Alexandria strolled into Darcy's apartment with a skip in her step. As she walked into the dining area, Darcy paused what she was doing to find Alexandria happily eating some pastries that were left on the table.
Darcy looked at her strangely and approached the hybrid cautiously. "I assume it's done?" she said slowly as she leaned on one of the chairs.
Alexandria looked up and quickly swallowed her bite. "Yeah! It went great. His ashes are scattered over some abandoned warehouse," Alexandria beamed.
Darcy's mouth fell slightly agape and was left at a loss for words. Of all things, she didn't expect the hybrid to be so cheery. The witch knew that while she did come to Manhattan for that sole purpose, but seeing Alexandria so unbothered made her feel disturbed in a way.
Alexandria lit up as she remembered something. "Oh, right. Before I forget, I'm gonna need a location of The Syndicate's hangout spot. I remembered one of your contacts mentioned before."
The witch narrowed her eyes. "You told me that you only wanted Travis. And I agreed that was all I was gonna help you with. Our deal ended the moment you killed him," she reminded her. The last thing that Darcy wanted was more ties to the hybrid.
"Well, it seems we're going to have to negotiate a new one. I thought you of all people would be willing to give me it," the hybrid voiced aloud as she finished off her food. Alexandria flashed a smile before she moved towards the kitchen to wash her hands.
Darcy ignored her previous comment and crossed her arms over her chest. "What happened with Travis?" she asked as she unconsciously took a step back from the hybrid.
"The details aren't important. What is important though, is that I get that location before I get impatient," Alexandria spoke vaguely as she eyed the knife holder sitting in front of her.
Alexandria heard a scoff from behind her and the hybrid then took one of the knives out. She held it in her hands and saw how the light reflected off the metal. The Sinclair lightly ran a finger across the blade and noted how it looked as though it hadn't been sharpened in a while.
Darcy shook her head, about to refuse, but before she could even utter a single word, Alexandria threw the knife towards the witch. The kitchen knife landed right next to Darcy's face, skimming her cheek. She flinched as her eyes widened, now seeing the knife in the corner of her eye, lodged right in the wall. She let out a shaky breath and slowly brought her hand up to her cheek to feel a small trickle of blood. As the witch's eyes went back to the hybrid, she saw how she looked proud of herself.
"Huh, I've got pretty good aim," she commented as she reached behind her to grab another kitchen knife.
Darcy kept her back pressed against the wall and slowly shuffled away from the knife next to her. But she immediately froze in her spot as Alexandria raised the knife threateningly, lining up her shot like she was carrying a dart, and Darcy was the board.
"You turned it off..." Darcy voiced quietly and Alexandria gave a toothy smile.
The hybrid placed the knife on the kitchen island before moving closer to Darcy, her hands clasped in front of her. "I'm gonna need that address now," she whispered as she took the knife from the wall and held the tip under the witch's neck.
~ * ~
It didn't take long till the Sinclair was able to find the address that Darcy had given her. Located on the outskirts of the city, in a more secluded and quiet area. Alexandria walked down an alleyway to find a single door. Several scratches going up and down the metal.
As she approached the door, she heard a single heartbeat standing on the other side of it and a handful of more distant voices. She lightly knocked on the door and a small slider on the door moved to the side, allowing for a set of dark eyes to look through.
"Who are you?" the man's voice was rough and raspy like he smoked frequently.
Alexandria held her hands behind her back. "You wouldn't happen to be The Syndicate would you?" the hybrid got straight to the point.
The man stayed silent for a moment before he narrowed his eyes. "No. Go home, kid," he responded and shut the slider.
Although, Alexandria's heard the slightest change in his heart rate. She had almost missed it. The hybrid sighed and let her hands fall to her sides.
Bringing a leg up, she forcefully kicked the door open. The man gasped and jumped back, surprise written all over his face as he stared at the girl. "What the fuck?!"
