Title: The Bell It Tolls For Thee: The Second Life of Matt Donovan

Rating: M

Summary: Matt Donavon has always wondered about his place in the world of the supernatural, when trauma and a near death experience awakens something dark inside of him he finds that place with the help of one Bonnie Bennett…

Genre: AU/Supernatural

Pairings: Bonnie/Matt, Tyler/Caroline, Jeremy/Anna, Kelly/Klaus, Elijah/Katherine, Stefan/Elena, etc.

Warnings: Violence, Language, Mild-Moderate Sexual Content, Character Death, etc.

Author's Note: This is a repost with some minor rewrites and edits. This takes places during and after 3x05. There M rating is for later chapters. Thanks to all of those who supported me during my rough patch. Please do not pm me regarding updates on any other fics or comment on any of my other fics in the reviews for story. Feedback is always welcomed. Thanks for reading.

Part One: Awakening

Matt Donavan welcomed death. He welcomed the chill of the water. He welcomed the painful burning in his lungs. He welcomed the rushing sound of water echoing in his ears. He welcomed the darkness as he closed his eyes. When he could no longer feel anything he welcomed his sister's presence. Vicki was dead, and seeing her meant that he was dead too. He wouldn't have to be lonely anymore.

Slowly he remembered why he was there, what he had killed himself to accomplish. He asked Vicki about how to save Tyler because he knew he would have to go back, back to the loneliness, back to a life where his friends were becoming strangers, back to a house that he had to work to pay bills for, and back to seeing both of his ex-girlfriends happy with someone else. But he was going to live so that Tyler wouldn't die, he couldn't lose someone else, he had lost too much already.

He listened as Vicki told him that Elena would have to die. He wanted to hang on just a little longer. Tell her a proper goodbye. Tell her he missed her. Tell her that he was sorry that he hadn't been able to protect her. Something was already pulling him back. He began to start feeling things in bits and pieces. Hands on his chest. The softness of someone's lips over his own. The burning in his lungs return as he began to once again take in air. He barely had enough time to say goodbye to Vicki before he heard Bonnie's voice begging for him to wake up.

He was torn between clinging to the sound of Bonnie's voice telling him to come back and Vicki's voice telling him not to leave. In the end Vicki disappeared and Matt felt himself attempt to breathe through his mouth. He ended up coughing up water instead. The burning eased and slowly Matt opened his eyes and met Bonnie's green ones.

He had never realized how green her eyes were. She looked on the verge of tears. Her eyes were swimming with emotions; relief being the most palpable. A part of him had thought, before he had jumped into the pool, about what would happen if he didn't wake up. He had wondered if anyone would truly care if he were to die and the look in Bonnie's eyes gave him the answer to than question. Yes she would care. She couldn't take another loss either.

Their eyes stayed locked as she helped him to the seated position. She bit her lip as if she wanted to look away but she didn't, perhaps she couldn't. For the first time as Matt looked at Bonnie he realized that he may not have been as alone as he thought.

He wrapped his arms around Bonnie and though she was shaking she returned the embrace. "I'm sorry," he whispered, "It was the only way."

The only response that he got was the sound of Bonnie's sobs as she cried into his neck.

:::

As Bonnie waited next to Matt's truck, she wondered if he had really taken her words into consideration. After the revelation that both Elena and Tyler would live she had been relieved though her relief was temporary.

She couldn't help but think about Matt. What if she hadn't gotten to him in time? What if she hadn't been as good at CPR as he thought? What if Matt had died?

She loved him the same as all of her friends but she had realized that Matt was painfully human. He wasn't a vampire like Caroline or Stefan. He wasn't a hybrid like Tyler now was. He didn't have a ring that would protect him from death by supernatural means like Jeremy or Alaric, and he didn't have people who would line up to protect him like Elena did. Even Bonnie had her powers. What did Matt have to protect him outside of the people who cared about him? Not enough to keep him alive when there was a creature of the non-human variety targeting the town they had all grew up in nearly every day.

Bonnie had meant what she had said. Matt had a choice, he could live a separate life. He could lead a normal life. He could lead a safe life. He was already separating himself from them, he could cut the cord that tied them to him completely and they could protect him from afar if anything should happen. Losing him after being his friend for so many years would hurt…but knowing that he was safe….

She was jolted from her thoughts as Matt appeared, walking toward her a small smile on his face. She returned his smile even as she shivered slightly, a chill running down her spine as the night air hit her. She was still slightly damp from the dive in the pool.

When Matt reached her he pulled a sweatshirt from behind his back. "It's kind of gross and smells like my sweat but it's warm and dry," he said.

"Warm is good," Bonnie said, "It's okay."

Matt reached around her and wrapped his sweatshirt around her shoulders tugging it slightly, and inadvertently pulling her closer to him. ""Thank you," he said still clutching the sweatshirt, "For being better than me at CPR."

