A Twilight to the past
Part 3
Niklaus had gone with his father, Bella, Charlie, Freya and a couple of other wolves to prepare the cave where he was supposed to have died, making sure that it would fit the story they had agreed on. They had brought two large pigs that they bled on site, making a believable blood splatter and a fake trail of blood leading all the way to the river and they took great care into making everything believable according to the story they had agreed on with the others.
"Are you alright Bells?" Charlie asked his daughter when they took care of the blood.
"Surprisingly, yes. I don't feel faint at all." She replied, surprised by that fact too.
"Why, are you sick?" Niklaus asked, concerned.
"No, don't worry. It's just that... Well, my entire life, I've been fainting at the smell of blood." Bella explained.
"Too bad it stopped, it would have been funny if you had been forever a vampire who needs blood to live but faints at the smell of it." Charlie teased her, making everyone chuckle too.
"You think you're hilarious." She shook her head, sending a playful frown his way.
"I know I am." He winked.
"Bella, the forever fainting Hybrid queen." Ansel added, laughing with Charlie.
Bella noticed that Niklaus seemed to be fighting off a smile too.
"Oh go ahead and laugh with these two, I can tell you want to." She told him and he kissed her cheek before he went to laugh with Charlie and his father.
"Men." Freya rolled her eyes, making Bella smile at her.
.
Once everything was done, most of them went back to the village, but Niklaus wanted to wait a bit, see if Mickeal would come to check it out like they thought. Part of him was curious and wanted to see how he would react to the news. Bella decided to wait with him and so the two of them waited, hidden by magic Freya did.
As they waited, they sat against a nearby tree, in each other's arms, and they talked about everything that crossed their minds. Their feelings for each other, the future Bella had lived in and what she wanted to prevent, what she'd miss the most about the future, what it felt like for her to turn for the first time, and simply how happy they were together. They talked about their childhood, their tastes... Everything and anything that crossed their minds. Bella even told him about her mother who had tried to prevent her from coming back here and had refused to come back herself.
"Shh, someone's coming." Bella whispered.
"They're here, with Mickeal." he replied as they hide to watch the group of men move around.
"I've never seen him before, but he looks angry..." Bella commented.
"That's not an angry look for him. Trust me I've seen it up close, his angry look. No, this is... He's sad... Guilty maybe?" He couldn't quite believe what he was seeing.
"Maybe losing you made him realize how wrong he's been. He could be angry at himself. Maybe there's hope for him." She whispered back to him.
"Maybe..." Niklaus nodded, still holding Bella's hand in his as they watched.
When his brothers and Mickeal ran along the trail, to follow it, they followed from afar and, from where they stood, Niklaus was able to witness the tears Mickeal hid from Finnik, Elijah and Kol. It surprised him to see this side of the man who had tortured him for so long. Maybe there was hope for him after all, maybe he deserved to know the truth eventually.
.
Esther was sad, furious and afraid.
Mickeal understood why she was sad, Niklaus was dead and he could understand her sadness and anger at his loss, but he didn't understand why she was so determined to make them all stronger. She seemed afraid of the wolves more than ever, even though it was a bear that had killed Niklaus, in the middle of the day, once the full moon was over. The wolves had nothing to do with this death and yet she seemed determined that they'd attack eventually, like she had information he didn't have. He had tried to reason with her, or to get her to explain herself, but she had said nothing at all. He was still unable to understand her and her actions, so he simply went along with it, thinking that it would always be good for his family to be stronger than the others.
As a warrior, he understood that being strong and prepared was awlays good, in case of an attack by an enemy. He knew that sometimes, people you didn't know were your enemies surprise you by an attack.
"Do you think we should tell Father?" Kol asked Finnik.
"Tell him about what?" The eldest brother asked, confused.
"That Niklaus is alive, why Mother is so afraid of the wolves." Kol explained.
"No, it's too dangerous. Once he finds out that Mother cheated on him and lied to him all these years, he'll be furious and he might kill her before she finishes the potion and spell." Finnik shook his head.
"But you and Freya and me, we could do it, do we really need her for this?" He asked.
"You might have a point... I'll ask Freya what she and Niklaus think. You go and discreetly ask our siblings what they think we should do." Finnik decided before he closed his eyes, doing a spell he now knew by heart that allowed him to speak to Freya, through their now linked minds.
.
"Did you talk to Freya? She was looking for you this morning." Bella asked Niklaus as he joined her for lunch.
"Yes, she told me that our siblings want to tell Mikael everything. They wanted our opinion. I told her that I didn't mind, as long as he left me alone to my peace and happiness but that they needed to keep in mind that the deal we made with Aunt Dahlia includes Esther being sent in this other world alive. Mikael could kill her, and then we'd all be in trouble with Dahlia, we don't want to break our words like Esther did." Niklaus replied.
"Do you think they'll tell him?" She asked him.
"No, I doubt it. Finnik apparently didn't want to, he's afraid of the consequences and Freya agrees with me, I think the others will follow our lead. I think they'll wait until the last moment." Niklaus replied.
"Did your father talk to you, about becoming hybrids?" She asked him.
They were alone, in a quiet spot, enjoying just being together. Niklaus spent a large part of the day with Ansel, or getting to know the other members of the pack, but he always found some time each day to spend with Bella. They both had a hard time waiting for their wedding.
"Yes, he told me that Charlie and him want to become hybrids, but that he wants to abdicate and give me the Alpha title before he does." Niklaus nodded.
"I'm pretty sure Charlie wants to become a hybrid just so he can once more, in the future, watch a game on tv with a pizza and a beer. He wants to do this at least once with his best friend, Ansel." Bella chuckled, making Niklaus smile though he wasn't sure what she was talking about.
