Just because Hope was a grown adult didn’t mean she didn’t still do things she did as a teen. For instance, once she conned a man on the road out of a pack of cigarettes, flirting with him to get them while Sam was in the bathroom. It was too easy, he was willing to offer her anything to trick her into joining him for the day. She would never do that, of course, but it was nice to get free cigs.
So, there she was, sitting on a dusty rooftop as the morning sun peaked over the horizon. Hope knew she could have gone to a number of cleaner spots to watch the sun rise. But, something about abandoned buildings just out of the city limits made her feel like that giddy teen, sneaking out to see her boyfriend in places like this, again. The hybrid missed feeling like the whole world was laid out before her, and moments like this brought it back.
Of course, until they were interrupted. Heaving a low sigh, she rolled her eyes as she stood with the front portion of her body pressed against the stone ledge of the building. “The sunrise is like a promise every day for new beginnings, don’t you think?” The question was innocent enough, but depending on the answeree it could be packed.
"There's never too much attention needed. I have enough for everyone." Hope assured, not pleased with the idea of one of her family thinking they weren't worried about or necessarily needed somewhere. "Oh! I'd love to watch, if that wouldn't be a bother. I've always been better with things like fire." She allowed a laugh to bubble past her lips, although she was always curious about why she seemed so much better with her destructive nature. It was perhaps the rage that boiled within her from her werewolf genes, and also the darkness that seemed to come attached to the Mikaelson name. "They'll be proud, I'm sure of it." She smiled, already knowing that they were always glad when one of the youth began practicing. "Of course. It's quiet, somewhat secluded. Makes for a good spot to increase concentration and control." The hybrid shrugged, watching her younger sibling with an inquisitive gaze. There was so many of the family, that sometimes it could be hard to keep an eye on them all. Hope wanted to, wanted to be there to protect her younger relatives from the dangers that would rear their heads, but they had their parents and aunts and uncles. There was nothing the Mikaelsons did better than pull together as family when something threatened them. "The only one in the family," she flashed a mischievous smile, Sam knew about it but he hadn't been in contact with her lately. She could only hope things were alright, she had taken off quite suddenly for NOLA during their travels, eager to get home after time spent away. "I've been well. I've finally gotten fully settled back here, found the perfect little place to stay. It's cozy, fits me nicely. I'm definitely not missing the hotels and motels I stayed in on the road."
Hope raised a brow at the spooked girl, sending a soft smile her way. "It's just me, Lily." She bit her lip as she looked around, before her gaze settled upon the Kenner girls' face. "How are you?"
she was one part alone when they met,
and two parts tragedy when she left,
and the way he smiled with his eyes left her damn near hypnotized
but her daddy said that kind of love was unwise.
forbidden is such an intoxicating word
and she saw the picture he had built of her
the view he had inside his mind
the way he saw her even despite the witch inside
and she couldn’t believe he would also chase an infatuation so wild.
unpredictable was what they called themselves
but their days were spent by the others side
you saw them together all the time
never alone never lonely always happy with the other.
//
this, this was what her father was worried about;
the princess fled the castle
left without so much as a goodbye
faded into the night
he was loyally by her side
and they went away like the ocean tide.
years spent on the road
they called each other home
didn’t know didn’t know didn’t know
if they even had anywhere else to go
but they would go back to the town that lacked its Hope.
she did not know when she met him
he would be her unravelling
and she, his
but they filled each others lives up
and one without the other was like a lost bird without a nest
it was uncomfortable and a sad sight
so pray they never lose the light
the one they sparked in each others eyes.”
- CER // he is her saving grace, her sanity, her safe space
August 17th, 2016
when he kissed her
everything changed;
the world had become
a small freckle on her
left cheek and the way
she bit her lips and
her body beneath him;
his future felt itself
shape into sunday mornings
when it used to be made
entirely of
alone, a picture
he had never realized had been
terribly
empty
without her.
Hope laughed lightly, a little glint in her eye as she admitted, "My father was definitely not thrilled. He wasn't aware until I was out of the city, and he had other family to worry about so he couldn't come get me." She grinned, "The worst I got was disappointed voicemails." She could clearly remember a few that she hit delete on almost immediately. It wasn't that her father Klaus yelled much, but that she hated letting him down. As the firstborn, she felt a duty to try and make her father proud of her. "It worked well for me. There were days where we got stuck in a hotel, or there was nothing to do besides stay in and work. Too dangerous or just nothing much around." She shrugged, there had been places where towns were practically dead, just pit stops on the way to other cities.
