Wow! I come back and I have loads of fantastic reviews! Thanks to all of you it means so much to me. This chapter will be dedicated to Believer29 because this is the chapter we get more reactions from Anna's family which is what you suggested! I'm hoping this chapter will be of a longer length but if it's not – I'm working on it! Thanks to all you lovely reviewers! Sorry about the extremely slow update I had two powercuts and an error with submitting documents. Lol. It's all fixed now and I have this chapter for you. Enjoy!

Kate

Disclaimer- Don't own- to prove it see prologue. Although I do own Fredrik! Hehe...

Home Again

Anna rolled over, coming face to face with the Werewolf. She'd gone from the hunter to the hunted in a matter of seconds and it petrified her. The Werewolf's piercing eyes stared down at her; she knew then it would show her no mercy. The stench and feeling of its breath on her face was enough to make her sick. Behind the creature, Fredrik appeared, grinning in satisfaction because Anna was on the verge of death. Part of Anna's brain was telling her to get up and fight, so Fredrik wouldn't win. But most of her brain stopped her from moving; so her suffering would end quickly—and hopefully, painlessly. The savage beast drew back to its full height; huge claws out. The last thing Anna saw was its strong arm being thrown back, she couldn't' watch anymore she threw her hands over her eyes.

Two gun shots pierced the night air, followed by a blood-curdling howl. Anna clamped her eyes shut; moving her hands to her ears to block out the noise. The horrific din managed to get through the barricades her hands made; running through to her heart. Spreading fear in the places only happy memories should be kept. Silent tears began to build up behind Anna's closed eye-lids as she started begging for the noise to stop. Her whimpers, it seemed, only prolonged her suffering as the racket continued. Finally, Anna heard a muffled thump, followed by several gasps and voices. Afraid to open her eyes; she just lay there on the hard ground, shaking uncontrollably. Distant voices were calling her name, but she couldn't reply – she couldn't be sure the Werewolf wasn't still above her. Out of all the chaos, one voice stood out from the rest.

"Anna!" Velkan cried running towards her. He almost stopped—almost. The sight of her frail body; curled up in fear, was nearly too much for him. He quickly shook off these thoughts, reminding himself of his duty; the promise he had made to himself. As soon as Anna had run to him and told him that she would be going on the hunt too; he had vowed to protect her at all costs. A silent promise that only he knew of, and only he could keep.

Before he knew it, he'd reached her small form and pulled her into his arms, whispering reassuring words into her ear. Anna finally opened her eyes. A rush of relief filled her body, she was finally safe. She threw her arms around Velkan, returning his embrace. Anna let out a choked sob. The tears that had been threatening to spill; the ones she had tried to hold back, were making their way down her cheeks as all the feelings that she'd been keeping to herself in the last few minutes finally caught up with her. Velkan felt anger and insecurity as he held his sister in his arms. He finally began to realise that she wasn't as strong as he had once thought. Always, Velkan had thought of Anna as a strong, independent person – his equal rather than his little sister. But now, he saw a whole new side to her; one that he was sure she wouldn't show very often. Fair enough, Anna had just been chased and nearly killed by a Werewolf; but she was crying – she never cried. Most of all, Velkan felt angry. If he had just persuaded his father to let her come in their group. No. He should've persuaded Anna to stay at home; he should've made Anna stay at home. Now, because of him, she was petrified and possibly hurt.

"Anna? Look at me." He whispered in her ear. She moved her head slightly, and looked straight into his eyes; seeking the guidance and security she needed. Her eyes were empty; they no longer contained the spark that normally filled them. After all this time, her breathing was still ragged and slightly laboured. Velkan looked her in the eye; concerned for her welfare. "Are you hurt?" He asked. His sister shook her head slowly. Velkan stroked her cheek with his thumb; stopping dead when she winced slightly. He turned her head gently to the right, examining the small gash on the side of her face. He glanced around, looking at his father; who was talking to Fredrik. He made a mental note about speaking to him; he had to find out what happened before his group arrived. Slowly, Velkan stood up; convincing himself it wasn't good for Anna to stay on the floor. He helped her stand. Anna stood shakily, holding onto Velkan for support. She was so glad he was there for her; he was the proof that she wasn't dead. Although she was still trying to convince herself this was the case.

