Chapter 12

"Mavis? Come on, Mavy...all you have to do is eat this mouse."

She didn't move or respond to Johnny's voice, keeping her head buried in her drawn up knees; it was dark and comforting...she was safe like this...

"Mavy," She heard her Dad plead. "I know that you are very upset, but you need to eat something... You need to keep your strength up."

What's the point anymore?

Mavis heard Johnny sigh. "It's not gonna work, Drac... But we can't let the kids see her like this! All...pale and tired...and hungry..." There was a sniffle and she realized that he was close to tears all of a sudden. "I can't do this, Drac. I have no idea what the hell I'm doing right now..."

"It's going to be okay, Johnny."

"But it won't!" She heard her husband tearfully deny. "I mean, just look at Mavis - she looks dead and I...I can't lose her, Drac, I-I've already lost tons of people in my family...and then there's the kids...what am I meant to tell them?"

This time it was Dracula that sighed. "I don't know. But do not worry about it; I'll look after them, just until you two are feeling better again. You know that I'll protect them with my life, Johnny."

There were a few moments of silence and Mavis didn't know what was going on - it was kind of comforting, just seeing darkness when she opened her eyes to the quiet.

Eventually it came to an end, and she heard her father walk across the room. "I should probably get back to work. I'll be back in an hour or so to see if...if she feels any better."

There was no point in asking Johnny to stay with her - it was obvious that he would.

After she heard the door shut, she felt Johnny's body move closer to her and she tensed up slightly in instinct. "Mavis? Please talk to me."

What was there to say? She honestly couldn't think of anything that would have seemed sufficient enough to explain all of the feelings that were running through her, not even when talking to the love of her life.

"Don't shut me out, Mavy," Johnny tried, voice threatening to crack from exhaustion and the many hours of trying not to cry. "I can't...I can't do this on my own. I need you, a-and you need me...please, just talk to me or something."

Slowly, Mavis lifted her head to look at him; he didn't look much better than she probably did, judging by the bags under his eyes and glazed over eyes that were so obviously holding back tears.

He blinked at her, as if astounded that he'd gotten her to respond. "Mavy?"

She didn't say anything - her voice felt weak and unstable - but she leaned forwards and wrapped her arms around him tightly. Johnny squeezed her back, starting to sniffle slightly. He didn't cry, choosing to hold it in, but it was obvious that he wanted to. Mavis couldn't hold it in, however, and started to cry again as they held each other.

Why?!

It was morning by the time Mina agreed to go to bed, the Sun already rising and casting light on the unusually quiet castle. Getting her into her pyjamas had been one thing - getting her to climb into her coffin and go to sleep was another entirely.

"I want a bedtime story," Mina stated defiantly, folding her arms and pouting.

"I know," Lucy told her, getting kind of annoyed now. "And I already said that Jack would read you something."

The youngest vampire let out a groan. "I don't want Jack to read it - I want Daddy!"

Lucy and Jack looked at each other, not sure what to do. "Mina," Jack said softly, looking down at his sister with wide eyes. "We already told you that Dad can't...he and Mommy need to be alone for a little while." He paused, something clicking in his brain. "Hold on...do you know why they need to be left alone?"

Mina didn't say anything, instead just shaking her head.

"Jack," Lucy muttered warningly. "Remember. She's thirty-one."

Jack nodded quickly. "Yeah, I know. Okay, Mina: how about I tell you a story - I'll tell you what's happened to Mom and Dad."

Mina nodded, suddenly eager to clamber into her bed with her Martha-bat. Lucy moved closer to her brother, frowning at him. "What are you going to tell her? She's not going to understand..."

"I have something in mind," He assured her quietly before moving to sit on his little sister's bed. "Okay, let's see..." Jack looked down at his sister and gave her a small smile; telling stories was something that not only brought him joy but was also a comfort during this time, and he just hoped that telling his sister a story would bring her some comfort too. "I'm going to tell you a story; it's kind of sad but happy. You ready?"

Mina grinned up at him. "Yup!"

"You know how much our Mom and Dad love each other?" Jack asked, voice smooth as he spoke the words. "Well, when two adults love each other, they have children to share that love with. That's why you, me and Lucy are here." When he referred to Mina, he tweaked her nose affectionately, causing her to giggle. "Now, just because there's more than one of us, it doesn't mean that they love one of us more than the other - in fact, they love us more and more with each day that goes by."

"I love them too," Mina agreed. "And I love you and Lu...and I'm gonna love my new brother or sister too!"

