Subj: Darane Svatura -- 7
Date: 6/19/00 10:58:26 AM Central Daylight Time
From: Katrinka
Byers was in his room. He had the window open, the excuse being that it was a warm day. The real reason was more complicated then that. The window opened up to the servant's porch. He had been amazed of what he saw on that porch. Servants having affairs. People gossiping. This was the hub of social life at Collinwood.
Now he watched Scully standing on the porch. It made him wonder why she would use the servants porch, when she had the nice one off of Quentin's quarters. Beth was with her. Perhaps that was the reason. Scully had become friends with the maid. The rest of the help stayed off the porch while she was there, respecting the thin line between the masters and the servants.
//I wonder if she knows that a proper woman shouldn't socialize with the help? //
//Why doesn't Beth tell her? //
In the distance, Byers could see Quentin, with Angelique. He pulled the woman close to him, kissing her passionately. Then he picked the witch up, and carried her to the cottage.
The sign, this was the sign. Byers left his room, and went to the doorway of the porch. He could see Mulder waiting in the bushes.
"Miss Heather, she doesn't mean anything to him." Beth told Scully.
"Then why does he go off with woman?" Scully sounded lost.
"It's his way." Beth said softly. "I learned that long time ago."
"The two of you?"
"Quentin comes to me sometimes," She admitted. "He doesn't love me. I know he doesn't."
Byers thought it was strange that Beth would admit her affair with Quentin. He was wondering if he would see anger from Scully, instead she said. "That doesn't stop you from loving him."
"I know, I'm a fool. Our baby won't be loved by him."
Byer's mind began to race. Beth was pregnant with Quentin's child. Byers grandfather, she was pregnant with his grandfather.
Scully put her arms around Beth. "We're sisters. Letting Quentin Collins use us."
//Talk to Scully. // He could hear Mulder's voice clearly in his mind.
Byers found himself going onto the porch. "It's a beautiful night."
Scully pulled away from Beth. "I'm sorry Byers, I know that I shouldn't be here."
"I don't see any problem with you being here."
"You won't tell?" Beth asked.
"Of course I won't!"
//Now! Pull the necklace off of her now! // Mulder commanded.
Byers went to Scully; he grabbed the cameo she was wearing around her neck. He pulled it off, then stomped on the cameo; it shattered in several pieces.
"That belonged to my mother," Scully murmured.
Mulder came out of hiding. He took the charm that Madga had given him off. He slipped it around Scully's neck.
Scully looked up to Mulder confused. "Mulder?"
"Yes, it's me." Mulder smiled. "Do you remember your name?"
"I'm Scully." the woman looked around, her eyes settled on Byers. "What are you doing here?"
"Do you remember what happened to you in the past few days?" Byers asked.
"Of course I do!" Scully shook her head. "I thought my name was Heather."
"What do you think your name is now?" Mulder asked.
"Dana Scully."
"You need to get her out of here." Beth told them. "You don't want to get caught."
"Then we better go." Mulder looked at Byers. "Led the way."
"I need to stay here."
"You're in danger if you stay here." Beth reminded him.
"Now that Scully's gone. I am needed here even more." Byers said firmly.
"John, you could be killed!" Mulder gasped.
"Without me being an insider, I don't think we could get back to the staircase."
Mulder looked Byers over. "Be careful. Angelique will be very angry when she finds Scully is missing."
"I'll stay safe." Byers promised.
Mulder took Scully's hand. "Let's get out of here."
*****************
Mulder knocked on the front door of the old house. A Gypsy woman opened the door. She looked over Scully, and the agent could tell that this woman *knew* her secret. "You must be Scully, you better come in."
Scully went into the house, followed by Mulder. The woman locked the door behind them. The woman looked at Scully again, Scully felt as if he soul was an open book that this woman could read.
"Were you followed?" A man asked coming into the foyer.
"No, I made sure." Mulder said.
"Where's Byers?"
"He though it might be better if he stayed at Collinwood. Now would be a time we might really need a spy." Mulder explained.
"He's putting his life in danger," Madga told him.
"I know that. I tried talking him into coming with us, but he wouldn't."
"I hope he's careful. It would be a pity to loose such a loyal friend." The man looked at Scully. ""I'm Barnabas Collins, welcome to my house."
"Scully, I'm Dana Scully."
"I am sorry about what happened to you," The man apologized formally. I'll try to get you back to 2000."
"You know I'm from the future." Scully asked, it wasn't a question, really.
"I am like you, from the future." Barnabas explained. "Unlike you, I am from 1970."
"Barnabas can be trusted." Mulder tried to reassure. "He was my mentor at Oxford."
"If you say so," Scully said.
"What do you want us to call you, Mrs. Collins?" Barnabas asked.
Scully felt sick at her stomach. "Call me Scully."
"All right, Scully," Barnabas smiled. "Madga, Scully must be hungry, why don't you get her something to eat?"
Scully watched the Gypsy woman leave the room. Scully could remember this room. She had been kidnapped from it.
