Elijah walked her back, if the witches were on to her presence in the city, he didn't want them intercepting her on the way back.

They walked in silence, crunching leaves under their feet. That seemed to be the only sound that they could hear because even their thoughts were empty.

Elijah slowed to a halt, just out of nowhere. His hand grasped Cassandra's wrist and pulled her back to stand beside him.

"What is it?" She turned to him and asked sharply, it had better be something of importance or else she will keep on walking.

"Can you smell that?" He asked, Elijah's eyes stared into the distance, the direction that he thought the ghastly smell was emanating from.

"You're senses are much sharper..." Cassandra's rolled her eyes and began to speak, but halfway through she was hit by whatever the smell might be "maybe it is just the river" she suggested "leave it be, the smell will pass"

Cassandra stepped forward but Elijah's words stopped her once more "no" he replied "I can smell blood, maybe it is one of my vampires"

"Elijah, leave it" Cassandra urged "if you go to find the source of the smell, it could be dangerous, it could be a trap"

"The sun is still up, my dear" Elijah looked towards the sky, he had about an hour left of daylight, which gives him plenty of time to find the source, investigate and get home. "If you are scared, then you are only a few minutes away from your home"

Elijah stepped in the opposite direction of where they were going, he walked away without another word.

Cassandra stood and watched him walk a few steps away, she was utterly speechless. She came out with a series of 'ah's' and 'er's' in replacement of actual words. Cassandra gritted her teeth and took a deep breath in "Elijah, wait"

Her pace picked up as she ran after him, scared of what she might find. Elijah turned his head slightly and couldn't help but smile subtly as she followed along like a lost puppy.

"Didn't Rebekah do a head count for your vampires?" She asked as her smaller legs tried to keep up with Elijah's quick stride.

"Yes but I haven't had the opportunity to speak to her today, as you have known" Elijah replied "we have spent the entire day together"

Yes, indeed they did. And it was a day that she would never be able to forget. Cassandra looked towards the ground and bit her lip gently to try and mask the smile that came across her face. But he did have a glimpse of it, wanting to just stare and analyse every part of her face.

But as always, these happy moments, the ones where they wish everything had frozen, comes to an end. A sharp realisation of the damnation that they are entrapped in.

"Oh my..." Cassandra looked down, her feet had stopped just skimming the head of a vampire that sprawled on the floor. It's skin turned grey and his eyes opened wide to show the fear that he had before dying.

Elijah knelt, wiping his fingers along the man's neck, covering his fingers in blood "cold" he sighed, clenching his fist and looking away. "He's been dead since last night, the blood is drying, his skin is like ice"

"D-did you know him?" She asked quietly, biting her thumb. Elijah turned and placed his fingers under his chin, lifting the man's head so the sun caught is face.

"Barely" Elijah replied "we've exchanged a few words beforehand, Niklaus turned him"

"I am very sorry, anyway" Cassandra looked down at Elijah's solemn expression, "you seem too upset over a man that you hardly knew"

"It's not the man" Elijah threw himself to the floor, looking up at her "it's the anger, someone I cared deeply for suffered the same injuries in the same place as we are now"

"Was it a girl?" Cassandra wouldn't have asked if she wasn't certain, well, almost certain.

"Would you believe me if I said I've only fell in love twice before?" He asked, bursting out with a short spell of laughter "I never really allow myself to care for another, but this time I did"

"Her name was Florence and she was the first one I turned when I arrived here, she was made to protect us, but when I realised we were finally safe, we became involved with each other" he explained "you see, my father has chased us across lands, wanting to kill us. But now this creature has cursed the land, it'll either harm us before our father can, or news will spread about the increased levels of deaths in the city and it will draw him here"

"Elijah, you don't have to..." Cassandra places her hand on his knee, and looked up at him. She was about to tell him that he didn't have any obligations to explain, she was going to tell him that his loss is tragic and give him a sympathy. She was going to try and explain that maybe the creature doesn't mean what he does, maybe he just can't control himself, surely Elijah had done worse, but she wanted to explain it just to make him feel somewhat better.

But her heart stopped as she looked away at the bare bush beside her, there were hardly any leaves on it, just crisp, brown twigs. She didn't say anything, her breath caught in a gasp. 'Stupid' she uttered to herself

"What is it?" Elijah fidgeted, leaning forward to look in the direction her eyes were looking in. He jumped forward as soon as he saw it.

Elijah's hands lifted the piece of fabric stretched to the twig, his eyes examining every thread, every detail on the small swab. "This must be the fabric of whoever is the author of these murders" he said coldly, realising he held in his hand the one piece of evidence that they could trace, with the help of a little magic.

Cassandra tiptoed and took the fabric off him "this thing isn't a he, it's a she" she said examining the lilac piece, she could almost make out the jacquard pattern as a flower.

"Do you think you can do a spell and find out who this belongs to?" Elijah asked. Cassandra twiddled her fingers and looked up at the sky

"It's getting dark"

"Then you can stay at mine for the night" Elijah suggested

"Your family hates me, can't we do it tomorrow?" She asked

"I need to know, tonight" he urged "we can put a stop to this all"

"Fine"