Chapter Text
"Need you and I crave you, hate you. Think I ripped the wings of off my fucking angel, it don't hurt me, damn."
-Xxxtentacion
"Ahhhh!!" Penelope screamed out, tears covering her caramel skin, breathing heavily from yelling out from the torture she is enduring from her former friend/lover.
How did everything get so fucked, she wonders but deep down.. Penelope has always known things would end this way when she made her choice to hurt her friends instead of asking for help, and once again all she can do is deal with it and accept the cost of her actions, which she knows will soon end in a gruesome or painful death.
DJ smirks quietly to herself knowing how much pain and anguish Penelope is feeling, it gives her such a satisfying feeling to see and inflict personally on the behalf of her timid and shy part of her.
"Penny, I've said this like 6 times already, this can all stop if you just tell me how to find the rest of my lost memories and we can end this pain you're experiencing." She mocked in a serious tone.
Penelope glared angrily and spit out the blood that had built up in her mouth on the floor in front of DJ's feet. "I'd rather die." She declared boldly.
DJ just shook her head before shooting a lightning bolt towards Penelope with a voltage so strong her heart nearly stopped beating.
Gasping for her heart to not stop, Penelope realized how much she wanted to live, how much she wanted to save her friends even if it meant hurting them for whatever good reason she came up with in her head. More tears stung in her eyes as she caught a little bit of air back on her lungs, she started to contemplate whether or not to end her misery and tell them how to find them.
"Jo, this isn't working. We need to try something else " Lizzie offered with a grimace.
"What do you suggest we do?"
Lizzie looked a bit nervous to reveal whatever idea she had like it was something she wanted to do but also didn't want to do. "It needs to reach a more personal level, and I know exactly how to but it requires only me and someone else in the room."
"Okay, I know good bunny has sorta forgiven you for your transgressions but that doesn't mean to openly do it in front of me." DJ threatens while approaching Lizzie slowly with murderous intent
"No! I mean something else entirely, not having sex with her! Plus I don't know if you remember but she said I was an average lay at best so I don't think having my ego bruised more would help." Lizzie exclaimed with disgust and sadness.
"Oh no, I remember. It was funny as hell." DJ chuckles.
Now it's Lizzie's turn to give a glare toward her twin.
"I think changing the subject would be best." Kol says with a lingering uncomfortable expression.
"Yeah, I second that." Marcel agreed.
"Same." Klaus also agreed.
The other Mikaelson's nodded in agreement with grossed out expressions.
"Whatever! Can you just consider my idea for a second and not think about my mistakes! I want to hit her where it hurts!"
"I'm sitting right here!" Penelope exclaimed, upset.
DJ just stared at her twin with a lost look and irritation. "You're being incredibly cryptic and vague."
Lizzie rolls her eyes before grabbing her wrist, "Follow me."
They rush upstairs while the Mikaelson's continue interrogating Penelope for the time being.
"What is so secret and uncomfortable about the plan that you need to drag me away from the enjoyment of torturing her?" DJ questioned in a frustrated tone.
Ignoring her tone, Lizzie spills the truth this time. "Can you go to Hope's place and ask for Maya Machado?"
DJ raises her eyebrows curiously , "You want me to bring in her ex girlfriend that she abandoned.. with you there as the recent lover?”
"Y-yes and I am NOT her lover just because I maybe.. hadfeelingsforPenelope,"
DJ's expression widened into a proud smirk as Lizzie rambled on. "but that's beside the point! Can you go there and see if you can find her?"
"Yeah, I can see what I can do but I'm going to go as little sweet innocent Josette." DJ said with an eye roll and grimace.
"I really don't get why you're helping her if you dislike that side of you so much."
"Oh no, I love her, it's just her self hatred for me. It bleeds into me and does this weird reverse psychology thing where it seems like I hate her and vice versa." DJ explains plainly
Confusion waves over Lizzie as she tries to comprehend what her darker twin said. "I can't tell if that was serious or you were being a snarky sarcastic bitch.."
