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Spoilers warning: Set during "The Murder of One"

Three days before her wedding, she had expected her maid of honor to help her figure out her seating chart one more time. Instead, Aya found herself helping her frantic friend pack up her few belongings for a trip to a small town. Sage always was the hard ass that no one dared to challenge, but she looked like a love sick teenager as she fretted about her clothing and what she would say. Sage rarely allowed people into her small cottage that had become a shrine to Finn. She still had the dresses from 900 years ago hidden in a chest at the foot of her bed. By her bedside, was the only portrait she had of Finn that reminded her of him every day.

The phone call from Klaus was unwelcomed until she heard the words that she had dreamed of for so many years: Finn is alive. She immediately packed her things to get to Mystic Falls, almost forgetting to tell her favorite protégée that she wouldn't be able to attend her wedding. She had done so many things to hide her grief that she hoped Finn would forgive her. He was so noble, so perfect that she had felt inferior, but he was back. There was nothing changing the fact that he would get the truth, but she needed to have him once again. He was the man that had given her a life that she could only dream of and he deserved another chance. She wondered how he would adjust to the times and whether he would remember her still. So many thoughts ran through her brain that she had become frozen in her bedroom.

Sage snapped out of her thoughts as she looked over to the anxious bride to be. She ran up to her friend, hugging hard as she saw the tears in Aya's eyes build. No matter how strong she was, she couldn't get rid of the soft spot she had developed for the moor princess, as she liked to call her.

"I'm sorry for being so selfish, but I can't imagine this day without you," Aya said, choking back her tears.

Sage punched her lightly in the shoulder as she let her go.

"I know, but I have waited nine hundred years, I can't bear to wait another day," Sage chipped. "You can always postpone the wedding if you'll miss me that much."

Aya jumped back in shock. "The flowers, the music, and the location have been set! It's perfect!" She snapped back. "Do you know how hard it was to get clearance to have my wedding in that park after dark? I even had to compel the park rangers to stay away from my area for the rest of the night. Also, the ice sculptures cannot wait for you to return, they look so realistic I had to give the artist extra money."

Sage chuckled to herself as she hurried in record speed to finish her packing before Aya managed to pull herself out of her speech about her meticulous wedding. She looked back to the small portrait that she had held onto after all these years and imagined how it would feel to hold him once again. She wondered if he would feel different, if he would still feel like home. As Sage began to walk out the door, she felt a hand grab her. She began to tear as she looked at her friend and cracked a smile. She could felt herself beginning to shake as she thought of Finn again.

"It's fate, you know. We are both getting our princes," Aya said softly.

"What if he doesn't care about me anymore?" Sage said, finally voicing the fear that had crept into her heart.

"He seemed like a romantic and we all know how romantics turn out as vampires," Aya joked.

"I wish I can see his face when he sees you walk down that aisle."

"Same here, I would love to see a Sage in love."

The two women gave each other chaste kisses on each other's cheeks before Sage departed for Mystic Falls. Aya hoped for her friend, confidante, and maker to finally have her missing puzzle piece. If it wasn't for Sage, she would have been another forgotten figure from history.

Āyisha Awzal was one of the most well read in her village. Her family could trace it's lineage to the Ottoman's royalty and had expected Spain to be their home as it had been for over an hundred years, yet one day she was awoken to the decree of their expulsion. The poor villagers that once worked the family's land grabbed anything with value. They stole away the lives of her family one by one with pitchforks and nooses. All she could do was run away to save herself. Nothing she could do could hide the fact that she was a moor and even in her darkest moment, she wouldn't have changed a thing. During her escape, she had lost her burka in the woods letting her dark brown hair swing wildly in the wind. She was left in a simple silk bed dress that made her feel ever more frail, her dark brown hair glistening with sweat as she found herself navigating the city.

She stayed cowered in a darken alley as the mob approached her. She tried to remember the faces of her murderers so she could curse them in the afterlife. But then suddenly, the torches were on the floor, being smothered by the blood of the crowd. Ayisha was shocked at the woman dressed as a man, with fire red hair flowing out from under her commoner's hat. Her hands dripped with blood as if she had been bathing them in it. The woman took off her hat and curtsied, scaring her so much that she wondered if this was death's angel. She backed herself further and further into the dead end. Closing her eyes, she awaited the darkness to become her home. A gentle caress of her cheek made her open her eyes. The grey eyes scared her so much, her body began to shake violently.

The woman smiled and spoke of revenge and life and when the speech was over, she offered a bloody wrist. The expressions of anger and disgust on the faces of her would-be killers was burned into her mind just as much as the hanging bodies of her siblings. This "Sage" offered a way to escape the pain of all she had lost, so she accepted .A quick snap of her neck initiated herself into a new world with a new friend. That was the beginning of what she considered to be her true life.

