Title: The Gods of Virginia
Rating: M
Genre: AU/AH, Time Travel/Romance
Pairing(s): Bonnie/Stefan, Bonnie/Damon, Elijah/Katherine, Tyler/Caroline, Rebekah/OC, Matt/Katherine, etc.
Summary: When an accident sends Bonnie Bennett back to 1864, and circumstance forces her into becoming a "kept" woman, she is less than excited to find that Damon Salvatore will be the one for whom she will play placée, but it is the price she must pay to live amongst the gens de couleur, a society that holds the only ancestor she has with the power to send her home. However, Bonnie begins to interest Stefan Salvatore as well and to make matters worse Mystic Falls isn't ready to witness open concubinage between a white man and a black woman especially when that woman is suspected of witchcraft.
Warnings: Time Travel, Non-Canon, Racism, Sexual Content, Violence, Original Character etc.
Part Three: The Swing
When you live in a society so hell bent on critiquing and policing your behavior, it is hard to remember who you are underneath. What is the act and what is genuine. It is hard to hold yourself accountable for your actions when they are dictated to you by someone else. But sometimes, there are rare people. People who challenge you and force you to put a mirror up to yourself. People who remind you that you do have a choice, and that your choices matter. And if you are not careful, very careful, in that moment when they force your own self upon you, you will lose a little bit of that self to them. In that moment, a piece of you will fall in love with them, and the rest of you, not knowing what else to do, will eventually fall and join it.
― From the journal of Damon Salvatore circa April, 1864
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 1864
The house that Bonnie had been moved into had nothing of her own. Her clothing was what Thomas' sister had left behind and spare dresses of Aimee's. The furnishings were all owned and paid for by the Salvatore and on and on it went. Still it was a nice little two story house, and though Bonnie felt like she was intruding on someone else's space, she knew that it was at least meant to be hers.
Bonnie watched as Aimee began to put up wall hangings with odd symbols stitched in the patterns, in the living room. She had seen similar hangings in the house that Aimee and Raoul shared but she had not looked close enough before to see the odd symbols threaded into the fabric.
"Those symbols," Bonnie said, "What do they mean?"
Aimee turned to face her, the skirts of the yellow dress she was wearing trailing across the wooden floor as she did so. "They are called veves," she said, "They act as beacons for the Loa or spirits within the vodou religion. You can use them to represent the Loa during rituals or as forms of protection as I am using them now. The representation obliges the loas to descend to earth when called upon." Aimee pointed to the symbols as explained which Loa the represented. The Veve of Ayizan, the loa of commerce, and associated with rites of initiation. The Veve of Baron Samedi and another for his wife Maman Brigitte; both representing death. The Veve of Damballa, the sky god and creator of all life. The Veve of Papa Legba, the guard of the crossroads, and intercessor between the loa and humanity. Then lastly the Veve of Ogoun; the spirit residing over, truth, war, creativity, and a list of other things Bonnie was unable to keep track of.
"I know that the magic that you practice is much different in nature," Aimee told her, "And so you don't have to embrace this. However, I find that it is best to know more than one way to protect yourself. I also believe that if you are capable of many types of magic then you should practice many types. The spirits place enough limits on our powers as it is. We should not limit ourselves."
Bonnie nodded, thinking of the times that she had been held back by herself, her friends, and the spirits. "I want to learn," she said, seriously.
Aimee smiled and nodded. "Good," she said, "I had hoped that you would say that." She looked at Bonnie a moment, as if she wanted to tell her something but wanted to gauge her reaction first. "In New Orleans; Thomas, Raoul, and I used to go on what we called night runs. We crept onto plantations and we aided the slaves as best we could. In Thomas and my case it was sometimes through magical means. We are testing the waters with that here as well, starting with the Salvatore plantation. There was an incident Raoul witnessed and there is a man in need of our help. You can come if you like. It would be a great learning process. You can see firsthand how some of the things that we make are used before you learn to make them yourself."
Bonnie frowned, as she was sure that there was something that Aimee was not telling her. "What is it that you are afraid to say?" Bonnie asked.
Aimee sighed, and looked away a moment. "We have become accustomed to seeing things that you have not," she said, "I have to warn you. If you go with us, that you will see some things that you will not wish to see. You do not have to come if you are prepared for that?"
Bonnie could guess at the types of things that she was hinting toward, but she made the decision to go anyway. "I'll come with you," she said, lifting her chin and meeting Aimee's questionings gaze. Bonnie wasn't sure that she was ready to see what Aimee was warning her away from but she had a feeling that she needed to bear witness to it just the same.
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 2011
Abby Bennett watched as Aimee sat down across from her at the kitchen table in the house that she had once shared with her mother. The woman only seemed to look slightly older than the picture in the attic, but from what Abby had been told it was because for her only a few years had passed between the present and when the photograph was taken.
"I can't believe the sprits allow you to time travel," Abby said.
Aimee shrugged. "It only works when we don't screw with the timeline and most of the times we time leap to keep the time line from changing," she said, "It's the spirits way to make sure that what is meant to happen happens. That's why we had to make sure that Bonnie went back. We found out about the watches through her and so she was the reason that we started the time travel in the first place. If she hadn't have gone back then we never would have known about the watches, the leaping, and everything we have done up until this point would have been lost."
