Bonnie is having terrifying dreams about one of her ancestors. Despite Elena's efforts to smooth things over, Bonnie and Caroline continue to argue over the medallion. When the girls hold a séance to help them decide what to do, the results are stranger than any of them expected. Kai finally confronts Damon about his new interest in Bonnie, and Damon reveals the truth to Kai about why he has returned to Mystic Falls.
Change was in the air. The first light was crisp and clear, the sky was pale blue, orange, and yellow. The forest's trees bordering the west of the graveyard, which had gone fiery, and the air smells different.
Bonnie had been having dreams. Of a time before her. She dreamed of plantations, burning crosses, and vampire feeding on the innocent. It was worse whenever she fell asleep, more fragmented, confusing jumbles of images - not dreams, but memories, from another lifetime. She was not getting a lot of rest these nights.
Bonnie dreamed of her, which is something completely weird. Emily Benett, dressed in all white and something out of fashion. Her amber eyes are bright, and her long dark brown hair in tight curls pinned up. A lost, confused look on her face got Bonnie worried.
"Please, help me."
A fog filled the air around Emily, making everything but the closest monument lost in the whiteness.
"Where are we?"
Gravestones emerged silently from the fog as Bonnie spun around.
"This is where it started. And this is where it has to end."
The fog swirled around Emily like magic.
"I don't understand."
A gust of wind made a ringlet of mist whirl before Bonnie, and the image of Emily Bennett swayed a little.
"Help me, Bonnie."
There was so much detail in the dream, things she couldn't even put her finger on.
Bonnie woke up shaking, crying, sweating, and nauseous. Gazing around, her eyes spotted the gate to the cemetery, staring blankly at the headstones surrounding her and slowly noticing she was lying on damp grass as her breathing quickened and her fists clenched at her side. What the hell was she doing in the ruins of Fell' Church?
On an early Monday morning, while mist still hung low in the air, before folks started filling the street of Mystic Falls.
Bonnie pushed herself onto her feet and began walking. She could feel her bare feet ache as she walked through the dirt. She paused at the gate to the cemetery. How the hell did she get here?
Clenching and unclenching her feet to make them keep going. Bonnie pulled her thin robe around her momentarily and willed herself to go on.
Just as she started walking again, she noticed the bright headlight of a truck coming towards her. She paused, unsure for a moment what to do. The truck pulled up directly in front of her and the engine shut off.
A man stood from the truck and waved at her. "Are you Bonnie Bennett?"
"Yeah," Bonnie said breathlessly. "Who are you?"
"Chris Parker, Malachai's uncle," Even though the man lived here for almost twenty years and had lived on the same block as the Donovans for the past five years. Bonnie was almost certain this was the first time she's interacted with him.
The man ran a hand through his dark blonde hair and patted it down. The sunrise caught his eyes in such a way that the pupil brighten. "Let me get you home. Your grandmother must be worried sick."
Bonnie stumbled towards the truck. As she struggled to get her legs to work. She hopped in the passenger seat faster than she could process her own motions.
"Thank you." The crisp morning air began nipping at her cheeks as they sped up onto the road.
"Want to explain what you were doing out here?" he asked her and his words slid over her skin, raising the hair on her arms.
Eyes wide, she stammered. "Honestly, I have no clue. Things have been so weird lately. I'm sure Kai told you everything."
Chris glanced at the radio clock and shook his head. "Probably not, but I know the basics."
She felt her shoulders slump. "You know about me? What am I? About my family?" Bonnie asked, willing to play it how Chris obviously wanted it, for now.
"The Bennett witches, yes." Sincere, with eyes steady, and a soothing voice. "Your family is well known, even to us Portland natives. There's been Bennett witches who've lived and traveled through Portland. I knew your great aunt, Shirley. Meet her in college. Her husband was a great footballer back in his days."
It was rare when someone mentions her Aunt Shirley.
"You should know this, Malachai and Jo. They're new to this life. My brother and his wife were educators. Much like your grandmother, so they kept their children sheltered away from the supernatural. It wasn't until the twins entered high school, when they're parents allowed them to practice magic. And after losing their family, the coven disowned them, refusing to train Malachai, and Jo stopped practicing out of fear."
Bonnie licked her lips as she thought of something to say.
"Kai said he was a siphoner, not a real witch, not like Jo." Bonnie whispered pitifully.
Chris' eyes flickered over her face in return, searching for something, and he seemed almost relieved to not have found it.
"A siphon witch possesses the rare ability to absorb all forms of magic from an external source in place of their lack of personal power. Malachai has the same weakness and strength as any witch."
"So what are you?" Bonnie asked with a confused brow.
Chris offered a biting chuckle. "It's complicated."
Bonnie almost laughed at him. "There's a lot of that going around," she muttered, staring out the window.
Monday rolled back around for the week. Kai was sitting uncomfortably in the back row of a tiny classroom, watching other students file in one by one. Their usual substitute teacher wasn't in her seat, napping away. So Kai guessed the new history teacher would arrive today.
Jo took her fixed seat in the front and center, with her earphones in, humming the tunes from The Academy Is… and studying her notes for AP Bio.
"Have you spoken with Bonnie?"
Elena came up beside him, dropping her messenger bag down in her chair. Right away he could see an emotion on Elena... not a good one, which made him worry.
"Not since Saturday." Kai offered, as he chewed his bottom lip.
"She told me you went over to visit her." Elena gave him a withering stare. "I'm glad you were honest with her," she whispered before hinting what she knew. "I know about her too, what she is. What you and your sister are."
