It was an excitingly eventful night at the Hotel Transylvania.

There was a wedding going on, and it was becoming the monstrous event of the season. Sure, the hotel had held weddings there before, but this one was different. Why? Because it was the wedding of Count Dracula and his bride-to-be Ericka Van Helsing. No one could forget the events that had unfolded aboard the cruise ship The Legacy just a few short months ago in the summer. It was a rollercoaster of happenings that ultimately ended up producing a zing - something that the monsters recognized as one true love. And now, the pair would finally bring that zing to officiality before many of these very monsters through the witnessing of their marriage.

The hotel lobby was decorated with a beautiful spider-woven sign that read 'Congrats to Drac and Ericka.' Guests from all over Transylvania - and some like Murray the mummy, Bigfoot, and the Yeti who had come from lands beyond - poured in through the front revolving doors. Their roars and whoops of excitement were heard rumbling throughout the corridors.

Up in his chambers, Count Dracula was preparing himself for the occasion. He dressed down in his most formal suit - a black set with gold embellishments and a frilly white ascot that was tucked neatly into his silk jacket. He smiled as he smoothed back his sleek black hair, knowing that he was looking his finest for his bride. A gentle knock on the door broke his attention away from his thoughts, and a moment later Mavis entered inside. She was looking beautiful as well, dressed in a simple black dress that flared out at the knees with a pair of kitten heels.

"Mavis," he said sweetly in greeting. His smile fell a little as he noticed Mavis's slightly somber expression. "Honeybat? What's the matter?"

"Hey Dad," she said quietly, coming up to him but not yet meeting her father's gaze. "I just came to check in on you and see how you were doing."

"Me? Well, I'm doing just fine, sweetfangs, but I believe I asked you how you were doing." He came up to her and with two fingers under her chin he lifted her head so that he could look in her eyes. "What's wrong my little Voodoo doll?"

"I uh…" she began, but then stopped, sighing. "Dad… are you sure you're doing the right thing and all, marrying Ericka?"

Drac nodded. "Of course I am. I love her, and she loves me. We zinged, just like how you and Johnny did."

"But what if this is some kind of trick, Dad?" Mavis interjected with worry. "What if she's just playing along and she really just wants to hurt you?"

"Sweetheart," Drac began gently, "I hate to say it, but that's a silly thought. Everyone knows that Ericka is a great lady. At least, I thought everyone knew." He gave her a pointed look, and her cheeks flushed a little with embarrassment.

"Sorry, Dad," she said. "I just don't want you to get heartbroken again… especially after what happened to Mom…" She broke off as tears began to water a little in her eyes. Dracula noticed and opened his arms out so that he could envelope her in a hug.

"Oh, honeybat, don't cry," he said, soothingly running his hand up and down her back. "Everything will be just fine. I know this day can be a little bit of a challenge for you, as it is for me. I'll never forget my wedding day with Martha." He sighed as he recalled the event that was hosted in his castle, where his friends had provided the music and he and his bride had waltzed through the floors and ceilings at the reception. Drac continued. "But, now it is time for a new beginning… with Ericka. She will never be Mommy, but she is still a wonderful part of our family."

Mavis seemed to have considered this for a moment, and finally looked up at her father with a look of determination. "Okay, Dad. You're right. I'm sorry that I acted all like this…"

Drac waved a dismissive hand. "It's okay, sweetheart, I understand. But you should go head downstairs now. The wedding is about to start soon!"

Mavis smiled and shapeshifted into a bat. "Don't worry, Dad, I'll be there!" With that, she flew out the door of the chambers.


A few minutes later, the wedding commenced.

It was a beautiful spectacle to see. The hotel was so beautifully adorned with elegant trimmings that led the eye right up to the altar. There, Dracula stood proudly with his head held high and his hands behind his back, doing his best to prevent himself from rocking back and forth on the heels of his shoes. Drac's friends - Frankenstein, Wayne the werewolf, Griffin the invisible man, and Murray the mummy - loyally stood by his side as groomsmen, whispering words of encouragement.

"Don't worry, Drac, you got this!" Frank reassured the vampire.

"Yeah, you've done this before. We were there for you then, and we're here for you again now," Wayne said in a comforting voice.

"Just remember to breathe," Griffin piped in, with a pat to Drac's back.

"Uh-huh, don't you get too nervous there!" Murray teased.

