Disclaimer: Van Helsing is not mine, I'm sorry to say. Cuz if he were, you know I'd share with you all! Maybe…lol.
A/N: Hey guys! Check it, I actually found a moment to update. I felt so bad leaving you all stranded, especially cuz I have up to chap 17 written. So, to ease my guilty conscience, here is chappie 14. But first, some PR's! Oh, and I forgot to say this when I posted chapter 12…the idea and most of the beginning of that chappie was vanity's idea. I meant to give credit where credit is due, but I forgot and so I must apologize to vanity. I'm sorry, Pix! That said, we can all move on with our lives.
Countess Alana: Hey there girl! Loved ur review, as usual. Yeah, everybody seemed to like that T-shirt line, lol. And yes, I do read PotO fics, and yes, they are awesome! Update ur fic soon and email me, k? Later:)
Remember: YAY, a new reviewer! OMG, ur reviews totally ROCKED! They made me feel so frickin' special, lol. I'm SO happy you like my fic so much! Wow, I had no idea it was that good…I just write for fun! Oh btw, I read ur first fic and LOVED it! I'm gonna start the prequel tonight, and then I'll read the sequel, k? Sorry I couldn't review ur first fic, but I really liked it, just so ya know. Hope you like this chappie just as much:)
FastFuriousChick: I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you mad! Don't hate me! I couldn't help it; I absolutely LOVE writing Andrea/Drac scenes. So I apologize, but I couldn't resist. I'm still not sure who she'll end up with though…I'm undecided. We'll just have to find out, won't we?
Fortune Zyne: Oh don't worry. They go farther later. But not real far. And now that I've ruined the story for you, lol… Hmm, you know, I was just thinking that Gerard would make a kickass Dracula so it doesn't surprise me. Now I want to see it, lol.
Russian Vampire: Yay, another new reviewer! I'm glad you like my story, and I hope you like this one too. :)
Anonymous: Okay, to whoever reviewed me but didn't leave a name…I don't remember who's story I reviewed but I'm happy that you got my review, whatever it said, and I'm glad you like my story. Here's the next update for you, so wait no longer whoever you are!
Lady Kathrin: Yeah, that was one of my favorite lines, lol. It was probably a little OOC of Drac, but I had to have him say it, you know? I agree with you, falling 8 stories would definitely hurt and I'm not gonna try it, but Andrea's my girl and I couldn't have her die or anything, so you know she'll be fine. Thanks for your review:)
Pix: Yeah, I'm real sorry 'bout not giving you credit. But, I apologized in school and I fixed it above so no worries. The wheely chair thing is priceless. Do you know how much I would've paid to see that! Lol, LYLAS Pix and see you later!
Alrighty, on to chapter 14. There's not a moment to lose! LOL, enjoy!
Chapter 14
I awoke again when I heard someone call my name. I opened my eyes to the pleasant sight of my friends surrounding me, leaning over the bed. Van Helsing called my name again. "Andrea? Are you awake?"
"Yes," Carl said, rather loudly and excitedly. "Wake up; we have so much to tell you!"
"Not so loud, Carl!" Sylvia reprimanded quietly, "She's tired and still recuperating." Carl looked properly ashamed for about five seconds, then continued to urge me to wake up faster. As I became more awake, I remembered what had happened before I had fallen asleep that last time, and what I had done. A wave of guilt washed over me, and I couldn't look at Van Helsing without feeling sick inside, so I focused my attention on Sylvia and Lydia. I took notice of Fiona, who didn't look as lost as before; that was a good sign at least. I stretched and moved so I was sitting straighter in bed, wincing when my ribs twinged. An anxious look crossed everyone's face but I mumbled that I was fine.
"So, what's up? How long have I been here? I have no clue what day it is. Did you guys find anything out at the lab that night? Does Fiona believe us? Wow," I said, looking around as they all pulled chairs up next to the bed around me, "I feel so popular. So fill me in already!" Lydia began speaking first, jumping in and cutting off any attempts Carl, Van Helsing, or Sylvia made to start.
"Okay, so while you were hanging with VH and being dropped off a building, Carl, Sylvia and I were hard at work. We did some snooping." She paused dramatically for effect and glanced around at the group. I decided to look surprised and intrigued, just for her. But as soon as Sylvia opened her mouth to continue, she started up again. "So first we ran the Holy Water test, right? We took some cells and added a few drops of the Water and watched. But nothing happened. They stayed the same. Completely the same. Their concentration equilibriums weren't even affected." She looked depressed, and so did I. Great, so none of the old rules apply. Oh, joy. " But after that we cleaned up and took a walk to Fiona's lab. And then–"
"Ahem." Carl said, pointedly interrupting. "Perhaps you could let one of us share in the storytelling, hm?" Now it was Lydia's turn to look properly ashamed.
