Author's Note: the reason I'm writing this one is because I'm taking an Gothic and Horror Lit class and we're currently reading Dracula, so I thought I write a story with a bit of horror; not to mention Dracula is my favorite monster.Plus I also wanted to have a story with the setting in Romania since it's my home country. Now this story is basically POTO meets Dracula with a few Twilight references (only a few). I hope you guys enjoy this one :)

Chapter One: Visiting a Friend

"Hurry up dad, I can't miss my flight!" Christine yelled from her bedroom. She was running around her room, making sure she wasn't forgetting anything. Her whole closet was basically packed in her suitcase while she packed several books, her laptop with her charger, her beauty products and a few movies. Her suitcase almost overflowed from everything, but she still managed to close it. Her phone was all charged up and ready to use. She had gotten an international plan for it so she could talk to her dad while overseas. Quickly checking herself in the mirror, she made sure she looked alright. Her chocolate curly locks were pulled back into a French braid, pushing it off her beige skin. A pair of hazel brown eyes scanned her appearance, approving herself. Quickly putting on her pair of UGG boots, she dragged her heavy suitcase out of her room. Her father was waiting in the kitchen when she came downstairs and helped put the suitcase in the trunk. Grabbing her purse, she got into the car and pulled out her phone to quickly text her friend. Her dad started the old Beetle and began the long drive to JFK Airport. During the ride, Christine looked at SELF Magazine that featured Emmy Rossum. She was a big fan of Emmy and often got called 'Little Emmy' due to how alike they looked.

Arriving at the airport, her dad helped her check-in her luggage and get her plane ticket. He walked her over to the security and hugged his daughter. He was going to miss her while she was gone, but wanted her to have a good time. Saying good-bye, he watched her go through security and then to the gate. Waiting at the gate, Christine quickly went on her Twitter and Facebook via her phone to sign-off before boarding the plane. When it was time to board, she got up and went to stand in line. Finding her seat, she texted her dad to tell him and turned off her phone. As she waited for the plane to take off, she looked over the safety instructions. The plane soon took off and began its long flight to England. Taking out her favorite book, The Phantom of the Opera, she opened it up to where she had left off. She also turned her phone back on and plugged her headphones in. Going through her music, she played the music from the 2004 movie version and began to read. At one point she had to pause her reading so that she could eat her dinner, but continued afterwards. She fell asleep sometime during the flight and woke up to the light coming through the window. Looking out the window, she could see the English countryside and couldn't believe she was actually seeing England. The planed landed and she quickly ran through the airport to catch her next flight. Before boarding her next plane, she grabbed something to eat. When the second plane took off, she resumed her reading till it landed.

The plane landed at the airport and Christine got off to get her luggage. Looking at the signs, she regretted not buying a book on the language. She quickly found a little store and bought a language book. Looking through the book, she found the word she wanted and looked for that sign. Spotting the sign for luggage, she followed where it led and came to the luggage belt. Getting her suitcase, she texted her friend to find out where she was. Getting an answer, she walked over to the meeting place and saw her friend.

"Christine!"

"Meg!" The two squealed as they ran to each other. It had been several months since the two saw each other.

"I can't believe you made it."

"Took a lot of begging, but I'm here." Christine looked at her friend. She still had her blonde hair, but it was much shorter than before. She also had gotten a little tanner, but still kept her green eyes.

"Come, you must be tired after two long flights. Mom's waiting in the car for us." Meg went to grab the suitcase. "Whoa, what'd you pack?" She asked.

"My room." Christine joked and took one end of the suitcase while Meg took the other. The two walked out and over to the parking lot where a car was waiting for them. Meg's mom got out to greet Christine and help them put the suitcase in the car. Once the luggage was in, they began the drive away from the airport.

As they drove, Christine peered out the window to look at the country. Miles and miles of green stretched over the rolling hills as big as mountains while groups of clouds played hide-and-seek with the sun. They soon came upon the Carpathian Mountains that looked like they ran forever. Christine's eyes ventured up the tall mountains as the car drove along them. Soon they arrived to a small village along the mountains and drove through it. As she looked at the village, she thought for a moment she had travelled back in time. Coming up to a small house, Meg's mom turned off the car. Christine got out and let her mouth drop. Meg came up next to her and noticed she was staring at the landscape.

