Young Dracula
Prologue
Bryn, Robin and Vlad; an ordinary girl, a wannabe vampire and an actual vampire, connected by a weird sort of friendship.
Vlad lived in a castle (no big surprise there then!) with his father, the Countand older sister Ingrid. Robin lived with both his parents, younger sister and older twin brothers. Bryn only lived with her parents, her two older siblings had moved out and made a living somewhere in London.
Chapter one
"Vladimir!" the count's voice echoed clearly throughout the castle. The three friends where in the library attempting to complete their English homework, but the collection of books were way too old to help them with anything.
"I best be going, goodness knows what dad wants!" Vlad told his friends as he got up to leave.
"We'll probably still be here when you come back, I mean it's not like this homework's gonna be even half done tonight!" Robin stated, his black hair flopping back in place.
Vlad smiled at Robin, shutting the door behind as he left, running down the corridor only to be halted in his tracks by his apparating father. It startled him momentarily, but he was so used to his father using his vampire given powers to move around the castle, that the act didn't faze him entirely.
"What do you want?" he tried to sound enthusiastic, but really he just wanted him to get on with it so he could go back to his friends.
"I have taken the liberty of place a coffin in your bedroom, got rid of that horrible wooden contraption." The Countinformed his son, as he pulled his cape firmly around him ready to apparate.
"You've what? Dad! You know I don't want a coffin!" but it was too late to ague, the deed had already taken place and the count had already apparated.
A sulky Vlad re-entered the library, where as promised his two best friends were still tackling the English homework. He resumed his place on the red faded cushion next to Bryn, picked up his pen and the half written piece of paper but couldn't write anything. Bryn and Robin looked at each other, they knew that their friend was annoyed about something, they always knew when Vlad was feeling upset or annoyed, (he wasn't exactly brilliant at hiding it from them, but then again no-one else seemed to notice, not even his own family.)
"So? Are you going to tell us what's wrong?" Vlad looked Robin in the eye and shook his head.
"Come on, spill" Bryn said in the forceful way that Vlad often caught himself doing. He couldn't deny that, so he told them what his father had done.
"Cool!" Robin said, immediately after Vlad finished. Bryn was giving him one of those looks while shaking her head slowly. Robin quickly changed his attitude to that of a concerned friend, rather than of an appending fan; he was in fact both at times.
"You know we could arrange a sleepover, then it won't seem so bad." Bryn suggested.
All agreeing that this was a good idea, Bryn and Robin dashed home and collected their night things, quickly asked permission (although they would've sneaked out anyway, without permission) and raced back to the castle.
The English homework lay abandoned in the library.
"Stop being nosy and help put out the sleeping bags" Robin was fascinated by Vlad's coffin/bed and was inspecting it from every angle he could find. It was quite clear he would rather have a coffin for a bed, any day. Still examining the bizarre sleeping accommodation, Robin had completely disregarded Bryn's comment.
"Robin!"
"Alright I'm coming"
"You know, if you want, you could sleep in the coffin, I'd much rather seep in the sleeping bag" Robin's eyes grew at least an inch wider at Vlad's offer, consequently accepting extremely quickly. So it was settled; Robin would sleep in the coffin and Vlad and Bryn would occupy the two sleeping bags.
The moonlight seeped through the open window, the shadow of a bat could be seen covering the full moon, the bat was the familiar of Vlad's father, the count, of for a midnight hunt. As each of them silently drifted off to sleep, the coffin lid creaked slowly down on Robin. The only hope was that the decorative dots where in fact breathing holes. For it was a well-known fact that vampires don't breathe, if the coffin was indeed design for a vampire or an unfortunate deceased, then there would be no need for breathing holes.
The sun shine through the cloudless sky into the castle windows, only Vlad's was open, one beam of sunlight hit the black coffin wherein laid Vlad's best friend Robin.
