"Great American Road Trip Part 1"

So we all go back to yours and you sit and talk to me on the floor

There's no need to show me round baby, I feel like I've been in here before

I've been wondering whether later when you tell everybody to go,

Will you pour me one for the road?

I knew this would be on the cards

I knew you wouldn't fold

I saw this coming from the start

The shake, rattle and roll

- Arctic Monkeys; One For the Road

He's funny, Bonnie thinks to herself as giggles wrack her frame. Kai is finishing an anecdote about how he had once gotten an unfortunate wedgie while rock climbing in their empty, little world and had to awkwardly remove his pants in order to get out of the situation. His animated retelling is so ridiculous it must be exaggerated.

The whole tea and cookies with the only other person on Earth thing turned out to be more fun than she had anticipated, especially since Kai didn't really hold her actions against her. Bonnie's surprised by his own calm acceptance of the situation, but the man assures her that he's freaking out in his own way.

It's weird, how easy camaraderie grows between them. It's almost like being reunited with an old friend who still knows you better than anyone else.

Kai's smile dims and a thoughtful expression overtakes his face. The sudden somberness draws Bonnie's attention and soon enough her own bemusement dies out.

"Kai?"

"Your last name...you're a witch, aren't you?"

The impromptu comment flusters Bonnie and her first instinct is to lie; luckily when she does open her mouth to speak, her mind has already caught up to her lips.

"Yes."

It's not really an admission, logically speaking. Kai has spent the last eighteen years, apparently frozen in age, in a world with a population of one - two now, she corrects herself - that magically repeats the same day. The fact that he was the one to bring up witchcraft indicates his own knowledge of the supernatural. Still, mistrust is hard to shake, especially of those who latch onto her surname, and so Bonnie watches him closely as he digests her confession.

"Me too," he confides quietly, then smiles bitterly. "Sort of."

Brow crinkled, Bonnie shakes her head. "I don't - how can you only be sort of a witch?"

It's Kai's turn to watch her. "I'm a siphon," he says the word like it was cursed. "And I was born into the leading family of one of the oldest, most powerful covens in the world."

Bonnie is confused by the term, but before she can ask him to clarify, he scoffs.

"I was supposed to lead, after my Dad, you know? But then I turned out to be what I am and he pretty much turned his back on me after that. Deep hatred for siphons in the Gemini coven, like racism or homophobia. He treated me like crap for twenty-two years and eventually just discarded me." Something bitter flicks over his face before it smooths out.

"He discarded you?" Bonnie asks, incredulous.

"Yup," he pops the the P. "Dumped me here and left me to rot when I came of age." He shakes his head.

"I'm sorry, Bonnie. I don't know why I'm telling you this, it's pretty much ancient history. I shouldn't burden you with this when we've just met."

"No, it's okay," she smiles sympathetically. "I get it. I've been discarded before, too."

"You?" Kai snorts. "I find that hard to believe. You're a Bennett. And you're beautiful."

He says it so bluntly and casually, like he really can't comprehend that she would ever be able to understand what it feels like to be a misfit. That she would be able to sympathize with being the one tossed aside and forgotten like so much trash. Bonnie frowns at him, rebellious.

"It's true," she snaps. "I've been essentially orphaned and left to figure out how to be a witch all on my own. My boyfriend once cheated on me with his ex who was dead. My friends are literally all I have, but sometimes I feel they overlook me in favor of my powers. Like I'm some magical fix-it whenever we have a problem."

Her tone had become increasingly bitter and the words flow out, unstoppable, but once her tirade is over, Bonnie is overcome with embarrassment and chagrin. She wants to take back everything - not only did it make her seem pathetic, but also like she was competing with him to be the more pitiable soul. Ugh. That wasn't her intention in the slightest and Bonnie closes her eyes, biting her lip as she tries to hold back her self-disgust.

Kai chuckles lightly. "Haha, okay. You win."

"No."

He looks up at the steel in her voice.

"No," she repeats, softening her tone. "I wasn't - I just wanted you to know that I could sympathize. It wasn't supposed to come out like that."

Her companion nods. "I understand, Bonnie. Thanks." Silence draws out between them for a bit, surprisingly comfortable before he interjects into the quiet again.

"How'd did you get here? I mean, I know my dad made this place as a prison for me so I couldn't become leader, but somehow I doubt he did that to you too. You don't seem like the type to put up with his shit."

Bonnie smiles at the teasing compliment. "I died," she said quietly, looking down at the counter. She draws patterns over it's surface, not meeting his eyes as she continues. "I'd died before, but this time, it seemed like the absolute end. Grams sent me here."

"Grams?"

"My grandmother. Sheila Bennett. Did you know her?"

The witch finally looks up to meet his gaze and is taken aback. Kai is staring at her in a mix of anger and disbelief, eyes blazing with something like betrayal. "Wha-?" Bonnie starts, but is interrupted.

"Sheila Bennett is your grandmother?" he snarls. Bonnie's hackles rise at his aggression and she pulls back slightly.

"Yes?" she ventures. "Why are you so upset?"

Kai scoffs and suddenly spins around, his back to her. He rakes his fingers through his dark hair. "Sheila Bennett is a traitor. I thought she was my friend, but in the end, all she was doing was helping my dad create this place to imprison me."