Bonnie bit her lip and looked at him with those eyes again. He couldn't put into words how grateful he was to her. "You shouldn't have put so much faith in me," she said shaking her head, "Tonight never should've happened. It shouldn't have come to that. What if you had-"

"But I didn't," Matt cut her off, his tone gentle but serious as he to reassure her, "I'm fine. Thanks to you. You've saved all of us more times than I can count and probably more than I even know about. Besides Bonnie we're friends, we've always been friends. If I can't put my faith in you, who am I supposed to put it in?"

Bonnie studied him closely. "You can have a normal life if you want it Matt," she whispered, "I want that for you. Just think about what I said okay?"

Matt nodded. He let go of the sweatshirt and took a step away from Bonnie. "I'll think about it," he promised. It was the hope that he saw in hers eyes at the thought of at least one of them having a normal life that stopped Matt from telling her that when she had left him to go and wait outside he had seen Vicki, well that and the fact that no matter the reason he was able to see his sister, he didn't want to let her go.

Matt opened the door to the passenger's side of his truck and helped Bonnie inside. He closed the door behind her and then walked around to the driver's side and climbed inside. He pulled his keys out of his pocket, and spared a glance at Bonnie.

She was huddled up in the seat next to him, his sweatshirt wrapped tightly around her. She looked so small. No one could've guessed by looking at her how much power, inner strength, loyalty, and heroism she packed into such a small frame. The world may not know what she was capable of but Matt promised himself that he would never forget.

Starting up his truck, Matt pulled out of the school parking lot and headed in the direction of Bonnie's house.

The ride was silent but comfortably so. Each of them was grateful that they had all survived the night. Matt was right, his sweatshirt was warm, and so was his presence. Bonnie looked out the window at their town as he drove. After a night like tonight some would wonder why she bothered trying to protect the town if things like what had happened tonight kept happening anyway. But Bonnie was more determined to protect her town than ever. So whatever Klaus was planning once he created his army, she would be prepared for it, and even if she wasn't she would fight it.

As Matt pulled into Bonnie's driveway he realized as he looked at the dark empty home that Bonnie's father was out of town...again. In fact Matt couldn't remember the last time the man had been in town. He had known she would be alone of course but he felt guilty in that it was the first time in a very long time, probably since the arrival of the Salvatore brothers, that Matt had felt concern at the fact. If anything vampires in the town should have increased his concern not diminished it, even if Bonnie was a witch and was used to taking care of herself. Matt was used to taking care of himself but that didn't mean that he liked doing it all the time, or that he didn't want someone to show concern for his wellbeing every now and then. "You sure you'll be okay here by yourself?" Matt asked.

Bonnie didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the question. As nice as it was of him to show concern about her, it was a little late for it. Still she knew Matt meant well, he always meant well. "Its fine," she said, "I'm used to it." Matt frowned and Bonnie realized that she had said the wrong thing. "I'll be fine," she said firmly.

Matt reluctantly nodded. Bonnie moved to take his sweatshirt off and he shook his head. "Keep it," he said, "Even if I can't take comfort in the fact that you're not alone…at least I know you'll be warm."

Bonnie leaned across the space separating them and placed a kiss on Matt's cheek. "I'm glad you're okay," she whispered.

"Me too," he said. Matt got out of the car abruptly and Bonnie blinked after him. She watched as he walked around the truck until he reached the passenger's side. He opened the door and held out his hand to help her out of the car.

Bonnie took Matt's hand and trembled slightly as she felt a slight surge of power buzzing under the surface of Matt's skin. She shook her head as Matt let go of her hand, it had been a long night, and she was obviously imagining things. "Good night, Bon," Matt said.

"Good night, Matt," she replied. Matt watched her make her way up the walk and then the porch steps. She found her keys and unlocked the door before turning and waving at him. Once she had gotten in safely Matt got back in his truck and watched as the lights went on inside. He didn't leave until they went out again.

:::

Matt lay in his bed, his eyes were closed and he was unmoving. He didn't notice when the water started to leak in beneath his bedroom door, soaking his carpet. The water continued to rise and rise. Soaking through the pile of dirty clothes on his floor, and moving higher still until the water level reached higher than his neglected hand weights.

His door opened and the water rushed in faster and rose more quickly. Still Matt lay on his bed stiff as a board. Even as the water reached the bed where he laid, seeping into the sheets. The water grew higher and higher, covering Matt's sleeping form.

"Matt!" A frantic voice called out his name. He didn't move, "Matt, please!"

His room was submerged in water and still Matt lay on the bed. Even as his lights went out and the room grew dark, the only movement that remained were the moderate amount of belongings that floated around in the aquarium that his room had become.

"Matt!" He recognized the voice this time. Bonnie. Suddenly she was there, swimming toward him, seemingly shrouded in light. She swam until she was hovering over his still form. Her small hands framed his face and she used him as leverage to pull herself forward and cover his mouth with her own.

