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Midnight Roses	By : FlameWolf666 Category: Hellsing > Het - Male/Female Views: 7370 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do NOT own anyone or anything from the anime/manga Hellsing. This is not for profit and just for fun! Please don't sue!

Chapter List
- 16
- 17
- 18
Author's Note: Well, we learn more about Max's life as Mina here.
Chapter Twelve: Memories of Mina
'The young female sat at her usual meeting place, a slightly alarmed look on her pale face. The surprise arrival of a doctor by the name of Van Hellsing had turned Lucy's already frightening illness into something other-wordly. He spoke of garlic, blood transfusions and crosses, sounding like something out of some sort of folktale. One that sounded familiar and made her uneasy about her Prince. Emotions from a past life as well as her own burgeoning love welled in her heart, replacing any lingering thoughts about the lost Jonathan.
A guilty sigh left her lips at the realization as her emerald eye roved around to search for the man she now knew as Vlad. It had only been a day since their last meeting and already much has happened. Despite her faint feeling of something being wrong, Mina ached for the touch of the raven haired Prince on her milky skin. Just breathing his scent would bring her scattered mind calm and she would at least know peace from the nightmare Van Hellsing had brought with him. A nightmare that kept tickling at something in the back of her mind, something she had heard from her nanny when she was a child in bed. A story about a creature that only came at night.
Just as she was about to grasp the elusive memory, she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder and a familiar scent wafted to her nose. “Vlad,” she gasped, turning to face her Prince with eagerness and apprehension in her expressive orbs. The dark haired male only smiled down at her lovingly, reaching up with the hand that had been on her shoulder to cup her pale cheek.
“You look troubled my dearest Mina,” he rumbled, his baritone voice almost sounding like a gentle purr as his thumb brushed her skin.
“I-it's Lucy, she's gotten worse. A foreign doctor by the name of the of Van Hellsing was summoned and arrived just today. Some of the things he said were very strange and have made me a bit frightened,” she whispered, looking up into his molten, affection filled eyes.
“Really now? And what did this doctor say?” he replied, his voice holding a slightly steel edge as he removed his hand from her face.
“He first insisted on giving poor Lucy something called a blood transfusion, then he ordered garlic and crosses to be hung on all the windows,” Mina replied, sounding a bit dazed as she looked up at her crimson clad companion. The more she saw him in the outfit, the more it made her feel a shudder of fear through her very soul; as if the red signified he was the Devil Himself. The woman known as Elizabeta could only agree, the shade's faint curiosity about how he hadn't seemed to have changed in the endless years they had been apart filling Mina's head. It was almost as if he had been alive this whole time and had never been reincarnated at all, something that was surely impossible but only served to niggle at the lingering memory of the story her Nanny used to tell after she had begged relentlessly.
Then, all of a sudden, it came back with full clarity; making the dress wearing female draw in a shuddering gasp. Her mind was instantly flooded with a memory of her laying in her childhood bed, staring up at her careworn caretaker. The elderly woman smiled down at her with infinite patience as she brushed strands of the child's ebony hair off her milky forehead. “Young Miss, if I tell you that story before you go to sleep you will have nightmares. Don't you remember?” she murmured, her comforting voice slightly shaky from her advanced age. Her steel gray hair was tied in a tight bun and mischief twinkled in her blue eyes as she smiled lovingly down at her young charge.
“Please Nana? Pleeeease?” the young Mina cajoled, giving her best puppy dog eyes to her much loved Nanny.
“Oh alright but do not expect me to come to you when you wake up screaming in the night,” the matronly woman warned, no real threat in her kind voice. They both knew that at the first sounds of distress, the faithful servant would be by her side in a heartbeat.
“In the country I grew up in, there was a legend about a creature known as a vampire that would come in the night to suck the blood of young maidens. During the time I was a little girl, I didn't believe a word of the legends until the deaths started to happen. One by one, young women in my village were falling ill only to die a few days later. The strange thing was, only a few days after their death; there were reports from the villagers of seeing the women wandering around at night. Some said they would try to lure men or children to them with their unearthly eyes and none they took ever came back.
Word spread quickly around the small village, spreading panic in it's wake. Whispered words about a nosferatu haunting our small hamlet were heard on ever street corner. Legend told us that the only way to stop a vampire's attack on a victim was to hang crosses or garlic on the windows. Any bodies that were suspected of being turned were to be beheaded and burned. It was a gruesome time, full of fear and paranoia but no one could dare to just stay at home. We were a poor village and we needed to work to keep food on our tables at night.
