THE NEXT MORNING
When Lizzie Saltzman is woken up by the bright sunlight shining through her room, she feels annoyed that her beauty sleep was interrupted.
"Josie, why didn't you close the blinds?" the blond siphoner witch asked, knowing her twin, who usually wakes up before her, would close the blinds to let her sister sleep longer. But there was no answer.
"Josie, where are you?" Lizzie questioned as she woke up from the bed, looking for her in their bathroom without any luck.
As Lizzie's confusion grew, she reached for her phone to call her sister, again without any answer.
"Josette Olivia Saltzman, where the fvck are you?" Lizzie questioned out loud as she quickly got dressed to find her sister.
After searching the entire school for her sister, she suddenly remembered what her parents told her while Josie was looking for Hope. Hope is back. Her sister is probably with Hope.
'Oh, not this again.' Lizzie thought to herself as she went to Hope's room. In her dramatic ways, the blond twin has never believed in knocking, so she storms right in, and don't you see, Hope Mikaelson's limbs are all over her sister while both of them are still sleeping.
Lizzie, in her usual not caring manner, doesn't care about waking them up and starts to speak.
"Oh, there you are, Josie. I've been looking all over the school for you, and you're all cuddled up to your old-new best friend."
As these words wake Hope and Josie up, they suddenly realize their position, all cuddled up with their legs tangled into one another. As Josie returned to her senses and realized the position, she quickly stood up from the bed.
"Hey wolfie, I know you don't remember me, but I am Lizzie, the prettier Salzmann twin" Lizzie introduced herself in her typical fashion.
"I think that is debatable," Hope replies, defending Josie and making her blush.
"Aghhh, I can't deal with you two this early already. See you at breakfast." Lizzie said, leaving as quickly as she came, making a mental note that she needed to have a little chat with her sister later that day
"Is she always like this, or is it just me?" Hope asks curiously.
"Depends on the day." Josie simply replied, earning a smile from the redhead.
"I need to go to my room to get dressed...." Josie started to ramble.
"Or you could just borrow a hoodie from me. My aunts brought me some clothes before they ship the rest." Hope offered, surprising the brunette in front of her.
"Yes, that would also work," Josie answered with a shaky breath.
After a while, the girls walk to the cafeteria to have breakfast, both starving already.
"I want to introduce you to some friends," Josie informed Hope as they walked to the usual table with their trays full of food.
"Good morning, everyone; say hello to Hope. I know you know her already, but please remember that she doesn't remember anything." Josie warned her friends as she reintroduced the tribrid.
As the members of the super squad started talking to Hope while having breakfast, Lizzie took this chance to pull her sister by the arm and move with her aside to talk.
"Josie, what are you doing? Do you really want to suffer again? I mean, are you wearing her hoodie, or where does this ugly thing come from?"
"Lizzie, it's Hope.... you know I would do anything for her. And so, what if I am wearing her hoodie? She offered." Josie defended herself.
As Lizzie started to speak again, Josie looked over to see Hope being overwhelmed and overcrowded by everyone from her usual table. Too many people tried to get Hope to remember them. This made Josie walk back over to Hope, not caring about what her sister had to say anymore.
"Hope it's so good to have you back here! Would you please help me clean my wings?" Wade's voice was full of cheer and joy.
"Your what?" Hope asked, giving him a perplexed look, luckily managing to swallow her food.
"Come on, Hope, we're going to the library." Hope was relieved to hear Josie's words as she felt very uncomfortable in this situation. As they quickly put their trays away, Josie took an apple with her to eat on the way, and her sister took away her chance to eat and have breakfast.
"Hey, are you okay?" Josie asked worriedly as they reached the library, seeing Hope's uncomfortable facial expression.
"Too many people wanting my attention." Hope quickly answered with a rushed breath.
"Can I try something?" Josie asked as she reached for Hope's hand. Hope simply nods, giving Josie her answer.
"You might feel this a little." Josie warned before their interlocked hands turned into red light as Josie started to siphon from Hope.
As the magic that seemed too much inside her was slightly removed, Hope felt relief without understanding what was happening. Without warning, Josie whispers a spell, making the books fly out of the bookshelves as they flow around the almost empty library, making Hope stare in wonder.
"It's true, Hope; everything your aunts told you is true. It may seem impossible, but it's true." Josie said before she spoke another quick spell, placing the books back where they belonged. (A/N: Does any OG TVD fan see what I did there?)
After the little magic show, Josie told Hope to follow her as she led them out of the library.
Hope gets led through a hallway by her wrist, Josie, of course, being the holder of it.
"Josie, where exactly are we going?" Hope asked in confusion.
"I'm taking you to a place where I can hopefully answer most of your questions," Josie answered with a comforting smile.
With that, Josie turned into another hallway; before Hope knew it, she was inside a classroom.
"Josie... this is a classroom." Hope said, stating the obvious.
"Yes, but there is more to it." Josie teased before she uttered a small spell under her breath. Suddenly, a projector lit up a massive screen with a PowerPoint titled 'The Mikaelson Family History.'
"Are you teaching me about my family?" Hope could feel a grin fighting on her face.
Josie nodded, "I know this isn't the best way to explain your family. I feel like I can't give them enough credit for the impact they made on the supernatural world, but this is the best I have. Plus, I think you deserve to understand your family and maybe... a little of who you are too."
"Well then, Miss Saltzman, you may proceed," Hope said with a happy nod.
"Okay, it's a lot of information to take in. So, if you have any questions or need me to slow down, don't be afraid to jump in." The witch looked at the tribrid for reassurance, only to find a friendly smile.
