After emptying her second blood bag of the day, Hope groans and tosses it into the trash can. Why didn't help? Maybe… No, this kind of situation does not justify her wolfing out. Those words shouldn't get to her like this, she should be passed that by now.

Alone, just how you deserve to be.

Hope puts her hands on both sides of her head, she just wishes she could turn it off, but Alyssa's words keep repeating themselves over and over again.

She's not alone, she knows she's not.

There's people who care for her, who love her.

She's not alone, she can't be alone.

So why does she feel like this?

She's so caught in her own head that she barely hears the sound of her phone ringing.

Rebekah.

Hope's heart is still aching painfully inside her chest as she reaches for her phone and answers the call.

"H-hello?" She says in the phone.

"Hope?" Rebekah quickly says, her voice full of worry. "Sweetie, why is your voice shaking? What happened?"

This time, Hope doesn't even hesitate to say the whole truth to her aunt, no need for lies. Maybe getting it all off of her chest would even help her.

"I-I had a little confrontation with another student in Potion class. Remember when I told you about MG getting hurt?" Rebekah hums. "Well, the girl who yelled at me, Alyssa, seems like she wasn't done. She made a whole scene in class. I'm just… a little shaken up."

There's a pause, and then Hope decides to add something. "It just feels like everyone hates me..."

Rebekah sighs, knowing way too well the burdens that come with their last name. She tries to find something that could comfort her niece, make her feel a little less alone. A little more loved.

"Darling… Listen, the Mikaelson name has always brought a lot of fear. I've suffered from that times and times again, but it also comes with a lot of benefits."

Hope snorts. "Yeah, right…"

"I know it doesn't look like it now. But it does. "Rebekah says gently. "Hopefully one day you'll let me show you."

"Okay… If you say so. It just doesn't seem like people will see the benefits here." Hope says with a dark chuckle.

"Honey, sometimes curiosity can be mistaken by fear. And fear, by hate. Maybe that's why you feel like people hate you." Rebekah offers gently. "And besides, that doesn't apply to everyone… I'm sure a lot of people care about you. There's the twins, Alaric, Caroline... They all love you, even when you push them away."

"It's been so long aunt Rebekah. Both of the twins moved on, they're happy. They don't need me around anymore." Hope quickly says, but it sounds more like she's trying to convince herself.

"You know that's not true, darling" Rebekah says as softly as she can. "The twins would never shut you out."

"Aunt Rebekah-" Hope cuts in sigh.

The blonde woman quickly interrupts her niece since it's clear Hope doesn't wanna talk about her relationship with the Saltzman twins. Maybe it's a good time to get back to that new girl in her niece's life then.

"What about that Penelope girl you mentioned earlier?"

Hearing Penelope's name puts a stop to Hope's train of thoughts. Somehow, she had not been expecting her aunt to bring the short haired witch up. But then… Rebekah said they weren't done talking about her, so it shouldn't have been a surprise.

Then, the tribrid realizes that she doesn't really know what to say about that. No, Penelope didn't hate her. She actively tries to have some kind of relationship with her actually.

"Penelope is my new partner in Potion class." Hope decides to say. "I was supposed to be partnered up with Jade, Josie's new girlfriend, but apparently they switched partners."

"Penelope… Wait a minute, I've heard this name before. Oh! Isn't she Josie's best friend?"

"Uh, yeah, she's the one." Hope scratches the back of her neck, suddenly feeling a little shy. "She's nice to me. Like, she's not really nice, but she's not the nicest person. What I mean is, she can be a bitch but it's not done in a mean way. Does that make sense?"

Rebekah chuckles, hearing her niece ramble like that was a rare thing. This girl must have a little something that makes her special.

"Well, she can't be that bad… I mean, she's Josie's best friend after all."

"She's not bad! Life just made her… rough, I guess. She has her walls up."

Rebekah hums. "Makes me think of someone…"

Hope rolls her eyes. "Really?"

"Okay dear, I get it. You know what? I definitely have to meet that girl now! Josie told me so much about her, and if she gets you rambling then-"

The tribrid quickly cuts her aunt, not really liking where this conversation is going. Actually, not liking it at all.

"Oh, aunt Rebekah! I totally forgot, but I have this really important assignment to do for tomorrow, so…"

"Which class?" The Mikaelson woman quickly asks.

"Oh, uh, geography class? Anyway, bye aunt Rebekah!"