Kai's chest constricted in a panic, and all he wanted in that moment was to disappear. "She told you?" he asked, all horror and fear with wide eyes.
"Bonnie is like my sister. We tell each other everything." Elena shrugged. Kai grimaced at that admission. "This secret was too big not to. I promise I won't say a word. Not even to Caroline."
Kai gave her a crooked smile. "Thanks."
Elena cleared her throat, trying to seem casual. "Look, I'm rooting for you two. I'd hate to see you screw up a good thing with Bonnie. She has a lot of trust issues, okay?"
Kai looked at her suspiciously. "I'm noticing that."
A short, bitter laugh left Elena as she folded her arms.
"You know, I broke up with Matt at my parents' funeral over the summer. Thinking I was sparing him the burden of dealing with me. But I was only hurting him by isolating myself and shutting him out of my life. And now he's going through so much shit with his mom bailing on him again and Vicki's gone too. He's struggling to pay rent and keep the lights on. Yet he never hides away from me or my help. Matt's always been open and honest with me about everything going on in his life. I realized I had a good thing with him. So over the weekend, we talked, hashed things out. We're giving it another shot, together. I don't doubt the same can't happen with you and Bonnie."
Kai kept silent for a long while, thinking this over.
"It might be more complicated than you and Matt," he looked down at his desk, thumbing at the worn edge of the textbook.
Elena gave him an odd look. Finally, she sighed. "You've been showing up for her because you're crazy about her. You won't ever be able to stay away from her." Elena said, smirking a little. "Take it from someone who's been in your shoes. When it's real, you can't walk away."
Rushing in, books clinging against her chest, was Bonnie, looking smaller than she's ever looked. Elena watched her friend in alarm. Before either of them could speak. A man approximately over 6 feet tall with an athletic build walked in straight away, closing the classroom door.
"Good Morning everyone. Alrighty," the older man said, setting his leather bag down on the floor next to the copper desk. He was wearing a tweed blazer and dark jeans with his hair gelled in a pompadour taper style.
Jo made a sideways glance at Kai. This was the first time she'd ever acknowledged him in class. So she felt a weird vibe, too.
The dark-haired man wrote his name out on the whiteboard. While Elena tossed a paper ball to Bonnie.
Kai looked over at Bonnie, and mouth, "What's going on?" he squinted his eyes at her.
Bonnie gave him a shrug before turning her attention back to the board.
"Alaric Saltzman. It's a mouthful, I know," the man started while he looked around the room at his new students, who were taking out their textbooks and binders. "The name doesn't exactly roll off the tongue. Saltzman is of German origins. My family emigrated here in 1755 to Texas. I, however, was born and raised in Boston."
Kai gave him a curious look, then spied a large, garish ring on his finger. Something about the ring was triggering to Kai. He felt an odd pull towards it, like it was familiar to him.
"You'll probably want to pronounce 'Alaric' but it's 'Alaric,' okay? But you can call me Ric. I'm your new history teacher."
The girls in the front row all sighed dreamily at this man. Kai didn't get the whole thing with high school girls lusting over these thirty-year-old men. Thankfully, he never had to worry about Jo being led on by some old geezer.
Bonnie waited the whole morning before meeting up with Elena. The two were sitting at a picnic table outside on the school campus. Her nails tapping on the top of the picnic table, keeping rhythm.
Bonnie looked up at the sky—squinting. It felt good, warming every inch of her exposed skin, thawing the sadness that felt rooted deep in her bones.
"You've never been late to class." Elena was leaning on the table, pulling her hair up into a messy bun. "Where were you this morning?"
Bonnie swallowed nervously before she answered. "Over the weekend, I've been having these dreams about my ancestor, Emily Bennett. She keeps calling out for me to help her. I keep seeing that damn fog, and sometimes the crow, I.. I don't know what any of this means."
All expression vanished from Elena's face. "Bonnie, I'm really worried about you. Maybe it's time you take this seriously."
Bonnie sighed dramatically. "If I do, I'm just opening up a pandora's box of trouble."
Elena sucked in a breath. "I get that, but you're not alone. You have your grandmother and Kai wants to help, too." Elena said after a pause. The corners of her mouth trembled a little. "Hell, I want to help."
Bonnie bit down on the angry words burning her tongue. "Thanks, but this is bigger than us. I think Emily is haunting me."
Elena made a dismissive gesture. "Or she's trying to send you a message."
Bonnie placed a hand over her necklace. "Grams told me Emily was a powerful witch back in the Civil War days and that this medallion was hers. A witch's talisman."
"That's the necklace Caroline wants to give Damon." Elena's brow furrowed in confusion. "What the hell could he want with it?" she asked, sounding both alarmed and concerned.
"Who knows, the Founding Families took everything from my ancestors. This might be one of the few things we have left."
"I know you're going to hate me, but I say embrace this." Elena's voice was steely. "With all the weird stuff going on, why turn your back on the one thing that can probably protect you the most?"
"There's something I haven't told you yet," Bonnie said slowly, thinking it through. "This morning I woke up at the remains of the old Fell's church. I must have been sleepwalking last night."
Elena leaned forward. "Holy crap…"
"Chris Parker gave me a ride home," she felt childish saying it. She knew she should have started the conversation first with this news, but honestly, the car ride from this morning felt unreal.
"Did he say anything? What does he know? Is he a witch too?" Elena whispered in dread.
