A/N: Thanks again to everyone who has left me heartfelt reviews. It is so wonderful to know what people think! Each one of your comments makes me smile, and also makes me want to write another chapter just as quickly for everyone to enjoy. Also, if anyone would be willing to beta for me, I would love an editor. ^_^ Now, without further ado…
Broken Fate
And this broken fate has claimed me
And my memories for its own
Your name is pounding through my veins
Can't you hear how it is sung?
The Secret's in the Telling by Dashboard Confessional
Elena walked from one class to the next with a fuzzy head and no interest in anything that they were learning in school that day. When she had told Bonnie that she felt backwards, she had certainly meant it. Everything felt off and weird and none of the thoughts in her head were right. They were mean and spiteful and directed toward Stefan. But then again, he had just walked away from her. Scratch that, he had just refused to stand up for her, and then vanished without so much as an "I'll miss you." And to think that for the longest time she really thought Stefan might have been in love with her. Apparently that had just all been in her mind, because Stefan certainly hadn't put up a fight with her when she told him to stop toying around. Maybe he realized that it was for the best? Because, as much as she had wanted a life and a future with him, at every bend in the road he made it abundantly clear that whatever future she had planned, he couldn't be a part of it. It made her wonder why he came back to Mystic Falls at all, knowing he would never be able to stay.
Elena shook the thoughts from her head. Whatever was going on in her mind, she needed a respite from it.
Bonnie knocked vigorously on Gram's door. She was really nervous and needed advice about how to reverse the spell she had put on Caroline and Elena. She hadn't meant for it to affect both of them, but since she had mistakenly used a brush of Elena's which happened to have Caroline's hair in it, she had quite a mess to clean up. Gram's answered the door and gave Bonnie a sympathetic look.
"My dear Bonnie, come in. I will fix you a cup of tea while you tell me all about it."
Bonnie threw her arms around her grandmother and hugged her tightly. "Thanks Grams. I really need some help."
"I should say so." Grams said with a knowing expression, closing the door behind them once they were both inside the house.
Bonnie plopped down into one of the kitchen chairs, letting out a deep sigh. "I didn't mean for this to happen, ya know? I was just trying to help a friend. Caroline has been really different lately and I thought I could help her."
Her grandmother put water in the tea kettle and then sat down at the table, taking Bonnie's hands into her own. She looked at Bonnie cautiously, knowing that what she was about to say might not go over well with her granddaughter.
"You used personal items from both girls?"
Bonnie had given up trying to understand how her grandmother knew things that she had not revealed to a soul and simply nodded. "I read that spells are more effective when you use something with the person's DNA like a toothbrush or hair from a hairbrush. So I grabbed a hairbrush that I thought was Caroline's and it turns out it was actually Elena's. Caroline had used it though, so it ended up affecting them both." Bonnie let out another sigh.
Grams stood up, her face weary as she took the whistling tea kettle off of the burner and poured water into two mugs before dropping a tea bag into each of them. When she turned to face Bonnie again, her mouth curled into a compassionate smile.
"Bonnie, you must remember that magic is not a toy. Our family's heritage is deeply rooted in the earliest and one of the most powerful line of witches in the world. While I understand your desire to help a friend who was in pain, there comes a time in every witch's life when she learns the value of a spell gone wrong. I am hoping that this is that time for you darling."
Grams sat down, handing Bonnie a cup of tea and looked her granddaughter squarely in the eye. "I know that you came to me looking for an answer, and I am sure you aren't going to like what I have to tell you."
Bonnie's face fell. "Am I banned from being a witch?"
Grams let out a quiet, simple laugh. "Hardly, my dear. On the contrary, I am glad that you are practicing your magic. But unfortunately, there is nothing I can do to reverse the spell you have put on your friends. You are going to have to let the magic run its course."
Bonnie was surprised. Her mouth gaped open at the reply. "How long will it last?"
Grams shrugged. "How long did you write the spell to last?"
Bonnie sunk down into her chair, covering her face with her hands. "I didn't specify."
Grams shook her head. "My dear Bonnie, I certainly hope that you have learned your lesson after this. There is no telling how long it will take for the magic to run its course. Your friends will be filled with its essence until they have learned their lessons from it."
"But Elena… it will suppress her feelings for Stef-"
"The vampire?" Grams asked, cocking her head to one side. "I do hope that you see the logic behind what you did, Bonnie. Perhaps it is for the best. It is… Elena… that does not know about the spell, is it not?"
Bonnie nodded.
"This spell of yours," she paused for a moment, choosing her words carefully. "Perhaps it has been fated to spare your friend's life."
