WARNING: Fic includes characters who die, a lot, spoilers and theories up Sx13. Don't forget tissues.

Hello, my lovely readers. I meant to write and post this last Thursday, but I got a bit behind. And this a little bit dark for Valentine's, for about 90% of the fic. On with the show…

Even In Death:

Twigs snapped under foot as Hope Mikaelson ran through the woods. She felt sweat covering her skin. Her urge to turn pressed down on her like a staggering weight. "Hope, wait!" Lizzie's voice came to her from afar. No. She couldn't wait. She couldn't stop. She had to get out of here. Nowhere to go. Nothing. Just nothing. Nothing but pain. And the sickening realization that she'd been too late. Landon wouldn't want you to feel like this. But Landon wouldn't want anything anymore. Landon would never want anything again. Landon was dead and as the thought entered Hope's mind, her knees caved from under her and she let out a scream so loud that the whole night seemed to hear her.

Before:

"We still don't know what The Necromancer wants," Alaric said. He stood in his office. An axe lay on top of his desk next to final exams and might make Hope's lips twist upward, if she didn't feel so damned pissed right now.

"But it's not too late," Lizzie added.

"Not as yet," Sebastian added. He leaned against a wall and Hope glanced at him.

Sebastian stared back until she turned to look at Alaric. "We know he's the one behind all of the crazy things that happened lately. He's behind the prophecy." Her words stopped when the door to the office swung open and MG, Kaleb and Jed came in. Jumping to her feet, Hope looked to MG. "Did you find him?"

"Not yet. But we're still looking," MG said. He swallowed as Hope inhaled sharply and shook her head. "We're going to find him, Hope."

Hope shook her head. "I'm going out there."

"Hope, you can't. He's got Jo." Lizzie snapped. Sebastian moved in front of the door. Hope let out a scoff, folding her arms over her chest. She had a million sarcastic comments for the Teen Dracula and his thinking he could stop her from leaving but Lizzie's last words stopped her. "He'll kill her, Hope."

Letting out a hiss, Hope shook her head. "We can't just stand around and do nothing."

"Hope's right." Alaric said. He looked at the others. "We're going to find that son of a bitch and bring my daughter home."

The words made Hope smile. It was not a pleasant smile. It was a smile very much like the one her father used to use before he tore someone's head off. If The Necromancer wanted to take Landon, Hope would find them both and The Necromancer would go somewhere but it wouldn't involve peace.

~0~

"Okay. Raf. I need you to stay out of this," Hope told the werewolf who shook his head. "Raf, promise me," Hope said. "We still don't know what the Brotherhood of the Traveling Red Hoods did to you, yet, so you need to stay out of the way." She watched the werewolf pace his room with Landon. The scent of her boyfriend was overpowering and she felt annoyed with every second she lost not being to be able to hunt him down.

"Land, can take of himself, Hope," Rafael argued. "You've seen what he can do now. "Plus, he's smart. He'll use his powers of his brain. And he'll come home to us."

Shaking her head, Hope let out a short reply, "I've underestimated The Necromancer before and I almost died."

Rafael stopped talking. But Hope could see he did not agree with her. "Fine." He shook his head. "I'll stay here."

"Good." Hope clenched her jaw and stomped out of the room. She had enough people whose lives were at risk. She did not want to worry about the possibility of one person dying on her watch.

~0~

"I really think you're making a mistake here," Landon said, his hands held upwards as he watched The Necromancer and the humans The Necromancer had killed and then brought back to life as his Army of the Undead. "I'm not a threat to you. And whatever it is you're doing here." He squinted his eyes at the mini-Malivore pit. "Just let me go and I won't have to use my awesome Phoenix powers on you."

"Oh, dear boy, you're powers are useless." The Necromancer chuckled and showed Landon a set of teeth which a dental insurance company would not cover.

Landon frowned. "You don't understand my power. You see, the more angry you make me, the more fire I build up and then: Whoosh! Flames and wings. It's a whole production!" Landon flung his arms in the air and felt worried when nothing happened. Apparently he needed to be more upset. Damn.

The Necromancer chuckled and looked into the pit. "Looks like your batteries are not charged up just yet. Good thing mine is." He looked outward and Landon saw Josie Saltzman come in the doorway of the mausoleum.

"Jo! Josie!" Landon cried. "Thank God you're here!"