With the door wide open, Alexandria was able to see the man fully, standing a few feet in front of some stairs and leading down to a room below. Her interest was piqued and she looked back to the man, several tattoos over his neck and a few being hidden behind his long hair. He wore a vest which displayed his fully tattooed arms, but her attention was drawn to the one on his shoulder. The Syndicate's tattoo.
The hybrid's eyes went back to his and she plastered a fake smile. "If you don't mind... I'm just gonna pop down there real quick and say 'hi' to your friends," she announced and the man frantically shook his head.
"You can't–"
Alexandria immediately shut him up by grabbing the back of his head and slamming it into the wall next to him, knocking him out completely. Before he could fall forward, Alexandria grabbed the collar of his vest and instead pushed him down the stairs.
The unconscious man went tumbling down the stairs fast but Alexandria took her time, leisurely following and walking down the steps. As the unconscious man made it to the end, the conversations of those in the room halted, startled as ever as they stared at their friend sprawled out on the floor.
When Alexandria caught up, she stopped just before she hit the bottom of the steps and looked around the room. The Syndicate's hangout spot was an old rustic looking bar. She counted seven people, excluding the one passed out on the floor. Men and women scattered around the room. What caused irritation to swell up in her, was the fact that she recognised some of these people. They were the same exact people who were a part of the massacre.
As they all spotted the intruder, they were all thrown on high alert and grabbed their handheld weapons. Guns and knives were drawn at the sight of Alexandria standing over their unconscious friend.
"Who the fuck are you?!" a man with slicked-back hair spat as he stood up from the bar, holding his knife threateningly at Alexandria.
The hybrid almost laughed at the small knife.
"Holy shit, is he even alive?" another man who wore a dark hoodie mumbled as he continued to stare at his friend, barely even acknowledging Alexandria.
The hybrid walked down to level with the rest of the group and stepped over the unconscious man. Alexandria went to walk further into a room and she immediately spotted a wolf head mounted on the wall. Before she could step any further, one of the women stood up, gun drawn. The woman slowly made her way to Alexandria till she was standing a few feet away from her, the weapon pointing directly at her heart.
"Don't make another move or I'll shoot," the woman threatened lowly.
Alexandria smiled and lazily raised her hands. The man wearing the dark hoodie finally managed to peel his eyes away from the body on the floor to look at Alexandria.
But when he did, he let out an audible gasp that caught the attention of a few others in the room. "Shit, she's the wolf that escaped. The one that killed Isaac and his guys," he reminded the others and they all looked back at Alexandria, trying to comprehend how she was the one who killed three well trained men.
Alexandria's smile grew wider. "Guilty," she answered them with a shrug.
The woman's eyes widened as she realised. "I remember seeing you," she chided and her grip on the gun grew tighter. "Isaac was a good man. Paul and Felix? The other two guys you killed? They were my friends," her voice became shaky and tears welled up in her eyes.
Alexandria burst out laughing at the statement, unable to contain herself, but the group remained silent as they held their weapons up at the girl. "S-sorry, sorry. I couldn't help myself. It was a funny joke," Alexandria raised a hand over her mouth to stifle her laughs.
As soon as she calmed down, she took a deep breath and saw the woman in front of her unamused. "Oh my, you massacre innocent people and you think you're saints," she scoffed. "What about all the people you killed? Were they not good people– oh, right. Sorry, you were too busy sticking arrows into their bodies to get to know them. Kind of skipped a few steps," Alexandria sassed with a smile as she imagined the many ways she could kill them.
"Talking to people helps you get to know them. See, like this, my name is Alex," she introduced herself with a wide smile and placed a hand over her chest. "I'm a very angry hybrid who is going to brutally slaughter you all," Alexandria said in a cheery tone and the woman just scoffed.
"Hybrid?" the woman said with disbelief but shook her head. "Doesn't matter. I'm going to finish what they started," the woman vowed and started to squeeze the trigger.
