Last time on Blind Hope

"Gramm, your mother is going to prison. She, along with Bruce, was behind Hope's disappearance. I want you to take over Alphaship and the pack until the Council and I come to a decision. Drake will act as advisor. Do you understand me?" Gramm nodded, his eyes hardening in resolve. Dorian looked at Emily. "Are you capable of handling your pack until the Council and I come to a decision?" She nodded weakly. "Good." Dorian looked at Horatio. "Let's go get our Queen."

~~~~~~~~~~

Night had just fallen, and Hope was still pacing, muttering. "Is mating even wise? What if Harper and Ashton come out blind?" Rachel was sitting across from Hope, saying vague and cheerful things.

"Then you can teach braille!" Charles had fallen asleep. Vivian and Blake were looking over documents as Blake introduced her to the inner-runnings of the pack. Hector was leaning against the wall, attempting to keep sanity. Why had he wanted this position again? Ah, yes. To prove Vivian wrong that the Royal Pack wouldn't be able to take care of her.

"Is he even coming back?"

"He said he would!" Every word Rachel said was with the energy of a thumbs up.

"He's never coming back."

"Let's pray!"

Hope's eyes snapped up, and she focused hard on the noises she heard. Hector watched her face closely. Her eyes lit up, and her breathing increased. He smirked.

"Someone's back." Then her breathing stilled, and she tilted her head. Hector went on alert again.

"He's with someone. A male." She sniffed the air again. "Hazelnut." Dorian and Horatio walked through the door, and a smile broke out on Hope's face.

"OH MY GOSH!" Horatio shouted, grabbing his heart. Hope winced turning her head away. Dorian smacked the back of Horatio's head and growled.

"She has sensitive hearing." Vivian came running into the room, beating Dorian to Hope.

"No screaming!" She whisper screamed. Hope wiggled out of Vivian's hug and made her way to Dorian who scooped her up and planted a kiss on her forehead.

"Hello, my sweet."

"Hello, mi amore." Dorian purred.

"She's actually blind." Horatio had lowered his voice, but he stood shocked nonetheless. "I mean, we always said your mate would have to be. Because of your face, that is. But she's actually blind."

"How did you notice so fast?" Dorian frowned, looking back at his Beta. Horatio looked at Hector, and Hector looked at the floor remembering how Dorian had managed to go an entire night and morning without realizing.

"Uh, her eyes are milky."

"They're silver." Dorian kept frowning and tilted Hope's head up. "A beautiful, beautiful silver." Hope's face flushed, and she shivered at his touch. "Are you ready to go home, sweet?"

Hope nodded and turned to face Vivian. "I know you don't like this, but we both know it has to be this way." Vivian nodded, tears welling up.

"Imma miss you." Vivian hugged Hope, bursting into tears. "You've been my life for eighteen years!" Hope melted into her embrace.

"I'll miss you too, but we will see each other again." Vivian nodded, and pulled away, wiping her tears away.

"I know. I know." Vivian took her hand and gently wiped a stray tear off of Hope's face. "Don't walk off any cliffs, K?"

"Okay."

"And no pineapple."

"Same for you. It's just wrong." The two laughed and hugged one more time. Dorian took Hope's hand and lead her outside with William and Hector trailing. Horatio walked ahead, opening the car door. Hope stepped inside and sat next to Dorian, holding his hand tightly. She shivered, and looked out of the car window.

Vivian collapsed on the floor with a sob, and Blake picked her up. "Goodnight, Charles."

"You can do it!" Rachel said, her eyes glazed over.

"Uh, she should probably go to bed too..."

"Yeah, she hasn't really be coherent in an hour. Just kinda zoned out saying peppy things." Blake left the room with Vivian in his arms and took her to his bed.

"Vivian, angel, I'm here."

"You aren't Hope." Blake pushed her hair back and sighed, laying down beside her.

"No, I'm not. But everything will be fine. You'll see." Vivian nodded, trying to stop her tears. "Everything just feels weird. I promised my parents I'd keep her safe."

"And you did!" Blake sat up, and took Vivian's face so she had to look at him. "You protected her! She's going off with her mate and is going to live in a castle! The safest place!" Vivian nodded, biting her lip.

"I know. She's better off. Safer." She sighed, wiping her tears away. "Let's sleep." Blake nodded. "Maybe later we can do more than sleep."

"Easy, tiger." Vivian giggled and curled into Blake. "Thanks," she whispered, snuggling deeper into Blake's warm embrace. "Maybe tomorrow we can do some... things." Blake squeezed his eyes shut, trying to make tomorrow come quickly. Vivian giggled and let her own eyes close.

