AN - First, of course, as always it would seem, sorry for taking so effing long. But more importantly THANK YOU to everyone who left a review or two. I honestly think I might have the most supportive group of readers in the world. You guys are truly incredible and did a brilliant job nagging me into writting. I owe you all. I also want to send a special shout out to Some Strangers keep starring - you guys all need to send much love out to this person because this chapter would not exist without them, or more accurately, you'd still be waiting for it - I totally copped out and used your suggestion. I just didn't have it in me to write a Bamon-less chapter.
Also, I have a special request for anyone who's good with graphics. This story needs a picture and I suck at that kind of stuff, so if anyone's willing to make one for me, I'd really appriciate it.
Food for Thought: Katherine is dangerous but she isn't reckless. She acts quickly but never hastily. She always has multiple contingencies in place before making any moves. So, with the added weight of the Council watching her I wondered how she might handle the "Bonnie problem" (as someone in a review put it) and this is what I came up with. Hope you like it.
Katherine fiddled with a loose strand of hair as she scrutinized her reflection. She looked particularly stunning today. It would be a pity that Damon would not be around to see her, though Stefan's attentions would more than suffice.
And as it stood, there was a chance Damon would not pay her any mind even if he were still here.
She frowned darkly, the image of him hovering over that serving girl lingering like a bad taste in her mouth. The girl was practically a slave – what could he possibly see in her? What could he possibly prefer about her?
Katherine's brow wrinkled thoughtfully and she took comfort in knowing that those lines reflected at her now would never be permanent.
It couldn't be the dark skin. It was presently unfashionable and had been for the past few centuries. It could be her eyes... they were rather remarkable, Katherine reluctantly conceded. Her voice was pleasant enough, but nothing to lose one's senses over.
Clearly Damon had spent a great deal of time in the girl's presence, so perhaps she had a winning personality.
Katherine scoffed. She highly doubted the girl, Bonnie, had anything of interest to say.
Whatever the reason the fact still remained, something would have to be done about this. Katherine would not be handing over one of her toys to a serving girl. She hummed thoughtfully, brainstorming.
The simplest solution, of course, would be to kill the girl. Alas, the Council was already sniffing around her skirts and she was beginning to have to walk a very tight rope concerning the people she killed. She had recently taken to hunting on the roads just outside of Mystic Falls. Her prey was usually traveling merchants; no one that could be missed in this small town. To actually kill Bonnie on the property would be suicide. And as easy as it would be to dump her body any old place after the fact, just the girl's association with this estate could be enough to cast suspicion.
No. Katherine couldn't risk sullying her hands with this particular murder, as satisfying as it would be to drain the girl dry. She'd just have to think of something else.
She heaved a sigh, letting her eyes drift behind her reflection to focus on Emily as she laced Katherine's bodice.
"Emily," she sang suddenly as an idea unfurled with lazy grace in her mind's eye.
"Yes, miss," Emily answered, the perfect picture of demure obedience, her eyes focused solely on the task at hand.
"What do you know of that serving girl? The one who injured her arm... Bonnie, was it?"
"Bonnie?"
Emily's gaze ripped away from her work and caught Katherine's in the mirror. Her brow crumpled in confusion before she looked back down. "I've spoken to her on occasion. She seemed to me sweet tempered... though simple. Why, Miss Katherine?"
Katherine cast her mind around for a plausible excuse. She refused to let anyone know she was feeling romantically threatened by a servant – how appalling; she would never live it down. Quickly she landed on something that would be sure to cause a stir without forcing her to lose face.
Fighting the smirk that threatened to overtake her, she answered carefully, "I have reason to believe that she may be aware of my true nature."
"Oh?" Emily inquired gently.
"She has made several thinly veiled comments to me that have implied a certain knowledge."
"She's done what?"
Emily's hands slipped at her laces and pulled far too tightly. It was a good thing Katherine had no real need for breath or she might have fainted from the sudden lack of air.
"Emily," she managed to wheeze through the constraints.
"Forgive me, Miss Katherine," Emily apologized as she worked quickly to loosen the laces. "I simply cannot conceive of anyone being so foolishly brazen."
"It's quite alright," Katherine assured once she had enough breath to speak with. "I, myself, was rather struck by it."
"What will you do?"
"Nothing." Spinning out of Emily's grasp she fixed her handmaiden with a benevolent smile. "But if you were to watch this girl and to find anything untoward... well, I worry for her, you see. She seems rather ungainly. Some other misfortune may befall her if she does not take greater care."
Emily bowed her head, her expression unreadable, "Of course, Miss Katherine."
"Do you know why Miss Katherine would ask me to watch you?"
Bonnie froze midway through flipping a page in Emily's Grimoire. "Uh..."
