Roughly a year passes by without a word from anyone besides Elijah or Rebekah, and every once in a while, Marcel comes by. He's changed so much, but just like everyone else, you've always held a place in his mind, seeing as you were the mother figure in his world. Your life has become some type of normal, seeing as you're a free woman. When you finally decided it was time to let Nik get his revenge, you simply didn't cover your tracks like you had done all those years. There weren't goons out constantly looking for you, but you knew that as soon as he would be able to find you, someone would come. Having been someone present in their lives through the years, you knew that he normally always had far bigger fish to fry than spending his every moment obsessing over where you were.
Your name is finally beginning to get the respect it deserves, and the vampire community has taken you as their first line of defense against those who wish to do harm to your town. It hasn't been easy at times, but it's been manageable. You are the only vampire/hybrid that is equal to Nik, that's always given you an edge around others. You are the only one who could take him on singlehandedly and have a chance of surviving.
Recovery was a long road for you. The venom Nik used was the most damaging thing you've ever experienced besides white oak. It took forever and a day before you were back to full strength. Just within the past few months, you've been feeling more like your old self again. Things are good for once. Occasionally, you'll check in on the French Quarter, just to make sure things are still alright. You haven't seen Nik, but between his siblings, you're kept in the loop for the most part. Some weeks are silent, others are filled with the latest news. It's a balancing act between caring enough and trying not to care too much. The thought of moving back to New Orleans has crossed your mind so many times now, you've lost count. That city was your home, and it always will be. The people here need you, though. You can't just leave. Unfortnatually, your responsibilities outweigh your desires. Since taking charge, everyone comes to you when they need something. New vampires come in and need someone to help guide them, it's always you who helps them. It's a responsibility you never asked for, but one you couldn't turn down, either.
It's been over a month now since you last heard anything from either of the two Mikaelson's. You've been doing your best to keep busy, but it's getting harder as this appending feeling of despair is slowly starting to appear throughout your mind. You've been brushing it off to stress, but somewhere, deep down, you know it's not stress-related. You know Elijah stays busy, and Rebekah is always running off to some other part of the world, but this feels different this time. It's just stress. It has to be.
"Y/N, is everything alright? You've been staring off into space for five minutes." Your right-hand-man, Lance, asks as you both share a cup of coffee at the local cafe while going over a few business-related things. "We can do this some other time if you would like, I am free all week."
Your eyes snap back to him and away from whatever you've been staring at while being zoned out. "What?" You shake your head softly. "No, no, this is fine." Sighing heavily, you drag your fingers through your hair. "My apologies, I just have a lot going through my mind right now."
"If you're so worried about them, why don't you just go see them?" He asks, knowing good and well exactly what's running through your mind. Lance is one of the best witches you've got in your corner, his work is very honorable and so is he.
"Who would protect everyone if something happened? I'm pretty sure I'm the only one here whose bite can kill a normal vampire." You chuckle a bit. "I'm sure it's nothing, I'm just probably not getting good enough sleep, that's all."
"Hey, I'm more than capable of handling myself, and everyone else," he teases. "Are you sure?"
You nod. "Of course." Nope. "Let's continue, yes? I'm taking up too much of your busy schedule."
"Yes, because I'm so busy." You sit back as he takes a sip of his coffee. "You've lived your life on the run for so many years, then in hiding. It's time you lived for yourself, and I don't think living for yourself included approving or disapproving business license to the local supernatural beings."
"It's important to know who comes into this town and stays. Knowing what's going on at these businesses is very important, and there's no other place I'd rather be." You snatch some paperwork up from the table and begin looking it over.
He hums, knowing good and well you're lying through your teeth. "You and I both know exactly where you want to be, baby. Curled up with your ex-lover, watching some cheesy movies and feeding each other blood bags."
You flop the papers against your forehead. "He wasn't my ex-lover, I'm sure he hates those movies, and why would I waste my blood bags on him?" You pull the papers back and begin reading again. "Just because you think he's yummy, doesn't mean I still do. By all means, he's all yours."
He snorts. "Y/N, if I had a dollar for every time you've told yourself that lie, I would be living in a castle by now, and not one of my own creation. Why are you doing this to yourself?"
You huff lightly. "Maybe because I was hunted for nearly a century? Doesn't that give me a good enough reason to not want to be with him anymore? Do I need a better reason than the fact I nearly died at his hands, if Elijah hadn't convinced me to tell my half of the story? I really think that's a good enough reason."
