Alvin and the Chipmunks meet DRACULA!

"Simon. Simon! SIMON!!"

Simon rolled his eyes, still crouched over the small trough of dirt. "Just a minute, Alvin, Jeannette and I will be though in just...one...minute."

"A minute! A minute? You said that an hour ago!" Alvin resumed pacing. "I've been stuck in this school for an hour after the bell, and I don't even have detention!""

"We're done here now, okay?" Simon stood, glaring at his brother, and brushed a few specks of dirt off his blue turtleneck. "You could have walked home with Brittany and Eleanor, you know. All you would have had to do is apologize to Brittany for insulting her."
"Apologize? Never!" Alvin struck a wounded pose. "She should apologize to me!"

Simon simply ignored him. He turned to Jeannette instead. "I'll take this soil sample home and examine it. I'll tell you tomorrow if our formula is affecting the integrity of the soil the way we think it's going to."

"All right." Jeannette agreed absently. "The garlic bulbs should be ready in a few weeks. We should see if this new fertilizer works as well as we hope then."

"Can we go now?" Alvin repeated.
"Yes." Simon headed out of the school lab, Alvin and Jeanette on his heels. Theodore followed quietly behind. Ever since the "werewolf" incident, he had been even quieter than usual. He said he didn't remember anything, but sometimes Simon wondered.

"Besides, Alvin, it wouldn't hurt you to start thinking about your science project, would it?"

"No problem. I've got it all under control." Alvin waved him away. It was typical Alvin – overconfident to the max until everything fell apart around him. "I'm planning on – hold the phone. Where did that come from?"
"What?" Simon's eyes followed Alvin's pointing finger. Up on the hill overlooking their house was a large stone castle. He was pretty sure it hadn't been there this morning. "Hmm. I don't know."

"I d-don't like it. It's scary." Theodore piped up. He had quickly scooted behind Simon, peering around him to look.

Simon put a comforting hand on Theodore's shoulder. "Don't worry, Theodore. It's probably a movie set or something. We do live in Hollywood, after all."

"Oh. Okay then."

"It doesn't look much like a movie set to me. I think it looks like a haunted castle!" Alvin's eyes sparkled, not noticing the fear that came flooding back into Theodore's face. "I bet that's it! Ghosts are probably swarming all over that castle. We could –"

"No. We couldn't, and they aren't." Simon interrupted, anger in his voice. "You are not going to start that again. No more monster hunts. You're scaring Theodore."

Alvin gave him a well-practiced look of innocence. "I think someone is forgetting that last time I was right. Mr. Talbot was a werewolf. He even turned Theodore into one!"

"No, Alvin. We're not going up there."

"But-"

"No!"

Alvin sighed theatrically. "All right, all right!"

"Thank you." Simon glanced at Theodore. The little chipmunk still had a worried look on his face. Simon hoped that Alvin really would drop it.

As they turned the corner to there house, however, Simon caught the crafty look Alvin sent back up the hill, and sighed.

Of course Alvin wasn't going to give up that easily. Of course not.

oooooooooooooooooooo

"Hi, guys!" Dave called out cheerily as they walked into the house. "How was school?"

"Fine." Alvin said automatically, but his mind was still on the alluring castle up on the hill. Actually it was pretty close to the truth. No trips to the principal – a few threats to do so, but hey! Close didn't count.

Dave continued talking but Alvin's mind was elsewhere. He had to figure out a way to talk Simon into going to that castle with him – without letting Theodore know. He loved his little brother and really didn't want to scare him, but he knew that the loyal little chipmunk would want to come with anyways.

Alvin was uncharacteristically quiet during dinner, but for a change Simon talked enough for the both of them. Endless details about his silly science project. Bor-ring.

"I only need to save up just a little more and I'll be able to buy that new microscope I want. Then I'll really be able to see the garlic cells well when we're ready to dissect them. I have almost enough money."
Alvin's ears perked up. Mentally he tallied what he had stashed upstairs in his sock drawer. Almost twelve dollars. He had been saving it, but he was pretty certain that Simon wasn't going to crack easily. That only left bribery.

The night seemed to drag on until they went to bed. He waited until he was tucked into his bed and he was sure that Theodore was soundly asleep to set his plan in motion.

The moonlight bathed him in silver as he slipped quietly out of bed, causing him to glance over at Theodore. His baby brother was sleeping peacefully. A few weeks ago that moonlight would have transformed the little chipmunk into a growling, slobbering werewolf, but not now. Alvin felt again the relief that his brother had been cured – however weird the cure had seemed.

It had not been fun having a monster for a brother.

He crept up to Simon's bed, crawling over the side silently, and looked down at him. Simon was fast asleep.

"Simon." Alvin said as quietly as he could, and poked him hard in the shoulder. "Simon, wake up."
"Huh?" Simon's eyes cracked open, and stared up at him. "Oh, no. Not again."

"Simon, I have to get a look at that castle. I just have to!"

