"Whoa, okay, time out. We could both use a break."
"Good point." Caroline and Allison sat down for a while.
"You know, you're not bad for a rookie."
"Well, I've had to face werewolves and Katherine before." Caroline told her. "You have no idea what I can handle."
"You're a lot tougher than you look."
"Well, I did learn from the best and having Maria and the Salvatores as my friends didn't hurt."
"Yeah, I know. She just always seems to bring out the best in people." Allison said.
"How did you two meet, anyway?"
"We were best friends." Allison explained. "I was a party girl in college. We met at one of the parties. I thought she was just some shy freshman girl looking for a place to stay."
"Yeah, it took her a while to warm up to me, too." Caroline said. "All I knew about her was that she was the new girl posing as Bonnie's cousin. Sort of makes sense since I know they're both witches now."
"Yeah, when she told me she was a vampire, I thought she was joking." Allison said. "Then she saved me from getting jumped on my way home once."
"How long have you been a vampire?" Caroline asked.
"A while now." Allison said. "Actually, Maria's the one who turned me. We decided to travel together, but I got hurt pretty badly one day. Her spells weren't working, so she healed me the only other way she could. If it weren't for her, I'd really be…"
"Wow." Caroline said. "At least you were close with her. I barely knew Maria before I became a vampire."
"Well, she's always willing to help out friends that she meets, no matter how annoying you are." Allison said.
"Hey!"
"What? You remind me of me when I turned." Allison said.
"Yeah, at least you weren't turned by a psychotic doppelganger."
"Hey, things happen." Allison said. "Anyway, you seem close with that werewolf friend of yours."
"That's all we are, Ali. Just friends."
"Really? Cause I thought you two were together."
"Why would you think that?" Caroline asked. "Besides, I just broke up with Matt."
"Look, Maria told us about everything that happened in Mystic Falls while we weren't around." Allison said. "It's obvious that you like Tyler as more than just a friend." Caroline blushed. "Look, I get you need time to get over your ex, but if he can't accept you for all of you, maybe you should be with someone who does understand."
"That's pretty deep for a party girl like you."
"Well, I know from experience." Allison told her.
"Wait a minute, are you and Nate…"
"We're not talking about me here, are we?" Allison said. "My point is, love always finds us in the weirdest places. I mean, look at Maria. None of us thought she and Damon would finally become a couple."
"It's not that unbelievable." Caroline said. "They might be opposites, but she gets this part of him that none of us can."
"Exactly, Care. It is okay to call you that, right? I mean, we're friends, aren't we?"
"I guess. Maybe after practice we can go shopping." Caroline said.
"I'd like that." Allison said. "Anyway, why don't you show me your best moves?"
"Bring it on, eighties chick."
...
"How about you start by showing us what you know how to do?" Bonnie asked.
"Well, I only know how to do small stuff right now." Lauren told her. They were at her house with Jeremy and Matt.
"That's okay. Just show us anything." Jeremy said.
"Okay." Lauren looked around the room. She noticed a fruit bowl on the table. She concentrated and an apple started levitating.
"That's pretty cool." Matt said.
"It was one of the first ones I learned." Lauren said. She gently placed it back.
"You know, if you concentrate hard enough, I'll bet you can use it as an offense to keep the enemies away." Bonnie said.
"I don't know, I don't believe in using my powers to hurt others." Lauren said.
"Just think of it as pushing them back." Jeremy said. "Believe me, I'm not much of a fighter either, but I'd do anything to protect my friends."
"Come on, I'll help you out." Bonnie told her. She stood next to Lauren. She looked at Jeremy. "Sorry, you don't mind, do you?"
"Not at all, just don't do anything that could turn me into a tree or something."
"Okay, concentrate. Try pushing Jeremy back." Bonnie said.
"Got it." Lauren said. They focused their powers.
"Uh, guys? Was that supposed to happen?" Lauren opened her eyes, Bonnie had a hand over her mouth. Jeremy was floating in mid-air.
"Oops." Lauren said. "Guess that still needs work."
"Okay, let's just try and get him down from there." Bonnie told her. "Believe me, we've all made mistakes during our first try."
They managed to bring Jeremy back down. "You okay?" Matt asked.
"Yeah, that was a little weird though." Jeremy said.
"Sorry about that." Lauren said.
"Hey, it's no big deal. Besides, you just need a little more practice." Jeremy said
"Maybe we should try something a little easier." Bonnie said.
"Yeah, I have a feeling this could take a while." Lauren told her.
"You can do this, Lauren. Here, try this." Bonnie set a heavy book on the table.
"That's a lot of reading material."
"I want you to try and throw it at the wall using your powers." Lauren focused and managed to levitate the book off the table. She seemed to be straining.
"It's really heavy."
"Okay, stop." Bonnie said. Lauren set the book back on the table.
"What's going on?" Matt asked.
"When witches push themselves too far using magic, it can start to hurt them." Jeremy explained. "This stays between us, though. If the others found out, it'd put these two in danger."
"Got it. I won't tell anyone."
"When she said you were a beginner, I didn't know you struggled like this."
"I never told her." Lauren explained.
"Okay, why don't we try using this one? It was part of my summer reading assignment, but it only made me fall asleep." Bonnie said. Lauren concentrated again and managed to fling the book against the wall. "Nice work."
"Guys, was that supposed to happen?" Matt pointed to a spot on the wall. Apparently her magic had left a burn mark on the wall.
"I guess I can tell them it was a loose wire." Bonnie said.
"Sorry."
"Hey, it's fine, Lauren. I've had my own incidents. See that mark over on that wall? There used to be a picture frame over there." Bonnie told her. They all looked at the wall she was pointing at.
"Whoa." Lauren said. .
"You did that?" Matt asked.
"I always wondered what you used for practice besides Damon." Jeremy said. The others looked at him. "What? No one else really likes the guy and it did help with her with that spell."
"True." Bonnie said. "Though that was before Maria had feelings for him."
"Are you kidding?" Lauren asked. "Maria's always had feelings for him. Even before she turned."
"Whoa."
"You don't have to feel bad, though. She's used it on him a few times, too." Lauren said.
"Oh, right." Bonnie said. "I remember when they got into a nasty fight. It ended with her giving him a migraine that lasted for days, and that was before they started dating."
"Anyway, we should probably get back on topic."
"You're right. Okay, let's try the same spell again. This time I'll help you."
The two of them held hands and levitated the book. It managed to hit the wall this time. What they didn't expect was for it to shatter the window. "Was that supposed to happen?" Jeremy asked.
"It's okay, I can fix it." Bonnie said. She used a spell that automatically fixed the window.
"I have got to learn that one someday." Lauren said.
"Well, for now let's stick with defending yourself." Bonnie told her.
"Alright."