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༒ 𝐃𝐚𝐰𝐧༒

• 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 13; 𝙆𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙆𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 •

"Are you sure it will work?"

"It's supposed to," The witch shrugged with a heavy sigh, "I cannot undo the compulsion, but I can try to weaken it a little. It should give us an opening to know what exactly did she compel Cassie to do. Except the.."

"Deep attraction to Niklaus?" The noble original murmured to help an awkward Freya finish her sentence, his voice stern and distant. The entire conversation he gazed at the window and listened, avoiding any eye contact, especially with her.

"Cass," The older sister crouched in front of the couch with a sad, comforting smile. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Yes." Cassie nodded slowly and replied quietly, glancing at an unusually silent Klaus and at Elijah's back. "What choice do I have? For all we know, Aurora may have compelled me to do something against all of you and I wouldn't even know. I don't want to hurt anyone."

"I know." Hayley nodded and gave her hand a small squeeze before standing up again.

Cassie looked up at Freya and heaved a sigh. "On a scale of one to 10, how painful is it going to be?"

"Not as painful as dying, I assume." Freya tried to comfort with the reference to the eclipse night, yet she herself wasn't sure how badly this spell could go. It was the first time she has ever performed this spell, and she had zero idea what is she doing, but as Cassie said - what choice did they have?

Elijah, knowing the spell is about to begin, gave in to the concern and curiosity as he turned on his heel and stared at Cassie, who looked torn almost as much as he did. He couldn't blame her for kissing his brother - after all, she was forced to believe she's madly in love with him. Nevertheless, as any other boyfriend would probably feel, he couldn't help but scold himself for not noticing it earlier and feel tortured at the sight of the woman he loves looking at another man (who loved her as well) in the same way he himself was looking at her.

Their eyes met for a long moment before she turned to look at Klaus and sunk into a trance of emotions she was compelled to have, until Freya cut the moment short and started to chant the spell.

The moment the ancient spell's words left Freya's mouth, Cassie fell on her knees and began to scream in pain while holding her head between her hands. It felt like someone was cutting her head in half, entering her brain, and studying her mind without her permission. Furthermore, it wasn't only they were searching through her brain, but also pushing her to let go of a few pieces of it. Freya was trying to tear the compulsion to shreds as much as she can, but Cassie's resistance was harder than she thought it would be.

"MAKE HER STOP!!!" Cassie begged as tears started to stream down her cheeks. "PLEASE, STOP IT!"

Elijah was the only one to forget the importance of this spell as he took a step forward toward his sister, but Klaus was fast enough to hold his bicep and pull him back.

"Elijah, give it a minute-"

"How incredibly convenient for you to say!" The older brother argued hastily, his loud voice almost sounding muffled between Cassie's shrieks of pain. "You have no right to tell me what to do!"

Klaus clammed up instantly and returned his hand to his side, while Hayley was trying to hush aching Cassie by stroking her hair slowly. It didn't take long before Freya gasped and opened her eyes, panting heavily as the younger Marshall groaned in exhaustion, yet relief.

"What happened?" Hayley asked the witch, wide-eyed in worry, "Did you see it? Do you know what she compelled her to do?"

"I-" Freya's voice was shaking and her breaths unsteady as she watched Cassie slowly return to her senses and gazing at her curiously. "She told Cassie to repress her feelings for Elijah, and think she's in love with Klaus. She.. Aurora wanted her to divide the two of you. This compulsion.." She tried to catch her breath while attempting to wrap her head around what she just witnessed in the younger girl's mind, "It's so strong! This desire and lust for Niklaus are impossible to break. I fear only Aurora can be the one to undo it."

"Great! Then we not only have to get Jackson's heart before the Strix will find a way to break Esther's sireline spell, but also find Aurora before Cassie will jump at Klaus and strip him!" Hayley let out carelessly and tactlessly before she turned to look at Elijah apologetically and in frustration. "I- I'm sorry, I didn't-"

"It's alright." He dismissed her remorse and put on a tough face that will conceal his dismay. "We shall find Aurora and get this over with."

Cassie glanced at her older sister, bewildered and confounded, oblivious to all bit of emotion she - deep down, underneath the suppressing compulsion - has for this man. With a loud sigh, she got up and stormed out of the room, her sister quickly follows behind as she called her name repeatedly to stop her.

"Cassie, hold on, could yo- Can you stop?!"