One night, when I was walking home from my job as a flower seller, I saw the creature responsible. I will never forget the sight of him. The first thing I saw was his eyes, glowing in the darkness like a pair of flickering candle flames. Then his voice, deep and smooth like a dark chocolate for the ears. “A young lady such as yourself shouldn't be out alone on a night like this. It is dangerous,” he practically purred from the darkness as he stepped into the dim light afforded by the candles in the streetlights. He was very tall and dressed in all red, his black hair hung in his pale face while his sunset eyes looked into my very soul.
Just being in his presence made me weak in the knees and his voice was hypnotic, as if he could bend me to his will effortlessly. “Come, I will escort you home to protect you from the dangers that lurk in the night,” he rumbled as he grabbed me arm and entwined it with his. Then he began to lead me through the village, sticking to the shadows as he led me unerringly to my house. It was at this point that I began to feel frightened. This creature knew where I lived and I was now alone with him. I couldn't help but wonder if I was going to be his next victim.
Instead of biting me like I feared, he merely kissed my hand before grinning at me with his mouthful of fangs; a sight that scared me down to the marrow of my bones. “Be careful for a while during the nights,” he chuckled, as if amused by my fright. Then he turned and walked away. Soon after that the sightings and attacks began to taper off until they simply stopped. We simply assumed the creature had his fill and moved on but something about what he said still makes me wonder. The simple truth is, there are things on this Earth that we do not know about and many would consider mere legend. Never forget this my child and beware while alone at night,” her Nanny finished, pressing a kiss to the child's head. Young Mina only looked up at the wizened woman with thoughtful, emerald eyes.
As Mina came back to the present, her brow furrowed as she found herself thinking about her Nanny's description of the creature as well as the steps they took to ward it off. Could Lucy really have been bitten by a vampire? Could Vlad, her prince, be the creature her Nana had described? As fantastic and impossible as it seemed, it was the only explanation that made sense. Even Elizabeta agreed from the back of her mind, offering the fact that he would explain how he hadn't changed since she had last seen him. Tilting her head back to look at her silent companion, her breath left her in a rush from the way he was looking down at her.
Her dark haired Prince was almost glaring at her, his sunset colored eyes almost glowing in the semi-darkness of the twilight. “Y-you're a vampire aren't you,” she gasped out in a breathless whisper, her delicate hands clutched between her breasts. Her heart lurched and ached in her chest as she awaited his answer. Apprehension filled her and her entire body began to shake from fear. What would she do if he answered yes? It would mean he had been attacking Lucy, draining her of her blood to turn her into something like himself. She wasn't sure if she could overlook him attacking her closest and dearest friend.
Instead of answering her right away, her crimson clad companion only met her gaze steadily, every line in his body speaking of inner tension and guilt. “I am,” he rumbled simply, bracing himself for her reaction as an errant breeze blew his inky bangs into his eyes. As soon as the words left his mouth, Mina found herself backing away from him in fear and shock, her head whipping back and forth in denial.
“You, you attacked Lucy. You're the reason she's so sick,” the green dress wearing female gasped out, tears of heartbreak and betrayal rimming her eyes as she continued to back away from her dark acquaintance.
“Mina…,” he murmured, stepping towards her slowly with his hands held out with his palms facing upward.
“No, no! You're killing Lucy and I've been… I'm such a fool,” Mina gasped out, hot tears of regret rolling down her pale cheeks as she turned and ran from her dark companion.
As she fled into the darkening night, the vampire stood watching her with a stricken look on his pale face. His hands fell back to his sides as his hands curled into tight fists. “Mina, forgive me. I never thought I would find you again and I was so lonely. If I had known who you were, that she was your friend, I would have never begun the process of turning her,” he rasped, his voice shaky and full of emotion as he allowed his body to fade into the shadows. Right now, there were more important things to worry about than the possibility of his lost soul mate. Van Hellsing was on his trail and he would have to be more cautious in his movements.
Lucy lay on her back in the bed, her red hair spread out on the pillow under her head and giving her already pale skin a ghost-like quality. The skin around her eyes was purple, almost bruised looking from blood loss and her breathing was weak and uneven. A vase full of garlic flowers sat by her bed and more adorned her windows and the posts of her bed. Crosses also hung from the windows and bedposts, light from the candles bouncing off them and causing odd lights to dance on the walls. One cross shaped light landed on a pair of red, irritated looking punctures, causing a slight hiss of pain to leave her lips as it burned her very slightly.
Outside the huge glass doors that lead to a balcony that overlooked a garden stood a shadowy figure of a man, two glowing points of light where his eyes would be. As if sensing his presence, the weak and frail woman sat up, turned her head and gazed out the door that was to the left of her bed. “My lord,” she gasped out in a weak voice, a shaky hand going to the wounds on her neck. A wistful smile appeared on her face as she swung her shapely legs of her bed and made her way to the door to open it for him.
