Redamancy | Elena Gilbert

Chapter 55

Three months passed.

Bonnie's magic was being stubborn. Rosalind, as always, was stubborn, too.

It didn't seem like Ruby had been able to find Kai in all her little trips out of Mystic Falls. There was a whole world to explore, and Kai could be anywhere. Their only hope was a Locator Spell, which was still in the works.

Rosalind was doing her best to encourage Bonnie while they practiced together. The hybrid was learning a lot more about spells than she ever thought she would. The sucky part was that she herself couldn't practice magic.

She went on runs everyday in the forest. Swam in the falls and any swimming pool she found. She trained with punching bags, pretending Klaus and Kol were across from her, shouting out cheeky comments.

She'd lay by herself on the edge of the forest and talk aloud as if Elena was curled up beside her, gazing at her adoringly while she spoke. Most days, she talked about her plans for when she got out. Sometimes, the conversation became about Ruby, who ever so often tried to 'accidentally' bump into Rosalind whenever she returned to Mystic Falls to report that she still didn't know where Kai was.

Rosalind didn't want to know her. Didn't want to hear anything she had to say. Bonnie was trying her hardest to remain neutral, but grew frustrated with Rosalind's stubbornness as well as Ruby's insistence on catching her daughter off-guard for a conversation. The witch would have preferred for Ruby to arrange a sit-down dinner instead of bombarding Rosalind with greetings. She also wished Rosalind would try to be civil and open-minded instead of believing that Ruby had nothing to offer her.

"My mom left me, too," Bonnie told her. "Twice. And yeah, it sucked, but I am still thankful that I got that time to learn more about her. This might not go down well, but how will you know if you don't try? I don't want to play this card to hurt you, but... what would Elena say?"

The hybrid knew she was right. "Elena would probably be pushing me to talk to her. Probably would lock us in a room together so we either get it over with and kill each other or bond."

"Invite her to dinner," said Bonnie. "We've been here for three months with no way to escape because she can't find Kai. I think if you two were able to team up, you'd find him a lot easier. Your brains and powers combined would do wonders."

"What should I talk about?" asked Rosalind. "What should I cook? I don't know anything about her, or what she likes."

"Which is why this dinner would be a really good idea."

Rosalind opted to make grilled chicken carbonara with some tossed salad and garlic bread. Bonnie excused herself to go to the Bennett House, hoping that nobody would be dead when she returned.

Ruby arrived at seven-thirty, exactly the time Rosalind had stated in her invitation. She was wearing a similar outfit to the one Rosalind had found her in the day after they arrived in the prison world: a tank top with bell-bottom jeans and sneakers.

"Hey," said Ruby, offering her a small smile as she walked to the table. She held up a bottle of wine. "Got this from the store. I know I should probably not be encouraging underage drinking, but, well..."

"I've been drinking since I was six," said Rosalind. "Never became a real addict." She brought forth two wine glasses. "You?"

"No," said Ruby. "No addictions, thankfully. Tried some stuff before I got pregnant, some other stuff afterward, but never really liked anything. I don't even drink soda or tequila or anything, it's not really my thing. Wine, though... perfect."

"Hmm," said Rosalind. "Let me guess, as long as a drink is sweet, colorful, and doesn't taste like alcohol, you'll drink it. Something fruity, I imagine."