Z - Zing

Martha hummed to herself as she finished her drawing, sitting back so that the sleeves of her dress didn't smudge the ink; she just had to wait for the pages to finish drying, and then it would be ready to bind into a book.

She knew she didn't need to - after all, her daughter hadn't even learnt how to walk yet - but she couldn't take any chances; humans were wiping out monsters every day, and while she firmly believed that one day that monsters and humans could co-exist in peace, that could be centuries away.

"That is a good drawing," She heard a thick Transylvanian accent say from behind her, and she turned on the chair to look at the vampire who had just entered the room. "But I must say, you've spent a lot of time on this 'little project' of yours - what exactly is it?"

"A surprise," She answered teasingly, standing up to wrap her arms around her husband. "For both you and Mavis; that means no peeking, Mister!"

Dracula raised an eyebrow. "But it's not for me? So why should I not get to see?"

"Because it's...it's special," She admitted softly, eyes twinkling. "It's just for Mavis to see, when she reaches a certain age - it's for her one hundred and eighteenth birthday."

"But that is over a hundred years away," Dracula stated. "You have a long time to do it."

This was were Martha had to sigh - she really didn't want to admit it to her husband, lest she sound like a crazy bat, but she knew she owed him an explanation of some kind. "I know you say that we're safe here," She told him, not looking at him. "But you've heard the news from our friends; only last week, that sweet newly-married yeti couple were torched and badly injured just because they were on their honeymoon. Humans aren't...aren't so accepting of us right now, and I just want to be prepared."

"But nothing will hurt you," Dracula reminded her, putting two fingers under her chin and tilting her face upwards so that they were eye-to-eye again. "Or our precious Mavy; I built this castle to keep us safe. Do you really think I'd let the humans get you?"

"No...but regardless, I'd still like to be prepared." She sighed, tilting her head so that they were forehead to forehead. "If something does happen, and I can't give this to her-"

"But you will be able to," The Count said quietly.

Martha nodded. "Hopefully, yes. But I just want you to promise me that, if I'm not here for some reason, then you'll give this present to her when she turns one-hundred and eighteen - not before. And you don't get to peek either!"

"Alright," He agreed, giving a small chuckle. "I won't peek. I shall find out eventually. Now," He smiled down at her. "I was about to wake Mavy from her nap, to feed her. Do you want to help me?"

"In a minute," She told him, nodding as she pulled herself out of his arms. "Just let me finish what I'm doing, and I'll be down soon."

As her husband left, Martha smiled to herself; although she hoped she'd get to see her daughter grow up and see the present, it still felt good to know that her husband would take care of their baby if she couldn't. She turned back to the book she had been writing - she briefly wondered if she should illustrate the last page, but then decided that the message was the most important thing.

Your zing will come, my love. Cherish it.

She picked up the quill again, dipped it in ink and began to write out a, 'Love, Mommy' in neat cursive letters: by the time her daughter read this, she would probably have been past the stage of calling her mother 'mommy' but Martha couldn't bear the thought of her baby being that grown-up just yet. While Martha knew that her daughter finding her zing would be very far off in the future, probably after receiving this present, she still wanted her daughter to be ready for it - to know how important it was.

She'll be fine, Martha thought as she pulled all of the papers into her arms and got up to leave the room. With or without me there.

Two lonely bats crashed in the night...

Mavis' eyes had widened when she saw the broom hurtling towards her; she briefly registered something on the broom screaming too, but before she could get a good look the mass had hit her and sent her flying to the ground. It hadn't been that high a drop, but it still hurt really badly. She let out a groan, rubbing at her head with her hand, before looking up to see what on Earth could have hit her - and, boy, was it a pleasant experience.

They felt a zing, love at first sight.

Johnny let out a soft groan, looking up groggily - and his heart stopped beating in his chest, a pink light flashing across his eyes at the same time as it did in Mavis'. Wow...she's beautiful. He felt his mouth drop open slightly, eyes widening as he took her in; she seemed different from any other girl he'd seen...she had a pale complexion contrasted by dark clothes that just seemed to oddly suit her, and he was sure if anyone else had tried it then it wouldn't have worked.

