Moonlit Shadows

Disclaimer: See first chapter

Rating: PG-13, for later chapters and as a precaution

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Thanks for all the reviews, they really mean a lot to me!!!! I love all of u guys to death!!!

Chagrin: Thank u for the comment on Carl, I was hoping I did a good job putting him in character. Thanks!

Quicksilver2402004: I hope u enjoy this chapter then, ur favorite person's finally in it, lol yay! (Dracula's my favorite too)

VanHelsingWannaBe: lol! I hope it wasn't too much suspense, lol

Anonymous review: Thanks for the tip! I think this one moves a little faster ::crosses fingers::

Princess Dracula: I thought the paragraphs were a bit too long as well and too close to one another. Hope this one's easier on the eyes! Thanks again for the suggestion!

Elven Princess: Thank u!!! I'm glad u enjoyed it!

C.S: Thank u for all the tips and thank u for the comment about me keeping u interested till the last sentence, it means a lot. Thanks again!

INMH: lol! I hope u enjoy this chapter as much as u seemed to have enjoyed the last one, lol ::smiles::

Silence-before-betrayal: Thanks for being my first reviewer ever, lol! And thanks for the encouragement, I will most definitely keep writing this story and try to keep it up ::smiles::

Thanks again to all my reviewers!!! When I got back from the family vacation I was on, I wrote this whole thing right away. Thank u guys so much for all the suggestions and encouragement, they really keep me going. O and before I forget this, I would like to thank my friend, Lexi, for helping me get through the small details of the story thus far and correcting the first chapter, and thank u Greg for helping me correct the second chapter since Lexi is in Japan currently. I love ya guys!!! And now, without further adieu, (or however u spell it, lol) the second chapter! Hope u enjoy this chapter!!! R and R!!!!!

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Chapter 2

Lights' Shadows

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The sparkling white moonlight illuminated the various alleyways and streets of the small village below Count Dracula's castle, as well as a young maid on her way home from the village's small well.

She quietly hummed a carefree tune to herself while gently swinging the water-filled bucket to the rhythm until she saw something out of the corner of her eye. She turned towards the place where she thought she saw a dark figure, but nothing was there.

"I must be going crazy..." she muttered to herself while looking around. "There is absolutely nothing to worry about," she quickly said afterwards, picking up the pace. "It's not like there are any monsters here anymore..."

"Oh really?" said a voice from behind her.

"Who's there?" she said aloud, her heart racing. She looked wildly around again, but her search was fruitless yet again.

"Sh...sh...show yours...se...self, whoever y...you are!" Her heartbeat had gotten so much faster that she could practically hear it by now.

"Ah, but would you really want me to do that?" The thickly accented voice called out, this time it sounded like it was right beside her.

She let out a high-pitched scream and ran, dropping and leaving the bucket and all of its contents behind her. She kept on running as fast as she could toward her house but the way was soon blocked by a tall menacing figure, all in black.

"Well, well, well," the man said punctuating each word and shaking his head in mock disapproval, "what is such a beauty as yourself doing wandering the streets, all alone, at night."

She looked up and noticed a hint of a smile on his pale face, his eyes hidden by a shadow, though she could almost imagine them, ironically, gleaming with malice.

"I w...went..." she trailed off for he had quickly seemed to disappear and then reappear behind her, snaking his arms around her waist in the process. She tried to struggle and get away but the more she fought, the stronger his grip on her became.

"Do go on..." he whispered into her ear, sending chills down her spine. She struggled some more to try to escape but found it useless.

"Please let me go..." she begged, tears forming in her eyes and then rolling down her cheeks like liquid silver. "Please, I beg you..."

He loosened his grip then, lulling her into a false sense of security to which he then turned her brusquely about, making her face him. She looked up and seemed to be caught in his gaze.

As much as she tried, she couldn't help but keep staring into those cold, blue eyes. She suddenly felt tired, the prospect of a good night's sleep tempting her until she suddenly gave in and relaxed.

The man held the girl more tightly in his arms now, almost protectively, and slowly stroked her hair, eventually exposing her neck. He then held her head in one hand and the rest of her body he had draped on the other, while he brought her neck up to his lips and gave her a caressing kiss before piercing her flesh with his fangs.

He slowly drunk the hot liquid that was her blood, running through her veins, until her pulse began to dim and then stop altogether. Her body then lay limp in his arms.

He dropped the girl's body carelessly on the road beside him and licked the remains of the crimson blood from his lips. "Here I come Gabriel..."

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A/N: Sorry that the chapter's so short and that it took so long to post! I was sorta on a 2 week family vacation in a town that had practically no technology whatsoever, so I was like completely isolated from the world for a few weeks! It was pretty relaxing though, I met lots of interesting people. Anyways, at least I got Dracula in this chapter, yay! finally! The real fun will begin next chapter, though. Hehe. The 'young girl' (I will not reveal the name now...muahaha, lol) will make an appearance finally since she will be a major character, and yeah, things will most definitely get interesting...Don't worry, I've already started writing it so hopefully it'll be up sooner than this one was up, unless I have another family vacation I don't know about, which is doubtful, but you never know, my family can be spontaneous at times...O well, I hoped u enjoyed this chapter!!!

-Adelynne-