I DON'T OWN TVD.

Welcome back, everyone. So far we have 56 reviews, 169 faves, 223 follows.

I don't know if anyone has noticed this about my writing but I don't do cliffhangers. I prefer my chapters to be like a ministry that resolves by the end of the chapter.

So, READ, FAVE, FOLLOW, REVIEW, AND ENJOY.

I'd like some comments about my writing style as well.


CAST

Phoebe Donovan - Ryan Destiny

Lora Heinz - Molly Quinn

Hekate - Gabrielle Anwar

Thanatos - Colin O'Donoghue

Hypnos - Bow Wow

Morpheus - Jaden Smith

Phobetor - Tyrel Jackson Williams

Phantasos - Rhenzy Feliz


REVIEWS

poppyflower1235: Magic. I saw an ad for something like that, but turns out it doesn't work like that in real life, so why not in a place full of magic. As for Matt, I didn't want the characters to be too OC. Matt is said to be loyal, honest, and kind. I wanted to keep those traits. He's also shown to have great leadership skills and a great sense of responsibility shown by when he became a deputy and sheriff in Mystic Falls. He can also be cold and ruthless when it comes to the people he loves as shown by when he tortures Damon in the 8th season over Tyler. With his magical abilities, I have great plans for him in this story in the future. The same goes for the other characters who already have personalities present in the show. Jenna, Victoria, and Enzo will still have their show personalities, but more enhanced and fleshed out since most of them are side characters who didn't have much screen time. I'm enhancing their show personalities to fit my story.

SumeragiByakuren: Thank you. I'll try.

fayenight: Thank you. You have no idea how glad I am to know that my intentions were shown through in my writing. Thank you for sticking with me.

Guest: Hello and welcome. Thank you for reading. With the last two chapters, I'd been building toward Kelly leaving. It's sad for Phoebe, but I think it's important for Kelly to leave since she too is a character who's reacting to the things happening around her. Kelly has yet to deal with her grandmother's passing in a healthy manner and she's hurting her children. We've reached the climax of the relationship between the Donovan siblings and their mother. Kelly has to leave to find herself outside her children. I think it's better for Phoebe that Kelly left because she's forced to confront the toxic and neglectful relationship she has with her mother. I love Phoebe, but everything she goes through emotionally and physically will strengthen her character.

Siegrain-Black: You make a good point. Thank you and welcome to the story.

RenTenTen: Welcome back and thanks for reading. I didn't know what "Hope Floats" was so I googled it. Never seen the movie before so I still don't get the reference. Sorry.


AGES AND GRADES OF CHARACTERS AS OF DECEMBER 2005

Lora Heinz - Born June 8th, 1979 - Age 26 - Graduated - Businesswoman

Jenna Sommers - Born September 12th, 1980 - Age 25 - Graduate School, Harvard Medical School, Psychology, 3rd year

Phoebe Donovan - Born November 30th, 1989; Age 16 - Graduated - Businesswoman, Glassblower, Artist, Jeweler, Designer

Victoria Donovan - Born August 20th, 1991; Age 14 - Mystic Falls Middle School, 8th grade

Caroline Forbes - Born October 10th, 1992; Age 13 - Mystic Falls Middle School, 7th grade

Matthew Donovan - Born February 26th, 1993; Age 12 - Mystic Falls Middle School, 7th Grade

Carrie Bauer - Age 7, Residence: Washington DC


"I do find the sibling connection endlessly fascinating, as I do all family dynamics. I like how siblings seem to create their own parentless mini-civilization within a family, one that has its own laws, myths, language, humor, its own loyalties and treacheries." - Jandy Nelson


Chapter 13 - As I Lay Asleep

November 30th, 2005 - Phoebe's 16th birthday

"Phoebe?" She said nothing.

"Phoebe?" They called her name, but she did not respond. Her eyes were focused on the house before she stood up and began to walk away. They all looked at one another, exchanging confused and worried glances before turning to look at Phoebe's back as she entered the house through the back bay doors. Matt and Ria were the first to stand to follow their sister, running after her, worry evident in their countenance. They were soon followed by Enzo, Caroline, and Lora.

Daniel Bauer was left in confusion alone with his daughter. Was that because of magic? He wondered as he looked at the group entering the house. He was ordinary so he couldn't sense magic. He also interacted with Phoebe in a more professional manner rather than personal so he didn't know her personality all that well. But based on the reactions of her friends, he knew it was out of the ordinary for her. "Dad," he turned to his daughter only to find her in tears.

"Sweetheart, what is it? What's wrong?"

Carrie wiped her tears away. "Phoebe doesn't feel right. She's so scared and lonely and sad." Carrie was very intuned to others' strong emotions, sometimes feeling the strongest emotions around her as her own. She was empathic. When she was younger, she would have random mood swings, which the Bauers later found out were due to her channeling the emotions of the people around her. Carrie wrapped her arms around her father. "I miss mommy and daddy." Daniel's eyes narrowed at her words as he realized that she wasn't talking about herself, but was instead talking about Phoebe. He looked back toward the house. Carrie was feeling Phoebe's emotions as her own. Phoebe was missing her mother and father. He sighed as he passed his hand lightly down his daughter's back to comfort her. He tried to control his own emotions, remaining calm, just as Phoebe had taught him. His calm emotions would help overpower other people's emotions that Carrie felt.

Carrie slowly pulled back to look up at her father. "I'm okay now, dad." She looked back toward the house, where they could hear loud voices. "Can we check on Phoebe?"

His brow furrowed as he looked toward the house then back at his daughter. He worried for Phoebe but at the same time, he didn't want the same thing to happen to his daughter again, to be overwhelmed by Phoebe's strong emotions. "Alright, but we'll have to keep our distance."


Their hackles raised when they sensed the powerful waves of magic they felt as Phoebe walked away. Matt and Ria followed their sister without another thought, their friends following soon after. They found their sister standing in front of their mother, who stood before the open door with a suitcase.

"What are you doing?" Matt asked. Ria came in beside him with a, "What the hell is going on?" The two siblings looked between their mother and their sister. Phoebe was holding one side of her head with one hand as she massaged her temples. They turned to their mother who stepped over the threshold to the front yard. In their confusion, they followed after her, leaving their sister in the hands of their friends.

"I'm leaving with Pete." Matt and Ria's eyes widened at their mother's words. "I don't know when I'll come back, but I have to go."

Matt's brows furrowed as he looked at his mother, mouth agape as he was unable to believe the words that came from her mouth. "What? You're not coming back?" He was only four, almost five, when his great-grandmother died. Phoebe had told them many times that their mother used to take care of them. He saw the photo albums. Pictures of them all together in fairs and other events in Mystic Falls, eating together in restaurants, birthdays, his mother kissing his baby cheeks, and holding his hands when he was learning to walk. But, they were all just photos. He had no memories of his mother ding anything for him. She was just a woman who was there. When he came home, she wasn't the one who helped him with his homework and she wasn't the one who made his breakfasts in the morning and prepared his school lunchbox. All his memories of her were when she was sleeping on the couch drunk, or when she brought her friends over to the house. He would also catch a glimpse of her in the streets around town or run into her in the hallway during the rare occasions she was home. "She wasn't always like that," Phoebe would say and he would simply nod and agree. Phoebe yearned for the time their mother would show them love and care, but Matt never knew that time. He doesn't remember a time when his mother showed him she loved him.

"Why?" Ria asked.

Phoebe and the others slowly followed onto the front lawn, while the Bauers remained to the side of the house, able to see and hear everything happening but still keeping their distance. Kelly shut the suitcase in the trunk of her sedan and her bags in the back seat before she shut the doors forcefully. "If you need anything, just ask Miranda. She used to be my best friend. Carol and Liz will help you since they like all you kids so much. The three of you won't have anything to worry about," she explained as though she was not leaving her children without a parent. "I can't do this anymore."

Ria furrowed her brow in bewilderment. "Do what?"

