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Chapter 6: Time Incident

Stefan and Elena had taken Damon to Alaric Saltzman's old apartment. Hope had followed them while thinking of a solution to save him. It was impossible for Klaus to get home in time to cure Damon. And Damon Salvatore wasn't supposed to die then. This meant that this situation was due to the Tribrid's presence in the events following the Mystic Grill hostage-taking.

Her future was going to be changed forever, and it was her fault. Completely panicked, Hope thought of a way to save Damon. Arguments between Elena and Stefan didn't help her. And Damon's condition just got worse. He needed the antidote fast or he would die in a very short time.

"Damon's dying and it's your fault, Stefan!" Elena raged against her boyfriend. "If you had followed your brother instead of following your Hope's plan, we wouldn't be here."

"Elena, it's not his fault," Damon told her in a weakened state with his eyes barely open."Stefan had nothing to do with it. And certainly not Hope. It's not their fault."

But Elena was completely upset with Stefan, at the same time she was worried about Damon.

"The situation had eluded us", answered Stefan as distraught as Hope. "You think I wanted this?"

But that didn't comfort Elena. It was quite the opposite, it made her even more furious with him.

"You compelled my brother so that he forgets God knows that! You lied to me and hid things! Like the fact that you made a deal with Klaus and Hope! Then I don't know what I'm supposed to believe from you!"

"Listen, it's not what you think, okay?" Stefan insisted, not knowing how to calm her down.

"Right now, your brother's dying and it's YOUR fault!" resumed Elena more and more angry.

Very close to them, Hope panicked. Elena and Stefan continued to argue, but she was too distressed to pay attention to what they were saying. She could cure Damon with her blood by making them believe it was Klaus' blood that he was putting aside? No, that wouldn't work. To keep up appearances, Hope would be forced to make an unnecessary round trip to the Mikaelson Mansion. It would take too long. And if Klaus learned that Damon had been poisoned with werewolf toxin and that he had been treated with his blood, he would demand an explanation. And the story of his blood being sidelined wouldn't hold up. How to save Damon without endangering the future?

What should she do?

If Damon dies, her whole future would be destroyed. Hope saw the consequences of the vampire's death coming. No Salvatore Boarding School in the future. And a high probability of never seeing Alaric Saltzman alive again. And without Dr. Saltzman, no Lizzie and Josie. With dread, Hope imagined the Saltzman sisters disappearing from reality, as if they had never existed. No Salvatore Boarding School, no Rafael, no MG, no Kaleb, no Jed... and no Landon... What if Damon's death also affects Hope Mikaelson's birth? It was a high probability. She may never be born.

No, she couldn't accept that. Damon wasn't supposed to die now, and Hope knew what she had to do.

Meanwhile, Elena and Stefan continued to argue.

"Call Klaus right now and tell him to treat Damon!" resumed the vampire Gilbert, still furious.

"I can't," objected Stefan desperately. "Klaus isn't in Mystic Falls right now. He is out of country. And even if he was there, he would never agree to save Damon."

"I don't care!"cried Elena indifferently. "Call him!"

"I'm telling you it won't help, Elena…"

"CALL HIM!"

Resolved, Hope turned to them.

Even if Stefan calls Dad, it won't help! With Connor dead, he will never agree to heal Damon! And even if he agreed to heal him, it won't change anything! He is still in Italy! He'll never get home in time to save Damon! Only I can do that! I'm taking a huge risk doing this, but I have to! If Damon dies, my future dies with him! I do not have a choice!

Stefan took his phone and was about to call Klaus when Hope abruptly stopped him by snatching his phone from his hands.

"NO, don't call him! It won't help! I'll do it!" she told him abruptly.

"What?" exclaimed Elena surprised.

"I can save him, I will!"

"Save Damon? How?" exclaimed startled Stefan as if Hope had gone mad.

"Trust me, Stefan! I can save your brother! I can!"

"Only Klaus' blood can cure werewolf toxin," Elena objected categorically. "Stefan, don't listen to her and call Klaus!"

But Hope glared furiously at her.

"You wanna Damon die? Klaus is out of town right now! Even if he agreed to heal him, Damon will be dead before he can get home!"