As soon as it swung open, his presence filled the room and he was standing bare inches from her. His burning eyes bored down into her as he bent to inhale her scent, as if assessing her for something. Lucy only closed her eyes in response, her blue eyes fluttering shut as she leaned toward him, baring her neck for him in anticipation. Instead of gifting her with his sweet kiss like she had hoped, her strange visitor only pulled back with a low growl. “It is too late,” he hissed out, his voice tinged by anger and not the heated passion she was used to. Before she could even begin to form the words to ask what was wrong, he was burying his fangs in her neck and her world was filled with dark pleasure.
Mina awoke to a letter from Jonathan saying he was alive and that he had ended up in a mission in Romania. He wanted her to join him to be married immediately. The news didn't bring the joy she had expected, instead bringing a rush of guilt, apprehension and a deep sorrow. 'You can't marry him! You already belong to another!' Elizabeta protested heatedly from the back of her mind, her own fear flowing through their innate connection to eachother.
“I was with Jonathan before all of this happened! Besides, Vlad is no longer the man you knew. He's a beast, a creature who is killing my friend,” Mina murmured quietly, not quite convinced by her own words. Despite her lingering anger and betrayal over her revelation of yesterday, she still felt empty and alone without her dark companion nearby. Had she gotten so attached to the demon that he had made her forget her loyalty to Lucy, to Jonathan? No, she would go to tell Lucy of the events then go join her intended in Romania to be married. Once she was married, maybe she would forget the dreadful tugging of her heart.
Mina ran up to the doors of Lucy's mansion, her sea-green dress whirling around her ankles as she moved. Her friend would no doubt want to hear of the events as soon as possible and the young woman couldn't help but hope the happiness would help Lucy's recovery. As she reached the front steps she was startled to see Van Hellsing and Lucy's fiance, Arthur Holmwood, standing in front of the huge double doors that lead into the building. “Mina! My dear Mina, I'm so glad you've come,” Arthur exclaimed, relief and a deep sadness in his smooth voice. The brown mustache that adorned his upper lip almost seemed to droop from his depression.
“Arthur, what is it? Is Lucy…?” the young female gasped, her ebony hair framing her face as her gaze shifted from the old doctor and the young, distraught man.
“She's… she's,” Arthur stammered, his adam's apple working in his tanned throat as he struggled to get the words past his lips.
“Miss Westenra is dying my lady. She does not have much time left. We were just about to send a messenger to get you,” Van Hellsing replied for the wordless man, his faded blue eyes shining with sadness and an odd determination. His gray hair was combed back, the ends of his hair touching the back of his neck and a mustache of the same color graced his upper lip. The wrinkles on his gaunt, pale face only added to his somber look as he looked down at the young female before him.
Mina could only look at both men in shock, her heart dropping to the bottom of her shoes. Somewhere, deep inside, she hoped they were only playing a cruel joke but she knew that Hellsing was very serious. Without another word to the pair, the black haired woman shot into the mansion and up the stairs to Lucy's room. Flinging the door open, she drew in a surprised hiss at the sight of her once vibrant friend.
The young female lay on her back, her eyes shut and her red hair spread under her head. Her cheeks looked hollow, dark purple tainted the skin of her eyes, and her once milk colored skin now looked ash gray. Her thin chest barely moved as she breathed, almost making it look as if she wasn't breathing at all and giving poor Mina quite a scare. “Oh Lucy,” she breathed, moving into the room to stand by her childhood friend's bedside. The frail woman's eyes fluttered open in response, a weak smile on her corpse-like face.
“Mina, my dearest Mina. It does me so much good to see you my sister,” she whispered in a wispy voice, reaching for the other woman's hands with her own. Mina only smiled sadly in response, placing her hands in Lucy's.
“I got word from Jonathan. He's in a mission in Romania and wants me to join him to be married,” Mina told the ailing woman, smiling as the news had the desired effect. It was as if her words gave Lucy a new life, the weak woman sitting up and smiling at her friend.
“Oh Mina, I'm so happy for you! I so hoped that Jonathan would be found someday and you two would get married. I have a wedding present for you,” the red haired female whispered, her voice still weak and wispy even as her blue eyes glittered with merriment. The dying woman then began to tug at a ring on her finger that was a huge, ornate sapphire set in silver.
“I wanted to give this to you on the day of your wedding as a symbol of our sisterhood. I can't tell you how much I wish I could be there with you on your big day,” Lucy sighed as she reached forward to place the ring in Mina's hand.