Simon closed his eyes and shook his head. "No. Absolutely, positively, one hundred percent not."

"Look, we won't tell Theodore. I don't want to scare him either. But I have to see if it's haunted! I just have to!"

"So I suppose you want to get dressed, sneak out of the house, and you and I go out ghost-hunting tonight?"
Alvin grinned delightedly. "Exactly."

"Ahhh! I was being sarcastic, Alvin!"

"Simon, everyone knows that more ghosts come out a night. It's been scientifically proven."

"Oh, great plan. But I am not going."

Alvin sighed. "Okay." A small pile of dollar bills dropped from his hand to the bed. "But I bet this would have helped you make a small purchase I heard you talking about earlier."

Simon's face had a look of interest on it. "That's just about enough more for me to buy my microscope." He said quietly.

"Yep."

Simon sighed. "Okay. I'll get dressed. But I just know I'm going to regret this."

oooooooooooooooooooo

"I don't think it's a movie set, Simon!"

Simon groaned out loud at the excitement in Alvin's voice. Now that he was here, wasn't sure it was a good idea anymore. "All right, I was wrong. Happy?"

"Yes!" Alvin wasn't talking about Simon's error, though. "Through here! The window's open."

They slipped in through the window almost silently. "No ghosts yet." Simon said, his eyebrow raising wryly.

"We just got here! Come on."

Simon followed him reluctantly. The castle was spooky, he had to give Alvin that. Cobwebs drifted from the ceiling like the castle had been standing here for centuries instead of hours. There seemed to be no electric lights, but a wealth of candles was burning, and long dark red velvet drapes covered nearly every window.

"Don't go in too far, Alvin. We don't want to get lost."

"Don't worry, Simon. I remember the way out."

Simon hoped so. He hated it when Alvin said, "don't worry." Also, he was starting to feel a little creeped out.

"Still no ghosts." He repeated a few minutes later. "Can we leave now?"

"No, Simon! I just know there's gotta be ghosts here. Its way too spooky for there not to be ghosts here!" Alvin sounded frustrated.

"Look, Alvin, I sympathize that you want to see a ghost. But maybe they don't want to see you." Simon said, annoyed. "Can we –"

They both jumped at a sound above them. "Wh-what was that?" Alvin asked.

"I don't know." Another whoosh sounded above them. "And I don't care. I'm leaving, Alvin."

"Simon, no! We can't just –"

Something swooped out of the dark, aiming right at Simon. "Ahhhhhhhhh!" he yelled. "Something's biting me!"

"It's a bat! There's a bat on your neck!" Alvin yelled.

"Help me get it off!"

Alvin swatted at the bat. "Shoo! Shoo!" It did little good.

"Grab it and pull it off, Alvin!" Simon yelled again.

"Okay, okay I got it! I got it!" Alvin threw the bat away from him. "Run!"

Simon ran after Alvin, not knowing whether or not the bat was following them. "Alvin, you'd better remember the way out." He shouted as he ran

"Sure I do!"

Simon wasn't so sure. He couldn't recognize this part of the house. "Alvin! I think we're lost."

"No, no we're not!"

"Yes we are!"

Alvin suddenly spotted a large door. "Look! There's the exit!" He jumped up and grabbed the handle. Simon felt a huge wave of relief when he saw the front lawn.

They kept running down the hill, across the streets, all the way back home. They even kept running right up to their room, heedless of whether or not they made any noise. It was only when they had stopped that they realized they could have woken Dave or Theodore up.

"Be very, very quiet." Alvin whispered to him. They waited for a few seconds, then breathed a sigh of relief in unison. Dave hadn't woken up – neither had Theodore.

"That was not the way we got in, Alvin." Simon said, irritated.

"So what? I got us out of there." Alvin gasped. "Simon! You're bleeding!"

Simon reached up to touch his neck. Suddenly he realized how dizzy he was. "The bat. It bit me."

"I'll get the first aid kit." That was quickly done, and soon Alvin was putting small Band-Aids over the two tiny puncture marks. "It must have been a vampire bat." Alvin concluded.

Simon looked at him suspiciously. "You do know that vampire bats aren't really vampires, don't you?"

"I-"

"Because I am not going to go vampire hunting with you. Not. Going. Vampire. Hunting."

Alvin made a humph noise. "All done."

Simon gave him a pointed look. "Good night, Alvin."

But before he fell asleep, he heard Alvin sneak over to the bookcase and grab a book and his flashlight.

Oh, brother. Simon thought, slipping into bed.

oooooooooooo

Back in the castle, the bat flew deeper and deeper into the catacombs. Reaching a particularly dark room dominated by a coffin placed in the middle, it hovered for a moment before assuming its true form.

"Interesting." Dracula said. "A nice little snack. Not what I was expecting to start with, but yes. I think it could work. The little chipmunk can definitely fit into," he laughed evilly. "My plans."

End of part one.