March 26, 2019

Being twenty-eight felt strange.

Esmeray didn't really find that she enjoyed her birthday anymore. For the past five years, it was simply a reminder of the events that had taken place in the Compound. She'd see Klaus's pained face as Marcel stabbed him with Papa Tunde's blade. She'd remember the way her cherished items burned in a pile off to the side.

She twirled the glass of orange juice in her hand, observing how the liquid glided along the cup's surface. Across from her, Hayley was making breakfast while they waited for Mary to arrive, apparently with news on a lead.

Esmeray had been in charge of that. She genuinely thought she'd be able to free Klaus in less than a year, because she had the contact information for the other pure wolves whose venom she needed.

She'd collected a supply of her own venom, at first. Hayley had been beside her, holding her hand to keep her from flying into a panic attack. Next, Hayley had allowed her to extract her venom. That knocked Poldark and Crescent off the list.

Aaron Campbell had been more than happy to give his venom. Elvis was not comfortable putting on the mask again, and Esmeray understood that. She'd spent several weeks in Portland, trying to find a sense of normality in her life again after Klaus was taken from her. She got to spend time with Aaron and Nat's two daughters, Lyla and Anya, who were sweet, and reminded Esmeray of her beloved friend.

She'd traveled further north to acquire venom from a BasRoq wolf and Deep Water wolf, relatives of one of the captives that had been in Lucien's lab. Then, she'd come closer to New Orleans to see one of Klaus's relatives for North East Atlantic venom.

It was the Malraux that brought her progress to a screeching halt.

"Damn it," whispered Esmeray after another failed Locator Spell. "Lucien bragged that he'd wiped their line out. "But I swear... someone had to be left... Keelin, she was young when I helped her out, around my age. She left the Pack, she has to be around somewhere. But I can't get any trace of her..."

So her travels had stopped. Those first six months of moving around had yielded only six supplies of venom, and they were in need of a seventh. Distraught, she'd transitioned to looking for a cure for Freya and Rebekah, which had been a bit easier, yet had still taken her some time.

The second anniversary came, and Esmeray was at least able to spend some time in Mystic Falls. They were lucky that Enzo had been able to gain control of the Armory before those previously in charge made a stupid decision to open some mysterious vault. Esmeray had learned by now that some doors really never needed to be open.

While she was happy to be with her friends, she didn't feel like she could relax. She'd had Bonnie help her write the Resurrection Spell for Davina. She'd begged Caroline and Alaric to let her do their grocery shopping for them. She didn't want to rest, because she felt as though she wasn't actually accomplishing anything. To ease this feeling, she started to travel again.

She'd done what she said she'd do to honor Anya. She had enough information about wolves, vampires, and witches who were over eighteen and wanted her to perform her spell on them. State by state, she'd gone to help them, remaining at their side for a few days to help them change their legal documents and get settled into a healthy diet to ensure they didn't have any negative side effects.

The majority of those who took her up on her offer were quite young, and nervous about asking her. But with her contacts in place, each of them had been able to first tell someone they knew, before that person contacted Esmeray. She'd even helped several of them get their own place and become financially independent, since their parents were not supportive of them. She'd taken time to help them on college and financial aid applications, as well, to help them get ahead in life even if their families were horrid to them.

She finished the last of the procedures at the end of the third year. It was hard to believe that it had taken this long to accomplish everything, but Esmeray had to try to stay positive about it. After all, it wasn't easy to be traveling all over the place in a covert manner and still manage to get back to Hayley and Hope without compromising their position.

Esmeray saw them often enough for Hope to know who she was. But she hadn't been as heavily involved in the process of raising her. She knew it was better to stay away and not draw attention to the house they lived in. The faster Esmeray got her materials together to save Klaus, the better it would be for her to let her guard down and color a few pages with her.

So, whenever she wasn't at the safe house, she was staying with friends, or sometimes, in apartments by herself. It was lonely, and Esmeray hated that everything seemed like it would be unresolved forever. Though she'd found a cure for Freya and Rebekah (thanks to the help of the wonderful Heretics Nora, Mary Louise, and Valerie), she was still at a loss for Keelin's location.

She'd tried to distract herself from it. She went around helping wolf Packs again, and had even dabbled in the foster care system when she'd learned that some foster parents were abusing a young, untriggered wolf who had lost his parents in an accident. She'd helped bring several children into better homes, and had even briefly fostered a baby whose mother had died in childbirth.

"He's so small," Esmeray had whispered, cradling the baby as she leaned back on Hayley's couch. Hope was beside her, looking at the child with big eyes.

"Where did he come from?" asked Hope, who of course, at the age of five, still had no idea how babies were made. "Did a stork bring him to you?"

Esmeray smiled. "I actually went to get him. He was lonely, and I'm taking care of him for a bit until he's old enough to go with a couple who really wants him."

