...
They left the small house in the early hours, when it wasn't quite morning yet. But the deepest night at least was over. It was still dark, however, and cold.
Annoyed, Bonnie rolled her eyes at the weather. She was so over it. With a weary sigh, she followed Enzo, who was leading her on their way into the unknown. He had jotted down a map for her, showing her the rough outline of the route they would be taking, deep into the Outskirts, and from there, into Silveren territory. The thought alone had made her feel the tingle of anxious anticipation, mixed with the cold sweat of a panic attack. But they didn't have a choice.
She wished they could have just stayed away from everyone else, away from the war, from the Golden, the Silveren, the Bonded and the Eternals. But it wasn't meant to be. They were in too deep. They were an amalgamation of it all, and they were falling apart. Enzo's whole arm was slowly taking on the color of his scar, his pain a constant in both their lives. Their link was the one thing keeping him functioning, and when he quietly told Bonnie that he was now officially holding the record of being the Eternal alive for the longest period without access to a weapon, she was so deeply shocked and upset that she didn't even know what exactly to say to him.
"So… this is uncharted territory? It could just be our bond keeping you alive?"
He gave her the saddest resigned look and apologized. Of course it wasn't his fault, she knew that. It just upset her that they couldn't figure this one out without help, that they had to deal with that whole complication to begin with. As if their strange relationship, their bond wasn't difficult enough already.
They were riding side by side, when Enzo spoke next. "They'll be looking for me."
"We already know that," she replied, but he shook his head.
"Not just your people. Mine too."
"Why? For all they know you're still on your mission, right? You were alone, so nobody would be any the wiser on what actually happened."
"Yeah." He gave her a strange look.
"What are you not telling me?" Suddenly wary, she frowned at him. But he only shook his head, strands of dark hair falling in his eyes, before he turned away again, scanning the land ahead of them.
"They expected me to report back a while ago."
"Report back?"
He looked at her somewhat flustered. "Don't play dumb, Bonnie. Even if you're not military, you should know that soldiers can't just go off and leave without anyone noticing."
Biting her lip, she tried to fight the urge to snap back at his patronizing tone. She knew he was agitated, she could feel it over their link, so she let it go. But she was still a little upset about it.
"Alright," she eventually said, "You're overdue for reporting back. That's it? Which means they'll think you either died or got captured—"
"Or deserted," he added, his mouth a thin line. "They'll be searching for me. An Eternal can't just leave. There'll be a highly trained search troop coming for me. For us..."
Awesome, Bonnie thought. How many more rocks would get thrown into their path? She had hoped Damon's betrayal was the worst of it, and that him coming around would make things at least a little easier for them. She was stupid for having allowed herself to entertain that thought. Nothing was easy anymore.
"So what now?"
They exchanged a glance. Bonnie could see the muscles work in Enzo's jaw as he seemed to be making a decision.
"There's someone I could try to contact," he eventually allowed, "They're military, too. An old friend... and my sister."
"You have a sister," Bonnie blurted out in surprise, she couldn't help herself. Enzo didn't seem to be reading anything into her testy tone, however, which was probably for the better. She didn't know what she had been thinking. They had slept together, spent time together, shared pain; and yet they were still only strangers to each other. She knew nothing about him. And he knew nothing about her.
He had a sister...
She forced herself to redirect her thoughts. Two groups of people were coming for them. Hers and his. It was only a matter of time until one or maybe even both groups found them. They would have to be even more careful to not fall into the wrong people's hands. Easier said than done when you needed help.
Now Enzo had mentioned that friend, and a sister. But they were military too, and that worried Bonnie. Trusting someone that was also with the Silveren military didn't sound like a good plan at all. She didn't really know what to say.
"What if your friend informs her superiors that you contacted her? What about your sister? How close are you? Can you really trust her? I mean, if your people are that desperately waiting to hear back from you?"
"They wouldn't do that."
Bonnie frowned, strangely annoyed about how sure of that he sounded. Because her own best friend had betrayed her…
"You don't know that."
Enzo smiled at her mildly. "I do."
"That's what I thought about Damon and Elena," she argued, and his expression changed into something darker, sadder. But there was understanding in there, too, and it got to her.
"I know. But that may have been the bond corrupting them. They may have gotten brainwashed during whatever 'training' you guys get when you establish that type of… connection."
Bonnie's breath hitched. He had said it so casually, like he just knew how the military worked and that that was something they would do. But the thought had never even occurred to her. Yet it explained so much. The Damon she knew - had known - would have never done what he had ended up doing.
