First and most importantly thank you to all my reviewers who make updating worth so much more. Have a Dracula shaped biscuit! (They're covered in chocolate… :P)

Almost-Lost-Hope6: Thank you!

AlexandreaxHarker: Lol, you and your mum eh? Which one of you is most like Dracula :P

et-spiritus-sancti: Ah yes, emotions are indeed rolling and they go backwards and forwards faster than… um… something going backwards and forwards… really fast… Similes are not my strong point. Hope you like this chapter!

Katca Mcadar: Ah yes, Dracula can indeed be annoyingly self-confident but, hell we all love him anyway! Thank you, I was quite proud of the butterfly imagery: "My soul is painted like the wings of butterflies…" Queen, The Show Must Go On. I imagine Annora's soul to be like that, delicate, intricate and all the bright and beautiful colours there are.

KaindeAmedha419: "How does a vampire spawn a child when his reproductive organs no longer work?" Well my friend, my theory is this: since Dracula had vampire children with his brides in the film then his reproductive system still works. The reason the baby actually began to grow within a human was because God gave it life, it really is a gift from God (though Dracula is too consumed by anger and hatred to see it.) Whether anything happened to the baby or when Dracula sired Annora is told in this chapter. By the by, ZIM ROCKS! My fav episodes are Tak the Hideous New Girl, Parent Teacher Night and Backseat Drivers from Behind the Stars…

Eccentric Banshee: Oh yes, angry Dracula is best, I like angry Dracula… :P And he does deserve it, though Annora really should stop being so annoying because he gets dangerous when he's angry, as we will see in this chapter…

Haunting Whispers: Glad you like it! Hopefully this chapter will drive you crazy with anticipation for the next one!

Fortune Zyne: Lol, well, you're kinda right...sort of.Butlook here, if you want to write the story with the ending you think it should have then go ahead (just credit me at the beginning!) BUT STOP TELLING ME HOW THIS STORY IS GOING TO END! Grr! stomps off to write real ending.

DarkBird1345: Glad you like, here is the update!

Note: I have changed most of the chapter titles so don't worry, you're not going mad!

Ok, this is where my really dark side is revealed. Darth Vader is so proud of me…

…Sorry, that was appallingly dreadful and I shall go bury my head in shame. Hopefully my story writing is better than my sense of humour… I'm not too happy with the way this chapter turned out but so much happens that it was quite difficult to write. We are nearing the end my friends, we are so close to the end of all things…

CHAPTER 12- MOTHER LOVE

Annora looked down at the tiny creature that lay in her arms. It was human and it was alive. She sighed, her heart bursting with renewed love every time she looked at those minute features. It was a girl. Annora still couldn't believe she had survived. Usually premature baby had little chance of surviving yet it had bawled lustily when born and the brides had, with some surprise, passed the child to its mother who smiled a tired but tender smile and now held the child as though it were made of glass. She was afraid, so afraid that she was dreaming. Scared that this wonderful dream might shatter, leaving her alone in a world of splintered illusions and broken, twisted darkness. This one fragment of light pierced the gloom and suddenly she no longer cared that her own soul was damned, as long as she could keep her daughter safe.

"Grace," she whispered, looking down at the tiny child that had curled a tiny finger around her own and fallen asleep. "Hopefully your name will protect you better than mine did me."

She knew the Count would not like the name but her love for her daughter and desire for her to blessed with divine protection outweighed her fear of the Count's wrath. Dracula… She had almost forgotten him. The Count had not stopped thinking about her nor his child. Dracula had heard the cries and had scarcely been able to contain himself. As the first cry sliced through the thick air he had let out a great cry of laughter and sunk to his knees, overcome by emotion. The baby was not dead, it was alive and it was healthy. He heard noises from the inside the room. He guessed the sheets were being changed and it sounded like Annora was bathing. After what seemed like eternity quiet murmurs were heard within and Aleera appeared at the door.

"She wishes to see you."

The Count swept into the room and stood by his newest bride. She looked up at him, eyes sparkling with happiness.

"She lives!" She whispered. Dracula smiled down at her, a genuine, joyful smile and she smiled back and it seemed that in a moment all their troubles had vanished and the past month was forgotten. Dracula held out his arms and Annora placed his sleeping daughter in them. He looked down at her, his daughter, his pride and joy. She was so small, unbelievably tiny. There was no chance that the baby could have survived being delivered so before her time. It was impossible, unless…

"It's a miracle," Annora said, her eyes shining up at him, "God has not forsaken us, I told you he wouldn't! Oh, thank God she is alive!" and she laughed. It was a beautiful sound, a melody of pure happiness and joy. Dracula smiled, savouring the sound, it had been many months since he had last heard that laugh and even before all this darkness she had rarely laughed like this.

"What is her name?" he asked.

"Grace."

