What's this? Another new chapter? So soon? Yes, it is. I seriously love writing scenes with Kai in them. And it seems that you all love them too, so I was excited to write this chapter.
There's an important question in the end author note I would love for you all to answer and I will also answer a reviewer question. But for now, enjoy the chapter. :)
"And of course, I broke into the Oval Office and took a picture of myself at the window, looking all JFK. But then I was like, 'Wait, how am I going to get these photos developed?'" Kai said from his spot in front of the fireplace tied to a chair.
"Oh my God." Damon interrupted him. "Just answer the damn question. How are we going to get out of this Twilight Zone?"
"I got a question for you." Kai avoided Damon's question. "Why do you think we're stuck on a repeating loop of May 10th, 1994? Doomed to relive a solar eclipse forever, and ever, and ever."
"How the hell should I know?" Damon said, taking a sip of his Bourbon.
"Well, I heard you tell Bonnie this place was your own personal hell. I'm kinda curious why?"
Charlie walked into the parlor then. "And we have decided that it's not his hell. It's mine."
"Hey there, Doll Face. Why don't you do me a little favor and untie me?" Kai flirted with Charlie. "Unless, you're into that kind of thing. In which case I'm totally up for it."
Both Damon and Charlie sent him a murderous look and Bonnie stepped into the room before she could snap back at him. Bonnie was carrying a book bag filled with the items Kai sent her and Charlie to search for.
"We found everything you asked for: can-opener, shower drain, grinding wheel, jam, pocket knife, volume 'O' of the encyclopedia, a nail, a black marker, and a white lily, which was the most difficult to find." Bonnie said, dumping out the contents of the book bag on the table.
"Why the hell did you need a lily anyway?" Damon asked.
"Untie me and I'll tell you."
The three shared a look before Charlie reluctantly grabbed a knife and cut the tape keeping his wrists tied to the chair.
Kai rubbed at his wrists, "Ahh. Thanks babe." Charlie just narrowed her eyes at him.
"Okay. Now, how is this pile of crap going to get us out of here?" Damon asked.
"I'll exlpain... as soon as you tell me what you did on May 10th, 1994." Kai said.
"What difference does it make?!" Damon asked, frustrated.
"Let me put it this way; Bonnie's magic is one part of the equation. My as-yet undisclosed knowledge is the other. Which means you would be hitching a ride home for free. I just want to know if you deserve to come along." Kai explained.
"What about Charlie?" Damon asked, wondering what her part of the 'equation' was. Charlie raised an eyebrow at Damon and he just shrugged.
"I'm letting her come with us out of the kindness of my heart." Kai said and sent a wink to Charlie. "You're welcome, Sweetness."
"Oh how kind of you." She replied sarcastically.
"Now, do you deserve to go back?" Kai asked Damon.
Damon grabbed the pocket knife from Charlie and lifted Kai up off the chair before pressing the blade against his neck.
"How about I just torture you until you say something useful?"
"If you torture me, I'll get mad, and then I won't want to help you." Kai looked over to the girls. "What kind of person needs that explained to them?"
"Damon, just let him go." Charlie said. "Whether we like it or not, he's our best chance at getting home right now."
Damon dropped Kai but kept the knife up to his neck. Bonnie walked over and took the knife from him while Kai just laughed and sat down on the couch.
"Play nice." Bonnie warned Damon. "Why don't you just tell him your story?"
"Maybe because I don't want to talk about the worst thing I ever did, Bonnie."
Bonnie looked confused before looking over to Charlie. "Do you know what happened?"
Charlie nodded her head and shared a look with Damon. Even now, years later, Damon looked guilty about what he did because he knew he crossed a line and made a mistake he couldn't take back. It was one of his lowest points in his existence.
"Yeah, I do." Charlie said. "And it's not good."
"Ooohh. Now I'm listening." Kai said and ate some jam from the jar with his hand.
Mystic Falls, 1994
The front doorbell rang out through the Salvatore Boarding House and Stefan opened the door to Damon who was holding a newspaper.
"Ready for some bad news?" Damon asked but Stefan just continued to stare at him. "Barely seen you in fifty years, Stefan. You could invite a brother in."
"Give me one good reason why." Stefan said.
"Check your answering machine, I'm trying to turn over a new leaf."
"Oh, I heard your message. I also heard you sent Lexi some flowers, seventeen years after you left her to burn to death on a rooftop."
"Well-"
"It's a little late, but I see you're trying to make amends. I just want to know why." Stefan said.
"Uh, well, I can tell you this Stefan, I'm tired of tearing up New York City. And, maybe it's the partying of maybe it's my conscience-"
"Well, I believe that would require one." Stefan interrupted but Damon just kept talking.
"And then, I had this moment of clarity, and I said, 'Wouldn't it be great if I just woke up in my own bed and could have a fresh start?'"
"Have you talked to Charlie about this 'fresh start?'" Stefan asked.
Before Damon could answer, Zach Salvatore walked up behind Stefan.
"You must be Damon." Zach said.
Damon gave Zach a salute and Stefan said. "Damon, this is, uh, Zach Salvatore. He owns the house now, he knows the family history, and I told him if you got out of line, I'd take care of you myself."
"Why are you always expecting the worst out of me, Stefan?"
"Oh, I don't. Otherwise, I wouldn't allow this." Stefan nodded to Zach.
"Come on in, Damon." Zach said, not knowing he just made a huge mistake.
