"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE NOT COMING?!" Aurelia winced at the sound of Caroline's angry voice from the speaker of Stefan's phone before directing her gaze towards the Salvatore man himself, who was on the ground, pushing himself up on two wooden logs underneath either one of his palms. "You're a Founding Family member. By definition, you have to be there."

"Be where, exactly?" She piped up, making Stefan raise his head to look up at her with a quick smile.

"You actually came—" He took a quick glance at the time on his phone just a foot away. "An hour late, but I'll take it." She hummed at his words, realizing that he was taking baby steps with her; a kind gesture, really, considering how she had expected him to rush into things with her—she wasn't complaining that he was slow, of course. "Where were you, anyway—"

"Is that Aurelia?!" Caroline cut him off quickly, and Aurelia could've sworn she felt the adorable blonde's eyes go wide in pleasant surprise. "Stefan, did you kidnap my sister?!" That was when the two exchanged looks perplexedly, before Stefan cracked a smile and looked towards his phone. "Stefan, I swear to God, if you—"

"No, Caroline," Aurelia picked the phone up from the leafy ground, hands pushing her hair away from her face as she bent downwards to reach for it properly. "We're just here because we have nothing else to do right now."

"I thought you had to go feed."

"Yeah, no," Aurelia mumbled. "I had to compel the waitress to forget anything because some deputies showed up at the Grill—" Huffing once, she spun around. "Disturbed my perfectly good meal, y'know—and what the hell were they even doing there? They were literally on duty so, like, why would they drink?"

"Aurelia," Stefan broke her small rant. "I think she means why you're here with me." Aurelia looked at the man once, and then at the phone in her hand.

"Well, duh—" Caroline added in. "Last few months, it looked like you were avoiding him to no end." The Heretic frowned considerably, before grimacing in embarrassment. "And yes, 'Lia, it was that obvious."

"Salt in the wound, Caroline," She cringed. "Salt in the wound."

A snicker from Stefan earned himself a glare from the woman, who huffed and tossed the phone up and down with another scoff. "Anyway," She began. "Where was Stefan supposed to be?" Stefan's eyes then widened as his hand stuck out to reach for the phone in her hand..

"No. no, don't remind her—"

"Oh, yes!" A muffled and defeated groan emitted from the Salvatore man's form, shoulders slouching over and hands pulling back to cup themselves over his face. "I don't know what's going on between the both of you, but Stefan always listens to you, 'Lia."

"I do not!"

"Shut up, Stefano—" Aurelia hushed him by pushing him away lightly. "If she's giving me orders to blackmail you, we should both hear it so that you don't blame me for it." At the end of her sentence, she flashed a seemingly innocent, yet playful smile that had Stefan conflicted on whether to glare at her or be endeared—

Never mind.

"Aurelia, please convince Stefan to come to this year's Miss Mystic Falls with you." Ignoring the stress on the 'please' part of the simple request, Aurelia scrunched her nose up with slight disgust, before throwing the phone behind her, letting Stefan catch it with a small protest. "Come on! I'll be alone!"

"And I'll be bored!" Aurelia retorted, folding her arms stubbornly as she spun around to face Stefan. "Stefan, tell her! I'm not going, you can—" Stefan furrowed his eyebrows, opening his mouth to protest for what seemed like the millionth time.

"Hey, I don't want to go either."

"No one cares, Stefan; you're a founding family member—you have to be there." Caroline chastised; Aurelia had to take a second to admire how even without her physical presence, the younger vampire was still so assertive and influential. "And Aurelia, please, please, please, please—"

"Why are you so insistent on me going?"

"Because you're my sister and I love you and I want to spend all the time I possibly can with you." A smile crept up onto the Heretic's lips. "Also Elena's been really suspicious with us as of lately and I think it has something to do with Damon because he's also been really suspicious." That was when the blonde's appreciating smile dropped in disappointment. "So..."

"Think?" Stefan piped up once more. "Elena has feelings for Damon, Caroline, all of us knew that one." Much to his surprise, Aurelia looked straight at him, eyes wide and lips parted in utmost surprise. "...you didn't know, did you...?"

