IN WHICH - The last thing that Hope Mikaelson expected when she came out of Malivore was to still be alive, the second last thing she expected was to be disowned by most of her living family, and the final last thing she expected was some ancient be...
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THIRD PERSON POV
CHAPTER 10
The soft rustling of the trees and the distant moaning of walkers faded into the background as Hope sat beside the fire, her hands cradling a cup of water. She didn't feel the need to look at Daryl or Sophia, though she knew their eyes were on her, waiting for an explanation. She'd told them she could try, that there might be a way, but now the truth had to come out.
She had to explain.
"I'm not like you," Hope began, her voice low but steady as she stared into the flames. "I'm not even from this world."
Sophia shifted beside her, her eyes wide with curiosity, but the weight of the words wasn't lost on her. Daryl remained silent, but his sharp eyes never left Hope.
Hope's fingers traced the edge of her cup, her thoughts far away for a moment before she continued. "I'm what's called a tribrid—a hybrid between a witch, a vampire, and a werewolf. But I haven't fully activated my vampire side. Not yet. You see, my blood... it's powerful. It can heal, but it's not just because of my magic. It's the blood of all three species working together. I used it to save Merle... I had to turn him into a vampire to save his life when he was almost dying." She stopped for a moment, remembering the chaos of that night, the decision that still haunted her.
Daryl shifted, clearly processing her words, but he didn't interrupt.
"I'm from a different universe," Hope continued, her voice soft. "One where... things are different. You wouldn't believe it if I told you, but I'm here because... well, because of fate, I guess. I wasn't supposed to end up in this world. I wasn't supposed to be part of this fight, but here I am. And I can't change that."
Sophia, who had been listening intently, spoke up, her voice barely above a whisper. "So you can heal people... like with your blood?"
Hope nodded slowly, glancing at her. "Yes. But it's not as simple as just using it to heal someone. It doesn't work like that. It's a part of me, a connection between my species, and it takes a toll on me every time I use it. When I used my magic to heal Carl, Pedro, and Daryl, it nearly drained me. It's not something I can just do whenever. And it won't work with a bite like yours, Sophia. My magic itself is too volatile, it is like an explosion inside of me, and the more I use it the more it wants to just explode out of me."
Sophia's face fell, the hope she'd briefly clung to flickering and then dimming in the growing darkness of the evening.
"Your bite's different," Hope explained softly, her voice full of regret. "I can't heal that. Not with magic, not with my blood. The infection spreads too fast. There's nothing I can do to stop it."
Daryl's eyes narrowed, his face hardening at the pain in Sophia's expression, but Hope held his gaze. She knew this was the hardest part. This was where hope began to slip away, where the line between saving someone and letting them go became blurred.