The Count entered his son's room, cringing at the brightness of the room, keeping to the shadows he managed to close both the window and the shutter at the same time. Relaxing, now there was no sunlight to contend with, the Count calmly sauntered up to the coffin, unlatched the lid and lifted it with ease. On looking in to the coffin, the Count let out an ear-piercingly high shriek. This loud shriek woke the three sleeping children; one found himself gazing into the count's deep brown eyes.
"What is he doing in your coffin?" the Count demanded of his son when he had realized where he was.
Vlad had arisen from his sleeping bag and was now standing facing his father, the Count was merely a head taller than Vlad -with a few more years of growing he would eventually be taller than his father.
"I did not want the coffin in the first place and I wasn't going to spend the night in that uncomfortable thing, I'd rather have a sleeping bag as my permanent bed if I have to." Vlad announced angrily and matter of fact-ly.
Bryn sat up, listening to the father and son argument, she felt quite proud of her friend for sticking up to his father. She knew it had always been a hard task. But she knew that it was her turn to do some sticking up.
"Nobody should go in your coffin, it was design for you." The Count continued.
"But somebody had to sleep in it, we've only got two sleeping bags and Robin didn't mind as much as we did." Bryn said, defending both herself and her two best friends whom she knew would never have had an answer good enough to make the Count falter.
The Count seemed to be searching for words to say to the child, he felt defeated, a child had given him a worthy reply that he could not respond to, he had been defeated by a girl! Swishing his cape dramatically, the Count took his leave.
"Gee, I do believe our Bryn just left the Count speechless!" Robin was sat straight up in the coffin. If anyone looked like a vampire at that moment it was him, his black hair lined his face, appearing more like the Count then Vlad had ever seemed. His pyjamas where red and black, the black matching his hair, the dark leather jacket that he had used as a blanket, suited a vampire more than a breather, but Vlad hated the colour black and he hated leather.
Vlad, looked at his friends, they all smiled at each other, feeling as though they had accomplished the impossible. They were an odd trio, Bryn always looked as though she was 10 years old but in reality she was two years older than that, Robin always looked like some sort of Goth and Vlad, well he looked normal but because of his family and home he was classed as a weirdo at school.
"I guess we got to get to school." Bryn said regrettably.
"Better than this place!" Vlad exclaimed rolling his sleeping bag up and placing it inside Robin's overnight bag; Bryn did likewise, placing it in her overnight bag.
Bounding down the stone staircase, Vlad and Robin grabbed their seats at the grand table. (They had left Bryn to change in the bathroom)
Vlad's sister, Ingrid was already at the table drinking a glass of what Vlad hoped to be blackcurrant juice. She was staring at Robin, who was blushing –they all knew Robin had had a big crush on Ingrid since the start of year 7.
"Your weirdo of a friend, slept over last night did he?" Ingrid directed this to her brother even though she was still staring at Robin and it wasn't a kind stare either, poor Robin felt as though all spotlights were on him as he was being interrogated like a criminal.
"Yes, he and Bryn stayed the night." It was a simple answer but it made her shut up for a while, until Bryn descended the stairs.
"Oh look another weirdo to add to these two." Bryn ignored the comment and pulled up a chair beside Vlad. The drinks were already on the table, cautiously Bryn took a sip, it tasted foul. Vlad and Robin, on seeing Bryn's cringing face, decided not to drink it at all!
Renfield entered the room balancing the plates on his arm, only just managing to place them on the table intact. The friends peered over the top of the plate, repulsed at what they saw; it was a horrible brown colour and something was moving in it. Exchanging glances the three of them silent agreed to pay a visit to the shop on the way to school. Taking a few mouthfuls, they praised Renfield but said that they were already late.
Quickly escaping from the castle, looking like they were in a hurry, soon as they were out of sight they continued strolling down the rest of the path, until they reached the shop.
Buying three croissants, they munched on them while walking through the school gate, attempting to finish it before the bell went for lessons. Robin still had a tiny bit left as he walked into the English classroom.
