Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It’s been two weeks since the Saltzman twins’ sweet 16th birthday party. After the events of that night, Alaric thought it would be good for the twins to spend some time with Caroline, considering they had to siphon magic out of Jo and watch their biological mom disappear. Josie thought being away would help her forget what happened with Jo, and it did, but only for a while.

Now back in Mystic falls, Josie kept herself comfortable at the backseat, looking out the car window as she listened to Lizzie babble on and on about being with their mom to Alaric. Josie knew her twin sister was ecstatic that they got to spend time with their mom, and she was too, but thinking about being back at the school after everything that happened with Jo... and Penelope, wasn’t putting her heart at ease.

When they finally arrive at the Salvatore Boarding school, Lizzie immediately got out of the car, leaving Josie and Alaric to deal with the bags.

“Are you okay?” Alaric asked, having noticed how quiet she was during the car ride. He opened up the trunk before turning to his daughter.

Josie wanted to say no, but making him worry was the last thing she wanted because she could tell that he was still very much affected about losing the love of his life again.

“I’m okay,” she said, adding a small smile to make it more believable. “Just a bit tired, I guess.”

She made a move to reach for her bag, but her father stopped her. “It’s lunch hour,” he said, putting the bags on his shoulder, “Why don’t you go get something to eat and I’ll take care of these.”

The Saltzman twin wasn’t hungry, but she figured she could use the time to think about a few things. “Okay,” she said, thanking her dad before walking up to the entrance.

Josie pushed through the front doors of the school, not expecting to see MG already in front of her.

“Josie!” The vampire shouted, hugging her with excitement, which the twin returned with a smile. “So happy you’re back!”

“Yeah, me too,” she replied even though it wasn’t entirely the truth, but to be fair, she was happy to see him again.

Pulling away from the hug with the intention to excuse herself so she could be alone, Josie caught sight of the one person she wasn’t ready to see.

At the end of the hall was Penelope Park, who as expected was already staring at Josie. Almost instantly, their eyes met and her heart began to race as her mind goes back to the night her lips touched hers for the first time since their breakup, the night she finally chooses to be selfish for once and go after what she wanted, the night she finally lets her anger go, even if for just that moment, to let a familiar feeling of love and longing consume her.

She had wanted that moment, had longed to taste her lips again...

But it wasn’t right. She can’t be that impulsive again.

Coming back to her senses, Josie broke eye contact with Penelope, excused herself from MG, and hastily made her way to the library.

She can’t go through another heart break.

~

The next day, Josie spent most of her time in the room doing absolutely nothing. It was Sunday, so that means there were no classes. For the most part, Josie was glad that she didn’t have to get up to go to class because that would mean there’d be a higher chance of bumping into Penelope and that was something she wasn’t ready to encounter.

But when lunch time came, Josie decided to leave the room, not being able to let her stomach grumble for much longer. And as much as she dreads being out in the halls, she knew she won’t be able to hide from Penelope forever.

When Josie finally got to the cafeteria, she quickly stood in line to get food. To her surprise, she was able to eat her lunch peacefully without any interruption. After she finished eating, Josie began to make her way back to the dorm, eager to just wrap herself with a blanket and distract her mind from thinking about what happened the night of her birthday.

Reaching the door to her dorm, Josie had this odd feeling of... disappointment? She doesn’t understand why and it can’t possibly be because she didn’t see Penelope, because her main goal was to literally avoid her. But the fact that she had expected for her ex to show up out of nowhere - like she always does - and she didn’t, made Josie feel something.

Josie sighed and shook her thoughts away, convincing herself that not seeing Penelope was better than having to be reminded of her lips against hers every time she sees her.

Josie reached for the doorknob, expecting to see an empty room that she can have to herself, knowing all too well that Lizzie was probably still somewhere on campus, boasting about spending time with their mom.

However, when she pushed the door opened, she was not welcomed by an empty room.

“Penelope.” Josie said, and the dark haired girl looked up from her place, her eyes immediately locking with the twin. There was something about the way Penelope was gazing at her that Josie couldn’t understand.

“Hey Jojo.” She said, her voice soft as ever.

“Wha-what are you doing here?” Josie asked, looking away and trying her best to avoid further eye contact. She waited for an answer but all she heard was movement. She could feel her ex-girlfriend’s presence in front of her and oh god she wanted to melt. She wanted to hug her so bad and feel her warmth, but she can’t. She won’t.

“I wanted to see you.” Penelope smiled, trying to catch the twin’s eyes but Josie was persistent on avoiding hers.

