Back to Me

Hope Andrea Mikaelson

Was Josie a terrible liar?

The worst.

Whenever she tried her face contorted with guilt, like a child's who had gotten caught doing something they weren't supposed to.

But she made up for it with master stealthiness.

Her cheerful personality made people feel at ease. She lowered their walls without even trying because her smile was just so contagious. If she were to steal something from them, they'd be too lost in her eyes to notice until much later after her effect had worn off.

Hence Hope was unsurprised when a couple of hours later Josie lowered a cloth bulk through the small opening of the cave. In fact, Hope's chest was brimming with pride.

She took the bulk in her hands and untied it from the rope attached to it. She peeked through the folds to make sure everything was accounted for.

This was the first step of their plan and it was, arguably, the most important one. After this it would be a relentless frenzy for Josie, while Hope would have to wait until after classes ended.

She tugged on the rope to let Josie know she was free to go and watched as the rope retreated.

The bell for first period rung not an hour ago, meaning students were already buzzing about. She didn't want Josie to get caught gathering materials for a spell when she couldn't even do magic, let alone have her lie her way out of it. It would be a disaster.

With the second stage of the plan now in motion, a part of her grew restless. She paced the cave nonstop after Josie left. She wanted to be with her, working together and keeping each other safe. But she landed herself in this situation and all that was left for her was to trust Josie.

She shook her head-- she had her own part to play.

Tucking her legs underneath her, she let her magic circle around her in a bubble. The ground beneath her feet disappeared and this time she only struggled for a few seconds to find her balance. She levitated five feet from the damp floor, safe within the warmth of her own magic.

Ever since she fed on the acolytes her magic had become much more difficult to tamper. Whereas it usually threaded between her veins like a coat of armor, now it sloshed around in her chest and weighed her down like an overfilled dam. She found that letting it expand around her eased the pressure and offered a much more comfortable seat than the hard cave.

All that was left for her was waiting. She couldn't risk someone walking in on her while she performed the spell. And she only had one shot to get it right. Josie and her agreed it would be best to do it after class. She said supper would have been delivered to her by then -- meaning no one would disturb her for at least a couple of hours -- and students would be in their rooms without fail.

Hope watched the light seeping into the cave become dimmer as midday rolled around. Then saw it progressively turn orange later in the afternoon. Her ears perked at the sound of the last bell, signaling the end of the school day.

She braced herself for supper, wondering who would deliver her tray.

A few minutes later the door creaked open and Dr. Saltzman strutted into the cell. Hope had grown extremely bored in the past hour though, and she had begun spinning in her little magic sphere. Currently she hung upside down, her hair barely grazing the floor of the cave.

Alaric asked her something she didn't bother to listen. She glowered at him for a second before continuing her spinning. He tried once more, but Hope refused to dignify his presence with a comment. Eventually he gave up and left the tray just within the barrier boundary.