"Maybe you can sign up for a few next semester."

"Night classes and project classes, got it."

"I can recommend some, even."

"That'd be great."

"Happy to help." Kiss!

Kiss!

School tumbles by after that, a hectic rush - Dani still has the dreams, but not as often, and she doesn't have any during finals - Carmilla looks exhausted but assures Dani she's keeping up with everything -

And as finals week is stuttering to a stop, another girl dies. 

This one makes the news as a murder - something was caught on camera, a dark smudged blur, and the girl is on camera when she collapses - just about in public, and there's eyewitness accounts of a faceless ghost. 

(The Black Cat forums explode in activity.)

Yeah. Dani would bet they do. She's kind of... disengaged from them, at this point.

"Why do you think this one was different?" she asks Carmilla.

"Maybe she wants to get caught."

"...What for?"

...She shrugs and makes a small, unhappy noise.

Hug?

...Hug.

"Love you," Dani says.

"I love you too," she says, softly - sadly. "More than anything."

Kiss.

Kiss.

It's only a few more days before the semester ends and the students return home. They pass in a bit of a daze, for Dani. She's pretty sure now she knows who- what- Carmilla is. The question that remains is, what is she going to do about that? She doesn't want Carmilla hurt, but she doesn't want other people to keep getting hurt either. Carmilla is nice, pretty, clever, considerate, witty- Dani does love her.

So when she happens to pause on the stairs at her house and overhear her father saying something about Mircalla's grave and ending the threat- She doesn't fight the instinct that has her bundling up and tearing out of the house as soon as possible. She knows where the grave is and that's where she's going.

The mausoleum is quiet - and deserted this time of year, no mourners nor tourists, no historians either. Dani has to slip past a guard, but he's not paying much attention, and it's easy.

Mircalla Karnstein's grave has pride of place in her family's expensive mausoleum. Whatever their relationship in life, her father felt it important to at least make a pricey show of mourning her. 

The heavy marble sarcophagus labeled as hers - richly carved with intertwined cats - looks like it hasn't been opened since her death. 

Oh.

"Sorry," she whispers, and attempts to open the sarcophagus.

The lid's heavy - 

But Dani can get it open. 

Carmilla's inside, eyes closed, breath soft and even, her sleep totally undisturbed by the loud scrape of stone. She's dressed like Dani's used to, modern clothes - there's desiccated fabric scraps littering the stone under her. 

It's true.

Then... the fairy tale thing would be to break the curse with a kiss. So.

Here goes.

She gasps, eyes snapping open, and makes a very confused sound. 

"Carmilla?"

" - Dani??? What - "