The Gilbert family was no stranger to death. Over the years, death seemed to just take and take, until for a while it seemed to just stop. The Mikaelsons were no strangers to it either. Over course of their long lives, they'd witnessed a lot of death. Ranging from the enemies they killed, to the loss of people they'd grown to care about deeply. It seemed that now, after years of a peace from that feeling heartache, death had once again come back to haunt both families. Slowly but surely, the blackness and muffled, distorted voices vanished for Mira Rey Mikaelson as her eyes snapped open, bolting upright from where she lay with a gasp.

   Her eyes darted around the room, taking in her surroundings as she quickly realized she was no longer at Shiloh place. One moment, Audrey and Hayley had been urging their daughters to run, and the next they saw Greta's faces before that was it. 

   "Mira?" Grace's small voice sniffled.

   Elliot swallowed hard. "Aunt Freya! She's awake!"

   Mira was able to make out she was in her siblings dorm room at school, before the door opened and Freya walked in, quickly making her way over to her niece. "Hey, hey." She said gently, sitting on the edge of the bed beside her. "You're okay. You're safe now, you and Hope both are."

   "What happened?" She immediately got to the point. "Where's my mom?"

   The remnants of the strong expression Freya had been trying to keep up for the sake of nieces and nephew faded, and grief filled her eyes. "Mira..." She began quietly, taking her hand. "I'm so sorry..."

   "Sorry? What? Freya, where--" But she was cut off as she heard her siblings, and looked to where they stood across the room, tears falling down their faces. A lump formed in the back of her throat as realization slowly began to hit her, but she shook her head in denial. "No...no, what's...where is she? I want my mom. Where's my mom?"

   Freya took a deep breath as she squeezed Mira's hand. "She's gone." She whispered out sympathetically.

   "No, but she said she'd be fine. She can't..." Mira's voice cracked, shaking her head still as she tried to stop the tears from welling up in her eyes. She shuffled back on the bed, snatching her hand away from Freya as she squeezed her fists shut, causing her fingernails to dig into her palms. But she didn't feel it, she couldn't feel anything through the numbness that was slowly engulfed her body. "She can't be gone. S--she..." Her breathing sped up rapidly and unevenly, squeezing her eyes shut.

   The lights in the room flickered as the ground began to shake. "Mira?" Elliot called out worriedly.

   Grace didn't say anything and ran over to the bed, climbing on and hugging onto her sister tightly, followed a few seconds later by Elliot. Slowly, the shaking stopped as Mira slowly looked down at the twins, who cried quietly into her shoulders as they clung onto their older sister. As much as she didn't want it to be true, one look at them forced her to face the truth of the matter. A sob escaped her lips as she wrapped arms around Grace and Elliot, crying with them as she hugged them tightly in return. 

   Freya Mikaelson moved closer to the three to comfort them, her eyes falling on a picture sat on Elliot's bedside table that made a tear fall from her own eye, as she looked a picture of Audrey smiling with all three of her children in her arms. 

   Something that would never happen again.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

   There had been some debate over the funeral for Audrey. Klaus had organized for she and Hayley's second line to be a joint affair, as knew just as Freya, Marcel, and Vincent that the pair were sisters, even if they weren't tied together by blood. They'd became sisters the moment they had met fifteen years ago, and nothing had ever managed to change or break the bond that they had formed with one another. But he also knew, just as Elena and Jeremy Gilbert did, Audrey would find peace with people she lost that she held most dear to her. Her parents, her aunt, even her uncle, and all of them wanted to be able to honor that.

   So, before the kids and Freya would be flew back to New Orleans for the ceremonies there, there was going to be a small one held for Audrey in Mystic Falls. While there wasn't time for a huge service, with some help from Caroline, anyone that wanted to attend agreed to meet at the Gilbert family plot in the cemetery, where a headstone was being erected for her next to her parents headstone.

   And despite any differences some in Mystic Falls might have had in the past with the Mikaelson family, for Audrey, all of those were being pushed aside for the day. 

