It was the sound of footfalls that woke me up; hasty, stealthy steps rushing along the corridor and down the stairs. Lia, most likely, on her way to hide presents under the Christmas tree, I concluded, a smile tugging at the corners of my lips. It had been such a great night...

I stretched under my covers luxuriously, revelling in their warmth and softness. Turning towards the window and the sea and the sky beyond, I noticed that the sun had risen fully by now, only to be swallowed by grey, ceaselessly moving clouds, making it impossible to guess where the water ended and the air started. But it didn't matter. Rain or shine, nothing would spoil my mood today. Stoker was right. I can really connect with Vlad whenever I want... and he is free, at home, waiting for my return...

I was starting to doze off again when Lia knocked, then entered even before I could invite her in, a cup of coffee in her hand.

"It's nearly ten o'clock. We are waiting for you downstairs. I have presents for all of you and Bram wants to know if you had a dream..." she started, not giving me time to protest, or even just to reply.

As I sat up and took the coffee from her, still speechless, she moved towards my wardrobe, to choose some clean clothes for me.

"You better wear something comfortable." She rattled on. "The guys said that after brunch we'll walk to Lucas' place along the beach, it will take us at least an hour!"

As I did not say anything she turned to me, a white cardigan in her hand. "Which skirt will you wear with this?"

"Dark blue." I said after a moment of thought, smiling. "And pass me my notebook, too. Please."

She took it from my handbag lying at the bottom of the wardrobe, and gave it to me together with my clothes as I handed her the empty cup.

"I'll be with you in fifteen minutes." I told her distractedly, already lost in writing down my dream.

"I'll send Lucas to get you if you won't." She threatened as the door closed behind her.

When I exited my room finally, washed, dressed, arms full of presents for my friends, I bumped into Lucas who was just about to knock on my door.

"Sorry," he apologized, taking a couple of larger packets from me. "Your friend is at least as annoying and insistent as my uncle. She made me come up here..."

I laughed. Poor Lucas. "Don't apologize. I know her well enough. And now that she's with your uncle, she, they'll be unbearable!" I rolled my eyes at him, making him chuckle.

Down in the sitting room the fire was burning, the coffee table was obliterated by a large quantity of foods and drinks for our brunch and there were presents at the foot of the Christmas tree.

It was a perfect morning, there was no rush, no urgency to do anything. As Mum was off sailing with Julian and his friends, we would not see them today. We were free until the evening, when we would dine with Lucas' family.

It will be a great day. If only Vlad could be here with me. I wished, sighing, as I sat on the cushions arranged on the floor by the fireplace, and my eyes strolled to Lia and Stoker.

They looked so happy together, she lying on the sofa, her head resting on his lap, as he played with her hair while they stared in each other's eyes silently, lost to the world. The sight of them made me feel lonely and empty, I needed Vlad at my side.

The dreams are not enough. I thought, recalling my vision. The seed of the idea that settled in my mind last night was starting to grow-- if I could go back to Vlad, but could not stay longer than another year, maybe... maybe I could lead him out from there and...

Careful. My subconscious hissed. It was a dangerous idea, because if it would not work... Shuddering, I remembered how depressed and heartbroken I felt when I returned from the castle two months ago. I was still only beginning to heal now. Going through such disappointment one more time would... would break my heart again, I was sure. But how many times a heart can break?!

Lucas glanced at me from the screen of his phone as he heard me sighing.

"You should eat something." He reminded me, the sudden shift in my mood getting his full attention.

I nodded, moving to the table and filling my plate.

"How was your night, Samara?" Stoker asked, finally acknowledging my presence.

"I wrote everything down for you, don't worry. You were right, by the way."

He grinned at me, nodding once, before he turned back to Lia.

"There will be... someone I haven't met in a while at my father's tonight..." Lucas said, still typing on his phone, when he caught me observing him. This wasn't his usual behaviour. Interesting.

"A she-someone?" I asked around a mouthful of gingerbread.

He nodded without looking at me.

"An... ex or future she-someone?" I ventured, intrigued.

"Not telling you. Eat, will you?" He smiled, typing in one more text, then putting the phone in the pocket of his jeans.

Soon he stood up and walked to the tree, dividing the presents while I finished eating.