Kelly motioned between herself and her children. "I can't do this!" Matt and Ria almost jumped when their mother yelled. "I can't do it. The family, the kids. I got pregnant at sixteen and then I had a kid. Then another kid and another kid. I was a kid too. I just wanted to have a little fun with some college guys and my boyfriend. I couldn't go out with my friends because I had school, then I had work. I had to wake up and breastfeed in the middle of the night. I never got to enjoy my life." The tone of voice rose. "It's my life and I want to enjoy it anyway I want without the burden of my three annoying kids judging me just like everyone else in this godforsaken little town." She was out of breath when she stopped her rant.

Matt wasn't surprised, but he suddenly became afraid. Kelly's greatest personality trait was the fact that she was a neglectful parent. She ignored her kids, allowing them to bring their friends to live into the house, or else Enzo wouldn't have been able to live with them when he wasn't traveling. Kelly spent most of her time outside the house, allowing the Magi to gather and practice their magic as they wished on the family's large property. At the same time, Phoebe was able to control the house finances and even started her own business, allowing them to bring in more money than they could ever need, growing their wealth exponentially. They never had to worry about money in their lifetime. But, Kelly was also useful. The fact that she was their mother meant that they could do anything they wanted and no one complained. Without Kelly, they would be reported to the police and they would become wards of the state. They could be sent to long-lost relatives they never knew and separated. Matt didn't want that. He looked at Ria, who also seemed to have made the realization when she turned to look at him with wide eyes. They didn't want to be separated from each other, under the supervision of strangers, unable to live in their own home just because their mother didn't want to do the bare minimum for her children.

Phoebe moved forward, her eyes only on her mother as she passed between her siblings. Once again the heat from their sister's magic sinched their skin as she moved past them. They could feel it overtaking the atmosphere around them and they could almost see it as it moved her hair around her face like the wind. "What the hell are you talking about?" Her voice was low and demanding as she stood before Kelly.

Kelly's eyes widened before she lowered her head, unable to stand the sight of her three children standing before her. She pushed past her feelings of shame as she looked into her eldest daughter's eyes and said, "I'm leaving with Pete and I'm not coming back. It's just for a little while," she added, her eyes almost pleading. "I need to live for myself from now on. I need a bit of time to enjoy myself and then when I'm all better, I'll come back."

"It's my birthday and this is your gift to me?" Phoebe asked sharply. The others slowly took a step back when they felt another wave of wild magic leave Phoebe's body. Everything was deathly silent as all their senses were on alert. The wind howled through the trees, bringing the clouds over them, darkening the sky. Thunder rumbled as static electricity filled the air. The animals that made their homes in the surrounding forests and on the Donovan property fled, feeling the danger coming from the emotional magus. The Magi were suddenly on alert as the release of magic was like a multi-stage volcanic eruption. Small waves at first, a little rumbling, but nothing to worry about. A few quakes here and there was more cause for concern as the magic suddenly took control of the atmospheric conditions. The waters of the Moon Pool swirled in the small pond, causing water to flood the forest grounds.

"NO!" Enzo, with his enhanced hearing, almost went deaf when Phoebe shrieked. Another quake of magic.

"Phoebe," Enzo called out to her. He couldn't stand seeing her so distressed. He stepped forward to go to her, but Lora pulled him back. "No, you can't." She looked to Matt and Ria. "Matty, Ri, step back." The two siblings didn't want to leave their sister alone, but they knew that Phoebe's emotions overtook her logical mind. Her control broke. Phoebe could see no one but her mother as she screamed and yelled and begged Kelly to stay. Phoebe was a danger to them.

Kelly stepped back from her daughter who was growing hysterical as she begged her not to leave. Closing her eyes, Kelly turned around and ran to her car. She locked herself in the car before she quickly drove away, without a second look behind her.

Lora led Ria, Matt, and Caroline away from Phoebe as she was crouched down on the ground, her head in her hands. The rumbling of the thunder grew louder, and the lightning flashed brighter, and the trees bent over in the rushing winds. "We need to put up a barrier," Lora said when they stood with the Bauers. Ria and Matt nodded, joining hands with Lora as they chanted. The magic coming from Phoebe howled furiously before everything inside her erupted. A large rush of energy exploded from the young Magus as she screamed, throwing the vampire away from her into the surrounding trees. The waters of the Moon Pool rose vertically into the air in response to her distress, saturating the atmosphere with magic, bringing down rain and lightning all around them. Phoebe's power clashed with the magic of the other three Magi, but they held firm, holding the barrier around themselves and their friends to protect against the Old Soul's raw power.

They watched behind the barrier as Phoebe stood and wandered into the streets. In her distress, they heard her call for her mother and father before she suddenly collapsed on the ground.

"Sister!"

"Phoebe!"


Enzo placed Phoebe in the bathtub, still in her clothes. He looked at her longingly, his brown orbs reflecting concern as he passed his fingers over her face, moving her wet hair from her eyes. He closed his eyes before he stood and turned to Ria. "Are you okay?"

She remained silent as she shook her head, longheld tears streaming down her face. Enzo took her head in his hands, bringing her into his chest as she cried. She had changed out of her wet dress and heels into a pair of sweatpants and a graphic tee, but her hair was still wet and her body was still cool from the rain. He gave her silent comfort, knowing full well that the fourteen-year-old was probably distressed not just because her mother abandoned her, but also due to her sister's sudden coma.

Victoria inhaled a deep breath as she pushed herself away from her friend. "I should take care of her. We'll talk later." Enzo simply nodded before he pulled her to him once more, placing a soft kiss on her forehead. Enzo left the bathroom into Phoebe's bedroom, out the door into the hallway. He quickly flashed to his room, changing out of his damp clothes, taking his thermos of blood with him as he left for the drawing-room, where everyone else was waiting, also in dry clothes and damp hair. Carrie received some clothes leftover from when the girls were younger and Mister Bauer got some of Enzo's clothes.

Enzo sat on the couch as he sipped the blood through the straw, trying to regain his strength. When he was thrown back by Phoebe's magic, he found himself impaled by a tree branch. He broke the branch from the tree and fell unceremoniously to the ground before ripping the branch from his abdomen. He was lucky the branch hadn't pierced his heart. He groaned, shifting in his seat as he could still feel tree bark in his wound, hindering his healing process.

Everyone looked to Daniel when he cleared his throat. "Okay," Mister Bauer said, "I've been working with Phoebe and a lawyer for several weeks now in preparation for when she turned sixteen."

They all frowned. "Why?" Matt asked.

"Well, now that she's sixteen, she wanted to be emancipated. It means, she was going to go to court to ask the judge to emancipate her so she would no longer be under the legal control of her mother. She would be able to control her own money and get her inheritance. She would essentially be an adult. Her lawyer has made the preparations. She just needs to appear before a judge," Daniel explained. He clasped his hands in front of him on the armchair. "In fact, I am sorry to say, because of Kelly's sudden abandonment, and Phoebe's absent father, emancipation should be easier for her."

Matt simply sighed and nodded. "I understand. No matter how much my sister loves our mother, she doesn't trust her. I don't think she wanted to acknowledge it, but I think somewhere in the back of her head, she knew our mother would leave us and she was making preparations." He turned to Caroline. "Care, you can't tell your mother that Kelly left. If you do, as the sheriff, she'll have to report it to CPS." Caroline nodded. They weren't saying it but everyone in Mystic Falls knew that Kelly was flighty. Even if they didn't see her around for days and the Donovan siblings were left without any adult supervision, Matt, Ria, and Phoebe had always been able to take care of themselves and kept out of trouble. People in mystic Falls could care less for Kelly's short absences since she always returned. They had at least a few days to weeks before anyone realized that they were completely alone and Kelly would not return. Matt turned to Enzo and Lora, the two true adults that could act as their guardians. "Lora, can you stay around for a while?"