Brice drove up the dirt road to pick up his fiancé who seemed frozen on her friend's porch. He couldn't help but be jealous of all Aya had ever had in her past and present life. Brice loved everything about her from her brown skin that seemed to shimmer in the sunlight to her grace with every movement. She wore a strapless blue dress that draped down to the floor and a simple pendant around her neck that he had bought hundreds of years ago when he first saw her. He hated how thin he was when he was turned. It made him feel like a peasant, no matter how much culture he tried to learn. He always preferred the casual looks of the time, feeling as if high fashion was simply just not meant for him.

Aya perked up as she saw Brice exiting the car with flowers in hand. He was so tall that it made even him look awkward exiting the small sport car they had bought together. His hands often shook whenever he handed her presents, which Aya found endearing even after all these years. Brice's short brown hair was tousled without a single hair product in it and his high cheekbones further enhanced his full lips and sharp nose. Aya stood on her tiptoes to kiss Brice as he approached her, causing her to lose her balance. He quickly dropped the flowers to catch her before she even tilted another inch towards the ground. When she open her eyes to see the look of adoration on her beloved's face as he held her with lean arms, she couldn't wait for their wedding.

"Darling, you have to be careful," he pleaded in his guttural Scottish accent. She laughed as she pulled herself up to snuggle against his skin.

"I have millions of dresses."

"But there is only one of you."

She squeezed him tight as he placed his head on top of her soft, lilac-scented hair. He took his index finger and pulled her head towards him so he could kiss her glossy lips gently. Her hands held on to the edge of his green sweater as she kissed him back harder. Every time he kissed her, she felt as if he was setting her aflame, but as his hands crept to the nape of her throat, she willed herself to let go.

"Not before the wedding," she said halfheartedly leaving Brice quite flustered. She rushed into the car as Brice ran his fingers through his hair. He thanked the fates for letting him have this piece of happiness and frustration every day.

Brice Bossard was a sickly child who grew into a wiry fellow and seemed to invoke rage in all he encountered. The many scars that laid on his back and fingers were reminders of his numerous duels that he had since puberty. He even prided himself in his ability to stay conscious no matter how bad the assault was. Germany seemed to have changed so quickly with word spreading of the printing press and the preachers who filled the streets to save souls. He became disenchanted with religion early on. He cared neither for words of the rich or the soul. Filling the hunger that often filled his brain at all times was his priority.

As he walked back to his small home he had built, he was hit from behind with a rock. The blood spilled in patches on the dirt road, yet the attackers continued until he was nothing more than a broken item that littered the main path. For a small piece of gold, he felt his world drift away from him no matter how much he willed for it to come back. A shadowed figure stood over him with their face hidden by a monk's hood. He asked for his final rights before he could think, yet the man filled his mouth with bad wine that tasted like the blood that he was sure covered his mouth. Before the birds could chirp their morning song, he was healed from his wounds.

He continued his journey back home with speed, pledging himself to the church and God but then he caught the attention of another derelict and found a knife in his throat. He had awoken with a hunger that plagued him more than anything and unaware about who he had become. It would take a few years before he found his angel who showed him the way. Years came and went, but he found himself more in love with her each decade that pased. A few years ago, he had finally decided that he had to make it even more official, no matter what form they now were.

It took so many months to plan this wedding, the groom and bride were insanely thankful for their longevity. It was so hard to find the one, especially in the vampire world, but somehow they had managed. Five hundred years under their belt seemed to prove that they were ready for the first step into a permanent union. A park wedding at dusk that the bride researched obsessively for weeks, everything had to be perfect for the day she would cherish for the rest of her life.

The corset was so tight that Diane began to wonder if Aya, as she nicknamed her, wanted her to break her ribs. In front of the mirror, she fretted with the details of her dress, looking at her face for any blotches or mistakes. Diane rolled her eyes as they exchanged stories of their cultures, wedding practices, and why Aya had chosen something so modern.

"Maybe I should bring the makeup artist again," Āyisha asked nervously.

"You look perfect," Diane said, smoothing the back.

"I want him to think I'm perfect. If I'm not perfect, I'll be one of the girls complaining about him siring some high school girls with a big ass who oohs and ahhs at his stories of pirating or something," she ranted.

"Remember when he fell over board and we had to save him?" Diane smiled at the growingly frustrated woman.

"I'm serious. I don't want to be that vampire. Stake me now!"

"He proposed so you never have to worry about this again. He loves you," Diane insisted, pulling the last strap of the dress.

"I just love him so much." She turned to look at her best friend for the last two hundred years. Diane's broken smile made her feel a little better as she shook her lightly.

