Three

"Hello, princess."

The entire room went silent. All were confused, all were shocked. They'd just witnessed a complete stranger- a potential monster from Malivore- had just come into the school, undetected, and kneeled upon Hope and called her princess. No one knew her. No one knew her name. Where she was from. Why she was in Malivore. What she is.

But, of course, there's only one person that was in Malivore that would call Hope her princess.

Melori.

She escaped, but how?

"I..." Hope cocked her head to the side. "What did you call me?"

"Princess," Melori confirmed. "That's what you are."

"Who even are you?" Lizzie stepped in, of course, with a hint of jealousy that it wasn't her that a complete stranger had called princess.

"Where'd you come from? Malivore?" Alaric asked. "Right? That's-that's where you come from? Malivore sent you."

"I wasn't sent by Malivore... I escaped."

"Sorry, lady, that's hard to believe. Every monster that came from Malivore tries to kill us," Kaleb said.

Rafael continued, "How do we know you won't do that?"

Mel looked him square in the eyes, sending a wave of shivers down his spine. "Even if I said I have no reason to harm you, gaining someone's trust isn't so simple." She turned her gaze back to Hope. "I know everyone's forgotten me. But I also know you're the only one that can help me."

Hope stepped back a little, raising her head slightly in even more suspicion of the strange girl before her. Melori figured that she and the others weren't really buying the whole 'not-sent-by-Malivore-to-kill-you' thing, so she braced herself for what was coming.

She lowered her head and closed her eyes. "Do what you have to..." And hope did.

With a quick incantation, Hope made Mel fall unconscious, causing her body to go limp and fall to the floor on her side. The crowd, although still tense, relaxed slightly now that the mystery girl is unconscious.

Hope's brain was rattled. She couldn't pinpoint what exactly was happening, but she knew at the very least that no one would call her princess or anything if the sort if they didn't know her heritage on a personal level. Her wolf heritage.

Who was she?

Alaric sighed at the sight of Melori unconscious on the floor. "There goes my vacation..."

As I sat up, now awake from being knocked unconscious, I noticed that I had been chained by the hands to the floor of a dungeon. I didn't have much clothes considering the last thing I was doing before Malivore was eating lasagna in my pajamas. Well, in a t-shirt and panties, but who ever really wears pants to bed?

It took me a second to realize that I had been given a pair of shorts, and that I even had a collar as well, also attached to a chain bolted to the floor. I wasn't sure how I felt about that, but there's wasn't much I could do about it without giving them a reason to not trust me.

I checked my surroundings just to check out the place, but instead found Hope on the other side of the metal bars that kept us separated. Beside her were a few others; the two girls that I noticed were holding hands earlier (which were glowing a faint red), a man in which I assumed was the headmaster of the school, and a boy that was as scrawny as ever. But his appearance didn't quite fool me as I could smell the death radiating from his body. He was a vampire.

Each of them watched me intensely, cautiously, but it was Hope's eyes that held the most curiosity.

I stood to my feet with my chained hands in front of me, regardless of being extremely fatigued and hungry. I guess all that time trapped in nothing was catching up to me.

I raised my hands slowly. "I get the cuffs, but the collar is a bit excessive..."

"Just being cautious," the older man said. I didn't know his name, only that he had to be the one in charge. "Who are you?"

I straightened my back, looking directly into Hope's eyes. If there's anyone's trust I cared most about gaining, it was hers. "I'm Melori. Collins."

"Doesn't ring a bell," Hope said bluntly.

"I figured it wouldn't. Malivore makes people forget you, right?"

Hope shook her head. "Not me. Even if you were in Malivore and I knew you, I'd remember."

"Interesting..." I said, wondering why or how she'd remember.

My eyes traveled to the blonde girl, who stepped forward with her arms crossed. "You seem to know Hope in some weird way... You called her 'princess'?"

"Why is that?" The other girl jumped in.

I turned my gaze back to Hope's. "You really wouldn't believe me..."

