A/N Okay, we are within spitting distance of the climax! In fact, you might call this part of the climax! I hope you enjoy it!
HyperCaz: Oh boy, it starts... heh, yea, everyone is going to stop liking me in these next two chapters.... I actually do give a minor explanation for why 'Van the Man' didn't come and save the day fairly early on in the chapter... And I'm sorry it had to be violent, (Carl the Stuffed Purple Dog made me do it!!!!!) but it furthers the plot.
Mourn-today- BUFFY FOREVER! Um, I'm not so sure my parents would want me givin' out my email... but if you want, you can ask questions in your reviews and I can respond here. Thanks for your review!
Doris()- Wow, I'm flattered to hear you saying all those things about my wee little story! I promise you, I won't let this die! I already have the next two chapters after this written anyways...
Irish Anor- Yes, it was cringes Anorel Tinuviel. Yes, Gabriel will lose his temper with Vlad in this chappie, but I'm afraid you have to wait one more for the violence:-)
Alright, here we go!
Chapter 10:
An Invitation to Die
Analiese remembered nothing of the rest of the night. She had crawled back to her own bed after leaving Dracula's room and fallen asleep almost immediately, but around dawn she woke up in a cold sweat with tears leaving slimy trails on her face. Now her body and soul were beginning to ache and her heart scream out for comfort. Breathing harshly, she pulled herself out of bed and looked in the mirror, shuddering at the hideous state she was in. Every part of her being screamed out for Gabriel, and so she made her stumbling way through the dark corridors and up into the tower she knew his room was in.
Van Helsing was fast asleep, having heard nothing of the tragic terror that happened just below him that night due to the thick stone floors and walls. His Hunter's instincts kicked in as Analiese knocked on the door, and he was out of bed in an instant, reaching for a sword on the wall. Just then, the door opened and a shaking Analiese stepped in. His heart stopped for her as he saw her condition: her clothes were hanging about her in rags, her lips were swollen and a huge purple bruise was forming on the side of her face. There were vicious cuts all over her arms and across her cleavage.
"My God Analiese! Wh-what..?" Van Helsing stuttered, holding his arms out for her. She ran eagerly into his embrace, not caring how much it hurt her battered body, and buried her face in his shoulder. Wracking sobs nearly broke her all over again, and stained the shirt Van Helsing had worn to bed. He held her tightly, tears of his own forming as fear made his heart pound. "What happened to you?" He asked slowly, quietly. She drew back slightly, enough so that he could see her face and brush away her tears with butterfly kisses.
"Vlad..." She said in a cracked voice. An oddly cold rage flooded Van Helsing at her single word. Now everything was making horrible, clear sense.
"He... did this to you?" He asked calmly. She nodded soundlessly and lay her head on his shoulder again; he ran comforting hands along her back as he sought to control himself. That bastard. That sodding bastard... "I want you to stay here for the day, alright Analiese?" He said slowly, guiding her to the bed and laying her down. She nodded numbly, wiping away a few of her tears. His hand stroked her cheek, catching those tears that she did not.
"Won't you stay...?" She asked in a barely audible voice.
"No, love. I'm going to go get you breakfast." He said gently. With utmost delicacy, he brushed his lips against hers. "And I'll tell the maid to bring you some fresh clothes." Unable to bear the sight of her a moment longer, he left the room. On his way out of the tower, he bumped into a maid and told her to go get a simple shift for Analiese, before heading down to the hall where he knew the others would be eating.
This day, there was near silence at the table, hanging over the men sitting out it like a pregnant rain cloud. There was already tension in the air, but when Van Helsing entered it almost seemed to crackle with electricity. His mouth fixed in a tight line, he strode quickly over to his seat and sat down, beginning to eat.
"Where is Analiese?" Carl asked innocently.
"She felt sick. She's in bed resting." said the monster slayer tersely.
"How could she not feel sick after locking lips with the likes of you?" hissed Daniel. At the moment, something very unexpected happened. James, who never interrupted the natural flow of life, threw down his fork and jerked himself to his feet.
