"Did Katerina tell you this? Because she told me that I cannot leave..."

"You cannot leave without me." I said, watching him as he pulled himself into a sitting position.

I followed his example and we sat on the bed facing each other, the crackles of the fire devouring the momentary silence that descended between us like a wall.

"When you arrived last year, leaving this place with you if you could not stay was my greatest wish, Samara. I would have followed you outside, I swear, I was ready to force Katerina to make it possible, if I had to... But it was before everything went wrong here... while Ioan was still alive, when Andrei never interfered with my life and Rareş would not dare to question my authority as a Prince..." He sighed heavily before he continued, "How can I leave this country on my son's shoulders like this? I'd feel... like running away from a battle which I know I'm bound to lose sooner or later, leaving them all behind to suffer for my mistakes. I love you, Samara, but unless I manage to fix this place before the portal reopens I will have to stay, and I beg your forgiveness..." he trailed off.

Even though it seemed like he was renouncing me, and Aurora, for his son and country, and I felt the traitorous tears rolling down my cheeks, I loved him even more for it, if that was possible. This is my Vlad. I would not want him to be any different.

"I understand," I whispered, voice breaking with sobs.

"Hush," he said, pulling me close and letting me bury my face into his chest. "It hurts me as much as it hurts you... forgive me..."

"There's nothing to forgive, I love you."

It took him a while to make me stop crying, but somehow he did; my sobs ceased at some point as I listened to his soothing words. I resolved not to mention his coming away with me ever again, but help him as much as I could to make this place the way it used to be in the past, before the portal would reopen again. I would never want to leave Junior here alone either, seeing the way things were now.

"Tell me about your son and Clara." I demanded as we lay down again, my head resting on his chest, one of his hands playing with my hair absentmindedly.

"What about?" He asked with a hint of a smile in his voice. "They... are together, and happy."

"But?" I asked, intrigued by his slight hesitation.

"Clara is an unmarried girl, and a mother. That's not something looked upon well here."

"Why does your son... " I started to ask, even as it hit me, "oh! Of course. The Council."

"Exactly. My son wanted to marry her the moment he found out that she was pregnant. He asked the Council several times. At first he meant to marry her because of Ioan, wanting to take care of his best friend's girl, and later, because he fell in love with her. And I'm sure that she loves him too. However, she does not want to be changed and so the Council refuses to marry them."

"That's so unfair." I murmured.

"Yes," Vlad sighed, "and I have no idea what to do about it."

"Are there many couples like them?" I asked, a shadow of an idea starting to form in my tired mind. Maybe I could do something... at least try... I thought, my eyes closing, Vlad's reply reaching me through a haze of sleep.

"Yes, quite a few..."

It was late when we finally got out of the bed the following morning, helped each other to get dressed and descended into the kitchen for an early lunch, hand in hand. I was so confused by all the unusual, furtive looks the inhabitants of the castle were shooting at us that I cornered Lucas at the first occasion I got to speak to him without an audience. The moment Vlad got distracted by ordering our horses to be prepared for our ride to the lake in the forest on which I insisted when he let me choose where to go in the afternoon, I was next to Lucas.

"What's wrong with everyone?" I asked, whispering fast, as I pushed him into an alcove next to the large fireplace.

He laughed, "That's exactly what everybody keeps asking about the two of you. You... are different around each other, more... intense and serious, as if neither of you could breathe if you were not together."

The way he said that made me smile, and sigh. My and Vlad's last night's conversation apparently left a sign on both of us. And it wasn't easy to hide anything when living surrounded by very perceptive vampires.

"So, did something happen?" Lucas insisted curiously.

"We talked." I admitted.

"And...?"

"And I have a lot of work to do."

"What are you talking about?"

"We must talk to the village's priest. As soon as possible. Then we will see what to do next."

"What? We, like you and me? Talk to a medieval priest? Are you out of your mind, Samara? You are a vampire now as much as I am, he won't listen to you... Your Majesty," Lucas looked somewhere beyond me and bowed suddenly, even as Vlad's arm snaked around my waist from behind, startling me.

"The horses are ready," he said, kissing me on the temple. "Shall we go before it starts snowing again? Lucas, we won't need you today, unless you want to come along, of course."

"No, thank you. You two have a nice afternoon." He bowed again and shooting me another exasperated look questioning my sanity, disappeared from the room.

"Let's go then," I said, turning to Vlad, while musing how to persuade Lucas to sneak out of the castle with me and visit the priest on the first occasion...

