Hi everyone. In this chapter, Hope is going to face a threat she has not faced before. And that is because she has struggled so that her existence can happen.
Good reading.
Chapter 15: Darkness on the Edge of Future
Completely despondent, Hope made her way to the Mikaelson Mansion. She had finally revealed the truth to her mom. Part of her felt relieved and part of her was sad. She wanted to say goodbye to her mother, and she had only succeeded in pushing her away. Although she understood her reaction, Hope was unhappy that she could not say goodbye to her mom. And now she would never see her again. She would have to live with the image of her mother who ran away from her, not wanting to accept a future daughter and pregnancy. Hope felt guilty for coming to reveal the truth. Was she right to do so? Was she wrong? Who could really say? Would she face new time incidents?
She eventually reaches the Mansion. She quickly dried her tears, not wanting to attract the attention of her dad, knowing that he wouldn't miss an opportunity to make her confess her secret. And now that her mom had run away, Hope was even more reluctant to tell her father. She knew that she could not escape it. Sooner or later, her secret was going to be revealed. Very soon, her dad was going to find out about Hayley's pregnancy. Hope wondered what she should do. She was still not close to going back into her future. She would have gone to see Bonnie, but because of Jeremy's death, she didn't dare go to her and ask for help. They had just returned from Mystic Falls. The Cure was in the hands of Katherine Pierce and Jeremy was dead. Hope needed a friend.
Just then, her phone rang. Convinced it was her mother, Hope took it out and was disappointed to see Stefan's name on the phone screen. Why was he calling her so early in the morning? Could it be because of Elena again? Did she run away to kill someone?
I hope it's not a problem with Elena again! Because right now, I'm not in the mood to deal with a vampire without humanity! Again and over again Elena!
Nevertheless, she answered the call that she received from the vampire.
"Hi Stefan." she replied, wanting to look natural. "What now? Another problem with Elena, I guess?"
"No, Elena's with my brother." the vampire replied. "That's not why I'm calling you. It's about Silas. I think he's in Mystic Falls."
The name of Silas made Hope tremble. With her fears about the future and the departure of her mother, she had completely forgotten this immortal, dangerous and powerful being. The one for whom the Cure was intended. Hope knew his history: Silas was known as the first immortal, and an extremely powerful witch among the Travelers, as well as the co-creator of the immortality spell with Qetsiyah. If he is currently in Mystic Falls, this could be a serious problem for Hope. She had arranged for everything to lead to her conception, including the awakening of Silas. And he was back out there. Silas could discover her secret and threaten her future.
After a shock, she took the phone call.
"What makes you think he's here?"
"Sheriff Forbes contacted me." replied Stefan. "According to her, the hospital's blood bank was robbed. All blood supplies are missing. And not just in town. There's been reports of six other blood bank thefts all within 30 miles of Mystic Falls. Somebody's stockpiling blood. I know it's not Elena, neither are we, and it's not Damon either…"
Hope was stunned.
"So someone robs all the blood from hospitals? Either it's a vampire who has great thirst or…"
"I think Silas followed us back from that island." said Stefan. "He hasn't fed in 2000 years, so he would need to gorge on blood. It explains the thefts."
If Silas needs blood, it means he's not powerful enough yet. Maybe I have a chance to neutralize him without killing him. Fortunately Mom left Mystic Falls. Silas could use her to get to me if he unmasked me.
"And so you call me to help you find him?" she asked.
"I contacted Klaus." said Stefan on the other end of the line. "Meet me at my house."
"I'll be right there." Hope said as she hung up.
She reached the entrance of the Mansion, noticing her father leaving. He saw her and joined her.
"Hope, what were you doing out?" he asked to her.
"I was off to play wolf." justified Hope wanting to remain neutral. "I needed it. Too many emotions at once, from being stuck with the Gilberts."
Klaus looked suspicious, but didn't dwell on her.
"Well, Stefan called me. Apparently, he wants to see us both at his house."
"He called me too." Hope replied. "It would have to do with Silas."
Klaus frowned at the name.
"It must be serious for him to contact us both."
"He says me, that multiple blood banks have been robbed in hospitals near the town." explained Hope. "All the blood bags have disappeared from hospitals. We are dealing with someone who is really very thirsty to be determined to plunder the hospitals' stores."
"Unless it is this dear Elena without humanity who delights in her darkness." suggested Klaus with a funny grin.
"I don't think it was her." Hope objected. "Stefan and Damon would have noticed her. Then they aren't stupid enough to be careless like that."
"Maybe." replied her dad, not convinced. "Let's go to my old friend became enemy."
