"Hope, I'm bored," Alexandria complained to the girl sitting across from her as she leaned back in her seat to which Hope only hummed in response.
The two were sat in the library, which was becoming a usual spot for the two. With no Gemini twin to annoy, Alexandria found herself hanging out with Hope more. As they spent more time with each other they became more confident with calling the other a friend. So they found themselves at the library once more, hoping to find some peace and quiet, although they had forgotten one crucial factor.
Tomorrow was Remembrance Day. It was much more lively that night as many students were crowded, taking their turns to write their letters. Alexandria had heard of it from the twins before they had left to visit their mom. A day that consisted of a tradition where students were asked to write letters to their dead loved ones so they could be later scattered in the cemetery. It was safe to say that the werewolf wanted nothing to do with Remembrance Day. And it seemed the only other person who was just as uninterested as her, was Hope.
Alexandria's head was hung back on the backrest of her chair so she was facing the ceiling. Arms crossed over her chest with one leg propped up on the seat. When she received no proper response from Hope, she looked back down to see that her undivided attention was been given to a book. Hope was sat straight up in her chair with her legs crossed, her sketchbook laying on top. Her facial expression remained neutral as she effortlessly drew a sketch of The Necromancer. A creature that had made themselves known after the twins' birthday a couple of days ago.
Alexandria admired how talented the girl was. How she was able to make beautiful works of art. During their times hanging out with one another, she discovered that Hope would usually draw when there was something bothering her. It seemed to be a way for her to process her emotions. Alexandria found it beautiful that she was able to express those feelings through art.
Alexandria patiently waited and once she noticed that Hope was just about finished with her sketch, she spoke up, "Can we do something?"
"Do what?" she finally responded, closing her sketchbook and putting it away.
"I dunno... something that means us leaving this library," she said, glancing over to the crowded library.
Hope sighed as her gaze followed the others. She too didn't particularly like their current environment and agreed. The two got up from their seats and had decided to go to the werewolf's room instead. Much more secluded and away from everyone else. But they were stopped when they saw an unfamiliar girl walk through the front door. She seemed to be in rough shape, bruising on her forehead, makeup smudged, specks of blood on her shirt.
"Cassie," Rafael had muttered from across the room, dropping his bag and bringing his girlfriend into an embrace.
"Wait, Cassie? Isn't that his supposed to be dead girlfriend?" she whispered to Hope who was just as baffled as her.
The two girls were left stunned. To their knowledge, Cassie had died in a car crash. But there she was, very much alive. In a school filled with the supernatural, almost everyone had their ghosts. And a girl with the Mikaelson name and another who was a werewolf, they had their fair share of ghosts. It made both of them anxious.
After watching the tearful reunion, Hope turned to the girl next to her. "I'm gonna go down and pay a visit to this so called 'Necromancer'. You coming with?"
She was about to say yes, but eventually shook her head. She remembered that Alaric would be downstairs interrogating the creature and didn't want to be anywhere near him. Not after their last encounter.
"No, you go ahead. I'm not feeling up for it right now," she said lowly, fiddling with the piece of paper in her pocket as she saw Rafael and Cassie walk further into the school.
"You sure?"
Alexandria finally tore her gaze away from the two and looked to Hope with a forced smile. "Mm, let me know if anything interesting happens," she murmured and strolled off before Hope could say anything else.
~ * ~
Alexandria found herself back at the library. She became restless just sitting in her room and couldn't find anything to distract herself. Blasting music in her ears and watching random movies wasn't cutting it this time.
Thankfully, all the students had cleared out, having finished writing their letters and continuing on with their day. An uncomfortable silence settled around her as she thought of what she had witnessed earlier on. Rafael's dead girlfriend was resurrected. The person who Rafael had indirectly killed, causing him to activate his curse. He was the most recent addition to their school, and had a recent death lingering around him. Alexandria arrived not long before him. So she couldn't help but wonder if there was a chance she could see her dad. The thought frightened her, but it was also an outcome she was hoping for.
Alexandria hadn't lost many loved ones in her life. Not that she had much family to begin with. The thought of writing letters to dead loved ones seemed absurd to her. She didn't see the point. But what a fool she made of herself as she found herself in the library, a slip of paper in front of her.
