TBC means to be continued. It's how I let people know that the story isn't finished yet. I mean, you can probably guess that, but I do love cliffhangers.

Disclaimer: I own nothing except what I made up. Fair enough.

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"My, isn't she a pretty baby?" Gabriel asked, looking into the face of the baby in his arms. She was a couple of months old, with thick black hair and hazel eyes. He looked up at Lucia, who was standing in front of him in the doorway. "Then, I would hardly expect anything less, going on your beauty."

Lucia laughed lightly, cocking her head with a small smile. Gabriel handed the baby back to his wife.

"Now, Giselle, you must bid your father goodbye for now," Lucia said to the baby. "He is going away for a while."

He caught his wife's soft lips in a loving kiss. "I love you, my darling. I shall not be long, a few months at most. If you need anything, I'm sure Vladislaus Valerious will help you."

She blushed, sapphire eyes lingering for a moment on the baby's black hair. "I have no doubt in my mind that he will help me."

"Are you alright?" Gabriel asked, noticing the blush. His eyebrows quirked up as his wife captured him in another kiss, this one more lingering.

"I am merely emotional. I hate it when you leave." She watched him bend down and pick up his case easily. Vlad appeared at the garden gate. He was leaning casually on it, blue eyes glinting at her.

"Goodbye," Gabriel said, stooping to peck the baby's cheek. He spun and walked down the garden path. He and Vlad exchanged a few quiet words. Gabriel wrung his hand, and they embraced. Gabriel walked off, and Vlad turned to Lucia, lips twisted into a suggestive smirk.

Lucia awoke suddenly from the warmth of her dream. She was lying in bed with Gabriel. He had an arm draped over her waist and was lying on his stomach, brown hair hiding his face. Lucia was curled comfortably next to him. He had insisted she sleep in his bed, so that he could protect her. Nothing had happened. They hadn't even kissed.

She remembered the kisses from her dream. So soft... so loving. She wondered if she had been seeing a past incarnation of Gabriel, Vlad and herself. If so, it meant that not only had she and Gabriel been together in their past lives, but Dracula had also been there in more than one.

She looked at Gabriel. He was snoring softly. She slid out of bed, aware of how cold it was. She was wearing one of Gabriel's shirts; a white one which fell to her knees. Her hair was loose, and she scraped it back from her face as she walked out of the bedroom.

She had intended to go to the kitchen and get some breakfast, but a piece of paper beside the front door caught her eye. It had clearly been pushed underneath. Her legs carried her over to it, and she picked it up, holding it up to see it was a beautiful invitation.

You are formally invited to the Vaseria town hall masquerade ball tonight.

Please be there for a six o'clock start.

She turned the paper over, and narrowed her eyes as she saw what she had been looking for. A handwritten note was on the back. The handwriting was narrow, tall and in red ink.

To my darling Lucia and my friend Gabriel,

I would like to make it clear that you will be at the ball tonight if you ever want to see Friar Carl again. I intend to swap him for Lucia, and this will be done without question and without fuss. If you try anything, he will be killed.

It promises to be quite a night.

Count Vladislaus Dragulia

Lucia felt a thrill of excitement. She would get to see Dracula again tonight. She went back to the bedroom, sitting down on the bed beside Gabriel and pressing a kiss to his cheek. He awoke with a start, and rolled over sharply, eyes softening as he saw it was Lucia.

"Good morning," he smiled. His smile faded as he saw her serious expression. "Luce? What's wrong? I know I'm a scary sight in the morning, but still..."

She laughed weakly, and handed him the invitation. He read both sides of it, his expression dark and stoney. He tossed it to the floor and sighed. "I can't hand you back over to him."

"He'll kill Carl if you don't. It's the only way to save Carl, Gabriel." She wrapped her fingers around Gabriel's warm wrist. "He will hurt Carl. But he will not hurt me."

Gabriel shook his head grimly. He did not believe that Dracula would not hurt Lucia, but he obviously didn't want to argue about it anymore. "Lucia, if I let you go tonight... I fear I will never see you again."

Lucia looked away as she thought about this. Would she even mind never seeing Gabriel again? She loved him, yes, but she loved Vladislaus too. When she was around Vladislaus, her heart raced, her head spun. Their love was dangerous, passionate, risky. The love she shared with Gabriel was warm, right, comfortable. Of course she would mind never seeing him again, but she longed to be with Vladislaus.

"Of course you will," she said. "Soulmates are meant to be together. Fate will guide us." She pressed her fingers to Gabriel's cheek. It was worn and weathered. She did not know why she felt it was so important to reassure him. All she knew was that she had to go with Dracula tonight, for her sake, and for Carl's sake.

He covered her fingers with his own, bringing her fingertips down to his mouth to kiss them softly. "Lucia, my lovely Lucia, Dracula will have something up his sleeve we haven't even thought of. I don't want to lose you."

She forced a small smile. "Together, we're the best Hunters in the entire Order."

He sighed, sitting up and looking at her sadly. "That's together, Lucia. If I hand you over to Dracula, we will be apart.... You could die."

She laughed grimly. "You will not scare me with shocking facts like that, Mr Van Helsing. I am not afraid of death. It happens to the best of us, right?"

He sighed again, shaking his head. "You're too young to die, Lucia. You're much too young."

"Nobody is too young to die," she said softly, standing up and walking to the window. It was a dark, grey morning, and snow drifted gently down to earth. In the distance she could see Dracula's castle, high on the hill behind Vaseria. She thought of Vladislaus. If he had died at the age he appeared now, he must have died very young.

