It's been quite a long while since I last posted anything in this story.

But yeah, our vampire does it again, and trust me when I say that he's no idiot. Take it from me, I'm pretty sure there are some that would inevitably get smart to what hindered them before and turn it around in their favor.

Mary's gonna have to give it everything she's got if she's gonna get through this nightmare.

Anyways, without further ado, enjoy!

I own nothing except my OCs.

Read, leave me a review, but flames are unacceptable.

Chapter 27: Love Once Lost

"When we were first staying at Hollow Bastion with the promise of finding another ride, there was something peculiar that I saw while exploring the castle with Jane," Mina chose to explain to the professor about what she had experienced with the hopes that her knowledge might help offer an idea as to what Xemnas was after. "In an abandoned studio, I saw a portrait of a lady who looked eerily similar to me, except she looked much thinner than I, and under the picture was a name: she was called Hellene Steiner. As I looked upon it, I could've sworn that I was seeing visions of her, as she was when she was alive. At one point, we had questioned Xemnas about it, and he claimed that an ancestor of his family knew her, and loved her long ago – until she died of an incurable illness. But ever since then, whenever, I was alone; he would always be near me, as though he was pursuing me without my knowing that he wanted something from me."

Intrigued, Eraqus wanted to find out more. "Did he show implications of desire to you, always invading your personal space, speaking to you as though he was trying to charm you?"

Mina nodded. "Yes, he did. It's happened even after we fled Hollow Bastion. When he and his cohorts showed up at our cousins' home, he would speak as though he was directing his words to me and yet it also isn't meant for me. And there was another instance when he suddenly showed up at our cousin Terra's doorstep, which – and I horribly shame myself for the mistake I made after being instructed otherwise to answer to no one – I invited him in, and I let him near me when I should've known better that I wasn't supposed to. I was only speaking with him regarding what I was experiencing since I had no idea how to communicate these strange activities to my sisters, but just as I was about to leave to collect myself, I had another episode of those uncanny hallucinations, but at that time, I had no way to resist such excruciating mental pain. I suppose it didn't help in the slightest that he indicated an urge to never let me escape from his grasp again…"

Now Mary understood what it was she saw upon arriving home to rescue Jane: Xemnas had been in the house without their knowledge, and Mina was most likely under his thrall. He was a sly bastard for manipulating her little sister into allowing him entry, but after how much more damage he had done to her through the tainting of her blood, it only served to fuel her burning desire for revenge against the devious parasite that plagued them.

Professor Eraqus, after listening to the plights of young Mina, was unquestionably intrigued at this. "This is certainly very fascinating and spine-tingling to hear, to speak of a creature more complex than we initially thought. It is clear that there is more than one motive for the hunt against the family, and the evidence is right in front of us all along. The leader of the unholy coven is still a bloodthirsty monster, which we can still agree on. However, thanks to Miss Mina's unique insights as to his opposite character, he also seeks more than human blood to claim as his own. His attack on her is proof that blood lust and its opposing counterpart are fixated on she whom he believes is a perfect replacement for his lost love from long ago."

Terra turned to him, revolted at the idea. "How could such a loathsome thing have an unbearable lust over my cousin?"

"Think carefully on this: a select few of his ilk had chosen targets of their own, you've become aware of that," the professor insisted firmly, "We know that the one called Marluxia pursued Jane to satiate his own selfish goals, possibly intending to turn her into a vampire like himself from lust. We have learned that a character called Xaldin was responsible for exacting his violent revenge on Caroline out of spite for the cruelty she delivered to him, and he is still on the prowl, I am certain. It is safe to believe that Xemnas is not that different from his brood, pursuing particular targets either as an asset or as an endangerment to them."

Kairi was horrified to hear about this. "Oh, no! My poor, dearest cousin! It dreads me to think of what would've happened if they had targeted us after fulfilling their objective against our dear cousins."

Mary certainly sympathized with Kairi in her worries; after all, if the vampires had their fill of vengeance against the leading four who were supposed to be gullible prey in the beginning, then there's no question that they would quite possibly do the same to the rest of their family if they so wished it. But since they supposedly broke a particular taboo that none of them understood too well during their brief stay, only the four of them became the prime targets for the true monsters they have discovered. With Professor Eraqus and his apprentices added into the equation, though, it is very likely that the threats targeted toward them will only increase thanks to the help they've just recently received.

