"You called him!" she heard Elena say in a betrayed tone.

"I'm sorry Elena," Rose said.

"You said that you understood," she scolded at the vampire.

"She lied,"

"Damon Salvatore," A girl said in amazement, the redhead was surprised there was someone else in the house.

"Get rid of her," he said in an annoyed voice.

"No way," she said grinning as Rose led her out.

"Come on, we're leaving," Damon said.

"No,"

"I said were leaving." He said sternly.

"I'm not going with you," Elena said stubbornly.

"You do not get to make decisions anymore," Damon hissed at her.

"When have I ever made a decision? You and Stefan do that for me. Now this, this is my decision."

"Who's going to save your life while you're –"

"You're not listening to me Damon. I don't want to be saved." She argued. "Not if it means that Klaus is gunna kill every single person that I love."

"Get your ass out the door before I throw you over my shoulder and carry you out myself." he said darkly.

Azalea sighed.

"Will you back me up," he said looking at her.

"Sorry Damon, if I do that than I am a hypocrite," she said, making her companions look at her.

"What?" they both said.

"Were here to meet the doppelganger,"

They all span round to see the two vampires who had just entered the room.

"Thank you for coming," Elena said trying to go forward, but Damon caught the top of her arm.

"I will break your arm," he snarled with his teeth clenched, then he turned and smiled at the vampires. "There is nothing here for you," he said charmingly, though you could hear the silent threat.

Before anyone else could move a man appeared, he blurred in as Rose disappeared, though Azalea barely noticed. She recognised the man.

"Elijah? I killed you. You were dead." Damon said his voice confused.

"For centauries now,"

"Bloody hell." she whispered, taking a step back to compose herself.

It was him!

"We were going to bring her to her to you, for Klaus, she's the doppelganger –" one of the two vampires told him.

"Enough, does anyone know you are here?" Elijah said.

"No," they said together.

"Well then, you've been very helpful." He said smiling before plunging his hand into their chests and removing their hearts. He looked up at the people close to the doppelganger. His eyes moved from the black-haired vampire too…

"Azalea," he said softly, he blurred up to the redhead. He hadn't seen her in so long… She was here in the middle of all of this.

"You are Elijah," she squeaked. "Elijah Mikaelson. Then who… don't say that he…"

Elijah smiled as she slowly put the pieces together, understand forming in her green eyes.

"Who was the other man?" Azalea demanded, having a feeling of dread in her stomach.

"You know," he said before he vanished.

"Lea, how do you know him?" Elena said as the two of them stared at her.

"I, er. I was little – before Hogwarts – and um. I got lost in London… I was lost and they found me… They helped me get back to my Aunt."

"I'm sorry, two of the strongest vampires in the world –"

"Klaus must have saw me… As soon as they see their…" she took a deep breath forcing herself to say it. "Their mate, they know. It's instant."

"Like imprinting in Twilight?" Elena asked her. Azalea chortled.

"A little, yeah. I'll find the memory and study it. Maybe they said something helpful to me."

"For now, let's just get out of here." Damon said taking each girl's arm and guiding them out of the apartment.

When the group returned, they discovered that the plan went horribly array in their absence. Katherine had hidden the stone and had woken up before Alaric could find it. They found Alaric dead and Stefan is in the tomb.

"Ric!" Azalea gasped and rushed to her uncle's unconscious form. She clasped one of his hands in both of hers.

"What happened?" Damon demanded. While Damon discovered the events of the day while they had been to Richmond, Azalea watched her uncle carefully. She waited for signs of his return to the world of the living. The more she focused the more an unconscious frown settled upon her face. She couldn't put her finger on it, but something was wrong. She could feel an energy whirling around him… A persuasive energy… A manipulative energy…

She tuned out the others and tried to focus on this mysterious force. As its swirling grey energy, almost feminine... Azalea took her uncles hand and tried to push the mysterious force away from him.

She could feel its surprise, as it began to pull away. As it did so Alaric gasped back to life, shooting up and looking around. Azale wrapped her arms around him tightly. Recognising those red curls, he held her close.

"I felt something near you," her head pressed into his shoulder. "Something dark,"

"Shh, I'm fine," he soothed.

The groups went their separate ways, Azalea spent the night watching Alaric closely, checking for signs of this presence again. By the time they went to bed, she hadn't seen or felt anything else unusual.

Hopefully he didn't make a habit of dying.

When Azalea woke in the morning she couldn't believe how quickly the time had gone round. It was already April, and it was already Tyler's first full moon!

She had been giving Caroline types on how best to help Tyler, and had been pouring into research about bloodline wolves whenever she had a free moment.

Speaking of free moments after Elena's plan failed to help her friends, Azalea felt as though she needed to speak to Elena. Ignoring the message from Damon that she had read when she had woken up, she headed out of her house and across the front garden.

Once she opened the door she knew she was in trouble as she heard Damon Salvatore.

"–Change of plans. You babysit," he said as the redhead came through the door. "And what are you doing out of your house? It's like herding suicidal cats. Jere, can you?" He nodded to Azalea.

She hexed him.

"Ow!"
Elena laughed, as the vampire left. Elena glared at her brother, taking her friends hand and pulling her up the stairs.

"If we a stuck here, we may as well try and do some normal things," she smiled. "Can I play with your hair? I think it would look amazing in a crown braid."