"Carl's absolutely right. So anyway, Andrea," Sylvia continued, leaving Carl looking thoroughly miffed and affronted, "we went to Fiona's alb to see what Drac had been up to. We first had to find his work station, you know how big Fiona's department is, then go through his lab notes and such. Finding his area wasn't too hard; he didn't have that classic pile of work-that-I-should-be-doing-but-I'm-not papers on the corner of his desk. But what he did have there wasn't much. Upon closer inspection, it didn't even seem like real data and experiments. I think the whole thing was just a front to find you, Andrea. I can say with almost absolute certainty that Dracula wasn't really doing anything in the lab, which is comforting, on one level." At this point, Fiona, who had remained silent until now, burst into tears.
"Oh, Andrea, I'm so sorry! I feel horrible! He used me to get to you, I didn't even know who...what he was. And I actually liked him a little! I feel like it's all my fault you're here, all busted up in this hospital. Can you ever forgive me?" Everyone stared at her a little strangely because of her sudden outburst, but I smiled at her.
"Of course I forgive you. In fact, there's nothing to forgive; none of this is your fault, how could it be? You obviously couldn't know who he really was...I'd have been very surprised if you did. So it's okay; I don't blame you for anything." She tried to stop her sniffling and smiled back at me.
"Great, now that we're all chummy again, could we please focus?" Carl asked a bit tersely.
"On what?" Lydia asked.
"On Andrea and what our next move is." He turned to me. "You've been here about a day and a half by the way."
"Thank you." I responded. That gave me a better grip on what day it was in the outside world, though I felt like I'd been in this room forever. "Well, there's no need to focus on me anymore; my curiosity has been sated for now. But what are we going to do now? Seems to me that we've exhausted every possibility."
Everyone sat quietly in thought for a moment, no one sure what to do. Finally Carl spoke up. "I think Andrea's right; we've done pretty much all we can for now. But I wonder..."
"What?" I asked. We all looked at him, waiting for him to continue.
"Well, the old rules about destroying Dracula don't seem to apply here, but maybe they still do in the past."
"You might be right," Van Helsing responded, "But I see two big problems with that. One, how do we get back to the past, and more importantly, how do we get Dracula back there with us?"
"I'm not sure." Carl said, lapsing into thoughtful silence again.
"Well, how did you get here in the first place?" Fiona asked.
"As far as I know, they just appeared in my kitchen, like how I had just appeared in the past." I said.
"Um, we're not really sure either." Carl and Van Helsing exchanged glances. "I'm pretty sure God had a hand in it, but I don't know if we could move through time willingly."
"It'd be cool though!" Lydia cut in.
"Yes, but that's rather beside the point." Carl replied.
"Guys, I feel like there's something we're missing here." Everyone turned to me and I thought for a moment, trying to put my finger on what I felt like I was forgetting. Oh, yeah. "Why is the ring so important? Does anyone know? Is there a reason why Dracula dropped me off a building to get it? There had better be a reason."
Everyone looked at each other, really hoping someone else would have the answer. When it looked like no one was going to respond, I threw my good hand up in disgust.
"Great! Just great. This whole thing is really pissing me off. I hate how we really know nothing at all about anything. I'd say we should figure out what makes this ring so special before we do anything else. Agreed?" Everyone nodded their heads.
"Hey," Sylvia said, "Are your ribs still hurting?" I realized what she was getting at; I had just moved quite a bit without wincing at all. I stopped and took stock of myself. My arm was still definitely broken...there was no moving that, but my ribs weren't bothering me as much. I poked one tentatively.
"They don't hurt nearly as much as before. But I'm pretty sure they're still broken."
"That's still a pretty fast recovery. Maybe you'll be out of here sooner than you think. Or that stupid doctor thinks at least." Hmm, I thought to myself, that'd be nice. Thank you, Anna.
Van Helsing, Carl, Sylvia, Lydia, and Fiona all stood up and put the chairs back where they'd found them. "It's getting pretty late; we should go and let you get some rest." Sylvia suggested.
"Yeah, and get some rest ourselves." Lydia added, yawning. I nodded in agreement.
"Sure. I'll be here; don't worry. I'll see you all later then." I waved them all off with my good arm, and sighed contentedly when quiet returned to the room. Hoping against hope, and I mean really really hoping, I prayed Dracula would stay away from me for the time being. I just had too much to deal with right now, most of it being his fault. No, scratch that. Pretty much all of the adventurous and unusual mess my life had become I could blame on him. And I did. Without wanting to spare him any more thoughts, I closed my eyes, and tried my hardest to clear my mind and get some rest.
Okay all, that's the end for now. I should be able to post chap 15 within the next few weeks, in theory, and once the summer's here updating will be easier. God, what am I going to do once this fic is over? It's like, my life. Maybe I should start a new story…I don't want to think about that right now; it's too painful. I love my characters too much, lol. Anywho, hope you all liked this chappie, though not much happened I'm sorry to say, and now there only one thing left to do…REVIEW please and thank you! And ta-ta for now! Luvs to you all, my fantastic reviewers:)
Gem