The Lycan turned firm on her heel to face her sister, revealing a pair of emerald green eyes brimming with tears, and jaw clenched tightly in anger. "No, I can't stop! I can't stop because I can't stay this close to Klaus especially not when Elijah's watching and hurting! You- You don't understand, Hayley, it's like I'm drawn to him. Like every cell in my body tells me to run towards him and hold onto him for dear life!"

"I know, Cass, we'll figure this out, I pro-"

"Your promises don't help me right now!" Cassie exclaimed in fury and took a step forward toward her flinching sister. "I need to find Aurora. Now."

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Old-fashioned jazz music playing on a gramophone player rang through the walls of the train car that seemed like it was formerly a post office car as the two sisters warily stepped into the dysfunctional vehicle. There was a strange scent of mold and decay, along with a lot of dust in the air that almost made Cassie suffocate on it.

"Well, that's not creepy at all." She murmured lowly as she scrunched her nose up in disgust and put her palm over her mouth to block the dust and dirt out of her airways.

Hayley quickly hushed her, whilst she walked further along the corridor toward a particular curtain, assuming by the familiar smell Aurora might just be there. She signaled her to stay in her place before she ripped open the curtains, only to find the room empty of anyone.

"Great. So that's another dead-end." Cassie growled quietly and folded her arms over her chest. All of a sudden, a creaking floorboard sound nearby caught the two's attention, and made them turn on their heel.

"Not necessarily," Hayley muttered before walking past her sister toward the source of the noise, which seemed to come from behind one hidden door of a closet. She exchanged a confused look with her little sister before pulling the door open, finding an old acquaintance bounded, gagged, and very desiccated as though he's been starved for quite some time, before he slumped forward onto her. "Lucien."

"Now, that's a face we haven't seen in a while." Cassie heaved a sigh of impatience before coming forward and grabbing his chin aggressively to lift his head up. "Where's Aurora?"

"Get.. Klaus.. Out of here." He breathed out weakly and said, causing both sisters to look at each other in worry.

Meanwhile, outside, the Mikaelson brothers were walking among the abandoned trailers and cars in search of the specific location Hayley have told them about over the phone where they were hoping to find Aurora De Martel, and make her undo the compulsion on Cassie before they'd kill her and get the white-oak bullets. Much to their surprise, they had to stop dead in their tracks at the sight of Aya and the two Strix members who have put the said redhead's unconscious body in the back of an SUV.

"Hello, gentlemen." Aya sing-songed as she approached the two with a soft smile, not impressed or concerned in the slightest bit.

"I had planned on taking a different head tonight, but yours will do just fine," Klaus told with a small smirk right before the dark-skinned woman drew Aurora's white oak bullet-filled gun and aimed it at him, killing his smug mood instantly. "I am getting so tired of having that vile weapon pointed at me!"

Aya looked at him in amusement and shrugged before she turned with the gun toward Elijah, who was seemingly unmoved by her actions. "Creator destroyed by his own creation. I suppose there's a certain poetry to that, wouldn't you say, Niklaus?" He paused before raising his chin challengingly. "Shoot me, and you die."

"True. For now."

Out of thin air, approached one of the witches who has been plotting with the Strix and began to cast the Chambre De Chasse spell as she thrust her hand forward. Soon enough, Klaus and Elijah's muscles seized up, and they both groaned in pain as the wind started to howl around them. At last, they both collapsed to the ground as their astral selves were sent somewhere else.

Klaus was the first to wake with a gasp on the floor of the hunt room and rolled over to see that Elijah, too, was now struggling to get to his feet.

"What is this?" A horrified Elijah whispered under his breath.

"Oh, Nik. The funny faces you make when someone surprises you."

The two turned around to the sound of the familiar, sweet giggle of Aurora, who smiled in contentment as she watched their confounded and bewildered looks. Not seconds later and her brother, Tristan, came out from the shadows to stand by her side, greeting the brothers with a small grin of his own.

"So good to see you both again, especially today."

"How the hell are we here?" The hybrid uttered solemnly.

"Oooh! I know the answer to that one." The redhead perked up and replied, "It's representational magic. Something in this room represents each one of us."

"Apparently, it's what allowed Aya's witches to drag you to this Chambre De Chasse they created for me."

"Perfect. We find what represents us, we break free." Klaus stated as he recalled the time his eldest brother, Finn, has performed the same spell on his brothers and himself.

