Chapter nine

A new Joker

Bonnie was dreaming and she knew it. In her dream she was in a beautiful chamber, with the antique furniture, the red velvet curtains and the mahogany walls. Her eyes could take in every detail. It was strange enough but she got used to having realistic dreams lately. This place didn't seem familiar and Bonnie felt she shouldn't be here.

"Welcome, darling."

How predictable.

She slowly turned around to see Klaus sitting in a chair. He was smiling looking at her.

"It was rather hard to get to you. I have to thank Elsa."

"Are you invading my dreams now?" Bonnie asked coolly.

"Actually, I'm constructing this dream."

She furrowed her brow trying to understand what his point was. She couldn't attack him now, it was obvious, but he couldn't kill her either.

"What do you want?"

He raised one eyebrow.

"You are really going to die this time. Do you understand it?"

Bonnie took a step towards him. She felt the floor vibrate beneath her feet but paid no attention to that.

"Okay. But let Jeremy go."

His mouth twitched with amusement.

"Are you serious? No, I don't think so."

"Then I'll stop you."

Klaus shook his head slowly. Bonnie's vision went blurry for a second and she blinked.

"That's where your suffering began. You wanted to be my enemy. Why do you think Jeremy is with me now? You were so naive."

"What?"

"You and Stefan are so alike. He thought he could escape. You thought I would let you live. And you both don't have a ghost of a chance to stand against me."

"You didn't attack me," she said, her voice quivering with fury. "You aimed at Jeremy."

"But wasn't it the easiest way?.. Elsa was ordered to capture your boyfriend. She is rather talented and very creative. And Jeremy was so easy. Not to mention, he was broken already. Poor boy saw dead people. He thought he was going crazy..."

Bonnie closed her eyes to hide her emotions but opened them quickly.

"Elsa was a good listener," Klaus said, watching her. "And Jeremy was telling her things he couldn't tell you... My dear witch had figured things out soon enough. When she told me what had happened I was so amused. Saint Bennett had performed necromancy."

"You know nothing," she spat out.

"I never even hoped you'd surprise me like that," he muttered. "And this boy —"

"Let him go."

His smile suddenly faded. Bonnie felt unsteady — the floor was shaking violently. But she had to keep her eyes on Klaus.

"You don't even get what your problem is. You see, there's no man who wants a powerful girlfriend. All men always were and always will be seeking the power for themselves. And some blind ignorant bitches who think they can change something that's out of their hands or stop someone who's obviously stronger I despise the most. Bonnie, becoming my enemy was your biggest mistake."

Bonnie clenched her fists.

"Your biggest mistake was messing with my friends," she said angrily.

Surprisingly, he looked pleased. Really, this vampire was beyond Bonnie's understanding. Klaus chuckled.

"So loyal. So afraid of losing someone you love. That's why you will lose everyone. When Jeremy breaks (and that will be soon enough) I'll kill him. Then I'll kill Elena. Then your blonde vampire friend. Then her werewolf. Your Daddy when he comes back home. And probably if I feel this way I will slaughter the whole town. And then I'll send you somewhere you truly belong. At the stake."

The floor finally cracked under her feet. And then she was falling, and there was a terrible moment when Bonnie realized there was a consuming fire around her. She was burning.

Damon was awakened by the smell of smoke. He crinkled his nose and sat up in his bed, feeling confused. Then he rolled his eyes and groaned in frustration. Stubborn. Witch.

Buttoning his shirt, Damon made his way down the stairs and saw Bonnie standing next to the table in the living room.

She was burning. She was burning Jeremy's T-shirt in the metal bowl. Damon felt like hitting something.

"What the hell could have happened in the last three hours?" he asked irritably.

Bonnie didn't look at him. She slowly lifted her hands and the flames rose higher, following her fingers. Her eyes were fixed on the bowl. Damon scowled.

"Aren't you going to answer? Hello? Bonnie?"

"Hello. Maniac."

Damon cocked his head in confusion.

"Are you picking on me?"

She didn't even bother to answer. Damon came closer.

"What are you doing?" he said in a low voice.

"I need to find Jeremy."

"Yes, it's obvious! Why now?" he looked at her closely and frowned. "What the hell had happened? You look... scared."

She flinched but didn't look up.

"I'm... I'm not scared."

"You're lying," he said accusingly. His eyes were burning as he watched her suspiciously. "What's wrong?"

Bonnie scoffed.

"Everything is wrong."

"I thought we agreed to wait."

