9.
Present
"All right, Bonster. You ready?"
In his left hand, Kai holds a red beanbag. In his right, a wooden baseball bat which he's currently leaning on. They're going to practice some spells. Specifically, Kai's going to watch Bonnie fuck some shit up.
She pulls her long hair back into a low ponytail then twists and wraps the blonde strands until they form a bun at the base of her head. The sweater she took to brunch rests at the backdoor steps. The silky royal purple camisole she wears billows lightly in the wind, her skin absorbing the midday rays of the sun. She's got an effortless kind of beauty and Kai wonders if she knows that.
She squints and holds her right hand out at the ready. "Bring it."
He whistles. "Okay…" He gets in his own stance. Facing her from across the yard, he tosses the beanbag up in his palm before throwing it straight up in the air and swings the bat. They collide, sending it in Bonnie's direction. With her brows furrowed together, she mutters "phesmatos incendia" at the approaching object and it bursts into flames in the air. Sidestepping the ashes flying straight for her, she watches the smoldering pile land where she moments ago stood then she raises an arched eyebrow at Kai.
"Yeah, I didn't think that one completely through. Maybe we leave the fire for inert objects?"
"Ya think?" she replies. He tosses up another beanbag and strikes it with an impressive swing. This time Bonnie whispers "vatos", and it explodes raining tiny plastic beads down on her. She snorts, wondering what else she expected to happen, before convulsing in laughter.
Kai watches, both amused and impressed. He hasn't gotten to see her lighter side since she's been here. She's so suspicious and taken aback by all the things that are different. It would seem that magic is the one thing that allows her to be genuine.
"How about we try something that doesn't result in me getting pelted?" She shakes her tank, a few beads falling from her bra.
He resumes his earlier position, rests his weight on the bat. "What do you have in mind?"
Buttoning her lips, she turns to her left and then in the other direction as she takes in the whole of the backyard. There are tan picket fences separating their lush green lawn from the neighbors'. There, near the doors that open down into the basement, is Sheila's old garden. She strides over to the plot of dirt and withered bulbs and kneels.
Dropping the bat, Kai comes up beside her, his brows knitting together. She's already muttering by the time he's within earshot. "...plantus vivifey, plantus herbus. Phasmatos tribum, plantus vivifey, plantus herbus." A brown stem transforms back to its green state, the tulip bulb revived. Bonnie opens her eyes and smirks up at Kai.
"Well, now I have to unroot the whole thing," he says, folding his arms across his chest, to which Bonnie's smile drops. "Sheila's garden is supposed to be magic-free. Thriving, or not, with only the use of an ol' green thumb, ya know."
She sighs. "Now you're just making shit up."
That plot of garden was crafted with the intention of Bonnie learning elemental spells. They installed it maybe their third week in the townhouse. Bonnie had stopped giving her Grams the silent treatment by then because she missed their magic lessons.
Kai silently blinks in disappointment, and so Bonnie's response is to mutter "incendia" and watch the yellow flower go up in flames. She gets to her feet, wipes the dirt off her bare knees, and turns toward the house. Immediately, Kai wilts. "I'm sorry, Bonnie. I was joking. Really."
They do a little dance, her spinning in frustration to face him and his arms outstretched, his hands ready to fall on her shoulders but he doesn't dare touch her. "Well, you're not funny. I just destroyed a perfectly good flower." For effect, she glances back at the garden and waves her hand, a silent spell to douse the small fire.
He bites back the smile threatening to brighten his face. If he had to put money on it, Kai would bet Bonnie loves the incantations that result in fire. It could be that candle lighting was her first foray into magic or that's simply her personality. Fiery. And he likes getting under her skin. Anyone else wouldn't be worth the effort, but her… He doesn't tell her that, though.
"Let's try something else. I've been working on a spell I need help with."
Bonnie's nostrils flare. Their back and forth feels like Charlie Brown and Lucy van Pelt, only it's Bonnie going to kick the football and Kai's the one yanking it away. "What is it?"