Hope tilted her head to the side. "Try it."

"We need to know who and what you are, Melori," The headmaster said. "Where are you from, how did you get trapped in Malivore? Why do you think Hope's some princess."

"Her mother is the queen of the Crescent Wolf Pack. Hayley Marshall?" Hope's face dropped, changing into an unreadable expression.

"You knew my mother?"

I chuckled nervously. "I know her. She helped me through the toughest times of my life. How-how is she? Is she okay...?"

Everyone's faces suddenly showed a concerning amount of pity and empathy. And Hope seemed distraught. As painful as I felt when my parents died.

I balled my hands into fists, preparing myself for any bad news. "What happened to her?"

Tears threatened to fall from Hope's eyes, but she was quick to blink them away. "She died. Three years ago."

I shook my head, looking away from each of them, not wanting to believe that she was gone too. My mom and hers. Both good women, both gone.

A sudden thought occurred to me.

"Marcel... he mentioned that there was this evil after you... I never got any updates before I wound up in Malivore..." I turned back to face them, stepping as close to them as I possibly could with these restraints. "Tell me, is he...?"

Hope's breath caught in her throat as she collected herself, seemingly trying her best to muster up an answer. "Um... the... only casualties were my dad and my uncle Elijah."

That struck a nerve somewhere in me. I felt a muscle in my face twitch. None of this made sense to me. None of it felt real, but I knew it was. I knew more people I cared deeply about were gone. "So you're telling me the first people to show me kindness when I lost everything are dead too."

I felt sick. Angry, claustrophobic. Barely able to breathe. I felt the need to escape.

I grabbed hold of the collar, using all my strength to pull and break it off, then did the same with the cuffs. The others grew scared- surprised that I broke the restraints so easily- and braced themselves to fight. Hope stood unfazed.

"Hey, man, calm down!" The vampire held his hands out.

I wiped a stray tear from my cheek, pacing the cell from wall to wall. I'd tried to calm myself, but I was overwhelmed now knowing that they were gone. The only three that came to my rescue that night. The three that assured me I'd be safe. That I'd still have a family and be loved.

"Guys, give us the room."

"Hope, are you crazy?!" The blonde witch shouted.

"We're not leaving you with her!" The other witch followed.

"She is upset and uncomfortable right now, obviously. And it's clear that my parents held some sentiment to her and she's just found out they're dead-"

"She's dangerous, Hope-"

"Dr. Saltzman, please. She's grieving. That doesn't make her dangerous and even so, I can handle myself so please just give us some space."

As I paced the cell, I could see them hesitating to leave. If I were them I'd be afraid of me too.

With one final nudge, the group of people left Hope and I alone.

She sighed heavily and moved to one of the walls where the bars imbedded into it. She sat with her back against the wall, one leg crossed over the other, then motioned for me to sit with her.

After pacing for a little while longer, calming my nerves, I sat in the same position as she did, with only nothing but metal bars between us.

Hope sat in silence, watching me closely as if she was waiting for me to say my peace. She wanted me to tell her more about myself, my origins. Probably how I knew her family, and why I was hellbent on calling her princess.

I wasn't going to give, but I knew I couldn't truly resist.

"At a very young age, I lost my entire family. In just under a month," I said quietly. I was here, telling my story, but I refused to go so far as to mention my brothers. I refused to look her in the eyes but I knew she was watching me.

"I grew up in New Orleans. With the Crescent Wolves."

"You were in my mom's pack?" I simply nodded. "So you're a wolf."

"And then some..." I glanced her way and realized I'd confused her. "My mom was a hybrid."

"You're lying to me. That's impossible, all hybrids were killed."

"Except my mom. Because she held some sentimental value to yours." I cleared my throat some to make sure I was heard clearly. "My mom was Hayley's best friend, right hand woman. The beta wolf, if you will. And my dad's job was to protect the village with his magic."

"Wait... if your dad was a witch and your mom was a hybrid... doesn't that make you...?"