Elena arrives at the boardinghouse at the same time as Caroline and a smile lights up her face at the sight of the other vampire. She feels like she hasn't seen her childhood friend in so long, like the fall of the other side had taken two of her sisters instead of just one. The sight of the beautiful, flaxen-haired girl sends a jolt of relief and joy through her.

"Hey," the brunette greets, doe-eyes soft as she looks over the other girl in concern.

"Hey," Caroline greets back absently. Elena tries not to take it personally as she continues the conversation.

"Date with Stefan?"

Caroline makes a face. "I wish. The other one actually."

"Oh. Okay." The doppelganger feels a bit off-kilter about the situation. For the last four months, since Bonnie went away, Damon and Caroline had been obsessively working to find a way to bring her back.

So far, every avenue taken had turned out to be a dead end, but the duo were probably the most stubborn team to ever tackle something. It was about two weeks from Thanksgiving, and instead of giving into her usual end-of-the-year holiday cheer, Caroline had only passively participated in activities, preferring to leave parties and preparations early in favor of researching and traveling with Damon. The older vampire too, had been less spunky than his usual self, having returned to the behavior he had taken up when Stefan had gone Ripper with Klaus. The only difference now is that he didn't bother trying to hide his somberness and frustration when it came to dealings concerning Bonnie.

Hesitantly, Elena asks "How's that going lately?"

Caroline's face darkens as the two enter the den and Elena regrets asking. Damon is sitting cross-legged by the fireplace, drinking his ever-present bourbon as he pours over papers about dimensional traveling that an occult professor from Oregon had faxed him right before Elena left for classes. It looks like he had made a significant dent in the reading if the amount of dead highlighters in the waste bin next to him meant anything.

The blonde vampire strides over to him without hesitation, and Elena has to take pause as she watches Caroline immediately ask Damon what he's learned. So preoccupied, she doesn't notice when Stefan comes up behind her until he's leaning in the wide door frame opposite of her.

"A bit disconcerting isn't it?" he asks her, eyeing the sire and progeny as they talk pros and cons about trying to locate Bonnie in another dimension, or even how they would go about being able to do such a thing. Elena smiles wryly.

"You're telling me," she sighs. "Is it bad to wish that they would move on? Bonnie said that Grams found a way to help her find peace - what if they do manage to bring her back and it's not even what Bonnie would have wanted? What if Bonnie's in heaven, or being reincarnated as an incredibly wealthy princess, or in the Fields of Elysium? What then?"

Stefan looks over his ex thoughtfully. "Given this a lot of thought?" he asks teasingly.

"Is it obvious?" Elena smiles wistfully. "I just don't want all this to have been in vain. I want Bonnie back too, but - she's died for us so many times already. Maybe it's better to just let her rest and try to do better for her instead of bringing her back to a place that's only hurt her."

"That's a rather wise thought," Stefan admits. Elena tries not to take offense or wonder insecurely if he's surprised by her reasoning. "How's it working out?"

"It hurts. I know they both think I'm being selfish by doing nothing, but this time, I swear, my head's not up my own ass."

Stefan snorts at the crass statement and they share a friendly, bemused look. The look lingers a little too long, softening to something that would be inappropriate between them now and the two turn away from each other. The older vampire eyes his sibling and his current girlfriend as they tolerate each other for the sake of a girl they both miss too much to even try to function without. The two are so absorbed in their work that the conversation between the two doppelgangers hanging in the doorway went unheeded.

"Do you think they're being selfish?" Elena's voice interrupts his observations. "Or do you think they're right? I know you help them out sometimes so that they can take breaks. I know you're worried about them too."

Stefan sighs. "I think they need to work out their grief and that they can only do that if they try to fix the situation. I think Caroline still cries herself to sleep at night looking over old pictures of the three of you. I think Damon has nightmares because he was the last one to be with Bonnie when she crossed over and it haunts him."

"He loves her," Elena blurts and the younger Salvatore turns to her, surprised. The doe-eyed beauty looks down in embarrassment. "Bonnie. I don't think he even knows that he does, or even how he does. But Damon loves her, and I think it hurts him because they never really got to work it out, even if he'd never admit it or let himself realize it."

"Elena -," Stefan starts. She smiles ruefully.

"It used to bug me. Still does, when I'm here and he still can't let go. I've only been jealous of Bonnie about little things before, and now that I'm really upset with her, I kind of feel like scum, because I don't think she'd be jealous in my place. I think she'd be supportive of him. But I just feel -"

"Discarded." The brunette meets his gaze and nods. He always understands exactly what she means.

"Yeah. I feel discarded."

Surprisingly, he's sitting on the porch swing. Bonnie had expected not to see him again, after he'd stormed out after his accusation, but there he was - sitting on the porch swing, overlooking the street like he was contemplating finding a jack hammer just to ruin it. She tries not to let the relief that washes over her be too obvious, but she can't fight back the small quirk of her lips when Kai glances her way. He grins back apologetically, looking down at his feet when she comes over. He scoots to one side of the swing, leaving her room to sit down on the other end.

"I was scared you'd left," she confesses. He tilts his head in her direction, just slightly, to peer at her from under his lashes.

"I was scared you'd want me to leave," he murmurs back. She meets his gaze and they grin at each other.