His hands move to make a show of peace, palms facing out to her, and he saunters away to his car. She huffs. Through the open window, he retrieves his notebook and flips through the thin pages until he finds what he's looking for. He returns to Bonnie and hands it to her, his eyes dissecting her expression as she reads over the process. Her lips soundlessly murmur over the enchantment before quirking up at the corners.
"You forgot your binding agent."
Kai's jaw drops. "You're kidding." She flips the notebook back to him and he runs down his list of ingredients. Glaringly obvious is his omission of salt. He grins back at her. "I could kiss you right now."
Green eyes widen and she takes a noticeable step backwards, but Kai's already halfway to his car where he left his pen. Craning her neck side to side to release tension, Bonnie shakes out her arms. Why is she letting this guy make her nervous?
It's been a while since she had a chance to practice her magic with another person. She was a junior in high school when two black men showed up on their doorstep here in Whitmore. Bonnie sat reading a novel for her English class in her chair in the living room while Sheila spoke in hushed tones with the men on the porch. She made eye contact with the younger man through the window, a light-skinned guy with a shaved head and a dark mole just to the right of his nose. His eyes were conflicted but somehow still kind. Her Grams ended up turning them both away and refused to give Bonnie any details as to who they were, how they found her, or what they wanted.
A few years later, she bumped into the same guy on her way to her Anatomy and Physiology lab. He introduced himself as Luka Martin, a "warlock" whose father once asked the Bennetts for help finding his daughter. Luka's sister Greta had gotten mixed up with a very bad vampire and they were trying to save her. When Bonnie asked whatever became of his sister, his gaze turned downward. A gasp caught in her throat. They'd asked for help, her Grams said no, and a woman, a witch, was dead because of it.
From there they struck up an unlikely friendship. Bonnie thought he'd hold what happened to Greta against her, but that wasn't the case. While, yes, they were trying to save her, they'd also been hired by a vampire to foil whatever mess she'd gotten herself into. From her conversation with Caroline about the Original vampires, the names Niklaus and Elijah now made more sense. Elijah Mikaelson hired the Martins to remove Greta from the equation so the Sun and Moon Curse couldn't be broken but reneged at the last moment in the interest of saving his own brother. In the chaos that claimed Katherine Pierce, Hayley Marshall, and momentarily took Elena's life, Greta Martin was also killed.
Once they moved past their momentarily crossed paths, Bonnie was elated to find another magical person to practice with. Someone who understood that part of her. And it helped that he was exceedingly good looking even with a bald head. He was her sparring partner, renting out a warehouse in the industrial district so they could properly practice. Elemental and offensive spells. They'd craft psychometry incantations and invocations all while telling April and Grams and Luka's father they were studying chemistry.
After a semester of getting very close, they hooked up one night in her dorm when April was at the library. It was the first time they'd even kissed, though they both had been dying to for months, and while neither were virgins that was also the first time either had slept with another witch. He really meant something to Bonnie, so waking up the following morning to a note on her pillow saying he had to go to New Orleans was a bitter, bitter pill.
She never heard from him again.
Sparring with Kai feels different than it did with Luka. Bonnie can tell he's holding back. Or maybe he's testing her to see how powerful she is before he shows his hand.
"Hey," she calls after Kai. "Why do you let Grams call you by your full name?"
"Old habits die hard, I guess."
"What if I called you Malachai?"
He snorts. He doesn't hate the way it sounds rolling off her tongue, as if it's a precious gem. However, with the exception of Sheila, everyone who calls him by his official title of Malachai Parker are people who don't know him. His coven elders and members, his father… No, he would like Bonnie to know him.
He turns to face her and leans his back on the side of his car. "Only if I get to call you Bon Bon."
She shudders then chuckles humorlessly. "Please don't."
