"Have you been feeling out of control?" Josie softly asks in Hope's ear.

Josie's the first one to talk in more than 10 minutes of silence. After Hope admitted she had no idea what was happening when her eyes turned gold, Josie tightened her hold on the tribrid. They settled in silence, letting themselves just feel each other's presence for a while.

"No… Not really. When I realized we both couldn't feel each other, I started to spend a lot of time as a wolf. It was easier to forget the void in my chest."

Josie stops her gentle strokes on Hope's arm for a second or two. She knows all too well what Hope means. She felt that emptiness too while she was away. As soon as the brunette got on her plane, she regretted leaving.

"I felt it too." Josie whispers. "Why do you think your eyes turned gold for so long?"

Hope suddenly feels defensive. "I told you already. I have no idea."

The little kiss Josie places on her shoulder makes Hope's heart stop in her chest.

"No need to get defensive. I was only asking."

Josie's soft voice immediately makes Hope feel bad about snapping at her. Hope slowly turns around in Josie's arms, and when she's face to face with the brunette, her words get stuck in her throat. She loves Josie's face so much, why did she never noticed that before? Josie moves her arm from around Hope's waist, and slowly moves her hand up to Hope's face. 

"Did I scare you?" Hope finally asks.

"No." Josie says, not even hesitating.

"You're too trusting." Hope replies, but she gives Josie a small smile. "How was Europe?"

"Good. Amazing views, and so many things to do. But I didn't enjoy it as much as I would've a couple of months ago. There was something else on my mind."

Hope knows Josie is talking about her, but she decides to play the younger girl's game.

"Oh yeah, what was it?"

"It's not something, but rather someone."

"Then, who is it?"

Hope can't help but notice how dilated Josie's eyes are. They're so close now. Josie's eyes fall on Hope's lips for a couple of seconds, before slowly going back to Hope's eyes.

"Do I really need to say it out loud?" Josie whispers.

"I'd like to hear it."

"You, Hope Mikaelson, never left my mind as I wandered around Europe with my mother and sister." Josie quickly lets out. She takes a deep breath before speaking again. "Happy?"

Hope nods. "You never left my mind either."

Their eyes stay glued on each other. Hope wishes she'd be brave enough to do something right now. Maybe something like kiss Josie, just to show her how much she missed her. Maybe even admit that being friends with the brunette was never really an option, and she knows it now. But nothing happens, Hope's body stays frozen. Josie on the other hand, does move. The Saltzman girl take her hand away from Hope's face and stands up from the bed. 

Hope helplessly watches as her soulmate pulls away. There is so much emotions in the air, that Hope isn't even sure about which one are hers. 

The tribrid sits up in bed and watches as the brunette stands in the middle of her room, arms crossed. 

"Is something wrong?" Hope asks.

"I-uh, no. I just needed some space, because you were being very romantic again, and well, my heart has its limit."

"Oh…" Hope looks down for a moment, and then back up at Josie. "You're the one that started it though."

Josie gives a mock-glare to Hope, before sitting on the edge of the bed. The tribrid slowly gets closer, until she's sitting next to Josie. Hope smiles and nudges the brunette's shoulder with her own. 

"I'm really happy you got back earlier." Hope softly says.

Josie turns her head to look at Hope. The auburn haired girl is happy to see Josie's beautiful smile back on her face.

"I'm happy to be back too. Lizzie is kinda pissed though. She was enjoying our trip."

Hope rolls her eyes. "Who cares…"

Josie frowns. "I do. She's my twin Hope."

"I know that. But Josie… Lizzie is so selfish. She barely pays attention to you."

Josie suddenly avoids Hope's eyes. "Please stop."

"I'm sorry." Hope says with a sigh. 

"Can we just… focus on us?" Josie asks, and Hope can actually hear the nervousness in her voice.

"Sure."

The tribrid reaches out and takes Josie's hand in her own, getting a beautiful smile as a reward.

"I wasn't scared when your eyes turned gold, but I think we should talk about it with my parents. Just in case, you know?"

Hope looks down again. "I guess yeah."

"Okay, let's go."

"Now?" Hope says quickly. "I thought we were having alone time today."

"This is important Hope. We can get alone time later." Josie says, her smile still there.

Hope groans. "Fine."

*

"Gold? Your wolf took over?" Alaric asks with a worried frown.

