For Good | Hale- TO/TW [8]

50 | Always

gif created by me :)

The roaring fire before her calms Lexi's nerves. Her skin may itch, her mind may turn, but the familiarity of a bonfire sets her at ease. With her family surrounding her, she can't help but smile as happiness floods her veins. She knows it is the last moment they will have together. Nothing can fix what was broken, but Lexi can have this memory forever.

She wraps her arms around Derek, snuggling into his chest. Catching her children's eyes, she smiles at them gratefully. They both do their best to return the smile, but Klaus begins to speak.

In a line, the family faces the Original Hybrid and the miracle trybrid. Klaus holds Hope's hand as he says, "You know, as much as I've savored the joy of tormenting you throughout the years, I must confess you all mean everything to me."

He looks at each of his siblings specifically as he feels his throat clench. "Your loyalty and your counsel and your love is probably the only reason why I've survived as long as I have."

Lexi notices the children begin to chuckle. Hope has tears in her eyes that she attempts to hide; Teddy just scoffs while Stella hides her face behind Teddy's arm.

"Which is how I know, long after I'm gone, you will all come together, time and time again, to take care of each other," Klaus says, his voice soft to avoid it breaking. Lexi's eyes soften at the sound. "And that is why I'm not afraid of your future."

Elijah glances down at his feet before he says softly, "We're bound forever to those with whom we share blood. And while we may not choose our family, that bond is our greatest strength."

Klaus stares at his brother, his closest friend and confidante with tears shining in his eyes; the flickers of the fire light up the tears. He says, "Though I may be leaving you, tonight is not the end of the Mikaelsons." Klaus looks at each and every person in the eye. First, he looks at Marcel—his adopted son. The boy he raised, and the boy who would now live his own life. 

Next, Rebekah—the girl he watched grow into a reckless young woman. The sister he stole love from time and time again; the sister he regrets hurting over and over again.

Then, he looks at Freya and Keelin; the sister he never wanted but is happy he has, finally content with the love of her life. They stand together, unified.

Kol comes next: the mischievous brother who always made life hell. The brother who got over himself to say goodbye to his torturer. Regret blooms in Klaus' heart. Looking at him now, Klaus cannot even imagine the dagger he once shoved into his brother.

Elijah stares at his younger brother with pride in his eye. For Elijah, Klaus could not be more grateful. Elijah kept him honorable for his daughter. He would not be alive without Elijah.

Finally, the Hales. Klaus feels his chest contract as he stares at the children he never got to know. He kept track of them, obviously, but staring into Stella's Mikaelson blue eyes and Teddy's Hale green ones, it is like a blow to the chest. They are all grown up, and their only memories of him would be his death and his panic.

Klaus had always liked Derek. Even if he could not admit it, Klaus knew the Hale wolf was right for his youngest sister. She needed someone to challenge her, to love her more than Klaus could show. Derek was always the right person, waiting for the right moment.

The Original Trybrid meets her brother's gaze. He sees something hidden in the tear rolling down her cheek, but she has always been a mystery to him. They were the same: creatures that fit nowhere yet strived to be accepted. They were each others' balance: without one, the other would silently hurt until they saw each other again. And now, Lexi would never see him again. And Klaus would never see her again.