You wake yet again at dawn, but you seem to have passed through a change of scenery during the night. You are now snugly placed in a cot, enveloped in a heavy wool blanket. You jump up and look outside. The sun is rising. Its golden rays are barely reaching over the horizon.
Van Helsing is sitting by a small fire, muttering to himself as he looks over a scroll. Then your hangover hits you completely and you fall back with a thud, gripping your head. When you can see straight again, Van Helsing stands in the doorway. He looks amused.
"Did we sleep well?" He asks.
"Yes, we did," you groan, gripping your forehead, "And now we shall never drink again." Van Helsing chuckles. He offers you a hand and pulls you to your feet. There is an awkward pause as he looks into your eyes. You vaguely recall a smoldering kiss from the other night, but you suppose it could have been a dream.
"Come. The fresh air will do you good," he says. You walk out into the frigid air and sit near the fire. "Have some breakfast," he offers, handing you some eggs and sausages. "Eat fast; it will freeze if you don't." So you gobble the food down and he offers you the whiskey flask once more. You stare at it. He grins. "Either take it or drink nothing," he says. You finally take it, but you have only a small amount. He shakes his head at you.
"Is Vladimir up?" You ask. Van Helsing shakes his head.
"Not to my knowledge," he says.
"Did you sleep last night?" You ask.
"No. I let you have my cot," replies Van Helsing, "I sleep on the rare occasion."
"How can you not?" You ask. This is incredulous to you, that someone would not sleep. He shrugs, taking another swig of whiskey. "Are you an alcoholic?" You ask. He snorts, splattering whiskey on the snow. Then he laughs. You raise a brow and then head into the tent where Vladimir was placed.
Vladimir is awake, but staring restlessly at the ceiling.
"How is your shoulder?" You ask, seating yourself beside his cot.
"You should have run and let him destroy me," said Vladimir, ignoring your question. You roll your eyes.
"How is your shoulder?" You repeat. He does not answer at all. "Vladimir. We are a team. I do not leave you, you do not leave me…"
"It is obvious that I do not leave you, but if there is danger, you should let me fend it off so you can get away. Imagine what would happen if he killed us both! Then where would we be?" Fumes Vladimir. You sigh and get up.
"I hope your shoulder is feeling better," you say, exiting the tent. You bump into Van Helsing, who is looking at you intently. He is holding the flask of whiskey still, casually. You slip past and he turns to continue watching you. You decide to go check on Carl. When you peer in, he is hunched over a book, snoring. You decide not to go through with what you did last night. When you turn out of the tent, Van Helsing is standing there again.
"Stop it!" You demand. He smiles, taking another swig of the whiskey.
"Stop what?" He asks. You are fuming. He is just doing this to be annoying (while he can; after all, there will soon be a time for no fun and no games).
"Following me, staring at me…stalking me," you slip past him and gather up your things into your bag once more. The horses are standing by, watching you silently. Van Helsing tips his hat and stands in your way. You sigh, angrily and glare at him. "What do you hope to accomplish by this?" You ask. He shrugs.
"I'm just pushing your buttons," he states.
"Well, stop pushing my buttons. Please," you say, "There is no time for this…immaturity." You wave your hand dramatically and he watches, fascinated.
"Did I kiss you yet?" He asks. You begin to slowly turn bright red and then quickly stalk past him.
"We were drunk," you say, "All's well in fun and games."
"Aren't you just the least bit curious what it's like when we're not drunk?" Asks Van Helsing. He has by now put the flask away and is looking at you earnestly.
"Another time, another place," you state.
"Oh, where then? Dracula's castle?" Asks Van Helsing sarcastically, "I think I would rather get it over with."
"Get it over with?" You raise your voice, staring at him, rage slowly building. "If I am already such a burden, why do you not dismiss me and send me away to the Adriatic Sea?" He shrugs, a smile playing in his eyes, and then walks past you as if the game is over.
"Relax Miss DeLune," he says, "I was just joking with you." You are too enraged to respond and return to your tent to sort through your belongings to make sure they are all there.
In a few minutes, you hear Carl talking to Van Helsing but you cannot make out the conversation. You exit the tent to see the two conspiring at the fire. Van Helsing waves you over.
"Welcome back, Miss DeLune," he says, "Now I can formally introduce you two. Carl, this is Mira DeLune. Miss DeLune, this is Friar Carl, my loyal companion."
"Good morning, Mira," says Carl, "I am sorry if I startled you last night. You see, I've had some bad experiences. Van Helsing will tell you…"
"He failed to warn me last night of so-said 'bad experiences,'" you say, looking at Van Helsing. He smiles innocently and sits back.
"So, the plans, Carl?" Asks Van Helsing.
"Well it is still unclear to me what we could have missed. So we may want to go back to Rome and ask the officials there," says Carl.
"I do not want to leave the city so far away," you say immediately. Carl shrugs.
"We do what we must," says Van Helsing sternly, "We cannot cater to your personal needs."
"I assure you I am quite selfless in my reasoning," you say, "I fear only for the safety of my people."
"You remind me of Anna," mutters Van Helsing. You glare at him.
"Well, the lady does have some sense. There are risks in leaving the city so far behind," says Carl.
"We cannot afford those risks," says Vladimir, coming out of his tent. He assumes a seat next to you. "It's the city that Dracula wants. And then he will be after Mira. Trust me. After he gets Mira, he will want Van Helsing."
"Who are you?" Asks Carl.
"Oh, Carl. This is Vladimir; Mira's travel partner," says Van Helsing.
"Nice to meet you," says Carl. Vladimir just glares at him. Carl gulps.
"We must travel back towards the city and find a safe base nearby," says Vladimir.
"Where is there a safe base?" Asks Van Helsing. Carl is looking over his map.
"Well there is a holy place in the mountains… but it has long been abandoned," suggests Carl.
"The Courts of Andume?" You ask.
"Yes…" says Carl, "How did you know?"
"I have been there…once…" You say. They all look at you. "It was long ago though. The place is both blessed and cursed. It protects from evil, but there is evil all around it."
"Well in a way, that is a good thing," says Van Helsing.
"It is nearly impossible to get in there," you say, "It must be accessed in daylight only."
"What about staying quarters?" Asks Carl.
"We could stay in the sanctuary there…but someone must be on guard…we would probably have to do guard shifts," you say, "It is a great risk however."
"But the only alternative to Rome," says Carl, "It seems to me that going to Rome would be going about it the wrong way. So I believe the Courts of Andume must be used. How long would it take us to reach them?"
"Three days," says Vladimir. Everyone looks at Vladimir.
"How do you know?" You ask. Vladimir seems nervous.
"I used to live there."