# Chapter One
***HOPE PUSHED OPEN the door of the sheriff's station and stopped just inside, suddenly aware of how she must look. There was mud on her clothes, her hair was tangled, and she had spent the walk into town trying not to think about the fact that none of this made sense. She had jumped into Malivore. She remembered that much. What she didn't remember was anything that could explain waking up beside a road in California, assuming the sign she had passed was telling the truth.***
***The woman behind the front desk looked up, her expression changing as soon as she saw her. "Honey, are you all right?" she asked, coming around the desk. Hope opened her mouth, but the answer she had been preparing disappeared. She was tired, she didn't know where her family was, and she had no idea what she was supposed to do next. "I don't know where I am," she admitted.***
Hayley leaned forward, her eyes fixed on her daughter. "Someone help her," she whispered, watching the woman guide Hope toward a chair. Beside her, Klaus sat with his jaw clenched and one hand wrapped around the armrest. He had already tried the theater doors, and Elijah had stopped him from trying to tear the screen down only because it was the one thing showing them where Hope was.
"She went to the police. That's good," Caroline said, though she sounded as if she was trying to reassure herself as much as everyone else. "There are people there. She isn't alone."
"For now," Klaus muttered. Hayley turned and gave him a sharp look, and he closed his mouth. She was frightened enough without him making it worse.
***The woman introduced herself, found Hope a blanket, and told her that she was in Beacon Hills. When Hope asked which state, the concern on her face became more obvious. California, then. The sign hadn't been wrong. Hope pulled the blanket around her shoulders and tried to think of a reasonable explanation, but she was still sitting there without one when a door opened down the hall.***
***"I'm just saying, taking my keys feels excessive when we could be having a productive conversation about this." A boy came out carrying a backpack by one strap, turning to look at the man following him. "We had a conversation," the man replied. "You explained why you drove past a roadblock, and I explained why you're not driving anywhere else tonight." The boy frowned. "I feel like you're reducing a complicated situation to make me look bad." He turned toward the waiting area, noticed Hope, and abruptly stopped talking.***
***The man followed his gaze and approached her. "I'm Sheriff Stilinski," he said, crouching slightly in front of her chair. "Can you tell me your name?" Hope adjusted the blanket. "Hope." He nodded, his voice staying gentle as he asked whether she was hurt and whether there was someone he could call. She answered the second question before he had quite finished asking it. "My aunt. Can I call my aunt?"***
"At least he knows how to speak to her," Elijah said, watching the sheriff take out his phone.
Damon glanced toward Klaus. "Try not to threaten this one before he's actually done something."
Klaus ignored him. On the screen, Hope was dialing a number, and Freya had gone very still beside Rebekah.
***Hope called Freya first. When the recorded voice told her the number wasn't in service, she checked what she had entered and tried again. Then she called Rebekah. Then the school. By the time she lowered the phone, she could feel everyone trying not to stare at her. "They aren't working," she said, handing it back. The sheriff didn't ask why she sounded so upset. He simply put his phone away and told her they would try something else.***
***"What's your last name, Hope?" he asked. She hesitated before answering. "Mikaelson." He waited, apparently expecting her to spell it, and she realized he hadn't recognized it at all. There was no change in his expression, no careful glance toward the door. She had spent years wishing people would stop deciding things about her because of her family. Now she would have given anything for him to know who they were.***
***After asking a few more questions, the sheriff stepped into his office. His son remained near the chairs, looking between Hope and the vending machine before finally approaching her. "I'm Stiles," he said. Hope looked up. "Is that your real name?" He smiled a little. "It's the one that doesn't require a pronunciation guide. Can I sit?" She nodded, and he took the chair beside hers, leaving enough room that she didn't feel crowded. "Do you want some water? I'd offer coffee, but I'm pretty sure it's been here longer than I have."***
Rebekah smiled faintly. "Well, he's trying."
"He's staring," Klaus said.
"She's covered in mud and sitting in a police station," Hayley replied. "People are going to look at her."
"He's also asking before sitting beside her," Caroline added. "Which is more consideration than some people in this room have managed in a thousand years." Damon put a hand over his chest, and Elena pushed it back into his lap without looking away from the screen.
