...But he knew how to make up for it...

Karen glanced at the sky before coming out of her house. It had been raining for one or two days straight and it showed no signs of stopping. Therefore, she opened her umbrella before coming out of the house, off to work.

Her eyes were swollen from crying, but no more. She took her mother's advice and just...stop thinking about the opportunity lost. Shit happened, and McCormicks were a real magnet of it—she was old enough to get used to a life of failures and disappointment. She guessed she was right. It was too good to be true and reality woke her up with a slap. She was dying to go to get admitted in college so she could stop working at the bar, because she hated it, but now...well, she couldn't stay and home, feeling sorry for herself; she still had to work to help the family...It wasn't such a big deal, was it? No one died from not becoming a doctor...

She stopped, feeling like somebody was watching her. But it was not an unpleasant sensation. All the contrary, actually. It was very reassuring, warm...A bit like if God had sent an angel to watch her steps...

...That could only mean that...

A figure landed from above in front of her. She only drew back a bit, startled, but immediately her surprised expression turned into a smile.

"Guardian Angel..."

Rain ran down Mysterion's lips and chin.

"...I know what they did to you...for defending me..." He said.

Karen nodded slowly. "I don't believe anything they say about you and the Freedom Pals...I heard that the child lied about Fastpass touching her, saw on the TV how they harassed Wonder Tweek and even threw a rock to his head and...and Melman Ackroyd wasn't a good person...People are being so unfair I couldn't keep quiet..."

"...I will do everything in my hand to get you admitted. I will-"

"No, Mysterion." Karen shook her head. "I...think it's become very clear that college is not for me."

"Don't say that. I have observed your hard work all these years. You are very intelligent. Any university should be fighting to have you."

Karen smiled kindly, tilting her head.

"No university is going to accept me as long as they check their candidates' social media. Even if I deleted that post and even my profile, some people have already called me out. They would find out. And I won't conform to the agenda against you, even if that means I can't go to college."

"No. Listen to me. I won't let your talent be wasted in a bar, having to put up with drunkards." Mysterion came closer to place his strong hands, those hands which had punched people who wanted to hurt her, on her shoulders, and looked at her into her eyes. "I swear I won't stop until they change their minds. But in order to do this you have to promise me something, Karen...You must join the crowd and hate on us."

Karen stared at him with wide eyes.

"I can't do that." She replied.

"You must. It's the only way they'll leave you alone. Loathe and cancel us just like everyone else does, educate yourself on why we are terrible, don't question anything they say about us, and everything will be just fine."

"But that's horrible, Mysterion..."

"Sticks and stones...I have gone through much worse..."

Karen shook her head and left her umbrella on the pavement to take his hands.

"No. You have always been there for me. You comforted me wen I was alone, scared and sad. You helped and took care of me when I had no one else to rely on. It's time I return the favor. You guys are not alone. You are not alone." She smiled at him and pressed his hands so he could feel her determination, her warmth. "...No matter where you go. No matter what you do. I will always be there."

Kenny struggled to keep that stone cold face and grave voice...

"...Please, don't...You have to put yourself first..." He avoided looking at her to the eyes. He didn't want her to see the sparkle in his eyes. But she had noticed already.

"Maybe I want to be like you and care for others before myself." Karen replied.

"...You are a woman now..."

"Yes, and I am not afraid anymore."

Mysterion moved away from her, even if he still wanted to touch her hands. "It doesn't matter. I still won't leave you—not even when you are a hundred years old."

He turned around and ran around the nearby corner. Karen quickly followed him. When she finally got there, Mysterion was gone. She rose her head but there were still no signs of him.

She sighed, smiling, before picking her umbrella back and continuing on her way—or at least that was what she intended to, because a figure emerged from the shadows. She thought for a second that Mysterion had something left to say, but the person who approached had long hair and sharp canines when he smiled.

"Hello, Karen."

She was glued to the spot.

"Long time no see, per se...You got really pretty..." The apparition said.

"I know you..." She muttered.

"You used to be such a lonely kid. The poor girl who had no toys to play with and had no cable or streaming services and couldn't follow the shows people talked about. Everyone mocked you, per se. But I didn't. Remember?"

"No...You tried to convince me to join your vampire group." Karen drew back as Mike approached her.

"Don't talk like I was taking advantage of your situation to increase my army of the undead. All of us were lonely, tortured souls. Even I, per se."

"You were just a boy who never realized that going around pretending to be a vampire is pathetic..."

Mike lost his smile.

"You used to call me your friend. But you had to listen to what all those pitiful humans said. If only you knew, Karen, the power of being a creature of the night, per se..."

"I have to work, Mike, I have no time for this..."

She stepped back, not turning her back on him. Somehow, when she turned around, there he was, standing right in front of her.

