Chapter 27: novis initiis

"Are you sure we're headed in the direction? This place looks creepy as hell and I'm picking up all sorts of bad vibes."

Damon grinned "Then we're going in the right direction."

Bonnie rolled her eyes as the boat came to a stop. Stefan who had remained quiet during most of the boat ride to the island got out first and held out his hand to Bonnie as an attempt to help her out. "Thank you," Bonnie mumbled before taking it and exiting the boat.

"So, how do you guys want to do this?"

Damon eyed his surroundings and decided it was probably best to split up while taking this little scavenger hunt around Gillian's island. He figured that way they'll cover more ground that way.

Caroline merely gaped at him "Are you crazy? You can't expect us to travel this island alone especially since we don't know what the hell is out there."

Bonnie agreed wholeheartedly "Caroline's right. If anything went left at least I have my magic which means I can still protect us from whatever that's out there."

"It's not your job to protect us. We're here for you." Stefan chimed in "But you're right. We should all stick together until we know what we're dealing with."

"We're dealing with unfamiliar territory looking for a cure that may take days to find. If we separate we can cover ground and have a better chance at finding it."

Bonnie had to admit his logic was sound but she can tell Damon was playing at something else.

"Stef, you and vampire barbie can take the west wing and Bonnie and I can take the right."

And there it is. Bonnie thought.

"Why does Bonnie have to come with you?" Caroline asked not liking the idea of Bonnie being alone with Damon even though she told them to remain close to Bonnie despite her protests.

"With the sire bond still in effect, no one knows how Stefan and Bonnie will react when the other is in a dangerous situation. Their judgment will be clouded and we need everyone on their A-game."

"Isolating us serves no one but yourself, Damon but that's the point, right? You're just trying to find any opportunity to get Bonnie alone and I'm telling you right now that's not going to happen."

Bonnie flinched feeling Stefan's anger rise. Her small hands balled into a fist "Guys! This isn't helping." she looked at Damon "We're not splitting up. We need to all stay together just in case shit hits the fan as I said before. We also don't need you two arguing the entire time either because in case you forgot that tends to cloud your judgment as well. So right here and right now I need your word on this that we'll all remain on the same page until the cure is in our hands."

Caroline looked in between the Salvatores when neither of them was quick to agree "Well, are you guys in or not?"

Stefan nodded "I'm in."

Damon grumbled something but the consensus was that everyone agreed.

Two hours into their hike to the caves they've managed to find nothing. Not a sign of human or wildlife which sent bells off in Stefan's mind.

He turned to Bonnie who appeared to be lost in thought "Are you picking up something?"

"No, but I know you're worried and it's causing me to worry, so stop it."

Stefan laughed "I'm sorry. It's just we haven't seen a single sign of wildlife and we've been walking for almost two hours."

Damon snorted "Maybe Bambi tipped off the rest of his furry pals of your presence and decided to haul ass to the nearest exit."

Caroline rolled her eyes "Am I the only one here remembering we're vampires and we can use our speed to move things along quicker."

Bonnie shook her head "No, I thought of that but we still don't know what's out there. Using our speed would mean we'll just be rushing into something blindly. Just because we haven't seen anyone doesn't mean something or someone's not out there and my magic is never wrong, something is out there. I can feel it."

"Well, we still need to take a break. I'm hungry and a little tired."

Damon examined the area deciding that there was no better place to set up camp than the spot they're in "So, about those sleeping arrangements. Bonnie and I will share a tent and Stefan and Vampire Barbie can share the other."

Bonnie glared at Damon who merely shrugged "What? We shared everything else. What harm will it do if we share a sleeping bag."

Caroline intervened before Stefan could "Bonnie and I will share a tent and you two can stand guard. You know, watch for anything suspicious."

Damon rolled his eyes "Fine," he turned his attention to Bonnie. She seemed to be looking around at their surroundings "Are you hungry?"

Bonnie bit down on her bottom lip tempted to lie but she knew she needed to be at her best to get what they came here for "Yea, I am."

"So how do you want me, little witch? On my back or on my knees" he whispered heatedly

Bonnie shook her head "I—Caroline, do you mind?"

Caroline nodded "Of course, I packed a few blood bags just for this."

