A/N: Hello, everyone. Thank you, thank you for the lovely reviews. Glad to know I can still surprise you guys. Here's the follow up to last chapter. Enjoy!

"…I'm your brother."

Wait. Brother? Brother? That explanation floored Bonnie and refused to compute. He had to mean figuratively as in they fell under the umbrella of magic, therefore making them "family" in a sense. However, he said his last name was Hopkins. Hopkins.

He…he couldn't be telling the truth. He couldn't mean they shared the same father…or mother. Right?

With Lucy, Bonnie had the immediate feeling of oneness, kinship. She knew she could trust her but couldn't figure out why. Bonnie never got that with Luc—er Ezra. Not even a hint.

Bonnie's feet moved of their own volition as she scrutinized every detail seeking familiar features Ezra shared with either of her parents. Did he have Rudy's eyes, Abby's nose, her dad's mouth, her birth mom's chin? Whose complexion did Ezra share, strange habits, or mannerisms? Did they have anything in common? If they were to stand side by side would others see they were related, that they were siblings? The questions were dizzying but probably not as much as the fact the strange eagerness inside of her that wanted it to be true.

Bonnie's breathing became stucco. She didn't reach out to touch Ezra. But her magic did. His was so palpable it encompassed the entire lower portion of her house. She waited for her magic to decide if he were friend or foe and to lash out, but it merely and shyly tapped Ezra's magic that excitedly welcomed hers to play.

Bonnie drew back, startled.

"You have questions. Go ahead and ask me," Ezra prompted. "I'll answer to the best of my ability."

"Is Rudy Hopkins your father?

Ezra nodded.

"How long have you known?" Bonnie said more sharply than intended.

Ezra sighed, "For about a year and some change. My mom didn't see fit to tell me until she got word that Rudy had died."

"Did he know? About you?"

Ezra shook his head. "My mom didn't see fit to tell him either. She was afraid because of what she is."

"What is she?"

"Jinn."

Bonnie frowned. She'd heard the term before yet had no idea what it actually meant. She'd look it up later.

"Traveling pharmaceutical rep and a physical therapist who met at a conference in Lansing, Michigan, it was a match made in heaven," Ezra joked. "Until she got pregnant with me. My mom being what she was had a feeling it would be passed on to her seed, and she feared rejection because of her strangeness. So she broke things off with Rudy. According to her, he tried to get back with her a few times, but she refused then moved. To Arizona were I was born. She met my stepdad and trusted him enough with her secret. He didn't care. Adopted me when I was eleven. Rudy dies and she tells me the truth."

"How'd she know about my dad's passing?"

A pause, "Another rep who was a mutual friend told her."

Bonnie shifted her weight on her feet. If Rudy had known about another child he fathered it would have explained his constant absences from their home. But he had no clue, and should she be pissed on her dad and Ezra's behalf they never got the chance to know each other? Hell, she was mad as hell at Ezra's mother because all this time she could have had a brother. If Ezra was telling the truth.

"You never asked her before you were adopted about your real dad?"

Ezra snorted and folded his arms. "Lots of times. She'd blow me off, dismiss me, say 'Lucas Moreau is your father and that's all you need to know'. She had a change of heart apparently. It took a while before I told myself to try to look for Rudy, or his grave. Then I learned I had a little sister."

"Little sister? You're older than me?"

That charming smile was back. "Yeah, I'm twenty-two."

Bonnie rocked on her heels, letting everything she's heard so far process. Before she knew it, Lu—er Ezra loomed only a foot and a half away from her.

"It took me a long time to find you," he expressed quietly. "Every kind of locator spell I tried, failed. I asked a warlock friend of mine to try. He said that you were alive but dead. I thought he meant you were a vampire, but he said that wasn't the vibe he was getting but couldn't explain exactly what he felt."

Wetting the seam of her mouth, Bonnie confessed, "I died…four months before Rudy did. I watched him from the other side as he was murdered on stage by the first ever vampire," her throat grew tight with memories. Being stuck on the other side, smiling as her father made a speech, Silas appearing, compelling everyone and…and ending his appeal to find Katherine by slicing her father's throat. Her hand went to her own.