Abby didn't like it but Aimee had assured her that Bonnie was alright and would come out of the incident unharmed and so she decided that she would trust her. In truth she had no choice in the matter. "Is that the only reason that you came to this time?" Abby asked, "To make sure Bonnie went back to yours?'
Aimee shook her head. "We wanted to see her," she said, "And I needed to warn you."
Abby frowned as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Warn me about what?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.
"The witch," Aimee said, "Esther. The one that is a part of the original family. She has been sponging off the powers of the witches in our line for over a century. She is going to try to use you and Bonnie to kill her children. Not necessarily a bad thing but were it to have happened it would have went really wrong really fast. It would have gotten you killed, or rather turned into a vampire in the end. But Bonnie leaving saved you from that path. However, we still need to unlink the woman from our line before Bonnie returns and I know the spell that needs to be done in order to do it."
"With the new adjusted timeline," Abby said, "What will happen if we don't unlink Esther from our line before Bonnie gets back?"
"Then Bonnie will be the one that gets turned into a vampire and that can't happen," Aimee sighed, "For more reasons than one. We just have to end this before Bonnie gets back and before Esther knows that we know."
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 1864
As she walked into the cramped slave quarters Bonnie was hit hard with the metallic smell of blood. She gripped onto the sleeve of Thomas's jacket as he was the one closest to her. Raoul and Aimee, were blocking her view of the person that they were there to help and Bonnie knew there was a reason for it.
Aimee turned to them with a large jar in her hands. She was explaining the properties of the ointment inside. How it was made, the ways in which it would heal the man. However, Bonnie wasn't listening. Her attention was solely on the man that was sitting backwards on a worn wooden chair. His back was exposed and Bonnie could see the angry wounds there. Large lashes, crisscrossing over one another, clearly from a whip.
Bonnie looked away, feeling the urge to sob and vomit all at once. It did not help that the man was so old, so frail.
"Come now," Thomas whispered into her ear, "I will take you outside."
Bonnie shook her head vehemently, taking a deep breath. She loosened her grip on Thomas's sleeve before letting go entirely. They watched as she walked around the chair, and knelt before the man so that she could see his face.
The man opened his eyes, looking at Bonnie as if she were some sort of apparition as she removed the hood to her cloak. "Hello," Bonnie said, her voice soft and broken, "Can you speak?" At the man's nod she smiled just a little. "What's your name?"
"Solomon Hardaway, miss," he whispered.
"My name is Bonnie," she said, reaching up and touching his face, "And I and my family are going to help you."
Bonnie stood a moment later and took the jar that Aimee offered to her. She listened as Aimee told her how to apply the ointment. She nodded here and there, but her eyes kept straying to the wounds on Solomon's back.
Her hands shook as she opened the jar and applied the ointment. She almost laughed in relief as almost immediately the wounds began to close. She handed the jar to Aimee as the woman began to assist her.
"Do you have family Solomon?" Bonnie asked, partially because she was curious and partially because she wanted to think about something other than what she was doing.
"I had a wife," he replied, "She was pretty like you."
"Well aren't you just the charmer," Bonnie smiled. She continued to talk quietly to him until they finished. She smiled halfheartedly as he thanked them.
As Aimee told him where to hide what was left in the jar Bonnie allowed Raoul to lead her outside. They walked silently until they were a well ways away and then Bonnie stopped as she began to wring her hands together.
"Bonnie," Raoul whispered as he studied her face, "You can let it out now, cheri."
That was all that Bonnie needed to hear and she began to sob. Raoul wrapped his arm around her trembling form and hugged her into his chest.
"You did well, petit mignon," he said, as she rubbed soothing circles on her back, "You were very strong and we are all very proud."
Bonnie clung to him, not really listening. She tried to stop crying but she couldn't. The reality of the situation was beginning to sink in and Bonnie didn't know if she was strong enough to handle it.
"I don't feel strong," Bonnie murmured, as her tears finally quieted.
"One usually does not when one is at their strongest," his said, as Bonnie pulled away from him, "I believe that you will be just fine."
They turned at the sound of footsteps and watched as Aimee and Thomas walked toward them. Bonnie wiped at the tears on her face, not wanting to appear weak in front of them.
"You do not have to hide your tears," Aimee said, as if she had read Bonnie's thoughts, "You did very well for your first night. Thomas himself could not stomach his first time as well as you did."
Bonnie looked at Thomas in surprise and he shrugged, giving her a smile and a nod.
"You have done enough for one night," she said, "Thomas and I are going to visit the rest of the quarters. Raoul will escort you home. We can try again in a few days."
Bonnie nodded. She was determined to try again. As much as it hurt her to witness, to be subjected to the harsh reality of the suffering of her people within the time frame that she was in, she knew that it would hurt more if she were to do nothing. She supposed, as the thought came to her, that the strength that Raoul spoke of, was not entirely absent in her after all.
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 2011
Damon Salvatore stood in front of his mother's grave, his eyes on the withered tombstone. It had been a while since he had been there, since he had ever wanted to be there. It was the memories that now haunted him that were forcing him to come.