"You can certainly try, but until then, my Strix are preparing a spell that is like no other in history." Tristan scoffed and informed as he and Aurora walked closer to the duo, arm in arm. "We are going to sever the link which binds your lives to ours."

Elijah raised a doubtful brow. "Are we, now?"

"Mmhmm."

"Our second rate-Napoleon, desperately trying to leave his mark on the world with those filthy little claws." The suited original hissed bitterly as he watched Tristan stands tall in front of him with a prideful, teasing smile.

"Even if, in the end, he's left with nothing but the scars of his failures." The younger brother commented contemptuously.

"Oh, rest assured, it will work. Soon, our fates will no longer be tied to yours." The older De Martel announced calmly.

"And, once that's done, as your bodies remain helpless, and your minds remain here, Aya will use my white oak to fulfill the prophecy." The redhead added.

"So, you see.. Today, you die. And, with your sirelines torn from you, you die alone." Tristan stepped forward boldly and stared deeply into Klaus' eyes. "Until then, how shall we pass the time?"

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"I had no idea that Aya was gonna take Klaus and Elijah down! And regardless, why the hell are we trusting this guy all of a sudden, huh? He's the one who ran off with Aurora the first chance he got!"

"You can hardly fault a man for following his heart. Yet, the moment she started raving about firing white oak into Klaus, well.. Words were said, hearts broken, veins drained." Lucien explained with a shrug as he paused his frantic gulps of the blood from the blood bag he was given.

"You're one to talk about trust - who was it that handed my dead husband's heart to the people that helped murder him?" The older Marshall girl intervened as she turned to Marcel with her hands on her hips.

"I bought your life with that heart. But hey, you know what? You called me here, so if you have another plan? Please, let's hear it." The dark-skinned man reasoned in defense.

"Yes, please, let's get to the matter at hand." The youngest of them murmured as she buried her head in her hands frustratedly.

"It's simple. We storm the coven house, stop the Strix from completing the de-siring spell. Period." Hayley answered, keeping her eyes fixated on Marcel with a cold glare.

"Okay. Well, that's easy for you to say. You're not sired by anybody, are you?"

"It's not just about de-siring.. We've got to stop an execution." Lucien interrupted as he commented with all seriousness, receiving skeptical looks from all three.

"What are you talking about?" Marcel voiced lowly.

"A lovesick teenage witch with a runner-up heart is somehow going to break the sire link? I'm sorry, but your darling Davina is in over her head, and Aya knows this." The older vampire told honestly, "She will let Davina de-sire both brothers, then test the spell's success by firing a white oak bullet into Klaus' heart. I mean, it's win-win for her - if you live, Marcel, we'll, she's won. If not, at least she's eliminated the rival sireline, including me."

"His prophecy witch said she saw Klaus die and his entire sireline burn." Hayley pointed out.

"She watched us fall, she watched us burn, every soul Klaus ever turned. When Aya tests this spell, Klaus will fall either way. And, if Davina fails, as she likely will, the two of us will die as well." Lucien finished pensively and returned to focus on his blood bag.

"Actually.." A male voice heard as it came from the entrance to the dining room, "Make that the three of us."

Cassie's confused eyes darted to her sister, whose eyes were wide and surprised, yet not so oblivious about who this person is. She grabbed her forearm tightly and sent her a questioning look, to which she responds with a small voice. "Uh.. Cassie, this is Stefan. He's.. An old friend of Klaus'."

"'Friend' is one way to put it." The said stranger, now recognized as Stefan, said with a soft chuckle.

"R..ight. Uh.. Stefan, that is my sister Cassie." Hayley murmured, still quite stuck in the daze of her shock.

"Sister?" He cocked a brow in surprise before nodding. "It's nice to meet you, Cassie."

"Well, I don't know who are you but if Hayley knows you and if you're a part of Klaus' sireline, that makes you trustworthy enough as an ally right now." The supposedly Strix member said and outstretched his arm, offering it to Stefan, "Marcel."

Stefan shook his hand momentarily before pointing at the feeding vampire who sat behind without sparing the group a glance. "And this?"

"This is Lucien. You can ignore him." Cassie responded dryly and tilted her head with a skeptical expression. "What are you doing here?"

"It's a long story, but I pretty much came here with Klaus. I needed help with.. Something, and his older sister-"

"-Freya."