Arriving at the Salvatore Boarding House, they discovered Caroline collecting garbage from the house, following the disaster of Elena's party last night. Finding a cup still containing alcohol, she thriftily drunks the last sip before throwing it in the trash.
With humor, Klaus could not help commenting:
"Desperate times, I take it?"
"Hello Caroline." said Hope with kindness and compassion.
She felt sorry for her future headmistress. Caroline had just been through a difficult time. First the forced departure of Tyler by the Tribrid's father, then the humanity switch of Elena who had tried to harm her mom. Hope suspected that Caroline had nothing to be happy about right now.
"What are you doing here?" asked Caroline in a despicable tone without looking at him, nor paying attention to Hope and throwing an empty cup into the trash.
"Not judging you, for starters, although if you are determined to get drunk, then perhaps I might recommend something a little more sanitary?" replied the Original Hybrid.
Keeping eye contact, Caroline took another cup in one go and threw it with a defiance into the trash can under her arm.
"Well, then. You showed me." said Klaus amused.
"Shouldn't you be out chasing Tyler to the ends of the earth? Or are there still some hopes and dreams you wanna crush around here?" cried Caroline bitterly.
Poor Caroline! Dad forced her boyfriend to leave town. Her best friend lost her brother and turned off her emotions, then went mad and attacked her mom, the sheriff. I think I'd be acting like her if I were in her shoes.
With total indifference to Caroline's contemptuous gaze, Klaus added more beautifully:
"Depends. Do you happen to know where the young Brutus is?"
Caroline returned to her garbage collection, responding coldly:
"I know where he's not… with me. And he gave Matt the deed to the house, so he's gone for good."
Hope spoke softly to her dad.
"Be nice to her. She's been through a lot lately."
Klaus nodded and slowly approached her.
"Tyler made it his life's mission to kill me. You can't hate me for driving him away."
"Oh I can, and I do." Caroline said in a firm tone. "Now if you guys don't mind, I'd like to get back to spiraling, so go away."
"Actually, Stefan asked us to come." Hope replied with compassion. "That's why we're here."
At this point, Stefan entered the room.
"Yes, I asked them both to be here. We need the help of Klaus and a witch like Hope. Because I think Silas is in Mystic Falls."
Shortly afterwards, Stefan told them what he had learned about the blood bags stolen from nearby hospitals.
Klaus poured a glass of bourbon in response, as if he was not concerned:
"So some blood went missing from a few hospitals. What about Elena? Don't vampires with their humanity off tend to overindulge in human blood." (turning to Stefan.) "Or were you the exception?"
"It's not Elena." objected the vampire Salvatore.
"Even without emotions, Elena wouldn't be stupid enough to make such a mistake that would attract attention." added Hope.
"Well, let's say for a moment that it was Silas." admitted Klaus sitting on the couch with his glass of bourbon in hand. "I'm struggling to see how this affects me and Hope."
Stefan explained to them:
"Look. Silas wants to die and be reunited with his one true love, but he's supernatural, so if he takes the Cure and dies, he gets stuck on the Other Side."
"How Shakespearian." commented Klaus amused by taking a sip of his glass.
"But if he destroys the Other Side altogether." Stefan said as if the Original Hybrid had not said anything. "He can take the Cure, die, and pass on, but in destroying it, every dead supernatural being will return to our side."
Caroline looked at Klaus and said:
"That means every werewolf, every witch, every vampire. I wonder how many of those you personally killed. Care yet?"
Hope looked nervous. Her mom had just left her after telling her the truth. Having to deal with Silas after that was one thing, but dealing with her dad's old dead enemies was another. She didn't need that right now.
"Don't take it lightly." she replied hoping her dad would take this threat seriously.
And to her great relief, she noticed that her father seemed to care, because he wasn't at all amused.
"My interest is piqued. How do we stop him?"
"Bonnie said Silas needs to complete three massacres to do this spell." replied Stefan.
"The Expression' spell." said Hope. "This is what Shane was trying to create for Silas' rise."
"Exactly." approved the vampire Salvatore. "Before Professor Shane died, he convinced the Pastor Young to blow up the Council. Next, he had you kill your hybrids, and now he only needs one more massacre, so if he's here, that's what he's doing. We need to find him."
"Shane was an expert on everything about Silas." Hope explained. "And he knew perfectly well the ingredients for the spell of Expression. It's worth trying to find out what he had in his office at Whitmore College."
"Good idea." said Stefan. "We can start there."
The night had fallen. Hope, Klaus, Stefan and Caroline had entered Whitmore College. They entered the old office of Professor Shane.
