Disclaimer: Um, yeah. Since my last update I have won the lottery and bought out Van Helsing and everything to do with it. And also, I recently acquired the ability to fly. I would fly VH over to you just so you could see him, but my lawn gnomes just came to life, and I'm thinkin' I should deal with that. Sorry, maybe next time. Lol, and also, that was all sarcasm. :)
A/N: I am so sorry it took me a while to update! I have been busy writing chap 14, but now I'm on to 15, so that's good. However, as I'm sure most of you lovely readers know, finals are coming up and I'm swamped with review classes and crap and will be probably unable to post again till the beginning of July. I know, isn't that horrible? I thought the same thing, so I decided to post both 12 and 13 today, so you guys would have a bit more to keep you all occupied, lol. Anyway, I've got some PR's, and then you can read chap 12 and finally find out what happens! YAY! Cuz, that really was a very wicked cliffie at the end of 11, wasn't it? grins evilly But I know you all love and forgive me, so I'm over it. :)
HughJackmanFan: Wow, thanx for your review, but it was a little confusing…I'm not sure what you meant, but my friend and I share a profile here. The only stories that are written by me and not my friend vanity are The Perfect Dream, and this one. Hope that helps a bit…I'm sorry I was really confused, lol. Anywho, I'm glad you liked the chappie and my fic! (You do, right? Lol)
FastFuriousChick: YOU'RE DYING! NOOOOooooo…lol I know; I'm absolutely horrid aren't I? Teehee. Well, here's two chaps for you to make up for it so hopefully you won't die anymore. At least, until you finish reading them…Ur reviews are great btw. They make me laugh. :)
Silenced Angel: YAY! A new reviewer! FanTAStic! Lol Sorry it took me so long to update and I'm sorry you were waiting. Now you can find out what happens and I hope you like these next 2 chappies!
Lady Kathrin: Oh, of course. I mean come on, VH is in the future…how could I NOT have him drive a car? I couldn't resist, lol! Too bad I didn't go into detail about it…it would've been hilarious. :D Oh well. Thanx for your review, and Enjoy these next chaps!
Countess Alana: You are probably my fav reviewer too, but I try not to play favorites. I LOVE YOU ALL! Lol I loved your new chap; update soon plz! And I hope you like these chappies too. I know; Drac's got a lot of nerve throwing my protagonist and main character off a building. I had to have a stern talk with him, lol. :) Luv ya'!
Fortune Zyne: Help, help, I'm being attacked! Lol, if you attack me, how can I update? Jk, sorry for the wait, and I'm glad you liked the chap. (That was a positive response, right?) lol :)
And that's all I have to say. So now…here for your enjoyment…I give you…CHAPTER 12! Ta-Da! Enjoy!
Chapter 12
Talking. That's all I heard, and I wished they would just shut up and let me sleep. The darkness was so comfortable. I felt myself sink blissfully into it, but something stopped me. The darkness was just below me, but I couldn't sink completely into my desired retreat. Then I remembered everything. Dracula, the building, the ring, Van Helsing, and falling.
"She's coming around!" I recognized that voice. Lydia's name came to mind. I heard the excited murmuring of Sylvia, Carl, and Van Helsing. Then a new voice.
"She's conscious? That's impossible! There's no way she should've survived that fall at all, much less regained consciousness!"
I forced my eyes to open. Everyone was gathered around me, and I could feel Anna's calming presence inside me. Probably the only reason I was still alive. I noticed that Fiona wasn't there, then was glad she wasn't because I was in no mood or condition to explain Van Helsing and Carl's presence to her. I surmised that the unfamiliar voice I heard was the doctor at the foot of the bed staring at me with a look of utmost disbelief. Van Helsing's face looked oddly puffy as though he had been crying, but I decided not to say anything. Right then he looked pretty elated anyway. Instead I settled for the most witty remark that I could muster while feeling like I had been hit by a train.
"I feel like I just fell 8 stories." I stated managing a weak smile.
"I told you she was strong." Van Helsing said proudly as the rest supplied smiles. Everyone chose to ignore the annoying stuttering of the disbelieving doctor.
"What happened?" I asked groggily.
"Well, I thought that was obvious." Carl answered. "You fell 8 stories!"
"I knew that!" I answered as exasperatedly as my demolished body would allow. "I meant what condition am I in? And how long have I been out? And what's been happening in the meantime? Did I miss anything important?" At this, Van Helsing put a hand over my mouth to stop my flow of questions.
"One at a time." he said, sounding both exasperated and patient. "Start with the first one. The rest we'll talk about later." Everyone turned to the doctor who had mercifully fallen silent for the answer to the first question.
"Well, you fell mostly on your side so you have 3 broken and 2 fractured ribs, a broken arm, and a bit of internal bleeding that we took care of the moment you came, at this man's demand," he jerked his head irritably towards Van Helsing, "though we were sure that you weren't going to make it."
"Well, I did. What're the chances I'll make it without major scarring and without being stuck in a wheelchair for the rest of my life?"