"I was standing right there and couldn't do anything! I was brought back as the anchor. I had one year before the other side collapsed and…" Bonnie roughly cleared her throat, ran her hands over her goose pimpled arms.

"It's all right," Ezra cupped her tiny shoulder. "You don't have to tell me. We don't need to talk about this tonight. You've been through enough. I just wanted you to know I'm not here to hurt you. I want to get to know you, want us to get to know each other. Family is really important to me, and I can tell it's really important to you, too."

Bonnie nodded, quietly, and shyly averted her gaze. She hated showing her vulnerability in front of strangers, and though her head was trying in earnest to wrap around the fact she had a brother (possibly) it meant she wasn't alone anymore. Her friends were friends. She was now down a friend—the lights reacted to her dark change in mood, but it wasn't the same as sharing blood and history with someone.

"Your boyfriend is pissed," Ezra chuckled lowly.

Bonnie looked to the ceiling where she could hear Damon pacing wildly back and forth. She almost corrected Ezra. Damon wasn't her boyfriend, but right now it was semantics.

"I should go. We can talk later because…"

"How can I trust what you're saying?" Bonnie interjected. "I mean, you showed up out of nowhere and weren't upfront with me from the moment we met. I may not know everything about my dad, but what you know about him is public record, easy to find if you have a name."

"I have letters and pictures our parents exchanged during their…courtship. If you want to see them, here," Ezra withdrew a scrap of paper with his address and phone number scribbled on it. Bonnie slipped it from his fingers. "I'm sure I could convince my mom to talk to you if you need that extra bit of validation."

"That…would help."

The two eyed one another. Ezra took a step back. "Call me when you're ready. I'm not going anywhere." He faded slowly until nothing but air occupied the space he once stood in.

A minute later Damon came charging down the stairs the second Bonnie dropped the shield.

She cut off his tirade before he could even begin. "Not now, Damon. Please."

"Bonnie…you can't…"

"Damon," she barked. "I know what you're going to say. I can't trust him. He's up to something. He's lying. The same thing is going to happen that always happens when someone shows up under shady circumstances. He saved my life tonight. I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, and hold off in point a gun to his proverbial head until I get answers and proof. Can you do the same? Please?"

Hands on his hips, Damon's molars ground on top of one another. Either way he sliced it he would come out looking like a douche. If he tried to forbid her from questioning Luc-Ezra whatever the fuck his name is, if he hurt the boy in a preemptive strike and he ended up telling the truth about being Bonnie's brother, she wouldn't forgive him. Damon couldn't twiddle his thumbs and just sit around to let Bonnie get hurt. She was already hurt enough as it was on every level that mattered.

Nevertheless, he'd give her space, but best believe he'll be in the same room whenever Bonnie ventured to talk to Ezra. That he wouldn't compromise on.

Damon tossed up his hands, "Fine. It's late. We should get to bed."

Bonnie headed upstairs as Damon turned off the lights and made sure the doors and windows were locked. He peered out of the window by the front door, eyes zeroing on the dark patch of dried blood he'd have to power wash away. A swelling of rage showed up as spidery veins in his sclera. He took a deep breath, then another.

Snuggled beneath the covers, Bonnie released another heavy breath and literally felt her heart pounding. It was a welcoming sensation because the alternative was death. It whirled and collided with Ezra's voice saying, "I'm your brother." The news made her nauseous, dizzy.

All too soon that life-altering thought was changed with another.

Elena tried to kill me. Betrayed wasn't strong enough to describe how Elena's attempt on her life made her feel.

Bonnie's musings switched as her bedroom door was shut quietly and locked.

His shadow moved across the ceiling, his feet made not a sound on the floor as he drew closer to the bed where she tried to hide, bury what she was feeling. Bonnie turned on her side and her vision came into contact with his knotted, pale abdomen. Damon said not a word as he loomed near the bed for a minute then sank down on the mattress, lied beside her.

