Walking along the path in the garden in the daylight, Victoria did her best to recall her memories, yet she was struggling. It was all too much. Everything that had happened seemed incoherent and made no sense to her. She had no idea what had possessed her to take the hand of Velkan Valerious. She had no idea why she had let his fingers hold onto hers as the roar of the Count echoed through the room. He had only been stopped by the intrusion of the Valerious guard, each one of them brandishing a cross in his direction and giving enough time for Velkan to take Victoria and escape.

Victoria had been shocked when the Count had not chased after her. Men had died in the castle while there had been fewer who had escaped. It had done nothing but cause Victoria to grow with worry. The Count had not come for her, but she had no doubt that he would in time.

It was rare for the sun to shine in Transylvania, yet shine it did as she took a seat on the bench in the garden of the Valerious home that had once belonged to the Count. She folded one leg over the other, letting her cloak fall open to reveal the exquisite red gown she wore.

Closing her eyes, she could picture the day before. She could remember the feeling of the Count's hands on her body. She could remember how he had touched her intimately. If she closed her eyes then she could remember and it almost made her moan with need. She resisted the need to make a noise, choosing instead to stand up and begin her walk again.

It was only then when she bumped into the Prince Velkan. She had been wandering along the grass that was covered in melting snow, revealing the green underneath it that had been hidden for too long. There were no plants or anything colourful in the garden. In fact, Victoria doubted they would survive in a place like Transylvania.

"Victoria," Velkan greeted the woman who he knew as his wife.

She looked the same as she always did to him; stunningly beautiful. He couldn't help but want to smile at the sight of her, but the gleam in her eye had gone. No longer did she smile at him and rush towards him, throwing her arms around him and declaring her love. Instead she was hesitant, too worried about who he might be.

"Prince Velkan," she greeted him back and he shook his head.

"Just Velkan," he urged her. "We are married, after all."

"Yes, apparently so," Victoria nodded at him and he offered her his arm, acting in a courteous manner.

Hesitantly, she moved her hand upwards and let it lace into his arm before she walked by his side. She could feel him looking down at her, watching her with intrigue as she kept her eyes on the floor, biting down on her lip as she wondered how to ask him the questions she had.

"I remember hardly anything," Victoria whispered. "All I remember is the past…the past from when I was with him and he was human…but I died. I died and I came back into this body, but I don't remember what I did in this body. I don't remember a time before Vlad."

"I confess, I do not understand it," Velkan admitted to her in a soft voice and she almost felt the need to chuckle at hearing that. He wasn't the only one who was confused about everything that had happened. It took a moment before Victoria spoke once more.

"But I married you," she whispered and Velkan nodded.

"You did," he confirmed, the pain entering his chest once more at the thought of her not remembering who he was. He wanted that more than anything. He needed her to remember. "We met one evening. I bumped into you, literally, too. You fell onto the floor."

"Really?" she wondered as they stepped into the mansion, Velkan holding the door to the library open for her as she entered.

He closed the door once more, locking it for good measure as he held his arm out to the chaise longue by the fireplace, offering her a seat. She perched on the edge of it, her gown puffing around her body as he sat at the other end, his arms dangling over his legs before he turned to watch her.

"After that night we spent most of our time together. I…well…I grew fond of you, just as you grew fond of me," Velkan told her. "But things changed when Dracula discovered you. He…he declared that you were a woman from his past; the woman he died to protect. He sold his soul to the devil to bring you back and that is what he has been waiting for."

"But he murdered that man," Victoria declared. "The Vlad I knew would not do that."

"Because he is not the Vlad you know," Velkan promised his wife. "He has changed. He is a monster. My family are trapped, Victoria. We need to kill him to break the curse and leave purgatory once we die…he has ruined our lives…my father's…grandfather's…even mine. You were happy before you remembered, Victoria. We were happy together. You need to believe that."

Victoria moved to take hold of one of his hands inside of hers, squeezing on it tightly as he watched her complete the movement, wondering what was going through her mind as she perched closer towards him.

"I do believe you," she promised him in a small voice. "I believe everything you have said…but that does not mean that I remember."

"If only you did," Velkan said, his voice low and soft as he moved one of his hands to her cheek, stroking it softly while he searched her gaze, looking for any trace of his Victoria in there. "But I will do all I can to help you remember. I will never stop, Victoria."

"And if I cannot? Velkan…I have no doubt that you are a kind man," she promised him. "I know that and I can see it. You must love me if you came back for me, but I…I might not want to be with Vlad, but that does not mean that I am the woman you married."

Velkan nodded. "I see," he said. "And I understand."

"Do you?" Victoria asked of him. "Because I know that this must be difficult for you."

"Difficult," he chuckled on the word, shaking his head as he closed his eyes for a moment. "This is torture, Victoria, but you are welcome to stay here for as long as you need to. I will do all that I can to keep you safe."

"I should move on-"

"-Nonsense," Velkan interrupted her. "You are my wife and I insist. You might not remember me, but that does not mean I cannot protect you."

She smiled over to him, trying not to look too bemused as she pressed her lips against his cheek and heard him inhale sharply, clearly struggling with whatever was happening between them. Velkan wished he could do something to help her.

…

He had been in a fit of rage ever since she had left. The Valerious guard had been wiped out once he had finished reacting to each of their crosses they had brandished at him. He had watched Victoria ride away with Velkan once more, but he had not pursued her. Pursuing her would be a waste of his time. She would only come back and detest him and he could not bear that.

