1002, southern france

Cheeks burnished with a humiliated pink, Aubrianne scuttled away from the group of pretentious noble Ladies, ignoring their taunting giggles as she kept her gaze on the floor.

After Lady Astrid had left her side to go and see her husband, the noble Ladies had decided they no longer needed to keep their polite act up.

Instead of ignoring her presence, they had begun teasing and mocking her, calling her Tristan's little slave. Their words had been hurtful and cruel.

Though her eyes were damp with tears, she refused to shed them. She wouldn't cry for those horrid women.

Aubrianne was so caught up in her thoughts she barely watched her path as she slammed into a firm chest, falling to the ground.

Lady Astrid's dress! She jumped to her feet, ignoring the outstretched hand as she began dusting off the back of the dress. No doubt the dry mud had stained the peach fabric. Would Lady Astrid be mad at her?

"I'm so sorry, My Lady." A polite, masculine voice spoke up, making Aubrianne jolt in surprise.

She had almost forgot she had bumped into someone as she glanced up, eyes widening at the sight of Lady Astrid's brother-in-law.

"I-I..."

The Lord Elijah was even more handsome up close, his jaw-line sharp enough to cut through graphite.

He narrowed his eyes, fingers wiping away the single escapee tear as he frowned, glancing behind her.

He caught sight of the giggling noble women sat with Lady Aurora, they were all looking at Aubrianne, though they quickly glanced away when they noticed Elijah staring.

"Has something bothered you, my Lady?" He asked in concern.

Elijah had never liked seeing a woman in distress. He had seen his own sister and mother shed streams of tears before, so it hurt him to see any woman crying.

Especially such a delicate and very pretty young woman like the one before him. He didn't recognize her; he certainly would have recalled seeing such a beauty in Court.

"I'm- I'm no Lady, M'Lord." She murmured.

She was clearly embarrassed as he arched a brow. "Pardon?"

"I'm Lady Astrid's handmaiden, M'Lord."

'Hmm', that was news to him. Elijah hadn't known his sister-in-law had adopted a handmaiden during their stay.

"Surely a woman as fair as you should be considered a Lady." He commented, sending her a small smile as her cheeks flushed pink.

She momentarily forgot all about the cruel words spoken by the Ladies as she shifted uncomfortably on her feet. "I-I, I don't know what to say, M'Lord."

He smiled and it wasn't till she met his dark gaze, the realization that this was Kol's brother dawned upon her.

Tristan had told her that he believed the family were demons, that something wasn't right with them. He had told her to do all she could to stay away from them, even Lady Astrid, only spending time with them when necessary.

"I... Excuse me, M'Lord. I'm very tired." She murmured, suddenly looking very pale as she skirted around him, leaving him standing alone.

Frowning, Elijah watched as Aubrianne practically ran away, frightened tears gathering in her eyes beyond his vision.

Elijah arched a brow. She had suddenly seemed so terrified. Why was that?

...

The note of his heartful confession felt heavy in his pocket as Lucien walked through the corridors. He frowned sullenly as he thought of Niklaus.

Perhaps he wasn't the friend Lucien had thought him to be. He hadn't wanted to help him deliver his note to Aurora, and Lucien couldn't understand why.

It wasn't like Nik knew of his true feelings towards both Astrid and Aurora. Sighing, Lucien placed his hand in his pocket, clutching the note within the fabrics safe grasp.

Lucien was swiftly cut out of his thoughts by frantic footsteps. With a frown on his face, Lucien turned, only for a body to slam into his.

All he saw was a whirlwind of red as they fell to the ground, the note slipping between his fingertips beside them, laying forgotten and isolated on the floor, as he stared down in surprise at the girl beneath him.

Aubrianne. Tears were falling from her eyes and she looked dreadfully pale. It was only when her arms began pushing against his chest, Lucien realized he was still laid on top of her.

Cheeks flushed in embarrassment, Lucien found himself unable to form words as he tried to get up, his legs between hers as she struggled. "Get off me!" She cried out, wiggling away.

Lucien scowled, cheeks still tinged pink. "I'm- I'm trying! Stop moving!" He shouted in frustration.

If anyone would see them in such a compromising position, especially because she was Lord Tristan's servant... The outcome would not be good.

Just as Lucien was about to push himself up, a hand gripped the back of his tunic, shoving him off Aubrianne and into the harsh stone wall.

Groaning, Lucien felt a dull throbbing at the back of his head, fingers reaching back, only to return coated in a coppery liquid. Vision blurring, Lucien was surprised to find Tristan, flanked by his guards.

While Tristian laid a hand on a sobbing Aubrianne's shoulder, the guards moved to grab his forearms, pulling him forcefully to his feet.

What the...

Oh no. The position they had been in, Lucien telling her not to move, Aubrianne crying... He knew what it must have looked like.

"My Lord- please. This is all a misunderstanding!" Lucien cried out. If it wasn't for Tristan's guards restraining grip, Lucien was pretty sure he'd have fallen to his knees.

Aubrianne's eyes widened in realization as she rapidly shook her head. "No- no, it wasn't like that, M'Lord!" She begged but was swiftly silenced by Tristan.

Walking towards Aubrianne, Tristan halted in his stead just before he could stand on the crumpled note. Oh god... Could this day get any worse for Lucien?

Narrowing his eyes, Tristan leaned down to pick up the note, carefully unfolding it. As he read the words, a possessive anger enlightened within his dark eyes.

'It seemed not only Lucien was trying to force himself upon his little servant, but he was also obsessed with her, writing ludicrous and pathetic poetry. He couldn't have that, after all, she was his property' Tristan thought to himself as he folded the note back up.

"M'Lord." Aubrianne whimpered.

Gently shushing her, Tristan's cold gaze moved to Lucien. "No need to worry, little dove. My father has very strict rules about this type of misconduct in his keep. I believe this little runt needs a trip to my dungeons." Tristan called out, nodding at his guards.

Instantly the guards began dragging him down the hall, ignoring his helpless screams as Tristan gave Aubrianne a parting glance before heading after them; towards the dungeon.

No one touched what was his.

So because I changed the aurora/Klaus storyline, I made some alterations on how Lucien is going to get turned into a vampire and why Tristan captures him.

So Lucien feels betrayed by Klaus, because he refused to deliver the letter to Aurora, which is basically the reason he was unable to explain or reason to Tristan the misunderstanding with Aubrianne, no matter what she says, as he believes the letter to be for Aubrianne, because of the similarities between Aurora and Aubrianne (red hair, pale skin etc).

But I'll explain it more as it goes on!