Content Warning: Depictions of violence, murder, blood, and gore
The snowstorm had started fifty minutes after they hit the road. The white snow and dark navy sky made it hard to see even with the lights on the highway. While she knew vampire senses were heightened and trusted Klaus, she did not trust the car to be able to make it through such terrible conditions. One wrong move and they could swerve off the highway due to ice.
Bonnie leaned against the freezing window. If it weren't for Stefan or Kol trying to keep her mind on their conversation, she would be hyperventilating at the speed Klaus was going. The speed was needed, but she hated every second of feeling like she was in a car race. Dread and fear oscillated in her head.
Klaus had hastily explained that Lydia had called because a coven of light witches had visited her asking for "Bonnie Bennett." Lydia had told them a lie that they were staying in a town north of her before calling Klaus and warning them to leave quickly. Why had the witches wanted her anyway? She grimaced.
Klaus hit the dashboard before dialing a number. A familiar name popped up.
"Yes?" Elijah answered.
"We will be arriving home late tonight."
"Isn't there a snowstorm in Ohio?"
"Yes, we are driving through it." Klaus tightened his grip on the steering wheel. "There has been a change of plans."
"I see."
"I'll see you soon. We have much to talk about. Be ready."
"Does this include our siblings?"
"Yes." He then hung up.
Stefan placed a reassuring hand on her back. She tilted her head so she could look at him. He smiled as his thumb rubbed back and forth. She exhaled before returning a small smile. She knew the situation was troubling him as well, but he still made sure she was okay. His reassurance made her melt under his touch. The worries, for a moment, faded into the back of her head. His emerald eyes brought a sense of safety and comfort.
"How about we stop by a diner once we hit Virginia? Just takeout." Kol suggested.
"We have food at home." Klaus's snippy response made Bonnie frown. "How can you even think of food at a time like this?"
She interrupted, "he's a foodie."
"Right, like Bon said, I am a foodie." Kol huffed. "What does that term mean, again?"
She tried to cover her laugh with her hand. "A person who greatly appreciates food and enjoys it. Someone super into it."
When the snow no longer fell, she looked behind them. The snowstorm was moving north. She let out a sigh as her muscles relaxed. As she looked ahead, the road was clearer but not by much as the fog was sweeping across the highway. Her brows furrowed. Fog?
"Fuck."
Bonnie's head snapped to Klaus. The car had stopped even though she could audibly hear Klaus's foot stomping against the pedal.
"Is the snow—"
"It's not snow." Klaus paused. "It's magic."
"Eight heartbeats," Kol confirmed. "I supposed the coven was a bit wiser than to trust a healer?"
"We can take them." Klaus flung his door open allowing a wind current to creep into the warm car. "Bonnie, stay in the car."
"I can help. I'm not sick anymore."
"You're recovering."
Kol argued, "she should stick near us. If we get too far, the car is an easy target."
Klaus and his brother shared a gaze.
"Fine. Stay by Stefan's side."
When Bonnie got out of the car and a few feet away, she could feel the presence of the light witches approaching. She knew they were there, but it felt odd. Before if a light witch was near her, she felt as if meeting a kindred spirit connected to hers through nature. Now, she noticed them but in a detached way.
Soon, eight witches in heavy fur cloaks appeared in front of them. One had taken a step forward and Bonnie guessed based on the other witches gazing at her, that she was the coven leader. The pale woman, no older than forty, stood out against her younger companions who may be in their early twenties.
The leader witch announced, "by the order of the Spirits, we are to bring Bonnie back home. Give her over."
"Like fuck we will." Kol spat.
"Do you know who you are talking to, boy? You are just a vampire in my way. Give the girl to me and no harm will be brought onto you."
Bonnie saw Kol and Klaus grin. Did the witches not know...? The witches formed an attack line before rushing toward them. Bonnie reached her hand out, but Stefan grabbed it.
"No."
The witches' faces went from smug to concern as they drew closer. Klaus and Kol stood their ground and maintained their sinister, foreboding grins. The witches' faces started to pale and their expressions became serious. They were concentrating, but on what?