Lora nodded. She was also well-known around Mystic Falls as she was often seen around town with Caroline and the Donovan siblings. Even Liz thought she might be a distant relative with the number of times she was seen with Phoebe. They even had a business together. She also didn't want to leave Phoebe in her catatonic state, as she knew, in her distress, Phoebe had called for her father. She didn't have time to think about it before, but she had perceived a divine presence just before Phoebe collapsed. She knew Phoebe had retreated to Erebus to be with Hypnos. Phoebe explained to her before that she had been to Erebus many times on her birthdays to be with her father while she slept. Lora's heart thundered in her chest as she sighed, hoping that Phoebe was just sleeping and would wake up the next morning.

Matt turned back to Mister Bauer. "Mister Bauer, can I ask you to speak to another lawyer to arrange a change of guardianship papers. If my sister is emancipated, she will be able to become our legal guardian with our mother absent."

Daniel nodded as he smiled, looking proudly at the young man before him. He knew Matthew was only 12 years old but it seemed as though he already had great foresight as he kept a calm demeanor while he was suddenly thrown into a distressing situation that even adults would struggle with. "I'll speak with my wife and she'll recommend a lawyer for your case."

"Thank you, sir."


Water fell from the sky with fervor, saturating the surroundings with magic. Knowing full well that the magical weather phenomenon would not let up any time soon, Daniel left Mystic Falls with his daughter and Lora drove Caroline home before the street could become flooded. Caroline resisted at first, but after Lora explained and promised to call Caroline if anything happened, the young blonde relented. No matter how much she was worried for her friend, she knew there was nothing she could do to help Phoebe. It would be best for her to just stay out of their way while offering emotional support to her friends.

Ria, after having removed the wet clothes that clung to her older sister's body, bathed her in warm water in the tub. She dried her sister with a towel and her hair with a blowdryer, knowing well that Phoebe would not want the bedlinens to get wet. She dressed Phoebe into comfortable cotton pajamas before she levitated her sister's unconscious body to the bedroom and into the bed. Ria fluffed the pillows around her sister's head making sure she was comfortable as she slept. She pulled a vanity chair toward the bed, looking at her sister's peaceful face. She pulled on the ringlets of her sister's hair, which had already returned to their tightly coiled natural state, as she held Phoebe's right hand in her own. She passed her thumb lightly over the dark skin as her tears finally fell. "Please wake up, sis." She lowered her head while still holding on to her sister's hands, repeating the words like a prayer, "Please be okay. Please be okay."

She didn't look up when she heard the door open and close as soft heavy footsteps plodded around the bed. The giant Newfoundland jumped into the bed on Phoebe's left, lying his face next to her as he sniffed her face and licked her before letting out a low whine. He laid his head on his paws, staying near the sleeping Magus, his eyes never leaving her unconscious form.

Victoria stepped back, pulling her chair away from the bed as Lorenzo lay on the right side of the bed. She clasped her brother's hand, holding him tightly as they stood back and watched the vampire, the dog, and their sister on the bed.

There was complete silence in the room as Lora, Ria, and Matt stood beside Phoebe's bed as they watched Enzo place his hands on the sides of the young Magus' temples. They all waited with bated breaths as he closed his eyes, willing himself into her mind before opening them again. He looked up at them, shaking his head, causing them to all release a breath of disappointment.

"What happened?" Lora asked.

Enzo closed his eyes once more as he shook his head. "There was nothing. Just complete darkness. I tried to push through but I couldn't. I couldn't find her."

"She's probably in Erebus right now," Lora stated. "With her father."

Ria shook her head. "Let's not worry too much. She's been there before. She'll be awake by tomorrow." She said the words as she forced a smile on her lips. She returned to the bed as Enzo got off, lifting the covers to snuggle beside her sister. She held her sister's hand tightly as she placed her head into the crook of her sister's neck.

Phoebe always woke up. She told them about all the times she'd been in the Darkness before. Phoebe had told her many times about her projections into Erebus where she spoke with her father while Nyx covered the sky. She always returned the next morning. She woke up because she was always just sleeping and in her sleep, she could be with her father. Everything she knew about her sister's trips into the land of Darkness repeated in her mind like a mantra. Phoebe was with her father and she would return. She looked at her sister's face, who looked very much like she was sleeping. Because she was sleeping. And people wake up eventually when they sleep, so Phoebe would definitely wake up. Definitely. She would return. Ria repeated in her mind to convince herself. To comfort herself.

They had lost their mother. Phoebe was the one who was the most emotionally attached to Kelly that the shock of her leaving caused her to call on Hypnos, her father, who always visited on her birthday, before the night came. From the powerful release of magic and Phoebe's loss of control, Ria understood her sister's heart was breaking. Her own heart was also breaking even though she was not as attached to Kelly as Phoebe. Their mother left them. Could she have made it any more obvious how she felt about them? They were disposable. Forgettable. They were nothing in their mother's eyes. Their mother was lost to them. They couldn't lose their sister too. They just couldn't. So Phoebe would be fine. She would wake up. She had to be. She was their rock and they just couldn't be without her.


December 3rd, 2005

Three days passed and Phoebe's conditions remained the same. She remained catatonic. No matter how many times Enzo tried to enter Phoebe's mind, he always found himself in the darkness, unable to push any deeper. He even tried forcing her eyelids opened to compel her to wake up -knowing full well that compulsion doesn't work on Magi and other supernatural beings- but he was desperate and out of options.

Lora, Ria, and Matt were combing through the grimoires in the library, looking for any spells they could find to counter Phoebe's current state. They even looked for sleep spells and created their own wake spells to try to bring Phoebe back. Of all the Magi in the group, Lora was the one most skilled in mental spells. She tried a compulsion spell, ordering Phoebe to wake up just like Enzo had before trying an information-gathering spell. There was no response for either.

"Okay, okay. Let's rethink this. Phoebe wrote that she's doing some type of astral projection when she's pulled into Erebus," Lora said as she pace around the library, surrounded by open grimoires.

"Yeah," Ria replied.

"So either we project into Erebus…" Matt added.

"Which we can't since it takes a god's power to project Phoebe into Erebus…"

"And we can't be sure we'll be able to pull ourselves out, let alone find Phoebe, and pull ourselves out with her," Lora listed. She shook her head. "Too many variables are out of our control."

"Which leaves…"

"We forcefully pull her out with an astral projection reversal spell." They had no other choice. They would try anything to bring Pheobe back even though they all knew what they weren't saying. They did not have enough power to cast such a spell. Even if they channeled Phoebe and Enzo and Jenna (who has a god's blessing but is still a human who hasn't yet shown any special abilities). Even with those odds, they will try anything to bring their friend back.

Enzo laid Phoebe in the middle of a pentagram drawn with salt in the basement of the house which housed many of the herbs and gemstones for spells as well as a space for their more complex spells and rituals. Lora kneeled in front of Phoebe's head. She placed her fingers in a bowl of black paste and passed the paste on her forehead down to the sides of her face. "I'm ready." She placed her fingers around Phoebe's head and face before she began to chant. The torches around the room flared as Lora's chanting grew louder. She channeled all her friends, repeating the chant with more intent, but she could not feel Phoebe returning to consciousness. With her eyes closed, she found herself in the darkness, trying to force an opening to pull Phoebe back, but the power of the primordial was unyielding. Inevitably, the power required for such a feat became too much, causing all the people in the room to slowly fall to their knees in pain as they were being channeled to power the spell. They screamed and writhed on the ground before a force from Phoebe's body pushed against the spell. The flames extinguished and the room returned to darkness with everyone unconscious. Phoebe remained asleep and unaffected.

Jenna had nothing to contribute to help her friends, so with a heavy heart, she returned to Massachusetts Sunday evening. Lora and Enzo were also adamant that Victoria and Matthew return to school as there was nothing either of them could do to help Phoebe.

"There's nothing you can do here," said Lora as she packed the siblings' lunches into their boxes. "I'll be looking through the grimoires and journals to see if I can find anything. Enzo's gone to Slater to find any information he can or get any artifacts that can bring her back, but there's nothing you can do."

