A/N: Disclaimer in Chapter 1.

*IMPORTANT*

I've had a lot of messages calling me something that rhymes with 'witch' over a review that I submitted (logged in – as it seems I'm being accused by some for the anonymous ones as well).

All I will say about it is that when I submitted the review I was only following what *the site* had told me to do as *the site* informed me of the situation in the first place as wanted me to act (considering everything that has happened over the last couple of weeks), *they* told me to contact the author that way and tell them how I felt about the situation and how it affected me.

I'm unsure at the moment, but thanks to all the PMs I received over it, I'm considering removing my account in the next few days.

I know it's cheeky, but I would be grateful for any advice or suggestions on what to do.

Chapter 52: Supposed To Buzz

The reflection simply stepped into Vlad's body. Vlad tensed, his back arching upward, his arms out at an angle by his side. He ground his teeth as he fought back a scream that threatened to burst through his throat.

Vlad's eyes snapped open. His fangs dropping down automatically as the first reflection stepped into him. He let out a hiss of pain at the sensation, they came down much faster and sharper than a normal vampire's.

Erin relaxed as she watched as he absorbed the first reflection. His eyes turned black for moments as he stiffened becoming statuesque before his eyes cleared and his gaze fixed on Erin. Mere seconds before he doubled over panicking and clutching at his chest.

Vlad instinctively tried to take more breaths of air even though it wasn't necessary. His eyes darted around trying to silently call for help.

Erin dashed in front of him, she realised then how alone he'd been through his original transformation. She couldn't remember hers, she couldn't remember ever stopping breathing but she had been unconscious at the time but she knew Vlad had stayed with her.

She placed a hand on his chest trying not to frown at the absence of his heartbeat. Her left hand she placed in his hair but he flinched away from her.

"Vlad calm down." She whispered, if anything he only panicked more. Erin pushed him backwards, he went reluctantly before hitting the wall. It wasn't the wisest thing she could have done as she felt him struggle but she wanted him to look at her.

"The wimp." Ingrid muttered. Bertrand didn't say a word, he didn't even move.

Erin's eyes flashed, she wished she'd insisted on them all leaving them alone for this. Her head snapped towards Ingrid. "Vlad's gone through this for the third time now, you did it once, don't you dare judge him." No vampire should be put through this, even for the first time. Their child had to go through this, the thought made her stomach flip.

"But…"

Bertrand was the one who spoke this time, "Ingrid." His tone was sharp and she immediately quietened, nodding.

Vlad's eyes were still moving around frantically, they were slowly turning red in his fear and worry. He was probably associating it with his heart stopping earlier.

"Vlad look at me." She spoke to him gently. Vlad's eyes flickered to her then back down. "Look. At. Me." She punctuated each word slowly. He eventually looked at her, his hand clutching his chest. Erin took his hand from his chest and placed it on hers to feel her unbeating heart before placing it on top of their child. "This is normal for us." Vlad focused on her and felt himself calming slowly.

Erin could feel his body heat diminishing with the ceasing of his heart, it was unsettling for her. It was as if she'd created a vampire of her own even though the man in front of her had created her. Erin let go of his hand that she'd held to her chest, squeezing it quickly before she did so. She brought her hand to the back of his neck and twisted her fingers in the silky hair there.

She watched carefully, not blinking once, as his eyes slowly returned to their usual blue-green colour. Vlad was slowly straightening completely but she could tell he was still afraid.

Erin saw a movement out of the corner of her eye. She knew what it was. She turned shielding him. He was slowly recovering but he was in no fit state to host all of his reflections just yet. Erin held out a hand to the vampire's reflection. He stopped in his tracks. "Give him a minute to recover." She told him firmly. Vlad needed to recover before absorbing more; he'd been weakened enough last time.

Vlad slowly straightened out, looking up at Erin. She could see that he didn't look completely ready but he was more ready than before. "It needs to be now." Vlad told her, pushing her gently to one side.

"You're not ready."