Matt's eyes flew open and suddenly his nose and his lungs were filling with water. The pain was unbearable. The roaring in his ears deafening. He wanted to move but he seemed fused to the spot he was in. The burn and the ache were so great that he wanted to scream. As he opened his mouth he found that Bonnie's tongue slipped inside, and as he shared her air, finally he could breathe.

Matt woke up with a start, covered in sweat and gasping for air. He couldn't get enough air, he was still drowning, he was sure of it. Echoes of voices that he didn't recognize filled his ears and he held his head praying for them to stop even as they grew louder. He grabbed his pillow and used it to cover his head as the voices began to scream, he couldn't separate them, couldn't identify them. There were so many.

"Matt!" A voice cut through the noise and suddenly everything grew quiet, eerily so. Matt opened his eyes and found Bonnie standing at the foot of his bed.

Matt tossed his pillow onto his bed and ran a tired hand over his face. He blinked at Bonnie who already seemed to be dressed and ready for school. School…just the place Matt didn't want to be after what had happened the night before. He coughed looking away from her as he remembered the contents of his dream. "What are you doing here?" he asked, "How'd you get in?"

She didn't seem put off by his slightly rude greeting. Hesitantly, she walked around the bed and sat down next to him. "Caroline told me where you kept the spare key hidden so I kind of let myself in," she said guiltily.

Matt raised a brow at her. She had the good sense to look sheepish. He looked down at himself and realized that he was shirtless. He stood abruptly and walked over to his dresser as Bonnie coughed and looked away. He dug through his drawers until he found a t-shirt and pulled it over his head. "You still haven't told me why you're here," he said turning back to face her, "Not that I mind seeing you. I'm just surprised and well it's kind of early and you haven't really stopped by since that time we had to do that history project together in sophomore year so…"

Bonnie turned back to face him glad that he was now descent, not that she minded the view, Matt was her friend but that didn't mean she was blind. She picked up his disregarded pillow and chucked it at his head, shaking away her odd thoughts. She and Jeremy may have been having problems but they were still together. Besides Matt had already been involved with both Elena and Caroline, there was no reason that he needed to hit the trifecta. "I came to check on you, you jerk," Bonnie said laughing as Matt ducked away from the flying pillow, "I've been through the almost dying thing before…a lot….and well it takes a while to get over."

Matt picked up his pillow. "This is how you plan on comforting me?" he asked, "Throwing projectiles at my head?"

"Soft projectiles," Bonnie corrected, "That are practically harmless." Matt gave her a look before shaking his head and tossing the pillow back onto his bed. Sighing he walked over and sat down next to her. "Seriously," Bonnie said her eyes searching his face as if she thought he might break at any second, "How are you?"

"I'm fine," Matt said turning away from her slightly. He was unable to hold her gaze under such intense scrutiny.

"Really?" Bonnie asked clearly skeptical, "Because from what I saw when I walked in you seemed to be having nightmares." Matt was silent. He didn't want to think about his dream or her role in it. "I'm sure it's just trauma and you'll be over in a few days but…I'm here if you need to talk." Matt nodded. Bonnie wasn't sure if he understood how serious she was. "What I'm trying to say …," she paused, taking a deep breath before she continued, "Is that you're not the only one who isn't okay, and if you wanted to be not okay together some time then…well that's okay."

Matt smiled at her. "If that meant what I think it meant," he said teasingly mocking her rambling, "Then thank you." Bonnie nodded punching him playfully in the shoulder. "But I'm fine," he said. Bonnie raised a brow at him. "I will be fine," he corrected. Bonnie stood and Matt caught her by the wrist to stop her. She jumped slightly and looked at him her brow furrowed in confusion. The expression cleared from her face a moment later and she attempted to smile at him. "If I need to talk or anything I promise I'll call," he told her.

Bonnie's smile became more genuine. "Good," she said, "I have to go meet Elena and Caroline so…." Matt gave her a look that said, "Go ahead," and then looked sheepish as he realized that he was still holding on to her wrist. Slowly he let go. "Um…," Bonnie said staring at her hand where he had held it, "I made you breakfast. I just wanted to make sure you ate…I didn't ever want to eat much after something like that happen so I thought….and I didn't want…"

Matt stood and leaned forward, placing a small kiss in the middle Bonnie's forehead. She blushed slightly, wringing her hands. He had gotten so used to taking care of himself he had forgotten what it was like for someone to make him breakfast or be concerned about his eating habits. "Thanks, Bon," he said.

Bonnie smiled again. "You're welcome," she said, "I know what it's like to live in a big house all by yourself, with no one to turn to when something happens that turns your life inside out. It's not fun." She thought about her father who was always out of town and her mother who she could no longer remember.

"No," Matt said thinking of his wreck of a mother and wondering where she was for the millionth time since she had left again, "It's not."

"Anyway," Bonnie said seeing from the look on his face that she had dredged up old crap which was the last thing that she wanted to do, "I'd better go. See you at school."

"See you later," Matt nodded. Matt watched as she left and shut the door behind her. He wasn't surprised when as soon as the door clicked shut, he felt like he was drowning again.

