Vanilla Lace

Bill went on his knees, rummaging around the box that was in front of him. Inside it, there were secondhand clothing that was meant for the less fortunate, but Bill looked in dire need of a good outfit. He wanted desperately to be out of the jumpsuit, and an indifferent Frederic who had earlier chucked boxes outside the room’s door and granted his wish. He did not want to interrupt their frantic lovemaking.

The raven-haired teenager’s gaze was caught by Analiese who lowered opposite him, reaching to look through the pile of clothing. His pale and skinny topless body showed his ribcage quite prominently. When prompted earlier, when they were simply lying down in each other’s embrace, Bill assured her that he was indeed eating well, but she was not too sure. A passionate kiss ended the debate.

Analiese glanced at Bill as she picked up a black shirt, “You only wear black, don’t you?” She smiled at him.

Bill looked at her and chuckled, “Not necessarily. My options are limited—oh, that will have to do.” He took the shirt from her and put it on immediately. His gaze rose to meet her eyes, and he passed her a warm smile. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” Analiese answered, folding back the other shirts. “You’ll still need a pair of jeans, or something. There should be something around here.”

The girl slid over to another box and opened it, and it showed yet another box full of shirts. She suddenly laughed to herself softly and stared sideways at Bill. Bill’s eyes widened as he returned her gaze. It wasn’t long before he grinned.

“What, you heard it?” He said, throwing back a pair of skirt. He was sure Analiese read his mind, unintentionally, when he wondered if they were allowed to take a few clothing for themselves.

“Loud and clear,” the mahogany-haired girl replied, taking another box and finally finding the male pants all in one place. “I think it would be fine if we did. Take anything you want. I don’t know how long it’ll be when we get your things from the hotel back there.”

Bill’s gaze wavered, and it fell upon a dark blue pair of jeans that Analiese was holding up. She read his mind that said it was slightly too big for him, and she immediately put it back down. Her hands reached deeper and pull out a few, and tossed them on the floor for Bill to pick from.

There was silence for a while in between them, but Bill soon spoke, “When we go back there, I’ll get my money. All of it. All of what I have left, and we’ll go somewhere out of here. Out of Europe, to somewhere no one would recognize us.”

Analiese let a small smile creep across her face. She envied Bill’s naivety, but she was not prepared to let him know she thought of his plans as childish. Despite assuring him earlier she was going to back down on plans to find the way to turn Bill back to human, a small part of her that said she needed to still lingered. The more she thought about it, the more she wanted to give Bill back the life he always had.

Bill had a loving family. This young man had many friends, and he had countless fans. And he had the whole human population to protect ‘the truth’ from. In her case, all she had was herself. She was sure Oliver was helping her out of pity. If Bill did give up mortality, and she let him do so, the vampires would be at great risk. She would be hunted without end, and she was sure Bill would be, too. It was all too much to risk, but is it too much for love? Bill loved her. She wanted him to, but she was too late to realize that their love was a huge threat. It was a great gamble, but Analiese was sure that either way, she would never be truly happy in the end.

For a long moment, Analiese was staring into space, and Bill caught on, noticing her blankness. “Ana?” He said suddenly, interrupting her thoughts. He had already slipped on a pair of boxers and his hand grabbed a pair of black jeans that was just right for him. “Tell me what you’re thinking about.”

The girl turned to stare at Bill, and she sighed and sat on the floor properly, giving up kneeling like Bill. The boy crawled over next to her, enveloping her petite frame in his long, slender arms as one of his legs went over her lap. She was now caught in a cozy bundle of limbs as his lips lingered on the side of her head.

“Ana, please,” Bill pled softly, his warm voice being whispered gently in her ear, sending shivers down his throat.

“I’m just . . . thinking,” the girl said, chewing on her lower lip as she gave another sigh. Her gaze was directed on the wooden floor. The candles that illuminated the room hung around the walls, and it was bright enough to spot the figure of a rat scurrying along the boxes, and so Bill could read Analiese’s face.

He immediately groaned under his breath and threw himself back slightly, his grip on her loosening a bit. With a roll of his eyes, he started, “Don’t tell me it’s about that again.”