"Clearly not, Stefan," She mumbled. "Wow, is that why you ended stuff with her?" The man instantly shook his head, looking at her like she was insane. "She broke your heart and wanted a brother swap? Now that was a bitch move—especially considering her whole confession to you at the barn way back when."

"I...didn't think you were paying attention to that one..." He stated, slowly and with uncertainty, a puzzling and unreadable expression on his face—enough to leave Aurelia on the dark on if he was embarrassed or glad or upset she heard the doppelganger and his conversation.

"Caroline," Aurelia spoke quickly, eyes remaining on Stefan. "I'll make it, there's too much drama to miss." A quick smirk rested on her lips. "And don't worry, I'll make sure Stefan's there. I do quite enjoy babysitting on occasions. Besides, I want to get a piece of this Elena-Damon situation. I wonder why she suddenly wanted this swap."

"Well, isn't it clear?" Stefan asked. "Being a vampire's changed her, Aurelia, her heightened emotions aren't really helping her case." Aurelia laughed slightly at the fact, shaking her head.

"All of us went through that ordeal, darling." She replied, earning a small noise of agreement from Caroline through the phone. "She isn't any exception to this case—emotional or not, I don't think she deserves this special treatment. Plus, the more we give her, the more she wants—the desire for attention is like an addiction in that way."

"I mean, it's all the more reason to cure her." Caroline piped up quickly, causing a hum of confusion from her ancestor's form. "So, we need to look harder for the cure—and you're right, sis; we need to watch over her from afar, but work towards giving her the life she needs back."

"Wait, what do you mean, "cure"?" Aurelia questioned curiously, eyebrows furrowing as she looked at Stefan. "Did I miss something in the weeks I was absent from here?" Stefan nodded slowly once or twice, eyes observing the woman in a manner to take in her sudden change of demeanor.

"Stefan, think you can explain it to her? I have to start prep for Miss Mystic Falls. April will be calling me any second now."

"Yes, Stefan, do explain." The laugh in Aurelia's voice was gone, her expression falling into the cold frown that Stefan had gotten used to in the last months—much to his dismay and concern, of course. "I think I need some necessary detail right now."

"...I'll see you later, 'Lia, love you!" And Stefan cut the call, pocketing his phone with a small sigh.

"Is something wrong?" He asked her first and foremost, making her blink a few times in surprise, but retain her cold expression in the process. "Um, okay—I'm sure you know about this, 'Lia, Klaus told me about it himself. There's a cure for vampirism." Her eyes then went wide, her right foot moving backward to take a step.

"That can't be possible," She mumbled, head shaking. "No, that can't be true, not at all—" She let him fall back within her line of vision as she spoke again. "We're not talking about two different Klaus's, are we? Because I c—could've sworn that it was Klaus who told me—"

And as they spoke of the Devil, Stefan gasped loudly as the Devil himself, who seemingly appeared out of nowhere, suddenly shot up behind him and wrapped his arm around the younger's throat, teeth clenched as his grip tightened on the vampire. "In what world," Klaus Mikaelson spat bitterly. "Do the words "tell no one" mean "tell your brother and everyone I least expected to find out about this"?!" His hiss was enough to make Stefan shake slightly with fear as he continued to resist the death grip on his throat.

"Klaus." Aurelia's call for her brother's name was quiet and eerie as she took her stance in front of them, stopping just a few feet away. "Let go of him, and do it right now." Klaus looked up from him and towards the Heretic, behavior faltering slightly with her malicious glare at him.

"Aurelia, this is between him and I." Klaus stated swiftly, making the woman cock up an eyebrow. "I'd rather you stayed out of it, lest you're hurt in the process."

"And I'd rather you give me an explanation instead of focusing on him." She retorted sharply, her hand flying towards his forearm to press her thumb down hard on his bone, making him groan slightly, but retain his position nonetheless. "And I mean it, Klaus. You owe me one hell of an explanation, and I'd like it done now." As she maintained eye-contact with the Hybrid, he began to waver, grip loosening on the Salvatore brother—and Aurelia took the chance to pull Stefan away from him, before tackling Klaus straight to the ground.