"He loves you too." Diane took her best friend's hands and squeezed them tight. "All you have to do is walk down the aisle and he will know that without a doubt."

"I wish Sage was here. I wanted her to give me away," Aya confessed. As the days went by, she missed her maker more and more.

"Yeah, feminism in vampire form would love that," Diane scoffed loudly. "Besides she is trying to complete her love story right now."

The bridesmaids came in and gushed on her Victorian style wedding dress, reverting Aya into her former smug personality she had as a noble. A noble should always look perfect, she thought to herself. The jewelry was dug up from the many boxes she had kept over the years but most of all the ones Brice had given her. Diane was given leeway as she dressed in her formal gypsy clothing that was as colorful as she was.

Lucy Bennett felt awkward in the presence of so many vampires, but there was a fair amount of humans too. Lucy found an ally in the little group who had come to her town. It let her mind be at ease from the threat of Katherine. Lucy had settled in Portland for awhile to enjoy the budding culture around and met a former witch by the name of Diane. Diane ran a magic shop and offered Lucy a brand new perspective. Now she was invited to a wedding that wasted no expense. It was quite refreshing to go from running and hiding from vampires to having a whole catering table dedicated to her and the human guests.

The ceremony started with a wedding march from an older time. It was a flash to past as they exchanged wedding vows, surrounded by candles that illuminated the large oak trees that swayed all around them. As they walked down the rose covered silk path as husband and wife, Lucy almost felt tears develop in her eyes for them. Aya gave her custom wedding vow that thanked her maker and all the events she had lived through with Brice by her side. Brice recounted his early ripper days and how Aya had changed him. The couple kissed passionately and almost jumped at the sound of being called husband and wife.

Everything was white even though the groom wore a traditional black tuxedo. Chinese lanterns hung from the make-shift gazebo. The dance floor was black and white tile placed on the grass. The guests mingled and laughed over wedding cake, fresh food and even warmed blood available for the guests. The food was surprisingly excellent with lobster and steak cooked to order.

Lucy spoke with the humans who came. Some were future vampires waiting for the right age to join and others were saved by Brice or Aya. It was nice to feel at ease as everyone acted like a normal wedding.

The compelled DJ played their song for the first dance. For some, it was a bit shocking to hear such a modern song playing. As "The Pageant of the Bizarre "by Zero 7 played, the couple just swayed in each other arms. Music filled the night as the couple danced in the center of the ballroom. Brice kissed Aya's neck as they danced, unable to wipe the smile off his face.

"Did I make you happy?" Brice asked softly in his wife's ear.

"Happy, doesn't do it justice," she whispered back as her head rested on his shoulder.

A sick feeling began to rise from her stomach, making her back away from their embrace. She clutched her stomach hard, breaking the pearls that were sewn into her gown. She felt like vervain was coursing through her skin, but there was no way. As she looked around, everything began to shrink and her vision became weaker and weaker.

"Brice," she whispered. The world began to spin and she reached out her hand to grab onto something or someone. She felt like the day she was cornered in that alleyway, but Sage was nowhere to be found this time.

Her skin become yellowish as every second passed, destroying the gold flaked brown complexion that everyon always admired. She fell into his arms, looking up with her nose bloody. He screamed for help as her skin began to turn into a color he knew too well. The yells started to come from the other attendants as others began to fall too. Nothing could distract him from his beloved's whimpers.

"Not now," she repeated in a panic as more blood spilled from her nose.

She tried to speak again, but coughed up more blood, staining the white dress she had commissioned. She looked at his blood stained lapel before grabbing it tightly. Her skin began to crack as a gray shade began to envelope her.

"Baby, please don't die. My princess, my angel, please. I will die without you. Don't leave! Please don't leave!" He cried into her face pressing forehead to forehead. She thought about her happy memories with Brice holding onto it as her anchor to this world.

"Was my love not strong enough?" she coughed slowly before she was nothing more but a corpse in her husband's arms.

He screamed as he felt the concrete colored skin beneath his hands. The ring he carefully picked out to match her eyes was now a halo on her shriveled fingers.

Lucy rushed over the falling bodies that were beginning to litter the party. Brice looked up with red-rimmed eyes for some type of hope to return but Lucy shook her head, confirming a truth he didn't want to believe.

A vampire lunged at Lucy, blaming her for the deaths, but landed absent a heart that Diane now held. Diane was a good judge in character. She thought that it would take more than some witch to cause a massacre like this.

"I will help you find out what happened. I promise," Lucy announced immediately. As much as she hated vampires, she didn't think they needed to die like this. Diane nodded her head in agreement.

"When I find the person who did this…I will make them feel my pain. On my life, I will make them pay," Brice growled out as he rocked Aya's body in his arms.