Bonnie's fingers sought out Damon's over the covers. Cold, hard fingers gently wove around hers. They stared unblinking at each other as they had the same thought: we could have lost each other tonight. She could have died with so many things left undefined between them, and her personal dreams and aspirations unfulfilled.

But she had gained something. A brother. A stronger, thicker resolve to live as unapologetically as possible. And this unapologetic life she wanted to share it with Damon, however, she was unsure of where exactly his allegiance lied. With her or with Elena.

That would be exposed soon enough.

She didn't resist when Damon drew her closer and spooned her. Bonnie didn't hold herself stiff as she waited for sleep. She sighed the second Damon kissed the spot behind her ear. Now would have been the perfect time to make unrevoked promises of love, yet vampire and witch remained tight-lipped.

"You really think he's your brother?"

Bonnie sighed, "I don't know."

"Do you want him to be?"

"I don't know, Damon. If he turns out to be then I want to get to know him. I don't have much in the way of family left."

Damon listened to her breathing even out. Bonnie was fast asleep in his arms, and he wish he could freeze this moment because tomorrow…everything would be different.

Come morning there wasn't a microbe of awkwardness between Bonnie and Damon. His stomach muscles relaxed when she smiled, his toes curled when she kissed him, and he happily joined her in the shower when she offered to take one with her.

His hard dick nudged her but Bonnie shook her head.

"Not…not right now."

Damon pouted and finally found the courage to ask the question that had him falling in and out of sleep all night, "We're good, right? I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop."

Big, green eyes appraised him. Bonnie was in a weird, undefined state. Learning about Elena's treachery killed her holiday joy and the bliss of embarking on a new relationship; something she had been starved for. It left the taste of ashes in Bonnie's mouth. And she was doing everything she could while using everything in her arsenal not to reset to her default when she needed to regroup, which was to push people away and seek out the familiar arms of solitude.

Inclining on her toes, Bonnie poured what she was feeling: the confusion, the butterflies of anticipation, the pain, heartache, sadness, all of it, she poured into kissing Damon.

"My feelings haven't changed," she promised taking in the rosy hue to Damon's cheeks. "But things have changed."

If that wasn't foreboding.

"What do you mean?" Damon needed clarification.

The doorbell chose that time to ring. Neither moved to answer until Caroline started blowing up Bonnie's phone demanding to be let in.

Damon reluctantly dressed and left Bonnie to do the same. She took her time getting ready.

Word was slowly getting around about what happened. Matt and Alaric called to ask how she was doing. Numb was as close to a description as Bonnie could get. No one told her to hear Elena out but someone would. Jeremy being the prime suspect and as Bonnie expected, he called.

"I just heard. Bonnie please…"

"If you've called to plead your sister's case. Don't. Nothing is going to change my mind on what happens to her next."

Bewildered, it never actually crossed Jeremy's mind that Bonnie would want to retaliate.

"Are you absolutely sure it was Elena who did this to you? It could have been an illusion," he tossed out. "You know she wouldn't hurt you, Bonnie."

"If I had been alone when she did it I'd be dead. You want me to sweep it under the rug, blame what Elena did as a simple slip she didn't mean, you can go to hell."

"Bon…"

"Just because you developed some weird crush on Damon after he snapped your neck, doesn't mean the same is going to happen with me when it comes to that bitch," she rasped.

Bonnie hung up and clasped her aching throat. It still hurt to talk.

She put her finger to the mirror and, adding just the slightest pressure, the mirror splintered like a sledgehammer taken to bone.

Stefan and Caroline showed up bright and early bearing groceries. Damon let them in and stood aside as they took over the kitchen whipping up too much food Bonnie probably wasn't in the mood to eat. But she'd suck it up and try because she loved Caroline and wouldn't want to hurt her feelings.