"He's not your baby?"

"No, he isn't."

"He should be your baby. He looks like you."

Esmeray laughed lightly. "Because of the dark hair? A little, I suppose."

Hope propped herself up on her elbows, still staring at the baby. "Why don't you have a baby?"

"Hope," Hayley said. "How about we go and—?"

"It's okay, Hayley," said Esmeray, who, after three years, had come to terms with the loss she'd experienced. "You know, Hope, sometimes, it doesn't always work out. You'll understand more about it in the future. I can explain it to you when you're older."

"Okay," said the tribrid, putting her hand over the baby's arm. "What's his name?"

"I was told not to give him a name, so that his new parents can choose. So I just call him 'Little One.'"

Hope giggled. "Well, he is little. So it makes sense."

"You were this little, once, too."

"Was that when my dad was around?"

Hayley and Esmeray shared a look. "Yeah, it was," said Hayley slowly. "And he'll be back around, soon. Esmeray is working really hard to make sure that you can meet him."

"You're his knight in shining armor!" said Hope, and Esmeray nodded.

From the third to the fifth year, Esmeray had tried to be around Hope and Hayley more. Truth be told, she was growing concerned that the Malraux line had really been wiped out, and she would never be able to cure Kol and Elijah. She elected to wait, and see what information she could acquire without traveling.

This was nice for her. Hope was curious, and sometimes asked questions that made her feel a bit sad, but she didn't blame her, and always tried to answer her queries as best as she could.

"My mom told me that she and my dad aren't a couple like most parents," said Hope after she turned six and they were still eating leftover birthday cake. "Are you his girlfriend?"

Esmeray was surprised that Hayley had said this to Hope. "Yes, I am."

"What am I supposed to call you?"

"You can just call me 'Esmeray,' if you want. I don't think there's a term for 'dad's girlfriend.'"

Hope found this funny. "If you marry my dad, then what do I call you?"

"You can still call me Esmeray when we get married. Hayley is still your mom, and I wouldn't want to replace her."

"Why do people get married?"

"Well, for your dad and I, it's just our way of showing each other that we really love one another. Being bonded for life, in a way."

"Don't people's last names change when they get married?"

"Sometimes, yes."

"Are you gonna be Esmeray Mikaelson?"

"I would like to be."

"What if my dad became Klaus Poldark?"

Esmeray had a good laugh at that one. "You know, I didn't think about that, but that's right, he could change his last name to mine. Nowadays, society makes it seem like something weird if a husband changes his last name to his wife's instead of the other way around. Back when your dad and I were little, that wasn't a thing. Really, we didn't have last names... at least not in my Pack."

"What would my name be if I was born when you and my dad were little?"

"Depends where you were born. But I think, if you were still your dad's daughter in those times, you'd be Hope Mikaelson. For him, it was a tradition to have last names like that."

"Because his parents came from a different place than yours."

"Sort of. My mom's ancestors came from a similar place, but she didn't know much about that. So we learned the traditions my dad learned from his ancestors."

"Do you have siblings?"

"No, but I think I would have liked to."

"I want a sibling. I heard you and my mom talking about that once. Was I gonna get a sibling?"

Yeah, that was one of the questions that made her sad.

Esmeray took her hands. "I... was gonna have a baby at one point. And it didn't go well. The baby didn't make it. When I'm ready, I want to try and have a baby again."

"Good," said Hope, who didn't understand the concepts of trauma and miscarriages. "I want a little sister. Maybe a brother. Do you think that will make my dad come back?"

"Oh, sweetie," she whispered, smoothing her hair back. "Your dad would be here if he could. He'd come back for you and only you, if he was able to. I'll bring him to you soon, I promise. He loves you so, so much, and I know he misses you."

She tried to be a comforting presence for the little girl. She told her good stories about Klaus, and would help her with some of her drawings when she asked her to. She started to help her practice magic in a controlled environment (obviously without giving her her memories, that was highly inappropriate). She was just as strong and naturally talented as they thought she'd be, and truth be told, Esmeray worried the power would get to her head, so she'd tried to have Hope focus a bit on non-magical hobbies, as well.

For Christmas, before her seventh birthday, Esmeray had gifted her a paint set, and had seen a past memory come to life. (A/N: From Ch. 33).

"I haven't let us get... intimate or anything," Esmeray was telling Elijah, "so that we don't forge a connection that will cause problems."

"Niklaus mentioned you have a bad feeling about that. Would you mind telling me about this premonition?"

Esmeray bit her lip. "It's hard to explain. But I feel this... insane amount of energy. Chaotic, in some forms. Something potentially dangerous. I see... a vision of myself with a little girl who looks like Klaus."

Elijah raised an eyebrow. "She looks like my brother?"

