A/N: Disclaimer in Chapter 1.

I think everything is in place now in this fic but it might be slightly longer than my others. I haven't edited the plan yet, there are a few things I'm uncertain of, if I keep them all in it will be longer. I thought I'd let you know in advance.

Chapter 5: Arranged

Erin usually knew to take those words with a pinch of salt. Ingrid had called Vlad all the names she could think of over the years, she might not have hit him so often anymore but she wasn't afraid to call him an idiot.

The thing that worried Erin was the unforgiving look on Ingrid's face. Ingrid never used that look on her brother for this long and Erin knew for a fact that it would have surfaced from the moment in the throne room.

Vlad's face held self-disgust, something major had happened in the throne room and Erin wasn't sure that she wanted to know what it was about but she knew she had to.

"What's wrong? What happened?" She asked, she was worried now.

"I had to tell them why we have a vampires war, about Olga attacking you and the crown accepting you as my equal."

"Is that why I didn't turn to dust?" She asked, this was news to her.

"I think so." Vlad whispered, he wasn't sure either. The crown had saved her for a reason though. He decided to continue with what had happened. "Then Augustus realised that there would always be an equal to any future Grand High Vampires, the crown would accept someone by their side." Erin didn't see a problem with that. "So there wouldn't be another Council. That's where there's a problem."

Erin's face scrunched in confusion and she shook her head but her eyes never left Vlad's. "What problem?"

"Augustus has 'suggested'," Vlad began before Ingrid cut him off quickly with a scoff.

"*Demanded* in return for you being crowned quickly and quietly because they would stall until the remainder of the one hundred days was up." Ingrid corrected. She couldn't believe the nerve of the Council to force this on Vlad, it was clear that it wasn't just Jorgen, Baylor and Mikhail that didn't want to lose the power that the Council currently wielded.

"That any future Grand High Vampires should have an equal ready for when they assume the role." Erin didn't like where this was going. "In return for you being crowned Queen privately and quickly."

"What do you mean 'ready for when the assume the role'?" Her mind had latched on those words. Vlad looked at her, dread laced in his eyes. Erin shook her head, she pushed herself upwards her arms shaking just like before.

She was shaking as she tried to move, she managed it though, she slowly swung her legs down from the couch so she was in a sitting position.

"Please tell me you didn't." She whispered, her words ghosting across her lips as she paled.

Vlad couldn't deny it. "Erin…"

"Don't you *dare* tell me you let them decide that!" Her voice was dripping with venom. For the first time she felt the loathing of a true slayer for Vlad's kind. The thought that they could demand something so big made her feel ill.

Vlad looked away from her, his voice as quiet as a whisper as he spoke, "I didn't have a choice Erin."

"There's always a choice Vladimir! You just sentenced our future children to arranged marriages!"

YEKNODELTTILYEKNODELTTIL

Ingrid had been right, Erin did want to kill him – painfully and slowly. She saw red as she looked at Vlad. Erin shook her head frantically – calling him an idiot on Ingrid's part had been to kind. Erin could think of a few she could call him and a good number in Transylvanian too.

"Erin I don't know what to do about it at the moment – I need time to think of a way around it *but* I swear I'm not putting our children through that and especially not after what you went through."

Erin nearly being forced into marriage had nearly killed him; he hadn't been able to sit by and watch her go through that he couldn't watch any of their children go through it.

His kind had abolished it long ago he knew what was behind this revival of it. It wouldn't just impact their family the vampire community would follow his example', more marriages would be created.

"Tell them no." Erin snapped at him, she wanted it undone now not later. Her answer was the easy option.

"Erin they passed it." They'd all agreed on it before Vlad could object or say anything, made it a law. Laws about the Grand High Vampire couldn't be made by himself until the Council was abolished, even then he could only create them not remove them. Made it a condition of her being crowned. He was tired of all the fighting so he could do what he wanted.

She shook her head frantically. "No."

"Erin they wouldn't let me crown you, I'll fix it I promise."

Erin's lip curled angrily, "Vlad not everything can be fixed because you want it to."

"I'm so sorry Erin I made a mistake." It had been a mistake, his mistake was that he'd never seen it coming. He should have known better. "I didn't know what they were doing. They took advantage of it but it will be undone I promise…"

"Don't make promises you can't keep." She pushed herself upwards and shoved her way past him. Her steps were weak and she grabbed the wall to support her. Erin was so angry she couldn't look at him. Vlad moved to help her remain upright. "Don't touch me!" She snarled at him, her fangs drawn. At the moment the last thing she wanted was contact from her husband after this revelation.

She felt dizziness sweep her, she really shouldn't be moving while she was still recovering. She didn't dare move any further otherwise she'd either faint of collapse on the floor in agony.

Vlad pulled his arms back frantically from her, he'd never seen a more angry look on his wife's face. His face was a mixture of shock, hurt and remorse.

Just because she wouldn't let him touch her it didn't mean he would let her get away with ignoring her. "Will you listen to me?"