Unnoticed by the two women, Van Hellsing and Arthur stood in the doorway to watch the scene. Van Hellsing had an oddly grim look on his wizened face as his faded eyes stayed fixed on Lucy. Arthur, oblivious to the look on his companion's face, was the very picture of misery and heartbreak. His young face now looked decades old, worry for Lucy having aged him. “If she dies, how will I find the strength to go on?” he whispered, his voice tortured as he fought to give the two friends some needed time alone to say their goodbyes.
“You will need more strength than that to get through the next few days,” Abraham uttered cryptically, his blue eyes glinting with a steely edge. Arthur only looked at him in confusion before returning his attention to the pair in the room.
Mina insisted on staying with Lucy as she died, despite both men trying to usher her out of the room. She knew it wasn't proper for her to be in the room at the moment of death but she wasn't about to leave her friend alone for a moment. As the unfortunate female breathed her last, both Arthur and Mina were each holding a hand; tears streaming down their faces. Only Van Hellsing seemed unmoved by the event, staring down at the body with a critical look. It was only him that noticed Lucy's looks return to normal, looking better dead than she had ever looked alive.
Traveling to Romania had been a sad, guilt filled trip, most of it spent looking out the window at the speeding scenery. Lucy's death had strengthened her resolve to never see her Prince again but the news had yet to reach her heart, which still cried out for her dark companion mournfully. Trying to shut out her traitorous emotions, Mina focused on her soon marriage to Jonathan. Jonathan was a good man who had treated her like the finest prize he could have ever claimed. He wanted to give her the world on a silver platter. She would be perfectly happy with him and soon forget the draw of the stranger who had turned her life upside down. A stranger who had awakened the past life that was currently howling its protest in the back of her mind.
Vlad paced back and forth restlessly, a muscle ticking in his jaw as he clasped his hands behind his back. Mina, his treasure, had simply disappeared and he had been unable to find her to explain. Now a newly risen Lucy was telling him that Mina had gone to Romania to marry her fiance, news that was filling him with rage, despair, jealousy and fear. Everything in him was screaming at the possibility that he had lost her forever, all because he had turned Lucy for the sake of companionship. All he knew was that when she came back he would make the effort to apologize and explain. He wouldn't lose his other half to a mere human who was worth less than she deserved, unless she wished it; a possibility that scared him down to his very soul.
Jonathan was a much different man than who had left her to go visit a Count Dracula to establish a property deal, a journey which had resulted in his disappearance. He was no nervous and jumpy, jolting at the every small movement outside the carriage that traveled down the lonely roads of England. At one point the carriage stopped and her now husband leapt to the right window, staring at something with a fearful look. “My God, it is the man himself! He's grown young!” he hissed, his voice full of abject terror and he shot backwards and looked as if he wanted to disappear into the back of his seat.
Immediately Mina moved to comfort her shaking husband, her eyes flicking to the window he was staring out with such horror. It was at that moment that the carriage decided to move so she only caught a glimpse of red and black, making her heart lurch in her chest. Was Vlad also Dracula? Was he the man responsible for her intended's disappearance? The questions only made more guilt rise within her as well as fear. Could the presence in the back of her mind be nothing more than a trick placed there by Vlad? As much as she longed to accept that as an explanation, she felt in the very depths of her soul that Elizabeta was her.
All too soon the carriage drew up to her house, now their house; breaking her out of her reverie. Smiling at her still nervous husband, Mina gently led him out of the carriage and to the door. Leading him in with a gentle push of her hand, she couldn't help but feel as if she was being watched. Turning around, her heart stopped in her chest as she saw her Prince standing on the street and staring up at her with his intense eyes. “Mina,” came his voice, as if carried by the wind and caressing her body. Shuddering slightly as her heart clenched in her chest, the young female turned and practically fled into her house and closed the door.
Vlad stood on the sidewalk for a few more minutes, his unbeating heart a lead weight in his chest. Mina had looked absolutely terrified of him and it made him feel a deep fear in the pit of his heart. It was looking more and more like she was steadily putting the pieces together of who he really was and she was terrified of him. She was just like everyone else, only seeing him for the monster he supposedly was and not for the man he truly was. It was looking more like she would never accept him and the incident with Lucy certainly hadn't helped matters. Curling his hands into tight fists, a new determination came into his orangeish red eyes. No, he wouldn't give up! He would come to her tonight so he could explain.