The familiar voice responding did cause her to turn, lips quirking up into a small smile as she faced Anastasia. "You're always welcome with me," Hope encouraged, "I know how that is. It can be difficult to find a safe and quiet space." She knew the struggle, traveling or not. In New Orleans, there were considerably less factors than on the road. However, with the family they had, there were still plenty of dangers to look out for. "You can practice here, there's never really anybody around. I come here to think and sometimes practice a little." She always tried to find quiet places away from her sometimes invasive family, just for peace and time to concentrate on her thoughts or magic. As well as the attention to control that she had to constantly exercise. "How are you doing?" The woman asked, curious as to how her younger sister was getting on recently.
Clenched jaws seemed to be the simplest way of communicating with the witch in the late nights. She often escalated things with those she ended up rooming with to verbal fights, only able to be held back by her anchor. Of course, she would never physically tether herself to someone, whether with bonds or magic. What it was was a representative mental anchor. This idea that she could never become what the family name immediately made her out to be. Wherever she seemed to go, if anybody found out who she was, they either tried to challenge her, or assumed she was a monster and avoided her at all costs. It wasn’t that Hope did things to make others believe that, not publicly at least. But, she seemed to inherit her temper from her father, and what a wretched one it was. She had some semblance of control over it, had to in order to properly wield her magic. If she caved in to her darkest desires, she was fearful it would lead to disastrous results. She didn’t want to show that side to those she was rooming with, strangers or those close to her during her travels.
There was two people in particular that she didn’t want to end up disappointing, by letting her magic wreak havoc accidentally, her mother Hayley, and her romantic partner Samuel.Yes, she adored the rest of her family, in all of their oddities and dysfunction, but she felt a responsibility to not trigger her dormant genes. She didn’t want to experience the shift, ever, nor the bloodlust she had seen others feel. She didn’t want to be like that, she wished to remain the ever useful witch in everyone’s eyes. To strangers, she just wanted to remain shrouded in anonymity. Although there were rare times she had to exercise the power she possessed. Such as one night, where she had decided to let loose a little and go to a bar, not telling Sam where she was going. They were staying in a crappy hostel-style hotel, with two other roommates, who she wasn’t particularly getting along with.
Now, the decision to let loose was unusual in itself, but the way the night unfolded would make it the lesser of the odd happenings that tended to follow the young Mikaelson. The then 19-year-old was good at performing little spells to enhance her features. She found it easy to make it appear as if she was of legal drinking age, which allowed her to go get some liquid courage in her system. Not that she needed much to make her brave, she wasn’t a lightweight but she didn’t enjoy the burning taste of alcohol. Perhaps it was from watching her father drink, seeing others do it, not liking when she saw people drunk.
This late night, she was leaning her back against the bar, feet resting on the bars of the stool she was seated upon. Her lips were pulled down into an unimpressed frown, dark gaze narrowed and surveying the crowd. Hope knew sooner or later she would need to return to the hotel, would need to face her current problems. But, she didn’t want to, so she would stay for a while longer. She wasn’t aware that another was watching her, waiting for the perfect moment to approach. It was when she got up, leaving her three emptied glasses upside down on the counted, when he came close. The man had dark brown eyes, almost black in the dim lighting of the bar. His lips were quirked up in a self-assured smirk, posture straight and presence commanding. The witch turned slowly, brow raising at him smiling down at her, “So, what’s a little lady like you doing alone in a place like this?”
A momentary pause, as the woman formed a response, “Not looking for the likes of you.” The man seemed offended, placing his hand upon his heart as he mockingly laughed. Shaking his head, he grabbed her wrist gently, and tugged her towards a hallway that led to the door to a back alley. She almost refused, but then again, she was itching for a fight and this man seemed the perfect target. If he wanted to play the game, so would she. “Now, now, why don’t you talk a little more nicely?” The stranger addressed her, cocking his head as he stared her down. She felt uncomfortably stuck for a moment, before reminding herself that she held so much power. If he dared to raise a hand to her, or challenge her as she believed he might, she could fight back. She knew how to properly fight, even without magic, but she felt safer with the knowledge of her magic being a defense.