But before she could press down hard enough, Alexandria used her vampiric speed to reach out to her wrist and point it in another direction. A loud bang went off and a body crashed to the ground soon after. The woman gasped as she realised that Alexandria had made her do. The bullet that was meant for her, went to another Syndicate member. Landing right in the base of his neck. The few people around surrounded him, rushed to his aid and tried to stop the bleeding, although blood quickly went up his throat and he began choking on the crimson liquid.
"What the fuck have you done?" the woman next to him exclaimed. "Fuck, keep pressure on it!"
Alexandria's eyes never left the woman. The woman shuddered as she pulled her eyes away from the scene. "Tsk. It's okay, some people just aren't the social type. Let's try again. I introduced myself, what's your name?" Alexandria cocked her head to the side, almost menacingly.
The woman was too in shock to say anything or make another move. Another Syndicate member snarled and charged at Alexandria, but she quickly caught them by the neck before they could do anything else, all without pulling her eyes away from the woman in front of her.
Alexandria rolled her eyes and looked at the person she had caught. A man with short and curly brown hair, weakly clutching a knife in one hand while his other pried at Alexandria's. Although, Alexandria clasped her hand tighter around his neck till a loud crunch was heard.
The man's head lulled to the side and his eyes shut. The woman gasped and staggered back as Alexandria threw his body across the room.
The other Syndicate members sprung into action. Guns fired, but Alexandria was too quick for them. She vamped behind one of the members, one hand grabbing their neck, the other gripping their hair at the top of their head. In one swift motion, she ripped the Syndicate member's head clean from their body. Blood splattered across her face but she paid it no mind and vamped to the next person. The hybrid sunk her teeth into their neck, greedily taking blood before she bit down harder. The Syndicate member shouted and wailed but Alexandria only pulled back, ripping out a chunk of their skin with nothing but her teeth before she snapped their neck.
But before she could make her next move, a series of bullets pierced her front. Each making a deafening bang. The hybrid hunched over slightly and looked down to her stomach to see the bullet holes. Alexandria groaned and lifted her head to see the first woman who drew her gun at her finally doing something.
The hybrid vamped over to her and she attempted to shoot another bullet, but Alexandria grabbed her wrist and pointed the gun to the ceiling. The woman trembled and struggled under Alexandria's grip. With her free hand, Alexandria grabbed an empty beer bottle next to her. She smashed it against the table and using the broken bottle, she shoved it into the woman's stomach. The woman's breath got caught in her throat as blood pooled out of her stomach.
Alexandria smiled as she let her go but before she fell to the ground, she grabbed a knife that was sitting at her waist.
As the woman fell, Alexandria winced as she felt another bullet pierce her arm. Her eyes went to the culprit and found the worker standing behind the bar. Alexandria heard someone breaking a chair behind her and charging at her. As she saw the bartender pull the trigger again, she sped out of the way. The bullet landed in the chest of the woman that was previously behind her. The woman's face fell and she dropped the makeshift stake that she was holding before she collapsed onto the ground.
The bartender dropped the gun in fear and attempted to make a break for it but Alexandria used the knife she was holding and chucked it at them. The knife landed right in the back of his head and he fell to the ground.
The room was finally quiet as Alexandria looked around, she saw no one left standing beside her. The only heartbeat was the unconscious man she threw down the stairs earlier.
Alexandria winced as she still felt pain in her torso. She lifted her shirt to see that a few of the bullet wounds had completely healed, although there were a few that had yet to follow and only had blood dripping down. Alexandria rolled her eyes and she could practically feel the bullet still inside her body.
She decided to use the time and went over to the dead bartender to pull the knife out of the back of his head. The hybrid cleaned the knife thoroughly before she found a mirror. As she looked at herself, she saw blood splattered across her clothes, hands and mouth bloodied. The image, while horrifying to any other person, didn't faze Alexandria one bit. She held her t-shirt up with her teeth as she used the knife to dig into her own skin and pull out the shrapnel still in her body.
