Title: Unfinished
Rating: M
Genre: AU/Supernatural/Romance
Pairing(s): Bonnie/Klaus, Stefan/Rebekah, Bonnie/Stefan (minor), Klaus/Stefan (minor), Bonnie/Rebekah (minor), Caroline/Tyler, Matt/Katherine, Rudy/Gloria, Abby/Elijah, etc.
Summary: Bonnie uncovers memories of a previous life that she spent with Klaus, Stefan, and Rebekah….
Warnings: Violence, Sexual Content, Racial Tension (Slurs, Racially Motivated Crimes and the Like), Character Death, Bad use of 1920's slang, ect.
Part Eight: Lurking in the Shadows
The black and gold robe made of French Chantilly lace that Stefan had gifted her with shortly after them meeting fell open as Bonnie got up from behind Nik's desk. He eyed the champagne colored slip that she was wearing underneath. He could not help but stare at her lips as they wrapped around the cigarette she had lit.
Bonnie looked up at him through her eyelashes as she blew smoke out of her mouth. "Could you stop staring," Bonnie sighed, "You know it gives me the heebie-jeebies when you do that."
Klaus walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, his gaze never wavering. "I can't help myself, doll," he whispered, "You're too beautiful for me not to stare."
"Well aren't you the charmer," Bonnie grinned. She took a drag of her cigarette, before standing on her toes and kissing Klaus on the lips. "Shut your yap a minute," she ordered running the fingers of her free hand along his jawline, "I'm busy. Hold my ciggy for a minute, daddy."
Nik let her go and took the cigarette from Bonnie's hand and took a drag of the cigarette watching as she turned back toward his desk. She took a stamp from the desk drawer, licked it, and placed on the corner of the envelope that she had left on the desktop. "I thought you just wrote to your grandmother," Nik said.
"I did," Bonnie said, "But this is a special occasion. My grandparents' wedding anniversary is coming up. She hasn't celebrated it much since my grandfather passed but I always send her a card. They were together thirty five years before he went. When I was younger I couldn't imagine being with someone for that long."
Bonnie motioned for the cigarette and Nik took another drag before placing the cigarette between her parted lips. "And what about now?" He asked.
"I think we might manage it if we don't off each other first," she said, turning and putting out the cigarette in the glass ashtray on the desktop surface, "But only time will tell I guess." She leaned back against the desk and Klaus placed his arms on either side of her. "I used to want to be them," Bonnie said, "wanted what they had. You could tell the loved each other. Just looking at them you could tell. But I figured out that the relationship didn't have to emulate theirs, that what I really wanted was the love that they had for each other. It so rare to see that much love between two people. My grams said that she knew that he was it for her when they first played this word game. It was a silly game. They played it even before he passed. She liked his answers, she said."
"How do you play?" Klaus asked, leaning down and kissing her neck.
"Well," Bonnie smiled, "It's like word association. One person says a word and the other person says the first word that pops into their head in response. The longer you play the more your subconscious comes out. At least that's what grams says. I am not sure I buy what she's selling though."
"How's about we give it a go?" Nik suggested, sounding interested.
"Alright," Bonnie nodded, "But you can't hesitate. It has to be the first word that pops into your head after I say mine." At his gesture of compliance, Bonnie bit her lip and tried to think of her first word. The first ones were always simple. Something that would get the person used to the game before they got into heavier territory. "Up," Bonnie said.
"Down," he answered, rolling his eyes.
Bonnie giggled, before she tapped her chin with her index finger as she thought about the next word. "Smoke," she said.
"Fire," Klaus responded quickly.
"Red," Bonnie said.
"Lips," he said, his gaze moving down to her mouth that was still painted red from their night out.
As he leaned down to kiss her, Bonnie kissed him back, before pulling back and continuing the game. "Life," she said.
"Eternity," he said. He was immortal, and so while he believed in death, he did not believe that it would ever come to him.
"Hope," Bonnie whispered.
"Bonnie," Klaus answered, without thinking. He frowned at his response at the same time Bonnie's eyes widened.
"I said a word," Bonnie replied, trying to cut the tension that had formed, "Not a name, half-breed."
"You also said to say the first thing that came to mind, doll," he said.
She nodded as small smile playing on her lips as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I might be able to deal with you for thirty more years," she said, "At least before I test you again."
"So I passed then?"
"You didn't do too shabby," she said, "But I have one more word for you." She pressed herself closer to him before she next spoke. "Mouth," she said.
"Kiss."
"I was hoping that you would say that," she said, before she took his face in her hands and pulled him down toward her until their lips met.