   "Are you ready for this?" Hope asked Mira quietly, as the oldest of the four Mikaelson children stood together at the entrance for the cemetery. Freya wanted to wait for them, but Mira wasn't close to being ready, so Hope told her to take Elliot and Grace ahead and they'd catch up. 

   They could see everyone gathered ahead by the Gilbert plot. Caroline was there with Alaric, Lizzie and Josie, the blonde vampire holding her girls close to her as she looked at the newly erected headstone for her best friend. Alaric stood behind them, placing a comforting hand on Caroline's shoulder with a somber expression of his own. Elena and Damon Salvatore stood beside them, with three year old Stefanie Salvatore resting contently in her father's arms, clearly not understanding why her mother seemed so upset. Jeremy Gilbert stood close by them, holding a singular rose in his hand, offering a weak smile to Elliot and Grace. Normally, the two would be making the most of the time with the family they didn't get to see often, but they currently just clung onto one of Freya's hands each. Their eyes would look over at the headstone every so often, before they quickly looked away, each glance bringing the twins closer to bursting into tears.

   Stood near one of the trees, they saw the figures of Vincent, Josh, and Marcel. It made no sense for them to do the seven hour trip there to head straight back to New Orleans, but they also didn't want to miss it either, so Vincent had asked Ivy for help and the three were there via astral projection. They had asked a witch to help Klaus to do the same, knowing they couldn't risk him being there in person with Hope and Mira, not unless they wanted to bring the plagues their proximity brought onto the people of Mystic Falls. New Orleans was already struggling to cope with it enough. 

   He made the firm point that he would risk it if he had to, as he refused to not be there to say goodbye to Audrey. Yet, there was so far no sign of him. It was already hard enough that Rebekah and Kol had no way to make it, as they both wanted the chance to say goodbye too. 

   "How am I ever meant to be ready for this?" Mira whispered, knowing they should be going over to join them. But her feet weren't moving, as much as she willed them to. "How do I..." She tried but she couldn't finish her sentence. "It's my fault this happened."

   Hope shook her head as she grabbed hold of her hand tightly. "It's both our faults." She said, her voice thick with guilt. "But we have to say goodbye, Mi." She cleared her throat, taking a deep breath as she squeezed her hand. "So let's get through today the way we always have. The way that our moms were always so proud of us for doing." She locked eyes with her. "Together."

   Mira wiped her eyes with her free hand and nodded, squeezing her hand back. "Together." She repeated, and with Hope's help, she finally found herself able to move and they made their way over to join everyone. 

   Mira looked at the gravestone, and bit her lip as she read the inscription across it.

AUDREY GILBERT-MIKAELSON
JUNE 22ND, 1992 - MARCH 5TH, 2026
BELOVED SISTER, FRIEND, MOTHER, AND SOULMATE

"Goodbye is not forever. Goodbye is not the end. It simply means I'll miss you until we meet again."

   "Your mother may have never taken the Mikaelson name as once planned, but..." Klaus's voice began gently, as he appeared beside his niece and daughter. "She was always, and will always be a Mikaelson."

   "Soulmate...?" Mira glanced at him.

   Klaus knew why she questioned it. Freya had been honest with the girls about what had happened with Audrey and Hayley after Greta put them to sleep, about Elijah's role in it all. Mira didn't know what part of it all hurt her more. The fact her dad was there to help the family that wasn't truly his family, or the fact in her final moments, her mom was given hope of him being there for her and it was shattered in seconds. But Elijah wasn't himself, and Klaus knew that. Despite everything that happened, he knew when his brother stopped him from saving Audrey that day, he didn't know who was. He didn't have the memories of the love that he shared so deeply with her, because if he did, he would have done everything possible to save her. It was a blessing in a way, Klaus supposed, that Elijah didn't have his memories.

   Because if he did, he knew it would destroy him.

   "She loved him." He told her wholeheartedly. "And he loved her. He wasn't himself, Mira. He would have been there to save her and help you if he was. You know that."

   "Then why won't he just take the memories back?" She asked in pain. "He should be here. She'd want him here. Grace and Elliot need him, I...I need him." A part of her was angry, and she didn't know if it would ever go away.  

