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CHAPTER 33: ROSE COLORED GLASSES

❝ premarital rituals must include both parties. ❞

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JOY IS AS THORNY AND SHARP AS ANY OF THE DARK EMOTIONS. To love someone fiercely, to believe in something with your whole heart, to celebrate a fleeting moment in time, to fully engage in a life that doesn't come with guarantees, these are risks that involve vulnerability and oftentimes pain. When we lose our tolerance for discomfort, we lose our joy. If we cannot stand ourselves—if we fear, and we do—how do we live?

"That is the last of them!" Aiden announced, dropping the very last moonlight rings into the trash with a beaming smile. "Everyone out here is officially ring free."

"And better off," Hayley finished.

"Easy for you to say. You are a hybrid. I am back to turning every single full moon. And if the wolves who are loyal to Finn come back here, they are going to rip right through us." Aiden reminded before turning to Enola with hopeful eyes. "So I gotta ask—when is the wedding?"

"Ten days," Enola informed excitedly. "After that, my power is your power."

"The full moon won't control you anymore. Spread the word." Jackson hummed. "Any wolf who wants to be included needs to be here to bear witness to the wedding."

"I can do that," Aiden nodded. "In the meantime, what will you all be up to?"

"Good question," Enola nodded, turning towards Jackson with a raised brow.

"We are going to meet an elder. We need an old-school Crescent Wolf to conduct the wedding. Then there are the trials." Jackson shrugged. "You and Klaus say a few oaths, do some trust falls, smoke a little Blue Calamus root out of a peace pipe, piece of cake."

"Right," Enola nodded anxiously. "Piece of cake."

"Don't worry," Jackson said. "Klaus will be there too."

"Speaking of Klaus," Hayley began. "Where is he right now?"

"Trying to find Finn. The barrier is still up at the compound." Enola explained shortly. "You find Finn, you break the barrier."

"Let's hope Klaus breaks the barrier before sundown," Jackson sighed, earning confused looks from both Hayley and Enola. "It's Carillon Eve. The locals shroud the eyes of angels so that the dead can walk among us for a night without judgment. The locals will parade across the city at sundown."

"Klaus will find Finn," Enola announced. "And then we will meet this elder and follow these trials."

"Good," Jackson grinned. "Because I have been looking forward to seeing my grandmother for weeks now."

"Wait, wait, wait," Hayley interrupted, eyes wide. "Your grandmother?"

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Enola sighed for the umpteenth time when the phone went straight to voicemail. She was growing worried for her beloved fiancé. The only time he did not answer her calls was when he was in trouble. At first, she wondered if he had gotten a case of cold feet. But that thought was quickly brushed off. He would have told her if something was bothering him. Of that, she was certain.

"Are we hiking to Baton Rouge?" Hayley huffed.

"Just a little bit further," Jackson smiled. "You nervous?"

"I'm not the one you should be asking," Hayley pointed out, sparing Enola a quick glance.

"I'm sure Klaus is fine," Jackson rolled his eyes. "It is impossible to kill the guy."

"But it is not impossible to torture him," Enola sighed before stopping dead in her tracks. "Maybe we should reschedule."

"The wedding is in ten days," Hayley reminded. "We can't reschedule."

"Hayley is right," Jackson continued. "If we are going to do this, we need to do this now."

"And what about Nik?" Enola inquired. "We sort of need him for this to work."

"He will catch up to us," Hayley reassured. "He somehow always does."

"But—"

"Enola, I understand that you are worried, but Klaus is a big boy." Hayley chuckled. "He can take care of himself."

"I'm not so sure he can," Enola muttered under her breath.

"Y'all are late," An unfamiliar voice noted, drawing their attention to a cute little elderly woman with a stern look.

"Grandma Mary," Jackson greeted, pulling the woman into a quick hug. "This is Hayley."

"Mary, it is so nice to meet you." Hayley smiled charismatically.

"You can turn off your old people charm now. We have no time for sweet talk, darling." Mary warned, eyes focusing on the other unfamiliar face. "You must be Enola—the one my grandson is so sure can change the world."

"I wouldn't say that—"

"Then what would you say?" Mary quirked a brow.

"I would say that the wolves—that we—have been treated unfairly for far too long," Enola claimed. "It's about damn time we change that."

"Good," Mary grinned, eyes flickering around the area swiftly. "Now where is that fiancé of yours?"

"He is running a bit late," Enola confessed. "We can start without him."

"We can't," Mary shook her head. "Premarital rituals must include both parties."

"What exactly are our premarital rituals?" Enola inquired slowly.

"Fasting, purification, the rite of divulgement, to name a few." Mary shrugged.

"The rite of what?" Enola frowned.

"Oh, it's simple." Mary nodded. "You speak the truth, he speaks the truth, secrets are cleansed, everybody is happy."

"What do you mean by secrets are cleansed?" Enola pushed nervously.

"The two old alphas and the two new alphas smoke the root of a Blue Calamus flower. It links your hearts and minds together. The ceremony won't take if there are lies separating you. This way, there are none." Mary explained. "It's the most important ritual apart from the wedding ceremony itself. Hope you don't have too many skeletons in your closet."

"I—I'm not doing that," Enola stuttered. "I'm sorry. I can't."

