Please read the author's notes (both here and at the end)

Hi guys, before I get to the chapter I just wanted to say something about the progression of the story and the seemingly clear (from the stats) decline of interest in it. I'm feeling pretty down on the whole thing (in case you hadn't guessed...), and I'm really doing my best to keep it interesting for you. I know I could always pull the "it's my first fic" card, but, really, I'd much rather get it right than have a good excuse for why it's wrong. I swear on Roxula's hot booty that this is not just a re-telling of the film. It is shaped by the film to a degree and it follows its basic structure, but the film does not rule it in the way that it has chapters 3 and 5 (and 4 to an extent). I am asking you to have a little faith, I promised new stuff and I will make good on it.

I know it's taking a while to get to "the point," as it were. In a nutshell, I need to get Anna to Budapest. At the same time though, I need to set up the conflict between Dracula and Van Helsing, so I've been trying to give old Gabe some time to work his magic. Well, now they're on their road trip and we all know what comes next. This chapter contains nothing recycled from the film. You said you wanted Dracula and Anna to meet again, so here you go.

On a lighter note, I've been pretty nice to Van Helsing in the past two chapters but don't worry, that's about to change really soon. Come on, can he really compare to Vladislaus "Sexy Back" Dracula? Clearly not. We're about to find out who's king of the castle. Actually, Van Helsing doesn't even have a castle, so it's not really a competition...

Lastly, this chapter, like chapter 2, contains semi-kinky material. This story is still rated T, so there is no explicit content, but things do veer in the direction of smut. So, again, if you are offended by this kind of stuff, please don't read it and then flame me for it. If there is sufficient demand for the K-rated Dracula and Anna Go to the Malt Shop, or the K+ rated Dracula and Anna Go to the Malt Shop and Hold Hands, I might consider it. But for now, specter of Anthony Comstock, I banish you!

Thank yous are at the end this time. As always, I own nothing. Credit to Labyrinth for a few lines.


Chapter 6: What a Wicked Game You Play

We had been traveling for several days. We had passed through the Carpathians into Wallachia, from there we would travel west, crossing back into the Empire as we neared the coast. I must admit I was excited by the prospect of going to the sea, but I wished that the circumstances were different, that it was my father, and not Gabriel, who was with me, as he had always promised he would be.

We would rest briefly in the middle of the day, only to resume our flight at dusk and follow the sun into the west. I had seen little of Gabriel, but I knew that he was out there somewhere, passing through the same trees, looking at the same sky, and that thought heartened me. Carl proved pleasant company when he wasn't babbling on about one or another new invention or new phobia and the creature, thankfully, was largely silent. With the two of them squirreled away in the coach, however, and myself on top of it driving the horses, I spent the majority of the journey alone. The solitude was wearing at first, but I soon found myself embracing it.

It was the kind of adventure I had always dreamed about when I was small. Velkan and I used to pack our bundles with bread and cheese and solemnly take our leave of our parents. Strapping wooden swords and daggers to our bodies, we would set out stealthily through the forest in the armory, battling the fierce creatures there, making our way up to the tower—the castle where we would defeat Dracula once and for all. We were not allowed to play in the real forest. Whenever our father left for one of his expeditions we would beg to go with him, eager to have a real adventure of our own. We had defeated all of the imaginary monsters in the manor, and we were sure that we were ready to face the ones outside. "When you are older," Papa would always say.

Sure enough, the day came when Velkan was old enough to join him and the other men in the village and he went off to make war with Dracula's brides. But I was still too young, and I was left behind. When he returned, he was a man and too grown up to play with his baby sister. I had howled at the injustice of it all and screamed at them that I could not wait to grow up and make my own rules, that I would go on adventures and face foes beyond their wildest dreams. Now there I was, about to face Dracula himself. I carried Frankenstein's creature to Rome, passing through strange countries, through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered. And I was terrified. If this was a real adventure, I did not like it. I longed for my brother's company, for my father's advice, but they were not there to guide me. I was alone in the forest with no one to tell me what to do or how to proceed; I had to make my own rules. If this was being grown up, I did not like it at all.