After his mother had died, their father had shut down to the point of cutting off all emotion and all affection. They had not been allowed to cry, to express their feelings, to feel anything outside of what their father deemed they should. Even Damon and Stefan's affection towards one another had been restricted when they were under their father's gaze, at least it had been before Bonnie.
Bonnie was the first person after his mother had died to show him any sort of affection without expecting anything in return. The first who made him feel as if it was alright to feel.
He found it funny now as he thought back on it. She had never judged him. Even in this time, she was not passing judgment on him when she condemned his actions. It was just that she expected more of him, something better. He could see that now that he knew what to look for.
She had always expected more of him and there was a time when it had made him expect more of himself. A time when he would do anything for her. But now he didn't really know what to do. Wouldn't know what to do until she came back.
Once they had met she had been his guide in everything without trying. In the beginning she had not realized how much her words and actions meant to him. She had not realized how much he had grown to depend on her presence even in the earliest days of knowing her. But she had become everything, almost from first sight. It was amazing to him how just his lack of memory had changed the way that he looked at her, the way that he saw her in the present time.
But it wasn't just the fact that he had no memory of their time together, it was the experiences in between remembering and not remembering. He had, through them, changed and become a different person. Someone that the Bonnie that he knew in either time would likely not be able to even look at, let alone love.
"I know that I promised you that I would take care of her for as long as I could," Damon said, speaking aloud to his mother, "But what happens if she doesn't want me to anymore?"
There was no answer, and he wasn't expecting one.
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 1864
As Bonnie walked into the her house, thoughts of Solomon still fresh in her mind, she realized that no matter how long that she stayed in this time that she could not leave it unchanged. She could not shut her eyes to what she was witnessing now any more than she could shut herself off to the fact that she had become someone who let the world trample her and unlike the people around her in this time she had a choice in the matter.
Perhaps that was why she was here. So she could see what it was like to have no rights, no choice, and no agency, and in seeing that learn to exercise her own when she returned.
Bonnie walked into the living room and turned on the oil lamp closest to her. She jumped as she saw a lone figure sitting on her couch. She had to look closely to see who it was, but she frowned slightly as she made out the figure.
"Damon?" Bonnie asked, "What are you doing here?"
He was sitting on the couch, his jacket and tie thrown over the back of it. There was a glass in his hands filled with something brown and Bonnie was certain that it was alcoholic. Bonnie's frown deepened as she studied the worn look on his face.
"I wanted to see you," Damon said, looking up at her. His blue eyes seeming duller than she had ever seen them.
It was clear to Bonnie that he would not be there if there wasn't something wrong. It was rather late and Bonnie knew that given the constraints that they had put on their arrangement, this was outside of the norm. She removed her cloak and sat it over a nearby chair. Walking across the room, she sat down next to him.
In truth, she wasn't necessarily in the mood to talk, but at the same time she wanted to get her mind off the things that she had witnessed. Besides that she had offered him her friendship, and he had saved her from George Lockwood so in a way she felt she owed him. He was, at the very least more tolerable than his vampire counterpart.
Bonnie reached out and gently pried the glass from his hands and sat it down on the table sitting in front of the couch. "Tell me what happened," Bonnie said, quietly.
"I tried to stop it but no matter what I said…," he paused, running a hand over his face. Bonnie watched as he tugged at his hair, and a shadow of the temper that she was familiar with appeared.
Taking a deep breath, Bonnie took his hand in hers. "Calm down and start from the beginning," she said, softly.
Damon shook his head. "I was wrong to come here," he said, "Wrong to bother you."
"There's a reason you are here," Bonnie said, not really knowing why it was that she cared so much that he had someone to talk to, "A reason you came to me and not anyone else."
"I have been standing up to my father lately," Damon said, "I wanted to before. But I never did. You are part of the reason I think. From the first time I saw you I felt like I could live outside of what was expected of me. That I could do more than just fall in line. That there was another choice."
"There's always a choice, Damon," Bonnie sighed, "Just because someone expects something of you doesn't always mean it's the right thing. Especially if we're talking about your father."
Damon smiled, shaking his head. "When we were drawing up the contract," he said, "Raoul said that you would be good for me. I hate it when he's right."
"Are you ready to tell me what happed?" Bonnie asked, after a moment of silence.
Damon squeezed her hand, before letting it go. He wasn't sure how much to tell her and how she would react. "I was going to come to see you sooner," he said, "To make sure that you were settled in. But then I heard that one…one of the slaves was getting punished for working too slowly in the fields. Solomon. The man is old enough to be my grandfather, and used to working in the house besides. Yet, my father expects him to do the work of twenty men. But it is not really about the work, he wants to punish him for what happened to my mother."
Bonnie frowned as her mind went back to Solomon's wounds. With his age, and the extent of them, had it not been for Aimee they would have likely got infected and killed the man. "What do you mean what happened to your mother?" Bonnie asked, wanting to change the subject, and trying to silently control her growing anger.