"There's nothing to listen to Vladimir." His name was spat out making him flinch, "I've been though an arranged match Vlad, I nearly married Andrew. I wouldn't wish an arranged marriage on anyone."

"I told you I need time to think of a way to undo it but I will undo it." He repeated at her angrily, if she was going to throw in her side he was going to give her his. They both went through what her parents did, it wasn't just Erin. A normal vampire would have left her to marry Andrew but Vlad wasn't a normal vampire. "I went through it as well, I had to watch the woman I love being forced to marry to breed slayers."

"Its clear to me, either you don't crown me Queen or if you do we have to arrange a match for our children." Her headache was growing unbearable as it added to the one that just wouldn't go away because of 'wearing' that crown. The crown that was the source of all of their problems.

Augustus had realised that Erin would refuse to be Queen if it meant that their children would be pressured into an arranged marriage from her acceptance of it.

Erin's answer was immediate; she had the choice, "Don't crown me."

"I need you as Queen." He needed her more than ever now. He couldn't win a vampire war without her by his side.

"So you'll sacrifice our children's happiness just so I can be Queen."

"Don't twist my words Erin." Vlad warned, his fangs dropping dangerously in warning. Erin pointedly looked at them before looking back up at him, raising an eyebrow.

"Put the fangs away Vladimir."

Vlad didn't listen, he went to grip her arms before remembering that she didn't want to be touched. Vlad wasn't sure whether she'd use a technique Bertrand had taught her in that moment or not if he dared touch her. "You put yours away then." Erin didn't so he wasn't going to.

Ingrid had been standing uncomfortably watching the argument; she'd never seen them argue like this before. Vlad was near breaking point and Erin wasn't making any effort to calm him down, Ingrid doubted she could with her temper spiking. All she could do was hope that she remained invisible beside them and they wouldn't notice her. She didn't dare interrupt them just in case she herself was hurt although she doubted it she didn't want to chance it.

"I need you as my Queen, I need your advice through this vampire war. This won't come into affect until our first child is born, we have all that time to find a way out of this." He was trying to make her understand.

"No Vlad, I never wanted to be Queen – I've never deserved that power, they're showing you this. Now they have what they want, I'm not being Queen at the sake of our children's happiness."

"Erin they want the power, I can't have the Council during this war. They can change sides, I'd have to find new members and they'll do things their way behind my back. I need someone I can trust that can wield as much power as me. Someone I love." He couldn't have a Council that he would have to devote half his time to keeping an eye on just so they would win this war.

Erin shook her head, her mind was made up there was nothing Vlad could do to change that. "I can't watch as our children don't have a choice just like we didn't."

YEKNODELTTILYEKNODELTTIL

Vlad's head snapped up at that, the words chilling him to the bone. Erin watched as he stiffened, the entire room beginning to shake in response to her words. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"They'll have to get married at eighteen Vlad, sorry *mated* at eighteen." Grand High Vampires mated for life, not married. Vlad was apparently only the first in a long line to mate.

"Go back Erin." He wanted to rewind the conversation, back to the 'just like we didn't' part. "What do you mean we didn't have a choice?" Erin looked at him in confusion before understanding dawned across her face. "Are you saying that you mated with me because you had to?" His eyes flickered with hurt before becoming blank, he felt like someone had punched him in the gut.

Erin's mouth opened and closed as she tried to answer. She replayed the conversation in her head.

"Was I just the better option then? Andrew or the vampire?" Erin tried to answer again but Vlad's eyes turned pitch black. "I gave you three years Erin, you could have said no at any time, broken the engagement and there wouldn't have been any retaliation towards you." Her parents couldn't do anything about it neither could their kind or the slayers, Erin would have been a free woman again.

Erin wanted him to understand that they had decided this together but she didn't do it in the best way. "Vlad your instincts took over, you chose me knowing you probably couldn't choose anyone else…" Erin wished she hadn't said that the moment the words tumbled from her lips. "We were lucky we found each other at seventeen our children won't get a choice…"

Vlad's lip curled up into a snarl, he completely ignored the end of her speech – the part she'd used to try and correct what she'd said. "You're the one who fell for the vampire, you could have slain me when you had the chance, married a slayer like you were supposed to."

Erin jerked back as if he'd used his powers on her, that last comment had cut her deeply. She couldn't see if he was regretting it or not, either way her eyes narrowed as they turned the darkest shade of black. They became deep, dark abysses.

Erin wasn't going to talk to him if he was going to throw things back at her. Although she was just as guilty as he was. "Grow up Vladimir."

Vlad's next words were full of bitterness, he gestured to Erin's mark of claim on his neck. "I'm sorry Erin, we're stuck with each other. You should have undone it while you had the chance."

With those words he stormed from the room, leaving her on her own.

Erin slid down the wall and cried.

She cried for herself, Vlad and their children.

TBC

A.N: Thanks for reading.