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Lizzie Saltzman hadn’t slept in days. With a father in the hospital, her mother in Europe, and her sister always off doing God knows what, she wasn’t sure what to do. On one rare night when she was able to shut her eyes for about two hours, she woke up to her sister’s side of the room being empty, and an annoying knock on the door.
Lizzie moved the covers out of the way, and went to answer it. She was hoping it was someone from the squad with any answers on waking her dad up, or any news on where that monster Hope was, but it wasn’t a squad member. It was Finch.
“Hey,” she said, “Is Jo in?”
“No,” Lizzie said bluntly, and was moving to close the door when Finch stopped it, “What?”
“It’s just that I’ve searched the whole school,” she said, “This was the last place I checked.”
“She probably went to the hospital to see our dad,” Lizzie said.
“I checked there first,” Finch said, “No one has seen her.” Okay, that was weird.
“Give me a minute,” Lizzie said, and Finch nodded. She shut the door, and scrambled to get ready for the day, all while running through a list of places where Josie could be, but nothing reasonable came to mind. She opened the door to Finch and said,
“Have you checked my dad’s office?”
“First place I went after checking the hospital,” she said. Lizzie went inside, and it was empty, like Finch had said, but the school phone was on top of it.
“Did you check this?” Lizzie asked, picking it up.
“No but-” Finch started, only for Lizzie to cut her off with,
“Of course you didn’t.” This was why Finch wasn’t part of the squad. She never used her head. Lizzie opened the phone up, and checked the recent calls. They were all to an area code that she wasn’t familiar with.
“What is area code 504?” she murmured, and had meant to be inaudible, but Finch and her stupid wolf ears picked it up.
“Oh that’s New Orleans,” she said. Lizzie shot her a glare, “I had a friend who lived down there. She had that area code.” Lizzie took a breath, refraining from rolling her eyes. There was only one person Josie knew in New Orleans. Freya Mikaelson. And from the looks of the phone history, Josie had made quite a few calls to her around three this morning.
“You don’t think she would have…” Finch started, and Lizzie said,
“I don’t really know where Josie’s head has been these days, we haven’t really talked!” She pocketed the phone in her overalls and said, “I’m catching a bus over there.”
“But you don’t even know where she is,” Finch said, “Shouldn’t you call Freya first?”
“I’ll call her on the way to the bus,” Lizzie said, “If I leave now, I should make it to New Orleans by night-” she opened the door, and was cut out when she saw who was on the other side.
“Elizabeth?” the woman asked in surprise, probably taken aback by her frazzled appearance. But her shock was nothing compared to Lizzie’s as she stood face to face with a woman she hadn’t seen in nearly nine months.
“Mom?” she asked. She could see Finch’s surprised look out of the corner of her eye.
“Oh honey,” her mom said, coming to wrap her in a hug, “I was going to call, but I was in such a rush to come here that I forgot. Who’s your friend?”
“Mom, this is Finch. Josie’s girlfriend,” Lizzie said, her tone as uninterested as she felt.
“Right!” Caroline exclaimed, “I’ve heard a lot about you, Finch. It’s nice to meet you.” The two of them shook hands, and she said, “Speaking of, where is Josie? I’d like to speak to you two together to get a handle on what happened.”
“She’s in New O-” Finch started, but Lizzie immediately cut her off.
“She’s in our room,” she said, “She wasn’t feeling well yesterday, she stayed late with Dad in the hospital.”
“Oh, I should go check on her,” Caroline said, making a path towards the door. But Lizzie quickly grabbed her arm and said,
“She really wants to be alone,” she said, “Like, really .”
“Elizabeth…”
“You can see her tomorrow!” Lizzie said quickly, then added, “You will be here tomorrow, right?”
“Of course,” Mom said as she slid out of her jacket, “I’m not going anywhere.” She walked down the hallway to the office, and once she was gone, Finch said,
“Why didn’t you tell her?”
“Are you kidding? Do you know how much trouble she’d get in for taking a bus to New Orleans in the middle of the night? Josie and I may not be in the best place, but telling the parents when the other one sneaks out is a complete violation of twin code.”
“Don’t you think the dire situation we’re all in calls for a break in twin code?” Lizzie held up a hand to stop her.
“ Nothing calls for a break in twin code,” she said. She leaned against a wall, and processed her thoughts, “Okay, if Josie called Freya, that probably means she went to meet her. And Freya’s one of the most powerful witches in the world. If she went to her, she should be safe.”
“From who?” Finch asked.
“From Hope.”