"I never said that."

"So you've decided to go it alone?"

"Right."

"Are you stupid?"

"I hope not."

"Will you fucking look at me?"

She dropped her hands. Damon saw the fire in the bowl go out.

"You are losing it," he said quietly. "Am I right?"

"I need to find him," she said and her voice broke. Damon knew she wasn't talking about Jeremy now. "I need to stop him. Before it's too late."

"You are not yourself."

She shut her eyes. Damon saw she was frightened but he didn't get why. Three hours ago he was teasing her and she was okay. What was wrong now?

"Is the spell affecting you? Or is it the fog?"

She shook her head silently.

"Then what is this?" he demanded impatiently.

Again she said nothing. After a minute or so Damon put his hand on her shoulder and when Bonnie didn't move he stepped forward taking her in his arms. He still wanted to hear answers, though, it seemed she wasn't going to talk anyway. But no matter how good he felt holding her his worry didn't fade.

Bonnie didn't shove Damon away; it was okay to be comforted now. Soon enough everything could be different, she could be alone. She held her breath, letting her tears fall, hoping desperately Damon wouldn't feel it.

"You know, I really don't like to see you that sad. It's disarming, I can't even yell at you."

"Thank you for caring," she mumbled, stepping back. Damon's hand brushed her hair as he let her go reluctantly.

"Bonnie, I —"

He stopped himself when he heard footsteps. Bonnie saw Stefan enter the room and went back to casting the spell.

"You," Damon glared at his brother. "Do this 'Stefan talk' thing. Now."

"What are you doing?" Stefan asked, looking at Bonnie worriedly.

"I'm trying to locate Jeremy," Bonnie answered, her voice perfectly normal now.

"She wanted to go alone. So, little brother, you tell her to stop," Damon said.

Bonnie looked at him indignantly and the flames in the bowl shot up. Damon watched the fire dancing between her fingers and asked curiously, "Isn't it burning you?"

"No, it's okay," she answered snidely. "You wanna try?"

Stefan chuckled and Damon gave him a dirty look.

"She's telling a vampire to put his hand in the fire. She's officially mad. You understand she can't fight Klaus?"

"'She' is still here," Bonnie said, her smile gone. She closed her eyes and muttered, "I need to call Lucy, ask for her assistance. And she'll bring the potion so you can protect yourself."

'And the kick-ass witch is back,' Damon thought sourly. 'Was she really crying ten minutes ago?'

Stefan took a quick glance at his brother and said calmly, "I still think I should come with you..."

"Well, maybe it —" she suddenly opened her eyes and whispered, "I can feel him."

"Jeremy?"

"Yes. I can go now."

Stefan looked confused.

"Wait, don't you need a map?"

Bonnie shook her head, clicked her fingers and the fire disappeared.

"No, I know where to go. Okay, now I'm calling Lucy. Oh, I think I left my purse upstairs."

She rushed past Salvatore brothers, determination written on her face, and Damon grimaced. He didn't like it. First, she was trembling, she was crying, she was evidently scared and now she looked like she wanted to finish things no matter what it cost her. From Stefan's brooding look it was easy to tell that his little brother shared Damon's fears.

"She's on edge," Stefan whispered. "Her emotions got the best of her..."

"Let's stop her," Damon whispered back. "She can't just go. Talk to her."

"She won't listen to us..."

"Then tell Elena to talk to her."

"I'm afraid Elena is too worried about Jeremy," Stefan said sadly. "She might not be able to find the right words."

"Bonnie is her best friend. She needs to talk her out of this!"

Stefan said nothing. Deep down Damon knew Bonnie wouldn't listen to anyone but he was too stubborn to let it go. Bonnie was a fool for not breaking her connection with Jeremy. That link was affecting her. Too much pain because of some stupid teenager who was charmed away by some psychotic Nordic chick.

Bonnie returned quickly and sat down on the couch not looking at Stefan and Damon. Her lips were pressed together and she was clenching her fists without realizing it.

"Bonnie, why don't you calm down?" Stefan said gently. "You know we all care about Jeremy —"

Damon scoffed.

"Speak for yourself."

"It's not just about Jeremy," Bonnie said. "Klaus won't stop, he's going to kill everyone I care about. My family, my friends. He won't show mercy."

"Who told you that?" Damon asked, frowning.

"He did. He invaded my dream."

Damon was livid now. Stupid noble girl.

"He's just playing with you!" he spat angrily. "Why the hell did you believe him?"

Bonnie shrugged.