"Whatever, let's just tell the Mikaelson's what the new plan is and keep the devil spawn out of the loop." DJ says, walking back downstairs.
Lizzie nodded following behind her in quick succession.
_____________
Hope's Apartment
“Why the hell would you want to do that to her?” Maya shouted, not seeming too fond of what Hope was asking of her.
“Oh come on, I'm not asking you to kill her for me! I'm asking you to pretend to be my girlfriend when I go see my father's wife, while also being in front of my ex who is the reason I'm the way I am right now.” Hope explained as nonchalantly and monotone as possible.
Maya just stared at the Tribrid unimpressed. “Look, I get that she hurt you in one of the worst possible ways, unintentionally, but I don't think it's a good idea for me to be involved in something like this.”
Hope sighed, “Is this because of Penelope?”
Maya nodded solemnly, “It feels like a gut punch from you and you know that shit hurts, considering you're the Tribrid.”
Hope agreed with a soft nudge to her shoulder.
“Okay, how about I convince you to come with me to my family's vacation home.. and talk with Penelope yourself?” Hope revealed.
Maya furrowed her eyebrows, “What do you mean?”
“I mean come to the house and talk to Penelope.”
She scoffs at Hope thinking that her friend was shooting off a joke to ease her nerves about what she was asked of. “Sure and when I see her I will totally tell her just how much I want to hurt her the way she hurt me.”
“Great! Let's get going I'm pretty sure they've still kept her in the basement and have started her torture until she fesses up to whatever else she has planned.” Hope says excitedly while pulling Maya up from her bed walking straight to the door ready to leave and continue Josie's punishment but Maya pulled back slightly as she had processed exactly what Hope had just said to her.
“You have Penelope trapped in the basement of your vacation home and she's being tortured?!!” Maya exclaimed.
Hope furrowed her eyebrows in confusion at her outburst, “Yeah?”
Maya sighed, putting her index and thumb between her eyes with a shake of her head. “I should be used to this nonchalance from you and yet..” Maya looked back up at Hope with amusement, “it still somehow catches me off guard.”
“Well, that is what you love about me isn't it?” Hope said with one of her infamous smirks on display.
A blush covers Maya's cheeks at her friend's flirtatious tone, hitting her shoulder slightly with a laugh to follow, “Alright lady killer, save that for you know who.”
“So that's a yes?” Hope says excitedly.
With a giggle and a deal to treat her to dinner after, Maya agreed to the plan.
***
Back at the Mikaelson's…
As Lizzie and DJ prepared what they needed for their trip to Hope's home, Elijah came towards them with a proposition or rather question for Josie.
“You do know what happened don't you?” He asked with a look of remorse and understanding.
Josie looked at him and quickly looked back at what she was doing, “Do I know about what exactly?”
“Look, I know what it feels like to believe that you killed the love of your life. I spent a whole year thinking that before I decided that I would end my life, Niklaus also wanted to do so as he also believed his love was taken by his own hand as well but all I'm saying is.. don't give up before it's halfway through, you're only just getting started.”
“So.. someone took your memory of Hayley?”
“Yes, and my family. But they fought hard to bring me back from what those people made me become, and you can do the same.. but only if you trust us.”
Josie looked down at the hand presented to her. What should she do? She wondered. Would she trust him and the Mikaelson to bring her back for redemption? Or will the torturous sound of her regrets finally pull her away to the sweet relief she's been begging for since she regained all her memories.
Even the one she claims to not have.
“I'll have to think about it, but I'll have an answer when I get back, okay?”
Elijah looked at her skeptically but accepted her answer for now.
Finished with gathering what she needed, Josie and Lizzie set off to Hope's apartment not knowing what would be lying in wait for them there.
***
A knock sounded on Hope's front door. Frustration festering from being distracted by this unknown and unannounced visitor, Hope told Maya to answer it before she ripped whoever it was throat out from their ass, which truly made Maya want to blow chunks at how graphic that sounded.