They knew right then that they'd be husband and wife.

Okay, so maybe they hadn't exactly knew at that exact moment, but it soon became crystal clear that this was special...this zing was a one time thing, showing that they were practically made for each other. If Johnny could have had it his way, then he would have asked to marry her as soon as he could - maybe just a year after first meeting her - but he knew he had to play it right, to make it as normal a relationship could be (well, as normal as it could be when she was a vampire and he was a human that is).

Deep down, however, both of them knew exactly where the relationship was going from the start: they knew that they had hundreds of years left together, thanks to the fact they were both so young when they met, which was why they decided to take it slowly.

For a zing only happens once in your life. Your zing will come, my love. Cherish it.

And they did cherish it: when travelling from country to country, they made sure that they were enjoying the sights together. When the opportunity for a party or music concert came along, they attended and spent the entire evening together as much as possible; watching movies became the perfect chance to cuddle up and just enjoy each other's company with no words having to be said between them. When the day came that Johnny decided he wanted to go ahead and ask her to marry him, he didn't even have to hesitate in that decision - and she didn't hesitate in her answer either.

To clarify, a zing isn't immediately strong when it first occurs; the strength builds up over time, from a budding closeness to just pure love. This was obvious in Mavis and Johnny's relationship, going from hardly knowing each other (but still feeling a slight attraction all the same) to knowing that they'd found their soul mate for life, to being completely content to spend their time together even if they were doing next to nothing.

The zing is one of the most powerful magical bonds out there - more powerful than Dracula's mind control and more magical than the witches' cleaning spells at the hotel - this was obvious wherever you looked. For example, Dracula was still completely and utterly devoted to his darling Martha, despite the length of time passing since her death. He never completely got over it, instead throwing himself into taking care of their daughter, Mavis, and then later his grandchildren - at first, Mavis never understood why: she knew that her father had loved her mother, but it still seemed slightly odd to her that he never fully moved on.

But then she experienced her zing - she nearly lost it too. And suddenly, she understood completely what her father had been mourning over; she felt very blessed that Johnny came back soon after, bringing the dreams of travelling the world and being happy with him, because the heartbreak she'd experienced in the few hours of him being 'gone forever' was almost too much to bear.

A zing is a once in a lifetime thing - you never find more than one - and many awful things happen in the world; death, serious injury, prejudice... And that was why, over the years, Johnny and Mavis made the most of it whilst they still could.

"Daddy! Daddy! You promised, Daddy!"

"Alright!" Johnny laughed as he gave in, picking Mina up and heading down the hall to her room. "I'm doing it...So, have you brushed your fangs?"

Mina nodded excitedly.

"Washed your face?"

"Yes, Daddy," She stressed, rolling her eyes slightly. "Now can you tell me a bedtime story? Please?"

The redhead chuckled. "Yup." He set his daughter down on the coffin-bed, waiting for her to crawl underneath the pink duvet before sitting down next to her. "You comfy now?"

The dark-haired girl nodded before pausing to think; after a few seconds of deliberating, she shook her head. "Nuh-uh - I need my Martha-bat."

"Oh, of course!" He reached over her tiny form and grabbed the small bat plush. Dracula had bought it for his youngest granddaughter shortly after her birth, naming it after his deceased love and proclaiming that it would watch over Mina in the day, just like her grandmother's spirit. "There we go...no chance of daymares now...You ready?"

"Uh-huh," Mina nodded, clutching Martha-bat in her tiny hands and looking up at her father expectantly.

The older vampire brushed a lock of dark hair off her forehead affectionately. "So, what story do you want to hear? How about the time I went to that concert and nearly got eaten? Or how about the time I nearly died falling down a cliff?"

The child thought for a moment, brown eyes focused on him as she decided. "I want...I wanna hear about how you and Mommy met - did you zing?"