“You saw me yesterday.” Josie retorted, completely unaware of where that came from.

“Well you kind of took off before I could walk up to you.” Penelope said, taking a few steps forward, making Josie look up and meet her gaze. At this point, either one of them could pull the other for a kiss. Being this close, Josie wasn’t able to stop herself from briefly looking at her ex-girlfriend’s lips, before looking up to see her smirking.

“I had to do something.” Josie shrugged, trying to act like she wasn’t just caught staring at her lips.

“Or you’re just avoiding me.” Penelope said. It wasn’t a question, but an observation. Josie swallowed, shaking her head as she stepped to the side to walk towards her desk.

“I’m not.” Josie said, fiddling with the papers and pretending that she was doing something.

Penelope sighed, walking over to the desk and leaning on it. “Oh honey, you are.”

“Believe whatever you want to believe. I’m not avoiding you.”

“Then why can’t you look at me?”

Because looking at you will only remind me of the pain you caused, Josie wanted to say, but didn’t. She shook her head choosing not to answer.

“Look at me.” Penelope said, the softness in her voice taking over the room.

Josie didn’t move. Instead, she focused on fixing the stack of papers and books that didn’t even need fixing. She really can’t do this right now. Like what is she even going to say? Josie has no idea how she’s going to explain to Penelope why she’s avoiding her. Nor is she ready to tell her ex-girlfriend that even though it still hurts, she still loves her.

“Josie,” Penelope placed her hand over the twin, stopping her from whatever it was she was doing. “If this is because of the kiss—“

“Don’t.” Josie said, cutting her off, and pulling her hand away before finally facing Penelope. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Jo-“

“I said don’t.”

Penelope took a step back, and there was a pause before she nodded.

“Okay.” Her ex-girlfriend said, defeated. Josie’s chest tightened. It suddenly felt like there was no oxygen in the room, that the walls were closing in on her. On them.

Josie’s eyes briefly met with the brunette’s and in that short second, Josie could have sworn she saw sadness in Penelope’s eyes before it was masked with something Josie was way too familiar with whenever her ex tries to act like she was okay. A part of Josie felt bad, but she can’t afford to entertain that feeling right now.

“I won’t bring it up again.” Penelope said, nodding, before making her way for the door. “But when you’re ready to talk about it,” she paused, looking back at Josie, “You know where to find me.”

Before completely leaving the room, Penelope gave Josie a smile, the same smile she had when she told her ‘I know,’ and Josie knew then that no matter how hard she would try to ignore it, her feelings for Penelope won’t go away anytime soon.

Chapter Text

Josie pulled the books closer to her chest, walking along Lizzie as they made their way to their first class.

It has been a rough morning so far. Alaric was the one to wake the twins up, breaking the news to them that something had happened in the woods last night near the school and that he needed to check in with the police - aka Matt Donovan - to cross off the possibility of it being a new monster.

Lizzie, of course, wasn’t happy about it. She had concluded (more like assume) that Hope was going to accompany their father, which she hated. There had been a nonstop complain from her all morning, rambling about how the tribrid was stealing their father. And here Josie thought that after the three of them fought the Arachne, the two would start to be nice to each other. Guess that was still far ahead in the journey.

“I just don’t get why he can’t take us instead?” The blonde twin whined, basically stomping as they take a left towards their Chemistry of Magic class. “We’re his daughters, real daughters, not that tribrid of despair.”

Josie sighed, not sure how to reply. Unlike her twin sister, Hope has actually grown on Josie. They’ve created this friendship, this sort of bond that was far different from the one she has with Lizzie and... well she liked it.

Just as Josie was about to reply, the Saltzman twins were interrupted by the tribrid herself as she walked up to them.

“What are you doing here?” Lizzie asked, crossing her arms with a glare. “Aren’t you supposed to be with my dad?”

Hope Mikaelson rolled her eyes, not in the mood for a conversation with Lizzie Saltzman. The tribrid turned to Josie, totally ignoring the blonde twin.

“Hey Josie.”

Lizzie scoffed, offended that she was ignored. She uttered a quiet whatever before leaving the two alone.

“I need your help.” Hope said once Lizzie was out of ear shot.

“With what?” Josie asked, watching her twin enter their class down the hall. She’ll just catch up with her later.

Hope pulled Josie to the side, looked around, observing, as if to make sure no one was listening before she whispered, “Dark magic.”

Josie’s eyes grew, “We’re not allowed to use dark magic.”