The bus ride to New Orleans was about eleven hours. Josie hadn’t had that kind of time. So with a seemingly simple teleportation spell that had honestly required a lot more magic than she’d expected on her part, Josie had made it to New Orleans by sunrise. The streets were calm. They didn’t look like they’d been terrorized by a humanity-less tribrid. But Josie just…had a feeling that Hope was here.
Freya had told her not to come. Hope had run into Rebekah and things hadn’t gone well, and she’d made it very clear that she didn’t want to contact her family. Hope had also masked her location. She was smart, but sometimes, Josie liked to think she was smarter. Especially now when Hope had no emotions, and was doing everything based on want. And that never ended well.
So it made sense for her to listen to Freya’s warning. Hope was dangerous, and calculating. But Josie still couldn’t shake the feeling that there was still something inside Hope. Something good. Because she could’ve killed her dad. But she didn’t.
“Can I have some of the marigold?” Josie asked the shop attendant. This was no regular flower shop. The French Quarter Witches opened it up to sell specific herbs. And the code to show that you were more than a tourist was to ask for the marigold.
“Of course,” the man said, then lowered his voice “Anything else I can get you?”
“I need to find someone who cloaked their location,” Josie said, “Can you help?”
“Come on back with me,” he said. Josie followed him to a back room, and watched him open a drawer. He pulled out some herbs and said,
“This is sage. It’s used in common locator spells.” Josie already knew that, but she didn’t want this man to know how advanced she was. For safety purposes.
“Do you know what this is?” the man asked, holding up a…doll?
“Uh, no,” Josie replied honestly.
“It’s called a poppet,” he said, “Or…the more colloquial term, voodoo doll.” He placed it down in front of her and said,
“You need to enchant this by connecting it to an object that the person owns, or has owned at some point. Do you have one handy?”
“Yes,” Josie said. She reached into her pocket, pulling out the silver talisman.
“That’s a lovely necklace,” the man commented, “Where did you get it from?”
“It’s need to know,” Josie said, then changed her tone as she said, “I’m sorry, but this is risky business. It’s better to be in the dark.”
“All good,” he said, “I’m not offended.” He gave her a smile, then opened a cabinet. He pulled out a jar, and Josie jumped when she saw what was in it.
“Are those…”
“Caterpillars,” he said, “Don’t ask, because I don’t even know, but they’re necessary.” He gave her a sheet of paper and said, “Instructions and incantations are here.”
“Thanks,” Josie said, “How much?”
“On the house,” he said, “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”
“Thank you,” Josie said. She grabbed the ingredients, and left the shop. Now all she needed was to find a place to cast it. She settled on an empty spot in the park.
It was still morning, so most people were at work or school. That gave her the privacy she needed. She spread out the sage over the map, and placed the poppet and the talisman next to each other. She performed the connection spell, and once she was sure that worked, she said,
“Okay Hope. Where are you?” She pricked her finger with a needle from the shop, watching as her blood dripped on the map. She started the spell, and watched as the doll started to shake. She hoped that meant the spell was working. The doll stopped, so she closed her eyes, focusing on Hope. She saw her hair, her eyes, her smile. She kept her thoughts trained on her as she said the incantation. When she finished, she opened her eyes, and she saw a trail of blood leading to somewhere. The cemetery.
Josie still wasn’t back, and Lizzie could tell Finch was getting worried. She kept giving looks to Mom’s office, and Lizzie knew she wanted to tell her. The werewolf made a move for the door, so Lizzie had to intervene.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“What do you think? I’m telling your mom,” Finch said, “If Josie’s in trouble, she can help.”
“Josie will be just fine,” Lizzie said, “I’m trying to get through to Freya, and when she picks up, she’ll probably say Josie is with her, and I’ll know she’s safe.”
“And what if she doesn’t?” Finch asked, “Would you be able to live with yourself if your actions got your sister into trouble?” Lizzie didn’t want Finch’s words to hit her, but they did.
“Give me one more chance to call Freya,” she said, “If she doesn’t pick up, we can tell my mom.”
“Thank you,” Finch said, “but call her soon.” Lizzie nodded, and Finch went to the dining hall. Lizzie debated following her, but she was too nervous to be hungry. She pulled out the phone to make the call, only to get it plucked from her.
“I was wondering where this was,” Caroline said. Dammit.
“Yeah, Josie and I have been holding on to it because Dad’s…indisposed,” Lizzie said, “I was actually just on my way to give it to her.”
“Thank you, honey,” Mom said, kissing her cheek, “Have you had breakfast yet?”
