about the whole ghost thing. They should be appearing soon, and she was sure they had something to do with Matt and Vicky, but she had stopped all that, so the future was unclear. Her mind constantly threatened to spiral in order to account for what might change, but obsessing over it would do her no good. Whatever changes happened she would do her best to correct.
Her worries must've shown on her face because Caroline was staring at her with a frown.
"You okay?" She asked, leaning against her locker.
"I'm fine."
She played with the strap of her bag. "You've seemed distracted all day. You know you can tell me anything right?"
Bonnie mustered up a smile. "I know. It's nothing though."
She looked as if she didn't believe her, but thankfully she changed the topic.
"Are you coming to the bonfire?"
"Yeah."
"So I'll see you later then?"
"Sure." Bonnie closed her locker and zipped up her backpack, pulling it back onto her shoulders.
At the same time, Rebekah walked past them, throwing a smug look in Caroline's direction. Caroline bristled and glared. "I swear to god, if I could kill that bitch…"
Bonnie watched the Original disappear around a corner. "She's over a thousand years old and she's trying to steal your life. It's really a compliment if you think about it. She has all the time in the world and she's wasting it messing with you because she's lonely and jealous." Bonnie snorted. "It's actually kind of pathetic."
Caroline threw her hands up. "Thank you. That's what I said! But I'll still be glad when we figure out a way to get rid of her. Have you heard that she's shacking up at the boarding house?"
"Elena mentioned it." Bonnie was less than happy when she heard the news. She did not want Rebekah around Damon. They had a fling in the past, and the idea of the Original sleeping with Damon made her want to grab a white oak stake and kill the bitch, future be damned.
"And Stefan's still on a bender. Apparently, he was extra assholey with Elena today."
It was rare for her to hear much news about Stefan. Bonnie wasn't actively avoiding the younger Salvatore, but she wasn't really speaking to him either. In the one class she had today with the both of them, Stefan didn't even look in her direction. His sole focus was Elena, and that was perfectly fine with her. She did, however, miss the Stefan that actually cared. Though even with that Stefan, it was crazy how long it took them to start acting like actual friends in the future. While everything was going on in Mystic Falls, he never really talked to her outside of it all. It wasn't until long after that he reached out, but maybe that was only because of how often she was around his brother.
"Hey Jeremy!"
Caroline waved into the space behind her, and Bonnie looked back over her shoulder to find him standing behind her.
He rubbed the back of his neck, nervous to talk to her. "Hey, do you mind if I speak to Bonnie for a second?"
"No, go ahead." She glanced at Bonnie, and if she could see the mild look of displeasure on Bonnie's face, she didn't say anything about it. "I'll see you later, Bon."
Bonnie waved and turned back towards Jeremy, folding her arms across her chest. "What did you want to talk about?"
"You look pretty today," he said, eying the grey, off the shoulder blouse she wore.
She thanked him for the compliment and moved right along. "What is it?"
He cleared his throat. "So I had a weird conversation with Matt the other day. He's been thinking that Vicky is trying to contact him. Like earlier this week he said he's been having dreams about her that feel real. I've asked Anna about it and she doesn't know any of the details, but she says that a darkness surrounds Vicky, that she's bad news."
"So you've still been talking to Anna."
Jeremy sighed. "That's beside the point."
Bonnie could feel another headache coming on. "Look, I'll go find Matt and talk to him."
"Wait," he grabbed her arm. "What's with you Bonnie? You've been cold all week and you've barely spoken to me. You've never been the jealous type, especially when there's nothing to be jealous over."
He was wrong. She could very much get jealous. She just didn't show it. Even minutes ago, she'd been contemplating killing Rebekah just so she and Damon wouldn't sleep together. Sure, it wasn't as if she was going to do it, but she could get a bit possessive and territorial. Oftentimes she was subtle about it, but her Damon never failed to notice, and he loved it of course. The few times she'd been bold and almost got into a fight over him had him foaming at the mouth and unable to keep his hands off her. The man loved it any time she fed his ego, and boy did his ego love to eat.
