Chapter 10: Anchor of Salvation

As usual, since the sun was about to rise, Dracula was getting ready to go sleep in his coffin. He pondered to himself how many surprises fate planned for him, Mavis and Johnny. So many things happened since Johnny entered Mavis' life, both good and bad. However, he knew that children, when left alone to their own devices, will stumble and fall, will laugh and cry, will let both the good and the bad events of life shape who they will become. He reflected on what happened, and, while he wished her daughter didn't have to go through more pain than was necessary, a part of him was proud of her, since she was closer and closer to becoming an adult... Then, something that froze his own blood in his veins snapped him out of his pensive state.

"DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAADDDDDDDDDDDDDD!"

Dracula's hearing, just like his eyesight, was much sharper than a human's. When it was concerning Mavis' safety, he had something like a sixth sense, he was able to hear her, no matter the distance, nor the loudness of the noise. However, Mavis' scream was so loud that even a human would have heard. He quickly bolted towards the source of the scream, fearing the worst, since he never heard such despair in her daughter's voice in his whole life.

He reached the sauna room, following his ears. He could hear Mavis' cries, which seemed full of hysteria. When he entered the room, he froze, horrified. If his heart could beat, it would have stopped at the scene he witnessed. She saw her daughter holding the broken body of Johnny, crying loudly, her tears making her face smeared with her makeup, blood trickling from her mouth. He wasn't able to pick up any life-signs from him. He was starting to believe that she gave into her hunger, and killed him. He was growing full of despair, because, if Mavis became an out of control blood-thirsty vampire, he knew that he might have to kill her, for the sake of every monster in existence.

Fortunately for him, before he could delve deeper into such thoughts, he noticed several details that, in a way, reassured him. He noticed the hole in the ceiling, remembering that Johnny did crash on him when he was in the sauna, arguing with Frank, Murray, Wayne and Griffin about Mavis hitting off with Johnny. He also saw the smashed ceramic rim, as well as Johnny's broken neck. Lastly, he noticed Mavis' wrist, which was sliced off and dripping blood. He then understood roughly what had transpired, Mavis didn't kill Johnny, she tried to save him. However, he knew that the process of turning a human into a vampire is risky, because even a fully healthy human had a chance of dying during the process, so he knew that the odds of Johnny's survival looked quite grim.

Like the first time, when Johnny nearly died giving his blood to his daughter, he used his telekinetic powers to freeze his body, hoping to buy him some time. He then forcefully pried his body from Mavis' arms, which screamed in protest, still in a state of hysteria. He knew that she wouldn't be able to listen to a single word in the state she's in, so he used his hypnotic powers to put her to sleep, making her fall on the ground like a puppet whose strings are cut. He then carried Johnny to the infirmary, hoping, for Mavis' sake, that he would survive.

Two days have passed since Johnny almost died in his fall. He was lying on a bed in the infirmary, being in a comatose state ever since. Mavis was on his lap, desperately clinging to him, fearing that he would die if she ever let go. She also didn't wear any makeup, because she knows it would just smear on her face, with her crying on his deathbed. Lastly, she didn't eat nor drink anything, much to Dracula's dismay, which made her look literally like a living corpse, her face having lost pretty much any colors.

Dracula was sitting on a chair in the corner of the room, silently in pain, watching his precious daughter suffer so much. The nurse of the hotel did everything she could to help Johnny, but she stated that his odds of ever waking up were below 30 %. In reality, he wasn't in danger of "dying" anymore, but, since his nervous system was damaged when Mavis turned him, it was possible that his body would just stay in that comatose state forever, which was, in a way, worse than death, because there's always going to be a faint glimmer of hope that he will wake up, preventing the beginning of his mourning.

Dracula was cursing fate for being so cruel to them. Seeing Mavis and Johnny like that re-opened old wounds within him, making him remember how much he loved Martha, the time they spent together, Mavis' birth, the promise he made to her, which was to build a safe haven for any monster from the persecutions of humankind, and, sadly, how she died because of the blind hatred of humans. He knew exactly how Mavis felt, the pain of losing your lover is unbearable. Seeing his daughter feeling the same pain that he felt, and still feels to this day, is absolutely maddening to him, because he knows there's very little he can do to alleviate her pain.

Suddenly, he raised his head, having noticed that Mavis released Johnny's body from her clutches and was standing up. Tears were streaming from her eyes, but she wasn't sobbing anymore, she just let her tears flow without any resistance whatsoever. "Dad? Could you do me a favor?", she asked pleadingly. Dracula, who would do anything to lessen his daughter's pain, cheerfully replied, "Yes! Yes! Anything for you! Well...anything except erasing your mind, I don't want you to forget the happy memories you created with Johnny, no matter how much you're suffering..."