"Yes, Freya, was kind enough to do that. I was about to head out but I couldn't help but hear what y'all were talking about.." The green-eyed man told sheepishly as he rubbed his hands together and then stuffed his hands in his pockets. "I think I can help you guys."

The three standing in front of him exchanged an unsure look as they wondered whether to trust him with that or not. Now that there's a prophecy of the family's downfall including 'a friend', along with the family and foe, it was almost impossible to convince them to let anyone in. Nevertheless, Marcel was right by saying that if Klaus was the one to bring him to town, maybe he was reliable, after all.

"I'll go look for Freya." Hayley eventually broke the silence with a murmur to her sister before she walked past the four and toward the staircase.

"Yeah, sure, you go and leave me here alone with the boys." The younger sister huffed and complained under her breath quietly.

"Can I..?" Stefan gestured toward the blueprint of the Davilla Estate lying on the small table in front of a now standing Lucien.

"Go ahead." Marcel permitted with a small nod before Stefan came forward to crouch next to the table and study the prints.

"Could use one of these access tunnels to slip into a back room." He mused, raising his gaze only when Lucien hums in disagreement. "What? Worried about getting a little dirt on your thousand-dollar shoes?"

"Actually, I'll be doing most of the heavy lifting, since the vampires we're facing are, what? Seven times your age?" Lucien returned with a frown.

"Gentlemen, please." Cassie groaned and cut in with a heavy sigh before lowering her voice. "Your nonsense gives me a headache."

"Well, doesn't she sound just like her boyfriend?" Lucien mocked in amusement, drawing a glare from the young Lycan before he turned to face Marcel. "Is this really the best help we can get?"

"Doesn't matter. We're not getting their bodies back. Strix from all over the world are flying in to make sure this spell goes off. They're guarding every entrance and exit." The dark-skinned man informed solemnly.

"Well, you're their leader. Call a meeting. Schedule a retreat. Order them to stop." He responded easily.

"Nah, nah, nah, nah. I do that, Aya has no problem staging a coup." Marcel argued with a vigorous shake of his head.

"Marvelous. I guess it's on me to come up with our grand plan, then."

"No need, Lucien. Freya figured out a way to get the boys out of the Chambre. She just needs a strong enough power source." Hayley spoke as she appeared in the stairwell with the blonde witch quickly following her lead.

"I'd channel Finn, but he's all for letting our brothers perish." She turned to the Castle man with a sarcastic smile. "So, I'll channel Lucien. The older the vampire, the better the battery."

"And what are we supposed to do?" Cassie lifted a brow in curiosity.

"We're going to buy her some time, keep the Strix occupied." The older sister answered with an encouraging nod toward Cassie, Marcel, Stefan, and herself.

Lucien simply scoffed. "Wait, so you want me here holding hands with the leftover sister while you take the three toddlers and tackle the Strix? You must be jok-"

With a flick of Freya's wrist, Lucien's neck snapped and his body fell on the couch. The other four looked at her amused and awed.

"Huh, that was impressive." Stefan complimented in appreciation.

"Well, I work better with quiet." She shrugged innocently and replied.

"Wait, so the plan is that the four of us are gonna keep one hundred of the world's most ancient vampires occupied?" Marcel returned to the matter with a smile of disbelief.

"I hate to admit, but I agree with Marcel. That sounds ridiculously impossible." The jaded Lycan shook her head and told.

"Well, there could be another way.." Stefan mused, making all eyes land on him as he turns to the dark-skinned man. "All you have to do is get us to the front door."

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Tristan was playing a somber tune on a violin as Aurora circled around him and watched him affectionately, while Elijah was seated in a chair, looking bored and frustrated as he pinches the bridge of his nose, next to a scowling Klaus. When Tristan stopped playing, Aurora turned her focus to the Mikaelson brothers.

"Why, holy heavens. Look at you two. How could a woman really love either of you? Let alone both?" She turned to address the younger, "Even if she can stomach all your treachery, she's left to face your brother."

"And here we go again, with the same tune you've been singing since you came to town - 'How Elijah ruined our love'." Klaus returned, not even attempting to sound respectful toward his captors.

"I speak of both of you." She spat in reply.

"So compelling Cassie to believe she's in love with Niklaus was also a part of your grand master plan?" Elijah returned venomously, which made Aurora burst with rolling laughter.

