Dawn cast a heavy, gray ceiling over the roads cutting through Florida. In the passenger seat of the SUV, Ethan kept his eyes fixed on the horizon, not truly seeing it. In the back seat, Hope slept a heavy sleep, overcome by exhaustion and the pain that the Hollow's magic inflicted upon her body. Klaus drove with his hands firm on the steering wheel, and in the rearview mirror, Elijah's car could be seen following close behind, maintaining the escort.
Around nine in the morning, the imposing iron gates of the Salvatore Boarding School for the Young and Gifted loomed ahead. Klaus slowed down and parked in the tree-lined courtyard.
Before turning off the engine, he turned to Ethan and gave him a stern, imperious look. Then he glanced back at the back seat, where Hope was starting to stir.
"Before we go inside, kid..." he murmured, his voice low so as not to wake her abruptly. "Don't say anything to Hope about the curse. She already has too much on her mind, and I don't want to give her another burden to carry."
Ethan didn't even need to think.
"Leave it to me, Klaus. I won't say a word."
Klaus turned back and gently called to his daughter. Hope opened her eyes slowly, blinking against the bright morning light.
"Are we there yet?" she asked, her voice raspy with sleep.
"Yes, sweetheart. We're here."
Hope settled herself in her seat and glanced over at Ethan. In that exact second, her tribrid intuition tripped an alarm. The air around him felt different. The presence she knew now exuded a dense, alive, almost predatory aura, and his heart was beating to a deeper rhythm than she remembered.
"Ethan... did something happen to you?" she asked, frowning and examining his face closely.
Ethan gave a reassuring half-smile and met her gaze, not faltering in the lie.
"Nothing, Hope. I'm fine. Just tired from the trip."
Hope continued to watch him for another second, but decided not to press.
The door of the back car opened, and Elijah walked toward them, buttoning his jacket. Klaus got out of the SUV and went to meet his brother.
"I'm going to speak with Caroline about a few matters," Klaus said, walking with long strides toward the main entrance.
Hope got out of the car, accompanied by Ethan and Elijah. As they crossed the school grounds she knew so well, Ethan tried to adapt to the flurry of sensations his body was processing.
Now that the curse was fully awakened, he understood: until that dawn, he had been practically an ordinary human with a dormant power. The force coursing through his veins was overwhelming. He could hear the students' footsteps hundreds of yards away, the rustling of leaves high in the trees, the rapid heartbeats of the birds on the rooftops. Everything was more alive, sharper, incomparable to anything he had ever felt.
"Well? Are you going to come in or just stand there staring at the bricks?" Hope said, stopping a few paces ahead with a half-smile.
"I've got some things to take care of inside, too," Ethan replied.
Elijah watched the two of them in silence and then spoke up:
"Hope, would you mind going on ahead? I'd like a word with Ethan."
Hope looked at her uncle, then at Ethan, and nodded slowly. She headed inside the school, glancing back one last time over her shoulder.
When the door closed behind her, Ethan turned around.
"So, what do you want to talk about, Elijah?"
Elijah raised his gaze to the gray sky, then to the building, like someone bidding farewell to old memories.
"I want to ask you a single question, and I want you to answer honestly." He paused. "Are you certain about what you're going to do? This choice could cost you your life."
Ethan took a deep breath, feeling the cold morning air fill his lungs.
"I've been thinking about this the whole way here. About my mother, my sister, everything that's happened." He looked back at Elijah and smiled faintly. "There's a chance everything goes wrong and I die. I know that. But I couldn't live in a world where Hope doesn't exist. Partly because of this damn bond my father left in my blood. But mostly because... I've genuinely grown to care for her. I know what you're going to say—that I'm too young, that I have my whole life ahead of me. But this is the only way to end this once and for all."
Elijah listened without interrupting. Then he raised his left hand in a gesture he had made forever, almost a ritual.
"Ethan, I have walked this earth for over a thousand years. I have loved, I have hated, I have killed enemies and even friends in the name of my family. And the firmest lesson life has taught me is that death is the end of everything. There is no forgiveness nor love on the other side. Only nothingness. Everything we do will one day be forgotten, and therefore the only place worth being is here, alive, loving, and being happy."
Ethan absorbed the words. Then he let out a low laugh.
"A thousand years brings a lot of wisdom, I admit. But I read in a book once that there is no greater love than laying down one's life for one's friends." He shook his head. "Abandoning someone who needs me in tough times is not in my vocabulary. So yes, I am sure. If death is my destiny, then so be it."
Without waiting for an answer, Ethan turned and walked into the school.
Elijah stood in the courtyard, his eyes fixed on the door through which the boy had disappeared, turning every word over in his mind.
A short time later, we see Elijah arriving at the school library, where Hope was waiting.
Hope was looking at a display case.
"Stefan Salvatore's diary," Elijah said, walking up to the library.
Hope looks at him and then down at the display case. "We shouldn't touch this, but I already have the whole thing memorized. Spoiler alert: my dad is the big bad villain, and you're his evil sidekick."
Elijah replies: "From a biased perspective."
"Fair enough, I wanted a second opinion," Hope answered.
She walks over to the bookshelves.
"Alaric Saltzman's Mystic Falls archives," she says, showing it to Elijah. "Volume 1: Throughout history, my father is the big bad wolf."
She turns to put the book back on the shelf and feels a sharp wave of dizziness.
"Hope, what is it? What happened?" Elijah asks, startled.
"Nothing..." She puts a hand to her head, feeling unsteady, and says she's fine.
"Didn't Davina give you the pills for the discomfort?" Elijah asks, frowning.
"Yeah... Want to know what makes me feel better, like, actually better? Spending the whole day alone."
Elijah looks around and proposes: "Come on, let's get out of here. I know a place that makes a wonderful burger."
Hope rolls her eyes and says she isn't hungry.
"Fine, have a milkshake instead," Elijah replied, unyielding.
Hope rolls her eyes again, huffing, but gives in.