"He told me they wanted to be changed by us." he added.
"Yes, Charlie told me so too. He wants me to change him and you to change Ansel. I guess we'll see how it happens when we get to it. We have plenty of things to think about until then." She replied.
"You're right." he nodded.
Before this happens, they needed to deal with Esther, get married, change his siblings into vampires, make sure Dahlia wouldn't be a problem, deal with Mickeal and become hybrids themselves. And they wouldn't become hybrids too soon since they wanted to try and have at least one child before they did.
They knew that they'd have the opportunity to adopt later, over the centuries, opportunities were bound to happen, but they wanted to try and have one child that was theirs. Before meeting Klaus, Bella hadn't even thought of having a child, having spent so long taking care of her own mother, she was afraid of it but Klaus made her confident. He made her want a child, to become a mother to his child. The heir of the pack, of Ansel's bloodline.
Bella had told him of Alice Cullen who'd need saving much later, and they figured that other children would probably be in the same position as young Alice. They had also made the decision to look for supernatural children that were either mistreated or abandoned and to find them safe places to live in.
Bella told Klaus all about the Cullen family, who they were, what they wanted Bella to change in their lives and how things could go. She told him about the future she knew and they discussed a bit more her mother's decisions and actions. She let Klaus know how much it had hurt her that her mother wanted to stay behind and to keep Bella behind as well, that she missed the mother she had thought she had, but that she was furious at the other she realized she really had.
"Ayana told Ansel that she considered another option, leaving you in the future and have us meet there." Klaus informed Bella.
"It could have been fun, of course, with me coming back here, we can change a lot, not only for the Cullen's, but for history and even the vampire making potion who now allows your siblings to have powers." Bella replied.
"I wouldn't have had my father either if you had stayed in the future. He was willing to make the sacrifice to ensure you and I would be safe, but I'm glad you came back here." Klaus replied before he kissed her.
"I'm glad I came too. I like it here. It's... easier, I guess. Of course I miss some things, like hot bubble baths, my friends, the comfort of electricity... but I'll get it all back eventually." She smiled.
"And you'll show me everything." he smiled back, enjoying these small happy moments with her.
"I'll actually see it happen, maybe even meet the greatest inventors of history. That will be something." She smiled.
.
The next few weeks passed rather quickly.
Esther had worked fast on the potion, especially with her children's help who lied and told her that the spirits had helped them find how to improve the potion. They lied to her and told her that it was important to wait until the full moon to turn them, and she believed them.
"It's time, our siblings will come with Mikeal this afternoon." Freya told Niklaus and Bella.
"How did they convince Mother to let them out of her sight?" He frowned, nervous about this meeting.
"They said they wanted to collect a few items that would make them even stronger, she believed them since they found how to make the potion and she believes the spirits are talking to them about it." Freya replied.
"It's going to be a pretty big shock to him when he arrives..." Bella commented.
"No, they'll tell him everything on the way here, to prepare him. Finnik believes that he can convince Father to keep his anger in check. If he doesn't, he has a special powder to make him fall asleep so that he doesn't interfere with out initial plans." Freya shook her head.
"He better, because if he harms one person here, I'll kill him myself." Niklaus stated, not having completely forgiven his step father for the treatment he had received all these years.
"Don't worry, you're not alone and here, you're the one that will be in the position of power, not him." Bella reminded him kindly.
"I know." He smiled at her.
"In other news, I received a message from Aunt Dahlia. She should be back in a few days, she's not sure how many but she's almost done." Freya added.
"She's got everything?" Niklaus asked.
"Almost." Freya nodded before they were interrupted by an argument near them, between 2 young men who were viewing the same girl.
.
When Mikael followed his children in the woods, he knew they were lying about the reason they were going, he didn't know why or how but he knew they were all lying to him. They were his children, and of course he was used to them trying to hide things from him from time to time, but he couldn't help but link it to Esther's lies about her anger and fears. He couldn't help but feel left out and he needed answers.
His instinct was proven right when, on the way, Finnik and Elijah told him that not only Niklaus wasn't his son but Ansel's, the Alpha of the werewolf pack, but that he was alive. Then they told him about Freya being alive and what Esther had done to Dahlia, her sister. They told him about Bella being born, hunted by Esther, hidden in the future and brought back recently, being Niklaus' soul mate and planned to be married in just a few days. They told him of the deal Niklaus's father had reached with Dahlia in order to save Freya and keep Bella safe from Esther and that Freya was now safe with the wolves, working on a way to keep them all safe as well and waiting on Dahlia to come back so they could make Esther prisoner.
It was a shock all right, a very big surprise, but Mikael agreed to follow their plan, as long as they were saying the truth and Freya and Niklaus were alright, he'd follow through with their plan. He also decided to stick by their side his entire life, but to remain human. He didn't want to become a vampire and live forever, he felt like he had already seen enough during his time.
The rage he had felt for the past couple of decades was long gone now and he wondered if it had been linked to Niklaus not being his son, to Freya's absence or simply to Esther's mind games. All he knew was that he now felt like a different man and that this might be for the best.
Of course he was still strong, he'd still be able to fight enemies to defend his family, but he didn't feel the constent rage anymore, and he liked it.
Once they arrived in the village, the first thing he saw was Niklaus, with a beautiful young woman by his side that Elijah pointed out to him as Bella, then Ansel, the werewolf Alpha he had seen from afar a few times walked by, smiled warmly at Niklaus and went to calm an argument that was growing on the other side of the street between two young men. Niklaus soon joined him and Mikael smiled, seeing Niklaus alive, happy and in his rightful place.
"Look over there, father." Finnik told Mikael, pointing to the side to a young woman, tall and blond, who was handing out a doll to a little girl who smiled warmly, hugged her and ran away to her friends.