Lucy floated amongst the tilting graves in the foggy graveyard, her predatory eyes searching the darkness for any signs of life. Although Lord Dracula had ordered her to stay within the crypt until he brought her food, her hunger had driven her to the surface to hunt. The scent of blood and fear drew her like a magnet causing her nostrils to flare and drool to fill her mouth. Whoever it was smelled young, their sweet blood spiced by their fear and confusion. Just the thought of tasting the tiniest drop made her fangs ache and elongate in her mouth.
A young child huddled behind a gravestone, her green eyes wide with fear as she looked around the foggy, dark graveyard. Her tiny heart thudded in her chest, drawing the wispy creature closer to the unaware girl. The poor child was curled into a ball, her knees pressed to her chest as tears rolled down her cheeks. “Are you lost my darling?” Lucy cooed, smiling down at the frightened girl kindly.
“Y-yes, I came here with my friends to play hide and seek and they must have left without me,” the small girl answered, looking up at the ethereal woman above her with apprehension and dawning hope.
“Come with me, I can show you the way home,” the newborn vampire replied with a smile as she took the child's hand in hers and began to lead her to the crypt.
Just as she was about the reach the stairway that would lead to her coffin, Abraham Van Hellsing and Arthur came jumping out from the sides of the building to block her path. “Lucy,” Arthur breathed, disbelief and fear clear in his brown eyes as he stared at his undead fiance.
“Arthur,” Lucy purred, dropping the child's hand and reaching out for her would have been lover. Despite her hunger, the sight of her ex-fiance made her long for his arms around her. Lord Dracula was a skilled lover and was very handsome but had failed to pluck her heartstrings like Arthur had. Arthur had felt like a missing puzzle piece in her soul and being told that she could never see him again had broken her heart. Now that he was in front of her, she couldn't resist going for the embrace of his familiar arms, of maybe getting one last kiss.
Just before she reached the stunned man, a cross was shoved in her face; causing pain and fear to fill her. Hissing and baring her fangs from fear, sorrow filled her to see Arthur pull back and stare at her with his own fear. Seeing her beloved so afraid of her was simply too much, drawing her back to the reality of what she had nearly done to the child who was now cowering behind her. Whimpering in her throat, Lucy simply fled down the stairs of her crypt. “We must follow her and finish this,” Van Hellsing hissed, glaring at the reluctant, heartbroken looking Arthur to his left.
“What about the child,” Arthur whispered, gesturing to the cowering, sobbing child who was looking at the two men with confusion and fear. Van Hellsing also looked at the child before sighing in resignation.
“Take her home and come back as quickly as you can. This should be over by then,” the old man conceded before turning, heading down the stairs and into the crypt.
Lucy was on her knees on the stone floor of the crypt, her face buried in her hands. Her red tresses hung in her pale face as her shoulders shook. She hadn't thought about the victim being a child, only that she was hungry and the girl's blood had smelled so delicious that she couldn't help herself. “Lucy,” came a familiar, elderly male voice from in front of her.
“Dr. Van Hellsing, what am I? What did that creature make me into?” she asked, bloody tears slipping down her milky cheeks as she stared up at the wizened man. The old doctor only sighed before he knelt before the shaking female.
“He has turned you into a vampire, a nosferatu, a creature who craves blood,” he answered, his voice kind and full of sympathy as he gazed down at her. Lucy only hung her head, rubbing her bare arms as she focused her gaze on the dusty floor.
“My dear Lucy, I must destroy you. I cannot allow you to infect others and kill children,” Van Hellsing murmured apologetically, waiting until her eyes met his to stand up. He wanted to be sure the female understood him and bore him no ill will for what he was about to do.
The young nosferatu slowly got to her feet, more tears sliding down her white cheeks as she looked at the older man in front of her. She didn't want to die but she couldn't argue with the logic of his words. If she was allowed to roam free there was no telling what she would do or who she would kill. Tonight had certainly proven that she couldn't be trusted alone. “Will it, will it hurt?” she asked in a shaky voice, looking up at the doctor with tear filled eyes.
“Only for a few minutes, then you will know peace,” Van Hellsing assured, giving her a reassuring look. Lucy only nodded, laying down in her coffin and closing her eyes. Two more blood tinged tears slipped down her pale cheeks as she braced herself for whatever was to come. As she laid back, Van Hellsing set a leather satchel on the ground and reached inside; pulling out a mallet and a large, sharp, wooden stake.
“Just a few moments of pain my dear,” he murmured, more to himself than to the shaking female in the coffin. Then he placed the point of the stake where her unbeating heart would be before bringing down the mallet as hard as he could.
