┏━━━━━ ★ ━━━━━┑
𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐎.
[0𝟐]. 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐏𝐄𝐎𝐏𝐋𝐄
𝐉𝐔𝐒𝐓 𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐖𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐋𝐃 𝐁𝐔𝐑𝐍.
【 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐎𝐍𝐄 】
━━━━━━━━━━━━

━━━━━━━━━━━━
❛ 𝘞𝘌𝘓𝘓 𝘐𝘍 𝘐𝘛 𝘐𝘚𝘕'𝘛
𝘗𝘌𝘕𝘌𝘓𝘖𝘗𝘌 𝘛𝘏𝘌
𝘛𝘌𝘌𝘕𝘈𝘎𝘌 𝘉𝘐𝘛𝘊𝘏 ❜
┗━━━━━ ★ ━━━━━┛

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐎𝐘-𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐑𝐔𝐁𝐁𝐄𝐃 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐈𝐑𝐄𝐃 eyes, attempting to get the sleep out of them as he walked down the main stairs towards the ground floor, leading into the living area. Promptly, the commotion around Nathaniel quickly signaled something was going on. Then the second he saw mostly everyone in their Salvatore Stallions gear and sporting their signature colors on their faces, he remembered game day.

The annoyed groan abandoning Nathaniel did nothing to derail everyone from their daily tasks of preparing to lose yet another game against the Mystic Falls High's Timberwolves. The nephilim wasn't much for sports, but the arrogant grins on the humans faces each time they beat the Stallions irked him.

God's creation was a menace.

"Let's hit the dinning hall and carb-load," Lizzie Saltzman's voice quickly caught Nathaniel's attention. "It's game day."

Nathaniel swiftly turned to find his adoptive siblings walking along side each other, like they usually were. Lizzie dressed in her Salvatore Stallions jersey and Josie in her school uniform, but Nathaniel wasn't really focused on that. Instead, he noticed Lizzie's tone, which was an obvious indicator she was serious about the upcoming game and Josie on the other hand, seemed a little uneasy, tense even.

"I'm not hungry," Josie, noticeably guilty about something, quickly turned away from her twin evasively.

That was a wrong move on Josie's part. Mainly because Lizzie immediately stopped walking to turn towards her twin sister with a knowing and scolding expression on her face as Josie tried to play dumb about it. From Nathaniel's sport at the end of the corridor, he shook his head knowingly. Lizzie was about to make Josie even more upset, and he didn't like it.

"What?" Josie inquired.

Nathaniel noticed his presence was still unannounced to the Gemini witches as the two began to walk again, though this time in Nathaniel's direction. The nephilim was out of sight, able to listen in on their conversation and from the expression on Lizzie's face, Nathaniel was sure the twin wasn't ready to just let whatever they were talking about go without so much as a complaint.

"Well, uh, funny thing, actually, Josette," Lizzie started, and Nathaniel slightly rolled his eyes at the derision of Josie's name. "This morning, as I was desperately trying to make this trash bag of a jersey look cute, I suddenly had the urge to purge. So, I fled to the bowl, and lo and behold, I heaved up a gallon of black goo," Josie's eyes widened when she realized what that meant as Lizzie on the other hand stared at her accusingly. "So, seeing as I haven't been dabbling in any illicit black magic recently, I can only imagine it was a twin sympathy hurl," Lizzie finished and Josie quickly turned away with a guilty expression, confirming her twins' suspicions.

Nathaniel slowly clapped, emerging from his hiding spot by lifting himself off the wall he was leaning on, making it into the twin's line of sight. They both straightened out when they saw him. "Good job on cracking that one, Nancy Drew."

"You can't just be eavesdropping on private conversations, Nathaniel," Lizzie shot back, narrowing her eyes on him.

Nathaniel feigned a hefty sigh. "A pity. It seems I already have, Elizabeth," he sarcastically shook his head with a disappointed look on his face. "A little birdie told me what our amiable sister was up to, I just couldn't believe it."

