A/N: I was prompted "I love summertime. Do you know why?" and my favorite The Originals character. As always I couldn't help but drop in a little family bonding.
—
She sits on the roof of the compound, Hope sitting on her lap, Hayley's hand crossed over her daughter's stomach. The sun is slowly rising, a spectacle of purples, pinks and oranges for their eyes until the warm light caresses their faces.
They had dressed lightly, long sleeved t-shirts and jeans, the New Orleans weather already humid with heat as summer settled in.
"Do you know why I love summer?" she asked Hope.
Her daughter's hair tickled her face as she signaled no. Her face tilted up from where she had been staring at the French Quarter, admiring as the neighborhood woke up along with the sun.
"When I was in high school, before I activated my curse, we spent our summer by the beach, we'd drive down in our old car, windows down and we'd sing every song that played on the radio. We'd eat ice cream along the piers and we'd spend entire days at the beach. It was the one moment of the year when we had no worries beyond what we would eat at dinner. We'd pretend we were adventurers looking for mermaids and listen to coded messages hidden in sea shells."
Hope turned around in her mother's lap, Hayley's hands tightening around her waist as her daughter looked up at her.
"Then we should go to the beach! We can go today, it's the first day of summer! If werewolves and witches are real, maybe mermaids are too! We have to go look, Mom! Do you think Dad knows if mermaids are real?"
A voice interrupted them, "Nik's started packing bags for us, hurry downstairs and we'll go search for mermaids!"
Hayley jumped down, Hope leaning on her hip. "Are you ever gonna pretend you're not listening in on us, Rebekah?"
"Not when it means I can force Niklaus to drive us down. Moreover, I was told I could count on your for duets. We're on for a family trip!"