Don't own the characters.
I spent about an hour watching Young Dracula on iPlayer - have you SEEN the new logo for CBBC? Its hideous.
Anyway, that's got nothing to do with how much I love writing this.
On we go!
-YD-
The reminder of Ingrid on his skin went from good to bad in less than the time it took Vlad to hurtle into his room and stand under the shower. Scrubbing until it hurt couldn't shift the guilt inside him, and after the water ran almost as cold as his body Vlad admitted defeat, climbed out and dried and dressed. Brushing his teeth to rid the taste of her only made him feel sicker, too nauseous to even think of eating or drinking as he locked himself in the training room. The walls shook when he missed the bag and hit brick, but the injuries on his knuckles barely registered as he lashed out again. Vlad knew he needed to reign it in, his powers were always simmering just below the surface and it was dangerous to let them out this way. Growling in anger and frustration, he heard and felt the storm brewing outside and forced his emotions down.
Dropping to his hands and knees, his hands curled so tightly the concrete ground cracked beneath his finger tips. He should have been stronger, should have seen Ingrid regretting it but he was blind, ruled by feelings again. Vlad was reminded of the dreams he had when he was only thirteen, the earth beneath his hands as he shifted into a wolf. He wouldn't mind that now, getting to be someone else or something else. As the raging feelings slowly ebbed away, he felt exhausted inside and out as he stumbled back to his feet. Clicking his fingers to open the door, he was relieved to find his rattling of the castle walls hadn't attracted Ingrid - Vlad thought he may prefer a walk in the sunlight than see the look that had been in her eyes because of him again.
The next council meeting was only a couple of days away, they couldn't avoid each other forever. Though Vlad was prepared to bet they were both about to try. Not used to bothering, Vlad actually put his senses out to check the kitchen was empty before he went in to get food and blood - seeing Ingrid would make him sick again. Repeating the process before he ventured into the library, Vlad poured himself into research, both to back up his dimidius laws if someone challenged them, and to start preparing the future werewolf laws. Thinking of Wolfie stung a little, wondering what the innocent little boy would make of he and Ingrid. Scrawling down the last of his notes as the sun began to rise, he fell into his coffin and stared up at the lid. Ingrid kissing him softly afterwards was what haunted him now, not letting him forget the way their bodies fit against each other so well in a way he hated.
Sleep did not come easily, and his dreams had shifted from Ingrid naked beneath him to more of her bright eyes and throaty whimpers when they kissed. Vlad didn't know what to make of it, except he guessed his subconscious wanted Ingrid not disgusted to be near him more than anything else now. Remembering the dream world dreams, Vlad wondered where that had gone. Since his dream about being the chosen one, he hadn't been back. Oh, he had dreams obviously, but no slayers chasing him that led to real world injuries. His father had normal dreams too, or "human" ones, nightmares too. He had no idea about Ingrid, but then Vlad doubted she would appreciate him asking. Jotting the curiosity down on a piece of paper near his coffin, he resolved to look into it when he was done putting the early things about hybrid children together - the dimidius laws were an excellent starting point.
"You look terrible." "Charming as ever Ingrid." He hadn't even noticed her turning up in the library, lost in thought as he stared at the books. "Just trying to act normal." Clenching his fists and trying to reign his anger in, Vlad failed and snapped back "well maybe don't seduce me then tell me I made you feel dirty! Aside from anything else going on in my head, I really didn't need the guilt." Zooming past her before he got even angrier, Vlad punched his fist into the hole he already made in the wall of the training room and felt his skin tear again. The marks on his back were still there, he could feel them even if he couldn't see them, nor could he reach to heal them. Running his tongue over the abrasions on his hand, he watched as they knitted together and healed closed. Vampires healed fast, and the only things that could scar permanently were fangs, or argentalium liquid left to burn through their skin. Remembering Ryan, Vlad had to wonder where Ingrid had bitten him - he hadn't had a scar on his neck and it was only about hitting an artery with their fangs - necks were just easier and vampires were naturally drawn to them.
