Holidays Are for Family
Chapter 1: A Not So Jolly Holiday Party
Summary: Christmas finds the entirety of the Mikaelson clan gathering in New Orleans for Christmas. Things aren't quite as jolly and happy as they should be.
Disclaimer: I don't own The Vampire Diaries, The Originals or Legacies.
Family had always been important to the Mikaelson siblings. For a millennium, it had been varying on who was awake and together, but even when Klaus had his siblings daggered and in coffins, they were kept close by. But everyone was finally alive and well, and the threat of the daggers didn't hang over Finn, Elijah, Kol and Rebekah's heads nearly as much or as often as it used to. They had their niece to thank for that. At least for the most part. The rest of it was because everyone in the family had found the one person that they couldn't live without, and everyone was happy at the same time. Something that had never happened in all the years that the Mikaelsons had been roaming the earth.
Klaus had finally gotten together with Caroline Forbes, was surprisingly okay with the fact that she had carried Alaric Saltzman's twin daughters and had raised them as her own. Klaus even saw Josie and Lizzie as his surrogate daughters. Rebekah had reconnected with Stefan Salvatore, and the two were going strong. Elijah finally admitted his feelings for Elena Gilbert, and she had responded with admitting her own feelings. They were now engaged, and the family had, after some time and convincing from Elijah, accepted Elena into the family. Kol had met Davina Claire, reformed his homicidal tendencies and the two were married. Finn had taken some time to get acquainted with the 21st century and then had gone out to find his true love, Sage, and upon finding her, had immediately asked her to marry him, and the two were going on 3 years of marriage.
During all of that, the eldest Mikaelson siblings, Freya, had broken out of the curse that their aunt Dahlia had placed her under, sleeping for 99 years and being awake for 1 year before going back to sleep for another 99 years. The cycle had repeated for the past millennium, and Freya was thankful to be free of that and to be with the family that she had been taken away from as a child. She had even found a girlfriend, Keelin, and they were happy together. And on top of the Mikaelson siblings all being reunited, but before Klaus had gotten together with Caroline, he had had a one night stand with Hayley Marshall, resulting in Hayley getting pregnant with Klaus' child. It hadn't been thought possible, but when it was revealed that it was Klaus' werewolf side that could still reproduce, given that Hayley was also a werewolf, due to him having been born with the gene, Hayley and the baby were brought into the family and protected against any outside threats.
And while Klaus and Hayley co-parented their daughter Hope, they had quickly figured out that they weren't meant to be more than friends. Even now with Klaus being with Caroline, Hayley being in her own separate relationship with fellow werewolf, Jackson, and Hope being a teenager, Hayley was still considered to be part of the family. So when the first Christmas came around where everyone was happy, Klaus and Caroline had invited everyone down to New Orleans for the holidays. To say it was a full house, and very loud would be an understatement. Not only was it Klaus, Caroline and Hope, but Freya and Keelin; Finn and Sage; Elijah and Elena; Kol and Davina; Rebekah and Stefan; Alaric, Josie and Lizzie; Hayley and Jackson. 18 people, all of whom were a supernatural being of some kind. But even with 17 other people in the house, Hope felt alone.
Her mother was preoccupied with Jackson, her father was preoccupied with Caroline and the twins, and her aunts and uncles were all talking to their significant others. But it was right when Hope thought she would be able to slip away without being detected that Alaric stepped in her path and blocked her escape route. Raising an eyebrow at him, Hope went to sidestep around him, but Alaric anticipated her movement and blocked her path again.
"You're in my way." Hope said.
"I'm aware. But something is about to happen, and I think your father would very much want you to be present for it." Alaric replied lightly placing his hands on her shoulders and turning her back around.
"And how exactly do you know that something's about to happen?" Hope asked, reluctantly letting him guide her back towards the rest of her family.
"Because he asked for my blessing... and asked for my advice." Alaric replied.
Hope rolled her eyes at his vagueness. A guy asking for an older guy's blessing meant one thing. Her father was planning on asking Caroline to marry him. It was already twisted enough that the woman that was almost her aunt was the step-sister of her surrogate sisters, making her surrogate sisters her soon to be step-aunts, through marriage, and just trying to sort out all of the family relations was making Hope's head hurt. Dropping herself into a chair, Hope rested her chin in her hands and stared off into space until and hand came to rest on her shoulder. Glancing up, she attempted a smile in response to the one Elena was giving her.
"Are you okay, Hope?" Elena asked.
"I have a headache growing, and Alaric insists that I stay here because my father asked for Alaric's blessing and advice on something. Something that my father apparently wants me present for." Hope replied sullenly.
"You feel left out." Elena surmised.
"Yes. It's Christmas, I get that one of the main things about Christmas is being with family. And I love everyone here, really, I do. But at the same time, my parents have seemingly ignored my existence all night." Hope replied, quickly blinking back the tears that were threatening to spill down her cheeks.
"Have you tried going to them?" Elena asked.