"Sure,"
"I'll stick on the music." She smiled, grabbing hairpins and bobbles to begin working on the long red mane.

The Azalea spent the time together telling her more about the things that weren't in the books yet, how her fifth year had been awful, how no body had believed he had been back, the pink toad. The horcruxes.

All of it.

Elena listened as she braided and looped the hair over itself, feeling more and more sympathy for her friend as she began to recount the events that lead to Voldemort's death.

"Nobody tried to stop you?" she asked.

"I was lucky, when I did it, I had an hour… and I could just slip away in the chaos of battle."

"Did you go to… To Voldemort," she whispered.

"Yes," she said, haunted as she recalled those moments.

"All done," Elena said softly gently tucking one of the hairs she had left to frame her face behind her ear. Azalea turned to look in the mirror and smiled. It looked beautiful, the braids overlapping as they circled her head.

"This looks amazing, Elena!" she gaped touching it gently. Elena grinned at her.

"I'd be happy to do it more, I used to love doing this to my mother's hair, she would let me sit and play with it for hours…"
The playlist stopped, and the girls heard the sound of an unfamiliar voice downstairs, and Jenna laughing.

"I'll go check," Elena said, leaving the room. Azalea turned back to the mirror smiling at herself, she liked the way it seemed to emphases her collar bone, and make her neck look longer. She turned her head to try and look towards the back, the gently weaving continued no apparent end in sight.

How in Merlin's name had she done this.

No sign of Elena returning, cause the redhead to grow uneasy, holding her wand carefully in her hand, and casting a charm that would help if there were vampires in the house she slowly made her way out into the hallway, and down the stairs. As she got to the turn, and saw Elena and Elijah shaking hands.

Azalea missed the step, her stomach jumped into her throat as her body fell. She tumbled down the stairs.

"Lea!" Jenna and Elena called out at the same time. Rushing towards her their eyes were full of concern.

"I'm ok," she grunted, she tried to get up, however as she did so she felt a pang in her lower back. "Argh,"

"Ok stay still, what hurts?" Jenna's hand hovering on her form, scared to hurt her more by touching something.

"I'm –"

"Lea," Elena said sternly.

"My back and my ankle," she surrendered.

"Could you carry her to the couch?" Jenna asked Elijah.

"Of course, perhaps we should call a doctor?" he said as he bent down to pick her up.

"No," she said firmly. "I'll be fine," she winced a little as she tried to sit up a little more. Gentle hands helped her hobble to the sofa, where Jenna was watching her anxiously.

"I'll call Ric and get him to take you home," she said gently.

"Speaking of home. Jenna would you be so kind as to tell me where a local hotel would be?"

"Oh er, the closest is… oh! Lea could he stay with you, and Ric. It means we only have to drag these boxes next door. Ric won't mind, right?"

Azalea was careful not to show emotion, she saw Elena's face. She too was trying to find a way for the redhead to protest. But as Elijah wanted, she was stuck in the situation.

"Um, sure no problem."

"Thanks, I shall carry you back home, then come back for the boxes."

"Yay," she said to quietly for Jenna.

"Elena can you go tell Jeremy to come and help with the boxes," Jenna asked her. She looked at Azalea briefly before making her way upstairs.

"Thank you, Jenna I will go fetch my things from my car," Elijah said smiling at her.

"I'll go tell Ric the plan and start taking these over. Lea. Stay put," she said sternly, picking up one of the lighter boxes.

Once all the boxes had been moved, Elijah and Ric helped Azalea moving her back to. As soon as Jenna left the redhead (ignoring her aches and pains) got up and began to make her way to the front door.

"Where are you going?" Elijah's eyes narrowed, moving closer to the door.

"None, of your business," she said, she grabbed her phone out of her pocket planning to text Caroline that she was –

"Hey!" she protested as the Original took her phone between his fingers and placed it into his jacket pocket.

"Don't test me Azalea, it is a full moon, I know your friend is going through his first transition tonight. You are not to go anywhere near him. Wolves are dangerous, they –"

"I know what happened to your brother," she said softly. His jaw clenched slightly. "That is why they need my help, so he doesn't hurt anyone."

He shook his head. She scowled at him for a long moment, his expression telling her there was no way she was getting past.

"Why did you save me? Why didn't you just drain me, or leave me there?"

"We do not feed on children; you were in trouble."

"So… it wasn't because… because of –"

"Because you are Niklaus's mate, no."

"I've read a little about it, and Rose brought it up the first time I saw her, but –"

"For now, you need not worry, if we accomplish our mutual goals, this is something you shall never have to face." He said reassuringly.

"Rules," she said. "No killing, no meals brought home, blood bags sure. No hurting or compelling anyone who enters this house, lives here, or otherwise. You will help with chores. Deal?"

"Deal," he said amused. He holds his hand out as if he wanted something from her. She frowned unsure what it was he wanted.

"I wish to relinquish you of any temptations via calls or messages of distress." He said waving his hand slightly to emphases his point. She scowled at him. "You forget that myself – and likely my brother – have read the tales of your life thus far and kept up with any knowledge we could find of you. I know you have a flair for the heroics… often at your own expense. Your phone."

He raised his eyebrows further and tilted his head slightly to the side, as several seconds rolled by, after a couple more. Azalea sighed but did as the Original asked and handed it over.

"Come. Let us talk," he smiled at her, putting her phone in his inner blazer pocket as he gestured with his other arm for them to take a seat.