Meanwhile, we see Ethan inside the school. He felt a bit lost in that place, but it was already almost a second home to him, so to speak. Since it was morning, Ethan decided to go grab a bite at the cafeteria, even though the official hour had passed.
As he walked down the corridors, someone called out: "Hey, Ethan!"
Ethan looked back and saw Lucien; he was alone and not with his usual pack.
"Hey, Lucien, how's it going?"
Lucien stopped right in front of him, looked Ethan up and down, and let out a low whistle: "Damn, I heard about what happened to you, and holy hell, you've grown massively. You're bigger than me, and I'm 6'0"."
"Yeah, you know, man... Everybody hits a growth spurt in their teens," Ethan laughed awkwardly.
After that, Lucien turned serious. "You didn't just get bigger, you're way stronger than before. By any chance... did you trigger the werewolf curse?"
Ethan stayed silent for a second. "Look, man, I know you're the alpha of the wolves, but about that, I prefer to keep quiet for now. Let's just say I did what I did for a good cause."
"Hhm, okay. If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine, man. But know that I'm always here; if you ever need help with anything, just look me up," Lucien said, giving him a pat on the shoulder.
Ethan smiled, appreciating the gesture; turns out this guy wasn't so annoying after all. "See you around, Alpha."
Ethan turned and headed toward the cafeteria. Lucien turned his back and walked away as well.
Meanwhile, in the center of Mystic Falls, the sunny morning at the Mystic Grill contrasted painfully with the weight pressing on Hope's chest. She and Elijah were sitting at an outdoor table on the sidewalk.
Hope looked at her uncle and said, full of irony: "If you intend to tell me my father has a heart of gold, you picked the worst possible place... Seeing as inside there's a picture of the woman he killed in the Moonstone ritual."
Elijah replied calmly: "Look across the street at that dark-toned shop over there. That is the patch of land that used to be our family home..."
"The smell still haunts me to this day... burning wood, crushed flowers, rotting fruit..."
"Did you know your father painted quite a bit back then?"
Hope listened to her uncle in silence, attentive.
"He mixed paints, searched for stronger reds, deeper blues..." Elijah continued, his breathing faltering for a second. "He used to wake me in the middle of the night just to show me a color he swore he'd invented. I remember perfectly the first time he showed me the exact shade of turquoise."
An ironic smile crossed Elijah's face briefly. "It was the first time I ever smelled blood," Elijah recalled, his voice measured, pulling up the deepest shadows of his immortality. "When our father saw Klaus carving with a simple stick, he ripped the piece of wood out of his hands and struck my brother across the face, without a shred of mercy."
"And what did you do?" Hope asked.
"Niklaus begged me to run away with him... but I said I would never leave Rebekah and Kol at Mikael's mercy. So we stayed... It was the biggest mistake of my life. We should have run together. Your father couldn't go alone, but I promised him I would protect him from that day on, no matter the cost."
Elijah looked up at the sky, remembering a very distant past that would never return.
At that moment, a young boy approached carefully, carrying a tray. He placed a lavish glass in front of Hope and Elijah, smiling shyly. "Peanut butter milkshake with whipped cream at the bottom, just the way you like it," the boy said.
"Thanks, Landon," Hope replied, forcing a soft smile.
Landon cast a curious look at the impeccably dressed man with an intimidating posture sitting across from her. Hope noticed the awkwardness and rushed to cut through the silence: "Oh... This is my uncle."
"Oh... Hello, Mr. Marshall," Landon greeted politely, before returning his eyes to the girl, the shyness evident in his posture. "Why have you been away? You haven't been coming around lately..."
"I had some heavy stuff to deal with back home," Hope answered, looking away.
"Ah... I was hoping so much you'd come back," Landon confessed, scratching the back of his neck, vulnerable. "You're from New Orleans, right? That place is the birthplace of the greatest musicians in the world..."
Hope nodded and said with a smile: "No matter where you look, it seems like there's always someone playing Louis Armstrong down there."
Suddenly, some guys sitting at the front table started throwing ice cubes directly at Landon, laughing loudly and humiliatingly.
Hope shook her head side to side, annoyed. "You should just ignore them and go inside, Landon..." she said.
One of the guys threw another ice cube at Landon, but Elijah moved faster than any human thought. With a millennium-old, flawless reflex, his hand moved in a blur and he caught one of the ice cubes out of the air, inches away from hitting Landon, his face perfectly serene, though his eyes flashed with danger.
Ignoring the fright, Landon tried to gather the pieces of his dignity, looking hopefully at Hope: "Actually... There's going to be live music in the square tonight. I mean, there always is, but tonight it's blues. And I... I was wondering if maybe you and I could go together?"
Hope shook her head slowly and gave him a gentle smile. "Landon... I'm sorry, I can't. Tonight I really have something unavoidable to do..."
Landon's face fell. Disillusionment painted his features, but he tried to mask the pain with a crooked, awkward smile: "Yeah, sure... I should probably just pick up an extra shift anyway. But hey, thanks for the chat and the milkshake."
"Thanks for inviting me, Landon... and for the milkshake," Hope replied, smiling slightly at him.
Landon nodded with his head down, taking a step back: "Good luck. And... nice to meet you, sir."
"Likewise," Elijah answered with a polished nod, watching the boy walk away dejectedly back into the restaurant.
Elijah waited until Landon was out of sight. He turned to his niece. "The moon only reaches its peak later. You could have gone with him... Why did you turn the boy down?"
Hope looked down at her own hands, trembling on the table. "For two reasons: first, because I'm going to be dead soon. And second is..."
She stalled. The sentence died in her throat, and she stared at the wooden table as if she could find some answer there to the horror she was living.
Elijah looked at her and frowned: "How do you know that?"
"The witches in our family spent all this time locked up studying, surrounded by grimoires and despair... Did you really think I wouldn't notice?" Hope said, pulling the collar of her jacket down to expose the dark veins creeping up her neck. "Strange veins all over my body, this unbearable pain burning every inch of my organs... You know what? I want to know how much time I have left."