"Not even a little." You fling the papers down as you rest your forehead against the table. He continues. "Correct me if I'm wrong about any of this, but this is how I see it. Yes, what he did to you was horrible, but it's like you've said yourself, it's not like he was hunting you himself. There was some slack on that rope around your neck. If Klaus Mikaelson truly wanted you dead, you would've been killed the first chance he had. The man still loves you, Y/N. I know how it all looks to you, and you've got every single reason to hate him. I truly don't think he would have let you die, though. Yeah, he let you come close to prove a point, or to satisfy his own sick desires, or whatever the case might have been at the given time. I don't believe he would have let you die." He shrugs. "And as handsome as he is, I know better than to get tied up in that family. You, my dear, were born to be a part of it. You're already neck-deep, just submerge yourself and let the past go."
You push yourself up from the chair. "Alright, now, you've killed the mood. Mister, I'm free all week, I'll see you tomorrow for a revisit of these businesses." You collect your things and your coffee. "Thank you for the solid advice, I'll do my best to forget the past. Your advice is now also part of the past." Leaning down, you give a quick kiss to his cheek before walking away. "Thank you." You hear him sigh heavily as you head down the sidewalk. The feeling of something being wrong is growing stronger with every step you take and it's getting to the point where you can't ignore it anymore. As you walk, you begin to fish your phone out of your bag, only to find it ringing.
"Hello?" You answer, the sensation of your stomach lurching into your chest is enough to make your voice shake.
"Y/N? Where are you?" Elijah asks. "I'm at your place. We need to talk." His tone is serious, his voice sounds heavy.
"What's going on?" You ask, trying to steady your voice.
"Just get here, alright? Please... Time is of the essence."
"I'm on my way." Hanging up quickly, you take all the back roads, speeding down them as fast as you can. It's no more than a minute later when you come to a stop at your front yard, where you find Elijah sitting on the steps. Quickly walking over to him, you stoop down in front of him, a few steps down. "What's happened? I can feel it, Elijah. What's going on?"
He presses his mouth into a hard line as he shakes his head slightly. "I'm sorry I haven't been around more, it's just, I've had my hands full with matters that I'm losing control over," he mutters. It's rare for you to see him in this kind of a quiet, lost in his mind, kind of state. He's normally always so sure of everything. "I need your help, Y/N... I just don't know if you're going to be willing or not."
"Elijah, dear God, don't apologize. It's fine," you mutter back. Grasping his hands with yours, you try to offer him some form of comfort. "Why wouldn't I help you?"
He looks down at your hands as he places one of his on top of yours. "Because..." He stops for a moment. "It involves saving my brother from nearly the same fate that he had written for you."
You feel your insides drop as you squeeze his hand, trying to conceal the growing and intensifying anxiety that's pulsing throughout your body. "What's happened?" You ask, trying to keep an even tone.
Elijah begins to tell you that soon after you were freed, one of Nik's old friends had come into town. Justin was always one for a show, and it didn't matter how the performance took place. He would watch cities burn simply because he didn't like one person who lived there. In some ways, he's like Nik. The only difference is Justin lacks every single ounce of humanity he ever had. He's ruthless, he's arrogant, and he's dangerous. Back in the day, you always felt uncomfortable around him. The way he would look at you made your skin crawl. Nik caught him staring at you one day and practically ripped him to shreds. Justin was always bad news, but he's gotten even worse as he's aged. "He decided that since he couldn't have you back in the day, he would just take over the town, knowing that was my brother's second most love. They went back and forth for a bit, nothing too violent. When Klaus refused to give up for the second time, Justin took him down with a snap of his fingers practically. I still don't know how he did it, or what he did. I've been spending day and night trying to get him free, we all have. Everything we've tried has failed." He sucks in a deep breath. "The compound has completely been taken over, the city is in chaos, and my brother is locked up in the very same area he had you in." He shakes his head slightly. "Everything we've tried has failed, and I fear that if we don't get him soon, the damage will be irreversible."
You sit there, silently, in shock. You can't even think clearly. The only thing you're able to do is ask the first questions that come into your head. "What has he done to him?" You ask, your voice quiet. "Why would the damage be irreversible?"