:::

Bonnie was avoiding Jeremy. If he'd asked her then she probably would have said differently but he was completely sure of it. And yeah he wasn't there for the whole drama that happened on senior prank night but he was pretty sure getting kidnapped by Damon and Katherine was completely out of his control. And yes, he had some unresolved feelings for both Anna and Vicki, mostly Anna, but that didn't mean that he didn't still want to be with Bonnie or that he didn't care about her. And okay, maybe the whole him seeing Anna and Vicki thing was kind of a shock but they would never get anywhere if she refused to talk about it. But as he stopped by her locker and attempted to talk to her, she didn't seem to understand that.

"Put yourself in my shoes…," she was saying but stopped mid-sentence as she looked over at something over Jeremy's shoulder and smiled.

Jeremy turned to see what she was looking at and frowned slightly when he saw Matt smiling back at Bonnie as he walked past. It wasn't that he didn't like Matt, in fact they were becoming pretty good friends recently, but he was acting as if Jeremy wasn't there.

Matt stopped on the other side of Bonnie, leaning against her locker, and didn't acknowledge Jeremy in any way other than giving a nod and a, "Hey Jeremy," before turning his attention back to Bonnie. Jeremy wasn't sure why this bothered him but it did.

"Thank you again for breakfast," Matt said looking down at Bonnie, "I was a little skeptical at first but you actually make a mean French toast. I may just have to have another near death experience so that you can cook for me again."

"That won't be necessary," Bonnie said uncomfortably, "Seriously." It was way too soon to make jokes about what had happened. She had been too close to death herself and had lost too many people for jokes about near death experiences to ever not be too soon. "I'll cook for you whenever you want," she promised before she realized how the comment might have sounded. She glanced at Jeremy and wasn't surprised to see he was scowling.

"Considering what I did to my kitchen the last time I attempted French toast," Matt said not noticing Jeremy's expression, "I think I'll hold you to that."

Bonnie laughed happy to see that Matt was doing slightly better from what she had seen that morning. She had been worried about him. When she had walked in on him waking from whatever dream he had been having he had looked as if he was about to have a nervous breakdown, that coupled with the faint tingle that she had felt when she had touched him, that if Bonnie didn't know any better she would've said felt like magic, had Bonnie on edge when it came to Matt.

Matt took a swig from the water bottle he had been drinking but it was larger than he thought and it clogged his throat in a way that reminded him of drowning. He choked spitting the water out onto the hall floor. The voices from that morning returned full force. The bottle of water fell from his hand and he clutched his head, he felt Bonnie's arms wrap around him. He focused on her, closed his eyes, and the voices stopped.

"Matt," her heard Bonnie's frantic voice say as his head cleared, "Are you okay? Matt?"

Matt stood upright. He nodded as Bonnie smoothed her hands down his arms. "Fine," he muttered, "I just need some air."

Bonnie looked down at the water that had spilled on the on the ground and then back at Matt. It had obviously triggered the incident from the night before. Things were affecting Matt more than he was letting on but there was not much that she could do if he wasn't willing to talk about it. Nodding in resignation she slowly let him go. Her hand lingered in his however as she met his eyes. "Okay," she whispered, "But if you need anything…"

"I know," Matt said offering her a weak smile, "I know." He gave Bonnie's hand a squeeze, taking his time letting of it. He kept skin to skin contact as long as he could as he backed away from her. She seemed to be reaching out to him as well. Knowing even if he wasn't telling her, that he was her only means of stability at the moment. Their fingers brushed against each other one last time before Matt turned and disappeared through the crowded hall.

Bonnie watched him go, the concern evident in her eyes. She stiffened as she felt Jeremy's hands on her shoulders. "What was that about?" Jeremy asked.

"Nothing," Bonnie said closing her locker, "Nothing at all." She stepped away from him and his hands fell to his sides. As she walked away without so much as a backward glance or a wave goodbye Jeremy knew that she was lying to him and he didn't like it, he didn't like it at all.

:::

Matt sat in his truck glaring at his steering wheel. He needed to get the hell over this. First that freaky ass dream from that morning and now he couldn't even take a fucking drink of water without coughing up a lung. Then there were the voices. "What the hell is wrong with me?" He shouted at no one in particular.

"You should probably ask mom about that," a voice said from his passenger's seat.

Matt jumped hitting his head on the roof of the truck before turning to glare at his sister. "Vicki," he said, "Don't scare me like that." He rubbed the sore spot on his head

"Sorry," she said smiling slightly, "I couldn't exactly knock." She studied Matt smiling. She wished that she didn't have to do what she was about to do. But she wanted, no needed her life back. She couldn't take the loneliness and solitude that was the in-between. It was slowly driving her insane.

