Author: yeknodelttil
Show: Young Dracula
Rating: K+
Genre: Romance
Pairing: Vlad/Erin
Disclaimer: I don't own Young Dracula. This is purely for the enjoyment of its fans, created by a fan.
Summary: SEQUEL TO INTENT AND CONVICTION. They may have had one victory but Vlad and Erin must endeavour to deal with all the conflicts and struggles thrown their way in order to ensure the survival of the allies. Vlad/Erin
A/N: Thank you to all those who read and reviewed the prequel 'Intent and Conviction'. I'm going to try and post two chapters everyday. I'm not sure if this fic will be the same length or slightly shorter.
This is the final instalment in the series that began with 'Truth and Consequences', then 'Honesty and Deception' and then followed by 'Intent and Conviction'.
YEKNODELTTILYEKNODELTTIL
Set one month after Intent and ConvictionChapter 1: One Month
Erin shuddered slightly before turning over reaching out blindly for Vlad. This was the sixth time he'd left her in the middle of the…well day that she'd counted.
She pushed herself up with some effort; she placed a hand on her stomach rubbing it slightly. Being four and a half months pregnant was making her more exhausted than she thought. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, Vlad wasn't in the room but his leathers were meaning he was wearing casual clothes. Reaching out with her mind she could sense him in the throne room, with a sigh she began to dress herself.
The rebels had left them alone for a while, probably regrouping to plan new attacks now they knew Vlad wasn't just going to sit by and let them attack vampires in the middle of the day.
Erin couldn't help but think that it was the calm before the storm.
YEKNODELTTILYEKNODELTTIL
They were living in the castle for the time being, it was the best place to be to supervise everything. It had started simply because Vlad couldn't fly with a broken arm, by now it was more to do with getting things done correctly and properly.
She was sure that by the time the returned to the school she would be too big for them both to fit in the coffin. Never did she think she would miss a coffin but their coffin was certainly more comfortable than the camp beds the rebels had left behind.
Erin leaned against the doorway of the main castle throne room, it wasn't anything like Vlad had described. The once family home had been turned into an impersonal command centre, computers lined the walls, some hard drives were still in pieces after being smashed by some of the more die-hard rebels in the attack. After all nothing could be wiped permanently, only through physically taking a hammer to a hard drive could the data be destroyed. Some of the more determined slayers were trying to recover as much information from the drives as possible.
Across the walls were filing cabinets with plans and documentation; the documentation chilled Erin to the core. Information on ever member of the Slayers Guild and the Draculas were in the files, a section was even on the wolves. Everything was in there from Vlad's grades at Stokely Grammar to her medical x-rays when she broke her wrist when she was seven.
The argentalium coated walls were being washed down once again, the traces were hard to remove. Vampires could use their powers but they were still drained.
Erin spotted her wayward husband across the other side of the room, leaning against a table looking at a large interactive whiteboard.
YEKNODELTTILYEKNODELTTIL
Vlad stared at the screen flexing his arm back and forth, it had taken longer than a week for it to heal nearly bordering on two. Now it throbbed, Renfield had said the throbbing would disappear within three weeks. One week left to go…
On its backwards swing he jumped as fingers caught his arm. He spun rapidly coming face to face with Erin.
Erin gave him a soft smile, "Hey."
"Hey." He repeated back to her. "Couldn't sleep?" He questioned, seeing the tiredness in her eyes.
"You should know I can't sleep on my own anymore." Erin could see the bags under his own eyes. Vlad gave her an apologetic smile, she gestured to the screen behind him. "What are you looking at?"
"Something Chloe said. There are three bases, I thought this was the main one but it isn't. It was chosen for irony."
"How do you know? They trust Chloe she'd practically their second in command." It tugged at her heart how much Chloe had gained her parents' trust when she'd never been able to do that herself.
"One base has to be a training base." Erin nodded at his logic; Stokely Castle was more practical and strategic than a training base. "Look around what's missing?"
Erin surveyed the room, she couldn't see anything odd. Everything seemed to scream command centre. She shook her head.
"Labs. There are no labs and no hospital wing. The slayer's HQ has got both, we've got labs at home for Renfield and his alchemy. We don't bother with a hospital wing because we rarely need it."
Erin realised he had a point; all major finds and developments would be in one place. If the castle had been the major base they would've attacked to try and claim it back.
"So what are you going to do now?"
Vlad looked around the room; there was a hive of activity but very little noise. "I don't know." He admitted quietly. There was no way they could trace Chloe and nothing had yet been recovered from the hard drives that might tell them where another base was.
Erin made a decision then and there. "Right now you are going to go back to bed." Vlad didn't put up a fight at all as Erin began to guide him from the hall.
Unfortunately fate had other ideas tonight.
YENODLETTILYEKNODELTTIL
"INCOMING!" A cry was heard, echoing through the room. Vlad looked up to see two bats flying through the small gap the wolves had made in the ceiling for the vampires to come and go. The bats were chained together with a narrow piece off chain. No matter how narrow it was Vlad knew that the chain was extremely strong, nothing short of an explosion could break it.