“Not yet,” Lizzie said,
“Let’s go eat, then,” Caroline said, “I’ll get Josie to join us.”
“No!” she quickly exclaimed, and Mom frowned, “I mean, no need. She already ate. And I think she just went out to visit Dad.”
“Oh,” Mom said, and Lizzie could tell she was a little disappointed, “I was hoping you girls would wait for me to go with her. I hate the thought of you being there alone.”
“We weren’t alone,” Lizzie said, thinking about the service Finch and Ethan had set up, “It is nice to have you here, though.” Mom smiled.
“And I won’t be going away again,” she said, “I promise.”
“Yeah I know,” Lizzie said, “Should we eat?”
“Sure,” Mom said. She took her to the dining hall, and after getting their food, they ended up sitting at Lizzie and Josie’s usual table.
“So tell me,” Caroline said, “How’s school been going?”
“That’s a very mundane question,” Lizzie observed as she poured syrup on her pancakes.
“I think it’s time you got one of those,” she said. Lizzie couldn’t disagree.
“School’s been okay,” she said, “For the first time in my life, I’m getting straight As.”
“That’s wonderful!” Mom exclaimed. The praise was nice. It almost made her forget that her sister was missing, and her father was in a coma.
“Yeah,” Lizzie said, “Dad was really proud.” Her face fell, and Mom gave her a sympathetic smile.
“We’re gonna wake him up,” she said, “and we’ll get Hope back, too.” Lizzie’s expression darkened.
“I wouldn’t mind if we never had to see that girl again,” she said as she stabbed a piece of pancake.
“Don’t say that, baby,” she said, “Take it from someone who has turned off their humanity before. The Hope you know is still in there, and she’s fighting to get out.”
“Wait,” Lizzie said, “ You’ve turned off your humanity?” Mom blushed.
“It’s not an era I like talking about,” she said, “but it happened. And your stepfather as well as your aunts and uncle were able to bring me back. Just like I know we can bring Hope back.”
“But what if she’s too far gone?” Lizzie asked.
“Trust my experience,” Mom said, “and trust me. No one is ever too far gone.” The knowing look on her face made Lizzie wonder if her mom meant Hope, herself, or someone else.
Lizzie took another bite of her pancakes, and when she looked up, she saw MG standing by the entrance to the hall. He was looking at her, and gesturing for her to come over.
“Mom, can you give me a minute?” Lizzie asked.
“Sure, honey,” she replied, “Is something wrong?”
“No,” she lied, “I just need to talk to someone about…homework.” Mom nodded, and Lizzie left the table to go talk to MG.
“What’s up?” she asked as she approached him.
“Finch told me Jo was missing,” he said, “Is she okay?”
“I think she’s in New Orleans with Freya,” Lizzie said, “I was gonna call her, but my mom took the school phone from me before I could.”
“Lizzie, I know you and Josie have your twin code, but I really think you should tell your mom that Josie’s missing. What if Hope found her before Freya did?”
“That was my fear,” Lizzie admitted, “I guess I’m just hoping that Hope was serious when she said she wanted nothing to do with us.” Her father’s memory was still burned into her head, and Hope had seemed like she meant it.
“Hope’s word isn’t good enough,” MG said, “Look, I believe that there’s still good in her.” That was where they disagreed, “but she can’t be trusted. At least, not one hundred percent.”
“I don’t want Josie to be upset with me,” Lizzie said, “We’ve been through a lot of rough patches. I don’t want that to happen again.”
“Josie would never be upset with you for trying to protect her,” MG said, “I know that for a fact.” Lizzie knew he wasn’t wrong.
“Do you think Hope would hurt her if she saw her?” Lizzie asked.
“Normally I’d say no,” he said, “but given what happened to your dad, I don’t want to take chances. We can’t take chances.”
“ You’re right,” Lizzie said, “I’ll talk to my mom.” MG nodded, then frowned, “What?”
“I think your mom might want to talk to us,” he said. Lizzie turned around, and saw her mother walking up to them. Her unhappy looking mother.
“Mom, what is it?” Lizzie asked, “Is Dad okay?”
“As fine as he can be,” Caroline said, “but I didn’t come over here to talk about him.”
“Then what is it?”
“I just got a call from Freya Mikaelson,” she replied, “Do you want to tell me why she thinks Josie is in New Orleans right now?”
The French Quarter cemetery was massive. There were stones for people that were as old as six hundred years old, and some spanned whole generations. Josie looked down at her map. She was getting closer. It wouldn’t be long until Hope was standing right in front of-
“Looking for someone?” she heard, and she turned on her heel. Her heart rate spiked, and she knew the other person could sense her fear.