"He's been stabbed with a dark object, a dagger. When stabbed, it enters your body, and it takes over the mind, making you live your absolute worse reality imaginably, over and over again," he whispers. "I caught wind that it was poised when it went into his chest, but I don't know if that's true or not. I--, I've been trying to find out more, but I keep hitting brick walls."
"Poised with what?"
"The same venom mixture he used on you," he whispers. "It's a much lower dose than he gave to you, but it's still lethal with time. We've tried so many different times to break him out, to strike a deal, to free him. We tried so many times to the point that Justin is moving him to a different location. Somewhere we can't find him."
"What do you need from me?" You ask, hardly able to believe what you're hearing. You knew something was wrong. You knew something was wrong. What Nik did to you was insane, and part of you does feel like he deserves some just desserts for once. Not like this, though. Not like this.
"I need you to stop them." He looks up at you. "Y/N, you are the strongest out of all of us, even Klaus. Your power may be the same as his, but you've always had a stronger, more centered spirit. I can't do this without you, and there's no way he's going to survive without your help. I understand if you refuse, I do. If you don't want any part of this, I will understand," his words trail off for a moment. "But I can't do this alone anymore. Rebekah left town a few months ago now, in fear of what might happen to her if she stayed. I've been speaking with her about all of this, but she's just as lost as I am."
You swallow down the ball that's formed in your throat as you slowly rotate your head, feeling the tension rapidly growing in your neck. "Elijah, I hate what Nik did to me, but I would never just let him sit and suffer. I would never do to him as he did to me." You squeeze his hands once more. "I wish you had come to me sooner," you whisper. "Do you have a plan?"
The look of relief that comes across his face is enough to almost brings tears to your eyes. His shoulders fall as his lips part, the weight he's been carrying by himself is finally being shared with someone else. "I'm so sorry, Y/N. I didn't want to have to bring you into this," he whispers. "Thank you... Thank you..." Leaning down, his forehead comes to rest on the top of his hand. "They're moving him tonight," he mutters. "I have some ideas, they just need to be fine-tuned." He sounds so exhausted.
"You never have to feel like you're protecting me. It's a two-way street, always." You gently move one of your arms and place it around his back. "I'll take care of it, alright? We're going to get him, everything is going to be fine..." You watch him for a moment, becoming more and more concerned. "When was the last time you slept? Or fed?"
"I don't remember," he murmurs. "Everything has become one big blur."
"Elijah," you grumble his name, sighing heavily. "You can't expect to take care of everyone else when you aren't even taking care of yourself." You move your other hand and hook it around his arm. "There's nothing we can do right now while the sun is out, and people are on high alert. Come on..."
He goes to protest, but stops at the sudden moment of you standing, bring him to his feet with you. Slowly, you walk inside with him, knowing that your world is either about to be turned upside down, or turned upside down. Walking over to the couch, you ease him down before getting him a glass of blood and placing it down on the table. "Try to get some rest for now, alright? I'll take the load, you've carried it far too long..."
"Y/N, I--"
"Rest." You cut him off. "Please... I can't be worried about the both of you at once, and right now, my concern for you is growing rapidly." You lean down and hug him tightly. It breaks your heart knowing that Elijah's been freaking out by himself, which is something he does not handle well. It breaks your heart knowing that Nik has been suffering for weeks now, and you never knew. You've already silently asked yourself a few times now, "If I had known, would I have helped without being asked?" It's always a constant battle between good and bad inside of you, which has always been one of the reasons why you can Nik formed such a strong connection. You brought out the good in one another, unlike anyone else ever could.
Elijah takes a shaky breath as he nods. "Fair point, as always," he mutters. "Just for a few minutes." He hugs you back tightly, closing his eyes, finding comfort in knowing he's not fighting alone anymore. "Thank you," he whispers.
"Always," you whisper back before pulling away. You disappear into your office area, knowing he's going to be passed out in a matter of minutes once he lays his head back. There is a plan to be made, and it needs to be made now.
Some time passes before Elijah sturs. He fell out just as quickly as you expected. Vampires or not, sleep is still important. He joins you in your office, where you've already made your plan of attack with the help of your community. "Tonight, when they go to move Nik, I'm going to stop them halfway out. I got word on the path they're going to be taking, and there's one area where it's nothing but dense forest. With the help of my friends here and the supernatural community here, they'll take down the fleet while I get Nik and run for the hills. My friend Lance will cloak us so we can't be found. This will give you a prime time to take down Justin. Surely, his most trusted men will be with Nik during the transport, leaving the compound defenseless to a point. Defenseless enough to where you and a few of my guys could break in without any issues. I've already got a few inside contacts who are going to make sure things work out in our favor." You state as you stand from your desk, map in hand. There's even a fully packed duffle bag sitting on your desk with every single possible thing you could need. You're absolutely ready for anything. Elijah just stands there, looking slightly dumbfounded.