"Maybe third time's the charm?" she suggests and holds out her right hand. "Bonnie Bennett, dead thrice over. I'm here now because my equally dead grandmother spirited me here with witchcraft the last time I died so that my soul wouldn't get destroyed."

Kai smirks to himself, eyes blinking down as he looks down again. For a minute, Bonnie is worried he won't play along, but then he suddenly turns his whole body towards her and grasps her hand in his. "Kai Parker, magic siphoner and outcast of the Gemini Coven. I'm here now because my dad hated my very existence, but was too cowardly to just outright kill me, so he banished me to a world of isolation."

He turns her hand over so that her palm was facing down and brushes his lips over knuckles. Her skin burns where his lips brush and Bonnie ignores the fluttering sensation in her belly that the action induces.

"I do believe you're right. Third times are quite charming, my darling," he says in mock British accent. The silliness and light-heartedness with which he suddenly exudes causes Bonnie to chuckle lightly. She bows her head over their joined hands and leans her body in slight curtsey.

"Indeed they are, my dear," she replies in her most charming old Hollywood voice.

The two of them burst into giggles and he lets her hand go to fold over on himself. Their laughter dies down and he leans back in the swing to gaze at her.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm kinda glad you died." She snorts.

"So long as you understand why I'm glad your dad hated you."

"Oh, darling, I'm glad he hated me."

The two witches lean back together and rock the porch swing. Silence settles around them like warm blanket and Bonnie closes her eyes to relish it. She wonders if it's loneliness on both of their parts or something else entirely; she's never connected so well or so easily with someone, not even Elena.

"Is this your house?"

Bonnie opens her eyes to find Kai's face closer to her own than it had been before she closed them. Without her notice, he'd drifted closer on the swing and was leaning so that his forehead was scant inches from her own. She sits up to make distance, alarmed at how unalarmed she was by his proximity.

"It's my best friend's. Elena. My parents weren't often around when I was growing up, and so I would spend a lot of time here until my Grams had finished working for the day. I pretty much consider these walls home."

"Home," Kai repeats. He sits up suddenly, excitement dancing in his eyes. "Home. You're a Bennett witch and your grandmother helped create this world, meaning that a Bennett witch would probably be needed to leave it. I know where we can find the portal key for this world. If you're here, we can go home."

"Portal key?" Bonnie questions and Kai opens his mouth. Bonnie continues before he can speak. "But I don't have magic anymore. I was dead for a long time, then I was something that couldn't have magic. I didn't get it back and, trust me, I've tried to evoke it. I'm not a witch anymore."

Kai's mouth closes and he looks away contemplatively, biting his lip as he stews over an idea. He catches her eye resolutely and takes both of hands in his, sliding his palms until he clutches her wrists. Quizzically, she examines the way his fingers encircle her arm, then raises a brow.

"I want to try something," he murmurs. "I think your Grams wouldn't send you here if she didn't have faith you could leave right?"

Bonnie shrugs. "She sent me here to find peace. Maybe that doesn't include going back."

Kai looks down at her words and Bonnie's bleeding heart gives a pitiful thump at the flash of heartbreak that he tried to hide. The young woman had to bite back her sigh. Hope had slowly been dying for her the longer she went alone and without magic - now that she tries to imagine what Kai had felt on his own for nearly two decades and how he must feel now that she's here, Bonnie can't bring herself to kill his newfound hope as well. She wiggles her hands a bit.

"But maybe it does, she wasn't very clear. Go ahead and try your thing."

He studies her face again, checking for something. He must find it, because he nods his head slowly and gives her wrists a little squeeze.

"I'm going to try to siphon magic from you - if it's there, even blocked, I'll sense it. It's also probably going to hurt, okay?"

Bonnie nods. "I can take it," she nudges him slightly. "Go ahead."

He closes his eyes in concentration and for a long moment, there's nothing and Bonnie wants to scoff from the bitter disappointment. But then a sudden, sharp stinging hits her entire body and she gasps out in pain, doubling over. Kai immediately let's her go, soothingly patting her back instead, and Bonnie brings her arms in towards her body.

That was...not what she'd braced herself for. The pain, while different, was just as bad - almost worse - as being The Anchor when a spirit passed through. It was like being submerged into boiling hot salt water while covered in raw, open wounds. All her nerves felt frayed open and vulnerable.

She supposes that clears up her confusion about siphons.

"It's okay, I'm sorry. You'll be okay," Kai's still trying to calm her, a mildly panicked edge coming into his voice the longer she didn't respond.

Bonnie sits back up and takes a deep breath. Kai goes quiet.

"I guess I can see why your dad felt threatened." The siphon grins at her wry, teasing tone. "So," she continues. "Does that mean I have magic?"

"You have magic," he affirms. "We'll have to figure out how to unblock it, but it's there."

"And this portal key?"

"It's called an Ascendent. Looks like the guts of a clock. It's back home In Portland."

"Portland?"

"Yeah," he shrugs. "Gemini leader's house. My a-few-greats grandfather moved us out to Portland from Salem when he was leader."

Bonnie perks up at this admission. "Bennetts are from Salem, too."

Kai looks thoughtful. "Well," he stretches out the word. "We have to go to Portland for the Ascendent and we have to unblock your magic, so I suppose Massachusetts isn't a bad idea either," he trails off. Bonnie has an idea where he's going with this, but she waits to let him say it just in case.