Matt stood up from the table. "We can't just leave her here alone. We can help, just tell us what to do."

"Well, you can't help!" Lora shouted. She didn't mean to but she was physically and emotionally exhausted. Phoebe was in a coma and, even though she had power, a greater power had a hold on Phoebe's consciousness. A power she could not fight against. She had been reading and rereading grimoires and personal journals, but so far, she's been unable to find anything as no other witch or Magi in history had experienced with the gods. The old magics were lost. She had even gone to the point of reading myths recorded from the time of the gods, but there were no specific spells or rituals recorded in them. Asleep, she tried to contact Hypnos or the Orneiroi, but no one answered her call. Even Phoebe's projection spell didn't work for her. They were keeping her out. Keeping Phoebe in Erebus. Lora was out of options. All she could do was try to do right by her friend by taking responsibility in the Donovan household to take care of Matt and Ria. And Lora was certain that Phoebe would want Ria and Matt to return to school while she sleeps. "Phoebe's not going anywhere. I'll be with her all day. If we find anything, I'll call you. For now, please just go to school. It's what Pheobe would want."

Matt and Ria went through the motions when they returned to school. They got their books from their lockers and went to their classes, but more often than not, their minds would wander back to their sister. Every few hours, they received texts from Lora to help ease their minds, but each no-change text they received on their cell phones only brought them disappointment.

When lunch came around, Ria packed up her things and absentmindedly left the classroom for the schoolyard. Her shoulders bumped into something or someone -she didn't care- on her way out the door, but her mind was lost as she dragged herself to the bleachers on the other side of the parking lot. She raised her head up to the sky as she inhaled deeply. The rain had stopped and the heavy clouds parted, feeling the warm light of the sunshine on her tan skin. Magic was still thick in the air, tickling her skin with power.

As she turned the corner, she came face to face with Bonnie Bennett. Victoria simply breezed past, not even acknowledging the not-yet-witch. She didn't have the energy.

"What's your problem?" Bonnie said as she grasped Ria's arm.

Ria stopped. She looked down at her arm in the dark-skinned girl's grasp before pulling out of Bonnie's hold. She tried to continue on her way, but Bonnie rushed to stand in front of her again. Ria rolled her eyes as she looked at Bonnie, who didn't seem to want her to leave. "What'd you want, Bonnie Bennett?"

"I don't like how you treat Elena," Bonnie said. "You should apologize to her."

She shifted her weight on one foot as she raised a brow at Bonnie. Apologize to Elena Gilbert? Not even if there was hell on earth. "Why would I do that?"

"You bumped into her when you were leaving the classroom and just walked away. She fell."

So, that's what that was. "Oh no, it must have been awful." Victoria's voice dripped with feigned concern. "Did she break a bone? Tell me she broke a bone. She deserves at least that much for you to stand in front of me."

Bonnie shook her head. "Why'd you have to be such a bitch?"

"You make it sound like I'm supposed to care about how you feel about me. Newsflash, Bonnie Bennett, I don't." She walked past Bonnie again.

"You know, your mother's almost always at the Grill drinking during the day." Victoria stopped, her back to Bonnie, at the mention of her mother. "If she's not there, she's probably drinking at some club in the other town over. I'm not surprised she's a drunk, dealing with someone like you all the time."

"Don't test me, little witch." She marched over to Bonnie clearly annunciating her words. "I'm not in the mood for your judgemental attitude today. Keep your judgments to yourself and just stay out of my way, or you'll find out just how bitchy I can be." Although she was only a year older than Bonnie, she was much taller and towered menacingly over the younger girl.

Bonnie swallowed hard, feeling the strong pressure coming from Victoria. She didn't know what it was but ever since she was young, there was always this feeling she got when she was around those Donovan siblings, including Phoebe. It was what she felt like a powerful or influential person would be like. It was as though an aura surrounded them, setting them apart from everyone around them. And being so close to the middle Donovan, the feeling was almost suffocating and Bonnie felt threatened. She backed away a few steps before she straightened her back and looked up at Victoria. "Grams right. Maybe you are an abomination. A being who ruins everything you touch. Everyone treats your sister like she's some kind of saint or like she's something special, but you're all just like your mother. A burden bringing down everyone around you."

Rage flashed through Victoria's eyes as her magic burst forward against her skin. "Don't you dare talk about my sister like that. You don't know anything." She raised her hand high in the air with her magic at the ready. Matt appeared before his sister, his sharp blue eyes boring into her verdant ones, silently ordering her to stand down. Ria stopped, her chest heaving up and down with agitation. She huffed as she placed her hand down to her side, turning her head in shame from her brother's gaze. It had only been a few days since Phoebe fell into a coma and she almost broke the promise she made to her. Her chaotic emotions clashed in her mind. First, it was rage. The little Bennet bitch didn't know anything about her sister, but she was dragging her name through the mud. How dare she? Then came disappointment. Disappointment in herself for allowing herself to act so carelessly with her magic. Her sister taught her magic to protect herself. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she refused to cry in front of those people. She would not cry.

"Ria!" Caroline came running into the abandoned lot. The moment she saw the glistening tears in her friend's eyes, she pulled her into a hug. "It's okay. She's gonna be okay. Everything'll be fine."

Matt left Victoria to Caroline as he turned to face Bonnie. He walked closer to her, getting into her personal space as he towered over her. Once again, Bonnie felt the same pressure from Matt. There was just something about the siblings. "Ms. Bennett," he stated coldly, "my sister and I would appreciate it if you kept our eldest sister's name out of your mouth." Bonnie felt a sliver of ice pierce her heart. Matt had never spoken to her with such malice and indifference. She was afraid. "You are not worthy to speak her name." Bonnie stepped back, stepping over a wooden plank, causing her to fall on her butt on the wet ground. Matt turned around taking Victoria in his arms for a hug before he intertwined their fingers and began to lead her away.

Bonnie remained on the ground, watching the siblings walk away with Caroline. She could still feel it, the power radiating from them. She felt threatened. They were a threat. They were dangerous. Her mind and her entire body were screaming at her to run away. She wanted to run away but she was frozen still. She had to fight. She had to remove the danger. Before it killed her. She fell into a trance as she looked down at the puddle of water on the ground. The water bubbled and boiled before flames erupted from the liquid, rushing toward the three who were walking away from her.

Matt heard the sizzling as the fire rushed toward them. Ria stood beside Matt, pulling Caroline safely behind them as they raised their hands before the flames. "Ignis est mihi mandatum!" The siblings chanted in unison. The flames curved to the left before it reached them, leaving the grass scorched before it extinguished. Caroline stared at Bonnie in bewilderment while Matt and Victoria glared at the young Bennett witch with disdain.

Bonnie's eyes widened as she came out of her trance. She stared in surprise at the steaming residue of water and the trail of burnt grass. Did she do that? "Ow!" she cried when she placed her hand on the burning concrete. She held her hand and looked left and right. There was no one around. The eyes of Matt and Ria were still murderous. She got up and ran in the opposite direction of the three, clutching her burnt palm.

"What was that?" Caroline asked as she watched Bonnie run back inside. "I thought Bonnie didn't have her magic yet."

"The magic residue in the air is so thick, it sparked Bonnie's powers to life. The environment that was just over the Moon Pool is now all over Mystic Falls," Matt explained. "It'll eventually go away since the rain stopped."


Bonnie sat in her room, holding a candle in her hand as she focused on the wick, trying to light it. She knew something happened there. She was suddenly afraid then there was fire. And then Matt and Victoria raised their hands and the fire curved and then it wasn't there anymore. She thought she had imagined it but the burn marks on the grass and the concrete proved otherwise. She also had the burn on her palm to prove it. Was it really magic? Her consciousness wasn't completely present. Everything happened so fast that she only remembered it as snippets.