"Don't waste your time with jobs, Karen. Join me in a feast of blood and darkness for all eternity..." He purred, approaching inexorably.

"Mike, stop! You really need help, you're read Twilight way too many times!" Karen exclaimed, getting really scared now. Those fangs seemed so real...Just like his penetrating look.

"I told you a million times...It's Vampyr!" Mike exclaimed, and pounced on her.

Karen let out a scream whose echo reached Kenny several streets away, while he was removing his uniform. Muttering a swearing, he put it back on in a rush.

Karen used her umbrella to block Mike for barely a few seconds, until he got it out of his way with a swipe. Then he pinned her against the wall. Karen felt his warm breath on her neck, his animal like grunts, and whined, because it was really lame for a guy in his twenties to pretend to be a vampire, but he really believed and he was going to bite her and who knew what else...

"You said I was your friend..." Mike whispered. "You said you didn't want to see me unhappy...Well...Make me happy, Karen...Join me..."

His fangs didn't get to touch her. Mike felt that someone grabbed him from behind and forced him to turn around. He only had a few milliseconds to see a caped figure before a punch left him flat on his ass. His nose was surely broken, considering how it hurt him, blood was gushing out of it. His tongue tried not to let a single drop of it go to waste. He looked up at Mysterion with a grin dyed red.

"You know what I like, huh?" He chuckled.

And he got up, bowled him over to punish him for interrupting their conversation. Kenny had a lot of experience fighting, it had given him money when studies didn't help him go far in life, but Mike was free from every human feeling and restraint, he let the beast free, and attacked brutally and ruthlessly.

"Run! Karen! Run!"

Karen couldn't bring herself to do it. She drew back, getting out of the way, until she practically hid behind the trash bins, paralyzed, only able to watch how Mike attacked Mysterion like a beast.

She had to do something! She had sworn she would protect him! But what? She didn't have Mysterion's strength...If Mysterion was having a bad time with him, what could she do?

Mysterion got to grab him by the neck and punch him in the face a few more times. Mike, with a kick in the gonads, got to get rid of him, and sank his fangs in his neck viciously. When he ripped his trachea off, Karen let out a cry and decided she couldn't just witness how Guardian Angel died for her. She grabbed the lid of one of the trash cans and, while Mike was feasting on Mysterion, she hit him in the head with all her strength, and she didn't stop even when he was on the ground, she kept kicking him.

"STAY AWAY FROM HIM!" She shouted.

She had no time to waste on him. She ran towards Mysterion. She hoped she could do something for him!

"Angel...Guardian Angel..."

Mike got up groaning, not before licking a bit of the blood on the pavement. He stood up and stumbled towards Karen. She stood firm between him and Mysterion.

"Go away." She grumbled, fists clenched.

Mike would never admit he had been defeated. He said to himself that he had tasted enough blood for the night and it was back to return to his lair and heal...

"You have been lucky tonight, but next time we find each other, you will become one of my brides..." He said before fusing with the shadows.

Dear God, was he deranged...But Karen had no time to worry about him. She feared she was losing Mysterion.

"Oh, no...No...H-Hold on...I'll get help..."

But nobody could help him...His head was only attached to his body by a thread of skin. Rain was sending all that pool of blood down the sewer...He was still conscious and looked at her with shiny eyes, almost like a sacrificed lamb...The realization that he was dying made tears form in her eyes.

No, there had to be something she could do! She couldn't let him die! Not after everything he had done for her! She refused to give up. It was probably useless, but she thought of plugging the wound. Prevent as much blood loss as possible. Help him breathe.

In order to do that she had to...

Kenny wanted to stop her, but felt too groggy, had barely any strength left.

And so Karen removed the hood with trembling hands, finding a long, blond Mohawk haircut, just like...

...just like...

Karen felt air left her lungs and her heart stopped beating. She then took the black mask covering his face and pulled it up, revealing what she feared to find: the face of her brother Kenny.

She covered her mouth. "Kenny...Kenny! Oh, Kenny!" She cried, hugging Kenny.

If she had looked at that moment, she would have noticed there was no reason to cry: his throat was back to its place, the bleeding stopped, his neck was intact. Kenny rose his head, but Karen kept weeping and hugging him tight.

"Karen..."

Her tears blended with the raindrops falling on her face. Her sobbing didn't cease after hearing him talk, almost as if she couldn't believe it. Kenny stained her cheeks and hair with his own blood caressing her.

"Karen, it's okay..." He spoke with his real, tender, soft voice, the voice she had grown up hearing. "I'm okay, baby...It's all right..."

It took Karen a good while to finally look at him to the face and talk. When she did, she did it with thick voice, her hands on his cheeks.

"I won't let them hurt you...I won't let them hurt you anymore...I won't let them..."

No matter the rain...They remained long in there, just hugging each other...