Bonnie frowned, trying to think back. It was all such a horrible blur in her head. "He just said that the Bennett witches are well known across the coast. The other covens know about us. I don't have a clue what he is."
"Let's skip," Elena said, a wry smile plastered on her face. "We'll go over to my place, de-stress and try to figure out what these dreams mean."
Bonnie sighed. She should have known this was coming. "Elena…"
Immediately, a warm hand pressed against her cheek.
"Bonnie, you can't keep going on like this. We only have two classes left for the day. Your mental health is way more important." Elena said, now smoothing down Bonnie's uncombed hair.
Sometimes Bonnie couldn't believe this girl before her was Elena Gilbert. Had losing her parents given her clarity?
"Matt and Caroline are probably gonna wonder where we are." Bonnie said in a scandalized voice.
"Just because I have a boyfriend again, doesn't mean I'm ditching my best friend in her time of need. At least not anymore." Elena said somberly. Bonnie just smiled in response. "Besides, I was thinking this evening we could have an intervention with Caroline, and try to get her away from Damon."
Bonnie smiled as sweetly as she could. "Good luck…"
The two made their way around back to the parking lot. They both came to an abrupt halt as they spied someone actually leaning against Bonnie's car, grinning at both of them.
"Ladies, playing hooky, what naughty little schoolgirls," Damon smirked, and then seemed to catch himself. "Where's the blonde?"
"Get the hell out of here, Damon." Elena said, holding Damon's gaze steadily.
Damon raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly around the parking lot.
"Look, I'm just here for my necklace. I'll leave as soon as your little friend gives it to me." Damon announced cheerfully.
Bonnie gripped her keys so tight that they dug into her palm. "You can't have it."
Damon's expression just sort of closed down. "Why must you be so gruesome? I'm trying to help you."
"I don't need your help. How about you stay away from me, and my friends," Bonnie said as she pulled her book bag to her chest.
Damon cleared his throat and got a constipated expression on his face. "Speaking of friends, your little boyfriend tried to set me up. You know how difficult it was to get the sheriff off my back."
Bonnie walked forward. "You're sleeping with her underage daughter. How did you think that was going to work? Not to mention whatever mess you got Vicki Donovan in."
"I had nothing to do with what happened to her, and I don't appreciate your boyfriend lying to everyone, saying I kept her drugged up." Damon moved closer to Bonnie, disapproval leaching in his voice. "I know what he is, and why he and his sister got sent here. You tell him to back off or there's going to be deadly consequences. I promise he won't live to tell the tale."
Elena pulled Bonnie away from Damon and held her close. "I've had enough with your threats. Stay away from us. Or I'll tell Sheriff Forbes about how you cornered me at the football game and tried to kiss me."
Bonnie flinched back from the sharpness in Elena's voice, shocked. While Damon sputtered as if Elena had punched him.
"I wasn't trying to… fine." Damon backed away from them both. "Believe it or not, I was trying to get Emily off your back."
"Wait, how do you know about her?" Bonnie asked with a disgusted sigh.
"I know a lot of things, little witch." Damon said in a strange tone in his voice. "And I know more about that crystal than you do, and I know that she's using it to creep inside of you. See how scared you are? And you should be, because I will get that crystal, even if I have to wait for Emily to give it to me herself. So, next time she comes out to play, you tell her that a deal's a deal."
With that, Damon walked off, his swagger a little less pronounced.
"That guy is bad news."
Kai didn't see Bonnie and Elena after lunch. They both skipped English Lit and geometry. He asked Donovan if he knew where they were. The guy was clueless, and when he cornered Forbes about them after school, she bitched about how Bonnie was a petty thief trying to ruin her life.
Kai went home, contemplating whether he should show up at Bonnie's house unannounced and check in on her. But he knew she needed her space. She was still trying to wrap her head around all of this news.
His bad mood lingered until that evening when Elena Gilbert called and Jo got curious about why the most popular girl in school would be calling her dorky brother. Kai took himself outside. The illusion of privacy was better than none. He was a little surprised that Elena called him.
"Hey, hope I'm not interrupting anything."
"Just watching the season finale of Lost," Kai swallowed and pleaded for an appropriate distraction. "Can you believe Locke was an impostor the entire time?"
"That entire season was pretty wacky," Elena said slowly. Reluctantly. "Look, Bonnie is staying over at my place. We had a brief run in with Damon at school today."
His knees felt weak. All the air left his chest immediately. "Why isn't he locked up?"
"Because his uncle is covering for him," Elena sniped, steely determination coloring her voice. "The other night at the grill, he slapped Caroline and broke up with her."
Kai blinked. Whatever he'd been expecting, it hadn't been that. "Why isn't the sheriff doing anything about this?" he asked and felt it, along with a twinge of anger.
"I don't know. He's obsessed about a necklace he gifted Caroline." Elena replied bluntly. "But she gave it to Bonnie. And now Bonnie's grandmother is saying that the necklace belongs to an old ancestor of theirs. It doesn't belong to Damon. It's probably worth a fortune."
Kai ran a hand through his hair, his stomach in knots. "You think he's trying to get it back and sell it to the highest bidder?"
"Possibly. I mean, the guy is so shady." Elena agreed mildly.
"How's Bonnie holding up?" he asked, not sure of what else to say.
"Not good. Damon is scaring her. He's scaring me too." There was a long silence on the line before Elena huffed out a breath. "He's pissed at you, by the way. He's itching for a fight. I'm worried he'll come after you and Jo."