"Adoptive sister," Lizzie corrected once again.

Nathaniel rolled his eyes. "Go find yourself a broom and fly away," he scoffed, his eyes leaving Lizzie to land on Josie as a faint smirk appeared on his full lips. "I didn't think you had it in you, Jo."

Josie was stunned. "Who told you?"

"Oh, my dear Jo," Nathaniel tsked, tapping her chin with his index finger. "A gentleman never tells, you know that," he arched a brow, biting the skin of his lower lip for a second as he shook his head while looking up. "But not to worry, this stays between us girls."

Lizzie narrowed her eyes at Nathaniel's statement and once the nephilim felt her judging eyes on him, he turned to her, comically sticking out his tongue and gagging in feigned disgust. The Gemini witch shook her head and rolled her eyes before turning her back on him, blocking his view of the brunette. "What did you do, Josie?"

Instinctively, Josie turned away from both of them with an obvious guilty expression on her face; one Nathaniel quickly caught even though she tried to hide it. Meaning, since he caught on to it, there was no doubt Lizzie had as well and whatever suspicion the blonde one had, it had just been confirmed with Josie's actions.

As Josie turned a corner with Lizzie and Nathaniel treading behind her, they passed beside Penelope Park. Nathaniel almost overlooked her, considering his general distaste for the dreadful witch's luring tendencies, but she snorted. It quickly caught everyone's attention, letting them know she was listening in on their conversation. Like always. Nathaniel rolled his eyes for the umpteenth time once noticing her smirk.

"Well if it isn't Penelope the teenage bitch," Nathaniel half smiled sarcastically. "Nice hair, by the way. It smells a little burnt from here, did your iron malfunction?"

Penelope huffed out a chuckle. "Good morning, Nat."

"Go away, evil one," Josie piped up, over their small exchange.

"Already gone," Penelope smiled, feigning sweetness on her features but before she started to walk away, she made eye contact with Josie, who by the looks of it was using up all her energy to keep cool. "Hot tip? Next time you burn your ex's hair off, make sure she can't rock a lob," she finished with a flip of her now-shorter hair before strutting away.

Nathaniel deadpanned. "You actually went full incendia on the bitch-witch."

Josie shifted uncomfortably as MG made an appearance.

"Morning! Big game today!"

Lizzie scowled in his direction. "Bounce, MG. If you hurry, you can catch up with the Blair Bitch and tongue-chum her again."

"What the hell did I miss yesterday?" Nathaniel narrowed his eyebrows.

Completely ignoring Nathaniel, MG reluctantly walked away, knowing he had wronged his friend in that situation. And before Nathaniel could question both Gemini witches or anything could be discussed, Alaric Saltzman walked down the hall in their direction with a grim expression. Nathaniel had a bad feeling.

"Hey, girls, listen-"

Nathaniel cringed internally when Josie cut him off. "Don't do it. Don't say whatever it is you're about to say, because you have Dad-face, and wherever Dad-face goes, daughter disappointment always follows."

Alaric frowned guilty. "I'm sorry. I can't make the game today."

As expected, both Gemini witches looked disappointed by the news and sad replies soon followed. Nathaniel, as always, drowned out their meltdown, preoccupying his vision on something else in the room before zoning out. It wasn't until the words find and Landy Kirby came into play that his attention was back on Doctor Saltzman.

"What do you mean, find Wednesday?" Nathaniel asked without missing a beat.

Alaric sighed heavily as his eyes landed on Nathaniel, but instead of responding, Doctor Saltzman stilled, taking in the nephilim's appearance. Nathaniel's hair was sticking out in different directions and the only thing that covered his body were his pajama pants. And knowing Nathaniel, Alaric knew it wasn't a stretch the nephilim had also missed his first two periods by sleeping in.

"Why aren't you dressed?" Alaric inquired.

Nathaniel shifted onto his left foot. "Don't change the subject."