“Hope?” she asked, “Is that you?” There was silence, then she saw a boot come from around the corner, and Hope was in front of her. Dressed in a leather jacket with boots to match, the tribrid in front of her looked almost unrecognizable compared to her friend from school.
“Hi, Josie,” she said. She still said her name in the same soft tone she always used, but there was something else behind it. Something darker.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, and as she got closer, Josie noticed the small stains of blood on her jacket. She’d been feeding.
“I came to bring you home,” Josie said, and Hope laughed.
“I don’t have a home,” she told Josie, “Not anymore.”
“Yes, you do,” she said, taking a cautious step forward, “Come with me.” She extended a hand out to Hope, and for a moment, she saw a look cross the tribrid’s face. One that suggested they’d been in this situation before, “Hope?”
“You know I can’t,” Hope said.
“Why not?” Josie asked. Hope cocked her head, then pointed to the grave in front of them.
“Can you read what that says?” she asked. Josie faced the grave.
“Camille O’Connell,” she read, “October 25th 1988 to April 29th 2014.” Sad, she had been so young, “Who is she?”
“A friend-and former lover-of my fathers,” Hope said, running a gentle hand across the stone, “She was one of my caregivers as a baby. She passed before I even turned two years old.”
“I’m sorry you didn’t get to know her,” Josie said, her tone genuine. She felt the same about her stepfather. While she had vague memories of him, most of it was a blur.
“Camille is a primary example of something I’ve known my whole life,” Hope said, taking a step away from the grave, “Everything I touch, I destroy.”
“You haven’t destroyed me,” Josie said. Hope raised an eyebrow at her.
“Not yet,” she said. She turned away, “You should go home.”
“I won’t go without you,” Josie said, “I’m not leaving you behind.” Hope stopped in her step. For a second, Josie wondered if she remembered when she’d uttered those exact same words to her when trapped in Josie’s subconscious mind.
But that was wishful thinking.
Hope turned on her heel, her tribrid eyes glowing. Using her super speed, she slammed Josie against the wall. Her jacket wasn’t thick enough to soften the blow as her back collided with hard concrete.
“I tried to make this easy, but you’ve continued to test me,” she said.
“What can I say?” Josie asked. She was her mother’s daughter after all, “I don’t like giving up on the people that I lo-” she stopped herself. The word was on her tongue, yet she couldn’t bring herself to utter it. Why? Hope pushed harder on her collarbone.
“I gave your father a warning,” Hope said, “Don’t make me give the same one to you.” Josie struggled against the weight of Hope’s arm, but she was able to keep herself upright. Because Hope wasn’t trying to hurt her. If she was, she’d be pushing on her throat, not the bone below it.
“If you’re going to hurt me,” Josie said, “then get on with it.” A smirk spread across Hope’s face. She released Josie’s neck, and the siphoner fell onto the ground with a thump.
“Ouch,” Josie said, but it hadn’t hurt all that badly.
“Answer something for me, Jo,” Hope said, and Josie winced at the sound of her nickname. Coming from her now humanity free best friend, it sounded both wrong and right at the same time, “I cloaked my location. How were you able to find me?”
“What does it matter?” Josie asked.
“I’m curious,” Hope said, a sinister hint in her voice.
“I’m a very advanced witch,” Josie said, “I know my way around a locator spell.” It wasn’t the full truth, but she had a feeling that Hope wouldn’t be too kind to the nice gentleman who’d helped her perform the spell. The auburnette crouched in front of Josie, giving her a calculated stare.
“You know I can hear your heartbeat,” she said, “If you were being honest with me, it would have a steady beat, but yours is racing faster than anything I’ve ever heard before.” The smirk left her face, and it was replaced by a soft smile. A smile that always made Josie give in.
“You wouldn’t lie to me, would you?” Hope asked, her tone as soft as her expression.
“That’s not going to work on me,” Josie said. She could tell her heart was still racing, because Hope was soon grinning at her.
“I’ll tell you what,” Hope said, “I’ll let you get away with this. If you promise to leave me alone, that is.”
“You know I won’t do that,” Josie said, and Hope’s expression darkened.
“Then I’m afraid I’ll have to make you,” she said. She grabbed Josie by the shoulder, yanking her forward, and grabbing her head. Josie gasped when she realized what she was doing.
“Hope, stop!” she exclaimed, but it was too late. Hope was in her head, and she was able to see the whole exchange from the shop. When she was done, she let Josie go.