"Is that..." Mikael asked, unable to say the name.
"Yes, that's our sister Freya." Rebekah assured him.
At this moment, Niklaus and Bella noticed them and walked over to them with Ansel. Bella called out to Freya who smiled and joined them. The first thing she did was hug her father then, still holding onto him, she turned to her siblings to greet them too.
"I... I'm sorry..." Mikael told Niklaus, feeling like it was important that those were the first words he said to him.
"Esther did us both wrong, she made me weaker with magic, maybe she made you angrier too, who knows. I'm all for a new start, a fresh one, if you're willing to make the effort." Niklaus declared, making Ansel proud.
"I did you wrong, and I don't know if Esther had anything to do with it, but I will do my best to make it up to you. As for you, Ansel, I owe you an appology too, for how badly I treated Niklaus. I also owe you my thanks, for freeing my Freya and keeping her safe." Mikael said first to Niklaus then to Ansel.
"As Niklaus said, let's start fresh. Anyway, I have to go. Niklaus, don't forget the meeting tonight, then you'll trigger your curse." Ansel told Mikael and Niklaus before he turned around and left, leaving them to their reunion.
Then, Freya hugged her father once more and everyone left them alone a few minutes, to reunite.
"Where did Niklaus go?" Freya asked everyone once they joined the group once more with Mikael.
"An argument to break. Always the same two." Bella replied with a chuckle, making Freya roll her eyes in amusement too.
"Again? He had to separate them twice this morning, and earlier again with Ansel!" Freya exclaimed.
"The full moon's adding to their already existing rivalry." Bella shrugged her shoulders.
"What is it?" Elijah asked, curious.
"Two of the young men here in marrying age are fighting for the favor of a young woman, who is also in the marrying age but refuses to chose between them. Since Ansel has made a law that women are free to chose their husbands, they can't try to influence her parents, so they fight each other. She wants to marry for love, but she doesn't love either of them. Not that I blame her. Still, they think that fighting for her would end up making her like them for some reasons... Today is worst, maybe because of the full moon being close, it can accentuate bigger feelings like anger or jealousy and make them uncontrollable. They should try to stay on separate sides of the village before Ansel becomes fed up with them both and banishes one of them. He is kind and understanding, but like everyone, he has his limits." Bella explained, pointing to the men.
"Also one of them tried to make a pass at Bella during her first full moon run here, it doesn't help their case with Charlie and Ansel. Charlie is Bella's father and Ansel's Beta, his best friend. Ansel should have been Bella's godfather and he is her future father in law, he loves her too." Freya added.
"Well, I quickly put him back in his place and he hasn't tried again. Although I know dad sparred with him the next day, so he might have gotten a bit of a beating from him because of it." Bella replied.
"He's not bad looking..." Rebekah commented with a small blush.
"Don't even think about it. You're still too young." Mikael warned her.
"You deserve better, he's a bit of a lazy man and he believes women are inferior to men and should obey in silence. He also believes that he's better than everyone. His parents lost 4 babies before they had him and they spoiled him a bit, now he tends to think he's more important than he truly is. Arrogance and all. He thinks that Niklaus should chose him for a Beta, that he deserves it. I doubt he'll get it by acting this way." Bella replied.
"Niklaus would definitely not agree of you with either of them, either." Freya chuckled and Rebekah shook her head, amused.
Mikael spent the next few hours happily watching his children, all of them, interact together, happy. He could also see Niklaus in this village. He was a true leader already, respected, loved and in his rightful element.
"Ansel, can we talk?" Mikael asked as his children spent some more time together before it was time to go.
"Of course, is there a problem?" Ansel asked.
"No, not at all. I just wanted, once more, to apologise for everything I've done to Niklaus... I had no idea that he was yours... I... I don't know what changed, maybe Esther was really influencing my moods, maybe it was just the grief of losing Freya... Either way, I did you wrong without knowing it and, knowing everything I did, you still did your best to free my daughter and you've kept her here, safe and happy. And Bella... I had no idea... Esther never told me that she hunted a baby, that she wanted to kill a baby girl... Had I known, I would have done my best to help save her too. I am glad for this fresh start you and Niklaus have offered me, but I do owe you so, please, if there is anything I can do to help you or even Dahlia, in whatever you've got planned for Esther, let me know. I will make amends. One way or another. I get why Dahlia is angry with me, but I never asked Esther to stop using magic when she married me, this was her choice... I don't know why she told her sister that it was me who asked her to stop..." Mikael declared.
"You know, over the years, I often snuck near your village and, from the other side of the magical barrier Esther put in place, I watched over my son. I did see everything, I do know what you did to him, but here, today, I feel like I'm speaking with a different man. Maybe the man who's hurt Niklaus so much died the day he believed Niklaus had been killed." Ansel replied.
"You're a better man than I am. Thank you." Mikael smiled.
"You're welcome. Now, do you think you'll be able to come to the wedding in 3 days?" Ansel asked him.
"We should be able to sneak away, yes. At least now I understand why Esther was so convinced the wolves would attack us... I think I'll let her sweat it out, tell her that I've noticed a few young men from your village near our settlement, pretend I'm leaving to hunt them down when I'm just going fishing. She deserves the fear she's going through." Mikael nodded.
"That she does. Here, that's a dagger I've had for a while, she knows it's mine, she's seen it before. Take it and say one of the men you saw dropped it when they ran away. Then tell me how she reacted. It'll make her think I'm watching her, planning war in retaliation for Niklaus' death." Ansel smirked, making Mikael smirk right back.
"Under other circumstances, we could have been good friends." Mikael replied, taking the dagger in his hand.
