Disclaimer: As you know by now, I don't TVD. If I did, a great many things would be different. Any recognizable characters, plots, and dialogue belong to L.J. Smith and the CW.
A/N: This one got away from me a little bit. Abby's POV was only supposed to last for a scene, but she wouldn't let me go. My current estimate is two more chapters (but if any more characters take over, that may change). Thank you, as always, for your love and for your enjoyment of this story. Enjoy!
Abby
Bonnie and Elena had brushed right past Abby in their haste to get away from Esther. She followed them in, two steps behind. They hurried down a staircase, but when she tried to go that way, she found it impossible. She pressed against the invisible blockade for a moment, but when she was unsuccessful, she returned to the front room.
There was something unnatural in the air there, but it wasn't unwelcoming. Though the sun had gone down over the hills outside, mid-afternoon sun filtered through the room's high windows. It illuminated the dancing of dust motes. A stale herbaceous aroma lingered in the air. It reminded her of her childhood and the herbs her mother always had drying and in jars, both for cooking and for spellwork.
As she watched the specks sway in the light, she heard a faint whispering. It was coming from all around her, and as she turned to find the source, it became a multitude of voices speaking together. There was no one else in the room, and certainly not the crowd she could hear. That was when she figured out that they were speaking directly into her mind.
A hundred voices spoke as one. "Welcome, sister. Your aid to the Original witch is appreciated. Though, with a block between your spirit and your magic, your help is not all it could be. We could help you remove that block, as well as the one keeping you from your daughter." Abby felt herself drifting from reality as the spirits spoke to her. "In order to help you, though, we need you to sway your daughter. She acts against Esther, drawing power away from the good work the Original witch must do. Bring her back to the right path, and we will help."
Abby fought against the weight of a hundred wills being imposed on her own. She remembered hearing Esther say, while they were on the porch, that Elena had to die as well. That thought brought forth a long-forgotten memory that, when she pursued it, pushed the voices from her mind.
Her Bonnie had been two. Elena as well. Miranda and Grayson were hosting a Labor Day party that year. It had been a beautiful, blue sky day, but the sort of chaos that only comes from a party overrun by toddlers had reigned over the day. In the middle of the adults trying to have a barbecue and the children playing party games, Elena and Bonnie tottered off without anyone noticing. When they did, Abby and Miranda tore the back garden apart looking for the girls.
At long last, they found the two hidden amongst some late-blooming flowers. Bonnie was waving her little hands, and the plants around them followed the movement. A jubilant Elena squealed her enjoyment, clapping along to the dancing flowers. Bonnie looked up when Abby shouted her name, relieved to find that nothing had befallen her little girl, and the zinnias stilled. A cascade of flower petals fell over Elena in the sudden stillness, and she picked them up.
Miranda and Abby each scooped up their little escape artists, but as they did so, Elena tossed a handful of pink, red, and yellow petals at her friend. The women stopped when Bonnie waved her hands fists again, and the petals swirled around them like a colorful snowglobe. Abby's jaw had gone slack at the power and control her baby was showing, and Miranda looked between the wondrous sight and the little girl, but Abby saw the tinge of concern in her friend's eyes.
She knew that she would be out of her depths in training someone as powerful as her daughter would be. So, when Miranda approached her a few weeks later and asked her to protect Elena from Mikael, Abby had gone, and she hadn't looked back, believing with all her heart that Bonnie was best left in her mother's more than capable hands.
Slowly, she surfaced from the memory, and as she remembered the innocent, carefree faces of the girls, she was confronted with who they had become in her absence. They were stronger now, and resilient. The world seemed to rest on their shoulders, but between the two of them, she knew they could bear it.
Bonnie watched her like she was a difficult puzzle with unknown dangers. Elena, however, only had her head tipped to the side, showing a wary curiosity. Abby was no closer to knowing how to talk to them, so she asked the first question that came to mind.
"Can you hear them?" she asked, looking from one girl to the other before settling her gaze on Bonnie. "The vibe in this house is intense."
Bonnie crossed her arms as she scowled at the room in general. Since her appearance, the light had shifted ominously, taking on a more crimson hue. Almost as though the light was catching up with the day outside, but it lacked the comfort of a setting sun.