"Hope-"

The tribrid quickly hang up the phone. Then, she sighs and lets herself fall face first on her bed. Why does talking about Penelope Park make her feel so jittery, and… happy? Quickly, Hope grabs one of her pillows, buries her face in it and screams.

Two days later.

Hope and Penelope are going through their third training session together. The tribrid quickly notices that the short haired witch is not as vigorous as the first two days. Actually, Penelope looks tired. So, it's really no surprise when Hope pines the witch to the ground and Penelope just decides to give up. She lightly taps the tribrid's arm.

"Okay, I've had enough for today." The ravenette groans.

Hope smirks down at Penelope. "What's wrong Park? Can't handle training today?"

The raven haired girl rolls her eyes before pushing Hope off of her. The tribrid allows herself to be pushed away, she simply lays down by the short haired girl's side. They both stay like that for a minute or two. Hope lets Penelope catch her breath, stealing little glances at the girl from time to time. The short haired girl's eyes are closed, and Hope wonders what's going on in her head.

"A-are you okay?" Hope asks, her voice shaking a little.

A small smile stretches Penelope's lips, she opens her eyes a little and turns her head to look at Hope.

"Is this you caring, Mikaelson?"

Hope quickly turns her head, a faint blush covering her cheeks. She's avoiding Penelope's eyes because she simply can't admit she cares while looking at her.

"I don't care about a lot of people, Park."

The witch chuckles. "I know that. But… There's people caring about you, you know?"

The tribrid frowns and looks at the dark haired girl again.

"What do you mean?"

"Remember Potion class on Monday?" Hope nods. "I asked Jade to change partners with me, because… I really wanted to be with you after what happened with Alyssa. But, you also got Josie so worried, she only agreed in us changing partners if I'd make sure you were okay."

Penelope chuckles. "Then, she ambushed me after class, demanding to know how you were holding up."

Hope closes her eyes for a second. Feeling guilty about worrying Josie like that. Guilty about making Josie feel like she can't even ask her, by herself, if she's ok. She just wishes she could take some of her words and actions back and restore her relationship with the twins.

The auburn haired girl sighs, and then she sits up. Slowly, she brings her knees close to her chest, holding them with her arms. Then, Hope leans her cheek on her knees, facing Penelope.

"I don't want her to worry... She should be happy, she's supposed to be enjoying her life, not worrying about me..." She says, her voice so small Penelope has a hard time believing it's Hope that said the words.

The short haired witch sits up too, and crosses her legs. She looks the tribrid in the eyes, and the vulnerability she sees in them amazes her. She understands just how scared of caring Hope really is. Just how much it pains her to actually let people care about her.

"It doesn't work like that when you care about someone, Hope, and you know it." Penelope softly says.

The softness in her words and in her eyes confuse the tribrid. She still had a hard time adjusting to Penelope Park acting any other way than in a Penelope Park way.

Hope takes a deep breath before she forces a smile. Then, she quickly stands up and starts gathering her stuff around the gym. After a couple of seconds, she can hear Penelope doing the same. She glances at the other girl once, then twice. The witch never looks at her, or if she does, Hope doesn't catch her. When she has everything, Hope heads for the door, but before exiting the gym she has to do one last thing.

Hope swallows the lump in her throat, and clenches her fingers around the strap of her bag. Then, she looks over her shoulder and she finally meets Penelope's eyes.

"Thank you, Penelope."

The witch's smile quickly turns in a smirk. "For what?"

Hope decides to ignore the teasing in Penelope's words. "Everything."

Penelope Park is now a permanent presence in Hope's life. Everywhere the Mikaelson girl goes, the raven haired girl follows. It's a slow process, it starts with Penelope walking Hope to class. Then, it's the witch sitting with the tribrid during every meal. It even goes as far as them hanging out after class. At first, Hope acts all annoyed, and maybe she really is a little annoyed by Penelope's sudden intrusion in her everyday routine.

She's soon proved wrong though. As the days pass, she finds herself enjoying Penelope's presence and her cocky attitude. It feels good to have someone by her side once again. It makes the tribrid almost feel light again.

Maybe her feeling lighter has to do with the fact that Alyssa Chang decided to stop bothering her all of a sudden. Hope wonders what made the witch change her behavior, because she didn't just stop picking fights with her, she also started to actively avoid Hope. The tribrid was walking down a hallway with Penelope in the middle of the week when Alyssa appeared on the other side. The girl's eyes went wider than they ever been before, and in a second she disappeared from in front of them. Hope's confusion kept her from seeing the smug grin on the short haired witch's face.