This situation, however, had nothing to do with jealousy. It was about respect. Respecting her boundaries, respecting her feelings, and understanding why Jeremy seeing Anna behind her back rightfully made her old self uncomfortable and insecure in their relationship.
Currently, however, she couldn't care enough to explain all of that and dismissed his assumption. "I'm not jealous," was all she said before she tore her arm away from him and walked off.
Bonnie ended up calling Matt, but he didn't pick up. No one else seemed to know where he was, so she got ready for the bonfire, hoping she might find him there. What she didn't expect was to receive a text from Damon asking her where she was not long after she arrived.
At the bonfire, she responded.
Moments later, he was in front of her. She hadn't seen him since she'd dropped by the boarding house for a drink the previous week and things turned sour between them. Bonnie resisted the urge to give him a once over and quirked an eyebrow when he gave her one. What she wore wasn't anything to phone home about. She had changed out of her blouse and into a black t-shirt that showed a tiny sliver of stomach and an army green jacket.
"Have you seen Matt?" she asked.
He lowered his voice and leaned his head closer, one of his hands moving to rest on the tree beside her head. "No, but Elena's planning on taking down Stefan, so we may need you."
There was a poignant pause where Bonnie recalled their last argument and almost smirked. So now he was ready to admit that he needed her.
"Why isn't Elena the one asking me for help?" Assuming he had a reason for talking quietly, she kept her voice low enough to match his and stared up into his eyes, barely visible from how far they were standing from the light of the bonfire.
"She wanted to leave you out of it."
That meant he was coming to her of his own volition. Was it because of the argument? Was this his way of saying he was wrong? Regardless, she had bigger problems that might arise.
"Then I'm sure she can handle it herself. Honestly, you guys should probably leave him be."
He gave her an odd look. "You do know he's been snacking on townies like it's open season."
"Since when do you care?"
"Since when do you not care?" He shot back.
"I don't not care. If he's doing that then he needs to be stopped," she conceded.
He stared at her, and she knew he was looking for whether or not she might still be mad over the other night. "Then at least be on standby in case things go left."
"Whatever you guys are planning with Stefan, I'm sure it'll work out, but I really should probably find Matt."
"And I need to get back to barbie distraction duty." Eyes glancing over to scan the crowd of students, Bonnie expected him to leave, but he lingered, so she continued the conversation.
"Getting along with your new house guest?"
He scoffed. "Only for appearances."
"Still, I'm sure you're not too upset with having a pretty new blonde prancing about the house."
His mouth widened into a smirk. "I much prefer brunettes." Heat leaked from his gaze and went straight under her skin.
Bonnie ignored the way he looked at her. "Of course you do. Won't stop you from sleeping with her anyway though."
His hand went over his heart dramatically. "Your lack of faith is appalling."
She raised her eyebrows. "Tell me it hasn't crossed your mind once then."
He paused for a second too long.
"Exactly." She shook her head. "Bye Damon. I'm gonna go get a drink." She walked away from him, fighting the urge to stay.
And while she may have won against that particular urge, she lost the battle against the urge to look back at him, and the moment she turned her head, she tripped over a root and started to fall. Damon was at her side in an instant, catching her before she could hit the ground. His arms wrapped around her waist, and her hands found his biceps. With her body pressed against his, she found her footing again and leaned into that current running underneath her skin from being so close to him. There was a moment where they just stared at one another, and Bonnie's hands went to his chest while his went to the bit of skin her shirt didn't cover. "Careful." She could feel his fingers run along her sides and nearly melted into him.
She broke eye contact as the heat rose to her cheeks. "Right, thanks. " Her heart was beating erratically, and she weakly pushed her hands against his chest, dragging herself away from him. He let go of her, and she still couldn't quite get unflustered. "I'll um, I'll see you around." She turned around, cheeks still hot, especially with the way he seemed to enjoy how off-kilter she'd become.
Thankfully it seemed no one else had noticed.