Kai was more concerned with the dawning horror in his chest. "I'm tougher than I look, Gilbert," and the silence went on. "I'll talk to my uncle, see if he can do anything about this. Nothing is going to happen to any of us. Promise."
She must have heard something in his voice, because she paused. "Kai, don't do anything stupid." Elena said, and something in his stomach churned a little at the tone. "Damon isn't playing around. He's deadly."
"Just monitor Bonnie, and tell Forbes to stay away from Damon." Kai drawled, more sharply than he'd meant to.
"I'm planning an intervention tonight," there was a chiming noise in the background. "Speak of the devil. Must be her. Look, I gotta go. If your uncle can help, that would be great."
"I'm on it."
Kai walked back into the house and flinched as he caught sight of Jo and Chris sitting around the living room, Wheel of Fortune playing in the background.
"What did Elena want?" Jo asked with a conspiratorial smile, then her smile dropped as soon as Chris looked at her.
"Damon came by the school today. Apparently he's harassing Bonnie." Kai did not snarl, although he wanted to.
"What the hell, why? What does he want with her?" Jo questioned, her voice shrill.
"Gilbert said something about a necklace. Forbes must've gotten it from Damon, and she gave it to Bonnie. He wants it back now. He slapped Forbes and dumped her." Kai told her as he crossed his arms over his chest. He couldn't figure out what else to do with his hands.
"How does he keep getting away with shit?" Jo questioned in a tone of voice that made Kai flinch.
"No matter how troubled Damon seems, he's still Zach's family." Chris paused, an emotion Kai couldn't pinpoint coloring his face. "I believe my old friend is covering for him."
"Then you need to talk to him." Kai said sarcastically as his last nerve finally snapped.
Chris's expression hardened. "Don't you think I've tried Malachai? Zach's been avoiding me. He knows if we speak what I'll ask of him, but it doesn't matter. Damon won't keep getting away with things."
"Then we need a plan," Kai told him, anger in his words.
Chris' lips twitched and his eyes darkened, but other than that, his face became blank, as if his spirit had been washed away.
"The plan is for you to let me handle it."
Kai shook his head and looked questioningly at Chris.
"Shit has been going sideways for the past two months. Everyone has been turning a blind eye. If I hadn't gone to that hospital and questioned Vicki, I would have never suspected we were living amongst vampires. And I'm the only one who's trying to deal with Damon."
Disappointment flashed across the older man's face before he pushed himself to his feet. "Malachai, I get you want to protect your sister and friends, but you don't know this town's history."
Kai wasn't sure he ever glared at someone with as much hatred as he was now.
"I don't care. Bonnie needs my help, so I'm gonna help her, with or without your approval," he snarled, jabbing his fingers towards Chris.
"Here, take this." Jo came towards him with a sparkling gemstone necklace in her hand. "Dad told me once that he wanted to pass this on to you." Kai's eyes blinked rapidly when Jo's small hand grabbed his, putting the pendant into his palm. "I found it in a box of his old things before we moved everything into storage."
"It's our great-granddad's amulet. A witch's talisman. It will protect you. You can also siphon magic from it." Chris started then stopped. "Be careful with it."
Kai nodded, closing his fingers around the amulet. "I will," he gave a dark laugh. "Thanks Josie."
Kai turned and headed out into the night. He knew one place Damon wouldn't resist going.
"Why am I not surprised you'd show up here?"
Kai approached the dark and dangerous man drinking at the bar. He let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding.
Damon looked at him, raising one scintillating eyebrow. "I believe your girlfriend passed on the message I gave her."
Begrudgingly, cautiously, Kai sat down, leaving about two feet of space between them. "I haven't spoken with Bonnie. Elena, however, called, not happy about how you keep tormenting her friends."
Damon sighed. His hand fell. "Okay, which one of them are you boning?"
Kai resisted the urge to smack him. "I'm not here for this shit."
"Look, they are both hot. Elena is way more my speed, but I wouldn't mind having a go with Bonnie. Teach her the way around a cock," Damon said eagerly. And Kai found a whole new level of repulsion.
"You know what…" he paused, trying to ignore this blasphemy, because if he didn't, he would have to do something drastic.
The older man glared at him, then drew himself up. "Relax, Malachai, I'm messing with you. In fact, I kinda like you. You remind me of a younger me."
A chill shot down Kai's spine. "God, I hope not."
The corners of the vampire's mouth curved up. "You came here for something. What is it?"
Kai sat back and put his hands firmly on his knees. "We need to talk, mano a mano," he said through his teeth.
Damon threw his head back and laughed.
"Oh really, well then… bartender, get me another bottle for me and my new friend."
The ease dropped out from Kai's stomach. He knew this was going to be a long and draining night.
"I've got Tuscan Six Cheese Pizza with Garlic Knots? Oh, and mint chocolate chips ice cream," Elena told them with an uncertain expression on her face as she stood in her living room.
"I bought brownies," Caroline added as she held up a plastic container from home. "I'm so glad we're doing this. The three of us have not been hanging out in a long time."
"Yeah, it's been a crazy year. So much has changed." Bonnie said with a sympathetic cringe. "Maybe we can catch up and talk."
Elena handed out the plates and bowls, while Bonnie moved to dish out the ice cream and Caroline started dividing up the pizza.
"Did you hear Blair Fell got caught behind the bleacher on her knees with stoner Jared?" Caroline's voice was light and teasing.
Bonnie made a vague gagging noise.
"Caroline, can we talk about anything other than your loser bootlicker friends giving blowjobs?" Elena instantly echoed, a scowl settling over her features.