Elijah stared at his niece, feeling his own heart—long dead—shatter in his chest. He tried to muster his strength, forcing firmness into his voice: "Under these conditions... we fear you won't be strong enough to endure the full moon transition."
"Why wouldn't I?" Hope scoffed with a bitter, desperate laugh, tears rolling freely down her face. "It'll just be every single bone in my body breaking at the same time, while the Hollow consumes whatever's left of my soul!"
"Listen to me!" Elijah exclaimed, leaning forward, his hands trembling as he gripped the table while his eyes begged for hope. "Your father is out there, moving mountains, searching for the exact cure this very second, while we're talking! We are not going to let anything happen to you, you understand?! You are our family!"
Hope closed her eyes and breathed harder than normal. Maybe it would just be better to... let it happen already. It's so exhausting to fight when all you do is break everyone around you.
Elijah turned pale, horror stamping his ancient face: "Why are you saying that, Hope?"
Before Hope could answer, the irritating sound of laughter and clinking glasses at the neighboring table cut through the air. The same guys who had mocked Landon were getting up from their table.
"You're short 7 bucks here," Landon said, picking up the money the guys had left on the table.
"That's your tip! Seven bucks less for your piece-of-shit service!" they laughed, getting up and walking away while mocking him.
Elijah heard it all while looking at Hope across from him. Without saying a word, he reached into the inner pocket of his jacket, pulled out a wad of high-value bills along with his car keys, and left a large bill right on the table.
He looked at Hope, and a firm, knowing, slightly defiant glint appeared in his eyes. "Do you know how to drive?" he asked.
Hope looked at him, confused. "Mom and Declan taught me the basics in his old beat-up car... why?"
"Then it's time you drove a real car. Come with me," Elijah ordered, rising with his usual elegance. But before taking his first step, he paused, turned his face slightly, and offered a small, ironic, conspiratorial smile. "Oh... And before I forget: what was that second reason you didn't want to go out with the boy?"
The question caught Hope totally off guard. She froze, feeling her blood boil and rush in violent waves up her neck until it dyed her cheeks a deep, dark red.
"E...Elijah," she stammered, completely cornered, looking down at the floor and trying to hide her burning face with her hands. "I-I... I already like someone, okay?! Satisfied?!"
Elijah let out a low chuckle as he walked toward where the car was parked. "That's what I thought," he teased.
Leaving the embarrassment behind and feeling her heart beat wildly against her ribs, she took a deep breath and hurried after him down the sidewalk.
Upstairs at the school, after grabbing something to eat, Ethan went to his room. He took a deep breath, trying to slow the erratic rhythm of his own heart as he absorbed the gravity of what was about to happen.
Determined to sort out the final details with Klaus, he got off the bed and headed downstairs. Ethan searched for the hybrid through the main corridors and the courtyard, but didn't find him. As he passed the headmaster's office, his new senses picked up the muffled sound of raised voices: Caroline Forbes and Alaric Saltzman were arguing heatedly inside the office.
Ethan took two steps forward and knocked firmly on the wooden door. The conversation inside stopped instantly. "Who is it?" Caroline asked, her voice on alert. "It's Ethan," he answered from outside.
Inside the room, Caroline and Alaric exchanged a quick, tense glance. "Come in, Ethan," Caroline instructed.
Ethan turned the knob and entered. The headmaster's office was permeated with the heavy aura of the meeting. Alaric was leaning against the wooden desk, while Caroline stood near the window. "Hey, Ethan... How are you holding up?" Caroline asked, trying to soften her expression, though worry bled through her eyes.
"I'm good," he replied shortly.
"Hello, kid," Alaric greeted, adjusting his posture.
Ethan responded with a respectful nod.
Caroline stepped toward him, crossing her arms and letting out a heavy sigh: "Klaus told me everything, Ethan. This is absurdly reckless! Do you have any idea of the danger? Do you know how your mother is going to feel if something happens to you?!"
Alaric shook his head in agreement: "She's right, kid. It's an insanely high risk."
Ethan kept his gaze fixed on both of them, impassive and showing no trace of hesitation. "I know that..." Ethan replied, his voice deep and measured. "But there's nothing else left to do. The other option is Klaus's death, channeling the Hollow into himself and killing himself. And Hope probably wouldn't survive that... Not after everything that happened with her mother. Losing her father now would simply destroy her. I understand she's strong, that she can somehow overcome it—but why should she? If I can fix this."
Caroline frowned, surprised by the young man's maturity and cold calculation in the face of death. "Why would you go this far for her, Ethan?" Caroline asked softly, seeking to understand the force driving him.
Ethan looked Caroline straight in the eyes and, without hesitating for a single second, replied: "Because I love her."
Silence reigned in the room. "Everything happened so fast..." Ethan continued, looking down at his own hands and then clenching them into fists. "But I am completely sure that I love her. And I'd rather die a thousand times than let this keep causing her pain."
Caroline blinked, disarmed by the declaration. "Ethan..." she murmured, shocked.
"Kid..." Alaric said, not knowing exactly how to respond to such determination.
Before anyone could say another word, a sharp, metallic noise from the hallway near the room cut through the air. Ethan frowned instantly, his senses on high alert. Alaric reacted on instinct, turning to the desk and grabbing the loaded crossbow he kept within arm's reach.
"Oh, no..." Caroline grumbled, anticipating what was coming next.
In a blur of overwhelming vampiric speed, Klaus Mikaelson appeared in the doorway with his usual imposing posture, casually holding an arrow soaked in blood in his hands.
"Impressive system... secure, I'll give you that. At least if I were a baby werewolf going through puberty," Klaus mocked, with his usual sarcastic smile.
With a disdainful gesture, Klaus tossed the arrow fired by the school's traps straight onto the floor, where it clattered against the tiles. Then, the Original Hybrid raised his eyes and stared at Ethan, who was standing beside the desk.