"What are we even looking for?" asked Caroline uncertain of their presence in the former office of the deceased teacher.
"Well, if Shane really was working with Silas, chances are he was helping him plan his next move." replied Stefan.
"And it's in his office that we'll have a better chance of finding out what he knew about the Expression." added Hope. "We'd be better at stopping Silas if we knew the next massacre."
"Where, on his evil villain to-do list?" replied Caroline with skepticism. " 'Steal blood, perform three massacres, pick up dry cleaning'?"
"Actually, not to nit-pick, but we evil villains usually use minions to pick up our dry cleaning, that sort of thing." added Klaus while searching Shane's office.
"Agree." Hope nodded as she opened the drawers of the desk.
"Stefan, why are Klaus and Hope necessary again?" retorted Caroline staring at Klaus coldly.
"Well, we don't know what Silas can do." replied Stefan. "So if we do have to go head to head with him, an Original Hybrid who can't die and a great powerful witch like Hope might come in handy."
"Thank you, Stefan." replied Hope moved that the vampire Salvatore considered her a powerful witch.
Klaus continued his amused tone by adding in front of Caroline:
"Besides, Stefan and I work well together, or at least we did in the twenties."
Stefan was bothered to hear of his dark past alongside Klaus in Chicago in the twenties.
"Well… granted my emotions were off."
Hope couldn't help but frown at the memory evoked by her dad. She knew her dad met Stefan just after Mikael forced him to leave New Orleans. And at that time, Stefan was ripper.
"Sorry you didn't know Stefan at that time, Hope." Klaus continued with amusement. "He was more fun, just as Damon is probably relishing in Elena's emotionless company in New York."
"My brother knows what he's doing." assured Stefan in a categorical tone.
"Does he?" Klaus pointed out in an incredulous tone. "Don't underestimate the allure of darkness, Stefan. Even the purest hearts are drawn to it."
Stefan was content to sigh, unaffected by the words of his enemy.
Hope seemed shocked to remember the moment when she had the Hollow in her, and that it had totally consumed her to being able to kill. If she activated her vampire side, would she become as evil as her father had been? Or would she become a ripper like Stefan was in the 1920s?
Not noticing his daughter's trouble, Klaus shrugged:
"Still, I'm sure it'll all be fine."
Hope and Caroline found books on a shelf. They were looking for guidance on the next move involving Silas. When Caroline was able to find an interesting book.
"I… I think I found something. Symbolic Figures in the Dark Arts. Didn't Bonnie talk about Expression Triangles? Here."
She opened the book and put it on the desk where Klaus was sitting. All four could see a large, intricate drawing that represented a triangle.
"There is the symbol of Expression." said Hope looking at the page.
Stefan read the page:
"In some schools of magic such as Expression, human sacrifice can be used as a focus for power. It is rumored that the addition of two supernatural sacrifices compounds the mystical energy, creating an Expression Triangle."
Hope looked at the symbols on the triangle. It showed the one who was on top of the trine.
"There is the symbol of humans. Young's massacre of the Council." she explained before pointing to another symbol. "And this one, the symbol for demons. The Hybrids."
"And what is the third, my littlest wolf?" asked Klaus.
Hope seemed shocked to recognize the sign.
"Oh crap!"
"What? What does that mean?" asked Caroline.
"This symbol represents the witches." stammered the Tribrid with a shock. "The third massacre involves twelve witches sacrificed. After that, the triangle will be complete. And Silas will become very powerful. That means Silas must have found a way to lure witches into Mystic Falls and send them to the death."
"We need Bonnie." Stefan said. "We must find her and prevent twelve witches from being killed. She can convince them to leave town. And they could help us find Silas."
Later, Stefan and Hope went to Bonnie's house.
"I haven't seen Bonnie since we left the island." explained the vampire Salvatore. "I hope she will be able to help us. She's been very upset since Jeremy died."
"And she's not the only one." explained Hope thinking of Elena without her emotions.
Stefan came to the door of the house of the witch Bennett. The door opened and it was Bonnie's father, Rudy Hopkins, who opened it.
"Hello, what do you want?"
"Hello, we came to see Bonnie." Hope explained. "We need her help. Is she here?"
"My daughter needs help." replied Rudy with an alarmed tone.
"What's wrong?" asked Stefan.
"Since she's come back, she can't control herself anymore, she's losing touch with reality!" said Bonnie's dad with anxiety. "I contacted my wife to bring in witches. They will help Bonnie better than this damned professor Shane does."
"What did you say?" exclaimed Hope astonished. "Professor Shane? Why are you talking about him?"