"Huh." Damon took a step into the house. "Thanks." He walked past Stefan, patting him on the shoulder.
"You ready to start over?" Stefan asked.
"Hell yeah."
Stefan showed Damon a few changes Zach had made to the house since the last time he'd been there. They reached Charlie's room and Stefan asked, "So what does Charlie think of this new leaf?"
Damon looked uncomfortable for a few seconds. "I, uh, don't know. I haven't talked to her in a while."
Stefan looked confused. "What do you mean? I thought you saw each other every couple of years?"
"Yeah, well, she must be busy." Damon said, avoiding the question. "Have you heard from her by chance?"
"Not since we were here for our birthday last year. We came back to Mystic Falls for a few weeks, met Zach, then left. I haven't heard from her since. I just got back here last month and Zach hasn't heard from her either."
"So you don't know where she is?" Damon asked.
"She's right here." A voice said from the top of the stairs. They saw Charlie standing there with a suit case in her hand.
"Charlie!" Stefan said excited and ran to greet his twin that he'd missed.
"Hey Stef." Charlie said and returned the hug.
"What are you doing here?"
"Well, I thought I'd come and visit Zach. I didn't know you two would be here."
"I've been here for about a month. Damon just got here actually."
Charlie turned her attention to Damon who was looking a little weary at seeing Charlie again. Of course he'd run into her a few times since the Augustines, but every time he's seen her since he has this overwhelming feelings of guilt that he tries so hard to fight.
"Hey, Charlie." He said a little nervously.
"Hey, Damon." She responded.
"Uh, how've you been?" Damon asked. Stefan watched, confused because things had never been this awkward or strained between his siblings. Damon and Charlie always had a good relationship so it was strange to see them so... distant. It made him wonder what happened to cause this.
"I've been good. You?" Charlie asked politely.
"Pretty good." Damon said.
There was a moment of uncomfortable silence that seemed to stretch on forever until Charlie walked closer to Damon. He expected her to hit him, or yell at him. But instead she hugged him.
Damon hugged her back, happy to see that she apparently didn't fully hate him. Charlie whispered to him, low enough so that Stefan couldn't hear, "I'm okay. It's okay, Damon."
Damon smiled at her when she pulled away from the hug. They shared a look of forgiveness and acceptance, and that was all that was said referencing Enzo or the Augustines, well, until a day later.
Charlie walked into her room and threw her suit case on the bed before turning back to her brothers. "It's good to be home."
Kai was lying back on the couch with all the stuff he asked for littering the table. Bonnie and Damon were standing in front of the fire place staring at Kai, while Charlie was sitting in the arm chair in front of the couch sideways so that her legs were thrown over the arm.
"I need to be entertained while I work." Kai said and then sang. "Hell story please."
"Remind me not to kill him." Damon said.
"Maybe telling him your story will take your mind off of it." Bonnie said. "Speaking of," Bonnie turned to Charlie. "I thought you said the first time you were back in Mystic Falls with your brothers since you were human was 2009?"
"The first time we were here is not exactly a story I love telling. Damon continue with the story, please. Let's just get this over with." Charlie said.
"Whose side are you on?" Damon asked his sister.
"The side where we get to go home to the people we love, Damon."
"Fine." Damon said after a minute then turned back to Kai. "On May 9th, 1994, I was living here. I'd come home to walk the straight and narrow."
Mystic Falls - 1994
Damon and Stefan were shining Damon's blue Camaro but Damon became easily bored with it. He saw Stefan taking a drink out of the flask and knew the contents weren't alcohol.
"Can I have a sip of that? I'm starving." Damon said.
"Sure."
Damon took a drink from the flask but froze and stared at the flask in disgust.
"It's good right?" Stefan asked.
Damon's face contorted at the foul tasting liquid. "Hmm."
"Oh, yeah. I can't remember if that squirrel was roadkill, or one I caught in the rat trap."
Damon shook is head side to side trying to adjust to the taste, but nothing was helping.
"Better hope it was roadkill, though, because the trap was full of rat droppings." Stefan continued to purposely gross out Damon. "Swish your tongue around. Does it feel like hair, or is it more of a grainy pellet?"
With difficulty, Damon finally downed the blood and took in a big breath of fresh air, trying to rid his mouth of the awful taste. "Ugh." Stefan on the other hand, took a drink from the flask as if not at all bothered by the taste.
Zach waved as he passed by them with a bag full of groceries.
"How's it going Zach? What's up with all the grocery trips?" Damon asked.
"Oh, uh, one of the boarders is craving blueberry pancakes." Zach answered and walked inside just as Charlie was walking outside. The two smiled at each other in greeting then Charlie made her way over to her brothers.
Damon, however, was focused on Zach and the heavily pregnant woman standing in the doorway. "You know, maybe I should run the Salvatore Boarding House. Take over for Zach, get in good with Gail..."
"She's on vervain, Damon." Charlie informed him. "So is Zach, which means hands off. Come on, you said it yourself you were turning over a new leaf. Act like it." She sent him a stern look.
Kai started to snore on the couch, board with the lack of excitement in the story.
"Perfect. Our savior's insane and narcoleptic." Damon said.
"He's awake." Charlie told him from her spot still in the chair.
"Yep, I'm awake." Kai said and sat up. "Let me guess, you killed the pregnant woman."
"Shut up, Kai. You weren't listening." Damon snapped.
