𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗿, 𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗲.

           "Father!" Evangeline exclaimed, hurrying herself to her father's side and burying herself into his loving and strong arms. As expected, the hug was tight and warm—something she had missed dearly. "How have I missed you."

"So did I, my darling," he whispered tenderly, kissing her forehead. He then pulled away, cupping her face and examining her face. "You look just like your mother, Evangeline."

"A bit uglier though," Tobias teased as their father hit his arm, rolling his eyes. "Hello, sister," he chuckled, pulling her into a hug.

Despite her being the eldest, Evangeline was much smaller than her two brothers. Tobias was the tallest while George was still close to her in heights.

"Hello, Tobias," she cooed, patting his cheek as he groaned, shoving her away playfully. "And, there is my little George. Well, not so little anymore," she snorted, bringing him into a warm embrace.

George chuckled, returning the hug, "Father has been feeding us well," he joked as she rolled her eyes, ruffling his hair. "Where is that mysterious man of yours, sister?"

"Probably in his chambers," she said with a shrug.

Truth was Niklaus was pacing back and forth in his brother's chamber as he thought about what his brother had just said to him. Niklaus had spent three long days avoiding Evangeline just to keep his head clear. All his thoughts were spinning around ever since she had showed so much excitement about her father and brothers arriving in France. Being with Evangeline was all he wanted but was he certain he could trust her with his family's secret?

With Evangeline, Niklaus was giving himself a chance to be happy again and he knew deep down that he wanted her and no one else.

Rebekah sighed, closing her eyes as she could not bear her brother pacing anymore, "Nik! Would you stop? You must tell her the truth before you ask her father for her hand."

Kol scoffed, "Or he could compel her to think it is very well to be a vampire. Well, in your case brother, half-vampire."

Niklaus shook his head, ignoring Kol's words, "No, no mind compulsion on her. We cannot lie to her," he muttered, refusing to use his abilities on her.

A few knocks interrupted them as Rebekah walked to the door, opening it slowly. The page showed himself, clearing his throat, "What is it?" Niklaus queried.

"Lady Evangeline, my Lord."

Niklaus let out a sigh of frustration, gesturing for him to let her come in. He could smell her balmy scent approaching them. The first thing she did when she stepped in was wave and smile.

"Evangeline," he breathed out.

She smiled, "May I talk to you privately, please?" The siblings took this as an invitation to let them alone and left. Evangeline waited for them to go before speaking again, "Could you possibly be ignoring me, Niklaus?"

"My love, of course not," he reassured. "I needed to speak with my family and think. And perhaps, I panicked a bit about meeting your father."

Evangeline's hand reached for his cheek but pulled away too soon. He closed his eyes in hope to recall her quick touch, "My father's decision will not impact mine, Niklaus. I desire to be with you, no matter what."

Niklaus frowned, leaning closer to her, "Evangeline, you are deeply aware that secret unions are prohibited. I cannot risk your life and titles for the wedding we have been dreaming about. You do not want to be a damaged soul like I am."

"If you do feel for me then you are capable of being saved," she murmured. "Let me be the one to ease your pain. You know very well what I want, the choice is in your hands."

Niklaus should tell her, he should be honest and tell her his secret. As he thought about it, he could not help himself but to shout her name and catch her attention once again.

"Wait," he pleaded, grabbing her hand to bring her closer to him. This time, she sat by his side and he could feel her leg slightly grazing his. "I do have a confession to make and perhaps, everything will change once I say it," he licked his lips, building up the courage to speak.

"Niklaus—"

He cut her off as she took her hand in his, "I am an immortal," the confession came out as a whisper, as if he had just said forbidden words. And in some ways, he had. "I cannot die because of my mother's doing, her own selfishness. She was a witch."

"Niklaus..." she gulped quietly but he cut her off. He needed to get this out.

"She turned me—us. Elijah, Kol, Rebekah and I in 1001 before dying. I have been wandering Earth ever since. I killed people and I have been a bad person but I am trying to change—for you," he breathed out

And his worst fear became true when she stayed quiet, so quiet that Niklaus could hear the birds chirping outside clear as day. Evangeline was the first person he had opened up about it. He had thought of this all along. He would never ever try to turn if she wished not to, if he had to, he would stay with her until her hair turned grey and her breath stopped. He would for her. Niklaus could hear her heart beating fastening as he came to the painful realisation that he was scaring her.

