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In the Shadow of an Angel's Wings	By : gothikfaerie87 Category: S through Z > Van Helsing Views: 5349 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Van Helsing, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 5
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Chapter Six: On the Run

I was disturbed in the middle of the night by ghostly howls
and rattling shutters. Gabriel was still asleep beside me, arms draped
unceremoniously around my torso. From what I could tell, he had fallen into a
very deep sleep and wouldn�t be awaking easily. The howls continued, but it
sounded almost like the wind. The rattling could have been caused by it as
well. Still, my instinct was to investigate the matter.

Sliding down, I was able to slip easily from his arms. I
hastily collected my scattered clothing and put it on, avoiding the bodice for
now. I shivered slightly. The fire had burned out a while ago, so the rooms
were dark and cold. I grabbed a lantern and lit it, cocking my pistol with my
other hand. I wasn�t scared�I was just always prepared for some kind of attack.

The floor creaked under my boots, my heels clicking softly
as I stepped. I narrowed my eyes at the dark windows, approaching the door with
a practiced caution. Suddenly there was a loud scream outside and my head
jerked back in surprise. I breathed a little rigidly as the rattling stopped.
There was one more howl and silence. All I heard was my breathing. I then
realized that I was a little frightened. It hadn�t really occurred to me that
there would be evil creatures abroad. Gulping, I proceeded to the door.

Suddenly I was grabbed around the shoulders, my pistol hand
grasped into inaction. I was spun around, wide-eyed, to face Gabriel. He
appeared to be barely half awake, and half-dressed at that�in his pants, boots,
and his scarf just tossed over his shoulders. I moved to say something. �Sh�!�
He whispered fiercely, cocking one of his pistols and shuffling past me. I was
a bit annoyed. Every time danger became eminent, he took complete charge of the
situation. It was surprising that I hadn�t become used to it by now, but I
wasn�t sure if I ever would. I followed after him stubbornly.

He stopped at the door, listening�sensing. His hand rested
on the door handle in perceptible hesitance. I was thoroughly aggravated. Still
I bottled it in, aware that he would not appreciate a childish outburst from
me. I was never going to get used to him being in charge�I was too independent
to. He breathed softly, as if he were regaining his composure. He closed his
eyes for a minute and leaned his head forward a bit before shaking out his
nerves. Then his eyes flashed open again.

�Stand back, Anna,� he said.

�But, Gabriel!� I began to protest and he whirled his head
around to glare at me.

�Get back,� he growled. I backed away, a little frightened
by his sudden change in demeanor. Then again, he did get very aggressive when
he felt he had a task to accomplish, as I had seen in the past few days. I
wasn�t about to argue now. There�d be no use in doing so. He turned back and
probably rolled his eyes, but all I could see now were the two long scars on
his back. Again I was met with a twinge of pain, perhaps, at the sight. I shook
my head, displacing my shocked expression with one of ferocity.

Gabriel finally lurched forward, throwing the door aside and
stepping into the cold swirl of the winter air. There was nothing but silence.
He looked frustrated and whirled about to grab my lantern. He headed out of the
cabin. I followed cautiously, staying within the circle of light. Then beyond his shadow, I saw a figure lying
in the snow ahead. Gabriel broke into a faster pace and stood over the body,
examining. I approached, breathless.

�What is it?� I asked, looking down. Gabriel looked grave
and crossed himself, turning solemn, dark eyes to me. I heard voices
approaching from the town and whirled to see torches coming through the snow.
Gabriel froze again. The cold didn�t seem to bother him one bit. He looked at
the approaching figures and suddenly seemed to strike an epiy ofy of sorts. He
looked at me with an almost terrified expression and then at footprints that
led off to a nearby cluster of woods. A feeble-looking woman darted out
suddenly and threw herself to her knees at the dead body�s side, wailing.