A vibrate jolts her. She pulls her phone from her back pocket and reads the screen. Jeremy sent a group text to her and April: Bonfire at the Falls! BYOB
April quickly responds: Thirsty Thursday? I'm there! Bon?
"Bon?"
"Huh?" She looks up, the message having completely disengaged her from the present. Kai's looking at her expectantly. He'd asked her a question. "I'm sorry, what?"
He tosses his notebook to the passenger seat. "I asked if you wanted to go grab a drink with me."
"Uh…" That's the second time he's asked in a handful of days and normally she wouldn't turn him down twice. She scratches her scalp. "There's actually a bonfire tonight at the falls. In Mystic Falls."
"Oh." His expression schools into a passive mask. "Okay."
Stuffing her phone into her back pocket, she approaches him. "You wanna go?"
"I think we both can agree I make an awkward tag-along."
"No, believe it or not, I think I'd rather you come with me? April will be there, but we're not really close with my old friends anymore."
He tightens his jaw and throws his eyes to the ground. "I dunno, Bon…"
She stops a yard away from him and props her hand on her hip. "What happened to getting to know each other? C'mon, we both need to get out of the house."
Meeting her bright gaze, he chews on his cheek. He'd promised Sheila he'd have dinner ready and he doesn't usually leave Whitmore unsupervised. But he'd be with Bonnie… And that would give them more time together. She's biting her lip in anticipation and he doesn't really want to say no. So he doesn't.
He heaves a defeated sigh. "Okay, sure."
Bonnie's wide mouth drops open in shock. She hadn't expected him to say yes so easily. "Okay! I'm going to change. Will you be ready in an hour?"
"An hour?" He blanches. "I thought you said bonfire, not a ball."
"Um, I have to dig through my boxes of clothes since there's no room in my closet to hang them up. Hint, hint."
"Oh, so it's my fault you take so long to get ready?"
"I'm just stating a fact," she cheekily replies.
He shakes his head. "No, you're right." He slaps the top of his car and marches to the house. Bonnie trails him, questioning him along the way. They rush through the back door, stride down the hallway between the kitchen and staircase, take the stairs two at a time until they're upstairs. Kai turns the knob to Bonnie's room and steps inside. His abrupt stop almost makes Bonnie run into the back of him.
He turns to his left and notes the two large cardboard boxes stacked on top of each other in the corner. He "hmph" then moves to the closet. Sliding the white wooden doors open, he reaches for the hangers with his clothes and yanks them out.
"You don't have to do that. I was joking. They're fine. I can wait."
"No, no," Kai argues, folding the heap of material over his arm. "This is your room. And I will not be responsible for tardiness."
"You do way too much, you know that?"
"Am I what the kids call extra?" He'd heard Liv use the term once or twice.
Bonnie can't help but snort at the colloquialism. "You are so extra!"
He takes in her smile, glad that it's at his own expense, and grins back. When they've been staring at each other for what feels like too long, Bonnie averts her eyes to the clothes he's holding. "I don't have any hangers."
Kai rolls his gray eyes to the ceiling. "Now you're just being greedy."
He disappears and Bonnie watches him go. When she no longer hears his heavy footsteps, she texts Jeremy and April that she'll be there.
x
They ride with the windows down, the wind whipping Bonnie's hair around. As she speaks, she twists the tendrils between her nimble fingers fashioning a single golden braid. She changed into a peachy floral skater dress with capped sleeves, the stretchy cotton soft on her skin. Kai's traded his cargo shorts for black jeans, a plain grey t-shirt, and converses. Once her hair's tamed, she straps up her sandals. She's not too cute to remember the shore of the falls is rocky and sandy as hell. No reason to wear heels or wedges unless she wants a broken ankle.
"What about Motown?"
Kai throws her a sideways glance. "Seriously?"
"What? Some people have a different definition of classics."
"Not me."
"Mm, country?"
He makes a face at the road ahead. "I mean, Dolly Parton and Hank Williams Jr. both had their day. But the whole my dog died and wife left me shtick just doesn't sit."