***Stiles bought her water and a packet of crackers, dropping a handful of change in the process. Hope watched him chase a quarter with his shoe before picking it up. "You didn't see that," he told her as he returned. "I saw all of it," she answered, and he looked pleased that she had bothered replying. He sat down again, opened his own bottle, and didn't immediately start asking what had happened to her. Hope appreciated that more than she knew how to explain.***
***His phone lit up several times. She caught the name Scott and part of a message about someone named Lydia before he turned it over. "You can answer," she said. "It looks important." Stiles glanced at the screen, his expression briefly losing its humor. "A friend's having a bad night." Hope looked down at the blanket around her shoulders. "Apparently, it's going around." He gave a quiet laugh, though it didn't last long.***
***When the sheriff called him into the hallway, Hope heard more than either of them intended. They hadn't found the school. The numbers weren't checking out. His father wanted him to be kind, but he didn't want him getting involved in something they didn't yet understand. "And don't promise her we can fix it," the sheriff added. Hope stared at the unopened crackers in her lap. A few minutes later, Stiles came back and sat beside her without mentioning any of it.***
Freya glanced down at the phone she was still holding. "I would have answered."
"We know," Rebekah said, taking her hand. "She knows."
Alaric shifted in his seat. "The sheriff's being careful. He doesn't know what happened, and he doesn't want his son giving her false hope."
"That doesn't make it easier to hear," Stefan said. Hayley nodded without turning around.
***By the time Stiles returned with dinner, Hope had washed her face and changed into a sweatshirt from the station's emergency supplies. Someone had found slippers for her feet, and the sheriff had let her sit in a small interview room with the door open. She looked up as Stiles placed a paper bag on the table. "Turkey or ham?" he asked. "Those were the options that looked least likely to make this evening worse."***
***"Why are you still here?" Hope asked instead. He paused with his hand in the bag. "You were leaving when I came in," she continued. "You don't have to keep sitting with me." Stiles pulled out a sandwich and set it in front of her before answering. "You kept looking at the door. I thought you might want some company." Hope's fingers tightened around her water bottle. "You don't have to feel sorry for me." He shook his head. "I'm offering you a sandwich, not adopting you."***
***She looked at him for a moment before a small laugh escaped her. Stiles smiled and reached for his own food, catching the edge of his bottle with his sleeve. It tipped off the table, and Hope instinctively lifted a hand to stop it. Before she could finish, the bottle stopped in the air. Her hand remained beneath it, empty. Across from her, Stiles went still.***
Bonnie sat forward immediately. "Wait."
Freya's eyes narrowed as she watched the bottle hang between the table and Hope's hand. "That wasn't her."
"How do you know?" Elena asked.
"Look at her face," Bonnie replied. Hope was staring at Stiles, and Stiles was looking toward the open doorway.
***"Did you do that?" Hope asked quietly. Stiles looked back at her hand. "Were you about to?" Neither answered for a moment. Then he reached down, took the bottle out of the air, and placed it on the table. Hope glanced toward the hallway before turning her palm upward. His packet of crackers rose between them, drifted over the sandwiches, and landed beside her elbow.***
***Stiles stared at it. Then his face broke into a grin. "Okay. That makes this conversation significantly easier." Hope found herself smiling back despite everything. "Your dad doesn't know?" she asked. He shook his head. "Nobody here does." She studied him, noticing how carefully he was watching her now. "You don't have to explain," she said. "Not just because I saw you." His expression changed, the smile easing into something quieter. "Neither do you," he told her.***
"Oh, I like that," Bonnie said.
"Of course you do," Damon replied. "The secret magic club has gained another member."
"We don't know what he is," Freya reminded him. Klaus glanced toward her, clearly disliking that answer, but she continued before he could ask. "Moving a bottle doesn't tell us enough."