"I'm starting to think so too." Ansel nodded with a smile.
.
Once Mikael went back home, he sent his children to do their daily tasks while he claimed to go hunting to his wife. He came back a couple of hours later with just one rabbit and he cornered Esther.
"Is something wrong?" She asked him.
"I think so. You were right to be worried about the werewolves. I was attacked by two young men from their village. I killed one and the other ran off. I even took from them the knife they tried to use to kill me." Mikael told his wife, showing her Ansel's dagger.
He watched as his wife paled when she saw the blade. He didn't like lying but this was worth it. His wife would pay for her lies.
"I... We... I... We'll be fine, the potion should be ready soon. They won't hurt us." Esther manage to speak in a small voice.
.
Niklaus was ready.
The full moon would rise in just a few hours and he had just killed the sick old man who had traveled here to die while helping a wolf trigger his curse. After that, the young man and futur Alpha had waited for the moon to rise so he could have his first shift with his father. He had specifically asked Bella not to be present, because he didn't want her to witness this.
It wasn't so bad in the end, sure, it was a lot of pain, but Niklaus realized that it wasn't unbearable. He could endure it and he handled the change like a true king, like Bella had done it before him. Of course his wolf form was spectacular. He was completely black and with Bella being completely white, they made a powerful and outstanding pair.
During the next afternoon, Dahlia came back with everything she needed to stop Esther. They told her of Mikael making peace with them and agreeing to let her handle Esther and to stay by his children's side without turning into a vampire and Dahlia agreed to leave him alone, as long as he didn't attack her. The powerful witch also agreed to wait until after the wedding passed to attack her sister.
One the second night of the full moon, Klaus had his very first pack run, though he did notice that all the other wolves, including Bella and Charlie, stood back a little in order to allow Klaus and Ansel to have some privacy. He could still feel Bella's presence. Now that his wolf side was out, he felt his bond with Bella with more intensity. He knew just exactly where she was and how she was feeling.
Klaus loved the freedom he felt when he ran in his wolf form, by his father's side and with the rest of his pack following him. It made him a bit angry to know that his mother wanted to stop this from happening, to prevent him from feeling this freedom. She'd pay for this along with the rest.
The next morning, the village was busy. Very busy. Everyone was preparing for the wedding of the future Alpha and his soul mate.
"How is Mikael going to manage to sneak them all away from Esther today?" Bella asked Freya as her future sister in law helped her do her hair.
"I gave him a special seed to feed Esther, she's going to feel sick all day. He'll pretend he takes the children away so she can rest. Pretend he wants to teach them something important so they're ready to fight against the wolves if necessary." Freya replied with a small smile.
"How sick is sick?" Bella asked with a smile of her own.
"She'll hate today. It won't be pretty to see." Freya smirked before they both chuckled a bit.
Usually, Bella didn't like hurting people, or hearing about them being hurt, but this was Esther, a woman who had been hunting her down since she was a baby, so she felt like ti was well deserved.
Bella and Freya were joined by Rebekah less than an hour later and the younger sister told them that they had been rushed out of the house earlier than planned because Esther feared they would catch what she had.
Bella had never thought she'd ever want to get married, her mother, Renée, had made sure of that. Yet she was excited and eager to get things started, to be married with Niklaus. They had just met, but she felt like she had been waiting years instead of weeks.
"Anyway, I've heard that you and Nik will be living in this house? Where will your father go? Surely he won't stay here!" Rebekah asked Bella.
"My father has decided to move in with Ansel. Usually we would have built a house for Niklaus and I, but our fathers don't think they'll ever fall in love again and even if they do, we'll build a new house then. I think that when he looks at this house, my father is reminded of my mother's betrayal. He didn't say it, but I think that's why he suggested we moved in here and he moved out." Bella explained.
"They'll bring our brother's possessions in there after the wedding, while they both... hum... You know... Shift into their werewolf forms and... Run." Freya replied, trying not to say too much to her younger sister who still got it.
"Are you scared?" Rebekah asked Bella who shook her head.
"No, not at all. I'm... Kind of eager." Bella whispered, making the girls chuckle.
"And what about your mother? I mean, I know she decided to stay in the future and all, but do you miss her today?" Rebekah asked Bella shyly.
"I expected to. I thought that I'd want her to be here, smiling, watching me walk to my one true love... But I don't. All I feel when I think about her absence, is anger. I'm still angry at her because she tried to prevent this from happening. She could have chosen to stay in the future and still helped me get here, prepared me, supported me, but she didn't. I don't think I'm ready to forgive her for this. Not yet. Maybe not ever." Bella shook her head.
"You're a kind soul Bella. I refuse to believe that you won't forgive her, ever. I think you'll be able to forgive her later, once you catch up with the time you left in the future and you go see her. That's when you'll be able to forgive her." Freya declared with a kind smile.
"You're probably right. I'll probably show her how angry I am at hr, then I'll show her how happy I am despite her actions, and I'll end it by forgiving her but refusing her a place in our lives." Bella nodded with a chuckle.
When the time came for Bella to get married, Charlie came to warn them. Freya and Rebekah went ahead and took their seat while Charlie walked with Bella for a while. Then she let go of her father's arm and walked on her own to Niklaus, handsome as ever, waiting for her next to the priestess who handled such ceremonies.
It was still early afternoon and they started the party and shared food now, before the moon rose and they'd have to separate. Everyone was having fun and Bella was glad Mikael allowed his other children to be present, she knew that it meant a lot to Niklaus to have them present.
From afar, she saw Mikael and Dahlia speaking together and since they were both smiling, she knew that they weren't attacking each other. She later learned from Freya that Mikael thanked Dahlia for taking care of Freya all this time, for keeping her safe and he swore not to stand in her way.