Anna started to take in her surroundings. They were deeper in the forest than she had thought. Most of the trees were dead and broken. There were claw marks on some of the trees and wolf fur on odd branches. The lack of moonlight gave the wood a sinister atmosphere. She gazed at the floor, eyes falling to the small man lying a few feet away. His skin was pale and he was frozen in and awkward position. The two bullet holes in his chest were leaking crimson blood. Anna knew at once that this was the Werewolf that had chased her. She felt sick knowing that he was just an ordinary man; cursed with something no-one could cure.

Velkan put a supportive arm around Anna's shoulders and led her over to their father.

"Papa, can we call everyone back to the manor. So we can find out what happened to Anna?" Boris looked down at his son and started to consider his proposal. Another voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Perhaps we should wait until morning? That way the princess gets some rest and we will have more time to discuss this…" Fredrik paused. "Terrible accident." Anna was sure she heard a slight sneer in his voice as he said those last two words. She knew that Fredrik hadn't got her welfare at heart. It was just buying him more time to come up with an excuse – a cover story. Something about this made Anna snap.

"No" Her voice rang out and everyone turned to look at her. Fredrik stared in disbelief as she advanced on him and her father. The familiar sparkle had retuned to Anna's eyes and Velkan knew she had recovered well enough from her ordeal. "I know what happened. We should go back to the manor tonight, so I can explain." Fredrik noticeably paled at this statement but had no choice but to go along with it.

"Very well princess. We shall listen to your account of what happened." With that, he marched down the path towards the horses. The rest of the group followed silently; the sombre mood of their general reflecting in their faces for very different reasons. Anna smiled at Velkan, taking his hand and leading him towards their horses.

The tense ride back to Valerious Manor seemed to take longer than ever. All Anna could do was think about how she was going to explain Fredrik trying to kill her. He was her father's best friend; surely despite this, he would believe her side to the story? She hoped he would; otherwise her chances of hunting again were very slim indeed.

The lobby of the manor was as uninviting as it always had been. The unused sword wracks added a hostile sense of doom. The hunting party walked through the house and settled in armchairs inside the first common room. Anna, Velkan and Boris were just about to join them when they ran into someone they thought they could escape from.

"What took you so long? You were out there for hours!" Helena raged looking at all three people in turn.

"We had a minor problem." Boris started. Helena stopped pacing and stared questioningly at her husband.

"Problem?" She repeated. Helena then turned to Anna, and for the first time, noticed the wound on the side of her cheek. "Anna! What happened to you?" At that point Anna felt two inches tall. Her mother was sure to blow this out of all proportion, she always did.

"I-I er, fell?" Boris steeped beside Anna, putting his arm around her.

"Helena, we were just going to discuss what happened tonight. Come with us and listen." Velkan decided this was the best decision his father had made that evening. If his mother was in the meeting with the whole hunting party, she couldn't go over the top—not with a load of men in the room. Helena nodded silently and walked ahead of the trio into the common room.

Once everyone was settled in the room, Boris addressed the men, in particular, Fredrik.

"Right, I'm sorry that I have to do this. Fredrik I need your account of what happened tonight—no interruptions." Boris looked around the room, staring everyone in the eye at least once. Fredrik rose from his chair and stood facing everyone. Boris went over to the other side of the room, facing his family.

"Well, we had just entered a clearing in the forest, the beast was there. We had all just gotten into position when Anna jumped from her hiding place and ran towards the Werewolf!" A few gasps escaped the mouths of the men in the room. Anna's face darkened. She was aware that her mother was stared at her, shocked. But she didn't care. She needed to tell people the truth. "I tried to stop her but it was too late" This was too much. Everyone in the room was staring at Fredrik, unable to belief that Anna could be so stupid. But the thing was—they were still believing his story.

"No." Anna stood up walking over to Fredrik. "That's a lie and you know it." Boris started to rise.

"Anna. I can't believe that you would do something so foolish, but to lie about it is a lot worse young lady!"

"I'm not lying!" She snapped back at her father. "I didn't jump out in front of that creature. Not after I saw what happened to Aunt Margaretta."

"Anna --" Boris started.

"I was pushed!" She almost shouted. She stared at her fathers face, waiting, hoping for some sort of reaction. Boris looked back at her; a shocked expression on his face. Anna glanced around the room, taking in the shocked expressions on people's faces. Velkan was the only one with a different tone on his face. His face was kind and understanding; someone she knew believed her. Fredrik was smirking, his shock replaced by a victorious grin. He laughed to himself.