“Didn’t stop you before.” Hope pointed out, referring to the time they performed a spell to find Landon, “and keep your voice down. No one can know about this.”

Sure, they used black magic before, she’d give that a pass, but using it again? Josie shook her head. “I don’t know Hope. It doesn’t feel right.”

“Please, Josie.” It would be too risky.

“Hope, I’m sorry. You know what black magic does. It consumes you, poisons your mind and fills your heart with darkness. Do you honestly want that?”

“God you sound like your dad right now.” Hope leaned on the wall and Josie took that time to observe her friend. There was something about the tribrid that she didn’t notice at first. She looked exhausted, defeated even.

“Hope, why do you need dark magic for?” Josie asked, keeping her voice quiet. If she were to help her friend, she’d need to know why first. She can’t let Hope put herself in danger.

But Hope wasn’t going to give anything away. Josie could tell by how the tribrid didn’t show any expression other than desperation.

“I need to know if you’re in,” Hope said, ignoring her question. “Only then will I tell you.”

“I can’t, Hope.”

There was a pause. Josie doesn’t know what else to say so she resort to looking at Hope with pleading eyes, hoping that it would be enough to change her mind.

“Fine.”

Josie smiled, relieved that she was able to convince her-

“I’ll just find someone else to help me.”

What? No. That wasn’t what she was hoping to happen. Josie tried to form words, but was taken aback by the name Hope called.

“Penelope!”

The twin froze in her spot, willed herself not to turn around, knowing that her ex-girlfriend would be there standing behind her.

“Hope.” Josie heard her say, and it took everything in Josie’s power not to look back. Hope turned to the other witch, moving past Josie who remained standing by the wall, listening in on their conversation.

“Can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Let me guess, you want a rematch?“

“Oh please, why would I need a rematch when I clearly won that game fair and square.”

“Dude, you cheated.”

“I did not.”

“Oh? So you didn’t use your werewolf abilities, which is against the rules, by the way.”

“You have no proof.”

“The guilt in your eyes is enough proof.”

What is going on? Josie thought. Since when were these two this close? She leaves for two weeks and she comes back to find out they’re friends? Not that Josie cares or anything, Hope and Penelope can do whatever they want, but how did that even happen?

She can only assume it started when they teamed up to save her, and honestly, Josie wasn’t sure how to feel about it. However, she was definitely not surprised, considering that the two actually have a lot in common, especially in their obvious dislike for Lizzie. So they definitely have that to bond over.

“Anyway,” Hope said quick to change the topic. “I need your help with something.”

“If it’s magic related, I’m in.” Penelope said and Josie just could imagine the look on her face. Probably smirking if she were to guess.

“What if I say, it’s... dark magic?” Hope asked.

Not being able to handle the curiosity, Josie finally turned her head to look at the two. It was as if her ex-girlfriend had a device that would alert her whenever Josie was looking because right when Josie’s eyes landed on her ex, Penelope shifted her gaze to meet hers.

“Even better.” Penelope said with a smirk, sending a wink over to Josie.

Well, this can’t be good.

~

Lunch hour came and Josie haven’t stopped thinking about Hope and Penelope’s plan to use dark magic. She had tried to change Hope’s mind about it, walking up to her after their common class, but whatever convincing Josie tried to do did not work. For whatever reason, Hope was hell-bent on making this spell happen.

There was another option to consider, that is if Josie wanted to. She could talk to Penelope about it and convince her not to help Hope, but it was an option that was very unlikely to happen because Josie wasn’t sure if she could do it.

Josie placed her fork down and reached for her drink, pushing the thoughts away. She looked over at Lizzie, who was sat next to her, and found her glaring at someone from across the dinning hall. Josie followed her twin sister’s line of sight and found Penelope laughing amongst her group of friends.

“Is it just me or Satan hasn’t bothered us at all today?” Lizzie asked, her brows meeting at the center.

Josie’s eyes shot up at that, did she just hear her right? Her twin sister? Asking about Penelope? The world must be ending.

“Shouldn’t that be a good thing?” Josie asked, looking back down to pick at her food.

Lizzie was right though. Ever since yesterday, Penelope has kept her distance. Usually she would appear out nowhere and would throw an insult at Lizzie here and there, but there was none of that today and Josie wasn’t entirely sure how to feel about it.

Lately, she hasn’t been sure about anything.

“It is.” Lizzie said, taking a bite out of her apple. “It’s just weird.”

