It was strange to be like this. Talking to another girl, without a care in the world. And it made Bonnie remember why she had been so heartbroken when her best friends turned their backs at her. She missed this. She needed a friend.
They giggled at the same time as Rebekah finished telling Bonnie about the day Ayana had discovered the blond trying to cast a love spell.
"How old were you?"
"Twelve!" They both laughed "She was so mad. I thought she was going to tell father." Then Rebekah smiled, staring at some spot above Bonnie's shoulder. "But then she gave me a potion for acne and taught me how to braid my hair away from my face."
"Seems like she was a very kind woman" Rebekah nodded. "Do you really think we are related, me and Ayana?"
"Definitively. And not just because of your names and your magic. This might sound silly, because she lived a thousand years ago, but you two actually look alike… Do you realize what this means, Bonnie?" Rebekah offered her hand, which Bonnie took. "It means that you are, in such an odd way, tied to us. Our families have an ancestral, magical bond that brought us all together." She smiled broadly. "We were meant to be here right now. To be friends."
But before Bonnie could say anything, the doorbell rang. Bonnie couldn't help but wonder why that house had, all of sudden, become so damn bustling.
…
Rebekah Mikaelson was surely not what he had been expecting. Actually, Matt had a full damn speech planned to try and lure Klaus into letting him speak to Bonnie. He would even cry if needed. But coming face to face with Rebekah, for the very first time after she threw him and Elena off a bridge, rendered him completely speechless.
And, by the look on her face, she was surprised too.
They spent two whole minutes staring at each other, not quite sure what to do before she smiled sheepishly and muttered an "Hey". Matt wondered if he was too dumb as to accept that as the perfect apology.
"Hey" he smiled back, scratching at his nape. "I, mmm... Could I see Bonnie?"
…
"Gone?" Damon wrinkled his nose, unbelievingly. They were by the side of the road on the outskirts of Mystic Falls to avoid anyone finding out about their plans. "What do you mean Klaus is gone?! Where did he go?"
Matt went to sit by the Camaro's hood, but at Damon's what-do-you-think-you-doing face, he thought it better not to.
"Dunno." He shrugged, folding his arms over his chest. "All Rebekah told me was that the dude's outta town. I didn't want to push it, she might get suspicious."
Damon raised his hands to stop the other guy from going ahead. "Wait. Rebekah is there? With Bonnie..." He chuckled. "The Original Bitch has become Klaus' watchdog."
Matt turned red and stalked over to Damon menacingly. "You don't talk about her like that!"
Before his blow could hit the vampire's face, Damon had him pinned to a tree.
"Easy, pretty boy." He hissed on Matt's ear. "I could snap your neck and leave you here to rot just like that." He snapped his fingers. "And nobody would even guess it was me. You're lucky I think you're useful." He let the boy go. "And so is that crush between you and Bekah-Boo. Lissen' up, Imma tell you what you gonna do."
…
She thought her times of staring out the window were long gone. She was wrong.
Matt's visit got Bonnie a little nostalgic, introspective. She missed her old friends, her known routine. But, mostly, she missed how things used to be before all that supernatural mumbo-jumbo. And she wondered if life could ever be so carefree again.
That's how Rebekah found her: deep in thought, lying in the library's chaise longue. She didn't make her presence known until she heard Bonnie's deep sigh.
"Hey" Rebekah said, softly. Bonnie's eyes snapped up to her, but the smile on the witch's lips was a little bit sad. "Are you okay?"
Bonnie didn't reply right away. She straightened herself to make space for Rebekah in the chaise longue. Only when the blonde took her hand she gathered the courage to speak.
"Will be… I guess"
Rebekah squeezed her hand.
"I see Matt did not stay for long. You want to talk about it?"
"He apologised. Said he missed me and… I'm not even sure why he apologised, or why it got me fifty shades of blue but" She let go of Rebekah's hand to brace her own knees. "it did."
"Because you miss him too, maybe?"
She nodded. "Matt has always been like a brother to me and I really, really miss him… them. I wish things would just go back to the way they were, you know? I wish I could have my friends back to being my friends…" She bit her lip.
Rebekah raised a brow. "But?"
Bonnie took a while to reply. "But I also want this life here. With you and your brother and… All the things he's been teaching me. I don't remember when was the last time I felt so in peace with myself like I feel here and... I know I can't have both."
Rebekah grimaced. She knew what Bonnie was talking about; Klaus had told her about the undesired visit they got from Damon a few weeks earlier. Visit that had triggered Bonnie's memories and left her feeling like she was supposed to chose a side.
She only wanted to make sure Bonnie picked the right one. Theirs.
"Listen. I have some years of experience over you and… I will be honest, Bonnie. Things never go back to the way they were before. Life is forever changing and it never stops. But, sometimes, you can keep a small token with you, to remember how it used to be. And, if you are blessed enough, that small token will be the best part of your past." She smiled "Want me to call your friend now?"
…
Matt hung up his phone with blue eyes wide open. He never thought he would have the opportunity to put Damon's plan into movement that soon. He could give that to the vampire, tho: Damon seemed to know how Rebekah's mind worked.
He grabbed his keys and jacket and typed a text as he left.
I've been called. Get ready.
"And… send."
…
It was refreshing to be like this. Not having everything be about herself.
Of course Bonnie loved all the attention she got from Klaus - and, lately, from Rebekah as well - since she moved in with him. But, for someone who was more used to being the ignored child and the sidekick friend, having things to be all for her, to her, and about her felt… weird. And overwhelming. And tiresome.