"Your mind tricks don't work on us, unfortunately for you. Maybe try something else?"
Five witches halted while three charged ahead in a fury. Their glowing eyes filled to the brim with hatred. The first one got to Klaus and had a hand out with fire. She was about to blast him, but Klaus zoomed closer and grabbed her face before squeezing. The crackling of her skull made Bonnie's stomach churn. Skin and blood oozed from the gaps between Klaus's fingers. She heard a final crunch before matter spattered and the body went limp.
The two other attackers slid against the icy road as they tried to walk back toward their coven. Kol sped at them with his arms stretched out. He gripped the back of their hair before slamming their faces into the ground. The splat sound brought shivers down her spine. Their bodies became still on impact.
"Did they not warn you about going against Originals?" Kol looked up with a grin.
"Sisters!" the leader witch screeched.
"Not so fast," he hissed.
All five raised their hands toward them. Bonnie's heart quickened and without thinking, she pushed her palm out. The clashing of magic caused both sides to propel backward. Bonnie winced as her head hit an icy patch with little snow to buffer her fall.
When she sat up, she felt the back of her head ache. Her hand trembled when she felt a wet spot and retracted her hand. Crimson smeared across her fingertips.
"Stefan." She groaned as the pain started to throb.
"Stay down."
The leader witch took the opportunity to push Kol and Klaus as they tried to get off the ground. She slung them in opposite directions of the highway and into trees. The other four witches saw their opening and rushed toward her and Stefan. Stefan got up and gritted his teeth as the four set their eyes on him.
She lifted her trembling palm again and pushed three back a few yards and onto their asses. She kept her palm up as they wiggled to be free from her grasp. One paused but Stefan closed the distance within a blink of an eye. The witch's eyes glowed and she could hear Stefan's grunts from the mental pain she was causing. He reached out and seized her neck causing a sharp snapping sound. He flung her body into the snow as Kol and Klaus sped their way back onto the highway.
She snarled. Besides the wound, she should be fine. Fine! Why was her magic acting like this? She could take on Klaus head-on nearly killing him in her early witch days, and her dark magic had been a force to be reckoned with. She had been sick, but she was cured of her symptoms! Why? Why was her magic on par with regular witches?
"You side with monsters!" the leader witch yelped. "You must atone."
The leader witch flung magic at her causing Bonnie to lift her hand up. This time she let her magic fling with a harder, stronger force causing the witch to put up a magical wall as the magic headed straight for her. The three previously laying witches were back up and freed from Bonnie's magic, but were now surrounded by Stefan, Klaus, and Kol.
They lit their hands ablaze with a large fire, but Bonnie pushed her palm down causing them to fall to their knees. Kol stomped his foot into the face of the witch closest to him as he ripped her arms out. Her screeches died as soon as her head made contact with the ground and her face was flattened by the force of his foot. The next one tried to flee, which did make Bonnie's heart sink as Klaus grabbed her foot and brought her to the ground before also striking her with his foot. The third witch's eyes were no longer glowing.
"Like old times?" Stefan's dark eyes and grin made Bonnie's blood run cold. The Ripper.
The witch tried to push them and make a break for it, but Stefan went past her and spun her around. He captured her neck with his arm and held it in a headlock before Klaus sped over and pulled her shoulders away causing her throat to rip and her body to tear apart at the force.
The leader witch's eyes darted from them to her. Bonnie forced herself back onto her feet even as she heard ringing in her ears and her pain was increasing as the cold pressed itself against the open wound in the back of her head. She was ready to attack the last one and end the fight, but then she sensed something. She cursed. No... No!
"There's more," Kol hissed.
The head witch grinned as a dozen new witches approached behind her. One held something covered in cloth. She handed it to their leader.
"Here's a gift."
The head witch chucked a decapitated head toward them. It wasn't until it stopped rolling that Bonnie could make out the features. A cry escaped her mouth as she covered it with her dried bloody hand. The head of Lydia laid on the crimson-stained snow.
