Epilogue – I do Believe

It was a powerful feeling, to lift from the air with your own speed and then land on the soft – yet hard – ground with both of your feet and then travel faster down the hill. Snowboarding was something Hope had always wanted to try and a skiing vacation during the Christmas holiday was something she hadn't been able to turn down.

It had been Kol's idea, but Rebekah had been the one whining about it, so they decided to do as the blonde brat of the Mikaelson's wanted. They had just finished packing up their belongings in New Orleans when they had decided to take some time off. Because the thing was, they wouldn't return to the French Quarters anymore. It had taken a while for Klaus to let go of the city he had in his grip, but he had actually been the one to admit that the city had once been their home years ago, but not anymore. It was time to move on, time to find another place to call home and leave the old one in the hands of its heir; Marcel.

And so the search had begun.

Hope's eyes caught Kol and Rebekah at the bottom of the hill and smiled as she sped up before making a fast stop in front of Kol, causing a wave of snow rain over him. Rebekah bursted out in laughter, as Kol muttered nasty words while brushing the snow off him.

"We have been here for two days and you already know how to make a three-sixty," Kol said with his voice as grumpy as his face.

"I'm a natural, feel free to blame me," Hope shrugged. Of course her new abilities as a hybrid made its effort, but she was still very proud of how fast she had learned how to manage the snowboard. It was even more fun when she knew how much it tortured Kol.

She bent down to unlink herself from her board, if she hadn't been a supernatural creature then her whole body would be in pieces. It had been hours since she last had eaten something, and by that she meant real food and not the red, liquid form.

"Maybe if you stopped watching girls, Kol, you wouldn't fall flat on your face all the time," Rebekah suggested with a teasing grin.

"Sod off."

"What time is dinner again?" Hope asked when she picked up her board and looked over toward the small café that were situated in the bottom of the hill. She already knew where to find her father, Klaus wasn't much of a skier, and spent most of their vacation by the bar. As for Hayley and Elijah, they spent most of their time at the cottage they have rented.

"Half past six," Rebekah answered and checked her phone. "It's almost five now."

"I'm starving, I could eat a whole buffet of sexy women," Kol grinned.

"Not that kind of dinner, you bloody idiot!"

"This rule about no killing during the holiday is killing me."

"Just shut up, Kol!"

Hope shook her head, a lot had change about the Mikaelson's after that night of her seventeenth birthday. They all had become more calm, protective and actually more aware of the living people around them. Even Klaus was more careful now, though it could have something to do with the fact that Esther still was out there somewhere biding her time. No one had seen any track of Hope's grandmother and it was something that they would have to face one day. Esther would want her revenge, she would fight for her children's death and everyone knew it.

"I will go and check on Nik," Hope said when she grew tired of Rebekah's and Kol's argument. Apparently Kol thought Rebekah dressed as a prostitute, which of course wasn't appropriate during family time. Hope understood that Kol was only after Rebekah to become angry at him, he loved nothing more than to tease with people.

She didn't bother waiting for an answer from either of them before walking past them toward the huge building behind them. She left her board outside the door before stepping into the warm entrance. It was a really cold winter, with loads of snow on the ground which were filled with a new cover of white flakes every night.

For Hope, who never had seen anything like this before, thought it was very beautiful and a sight she would remember for the rest of her eternal life. She had never experienced a real winter or a Christmas worth remembering. When her adoptive parents still were together they hadn't celebrated Christmas, mostly because it had reminded her adoptive father about his mother's chronic depressions.

As she had suspected, she found her father sitting by the bar with a glass of bourbon in front of him. To her surprise she didn't see his girlfriend anywhere, Caroline had been invited to join them and she had gladly accepted it. But she had acted a bit strange lately, kept hiding out in her room and only coming out when it was dinner or sometimes to join them on the ski slopes.

Klaus raised his gaze when Hope sat down next to him. "Hello, sweetheart."

"What's up with the grumpy face?" she asked without even greeting him back. She could read him like an open book already, she always knew when something was bothering him or when he had done something terrible.

He sighed and tore his eyes away from hers, emptying the glass of liquor before putting down the glass and refilling it. "Caroline have been acting rather odd these days and I don't know what it is."

Of course that was the thing filling his head with thousands of questions. Caroline was one of the few people in the world brave enough to stand up against Klaus, Hope being the other one with that kind of bravery.

"Yeah, I've noticed," Hope nodded. "Have you asked her about what's bothering her?"

"Yes, but she won't tell me."

He was really mad, she could tell by the look on his face. He did that usual expression where his teeth clenched and eyes went into its darker shade.

"Tried compelling her?"

"Hope!"

"What?" she smiled. "It was a joke, okay?"

Klaus frowned and turned back to his empty glass, which shortly thereafter were filled with bourbon again. If he wouldn't have been a hybrid, then Hope could have sworn he was an alcoholic. Because hybrids couldn't be classified as a alcohol-addict? Or could they?

"Is it because she hasn't made up her mind about becoming a vampire again?" Hope then asked. She knew it was a tense subject at the moment, since Klaus wanted Caroline to be turned back into a vampire, but she wasn't sure about it yet because of all the possibilities as a human.