Alaric huffed. "Landon can't be compelled. So, as of right now, we have a kid running around with a stolen artifact and knowing all our secrets."

Nathaniel snorted. "This is just awesome. Who was it again that told you and Hope it was a really bad idea telling the emo kid about all this stuff? Oh, right- me! I bet you're asking yourself why you didn't listen to me in the first place, huh?"

"This isn't the time for that, Nate."

"Oh, I know. But I'll bask in this I told you so for a while after we find him."

Alaric shook his head, his attention landing back on his daughters. "We have to protect our profile now more than ever. Can I count on you guys to do that?" he asked, and the twins hesitated before nodding in agreement. "Alright. I love you both. We'll be back as soon as we can."

With that, Alaric walked away, preparing to leave in search of Landon. And after seven prolonged minutes, Nathaniel reappeared at Alaric's side just outside the front doors of the school with a fresh set of clothes and his hair better tamed, yet still slightly messy. In his right hand, Alaric held his hunting bag before passing it on to Nathaniel.

"I'm only letting you come for the extra set of hands, Nate," Doctor Saltzman warned him, eyes locking on Nathaniel and Nathaniel's with his. "I want you to be careful. We still don't know why he couldn't be compelled, but that doesn't make him nonhuman yet. So, if you kill him-"

"I potentially start Armageddon. I know, Ric."

Alaric nodded once he thought Nathaniel understood completely before stalking off towards the SUV. Nathaniel treaded behind him, hoisting Alaric's bag over his shoulder before his eyes landed on Hope and his heart skipped a beat. The nephilim couldn't even stop to assess the moment before he noticed Rafael standing by her with a wrench in his hand as they argued.

Hope glared at Rafael in warning. "I have actual magic powers."

"And I have a long history of anger issues," Rafael shot back, unaffected.

"He can come," Alaric rushed past them in a hurry to put his gear in the SUV.

Hope looked at Alaric as though he'd lost his mind. "What?"

Nathaniel flipped on his dick switch as he rolled his eyes. "If you stopped arguing for a second and actually used your brain, tri-hard, you'd see he knows Wednesday. He's an asset. If he doesn't get killed in the process, that is."

"We need all the help we can get," Alaric added with a shrug before turning to Rafael. "So, fix the car and hop in," he paused, making a face at Rafael's attire once noticing the werewolf's smug smile. "And put a shirt on."

It wasn't long before the SUV was up and running, taking them from point A to B. Though the ride was tense and silent, Nathaniel ignored it. It was different being on a mission and having a fourth companion, but Nathaniel was good around wolves. He preferred them to the vampires in smell and overall the energy they put off.

Rafael shifted beside him. "You won't hurt him, right?"

"He deserves it," Nathaniel answered without sparing him a glance. "But no, I won't."

"You think Hope might," Rafael presumed.

Nathaniel shrugged. "Your friend lied and stole from us. Hope doesn't take lightly to those types of things, and honestly, neither do I. The only difference is she can actually do something about it and I can't."

Rafael sighed. "He's not bad person. I know him."

"He incinerated a bus filled with innocent people."

Rafael shook his head. "He wouldn't do this."

The statement seemed more unlikely as time progressed and more things appointed to Landon being responsible. Hope believed it was him, she had presumably seen him do it. And Nathaniel, though he couldn't really stand the tribrid, trusted her completely. Rafael on the other hand continually defended Landon from everything that pointed to the curly-haired boy being guilty of committing the crime.

"I don't know why he's still out here. He had a whole day's lead on us. He could be anywhere," Hope spoke up as the four walked into the woods.

Rafael looked at Hope as thought the answer was obvious. "Maybe 'cause he doesn't have a reason to run."

"Or he has a guilty conscious," Nathaniel stated, kicking rocks as he walked.

Hope gave Nathaniel a grateful look. "Thank you."

Nathaniel nodded in acknowledgment before his hearing picked up leaves and branches breaking under the weight of something, stopping him in his tracks. "Shh! Wait," he whispered, and everyone stopped walking for a moment as they focused their hearing on whatever had caught Nathaniel's attention. "You hear that?"