"To think she would lie to us. Her fellow light witches."
Klaus's hands balled into fists before he lunged at them and morphed into his wolf form. Stefan and Kol sped behind him and charged at the coven head-on to their horrified and shocked faces.
It was carnage. Ripping of limbs, bones, and hearts. Magic flew everywhere as they zoomed around the area at vampiric speed and never stopped. In the chaos, the leader witch was able to make it a good distance to Bonnie. She had her palm out as the witch kept striking her with magic. Bonnie let her fingers warm up and tingle with her magic before flinging what she could muster around her with no strict direction. The witch tried to shield herself but only could block most of it. A fragment of Bonnie's magic managed to hit her face causing the witch's jaw to hang as a chunk of her mouth was hurled to the ground.
"There is nowhere you can hide." The witch groaned as blood leaked from her ripped mouth with exposed shattered teeth. "Someone will bring you back to the witches' house."
"No one will."
"To think you were the chosen one. You are just like her. The exact same... from your great power to your unending disappointment."
Before she could utter another word, her face was smashed between the teeth of Klaus's wolf form. He dragged the head away from her body before spitting it onto the ground. Bonnie gazed went from him to the others.
She tried to take in a few breaths, but nothing could calm her down, not after the bloodbath she participated in. Death was everywhere.
Kol ordered, "grab the evidence. Bonnie, can you light a fire?"
She trembled as she nodded. The cold weather finally got to her as her teeth chattered and chills ran down her body. She tried to pick up the pieces with them, but her concentration waned as the wind brushed past her with an icy stroke.
It took a few minutes of digging around, but they managed to grab all the pieces of everyone... including Lydia. They went into the forest and chose a remote spot before Bonnie lit a fire. The heat provided warmth and rid her of shivers, but it was no savior. With the heat, it brought a revolting smell of burning flesh and insides. It made her heave.
"Do you need blood?"
She turned around to see Stefan, whose eyes were still dark. Less Stefan and more Ripper. However, his eyes did hold concern.
"Are you sure? You took some hits."
"It's a little blood. I'll be fine."
She nodded before Stefan stepped close to her. He briskly bit into his palm and pushed it against her mouth. The drops of scarlet dripped into her mouth. The rust taste had been easier to swallow previously, but not now. Not among burning bodies and crimson snow. Not when the air smelled of copper and sulfur. The smell was pungent enough that it evaded the nose and the mouth. The air soon reeked of intestines, blood, and bones in the magical fire as skin dwindled from the mutilated corpses.
She settled on a rotten tree stump as she watched the flames and kept feeding it her magic. Stefan and Kol took pieces of bodies from the pile and tossed them into the fire. When nothing was left in the fire, they would pick more pieces and throw more in. The process of seeing the red, orange, and yellow flames disintegrate the bodies into nothingness was...
Klaus came near them in his wolf form when the pile had only one piece left. He whimpered when she took Lydia's head. Her lips quivered as she placed the head into the fire. She couldn't look at the fire. She couldn't see... She ran back to the tree stump and cast her gaze back to Klaus. She reached out a hand to Klaus who trudged over and sat near her feet. She put her hand on his head as his blue eyes stared into the fire.
Even if one was immortal and death was constant, the pain of a loved one never did get better. Klaus's eyes said that much. All those years... He held back the tears. She did too.
And it all feels like my fucking fault. I could have waited. I should have...
The wolf stood up before heading back to the car. She started to get up to go after him.
"I'd give him a second." Stefan placed his hand on her shoulder. "He needs to get changed."
After a minute passed, all the remnants were gone. She waved her hand and the flames diminished. It was as if none of this ever happened to the world. No trace. However, the scars were left in her mind and in theirs. She stared where the once fire was as if entranced by the scene.
Stefan tugged on her hand. "We have to keep going."
-X-
It was very early in the morning when they arrived in Mystic Falls. She had expected the return to be more joyous. She had been cured of her symptoms, but she hadn't prepared what that would cost.