"Not today," Bonnie admitted. "In the past, the spirits of the witches had plenty to tell me, but I don't think they're happy with me at the moment. I didn't think they'd speak to you, with your, uh, supposed lack of magic."
"They say they can restore my connection," Abby said. "But that you have to agree to stop working against Esther."
"Not gonna happen," Elena said, and her eyes flashed with unexpected ferocity. Bonnie nodded beside her.
"Even after all they've lost to the scourge that is vampirism?" the voices asked in a mocking tone that rang through Abby's head. "If it weren't for the parasites, your daughter would have had her mother whilst growing up, and her grandmother wouldn't be dead. If not for vampires, the doppelgänger would be able to live a normal girl's life. She wouldn't have died and required our intervention, and the death of her last parent, to survive as she is. If not for-"
"Enough!" Abby exclaimed. The voices hissed but fell silent as both girls looked alarmed at her sudden outburst. She relayed the spirits' question but withheld the additional comments that had been intended to wound and guilt the girls into action.
As she asked, Elena's eyes hardened, and she stood straighter. Her eyes narrowed, she looked around the room as if hoping to put the spirits in their place. Bonnie took Elena's hand and squeezed. They didn't need to hear the omitted words to know what was implied.
Bonnie's eyes fell on Abby. She felt as though she was being torn apart and examined. Abby feared there was no chance she wouldn't come up lacking in Bonnie's eyes. She wished, more than ever, to do right by Bonnie, but before she could speak, Elena began to defend her choice.
"No matter how much I've lost," she said, still searching the room for someone to tell off, "the vampires in my life have given me so much more. Stefan helped me find my way back to life. He and Damon, even if they don't listen to me, have helped me find strength I didn't know I had. And you" - she turned to Abby, fire burning in her eyes - "can't expect us to just stand by, or even aid in, Caroline's death. She's our sister. And Elijah-"
"Not to mention," Bonnie interrupted Elena's tirade, glancing at her friend in concern when her voice cracked on the last name, "though Elena wouldn't call it a reason, Esther plans to kill her too. I can't believe the spirits are okay with that, but I assure you, I'm not playing a role in the deaths of the only family I have left."
"Your father," Abby began, but Bonnie steamrolled the ending of the sentence.
"Doesn't understand." Bonnie's eyes closed off completely, leaving only an impassive mask on her face. She tapped the free fingers of her free hand against her thigh as she squeezed Elena's hand again. "I think he's more than a little afraid of what I am," Bonnie continued. "My friends aren't. They're my family." Abby had to bury a wince at that. She didn't deserve to feel hurt by that after abandoning her only child for sixteen years. "I refuse to give them up for some old witch who can't accept past choices."
The house rumbled furiously at her words. The air went deathly still as the light flashed like red lightning. Two young women stood glaring at open air, hands clasped tightly. They appeared unafraid, and Abby was envious.
"Anyone who doesn't like it," Bonnie growled.
"Can shove it," Elena finished. "We've made our decision."
The angry rumbling continued, but both Bonnie and Elena sported grim faces, and it only took a moment longer for Abby to reach her decision. She refused to take her daughter's family away again.
"What can I do?" Abby asked. "I want to help you."
At her admittance, the rumbling intensified. The light flashed like a strobe, and it felt like a brick wall had sprung up at Abby's back. It pushed her toward the door. She craned her neck to the side and saw that Bonnie and Elena were being thrust forward the same way. All three of them stumbled across the threshold, turning just in time to watch the thick oak door slam hard enough to crack.
The voices had one last message, and Abby saw Bonnie winced as well.
"You and yours will find no more aid here, Bennett witches!" they shouted, and it reverberated through Abby's entire body. "Your bloodline has chosen the wrong path!"
"What was that?"
Elena whirled on the source of the voice. "Jeremy!" she exclaimed and ran forward to hug him tight. He clasped her smaller frame to him. After a long hug, she pulled back and smacked him on the shoulder.
"You shouldn't be here!" she said, poking him with each word.
"I'm glad you're okay, too, 'Lena," he said, chuckling. "And, if all the people I care about are here, it's exactly where I'm supposed to be." Though he was talking to his sister, Abby saw him cast a lingering glance at Bonnie. And she didn't miss the bare flush on Bonnie's cheeks before she turned away to greet Caroline, whose arrival had been missed as Elena chastised Jeremy.
