A/N: Disclaimer in Chapter 1.

A few people have asked about a sequel to this, in truth I didn't have one planned but if you would like to see one I can create one.

Chapter 21: Confrontation

Vlad pulled his forehead from Erin's at the sound. He didn't move far. Erin let out a small groan at the familiar sound.

The mechanical click of loading multiple stake-firing crossbows.

No other noise came from the ones holding the weapons so Vlad believed they were waiting for him to either face them or speak first.

Vlad stepped back slightly, letting out a sigh, to allow Erin to straighten herself out. He smoothed down his hair, and combed his fringe back into its usual place with his fingers. Erin pulled on her shirt, she knew it'd be creased but she didn't care.

Erin gave him a quick smile and he began to move fully away from her, then something caught his eye.

"Neck." She heard in her mind making her jump slightly, she looked at Vlad automatically. She'd forgotten that he was telepathic, although she didn't understand what he meant. "Cover the scar." It came again this time she understood perfectly.

Erin pulled at her collar, deliberately making it stand upwards in an attempt to hide her bite marks. Vlad gave her a brisk nod to say he couldn't see them anymore.

He pulled away completely; trying not to grimace as he turned around to face Jonno, Mina and six slayers all aiming, with alarming accuracy, stake firing crossbows at his chest.

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The slayers looked furious and that was an understatement. Vlad knew he'd have to be careful, as they seemed to be looking for any excuse to pull the trigger to stake him.

Jonno's head straightened as he looked up from the sighting device. He shot Erin a disgusted look; Erin tipped her head not letting his opinion bother her. She had a feeling Jonno had a slight crush on her but she only had eyes for Vlad, just like she had since she'd first met him.

Vlad's hand took hers, lacing their fingers together tightly, Mina shuddered at the sight of their affection.

"I thought we agreed 'no biting'?" Jonno spat at him.

"We haven't bitten anyone." Vlad told him sternly, his body was tense preparing to strike at any moment if he had to.

"Then why are there bodies?" Jonno asked sceptically. "Bodies that have had fangs in their throats?" He practically shouted the last part at Vlad.

Erin wanted to press her own hand against her scar but fought against it. She flinched as she felt the phantom pain of Sethius drinking her blood. She squeezed Vlad's hand inadvertently. His head snapped to hers and he saw the look of panic on her face. Erin shook slightly before sending a tight smile to him.

Vlad reluctantly focused on Jonno once again, "We've got a problem," Vlad told him closing his eyes briefly as he spoke. "We're not biting anyone." Vlad looked him directly in the eye.

"But…"

"Its Sethius." He told Jonno quietly.

That was one name Jonno didn't want to hear again. The madman who's made sure they were trapped inside that small tent for hours. He remembered clearly, Sethius turning to ash before his very eyes.

"We destroyed him." Jonno didn't believe him for a second.

Vlad winced, "Not entirely, there was a bone that survived…" He was going to cut a long story short, "He was resurrected from that."

Jonno couldn't believe they'd been that stupid.

"How?" Mina's eyes narrowed as she spoke, staring the young couple down.

"That's not important." Erin spoke, "It was an accident, that's all that matters."

Mina saw through her explanation "One of you brought him back. Vampires are always after power aren't you?"

"It was a misunderstanding." Erin conceded, "Someone found the bone and brought him back instead of destroying it. It wasn't Vlad's family that did it." Vlad gave her a grateful look for that admission; it was his family they would hold accountable straight away even if they were through extension to Ingrid.

Jonno growled at their admission, it had taken working with the vamps last time to get rid of that maniac. "And you just let him escape?"

"We didn't do it on purpose!" Erin protested violently, she doubted the slayers would have been able to hold onto a regular vampire let alone a powerful on if they'd switched places.

"He's supposed to be the most powerful vampire!"

"I am." Vlad snarled at him, "We can argue about this all day, but he's out there. Neither of us stand a chance alone, we need to work together to defeat him otherwise he'll achieve total anarchy. So what do you say? Are you with us or against us?"

Jonno let out a frustrated groan; he waved his hand to the small posse of slayers that had arrived with him. Immediately they lowered their crossbows.

"Fine, what do you need us to do?"

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Bertrand's nose was the first to twitch as the stench filled the air to the throne room. Ingrid straightened in her seat throwing her issue of Fang Magazine to the side of her.

"I smell slayer." Ingrid hissed, her fangs dropping automatically. She stood speeding around the couch to stand next to Bertrand.

The door opened, revealing Vlad and Erin. The young couple entered the room, their shoes squeaking on the floor. Ingrid could tell that the pair had resolved their differences.

She growled as she saw eight figures enter the room, she smirked as she wondered if this is what was left of the Slayers Guild after Bertrand's friends had met them on their way to Garside Grange.

"They'd better be holding you hostage." Ingrid muttered to her brother, Vlad ignored her.

The Count looked at his son, lightening flashing in the distance. "Why," He paused for emphasis, "Are there slayers in my castle?"

"It's a school dad, not a castle." Ingrid muttered to her father, he wrinkled his nose at her correction.