Stefan continued to shake his head in disbelief.

"Hope, how can you save…"

But Hope interrupted him in an alarmed tone.

"We don't have time! I need a knife!"

But neither Elena nor Stefan reacted. They still kept staring at Hope like she was mad. She firmly insisted impatiently.

"A knife, hurry!"

Despite himself, Stefan gave her a dagger he found in Alaric's belongings.

"To do what?" he wondered, intrigued.

Immediately, the Tribrid came to the bedside of Damon who seemed to be barely conscious. With the dagger, she cut the palm of her hand.

"What's she doing?" asked Elena taken aback.

"I don't know," Stefan answered as confused as her.

Hope came to put the palm of her bloody hand on Damon's lips for him to drink her blood, under the amazed eyes of Stefan and Elena. Hope made Damon drink her blood and he already felt better.

When Damon's condition improved, Hope pulled her hand away in relief. Elena and Stefan could see that he was better. He seemed to be in great shape.

"How do you feel?" Stefan asked, shocked.

"I'm fine," Damon answered as stunned as them.

He took off his shirt and everyone could see that his chest was intact. The black veins were gone. The werewolf toxin was gone. Stefan and his girlfriend couldn't believe it.

"She…cured you?" Elena exclaimed, stunned. "How did she do it?"

Now the three of them were staring at Hope in amazement and bewilderment, trying to figure out how a witch could cure werewolf venom with her blood.

Hope just stared at them, very embarrassed.

Once again, I messed with time! First with Dad after he broke Aunt Rebekah's neck, and now I've just exposed myself to Elena and the Salvatores! How do I fix this? Good work, Hope! How do we limit the damage so we don't screw up the future?

The Mystic Falls trio still stared at the Tribrid in bewilderment. Then Stefan came to take Hope's hand to find that her gash was completely gone. As if it had closed.

"Her wound has healed," he declared aloud more to himself than to the others. (He continued to stare at Hope in amazement, his eyes wide.) "Like in the tunnels… You can heal like a vampire! How'd you do that?"

Embarrassed, Hope searched for an explanation to give as everyone watched. She had to find a way to this without her father finding out. By saving Damon, she had just saved her future, and at the same time jeopardized it a little more. And it shouldn't get any worse.

"I…I…I'm more than a witch," she replied softly.

"That, I think we've got it right now," Damon said, his eyes fixed on Hope as if she were the Devil.

"My blood is also an antidote against the werewolf toxin," explained the Tribrid hesitantly.

"This is impossible!" Stefan exclaimed in amazement. "Who the hell are you?"

"I'm a hybrid creature," answered Hope. "That's all I can tell you. I wish I could tell you more, but I can't."

"Why?" Damon wondered dazedly.

"It's too dangerous for me to reveal who I am," Hope explained. "When a supernatural creature is more than one, it is considered an abomination. I'm not a bad person and I mean you no harm. I have my reasons for being with Klaus. So I'm not crazy enough to ask you to trust me, but I swear I have no bad intentions towards you three or your friends. I will never hurt you."

"Why are you with Klaus if you mean us no harm?" asked Elena confused.

"It's…complicated," the Tribrid answered uncomfortably.

"If you want us to believe you, we're going to need more," Damon tells her still shocked.

"I don't care if you don't believe me," Hope objected. "Just one thing I ask of you in return."

"What?" Stefan asked, raising his eyebrows.

With fear, Hope inhaled and looked at Stefan asking:

"Does anyone else know that Damon was injured with werewolf toxin? Did you tell anyone?"

"No one knows," Stefan assured her still confused.

"Good, because it has to stay that way. No one can know what happened. No one can know that Damon was hurt by Connor. Nobody. And even that I cured him. What you saw, it must stay here. No one can know that I did this! Not even… uh, Klaus! Especially not him!"

"Klaus doesn't know that your blood can cure werewolf venom?" asked Elena in amazement.

Hope stared at her wildly and replied:

"He doesn't! And he must ignore it! If what I did gets out, we'll all be in danger! It could get the attention of the wrong people! And these people, you don't want to meet them! I took a huge risk saving Damon's life! What I've done could endanger me and all of you."

"Why did you save me if it was risky for you to do so?" Damon asked, raising his eyebrows.