“Hmm.” Was all Josie could reply, taking another glance at Penelope, who was now looking at her. Her heart did a little flip, not expecting to make eye contact with her. Although she should have known better, it was no stranger for Penelope to stare.

While this happened, Josie felt her heart slowly sink to her stomach at the realization of how much the smallest things that Penelope does (intentionally or not) still affects her. She hated the fact that the girl who broke her heart still makes her feel things. She hated that whenever she looked at Penelope, she would remember the painful memory of their break up. She hated that when she thinks about her, she would lose control of her thoughts. And most importantly, she hated that when Penelope looked away just now, a part of her was sad.

After lunch hour and the fourth and fifth hour, Josie went to her room and changed into a more comfortable clothing. She then worked on her homework, which took her a little longer to finish. By the time she was done, it was already 8pm, which meant that she had missed dinner, but she didn’t mind because she would rather work on her homework than procrastinate. Besides, the kitchen was put on campus for a reason.

“Hey Liz, you want anything from the kitchen?”
Josie pulled herself from the bed and looked at her twin who was sat on the floor, meditating.

“If they have key lime pie-”

“I’ll get you a slice.” Josie didn’t have to hear the rest, she knew her sister well enough.

“Love you.” Lizzie gave her the biggest smile and went back to meditating, which was a cue for Josie to leave.

Approaching the kitchen, Josie could hear cabinets opening and closing. She slowed down her pace and creeped inside the kitchen to see who was in there.

Josie scanned the room but didn’t see anyone. Weird. She was certain someone was just in there. Must have been a witch, practicing a spell in the next room and doing horribly on it.

Shrugging it off, Josie made her way to the cabinet near the fridge, setting her mind on making ramen. When she pulled the cabinet open and got a packet, she heard movement from her left almost scaring her.

Before Josie even turned to look at who made the sound, she could already feel a pair of eyes on her, the feeling being way too familiar that she can instantly guess who was staring.

Turning her head, Josie sees her there, leaning on a counter, her arms crossed with a smirk plastered on her face.

“Sorry, I didn’t know you were here.” Josie said, closing the cabinet and making a move towards the exit. “I’ll leave.”

“Nonsense.” Penelope said, shifting from her position as if to reach for Josie. “There’s no rule that only one person can be at the kitchen.”

Josie paused, not saying anything, Penelope continued talking, this time with a softer voice. “Stay.”

Josie looked at her, and the first thing she noticed was how soft she looked, how she carried the same face Josie had fallen in love with a year ago, a face that she knew by heart that if she were to draw it, she would get it perfect.

Penelope smiled when Josie went back, also returning to whatever it was she was doing.

The next couple of minutes was filled with silence. Josie walked over to the stove, having prepared the pot for her ramen, while Penelope continued to go through the kitchen cabinets.

Josie noticed the amount of snacks on the counter that her ex-girlfriend have collected. That’s a lot for one girl, Josie noted.

“They’re not all mine.” Penelope suddenly said, as if she read her mind and Josie mentally slapped herself. Of course, she saw you look.

There was another silence. Josie’s heart was racing - had been racing since she saw Penelope - to the point where she was eager to leave. But even if she wanted to, it was like her feet had a mind of its own because it didn’t want to move. Her feet stayed there, planted on the floor, while Penelope wondered around room. At this point, it almost seemed like her ex-girlfriend was waiting for her to finish cooking.

Turning off the stove, Josie stirred her plain ramen - she would have added more ingredients but she was rushing so she decided not to - and prepared to take it out of the pot only to realize that she was missing a bowl.

She turned her head towards the cabinet that should hold the bowls, but she was there. Penelope was there, leaning on the counter that was right above the cabinet, a knowing smile on her face.

Josie cleared her throat, considering to just forget the bowl and eat the ramen from the pot... oh but that would be weird—

“Need a bowl?” Josie heard Penelope say, interrupting her thoughts. She has got to be doing this on purpose.

“You’re kind of in the way.” Josie replied, gesturing to how she was blocking an access to the cabinet above the counter.

Penelope looked up, as if she only realized now where she was standing. “Right.” She took one step to the right, and made no further steps, still blocking an access. “There. That should be good.”

Josie rolled her eyes. She’s definitely doing this on purpose. Ignoring the loud pounding of her heart, Josie slowly walked up to the counter, keeping her eyes on anything but Penelope’s. With each step she took, her heart clenched tighter and tighter.

Reaching the counter with Penelope in front of her, just inches away, Josie reached for the top cabinet. Being this close, Josie was sure the other girl could hear her heart pounding against her chest.