She sighed. No matter how much she looked at the wick, nothing happened. There was no light and no fire. Not even a spark. She could ask her grams when she returned from her classes. Sheila was always talking to Bonnie about her heritage as a Bennett witch, talking to her about her ancestors coming from Salem and magic. Bonnie never took her seriously, but what if everything she was saying was true? Did she really have magic? And the Donovans too? Was everything they were saying true?

Bonnie raised her head when she heard the door open and shut. She rushed out of bed, down the stairs, to the front door. "Grams, something happened today."

Sheila turned around to face her granddaughter, who was more agitated than usual. "What happened Bonnie?" she asked when she saw the bandage around the girl's hand.

"I- I'm not sure. Something happened at school today. I don't know what's happening to me." Sheila could sense a change in Bonnie. She could sense Nature drawing closer to her, but it seemed as though Bonnie hadn't truly awakened her magic.

She dropped her keys in the bowl at the door and her bag on the floor before bringing Bonnie in for a hug. "Oh, come 'ere, child." She walked Bonnie to the table in the kitchen before she put on the kettle to boil water on the stove. "Tell me what happened?"

"Victoria, you know how she doesn't like Elena. She was pretty out of it today and bumped into Elena. I went to her and told her to apologize and I said some things. Then Matt came too. I don't know what it is grams, but they have this weird energy around them. Like some heavy pressure. It's kinda like how I think I'd feel if I met my favorite celebrity," Bonnie tried to explain. "Are they really witches, grams?"

"They are not witches," Sheila exclaimed. "We, witches, are servants of Nature. Our power comes from the earth and in exchange, it's our duty and responsibility to keep the balance of Nature. They, they are Magi. They are abominations. They're born with their power, so they're not accountable to anyone. They only seek power and more power and they use dark spells and objects. They don't care about the balance and most of them upset it." Sheila poured the tea into mugs and gave one to Bonnie. "Did they do that to you?"

Bonnie looked at her hand and shook her head. "They… I- I don't know. I think I did it. I felt scared of them, then suddenly I…" SHe didn't want to admit it. Admit that she used magic. Did she really? Her mind wasn't all present so maybe she imagined it. But what if it was real magic? What if she did real magic? "I… I think I lit the water on fire. When I touched the ground, it was hot and I burned my hand. But they, Matt and Victoria, they curved the fire. They made it go into the grass."

She wasn't sure where it had come from but for days, it rained non-stop and Sheila could sense the powerful magic released all over Mystic Falls. Sheila sensed that Bonnie had awakened her power earlier than she anticipated, caused by the vast amount of magic in the air. She had thought that Bonnie would only awaken her magic when she was 16. "I'm going to have to start teaching you magic Bonnie. A young witch's power is unstable. When you're emotional, your magic could go out of control and you could hurt someone. You also need to be able to protect yourself. And I want you to stay away from those children, Bonnie." Sheila's face hardened as she thought about Bonnie coming into contact with those children. They were just children, but they were abominations. Their magic was against Nature. If she allowed them to continue living, they would become a threat to Bonnie. She turned Phoebe away and did not harm the girl because she was a child, but she had spread her plague to her siblings and other innocent girls. She couldn't let it continue.


Sheila Bennett stopped in front of the house as she looked up with eyes wide in amazement. So much magic. So much power is stored in this place. She preferred to remain far from the Donovans so she had never come to their home before. The moment she stepped out of her car, she sensed the large amounts of magic power radiating from the property. She had not grasped the amount of power that child had accumulated since last she saw her. She sensed multiple spells woven through the walls of the house and even a great boundary spell set over all ten acres of the woodland. An assortment of different flowers and herbs dotted the front lawn, parallel to the path leading to the front door. The most prominent of the flowers were vervain and wolfsbane overlapped with many crystal garden lights between the flower beds.

The moment she stepped on the path, she felt the boundary spell fighting against her, trying to push her off the property. Something pressed on her chest as she began to struggle to breathe. Another step and her knees wanted to buckle under the weight that pressed on her back. Sheila quickly stepped back onto the sidewalk and was immediately able to breathe once more. She looked at the door that opened as a pale, young red-headed woman walked toward her. "Mrs. Bennett," she said, standing on the other side of the boundary. "How can I help you?"

Most of the things Sheila knew of the Magi were from secondary and tertiary sources. Some were from interactions some of her ancestors had and wrote in their journals and grimoires while others were from legends and folklores she collected as an occult professor. All she knew was that they were powerful and dangerous and they upset the balance. Weaker and younger witches steered clear of them while more powerful witches hunted and killed them to keep the balance. Many of the Magi went into hiding, living normal lives amongst humans, which made the uninformed of the supernatural world believe they had gone extinct. Abby was the one who realized that Phoebe Donovan was a Magi when she interacted with the young girl when she was a toddler. Sheila had never interacted with the Donovans. She had not been so close to a Magi in years, and Phoebe was still a child then. This woman standing before her was young, maybe in her mid-twenties- yet her power was astonishing. It's similar to how Bonnie had described it to her, incredible yet suffocating.

But Sheila had been alive longer and had more experience. Although she could not cross the boundary, Sheila was certain that she was more powerful than the young woman before her. The girl knew that too, which was why she remained inside the boundary, in her territory, so she would not be overpowered by the elder witch.

Sheila's lip quirked upward. "Aren't you going to invite me inside? It's disrespectful to let your elders stand outside without an invite for tea."

"I am sorry," Lora replied respectfully. "I am afraid that won't be possible. Something unfortunate happened here a few years ago. As you can tell, there is a boundary spell around the property. Anyone with harmful intentions cannot step a foot into the property. Even if I invited you in, you wouldn't be able to reach the door. And I'd hate to have to find a ditch somewhere to leave your body."

Sheila gritted her teeth. "Victoria and Matthew had a confrontation with Bonnie at school. She was hurt. I told Phoebe to stay away from me and mine. Where is she?"

"I'm sorry Bonnie got hurt Mrs. Bennett but you should teach your granddaughter not to start fires she can't control or it will burn her, just as it did today. Matt and Ria told me how she almost burned them alive along with Caroline. Had they not been skilled enough to control the flames, both of them and Caroline would have been burned to a crisp. And I'd be the one knocking on your door," Lora said. "And Phoebe's unavailable at the moment. Goodbye, Mrs. Bennett." Lora turned and walked back to the house, the door shutting behind her.

Lora turned to Matt and Ria, who were sitting in the living room watching TV. "Hey, stay away from Sheila and Bonnie Bennett okay. We have no idea what that woman is really capable of." The siblings exchanged a glance before turning to Lora to reply with a nod.


Sheila Bennett would not be deterred. Going to the Donovan house had only served to strengthen the old crone's resolve. Those people were a threat to her granddaughter. Nothing more could change her mind. It didn't matter that the argument was between two teenagers or that Bonnie was the one who attacked first. It didn't matter that they had not retaliated when Bonnie almost killed them with her magic and the siblings only sought to protect themselves. At that moment, keeping the balance of Nature was only second in her mind as she searched through the grimoires of her ancestors. What was at the forefront of her mind was the selfish desire to remove a perceived threat to her granddaughter. She collected her herbs, candles, and crystals as she prepared the spell, unknowingly making an even greater enemy than her narrow mind could have ever imagined.


December 9th, 2005

Bonnie looked in her school bag once more at the small plastic bag of powder her grams had given to her. She had been carrying it around for a week without doing anything with it.

"Bonnie, take this. Get as close to them as you can before you release this powder. When they breathe it in, it should stop them from being able to use their magic," Sheila told the young girl. She had used the fear Bonnie felt of the two siblings to convince the young witch to act against her peers. To take from them a part of their being. To kill them.