Bonnie makes a face. "You realize you're south of the Mason-Dixon line living here, right?"
"Is that a race thing?"
"I'm just saying…"
"Okay, Casey Kasem, what about you? Are you top forties, strictly nineties? You look like you were into Janet Jackson."
He's not wrong. "Grams listened to Motown. My dad listened to everything from The Beatles and Nina Simone to New Kids On the Block, and my mom left behind a pretty sweet eighties, nineties hip-hop and rap collection. I think I still have the cassettes in the basement somewhere."
"You ever hear from her? Your mom?"
She wistfully glances out the window, deeply inhales the summer breeze. "Nah. I wouldn't be surprised if she died a long time ago."
Kai doesn't respond to that, but Bonnie's not done grilling him. They're both pretty similar in the music department, though his knowledge is pretty stuck in the 80s and early 90s. He doesn't seem to be a big fan of much music past the turn of the century. "Madonna."
"Eh."
"Lady Gaga."
"Who?"
"David Bowie."
"Always."
"Prince?"
"For him, I definitely would."
That earns him a hearty laugh from the passenger seat. "So basically you've got the musical taste of a forty year old man."
"You say that like it's a bad thing." He flashes her white toothed smile.
The car turns off the main highway. Tires spin rocks and sand as they rumble down the dirt road to the falls. In the distance, the bass of a song of an unidentifiable genre blares. Bonnie's stomach flips and she hates that. Her and Kai had a nice ride with entertaining conversation. Not once did they get on each other's nerves, but now that ease is quickly depleting.
Kai notices her anxiety tick up, the lights on his dashboard flickering. Does she even know how strong her magic is? Most witches don't affect their environment the way Bonnie seems to. He parallel parks between two oak trees and idles. "There's no shame in turning around and going home."
Confusion colors her face. What makes him think she wants to go home? And why does the word "home" from his lips sound more appealing than it did just days ago? Her eyes dart to the lights of his radio dimming and brightening and she gets her answer to at least one question. "I'm fine."
He raises his eyebrows in a skeptical look but says nothing. Killing the engine and tucking his keys in the visor, he gets out and rounds the large brown hood of his car to open her door. She steps out and tugs at the hem of her dress, the heat and humidity of summer causing her thighs to stick together. "Okay, one more and then we can go. Nirvana?"
Kai pushes out a gust of air and shoves his hands in his front pockets. He looks everywhere but at her. "Bonnie, I don't know how to tell you this but… I'm much more of a Hole fan."
"Courtney Love?" She scoffs. "That totally changes my view of you."
"Is that good or bad?"
She smirks and walks off. Amused and admittedly a little turned on, Kai grabs the six pack Bonnie bought from the gas station and shuts the passenger side door. "Bon, is that good or bad?"
x
April and Jeremy find Bonnie and Kai nursing their drinks by the treeline. With the sun setting and the bonfire raging, there is a warm glow cast over the grounds. Bonnie sips a hard cider, her body turned toward Kai in an effort to both scope out any familiar faces and hide herself from anyone recognizing her. They idly chat more about music, but their attention is on people watching.
"Bon!" April shrieks, hugging her best friend around the waist. Bonnie sways from the force but rights herself. Jeremy strides beside them, clinks his Bud Lite against Kai's own bottle of hard cider. Kai squints. "We've been looking all over for you. Oh, hiya Kai."
The Parker witch smirks like he's got a secret but he swallows his amusement by sipping his drink. "April. Nice to see you again."
"Ah, he speaks!"
"He actually talks a lot," Bonnie chimes in. "It's almost impossible to get him to shut up."
She can make fun at his expense. He can take it.
April bends forward, the backside hem of her red polka dot sundress riding up, and snatches a hard cider. "Ya mind?" Bonnie shakes her head. Yeah, her friend is either very stressed by being home or she started drinking before she came out here.