This felt like a trick question.
Bonnie could feel the weight of Emily's gaze on the back of her neck. Emily was perched on the edge of her bed looking every bit like a bird of prey right before it swept in for the kill.
Bonnie knew exactly why Katherine wanted her watched (and at least now she had a definite answer as to what that shadow in the woods had been), but how to answer Emily's heavy-handed question without incriminating herself?
"She said that?" Bonnie exclaimed, hoping her slightly delayed reaction could be construed as alarm.
"Indeed," Emily replied, her hawk-eyed gaze narrowing and lips turning down. "What reason would Miss Katherine have to ask that of me? She seems personally affronted by you."
Guilt and panic pinched painfully at Bonnie's heart and she forced herself to take a deep breath. She had no way of knowing what Emily knew. Now was not the time to freak out and tell her everything.
Emily sprung to her feet like a cobra striking. "How could you be so reckless, Bonnie? You have endangered not only your future but your very existence."
Oh god, she knew.
"It was an accident!" Bonnie began hastily, "I swear I didn't mean for this to happen."
"Did you honestly believe you could get away with such a thing?"
Bonnie pulled absently on the rough cotton of her sling and offered a small shrug. "Not at first, but after a while... I stopped thinking about it. One thing just kind of lead to another and the next thing I knew it was happening all the time."
Emily went very still.
"How long has this transpired?"
Bonnie hesitated. She was getting the distinct impression that now was not the best time for honesty. "Not long," she hedged.
Bonnie's name rose like a tired sigh from somewhere deep inside Emily as the young woman sank back onto her bed. She suddenly seemed much older with her face buried behind her hands and shoulders hunched the way they were.
Bonnie couldn't fight the guilt that swelled in her chest. She had been nothing but work and worry for her ancestor since her arrival and it was starting to make Bonnie feel like a tool. Though she had always been aware of the danger she was putting herself into running around with Damon, she had never truly given thought to the trouble she could be causing Emily. That was pretty low of her.
"Emily, I'm so sorry. I never thought about how you fit into this. I wasn't thinking at all really. I was just... having fun."
"Fun?" Emily's head snapped up. "What precisely did you say to her?"
"What?"
"These thinly veiled comments that proved such an amusement to you."
Okay, now Bonnie was really lost. "What?"
Emily's gaze sharpened as she studied her intently. "Miss Katherine claimed you made thinly veiled remarks about her true nature. Did you not?"
Bonnie could feel her jaw slacken in disbelief.
That was so fucking close.
Emily raised an inquisitive brow as she pressed, "What reason were you apologizing for, if not that?"
Bonnie shook her head emphatically and then tried desperately to tone it down ten notches to something normal. "No, it was exactly that reason that you just mentioned. That was exactly it."
Emily looked unconvinced, but continued her previous inquisition, "What did you say to her?"
Bonnie racked her brain for anything she might have said. She had been making thinly veiled remarks, at least in her head.
She tried to remember what she could have said to set Katherine off.
Nothing came to mind. She'd been extra careful to keep her opinions on Katherine to herself. The only person she had ever said anything to was Damon. This was definitely a ploy on Katherine's part, but it worked in Bonnie's favour.
She hesitated, casting for something that sounded plausible. "I don't really remember what I said exactly. I may have implied that she was two-faced at some point."
"If that be the case, you must take further care in the coming weeks. Do nothing that would cast suspicion upon you. Katherine may have charged me with being your keeper, but she will undoubtedly be watching you closely herself. I can cast her suspicions off of you for a short time, but if she is serious in wanting to be rid of you, depend upon it, she will find a way."
"I sincerely doubt I'll find myself in any compromising positions in the near future," Bonnie reassured earnestly.
What with Damon's departure she highly doubted she'd be doing much of anything in the coming months. Would she even be here for that much longer? She and Emily had made a bit of progress with the spell – no major breakthroughs, but it finally felt like they were getting somewhere which was... nice, she supposed. Or it would have been two months ago, but now... She didn't want to leave until Damon got back and who knew when that would be.
He might never come back.
Her stomach rolled unpleasantly and she pushed the thought aside.
He would come back. She knew he would. All this had happened already and he had clearly made it through the war unscathed. 21st century Damon was in perfect form; not a blemish on the bastard. She had nothing to worry about.
But things are different now, a doubt nagged incessantly in her ear. You talked to him and changed everything. He's not so safe anymore...
"Are you unwell, Bonnie?"
Bonnie jerked up from where she had slumped against the hard wood of the desk and glanced from under her curls at Emily's concerned face.
"Just a little tired."
"You should rest. We will see one another on the morrow."
Bonnie nodded, pushing herself away from the desk and making her slow way into the hall. Once there she headed for her room, putting one foot absently in front of the other as she allowed her mind to drift to the last time she had seen Damon.