"I don't know," he muttered without looking at her. He was definitely not in a chat mood.

They stayed silent for a while, enjoying the short break of not worrying about anything and just listening to the other guests in the building. Most of them were either groups of teenagers or parents with their kids, making Hope feel like she didn't belong there at all.

"Have you figured it out, by the way?" Hope then slowly asked with careful voice. It wasn't often that Klaus showed his bad side toward her, but she guessed this was one of these really dark days. "The thing, you know? About my eyes?"

"I have my speculations."

She raised her eyebrows, she wanted to find out, she had walked around long enough without the answer to the one question their all had wondered about ever since her hybrid face was shown the first time. The question about her eyes, why they turned into a dark shade of purple instead of yellow like other hybrids.

"A witch told me it's because you're a born hybrid and because your ability to use magic," Klaus explained. "Therefore the reason why your eyes aren't yellow is because of your genes and unusual strengths."

"That's it?" Hope said in disappointment. She had hoped for some more interesting explanation, like she had some other side that she could trigger too or there was something about her that made her even more special than what she already was. "No other hocus pocus?"

"Sorry, love, that's all there is," Klaus said.

"How lame," she whined and played with a toothpick in her hands. "But purple is more awesome than yellow."

Klaus frowned and rolled his eyes by her comment. Hope swallowed, she could honestly say that she had changed. Not only because of she now being immortal, but also as a person. When she had gotten abducted by Mikael, she had realized how much she actually care for her family and it had opened up her heart in another way than before. She was still the same stubborn girl she had been before and she didn't really believe in 'real love', but her family gave her the things she needed and that was enough for her.

"Hey, dad," Hope said with a low, breaking voice. He looked up from his glass to meet her eyes. "You know I love you, right?"

The touch of smoothness that filled his face made her eyes water, all she could hope for was to her father to become the man he wanted to be and not the one everyone reckoned him to be. He bent down and took her face in his hand before gently planting a kiss on top of her hair.

"I know sweetheart."

"I promise, she literally stared at me the whole time!" Kol bragged.

"Because you had the bloody clock behind you," Rebekah answered with a snort.

"She smiled at me!"

"In your dreams perhaps."

Kol shot deadly looks at his baby sister before reaching toward his beer on the table. "You're such a buzzkill, Bekah!"

"Hey!" Hope shouted. Ever since Mikael had died and they had found the peace they wanted, all of the family members used the word buzzkill, only to tease Hope. Though no one said buzzkiller, which was her own kind of way of expressing the word.

Kol laughed and leaned back in the coach with a satisfied look upon his face, sometimes Hope wished they had never brought him back to life, though that would also be a lie. She liked her uncle and would probably have to just accept that he could be a dick if he wanted to. And if she grew tired of him then she could lock him up in someone's basement for a century or two. She was after all stronger than him.

"Oh my god!" Kol exclaimed when Elijah appeared around the corner from the kitchen. He walked past Kol and sat down next to Hayley on the couch opposite of the one Kol sat on. "Did all your suits shrink in the dry-cleaner, brother?"

If it hadn't been Christmas eve and she hadn't been so exhausted from the dinner, then Hope definitely would have agreed with Kol by slipping in a comment. Because seeing noble Elijah dressed in sweatpants was a big shock from most people, including Hope and apparently Kol and Rebekah.

"Jealous because they fit me better than on you, brother?" Elijah shot back. He leaned back in his seat before tossing his arm around Hayley's shoulder.

"I believe someone got burned," Hope's mother commented as Kol's jaw dropped.

"Me?" Kol snorted already with his amused expression back. "Not the least, darling. I let him win this argument, consider it a Christmas gift."

Elijah rolled his eyes at his brother just as the rest of the people in the living room of the cottage wanted to do. It had been an unusual calm evening, and not only because Klaus and Caroline were missing, they had decided to have a short chat after dinner. Hope could only imagine how great that would go, it probably ended with Klaus taking off and Caroline screaming after him.

Speaking of the devil. The door knocked open all the sudden and a furious Klaus rushed inside with Caroline close behind him. Surprisingly enough, she didn't look angry at all, more desperate and sad.

Elijah made a move to ask what was going on but Hayley gave him a warning glance, Hope had to agree, they wouldn't want to disturb this fight. Even Kol seemed to understand the seriousness in this situation.

"If you want to leave, by all means, do as you wish!" Klaus growled. He had stopped in front of the corner cabinet where they kept the liquor and filled one of the glasses before drowning it at once.

"Would you just listen to me?" Caroline screamed back. "It's not that!"

"Then what is it? You won't bloody tell me!" His eyes shifted in yellow, but Caroline didn't even notice. Hope sunk in her seat, why was it so hard for Caroline to tell Klaus what was bothering her? It couldn't be that bad, besides, Klaus was a man of experience, he wouldn't care if she left them for a century or two. Although, he might because she wasn't a vampire anymore, nice thoughts Hope.

"Is it because I want you to become a vampire again?" Klaus continued with his voice still filled with rage. "Or haven't you gotten past all the bad decisions I made decades ago?"