To that, Mavis replied, with a slightly irritated tone, "I don't... Forgetting Johnny because I suffer would be like denying he ever existed, it would be like killing him a second time, I'll never forget him, even... if ...he ...never gets back..." She was obviously trying to contain her sobbing at the end of that sentence, hating to ever consider that possibility. She then continued, with a tired tone, "I just want to talk to you alone, Dad...Can we fly on the roof?"

"Yes! Of course, Mavy-Wavy! I'll do anything if that can make you happier!", he replied snappily. She chuckled a little, and replied softly, "Thanks, Dad!" before morphing to a bat and flying towards the roof of the hotel, her dad closely following her lead.

Mavis and her dad were sitting on the roof, not saying a word for several minutes. She hung her head low, resting it on her knees, overwhelmed with sadness and fear. Dracula stood awkwardly still, eyes wide open, not too sure what to do. He chose to keep his silence, waiting for his daughter to open up to him, not wanted to force it. Finally, she broke up her silence, "Dad...During these last days, I thought about it over in my head several times...I...I...I don't know how you'll take it, you're going to freak out..."

"Don't worry, my sweet little blood-orange, just let it out, I'll support you no matter what...", he replied, trying his best to put on a warm face to make her feel better. "You promise you won't freak out?" she said. "Of course, Mavis!", he replied, crossing his fingers and resting them on his heart. "Well, I thought about it over and over, no matter if Johnny wakes up or not, in a few months, I plan to have sex with him..." She said, cringing and wincing, because she knew that her dad will freak out.

However, instead of that, only silence followed. After a few moments, she mustered enough courage to look at her dad, which, to her surprise, was surprisingly calm, his head slightly tilted sideways, looking pensive. Only one word came from his mouth, with a tone devoid of judgment, just wanting to understand, "Why?". She bit her lip, and continued, "Because I want him to have a legacy. Because I want something to live for. Because I want to bear his child in my womb. Because I want to know what it is to be a mother..."

Dracula inquired, still calm, almost in a creepy way, "How are you going to do "the act" if Johnny's unconscious?" Mavis blushed quite a bit, obviously being embarrassed, "Well, I asked the nurse when you weren't around, I found out that the male, erm, "organ" can be stimulated into action, even if the brain isn't working..."

Lastly, Dracula asked, "Having a child is a huge responsibility, are you sure about this?". To that, Mavis replied, almost choking in her sobs, "Yes...I'm sure...You're probably going to hate me for saying this, but Johnny was the world for me. In the short time I knew him, he illuminated my soul so brightly, that I would die without him. If he ever were to die, as I am now, I'll be honest, I'll probably commit suicide..."

Upon hearing that last sentence, Dracula felt as if somebody shoved a wooden stake in his heart. Tears were forming in his eyes, he already lost Martha, if he lost Mavis too, he couldn't fathom it...Before he could say anything, or shed a tear, Mavis continued, "However, if I'm able to bear his child into this world, I feel I would be able to survive, using my child as a reason to continue living...Forgive me, Dad, you probably don't understand what I'm thinking right now..."

Much to her surprise, Dracula gave her a strong embrace, wrapping her entire body, save her head, into his mantle. He was crying loudly now, which surprised her even more, not used to see her proud father like that. "Oh, Mavis... You're wrong, I understand completely how you're feeling! When your mother died, I thought countless times about simply ending it all, about ending my pain, perhaps slaughtering as many humans as I could before perishing. However, every time I was on the verge of losing my mind, only one thing was able to help me keep my sanity..."

Mavis inquired, although she guessed what the answer was, "What was it, Dad? What was the thing that helped you go through all that?" Dracula looked at her, straight into her eyes, "It was you, Mavis! Each time I felt my mind was about to fracture, a simple smile from you, a simple giggle, was all I needed to feel better. If you didn't exist, I wouldn't be alive now! You were my anchor of salvation, that I felt I could cling to to feel alive. I completely understand why you want a child, and you have my full support!"

Mavis wanted to answer, but couldn't. All she could do was sob in her father's mantle, while he also did the same. They both felt sad, yet happy. They both cursed fate, yet thanked it...

Author's note: Alright. That chapter was a little darker than I thought, but overall I believe I did a good job finally getting that idea out of my head, an idea I got ever since I've read "CHAPTER 16 - Through the Looking Glass" of the fanfic Demon's Heart from callmemavy.

While I'm feeling relieved that I finally got it out of my head, I'm kinda stumped. That idea that germinated in my head was the sole reason I created this fanfic, and I intended to finish it soon after. However, I found out that I like writing, and, perhaps I don't want to finish it yet. So, if any of you want to leave me suggestions, ideas, requests, on how this story could continue, either through reviews or private messages, I'll be honored to try. I do want to avoid creating or using original characters if possible, as I prefer to keep my story closely focused on Mavis, Johnny and Dracula.

I'm not the best author about fanfics, as this was my first tentative, still, this was a very fun experience, and I hope to continue a little longer.