There were some things that Vicki liked about death, namely the knowledge that it gave her. She knew things that she hadn't known about in life, about the people she knew, about everything. When she had found out what had been in her family's blood she had been shocked. When she had died the first time, had she been brought back by more natural means instead of being turned into a vampire, she would've experienced what Matt was experiencing. The Lockwood curse was triggered by killing someone but the Donovan power was triggered by their own death; it awakened what lay dormant inside of them, opening their connection to the in-between. She would've rather been connected to the dead in the way that Matt was now instead in her own death. But she couldn't change the past; she could only ensure that she could have a future.

She wished that she could rely on Matt completely for help, but his powers were still awakening and the witch on the other side had told her that while he could open the door to bring Vicki back to the physical world he wasn't powerful enough yet to finish the job. No, to fully come back Vicki would have to do what the witch asked so that she would help her from the other side.

"I missed you," Matt said, "I didn't think you'd be back. I thought I imagined seeing you." Vicki wondered what Matt would think if he knew that things would only get worse in the whole seeing dead people department.

"Not your imagination," Vicki said, "I'm really here." She looked Matt in the eyes intently. "Matty," she said coyly, "What if there was a way that I could come back. Not just like this but…for real…if I could be alive again?"

Matt's eyes widened as he considered this. That was impossible though, wasn't it? Bonnie couldn't do that type of magic anymore and even if she could Matt would never ask that of her. He opened his mouth to tell Vicki as much when he heard a knock on the driver's side window. He turned and saw Tyler on the other side. He sighed. When he turned back he wasn't surprised to find that Vicki was gone.

:::

Kelly Donovan flipped the sign hanging from the window of her shop from closed to open, unlocking the door. She walked over to the shelf full of astrology books and books that claimed to tell the secrets of the stars and began to stock it with the new shipment that she had just gotten in.

Kelly had been in Chicago for a year. It suited her. It had enough of a night life to sate her wild urges and was close enough to Mystic Falls that she didn't feel as if she had completely abandon her son.

She had opened her shop six months ago, right after celebrating three months of being sober. The Seeing Eye, she called it. She told fortunes, mostly foreseeing deaths, and sold books and trinkets that those who believed in her gift ate up as much as they ate up her visions.

The irony hadn't escaped her that she was doing now, the exact things that her mother had been ridiculed for while she had lived in Mystic Falls growing up.

When her mother had told her of how she had died on the table giving birth to her, only to be resuscitated, she had told Kelly that after she had started hearing voices in her head she had gone to Sheila Bennett who had been rumored to be a witch for assistance. Her mother hadn't believed the rumors about Sheila but as she was hearing voices she didn't know where else to go without having to be committed. Sheila after hearing her mother's story had offered her a drink and given her a book on Necromancy. By the time Kelly had turned one, her mother had perfected her power.

Kelly had always refused to believe her mother and had been embarrassed by what her mother had claimed to do and by a town who persecuted her for it. It wasn't until Kelly had left town with Pete that she realized he truth of what her mother had told her.

Their car had crashed, and wrapped itself around a tree. Kelly's heart had stopped beating on the way to the hospital. She had been saved and upon waking from her surgery, the voices had started. She had written to Sheila Bennett a week later.

Sheila had written back speaking of ancient Shaman and Necromancers throughout the Donavan line, and about powers triggered by trauma and death. Kelly hadn't taken the news well, it was when the drinking had started.

When she had returned to Mystic Falls the dead had followed her. She couldn't escape the voices of the dead calling out to her in her head. She couldn't stop her powers from slipping, accidently taking a soul here and resurrecting someone there. She hadn't learned about her powers or how to control them before her return. She had chosen to ignore them but her problems had followed her and so she drank and she acted like an idiot and her son had told her that he never wanted to see her again.

After she had left she had decided the only way that she could ever live a life worth living would be if she learned to accept who she was and her powers were a part of that. And so she had joined Alcoholics Anonymous and had gone to the library to research Necromancy. The rest was history.

"Hello mother," a voice said from behind her.

Kelly jumped, the book she had been holding having fallen to the floor. She turned to see her daughter standing behind her. "Jesus Vicki," she sighed, "I asked you not to do that."

Vicki smirked. Her mother was the only one that could see her outside of Jeremy and Matt. Jeremy blocked her out most of the time and her mother wasn't close to her in life or death so she hadn't been lying to Matt when she had said that she was lonely, considering who could see her, outside of Matt, she may as well have had no one. "And here I thought that you would be happy to see me?" Vicki pouted her tone dripping of sarcasm.

"I'm always happy to see you," Kelly said returning to her task, "Even when you're up to something."

"What makes you think I'm up to something?" Vicki asked. That was the one thing that Vicki hated about people that practiced death magic, they were just as suspicious of the dead as they were the living because they knew exactly what the dead were capable of.

"You never were a good liar," Kelly said. She placed the last book on the shelf and then turned and faced her daughter. "Let me guess," she said, "Another scheme to bring you back from the dead."

Vicki growled and the lights of the shop flickered, the books that Kelly had just shelved falling to the floor. Kelly stared at her daughter unimpressed. "I wouldn't have to scheme," she hissed, "If you would just help me."