Klaus Mikaelson kicked off his boots and laid down on the bed that was in the guest room that he inhabited in the Salvatore boardinghouse. Bonnie joined him a moment later, laying down with her head pillowed on his stomach. She still wore the dress she had worn while singing at the run down club that night and as she closed her eyes, Klaus couldn't help but stare down at her.
Her small fingers played with the hem of his shirt, before her hand sought his own and she threaded their fingers together.
"I want to know about you," he said, "The way that you are right now. I want you to tell me everything that I missed."
Bonnie opened her eyes and raised an eyebrow at him as he looked in his direction. "Everything?" She asked. When he nodded, she sighed. "That's going to take a little more than one night, half-breed."
"I have time," he said, reaching out with his free hand and running it through her hair.
"I'm tired," Bonnie said, "And I don't know where to start and you keep staring at me and it's making me self-conscious."
"You're too beautiful for me not to stare, sweetheart," Klaus stated, his mind somewhere in between the past and the present.
"We'll aren't you the charmer," Bonnie giggled. She closed her eyes again, enjoying the feel of his fingers in her hair, as a thought occurred to her. "There is another way you can kind of get to know me since I am too tired to tell you my life story," she said, "Even though you know a lot already. You know about my mom, about my friends, most of my past and you've been in my present. There isn't much else to tell. Except maybe about my dad and my Grams but that can wait until I'm not so sleepy."
"Then what's you're alternative?"
Bonnie smiled as turned her head to look up at him. "There's this word game I used to play with my Grams," she said, "Not so much after my grandpa died. But we still played sometimes. Mostly on their anniversary."
"Something to do with word association?" Klaus asked, smiling.
Bonnie nodded and his hand shifted in her hair slightly. "How'd you know?" She asked, curiously.
"You taught it to me," he said, "Before."
Bonnie nodded again, not all that surprised. She knew that they said that her memories were still there just under the surface and Bonnie was beginning to believe them. Though, she also believed that history had somehow been reborn when she was reborn. The fact that her family was so much the same was proof of that.
"So you know how to play then," Bonnie said, "Go ahead and start."
Klaus nodded, thinking of his first word. "Up," he whispered, grinning when Bonnie rolled her eyes.
"Down," Bonnie laughed.
"Smoke," Klaus said.
"Fire," Bonnie responded, loosening her grip on his hands so that she could play with his fingers.
"Blue," he said, as he watched her trace the lines on the palm of his hand with her index finger.
"Eyes," Bonnie murmured, her thoughts focusing themselves on him, even with him being in such close proximity to her.
"Always," Klaus said, thinking of the time when he had told her a part of his family's story. A story he and Rebekah had retold her due to the present danger of their once beloved and respected father.
"Forever," Bonnie murmured.
"Love," he said, glad when the word brought a smile to her lips instead of causing her to hesitate or pull away from him.
"Nik," Bonnie said, without thinking. Her face flushed with embarrassment a moment later as she sat up suddenly.
"If I remember the rules correctly," Klaus said, attempting to keep her from running, "You are meant to say a word, not a name."
"It was the first thing that popped into my head," she said, honestly, and then, "Can you just let me off this once?"
"That depends," Klaus said, sitting up as well. He eyed her as she unconsciously shifted closer to him. "I have one more word for you," he told her.
"Shoot."
Klaus reached out and took Bonnie's face in his hands. "Mouth," he said, leaning down slightly. His gaze moved down to her lips and Bonnie noted the darkening of his eyes and the dilation of his pupils.
"Kiss," Bonnie said, before he closed the distance between them and covered his mouth with hers.
In that moment, as Bonnie pressed herself against him and wrapped her arms around his neck, Klaus was certain of one thing. Thirty years or fifty years or one hundred years or one thousand years could pass and they would still be this much in love with one another. This much consumed in one another. That memory intact or not, whenever someone said the word love in Bonnie's presence, his name would pass through her lips in response. If she never remembered, this would be enough.
:::
Abby Bennett sat next to Gloria Hayes on the couch in the living room of the house that she had once shared with her daughter and her former husband, scouring over her mother's grimoires. No matter how many spells that she tried in order to reengage her powers, none of them were working. She didn't respond to any of the attempts to regain her magic favorably.
Gloria sighed as she watched Abby hold out her hands and attempt another incantation. Once again Abby's powers stayed stagnant. "Look," Gloria said, "Let's take a break. It could be that we're just trying too hard. Maybe you need to more relaxed, our magic is tied to our emotions, and so you stressing yourself out over this could be a part of the problem."
Abby nodded, though she really wasn't so sure. "I think that we should explore the possibility that this may never work," Abby frowned, "I might not ever be able to access my powers again and Bonnie may never be able to remember."
Gloria closed the book in front of Abby, and gave the woman a look. "I say we eliminate all possibilities before accepting that one."