Jack's smile started to slip. "I know. Well, when a woman is pregnant, she has to wait a long time - about nine months - to meet the baby. It's a long time, right?" His little sister nodded. "We were going to wait all that time to meet our new brother or sister...but now we don't have to."

Her eyes widened. "They're here already?!"

"No...no," Jack sighed, scratching the back of his neck. "The thing is that...is that they're not in Mom's stomach anymore. They went up to Heaven." He pointed upwards. "See? They went up there instead."

"Why?" Mina asked, frowning to herself. "Why are they in Heaven? Will we get to meet them?"

"They went to be with Grandma Martha," The middle child said softly, feeling his eyes sting slightly with small unshed tears. From across the room Lucy had started to wipe at her eyes, refusing to be seen crying in front of her younger siblings. "And now they're safe because Grandma is looking after them for us."

Mina looked down at her bat for a moment before looking back up at him again. "Why couldn't they have stayed down here with us? Even if it was only for a few days?"

"I don't know," Jack admitted, and for once he really didn't know. "But we'll see them one day, when we go to Heaven. And then we can fly around the clouds together, the four of us, and play bat-tag."

"And I'll win," Mina interjected confidently.

Jack gave a laugh. "Yeah, I'll let you win. Anyway, you need to get some sleep."

She let out a groan but nodded, grudgingly lying down and letting her older siblings tuck her under the covers of the bed. While Mina now understood why exactly her parents and family were suddenly so saddened - starting to feel this way herself now - she didn't quite understand why the new baby had to leave them so soon.

To be fair, no one did.

No matter how much she tossed and turned, Lucy found that she couldn't sleep that day; all she could think about was how long this situation would go on for...having to look after her siblings, having to make sure that they were well-looked after...

She took it very seriously and she always had; when she was seventy three, Mina had been born. The first thing Johnny had done was sat her down and spoken to her about her duties as the eldest - he'd even asked her, if necessary, to take care of her younger brother and sister if anything did happen. At the time it had seemed impossible, and she'd thought that her father was high on something (looking back on it, it was probably the feeling of having another healthy child being born that had caused him to be so euphoric) - but now she understood what he had meant.

Lucy gave a sigh and rolled over onto her side for the fiftieth time that day. She wanted to keep her brother and sister safe, she really did - after all, even though they fought and bantered often, she still loved them - but she realized now that it was not an easy task in the slightest.

Ah, screw it. Lucy threw the duvet off of herself and sat up in her coffin. She never slept with the lid on, since she had always feared that she'd suffocate in her sleep with it on, so she was immediately able to lift herself out of her bed and pull her sneakers on - maybe a walk around the castle would settle her thoughts enough to allow her to rest.

The hotel had always been one of her favourite places to be; although she and her family had a home to live in, the hotel was definitely an extremely close second. There was just something about it, something that always made it seem warm and safe to whoever stepped through the revolving doors. For as long as she could remember, this hotel had been her playground; being the owner's granddaughter, she had pretty much had access to anywhere she wanted, even Dracula's office.

Walking down the corridor, Lucy could practically hear the memories of her and her siblings running around as they played, laughing childishly... It made her feel odd, remembering these things so fondly. Those times - when she had been no older than Mina - had been simpler and easier, and she suddenly wished that for a moment - just one moment - she could go back to being that young and innocent.

Ironic, considering how much I wanted to grow up.

Being grown up wasn't as great as she had thought it was going to be: she had spent all this time trying to grow up...trying to find her zing, trying to show that she was an adult...and now she wished she could be little again.

Her walk took her downstairs to the lobby - and she quickly discovered that she wasn't the only one who couldn't sleep that day.

At first she had thought it was Freddie sitting in one of the armchairs, but it was only when she got closer that she realized this person's hair wasn't nearly as curly, that his frame wasn't as tall or lanky. As Lucy got closer, she realized who was sitting in the lobby - and that they'd been waiting for her.

"Damien?!"

The other vampire smiled at her charismatically. "Hey, babe."

"What are you doing down here?" Lucy asked, stopping a few meters away from where he was sat. "It's got to be hours until sunset."

"I knew you'd come down here," He said smoothly, giving her a grin. "Besides, it's been too long since we last hanged out. I've been missing you being close."

Oh God. It's those eyes. "I..uhm...You said-"

"Who cares what I said at the pool?" Damien asked, standing up and taking a few steps closer towards her. "I was mad to say that; all I've been able to think about is you and how gorgeous you are."

Lucy wanted to remind herself that he was an asshole, but it was difficult when he was practically purring in her ear.