Damon observed as his little brother and Caroline maneuvered around another, making comments here and there, but weren't really talking to one another. It was evident by Caroline's extreme formality something happened to crush her future dreams of that June wedding. And Stefan, being the gentleman he thought he was, wouldn't be malicious to twist the knife in deeper that the blonde stood no real chance with him. The ultimate friendzone. Damon was sympathetic.

However, a knot formed in the pit of his stomach. Damon wasn't too sure where things stood or where they might go between him and Bonnie. What did she mean by her feelings not changing but things having changed?

The elephant in the room wearing a bright pink tutu continued to go unacknowledged until Caroline got fed up with the avoidance tango.

"What is Bonnie planning on doing about Elena?" she directed that pointedly at Damon.

Stefan paused in stuffing a slice of pineapple into his mouth, and stared at his brother who shrugged and tucked his hands into his pockets.

"I don't know," Damon fessed up. "She hasn't said a word to me about what she wants to do, or is going to do…"

"And you haven't asked her," Caroline finished. "Well, we need to talk to her about this. I'm pissed as hell Elena would pull some bullshit like that but…they're friends."

Damon countered, "Being friends isn't going to be enough to stay Bonnie's hand. Elena ended their friendship the minute she took that fucking X-Acto blade to her best friend's throat!"

Caroline flinched a bit. She knew throwing out friendship as a reason for Bonnie not to retaliate was idealistic at worst, flimsy at best, and meant nothing once it was all said and done. There were few times she particularly enjoyed watching her friends be at odds with one another. The last time there had been any serious rift between Bonnie and Elena was after Grams' death. Though she would have been justified, Bonnie never made Elena choose which she wanted more: their friendship or her relationship with Stefan. All Bonnie had asked of Elena was to not force her to have to choose. Nevertheless, Caroline tried to find a shred of comfort in the fact Bonnie was not like Klaus or Damon or even Stefan who got revenge by murder.

This time Elena did not have the convenience of falling back on the lame ass excuse of her humanity being off. Pure, blind jealously was her motive for murder.

Stefan gripped the counter behind him. "Whatever decision Bonnie does come to…are you going to stand behind her?"

Damon inhaled deeply. No one needed to tell him that he had, in the past, uncannily eliminated any threat to Elena. Irritated his single-minded obsession was thrown into his face, he scowled, "What about you, brother?"

"What about me?"

"I'm not the only Salvatore that bent over backwards and sucked his own dick to make sure Elena's heart never stopped beating."

"Ugh, must you be so graphic?" Caroline complained and resumed cooking the last slice of French toast.

Stefan's lips pulled down at the corners briefly. Did he want Bonnie to kill Elena? Not if it could be helped. Killing friends left a stain, a mark. Stefan was smart enough not to try to advocate for Elena either. "What happens next is Bonnie's decision."

Damon scoffed at Stefan's unwillingness to answer a question he had trouble answering himself.

Caroline felt a subject change was in order. "I meant to bring this up at the party. My mom said there was an attack in Mystic Falls. Vampire attack," she sat two mugs down on the table.

Stefan and Damon shared a look. Then it clicked for the elder brother. What Liz had called him about.

"She's sure about that?" Stefan asked and began to set the table.

"Yep. The woman was nearly exsanguinated. Plus, her ex-girlfriend, Cherie Tomlinson has gone missing along with one other person, Jayson Fell."

"A member of the founding family. Awesome," Damon muttered dryly and in two strides opened the fridge to root around for something to drink. He had been ravenously thirsty all morning. "I see it's just as hard for them to stay out of trouble as it is for us."

"I think the revenants are behind the attack and missing persons."

"Why would the revenants kidnap two people and attack one? That doesn't make sense," Stefan rationalized.

"What doesn't make sense?" Bonnie said as she entered the kitchen. Heads swung in her direction.

"Hey," Caroline beamed cheerily. Too cheerily. "How are you? Come, sit, eat," she pulled out a chair at the table that was over laden with food.

Bonnie surveyed each vampire in her kitchen. The too blank expressions on the Salvatore's. Caroline's near manic smile. "Are you going to tell me what you were talking about?"