"No!" Hope quickly protests, before realizing that she actually lost it for a second or two. "Maybe, I don't know."

Hope is tense under the eyes of Josie's parents. She feels like they're judging her. Like they're trying to figure out if she's good enough fo their daughter. The tribrid feels defensive, like she has to prove herself. 

Hope looks away from the two adults in the room, and quickly looks for her soulmate. Josie is still standing by her side, and when their eyes meet, the brunette makes a move to get a little closer. Some tension leaves Hope's body when Josie's hand slips into her own.

"It was as if she wasn't there." Josie tries to explain. "Her eyes didn't leave my soul mark until I forced her to look at me."

"Oh, and why was she looking at your soul mark? You know the one that is situated on your hip!" Caroline says full mother mode on.

Josie and Hope look at each other, a matching blush on their cheeks. 

"We just… We needed to make sure they were both still there." Josie answers.

"So, no funny business?" Caroline says with a raised eyebrow.

"Mom! I already told you, it's not like that between us."

"Right." Caroline eyes them suspiciously.

"Can we focus on the fact that my wolf might take over sometimes when I'm with Josie?" Hope says. "I'm scared, okay? I don't wanna hurt her."

Every eyes fall on Hope again. It was a rare thing to hear the Mikaelson tribrid admit she was scared of something.

"I'll call your aunt Freya, maybe her and Keelin could help." Alaric says, already reaching for the phone. "You can both sit down."

Hope is the first to sit down in a chair in front of the man's desk, quickly followed by Josie. The Saltzman girl is still holding Hope's hand, and for that the tribrid is grateful. 

"Hello Freya, it's Alaric Saltzman." The man says. "I'm calling you because there is an issue with Hope, and we'd need your help." A pause. "Oh, okay." 

Then he hangs up.

"What? That's all?" Hope says, a little panicked. "Was she busy or something?"

"No, she's gonna do astral projection. She should be her-"

Just as he says that, Freya appears in the center of the room. Seeing her aunt there makes Hope suddenly remember just how much she misses her family.

"Aunt Freya…"

"Oh, Hope! I didn't know you'd be here. It's so good to see you honey."

"It's good to see you too."

Freya's eyes fall on Josie and Hope's intertwined fingers.

"What is that?" She asks with a teasing smile. Alaric clears his throat before anyone can answer. "Oh right, the issue."

"Right." Alaric sighs. "Hope, did you inform your family about your… situation?"

The Mikaelson girl sighs and looks down. "No, I did my best to hide it from them actually."

Immediately, Hope feels a very familiar pain in her chest. She quickly looks up and meets Josie's eyes. Disappointment is written all over Josie's face.

"Josie-"

"Later." The brunette says.

Hope has no time to protests.

"Hope, do you want to tell your aunt, or should I?" Alaric asks again.

Hope takes a deep breath. "Josie's my soulmate."

Freya's eyes grow wide. "Show me the soul marks."

"You knew it was possible?"

Freya rolls her eyes. "I've been alive for a long time Hope. Soulmates are rare, but they happen every now and then."

Hope gives a little look to Josie before standing up. She's relieved when Josie silently follows her. Hope doesn't hesitate to just push her shirt to the side to show her tattooed skin to Freya. Josie, on the other hand, seems a little nervous, but she still does. It takes everything within Hope to not look at Josie's mark. 

"They look legit." Freya says.

"Believe me, they are." Hope says.

"Okay, what's the issue?"

This time Hope doesn't answer. She looks everywhere but at her aunt, and maybe she avoids looking at Josie too.

"It seems like Hope's wolf is acting up." Alaric speaks up.

"How so?"

"Earlier today, we looked at each other's marks and Hope's eyes turned gold. It looked like she wasn't there anymore. She only stopped staring, when I forced her to look away. That's when her eyes got blue again too." Josie explains

Freya is frowning now. "So her wolf took over for a couple of seconds while she was fully human?"

"Yeah."

"That's alarming." Freya admits. "Let me look it up, and in the mean time, limit your time together."

"What?" Hope says panic filling her once again "Josie just got back!"

"Hope, sweetie, you want her to be safe, right?"

"Of course." Hope says in a sigh.

"Then take some time apart."

Hope looks at her soulmate, only to see sadness written all over her face.

"I'll stay away, but please make it quick." Hope says.

