"D, what is it?" The dhampir and the young boy were outside on the ranch doing their daily round of chores when suddenly D had stopped. He lowered his brow.

"Stay here," he said, unsheathing his sword as he headed towards the door of the farm house. He sensed something... someone.

"This could get ugly," came the parasite in D's left hand. "He's here, ain't he?" D nodded slowly, holding his sword out in front of him. A barrier was around the house. It electrocuted the sword, and D, who didn't even seem to be fazed.

"A barrier, eh?" the parasite muttered. "That blue pendant o' yours should do the trick." Before the creature had told him, D had already taken out the pendant that hung around his neck and held it in front of him. The blue light flooded the entire house, then slowly flickered out. The dhampir then stepped into the house.

"Doris...?" he asked, looking around. He quickly headed to her room. There stood his own father, his pale hand covering the mouth of the girl who was pressed up against him. Her eyes were wide as she stared at D, trembling.

"Glad you could make it," the Great Ancestor said, rubbing his free hand along the shoulder of the shaken girl.

"Get your hands off of her..." D said, sword held out in front of him. His father smiled, looking down at Doris before looking back at D.

"Now, now, you and I both know that hurting Miss Lang is not what I came here for..." The dhampir lowered his brow.

"What do you want?"

"I told you before, I just want to see my grandchild..." Doris was so shaken, she couldn't even concentrate. She swallowed hard, closing her eyes tightly. She was too afraid to speak.

"Let go of her. You have no right to interfere with this," D said. The Noble ahead of him just laughed.

"No right? But I have every right... I am the child's grandfather, after all..." With that, he turned to the crib where a small form lay, strangely sleeping through the whole ordeal.

D lunged at him. A silvery flash flew down from the heaven's, seemingly slicing right through the Great Ancestor. Doris, who was thrown aside beforehand, had no idea what was going on in the matter of milliseconds that was the battle.

D's sword, just like the last time, had sliced through his father, whom had turned to smoke as the blade entered him, and as it exited, his body rejoined together.

"It's impossible for you to kill me, my son, so please, don't waste your strength." D stopped, hand clenching tighter around the hilt of his sword.

"What do you want with Dante?" Dante, Doris thought. That was the first time D had ever said his name aloud, at least around her.

"What grandfather wouldn't want to have contact with his only grandson?"

"He's only 1/4th Noble... Why do you take such an interest in him?"

"Pity, it is," Dracula said, hands curled up around the beam of the crib as he peered in at the sleeping child. "But that quarter of a Noble's blood is my blood."

"Leave him alone!" Doris screamed. Her bottom lip was trembling, tears streaming from her eyes. "Just leave him alone!"

"My, my... She's a talkative one, isn't she?" The Great Ancestor said, bending down to the girl who sat on the ground. His beautiful eyes looked into Doris' cobalt ones. A slender hand was placed upon her pale cheek that glistened with tears. "You've surely chosen a beautiful one, my son... Yet, you have chosen to leave her neck absent of a bite... Haven't you ever wondered what her blood tastes like? I'm sure it's very sweet..."

Doris' eyes were wide as she could feel Dracula's breath on the nape of her neck, but instead of biting her, he simply stood back up and turned to D, who, the second his father had turned around, had shone the bright light of the blue pendant at him. Dracula shielded his face. It burned his skin, almost like Time-Bewitching Incense. It seemed as if a great wind blew, for his cape fluttered about in the small room. Almost paralyzing him to the point of not being able to stand, the Great Ancestor spoke.

"You know your mother... she... gave that to you... when you were only an infant..." A smile curved around those blood-red lips of his. "To protect you... from Vampires... When you were practically one yourself..." With that, he chuckled demoniacally, opening one half of his cape with his arm, and like a gust of air had flown from it, D flew back against the wall.

"Farewell, my son..." He looked at Doris for a moment, smiling coldly, without saying a word, and closed his cape back up, seeming to evaporate into thin air.

"D!" Doris stood and ran over to the dhampir who had just stood from getting knocked into the wall. She embraced him, tears running down her cheeks. He was silent, only looked behind her at the doorway where a 9-year-old boy stood. He was trembling, wide-eyed as he gripped the door. He seemed to be panting as well, dripping with cold sweat. The unexpected guest scared him out of his mind. He gave a longing look toward D, then took off for a mad dash towards the opposite end of his house. D soon followed, going to comfort him. Doris fell to her knees and began to weep. Somewhere from deep inside her, she felt as if this was only the beginning. The beginning of the end.

Sorry that it took sooooo long to write this! I was kind of a jerk for making you guys wait, wasn't I? (laughs) Well, thanks for reading another chapter! They might be pretty short from now on, but please forgive me for it! I haven't had muse in a while... I just realized how long it had been since I updated! Anyway, thanks for reading, and please review with ideas for what's to come! I need help, guys! Thank you!