Analiese looked at Bill quickly. “Bill, please,” she said, holding his arm tighter, not wanting him to let go of her.

“Ana, come on!” He stared at her intently before hugging her tightly again. “If you don’t know already, I’m stubborn and I can get really persuasive. I’m staying this way, and that is final.”

Bill laughed to himself, in disbelief that he was actually thinking of the fact that their love story was not like the typical vampire fiction where the vampire was the male. And this time, the human was actually turned already, and right from the start. Being the dominant male human, Bill had the power to persuade Analiese to listen to him. He loved that. Their love story was one in a million.

“You’re so difficult,” Analiese mumbled under her breath, ignoring the grazing of his lips against her neck. She closed her eyes and let Bill’s hand roam her body like they did a while ago. “Why are you so difficult?”

“Isn’t love difficult?” Bill answered her, kissing her ear delicately.

Analiese’s hand slid up to run her fingers through his fine black locks, making a gentle fist before biting on her lower lip. “Bill,” she mumbled, pulling away slowly and looking down.

The other looked at her, slightly confused as to why she was being so affected by something he thought was decided upon already. “What?” He said, stroking her neck.

Analiese pulled away entirely, going to sit on the bed in the corner of the room. She curled up on the edge, wrapping her arms around her thighs that were brought close to her chest. Nuzzling her chin in between her knees with her eyes casted downwards, she spoke, “It’s so hard.” Her eyes closed and she let a tear escape.

Bill quickly pulled on the pair of jeans before her went over to Analiese, while pulling on a jacket he snatched from the box he passed. Making his way to her, he replied, “What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about—”

“You’re talking about being in love,” Bill cut her off in a displeased tone, stopping when he reached her. He decided against sitting. “Aren’t you?”

The girl didn’t look into his eyes as she made her reply. “I’m talking about being in love with you.”

Analiese knew Bill was sensitive enough that such simple words would cause him to overreact in certain ways. She was hoping to get him to so, just so she could hurt him. She thought, the only way to make him leave her without putting up a fight was to make him hate her. To do so, she had to hate him.

With those few words, Bill could feel a slice on his heart made with a cold knife. He was entirely disappointed that she felt that way. “You’re lying,” he mumbled, standing in front of her, slouching slightly.

“And you’re stubborn!” Analiese shot up. Her gaze was intense and hard, and it pierced right through the other. “You don’t know what’s best for you, Bill. You’re so dull, thinking with your goddamn money, we can go wherever and keep on running forever, don’t you? You think it’s so easy? If we live forever, we’ll have to fight forever. Do you think we will even have the time to love? These people will never rest, Bill. They will never.”

Bill stared at Analiese with unexpected contempt. He never saw it coming from her, all those words she muttered. Was he wrong when he thought that she was the one for him? Did she fail to see that they were made for each other? And he thought that she was ready to risk everything for love, something he always held true to his heart and lived by. He was at a loss for words as his mind was in a state of blur.

“Ana, what is your problem?” Bill spat. His voice was controllable, but his disdain was inevitably picked up. “I’m dull, right? Yes, I am dull. I’m stupid, but I know what I want and what I will do to get it. And at least I’m no pessimist. I know it’s you I want to be with, and it’s you I will be with no matter what.”

“You hardly know me, Bill,” Analiese frowned, standing up and going closer to him with each sentence. She was slightly disheartened that she was intentionally causing him so much pain, but it was for the best. She kept her mind as strong as possible, rejecting all possible mental penetration from Bill. “We’ve met for a few weeks and we’re in this deep for God knows what reason. What happened? Why did it happen so fast? I don’t know, and maybe I don’t want to. And maybe I don’t love you. Maybe it’s a mistake. People make mistakes, don’t they? Maybe you don’t love me. Maybe it’s a passing phase.”

“But this phase has not passed,” Bill growled at her. And he thought she really loved him. Now, she was calling it a mistake? “Fuck it, Ana. Fuck it, okay? Why are we even arguing about this? What does this mean, you hate me?”

Analiese mumbled, almost tired from the breathless retorts. “I hate us. I loathe us. We’re the reason for everything that went wrong.”