"I was listening, in my sleep. You were hanging out with your distant nephew Zach, who you called Uncle Zach, because that's not confusing. Plus, pregnant lady Gail, who had a big bull's eye on her chest. Got it." Kai said.
"Tell me you didn't kill a pregnant woman." Bonnie asked Damon.
"Oh, that's totally what happened. Why else would today be his personal hell?" Kai said. Damon became angry as he knelt in front of the table to come face to face with Kai. "Oh, here we go."
"The only reason that you're alive right now is because I thought you could get us out of here and you could help us. But you don't HAVE any answers! You're just a man child with jam on his fingers!" Damon said angrily and tossed the empty jam jar onto the table."
"Okay." Kai conceded. "To get home, we'll harness the power of the eclipse using a mystical relic. It's called an Ascendant, and it looks like this." Kai picked up the contraption he built with the items he sent Bonnie and Charlie to find. "The last time we had it was in the Pacific Northwest - Oregon." He opened the encyclopedia to a map of Oregon."
"We?" Bonnie asked.
"It belonged to my family." Kai stated.
"What the hell was the lily for?" Bonnie asked. "Do you need it for a spell or something?" Bonnie asked confused.
"Oh, right. This," Kai grabbed the lily and stood up before walking towards Charlie. He sat down on the table in front or her so he was at the same height as her. He held out the flower to Charlie. "Is for the beautiful lady."
Charlie accepted the lily by the stem. She sniffed the flower, because to be honest lily's were her favorite flower. "Aww, thank you, Kai." But before he could get his hopes up, she snapped the lily in half and dropped it on the floor.
"Aww, come on, Doll Face. What's it gonna take to get an honest smile from the gorgeous face of yours?" Kai asked.
"You want to see me smile?" Charlie asked. She turned her body so that she was no longer sat sideways in the chair, instead facing Kai head on. "Get me home!"
Kai winked at her. "No problem, babe." He grabbed the pocket knife and made a small incision on the tip of his finger then turned to Bonnie. "Here's a little blood to get you started. Now all we need is a locator spell to pinpoint the Ascendants whereabouts."
Damon and Charlie looked at Bonnie expectantly and Damon said, "Think you can find our ticket out of here Bon-Bon?"
Bonnie agreed instantly. "Hell yeah."
Bonnie stood over the map with a bit of Kai's blood on it and began chanting in order to find the Ascendant. Damon was in the front yard making paper airplanes from the newspaper and Charlie sat on the table watching the map but noticed nothing was happening. Kai just watched with a smug look on his face.
"Phesmatos tribum, nas ex viras, sequitas sanguinum." Bonnie chanted then looked down at the map. "It doesn't feel right. Maybe I need a bigger map?"
Damon walked inside and dropped the newspaper on the table. "Maybe your just out of practice and you suck at magic now."
"Or," Charlie interrupted then hoped off the table to stand next to Bonnie and put a supporting hand on her shoulder. "Maybe you're just out of practice and need more practice. It doesn't mean you suck at magic. I mean think about it. You were dead all summer, then you came back as an anchor. If you think about it you haven't been a witch for over a year. Don't fret Bonnie. You'll get it."
Bonnie sent her a grateful look, thankful for the support.
"Well isn't that just so optimistic of you Charlie." Damon sassed and Charlie earning a glare from her.
Kai stepped over to Charlie. "Don't listen to him. It's good that you're supporting your friend and hoping for the best. Just ignore Damon, pretend he's a white noise. That's how I use to tune out my siblings. I grew up with a ton of little sisters and brothers. You know, all of them constantly yammering. But it taught me how to focus." He said to both Bonnie and Charlie but kept his focus mainly on Charlie.
"I grew up with two brothers and have lived with them for almost 170 years. I think I've mastered the art of tuning out people."
Kai took a step closer to Charlie and stared into her eyes. "We both have annoying siblings. Looks like we have something in common." Charlie just raised an eyebrow at him, unimpressed.
"Easy there, 'big brother.'" Damon said, noticing the look Kai was sending Charlie. "She doesn't even know you. At least buy her a drink first."
Charlie just sent another glare Damon's way.
Mystic Falls - 1994
Zach was throwing a party for the eclipse at the Salvatore Boarding House.
"May I call you Liz?" Damon said, talking to a young woman who was actually a younger Liz Forbes.
"Sure." She agreed.
"Your daughter is so adorable." Damon complimented when Liz showed him a picture of baby Caroline.
Liz giggled. "Yeah, Caroline's high maintenance, but she's worth it."
A couple feet away, Zach was taking a Polaroid of an unsuspecting Gail. When she saw the flash, she turned to Zach and said, "I'm so getting rid of that photo! Stefan, come take a picture of Zach and me."
"Sure."
"Thanks Stefan." Zach said.
Stefan took a picture of the happy young couple. "And now, back to my cravings." Gail said and grabbed a cupcake while Zach went off to mingle with the other guests. Stefan noticed two puncture wounds on Gail's wrist and knew instantly what had happened.
He knew for a fact that it was Damon. He knew it wasn't Charlie for several reasons. Charlie would never feed from a pregnant woman, considering the high esteem she held for the women who still had the opportunity to carry children. Ever since she turned and knew she couldn't have kids, Charlie had great respect for those who could because it was a gift. One that Charlie wouldn't risk by feeding from them. He also knew that Charlie was going a couple towns over to feed to avoid risking suspicion in Mystic Falls. Damon, clearly wasn't taking that precaution.