"She died," Damon said, "When we were very young. Consumption. My father has been like this ever since then. He drank in the beginning but then he just shut down and immersed himself in work and hate. He is unapproachable and unaffectionate. Solomon….used to work in the house as I said. He was caring for my mother before she died. Father blamed him for her death and sent him to the fields."
Bonnie silently took in the information he was giving her and waited for him to continue. Her hatred of Giuseppe Salvatore was growing, at the same time a plan was forming in her head.
"He never beat him before," he said, "But today something in him…I am unsure but I have never seen that look on my father's face before. Perhaps because he feels he is losing control over me, and perhaps it is because he felt powerless to protect me and Stefan when Raoul could. I am not sure but there was no excuse for what he did. I tried to stop it but I could not. I never like it when it happens, but I always turned away and it is rare for him to have slaves beaten. But with Solomon, I had to speak. But I changed nothing,"
Bonnie wasn't sure what to say and so for a moment she didn't say anything. "At least you spoke," she said, "You didn't keep quiet." She couldn't tell him that Aimee had healed Solomon, not without revealing what they were. "Perhaps the damage was not as bad as you think," she said, "Perhaps he is stronger than you think."
"Perhaps," Damon said, looking ready to pick up the glass again.
"If I ask you to do something for me," Bonnie said, slowly, "Would you try and make it happen?" Damon frowned, turning toward her and studying her face before he nodded. "When Solomon is well enough," she said, "Instead of sending him to the fields…perhaps he could come here and work with Corrine, for me."
"I had thought about it," he said, "When we were drawing the contracts. But I was certain that you would not want slaves."
"I don't," Bonnie answered honestly, "But if it will spare him the abuse then I can live with the discomfort."
"Then I will do what I can," Damon said, feeling slightly better about the situation now that there was something proactive that he could do, "My mother would have wanted me to do right by Solomon. They were very close from what I remember."
"What was she like, your mother?" Bonnie asked, both out of curiosity and because she wanted to change the subject. She was happy that she could possibly spare Solomon further abuse but at the same time she hoped that Giuseppe would not target others in his place.
She was surprised Damon even cared. Damon as a human was very different than she had imagined he would me. She expected more arrogance and more selfishness. She didn't know if he had always been this way or if she was changing things already.
"She was kind," Damon said, "Sweet, loving, affectionate. She used to sing to us. I miss that. But I miss talking to her the most. Being free to talk. Being on the receiving end of her hugs, her kisses. I could not go to her grave, I've never been there. Stefan goes all the time. Talks to her. But I think it is because he barely remembers her. It makes him feel close to her. I have not felt as close to anyone since before she died, not even Stefan. I cannot talk to anyone about her because Stefan does not remember and my father wishes to forget."
"You're talking to me," Bonnie pointed out.
"You are easy to talk to," Damon said, scratching the back of his neck, "You just sit there listening quietly. It makes me wonder what you are thinking."
Bonnie was thinking a number of things. Most of it comparing the Damon she had known to this one. The contrast between the two was odd, but it didn't escape her that that they had some similarities as well. She felt that she was beginning to understand how this person could become who he was when she left, especially after being manipulated by Katherine and turned into a monster. Still she thought that he should be held accountable for his actions. She wondered if she could have the same effect on him as a vampire. If she could make him see things beyond the selfish box he placed them in and actually make him think about his own actions and the actions of the people around him. In a way she had, in tiny passing moments. But even now she wasn't sure why she cared one way or the other.
"I would like to give you a hug," Bonnie said, surprising them both. She blamed it on the sympathy she had for him at the loss of his mother. She had felt that same way when she had lost her Grams, and this Damon at least, had no part in it. Besides she had her own responsibility in that as well.
"Why?" Damon asked, his voice soft, his expression looking shocked at the thought that anyone outside of his brother would want to.
"You said you wanted to be friends," Bonnie shrugged, "That's what friends do. And I feel like you need it."
Damon stared at Bonnie for a long time. She waited, not wanting to push him. After a long moment he nodded.
Bonnie hesitated, realizing belatedly that she was about to hug Damon of all people. But as she looked at him she saw something there that she had never seen before and whatever it was it caused her to move forward. Carefully she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into her.
It took him a while to return the embrace but he did, he hugged her much tighter than Bonnie had expected. Still she rested her head on his shoulder and began to hum lowly. Some old lullaby that she barely remembered Abby singing to her from her own childhood. She didn't pull away as he buried his face in her neck. As she felt his hot tears and listened to the muffled sobs, Bonnie realized that even though consciously she had known that he was human, this was the first time since she arrived that she recognized him as not monster but man.
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 2011
Elena Gilbert was not really surprised by the reaction that she had gotten after she told Caroline Forbes the story that she herself had been told by the Salvatore brothers. None of it made any sense, particularly Bonnie being involved with Stefan and Damon, even if they had been human at the time. Though, Caroline was more concerned with the thought of Bonnie being in another time than anything else.
"What do you mean she's in 1864?" Caroline asked, blinking at Elena. She had asked that question at least twice already.
When Elena had showed up at her door step with an unbelievable story and even more unbelievable reaction to said story Caroline didn't really know what to say. She couldn't say that it surprised her that Elena was harping on Bonnie's involvement with the Salvatore when the real issue was that Bonnie was missing and the only explanation for it was something that was unfeasible. However, that didn't make her any less annoyed with the whole thing.