“But we’re also the reason for everything that went right for the first time in my life,” Bill added quickly before groaning. He ran a hand through his hair, staring at her once more. This time, he was much softer with his gaze. “Fuck, Ana. To Hell with everything. I know what you’re trying to do here, okay—”

“Stop making stupid, positive comebacks about my sentences!” Analiese raised her voice at him, pushing him back once against his shoulders. “I want to be normal, like a normal human being. I want to have time to get to know you before deciding I want to be with you eternally. Or not. I’ve only ever seen you, not known you. You changed since the time I first saw you. You’re not innocent anymore. You know too much. You want too much. You give too much, Bill.”

“I gi—” Bill shook his head after a slight snort of disbelief. He scoffed and rolled his eyes, unable to take in all that his opposite was churning out. “Ana, please,” he gritted his teeth. “Do you really want me to go back?”

Analiese took a deep breath, knowing that whatever her answer was, it would be her final decision. Before she could speak, Bill continued.

“Do you want to know why I love you?” He started. “You’re different. Not because you’re part royalty, or that you’re some supernatural shadow from my goddamn dreams. You’re not some girl who’s obsessed with me because I’m in a band. You’re not in for the money or fame. You’re just . . . you! You protect me, and you saved my goddamn life. Tell me, how do I ever find a girl like that?”

Bill was staring at her coldly, hoping fervently that Analiese would recover from her bout of sudden cynicism. It was affecting him badly, and it was destroying their relationship that had only restarted a while ago.

“That . . . is your problem,” Analiese swallowed, not staring at him.

There was a long moment of silence as Bill clenched his jaw, feeling entirely hopeless. “This is not working!” The black-haired shouted away from the other, storming to the other side of the room and kicking a few boxes out of the way. “This is not working at all!” He groused.

Analiese was slightly confused. “What?” She stared at him. She secretly hoped that he would just give up on everything. However, a small part of her wanted everything to happen for them. Mentally chiding herself, Bill started on his reply.

“You’re trying to make me hate you, aren’t you?” Bill’s eyes widened at her as he took slow, menacing steps towards her. “You want me to hate you, so that I will leave you. You think I’ll just go, just like that?”

“I am not!” Analiese lied through her teeth. Bill was still convinced so, she could tell just from his face, but she didn’t care what he thought. She wasn’t going to let her plan fail. “I’m just stating the facts. You don’t love me, Bill. You don’t.”

“What the fuck,” Bill hissed, glaring sideways at the girl he loved. “Why are you doing this, Ana?”

“If you do,” Analiese said in a loud voice. And then she calmed down and continued, “If you do love me, we’ll leave right now. We’ll get out and find a place where you can safely ‘change’ and you won’t hurt anyone.”

Bill’s eyes brightened. “Are you . . . are you serious?”

“Now, Bill,” Analiese accentuated the first word. “As soon as possible. Take everything you have. I have nothing, and you know that. I only have you.”

The other softened, his eyes flickering slightly. “Your mood swings were starting to give me a whiplash,” he said, his hand softly on the girl’s cheek. They stood closer to each other.

Analiese broke into a subtle smile, leaning in for a tender and loving kiss. They broke apart and engaged in a long hug, and she looked over Bill’s shoulders into the darkness, contemplating her interior motive for her sudden change in plan.

* * *

Oliver trod up the path, his eyes wide and fixated on the trail he was following as he braved the heavy rain. The thunder had subsided, and it seemed that Halle had been raining for the past day, as heard on the radio on the way to town. He was striding cautiously up the slope, making it as unnoticeable as possible that he was in the vicinity. His black car was parked further off, and he made sure no one would find it. Especially any vampires.

He went up to the Halle Market Church, roaming the grounds for a while, observing the surroundings before settling on the back entrance. There were no cars there on a gloomy late evening, and all Oliver could feel was relief. At least, he could work safely in finding Analiese. He knew she would be here. It was part of her history with Bill. Besides, Analiese would have no other place to go. She had to be here.

The tall vampire strode up to the heavy gate, knocking thrice at the entrance, awaiting a response. He could see through the door that was slightly ajar, and he noticed that the gate was not latched properly. It was as if someone left or entered in a hurry.