No one truly knew the source of a Magi's power. No witch knew. Most Magi did not know the true origins of their powers. And those who knew kept it as a closely guarded secret. Most knew that magic radiated from the Magi's bodies like heat from a fire. And the powder made from the petals from the burnt ashes of Cosmos Blackshaw flower was cut off a Magi's access to their magic power. The flower was rare so it was not often used against the Magi so no one knew just how poisonous the flower was to a Magi. Once the particles of the flower entered the bloodstream, it would inevitably reach the heart where the magical core is located. The poison will enter the core, causing instability in the Magi's magic, slowly causing them to become completely unable to channel their power. The Core will degrade over several days until they lost all their magic. Once a Magus lost their magic, they instinctively know that a meeting with Thanatos was inevitable.

Somehow, Abby Bennett had long since had a petal of Cosmos Blackshaw, which she left to her mother when she abandoned her magic. In an old ancestral grimoire, Sheila found a meaty passage about the Magi and the use of the Cosmos Blackshaw which wrongfully stated that it removed a Magi's power. She burned the flower petal, placed the ashes in a bag, and gave it to Bonnie.

Bonnie was apprehensive at first, but every time she neared the Donovan siblings, the same suffocating power spread all around her. As days passed, her hesitation waned and her convictions grew. She didn't want to go to school every day feeling like she was going to die every time one of them came near. She wanted to be free of her fear of the danger the siblings posed so she decided to use the powder. When school let out, Bonnie rushed out of the classroom to the school's bus parking lot knowing that Matt and Ria would be rushing to take the bus together to return home. She held the powder against her chest, hidden by her notebooks as she watched for the two young Magi's approach. When she saw them, she looked away. She steeled her nerves and reentered the school as she faked searching through her bag. She looked toward the siblings occasionally to know the distance she needed to go, but she realized she didn't need to as she sensed their power the closer she was to them. Bonnie threw herself at the siblings, causing all of them to fall on the ground and the black as to spread all around them. It was on their clothes, their skin, and their hair. The siblings did not know the danger the black ash posed as they simply got up and walked away from the young Bennett.

The next morning, Lora frantically searched through the grimoires for a diagnostic spell. Both Matt and Ria had fallen ill with fevers, aches, and chills and were coughing up blood. The moment she spread the crushed herbs over the siblings, a light shimmered around them, until only their heart glowing a deep black color. Her eyes widened as she fell to her knees. "No." Thea's grimoire was the oldest in their collection at two thousand years old. She had read the hidden passage about the Cosmos Blackshaw flower and its poisonous nature to the Magi. The flower was so rare that she never imagined it would pose a threat to her and her friends. Thea had been a theorist when she was alive. She stated that there was no antidote for the poison.

For the first time in her life, Lora had never felt more hopeless than before. She was all alone and she didn't know what to do. Her best friend was in a coma and she had no idea when she would wake up. She decided to be responsible for her friend's siblings, but now they had been poisoned and were dying. And there was nothing she could do. Her magic reacted to her distress as the objects in the room shook and began falling off the tables and shelves. Magic thrummed just beneath her skin ready to burst forth to protect her coven members. She called Caroline to help her by taking care of Matt and Ria while she looked read and reread as many grimoires as she could. She had read and memorized many of the grimoires in their library. She doesn't remember a cure for Blackshaw's poison. No matter how many times she hoped to find some hidden page with the cure to Blackshaw poison, she never found a spell. And time was of the essence.

She was useless. She was supposed to be a powerful Magus, capable of great feats like controlling the elements. Yet here she stood, useless, worthless, hopeless. Unable to do anything. Unable to save her friends. Her family. She left the grimoires and the library and trudged to Phoebe's room. She still looked as peaceful as she did ten days ago, laid as though she was only sleeping. Her voice came out in a whimper as she dropped her exhausted body on the chair beside Phoebe's bed. She took her friend's hand in her, feeling their magic mingling and interacting with one another. She laid her head on the back of Phoebe's hand as she sobbed, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I can't do anything. I can't help them." She passed her thumb over the dark skin of Phoebe's hand. "I feel so lost, so empty, without you here. You know, you and Matt, and Ria, Enzo, Caroline, and Jenna are my family. The family who chose me. And I'm so grateful that you brought me into this loving family. But, you're the glue that holds all of us together and without you, everything seems to fall apart." Her tears flowed freely for the first time in a long time. "I know you're hurt. I know Kelly broke your heart and I can understand how you feel. Abandoned. Lost. Betrayed. Like you're not enough. I felt the same when my sister left me. But, I'm here, sweetheart. I'm here and everyone else is still here. We're here for you and, if you just give it a chance, we can help put the pieces back together. Just like you mended my broken heart. Please, just come back to me. Come back to us. We need you."

Lora remained alone in the silence with her tears, unaware that Caroline had heard every word she said on the other side of the door.

She sensed the magic first. It reached out to her, comforting her as it had done many times before. Then a twitch of the muscles in the fingers. Lora raised her head, eyes wide as she looked upon her best friend's beautiful chocolate eyes. She jumped onto the bed, wanting to be as close to her friend as possible to truly see if she had awoken.

Phoebe's lips curved upward as she opened her mouth to speak. She had not moved or used her vocal cords in over ten days. Her muscles grew stiff and her throat was hoarse as she said, "I- I'm he -her… here. I'm… here."


Phoebe was fine. She was fine. She was happy with her father and her brothers surrounded by the darkness and the night. At first, it all hurt so much. She was depressed. Her father remained with her. He sat on the grass in the middle of the meadow of poppies with her head on his lap as he sang lullabies. His large hands rested lightly, comfortably on her head as his wings spread over her body like a blanket. And she slept. Her body was resting in the mortal plane while her mind remained in Erebus. She was also drunk on the waters from the River of Oblivion, but it was so much better not to feel.

Phoebe knew she had issues. She had both mommy and daddy issues. And a host of other issues. She had trauma. She was depressed. Then, her own mother ripped her heart out and fed it to her. She just broke. All she could think about was wanting to escape. The only other parent she had actually had an excuse for being away. He was a god. He was made of energy and it was difficult to create a physical body. So she didn't mind his presence at the moment. She just wanted the pain of her broken heart to go away. If it was opium or lullabies from her father, the God of Sleep, or water from the Lethe, or all three, she took it. She didn't want to feel. She didn't want the hurt. She needed to be happy and leave all the pain behind.

"Do you know it is here that I met you?" Hypnos asked as he twirled one of her curls onto his finger. They were sitting at the bank of the Lethe. "Thanatos came here with you when you left your world to have you drink from the river so you would forget your past life. And over the centuries, every time you died, you always returned here. You told me the stories of your adventures in your lives and the mortal realm. The light in your eyes and your enthusiastic smile was infectious and I could not help but love you. I helped to nourish your soul and you became a daughter to me. My sons, my mother, and my father all delighted in your presence. It was as though this land of infinite darkness was suddenly filled with light. And you became the source. And then you would leave and would forget but we would always watch over you. And when you returned, you remembered us once more and we welcomed you because this is your home."

She hummed in response, her eyes still closed. She spent most of her time sleeping and dreaming. She was just about to fall asleep before a crazy flying rabbit appeared behind her eyelids, laughing at her with its buck teeth. "Ahh!" She shot up off her father's leg when her nap was once again disturbed. "Phantasos!" Shadows and mist swirled as her brother slowly took form before her, his wings flapping energetically as he cackled at her discomfort.

"Come now, little sister," he said as he stopped laughing. "You must learn to protect your mind. Especially on the astral plane."

She picked up several flowers, tossing them at him. "This isn't the astral plane, idiot." She chased after him around the field, Phantasos cackling all the while teasing her. He ran, but each time he was within her reach, he flew over her head, flapping his wings in her face.

"Shame you cannot fly." He flapped his wings in her face once more. Just as he was about to take off, Phoebe grasped his wings in her hand, pulling him back down to the ground, hard. Just as she straddled him with her fists raised and a smirk on her lips, he turned into black mist and smoke, escaping her grasp before he reformed behind her. This time, he remained well out of her reach as he inspected his perfectly repaired wings. "You have quite the mean streak, dear sister."

She huffed as she rolled her eyes, dropping the black feathers she plucked from his wings.

