Josie still wasn't talking to Lizzie, which worked out fine, because Lizzie didn't particularly want to talk to Josie.

In fact, Josie wasn't talking much to anyone, because they were all 'taking Lizzie's side', including their father.

Alaric requested some counselling sessions, but Miss Tig couldn't bring Josie round on that front either, although Lizzie swore blind that Emma hated her, so she was convinced she was riling Josie up intentionally.

And even Penelope was in Josie's bad books, which meant that Hope had an angry girlfriend, who was pretending she wasn't miserable, and a miserable best friend, who was pretending she wasn't angry.

So when Caroline suggested Lizzie accompany them to Mystic Falls for Liz's birthday in February, Hope was quietly relieved

Despite being in her late sixties, Liz was still the town sheriff for another few months, but by now all she was doing was training her replacement.

This still took up a lot of her time though and she was running late, so Caroline treated the girls to dinner at the Mystic Grill before going to see her mother.

"Caroline!"

Caroline smiled, hugging Jeremy as he rounded the bar. "Hi Jer."

"Miss me already?" Jeremy asked with a grin.

"Obviously," Caroline said, raising a hand to greet Jeanette, who was taking orders across the room. "Mom's birthday."

Jeremy froze. "Jeanette?!" He hissed.

"I've already got her a card and a gift," she answered under her breath.

Jeremy relaxed. "Lifesaver, I swear to God."

"Don't you forget it, Gilbert."

Jeremy shook his head, giving Lizzie a hug. "And how is little sister number one?"

Lizzie shrugged. "Getting there."

"Hi Uncle Jer," Hope said, hugging him. "It's really quiet without you and Uncle Kol driving Aunt Davina round the bend."

"Not just Davina," Jeanette said, passing the orders through the window to the kitchen.

"By the way, Care," Jeremy said, "how come you look …?"

Caroline fingered her necklace. "Gift from Davina."

The necklace was charmed, so hopefully no one would be asking Caroline why she looked no older than her teenage daughter.

"That would have solved our problem," Jeanette said to Jeremy.

"Temporarily," Jeremy said, sliding an arm around her waist. "I don't regret a second. Even if it does mean dealing with New Orleans food for six months every year."

"Okay, we're just going to grab a table," Caroline said hastily, "and let you two have this debate for the fiftieth time."

It wasn't long after they'd sat down, before another voice intruded.

"Oh my Lord - Caroline Forbes, is that you?!"

Caroline pulled a face only visible to Hope and Lizzie, before standing with a bright (fake) smile. "Tina! It's Caroline Mikaelson, now actually."

"Oh congratulations!" Tina trilled. "I did hear on the grapevine - I'm guessing one of these young ladies is your daughter?"

"This is Hope," Caroline said. "And her girlfriend, Lizzie. This is Tina Fell, an old schoolfriend."

"Oh, it's Tina Martin now," Tina said.

"Congratulations," Caroline said, with more sincerity than Tina had managed. "That would be … Richard Martin?"

"That's right," Tina said, beaming. "Three kids, two boys and a girl."

"Oh, lovely," Caroline said.

"So are you in town for Miss Mystic Falls?" Tina asked.

"No, it's Mom's birthday tomorrow," Caroline said. "Also, it's not like Hope qualifies; I'm fairly sure Miss Mystic Falls has to, you know, live in Mystic Falls."

"Such a shame," Tina said. "My daughter's competing this year; it would be like history repeating itself."

"Oh, did you two compete at the same time?" Lizzie asked innocently. "Who won?"

Tina's smile became a little fixed. "Caroline did."

"It was a very close call," Caroline said kindly.

"Anyway, it was lovely to see you, Caroline," Tina said. "We must do lunch."

"Absolutely," Caroline agreed. As soon as Tina was out of earshot, her smile dropped. "We are never doing lunch."

Hope giggled. "Were you two friends?"

"We were both on the cheer squad," Caroline said. "In her world, that's probably the same. We are probably going to get that a lot while we're here, girls, just to warn you. The Forbes were a founding family."

"Does that matter?" Lizzie asked.

"It does here," Caroline said with a sigh. "Welcome to small town politics."

Sure enough, within ten minutes, Mrs Beech appeared at Caroline's side, exclaiming over how much Hope had grown and how she hadn't seen Caroline in years.

Hope just smiled, gripping Lizzie's hand under the table, and Caroline gave her other arm a comforting squeeze.

"It's really lovely to see you, Mrs Beech - how's Kelly doing?"