***Hope ate several bites before deciding to tell him. Not everything, and not all at once, but enough. She explained that there had been a pit, that she had gone into it deliberately, and that she hadn't expected to wake up beside a road in another state. Stiles listened without interrupting, his food forgotten until she stopped talking. "And you think it sent you here?" he asked. Hope rubbed at a mark on the tabletop. "I don't know what else to think."***
***"Okay," he said, pulling a notebook from his backpack. "Then we write down what you remember and check what we can." Hope stared at him. "You believe me?" Stiles glanced at the crackers she had moved. "I'm not really in a position to complain about things being strange." He opened the notebook, then stopped when he noticed her expression. "Unless you don't want to do this tonight. We can just eat."***
***That was what finally made her relax. He wasn't trying to pull the story out of her, and he wasn't looking at her as though she might fall apart if he said the wrong thing. "We can write it down," she said, moving her chair closer so she could see the page. Stiles handed her the pen.***
Hayley wiped beneath one eye, annoyed with herself for crying over a boy passing Hope a notebook.
Elijah noticed but said nothing. Beside him, Klaus watched his daughter lean over the table, explaining something while Stiles listened.
"She needed someone," Hayley said quietly.
For once, Klaus didn't argue.
***The sheriff took them home after making more calls and explaining that the arrangement was temporary. Hope agreed before he could finish assuring her that they would keep looking for her family. She didn't want to spend another hour in the interview room, and she didn't want to go somewhere without Stiles. That second realization bothered her enough that she kept it to herself.***
***Stiles gave her his bedroom and stood in the doorway while she looked around. "There are clean towels on the bed. Ignore the desk, and definitely ignore the wall." Hope looked at the photographs and notes pinned above it. "You've made that difficult." He followed her gaze and winced. "It's usually less concerning when I explain it." She pointed toward a photograph. "Lydia?" Stiles nodded. "Your girlfriend?" He shook his head quickly. "No. Definitely not. We're not together." Hope glanced at him. "You could have stopped after the first no."***
Lizzie smiled. "He wanted to be very clear."
Josie nudged her, though she was smiling too. Farther down the row, Landon looked at his hands. He and Hope had ended things before she disappeared, but knowing that didn't make watching this easy.
Elena glanced toward him, then back at the screen, giving him the privacy he clearly wanted.
***Later, Hope found Stiles in the kitchen with a mug floating beside his shoulder while he searched a cupboard. He looked over as she entered. "Please tell me you know how long tea is supposed to sit in the water." Hope pulled out a chair. "That depends on the tea." He examined the box in his hand as though it had personally disappointed him. "That seems unnecessarily complicated."***
***She watched the mug settle into his palm. "You do that a lot?" He glanced down, then smiled. "Whenever nobody's looking." Hope rested her arms on the table. "You like using it?" Stiles looked surprised. "I love using it. I spent a week teaching myself to fold laundry without touching it." She laughed. "A whole week?" He placed her mug in front of her. "You haven't seen how many sleeves can go wrong."***
***He sat beside her, and they kept talking after the tea had gone cold. He told her about his father, Scott, and the werewolves in Beacon Hills. Hope told him about the school and the family he hadn't recognized. When she explained that she was a witch and a werewolf, he asked questions instead of looking frightened. When she told him about the vampire blood, he went quiet long enough that she regretted saying it.***
***"But that part hasn't happened yet?" he asked finally. Hope shook her head. "I would have to die first." Stiles frowned. "Then I'd prefer we avoid that." She stared at him before laughing, surprised by how relieved she felt. He leaned back in his chair. "Was that the wrong response?" Hope shook her head again, still smiling. "No. It was a good one."***
"He took that well," Stefan said.
"He lives with werewolves," Damon replied. "Apparently, that changes your standards."
Bonnie looked toward him. "You live with all of us."
"Yes, and look what it's done to me."
Rebekah rolled her eyes, but Hayley barely heard them. Hope was smiling again, and this time she wasn't trying to hide it.
***They reached for the sugar at the same time. Their fingers touched, and Stiles suddenly stopped moving. Hope looked up, her smile fading when she saw his face. "What?" He pulled his hand back, then seemed to regret it. "Nothing you did," he said quickly. Hope turned toward him properly. "That wasn't what I asked."***
***Stiles looked at her for several seconds. Whatever had happened, he was taking it seriously, and that made her sit a little straighter. "There's something I need to check," he said. "Before I explain it badly." Hope studied him. "Is it dangerous?" He shook his head. "Not to you." Her eyebrows drew together. "I meant to you too." His expression softened at that, and he looked down before answering. "No. I don't think so."***
Freya frowned. "What happened?"