Caroline sniffed and looked around the room with obvious disdain. "What crawled up your ass, Elena?"
"Why is Damon trying to get this necklace?" Bonnie interrupted, jumping in to change the conversation.
"Damon doesn't tell me anything except that I'm shallow and useless," the blonde said sadly as she turned to Elena for confirmation before she headed for the couch.
"Caroline…"
"There's something I've been meaning to tell you," Bonnie said carefully, and Elena's eyes flooded with realization. "I'm a witch."
Caroline let out a loud scoff and raised her eyebrows. "We're all well aware of that."
"She's being serious Caroline." Elena took a plate and a bowl and retreated to her father's old reclining chair. "Maybe you should listen to her for once."
Placing her plate of pizza on the armrest, Bonnie dug into her slightly melted ice cream.
"I wanna be honest with you. Damon knows about me. He wants this necklace that belongs to my family and I think he's using you to get to me." Bonnie said through a grunt of exasperation.
"Really? Isn't Kai enough." Caroline drawled out that almost insufferably brazen tone. "I mean, I get you aren't the town's prize, but you have the new kid eating out of your hand and you want to take my boyfriend away from me?"
Elena folded her lips and mock-glared at the blonde. "Are you serious, Caroline? Boyfriend? We watched him slap you the other night. He's abusing you, emotionally and physically, yet you want to accuse Bonnie of something like that?"
Bonnie paused, then cleared her throat. "Forget it Elena, let's just…"
"No," Elena growled in warning. "Damon tried to kiss me. Your boyfriend came onto me in our school parking lot. If Matt hadn't shown up, I don't know what would have happened to me."
"Look, Caroline. We're worried about you." Settling back against the cushions, Bonnie swung her legs over the arm of the armchair. "We're used to your bitchiness, but this is different. You're different and we're scared for you."
Caroline dropped her plate on the coffee table where it rattled against the wood. Nibbling at her lips, she peered at them through her blonde loose curls that had fallen into her eyes.
"It's over between me and Damon. I was fooling myself, thinking he was someone I wanted to be with, but he wasn't. He's cruel and a manipulator. I hate the person I've been since I met him. I'm sorry, Elena, you didn't deserve that. And Bonnie... I was way out of line. I shouldn't have accused you of wanting Damon. You clearly have better taste in guys than I do."
Bonnie pushed her hair back behind an ear. "God, there's way too much drama in this room."
"Sorry. But on a lighter note, I have an idea. Why don't we have a séance?" Caroline asked and then wrinkled her nose.
"I don't think that's a good idea." Bonnie shook her head and shared a look with Elena.
"I think it's a great idea," Elena bounced in her seat in excitement. "And guess who has that old Ouija board," she stared at Bonnie and watched her for a moment before she continued, "Come on, maybe we can get some answers from Emily."
Caroline raised her eyebrows, lips twitching. "Emily is?"
Elena turned to her with an elaborately innocent look. "The ghost that's been haunting Bonnie. The necklace belongs to her."
"Well then, this Emily chick has some serious explaining to do." Caroline exclaimed, clapping her hands together in unfeigned eagerness.
Kai cracked first.
"You're a vampire." He tapped the bar with a fingernail.
That made Damon laugh. "And you're a witch," he tilted a skeptical eyebrow. "I bet you're just discovering yourself. You seemed surprised when you used your powers against me that night."
Kai leaned the throat of the Coca-Cola bottle against his forehead, rubbing it back and forth. "I'm not a regular witch, I didn't think… it doesn't matter."
Damon nodded slowly, never taking his eyes off Kai. "Zach said you're a siphon witch with no actual powers of your own. More of a freak of nature."
Kai threw a bottle cap at him. "Fuck you, asshole."
"I'm not taking a dig. I can relate, you know, being a creature of the night." Damon pressed his lips together, then shrugged. "Mind telling me why you left your coven?"
Kai shrugged and ran his hand through his hair.
"My family has never been popular with the Gemini Coven. My father was supposed to be coven leader, but he chose a normal life with my mom over his responsibilities, so the coven gave the role to someone else. That's how we became rejects of the coven. When they died, everyone shunned my sister and I." Kai frowned thoughtfully, and stared blankly at Damon, "The Parker family legacy is now down to one set of twins. One a witch, the other⎯ Chris is the only family we have left."
"Damn, that sucks," Damon barked out a cynical laugh.
"I've got a question for you," Kai sighed, scratching at his sweats. "Why are you going after Bonnie?"
Damon looked irritated. "I'm not after your girlfriend, Casanova."
Kai could argue with that. "Damon, why are you stalking Bonnie?"
The vampire shot him a surprised look. "Stalking, please don't fool yourself into thinking I actually want that self-righteous bitc…"
Kai looked down at the crystal he's been palming between his hand before chanting.
"Phasmatos superous em animi…"
Kai knew Damon was feeling a ringing pain in his head. He watched as the other man grabbed at his temples.
"I'm not as inexperienced as you believe, Damon. I swear you say one more word about Bonnie." His anger struggled against sudden fierce desire.
Damon drew himself up to his full height and looked repressively down his nose at him. "Fucker, I gotta stop underestimating you."
With effort, he came back to himself. "Just tell me what you're up to."
Damon blinked, bemusement breaking through his mask. "Fine, me and my brother Stefan. We're the original Salvatore brothers." His grin broke like a sudden sun. "The woman we wanted to save was named Katherine Pierce. That crystal Bonnie has belongs to her."
Kai blew out a breath. "So you just want your dead girlfriend's necklace?"