"Why are there slayers in my home?" He asked again. "Get rid of them." He told his son.

"No." Vlad told his father seriously, "They might be able to help us defeat Sethius." Vlad told him, assuming his future role.

His father looked angry at Vlad's contradiction. "Your 'decisions' have caused us nothing but trouble." He pointed a finger at his son, "Bringing Ingrid back, Renfield giving her the keys to the blood cellar, your mother, Bertrand betraying you." The Count snapped at his son. "I'm still the one in charge."

Ingrid tipped her head as the Count listed all the problems that resulted around Vlad's decisions, "Haven't you forgotten someone?"

"Erin's not nearly as bad now she's…" Thunder cut the Count off quickly; he looked at his son who dared him to continue. He knew if he did his son would probably murder him. "Your girlfriend." He finished lamely.

"When I'm 18 I will be the one in charge around here." Vlad snapped, his eyes turning black. "We've got enough *problems*," He didn't want to mention their divided world around the slayers, he didn't want them to have more information they could use to their advantage, "Your regency ends when I'm 18, you'll have no more power over me."

The Count's eyes narrowed at his son's 'rejection' of his current status. "I am your father, you will obey me."

"And I will be Grand High Vampire…"

"Vlad, don't!" Erin snapped suddenly wanting the conversation over as quickly as possible. Vlad turned to face her. He nodded. She sent a scathing glare towards the Count before he could say or do anything. The Count nodded knowing why she was silencing them – she didn't want things to be said in the heat of the moment.

"Look we need them as much as they need us." He finished.

He turned to face the slayers; they wouldn't get anything discussed until everyone had calmed down.

The best was to get them to relax was to get them a drink and let them adjust to their surroundings.

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The slayers all looked at their coffees as they accepted them off Renfield, half expecting him to have put rat poison in them. Jonno sniffed his, the smell of coffee overpowering his nose and making his eyes water.

"How can you bear to be with a vampire?" Jonno asked Erin firmly as Vlad reached for a bottle of soy blood. "He's not even a person."

Erin cast a look towards Vlad, a smile crossing her face as she watched him. "Vampires are exactly the same as people." Jonno scoffed loudly before laughing at her.

"They're blood suckers."

"Not all vampires drink blood." She told him angrily. "Vlad doesn't drink human blood." She nearly said he'd never drank human blood but she didn't want them to take it the wrong way if they found out about her bite – he had to drink her blood. They wouldn't understand that though. "By choice." She told Jonno firmly.

"That doesn't make him any better."

"You're scared of his power," She hissed at him, Jonno moved back confirming what Erin had said. If they couldn't control something then they wanted to get rid of it. "You know Vlad's the most powerful being on Earth, you're just terrified he'd use it against you."

"Was that a threat?" Jonno asked, enjoying the challenge she'd given him. He reached forward to touch her but she moved out of his grasp.

"No, something I've noticed. Unless you can tell me why you planted UV receivers around the school, when they hadn't touched you?"

Jonno couldn't answer her question, they had tried to attack them without being provoked. "Don't forget you destroyed the generator. You're living with them, protecting them."

"I'd do it again," She told him firmly.

"Ingrid bit your brother!" He couldn't understand her loyalty to them.

Erin's face clouded, she could feel the tingling in her mouth as her fangs wanted to reveal themselves. "And you wanted to slay him because of what he'd become. You didn't even try to help him, I did."

Vlad could tell Erin was growing dangerously close to strangling Jonno, if he wanted the slayers held he doubted it would help their relations with them if Jonno suddenly had a black eye.

He strode across the room and handed Erin a goblet of soy blood, he's taken great care not to let the slayers see him pour it. Erin accepted it off him gratefully, smiling at him. Their fingers lingered, touching for a moment before Jonno's cough made them part.

Erin drank from the goblet her eyes twinkling as she watched Vlad settle himself next to her.

"What are you drinking?" Jonno asked her.

"Blueberry juice." The both spoke at the same time. They bit back smiles as they looked at each other.

Erin quickly drained her goblet before Jonno could actually inspect what was in there. As soon as she placed the goblet on the floor Jonno's eyes were looking at the remnants trying to work out if they'd been telling the truth.

Vlad drank his more slowly, Jonno could smell what Vlad was drinking. It held a more fruity scent, human blood didn't have a scent to breathers. It must have been that substitute he'd heard vampires talk about.

"Do you want more?" He heard Vlad ask Erin quietly. She looked at his goblet then back towards the blood cabinet. Vlad's face no longer held pain when he asked Erin that question; he'd come to accept it now that he wasn't her master.

"Maybe a bit more." She grinned at him as her stomach growled.

Something about Erin made Jonno suspicious, the way she shied away from his contact, the panic at the mention of bitten bodies, the way Vlad had made the Count change what he was going to say.

He had a hunch.

He reached forward and grabbed her blue shirt. The top two buttons ripped off as he yanked it downwards; luckily she was wearing a vest top underneath.

Now the collar was skewed it revealed a fresh, red scar. The perfect shape for a set of fangs.

"You bit her!"

That was the signal for chaos to begin.

TBC

A/N: Thanks for reading.