Y - Young

Young babies, as many intelligent people know, do not do very much besides eating, pooping and sleeping; it's not their fault of course, and they do eventually become more interesting as they grow older and learn new things. Monster babies, however, took a lot longer to become interesting, thanks to the fact that monsters aged slowly in comparison to that of a human.

To one vampire, however, his baby couldn't have stayed little for too long.

The Sun had barely set that evening when Martha was woken by the cries of a baby; she didn't even need to look up to know what had woken her daughter up. "Vlad? You don't need to hold her all the time - picking her up just makes her more restless."

She heard her husband give a tired laugh as the crying stopped. "But Martha, look at her! She is so beautiful and tiny...I can't not pick her up!"

Martha groggily raised herself from the bed and crossed the room to peer at their daughter in her husband's arms. "I know she's beautiful - she's my daughter as well. And she won't be that tiny forever; she will grow."

"Yes, but that is years away," The Count dismissed, beaming down at Mavis and showing off his fangs; his daughter looked back up at him and opened her mouth in the same way to mimic him - although, she was merely showing off two tiny white teeth that weren't quite fully-grown fangs just yet. "Oh! Look at that! She's so clever! Aren't you, Mavy Wavy?"

Martha couldn't help but smile, leaning over and resting her head on her husband's shoulder so that she could also gaze down at their infant daughter. "You know, you spoil her way too much, Mister," She teased.

"She probably already has her hypnotising powers already," Dracula boasted proudly.

"At three months old?" She questioned sceptically.

"Well, she is a Dracula."

The vampiress just laughed, kissing the Count on the cheek. "I highly doubt that, honey - I think you're just a vampire in love with his daughter. Now, put her down so that she can nap for another few hours; we could both use the sleep."

Dracula pouted in a way that Martha found adorable. "But...but I have waited all day to spend time with her. Maybe just...an hour or so? You know...just to tire her out and let you sleep?"

Martha wanted to say no, she really did - but it was cute that he wanted to spend so much time with their daughter, and she couldn't resist. "Alright; half an hour and then she gets to take another nap."

Before he could argue or agree, Mavis let out a curious noise and started to poke at Dracula's nose. He chuckled, miming stealing her nose. "I've got your nose, Mavy!"

She frowned up at him, clearly confused.

"Oh, alright!" He gave in, and pretended to replace it on her face. "There we go! As beautiful as ever!"

This clearly appeased Mavis, because she went straight back to smiling cutely and poking at her father's nose with a tiny finger. Martha laughed, unable to help it. "What?" She asked when he just stared at her in question. "She's probably wondering what it is, dear!"

"A nose."

"Yes, but it's so much bigger than her own," She explained, and she giggled even more at the sour look he gave her.

Dracula just eyed her. "Are you telling me that my nose is big?"

"No," She liked unconvincingly. "I was just...I mean, she's a baby, so hers is tiny compared to... Alright! Fine!" She gave in, exploding into giggles again. "It's just a bit large, Vlad!"

"Hmm. Well, I see that you have not lost your childish charm," Dracula muttered, pretending to be angry - but he was smiling widely at her once again. "You're still a hundred and eighteen at heart, aren't you?"

She wrapped her arms around his waist, nuzzling into the crook of his neck from behind. "Maybe...you make me feel like it sometimes, and not because of the age difference either."

It wasn't as if they were newly-weds - far from it - and they had a child of their own; and yet, he couldn't help but silently agree with her. Something about being with his wife made everything new and exciting, as if he were a new fully-grown vampire again.

And that was how he knew she was the only one for him.

Dracula had seen quite a lot of things during his lifetime; different monsters, different places, his hotel actually being opened, a human entering his hotel, his daughter falling in love with said human...in short, he had seen it all. He loved getting to see all of the different things that changed and shifted in his life, even if he didn't really want it to very much.

One of his favourite things was, for a reason he liked to keep secret, seeing how his daughter and Johnny's relationship played out over the years.

At first it had simply been like every teen-aged relationship; the two would talk in letters and over the phone about staying up late in the morning and watching movies together, banter over goofily silly things before laughing it over - and of course the occasional argument. But as time started to pass, he quickly realized that it wasn't like a throwaway relationship that one experienced before a zing - this was the real thing.

It started with small things, about a year later when they came back home for her birthday - glances and secretive smiles here and there, barely noticeable unless you looked for it specifically. Then, one night, it went one step further; while the couple had been talking to the Count and a couple of their friends excitedly about their travels, Johnny had turned his head to look at Mavis - and the smile he gave, along with the bright lights in his eyes, was immediately telling.

It was a breath-taking look - Dracula knew it well, since he and Martha had looked at each other like that countless times centuries ago - that held so much love, devotion and power. It was like Johnny was looking at something he considered to be special, something that was more beautiful than anything else he'd seen; it were as if he was fully content with everything in his life, and a look that just screamed utter devotion to even the simplest of onlookers.