When Maya opened the door, one of three things happened:
Hope, even though she said for her to get the door, was standing next to Maya watching and glaring heavily at the unannounced visitor, which was obviously Josie and Lizzie.
Hope, even though she said for Maya to get the door, had already snapped Lizzie's neck the moment Josie's face appeared and had Josie by the neck next to the door, ready to snap her neck next.
She was just snarky with A LOT of physical anger building inside of her.
If you guessed number 2, then damn.. y'all need therapy and I like your sense of dark humor with the touch of obvious tension between them.
But once again, we both know it was number 3, right? I mean this is Hope we're talking about, she'd rather kill look alikes than her right now but even that is not as satisfying to her at the moment.
“What the fuck are you cheaters doing here? And aren't you supposed to be fucking dead?!”
“Hope!” Maya shouted.
“What!? They are cheaters?! And I killed her by snapping her neck!”
“It's still rude!” Maya scolded.
“I will choke you!” Hope threatens.
Maya smirked, pulling Hope close with her arm around her waist in a sultry way, “Wouldn't be the first time you've done that now would it?”
“Okay! No, I will NOT be a witness to this!” Lizzie stated, about to march into Hope's apartment to stop them from doing unspeakable acts in front of her, only to wind up on her ass.. again. But this time it was the fact that she wasn't invited in.
Josie looked on with sadness and a hint of jealousy.
“Babe, just let them in, it'll probably be a quick question okay?”
With a sigh, Hope reluctantly invited Lizzie and Josie in.
“I need to speak with Maya.” Lizzie said getting right to the point.
Hope looked towards her questioningly. “Why?”
“I want her and I to confront Penelope so she can give Josie back her memories.” Lizzie explained.
“Okay.” Maya said, immediately after hearing the answer.
Hope pulled Maya to the side in a concerned girlfriend manner, squeezing out a little bit more of that barely hidden jealousy stirring inside of Josie's little head.“You sure? I don't want you to get hurt.”
“I'll be fine. I just want to discuss what we will need to do and say so we can be prepared.”
She rolled her eyes before agreeing, “Fine.” Hope leaned forward giving Maya a brief but noticeable kiss to cement their ‘relationship’.
“I'll be in the other room with this one because I need to have a little chat with her as well.” Hope said, close to her lips but loud enough to catch both twins' attention.
Josie scoffed and rolled her eyes walking into Hope's bedroom.
Hope walked right behind Josie with a groan under her breath wishing this could be over soon.
“It will be.” Said Hope's other half with a darkness that Hope subtly but stupidly ignored.
Closing the door behind them to give the other women some privacy, Hope and Josie just started yelling at each other, of course Hope put a silence spell over the room.
“Well, you still didn't have to fucking kill her!”
“And you still didn't have to trap me and yet you did so I guess we're even!” Hope yelled back.
“I don't want to be even with you, I want to fix whatever I broke when I lost my memories!” Josie cried.
Hope rolled her eyes, “You can't fix this.” She said pointing between the both of them, “Whatever part that could've been salvaged was dropped into a black abyss called the afterlife and won't be coming back! Ever!”
“So you're just going to hate me and continue to make my life a living hell because of something I had no control over?!”
“Oh you had control you're just too weak to fucking handle anything that's breaking down whatever wall you built when you fucked with dark magic when I asked you not to!!”
“Well I'm sorry Hope, what do you want me to do?! I've groveled, and begged and pleaded even with no memory of why you hated me so much to just tell me why you wanted to hurt me!!” Josie screamed with the pain of the past finally haunting her in the worst way she could imagine.
“Oh please Jo, spare me your dull excuses of ‘why oh why me!’ You needed to feel my pain because it was just as much your fault as it was mine!” Hope bellowed, anger seeping out like a roaring fire.
Josie stood in utter disbelief, she didn't think Hope blamed herself for the death of her unborn child.. she thought that Hope only blamed her fully for everything that went down.
