The years passed. The aging spell was working normally. My two children, Harry and Iris, were already five years old, Elena was twelve and Jeremy ten.
Miranda never really came back, and the children ended up in our care.
Amara had been living with us for more than four years as the housekeeper. As Elena grew older, one day she looked at Amara.
"Uncle Nik… why does Amara look so much like me?" Elena asked, her eyes full of fear and confusion.
Honestly, I didn't want to, but Jenna, Amara and I sat down with Elena and talked, explaining how adoption worked.
Elena was a smart girl and she understood. She asked if Amara was her mother, and we confirmed she was not.
We only said Amara was something like her biological mother's sister — a lie we made up, that she had come to work for us after finding out her sister had given a baby up for adoption.
We tried to put it as gently as we could, so Elena wouldn't feel abandoned or grow resentful.
Life went on. It was quiet, but wonderful.
Five days later
"Daddy, daddy!" Iris ran over and hugged me. "Look, daddy!"
She was holding a snake in her hand. I gasped — it was a jararaca pit viper. I stared at it, and the snake trembled.
"Daddy, stop, you're scaring her." Iris stroked its head as it coiled around her wrist. "Don't scare her, she's nice."
Wait, if I remembered right, Harry was born with the ability to speak to snakes in the films… but that came from Voldemort's Horcrux. Iris was never touched by the killing curse — she shouldn't have that power.
I knelt down so my eyes were level with hers.
"Sweetheart, can you talk to this snake?" I asked, brushing her little cheek.
"Yes, daddy!" She beamed, showing me the snake wrapped tighter around her arm. "All animals talk to me. They're a little boring, but it's fun."
Oh… so she can speak to animals in general. Well, Harry and she are the first‑born children of an Original vampire… powers like these might be possible.
The problem is I had Sheila seal their magic. It shouldn't be showing up this early.
Wait… my chest tightened. I looked at her calmly.
"What do the animals say about daddy?" I asked, holding my breath. Damn it, if they told her something they shouldn't have, I might wipe out an entire species.
She stared back with wide round eyes and smiled, holding out her arms for me to pick her up.
"They're afraid of you, daddy. They say you're the most powerful thing alive, and they call me the most protected princess."
Smart animals. They just saved themselves.
I lifted her into my arms and nuzzled her cheek.
"That's right. You're the most protected princess in the world. I'll keep you safe forever."
"Yesss!" She laughed and nuzzled me back.
Then I paused.
"Does your brother talk to animals too?"
"Stupid Harry only talks to snakes!" Iris shouted, throwing her little arms up. "I'm better!"
"Hey, don't call your brother names." I gave her a gentle warning. "You two must respect each other, understand?"
"Sorry, daddy," she whimpered.
"It's okay, my love. Just don't do it again." I kissed her cheek and let her go play — but not before giving the snake a sharp look.
"Daddy stop, you're scaring her again," Iris complained.
Three more years went by
"Uncle Nik!" Jeremy ran up and stopped in front of me. He was thirteen now. "Can I go out with some friends?"
"Where are you going, and who are you going with?" I asked, looking straight into his eyes.
"Marco, Lívia and Vicky," Jeremy answered timidly.
I glanced aside and saw Elena hiding behind the door, shaking her head desperately and making a "no" gesture with her fingers.
"As far as I know, Vicky's a repeat student and older," I said. "Besides, your grades have been dropping, haven't they? So you're not going — and don't think you can go ask Jenna either."
"But…" He tried to argue, but I cut him off.
"Or would you rather be allowed out and lose your monthly allowance?" I held his gaze so he'd know I wasn't bluffing. "Choose quickly."
"I get it," he mumbled, lowered his head and walked away.
After he left, I looked into the distance.
"Elena?" I called. She hurried out from behind the door.
"Good morning, Uncle Nik." She ran to hug me and I hugged her back.
"So… are those friends of your brother really that much trouble?" I asked. I kept track of their social lives, but still tried to give them some privacy.
"Yes. Vicky smokes marijuana," Elena said, meeting my eyes. "The others are going along with it, but she's not bad, Uncle. Apparently she has to take care of Matt and she's under a lot of pressure."
"That's no excuse to drag everyone else into it," I said, stroking her hair.
She was fifteen now, right in the middle of adolescence. I had blocked most of the doppelgänger's natural instincts to manipulate and cause chaos — though she was still sharp and knew very well how to get what she wanted.
At least I'd made sure she wouldn't end up like the Elena from the series, ready to sacrifice herself and everyone around her without meaning to.