"Say, Bennett darling," he speaks in his play British voice again, a brilliant smile lighting up his face. "What do you think about roadtripping across the Land of the Free?"

"Why, my dear," she replies. "I thought you'd never ask."

It was a bit disappointing to Kai how easy it was to convince Bonnie to join him, a strange man, on a road trip across America. He wonders idly if it speaks volumes of how desperate for company solitude has made her or if it speaks volumes on how wildly he misjudged her intellect. Granted, he was playing this little game of theirs with an advantage she was unaware he had, but still.

They have dinner together - a really hearty beef stew she makes from scratch - and Kai nearly cries at how wonderful it is to eat a home-cooked meal he didn't have to make himself. At some point, he'll have to show her how great eighteen years of practice will make you in the kitchen, but for now -

Fuck, it was great to just be served for once.

He reappraised her intelligence when, after dinner, she goes and packs up a few belongings and shows him to a guest room. Kai thinks he may have given her too much credit before, but then he notices her making her way out of the house.

"Where are you going?" he asks. She smiles.

"I've got to go make a few stops tonight before I can go anywhere. I'll be back in the morning, no worries."

And then she's gone, probably off to one of those other houses she liked to spend time in and Kai is left to his own devices. He briefly considers following her, but decides against it in favor of better exploring this house. It's not the same one he broke into nearly four months ago - Bonnie waffled between houses depending on her mood - but she spent a lot of time in this one, the Gilbert house, and the cottage style one he'd first watched her sleep in. That house had the taste of strong magic, so he figures it must have belonged to Sheila, considering Bonnie would have been a toddler in 1994 and not a practicing witch.

He never really explored this residence before, so he wanders around perusing the rooms. A girlish, princess themed room he concludes must belong to the ever mysterious Elena and a rocket-ship in space themed nursery don't hold his attention for long. He spends a while investigating a home office, digging up journals and files detailing information from something known as The Founder's Council. It was an interesting read - a lot of hullabaloo about vampires - and Kai finds himself intrigued by the secrets kept in the old, sleepy town.

He grows bored of digging around in there and makes his way down the hall to the master room. It's the room Bonnie's been sleeping in, even though she preferred to shower in the Jack-and-Jill bathroom upstairs for some reason. He goes through the walk-in and dressers, finding nothing of interest, so he turns his attention to the duffle sitting under the foot of the bed.

That proves to be more entertaining. For one, Bonnie has really cute taste in undergarments, something he never really paid attention to because he would always give her privacy during showers and changings. Kai holds up something that proves to be little more that a scrap of apple green lace, sliding it over his hand and contemplating all of the skin he can still see through the fabric.

How interesting.

For another, the bag yields the camcorder that he sets aside for later study in lieu of the grimoire that catches his eye. It's hidden, wrapped up in a sundress. Kai flips it open slowly, sees the name Emily Bennett emblazoned onto the inside cover. He blinks.

Well damn; he didn't expect to find a legendary Bennett's spellbook.

Carefully, Kai looks through the grimoire, reading through the spells. Emily was very organized - her grimoire read more like a textbook than a journal, with the front explaining the basics of spell casting,divination, and projecting while the back descended into different types of spells, each one more in-depth and dangerous than the last. If Emily's book was any average standard, it was no wonder Bennetts were considered magical savants.

A certain spell catches his eye. It's encoded, but from what he's garnered of Emily's alphabet so far, it seems like a spell that could be used to create another dimension. He begins trying to translate the alphabet into Latin and grows more excited as he slowly makes headway through the spell.

He manages a rough translation about an hour later and Kai is certain this is the spell. He stares at the pages a few moments longer, burning the words into his mind's eye and then double checking that he has it memorized. Once he's done, Kai repacks the duffle bag perfectly, careful to leave no trace of himself as he swipes up the camera and lies down on the bed.

The siphon falls asleep watching Bonnie reminiscence and theorize. He's glad she didn't prove his original conclusion wrong - girl was smart as a whip.

-o0o-

The next morning, Kai's up before the sun, rearranging everything back to the way he found it, before going to the kitchen to scrounge up breakfast. He settles on toast and cereal, not really in the mood to cook anything. Lethargically, he chews his way through Lucky Charms and waits for Bonnie to show up.

She shows up around eight with a large knapsack and a smile, joining him at the table and pouring her own bowl of something magically delicious. After she finished eating, they clamber into Kai's car with their (hers really) stuff and he takes I-95 north towards Richmond. Bonnie frowns every time he blows through a red light, but says nothing. Instead, she digs through his CDs and, to his delight, she settles on Pearl Jam. They sing through the songs together, but she skips Jeremy and Kai bites back a snicker. About thirty minutes from D.C., Kai finally speaks up to start their first real conversation of the day.

"You hungry? It'll be lunch time soon."

Bonnie smirks lightly and lolls her head in his direction him.

"Yeah, let's hit up a Micky D's drive thru. I'm craving fries."

He shoves her playfully. "Ever been to the Smithsonian?"

"On a school trip once. Why?"

"I want dinosaurs."

"You want to eat dinosaurs?"

This time he tickles her. "No, I want to eat a burger. I want to climb a dinosaur."

Bonnie wiggles out of his grasp and grabs his his hand, holding it down over the stick. He shifts gears with her hand covering his. She pulls away.

