Vulnerable / Klaus Mikaelson {Book 1} (EDITING)

Chapter 18: Hope

Or so he thought.

After Klaus and Elijah left the church to go save the baby, Hayley had waken up from her transition. She sat up on the sacristy to see Scarlett's lifeless body. She became overwhelmed with seeing the body and the flashbacks she had gotten of her labor until her face went blank. It didn't bother her anymore.

She walked out of the church before pausing in her tracks once she reached Scarlett. She looked down at Scarlett's body, feeling the same sadness from before. "I'm so sorry, Scar."

With that, she left the church. A few minutes after Hayley left, the grey that covered Scarlett's skin started to dissolve. The veins started to fade too. Once Scarlett's skin turned back to it's natural shade, Scarlett awoke. She gasped, regaining the air she had lost.

She tried sitting up but something held her back. She looked at the pain in her chest, seeing the stake there. She sighed in annoyance, resting her head quickly before gripping onto the stake. With a countdown, she gained the strength to pull the stake out of her. She sighed in relief, throwing the stake across the room.

She looked down at her wound, seeing it slowly heal. She chuckled happily before rising up from the church ground.

Not seeing Klaus or Hayley, she guessed they were saving the baby. She rushed out of the church and to the Lafayette Cemetery where the witches were known to have rituals.

Scarlett arrived to the cemetery, making her way in. When she was first turned into a vampire, Marcel made sure she was invited into the cemetery. In case he wasn't around, he needed someone to check up on the witches.

Scarlett used her vampire speed to search around the cemetery quicker. She looked inside each tombs for any sign of life but found nothing. That was until she reached a spot where she noticed Genevieve and the two Harvest girls. Genevieve held a knife over the newborn baby, making Scarlett feel anxious.

Before Genevieve could drive her knife into the child, Scarlett rushed over to basket that held the baby and took the basket away from the witches. Everyone wondered where the baby went. Klaus followed Scarlett out of the cemetery, not knowing it was her that saved his child.

Scarlett ran away with the child until she reached the Mikaelson compound. The place was scattered in dead vampires, strewn across the courtyard. Scarlett didn't see the scene because she was too busy looking at the baby.

"Hi." She cooed. She moved over to the fountain and sat down on the rim of it while keeping her eye on the child. "You're safe."

Heading footsteps approach, Scarlett lifted her head, looking at where she heard the footsteps. There was Klaus. A sight for sore eyes.

"Scarlett." Klaus blurted out, not believing the sight before him. "How are you alive?"

"I don't know." She shook her head. "But it doesn't matter."

Scarlett got up from the fountain, slowly walking towards Klaus with the baby in her arms. She smiled at the newborn before looking at Klaus with the same smile. No longer focused on Scarlett, Klaus held out his arms, gesturing to the baby. "May I?"

"Obviously." Scarlett responded in a "duh" tone.

Scarlett handed Klaus the baby slowly, wanting to be careful with the little one. Once Klaus had a grasp on the child, the child started to cry. "Shhhh. Oh. Hey."

The child stopped crying, seeing her father hold her in his arms. Klaus stared at the child in awe. The moment he had been looking forward to was finally there. "Hey there."

The baby turned her head, looking to Scarlett. The two hybrids smiled from joy, looking to one another as they laughed. Scarlett looked to the child with the same admiration that Klaus had. "She's beautiful."

...

Klaus held the swaddled baby as him and Scarlett stepped into the baby's nursery. He laid her down in her crib gently as Scarlett moved to stand beside Klaus. They both watched the child with interest. "She's just so cute, I don't want to look away."

Klaus chuckled at her comment, making her laugh too. "Did you ever want kids?"

Scarlett's smile slowly faded at the question. "Yeah. I did."

The room became filled with awkward silence except for the baby's coos. Klaus sensed how awkward it got and changed the topic of conversation. "Listen Scarlett... thank you for everything."

"Klaus, it's no-"

"No, it is a big deal." He cut her off, knowing what she was going to say. "You stuck with my family through a war. You made sure the woman that carried my child was safe. You even got stabbed just trying to help her. And... you helped me."

Scarlett stared into his eyes, sensing the emotion that he held. Klaus glanced down at her lips before looking back up. "For that, I owe you my undying gratitude."

Scarlett processed his words as she slowly nodded. "Yeah. Of course."

There, the two stood. Looking over the child before them, thinking about what was going on between them.

...

Later that day, Scarlett had came to a decision. A decision she didn't want but she thought she needed. The decision to leave New Orleans for a while.

The first person she told about her decision was Marcel, who was healed of his werewolf bite by Klaus. He supported her decision, saying his goodbyes to her. Another person she told was Davina, the two cried a little bit before Davina forced Scarlett out, telling her to go do her own thing.

The last person she wanted to tell was Klaus. She felt a strain that made her want to back out of whatever she was doing.

In the night, she went to go visit Klaus, knowing it was now or never. She walked throughout the compound, looking for Klaus until she found him. He stood in the nursery, watching over his child when he sensed Scarlett's presence. "What are you doing here?"

Scarlett stepped into the nursery, tugging at the end of her sleeves. "I just wanted to say goodbye."

Her words made Klaus turn toward her, his facial expression showed he was appalled. "What?"

"I'm leaving New Orleans for a while." She clarified. "I just need a break from all of this supernatural bullshit."

"Why'd you feel the need to tell me this?" He questioned, walking towards her slowly.

"Because, if I didn't say goodbye, I wouldn't forgive myself." Scarlett admitted, looking up to the man. "I do have feelings for you. As much as I try to fight it, I can't. You could slaughter an entire city and I would still find myself coming back to you."

Klaus lightly smirked at her confession but kept in his snarky remarks, knowing she wasn't finished yet.

"Just admitting that, I realized how hard this goodbye is going to be." She muttered under her breath. "Goodbye, Klaus."

"Goodbye, Scarlett."

Author's Note: Hey guys! Thank you so much for reading my story! It truly means a lot! This is the last chapter of Act One and I don't know when Act Two will come out. So see you guys later!