“Why don’t I wipe that smug look off your face?” She shot back, scowling back at him. He had released her from his loose grip, and her arms were now crossed against her chest. Her stance was a clear display that he shouldn’t piss her off. The man either didn’t understand, or didn’t care enough to back off. Either way, it wouldn’t end well for him. “Hey, play nice.” He cooed to her, stepping closer. That was when she smelled the alcohol on his breath. She spoke no more, as he grinned wickedly, footsteps sounding behind him and another man appearing. This one had a cloth sticking out of his front pocket and it didn’t take her long to realize what he was going to try. Hope didn’t even vocalize her thoughts as the men went to corner her, just quickly threw out a punch to the dark strangers face. She hit him square in the jaw, already fueled by her earlier anger. He stumbled back with surprise, while the blonde-haired man went for her. She dodged him, having the advantage of speed over his hulking form.
She easily knocked that man out with magic, he wasn’t the one who started this and she wouldn’t beat on him like she would the other. Turning to the man who now advanced, she spat at him, “Oh really? So you don’t think me easily taking down your friend is a warning? Okay.” As he lunged forward, so did she, sending a shock into his system with magic as she wrapped her hands around his neck. The Mikaelson used her magic to force him to the floor, him staring up at her with horror clear in his eyes. This wasn’t her first fight using magic, and it wouldn’t be her last. Or so she thought, as he tried to fight back again, his hands grasping her ankle and pulling forwards. She felt herself falling and prepared for impact, rolling to the side as he lept up. “You’re not really helping yourself here,” she muttered under her breath, before pushing herself up. She threw wave after wave of magic at him, practically seeing red with how pissed off she was.
Hope was no longer in full control of her anger, as she took him to the brink of consciousness. Before he passed out, she growled in his ear, “What I learned growing up, is that this is how to be a heart-breaker.” What she wasn’t aware of, was that when she thought he passed out, he really stopped breathing. It was all a matter of mistake, truly. A mistake that she would face the consequences of later, blissfully unaware then as she left, heading back to the hotel to now diplomatically face her roommates. Her anger taken care of, she would be able to view things in a clearer light, hopefully.
Exhaling softly, the youthful hybrid peered uncertainly down the bridge, eyes fixating unwaveringly on the water flowing freely beneath her. She chewed on her lip, brows tugging together in an intense expression, arms folded across her chest and shoulders up to display a fierce posture. There was a constant defiance in the way she held herself, whether she was aware of it or not, that could be taken as a warning that she was occasionally volatile, or standoffish. She never meant to be, but when she was deep in her thoughts like this, it was sometimes difficult for her to truly pay attention to others. Of course, she was attentive enough to notice when another presence hadn’t moved away after some time of watching her. “Well, are you going to approach me or not?” Hope addressed the figure, not yet turning to survey them, instead remaining in place. “I don’t bite,” she joked, inwardly thinking /much/.
“Ah, those can be a pain in the butt as well,” she nodded, before cracking a small grin. “I kind of ran away from college for travel, so I luckily, or unfortunately, got to miss those troubles.” Hope shook her head, she had finished schooling online, had wanted to see the world but knew well enough to keep up on her studies. “I still got a degree through online schooling, thought it took a bit longer as it was on my time.”
"I just wanted to see how you were doing. It's been a while since I've seen you," the older Mikaelson smiled, head tilting as she surveyed Anastasia. "When did you get a dog?" She motioned to her pet, smiling down at the little creature.
“I’m not sure what’s possessed you to start a conversation with me but I think it’s time you take a few seats.” Hadley said with an eyeroll. She wasn’t in the mood to talk to anybody and the more she heard the person voice, the more annoyed and irritated she became.
Hope scoffed, "Well, forgive me for attempting to start up a conversation. You were all alone and I thought you might appreciate some company." The Mikaelson frowned as she looked at the woman, brows furrowing as her arms crossed. She didn't like when people were unnecessarily rude, she had dealt with enough of that to last her a lifetime, "What got your panties in a twist." The grumble was soft, but if the other girl was paying attention, she would surely hear it.