Gloria had come to have a sort of understand with the woman, but that didn't mean she wouldn't push her if necessary. Bonnie deserved to have the woman go all in for her for once. To have her mother sacrifice something for her that didn't have any selfish tie in motives.
"I get that you care about Bonnie," Abby said, "But what exactly was your relationship before? I mean Klaus and the others I can sense and Bonnie talked about them a lot when she remembered. But she was always hesitant to discuss you…at least with me." Both Sheila and Rudy knew a lot about Gloria. Enough to track down her record and gift it to Bonnie. Enough to think well of the woman without even knowing her. However, whenever Abby had asked Bonnie about Gloria as a child she was hesitant to say anything outside of missing her influence in her life.
"We were close," Gloria said, crossing her arms over her chest, "Like sisters. I took care of her. Looked after her. I wasn't able to keep Klaus and the others away but I think I did an okay job up until they arrived. Her family had abandoned her outside of her grandmother, I was there when they weren't, and I didn't just care about her. I loved her. I still love her. That's why I am here now, away from my home and my business, doing everything I can to help her. Being the sanity within all of this craziness for her. She would do the same for me. She's always been loyal and I respect that. I couldn't love that girl any more than if she was my own flesh and blood."
Abby knew what Gloria wasn't saying. She had been a sort of motherly figure. She had been the mother that Abby hadn't been before and slowly but surely she was taking on that role again with Bonnie now.
"If I were you," Gloria said, reading the woman's expression easily, "I would spend more time worrying about what your role in Bonnie's life than what my role is. At the end of the day, I am not the one that needs to work to regain her favor. I know where Bonnie and I stand. And at the end of the day you are her mother, so what I am to her should not be able to threaten that. If it does then well…that means that you need to think about how to change that."
Abby was about to respond when they heard a key in the lock of the front door, before it opened. Gloria was about to call out, thinking that it was Bonnie when a male voice spoke. "Bonnie, sweetheart," he called, "I'm home. I have so much to tell you. Sorry I had to go to that convention right after our vacation. I would have come home if I could. But I made it up to you I think. On the way home, I passed this little antique show while driving through Pennsylvania they had so much stuff from the twenties. I know how much you love the jazz age. I might have gone a little overboard but when is the next time…"
Rudy Hopkins trailed off as he entered his living room, his bags fall from his hands as his eyes landed on his ex-wife. "Abby?" Rudy frowned, "What are you doing here? Where's Bonnie?"
Abby opened her mouth to answer, but faltered at seeing the look on his face. It had been so long since she had seen him and she knew then that a part of her still loved him. Still missed the family that they had. She wanted something back that she would never be able to get back.
"She's here because I found her and asked her to come," Gloria said, when Abby remained silent, "Bonnie needed her."
Rudy turned to Gloria, noticing her for the first time. "And who the hell are you?" He asked. Then he looked at her, really looked and a thought came to him. She looked familiar, and it wasn't long before he realized he had seen her face once before. She had been much younger, and on the cover of an old jazz record. "Gloria," he said, a disbelieving look on his face, "Gloria Hayes?"
Gloria nodded. "How did you know?" She asked.
"Bonnie," Rudy said, "She used to talk about you all the time. She always played that record of yours. Said that you were coming back for her."
"Took a little longer than I had hoped," Gloria smiled.
"All this time I thought that maybe…," Rudy said, "But she was always telling the truth." Rudy held out a hand, and smiled when Gloria shook it. "I know this might sound strange," he said, "But thank you for taking care of her. For loving her enough to bring her back. If you hadn't I wouldn't have had the privilege of knowing her, of loving her myself. I'm not as present as I want to be all the time but I want you to know especially that I am doing all I can to do right by her this time. If I'm gone it's because it's a necessary evil to take care of her. She said that you didn't much care for her parents before so I thought that you should know that about me."
As he looked at her Gloria could see the honesty in his eyes. Gloria thought that perhaps she had gotten the wrong impression about Rudy in his absence. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that Bonnie's old journals from childhood had spoken good of Rudy and even now when she mentioned Rudy, Bonnie's only qualm seemed to be the wish that she could see him more. But it seemed that it was work and the need to provide for them both that kept him away and not so much the wish to not want to be around Bonnie.
"That's good to know," Gloria said.
"Bonnie," Rudy sighed, letting go of her hand, "She remembered before, but she doesn't now. But I am guessing that since Abby is here that you already know that."
Abby winced as he used her full name. He had normally always used terms of endearment or at times he called her Ab, very rarely had he ever called her Abby.
"Yes," Gloria nodded, "I am aware of her memory loss. We're working on getting it back. And Bonnie wants to work on her relationship with Abby."