"He's been with Bonnie since she came home." pursued Rudy totally agitated. "He's supposed to help her control her magic, but it's getting worse!"
Hope and Stefan were stunned. Professor Shane died on the island. Rebekah was the last person to see him and confirmed his death. If Shane was dead, who was with Bonnie?
Shortly afterwards, Stefan and Hope left the Bennetts' residence, both confused and bewildered.
"Stefan, you told me that Shane died on the island." asked Hope anxious.
"He's dead." the vampire assured her as stunned as she was. "Damon knows from Rebekah and confirmed it to me. She saw her body decay on the island."
Hope appeared stunned, then tried to regain her senses.
"Okay. Either a zombie is hanging out with Bonnie, or…"
"…Silas who is with Bonnie with the appearance of Shane to deceive her." Stefan concluded as intrigued as she.
"And he found a way to get witches into Mystic Falls." said the Tribrid nervously. "Bonnie's out of control, and Silas brainwashes her so he can get his third massacre."
Caroline and Klaus were alone in Shane's office, leaning on a map of Mystic Falls. Caroline, with a ruler and pen, drew lines on the map as she spoke.
"There've been two massacres. Pastor Young's farm is here, and the old Lockwood cellar, where you spitefully slaughtered twelve of your own Hybrids, is here." (She drew a line connecting the two places.) "According to the book, the Expression Triangle is equilateral, putting it here."
She drew two more lines, forming a triangle on the map.
But Klaus replied with amusement:
"Somebody's been skipping their geometry classes."
He took the ruler and pen from Caroline's hands and drew two more lines, forming another triangle opposite to Caroline's.
"There are actually two places where the third massacre could be." he said, drawing lines.
"Well, you didn't let me finish." says Caroline with a embarrassed smile.
They continued to look at each other from the other side of the office when the door opened and Stefan and Hope came back to them.
"Hey. What's going on? Did you guys find Bonnie?" asked Caroline.
"No, but we talked to her dad. We think we found Silas." replied Stefan.
"He brought witches to Mystic Falls." added Hope nervously.
In the dark woods, Bonnie made her way to a clearing where she met a woman who faced her.
"Is it just you?" asked the young witch.
"This place wasn't easy to find." the woman replied.
"Figured you wouldn't want to draw attention." she reminded Bonnie.
"It'll work. I'm Aja."
"You friends with my mom?"
At the mention of Abby Bennett, the witch Aja gave a sad smile.
"I was. After she became a vampire, we didn't have a whole lot in common."
"So she's not coming." asked Bonnie disappointed that she couldn't see her mom.
"This is witch business." Aja firmly declared. "Look, I know you're scared, but I've dealt with Expression before. I know the hold it can have on you."
"It's not that." mumbled Bonnie. "I'm just- I'm strong. You won't be able to do this alone."
"Oh, honey, who said anything about being alone?"
At her words, a dozen people emerged from the woods, joined the clearing, came to them and all began to form a circle around the two witches.
"There's almost nothing as strong as a full coven." explained Aja. "So I brought eleven of my closest friends. Won't be fun, but we're gonna cleanse you. You ready?"
"Let's do this." declared Bonnie with determination.
She was lying on her back in the center of a pentagram on the ground. Around the pentagram were faded torches and the circle of witches; Aja was crouching above her.
"Call out to the spirits, Bonnie. Let them in." she urged by placing her hands on the sides of Bonnie's head.
The woman took an inspiration and began to recite:
"Phesmatos tribum… aah! Aaah!"
She moaned in pain and her body jumped.
"I can't. It's hurting. It hurts! Oh!" she moans.
"It's because you've rejected the spirits." explained Aja always leaning on her. "The Expression's consumed you."
And the old witch began to recite in her turn:
"Phesmatos tribum nas ex viras…"
"I changed my mind." Bonnie replied in a small voice.
But Aja didn't cease the spell:
"Purgal animum sous…"
"I don't wanna do this anymore!"
But Aja seemed to not hear her or ignored her and continued her spell, paying no attention to the distress of Bonnie who began to screech in pain:
"LET ME GO! STOP!"
"She's fighting! I need help!" cried Aja, addressing the circle of witches. "Link with me! Lend me your power!"
The others knelt on the ground and joined Aja, reciting in unison:
"Phesmatos repallus tantian…"
Bonnie cried in pain and the torches that formed a circle around them shone with a thousand lights.
"Maltuscanum anium par vas."
Then the eyes of poor witch Bennett suddenly opened and were milky-white color.