But seeing the way Rebekah and Matt were ogling each other… She was definitely not the center of attention here.
"Hey, you girls have ice cream? I'm on the mood for some peanut butter milkshake. Whaddaya say?"
Bonnie moaned loudly. "Matt's PB shake's gotta be the heavenliest thing on earth."
"We have a carton of low fat vanilla in the kitchen…"
"Low fat?!" Matt interrupted Rebekah. "You don't really expect me to make milkshake with low fat vanilla, do you? C'mom. Gotta be chocolate chip." He looked up to Bonnie and gestured almost imperceptibly towards Rebekah to her "Bons, do you mind setting everything up while I go with Rebekah to get the ice cream? You know the recipe…"
"No" Rebekah said. "I am not supposed to leave Bonnie alone in the house. Nik made me promise I would not."
Matt's expression fell, like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar, and Bonnie almost laughed. He wanted some time alone with Rebekah so badly, it was borderline pathetic. But also sweet. She found herself smiling at the two idiots.
"How about this: I'll go and get the ice cream, and you kids stay in here." She grabbed her wallet and phone from the counter "This way I won't be left alone, and you won't break any promises. Okay?"
"I am not sure…" Rebekah started, brows furrowed. "It is just not safe for you to be alone."
"I won't be, Rebekah. There are dozens of people on the store by this hour, and if anything happens I have you on speed dial." She smiled. "It will be good to be outside again, really. Talk to people, act normal… I want this." Bonnie grabbed her coat and walked to the door. "I'll be back in half an hour, you guys behave."
Rebekah was still looking worried when they heard the SUV leave. Matt was smart, though, and quickly kissed away her worries. When he had the opportunity, he texted Damon the change of plans, hoping that he still got a chance with Rebekah once Bonnie was kept safely away from Klaus.
…
She felt him before she saw him. Not that Damon was hiding, because he definitely was not. Just… staring at her from a distance. Like a creep. She sighed and handed the cashier the money.
When she walked out of the store, he was leaning by the driver's door of her car. Well, technically, it was Klaus' car, and maybe it was that thought that made her so annoyed by his nonchalance. He had no business being around Klaus' things like he had any right over it.
"Excuse me." She muttered between gritted teeth, keys in hand, while trying to walk past Damon and into the SUV.
"No I don't." He held the door so she couldn't open it. "Not unless you'll hear me, anyway."
Bonnie sighed. "Already done that once. And unless it is goodbye, I'm not interested in what you have to say."
"A little bird told me your boo left town, is that true? Also heard he left that charming sister of his behind, so he can still keep tabs on you. How gentlemanly." He smiled humourlessly. "Do you happen to know where he's gone to?"
"None of your business." She spat at him.
"Oh, that means you don't." Damon clicked his tongue three times, and Bonnie almost didn't resist the urge to slap him. "Lucky you, I have been paying attention. Wanna know what's the word going on from New Orleans to New York? The entire supernatural community is been talking of Klaus Mikaelson's new weapon, and how he's gonna use a young, naive, yet powerful witch, to recreate his army of hybrids. Right now, he and Elijah are after some sorta magical artifact to help you with the spell to do his bidding." Then, in a very unexpected move, he opened the car door himself and held it for her to get inside. "I know you don't believe me, Bonnie. But just wait and see; he will bring you a gift from his travels and, sooner or later, he will ask you for a spell. Then you will know I am right. Believe it or not, Bonnie, I want to protect you."
Bonnie drove as fast as she could to put enough distance between herself and Damon. Partly because he was annoying, partly because she didn't want to even consider what he said could be true. And partly because his last words had been carefully chosen to trigger some sort of memory from her, and right now it was trying to resurface in her head, and she didn't want to deal with what it might bring.
…
The house was too quiet when she arrived. Through the front door and into the foyer, she found Matt sitting alone by the couch, his hands rubbing up and down his jeans-clad knees. His eyes rounded slightly when he caught sight of her, and then he exhaled in a little laughter.
"You got the ice-cream?"
"Chocolate chip, as requested." She raised the plastic bag for him to see. "Where's Rebekah?"
"Upstairs, taking a call. I think…" He lowered his voice "I think it's Klaus"
Bonnie smiled. "You don't have to be afraid of him."
She handed him the ice-cream and stared at his tense back as he headed to the kitchen.
"Matt?" He turned. "If you ever lie to me again to get me alone with Damon, Klaus is gonna be the last of your problems."
…
They walked out of the private hangar carrying no other luggage than the square black valise. Klaus let Elijah be the one to carry it, not because it would be safer with his brother, but because that way he could better resist the urge to clutch the artifact to his heart.
Everything he ever wanted in his life, and he was about to get it.
"Thank you, brother."
That startled Elijah. Klaus was never the one for pleasantries.
"You are welcome, Niklaus." He said, as they entered the car waiting for them outside the airport. "But are you sure she will agree to do the spell?"
"Yes." He said, after a beat. And then, more confidently. "Yes, she will."
Yall must want to kill me. But, hey, better late than never, right?
In this chapter, we had a little more of Bonbekah bonding, the unlikely allies Damon and Matt being caught, because they're dumb, and Klaus and Elijah finally finding what they were looking for. But how does all of this plays into Bonnie's destiny, and what Klaus is going to ask from her? Well, that's something you gonna have to wait and see.
More two chapters will follow (perhaps a third one as well, but there's no much more story to tell). I hope you guys haven't given up on me even though I take so long to update. Life is shitty.
Please, let me know you still reading by leaving a review.