Logan got out of the driver's side door of the borrowed car, pulling keys from his pocket. He stared at the black iron gates that were framed by stone pillars, the walls proceeding up and down the hill to block off the property from the rest of the world. He chose the proper key and unlocked the padlock. He pulled the chains free and then pushed the gates wide so their cars could pass. He smiled, glancing back at the vehicle to see Ranelle leaning forward from her seat, looking up at the arching black metal. He returned to the car and climbed in.

"Are you ready?" he asked.

She nodded, still looking at the crest that waited at the top of the gate.

Logan smiled and nodded in turn, knowing that was the best response he would get for now. He put the car in gear and then hit the pedal. The vehicle crept forward on the gravel drive and proceeded through the gate and down the lane towards the coast. He could hear gulls screeching, and he smiled again.

He hadn't seen the smaller manor house in nearly a decade, and he was excited to return home. While Loraine had loved the large estate near Masterton with its servants and close proximity to civilization for hunting, Logan had always preferred the isolated bay-facing home. He had kept it as his own secret, a place only for him and his memories. He glanced in the side mirror to see Marcius's car not far behind and then he checked the backseat to see Avalon was staring out the window at the trees.

They drove down the narrow lane until the trees broke off to leave open sky and the drop-off cliffs ahead. But before the cliffs, a three-story home sat framed by the clear night sky. The exterior was built of dark grey stone and brick, large windows making up the first floor in groups of three. The large door was painted dark green, gold and black metal work framing it. A reflecting pool waited just before the door, making a natural cul-de-sac for the driveway.

"Do you like it?" Logan asked as he pulled around the curve in the gravel road to pause just outside the front door.

"It's...gorgeous," Ranelle answered, still looking out the windows at the structure. "Avalon, what do you think?"

"Cool," he said, his voice high with excitement as he drug out the word. He quickly fiddled with his seatbelt. "Can we go in?"

"Yes, we can," Logan replied to his son with a smile. He undid his own seatbelt and climbed out just as Avalon got his door open and his feet hit the gravel. He stepped around to the other side of the car and held the door for Ranelle as she, too, got out.

The auburn-brunette stared up at the stone walls, taking in the stained glass detailing among the windows on the third floor. She glanced over at her husband with a smile before looking back up at the house.

Logan squeezed her shoulder as he pulled her into him. "This is all ours," he promised. He looked up when the sound of a car door caught his attention as Marcius and three of his men got out of the second car. He nodded to them and then kissed Ranelle on top of her head. "Shall we?"

"Yeah!" Avalon answered for both his mother and himself.

Logan chuckled and nodded as he moved forward to the steps that led up to the door. He hopped up the three stone stairs to the front entrance and spun through his keyring for the proper one. He undid the top and bottom locks before he slowly turned the handle and pushed it open. He stepped inside, looking left and right to clear it of any possible intruders. He turned to look over his shoulder at his family and nodded.

Ranelle held Avalon's hand as they went up the steps and into the house. She looked up at the white and wood interior, the dark wooden trim detailed with pops of gold metal in floral designs. The furniture was covered with white sheets to preserve it. But she could make out the silhouettes of a large couch and loveseat set, as well as a pair of armchairs off to the left, a stone fireplace taking up the middle of the opposite wall. The other wall was made of windows that let in the moonlight from the front yard.

She glanced to the right and could make out the dining room through a pair of sliding doors as Logan opened them up to begin circulating air throughout the house. On the other side of the foyer, a large staircase and balcony led to the second and third floors. The back wall was made solely of tall windows and she could see a garden and the distant ocean. She let go of Avalon's hand as she moved forward through the home to the glass patio door, slowly opening it to step out onto the cobblestone and grass space. Large rose bushes in full bloom framed the courtyard, accompanied with a fountain and birdbath. White hydrangea bushes and petunias had been planted amongst the red roses, filling the cozy space with a perfume she had long forgotten. She smiled, moving through the garden to the backyard as the sounds of waves called to her.

Ranelle stepped between the hedges that made up the back of the open ground, finding a path to the ocean a few hundred feet down the hill. She grinned, watching the waves dance along the sand in the moonlight, the water reflecting the stars in muddled, distorted constellations all their own. She sighed, feeling content.