"The Mikaelson's are widely known for being the original vampires. They date back all the way to the 10th century and are believed to be born in Norway."
Hope stopped Josie, "So how did they end up in New Orleans?"
Josie laughed, "I'll get there soon. Basically, your family believed that Freya had died."
Hope's mouth dropped, "Freya's not dead!"
Josie nodded, "Well, she isn't. Actually, your grandmother Esther has said Freya had died during a plague while your grandfather Mikael was gone."
Hope was confused, "So what really happened to Freya?"
Josie clicked to a new slide where the words read 'Dahlia'. "Your grandmother's sister had done a fertility spell using dark magic so she could have children. As payment, every firstborn of the Mikaelson bloodline will be taken by Dahlia. But don't worry, your family revolved around that issue centuries later."
The tribrid hummed in understatement as Josie continued, "With this, the family moved to live with the werewolf pack in Mystic Falls. Unfortunately, one of the Mikaelsons had been attacked by a wolf during a full moon, and well, Mikael, your grandfather, was desperate to find a way to live forever, be stronger and more powerful than the wolves. So, your grandmother being a powerful witch, found a spell and, using black magic, created the first ever vampires in the world. But mother nature needs balance with everything. As the plant vervain is deadly to werewolves, the wood of a wide oak tree can kill an original vampire of your family; with regular vampires, a regular wood stake is already deadly. But don't worry, your family got rid of the wide oak tree, but this is something you would have to ask your aunt Rebekah to be sure of."
Hope was stunned; the first original vampires of the world were her family. Hope almost felt like she had a lot to live up to. Josie only stared at her, noticing her processing look.
"As I said, it's a lot to take in, and I'm sure you're probably wondering how you came to be. Especially since vampires can't reproduce."
"Wait, vampires can't reproduce?"
Josie nodded, "Well, they are dead."
Hope nodded, "So, how did I come to be?"
The brunette turned to the next page; it read "The First Hybrid."
"Your father, Niklaus Mikaelson, was the first ever hybrid. You see, Mikael was not actually his father. It was a werewolf named Ansel."
"Woah woah, so Esther cheated on Mikael?'"
Josie nodded, "You'd be surprised how complicated your family tree is."
Hope frowned, "Sounds complicated."
"Don't worry, Hope; I'll do my best to make it easier to understand," Josie reassured her.
"You're doing great, Josie; I think I'm just more shocked about their history and impact on the supernatural world," Hope admitted.
"Yeah, I get it." Josie pointed out.
"You get it?" Hope asked in surprise.
"Well, not from your perspective. I've never had my memories erased, especially about an important part of myself, like being a witch. But I get how it feels to grow up with family members who impacted history. I know it's nothing compared to your family, but being the last members of a strong witch coven and the daughters of the headmaster of this school, sometimes can be tough to live up to for Lizzie and me." Josie explained her point of view.
Hope listened to Josie and saw how the brunette nervously played with her fingers as she spoke.
"Josie Saltzman, I think you're doing great," Hope reassured her.
"I think you're doing great too, Hope Mikaelson." Josie answered as she looked at her with a smile.
Silence enveloped the room; it wasn't awkward; it was comfortable.
Josie cleared her throat, "Moving on, your father had his wolf side locked away after he killed someone. So, he never truly was able to experience that part of himself."
"I could never imagine having that part taken away...."
Josie frowned, "Your father deserved much better...."
"Yeah.." Hope gave a sad smile.
"Let's move forward in the future. The Mikaelsons later discovered how to make their own bloodlines, allowing more vampires to roam the world. Later on, this would affect the Mikaelson family; many supernaturals didn't like the power the Mikaelsons had and the destruction they caused to their families. So, a lot of them went after your family. Luckily, your family was strong and even stronger together. Their family bond is the one thing that held them together and what protected all of them." Josie continued her presentation. The way Josie spoke about Hope's family warmed the tribrid's heart.
"The way you speak of my family, it's like you knew them yourself." Hope said in astonishment.
"Well, most of this was your help. We had to work on this class project together a few years ago." Josie explained, remembering how nervous she was to work with her crush.
"Wait, so I told you most of this information?" Hope asked in shock, making Josie giggle.
"Yes, you did and even a lot about your family. You told me how you guys would always have these massive dinners and that you would all dance together after. You also mentioned how no matter what, you stuck together, and family was first. As you explained, the world was wrong about you and your family. If anything, I think what everyone was most afraid of about the Mikaelson family was how powerful their bond was and what they could do with their love for each other." Josie explained with a warm smile. Hope felt like she was going to cry; knowing that she could trust Josie in the past, it felt like even more reason to trust Josie now.
"What else did I tell you?" Hope wanted to know everything. About her family, her past, and especially her past with Josie.
Josie closed the PowerPoint and sat down near Hope, "That your mother and father hate banged and then accidentally got pregnant with you. They both did their all to protect you and that you were named Hope because you were the new light to the family."
Hope raised an eyebrow, "Did I really say all those things?"
Josie giggled, "The first part, yes. I may have twisted your words just a little at the end."
The tribrid laughed and shoved Josie on the shoulder, "Thank you for this."
"Anytime," Josie said with a happy smile.
Hello everyone,
The new chapter is finally here, and it's a long one – YAY! I hope this makes up for not updating in December.
The last part of Josie teaching Hope about her family was written by the fantastic LonelyBear (on AO3) with tiny little adjustments from me.
I hope you like this chapter. Please comment on what you think. I always appreciate your comments.
I HOPE you're all safe, healthy, and doing well.
Lots of love,
-N