Feelings - A Hosie Story

Chapter 17 - "A creepy old warehouse"

Alaric is behind the wheel as he drives them to the place on the map. And as they get closer, Hope feels her anger growing. Her heartbeat quickens. Whoever they are tracking killed Josie. She would love nothing more than to rip their heart from their chest. She wants to act on that, but she knows it's not what Josie would want. So instead, she'll go over for something a little less violent.

These, these thoughts - they are the darkest parts of her father. The parts that everyone feared. Parts of him that people feared she inherited. What they feared she would become. Her whole life, she's been told by those around her that she's not like him in that way, that she only has the better parts of him, but deep down she's always felt she has a certain darkness. One that even she is scared of because she has no idea what she'd be capable of if she were to let it take over. To have control.

So, she fights against it. She fights to be stronger and better, for her mother, her father, and for the rest of her family. She fights, and she continues to fight to be the person that they'd all want her to be. Someone that they can be proud of. And she fights to prove the world wrong. Everyone believes that the Mikaelson are villains, that they are evil creatures. Hope feels that it falls on her to prove that isn't true. Hope wants the people who doubt her family to know that Mikaelsons can be some of the most kind and loving people, no matter what the stories say. She needs people to know that when it comes down to it, at the very core, the Mikaelsons are good people.

This is a task she's set herself to fulfill in life. To paint the family name in a positive light. To create a good legacy for future generations to come.

~~~~~~~~

They park less than a mile away from the location. It leaves enough distance to keep the element of surprise, so as to not be seen too early. Hope takes a few of the blades from the bag, holding one in hand and storing some others up her sleeves. Lizzie siphoned from Hope before leaving, ensuring she had enough magic to last what could potentially be a big fight.

They tread through some trees until it opens up into a much larger area. There's a large, empty concrete patch (what appears to have been a parking lot in the past) next to an old warehouse.

"A creepy old warehouse. Why am I not surprised?" Lizzie chuckles lightly. In reality, she does it to hide her nerves. Hope recognizes this. Not only had she gotten to know Josie better over the past few weeks, but she's also come to know Lizzie better too. From small interactions as went to go and meet Josie, to longer conversations between the three of them.

But yes, she's nervous.

So are Hope and Alaric and Caroline.

How could they be anything else? Feel anything other than their heart drumming and sweat dripping from their foreheads?

They don't know what they are going to find.

They don't know what to expect.

They don't know if it's a trap if they've been given an empty location. Anything could be waiting for them inside the building and they wouldn't know it until they step through the door. Not even with Hope's wolf senses. It's like there's some sort of magical barrier that cuts everything off from the outside world.

That's what tells Hope she's on the right track.

So, essentially, they're all going in blind.

All that Hope can think, is that whatever happens, she has to get justice for Josie. Somehow, someway, she just has to.

The tribrid looks at Lizzie, thinking. Then, she glances down at her wrist and cuts it with the blade in her hand, before holding it up in front of the blonde girl. Lizzie tilts her head, but Alaric and Caroline don't seem to be looking. They are scouting out the area. After a second, she catches on to what Hope is offering.

"It's your choice, and you don't have to but, I-we've already lost Josie...we can't lose you too," Hope says sincerely. She sees the expression on Lizzie's face soften. A small smile creeps onto Lizzie's face when she understands what Hope is saying. That she's looking out for her. Despite the terrible circumstances, Lizzie's happy they've grown beyond their pettiness from childhood years.

Lizzie nods, drinking a few drops of blood from Hope's skin that spilled out before the wound healed. She mouths a thank you to her, who nods her head in a reply.

Lizzie doesn't want to be a vampire. Being cursed to feed to blood for eternity has never appealed to her, but after losing her sister, she'd gladly take the offer. Her parents have been devastated by Josie's loss, so losing Lizzie too would be too much for them.

This is their insurance policy. It's a guaranteed 'I'll see you later'.

Alaric cuts over the silent interaction, telling the girls that they must stay behind him. Lizzie rolls her eyes, but she's not about to start an argument.

"Look no offence Dr Saltzman, but you're human. I think I should be the one saying that." Hope says. She swears he acts like he's indestructible at times.

"And you are not the first person to remind me of that. You may be more powerful than all of us, but I'm still the adult." He whispers as they approach the building. There's a single entrance in sight. He signalled for them the two girls and Caroline to follow him. They share a look. Then nod.

They walk in, making as little noise as possible.

It's dark. Gloomy. The kind of villain lair you read about in books or see in movies. A perfect place to hide, because nobody looks there.

One second, they are walking in. The next, Alaric's crossbow, along with all of the other weapons, is pulled from them and thrown into the shadows somewhere.

Caroline, Alaric, Lizzie, and Hope all left without physical weapons. All they have left to rely on is their magic and heightened abilities. And yet even with her werewolf senses, Hope can hardly see anything. She does hear movement. The moving of feet. And she follows it with her hand. She pinpoints it, then heads straight for it. She ends up holding someone by the neck, and a strong smell of blood clings to them.

Her first thought? This is the vampire that wounded Josie in some of the photos.

Sure, Hope promised herself earlier to be better than her father, to not kill, but being faced with someone who may have hurt Josie, well that makes it harder to want to keep that promise.

"Someone's feisty." The deep voice gets out, not without a struggle. The person has a British accent. A strong one. "Now!" It shouts. The area around them all lights up, revealing the person in Hope's grip. It's a man, tall but skinny. And Hope's eyes glowed yellow at the smirk on his face.