"We need more strength!" continued Aja in a pressing voice.
And the choir of witches said again:
"Phesmatos repallus tantian maltuscanum anium par vas."
Bonnie continued to screech in pain.
After walking through the dark woods, Hope and Stefan eventually found a well-animated clearing. Several witches stood in a circle around Bonnie and a woman who was crouching on her. Hope could hear the witches recite a powerful spell to cleanse dark magic, and Bonnie howling in pain.
The torches were burning around the circle of witches. Bonnie, lying on the ground, was fighting against Aja and screaming in pain. Her eyes were white and she was bleeding from the nose.
"What the hell are they doing to her?" said Hope, anxious.
Bonnie wasn't supposed to die tonight, and besides, the Tribrid needed her alive so she could come back to her future.
"Yield to the spirits, Bonnie! You can't fight us!" cried the witch Aja.
Stefan ran to join Bonnie, using his vampire speed.
"Stop!" he implored them, alarmed. "It's not what you think."
But Aja gave Stefan a hateful look, still keeping her hands on Bonnie's head in agony.
"This is no place for a vampire."
Hope joined them in turn, begging them to leave the poor witch Bennett alone.
"Don't do that! You'll kill her! You've no idea what's going on!"
At the sight of the girl of future, Aja gave her a hostile look and appeared vigilant, as if Hope had the plague.
"Who are you? I feel a powerful magic in you! You are not an ordinary witch!" (She glared her.) "You are an abomination! You don't belong here!"
The other witches in a circle looked at Hope with the same hostility, but the Tribrid ignored them and continued to beg:
"Bonnie's under the influence of Silas! She is not aware of her actions!"
"Silas?" said Aja.
"He brainwashed her to kill you." added Stefan.
Bonnie continued to moan in pain. Aja pulled out a dagger to the horror of Stefan and Hope.
"Wait. What are you doing?" exclaimed Stefan in horror.
With no empathy for Bonnie, Aja continued with contempt.
"If Silas has her, she's lost. We can't save her."
"Stop! Are you crazy?" cried Hope as she rushed towards Bonnie. "I need her alive! You don't know what you're doing!"
But Aja holds her hand, causing Hope to back up and prevent her from reaching her friend. And Stefan had no more chance, for the witch cast an attack spell on him, making him moan with pain.
"I have the power of twelve witches. You don't stand a chance!" (Then she addressed Hope.) "When we're done with Bonnie, we'll deal with you, you abomination!"
Hope struggled, but she wasn't able to stand up to a coven of witches who attacked them magically, forcing them to retreat.
Stefan grabbed Hope and walked her away from the circle at full speed, backed into a tree and moaned in pain.
The witches resumed their singing on Bonnie, as if nothing had interrupted them.
"They're gonna kill her, Stefan! They will kill Bonnie!" exclaimed Hope in horror.
This crazy witch has become linked to her friends! The only way to save Bonnie would be to kill the witch who wants to stab her! But if she dies, the others will die with her and Silas will have get his massacre! And if Bonnie dies, I'll never go home, and worse, my whole future will be compromised! I will not be in a supernatural boarding school in the future! The third massacre is therefore inevitable! It should be!
Klaus and Caroline joined Stefan and Hope.
"They're linked. Bonnie's gonna kill them." declared Stefan.
"Not if the witches kill her first." replied Klaus without any compassion for Bonnie.
"We cannot let them kill Bonnie." said Hope in anguish.
But Klaus didn't share her anxiety and came to catch Stefan to prevent him from reaching the circle of witches.
"The only way to stop the witches is to kill them, and then Silas gets what he wants." he explained as he watched the witches recite their spell.
Aja, still in the center of the circle and above Bonnie who was always lying on the ground, implored the spirits of the Other Side.
"Spirits, take her soul. Free her from darkness."
Aja held the dagger over Bonnie as she screeched in pain, louder and louder. And Hope knew she was in no condition to retaliate against her torturers. She was going to die.
"That psycho witch is gonna kill Bonnie! And Bonnie is in no condition to kill them! She's going to die!" continued Hope still anxious.
Suddenly, Caroline used her vampire speed, rushed into the circle and stabbed Aja, killing her.
Klaus uttered a long howl.
"NO!"
Caroline watched the witches who formed the circle fall dead and the flames of the torches go out. She looked around, horrified by her gesture, then remembered her friend who was inanimate on the ground.
"Bonnie? Bonnie?"
Hope ran to her, and came down to kneel near the witch Bennett.
"Bonnie, it's Hope. Can you hear us? Caroline and Stefan are with me. Bonnie?"