Sending off a message to Jonno for an update on their side of things, Vlad went back to scowling at the fist-shaped hole in the thick wall. "Chasing a few leads, think we are getting close to a few of the youngest" was the answer, so Vlad mentally prepared himself for another trip back to the UK soon. It was a month away still, but Vlad was already desperate for council recess to come around so he could take the time to try and untangle his fried brain. Not that he had any success yet with trying most of the week. "Stop doing that!" He felt Ingrid turn up behind him, knowing his marked up back was on show from feeling so trapped his t-shirt felt stifling. "Is this how its going to be now?" Forcing himself to turn around, Vlad shrugged as he looked at her. "I was doing ok before, you're the one who made everything change." "Before? Is this why you've been even more of a pain in the neck than usual?" Backing away from her now, he shook his head, more to himself than her. "It doesn't matter, I just can't look at you when you're looking at me that way."
For the second time that night he ran, getting away from her before he cracked or cried or something else he couldn't think of yet. This was probably the worst way to deal with this problem, but Vlad was all out of ideas and rapidly running out of threads of control. He couldn't even run away properly to clear his head, there was a whole race he had to govern and the cease fire would not last without him. Ingrid didn't seek him out again that night, and Vlad only left to grab a bottle of soya before flitting back to his room to hide neatly in his coffin. By the time they had to leave for Council together, Vlad felt utterly drained. Tightening his robes and picking up the crown, he didn't wait for Ingrid this time as he left. "Where is your dear betrothed your grandness? Not too ill to attend I hope?" Hack asked after her, but Vlad sort of shrugged. "You know women, we live on their schedule not the other way around." "Some of us don't like leaving their castle looking like they got roughed up by slayers on the way here. Evening Hack." Again, she crept up behind him without him even noticing, which didn't say much for Vlad's senses really.
"Miss Dracula. Are we ready to head through?" Vlad nodded, taking his accursed staff from Roque as they passed him en route to the meeting room. After their 'behaviour' at the Dracula castle, Vlad knew they had to ease off the tense silences or people would start to wonder what was going on. That didn't make it easier to look at Ingrid, but he managed to get through the mercifully short meeting without cracking, staying only long enough to check the others left before Ingrid this time. When he left the building he treated himself to a good long fly, stretching his wings for the simple joy of freedom in the air. His problems were waiting for him when he landed, but those few hours of gliding through the night had been peaceful. A quick trip to the kitchen alleviated him of his robes and crown, slowly drinking down his glass of soya and trying to cling to the sense of relaxation.
It wasn't to last, when he saw Ingrid again in the library and her eyes were bright like they had been that night, his chest constricting like she was weighing on him physically as well as mentally. "What do you want from me?" "I'd settle for honesty." "Honesty is for breathers." "And you're as human as vampires come." She had him there, Vlad was probably the only vampire alive who clung to the motion they had souls, not just black pits of blood and thirst. Ingrid kept looking at him, waiting for an answer. "Why did you do it? I'm going out of my mind trying to work out where all these feelings are coming from and you just drag me into a coffin and... And then make me feel like I did something terrible?" Ingrid didn't say anything, just stood looking deep in thought for minutes that ticked by like hours. They both jumped when Vlad's phone rung, the heavy silence broken.
"Jonno, this isn't a good time." "Sorry, but you need to get here. You and Ingrid." "Why?" Already anxiously wound up as he was, Jonno's tone didn't help him in the slightest. "Just get here, you'll barely make the sunrise if you leave now. I swear it's important." "Alright. I'll be there. No promises about Ingrid." Hanging up the phone, Vlad scrubbed a hand over his face. "What was that?" "Not a clue. Jonno said we need to go to him. Now. And apparently its important." Both of them knew they were putting off dealing with what had happened, but neither of them said as much as they dashed to get ready to leave again. Bagging soya bottles as he was going to be there at least the day, if not longer, Vlad pulled on his zip up jacket and met Ingrid at the door. "You're coming then?" "I'm curious." Shrugging, he leapt up into bat form and got flapping, they were literally in the few minutes to sunrise by landing time as they went. Jonno was waiting as they landed, hurrying to invite them inside before the sun could dust them.