"Just what I said," Elena sighed, "They had a picture and everything. They said that it won't feel like she's gone that long for us but for her it will be longer. I'm only telling you because I thought that you should know and I didn't want you to find out another way if you were looking for her or had contacted her before she got back."
"Do you actually buy any of this?" Caroline asked, "Bonnie could be somewhere hurt and alone and we're just supposed to believe she just so happens to be a little over a hundred years in the past?"
Elena frowned. She wasn't sure what sort explanation Caroline wanted. "Well I am taking Stefan and Damon's word at face value," she said, "If you want to interrogate them go ahead but they're just going to tell you exactly what they told me."
"You could at least try to seem like you're worried," Caroline huffed.
"I am," Elena said, "But it isn't like we can do anything. Besides they said that she was fine and that she would come out of this unscathed. And since apparently both Stefan and Damon were in love with her I'm sure they're taking good care of her."
Caroline blinked. "Do you hear yourself?" she asked, "Bonnie is hypothetically in the middle of the Civil War era in the south and you're worried that she could be cozying up to Stefan and Damon as humans. You do realize that if this is true that her being black and a witch on top of that could put her in all types of danger."
"Like I said," Elena stated as she stood, "They said that she was taken care of. She apparently had family here during that time. If you don't believe me then you can go talk to them yourself. Either way it's not like we can go and get her so we'll just have to wait it out."
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 1864
Bonnie watched as Stefan and Raoul positioned the piano forte in the small parlor of the house that she now resided in. She had mentioned to Aimee that music sometimes helped her keep calm and that her grandmother had been teaching her to play before she died and that was all that it took.
Bonnie stepped forward and ran her hand over the lid as Stefan and Raoul stepped back. It was a beautiful instrument, made of rosewood with butterflies engraved into the surface. Bonnie smiled, as she sat down in front of it.
Stefan sat down next to her and opened the book full of sheet music he had purchased in town. "I'll turn the pages for you," he offered.
It had been days since the incident with Damon and she had not seen him since then. She was worried but Stefan always said that he was fine when she asked. She was actually growing rather comfortable in his company as he was her constant companion when he was not at school. Between Stefan, Raoul, Thomas, Aimee, Corrine, and Emmanuelle, Bonnie was rarely ever alone and she was becoming rather accustomed to her situation even if she still missed home.
Bonnie began to play a rather complicated piece. She missed a few notes, but Stefan didn't seem to notice. "You play very well," he said, "Your grandmother was a great teacher."
"She was great at most things," Bonnie said, "She took very good care of me before she passed."
"Is that why you came here with Aimee?" Stefan asked, "Raoul told me that your mother left when you were very young."
Bonnie nodded. She didn't know how actual details of her life kept slipping out around them but it did. It was perhaps because everyone seemed so interested in her and she wasn't used to being the center of anyone's attention. "She came back before I left," she said, "We were coming to an understanding I think. I actually kind of miss her."
Stefan frowned at the sudden sad look on her face. "Would you like to play another?" He asked, trying to lighten the mood a bit.
"These seem very complicated," Bonnie sighed, "I'll probably have to practice before I get really good at any of them."
"What about songs that you know?" Stefan asked.
Bonnie shook her head. She doubted that she could get away with playing jazz music like her Grams used to, it would probably freak everyone out. Bonnie looked around and realized that Raoul and Aimee had left the room. She wondered a moment where they had gone before her mind ran over the very few classical pieces that she knew that she could possibly get away with playing. "Wait a minute," Bonnie said, a thought coming to her, "I thought you had a recitation to do in school tomorrow. Aren't we supposed to be practicing?"
Stefan made a noncommittal noise as he flipped through the pages of the music book. "It is only King Lear," he said, "I could recite that in my sleep."
Bonnie raised an eyebrow at him. "And you're admitting that out loud?" She asked.
"I am extremely proud of my literary prowess," Stefan said, theatrically, dusting off his jacket, "Thank you very much, Miss Bennett."
Bonnie bit back a laugh, as she began to run over the list of songs she knew once more. It was weird to her how easy it was to interact with him. Then again it wasn't. It had been somewhat easy before, in her time when she hadn't known what he was. And now there was no vampire barrier in between them.
Thinking of home made her think of her friends and out all of them she had to say that she missed Caroline the most. She missed Elena and Jeremy as well, but Jeremy had already been in Denver when she had left and Elena had been wrapped up in Stefan, so Caroline was the only one Bonnie had been spending any time with before she had gone.
She wondered for a moment what Elena would think of Bonnie being in this time and befriending Stefan and Damon as humans. She rather quickly decided not to think about it, however. This Stefan and this Damon were human and untouched by the Petrova and so in a way Bonnie was almost able to separate them completely from the ones in her time.
"Have you thought of any songs yet?" Stefan asked, regaining Bonnie's attention.
Bonnie thought of the last time she had felt normal. It was when she had been watching a movie with Caroline over a month ago now, Amélie. There was a song in the film that Bonnie had learned to play because Caroline had said that she liked it, but with the originals and finding her mom, Bonnie had yet to play it for her. Figuring that she could play it for someone at least Bonnie decided to give the song a try.
