Then we get terrified, like children waking in the dark, we don't know where we are.

[moralitypolice]

( Bonnie, bag in hand at her side, holds the door open this time. She sighs, looking wistfully off at Danny, sullen, in the backseat. )

I wish I could make it all better, like I could undo it all, or, go back and prevent it altogether. Too many of us have no parents. No living family.

( She sighs.

From Danny's seat if or when he looks back, Bonnie and Isaac continue their discussion. Scott texts Isaac, so he pulls his phone out, eyes down quickly.

A couple approaches from the south, arm in arm. The guy in glasses leans in whispering something that makes the girl laugh. As they separate to move around Bonnie, everything happens quickly. The brunette girl brandishes a stun gun landing a blow to Isaac's side. Out of the leather jacket, the man reveals what looks to be something dark colored, with a flat bottom. He drops it. From the car, he can see a spell attempted, Bonnie's lips moving but nothing happening. She tries struggling, but the woman whacks her on the back of the back sending her down. The man quickly pulls out a pair of iron handcuffs the woman waves away, not now, and as fast as it happens, a bright yellow taxi pulls up.

Three others, including one dressed as a taxi-driver throw Bonnie and Isaac into the trunk. When everyone is inside the car, the driver puts down a black device on the top of the cab quickly, puts on a pair of leather gloves, climbs inside the cab and speeds off.

Bonnie's bag, and the contents within including her phone lie on the sidewalk next to Isaac's dropped phone.

The driver in Danny's car starts the ignition, this is probably protocol. )

Comments

[jockwitch]

( She exchanges looks with her sister, because, right, time zones. But, time is of the essence as her dad would say. )

Hey, mom. Yeah. We're just - not sleeping tonight. We heard the moon was supposed to do this cool thing and we're staying up to watch it. ( A natural 20 sells this lie like butter. )

[saveslives]

How cool of the moon.

[She does sell that lie very well, and given the twins' unconventional high school experiences, she doesn't question it that much.]

I don't think you called to tell me about the moon though.

[jockwitch]

I didn't call about the moon, you just asked about the moon.

( Lying once is easy, but when the parental detector pivots, lying twice is not, she looks to Josie then holding the phone out. )

Josie and I were --

[saveslives]

[Josie waves her hand because no that does not sound like a good idea. There's lots of dramatic silent gesturing as they have a silent twin debate over who's going to talk to their mom and Jo sighs.]

If someone doesn't speak, I'm going to start thinking something's actually wrong.

[jockwitch]

( Fine, Hope speaks, she steps forward.

"Nothing's wrong, Mrs. Saltzman. Just two girls who are debating about the power of the solstice and have a bet going, one of them is trying to impress a cute of age witch and the other ended our date early because of the moon." (14)

Also, sorry Lizzie and Josie and Danny for that secondhand embarrassment.

Ever the constitution to handle mortal embarrassment, Lizzie glares at Hope and speaks up. )

I said that the solstice has to carry some greater power, like the prison world and the eclipse and Josie thinks it's just touristy crap. And yeah, there's the moon. ( Another waste of a natural 20 )

[saveslives]

[You all are lucky that Jo isn't there to bore into all of you with her mom stare, but for now she's not hearing anything that pings too many bells.]

Well, there are a lot of rituals that come with the Solstice. It just depends what kind of traditions you follow.

[jockwitch]

I told you.

( "But, if one were to use the solstice, what could they be doing? Like, if someone wanted to prevent a solstice ritual." Hope. That's. Lizzie looks at her sister again and just shoves the phone at her, she's done because Hope is taking over. )

Sorry, Mom. Hope's getting a jumpstart on research in college on our vacation. Anyway, could you go in tomorrow and browse Esther Mikaelson's grimoires? There are a lot of witches in town and we want to go to the festival, but we're not trying to get into trouble so we want to be sure. Also, his name is Danny.

[saveslives]

[Danny's eyes go wide like why are you bringing him into this never mind the fact that the conversation is about him. Jo, on the other hand, is trying to read between the lines of both questions and see what they're actually looking for.]

Again, it depends what they practice. Solstice rituals for the Gemini Coven were different from the French Quarter witches. You might have to be a little more specific.