I shook my head slowly, holding my head down. Nervously, I began to fiddle with my fingers. "Magic would come easily to me if I possessed any. I'm not a tribrid. Just a hybrid. I haven't died yet but I have killed someone before..." My mind raced back to the witch I thought was a vampire. How I staked him through the back. How he never went home to his family because of me.

I quickly shook those thoughts out of my head and continued. "Um, I can... turn whenever I want, so..."

"If you're just a hybrid, how did you escape Malivore? The only way out is trough casting spells. How'd you even figure that was your ticket out?"

I pulled my knees close to my chest, holding them in place as I rested my chin on my knees. "I saw you when you entered Malivore, but for some reason you couldn't see or hear me. I called out to you..."

Hope shook her head. She had this look that told me she didn't buy my story, so, I had to sell it a different way.

"You were with this man. Malivore's son, apparently..." This got her attention. She looked at me, trying to determine whether I was really telling the truth. All I needed to do now was deliver one final push. "Clarke? He tried to manipulate you into helping him escape as well."

Hope finally believed me, nodding her head slowly. "Why couldn't I see you? And still how did you get out?"

"When you left I was determined to leave too. To see your mom again. To see everyone again. So I sat in one place and focused every ounce of my energy in trying to get some kind of spell to work."

It took forever too. Each time one spell flopped, I sat and tried it again at least 10 times before moving onto the next. I don't know how many spells I went through, I just know that it was enough to lose count. Until at one point where I almost gave up. The the cyclone appeared and I took no chances and allowed it to carry me away.

I was lost in thought until I heard Hope getting up. I stood as well, watching her brush off her clothes.

She shook her head. "I'm sorry but, even if all of this is true, I don't know if I can trust you."

She started towards the door. I scrambled to my feet, ignoring the exhaustion, and called out for her. "Hope, wait please!"

She glanced over her shoulder briefly. "I'm sorry Melori but I don't think I can."

"Wait!" Her foot was just barely crossing the threshold. "June 24th! June-" Hope stoped in her tracks, but she didn't turn around. She was listening. "June 24th. You were just barely five. I was too... Your family had gathered at their compound. Including the ones married into the family. Davina and Keelin..."

Hope still didn't turn around, but her head was now positioned to where she could hear me better.

"Klaus and Elijah and Hayley all walked into the compound where the rest were waiting. But Klaus had something in his arms. A cub, a wolf cub whose fur was as black as midnight, but if you looked close enough you could see specks of grey."

Finally, Hope turned around. Her eyes showed signs of recognition, and I knew that those few seconds of eye contact at the compound had paid off. "That wolf... that was you?"

I nodded, leaning against the bars of the cell. "That was the first time I'd turned. And the night I watched my parents die." I saw that I was getting through to her. That I was gaining some level of trust with her. I decided to really sell it. "He handed me over to Marcel to be under his care while they went to find the vampires that killed those wolves and my parents. Marcel's been a dad to me ever since."

The princess's eyes fluttered, showing something along the lines of sympathetic and pity, but there was some form of recognition, and trust. That's all that mattered.

With a wave of her hand, the cell door opened. She was setting me free.

"There's still a lot we need to know."

"I understand." I slowly walked to the exit and awaited her instructions.

"Just follow me so we can get you showered and clothed. I'll have to meet with Dr. Saltzman and the others to figure out what to do about you."

Hope led me out of the dungeon, down a short corridor where there were other cells on one side of the wall, then up a small flight of stairs.

When the sunlight beamed through the windows as we walked down a hall, passing a few students that eyed me, I came to a sudden realization that I was actually freed from Malivore. That this wasn't a dream, but was reality. And that I was one step closer to finally getting to know Hope, and protect her like I'm destined to.

---

I was going to wait until I had a chapter for my other book, Lucienne, but recently I've had more inspiration for this one. so look out for a second update VERY soon. (likely today).

thank you very much for reading! I appreciate all of you.

kisses x