"The hip bone is damaged, but you won't be in a wheelchair forever. However, you won't be so lucky with the scarring." He held up his hand to stop the inevitable protests that he predicted when I opened my mouth. "Your scars won't be too visible. Most of them, anyway." He added.
"How long am I stuck in a wheelchair?" I asked grudgingly, not really wanting to hear the answer.
"Well, anyone else should be dead, so I don't know what kind of recovery to expect from you. However if I had to give you a time span, I'd say a few months at least. Your arm may be in a sling for much longer than that. We've repaired the elbow as best we could, but it'll take time. All your injuries will."
"Well, that's better than I expected, I guess." I muttered under my breath. "I'm tired." I announced suddenly, mainly hoping that everyone would clear out and give me a moment of peace.
Apparently someone 'upstairs' was listening because everyone immediately took the hint and complied. The doctor strode out muttering about some paper work he had to do now that I had miraculously recovered. Van Helsing and the rest slowly filed out, saying they'd wait outside in the waiting room for a while. Finally alone, I settled myself comfortably against the stark white hospital sheets below me and took a deep breath, one that I immediately regretted as a sharp pain shot through my chest due to the injured ribs. I winced.
"Yes, my dear, you may wish to take smaller, shallower breaths." The ever familiar voice of the Count caused a shiver to pass through my aching spine. But right now all my pain was forgotten in my moment of panic as I looked around for the source of the voice. "No hard feelings I hope, Andrea?"
"No hard feelings? You throw me off an 8 story building and you hope that I have NO HARD FEELINGS!"
"You just can't seem to stay dead, can you?" Dracula mused to himself, ignoring my outburst.
"Neither can you." I retorted sullenly. Dracula chuckled at this and materialized from a darkened corner.
"Good point, Andrea." He took a few steps closer to me, menacing yet seductive. "I love the things you say." I watched him warily and distrustfully, half expecting him to jump at me and finish the job he started. Dracula chuckled again.
"Don't be silly, my dear. I'm not going to kill you here, now. That wouldn't be very fair, would it?"
"Since when do you play fair? And get out of my head!" I shouted.
"Shh, we wouldn't want to cause you any unnecessary stress."
I sighed in defeat. I was too tired to keep up our usual banter. "Vladislaus, you are hardly what I'd call 'unnecessary stress'. And I think you've caused quite enough stress already. It's your fault I'm lying here half dead." Dracula smiled when I used his name, and moved so that he was standing directly next to my bed, on the right side, farther from the door. He picked up a lock of my hair lying on the pillow and began idly twisting it round his fingers. I shivered.
"No," he whispered, "it's Anna's fault you're only half dead. If it were my fault, you'd be all dead." I couldn't help loathing this monster standing over me, openly admitting his attempt to kill me, even as I yearned for his touch. "Reincarnation's a funny thing." he continued, "The bit of Anna inside you saved your life, and is proving quite a nuisance to me." I closed my eyes, too tired and achy to think much.
Just then, Van Helsing and Carl enter my room, shepherded in by Lydia and Sylvia. "Quick," Sylvia was saying, "Fiona's coming down the hallway. We can't let her see you. You stay in here, and we'll stop Fiona from coming–" Sylvia stopped talking and all four of them froze when they saw Dracula standing next to my bed. Dracula was frozen as well, and before anyone could do anything, Fiona came down the hall and burst into the room.
"Oh my God, Andrea! I came as soon as I heard! Are you alright? What happened?" She stopped when she caught sight of everyone in the room. "Sylvia, Lydia, who are they?" she asked, pointing to Carl and Van Helsing. "And, wait, Vlad? What are you doing here? What is going on?" As soon as she had finished, Dracula let go of my hair and whirled back to the corner, disappearing in a whiff of smoke. I watched it all dully, thinking what I nightmare it was going to be now that Fiona had gotten involved. And I still didn't know if Sylvia, Lydia, and Carl had found anything in the lab, or even how long I'd been unconscious. All the explanations Fiona would need, about Van Helsing and Carl, about me, and about Dracula most of all. I sighed. Just thinking about it gave me a headache. I decided to ignore all the talking coming from my friends and tried my hardest to dramatically faint or something. You keep saying I'm perfect Vladislaus, I thought tiredly, looking into the corner where he had appeared and disappeared. Perfect for what?
My last thought was Dracula's voice in my head whispering, "For me..." And I saw his ensnaring hypnotic eyes flash in the corner, before sleep overtook me again.
Muahahahaha! Lol, bit of a cliffie again, but not so bad this time, huh? I love writing the scenes between Drac and Andrea…(Can you tell, lol?) I never get tired of 'em. Hope you think this chappie was worth the wait, but I doubt it. I mean, not too much happened. Well…I guess it's a matter of opinion. So review and tell me what you thought! Or wait till after you've read chap 13 and then review. Nope, changed my mind. Review now. Muahahaha, more reviews for me! Lol, I guess I'm in an evil laugh mood today, haha. Oh, btw, who got PotO on DVD? I got PotO on DVD! I did, I did, I di-id. Lol, and I LOVE it! Gerard Butler is the hottest thing! Aside from Drac I mean…lol.
I wuv you all!
Gem