The two young women catch up because, even though they text every day, they haven't gone this long without seeing each other in a while. The men stand sentry. The Parker witch isn't too interested in anything Jeremy could say and he hopes Bonnie doesn't expect him to be overly cordial. He'd rather have food poisoning - from both ends.
"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit," April cries. "I can't remember where I left my cell phone. Jer, did I leave it in the car?"
Without pretense the two leave as swiftly as they came, and Bonnie breathes out audibly. "Your friend is…"
"A mess, yeah," she concedes. "I still love her to pieces, though." She takes another swig and spots Caroline on the other side of the bonfire. She's standing beside Stefan and a man who Bonnie belatedly recognizes as Damon Salvatore. Caroline catches her eye and makes a beeline for her.
"Bonnie Bennett, look who decided to grace us with her presence." Caroline sweeps Bonnie in an almost bone crushing hug. "I am so sorry about the other night. I don't know why I was so bitchy. It's not like I have a time of the month anymore."
She releases the little witch and places both hands on her hips. She dons a pink bikini top and daisy dukes, the strings of the matching bikini bottoms peeking out from her shorts. Her blue eyes bounce from Bonnie to Kai. "I know you. You're Sheila's shadow."
Better than a leech, Kai thinks to himself as he smiles at the passive aggressive blonde. "That'd be me."
"Bonnie, I didn't know you were bringing a date," Caroline stage-whispers.
It's not as if she knew Bonnie was even coming, but Bonnie pushes the mental chide aside. "Me neither. Is that…" She points. "That's not who I think it is, is it?"
Caroline turns at the waist even though she knows exactly who Bonnie's talking about. "That most certainly is. With Elena out of the country, the brothers are like a package deal or something. At least with her, it's easier to share custody."
Damon gestures to them and the blonde vampire huffs. She goes to march over, but Bonnie grabs her wrist. "I know I've been gone for forever, but… You don't have to be around him if you don't want to."
Misty blue eyes meet thoughtful green ones, and Caroline smiles. "Trust me. I never do anything I don't want to anymore." Steeling herself to return to the Salvatores, she takes a deep breath and tosses her hair over her shoulder. "I hope you guys brought your bathing suits, because the water's really nice this time of night."
Bonnie and Kai watch her saunter away. Neither know what to say. Gaze still on the three vampires on the other side of the clearing, Kai tilts his head in Bonnie's direction. "It's not too late to cut and run. I don't think anyone will miss us too much."
She looks up at him and she gets an idea. Tossing back the rest of her hard cider, she discards the empty bottle and reaches for the hem of her dress. She lifts it up and over her head revealing a seamless pair of bright blue panties and a matching bra. The thought to bring a bikini never crossed her mind, but it's been so long since she swam in the river.
Kai's mind goes blank looking down at Bonnie. He gulps. Her panties sit low on her hips and cut right across the cheeks of her ass like the underwear company suddenly ran out of fabric. She's got a devious glint in her eyes and it doesn't take a genius to figure out where her mind is at. He, too, knocks back the rest of his drink, pulls off his shirt and kicks off his shoes. Getting out of his jeans is a little less graceful, but Bonnie teems with excitement that she didn't have to say a word for him to catch her drift.
Grinning like idiots, they leave their clothes and what's left of their six pack in a heap behind a tree and hurry to the shoreline. The water's warm and lapping with partiers. Bonnie and Kai swim out to the center of this pocket of the river. Backstroking with her wistful gaze on the colors streaming across the darkening sky, Bonnie circles Kai.
"You're a really good swimmer."
"I should be. I was a lifeguard once upon a time."
"How Baywatch of you."
She snorts. His references are dated but never so obscure she can't connect. "Tell me something, Kai."
"What to you want to know?" He wades in the water, turning with her as she rounds him.
Bonnie shrugs, slowing to a lazy float. She flicks her eyes to him and hones in on the silver chain around his neck. She never noticed it before or the charm hanging from it. She tucks her body back so she's vertical in the water and reaches for the tiny silver circular plate. There's an etched image of a bunch of lines and dots in the form of a constellation placed behind a piece of glass. "What's this?"