Klaus turned toward her at once. "You don't know?"
"No," she said, keeping her attention on the screen. "And I'm not going to invent an answer because you want one."
Hayley watched Hope reach across the table. "Neither is he."
***Hope caught his sleeve before he could get up. "You don't have to explain tonight," she said. "But don't lie to me." Stiles met her eyes and nodded. "Okay." She held his gaze a moment longer, making sure he understood, before letting go. He stayed in his chair.***
***"For what it's worth, I don't usually have people in my kitchen at midnight asking reasonable questions about floating mugs," he said. Hope smiled. "What do you usually do?" He shrugged. "Homework. Research. Make decisions my dad describes as preventable." She laughed, and he watched her with such obvious pleasure that she felt her face warm. "You're doing all right tonight," she told him.***
***Stiles blinked. Hope tilted her head. "That was flirting." He let out a short laugh, looking down at the table. "I thought it might be, but I didn't want to build an entire embarrassing assumption around it." She nudged his knee with hers. "You weren't wrong." This time, when he looked at her, he didn't immediately glance away.***
"Oh, she likes him," Rebekah said, sounding delighted.
Klaus shifted beside Hayley, who caught his wrist without looking at him. "Let her have this."
"I haven't said anything."
"You're getting ready to."
***In the morning, Stiles burned the toast and Hope stole the better pieces from his plate. His father had already returned to work, leaving a note asking them to stay reachable and reminding Stiles that helping Hope did not excuse ignoring his phone. Stiles read it while she scraped the black edges off a slice of bread. "He knows you well," she said. "Unfortunately," Stiles replied.***
***Scott called while they were eating. Hope listened as Stiles's expression grew serious, and when he ended the call, she asked whether his friend needed help. He nodded. "You don't have to come." Hope looked pointedly at the notebook they had left on the table. "You've been helping me since I got here. I can spend a morning helping someone else." Stiles glanced at her slippers. "We should probably get you shoes first."***
***They stopped at a shop on the way. Hope argued about letting him pay until he agreed that she could owe him, and she carried the receipt out with her as proof. Beside the Jeep, she turned toward him before he could open her door. "You could ask me out," she said. Stiles stopped with the keys in his hand. "Now?" Hope smiled, suddenly a little nervous herself. "Unless you've changed your mind since last night."***
Caroline grinned. "Good for her."
Landon shifted, swallowing before looking back at the screen. Josie rested a hand briefly on his arm, and he gave her a small nod.
***"I haven't changed my mind," Stiles said. "I just wasn't sure whether asking would be inappropriate when you're dealing with all of this." Hope stepped closer. "I can be upset about what happened and still like you." He looked at her for a moment, then smiled. "Will you go out with me?" She nodded. "Yes."***
***Neither moved away. Hope glanced at his mouth, then back at his eyes. "Can I kiss you?" Stiles's answer came quickly enough to make her laugh. "Yes." She caught the front of his flannel and leaned in, kissing him softly. His hand settled at her waist, and when she moved closer, he kissed her back. It wasn't long, but she was smiling when she pulled away, and he looked as though he had forgotten where they were.***
***"You okay?" she asked. Stiles nodded. "I had something intelligent to say. You'll have to give me a minute." Hope laughed, keeping hold of his shirt for another second before letting go. Then her expression grew more serious. "I'm still going to try to get home." His smile softened, but it didn't disappear. "I know." She watched him carefully. "And you still want this?" Stiles took her hand. "Yes, Hope. I still want this."***
Hayley leaned back, finally releasing a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.
"He isn't asking her to stay," Elijah observed.
"He shouldn't," Klaus said, though there was less bite in his voice now.
Rebekah glanced at him. "You're allowed to like something he does."
"I'll let you know when I require permission."