"I'll play it," she said, "If you help me."
Stefan shook his head. "While I do not mind listening," he said, "I am hopeless when it comes to playing. I would embarrass us both."
"Give me your hand," Bonnie said, "I'll show you which keys to press. Just hit them when I nod. I'll make it easy on you and only give you three."
"Very well," Stefan said, placing his hand in hers. He watched as she positioned his hands on the keyboard. "Does this song have a name?" He asked, to distract himself from the fact that she was touching him.
"Comptine d'un autre été l'après midi," Bonnie whispered, "I learned it for a friend but she never got to hear it. I left before I could play it for her. So you are my new intended audience."
She went over the song with him before they began to play. Bonnie laughed at the befuddled expression on Stefan's face in the beginning. By the end they were in tune and Stefan asked to play it again. Bonnie nodded and they began again.
"I never knew I was so musical," Stefan said, as they finished.
Bonnie gave him a look, as she ran her fingers over the piano keys. "I am the one who did all of the real work," she said.
"That is debatable I think," Stefan grinned.
Bonnie was about to respond when they heard the clearing of a throat, coming from behind them. They turned to see Damon standing in the doorway. Bonnie smiled, at him, and then smiled wider when she realized who was standing next him.
Solomon nodded at both Stefan and Bonnie as Damon stepped forward. The older man looked much changed from when Bonnie had last seen him the night she had went to his quarters with Aimee and the others. His brown skin had lost its gray pallor and his deep brown eyes held more life as he smiled at her.
"I can't believe you pulled it off," Bonnie said, turning toward Damon.
"It took some convincing," Damon said, "But it was either back down or press the issue until I got the results I wanted and so I stood my ground."
In that moment Bonnie was sure that she was as proud as Stefan looked. Solomon was one person out of many but at least she could rest easy about him, and the others would still get help from the night runs that she would start going on again soon with Aimee and the others.
"There is somewhere I want to go," Damon said, looking in between both Bonnie and Stefan, "And I want both of you to be there with me."
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 2011
Thomas La Belle had broken into many a home in his life. However, none was as big as Mikaelson Manor. It had taken him forever to try and find something that belonged to the witch that Aimee had told him about and even more time to figure out his way out of the manor.
It was a wonder that he had not been caught. However, he had come to find that though the Originals were powerful and vampires, they didn't tend to use their senses very much. One would have thought with heightened smell and hearing, that it would be second nature to be hyper aware of one's surroundings but it was exactly the opposite. Not only that but they seemed to let a number of things distract them, including but not limited to, their failed love lives and family drama. As far as missions given to him by Aimee, this one had not been that hard, he had expected much more from a vampire family of their caliber.
Thomas took the charmed box from his pocket and placed the necklace that he had stolen into it. No matter what anyone tried, no one would ever be able to open it outside of himself and Aimee.
He had parked his car a ways down the road, as not to draw suspicion. As he got inside he began to think about Bonnie.
While Raoul was of the mind that Bonnie being involved with the Salvatore upon her return was an inevitability, Thomas was not so sure. He had been silently watching Bonnie and her friends for some time now and there were a very many factors at play, one of them being the fact that one of Bonnie's best friends was involved with the Salvatore men.
Thomas would not exactly be torn up if Bonnie decided to distance herself from Damon and Stefan upon her return, he didn't want to see her hurt. But there was nothing that he could do about that or her involvement with them. He had learned a long time ago to keep his mouth shut about the matter.
What he could do now, was keep her safe in another way. He could help Aimee with the spell that would unlink the Original witch from the Bennett family and restore the timeline to a point where none of them would be in any danger, because right now nothing else was more important than that.
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 1864
The graveyard was almost empty aside from a couple a few headstones down. They seemed to be more worried about staring and Bonnie, Damon, and Stefan than mourning for whoever they had come to see. Bonnie tried to ignore them but she knew exactly why they had been staring.
She looked away from them and continued to walk in between the Salvatore brothers as they headed toward their mother's grave.
"You said your mother left when you was young right?" Stefan asked, looking down at Bonnie.
Bonnie nodded. "Yes," she said, "She came back before I left but it was awkward. She missed a lot of my life and so it was almost like she was a stranger."
"Do you remember anything about her from when you were young?" Damon asked.
Bonnie wasn't sure where the questions were coming from, but assumed they were trying not to think too hard about what they were doing and where they were heading. "Not really," she said, "She was really distant toward the end. Before that I remember that she used sing to me and tuck me in at night. And there was this swing in our back yard that by dad put up. She used to push me on it so high that I would imagine that I was flying."
Bonnie hadn't really tried to remember all that much about her mother, the more that she thought about it. She had resented Abby and it kept her from thinking about the fact that there had been some good in their relationship, prior to her abandonment. Bonnie wondered if she would ever get to tell Abby as much in person.
They stopped in front of a tombstone that depicted an angel and read, "Mary Salvatore, loving wife and mother."