"We can do that, can't we?" she mutters musingly.

"We can do whatever, Bon. No people equals no rules."

She's quiet for a minute. Kai knows she just needs a little push, a small nudge to get over the good girl spirit that holds her back even now.

"Come on," he goads. "If we're going to trek across the country, we might as well do it better than anyone else ever did."

She bites her lip, looking uncertain. "If we're going to turn this into a thing, shouldn't we have more stops?"

"We can stop anywhere. No one's gonna stop us."

After some thought, she shrugs. "Why the hell not?"

Kai beams at her wickedly. "That's the spirit!"

The call comes in while Caroline is studying for organic chemistry. It's the first real break she's taken from her rescue mission in a while, and it's only because she doesn't want to waste time by flunking the class.

The caller ID says it's Elena and, with an eye roll, she let's it ring. She and the brunette had been at odds for a while now, the other girl's blasé attitude when it came to saving Bonnie irritating the blonde. The phone stops ringing, but then starts up again a moment later.

With a soft sigh, Caroline answers.

"Yes?" she mutters non-committedly.

"Care! Thank God," at Elena's distraught tone, Caroline sits up straighter, IUPAC rules forgotten. "You need to come to the hospital, it's your mom. She collapsed an-"

"On my way," Caroline cuts her off. She's already got her keys in hand and is pulling on her jacket. She hangs up without saying goodbye and slips her phone in her pocket, mind already in a chaotic rut as she vamp speeds to her car.

-o0o-

Stage four cancer. Caroline doesn't know if she should berate her mom for keeping it a secret for so long or berate herself for not trusting her instinct every time her mom brushed off her concerns. The tall girl looks over her sleeping mother, feeling overwhelmingly underwhelmed.

She's just numb.

First Bonnie, and the longer she goes failing to find a solution to that, the more she can sense herself cracking at the seams. And now Liz. Caroline's brain is already pumping out theory after theory on how she can save the older blonde, but some dark corner of her soul is whispering to her that she'll screw that up too.

Elbows on her knees, Caroline cradles her head in her hands and tries to will herself to cry. To do something to let out the frustration threatening to choke her.

My mom is dying, she thinks. My best friend is dead. My other best friend is letting me pull away.

She can't tell if she's wallowing or not. Is this grief? Is she ready to give up? Caroline doesn't know, and that in itself should be worrisome, except she. Can't. Feel. Anything.

Overwhelmingly underwhelmed.

Fuck.

Stefan slinks into the room and it's a peripheral observation for Caroline. She notices that he pulls up a chair next to her and runs a soothing hand along her back, but she doesn't acknowledge his inquiry about her emotional state. How could she?

She just sits and stares at her mother for a long, undisclosed amount of time, thinking. Then she kisses her forehead and leaves, Stefan looking after her in confusion.

They're back on I-95 north, heading towards New York City and full from the burgers that they made for each other while they were still in D.C. Bonnie is looking through her grimoire and humming along to Salt-N-Pepa's "Shoop" while Kai rapped along with Pepa.

"Yo, Salt, I looked around, and I couldn't believe this. I swear, I stared, my niece my witness," Kai's eyes got wide and he waggled his eyebrows when Bonnie grinned at his antics. "The brother had it goin' on with somethin' kinda...uhhhh."

He exaggerates the moan at the end, lowering his voice and releasing the wheel for a brief second to hold his hands up as though he were indicating the size of something. Bonnie burst into laughter at the crude suggestion, to the point that she eventually chokes on spittle. The laughing fit morphs into a coughing fit and the younger witch tries to bring herself under control, tears shining in her eyes as she switches between grinning and trying to breath. Kai chuckles at her predicament.

More and more of his actual personality is starting to leak into the good guy persona he'd crafted especially for her, but Kai can't say he's too bothered by it. Usually, he would be able to hold onto the facade for much longer than the day they've spent together, but it's extremely easy for him to just be himself with her. Alarmingly easy really, and after the past four hours - the most fun he's had in a really long time - it's no wonder he's becoming far too relaxed with her.

Maybe it's because they'd spent hours running wild around the Smithsonian. Maybe it's because she went inside the caveman exhibit and pretended to be primordial with him. Maybe it's because she sat in that useless red airplane with him and pretended to be the ugly Wright brother because obviously Kai was going to be the handsome one. Maybe it's the fact that she climbed the T-Rex fossil with him, camcorder out as they sat on it's head, so she could record them. She said it was the closest they could come to a "selfie", whatever that was, but it was fun to see her finally relax and stop being so morose.

Bonnie sighs and pats her belly. "I'm sorry," she states. He looks at her from the corner of his eye with a slight smile.

"Why?"

"Well," she starts. "You fed me that amazing, gourmet burger, and I gave you something like cafeteria food."

He chortles. "What kind of amazing school cafeteria did you have?"

She smiles and looks down at the grimoire in her lap. It was open to the spell Kai had found last night, but she doesn't say anything about it. Her reticence makes Kai a little paranoid, despite his patience urging him to stay calm. Kai slowly accelerates the car in annoyance despite the already high speed he was driving, but keeps his voice light when he announces their next stop before Salem.

"Hey, let's go to New York,"

-o0o-

They spend the night at a motel and make it to the Big Apple in less than three hours the next day. Bonnie drives, impressing Kai that she knows how to drive a stick, and he picks the music. She hums along to End of the Road with him once he chooses one of his Boyz II Men CDs, telling him intermittently about some of her adventures as a witch.