   He was standing by the daughter of the woman who got Audrey killed, rather than get the memories back of his family back. Maybe he couldn't help it, but with the guilt and pain already eating away at her inside, the bitterness grew.

   Dropping their holds on Freya's hands, Elliot and Grace made their way over to Mira, wanting their sister more than ever. Mira pulled on the best smile she could muster, as weak as it was, for their sake and dropped Hope's hand so that she could hold both of theirs. Klaus gave a small nod over to Caroline, who nodded and gently moved away from her children toward the headstone. 

   "Um...everyone asked if I'd like to be the one to speak today, so I'm going to try my best." Caroline began, looking around at everyone. "My whole life, Rey was my best friend." She announced, twisting the friendship ring that still sat on her finger after all these years. "And she is going to be my best friend forever, no matter if she's here or not. " Tears appeared in her eyes as she continued, but she tried her best not to let them fall. "There was a lot that we said we were going to do together when we got older. Some of it we got to do, and we got lucky that our girls have grown up as close as we did." Mira's eyes glanced over to Lizzie and Josie, who offered her sympathetic smiles. "She went through so much, so much that I think anyone else in her position would have broke. But Audrey didn't." She shook her head. "She just kept on going, and going, and through it all she fell in love." She said softly. "And from that she had three beautiful, amazing kids, every bit as strong as their mom. She was so proud of you guys." She looked at Mira, Grace, and Elliot softly. "And she always will be." She then turned to look at the gravestone, taking the rose that Alaric handed her.  "It's okay, Rey. You can rest now. We all love you." She bent down and laid the flower down on the grave.

   One by one, everyone then went up and laid a flower down on the gravestone, little Stefanie placing down a card she'd made for her aunt. Mira, Grace, Elliot, and Hope all waited till last, everyone but Klaus and Freya leaving to give them a moment in private. Hope walked up first, bending down and placing down a framed picture of Audrey and Hayley together, one taken years before everything with the Hollow had split their family apart. A time when Hope and Mira were still just babies, when Jackson Kenner was still around. It had been a day Audrey had gone with Hayley to the bayou, the picture take of them stood on the dock by the shack, Jackson pulling a face behind them since they couldn't see him to stop him.

   "Goodbye aunt Rey." Hope whispered, her fingers gently touching the glass of the frame as she looked at it. "I hope you and mom are together, looking after each other, just like always." A sad smile pulled on her lips. "I love you." 

   Grace and Elliot went over next together, Freya keeping close behind them just in case. "We love you, mommy." Grace said sadly, as they both placed down the card they made along with some flowers. "We're gonna be good, we promise."

   "We miss you." Elliot wiped at his eyes as his tears fell. "We're never gonna forget you. Ever."

   Freya moved and pulled her youngest niece and nephew into her arms, gently moving them away as she comforted them. Mira slowly moved closer and bent down in front of the gravestone, trying to find the words. But nothing seemed to come close to the right thing to say in that moment. "I'm gonna take care of them, just like I promised." She finally managed out in a whisper. "We're gonna be okay. W-we're gonna make you proud." She closed her eyes and leaned her head back as the tears began to cloud her vision. "This is all my fault, mom." Her voice cracked. "But we're gonna make it right, we're gonna save our family." Mira swore, knowing Hope felt exactly the same. "No matter how long it takes, or what we have to do." She cleared her throat as she reached her hand forward, running her fingers across the engraving. "I love you, mom. Always and forever."

   Getting up, she turned and walked over to Hope, who pulled her into her arms and let her cry into her shoulder. Freya wasted no time pulling the two girls into her arms with the twins, giving her brother a nod as he looked at the four children worriedly. This was only the start of the grief they'd have to deal with today, and it was already proving too much than he ever wanted any of them to experience. He waited until Freya had taken them out of earshot, over to speak to everyone else, and he walked over in front of the gravestone. 