While he felt slightly uncomfortable with this, Dracula did feel somewhat grateful that his daughter was with someone who clearly cared for her, someone who would look after her when he himself couldn't. For a couple of their age, they seemed rather mature (to Dracula, at least), and not just because of the loving looks; at their age, it wouldn't have been expected for two people to be so sure of their love and how long it would last, even in the monster world where zings occurred.

And yet, there was an innocent quality to it, maybe because of their ages and inexperience in such relationships; it didn't escape his notice that it went far beyond just being in love. The two were often seen laughing and joking together, sometimes venturing out to the pool for a chicken fight or sneaking into the dining room for a flying table race or two - they were friends as well as lovers, relying on each other to have fun.

It was strange, he decided to himself, that while their relationship was so serious in the sense that they knew they were meant to be, they also seemed in no hurry to settle down together or anything; they were having fun, travelling the world and seeing new things instead. They joked around, like kids, teasing each other childishly and actually acting their ages.

Dracula couldn't help but compare it to his own time with Martha; they, too, had met and zinged when his wife was one hundred and eighteen. But they had been young back then - Martha was younger than him too - so he'd decided to take it slowly, not to rush anything in case he ruined it. Of course, she'd grown impatient with all of the slowness and taken the first move by kissing him shortly after they first met - not that he'd complained too much, mind you. Seeing his daughter and Johnny made the memories flood back to him, and the elder vampire would often find himself being broken out of a daze by a guest or zombie appearing in front of him for help.

Of course, while he was happy for them (and glad that his daughter had someone to love and cherish her), he was her father first and foremost; there were precautions he had to take, questions he had to ask, so that he could be comfortable with the knowledge that she was safe - even if the answers themselves may have made him feel uncomfortable.

"Mavy," He said once he'd managed to get her alone one night; Johnny had gone down to the pool for yet another party, and she'd agreed to meet him down there after she finished talking to her father. "We need to talk."

"Okay," Mavis agreed, kind of confused. "About what?"

The Count put his hands on her shoulders, giving her a very serious look. "Now, I know that you and Johnny...you are quite close, yes?" She nodded. "Well, I am happy for you, Sweet-Ums, I really am! But I just..." He hesitated. "You are both so young, and I want what is best for you - for both of you."

Mavis nodded again, giving him an odd look. "Of course. But what are you talking about?"

He sighed, shutting his eyes as he continued this rather unpleasant talk. "There is no need for rush in a relationship," He told her. "Rushing will only ruin it. Do you understand?" He didn't wait for answer, instead opening his eyes and gazing at her again. "Now, although I have trusted Johnny to take care of you while you both travel, I do not trust him in other areas..."

What on Earth-?

"Humans do not live for very long," He stated. "And they feel the need to rush their lives, to get everything done before it's too late. Uhh...I've recently done some research on them," Dracula admitted, and Mavis' eyes widened slightly. "And I've learnt of some of the things they do at young ages - dangerous things, stupid things...and of course, rather heavy things that they're not ready for."

Please don't this be what I think it is.

The elder vampire took a deep breath. "Look, I'm going to cut to it; humans, when they're your age - well, their version of your age - do...things...together. A lot of the time, according to the research I have uncovered, is that the...uhh...girls are forced into it because of the boys."

Holy rabies. It is what I think it is.

"Be honest with me, darling - has Johnny forced you-"

Mavis coughed uncomfortably, sure she would blush if she could. "No! Of course not!"

Dracula breathed out in relief, giving her a nervous smile. "Hehe...I knew that. I just wanted to be sure, Mavy." He paused, and the younger vampire was almost completely sure she knew what was coming next. "I do not mean to...you know...intrude or anything, but I care about you, Mavy."

"I know," She mumbled, willing in her head that he would go no further.

But he did. "So...you know. If you want to tell me anything-"

"I don't," She interrupted quickly, looking away as she became more embarrassed. "Dad, I think I get the message-"

"I understand if something did happen," He hurriedly told her, raising his hands in self-defence. "I mean, you are a zinged couple travelling together - I mean, sharing hotel rooms and what have you probably means that you were rather close, and urges do occur-"

"DAD!" She shouted desperately, standing up from the bed and staring at him pleadingly. "Please stop!"

"Right, of course," He agreed quickly, also standing up. "It is none of my business, after all. But if you wanted to talk to someone-"

"I will talk to you," Mavis finished quietly, even though she would have rather gone to either Wanda or Eunice about this kind of thing. "Can I please go down to the pool now?"

Dracula nodded, giving her a small smile. "Of course, Sweet Fangs! In fact, I will come down with you!"

"Fine. But no giving Johnny 'a talk'," She warned as they headed for the door. "I mean it, Dad."

"I give you my word," He promised - although he badly wanted to, even if it would just be intimidating the human into not doing anything with his daughter.

One more...and then it's all over.

So, question time everyone: where do we go from here? Would you guys like to see any particular drabbles extended, or a particular theme that ran through the story written in full: for example, maybe about Johnny and Mavis' experience in raising their kids from start to finish? Or maybe to see how the whole Ava bitch thing is concluded? You are the readers, so I'm giving you the power.

And, yeah, I think we can all guess what "Z" will stand for...see you soon!