"No, that - in fact - was an idea that came to me in my sleep." She told as she leaned against one of the columns. "You see, I've learned that the best way to destroy the two of you is to show one of you what the other can take from him, just as you did for centuries. Here's an example - Nik, did you not rip Aya from Elijah when you forced him to abandon his loyal Strix? Just as he tore you from me? All in the name of 'Always and Forever'. A ridiculous concept that ensures both of you spend your immortality alone."

Klaus soon turned around to avoid her piercing gaze, having no intention to show her how this topic may affect him. Truthfully, the romances in his and Elijah's lives were known to be their greatest weaknesses, and what divided the two of them many times before throughout the history of their existence. Although each one has his way, they were both driven by love and affection, which not once and not twice have pushed them to make a choice between their 'selfish' desires and their family. It was no secret that Cassie wasn't just another girl crossing their paths and drawing their hearts to her, but a woman whose faith is forever bound to this family (as the aunt of Klaus' daughter), and therefore to them both.

Despite Aurora's desperate attempt to provoke Klaus' feelings towards Cassie by showing him what could he have with her if not for his loyalty to his brother, the outcome was completely opposite. Seeing the torture in Cassie's conflicted eyes made him realize how unreachable and hopeless is his dream to be with her. It only emphasized what he already knew and hated to admit - that deep down Cassie always has been and always will be madly in love with Elijah, and that's something not even a compulsion can entirely change.

"Oh. It appears I struck a nerve." Aurora noted with a smug smirk as she noticed Klaus' avoidance of her stare.

"Tell me something, Aurora - have you met your brother Tristan?" Elijah hissed back, pointing at Tristan accusingly as Aurora turns to face her brother with a confused look. "Between deception and rampant abuse, he frequently - repeatedly - isolates and abandons you. Of course.. He's painfully aware of something that we've known all along - you are a deranged and ridiculous child who cannot be left unsupervised. Do you know.. I think the greatest mercy I ever paid my brother was to compel you to leave him." He then paused and turned to his brother with a cynical smile. "Et vóilà! Ten centuries later.. He came to that conclusion all by himself."

He took a step forward, yet Tristan was quick to stop him with the violin bow he was holding. Narrowing his eyes with a contented grin, he spoke again. "Well, look at that. So, it appears I've struck a nerve."

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While their astral bodies were trapped in the representational spell, the Mikaelson brothers' physical bodies were floating in the water in the pool room where only mere days ago Aya has led Elijah and Cassie into on their quick visit there. Surrounding the pool stood the witches of the vampires organization, and one particular teenage witch amongst them. She was consulting her de-linking spell notes confidently, having no doubt she's the key to get this spell work, and if she'd help the Strix, their witches will help her get her deceased lover back.

"I'm ready." She announced quietly to the dark-skinned man who stood beside her and chews his fingernails anxiously.

"Are you sure? Take your time." He nervously glanced at his watch, his smile nearly betrays the plan he has arranged with the others.

"If the girl is ready, she's ready." The Strix leader walked into the room escorted by other members of their society. She put the heel of her platform boot on the edge of the pool and kneeled forward to get a good look at the two men, who were still floating unconsciously in the pool. "All of us have waited long enough for this."

Taking Jackson's heart out of the box it was buried in and surreptitiously grabbing a glass bottle adorned with gold, Davina made her way slowly and cautiously towards the pool and started to explain. "The unsired heart will bind the Sisters' magic to these waters." She crouched down and held the heart aloft over the water. "Once the pool's fully charged with the Mikaelson blood, I can break the sire link."

And then she dropped the heart with a large splash.

Meanwhile, in the Chambre De Chasse, Klaus and Elijah seemed to be in a verbal standoff with Tristan and Aurora. Their sister wasted no time rushing towards them and giving them her instructions. "Quickly. Find me what represents you in here."

The hybrid smirked at the sight of her, but before any of them could react further, Klaus' throat suddenly split open as though someone has slit it with a blade, causing him to gasp and choke up blood.

"Niklaus!" Elijah's eyes widened frantically at his brother's state as he stumbled to the ground, until his throat was slit as well and he fell to his knees.

"Oh God. It's starting." Freya looked at her brothers with horror as they gripped their throats and tried to staunch the bleeding as they gasped and choked on their blood.

While in the real world Davina finished slitting the two originals' throats and chanting the spell lowly. Once she dropped Elijah's body back into the water, Aya leaned forward toward him, almost as if she is giving him a mocking kiss of goodbye. At the back of the room, Marcel watched agitatedly and waited for the rescue team to step in.

