A/N: Disclaimer in Chapter 1.

For the person who bluntly told me I'm posting late…

I'm sorry for posting late and (I'm sorry of this comes across as rude) but I have had a lot on my plate at the moment.

My mom has been in hospital, now she's home and she's confined to bed. I have to look after her and still do my job at work without time off and I don't get weekends off.

I am still typing 4,000 words a day but its hard trying to do it around my job and looking after my mom. I don't have to post two chapters everyday but I want to.

Please don't assume this fanfic is my only priority at the moment.

At the moment it's a very difficult time for me so I'm not going to lie and say I wasn't upset, typing this story is the only thing keeping me sane. I was very hurt that I was criticised when someone didn't know the facts.

I'm sorry for my rant but I'm saddened that I've had to justify myself publicly when I would have preferred to keep it personal but I couldn't reply via PM.

Chapter 25: Preparation

"You okay?" Erin asked Vlad as he brushed hair from his eyes, wiping his forehead slightly.

"Yeah." He told her softly, stuffing the stubborn sleeping bag deeper into his bag.

"We'll take our time," She told him grasping her rucksack in her arms tightly, hugging it to her.

Vlad zipped up the bag and pulled the cord tighter sealing it closer before clipping it shut. "We need to get away from here as fast as possible." Vlad contradicted her.

Erin knew that but as long as they were getting away it didn't matter how fast they went as long as he was fine. She didn't want him to relapse back into a delirious state.

"I need you, not the delirious one who can bite us at any time."

"Is that the only reason?" He asked feigning hurt and Erin smiled at him. She didn't need to say it out loud he knew.

Erin kicked the embers of the fire that had been doused hours ago, spreading them along the floor of the cave. They didn't want to leave any trace of them ever being there, the remains of a fire would be obvious.

Vlad looked around the cave. He launched a small fireball burning the remains of the old bandages and his damaged shirt that lay on the floor. Instead of leaving ashes the remains simply disappeared.

Erin drew her eyes back to Vlad, his powers never ceased to amaze her and she was sure he could do a lot more than he already knew.

Vlad deflated suddenly and stumbled slightly to the right as he lowered his arm. Erin immediately caught him, grabbing his upper arms to steady him.

"Vlad?" She searched his gaze; he didn't know what had happened either. He looked down as if he was trying to work it out himself.

"I don't think I was ready to use that power yet." He told her softly, he could already feel the drain on his strength.

"What happened?"

"I just got a little dizzy." He looked into her eyes; "Look you said I was pretty bad for a while. It's just the end of the infection." Erin wanted to say 'poison' but behaved herself. "My version of a headache." He told her with confidence but inside he felt as if he was about to throw up, he'd tapped into strength that wasn't there.

Erin searched his eyes before nodding and accepting his answer. Vlad was a vampire and his cures and ailments affected him differently than humans.

Erin pressed the softest of kisses to his forehead.

Robin quickly ran back towards them, just as Erin and Vlad had moved apart.

Robin gasped at them, doubled over trying to catch his breath, "There's something going on."

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Vlad and Erin shared a worried look with each other. That wasn't a good sign

"What did you see?" Vlad needed to know.

"Lights, lots of light moving fast through the forest. It could be torches going on and off."

Slayers still used Morse Code even though it had been declared obsolete by the rest of the country.

"Slayers?" Erin asked him quietly. Vlad shrugged if they were using stasis spray he wouldn't be able to smell them but then again his abilities might not be fully cooperating with him if the fireball earlier was anything to go by.

Vlad slowly crept towards the edge of the cave looking out into the darkness; he automatically looked at the cloudless sky above the trees seeing the stars glistening. He lowered his gaze to the forest and he immediately saw what Robin meant.

The lights were moving too fast but his eyes easily followed them. It wasn't torches being turned on and off in some kind of Morse Code.

His pulled his head back with a small gasp.

Robin noticed his reaction, "What is it Vlad?"

"Those aren't torches."

"What are they then?"

Vlad lowered himself slightly, taking a defensive position. "Vampires."

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Looking closely it wasn't torchlight that the vampires had, it was the moonlight glinting off their gold buttons that decorated their clothes. Vlad was the opposite of them, he seemed to favour silver with the exception of his cape.

As they darted from side to side the light glistened and glimmered creating the effect of torchlight.

"Are they looking for you?" Erin asked him.

Before Vlad could answer, he got as far as opening his mouth, Robin butted in, "What do you mean are they looking for Vlad? I thought he was the Vampire King?"

"Not until I'm 18. Dad's my Regent." Robin winced, he wasn't sure that was a good idea.

"But your dad wouldn't send anyone after you, I know he's completely bonkers but…"

Vlad and Erin winced slightly, "We didn't exactly tell them we were leaving."

"So they're after you?"

Vlad shook his head, that wasn't likely. "No the Council would have his fangs in a jar for losing me, Bertrand's too. Dad will ignore it for as long as he has to."

Whoever these vampires were they didn't know Vlad was there at all.

"Why aren't they coming closer?" Robin asked them quietly.

"The stream." Vlad told him.

"What about the stream? Don't they want to get their leather wet?"

"It's flowing water."

Vampires couldn't cross flowing water without a bridge or boat.

Erin shrugged lightly, she didn't like what she was about to suggest it would blow Vlad's cover but they couldn't move while they were still there. "Can't you just tell them to go?"

"Its my kind we're dealing with not yours, slayer." The emphasis was on 'slayer'. In that moment she didn't care which Vlad it was and she hit his shoulder hard, 'breather' didn't insult her but 'slayer' did. Vlad's eyes softened at her reaction, he didn't mean to upset her, in this state he spoke before he thought. "Sorry."

