Dracula glided more than walked down the grand staircase. A silence had filled the room when he had entered. Dracula seemed to command the same amount, or even more respect than Elden did. Some of the nearby female vampires started sighing as he reached the last step, eyes dreamily fixated on his face. I just rolled my eyes.
Dracula scanned the room with sharp eyes, until he found what he was looking for. He strode over to where Elden and I stood, smiling as he reached out his hand for Elden to shake.
"Hello, old friend," Dracula greeted Elden, pulling him into an embrace, and clapping him on the back happily.
"Hello," Elden said, smiling as Dracula stepped back to take a look at Elden.
"You've grown," Dracula commented.
"Not really," Elden said, and they shared a laugh.
"I know not physically, but your mind has matured since we last met," Dracula said.
I liked the vibe that I was getting from Dracula. He seemed almost fatherly to Elden. He wasn't the creepy old man that I thought him to be. In fact, he wasn't old at all. I had expected him to be an ancient looking being, but he looked like he was in his prime, sharper than ever.
"And who is this lovely..." Dracula trailed off, a strange look on his face as he peered at me.
"This is Helena," Elden answered, throwing Dracula a curious glance but continuing on. "She is a mystery to me, and maybe you can help me solve it. She-"
Elden was cut off as a very drunk vampire lady stumbled over to Elden, taking a hold of his wrist.
"I lub dis song," she slurred. "Dance wib me, you sexy man."
Elden shrugged helplessly as he was dragged away, and I chucked as the lady stepped repeatedly on his feet, almost making him trip as they whirled a little too fast around the floor. I felt a tap on my shoulder, and turned to see Dracula still staring at me.
"Would you care to dance?" he asked.
"I, um...sure," I stuttered.
Dracula, the greatest vampire legend in the world, had just asked me to dance. I was in awe of the situation as he led me out into the dance floor. He held me gently in his arms as we started to dance.
"You remind me of someone," Dracula said suddenly. "Your name was Helena, if I am not mistaken?"
"Yes," I answered.
Who would I remind him of? I had never met a vampire or anyone who knew a vampire before. Just then I was slammed into, and would have been knocked over if Dracula had not kept a firm grip on me. I turned around angrily, but started laughing when I saw Elden and his new girlfriend stumbling away. I could see Elden's lips moving as frustration clouded over his features. He was probably cursing the girl out. She didnt seem to notice though, because a huge lopsided smile was plastered across her face.
Dracula smiled for a moment, but then his face grew serious as he tightened his grip on me, and started to lead us towards one of the hallways. We danced our way over to the dark hall, and once we were out of sight I pulled out of his grasp.
"What do you think you're doing?" I asked. "I'm going back out there."
I started to walk back to the dance floor, but Dracula clasped my hand tightly.
"You aren't going anywhere," he said lowly, "Not until I know something."
I tried to pull away again, but this time Dracula pinned me up against the wall. My heart was pounding as he took my hand, and brought it up to his mouth. As he bared his fangs I knew what would come next.
"Please, no," I plead, but it was too late. Dracula had made a small cut on my index finger with his fangs, and was drinking from me. It didn't hurt at all though, like I thought it would.
After only a few moments of drinking, Dracula stopped, and snapped his head up sharply. He had a look of shock upon his face.
"How...how did you come to be here?" he asked, his voice trembling.
I was at a loss for words. What did he know that I didn't?
All of a sudden I had a terrible headache. I clutched my head as images flowed through my mind. Images of Fran, Carla, Dan...Elden. The last images that I saw were all of Elden. Elden finding me, capturing me, scaring me half to death. Then it dawned on me: Dracula was reading my mind, sifting through my thoughts to find what he wanted.
The headache stopped as suddenly as it had begun, and Dracula looked furious.
"Elden!" he roared, and snapped his fingers.
Elden appeared in the room, looking confused as he took in his surroundings. Once he realized that he wasn't with his drunken dance partner he looked relieved, but that didn't last long. Dracula was upon him in a flash, slamming Elden up against the wall.
"Was this your idea of a joke?" he yelled. "How dare you kidnap her! How dare you treat her like this! You are my closest friend, and then you pull something like this? Explain yourself."
Elden didn't say anything; he didn't even look Dracula in the face. All he did was stare questioningly at me. He looked as lost as I was.
"Don't look at her. Have the courage to face me!" Dracula snapped.
Elden slowly turned to look Dracula in the eyes.
"I don't know what you're talking about, so let me go. Obviously you know more about her than I do," Elden said.
"Don't lie to me. Youre already in deep shit to begin with," Dracula threatened.
"Read my mind if you don't believe me. I open it willingly to you for inspection," Elden challenged.
Dracula became silent, and entered an almost meditative state. Elden winced slightly, but his jaw was still set in determination to prove he was innocent of whatever crime Dracula thought he had committed. After a few seconds Dracula stepped back with a softened expression on his face.
"You really don't know her," he whispered.
"Yes, but I wouldn't mind if you shared what you have found," Elden said.
Elden was back to staring at me. I felt his gaze burning through my skin, trying to find information that I did not have.
"Excuse me, but...who do you think I am?" I asked Dracula tentatively.
"Someone that I never thought I would see again," he said, turning to face me.
The expression on Dracula's face was a mix of sadness, regret, but at the same time happiness. A small smile appeared, and his eyes were full of wonder. His eyes...they were violet. Exactly like mine.
I let out a small gasp as something clicked in my head. Small shards of memories long ago dismissed as being childish dreams overwhelmed me. I started to remember being with Dracula in the past. He had meant something to me then, and I had been dear to him too. But no, it couldn't be true. I could never be...
"Helena is my daughter," Dracula choked out, and pulled me into an embrace. "She is my daughter, and I have finally found her."
does that mean I have to drink blood? *gags*
really? I'm his daughter? *me nodding solemly*
This is Dracula. Helena has a pretty good-looking dad, if I do say so myself. I've decided to add a comment box to my stories, so you have a place to type your reactions.
< !-- BEGIN CBOX - http://www.cbox.ws -->
< !-- END CBOX -->