Bonnie smiled and followed her best friend to a more private area away from the boys. "Thank you for doing this."

Caroline swatted away the bushes that were obscuring their view "I was hoping you would ask me again."

Bonnie raised a brow.

"Not in that way. I meant I knew with Damon and Stefan both being here with us you didn't want to make a difficult situation—"

"A nightmare?"

Caroline gave her friend an apologetic smile.

Bonnie rubbed her small hands together "This whole situation is freaking me out because before all of this happened Stefan and I wasn't all that close at least not in the way we used to be. We became casual acquaintances and then Damon and I, well we hated each other."

"Hate is a strong word. I think you two stopped hating each other and became mutually indifferent to one another."

Bonnie wanted to argue with that observation but found that she couldn't. They weren't friends but somewhere along the lines, they started to rely on each other in the weirdest ways. Somewhere in between the threats and murder attempts she started to count on Damon and vice verse.

What about her and Stefan?

Stefan and Bonnie bonded literally because she saved his life and in return, it cost her hers. But sire bonds can't be created out of nothing. She reminded herself. After Elena chose Damon over Stefan, Bonnie's heart went out to him. Stefan fell in love with a woman that was destined to break his heart because her heart belonged to someone else. Bonnie could sympathize with going through something similar with Jeremy. She doubted she was placing any unresolved feeling she had for Jeremy onto Stefan, especially since her feelings for Stefan felt different. They felt like her own.

Bonnie ran her hand through her long hair "Why does everything have to be so complicated?"

Why did any of this matter? She had already come to terms with the fact that they would only have Elena's best interest at heart while she was merely an obligation until they found the cure.

Caroline shrugged plainly "Sometimes it takes dying and turning into a vampire for the man you love to see it."

Bonnie smacked Caroline in the arm "Hush, let's just get this over with vampire Barbie."

"And now she's acting like Damon?" Caroline teased "Maybe I was wrong about which Salvatore that truly has your petite heart."

Bonnie's only response to that was the extension of her fangs "I'm going to kill you."

Caroline laughed before holding out her wrist.

Damon tossed the blood bag to the side while eying his baby brother "Y'know Bon Bon is right."

Stefan remained quiet but that didn't bother Damon in the least.

"We need our strength to face whatever the hell is out there and we can't do that with you on a bunny diet and since there are no bunnies in sight…"

Stefan turned his head slightly "You want me to feed on humans?"

Damon shook his head "No, not exactly" he tossed a blood bag in his direction "I would never ask you to do this knowing your history but—"

Stefan stood up straighter "No, I can't. Even if it's only for however long we're out here this won't end well for me, Damon."

Damon knew Bonnie was at one point giving her blood to Stefan which for a short period it was like rocket fuel for his baby brother. It gave Stefan the pep in his step that he needed. But It wasn't the real deal and it wouldn't give Stefan what he needed to leave the island alive if Bonnie's hunch about the island having other visitors was correct.

"Bonnie's safety aside. I need my brother at his best. You need to be at your best if you want to make it out of here alive."

Stefan scrubbed a hand over his face already knowing Damon was right. Blood bags weren't the real deal but it was as close to hell as he could get when it came to feeding off of a human. He picked up the blood bag and observed it. "I need you to promise me something."

Damon raised a brow "I'm listening."

"If anything happens and I lose control. You take Bonnie and —"

"Stef—"

Stefan took a step closer to his big brother practically pleading "I mean it, Damon. If I lose control while Bonnie is sired to me we don't know what will happen. So promise me that you will get her as far away from me as possible. Do whatever you have to do to keep her safe."

"I promise. I give you my word."

Stefan nodded. He looked at the blood bag again before inhaling. He told Bonnie that he would do whatever it took to keep her safe and that's what he planned on doing and with that, he used his fangs to rip open the bag causing blood to gush in his mouth. Stefan closed his eyes and savored the taste.

Damon watched as the veins under his brother's eyes became visible under the moonlight while the blood he was chugging down like a toddler with a nice warm bottle dripped down his chin.

And at that moment Damon started to wonder why he never learned to keep his big mouth shut.

Bonnie and Caroline made their way back to the campsite to find Damon bringing over wood to build a fire.