"Ethan isn't going to die," Klaus intervened, addressing Caroline and Alaric with a grave, resolute tone. "The Hollow will be destroyed the moment it enters his body... at least, that's what Davina said."
Klaus took a step forward, adjusting his jacket as his gaze landed on the young werewolf beside him. The Original Hybrid had heard Ethan's declaration perfectly as he approached the room.
He had heard the boy state in no uncertain terms that he loved Hope. Klaus felt profound admiration and a silent respect for everything Ethan had done for his daughter up to that moment—from ruining his own soul to triggering the curse for her—so he preferred not to make jokes or ironic comments.
"I would have preferred he didn't meddle so much and that this ended with me," Klaus continued, looking at Caroline firmly. "However, if there is a chance we all walk out of this alive... why not try, right, Ethan?"
"Yes," Ethan answered, his voice steady and his gaze unwavering.
Caroline looked from Klaus to the boy, sighing deeply. The tension in the room was still palpable. "Ethan, can you give us a second? I need to speak with Klaus alone," Caroline requested gently. "You too, Alaric, please."
Ethan nodded silently and walked toward the door.
"Okay," Alaric answered. He left the office, letting the door close behind him.
Walking through the school corridors, Ethan sought the fresh air of the main courtyard. He sat on one of the wooden benches under the shade of a large tree, watching the activity around him. Young students laughed, used simple spells to make leaves float in the air, practiced minor magic tricks, and enjoyed the day as if the world were a safe place without shadows.
Ethan stared down at his own hands. The raw truth weighed heavily on his mind: there was a real possibility he could die that night when he took in the Hollow's dark magic. Or maybe Davina's plan would work, his newly awakened werewolf side would destroy the corruption completely, and everything would end well. But regardless of the outcome, he knew he had to face it. There was no room to back down.
Feeling his chest tighten, he pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed his mother's number. He wouldn't tell her anything about the curse, the mugger in the alley, or the bizarre night ahead of him in a few hours. He just wanted to hear her voice—the voice of his safe harbor.
The phone rang three times before it was answered. "Ethan? Hi, my boy," his mother's affectionate voice sounded on the other end, but an ironic tone quickly followed. "What a surprise... I was starting to think you forgot you have a mother."
Ethan closed his eyes for a second and smiled: "Hi, Mom, everything's fine. Thanks for asking."
There was a brief pause on the other line, and he could hear his mother's emotional sigh: "Humpf... You go days and days without even texting your mother and expect me to be cool with it?" she scolded.
Ethan shook his head and laughed; his mother was something else. "All right, Mom, sorry for not calling. I just wanted to say everything's fine and—"
His mother fell silent. "What? What happened?" she asked, sounding somewhat distressed.
"Nothing, nothing happened, Mom. I just wanted to talk to you, I was missing your bad mood," he joked.
"Humpf, I hope you call more often and don't forget your mother, you little rascal!"
Ethan laughed. "All right, Mom, I have to go now."
"Bye, behave yourself and don't get into trouble," she answered.
The call ended. Ethan lowered his phone and stared at the black screen for a long moment. He let out a deep sigh, slipped the phone into his pocket, and stood up from the bench. He decided to head out to the street to do one last thing he had forgotten before coming to this place: the contingency plan. If things went wrong for some reason and got out of hand, he needed the most urgent thing possible... hard cash.
Meanwhile, in Elijah's car, Hope was driving while Elijah guided her along the way.
"That would be an oncoming Stop sign," he noted, pointing to the sign ahead of them.
"Okay, okay, don't panic, alright? There's no way I can kill you, and I'm already dying anyway, so..." she retorted.
"Is it really necessary to destroy this work of art like that?" he remarked about the car handling.
"Hnm, look, I know what you're doing with the milkshakes and the driving lessons... the small pleasures, whatever. I'm not suicidal, if that's what you're worried about. That's not what I meant when I said maybe it would be better if I died."
"You clearly don't seem interested in surviving," he said.
"It's not that I want to die, it's just that I don't think I was really meant to exist to begin with. Think about the bizarre things that led to my birth: my father lived for thousands of years, performed some crazy rituals, and became the only vampire who can procreate; my mother bounced through several foster families until she reached Mystic Falls; and when my father was sad and drunk, he had a night with my mother—who stayed with him out of spite—and boom: the miracle baby... Of course, leaving aside the fact that I possibly killed my twin brother by sucking all his magic in the womb or something."
"All right, Hope, you don't need to spell out every little detail, and don't blame yourself for your brother under any circumstances. What happened to him was the universe bringing balance—"
Hope stayed quiet for a moment. "Is it possible to be a mistake and a miracle at the same time?" she asked.
"No one is a mistake, Hope. This family fought tooth and nail to keep you alive ever since we knew of your existence," he said.
"I know, but the universe has been trying to kill me since before I was born to try and rebalance itself or something. I'm very grateful you guys fought so hard for me, but when I took the power back, I knew I could die. It was my decision."
"Turn right," he answered, parking the car.
Hope looked ahead and saw the guys who had been bullying Landon at the Mystic Grill. "Okay, so... We're going to spend my last hours watching Connor make out with the future Miss Mystic Falls?" she asked ironically.
"Why do you suppose your friend Landon didn't fight back against their insults?" Elijah asked.
"I don't know... Because he needed to keep his job?" she retorted.
"Exactly. But we, on the other hand, have nothing to lose," he said.
Hope looked at Elijah, half confused. "What do you mean?"
"As you know, I can hypnotize these idiots into doing whatever you want," Elijah replied.
She smiled. "Or you can make them forget what I'm about to do," she said, pushing the door open and stepping out of the car.
"That wasn't what I suggested. You shouldn't waste your energy like that," he said, getting out after her.
"If I die getting my revenge, it'll be worth it."
Elijah grabbed her arm, but she pulled away: "Hope, you have to conserve your energy!"
"Relax, I'll be fine," she retorted.