"Your eyes have adjusted well to the darkness," said Morpheus as he descended from the night sky.

"You went to see grandmother?" Phoebe asked. He swooped in, carrying her with a hand under her legs and another hand on her back. "How is she?"

He kissed her cheek. "She says hello. You know how she is. She can never remain in one place for long." Suddenly, a black streak struck Morpheus causing him to drop her.

"Oh, come on. You guys suck," she screamed as she fell. The black streak came and wrapped itself around her, taking a solid human form, his wings flapping to halt their descent. Not too long after meeting them, Phoebe found out that her elder brothers were all very clingy. They were immediately all over her, hugging her, lifting her, and flying with her. Phantasos and Phobetor were especially childish, playing pranks on their sister. At first, she was depressed. Only staying in the cave with their father, sleeping on his lap. When she wasn't sleeping she remained at the Lethe, looking out over the fields. She didn't react to the brothers in the early days but she eventually snapped. All the brothers' pranks and teasing riled her hot temper. It brought her out of her depressive state.

With Matthew and Victoria, she had to be the responsible older sibling. She had to manage the household finances, cook and clean and make sure her siblings got to school in the morning and ensure they did their homework in the evenings. She had to be the middle ground and the voice of reason in their arguments. She had to manage her businesses, both mundane and supernatural. Even with help, there was not a time when she didn't have some sort of responsibility. With her older brothers, she was the younger sibling. She was able to let go and relax. She had no worries and no responsibilities. Her brothers' annoying her was fun. They made her laugh. She could be bratty and she was spoiled. She complained, but she liked all their touches. Her father's fingers in her hair and her brothers' kisses on her cheeks were shows of affection that she didn't realize she missed from her mother. With them, everything was brighter.

"Hello, darling sister," said Phobetor with a childish grin on his face. "Missed me?" He landed and placed her on the ground.

Phoebe planted her feet firmly on the ground as she tried to calm down. She turned to her other brother, furiously smacking his chest. "You suck. Don't think I forgot about the Augustine nightmare," she complained. "That thing really messed me up."

He massaged his chest, as he looked at her with wide eyes and a mellow voice as he pleaded. "Sister, please forgive me. I simply wanted to give you the initiative to rescue your darling Lorenzo," he explained. "Don't tell me you weren't driven after that? Although I did not account for your vindictive nature. Hex the good doctor for almost 8 years."

"He deserved that! That man tortured Enzo for however many years in the name of 'medicine for the good of mankind'. What a hypocrite. He deserved to feel every cut and every burn Enzo had when they shoved vervain in his bloodstream and starved him for decades," Phoebe ranted. "At least I didn't let Enzo kill him like I did the rest of Augustine."

"Sister, he's in a mental institution living and reliving every atrocity he has ever done to your beloved vampire. He's living a fate worse than death," Phantasos said as he hovered over her shoulders, his arms wrapped over her chest while his wings held his weight.

Phobetor rested his elbow on Morpheus' shoulder who had descended along with his brothers to surround their little sister. "He won't even get to rest when he dies. I am certain Queen Persephone is preparing his own personal hell. You know how she gets when people mess with her vampires."

"The Queen has been displeased. She did not expect him to live as long as he has while hexed. As he is living and human, she has no power over him. She still waits for his demise," Morpheus explained.

"Our Queen is not a very patient woman." All the brothers nodded as they followed their sister back toward their father's cave.

Phoebe stopped when she saw a shooting star streaking across the sky. Phantasos brought her into his chest with her back to him and his chin over her head. Phoebe inhaled, letting her body relax into his arms as Phobetor and Morpheus came to stand on either side of them. She felt tightening in her chest as she grasped tightly onto Phantasos' forearm. The star fell a great distance from them, lighting up the land of darkness with white light, slowly transforming into the beautiful goddess in the middle of the field of flowers. Phoebe closed her eyes, causing the build-up of tears to fall down her cheeks. The presence of the goddess was bittersweet as her time with her other family finally came to an end.

"Remember daughter, you are not alone. When you mourn, we mourn with you. When you laugh, we laugh with you. You are wanted. You were chosen. We chose you. All of us. Even if we leave, it is not forever. It is only for a while and we will see each other again." Tears flowed down her cheeks as her father's voice slowly faded as she finally opened her eyes in the light of the mortal realm.


Phoebe could not move her body. She had been asleep in the same position for almost two weeks and her muscles had atrophied. Lora carried her out to the Moon Pool, where she bathed to help her muscles recover faster while she recounted the events of days passed to Phoebe. Phoebe simply listened as she stared out in the distance listening carefully as her mind recorded the names of the people who played the most part in the attempted murder of her younger siblings. The tempestuous and bratty younger sister Phoebe was left in Erebus, replaced by the responsible, protective older sister. They would pay. They would pay for hurting the people she loved. Sheila Bennett would regret making an enemy of Phoebe Donovan.

She quickly gave orders to call Enzo to make preparations as Lora drove them to a hospital in Richmond. With Slater's help, they were able to get a VIP ward with access to emergency medical equipment. The moment he saw her, Enzo pulled Phoebe into his arms, hugging her tightly, inhaling her scent. He wheeled her wheelchair in after her siblings were placed in the private hospital room with a group of compelled doctors and nurses while they were guarded by a group of vampires.

There was no cure for Blackshaw poisoning, so Pheobe decided to use medical sciences to bring her siblings back from the brink of death. The doctors and nurses set up the hospital room. A blood transfusion machine was attached to the two sick Magi, removing the tainted blood in their bodies as they were given a mixture of blood taken from Phoebe and Enzo. After taking several gulps of Enzo's blood, Phoebe stood off the wheelchair as everyone stood against the walls of the room, far from her as she began to cast the spell. The beds were close enough that she could touch Matt and Ria's chests, where their hearts were located. She closed her eyes, and for the first time, she began a spell with a prayer. "I call upon the god of medicine and healing, Lord Asclepius, and the Keeper of the Divine Well and Goddess of Magic, Lady Hekate." She raised her hand over in the air as two markings appeared on the back of her hand, the symbol of the medicine god on her right hand and the symbol of the goddess on her left hand. Lightning sparked from her hands into the bodies of Matt and Victoria, causing their bodies to seize suddenly. With each line she chanted, the spell intensified. The yellow lightning sparked around the room, causing the lights to flicker on and off.

Phoebe stopped chanting as Matt and Ria coughed up the black ashes that had been used to poison them. Quetzal came forth from Phoebe's talisman on her wrist and swallowed the black dust that had gathered into a small blackened ball in the air. Phoebe was drenched in sweat as she went to touch her siblings. They were breathing easier now and their skin had regained its lighter coloring rather than the purple coloring they had as the poison ravaged their bodies.


"Hello, Bonnie. Can I come in?" Phoebe smiled gently, but Bonnie could see the danger in her eyes and the slight curve of her lips. She had been wrong. The feeling of suffocation she felt from Matt and Ria was just their magic naturally leaking from their bodies. Her eyes widened as she lost her breath as Phoebe's greater power pressed onto her body, coiling around her like a snake, constricting her.

Bonnie stood frozen at the bottom step. Sweat formed on her back and gooseflesh formed on her skin. She wanted to run as waves of danger radiated from her but her body was paralyzed in fear. She couldn't remove her eyes from the young woman dressed in all black: black knee-high boots, black pants, a black turtle neck under a black and dark gray patterned long coat standing high above her on her grandmother's porch.

Phoebe suppressed the threatening wave of her magic, allowing Bonnie to finally breathe easily. Bonnie wanted to run, but she could feel that it would be futile. She stepped forward. One step. Two steps. Up the porch. She fumbled in her bag to find her keys. She closed her eyes and took several deep breaths to stop her hands from trembling as she unlocked the door. "Sure… please come in?"

Phoebe's presence was heavy as she stood directly behind Bonnie as they entered the house. Bonnie turned around watching as the door -her escape- shut behind them. "Thank you," Phoebe smiled once more.

