Hope and her twin sister Faith were desperately wanted, desperately sought after by their parents, Garrett and Miriam Kelly. The couple were both teachers at an elite prep school for girls in upstate New York, and after several years of marriage and working with children ages 12 to 18, it looked like they may never have their own family. After some fertility treatments, Miriam finally became pregnant — with twins. The two bundles of joy in pink blankets were named after the two qualities Miriam and Garrett never themselves lacked. While the couple was not paid well, they had free room and board at Sacred Heart Academy, and when the girls were old enough, they would be given free tuition to the school, which cost most families thousands of dollars a year, and was attended by politicians' and celebrities' children, considered one of the most direct routes to the ivy league.
Little Hope and her sister were both bright and precocious, as might be expected, being the children of well-educated instructors, surrounded by such a lush academic environment. Their younger years were spent at the local public school, but as they lived on Sacred Heart's campus, the little tow-headed twins were often made the pets of the students. They found their way somehow into many student productions. No doubt they felt they were special, given so much attention. Each had their own unique personality of course, but being identical, they could also slip into the other's persona and trick anyone they wished — even their parents. While both the girls were at the heads of their classes (their parents felt they should be in different classes at the elementary school), Hope was the more analytical and very good with words, where as Faith was the more lofty of the two. If one had a test in a subject the other was better prepared for, they would swap places for the day. The fact they were rarely caught encouraged them to take bigger risks, and they never grew out of the habit.
When junior high came, the twins entered the classrooms of the academy they had lived at since birth — and found it to be an entirely different world than the one they knew as the "darling little twins" of the two favorite teachers. They were considered "townies" by those who were paying customers of the school — a term spoken with derision of the children who attended the local public schools. They were considered "FTs" — short for "free tuition" — a term spoken with even more scorn for those students who were either the children of teachers or were invited based on the school's need to fill certain quotas. Suddenly being the teachers' kids was a stigma to bear, and the twins found that despite being brighter and more charming than their classmates, they were still viewed as something less; even to some of the teachers. Paradoxically, they were also held to a higher standard because their parents were teachers and they should "know better."
Hope and Faith began to scheme on how to get what they wanted. Fame, as well as a little pocket change. Hope had the way with words, and a desire for financial gain. Putting pencil to paper was as easy for her as breathing. She and her sister, the photographer, signed up for the school newspaper as a team. Hope would be the one writing the articles, while Faith would take the photos. Of course, this lead to opportunities for the girls to snap photos and write up stories about those around them. If the quarterback was cheating on his girlfriend, they found out. If a teacher was seeing a student, they found out. If a student snuck into the office to steal the answers to the next test, they found out. Stories were written, copies sent to the offending individuals with the chance to rectify the situation by means of financial gain in order to stop the leak of the story to the paper. However, their normal stories were also very good. In fact, they were commended by the school principal for doing a story on local dumping of toxic waste that somehow affected the school water supply. That expose sent no less than three individuals to jail, as well as made someone responsible for the cleanup of the school's water system. It was then that the duo realized that they would continue in the field of journalism.
While they were talented and intelligent, their parents' income just wasn't enough to send both of them to the Ivy League schools that their peers were all destined to attend — while the other girls in their class made plans to go to Harvard, Yale, Brown, or Cornell, the Kelly girls applied for every scholarship they could find, and yet the money from the few they managed to win would simply not be enough — not when their parents' combined income was only about $80,000 a year. They made too much money to get any real financial aid, but not enough to actually pay for an elite university of the ilk that the two girls always figured they'd attend. A public university was the only option, unless they wanted to end up with massive student loans. While the girls were ambitious, they were also practical. They chose to attend NYSU. Of course, this was a choice that made their parents nervous, for it was only a couple of years after the Bomb had gone off in New York City. But the twins insisted, and as always, what they wanted, they got, for Miriam and Garrett could never say no to their children.
There Hope majored in journalism with a side track of creative writing. But there were plans aloft for herself and Faith, and they needed one another to make them come true. If they could make hundreds of dollars off of their fellow Sacred Heart students, imagine what they could do in the real world, from people in high places — a mayor on the take or a senator caught with a prostitute? So Hope and Faith once more the two became the stars on the student newspaper — somehow they made enough big scoops between all the stories they didn't publish while pocketing the payoff money. The two are now in their final year of studies, and have taken positions as interns for the summer and fall at the New York Daily News. The two know that internships often become full-time positions, and they are eager to earn the coveted position as full-time employees of the paper; that, or make enough money that they never have to work for a living. Whichever comes first.
While Faith has dreams of artistry, Hope has dreams of financial gain. Faith may not entirely see her sister's point of view each time, the money they make from their scheming adventures is enough to assist them both in their goals.