A lot of the stories are things he already knew, but he's surprised to find that she's met Jonas Martin, a witch a few years older than Kai and getting married the last time Kai had seen him. His reactions to learning about Greta and Luka Martin are in no way faked - it's a blow to realize just how the world has moved on and forgotten all about Malachai Parker. His hunger for power rumbles when she confesses to coming into possession of the Martin grimoires upon the family's extinction.

New York City itself turns out to be more fun than the Smithsonian museums, especially when they settle on playing tag on the Empire State Building and shooting each other with the Super Soakers Kai stole from a toy store. Bonnie, Kai learns, is competitive to the point of aggression, and for the first time ever, he finds himself likely to lose if he doesn't step his game up. He rigs the plumbing so that the sinks spray water whenever they're used, but she gets back at him by setting off the fire sprinklers and making her way outside to the top balcony, where she quickly dries off in the warm wind.

By the time Kai joins her, he's soaked to the bone and a bit disgruntled, especially when he sees her dry clothes and only slightly damp hair. He half-heartedly shoots her with his water gun to tag her when Bonnie crows in victory. He has to give it to her though - he's never lost any game in his life to anyone that wasn't named Joshua Parker. Bonnie is pretty much joining a hall of fame.

They chase each other around for another ten minutes, shooting at each other and laughing every time their hits connected, until their guns were empty. Kai, who's still dripping out his own puddles, decides to just fuck everything - tossing his water gun aside he dashes at and tackles Bonnie.

"No!" she laughs out when he tucks her underneath him and straddles her. The petite girl shoves at his chest, trying to get him off, but he bats her hands away and yanks off his water-logged shirt and holds it over her head. A few drops spatter menacingly around her head.

"Say mercy," he commands.

"Never!" Bonnie wiggles harder, upping her efforts to try to get away. Kai ignores the quick thought that he now knows what kind of panties she likes to wear in favor of wringing out his soaked tee right onto her face. Her expression becomes scrunched and sour when the water hits her and Kai gets wracked with laughter from the sight. He's kneeled over her, on hands and knees, silent chuckles shaking his frame when he notices how quiet she's gotten. Catching his breath, he peers down at the younger witch.

He's awestruck.

Short, damp hair spread out like a halo, brown skin glistening with sweat and water under the sun, lips pink and lush and parted. And her eyes - verdant orbs peer up at him through dark, water-clumped lashes and Kai finally takes note that he's half naked and kneeling over her in rather suggestive position. The provocation to do something teases him. It would be so easy right now, for him to lean down and seal his lips over hers.

Kai knows that if he did, Bonnie wouldn't stop him.

But he doesn't. Instead he rolls off and helps her up.

"I guess it's a tie then?"

"If telling yourself that makes you feel better," she responds quickly and Kai clucks indignantly at her sass. Bonnie's pulled herself together well, and there's no lingering awkwardness on her part, which kind of bothers Kai. He's the one playing a game, therefore he shouldn't be so rattled. But he is.

He turns away and breezily tells her that he's going to go change and grab some food and that he'll meet her at the car in a half-hour. Agreeing to the plan, Bonnie goes her own way once they're out of the building and by the time they meet up again, she's changed into a short black dress covered in white and yellow daisies. Kai hands her a meatball sub and tries to ignore how nice her legs look every time she crosses and uncrosses them.

Heat sluices through him, building up and up as he pushes into the pliant body below him. Greedy hands reach up to grip his hair, pulling his mouth into a biting kiss and the young witch grips the hips in his hands tighter, tilting the other's body and eliciting booming noise.

All the stress, all the heavy burdens of his coven fade away to the background. Luke's needed this all week.

Keenan starts pushing against him more frantically, murmuring nonsense and begging Luke to fuck him harder. The blond nips at his lover's stubbled chin in reproach, before covering the older man's mouth. He pulls back slightly, thrusting his hips harder and he can feel Keenan's moans vibrating against his palm. The doctor is sweaty and tired, having some trouble keeping up with his younger companion who has kept him trapped in the bed for almost two hours.

Luke can't stop.

Frustrated, he pulls out and ducks his head, sucking Keenan into his mouth with a hard inhalation. The man keens at the sensation, and the taste of salt and cum assault Luke's taste.

"Luke, Luke, baby please. I can't..." the pleads trail off with a sharp cry when Luke shoves three fingers into his fucked open ass and curls the digits against his prostate. Keenan arches off the bed.

"Fuck! Luke, please!"

The witch pulls off of the man's dick with slurp, a trail of saliva hanging off the tip as he licks his way up Keenan's chest.

"Come on, baby, please," the doctor moans when Luke pushes his knees on his chest and shoves back inside of him.

Luke can feel a familiar pressure finally settle into his loins and the pace of his thrusts increase as he chases the feeling. Keenan wails, nearly crying from overwhelming sensation as he comes for the third time, twitching with aftershocks that pushes Luke down from the crescendo he's reached. Grunting, the blond grasps the rumpled sheets and empties into his boyfriend.

He pulls out and collapses next to Keenan, who takes a moment to gather his breath before kicking the blankets farther away from the overheated duo.