The trees were growing thicker, crowding around us—an unreal city of heavy boughs and twisting branches. The birds did not sing here. As we continued, I came to feel increasingly that I was not alone, that someone or something was watching me. And every so often, above the rushing wind, I could have sworn I heard the beating of wings.

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It was nearing twilight on the sixth day. The sun was obscured by thick clouds, but I could tell how late it was by the stillness of the woods, as all the creatures that lived there went to seek their leafy beds. I, on the other hand, had just abandoned mine. Rousing Carl and the monster, I went to go wash in the stream I had heard rushing nearby. Carl had warmed to the thing considerably, even calling it Adam, but I still could not bring myself to regard it as human. When I looked at it all I saw were Dracula's hideous offspring and my brother's sacrifice.

I had finished washing and was putting my jacket back on when I heard it. Somewhere, amidst the trees, a twig snapped, almost too quietly for my ears to discern. And then another, and another. It was too big to be a deer, too precise to be a bear, but whatever it was, it was getting closer. And then, as if he had always been, there he was, a tall, graceful figure in black lounging indolently against a tree. He shifted his weight and began to walk towards me, his steps long and languid, like those of a cat just awoken from its nap. Only his eyes betrayed his concentration, they were sharp, predatory, and fixed on me.

"Good evening, my princess," he said, smiling darkly, "you appear to be a bit far from home. Have you lost your way?"

I stood dumbfounded for a moment. He should not have caught up with us so quickly. My father had always told us that nothing was faster than Transylvanian horses, but then I was finding out that my father had been wrong about a lot of things. Stupidly, I began to back away, and he followed, slowly closing the gap between us.

"What are you doing here, Count?" I asked warily. I tripped over a root and almost stumbled, and still he advanced on me. Whatever I did, I could not let him know that I accompanied the creature, and that it was nearby.

"The forest is a dangerous place for one so fair," came his soft, even reply. He offered me his arm and his smile broadened, the glint in his eyes dangerous. "Perhaps you would permit me the honor of escorting you home." As he spoke he lunged for me. I bolted, not paying much attention to where I was running; I knew I had to get him as far away from the monster as possible. I heard him roar in anger behind me as I tore through the trees, branches snagging my clothing and scratching my cheeks, and still his footsteps pounded the earth, close on my heels. I wove blindly in and out of thick trunks and curling roots until at last the sound of his feet faded and the woods were quiet once more. By now the sun had set, the entire forest was painted in gold as the shadows of evening crept in. I ran to the nearest, tallest tree and climbed swiftly into its branches, lying low and pressing myself against its trunk.

After a few minutes, he came into view. His steps had become slow and disinterested once again and his hands were clasped behind his back. His chin was pointed towards the ground, but I could see his eyes glittering as he looked up at the trees. He paused directly under my hiding place. I hardly dared to breathe. "Come out, come out, wherever you are," he called softly. "You are very clever, my dear, but you cannot hide for much longer. Your heart is beating wildly, princess…it calls to me. Such beautiful music it makes, I can almost dance to it." He began to turn slowly, his arms clasped around an invisible partner, his feral eyes fixed on my tree. "Perhaps a waltz," he drawled, "or a polonaise," he moved faster, "or a tango?" He stopped suddenly, his eyes raised to my branch once more. "Or perhaps," he whispered, "something with a bit more lift?" and he launched upwards.

I threw myself down from my perch, hitting the ground at an odd angle. A searing hot pain shot down my left arm, my vision suddenly blurred. I scrambled to my feet and took off once more as he leapt back down from the branch with a yell. As I fled I looked down at my arm, my shoulder was hanging at a grotesque angle—I had dislocated it, perhaps even broken a bone, but I had no time to tend to it and so I forced myself to keep running.

I ran and I ran, looking wildly behind me, but there was nothing there. And then, as I broke out of the trees and into a clearing, I slammed into something solid and hard. Stunned, I fell back onto the ground, my head smarting from the collision. My shoulder had long since gone numb.