�Murderers!� She suddenly screamed at us, �You killed her!�
The woman wept and then turned her face to the approaching figures. She leapt
up (a little too lively for an old woman, I thought) and pointed a finger at
us, screaming something in Hungarian. Before I could verbally or mentally
react, (or translate her Hungarian, for that matter) Gabriel grasped my hand
and practically dragged me back into the cabin, slamming the door and locking
it, before wedging a chair against it.

�We�re being framed,� he nearly hissed at my confused
expression. Confusion turned to rage within me. I fumed. �Don�t just stand
there, get together your things!� He snapped at me.

�Someone�s grumpy,� I muttered to myself, grabbing together
my things hastily. He had quickly finished dressing and then suddenly there was
banging on the door.

�Police!� Someone was yelling through the wood. I felt my
heart in my throat and tossed on my coat and gloves, not bothering with the
bodice. Gabriel snapped his fingers at me and we crept silently to the
side-door, which led directly into the stables. In the front, however, the door
splintered and finally burst open with several angry-looking officers. They
dropped their makeshift battering ram and filtered in through the door. I
exchanged glances with Gabriel and then we simultaneously bolted through the
side-door, heedless of the officers� shouts. Once inside the small stable,
Gabriel quickly secured the door (which would take longer to break down than
the front-door, no doubt), and we made for our horses.

�You get this often?� I commented almost sarcastically,
throwing my saddle on my horse as he did likewise. He smirked a little and
nodded, his brows raising under the brim of his hat.

�Oh yeah, all the time,� he replied. We loaded up our bags
immediately and mounted.

�So how do you want to do this?� I asked calmly, amidst the
banter of the banging of the side-door. He glanced forward, tipping his hat a
little at the wide outside doors, which suddenly burst open.

�This,� he answered, kicking his horse into a full-out
gallop. I followed suit and we burst through the doors. �Thank you, may God
smile upon you all!� Gabriel yelled back at the baffled townspeople.

�I suppose it�s funny that we�ve been framed for murder,� I
stated, glaring at him a bit. He smirked.

�I�m used to it,� he answered, pointing at his face under
the hat, �Most wanted man in Europe.�

�Oh yeah, that�s right,� I smirked and laughed a little,
turning my face on the snow-covered grounds in front of us. The horses plowed
through it with almost no problem (Transylvanian horses are used to snow). �So
where are we going?� I finally said after a while.

�Hopefully away from angry Hungarian police officers and
townspeople wielding pitchforks and sticks,� he mused sarcastically, focusing
on the path ahead. The mountains were only growing closer, and I was exhausted.

�Why do I feel like we�re heading into danger?� I asked,
unsettled.

�Because we probably are,� he answered, wrinkling his nose
and looking around in the darkness. I finally realized that it wasn�t actually
snowing out. The breeze was picking up the light layer and casting it around in
eddies. Overhead, the clouds were dispersing to reveal patches of starry sky. I
smiled a little at my memories of the stars. And then there was silence.
Gabriel seemed tense and perked up every so often to gaze around. But I was
slowly dozing off, my exhaustion overcoming me.

Then it happened: I fell asleep while riding. I fell into a
dreamless sleep, which was surprising. I wasn�t sure what woke me exactly, but
it could have been the excruciating cramp I found in my neck. I groaned
slightly, my eyes opening into the haze of the hours just before dawn. The
clouds had cleared away and we were riding now at a walk. Gabriel had brought
the horses closer and now looked at me with an amused expression.

�Sleep well, Princess?� He grinned. I blinked, waking up.

�Where are we?� I asked drowsily, looking around. We were
surrounded by trees and the ground ahead was steadily sloping, although it
appeared we were on a road of sorts. Gabriel shrugged a bit.

�I believe we are headed southeast, which would bring us
closer to your home if we kept going,� he answered, �It�s been a while since
I�ve seen any signs of life, however.�

�Is that good or bad?� I asked with a yawn, not able to
think straight.