Bonnie shook her head. "No Grams, you don't understand. Stefan- he's not the bad one."
Grams gave her granddaughter a knowing smile. "I know more about the Salvatore's than you might think, Bonnie Bennett."
Caroline sat with Elena at lunch, chatting casually about how she was planning on going to the local college over the weekend to enjoy some parties.
"Ya know, I realized that college men are just so much easier to get along with than high school boys. High school boys are just all about playing games and getting laid. College guys are far more laid back."
Elena nodded her head. "Yeah."
Caroline's brows went up expectantly. "So, do you want to come with me? I mean, since you and Stefan are back on your respective markets?"
Elena raised her gaze lethargically to look Caroline in the eye. "I'm gunna have to go with no on that one."
"Come on Elena, it'll be fun. Girl's night out. You, me and Bonnie; we can go out meeting new, exciting guys."
Elena let out a sigh. She had way too much going on in her head for this right now. "I don't know, Caroline. Can I give you an answer later?"
"Yeah, I guess. Just let me know." Caroline spotted Matt coming toward her and grabbed her bag and stood up from the table. "I have to run. I just remembered I told Miss Lake that I would help her during lunch."
Elena gave her friend a weak smile, feeling a little guilty for not adding more to the conversation. Caroline glanced back and scoffed as she dumped her tray of food, seeing Matt still coming after her. She stalked down the hallway.
"Hey Caroline! Wait up!" Matt called as he jogged down the hallway after the blonde.
Caroline turned around and stopped in the middle of the corridor. She didn't say anything, but she stood there, waiting expectantly to hear what he had to say.
"What's up with you today? You seem different."
"That's because I am different. I have decided I don't want to deal with your 'I just wanna get some' football jock crap anymore."
Matt's face went through a wide range of emotions, stopping somewhere between anger and disappointment. "Caroline, what are you talking about?"
Hands went to her hips as she took a defensive stance. "I just don't feel like going through all this high school drama anymore, Matt. Not with you, not with anyone."
A hurt look crossed Matt's face which he quickly covered with a more appropriate ticked off look. "Okay, I don't know who or what has gotten into your blonde little head. But remember how we talked about lame girl moves? Well, you're pulling one right now." He shook his head and took a step forward. "I thought we were friends. I thought we were having fun hanging out. If you really think I'm like Tyler and Jacob and all those other guys who just want to get in your pants, then I'm glad that you're trying to blow me off, because I don't want to hang out with you anymore anyway. I thought that after this much time you would have realized I am not like them, Caroline. But apparently nothing has changed with you. You're still the self-centered cheerleader you always were."
Caroline's jaw dropped as she watched Matt turn around and walk away.
"Matt-" she said, trying to call after him. But he didn't look back; he just disappeared around a corner, leaving Caroline there alone with her own thoughts.
Stefan put the key into the ignition of the '05 BMW 330xi he had just purchased and turned the car on, letting it idle as he pulled the sales stickers off of it. He didn't really have much of a plan yet as far as where he would go, but he was hoping that once he had checked out Logan Fell's body for clues he would have a better idea. Stefan was determined to protect Elena, even if she had finally thrown in the towel on their relationship. And if Damon was right about other vampires in the area coming for Elena, then he would have to track them down before they came to Mystic Falls.
He couldn't really say that he was surprised that Elena had finally had enough of him; to be honest, he was beginning to think that his actions were pretty deplorable. As much as he hated to admit it, since his plans were never to change Elena into one of them so that he could be with her forever, there was little reason for him to have interfered in her life the way he had. He had just been so compelled to meet her, to know her. There was something about Elena, something more than her resemblance to Katherine that had required him to know her. But if he had known what would have happened, what Damon was going to do, he would have never put her in the middle of this mess.
Stefan pushed the gear shift into Drive and sped off the lot toward the Mystic Falls town morgue.
After school had ended, and with no sign of Bonnie all day she might add, Elena decided that the best way to find that reprieve would be to go somewhere that no one would expect her to be. Leaving her car at the school, Elena chose to walk the eighteen blocks to the opposite side of town, where there was a small, seedy restaurant that was usually inhabited only by the local drunks. Sticking her earbuds in and turning her iPod on, Elena settled down into a seat in the back. A hard rock base thumped loudly in her ears drowning out her own thoughts for the time being. Because god only knew her thoughts were of the strangest variety today. Things that her imagination previously came up with as punishments for Damon's horrible behavior were now playing over in her mind, only with Stefan as the key player. Brutal, awful things; bear attacks, Lexi coming back from the grave to haunt him, some vampire making him their bitch, instead of the other way around. Elena had to admit, before when she had thought of those things concerning Damon they had given her some relief and had even made her smile on occasion. Now she couldn't stand the thought of putting Damon in any of those situations. Thus, the need for a break from her thoughts. Because of all of the things that she should be thinking about Damon, his arms around her in a tight embrace was not one of them.