Bonnie opened her eyes – still milky-white color and whispered with a strange smile:
"The triangle is complete."
And she lost consciousness.
Hope sighed with relief and apprehension.
Silas finally got what he wanted. His third massacre. My future's saved, but with Silas becoming more powerful, it may not last long.
The next morning, Hope and Stefan had taken Bonnie home. The vampire had gently laid her on his bed. Both waited for her to wake up, hoping that she would be herself again.
"Silas got what he wanted." Hope explained. "I think he doesn't need to use Bonnie anymore. She should be lucid now. Silas brainwashed Bonnie into contacting her mom to bring in a coven of twelve witches who would contribute to the third massacre."
"I hope Bonnie gets through this." declared Stefan anxious. "We lost Jeremy, then Elena. We need Bonnie right now."
"I know." says Hope nicely wanting to comfort the vampire.
Finally, Bonnie awoke with confusion. Hope and Stefan were relieved to see that she looked like herself, as her eyes had returned to normal.
"Bonnie. How do you feel?" asked Hope.
The witch stared at her with astonishment.
"Hope? What are you doing here? Should you be locked in with Klaus in Elena's living room?"
"What?" said Hope, stunned. "You don't remember what happened?"
"What happened?" said Bonnie with confusion. "Stefan? How'd I get here?"
"Bonnie, Hope and I brought you home." explained Stefan confused in turn. "The witches almost killed you."
"What witches?"
"You really don't remember?" said Stefan, surprised. "Whatever the witches did must have messed with your memory."
"Probably when they tried to cleanse her mind." Hope supposed.
"Hope. Stefan. What happened?" said Bonnie, intrigued. "How did I get off the island?"
"Bonnie, what's the last thing you can remember?" asked the Tribrid with sympathy.
Bonnie searched her memory and babbled in shock:
"I guess… I remember being in that cave, and Jeremy was trying to pry the Cure out of Silas' hands. Please tell me he got it." (When she saw Stefan and Hope look down, she looked anxious.) "We didn't get it, did we?"
"I think I'll leave you.' " said Hope as she stood up. "Stefan, you can tell her what happened."
Stefan nodded his head, while Hope left the Bennett house knowing that the news of Jeremy's death would upset Bonnie to the worst.
Hope returned to the woods to see her dad bury the dead witches last night. She was afraid of what would happen next. Silas was in Mystic Falls at full power. How was she going to protect her future with this threat over her head?
Klaus had just finished burying the last witch. He laid a shovel as he turned to Caroline, who was sitting next to him and was in shock of what she had done last night to save Bonnie.
"There. Twelve graves for twelve witches. Like it never happened." (He rolled up his sleeves as he approached Caroline.) "Only it did happen, and now Silas has everything he needs to open the gates to hell on earth."
"You were just gonna let Bonnie die." Caroline reminder him with a reproachful face.
"I know arithmetic isn't your strong point, but one is still less than twelve."
"Yeah, but that one is my best friend." replied the vampire Forbes coldly.
"You tell yourself whatever you need to so you can sleep at night." Klaus mumbled.
With a dreadful realization, Caroline gasped in horror:
"I just killed twelve people…"
Hope looked at her future headmistress with difficulty. As for Elena when she killed Connor, Hope had remembered the death of the man of the church in New Orleans.
In the future, I killed an innocent man who had done nothing wrong. And Elena and Caroline were forced to kill people who would not hesitate to kill their loved ones. Caroline only did what she thought was right. She saved her best friend. Her other best friend had turned off her emotions. It is understandable that she would never let Bonnie die.
Sighing sadly, Hope walked away from her dad and Caroline and quietly into the woods, not knowing where she was going. She thought about what had happened and what was to come. She had passed the one-night stand of her parents, guaranteeing her existence. One problem less to worry about. But now, Silas had become a real problem for the Tribrid. She didn't know if she was able to stand up to him or even fight back, because she knew he was more powerful than her dad. He was able to read minds. He could easily expose her, blackmail her or threaten her parents. Hope was grateful that her mom left town. Away from Mystic Falls, better protected.
Suddenly, she saw a figure hidden in the woods. Hope joined her with great caution. To her great amazement, it was her mother Hayley, who was hidden behind a tree. What was she doing here? Why did she come back?
"Hope?"
"Mom!" cried Hope, stunned and shocked.
She didn't expect this. Why did her mom come back? She should be in New Orleans.
Discreetly, she joined her.
"What are you doing here? You should be in Louisiana right now!"
Hayley spoke tenderly to her.