"What exactly are you suggesting princess?" Anna wheeled around to glare at him.

"You know exactly what I'm suggesting general. You pushed me and you know it!" Fredrik managed a contained chuckle.

"The girl is delusional! What reasoning could I have to want her dead? She's crazy!" Anna had had enough. She flew at Fredrik her hand already balled into a fist. Thankfully, Velkan had seen this coming and had run over to her to hold her back. She struggled for a while hurling insults at every one and anyone who was listening. Her mother had left the room, unable to watch the unlady-like behaviour of her daughter. Finally Anna had calmed down enough to persuade Velkan to let her go. She stood, out of breath looking at Fredrik; disgust showing obviously on her face. An idea hit her and she smiled slightly. Turning to her father, Anna spoke directly at him for the first time.

"Papa, if he is so innocent in all this, search him. He shouldn't object. He has nothing to hide, right general?" Everyone turned to look at Fredrik.

"That's correct princess." Fredrik was completely relaxed and handed his jacket over to Boris who took it, reluctantly. Boris quickly rifled through the pockets. Finding something hard and metallic, he paused and pulled it out. It was a gun. The item in itself wasn't incriminating, but as he examined it further, he saw the Valerious family crest engraved on the handle. Instantly, Boris recognised the gun as the one he had given to Anna as soon as she was old enough to use one. Anna saw her chance.

"Papa, would that be my gun you're holding? The gun I couldn't find in the forest. The one I needed to kill the Werewolf with?" Boris nodded and handed the gun back to Anna, turning on Fredrik.

"Why did you have that?" He asked.

"The girl dropped it at the entrance to the woods I was going to return it to her." Fredrik had begun to look slightly uneasy. He shifted his weight from side to side, his eyes darting around the confines of the common room. Now it was Velkan's turn to speak.

"You're lying. Anna never goes anywhere without her gun and if she was going to try and kill a Werewolf on her own, she would've checked she had it with her first." Anna felt her brother's hand on her shoulder as she stared accusingly at the scared general in front of her. Several mutters could be heard around the room; everyone else having their own opinion on what had happened. Boris sighed heavily, knowing that his children were correct; and placed his hand on Fredrik's shoulder.

"You're a traitor and a disgrace to the Valerious family name. I didn't want to have to do this Fredrik but I have no choice. You will hang."

Boris had dismissed the rest of the hunters and had put Fredrik in the town stocks for the night. Velkan and Anna decided that the best place for them was in the library. Velkan sat down at the desk, reading a Latin script while Anna just stared into space thinking about the nights events. The sound of harsh voices awoke Anna from her silent state.

"No Boris, I knew she should never have gone with you. Her place is here with me. The sooner she goes to school and learns that, the better for all of us."

"I think tonight was a wake up call for her. She would stay by my side the whole time. She's coming next time and that's final Helena." Velkan, who had been listening the whole time, snapped his head back into his book as the library door opened. Helena walked in; walking towards Anna.

"Can I have a word?" Anna nodded obediently and followed her mother outside. Helena shut the door and turned to face her daughter, looking stern. Anna got the feeling the 'word' would not be along the lines of 'I'm proud of you Anna'.

"The way you acted today was absolutely despicable Anna. I have never been so embarrassed in my life! That was no way for a princess to behave. Your father is insistent that you carry on hunting with him; however I'm not so sure you can cope with it. I hope you're proud of yourself. That school ought to sort you out." Anna hung her head. She knew that she hadn't turned out the way her mother wanted her to be. She wasn't someone obsessed with finding a husband, having children and waiting on everyone hand and foot. All she wanted to do was kill Dracula and live her life the way she wanted to. Anna hated living up to her mother's expectations, because she always knew she would fall at the first hurdle. She would never be good enough for her. At least going to Velkan's school she knew no-one would know her. That's the way she intended it to stay. If no-one knew her, no-one would have to judge her.

"I'm sorry mama, I let you down." Anna had to mentally stop herself from adding again onto the end of that sentence. With that, she returned to the library; hating the fact her mother got the better of her, again. She shut the heavy oak door and turned to see Velkan's head buried into his book. The cover looked slightly odd to Anna. Realising why, she smirked to herself.

"Velkan, if you're going to pretend to read; at least put your book the right way up." Velkan looked down at the upside-down cover and blushed. Anna shook her head and returned to the arm chair. Thinking about what would happen the next day, when she would start school.

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