Chapter Text
Atlantis was no longer the abandoned city that was thought to be lost in history. Instead, it was a jostling place that arose from the sea as a rocking casino. The enormous Kraken that inhabited the reef around it had risen out of the water and sang a smooth tune for the visiting monsters. They cheered happily and took to the games and activities that the place had to offer.
Nobody, or at least she thought nobody noticed, as Ericka crept behind the curtain that held a construction area. A curious man in black followed behind her, and he was followed by his daughter.
Ericka made her way through the abandoned cavern with ease. She had studied her great-grandfather’s mapping, and knew just which ways to go. She crawled through a stone passageway, dove in through a deep pool, and emerged to a set of abandoned stairs where, at the top, stood the large hand of a stone statue that held the instrument of destruction pinched between the fingers. In her eagerness to grab the item, she didn’t think twice about stepping onto the platform. An ugly surprise came to her when an ax flung its way out of the side wall toward her, making her realize the mistake too late. She cringed and closed her eyes as she prepared to feel it collide, but the sensation did not come. Ericka opened one eye, and then the other, to find that the weapon had been flung away by Count Dracula.
“You… you saved my life,” she breathed, still a little shaken.
He shrugged. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I?”
“Well, um… I just can’t believe that you would do that for a human,” she admitted.
“Humans, monsters, what’s the difference?” he prompted.
Ericka looked down, a little ashamed. “Yeah… right.” Then she thought of something else. “Wait… what are you doing here?”
Dracula got nervous. “Oh, well… um… vampires can predict the future! Yes, um, I knew that you would need my help!”
She easily saw the lie, but she allowed the explanation, if only to see how easily flustered he was around her. “Huh. I never heard that one before.”
“Oh, yes, yes. It’s a well-known fact.” Then he changed the subject. “What are you doing here.”
Ericka was now the one getting nervous. “Me? Oh, I um, I’m here to get that ,” she said, pointing to the stony device atop the statue. “It’s a family heirloom that was lost at sea, and my great-grandfather is - was - really hoping to get it back. So… anywho…” she began to walk away from Dracula. “Thanks for saving my life, but I think I’ve got it from here - “
The words were scarcely out of her mouth before she had found out that she stepped wrong again, and another ax flew toward her. Dracula stopped this one just as easily. Ericka chuckled in embarrassment. “I have to be a little more careful,” she admitted. “How many times can you save my life?”
Dracula shrugged, and playfully replied. “I don’t know… every time?”
Ericka smirked. “Oh really? How about you prove it!”
She leaped out onto the stairway and began to make her way up, pressing down the fear of being burned alive, axed in the head, speared to death, or crushed to a pulp by boulders. As Drac had said, he came through every time, gracefully helping her dodge the obstacles, pressing her near his body like a security blanket and making every fiber of her being tingle with adrenaline. It was exhilarating, and terrifyingly thrilling at the same time. They soared up the last of stairs together, Ericka landing a ballet-like leap directly in front of the hand statue. She breathed heavily and turned back around to face him. “ That was incredible!”
He simply stared back at her with an expression of wonder, mystification, and it touched her to see him look at her like she was an angel or a goddess. She wanted him to see that for him, she could be. Ericka prepared herself to stand on her tiptoes and pucker her lips, but his voice speaking at that moment broke the thought away.
“Aren’t you going to go get your family heirloom thingy?”
She blushed at having nearly forgotten all about it. “Oh, right!”
As easily as a lizard, she crawled her way up and plucked the object from its place on the statue. “Got it!”
The instant she assured him, the whole platform began to start shaking violently. Stones from above began to rain down. Ericka could only stare upward at it in a state of frozen panic.
Thankfully, Dracula did not delay. He turned on his superspeed and swept her up, just before she was going to be crushed by the falling debris. As the room collapsed around them, he swept them both away the way that they had come, across the stairs, back into the pool, and out the other end to the sandy shoreside of the cavern.
It took a moment for either one of them to recompose themselves, but when they did, laughter broke out among Dracula and Ericka. Another crazy escape and certain death evaded. All thanks to this wonderful man , Ericka thought silently. Seeing the ax that was still lodged to his head, Ericka offered to remove it. As she tried to tug it, however, a new presence made itself known.
“Dad!”
It was Dracula’s daughter, Mavis. She looked at the arrows that were littered on her father’s body and looked to Ericka with hatred. “What are you doing to my father?!” she demanded, and enveloping her with magic, lifted Ericka into the air.
Dracula quickly rose to her defense. “Mavis, stop! Put her down!”
But Mavis refused. “She’s trying to hurt you, Dad. Why can’t you see that?”
The vampire faltered. “Because… because… I-I… zinged.”
Mavis finally paused at this and lost her magical hold on Ericka. She fell to the ground with a thump. “What?”
Dracula nodded. “I zinged, with Ericka.”
The girl shook her head. “No, that’s not possible. You only zing once.”
“That’s what I thought too,” he responded glumly.
Hearing all of this, and approaching them,, Ericka was confused. “Zing? What’s that?”
Dracula stepped forth and explained. “It’s a thing for monsters… sort of like our love at first sight.”