"You don't think I wouldn't bring you back if I could?" Kelly asked. She had explained this to Vicki already. "You were a vampire when you died," she said, "You were unnatural. Who knows what you would come back as if I resurrected you but it wouldn't be you…not really. I've told you magic-"

"Has consequences," Vicki finished rolling her eyes, "I know." They had had this discussion before, it was one of the reasons Vicki was using Matt as a last resort now. "Whatever," Vicki spat, "I'm going to go see Matty."

"Why?" Kelly asked, "He can't see you. You're only making things more painful for yourself Vicki, clinging to a life that you no longer have. I know you don't want to accept this but it's time for you to move on."

"You'd love that wouldn't you," Vicki said accusingly, "Then you'd finally be rid of me."

It was times like these that Vicky reminded Kelly of herself. The only thing that had surprised her about Vicki's death was the fact that her daughter had died before she had. Kelly blamed herself of course but that didn't change the fact that she couldn't resurrect her daughter or convince her to crossover. Kelly was such a fuck up while her daughter was alive, her daughter still refused her advice in death, even if crossing over was the best thing for her. "You know that I would rather have you here," Kelly said calmly, "But crossing over is what is best for you. I love you and seeing you here and so helpless and alone…holding onto a life that you will never get back…. It breaks my heart Vicki."

"For your information," Vicki shot back, "I will be able to get my life back. Matt can see me." Vicki grinned at her mother's expression as the words sunk in.

"What do you mean Matt can see you?" Kelly asked. She couldn't believe it. Matt shouldn't have been able to see her unless…. "You don't mean…"

Vicki nodded. "Matt died last night trying to communicate with a dead witch so that he could save his best friend's life," Vicki said, "Too bad you weren't there...I mean you can talk to the dead right? You could've saved him the trouble."

"Is this funny to you?!" Kelly shouted, "Your brother just lost any chance he ever had at living a normal life."

"Oh please," Vicki laughed, "Like anyone can live a normal life in Mystic Falls. At least he actually gets to live any life at all. Besides if you cared so much about him not inheriting your freaky powers you would be there and not here right now." Kelly was silent as she digested her daughter's words. Vicki was telling the truth. "He won't be the only one living their life much longer," Vicki continued, "He's going to bring me back and it's going to be the way it was before. We didn't need you then and we don't need you now."

Kelly watched as Vicki disappeared. She took a deep breath once she got over her shock. She couldn't let Matt bring her back. He couldn't be strong enough yet for a spell of that caliber, not only that but there was no telling what Vicki would come back as. Kelly walked over to the shop door and took out her keys to lock it so that no one would come inside. She flipped the sign from open to closed. She headed toward the back of the shop where the staircase that lead up to her apartment was, she would need to pack. She was going back to Mystic Falls.

:::

Bonnie cornered Caroline on her way to the cafeteria right before lunch. Caroline started going on about Tyler acting like an asshole and then began to mention a bonfire but Bonnie shook her head. "Caroline stop," she said seriously, "I need to talk to you."

"About what?" Caroline asked immediately on alert, "What happened? Is it Elena? Is it Tyler?"

Bonnie rolled her eyes not bothering to mention that Caroline had just gotten done calling the new hybrid an asshole. "No its Matt," Bonnie said, "He almost died last night. If I hadn't gotten there in time…I'm just worried about him."

"Why?" Caroline inquired, "I mean outside of the obvious."

Bonnie told her about the nightmare that she had witnessed Matt having that morning. Caroline raised a brow at the fact that Bonnie had not only felt the urge to wake up early just to pay Matt a visit but also to make him breakfast but she didn't comment. Bonnie told her about the incident with Matt in the hall way that morning as well. "He was holding his head almost like he was in pain," she said, "Then just like that he was standing upright and he disappeared."

"It's probably just the trauma over what happened," Caroline said, "He'll probably be fine in a couple of days."

Bonnie shook her head. "But I've been feeling this weird tingle when I touch him," Bonnie said, slightly embarrassed about how she much have sounded, "Almost like-"

"Almost like you're worried about him and really stressed on top of that so your powers are going all wonky when you see him because you're just looking for something to go wrong?"

Bonnie frowned not liking the tone Caroline was using with her. It was almost as if she were talking to a child. "That makes sense I guess," Bonnie said even though she was still skeptical.

"Now about the bonfire," Caroline chirped already back to her cheerful self. Bonnie nodded and pretended to listen as Caroline made plans. On the inside she was attempting to figure out what could be going on with Matt because she just knew something was going on.

Caroline stopped talking long enough to glare at Klaus' sister Rebekah as she strutted by them. Bonnie sighed. It looked as if she would have to figure out what was going on with Matt by herself.

:::

Matt sat next to Vicki in the stoner pit and frowned. She wasn't making any sense. "You want me to perform a spell," he reiterated the request that she had made to him. Vicki nodded. "Last time I checked, Bonnie was the only one in our little group who has magical powers and even she isn't as strong as she used to be."