Rudy frowned, turning to Abby. "Is that true?" He asked.
Abby nodded. "I met with her and we talked," she said, speaking finally, "Listen Rudy, I know that you don't want me here and I understand why. But I'm not going to let you force me away this time. I want to know my daughter."
Rudy rolled his eyes at her. "If that is what Bonnie wants then fine," he said, "It's not about me at the end of the day, it's about her. But don't act as if I didn't make you leave for a reason. And don't act as if you tried so hard to get in contact with her after you left. I've had some time to think about it and I understand why you did what you did. I do. But that doesn't change what you took from her and that doesn't change the fact that you made a choice about our daughter that had a permanent impact on her without discussing it with me first or the fact that you used your powers against her. For Bonnie's sake I hope that you're able to fix what you broke. But you and I no longer have anything to say to each other."
"That's perfectly fine with me," Abby said, "And you don't have to worry. I was just here waiting for Bonnie to come home. I'm actually staying at my mom's old place."
Rudy nodded at Abby, before turning back to Gloria. "If you're here," he said, "Does that mean that the others are here too."
Gloria knew who he meant without asking. She was happy to change the subject and glad that the tense exchange between Abby and Rudy was over. "They are," she said, "How much do you know about them?"
"Enough to be worried," Rudy sighed, "But probably not enough to know how to deal with the situation. With them."
"Bonnie is just as open to them now as she was then and they are probably even more dangerous," Gloria said, "There are things you need to know that have been happening in your absence, and if you want to know the best way to broach the subject with Bonnie then I can help with that too."
"Well," he said, "How about we go and have a cup of coffee and you can fill me in. I don't want to confront Bonnie about this without knowing everything and I don't want to upset her."
"I'd like that," Gloria said. She turned to Abby and gestured toward the grimoires. "If you are going to keep trying then remember what I said about relaxing. Call me if you make any progress."
"Of course," Abby said.
Rudy began to lead Gloria out of the house, his hand on the small of her back. "Bonnie still sings from time to time you know," he said, "Since you're back then maybe she'll pick it up again."
"I hope so, she always did have a nice set of pipes," Gloria said as she grabbed her jacket.
"Yours aren't so bad either," Rudy commented, "Do you still sing?"
"From time to time," Gloria laughed, "Not as much as I used to though. I'm a little behind the times as far music nowadays goes. I can't seem to let go of the old stuff."
Rudy shrugged as he opened the door for her. "I'm a jazz man myself," he said, "Classics are classics for a reason."
Abby frowned as she watched them go. She was pretty sure that no matter how hard she tried, she wouldn't be able to relax.
:::
Bonnie was putting the finishing touches on her makeup when she suddenly saw a figure behind her in the reflection of the mirror that she was using. The other hoofers didn't seem to notice the man and Bonnie was certain that compulsion had something to do with it.
"Hello, sweet Virginia Bonnie," Mikael leaned down and whispered into her ear.
Bonnie put down the tube of red lipstick in her hand and met his eyes in the reflection of the glass. "Mr. Hunter," she greeted.
Mikael placed his hands on her shoulders, noting when Bonnie to stiffened under his touch. "Might I have a word with you, my dear?" He asked.
As many times in as many ways as he had been pursuing her over the last few days, Bonnie was aware that there was no real choice. He was dangerous, and though Bonnie didn't know what he wanted, she could sense his power.
"Very well," Bonnie sighed, "But I have a set to get ready for so I hope it doesn't take long."
Instead of replying Mikael walked in the direction of the john. Bonnie swallowed nervously before getting up and following behind him. A part of her was afraid. There was a foreboding feeling in the pit of her stomach and Bonnie hesitated. But Nik and the others were in the club, as was Gloria. If something happened to her, they would get to her in time and she would have her powers to defend herself if nothing else.
Mikael held the door to the bathroom open and motioned for Bonnie to enter. Bonnie walked inside and Mikael walked in after her and closed the door behind him.
"What is it that you want to discuss?" Bonnie asked.
"While I have made my interest in you no secret," Mikael said, "I have not been completely honest with you about my identity and my motives."
Bonnie grinned, crossing her arms over her chest, "I can't say that I'm surprised by that jack," she said. He had been creeping around the club, sending her gifts, coming to her performances. When she had told Nik he had said that he would take care of it but this Mr. Hunter didn't seem to scare so easily.
"My real name is Mikael," he revealed, "And I am one of the oldest vampires in existence. I also hunt and kill vampires." Bonnie looked confused and Mikael couldn't blame her. "In truth I had begun pursuing you with the intent of destroying you," Mikael said, "I came here to destroy the very people that you are loyal to and I couldn't let you get in the way of that. The problem is….once I laid eyes on you I could not bring myself to destroy all of that beauty, power, and spirit. It seemed to be such a waste."