"Sure, as soon as you sit down and eat," Caroline persisted.

Moving cautiously, Bonnie crossed to the table and sat down. Caroline tossed more than enough food on her plate that the witch knew she'd never get through more than half of it. The others joined her at the table, passing bowls and dishes back and forth. Bonnie sampled the eggs, bacon, and French toast.

"Enough with the stalling. Tell me what you were talking about."

"Revenants," Damon said as he added creamer to his coffee. Something uncharacteristic, and when he took a sip and grimaced he knew why. "Seems they're attacking people now…humans," he amended, thinking of his own attack. "One person at least, and two people have gone missing. One of them hails from a founding family. That could be important or irrelevant. Not sure which at the moment."

Licking syrup off her thumb, Bonnie asked, "When did this happen?"

"Two or three days ago," Caroline replied. "My mom is meeting me later to go over more details."

Bonnie chewed, contemplating. "If their bodies aren't found, the revenants might have found a way to successfully possess someone. It's only a theory that they wouldn't be able to possess a human, because humans wouldn't be able to sustain their spirit. But maybe…they could possess the bodies of those with latent magical abilities."

Stefan threw out, "If that's the case, is it possible the people who are missing could be witches and warlocks?"

"Or possible travelers," Bonnie said.

"Travelers would make better sense, chemistry wise," Damon attested.

"Sounds logical."

"How would they know to attack those people?" Caroline looked around the table.

Bonnie explained, "Even while dead a witch isn't completely powerless. Perhaps it's a remnant from the spell Markos cast that allows them to suss another of their kind. I really don't know. Just…whatever happens next keep me posted," she wiped her hands, stood.

Damon dropped his fork, "Where are you going?"

"Out."

"But you've barely eaten anything," Caroline needlessly pointed out.

Bonnie glanced at her plate. "I'm full. Thank you for coming over and doing this. You didn't have to."

"We didn't but we wanted to. And by we, I mean Stefan helped…a little."

Stefan shrugged like it was no big deal.

Bonnie offered him a half-smirk. "My compliments to the chefs. There's something I need to take care of so I'll catch up with you guys later," she made a beeline for the exit.

Damon was fast on her heels following Bonnie upstairs. "Now would be the perfect time to go over that research Alaric collected. Revenants are getting bold and impatient if they're openly attacking people now."

"Then I guess you better get on that," Bonnie shucked her robe, dressed in the outfit she had laid out on the bed.

Distracted by her caramel flesh, breasts almost pouring out of her bra as she bent slightly to pull on her pants, Damon wagged his head. "You're going after her."

"What gave that away?" Bonnie mocked.

Damon pinched the bridge of his nose. How could he get her to stop and think, and what exactly did he want Bonnie to think about? "Can you just…I'm coming with you."

"No, you're not."

"Yes, I am."

Bonnie rounded on him, "You had your chance and you blew it! You could have killed her and you didn't!"

"Could you kill Jeremy?"

Bonnie didn't answer but the answer was so plainly written in the tightening of her jaw and dimpling of her forehead.

"No matter how pissed off we get, we know at the end of the day, the people who really matter to us we can't take their life. No matter how justified. Look, whatever you decide to do, Bonnie, I'll understand."

She smiled but there was no humor behind it. "You're not going to secretly hold a grudge against me, resent me? You talk a good game, Damon, but too many times you end up eating your words. Whatever I decide, I'm not going to let you punish me for it. Know that."

Bonnie finished dressing, slipped her boots on, palmed her keys, phone.

Damon stood as he watched her roll out of the driveway.

Her hands kept slipping on the steering wheel regardless of how tightly she clutched it. Brown eyes darted to the rear and side view mirrors every five seconds expecting to see the headlights of a light blue Prius or cobalt Camaro barreling behind her.

There had been no question about it. Elena Gilbert knew she needed to run.

Running from someone who could find you with one simple spell was futile. She had thought about going to Luke and asking him for a cloaking spell or something, but that only would have slowed her down, and he wasn't too keen in doling out anymore favors to her.

