i just might love you (a hosie royalty au)

Part 8 "Are we both..."

A/n: happy 1k :)
sorry I was late.
***

Josie found Hope early that morning in the kitchen. There were a few maids there preparing everyone else's breakfast. They were making jokes with the Princess as they worked, speaking openly and sharing their thoughts with a certain type of ease.

Hope was wearing dark brown trousers with a cream tunic, her belt slung over her left shoulder with a sword attached at the back. She had another one to hold her loose pants up, this one had her personal sword attached to it. Her long hair was braided down the right side of her head. She was carrying a wicker basket with a blanket folded over it. However, her signature cloak was nowhere to be seen.

Hope looked up, smiling when she saw her and excused herself from previous conversation.

"Ready to go?" She asked as she wandered over to Josie. The brunette returned a kind smile to her new friend. Were they friends now?

"Yep." Josie replied, eyeing the basket with suspicion. Hope started to lead her through a back door. It lead through a poorly lit hallway, twisted and turned a few times, and then ended at a metal door. It wasn't like anything the Saltzman girl had ever seen before.

"It comes out at the stables." Hope said over her shoulder as she forced the door open. It seemed to take a lot of effort. "It's the best way to get in and out without anyone noticing."

"And you trust me with this information?" Josie said, her tone teasing as she studied the other girl, watching her shrug in response.

"It's just a feeling." Hope tried to hide her grin, but it seeped into her words.

They walked down the dark corridor in silence, Josie treading carefully as it began to slope downwards. When they reached the end there was a short ladder. Hope climbed up and opened the hatch at the top, shoving the basket onto the ledge and then hoisting herself up. The light was almost burning Josie's eyes as she stared up at it, shielding them with a hand as they adjusted. Hope was already out of sight, causing the brunette to panic as she scrambled up the ladder after her. She came up into a small tack room. The bridles hung up on the wall were well kept, as were the saddles on display. It looked like someone had just been polishing them, though Princess Hope was the only other person in the room.

"Shut the door, will ya?" Hope called to her from the other side of the room. She had her hand ready to twist open the doorknob, fidgeting as she waited for the other girl. Josie scurried over to the hatch and lowered it awkwardly, cringing when it made a sound louder than she would have liked.

Hope had left the room.

"Do you ever stay in one place for more than a minute?" Josie huffed as she caught up to the girl. She was standing near a tall Friesian stallion, his dark eyes turning to study Josie as she approached. She froze as his menacing eyes appeared to be piercing deep into her soul.

"Easy now." Hope said softly to the horse, pulling on the bridle to look him in the eye. "She's nice, so you're going to be nice."

He shook his glorious mane and sighed, pawing anxiously at the ground.

"This is Daisy. He's a little devil to new people, but once he knows you're alright he'll be fine."

"Daisy?" Josie exclaimed, eyeing the huge warhorse from a distance. He was an intimidating specimen.

"Yeah," Hope chuckled, patting his neck. "He was born in a field of Daisy's and... Well, it stuck."

Hope extended her hand to Josie, beckoning her closer. The brunette stepped forward timidly, taking the Princess's hand, but wincing when she brought it closer to the horse. His breath puffed against her hand as he studied her, and then Hope brought their hands gently to his snout, her's overtop of Josie's.