"No. But look at them. Mom is so wrapped up in whatever Jackson is saying, that it's like she's oblivious to everything else that's happening in the room. And Dad is talking to the twins, probably asking them to help him propose to Caroline. It's like I'm not even here." Hope said.
"You know that's not true, Hope." Elijah said as he came over and sat on the arm rest of the chair that Hope was sitting in before pulling Elena towards him.
"Can't I just go up to my room?" Hope asked, looking wishful up at her uncle.
"You might think that you're parents are acting like you aren't here, but as soon as you leave the room, they will both wonder where you went." Elijah explained.
"Yeah, right." Hope said with a humorless laugh. "We could test that theory. See how long it takes them to realize I'm not here." She suggested.
"Hope..." Elijah said warningly.
"She makes a good point, Elijah." Elena said.
"You two are the second and third person who have talked to me since everyone showed up. Tell me how that translates to anything other than my existence here tonight being ignored, Uncle Elijah." Hope challenged.
"I'm sure that's not true." Elijah countered.
"It is. I got the basic greetings as everyone showed up, and then nothing until I tried to leave, and Alaric stopped me." Hope said with a huff.
"Not even the twins?" Elijah asked.
"Not even the twins. As soon as they got here with Alaric, they went straight to Dad and Caroline and have been with them ever since." Hope replied with a frown.
"If you two ladies will excuse me for a moment..." Elijah said after placing a kiss on the top of Hope's head and on Elena's cheek.
Hope leaned into Elena's side as the older woman took Elijah's spot on the arm rest and put her arm around the young tribrid's shoulders. The pair of them watched as Elijah made a beeline for Hayley, managed to untangle her from Jackson, and then led her over to Klaus, pulling him away from Caroline and the twins before the three of them disappeared. Hot tears pricked at Hope's eyes once more and she blinked them away as best as she could, but a few of them escaped, and she quickly swiped at her cheeks. The longer that it took for Elijah to talk to Klaus and Hayley, the harder it became for Hope to keep her tears at bay, and when she started to lightly shake with silent sobs, Elena scooted Hope over and slid into the chair next to her almost niece before pulling Hope into a hug and rubbing her back. Hope couldn't help but wrap her arms around Elena and bury her face into the older woman's neck to hide her tears, but Elena didn't seem to mind. She just let Hope cry and softly whispered words of comfort.
"What the bloody hell do you mean Hope's upset?"
Klaus' words rang through the house, causing the idle chatter from the rest of the family to come to an end.
"Just that, Niklaus. You have neglected your own daughter all evening. Both of you have. She feels alone and like her absence would go unnoticed if she were to leave the party." Elijah ground out.
"That's absurd Elijah. She's our daughter, of course we would notice if she left the party." Hayley said.
"Are you sure about that Hayley? Because if it weren't for Alaric, Hope wouldn't currently be sitting in the other room, completely miserable because her own parents haven't paid her any mind." Elijah argued.
"I've had my eye on her all night, Brother. She never left the room." Klaus scoffed.
"Have you Niklaus? How many members of the family have talked to Hope since everyone got here?" Elijah challenged.
"Why kind of question is that, Elijah?" Hayley asked.
"One that will either prove Hope's version of events correct, or Niklaus' version. Your answer, Brother. How many family members have talked to your daughter since everyone got here?" Elijah repeated.
"Everyone." Klaus replied.
"Not counting when everyone showed up and said hello. Once everyone in the family was here, and everyone greeted one another before breaking off into, for all in tense and purposes, small groups, who talked to Hope?" Elijah elaborated.
"I... I don't know." Klaus replied, his anger at Elijah's accusations deflating completely.
"If you had truly been keeping an eye on her all night, you would know the correct answer. What about you, Hayley. Do you know the answer?" Elijah asked.
"No, Elijah. I don't." Hayley responded with a sigh.
"3." Elijah replied.
"Come again?" Hayley inquired.
"3 members of the family have talked to Hope. Alaric, myself and Elena. And the only reason Alaric stopped Hope from leaving the party was because you apparently asked him for his blessing on something, Niklaus?" Elijah said. "Should you not have talked to your daughter first, before moving forward with a plan to ask Caroline to marry you?" He added.
"I had no intention of asking Caroline to marry me tonight. And even if I had, it being mentioned so openly would have ruined the surprise anyway." Klaus replied quickly.
"You two are parents. While it is essential that you both have lives outside of that, and not to let being parents define who you are as individual people, you cannot let your individual lives take precedence over being their for your daughter." Elijah said before he turned and left Klaus and Hayley standing there staring at each other.
Upon returning to the living room, Elijah made his way over to where Elena was still sitting, trying to calm Hope down and lifted his niece into his arms. He whispered something to Elena and then carried Hope out of the room and upstairs to her bedroom. While he had just reprimanded Klaus and Hayley for not paying attention to Hope throughout the night, everyone in the family was guilty of ignoring her, himself included. He hated that he had done that to her. Once he placed Hope onto her bed, he sat on the edge and pushed her hair behind her ear.