Checking the rearview mirror again, Elena gasped because she was being tailed. Squinting, she realized it was a silver SUV. Marginally she tried to relax and sighed in relief once the SUV veered off to exit the two lane road.

She was being too paranoid for her own good.

"Argggghhh," she screamed, slammed on the brakes and turned the wheel in the opposite direction so she wouldn't hit the innocent deer that was standing in the middle of the road.

Her truck skidded to a stop, heart racing, hair flying as Elena prepared herself for the inevitable crash. It never came. She opened her eyes. The deer stood there staring at her wondering if she was going to get out of its way.

Breathing harshly through parted lips, Elena glared at the deer and for a second her eyes played tricks on her. Was it…was it staring at her in judgment? A shiver crawled down her spine whereas bile tickled the back of her throat. Now it seemed wildlife was out to get her, too.

Just as Elena took her foot off the brake to hit the gas, something slammed into the side of her truck.

She went spiraling. Screams filled the cabin. Her hands were no longer clutching the wheel, but were lifted and pressing against the roof. The truck rolled down the embankment before being impaled on a large pine tree. It set her teeth of edge—the impact. Glass shattered and it sliced into her skin. The seatbelt pulled tightly against her chest and took her breath away. Something heavy landed across her lap.

Elena looked around and saw nothing but green, prickly needles. They were everywhere and surrounded everything. Reaching for the seatbelt, Elena tried to unlatch it, but there was a heavy branch pressing against it. Her eyes widened. That's when she noticed that a large portion of the tree was inside the truck.

A branch pinned her legs down. Elena tried to squirm to see if she could free herself but she couldn't move more than a centimeter at a time. Her panic level was beginning to climb, yet she admonished herself to calm down. She could get out of here. All she had to do was unbuckle her belt, recline the seat, and climb out of the shattered back window.

"You can do this," she gave herself a pep talk and tried to squeeze her hand between the tiny space between the seat and the branch. Bark dug into her hand, splinters injected into her flesh, blood seeped out, but Elena didn't retract her hand. She kept burrowing until her fingers bumped into the buckle. She pressed down on the lever and the seatbelt gave away.

Sighing in relief, Elena grabbed the branch that was on her legs and pushed. It didn't move so she tried to lift it. Still nothing happened.

Her panic resurfaced.

Since she couldn't remove the branch, her hands fiddled with the door handle. Unfortunately the door wouldn't open more than an inch.

She was trapped.

Something groaned and the truck buckled. Elena screamed again and wondered if something was pushing on the truck from the outside.

Then to her horror she watched as the branch that exploded through the windshield began to lengthen, stretching, pointing like a finger towards the backseat. She wasn't sure if what she was seeing was real or a figment of her imagination. Elena didn't recall bashing her head on anything as the truck rolled down the embankment. Either the truck was still moving, or the tree was growing inside of her vehicle.

That couldn't be possible.

The needles began to fan out. She was hit in the face with sharp, pin-pricks that drew blood. She had to get out of here or otherwise she would look as if she got a facial compliments of Hellraiser.

Futilely she yelled, "Help!"

The branch continued to expand, along with the needles, and they were burrowing painfully into her cheek, chin, and her temple. Elena twisted her face away and her left cheek smacked into the cracked, cool window of the door. There was nowhere for her to go.

The air was becoming almost noxious to breathe. A heavy, resin aroma filled the cabin. Taking in sharp breaths, Elena reclined her seat back as far as it could go, which wasn't that far, and wiggled her legs free one at a time. The bark bit into her through her jeans, pinching her mercilessly. She was sure to have welts but vanity wasn't her reason she needed to get out the best way possible. Clearing her feet, all that was left to do was somehow scramble to the back, and get out of the truck.

Just as she turned in her seat, her hair got ensnared and jerked her head back painfully as something sharp pierced her back. Warm blood gushed. She screamed silently, unable to form a sound because the pain was too intense. She clamored to free her hair, pulling at the roots, yanking against the branch that held her prisoner. Several patches of hair were ripped out that made Elena feel like she licked an electrical fence, but she was free enough to scramble to the back. Keep moving she told herself. She could worry about her injuries later.