"Yes. Same hair. Same eyes. Even the complexion is the same. In the vision, she's painting a landscape for me... a forest and my wolf form, which scares me because I have never seen what I look like as a wolf through my own eyes— just through Klaus's memories of me when I've turned. And from this, I assume that he and I might be able to conceive a child. That makes me feel even more worried. The energy I feel makes me think that unless I'm a full hybrid in control of both my natures, I won't be able to handle a pregnancy like that. Either I'll kill the baby with an unintentional release of energy, or the baby will kill me from draining me so much of my strength. I don't know why or how but even with Klaus's vampire side, I feel certain that our wolves are drawn to each other because they seek to create someone just as powerful as us. This kid... I know this sounds far-fetched but I think that if we could make a baby together... it would be a tribrid."

Hope had seen Hayley and Esmeray's wolf forms, and as a thanks to Esmeray for her paints, she'd painted her wolf standing in the forest outside the house. That day had made Esmeray's heart ache.

"Here you go," Hayley told her, the morning of the fifth year. "Happy birthday. Twenty-eight and you still look super young."

Esmeray offered her a smile. "Thanks." She started to dig into the waffles she'd made for her. "So, I'll be going out again, depending on what Mary tells me. You should stay here, I don't think it's safe for you to go."

"I should be going with you, Esmeray. It's dangerous by yourself."

"I've practiced sneaking around for five years, and I've been safe. We know that vampires are trying to get to you or Hope to use your blood and locate Klaus and the others. They have witches on their side that will be able to use your blood to tap into Hope's relationship with all of them, because she's your daughter and her blood turned you into a hybrid. I don't have a single drop of Mikaelson blood in me, and they wouldn't be able to locate them if they caught me. Besides, if Mary is right about there being a lead on the Malraux... Keelin knows me. She doesn't know you, and won't come willingly."

Hayley sighed. "I worry about you, Esme. You haven't had a proper break from all of this."

"I'll take a break once Klaus and the others are safe," she told her. "I've seen a few therapists in the past. I just don't feel relaxed, knowing Marcel is tormenting him, and the others are in a Chambre de Chasse that not even I can access to give them progress reports. I need to see him again. I should have already been able to save him, and I haven't. So please, don't worry about me. If I'm still all frenzied after the rescue, then you can be concerned."

The two hybrids perked up at the sound of a car pulling up. Esmeray got up and went to look out the window. Sure enough, Mary's truck was just parking in the driveway.

"Hi," said Esmeray, smiling and pulling her into a hug. "How was the drive?"

"Not too bad," Mary said, patting her shoulder as she walked with her to the house. "How have all of you been?"

"As well as can be expected," she replied. "Hope's excited to see you." She stopped expectantly in front of her. "I should get going if I want to finish this all by tonight."

Mary frowned slightly. "Are you sure this is the right thing to do? Hope might be better off not knowing them. They're trouble, Esmeray. I don't want to see you get hurt again."

"You should hear how often Hope's asked me when I'm bringing her dad back. She needs them. Hayley and I are good at protecting her, but we need the extra muscle. We can't keep a tribrid hidden away forever. And her magic is growing so much... she needs her Aunt Freya and Uncle Kol's help with it. They do spells different than mine, and Hope needs a well-rounded magical education."

Mary put her hand on hers. "Then you'll be looking to head to Texas." She slipped her a small piece of paper. "Just... be careful. This could be a trap. You three are all I have now, and I won't stand to lose you the way I lost Jack."

"I'll be careful, I promise."

She was able to get on the move fairly quickly. After giving Hope and Hayley each a hug, she'd loaded the coffins into the moving truck Hayley had driven five years ago, and had cast a Cloaking Spell before heading to Texas.

"That fucking explains it," Esmeray muttered to herself as she leaned back in the truck, having done a spell to have it drive itself while she did a Locator Spell to pinpoint exactly where, in Austin, Keelinw as. "She's been using science to suppress her traits. Freya couldn't find me because Lucien had me pumped with chemicals." She wove her hands over the map in a different manner, and found that Keelin was currently inside of a bar.

With her driver's license ready, Esmeray parked the truck in a back alley, cloaking it with yet another spell before she walked into the bar, seeing Keelin with several other women, doing shots at a round table.

She purposely moved toward her, brushing against her and making her turn to see who it was.

"Oh my god!" said Keelin excitedly. "Esmeray!" She held up a badge. "Last time I saw you, I was barely about to graduate from Medical School."

"Hi," she said, giving a look that said, 'we need to talk.' Keelin didn't seem to think anything was wrong. "So, what are you celebrating?"

"I just finished my residency," said the wolf, "which makes me an official ER doctor."

"Great," said Esmeray. "Congrats. Do you feel like saving five lives today?"