"He's getting weaker. Separating the reflection took it out of him. We need to do this now." He told her. Erin shook her head but she didn't have chance to react.

"Ready?" The reflection asked him.

He nodded, opening his arms and closing his eyes. If he was about to be thrown backwards he'd prefer not to see it happening again.

YEKNODELTTILYEKNODELTTIL

Vlad's head it the wall with a crack as his full reflection finally stepped into him, reuniting with its single reflection.

The now full vampire staggered forwards slightly as his sense of balance was compromised completely. He felt pure pain flood him, he'd forgotten how painful this mergence truly was.

"You've merged?" She asked, checking that she hadn't suddenly lost the ability to see his reflection.

"Yeah."

Erin looked at him, "You're sharing?" Vlad nodded soundlessly, he felt as if his head was about to explode. He ducked it down again at the sudden movements. She launched herself at him with a smile, kissing him thoroughly.

Vlad was surprised at first before quickly responding, he pulled her flush against him wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her thoroughly. He gently bit her lip forcing her to open her mouth to allow their tongues to brush. Erin's hand fisted tightly – but not painfully – in his hair, tugging on the locks their.

A coughing behind them remembered where they were and they pulled back wide smiles across their faces despite the pain Vlad felt in his head.

"I love you." He told her, no other vampire that he could have mated with would have stuck with him throughout this.

Erin's eyes watered, she could see both sides of him in his eyes. She stroked his neck lightly, before kissing the scars. "Love you too."

Erin spied the crown where she'd discarded it on the side and reached across for it.

"What…" He began to ask as she stretched in his embrace but refused to leave it.

Erin grabbed the crown and handed it over to him with a smile on her face. "Your highness." She teased. Vlad groaned and took it from her, he looked at it briefly before preparing to toss it to one side. Erin shook her head, taking it off him and placing it on his head. Vlad's head tipped to one side as he looked at her in annoyance. She shrugged. "Just want to make sure you've had power handed back to you."

Vlad tried to look up at the crown, knowing it was futile, he happily pulled it from his head with a smirk. Erin didn't stop him this time as he tossed it into one of the corners.

"You're back." She whispered.

"I'm back."

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Only the slayers were left in the room after the vampires had gone, Mina decided that it was as good as any time to finish working on the device that would benefit them all. It had worked once but she didn't want it blowing out the electrics again. Unfortunately she'd also been left with the Nobles.

"What are you doing?" Thomas asked Mina, nearly making her rip out the wires in the device as she jumped. Her fist automatically clenched as she debated whether to ignore him or answer. Answering won as she had a feeling he'd keep pressuring or bothering her until he got an answer.

"Something that's nothing to do with you." She muttered slightly airily, as she dropped the screw on the floor. She dropped the screwdriver.

"How do you feel about the spawn?" He asked casually.

"They love it." She answered.

"I didn't ask how they felt, I asked how you felt? She's breeding for them. Love means nothing to vampires. She was barely seventeen, too young to know what love…"

Mina slammed the screwdriver down on the floorboards, Catherine moved back slightly. Mina spun around to face Thomas. "You say that but look at what Vlad nearly lost to be with her. He nearly lost her. Your daughter has just stood by Vlad through all of this, she can deal with the most evil part of a vampire without letting it get to her. They're devoted to each other. Vlad offered to marry her to save her, he didn't have to but he did. He willingly tied himself to her at seventeen and I don't think either of them will regret their decisions."

"What about the spawn?" Thomas wasn't going to let the subject drop.

"A child is a child." Mina answered. "We're not at war with the vampires anymore, their child will be brought up to care about slayers and vampires. It isn't a ploy for power, it was an unexpected blessing and they're happy about it. Don't ruin it for either of them." She looked back at the device. "One more tweek…" Mina muttered slightly strained as she tightened up the screw on the device.

Then she turned it on.