“Josie.”

The twin froze, her eyes flickering down to Penelope’s lips before she looked up to meet hers. Josie felt her legs weakened. All she needed to do now was grab a bowl, close the cabinet and step back, that was it, and yet she did none of that.

Josie felt stuck; stuck between wanting to put a distance between them and wanting to close the gap. She noticed Penelope’s eyes travel down to her lips, and for a moment it felt like Penelope was about to lean in, and oh my god she wanted for her to lean in so bad.

Fuck.

No.

She can’t.

But her lips. They were only inches away, and soon enough Josie felt herself leaning in until Penelope spoke, breaking the moment.

“You’re ramen’s gonna get cold if you don’t get that bowl.”

Josie took a step back, embarrassed. Knowing that her cheeks was probably red, Josie made a mental note to yell at herself for actually leaning in. She shouldn’t have done that. Penelope probably think she was a hypocrite because just yesterday she was telling her not to talk about the kiss and then now she herself was leaning in for a kiss? Ugh. That was so stupid of her.

But at the same time, Josie’s heart dropped for actually thinking Penelope was going to kiss her, for actually wanting Penelope to kiss her.

Josie pushed those thoughts away and quickly closed the cabinet after grabbing a bowl, hastily walking back to the stove where her ramen was. When she successfully transferred her ramen into the bowl, from her peripheral vision, Josie saw Penelope walk away, carrying a box full of snacks and drinks.

“Good night, Jojo.” She heard her say and was almost out of the kitchen when—

“Wait.” Josie called out, surprising herself.

Turning to face the short-haired girl, who was also surprised, she cleared her throat and tried to organize her thoughts. “I know it’s not my place, but please don’t do dark magic with Hope.”

Penelope’s eyes softened at that, and Josie wished she could read her mind, “Josie, I-“

“Please, Penelope, just - think about it.”

Her ex-girlfriend nodded, balancing the box on her arm. “If you’re worry about Hope, don’t be, okay? There’s nothing to worry about.”

“Yeah.” Josie said quietly, looking down. If there was nothing to worry about, then why can’t she shake the feeling that something was wrong. Something about the whole setup was sending Josie a bad message. But she couldn’t understand why that is. A part of her wanted to find out but that would mean she’d have to join them when they do the spell.

Before turning away, Josie gave Penelope one last look with the intention to speak to her through her eyes; although Josie wasn’t exactly sure what message she was trying to send. Was she begging? Showing her concern? She has no idea.

In the first place, why was she even against Hope doing black magic? She did it with her before to find Landon. At first she was hesitant about it, but that didn’t stop her from completing the spell. So why on earth can’t she let herself be okay with Hope using it again?

Why can’t she shake the feeling of being worried, not only for Hope, but also for Penelope.

~

“You know you’re slower than a turtle.” Hope said before she could even fully open the door for Penelope.

“Well I’m sorry, you’re the one who wanted so much snacks.” Penelope walked inside, mindlessly handing the box to Hope and going straight for the couch near the bed, plopping herself down.

“You were gone for almost half an hour!” Hope said, wanting to point that out. She dropped the box on the floor and began going through it. Grabbing her favorite snack and opening it, she looked up at Penelope who was unusually quiet. The girl was sat on the couch, gazing into nothing but space as if deep in thought. Hope grabbed the nearest bag of chips from the box and threw it at the girl.

“What the hell?”

“What are you thinking about?” Hope asked, raising her eyebrows while she sat on her bed. “Everything okay?”

Penelope composed herself pretty quick from that throw because now she was smirking at Hope. “Aw you getting soft on me Mikaelson?”

Hope rolled her eyes, throwing another item at the short-haired girl. “Shut up.”

Penelope laughed, catching the item this time. “Quit throwing things at me. I’m not Lizzie.”

Hope laughed, she could agree to that. Two weeks ago, she would have considered Penelope as another Lizzie that she would never be friends with, but after their little team up to find Josie, and the formation of the Avengers Squad was established, along with the continuous bumping into each other in the halls which prompted a back and forth banter, Hope had realized that there was a side of Penelope that she could get along with.

It was crazy how fast they got along. But at the same time it was bound to happen because most of their talk consisted of how much they dislike Lizzie, basically pointing out the things they don’t like about her. Sometimes they talk about Josie too and how they both agree that Josie needed to start finding her own voice, how she needed to start taking care of herself and putting herself first before anyone else. It‘s what she deserves.

