Feelings - A Hosie Story

Chapter 38 - "My sister's gonna become a heretic"

Hope finds herself fighting alongside Alaric. It's been the same tactic: she weakens enemies, and he delivers the final blow. The conflict had erupted without warning; despite their readiness, nothing could truly prepare them for what they were to face.

There aren't many opponents left to fight, some ran but most have been killed, and Hope wonders where the man had found these people in the first place. She wonders why so many of them had been willing to help him attack a school. Her best guess? They all hold a grudge against her family too.

"Where's Josie?" Alaric enquires without even looking in her direction, shooting his crossbow.

"I don't know. I'm gonna go find her!" Hope shouts back at him. She scans the room for anyone in need of help. Her family is managing okay - injured, but okay. A few more students have fallen. MG is on the floor too, thankfully still alive and fighting back. Hope lends him a hand in fighting off the vampire attacking him, before assessing the best route out. She has to find Josie, hopefully before anything bad can happen to her.

Hope concentrates, but everything is overwhelming. There's too much happening, too many scents and sounds. Yet, after a few seconds, she picks up on Josie's unique smell, hiding behind the layers of smoke and blood. Having found it, she follows it, through a few hallways, around some corners until she finds who she's looking for.

"Josie!" She calls out, walking closer. As she approaches, she notices the man lying dead on the floor, the one who had started it all. "Josie...are you okay?"

"I-I killed him," Josie says, turning around, her face saying so much. Her eyes express every thought in her head. Hope listens to them, then notices the stain on Josie's shirt. Blood. Lots of it.

"Oh, my god..."

"I-I need to lie down," Josie stammers and in seconds all of her muscles stop working and she collapses to the ground. Hope catches her with ease, but she still ends up falling in her lap.

Blood pours from Josie like water gushing from a bottle, creating a puddle underneath Josie that she's drowning in. It covers Hope now too, though she's oblivious to it, the tears brimming in her eyes, clouding her vision. She's oblivious because all she can look at, all she's focused on is Josie. All she cares about is Josie, and holding her, making sure she's calm and safe...because Hope knows what's happening now, of the tragedy that is unfolding before her very eyes.

"It's okay, Hope." Josie mutters "I...I-" Before Hope can even think of her next thought, or a way to avoid what seems to be inevitable, she hears Josie's heart stop and air escape her lips for the last time in this part of her life. Hope cradles her body as though it were the greatest treasure on earth. To her, Josie is. She's worth more than gold or diamonds. She's worth more than the sky and the stars and the universe itself.

The smell of blood still hangs in the air, although Hope can't hear fighting anymore. No spells are being performed and no fists are being thrown. It's quiet, quieter than it has been since long before this started. Everything stands still. Anyone of his allies that may still be alive has scattered, leaving the teachers and students to clean up the mess.

The battle is over. They won but at the cost of so many and so much. Innocent lives that can't be brought back, and some that can and will yet won't ever be the same.

"I-I'm sorry I couldn't protect you." Hope strokes Josie's cheek, brushing away the hair so that she can see her face in all of its beauty. Her expression is frozen in a soft smile. A peaceful one. "But I'll help you through this. I swear. I won't ever leave you."

Hope gently closes her eyelids. "You're too good for this world. You didn't deserve this." Hope takes a deep, shaky breath, doing what she can to calm her emotions. It doesn't seem to be working well, but it is enough for Hope to figure out what to do next. As careful as she can, Hope stands up, pulling Josie into her chest. She carries Josie in her arms, knowing that what she needs is to be with her family when she wakes up.

She reaches the gym, using her foot to kick the door open. She sees members of the Squad talking with Alaric and Caroline, all looking equally injured and defeated.

"We have lost some good-" Alaric pauses mid-sentence, having now spotted Hope walking in. "Oh my god! Josie!" His voice breaks as he rushes over to Hope.

"I...It was too late when I got there. He-he's dead, but now so is she." Hope sniffles. Caroline and Lizzie follow shortly after Alaric. The three of them crowd around Hope and Josie. The three of them look at their fallen family member, whose entire life is going to be turned upside down.

Hope hears cries throughout the school, no doubt tears for all those that they have lost. Good people. Strong, young souls that shouldn't have lost their lives. Students who were brave and chose to fight for their school, their home. Students who have died with honor.

"My sister's gonna become a heretic," Lizzie voices, her tone laced with disbelief as if the reality of the situation hasn't fully settled in.