"You're Stefan's brother and you didn't deserve to die," the Tribrid replied abruptly.

"That's not all you did." Stefan said skeptically, staring at Hope as if trying to analyze her. "You spent all day trying to protect us. You were afraid for all of us. Why?"

"I can't tell you more, I'm sorry," she replied, still distraught. "You already know too much!"

"All we know is that you're a weird witch with the ability to heal like a vampire and whose blood cures werewolf venom," Damon pointed out.

Hope took on a pleading tone as she stared at the Mystic Falls' trio.

"Stefan, Elena, Damon. I begging you, guys! Promise me what happened and what I did doesn't come out of this room! I'm asking you to keep this a secret, that's all I'm asking in return! I begging you! No one can know what I did! Not even your friends! Not even Klaus! Nobody! My secret must not be discovered, under any circumstances! Please! The less people know about me, the better for all of us! Can I trust you? Please?"

She knew she was asking a lot of them, since she hadn't known them long enough to trust them, but she had no choice. Her secret must not be revealed or her future would suffer. Even her father must not have known.

A witch who turns into a werewolf still works, but a witch whose blood cures werewolf venom will get his attention. He will demand explanations. He won't let me down for answers and I'll be forced to tell him I'm his daughter. And that is not an option. He must not know! I can't afford that!

There was a long silence. Elena and Damon still continued to stare at Hope in amazement and confusion. Then Stefan looked at Hope resolutely.

"It's okay, we won't say anything. If that's what you want."

Hope nodded gratefully at the vampire, handing his phone back. Then she turned to Elena who nodded.

"Damon?" Stefan told his brother.

The eldest Salvatore still continued to stare at Hope with stupefied eyes, then finally nodded.

"As long as you're not trying to kill us, that's fine with me," he replied.

Hope was relieved.

"Thank you very much!"

"As long as you don't make us regret your presence, we'll keep your secret,"added Stefan.

Hope nodded, relieved.

"It won't! I better go home! I have to prepare for Klaus' return. Now that Connor is dead, he's not going to be happy."

Elena looked horrified. With what had just happened, she had completely forgotten about the Hunter she had just killed earlier that day.

The Tribrid was about to leave when Stefan called out:

"Hope?"

She stopped and turned to him.

"Thank you for saving my brother," he said gratefully.

Hope nodded with a friendly smile and left Alaric Saltzman's apartment. When the Tribrid was gone, Damon turned to his brother in amazement and panic.

"Stefan, what the hell's this girl?"

"Good question," Stefan answered as uncertain as him, shrugging his shoulders.

At Lockwood Mansion, Hayley was being comforted by Tyler. Both were mourning the death of Hybrid Dean who had been killed earlier by Hunter Connor.

Tyler hugged the wolf woman, speaking softly to her.

"I am so sorry."

Hayley pulled back from his embrace, shocked by today's events.

"I can't believe Dean's gone. We could have saved him. I know Hope did what she could… Where is she? I looked for her everywhere. I didn't find her."

"Maybe we should keep our distance from her," Tyler suggested. "She's with Klaus. We cannot trust her."

"Hope is not Klaus," Hayley objected, shaking her head. "I don't know how I know. A hunch."

Just then, Caroline walked into the room, her arms crossed over her.

"I apologize. Am I intruding?" she said in an angry voice.

Tyler pulled away from Hayley and stared at his girlfriend, embarrassed.

"Caroline, it's not like that."he stammered.

"I keep waiting for you to make up some dumb story so at least I can call you a liar. Is that now?" asked Caroline furiously.

Uncomfortable, Hayley pulled away from Tyler.

"I'll let you two talk."

"Thank you. How big of you." Caroline agreed coldly.

Hayley glared at the blonde vampire and walked away. She let Tyler explain himself to his girlfriend. She wanted to go up to the room where she was staying, when she saw someone who had just entered the Lockwood Mansion. Someone Hayley knew.

Hope had just entered the Mansion. She still wanted to take advantage of her father's absence in Mystic Falls to spend time with her mother. Even if the latter was unaware that she was her daughter.

"Hi," Hope said with a friendly smile. "I wanted to see you after what happened today."