"Someone's here," Alaric frowned once he heard the crunching.

After a second, Alaric took off jogging through the foggy forest towards the source of the noise with Hope, Rafael and Nathaniel following suit. Cutting through branches, they suddenly came across a woman sitting on the ground as though hiding behind a large tree. The stranger quickly scrambled to her feet, revealing her white dress, that like her skin, was covered in soot.

The first thing that Nathaniel noticed was the panicked expression on her dirt-filled face, which pointed out to him quite obviously that she was scared. Doctor Saltzman on the other hand, quickly held both his hands up in a non-threatening manner in order to try to calm her nerves down.

"It's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you."

The woman looked back and forth at Alaric, Hope, and Rafael. And once her eyes landed on Nathaniel, they widened, and it quickly confirmed the nephilim's suspicions. The woman didn't register as human to Nathaniel when he sensed her, but he couldn't quite pinpoint what she was. The nephilim had never come back empty in those situations, except for Landon. But he had pushed that back, thinking the kid was just abnormal.

"Where you on the bus? Can you tell us what happened?" Alaric proceeded to question her, bringing Nathaniel out of his thoughts.

The woman curiously looked at the forest around her but remained silent, almost as thought she couldn't quite understand what they were saying. Nathaniel quickly walked around Hope to get to Alaric before softly pulling at his shoulder to pull him away from the creature.

"Ric," Nathaniel tried.

Alaric pulled his shoulder from Nathaniel's grasp. "Wait, Nate."

"Is she a survivor?" Hope frowned at the woman.

Rafael tilted his head. "Smells like it. She reeks of smoke."

The woman continued looking around with wide eyes and Alaric assumed she must have been traumatized. "I think she's in shock."

"No, she's not human," Nathaniel stated cautiously.

The nephilim waited for the woman to drop the act after his statement, but she didn't even flinch, much less falter. Alaric, Hope and Rafael turned to him swiftly with confused, yet concerned expressions and Nathaniel stared seriously at the woman before stepping towards her, but she instinctively stepped back.

"I'm willing to bet she sees or at least senses my grace," Nathaniel voiced his theory.

"Elaborate, Nate," Hope uttered.

Alaric looked the woman over. "What is she? A demon?"

"Wait, what?" Rafael questioned, stunned.

Nathaniel shook his head. "I don't know what she is, she's just not registering as human. And I'm pretty sure her confusion isn't an act either. She's genuinely out of it."

Alaric nodded quickly, looking back at the woman before turning towards them again. "Okay. I'll take her back to the car and call Dorian to pick her up. Uh, you three go ahead, I'll catch up-"

"No," Nathaniel interrupted. "She might be dangerous. I'll go with you."

"Nate, she's confused, probably doesn't even know what she is either, I'll be fine," Alaric tried to ease Nathaniel's worry. "Besides, you're in charge. I trust you to keep those two safe and out of trouble. So, don't engage. We don't know how dangerous Landon is."

Nathaniel nodded. "Yes, sir."

"He's not dangerous-" Rafael tried defending.

Alaric shot Rafael a stern look. "I said don't engage."

Nathaniel cleared his throat. "Come back in one piece."

"Stay in one piece," Alaric smiled slightly.

Hope rolled her eyes. "Come on."

And as Nathaniel walked away from Alaric, he couldn't stop feeling his heart in his stomach at leaving his adoptive father with that strange creature. Not even when Hope locked her arm with his to ease his nerves as they walked.

▆▆▆▆▆▆ ★ ▆▆▆▆▆▆

unedited.
question, do you guys ready nate's
voice in an american accent or a british
one? i'm very curious about that.
oh, and by the way, i'm super bummed
because i wanted to give nate some
tattoos because hero had some in
after, but needles can't pierce
nephilim skin and i want to keep
this as canonically as posible, oh well.