[Josie and Danny seem to have a brief conversation with their eyes that essentially amounts to do you want answers or not and he sighs.

"Druids. We're druids."]

You must be Danny.

["Hello, Mrs. Saltzman. Pleasure to meet you."]

[jockwitch]

They're Celtic. Ancient practices handed down, all word of mouth. But, words fly out of people's mouths, so, maybe Esther Mikaelson knows something.

( Maybe indeed. And then Hope chimes in. "We're drinking." (8)

Lizzie just - WHY'S with her eyes. )

[saveslives]

[Welp, on this one Jo manages to roll higher than Hope so the lie about them drinking is the one that manages to ring false (13). Amusing, to say the least, but that's not relevant to what they're asking.]

Well, I'll have to look into the specifics as they likely vary from coven to coven, but from what I remember, druids use the solstices as a passing of the torch, but also a passing of knowledge. Think of it like ancestral magic, only it's more of ... getting access to an external hard drive, once the heir is confirmed.

[jockwitch]

And, if the oldest members of the coven -if they're gone. How is that knowledge passed down?

( She's not trying to fake this anymore, and her eyes meet Danny's because she remembers his horrible circumstances. She taps the mute button on the phone. )

Then you'd take out the successor. Or, as many witches. That's what they're doing. Taking Aunt Bonnie was about stopping you. Stopping your coven. But, it can't be enough. And they escaped. Hope...

( "They're not done. And there are more of them. It's about the solstice. And you." )

[saveslives]

[Now she's starting to get a little concerned.]

Well, if they're gone then they'd probably need a secondary proxy. A witch elder of their own right to bless the ascension. Doesn't have to be a member of the same coven necessarily, just someone the coven trusts.

[Danny is quiet as this information is laid out, turning it over in his head. Meanwhile, Jo hears nothing but silence and frowns.]

Girls? You still there?

[jockwitch]

( Right, mom. She unmutes! )

Right here, Mom. And that coven-ee, they become the conduit?

[saveslives]

They become the leader. It's a right of passage.

[A beat.]

Think of it like the Merge, but significantly less trauma.

[jockwitch]

( Lizzie winces at that, sighing, wondering what happens when the coven leader doesn't know how to... ascend. )

Did aunt Bonnie bring you here because of the solstice?

[saveslives]

["If she did, she didn't tell me. I thought she invited me so I would stop moping around the castle."]

Then it looks like you guys should probably be talking to Bonnie.

[Then there's a pause as the mom intuition really starts tingling.]

Where is Bonnie?

[jockwitch]

She's asleep, mom, in her room.

( (13) as she makes the valiant effort at lying again. 20's are a thing of the past. )

[saveslives]

[Jo is suspicious (13). But she also will pretend that she's not (15).]

Probably where you should be too. Get some rest, all of you. And enjoy the rest of your trip.

[A beat.]

Love you both.

["Love you too, Mom."]

[jockwitch]

Love you, Mom.

( That was nerve wracking. )

Not our best idea. And we don't know anything new.

[undermyfeet]

We know a little bit new.

[They know that this is definitely supposed to be his coming out party.]

We should probably get some sleep though. Until William comes back with news on the hunters.

[He's about to say more, when one of the phones springs to life.

Bonnie's phone.

With Jo's name on the caller ID.]

[jockwitch]

( "Don't answer it." That's Hope's wise words as Bonnie's phone rings from the desk. )

Right. Bonnie's asleep. It's late.

[undermyfeet]

Right.

[It feels weird, just letting a phone ring, but they do it.]

Anyway. We should sleep too. Give William time to work, and we can look at it with fresh eyes in the morning.

[jockwitch]

( Sleep. Right. )

Did - did William give you your own room?

[undermyfeet]

[He opens his mouth to say yes, he totally has a room when he realizes that ... no maybe not.]

No. But it's fine. I can -

[He glances around and points to the arm chair.]

I can just crash in the chair or something.

[jockwitch]

( Maybe this is a conversation she doesn't need to be happening in front of Hope and her sister, and Hope nudges Josie's shoulder. )