"You did all of this in an hour?" He asks, sounding surprised.
"Less than twenty minutes, actually," you correct. "I've made a lot of contacts over the years, how do you think I stayed alive for so long?" You tease with a smile. "Don't worry, I've got it taken care of. We need to get to New Orleans as quickly as we can, our time of attack is three in the morning. That's when they'll be in the thickest part of the forest, and will be most vulnerable for an ambush." Slinging the bag over your shoulder, you look up at him. "Are you feeling better?"
He nods slightly, processing everything. "Uh, yes. Yes, thank you. I wasn't planning on falling out like that..."
"I knew you would." You grab your keys as you walk towards him.
"You always did know when you were right about something," he mumbles slightly as he follows you out. As teenagers, that was one of the running things between the both of you. You and Elijah hold the same standards for yourselves. The swiftness, the sharp consciousness, the thought-out movements. When you thought you were right about something, it normally ended up being true. You never liked being wrong, so you just made sure it rarely ever happened.
Leaving your home, you both load into his car and burn rubber as he heads down the road. The drive takes roughly three hours at normal speed. Seeing as everyone on this coast knows who you are, and everyone else has been compelled, it takes just about two hours to get into town. Elijah takes you to Marcel's compound across the river where you hide out until it's time to leave.
"Took you long enough to get back here--," Marcel starts to dig into Elijah but stops the second he sees you getting out of the passenger's seat. His demeanor softens. "Y/N! I really didn't think you would agree to this." He states as he comes over to you.
"Save the drilling for later, alright? We've got far more important things to deal with," you tease lightly as you smile at him. "What kind of person would I be if I didn't say yes?" You ask as you both reach in for a hug.
"One of the smart ones." He hugs you back. "I'm sorry I haven't been around more, it's just been--"
"Hectic?" You cut him off, teasing slightly. "I know, that's what everyone else has said, too. It's a two-way street, though. I've had my hands full with my people, too. Leadership takes a lot of time out of the day." Pulling back, you grab your bag.
"Things going well for you over there? I've heard about the business deals you've been working out, those are some smart moves."
"Who do you think you learned your skills from? It certainly wasn't Nik." Chuckling softly, you walk past him and into the building. "He knows how to get what he wants by force, not by organizing and forming contracts with others."
"Brut force was his favorite way to get what he wanted, that is true."
The three of you go inside and set things up as needed. Laying out your weapons, everyone takes their choosing. Eventually, your men show up, as well as a group of people Marcel brought into this. Showtime.
"This is how it's going to go down, alright? Listen closely, because I'm only saying this once. If you don't listen, you'll end up dead tonight." You state, your tone sharp. You can hold the room with just one sentence. "The fleet is going down Old Derby Road tonight. It's the backcountry, there's no lights, no stores, no people. It cuts through one of the thickest parts of the forest, and it's going to be our best bet at stopping them. The only thing we have right now is the element of surprise, and that's something we absolutely need to keep." Tossing the map out onto the table, you take a marker and draw out your path once more. "There will be three SUVs driving. One in the front that's loaded up with security, Nik in the second one, and the third one is also battened down with security. I want to pick off these vehicles one by one, but it's going to have to happen all at the same time." Taking a drag from your cigarette, you gesture at Marcel. "I want you and Elijah at the compound. Taking down Justin is just as important as saving Nik. You have to reclaim leadership, whatever that takes. You both are the most trained, and Marcel, you've been trained by the best." Us. "Take some men with you, however many you think you'll need, and don't get cocky with it. The more of us there are, the better chance of survival. Storm the place, guns blazing." You sit your pen down. "For my party, we're going to be waiting when the fleet comes through at exactly three in the morning. Their weapons will surely contain wood, and that can kill you, but it can't kill me. I'll stop them, slow things gown enough to the point where you're able to attack. There should be at most five men per vehicle, and one of them will be Nik. I want one person per person. As soon as the cars stop, you pick a window and you drag whoever is sitting there out of the car, and rip them to shreds. Leave Nik up to me." You rub your cigarette out in the ashtray. "I'm hoping to have everyone done for before any eyebrows will be raised by any allies Justin has. When you kill someone, take care of the bodies. I don't want any evidence that can lead anyone back to any of us. If you drink, you drink them dry. No blood spilled. If you kill, you dispose of whatever is left. If you want to leave because you're not cut out for this, then now is the time. This isn't going to be easy, but with the way I've planned it out, it shouldn't be rocket science either."