His breath hitches in his throat. She's so close he can smell river water and the lavender shampoo she apparently still uses after all these years. Her knuckles graze his chest and keep tapping his skin as they bob, their magic sparking. He's made a very concerted effort to not touch her, but here she is in his personal space like it's the easiest thing for her to do.
It's not until she looks up through her long lashes that he realizes she's waiting for an answer. He swallows against the dryness of his throat. "The Gemini constellation. It's my family's original crest."
"Original?" Handling it like it's a relic, she gingerly twists the emblem with her fingertips. There's nothing on the back but .925 telling her it's sterling silver, so she flips it back.
"The last two coven leaders wanted something a little more modern so they came up with these, like, logos that only Gemini witches would recognize. But they were just obscure as hell. I came across this in our archives and thought the the fourteenth century was pretty vintage."
"Your coven goes back to the thirteen hundreds?"
"Officially, yeah. The Bennetts go back to Salem, right?"
She scoots away from him, the water swishing through her fingers. "Last I checked, I can traced an ancestor of mine back to one BC."
He gapes. "You're serious? How do you know that?"
"It's a long story."
"Look at you, being vague."
She spins away from him and propels a few yards away. He's quick on her heels. "Bonnie Bennett, you can swim but you can't hide."
"It's complicated and I don't want to go into it," she throws over her shoulder. Gasping deeply, she dives under the surface and breaststrokes towards shore. Blinking, Kai waits a moment before chasing her. Sometimes with her it's like pulling teeth without novocaine.
Her feet hit the sandy bottom and she wades to the bank before hurrying over to the tree where she left her dress. There's nothing there so she searches the nearby trunks. Maybe she mistook which tree… Frowning, Kai comes up behind her. While he wholly appreciates the view before him, her magic alerts him something is wrong. "Bon?"
"I can't find our clothes. I could've sworn I left them...right - here," she huffs, swatting at shrubbery.
"Bon."
"What?" She whips around and finds Kai holding a ripped piece of cardboard that had earlier been holding their six pack. Squinting at the lettering in black marker, she reads Welcome Home, Bon Bon.
"Looks like you have a secret admirer."
Her good mood ruined, she snatches the note. "Not even…"
Past
"Bonnie Bennett, just the witch I wanted to see."
Once was one time too many, but here he is again. Damon Salvatore with his leather jacket, floppy hair, and predatory gaze. The first time she found him waiting by her car, she'd been scared out of her wits. Now, she filled with indignant rage. He already showed his face at the 50's decade dance when for one, he's too old and two? Everyone knows what he did to Caroline.
He needs to stop skulking around like an old pervert. "Get out of my way," she grumbles, bumping his shoulder to pass him.
"Temper, temper."
"What is wrong with you? No one wants you here. Not your brother or Elena. Definitely not Caroline after what you did to her. I should tell her mom, you know, the sheriff."
"You really don't want to do that, Bon Bon."
She shifts her binders under her arm. "No, I think I do. Hello, 911? There's this older guy lurking around high school aged girls at Mystic Falls High. White male with dark hair and blue eyes. Not quite six feet, but he thinks he is. Sure, I'll hold."
He grimaces at the threat. "Give me chance here, huh? I want us to be friends. I saved you from Emily, remember?"
"You almost killed me!" she spits.
He steps closer pressing her between him and her car like he'd done the first time he tracked her down. "I'd really like to do this the easy way, but I could just make you."
"You can't compel me and you know it."
"I have other ways of getting what I want," he threatens through thin lips and gritted teeth.
"So much for friends, huh?" She elbows him in the stomach to get him off of her, hops into her car, and speeds away.
Author's Note: I must run to a christmas party but wanted to post before I go. This is starting to get into the meat and potatoes of the thing, and I don't know about you but I'm excited ; )