Emma once said to her during one of their sessions, 'If your dad was sitting where I was right now, what would you say to him?' The question seemed ridiculous at the time, but as Rafael was talking to his dead girlfriend in the other room, she actually began to wonder about her answer. She thought that if she could write it down, then maybe, if her dad was ever walk through that door, she would know what to say.
Her writing was normally rushed but it always had a sense of flow. It was chaotic and often seemed like she had too many ideas, but not enough space to write them down. But this time was different. Instead, she took time in making sure her handwriting was neat and eligible. It felt as though she had so much to say, but none of her thoughts strung together well enough to form a proper sentence.
She caught glimpses of other students' letters earlier. Having much to write. Purposefully making their handwriting small so they could fit all they wanted to say. Some students writing on both sides of their paper.
But as small piece of paper was laid out in front of her, only three lines adorned the paper.
Dear dad,
I'm sorry.
Love, Alexandria.
The Sinclair sighed, folding the small slip of paper and holding it tightly within her hands. Staring at the basket filled with letters in front of her as she sat in the library alone.
Just across the room, Hope was speaking to Dorian and the man had left the library after giving the student the books she needed. Just as the girl was about to leave the library as well, she stopped. The library was quiet and she thought it was empty, but there was one person sitting by themselves in the room. Alexandria was sat at a desk by herself. She seemed to be spaced out and her expression was unreadable. She couldn't tell what was going through her mind but she noticed that her gaze was fixed on the basket filled with letters.
Her body moved without her thinking and she had walked up to the werewolf. "Hey," she spoke softly, gaining the attention of the werewolf.
Alexandria had looked up to see Hope looking at her from a few feet away and she put her letter into her pocket. She gave her a weak smile and adjusted her posture to sit up straight. "Hey," she greeted back. "What's the books for?"
"Just some light reading on our latest monster problem," she replied, taking a seat beside the werewolf and placing the books on the desk in front of her.
"Did you need any help?" Alexandria offered.
She shook her head. "No, it's okay. What are you up to?" she asked even though she saw the letter she was previously holding.
Alexandria propped her elbow on the table and rested her head on her hand. "Thought I'd give the whole letter thing a try. Can't find the right words to say," she admitted honestly.
"Who did you write it for?" she pried, her curiosity getting the better of her.
Alexandria bit the inside of her cheek, exhaling slowly. "My dad," she replied in a flat tone, folding the letter before putting it in her pocket with no intention of placing it in the basket next to her.
Before Hope could say or ask anything, the werewolf stood up from her seat, causing Hope to raise an eyebrow at her. "Where are you going?"
"Gonna head back to my room," she said as she scrunched the piece of paper lying in her pocket with the full intention of throwing it out later on.
Alexandria's mood flipped instantaneously which almost gave Hope whiplash. She seemed so distant and bleak, but she was able to disregard those emotions seemingly at the snap of a finger. Alexandria didn't want to dwell on that and she hoped that the tribrid wouldn't question her on the matter further.
"Oh yeah, tomorrow I won't be here," she told the girl just before she was about to leave.
"What? Why?" Hope immediately asked, her eyebrows knitted in confusion.
"My brother and aunt are leaving soon so I wanna spend the day with them tomorrow. I'm sure Dr. Saltzman won't even notice but if he asks, I'm literally anywhere that's not within a fifty metre radius of him," she finished, propping her arms on the backrest of the seat she was previously sitting in and leaned on it.
The tribrid wanted to pry about their previous conversation but Alexandria had changed the topic so quickly. She wanted to ask if she was alright but as her eyes searched the depths of the werewolf's, she could tell that Alexandria was practically begging her not to. "Okay... just be careful alright?"
Alexandria's lips curved upwards into a grin. "The Hope Mikaelson is worried for me? I'm honoured," she feigned shock and placed her hand over her chest.
Hope narrowed her eyes and stood up to face the girl. "We don't know who this Necromancer guy is, or how far his powers extend. Clearly, resurrecting Cassie is part of some ploy for the knife. But who knows how far he's willing to go," she carefully warned the girl who just nodded without really taking anything in. "Just promise me you won't do anything stupid."
"Don't worry, I won't. Pinky promise," Alexandria stood up straight and brought her fist in front of the tribrid, pinky out as if she was a child making a promise.
She wasn't amused though, her gaze going between her hand and her eyes.