"Do you really expect me to just let you go out there without me?" Elijah asks.
"Yes, I do. You asked me for my help, and that's what I'm giving to you. I love you, but you're going to just have to trust me on this. This isn't the first rescue mission I've been on, believe me." Shaking your head slightly at old memories, you straighten yourself up. "Once I have Nik, I'm booking right out into the forest. Lance will cloak us as we go, and wherever we end up will be the safest place for him until this has passed. Keeping him, us, and the people of this city safe are the top priorities. I'm not stepping foot back into the city until I know it's safe, and I do suggest you all do the same. Once Justin is taken care of, wait things out from a distance. Stand ground, but be very observant. Anyone can strike back in revenge." Sighing heavily, you drag your hand down your face, knowing this next part is going to be tricky. "There is something that everyone single one of you needs to know right here, and right now. You all are our most trusted circle, which is why you're here..." You pause for a moment. "There is a little girl's life at stake, as well, and her name is Hope." The room falls even quieter than it was before. For just over a year now, there's a secret that has been kept from everyone except you and the family. You don't mention the fact that it's Nik's daughter, but it's not really something that needs to be said. They know just by your demeanor. "Hope is being held at the compound under Justin's thumb. It's the only leverage he had over Nik, and he's used her to his advantage. Her protection is very, very important to all of us. You will lay down everything you have in order to protect her, do you understand?" You watch as everyone in the room nods, knowing how serious this is. This isn't a group of random vampires and witches that were gathered off the street. They are soldiers, warriors, people that know the battle, just like you, Elijah and Marcel do. The importance of this is too extreme to have anything less. "We've got two hours before we need to get on the road. Take this time to tie up any loose ends, alright? Prepare. Thank you all..." After grabbing something from your bag, you step away from the group, Elijah following you as you go outside on the balcony for some air.
"Are you certain about all of this? You truly have this handled?" He asks, trying to not come across as uncertain of you. "I trust you with my life, but it took me weeks to just get the information I shared with you earlier..."
Sitting down on the steps of the fire escape, you offer him a reassuring smile. One that's calm, but so very stressed all at the same time. "I learned from the best." You shrug slightly. "I dealt with something similar to this back in the fifties. Someone had come to me for help, having known about the stories that have been passed down through the generations about us. I was reluctant at first, but I couldn't leave them behind. It was Chicago, and the local mob was run by vampires. This woman had heavy debt, and when she couldn't pay, they took her son..." You shake your head. "It wasn't easy, and it wasn't pleasant, but I couldn't tell her no."
"What happened?" He asks as he leans up against the railing.
"They had already murdered him by the time she had found me," you mutter, the memory not sitting well in your mind. "She just didn't know. I found him after blowing through where they were holding him."
A pained look comes across his face as he takes a sharp breath. "I'm sorry."
"I still hear her screams when it's too silent," you whisper as you look down at the item you pulled out of your bag. "I can't let that happen this time."
His eyes follow yours and fall onto the letter you're holding, still sealed as it was a year ago. "You never read that?" He asks, surprised.
"I couldn't bring myself to read his words after having not heard anything kind for so long." You stare at the envelope. "I know I took the blame for your father coming, but he should have known that I would have never done something like that, even if I had told him it was an accident. The fact that he even thought that I could, that I was telling him the truth, hurts more than anything else."
"Y/N, my brother is a complicated man, to say the least. Read the letter, alright? It might bring some clarity to the dark cloud that haunts your mind. I'll see you inside."
You nod as he goes back in, leaving you alone in your silence. With the sounds of the city bustling in the background, you look out across the river. You've fought for your current home for so long now, you've forgotten what it feels like to be back to the first place you had called home in many, many, many years. Your fingertips pop the wax seal and pull out the tan-colored pages. With the light of the fading sunset, you begin reading.