Once the two girls embraced, Bonnie turned to Elena.
"Really, Elena? Didn't we have this same fight an hour ago?"
Elena frowned and looked up at her brother, who had quirked an eyebrow at her. "Yeah, but… Jeremy-"
"Uh-huh," Caroline interrupted as she linked her arm with Bonnie's. "We know. You're the only one allowed to have a martyr complex."
"That's not-" Elena began, but the other three shot her exasperated looks. She stopped mid-thought. Instead of arguing, she gave Caroline a quick hug as well.
"Did Kol come too?" Bonnie asked.
Caroline nodded and turned, scanning the horizon. She pointed to the trees on the far end of the clearing, but Abby couldn't see anything at first. Then, the moon rose a little higher, and it's nearly-full face illuminated four forms, equally spaced and stalking toward Esther and her son.
Abby saw Esther look up and step into the protective circle as her children - it had to be her children - neared.
"They're going to distract Esther," Bonnie said, and Abby turned her attention away from the sight. "Our ancestors already said they'd help me break the link between the Originals and Elena, but I could use your help to strengthen the connection." Bonnie finally met Abby's eyes, and though they were identical in color and shape, Abby didn't think hers had ever burned with the conviction Bonnie's did.
Abby nodded, and the two moved quietly past the others and down onto the ground. The other three were still watching the oncoming Mikaelson showdown, but Bonnie pulled a few small items out of her pockets: a tiny crystal vial of what looked like blood, a torn fragment of parchment, and -
"Are those birthday candles?" Elena asked from where she stood on the step.
"It was all I could sneak away," Bonnie said. "I hate to ask, Elena, but I need one more thing."
"Let me guess," she said, jumping down off the porch to join them. "My blood?" Bonnie nodded, and Elena offered her hand without hesitation. "Isn't it always that?"
Bonnie unstoppered the vial she already held, pricked Elena's finger with a pin, and caught a couple of drops in the vial.
"I know," she told her friend. "And I'm sorry. You know I wouldn't…"
"I know." Elena waved her off. "Just fix this so we can take care of her."
Bonnie nodded before kneeling down and smoothing out the parchment. She carefully poured the vial into the middle of the page, between six names. She looked up and Abby, who then joined her on the ground. Bonnie walked her through the words as Elena stepped away.
Once Abby had the words down, she nodded that she was ready. She and Bonnie joined hands and the candles flickered to life around them. Then, they began to chant.
"Phasmatos ex solves, exis paunos animatos. Phasmatos de conjuctos, sua facto dux male. Phasmatos ex salvos, exis paunos animatos. De conjunctos sua facto. Phasmatos devos male." As they chanted, Abby felt surrounded by the warmth of family. She kept her eyes closed, but she felt a rough, calloused hand settle on one shoulder while a more delicate one rested on the middle of her back. Bonnie's hands twitched in hers, but they stayed focused, repeating the spell until the air shifted with its completion.
Abby opened her eyes and, for the briefest moment - less than the flash of a lightning bug - Abby saw that she and Bonnie were surrounded. Each person kneeling around them had features she had seen in the mirror or in family photos. All of them were connected in a web of touch.
At Bonnie's right shoulder, Abby saw a face she thought she never would see again. Sheila Bennett knelt beside her granddaughter. She smiled at Abby before vanishing with the rest of the Bennett ancestors. Bonnie still hadn't opened her eyes, but a single tear trailed down her cheek.
As she opened her eyes, Bonnie wiped the tear away. She turned toward where Elena had stood but froze. Her eyes widened as she turned. Abby moved to look too.
Elena was sprinting across the clearing toward Esther, who stood with power cracking around her hands. Hands pointed directly toward the blonde girl amidst the group of Original vampires.
As Bonnie called out to Elena, Abby grabbed her around the middle. She had to stop Bonnie from going into the line of fire. From the corner of her eye, she saw Caroline doing the same to Jeremy even as she screamed after Elena herself.
Elena glanced back once, but her face was set. "Sorry," she mouthed before turning back to whatever task she had set herself. Abby could only watch as she forced Bonnie back toward the porch. Each scream from her daughter ripped at her heart.
A/N: Sorry (not sorry) for the cliffy! It was the only way I could feasibly end this chapter...