Back to Me

Light at the End of the Tunnel

Chemistry of Magic was a subject Josie was naturally talented at. She could easily understand the theory behind spells and take them to practice with no effort. Lizzie, however, didn't share her flair for it.

She'd always been more of a 'shoot first, ask questions later' kind of person. She didn't concern herself with the technicality of spells or potions so much as the end result. Which is why they stayed up until the early morning reviewing for the upcoming big test.

Josie was dabbing concealer under her eyes to hide the dark circles while her sister frantically ran through last night's notes, still open and scattered over her bed. They fell asleep sometime after 2 a.m. when Lizzie finally memorized the advanced structure of healing potions and its ingredients. Usually, the blonde wouldn't bother so much about a test, except she already failed the last one, and she knew her dad would flip if she failed another.

"Did you know it's scientifically proven that cramming for tests is less effective to learn information?" said Josie, amusement clear on her voice as she watched Lizzie through the mirror.

"That's bull. If it didn't work, then why do I keep passing?" Lizzie buried her nose deeper into the notebook, willing the writing to stick to her brain.

Josie walked to her sister, soothingly stroking her hair to comfort her, "You'll do great. You studied hard last night."

Lizzie sighed, looking up at her, "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Probably fail," Josie smiled, crossing the room towards the door, "I gotta go, I've Ancient Species next."

The teacher of said subject had a reputation for handing out detention like it was candy. The main reason? Tardiness.

She picked up her books and binders for her next classes before free period and wished the blonde good luck. Lizzie absent-mindedly waved good-bye, taking advantage of the last few precious minutes she had before her test.

Josie left the room, though her rush came to an abrupt halt as she collided with something. The books cradled in her arms slumped to the floor. Notes poured all around her in a white mess.

She lifted her head to apologize, after all, she was the one hustling.

"Hope?"

Wide blue eyes stared back at her. Livid, running from her face to her feet like she was making sure Josie was intact. She looked exhausted, even more so than Lizzie and she had in the morning, if that was possible.

Josie held her by the shoulders, trying to appease her distress, "Hey, it's ok -- we just bumped into each other," She said, but seeing it did nothing to calm Hope, she tried smiling at her, "I didn't break any bones."

At first, she thought it was cute how worried Hope was for her, that even a small collision sent her into protective mode. But now, with her face still frozen in a haunted expression, Josie suspected there was something more concerning the tribrid.

Hope finally found her words, and said, "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, why wouldn't I--" Josie caught herself, a frown settling on her features, "Did something happen? A monster?"

There hadn't been any monster problems lately, but they weren't known for having the best of luck. Maybe their streak of calm mornings was about to come to an end.

Suddenly a sheepish look overtook Hope's eyes as she brought a hand up to her hair, "No... I- I had a nightmare and just... wanted to make sure you're ok," She said, so quietly Josie had trouble hearing her.