Then she began a magical chant, and all the windows of the cars being washed at the car wash next door turned to frost and shattered.
"AAH, MY CAR! OH GOD, WHAT HAPPENED?! WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY CAR?!" shouted Connor, the leader of the "bullies."
Hope smiled out of the corner of her mouth. "Okay, that was pretty good."
After their hysterics, Elijah walked over to them.
Elijah gave a small, restrained smile, walked up to the frightened teenagers, and hypnotized them to forget all about it, then walked back to Hope, who was sitting nonchalantly on the hood of the car.
"Your father would kill me if he knew I let you do that," he noted.
"I won't tell," she replied.
"Listen, Hope... I know you think it's the end of the world, that everything is over for you," he shook his head. "It isn't. All of us are here to help you. I shouldn't be telling you this right now, but... your friend Ethan might be the key to all of this."
Looking at him, Hope said: "What? What do you mean?"
"To begin explaining this, I need to talk about Davina first. She ran a magical test, and in that test she used some of Ethan's blood and your tears that Davina gathered at the cemetery..."
Hope instantly remembered that time on the street when Davina had approached Ethan.
"She ran an arcane analysis and saw that Ethan's blood was incomplete, but that it could function as an antimagic or sorts against the Hollow, putting an end to it forever... However, for that to happen—"
"For that to happen what, Uncle?!" she asked, tense.
"He would have to transform into a full werewolf," he replied.
!!!!
She jumped to her feet from the hood of the car. "So that's why he was different this morning?! You made him kill someone?! Why did you let that happen?!"
"Ethan was just as determined to do this as you were when you pulled the Hollow into yourself, Hope. Don't blame him for it; he only wants what's best for you."
"Yes, but if there's any chance of this going wrong and him dying, I won't accept it! He doesn't deserve this!"
"You cannot give up, Hope, not while everyone is doing everything they can for you."
"But what if I don't want them to do this?" she retorted.
Elijah shook his head negatively. "Hope, everyone is doing this because they love you—don't let that go to waste like this."
"You don't understand. I don't want Ethan to get hurt because of me... He shouldn't even have come to this school, to be precise. It's all my fault! If I hadn't met him, maybe he would have triggered his bond with someone else and not me... Not while I'm carrying all these problems and dumping them on him."
"I know how you feel, Hope, but it was his choice. He decided on his own to do what he's been doing for you, because he cares for you. I didn't see a single moment of hesitation in his eyes; there was only certainty. You can't run away from someone who cares for you, not like this. Don't give up on this fight..."
"But what's going to happen to him?" she asked, her voice thick with emotion.
"Davina stated that as soon as the magic enters him, it will be destroyed once and for all," he answered.
"But is that certain? Because I've got this thing inside me and I know how destructive it is," she replied, distressed.
Elijah, in his thoughts, didn't know if it was entirely certain, but he couldn't tell her the naked, harsh truth. "Yes, Hope, it's certain. Ethan is going to be fine."
She looked at his face for another moment. "You're lying, I know it... And I won't let Ethan ruin his life because of a murderer like me."
"Listen to me: the man at the church was not your fault!"
"I'm talking about my mother!" she retorted, her eyes red with hatred and pain.
"Your mother wasn't your fault. If you want to blame someone, then blame me," he fired back firmly.
"I tried! No matter how I look at it, it's always my responsibility... Roman and his mother were afraid of me, I was the one who kidnapped my mother to begin with, I left her vulnerable!" Hope collapsed.
"This family needs you, we need you, Hope... And you're going to survive," he replied, urgency in his voice.
"— Why?! Why?! I spent my entire life trying to piece this family together, and all I've ever done is ruin everything! It was me who messed it up... So just let me go, please, because I'm tired. I'm so tired, and if there's one thing I want right now... it's my mom," she sobbed, on the verge of breaking down.
Aiii...
She brought a hand to her head, hit by an unbearable wave of pain. "Ahhh..."
Her breathing failed completely, her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed unconscious into his arms.
"HOPE!" Elijah caught her before she hit the ground and rushed her over to his brother Niklaus...
Back at the school, Ethan sat on the ground, leaning back against his now-customary "Ethan's tree," his gaze lost in the gray sky.
Everything's sorted with my contingency plan. If something goes wrong, at least the basics for my mom and sister won't be lacking... I think, anyway, he thought, trying to keep his growing anxiety in check.
Suddenly, a violent, sharp spike of pain shattered the silence in his chest.
"Arrg... What the hell is this? Arrhg, dammit... Did something happen to Hope?" he muttered, panicked.
Ethan sprang to his feet, still feeling the echo of that piercing agony, and bolted toward the place where his intuition told him they were. He didn't even need visual clues; it felt as though he were following an invisible thread before him—a trail that seemed to grow darker and pulse harder with every passing second.
Ahhh, dammit...
He reached the back of the school's old structure and saw the sight that paralyzed his world: Elijah, Klaus, and, stretched out motionless on the grass, Hope, looking lifeless.
"HOPEEE! WHAT HAPPENED HERE?!" Ethan demanded, his voice breaking into total despair as he sprinted toward them.
"She suddenly collapsed... We were in town," Elijah replied, urgency etched across his face.
"HOPE, WAKE UP!" Klaus was already kneeling, delivering firm, desperate chest compressions in an attempt to revive his daughter.
Ethan paced back and forth, pulling at his hair, consumed by an unbearable agony. He wanted to help, wanted to lift her up, but the fear that the Hollow would react or that his own newly awakened strength might hurt Hope kept him frozen inches away.
"Please... Please, sweetheart..." Klaus whispered, his voice cracking.
"Go get Caroline and tell her to bring the twins, Elijah!" Klaus ordered, never stopping his resuscitation efforts.
Klaus kept up the chest compressions, while thick, silent tears escaped his eyes—a sight no living being would ever imagine witnessing from the terrifying Original Hybrid.
