Waiting in the Wings

Summary: Griffin, the Invisible Man, is secretly in love with Count Dracula, and wants nothing more than to become visible and show the oblivious vampire that someone truly does love him. A mysterious guest at the hotel offers a cure for Griffin's invisibility, but in exchange he wants one thing, something precious that belongs to Dracula without which he cannot live ... Rated T for safety.

A/N: My first Hotel Transylvania fanfic! I love the movie, and I adore all the characters, especially Drac and Griffin. I thought I could elaborate on Griffin's character and his own thoughts on his invisibility, plus try out some Drac/Griffin fluffiness, which, I'm sure, is a first on this website. C'mon, Griffin's "You're irresistible" line can be taken two ways – and I'm taking the slash route, for sure. ^_^ I have not read "The Invisible Man" by HG Wells, but I have done a bit of research into it to form a basis for Griffin's wish to become visible.

Hope you like this fanfic, so please, no flames.

Disclaimer: Hotel Transylvania belongs to Sony Animation. "The Invisible Man" and "Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde" belongs to HG Wells and Robert Louise Stevenson, respectively. I own nothing but this fanfic.


Chapter 1: Intro

Love is blind.

How many times had Griffin heard that insufferable cliché? It certainly grated on the Invisible Man's nerves from time to time – more so when the other monsters constantly threw about this saying to describe the ensuing romance between Mavis and that human, Jonathan – but what irked him the most was the fact that, in his case, the phrase rung true.

Griffin sighed, lying back on his bed with his head buried in his pillow. He felt absolutely fatigued: it was a long, long, long drive to the hotel, and his energy was sapped, what with meeting and greeting some of his closest friends who had gathered at the hotel that evening. Frank and Eunice Stein arrived by Express Mail, per usual, and goodness knows Eunice always had a lot to say (and complain about). Wayne and Wanda were already there with their brood, and the werewolf couple showed off their newborn pups (well, more Wanda than Wayne doing the showing off), two more boys and another girl that they named Wilson, Wiley and Winona. All the attention on these pups, however, did not bode well with the other kids, and that resulted in general chaos and destructive behavior … okay, that was pretty much the norm, only this time multiplied by 1000. Luckily the zombie staff intervened (ie. became the kids' targets-cum-chew toys) before Griffin was nearly decimated.

Beyond tired at this point, Griffin mumbled his excuses and said he was leaving for his room.

"Wait, you can't go yet!" said a very persistent Count Dracula, making a grab for Griffin's arm (only to take hold of his nose instead). "Murray will be arriving shortly. He'll want to see all of us – pardon the pun."

The statuesque vampire's iridescent blue eyes seemed to bore right through the lenses of Griffin's spectacles, and, not for the first time, the Invisible Man thanked whatever gods above that no one could see him blush.

"Can't you wait a minute longer?" asked Dracula, staring intently into what seemed to be the Invisible Man's own orbs.

Griffin reluctantly pulled back from Dracula's grip, and, adjusting his glasses and rubbing his sore nose, replied, "Maybe later, Drac. I'm kinda tired. The drive here, you know, it always takes it out of me." He lowered his voice, forcing the vampire to lean in (and making Griffin blush even more). "And Wayne's kids … they're alright, but I think I've had my fill for the day. Meeting Murray will just about kill me."

"Ah, say no more," whispered Dracula with a chuckle. "I understand. You need time to recover, and Murray certainly won't let you go in a hurry until he recounts everything that's happened to him in the last few months."

He straightened up with a knowing smile. "Alright, I'll let you off this time. Just promise me you'll get enough rest. I don't want you to be anywhere else in a fatigue when my little girl and Jonathan return to the hotel from their trip the day after tomorrow. That's something you can't miss."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world, Drac," answered Griffin, fighting back a sigh.

Before the vampire could say anything else, Griffin turned on his heels and made his way to his room. If the Invisible Man was not wearing his spectacles and did not utter that last remark, Dracula could have sworn he was talking to nobody but himself.

Griffin adjusted his glasses once more with a sigh, running an unseen hand through his abundant, red curls (of which he was immensely proud). He cared deeply for his friends. Sure, over the years they branched out to other monsters that would come and go at Hotel Transylvania, but no one could break apart their social circle – they were family. However, you could only have so many doses of "family", and Griffin had his fill, thanks very much.

Thank goodness he escaped before Murray, aka "the Party", arrived, otherwise he would have collapsed right there in the lobby, exhausted like anything.

Not that anybody would notice, thought the Invisible Man bitterly, unless they tripped over me.