“Hope, I-”
“What!? Are you going to give me more of your pained excuses?!” Hope continued with a buried rage that surfaced after a whole year of it being at bay.
“No.. I just-” Josie tried..
“I love you, I hate you, I loathe you, I'll break you, I don't need you but all I know after everything is that I still want you!” Hope screamed out in agony, desperately needing to push the woman that has caused her so much joy yet do much pain.
Tears welled up in Josie's eyes, "You know how much I regret everything that happened but you have to realize that it wasn't me, my memories were altered into a person I've never been!”
"Yeah.. maybe they were altered but everything I felt that day was real and true.. so whether or not it was you, being around you just brings me more pain than I have felt in my entire life, and I don't need that right now.”
“Let's not talk about the pain then..” Josie suggested.
“What?”
“Let's not talk about the pain, talk about something else until we can rehash this again okay?” Josie asked with a plea in puppy dog eyes.
With a scoff Hope folded her arms and said, “What do you want to know?”
“How did you even know Lizzie and Penelope were sleeping together behind my back?” Josie asked with genuine curiosity.
Hope smirked looking down at her hands for a second then slowly approached Josie like a lion eyeing their meal for the day.
Josie tried to feign innocence but her body reacted to Hope in a way she couldn't deviate from. As Hope stands in front of her, Josie notices that her heart is rapidly pumping out of her chest. She couldn't help wondering what Hope is doing but everytime she thought about it a shiver would go down her spine like a strike if excitement hit her lower and lower until it reached her toes and came back up stopping right where she begs internally for it not to.
As all those thoughts transpired in her head, Hope smirked more deviously and leaned to Josie's ear and whispered ever so lightly.
“I could smell Penelope on her the moment she got in my face..”
Josie let out a slow breathy groan as she tries to pull some courage into herself and not give in to the obvious teasing that Hope is doing.
“Hope.. don't.” She whispered with a hint of regret.. while slightly turned on.
Hope just leaned closer, her lips almost touching Josie's ear.
“Just like how..”
“Hope, stop.”
Suddenly, Hope backed away with a proud grin before going back where she was standing, while answering my question. “Like how I did when I caught them in the gym earlier that day before the fight in the cafe.”
Josie stared in shock. “You found out about them the same day we found each other again and you just decided to make it sound like you already knew before that day?!”
Hope just shrugged nonchalantly, “Wanted to make you feel the way you do now.”
“And what is it that I feel right now?”
Hope sighed with a firm shake of her head, “If I tell you that.. we won't leave this room.”
Josie felt the quiet gasp she held fall out of her lips with the bold admission from Hope but still with an ounce of courage (and obviously still turned on) she asked something that threw off the whole plan they were both supposed to be on.
“What is it that I feel right now, Hope?” she whispered with an ever so gentle touch to those uttered words.
Hope just stared into the dewy brown eyes and searched in them for a sign of backing down before this got any further but even she knows it already has gone farther than each woman expected and now they have a choice to make.
Give in to their desires.
Or..
BREAK THEM.
But let's be honest, this is MY book so..
It'll break them while they give in to their desires.
Hope stares into the eyes of her former lover and friend with a desire she hasn't felt in so long. Slowly, she leans forward with the intent of teasing Josie with her gentle yet firm voice saying, “You feel.. angry, sad, determined, and scared.” Hope grinned with a quiet chuckle in the back of her throat, moving her lips closely near Josie's ear, “But most of all..”
“What?” Josie whispered shakily, trying to hold onto her dignity but obviously failing miserably as she unconsciously moved closer to Hope, inhaling her smell like she's the only thing she needs.
Hope wraps her left hand around Josie's waist, while her right hand slithers slowly around her neck. “..you feel like having me fuck you on the back of my door with my actual ‘girlfriend’ in the other room with your sister talking, and I have to say that's just dark.”