"Fine, fine. I promise I won't do anything stupid. I'm just going into town," Alexandria assured with a grin, bringing her hands into her pockets. "Cross my heart and hope to die," she added playfully. Hope rolled her eyes and walked away, but a smile fell on her lips at the werewolf's antics.
~ * ~
"Hey, I wasn't expecting you until later today. Didn't you have classes this morning?" Eleanor greeted the girl with surprise, seeing her niece at her door in the middle of the day.
"They got cancelled because of Remembrance Day," she lied, stepping into the home to see that almost everything had been packed.
Over the past week, Eleanor and Lukas had been making arrangements for their move. It was better this time around as they had a week to prepare and gather their things. Two days after the car crash incident, Eleanor had sat the two siblings down for discuss their future plans. Lukas had remained unaware of what really had happened. It wasn't like the boy couldn't find out. He knew he hadn't activated his curse and all he had to search up was a recent car crash in Mystic Falls to discover the fate of that driver. But he didn't. He hesitated.
Eleanor was open about her struggle trying to support both siblings in Mystic Falls. It hit both the Sinclair siblings hard. They spoke about what was going to happen and figured it was best to leave as soon as possible so Lukas wouldn't be too behind at his new school. But Eleanor and Lukas had plenty of time to pack their things and their flight was for the end of the week. Now that time had come and they were set to leave tomorrow morning.
"What time is your flight tomorrow?" Alexandria asked with uncertainty, and uncomfortable atmosphere lingering in the air between the two.
"Early," she sighed, irritation showing through the crease between her brows.
"I could drive you, you know?"
Eleanor smiled gratefully but shook her head. "Don't worry, I already have everything sorted. I don't want to hassle you, especially since you still have school," she reasoned and Alexandria gave a stiff nod. "I have some last minutes things I need to sort out, some calls I gotta make. We'll do takeout later tonight. Here, take this and treat yourself. And bring Lukas... I'm worried about him," Eleanor's voice fell to a whisper as she gave the older girl a couple of notes.
Alexandria nodded in understanding, thanking the woman and going down the hallway of the nearly empty house. She peaked inside her brother's room to see the walls barren and the area scarce of furniture. The only things remaining to be an empty desk and his bed. A few bags and some luggage containing the rest of his belongings. Lukas was at his desk on his phone and had his headphones on, scrolling mindlessly without really taking anything in.
"Hey," she called out softly from the doorway.
Hearing his name, he removed his headphones and turned around in his seat. "Hey," he greeted back quietly, fidgeting with the loose threads of his worn out grey shirt.
Her eyes "Did you wanna go out somewhere?" she suggested, showing the few bills that Eleanor had just given her.
"Uh, sure," he responded plainly and got up from his chair, chucking a few things in an empty bag before passing Alexandria to leave the room.
The werewolf watched as Lukas walked into the living room, saying a quick goodbye to Eleanor before heading out the front door. His posture slumped and his voice monotone. Like he wasn't fully present, off in his own world with his gaze slightly downcast.
Just as she was about to leave, Alexandria and Eleanor shared a look of concern for the young boy. They had both noticed his dejected mood and how he was quieter than usual. Alexandria muttered a small goodbye as she left out the front door, seeing her brother waiting by the passenger door.
The car ride was silent. They hadn't properly spoken to one another since their last outing and neither sibling was sure how to start a conversation. But Alexandria bit the bullet and spoke first. "How are you?" How have you been lately?" she asked cautiously, watching the boy's expression change ever so slightly.
The boy didn't pull his gaze from the window. "I'm alright," he replied dryly and continued to mindlessly count the cars they past.
Arriving into town, the siblings stopped by the Mystic Grill. With the sun at it's peak, the place was relatively quiet. Only having a couple of customers stopping by for a quick meal. Alexandria and Lukas had bought themselves some milkshakes and had decided to walk around town. Going into any store they found interesting while making small conversation.
She tried her best to lighten the mood about moving. Lukas was grateful, he could tell that she was trying and did his best to put on a smile.
Alexandria noticed how Lukas always seemed to remain a couple of steps ahead of her and she sighed quietly. She shook her head lightly and jogged to catch up with her brother. She threw an arm around his shoulder and ruffled his hair. The boy was quickly brought out of his trance and the sudden action made him jump slightly.