There was no point in being negative, Griffin knew. There were positive things to look forward to during his stay at the hotel: spending time with his friends. Catching up with the other monsters, that was another thing. Oh, spend an hour or so in the sauna with the guys, escape from the women (and kids) for a bit, indulge in some quality "guy time".

But the biggest event to look forward to was the homecoming: Mavis, the only daughter of Count Dracula – the vampire's pride and joy – was returning to Hotel Transylvania with Jonathan, her human boyfriend, from their trip in Hawaii.

Before Jonathan walked into all of their lives, Dracula would never let Mavis step out of the hotel to see the world in all of her 118 years of her life. However, Jonathan – cool, "roll with the punches", fun-loving Jonathan – crept into the vampire girl's heart (it was "zing" at first sight!), and he even made a strong impression on Dracula and the other monsters. So much so, not only did they realise that not all humans were bad, but Johnny even persuaded the stern vampire to let Mavis see the world after her 118th birthday. Being an experienced traveller and deeply respectful, Jonathan promised Dracula that he would look after Mavis. Not without a little reluctance, Dracula relented, and soon the unique couple embarked on a trip to "paradise", otherwise known as Hawaii (or "Haweewee", as Mavis once put it).

Now, they were returning home in two days, and to celebrate their homecoming, Dracula had extended invitations to his closest friends to partake in a welcome-back party, and … well, here they were, Griffin included.

The things I do for Drac, thought Griffin, rolling over in the bed with a tired yawn. Celebrating Mavis's birthday to welcoming her home in the space of – like what? – three months, that pretty much drains one's energy.

Judging by hints dropped by the vampire, Drac was going all out for this party. Nothing was too good for his little girl, his "Mavy-Wavy". He cared so much about her, and apart from the hotel she was the most important thing in his life. Everything he did, he did for Mavis. He always put her happiness before his own …

And Griffin truly wanted his friend to be happy.

If only I could just pluck up the courage and tell him …

Griffin groaned in embarrassment, burying his blushing-hot yet invisible face into his pillow. Just the thought that he, Griffin, the Invisible Man, was secretly in love with the one and only Count Dracula, and that he desperately wanted to tell the venerated vampire how he really felt about him …

That thought alone sent shivers down his spine.

Rolling onto his back, Griffin gazed up hopelessly at the ceiling in a feeble attempt to calm himself down. His face was still blistering hot, though, and it only aggravated the Invisible Man even more.

Yes, I am in love with the most famous, over-controlling, over-protective, uptight, domineering, immortal, seriously old and incredibly attractive vampire in history, he thought, furiously removing his spectacles. He's my freaking "zing" and I don't have the nerve to tell him how I feel!

Not that it matters, though. Drac isn't even aware about my feelings for him and he will never see that as long as I'm invisible. How can I possibly show him that we can be more than friends? Besides, he doesn't believe that anyone could love him, and he only has Mavis's wellbeing in mind, not his own. And as for Martha … he'll never move on from her ...

It was too painful too think about.

Another sigh escaped from Griffin's lips.

Indeed, love is blind. Despite Johnny being a human, mortal and a bit crazy at times, Mavis saw past his faults and still wanted to be with him. But in the Invisible Man's case, Count Dracula could never – would never – be able to see past the other's invisibility – his greatest fault – and realise how much Griffin loved him. The vampire would remain forever oblivious, unaware that someone out there had wanted him and remain so for centuries to come, long after Griffin was buried in the ground. No matter how many times he would tease or occasionally flirt with the vampire, Dracula would never ever grasp the concept that the Invisible Man was chasing him.

Ever.

Why? Because I'm invisible. They can see right through me, but they … he … he can't see past my fault.

I can't show Dracula that I love him.

And I'll never get the opportunity …

A tear, almost undetectable, ran down Griffin's cheek. He didn't wipe it away, he just let it fall. Turning on his side, the Invisible Man placed his spectacles on the bedside table and settled into a more comfortable position with a sniff.

Closing his eyes, waiting for sleep to take him, Griffin thought:

If only there was a cure for my condition … then I'd show Drac the real me … I'd show him that I love him ... that's if he'd want me, too …

With that thought in mind, Griffin succumbed to sleep, unaware that in a few days time, he would emerge from the wings and get his long-awaited opportunity, but at the expense of his loved ones and the benefit of another, one who had been waiting for his own opportunity to gain something from a certain vampire for a long time …


A/N: First chappa done! It was quite hectic, but I think I did okay. I want to get the cover-art up soon, as well as the second chapter, depending on the response to this introduction. Hope you all liked this, and I hope you're open to some D/G slash. :)

Reviews are welcome!

*~AI07~* ;)