Keelin frowned. "Whose lives?"

"Just some friends of mine who are in need of some of your... special talents."

She tensed. "This is about my venom, isn't it?" she whispered. "My grandmother told me about... the laboratory... before she passed."

"I just need a little bit, I swear it," said Esmeray, and she wasn't lying. "I can multiply the amount with spells if I need it in the future. I need to get this done today. Please."

Keelin hesitated, looking back at her friends. "Fine. But we're getting burgers along the way, I haven't eaten properly yet."

"Deal," said Esmeray, leading her to the back door before grabbing her arm and speeding them to the truck. She saw two men watching them from a street corner as she pulled out of the alley, and wove her hand, snapping their necks from a distance before driving off.

"Let me guess," said Keelin once they got their burgers, "this has to do with that boyfriend of yours."

"Yep," said Esmeray, tapping her palms against the steering wheel and actually making herself drive this time. "Know any abandoned warehouses or something in this city? I don't want to cross into Louisiana yet."

"Uh, yeah, take that exit here and I'll tell you where to turn later, it's a long way from where we are, but it'll give you the privacy you need... speaking of that... why are we in this huge truck? What's in the back?"

"The coffins with my in-laws," said Esmeray simply, which made Keelin choke on her drink.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"My boyfriend's two brothers and two sisters, who are dying. I don't reckon your grandmother told you much about why our venom was being extracted, did she?"

"Not really, she just said it was torture, and some crazy guy named Lucien wanted to kill Klaus Mikaelson. She mentioned that you... had a miscarriage."

"Yeah. Unfortunately. What happened was that Lucien combined strains of venom from the seven different werewolf bloodlines, and combined them to turn himself into a creature stronger than the Originals. Literally, his bite can kill them, and did kill their eldest brother, Finn. Klaus's two brothers are currently bitten, and it's through a Sleeping Spell that we've been able to keep them alive. I need your venom to finish making the cure. I know I helped you stray from your Pack and go into hiding, and I don't want to put you in danger, but I have a feeling we're being followed, and I swear that as soon as this is done, I can help relocate you if you need me to."

"Look, I owe you one, after you helped me get out when my folks didn't want me to go. If it helps you, I'll do it. I know my grandma would have wanted me to."

"I'm sorry to hear that she passed. I didn't know."

"After my grandpa left, she just... didn't want to live anymore. And he died waiting for her to come back, not knowing where she was for a whole year. I think she just wanted to go be with him in the afterlife."

"You need to be extra careful now. You're the last Malraux wolf. That's gonna put a huge target on your back."

"Is it really getting to be that bad?"

"Now that the serum with the combined venoms exists, yes. Someone may try to recreate it. You and I are in the most danger. There are still two Paxon wolves, two Deep Water wolves, five BasRoq, four North East Atlantics, and a lot of Crescents—"

"Wait, who are the North East Atlantics? I thought the seventh pack was the Barry Pack."

"Ah, only the Malraux ever called them the Barry Pack, because your Pack was the first to stray and that was the earliest known name for them. They chose to be called the North East Atlantic Pack instead, and most others know them by that. Same Pack, though, nothing's different."

"That's really it, then? The pure wolves are becoming completely scarce?"

"Yep, unfortunately. You and I are the last of our kind. Makes us special to both the good guys and the bad guys. Pretty soon, the only pure wolves will be Crescents, and from then on... maybe the purity will disappear entirely."

"That's depressing. Do they still call you the Queen of the Wolves?"

"Apparently, yes. It's sweet, I guess, I just don't really know what to do with it."

"Why?"

"Well, it's just me. And I won't live forever, I'm mortal. So what happens when I die? Will there just be no queen?"

"Probably not unless you choose someone to be the next Queen so they can watch over the wolves."

"Good idea. Maybe I'll pick you."

"What? Why me?"

"What makes us special now that we're the only ones left of our line, is that we're unbiased. We don't have Pack members, so we won't prioritize them. It keeps us being fair."

"Only if I find a way to do magic," said Keelin with a smile. "I'd like to be a witch."

In the future, Esmeray would tease her about how she got to do some magic via being Freya's girlfriend.

A/N: Obviously didn't do anything for TVD S7 and 8. Why? Matt wouldn't have let Rayna Cruz escape. Stefan wasn't marked with her sword cause he and Damon were working together properly since Damon dating Bonnie means Kai never put Elena to sleep, therefore, the Phoenix Stone thing didn't lead him to 'burn' her or desiccate himself. There would also be no concern about the magic suppressing pills cause Enzo is dating Caroline, not Bonnie. Plus, Enzo made sure the Armory idiots didn't open the vault. I don't know if I'll ever mention it, but just know that Stelena, Bamon, and Carenzo get their happy endings. Woohoo, everyone lives! Back to Klausmeray.