𝕊𝕖𝕣𝕖𝕟𝕕𝕚𝕡𝕚𝕥𝕪 ~ 𝕂𝕒𝕚 ℙ𝕒𝕣𝕜𝕖𝕣

𝔽𝕠𝕦𝕣𝕥𝕪 𝕊𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕟

The girls were helping Hope get ready whereas I was just waiting for them so that we could leave. I looked down at the pictures on my dresser and picked one up of Hayley and I. I smiled as I looked at it, it was from my wedding, the first time that I met Hayley properly. She was laughing at something I had said, I don't really remember what, the both of us being slightly drunk, and I was kissing her cheek, that day was so amazing, I had never felt happier than I did then, Hayley and I had bonded instantly, it had felt like we had been friends for years.

"Mom we're ready." Kaiara tells me, I put the picture back down, wipe my eyes and nod, "alright let's go."

We travel to New Orleans in silence and once we got there, Freya met us, I decided that Hope should have some alone time with her aunty and so I took the girls for breakfast even though none of us were in the mood to eat. "Mom?" I looked up from my plate, "yes honey?" I ask Kaira who stops picking at her food, "did Roman actually help kill aunt Hayley?" Kaiara asks making Arabella also look up, "yes, but he didn't know that was his mother's plan." I tell them watching the anger make it's way to Arabella's face. "I'm going to kill him." She hisses banging her utensils onto the table. "Arabella, I know that you're mad but violence isn't the answer, you can't kill him." I explain watching her scoff. "He deserves it, if it wasn't for him aunt Hayley would still be here, so I'm going to make him suffer." She says before storming out.

"I'll talk to her." Kaiara tells me quickly following after her sister. I sigh and drop my head into my hands, dealing with loss was hard and everybody dealt with it in different ways, it was also hard to comfort others when you were trying to comfort yourself.

I make my way outside to find the two of them sat on the sidewalk, crying in each other's arms. I sit between them and wrap my arms around both, the two leaning into me, "Mom why does it hurt so much?" Arabella asks me as she sobs, "losing someone close to you always hurts." I tell her giving her a kiss on the head, "when does it stop hurting?" Kaiara whispers, "I don't know baby, it's different for everyone." I tell her, "do you girls remember what I told you when your uncle Tyler died?" I ask them, Arabella shakes her head but Kaiara nods, "you said death was a special sleep, that it was peaceful." She murmurs, and I nod, "your aunt Hayley, is just sleeping peacefully." I tell them, "and I know that it hurts but we just have to go on with our lives and honour your aunt Hayley's memory." I tell them.

"I have an idea, why don't you both say something's you loved about Hayley, it might make you feel better." I suggest, "um I used to love how she would braid our hair for us because you didn't know how to." Kaiara starts smiling to herself at the memory, "or how she'd save us from your punishments if we ever got caught doing something we shouldn't have been doing." Arabella hums, "or how when we were kids she'd secretly give us candy when you had told us no." The three of us sit there for a while and just share memories of Hayley that made us smile.

***

"This is all wrong. She didn't even know all these people." Hope says to Freya panicked as she looked at the crowd that had gathered for her mother, "Your mom made a mark on this city. Everyone's here to honor her." Freya tells her, "But where are all of her friends?" Hope questions, "I don't know where the others are but we're here and they're probably on their way." I assure Hope as we join her and Freya. She smiles seeming a bit relived but still panicked, "where's my dad?" She asks, "he'll be here soon, astral projection is pretty difficult, so it may take a second." She nods but seems unconvinced.

We walk on after the casket only for two black vans to pull up in front of Hope, Josh moves forward to check it out, pulling away the tarp to reveal some vampires, the night walker nazis. They claimed they weren't leaving without Elijah and his girlfriend or whatever. Klaus must've moved them somewhere since two Mikaelsons couldn't be in the same place at the same time.

Freya and I try and usher Hope with us but she refuses to leave, instead she pushes us all to the side with magic and then sets one of the vans on fire, she turns to give the other van the same fate when the man sat there loaded his gun and took a shot at Hope, luckily she was vamp sped out of the way and they left.

***

Back at the compound I heard shouting and crying from Hopes room and so I entered even though I had wanted to give her space. "Aunty Thea," she sobs wrapping her arms around me, I frown at all the hurt she was going through, "I just had an argument with my dad, I want him to be here for me." She cries, I rub her back, "I know you do honey I know, and he wants to be here for you." I assure her knowing now was not the time to explain why he couldn't, she knew that already but she was a child who was hurt and angry and all she wanted was her dad. I understood how she felt, when I lost my parents I felt like dying, I didn't know how I could've gone on, I felt dead to the world, until I met Kol he brought me back to life.

Everyone dealt differently though, my twin sister found herself able to go on and try and make things normal again and my younger brother turned to drugs. Hope was strong, way stronger than I was at that age and so I wasn't too worried about her, I knew that she was going to come out of this ok.

I just sit with her for a while, her wrapped up in my arms, like a child wanting to hide from the world, "aunty Thea?" She hums after a while her voice weak, "yes honey?" I answer as she pulls herself from my embrace, "I love you and am thankful for you sitting here with me but do you think you-" I nod, "of course, if you need me just let me know." I tell her before giving her a kiss on the head and leaving, I knew that she needed some alone time.

Someone that I knew did not need to be alone right now however was her father, he never dealt with things the best when he was alone and now that the three people who calmed his best couldn't be with him, he definitely did not need to be alone.

I find him in the bayou carving Hayley's name into a tree, as was the wolves tradition, I hang back for a second and just let him have his moment of mourning until he starts to cry, then I move forwards and wrap my arms around him.

He leans into me and cries and cries making my heart hurt for him. "I don't know what to do Thea?" He cries to me as I try and soothe him. "It's ok Klaus, everything will be ok." I assure him. "I want to be there for her, but how can I when the closer I get to her brings her to death." He says making me frown, "we'll work it out, we always do."

***

Later in the evening we all make it to the bayou for Hayley's werewolf send off, well all of us except for Klaus for obvious reasons.

Keelin had flown out and so after a sweet reunion between Freya and Keelin the ceremony started.

"People will forget the things you said, forget the things you did, but no one ever forgets the way you made them feel." Freya starts off, "Hayley Marshall... made me feel like I was part of a family. And when the realities of this life became too much to bear, we shouldered them together. We laughed, we cried. When I failed, she lifted me up. And when I succeeded, she danced by my side." I smile as a tear escapes my eye think of the times Hayley and I shared, like when Alaric and Caroline had agreed to let me teach at the school, I was with Hayley and she had jumped out of her seat and pulled me up with her and started dancing. "And she did that for all of us."

"No one will ever be able to replace her, or heal the pain we feel at her loss." My girls wrap their arms around me, "But we can honor her with our actions and with our words.We can love each other, the way she would've wanted us to love." I kiss the top of the girls heads as I hear a sniffle. "Good-bye, Mom." Hope murmurs as we watch the fire light and sail softly across the water.

Klaus then emerges and takes Hope's hand in his, we all stand there for a moment watching the beautiful father daughter moment until the thunder rolls and we all decide to leave not only to give them the moment alone but also away from any potential risk due to the two of them being in such close proximity.