"Hey, what happened to your wrist?" Stefan asked Gail.
Gail thought for a minute but couldn't come up with an answer. "I don't know."
Stefan looked over to Damon to see him still talking to Liz Forbes.
"So how does this thing help us watch the eclipse?" Liz asked about the device Damon showed her.
Damon took it from her. "You put it between you and the thing that is too hot for you to look at." He said and held the device up to his face to look at Liz through it. "Ahh, it works."
Liz laughed. "My husband would get a kick out of you. We should invite you over for dinner sometime."
Before Damon could answer, Stefan interrupted them. "Damon? What did you do to Gail?"
"Is everything okay?" Liz asked.
"Looks like the jig is up." Damon turned to Liz and compelled her. "Go home. Forget you ever met us."
"What's going on?" Charlie said to them, noticing the tension from them across the room.
"How the hell did you feed on Gail? She's on vervain." Stefan said to Damon as he led him down the hall, away from prying eyes.
Charlie's head whipped around to Damon in shock and anger. "You fed on Gail?!"
"Yeah, in her coffee." Damon ignored Charlie. "I swapped it out last week. Same for Zach."
"These people are my friends. Zach is our family. They trust us." Stefan said referring to himself and Charlie. Damon... not so much. While Charlie had only been there as long as Damon, Charlie still had a few acquaintances from when she and Stefan were in town the year before for their birthday.
"And they'll trust all of us!" Damon said. "Look, I'm feeding inside the house, right? Snatch, eat, erase. You don't have to go out of town just to feed. It's all completely functional, Stefan. I told you, it's a new start!"
Damon went to walk away figuring the conversation was over, but one agreeing look from Charlie and Stefan had snapped Damon's neck before he could get any further.
Enzo was sitting in the shed, trapped and chained up by Tripp, because Stefan had stabbed him in the back. Literally.
Enzo accepted the fact that he and Stefan would never get along. But he was hoping that they would be able to at least tolerate each other for Charlie's sake. But nooooo, Stefan shot that idea to hell.
He knew how much Charlie loved her twin, she loved both of her brothers almost to a fault. He thought that she forgave them too much and too easily. He thought she let them off easy. But Charlie loves her family. She'd do anything for them. Enzo just wished she got the same in return.
Yes, Charlie was a short-tempered little spit fire. But he loved her for it. She was also extremely selfless and would do anything for the people she loves. No, Charlie wasn't perfect, but she was perfect for him.
Damn, he missed her.
Enzo sat back against the wall and fell asleep, hoping to dream of Charlie. Lucky for him, he did just that.
The door to the shed opened and Charlie walked in. She looked even more beautiful than the last time he saw her.
"Charlie." Enzo said, staring at her as if just seeing her for the first time.
"Hey there, handsome." Charlie smiled and sat down in front of him. He wanted to reach out and touch her, but he was afraid she might disappear. "I'm only gone for four months and already you've gotten yourself captured again?"
Enzo smiled. "What can I say? I'm just lost without you."
"Apparently." Charlie's face lost a little happiness and she looked more serious. "How are you doing, Enzo?"
Enzo sighed. "Not to good, Sweetheart. I'm trying to hold it together, but everyday it gets harder and harder. I need you here, Charlie."
"I'm so sorry. Trust me, I know the feeling. I'm trying to get back to you, but there are... complications." Charlie said.
"Where are you anyway?" Enzo asked.
"I can't really explain. Just know that I'm safe, and I'm doing what I can to keep you safe."
"Keep me safe? What are you talking about, I'm perfectly fine." Charlie looked around the shed that he was currently locked in. Enzo smiled. "Oh, this. This is nothing. I'll be out of here in no time."
"I'll get home Enzo. I don't know when, but I will. Don't give up on me." Charlie said.
"Never."
Charlie smiled sadly at him. "I have to go. Please don't get yourself in more trouble than you already are."
"I'll try. But you know me, I'm a thrill seeker."
"If I come back and find you dead, I will bring you back and kill you myself."
"Looking forward to it Gorgeous." Enzo said. "I miss you."
"I miss you, too." Charlie said. "I'll be back soon. I promise. I love you."
"I love you."
Enzo woke up from his dream half expecting to see Charlie there, but unfortunately she wasn't. He knew it was a dream, but it felt so real. He could only hope that everything dream Charlie said was true and she would be back soon.
Now to get out of here.
Bonnie was still working on the spell, except this time, she had an entire map of the United States, not just Oregon. It worked this time and the blood started to trail it's way across the map towards Virginia.
"The spell's working." Bonnie said after some chanting. "But I'm having trouble getting a close read on it. It feels close, but I can't pin-point it."
"Why don't you and Charlie hold hands. Since you're out of practice, being connected to another supernatural being can sometimes help." Kai suggested.
Bonnie had never heard of that before, but at this point she was willing to try anything if it meant getting back home. So she grabbed Charlie's left hand and started to chant again, focusing harder.
After a couple minutes, Charlie asked, "Is it helping?"
"The connection is getting stronger." Bonnie said.
"Here." Kai said and grabbed Charlie's other hand and placed it on the center of his chest. "Since it's my family's Ascendant, a connection with me should help make it even stronger. Try again."