Having second thoughts as she realizes what she's doing Josie puts a hand to Hope's chest, "Wait..we should stop.. this..” Josie takes a breath and backs away, keeping her distance while also gathering whatever ounce of dignity she had left, desire still lingering in her doe eyes.
Hope scoffed with a snide look in her eyes, “Typical, you get me and my wolf riled up for a pounding.. and nothing.”
“Look, I obviously still-”
“Don't.”
Josie looked down guilty, “Sorry.”
“It's whatever, I have a girlfriend to help me with the situation anyway.”
“How long has that been going on by the way?”
“A year.”
Hope's answer made Josie choke on her own spit. “A y-year? Why the hell were you flirting with me?”
Hope walked up to Josie with a mocking smile, “Like I said earlier for most of your asinine questions, to make you feel how I felt.”
Before Josie could make a rebuttle, a flash of pain hit Hope in her head and she grabbed it, squeezing with intent and begging for it to leave. “Ahhhhhhh!!!”
Josie rushed over to her fear clawing at her chest seeing the love of her life in so much pain because of her.
Josie rushed out of the room yelling at both Lizzie and Maya to help with Hope's searing headache.
As they reenter the room they are met face to face with a version of Hope that even the great Klaus Mikaelson would shudder.
The murderous intent that Hope has in her eyes are solely focused on the doe eyed brunette and Josie knew right then and there that her time was up and no one.. not even the Mikaelson's could save her from the wrath of..
Hope Andrea Mikaelson.
_______________
"I'll be alright soon.. I'll forever be the elephant in the room.."
-Xxxtentacion
____________________
Inside Hope's mind…
“You remember how you said you only wanted scenarios where you kill people that deserved it?” Other Hope says, suddenly popping up out of nowhere.
“Ugh why are you here again?! I thought you left for good after I made the plan with Maya and had an unannounced visit from Josie.” Hope replied, gathering things for the next phase in her demented and cold hearted plan.
“I was there. Just.. observing.”
Hope scoffed at her other half, “Observing what? How to torture me some more?”
“Yes.”
Hope paused at the truthful admission. “You're kidding. What insightful bullshit have you dug out of your non-existent ass to torture me with now?”
“Me.”
“Wha-?” In an instant, Hope was tossed into an empty dark expansive room. Nothing other than pitch blackness, as she turned around she became face to face with herself, only much darker and emotionless. A smirk that not only rivaled her father's but her own as well, it put a slight tick on the back of her neck that she had never felt before.
Ignoring whatever it was, Hope continued.
“Why the hell would you think I want to hurt myself? What gives you this idea that I want to die?!” Yelled in frustration.
Darker Hope started walking in calculated steps around her, “Because you constantly seek out things or people that have any advantage to destroy you so you can finally reach whatever peace you're seeking.”
“I'm not seeking anything other than revenge for the death of my child!!” Hope roared.
“Yes, that may be true but you're also seeking relief, freedom from the things that bind you.”
“The only thing that is binding me is you!!” Hope sassed, her first balling up already losing the last of her patience.
The darker version of Hope stepped forward in a slow manner with the coldest gleam in her eye that a shiver was shot through her spine, then she smiled with a darkness that made her want to leap back in fear, and the darker version opened her mouth and said, “Exactly.”
Like Dark Josie teased not only days ago, with a snap Hope was transported into a warped world with nothing but dead bodies of herself, her mom, her dad, Elijah, Rebekah, Marcel, Kol, Maya, Penelope, Josie, Lizzie and everyone she's ever known but only one unmoving, bloodied, disembodied, and disfigured tiny body caught Hope's eyes, slowly she stepped toward the body, something buried inside her chest reigniting as she gets closer. Hope knows who's body it is but if you know Hope, then..
No.. she doesn't know who's it is.
As she ends with her final steps, Hope feels her breath lessen and reach a light whisper of a clam wind before the storm rained hell upon them and everything rushed back into her, then pain, the gut wrenching loss, crippling depression that ebbed her for only mere seconds during the process of losing her child before her humanity shut off completely.
