"Does it work?" Lucas asked, without turning, from where he was kneeling by the sitting room's fireplace when he heard me descending the stairs the following morning.

"It should. It did, last year." I replied quite unnecessarily as he already managed to get a small flame burning around some dry twigs and pieces of paper he had piled on the hearth, the thin ribbon of smoke floating up the chimney as it was supposed to. "See? I'm sure there's more wood in the garage, we can bring it in later."

A wide grin spread across his face when he stood up and caught sight of me, curled up under the blanket on the sofa, watching him with only half-opened eyes and considering going back to bed. It was cold, cloudy and windy outside and my bed was so warm and comfortable...

"Haven't you just woken up? And you're lying down again! You don't plan to spend the whole Holidays in bed, do you?" Lucas teased. "You need to get changed," he pointed at my dressing gown as he snatched my blanket away, "then we should get you practicing your fighting skills some more..."

Yeah... 'practicing my fighting skills' right now consisted of listening to his tips on how to hold a knife, and trying to remember that I was not to freak out at the sight of blood. Even though a real vampire wouldn't bleed as profusely as a human, still, there would be some blood...

"Fine, fine, but I need some coffee first," I said as he reached for my hand and pulled me to my feet quickly, making me feel dizzy.

This was the newest symptom of the pregnancy-- my vision blurring and exploding in spots every time I stood up too fast. That, and the constant hunger.

"Also, I need something to eat." I added. "A croissant. Or two. Then I'll cook lunch and..."

"You'll cook later, otherwise we'll never start with your practice," he laughed, following me into the kitchen and putting the kettle on while I rummaged through the cupboards to see what Mum had bought for us.

In the end, we didn't get as many occasions for practicing fight and self-defence as Lucas would have liked, during the two days before Lia and Stoker's arrival.

We spent most of the time out, at Julian's, or at Lucas' father's, shopping for clothes and presents with Anaïs or strolling in the Marina with Mum. I suspected that Lucas pitied me too much, seeing me drained at the end of the days when we finally got back up to the house, to force me to do any practice. But he made me fall asleep on the sofa both nights by making me listen to his summary of the main points of self-defence, and the list of the body parts I should be aiming for when trying to disarm or disable an opponent with a knife.

Then, on the evening of the twenty-fourth, Lia and Stoker finally arrived.

"I missed you!" Lia rushed out of the large black car to embrace me as if we hadn't seen each other for a couple of months, rather than days. "Goodness gracious me, you've grown again!" She exclaimed when she pulled me inside from the veranda where I had been waiting for them.

"We need to talk, Samara," Stoker said as he and Lucas walked past us, loaded with the luggage. "Later," he added, seeing that Lia kept rattling on about my pregnancy as she walked towards the kitchen tugging me behind her, apparently too excited to let anybody else talk at the moment. What is wrong with her? She was a chatty girl, but she did not usually speak quite as much or as fast as this...

"So," I said once we had eaten and Lia announced that she had had a long day, and wished to go to bed. "There's the master bedroom, or the two smaller ones across the corridor from mine and Lucas' rooms. You guys choose whichever you want."

It was amusing to watch the two look at each other across the table, then the blush spreading over Lia's cheeks like wildfire, as she declared, "We'll... take the master bedroom, thank you."

Wow. So that's why she is so... strange. My friend who two months ago did not believe in love, was admitting to be in a relationship... I had to bite my tongue not to tease her about it, the way she used to tease me whenever I tried to prove to her that love existed in the past.

"Great. Off you go, you know the house. I'll get the dishes." I told her instead, pushing my chair away from the table and standing up.

"Thanks, Sam." She whispered in my ear as she rushed to embrace me before vanishing up the stairs, followed by her Abraham.

"That was... fast." Lucas muttered, running his hand through his curls. "I would never have said..."

"Oh well. Don't worry about them, they seem happy enough together." I shrugged, finally accepting the idea of Lia and Stoker as a couple.

"You're right of course, it's just that now that I think about it, I don't remember ever seeing Uncle in a long-term relationship." He said as he stood up to help me collect the dishes and fill the dishwasher.

"Lia is the same." I smiled. "I guess they'll learn how it works together."

Lucas and I were watching a movie, an action-packed kung-fu fantasy from which I was supposed to learn some new moves, or at least recognize the ones he taught me, when Stoker joined us in the sitting room an hour later, saying that Lia was asleep.

"Did you have any new dreams, Samara?" He asked as soon as he sat down and Lucas switched the television off, so we could talk undisturbed.

"Not really," I shook my head sadly. "Just the usual incoherent glimpses..."

"Have you ever thought that it might be you, creating the dreams as a connection between you and him?" He asked, scanning my eyes for answers which I might not be able to put into words.

"Vlad said something like that, in one of my visions, but it can't be possible, can it?"