"Bella, Niklaus, our siblings want to say goodbye. They have to get back to their house before night falls." Freya announced, interrupting the happy couple as they fed each other fruit.
"Let's go and say goodbye then." Niklaus smiled.
The last few hours before the full moon passed quickly and soon, it was time for Bella and Niklaus to run together in the woods, in their wolf form. It was the start of their married life and they both knew that it would be a happy life.
.
The happy couple didn't emerge back until late afternoon the next day and they learned that the vampire potion was now done.
Niklaus' siblings had talked with Dahlia while the couple was enjoying their wedding night and decided to have Dahlia and Freya confront Esther, along with Bella. Niklaus would then come in and show Esther that he was with Bella, and then all of her children and Mikael would come in after that. They had put the vampire making potion somewhere safe, in Ansel's village, and they were confident that they were deady.
Once Esther knew that she had lost, they'd send her and Dahlia to the world they had created and all of Niklaus' siblings would have the choice to take the potion or not. They'd also get the choice to wait a few years before they did.
.
"Are we ready?" Bella asked Freya and Dahlia as they made their way to the others with Niklaus.
"I might be a bit nervous, but I'm definitely ready." Freya smiled.
"What about you?" Dahlia asked Bella with a smile.
"Oh, I'm ready to confront her about why she tried to have me killed. I mean, if she really wanted to keep Niklaus by her side, there were other solutions, like letting me live, making sure we met early. I get a feeling that my mother wouldn't have stuck around in this time either if we had stayed, so she would have been able to step in and replace Rene. I would have decided to stay with Niklaus, and close to her. It's her own mistakes that are driving her to hell." Bella replied.
"You think your mother would have left without you if you had stayed in this time? She took you with her in the future." Niklaus asked her, surprised.
"I've been thinking about this. She took me with her, because my father was alone. Here he would have had Ansel and the entire village to back him up. She wouldn't have been strong enough to stand up to everyone. She took me with her because she wanted to hurt my father, to show him that she was the one with the power." Bella replied.
"I think you're right." Freya smiled.
"What about you Dahlia, are you sure that you want to go to that world? You could stay here a while, with us." Niklaus asked the aunt he hadn't known he had.
"There isn't much for me in this world. Don't worry though, I've made sure you all would be able to communicate with me in that other world. I'll happily help you anytime you need it." The powerful witch smiled.
"And if we make enemies that we want to get rid of, we can send them to you." Freya smiled back.
"As we have agreed, yes. I will be the only one with magic in that prison world. It will truly be a prison to everyone else, to me, well, it will be home. My own little kingdom, to mold to my will." She chuckled.
"We're at the barrier. Now is the time to check if Finnik and Kol have truly managed to destroy it." Bella noticed.
The brothers had done a good job and the 4 of them were able to walk through what had been a strong barrier. Esther's other children were outside, along with Mikeal.
"Mother is inside. We gave her a magical headache and she's trying to cure it and sent us outside to have some calm." Rebekah informed them in a quiet voice.
"Good, let's go then. Bella, you go first. Don't worry, I've placed a protection spell on your and Niklaus' wedding band. No attacking magic will work on you." Dahlia said and Bella nodded.
She stood a bit straighter, kissed her husband and walked inside, leaving the door open.
"Who are you? You can't just walk in my home like this!" Esther exclaimed angrily as soon as she saw Bella.
"Who I am? Well, I thought you'd know. I mean, you have been trying to kill me since the night I was born. One would think you'd know who I was all along." Bella replied and she saw recognition in the witch's eyes.
"You... You're too late, Niklaus is dead! You'll never find happiness with him." Esther replied with a smile.
"Is he as dead as I am, Mother?" Freya asked, walking inside as well.
"F... Fr... Fraya?" Esther asked, suddenly afraid.
"Why so scared, Mother? Worried that you're not the biggest witch in the land anymore? Don't worry, Aunt Dahlia has raised me well and taught me a lot. I'm just as strong as she is now. Stronger than you are." Freya replied confidently.
"That you are my dear. Strong and smart. You grew into a young woman I am very proud of." Dahlia agreed, walking in as well.
"Sister..." Esther whispered, taking a step back toward the back door.
"No need to try and escape Mother, you're trapped." Niklaus spoke, walking inside through the back door.
"Niklaus... you were dead!" Esther exclaimed, seeing the anger on Niklaus' eyes.
"That's what you were told and shown to believe. Now, I could have understood and forgiven you for hiding me from my true father, Ansel. I understand your fear that he might take me away, but trying to murder my soul mate? That's something that I cannot forgive. That's something I can't get past." Niklaus announced as Bella joined him and he wrapped an arm around his wife's waist, showing Esther that they were indeed together.
"I'm curious, as a witch, can you tell that we're married? That he has triggered his curse and that he's the heir to Ansel's Alpha title? Can you tell how much his pack loves him? Did the spirits tell you about our prophecized future and the packs that are already trying to find ways to be our allies?" Bella asked with fake kindness.
"She probably can't, she couldn't even tell that we were lying to her." Finnik answered as all of her children walked inside.
"No! I can explain, I swear it!" Esther shook her head, truly afraid.
"You can explain, really? Can you explain to me how and why you spelled me to be angrier at Niklaus that I should have been? Why you cursed him to be weaker than he was supposed to be, which in turn only frustrated me more because I knew that he could have been stronger and done better? Why you cheated on me and had another man's child without telling me? Can you explain to me why you tried to have a baby killed just for being Niklaus' soul mate when you know the value of True Love and of Soul Mates? Or maybe you can tell me why you have traded every first born of our bloodline to your sister or why you made me believe that my beloved Freya was dead?" Mikeal spoke from behind Niklaus, forcing the witch to turn around once more.