"I will. Bye everyone."

Just like that Freya disappears. It doesn't even take a second for Hope to be tackled in a hug. She almost loses her balance, but the tribrid manages to stay on her feet. She knows Josie is crying, and Hope can't help but wanting to cry a little too. 

"Josie, please…" Hope pleads.

"I know you won't hurt me." Josie says. "Please Hope, please…"

"We have to. This way we're gonna be sure no one will get hurt." 

"You're just trying to push me away again!" Josie says suddenly breaking the hug.

Hope is taken aback by Josie's words. "What? No, I'm not! You heard her, we have to take our distances just in case."

All the emotions mixed together are making Hope so confused. She's in pain, she's sad, she's mad… Before Hope has the chance to do anything, Josie storms out of the room. 

"What the hell just happened?" Hope asks.

"Language." Alaric says.

"I think you just broke her heart." Caroline says.

Hope's eyes go to the blonde woman. "I'm only trying to protect her."

"I know." Caroline sighs. "I think Josie's emotions got the best of her. I guess she could also feel yours, which only confused her more. Give her some time, she'll come around."

Hope nods, and without another word, she leaves the office. 

Josie's back and they had a little bit of time together, only to be ripped apart again. This time though, Hope can feel her soulmate. 

Not feeling Josie at all had been the worst thing to happen to the tribrid since her parents death. 

But now, Hope can feel her and she knows Josie is in pain, and there's nothing she can do. The tribrid can't decide what's worst.

Not feeling anything at all, or knowing Josie's in pain and being unable to help?

*

It's the middle of the night when Hope is startled awake by a knock on her door. The tribrid quickly gets up and walks to the door. Her eyes widen, and her heart skips a beat when she sees Josie on the other side. As she sees Josie's crying face, Hope's sleepy state leaves and the pain catches up to her. 

"Josie, what's happening?"

"I-I had a n-nightmare." Josie gives as an explanation. "Can I please come in?"

Deep down Hope knows she should say no, but she doesn't have the strenght to do that. So instead, Hope reaches out for Josie's forearm and gently pulls her inside. 

"Get in bed, I'll be back with you in a second." 

Josie does as she's told and Hope walks to the bathroom. She wets a cloth with warm water and grabs a box of tissue before going back inside her room. She hands the box to Josie, and the brunette takes it with a grateful smile. When Josie's done, Hope gently reaches out and wipes the Saltzman girl's cheeks with the wet cloth. 

Josie watches her silently, mouth slightly open and her eyes wide. When Hope notices the look in Josie's eyes, it's too late.

The brunette girl leans forward and presses her lips to Hope's. Without even thinking about it, the auburn haired girl closes her eyes and sighs in the kiss. The kiss is firm, Josie's full lips pressed against Hope's. Their lips don't move though, so the kiss stays chaste. Hope isn't thinking straight, Josie's lips are the only thing she can even manage to think about. After a couple of seconds, what she's doing catches up to Josie.

The young witch pulls away, her eyes wide. "I'm so sorry." 

Hope tries to reach for Josie, but the brunette pulls away. Soon enough, Josie stands up and heads for the door. Hope is quicker than her though, and blocks the door.

"Don't run." Hope pleads.

Hope moves closer to Josie, but the brunette flinches when the tribrid tries to touch her.

"Josie, please. What's wrong?"

"I dreamt that I didn't exist." Josie rushes out.

"What do you mean?"

"I was gone Hope!" Josie explodes. "I was just… gone. And you…"

"What? Me, what?"

"You were with Lizzie. Her name replacing mine on your skin."

Hope doesn't even hesitate to push her pyjama shirt away from her collarbone, exposing the tattooed skin. Sure enough, Josie's name was still written there. The sight caused Josie's eyes to fill with fresh new tears.

"I'm so sorry about the kiss Hope."

Hope's face softens, even though she doesn't smile. Hope slowly moves closer to her soulmate, making sure Josie's okay with it. The brunette doesn't flinch, or pull away this time, so Hope pulls her in a hug.

"You are my only soulmate Josie. I don't know what this dream was about, but it wasn't true."

They stay like that for a while, hugging in the middle of Hope's bedroom. Hope knows they shouldn't even be together right now, but there was absolutely no way she'd let anyone take away Josie in this moment. They belonged together, and nobody would get between them. Hope is gonna make sure of that.