Author's Note: I assume most readers have never heard of The Little Vampire (look it up on Wikipedia or something), but if you have, this is based on the movie and not the books. And if you have never heard of it, it really doesn't matter, because it is basically just a vampire fiction story. The only reason I call it fanfiction is because I am using the characters from The Little Vampire. They will be introduced later. The characters Kendra, Brittany, Ashleigh, and Bill all belong to me.

Chapter One: When it Rains, it Pours

The forest was silent, save for the sound of raindrops viciously pelting the treetops. I ran through the trails at full throttle, my running shoes sinking centimeters into the moist earth. There were a few stray puddles here and there, but I ran straight through them. My feet were already soggy anyway; they hadn't stood a chance inside my lightweight, breathable shoes. I could hear the water that had pooled in the bottoms of them, squishing in resistance against my pounding legs. I could see a flash behind me out of the corner of my eye, and a sudden crack of thunder spurred me into an even faster pace.

I cursed the weatherman out loud. He had promised clear skies until tonight, a gaudy smile stretching across his face as he boasted some load of bull report insisting on a few small showers after six o'clock, nothing before then. But it had started sprinkling right in the middle of my run. I had thought nothing of it at the time and decided to continue to the end of the trail. Bad decision. The rain got harder and harder until it was a full blown thunderstorm!

I was nearing the end of the forest trail, and I knew I had no choice but to get soaked. The trees had sheltered me for the duration of my run, but within moments I would be running on roadsides until I reached my house. Bracing myself, I darted out of the woods and was greeted with the sensation of raindrops hitting my skin like a thousand cold bullets. I urged my body faster still until I reached my street, and was still panting by the time I ran into the driveway and barreled into the door.

The very first person I saw when I stepped inside was Brittany, my stepmother. I mean literally, she was right in front of my face. "Kendra!" she gushed, "you're a mess! Your father and I were worried sick! What were you thinking, going out in a thunderstorm like that?"

I reached behind my head and began to wring out my auburn ponytail, the water it had held spattered onto the floor in a very satisfying sort of way. The strands that had fallen out of the hair elastic were pasted to the front of my face, and I swept them back indignantly. "Well I didn't exactly plan it. The weather was perfectly clear when I went out."

Ashleigh, my stepsister, poked her head around the corner and grinned. "Nice hair, Kendra. And the outfit too, really cute." Her voice dripped sarcasm. Ashleigh is twelve, and at the stage where she truly believes that she is some kind of tween superstar. Of course it doesn't help that Brittany has showered her with designer clothes and handbags practically since she popped out of her womb.

I glowered at her and was about to tell her exactly where she could stick her opinions, but then my father rounded the corner behind her, his eyes narrowed. "Kendra, for god's sake."

"What?" I put on my most innocent expression and hastily tried to hide the puddle of rainwater I had left on the floor.

He threw up his hands in exasperation. "Well, where were you and what were you doing? Honestly, you leave after school, no note, no phone call, not even the slightest hint of where you're going, what you'll be doing, who you're going with-"

"Dad, I went out for a run! What else could I possibly be doing on a Thursday afternoon? In this outfit?" I tugged at my sopping wet tank top and running shorts, which were dripping almost as much as my hair.

"Oh, I don't know, meeting friends, hooking up with boys, smoking marijuana…" He leaned forward and sniffed in my general direction to see if I had been partaking in the latter of said activities.

I shifted away. "Dad, come on. Don't you trust me at all?"

He huffed. "I'm sorry, I wish I could. But you're a sixteen year old girl and it's my responsibility to watch out for you." My father paused, looking as though he almost felt guilty. "Well, supper's almost ready. Go clean yourself up. We'll talk about this more later." He paused again, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "And for the record, I don't think you're smoking anything, but I had to check. We'll talk about this later, like I said."

A small sigh escaped my lungs. Brittany leaned forward, her pale hair falling around her face, and patted my wet shoulder. "I'm sorry sweetie, he just cares about you a whole lot, that's all. We all do." She snapped her gum out of habit. It was one of her more annoying ones. Normally I could tolerate it, but today I felt as though I would lash out at her at any moment, which made me feel even worse. Britt is a little ditzy, but lovable and sweet, and only a truly horrible person could find it in themselves to be unkind to her. In order to avoid the event, I brushed away from her and plodded up the stairs to my room, my ponytail leaving a trail of water droplets on the wood floor behind me.