And for some ungodly reason, that was exactly what she was thinking as a smell similar to his cologne wafted through the bar. Elena closed her eyes, turning the volume up louder on Muse's "Time is Running Out" as it filtered through her headphones. It wasn't drowning out her thoughts as she hoped it would. In fact, the lyrics seemed to fuel her flame for Damon and her mind kept running over the words in her head. "You're something beautiful, a contradiction, I wanna play the game, I want the friction, you will be the death of me".
There was something to be said for poetic irony. Because with the line of thoughts running through her mind today, it was a sure thing that Damon would, in fact, be the death of her. Probably sooner rather than later too. By the time the song reached the bridge, and the words 'you will suck the life out of me' came across in Matthew Bellamy's sultry voice, Elena ripped the headphones from her ears and slammed them down on the table.
"Seriously?!" She scoffed to herself under her breath in the dimly lit room. It was like the song was egging her on, pushing her to go after him. No, she was reasonable, she was far more sensible than that. And she knew better.
"Rough day at Mystic Falls High?" a voice came from the darkness, so close that the cool breath gave her a tingling sensation from the crown of her head to the tips of her toes. And all of her reasonable, sensible thoughts flew right out the window. But Elena was always one to put up a good fight. And despite the fact that she didn't want to, she was more than able to continue her attitude towards Damon.
"That is none of your business."
He cocked a brow. "Now now, none of that cattiness unless you're going to let me make you purr like a kitten later. I only meant that I didn't expect to find you here drinking."
She raised her glass and took a sip. "It's Diet Coke."
Damon smirked. "You came to… this place…" he gestured around the room, "to drink a Diet Coke and what? Do your homework? Come on, Elena. What's going on?"
"Like you care," she practically spat back. It was an easy rhythm that they settled into whenever he tried to talk to her. She found it increasingly hard to believe anything that came from his perfect pouty lips. Her thoughts began getting murky again and she stared down at the table to try and clear them up.
He's the bad guy, Elena. Damon killed Lexi, he hurt Caroline and nearly killed your best friend. Don't let him get into your head. Her thoughts carried along like that as he spoke, trying mercilessly to convince herself of what she was repeating over and over in her head.
"I plead the fifth. But seeing as how I'm the only person here worth talking to, you might as well."
"I don't really want to talk about it." A strategically placed frown that would have made any man's heart melt crossed her features. Lucky for Damon, his heart was frozen solid behind a steel door. And so he persisted.
"Now, that is exactly what Stefan said."
Elena snorted. "I should have known he'd go crying and brooding to you." And then her hands flew to her mouth, unable to believe that she had just said that.
Damon's grin grew. "There's the spunky girl I met a few months ago. Stefan's been watering you down."
"You don't know anything about Stefan and myself."
Damon chuckled. "You'd be surprised, kitten," he said, adding the last word with special emphasis.
Elena's eyes burned into the table. "Whatever that is supposed to mean, stop it. I am not doing this with you."
"Ah, you'd rather do something else with me then?"
"Quit it Damon. I don't care what Stefan told you. None of it matters anymore." And this time, her frown was sincere.
"Come on Elena, you and I both know that my brother is not the reason that you are sitting here right now." His voice came out in a low, sexy whisper and she had to grip the table to keep herself from doing anything rash. Like jumping him right then and there.
This was certainly not what she had been expecting to hear or subsequently feel. It was almost as if the necklace wasn't working and he was getting exactly what he had always talked about wanting from her. But nonetheless, his words had certainly made her think. If she had come here on her own accord, looking for a respite from her thoughts, why shouldn't she give in? Elena looked into his eyes for the first time since he had claimed the chair next to hers. It took her a moment to regain herself enough to answer. "Do something for me?"
Damon's features faltered for the briefest second. "What did you have in mind?"
Her hand fell gently to rest on his arm on the table and her eyes smoldered as she held his gaze. "Compel me."
A/N: I hope everyone likes the slightly darker version of Elena that has emerged because of Bonnie's spell. I do hope that Elena is up to everyone's standards. I'm not planning on making her like Clark Kent on red kryptonite or anything, but she is a little different. As usual, reviews are love. Thanks for stopping by and reading!