"I couldn't leave you behind. I couldn't ignore you and pretend that you didn't tell me anything. Hope, I'm your mom-to-be. I'm recovering from shock. And I wanted to spend time with you, given the fact that your time-here is temporary."
"Mom…" whispered Hope moved and shocked.
She hugged her mother, and the latter gave her a warm smile.
"It's weird to tell me that you are my unborn daughter." said jovial Hayley. "Really amazing!"
All moved, Hope clenched her against her. Then, with anguish, she remembered why her mother shouldn't have come back.
"Mom, you shouldn't have come back. You can't stay here. You have to go. Now."
"Why?" said Hayley in amazement.
"Silas is in Mystic Falls." Hope explained alarmed. "He finally got what he wanted. First, he had the Council fire, then the twelve Hybrids, and now twelve witches have just died this night. Silas is here. And he became powerful. It's too dangerous for you to be here."
"Why should I leave?" asked Hayley confused. "You think you're powerful enough to face him?"
"I don't know." admitted the Tribrid, worried. "I've never been in front of someone like Silas. He is a threat to my future and also to you."
"Why would he want to kill me? I've never met him, and he doesn't know me…"
"Not yet." said Hope, increasingly panicked. "But he has the power to read minds. He could find out about me. Find out my secret. And he could also attack you to get me. If something happens to you, I will disappear from reality…"
Hayley laid her hands gently on her daughter's shoulders, in a soothing tone.
"Hope, it's okay, nothing's gonna happen to me. Whoever this Silas is, I'm not scared of him. And there's no way I'm leaving my daughter from the future in the clutches of that monster. You don't have to face it alone anymore, Hope. I'm here, and I'm gonna help you protect yourself. We could go to Klaus… well… your dad and invent an excuse for me to stay around. We'll find something, Hope. But please, don't leave me out of your life."
Hope had tears in her eyes and snuggled up against her mom.
"I'm so glad you're back. That you are with me. It was very hard to face all this alone. It was horrible. But I couldn't risk my future. Our future. And…"
Hayley gently stroked her back and spoke to her softly.
"It's gonna be okay. I'm not going anywhere without you. We're gonna find a way to stop Silas from being a threat to you. I can't leave you here alone with… your dad. Does he know about you?"
"Not yet." Hope replied sobbing. "I plan to talk to him about it. But for now, it's too early. I'm still stuck here, and I haven't found a way back to my future. I don't know how to do…"
"It's gonna be okay." says Hayley to comfort her. "The first thing we need to do is find the Cure. Silas wants the cure for himself. If we find him, I think he'll leave us alone and have no reason to come after you."
Suddenly, Hope stopped crying and looked at her mom anxiously. She hoped to be wrong, but had a bad feeling.
"What did you just say?"
"The Cure." Hayley replied simply. "We need to find it so that Silas leaves us alone."
Panicked, Hope walked away from her mom as if she had a contagious disease.
"How do you know that Silas is after the Cure? I didn't tell you."
"Are you sure?" said Hayley with confusion. "If it's not you, it must be your dad who told me about it when I was at Mansion."
"No." the Tribrid affirmed with a categorical tone. "Dad didn't know anything about Silas at that time. He could never have told you…"
And she realized with astonishment and disappointment.
"You're not my mom!"
She backed away, eyes wide open in shock. Hayley began to smile strangely. An evil smirk. And she chuckled.
"Silas!" Hope murmured, shocked, for she had never heard her mom laugh like that.
"Clever girl!" Hayley chuckled. "You're pretty good for someone your age."
After a shock, Hope gave a hostile look to Silas who had taken the appearance of her mom.
"What do you want?"
"Hello Hope Mikaelson." continued to be immortal with the appearance of Hayley. "I was very eager to meet you. Meeting a time traveler's something you don't see every day. You've gone back in time and you're fighting to preserve your future. Besides, I should thank you for my third massacre, since it was necessary for your future. Or rather, Bonnie's necessary for your future. What I want is to get to know you. Be with me."
"What do you expect from me?" said Hope, still stunned.
"That we become partners, you and me. The eternal Silas and Hope Mikaelson, the Tribrid of the future. We could both accomplish a lot. You have no idea of the knowledge I possess. Join me, and I assure you will not be disappointed. You're going to love it. I can offer you anything you want."
Hope glared him.
"Like when you promised Shane to bring back his dead family if he agreed to be your minion?"
"Shane was just a weak, naive human." replied Silas with the appearance of Hayley. "You have more values than him. Help me find the Cure and I'll help you get back to your future. Even better. I'll offer you a wonderful future. The one you want most. Bring me my Cure. I don't care about your parents. All I want is my Cure."
