{-One month before 1.01-}
Hope Mikaelson did not want a roommate.
In all her years at the Salvatore Boarding School, she never had a roommate. It wasn't like she begged for one. She was perfectly content with keeping to herself. Being alone was okay.
Having a roommate meant having a friend, and she didn't do friends.
The people that Hope cared about tended to die on her. She was cursed the moment she was born, and whether she was actually cursed (considering her family she wouldn't be surprised) or not didn't matter. Whenever she got close to someone, or had someone she cared about, something always-- always -- happened to them. So, when Dr. Saltzman knocked on her door the afternoon before the full moon, claiming he found someone to move into the empty side of her room, she was not happy.
Hope reluctantly sat in the passenger seat of Alaric Saltzman's car, staring at the sun barely kissing the horizon as he drove them into town. The headmaster was rambling about what she could only assume was school related, but she wasn't paying attention. The new recruit was a werewolf and, to their luck or misfortune, found herself in Mystic Falls the day of the full moon, and that meant they had to restrain her.
Well, they had to find her first. Alaric's contact called them ten minutes before, explaining that the girl was in Mystic Falls, but something came up and she wasn't able to follow the newly triggered werewolf. She mentioned that she bumped into the girl at the Grille.
Hope was the first to climb out of the jeep, eager to get it over with and return to her room. There was a new show she really wanted to watch, but she couldn't exactly do that--
"This way," Alaric directed, suddenly pulling Hope from her thoughts. He jumped out of the jeep, one hand on his cellphone the other on his crossbow, which was tucked just under his jacket.
Hope raised a brow. "Do you really think you'll need that? We've handled much worse."
Alaric didn't respond much to Hope's surprise. He gestured for her to follow, and she did so, walking down the sidewalk towards the town center. They walked for a few minutes until they reached the park, and they had an idea of what she looked like, having received a picture from the contact.
Hope saw her first. Sitting on a park bench, the girl rifled through her backpack. She was tall even sitting down. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a low ponytail. The denim jacket she wore hung loosely on her shoulders. Distracted, Hope bumped into Alaric's back, who turned his head to look back at her.
"What?" he asked, his eyes darting between Hope and where she looked. He hadn't noticed the girl yet.
"Over there," Hope answered. She pointed her chin towards her. "I'm pretty sure she matches the description your mysterious informant gave. Blonde, denim jacket." The blonde lifted her hand and tucked a stray hair behind her ear, and, weirdly, Hope forgot what she was about to say.
"Perfect. Now, we just have to get her away from here," Alaric mumbled. The two made their way towards the girl, attempting to blend into the others wandering the park.
Hope's brows drew together as the realization hit. "What's her name?"
"I thought you weren't interested in a roommate." A grin spread on Alaric's face.
"I'm not," Hope scoffed. "I can't be useful if I don't know her name."
Alaric wasn't subtle about his grin, wearing it proudly as he stopped next to a streetlight. "It's Elara. Her last name's Davenport, but I'm not sure if she'll answer to it."
Elara Davenport. She tested the name on her tongue, and it seemed familiar. Had her family known any Davenports?
"What do you mean you don't know if she'll answer to it?" Hope questioned, whispering.
Alaric flickered his gaze between Hope and Elara. If they spoke loudly, she could easily hear them without any supernatural hearing. She seemed unaware of their presence, still searching through her backpack for something.
Alaric shook his head as he changed the subject, speaking lowly. "Any ideas on how to redirect the wolf?"
Hope nodded. "Just give me a minute."
Before Alaric could question her, Hope brushed past him towards Elara. Inconspicuously, she sat on the edge furthest from Elara, look forward. Elara shot her a look, one that Hope couldn't read.
The two looked at each other for a short moment before Hope spoke, doing her best to have a joyful tone. "Hi."
Elara leaned back against the bench. "Uh, hi."