"Haven't you been missing me too?" He asked lowly, lifting a hand to tuck a lock of her messy red hair behind her ear. "Haven't you missed the feel of us being together, just knowing that there's something between us?"

She didn't say anything, eyes wide as she watched him lean closer and closer...he was about to kiss her, she realized...

"No," She gasped, pulling away before his lips could touch hers. Damien frowned, clearly not expecting this to happen. "Look, I'm really sorry but I can't...at least...not with you...I mean, you're so good-looking, don't get me wrong! But I just...I..."

He raised an eyebrow. "Are you kidding me? I'm not stupid, you know." Lucy was confused by this, and it must have been evident on her face because Damien gave a loud sigh of annoyance. "I've seen you and that stupid waiter hanging out - do you honestly think that he's special?"

"Freddie is a nice guy," Lucy said slowly. "And I like him. But we're just friends, nothing more."

Damien snorted. "Yeah, well...the way he's been going around, he clearly thinks that you're his girlfriend or something. See, I told you he was an idiot."

Lucy badly wanted to snap at him: to tell him in a rather pointed way that Freddie was not an idiot, that he was rather sweet and friendly...but she just couldn't find the heart to do that, to start an argument.

"Look, if you want someone to show you a real good time," The other vampire continued, leaning in close again and grabbing one of her hands in his. "Then hang out with me tonight. We can go hunting or something - I heard that there's a ton of scorpions nests around here."

Say no. "Fine," Lucy gave in, feeling quite defeated. "Fine. Tonight."

...Oh, and God! Her eyes! They're so...so pretty and blue and...man, it makes me feel like I'm drowning in an ocean when I look into them.

Freddie grinned even more up at the ceiling, body alive and awake all of a sudden. He couldn't help it - all he could think about was Lucy and how amazing he found her. She was gorgeous and she had what he considered to be the most expressive eyes he'd ever seen on a girl; but it wasn't just that - her personality was just so...so endearing! She knew lots of things that he didn't, and she wanted more.

Ah, screw it. I'm going for a walk.

He didn't even bother to put on proper clothing: shoving on his sneakers and a jumper, Freddie quietly left the room he and his Uncle had been given in the hotel and set off down the corridor. Hopefully it wouldn't be too long until night fell again and he'd get a chance to see Lucy.

Freddie had decided on it before he'd even turned a corner: he was going to ask her out on a date. Now he just had to figure out how to do it.

Let's see...how about...hmm...what am I meant to say? Should I just say something like... "Look, I think I'm in love with you"?...No. That's too strong, I guess, just for asking her on a date...actually, maybe that would better my chances. Girls like that love stuff, right?

Before he could dwell further on it, he heard voices from the lobby - he immediately recognised one of them to be the girl who was occupying his mind and smiled nervously to himself. Well. Here goes nothing.

Freddie quickly tied to smooth down his unruly curls, messed up thanks to the small amount of sleep he had managed to get, and took a deep breath as he prepared to enter the lobby.

"Are you kidding me? I'm not stupid, you know."

Freddie stopped in his tracks, pausing when he heard this voice; it sounded masculine, definitely a guy, and rather annoyed. Why was this guy annoyed? Was it with Lucy?

"I've seen you and that stupid waiter hanging out - do you honestly think that he's special?"

Well, joke's on him, because-

"Freddie is a nice guy," He heard Lucy say slowly, immediately recognising her voice. "And I like him. But we're just friends, nothing more."

Friends. The smile on the young man's face disappeared.

The male in the lobby snorted. "Yeah, well...the way he's been going around, he clearly thinks that you're his girlfriend or something. See, I told you he was an idiot."

They'd been talking about him? Freddie frowned, suddenly feeling rather hurt by this piece of information: but surely Lucy didn't agree with this opinion, right?

"Look, if you want someone to show you a real good time," The other vampire continued, leaning in close again and grabbing one of her hands in his. "Then hang out with me tonight. We can go hunting or something - I heard that there's a ton of scorpions nests around here."

Say no, Lucy. Please.

"Fine," Lucy agreed. "Fine. Tonight."

Freddie couldn't hear anymore; he felt his heart break in two and tears sting his eyes. How could I be such a freakin' idiot?! The red-haired man turned around, slumped over with his hands shoved in the pockets of his jumper, and started to walk back down the corridor to go back to his room.

Mavis woke up for the umpteenth time that day, unable to sleep yet again. Whenever she did sleep, all she could think about was what had happened...going to the bathroom with a stomach ache and suddenly seeing it...all that blood...