“Henry Weaver,” she said, “He’s one of the French Quarter witches. Nice guy. Happily married, father of a little two year old who plays with my cousin, Nik.” She gave Josie a solemn look.
“Such a shame that he’ll have to grow up without his father.” Josie’s eyes widened.
“Hope, you don’t have to do this!”
“If you’re going to chase me after I’ve told you not to, then you deserve to suffer the consequences,” she said, “and what I choose to do next…that blood is on your hands.”
“Hope, this isn’t y-”
" Ad Sonum ,” Hope said before she could finish, and everything went black.
According to Freya, she’d gotten a message about a Gemini witch being in town. She’d tracked Josie’s trail, which led her to the cemetery, but nothing was there.
“Wherever she went after that got cloaked,” Freya told Caroline, “but I can say without a doubt that one of your daughters was in New Orleans.” And since Lizzie was at the school, that left Josie.
“I thought she was with Freya,” she told MG, “Maybe she was making her way to her, and she ran into Hope.”
“I don’t think Josie was looking for Freya at all,” MG said, “She just wanted her to know she was coming. Look.” Lizzie went to sit next to him at Josie’s desk, and she saw the papers he was looking at. They were newspaper clippings about animal attacks in the area.
“Josie was trailing Hope the whole time,” Lizzie said solemnly.
“Yep,” MG said.
“Dammit,” Lizzie grumbled. She sat up angrily, “Josie saw the same thing I did in my dad’s memories! She saw Hope say she wanted us to stay away. So why couldn’t she?”
“I don’t know,” MG said, “but I think we need to get her back before we get mad.” Lizzie shook her head. The door opened, and Caroline walked in.
“I’m going to New Orleans to help Freya look,” she said, “Mrs. Featherwood will keep an eye on you guys while I’m gone.”
“No way, I want to come with you,” Lizzie said,
“It isn’t safe,” Caroline replied, “Hope doesn’t have her humanity. The girl you know won't be who you'll see at first glance.”
“I know that,” Lizzie said, trying to keep her irritation at bay, “You don’t have magic, Mom. If something happens before you get to Freya, you could need me.”
“Elizabeth-”
“I can come, too,” MG offered.
“Me too,” came Finch’s voice. Lizzie watched the werewolf enter, her tone scared, “Josie’s my girlfriend, I want to help her.”
“I’m not taking three students with me on a trip like this,” Caroline said.
“If you don’t take us, we’ll just find a way to go anyway,” Lizzie said, “and you know it.” Mom raised an eyebrow at her, “Come on, Mom. Won’t you feel safer knowing we’re with you?” Caroline looked at all three kids, then sighed.
“Alright,” she said, “You can come. But I’m calling the shots, do you understand?” They all nodded, “Good. Let’s get in the car.”
Lizzie sat in the front with her mom, while MG and Finch took the back. Caroline plugged something in the ignition instead of the keys.
“What is that?” she asked her.
“A gift from your Aunt Bonnie,” Caroline said, “It’s a teleportation potion in the form of a key. Once I start the car, a portal will open to wherever we want to go.”
“Whoa!” MG said.
“That’s sick,” Finch said, awe in her voice.
“Why don’t you teach that to us here?” Lizzie asked.
“Maybe next semester,” Caroline said, starting the car. She pressed the gas, and as they lurched forward, they were taken away from the school, and they were in the streets of New Orleans.
“Magic gets better every day,” Lizzie murmured as the car continued forward. They drove in silence for a bit, and she asked, “What will we do if we see Hope?”
“We don’t show fear,” Caroline said, “Hope may not be herself, but that doesn’t mean she’s gone for good.” Lizzie refrained from rolling her eyes, but she still asked,
“Why does everyone keep saying that?” Mom gave her a sympathetic smile.
“Humanity allows us to feel emotions, but it’s not the only reason we have them,” she said, “It’s the reason Hope let your father live, because that part of her who loved him-who cared for him-is still inside. So that’s just what we need to appeal to.”
“You really think that’s still in there?” Lizzie asked.
“No,” Caroline said, “I know it is.”
When Josie opened her eyes, she could hear birds chirping, and she could see trees around her. She was in the forest, just not the one from home. She was about to start looking around when she realized her hands were bound. As she got a better look at her surroundings, she realized that her body was tied to a tree, and her hands had nothing to siphon.
“Oh good!” came a way too cheery voice, “You’re awake.” Josie turned and saw Hope staring at her with a maniacal grin while she twisted a knife in her hands.