"It's okay." She could see how sorry he was. 'Slayer' hit a nerve with her, she couldn't explain it, it just did.

Vlad sighed, she was right. If the slayers realised how many vampires there were in the area they'd come down on them like a tone of bricks. They couldn't risk being exposed. "You're right, they need to go."

Robin rubbed his hands grinning. "Awesome." Vlad gave him a surprised look; Robin loved vampires until one threatened them. "You need to look more vampire like." Robin told Vlad. He looked too normal in a t-shirt and brown jeans.

Erin shook her head at Robin, "What do you want fangs?"

On cue Vlad lowered his fangs and Erin glared at him as Robin jumped back startled, he still wasn't used to Vlad being a full vampire. Vlad hadn't intended to scare him, he was answering in a sarcastic way. Erin always seemed to take it in her stride.

"Away." Erin sighed and Vlad obeyed – for once.

Robin scrutinised him more carefully. "Haven't you got anything more menacing? A cape or something?" He was desperate to see what this full vampire Vlad looked like in a cape.

Erin remembered the jacket she'd been wearing for the last few days, she threw it to him.

His leather jacket with lapels and narrow collar. Vlad gave her a look as he glanced down at it.

Erin shrugged, "It's leather." All vampires wore leather; they looked more threatening when they did.

Robin had already started raiding Vlad's immaculately packed bag. Vlad rolled his eyes, he was much tidier than he had been four years ago…and Robin was making a mess.

Vlad watched as he threw something to Erin, who smiled and nodded. She held it up to Vlad, grinning.

"Are we going to play dress up or are you going to tell me what you're doing?" He didn't like people dressing him up, ever since his dad had decided to put a cape on his rugby kit.

Erin and Robin grinned and Vlad knew he wasn't going to get an answer.

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Erin was being gentle as he was pushed back and forth between them but Robin was being slightly more forceful.

"ENOUGH!" Vlad shouted, they'd just about agreed on dark, navy blue jeans for him and his jacket. It would be dawn by the time he actually faced the other vampires.

He shoved passed them and grabbed a sapphire blue cotton shirt and his black pumps.

He stared at them as they watched him waiting to get changed.

"Privacy?" Vlad asked them, Erin and Robin turned around with a reluctant sigh. "Thank you."

"Haven't you seen it all before?" Robin whispered to Erin loudly, deliberately teasing his friend. Erin covered

"I heard that."

Erin let out a small giggle as Robin chuckled.

Vlad dressed as quickly as he could. "Ready." He told them and they both turned. Erin grinned at him, he looked much more regal in those clothes than he had before.

"Much better." Robin and Erin spoke together before chuckling. Vlad wondered what had ever possessed him to become friends with either of them.

Robin remembered something, rummaging through his pockets. He'd found it in Erin's bag. "What's this?" Robin asked looking at the cloudy bottle in his hands. Vlad snatched it off him; he didn't do it to be rude he did it in haste.

"Its empty." Erin told him. Vlad shook the bottle he could hear something at the very bottom.

"There's something inside."

Erin shrugged, "There isn't enough for a dose." If there had been she would have worn it when they faced Ryan.

Vlad squinted at it, "Will it work if it's watered down?"

"I've already watered it down once." She told him.

"Can you do it again?" He asked her desperately.

"I might be able to but it'd only last an hour at most." It really wouldn't work for long without wearing off.

"Do it." Vlad told her quietly.

Erin didn't need to be told twice she grasped the freshly filled thermos from Robin and sat down.

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Erin didn't dare add too much water to water it down, only enough to make a whole dose. She didn't know where to get any more; she'd been given it with her slayers kit. Somehow she had a feeling the slayers knew she'd try to avenge Ryan. No other slayer had been given it before.

She jumped as a shadow covered the dim light from the torch, they couldn't risk lighting a fire.

"You need to make sure you cover your pulse completely." Vlad told her looking at the slither of precious liquid in the bottle.

Robin seemed a little put out that Erin was getting the spray so he assumed, "So she gets it because she's a girl?" Robin tutted afterwards, his friend seemed to only really care about his girlfriend.

Vlad rolled his eyes, he wasn't playing favourites. "Erin gets it because she's supposed to be a half fang…and some of my kind that met her are out there." He grabbed the scarf that had been discarded in his jacket pocket and gently wrapped it around her neck. He adjusted the neck scarf slightly so it looked right on her.

"How come she gets to be the vampire as well and I'm a victim. Why can't I be a vampire too?" Robin sounded slightly childish

"Because you have a heartbeat." Vlad told his friend firmly. "And you'd never make a convincing vampire."

"Well Erin's not going to do much acting is she?" Vlad nodded agreeing with Robin's comment.

"What are you…"

"Stay quiet and don't say a thing even if they provoke you." He told Erin firmly cutting her off, Erin didn't like being silenced without a good reason.

"Why not?"

Vlad didn't want to answer that even though he knew he had to. Erin tipped her head waiting for an answer.

"Because women are seen and not heard." Robin told her quietly, seeing Vlad was reluctant to answer.

"Ingrid…"

"Erin please!" Vlad cut her off, he wasn't about to start a debate over his culture's way of life. Yes it was wrong but there was nothing he could do about it – not at the moment anyway.

Erin nodded slowly she didn't want to make this worse for him.

Vlad took a deep breath and made his way towards the cave entrance.

Erin and Robin stood behind him creating a triangle shape.

He looked at them before nodding.

Vlad stepped out of the shadows of the cave and into the darkness of the night.

TBC

A/N: Thanks for reading.