Mina was restless, pacing along her balcony while her husband slept in the room behind her. Despite her resolution to forget her dark companion, her heart still ached for his nearness. It was almost enough to make her start crying in frustration and sheer depression. He had killed her friend, had more than likely driven Jonathan mad and yet she still felt frustratingly hollow without him. A fact that filled her with guilt and self hatred. How could she still feel anything for this beast after everything he had done? 'We will always love him. There's nothing that will stop that,' Elizabeta whispered from the back of her mind, sounding as sad and lost as Mina felt.
“It must be hard for you to see him like this,” Mina whispered, moving to the railing of her balcony and looking out into the night. The shade stayed disturbingly silent, faint waves of despair and heartbreak pouring from her and into her host's mind.
“Mina,” came a husky, lonely whisper on the wind, causing the young female's entire body to shudder from both pleasure and fear.
“Vlad,” she gasped, looking over the edge of the balcony and at the darkened ground below. There, staring up at her with glowing eyes, was her dark Prince.
“No, please go away. You killed Lucy and Jonathan still hasn't recovered from whatever you've done to him. I can't… I can't bear to be around you, please,” she begged in a breathless voice, her heart jumping in her throat and clenching painfully.
“Mina, my Mina; please just allow me to explain,” he begged, his voice soft and full of sorrow as well as regret. Then he began to float up towards her balcony, his burning eyes locking her in place as he got closer.
Instead of running like everything in her body was screaming at her to do, the young woman only stood in place; backing up slightly to allow the vampire to land on the balcony. The creature towered above her, his sunset colored eyes full of fear, regret and sadness as he stared down at her. “I have been alone for too long to even remember. I had gotten bored of Romania as well and longed to see more of the large world around me. I summoned your Jonathan for pure intentions, just wanting to buy some estate in England. While he was there, he stumbled across what I was and tried to destroy me. I only locked him up in that castle to save myself. As for young Lucy, she was so fresh, so vibrant; something about her drew me like a moth to a flame. I couldn't help myself, I was so lonely and I never thought I would find…,” he murmured, flinching slightly at the parts of the story he had left out. He had left out he had three consorts in Romania, ones that had been with him for centuries but no longer held his interest.
It had been these that had led Jonathan to his unfortunate discovery. If only the foolish man had followed his orders and stayed in his room, he wouldn't have had to have left the foolish realtor to the mercy of his consorts. He would have gladly let Jonathan go unmolested if it hadn't been for that fact as well as the fact that the man had also tried to kill him while he slept. Then, all of a sudden, he jolted in place as he felt a strong, yet phantom pain in his chest. Almost immediately grief filled him as he felt the severing of his connection to his newborn Childe and consort. Van Hellsing had reached and dispatched of Lucy, it would only be a matter of time before the old hound managed to track him down.
Mina had absorbed what he said in silence, sensing there was more to the explanation about Jonathan but unwilling to pry the information out of him. Then her companion had gone stiff, a pained expression on his porcelain face. It almost looked as if someone he had cared about had died suddenly, making her want to offer any comfort she could, a fact that disturbed her but was undeniable. So, as she looked up at his strained face, the delicate female wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her cheek against his crimson clad chest.
In the instant his scent hit her nose, all her remaining despair and anger at him disappeared. Just holding him in her arms soothed her wounded soul as well as her tumultuous feelings. Then, to her surprise, Vlad was wrapping his arms around her and burrowing his nose in her hair. “Lucy is gone,” he murmured quietly, as if expecting her to understand what he meant.
“What do you mean? She was gone before I left,” Mina whispered, pain faintly flaring in the back of her mind only to be quickly quelled by her contentment of just being in his arms.
“She was reborn into unlife, not truly dead. Van Hellsing has ended that existence,” he replied, his voice husky from rage and sorrow as his arms tightened around her slightly.
“How do you know it was Van Hellsing? Also, isn't it a good thing she won't be able to kill more people?” Mina asked, pulling away to look in the shadowy creature's eyes. Even as she finished speaking, she felt foolish about what she had said. A life was a life, it didn't matter how righteous the reasons were for taking it.
“No, if she listened to me she would have been well fed without having to take any life. Now she is truly beyond any reach. As for how I know it was Hellsing, let's just say he and I are old 'friends',” he replied his baritone voice full of ill humor as a sardonic grin curled his lips, showing off his long, sharp canine teeth.
Instead of startling at the sight of his fangs like he thought she would, Mina only resumed hugging him with her cheek nestled against his strong chest. “I just don't know what to do. Everything inside of me is telling me I'm betraying Jonathan and Lucy by loving you. If it's so wrong, why do I only feel content when you hold me in your arms?” she whispered in a heartbroken voice.
“Mina, all I can ask is your forgiveness. If I had known of your existence and the importance of these people in your life I would have never done any of what I have,” he assured, pulling back to tilt her chin with his hand so he could look into her confused, emerald eyes.