After an uncomfortable few minutes, Alexandria successfully removed all the shrapnel out of her body. She made an effort to tidy herself up, washing the blood off her mouth and hands. But she noted to herself that she would have to get new clothes as they had been damaged and dirtied beyond saving.
Alexandria then climbed over the bar and sat on the counter, twirling the knife in her hand as she waited for the man to wake up.
Only a minute later and the man started to stir his unconscious state. Delirious and disorientated, it took a couple of seconds to realise just what he had come back to. But when he did, his eyes shot wide open, letting out a high-pitched shrill as he scrambled away from the several bodies lying around him. The bodies of his friends.
Blood was splattered across the walls and seeped into the wooden floor panels. His heart began racing and pounding against his ribcage. The man began hyperventilating and he crawled back till his back hit a wall. His eyes frantically darted across the floor, seeing each of his friends lifeless.
His gaze soon shifted to the figure sitting on the countertop of the bar. His body began to shake from fear as he looked at the hybrid, a sinister grin on her face as she played with the knife in her hands.
"Welcome back. I was waiting for you to wake up. Your reaction was definitely worth the wait," Alexandria chuckled as she jumped down from the counter. She began stalking towards him and the man pushed himself up further into the wall and looked away in fear.
Alexandria gripped his chin and forced him to look at her. "Tell me, are there any more of you? Any other Syndicate members I should be worried about?" she compelled him as she stared directly into his eyes.
The man, unable to resist the compulsion, felt the words rise up in his throat and out of his mouth against his own will. "N-No. The only others were the people who died in Maine," he answered.
Alexandria smiled, although slightly disappointed that her hunt had come to an end. "Good. But... fun's over. I'm feeling quite thirsty, actually. I'm sure you can help me with that," Alexandria snickered as she grabbed him by the collar and sank her teeth into his neck. The man screamed and squirmed under her grip but Alexandria listened to them gleefully as she drained him dry.
The man's heart stopped as too much blood was taken from his body and she soon let his body drop to the floor. The hybrid wiped her mouth messily and then moved back over to the bar.
Jumping over, she searched the area and found a pack of cigarettes behind the counter which probably belonged to the bartender. She immediately chucked the cigarettes behind her and rummaged through the counter. Alexandria soon found a zippo lighter and she took it eagerly. Afterwards, she took a couple of bottles from the shelf behind her and began dousing the room with alcohol. Once she had discarded a handful of bottles, she went back to the steps with the lighter in hand.
Without a second thought, she lit it and dropped it on the floor. Fire immediately went ablaze and spread throughout the room. Heat engulfed her and she took in the sight. Just before the flames got too out of control, Alexandria walked out of the bar, leaving the burning building with a smile on her face.
~ * ~
Three months. She learned that three months she spent trapped in an endless void of nothing. Trying to make peace with the fact that she would never get to see the light of day. Never get to feel the air brush against her skin. Never get to hear the voices of those she loved. Never again. But after returning to Mystic Falls, the tribrid learned that her sacrifice amounted to that of what she saw in the pit. Nothing.
But even so, Hope's first thought when escaping Malivore wasn't anything remotely related to it. Her first instinct had led her all the way back to the Salvatore School. Her home. To someone that remained a constant thought throughout her three months of nothingness.
Hope thought that she would never get to see the gates of the Salvatore School and she let herself feel relieved. But she soon learned that it was a mistake to even let the thought cross her mind.
The gates had opened automatically to let a car drive out but it had stopped seeing the girl in the driveway.
"I didn't see you, are you okay?" the man apologised as he got out to check on the girl.
"Yeah, Dorian, I'm okay," she responded with a soft smile but Dorian was left silent and confused.
He faltered slightly, narrowing his eyes as he wondered if it was just his inability to see in the dark. But as he got a better look at the girl, nothing came to mind. "Glad to hear it, but... how did you know my name?"
