Title: I'll Love You for Eternity.

Summary: With Hayley spending time in the Bayou with her pack, Klaus and Hope spend the evening engrossed in a novel from Klaus' childhood. Fluffy daddy/daughter love assured.

Rating: K.

Characters: Hope and Klaus with a touch of Klayley.

Word Count: 1,428.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Originals nor the characters; all rights belong to Warner Brothers.

Enjoy and feel free to review xx

A light flutter of footsteps on the floor above caught Klaus' attention. He paused, listening as the footsteps ceased on the landing of the stairs. A smile flittered across his face as he set his book down on the large mahogany lamp table.

A quiet creak of the stairs, followed by a small gasp made him smile wider. He knew what she was up to; she did this every time Hayley was out spending time with her pack in the Bayou. His tiniest wolf would attempt to sneak up on him when she was supposed to be in bed to surprise him. And unbeknownst to her mother, Klaus and the little girl would stay up late curled up on the couch together reading her favourite picture books.

Feeling playful, he stood silently and made the quick and easy jump to the second floor, allowing him to approach the child from behind. Without a sound, Klaus flitted to the top of the stairs where Hope had just reached the middle landing, poised on the tips of her toes, trying to be as quiet as possible. Due to her age and tiredness, the four year old was a little clumsy and louder than she wanted to be. Just before she took her next step, Klaus descended the stairs and grabbed her tiny waist.

"Boo," he whispered playfully, tickling her so she wouldn't be frightened.

There was a small intake of breath before the little girl fell into his arms, giggling uncontrollably. "Daddy! No!" She gasped around her giggles, wriggling in his arms as she attempted to break free.

"You should be all tucked up in bed, my tiny wolf," he told her, swooping her up into his arms to cradle her small body against his chest. He touched her nose lightly with a kiss, joining in with her innocent laughter.

"Daddy, you have to read to me before I sleep," she reminded him, her face becoming comically serious. A small frown of disapproval at his forgetfulness formed between her pale blue eyes. They were a mirror image of his own, though they held a more innocent sparkle. The soft dark brown hair that framed her face and lightly tanned skin were all inherited from her mother. She was the perfect combination of both Klaus and Hayley.

"Of course, princess," he allowed, placing her back on her feet. He took her small hand in his own and led her down the stairs. She pulled her hand from Klaus' and ran across the soft carpet to the leather couch near the fire crackling in the fireplace. She crawled up onto the couch. Klaus sat beside her and held his arms out.

"Well, come here," he said.

Little Hope slid across the couch into her father's arms and nestled herself against his chest, her head tucked under his chin. Klaus pressed a kiss to her head and grabbed a book from the table.

"How about this one?" He asked, showing her 'The Three Little Pigs'. A sly smile slid across his face as she turned in his arms to face him.

"That book is mean to wolves, daddy!" She declared indignantly, frowning at him. He couldn't hold back his laughter as he smoothed out the crease between her eyebrows. "Wolves aren't mean," she told him. "You and mommy are nice and you're wolves."

Klaus had transformed into his wolf form just once in the last few years to show his daughter. She had smiled brightly, her blue eyes clear with wonderment when he'd padded toward her through the forest. She'd reached her hand out toward him as he ducked his sandy blonde head down to her level, allowing her to run her fingers through his hair. Ever since that day, the child had begged for a puppy for Christmas. He smiled fondly at the memory.

"Okay, I'm sorry," he laughed. "You're right; wolves aren't mean. Why don't you go into the library room and pick out something?" He suggested. The girl nodded and jumped from the couch, bounding into the adjoining room. A few seconds later, she reappeared, clambering back into her spot in Klaus' arms. He pulled a soft blanket off the back of the couch and draped it over Hope. She snuggled back into him.

"This one," she handed him the book. He took it from her, sliding his fingers over the worn leather bound cover. This story was more than a thousand years old. His mother had penned and bound the story while she was pregnant with Henrik. It was a sad story, and he, Kol and baby Rebekah would gather around Esther to hear it whenever Mikael was away. He never liked Esther doting over the boys. A mothers love was only for girls. Despite everything that happened with Esther, Klaus still held onto fond childhood memories of her. He never doubted that at one point she had truly loved all her children. The story had always left him in quiet tears. It wasn't until a few years later that he'd learned the truth behind his mothers' story.

Klaus opened the book carefully and sat it in Hope's lap and shifted her slightly so they could both see the pages. "I don't know these words, daddy," she told him, running her fingers over the ancient language.

"This is a very old language," he told her. "We don't use it anymore, but I can still read it to you."

Hope nodded her head, her lose curls falling around her face.

Voice soft, he began to read. The story told of a young Viking woman and her family. It told of her heartbreak when she lost her first born child to the plague and how she had become so desperate to never lose another of her children. The story wove a heartbreaking tale of love and loss and the mothers' devotion to her precious children.

"The young mother placed a kiss on each of her children, vowing to love them for an eternity," he finished, closing the book.

"Daddy?" A tearful voice sounded.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" He asked, cuddling her close.

"Would you and mommy be that sad if I died"?

Stricken, Klaus ducked his head against his daughter, tightening his arms around her. The loss of a child was a pain he knew all too well.

"That's something I never want to think about," he told her, voice raw with emotion. It had taken almost two years for him to bring his daughter back to her home, and he had vowed to never let her go again. "Sleep, darling," he softly pressed a kiss to her head and readjusted the blanket around her.

A few minutes later, he felt Hope's body relax in his arms and her breathing deepened and slowed as she fell into sleep. He ran his fingers through her hair and down her cheek. Hope had softened Klaus tremendously. His baby was the only one who could calm him when he was upset, the only one who could turn his day around with a single smile. Every part of her was perfect; all the good he and Hayley possessed within themselves had been handed down to their little girl with none of the bad. While she had a bit of a temper when she didn't get her way, she could control it much better than Klaus ever could.

"I love you, baby girl," he told the sleeping child.

A movement in the doorway caught his eye. Hayley leaned against the doorframe, a small smile on her lips.

"How's our girl?" She asked quietly, stepping into the room and over to the couch.

"Perfect, as always," Klaus told her.

Hayley dropped to her knees and leaned forward to kiss her daughter's soft rosy cheek.

"You know, for two people as messed up as we are, we did pretty well with this one." Hayley joked lightly.

He touched her cheek lightly with a smile. There wasn't, and would never be anything romantic between Klaus and Hayley, but he had come to love the mother of his child in a special way.

Klaus sat up, careful not to disturb the sleeping child in his arms. He stood, cradling her in his arms and carried her to her room with Hayley at his side. Together, they tucked their little girl into bed. Hayley kissed her forehead and retreated to her room just off Hope's.

Knowing Hayley could hear him, Klaus leaned in close and kissed Hope's cheek.

"Mommy and daddy will love you for eternity, princess."