A few steps away, Ethan's tears burned his face as well. Seeing that time was running out and that her heart could stop for good at any second, Ethan decided he had to risk everything. If he just stood there watching, that would be the end.
He extended his right hand, palm facing directly toward Hope's body. Even without touching her physically to avoid contagion, he focused all the energy coursing through his new veins. He felt stronger, more alive than ever; the primal aura of a werewolf pulsed with a magical, ancestral charge that seemed to overflow from his pores. If there was any way to channel that power to save her, he would do it.
Ethan released the energy. An invisible wave of heat began to flood Hope's body, acting like a thermal and spiritual shock to her soul.
The exact second the magic surged through her, Hope's eyes snapped wide open.
"Ummmff..." She woke with a violent start, gasping air into her lungs in a strangled wheeze, followed by a fit of coughing.
Klaus's face, moments ago the pure image of despair, transformed into a mixture of relief and disbelief.
"Dad... Ethan..." she stammered, weak and confused.
Klaus pulled her into a fierce, immediate embrace, holding her with every ounce of his soul.
"Hope... You're okay, my love, you're okay..." he murmured, trembling.
"Dad..." Hope wept uncontrollably, her fingers gripping his jacket until her knuckles turned white. "Dad, I don't want to die... I don't want to..."
"I know, my girl... I know..." Klaus said, his voice breaking as he cupped her face in his large hands and stroked her wet cheeks.
A few paces away, Ethan took a deep breath, quickly wiping his eyes with the back of his hand.
"Hope... you're not going to die," he said, with a tone of absolute firmness that cut through the air. "Don't worry. I'm going to put an end to all of this."
With red, tear-stained eyes, Hope slowly turned her face toward him. Ethan offered her a fragile, reassuring smile, though a few more tears escaped and tracked down his own face.
A short while later, Elijah finally returned, accompanied by Caroline. She spoke with them for a bit, analyzing Hope's condition and realizing that the situation, at least for the moment, had stabilized and pulled back from the brink of crisis.
Elijah walked slowly over to his niece and pulled her into a warm, comforting embrace. Hope returned the gesture, burying her face in his shoulder for a few seconds, relieved to feel the support of her family.
Ethan remained a bit further back, leaning against the structure with his arms crossed over his chest—his usual reserved posture, but with his sharp gaze locked onto Hope's every move.
They talked for a few more minutes there in the courtyard. Feeling the need for some air and a moment alone with the person who was about to risk everything for her, Hope looked at her father and Elijah:
"Dad... Uncle Elijah... I'd like to go out with Ethan for a bit. We need to talk alone."
"Ethan, let's take a walk?" she asked, her voice still carrying a trace of fragility, but resolute in her request.
Ethan frowned, uncrossing his arms and pushing off the wall. He assessed her condition—her face still pale and the Hollow's dark veins still latent beneath her skin.
"Hope, you aren't in any condition to go out right now," he argued, stepping forward with a protective tone. "It's too dangerous. Your body just suffered an absurd shock, and night is already falling..."
"I'm fine, seriously," she insisted, stepping closer to him and lightly grabbing his jacket sleeve in a silent gesture of someone who needed that more than air.
Without waiting for a definitive answer, Hope turned to her father and uncle, announcing with an unyielding determination that brooked no debate:
"Dad, Uncle Elijah... We're just stepping out for a quick second. Just some fresh air."
Klaus immediately furrowed his brow, his hyper-protective Hybrid instincts flaring to life. He opened his mouth to refuse, but seeing his daughter's pleading eyes and the way she looked at the boy, he sighed heavily, clenching his jaw before giving a short, serious nod.
Of course they were going to follow them.
It was obvious. While Klaus and Elijah pretended to allow the outing, both knew they would never let the tribrid wander alone through the streets or the woods in her condition, especially with a full moon crowning the night. Surveillance was guaranteed, every step monitored closely for her own safety, just in case the worst happened.
Unaware of the silent complicity between father and uncle, Hope turned to Ethan with a melancholy half-smile.
"Shall we?"
Ethan took a deep breath, knowing he couldn't refuse her anything, and nodded. The two turned their backs on the school and began walking out through the gates, as the first shadows of night began to paint the sky over Mystic Falls.
As they walked down the quiet sidewalks of Mystic Falls, Hope glanced periodically at Ethan, as if trying to etch every detail of his face into her memory, needing to make sure he was truly still there.
Ethan, for his part, kept a soft, calm smile on his lips, watching the scenery around them. Under the dim light of the old town streetlamps and the sky beginning to dye a deep navy blue, everything felt strangely alive to his new werewolf senses.
Upon reaching the central square, they noticed unusual activity. A small stage structure was being set up, and a few jazz band musicians were adjusting microphones, tuning double basses, and testing their horns, preparing for what looked like a night performance.
Ethan paused for a second, raising his eyebrows as he looked at the commotion in the square. He turned to Hope, curious:
"Hey, what's going on over there? Is there some kind of show or festival tonight?"
Hope blinked, taking a second to orient herself before remembering what Landon had mentioned earlier while they were talking outside the Mystic Grill.
"Oh... that's right," she muttered, shaking her head. "A friend I saw today told me about it earlier. Apparently, there's a blues and jazz night happening here in the square."
Ethan looked at the musicians, then shrugged, letting out a nasal chuckle:
"Cool... But I don't think that's quite my musical style, honestly."
Hope arched an eyebrow, crossing her arms with a mock air of judgment, though a small smile began to tug at the corners of her lips:
"Is that so? If you say so, what would your ideal musical style be, Mr. Ethan?"
Ethan turned his face toward her, playing along with a playful glint in his dark eyes:
"Oh, classic. Rock and roll through and through. Preferably something loud enough to drown out the rest of the world."
Hope let out a genuine laugh, the first in a long time that sounded light and devoid of the crushing weight on her chest. She looked him up and down with an ironic gaze:
"Ah, I figured as much. With that mysterious bad-boy persona of yours that practically screamed 'stay away from me' on the first day of class, rock fits the character perfectly."
