Chapter Text
Mina lay in her bed, trying to push the thoughts swirling in her mind to rest. Lately, things seemed to be determined to undermine her plans, from Alexander Grayson offering his home to host Johnathan and her's engagement party, to finding those samples in Professor Van Helsing's secret room, to Lucy's strange behavior that day.
Then of course, there were the dreams. And Mr. Grayson himself.
The dreams had started the night of the ball, where she had first met the mysterious American who had captured society's interest with his scientific display. But it wasn't holding the lightbulb that glowed without being attachted to a power source that had her waking from strange dreams. It was the man himself that had her wondering if her mind wasn't snapping under the pressure of school.
From the moment she fell asleep to the second she awoke Mina found herself dreaming about Alexander. It wasn't just his charm, encouraging words, or devilish smirk that entered her dreams (although they did appear) it was that similarly eerie feeling that somewhere, somehow she had already known him before that night.
She still got that feeling whenever they were alone. They had met somewhere before, even if she couldn't place him.
The feeling was the last thing she recalled before falling asleep.
The sheets changed in the dream. Gone were the common white cotton that usually held her slumbering body. Now she was wrapped in white silk, the pillows a buttery golden color, while Mina wore a simple off-shoulder white nightgown. She was running her fingers through a man's hair; the hair was long and dark, not the same brown as Johnathan's.
She stopped, and the man raised his head to smile at her. Alexander.
"Is something wrong my love?" he asked, his voice accented differently. He didn't sound American at all now.
She tried to open her mouth to tell him to remove himself from her bed, but the words wouldn't form.
He seemed to take her silence for something else. He shifted so that he was leaning over her, his smile shifting into something more tender. His right hand slowly slid up the side of her face, the thumb stroking the cheek with affection.
Unbidden, she felt a smile come to her face at his touch. She knew this was most irregular, but the touch felt prefectly natural, as though she always let him do this.
Slowly, he leaned even closer and close his eyes. She felt his lips press against hers, again with the same tenderness that she held in his eyes. His mouth felt warm, the hand moving down her face while his other hand slid up her arm. She felt herself lean upward into him, as though she were in a trance.
Then suddenly the scene changed.
She was wearing more common-day clothes, and Alexander's hair was back to its normal length. However, she seemed to have entered a scene where they were passionately kissing. As she suddenly pulled away he frowned and pulled her into a sitting position.
"What's wrong?" he asked, his voice back to its American accent, although she could almost hear the light British tone behind it.
"What the bloody hell are you doing?" she asked, pushing her hair away from her face.
He attempted a smile, but it fell flat when he realized she wasn't joking, "I was trying to convince you to take the day off and go to the country estate with me sweetheart" he answered, as though this were a common day event for them.
"Mr. Grayson, I don't know what you presume our relationship is, but we are not courting. I don't know what's even going on!" she insisited, glad to have her voice back.
He flinched, "Are you saying you don't love me?" he asked harshly. He searched her face for a reaction, but after a moment's silence he grew angry.
"Look me in the eyes and say it" he demanded.
"I don't love you. Mr. Grayson I'm engaged to Johnathan, I love him!" she declared, moving to get off the bed.
Alexander let out a harsh bark of what she assumed he meant as laughter, "Well good luck with that, I imagine it'll be quite difficult to love a man you left brokenhearted for me" he replied, getting off the bed and prowling towards the table with the liqour.
"I-what?" Mina gasped.
"Don't play coy with me Mina, my love. You can't just go back and forth between the two of us. The moment you left him and came to me you knew it was forever" he poured a drink, shot it down, and turned back to stare at her.
He took step after step, his eyes never leaving hers until he stood before her, so close she could feel their breaths mixing.
"You knew that when I claimed you, it was forever" he leaned forward until his mouth rested next to her ear, "I waited for years for you to come to me, now that I have you again I'm never letting you go" he promised.
She shivered as his words wahed over her. Forever with this man. Perhaps this is why she felt as though she'd known him when they met.
Perhaps her soul had already known who he was to become the moment she set eyes upon him.