"What the hell was that?" Keenan finally bursts and Luke has to chuckle at the note of wonder in the man's voice. He shrugs.

"I just missed you, I guess."

"Miss me more often. I'll move to Alaska, make it easier for you," the older man jokes. Luke grins and wraps his arm around him, pulling him close. Keenan makes a mild sound of disgust when his cheek presses against Luke's sweaty chest, but he throws an arm around the blond's middle and settles in anyway.

The high of hormones is slowly leaking out of Luke, as the worrisome thoughts that had been plaguing him lately descend like vultures now that his distraction had come to an end.

His twenty-second birthday was coming up soon. In the past, Luke's birthdays used to be a cause for merriment, but now that this specific year was on the horizon, all he could feel was dread. By the end of winter, he wouldn't be a twin anymore. He wouldn't even be his own person anymore.

Keenan draws patterns on Luke's stomach and presses a kiss on his rib. Luke pulls him closer.

"I love you," Keenan murmurs.

All Luke can do is twine their fingers together.

Kai takes I-95 north again, even though it's not the quickest way to Salem, because he wants to travel along the coastline. For the duration of the ride the little bit of salt that is always in the air reminds Bonnie of the little day trips to Virginia Beach that Grams would take her on during the older Bennett's free weekends. Bonnie keeps the windows rolled down and breathes in the coastal air and tries not to freak out about the boy in the driver's seat.

She's concerned for herself.

Her friendship with Kai is...weird, to say the least. Moving way too fast for sure. After the night she'd spent in her Gram's place, she had resigned herself to making the best of this trip and to getting along with her travel companion, but perhaps they were getting on far too well - the easy banter and the light-hearted jabs and the way he just got her were causing her to be suspicious - it was far too much like when Shane took her under his wing. She tries to tell herself that Kai's just a nice, but unfortunate guy, but the other, more cynical part of her, that's so accustomed to being used and manipulated, tells her he's not to be trusted at all.

Bonnie doesn't know which side to listen to.

She watches her sole companion from the corner of her eye as he takes an exit towards a gas station.

"Need a break," Kai announces after he parks by a pump and exits. He stretches and his shirt rides up; he has a light sprinkling of dark hair that trail down below the band of his pants and Bonnie looks away quickly. She exits the car herself and does her own light stretch, her back to him so she's unaware that he watches her knowingly. She gestures at the store.

"I'm going to head inside," she informs him and heads off at his hum of acknowledgement.

Inside, she turns the pump on for him and hollers out to him that he can get some fuel. Then she grabs three plastic bags and fills one with a variety of snacks - making sure to grab a few bags of pork rinds because Kai was a disgusting human being and fruit so they don't die of scurvy - another with sodas and water and the last with some supplies they might need. Bonnie goes back to the front and peers out the glass doors. Kai's leaning against the front tire, hands in his pockets as he looks up at the sky.

Heart racing for unknown reasons, Bonnie leaves the bags of pilfered goods on the counter and goes to the unisex restroom. The washroom is simple and dated, but clean. She pees quickly and washes her hands, lingering a little on her reflection - washing her face to cool her reddened cheeks, fixing her eyeliner, adjusting her sundress, smoothing down her hair because ew, the frizz - before she stops herself in realization.

"What the hell are you doing?" Bonnie asks the mirror. Her reflection doesn't reply but it doesn't have to, the witch turning away it in revulsion at her epiphany.

Slut, she thinks to herself. Floozy. Tart. Skank. Harlot. You don't even know him. Quickly, she unlatches the door and throws it open and rushes out - right into a hard chest.

"Woah," Kai grabs her shoulders as she stumbles back. "Where's the fire?" he jests.

Bonnie shrugs off his hands, looking down at the ground. "Nothing," she murmurs. "I just didn't want to keep you waiting."

She doesn't see Kai frown at her behavior, but she knows she needs to get away from him and his easy affection when he cups her chin to lift her head so he could meet her gaze.

"What's wrong?" he asks and Bonnie scowls at him, knocking his hand away from her face. His eyebrows raise at that, but he doesn't get mad - if anything, he looks more concerned and how dare he?

"Don't touch me," Bonnie knows she's being irrational - what's a grasped chin, when she's seen him naked (almost twice!) and been straddled beneath him and watched him like a hungry wolf? What is it when she's known him less than a week, but feel like he's been around her whole life, when the two of them fit around each other like molding clay?

She knows she's being irrational, but Bonnie doesn't - can't - trust this feeling of rightness, of home and hearth and peace this stranger brings her.

So she glares up at him, tells herself the fluttering his height makes her feel is apprehension. Bonnie wishes she could look away, wishes she had her magic to erase this whole bad idea of a journey, when she sees the way he licks his lips and his eyes darken at her angry glower.

"Bonnie?" his low voice is almost imagined, it enters the quiet between them so gently.

Unbeknownst, they've drifted closer - her head is tilted back more and he looms over her, each of their eyes enthralled with the person in front of them. Bonnie can feel the heat of her anger transform, go from a blaze to a simmer, move from her neck and upper chest to places lower. Her breath catches. His jaw clenches.

Their lips collide.