To her relief, the back passenger door wasn't blocked. With a good kick, Elena managed to get it open far enough for her to slide through the opening. She fell to the ground and crab crawled away.

Seeing her truck bent and practically wrapped around the tree, gave her pause.

"Ohmygod," she breathed.

A twig or two snapped which had Elena whipping her head toward the noise. She gulped, eyes widened in fear. Her breath turned into asthmatic pants. Elena thought she'd have a day, maybe two tops of a head start, but no that head start had been regulated to a handful of hours. How had Bonnie caught up with her so damn fast?

The answer that Elena didn't know stood beside Bonnie. Elena, puzzled, wondered for all of ten seconds why Bonnie was with the guy from the party. She couldn't recall his name, but that didn't matter as the fact she was caught.

Placing one heeled boot in front of another, Bonnie strolled closer to Elena who had yet to get her ass off the ground. The smile on her face was empty but contrasted with the fire that made her verdant eyes flare hazel.

"You are a waste. A complete and utter waste," Bonnie finally spoke.

"B-Bonnie, I'm so sorry," Elena apologized weepily.

Bonnie glanced behind her at Ezra, "She's sorry." Ezra snorted. She gave her undivided attention to the crying doppelganger once more. "Do you know what witches used to do back in the day to those who wronged them? They'd wipe out entire families, or just poison and kill the person's children. Lucky for you, I'm not like those who came before me. Unlucky for you, I'm not in a forgiving or merciful mood."

"Bonnie, I didn't mean to hurt you. I swear I didn't mean to do what I did. I was upset, hurt, and confused. "

"Shut. Your. Fucking. Mouth."

Elena's jaws were physically closed by an intangible force. She soon discovered she couldn't move either. Not even to recoil as Bonnie closed the distance between them, and ran her fingers through her hair. She was at her total mercy.

Bonnie stared down at the doppelganger—haughtily, like a monarch deciding the best course of action to take against a mortal enemy.

Elena had no idea what her fate might be, but from the stoic expression that cleared Bonnie's features, she had reached a decision.

Day turned into night and only half of Damon's mind had been on the research Alaric had given him to review. Stefan had offered to stay to help when Caroline checked out to meet with the sheriff for more details about the attack and missing persons. She had since returned with no new news, just a promise from her mother that if anyone else should go missing or turn up half-dead or dead from a vampire attack, she'd call.

Jeremy had shown up in a tizzy, scared out of his mind on what Bonnie meant to do to his sister. He of course had been irate that no one tried to stop her.

"So you just let her walk out of here knowing she was off to go kill Elena? What is wrong with you?" Jeremy had spat which nearly resulted in him being choked by Damon until Stefan planted himself between the boy and his brother.

"When Bonnie sets her mind on something you know it's hard as hell to change it. Your sister sat this in motion. Now she's gotta to deal with the consequences," Damon rebutted heatedly.

The tension in Bonnie's house was palpable as they awaited her return.

Jeremy had called Matt for back up and support. He just couldn't believe this.

The sound of Bonnie's car pulling into the driveway made nerves explode. No one moved a muscle, much less took a breath.

Bonnie swept through the front door with an inkling of an idea of what she might be walking into; the cars parked along the front of her house, notwithstanding. She took her time closing the door, shedding her wool pea coat, scarf, hanging both items in the closet.

Her smile was one of inevitability as she stood in front of the delegation that commandeered her living room as either a place of intervention, or strategizing.

To those assembled Bonnie seemed different. The vampires didn't smell any blood on her, and to the humans she was as neat and chic as they've come to expect, but there was something to the air around her and the air she projected. Confidence with a pinch of mercilessness. Were they dealing with a witch or a ten-year starved vampire? It was hard to tell the difference.

Jeremy was the first to break the silence. "Is she dead?"