   "I don't know how I'm supposed to do this without you." He spoke somberly. "Without you or Elijah or Hayley to guide me...I'm lost, sister. More lost than I have ever been." Klaus admitted honestly. "But I heard you, and I swear to you, I will take care of them the best that I can. This family owes you a debt that cannot be repaid, as you...you helped each of us in ways you'll never know, Audrey. I'm sure Rebekah and Kol will be along to tell you the same when they can, and I know being unable to be here today pains them. But we have to do what we can to protect the girls. No matter what, and I know you understand that." He took a deep breath. "He's gone, and I don't know if he'll ever come back. That face you saw, that wasn't him that day. The real Elijah never would have stood back and allowed this to happen to you. But for you, I'll do whatever I can for him. Even if it means protecting him from himself, because we both know what this truth will do to him."

   Klaus lingered in silence for a moment, and before the spell began to pull him back to reality in New Orleans, he could have sworn he felt Audrey's presence at his side, even if he couldn't see her.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

   After the service for Audrey, Klaus sent the jet to collect the four and bring them back to the city for the second line. But it appeared this wasn't as well prepared as the service had been in Mystic Falls, and the four kids didn't look at all confident or pleased as they glanced around at everyone gathering for it to begin.

   "Where's Dad?" Hope asked their aunt anxiously.

   "He'll be here soon." Freya assured her. "He's just waiting on Ivy to help him with the astral projection."

   "Everyone else?" She asked.

   "Marcel should be here. Vincent." She assured, and pointed over to a familiar face waiting on the street. "There's Josh." He gave the four kids a wave, and gave him weak smiles in return.

   "What about Declan?" Hope then asked, and noted how Freya's face fell as she avoided her eyes. "Please tell me someone told Declan."

   "You didn't forget." Mira said in disbelief.

   "He's in Ireland." Freya rambled out, guilt on her face. "I-I was so focused on everyone else..."

   "Oh, my God, Freya." Hope shook her head as she looked away from her.

   "I'll fix it." Freya promised as the music started, and the march began.

   "I thought Caroline was coming for mom." Grace said after a moment, looking around for sight of the blonde. "Where is she?"

   "She couldn't make it." Freya admitted to them. "She sent Klaus a message apologizing, but she needed to stay with her girls."

   Mira bit her lip, glancing around at the crowd of people following behind them in the march, just as Hope was. Nothing about this felt right. Other than Josh, there wasn't a single person any of them recognized there, despite the promises that they'd turn up. She felt the worst for Hope, as this was the first part of the service planned for Hayley, and no was there compared to earlier. 

   "This is all wrong." Hope shook her head, seeing the lines of drunken tourists lining the streets as the march continued. "Mom and aunt Rey didn't even know all these people."

   "Your moms made a mark on this city." Freya told the four gently. "Everyone's here to honor her."

   But that didn't bring Hope any comfort. "But where are all of their friends?" She mumbled before she began to walk ahead. Grace and Elliot glanced at one another before they ran after her, each taking one of her hands to try and help calm her down. She was the one most on edge compared to Mira, Grace, and Elliot. Freya fell behind to answer her phone, leaving the four Mikaelson children walking together without her, but it wasn't getting better even with the twins help. "This is all wrong."

   Suddenly, a black van sped forward and blocked the street, stopping the second line from going any further, another one blocking the path behind.  "Josh!" Freya yelled to the Rosza vampire.

   "Freya!" Klaus's voice yelled.

   "Klaus!" Freya looked relieved as he brother came to her side.

   The van doors opened to reveal Greta's followers inside, loaded weapons sat on the floor in front of them, as they kept themselves shielded from the sun. "Emmett. What the hell are you doing here?"

   "Where are Antoinette and Elijah?" Emmett demanded.

   Josh scoffed. "Probably under a rock somewhere. Maybe you should join them."

   "We're not going anywhere till they're returned to us safely." He stated.

   "Hope, Mira, Grace, Elliot." Freya moved to them as Klaus vanished almost quickly as he had appeared, pulling them closer. "We've got to get out of here."

   "No." Hope shook her head.

   "Hope--"

   "I said no. This already sucks enough. Look, I'm not gonna let them ruin it more." She refused before she waved her hand, causing Freya, Grace, and Elliot to vanish and reappear on the side of the street, out of the way. "Mira--"

   But Mira just took her hand with a determined look. "I'm with you."