Still, with Mina's life hanging in the balance and Xemnas having already left his mark in her bloodstream, it only means that the family is in a more precarious situation than they were before. They would have to search for Xemnas' current hiding place as soon as possible, and then destroy him if they want to set Mina free from the curse placed upon her. But the question is; where is he? And for that matter, are he and his cohorts hiding somewhere in town without them knowing it?

"Well, then, what are you going to do?" Sora asked out of the blue. "Now that Mina's in danger, how are you going to save her?"

Mary shook her head in uncertainty. "That is where I have no answer. We don't have any leads on where we can find Xemnas and hid current hiding place. Given how he followed us from Hollow Bastion, he would have to conceal himself somewhere fitting to his advantage – more so considering how his abode is a ruined home of high class long forgotten."

"Considering how long they have been haunting the Chastain sisters, it would make sense that they had to have knowledge of the environment," Aqua agreed with her.

"But then, where can we find answers as to how well they know the surrounding area?" Ventus wondered. "We'll need to know where we can research our adversaries, and scour the entire town for clues as to where their temporary den could be."

That was when Terra had an idea. "Perhaps we could investigate the archives at the ministry, search into available information on every house and shop known within Twilight Town. One of the existing buildings might give us a clue on where to start looking."

The professor nodded, interested in the idea. "That might be the smartest course of action, especially if we are to keep up with the vampires' movements. The magistrate might have some knowledge as to every residence within the vicinity of the region, even those that have not been recorded for some time."

This gave Mary a small hope spot in this dark hour; if they are fortunate enough to gain access to the archives on the town itself, then that means there is still a chance to shift the tides to their favor and save Mina much sooner. But even so, there is still the off chance that the vampires will figure out their next course of action. After all, with Xemnas as the leader of the brood, it is very likely that some of his minions are much smarter than the average person; not all of them, given what happened to Marluxia, but some of them have to be intelligent enough to pull of their farces and then prey upon their victim once an opening has been found.

Eraqus seemed to know what Mary was thinking when he spoke again, "However, it is late, and we will not have the opportunity to seek the magistrate's aid until morning. We will, unfortunately, have to wait until we can take this opportunity."

That disappointed Terra. "Then what do we do for the night? After what befell Mina, how can we protect her?"

"We'll have the cloves of garlic positioned in certain parts of her bedroom, for her own protection," the professor replied matter-of-factly, "But for extra precaution, it would be in our best interest to have the crucifix kept around her neck at all times for the night. Should any of these wards be disturbed, then we will know that the vampire has come to strike again."

"But then that means Mina will be endangered all over again," Mary pointed out in disapproval.

"That is true. But hopefully, she will not be attacked a second time once he sees the garlic and the crucifix," Ventus said, trying to hold out optimism.

Although she had her doubts that Xemnas could be repelled that easily after what she had heard from her sister, Mary had to have confidence in Eraqus's plans as he is their only chance at surviving by this point. Even if the wards fail to do their job, she had a faint idea that he might already be formulating a few backup plans just in case this one goes horribly wrong. But for now, she'll just have to ride the night through and wait for any new developments in the house, for better or for worse.

As night dominated the skies, the Lander house fell mostly quiet; prior to that, it was a little busy after Kairi and Sora had left to attend to Jane, allowing Professor Eraqus to make certain arrangements with the residents and the staff as to how Mina's room should be handled. He went to great lengths to make sure all them implicitly follow his instructions not to trifle with the cloves of garlic he had hung around her bedroom, and above all else that she is not to be disturbed under any circumstances until morning. It gave Mary reason to believe that he didn't want to take chances on having anyone in the house be exploited by Xemnas, considering what he is capable of; if anything, if he is able to compel someone as vulnerable as Mina, chances are the staff would be no different on being susceptible to such power.

Though it was a bit intolerable to have to put up with the scent of garlic, at least she understood that it is a necessary tool to try and ward off the vampire. However, she couldn't shake off the feeling that even the professor – for all his knowledge and determination – has his doubts as to how long he can keep the vampire at bay, as he hasn't said that this strategy is guaranteed; most likely he didn't want to tempt them into believing he is overconfident, lest he risk greater danger on everyone in the house.

Now, the house has gone quiet, and everyone is stationed nearby Mina's bedroom so that she can be checked on more efficiently. Even Mary had to make a temporary move to another until the matter can be resolved, if at all. For now, she is settled in alongside her cousin Terra inside a bedroom nearby the door to Mina's. She didn't want to admit it, but she could easily smell the garlic from outside.

"I honestly cannot imagine how Mina will be able to sleep with the scent of the garlic herbs in there," Mary suddenly confessed.

