The Originals One-Shots

Midnight Chats

 Finn Mikaelson couldn't sleep that night. Everything had gone quiet in the compound a while before, so he'd assumed everyone had gone to bed. But even with the quiet, he still couldn't fall asleep.

 He sighed, sat up, and looked at the clock. It was nearly midnight. He sighed again, and got out of bed. 

 He made his way down the creaking stairs as quietly as possible. He could see a light on in the kitchen, and wondered who else was up. Or perhaps someone had just left a light on. But when he went into the kitchen, it was Freya. She was sitting at the table with a bowl of cereal, scrolling through something on her phone.

 "What are you doing up?" Finn asked.

 She smiled and groaned. "Okay, you caught me. I'm secretly a night owl. Everyone is too busy with their own problems to notice my sleeping pattern isn't exactly normal. But what are you doing up?"

 "I couldn't sleep," Finn answered. "Perhaps I'm also a 'night owl', as you put it."

 "Well, sit down," Freya said. "What's wrong?"

 "Most things, I think. I'm still adjusting to the twenty-first century, and it is an enormous adjustment. And then there's our brothers and sister. None of them like me, and none of them trust me. I know why they don't trust me, and I've acknowledged it."

 "But it's still hard being here with them knowing that," Freya said. "I know. Finn, you have to give them time. Having you around is an adjustment."

 "Why, because they kept me locked in a coffin for nine hundred years? Freya, you don't...think that they think I really hate them, do you? Could they really hate me that much."

 Freya put down her phone and gave him a serious look. "Don't say that, Finn. You shouldn't be thinking like that. They'll get over it."

 "Really? I doubt they've forgiven Mother and Father. They're just not spoken of anymore."

 "Well, Mother and Father had the reasons for doing what they did, and so did you. Finn, what's really bothering you?"

 Finn sighed. "All right. It's being a vampire. I don't like it, Freya. I don't think I'm ever going to get used to it. I can't feed on people, or even animals. I'll just be drinking from blood bags for the rest of my life. There. That's the other half of my problems."

 "Oh, Finn." Freya squeezed his hand. "You think I didn't have to adjust to living here, to being part of this family? But I love our little siblings, and I've adjusted to the twenty-first century. You can, too. Just give some more time. And practice being patient."

 "That's not easy while living in a house like this," Finn pointed out.

 "I know," Freya said. "If you ever want to be a night owl, there's a good chance I'll be here around midnight." 

 "I think I would like that," Finn said, and he smiled for the first time in a while.