But Hope wasn't interested in a partnership with Silas at all. She answered him firmly and with a threatening tone.
"I'll never join you! Leave me alone! Your problems are none of my business, Silas!"
And she turned her heels to dodge him. But Silas was stubborn.
"Hope, you don't want me as an enemy. You're making a serious mistake."
"Not as serious as being your underling as Shane was to you." replied Hope without looking at him and continuing to walk fast.
She walked quickly into the woods to outrun him. When suddenly something threw her to the ground, as if an invisible force had hit her.
Hope fell to the ground between leaves. She turned and saw with horror her uncle Kol alive, above her.
"Hope, my niece from the future who killed me!" he replied in a hostile voice. "You're no better than your dad! Well… he stabbed me to lock me in a coffin, whereas you… sent me to the Gilbert's to kill me…"
In a state of panic, Hope appeared to be helpless. Then she stood up and gave him a menacing look.
"You're not my uncle! I know who you are, Silas! Stop taking my uncle Kol's face!"
"Why?" said Silas with the appearance of Kol. "Seeing your uncle Kol makes you feel uncomfortable? Your dad knows that you sent his little brother to be killed so that you could exist? Maybe I'll go talk to him. And I'll even tell her that you're his unborn daughter."
"Leave my father out of it!" roared Hope angry. "You don't care about my family! Leave me alone!"
"Until I have my Cure, I'll continue to torment you with the faces of all your loved ones until you go crazy!" said Silas with the appearance of Kol.
"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Hope continued on the run.
She ran into the woods, looking for the way out. When her father came out of nowhere and grabbed her by the shoulders.
"Where do you think you're going, my littlest wolf?" asked Klaus in a tone that was not kind.
He seemed furious and had both hands firmly on her daughter's shoulders.
"What's wrong?" asked Hope, surprised.
"You tell me what's going on, Hope." said Klaus furious. "All this secrets…"
"I didn't hide anything from you…"
"Drop the act, Hope. It's over now. I know the truth. I know who you are. You're from the future. And you're my daughter. My daughter from the future. The one for whom I gave my life. I'm dead because of you, Hope! You're not worthy of being a Mikaelson! You're not my family! You are nothing!"
Hope then fought against her father, knowing that she was fighting against Silas who had now taken the appearance of her father Klaus.
"Silas! Stop it! You're not my dad!"
"No, but I could go visit him and tell him everything he wants to know about you!" Silas chuckled with Klaus' face. "How do you think he's going to react when he finds out that you helped kill his brother Kol?"
He chuckled by holding a strong hold on Hope, who struggled to get rid of him.
"You spent all this time with your father." said Silas gloating. "But not your future father who fought for you. Your father who is a real bloodthirsty monster. You dislike my face, Hope Mikaelson? Because I can be a monster even worse than him!"
Furious, Hope cast an offensive spell on him.
"Icaeus!"
Silas was immediately driven out of her. Taking advantage of this respite, Hope resumed her course, but she could not go far, for she felt herself rising. She could cast all the spells she knew, but she remained in the air, as if suspended by invisible threads.
"What the hell is happening?" she wondered, floating in the air, despite herself.
She saw Shane waving his hands in the air, with an evil look.
"You're unique, Hope! A time traveler!"
Realizing that it was Silas who had taken the appearance of Professor Shane, Hope appeared stunned and helpless.
"What are you doing? Put me down! Let me go!"
"Relax, sweetheart! I take you back to your future!"
"WHAT?" exclaimed the Tribrid, frightened and horrified.
"If you refuse to help me find the Cure, then you're a useless for me." explained Silas with Shane's face. "So… I'm going to send you back to your future…"
Hope was frightened. She couldn't go back to her future now. Not after what she had caused as damage in time.
"NO! DON'T! DON'T SEND ME BACK! PLEASE, DON'T!"
Ignoring her screams, Silas laughed:
"Honestly, I don't know what your future will be like. Maybe it will be beautiful for you? Or maybe it will be so terrible! I suppose you'll find out soon. Goodbye Hope Mikaelson and welcome back in the future!"
Hope was raised in the air, while Silas made her fly high out of the woods.
And he uttered an incantation that Hope recognized as the one Dark Josie had uttered before sending her back in time. The Tribrid felt a long fall...
"DON'T DO THAT! NOOOOOOOOOO!"
And she lost consciousness.
Thanks for reading and reviewing.
Until now, Hope had not paid attention to Silas, because of her fears about her improbable existence. And now she is suffering the consequences, despite herself.
See you soon for a chapter.