"Well, duh!" Johnny laughed, and she smiled contently with this knowledge. "Well, alright. We met in Grandpa's hotel, in the lobby-"

"Were you a guest there then, Daddy?" Mina asked, eyes wide with excitement.

"Err...kinda." Although he wasn't ashamed in any way that he'd been a human for the first twenty five years of his life, he and Mavis had decided that it may have been just a touch too complicated for their youngest daughter to understand - the older two knew, and Mina would when she got older, but for now she would remain peacefully innocent. "You know how I travelled the world, even before I met Mommy, right? Well, I was travelling when I found the hotel."

Mina gave a tiny, dainty yawn. "Did you like it there?"

"Well, yeah! Who doesn't?" He chuckled to himself. "Anyway, you know how I get lost and stuff easily?"

"Yes," His daughter agreed, nodding a little. "Grandpa says that you're clumsy and go places that you shouldn't."

Thanks, Drac. "Yeah, well, I ended up...borrowing a witch's broom."

"Why?" She asked, tilting her head to show that she was confused. "Did you want to do some cleaning?"

"Nah, I just wanted to fly on one," He said, shrugging his shoulders slightly. "Anyway, 'cause I'm not that good at broom-riding or anything, I lost total control of it. And then this vampire girl was walking down the stairs, right, and...and I kinda crashed into her."

Mina gave a high, adorable giggle. "Oh, no! Did it hurt? Was she angry at you?"

"It hurt a little," He admitted, reaching up absentmindedly to rub his head as he thought back. "So I looked up, totally ready to apologize to the girl I'd hit, and-"

"And you felt a zing!" Mina interrupted excitedly, jumping up in her bed and beaming happily. "Because it was Mommy that you hit!"

"Hey, you know this story already!" He accused jokingly, reaching his fingers to tickle her until she laid back down. "Do I really need to tell you if you already know?"

Mina nodded quickly. "Yes! Yes!"

"Well, why don't you just tell it to me?" He asked, not really meaning it - he'd had this conversation too many times to count with all of his kids, and it was the same answer every time.

Mina shook her head. "No! It's better when you do it, Daddy!"

Call him an idiot, but Johnny still loved hearing his kids say it.

"Please finish it, Daddy," The little vampire begged, gazing up at him with wide hazel eyes. "Martha-bat wants to hear it too."

As if to prove the point, she made the bat plush nod it's head.

Johnny grinned, tucking her underneath the blankets again. "Well, alright, but only 'cause Martha-bat wants to hear. Where was I?"

"You and Mommy had just zinged," She reminded him, snuggling into her pillow so that she comfortable. "Then what?"

"Well," He continued, trying to remember. "Your Grandpa wasn't too happy, I can remember that...probably because I'd just messed up the lobby and knocked your Mom down the stairs. But he let me stay anyway, - I'm so glad that he did." He paused as his daughter yawned, and something told him that it wouldn't be too long until she would be asleep. "Your Mommy and I started to hang out; you know, sitting on the roof, playing in the pool, that kind of thing. So, one night it was your Mommy's birthday, and there was this huge party - I helped organise, and she spent most of the night dancing with me."

"And then?"

"And then there was this moment," He recounted, slowing down as he remembered it in full-detail. "She looked at me, and I just...when you're older, you'll understand what I mean." She blinked but didn't protest at his lack of description. "She was so beautiful, Mina, and I knew that I'd fallen in love."

She gave another yawn, this time bigger than the last time, before speaking. "Did you kiss her, Daddy?"

"Yeah...well," He hesitated thoughtfully. "Your Mommy kissed me first, because I wasn't brave enough to." He thought about the next few events: he didn't really want to go on forever, since she really did have to sleep, and he didn't know how to tell her that her Grandpa hadn't wanted him there at first in case it made her ask more questions, so he decided to just skip that bit for that night. "So, after we kissed, we started dating and travelling the world together."

"And then?"

Johnny smiled at her, tweaking her button nose affectionately. "And then, when we finished travelling, we got married here at the hotel and settled down in a nice house."