"Hey!" he exclaimed as Alexandria continue to mess with his hair. Annoyed, he pushed away his sister and glared at her.
Alexandria laughed at the way his face scrunched as he fixed his hair. Lukas tried keeping an irritated expression but Alexandria saw a ghost of a smile appear on his lips.
"You're so annoying..." he whined and stuffed his hands in the pockets of his pants.
Alexandria nudged his shoulder. "Me? Annoying? Never," she smirked as she heard him groan in response.
The small action from his sister made his heart feel a little bit lighter. The thought of leaving his sister in Mystic Falls still saddened him. It would be his first time being separated from her, but he was glad that she had the Salvatore School.
Just as the two siblings were about to head home, Alexandria stopped her brother. "Hey, Lukas," the boy turned around. "I know the situation isn't ideal but if you ever need someone to talk to, you know I'm just a call away. I'll always make the time," she told him with a sad smile.
Lukas exhaled slowly and nodded. "Yeah, I know," he replied and his gaze fell down to the pavement. He began kicking loose pebbles near him and fidgeted with his hands in his pockets.
Seeing his mood dampen, she wondered if she shouldn't have said anything in the first place. But she needed to tell him. She could tell he was struggling with everything. "Spring break is coming up," she pointed out and Lukas' head shot up. "I'll come visit you then."
The boy lit up. "Really?"
She smiled softly. "Yeah of course. I have exams right before but I'll come visit as soon as I finish."
Lukas smiled, feeling a little better. Alexandria wrapped an arm around his shoulder, bringing him in for a side hug.
~ * ~
Saying goodbye wasn't easy for any of them. Alexandria was left to walk back to the Salvatore School, hugging herself as the cold air would prick at her skin. Sitting in the empty house, Alexandria grew anxious watching the time pass by. And leaving the house, she would still watch it. Watching the seconds change, making the minutes change, making the hour change, knowing that soon Eleanor and Lukas would be gone.
She didn't know what to feel. She felt rather empty for a person who's only remaining family was about to move several states away. But rather than processing any of her feelings, Alexandria wanted to push any emotion down and forget about it. So, she found herself walking towards the gym. It was late but still Remembrance Day, so many students and teachers had gone off to the cemetery.
Wearing more appropriate clothes for the occasion although when entering the gym, she found someone else there. "Jed?" she called out when she noticed the werewolf using the punching bag for training.
Upon hearing his name, the werewolf turned around and saw Alexandria in the doorway. "Oh, hey. Looking to do some training?" he asked, walking over to his belongings to take a drink of water.
Alexandria sighed. "Yeah, I could go with some of it right now," she answered him plainly, cautious of the other werewolf.
Jed nodded. "Wanna have a go? I can hold the bag. This one is too light so it kept swinging everywhere for me," he suggested, pointing over to the punching bag.
At the offer, Alexandria was confused but agreed and placed her own belongings next to Jed's. He chucked the other a pair of gloves before walking over back to the bag. After securely placing the gloves on, Alexandria followed Jed who was holding the punching bag in place.
Getting into the proper stance, she began doing boxing drills, punching the bag aggressively while Jed used his body weight to stay in place. She continued going for a few minutes before Jed decided to break the silence.
"You seem like you've got a lot on your mind," he said carefully, looking up to Alexandria and watching her expression to see if he had overstepped.
Alexandria eyed him for a moment. Throwing punches left and right so hard that Jed really had to hold his ground. "Why are you asking?" she questioned curiously.
"Just wondering..." Jed responded with uncertainty which caused the Alpha to stop, giving one final blow to the punching bag that almost knocked the wind out of the other werewolf.
Jed grunted at the sudden impact and stepped back when he noticed that his Alpha was looking at him strangely. Alexandria tilted her head in confusion of Jed's unusual behaviour and took a few deep breathes to calm herself after her drill.
Alexandria wasn't used to this kind of treatment from Jed. It was usually the two being nothing but hostile to each other. Constantly getting under each other's skin and finding ways to pick a fight. She honestly thought that she might've knocked him too hard during the Alpha challenge because the person in front of her was not the Jed that she was accustomed to.
"I was an asshole to you," he said suddenly. "To everyone, but especially to you," Jed admitted, looking to the ground.