"Dead? No no no, Katherine was like me. In fact, she was the one who turned my brother and I into vampires." Damon said idly, still grinning. "Katherine isn't dead. She's stuck in a tomb under a church. The witch Emily Bennett sealed that tomb to keep Katherine safe from the Founders."
Kai chewed on that for a long moment. "This vampire chick, Katherine, she's been trapped in a mystical holding cell for the last century and a half. You don't really believe she's alive."
"I'm no expert on starving vampires, but yeah, she's probably a dried up corpse hungry for her first meal." Damon said, then dropped his gaze, the smile fading.
Kai didn't know what to make of the expression on Damon's face. "Why haven't you tried to get her out? It's been years."
"Did you know that witches can use celestial events to draw energy into their magic?" Damon's eyes flashed and color flooded back into his face. "Me either. But in order to give the crystal its power, Emily used the comet that was passing overhead. And, in order for that crystal to work again…"
Kai studied him long and hard, then nodded a little. "Let me guess, the comet had to return."
Damon cocked his head at him. "There's a long time in-between comets. And a couple of hiccups along the way with the crystal, but the comet passed, and I got the crystal. And then Caroline got the crystal, and now Bonnie has the crystal, and here we are."
His anger, which had been receding, grew again. "Why would a witch help a vampire? What was in it for her?"
Damon slitted his eyes suspiciously at Kai. "Emily knew the Founders were gonna come for her, too, and she made me promise that her lineage would survive."
"Well, you're doing a stellar job so far." Kai shot back hoarse, stung.
Damon's expression snapped shut. "Emily and I never cared for each other. Witches and vampires don't get along that well." Then he tilted his head and peered at Kai through narrowed eyes. "And despite what you think of me, I'm probably gonna be the least dangerous vampire you'll meet. If you think I'm troubled, well, you have no idea what worse things are lurking outside of Mystic Falls."
The vampire laughed and laughed and laughed.
Messing with the spiritual world, doing something more daring than prank calling the neighbors, was petrifying. While Caroline was not a believer, Bonnie knew about herself, and she knew there were others like her.
Elena sat down across from Caroline and looked at the blonde expectantly. Caroline just stared back, oblivious to what her dark-haired friend wanted from her.
Bonnie scrunched up her face. "What are we doing?"
Elena gave a small puff of laughter. "Yes, Caroline. What are we doing?"
Her eyes glistened excitedly, and Bonnie sighed. She would never understand how her best friend found the witchcraft stuff interesting.
Caroline rolled her eyes, but held her hand out. "Be quiet and concentrate. Close your eyes."
Bonnie counted to ten, and she put her hand on the planchette.
"Now take a deep breath. Bonnie. Call out to her."
"Emily, you there?" Bonnie called out from her spot on the hardwood floor as she moved the planchette across the board, along with Elena.
"You gotta do better than that, Bennett." Caroline deadpanned back. "You're a witch, aren't you?"
Bonnie sighed again, louder. Caroline raised an eyebrow at her.
"Emily. I call on you. Have you been trying to send me a message?" Bonnie asked, enunciating carefully, as if Emily Bennett would have trouble understanding her. "Are you trying to help me?"
The planchette moved. The girls held their breath as the planchette dragged its way towards the corner of the board. It passed the letters and stopped over the word, "Yes".
Bonnie looked at Elena, concern weaved across her face. "Okay, I'm here to listen."
The planchette drifted under her fingertips, moving towards the letters of the ouija board. It kept moving until it stopped at 'F', then a moment later it drifted over to 'E', then 'L'. And it stopped.
"FEL. What's that mean?" Elena grinned at Bonnie's glowering face.
The board didn't move.
Caroline quickly snatches the planchette from the others and pulled it to the GOODBYE section, before collapsing on the floor. "Crap, this is stupid. I don't know why I let you guys talk me into this."
Elena stiffened and gave Caroline a significant look. "Caroline, this was your idea."
Bonnie was quiet for a moment, thinking.
"Emily, please, what do you know? Why does Damon want your necklace? I deserve an answer."
Not long after, the room seemed to grow heavier. The energy in their atmosphere seemed to grow ghastly. Something in each of their stomachs dropped, a distressful emotion that touched their spirits maliciously. The feeling hauled for a moment, before progressing gradually again.
Bonnie closed her eyes in sudden pain and guilt. "You know what I'm done. I've had it. Screw you, Emily."
As the dark power continued to rise, the temperature plunged. In a matter of seconds, the air was frosty, leaving all the girls shivering at the unexpected drop.
"I'm getting the light." Elena patted Bonnie's on the shoulder and jetted for the light switch. The girls all blinked their eyes to adjust to the glaring light.
"You guys, the necklace. It's gone."
Something in her head snapped.
"Dammit, Caroline, stop messing around." Elena jerked a thumb toward the blonde. "Give it back."
Caroline drew in a deep breath. "What? I don't have it."
Elena looked straight into those vivid blue eyes. "Who else would have taken it?"
Bonnie was looking around, and absently murmured. "Can we not fight? It has to be here. Just help me look."
Elena checked Jeremy's room, while Caroline popped around in the hallway, and Bonnie searched towards the bathroom. That's when she noticed the gem on the floor. She moved forward to reach for it.
"Guys, I…" The door slammed shut as soon as she entered inside. "You guys open the door! Help me!"
There was something trying to control her body. It dug and clawed its way into her mind, twisting around until she was no longer the only one in there; Bonnie was sharing with something else. Something dark, ugly, and treacherous.