Jo turned to look at Landon and his eyes widened when he saw the empty blackness staring back at him. She cocked her head to the side. "What do you need him for?" she inquired, no expression in her voice. Nothing of the kind, gentle girl Landon knew so well. It was like… Jo wasn't in this creature who wore her face.

"Oh, don't fret, my pet. He's just a tad bit of a distraction from the real fun we're going to have tonight." The Necromancer rubbed his hands together. "Right then. Off you go, boy. Go! Tell your friends that pit is about to burst with all kinds of goodies!" Clapping his hands together, The Necromancer let out a laugh which might have made Landon chuckle at the villain, if not for a creeping sense of doom crawling up the back of Landon's neck. "I'm giving you a head start," The Necromancer added, his eyes gleaming.

Landon finally realized what the sense of doom was when one of the Red-Hooded minions to his right ran a knife up the side of Landon's neck. It was a shallow cut but it made Landon's hand slap over the cut.

"RUN, FOOL!" The Necromancer thundered.

Landon took off in a run. He nearly tripped over his own feet. He willed his powers to work as he stumbled through the graveyard. The full moon hung high in the sky. He knew werewolves and vampires alike would be able to smell his blood. Would The Necromancer have sent minions to let loose the werewolves at the Salvatore School? Landon felt certain he would.

"Landon, over here!" Head whipping to his left, Landon felt a grave sense of relief when he caught sight of Rafael. "Come on!"

Rafael waved a hand and Landon ran toward his brother. "Come on!" Rafael continued to urge Landon.

Arriving in front of Raf, Landon let out a quiet laugh. "Hey! Bet you thought your days of saving my ass were over?"

"Yeah. Kind of thought you'd have Phoenix-ed your way out of here by now," Rafael said with a grin as his eyes darted back and forth.

"Nah. I was just waiting for the very last second to see if you or Hope would show up. Then I show off." Landon shook his head. He felt so much better now that he wasn't alone. For one thing, he'd begun to wonder how many lives he could go through before that was the last one. And he felt like he had so much to live for.

"I'm sorry," Raf's words made Landon look up. His brows came together and his mouth opened to form a reply to Raf's words when Landon felt something sharp go through his heart. "I'm so, so sorry." Raf began to cry as Landon looked down at The Golden Arrow. "Lan," Raf choked out as he caught Landon when Landon sunk to the ground. "Lan?"

~0~

"I smell blood!" MG called out. He was running to the right and Sebastian nodded.

Sebastian pointed ahead of them. "It's the bird's."

Hope and Lizzie exchanged a look before Hope took off in a sprint. "Hope, it could be a trap!" Alaric shouted after Hope. She could hear him running, too. She was not going to stop. Not for anything.

"Oh, my God!" Hope cried out as she caught sight of Raf. He held Landon in his arms. He shook his head as he saw her through eyes still full of tears. "Landon!" Hope screamed, racing over to Landon's side. "No! No!" She placed her hand on the arrow and jerked it out. She heard a sickening pop.

Somewhere behind her, Hope heard the others arrive. "Oh!" Lizzie's cry of shock.

"Bloody hell," Sebastian muttered.

Alaric's groan.

MG muttering to himself and Kaleb's cursing. Jed said something that Hope did not care about.

"What happened?" Hope demanded, looking at Raf. She needed to know.

"I didn't want to do it, Hope. I… I couldn't stop it…" Raf shook his head.

"What did you do?" Hope shouted, suddenly taking hold of Raf's shirt collar and shaking him. "What did you do to Landon?" She began to sob, shaking her friend as if he weighed nothing. "Why?"

"Because…" Raf shook his head.

"Because he's like Cassie, Hope," Alaric said, moving to join them. "Because he's…"

"Dead." Kaleb's blunt addition made Hope's head snap in the vampire's direction. "And now he's The Necromancer's puppet."

Turning in horror, Hope stared at Rafael. He didn't look dead. But Cassis did not look dead either. How could they have missed so many clues? And now… Her eyes went down to Landon's body.

"No! No, this is not the same!" Hope held up a hand. "This," she pointed at Landon. "This is personal. He wants me to suffer. That's what he does. The Necromancer plays games. He's like a cat with a mouse."

"What did you do to him to make him this angry?" Lizzie asked.

Hope's hand were in her hair and she could not think. Her head was a mess. All she could do was keep looking back down at Landon and re-live every time she's lost him. He should have been able to save himself. Why didn't he just fly away? No. Something else was at work here. And Hope intended on finding it and kicking its ass. It was all she had left now.

