Erinna sat on a stool at the antique historical dressing table in Dracula's chambers. It was dusk and she had just taken a shower after waking up.

She picked up the hairbrush that she guessed had been put there entirely for her benefit. She felt the Count approach and shivered as his dark presence oppressed all the warmth and light in the room.

He stood behind her chair.

"May I?" he asked holding out his hand for the hairbrush.

There was just something unnerving about putting a potential weapon in the hands of a man with a legendarily sick and unstable mind that she hesitated.

"Countess?"

"Don't call me that," she gritted her teeth irritably, slapping the hairbrush into his awaiting palm.

He began brushing full strokes through her long dark hair with astonishing tenderness and caution. His close proximity sent shivers through her, the delicious kind. It was ridiculous how drawn she was to him even though she knew the amount of depravity he was capable of.

The concentration on his face was endearing such that she remembered she hadn't properly thanked him for Angelica and the girls.

"About earlier--," she began but was interrupted before she could convey her gratitude. He stopped brushing her hair mid-stroke.

"It shall not be mentioned again," he said guardedly, probably thinking she wanted to rub her victory in his face. How wrong he was; she was not that kind of a person.

"I actually wanted to say thank you."

"I don't do favours darling, you might want to remember that," he said darkly but she just found it amusing.

"You managed to compromise today."

"No. You threatened me and no one threatens me. I might have promised not to kill your friends but I never promised not to hurt them, or torture them to the point of death, revive them with vampire blood and do it all over again. And I think your vision showed you I am not short of torture devices or methods," he said with a sadistic smile and Erinna's jaw dropped.

He couldn't mean that.

"You are sick."

"Not the best way to convince me to spare them love; you're going to have to come up with more attractive offers."

"You can go to hell," she said icily, eyes glaring daggers at him.

How dare he go back on his word and play with people's lives as if they were his pawns in a chess game?

She wanted to bend to his will, after all those people's lives were in her hands but she was tired; tired of playing his sick games and going in endless circles.

He was always going to threaten her with their lives and she was not about to sell herself when he might just kill them anyway after getting what he wanted.

It was time to take a risk, leap off a roof and hope there would be a soft bush to cushion her fall. True leaders were innovative and ready to take risks when necessary.

She knew he wouldn't kill them, they were his only leverage. She just needed to push him hard enough and make him believe she couldn't care less about the people he wanted to sacrifice on her behalf.

"I guess I'll just call Alexander to begin then, he can start with Angelica."

"Whatever I say or do doesn't matter; you'll always have those people's lives over my head. So why don't you go right ahead Dracula? Feel like destroying a few lives, crushing a few dreams, wrecking a couple of families? Well indulge yourself because I. Don't. Care."

The glaring contest lasted for a full minute, Erinna unwilling to back down until at last Dracula vanished from the room in a blur of colours that only a vampire could make out.

******

Dracula held his sword up, inspecting the sharp expertly made object encrusted in the blood of many, mercilessly killed in the battlefield in earlier eras.

"I'm going to kill them; every last Elf in that damned town and nothing you or anyone will say will stop me Alexander. So it's either you join me or stand by and watch the bloodshed. Get everyone ready, I want the best ten men in your army ;by nightfall Ellingsdale will be ashes."

He looked outside the window at the sky, it was only a few minutes after dusk, and he could make it back before dawn. He had reached the peak of his anger where his whole demeanour was frighteningly calm and everything about him whispered death. His red eyes gleamed with blood thirst and his canines promised instant fatality.

Alexander however laughed, coming closer to stand beside him.

"What has she done this time? "

"Get out of my way if you're not going to help me. "

"OK, ok ; when do we leave? "

Dracula looked at his right hand man in shock and suspicion. It was not like Alexander to encourage him to do something as reckless as murder an entire kingdom. Him and Erinna were the same in that respect, always trying to save lives.

"I hope you know my little tiger won't look at you twice after this," Alexander smiled.

"Stop referring to my bride with animal names," he said irritably.

He had known Alexander would not condone his killing spree and apparently he had been right. The bastard had just been up to his old tricks again, acting as if he was Dracula's conscience; something they both knew didn't exist.

"As you wish. I know you cannot be happy if the princess---"

"Countess," Dracula corrected him again.

"Fine. I know you can't be happy unless the Countess is happy too and murdering her people is not going to earn you any brownie points." Alexander paused before continuing, "Sure it may bring you a few months of relief and ecstasy but think of what it will cost you."

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After a lot of pondering, the Count returned to his bride and found her on the balcony staring at the sky. He didn't know what to say so just uttered what came first to his mind.

"I made you angry earlier," he said but she made no indication that she knew he was there even though he knew she had heard him.

"I shouldn't have said what I said."

"The fact that I was not replying you should have indicated I have no wish to speak to you."

He did not like the way she talked to him then but decided to ignore it, he had a mission after all.

"I came to apologise."

"You just did, now get out."

That, he couldn't ignore.

"Excuse me?"

She finally turned and faced him and what he saw in his eyes shocked him. There was a coldness that had never been there before and he knew it was his entire fault.

"I said I wish to be alone. Your presence is stifling me."

"You might not have noticed, but this is my bedroom," he reminded her.

"Then give me mine."

To hell with the apology, he was not going to let her talk to him like a petulant child.

"I am not familiar with Elf traditions love and I know having been locked up your whole life, you're a bit behind on the times but astonishing as it may seem, husbands and wives all over the world do share bedrooms."

"I am not your wife and I will never be," she declared indignantly.

Didn't she tire of denying the inevitable?

"You realise this you hating me act is getting old don't you?"

"It's not an act," she said dealing him with a glare he physically felt.

"Not even you can fight prophecy sweetheart," he told her.

No matter how much she might hate it or try to ignore it, their destiny was inevitable. He knew the Elves had told her their version of her destiny. But that was half of the story.

They neglected to tell her that she Erinna and the vampire prince she so hated were going to be joined as one, that they were destined to be one.

"You believe in prophecy?" she scoffed.

"Prophecy brought you to me," he answered.

How could he hate it when it had given him the best gift?

"Then you should also know that prophecy said I'll kill you," she said.

She thought he didn't know that.

"I know," he said and wanted to smile at the shocked expression on her face before it turned suspicious.

"You don't think I can do it?" she dared him to say no.

He sighed.

"Erinna I didn't come to fight with you. We're digressing, if you want to be alone fine but be rest assured that when I want to, we will share this bedroom."

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