I selected a pair of gray sweatpants and a My Little Pony t-shirt from my pajama drawer, then lurched my way into the bathroom. After locking the door securely behind me, I started up the shower, with water as hot as I could stand. I began to gingerly peel my wet clothes off my body and tested the water cautiously with my finger, pulling it back almost as soon as I had put it in. Definitely too hot! By the time I got the water to the right temperature, I could hear my father calling me from downstairs.

"Kendra, supper's ready in five minutes!"

"Yeah, yeah, wanna wait a minute?!" I knew I'd get an earful for being rude once I got down, but snapping at someone gave me some kind of primitive satisfaction, so I figured it was worth it. My father shouted something else up that sounded vaguely like a reprimand, but I ignored him and stepped primly into the shower. The hot water gave me a pleasant chill as I inhaled warm steam, filling my mouth and nose with its clean taste. Within minutes the whole bathroom was enjoyably humid, enough so I couldn't see much in front of my face but water vapor. I must have spent a good twenty minutes in the misty room, because when I arrived at the table the food looked considerably cold. My father looked annoyed, Brittany looked concerned, and Ashleigh looked livid.

"Kendra, come on. We've been waiting, like, three hours for you!"

I snorted. Ashleigh liked to throw the word 'like' in all of her sentences as many times as possible. And she did a decent job of it too. "Aw, quit your griping. As if it's been that long. And besides, I think you could survive for a few hours without food." I retorted.

Ashleigh puffed up and was about to reply, but my father cut in. "Kendra, knock it off and sit down."

I nodded and sat down next to Ashleigh, who responded by edging away as rudely and obviously as she could manage. "Sorry kid, but in case you haven't noticed, this was the only seat left." I was aware of the reproachful looks of my father and Brittany, but chose to overlook them as I reached across the table for the salad bowl.

The table was utterly silent for a few moments, and I could feel everyone's eyes on me as I ate. Then, out of the blue, my father blurted, "Kendra, who is this boy you've met? It's about time you've told me and quit keeping secrets."

I choked on my casserole. "Excuse me?"

Ashleigh burst into a fit of laughter. "Oh yeah right! Like any boy would ever go out with Kendra!"

I fixed her with my most fearsome scowl, but the little brat only laughed harder. Then I turned to my father. "Dad, I haven't been meeting any boys, honest. I've only been out running." I was dead serious about it too. Boys at school mostly left me alone, and the only ones who ever showed interest were the completely undesirable ones. But I chose to leave that little detail out.

"Kendra, you can stop hiding this from me, it's OK. I'd even like to meet this bloke." He paused. "Unless he's some kind of punk or something. Then you'd better forget him, because I do not approve of chains, or skulls, or pants that sit below the waist."

"Dad, I don't have a boyfriend, seriously!"

"Kendra, it's OK if you have a boyfriend!" Brittany exclaimed, brightening. "I had boyfriends by the time I was your age. And Bill, stop interrogating her!"

Ashleigh decided to add her two cents in. "Yeah, come on Bill, I know what boys like, and Kendra is not it."

My father raised an eyebrow, but remained silent. Both of us looked to Brittany to scold Ashleigh, but the blonde remained as clueless as usual. Britt never punished Ashleigh, and I suppose my father didn't feel quite right about doing it himself. She wasn't his kid after all. But this meant that Ashleigh got away with just about everything, and she relished the fact. At one point she had even made an effort to be polite to me around my dad, but once she learned that she wouldn't get in trouble, the mini-blonde made a point of insulting me whenever the opportunity arose. I expect that she resents her mother's remarriage quite a bit, but it really isn't my fault. And I was nothing but nice to the little snot-nosed twit when I first met her, so why did she choose to take it out on me?

"Dad, if I was seeing someone, I'd tell you. I promise." I stared straight into his eyes, which seemed to reassure him.

He sighed. "Alright, I'll take your word for it." The table was quiet for a few long, dragged out minutes, save for the sound of the four of us chewing and swallowing our dinner. My father and I finished at around the same time, awkwardly avoiding looking at each other as we stood up to clear our plates. When we walked into the kitchen, I looked up to see my dad, his mouth part way open as if he were trying to decide whether to make words come out or not.

"What's the matter dad?"

"Kendra, I don't know if this is the right time to bring this up, but I have something I need to tell you."

I perked up and stared at him. He seemed to grow uncomfortable under my gaze. "Yeah, what is it?"

"Brittany and I have been talking, and well…"

The words that came out of his mouth next can only be described as devastating.