From the short amount of time that Hope had gotten to know Penelope, she has learned how much her new friend cares deeply for Josie even if she sometimes don’t show it, taking into consideration how committed she is to keeping a bitchy, stone-hearted mask to hide her vulnerable side.

It was times like these that Hope wished Penelope would let her guard down because she could tell that something was on the girl’s mind. And from the looks of it, Hope can only guess it was about Josie.

“You gonna tell me what’s up though?” Hope asked, trying again to get something, anything out of her friend even though it was against her character to easily be this caring for a person. Penelope only shrugged and leaned back on the couch, nothing coming out of her mouth. “Come on. Maybe I can help.”

She really shouldn’t pry, but having witnessed the two as a couple and seeing her and Josie so heart broken after their break up when they so clearly still have feelings for each other, made Hope want to be a cupid to help them find each other again.

After a few minutes, Penelope sighed. “It’s Josie.” Hope mentally patted herself on the back for guessing it right and focused on Penelope again. Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Both Penelope and Hope looked at each other, wondering who might that be. Hope got up from the bed, and walked towards the door to open it. As slowly as she could, she turned the doorknob with caution and alertness, just in case it was Alaric. They can’t risk being caught because there were torn pages of black magic spells sprawled all over the center of the floor, and if he were to see that, both Penelope and Hope would be in so much trouble; they would probably face death to be honest.

When the door was completely opened, Hope came face to face with their unexpected guest.

Josie Saltzman.

And maybe, just maybe, she’ll finally get to use her cupid skills.

Chapter Text

“So...” 

Hope looked at the two witches - one on the couch, the other across the room near the window - waiting for one of them to say something. When neither of them did, Hope decided to put her attention on Josie to get some answers. 

“Have you changed your mind about doing black magic?”

“Not exactly.” Josie said, keeping her eyes focused on her hands before sighing. “Honestly, I don’t even know why I thought it would be a good idea to come here.”

“Maybe... you secretly want to join us.” Hope said, raising her shoulders with a smirk. 

“Or maybe, I just want to make sure you guys do it right.” 

“Ouch. Are you implying that we’re horrible witches?”  

“Well--“ Josie said with a tease in her voice before a smile formed on her face. Hope smiled back, glad that the atmosphere wasn’t as tense and awkward as before. She then took a quick glance at Penelope and found the witch gazing at Josie with a smile herself. 

What a soft bitch, Hope thought, noticing how quick  Penelope’s expression changed when it came to Josie.

“It’s a good thing you’re here then. You can help us.” The tribrid said, looking back at Josie with hopeful eyes.

Josie shook her head. “I told you Hope, I’m just here to—“

“Make sure we do it right, I know. But I could really use your help.” 

“You already have Penelope.” Josie said, saying her ex-girlfriend’s name quietly and refusing to look at her. In fact, she hasn’t really given her any glance ever since she got here. 

“Yeah, but I’m actually gonna need you, too.” Hope said, and Penelope stood up, finally moving from the couch to pick up a certain paper on the floor. 

“Why?” Josie asked, still focused on Hope.

“Three witches.” Penelope whispered, confused as she read the page that contained the spell and the requirements. “It says here the spell needs to be performed by three witches.”

“I know.” Hope said, now avoiding to look at Josie, who was probably looking at her in confusion. Time to explain, she thought, preparing herself for the questions.

“Wait.” Josie walked up to grab the paper and after reading it, looked back at Hope. “Did you know you were gonna need three witches before you asked me?” 

“Um...” Hope pressed her lips together, “Yes?” 

“But you asked Penelope when I said no, and you obviously didn’t ask anyone else. So who‘s supposed to be the third witch?” 

Hope took a step back, a small smile on her face as if she was trying to look innocent. “You?” 

“We went over this already, Hope. I’m not doing black magic.” 

“Well, you’re already here so...” 

“I don’t believe this.” Josie crossed her arms. Hope looked at Josie knowing that the witch was trying to make sense of everything in her mind. “You planned this whole thing didn’t you? You wanted me here so I could be the third witch.” 

Hope sighed. “Okay, let me explain. Originally, I expected you to say yes, but when you didn’t, I saw Penelope and knew that if I asked her in front of you, you’d be... inclined to help.” 

Josie scoffed. “Inclined to help? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh don’t deny it. You being here is already enough proof.” 

“I—“ Josie paused, now putting her attention on Penelope. “Did you have anything to do with this?”

Penelope raised her hands, not about to take any blame, “Of course not. This is all Hope.” 