"Homework out please!" the teacher bellowed across the classroom. The rustling of paper could be heard as each student searched for their homework in the depths of their bags. Neither Vlad, Robin, nor Bryn even tried to find their homework, they knew where it was; in the library at Vlad's castle.
The teacher was drifting round the classroom, collecting her students work up. When she reached the table where the three missing homework's were, she paused waiting for either a piece of paper to reach her outstretched hand or for a valid excuse to be given.
"Sorry Miss Halswood," Vlad said, trying to appeal to her soft nature before she had a go at them.
"And where is your homework, you three?"
"We kind of left it at Vlad's." Bryn replied.
"But we did do it honest miss, we were in the library all evening trying to finish it." Robin declared.
Miss Halswood let them off, on the condition that they would hand it in first thing the next morning.
The bell rang for break and no one lingered for less than two minutes in the dreaded English classroom. Filing out the small doorway and onto the playground, Robin and Bryn found themselves being pushed and shoved till the arms where bright red. The pushes were from the school's bullies, who seemed to have it in for Robin and Bryn, not Vlad though; no one ever bullied Vlad, not after they had seen his father at the parent's evening last summer. The shoves where coming from Ingrid's friends, trained –it seemed- to pester Vlad and his friends until they reacted (which would mean it was going to keep going throughout Vlad's childhood)
Hastily nabbing a bench, they took up their seats before anyone one else stole them.
"Phew, that was close, with the homework, I totally forgot about it!" Vlad asserted, relieving his shoulder of the heavy schoolbag. Bryn was rubbing her red arm, complaining that it was stinging, Robin was agreeing intently. On examining their arms, Vlad told them that some action should be taken on those bullies.
"What I never quite understand is why they never try bulling me, it's always you two."
"That's 'cause they've seen your dad, mate!" Vlad rolled his eyes and then frowned.
"I think I have an idea!" he was grinning, an evil grin.
"Alright, have you slipped the invites in their bags?" Vlad asked Robin, he nodded.
"The capes are ready, on your bed." Bryn said (the Count had given Vlad his original bed back; saving the coffin for when he was older and more prepared). Vlad nodded, their plan was coming together very nicely. They would just have to wait till after school, for the plan to completely work its magic.
It was getting darker, as Bryn, Vlad and Robin took up their places on the high ledge near the grand entrance. A loud knock could be heard and Vlad shouted 'enter'. The doors flew open, revealing the gang of bullies that waited outside the door.
"Come forward." This was Robin's voice. The gang shuffled forward.
"We've come for the party." One of them dared to say, fear trembling through his voice.
"You are just in time. Continue down the hall" Bryn informed them, when in fact all they would find themselves in, was a large black cage.
They waited for the screams to come, before they abandoned their posts.
"Screaming in delight, I hope!" Robin pronounced an evil tone coming through, which worryingly sounded right on him.
"Maybe we should leave them in there, they seem to like it!" Bryn suggested. A chorus of no's came from the enclose cage.
"I think they need to give their word about something first!" Vlad encouraged.
"Anything!" the screams said.
So Vlad started his proposal; they would be let out only if they were to promise that they would never bully them again. Robin tried pushing it to making them carry their stuff around school, but Bryn said that was going too far.
Vlad undid the lock and the gang ran down the corridor, out the door and down the path, not stopping for even a second.
"Well that got rid of them." Bryn said untying the cape and handing it back to Vlad. Never again, she had decided mentally, would she wear that cape, it was itchy, hot and generally uncomfortable.
School the next day was extremely amusing. The gang of bullies kept avoiding them like the plague; it felt good to be the ones on the opposite side of the bullying for once. At break time, a few victims of the bully gang came up to the three friends asking how they had manage to completely change their attitude toward them, when they retold their story, they laughed, going away and telling their friends, eventually the story of how the bullies fell from their original supremacy, to cowering at the sight of just three of their peers. The plan had succeeded considerably more then was intended. Vlad felt particularly pleased with himself for coming up with such a brilliant plan.