There Is No Me Beyond You

~9~

Lucas helped me to my feet when we landed on the other side, making me gasp with pain. Somehow, I hurt my right ankle on the rocks covering the ground under our feet.

It's the fault of these silly shoes! I despaired, inspecting the tips of the leather lace boots, which appeared on my feet in place of my well-worn, comfortable trainers, showing from under the hem of my burgundy velvet dress. My long brown skirt was gone, and my green jacket had vanished too; I was wearing one of my warm, fur-lined coats now.

I... nearly couldn't believe it. I found my way back home, into my world, my time. Despite Stoker's awful theory, the passage was still here for me. Now I only needed to find the man to whom I belonged.

Letting go of Lucas' hand momentarily I pulled the long silver chain of the Victorian locket over my head and loosening up the laces of my gown I stuffed my book into its tight bodice, not trusting the coat's pockets with it.

"What?" I replied to Lucas' raised eyebrow look, testing my foot by trying to put my whole weight on it. It isn't too bad, I can walk...

"Nothing." He shook his head. "You look so much... 'at home' in that dress."

"Wow." I said, noticing only now, as he mentioned my clothes, that his hadn't changed. So it is as Stoker thought, it's only me... I mused as I admired the dark silhouette of the impressive castle standing some distance in front of us instead of the old ruins, rising from the cloud of thick, chilly mist.

We could hear restless horses neighing somewhere nearby, their hooves stumping impatiently on the cobblestones. They were hidden in the deep shadows where the light of the few small fires burning along a narrow path leading from the arch to the castle did not reach. Apparently, we were in a courtyard, not far from the stables.

Lucas took my hand in his again and dragged me behind him, back through the now perfect arch, then in the direction where the stairs had been in our time.

It was a slow walk. Hours had passed since we stepped into the passage even though we did not perceive it, and it was now nearly completely dark, and foggy. The path Lucas chose was poorly illuminated by the incandescent torches mounted at wide intervals on the stone outer wall of the citadel.

Suddenly the world spun around me and I had to stop and lean against the cold wall, hit by a strong wave of nausea. I felt my knees tremble but Lucas caught me before I could slip to the ground.

"What's wrong?" He asked, holding me tight.

"Just... just give me a moment." I begged, leaning into him. "It was the same before, I just forgot about it. It will pass soon."

He, perfectly undisturbed by crossing the time portal, waited patiently, giving me as much time as I needed before I was ready to go on.

"I'm good. Let's go before someone notices us." I said weakly after several minutes.

"Yes, we should move, or at least hide somewhere," he said, pulling me further away from the burning torches, which filled the cold night with the sounds and smells I missed so much-- the hiss and whisper of the flames and the scent of the burning wood.

My heart stumbled with joy as I realised yet again that I was really here, and soon I would be with Vlad, and then we would both be with Aurora...

I bumped into Lucas who had stopped in front of me and I, lost in thoughts, hadn't noticed. We reached the place where the castle's wall finished abruptly and the light of the last torch cut a flickering semicircle out of the surrounding misty darkness. A motionless male body lay there on the ground, face down, on the outskirts of the half moon of light, barely visible from where we stood.