Bonnie mentally cataloged the information that he was giving her, even as her eyes roamed the room in search of some means of escape. "If you don't want to kill me then what exactly do you want from me?"
"I want to offer you something better than what you have," Mikael said, "I want to give you a chance to join me. To be with me. What I am may be against nature but I am working to remedy it with my hunting. You are worth more than that boy, the hybrid, can give you. You deserve more than being kept by someone who wants to use you in a vain attempt to protect themselves from me."
Bonnie had had enough of this. "I'm going to stop you right here, pal," Bonnie said, holding up her hand, "I don't care what you think I deserve. You don't even know me. I don't care what you think that you can offer me, it doesn't matter. You could offer me the world and I wouldn't turn against Nik for anything. I don't know why you want to hurt Nik but I don't care, if you want to come after him then you will have to get through me."
"Think about what you are saying," Mikael said stepping forward. He sped toward her, backing her into the nearest wall. "I saw the way you looked at me before you knew my motives," he whispered, "You were intrigued and flattered by my attention. If Niklaus is the only thing stopping you then I assure you that you will forget him in time."
Before Bonnie could comprehend what was happening, he was grabbing her and kissing her. Bonnie pushed him away, frantically wiping at her mouth. "I don't know what the hell you deal is or what is so hard for you to understand," she spat, "But I love him. I love him and nothing will ever make me turn against him. Not you or anything else."
"Is that your answer?" Mikael asked.
"That's my answer," Bonnie said, standing her ground, "And no matter how you ask or in what ways you ask it will always be my answer."
"What if I promised that I would spare him and his sister in exchange for you coming with me?" Mikael offered.
"I wouldn't believe you," Bonnie said seriously, "And even if I did. I would rather die defending them than live apart from them in hopes that they be spared. Being without them isn't an option for me, especially if you are the alternative."
"Very well then," Mikael said, blinking. Without warning he attacked. Bonnie was barely able to raise her hand in defense of herself before Mikael grabbed the hand and crushed it in his own, breaking her bones. Bonnie screamed and he wrapped his other hand around her throat cutting off the sound.
As Mikael bit into Bonnie's neck, her last thought was that she had never been able to tell Nik that she loved him.
Mikael looked on as Bonnie left the Salvatore's home with his daughter in tow. She had not changed much and even after all of this time he could say that he desired her. He had never quite been sure of what exactly drew him to her, but he supposed it was a combination of things. It didn't matter. What mattered was that he still wanted her, wanted to sway her to his side.
It would have been easier if he hadn't spent over a decade entombed. He could have gotten her while she was young. She would have come with him for Niklaus' sake and the sake of her family in the beginning but he would have had time to wear her down. Time that he had not had before.
Now he was back to where had been before. Too late for her not to have succumbed to the boy's influence. Creeping around unseen and waiting for the opportune time to corner her all over again. The only thing that he had in his favor was that she no longer had her full memory. She would know him, just the same but her blind loyalty toward the boy could not be as strong as before without knowing about all of their time together.
He listened to his daughter going on and on about some high school dance. A dance that his children were foolish and weak enough to happily attend. It would be as good a place as any to strike. It would catch them by surprise as their guard would likely be down given the fact that they would be distracted by his witch and the Salvatore boy. All he would have to do was get Bonnie alone. He would give her the same offer as he did before and if she refused him again then she would meet the exact same fate.
:::
"Hold still, Blondie," Bonnie chastised as she fastened Rebekah's dress. It was green and blue with a beading design that was reminiscent of peacock feathers.
"If you could keep your hands in appropriate places then I could stop moving, doll face," Rebekah commented, even as she straightened her stance.
Bonnie gave her a look as their eyes met in the reflection of Rebekah's full length mirror. "I am simply making sure that the dress has the right fit," Bonnie said, rolling her eyes, "It isn't my fault that you and Nik insist on relating every little action back to doing the deed."
"So you weren't just trying to cop a feel of my bubs just now?" Rebekah said.
Bonnie finished fastening the dress. "This," she said, smoothing the dress out with her hands, "Is adjusting the dress." She then moved her hands around to cup Rebekah's breast through the dress. "This," she said squeezing slightly, before letting go, "Is copping a feel. You'd think that a dame as old as you would know the difference."
"An age joke?" Rebekah huffed, "Really?"
Bonnie shrugged as she watched Rebekah study herself in the mirror. "Well," she said, "What do you think?"
Rebekah smiled a she nodded in approval. "It's perfect," she said, "Not that I'm surprised. You always know what looks good on me." Rebekah turned and wrapped her arms around Bonnie's neck, kissing her softly on the lips. "Thanks, sweetheart," she murmured as she pulled away.
