[2] Darkest Hour • The Originals ✓

xx.

chapter twenty.

Rhea found Matthias in the backyard, after getting off the phone with Kol and explaining what happened, heneeded a moment to himself. He was sitting on the ground and staring off into the distance as if he had nothing but the world on his shoulders. She supposed that maybe he did, after all he was trying to make sure that everything goes according to plan but felt as if no one was listening to him at the same time.

"Klaus wants you to run with Rebekah." Matthias admitted to her. "He fears Dahlia and once Rebekah has hopped into a body, she is to come and take Hope before leaving again."

"And you do not want me to?" She asked him with a frown.

Matthias sighed and Rhea sat beside him, but he only pulled her into his arms so that she was situated in front of him instead with his legs on either side of her and his arms wrapped around her waist. "I want you safe, I want you away from harm, but I would never ask you to run."

"For our child though, do you believe that I should?" She asked him softly.

Matthias rested his head against her shoulder. "I want you to do what you believe is the right thing. I do not want you out of sight or reach, but I can't be selfish."

"You're allowed to be selfish." Rhea told him. "Everyone is, it just depends on the selfish want and whether the person will want to agree."

"So, if I asked you to stay by my side, to not run from my enemies like Nik wishes to do with Hope, would that be too much?" He asked softly with furrowed brows.

Rhea smiled and leaned into him. "You and I both know that I can handle myself. I'm a heretic after all and I will not let anything happen to our baby."

"Neither will I." He promised her.

"Then all that's left is to get the car ready." She told him and Matthias laughed. "I overheard their plan, Elijah and Hayley will stay behind while Klaus and Rebekah head back to New Orleans."

"Yes, Katherine will stay behind for Elijah." Matthias added in.

"And Nadia will most likely stay unless she chooses to come." Rhea finished.

"How did you meet Nadia?" Matthias asked her softly.

A smile blossomed onto Rhea's face. "Funny story actually, she was trying to kill me."

"What?!"

"I was looking for Katherine and I heard that she knew the original family that was with her." Nadia spoke up from behind them with a sheepish smile on her face. "She wasn't talking."

Rhea laughed and nodded her head. "I wasn't going to betray Matthias' trust like that until you told me who you were, and I realized we could help one another."

"What do you mean?" Matthias asked her.

Rhea sighed, "Since becoming pregnant, I can't preform magic." She confessed and Matthias got worried. "I mean, it just drains me a lot more than it used to before which definitely sucks and so with Nadia around, I realized that it would help with protecting me and our child." She explained.

"Maybe they're a siphon as well and that's why it drains you." Matthias explained.

"Maybe." Rhea agreed.

"We didn't get to properly meet." Nadia spoke up again. "I'm Nadia Petrova."

"Matthias Mikaelson, but you already knew that." Matthias smiled at her. "So that would make you my niece."

Nadia's eyes widened. "Niece?"

"Katherine is like a sister to me and Klaus, while Klaus may not show it often, he does love her and she's with Elijah so." Matthias shrugged. "Welcome to the family, darling."

Nadia smiled at that and sat down beside the couple. "It's weird to think about having a family when I've searched for my mother for so long."

"Well, you found me." Katherine spoke up as she joined them. "And I'm never letting you go." She promised and Nadia felt at peace for the first time in 500 years.

Katherine sat beside her daughter and the four just talked about anything and everything. It was a range of questions about Nadia and Rhea until Rhea had fallen asleep in Matthias' arms that he bid the two goodbye before taking her inside.

"I don't want you to get your hopes up Nadia." Katherine suddenly spoke and Nadia looked at her. "I'm terrible with letting people in, I'm even worse with words. I lie, I manipulate, and I murder, and I have no idea how to be a mother." She confessed. "I want to try and make up the time we have, right now we're in a war zone though and I may do things and say things that make you up-"

"I understand." Nadia cut her off. "I know what you've done, I've heard the stories, and I just want to know you." She explained to her mother. "That means I have to see parts of you that you don't want me to see and that's okay. I know not to paint a picture in my head of you, not to hope that you'll be a doting mother, I just want to know you."

Katherine smiled softly at Nadia, "Then I'll be glad to tell you whatever you want to know."

Inside, Matthias had set Rhea down on the bed when she woke up and gave him a sleepy smile. "Hi."

"Enjoy your nap?" He asked her with a chuckle.

"Yes, I haven't been able to sleep for ages now." She laughed but Matthias was concerned. "I can never get comfortable and usually Nadia has to cuddle with me before I'm out like a light but even then it's only for a few hours." She explained.

"So basically, what I used to do." He asked her and Rhea nodded. "Move over." Rhea complied and Matthias climbed into the bed after kicking off his shoes. "We can spare an hour or two."

Rhea hummed and smiled softly as she rested her head on Matthias' chest. Matthias pulled her close and placed a chaste kiss to the top of her head before he heard her breathing even out and she was fast asleep.

Matthias looked down at her and felt his chest fill with dread and fear, he didn't want anything to happen to her. He didn't believe that he would survive losing her and he prayed that he wouldn't have to find out.