“Hello?” Oliver’s voice echoed throughout the church through the gate. He could have gone in, but he wasn’t allowed to since he was not invited. It was a centuries-old vampire tradition that had solidified itself in modern day superstition. He hated it, but accepted it as a way for humans to prevent vampires from entering a holy place at will. “Hello!” He repeated, rattling the gate slightly.

Bill jolted awake from his long slumber, finding himself entirely covered in cold sweat. Droplets trickled down his forehead, traveling past his thick eyebrows and down the contour of his nose and the curve of his cheeks. Feeling slightly irritated by them, he quickly wiped the moisture off his face and neck with his arm. And then he heard the voice from his sleep.

“Hello? Anybody there?” The voice resonated throughout clearly against the pitter-pattering of the heavy raindrops against the window of the room Bill was in.

The teenager turned to find Analiese missing. “Ana?” He called out frantically, jumping off the uncomfortable bed and walking around the room. “Ana!”

“Hello!” The voice was louder, and Frederic’s voice soon overcame it with a disgruntled reproach. Oliver shook at the gate. “I know they’re in here,” he growled. “I can smell them.”

Frederic relocked the gate when he saw that it was left halfway latched. He rolled his eyes at the man, grumbling under his breath at about how much trouble the teenagers brought him so far. And the old man knew that this man was much stronger a vampire for he could pick up scents. Vampires intimidated him less each time, but annoyed him more. He quickly made that thought open for Oliver to pick.

“You can smell them but one of them is what’s left of her,” Frederic answered curtly, staring at the tall stranger who scowled at his thought. He hated that every once in a while an unwanted visitor comes by. If it continued when Halle’s weather gets better, it would be disastrous when tourists visit. “Leave now!”

Oliver stared at the old man sternly. “What do you mean what’s left of her?” He frowned. “Analiese? She left?”

Bill was racing down the stairs, and Oliver who had his mind wide open to all thoughts and feelings surrounding him undeniably picked up the sense of utmost urgency. His eyes darted beyond Frederic, and set upon a familiar looking teenage boy with long black hair and blond streaks, his face pasty and agitated.

“Where is she?” Bill shouted, almost stumbling down the stairs when he lost grip on the railing. He could see Oliver’s familiar large hands that were showing through the gate. The teenage boy always remembered hands for some reason. “Oliver? Where is she, Frederic? Where is Ana?”

Oliver’s eyes were locked on a sallow-face Bill Kaulitz when he reached the gate. “She’s gone,” Oliver mumbled, the heavy rain behind him soaking him partially since his favorite black leather trench coat was waterproof. “He says she’s gone.”

Bill could not believe his eyes, and his heart dropped when he finally made sense of it. “What do you mean she’s gone?” He glared at Frederic. Almost immediately, the boy threw the old church keeper against the brick laden walls of the church, causing the other to give off the most excruciating groan. “Tell me where did she go! Where did she go, Frederic?”

“Bill!” Oliver bellowed, pointing firmly at Bill. “Put him down!”

“When did she leave? Why did she leave me? Tell me!” Bill shouted at Frederic, who had his eyes closed as he was barely able to open it to face Bill and see his fury. He knew this teenage was close to being a creature of extraordinary power, and he tried not to move or he might drop dead the next moment.

“I said, put him down!” Oliver raised his voice at the teenager, restrained by the wrought iron that held him back and out in the pouring cold and wet weather. “You’re going to kill him, Bill! He doesn’t know anything!”

“Come in! Come in!” Frederic hurried the stranger in with a slight wave of his hand. He did not want to be crushed by Bill, and he hoped that Oliver would help him.

Instantly, Oliver’s hand reached and fumbled for the latch that was behind the gate. He pulled at it and pushed open, letting himself in. Now, he was entitled to eternal entrance as and when he liked, but not that it was a problem for Frederic at the moment. The old man had other things like Bill to deal with, who was threatening his life with his hand on his throat.

“He’s fucking lying,” Bill said through gritted teeth. “Ana would never run away! She promised!”

The teenage boy’s grip on Frederic’s neck tightened, and his nails dug into the old man’s wrinkly skin. Oliver straightaway pushed the boy away from the old man, bringing him to the floor.

“Get a grip of yourself, Bill!” Oliver yelled, tugging at the boy’s shirt when he lost a hold of his arm. “Calm down!”

