At the end of last week’s episode the six performed the binding ritual. Now they are a united force. Their magic is under control, but they have lost the ability to do magic on their own; two or more must be together in order to use their powers. This upsets Faye Chamberlain; she has gone from conjuring storms to having to open her locker manually. At first I think the title of this episode, “Loner,” refers to how Faye is set on finding a way to get her solo abilities back, but actually it’s about how Cassie is more familiar with being alone than having friends.
Cassie feels she has completed her task. She agreed to form the circle, so now everyone can leave her alone. She tells Diana that she doesn’t want to be friends. However, multiple forces are pulling Cassie out of her shell. Sally, the class president, needs help to decorate the gym for the school dance since her arm is still injured from being pushed off the deck by Faye. Cassie agrees to help Sally. Adam introduces Cassie to Luke, who asks her out; Cassie refuses. After school, Cassie and Sally are talking at The Boathouse. Sally notices how Cassie looks at Adam and how Adam looks at Cassie. To prove she’s not a boyfriend stealer, Cassie tells Luke that she will go to the dance with him.
In the parking lot, Cassie is attacked by Zachary Larson, a man who knew Amelia, Cassie’s mom. He learns Amelia’s dead, and Zachary tells Cassie that Amelia vowed to never return to Chance Harbor. He grabs Cassie; he knows she’s a witch and doesn’t want what happened before to happen again. Diana arrives. Together, Cassie and Diana use their magic to push Zachary away so they can leave. Cassie thanks Diana; she knows that she could not have defended herself without Diana’s help. Because of the attack, the six meet at the house in the woods. Diana apologizes to Faye; Diana did not know that they would not be able to perform any magic alone. According to Diana, magic happens by sensing what each other is thinking and tapping into their collective power. Alone they are powerless, but together they are more powerful than before.
Charles informs Dawn that Zachary is back in town. Zachary was friends with Amelia, who was also friends with Heather. The three were close until Amelia got deeper into witchcraft. Dawn is not pleased that Zachary knows everything and is threatening the circle. Yes, their children are part of the circle, but they want to protect the circle for own personal goals. Charles offers to take care of Zachary, but Dawn tells him that they can’t kill everyone who gets in their way. This momentarily confuses Charles since he just finished hiding Henry’s body; in last week’s episode, Dawn killed her father-in-law. Before he leaves, Charles tells Dawn that he had to come up with a cover story to explain why he is around Dawn so much—he told his daughter Diana that they were dating. Dawn finds this amusing and agrees to play along.
The night of the dance arrives. Originally, Faye did not have plans to go to the dance; instead, she investigates ways to get her individual powers back. Zachary surprises her. He wants to know if the six have bound the circle. Faye tries to use magic, but she can’t, and Zachary realizes that the circle has formed and knows that alone they don’t have power. At the dance, Cassie tells Luke that she was a loner at her old school; being social and having friends is new to her. Because no one is dancing, Sally asks Cassie and Adam to dance (Luke stepped out for a moment). They agree. The connection between them is evident. They can’t deny something is going on. Adam knows that Cassie has been staying away because he is in a relationship with Diana, but he tells her that he loves Diana, so they only have the potential to be really good friends.
Faye flees to the dance. After beating Charles up, Zachary goes to the dance with the goal of killing Cassie. The six split up; Diana and Adam find out that Heather was at the boat sixteen years ago, the same boat that caught on fire killing many of their parents. Cassie ends up alone. Zachary tracks her; he blames Amelia for doing something to Heather, something worse than death. Cassie runs, but Zachary grabs her. The other five find them. Adam channels the power of the circle to lift Zachary and slam him against the ceiling. Cassie thanks everyone for saving her and realizes that she cannot continue on this journey alone. She is part of a circle now, and she needs to start interacting with her fellow witches. She might have been a loner most of her life, but by opening herself up to the circle, she will begin to discover new aspects of who she is and what she can become.
The group panics trying to come up with a way to deal with the situation, but Dawn appears. The six weave a tale about how they found Zachary going through the lockers and that he slipped and fell. Their story is weak, but Dawn buys it; the circle has given her a way to deal with Zachary. Later that night, Dawn opens the trunk of her car. With Charles’s help she has Zachary tied up. Dawn “marks” Zachary. She tells him that if he ever comes near one of the circle again she will turn his life into a living hell worse than what Heather has gone through.
This week we learn more about Faye. Although Faye is impulsive and independent, she is not cold-hearted loner. Her best friend is Melissa, and after finding out about Melissa’s relationship with Nick, Faye lectures Nick about treating Melissa better. Faye tells Nick to either treat her right or leave her alone. Faye tearing Nick a new one shows her loyalty to her friend; she’s protective of the people she cares about. It might take someone a while to become Faye’s friend, but once she’s your friend, Faye will likely have your back till the end.
Near the end of this episode, Diana and Cassie have an interesting conversation. Diana truly wants to be Cassie’s friend, but Diana is not blind; she sees the connection her boyfriend Adam and Cassie have. Diana loves Adam and has for a long time. Diana, at this moment, is mature; she tells Cassie that as long as everyone is honest and remembers who belongs to whom, then everything will be fine. Diana has convinced herself that acknowledging the Adam-Cassie connection will make the situation better, but there is a subtle glint in her eye that suggests she wants to be friends with Cassie for another reason. No matter how genuine her actions are now, a part of Diana is probably thinking, “I know this girl wants my man. And I know to keep my friends close but my enemies closer.” Things are fine now, but Diana doesn’t know how close Adam and Cassie have come to kissing. If she knew, then their conversation would have been different. The question is not if Adam and Cassie will cross the line, but when. How mature will Diana be then?
Next week we meet Heather. Cassie is beginning to feel as though she never really knew her mother. This is the danger of keeping secrets and pretending to be someone you are not—you endanger the people you claim you set out to protect. Their parents were trained in the craft yet caused destruction and death. With no training, are the six fated to repeat their parents’ mistakes? Cassie has come to accept that she is not alone. Being part of the circle gives her strength. However, all the members of the circle are stumbling in the dark. They have great power, but have no idea what their responsibilities are. Once they learn what they can do, no one will be able to stop them. Until then, let’s hope they don’t cause too much damage to Chance Harbor or to themselves.
If you missed last week’s episode read our ‘The Secret Circle: Bound’ recap to catch up.