“I love you with everything I am. You are as needed to me as air and water is to a human being but if you wish to never see me again, I will honor your wish,” Vlad continued, bloody tears beginning to roll down his cheeks as he awaited her answer. If she bade him to go away he would obey but it would break his heart.
Instead of answering him verbally, the young female stood on her tiptoes to plant a gentle kiss on his cool lips. In response, Vlad wrapped his arms around her and returned the kiss with all the passion he felt for the woman in his arms. The strong reaction to her kiss caused her eyes to fill with tears and her heart to swell with love. Even if loving this demon damned her immortal soul, she had never felt more at home than in his arms. As the revelation came to her, she felt his cool tongue on her lips; begging for entrance.
In shock, Mina opened her mouth; only to have it invaded by his tongue as it lapped over the top of hers. A deep, shuddering growl rumbled from his chest as he continued to swirl his tongue within her warm, welcoming mouth. To both their surprise, the young female began to respond, her arms coming up to wrap around Vlad's strong neck. After a few moments, the vampire broke the kiss to allow his human to breath; looking down at her with love filled eyes. “Mina, my Mina,” he husked out, bending to kiss her temple as his human struggled to catch her breath. Then he was gone as suddenly as he had appeared, leaving behind a confused Mina as she stared at the empty air her Prince had once occupied.
“Mina?” came Jonathan's sleep muzzed voice from the doorway to the balcony, answering her question of why he left.
“Be right there Jonathan,” she answered as cheerfully as she could muster, only slightly relieved when she heard him turn around and go back inside.
It had been only a day since her Prince's visit as well as Lucy's true death and Mina found herself languishing from lack of contact with her dark companion. Something inside her now craved his presence near her and she simply found herself unable to motivate herself to eat or even leave her room. She found that without seeing her Prince for even one night she had simply fallen into a deep depression. Right now she would give everything just to hear his voice. To make things worse, her odd behavior was concerning Jonathan and he was now threatening to send for Hellsing to come examine her. Sighing in frustration and sadness, the young female opened the doors to her balcony to step outside and watch the sunset.
As the sky grew darker, she found herself growing more anxious at the prospect of seeing her Prince tonight. Sure he hadn't come last night but she had no doubt she would see him tonight, something inside her telling her so very strongly. Then, as if on cue, she heard a familiar voice on the wind whisper her name; making her close her expressive eyes in pleasure. When she opened her eyes, he was standing before her; his eyes glowing slightly in the deepening twilight. “Vlad,” she whispered, happiness and relief filling her at the sight of him. Then she was in his arms, her cheek rubbing against his chest as she pressed herself to him as close as she possibly could. She knew she should be ashamed of her shameless display but she just couldn't find it within herself to care.
“Mina, I have come to ask an important question,” the dark Prince rumbled out, pulling her back so he could look into her eyes. Mina looked up at him with a look so full of love and trust that it nearly took his breath away.
“Will you join me in this eternal life, walk by my side in the night as my Queen?” he asked, his voice rough from the emotions he felt as he awaited her answer with bated breath.
The young female could only stare up at her shadowy visitor with shock on her face before contemplation replaced it. Was this the life she wanted? To become a creature that was hated and seen as evil by most of the world? A creature that could only live by sucking the blood of others? As she looked up at his apprehensive, love filled eyes, Mina found her answer was yes. No matter what she would turn into, she always wanted to be by Vlad's side. “Yes, my Prince, yes,” she gasped out, tilting her head to the side to bare her neck to the vampire. Then his fangs were buried in her neck and her world filled with dark pleasure.
It only took twice to make Jonathan suspicious about her weakness and inability to get out of bed. Against her heated protests, her well meaning husband had summoned Van Hellsing and the man was now examining her closely. When he had turned her head and had seen the puncture marks, a greedy grin appeared on his face. “He's bitten you and created a link between you and himself. Miss. Harker, you have given us a way to find and destroy this beast,” he declared, triumph in his tired eyes as he clasped Mina's hand in his.
Trying to keep the concern and reluctance from her face, the young woman could only nod in agreement. Van Hellsing beamed in response, kissing the back of her hand as he got to his feet. “Come Jonathan! We have much to prepare! Tonight we will stand guard outside Miss. Mina's room but the next night we will begin our hunt,” the old doctor exclaimed excitedly, wrapping his arm around Jonathan's shoulder and leading him out of the room. Both were oblivious to the fact that Mina's eye were filling with fear.