"Why not?" Stoker asked, leaning closer over the low coffee table dividing us, and looking at me even more intently, if that was possible.

"Because, I don't know you, vampires, but people, humans like me, can't do that." I announced, pulling my feet up onto the sofa and hugging my legs as I tried to sink deeper into the cushions. I still found talking to him about serious matters disquieting.

"What if you are not... just a regular human, Samara?" He asked, making my breath catch.

Just... What?

"Have you ever thought about your previous life, your origin?" Stoker continued when I did not respond.

"What about it? I did ask Katerina a few times, but she was always so vague that I gave up." I managed to say finally.

He nodded thoughtfully. "That makes sense. She never told me anything about you either. And now I know that she couldn't. She's one of you."

"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked, unable to follow his murky reasoning.

"You are a Transcendental, Samara."

"And that is....?" Lucas asked, his voice laced with doubt, before I could say anything.

"They are... eternal beings with... unusual powers. Magic, if you want." His uncle replied seriously, relaxing his watchful pose and leaning against the back of the armchair.

Is he serious? This was too much, even coming from someone like Abraham Stoker, a person with an apparently unlimited imagination.

"Are you saying that I'm a witch? I must tell you that Rareş beat you to this silly theory. Do you really think that I can do magic tricks and all that?"

"Wait. Let me explain," he said. "You are not... pure. Even in your previous life, your father was an ordinary human, so you only inherited a part of your mother's powers. And now you are reborn. Your magic is greatly... diluted. But I'm certain that your mysterious, original mother, who appeared out of nowhere and disappeared again from history without leaving more than a couple of lines confirming her existence in the old records, was a Transcendental. So is your nurse and partly, you."

"Is Katerina really a ...?" I struggled to ask, unable to pronounce the word witch.

He nodded. "Think about the time portals," he said, making me recall the one I walked through immediately.

It was just a black, empty... well, completely invisible on this side, in this century. There had only been that... faint buzzing sound in the castle the whole day when it was open, but only on the other side. Walking across made me feel dizzy and tired but...

"Was it anything like you would imagine a time portal to be?" Stoker prompted, disturbing my reverie.

"No, not really." I said, recollecting some descriptions of time portals from the fantasy books I've read. "There was no strange smell, whispering voices or howling wind..."

"Precisely. Because it's a... magical passage created for you by your Katerina, who knew that you'd be reborn at some point, rather than an accidental passage in time!"

I opened my mouth to start asking or protesting, I wasn't sure which, but he interrupted me before I could start.

"I don't know much about this. About them and their powers. I have no idea why you were reborn, in a body identical to your previous one, why now, or how Katerina knew it would happen. There's next to nothing concerning Transcendentals in books. They are not the typical witches, those women concocting dubious filters and potions, scaring most people out of their wits then getting burned at the stake for alleged crimes they did not commit. They are different. I have only found enough information to get me started to think about this possibility, when Lucas mentioned your love for wild animals. That's not a simple love." Stoker said, his curious eyes piercing through me. "That's one of your powers. You may be able to connect with the wild beasts, to understand them. With a little practice, I'm sure you'll learn to communicate with them and make them obey you in no time."

He paused for a while to let the information sink, then continued, "Then there are your visions. Your occasional glimpses of the future-- the way you feel your child will be a daughter, or the premonitions you see sometimes. Premonitions that help to save and protect those you love. And the link you created  between you and your husband, to see and watch over him when you are apart. Those dreams, which for some reason you blocked."

"I... I did no such thing. Why would I block them?" I asked, feeling confused.

"Because you thought you had a reason to do so. Maybe you needed some time to... clear your mind and make a decision... maybe you thought he needed to do that. I don't know," Stoker shrugged. "But I'm sure that as soon as you stop overcomplicating things, and decide to simply follow your heart as you have always done, the dreams will come back."

He took his notebook out of the pocket of his grey sweatshirt and consulted it briefly before adding, "I think that your husband can only see you when he's asleep too, so you should tell him to try to sleep more, the next time you see him. And one more thing, Samara. It's possible that once your child is born your connection will weaken. But that's just a theory."

"This all is just a theory, right?" I asked, mind reeling. He was... making enough sense to make me hope...

"More-less, yes." He smiled.

"I should go to bed." I mumbled. I needed to be alone, to organize my thoughts and all the new information.

"Good night, Samara. Try to dream." Stoker said standing up and walking towards the sliding door, a packet of cigarettes appearing in his hand.

I stood up too, and made my way slowly out of the room, towards the staircase leading to the bedrooms.

"Are you all right?" Lucas asked across the room.

"I... think so. Do you think his... theory is right?" I asked, nodding to Stoker who was standing on the veranda behind the glass, his back to us, the tip of his cigarette glowing faintly in the dark.

"He might be. I guess you'll tell us in the morning." Lucas smiled. "Good night, Samara," he added, before he too walked outside.