Bonnie sat on the couch in the living room while Phoebe decided to make tea in the kitchen. Even from the distance, she could sense the oppressing force of the Magi's magic. Once again, she couldn't run. The only thing her body was able to do was take out her phone to send a short text to her grandmother.

"It's a thing with all magic users, we love our teas. No matter if they're Magi or witch, you'll be able to find a wide variety of dried authentic tea leaves in their kitchen cupboards," Phoebe said as she walked into the living room with two teacups and a tea kettle on a tray. Once again, she removed the overbearing force of her magic as she poured the tea into the cups. She handed one to Bonnie and took the other. "I heard you awakened your magic."

Bonnie held the teacup as she replied. "Ye- yeah."

"Right, you almost burned my siblings and Caroline alive. Good thing Matt and Ria had been learning magic for years now. Fire manipulation spells are child's play for them now."

Bonnie swallowed hard as she placed the cup on the table. "Drink it, Bonnie. It's just Chamomille. It'll help you relax." Bonnie blew on her tea before taking a light sip. She didn't taste anything wrong with the tea. She glanced at Phoebe, watching as she drank her tea without hesitation. Their teas came from the same kettle so she deduced that the tea was safe to drink. Her nerves were all over the place so she took a deeper gulp to calm down. By the time she finished her tea, she had relaxed significantly. She was certain that Phoebe was trying to intimidate her, but she didn't think the older girl would do anything to harm her.

"Um… I haven't seen Matt and Vicki at school all week."

Phoebe's face scrunched up in displeasure when she heard the name. "Victoria."

"What?"

"Her name is Victoria. I don't like that nickname. Call her Victoria," Phoebe corrected. "You should only call people by the name they tell you to."

What was it with that family and names? "Okay."

"And the reason you haven't seen my siblings is because they were sick. They almost died." Phoebe paused as Bonnie's eyes widened.

"What?" She sat back into the couch and gasped when she saw the black and green and gold snake unwrap itself from around Phoebe's neck. The serpent hissed as it crawled across the floor toward Bonnie. Her blood ran cold when the serpent crawled up the couch, up her arm, and wrapped itself loosely around her neck. She shut her eyes tightly when it hissed and licked her face with its forked tongue.

"They were poisoned. Last Friday, they told me you walked right into them, dropping a bag full of black ash that fell all over their faces. You almost killed my siblings, Bonnie."

Bonnie finally opened her eyes, which were now full of tears as she shook her head. She didn't know if she was crying from the news that she almost killed someone or from the feeling of the cold body and sharp scales of the snake around her neck. "No, I didn't…"

"I know, Bonnie." Phoebe now stood in front of her. "You just awakened your power. You wouldn't have been able to cast such a sophisticated spell a week after awakening your power. That's the only reason I'm not killing you."

"What?" Bonnie's eyes widened further.

"But Sheila has to pay. She cast the spell and used you to deliver the poison. I am very protective of my siblings, Bonnie. Since I met them, I swore that I would protect them. I love them more than life itself. They are the only things that make my life worth living. I would do anything for them, even murder." She took Bonnie's terrorized face in her hands and said, "Sleep, Bonnie." Phoebe's breath fanned the younger girl's face, causing her eyes to droop as she fell asleep. She sat on the couch, supporting Bonnie's head on her shoulder. She placed her hands lightly on the young girl's temple and cast a spell. "By the time you wake up tomorrow, you will find Sheila dead in her bed. Your newly awakened magic will be sealed until you awaken it naturally. And you'll have forgotten everything that happened this afternoon. You'll only remember that you were tired when you came home and fell asleep." She passed her hands tenderly in Bonnie's hair. "I'm sorry, Bonnie. I'm taking your grams from you but if I allow her to live, she will come after me and my family again. I have to make you forget this because I don't want you to also become a threat to my family. I don't want to have to kill you, too. In another life, Bonnie Bennet, maybe we could've been friends." Quetzal opened her mouth and bit Bonnie's shoulder, releasing a cocktail of magical venom into the young witch's bloodstream, sealing her magic away from her.

When Sheila arrived home, she found Phoebe Donovan in her house. From the sudden release of the young Magi's magic power, Sheila understood that she had made a terrifying enemy. But that realization came too late.

She looked up to see not the eyes of a child but apathetic violet eyes. Her eyes widened. She had never seen them before but she had heard of the mark of the Children of the Gods from various occult circles. They shimmered in the dark of various shades of purple. The change disappeared as fast as it appeared. "You won't be going to the Other Side to be with your ancestors, Sheila." Sheila was already dying from the poisonous cocktail of venom Quetzal released into her body. Her breath quickened as adrenaline pumped furiously in her bloodstream at the sight of the God of Death and the Gates of Hades standing behind the demigod.

When Sheila's spirit left her body, the gate opened and dragged the witch into its depths before closing and disappearing once more, leaving Phoebe in the darkness.

Phoebe made sure the girl was breathing easily without any side effects from Quetzal's bite. She tucked Sheila under the bedsheets, placing her hands by her sides to make it appear as though she was only sleeping. She knew Bonnie would be heartbroken and traumatized when she finds her grandmother unmoving the next morning. She empathized with the girl but she did not regret her actions. She bent down on her knees to say a short prayer for the old witch to find peace in Hades. She left the house, leaving Bonnie and Sheila in their beds.

Phoebe let out a long exhale, watching her breath come out in wisps in the frigid night air. She shoved her hands into her pocket as Quetzal wrapped around her neck tightly. A thin layer of magic lay over her body, keeping all her body heat from escaping. She raised her head up to the night sky where the stars twinkled brilliantly. The moon was almost full, just waning, but the night was dark. Nightmares awaited her in her dreams.


These last three chapters were all going to be just one, but I started writing and the longer the chapter ran, the less motivated I became. I knew where I wanted to go but the road was longer than I thought so I decided to split it up. Chapter 11 was about betrayals our main cast suffered at the hands of the people they loved. Chapter 12 is showing two contrasts, two birthdays, two families, two mothers. One ended up happily while another ended tragically with another abandonment and betrayal by a loved one. Chapter 13 shows the aftermath of all that based on characters' reactions. These chapters will affect our characters' arcs from now on.

Although Phoebe may seem like she's becoming too powerful, remember she's been practicing magic for over a decade. If we compare her to Bonnie's power progression in the show, she was only a practicing witch for about 8 years, and a lot of that time, she either lost her powers or was dead. Bonnie got by mostly on instinct while Phoebe has the knowledge from her past lives, knowledge from the gods, and the multiple grimoires she's collecting. She's also practicing with a group of other witches (Matt, Ria, and Lora) so they're learning from one another as they figure things out, bouncing ideas off one another, while Bonnie was all alone. Phoebe embraces her power, while Bonnie rejected her magic most of the time. They're just not on the same level. I'd say she's probably on the level of Vincent Griffith. And we haven't even gotten started on the show's plot yet.

But even though she's physically strong with her magic, she's emotionally fragile. So far, I've mostly focused on inner conflicts to build character in the characters and define their personalities. I am of the belief that inner conflict can be just as interesting as physical outer conflict.

I've been saying that Pheobe's vindictive, but we finally see it with how she kills Sheila after Sheila almost kills Victoria and Matthew with her spell. She loves her family very much and she will do atrocious and criminal things for them, but she prioritizes their wellbeing before revenge.


SPELLS

Fire manipulation spell: ignis est mihi mandatum (fire is mine to command)


Note: Lethe = River of Oblivion/forgetfulness

Song: Paralyzed by NF

Sorry if anyone doesn't like the dates but they help me with the timeline. I can see my story clearer when I know the exact date of events that are happening. It's how I know I can have Caroline taking care of Matt and Ria the day after December 9th 2005 because it's a Saturday so she doesn't have to go to school. But the dates don't necessarily mean that everything is linear.

Thank you for reading.

Love, Jaime.