�That all depends� if we were in desperate need of shelter
or supplies, I suppose it would be bad, but, we�re not, that I know of, so I
guess it doesn�t really matter. At least we�re not surrounded by angry
Hungarians,� he grinned at me again. I stared at him.

�You get really odd when you�re tired,� I stated blandly,
shifting my position slightly and wincing at the pain in my neck. He laughed
and then scoffed at me a little.

�I�m not tired,� he responded.

�Mhm,� I said doubtfully, moving my eyes along the path. I
had almost been hoping to wake up to either silence or some kind of deep
discussion, but Gabriel was in a humorous mood. Surprising really. Perhaps he
was covering up the annoyance within himself.

�You�re the one that�s odd when she�s tired,� he smirked,
looking at me through twinkling eyes. I frowned, staring at him, a little
insulted.

�When I�m tired, I sleep, like normal people,� I retorted,
glaring at him. He continued smirking.

�Oh really? The other night, you were exhausted and you ran
like hell was collapsing on you,� he replied, not taking his eyes from me. I
flushed.

�That was different,� I muttered, adjusting my position
again self-consciously. He watched me, amused. I tried to think of something
witty I could say in return, but I was just too damn tired. �At least I don�t constantly assert my power
on you and feel the need to take complete control of everything,� I said, �And
I could.�

�I�d like to see you try!� He laughed a little at my comment
and focused his eyes on the path again, as if he were interested.

�If that�s a dare, you can be certain of my taking it,
Mister Van Helsing,� I said, glaring at him. He turned his head again, looking
at me with an almost surprised expression. He tipped his hat a little and
smirked.

�Then it�s a dare, Miss Valerious,� he said seriously, but
underneath his expression, I saw the devious gleam. It ignited a fire of
indignance within me and I straightened my back a little, as if I needed some
comfort that I was still proper.

�I have every intention of carrying it out, Mister Van
Helsing,� I stated, for my own reassurance.

�And I expect you to,� he said. There was silence again. We
went over the slope and started descending downward again, only to be met with
a path that ran along the edge of a steep drop-off. Below in the gully was a
city, and the lights still appeared to be burning brightly. �What town is
this?� Gabriel thought aloud, going on ahead of me. I shrugged, examining it.
The path led down into the gully (it was very narrow) and to a stone gate.

�Perhaps there�s a sign?� I suggested, following behind him
on my horse.

�There must be,� he commented. When we reached ground level,
we rode up to the gate to see a mahogany wooden sign with gold embossed
characters on it. I strained my eyes through the dimness and made it out
vaguely.

�It�s in Latin,� I stated, �I can�t read it.� Gabriel frowned,
looking around at the wall/p> /p>

�I don�t sense any evil,� he said, �If anything, I sense a
kind of� inner peace.� I furrowed my brow, still looking at the place.

�Perhaps it�s some form of a monastery?� I suggested.

�Maybe�� He said, �At any rate�I�m going to find out.� He
dismounted and took his horse�s reins into his hand, stepping across the
thresh-hold and examining the front door of the place. �It�s definitely
religious,� he stated, pointing up at one of the spires of the city. There was
a large cross that seemed to loom across the remnants of the night sky.

�I feel like I�m being watched,� I shivered a little,
dismounting and following him to the door. He lifted his fist and rapped on the
door three times.

I have to admit there was nothing dangerous-looking about
the place, but if there were beds, peace and quiet, and shelter from the evil
things outside, I was all for staying the night�that is, if my urge to prove my
power to Gabriel was not overwhelming me at that point�but wait! If this were a
religious place, such activity would be strictly forbidden�wouldn�t it? I
smirked a little at the thought. Forbidden. That was intriguing�

A/N: R and R. e_e I appreciate your moral support!
It means a lot to me! I know, I�m dependent� ._. So I think VH maybe got a
little OOC in this chapter, but I made up for it with the excuse that he�s
tired (see, he denied it! See! See!) All right that does it. I need sleep.
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- 7
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In the Shadow of an Angel's Wings