Dracula towered over me and laughed richly. "My lady," he said, "you run as if the Devil himself were after you." Before I could open my mouth to reply he was on me like some kind of beast, pinning me to the ground with his body and savagely seizing my throat with gloved hands. "Where is he?" he hissed.

"Who?" I choked. I prayed he meant Gabriel and not the monster. I knew that if I lied, he would know instantly.

"Do not make me repeat myself, highness." His words were forced through clenched, bared teeth and his eyes had become bottomless wells of black as his grip tightened. I struggled vainly, but I was trapped between his powerful thighs and the weight of his torso pressed me down into the earth.

"He's out there," I wheezed, "just like I said he would be. Gabriel's out there, unprotected, I swear it!"

"Oh? It is Gabriel now, is it?" he smirked down at me, "what a charming new development." And then the smile faded once more, his beautiful mouth hardened and became twisted and cruel. "And where might dear Gabriel be going?" I was struggling madly to breathe. He bent his head closer to my own. "I will not ask you again, my pet," he hissed, throttling me savagely, "where is he taking the creature?"

"Rome…" I rasped, my voice barely more than a whisper. I clawed desperately at his vice-like fingers with my right hand, but they did not budge.

"I beg your pardon?" he scoffed at me.

"Rome," I managed to say more loudly, "he's taking the monster to Rome…to the Order."

He cocked a brow, smiling again, but his tone was deadly. "Answer me one more question, dearest. If he is taking the key to Rome, then what, pray, are you doing here?"

I was on the brink of losing consciousness, my brain was desperate for blood and air, but I forced the words out. "Decoy…keep…the creature…away…from you." I did not lie—I was there to keep the creature away from him, but I was not the decoy, Gabriel was.

That seemed to satisfy him, however, and he released my throat, although he continued to sit heavily on top of me. I coughed and sputtered as I gulped down precious oxygen. "And you both departed at the same time?" he inquired. I nodded weakly. He delicately removed his gloves and then took my throat in his hand again, but this time to caress, not to choke. "Must I always drag information out of you by brute force?" he sighed, a glimmer of mirth in his eyes "it is most wearing."

"You have what you need, Count," I panted, trying again to pry myself out from under him, "now get off of me and let me go."

"Now why would I want to do that?" he said, smirking down at me suggestively. He dipped his body low, grinding his hips into me as he bent his dark head to whisper in my ear. "This position has many benefits, princess…" he ran his tongue lightly along my jugular and pressed his open mouth to my jaw. "Perhaps we should take advantage of the pleasures it affords us," he husked.

"You conceited pig!" I hissed, "I take no pleasure in your company!" I strained against him, trying to free myself from his grasp, but I only succeeded in closing the remaining distance between our bodies. His eyes grew brighter as I unwittingly bucked into him and I felt him stiffen between my thighs, the sudden contact shocked me. He bent his head to my lips but I angrily turned my head to the side and his mouth collided with my ear instead. A shudder involuntarily ran down my spine as he teased the lobe with his tongue.

"Why do you turn your face away, my love?" he purred, "you seemed to enjoy my kisses when last we met."

"I most certainly did not," I spat, although I knew it was a lie.

"Is that so?" he murmured, burying his smooth face in my neck. And I realized to my horror and shame that I did want this contact, just like I had before—it was dark, forbidden, and delicious. The sensations that he was awakening in my body were frightening. I felt suddenly out of control. All the heat in my body pooled where his hardened desire teased me, fanning out in flaming fingers down my thighs, leaving me hot and aching. He was lightly kissing my collarbone, trailing his icy lips lower and lower, his masterful fingers teasing away my shirt from my chest. And then back up again, along my neck and over my chin. He paused, hovering over my mouth, and bit my lips gently, which were pulsing in anticipation of those heavenly kisses I knew he could bestow. But I wanted victory more than I wanted him, and I brought my knee up sharply and slammed it into his groin. He roared in pain and anger, doubling over, and I rolled out from under him and threw myself to my feet.