Ericka’s eyes widened as a mix of emotions went through her. Dracula loved her. Dracula loved her ! He had loved her since the beginning of the cruise trip. It was an amazing thing to hear. But on the other hand, it was a terrible thing to hear. He couldn’t love her - she was the enemy. “Wh-what? No, no, no…” she tried to contradict. “You don’t even know me…”
“Well, not yet,” Dracula agreed, “but we could…”
“No, no please, you don’t understand…” she interrupted with more persistence.
“But Ericka…”
“NO!”
She turned away, averting her gaze and rubbing her hands up and down her arms to try and reel in her nerves. The beginnings of tears were starting to form in her eyes, and the last thing she wanted to do was break down in front of him and his daughter. Dracula came forth however, and carefully touching her arm brought her back around to face him.
"Ericka," he whispered, and the way he said her name made her want to melt. His hand gently caressed her cheek in a soothing type of manner, his gaze shifting between her eyes and her lips as he leaned in, his purpose all that clear as it was when he leaned into her on their date.
Only this time, she allowed him to follow through with his intentions.
It was a light kiss, a simple brush of lips against lips that was shy. He pulled away for a brief moment, but the clutch of her own fingers against his shirt brought him in for another. This one was far more tender, if possible, and he kissed back with a gentleness that almost made her want to cry.
When they eventually parted, she felt breathless, her eyes still stinging from the tears of frustration that had formed in her eyes moments ago. Frustration at the simple fact that she was not supposed to love the man in front of her right now, and frustration at herself for being unable to determine why she did. As she attempted to gather her thoughts, he had leaned in and captured her lips again. She allowed the sweet pressure and the euphoric sensation that came along with it to overtake her for a moment more before she gently began to push him away.
"N-no," she muffled against his mouth, and as she broke their kiss he opened his eyes. Her cheeks were flushed and she could feel those persistent tears continue to well in her eyes and threatening to spill over at any moment. Taking a shaky breath, she willed her composure back under control and tried desperately to ignore the pleading look in his eyes. "I can't do this," she whispered. Removing herself from him completely, ignoring his broken-hearted look and the dumbfounded one that his daughter wore, she grabbed the pack she'd brought along with her from the sand and quickly made her way out of the cavern.
It was back in the safety of the secret chamber that she finally did allow herself to cry.
A gentle hand glided across her cheek, smoothing back a stray wisp of hair that had shielded part of her eye. She peered directly into his soft blue eyes, his face so close to hers that she could feel the soft puffs of breath against her mouth. She can sense some hesitancy from him, but she does not want him to stop.
"Kiss me," she implores, softly, gently pressing her body up and onto her tiptoes to make it easier for him to lean in.
He stills for a moment before leaning down and closing the gap with a gentle, almost featherlight brush. But the light contact isn't enough. With a rush of desire, she gasps out and presses harder against his lips, desperate to feel more. Thankfully, he obliged to her wishes and, parting his lips slightly, deepened the kiss . She moans into his mouth and tries not to let out a whimper of pleasure when his tongue slips into her mouth, exploring and tasting. His hands in the meantime reach behind her and begin to unzip the flowery-patterned dress she had on. It slides off easily and onto the sandy ground without so much as a sound. He pulls away for a second, his eyes roaming her exposed, bare figure with a sort of lust.
“You’re beautiful,” he whispers.
She smiles and lays herself down on the sand, legs spread open in a teasing fashion as he makes quick work of discarding his articles of clothing. His body is like that of a Greek statue, with lean muscles and flawless skin. She runs a hand through his soft black hair, kissing him once as he positions himself between her thighs.
A pressure overtakes her core as he pushes himself inside her, filling every inch of her with his member. Delightful moans escape her as he thrusts himself, hard and slow, taking her completely as she clings to him and thrusts her hips back up to meet his. A string of encouraging murmurs falls from her lips as he continues to bestow the pleasure on her body.
"Drac… yes, oh yes… p-please, harder… OH!"
The man responds eagerly to her, driving in and out, pounding deep into her as his own orgasm took over. He spills his release with a passionate roar, but the name he cried out into the thick night air was not hers.
"MARTHA!"
Ericka jolts awake in the next moment, frightened and confused. The dream had felt all too real, like the ones she had been having during the cruise so far. And more and more did her desire grow for the vampire. With a glance to the dresser, she took note of the time. It was only a half hour until the Atlantis party. A half hour until she and her great-grandfather would decimate all of monster-kind that was on board The Legacy . A half hour until the immortal Count Dracula was finally killed. A part of her was grateful that she had kissed him when she did, because shortly, there would be no other opportunity to.
It’s an awful thought, but she suppresses the feelings. Her great-grandfather would certainly be up from his nap shortly, and he would want her to prepare for the main event. Forcing herself out of the cot, she swung her legs over and strolled toward the vanity. Some of the makeup had been distorted due to the crying, but she easily fixed it with a few simple adjustments. She looked much better now that she saw herself in the vanity mirror. Her great-grandfather would certainly want her to look her best when she revealed herself to everyone as a Van Helsing. Glancing at the poster of Dracula on the wall, she strolled up to it with a pit of sadness and very quickly planted a chaste kiss on the paper, whispering one last apology before she went off.
“I’m so sorry…”