Bonnie began chanting one last time and the candles in the room lit up. She figured it was because of the connection to Charlie and Kai, but really Bonnie was just getting stronger in using her powers since she hadn't had them in a while. Kai knew these 'connections' weren't the cause of Bonnie's ability to find the Ascendant, she had simply strengthened her bond to her magic again. Kai knew she was ready now.
"I found it." Bonnie said and when she opened her eyes, the lit candles around the room went out.
"You did?" Charlie asked.
"Yeah." Bonnie said and raised her eyebrow at Kai then looked to Charlie. "Move your hand to the right a little bit."
Charlie's eyebrows scrunched together in confusion but she did as Bonnie asked. She moved her hand to the right, over Kai's jacket and felt a bulky and round shaped piece of metal in his pocket. "Are you serious?" Charlie asked him and tore her hand away from his chest as if burned.
Kai just winked at her again, reached into his pocket and pulled out the Ascendant. "Very good, Bonnie."
"That's the Ascendant?" Bonnie asked.
"The one and only." Kai confirmed.
"Thanks for the mind games, jackass." Damon commented.
"It was just another little test. Bonnie's magic is now strong enough and precise enough for the spell." Kai said. "I do believe you're ready. Pack your bags. We're going home."
Bonnie, Damon, and Charlie looked at each other in disbelief but happiness. Kai watched as Charlie's face lit up with a hesitant yet happy smile. Deep down in his cold heart, he felt a little warmth knowing that he was the one who put that smile there.
"There's that smile I've been waiting for, Doll Face." Kai said to Charlie.
She tried to drop the smile from her face but she couldn't. She was too excited. This was the closest they'd been in four months.
The three of them couldn't believe it. They were actually going home.
Mystic Falls - 1994
Damon woke up on the floor of a shed after getting his neck snapped. He lifted himself up to see Stefan and Charlie at the door of the shed.
"So, here's what I don't get Damon. Why'd you insinuate yourself back into my life life and then cheat, and lie, and break all the rules?" Stefan asked.
"Well, I lied because I knew you'd be mad. Believe it or not, I like being here, Stefan."
Damon managed to stand up and stumble towards Stefan and Charlie, but when he walked out of the shadow and into the sun, his skin started to burn.
"Ow! Ahh!" Damon complained, noticing his daylight ring was gone.
"You get your daylight ring back when you decide to behave. Now, answer my question. Why did you come back here?"
"Because I missed my brother. I wanted to have a connection to my humanity, Stefan. I wanted to feel something again. I decided to come back home, hoping we could find Charlie and be a family again and it all came rushing back, just like I hoped it would."
"Oh, congrats." Stefan said. "Now what?"
"Come on, guys. Let's just hit the road, just us huh? I'll let you drive my car, Charlie and I will get you off this vegan diet and teach you how to feed again. It'll be great. Huh? What do you say? Come on! Trust me." Damon tried to persuade them.
"Yeah, I can imagine a road trip with you Damon." Stefan said while Charlie just stayed quiet while processing her feelings on all of this. "I can imagine you feeding on innocent people and uh, leaving a trail of bodies behind while Charlie cleans them up to keep people off our trail. I can imagine you making me drink human blood, and laughing at me while I suffer."
"Way to be an optimist, Stefan." Damon said.
"Just looking at the facts, Damon. 1912, you convinced me to drink human blood again, which is why I became a Ripper. In 1942, you almost pushed me off the rails again because you were so damn needy. 1977, you left my best friend to die after I sent her to come help you. All the while, Charlie was cleaning up the messes that admittedly both you and I made. And now, I'm finally happy. I have a new life, Charlie's living the life she wanted and you just can't handle that, can you Damon?" Stefan said.
"I'm not trying to screw up either of your dumb new lives." Damon said.
"You don't have to try, Damon. All you have to do is exist. Because no matter what I do or where I go, you will be with me forever trying to destroy every single thing that I've built and Charlie has to live with two brothers who can't be around each other for more than a day. I don't know why I thought this time would be any different. You just keep failing." Stefan exclaimed.
"Alright, Stefan. You've made your point." Charlie said. She couldn't stand to see her brother's argue like this, but unfortunately she was used to it by now. She too was hoping that this time could be different. But, like Stefan, she was wrong.
"Guess that's a no on the road trip, huh?" Damon asked.
"That's a NO on the road trip." Stefan said and walked away.
Charlie still stood at the door though.
"You going to yell at me now?" Damon asked.
"It wouldn't do any good so I won't waste my breath." Charlie said monotonously.
"What's got you in a mood?" Damon asked.
"You fed from a pregnant woman Damon. She was carrying another life yet you still drank from her. You know how I feel about that Damon, but I'm starting to think you truly just don't care about anything." Charlie said.
"There are some things I care about." Damon said.
"Really? Because family sure isn't one of them." She told him. "Stefan's right Damon. Every time something good for Stefan comes along you do something to ruin it, and I know you do it on purpose. You're not stupid Damon. You can't be this reckless without thinking about it first. Until you and Stefan can find a way to live together, we'll just be repeating the same cycle. So I have to agree with Stefan on this Damon. You know I love you, and I will always love you. I still have hope that we can be a family again, but I can't do it on my own."
Charlie walked away to leave Damon to think about what she said. She loved both her brothers and she wanted them to be a family again, but she was starting to think that was just a dream that's not meant to come true.
Bonnie, Charlie, and Damon were following Kai around outside as he kept looking through the Ascendant towards the sky.