   Hope squeezed her hand and nodded, before the pair focused on the van that was blocking the path behind them.  "Bruciare supe terram, faciendo ignis ga praemium." The two cousins chanted in sync, and frusted their hands forward at the van, causing it to go up in flames.

   "Hope!" Freya yelled out desperately. "Mira!"

   "Weapons up." Emmett commanded, as the two then narrowed their eyes on the van he and the other vampires sat in.

    "Bruciare supe terram, faciendo ..."

   "Josh!" Josh wasted no time as Emmett pulled the trigger on the stake gun in front of him, grabbing the two Mikaelson teens and rushing them away before either of them could get hit.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

   After the disastrous second line, it appeared that all the Mikaelsons had been pushed to their breaking point. Hope forced Klaus away when he tried to reach out to her, and the four kids had remained silent in the hallway when they heard Freya crying in her room before they left. Ever since they'd got back, the four had been going through different books and grimoires, trying to find a spell that was going to fix everything. They couldn't bring their moms back, but they could find a way to bring their family back together, just as they said they were going to do. 

   For Mira, Grace, and Elliot, the searching offered a distraction. There was no hiding the truth from them after what had happened, and Freya admitted to them Klaus had Elijah and Antoinette locked up on the edge of the city, after the pair had made a surprise appearance in New Orleans before the four arrived back. Which was why Emmett and the rest of Greta's followers had shown up, demanding for them to be returned. 

   But that wasn't their father.

   He was just the man didn't remember them, and that version of him was far more concerned for Antoinette than the true family he had no memories of. That was the version of him Audrey had seen last, and they wanted nothing to do with him. 

   When night fell, the four Mikaelsons had left for the bayou, were the Crescent packed had prepared a werewolf funeral for Hayley. Which offered a second chance to give her the goodbye that she deserved, just as Audrey had managed to get in Mystic Falls that morning, without anything ruining it. 

   Carefully, Freya scattered the earn of Hayley's ashes along the flower filled raft that had been prepared, chanting a spell gently as she did so. "Mou sé li la paix. Mou sé li la paix. Mou sé li la paix. Mou sé li la paix."

   With some help from Mira to keep her from crying, Hope had picked out some of Hayley's things to put on the raft for the funeral, as something to represent her. The twins placed down a picture of all of them and their moms together, as Hope placed Hayley's favorite boots and jacket down beside it. Mira placed down another picture, which was of Hayley holding Hope when she was just a baby, out in the bayou with Jackson beside them smiling. 

   As Freya joined the four, they stood in silence for a long moment before Hope broke it. "We know how much that you've lost over all these years trying to get our family back together." She said softly, glancing at Freya who looked down. "And... we know that you think that there's nothing else that we can do. But  we believe that there is. There has to be. We have to save each other. We have to save always and forever." She urged wholeheartedly. "You've taught us most of what we know about magic, and... ...if you're up for it, we'd really like your help figuring it out."

   "We're stronger together." Mira nodded in agreement, as Freya looked at the two teenagers. "Our whole family is stronger together. Maybe we'll be able to fix this together."

   "Anything you need." She promised them.

   Hope smiled weakly as she looked at the raft, her eyes falling onto the necklace Jackson gave Hayley on their wedding day. "Do you think that I could, um..."

   "Yeah. Absolutely." Freya carefully placed it around Hope's neck, fastening it before moving her hair out of the way. 

   Hearing footsteps, their eyes glanced over toward the wood shack, making small smiles appear as they saw Marcel, Josh, and Vincent arrive. The twins looked at their sister, who nodded, and they wasted no time quietly running over to Marcel. Marcel bent down and pulled the two into a hug, before he lifted Grace up into his arms, Elliot looking at Josh who picked him up without needing to be asked. 

   Hope glanced over her shoulder, and her smile grew slightly. "Freya." She gained their aunts attention, nodding to who else was approaching.

   "Keelin." Freya breathed out when she saw her, moving forward and hugging her tightly. "Oh. Oh... How did you..."