Hope drops to her knees, cradling the corpse of her unborn child, tears drenched her as an unnatural black and red rain covers her and bodies around her, unknown to her that darker version of herself took control of her body and has started the prolonged plan of vengeance on the one and only…
Josette Olivia Saltzman.
_______________
"I'll always love you… I'm sorry."
-Xxxtentacion
______________________
No Humanity Hope's POV
It's like people who have loved and hated the ones they cared about..
It's truly a thin line.
The thin line between love and hate really throws people off sometimes, considerably the ones that are in that type of situation, first it's all the 'I hate you for breaking me, destroying my love for you, I wish we had never met!', then it's the, 'I love you no matter how much you've hurt me, I'll still be there for you if you need me', blah blah blah blah.
Eughh! I swear shutting off my humanity was the right choice even if it was unwillingly.
Loving someone is more tortuous than hating them. It doesn't take up your heart and soul overwhelmingly, if anything, hating Josie instead of loving her has given me a sort of peace of mind but also a sense of resentment, but hey, it's what I wanted right?
Hating her was just so exciting, it had me on the edge of my seat waiting to see what plot or scheme I had planned next, and yeah, I know killing brunette women that look like her shows a type of.. restraint but it totally was not that, I was just warming up for the final act, I mean who doesn't like a little foreplay before the final climax of sweet release?
I fucking love it, and it gives me the satisfaction of know how much I will enjoy this, but also it gives me a hint of sadness because I don't want the game to end too soon, but as we all know..
Playing the same game over and over just makes you predictable to your opponent and that's how you lose the whole game.
Back to what I was saying before, the thin line between love and hate can be super blurring if you don't see what it can do to your mind and well.. I see what it has done to me just fine even if others insist that I can't see it and that I don't want to but that really is just utter and complete bullshit.
If I couldn't see it, would I be actively going after the person who has wronged me after I gave them chance after chance to back off and let me live in my new and improved mindset just to rip their hearts and spine right out of their backs just to show them how much I truly love them?
No. I would be begging like a weak and pathetic dog looking for a treat or a home.
And I am not weak or pathetic.
I'm the Tribrid. Nature's loophole. My father's daughter. First born Mikaelson witch, more powerful than all species combined.
And no one can or will stop me.
Not even with that stupid little spell of hallucinations they did.
I am bound by nothing and no one.
I control me and everything I decide to do with this pain that she has caused me..
No one else.
____________
I never thought it would come to this, me having to lay myself bare in front of everyone.. especially her. Truthfully, it's cruel and unusual punishment for an unnecessary circumstance.
But as we all know, I didn't choose this.. consciously anyway. But I guess this is the price to pay when you have no humanity and an entire family that continuously begs and pleads with you to reconsider the actions you have done in the past year up until now.
That action that I'm doing right now per say.. well they really aren't too fond of it considering I have my hand wrapped around Josie's neck dangling her off the top of the university's roof in the dead of night.
I mean I did say for them all to keep their distance and everything would be just fine but she just had to stumble to my house with her begging and pleading like she is the innocent person she wants everyone to believe.
But hey, everyone thinks I'm a monster now, just wait until they see what I have up my sleeve for my true final act.
My hand loosened as I watched the desire she felt earlier melt away and replace it with petulant fear.
“Hope..I'm s-sorry for the part I played in this.” Josie begged seeing her life flash before her eyes.
I tightened my grip again, pulling her to my crystal blue eyes that held love in them when they looked at her, now those eyes hold grief and resentment, and pure hatred. “You should've thought about that before you did it.” As those final words leave my lips I completely let go of her neck, accepting the price for her actions, I watched in triumph as the brunette I once cherished like a delicate flower, fall with a grace unlike any other victim I've had in my grasp, descending into the darkness of the afterlife as her body hit the ground.
And let me tell you..
It was truly satisfying.