He was, however, too quick for me and his hand shot out and grabbed the collar of my jacket, yanking me back against his chest in a choke-hold. His face was twisted in rage, his voice jagged and inhuman. "You little viper!" he snarled. He leaned close to hiss in my ear. "I must advise you, my love, not to tempt my temper. I have been forgiving and generous with you up until now but, as I believe you know, I can also be cruel…"

"Generous?" I shot back, "how have you been generous, Count? You've seduced me, threatened me, taken away everyone I ever cared for! I would hardly call that generous." I wanted to kill him, to tear him slowly limb from limb and make him beg for mercy, but all I could do was pout like a petulant child. I was humiliated and furious with myself. Furious with him for reducing me to such a state. I had been trained my whole life for this confrontation, but now that it was upon me, the only weapons I could hurl at him were petty insults. And from the look of him, he was just as angry.

"I offer you your brother!" he roared. I winced as his arm crushed my wounded shoulder. "You defied me and I relented, you wept and I soothed you, you have disobeyed, betrayed, and disrespected me—knowing the consequences, I might add—and still he lives! I have spared both of your lives when I had due cause to take them, I have given you second chances when you deserved none, everything I have done has been for your benefit. Tell me, highness, that that is not generous!"

"I…" I began feebly.

"ANSWER ME!" he shouted, whirling me around and shaking me viciously, seizing hold of my injured shoulder in his rage. It felt as if daggers were shooting down my arm and my spine and I cried out in pain. Instantly he dropped it and released me. I stared at him with tears in my eyes, clutching my useless arm in silent agony.

He pulled me back into his arms, quite differently this time, all traces of anger fading from his handsome face. His voice came hushed and soothing in my ear and I stood spellbound as he gently reached up to touch my shoulder. "Let me see," he said softly, and bent his head to kiss it lightly. I gasped as I felt the joint snap back into place, the torn tendons and ligaments fusing together beneath his touch, the bruises melting away. For a moment we were still. I leaned against him, exhausted, and he tightened his arms. I was astounded, and slightly perturbed, that this monster who had preyed on my family for centuries and damned them to Purgatory, who had threatened to kill me on more than one occasion, would hold me so gently, healing my wounds, kissing away my pain. Why not just kill me and be finished with us all?

"Because you are mine," he whispered, as if he had read my thoughts. "I could never harm you." He began once more to kiss my neck, wrapping his strong arms around my waist, his hands splayed sensuously across my abdomen. "Yes, necessity breeds strange bedfellows, does it not? But it need not be all unpleasant...I think you'll find I can be a most passionate lover..." His kisses were drugging, intoxicating, and once again I felt myself falling under his thrall. The heat between my thighs returned and a tightness began to coil in my abdomen as he continued to ravish me with his mouth. "I ask for so little, Anna," he purred into my skin, "just let me rule you and you can have everything you want." His hands began to make their torturous way up my torso, teasing my hot flesh, which burned under his icy touch. At last they reached my bosom, where they cupped, caressed, and pinched, drinking in my instinctive response. He sunk dull teeth into my shoulder, trailing love-bites up my throat to my jaw. "Obey me... he murmured between kisses, "and I will be your slave."

"Count…" I breathed. I was internally at war with myself. Every rational part of me screamed that I should pull away, that I should be fighting him. But an equally fierce, dark, wanton side reveled in his attentions and poured poisonous, honeyed words into my mind. I wanted this...and he wanted me. Me. And how could something that felt so good be wrong? No, I knew that this was wrong, but I still didn't want him to stop.

"I would make you my queen," he whispered. And then he pressed his lips to my face, to either side of my mouth before seizing it in a searing, demanding kiss. I tried vainly to suppress a moan when his tongue pried open my lips and slipped inside, cool and silky, as it caressed my own. I had never felt anything like this before. This was pure, unadulterated passion, raw and animalistic, and it consumed me as I gave in to his demands and kissed him back wildly, wrapping my arms around his neck. He growled my name as his hands wandered lower, his fingers brushed lightly against the center of my body. And then harder. I gasped in surprise and delight, throwing my head back and arching against his hand. And then I didn't know about right or wrong anymore. I didn't know anything. I knew only that these foreign, silky sensations were unlike any I had ever known. It was as if my entire body was compressing, drawn into his long fingers that shamelessly kneaded and stroked. It was as if I was on fire. He grabbed my hips, pulling me towards him, and he thrust himself up against me, making me feel the lust that could so easily be consummated.