"Bonnie! Bonnie! What's going on, Bonnie?" Elena asked through the bathroom door from the hallway.
"Bonnie!"
Caroline and Elena pound on the door.
"Bonnie! Bonnie! Unlock the door!" Caroline pleaded to her.
The lights flickered. Both Caroline and Elena paused, trying to open the door. The blonde looked around.
When the bathroom door finally opened, it revealed the lights were on. Bonnie had the crystal in her hands. She appeared to be fine.
"What happened? Are you okay?" Elena asked, worried.
"I'm fine," Bonnie said with a strange tone and a stoic look.
"Unbelievable. You were totally faking it." Caroline muttered under her breath.
Elena quirked a mildly amused eyebrow at her. "Calm down, Caroline. Bonnie was just scared as we were."
"She knows I don't believe in this shit. I was worried about you, Bennett." Caroline said softly after a moment, stepping back and away.
Bonnie frowned, unamused. Elena hid a small smile. Bonnie was very focused when she went into warrior mode. "Everything's fine."
"You know what? I'm getting out of here." Caroline said, picking up her bag. "I've had enough freaky fake witch stuff for one night."
Bonnie thought for a few more moments, pressed her lips together disapprovingly, then finally nodded. "Thank you for having me. I'll take it from here."
Elena threw up her hands. "What about our sleepover? You can't leave."
Bonnie strode forward, face grim and focused. "I have to go back to where it all began."
"Bonnie…" Elena gasped, finally connecting the dots. "Oh My God! Emily!"
"I won't let him have it. It must be destroyed." Emily said, and Elena stared at her. She looked perfectly serious.
"Wait!"
Elena moved to chase Bon.. Emily down the stairs. When she tried to open the front door, it was sealed shut. Emily must have spelled it shut.
"Dammit." Elena shouted hoarsely.
"Elena, what's going on?" Caroline asked with sudden urgency, looking to the door.
Elena gave no response, just stared straight ahead. A sick feeling washed over her, until the front door finally opened, and Jeremy walked in.
"What the hell? You guys almost scared me to death."
Elena heaved a vast sigh of relief and moved forward. She rushed back upstairs to her bedroom for her cellphone. Searching through her call history, then thumbed the call button, held the phone to her ear and moved over to her window.
There was a long, fraught silence from the other end of the line. Then a voice spoke up. "What's up, Gilbert?"
"It's Bonnie."
"What happened?" Kai's voice was laced with concern.
"Emily possessed her. We were doing a séance, contacting the dead. We used an Ouija Board to ask Emily some questions, but all we got out of her was FEL…" Elena leaned her head back against the frame of the window. She pursed her lips thoughtfully, her eyes widened. "Shit, Fell's church, by the old cemetery. That's where she took Bonnie in her dreams. We have to help her, Kai."
"Don't worry, I'm here with…" There was another long pause, then Kai shouted. "That fucking asshole."
Elena stared at the ceiling without seeing it. "Who?"
The response was swift. "Damon."
There was a lump in her throat. "Damon? He's with you."
His voice turned serious. "Was, he just ran out, crap he's going after Bonnie for the necklace."
She hesitated, but not for long. "Kai, please."
"I'm on my way over there. Call my house and tell my uncle to meet me at the church," he told her precisely.
Elena hung up and sat in the window quietly for a few more minutes. She couldn't just sit around waiting for someone else to save the day. She knew the truth about Bonnie, her powers, and the danger that came with it. Bonnie was there for her all summer while she grieved the loss of her parents. How could she not return the favor and save her best friend?
Kai made a run for it. He was determined to find Bonnie. Running through the forest, he luckily found where Damon and Bonnie took off to the old Fell's Church that had burned down during the war.
Kai tripped, stumbled, and only barely caught himself on the trunk of a tree. There were only a few more feet before he reached the field. He sucked in a breath and coughed. Until he arrived on the scene.
"We had a deal, Emily."
He froze. He couldn't move, couldn't speak, just looked.
"Things are different now. I need to protect my family."
Bonnie's voice, Bonnie's face, Bonnie's body, but this was not Bonnie.
"No. I protected your family. You owe me."
Kai bit his lip until it almost bled.
Bon- Emily shook her head furiously. "I know. I'm sorry."
Damon took a step closer. Rising fury gave Kai his ability to speak up.
"Stay away from her," he grated out.
Damon's lips quirked, but he manfully kept a straight face. "Don't you ever get tired of being a pain in my ass?"
"Malachai Parker, of the Gemini Coven." Her voice was cool. "It's an honor to have someone of your pedigree court one of my own."
She was very professional and pragmatic.
Kai reassesses her but doesn't yet relax. "Umm. Thanks."
"I don't have time for this."
Damon growled and charged straight at Kai, throwing the first punch. He dodged it effortlessly, only to trip over Damon's low kick, falling down to the ground. Damon moved fast, placing his foot on Kai's chest so that he couldn't get up.
"Enough of the games, Emily. Give me the crystal or I'll kill the boy." Damon bit out, gritting his teeth.
She was quiet for a noticeable time. "No. I have to do this. I won't let them escape."
Damon stared angrily into space. "Them?"
She made a disgusted face and drew her head back. "To save her, I had to save them."
"You saved all those vampires." Damon stepped forward, his body coiled for violence.
Kai's breathing hitched. He ached somewhere down deep. Now was the time. He reached for the amulet in his front pocket.
Damon clenched his jaw before speaking again. "I don't care about them. I just want Katherine."
