Blue ▹ The Originals [2]

CHAPTER FORTY

CHAPTER FORTY
FAMILY OF MONSTERS

"Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody."

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

     When Henrik arrived at his old home, utterly exhausted and a headache eating away at his temples, the first thing he noticed was that it was eerily quiet. He had expected to come home to nothing less than chaos. Klaus and Kol going on rampages, and Rebekah destroying furniture all around the house. Instead, he was welcomed with silence. Perhaps they were wreaking havoc somewhere else, so he walked through the compound slowly, taking it all in. It felt odd coming back to his home. It didn't feel like his home anymore. When he thought of home, he thought of silk sheets and River Seine and Francis. Compared to the comfort Paris offered, New Orleans seemed much too dark and dangerous.

He glanced into a random study as he wandered through the compound, hoping to find Freya somewhere in the home. Out of all his siblings, she would be the one to mourn in silence. Instead of seeing Freya, however, all he saw was a black coffin, the lid closed. Fresh flowers were sitting on the table beside it. Henrik came to an abrupt halt, breath hitching in his throat. He stared with wide eyes, feeling like someone had punched him through the chest, then blinked his eyes rapidly to keep tears at bay. Pulling his eyes away from the casket, he continued walking until he reached the courtyard. He came to a stop when he noticed a large circle in the middle of the floor. Hope and Hayley were both in the middle of it, and Freya was on the outside, chanting with her head bowed. As he stepped closer, he saw that her blue pendant was in front of her. It was shattered into pieces.

Knowing better than to interrupt a witch when she was in the middle of a spell, especially one that looked so delicate and unpredictable, Henrik took the opportunity to set his duffel bag on the bottom step of the stairs nearby before sinking down. He buried his face in his hands, then moved them up so he could dig the heels of his palms into his eyes. They felt dry and swollen. He had thought he'd gotten all his tears out by that point, but they were still coming at random intervals, and he didn't know how to stop them. Seeing Elijah's coffin certainly hadn't helped.

He was rubbing his eyes with his fingers again when he heard a gasp. Dropping his hands, he looked up, watching with mild interest as Hope shot up from her spot on the floor. Freya had stopped chanting, and she rushed to check over Hope. Hayley was still unconscious. Henrik pulled himself up using the staircase banner. His boots clunking against the concrete floor made both of them jump. Neither had noticed his presence until then. It took Hope a moment to recognize him, but when she did, a bright smile stretched across her face.

"Henrik!" she exclaimed, shooting forward to wrap her arms around his waist. Managing to get out a weak chuckle, he hugged her back briefly, then ruffled her hair as she pulled away. Freya was there to take her place immediately. Their hug lasted longer, only because they were both seeking comfort from someone who was feeling a similar type of grief.

"Not that I'm not happy to see you," Freya said as she pulled away from him, "but you shouldn't be here. It's not safe. The Hollow will want your power for herself." Henrik grimaced.

"I know that," he said. "I just..."

"You felt him." Henrik nodded, then decided to change the subject, eyes going to the circle of salt still on the floor, to Hayley still unconscious inside of it. Hope was letting them have their moment, peering down at the pendant with a small frown.

"Quite a spell this is," Henrik noted, circling around Freya to peer down at the pendant as well. He glanced at Freya when she stopped at his side. "What were you doing?"