Bonnie was aware that this was the first time that Damon had come to see his mother since her death and so she knew that it was no small thing that he would want her there. She seemed to have integrated herself into their lives in a very short time and Bonnie wondered how much closer they would get before she went home. She also wondered what it would mean, if anything once she did manage to go back.
"I have been trying to get him to come here for years," Stefan leaned down and whispered in ear, "You are here just a few days and it is almost like he is different person."
"Different good or different bad?" Bonnie asked, as she watched Damon kneel down and place a single rose in front of the tombstone.
"Good," Stefan smiled.
As Damon stood and whispered his goodbyes, Stefan moved to stand beside him, placing a supportive hand on his shoulder.
In that moment Bonnie felt like an outsider but she didn't mind it. While in her time she knew that they loved each other as brothers did, it was a very rare thing that she saw moments like this that passed between them. Moments when they actually seemed like real brothers. She hadn't really cared one way or the other before, but now that she actually was about to witness there closeness she was saddened at the thought that they had lost it.
Bonnie began to wonder about her own family. Had her grandmother been alive she knew that she would worry but again she wondered if Abby would do so. She wondered if her father would come back to town long enough to even know that she was missing. It was a sad and strange thing that the people in this time seemed to be more concerned about her wellbeing than the ones in the time that she had left. The thought was so disconcerting that Bonnie felt the urge to run somewhere where she could be alone, even as a part of didn't want to be.
When Bonnie finally came out of her own head she noticed that both Stefan and Damon were staring at her. Bonnie gave them a questioning look as Damon held out a hand to her. Even so Bonnie took his hand and allowed herself to be pulled forward.
"Mother," Damon said, glancing down at Bonnie slightly, "This is Bonnie Bennett. She is the one that talked me into coming to see you, though I am not sure she really knows it. You would have liked her. She is one of the few kind and pure souls left to offer in the world and in knowing her I have never been more grateful to know anyone since you. For the first time in a while I feel like you would be proud of me and she is a big part of the reason. So I have decided to promise both you and her here today to take care of her for as long as I can."
Bonnie squeezed Damon's hand and smiled, her eyes watering just a bit. She felt the moment would have been more meaningful if she hadn't already experienced a version of him that was so different. There didn't seem to even be the slightest chance to her that any part of this Damon would be there when she returned to the present.
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 2011
Caroline Forbes had come banging on the Salvatore's door over an hour ago looking for answers and she wasn't happy when the ones that she got mirrored the ones that Elena had already given her.
Stefan had told her as much as he was willing to tell her, which was not a lot with the state that he was in. Still she felt as if she was missing something.
"So," she said, "If all Bonnie needs is this watch to get home and this Raoul guy has one then why doesn't he just go back and use the one he has to go get her?"
Stefan sighed, running a hand over his face. He had explained it already, but she didn't seem to want to understand. "Because," he said, "He got the watch when they found the man that had them, which they did for Bonnie's sake, meaning….you know what forget it. Look, all you need to know is that if things don't play out the way they are supposed to play out then things could go terribly wrong. In order for them to do that then Bonnie has to stay where she is. It won't be as long for us as it is for her. For us she'll be gone for a week at the most or so I am told."
Caroline sighed. She wasn't happy with the situation but it was clear that there was no changing it. "So is what Elena said true?" she asked, "About you and Bonnie and Damon and Bonnie?"
Stefan shook his head. "That isn't really any of your concern." Stefan sighed.
Caroline frowned, but didn't press the conversation. "I was just curious," she said, "I mean it isn't like she was in the best place with either of you when she left here and so I doubt it will be all sunshine and rainbows when she gets back."
"I know that," Stefan said, "I don't expect anything and neither does Damon."
Caroline considered him for a moment and frowned. "You look like you feel like you're dying," she said, "And according to everything that I've been told, now that you've flipped your switch, you're not supposed to feel anything."
"You should go," Stefan said.
Caroline stood. "If you are this bad now," Caroline said, "I wonder how bad you'd be with your emotions turned on. She obviously did a number on you. I didn't think she had it in her. I'm kind of proud."
"Leave," Stefan muttered.
"Fine," Caroline agreed, "But if Bonnie isn't back in a week then you'll be hearing from me again. Actually, you'll be hearing from me and keep hearing from me until I see her again."
:::
Mystic Falls, Virginia, 1864
Thomas was teaching Bonnie how to play draughts. In all actuality it was basically checkers, but it seemed to please him to teach her the game and so Bonnie didn't mention that she already knew how to play it.
"Shouldn't you be going to the apothecary for Aimee?" Bonnie asked, as Thomas set up the board.
Thomas winced and it was clear that he had forgotten about his intended errand. He had come to see if Bonnie had wanted to go with him but Bonnie was staying and waiting for Emmanuelle to arrive. She was teaching Bonnie how to sew so that she could help Aimee mend some of the clothing that belonged to slaves they had been assisting.
It had been a week since they had started and so far they had gone to the Salvatore's and the Lockwood's. No one had grown suspicious just yet, but Bonnie knew that as small as the town was, it was only a matter of time.
"She will not kill me if I stay and play one game," Thomas said, "I will leave when Emmanuelle gets here."