"You're wandering around like a crazy man, why?" Damon asked.
"Looking for the exact right spot. We need to find where the power of the eclipse is focused." Kai explained.
"You know you could have just shown us the Ascendant to begin with." Bonnie said.
"I could have. But I needed you to focus on your powers so you could get stronger..." Kai trailed off.
"Being connected through a supernatural being did nothing for her powers did it?" Charlie asked.
"Nope. But it helped her gain confidence again to use her powers. And I got to feel your hand on my chest. It was a win-win." Kai threw a wink at Charlie then continued to look through the Ascendant.
Charlie trailed back with Damon and Bonnie and Bonnie said, "There's something not right about him."
"I know, he keeps hitting on Charlie. There has to be something wrong with him." Damon sassed.
"Hey. I'm a catch thank you very much." Charlie said.
"Are you forgetting about a certain vampire back home named, Enzo?" Damon asked.
Charlie sent him a deadly look. "You did not just ask me if I forgot about him."
Damon smiled. "You know I'm just messing with you. But I do think Bon-Bon over here is jealous you're getting all of the attention."
Bonnie scoffed. "You know, I can't wait to get out of here so I don't have to hear your voice anymore being a constant irritation."
"Can we just have a few lasting seconds of peace please?" Charlie asked.
"What else am I supposed to do while we wait for this idiot to use that thing to get the stars to align?" Damon asked.
Bonnie noticed a paper airplane that Damon was making earlier on the ground and unfolded it to read the article.
"What's that Bonnie-Boo?" Charlie asked. She was in a pretty decent mood. If Bonnie and Damon weren't fighting and Kai would stop constantly flirting with her she'd be just peachy.
"Hey, what's up with the nature walk?" Damon asked Kai.
"I use the Ascendant to figure out where we need to be standing during the eclipse." Kai answered.
"Great. Let's do some magic. Get the hell outta here." Damon said.
"Oregon." Charlie whispered to herself and connected it to the fact that Kai said his family was from Oregon.
"What?" Damon asked but Bonnie folded the paper to find the article.
"I read this paper like a thousand times, and there's something in it about Oregon." Bonnie said.
"What about it?" Damon still didn't follow.
"You know, Kai said he had all those brothers and sisters." Charlie said when Bonnie found the article.
"'Family massacred in Portland.'" She read out loud. "The only one missing was the oldest boy, a 22 year old named Malachai."
"Who names a kid Malachi?" Kai said and he turned around. "It's like they expected me to be evil."
"All these kids were murdered." Bonnie stated.
"Hello! Not everyone died. I had a soft spot for one of my sisters. 'Cause otherwise, I would've cut her lungs out, and not just her spleen."
"Something tells me you're not speaking hypothetically." Damon said.
Kai pointed to the pictures of his siblings in the paper. "Look, well, these two I uh, hung off the stairwell railing. Then I put a hunting knife in her abdomen, and him, I drowned in the pool. But he kept fighting me. I was like, 'I saved you for last, you ungrateful little...' Anyway, that was that." He said and walked forward a bit.
"You just killed your whole family?" Bonnie asked.
"You're insane." Charlie shook her head at him.
"Oh come on, babe. I thought you liked bad boys." Kai said.
"Oh, I do. But there's a difference between bad boy and psychopath."
"Eh, details." Kai dismissed. "Yes I killed my family. Well, coven to be precise. Oh, you know, family of witches."
"You're making her jump through hoops and you're a witch?" Damon spat.
"Sort of, yeah. No powers, obviously. Oh, and of course, Gemini Coven did not take it too well when they heard what I did in Portland. It's why they banished me here."
"This place is a prison." Charlie said.
"They created it for you." Bonnie said to Kai.
"Yup." Kai confirmed. "This place isn't your hell, Damon. It's mine."
"We're not letting Kai out of here, okay?" Bonnie said as they all walked into the Boarding House. "He just said he's a serial killer."
"I don't care!" Damon said. "I want to get out of here."
"How can you not care?" Bonnie said to him in disgust. "Maybe because of the horrible things you have done? Maybe 'cause killing a bunch of kids is not a big deal to someone who's murdered a pregnant woman?"
"Bonnie." Charlie said, trying to stop her, but she and Kai stayed back to let Damon explain the story.
"Am I wrong?"
Mystic Falls - 1994
"Did you leave the door open?" Stefan asked Zach.
"No. Why?"
They suddenly heard screaming coming from a room down the hall. They ran in there to see everyone dead, except for Gail who Damon held by the neck.
"This eclipse party blows. I didn't see the sun at all when I crossed the yard!" Damon said, uncaring. "I forgot how much stronger we are when we drink human blood."
"Zach." Gail said, afraid of what was happening.
"Damon, please don't hurt her." Zach begged.
"What the hell?" Charlie walked into the room. "Damon."
"I want my ring back Stefan." Damon said.
When Stefan hesitated, Charlie bit out. "Give him the damn ring Stefan."
Stefan finally threw the ring to Damon and he caught it saying, "Atta boy."
"I'm never gonna be rid of you, am I?" Stefan asked.
"No, you're not. 'Cause in 1912, I showed you who you were, Stefan. In 1942, I gave you your freedom, and in 1977 I almost killed your best friend because it should have been you there to help me, Stefan. Hell, even Charlie wasn't there, were you?" He said to Charlie.
