Sleeping Beauty

Chapter 3

Bonnie stared out of the passenger window in awe. The beautiful English manor Klaus and Hope lived in was nestled among a thick forest and sat on top of a hill. Klaus drove them down the dirt road early the next morning. They passed an old stone bridge and a huge lake covered with dried leaves on their way to the village which was all the way down the hill.

The scenery took Bonnie's breath away. There were fields upon fields of emerald green hills with a few clusters of trees with rusty red and yellow leaves in between. The glorious display of autumn colors was unlike anything Bonnie had ever seen before.

Klaus glanced at her from time to time as he drove them. Bonnie didn't even notice, so enraptured was she by the beautiful landscape. The land seemed to stretch on forever, a sea of green mixing with red and yellow against a sunny and cloudless sky.

"This is amazing," Bonnie murmured. "It's like being in a movie..." it was the only thing she could compare it to. She had never been out of the United States before, she had barely been to D.C. mostly on school trips and she had gone to New York once with her dad. Unlike the busy and noisy cities, this place was calm. There was a sense of tranquility, a feeling of peace and security.

"You will love the village," Hope happily told her from the back seat. "You will love living here, Bonnie. I promise."

Bonnie smiled weakly. Hope had been chatting nonstop about the village and the people and her school and her friends. She was a happy child, Bonnie could see it in the way her face lit up and the beaming smile that graced her pink lips as she talked. She was very excited about showing Bonnie around and visiting the places she loved. Bonnie didn't have the heart to tell her that she wasn't planning on staying with them; she would be leaving soon.

As soon as the elder can bring the barrier down, Bonnie thought as she continued to stare out of the window. She hadn't slept at all. After nearly a decade in a magical coma the last thing Bonnie had wanted was to lay down and close her eyes. She had spent the entire night pacing, thinking, and staring out of the window into darkness outside. She remembered her friends, her dad, her time in Mystic Falls and all the events leading up to her magical inducing sleep. She had cried for them a lot the night before, grieving for the life she used to have, for the people she used to know, and for the girl she used to be. Everything had changed in the blink of an eye for her and she was still struggling to adjust.

An elderly and kind woman named Vera had brought her breakfast and bags filled with clothes and shoes. Bonnie had felt rather embarrassed because they were the perfect size, right down to the underwear. Vera had introduced herself as Klaus's housekeeper, Hope's nanny, the cook, and cleaning lady. They hadn't talked much but Vera had seemed pleasant enough. She was also a witch, Bonnie had sensed her magic the minute she stepped inside the room.

Bonnie saw the dry-stone walls first as they approached the village, then the limestone cottages with their beautiful autumn colored gardens. Once they finally entered the village she saw the stone houses perfectly aligned together. There was a flower shop, a bakery, a pub, a post office, a coffee shop, and lots of other shops as well as a couple of restaurants on each side of the main road. Her eyes opened wide with wonder when they passed a two-story honey colored stone house, Morrigan's Magic Shop read the big sign. The scent of vanilla and lavender hit her nose despite the car's closed windows.

As they rounded the corner, Bonnie spotted another magic shop, The Black Cat the sign read. This one was smaller, the shutters black, and the door red. Bonnie felt a shiver run down her spine as the car drove by.

Klaus parked right across from a beautiful 15th century style church. Right next to the church was another limestone building with a red roof. Children of all ages were making their way inside.