Dracula looked at Annora green eyes glinting with an odd light as he wondered… he wasn't angry at her choice of name. A name couldn't save anybody. Annora was proof; 'Osmond'… Divine protection from God… he smiled ruefully and yet a shadow of doubt flickered in his eyes. A miracle, was it possible? Could this really be the true sign from God, the ultimate sign to show that he had another chance?

"A gift from God?" he murmured. Annora looked up at him in surprise and wonder. He frowned a little and looked at her with concern.

"You need more blood, the birth has taken all your strength."

Annora closed her eyes and lay back peacefully.

"I do not need to, not anymore."

"How are you going to feed the baby then?"

Annora smiled at him and he knew she had been planning this ever since she had found out she was with child.

"I will give Grace to a village woman who has lost her own child, there is always one such unfortunate woman in every village. She will have milk to spare and I shall leave a note, asking her to care for her as though she were her own. It is a shame Grace is not a boy, the church will not accept a girl. Anyway, how could I feed her? I have no milk."

Dracula felt a little uncomfortable since women did not, as a rule, discuss these issues with men. He glanced at her briefly and said, "I think you have."

Annora glanced down at her breasts which had swollen considerably in the past month. She cast a doubtful eye at the baby.

"Very well, I will try. I would like live to see her grow a little at least." She smiled. Dracula passed Grace to Verona who placed the child in a cradle that Marishka had found somewhere in the castle. The brides then left the pair alone and Grace did not awake so for the first time in many months they could talk without anger and without distractions.

The Count sat down next to his bride on the bed and she smiled at him. His eyes were serious and looking at her he say that though she continued to smile her grey eyes were troubled, wondering what he wanted.

"I do not ask you to forgive me. I do not want your forgiveness because I do not regret what I did. However, there is one thing I want, just one thing that you can give me and if you can give me what I crave more than anything in the world then I will be happy for eternity."

She looked at him, her eyes dark with foreboding.

"What do you want from me?"

"Annora, I want, I need your love. Prove to me that this is a gift from God. You have given me a daughter and you tell me that she is a gift from God, literally a sign of God's grace. But that is not enough, if you can still love after all I have done then I am complete."

She stared at him.

"How can you doubt me?" she asked. "You know me well enough to know that I can't help loving you. I hate what you have done to me but I don't hate you. And whether you want me to or not, I forgive you because that is what I do. I forgive and forget. After all, it is not my place to judge. It is God's. I have accepted my fate. But tell me, why do you want my love when you do not feel the same?"

"I can learn to love. Annora," He took her leaned in so that his mouth hovered just over hers, "Teach me…" he kissed her and she didn't resist. It was tender, it was passionate and so unlike any other kiss they had previously shared. She could sense his need, his desperate longing to feel something. She sighed inwardly, she couldn't teach him how to feel but she could show him how wonderful it was to be loved even is he couldn't return it.

Dracula remembered happiness. He had lied a little to get it but the blissful sensation of her loving kiss was worth it. It was true, he didn't need her for sex and he didn't really need her love either. He hadn't lied when he said he wanted her love because he genuinely did, just not for the reasons he had believed at first. He didn't want her love for sentimental reasons. No, he wanted it because it would prove that God had not truly deserted him. Two signs, the two things almost every man craved; a child and a woman who loved him purely and freely. And if God had truly granted him these then there was hope that he would be forgiven and then he could live in happiness, no longer tormented daily by his hideous sacrifice. He had wondered if it was wrong to use Annora like this but if she was happy then surely God would not mind…

Annora took Grace back in her arms and gently kissed the fragile baby. Dracula smiled down at the pair of them and then turned and left in search for something for his bride to eat. Annora glanced down at her bosom and was uncertain of what to do. She had never known a mother and neither Aleera nor Marishka had ever borne a child. Verona, however, had been a mother before, many centuries ago when she had lived with her first husband. She re-entered the room when Dracula left and helped Annora position Grace and tutored her in the art of breastfeeding. Annora's face fell when Grace refused to wake up and take the breast offered to her.

"Maybe she will take it after you have fed," said Marishka who had been watching. Annora nodded and waited for the Count to return. She had numbed herself to this experience, only allowing the guilt and horror to sink in afterwards. When Dracula returned she took the human and instinctively fed, blocking her mind from connecting her actions with her conscience. When she was done he took the body away and also the cooled body of the victim before, which had lain on the floor throughout her labour. Annora sat up but Grace was still asleep so she followed Aleera's advice and fell asleep as well.

When she awoke she remembered several things all at once. She had a beautiful living daughter, the Count wanted her to teach him how to love and she had eternity to do it. God always forgives… surely he would want her to make the most of this extended life? If she lived it as a good person and showed the Count a better way of living then surely God would forgive her. She sat up slowly and when she stirred Grace began to cry. Annora cuddled her close, murmuring soothing words. A precious creature and so vulnerable. So small and defenceless, she was dependant on her mother and that made Annora feel overwhelmed by love and responsibility. Verona helped her out of bed and Marishka helped set her down in a chair. Once comfortable, Annora began the difficult task of trying to persuade Grace to breastfeed.