Terra apparently heard her and replied, "I am not too thrilled about it myself, but I am quite certain that we don't have too many options on our hands. I don't like the idea of leaving Mina by herself either, but so long as one of us at least has open ears, we will know whether or not someone has entered the house."

To prove the point, Mary noticed that Terra had a set of firearms and bladed weapons arranged on the desk, each of them meticulously prepared for use in case of an emergency. It surprised her to know that he had such tools in his own house, but given who he once associated with and what he knew as a doctor, he most likely wanted to be prepared for whatever danger might come should the need arise. She probably would've done the same if she had any knowledge or experience in using weapons.

Then, unexpectedly, Terra handed her a silver knife. "You might to have a weapon on your person, just in case. After everything that's happened, I'd rather that you not go unarmed if those things are still loose in the town."

Though she wasn't too enthusiastic about handling a weapon, Mary knew that her cousin only wanted her to ensure her own protection; Terra can't protect her forever, and the professor can only do so much, so it's only fair that she had to keep herself safe whenever there is the off chance she's on her own. Cautiously, she took the sheathed knife from her cousin and held it close to her person as she prepared the belt around her waist.

Now, the only thing she can do at this point is wait and keep her ears sharp for any sign of intrusion, with only a sliver of cautious hope that Mina will stay alive…

Despite the eerie serenity of night, Mina found herself having trouble staying asleep for as long as she wanted. It wasn't because of the garlic hung around her bedroom – after all, she knew what the purpose of these plants are from the professor – and the scent of the herbs certainly had nothing to do with her anxieties. No, the only reason she had trouble maintaining any sleep was because of her fears about Xemnas returning to her.

The horrors of last night haunted Mina throughout the day after she realized what had happened to her, and it certainly didn't help when she had to watch her family struggle to keep her alive until they can find answers as to her salvation. The idea of becoming a vampire alone is enough to give her nightmares, and she didn't want to even dream about it so long as she is still human and sane. All she wanted was to be free of her horrifying experience and return to a normal life – or as normal as possible, at the very least. Though she knew that nothing will be the same should the vampires be destroyed, she certainly would've traded all of the horrors of the past just to regain any sense of normalcy she used to know and enjoy.

'Why did it have to be me now? I never asked for any of this,' she thought to herself as she felt herself about to cry, 'and I certainly don't want to cause my family any pain as one of the night creatures.'

Unfortunately, any chances of finding any peace never came to be when she heard a rattling sound by the window, forcing her to turn and discover – to her horror – that Xemnas is already there, trying to open the window. However, she watched as he quickly realized that, upon barely opening the windows a crack, the scent of garlic started to leak through the cracks. With an angry glint in his amber eyes, he flicked his gaze across the room as he quickly discovered the herbs strung around the room and – without even raising a hand – used his dark power to rapidly wither the cloves into nothing but dried, scentless specks of powder.

Mina, stunned at the sight of the mystic defenses completely destroyed by the power of a single vampire, suddenly realized the increasing helplessness of her situation as she watched the man effortlessly open the window and enter the bedroom, now able to breeze right in without anything to interfere with his objective. She really wanted to let out something from her voice – a plea for mercy, a scream for help, a declaration of defiance – anything that she can do to warn everyone outside of the danger that now threatens to continue exerting control over her. But no matter what she tried to do to get a sound out, not even a tiny peep came out of her mouth as she was forced to look at the man who towers over her in more ways than one. Just like the night before, she found herself losing what willpower she had left and at the mercy of the one who marked his corruption in her blood.

As she remained paralyzed, Xemnas slowly approached her, warily examining her for anything out of the ordinary when his eyes shifted towards the crucifix worn around her neck, the holy symbol lingering near her neck in a futile attempt to repel the demonized intruder. Not too pleased at the sight, he raised a hand to the cross and used his dark magic to instantly melt and disintegrate the metal into nothing, leaving her wide open for his predatory wiles.

"So, the professor thinks he can hold me back with his herbs and his crosses?" he said indignantly, "He may have been able to outsmart me when we first met, but even a man as wise and intelligent as he has his limitations. But you already know that is the case, didn't you?"

As much as she didn't want to admit it openly, Mina had reason to believe that Xemnas is much more intelligent than the rest of his cohorts, thus he had more awareness of what is to be expected when faced with a difficult adversary. Perhaps they all have underestimated what manner of vampire he really is…

Suddenly, she was startled by the hands slowly brushing across her pale skin, caressing her cheek and ice-cold fingers sliding down to her neck where he had bitten her yesterday. It sent her frightened chills down her spine, immobilizing her as she lay powerless once more at the hands of this fiend that stained her innocent blood.

