Nicola could feel his warm breath on her neck. The love was unbearable. She shook her head, trying to break the spell as Arene pulled her back and once again stood in front of her.

"Keep your filthy hands off her, you monster!" she spat.

Dracula smiled. "So strong... like your father."

Arene suddenly dropped her guard and her eyes narrowed. "My father...?"

He laughed softly. "I will return for the both of you soon. It has been a long time since I have had guests and I would love for you both to join me for dinner. I have been so lonely since my brides died... oh, I forgot, they were murdered. But is of no matter, I was getting board of them anyway."

He gave a regal bow and left them there in the darkness. Arene went over to Nicola.

"Did he hurt you?"

"No," Nicola shook her head, "he didn't."

Arene nodded and looked up at her friend. She didn't know what to say. Her mind kept going back to what Dracula had said; did he really know her father once? No, he couldn't have. Her family was dead and anyway, they would not have had any contact with Dracula. She pulled a small crucifix out of her pocket. Good, now she had a weapon. She could use this once Dracula came back.

"Did he mean for dinner or as dinner?" she thought to herself.

Nicola's thoughts were occupied in a different way. Did he really mean what he said... did he really care for her...?

The room they were led to was elegantly furnished. Long golden and black drapes hung from floor to ceiling, covering the large windows. A large table stood in the centre of the room. Food covered every inch of the surface and the smell was unbelievable. The hunger of both girls doubled as the aroma reached them. Most of the chairs were pushed against the sides of the room but three remained. One was at the head of the table and the other two stood either side of it. In the chair at the head of the lavish feast sat their host. His elbows rested on the arms of his beautifully carved, wooden seat and his hands were together under his chin. The two index fingers were extended and resting gently against his pale lips. He was watching them with an expectant look. After a moment he rose and gestured them to the seats.

With a glance at each other Nicola and Arene stepped forward and sat down. This room was very different from the parts of the castle they were familiar with.

"Please help yourselves, my dears," the Count said with a smile. His gaze lingered on Arene as he finished and Nicola felt a sudden stab of jealousy. He seemed to sense it and turned to her, a slight smirk playing on his lips.

"I am not hungry," Arene said firmly, though she was actually starving.

"You may as well eat it," Dracula responded in a bored tone. "It's not like I'd poison you. That would just be boring."

Nicola caught Arene's eye and shrugged before reaching forward for a piece of bread. She was famished and wanted to devour it as quickly as possible but tried to keep an element of decorum and broke off small sections at a time. Arene still remained seated in a rigid position, watching her new friend with a worried expression.

Dracula was smiling widely now and Nicola paused in her eating to regard him.

"Might I ask, Count, what this attire is about?" she ventured; gesturing to the clothes she wore.

"I thought you might like them," he replied pleasantly," and you look like a princess now."

"But what of Arene?" asked Nicola, her heart racing.

"Arene is a different case," the vampire returned with a fierce glance in the younger girl's direction. He turned back to Nicola. "Something to drink?" he offered, reaching for an unlabelled bottle near him on the table. Without waiting for an answer he picked up the golden goblet before her and poured what looked like red wine into it before passing it back to her.

"Nicola, I don't think you should drink that," said Arene quickly, watching Dracula's triumphant expression as her friend picked up the goblet.

"Come Arene," Nicola replied, "if he wanted to kill us we'd surely be dead already and, as he said before, poisoning really isn't his style." With this she raised the cup to her lips and drank as Dracula's laughter echoed round the room.