"Is everything all right?" Vlad asked, bringing his fingertips to the worry line between my eyebrows.

You must be more careful or he'll notice there is something on your mind before you'll be able to do anything. He knows you too well. My subconscious warned.

I debated telling him about my idea, to see what he would think about it. But I knew he would try to dissuade me and I'd hate to do anything he did not agree with... So it was easier not to ask his opinion and keep it to myself for the moment.

"Of course. Let's go, I can't wait to see Frost." I beamed at him, reaching for one of the apples lying on a small table near the fireplace-- Cook would have to do without that one in her cake. "Where's your son, by the way?" I added, realising that I did not see Junior at all today, and Clara disappeared the moment the lunch was over.

"Keeping our guests busy so I can enjoy a day with my wife," he replied, reminding me that the members of the Council were still present... waiting here for Rareş' arrival.

Divining the direction of my thoughts Vlad pulled me closer to his side and kissed me on top of my head as we exited the kitchen.

It was snowing heavily when we returned to the castle, and even more when, bathed and changed, I looked out of the window, while I waited for Vlad to join me for dinner in my chamber. Our guests, the awful vampires from the Council, apparently could not stay the whole day without consulting something with him and he was called off the moment we returned.

"Maybe it will snow so much that Rareş won't be able to reach this castle tomorrow," I told Katerina, who was hovering around, keeping me company, even after the maids removed the bath and brought in the food.

"I don't think that's very likely, my lady." She said gloomily. "He... he'll grow wings if he has to just to be here on time to talk to you. It's been years that he's been trying to accuse me of something, anything, just to get hold of me, to find out who... what am I. And now, if he's not completely unintelligent, he knows, or suspects at least, that you are like me."

"But why, why is he like that, why doesn't he let us be?"

"Jealousy, my lady. Hatred. In his eyes, you are the reason for his... lesser position."

"I don't understand, Katerina. Explain, please.

"You descend from the House of Muşat of Moldavia." Katerina and Vlad, who suddenly appeared behind me, said in unison.

"My lord, you can explain this to her as well as I can. Good night." Katerina said, curtsying, then making her way out of my room.

"Thank you Katerina," Vlad told her as the door closed behind her.

"Yours and his ancestors were related, Samara." He said after a moment of thought, encasing me in his embrace from behind as he rested his chin on top of my head, watching the heavy snowfall. "Your family was the most powerful in Moldavia back then. If your father made you marry one of Rareş' predecessors," he continued, reminding me that Petru himself was not born yet during my first lifetime, "Moldavia would have become an independent principality, with him as the ruler eventually, at least that's what he believes. However, you became my wife, and thus, the two countries were united. Later, years after you... left us, Rareş even asked the Turks to help him to restore his family, and him, as the ruler of Moldavia. But, of course they betrayed him, and I... knowing how he was related to you, pitied him, and made him a part of the Council, instead of punishing him as he deserved. I created this... beast he had become, always at my heels, hungry for my blood as much as the blood of those I care about..." he trailed off.

I leaned into him, closing my eyes. Vlad couldn't know that, but what he just told me about Rareş reminded me of Andrei. The reasons for their actions boiled down to the same-- both the men had hoped to gain power through my family, through me, and they would not let me be as long as I was around.

"I really hope that he'll get snowed in somewhere and we'll have another day just for us." I whispered, then turned around in his embrace, offering my lips for a kiss.

"I do hope so, too," he said as he looked in my eyes, holding my face cupped in the palms of his hands after he had kissed me, "but I'm afraid it won't happen. He'll be here early in the morning, ready to accuse me, or you, of something, anything, even witchcraft, just to drive us apart."

"How could he accuse me of witchcraft?" I forced my lips into a smile, trying to disperse his worries. I had never seen him this troubled before. "I can't even do magic..."

"You have no idea how human you still look even after the transition, that in itself is something strange. You keep appearing and disappearing from this castle... I'm sure he could find a reason if he wants to."

"And... you are sure that you still want me to talk to him...?" I asked, hoping that he would change his mind.

"I need you to tell him and his Council about Andrei, that man is at least as dangerous as Rareş himself now. I'll never be able to get to him without the Council's help, not without being imprisoned again, and what would become of you then, if I was taken away from here? Samara, please, tell me that you understand me."

"I do." I said simply. "I promised I would talk to him and I will. Come, let's eat now." I said, taking him by the hand and leading him to the table in an attempt to distract him from his gloomy thoughts.