He spoke in a calm voice but you could feel the anger that was behind it.
"I did what I had to do!" Esther shook her head, truly afraid.
"Lucky for your children and their descendance, we've come to an agreement. The deal for every first born is void, as long as they give me... well, you. Oh, don't worry sister dear, I won't kill you. No, I have a very safe place for us to go to. I created it myself. It doesn't have any magic for you to use, I'll have the power to do anythng I want and you, well, you'll be my prisoner." Dahlia said with a smile before she forcefully grabbed her sister's hand and used magic to send the two of them in the prison world she had created.
As a bright ray of light took the two sisters away, Dahlia smiled at her nieces and nephews and left behind the magical key to the prison world, the one they'd be able to use in case they wanted to send her more people.
"She didn't even try to fight, I expected her to at least try." Bella commented.
"When we gave her the magical headache, we kind of temporarily blocked her powers too. She couldn't do much." Elijah smiled.
"Well, that's done. What's next?" Kol asked.
"Freya can move in with us for one. e can spend some time together without hiding." Mikeal smiled.
"And we can take the vampire making potion to accomplish our destiny." Rebekah added.
"We have to wait for the next full moon for that. Plenty of time for everyone to think about it, decide if they want to take it or not." Freya decided.
"We've all already talked about it. Henrik is the only one who's still undecided, but the rest of us will take it." Elijah said.
"Especially since we can keep our powers when we change." Kol nodded.
"Niklaus and I would like to wait a while before we take it, we want to try and have at least a child. But we've agreed that if one of us gets injured gravely, we'll change." Bella announced.
"How long will you try?" Rebekah asked.
"No more than 6 months. If I'm not with child by then, we'll turn. We don't want to risk waiting too long, we have a lot to do and it will be easier if we're immortal." Niklaus replied.
"We also have to take the time, before we change, to decide what we'll do about the Ancient White oak Tree that will be the only thing capable of killing us." Finnik reminded them.
.
The next month went by quietly and happily for everyone. It seemed that nobody missed Esther and the villagers had accepted her disapearance quite fast, without posing any questions as to why she had left or where she had gone. She was gone, and nobody seemed to care.
Mikael lived in peace with the werewolves and his older children prepared for the big change they had decided on. Henrik was determined to remain humain for now but they knew that he'd have the opportunity to change his mind later on. He was still young and they all understood that he might not want to be a teenager all of his life.
Niklaus was taking a more leading role in the wolf pack and two different wolf packs had already visited. They had heard of Niklaus and Bella, of the prophecy that came along with them and so they came to pay their respect, become friends and allies. They had brought presents for the new couple and it was understood that every pack who came to pay their respect to the couple and become allies, agreed to follow their rules when the time came. They all agreed that Niklaus and Bella would lead them all, be the Alphas who commended all Alphas, some days. They'd prepare their packs, tell them the names, the prophecies, so that their descendents could be ready to welcome them some day.
Ayana made sure it was known that she was their friend too, that she was on their side. Of course the couple didn't doubt it, she had saved their lives after all, but she wanted other covens of witches and supernatural spieces to know about it too. She could see a bright future down the line, with Niklaus and Bella leading a council that represented all the different supernatural spieces in the world, making laws, upholding them, stoping wars before they started.
Not wanting to change the future too much, it was decided that in about a year, Bella, Niklaus and their family would travel to Europe for a while. She was afraid of changing too much on this land and, even if she was far away from Washington state, she didn't want to prevent the birth of someone important later on for her father's Quileute friends.
Bella also wanted them to be adapted to European lifestyle and to be well established in England by the time she needed to find Carlisle. The good doctor had given her the name of his father's church, the street and the approximate date he had been turned. She knew to wait for his father to die and to keep a close eye on him then.
"Still thinking about your doctor friend, Love?" Niklaus asked her as they were having dinner with their fathers.
"Carlisle?" Charlie asked and Bella nodded.
"Yes. Carlisle doesn't mind this life, he told me so. He said that he'll accept whatever happens to him. I know how he'll be changed, by a Cold One Vampire he's tracking. I've asked Ayana and Freya and they told me that Cold one Vampires are all over Europe. Very few of them are on this continent yet, they're all over there. They're weaker than we will be, so we'll be able to dispose of the opposing ones quite easily but... Do I let Carlisle become a Cold one or do we change him into one of us? Maybe being a Cold One is what makes him so good at resisting his bloodlust? I even considered saving his life and letting him live his life as a human but I truly belive that the world would be a worst place without him in it." Bella explained her thoughts.
"You still have quite a few years ahead of you, Bells." Charlie reminded her.
"I know, I know. I guess we'll see when we find him. Maybe we'll find him too late to change him into one of us, aybe fate will make the decision for us." She smiled.
"Anyway, a messenger arrived just before we came here. From a pack we haven't met yet. They can't travel all the way here but they want to make sure we know they're on your side as well, ready to follow your lead." Ansel replied.
"That's good." Niklaus smiled.
"Not that I care about these sort of things, but did he bring a present?" Bella asked with a small smile.
"This question wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that the previous presents you've received were pretty and shiny?" Her father asked her with a chuckle.
Indeed, the two previous packs to have visited and offered friendship had given Niklaus a horse and a strong sword and Bella received a necklace and a bracelet that, even though she wasn't into that sort of thing, she found very pretty and couldn't wait to be able to wear them in Europe when they finally visited a king's court.
"I knew she'd ask." Charlie told Ansel with a smile and the Alpha nodded, amused.
"This pack doesn't have much, and with the long travel the messenger had, they were afraid to send something too valuable, but they sent seeds from flowers and plants we don't have over here." Ansel replied.