"This had better be important, I was painting my nails." Several nearby slayers looked at Ingrid in confusion, but Vlad and Jonno were both more than used to things like that from her. Though Vlad knew she was lying, but he was hardly going to say "actually we were talking about how we slept together after entering a betrothal contract but its not like that" instead. "I didn't believe this myself until I saw it with my own eyes." "Saw what?" "Did you know you have a brother?" Both Dracula's stopped dead then and looked at Jonno in confusion. "I'm guessing you don't mean Malik, or Wolfie?" "No. A half human brother." Remembering Ingrids offhand comment about this being all they needed, Vlad was surprised. "How... What... Huh?" "Eloquent." "Sit on a stake Ingrid. Jonno?" The slayer boy looked a little uncomfortable, but still answered. "We've been looking for people with all those signs you gave me, and you volunteered your blood for the vampire database. He buzzed as a match to you, and then I saw him and I knew for sure. Given that he's too old to be your son, he has to be your brother. Half brother anyway."
"What do you mean, saw him?" "Its easier if you see for yourself. Come on." They followed Jonno along through the enormous building, up stairs that led away from the weapons production at the bottom. "Uh, Jonno, mind turning off the UV beams?" They were almost invisible, but there were shimmers in the air where Vlad and Ingrid could be dust just by walking through. "Sorry, this isn't exactly normal procedure. You two shouldn't even be allowed up here." The beams in the hallway vanished when Jonno hit a switch in a panel full of them, so the two could follow him. "Vlad, Ingrid, meet the Giles. You'll understand in a minute." Sharing a loaded look with Ingrid, animosity and issues forgotten for this brief moment, they stepped through the door Jonno indicated.
Five voices all went "wow" in sync, and Vlad expected all for the exact same reason. There were two female humans, one clearly the mother and another Vlad assumed to be a sister/daughter. The male was the interesting one, as aside from a few tiny differences around the nose and ears, he could have been Vlad's twin. "Its like looking in a mirror. Do you think this means I'll get taller George?" Vlad looked around for this 'George', as there were no other males in the room. "Nah, the girl is tall too, must be from their mother." The young girl was the one to answer. "Uh. Hi. I'm Vlad, this is my sister Ingrid. And you are?" He didn't add the Dracula, unsure how much these humans knew. "I'm Sally Giles, this is my son Adam, and my daughter Georgina." "Muuuum!" "Except we can't call her that, this is George." Jonno nudged Vlad from behind, probably to encourage him to stop standing in the doorway like an idiot.
He and Ingrid stepped further into the room, taking the two empty seats. "So, do you two know why we are here? Other than for this magic trick of my long lost twin appearing. Are we twins? Mum did you sell off my brother?" The look-alike was considerably more banterous than Vlad, joking about a bizarre situation with no sign of nerves. "No Adam, I didn't. There was definitely only one of you when you were born." "How old are you Adam?" It was weird, the boy even sounded like Vlad, the constant back and forth of his life meaning Vlad's accent had never truly settled into one dialect. "Fifteen, I'm sixteen in a few months." Seems the slayers had found him just in time then. "Well I turned eighteen several weeks ago, so no, we can't be twins." "Must be brothers then, I mean, I never knew my dad, mum got pregnant at Whitby Goth Festival but didn't have much but a name and a hangover to go on. Your dad isn't called Salem Smith is he?"
Both Vlad and Ingrid snorted in amusement at that, having never heard that particular alias before. "Salem Smith? I don't think so. Hold on." Vlad hunted through his bag, pulling out a family portrait he tended to carry with him. "This is my family." He held the picture out to Sally, who's eyes widened in surprise. "That's him." "Bats, dad got about didn't he?" "Like mum is any better." 'George', a tall, thin girl with a very youthful but smiling face and wildly curly hair, looked at the two of them in confusion. "Did you say bats?" Vlad hurried to look round at Jonno, who shook his head. They didn't know yet then. Trying to work out a way to break the news gently, his thoughts were interrupted by Ingrid's voice. "Yes. Its a pretty common thing for vampires like us to say."
-YD-
So I've done Adam!Vlad, full vampire!Vlad and dimidius!Vlad before, how about a story with both full vampire!Vlad and dimidius!Adam? Teehee.