"Hope!" exclaimed Hayley in amazement and relief.

Suddenly she went to hug her, unaware of why she cared so much for her. For some unknown reason, Hayley felt close to Hope, like she knew her. With tears in her eyes, she hugged the girl to her, as if she were the most precious thing to her.

Stunned and shocked, Hope hadn't expected her mother to hug her. Nevertheless, she clung to her, not wanting to be separated from this embrace. If only she knew a spell to freeze time. She wanted this moment to last forever. It had been so long since her mother had hugged her. She had almost forgotten how it felt. Her time in the past was limited and uncertain. But more than anything, she wanted to savor every moment she spent with those around her. Whether with her dad or with her mom. Her mother took her in her arms when she did not know she was her daughter. It was almost unexpected.

For a moment, the two women didn't say a word. They hugged each other. Then, Hayley spoke softly to her, tears in her eyes.

"I'm glad you're okay. I looked for you everywhere. When I saw what happened to Dean, I feared the worst not seeing you. I was afraid that psycho killed you. I was so worried."

"It's okay," Hope whispered into her embrace. "I'm fine, Mom."

She was so shocked by this hug that she had forgotten to contain herself. Hayley looked at her curiously, frowning.

"You call me Mom?"

With tears in her eyes, Hope wanted so badly to tell her the truth. Tell her she was her daughter. But the incident with Connor and Damon had made her realize that messing the time could have disastrous consequences that could endanger her future. Who knows what consequences would happen if she revealed to Hayley that she was from the future and was her daughter. After what happened to Damon, Hope couldn't afford to take such a risk.

She replied with tears in her eyes.

"You remind me of my mom. You have her face. You look so much like her… And… it's been so long since she hugged me that… I felt like it was her. I just confused you with her. Excuse me, Hayley."

To her surprise, Hayley was neither shocked nor intrigued. She answered her tenderly with a smile on her lips.

"It's okay, Hope. You don't have to apologize. I look like your mom. Your reaction is normal. I'm so sorry."

Then both ended up separating, to the great sadness of Hope.

"I'm sorry for Dean," whispered the Tribrid still upset. "I couldn't do anything for him. Connor had a prism that was blocking my magic… I couldn't save him…"

"It wasn't your fault, Hope," assured Hayley still saddened by the death of the Hybrid. "I know you did everything you could. At least you were able to save the hostages because of him. So Dean didn't die for nothing."

Hope nodded, still distraught at having to hide things from her mom.

"What about Connor? Where is he now?" said Hayley.

"He's dead," Hope said simply. "We caught him, but Damon and Elena got involved and it ended badly for him. Klaus wanted him alive. He's not going to be happy."

"Why did he want so much to have this Hunter alive?" wondered Hayley perplexed.

"Sorry, I'm not allowed to talk to you about it. It's about Klaus' business. The fewer people know, the better."

Hayley frowned, asking:

"He doesn't know about this psycho yet?"

"No, I haven't called him back yet," Hope replied. "I'm waiting for him to come home to tell him. And I know he's going to be furious."

Hayley sounded shocked.

"You should leave, Hope. Go away. You don't have to stay with him."

But Hope shook her head in a neutral tone.

"Even if I left town, it wouldn't change anything. He'll find me wherever I go. I don't run away from danger. And I'm not afraid of his anger. I'm sure it's gonna be okay."

"You are really brave, little one," Hayley told her with amazement and admiration. "If you ever need help, anything, you can always call me.. I'm here for you, Hope."

The Tribrid smiled tenderly at her past mother.

"Thank you, Mom… Sorry, uh… Hayley… Thank you, Hayley."

"You're welcome," answered the wolf woman with kindness.

At Salvatore Mansion, Stefan came back to his room after taking a shower and noticed his brother Damon at his desk drinking a glass of bourbon.

"How are you feeling, brother?" asked Stefan concerned.

Damon sighed annoyed as he put down his glass.

"Are you going to ask me this question all hours of the night? I'm fine Stefan. When Hope made me drink her blood, it felt exactly like when Katherine made me drink Klaus' blood the first time I was poisoned. It completely cured me. It's like Connor never shot me. You have strange associations, brother."