Dracula had come to visit Annora again, impatient to see his daughter after a seven hour wait. He was nearing Annora's chamber, his footsteps echoing strangely as they touched the stone steps. All was still, the castle was so quiet… unnaturally so. He quickened his pace; half afraid that something terrible had happened to either Grace or Annora. Aleera, Verona and Marishka greeted him half way up the stairs.

"Your daughter has finally started feeding," said Aleera with a slightly jealous smile.

"All seems to be going well," began Marishka barely able to conceal the bitterness in her voice. Suddenly the heavy air was torn by a series of sudden piercing screams and cries, a combination of pain and fear and then a sudden deathly silence. Dracula ran up the rest of the steps and burst into the room. He stared unable to comprehend the sight before his eyes. Annora stood staring, white faced, shocked, disgusted, terrified and revolted by the thing her eyes were riveted on. Blood flooding thickly from her breast and falling to the floor where it pooled, steaming and hot. Dracula's eyes travelled along the floor, dreading what he knew he would see. He almost gasped at the sight of Grace, her tiny frame twisted and broken, her head cracked and bleeding, no more cries coming from that soft, bloodstained mouth.

"I killed her," Annora choked. "I killed her!" Her voice became tight with hysteria and she started screaming. Dracula looked at the situation before him and he understood. He looked at Annora and he looked at his daughter. His 'gifts from God' and in a split second he was filled with such rage that his brides trembled and fled. Grace had not been born alive, he had known it all along, she had been born undead. How else could she have survived such a premature birth? He almost wanted to laugh at himself for cherishing such a false hope. He understood what had happened and his eyes grew darker and suddenly such hate filled his mind that he was oblivious to all else. Clearly Annora had tried to breastfeed Grace and the baby, sensing fresh blood, had fed on the only milk that would keep her alive. Judging from the chunk of flesh missing from Annora's breast and the excessive amount of blood oozing down her clothes the screams he had heard had been her crying out when Grace had bitten her and plucked the child from her breast, tearing the flesh as she did so.

Annora stared wide eyed at the bloody body of her daughter, still screaming. She hadn't meant to hurt her, she hadn't meant to drop her, she hadn't meant to kill her, her own baby, her beloved, her gift from God. Dracula knew all this but it did not calm his rage. He was a father, finally, a father and this woman had killed his child. He began to roar in anger and before Annora had time to realise the extent of the danger she was in he morphed into his hell beast form and attacked the murderer of his child with all his force and might. Annora's screams echoed throughout the castle and the brides winced and shivered and trembled but deep down inside a smug sense of satisfaction lurked, pleased that their lord would once again turn to them and focus on finding a way to bring their own children to life.

When Dracula finally left Annora, he swept away in his monstrous form to his ice chamber to escape from the horrors before him. A sudden hush descended on the castle and as the minutes passed slowly at last Aleera crept up the steps to see what had happened. Annora lay bleeding, torn and mutilated but still alive, uttering moans through ripped lips and crying weakly through tattered lungs. Aleera stood looking down triumphantly at her rival, shuddering a little at the hideous sight before her. Slowly Annora's wounds had begun to heal but it was a long process and the severe loss of blood made it unlikely that she would live. She had no desire to anyway, that was clear. Annora could not look at the body of her baby that lay where she had thrown it, its brains spilled out over the cold stone.

She had sinned, the worst sin she could possibly have ever committed. Guilty of manslaughter. No. Murder. When Annora had torn Grace from her breast she had realised what the child was and for a split second horror and fear had made her want to end the life of this horrid creature. An innocent baby that was already tainted, a child of the devil. Grace did not belong to God, she was evil and evil must be destroyed… thus she had acted and by the time the moment had passed it was too late, Grace lay dead upon the stone. If only she had not been premature then perhaps the blow would have been less damaging… if only Grace had fed, then she might have had strength and blood to heal herself… if only… if only…

Annora glanced up at Aleera and the red-headed bride's expression was no longer gloating but pale and shocked. Vampires were immortal, Dracula had sired Annora so that she would live forever with him and now he had fatally wounded her… nothing seemed to make sense anymore. Aleera knelt down beside Annora and took her bleeding hand, trying to ignore that the thumb had been torn off.

"Aleera," Annora whispered, wincing at the effort of speech. "Will you do something for me?"

"Yes," Aleera whispered, her cold heart moved to pity by the broken bride before her. She leaned in closely and Annora made her request.

Final chapter coming up… aren't you just desperate to know the end? Aren't you? Huh? Huh? No, really, are you? Please review and let me know!