"I wonder why, Damon." Charlie said venomously. In 1977 she was still hurting over Enzo then and couldn't look at her brother without being reminded of what happened. Hell, to this day she was still hurting, but the pain had become a dull ache, constantly there to remind her of what she lost. A dull ache that she learned to live with because it was the only thing she had to remind her that he was real. Of course she would have been there to help Damon, but you can't help someone who doesn't want to be helped, and she knew Damon wasn't ready to turn his emotions back on back then.
Damon chose to ignore Charlie's comment, knowing she was right, but was in too foul a mood to address it so he turned to Stefan. "Let's not forget that you forced me to feed, making me what I am. You owe me, Stefan. And it'll take you an eternity to pay me back." Damon bit harshly into Gail's neck then dropped her on the floor. "An eternity of misery, brother. Just like I promised." Damon said and disappeared.
Stefan and Charlie stood there watching Zach grieve over Gail's body. Charlie sent Stefan a sad look and he just nodded in understanding. So with that, Charlie left Mystic Falls. She left her brothers. She left her home. But she could never leave the pain and sadness she felt for her family that was destroyed.
"Ouch. Poor nephew-uncle Zach." Kai said.
"Stefan compelled Uncle Zach to forget about the girlfriend and the baby. But he couldn't cover up all those murders." Damon finished explaining. "Founder's Council was restarted, and Stefan took off. Left Mystic Falls for about fifteen years. All three of us did. And when I saw Uncle Zach again, I couldn't look at him without remembering that I ruined everything. So it was a nice relief when I got to kill him. Okay, can we go back now." Damon didn't want to keep talking about it.
"Oh, come on, Bonnie. You wanna go home to your friends. I wanna go back and give the rest of the Gemini Coven an excruciating death. Win-win." Kai said.
"Look, Bonnie, I know this guy's not a model citizen okay, but I got to get back. Not just for Elena, but Charlie and I need to get back to our brother." Damon said.
Bonnie sadly closed her eyes and Charlie's started to get wet with tears. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry doesn't work for me." Kai said and approached Bonnie, but Damon stopped him before he could.
Damon shoved Kai against the wall by his neck. "We may be having a bit of a disagreement, but don't ever lay a hand on her." He threatened Kai.
"Kind of a non-issue now." Kai said and looked outside. "We missed the day's eclipse. Rain check for tomorrow?"
"No." Bonnie said and walked out the door.
Damon looked over to Charlie who was just standing there with a broken look on her face.
"Charlie. Talk to her. She'll listen to you." Damon said.
"She's right, Damon." Charlie said, sadly.
"What?"
"She's right. Letting Kai out is just going to cause us all more problems when we get back. We have to do what's right Damon." Charlie said.
"Are you insane? No, we have to get back, we need to go home. You said you had hope, well here it is. Our chance to go home is here and you're just passing it up?" Damon asked in disbelief.
Charlie sighed. "I want to go home, Damon. Trust me, I do. But there are too many risks."
Damon stormed out of the house in anger, but Charlie knew it wasn't directed at her, but the situation. Charlie walked out of the room and Kai just watched after her.
She was willing to give up her happiness for the people she loved. Kai admired that about her. But Kai wasn't that selfless. 18 years he'd been stuck in this magical prison. He was going home.
"Hey, Bonnie-Boo." Charlie greeted Bonnie as she walked into the kitchen.
"Hey, Charlie." Bonnie said from her spot at the table eating pancakes. "Listen, I wanted to talk to you..."
"I get it Bonnie." Charlie grabbed a bottle of water and sat down on a bar stool at the island. "I don't like it. Hell I hate it, but I get it. We can't let Kai leave. And as much as I'm... dying inside, I know it's the right thing to do. I need to do what's right to protect the people I love, and in this case, that means staying here.
"Don't get me wrong, I want more than anything to go back home, but their safety isn't something I'm willing to risk. Letting Kai out isn't safe. With everything that's happened, these last few years especially, I've realized that just because we're vampires, doesn't mean were invincible. We can still get hurt and we can still die. If letting Kai out risks the lives of those we love then I'm not doing to do it.
"But I'm not giving up. I'm going to find a way to get us home without letting Kai leave this place. It may take some time, but that's pretty much all we have over here." Charlie said then smiled at Bonnie. "Thus ends my speech."
Bonnie smiled at her then said. "How are you feeling about all of this Charlie. I know this isn't easy for you."
Charlie smiled back. "It's not easy for any of us. But, the best thing about me is that I have both of my brother's personalities. In this case, Stefan's selflessness is the one that is showing through, which we get from our mother by the way. Just a little fun fact for you. I'm definitely devastated, but I'm going to do the right thing. Convincing Damon, however, is a whole other story.
"Oh, and go easy on Damon. He knows what he did was wrong. Trust me I know you think he's a monster, but he feels the guilt of what he did." Charlie said.
"How can you forgive him, or Stefan even, I mean, he killed Enzo. How can you forgive them for what they did?" Bonnie asked.
"I'm not perfect. I've made mistakes, too many to count honestly. But when I really needed them, my brother's have always been there for me. When you live as long as we do you can't afford to hold grudges. It only makes you bitter and miserable."
Bonnie knew that Charlie was right, she could see the guilt and remorse in Damon's face when he was telling the story. "I don't think Damon's the one we have to worry about though."
Charlie nodded, Kai was going to be a problem.