“Hope,” Josie said, struggling against the vines, “Let me go.”
“Why would I do that?” Hope asked, “You’ll miss the show.” She pointed with her knife towards something down the path. Josie turned, and she saw Henry. A woman and small boy were with him. They all looked happy.
“Hope please,” Josie said, “Let him go.”
“Oh I can’t,” she said, “You see, I told you several times that I didn’t want you or anyone from the school coming to find me. And you just won’t listen.”
“So why don’t you just kill me?” Josie said, “Why take an innocent?”
“That wouldn’t be enough,” Hope said, “If I killed all of you, your family would come from me then their family until it was a whole mess. And I don’t like messes.”
“You’re ripping a man from his family?” Josie asked, “How is that not a mess?”
“I’m teaching you a lesson,” Hope said, “This is what will happen if any of you try to interfere again.” Her eyes glowed again, and Josie could see the malice behind them.
“You’re a monster,” Josie said, and for a second, she saw something else in Hope’s gaze. Guilt? No, it couldn’t be. But she didn’t know how else to describe it.
“I’m a Mikaelson,” Hope said, “and I am finally, finally living up to that name.” She held up the knife, preparing to throw.
“You’d kill him in front of his family?”
“I’ve never much cared for children,” Hope said, “but this could be a learning curve. It could make him stronger.”
“He’ll come for you.” Hope laughed.
“I would love to see him try.” She readied her arm, and Josie knew she needed to act fast.
“Wait!” she exclaimed before Hope could make the shot. Hope fixed her with a glare.
“What?!” she exclaimed, her annoyance high.
“You didn’t kill my father,” she said, “You didn’t kill me, and you don’t want to hurt anyone at the school-”
“I didn’t kill your father because I needed him to deliver my message,” Hope said, “If he crosses paths with me, I’ll make my motives clear. Now if you’ll excuse me-”
“But you’re not going to!” Josie exclaimed, “and don’t give me any of your bullshit about not wanting a mess because we both know that isn’t true!” She saw Hope hesitate. She saw her grip on the knife loosen, “I know you want us to think that you don’t care, that you want nothing to do with us, but you don’t!”
“You don’t know me at all!”
“Yes I do,” Josie said, “You’re the same girl who never gave up on me when I gave you a thousand reasons too. You stayed when no one else wanted to. My own father wanted to throw me away in a box and you said no .”
“That’s who I was then!” Hope snapped, “That’s not who I am now.”
“Then why haven’t you thrown the knife yet?” she asked, and Hope’s eyes narrowed, “You’ve had plenty of time to, but you haven’t. Because you don’t want to.” Hope stared at the ground, “You don’t want to, because you don’t want that little boy to grow up the way you did. Without his father.” Hope’s grip tightened around the knife.
“You have no humanity, but you’re still Hope Mikaelson,” Josie said, “and Hope Mikaelson is good . I know it, and so do you.” Hope turned to her.
“I’m many things, Josie,” she said, then turned back to the family, “Good isn’t one of them.” And she threw the knife.
Finding Josie hadn’t been easy, but Freya had done it. Lizzie and Caroline went to the woods while Finch and MG helped Freya anchor the locator spell. They found her sitting by a tree, holding a knife. She didn’t look scared, or even hurt. Just…contemplative.
“Josie?” Lizzie asked, and her sister jumped when she saw her.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, then surprise hit her face when she saw their mother, “Mom?”
“Josette Saltzman!” she exclaimed, “You had no idea how worried I was!” She wrapped the girl into a tight hug, which Josie returned.
“I’m sorry,” she said as she pulled away, “I thought I could help Hope, get through to her…” Help Hope. The thought alone was enough to make Lizzie sick. She scoffed.
“What?” Josie asked.
“Our father is in a coma, and you’re more concerned about the person who put him there?” she asked.
“Elizabeth,” Mom said, her tone warning.
“No!” she exclaimed, “No, I really want to know why Josie felt that a whole trip to New Orleans was more important that finding out a way to wake Dad up!” Josie didn’t answer, she just hugged her arms together, keeping her grip on the knife.
“Let’s not fight,” Caroline said, “Come on. Freya wants to talk to you.” Josie nodded, and the three of them went back to the Mikaelson compound. The two sisters didn’t exchange words the entire way. Once they arrived, Freya was waiting.
“Did you find Hope?” she asked Caroline.
“Josie was alone,” her Mom said, “and she’s been quiet.”
“Did you find her?” Freya asked her, and Josie nodded, “What happened? Is she okay?”