"What do you think?" came the sound of Logan's voice from behind her.

"It's beautiful," she whispered, not able to look away from the ocean.

"I found it back in the Forties when Dracula last came to New Zealand," he said calmly, moving to stand beside her. "I bought it immediately. Something about this place... Always reminded me of you," he confessed.

Ranelle finally broke away from watching the waves to look at him, surprised. "Me?"

He nodded with a smile. "The architecture, the roses, the ocean... Something about it just spoke to me and I knew I had to have it. Whenever I needed to be alone with my thoughts, I always came back here as my private sanctuary. This place always gave me peace." He looked down at her with another grin. "Just like you do."

Ranelle smiled and nodded, turning her head to wipe a sole tear off her cheek before he could see it. It did remind her of an old home from centuries before her current present. It reminded her of the person she had always been, buried deep behind layers of masks she had forced herself to wear in the hundreds of years since. "I love it," she whispered.

"Good. Welcome home, my love."

"One more, Ranelle. Big push," Nathaniel said, his voice calm. He clenched his jaw, grabbing a towel from the stack that sat on the bench at the foot of the bed. He quickly readied it as the woman cried out in pain. "That's it. Push," he repeated.

The auburn-brunette dropped her head back into Logan's chest, her body shaking with the effort of labor. She could feel the warmth of his body as he sat behind her for support, his hands gripping hers. Sweat trickled down her forehead past her temples, mixing with the few tears she had shed.

Logan let go of her hand and wiped her brow with a cool washcloth. "Almost there, love. Almost there."

"Again," Nathaniel instructed. "That's it. That's it. Keep pushing," he encouraged.

Ranelle cried out again, feeling her muscles contract and tighten as she put all of her strength into one last strain. She breathed hard, trying to catch air in her lungs as she fought to stay conscious.

There was one second of silence that seemed to stretch for as long as she could discern before a soft wail broke the momentary quiet.

"There we are. Hello, beautiful," Nathaniel said, a light laugh in his tone. He continued to wipe off the small newborn in his hands and separated mother from child by cutting the cord. The dark-haired man rubbed the tiny baby, grinning as she continued to cry. "Yes, I know, I know," he spoke to her as he wrapped her up in the towel tightly. He looked at the parents with a grin.

"It's a girl."

"Girl?" Ranelle asked for clarification, her voice weak.

Nathaniel nodded again. "And she's perfect."

Logan sighed in relief, nodding. He kissed the top of Ranelle's head as he hugged her body against his torso. He ran a hand through her hair, smoothing it back off her cheeks from where it stuck to her sweat-dampened skin.

The British coven's commander finished wiping the baby's face and she quieted in his hands. He stood from his crouched position at the foot of the bed and moved to stand beside it. He offered the tiny newborn to her mother and helped Ranelle settle her in her arms.

The woman sighed as the infant was tucked against her chest, her head immediately turning to her mother's skin for warmth, no longer crying but instead making soft whimpers of complaints as she adjusted to her new world. Ranelle sighed, tears suddenly in her eyes. "Hello, darling, I've been waiting to meet you," she whispered, her voice rough.

"She's gorgeous," Logan said from behind her, and his wife turned her head to look at him. "Looks just like you."

Ranelle smiled, looking back down at their daughter. "We'll see. She has your forehead."

Nathaniel chuckled. "She's perfect." He moved back down to the foot of the bed and began to gather the dirtied and bloodied towels and medical equipment, letting the parents adjust to their new reality. Once he was done, he looked up at them again. "I'll go fetch the lad. I'm sure he's excited to meet his sibling."

Logan nodded in agreement before going back to stroking Ranelle's skin with the cold, damp cloth. He then placed it in the porcelain bowl at the bedside table. He reached around his wife, his fingers touching the baby's cheek. "She's beautiful," he whispered.

"She really is," Ranelle answered.

He grinned down at their little creation, turning to touch his nose to his wife's temple for a moment. "We still want to keep her name?" he asked.

The mother nodded fervently in tiny movements. "Eris Alexandria Katherine Eos Mezdor," she announced to the baby.

"The Dark Child," Logan finished.