Bitch, Hope thought, but she doesn’t say anything because it was true; Penelope didn’t have anything to do with this. 

After being quiet for a few minutes, Josie took a deep breath and finally said, “Fine. I’ll do it. I’ll do black magic with you.” 

Hope beamed with joy, “I knew you’d come around.”

“Oh god, Lizzie’s gonna hate me for this.”

At the mention of the blonde twin, both Hope and Penelope rolled their eyes. “Who cares what she thinks. You can’t let her dictate what you can and can’t do.” 

“Says the one who basically forced me to come here.” Josie retorted, kneeling on the floor in the center.

Penelope kneeled next to Josie, and Hope followed suit. “Hey I didn’t force you. You’re the one who came to my room willingly.”

“Yeah, but that’s cause you—“ Josie cut herself as soon as her eyes travelled to Penelope as if realizing what she was about to say. 

As much as Hope wanted to start the spell, she felt the need to continue the thought for Josie. Perhaps to tease her or to get a reaction of some sort.

“Cause I what?” Hope challenged, smirking. And when Josie only pretended to fix the objects on the floor, Hope continued. “Because I asked Penelope to help me? And you—“

“Can we just do this already before I change my mind.” Josie interrupted, annoyed. Hope laughed, nudging Penelope’s knee, which didn’t go unnoticed by Josie. 

“Okay, chill. We’ll start.” 

Hope suppressed a smile as she laid out the tools, objects, ingredients whatever they needed on the floor, feeling satisfied. 

After having everything done and ready, Hope held out her hand, one to Josie and one to Penelope. Both witches took Hope’s hand. Penelope did the same with her other hand to Josie who hesitated at first, but eventually held her ex-girlfriend’s hand. 

“Ready?” Hope asked, and the other two witches nodded as Josie’s hands began to glow. 

~

Josie opened her eyes, feeling slightly lightheaded. There was, however, a small tingling in her body when she was using black magic not too long ago. It felt... nice, but Josie decided to ignore that because it was probably just nothing. She then felt the tribrid lose her grip on her hand, and watched her sit on the bed. 

Soon after that, Josie felt a squeeze on her other hand. Shifting her eyes down, Josie noticed that she and Penelope were still holding hands, which made her heart flutter. It had been too long since the last time they held hands. Though the reason for this wasn’t the same as before, it still felt... like home.

Safe. 

Josie missed that feeling. She missed it even though she knew she wasn’t supposed to feel that way. She can’t risk losing control of her feelings because once she starts having these feelings, she might end up getting hurt again.

Quickly pulling her hand away, Josie got up and moved towards the desk, leaving a what looked like a disappointed Penelope.

Soon enough, the short-haired girl cleared her throat, the first to speak as she pulled herself up from the floor. “So did it work?”

Hope shrugged. “We won’t know until tomorrow.” Her eyes traveled to the clock on the wall. “Or at least in like 7 hours.” 

It was only 10pm. 

Josie watched Hope collect a jacket from her closet before she walked to the door. “So what now? We just wait?” 

“Yup.” Hope said, popping the p before she opened the door, turning around to face them. 

“Where are you going?” Penelope asked. Josie wondered the same. 

“Leaving.”

“What? Why?” Josie asked. Where could she be going?

“I’d rather wait somewhere else.”

“Why? This is your room.” 

“Not tonight it’s not.” 

Josie furrowed her eyebrows, getting suspicious, “What do you mean?”

“Tonight, the room is yours.”

Josie blinked, confused at first before she understood.

“Uh no.” Josie immediately said, not about to be left alone in the room with Penelope. “It’s okay, I’ll leave.”

Josie tried to exit, but Hope was quick enough to block an entryway. 

“You can’t.” 

Josie gave her a get-out-of-my-way look. “Why not?” 

“You just can’t.”

Josie was starting to get irritated. Penelope, on the other hand, seemed amused but confusion soon took over her face.

“What do you mean I can’t?”  

Hope put up another innocent look, stepping back until she was completely out in the hallway with the door still wide open. 

“Well you see, two weeks ago on your birthday, a certain witch,” She looked at Penelope, “trapped Rafael and I inside the gym. And you know me, I’m not one to let things go easily. So I figured, I should get my revenge by doing the exact. same. thing.” 

“So you trapped us in here?!” 

Hope nodded, a smug look plastered on her face. 

”Please tell me you’re lying.”