"Oh, well, that good too. Better even." Bella smiled.
"You were never one of jewelry, Bells." Charlie reminded his daughter.
"I know, I know, but the ones I got are pretty, I'll be able to wear them when we're in Europe and that kind of makes me happy, something to look forward to." Bella smiled.
"I've decided to leave the horse I got here with Mikeal when we go. It's better this way." Niklaus replied.
"Mikeal is definitely staying behind, then?" Ansel asked.
Ansel truly didn't hold any resentment toward Mikeal and he was ready to accept sharing a family with him forever. he understood that it was mostly all Esther's fault and he didn't mind the man joining them.
"Yes, he feels like he doesn't deserve to come along with us, and he dosn't want to be a vampire anyway. He feels the need to atone for his past crimes. Not only for what he did to me, but also for everything he did in battle. By staying behind, he can also control the stories and legends that we leave behind, the ones that will eventually spread around." Niklaus replied.
"But Henrik is coming with us. Mikeal feels better staying behind because he knows that Henrik will be not only with his siblings but with the two of you as well. he'll have 2 good father figures to guide him." Bella added with a kind smile, happy to know that her father and Ansel would be coming with them, having forever with them.
"Father, I was wondering, have you decided on the last name you'll use forever?" Niklaus asked his father nervously.
"Well, I kind of liked the idea of being a SWAN with Charlie, finally brothers, at least in name, but then it would be weird to explain to people that the two of you aren't cousins." Ansel frowned.
"Well, you can choose one name that will follow you forever, and once in a while the two of you can change it and be the Swan brothers. Though it sounds like the name of a jazz band if you ask me." Bella replied, making her father chuckle.
The other two didn't know what a Jazz band was, but they let it go, they'd understand eventually.
"Will your siblings be using the Mikealson name?" Charlie asked Niklaus who nodded.
"Yes, this way he's be coming along with them, live on with them forever." Niklaus added.
"What about you? You'll be using the same one, right? To stay untied with your siblings?" Ansel asked kindly.
"I've talked about it with them and Bella. I have three possibilities that I like. I could be a Mikealson along with them, but that's not really needed, because we're at peace and I trust that we'll stay untied and together forgever. We might move apart from each other at some point, but wel'l always find each other and be there when one of us needs it. I don't need to share their last name. I could also take Bella's last name and be Niklaus Swan. I know it's not really costumary, but I like it. I could also become Niklaus Anselson." Niklaus smile and his father smiled right back at him.
"We will be together forever, son. For the same reason you don't need to be a Mikealson, you don't need to be Anselson. I like the idea of us becoming all Swan's. Then our enlarged family would be the Swan-Mikealson clan. I like it." Ansel replied.
"Me too." Bella and Niklaus replied at the same time.
"Then that's decided. I'm sure you'll come up with a suitable crest for us all eventually." Ansel smiled.
"In the previous timeline, the Mikealson crest was a large M." Charlie informed them.
"We could simply add a Swan to it, roll the swan's head around the M and have it rest on top. And have a wolf howling on the other side of the M." Bella suggested.
"I like it, I'll work on it and run it by the others." Niklaus agreed happily.
"Anyway, when will your siblings change?" Charlie asked, keeping the conversation going while they were all together, not busy working on different side of the village.
"They've decided to change each on a different full moon, giving the first one time to adapt. Finnik will do it first, he's the calmest, the one we belive would have the easier time adjusting to the change. On the next full moon it will be Elijah and Finnik will be able to help him. Freya will be next, followed by Kol and then by Rebekah. I'll change after that." Niklaus informed them.
"That's actually pretty smart and reasonable." Ansel nodded.
"Finnik will change during the next full moon then?" Charlie asked, curious.
"No, they want to wait a few months, they have time after all. They want to try and cast protection spells on the ancient white oak tree that will be able to destory us so that only one of us can cut from it. It's complex magic apparently, but they'll manage it." Bella shook her head.
"Why not make it so that absolutely nobody can cut through it? Why make it so that one of you can do it?" Charlie frowned.
"Because some day, one of us might want it all to end and it will be easier to be able to do it this easily. They're also considerng the possibility of sending the Tree to the prison world, this way it would be protected and easy to reach." Niklaus informed them.
"I like the second option, this way, whoever wants to use it, will need to ask the others for help and they might be able to help him or her through it before helping them through it." Bella declared.
"Yes, me too." Niklaus agreed.
.
A few weeks had passed, and everything was well in Bella world. She really enjoyed laying with Niklaus every night, having sex with him was the best feeling in the world and she loved it when they found them to do it during the day.
That day, Bella had tried to speak with her husband, having somehting important to tell him, but they had always been interrupted. When he finally was able to come home, she hoped she'd be able to tell him her important news but he had missed her and he rushed to kiss her, leaving no doubt to what he was aiming for.
Of course, any thought of conversation left her mind in that instant. She had missed him too today, a lot.
Later, once they both laid down under the covers, happy smiles on their faces:
"So, I have been trying to tell you somehting all day, but we always seemed to be interrupted." Bella declared with a smile.
"Is something wrong, Love?" Niklaus frowned.
"No, not at all. I... I found out this morning, Freya helped me confirm it with an easy spell. I'm pregnant. About 3 months. I didn't see time pass and didn't notice the symptomes before." Bella explained and her husband was uable to hide his joy at such a happy news.
They celebrated together and made plans to informe their father and the rest of their family the next day, at the planned weekly family diner.
.
Of course everyone was happy for them, how could they not? After everything they had both been through, how could they not be happy for the kind couple?
"In other news, we've decided to send the Tree to Ount Dahlia's world. We'll be able to do it in 2 months because we need to gather a specal herb that hasn't grown enough yet. I'll go through the transition the month after that." Finnik declared.