“She’s fine,” Josie said, putting the knife on the table, “She uh…she found out I got help from a witch in town to break her cloaking spell. She was going to kill him in front of his son to teach me a lesson about going after her.” Mom’s jaw dropped, and Lizzie shook her head.
“I knew it,” she grumbled.
“But…there’s no blood on the knife,” Freya said, denial heavy in her voice.
“She missed,” Josie said, “but she was going to do it. I wouldn’t be surprised if she went and found the family later to finish the job.” She took a seat, burying her head in her hands. She came up a few moments later and said, “Then she ran. I’m not sure to where, but I doubt she’ll use the same cloaking spell as before.”
“You’re right about that,” Freya said, picking up the knife, “I’m going to run some tests on this. If she used it recently, it might be able to lead me to her.” Freya went to work, and Caroline sat next to Josie.
“She didn’t hurt you, did she?”
“Not physically,” Josie said, “Emotionally on the other hand…” She rubbed her eyes, and Lizzie could see that she was stopping tears, “I need to lay down.”
“Finch is in the other room,” MG said as he entered, “She’s waiting for you.”
“Thanks, MG,” Josie said, pretty unfazed that the boy was there. He left the room, and Lizzie turned to her mom.
“That’s it?” she asked, “You’re not gonna ask her anything else?”
“Lizzie, she’s hurting,” Caroline asked, “There will be a time for questions, but now isn’t it.” Lizzie huffed, and she gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze.
“I’m going to talk to Freya. I’ll be back soon, okay?” Lizzie nodded, and her mom left. Once she was alone with MG, he asked,
“Is Jo okay?”
“I guess,” she replied, “but I can’t believe her! We promised each other that we’d work together to wake my dad up, and she abandoned me to go find Hope.”
“She thinks there’s still good in her,” he said, “and can you blame her? She did let your dad live.”
“Barely!” Lizzie exclaimed, “He’s only alive because of the doctors. If we’d found him any later, he might not have been so lucky.”
“If she’s so dangerous, then why didn’t you tell your mom that Josie was in trouble?” MG asked, “Why keep it a secret?”
“Because of twin code,” Lizzie said.
“Come on,” he said, “Life threatening situations always beat twin code, you’ve told me that. So what gives?” Lizzie shrugged.
“I dunno,” she said, then lowered her voice as she said, “I guess there was a small part of me that truly believed Hope would never hurt her.” A small smile spread across MG’s face.
“And there it is,” he said.
“This isn’t me agreeing with Josie, by the way,” Lizzie said, “Hope is still a monster, and she needs to be stopped.”
“But?”
“But…my mom says that humanity isn’t the only reason we feel things. And Hope…Hope is the same girl who stopped at nothing to bring Josie back from the darkness, even at the expense of herself. I don’t think that girl would ever harm her.”
“And you’re right,” MG said, “You said Jo was fine.”
“For now!” Lizzie exclaimed, “but she also said Hope nearly killed a man for helping Josie. That man is only alive because Hope missed, not because she’s still a good person.”
“But Lizzie-”
“Plus, while Hope may not hurt Jo, it doesn’t mean the same goes for the rest of us,” she said as she stood up, “and I’m not letting her hurt anyone else again.” She left the room, leaving MG alone on the couch.
Josie watched Finch sleep, trying to take in comfort from the small rise and fall of her chest. One would think this would be enough to make her content, but it wasn’t.
Her thoughts were still fixed on Hope. On the pain in her eyes as she tossed the knife, and what Josie had hoped was relief when she missed. She was surprised when the tribrid let her go, but now she was gone. And Josie wasn’t sure if she’d ever see her again.
There was a knock on the door, and Josie slowly pushed Finch off of her so she could answer it. She opened the door, and saw Freya on the other side.
“Hey,” she said, “Can I show you something?” Josie nodded, and followed Freya to her workplace. She picked up the knife and asked,
“Is this the one Hope threw at that family?” Josie nodded, “and you said it missed?”
“That was what I saw,” she replied.
“Hope is skilled with close combat when it comes to knives, but not far away,” Freya said, “That’s why this knife was spelled.”
“Spelled with what?” Josie asked.
“A simple incantation. Here, take this.” She handed Josie the weapon, “Do you have skills?”
“None at all,” Josie said.
“Perfect,” Freya said. She picked up an apple, putting it on her head, “Stand on the other side of the room, and throw this knife at the apple.”
“I really don’t think that’s a good idea,” Josie said.
