polydeukes | penance } { ic inbox

Yeah, it's kind of weird with everyone spread out like this. The community seems so small, but then everyone gets together... There's a lot of us.

[And he's not sure how to feel about that, honestly. They can't all be accidental arrivals. Which are the ones that are here forever? Hopefully it's more than just the murder-hungry ones.]

Yeah, there is. And there's a lot of turnover too.

[You never know who's going to disappear, which isn't exactly comforting either.]

Kind of has you wondering what the point of all of this is.

Might not be a point. Maybe it's one of those "balancing the scales" magic things. Someone out in Albuquerque is opening a portal to heaven and doesn't realize that it's sending randos down to hell for a while. Something like that.

Could be.

[She wouldn't be surprised.]

I mean, Hell in our world was a chambre de chasse of sorts. A psychic prison world. Who's to say this isn't the same?

Have you talked to your mom about it? Maybe she's got ideas.

[Mrs. Salvatore has to know at least as much as Dr. Saltzman, right? And since they can't ask him, she's elected for mystery unraveling.]

[She shakes her head.]

No, not yet. There's been ... a lot of other stuff that she's been adjusting to.

[Given the mora miserium of it all, plus juggling all the timeline changes.]

I can imagine, but it can't be worse than the kind of stuff they're used to. Your dad is never shaken by this stuff, no matter how weird it gets. She might be able to help.

Yeah, well. My dad's ... been through some stuff.

[Vampire hunter to Original vampire to dead guy on the other side, to Original vampire again, to human again. Honestly, Josie isn't entirely surprised he makes some of the choices he does, given the givens.

Doesn't make the choices right, but she can see where they come from.]

He's been in Mystic Falls since the beginning. And they went through ... a lot of weird and traumatic stuff.

And they came out of it kind of normal. And that's how they know things. Josie, this one might be over our heads. We need all the help we can get with it.

[Josie nods because it's true, her mom would be a good choice. Maybe she'll pull her or Elena aside later to ask.]

Honestly the best choice would be Aunt Bonnie, or Hope's aunt Freya. My mom knows a lot but she's not a witch.

Your aunts aren't here, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to tap the resources we do have. Josie, things got bad out there. I don't like the idea of you being here any longer.

[She nods along at first, because he's not wrong, but she stops once he gets to the end.]

What about you? I'm not going anywhere without you.

We can figure that out when we've got answers to the rest of it. Hope can help with that part, especially if she remembers what we were working on here. We know that you and Lizzie get out, though. That's the priority.

[Josie doesn't like this. She knows as far as Landon knows he's dead back home, but she doesn't know that for sure. All she knows is that he's probably in this situation because of dominoes she knocked over, and she doesn't like the idea of leaving him behind.]

If this place isn't good for me, it means it's not good for you either. We get out of here together. We're not leaving anyone behind.

If we can. And if we get a shot before that, we take it. Especially if we end up needing to take advantage of a celestial event or something.

[Do they have celestial events in Hell to take advantage of? Josie isn't sure. But she also knows that this is a non-starter because she's not just going to leave Landon.

She's not.]

We can. Celestial events don't come on that suddenly.

Oh, so now you're confident about our options?

Why are you so determined for us to leave without you?

[It's not that she's confident about their options. It's just that that specific example was not the one you should have gone with. And really, she's just as determined to not leave without him.

She knows they might not have a choice. She knows that whatever Powers that Be that keep them here could just as easily whittle them down until only Landon is left. But she doesn't understand why he automatically wants to hobble any plans they make together, as though he's an acceptable sacrifice.]

[He is an acceptable sacrifice, though. He's the only acceptable sacrifice. His body is the only thing of value he has to offer. He can die when no one else can. They benefit from his pain. It's how he can earn his keep and contribute. It's not something he can afford to stop using.]

I'm just being realistic, Josie. It's not that I want to stay here, but I'm not going to pretend that it doesn't make sense if I do.

But it doesn't make sense. There's no reason that you belong here any more than I do or Lizzie does.

[Whether or not Landon is actually dead remains to be seen but as far as she knows, Landon hasn't done half the terrible things that she has.]

Even if you are ... dead.

[Deep breath.]

Even if it's true, that doesn't mean you deserve to stay here. So even if it's just taking you out of here so you can go find peace, we're not leaving without you.

[ he makes eye contact and gives her a thin smile. ]

There are worse places to be. I've had a lot of time to think about the options. Here, it's basically just like regular life with a few fewer existential threats.

I might not even be available for peace back home. I don't really know how any of that works, but only half of me is human. We're just guessing about the rules.

[ it doesn't really feel like they sent most of those malivore monsters anywhere peaceful. ]

[Josie knows that peace, like most things, is a choice you have to make. Hope honestly knows more about this topic than she does, as Alaric likely doesn't talk to his girls about his time on the Other Side.]

People who are supernatural get peace too. And yeah, maybe we don't know all the rules, but do you really want to wait here where there seem to be zero options?

Of course I don't want to.

[But he's ready to. Life isn't about what he wants, and he's already made his peace with that. If he's here, maybe Malivore will finally leave everyone alone.

This is running in a circle, and he hates that. So he'll shift his position and the topic at the same time.]

Do you think there are full moons where Raf is right now?

[She takes a breath and let's it go, at least for now. The mention of Raf is enough to shut her up, and switch gears.]

I don't know. In theory, he's back home. But I know that Elena's been to other places and leaving there didn't send her home.

Maybe he's with Hope. They can take care of each other that way, even if neither of them will admit it.

[Good things need to happen to the people who matter. ]

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