Right there, on the ground.

"He can never give you what you seek, pet…let me have him and be done with it, " he cooed against my mouth. The pictures he was painting in my mind with his body, his fingers and his tongue made it almost impossible to think. They were filthy, wanton, and dangerous, the kinds of things whispered about by ladies in waiting or confined to those forbidden books hidden away under the mattress. They were the kinds of fantasies someone of my station ought never to entertain, visions of hot, naked flesh and tangled limbs. But his words brought me sharply back to reality. Gabriel, I thought suddenly. And Velkan. I couldn't do this. I forced all of these forbidden urges aside and pulled away.

"And if he can?" I challenged breathlessly. "Why do you want him, Count? What value does he hold for you?" My mind was still swimming from his kisses, but I forced myself to be rational. There was something that the two of them were not telling me. Something was not right.

"As I already told you, that is none of your concern," he said shortly. "I must say, I wonder at your faith in him. I have known Gabriel for many years and believe me, my dear, he may talk sentimentally, but he will act mercilessly. He will not help you."

"And you will, I suppose?" My voice became heated. I was tiring of his games. I had given him the information he required, why did he still linger? The hour was late and we needed to leave. Carl would certainly be wondering where I had gone and I prayed that he and the creature would not come looking for me while Dracula was there. If they did, we would lose everything.

"I gave you my word, and I will honor that." His tone was simple and unreadable, but there was something in the way that he was looking at me... I shifted uneasily.

"Why?" I pressed him.

"Oh, highness, " he whispered, the mask suddenly falling from his face, "is it not plain enough?" He leaned in to kiss me again but I pulled away, averting my eyes. I would not be drawn back under his spell.

"You forget yourself, Count," I snapped.

"Surely you cannot blame me, my dear," he murmured huskily as his spidery fingers traced over my collarbone, "with such beauty before me." He was looking at me wolfishly, as if he wanted to eat me alive. It frightened me. "And so soft…" he caressed my cheek, "I can see you lying on a bed of satin"

"Stop it," I said more forcefully, jerking my face from his hand and glaring at him, blushing furiously. "I am not your plaything. You have brides to give you such attentions. Go home to them if that is what you desire"

"My princess…you must know I desire you...with all my heart," he said softly. I was shocked to see suddenly what looked like earnestness in his cold eyes. Slowly I raised a hand to his hollow chest, feeling the hard, sculpted muscles and the void beneath them. Where his heart should have been, where I should have felt some movement, there was nothing. I don't know what then possessed me to be so bold. I drew my fingers deliberately down his torso and laid them briefly over the stiffness in his breeches. I dropped my hand and raised my eyes unwaveringly to his.

"The heart is higher up," I replied acidly, "and one day, my lord, I will drive a stake through it. Go take your prize, and leave me be." I spun on my heels and stalked away from him, back into the trees.

"In time, my love," he called after me arrogantly, lustily. I looked back and saw him still standing there in the middle of the clearing, an imposing figure with his proud head held high, his eyes glittering with mirth. "In time."

Anger coursed through my veins as I stormed back through the forest. Anger and something else infinitely more powerful that I could not name. I know now that it was desire.

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The Count stood in the clearing long after Anna had disappeared into the trees, staring after her with an odd mixture of fury and longing. It had been a long time since he had been refused by a woman, and his body screamed in frustration and pent-up need, begging for some kind of release. A slight smile curved his lips as he thought about how she felt in his arms. She was so perfect, so innocent and unspoiled. He knew that no other man had ever touched her as he had done and that thought secretly thrilled him, that he should be all she knew of desire. How easy it would have been to take her right there, to press her body down into the leaves on the forest floor and ride to Hell itself between her thighs...