Lia laughed when she unwrapped mine. "That's rather perfect, thanks Sam." She said, studying the small charms attached to a silver bracelet-- a heart, a book representing her omnipresent diary and a flying bat. "That's you!" She giggled, pointing it out to Stoker and kissing him, even as he shook his head at me.

"How very mature, Princess Samara," he said, a smile he could not suppress completely playing on his lips as he unwrapped the large, leather-bound notebook I chose for him.

Like Lia before, I had to laugh when I unwrapped the present Stoker gave me-- a notebook. We had had the same idea.

Lia bought me a new, long, ash rose velvet skirt and a tiny, perfectly matching dress for the baby. I wiped away a couple of tears before anyone could notice as I studied the dress. I couldn't wait for my daughter to be born. The birth would mark an important milestone on my road back to Vlad. From then it would only be five months...

For Lucas I bought a huge book on the history of Medieval Europe which I knew he wanted.

And he gave me... "A sword? Really?" I snorted as I unwrapped my last present.

"You promised you would learn. See, I'm sure swords are the most common arms in that other world of yours, arms you would find lying around, and ready to use, quite easily." Lucas explained looking at me distractedly, his index finger marking a line he was reading in the history book already opened on his lap.

Once we finished eating and unwrapping our gifts we dispersed to get ready to go out.

Are they all this heavy? I mused, scowling at the sword, as I carried my presents to my room. I had held a sword a few times before, but only to move it out of my way when Vlad left it where it did not belong. I wasn't sure if I would ever be able to lift this one above my head, let alone use it in a fight. Whatever. Good luck to him. I thought, knowing that Lucas would not be dissuaded from trying to teach me, once he set his mind on it.

I took the last present from my bed, a dress and a book for Anaïs, and headed downstairs again, to help Lia to tidy up the sitting room before leaving.

The weather improved gradually as we walked along the endless beach towards the town. The clouds disappeared and the strong wind morphed into a mild sea breeze, permitting the noisy, always hungry seagulls to fly effortlessly above our heads.

Strolling next to Lucas silently, some distance behind Stoker and Lia, I replied politely to greetings coming from strangers we met along the way, all... unusually looking individuals. Just how many vampires are there in this world and how come I have never noticed them before?! I mused. Now that I knew that they existed even here, I kept seeing them everywhere, those perfectly well-behaved, self-controlled but always slightly odd-looking beings. Amazingly, the regular humans walking along the beach like us didn't seem to notice anything extraordinary neither on mine and Lia's two companions, nor on the others that passed by quite frequently...

I shook my head, trying to disperse my thoughts. This wasn't important. I needed to talk to Stoker about my idea, that theory I could not stop thinking about since last night, but he would not separate from Lia, not even for a minute. Finally, as we reached the Palace Pier, the two slowed down, waiting for us to catch up, then falling into step with us.

"What is it, Samara? I can feel you screaming at me." Stoker smiled, his white teeth flashing in the thickening semi-darkness of the late afternoon.

"If I can't stay with him, can I bring him over here?" I asked without any preamble, tired of waiting for a more appropriate moment.

"Your husband? Here?" He asked incredulously. "Are you serious?"

I nodded. "Why not?"

"Well, first off, I have no idea if something like that would be possible. Only your nurse would know that. And secondly... do you think that he would... simply... walk out of there? Leaving the place where he lived for so long behind, forever? His land, his principality, his people... his son? Let me tell you that in my opinion it would take a lot of convincing on your part. However, try! Having him here would be... interesting. I could definitely use his skill and expertise... we could work together..." He said, lost in his fantasies, as we crossed the road, our backs to the sea, and entered the town.

But he loves me, doesn't he? I mused silently, tormenting my bottom lip, as we made our way through the quiet streets lined with brightly coloured houses. We walked towards the Pavilion and the nearby park, where Lucas' house stood. He loves me enough to leave that place if that's the only way for us to stay together. Or... would he choose... ?

Lucas wrapped his arm over my shoulders and pulled me closer. He smiled at me encouragingly but did not say anything when I looked up at him.

Just what would you do without Lucas? My subconscious questioned as I put my own arm around his waist, realising that he had already become at least as important as Lia for me.