"And why would he lie? What can possibly stop him?"

Damon didn't answer. He suddenly felt angry for another reason.

Klaus had invaded Bonnie's dream. Even the witches can't always control their dreams and a vampire could create a nightmare hard to fight.

About twenty minutes later they heard the doorbell ring. Stefan went to open the door and came back followed by Lucy and Yuichi.

"I need coffee right now," Yuichi mumbled, rubbing his eyes. "What's wrong, Bonnie?"

"I've brought the potion," Lucy said, handing the bag to Stefan. She looked sleepy too. "Hope, there's enough. So, what about Jeremy?"

"I can feel him now," Bonnie said, rising to her feet.

"Good. Can you break the link?"

"No. But I will find him and then I'll deal with Klaus."

"Nope," Yuichi said. "I will."

Stefan and Bonnie looked at him in surprise and Damon narrowed his eyes.

"Please," he sneered. "You are afraid of your own shadow. Since when did you get into the warrior mode?"

Bonnie blinked, snapping out of her surprise, and said mildly, "Thank you but you don't realize who we're dealing with. You see Klaus is almost —"

"Invincible? So I've heard."

"I know the way to kill him," Bonnie said, frowning in confusion.

"Power-channeling."

"Right."

"You will die."

He said that in a calm and confident voice. Bonnie felt her body go numb.

"And he will survive it," Yuichi added. "A hybrid, Bonnie. That means he's stronger than ever. And you — you are the energy source for a human. That means your powers are not stable. Put two and two together and get it finally — you will die for nothing."

Damon saw panic on Bonnie's face. At that moment he realized she wasn't surprised to hear she would die. She just didn't like the fact she wouldn't take Klaus with her. And Damon decided that she would leave his house over his dead body. He also could be stubborn if he wanted to.

"I'll take the risk," Bonnie pressed, looking at Yuichi.

He said nothing, just chuckled quietly. She suddenly felt like a student who gave a teacher the wrong answer.

"But if I can't kill him —" she started hotly and Yuichi smiled.

"What were you going to say? If you can't kill him no one can?"

"Stop fooling around," Damon said, eyeing Yuichi skeptically. "You wanna kill Klaus? You have my blessing. Go ahead and bring me his head."

"Damon," Stefan said warningly.

"What? He wants to kill Klaus! Let him do it!"

"I want to kill Klaus too," Bonnie said matter-of-factly.

"Why bother? He is suggesting. No one needs to die."

Bonnie felt a flush of anger. He would never learn.

"Yuichi can die," she said through gritted teeth. "And, please, don't tell me you'll write him an eulogy."

Damon's eyes narrowed.

"Will you ever let it go?"

"Why should she?" Lucy said sharply.

"Keep your mouth shut," Damon snapped.

"Stop treating witches like trash."

"Lucy, don't," Bonnie said nervously. "It doesn't matter..."

Damon huffed, staring at her. "Un-fucking-believable... What exactly doesn't matter, witch? Just look at you, you are siding with someone you barely know and —"

"She's my cousin!" Bonnie exclaimed.

"She doesn't know you!"

"And you do?" Lucy rolled her eyes. "You didn't even treat her like Elena's best friend, for you she was just a weapon."

"Bonnie, it isn't true!" Stefan said, taken aback.

"You know what your problem is?" Damon said, glaring at Lucy. "You are the one who was played by a vampire. Katherine was using you."

"You would know."

"Bonnie, we care about you," Stefan sounded upset.

Bonnie nodded, a bit confused.

"I know. Don't worry, Stefan, I'm not mad at you..."

"Right. 'Cause Stefan is always a good boy."

"Well, he didn't want her dead."

"Lucy, really, that's okay..."

"Look, Damon didn't think clearly back then..."

"I don't need you to protect me, little brother!"

"You know what?" Yuichi said loudly. Everyone stopped talking and turned to look at him. "You guys keep shouting at each other, meanwhile I'll go and kill Klaus. I'll be back in an hour."

He rubbed his eyes again and added unhappily, "You really are something. Will anyone at least ask me how I'm going to kill him? Aren't you interested?"

"I don't care," Damon said, still angry at both Bennett witches. "Just do it."

Lucy was silent, Bonnie was looking at Damon furiously. Yuichi turned to Stefan and the younger Salvatore cleared his throat hastily.

"How can you do it?"

Yuichi beamed at him and said in a confiding manner, "I have a rare ability. I can reach the soul of a supernatural being. And break it. Like literally."

