Legacies: The Mikaelson twins

6. The Weight of Trust

After a night spent indulging in wine and blood with their uncles and aunties, Hope and Alec made their way upstairs to the rooms they had shared in their childhood. The weight of the evening lingered in the air, an unspoken tension between them. Both knew they needed rest, for tomorrow.

Though the new recruits showed no obvious signs of aggression, Hope had learned long ago not to underestimate anyone—especially when the stakes were this high. Alaric had taken his crossbow and wolfsbane, a move that only deepened Hope's suspicions about the new wolf. He wouldn't be an easy adversary. But Hope wasn't worried. With Alec by her side, even the strongest foes wouldn't stand a chance. Together, they were a force.

Alec lay awake long after the house had fallen silent. It wasn't the battle he was preparing for that kept him up, but the lingering mystery surrounding Aunt Freya's request. Why had she needed their blood? As a Mikaelson, Freya had no shortage of power, so Alec couldn't help but wonder whether the request was truly for their protection—or if something more complicated was at play. Was it really just to help track down her siblings, or was there something darker, more insidious at work? The questions gnawed at him, pulling him deeper into thought, until sleep finally claimed him.

By 7:00 AM, the twins had managed to get some rest, waking just in time to shower and pack before Alaric stirred. They slipped quietly downstairs, only to find that Alaric was already waiting for them. After brief goodbyes with their family, Hope and Alec left, the weight of their task heavy on their shoulders.

Hope settled into the backseat, while Alec took the front. The drive stretched on for an hour and a half, the landscape blurring past in silence. Alaric finally slowed the car and came to a stop, his eyes scanning the map in his hands.

"He should be somewhere around here," Alaric muttered, his voice low. "Bonnie only gave me the city and the quarter, so we'll have to keep our eyes peeled."

Hope rolled her eyes, her patience thinning. "You do realize Freya could've given us an exact location, right?" she said, leaning forward slightly. Her voice was cool, firm. "She's stronger than Bonnie. Hell, Alec and I are stronger than Bonnie. She gets nosebleeds after using black magic, but we don't. We're strong enough for it."

Alaric shot them a glance through the rearview mirror, his face unreadable. "Maybe Freya's stronger, but I don't trust your family. I trust Bonnie. No offense."

Hope's eyes narrowed, and Alec stiffened at the implication. "None taken," Hope responded flatly, her tone sharp with annoyance.

They wandered through the quarter for nearly two hours, each minute stretching longer than the last, as if the city itself conspired to test their patience. The frustration between them grew, thickening with every step they took.

"For God's sake, how much longer are we going to keep looking?" Alec's voice shattered the silence, sharp and strained, the tension in his words impossible to ignore. "Maybe he doesn't even want to come with us. Are you really going to force him?"

Alaric exhaled a long, heavy sigh, his frustration mirroring Alec's. "Of course not," he said, his tone dry, though he tried to mask the underlying annoyance. "I'll convince him, like any decent person would."

Hope shot Alec a sideways glance, the weight of their situation settling in more with every passing moment. This wasn't just a search for someone—it was a test. And what they were really after was much bigger than the person they were hunting.

"Why do you have your crossbow with you, then?" Hope's voice cut through the air, her sharp gaze fixed on Alec.

"Better safe than sorry," Alec responded with a shrug, though his eyes remained steady, a quiet confidence beneath the surface.