Or maybe it has everything to do with Penelope. Because even with all the teasing, all the flirting and the smirks, Penelope's attitude brings Hope comfort. A kind of comfort she can't quite explain, because she's never felt it before. At first, Penelope's jokes would make the tribrid roll her eyes in annoyance, but it quickly left place to her rolling her eyes fondly.

The whole week is spent like that. With them slowly getting closer, and with Hope "leaving" more and more room in her life to Penelope. They spend the weekend together. Sparring in the morning, catching up on homeworks in the afternoon. The Mikaelson girl even agrees to let Penelope watch a movie in her room on Sunday night.

Hope thinks it's strange that the ravennette sticks around now, when the tribrid is basically at her worst. With every day that week, the Mikaelson girl gets a little more down. I little more closed off. Even though she does her best to act as if everything is normal, she knows that the witch sees right through her, and knows that she's lying when she says she's fine, but Penelope doesn't push, and Hope is grateful for that.

Soon after the witch leaves the tribrid's room on Sunday night, Hope realizes she's alone. That thought is all consuming and it makes her feel even worse than she felt all week. To quiet the noise in her own head, Hope takes a long shower. It helps, even if it's only a little. Then, she slips under the covers of her bed. It takes hours for her to finally surrender herself to sleep.

Hope turns in circle, because it's the only thing she can do. It's like something stop her from doing anything but looking around. She sees so many familiar faces around her. Her family, her friends…

She stops as soon as her eyes fall on the faces of her parents. Hayley and Klaus are both standing in front of her, smiling softly. They look happy, they look proud. The tribrid desperately wants to run to them, to hug them, but her body refuses to move. She feels like screaming, or maybe even crying, but that doesn't happen either.

Then suddenly, her father and her mother both make a face as a shadow rips their hearts out. The two bodies fall to the ground under Hope's wide eyes.

The dark figure moves, and Hope's eyes are drawn to follow it. Just like that, she has to watch it rip the hearts out of all her aunts and uncles. She tries to fight whatever keeps her from moving, but she can't even cry, how could she move?

The Saltzman family is next. They all fall to the ground, one by one. Alaric, Caroline, Lizzie and then Josie. When the brunette twin falls to the ground, Hope expects it to be over. There's no one else she cares about anymore-

But the shadow keeps moving, Hope's anxiety spikes up, and when her eyes fall on the last victim, they grow even bigger than before.

Penelope Park.

The witch has her usual smirk as she looks at Hope, blissfully unaware of the fate that awaits her. One last time, Hope tries to scream, but nothing comes out. Then, the ravenette's eyes grow wide and she looks down at her chest. The dark figure moves away with the last heart in its hand, and Penelope falls to the ground.

Hope quickly sits up in bed. A cold sweat is covering her body, she's trying to catch her breath and the fear she's feeling seems to be seeping into her bones. The tribrid puts her face in her hands. Images of her nightmare keep invading her mind, she sees everyone falling to the ground over and over again.

The Mikaelson girl can't stop the stream of tears running down her cheeks, and suddenly, for some reason she hears the voice of her aunt in her head.

The twins would never shut you out.

Hope helplessly tries to stop the tears by wiping them away, but it just doesn't work.

The twins would never shut you out.

She can still see her parents' smiles. But then they fall to the ground, dead, one more time.

The twins would never shut you out.

Her whole family. In a matter of seconds, the mighty Original family was gone.

The twins would never shut you out.

Josie, Lizzie… Alaric and Caroline. All gone.

Even freaking Penelope Park. Dead. Because of her

Just as she thinks of the raven haired witch, her voice invades her brain instead of Rebekah's.

You got Josie so worried…

It doesn't work like that when you care about someone, Hope, and you know it.

The tears don't seem to want to stop. She keeps wiping them, keeps telling herself to just stop crying. Without another thought, Hope pushes her covers and gets out of bed. She quickly changes her sweaty shirt for a clean one, and throws an oversized hoodie on top of it.

Then, without even thinking, she heads out of her room. Her feet take her through the familiar path to the twin's bedroom and it's like her body is moving by itself, simply reacting to her heart's desperate desire.

Once there, helplessly, Hope watches her hand knocking on their door.

The next thing her brain registers is Lizzie Saltzman opening the door of her room with a scowl on her face, looking like she's ready to murder the person that just disturbed her sleep.