"Have you decided on how you'd like to be killed, son?" Mikeal asked.
"Well, we've all talked about it, father and we've decided that we'd like you to be involved in this change in a way, so we've decided that you'd be the one to kill us all, to trigger our change." Elijah replied in his brother's stead.
"Are you sure?" Mikeal asked, surprised.
"Of course we're sure!" They all nodded.
"Then I'll happily donate the blood all of you will need to complete the transition." Mikeal added.
.
After that, more time passed. Bella's baby bump grew nicely and she was talking baby names with her husband, making clothes with her sisters in law. Niklaus was working on a bed for his child, built and carved on his own, much to his father's pride because the baby bed was already magnificent and it wasn't over yet.
When the time came to take care of the Tree, the Swan-Mikealsons assembled around it and watched as the Ancient tree disappeared slowly. They checked with their aunt after that, asking her if it had arrived and she confirmed that everything had gone well.
Bella was in her 6th month when Finnik took the potion and changed into a vampire.
The new potion would make things different. A witch, once turned, would be able to keep her powers and people with predispositions for some abilities will be able to develop those abilities, much like Cold Ones. Bella did wonder if whatever kept Edward out of her head in the past future would become bigger, but she didn't think too much about it. Now wasn't the time, she'd see later.
.
Finnik, Elijah, Freya and Kol had turned and they were doing fine. They were able to control their thirst and they could feed from humans or animals. They chose to alternate. Being able to feed on humans and leave them alive was nice, but sometimes it was just more practical to feed on animals. They couldn't wait for the future, because Bella had described Blood Bags to them and they had to admit that it sounded like a nice option.
Of course, they could also feed on normal human food, which was a nice change.
Kol had been turned a couple of weeks ago and they were a couple of weeks away from Rebekah's change. The Swan-Mikealson family was having their weekly family diner. Everything was going well and Bella's meet pie had been so popular that she was glad to have made more. Niklaus was about to go and get it, wanting her to rest since she was close to the end of her pregnancy but she shook her head with a smile and stood up before he could.
"Just as stubborn as her father." Ansel chuckled.
"Oh... Ouch!" Bella exclaimed, dropping the pie and crying out in pain, her hands flying to her enlarged belly.
Finnik was of course able to catch the pie before it touched the ground and Freya was near Bella in a blink, holding her up.
"Bella, what's wrong Love?" Niklaus asked, coming to her as fast as he could.
"My water broke and ... AHHH" She growled.
"I'm guessing the baby is coming." Ansel said, as everyone stood up.
"I'll get the midwife." Charlie informed, running out of the house.
Later, as he stood outside his daughter's house, waiting for her to give birth, Charlie couldn't help but remember the night his daughter was born, many years ago.
"It's all going to be fine, Charlie. Bella's strong." Freya tried to reassure him.
"Yes, and even if she's injured, we'll give her our blood so she can heal." Elijah added.
"It's not that... It just reminds me of the night she was born. It's about the same time of the day, in the same house, with the same midwife..." Charlie replied.
"Except Bella is not her mother, and that's one hell of a good thing." Ansel added.
"Yeah, Renee refused to let me in the house while she gave birth, forced me to wait outside. Bella let Niklaus be present. And Rene screams were much higher than bella's are now." Charlie nodded.
"I'm surprised she's not screaming more. Esther was always very loud in her screams each time she gave birth." Mikeal informed them.
"Werewolves have usually a high tolerance for pain." Ansel replied.
"Our enhanced hearing abilities allow us to actually hear what's going on inside, and trust me, there are some ball reaping threats made to Niklaus in there." Kol said, making everyone chuckle.
It's only a few more minutes later that they were all able to hear a baby cry and they all smiled, hugging each others happily. Finally the Midwife walked out.
"The baby is a girl, and both she and the mother are fine. The father might have a hard time using his hand tomorrow but everything is fine." She told her Alpha before she left the family walk in the house.
"Bella?" Charlie asked in a shy voice, standing ahead of the others, at the entrance of the bedroom, giving her a chance to refuse him entry.
"Come on inside, all of you." Bella smiled.
Once everyone was inside the room, Niklaus spoke:
"Bella and I would like to introduce you all to our daughter. We've decided to name her Hope Charlie Swan-Mikealson." Niklaus spoke and the pack's Beta was happy and proud to see that his daughter's child would have his name as a middle name.
Everyone was happy for them of course and after giving them congratulations and offered Bella Vampire Blood so she'd heal even faster than normal werewolves, they went back home, letting the couple and their baby rest.
.
More time passed without incident. Rebekah transitioned without any problem and Klaus delayed his change a bit. He finally turned when Hope was 2 and a half months old. Bella decided to follow and changed when her daughter turned 6 months old, just one month before they had to leave their home to travel to Europe.
They had well organised everything and said their goodbyes to Mikeal, who was confident that him staying behind was for the best.
Charlie and Ansel had decided that they would only change into hybrids once they were established in Europe.
The ship was large enough and they had taken a lot of animals with them, so they'd be able to fee on the way. They didn't have to kill them of course, and Charlie and Ansel did offer their own blood, but they didn't want to feed on their own family.
I know that this chapter took some time, I hope you'll find that it was worth it. there will be just another one, that will end with a scene of Bella visiting her mother. While the chapter isn't written yet, the entire storyline is.
I also have an idea for an alternate story, that would start the same but instead of going back in the past, Bella would stay in the present with a hybrid Klaus. For now it's just an idea in my head.
The end of this chapter is a bit fast, I didn't have much inspiration to develop it much, but I might rework on it later.
Please leave a review, it helps me know if you liked the story of not.
Lorelei Candice Black