"It wants revenge." Sebastian said looking at Hope who stilled and nodded. "But perhaps it is not you who it wants to make suffer. Perhaps it is something else. Say this Malivore which caused you all so much grief. Perhaps Landon is bait. The Necromancer is capable of bringing the boy back to life, is he not?"

Hope's mouth opened and she nodded. "Yes! Yes, thank you! I have an idea! Get Landon back to the school. And take Raf somewhere. Make sure he can't leave."

"On it," Lizzie said with a quick nod. "Let's go."

"Hope, it's not safe. And Josie is still out there," Alaric said, watching Hope.

"I know," Hope nodded. "No else is dying tonight." She watched Alaric nod. Well, that wasn't true. Hope intended on making a deal with The Necromancer for Landon's life and she had a feeling she knew what he would want in return.

~0~

"Hope Mikaelson," The Necromancer seemed pleased to see Hope as she strode into the mausoleum. "I see you finally found me. Found my present for you, too, I take it. Given the grief coming off ya." He sniffed the air and grinned.

Hope's eyes swept the mausoleum. "You can say that." She spotted a familiar back. "Josie?" she cried, suddenly unsure.

Josie turned to reveal Darth Josie. "Hello, again, Hope. I'm sorry. I am busy."

"And you don't have time to let your family know where you are? And I see you've decided to hang out with the guy who was voted most likely to kill all your loved ones." Hope watched Jo. No response. "He killed Landon."

Jo still did not turn around and The Necromancer shrugged. "Sorry, my new pal is a bit busy at the moment. Gives us time to chat."

Hope turned her attention back to The Necromancer. "You know why I'm here?"

"You want your boyfriend back?" The Necromancer grinned.

"Yup," Hope folded her arms over her chest. "And you want revenge on Malivore for all of your time in the pit."

Eyes widening, The Necromancer let out a laugh. "Smart girl."

"You want a deal?" Hope retorted. "You want an end to Malivore. I want Landon back." Her eyes ticked to Josie. "And you can throw in releasing Josie from whatever hold you have on her."

The Necromancer looked to Josie who glanced in his direction before her eyes went back to the pit that looked suspiciously like a smaller version of the Malivore pit. "Yes. I believe we have a deal." He grinned back at Hope. "Shall we?" He held up a hand, directing Hope's attention toward the only way in or out of the mausoleum. Her eyes went over the Red-Hoods who stood sentinel around the mausoleum.

Hope shook her head. "I don't want to leave Jo alone with your minions."

"My minions?" The Necromancer placed his hand over his heart. "You think they'd hurt Jo. But she's my new ally. And it's been a pleasure working with her."

Josie turned to face them. "I am fine, Hope. You should go. If you want to save Landon, and the others."

"What does she mean by that?" Hope demanded, glaring at The Necromancer.

The Necromancer shrugged. "Not sure what she means a hundred percent of the time. She's a sly minx. That one." He grinned at Josie who did not smile back. Returning his attention to Hope, he continued to grin. "Right then. I suppose it's time to see if you truly are the seed of Klaus Mikaelson's loins. Ready to get your hands dirty, sweetheart?"

Hope narrowed her eyes and smirked back at him. "After you."

~0~

Entering the school, Hope waited for someone to try to stop her as she and The Necromancer made their way to the room she knew they brought Landon to without question. So many happy moments spent joking with each other during Alaric's lectures at the beginning of the day and so many parties that did not always go to plan. She made her way down the steps with The Necromancer by her side, Hope saw Landon lying on the floor.

MG and Kaleb stood guard over their friend. Lizzie stood beside Landon's head. She looked up when Hope stopped at the bottom of the steps. She glanced at Alaric who held a crossbow. Dorian was there, too, standing beside Alaric. Sebastian was on the other side, closest to Lizzie, and intent on protecting the siphoner. Hope' twisted in the corner.

Turning on her heel, to face The Necromancer, Hope stared him in the eye. "Do you worst," she told him.

The Necromancer chuckled, looking around him at the circle of Hope's friends. "Right to the action then." He moved to stand over Landon and his hands went to Landon's face. Hope felt her heart pounding in her chest. The Necromancer grinned at her. "Give me your hand."

"No! Why?" Alaric cried, out moving toward them.

Lifting a hand, Hope waved it at Alaric who stumbled backward. "Sorry, Alaric, you can't help with this part."