As soon as Lizze's sleepy eyes focus on who's at the door, her face instantly softens. The annoyance of being awoken immediately goes away, but is quickly replaced with worry as she takes Hope's state in.

The Mikaelson girl's sweater is way too large for her, it falls just above her knees, making her look even smaller than she is. The long sleeves are being clenched into shaking, but very tight, fists. However, it's the hot stream of tears running down Hope's face that makes Lizzie's heart clench painfully inside her chest.

The tribrid tries to meet the blonde twin's eyes, to give her some sort of explanation. Her mouth opens, but her voice never comes out, and once again her vision is completely blurred with the tears that don't want to stop falling.

Lizzie doesn't miss a beat, she steps closer and brings Hope into a tight hug. It takes a few seconds for the auburn haired girl's arms to go around the taller girl's waist, but as soon as they do, she doesn't let go.

Hope clings to her, desperately trying to soak in every bit of comfort the blonde girl's arms are giving her. It's still not enough, though. Something, someone, is still missing. As if feeling this, Lizzie gently brings Hope into the room.

When the door closes, Josie expects sounds of steps to follow, but they never come. She lifts her head from her pillows when instead of steps, she hears soft, oddly familiar, sobbing coming from the door's direction.

"Lizzie…" Josie says as she rubs the sleep out of her eyes. "What's going on-"

The brunette stops talking as soon as her eyes catch sight of auburn hair, and it's all it takes her to quickly push her covers away and get out of bed. In a second, Josie is on her feet and running to the embracing duo.

As soon as she feels Josie's body pressing against her, and a second pair of arms wrapped tightly around her, Hope loses it. Her cries turn into heavy sobs and she lets go of all the feelings that have been burdening her lately, but now, unlike of all the times she cried alone, her heart finally feels at peace.

The twins share a look, and they seem to come to a silent agreement. With Lizzie never letting go of her hold on Hope, and Josie with one arm still tightly wrapped around her waist, they slowly start moving towards the brunette's bed. Hope trusts these girls with her life, so she blindly follows their lead, letting them move her to wherever they want, seeing no reason to protest. She couldn't even if she wanted to.

Josie quickly glances at her slightly messy, full sized bed and gives her twin a quick look before begrudgingly leaving their embrace. As soon as she takes her arm back from where it was resting around Hope's waist, the tribrid gives her a distressed look, and Josie's heart twists painfully inside her chest at how desperate her eyes look. The only reason why she doesn't immediately throws her arms back around the girl is because she sees her twin tightening her hold around Hope's small body.

The tribrid turns and buries herself a little deeper into Lizzie, the blonde girl's hold never loosening. The siphon whispers soothing words, her right hand getting lost in auburn locks. Hope may not be her twin, but Lizzie still feels every little bit of pain coming off of her.

Josie, as quickly as she can, grabs all of the pillows and blankets from Lizzie's bed and sets it in hers, rearranging everything to make sure they would all be comfortable. Once done, she moves closer to the duo again, and gently pushes them apart.

The brunette witch takes one of Hope's hand in hers and gently gets her on the bed. Josie lays down on the far side of the mattress, opening her arms while angling her body slightly towards Hope, who instantly cuddles into her side.

The Mikaelson girl practically lays on top of the brunette, her head resting on top of Josie's chest, with a leg thrown across hers, bringing them even closer, needing as much contact as possible. Once she's comfortable, the brunette's arms close tightly around her.

Josie holds Hope as close to her body as she possibly can to make sure the auburn haired girl can feel her, and know that she's there.

As soon as they're settled, it's Lizzie turn to join them. She spoons Hope protectively from behind. The blonde girl throws her arm around the tribrid's waist and holds her close, not leaving a single gap between their bodies. It doesn't take long before Hope is hugging the blonde's arm close to her own chest.

Once they're all comfortable in their cuddling, they release a collective sigh. Hope's tears haven't stopped, but she feels better. Now that she's in the arms of her best friends, she feels safe, she feels loved.

Despite the tears never really stopping, her sobs turn quiet again, and Hope can feel her heart calming down. Due to how close their bodies are, she can also feel the twins' hearts beating against her, and that makes her feel warm inside. Everything about this moment helping to set Hope's intense feelings at ease.

The Mikaelson girl can't believe she kept herself from having this for so long. How could she do that to herself? All the twins ever did was make her feel better.

None of them realize when sleeps takes over, but they fall asleep still in that position.

Josie and Lizzie neve letting go of Hope.