"Are you... apologising to me?" Alexandria asked, a teasing smile growing on her face seeing Jed roll his eyes at the statement.
An awkward smile appeared on Jed's face and his eyes began to dart across the room, feeling uncomfortable with Alexandria analysing his every action. "My turn," he voiced and got into a proper stance.
The Alpha's eyes narrowed and she couldn't wipe the smile off her face seeing Jed so uncomfortable with the concept of apologising to someone. "No, no, no. You're not getting out of this," she raised her hand slightly to stop him. "Are you doing this just because I'm your Alpha now?" she questioned.
"No. No, I– It's not because of that," Jed quickly blurted out and nervously looked away when he saw the look that Alexandria was giving him, now standing up straight. "I've had a lot of time to think now that I'm not the Alpha anymore. Just seeing how you treat everyone else, it made me think."
Alexandria watched him carefully, taking in his words. But it was still strange to see Jed like this.
"Uh– just forget I said anything," he shook his head to dismiss the conversation and got back into his stance.
The other werewolf hummed, but didn't push it. Now holding the bag in place so Jed could have his turn with training. An awkward silence filled the room, as Jed placed his full attention on the punching back in front of him.
The Alpha tried thinking if Jed had some ulterior motive, which would've made sense before. Jed always acted high and mighty, believed he was better than every other werewolf. But seeing him so nervous, she realised that he was being genuine. It shocked her.
"So, why are you here instead of the cemetery with everyone else?" Jed asked after a brief moment. Unable to stand the silence between the two, but he cursed at himself mentally, wondering why he had to ask that question out of all the possible things he could've asked.
The werewolf sighed at the question. "My dead aren't buried in that cemetery. You?" Alexandria saw as he sharply inhaled at the question. He knew her story, but she knew nothing of his.
"No one dead worth remembering," he answered honestly in a solemn tone.
Alexandria nodded, thinking to herself for a moment. Jed soon stopped when he noticed that Alexandria seemed to be lost in thought.
The Alpha caught his gaze and she finally voiced, "There's something I don't quite get," she began and Jed's eyebrows furrowed. "Of all the things you chose as 'initiation', why ask all of us how we activated our curse?"
Jed's eyes widened at the question and quickly adverted his gaze, seemingly ashamed of his actions. He inhaled deeply and began taking off his gloves. She watched him carefully as he walked over to the benches, chucking his gloves next to his stuff before taking a seat. Alexandria soon joined him, following his actions and taking off her gloves and sat a few feet apart from him.
Jed had his elbows resting on his knees and he stared at his hands with his posture slumped. "If I'm being honest with you... I don't really know," he spoke softly, briefly turning his head to see Alexandria already looking at him. He brought his eyes back to his hands and started fidgeting in his spot.
In truth, Jed did have some idea of the answer, but he was too afraid to acknowledge it, let alone admit it. Alexandria nodded absentmindedly at his response. She never would've thought she could actually be having a civil conversation with him, yet there they were.
Thinking back on it, Jed had really toned down. He no longer presented himself as high and mighty. Partially because he was no longer the Alpha, but Alexandria could tell that there was a slight change. She still wasn't too sure of what that change was, but seeing him there at that moment, she became curious.
The two took a moment to calm down after training before Alexandria spoke up, "It doesn't change the fact that you were a complete asshole to me and to everyone else in our pack, but I appreciate it. Really. It's a start," she said genuinely as she started to gather her belongings, about to head out of the gym. Changing the topic of their previous conversation, she kept her tone light and joking in manner to turn the mood around which made Jed's lips upturn.
Making up for all the things he did in the past was no simple feat, but Alexandria was curious of just how exactly he would go about it.
"You're actually not half bad. When you're not trying to pick a fight with me," Alexandria mused as she put her bag on her shoulder.
The werewolf chuckled lightly at the comment. "Thanks, It means a lot," he said gratefully. "We should do this again sometime. Actually properly spar with each other," he joked around, referring to the Alpha challenge.
Alexandria smiled. "I'd like that."
The two exchanged their goodbyes and went their respective ways. It was strange. Weeks ago, the two were at each other's throats. Everyone at the Salvatore School knew about the disliking they had for each other. It was a strange occurrence for both, being in each other's presence and leaving without a single bruise. But neither minded. What they didn't know was that they actually weren't all that different from each other.