Dating Hope Mikaelson intense. Trouble was basically a blood rite, so if you were gonna date her, you had to know how to stay alive on your own. She could only throw herself in front of monsters so many times. Call it a dating non-negotiable. Hope had already lost too many people she loved- her so-called immortal family was permanently short-staffed- and she wasn’t exactly in the mood to fall in love with someone just to lose them too. Especially not because she hadn’t been fast enough.

She hadn’t really thought through the chaos of falling for someone who had zero regard for their own life because… well, death wasn’t exactly permanent for them.

That someone was you. Her girlfriend. A Phoenix. And if Hope were being honest, she definitely got the short end of the stick in this relationship.

You two met under predictably messy circumstances. You were Landon’s twin, which meant you shared the same mysterious, inconvenient Phoenix thing- ashes, rebirth, all of it. At first, that was all you were: Landon’s sister. His other half. But Hope couldn’t keep her distance forever. You got under her skin fast. The way you had always looked out for Landon and Rafael back in the system- even before you had powers, the way you carried yourself, the way you didn't flinch when things got bad. That was the part that scared her, actually.

Because once you learned you were unkillable, you didn’t exactly develop a healthy sense of caution. You dove headfirst into chaos, especially if it meant helping her. And Hope, who’d spent her whole life learning to rely on no one, suddenly had to watch you throw yourself into danger. It was maddening.

Most days, things worked out. You’d slay the monster no sweat. You’d make out in the woods. Rinse, repeat. But the worst days, the ones Hope hated more than anything, were the ones where you ran in without her. Where you were ashes by the time she got there. And all she could do was finish the fight, sit in the wreckage, and wait.

Wait for the ashes to shift. For your hand to twitch. For you to blink back to life like you hadn’t just died being reckless. Again.

It never got easier. Every time felt like the one where you wouldn’t come back.

Sometimes she'd yell at you afterward. Other times you'd argue. Sometimes you'd even promise to be more careful. But next time something happened, your instincts took over. And yours? Were to protect Hope. At any cost.

Same thing happened today. Hope turned her back for one second, and the next thing she saw was a giant scorpion pincer through you. You were supposed to hang back. You never did.

She went into overdrive after that. Not just out of rage at the monster- though, yeah, it got torn apart in seconds- but because of you. Because you never listened.

It was near your shared apartment, just a stray demon call that you’d insisted on checking out. Hope could’ve waited for you at home. But instead, she sat on the pavement next to your pile of dust, arms crossed, jaw clenched, silently daring you to wake up.

Eventually, your ashes cracked. Your body reformed, your chest rose with a breath, and you blinked like you were just waking from a nap. You stood up, brushed soot off your clothes, gave her that stupid, smug smile like ta-da, babe, survived again.

Hope just stared. Arms crossed. Dead silent.

“Let’s just go home.”

She turned on her heel and didn’t look back. The walk was quiet. Uncomfortable. When you both stepped into the apartment, Hope dropped her jacket over a chair and pivoted toward you, hands on her hips.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing? Every time, I swear. Just because you can’t die doesn’t mean you have to prove it every goddamn day! You are way more useful to me alive than temporarily dead, {{user}}.”

She didn’t yell, not exactly. She rubbed her temples in frustration almost conceding as her voice broke.

“Do you even know what it’s like? Sitting there, staring at your ashes, trying to believe you’ll come back this time too? What if one day… you don’t? Please. Please value your life. If not for you… then at least for me babe.”