Despite the fact he could not bear the thought of her being with the Valerious boy, he preferred that than seeing her hate him. She was the one person he could not stand to see upset, especially now that she was back to being his Victoria. Gone was the shell she had used to conceal her true self. He suspected it wouldn't take long before she came back to him. Failing that, he would go to her and make her understand.

But at that moment, the sun was shining over everything and he could not leave. He was stuck with his brides for the day, hiding in the shadows as they spoke amongst themselves. Marishka was the first one to move towards him, her hips swaying as he looked back to her.

"We heard what you told her, master," she said in a low and sultry voice. "We heard how you told her that she would be the only bride…the only one you would bed…"

Dracula felt himself grow impatient with the conversation and he shook his head. He did not need to discuss this right now with them. Instead of listening to them, he turned to look between all three of them.

"None of you shall be cast aside, is that what you need to hear?"

"No," Verona was the one to answer. "You promised to love us all equally. You promised to share us all, yet you would not offer the girl the same courtesy. She is to take special priority when you make her one of your brides."

"You know why," Dracula glowered. "Victoria is mine and only mine. You will all do well to remember that."

"But she is not here," Marishka answered. "She is not here and she ran away. Can you be certain that her heart does not belong to the Gypsy Prince?"

It was then when he truly lost control, moving towards Marishka with his fangs bared and his face contorted as she shrivelled back, shrieking loudly with clear fear coursing through her body at the sight of her master looking at her in such a manner. She screamed loudly as the other two brides took hold of her, protecting her from their master's wrath.

But Dracula did not move towards them again, instead he stood still, looking between them before backing away and realising what he had to do to win Victoria back. He could not be the man he was right then. He could not be angry. That was not who Victoria had fallen in love with. No, if she was the same woman as she was all those years ago then he had to be the same man.

…

The candle flickered as Victoria sat on the edge of the bed. She knew he was coming. She could sense it. She did not run, nor did she scream for help. Instead she remained seated where she was and she waited for him to make his appearance. He didn't take his time, instead choosing to enter her bed chamber through the window.

Standing up, Victoria looked over to him, her gaze even as he looked back to her, almost looking ashamed with himself which made Victoria arch her brow in intrigue. He stepped into the room and looked over her, taking in the white nightgown she wore as her hair hung in a plait down her back.

"I apologise," he initiated conversation. "What I did that night was wrong, but I need you to understand why I did it."

"You killed a man who had done nothing to harm you," Victoria informed him and he shook his head.

"That is not necessarily true, Victoria, and you know that," he responded to her and she bit her lip, allowing him to continue. "That man was trying to take your memories from you…memories of us…of who we were together…and I could not let him do that. I lost you once before. How can I cope with losing you again?"

Victoria moved around the room, her hands toying with themselves as she moved. "But that is the problem, Vlad, those are the people we once were…now…I do not know you. The Vlad I knew would never have killed someone like that."

"I understand," he assured her, "because that is not the man I am. That was the man filled with fear, Victoria…fear that you could be snatched away from me."

"Velkan told me more," Victoria said and he almost felt the need to roll his eyes at hearing that. "He told me how you kill one person from the village every so often."

"Only to survive," Dracula responded. "You do not understand, Victoria. Without that sacrifice then we would die. We take one…that is all…"

"That is all?" Victoria responded, her voice on the verge of hysteria as she watched him, wondering if he was truly the same man she had planned to marry. "Vlad, how can you talk in such a manner?"

"Because it is who I am now, Victoria," he told her.

Shaking her head back and forth, Victoria dared to back further away from him and towards the window again.

"I think that is the problem, Vlad," Victoria told him. "We are both different people now. We are not the same as we were all those years ago…you…you look the same, but you are different. I know that."

Dracula felt his hands ball into fists by his side as he heard her speak to him in such a manner. He couldn't believe what he was hearing from her. How could she speak to him in such a manner? How could she do this to him?

"I died for you," Vlad hissed, moving closer to her, but she shrunk away from him, clear fear in her gaze as she made the movement. "I became this monster to bring you back and now you tell me you do not want me?"

"I never wanted this," Victoria pleaded with him. "I never wanted you to make a deal with the devil…I loved you, but this…this is too much. It is all wrong, Vlad. It is wrong and you know that it is!"

"No," he responded. "What is wrong is the way you are acting…as though I am a monster…while the truth is that everything I has done has been for you and you know that, yet you toss my love aside."

"Love?" she echoed the word to him. "If love means killing innocent people then what we have is not love. It cannot be love."

Dracula had no chance to continue speaking as Victoria was already pushing the window open once more, standing by it and looking outside as the wind howled and the rain pelted down.

"You need to go," she told him, not looking to him. "I have nothing more to say."

"And that is it?" he demanded from her, finally touching her by taking hold of her chin, forcing her to look at him. "This does not end simply because you say so. This does not end. I have waited for this, Victoria. I have waited and I will not let you escape."

"Then what shall you do?' she enquired from him. "Drag me back to your fortress with you and make me your bride? Hold me captive?"

"No," he told her, his face wrinkling in anger. "But I will make you see sense one way or another. I will do that."

"Just leave," Victoria implored from him, motioning to the window again. "Please."

He didn't want to go. He shouldn't go. He should stay and make her see sense, but he suspected it would take time for that to happen. Saying nothing, he only moved to press his lips to her forehead, hearing her inhale a sharp breath as he completed the motion and then left her alone. But he was serious when he told her that was not the end. He would see to it somehow.

…

A/N: Do let me know what you think!