"Do you come here often?" Hope wasn't actually sure how to do this. She didn't have a plan to lure Elara away before her transition, but she felt like she had to
"No. Do you?"Â The corner of Elara's lips twitched upwards for a split-second. "Come here often, that is?"
Hope sent her a small smile. She still had no clue how to get Elara out of there, but she had her attention. "Mhm," she hummed. "I live here and go to the boarding school."
She noticed Elara's shoulders rise slightly, as if she was tensing. "That would be the Salvatore Boarding School, right?"
"You've heard of it?"
"Yeah, yeah," Elara muttered. "My f-- my brother spent some time here and he told me a bit about it."
Hope crossed her arms across her chest, glancing around. She saw Alaric nearby, pretending to be reading a newspaper, but it was clear he was listening to their conversation. "Oh, that's cool. Who's your brother?"
Elara shifted in her spot, wringing her hands together. At the mention of her brother, her fidgeting increased, but her expression remained still.
"I-I'm sorry," Elara began, her stuttering betraying her. She was nervous. She stood up quickly, lifting her backpack with her. "I've gotta go."
Hope nodded softly. "Alright. It was nice meeting you."
Elara turned on her heel to walk off but paused, turning her head back towards Hope. Closer now, Hope saw her eyes, blue like her own but with pieces of grey. The eyes are the window to the soul, but Hope couldn't see past the gentle gloss. Elara hid her emotions, nearly as well as she did-- maybe even better.
"I didn't catch your name," Elara said. Her fingers fiddled with a ring on her middle finger.
"It's Hope."
"Elara." She slung her backpack on her shoulder. "Nice meeting you, too."
She left quickly, but Hope didn't move. Her head turned towards Alaric, who seemed to catch her message. Follow her.
~-~-~
It wasn't until the next morning that Hope hears about Elara, again.
Hope and Alaric walked through the woods silently. It was early, the sun had just risen, and Hope was exhausted. She didn't have to shift with the full moon like the other wolves, but it still wore her out, attacking her every nerve with a sting. She was glad she didn't have to be there for Elara's transition. The first one was always the most painful.
Alaric explained how he caught her the night before. He followed her into the woods, keeping a safe distance until she started acting strange, rambling to herself and thrashing around. He barely had time to chain her to a tree before she transformed, and even then, she nearly broke through the restraints.
They stopped in a clearing, and Alaric pointed to their left.
"She's over there. I stayed with her through the night, but when I knew she would be turning back soon I came and got you. I'm sure she'd rather see a familiar face."
"And since you didn't ask me to bring any clothes, I'm guessing she already has some?" Hope said, her eyes boring into the bark of the tall tree.
Alaric nodded, a thin smile on his face. "I'll be in the car."
Hope said nothing as he walked away. She should've asked more questions. She should've asked why Elara had to be her roommate. She should've, but at the same time there a bliss to ignorance. Alaric wouldn't assign her a roommate if he didn't have a reason, and Hope could assume whatever the reason was.
She wanted it to be because he thought she wasn't a monster.
Hope turned around the tree. Elara sat with her back against it, covered in Salvatore School sweats. Her blonde hair fell down her shoulders, tangled and dirty. Before her expression was blank, but in the morning sun, with softened features and red eyes, she was easier to read than a children's book. Elara had been crying. A few tear streams remained on her cheeks, and there was a wet stain on her sleeve.
Hope felt her heart tug at the sight. Elara didn't know about this before. She didn't grow up with the supernatural like she did. It must've been horrifying. Hope remembered her first transition, how much it hurt her physically, but because her... her father was there, it was bearable-- almost freeing.
But Elara was alone, stranded in a different version of her world that she didn't understand. That she didn't know if she wanted to understand. Did she want to?
Hope would help her. She'd teach her, even, but how could she? She was afraid of getting attached, of caring. Would she be able to risk it?
Neither of them knew the answers to their questions, but they did know one thing. This was a big step in their lives. What kind of step, they weren't sure. They were in new territory, weaving their ways through a new path.
And they were terrified of coming out of the other side.