***Scott was waiting outside when they reached his house. He started toward the Jeep, then slowed when he saw Hope get out. Stiles introduced them, but Scott's attention kept returning to him. "Can I talk to you for a second?" he asked. Stiles shut his door. "She knows about werewolves." Scott stared at him. "You told her?" Hope folded her arms. "I already knew. And you can ask me questions. I'm standing right here."***
***Scott looked embarrassed. "Sorry. There's a lot going on." Hope's expression eased. "That's what Stiles said." Inside, Scott explained what he could about Lydia, and Hope listened from the couch beside Stiles. When he finished, she asked whether they had something belonging to her. Scott frowned. "Why?" Hope glanced at Stiles, then back at him. "Because I'm a witch, and I might be able to help you find her."***
***"Witches are real?" Scott asked. Hope looked at him until he seemed to hear his own question. "Right. Sorry." Stiles pressed his lips together, failing to hide his amusement. Scott gave him a look before turning back to Hope. "Would it hurt her?" She shook her head. "Not a locator spell." He nodded, looking relieved. "Okay. Good. We just need to find her and keep everyone safe. Nobody else gets hurt."***
***"That's what we're trying to do," Stiles said. Scott looked at him for a moment. "I mean it, Stiles." Some of the humor left Stiles's expression. "So do I." Hope glanced between them, noticing the change, but Scott was already standing to make another call.***
"That sounded familiar," Elena said quietly.
Alaric folded his arms. "Wanting nobody to get hurt isn't unreasonable."
"No," Elijah agreed. "Assuming everyone will agree on how to accomplish it is where things become difficult."
***Once Scott was upstairs, Hope turned toward Stiles. "He really doesn't know about you?" Stiles shook his head. "No." She nodded and settled back against the couch. He watched her for a moment. "You're not going to ask why?" Hope looked at him. "I might eventually. I'm not going to tell him, though. It's your secret."***
***Stiles looked down at his hands before speaking. "If anything happens while you're here, call me." Hope raised an eyebrow. "I can look after myself." He nodded immediately. "I know. That doesn't mean you have to do it alone." Her expression softened, but she remembered the brief tension between him and Scott. "Even if your friends don't agree?" she asked.***
***"Even then." His answer was immediate. Hope studied him, and Stiles turned toward her fully. "I care about Scott. He's my best friend. But he doesn't get to decide whether I help you." Hope's fingers brushed his, and he took her hand. "I would do anything for you," he said quietly.***
Klaus stopped moving.
On the screen, Hope was watching Stiles just as closely as he was. There was no smile to dismiss the words as a joke, and Stiles didn't look away after saying them.
"That's a very big promise," Caroline murmured.
Hayley nodded. "She knows."
***"You barely know me," Hope said, though she didn't pull her hand away. Stiles swallowed. "I know how it sounds." She looked down at their joined hands, thinking about the night before, the way he had gone still when she touched him, and the explanation he hadn't been ready to give. "Does this have something to do with what happened in the kitchen?"***
***He hesitated, then nodded. Hope appreciated that he didn't try to deny it. "Then we're going to talk about that," she told him. "Properly. And you don't get to make every decision for me because you think you're protecting me." Stiles's grip loosened enough that she could have pulled away easily. "Okay." Instead, she moved closer.***
***"But it goes both ways," she added. He looked at her. "What does?" Hope squeezed his hand. "Having someone. I'm not going to let you put yourself in danger for me and then leave you to deal with it alone." Her voice grew quieter. "If we're doing this, I'm on your side too."***
"He means it," Klaus said.
Elijah glanced toward him. "I believe she does as well."
Hayley wiped her cheek and kept watching. Whatever questions she had about the boy could wait a little longer. For now, her daughter wasn't sitting alone in a police station wondering why nobody would answer the phone.
***Scott's footsteps sounded on the stairs, and Stiles glanced toward the doorway. He started to move his hand, but Hope held on, giving him a questioning look. His face warmed, and he smiled at her just as Scott came back into the room. "I think we can get something for the—" Scott stopped, noticing their hands. He looked from Hope to Stiles. "Wait. Are you two together?"***
***Hope turned toward Stiles, letting him answer this time. He looked at her, then back at his best friend. "Yeah," he said, without the hesitation she had seen earlier. Hope leaned comfortably against his side, still holding his hand. "We are."***