   "I got on a plane as soon as I heard the news." Keelin answered, before the Mikaelson witch pulled her into a kiss.

   Now that everyone was there, the wolves moved the raft off the dock and onto the water, ready to be pushed out. Lisina gave Freya  nod, and the Mikaelson witch turned out to look at the crowd of wolves and heir friends gathered. "People will forget the things you said, forget the things you did, but no one ever forgets the way you made them feel." She began, Mira staying by Hope's side and holding her hand, seeing the tears appearing in her cousins eyes. "Hayley Marshall... made me feel like I was part of a family. And when the realities of this life became too much to bear, we shouldered them together. We laughed, we cried. When I failed, she lifted me up. And when I succeeded, she danced by my side. And she did that for all of us. No one will ever be able to replace her, or heal the pain we feel at her loss. But we can honor her with our actions and with our words... We can love each other the way she would've wanted us to love."

   Freya then looked at Lisina, who nodded and used her flaming torch to set alight to the raft, before it was pushed out into the water. Hope squeezed hard and tight onto Mira's hand as they watched it float away, tears falling down her cheeks. "Goodbye, Mom." She whispered out, looking up in confusion as she felt someone else take hold of her free hand, freezing in shock as met her dad's eyes. "What are you doing? You can't be here."

   "Yes, I can." Klaus told her, shaking his head. "Just for a moment. Our family has infinite struggles ahead, but right now, I need to be here with my daughter."

   Hope didn't reply to that and squeezed onto his hand too, a storm beginning to rumble in the clouds due to his proximity to Hope and Mira. "Things are probably gonna get ugly." Freya said quietly to Lisina. 

   Nodding knowingly, Lisina looked toward all of wolves. "Let's pack it in, everyone. Take shelter." She ordered, everyone beginning to leave, the twins letting Marcel and Josh to lead them away too. 

   Hope frowned slightly as she felt Mira let go of her hand. "Mi--"

   "Enjoy the moment with you dad." Mira told her, shaking her head. "I'll see you at home." She promised, giving her uncle a weak smile before she turned to follow after her siblings.

   "Mira." Klaus gently touched her shoulder, making her pause to look at him. "I think that your mother would want you to have this." Reaching into his pocket, he pulled something out and placed it into her hand. 

   She looked and her face fell sadly as she saw her mom's old necklace, with the charm that used to be on her anti-magic bracelet on it, along with the necklace she'd kept her engagement ring attached to. "I thought they were gone..." She managed to whisper, clutching them tightly in her hand. "Thank you." She said sadly before she left the father and daughter alone, ignoring her the part of her inside that wished that was something she could have with her dad too.

   And if all went to plan, maybe it would be.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

   Before the curses could do any damage to the bayou or the city, Klaus had said goodbye to Hope, but promised her that he would be there the best he could. Through Freya's magic, letters, calls, they were going to be together in the only way that they could be. But he made it clear to her that being together in person was no longer an option, not now he knew what had Ivy had told him about the prophecy. They were not many plagues left both they reached the final one, the death of all firstborns, he refused to put Hope's life at risk. He refused to put Freya and Mira's lives at risk.

   However, before he could make it far, a magical force snapped his neck and dropped his body to the ground. When he woke up, he found himself laid on the ground of the courtyard in the compound, the sound of thunder overhead as a storm brewed. Getting to his feet, he moved to head out the carriageway, only for an invisible boundary to throw him back for trying.

   "It's no use." A familiar voice informed him.

   Klaus slowly turned to see Elijah approaching, and he took a step back with a glare. "You stay away from me."

   "Oh, believe me, I'm not here 'cause I enjoy the pleasure of your company." Elijah sneered in distaste. "There's no way out. We're trapped."

I hope I did Audrey some justice with this send off. I've rewritten this chapter a few times to try and get something I like, and this was the best that came out. Next chapter, we move from Mira's perspective to Elijah's as the Mikaelsons try to work their way out of the chambre. It's gonna be an emotional one, to put it lightly, and likely a long chapter too.

I hope you all enjoyed!