"Thank you, Uncle Elijah." Hope muttered glancing up at him through red-rimmed and puffy eyes.
"Please don't thank me, Hope. I am just as much to blame for you feeling this way as your parents are." Elijah replied.
"You and Elena and Alaric at least talked to me. Sure, it was only after I had already tried to leave the party, but the three of you actually noticed something was wrong and talked to me." Hope said insistently.
"Hope, I need to ask you a question, and I need you to be honest with me with your answer." Elijah said, causing Hope to sit up and pull her knees to her chest.
"What is it, Uncle Elijah?" Hope asked.
"Do you feel like your parents are replacing you?" Elijah questioned. "And furthermore, do you feel like all of us are replacing you?" He added.
"Mom, sort of. Dad, yes. The rest of you, no." Hope said with a sigh after thinking about it for a minute. "I love Jackson, Caroline and the twins, they're all part of the family. But saying they are part of the family, but seeing Mom and Dad interact solely with them tonight, it hurt." She explained. "I mean, it's usually just me, Dad and Caroline, or me, Mom and Jackson... and it's fine. But I think in the back of Mom and Dad's minds, they figured that with the rest of the family around, they didn't have to focus their attention on me." She finished, turning her head to rest her cheek on top of her knees.
"Would you be interested in coming to stay with me and Elena for a time?" Elijah asked.
"You mean, move to Mystic Falls for a little bit?" Hope inquired.
"Yes. At least for the rest of your Winter Break. And then, at the end of the break, we can see about transferring you to Mystic Falls High." Elijah offered.
"Wouldn't that be illegal? Since you and Elena aren't my legal guardians?" Hope asked.
"If your parents neglect you, Child Protective Services could be called in." Elijah replied darkly.
"No, Uncle Elijah, they don't normal ignore me." Hope said quickly. She didn't like the thought that crossed her mind at a CPS agent or officer, or whatever they were called, showing up to the houses of a Hybrid or a Werewolf, and being mauled.
"Elijah..." Elena said from the doorway.
"If you would like to come stay with us for the rest of your break, that's up to you." Elijah said with a sigh.
"Can we leave now?" Hope asked in a small voice.
"If that's what you want, Hope." Elena said moving to the far side of Hope's bed and sitting on the edge.
"It is. I know that it won't help things to run away when things get hard, but I just don't feel at home here right now." Hope said.
"Then yes, we can leave tonight. Pack a bag, and we'll go let the others know." Elena said while leaning over to place a kiss on Hope's forehead.
Before Hope could move off of her bed, or for Elijah and Elena to leave the room, the doorway was blocked by Klaus and Hayley. Both looked upset, but neither looked angry. Hope didn't dwell on either thought and moved to grab her suitcase from her closet.
"Where are you going Hope?" Hayley asked.
"To stay with Uncle Elijah and Aunt Elena for the rest of Winter Break." Hope replied, sparing her mother only a miniscule glance over her shoulder.
"You said that you could leave?" Klaus asked, and Hope spun around, anger flashing in her eyes.
"Why does it matter? You have Caroline and the twins." Hope spat out.
"I'm not replacing you with Josie and Lizzie, Hope." Klaus said.
"Really? Because tonight sure made it look like you were." Hope replied.
"Hope, we're sorry. We never meant to ignore you tonight." Hayley said, placing a hand on Klaus' upper on to stop whatever he was about to say.
"Sorry isn't going to fix this Mom. You're happy with Jackson, Dad's happy with Caroline. I'm the tribrid freak that will never fit in with either of your lives." Hope said, her voice catching in her throat as she fought back sobs.
"You are not a freak." Klaus said, his hands clenching into fists.
"I'm the only one of my kind, Dad. And I don't see you and Mom having any other kids so that there will be others who understand what I'm going through. You were able to make other Hybrids once upon a time so that you wouldn't be the only one like you in the world. I don't have that option. I have the healing of a vampire, but I don't have the compulsion, or the ability to turn others into vampires. And I'm not even sure if I were to want a family of my own down the line, if it would even be possible." Hope said.
"We could figure something out..." Hayley tried.
"There's nothing to figure out, Mom! I will always be the only tribrid in the world. But at least if I go to stay with Elijah and Elena for a couple weeks, I won't feel like an afterthought to my own parents." Hope snapped, turning into Elijah's chest as her uncle moved to pull her into a hug.
"I think the party if over, Niklaus. Elena and I will take Hope to Mystic Falls for a couple weeks so that she can see where her family comes from, and we will discuss living arrangements going forward at the end of her Winter Break." Elijah said.
"I won't allow it." Klaus said.
"It's not a matter of what you'll allow, Brother. If you force Hope to stay here when she's clearly miserable, then you will only be inflicting more psychological damage." Elijah said.
"Klaus, we've been thinking of our own happiness ahead of our daughter's for a lot longer than just tonight. We aren't doing her any favors keeping her locked away from kids her own age." Hayley said before turning to look at Elijah and Elena. "Take care of her."
"We will, Hayley." Elena said.