Ethan feigned clutching his chest, shocked by the accusation, but immediately broke into a wide grin:
"Bad boy? Me? For goodness' sake, Hope, I am gentleness personified. That is a scandalous injustice against my immaculate reputation!"
"Pff!" Hope scoffed, rolling her eyes at his dramatics.
Ethan watched that smile for a few seconds. The soft light of the square's lampposts reflected in her eyes, and the spontaneous, lighthearted glow made it seem—if only for a second—as though the weight of the entire world had vanished from her shoulders.
"I have to say this again, though I think I mentioned it once before: did you know you look incredibly gorgeous when you smile like that?" Ethan murmured, his voice low, deep, and loaded with absolute sincerity.
A blush instantly rushed to Hope's cheeks, painting her face a vivid red. She looked down at the ground, visibly flustered, but with a shy sparkle in her eyes.
"Shut up, Ethan!" she scolded, trying to hide her embarrassment while pointing an accusatory finger at him. "Wait right over there by that pillar. I'll be right back, I'm going to get us some ice cream."
Ethan chuckled softly, shaking his head, and complied. He walked over to the stone structure of the square, leaning his back against the pillar and crossing his arms over his chest. With his athletic build, imposing posture, and the new vibrant, striking aura radiating from him since his transition, it was inevitable: almost everyone walking past gave him a second glance, curious or admiring.
A few minutes passed before Hope finally reappeared, carefully balancing what looked like a literal mini ice-cream boat, piled high with drizzles, toppings, and two spoons sticking out of the top.
Ethan's eyes widened at the sheer size of the dessert, and he let out an incredulous laugh:
"Whoa... Hope, I swear I'm not that hungry!"
"Just take it and shut up!" she ordered, faking a stern face as she shoved the boat toward him. "Do you have any idea how huge the line was for this? Don't you dare complain!"
Ethan raised both hands in surrender, laughing as he carefully took the boat:
"All right, all right! No complaints, boss."
The two began walking side by side toward a wooden bench tucked away under the shade of the trees at the edge of the square. Ethan glanced at her sideways, a playful, teasing glint in his eyes, and couldn't resist:
"You know, come to think of it... Starting tonight, I think I should start calling you 'little wolf,' don't you?"
The playful smile on Ethan's lips froze for a fraction of a second as he noticed the subtle shift in Hope's expression. The amused light in her eyes gave way to a bittersweet shadow, a distant echo of painful memories.
Hope stopped walking for a second, looking down at the mini ice-cream boat in Ethan's hands. The word "little wolf" had struck a sensitive chord in her chest.
"My mom used to call me that sometimes..." Hope murmured, her voice dropping low, almost like a whisper lost to the night wind. She swallowed hard, trying to clear the lump forming in her throat. "My dad... he called her little wolf all the time."
Ethan felt his chest tighten. He took a step toward her, closing the distance, his expression filled with genuine empathy. He said nothing, but the way he softened his shoulders and posture said everything: he was right there.
Realizing she had brought down the mood, Hope shook her head slightly, forcing a corner-smile to chase away the melancholy. She lifted her chin, resuming her defensive, fearless posture, and shrugged with a fake air of superiority:
"But... maybe you're right. Starting tonight, I'm going to be a real wolf, complete and unbound. So you'd better be very careful..." she narrowed her eyes, pointing an ice-cream spoon at him in a playful, threatening manner "...not to piss off a werewolf on the night of a full moon. Or you might end up as a snack."
Ethan let out a laugh, the tension dissolving into the air like smoke.
"Oh, I see. So her highness has fangs now and wants to scare me?" he teased, taking a few more steps toward the wooden bench. "Just so you know, I've got a trick up my sleeve too, Miss Little Wolf. Don't forget who the ancestral wolf is here."
"You're just full of yourself, that's what," Hope retorted, finally sitting down on the wooden bench and pulling the ice-cream boat closer. "Now get over here and share this ice cream with me before it melts."
The silence that settled between them was filled only by the muffled sounds of the square and the distant chords of the jazz band striking up their first notes. They ate the ice cream in silence for a while, each lost in the labyrinth of their own thoughts, knowing precisely what the relentless clock of that night meant.
Meanwhile, the crowd around them had grown considerably; couples, school students, and locals filled the sidewalks and outdoor tables.
As he brought a spoonful to his mouth, Ethan glanced up at the sky and noticed the shift in the moon's silhouette. The moon was beginning to rise majestically—round and silver, tearing through the dark mantle of the night with an almost unreal clarity. Ethan frowned, his jaw tightening by instinct as the first wave of tingling rippled down his spine. He turned to Hope, worry evident in his voice:
"Hope... Look up there. The moon is already full. Isn't it way too early for the peak?"
Hope followed his gaze for a second, evaluating the moon's position with the expertise of someone who understood supernatural cycles better than anyone. She let out a calm sigh and shook his head:
"Relax... It's fine. It just rose; the peak and full transition won't happen until later, closer to midnight. We still have time."
Ethan released the breath he'd been holding in his lungs, leaning back against the wooden bench and trying to force his body to relax, even though the blood in his veins was already vibrating at a feverish rhythm.
Silence returned, heavier this time, until Hope turned her face toward him. Her eyes, normally so steady, now carried a cutting vulnerability.
"Ethan..." Her voice came out shaky, nearly swallowed by the sound of the saxophone in the background. "Are you completely sure about what you're going to do tonight? There's still time... If you want to back out, there's still time."
Ethan slowly turned his gaze back to her. He uncrossed his legs, shifted on the bench, and draped both arms along the backrest, framing the space around her without directly touching her in a posture that was both protective and resolute.
"Yes, Hope. I'm sure," he replied, with a serenity that seemed to defy death itself.
Hope shook her head, tear-filled eyes shining under the moonlight. She leaned toward him, urgency overflowing in every syllable:
"You don't have to do this forcibly, Ethan! You don't understand... I know exactly how powerful this dark magic is, I had it inside of me! Your life is in real danger, you could actually die if you absorb the Hollow! Why are you throwing your life away like this?"