Alaric's eyes went wide. "Hope?"

"Hope, what are you doing?" Lizzie called out, her eyes on Hope who offered her a wan smile.

"What I have to," Hope took The Necromancer's hand.

"A life. For a life," The Necromancer announced.

~0~

Sitting bolt upright, Landon gasped. He felt like he'd just died and come back to life. He was used to that. But something about this time felt different. He had felt dead. Like dead-dead. The first thing he noticed was Lizzie Saltzman fall to her knees. She'd begun to sob. Sebastian's arms went around the girl. Alaric Saltzman raised a crossbow and aimed at something behind Landon.

Then Landon's gaze shifted to whatever Lizzie was looking at. His eyes widened and he felt his heart clench. "Hope? Hope? What the hell? What the hell is wrong with her?" He shouted. He reached out, gathering his growing cold girlfriend in his arms. "Hey! Somebody talk to me here!" His words came out shaky as he pressed his mouth to Hope's cheek. "Hope? Talk to me."

"Calm the theatrics, everyone!" The Necromancer's voice rang out from behind Landon. "She's not dead! She's the bloody tri-brid for God's sake! She's just going to come back…improved." He let out a chuckle.

Feeling rage filling him, Landon laid Hope back down as he got to his feet. "You did this to her! Didn't you!" he demanded. He could feel the fire beginning to build. Sparks began to come off of him as he moved closer to The Necromancer.

"I brought you back, boy. I can put you down again," The Necromancer warned Landon, wagging a finger at Landon who could care less in that moment. Then the school wobbled and everyone let out cries of shock, except for The Necromancer. "Ah, yes, and so it's begun."

"What's begun?" Alaric demanded.

"The final act," The Necromancer announced, throwing his arms wide. "While you were all fussing about these two star-crossed lovers," he waved a dismissive hand in Hope's and Landon's directions, "my dark witch has been casting a spell to allow every single tortured soul out of Malivore. All. At. Once. And that's just the beginning. You see, with their help and the little tri-bird, we're going to end Malivore for good. Now, how's that for an ending? Won't have to worry about your daddy then will ya, boy?"

Landon felt his throat close. "In order to do that, Hope has to go into Malivore."

"There's always a catch. Isn't there? Parting is such sweet sorrow and all that?" The Necromancer shrugged. "Now, we just have to wait for our heroine to awake to end this once and for all."

"That's not going to happen," Landon snarled.

"Oh, and how do you intend on stopping it?" The Necromancer demanded.

Landon turned to Alaric. "Now!" he shouted.

Alaric shot his crossbow and The Necromancer rolled his eyes before falling over. "That was annoying," he muttered.

Landon turned. "Lizzie, you need to go to Jo. You're the only who she'll listen to." Lizzie took for the stairs. Moving to scoop up Hope, he looked at her unmoving body. "Wish me luck."

"Where are you going?" Kaleb cried out when Landon spread his wings and flew right through the roof.

~0~

The sun was coming up when Hope found her eyes opening. She felt different. Something was changing. She wanted something to drink. "Hi," Landon said and her eyes lifted to see him kneeling beside her.

"Landon," Hope sighed in relief. "I thought that maybe my plan didn't work." She sat up and looked around. "Where are we?"

"We're on the top of the school." Landon let out a quiet laugh. "Thought they wouldn't think of the obvious place."

"Josie. She has so much power. She'll be able to sense us." Hope stood up. "Is the earth shaking?"

"Aftershock," Landon nodded. He held out a wrist. "You should probably drink something."

Hope opened her mouth to let out a laugh, not fully remembering what happened last night when it came back to her as her stomach growled she felt the veins under her eyes. "No. Not you."

"Hope, you have to feed," Landon said, shaking his wrist at her.

"Later," Hope retorted. "We have to stop Jo and The Necromancer."

Landon turned her to face him. "You can't fight if you're weak. Now, feed." He placed a hand on the back of her neck and shoved his wrist to her mouth.

Without another thought, Hope opened her mouth and sunk her teeth into her boyfriend's wrist. She could feel his warm blood running down her throat. Closing her eyes, she dug in, hearing Landon let out a hiss of pain but he wrapped an arm around her waist. "It's okay," he muttered as she continued to drink.

It took every last bit of restraint for Hope to remove her fangs from Landon's wrist and to pull back and look him in the eye. "We're going. Now!" she told him.