"Sure thing," Bonnie said, winking. She placed a kiss on Rebekah's lips, but stepped away at the sound of a throat clearing behind her. Bonnie turned to see Stefan, standing in the doorway of Rebekah's room. "You got a problem, superhero?" Bonnie asked.
Stefan frowned as he walked deeper into the room. "How come she never gets the boundaries lecture?" Stefan asked, "It is bad enough that I had to practically beg to stay in bed with you and Nik when Rebekah left me alone with no one to cuddle. Then when I offered to wash your back when I walked in on you in the tub, you looked completely aghast. Now I see you hold Rebekah here up to a whole other set of standards."
Bonnie blinked at him and shrugged. "You've caught me," she sighed, "But in my defense she kisses better than you and has a better set of gams too."
Stefan grinned as he walked up to her. "I challenge you on both counts, green eyes," he said. He moved to kiss her but Bonnie ran around him before he could as she caught sight of Nik coming into the room. He rolled his eyes as Bonnie jumped into Nik's arms and kissed him hard on the lips. "What are we, chopped liver?" Stefan asked.
"The short answer would be, yes," Nik said, as he carried Bonnie out of the room, "Especially in comparison to me."
Caroline Forbes held the door open to the boutique that specialized in vintage clothes as Bonnie and Rebekah walked in. Bonnie looked around in confusion as she noted the style of the clothing.
"Why are we here?" Bonnie asked, "Shouldn't we go to a regular boutique. I thought the theme for homecoming was Autumn in New York or something."
Rebekah rolled her eyes at the idea. "How very trite," Rebekah said, causing Bonnie to give her a look.
"I happen to be head of the homecoming committee and I was the one who came up with the theme," Caroline frowned.
"That doesn't surprise me at all," Rebekah said, earning a pinch in the side from Bonnie.
"Behave, Blondie," Bonnie ordered. Rebekah gave her a semi-apologetic look, but still didn't apologize to Caroline.
"It's fine, Bonnie," Caroline said, surprising the other two girl's. Caroline was putting up with Rebekah for Bonnie's sake, the same reason she had revamped homecoming as well. "I actually agree with Rebekah's assessment of the theme which is why I changed it at the last minute," Caroline said.
"What?" Bonnie asked, "Will everything get done on time?" Caroline never left anything to chance, especially when it came to party planning.
"There will be compulsion involved," Caroline said, "But it'll get done."
"So," Bonnie said, eyeing Caroline curiously, "What is our new theme miss head of the homecoming committee?"
Caroline beamed, looking rather proud of herself. "Well the new theme just so happens to be The Great Gatsby."
Bonnie and Rebekah looked at each other before they both squealed. "I know that you did this for me," Bonnie said, turning to Caroline, "So thank you."
"You're welcome," Caroline smiled.
Rebekah nodded her acknowledgement to Caroline as well. "It would seem that you're not entirely worthless after all," she said, "And since I'm familiar with the time period, then I should probably offer my assistance so that it doesn't end up being a total failure."
Caroline blinked at Rebekah and then looked at Bonnie. "That's the closest thing to a thank you from her that I'm going to get isn't it?"
Bonnie tilted her head to the side and considered Rebekah, before turning back to Caroline and then nodding. "Probably," she said.
"Whatever," Caroline sighed, "Let's just shop." She frowned as she considered Rebekah. "Also," she sighed, "Any help you could give would be great."
"I'll make some calls after we find our dresses," Rebekah said, as she walked over to one of the racks.
Bonnie turned to Caroline and smiled. "First its homecoming," she said, "Next thing you know, you two will be having sleepovers and braiding each other's hair."
"Don't push it," Caroline said, pulling a face.
Laughing Bonnie followed Rebekah over to one of the racks. When she had suggested the shopping trip, Bonnie had been concerned that it would be a problem. However, it seemed that Caroline and Rebekah were trying in their own ways, and that was all that she could really ask for.
Bonnie frowned as Rebekah picked up a white flapper style dress. She walked over to her, taking the dress from her hands. "No white," she said, "It'll wash you out."
"But it has gold beading," Rebekah pouted.
"That'll make it worse," Caroline said, agreeing with Bonnie, "White and gold on someone who is pale with blonde hair is a good way to draw attention away from yourself which is likely something that you don't want."
"If you like the idea of gold then we can find something where it's against a darker color," Bonnie said. "Trust me. I know what looks good on you."
Caroline watched Rebekah closely, the look the girl gave Bonnie giving her pause. She chose not to comment as Bonnie continued to sift through the rack. Caroline watched with bemusement as Bonnie's face grew thoughtful. She didn't understand why Bonnie was taking the task of dressing Rebekah so seriously. Bonnie had never been this picky about what she or Elena wore, she just nodded and smiled after they made their choices.