"Kelly's doing great," Mrs Beech said, beaming. "She's at a law firm down in California; she and Daniel just got engaged."

"Oh, that's wonderful," Caroline said. "Tell her congratulations, won't you?"

"Of course," Mrs Beech said. "Now, Hope, Tina just came and spoke to me, and I've checked the rule-book. There isn't actually anything that says that Miss Mystic Falls has to be a resident of the town. Tina has offered to sponsor you, so given your pedigree, you're more than welcome to compete. Technically, the application process has closed, but you can always bring the form with you."

"Thank you," Hope said blankly. "Um, I hadn't thought about it, but … I'll consider it."

"The pageant is in two days," Mrs Beech said cheerfully. "Hopefully I'll see you there."

"Maybe," Hope said faintly, as the older woman swept away. "Mom, why would Mrs Martin sponsor me if her daughter's competing."

"You may have noticed that Tina wasn't too happy about the fact I won," Caroline said. "She was absolutely convinced that she had. She thought Elena was her only real competition, and Elena only entered because her mother initially put her forward before she died, so her heart wasn't in it. She spent weeks beforehand telling everyone that she would win - she even had it on her college applications that she was Miss Mystic Falls. And then I won and completely humiliated her. I don't think she ever forgave me."

"So why would she sponsor me?" Hope repeated.

"Because she wants her daughter to beat you," Lizzie answered. "She's clearly still hanging on to that. What did she mean by pedigree?"

"Well, I was Miss Mystic Falls," Caroline said. "So was my maternal grandmother and two of my aunts, and of course Hope is half-Forbes. The thing is, Lizzie, everyone has to fill in an application form, but it's not really an application - it's all a con really. Founding families have guaranteed places and if there aren't enough, then the judges use the applications to choose the rest."

Hope pulled a face. "Then what would be the point in my filling in an application, if I've already got a place?"

"Because that's part of what they then use to choose the winner," Caroline explained. "It's not all based on a waltz. In any case, Hope, I know this is not really your thing, I certainly won't be disappointed if you don't want to compete."

Hope shrugged. "I'm not fussed one way or another. But I feel like a gauntlet's been thrown down. I'll need a partner."

"Hello?" Lizzie asked. "What am I? Chopped liver?"

"I don't think it's going to be that simple," Hope said.

"It's not," Caroline said. "The escort has to be male. It's tradition and it sucks, but there you go. Any ideas?"

"Just one," Hope said.

"Wouldn't Henrik be a better option?" Landon asked as he walked through the door.

Caroline dropped her keys on the table next to the door. "I explained on the drive back from the airport."

"Thanks for coming," Hope said with a sheepish smile.

"A beauty pageant?" Landon asked. "Who even are you right now?"

"A challenge has been set," Lizzie said. "Hope couldn't resist."

Landon sighed. "Seriously, Henrik can already dance."

"Henrik is a head shorter than me," Hope said. "It will look awful."

"It's your grandma's birthday," Landon said. "You don't need to be spending it teaching me to dance."

"She's not," Caroline said. "I am, and Mom's coming here. The dance is a waltz - a forbidden touch waltz, to be exact."

"Why is it called that?" Landon asked.

"Because the first twenty-four counts you're not allowed to touch your partner," Caroline explained. "After that, it's fairly standard - this dance is thankfully forgiving enough that we can get away with her leading as long as you can make it look like you are. The judges will be looking at her, not you, so it won't matter if your technique isn't spot on, as long as hers is."

Landon nodded. "But hers is going to be better if I know what I'm doing and she doesn't have to prop me up, right?"

"Right," Hope agreed.

"And how long do I have?" Landon asked.

"Pageant's at 10am tomorrow," Caroline answered.

Landon sighed. "Great."

The following morning, at Lockwood Manor, Hope waited with the other girls at the top of the staircase.

"So you're my mom's sponsor?"

Dana Martin was an almost exact copy of her mother, except she clearly hadn't developed her mother's ability to smile in someone's face and stab them in the back at the same time.

"Hope Mikaelson," Hope said with a smile. "Sorry about that - apparently our moms competed against each other."

"Mom wants me to beat you," Dana said.

"I know," Hope said, focusing back on the staircase. "Mom just wants me to take part - it's kind of a family tradition."

Dana frowned. "The Mikaelsons aren't a founding family."

"The Forbes are," Hope said.

Dana's eyes widened. "You're Caroline Forbes's daughter? No wonder Mom wants me to beat you."