"But I'm sure your military gives you all similar training," she argued, still trying to make sense of his words. Enzo shook his head, suddenly guarded, clenching and unclenching his jaw. Something was working in him, and she didn't know what that was.
"You can't tell me we are so much worse than you guys," she added, scrutinizing him. Before she could continue, he interrupted her, sounding uncharacteristically angry.
"That's not what I'm saying. If anything, it's the other way around. The Silveren… we are worse. Okay? You have no idea what they do to us once we've joined the military. And that is exactly the reason why I trust my friend. And my sister." He gave her a pointed look, then asked, "Do you have siblings, Bonnie?"
She pressed her lips together, suddenly feeling vulnerable.
"No." It was just a breath.
"Then you don't understand the trust that comes with that."
He looked at her, agitation visible in his features. Her eyes flitted over him, her anger quickly dissipating, despite his harsh words. He was right. She didn't know what it was like to have a brother or sister, but she did know how much she had trusted her own flesh and blood, her parents. She would have to trust Enzo and hope that his own trust in people she didn't know would, in turn, be honored.
What he had said about the Silveren military gave her pause. She merely had to put two and two together to figure out that whatever he was alluding to couldn't be very good. If the scar on his arm that had turned him into an Eternal was anything to go by, it must have been gruesome. She didn't have the heart to ask or argue any more, so she finally simply nodded and they continued on their journey in silence for a while.
...
They had been riding for half a day already, with only one stop in between, and Bonnie felt herself getting too sore and too tired. That there was still an awkward tension between them didn't help matters at all.
She wasn't willing to admit that she needed a break, however, pride getting the better of her. So she simply trudged on, hoping against hope that Enzo would soon make the decision that it was time to put up camp for the night. When that didn't happen, when they were still marching on come nightfall, even their horses looking tired and drawn, she sighed, and eventually put her foot down.
"Alright. Fine. I'm done," she announced, stopping right where she was and hopping off her poor horse. The ground underneath her was hard and frozen over and it was probably not the greatest spot to spend the night, but it was better than sitting on a horse for even just another minute. She was over it.
Enzo reined his horse in, finally looking at her for the first time in hours, and Bonnie was a little surprised to see him smile at her. Her own features darkened as she glared at him.
"Do you have anything to say, or are you just gonna stay on your horse and… stare at me?" Her frustration broke out of her unbidden, which made her even angrier. And she was angry, she didn't even know why. Angry at her situation, at the world, at being kept in the dark about that friend and sister of Enzo's.
"You're jealous." He smirked at her, hopping off his horse with ease. As he came to stand before her, Bonnie's glare intensified. She rolled her eyes and turned away from him, rubbing a cold hand over her icy cheeks and nose.
"Whatever," she hissed. "I'll just try and get some rest…"
She wasn't looking, but she heard him busy himself with his horse behind her back, while she tried to set up camp, making a little bedstead of sorts under a few nearby trees. She felt his stare in her back, felt his smile, but she didn't look around. He had called her jealous. She was upset about that, too. Admittedly, though, he was right. She was jealous. She didn't know the friend or sister at all. Didn't know what they looked like, whether they were smart, kind, or rough and wild. She didn't know whether they could truly trust either of them. And she was terrified of getting sidelined by them. Those women had history with Enzo.
Something she didn't really have yet.
Unless you count that strange mind-bond, or the fact that you pretty much saved my life; the fact that you were there for me when I was at my worst. Or the fact that I love you…
She started and whirled around. "You read my mind," she breathed, embarrassed, shocked, angry.
"I - what?" He gave her a genuinely puzzled look, a slightly uncomfortable frown, and she checked their bond, heat flushing into her face as she realized what had happened. She was in his mind. Not the other way around. Biting the inside of her lip, she looked away, upset with herself. She really needed to pull herself together. Whenever she got too agitated, she apparently overrode his poor mind and-
He loved her.
His words registered with her at exactly that moment and she secretively stared up at him, where he stood by his horse. Did he really mean it?
Slowly, she walked over until she stood right in front of him, gazing up into his eyes, a finger moving up to touch the curl of his lips as if of its own accord. He seemed a bit self-conscious, maybe perplexed, but he didn't push her away. Was he even aware that she had heard what he had said? Love was a pretty big word...