"I still haven't gotten over the beauty of Romania." She said to her friend. "Come on, I'll give you a little tour of the house and let you settle in." Meg led Christine inside and showed her around. The house wasn't big, but big enough for Meg and her mom. It reminded Christine of a small cottage like in the medieval times or in a Disney movie like Beauty and the Beast. While unpacking her suitcase, she hummed 'Think of Me' as she put her clothes in the dresser. Once she finished unpacking everything, she headed downstairs where Meg was waiting of her. She offered to take Christine into the village. Christine wanted to see the village, so she accepted Meg's offer and they headed out the door.

Walking down the small pathway to the village, Meg quickly told Christine quick information about the village. Arriving, Meg showed every important building from the museum to the post office. Christine kept falling in love with the village as they continued to walk around. They stopped at a little café to grab something to drink. Standing outside the café, Christine looked far out into the distance. Her eyes scanned the landscape until they noticed a castle in the distance. The white brick walls were visible through the thick trees while the towers rose high over them.

"What's that?" Christine asked, pointing to the castle. Meg looked to see what caught her attention and frowned.

"That's…Bran Castle or Dracula's castle." Meg answered.

"The Dracula's castle? From the book?" Christine had read Dracula several times, loving the horror story.

"Yep the very one; it use to be open to locals, but not anymore. The castle is now owned by someone and people no longer visit, saying it's haunted by a dark spirit. Some think a vampire lives there while others have their guesses."

"Vampires don't exist."

"Not to the people here. Many people believe that vampires are real. Remember this is Romania, home to Dracula. You'd be surprised at what the townspeople believe." Meg explained. "I'm guessing you don't believe in vampires."

"The only vampire I believe in is Dracula, but I have yet to meet him."

"Well…" Meg pointed to the castle. "…there's where he's said to live." A bell stuck from the little church and people began to run around, like they were rushing to finish their work. Meg grabbed Christine's arm and pulled her through the crowd. They returned back to the house where Meg's mother was waiting for them. Once they entered the house, she closed the doors and windows, locking them. They placed several crosses around the house.

Later that night, Christine sat by the small fire after they had finished dinner. She had noticed how worried and frighten Meg and her mom looked since they returned. Her eyes gazed at the flames as her mind wondered.

"Christine?" Meg's voice took Christine attention and her eyes turned from the flames to her. "You alright?" She asked.

"What's going on?" Christine asked. "Why did we rush back here?" Meg sighed and come to sit down next to Christine.

"Do you know what day it is?" Meg asked her. Christine shook her head. "It's Saint George's Day, the day that monsters are supposed to rise and walk the earth." She paused for a moment. "For the past few years, there have been reports of people missing that have disappeared on this day during the night. Some have remained missing while others have been found…dead. They'd find the bodies; drained of blood and pale as white. Some looked like the wolves got them while others looked like someone or something got to them. So now people don't really go out at night anymore. It basically started after the castle was bought by someone." Meg explained. Now she got Christine scared too. "I'm not trying to scare you but warn you of what's been going on in this village and why mom's going to be very protective."

"Thank you Meg."

"You're welcome. Now let's call it a night; you had a long day." Meg suggested. Christine agreed and they headed up to their rooms. Christine locked her bedroom door behind her. Walking over to the window, she stared outside. Knowing she should keep it closed, she unlocked it and opened it up. Her ears caught the sound of a wolf singing its beautiful song. She always loved listening to wolves howl, loving their voices. Her eyes ventured over to the castle that seemed to be glowing in the darkness. Her eyes closed as the wind gently blew pass her face. As the wind blew, she heard a voice humming quietly. They flew open, but saw no one. Closing the window and locking it, she quickly changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed. No matter how much she tried, sleep couldn't come to her. Soon the voice hummed again, a soft soothing melody and her eyelids began to close. Her mind drifted off as the voice sang her to sleep.