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Vlad pushed Erin against the wall, stepping into her as closely as possible. Erin moaned at the sensation, he brought his hand up to her – well his – jacket and tugged on the zip. It came undone easily revealing her rounding stomach to him. He looked at it before reversing their positions so he didn't put too much pressure on the unborn child. He began to slowly kiss at her neck, his fangs lowering and gently scraping over the skin that was revealed to him but never biting her. She shivered; she'd missed his fangs – something she never thought she'd say.

Erin's eyes watered at his simple actions she looked away.

"What's wrong?" He asked his fangs still lowered. Erin lifted her hand up and gently touched his fangs, almost stroking him softly. If he was a gene fang he wouldn't have the same number of fangs, he'd have less like her. She traced the four, white, razor sharp points delicately.

"Olga nearly took this from you."

He pulled her towards him and pulled her towards the couch. He encouraged her to sit on it before pulling her closer. Erin tucked her legs up under herself as everything finally caught up with her.

"But she didn't think about you." He answered, kissing her hair softly as she faced him on her knees. "She didn't think about my brilliant mate and how clever she is."

"Mom and Dad don't think I'm clever. Must be from knowing you." Her words were tinged with sadness. She was only bright enough to marry a slayer and breed in their opinion.

"You've always been clever Erin." She snorted. "They never saw the real you, I saw it when we met but they were afraid to. I saw the woman I love, the one who'll protect everyone she loves and who won't be beaten." Vlad leaned down and kissed her stomach. "The woman I'm having a baby with." He couldn't help the smile that crossed his face at his words. They always had that effect on him. "I love you and everyone can see what I see, even Robin and he can be thick at times."

Erin laughed, "Thanks…"

Vlad wasn't finished, "Erin you sorted this out, you worked out where half of me was hidden, you saved the shard of mirror to make it happen."

"I dropped the mirror. I could have lost…"

"You didn't. You're much more clever than you think. You are my Queen and my mate, I've never wanted anyone else and I never will." Erin's eyes watered at his words. She ducked her head down before smiling.

She leaned in close to him to continue what they had started before she'd become sentimental. Vlad smiled and closed his eyes. Just as their lips were about to touch he yanked his head back.

Vlad winced clutching his head as a high-pitched wail sounded throughout the manor. His headache growing ten times more intense, Erin rubbed her temples.

If he was still a gene fang he wouldn't have felt that.

After a few moments the sound stopped and he straightened, that felt exactly like a certain Slayers Guild Alarm.

An alarm that he'd hoped remained switched off in his home. He pulled himself up, dragging his wife with him.

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Mina snapped the handle back down cutting of the alarm. She mentally counted down, five, four, three, two, one.

The sound of a sonic boom behind her told her that the vampires had arrived, they always seemed to arrive within milliseconds of each other and she honestly didn't think it had much to do with their telepathy.

"What for the love of garlic was that?" Vlad snapped, he felt dizzy at using his speed, it had been like this when he'd first transformed he hated the sensation. He shook his head automatically regretting that as well.

"Sorry." Mina apologised from her position on the floor. "We've been trying to get the alarm working properly." The last time they'd turned it on it had blown out all of the electrics.

"It sounds like its working." Erin pointed out.

"Its supposed to buzz when there's an intruder not scream." Catherine muttered bending down to take a look at it. She froze before muttering. "Uh oh."

"That doesn't sound good." Ingrid muttered, earning a sharp poke in the ribs from Bertrand.

Mina turned towards Catherine, her head dropping in defeat.

"We're reading fourteen people in the manor." Mina muttered before doing a mental head count: Vlad, Erin Bertrand, Ingrid, herself, Catherine, the Nobles and Robin. That was nine. The two former Council members and Ryan in the cellar. That was another three. "That leaves two."

They all looked around the room, mentally performing head counts trying to work out whether Mina had counted correctly.

Each and every one of them coming to the same number twelve people.

Erin looked at Vlad, feeling as if ice was filling her. Vlad wasn't ready to face anyone, his speeding had shown that.

They needed to find the intruders before the intruders found them.

TBC

A/N: Please let me know what you think.

As I said I would be grateful for any advice or suggestions on what to do.

Thanks for reading.