Caroline shook her head, tears running down from her exhausted eyes. "No."

Klaus sighed and tore his eyes from hers, noticing the rest of the people in the room. Though he didn't give them any sign that he cared about their participation in this argument.

Hope bit her lip and tried not to feel sorry about Caroline. But she did look torn, tired and completely ruined. That until she took a deep breath to stabilize herself.

"It's nothing like that," Caroline insisted. She dragged her hand through her hair before she strongly met the eyes of the original hybrid and forced him to keep his gaze linked with hers. Her hand moving down to her belly. Oh my god. "I'm pregnant, Klaus."

When I was a kid, I used to believe in fairy tales. That every story which was written on a piece of paper with the beginning Once Upon A Time and ending They Lived Happily Ever After, actually was reality. As I grew up, my belief in those fictions disappeared. Now I don't know anymore.

Could a person say that you have experienced a fairy tale if your life started from the bottom and came to a place where you honestly could say 'and that's when I got everything I've ever dreamed of'? Probably, if you wanted to believe in such things. My life had had many turns, many ups and downs, cries and laughter's, dark days and lighter days. But it was still my life, I had managed to get through every bad day and healed every wound I had gotten.

Now, another chapter was about to begin in my life.

I guess you could say that my fairy tale begun when my uncle found me in the streets of New York City, it had been a beautiful afternoon when we met – well I guess you could say that we ran into each other on peculiar circumstances. My uncle did free me from my prison, a small apartment with my alcoholic mother, and took me to a place where magic were filling the streets, music and art covering every corner and people walking around with smiles upon their faces. New Orleans, that was supposed to be my home.

Yet it wasn't.

I have a tendency of getting myself into trouble, you see, my father is the most hated man on this earth. The original hybrid, the big bad wolf, a reckless man without sympathy. You could ask yourself why this man chose to spare my life after all he had achieved, every person he has chosen to kill, every city he had destroyed, but I don't think you would find any proper answer to that question. On the contrary actually, you would only find yourself getting more perplexed.

As my new beginning begun in New Orleans, I managed to get myself into trouble already the first couple of days there. I jumped off a bridge to prove myself for a girl in my class who to my defense was a total bitch, I made other people's daily life a living hell by throwing balloons filled with water on them, I manipulated my own father to his edges and hurt my mother by telling her I didn't appreciate her.

Then why would my story be such an interesting tale to read? Why would anyone want to read about a girl, a normal, a bit impulsive and mean girl, who would come up with pranks and hurt other people? Would that make this girl – this confused and hurt girl – the villain of this story? Maybe.

After a while in New Orleans I learned that my father, Niklaus Mikaelson, had killed my adoptive parents. My bones were cracked, my pride was gone and I felt devastated by the fact that the two people whom I had believed in for almost seventeen years, were gone. So I ran away. Away from everything that made me feel lonely, confused and out of the ordinary. All I could wish for was a normal family, without any supernatural, but as you should already know, life isn't exactly a bed of roses. You have to face your problems and be strong enough to take consequences, well this time Niklaus Mikaelson – the optional villain for this fairytale – happened to be my savior.

He was the one to convince me not to give up on this family, the royal Mikaelson family. So I did as he said and I fought for what I thought was right. I fought for our family and to make it whole again, just as my noble uncle Elijah once had promised me to be. That I would be the one to save this family.

Though our kingdom was about to fall apart, nothing could keep us together or from fighting each other. We blamed one another for our own mistakes, we gave each other glances of death and the royal family was literally about to fall apart. It was the end of an era, and we all could feel it. It was time to say good bye.

Though it wasn't until my transition to a hybrid that everything changed. The evil stepfather of Niklaus, Mikael, wanted nothing more than to see his children dead. Mikael kidnapped me and turned me into the monster everyone feared, a hybrid. The most powerful creature in this world. I had magic, I had some vampire, I had some wolf, which was the biggest mistake in Mikael's thousand years on earth – he had awaken the monster inside of me and it became his death. The death of the man that had started this whole story over a thousand years ago, made the royal family come together as one at last. The fear of losing each other had made them see the light of love again and they allowed themselves to get embraced by it. They were finally able to call themselves a family.

The little, mean and impulsive girl was also handed a gift. A gift with the ability of healing people who had died but had come back to life because of a curse. This girl's pure blood could heal vampires from their prison of eternity. And when a small-town girl crossed her path, she stumbled upon a journey beyond her belief. It led to a life. A life filled with light.

You could believe that the fairy tale ended here, and to be honest, a part of it did. Although there were much more to tell, more stories, happenings and lines to be crossed. I, however, am a really curious girl who seeks thrill. I would never say no to an adventure. So my story carried on. For how long? I don't know. But for me? An eternity.

My name is Hope Mikaelson.

I'm a born tribrid.

Part vampire, part wolf and part witch.

I'm the most powerful creature in this world.

And I do believe in fairy tales.

That's it for this time, folks. Hope you've enjoyed this time, because I have! One last, huge THANK YOU! And we'll hopefully see each other as I publish the sequel to this story. Until then .. ;)