"Miss Dana Martin," the MC announced, "escorted by Mr Ralph Wiston."

"Good luck," Hope said sincerely.

"Yeah, you too," Dana said, making her way down the staircase with a perfect smile.

Hope counted in her head. When she got to ten, the next announcement came.

"Miss Hope Mikaelson, escorted by Mr Landon Kirby."

Outside in the courtyard, Caroline fidgeted beside her mother. "Here we go."

Landon led Hope out of the house down to the temporary dance floor.

"Oh look at her," Liz murmured, taking Caroline's hand. "Reminds me of you."

Caroline smiled. "Well, that is my dress."

"It is?" Lizzie asked quietly. "I was wondering how you found it so quickly."

Caroline nodded. "Hope's dad gave it to me."

"It's beautiful," Lizzie said. "How long had you been dating?"

Caroline chuckled under her breath, her fingers tapping in time to the music, counting the steps.

Landon's frame wasn't perfect, but it looked like he was leading at the very least, even if he wasn't.

"We weren't dating. He invited me to a party and he knew I wouldn't go and that my excuse would be not having anything to wear. So he sent me a dress along with the invitation."

"Aww," Lizzie said with a grin. "That's so sweet."

"I didn't think so at the time," Caroline admitted. "Looking back, it was rather sweet."

"Smile," Hope murmured under her breath.

"I can't smile and count at the same time," Landon whispered.

Hope just about refrained from rolling her eyes. "You're doing fine. You're a musician; you know rhythm."

"Ladies and gentlemen, can I have your attention please," Mayor Lockwood called.

The dancers slowly twirled to a stop, facing the judging panel.

"Given my personal investment in at least one of today's applicants," Mayor Lockwood continued, "I have abstained from voting this year to ensure that the results are completely unbiased. Mrs Beech, the envelope please. Without further ado, it is my honour to announce this year's Miss Mystic Falls - Miss Hope Mikaelson."

To everyone's amusement, Tina Martin tried to argue the results. After all, how could Miss Mystic Falls not live in Mystic Falls?

Of course, her argument fell on deaf ears - she was the one who had sponsored Hope, after all, and she was the one who had convinced the judging panel to check the rules on that one anyway.

Hope being Hope, of course, had nominated Dana Martin to carry out any hometown duties in her stead, something Carol said just confirmed that the judges made the right decision.

After the inevitable party, Hope made her way up to her room to get out of her dress. She had just realised that she needed someone else to undo the zipper when there was a soft knock on the door.

Hope smiled. "Come in, Lizzie."

"How'd you know it was me?" Lizzie asked, letting herself in.

"My family don't know," Hope answered. "Can you … Is that my soccer jersey?"

Lizzie smiled. "So it was really weird watching you dance with someone else."

"I'm sure it was," Hope said. "I've been looking for that jersey."

"I may have borrowed it before Christmas," Lizzie admitted. "It's far comfier than any of my pyjamas. Do you want it back?"

Hope hesitated. "Nah, I think it looks better on you. It's a bit short though."

"Well, you're short," Lizzie said. "Do you need a hand with your dress?"

Hope nodded, turning around. She felt Lizzie approach her, gently lifting her hair from the back of her neck.

"Zipper or button?" Lizzie murmured, her breath ghosting across Hope's skin.

"Zipper, but there's a clasp at the top," Hope said, trying to keep her voice even.

"Got it."

The zipper slowly slid down her back, followed by soft kisses that sent goosebumps across her back.

"You're doing this on purpose," she murmured.

"Doing what?" Lizzie asked, grinning against her skin. "You wanted help."

"You know wolves are possessive," Hope said, "and you've got my name plastered across your chest. You're doing this on purpose."

"Yeah," Lizzie admitted. "What are you gonna do about it?"

Hope stepped away from her and pushed the dress off her shoulders so it pooled at her feet, before murmuring a spell that locked and silenced her door.

"Oh, we're playing it that way, are we?" Lizzie asked with a smirk.

Hope didn't answer, drawing her into a kiss, her hands sliding under her jersey to tug her closer. "If Mom catches us …"

"She won't," Lizzie said between kisses. "She popped her head in earlier basically telling me to give her half an hour to go to bed before sneaking over here. Something about not being a hypocrite."

Hope groaned, tearing herself away from her girlfriend. "Really, Lizzie? I didn't need that mental image."

"Sorry baby," Lizzie said with a mischievous smile. "Would it help if I took the jersey off?"

"Maybe," Hope said, playing with the hem. "Let's try it and see."