Hope's face fell and her heart dropped to her stomach. "Your parking pass," she answered as she glanced over to his car, her jaw clenching.
Dorian looked back and saw the parking pass displayed in the window. "Always hated that picture," he joked. "What brings you out here tonight?"
Hope thought of an excuse as her gaze drifted to the school behind him, but she ended up telling the truth. "A girl."
Dorian paused for a second. "Well, we're all locked up in there. Everyone's gone for the summer," he told the girl and her lips pressed into a thin line as she nodded.
"Okay... thanks. Uh– sorry to bother you," she apologised and started walking away.
Dorian was suspicious of the girl but said nothing as he got into his car to drive away.
Just as his car passed, Hope stopped in her tracks, looking back towards the school. Her heart broke knowing that while she was free, the effects of Malivore were still in place. But she couldn't just leave. Hope couldn't leave, she wouldn't leave without knowing if she was alright.
So, Hope went back towards the gate and entered the code on the keypad. The gates opened and she waltzed into the school without any issue.
Hope practically ran towards her room. Being muscle memory at that point. But as the tribrid stood outside her door, she saw no light coming from under it and she hesitated. Her hand hovered over the doorknob and she wondered if it would only hurt her in the long run.
But she pushed down any doubt in her mind. Hope knew it was stupid, she wasn't thinking straight, wasn't thinking clearly. But she needed to see her.
She turned the doorknob slowly and when she pushed the door open. Hope flicked on the light and saw that everything was in its place.
But Alexandria wasn't there.
Hope moved towards Alexandria's desk to find it neat and tidy. Every small trinket was in its spot on her desk, but what caught her attention was the dust collecting on the wooden surface.
She walked to the Sinclair's wardrobe and when she opened it, she noticed that it was still full of clothes. It looked as though barely anything had been taken from it. Her eyes landed on the familiar green hoodie. The same one that Alexandria had lent her all that time ago when they went to find Landon. She took it off its hanger and brought it closer to her face. Engulfing the woody tones she recognised belonged to Alexandria.
Her eyes widened slightly and her hands fell down, clutching the hoodie and her head fell to the wooden closet door. Scrunching her eyes, she thought about how pitiful she was being, and the idiot she must've looked like. "This is so pathetic..." Hope mumbled to herself as she held the hoodie close to her chest.
"What are you doing here?"
Hope jumped at the voice and saw Pedro by the door. Sleepily rubbing his eyes.
"Uh– sorry. I was just looking for Alex. We, uh– I'm a friend from her old school and we agreed to meet up for summer break. Have you seen her?
Pedro, as innocent as a child could be and barely awake, thought nothing suspicious of the mysterious girl. He thought he was dreaming. But his face turned grim. "She left..." he told her and Hope narrowed her eyes. "Alex left before summer break but um... no one's heard from her for a while."
"Oh... thank you," she mumbled and the boy soon sluggishly walked off.
~ * ~
After collecting some things from the school, Hope was determined to find Alexandria. No matter how many locator spells she did, it came up with nothing. She came to the conclusion that Alexandria was being cloaked by someone.
But as she sat at the bus stop, she wondered what she was doing. She wondered what she would gain, what she would do if she ever found her. No one in the world knew the name Hope Mikaelson, so it would mean nothing to Alexandria Sinclair.
Hope placed the prism next to her and leaned her head back. The cold on her skin left a bitter feeling stirring in her stomach. As she stared into the empty road, with nothing but a lamppost provided the area with light. She felt empty.
"Hi, there."
Hope sat up straighter and moved her head to the side to see none other than Alexandria Sinclair. "Alex..." the tribrid felt a moment of comfort as she looked at her.
Hope's mouth curved up into a smile, teeth peering through her lips. Alexandria leaned on the post of the bus stop with her arms across her chest, a small but sweet smile as she looked back at the tribrid.