"Now… what else did you want to tell me?" I asked. Her body tensed and she looked away.
"Well… I broke up with Matt," she said shyly, then found the courage to look at me. "Look, Uncle, I know you liked him…"
"Thank God," I almost blurted out in relief. "I couldn't stand that boy in this house anymore — I mean, I'm sorry it happened. What made you end it?"
I'd only let her date him because I knew it wouldn't last, but she needed to learn the hard way, even if it hurt me.
"He never admitted when he was wrong," Elena began. "I like him, but he won't listen to my side. He's spoiled because Vicky always gave him everything. Now she's deep into drugs, he's angry at her, and he won't listen to me. I don't want someone who won't hear me out for the rest of my life."
"I can't say much, but I think this shock might make him see his mistake," I said, brushing her cheek. "You and his sister were always so understanding with him. Their mother left them, and you've had your own loss — you were just lucky Jenna and I could provide for you. His sister gave him everything without saying no. If he doesn't learn from this rejection now, he never will."
"Now go get the car keys," I said with a dry laugh. "Go pick up your brother… because any minute now he's going to call me begging for a ride home, sorry for sneaking out and disobeying me. I didn't raise him to hang around people using drugs."
"Wait!" Elena's eyes widened. "He left already?"
"Yes," I replied with a laugh. "He's still angry. He lost his father, his mother abandoned you two. Amara is your blood relative, but Jeremy only has Jenna, who works more than I'd like, and me — no blood tie, even though I think of you both as my own, and he sees me that way too."
Soon my phone rang. I picked up and heard Jeremy's voice.
"Uncle Nik, come get me," he sobbed, terrified.
"Jeremy?" I said calmly. "Where are you, what happened?"
"I'm on the road with Vicky. There's something in the woods with red eyes. It attacked her," Jeremy cried. "She's bleeding really bad… please help me."
Damn it — an alpha. What kind of stupid alpha would come into this town? This whole place reeks of vampires.
"Uncle —" Elena tried to speak, but I made up my mind fast.
"Amara!" I shouted. She came running. "Stay with Elena. I've got to handle something."
Time slowed and I ran.
Deep in the woods
The alpha was panicking. He'd just attacked a group of humans, and one boy had stepped forward to save the girl.
He bit her. He was going to finish her off — he didn't want a half‑blood beta in his pack.
But to his shock, when he caught the boy's scent, every instinct screamed at him to run as far as he could.
The boy wasn't powerful, definitely human — but his skin carried the smell of death.
It was as if he lived under the same roof as the reaper himself. Only vampires gave off that scent.
The alpha had met some before: some weak enough to be pathetic, others terrifying enough to kill him with one gesture.
But none reeked of death this strongly. This couldn't be a vampire.
The alpha fled through the trees, a blur moving so fast it made a rushing sound.
It wasn't enough. Something slammed hard into his ribs, sending him flying through the forest, smashing branches everywhere.
When he finally rolled to a stop, he looked down and gasped, tears streaming down his face.
The lower half of his body was gone — only his torso remained, his insides exposed. Slowly his form shifted back to human.
All he could see was a silhouette walking toward him.
"You're lucky you didn't hurt my son," the man said. The alpha didn't even have the strength to lift his head, only his legs came into view. "If you had, your death wouldn't have been this quick."
Niklaus's point of view
I reached the road in less than a minute. Jeremy was unhurt, holding the girl.
Using my senses I tracked the alpha, hearing his footsteps far away, moving fast.
His speed matched that of a two‑hundred‑year‑old vampire. I ran after him.
It took less than ten seconds to catch up. The wolf looked like something from mythology, similar to the Lycans from Underworld but more compact and human‑shaped.
I used my power again and time froze.
I accelerated to his side and kicked hard into his ribs.
His body split in two: the upper half flew away while the lower half slammed into the ground.
Once I was sure he was dead — unlike vampires, werewolves aren't immortal, so it was over — a sudden surge of energy rushed through me, then vanished completely.
Ah… I remembered. The alpha's power. If Niklaus's memories were right, the same thing happened the first time he killed one.
He hunted hundreds, even thousands of alphas after that, trying to break his curse with brute force. It never worked, and eventually he gave up. All those kills helped wipe out many pure‑blooded werewolf lines.
Putting that aside… what do I do now? I rushed out in a panic and Elena saw me. Either I tell the truth, or I erase their memories. I'll try telling them first — if that backfires, I'll use the other option.