Damon walked into the kitchen. "Shame-eating?" He asked Bonnie.
"Thinking about that pregnant lady. She had a thing for pancakes." Bonnie explained.
"That's what you remember?"
"You remember it, don't you? You make pancakes every day."
"'Cause I'm bored." Damon said.
"That's not why Damon." Charlie said.
"It's because you're punishing yourself. You call this place your hell, it means you feel remorse." Bonnie said.
"It's what makes you different than Kai." Charlie said.
Bonnie sighed. "Maybe there is hope for you."
"Look guys, we can still get outta here. Charlie, I know you don't want to risk letting Kai out of here, and we don't have too. We can steal that 'Descendant' contraption, find out what Kai knows and we'll ditch him. I mean he doesn't have any powers anyway." Damon explained.
"Actually, it's not that simple." Kai said, appearing suddenly in the doorway.
"Geez." Charlie said after she jumped slightly from his unexpected appearance.
"You gotta stop doing that." Damon said. "It's creepy."
"Here's the thing; I have a killer effect on magic." Kai said walking into the kitchen. I can't generate it myself. But, I can consume it from others... temporarily. My family called me an abomination. That hurt my feelings." Kai grabbed Bonnie's wrist, absorbing her magic which caused her pain. He sent his hand out towards Damon and Charlie and they were surrounded in fire as they grabbed at their aching heads.
"Okay, we get it." Damon groaned.
Kai stopped his spells and let go of Bonnie. "You can see why my coven and I didn't get along."
"I smell an ultimatum." Damon said while Charlie went over to check if Bonnie was okay.
"If I consume all of Bonnie's magic, I'm just gonna end up killing her. But, if we work together, we can all go home as friends. Or I can devour her magic, kill all three of you, and go home alone. What's it gonna be?" Kai asked as he took a bite from Bonnie's pancake with a smug smile on his face.
Later That Night
Charlie was in the Salvatore kitchen, cooking and dancing around while listening to 'Jessie's Girl' by Rick Springfield.
Damon, Bonnie, and Kai all walked into the kitchen after hearing the blaring music coming from kitchen and they were extremely surprised to find Charlie looking so happy and cooking.
Damon walked over to the cd player to turn it down while Bonnie and Kai took a seat at the island.
"What's up with you?" Bonnie asked, surprised yet happy to see her friend smiling.
"I'm happy." Charlie answered.
"She cooks when she's happy." Damon explained and stood at the end of the island between Bonnie and Charlie.
"I may not need to eat, but cooking is fun and I cook when I'm happy, so sue me. I took a culinary class in 1998. Graduated top of the class, thank you very much." Charlie said and winked at Bonnie.
"What's got you in such a good mood?" Damon asked. "I figured you'd be upset since this magic vacuum over here is getting out." He pointed to Kai.
"Okay yes, we are unleashing a murderer who could potentially be the biggest danger we've ever faced, and yes I'm not too thrilled that we could be putting everyone we love in danger by letting this psychopath free-"
"Aw, Doll Face, you say the sweetest things to me." Kai said and winked at her.
Charlie rolled her eyes. "Anyway, yes, he is threatening to kill us if we don't let him out but guys... we're going home! Since my options are either let Kai free after he kills us or let him go with us, I'm choosing the one where we get to go home."
Damon smiled, happy to see his sister smiling again. "I agree with Charlie. Come on Bon-Bon, we're going home. At least try to look happy about it."
Bonnie smiled. "You know what, you're right. Instead of focusing on the dangers of this, we should focus on the positives. Like seeing everyone we love again."
"There, ya see! I'm glad I could be of help and bring joy into your lives." Kai said happily. They all just sent him a flat look.
"So Charles," Bonnie said, "Who are you looking forward to seeing the most?" She sent Charlie a sly little look.
"Well of course, I'm happy to see my brother again. Let's not forget Caroline-"
"Charlie." Bonnie said.
Charlie smiled and touched the heart shaped pendant hanging from the chain around her neck. On the back of the pendant it simply said, 'I love you.' Enzo had given it to her a few weeks before Stefan killed him. It was the 60 year anniversary of the day they met. He told her that in those 60 years, not a day went by when he didn't think about her or love her. Charlie cried when he gave it to her and she hasn't taken it off since.
"I'm gonna see Enzo again." Charlie said with a bright smile. "I'm gonna see Enzo." She repeated as if she couldn't believe it. "Ahh!" She exclaimed in happiness and she ran out of the room to get a bottle of Scotch to celebrate.
Bonnie and Damon watched her run off with a smile. Even Kai had to smile at the happiness in her face. Just as Kai was watching her leave, the Rick Springsteen song on the cd player was playing...
I wish that I had Jessie's Girl.
So many Kai/Charlie shippers. Not a lot of Enzo, but there was a lot of Kai/Charlie interactions in this one so I hope you like it. I have to admit, he may be psycho, but I'm a sucker for Kai scenes. I really love writing them.
Anyone have ship names for Kai/Charlie?
Question: Should Charlie go with Damon or stay with Bonnie and Kai? Review and let me know. :)
Thanks you guys! :)
To the Guest reviewer who asked if I had someone that I based Charlie's appearance off of, the answer is I don't. I really just made her appearance similar to Stefan because they are twins, but I had no one specific in mind. :)
We've also reached 300 reviews for this story! YAY! Thank you guys so much. I'm so happy you are liking this story and are taking the time to review. :)