Landon nodded. "I can't fly right now."

"That's okay." Hope took his hand, leading him to the edge of the roof. "Hold onto to me." His arms wrapped around her waist and they leapt off the roof.

Landon peeked out of one eye to peer around him and Hope couldn't help but smirk at him. It was good to have these tiny moments to hold onto in the midst of all the drama. But they never lasted long.

The earth rumbled again and Hope narrowed her eyes. "Time to go."

~0~

They only made it to the road that led to the school when Hope saw a monster. Lots and lots of Mali monsters. They were all headed for the school. "They're coming for The Necromancer." Hope looked at Landon who nodded.

Landon felt sure that Hope was right. The Necromancer's new minions had a single objective. And they were standing between the monsters and their new king. "We need to get to Josie," Hope added.

"I sent Lizzie to stop her," Landon replied at the same time that Hope moved forward.

"You what?" Hope's brows came together.

"No one will be able to get through to Jo like Lizzie." Landon hoped his theory was correct. Otherwise, they were all screwed. "We need to go back. We have to protect the school."

Hope nodded and they turned back, running toward the gates as the monsters ran, flew and crawled toward the gates. As they grew closer, Landon saw Wade standing at the gate. He wasn't alone. Alyssa Chang stood beside him. "Hey, guys. Thought you might need re-enforcements," Wade told them with a cheerful wave.

"And she's doing what?" Hope asked. "Planning on mocking the monsters away?"

"Ha-ha!" Alyssa rolled her eyes. "Looks like our basic witch still doesn't know anything." She marched outside the gates and set a crystal down. A line of fire began to rise in front of the gate, circling the ground as the monsters neared.

Smirking, Alyssa bounced back inside the gate while Landon and Hope stood just outside. The first monster who made it to the spelled wall of fire let out a shriek of protest, trying to by-pass the wall and could not seem to pass it. "Now, that is a boundary spell," Alyssa told them proudly. "Nothing's coming through there anytime soon."

A monster flew over the boundary spell and Alyssa frowned. "I didn't account for things that could fly," she glared at Landon like it was his fault.

"Good job, Alyssa," Hope groaned, stomping past. "I hope that thing has blood."

"She's a vampire now," Landon told Wade and Alyssa.

"A basic vamp," Alyssa called out.

"Sleep with one eye open," Hope called back.

Landon caught Alyssa's pause before continuing inside the school. This would be fun.

~0~

"I see me followers are seeking me out. Not long now," The Necromancer announced to Landon and Hope who just stared back at him. "And soon, you will be finishing your end of the bargain, or he'll be returning to being a roasted duck. Although I prefer lamb, meself." His words were directed at Hope.

"I told you: That's not going to happen," Landon snapped.

The Necromancer looked to Hope. "A deal's a deal."

"It is." Hope nodded, her eyes narrowing.

Landon could not believe what he was hearing. Hope intended on sacrificing herself in an effort to defeat Malivore, again. "Hope, you can't do this," he said, taking hold of her by the shoulders.

"I don't have a choice, Landon. Remember what you said about saving six people versus sacrificing one. Well, this is me, doing that." Her eyes softened and she moved forward to kiss him, Landon tried to pull away but he felt her hands go up and then his neck snapped to the side.

~0~

Hope felt her heart banging in her chest as she and The Necromancer stood in the room. He'd watched as Wade struggled to drag Landon up the stairs. Anyone else who came too close them risked being turned to stone by a gorgon who had made it past Alyssa's spell. Alyssa stood at the top of the steps with Alaric Saltzman, Dorian Williams, Jed, Kaleb and MG. None of them looked happy. But none of them made a move on the winged creature who hovered above the hole Landon created earlier. They didn't have time to research how to kill this many creatures. It was over. The Necromancer won.

"Don't look so unhappy," The Necromancer called out. "Not all of my new friends mean your harm. Hell, might even see some of them enroll for the new school year." He offered Alaric a quick grin as Hope shook her head in disgust. "Right then." His eyes went to the sky and he seemed to be looking for something.

A star shot across the sky and The Necromancer straightened his jacket. "Time to go, Tri-brid." He held out an arm as if he were escorting Hope to a ball.

Scoffing, Hope headed for the stairs ahead of her enemy. The sooner they got this over with, the happier she'd be. Technically, she'd been nothing. If she were lucky, she'd die and pass over to join her family. If she were not so lucky, she'd end up in another pit-of-never-ending-darkness.