She heard a low groan from next to her and trained her eyes on her husband; he was jerking in his sleep, letting out pitiful little whines and sniffles. "No...No...stop..."

What on Earth?

"Stop it..." Johnny whimpered, eyes squeezed tightly together. "Please stop...no one else...please..."

"Johnny?" Mavis whispered hoarsely - her voice was tired from the sobbing and crying that she had done over the past few days. "Are you o-"

He let out a yell. "NO! NOT THEM! Please! Anyone...anyone but..."

He must be having a bad dream, Mavis thought sadly, and she couldn't really blame him. She'd been having bad dreams too, about what had happened - only in the dreams, it had been a lot more graphic, a lot more explicit. In the dreams, she could feel it...she could feel the baby as they...and when she looked down in her dreams and saw the blood, there would be a tiny figure with defined features...

She rolled onto her side and settled for crying into her pillow.

"No...no! Stop!"

No matter how much he yelled, it happened: slowly, the figures gathered around him started to fall to the ground lifelessly. They died before his very eyes, one after the other.

"Stop it!" Johnny shouted, looking around for the cause of this. "Please stop!"

A dark figure loomed overhead, grinning in a twisted way, and effortlessly pointed to each of the people to cause them to die of a certain cause. Johnny could only watch in horror as he watched the people he loved fall...his parents, his brothers and their families all dying of old age... He felt utterly sick as he saw his friends from the hotel start to fall too, torches and pitchforks sticking out of them, and a small ghost appeared surrounded by a puddle of blood - a prospective child gone too soon...

Soon the only people left were Mavis and the kids.

"No one else!" He cried desperately. "Please, no one else, for God's sake!"

The dark figure just smiled and looked down at his family as he decided who would be the first. Why not all of them at once?

"NO! NOT THEM!" Johnny screamed, waving his arms at the figure. "PLEASE! Anyone but them!"

Whoosh.

His family fell dead before his very eyes...Lucy and Jack were motionless, eyes expressionless as they gazed up at him with blood running down their temples...Mina had burns all over her, scarring her so badly that he couldn't even see the freckles on her face...

But seeing Mavis killed him; she had a broken neck, body lifeless and pale and cold...

"NO!"

Johnny jolted up in bed, breathing heavily with tears running down his face. He tried to breathe properly to calm himself down, extremely relieved to see that he was in bed and not in some dark nightmarish room watching his loved ones die.

He quickly looked to his side and was relieved to see Mavis sleeping peacefully - when she actually could sleep, all of the problems seemed to go away for a while: she wasn't crying or sobbing, but rather sleeping fitfully.

Johnny ran a hand down his face, the images of his dream imprinted in his brain. I need...I need to see...

Making sure to be quiet, he carefully slipped out of bed and made his way over to the door; he opened it, relieved that the shrunken head didn't wake up and start screeching at him, and set off down the corridor.

The first room he got to was his son's: opening it, he peered inside and saw Jack sleeping on top of the covers, a torch in one hand and a book in the other. Johnny entered the room and slowly took both of the objects from his son's hands; after he'd put them on the nightstand, he grabbed a blanket from the end of the bed and draped it over the younger vampire. At least he won't freeze. Jack snuffled a little in his sleep but didn't wake up; Johnny almost smiled, remembering his mother saying that he himself had been a heavy sleeper, and ruffled his son's hair affectionately.

He visited Lucy next. His eldest daughter was sleeping, a small frown on her face as she contemplated something in her sleep, red hair spread out against the white pillow. Johnny watched her for a few moments, trying to convince himself that she too was okay, and pushed back some of the hair that was in her face. He could remember how on the day she'd been born (literally the day, which was unusual for a vampire) he'd been nervous - what new father wouldn't have been? But then he'd seen her and it had all clicked into place, like a puzzle piece - they fit each other, father and daughter. He pressed a kiss against her forehead before moving on again.

Mina was last, and she was hidden beneath the covers - so much so that he had to pull them back a little just to see her. Mina wasn't burnt anymore, much to his relief, and was hugging her Martha-bat to her chest as she slept quietly. Oh, man... Seeing his youngest, Johnny suddenly felt rather emotional; she was the baby of the family, and he treated her as such...the thought of anyone hurting someone as tiny and innocent as her made him feel sick and angry. "Nothing's gonna hurt you," He murmured to her, despite the fact she was asleep. The red-head put a hand on her cheek and stroked it with his thumb...she was still so young, so she still had a little bit of childish chub to her cheeks.

He couldn't change what had happened to the baby - but he could protect the family he did have.