'No. No. No. No...' Bonnie smacked dresses aside carelessly, searching for a good one. A dress that screamed 'No Big Bad Vampire Family, I Will Not Be Dying Today'. Honestly, she was almost about to give up when her fingers brushed against it. It was cotton. And old. Bonnie could tell that much from a simple touch. The dress had been through things. Power had coursed through its threads once. She inspected the garment and realized it had been her grandmother's favorite dress. She'd given it to her only a few weeks before her death. Bonnie pushed down the swell of emotions that flared up at the thought of her Grams and picked up the dress reverently.

It was brown. Simple, yet elegant with its long, tapered sleeves and cloth corset. Bonnie quickly divested herself of clothing, ripping off her tee shirt and flinging it onto the bed impatiently. The corset was easy to lace, surprisingly enough. Form-fitting sleeves covered her thin wrists, but didn't restrict any movement, which was perfect for a battle. The short corset gave way to a long skirt that covered the brown-skinned girl's ankles. She turned in a circle, and as the fabric brushed against her legs, the young witch felt almost...humble. As insane as it sounded, she could feel her grandmother in the dress. And her grandmother before her. Yes, this dress was definitely old. And unexpectedly cute. Bonnie felt like, well...a witch.

The dress itself exuded an aura of power. Tugging off her flats, Bonnie searched for a pair of tan slingbacks. Digging through the mountain of crap at the bottom of her closet, she found the shoes. They were a bit dusty, but she didn't mind. She wsa just about to tug them onto her feet when the doorbell chimed softly. Bonnie's father wasn't home. She'd sent him packing with a small spell once the vampires in Mystic Falls began to multiply like rabbits. She ran down the stairs.

God, she hoped it wasn't Elena. Their friendship had suffered, and she honestly wasn't ready to deal with either of the Gilberts. Bonnie pulled open the door and sighed. No one was there. It should have scared her, but in a town chock-full of vampires, witches, and doppelgangers, she'd learned to always expect the unexpected.

A small, brown box lay on the porch. A cream card was tied to its front, with fancy cursive spelling out her first name.

"Goddamn vampires" onnie grumbled under her breath, picking up the package none too delicately and slamming the door. She threw the card onto the floor and began opening the box. "Can't wait five seconds for me to answer a goddamned door. Nooo they're just too busy to actually tal-"

She stopped mid-sentence at the trinket that lay inside.

It was a necklace. A shining emerald lay in a silver setting attached a silver chain.

Bonnie bent to pick up the card that she'd dropped onto the floor so carelessly.

Bonnie Bennett

Here's a little something for you. Looking forward to our little 'chat' tonight. I wonder if you've told your squabbling little friends yet. Probably not. We both know you're the quintessential martyr, don't we love?

-Kol

P.S. Nice dress.

Bonnie released an unintelligible sound of rage as she threw the letter back onto the floor. Without a second thought, she called up her magic and burned it to pieces. The nerve of him! He'd been watching her. She ran back up the stairs quickly and strode over to the only window in her room to cover it. Grabbing her phone from the bed, she texted Damon.

Did you do it yet? What happened?

Only seconds later, a ping alerted her to his response.

Bonnie, he's stubborn and I'm me. What do you think happened?

Growling, she immediately called him. He answered on the first ring.

"Are you serious?!" she started in on him before he could even speak. "Damon, you had ONE JOB!"

His lazy voice replied sounding annoyed. "Do you know who Matt Smith is?! Jesus, this is the same guy who tried to punch me in the face after he knew I was a vampire!"

"Matt tried to punch you in the face?" she asked, curious, then retracted the question. "Nevermind! The point is that he can't be there. I'm serious, Damon. If he gets hurt, it's on your head."

"It's Matt Smith" the irritating vampire started. "I can show you a clear diagram of just how many fucks I give about Mystic Falls' golden boy. I have enough on my hands with Elena."

Before Bonnie could lay into him again, he hung up. She rubbed her forehead into the palm of her hand. So not only would she have the fight of her life tonight, but she'd simultaneously have to protect Matt from being dinner. Great.

Bonnie felt underdressed. Not that she was here to put on a show, but did everyone have to look so...perfect? She spotted Caroline, radiant in a dark green gown and being chased around by Klaus. She had no idea what that was about, but Care could take care of herself. Next she saw Rebekah, who stood against a wall near the grand staircase, eyes fixed on someone in the crowd. Bonnie followed her gaze.

Of course it would be him. Pushing hair behind her ears, Bonnie set off, pushing past a few people when she had to. Finally, she made it to Matt. He wore the same suit he'd put on for the prom, and inwardly, Bonnie smiled. Matt was so human, so very sweet sometimes. She tugged his hand, leading him onto the dance floor. Without waiting for him, she placed her arms around his neck, putting on a fake smile.

"Why are you here?" she growled in a voice that contradicted her sweet face and quite frankly scared Matt.

"Rebekah invited me." he responded earnestly. "And I would've been really rude to say no."

"You would've been alive too." she reprimanded him and he ducked his head a bit. "Matt. Please. Just leave, okay? Things might go really bad tonight. In fact, I'm ninety percent that tonight will be horri-"

She was cut off in the middle of her frantic sentence by a smooth voice.

"Mind if I cut in?" Kol stood beside Matt with a charming smile. He wore a crisp three-piece suit with a formal, black bowtie. Of course, he looked just as perfect as everyone else here.

"Fuck" Bonnie let a hiss slip.

Kol raised his eyebrows as if amused. Matt frowned.

"Bonnie?" he asked in question. She waved him off.

"Just go, Matt. I'm serious." she sent him a stern look.

After giving Kol a threatening look, which the man returned with a laugh, Matt stepped away. Immediately, Kol took the blond boy's place, positioning himself far too close for Bonnie's liking. There was little to no space between them as Kol wrapped an arm around her waist. She attempted to force them apart, but he used his superior strength to keep them close, and dipped down to her ear to whisper.

"You know you're quite the Mother Bear. I was only going to rough him up a bit"

Bonnie resisted the urge to bite his shoulder or stomp on his foot as hard as she could in her heels. "If you touch Matt-"

"Oh love, you're really not in any position to make threats. I'll do what I want with Matt. But first, I believe we have some business of our own to attend to." he began to sway them back and forth to the music, but Bonnie barely noticed. She waited with baited breath for his next words. They didn't come for quite a while.

But then he began to play with strands of hair, thinking out loud. "I meant what I said. The dress is nice. Quite fetching on you."

Despite herself, Bonnie snorted. "Please. It looks like we're in the middle of an Armani fall fashion show in here."

Kol grinned down at her with boyish cheekiness. "They're pathetic compared to you, Bonnie Bennett. But back to the point. We're going to have a test of wills, you and I, and it'll be quite the match. But not here. It would upset Mother. And I don't want to kill you just yet."

Bonnie thought about coughing the words 'Mama's boy' under her breath but decided against it.

"Until then, thank you for the dance Miss Bennett." he stopped them, then distanced himself with an irritating smirk. She snatched her hand away when he attempted to kiss it and he laughed. After the infuriating man had walked away, Bonnie set off in search of Matt yet again.

He was on the terrace having a conversation...with Rebekah. And things didn't look like they were going well.