"This one," Bonnie said, as she pulled a dress out and held it up to Rebekah. It was forest green, with gold beading and embroidery; with layered fringe at the skirt. "What do you think?"
Rebekah smiled as she took the dress from Bonnie's hands. "I love it. Let's try it on," she said.
Bonnie and Caroline followed Rebekah toward the dressing room both waiting as the girl tried the dress on. Caroline became distracted as she saw a prospect dress for herself and she walked off just before Rebekah came out of the dressing room.
"You look gorgeous," Bonnie said.
"It's perfect," Rebekah agreed, "And you were right. You always did know what looks good on me."
"You're welcome," Bonnie said. Rebekah surprised her a moment later when she kissed Bonnie on the lips. The movement was so quick that Bonnie thought that she might have imagined it.
When Rebekah's expression turned to one of guilt Bonnie knew that she hadn't imagined it at all. "Sorry," Rebekah said, quickly, "I forgot that you didn't remember. Not that it would be okay if you did if you didn't want it. What I mean to say is…"
"It's okay, Rebekah," Bonnie said, "I have my journal from before remember? It's pretty much full of you, and Nik, and Stefan. I kind of figured something like this would happen sooner or later."
"So it's okay?" Rebekah hedged.
"A little weird," Bonnie shrugged, "But not terrible."
"I'll take it," Rebekah said. There hadn't been any lead up to the transition of their relationship before. The first time they had kissed it had just kind of happened. "I don't expect anything," Rebekah said, seriously, "You set the boundaries before so feel free to set them now. And the same goes with you and Stefan."
"I probably won't be able to make an informed choice until I have memories," Bonnie said, "But I'm not going to take anything off the table in the meantime okay?"
Nodding, Rebekah smiled. "Okay."
Bonnie watched as she walked back to the dressing room. Caroline was standing next to Bonnie a moment later with a red and gold, layered dress in hand. "So Rebekah kissed you, huh?" she said, "Funny, I always thought that when the time came for someone outside of Klaus to pursue you in your weird little foursome that Stefan would make the first move."
"Really, Care?" Bonnie laughed. Only Caroline would have that sort of response to what had just occurred.
"What?" Caroline asked, "Don't tell me you weren't thinking the same thing. I guess all that talk about getting you dirty was all talk." Bonnie gave her a warning look but Caroline ignored her. "Out of complete curiosity," she said, "Exactly how far did your journal say you guys went anyway?"
"We're not talking about this here, Caroline," Bonnie sighed.
"Oh," Caroline grinned, "That far. I see. I'll have to tell Tyler that he was right."
"What do you mean he was right?" Bonnie asked, her eyebrows knitting together, "What did he say?"
"We're not talking about this here, Bonnie," Caroline said, mimicking her tone. As Bonnie glared at her, the only response Caroline gave was laughter.
:::
Jeremy Gilbert sat down next to his sister on their couch. Neither of them spoke. Jeremy had been isolating himself since Anna had disappeared and Elena had been on the outside looking in in terms of her group of so called friends.
"I don't get it," Jeremy said, finally, "How Bonnie could leave me for Klaus. I mean…I should've listened when Anna warned me but I couldn't imagine Bonnie of all people going anywhere near that monster. It's disgusting. And she always holds everyone else to this high standard and it's just bullshit you know. That she could judge me about what happened with Anna when she's with Klaus. Klaus."
Elena frowned, feeling the need to defend Bonnie for the first time in a while. "It isn't that simple," Elena sighed, "Caroline and Matt said that Bonnie had a whole life when Klaus before. And anyway she was honest with you and she was the one broke things off with you before she acted on her feelings for Klaus. Not only did you not show her that courtesy, but you lied to her about seeing Anna and Vicki all summer."
Jeremy rolled his eyes. "I thought you of all people would be able to understand," he said, "I mean you've been moping around about Stefan all this time. When's the last time that you even talked to Bonnie."
Elena wasn't really sure. It had been a while. She hadn't even been there when Caroline had called her after Bonnie's mother had returned. She knew more than anyone what the abandonment had done to Bonnie when they were kids. Still she had stayed away from fear of seeing Bonnie with Stefan or Stefan with Rebekah.
"I don't even see how she could fall for him," Jeremy continued, "He probably isn't even capable of love. I talked to Ric and he said he talked to Matt and Tyler and everyone seems to be buying into this. But it's bullshit."