The kiss is not what she expects (and she's somewhat repulsed with herself because how could she do that to Kai and to Jeremy, as to have expectations in the first place?) because it's too hard, too rough, too hungry. One of Kai's arms slips around her waist, dragging her closer, while the other runs parallel to her spine, hand clasping the base of her neck and pulling her head back so he can plunder her mouth. Her own hands don't rest idle, having immediately wrapped around his shoulders the moment his mouth met hers, her digits tangling in his hair and gripping hard, yanking him closer.

He moves her back into the washroom. Bonnie's back hits the edge of the sink, but before she can think on what to do, Kai's hands run down her bottom and grasp the back of her thighs, lifting her onto the sink and stepping between her legs in one smooth motion. His lips never leave hers, even when she leans back against the mirror that stood witness to her sins. No, he doesn't depart - instead he follows the pull of her needy hands and the allure of her hungry mouth.

Kai grasps her chin again, this time not in concern, but in domination, tilting her head back as his tongue takes her own hostage. He invades her senses, his taste, his scent, his warmth, his sounds of satisfaction, and Bonnie has to close her eyes to shut out the sight of his ravenous determination to have her. His large, warm hand grips her neck, pushing her shoulders backwards onto the mirror. His mouth finally leaves hers to pepper against her collarbone and Bonnie can at last gasp for air, dizzy from the dissolution of reason. He's still hungry for her and it's apparent in the way his mouth latches onto the curve of her neck, the way he sucks at it possessively, the way his hips press against hers almost painfully so that she's trapped between him and the porcelain sink, literally between a rock and a hard place and with no way to run.

Her hands run up and down his arms, both to soothe and to aggravate, before she clutches him closer, head thrown back, neck open to his assault, pelvis perfectly aligned with his. Above them, the fluorescent light flickers, threatening to plunge them into darkness. She can feel the urgent press of his erection against the juncture of her thighs. Spirits, Bonnie wants this, wants him, is so yearning for his touch, for his essence to be mingled with hers. She feels so warm and wanted, like someone took a torch and lit up her insides like a Halloween pumpkin, like she's done a huge spell that left her feeling like a live wire sparking in mineral water.

Her hands move, run down the front of his chest, his belly, grasps the waistband of his pants to draw him closer and Kai moans his approval into her neck, where his tongue laves a wicked pattern. The hand clamped around her neck runs a soothing thumb along her jawline, leaning her head to the side so he can suck bruises along the entire length of it. The other falls on a knee, squeezes it gently then pushing it away so that he can press against her even tighter. It runs up the outside of her thigh, under her black sundress and grasps the side of her black silk panties and tugs.

"Yes," Bonnie hisses. She arches up from the sink, giving him room to maneuver her underwear passed her ass. Her eyes open and she stares dazedly at the papered wall as Kai pulls down her panties and reaches for the moistened core it hid. His fingers brush against her clit in light circles and she jerks toward the sensation, the pattern on the wallpaper becoming sharper just before the light dies with a pop! Her head clears. It dawns on her then, where she is and what she's doing and who she's doing it with, and when Kai turns her head back around kiss her again, he can taste the rationality that now flavors her lips.

He pulls his mouth away and looks at her. In the dim light from outside, his eyes are heavy and clouded, irises blown, and, like her, his breaths come out in heavy pants. Eyes perusing her face, Kai removes his hands from their places between her legs and around her neck, resting them on the sink in a bracket of her frame. His head hangs low as he hunches over, swaying once, twice and then pulling away from her to lean back on the wall beside her.

"I'm sorry," he murmurs. He hands her her panties and looks away when she pulls them up.

"It's not your fault," she replies. She gives him an awkward smile. "I'm going to go back to the car."

He nods and moves away to give her space to leave. When he doesn't follow after her, Bonnie looks at him questioningly.

"Go ahead," he shoots her a friendly smile. "I'll be out in a few minutes."

Bonnie utters a soft okay, and goes out to the car. She has to double back to grab the bags she left on the counter, but once she's inside the car, she wants to slap herself. Instead, she groans and drops her head into the palm of her hands.

How could she be so fucking stupid?

What happened in the restroom - the almost mindless rut - wasn't something Bonnie did. She was cautious and fickle with her body because she knew she couldn't separate emotion and sex the way Caroline and Elena could. So what the hell had that been? She didn't have feelings for Kai - she couldn't! She's only known him for going on about four days.

But it's a lie, she knows, or at least a twisted truth. Logically, Bonnie shouldn't feel much of anything except tentative friendship towards Kai, but she does. The rush that filled her when they kissed wasn't friendly or mild or anything something so young should be.

She stays in that position for about five minutes before she starts to worry if her companion - or whatever he is now - is okay. Scoffing at herself, she makes the decision to forget about the fiasco and leans back to see if Kai is coming yet. She nearly jerks out of her skin when she sees him peering in at her curiously through the wind shield as he makes his way to the driver seat.

"You okay?" he questions. There is a deeper meaning to it, Bonnie knows, but she answers it shallowly.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Are you okay? You took forever."

He chuckles and starts the car, NWA filling the space between them with indignant curses. "Yeah, well, I had to take care of something," he responds.

Kai doesn't elaborate when Bonnie looks at him in confusion, but he does burst out in laughter when her expression clears in understanding. He takes the feeder road back to the freeway, the sounds of Ice Cube cussing out the police trailing out the open windows.

Gluttony: Appetites are hard to satisfy. || Temperance: Moderation is just a form of starvation.