Vicki felt sorry for him. Once he discovered what he was becoming he would be completely blindsided. She would've told him herself but she doubted that he would believe her and even if he did she was afraid that if he discovered the truth that he would not only reject his powers but in doing so he would refuse to help her as well. She couldn't take the chance. He was her only hope, Bonnie may have been a witch but she wouldn't help Vicki and even if she would Bennetts weren't known for death magic, the Donovans however….

"It's just your blood I need," she lied, "The witch on the other side will take care of all of the magic. All you have to do is read a few words and shed a few drops of blood and you'll have me back. Then neither one of us has to be alone anymore."

"I don't know about this," Matt said shaking his head. Nothing was ever as simple as it sounded, especially when it came to magic. Besides, it was him so something was bound to go wrong.

"Please, Matty," Vicki begged. She pled with her eyes and she knew the exact moment that he gave in. "Everything is going to work out fine," she said, "Trust me." And reluctantly, Matt did.

:::

The bathtub that Matt lay in was full of water, and still the water kept running. The water flowed over the edge of the tub and onto the white tiled floor, Matt's body lay still at the bottom of the tub, fully clothed, and unmoving. His skin was sallow, his lips blue, his blue eyes open. His corpse crammed into the bottom of his tub, and still the water ran.

Small feet walked across the floor, bare, long legs, brown skin, white dress, dark hair, green eyes. Bonnie. She must have come to say goodbye. But it was too late, Matt was already dead.

Still Bonnie walked across the white tiled floor, the water running out of the tub reaching her ankles. She turned off the water. Climbed into the tub, legs on either side of Matt's body as she straddled him, and still Matt lay stiff and unmoving at the bottom.

"Matt," her voice said, "Matt! Wake up!" But her lips were unmoving. She was somehow speaking without opening her mouth as she placed her hands at the bottom of the tub on either side of his head.

She leaned forward, her dark curls reaching the water first as she bent down and dipped her face into the water. Her mouth covered his and the moment their lips met, Matt's heart began to beat. The water made the echo of his own heart beat that much louder as it rang through his ears.

Matt closed his eyes, the water filled his lungs, and the familiar burning came. His instincts were screaming at him to push Bonnie off, to sit up out of the water, to seek air. Instead Matt's hands moved to grip Bonnie's thighs, his pounding heart still thumping in his ears. As Bonnie's hands cupped his face, Matt opened his mouth to her invading tongue, and then suddenly she was his air.

Matt's blue eyes snapped open and the first thing he saw was Bonnie's concerned face hovering over his. The voices were back and Matt had to shut his eyes, as he tried to block them out. Bonnie frowned her hands cupping the sides of his face. "Matt," she said, "What is it? What happened? What's wrong?"

Matt kept his eyes closed focusing on Bonnie's voice until the other voices stopped. Sighing and feeling on the verge of a breakdown, Matt opened his eyes. He looked around and realized they weren't in his bathroom but an empty class room. Memories came back to him slowly. Vicki begging, performing the spell, finding out what Vicki had planned, and being knocked unconscious.

"Matt?" Bonnie asked the worry getting worse by the minute, "What happened? Talk to me."

"Alright," Matt said, "I'll tell you. Just let me up." Bonnie let go of his face quickly, giving him an apologetic smile. She helped him sit up, frowning as he ran a tired hand over his face. He pushed the dream to the back of his mind and then he began to tell her about the spell, not leaving out any of the details.

Matt told her about Vicki and the spell. Bonnie listened intently as Matt told her the details of the spell, and showed her what he had done and how. She frowned, something wasn't adding up. "That spell," Bonnie whispered, "Something isn't right. It doesn't make sense."

Bonnie looked completely out of her element. Now Matt was worried. "Bonnie," he said carefully, "What is it?" Between the voices, the odd dreams, and seeing Vicki since he had almost died, Matt was starting to think that death would have been preferable to the drama.

Bonnie swallowed before she spoke, not knowing how to put it into words without freaking him out. "It's just," she sighed, "That spell. It's complicated and it's death magic…." Bonnie looked at him frowning her concern increasing tenfold. "Even with the help from the witch on the other side," Bonnie said, "The only way your blood would have worked is if you had powers of your own."

"But Vicki said she needed my blood because I was her brother," Matt said shaking his head, "She said it had to be the blood of a relative."

Bonnie shook her head. "That isn't how the spell works," Bonnie said, "She misled you. Probably because you wouldn't have believed you could do it if she told you the truth. But Matt…this still doesn't make any sense, unless there's something else you're not telling me." Matt sighed looking away from Bonnie. "I know you've had some trauma from the accident but was there anything else," Bonnie pressed thinking about the power she kept feeling emanating for him, "Anything strange?"

