Alternate scene: Marcel has one welcome and one unwelcome visitor. MarcelxHopexKlaus, family drama fic. Just something that could have happened in the episode. Spoilers for 4x07.

Pleasure to Meet You:

Head hanging forward, Marcel sat, his arms hung over his knees as he listened to the faint sound of footsteps making their way toward him. No one could see him or hear him. It was frustrating as all hell. Marcel felt the urge to howl. Not like he'd be disturbing anyone. Maybe Klaus and Elijah. His lips twisted into a bitter smirk.

The quiet footsteps stopped outside of the gate. Marcel didn't bother to look up when the gate inched open. Only when it occurred to him that footsteps were too light to be bearing an adult's weight that his eyes lifted. "Hey there," he said, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

The small girl gave him a solemn look. "Hi," she said. She took a hesitant step forward before stopping. "Who are you?"

"Marcel Gerard, pleasure to meet you," Marcel said. "I would offer you a hand but with the barrier, that's kind of difficult." He shifted on the ground.

Hope's lips tugged at the corners. "I'm Hope."

"I know," Marcel said with a chuckle.

Hope smiled and walked over to the edge of the barrier. Taking a seat across from him, she crossed her legs and watched him curiously. "Why are you down here?"

"I pissed your dad off. Again," Marcel retorted.

Hope continued to watch him. She was a little too serious for a kid her age. He wondered what she'd be like if he hadn't kept Klaus from her. Nope. She was better off. He would have been. "Why?"

Marcel cocked his head to the side. "Because he hurt me."

"How?" Hope said.

"By not being very good to me," Marcel told her. He knew it would piss Klaus off if he heard Marcel bad mouthing him to his daughter but he didn't give a damn. Marcel figured that everyone was probably lying to the kid; someone had to be honest with her.

"Is he your dad, too?" Hope asked him and Marcel stared back her. The kid knew more than she was letting on.

"In a way." Marcel replied. "Guess that means I'm your brother."

Hope smiled and Marcel smiled back at her. "I always wanted a big brother."

Shaking his head, Marcel laughed. Looked like the kid had learned to butter people up just like her daddy. God help them when she grew up. "Yeah."

"What happened before…" Hope seemed to be thinking before speaking to him. "Before you and daddy fought."

Marcel thought about what to tell the kid. "Your dad doesn't trust anyone. It's his weakness. He thinks everyone is against him. Even me. You can't push people away. You can't push the people who love you away unless you want them to prove you right."

The sadness in Hope's eyes made Marcel feel a twinge of guilt. He didn't want to hurt her, she'd never done anything to him. He didn't have long to think about it when a bellow sounded. "HOPE!" Klaus' voice sounded from somewhere near.

Hope's eyes moved to the ceiling. "You should probably go," Marcel told her with a wink.

Hope flashed him a smile. "I'll come back to visit," she promised.

Marcel nodded. He suspected that she wouldn't be able to but it left him something to look forward to.

Hope made her way toward the gate when it suddenly swung open and Klaus dropped to his knees. "Hope, I have been looking for you!" he said, his voice exasperated as he grabbed his child by her shoulders, looking her over for injury. "You're alright, love?"

"I'm okay," Hope said, hugging him.

Klaus gave Marcel a long, searing look over Hope's shoulder. "You really shouldn't go to play so far from home."

"I was safe. Marcel would have protected me," Hope said.

Klaus' brows rose. "Hope, he is trapped inside a barrier. How exactly is it that you think he would have protected you?"

Hope smiled and freed herself from her father's arms. Klaus watched, his gaze darkening when Hope walked right through the barrier that Freya had erected and took Marcel's hand. "See? I can go through but no one else can." She gave Marcel a quick hug, her arms going around his neck before she let go and moved back through the barrier to take her father's hand.

Klaus looked to Marcel, his jaw jutting out. "Right then. I suppose if you two can get along, I won't argue."

Marcel smirked back at Klaus. "You did a good job naming her."

"Didn't I?" Klaus' lips spread into his infamous smirk.

"Bye," Hope said, waving.

"Bye," Marcel waved and watched Hope and Klaus leave. He just hoped that whatever was trying to control him didn't use his new bond with the kid against them both. Closing his eyes, he allowed his head to fall again while he contemplated how the hell he and Klaus were going to keep their family's hope safe.

I think that episode was better than what I wrote here but I wanted to post the fic anyway. I hope that you enjoyed it. :)

Thank you reading, faving, following and reviewing.

Peace,

Jessica