In time, he reminded himself, in time. His plan was working flawlessly. Anna was right where he wanted her, trapped between a rock and a hard place. All the time now her body was calling out to him, begging him to take her. But then, she had always belonged to him, ever since she had been born. She just never knew it. He had been there when her mother brought her into the world, a tiny, screaming thing. He had watched from the shadows as she learned to walk and talk, and then later when she learned to fight and to kill. He had known all of her sorrows and all of her joys. He knew her better than she knew herself.

She had slipped away this time, but soon she would come running to him. And take her he would. The daughter of his greatest enemy would be his greatest trophy and he eagerly awaited the day when he would have her at his side, lovely, broken and submissive. She would sate his lusts and his vanity like no other ever could.

But there was something else that Dracula had not counted on, and of which he was not yet aware: just as she belonged to him, so he also belonged to her…

That's all, folks.

Now, the next update will depend on the reviews that this one does/doesn't get. I'm not trying to be a baby about this or anything like, I just have way too much on my plate right now to continue to give this the time and priority I've been giving it if it's not worth it for you all. I'm writing for me but I'm updating for you, so if you want me to update, you know what to do.

A/N: In case anyone wants a mini history lesson: the "Empire" is the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which, in the 1880s, included Transylvania. Wallachia was an independent principality, over which the Hapsburgs may (?) have had suzerainty. The most direct route to the coast would have taken Anna and Van Helsing through the northern part of the Ottoman Empire, ruled over by the Muslim Turks. Although the Sultan styled himself as a largely Western ruler and had strong-ish diplomatic ties with his Christian peers, relations between the Ottomans and the rest of Europe were somewhat strained in the wake of the Greek War of Independence (1821-1829) so Anna and Van Helsing would probably have avoided crossing into their territory, especially since they're traveling incognito.

The chapter title comes from the song "Wicked Game" by Chris Isaak. The video, starring Helena Christiensen, is dead sexy, see for yourself on youtube.

Thank You:

ForeverACharmedOne: My most faithful reviewer! I was starting to think you're the only one who liked this story, and can I just tell you, I freaking love your reviews! Look for more love triangle drama in coming chapters. Ah yes…Carl…who knew that he was such an, ahem, animal in the sack? Thanks for making me feel less like a talentless sod. You rule.

Elwydra: Woo, lurkers of the world unite! I'm glad you're enjoying the story, don't be a stranger! Now, is there any chance that, in your story, we can entice Van Helsing into tight lil' bathing trunks like in Casino Royale? I read an interview with Eva Green in which she said, about that scene, that Daniel Craig was the Bond Girl the film. Priceless.

redjegger: Oh wow, I wish this was a signed review so I could have sent you a reply. That was one of the sweetest things anyone has ever said about my writing—really, you have made the storm clouds that were childishly dancing over my head go away. I can't believe you indirectly compared me to Tolkien, excuse me, I have to go faint. The classics will keep coming, look for a cameo or two by T.S. Eliot. Again, your review made me smile, thank you so much for those lovely words.

Shoysrock: Another one of my faithful few, you rock my socks. And yes, M-rated goodness approaches, let me assure you. All I will say for now is chapter 13…yeah. I'm doing my best to keep this interesting, and I really appreciate your confidence :)

Charmes Malheureux: You write the best reviews! I was trying to use the scenes I recycled to shed new light on the characters, and I'm glad that you enjoyed/understood that. It was a tough decision whether or not to include many of them, and in the end I kept them in because I felt that they drew out Anna's conflicted opinion of Van Helsing and the depth/gravity of her situation as the sole surviving Valerious. I often (in academic writing too) have a problem with including too much information and not being as discriminatory/editorial when deciding what is and is not "necessary," and I'm bummed that it is so pronounced here. BUT you made me feel better. Yay! And I couldn't agree more, Nickelodeon is evil now. It used to be so awesome! I miss old school Nick—Inspector Gadget, Hey Dude, Salute Your Shorts, Cities of Gold, Are You Afraid of the Dark, The Little Koala, David the Gnome, etc…all this new stuff blows.