Dracula And Anna: Finding The truth

Ch 21: Dark Dungeons And Warm Cuddles

In the dungeon, it was dark, dank, and just plain creepy.

The dungeon was made of stone, which was not cut or made smooth, so if you run your fingers across the wall, you would find yourself with a badly cut and bleeding hand. Even the ground was uneven and rough to the touch. Dangling upon the walls around the room, were shackles just clanging in an eerie rhythm against the wall. If the Count's intention was to scare his prisoners to death, then it was working rather well.

Trembling in terror in a corner, careful not to touch the wall, was Corey Neumic. He appeared to be the sole occupant, at least in this chamber. He had heard rumours about the Count's dungeons, but he had never believed them. If all the rumours were true, then he was just thankful that he hadn't ended up in the dungeons of his castle, where it was said he kept other creatures of darkness and the occasional werewolf.

He jumped in shock, - the sharp surface cutting a gash into his back - as he heard a snarl not far away. It seemed the stone somehow made it difficult to figure out where the noise had come from, even for a vampire. Neumic couldn't tell whether it had come from somewhere outside the iron bar door, or right there in the same dungeon cell.

He breathed in a sharp breath, the scent of his own blood on the air. He could feel his wound healing, it was itchy and he could feel his flesh knitting itself back together. He tried not to think of what else might be lingering in these dungeons. As he tried to relax, he heard that same snarl, and if he didn't know any better, he would have sworn that it was much closer. His body began to shake, this was the least of what he needed right now, if he ever made it to dusk, he would have to face Dracula. Not the most comforting thought in the world, but he'd rather face Dracula, than Van Helsing. Van Helsing's life was to hunt down and kill creatures of the night, such as vampires. All vampires knew that, unlike Van Helsing, Dracula preferred not to kill his people; however, he would if provoked too far. At least with Dracula, it was more likely that a vampire would live. Yet, he still didn't like his chances.

Suddenly, he heard movement in his cell. He wasn't alone as he had initially thought.

'Whose there?' he asked in a quivering voice, but he received no answer, just the cold silence he'd had before. He was certain that he was not alone, there was someone else in here; perhaps they were just sleeping? He'd never heard of anyone snarling in their sleep before, maybe he was just imagining things, yes that had to be it; there was no one here but him. Whether or not he believed that, he told himself repeatedly that he was alone. Since he was so scared, he wasn't listening to his instincts. He was ignoring the fact, that there really was someone else in the same cell, and just because he couldn't see them, or because he told himself that there was no one else there, didn't mean that it was true.

He heard a scrapping noise, something similar to nails on a chalkboard. Neumic might never have heard that sound before, but he was certain that it was the sound of claws scraping across the stone floor. His body started to quiver from head to toe, what was this creature? He had no doubt that it was indeed awake, but what was it doing scaring him like this?

He saw a slight movement, somewhere in front of him to his left. Since the window was so small and so high up on the wall; it didn't cast much light, but from what little light he had, he could see the silhouette of something there in the dark. He didn't know what it was, but it was big. In the back of his mind, he couldn't help but think; that if he had ever seen a Sasquatch, this thing would've been bigger.

It was moments like these that he was glad that he was a vampire because if his heart could beat, it would've been so loud and fast that he wouldn't have heard the creature as it began to rise from its lazy position on the cold stone floor. However, that thought did not comfort him, when the creature turned to look straight into his eyes; with its dark cold stare that made him think of death. And although the thought of his vampiric speed, should've comforted him, it did not, because of the simple fact, that he was so scared, that he couldn't take his eyes off it. He knew he couldn't have moved, even if he'd wanted to.

It also didn't stop his scream when it leapt for his throat.

Dracula found he was too comfortable to want to wake up; in fact, he hadn't even opened his eyes yet. He felt movement against him. He knew it was a bride, for if it hadn't been, they would've disturbed him, waking him immediately. She was cuddled up close to him, her head resting against his chest, shoulder, and even some of his upper arm, since Dracula was lying somewhat on his side, his arm around her waist. One of her arms was wrapped around him fairly, but loosely, her head nuzzled gently into him, his chin resting just above her head.

For a while, he just lay there, it could've been minutes, or hours, he didn't care nor did it matter, he hadn't felt so at peace for a long time. However as time passed, his mind began to wander back to the previous night, remembering what he was to do first thing this evening; sometimes he hated having a position of responsibility, it could ruin calm evenings, and peaceful moments.

With a refrained sigh, he opened his eyes, finding them still heavy with sleep. He wished that he didn't have to get up, especially when he felt like being lazy, and staying in bed. He lifted his head carefully so as not to disturb his bride that was cuddled so close to him.

However when he tilted his head to look at their face, his lips parted in surprise; he fought back a gasp, but still managed a quivered breath. He found it hard to believe his eyes, his Anna, who did not remember the love she had for him, was cuddled up to him as if she did remember. Even though he knew it was because she was asleep, he gave her sleeping figure a warm smile. Gently, careful not to wake her, he brushed her hair out of her face. She was always so peaceful when she slept, even more than when she was awake, perhaps because she looked so peaceful. Even when she was angry, she was still beautiful; not even a frown disturbed the beauty of her face.

Dracula sighed; he knew that it was not going to be easy to get up without disturbing a single bride, let alone all of them, especially Anna. When he began to move, he felt Anna move closer to him, as if she was afraid that he was leaving and would not return.

'Don't go', he knew that she had to be dreaming, 'please'. Her voice was soft, almost loving; he felt his heart warm at such tenderness. It was a pity that it was only in her sleep. He gently brushed her hair out of her face, and began to move again, but stopped abruptly when he heard one word from Anna's lips, spoken with such tenderness and innocence that it surprised him, let alone the fact that she had spoken it at all.

'Vladislaus.'

His breath caught in his throat, he wasn't sure of what to say or what to do. He had not expected her to say his name, asleep or otherwise. He thought that he would never hear his name spoken from her soft lips again, especially with as much sweetness as she had just spoken.