Stefan looked amused as he threw down his towel. Then Damon resumed with his neutral tone.

"How is Elena?"

After Hope left, Elena resumed her task of burying the dead Hunter in the woods. She was overwhelmed with a deep sense of guilt. She had never killed a human being before.

Stefan sighed with a defeatist look.

"Angry, full of guilt, hasn't said a word to me other than that she wants to be left alone."

Damon nodded sympathetically.

Then Stefan noticed that his diary was wide open in front of Damon.

"Is that my journal?"

Damon replied simply as Stefan snatched the journal from his hands:

"I had to go through six locks to get it. I needed something to back up your insanity. You figure out how to tell Klaus you lost a Hunter and a Hybrid?"

Stefan put his book away in his cupboard, replying:

"Hope called to tell me that Klaus is on the plane. She hasn't told him about Connor yet. She prefers to wait for him to come back to tell him. Which means I get to live for another six hours. She also said that I shouldn't worry too much. She'll defend me if Klaus comes to murder me."

"Well, I got your back, you know, when he comes to murder you." Damon said with his glass of bourbon in his hand.

"Thanks," Stefan replied unenthusiastic. "Thanks for not saying anything to Elena."

"About what? About the cure we don't have, can't find, and probably doesn't exist? You're welcome." his older brother said with a smirk.

"She doesn't need to know that she killed her chance of being human again."

"Alleged chance."

"I believe him, Damon. You didn't hear Klaus' story. I believed every word he said."

But Damon didn't seem convinced.

"Well, I'll remain a skeptic for now. So what's your next move?"

"He said there was a Brotherhood of the Five," Stefan replied with a resolute look. "Which means there are other hunters out there and I'm just gonna keep looking until I find one."

Damon poured himself another drink, answering casually:

"Sure, Stefan, since you asked; I'd be happy to go on a suicide mission with you for a potentially non-existent cure. No problem. Honestly, I don't know what's the craziest thing that happened today. The fact that there is a non-existent cure for vampires or the fact that we have a new witch in town who heals like a vampire and cured me of werewolf toxin with her blood. You really told me everything you know about Hope?"

"As for her, I know as much as you do about her," Stefan replied, shrugging his shoulders. "The fact that she heals like a vampire and what her blood did to you, I learned that at the same time as you. I thought about it for hours. It still doesn't make any sense."

"What?"

"How can a witch's blood cure werewolf venom? Until now, only Klaus was able to do that. I don't see how Hope can do that. And even heal like a vampire. Even if she had used a spell, it wouldn't have worked so quickly."

"It's obvious that we have to do with a new creature that we don't know," replied Damon still shocked by Hope's gesture. "She said she is a Hybrid creature. Do you think Klaus would have turned her?"

"No, it's not him," Stefan objected, shaking his head.

"How do you know?"

"From what I understand, he met Hope after Rebekah destroyed Elena's last bags of human blood. So she wasn't turned by Klaus. I wonder if she might have werewolf genes. For her blood to act on the venom of wolves, it's likely she has some connection to werewolves."

Damon was even more stunned as his eyes widened.

"A were-witch? Do you think it exists?"

Stefan shrugged.

"That's the only explanation that comes to mind. We already have Klaus as the Original Hybrid."

"Wait, she said people might come and kill her if her secret got out," Damon reminded him suspiciously. "A witch with the ability to heal like a vampire and whose blood is the antidote to werewolf toxin… Considering her age, we should have heard of her by now. As far as we know, the only Hybrids we know of are Klaus and his gang of slaves. Apart from them, no one else. And if she was an unknown Hybrid, why would she come to Mystic Falls just when Klaus can't make any more Hybrids? It can't be a coincidence."

"I don't know, Damon," Stefan replied with a shrug.

"Why is she staying at his place if she means us no harm?" Damon said, thinking. "And why did she save me when I tried to kill her in the tunnels?"

"Speaking of which," retorted his worried brother. "I saw Hope in action. I saw her subdue Connor with several spells. She completely knocked him out. As a witch, she's a lot more powerful than Bonnie. When we were in the tunnels, she could have easily killed you. Instead, she held back, I saw her. It's obvious that she didn't mean to hurt you. If she had really wanted to, she would have done it. And while we were tracking Connor, Hope was freaking out. She was really afraid that one of us would be killed by Connor. She wasn't pretending, Damon. She was really scared for us. Someone who's on Klaus' side who cares about us, that doesn't make sense!"