"How could she not feel sick after dancing all night with such filth as Vlad?" He spat. Daniel leapt to his feet as well, his hand on the dagger at his waist. James did not falter, his hands clenched to the point of white knuckles.
"I'd cut your tongue out for saying such things as that!" David snarled, standing up as well.
"And I'd cut his heart out for more reasons than one!" Carl declared, throwing down his utensils and pointing to Dracula as he stood. With a shout of rage, Daniel drew his dagger, David and Michael close behind him. William, James, Carl, and John rallied together, eying the others with obvious hatred but not drawing weapons. At that time, both Dracula and Van Helsing stood slowly and moved in front of their comrades.
"Peace, my friends. Breakfast would not taste very good soured with their blood." Van Helsing said coolly. He did not know how they all knew what had happened, or if they knew at all, but he didn't need blood shed here.
"What turned you into a peacemaker, Gabriel?" Dracula crooned with a soft and deadly smile.
"Nothing. I would just so like to enjoy my breakfast." Van Helsing returned coolly.
"Enjoy it, then." Returned the mocking Count, bowing cordially.
"I thank you." Gabriel said as he sat. There was a lingering moment of anger as he began to eat again, but gradually the daggers were sheathed and the angry parties sat down. But after that exchange, no one seemed to want breakfast, and so, gradually, they trickled out, leaving Dracula and Van Helsing alone together.
"I do not know what she sees in you, Gabriel." Dracula mused aloud as he paced, stopping to lean on the table in front of his 'friend.' "I look at you and I see death." When this did not seem to have an effect on the aloof man, he continued to pace.
"I know what you did to her." Van Helsing said quietly after a moment.
"But do you know why?" Dracula cried with sudden vehemence. "Murderer they call you, Gabriel Van Helsing, you should know what it is to have blood on your hands. Let us say that what blood of hers I spilt last night was spilt on your behalf!"
"You have no conscience to remove guilt from, so I do not see why you seek to pin something that is nonexistent on me." replied the other silkily.
"You say I have no conscience, feel no guilt!" Dracula shouted, slamming his hands down on the table in front of Van Helsing. "I feel too much guilt over what I did, because I pursued the wrong person! I never intended to hurt her! It was you, you and your biting betrayal that drove me to what I did! The sin is yours, not mine!" For a quiet moment, Van Helsing watched Dracula with an expressionless face. Then, he stood and began to walk out of the hall. Dracula watched him leave; as his hand touched the doorknob, he shouted after him. "Remember this, murderer and adulterer! Without blood, there is no remission of sin!" Still wordless, Van Helsing left the Count to his tormented thoughts.
He managed to prevent himself from showing emotion of any kind until he reached the stairs to the tower he slept in. It was his fault! He should've listened to Carl, should've seen this coming! The looks Vlad gave Analiese were filled with more than the love between two cousins! If only he hadn't been blinded by his need to feel some semblance of closeness to Anna... She was taking over him... Oh god Anna, I miss you so... I'm 400 years across live, death and time away from you, and I've never needed you more than this moment. Take me away, Anna, fill up this emptiness as only you can... For a few moments he slumped against the wall, overcome, but then he dragged himself to his feet and plodded up the stairs.
He almost burst into the room and turned to see Analiese still lying on the bed but now in the new shift. She sat up as he entered, a look of fear on her face. His heart breaking in two, he rushed over to the bed, arms out as though to embrace her; she recoiled with a whimper of fear. Sadness softened his features and he began to back away, but she reached for him again, the burnt child reaching for the flame. He sank down on bed beside her, enveloping her in his arms. While it seemed that he was trying to mend her hurts and fill up all the cracks Dracula had left when he had broken her, she was filling up his hurts as much as he was healing her. For a long while they lay like that, each trying to find some shred of hope and meaning. It was Analiese who drew back first.
"I should go out and face them. I need to show Vlad that I am not afraid." She said as she pulled herself to her feet, wrapping her arms around her waist.