Wandering over to the drinks, she gathered herself as she got herself a cup of lemonade and browsed through her contacts, debating on whether to call Matt again or not. She leaned against a tree and looked up, her eyes automatically finding Damon and Rebekah across the clearing. They had a marshmallow on a stick between them and Damon plucked it from Rebekah to feed it to her. Bonnie's lips contorted into a frown, wishing she had an excuse to interrupt them. As if she could feel her watching, Rebekah's eyes abruptly met hers and Bonnie looked away, cursing at having been caught staring. She sighed and downed the rest of her drink. A second later, Matt finally called her back.
"Bonnie I-I think I messed up."
Vicky had made a deal with Esther to kill Elena in exchange for a second chance at life. Knowing Esther, Bonnie doubted the deal would've panned out the way Vicky expected, but they would never find out anyway. Bonnie did a spell to sever her connection to this world through Matt, and sent her back to the other side. But that, like it did before, triggered a collapse of the veil separating the other side from the waking world.
She received the news when Damon had rolled up on her and Caroline helping to set up for the Night of Illuminations.
He rolled down his window looking pissed.
"Greetings, blondie, witchy," he turned to Bonnie, "I think you got your voodoo wires crossed when you got rid of Vicky Donovan."
"What makes you think that?"
"I'm pretty sure I just got spit roasted by Mason Lockwood's ghost."
"I thought you said that ghosts couldn't physically interact with people?" Caroline asked her.
"Normally, they shouldn't be able to."
"Well they are, and I don't have time for a vengeful Lockwood. I need you to do something about this." There he went, being demanding. But he was right. Something did need to be done.
"I'll handle it."
His gaze lingered on her for a few seconds before he nodded and drove off, leaving her and Caroline. They glanced at one another, then immediately dropped what they were doing to head to Bonnie's car.
Bonnie went straight to her grimoires, and one of them oh so conveniently flew open to a page to reveal veiled matter. Bonnie's heart clenched in anticipation, knowing what doing the spell would mean and who it would allow her to see.
She grabbed the grimoire, marking the page, and she and Caroline went to the old witch house to perform the spell. The place made Caroline nervous, but Bonnie assured her that the witches were no longer there.
Opening the grimoire in the middle of the room, she began the spell.
Behind her, Caroline waited patiently, fidgeting and on edge as she recited the words. "Bonnie, I don't like this…" Caroline's voice echoed in the background, but Bonnie kept her eyes shut and concentrated on the spell.
She chanted.
The air changed, growing lighter and a presence entered the room. Bonnie's breath hitched when she felt a pair of cool hands grab hers, and her eyes flew open.
"Oh my god," Caroline's hand flew to her mouth.
For a long second no one said anything. Bonnie's voice caught in her throat on an undefinable emotion as a well rose up inside of her. "Grams," her voice was barely above a whisper and never had tears flown to her eyes faster than in this moment.
Bonnie squeezed her grandmother's hands a little too tight, and Sheila pulled her into a hug. "It's been too long." Bonnie said, sinking into her embrace.
"It has." Her grandmother's hand brushed through her hair, and Bonnie inhaled the familiar comforting smell of jasmine and honeysuckle.
"I still miss you everyday, and I think about you all the time."
Sheila pulled away, and Bonnie let her, though not without catching hold of her hand again. "I know it's been a long time for you, but we don't have time for tears." She looked over Bonnie's shoulder. "Nice to see you again, Caroline."
"Hi Miss Sheila."
She turned back to Bonnie who still hadn't let go of her hand and squeezed it. Her gaze turned soft and knowing.
"They know, don't they?"
"They do, and they're angry with you."
Bonnie's lips pulled into a frown. "How can they be angry with me for trying to fix what will happen, for trying to restore the balance."
Sheila shook her head. "Look at what's happening, at what's been happening. You haven't been restoring the balance, honey, and while they figured you've done what you did for a reason, they don't care about the why, they only care that you know, and you are still letting the balance be upset."