"Come back to bed," Gabriel said, lying back down and closing his eyes. "It's much too early to be up."

Lucia turned back to him with a slightly twisted smirk. "Ah, no you don't, Gabriel Van Helsing. We have got shopping to do. Up with you!"

"Shopping?" yelped Gabriel, sitting up sharply. "Excuse me, I do not do shopping. Why would you want to go shopping?"

"We have a ball to attend, sleepyhead. And you can't tell me that the Church's survival kit includes formal clothes as well as an automatic crossbow and a double ended stake?"

"You're right there..." he mumbled. "I suppose we should get going." He slid out of bed, standing up. He was dressed simply in a black shirt. He smiled sleepily at her as he pulled his trousers on, then sat back down beside her, pulling on his boots. "What do you propose to wear?" he asked her.

"Can I borrow some trousers and boots?" she asked.

He reached under the bed, producing the requested items, and placing them down beside her. "I'll let you get dressed in peace," he whispered, standing up and stooping to press a kiss to her cheek. He walked out.

She sighed, standing up to pull the trousers on. They were much to big, and she reached under his bed, finding a belt with a small smile. She pulled it on, then slid her feet into the boots. Again, they were too large, but they would have to do. Deciding she couldn't be bothered to brush her hair, she walked out into the hall.

"Your clothes look far better on you," she commented dryly to Gabriel, who was leaning casually against the wall, pulling on his coat and hat. He grinned.

"To be fair, they'd look far better off both of us," he smirked.

She rolled her eyes. "Spare me the sleazy flirting, Van Helsing."

He took her hand and pressed a kiss to her fingers. Then he spun her around in a circle, still clutching her hand, so that she was against him, held under his arm. "As you wish, oh beautiful maiden. Do mine eyes decieve me? Are you an angel from-?"

"On second thought, spare me all of the flirting," Lucia sighed. "Shall we go?"

"Very well," he smiled, taking her hand gently. They walked in silence out of the house to the horse, and Lucia climbed up easily. Gabriel slid up behind her, holding onto her tightly as they rode off towards Vaseria. It was snowing lightly.

"You are a beautiful woman," he whispered into her ear as they rode.

"I thought I said no more flirting?" Lucia commented.

"I'm being serious," he murmured. He yawned sleepily.

They arrived in Vaseria. The first place they saw was a small stable. Gabriel leapt down from the horse, then offered Lucia his hand. "M'lady?" he asked. She laughed and took his hand, sliding down. Gabriel wrapped an arm around her shoulders and tugged the horse towards the stable door.

"Excuse me?" Gabriel shouted.

A man walked out. He was bald with a long black beard, dressed in worn clothes. He looked suspiciously at them. "Can I help?"

"Would it be possible for you to look after my horse until I come to collect him?" Gabriel asked.

"Aye, but it'll cost you. I don't do this for free, you know!" the man snapped irritably.

"Looks like you do," muttered Gabriel, making Lucia smile.

"What'd you say?" asked the man, cupping a hand to his ear.

"I said of course I was going to pay you. I'm sure you'll do a fine job." Gabriel handed the man some coins and he and Lucia wandered away, hand-in-hand.

The snowy streets were busy with bustling people. Lucia noticed a lot of young women flocking around in groups, giggling and chatting. They looked at Gabriel and grinned cheekily, but Lucia was pleased to notice that he kept his gaze firmly on her. It made her a little guilty that Dracula plagued her thoughts so much.

"Are you alright?" he asked her as they made their way across the square towards a small clothing shop.

Lucia stared at the low-cut red dress in the window and began to wonder what horror she would have to squeeze into for the ball. "I'm fine," she replied, as they entered the tiny shop. Surrounded by racks of clothing stood a single woman. She was very short and slim. She must have been quite young, but it was hard to tell as her thick jet black hair hid most of her face. Her eyes shone through. They were of the brightest green Lucia had ever seen.

She stared at Lucia, then gasped. She turned and shouted into the back. "Mamma! You won't believe it, but we've found her! She's here! The one!"

Lucia lowered her eyebrows in confusion as a small, dumpy woman with thin grey hair and the same eyes as her daughter came walking out of the back. She too stared at Lucia. "By the powers, Lydia, you're right. She is the one."

"The one for what?" Gabriel asked, equally as confused as Lucia.

"The one for the dress," Lydia said earnestly to him. "We have had in our possession for three decades the most beautiful dress. So beautiful that if any woman unfitting of it's beauty wore it, it looked terrible on her. But this woman... she was made for it."

"Come, come, dear," the older woman said, pulling Lucia by her wrist away from Gabriel. She spoke to him. "You'd best go and attend to your other business in town. This could take a while."

Gabriel nodded and left. Lucia found herself in a dark back room as Lydia opened a large chest.

"What is your name?" asked the old woman.

"Lucia. Lucia Craft. And you?"

"I am Frances Danewood. This is my daughter, Lydia Danewood."

Lydia pulled out the dress. Lucia gasped. She had seen beautiful ballgowns before, but none like this. The bodice was made of ivory silk, with thin straps. A line of pearls ran down the centre of it, and it was embroided with golden flowers. The bottom layer of the skirt fanned out in a waterfall of pale gold satin. A layer of ivory lace covered it. It was a daringly low-cut gown.

"I don't think I'm right for a dress like that," Lucia protested.

Frances Danewood would not, apparently, take no for an answer, and they began to change her.

TBC.