She stood in the middle of the entrance room of the Mikaelson mansion. Klaus was right beside her as Kol and Stefan walked behind. She gripped the handle of her luggage tight. Her emotions were only held on by a thread.
Her eyes went to the opulent grand staircase as the other Mikaelsons rushed down. Their expressions ranged from concerned to panicked. They probably could smell the blood and death on them. They probably looked worse for wear, too.
Elijah questioned, "you're late. What happened?"
"Ambush," Klaus answered. "We have to leave Mystic Falls. The light witches are out to kidnap Bonnie. They'll send more. The Spirits will find it even easier to corner her here since we are so close to the dead witches' house which is where they want to bring her. They know about Bonnie being a dark user."
Kol added, "aren't happy about it either."
Bonnie noticed a dark expression cast over Rebekah. A memory was then triggered. Friday, the new moon...
"Aren't I supposed to do something Friday?" Bonnie asked her.
"It doesn't matter anymore," Rebekah said in a quiet voice. "All we can do is get you somewhere safer."
"Sister," Klaus demanded, "you have to tell us what you are hiding."
"I can't! I made a vow. The vow won't be completed, so I cannot tell."
Klaus's eyes turned icy. "Marcel would know some witches that practiced vow breaking, but he is having trouble with some witches there. Still, it is worth a shot. We have to know what our dear sister cannot tell us."
Rebekah flinched under the dark gaze of her brother. Elijah took a step in front of his sister and matched the scowl on his face.
Elijah contested, "it would be a horrible place to take Bonnie there with the instability and light witches. I know some dark covens out of Seattle and Portland that would provide protection."
Bonnie felt herself blending into the background. She wanted to scream. Her opinion hadn't been asked, let alone considered. They wanted to uproot her and talked about it among themselves as if she wasn't there. It reminded her of her old friends when they congregated and made decisions about her without her. Her hands started to shake.
"When will we be going back to Bonnie's home?" Stefan interrupted.
Klaus turned his attention back to them. His emotionless eyes went from him to her. She shivered under his commanding, uncaring gaze.
"You two can sleep here for now."
She didn't want to sleep here. She wanted to be in her own bed. Yet, her opinion was not asked. Rebekah took a step away from Elijah and nodded at Bonnie.
"I'll show her where."
Bonnie slogged up the steps while Rebekah strolled. Every step was harder than the next. Her strength slowly drained and her anger rose. Once they were both inside the guest room, Rebekah closed the door.
"I'm sorry," Rebekah murmured. "I wish it hadn't ended like this."
All Bonnie could do was nod. She dropped her bag near the bed before turning back to Rebekah. Her blue eyes held a similar sorrow to what she was feeling, but she didn't want to hear her. She wanted to sleep even if it was in a bed she protested.
What happened to your sense of will? A part of her snarked. Did it die with Lydia?
She was on the edge of sobbing. The monster, the voice, in her head that hated her, and everything had clawed itself into a permanent corner of her mind. Tonight would be hell if she could sleep at all.
"Your family didn't abandon you, Bonnie."
She blinked. "What?"
"They tried. Please know they tried."
"Then why...?"
Rebekah shrugged. "I wish I could tell you everything. The vow was to make sure I couldn't be forced to talk, but it fucked over everyone in the end."
"You said something about my ancestors and the grave. What can I—"
Rebekah held Bonnie's hands. "It's over. I would suggest you get your things packed up tomorrow. Klaus likes to move quickly and silently when we have to do moves like this."
"I can't leave."
"If you die or are captured, it'll only cement the future we are heading towards."
"What future?"
"That's all I can say." Rebekah let go of their clasped hands. She turned away and headed to the door. "I'm sorry."
When the door closed, she sank onto her bed. The loneliness and exhaustion swelled inside her. She raised a shaky hand up as a spell flung itself into the air preventing any noise from escaping the bedroom. She cried.
For Lydia.
For her.
For all of them.