“She wanted to run away, but she told me she wouldn’t! She said we would run away tonight . . . but I couldn’t wake up until I heard you,” Bill said quickly, his breathing fast and ragged. He had a distressed look on her face. Immediately, his eyes turned to Frederic. The boy raised a finger at the old man. “He. He’s lying—I can feel it. You can’t read his mind!”

Oliver looked at the old man. “I know,” he said. “Like all church keepers, you can’t. They serve a purpose.” He went to Frederic. “Please, let us know if she left anything. What did she take with her, and what time did she go?”

Frederic frowned and sighed, turning away as he said. “All she did was thank me. She took some money she borrowed from me, and…” The man old man laughed. “Like as if she will ever pay me back,” he mumbled and shrugged, pacing slowly along the walls with a hand on it.

“And what?!” Bill demanded.

“She told me to tell you not to worry,” Frederic said. He technically wasn’t lying. His back was constantly turned as he made his way to the grand piano. The old man started to wipe it with a damp cloth.

Bill frowned as he followed the man closely behind, and Oliver followed him. The two younger men watched as Frederic stayed in silence as he did his work. Bill contemplated deeply. Analiese would never leave for no reason, or would she? She had a reason for everything she did.

“What did you tell her, Frederic?” Oliver stared sternly at the church keeper. “Analiese only acts on impulse, and you must have definitely said something to her so that she would go out to do it. Did something happen? Did anyone come by? Was she kidnapped—”

“No, no, no!” Frederic shook his hands at the two others. “No one came by!” Frustration showed in his pale brown eyes, and he once again tried to stay away from their direct line of vision. Bill snarled slightly, miffed. He frowned at the old man and grabbed him by the arm to face him.

“No one came by, but you did tell her something, didn’t you?” Bill’s eyes widened slightly, as if he was sure he was hitting the nail on the head. Frederic grimaced, but he remained helplessly in Bill’s tight grip. “She hardly sleeps, and you must have had enough time to tell her what she was looking for here in the first place, haven’t you?” The teenager’s shapely brown eyes were filled with disbelief as he read Frederic’s facial expression. “You told her?!”

“Told her what?” Oliver asked, annoyed that he didn’t really understand what was going on. He didn’t even try and force through Bill’s mind. He was more concerned that Bill might break the back of the old man. There wasn’t going to be an accident like that, for fear the authorities might trace back to the works of the vampires yet again.

Frederic’s eyebrows creased towards each other, “Boy, I told you—”

Bill stared daggers at Frederic as he replied to Oliver. His eyes were brimming with newfound tears. “She wants to turn me back. I told her I didn’t want to go back, because I wanted to be with her. We argued about this almost the whole time since I got here, and she told me she was going my way. We . . . we were supposed to go to the bank today and take all the money I got, and…” Bill grabbed Frederic by the collar this time. “What did you tell her?!”

“Bill!” Someone shouted. That person’s voice was all too familiar, and the teenage boy immediately released Frederic and turned to stare at Analiese looking back straight at him.

“Ana!” Oliver was relieved to see her after such a long time.

“What are you doing?” She stormed over to Bill’s side and wrenched his hands away from the church keeper. Her eyes were set on the man that had just gotten here. “Oliver?! What is going on?”

“Where did you go?” Bill asked her, his tears in his eyes drying up. Pacing closer to her, he stared at her with the most intense pair of chocolate browns ever. Both of their young hearts were racing for some reason.

“I went to make a call from the town center,” she explained. “The storm cut the connection here, and my phone’s out.” Then, her gaze was set on Oliver. “And you. Do you always do that with your phone?”

“What?” Oliver looked at the girl. “Do what?”

Bill and Frederic were looking at her in confusion as Analiese continued. “I called you a few times and you finally picked up. But you didn’t talk. It took me a while to finally realize that you must have done in by accident. All I heard was a laugh at the end when I stopped rambling.”

“My ph—” Oliver’s eyes transfused to a darker shade. He didn’t look too pleased before he turned around and stared towards the gate, as if he was trying to recall something. In awkward silence, he turned back to Analiese, and everyone knew there was something wrong. “Analiese, I don’t have my phone with me.”