When they got to the top of the stairs, Alaric made a move toward them. The winged things let out a hiss and a something vicious came spraying across the carpet, leaving a gaping hole and Dorian had to grab Alaric by the arm and Alyssa let out a cry before Kaleb jerked her away from plummeting to the floor below.

"I wouldn't try to play the hero today," The Necromancer said, tilting his head at the teachers and the students. "Leave that to the girl. You'll all live longer than today if you heed that bit of parting advice."

"Hope, you don't have to do this," MG cried, moving close to the hissing hole in the carpet. His dark eyes met Hope's.

"MG." Hope said, stopping for a moment. "Thank you being my friend. And tell the others how much…" She shook her head and offered him a smile.

"I will." MG said. He glared at The Necromancer over her shoulder. "You're not going to win."

"Ah, big words." The Necromancer let out another of his super-annoying villain laughs. "Love to stay and chat, but we've got a date with my old enemy, Malivore."

Hope refused to look back as they continued on their way. If she looked back; she might lose her nerve. She just hoped that Landon would forgive her one day.

~0~

"Where exactly are we going?" Hope demanded after they'd been walking for long enough that she felt like they'd just been walking in circles around the edge of town.

"We're here. We've been here for, oh, say, a good hour now." The Necromancer replied. "In the meantime, I've been watching you pace all about."

"And where is here?" Hope looked at the Welcome to Mystic Falls sign.

"Ah, yes, we're just inside a bit of a magical barrier: Keeping you in. No running away from your destiny, girl." The Necromancer grinned at Hope.

"How can I run away from 'destiny?" Hope watched The Necromancer, trying to figure how far from reality his mind had shifted.

The Necromancer shrugged. "Well, you closed the Malivore pit with your little Golem. You closed the Pit."

Hope folded her arms over her chest. "And…"

"And, behold," The Necromancer waved a hand and Hope's eyes widened as she watched a spell be lifted and there it was…only it wasn't a pit… It was a thing. A creature stood feet from Hope and she could only stare at it in horror. This thing. This was her boyfriend's father. The thing that made her life a living hell for months and whose very existence meant a threat to Landon's safety.

"Here he is! The one, the only: Malivore!" The Necromancer clapped his hands together. "Bet you'd like to know what deals I had to make and the dark sacrifices and enchantments that I went through to bring this nightmare of a creature back to see his glorious end!" The Necromancer waved his arms about and Hope shook her head, making him frown.

"No! I just want to fight!" Hope cried. Running forward, she punched Malivore in the face.

Malivore did not raise a muddy hand or whatever those things were, to strike back as Hope pummeled him and kicked. Nor did he collapse. Her hands sunk into him and she grimaced, jerking her limbs back out before striking, again, and again.

"Oh, silly girl! That is not how to defeat him!" The Necromancer cried in disgust, shaking his head. "You bloody well turn him back into a bloody pit and throw yourself in!" The Necromancer rolled his eyes. "No more Mali." He clapped his hands together.

"And no more Tri-brid," Hope replied. She let out a laugh. "You're scared of me, aren't you?" She shook her head.

"I am The Necromancer!" The Necromancer waved his hands. "I fear nothing. I cannot die!"

Hope shook her head. "But you feel fear. Fear of him," Hope hooked a thumb at Malivore.

The Necromancer moved closer to Hope. "And do you know why you should fear him? Landon. Yes, dear, he's still looking for your little boyfriend. Lookin' forward to seeing how many little Mali babies he can create using your poor little boyfriend. Are you scared yet? Oh, Malivore, I know where your son is."

Finally, Malivore showed some signs of life. His gaze moved to The Necromancer. "I'll tell you, too, if you let me go."

"You son of a bitch!" Hope snarled, moving to attack The Necromancer when something picked her up and tossed her aside. Hope looked up to find Malivore had moved dangerously close to The Necromancer. At first she hoped that Malivore's intent was to suck The Necromancer back into himself but Malivore did not make another move.

"There's a school. I can take you there." The Necromancer told Malivore.

"No! No!" Hope shouted. She felt her heart pounding as she watched the two creatures interact. The Necromancer's smile told her something that made her shake her head in horror. This could not be happening. She had to find a way to end this.

Pushing herself to her feet, Hope opened her mouth to begin a spell when another sound came from somewhere close. "Going somewhere, Father?"