Ethan swallowed hard, feeling his throat go dry for a second. A genuine blush, mixed with the shyness and vulnerability of exposing what he kept locked in his chest, painted his face. It was hard to say those words out loud, without filters or defenses, but he knew he couldn't hide the truth from her. Not now, not ever.
He dropped his gaze to the paved square for a brief instant before meeting her eyes again, his irises flashing an undeniable, deep glowing green beneath the moonlight.
"Because I love you, Hope..." he confessed, his voice low, but steady enough to cut through any ambient noise. "I couldn't live in a world where you don't exist. That's why I do what I do. If something happens to me... then so be it. It was my destiny."
The words hung heavy in the space between them. Hope froze, feeling her heart stop for a second before racing wildly against her ribs. The tears she'd been holding back finally overflowed, sliding silently down her cheeks as the crushing weight of that absolute love crashed over her with overwhelming force.
Tears still wet Hope's face, but a small, soft smile broke across her lips at the confession. Refusing to let the weight of those words suffocate her, she reached out, firmly wrapped her fingers around Ethan's warm hand, and stood up from the bench in one swift motion.
"Come with me," she said, giving him a gentle tug.
"Wait, Hope, what are you doing?" Ethan protested, startled as he was guided toward the small clearing in the square where a few couples were dancing to the soft jazz. "You know you can't touch me like this... If the Hollow's magic reacts, or if I let go of you and the energy fluctuates, it'll be worse!"
Hope stopped right in front of him, lifted her chin, and stared at him with stubborn serenity, her eyes gleaming in the dim light.
"Shut up and dance with me, Ethan," she commanded in a bossy whisper that brooked no argument.
Ethan hesitated for a second, his protective instincts screaming in his mind about the risks of that closeness. But seeing the vulnerability and hope mixed in her gaze, all his resistance crumbled. He yielded with a defeated sigh.
"Fine... You're the boss, little wolf."
He stepped forward, carefully wrapping his arm around her waist, locking his firm hand in place while his other hand gently held hers. Hope took a synchronized step, closing the distance until their bodies fit together perfectly.
With a sigh of relief, she closed her eyes and rested her head directly against Ethan's broad chest. There, listening to the steady, strong rhythm of that heart beating in a new, ancestral, and accelerated tempo, the world around them seemed to melt away.
The noise of the square, the lights, the looming full moon, and even the deadly shadow of the Hollow evaporated, eclipsed by the warmth of that embrace.
Ethan, who minutes before had feared losing control, forgot every rule. He no longer cared about the risks, the magic, or what came after. With ragged breathing, he tightened his grip slightly on her waist, pulling her closer, and let his steps follow the slow, dragging tempo of the background music.
The saxophone wept long, melancholic notes into the night, soundtracking their dance in the center of the square.
"I'm scared, Ethan..." Hope murmured against the fabric of his shirt, her voice unrecognizable in its fragility. "Scared of losing you."
Ethan stopped his steps for a fraction of a second, swaying her gently to the rhythm of the melody. He raised his free hand, bringing his fingers to her chin to tilt it up with extreme delicacy. His green eyes locked onto her amber ones, filled with infinite devotion.
"Look at me," he requested, his voice husky and impossibly tender. "You aren't going to lose me. I'm right here. And I'm staying until the very last second."
The intensity of that look disarmed what remained of Hope's defenses. She sighed, her chest rising and falling against his, and in an impulse driven by everything they had been holding back in their hearts, she closed the remaining gap herself.
"Bend down a little," she told him.
He did, and she brought her face close to his...
Hope's lips brushed against Ethan's with a desperate softness—a kiss loaded with promises, fear, pain, and a love potent enough to destabilize anyone.
Ethan froze for a thousandth of a second before completely giving in, deepening the kiss with a contained passion that made both of their stomachs flip. He pulled her tighter, as if trying to fuse their bodies into one and shield her from the world. Time seemed to stand still around them, turning that single second of eternity into the most real and beautiful thing either of them had ever lived.
When they finally pulled apart, breathless and flushed, Hope offered a small smile, resting her forehead against his as the moon continued its sovereign ascent in the sky, marking the beginning of the end.
A few meters away, hidden by the shadows of the trees and the facade of an old café, three pairs of eyes had tracked every second of the scene.
Elijah, his hands crossed elegantly behind his back, watched the young couple dance in the square with an almost contemplative expression. Beside him, the atmosphere was the exact opposite. Klaus radiated a suffocating heat; the veins in his neck bulged, his eyes blazed with the predatory yellow of an Original, and his fists were clenched so tightly his knuckles popped. He looked a second away from charging over and ripping the boy away.
With ironic calm, Elijah raised a hand and gave three light, measured pats to his younger brother's shoulder, like someone trying to calm a beast about to attack.
"Control yourself, Niklaus," Elijah murmured, a playful half-smile on his lips. "Let the youths enjoy their final moments of peace. They deserve it."
Klaus growled lowly, flashing his fangs for a fleeting instant, but reined in his impulse, contenting himself with glaring daggers at Ethan from afar.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the square near the edge of the sidewalk, another silhouette watched the scene with a sinking heart. Landon, who had decided to take a walk after his shift at the Mystic Grill to clear his head, never imagined he would find Hope there at that hour—after all, she had sworn she had unavoidable plans.
But there she was. Dancing in the middle of the square. And not with just anyone.
Landon stopped dead in his tracks. His eyes took in the closeness, the intimacy with which they looked at each other, and finally, the kiss that stopped the world for both of them. A painful knot of rejection and jealousy formed in his throat. He clenched his fists so tightly his palms began to ache, anger and frustration burning silently in his chest.
With a locked jaw and eyes stinging with contained tears, Landon abruptly turned his back, shoved his hands into his jacket pockets, and vanished into the darkness of the night, deciding to leave before he saw any more.