* * *

“Good, here we go again,” Frederic said sarcastically before he continued to wipe this piano. “Please leave this place soon. The church will open in the morning, and the first Saturday fellowship starts at seven.” No one paid him any attention at that moment.

“What?” Analiese had her eyes locked on Oliver’s. Bill was in a similar state.

“What did you say you . . . rambled about?” The oldest vampire inquired, his frown deepening.

The girl panicked. “I wanted to make it fast because there were people queuing behind me—”

“What did you say?!” Oliver raised his voice. The room felt like it trembled a bit, but Bill assured himself it was all in his head.

“I told you I was . . . I was in Halle’s market church and I wanted you to come find me and Bill, or we will meet back at the . . . at the hotel in Salzburg where we left our things. Oliver, please don’t say you really lost it—”

“Oh, perfect,” Oliver sighed, a hand on his forehead. His eyes darted aside before he turned to stare at the teenagers again. “I didn’t even realize I lost my phone, do you know that? The last time I used it was when . . . when I talked to Fabian. He called me. I was in Unter Den Linden waiting for you—but you never showed up, Analiese.”

“I’m so sorry,” Analiese covered her face.

“Were you with anyone else?” Bill asked.

“No,” Oliver said. “I wasn’t. But then I called the—wait. You cannot be in Halle right now. And you cannot go to Salzburg. Whoever it was on the phone, whoever it was who’s probably on the way here, he’s coming for either of you.”

“Or both,” Analiese bit her lip as she mumbled.

Oliver sent her a slight nod of mutual acknowledgement to her words. “You have to disappear. And there is something I have to tell the both of you.”

The teenagers looked at the vampire with curious eyes. “What?” Bill said.

“The reason Fabian called me was to talk about your disappearance. He wanted to get Karl back. My father wants Karl dead or alive, away from the humans so that he won’t leak anything about the clan to them. I made an anonymous call to the Austrian Embassy in Berlin to talk about an exchange that is on Monday night. It’s almost Saturday now. They want you, Bill, because they think you’re with us, and we want Karl. Now, we don’t have time. Whoever took my phone knows your whereabouts. You have to go somewhere else right now before they know that Bill isn’t with us, but with you, Ana. It would ruin our chances at the exchange.”

“What was your plan, since you knew you wouldn’t have Bill on Monday night?” Analiese asked.

Bill’s grip on her hand tightened. Analiese barely realized their hands were together. “You’re . . . not going to kidnap me, are you?”

Oliver stared at the boy. “You still misunderstand me, don’t you, Bill Kaulitz?” He sighed lowly. “I know what the both of you have, and I have been on your side since the start. What makes you think I’m going to turn around and step on you?”

Analiese broke into a warm and subtle smile, chewing on her lower lip. Bill swallowed and nodded. “I’m sorry, I was just . . . never mind. What do we do now?”

The older vampire stared at Frederic who appeared to have been listening to every bit of the conversation. Looking sideways at him, Oliver spoke in a low and serious voice, “Old man, you have to swear over your life that you heard nothing today.”

“What?” Frederic turned around, eyes blinking slightly. “Did somebody call me?” He had on the most innocent look ever, and the teenagers were almost convinced he did not hear a single thing.

Oliver raised an eyebrow before he looked at Bill and Analiese. “Anyway, my father plans to kill every single one of them there so that none of them will be able to go back and make a report on us. Damn human beings and their undying lust for research.”

Bill smiled slightly. “So are you sure you will be able to defeat them?”

“Will you be there, Oliver?” Analiese asked quickly after.

“Yes, I will be. I’m happy to fight for my people.”

Analiese gave him a curt smile and sighed, her grip on Bill loosening. Bill turned to Frederic after a moment of sudden silence. “Why the Hell do you act like she left town?” He was finally able to have his say, and he wanted to know why Frederic let him continue stressing out over Analiese’s supposed disappearance.

“Bill,” Oliver chided.

Bill shook his head, staring at Oliver and explaining. “He’s being so difficult!” He complained. Analiese’s grip tightened, wanting Bill to stay quiet, but he ignored it and continued. “It’s not like we’re going to kill you, Frederic. You’re a nice man, I know, but you have to show it sometimes!”