"Are you afraid of me? Is that why you lost your ability to speak?" Xemnas asked her knowingly, vaguely mocking yet sympathetic. "Do you fear me solely for the old peasant superstitions that the old professor implanted into your head, or is it because of my previous visit that you show fright to me?"

It took a lot of her remaining willpower to finally find her voice as she answered, "I was…no, I still am afraid. After what horrors I saw at the castle, what tragedy befell us when one of your fiends murdered our sister and the nightmare you forced me into when you made me form an unholy covenant with you…I have every reason to be afraid of you! You've already tormented us enough. Are you not satisfied with starting your corruption on me with what you forced me to consume?"

Just as she finished her reply, Mina felt herself being pulled up into a seating position by him, nestled on his lap as he leaned in to her cheek to passionately kiss her. She felt his hands slowly slide across every curve of her body as his lips trailed away from her lower jaw all the way down to her breasts, causing her to let out small startled gasps as she felt him trace her body as though he had always been her lover. No matter what she tried to stop him from continuing his exploration of her body, he got wise to her resistance and immediately detained her in every way he could while he wormed his way around her.

Taking advantage of this, Xemnas leaned in to her ear and said to her, "You actually believe that all of you are to be punished with death by our hands? Do you really think the sustenance I gave to you is your punishment for the secrets you've learned?"

"It…It feels that way to me," Mina replied as she struggled to break away, "You kept claiming to mean no ill will against me, and yet you came to me and you put me in danger of losing myself to the condemnation of bloodlust. Compared to your men, you are the cruelest of monsters in existence…"

Instinctively, Xemnas forcibly pushed her down on her backside and straddled her as he lowered his lips to her throat, leaving Mina in her most vulnerable position. Just like before, a painful piercing vibe is felt throughout her body as she abruptly jolted from the sudden force against her unprotected skin, unable to find enough precious seconds to grasp anything to keep herself steady through the hellish pain coursing through her. The draining pull against her neck made her nauseous as she could feel herself slipping in and out of blurry dizziness beyond her control, barely able to make gasps for breath from the unbearably painful euphoria that coursed through her inner systems. If there is one way to describe such an experience, it might as well be a combination of sadistic torture and overzealous passion being exerted by the creature that inflicted his curse on her. It didn't help in the slightest that this man – he who had the audacity and the dangerous charm that continually fluctuated in his character – had the gall to behave as though he can easily read her like he would an open book.

Just when it seemed like she would no longer be able to hold on to her consciousness, Mina then felt the sharp canines depart from her throat only to be replaced by the spine-tingling feeling of a slick tongue slowly licking up the remnants of blood that still sought to flow out from her renewed wounds. It terrified her that such a person would do this after causing her suffering like he did; for what purpose was he tormenting her with such pent-up animalistic instincts?

Her fear was answered when he again cut himself as he had done the previous night; but this time, his self-inflicted wound was lowered down to his chest, left partially exposed for her to see the blood oozing out from his veins. This left her no room for escape as he lured her head close to that level, once more forcing her to ingest the tainted fluid that sustained his un-dead life over who knows how many centuries.

As he held her closely to him, she heard him say to her, "You may think me cruel, my dear, very selfish even. But I know well that love is always selfish. The more ardent the love, the more selfish love can be. If you knew how brightly my love for Hellene burned when she was alive, then surely you would be capable of doing the same, wouldn't you? It would invigorate my tainted existence if you would love me as she did, even after your rebirth as one of my own kind. But if you insist on hating me - even after your death and rebirth as a night creature - then it won't matter to me."

All of a sudden, the door could be heard bursting open violently as Mina abruptly spotted from the corner of her eye her horrified family and the professor armed and ready to make their move against the vampire. The most she could speculate is that one of them must've heard what was happening from outside, and alerted the others as to what they learned before gathering together to rally against the vampire that intruded on her a second time.

However, while still trapped in the embrace, Xemnas released her from where he wound once was, having already healed after forcing her to consume a second round of his cursed blood. She could see from the sinister gleam in his eyes that he was enjoying the sight of the revolted opposition as he simply held her close to him still.

He turned his head slightly to them and said dryly, "Pity you missed the drama I arranged for Miss Mina, isn't it? How painful is it that she is under my thrall…"