“It’s fine,” Freya said, “Just…picture the knife going to the apple. Can you do that?” Josie nodded, “Then go ahead.” Josie hesitated, and Freya said,
“Josie, I’ll be fine. Go on now.” Josie nodded, then did what Freya asked. She imagined the knife going to the apple, and she threw it. At first, it seemed like the knife was going to hit Freya right in the chest. But then, she watched as the knife moved course on its own, hitting the apple, and knocking it against the wall.
“Oh my God…”
“Pretty cool, right?” Freya asked.
“Pretty cool?” Josie asked, “That was amazing!”
“Indeed,” Freya said, “That’s what the enchantment does. When throwing an object, it will always hit right where the person wants it to.”
“Wait,” Josie said, “but Hope missed earlier…” She looked up at Freya, and the older woman gave her a nod as the realization hit, “Oh.”
“Yeah,” Freya said, “Oh.”
Hope walked through the woods. Her footsteps were quiet, and she moved slowly, eyes peeled for anyone who could be following her. She had no interest in making any sort of conversation. She was able to make it to her destination without anyone catching her, and she looked at the tree in front of her.
“Hi, Mom,” she said. She got no answer, obviously, but that was fine. She could do the talking, “I wish we were speaking under better circumstances. I suppose you’ve been keeping an eye on me like you said. I bet you haven’t been too pleased, have you?”
A cold chill came across her, and she hugged her body tightly. The cold didn’t bother her as a tribrid, but it still managed to leave a chill.
“I know you think what I’m doing is wrong, but I have to get Triad before they find me,” she continued, “but once I do, no one from our family or from school will ever need to worry about me. I won’t be bothering them anymore.”
The branches of the trees cracked in the wind, making her jump. She regained her composure and said,
“While this isn’t the life you wanted for me, it’s the one I’ve chosen. And I’m sticking to it.” She reached into her pocket, pulling out the silver talisman, “Josie thinks she can reach me. And while I hate to admit it, today she almost did.”
She draped the talisman over a branch, “I’m leaving this with you for safekeeping. Because as long as you have it, she never will.” She stepped away from the tree once she saw that the necklace was secure.
“Goodbye, Mom,” she said, “Until we meet again.” She left the forest, and went back to her car, putting Mystic Falls in the GPS.
Mom was getting the car ready to go when Josie came down. Finch saw her and said,
“There you are! I was worried you’d left again.”
“I was just with Freya,” she said, “You won’t believe what we found out.”
“What is it?” Finch asked.
“Hope missed the shot on purpose.” Finch frowned.
“Meaning…”
“Meaning that I was right! There is still good in her, and I know that I can reach it.” Finch looked uncertain.
“Jo, I know she’s your friend, and you care about her, but this could just be another one of her games-”
“It’s not,” Josie said, “Hope wanted me to believe that she was going to kill that family so I would give up. But she left the knife in the small chance that I’d take it and figure it out!”
“You don’t know that for sure-”
“But I have to believe it,” she said, “I have to believe that she wants my help.”
“What’s going on?” Lizzie asked.
“I can still save Hope,” Josie said. She explained the situation to Lizzie, and continued with, “I know it seems stupid now, but-”
“Exactly,” Lizzie said, “It’s stupid.”
“Lizzie!”
“She almost killed our dad, Jo! How many more times do I have to say it?” she asked, “You can keep going in all the circles you want, but it doesn’t change the fact that Hope is gone . And she doesn’t want to be found.”
“But the knife-”
“I don’t care about the stupid knife!” Lizzie exclaimed, “If you want to help Hope, that’s your call. But I’m not backing you up this time.” She got in the car, slamming the door behind her. Josie turned to Finch, blinking tears from her eyes.
“You’re with me though, right?” she asked.
“You know I want to be,” she said, “but Lizzie’s right. You can’t base a whole action plan on a small hunch.”
“It’s not a hunch!” Josie said, “It’s the truth.” Finch shook her head.
“I’m not sure it is, Josie,” she said. She then went to the car, “You coming?” She didn’t want to. She wanted to stay in New Orleans to help Freya look. But the school was also Hope’s home. And if Josie was right, then it wouldn’t be long until Hope came back to them.
“Yes,” she said. She got into the car next to Finch, and MG joined them soon after.
“Are we ready?” Caroline asked as she got into the driver’s seat, and they all nodded. While Mom went on a whole spiel explaining the magic behind a set of car keys from Aunt Bonnie, Josie’s mind went elsewhere. It went to Hope. Hope, who she was going to reach. However long it took.