Frederic was not bother by Bill’s comments, and he went on to say, “I wish she left. I wish all of you left! I just don’t like repetitive questions. You should ask the girl to stop asking me that one question, because I will never tell her—even if I know the answer. I’m glad she left for those forty minutes. You don’t know how much more at ease I feel when she’s away—”

“What question?” Oliver asked, intrigued. His gaze averted to Analiese, who was trying to avoid it by staring away. She pulled away from Bill and crossed her arms.

“Bill, let’s go,” she said. “We have to reach the next town by morning. I don’t want you to change too fast—”
Analiese turned to walk, expecting Bill to follow her. Bill simply stood as if his feet were stuck to the ground. The girl turned to stare at the teenage boy with wide eyes full of surprise.

“Come on,” she pressed him on, but he was still glued to the floor. And then she realized Oliver had a hand across Bill’s abdomen, preventing him from making a move.

“Is there anything else I should know, Ana?” Oliver said, his eyes fixated on her. “I don’t appreciate fishiness when I’m trying to help you. Let me know what problems you have, and I’ll try to solve them for you, or it will affect our plans.”

“It is not a problem,” Analiese said through clenched teeth, not wanting to look at Oliver. He can probably read her mind, but she knew he wasn’t going to unless she was being stubborn some more.

Bill looked at her softly. “Please don’t tell me that it’s that question,” he mumbled as he pushed past Oliver’s outstretched arm to go to her side. “You know how much I hate it.”

“Can we not talk about this?” Analiese looked at Bill, and then at Oliver. Briefly, she turned to stare at Frederic. “If you’re not helping me, at least keep it to yourself. I know I owe you too much, but still…”

“What question is it?” Oliver demanded, making a slight pause after each word to accentuate the seriousness this time round when he posed the same question.

“It’s something you cannot solve,” she said. “Bill, let’s go to the bank. I want all of your money out. Money is important.”

Bill was pulled along with Analiese, and the boy wondered why she made it sound so wrong. She never wanted his money, but she made it sound like it was all she cared about right there and then. Bill knew Analiese wasn’t being herself.

“You’re not going anywhere,” Oliver said. “Let me help you, Ana. Is it about money, really? I have money.”

“So does Bill, and I don’t need your help about my little problem, Oliver. You can never help me, unless you know the answer,” she replied with a calm voice. She wanted to pull Bill along. She wanted him to think that she wanted his money, but she knew it would never work right now. The focus was on the question.

Oliver frowned. “What?”

Frederic revealed suddenly, “She wants to know how to change the boy back to human. She wants to know the reversal procedure, but I told her countless times—I don’t know!”

Bill’s face burned from the intensity of it, and he knew he couldn’t take it if she ever found a way, unless she wasn’t going to force him to be human again. All eyes were on Analiese right now, and the girl took a deep and shaky breath.

“Do you?” She said, breaking the awkward silence that lasted for a few seconds in between them. By then, Frederic was staring at the trio and stopping his chore entirely.

Bill gazed at the girl, and saw that she was directing her question at Oliver. “Do I?” Oliver looked at her straight in the face. She slowly turned to face him. The male high vampire clenched his jaw tightly, making Analiese infer from that that he was indeed hiding something.

“Please tell me,” Analiese said, frowning. Her voice was sincere.

Bill’s eyes widened. “No!” He shook his head and looked at Oliver, standing in between the two. “You don’t know! Even if you do, don’t tell her!”

“Bill, move aside,” Analiese said firmly. She was staring at Bill’s long black hair with pale streaks, and she wanted him to let her speak to Oliver properly. “Move aside, Bill.”

“No!” He turned to shout at her, making the girl well up unexpectedly. She hated her weakness, that she had to get entirely physically emotional with the littlest things. However, Bill shouting at her without warning and in her face sure came as a shock to her.

Analiese shut her eyes and stood there, unmoving, and she said to Oliver. “Tell me.”

“I cannot tell you,” Oliver frowned.

Frederic shook his head and went away, mumbling, “It’s either or, either or.”

Analiese frowned as the old man disappeared. Did he know the way to turn Bill back? She had no idea what he was mumbling, and she turned to stare at Bill’s hair. “Bill, move.”