Her eyes widened further, mouth falling open in a grin scarily accurate to his own. "And then?!"

"And then we had three kids," He laughed, leaning down and nuzzling noses with her. "We called them Lucy, Jack and...oh," He pretended to frown, as if he'd forgotten. "I forget the last name...Maria? No, it's probably Meg or Mara..."

"My name's Mina, Daddy!" She giggled.

He grinned down at her. "Oh yeah! Silly me!" The two laughed together for another minute or so before Johnny cleared his throat and smiled down at her lovingly. "I think you should get some sleep now, cutie - you don't want to be tired when we go to the hotel tomorrow night, do you?"

She shook her head, pouting at having to go to bed but snuggling further into the coffin anyway. "Okay. Goodnight, Daddy. I love you."

Johnny leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Goodnight, Mina. I love you too."

"How much?" She asked softly, giving a small yawn.

"Pfft! More than all the skies and space out there of course!" He answered, grinning down at her as she blinked sleepily. "Sweet dreams, Mina. Don't let the daymares get you."

"They won't," She mumbled, turning on her side and wrapping her arms around her favourite toy. "Martha-bat will protect me."

Johnny watched her for another few seconds, waiting until she'd shut her eyes and started breathing slowly, before standing up to leave. He stopped by the bedroom door to take one last look at her - she was half-asleep by now, and looking adorably peaceful - and opened the door to leave. He made sure to shut it behind him before setting off down the hallway and to his and Mavis' own bedroom. He knew that their older two children were probably in their rooms and listening to music, but since they were that much older there wasn't any point in forcing them to go to sleep just yet.

In their room, he found his wife lying on the bed and reading a magazine. "Is she asleep?"

"Yeah, just about," He told her, flopping down next to her. He smiled at her, wrapping an arm around her waist and staring at her with adoring hazel eyes.

Mavis gave a small smile of her own, knowing what he was doing, and put her magazine down. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

Johnny just shrugged, still grinning at her. "I dunno...I guess I was just thinking about some stuff..."

"Mina asked about us meeting, didn't she?" Mavis guessed knowingly, and laughed when her husband nodded. "I should have known..." He pulled her further into his arms and she didn't resist, wrapping her arms around him too and nuzzling their noses together. "What 'stuff' have you been thinking about?"

"Oh, you know...everything," He said vaguely, and she gave him a look. "Alright, fine! I was just thinking back to all that stuff that happened...the whole zing thing, and having to be disguised as a Stein. That kind of thing."

He leaned in closer, so that their lips were only a few centimetres apart; Mavis took the initiative and closed the distance between them with a soft, gentle kiss. It wasn't a particularly passionate or fiery one, but rather an emotional gentle one that ended much too quickly for their liking.

"I'm really glad I met you," Johnny breathed, words somewhat warm against her skin.

She smiled. "I'm glad that you knocked me down the stairs on my birthday too."

He chuckled, rolling his eyes slightly. "Gee, wait to make it romantic, Mavy!"

"Fine," Mavis giggled, leaning forwards so that their noses were touching again. "I love you."

"I love you too," Johnny said back softly, moving in to kiss her again.

Neither of them had to say anything else - they knew that they'd love each other forever, so there was no point in saying it aloud.

And that's the end :'( I'm gonna miss writing this story, I really am...but I could always write more... :)

Anyway, I'd like to thank ALL of you for your continued support over the last 26 chapters - it really means the world to me, and I hope that if I continue to write for this fandom then I can count on you guys' support :D

Another thank you to everyone else who have suggested ideas on what they'd like to see extended - specifically Sondardo, Awesomo3000, Ssgt splatter, animal lover and wallaceb. I dunno how they'll be written - would you guys prefer it to be added onto the end of this as extras? Or would you like to see them as separate stories (more fleshed-out too)?

So, keep an eye out for either updates on this or new stories on the archive (nothing SHOULD be M-Rated just yet, so it SHOULD turn up). Thanks guys!