"There's really nothing for you to be jealous about, Bonnie," he said, swallowing, finally averting his gaze. "I'm sorry if I or any of my actions today led you to believe otherwise. I'm... scared, is all, I guess," he quietly admitted with such raw honesty that she forgot why she had even been upset to begin with. "Maybe I was trying to flee from that powerless feeling by riding without a pause. I'm sorry. I should have-"
She placed a finger right over his mouth, stopping him, shaking her head. She wanted to save him the trouble, wanted to spare him having to be so open and vulnerable.
I love you too, she abruptly blurted out, using her inner voice, closing her eyes. What the hell was she doing? This was definitely not just "saving him the trouble." This was... stupid. Scary. Honest.
Her heart was beating way too fast.
I really do. And that's what scares me.
…
They spent the night huddled together under all the blankets they had, still freezing terribly. Bonnie was the first one up in the morning, and quickly began to finally make a small fire and get some water boiling to awaken their frozen bodies.
They hadn't dared it during the night, too aware of the fact that the flames could have been seen from miles away. They had paid for their caution dearly, teeth chattering, fingers and toes blue, and Bonnie was worried that the new day's ride would be the worse for it.
When the water was hot and ready, she walked over to where Enzo still sat leaning against one of the trees. Extending a mug full of steaming water to him, she smiled.
"Drink up. We gotta get going," she told him, and he grimaced at her chipper tone.
"How do you even do it?" he asked, and she shrugged, knowing what he meant.
"My grandma said winters didn't used to be this bad, though they certainly used to be this cold. Just not for as long. She said way back when - way before the Last War - most people were like us: sturdy enough to function both in the heat and the cold."
"I guess evolution screwed us over in that regard, too, then. The Silveren shouldn't even be around anymore."
She smiled at him mildy. "Well, I, for one, am glad that you are still around." Her words were as close to an acknowledgment of their confessions from the day before as they had gotten. She flopped down next to him, getting ready for the inevitable talk, when suddenly, they both heard noises: horses approaching. People.
They froze. Exchanging a glance, they scrambled up.
Who do you think it is? Bonnie asked, fear rising inside of her. She wished for it to be a troop of her own people, but then again, what did it matter anymore? The Golden weren't going to treat them any better than the Silveren. Unless they came across someone that hadn't heard of their escape. Which was highly doubtful, at least if they encountered any Golden. She knew how it worked. All the Bonded would have informed their partners. They had an intricate system among themselves. She hadn't been in a mind-bond for long enough to have been taught how exactly it worked, but she knew that it did.
Enzo motioned for her to stay with the horses, while he slowly crept past the trees and surrounding underbrush to try and catch a glimpse of whoever was out there. She felt her knees start shaking and she tried her best to tense her body to stop it.
When he came back to her, he didn't look too pleased. My people. Definitely military. I counted six; an outpost, most likely. Could be a search troop...
Her heart sank at the news. What should we do?
He gave her a look, intense and dark. For a crazy moment she thought he could just betray her. Offer her up. For his own safety; for a reward.
I'd never do that. He looked hurt. Despite their dire situation, what had really gotten to him was that stupid thought of hers and she was upset that she had managed to screw up yet again and he had been able to read it.
I know. She gave his arm a quick squeeze and was relieved when he seemed to accept it. He clenched his jaw, peeking out between the bushes again, and she repeated her question.
So what should we do?
Wait. Hope they won't see us. He didn't move, just stared at her. It was strange how good they had gotten at communicating that way. It felt almost natural.
And if they do? she asked, forcing herself to not fidget with her hands by shoving them deep into the pockets of her coat. She was so horribly nervous. Anxious. She needed to remember to breathe. Don't panic, she told herself and she saw him give her a small smile.
I'll try to talk to them. Breathe, Bonnie. It'll be alright.
She smiled back, feeling awkward. She hadn't had anyone other than her mom or Damon look out for her in a too long time. She was simply not used to this. She sniffed, overwhelmed by everything.
Do you think they could know who you are?
He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Out there, the approaching sounds were getting louder, but Bonnie was focused only on him.
Enzo?
His gaze was trained on the horizon when he finally answered. They will most definitely know.
Because you're an Eternal and haven't reported back... She nodded, rolling her eyes at herself. Of course they would know who he was. They've all been told to look for you.
That too. He shook his head, looking incredibly uncomfortable. But also because I'm their Captain's son…
Bonnie's mouth fell open as she gazed at Enzo in shock. She didn't know too much about the Silveren, about their political structure, their military. Heck, she didn't even know enough about her own. But she did remember one thing: The Silveren were a people under the command of the military. They had only one true leader, and it was their Captain.
And Enzo was... the Captain's son?!