“You have to run! You have to!” she pleaded, grasping the crimson lapels of his Victorian style jacket in her hands as she looked up at him with fright filled eyes. Vlad only looked down at her passively, smiling down at her reassuringly as he bent down to kiss her forehead.
“No,” he hissed out, determination in his voice as he tightened his hold on the female in his arms. Jonathan and Van Hellsing had long since fallen asleep thanks to his powers but there was no telling how long the two would be unconscious. Yet this meeting tonight had been needed by both of them, the two of them needing to be close to eachother more and more often. Every moment away from eachother was agony for them, making it increasingly difficult for him to be able to leave her behind when he left.
“Van Hellsing is going to use me to hunt you! I can't be responsible for your death! Please, please!” she gasped out, tears pouring copiously down her cheeks as she looked up at the vampire with abject terror. If Van Hellsing was successful in using her to kill Vlad she would never forgive herself. She doubted she would even be able to continue on with her life, knowing he was dead.
“No, Mina. I cannot be that far from you. Come what may, until you are turned I am stuck here,” he rasped out, amusement tinging his voice even as he tried to reassure her. It was all Mina could do not to burst into frustrated tears as she burrowed her face in his chest.
The next day Van Hellsing used a technique known as hypnosis to improve her connection to the vampire to help track him down. While she was out, she gave information she didn't even know she had; telling them where he had stashed his coffins and where he was currently staying. When she came back to herself, Van Hellsing had told her the information she had given them; too excited to notice her deep distress. Then he and Jonathan were gone, off to destroy the coffins before the creature arose for the night; leaving behind a very distraught Mina.
As soon as they were gone, she was running down the stairs and out of the house. Hot tears blurring her vision, the frightened female ran until she reached cemetery. Then she was sprinting toward a large mausoleum, only stopped by the unmoving stone door. Gasping and crying in near hysteria, the woman fairly clawed at the unforgiving stone in her desperation to gain access to the large crypt. She was so distraught, it took her a few moments to notice the door swing open under her shaking hands. A gust of musty, stale air blew out of the pitch black chamber below, bringing the smell of rot and death. “Mina?” came a questioning voice from the darkness, filling her with relief.
“Vlad, oh Vlad! He's coming, they're coming. Van Hellsing hypnotized me so I would give out your location as well as the locations of all of your coffins,” she confessed breathlessly as the vampire appeared in the shadow filled doorway.
“He is already here my love,” Vlad replied stepping out of the depths of the crypt and into the sunlight, surprising the poor Mina rather severely. From everything she had read, it wasn't possible for him to be out in the sun like this. The only answer she got was a smile as he shoved her behind his back protectively.
Just as he had finished doing that, Van Hellsing, Arthur and Jonathan came sprinting towards them with determined looks on their faces. Narrowing his blazing eyes, Vlad shot forward to meet them, a vicious snarl ripping from his throat as he engaged in battle with the trio. It was all Mina could do not to rush forward and beg for his life, something that would have surely fallen on deaf ears. As the battle wore on, it became a one on one between the older doctor and the much more powerful vampire. Then, all of a sudden, Van Hellsing was lunging forward; burying a stake in the vampire's chest.
Vlad looked down at the piece of wood sticking out of his chest in astonishment before he slid to his knees. While this was happening, Mina became aware of a high pitched screaming coming from somewhere as she began to run towards the collapsing nosferatu. As she reached Vlad's side, she became aware the noise was coming from her. Just before she reached his side, she was caught in Jonathan's arms and stopped. “Let me go! Let me go! He needs me!” she screamed, her voice sounding hysterical and heartbroken as she fought against her husband like an angry cat.
“Get her away from here. Once he's dead, his thrall over her will end,” Van Hellsing assured, glaring down at the gasping vampire as his hands grasped uselessly at the stake in his chest.
Still sobbing Mina screamed for Vlad even as she was lead away by Arthur and Jonathan. Despite what Hellsing said, she knew she would never forget the being she was being forced to leave. She would likely never recover from the loss of him, would never forgive herself for betraying him. Screaming his name as she was cruelly torn away, Mina could only cry bitter tears as the vampire slowly left her range of sight.
Once alone with the vampire, Abraham knelt in front of him to grin cruelly. “She will be free of you now, you will never have her,” the old doctor gloated, hatred and triumph shining in his faded blue eyes. Vlad only chuckled in response, the sound weak and full of fluid.
“We will never be free of eachother,” the creature hissed out, dark blood bubbling out from between his lips as he began to loose consciousness. Even as he slipped into the darkness, he could see Van Hellsing glowering down at him with an evil glint in his eyes.
“Now you are mine, vampire. Mine to do with as I wish,” were the last words he heard before he blacked out.'
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Midnight Roses