Suddenly, one of the Strix vampires came in to speak to his leader nervously. "Aya. We may have a problem."

For a brief moment, Marcel could see the conflict in Aya's eyes, but she reluctantly left with the man, leaving Marcel and several other Strix vampires to supervise the spell that Davina and the other Sisters were casting the sireline unlinking spell.

Back in the Chambre De Chasse, Freya kneeled on the floor in front of her younger brothers, who were on their hands and knees and gasping as they try to stop the bleeding. "I need you to focus. Show me what represents you so I can break you out."

"The kings.." Klaus growled quickly.

"The knights.." Elijah answered with a grunt.

She immediately stood to her feet and rushed over to the chessboard, while Tristan smirked smugly and knowingly with an exchange of a glance with his sister. She picked up two pieces - a black king and a white knight - before desperately turning back to her brothers. "Which is it? The kings or the knights? We need to decide now."

"How perfect! Even in this crucial hour, your ignorance blinds you." The redhead commented as she watched a torn Freya trying to figure out which piece she must destroy in order to save her brothers. Even if you never learn from your sins, at least you will die because of them.. And I get to watch."

As the silence settled in the room and Klaus' eyes stared deeply into Aurora's mad ones, the realization dawned on him. "Take the queens. The women we betrayed represent us. Aurora.. Aya." He paused for a moment to look at his struggling brother. "Cassie."

Clutching the black queen tightly and beginning to crush it with her magic, Freya desperately started to chant the spell.

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Aya was walking into a parlor with at least a dozen of the Strix guards, looking impatient and annoyed by this inconvenience. "If you've lost contact, send men to the front gate to check the-"

Suddenly, she sensed something and stopped, holding a fist up in the air to signal her men and women to do the same. After a beat has passed, she gestured to three of the men to go into the next room to investigate, and when they do, it takes only seconds for stabbing noises and grunts of pain to be heard by the rest of the group.

Finally, a blood-soaked Rayna - the same huntress who was searching for Stefan - stepped out and grinned at the sight of the terrified vampires in front of her, though Aya did nothing but scowl at her. "Well, if it isn't Rayna Cruz!"

While the vampires lunged for the huntress at vampire speed, the two Marshall sisters peeked around the door to make sure they're all fully occupied before they continued on toward the pool room. They took a hesitant step into the room, and Cassie's breath hitched in her throat.

The very own man was in love with in her subconscious, and the man she was drawn to with all her being, were slowly bleeding to death in a pool they float in right in front of her.

Realizing her sister's uncontrollable gasp didn't go unnoticed by the one Strix member who stood at the back of the room, Hayley hastily sped towards him and snapped his neck before he could do anything to hurt either her or her sister. Unfortunately for her, his grunt of pain and the sound of him falling to the floor caught the others' attention. Marcel hurried to come to the girls' aid as they started fighting the Strix member, which made Davina open her eyes and watch his betrayal.

"Marcel!"

"I'm sorry, D." He mumbled and turned to the panting Marshalls. "We need to get them out of that water now."

They both nodded in agreement, but Davina's furious scream and thrust of her hand toward them stopped them from doing so.

"NO!"

The three of them were thrown back toward the far wall, incapacitating them long enough to return to the spell.

As if sensing the hit the three has sustained, the older Mikaelson brother arose from the water and instantly grabbed one of the witches by the front of her cloak, pulling her into the water and both drowning her and feeding on her at the same time.

After a few long moments of recovering on the floor, Marcel, Hayley and Cassie looked in shock at the happening while the Sisters and Davina attempted to complete the spell. Once the witch was dead, Elijah leaped out of the water and snapped the neck of one of the other Sisters while Cassie did the same to another.

"Davina, stop!" Marcel begged in desperation, but the young girl only stood to her feet and rushed away and thrust her hand toward Klaus as she carried on the sireline unlinking spell.

Just in time, Klaus woke in the pool as well, jumped out of the water at vampire speed, but the force of the Clair witch's spell caused him to remain frozen in the air as she growls at him.

"You've had your time!" She yelled in rage.

The lights in the room exploded into a shower of sparks, and she pushed her arms down, causing Klaus to land with a large splash into the pool.

Elijah looked to his side at bewildered Cassie, who tried to catch her breath in concern. He couldn't approach her right now, not when she's compelled to forget any trace of emotion she ever had toward him. It would be useless to try to gain any sort of comfort from her, seeing her eyes locked on his tortured brother who screamed inside the pool. And he might haven't been screaming on the outside, but Elijah's heart was torn to half at the sight of her almost completely forgetting about his presence and crying for Klaus' safety.