Elena frowned. She had been ready to give up on Stefan before he had come home. She had learned a lesson and thought that her time would be better spent being there for the people she had outside of him. But as soon as he had reappeared that had all gone out the window. Now, she was beginning to realize it wasn't Stefan she should have held onto but rather that lesson that she had learned before he had come home.
"How would we know if we haven't even been there to witness it Jeremy?" Elena said, as she realized how wrong she had been.
Matt had tried to tell her. Caroline had tried to tell her. But she had been too wrapped up in chasing after someone who didn't want her to listen.
"What's bullshit is risking your relationship with someone who is living and breathing and brought you back from the dead for a ghost," Elena sighed, "What's bullshit is me abandoning all rhyme and reason to pursue Stefan, even when we both had feelings for other people."
She understood it, that things weren't black and white. That they had spent so much time in their own heads to even consider things from anyone else's perspective. That she had taken her friends for granted and the things that they did for her for granted as well. Everyone's sacrifices had turned into something that was to be expected instead of the acts of love and friendship that they were. That was one of the reasons she had expected everyone to keep putting her feelings first even after things had changed. Why she had expected Bonnie to give Stefan and the others up for her. Why she had expected Stefan to eventually come back whether she had feelings for Damon or not.
"But you loved Anna and you cared about her. Just like I loved Stefan," she frowned as she continued, "So we excused our own behavior to the bitter end. If Bonnie loves Klaus then how is what she's doing any more wrong than what we did. I'm not saying I like it or that I'm okay with it. I'm not. We hate Klaus, but what does that have to do with how we feel about Bonnie? It's not like she's asking us to play nice with him and it's not like she abandoning her friends to give him everything and anything he wants. She's balancing things which is more than I can say for me. Not only that, but if our friends or exes liking the person we are in a relationship with was some sort of prequalification then none of us would ever be with anyone ever. We need to grow up Jeremy. Because if we keep doing what we are doing this is how our lives are going to be. You and me alone, complaining that people we once wanted to see happy are happy. I don't know about you but that isn't want I want for either of us. I'm going to call Bonnie."
Jeremy watched as Elena stood and left the room. He tried to pretend that her words hadn't affected him but they both knew that they had.
:::
Bonnie had come home in search of Abby, she had wanted to see if the woman had made any progress with the spell to regain her magic, and she wanted to show off her homecoming dress. However, when she arrived it wasn't Abby waiting for her but Klaus.
Apparently Abby was searching through Sheila's reserves to see if there was something that she could find and in the meantime she had called Klaus to look over the spells that she had already tried to see if he had any suggestions.
Bonnie had wondered at her not calling Gloria instead, but Klaus said Abby had seemed put off by the idea when he suggested that she do so. Dropping the subject, Bonnie decided to model her dress for Klaus instead.
Klaus smiled as Bonnie spun around in a circle in front of him. The dress looked excellent on her but that was unsurprising. The dress was strapless, black and nude in color, with floral embroidery throughout the bodice and a layered fringed skirt.
As unexcited as he was about the prospect of going to a high school dance, he was just as pleased to see how excited that Bonnie seemed to be.
He had heard that Rebekah had a hand in the planning, and she was looking for another venue. So at the very least the dance wouldn't be at the high school, even if he was going to be surrounded by children.
"You look perfect," he said as Bonnie came to as stop.
Bonnie grinned as she ran her hands down the dress. "I hoped you would like it," she said, "I'll look even better when I get all dolled up."
Klaus stood from his seat on the couch and took Bonnie's hands. "Dolled up or not you're beautiful," he said. Bonnie's smile widened as he bent down and kissed the top of her head. "I love seeing you this happy," he whispered.
"No one's ever said that to me before," Bonnie said, "That they loved seeing me happy. Then again, I don't think that I've ever been this happy before."
"Perhaps it has something to do with me, doll?"
"Maybe," Bonnie conceded, as she kissed him. She pulled away a moment later, letting go of his hands. "I have to take off this dress so it won't get ruined," she said.
"Would you like some help?" Klaus offered, a suggestive eyebrow raised.
Bonnie opened her mouth to answer, but stopped as she heard the front door to her house open. Bonnie turned at the sound. It wasn't long before Bonnie saw Gloria walk into the house. She smiled at the woman and her smile widened as looked at the person coming in behind her. "Dad," she said, "You're home."
"Hey, sweetheart," he said. Rudy smiled at her in turn, but his smile slowly faded as his eyes drifted to Klaus.
Bonnie looked from her father to Klaus. The situation suddenly seemed rather awkward. Bonnie looked to Gloria for guidance and the woman shrugged.
Before Bonnie could speak, her father stepped forward. "You must be the half-breed," he said, holding out a hand to Klaus.
Bonnie watched as Klaus smiled and shook her father's hand. This is going to be interesting, she thought.