"Things are different now." Her voice was light, but the warning was obvious.
"Don't do this." Damon snapped before a burst of hysterical laughter slipped out.
"I can't free them. I won't." She paused. No one said anything. Emily tossed her head up. "Incendia!"
The pentagram Emily carved into the dirt around her was set ablaze, and the flames created a wall between her.
"Motus," a flick of Kai's wrist, pushed Damon backwards, through the air, and onto the ground.
The vampire coughed, screamed, and his sputtering electric sound echoed in the early twilight silence of the refinery yards.
"I'm going to kill you and that stupid little bitch." Damon panted, catching his breath.
They fought again, veering, lunging, and blocking jabs and kicks, stuck in a never-ending rhythm where even the hits landed on each other didn't slow either of them down.
"Phasmatos superous em…"
Now Damon flashed into his full vamp face. "Oh, no you don't..."
Damon got a kick to the center of Kai's chest, knocking him back, and catching his legs with his other leg. Kai recovered quickly enough to put his arms up, defending against the kick aimed at his head.
Emily threw the necklace into the air, and the crystal exploded, while the remains rained down on them like fireworks. Now the spell was complete, and the crystal was destroyed. It was over.
Damon resolved to return at full force. He looked back at Emily with a hardened stare. "NO…"
Around the died down flames, Emily had now departed from Bonnie's body. Now she had control of herself again, and Bonnie looked around, confused.
"Damon, don't." A scream of helpless rage caught in Kai's throat.
There was a look of terror on Bonnie's face.
Kai was always fast, but not fast enough, and Damon took pleasure in knowing that as he moved to dodge. The vampire landed a good punch in Kai's stomach. He stumbled back and coughed, close to having had the wind knocked out of him.
"Phasmatos superous…"
Before he could get the incantation out, Damon found an opening, which he quickly took; he kicked Kai's legs out from under him, making the witch fall right on his ass and knocked down on his back with his head hitting the ground.
Watching from the ground, he could see Damon's eyes had a killer look in them. Kai couldn't move. His body was throbbing with pain. The vampire charged at Bonnie, his eyes crimson red and his fangs bared.
Damon gripped onto Bonnie's arm and dug his fangs into her neck. Bonnie screamed out in pain.
Before Kai mustered up the pain infliction spell, he heard a shotgun go off once, twice, a dozen times. Damon stumbled back, registering which way to run away from the immediate threat before finally reeling into a retreat through the woods.
Bonnie doesn't scream when she goes down, but somehow the soft, choked off noise of pain is worse.
Kai tries to hoist himself upright.
"Oh god," he recognized Gilbert's voice. "Bonnie."
His arms gave out, and he falls against the solid rock at his back, a grimace twisting his face. Someone rushed forward to help steady him. It was Chris.
"What the hell happened?" Elena asked, suddenly close.
"She's alive, but barely. She needs help." Chris said gently, and this time there were no misunderstandings.
His heart was screaming in his chest, "Chris… please do something,"
Nothing else mattered.
Chris motioned for Elena to move and hold Kai up. The girl did as she was told. He was gasping and clutching Elena's hand with bruised fingers and staring at Elena with wet eyes that said more plainly than words ever could.
His uncle dropped to his knees, scooping Bonnie's head up with one hand. She was scarcely breathing. Chris reached inside his coat, taking out a small bottle and poured liquid into her mouth.
Both Kai and Elena watched in shock as the blood flow from her neck stopped and Bonnie coughed.
"What did you give her?" Kai croaked, his words choking him.
His uncle looked... nervous. That was not the slightest bit reassuring. "Healing elixir, a potion that replenished any lost health or stamina. I need to get her inside and properly close the wound. She'll need rest."
Chris reached over and hooked his arms around Bonnie's knees. He carried her bridal style and made his way back to the truck.
Kai's head falls back, eyes closing for a long, excruciating moment.
"I don't understand what happened to Bonnie. He was biting her neck, and his face was like…" Elena struggled for a word to finish that.
It was late, Kai was tired, and it had been one thing after another tonight: "Damon's a vampire," he confessed, "He's been feeding on Caroline. That's why she had bruises on her neck."
Elena frowned and then shifted around so she could face Kai without having to peer around the trees. "Vampire? I… how is this possible?"
Kai reached into his pockets, drawing out his last remaining cigarette. "You didn't think it was just witches out around." he tried to light his cigarette with a hand that wasn't trembling. "Apparently, the world is crawling with mystical creatures, and Mystic Falls is their Hellmouth."
Closing his eyes, he took a moment to collect himself before turning his attention back to Bonnie. He followed his uncle to the truck, unable to process what's happened in the past couple hours. One more person knew the truth. And there were more vampires in Mystic Falls. Which means the town was in jeopardy of being a vampire hotspot.
AN: I'm back. Love every single response from you all. I know the story is just getting started with action. Kai's using more magic. Elena knows about the vampires. Emily Bennett made her appearance. Caroline knows about Bonnie being a witch, though she doesn't believe. Kai and Damon finally faced off and fought. Chris gave Bonnie some insight into Kai's history with his parents and the coven. The Bennett witches are popular and know world-wide. Alaric Saltzman is here.
Next chapter covers the Bloodline episodes. Kai and Bonnie have a serious yet hard conversation. Elena involves herself into the danger. Bonnie turns to the one person who can relate to her situations. Kai finds out what's happened to Zach Salvatore and the truth of Elena's lineage that connects to Damon's former flame, Katherine.