“I wish I was.” Hope replied, but Josie was too caught up in her emotions to acknowledge the slight sincerity in her voice before the tribrid continued. “But when Penelope left to grab some snacks, I did a little barrier spell that would seal the room, only allowing people to enter but not to exit. Except for me, of course.“

Penelope was taken aback, then her face slowly morphed into something that would resemble being impressed.

“Hope, this isn’t funny.” Josie warned furiously. She stomped towards the entryway, but was pushed back by an invisible force. 

“Sorry.” Hope shrugged, her face displaying amusement with another hint of sincerity.

No. This can’t be. She can’t be stuck in the room with Penelope. 

Not for 7 fucking hours. 

Fuck. 

“Didn’t know you could be so slick, Hope.” Penelope complimented, crossing her arms. 

Hope smirked, proud of herself. 

Josie rolled her eyes. If she were still in a relationship with Penelope, she would have liked the concept of them getting even with each other as friends and with Hope trapping them in the room, but considering that they weren’t together anymore, she hated the whole situation.  

“Please, Hope.” The twin practically begged.

The tribrid looked at her invisible watch, “Can’t. Gotta go, sorry.” 

Before Josie could even let out a no, Hope had already whispered a basic spell that closed the door. And as if Penelope finally realized that this was actually happening, she pried the door open, turning and pushing, only to fail. 

“Hope, you’re seriously not doing this, are you?” Penelope banged on the door. “Hope!” 

“7 hours! Use that time wisely.” The tribrid yelled from the other side. 

“Hope!” Both of the witches inside the room yelled, hoping that she would return, but the tribrid was gone.

At that moment, Josie could feel her heart pounding against her chest knowing that for 7 hours, she would be alone in the room with Penelope Park. 

~

Placing her hand on the door for the third time, Josie tried to siphon enough magic to force the door open, but it didn’t budge. Not even a little. 

“Come on!” Josie groaned, giving the door a kick. 

“Josie.” 

She heard Penelope called but decided to ignore. She placed her hand again on the door,  trying once more, thinking that if she siphoned all of the magic from the door, the boundary spell would break. 

But after so many tries, Josie finally accepted that the door would never run out of magic, which makes sense because the entire school emanates magic. 

“Jojo.” Penelope called again, using the nickname Josie had gotten used to hearing from her. “It’s no use. Only Hope can undo the spell.”

“Ugh,” Josie turned around, finally facing Penelope, while leaning back against the door. “What are we supposed to do for 7 hours?” 

Without moving from the bed, Penelope stared at Josie with a look on her face. A kind of look that illuminated something along the lines of longing. It made the twin feel so exposed as if one wrong move, Penelope would be able to see right through her. (As if she doesn’t already).

“How about,” Penelope got up, took a few step closer to Josie and stopped midway, “for tonight, we just talk?”

“About what?” 

“Anything. It doesn’t have to be about that — thing.” Penelope raised her eyebrows, assuring Josie of their agreement about the kiss and how they’ll only talk about it when Josie’s ready. 

Josie was showing signs of being hesitant, so Penelope tried a different approach. “How about this? For the next 7 hours, we’ll talk like normal people-“ 

“But we’re not normal.” 

“I know, Jo, but hear me out.” 

Jo.

Josie’s heart skipped a beat. 

“Let’s make a deal. Whatever happens tonight, whatever we say or do will stay here in Hope’s room. Tomorrow morning, we’ll go back to how things were with me as the evil one, the dark lord, satan or whatever it is that you and Lizzie wants to call me while you, being your selfless self, continuously fail to pretend to hate me,” Penelope smirked and for some reason, Josie couldn’t help but let out a small smile, before rolling her eyes.

“But tonight,” Penelope’s eyes went soft, a small smile on her face, “Tonight let’s forget about the past, let’s act like how we used to before we broke up, you know, at least as friends.” 

Josie felt a sting in her heart, she could sense that her ex-girlfriend wanted this and maybe tonight she does too.  

Penelope held out her hand, going for a formal agreement. “Do we have a deal?” 

The twin will never be sure of when she’ll stop hurting. She was tired, that’s for sure, but maybe tonight, just tonight, she can rest and allow her heart to feel anything but pain. 

Maybe tonight, she can forget about all the painful memories and act like everything was okay between them, maybe tonight, they can go back to being (girl)friends. 

Just friends. 

Maybe. 

“Deal.” Josie said, shaking Penelope’s soft hand. “But no funny business.” Josie warned. 

Penelope smirked, crossing her arms. “Can’t promise anything.”