Nicola woke and yawned as she stretched her arms out. She blinked and looked round. She was in "her" room. The room Dracula had given her but unlike before the curtains were wide open and rays of sunlight streamed in. Nicola stood and walked over, enjoying the feel of the sun on her skin once more. The enjoyment was tinged with sorrow though. Her lord was dead. She had loved him and he had claimed to love her as he died.

She heard the door open behind her and turned to see Van Helsing there. She realised that tears had sprung up in her eyes and she tried to wipe them away, thinking that Gabriel would be disgusted with her.

"So you really did love him?" asked Gabriel with some surprise as he moved towards her and hugged her close. "There, there," he continued as she sobbed against him. "I am sorry Nicola but it had to be done - to save Arene"

Nicola looked up suddenly. Where was Arene? Gabriel seemed to read her thoughts and smiled down at her.

"Arene is fine - she is resting though. She lost a lot of blood and she needs to regain her strength."

"Can I see her?"

"Soon," the Knight replied. "I will wake her in about an hour. The other girls are at breakfast. Once they have finished we will all leave here together," he paused for a moment and frowned. "They have not said much about what happened - I don't know how much they remember."

"Oh they remember it all!" said Nicola confidently. She could remember every detail and knew it would be the same with them. "I guess they just aren't ready to talk about it yet."

"Maybe," said the Hunter thoughtfully. "What about you. Any side effects? Are you hungry?"

"I'm fine I think," replied Nicola, "but no I'm not hungry." She tried to smile so he knew she was OK but it became more of a grimace.

Van Helsing looked at her carefully before speaking.

"Why not come down to the hall anyway. Perhaps the girls will open up more to you. I will return to Arene and will bring her down shortly."

"As you wish," said Nicola.

Together they headed out of the room. Nicola moved to the staircase and headed downstairs while Van Helsing returned along the corridor to Arene's room.

Nicola walked down the stairs to the breakfast hall. She could see and hear most of the girls talking in a soft tone. They knew what had been done and they knew it was for the best, even though it hurt them. Nicola entered the room and all the girls turned to her. Kate, the first girl to be changed, ran to her.

"Mothe..." she started to say, but something held her back. "Nicola, are you okay?"

Nicola nodded, trying not to cry.

"I'm alright, what about all of you?"

"We're alright, some girls remember more than others, but we all remember," she said sadly. "Did he have to do it?"

"Yes," she said softly, but started to cry because she knew it was true. She hugged the other girl and the two cried slightly, but were able to dry their tears. Suddenly, the other girl seemed to remember something,

"Arene! How is she?"

All the girls looked up at this and Nicola smiled and addressed them all as if they were still her daughters,

"Arene is alright, but she is resting. Van Helsing will bring her down in about an hour."

The girls smiled; glad to know that she was okay. One girl stood up,

"Nicola? Is it true? Is she really....?"

Nicola smiled again.

"Yes, she is the great-grand...." She thought about this and spoke again, "She is the daughter of Van Helsing."

There was a murmur of amazement through the crowd before Nicola joined them and they continued to eat. Most girls were talking about their homes and how they would fly out this afternoon. Others were taking cruise liners and some would just get a bus. One girl just couldn't help but ask,

"How could they both still be alive till 2004?"

No one had that answer.

After breakfast, most of the girls met outside the steps of Dracula's palace, saying their good-byes and giving out their LJ and E-Mail addresses. Suddenly, one girl spoke up, a smile on her face.

"Look!"