Chapter Text
If the night was supposed to go the way they planned then it would have ended with Josie and Lizzie between their parents as they blow out their candles after having fun with their friends, dancing, and doing the the annual birthday jump in the lake that the seniors started when they were in middle school, then Lizzie and Josie would go to their parents rooms—depending on who found them first, and they'd watch movies until they fell asleep. There was no plan of being nearly buried alive by their zombie bio mom who was in no control of her action.
Josie took her time in the shower cleaning herself up and crying, she didn't like crying in front of Lizzie it would make her feel worse than Josie felt so she saved her tears when she was alone. She could hear Lizzie outside talking to their mom- their mom mom, over the phone.
"Yeah, we'll call you when we're about to take off. Love you too. Yeah I'll get dad." When she heard Lizzie leave the room she finally shut off the shower and got out.
-
After the party, Hope was taken by her Aunt to her and Jackson’s suite while Jack plus the other teachers went to find the necromancer.
Hope laid down on her aunt and Jackson's bed. She didn't want to be alone right now so she asked if she could sleep in the suite, Jackson would probably let her sleep on the bed with her aunt while he takes the couch. But she didn’t want to think about monsters probably coming to attack them right now. Right now she worried about her friends, Ric and the girls had bigger issues to deal with right now so everyone just dispersed after the party. Aunt Freya tired herself out helping Lizzie and Josie with the spell to get their bio mom back to where she came from and now Ric was driving the girls to a private plane with Bonnie so they could be with Caroline for the time being. Hope tried not to move much since her aunt's never been the heaviest sleeper. It didn't matter, she had too many things in her head to move anyway.
"Hey," the door opened and Jackson was holding a bag of food. She could smell the steak and shake from here. She sat up slowly and thanked him, with everything happening she didn't get to eat any of the food that was prepared for the party. Fighting monsters really messed you up.
Jackson sat on the chair next to the bed where Freya's books were, he let Hope eat in silence knowing she'd talk when she was ready too. He was never one to push her anyway, he was always an ear to listen and an arm to hold. Hope looked up at him, after a few minutes of silence.
"Jack? Can I ask you something?"
"Sure darling, what is it?" Hope took a deep breath, she never really asked about her mom it usually made her and Jackson sad and they tried not to be sad about Hayley in front of each other.
"Do you remember when I was 5? Mom and I came to meet you in I think we were in Memphis at the time. It was the first time you've been outside of New Orleans but you still went because of us."
"Course I remember. I will never forget seeing you after a long time, I was very surprised at how much grandma Mary was so protective of you that woman was a hard one to crack.”
She smiled, Hope's childhood she was always on the move. Meeting new people in every state they pass through but never meeting connections. Hope didn't care though, she had her mom and grandma Mary, and after the first time she truly met Jackson she had him too. He didn't leave the bayou a lot but her mom would call him almost all the time and he would talk to her and tell her stories of wolves and the crescent pack and what was waiting for them in New Orleans.
"If mom came back, like what happened to Lizzie and Josie's birth mom what would you do?" Hope would be lying if she didn't think about her mom a lot these days, especially with remembrance day coming up the town holding parties for the dead in the cemetery while the school writes letters to those they've lost. Hope wasn't a stranger to death, but it doesn't mean she wants to talk about it.
"I don't know, I'm a big believer in balance. We balance ourselves as wolves between human and animal. We control our urges and our drive, before your mom and I got married it was the full moon that balanced us out even during that time of the curse,” Hope knows about the curse that was had on the Crescent pack—only human during the full moon, “If I had a chance to see your mom again even if it was just for a goodbye I'd take it. But I wouldn't want her to stay here."
Hope sighs, she knows Jackson is right magic always had a price, but with all this magic around her, she had thoughts, every time she feels like magic has taken something from her she always thinks, what if magic gave me something back?
She smiles at Jackson and offers him some of her food. He laughs and takes a fry, no matter what has happened to her she would always be thankful for her family.
—
"Are you going to write a letter?" Landon sits next to Hope, who had books open all over the library table. Some were for their classes but others were in languages Landon didn't even recognize.
"Isn't this kinda morbid? I mean my first Remembrance Day. Bonnie took me to the cemetery and we just had barbecue with some of the townies." He met some of Bonnie’s friends then, Matt Donavan and Jeremy Gilbert, who he found out was occasionally a teacher but only when supernatural hunters were found.
"Yeah, that's not the case here at school. We get sad letters to our dead relatives." Hope looks at her letter that barely had anything on it. She was writing to both her parents.
"Ah, I take it you're not a fan."
Hope shrugs, "I usually don't see the point in it. Why write to the dead? I'd rather not think about it at all. Besides I have more dead relatives than I’d like.”
"Have you heard from Lizzie and Josie?" Landon asked, he didn't see them leave but he heard from one of the wolves that they were gone so he'd be in charge of the letters.
"Yeah, Lizzie sent me a text saying how beautiful Europe is. They're heading to Spain I think, or somewhere off the coast of Spain."
"I think it's good for them to get out of here, especially after what happened."
Hope nods, "Yeah, I think they need their mom."
"So what's all this? Phoenix research? I thought that was my job?"
"My aunt left a few of her books here and I thought it would be good to have help looking through all of this. How are you by the way? Have any strange dreams lately?"
Landon didn't want to tell her that he's been having dreams again because he himself didn't know what to make out of these dreams.
"No weirder than what I've been seeing when I'm awake. Learning about everything magical is a lot to take in. It's bound to seep into my dreams."
"Hey, when are we allowed into town? I mean I go to do my job at the Mystic Grill but there are something’s I missed about this town.” He didn’t have a lot of friends when he first came here but it did allow him to explore the place more. He especially like the lake, it was a good place to write and get away from asshole jocks.
"Sadly we aren't really allowed to leave the school unless it's for games, jobs, or community service. The teachers and activity directors do their best to keep this place entertaining. But I get it, you're getting stir crazy?"
"Yeah, kinda." They both laugh, Landon liked this talking to Hope about things other than his confusing powers, or why monsters keep on coming to them, it was like they were just kids.
Hope looked at where Dorian and Mr. Florian were before she stood up and held out her hand.
"Trust me?" She asked, he looked at her
"Of course," because he did, he's known here for only a short time—not counting that one dance they had years ago, but she was someone he did trust. Maybe because she's saved his life multiple times.