The last time she ever saw Alexandria, she was lying dead in her arms. During those three months, trapped in Malivore, that image haunted her. But seeing Alexandria standing in front of her, a smile plastered on her face, for a second it made her forget.
"I really needed to see you," Hope spoke quietly, a frown taking over as she remembered that she wasn't real.
Alexandria sighed seeing the crestfallen expression and moved to sit next to Hope. "And here I am. So, what did you wanna talk about?"
Hope leaned back, her eyes going to the crystal between them both. A reminder for the Mikaelson that she was nothing but an illusion.
Her gaze then moved to Alexandria, going over her features and eventually settled on her eyes. "I missed your eyes..." she whispered, mesmerized by the clash of brown and green that always reminded her of the forest. Fitting, seeing as she was a werewolf.
"You're getting soft on me, Hope," Alexandria teased.
Hope's stomach churned thinking about the last time she saw her. She was a werewolf, but she was also a vampire now. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. "I'm so sorry... I should've never left you. If I just stayed... I could've helped you... I could've– I could've done something. It's my fault you're a hybrid," Hope pulled her eyes away from Alexandria as she tugged on the sleeves of her jacket.
"It's not your fault I died. You saved me, Hope," Alexandria voiced.
Hope briefly looked at Alexandria. The illusion was so convincing to her and she wanted nothing more than to just reach out and collapse into her arms. The way she spoke in first person as if she wasn't just her subconscious.
"I didn't though. You died, in my arms... and I couldn't do anything to stop it," Hope mumbled.
Alexandria shifted in her spot so her body fully faced the tribrid. "You did everything that you could've done in that moment," Alexandria told her softly and let the silence linger before she changed the subject. "You know that I wouldn't want you to leave without telling everyone your back. Our friends."
Hope's gaze fell to her lap. "But you're not even here," she said in a whisper, her voice breaking just a bit.
"I could be halfway across the country or I could be on the other side of the world. You figured it out yourself that you've been gone for three months," Alexandria reminded her.
Hope shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I have to try," the Mikaelson remained persistent, her eyes glancing over to the bag she had packed.
"You have a whole team that would back you up on this. 'Super Squad assemble' and all that crap," Alexandria attempted to joke and Hope gave a weak smile.
"Had," she corrected bitterly as she let her head fall back to the surface behind her.
Alexandria frowned hearing how dejected she sounded. "Well, you would have them if you told them," the Sinclair argued.
Hope let out a heavy sigh. "Dorian looked at me like I was crazy when I ran into him. Pedro thought I was some kind of ghost. And you know Josie and Landon have become friends? They seem happier than ever."
"Josie and Landon? Wow, really?" Alexandria said with disbelief. "Jo wouldn't be able to keep up with the amount of pop culture references that mop head spouts," she joked, earning a small laugh from Hope, but she soon fell quiet.
Alexandria frowned. The manifestation of Hope's subconscious in the form of Alexandria, frowned. And because of that, the Alexandria sitting next to Hope knew the exact second when the girl's mood turned foul.
"Sorry. Just trying to make you laugh," Alexandria said quietly.
Hope gave her a weak smile as she thought. She only spoke again after a few moments of silence. "I made a promise to your brother."
Alexandria dragged out her breath. "Even if I did know that, I wouldn't want you to just pack up and leave. This is your home, Hope. You can't just give up on that," Alexandria paused, but there was no response.
Hope turned her head to look at Alexandria once more. "It's not like I'm planning on leaving permanently."
Alexandria's lips formed a line. "There's no use in lying to me, Hope..."
Hope pulled her eyes away to look at the empty road. She blinked away the oncoming tears and crossed her arms over her stomach. "Could you leave me... for a minute? I don't really wanna cry in front of you, even if you're not even real," Hope turned her head away from Alexandria and shut her eyes.
Hope let a few seconds pass and held back her tears. As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw that Alexandria had disappeared. With nothing but the crystal lying next to her, she allowed the tears to freely fall down her face.