The next two full moons were significantly easier for Ayla. She still felt pain, and a lot of it, but nothing compared to what happened that first night. And she had still yet to transform into a werewolf. So for the first time in a long time she felt hope.

She felt in control of everything.

Her body.

Her abilities.

Her mind.

Her life.

She felt lighter, more at peace lately; and both Klaus and Stefan could tell. But there was a sadness lingering over her today. She stood outside of the hotel near the car waiting for her travel companions to meet with her. They were finally leaving Florida and heading up towards Tennessee.

And as excited as she was to be exploring elsewhere, the voicemail that she was listening to from earlier that morning had made her feel discouraged.

"Ayla, I don't know where you are or if you're even getting my messages anymore. But I wanted to wish you a happy 18th birthday, little sister. I miss you. Please just… be safe wherever you are."

"It's your birthday?" Klaus asked her, she jumped slightly at the sound of his voice. She wasn't expecting him to be standing there as she turned around and shoved the phone into her pocket. "Why wouldn't you tell me? I love birthdays."

"You do?" She smiled sadly. "Aren't you like a billion or something?"

"Well, not quite. I'm only a thousand, give or take a few years." She rolled her eyes but still held her small smile before taking a sip from her water bottle. "What? Is that too old for you?"

"What?" She choked on her drink, eyes widening bashfully as a blush creeped up onto her cheeks.

"The night of that dreadful sixties dance, Damon was convinced you were flirting with Alaric. And you were disgusted, saying that he was twice your age. So... is a thousand too old for you?"

"Wait a second, are you trying to flirt with me?"

"Is it working?"

"No!" She let out a hearty laugh. "We both know that I am way too smart to be seduced by you."

"Well, that's why I like you." He joked. "Why so glum today, on your birthday of all days?" Ayla just sighed, not knowing if she really wanted to divulge in her past. She looked at the Original vampire hesitantly, but as she was about to speak, he spoke up again. "Do you wish to return to Mystic Falls?"

"No, actually. I don't. I've never been anywhere other than Florida and Virginia. I want to explore, experience the world."

"Then what is it?"

"My mom." She finally admitted. "Before she died we had this tradition every year for my birthday. We were all we ever really had, so she always wanted to make my birthday a big deal. She used to always tell me that witches have a connection to the earth, so we would always spend the day in nature, hiking or riding horses or walking through the gardens. Then we would go out to dinner and she would always tell the waiter it was my birthday. Just so they'd bring a cake out and everyone in the restaurant would sing to me." Ayla smiled at the fondness of the memory. "She knew how much it embarrassed me, but she loved it. She would always end the night by leaving me a little birthday basket filled with a bunch of small gifts in it and a birthday card that always had a piece of advice in it. I think that's what I miss the most. Her advice. Every birthday since she died hasn't been the same. It's stupid, I know."

"It's not."

"She was the best." Her eyes were tearful, but she still smiled at the memories of her mother, her hand reaching towards the necklace that her mother had given her before she passed. She twirled it in her fingers before clearing her throat and wiping her tears at the sight of Stefan walking out of the hotel. "Sorry. We should get going."

Klaus watched her open the back door of the car and get in, as an idea sprung to his mind.

They had finally made it up to Memphis, just after three in the afternoon. Ayla looked around as they drove into the downtown area of the city, her eyes wide with delight. It was so diverse and beautiful. There were people walking through the small parks, live blues and rock music play right there on the streets that they were driving down, beautiful and expressive art adorning the buildings.

She had barely any time to look at all of the sights as they pulled up to the hotel they would be staying. They quickly checked in, or rather compelled themselves in, and Ayla went up to her room. She had just been taking out a change of clothes when there was a knock on her door. She opened it to see Klaus standing there with a grin on his face.

"I hope you're ready to go." Klaus told her and she just furrowed her eyebrows but nodded. She grabbed her phone and put it into the pocket of her romper and walked with him to the elevator.

"Are we practicing again?" She asked him, not knowing why he wanted to leave with just her. Usually, while he was off planning his world domination, Ayla was able to explore wherever they were. In Florida, she had explored some random but beautiful coastal towns and now she wanted to venture into the city of Memphis.

"Not exactly." They walked together for a few minutes in mostly silence. Ayla just took in her surroundings, listening to beautiful strums of people playing the guitar as they passed mom and pop shops and small restaurants. Klaus cleared his throat as they passed the sign that said Memphis Botanic Garden.

"What is this?" She asked, walking with him slowly into the main entrance.

"It's your birthday. I told you I love birthdays." He spoke softly. "I thought we could walk the gardens for a while. Then go to one of my favorite restaurants in the city."

"Don't you have your evil hybrid plans to get to?" Ayla asked him, trying to hide her true emotions.

"I think I can spare one day for you." Ayla just smiled as she nodded gratefully. "So towards the Rose Garden or the Arboretum first?"

They had walked together for a few hours. Klaus had told her a few stories of his past time in Memphis. He had told her that at one point he had even seen Elvis performing live in the city and had compelled himself into a party at Graceland. Ayla had laughed at that, not having any doubt about it being true.

He had told her of some of the beauty he had the privilege of seeing throughout his long time on the planet. He told her of the splendor of the Swiss Alps, the picturesque views of Cascada el Pailon in Ecuador, the quaint towns of Montenegro.

She was entranced by his stories and his experiences of the world. And for a fleeting moment, she couldn't help but think if her magic, if her beating heart, was worth the very short time she would live on this earth.

For a fleeting moment, she envisioned herself living an eternity of adventure, of exploration, of love. She envisioned herself taking in the splendor of the Swiss Alps. She envisioned herself awestruck by the beauty of Ecuador. She envisioned herself visiting each and every quaint town on the coastline of Montenegro.

The world was so full of genuine beauty, and she would only have a short time to experience any of it.

So she wondered, was her magic worth immortality?

The rest of the afternoon and evening were equally as riveting and exciting as the time she spent in the Botanic Garden with Klaus. He had taken her to his favorite restaurant in all of Memphis and then he had relished in the blushing of her cheeks as the entire restaurant sang to her as a cake was brought out by the owner of the restaurant.

She had smiled and laughed more than she had in months. And it felt strange that she was experiencing all of this with someone who was so hellbent on proving that he was some big, bad, evil monster. But she saw something in him. Compassion. Light.

They had walked back to the hotel and Klaus had walked her to her room first. With a smile on her face, she thanked him for the day. He nodded at her gently, before leaving her to open the door and walk into the room. She wasn't expecting to see a basket full of gifts on her bed, just like her mother used to leave for her.

She walked slowly over to the basket as she bit her lip. She looked at the sketchpads and pencils, along with the camera. He had obviously realized that she had run out of paper to draw on and he had realized that she was constantly taking pictures of the world around her on her cell phone. She rolled her eyes as she went through the rest of the basket, seeing a few bags of her favorite flavor of Doritos. Next, she opened up a neatly folded Led Zeppelin t-shirt. She smiled, remembering their conversation at the sixties dance just a few months prior.

And the last thing she saw was a card. She opened it up and took a deep breath as she read the neat handwriting.

Over the years, I've had my share of friends, enemies, lovers, losses, and triumphs. With time, they all begin to run together, but you will find the real moments are vibrant. The rest just fades away. The pain will always fade. And the real moments, you will find those to be the light, the ones that are worth living for.

Happy Birthday, Sweet Ayla.

AN: Sorry for the shorter chapter and the late update. I took a much needed break for the last two weeks but I'm feeling a lot more motivated to write now. Hope you guys enjoy this update.