~~~~~~~~~~

Hope sat beside Dorian, her small hand in his large one. She felt the car moving beneath them and felt disoriented. Where were they? She couldn't tell, and she didn't like not knowing. "What are we passing?" She asked after a long quiet. A gentle snore greeted her in return, and she tilted her head at the noise.

"He's asleep, Queen." Horatio yawned. "I don't blame him." He turned his head towards the driver's seat and called out, "Hey, William? You good to drive? Should we stop for the night?" William really wanted to sleep, but he also knew that Dorian really wanted to get his mate to her new home, especially after the leaving was so painful.

"Yes, Beta. I am fine to drive." William took a large swig of coffee he'd taken before leaving. "Yes, I will be fine."

"But what are we passing?" Hope tried again, but more snores greeted her. They were different in pitch, and she rolled her eyes. "William, I think it's just us."

"Yes, Highness. Why don't you sleep?"

"I can't." She looked towards the direction she thought the window was and sighed. "Where are we?"

"We're in Nevada. In a couple hours, we'll arrive at a private airport belonging to the Mountain Pack. From there, we'll take His Majesty's private jet to the Royal Pack in Kentucky where we have our own private airport." Hope nodded, listening attentively to William speak. He laid it out step by step in a way that let Hope know exactly what was going on - he could sense her unease. He looked in the rear-view mirror and saw that everyone really was asleep.

"William?" He smiled. She really wanted to talk.

"Yes, Majesty?"

"What is the pack like? Where will I be staying? What is it like? Are you always with Dorian? Is the castle really impressive? I've heard people say it's incredible." William laughed and looked back at her.

"The pack is the largest one out there. We have the largest army, largest group of members, largest pack-lands, and certainly the largest pack-house. The pack's you've been too are nothing compared to the Royal Pack. The people are really... uptight? It's everyone's unspoken job, regardless of warrior or omega status, to keep the Royals safe. They may see you as an outsider, but you'll be welcomed in eventually. Don't worry, Highness. I'm sure you'll have them at your feet before long." Hope smiled softly and shook her head. "You will be staying at the palace with His Majesty. If you were referring to sleeping arrangements," William flushed but shook his head to concentrate, "you two will have to figure that out. I've never been inside the Royal chambers, Highness, so I can't say what it's like. Outside of that, yes, I'm always with Dorian. Hector is in training to be an additional guard, and I think he'll be to you what I am to Dorian." He took a breath and thought back to her questions. "Ah, yes. The castle. It's... just as people say. Grandiose. Elaborate. Maybe a little scary." Hope giggled and leaned back in her seat.

"I see. Thank you." William didn't respond. He focused on the road and on the heart beat that remained just a bit faster than it should be for a resting heartrate. He knew the Queen was nervous, but wasn't sure if it was because of her task as Queen or if because she didn't know where she was. He noticed that earlier, she kept asking to be told what was around them.

"Are you okay, Highness?"

"Yes." Her voice said otherwise. William frowned and looked around. No danger.

"On the right, there are a bunch of trees. On the left, you can faintly see the mountains." He didn't know what else to say, so remained quiet until the scenery changed. "We're entering a city. We'll be at the Mountain Pack airport in about an hour."

"Thank you, William. Thank you." Hope let herself relax and fell asleep still holding Dorian's hand. In truth, William thought that he'd be a better suit for Hope than Hector, but well, time would tell.