Ryan Clarke? Hope whirled to find Ryan making his way toward them. "Hello, again, Hope. Miss me?"

Hope felt unsure as Josie came forward. Lizzie strode by her sister's side. The blonde twin offered Hope a quick nod. Then a third figure joined them: Penelope Park. "You're still using my pen," Penelope called to Hope.

"It comes in handy to send quick notes to people who are still eaves-dropping," Hope retorted.

"What are you doing here?" The Necromancer demanded. "The spell is not done!" He glared at Josie who tilted her head to the side.

"I am not being controlled by you anymore." Josie replied. She looked at Hope. "I need your blood." She held up a hand and Hope felt herself being jerked toward her friend. Her hand opened and her blood began to seep out through the open wound as she cried out in pain. Josie lifted both her hands and directed the blood toward Malivore. She began to chant in a language that Hope did not recall being taught at their school.

They watched as Josie rose in the air. Lizzie gulped. Penelope looked proud and Ryan looked vengeful, a little smirk playing in the corners of his mouth. "Good-bye, Father," Ryan muttered as Josie finished her spell and the Malivore pit exploded. Not before one of Malivore's hands snaked out around the startled Necromancer's wrist.

"Nooooo!" The Necromancer screamed. And then he was gone, too.

"Well, that was…" Hope began.

"Not over!" Lizzie cried, "Jo!"

Something was happening to Jo. She'd begun to glow bright and brighter and then they were all blown back from whatever was happening to the younger siphoner.

~0~

When Hope woke up, she found she could not remember instantly what had happened. Then her eyes found a girl standing above her. The girl offered Hope a radiant smile. "Hello, Hope," she greeted Hope.

"Josie?" Hope blinked. "Is it you?"

"She's blonde now. Whatever," Lizzie grumbled, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "Can we go now?"

Hope got to her feet but couldn't help but watch as Josie seemed to float rather than walk back to the school.

Once they'd made it back, Hope snapped out of it when Raf appeared at the gate. His grim look made her stomach twist. He offered her a tiny shake of his head, his eyes turning downward.

"No!" Hope cried, hurrying in through the gate. She used her new speed to find Landon in his room.

Alaric stood beside the bed. "Hope –," he began when Hope held up a hand and moved to kneel down beside the bed. Her hands went up to cup Landon's face. Tears ran down her cheeks and she felt how cold he was. "Please, don't go," she cried, weeping and feeling like her heart would stop beating too.

"I can help him," Josie said, and Hope turned her head to see the other girl floating into the room. In the rays of dawn, Josie seemed to emitting a faint glow. She smiled down at Hope. "Don't worry." She knelt down on the bed and placed her hands over Landon's heart. Hope watched, feeling panicked as Josie let out a quiet sigh and a smile appeared on her lips.

Then Landon's chest rose and his eyes snapped open. His eyes darted around the room like someone who felt the greatest shock of their lives until Hope moved to hover over him. "Hope?"

"Yeah!" Hope cried, letting out a quiet laugh. She pressed her lips to his. "You're alive."

"I am. How?" Landon still looked confused as Hope looked at Josie. "Okay. Is anyone else seeing Blonde Josie?" Landon asked, and Hope nodded, grinning. "Cool." He sat up. "So, what did I miss?"

~0~

Curling up next to Landon, Hope snuggled into her boyfriend's arms. "What do you want to do this summer?" she asked him, linking their fingers.

"Not hunt monsters," Landon said. "Not be captured by monsters. Nothing to do with monsters."

Hope nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

"You think Lizzie will stop complaining about being the less-hot-blonde-twin sometime this century?" Landon inquired and Hope let out a laugh.

"I think so. Penelope's been testing out some new spell which should keep Jo's new admirers at bay, for now." Hope glanced at Landon. "Are you into Blonde Jo, too?" she teased.

"Nope. I've got eyes for one girl." Landon cupped Hope's chin and pressed a kiss to her lips. Then he leaned against the headboard. "What do you think a Phoenix and a fully-powered-Tri-brid would ordinarily do for the summer?"

"Sleep. Eat a lot of snacks. Go to parties with Penelope, Jo, Lizzie, Sebastian, Kaleb, MG, Wade, Raf, and all of the other friends we have," Hope suggested. "And try not to get into too much trouble.

Landon nodded. "Sounds like a plan." Hope nodded and they decided to take a nap. They'd earned a little rest.

The End

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-J