***************
After eating, Scully realized it was late, almost ten PM. She yawned. She wondered why she would be so tired when it was so early. Was her exhaustion a side effect of breaking the spell?
Barnabas looked at Mulder. "Why don't you show Scully to a room?"
"Of course," Mulder nodded.
Mulder took Scully upstairs. There was a hallway with many doors. Mulder picked the first one, and opened it. "You'll be staying here."
Scully followed Mulder in the room. It was a very nice room, but obviously unused. Mulder went to the bed, and removed a dust cover.
"Where do you stay?"
"My room's down the hallway." Mulder folded up the cover, and placed it on a chair.
"I won't be staying with you?" She asked.
"No, we can't stay in the same room." Mulder sounded as if he thought the whole idea ridiculous.
"Because I'm married?"
Mulder walked to Scully. He reached out touching her shoulders. "If this was our time, then of course we would sleep together."
"So why not now?"
"Scully, this is 1897. Proper people didn't live together without marriage."
"What if we did?"
"I don't want anyone to think you're a loose woman."
"What's wrong with that?"
"For one thing, no one would respect you." His fingers caressed her shoulders "I can't allow you to be disrespected."
"I see," though Scully wasn't quite sure why her lover cared what others thought. "Mulder, I have a secret, something I should have told you from the beginning."
"What secret?" Mulder asked.
"When I was a child, no matter were my father was stationed, my sister and I were sent to spend summers with a woman I was told was my great-aunt. She taught us magic. She said I was the strong one, but I hated it. When I was old enough, I decided I didn't want to go down that path, especially when I found out the truth."
"What was the truth?" Mulder asked.
"My great aunt wasn't really my great aunt. She was something else. She's an immortal and her magic passes down to her female descendents. I thought if I denied the truth, it would go away. But it didn't."
"Do you think you could defeat Angelique with your magic?" there was hope in Mulder's voice.
"Magic is evil," she said firmly.
"What if it isn't? What if it's like electricity? It isn't evil, but it can be used to kill someone. That same electricity can save a life." there was belief in Mulder's voice, for the first time, Scully realized that believed in her, unconditionally.
"I'll have to think about it."
"Now that I know your secret, you have a right to know mine." Mulder told her.
"You have a secret," she said slowly.
"One that I've always been ashamed of."
"Then why tell me?' she asked.
"It's something that I should have told you when we first got involved," Mulder reached into his shirt, pulling out his pentagram. "It's why I wear this, why I asked you to tattoo yourself."
"Why?"
"I have a curse that has been handed down to all male members of my family. A punishment given to one of my ansistors who killed his wife."
"Who gave him the curse?"
"The woman's sister, a Gypsy by the name of Madga."
"You mean Barnabas' servant?" Scully gasped, she got a cold feeling in the pit of her stomach.
"Yes,"
Scully was angry with Mulder, for not telling her the truth. "Who is your ancestor?"
"It doesn't matter,"
"Damn it, it does matter!" she spat.
"My great-grandfather is Quentin Collins."
"You've descended from that monster? He's a werewolf!"
"I know, that's my curse." Mulder looked away from her. "I did tell you earlier."
"Did you really think I believed you?" Scully slapped Mulder hard in the face. "Do you think I would have become involved with a werewolf if I had the choice?"
Mulder turned his face away from her, but not before she could see the tears that stung his eyes. The bruise that had begun to form on his cheek. "I know you wouldn't have. What's worse, I'm a vampire now."
"How did that happen?" she asked.
"Barnabas crossed me over. I took your blood, don't you remember?"
"You had no right to take my blood!" Scully gasped. "How many people have you killed when we were together?"
"My only kill as a vampire came right after I crossed over." He explained. "None as a werewolf. The pentagram prevents me from changing. I've worn it all my life."
"So you've never changed?"
I did once," he admitted.
"Even with your pentagram?"
"I was at oxford, and involved with Phoebe Green. She thought my pentagram was evil. She took it from me when I slept. It was a night of the full moon. I turned...the next thing I could remember was waking up. There was a girl beside me. She was dead, her blood was on me."
"Is that when you broke up with Phoebe?"
"Yes,"
"You took my blood against my will. Killed innocent people. I don't know if I can forgive you."
"It's okay, I don't know if I can forgive myself." With that, Mulder left the room.
*****************
Mulder walked though the woods. Tomorrow night would be a full moon. It frightened Mulder, even though he knew with his pentagram he wouldn't change. He had fed from a cow, but still he hungered. Barnabas had told him to expect this kind of hunger. The hunger that only human blood could fulfil. Barnabas had told him about the need for slaves. A person who was used only for the blood taking. Barnabas had his, and Mulder would have to find his own blood slaves.
Mulder thought he wouldn't have to deal with the hunger anymore. That when Scully returned, the hunger would fade. The need hadn't faded; instead it had grown stronger, much stronger. He would have to feed, but not back at the port. Someone might catch him there.
He pictured Byers in his mind's eye. //Come John, come to me. //
//I'm coming. // He could hear his cousin say.