Caroline raised an eyebrow "You do realize we're all vampires which means we don't get cold."

Damon rolled his eyes "How astute of you blondie."

"You know what that word means? I'm impressed.

Damon ignored her "I figured we can tell ghost stories while we wait until the sunrise."

Bonnie snorted and looked around "Where's Stefan?"

Damon cleared his throat, not making eye contact with Bonnie "He took a walk."

Bonnie shrieked "What? You let him go alone?"

Damon sighed "No, but he wanted to be left alone. So—"

Bonnie shook her head already headed in the opposite direction to find Stefan "I'm going to go find him."

Damon grabbed Bonnie lightly by the arm and swung around to face him "No, you're not."

Caroline narrowed her eyes "We can't just leave him out there alone. Remember we're all supposed to stay together."

"I understand that. But, Stefan—"

"There's no but's, Damon. Stefan could be hurt, he could be in trouble."

"He could be right here," Stefan said almost appearing out of nowhere.

Damon let go of Bonnie and eyed his little brother "See, nothing to worry about."

Bonnie walked over to Stefan "Why would you walk off alone like that."

Stefan rolled his eyes "I'm not a child, Bonnie so please stop acting like I am."

"That's not the point. The point is that I've already said that there's something else out there and neither of us knows what the hell it is. Hence why we need to stick together."

Stefan nodded "Sure, I'll try to remember that next time." He said almost dryly.

Bonnie frowned and looked at Caroline. She sensed something was off with the younger Salvatore and before they got the chance to question him about it the wind suddenly picked up. The trees and bushes were suddenly uprooted from the ground and tossed in their direction.

Damon attempted to reach for Bonnie but was tossed backward several from where he was standing causing the back of his head to hit the back of a large tomb. Caroline's neck was violently twisted before she crumbled to the ground. While Stefan was impaled with a tree branch before getting his neck snapped as well.

Bonnie lifted her hand to see what was in front of her but was unable to as the wind seemed to pick up ever more "Stefan, Damon, Care…. Are you guys ok?"

Silence

"Caroline." She tried again but got no response. She tried using her magic but found that she was unable to.

Bonnie was able to dodge the tree that almost took her head off but in the next second a tree branch was impaled through her shoulder causing the hybrid to scream out in pain. A loud crack of thunder caught her attention before suddenly everything went dark.

When Bonnie opened her eyes she was in a semi-dark room which was only lit by a dim chandelier that hung over her head. Bonnie blinked at her surroundings and realized she was in someone's bedroom "Where the hell am I?" she whispered

The breeze that was blowing from the outside caused the dead branches to click-clack off of the feeble, arch-shaped windows that surrounded her. The walls seemed to be invisible because of the irregular, random sound of smashing and tapping on these windows.

Bonnie jumped up from the bed and tried to open the door and unsurprisingly she found it locked. "This can't be happening."

"Oh, but it is."

Bonnie spun around not noticing the other person in the room with her "Amina?"

Amina smiled "I'm so glad we can finally have that alone time together."

"Really? I figured you weren't up for family bonding time since you had me killed."

Amina grinned "It's merely a formality, I'm sure. Besides, think of it as a way of me trying to protect you."

Bonnie snorted "Protect me? Excuse me if I'm not buying it."

It was almost jarring to stare in the eyes of a young woman that looked exactly like her mother and so many others in their line "Of course you don't. But It's true. You weren't supposed to make it out of that forest alive. That was me protecting you."

Bonnie rolled her eyes "Where're my friends?"

Of course, she would be more worried about her friends "They're right where you left them. Of course, that is if they're still alive."

Bonnie narrowed her eyes "I swear if you harmed one hair—"

"Spare me. Your threats mean nothing. Besides you should spend your energy on other matters."

"Like what?"

Amina swung her long braids over her shoulder and shrugged. The move oddly enough reminded Bonnie of Katherine "You want the cure and I'm here to make sure you don't get it."

Bonnie blinked "If you're trying to tell me our ancestors created this "fate" for me so I can live my immortal life side by side with Stefan then you can forget it. I've already heard it."

"You know about the story of the cure and how it came to existence?" Bonnie said nothing but that didn't deter the nine hundred plus old witch "You see, Silas and Qetsiyah we're in love. So much so that Silas and Qetsiyah were supposed to be married at least that's what Qetsiyah thought. Turns out Silas was having a torrid affair with Qetsiyah's best friend Amara."