"My dearest Y/N, please forgive me for putting these words onto paper instead of speaking them in person. I fear I wouldn't be able to get them out properly, and the sight of me would cause you more pain. The last thing I want is to be hated more by you than I already am.
I'm not sure where to begin, my list is long with things that I need to say to you. Surely, some of it is me rambling, but there are important things that you need to know. Important things that I should have come to you and said years ago. Firstly, I need to apologize for what I've done to you. I will never deserve your forgiveness, and that is something I never expect to receive. Even so, I still need to say how much I hate the things I've put you through over the years, even before that night. I know I was never an easy man to love, and I thank you for never giving up on me when everyone else but Elijah had. Your support and love were the most important things in my life, and they still are, in a way. Over the years, my life has changed. I've changed. I know I've changed. I'm not the man you knew, I'm no longer the man I was when I had you. I don't believe he will ever come back, not without your love in my life.
I know the way I handled things that night was wrong. I know blaming you was wrong, and I know believing you was the worse of it all. I should have known you would have never betrayed me like that, or the family. What Rebekah did is, and will always be inexcusable. The fact alone that she and Marcel went years letting you suffer when all they had to do was tell the truth makes me even angrier. I know you were protecting those who you helped raised, you were being an honorable motherly figure to them, and I will always respect the love you have and had for them. I wish things could have been different then, but it's so far in the past now, there's no healing what's been broken. I should have simply listened to you that night, but knowing that Mikael was coming, I lost all sight. The rage and betrail I felt was unlike anything I had ever experienced, and I've yet to feel that way about anything ever since. Y/N, you were the greatest thing in my life. You always will be, besides my daughter, Hope. Yes, I have a daughter. She is a miracle, and she is the sunshine of my days. She's only a few months old, but she's already brought me more joy than I've felt in years. Her mother and I had no relations between us. It was all done behind my back, in an act of evil towards my name. I've faced many enemies since returning back here, and one thought it would be wise getting a werewolf pregnant with my DNA so I would be forced out of the city in return for my child. Naturally, their plan didn't work, and now I have a beautiful daughter. Her mother is no longer in the picture, it's just me and Hope. I know you would love her if you met her... I know how you used to speak of wanting a family. I'm so sorry I never could give that to you. I'm so sorry for what my family put you through, for my mother's actions. I do hope one day that you and my little girl can meet and she can finally see the woman in all of my paintings, in person.
I know I was horrible to you. I know you hate me. I need you to know this, though, because if I don't tell you in this letter, you will never know. I kept you so far away for many different reasons, but one of those main reasons is the fact that Mikael still walks this earth at this current time. There was a point in time when he was no longer amongst the living, and the story is far too long to write it. He had threatened to find you and kill you so many times, my only option was to act as if I didn't care. As if I had no love, no regrets, no compassion towards you. I needed you to hate me, so I could hate you. As time went on, I even began convincing myself that I had no mercy left towards you. I was so deep in my darkness, that I lost all sight of light. I know that what I did to you was horrible, but I would have never let you die down there. I needed everyone to know I didn't care. I even believed I didn't care. I did, though, which is why I'm writing you this. Even if the truth hadn't come out, I still would have never let you died down there. My father breathes down my neck constantly. One slip on my behave and he would have killed you. I needed to make it believable. I needed to hurt you in order to protect you, and for that, I'm so sorry.
I understand if you read this, and then burn it. I know what I've done, and I walk with it every day. There's not one single day where you don't cross my mind at some point. Things pop up all the time that remind me of you. Wildflowers, honey in my tea, the sound of the birds singing in the morning. I know how much you loved hearing them. You walk with me everywhere I go, be it a reminder, or the love I still have for you gripping to whatever soul I have left. You will be my one and only love, always and forever.
Yours,
~Niklaus"
Folding the pages back up, you clamp down on your bottom lip as the tears stream down your cheeks. God, he's such a pain in your side. If you don't love him, you hate him. If you don't hate him, you love him. It's a never-ending cycle. The thought of anything ever happening to him rips your heart out, though. Perhaps, you have done the same thing to him as he did to you. If you tell yourself you don't care long enough, you will begin to believe it. The truth of the matter is, you would take him back in a heartbeat. A family... The thought is foreign to you. You knew Nik has a daughter because Elijah told you, you never knew he wrote about her in the letter. He trusted you with the most precious information he had. That alone makes your desperation to find him that much stronger. I'm coming for you.