"Aurelia, you're making a mis—"

"Now is not the time to chastise me, Niklaus." She sneered; foot planted on his throat roughly as he glared up towards her for her guts. "We're going home right now, and you're going to tell me nothing but the truth." As she kneeled downward, Stefan couldn't help but shiver from behind her at not only the audacity she had to threaten the Original Hybrid, but the confidence she had exuded while so flawlessly committing the supposed crime.

"Alright, Aurelia—" Klaus' voice was now raspy from the pressure on his throat. "—Have some shame and let me free first, and then I'll take you home." As he submitted to her, she pulled herself off of him and took a look at Stefan once again.

"I'd suggest you get going, Stefan."

"I HAD NO CHOICE, AURELIA, WHY CAN'T YOU understand something so simple?!" Aurelia's fury was easily matched by Klaus' loud tone as he slammed the grand doors of the Mikaelson Manor shut with a crashing 'THUD' that would've made anyone but the two of them jump with fright. "I did it for you and your protection! You would've hated being human, had you taken that cure!"

"And who the heck do you think you are to make that choice for me, huh?!" Aurelia roared, spinning around to face him as her voice echoed through the almost empty Manor. "My father? Because the last time I had one, you told me he made all the wrong choices!" Klaus gritted his teeth as he placed his hand over his head. "But now, it seems as if you're following in that monster's damned footsteps!"

"Don't you dare compare me to that sorry excuse of a man!" He thundered; eyes shut to prevent his anger from reaching a violently physical level. "I am your brother, and I did it because I cared for you, Aurelia! So did Kol, so did Elijah, so did Rebekah. Do you understand what grief we would've been swept up with had you turned human and eventually submitted to death by old age?!" Aurelia stared at him with complete and utter disbelief in her eyes.

"So you're telling me, that you crushed all the hope I had—for the first time in a century and a half, mind you—for your selfishness?! You lied to me for the last three or so centuries because—what? —you were too much of a coward to deal with the loss?! I hated being a vampire, I hated being who I was, killing and committing so many crimes to live—when my conscience couldn't absorb my sadistic lifestyle?!" Her voice simply grew louder and louder as she continued to yell at him.

"Oh, and you're telling me I was being selfish? Look at you!"

"It was my life," She hissed. "I have a right to choose how I'm going to live it."

"And you've lived a life that most humans—no, even century-old vampires—could never dream to have!" He justified. "And take a look in the mirror now, Aurelia, look at the woman you've become. Had you taken that cure, you wouldn't have lived to see yourself become her! Vampires around the world tremble at the mention of your damn name, you ruled an entire colony for nearly two centuries—y-you were hailed a Queen of some sort in your lifetime! Imagine having whoever you want fear you, and whoever else you want love you! Half of the Mikaelson family never had the luxury of attaining an achievement so great!"

"I was miserable for half of that time, you imbecile—"

"And I can't, for the life of me, seem to figure out why you're still affected by this!" He yelled. "You'd be lying to me right now if you say you hate being a vampire! You and I both know that fact extremely well—you're too bloody proud to admit that what I did for you was right and will always be right!"

"And how the hell are you saying that with so much certainty?!"

"I will repeat, sister," He stated. "Take a long look at yourself in one of our many mirrors! Compare yourself to who you once were! You complain about my decisions for you, and yet, you stand in front of me, feasting in your immortality like a Queen! You're the Original Heretic now, too! Tell me, if I found and let you take the cure for vampirism, would you have been able to discover your purpose in this world? How you're the first of a race of one of the most powerful beings in the universe?!"

"NO!" She screamed finally, shoving him backwards. "You turned me, you absolute monster, you forced me blood when I told you and everyone in the mansion that I didn't want to be an immortal! I was willing to die because I didn't want to live like some sort of person with no purpose for all eternity—and that was you making a decision you still deem right for me! What if you finally snap and make a choice that kills me, hmm?! Then what, Niklaus?!"

"Do not speak to me like that!"

"You've daggered your own siblings, you ripped the life right out of your own mother, and you can't maintain one fucking family to save your life, you bastard! You live to control the ones who allow themselves to be vulnerable to you—tell me, what kind of relationship do you think that is?! You're fully capable of landing me in trouble!"