It puzzled Mulder, his need for Byers. He was loyal to Scully. But the hunger was something different. It pushed Mulder into making a choice he didn't want to make.
//I love Scully. //
//I must feed. //
Byers came through the woods. His pace quickened when he saw Mulder. Byers heartbeat called to Mulder. The sound of it was like a beautiful melody.
//I don't want to do this. // Mulder thought as he walked towards Byers. //Why can't I control myself? //
There was no need for words as they met. Mulder kissed
his cousin passionately. His teeth began to grow. Byers kissed back with just
as much passion. Their tongues battled for dominance. He would give anything
to
kiss Scully this way.
"John, I can't force you to do anything."
"You're not forcing me." Byers pulled away from Mulder. "I want this as much as you."
Mulder hated himself as he pushed Byers against a tree. He damned himself as he rubbed his teeth against his friend's throat. The desires for Byers began overcome everything. Mulder let his hunger take control. Mulder had to complete the feed. He pushed Byers head to the side, and bit down on his neck, drinking deeply.
********************************
Scully woke late; it was almost eleven am. She found Mulder in the sitting room, reading. He looked up to her; there was an almost healed bruise on his cheek. "How was your sleep?"
"Refreshing." She straightened the clothes that Madga left out for her. A skirt, a man's shirt. She had taken off her corset, and hadn't put it back on. She felt more like herself without it. "I've been thinking. My ancestor taught me many spells. I think I can help us get back to the staircase."
"Are you going to kill Angelique?"
"If I did that, I would be as evil as her." She thought for a second. "I know of a binding spell, I could render her powerless until we got away."
"What do you need for the spell?" Mulder asked.
"Herbs, does this place have a kitchen?"
Mulder smiled. "I'll show you where it is."
Mulder took Scully to a small kitchen. The kitchen didn't look like it had been used for a while. There was a rack of fresh spices, and an icebox. The only modern appliance, even that didn't have electricity. Scully opened the box. There was a half-frozen piece of ice, and food inside. She shut it.
Dana looked back at her work. "There are thing I need to do the spell, will you go into Collinsport and get them for me?"
"Just give me a list, and I'd be glad to."
Scully found a piece of paper in a drawer, and a pencil. She wrote a fairly long list for Mulder. Then she gave him the list, for the first time, Scully realized that Mulder still wore her father's ring. With one long look at her, Mulder left.
As soon as Mulder left, Scully realized that she had been wrong in loosing her temper, she should have calmed down and thought more about what Mulder told her. Mulder had been more then understanding with her secret. He had believed in her. She wished she could have been brave enough to tell him the full truth, who her ancestor was.
Mulder was a werewolf, a vampire. He was in danger right now. Scully knew that Angelique had quite sway over vampires. Scully needed to protect her lover. She looked around the kitchen; there were the right herbs to make a charm for him. If something happened to her, Angelique couldn't touch him. But first she had to do something for someone who helped her.
********************************
There was a small tapping at the back door. Scully went to it and looked out. Beth was standing there. Scully opened the door.
"Hello Heather, I came by to see how you where doing." Beth said.
"Come in, please."
Beth came in, and she shut and locked the door behind her. "I hope you didn't mind me coming by, I had to see if you where safe."
"I'm all right, really."
"Where's Mulder?"
"He's fine, he went to get me some herbs." she told Beth. For a moment her friend looked pale. "Why don't you have a seat?"
Beth nodded. She sat down on a chair. her hand briefly touching the small bulge that she was trying to hide.
"When's the baby due?" Scully asked.
"In the winter, around Christmas."
"You still have time to make a choice." she told Beth, then kicked her, in this time in history; woman didn't have a choice over their bodies. She would have to have this baby.
"I've already made my choice. I can't stay here. Quentin will never commit to me fully, and I don't want this baby growing up as the bastard offspring of the Collins." she said, "My sister lives in Boston, I've already contacted her. We're going to pretend that I am a widow."
"I hope everything turns out all right."
"I do too, I just hope that Quentin will let me go." she seemed haunted for a moment. "If he finds out, he'll try to stop me."
Scully turned back to her work, and took the cigar box that she had filled with materials. She placed it in front of her friend. "I have something for you."
She opened the box. "I don't understand."
"You helped me escape, I'm paying you back. This is an illusion spell. The instructions are inside it. All you have to do is follow them, and you'll be able to get away." she explained.
"Can you promise me something Heather?"
"Sure, anything."
"Take care of Mulder for me, make sure that he stays safe."
"I don't understand, why do you care so much for Mulder?" Scully asked.
"He's my future." her hand touched her stomach again. "Mulder's my great-grandson. He looks so much like my father..."
"On my goddess." she said, realizing what this woman said was true. "I promise you, I'll take care of him. If you can promise me you'll take care of yourself."
Beth got up. "I will, promise."
Scully hugged the taller woman. "I'll miss you."
"I'll miss you too. Thanks for giving me a new future." With that, Beth left.