Always and Forever

Entering the hallway, Hope's eyes darted back and forth in the darkness, and she puffed out a sigh of relief when she spotted Newt leaning against the wall.

"Yes, I did exactly as I was told…" Newt trailed off, not quite meeting her eyes. She knew if he did, she'd see the hurt there.

Hope opened her mouth to retort the first thought that came to mind but thought better and closed her mouth. She'd forced him to stand back while she saved the man they both loved.

She'd be pissed too.

Unfortunately, she was drained and hungry, and her tongue broke its leash.

"I'm sorry," she tilted her head to the side, "did you want to die too? My mistake, you're right; I should have let you walk in and do the dirty deed of snapping necks and tearing out hearts."

Newt's eyes flashed to hers and blinked before casting his glance at Albus, who said nothing that disagreed with her statement. They exchanged a silent understanding, and Hope rolled her eyes and walked forward.

"Stop looking at each other like I'm not here," she sighed and took Newt's hands, "I didn't want your hands as red as mine. Is that a good enough reason?"

"Hope you're…"

"A monster," she finished, "but darling, I'm the monster you never knew you wanted." With a smirk, she squeezed his hands and then dropped them, walking around him toward the exit.

"Let's get out of here. I'm starving."

"Hope…" Albus started as he walked after her.

"Are you hungry?"

She didn't have to look to know the side-eye he was giving her as they walked.

"Hope." Albus tried again, a little firmer.

"Oh, sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of me changing the subject."

The tension in Hope's shoulders eased a little as she heard his deep chuckle. She knew they needed to talk about all of this, but not yet. The idea of it made nausea roll in her stomach. If they talked about it, she would have to discuss...that night.

They would know what she did.

Meeting Theseus at the top of the stairs under the stars gave everyone a chance to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Alright, let's go." Hope nodded, walking to the carriage.

"Where?" Theseus asked with a frown, looking over at Newt.

Hope turned to look at them. They all seemed utterly exhausted; it gave her heart a twinge, but they had to hurry.

"New Orleans."

Albus, at a limp, started for the carriage. Newt went to his side and helped support some of his weight with his own. He couldn't Apparate them to the nearest gas station, let alone across the ocean to Louisiana.

Gas station. They had gas stations here, right?

Yup, her mind was perfectly intact again.

"Why?" Newt frowned. "We found out who was behind everything…" It seemed Newt couldn't bring himself to say her name. Hope could understand that- having a friend betray your trust is one of the worst hells on earth.

"Sylvia was partly responsible," she said, opening the carriage for them and getting in after. She closed the door and continued, "She's likely the one behind the wolfsbane, but not who killed Lisette. I need to look closer at Lisette's body before they desecrate her."

"Desecrate?" Newt asked with a frown.

Oh, right, a different genre of species.

"For my kind, those who have magic are tied to the balance of nature. Her soul will be trapped in her earthly body until she's desecrated, meaning a ritual that includes burning the body to release her spirit into the earth. So that she can move on. They may have already done it, but we have to try."

Newt nodded slowly as the carriage lurched forward. "What makes you think Syliva didn't kill Lisette? The letter- she left wolfsbane on the letter."

"I know," Hope nodded, "whoever left the letter wants us to think Syliva did it because she's been using wolfsbane against me, but Syliva didn't kill Lisette. When I mentioned her, she asked 'who?' and she wasn't lying. I felt her genuine confusion. She didn't do it, but someone did, and I'm betting you it's the someone who paid me a visit on Valentine's Day."

Her eyes met Albus', who had been silent all this time. She frowned, furrowing her brow. "Are you angry I killed her?"

It was a loaded question but a necessary one.

Slowly, his lips curved into a smile. "I was…shocked, but I don't think you'll want to hear my opinion on how else you could have handled her and the rest of them."

It was like a slow knife was carving into her soul, but Hope kept a grim smile.

"I will paint the city red to keep you both safe. If that makes me an evil bitch, then so be it," she leaned forward, "Love me or leave me- because that won't change."

Albus' lips suddenly connected with hers, and catching up with his aggressive lunge took her a moment. Their tongues swirling in a chaotic mess. He left her breathless when he pulled away.

"I shouldn't love someone who murdered twenty people in five minutes. Yet here I am."

Hope swallowed hard, her lips a bit swollen. "I would like to point out that I gave them the chance to leave. They raised their wands, and I reacted in self-defense."

Leaning back, a bit smug, she tilted her head to the side. "That wasn't even what you were thinking, was it?"

"No." Albus chuckled, glancing over at Newt and then at her. "You told me your last name."

Hope nodded slowly and tapped her fingers against her knee. Of course, she shouldn't have blurted it out in hindsight, but it felt too good not to.

"Your last name?" Newt asked with eagerness, leaning forward, bright eyes glittering with curiosity.

"Mikaelson." Hope breathed, and his smile fell.

"As in…"

Hope nodded slowly. "My father is Klaus Mikaelson, one of the original vampires."

