Josephine's pov

My eyes blink awake, slowly. I start to regain consciousness.

"Josephine? Josephine, can you hear me?" A voice whispers.

Falling. That's what I remembered.

I shot up, screaming.

"It's okay! You're not falling. You're safe." The voice smooths me.

"Breathe, breathe, my beautiful baby girl." The man said, holding my face. My vision clears.

"Dad? Mom?" I whisper, my heart skipping a beat.

"Welcome home baby" dad smiled, tears in his eyes.

Mom looked at the back of my neck.
"The sutures are holding. But take it slow" she said

I slowly stand, my reflection staring back at me. Not mine, someone's else's. Sharp jaw, wild hair, those storm-cloud eyes that carried the weight I could never bother with.

I twisted a strand of hair around my finger and smirked.
"Stop with the hair" dad said, laughing slightly.

I smirk.
"Now this I can work with." I sau

"Who told you this?" Kaylee questioned.

I stepped out from behind the wall, smiling.
"I did." I say

Kaylee looks angry and scared at once.
"You would take the word of a stranger over me?" She asked

I smirk.
"What's the matter Lee-lee? You don't recognize your best friend?" I ask

Recognition filled her face.
"Josephine?" She breathed

"Surprise" I smirk

Then I take a step closer.
"I heard that you were the one to find my last body after my tragic fall." I said, voice low yet deadly.

"I hear you found Isaac's body in the offering grove." She shot back in Chinese.

"Yes. His gift to the sanctum was appreciated" I answered in Chinese.

"He would never offer himself!" She yelled back.

"English, please" mom said

"She killed someone I cared for. I was protecting sanctum, from you" Kaylee replied

"So am I" I said, then jab a knife into her throat.

"No!" Mom yelled, stepping forward. But it was too late.
"Josephine!" Dad yelled

I watched the life drain from her eyes.
"Yours was the last face I saw before I fell. Now we're even" I spat. Then she died.

I turn to my parents.
"I know we have a lot to discuss. But right now I want to have a shower, and get out of these hideous clothes." I said simply, stepping over the body, and walking off.

I spent the night painting, as I normally did the first day. I dance around, happy to be alive once again.

I turn and see my parents walk in.
"Too loud?" I asked, turning the music off.

He smiled.
"No. Come here" he said, bringing me into a hug.

"You didn't sleep did you?" Mom asked.

"I never do my first night back." I answer

Then dad's face became serious.
"We have to talk about Kaylee." He said

"Uh- no we don't. Her family was afraid that you'd find out she killed me. That's why they ran. A couple of decades on ice- it'll teach them a lesson." I said.

I turned back to my painting.
"It might be considerably less than that." Mom said.

I froze. Then spun back around.

"The people from earth? How many of them are hosts?" I asked

Dad shook his head.
"We don't know" he said

"That's what you're going to find out." Mom adds

I look at her, realizing what she meant.
"Oh, no, no, no way." I whine

"Josie" mom starts

"Did you ask them nicely?" I asked

"They know Gabriel targets hosts, so of course they said they had none." She said

"Well, maybe they were telling the truth." I shrug

"All 13 of us had the blood when we landed. Odds are there are more like Diana." Dad insisted

"In the six years that I was on ice, not one single host was born. No one. If you'd just let me run the breeding program we wouldn't be facing extinction right now." I said, my voice irritated.

Dad shook his head again.
"We're not talking about oblation again. Those are our people, human beings, not a herd of cattle to be culled." He said

"That's right. Peace and love from the grace and glory of sanctum. Consent is key, blah blah blah. Tell me something. Did this Ferrari I'm wearing consent to giving up her body?" I asked

"We're brought you back because we love you. It was now or maybe never. Do not make us regret that decision." Mom told me. 

Dad turned to me.
"These people are dangerous, josie. If they find out we killed Diana, they will burn this world just like their last one." He said

He walked toward me, nodding for jade to bring me the clothes.
"Blessed is Josephine. Blessed are the primes." She said, kneeling.

"Jade will be there to protect you. You can tell them we insisted because of the children of Gabriel. This is your last chance. Redeem yourself for losing rose. Protect your primes as if all our lives depend on it, because they do." Mom said

"Start with abby. She's a doctor. She'll know how many of their people have the blood." Dad added.

I picked up a shoe, staring at it. Dad swooped it from my hands.
"They don't know what we are, Josie. And for now, I'd like to keep it that way." He said

"Why? What we are is spectacular." I raise my hands

"They won't understand. They'll run. And we can't let that happen, not when they could be the thing that saves us." He said

Then they walked off.

I walk into the room, jade shadowing me like the loyal little guard dog she thinks she is.

I glance around the room.
"Bellamy Blake. John Murphy. Jordan Green" I say like I'm taking attendance.

Jade starts to whisper.
"Yes good. Abby isn't here, maybe we should-" she starts

"Relax. I played Vladimir in Godot twice. How hard can Diana be?" I cut her off.

Bellamy waves me over, and I stride across the room like I own it-because, technically, I do.

"Mom!" The girl- Madi, right, Diana's kid- runs up and wraps her arms around me in a hug that nearly knocks the wind out of me.

"Oh, Madi. Good morning" I manage, hugging her back stiffly.

"Can I please go to school today?" She asks, eyes wide, hopeful.

"I don't see why not." I shrug, cute kid.

"Heda, we talked about this." Gaia cuts in, standing up like she's about to march me back into line. She looks between me and jade with suspicion shimmering in her eyes.

I wave my hand.
"Oh, apparently people with blood like mine are a target. The primes insisted" I say. She shut up- for a second.

"Which is why Madi needs to continue her training with me. What if she skins her knee? Or I don't know, gets a paper cut?" Gaia presses, in some weird grounder tongue. Fantastic. I understand none of it, so I just plaster on a neutral look and hope no one notices.

Bellamy, bless him, saves me. He steps forward, his eyes flicking between us.
"Everything ok?" He asks

"Yeah, fine. Where are the others?" I ask, redirecting the conversation.

"One of the primes is showing Raven and emori how to build a radiation shield." Bellamy says

"Ryker?" I ask

"Yeah. I sent echo, miller, and Clarke to watch their backs." He said

"And Abby?" I ask

"Still in the library. Jackson said he found her sleeping with her head on a book." He answers.

Typical. Humans and their exhaustion. I have 236 years of beauty rest in me.

I clap my hands lightly, turning back to Madi.
"Speaking of books. Let's get you to school" I said

"Heda-" Gaia starts again

"Chill out. She'll be fine." I said quickly

"Chill out?" Bellamy repeats, raising an eye brow at me like I've just said something foreign.

"What?" I ask, confused.

"Nothing. Just...happiness looks good on you. I got scared you were upset after our talk when you didn't come back last night." He says, lips twitching into a small smile.

"Oh, uh, yeah. They insisted I slept in a spear room, I tried to say no, but they made me." I toss it off quickly, then turn before he can press. Smile, pivot, walk away. Rule number one of improvisation: exit before the scene collapses.