Erin dropped her head onto Vlad's shoulder, burying it into his collarbone as she realised who the bats were. It was strange how easily she could identify everyone in his or her bat form – sometimes it worried her.
One of the bats slowly morphed and transformed into the Count whereas the other remained flapping in the air. Vlad extended his arm and clicked his fingers, immediately the bat began to transform, although reluctantly. She was fighting it as much as she could, Vlad considered deliberately speeding her up but decided it was a waste of his powers.
Bertrand sped to the Count side and began to remove the fangs cuffs from around the Count's wrist.
The Count marched up to Vlad the second Bertrand had removed the fangs cuffs from his wrist. He pointed his finger at his son. "I am tired of being left out of the loop."
"You only have to watch her!" Vlad replied, the Count wasn't the only one bored. No one else had anything exciting to do either. "Who's looking after Wolfie and the mirror?"
"Renfield and don't change the subject." Vlad really wasn't sure that was the best idea. Renfield and Wolfie didn't exactly get along. Leaving them alone together would probably equal devastation. As for the Blood Mirror, Vlad knew they'd be all dust before Renfield would have even realised it was under attack. "It's been a month Vladdy, she'd driving me insane!"
The Count pointed a long finger blindly at Magda, he was sick of the sight of her. The scheming she was trying to do to get back to Patrick, he'd been looking after her for a month while everyone else was in Stokely Castle.
Magda's appearance had changed while she was in 'captivity'. Her make up had been toned down, and her hair was limp around her shoulders. She hadn't come to the school prepared for more than a day visit. Even her clothes weren't the fashion items she always favoured. The clothes she was wearing were the ones that she'd left at Stokely Castle all those years ago, when Ingrid had found them she sent them back to her mother to wear.
"You lived with her for fifty years…"
"Until she ran off with a werewolf." The Count hastily interrupted his son's defence.
Magda decided to interrupt then, she didn't want to be around any more than they wanted her there. "If you just let me go back to Patrick I'll be out of your way."
Vlad spun, his eyes blinking furiously as he tried to keep calm. "The only thing stopping me from turning you to dust right now is the fact you might have information about Patrick. You betrayed our kind to the rebels…"
"That was Patrick not me." Patrick would never have known the location of the wolves to give the rebels without someone telling it him and no other vampire would do that.
Vlad folded his arms across his chest, "How did he get the information? A pig flew through the window and whispered it in his ear?"
"There's no need for sarcasm Vladimir."
"Good one Vladdy." The Count spoke at the same time as Magda, Vlad really had grown a backbone.
Magda stamped her foot causing the room to shake. Slayers dived for the already battered equipment as it fell to the floor in a desperate attempt to stop it from smashing into tiny pieces. "I am your mother and you will obey me!"
Vlad stood straighter, his full height making him even more intimidating. "I am the Chosen One." His voice was menacing and deep; it bounced off the walls "I'm the one in charge."
Magda turned to Erin, "Erin, daughter…"
"If I had my way I'd have staked you the moment Patrick took Chloe." Erin's eyes flashed and the computer screen behind them exploded. A group of slayers groaned, that monitor was one of the only ones that worked perfectly.
'ERIN!' She heard scolding her in her mind, she fixed Vlad with a sheepish look.
'Sorry.' She looked down, 'Blame the baby.' Vlad's lips fought to quirk upwards at the sides. Her hormones caused a lot of power problems.
"You wouldn't stake your own mother…" Magda quietened at the look of pure hatred Vlad gave her. She'd never seen her son give her a glare with so much emotion in.
"A mother loves her children." Ingrid took over. Vlad hadn't noticed Ingrid appear but he should have known that she would be there with his mother appearing on the scene. "You may have brought us into this world but we'll happily see you out of it."
Magda nodded quieting immediately. All of her children despised her, she would never know her grandchild because Vlad had made it clear that she wasn't going to be allowed anywhere near his child.
"Chain her to…" Vlad looked around the room; the only thing that looked substantial enough was the railing along one of the walls. "That!" Before he'd even finished speaking Bertrand had dragged her off towards the wall. Clearly Bertrand was fed up of her as well.
The Count bent down, placing his hands on his son's shoulders. "You should stake her now." He tempted him. Vlad felt the evil side of him agreeing and pleading with him.
"She's the only link we've got to Patrick." He whispered. "Even if she won't tell us anything, Patrick will want her back."
Erin linked her fingers with Vlad's she could feel how much it was tearing him up. Magda always left a trail of emotional destruction in her wake.
YEKNODELTTILYEKNODELTTIL
A cheer erupted around the room drawing the looks of everyone towards the commotion. None of the Draculas could see what had caused the commotion but judging from the cry it was a good thing that had started it.
The slayers patted themselves on the backs, clapping and grinning widely.
Jonno skidded passed them, stopping with a slight wobble. A wide grin crossed his face, "We've found another base."
TBC
A/N: Thanks for reading.