"Fear keeps us alive, it is not a thing to be ashamed of." Van Helsing said quietly, standing behind her and slipping his arms under hers. She held his hands as she spoke.
"I did not mean to hurt him. I wanted to see... if you truly felt for me. I thought that that was the only way I could know." She replied after a moment.
"All you had to do was ask. I'd tell you how I felt." He whispered, kissing her head lightly. Presently, someone knocked on the door. Crossing the room to open it, Van Helsing discovered that it was Carl. "Please come in." He said a little hollowly.
"Thank you." said the Friar as he entered. Analiese turned to face him.
"Hullo Carl." She said with the weakest of smiles.
"What's Dracula done to you?" He asked in a tone of horror, his hands falling to his sides.
"What's that you've got?" Van Helsing asked suspiciously, seeing the sealed parchment in his friend's hand.
"Daniel gave it to me. Said it was from Vlad and for you alone." replied the redhead, handing over the paper. Van Helsing paused only to look at the seal; how well he knew it, the dragon in a circle. Then he opened it and read it aloud:
Gabriel,
Honor calls me to challenge you this night, in the hall where we have shared so many days, to a duel. The weapons shall be swords, and shields will be allowed for defense. I will not permit seconds; this is between us and us alone. Arrive at the hall ere midnight takes its toll or be branded a coward.
Vladislaus Dracula
"He wants to duel you? Does it say if it's to the death or not?" Carl asked, his eyes wide. He had expected Dracula to outright try and kill Van Helsing, not duel him for honor's sake.
"I think it's just a formality, a reason to get me in a certain place at a certain time with a weapon. He wants me dead. After the rest of you left the hall this morning, we spoke. He blames me for what he did to Analiese, calling it my sin. He says he still loves her and in his anger with me for betraying our oath not to pursue her he vented on her. Then he said something about no remission of sin without blood." Van Helsing explained calmly.
"No! I won't let you fight him!" Analiese cried tearfully.
"Analiese, I have to!" He said tersely.
"No, no you don't! If it's anyone's fault, it is mine for playing games! I should be punished!" She continued in the same voice.
"You do not deserve punishment like this! You did nothing wrong by not loving him! I betrayed a promise that we made to try and prevent something like this, I outraged his honor and so I have to fight and die if that is the case!" Van Helsing said a little angrily.
"It is my honor that has been outraged, I should be the one who fights and dies!" She shouted.
"No" Van Helsing cried with sudden fear. "Don't even speak of death." He said in a low, harsh voice as he gripped her shoulders. "I could not bear to see you die again."
"And I cannot even bear the thought of you being so close to death! He could kill you Gabriel, kill you!" She cried, not catching his slip of tongue as she grasped his shoulders in return.
"Analiese, never doubt this: there is no other way I'd rather die than for your sake. If it healed your wounds, there is no one I would not kill." His face was so full of agony that Analiese fell silent for a moment. Then she sank into his embrace, holding his face close against her shoulder.
"God be with us this night..." She whispered fervently. At last, Van Helsing drew back.
"Carl, go to Vlad or one of his friends. Tell them I accept his invitation." Carl nodded and set off.
As soon as the Friar was gone, Van Helsing returned to Analiese's embrace. He would fight Dracula because he had the chance to fight back. So many things that had befallen him had been things beyond his control, things he could not fight back against. Things such as Anna's death. Now, he was being given the chance to fight back. He could almost make it seem like he was avenging all those things he had no control over. Like he was avenging Anna.
Funny, he had forgotten that he was supposed to kill Dracula for the Order. Now it had become all about Anna and Analiese. He wondered momentarily if that was good or not.
Feeling exhausted from his thoughts, he drew back finally.
"Let's get some rest." He told Analiese, leading her to the bed and curling up on the armchair next to it. He knew he would need his rest but would be able to find no sleep.
There was killing and dying to be done that night.
A/N Okay peoples, I think I may have had Van Helsing going a little Anna obsessive there, but I needed to portray that because since that is his whole motivation for loving Analiese... because she's like Anna. Next comes the big climax!