Bonnie shrugged failing to see what this had to with her "I'm not seeing the point."

Amina waved her hand causing three pictures to suddenly appear in her hand "Oh, I'm getting there. Silas and Qetsiyah were both witches. However, Qetsiyah was the powerful one of the two. Her gifts defy logic creating possibilities that were unheard of. She created immortality. With this new spell, Qetsiyah created would them the opportunity to spend eternity basking in their love but unfortunately, Silas had other plans. His plan was to kill Qetsiyah while sharing the spell of immortality with his beloved Amara."

Bonnie swallowed hard. She couldn't lie that was some fucked up shit she was hearing. "So what did Qetsiyah do?"

Seeing that she finally had Bonnie on the edge of her seat she continued as she walked closer to the young woman "I'm glad you asked. She gave him his precious immortality but she added a little something extra. She added thirst for blood."

Bonnie's eyes widen "She created vampirism."

Amina winked "Vampirism is merely a curse that's meant to be carried for eternity."

"At the expense of humans." Bonnie seethed.

"Humans weren't a part of the plan. What can I say they got crafty. Silas on the other hand never had a chance to experience those pleasures. Qetsiyah locked him in a box to desiccate. He's been desiccating for a thousand plus years."

"I don't understand. What does that have to do with me getting the cure—" Bonnie connected the dots on her own "Silas has the cure."

Amina nodded "I can't risk you or your friends screwing up and waking the bastard. Besides, It won't work for you anyways."

Bonnie shook her head "You're lying. You're just trying to talk me out of getting it."

Amina rolled her eyes "Listen, I don't give a damn if you don't believe me or not. Silas is not my only concern. My concern is that history will be repeating itself." she said before throwing the pictures at Bonnie and watched as they landed at the witch's feet.

Bonnie picked up the pictures and gasped "This can't be real."

"Doppelgängers aren't just a Petrova thing. Qetsiyah was my mother and the Salvatores are Silas's descendants. Stefan is his doppelgänger."

Bonnie thought this was some cruel joke. She, Stefan and Elena was the Descendents and doppelgängers of a thousand plus-year-old triangle. This could not be what her ancestors had in mind for her for the rest of her immortality. "Well, it looks like I'm going to be the one to break the curse."

The cure was Bennett's magic and wouldn't be able to cancel out one for the other. Bonnie was a hybrid and by laws of the supernatural world, she shouldn't even exist with vampirism also being magic. Very few had that exception, one being Niklaus Mikaelson."Your only option is a hybrid or a Vampire."

Tears spilled from Bonnie's eyes "I can't spend the rest of my life this way. I can't."

Amina didn't expect to feel for the girl but she did. Her plan was to lewer Bonnie up here and kill the girl but things changed. The young woman looked exactly like her mother so she couldn't act out her plan to kill her. But she could do something else.

"I can't help you become human but I can help you start over."

Bonnie frowned "I don't understand."

Amina grinned. "novis initial"

Mystic Falls— June 10, 2009

"Bonnie if you don't get your narrow behind down here, I'm going to whoop you good."

Bonnie stuffed her duffel bag with all things she needed for Tyler's beach party "I'll be down in a minute."

Sheila looked over at Amina who was sitting on the couch"Do you think this will work?"

Amina nodded "Her bloodlust is hidden with this spell so she won't have any urges for a while. We'll just have to keep monitoring her and I'll be doing that by being the cousin that came to live with you."

Sheila and Amina looked towards the stairs as Bonnie descended with a pair of cut off jean shorts and a tube top.

"What's for breakfast?" The witch beamed.

AN: YES I TOOK IT THEREEEEEE! We're back in 2009 and yes Bonnie is still a hybrid but she as well as the other town folks (including the scooby doo gang) are unaware of it. I've been writing this story for 8 years and I've been terrible with updates but now that I have a little more time to write I plan on doing just that. I hope y'all are taking care of yourself by practicing good hygiene and STAYING AT HOME. Until next time, happy reading and thank you for reviewing and sticking with me on this one.

novis initial in latin means "new beginnings"