"We don't have time for this," Matt said desperate to change the subject, "Vicki is going after Elena. I don't need to know what the spell needed to work all I need to know is if we can reverse it." If he told her about the voices then she would probably think that he was crazy and if he told her about the dreams…

Bonnie took Matt's hand ignoring the tingling sensation as she did so. Matt had died and been brought back only yesterday and now he would have to say goodbye to his sister all over again. Then there was the matter of the spell, and the likelihood that Matt had somehow developed some sort of powers. He was going to have so much to deal with. "Are you sure you can get through saying goodbye to Vicki all over again?" Bonnie asked carefully.

Matt shrugged. "It's not as if I have a real choice," he said, "I can't just let her kill Elena. And if the witch wants her to kill someone and she would agree, what else could she ask of her and get her to do? Vicki will do whatever it takes to have her life back. I can't risk anyone else getting hurt."

"I know you still have feelings for Elena," Bonnie sighed, "I wish you weren't in this position. That you didn't have to choose."

Matt shook his head. Elena wasn't the issue here, though he cared about her. Caroline wasn't the issue here, even though there was still a raw pain that her absence left, though Matt thought that had more to do with his own loneliness than Caroline. Matt hated to admit what he was thinking in that moment, but in truth, he was worried that once Elena was gone that the witch would want to use Bonnie in some way to get rid of Klaus, or worse that Bonnie could be next. "This isn't about Elena," Matt sighed, "I wouldn't want anything to happen to any of you. If it was in between you and Vicki, then I would be making the same choice."

Bonnie fought the urge to cry, she had always known how good Matt was but that never stopped him for continuously showing it. "Alright," she said, "Then we'll do the spell and I'll help you through the aftermath."

Bonnie squeezed his hand, in a gesture of reassurance but it didn't seem like enough. She made a silent vow that whatever Matt was going through, she would be there to help him through it.

:::

Jeremy Gilbert wondered if Bonnie was listening to him. He had planned on stopping her, confronting her, and making her deal with the situation. It was weird and uncomfortable but he needed her to at the very least, talk to him about it. He had wanted to let Anna go a long time ago, for a while it had seemed like he had, but now that didn't seem to be the case. But just because he couldn't let Anna go didn't mean that he wanted to let Bonnie go either.

But Bonnie was in no mood to talk about Anna, not when Elena's life was in danger, and she had more reason to worry about Matt than ever before. She was almost certain now that something had happened when she had saved his life, the question of course was what. She couldn't think of anything that would make sense given the situation.

Still she wanted to tackle one thing at time. She would take care of Matt now and then deal with Jeremy and his ghostly ex-girlfriends later. When she told Jeremy as much, she couldn't help but notice the frown that marred his features at the mention of Matt's name. She didn't know what the look meant but she decided not to dwell on it too much.

She didn't have time to think about Jeremy giving her odd looks after all. She had a ghost to get rid of, one friend to save, and another friend to console.

:::

Matt watched Bonnie with open interest as she knelt before him, head bent, eyes closed, hands clasped tightly together. He knew that she was worried about him, knew that he should be worried about himself, but he couldn't take his eyes off of her. He could feel her power as it rose and something inside of him was reaching out, wanting to grasp it, to hold onto it, and to her.

Then Vicki appeared behind them, begging and Matt had to close his eyes. Matt closed his ears to her pleading as well. But then the voices returned and he knew that he was going insane. He closed his eyes tighter, and bit his lip in an effort not to scream, hot tears running silently down his cheeks and he tried to drown it out. But then he heard the sound of a gate opening, wrought iron sliding against itself as some invisible prison unlocked and swept his sister inside.

Bonnie couldn't hear the gate, nor could she hear the voices; but as she opened her eyes once the spell was finished she could clearly see Matt's torment. "Matt," she whispered carefully, "Its over." She watched as his eyes shot open, endless blue and boring into hers. "It's over," she repeated more firmly this time. She saw his body tremble and without thought she shot forward, still kneeling and wrapping her arms around his neck.

Matt clung to her, his arms wrapping around her tightly. Too tightly, making it hard for her to breathe. But he could not breathe, he wasn't sure that he would ever breathe again. He buried his face into her neck and finally the voices stopped. She shifted and he was afraid, afraid that she would leave him, afraid that she would disappear just as quickly as Vicki had into the ether. "Don't let go," he said not hearing his own words, "I'll drown. You can't…"

"Shhh," Bonnie said softly, wanting to cry herself. She knew there was something wrong, something that he wasn't telling her, and something that was off with him that perhaps neither of them knew. But there would be enough time to ask questions later. She would first have to make sure that he didn't fall apart. She ignored her own discomfort and wrapped her arms around him tighter, one hand stroking his back and rubbing in soothing circles while the other moved upward and her fingers combed through the hair on the nape of his neck.

"I'm so cold Bon," Matt whispered, "I can't breathe." He understood now, as his pulse settled and his breathing returned to normal. He didn't want to have to ask her to save him, but with whatever this was, whatever was happening to him, he would have no choice. "You're my air, Bon," he said, "You can't let go."