Stefan's revelations perplexed Damon even more.

"What's Hope trying to do by staying with Klaus? Why would she want to hide who she is? Even Klaus doesn't know that her blood can cure wolf venom. Why hide it from him if she lives with him? I don't understand anything."

"Judging by her look when she begged us to keep her secret, it's obvious that something is at stake," Stefan supposed thinking. "And I'm sure it has nothing to do with the cure. I think she is our ally. Damon, I'm sure Hope is one of us. As long as she helps me find the cure, I trust her. And if she doesn't want us to reveal what we saw her doing today, then it'll be kept secret. And I think Elena will too."

Damon remained skeptical, though he was grateful to Hope for saving his life. Nevertheless, this situation puzzled him. His suspicions about Hope made him even more suspicious of her. But he preferred to change the subject.

"Speaking of Elena, tell me one thing. Why do you want to cure her?"

"What kind of question is that?" exclaimed Stefan sarcastically.

"A legitimate one." Damon answered seriously. "You want to cure her because she's a vampire and she's not cut out to be? Or you can't love her if she is one?"

Stefan stopped being sarcastic and replied seriously:

"I'll always love her. But she's not supposed to be this person. I don't want her to be."

Damon seemed satisfied with this answer.

"Well, if I'm gonna ride this fairy tale to its conclusion, I want to be clear about one thing." he replied.

"What's that?" asked Stefan.

"I'm fine with her either way, brother. So, if I do this, I'm doing it for you." Damon answered resolutely. "And if you want to make Hope our ally, I'm fine with that. And I agree to keep her secret. But trust is earned. Whoever this Hope is, I don't trust her. Nevertheless, I know I owe her because she saved my life today, so I'll keep her secret. But if this goes wrong, we'll expose her and we'll find a way to figure out who she is and how to stop her."

"I'm not worried about Hope. I'm sure we can trust her."

"If you say so," retorted the elder Salvatore, drinking his glass of bourbon.

At the Mikaelson Mansion, in her room, Hope had spent the night trying to find a way to return to the future using the Esther's spellbooks she had taken from her father's library. But the events of the day before had prevented her from concentrating. Dawn began to appear.

Damon would have died if not for Hope's intervention. Her father would never agree to cure Damon, even if he was in Mystic Falls. And Damon wasn't supposed to die, which meant Connor hurting him wasn't supposed to happen. If this had happened, it was because of Hope's involvement in the events.

The Tribrid had thought about what might have been with or without her. Her plan to capture Connor was just fine until Damon and Elena arrived. Even without Hope's help, Stefan would have managed to free the hostages through the tunnels. And Connor would have died anyway. With Damon's ignorance of the cure, Connor's capture could only end badly.

This greatly worried Hope. Because she wasn't supposed to be there. And the longer she stayed with her father, the more the risks of changing the future would worsen. And what could have happened to Damon was living proof of that. She had just come close to disaster.

Hope had to find a way to return to her time before causing another disaster that could be even more terrible than Damon dying. Not to mention the fact that she had exposed herself by saving Damon with her blood. She prayed that the Mystic Falls' trio would keep her secret. She hoped she could trust them. And pray that Klaus doesn't find out that Damon was hurt by werewolf venom and who miraculously got out. If he were to find out, he'd want to figure out how Damon got out when he was in Italy.

Frustrated, she threw the books to the ground. She sighed with a defeatist look.

"Jo, if your plan was to make me travel in the past to be erased from reality or to make our whole future disappear, you've done well!"

She began to brood over time travel and the fact that Dark Josie had sent her to the past.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the ringing of his phone. She took it out and saw the name appear. It was her dad. He had certainly returned to Virginia and was waiting to hear from Connor. The time had come to tell him what had happened.

Sighing resolutely, Hope eventually picks up to tell him the news.

Thanks for reading and reviewing.

Hope and Stefan will bond for the following chapters. And when we see what happens to Stefan in season 4, he will need a friend like Hope.