As the witches chanted, both Marcel and Stefan's skin started to turn red as Davina slowly broke the sireline link. It traveled up to their neck as they all screamed in agony until finally, Davina waved her arms in two concentric circles, which caused the water in the pool to shoot up in what looked like a half-dozen geysers. The force of completing the spell caused her to pass out and collapse onto the floor, and Klaus falling unconscious in the water once again.

Elijah and Marcel, both weakened by the ordeal they've each been through, struggled to rise to their feet. Once managing to do so, Elijah jumped into the pool to gently pick up his brother, whose body looked desiccated.

"Is he.." Cassie's voice broke as she whispered brokenheartedly.

Despite the pain in his chest, Elijah shook his head and reassured her that Klaus is still alive, considering the grey veins beginning to fade as the wound on his throat heals, and he weakly opens his eyes.

"I felt them leave." He murmured pensively. "My sireline is broken."

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Aurora awoke with a gasp in the corner of one of the larger tombs in Lafayette Cemetery, where she found herself behind a half-constructed brick wall in the doorway. Soon enough she has noticed Klaus standing outside of the wall, giving her a cold but slightly satisfied expression.

"Welcome back to the real world, love. I thought we might revisit our chat about what hurts and what does not." He spoke calmly, and she rushed toward him, yet finding out she's stopped by an invisible barrier. She glared at him and tried to push through it again, but failed and only made Klaus more amused. "Courtesy of my dear sister."

"What are you doing?" She asked, frenzy, with a sharp exhale.

"You made me realize today what a monster I've been.." He took a brick and set it on the half-built brick wall with one hand, while the other one holds a paving tool to flatten the grout. "And I am sorry that I didn't do this sooner."

"You can't just leave me here!" She cried in despair as he kept adding brick after brick to the wall between them.

"I had the right idea when I bricked up your portrait. Behind walls is where you belong." He told with a slight smirk.

Near-hysterical when she realizes that he's going to leave her trapped forever, the redhead began to plead with him. "Then just kill me! Please, Nik! Just kill me!"

"Oh, I think not. Not with the only one who loves you rotting at the bottom of the ocean. I wouldn't grant you the mercy." Klaus leaned forward until he and Aurora were almost nose-to-nose and sneered at her. So, while the fish eat him.. And the worms eat you.. Just know that it was I who took everything from you."

She watched his smug smirk faltering as his eyes darkened with another thought that crossed his mind, something hurt enough to make his amusement die, and be replaced by a whole different solemn expression.

"One more thing.."

Out of the shadows came into the tomb the silhouette of two figures, who was soon revealed to be his brother, and the short girl who hugged her shivering body with a cross of her arms. They walked in and stopped right in front of Aurora, who was quick to realize what were they about to ask from her.

"Free her from the compulsion you put her under." Klaus said almost in a whisper - clearly struggling with requesting to erase the love he has got from Cassie in the past two days. But it wasn't love. Not really.

She started to laugh and cocked a brow. "Painful, isn't it? To have to relinquish your loved one's affection.. To admit it is all just a fantasy.. That you will never be loved back."

"Reverse the compulsion, Aruroa." Elijah ordered confidently, unimpressed with her last, pathetic attempt to hurt Klaus.

She sighed and darted her gaze deeply into Cassie's green eyes before she talked. "The lust and desire you have for Klaus are false. You were never in love with him.. But with his brother. You forget our previous compulsion.. And move on."

Cassie's eyes lingered wide and blank even after she finished speaking, until they closed, and opened again.

She slowly looked over her shoulder at a bitter Klaus, before turning to look at Elijah, and letting out a sob she didn't know she was holding in all along. With a relieved sigh she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his neck while the tears started to run down her cheeks.

"Elijah, I.. I'm- I'm s.. So so.."

"Shh," He ran his fingers through her hair and whispered sofly. "It's alright, dear. You're safe now."

═══*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═══

A/N

Oh my god I've been trying to write this one for weeks and couldn't find the time or the inspiration to do it because of all my last exams and my fucked up mental health I'M SO SORRY :(

Anyway, I guess I'm back and I'll try to update more often. For real this time tho

Let me know what did you think of the chapter cause I honestly feel like it's trash

JAZZY