Bonnie frowned.

"Klaus doesn't have a soul to begin with."

"No, he doesn't have morals. That's different. But he has a soul. All vampires do. It keeps them sane. It gives them the ability to feel."

"But they can... you know, not feel if they want to," Bonnie mumbled, suddenly blushing. She couldn't tell why she was embarrassed.

"I believe it's wearing off after some time. Right, Damon?"

"No," Damon answered testily. But after a little hesitation he added, "Not with everyone..."

Bonnie looked at him and he held her gaze.

"Klaus may have a strong body," Yuichi spoke again, "but everyone's strength is measured by his weakest spot. If I break his soul he wouldn't be invincible anymore. And what matters most he wouldn't be able to regain his powers again."

Bonnie swallowed and said hurriedly, "I don't see how it's possible."

"I can weaken the supernatural in him. If I succeed you can finish him off without any harm to yourself. "

"But what if you fail?" Bonnie said quietly.

Yuichi frowned.

"Well... That would be bad."

"Have you ever done that before?"

"Um, no, but..."

"That's it," Bonnie shook her head. "You can't risk your life."

"Look, I once did a summoning spell to bring the soul back into the body. It can't be more difficult."

"Isn't it polar opposite?"

"Yes, but it requires the same amount of energy."

"And still —"

"Damon, back me up here, will you?"

"The loser is right. His plan is less stupid than yours."

The warlock grimaced.

"That was a very insulting way to show your support."

Bonnie looked at Yuichi intently.

"Why are you so ready to fight him?"

"I'll walk away if you and Lucy will do the same."

"I have no choice," Bonnie said grimly. "He won't leave me alone."

"Too bad then."

"But you barely know us."

"He knows me well enough," Damon cut in.

"Which only makes matters worse!"

"You are so trying my patience, Bennett."

"Bonnie, don't worry about me," Yuichi said. "You have someone to worry about."

"But —" Bonnie hesitated and then looked at her cousin. Lucy shrugged.

"Accept his offer," Damon said. "For Jeremy."

Bonnie smirked.

"So you're worried about Jeremy now."

"I never said that," Damon answered coolly. "But you are and that the only thing that matters."

"Elena is awake," Stefan said suddenly. "I'm gonna fill her in..."

He went upstairs. Yuichi looked around and said conversationally, "So... Nice place. Um, what about coffee, Damon?"

"The kitchen is that way," Damon said, pacing.

"Okay..." Yuichi sighed and Bonnie raised her head to look at him.

"I'll help you," she said calmly. "Come on."

Damon cast a quick glance at her but Bonnie didn't look back. She led Yuichi into the kitchen.

"I need a beautiful cup," Yuichi said, opening the door of the cupboard.

"Your powers are unique and amazing and everything. But how can you be so sure it will be enough?"

"Look, is there any Starbucks nearby?" Yuichi frowned as he checked the coffee machine.

"No. I was saying —"

"How come you're so noble?" he asked looking up at her. "You know, I was little when my dad told me that I'm a warlock. He asked me not to mess with dark energy. He made me swear it. I never thought about fighting the vampires. Never thought there were witches like you, Bonnie. You are like a fictional character, you know, so brave and selfless. Seriously, all you need to do your age is drink, party, kiss and tell, have a romantic picnic with a plaid blanket —"

"A plaid blanket?"

Yuichi smiled, pouring milk into his cup.

"It's classic."

"It's lame," Bonnie grinned at him.

"Just enjoy your lifetime," he said. "Coffee?"

"Nope."

Yuichi suddenly froze with a teaspoon in his hand.

"Did I sound like an old man right now?"

She was smiling again.

"Maybe..."

"Ouch."

Bonnie watched him stirring sugar into his cup and then said quietly, "Sometimes I feel like there's no tomorrow for me. Like I'm supposed to die."

"I know this feeling. Well, we need to remember that we are mortal and not all-powerful. A delusional witch is a disaster."

Bonnie looked away, fighting the tight sensation in her throat. Yuichi lowered his voice, "Sometimes it's overwhelming, right? You feel so powerful, you wanna do something really great or something really bad. And the power inside you, it feels like it would rip you to pieces. But you are still human. And there's only so much you can take."

"Why are you helping me?" Bonnie whispered.

"You are a witch and I'm a warlock. I know how you feel."

"Oh, that's why."

Yuichi shook his head, grinning.

"Nah, not really. The real reason is because I'm madly in love with your cousin."

TBC