Familiar Demons

A Simple Day at Home

"Shhh! You're going to wake her"
A whispered reprimand made its way to my ears.
I blinked my eyes open
Keelin was trying to place a tray with coffee and some scones on the bedside table and Nik was trying to climb onto the bed.
"Oh honey you're awake! Do you wanna come down for breakfast or do you wanna sleep in some more?"
"I'd like to see everyone"
"Alright I'll tell Marcel to set another place at the table. But I'll leave the coffee." She placed the coffee on the nightstand and took the tray with the scones with her.
She tried to get Nik to go with her but he wouldn't budge from his cosy position next to me.
"Let him stay. I'll get him downstairs for breakfast" I told her as I got ready for a sneak tickle attack on my favourite cousin. He started giggling and tried his best to squirm out of my grasp.
Keelin was smiling at us as she left.
"Ho-Hope that's-" fit of giggles "-enough I can't-" another fit of giggles
"Huh?huh? What did you say buddy? I couldn't quite make it out. More tickles?" I teased as I tickled him some more.
By this time we were both laughing hysterically
"What on Earth is going on here?" Enquired a voice from the doorway
"Uncle Kol " giggle "Hope won't" laughter for 2 whole minutes " stop tickling me!" The little guy finally finished a sentence.
"Really buddy? Maybe I should help you" he said entering the room
"I'll distract her and you make a run for it. What do you say to the plan?" Uncle Kol asked in a fake whisper.
Nik nodded frantically from my arms as he tugged and pushed and did whatever he could with those tiny arms.
"Okay! Here I come"
And that's how Uncle Kol, Nik and I ended up having a full on war and were supremely late for breakfast
It was not condoned

"You know Kol one of these days I'm gonna make you take stuff out of your hair all by yourself. Maybe then you won't get stuff in it again" Davina huffed as she plucked out what remained of my pillows out of Uncle Kol's hair.
"Love, half the reason I get stuff in my hair is because I get to have you do this" Uncle Kol replied with a smirk
"Ugh Kol please take that ugly smirk of yours outside. It's the first meal of the day and I don't want to face such unpleasantness so early." Aunt Rebekah was, to say the least, displeased with her brother's behaviour
But she was always displeased with him
So it wasn't really anything new
"Alright!Alright! Settle down! No clamour when food's here!" Marcel came bearing platters of pastries and pies and pancakes and set them down on the table .
Aunt Freya followed with Coffee and orange juice.
Keelin brought some bacon and toast. Aunt Rebekah started trying to get Nik to actually sit down and eat something instead of trying to climb onto the table.
Tha boy seemed to love climbing onto things
Breakfast was finished in no time. As Uncle Kol reached for the last pastry, a swift hand swatted his away and placed it on my plate. I looked up and saw Aunt Rebekah stick out her tongue at her brother. He paid back by making faces at her.
These two, literally and figuratively, have never grown up.
Marcel was shaking his head and cleaning up the table.
I finished the pastry and went over to give him a hand.
Nik jumped down from wherever he had climbed onto and carried two plates too big for his hands. But he did it
After we finished cleaning up. Marcel and I decided to go sort out some of Dad's paintings.
We'd decided to have an exhibition of his work in two months.
We were walking upstairs when Marcel started talking
"You know" he stopped at the top of the stairs and turned back to look at me " it doesn't change anything. What happened that night. What you did." His gaze is piercing now " We would do it again. In an instant . Because its you Hope. Because whatever happens we love you" I reached him and he pulled me into a hug. I hugged him back letting the tears slip through. "I know you've been thinking about it. I can see the gears turning in your head." He pulled back and gave me a knowing look " You think you put us all in Danger and you feel responsible."
"But I am-"
"Let me finish." He said gripping my shoulders and looking straight straight into my eyes.
"You are Hope Mikaelson. You have a Family. You have us. And we will always be there for you."
"Always and Forever" 
"Always and Forever" he kissed my forehead and patted my head
"Besides no else can beat me at hand to hand" he grinned
"Don't let Auntie Bex hear that. I'm sure she's probably figured out twenty ways to do it but is just keeping them as backup" I laughed at his expression
"You know what you're right. One more person to beat me at hand to hand then." He corrected his previous statement
"Sounds about right" I joked
" You know you remind me so much of Hayley." He said fondly recalling some faraway memory.
"I hope she and Uncle Elijah had that dance" a wistful smile now on my face
" Yeah. I hope so too" Marcel's expression seemed to mirror mine
"Do you think they found Peace?" I asked the one question I've been burning to know the answer to
He took out a painting my dad had made of all of us. Something He'd left as a parting gift. Marcel looked at it with an expression I'd only seen in the presence of my Father. "I hope for that too"
The painting selection turned out to be a "remember this?" session as one by one the entire family snuggled into the familiar space that would always belong to one of their own.
And we remember our own Always and Forever