Bonnie crushed the small square of cloth between her fingers and the folds of her scratchy cotton dress. Keeping a steady pace, she moved down the hallway, enjoying the waking sounds of the household as people began to go about their business. It was early enough still that the servants shuffled about with a certain lethargy, and yet late enough that the Salvatores and guest were bound to be out of bed.
With every room Bonnie came too, she checked inside. She had already been all over the grounds and most of the west wing, with the exception of Giuseppe's study which she had avoided like the plague, and Damon was nowhere to be found.
There was a chance he was still in his room, but there was no way she was going anywhere upstairs without a legitimate excuse.
Peeking into the library she came to a halt, her heart picking up loudly in her chest. Damon stood with his back to her, a finger skimming across the spines of a haphazard stack of books. She stood watching him for what felt like a small lifetime. Logically, she knew she should stop standing there like a creeper, but for the life of her she couldn't get her knees to unlock.
This is ridiculous, Bonnie, she mentally chastened. It's the same old Damon as always. Nothing's weird, nothing's changed. So what you almost kissed? SO WHAT? Nothing awkward about that... Just act normal. And don't, under any circumstances, think about it.
Shaking herself off, she quickly scanned down the hall both ways and stepped into the room.
"Hey," she called softly.
Damon spun, his eyes widening slightly upon seeing her and cheeks tinting a lovely rose. "Bonnie."
Heart hammering in her chest, she walked further into the room to stand before him. "You leave today."
"I do." He gave a jerky nod. He looked like a tightly wound coil ready to spring. She could see the tension in the line of his shoulders and around his eyes.
"I'm glad I caught you. For a while I thought you may have already left," she admitted in a half whisper, as if hoping he might not actually hear her.
The corner of his lips pulled up. "You were searching for me?"
Her stomach flipped and she paled. A denial was ready to trip off her tongue when she paused. There was no point denying it; she had just admitted to looking for him so, tilting her chin, she replied defensively, "I had something to give you."
"Oh?" He lifted an inquiring brow.
Suddenly self-conscious, she hesitated. Moving her gaze to rest on the disheveled bookshelf just beyond his shoulder, and noting briefly that she'd probably have to clean that later, she gathered her courage in a deep breath and slowly lifted the small cloth she was gripping in her hand out for him to take.
"A handkerchief?"
"A favour," she explained, desperately trying to ignore the heat rising in her cheeks. "I read somewhere that it was customary for people to give favours for good luck."
That and she had seen it once on Merlin. Not that she wanted anything like what happened between Arthur and Gwen to happen now, but it seemed like a good omen. Suddenly feeling incredibly stupid, she shook her head in embarrassment.
"This is ridiculous. I don't know what I was thinking."
She pulled her arm back only to have it tugged forward by the square of fabric in her hand. Damon held firmly to the other side. His face was sombre but a light sparked in his eyes that hadn't been there before.
"You cannot reclaim a favour once you have offered it, Bonnie – it's unbecoming. Besides, I want it."
She flushed deeper and her stomach refused to settle and she couldn't look him in the eye and –
God, Bonnie, get a grip! It's just a fucking handkerchief.
With a herculean effort she released the handkerchief, but she couldn't resist adding, "It's not for you to keep, you know. You're meant to return it."
"Much like you returned my hat," he teased.
Her attention snapped back to him and she noticed the all too familiar wicked gleam had returned to his eyes.
"I won that hat fair and square," she defended.
"That is yet to be determined."
"You're just a sore loser. The whole purpose of a favour is for you to give it back to me, Damon."
"Well then I shall."
"You'd better." She glared half-heartedly for good measure.
"Is there some significance to this?" he asked, lifting it towards the window to inspect it closer. She watched the light as it transformed the blue of his eyes to crystal. She was finding it hard to look away. "It appears to be new," he determined with the barest hint of suspicion colouring his tone.
"It's not," she countered quickly. "It's old, old, old – ancient even. Been in the family for years."
"An heirloom?"
She hummed an affirmative and immediately regretted it. Somehow she had convinced herself that it would seem like less of a big deal if she were giving him something she had had for ages instead of admitting that she had literally bought the handkerchief for this purpose alone.
From the way he was looking at her right now – his focus warm and intent as he studied her, the corners of his lips snaking up in the softest smile she'd ever seen, a smile that was doing very weird things to her respiratory system – she had been wrong.
He leaned forward unexpectedly. Her head swam and she struggled to concentrate as he leveled their gazes and pledged solemnly, "Upon my honour, I will take the utmost care of it."
She needed to wipe that look off his face – that smile. It was making her think about his lips, and how she wondered what they might feel like, and how she almost found out how they felt a few nights ago.