"What's your point? I don't see why you need to bring the past up at all!"

"My point," She began. "Is that you can't just make all these choices for me! Just because you're too cowardly to let me go. I'm not hung up on the past, brother, I'm hung up on the fact that you can't seem to stop controlling me—and that when you inevitably make a mistake, I'll be gone for good." She then paused for a moment, eyeing him up and down as she observed the growing fury. "Sometimes, these traits of yours make me think if you truly love me, or if you just love controlling me—"

"QUIET!" He thundered, hand impulsively wrapping around her throat and squeezing hard on her trachea, making her gasp for a second as she felt her back hit a wall hard enough to crack a rib. "How daft do you think I am?! How incompetent do you think I am as your brother, Aurelia?! Have you no faith in me? After spending your entire life with me and our family?!"

"K—Klaus—" She rasped out, tilting her head upward to wheeze for air. "I can't—breathe! D—Don't—" She slapped his hand, unable to find the will to hurt him with her magic. "Fuck—stop, please—we can't have a c—conversation like this—"

"Why? I thought you said that I didn't care about you!" He shouted. "Then it might just be easy enough for me to rip your bloody head off your body! Would you like for me to demonstrate how much I don't love you?!" She looked down at him, hands still scratching at his arm in an attempt. "And if you seem to hate me so much, why the bloody hell don't you just kill me with your magic?!" Aurelia's eyes widened considerably as she made eye-contact with him, noticing a look that she found all too familiar.

It had been one of pure malice—the same look she knew he gave people and vampires of all sorts before he killed them.

"Klaus—no—you know I'm not going to potentially lethally hurt you—we're not in our senses right now and I don't want—t—to do something I'll regret in just seconds!" She cried, trying to push him away as she kicked at him to kick him back into his senses. "Please—just let me down, and I—promise I won't be a dick—"

"Scared, Aurelia Parker?" His voice had lowered to a whisper. "That wasn't you when you were questioning my competence—where's all that courage now? Gone now that you know I can kill you so easily?" She shook her head, unable to speak as his grip tightened on her trachea. "Fight back, sister—"

"Klaus—please, I can feel the flesh on my neck t—tearing—" She coughed out. "I admit I pressed a f—few buttons in my anger—but I'm sorry—I was hurt, I can't control myself when I get emotion—emotional—I'm horrible with that, you k—know it."

"FIGHT BACK!" She flinched at his scream, eyes shutting and eyebrows crossing together, face contorted with a tinge of fear—a look Klaus had forgotten when it came to the woman in the grip. "Fight...back—"

"No." She responded, pulling her chest in as she held her breath. "I'm going to hurt—" A strangled cough. "Y—you."

Klaus felt a dark pit open up in the depths of his soul when he looked at his sister's face carefully; he hadn't known what exactly he looked for or why he decided to look at her, but when he saw a stray tear trail down the side of her face, falling past her cheekbone, a sinking feeling made itself known in his body. It had been like a murky hand pulling him into a flurry of dark nothingness, one that wanted to rip him apart for what he was doing to the woman he cared for so much.

She was right, he was angry; he was going to regret something if he didn't stop right away.

So he dropped her to the ground, expecting her to stand on her own two feet reflexively, but felt himself panic when her knees buckled and she collapsed completely, bursting into a fit of gasps for oxygen, followed by coughs as her throat recovered from the less than pleasant trauma inflicted on it. "Aurelia, I'm—" He began to reach out for her, moving quickly to help her out.

And he felt his muscles lock up as she held her palm out in front of him. "Stop." She mumbled; head tilted away from him. "Don't—don't..." Klaus' heart came close to shattering when he watched her begin to pull herself away from him, all while he remained helpless and frozen from whatever spell she had cast.

"Please... I'm sorry—" And as Klaus spoke, he felt his heart shatter at the sight of her glistening eyes as her hand gently wrapped around her own throat in an attempt to soothe the sore and irritated skin. "I wasn't thinking..."

"J—Just..." Closing her eyes, Aurelia took a deep sigh to calm herself down, to stop her form from shaking as she felt her eyes well