Niklaus took a step back, "Am I scaring you?" He queried. "You can choose to forget about me, us, everything we did for these past few months."

Evangeline shook her head softly, "What are you exactly?"

Niklaus sighed, his lips forming a thin line, "The strongest creature to walk on Earth. I am half vampire and half werewolf."

"I—I need some time alone to think," she admitted as he nodded his head, clenching his jaw. "No one will know. You have my word, Niklaus."

Evangeline left his chambers, a bit confused. All of the tales she had heard as a child were true, and she had no idea how to cope with the fact that the man she cherished was one of the bad creatures. Evangeline needed to think with clarity. All he had had said sounded like pure madness: vampires, werewolves, witches. But despite her confusion, Evangeline had no choice but to believe him, even when he told her how bad of a person he had been but she had met the admiral part, and she was convinced that Niklaus Mikaelson was worthy of her love. Worthy of being loved even.

Then it somehow hit her that being part of this family would imply her living forever, and Evangeline did not know if she was fond of the idea yet. She observed the River Cher, letting the wind travel through her black hair as she closed her eyes, enjoying the cold breeze upon her pale skin. Evangeline had to make a decision and fast. The sun soon went to sleep, leaving only the moon and her in the dark.

Without really knowing, she found herself strolling to his chambers and catching the eyes of a new noblemen as she passed by. But, none of them were nearly as good as him. As she reached the double doors, the page blocked the way as she exhaled, clearly exhausted from this day. Finally, he moved out of the way and she pushed the doors as he followed.

"...As I was about to announce, Lady Farley is here," the page mumbled, closing the door behind him.

"Evangeline," Niklaus whispered, rising to his feet as he reached her space but chose not to overstep his boundaries. "You must know that I do understand whatever choice you have made and will respect it."

Avoiding his eyes, she sat down on the nearest armchair, "I should have stayed earlier but it scared me. I needed to think clearly to not make any witless decisions," she mumbled, breathing in. "I do feel for you, Nik and I have come to the conclusion that you do deserve to be loved as well. I want to be that person, Nik."

"But—"

"I am well aware of the sacrifices that it implies but...I do not care."

"Very well. Are you sure, Evangeline?" He queried finally as she hummed. "You do realise what it means if we do we. This is forever, dear, and not metaphorically speaking," he said, earning a quiet chuckle from her.

Evangeline nodded once again, reaching for his hands. Niklaus had almost forgotten how warm people could be, "Then be it, Niklaus. You cannot shove me away after what you have confessed. I cannot tolerate a life without you. The court life was not what I wanted, I do not desire to be at Mary's side until my death or hers. Besides, the idea of giving myself to someone I do not quite cherish is something I do not fancy."

Wordlessly, he brought his lips to her forehead, grazing it softly before pressing a kiss, "Your choice has been made then. I do not wish to have another woman by my side, Evangeline."

Considering it was already night, Evangeline had to leave Niklaus by himself as none of them wanted people to start rumours before Niklaus could ask for her hand. Wishing him a goodnight, she walked back to her chambers but her eyes couldn't help themselves but drift towards his siblings who were laughing out loud in the halls.

"Evening, Evangeline!" Elijah said softly, smiling. "We do hope the discussion with our brother ended well."

Evangeline nodded her head with a smile, "Perfectly well, Elijah," she replied, earning a questionable look from them. Pulling a chair, she sat next to Kol and leaned closer, "He told me. I know what you all are."

Rebekah's eyebrows shot up in surprise, "And yet, you are still chatting with us. Why?"

"I love him," she said as if the answer was as simple as that. "I saw the good part and I am sure you all did once."

Kol nodded his head, agreeing with her as he slid an arm around her, "Well, shall we say welcome to the family Evangeline!" He exclaimed, throwing his cup in the air as she hushed him with a laugh. "What is it?"

"People do not know yet. I wish to keep it a secret until Niklaus asks my father," she explained. "So, Kol, for the love of God. Do not say a thing!"

"Relax, darling. You can trust me."

"I expect you to be here tomorrow," she then told him. "We are going to hunt."

Kol nodded happily as Elijah chuckled, "Do not worry, I will make sure he keeps it a secret," she thanked him silently. "Goodnight then. Welcome to the family."

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author's note,  everything is going very fast, because ACT I will be only 8 chapters long. the act one will help you understand Klaus and Evangeline's relationship before the upcoming events!!

happy new years, loves!!!!