Giving a gusty sigh to breathe out the butterflies, she admitted bluntly, "I lied. It's new. I bought it yesterday."
His smile widened and she almost leaned forward to close what little space remained between them. "I know," he confessed on a whisper. "No heirloom could appear so pristine. Especially one as old as you claimed this one to be."
She watched as his eyes drifted down to her lips and the smile faded from his face as he noticed just how close they were standing together. A slow blush crept across his cheeks and suddenly he was straightening up and taking a giant step away from her. The sudden rush of air into her lungs made her feel a little lightheaded and she focused on that rather than the small wave of disappointment washing over her. Damon cleared his throat, tucking her favour into his pocket before returning his attention to her.
Reaching blindly towards the pile of books beside him, he picked the one resting on top and held it out to her. When he spoke again his voice was rough, "I have something for you as well."
She tentatively grabbed the book from him, making sure to keep her fingers from brushing against his. The soft worn velvet binding felt incredible along the palm of her hand as she flipped it carefully open to read the title, "Villette?"
"It is another by Charlotte Bronte. I thought since you enjoyed the last so well you might be partial to this... and at the least you will have something to keep you company till I return."
The warmth in his gaze was enough to set her blood on fire and she hoped desperately he couldn't see the way it made her shiver. So she did what she did best; she deflected, "Or I could just talk to Stefan."
The corners of his eyes crinkled in joking irritation. "I rather you read the book."
He stilled then, his gaze dropping to the floor and his brow furrowed before he shifted uneasily in place.
She knew Damon well enough to know when he wanted to say something but didn't know how to go about it, so watching him curiously she pushed, "What is it?"
Keeping his gaze averted, he hedged slowly, "I... I had hoped that perhaps... you might allow me the privilege of..." He hesitated, lifting his blue orbs to hers and took a large breath before finishing, "corresponding with you whilst I'm away."
Bonnie felt as if she were on a roller coaster, but just as she made it to the top of the first hill the ride broke down and she was forced to wait for maintenance to come get her off.
"Corresponding?" she echoed incomprehensively.
"If I could but write to you a little, it might hasten the months passing until I am able to see you again."
Oh god, this man was going to be the death of her.
Very aware of her burning cheeks, she bowed her head, shrugging, "That's fine. I... might even write you back or something... maybe."
"I am glad for it... And so it is settled."
Coming back to herself, Bonnie realized she had passed her room by several doors and circled back. Entering the small, disheveled space she wasted no time before flopping down onto her bed to stare listlessly at the ceiling.
Damon had only been gone a couple of days. She needed to get a handle on herself. Everything needed to just stop. She could feel her emotions spiralling out of her control and heading straight towards the No Fly Zone. She could not let that happen!
She had been on this road a thousand times before: first with Patrick, the cute boy in kindergarten who used to steal all her cookies out of her lunch box; then with Tyler before he became a massive jerk; then with Sheldon who used to help her with her math homework, but he was gay, though neither of them knew it at the time; then there was Matt right before he started dating Elena...
Bonnie sighed and felt her body sink further into the lumpy mattress.
The absolute last thing she needed to be doing was developing a crush on Damon Salvatore of all people. The guy who attempted to rip her throat out; the guy who constantly made snide comments about her abilities as a witch, but was also constantly seeking her magical assistance – the hypocrite; the guy who could not take no for an answer; who cajoled her into riding his horse; who acted like a complete man-child when he got sick, and who had told her once that she looked quite well in his hat –
Bonnie groaned against the swooping in her stomach and refocused.
Not to mention the fact that he had daddy issues... and brother issues... and mother issues... and girlfriend issues. God, he had every issue in the book! Plus the whole space time continuum and, of course, she couldn't forget the infamous love triangle involving her best friend. Or was it a love square because of Katherine?
It's a mess, is what it is, and I will not be a part of it, Bonnie determined as she distractedly watched the room darken then lighten again as the sun darted in and out from behind the clouds. What I need to do is nip this in the bud while Damon's not around to bug me and focus on what's really important: getting home.
Decided, Bonnie shifted on the bed until she was as comfortable as the mattress could allow and tried to relax. A worry nagged at her, but she brushed it firmly aside.
Damon would be fine, because Damon simply refused to die. There were a countless number of people who had it out for Damon in the 21st century and yet he was still strutting around like he owned the very earth itself. Besides, she had put a protection spell on the handkerchief and there wasn't much else she could do for him from so far away.
She had more pressing matters to focus on anyways. Katherine for one.
Bonnie let out a gusty sigh and buried her head against her pillow wishing she could just stake the bitch and be done with it. Liking the idea, she decided to run it by Emily just to make sure that wasn't actually a viable option.