Bonnie wandered to her Christmas tree, fingered an ornament or two before replying, "Death is like a vacation with this group," she regarded him, coldly, "No, I didn't kill her."

No one said anything. Didn't even blink.

"Thank you, Bonnie," Jeremy's relief was so evident it pissed Bonnie off.

"I didn't do it for you," she snapped. "Besides, Elena has other uses than keeping a coffin warm."

Dread bloated the former vampire hunter's stomach. "What did you do to her?"

Bonnie looked everyone in the eye to see who would crack first and look away. Naturally Damon was the only one who held her stare.

"There's something happening a few days from now," she began conversationally. "The other side will be rebuilt. Something has to hold it together," the smile that formed on her face was a perfect copy of Damon's evil grin.

Little light bulbs went off above everyone's heads, soft curses were muttered, yet none protested.

Jeremy, stricken, voiced, "You're going to use her as the anchor, aren't you?"

Bonnie brightened considerably, "Yes."

"Where is she, Bonnie?"

She couldn't hear anything or smell anything. Breathing. When she did, it burned as liquid, cold liquid washed up her nose. She coughed, gagged which sent another torrent of liquid down her throat. She was choking on it. She tried to spit it out but more rushed in. She snapped awake to total darkness. Her hair floated around her and she was suspended but could hardly move. Boxed in on all sides. Water. She was underwater.

Elena, terrified, began feeling around for a door, a latch, a light switch, a handle, something to help her get out. There was nothing but metal from the touch of it. No air holes nor slats in which to see out of.

She screamed. Bubbles floated from her mouth and had nowhere to go. More water flooded her lungs and she was suffocating. She couldn't stop swallowing it, taking it in by the mouthful. Too much with nowhere to go. Filling her up like a balloon.

Drowsy now.

Loose limbed.

Drowned.

Dead. Temporarily dead.

Jeremy approached Bonnie damn near threateningly. Damon was prepared to clothesline him if necessary. "Where is my sister?"

Bonnie jutted her chin up, "She's literally in a safe place, drowning repeatedly."

"You stuck her in a safe?!"

"Un-hun."

Chills ruptured throughout, hitting Stefan the hardest who tried to conceal the sharp breath he took.

Fury and fear warred in Jeremy who flounced away from Bonnie disbelieving she could be this cruel. He understood why she did what she did, but he was having a hard time reconciling this merciless Bonnie to the selfless Bonnie who told him she'd die a hundred times if it meant he'd live.

"The thing is, Jeremy," Bonnie said soothingly, velvety sweet, "Elena has options that I never had. She could desiccate or stake herself. However, that would be mercy and an easy out. So trapped in a safe underwater it is. Now, I may decide to shorten her sentence and if I do, well she'll still be the anchor. Kai, he couldn't die regardless of how many times and ways he tried. I've applied that to Elena."

Damon gripped the back of his neck. Treacherous. He was…inappropriately turned on. He had been there when Bonnie sent that ax careening into Kai's chest and the asshole popped up alive like a damn cat. Knowing she did that to Elena…he knew never to piss Bonnie off. Ever again.

"It takes a vampire how long to petrify?" she glanced at Caroline then Stefan, "A few weeks? Well, it'll take years for the bitch even if she stops drinking blood of any kind. Her cells will be needles, and her throat will be on constant fire while her stomach bloats and shrinks endlessly from hunger."

"Damn," Caroline whispered under her breath.

"And during that torment, she'll still experience the pain of every supe passing through her," Bonnie paused to let that sink in. She was quite pleased with their troubled expressions mixed with awe. "If anyone tries to come to her rescue," she glared at Jeremy and Matt specifically, "you'll share in her fate. The time for crossing me and escaping unscathed is over. Merry Christmas."

A/N: I love it when Bonnie lays down the law. Yes, I know many wanted Elena dead, but that's too easy and she really wouldn't suffer, not for long. Especially when totaling up everything Bonnie has gone through for that chick. Nevertheless, let me know what you think/feel about this. Please. Thank you so much for reading.