Elijah's words ring through your mind as you stand from the step and go back inside. The thought that Nik's mind could be damaged is terrifying. Every nerve in your body and mind is in overdrive right now. Don't freak out... Taking in as deep of a breath as you can get, you rejoin the others. I'm not giving up.
As the hour approaches, the night has grown colder and colder. It's the middle of winter, and it's hitting hard this year. Slinging your bag into the back of Lance's car, you take your separate ways. You know Elijah and Marcel are going to be alright if they can just find some common ground to stand on long enough for them to work together. They've never really seen eye-to-eye, but they have both sworn to protect Hope. That includes the only parent she has left in her life. It breaks your heart, especially knowing what you went through as a child. The last thing you ever want is to see her father taken away from her.
The ride is silent. Everyone's minds are still spinning at how quickly things have plummeted downhill. Yesterday, things seemed fine. Today, you've got a small army of good trying to defeat the big army of bad. "I don't think I'm going to be able to make it to our coffee date tomorrow," you mutter as you stare out the window.
"If we survive long enough, we'll have to reschedule," Lance mutters back.
"I hope you know you didn't have to do this." Looking away from the window, you turn towards him. "I love that you're here, but you didn't have to risk this."
"Please, Y/N, I'd follow you into hell if you asked me to. That's what friends are for. Besides, I'm your second in command, I'm supposed to follow you through these suicide missions."
You scoff lightly. "So much for positive thinking, huh?"
"I'm just saying," he teases. "I've seen you at work before, protecting those around you. Things are going to be fine, I'm sure."
"We can certainly hope..." You turn your head back and stare out the window once more. Everyone who is coming out has taken separate routes. You've done everything in both of your powers to keep this as hidden as possible. One wrong move and the gig is up. That's something you can't risk.
The darkness of the night has grown since entering the forest. Parking a few miles away, you speed to the place of attack, parting ways with Lance after grabbing your bag. What he has to do can be done from a distance and his safety out here is just as important to you as everyone's, if not more. As others show up, you run through things one more time. "I can't have anyone dying on me tonight, alright? You follow the plan, and if something goes wrong, you book it for the hills. The deaths have to be quick, we can't have anyone making any phone calls for backup. Surely, at some point, someone will come looking for them when they don't show up at the drop-off location. That's why it's so important to make it look like everyone just disappeared. I don't want any bodies, I don't want any blood spilled, and I certainly don't want the scent of it around. If you're ready, take your positions and get yourself prepared. You've got roughly ten minutes. Good luck to everyone, and thank you for what you're doing tonight. I will forever be in your debt." Standing alone in the dense brush, you close your eyes for a moment, trying to slow your heartbeat which is racing a mile a minute. You bring Nik into the front of your mind, trying to see him in your mind's eye. There was always a mental connection between the both of you, which always helped if one or the other was in trouble. It's why you've felt so off lately. "Stay with me a little longer, alright? I'm coming for you," you think quietly to yourself. As you open your eyes, they shift to gold. Slowly, you ease yourself out of your clothes and place them in the bag, zipping it up tightly before starting to walk down the road. Craning your neck side to side, you stretch your muscles out, trying to relieve the ever-growing tension. "I'm coming for you." In the distance, you can hear the fleet hauling down the pavement. As you step out into the pavement, you feel your bones begin to shift. It's been years since you last changed. You begin walking forward, down the road, towards the oncoming SUVs. Your walk becomes quicker, and quicker, picking up at the same pace as they're coming down the road. Head on. Your jog becomes a solid run as headlights begin to shine from the horizon. Head fucking on. The second they're close enough, you leap forward and transform mid-air, landing down on the hood of the first SUV, going right through the windshield and ripping the driver to shreds. The SUV quickly goes out of control as wooden bullets start flying through the air, piercing your fur. Seeing as they won't kill you, you take as many hits as you can so the others won't have to. You can't feel the pain of anything yet, though. You're too focused on the task. You take out the man in the passenger seat before jumping to the second SUV, taking out the driver first, causing it to plow into the rear end of the other vehicle. Your main objective is to get everyone stopped. The moment the third SUV hits the second one and comes to a stop, everyone comes out of the woods and begin tearing everything apart. Quickly, you jump off the hood of the second SUV and shift back, whimpering from all the lacerations riddling your entire body. Going around the back, you shove the other car off of the rear and rip the doors open, freezing in your tracks. Nik...