i need a cure (there's no escaping your love)

Part 5

Being late is definitely not something Josie Saltzman is used to, but it's something that can happen when she spends time around plants. There's something about herbology that fascinates the brunette and makes her lose all sense of time. Tending to the plants, learning what they can be used for, helping her teachers turn those seemingly insignificant plants into remedies or offensive potions... Those are all things she absolutely loves doing.

Except that today it made her late for her flying lesson with Hope. She hates that part.

So, Josie is running in the direction of the flying pitch with her broom in hand. She's totally out of breath, but she doesn't allow herself to slow down. She just hopes that the Durmstrang champion didn't just leave when she saw that Josie wasn't there. With that thought in mind, the brunette groans and pushes herself to run even faster than before. There's no way she's missing this flying lesson.

As soon as she gets close to the flying pitch, Josie can see Hope standing in the middle of it with her own broom. A little smile quickly makes its appearance on the brunette's lips. She's so happy Hope actually waited for her. When Josie knows Hope has seen her, she decides to slow down. Her chest is on fire, and she has a hard time breathing. Josie quickly takes a mental note to start taking morning runs. She's way too out of shape.

"I was starting to think you were gonna ditch me." Hope says with a teasing smile.

"Me?" Josie says as she places both of her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath. Once she feels a little better, she looks up at Hope with an equally teasing smile. "I would never miss a flying lesson with the famous Hope Andrea Mikaelson."

Hope laughs it up as she rolls her eyes. "Why are you late?"

Josie straightens up, sending a sheepish smile Hope's way. "I lost track of time while I was watering and tending to the plants in the greenhouse. I'm sorry I made you wait."

"Don't worry about it." Hope looks away from Josie, suddenly a little shy. "Maybe you could teach me about plants one day."

The Saltzman girl's entire face lights up. "Really? Because it'd totally be my pleasure. It's so rare to have people actually be interested in herbology!"

Hope looks back at Josie, happy she didn't push her luck with the Slytherin student. She can't believe it was actually that easy to get Josie to agree to spend more time with her. She doesn't really have a particular interest in herbology, but she's pretty sure she'd be down to hear Josie Saltzman talk about anything. When she realizes she's been giving an awkward smile, and no answer, to Josie for a little too long, Hope tightens her hold on her broom before she takes a step closer to the other girl.

"I'd love to learn anything you wanna teach me." After a second, and a smirk from Josie, Hope realizes how what she just said sounds. Her cheeks heat up, and she avoids Josie's brown eyes one more time. "About plants, of course."

"Of course." Josie repeats Hope's words. She's tempted to tease the older girl, but decides against it. Hope seems already embarrassed enough. The brunette places her broom in front of herself, as if to inspect it. "So, where do we start?"

Hope tilts her head to the right, her eyes on Josie and her broom. She thinks for a long moment before saying anything. She needs to be a perfect teacher for Josie.

"Well, how about you tell me which part you are struggling with?" Hope ends up asking.

Josie sighs, bringing her broom back close to her body. "All of it. Honestly, I have a hard time getting this stupid thing off the ground."

"Oh." Hope blinks twice, taken by surprise.

The brunette chuckles. "It's okay if you wanna back down."