The carriage was silent, and she prayed Theseus, who held the reins, couldn't hear her over the wind. "There's a lot we'll have to talk about," she ran her fingers through her hair and looked at them hesitantly, "I need to know if this is a deal breaker."

"Hope-"

"I know what he's done. I'm not defending him, but I need to know if simply being his relation will make you ha-"

"Hope!" Albus and Newt said together in a loud, firm voice.

"Stop. Talking." Albus said and took her face into his hands. "You are everything we want. No relation can destroy a love like this…"

With a harsh swallow, Hope slowly nodded. Over the past year, she'd been shedding so many tears she otherwise wouldn't have cleared, but now she felt genuine tears brimming her eyes and quickly blinked them away.

How could they simply accept her?

Just like that?

"You must really love me…" Hope trailed off with a slight frown.

Albus took her right hand while Newt took her left and Albus took Newt's left, creating a circle between them.

"Always," Albus murmured

"And forever." Hope smiled softly to herself.

It took what seemed forever to get to New Orleans. Albus rested, a soft snore under his breath as Hope and Newt held hands as they watched the scenery pass.

Poor Theseus had to be exhausted. He'd withstood torture and was still strong against the occasionally rainy wind that battered the sides of the carriage. They landed with a soft thud, waking Albus instantly.

"We're here," Hope murmured, squeezing his knee before climbing out and standing on the soft ground of the bayou.

"Do what you need to," Theseus said from the driver's seat, "I'll wait here."

Hope wondered then if he was so willing to help them to make up for the fact that he's technically been working with Sylvia.

"Theseus, you know it wasn't your fault, right?" Hope asked with a frown. "She made you do things for her. That was out of your control."

Theseus shrugged with a slight frown. "I know. Doesn't stop the guilt, though."

Pursing her lips, she nodded slowly. "Thank you for helping us. We'll be back soon." Time would be his best chance of feeling better about all of this.

The three of them made their way through the edges of the bayou and into the city limits. The main stretch of road was busy with tourist nightlife, and she had to admit, seeing New Orleans like this was so strange. 

A hundred years in the past, yet it wasn't the past. It was technically the present.

"Trippy." Hope cringed a little.

"Pardon?" Newt asked, confused.

Shaking her head, she forced a smile, nothing.

Albus spoke as they followed Hope down different alleyways, twisting and turning in a way only a local could. "So, you are from here then?"

Hope nodded, glancing over at him. "For a long while, yeah. Then I spent a lot of time in Virginia."

"Where were you living when you lost your memory?" Newt asked curiously.

"In a state of despair," Hope answered a little too quickly, "this way." She crossed over a few more narrow alleys and stopped. She put a hand up to make them stop and listened intently. Carefully, she inched around the corner and cursed softly under her breath.

Albus and Newt poked their heads around, too. In the center of the alley, just down the way, was a group of people standing around what might look like a bonfire to keep warm, but it certainly wasn't.

Firstly, it was muggy as hell, and secondly, Hope could see the remains of a body in the center of the flames.

"We're too late." Hope sighed, looking at the sigils on the ground surrounding Lisette's half-cremated body. She pulled herself back and leaned against the brick wall, looking at them. 

"At least she's at peace," Newt murmured, making Hope smile softly.

"Let's grab something to eat." She could feel her mouth already watering as she took the lead again to guide them back to the French Quarter.

"You did die today. I suppose you must be famished…" Hope glanced over her shoulder to see Albus watching her curiously.

Hope grinned. "Yeah, I died. I'm also immortal. Impressed?"

"Hardly." Albus grinned, a playful twinkle in his eyes.

Laughing, she continued until they were surrounded by people again. Quickly finding a restaurant, they were soon sat down with steaming bowls of gumbo. Hope shoveled hers down, not just because she was starved but because she'd also ordered a plate of beignets.

"What will we do when we get back then?" Newt asked. "Syliva is gone, but whoever has been hurting you is still lurking about."

Hope shrugged. "My plan is to ignore it."

They both paused with spoons near their mouths. "Ignore it?" Albus asked.

Nodding, she took a sip of bourbon and sat back with a sigh of happiness. "Whoever this is is a little attention seeker. Every act that's been pulled, the wand against my back while I was naked, the hands on me while I was chained, the murder of someone I led them to, is all an act of power. They approach me when I'm at my weakest so they can feel empowered. If I ignore them, let them know I don't care anymore; that will likely draw them out to do something drastic."

"What if they kill you?" Newt asked. Hope gave him a look, and he smiled sheepishly. "Oh. Right."

Hope grinned as the fresh, piping-hot pastries were set before her. She took one off the top and bit into it, moaning. A little taste of home soothed her soul.

"My dad introduced them to me," she smiled sadly, "he would always give me the first one and call me his littlest wolf…" Letting herself be lost in the memory for a moment.

Glancing up, she met their soft gazes and it was like they could read her mind. They knew something terrible happened that night.

Hope smiled softly and murmured.

"I'll be alright."