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Enola dialed Klaus. She had spent the night waiting for his call. She couldn't make any big decisions without him. This secret was as much his as it was hers. So she wouldn't go through with it until he finally arrived. She had to discuss options with him. They both needed to be on board for this to work. Though with how determined he had been to keep Hope a secret—killing his own father—it was painstakingly clear that he was going to fight against this.

"You scared me," A familiar voice called out. Enola glanced towards Hayley before turning back towards the lake. "I was worried you ran off in the middle of the night."

"Nope," Enola muttered. "I was just out here thinking."

"About the wedding trials?" Hayley pushed lightly.

"I know I am supposed to divulge my great secrets, but I can't." Enola expressed. "You know I can't."

"But you need to," Hayley begged. "For our people."

"It's not safe," Enola reminded.

"When have we ever been safe, Nola? Our people have been cursed, hunted, exiled—but you can change the world." Hayley announced. "But to do that, we have to give each other our secrets."

"Does it count if you already know my secrets?" Enola inquired.

"Jackson is trusting you with our pack. He needs to know you trust him too." Hayley informed. "If you don't, then this whole thing will not work and we are right back to where we started."

"Too bad, so sad." A new voice drawled, turning their attention towards Klaus who stood a few feet away with a scowl. "I need a word with my lovely fiancé. Alone."

"I'll see you back at the cabin," Hayley whispered.

"Unlikely," Klaus scoffed.

Enola and Klaus stared at one another in silence as Hayley hesitantly left. They were unsure where to begin this conversation. It was clear they were on two different pages regarding the wedding rituals—wedding rituals he didn't bother attending. Did he truly have a say in this discussion if he wasn't here to partake in such events? Reluctantly yes.

"Have you lost your mind?" Klaus questioned. "Are you seriously considering this preposterous truth telling idiocy?"

"Actually, I'm kind of on the fence." Enola shrugged, unfazed.

"Well, then, allow me to make this simple for you." Klaus cleared his throat. "Under no circumstance will you divulge any family secrets. Especially none that would endanger our child."

"Except it is not that simple, Nik." Enola argued. "You saw what Finn did. He is growing more powerful by the day. Right now he controls over half of the wolves. Our marriage could change that."

"The outcome of your strategy is not worth the risk it imposes on our daughter," Klaus spat.

"Well, it isn't a risk if I trust Jackson." Enola shot back. "Nik, think—we could have a whole army of superwolves who could protect Hope as one of their own."

"Hope doesn't need a wolf army. I'll protect her myself." Klaus declared. "And an easier time I'll have of it without you running off, sharing secrets with every motley member of your brethren."

"Damn it, Nik." Enola huffed in annoyance. "This is our chance. We can bring her home. We have to at least consider this."

"I have considered it and I have deemed it absurd." Klaus decided. "And in this matter there is no one above my decree, not even you."

"It's a good thing I don't take orders from anyone," Enola said. "Especially not from you."

"The answer is no," Klaus growled.

"I'm done listening to you." Enola spat. "Let me know when you want to have a real conversation."

"Enola," Klaus pleaded.

"I am not going to stand here and keep my mouth shut when you tell me what I can and cannot do to protect my daughter," Enola yelled.

"Our daughter," Klaus corrected.

"Right. Our daughter." Enola agreed. "But it was your mother who tried to kill her. And who knows what your equally psychotic brother is up to."

"I will deal with Finn." Klaus promised.

"And then what? Hope will always be the daughter of Klaus Mikaelson—the hybrid killer with a thousand enemies." Enola reminded. "Don't you get it? It's you. You're the threat. You're so paranoid that you can't see that this wedding can help her. She can come home. The wolves will be on our side."

"The wolves cannot be trusted," Klaus said with certainty.

"In your paranoid mind, nobody can be trusted!" Enola scoffed. "Where does it end?"

"There is no end!" Klaus growled. "Need I remind you I killed my own father in order to protect her."

"Really? That is why you killed him?" Enola chuckled humorlessly. "Or is it just that you were so terrified of letting someone—anyone—in?"

"I let you in," Klaus muttered.

"Then why won't you just trust me?" Enola begged. "I know this wedding can work. We can bring our little girl home. But you have to trust me."

"I do trust you," Klaus promised.

"And I trust Jackson," Enola said.

"Do you really believe that he is worthy of your trust?" Klaus asked softly.

"I do," Enola nodded.

"Your stubbornness is something I have always adored about you," Klaus sighed, giving Enola a gentle kiss on the forehead. "Very well. We will have this wedding. We will save the wolves. But if Jackson ever betrays you, I will hunt him down and deposit his head on a spike." He smiled softly as more ideas came to mind. "Perhaps I will even leave it in his grandmother's garden."

And if we cannot stand ourselves—if we fear, and we do—how do we live? We don't. Not really. We survive. We get from day to day, propelled by fear, grabbing for what we think we need, and never truly knowing what would heal this spiritual void.

We do not flourish, or grow, or become the people we have the potential to be. We lose our capacity to give or let anyone near, because we have closed ourselves off even from ourselves. Who can you be to someone if you are a stranger to yourself? How can you connect with someone if you are divorced from yourself? If you cannot face the truth of who you are, how can you truly see someone else?

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AUTHORS NOTE.
i know this chapter was really short but i hope you liked it anyway. the wedding is coming up and i cannot wait. i already have it typed which is good because i know what to expect and you don't. until next time, my loves!!!