Bonnie grinned as she made her first move on the board. "She might kill you if she is in one of her moods," she said, "Raoul can't keep her busy forever. Besides I'm never going to learn if you don't get supplies."
"If you were not such a pretty little thing I would be deeply offended by half of what leaves that mouth of yours," he said.
"Only half?" Bonnie grinned, as she jumped over one of his pieces.
Thomas frowned as he glared down at the board. "Are you sure that you have never played this game before?" he asked.
"I never said that I never played it before," she said, "You just seemed so thrilled to teach me something that I thought it would be rude to interrupt. Perhaps you will be just as enthusiastic when it comes to teaching me magic but since Aimee is going to kill you before you even get to go to the apothecary I am afraid I will never know."
"If you are trying to scare me into leaving because you are about to lose," Thomas said, moving his piece on the board, "It is not going to work, Miss Bennett."
They looked up as Corrine came into the room. "Aimee is on her way over here," she told them, "I was just over there talking to her about a personal matter and she seemed displeased with someone by the name of Thomas. Do you all know anyone by that name?"
Bonnie covered her mouth to hide her laughter as Thomas jumped up. She shook her head as he bowed to her and disappeared.
"If you don't mind me asking," Bonnie said, looking a Corrine, "What were you talking to Aimee about?" She began to put away the game as Corrine held up a piece of paper.
"A letter from my son," she said, "His name is William. He just turned eighteen a few months ago. He is fighting for the north in the war. I was afraid at first but now I have never been so proud. Aimee is the one keeping him alive. Sent him off with enough protective charms and things to keep him alive for years."
"I don't doubt it," she said. Bonnie smiled. She didn't know that the woman had a son but it seemed to fit. She had already taken a maternal like interest in Bonnie and she was often the same way with Thomas. Bonnie had never really known that there were so many different roles that blacks could take on in this time. She had heard things in passing but it wasn't as if these kinds of things got any focus in schools. It was sad to think as much as the town seemed to dwell on their history and their founders, the history tied to Bonnie and her people was all but lost in her time.
"Do you mind if I read it before I start on lunch?" Corrine asked.
Bonnie waved a hand at her. "Go ahead," she said, "I will be fine I'm not really hungry right now anyway."
As Corrine left the room, Bonnie stood and ran her hands down her dress. She still didn't find it at all comfortable but the casual ones she was able to wear at home were a bit more comfortable than the more formal one. She had taken to wearing her hair half up and half down whenever possible as she didn't like it pinned up and her personal appearance was at least one thing that she had some degree of control over in the time that she was in.
Bonnie moved to finish putting away the board game when she heard someone creeping up on her from behind. Frowning she turned to find Stefan and Damon, the latter being the closest one to her. Bonnie rolled her eyes at him as he frowned.
"I told you that you would never be able to sneak up on her," Stefan commented.
"What brings you gentlemen here?" Bonnie asked, looking between them, "I thought I told you I would be busy today."
"We know," Damon said, "But we have a surprise for you. It will only take a few minutes and then we will be out of your pretty little hair."
Bonnie sighed. "Alright," she conceded.
"Turn around," he said. Bonnie gave him a look before she turned away from him. A moment later, he reached around her and covered her eyes with his hands and Stefan moved to stand in front of her.
"Is this necessary?" Bonnie frowned.
"Humor us," Damon replied. He nodded to Stefan and his brother took Bonnie's hands. "Can you see anything?" Damon asked.
"You're covering my eyes," Bonnie laughed, "So no." She didn't know what they were up to and wasn't sure if she wanted to know.
"Alright," Damon said, "Now, Stefan is going to lead you so do not let go of his hands because your eyes are staying covered and if you let him go you will fall."
"Fine," Bonnie said, "But this surprise better be worth it."
They moved through the room and out of it in tandem. Corrine and Solomon eyed the three as they made their way through the kitchen and out the back door.
Even though Bonnie couldn't see she was sure that they looked ridiculous as they walked down the steps. She nearly tripped a few times and she was happy when they came to a stop. She knew they were outside as she could smell the fresh air and feel the grass beneath her feet.
"Are you ready?" Stefan asked.
Bonnie nodded, even as she began to feel a bit apprehensive. Damon uncovered her eyes and it took her a moment to adjust to the light. Stefan pointed and she looked across the yard at the tree that stood there. Hanging from it was some rope and a piece of wood that they had fashioned into a swing. "You made me a swing," Bonnie said, not knowing whether to be shocked or touched, but settling somewhere in the middle.
"Stefan said that you missed home," Damon said, "So we thought it might help if you would be able to fly every so often."
"Would you like to try it?" Stefan asked.
Bonnie nodded not noticing as Corrine and Solomon came to stand in the back doorway to watch the scene.
Corrine frowned as they watched Damon pick Bonnie up and lift her onto the swing. Stefan pushed from the front as Damon pushed from behind.
"It is never a good idea to be going back and forth between two men like that," Corrine said, "I hope she realizes what is happening before she gets caught into something that she is not prepared for."
"Sounds to me like you not talking about the swing," Solomon commented.
Corrine turned and walked back over to the kitchen counter and picked up her son's letter. "That is because I ain't," she said, and didn't comment any further.