"What she wants involves killing people that I love. I'm not doing that, and sometimes the balance must be broken for it to be restored. Eventually, everything will right itself." Bonnie paused. "They don't know why I'm here?"
"They have their suspicions and so do I." Sheila raised a brow. "I've seen the way you look at him."
"He and I…" Her head whipped around as it occurred to her that Caroline was still there. She had a puzzled look on her face, but Sheila began to speak again and drew her attention once more.
"There's no need to explain. It took me a while to understand, but I can see how you both might be what the other needs."
"You have no idea. There's so much I wish I could tell you, about my life, about how things turn out. I-I think you would be proud of me. At least I've always hoped you would be."
Sheila's hands were almost warm on her shoulders as she regarded her with a gentle smile. "If only we had more time. You know what you need to do, yes."
Bonnie nodded. "Destroy the necklace."
When Grams disappeared, Caroline stepped forward, her brows pulled inward in confusion. "Bonnie, what did-"
Bonnie held up a hand. "I'll answer any question you have later. We need to figure out who has the necklace first."
They were led on a wild goose chase. First, Elena said Damon had it. Second, the necklace wasn't where Damon said it would be. Third, they couldn't reach Damon again, and then Elena wanted them to hold off on the spell so she and Lexi could keep helping Stefan with his addiction. Lastly, Anna lied about having the necklace to Jeremy and he believed her.
Eventually though, Jeremy called her again, saying that he had it, and Bonnie instructed him to meet her at the witch house.
When he did, Bonnie gave him a cold look and took the necklace from his hands. She lit the fireplace with a glance and threw the necklace in. The spell began and as she chanted, she felt Grams join her. Hearing her voice alongside hers almost brought her to tears again.
The necklace melted down into liquid and the spell finished.
Sheila turned towards her. "You're stronger than all of this, and I am proud of you. I will always be proud of you. Don't waste this second chance, and please lean on someone if you have to. Don't face it all alone."
She looked so worried for her, and Bonnie's eyes watered as Grams pulled her into one last hug and kissed her cheek. In a blink, she was gone, and Bonnie was left standing with Jeremy. It had been almost thirty years since she had last seen her Grams, and once again it felt like she was gone too soon. If only they could've had more time. If only they could've talked more."
Her limbs were heavy and she felt like curling into a ball.
"Bonnie…I-we need to talk."
She no longer had the patience to deal with him. "No, we don't. I know what you've done, and I don't need an explanation. We're over."
"But…"
"Leave. I want to be alone."
Almost as soon as he walked out of the door, a noise sounded from the fireplace. Looking over, there were sparks shooting from it, and as she took a closer look, she found the necklace whole again. She pocketed it, and went back to her car, ready to go home and wallow for the rest of the day, but a message from Caroline reminded her that she had some explaining to do. Bonnie had been planning on lying, on saying she had visions or something like that, but her grandmother's last words rang out in her mind.
They met at Bonnie's house, Caroline walking in and taking a seat on the chair while Bonnie sat on the sofa. She waited for Caroline to start.
"What did you mean earlier when you said you were trying to fix what's going to happen? That you wanted to tell your Grams how things would turn out? Why were you talking like you know what's going to happen?"
She wanted to lie. Everything in her told her she probably should lie, but this was Caroline, and if anyone would understand her and maybe even support her, it would be her best friend. And Bonnie needed support, needed at least one person she could stop lying to. She was tired of being alone in this.
"Because I do know what's going to happen. I'm not exactly the Bonnie you know, Caroline. I'm from the future."
A/N:
Hello lovely readers, it's been a while.
Honestly could've had this one out sooner, but I've been having a mental crisis over how I'm going to deal with the later events of season 3 to the point where I have post-it notes detailing 3 alternate timelines on the walls of my room that I was struggling to choose between lol. For some reason, that just made me stop writing all together for a while, but I'm trying to get back into it!
Thanks for reading as always!
Chapter title from "Down" by ChloexHalle.