“No!” He shouted at her again, this time, not as loud. “Let’s go. Now.” He grabbed a hold of her wrist, but the girl wouldn’t move. Instead, she tried to pry her hand away from him.

“Let me go!” She cried softly, pushing Bill away.

“Analiese!” Oliver raised his voice at her. “Listen!”

The girl softened immediately and stared at Oliver with watery eyes. “Tell me,” she plead. “Tell me, so I can save you, too. I can save the others. I know I have to sacrifice what I have with Bill, but I love him and I want him to be safe. And being safe is not being with me. Oliver, I know you know what I mean. Why help me anymore when you can just tell me the method and Bill can be human again? Then it will all end!"

"Because!” Oliver’s voice boomed, keeping his words in as she spoke non-stop. He rubbed his face and sighed, unable to bring himself to look at Bill. “Because if it happens, you can't be with Bill."

"I know,” Analiese said. “I know I can’t, but it doesn’t mean I will stop seeing him and stop looking after him.”

“I don’t want that,” Bill grumbled in a distressed tone as he faced her. Now, they were all standing in a circle and facing each other. “I don’t want what you’re wanting right now, Ana. This was not our plan!”

“I can’t tell you, Ana,” Oliver said, and then he apologized. “I’m sorry.”

“What do you mean? You said you wanted to help me! Then tell me, Oliver, why did you even help us at all?! Why did you help us run away when you know this is how it will end? If we run away, we’ll make them look for us and you know it will only get worse and endanger the vampires, so why? And now, I want Bill to have his normal life again, you’re reluctant, and you want us to continue being wanderers because of what?!"

Bill was fuming, but he was keeping it bottled inside. Analiese was right. Why wouldn’t Oliver tell? Why did he help them to lead them to further trouble when he could end the whole thing right there and then by turning him back to human? What was the catch?

"The truth is . . . I have loved your mother all along," Oliver revealed.

"I know you do," Analiese sighed, wiping her tears away. Bill couldn’t help but go over to her, wrapping his arms around her. He nuzzled his face in her mahogany locks of her briefly, inhaling her familiar scent before staring at her face intently. He was disheartened seeing her so downcast, especially about her mother. Meanwhile, he was confused by the direction of the situation.

"No, I was in love with her, Ana,” Oliver admitted. “I really loved her. I wanted to be with her, like you Bill. But all she saw me as was just a friend and she was really in love with your father, but he was a bastard. A real asshole. He left your mother while she was pregnant with you. He wanted to kill you. He was the one who sent the Austrians after her. That was why she died in that fire. And when she told me to take care of you, I had to. I treated you like my own. Like you were ours. I treasured you, and I protected you, and that is why I cannot tell you the way to save Bill's life, Analiese. You have to understand that I can't. I'm sorry."

"Understand what? What do you mean?!" The girl’s eyes widened, her tears rolling down her cheek. Bill was confused slightly at the sudden amount of information revealed. “Tell me!”

"No, Ana. I can't tell you."

"Please, on the account that Bill will be like that forever. I've ruined it for him. The vampires want him dead, Oliver! I love him and I want him safe. I can’t let the same people who killed my mother kill him! I don’t want them to get to you. Please!"

"It will go against the promise I made to your mother!" The older vampire snapped.

"Oliver!" Analiese cried out shakily, but Bill steadfastly supported her in his arms. Despair was contagious. A part of him denied the fact that Oliver was about to spill the secret.

"The person who turned him must die with a silver stake through the heart. Only then will Bill's supernatural senses fade if he hasn’t underwent the whole transformation. Bill will lose all connection with you when your soul fades entirely, and then he will regain himself slowly." Oliver sighed and rubbed his face. “God, Ana! Do you understand now? Do you understand what I mean?” There was silence. “You must die, Ana. You must die in order for Bill to survive, and I don’t want you to die!”

Analiese silently contemplated. Bill was turning full soon, and then he would lose his internal organs during the transformation. The reversal would be ineffective if he was a full vampire. She only had a week, and no more. She had to do this soon. Her mind was too focused on that, and she did not bother to put up walls around.

“No,” Bill mumbled. His eyes grew red. “She cannot die!”