To the bride's side, the bridesmaids awaited. Eunice, Frank's wife; Wanda, Wayne's wife; Crystal, Griffin's invisible girlfriend; and Mandy, Murray's girlfriend; had all become very good friends with Ericka and were chattering excitedly amongst themselves as they awaited her appearance.

"O...M…G, girls, did you see just how fabulous she looked? Dracula is just going to die when he sees her!" Crystal gushed.

"I helped with that, you know," Eunice put in. "Always gotta make the hair looks nice and then you're good to go!" She emphasized by fluffing up her own hair, then added, "oh yeah, and let's hope that Drac doesn't die, 'cause then Ericka will miss out on the good stuff later on!"

Wanda gasped at Eunice's blatant remark. "Eunice!" she cried.

The Frankenwoman shrugged. "What? It's true. You don't have to bite the donut to know it's sweet, am I right?" She nudged at Mandy who was next to her, who was snickering behind a hand.

"You are correct," she confirmed, grinning mischievously.

Finally, the wedding march started. Wayne and Wanda's daughter Winnie skipped happily along the aisle tossing sunflower petals from her little basket on the path. The monsters cooed at the little pup, and then their attention was drawn back to the end of the aisle where another presence was made known. Dracula's heart palpitated quicker, for the newcomer was his beautiful bride - Ericka.

She looked simply ravishing in a lacy white gown that clung perfectly to every curve of her body. With careful steps, she made her way up toward the altar holding a small bundle of sunflowers clutched in her hands, until she made it to the top where her groom was. She blushed significantly as their eyes met, and a shy smile came across her lips. A little moment later, Dennis approached the pair with a pillow that held their wedding rings. After a quick ruffle on the red-haired boy's head, Drac picked up one of the golden bands and slipped it delicately on Ericka's finger. She did the same for him just as Blobby wiggled his way up to them. With his gurgling speech, he asked them the most important question that everyone attentively listened to.

"Blublu Bubbubuh Blublublubuh bluh?" he asked Drac.

The vampire nodded. "I do."

The Jell-O monster then turned to Ericka.

"Blublu Bubbubuh Blublublubuh bluh?" he asked.

Ericka answered breathlessly. "I do."

Blobby nodded his green head and proceeded. "Bluh bluhblubuhbluh blublubluhbluh!" he said, which roughly translated to "Then I now pronounce you husband and wife!"

The monsters in the crowd began to clap and cheer vigorously. Drac enthusiastically swept his new Countess into his arms and gave her a passionate kiss that Ericka gladly returned. Everyone could clearly see that they were meant for each other and that they would soon lead a happy life at the hotel. Still, even among all the enthusiasm, there was still one that was rather off-put by everything.

"Woo-hoo! YEAH!" Johnny cheered, standing up on his seat and clapping loudly. "Drac's a married man! Isn't it great, honey? Honey? Mavis?"

"Oh, what?" Mavis replied, only really half-hearing what her husband was saying. She was too focused on keeping an eye on her dad and Ericka. They had broken away from their kiss, with much reluctancy, and were now making their way down the aisle and out of the back door that led to the ballroom where the reception was about to take place. Watching the last of them disappear, she half-heartedly answered Johnny. "Oh yes, hon, it is great. Dad's happy again. He's married after almost a century after all."

"Yeah, totally!" Johnny grabbed her by the hand and rose to follow the others out into the ballroom. "Now come on! A party isn't a party without DJ Jazzy Johnny in the house, am I right?"

Mavis giggled a little at his energy and allowed herself to be dragged out to the celebration.

And it was a grand celebration indeed.

Bright lights flashed on the dance floor and the monsters pranced and skipped to the rhythms. A few of Drac's friends were by the buffet table, where Frank was presently gorging himself on a few slices of the vanilla wedding cake topped with scream cheese. Drac led Ericka to the table to get some of the pastry for themselves when Dennis excitedly flapped up next to them as a bat.

"Congratulations Papa Drac and Nana Ericka!" he cheered.

"Denisovich, my little devil dog!" Dracula greeted cheerfully, and scooped the kid into his arms as he shapeshifted back. The boy giggled as his Vampa nuzzled against him and then transferred him to Ericka's arms so that he could get a drink.

"So, are you going to make a baby now?"

Dracula immediately choked on his Blood Beater and Ericka paled so much in the face that one would have likely mistaken her for a vampire in that instant.

"W-wh-what?" she squeaked out.

"A baby!" Dennis said as though nothing had happened. "I learned all about it at school, where when two people love each other very much, they go and - "

"DENNIS!" Drac suddenly cut in, his throat a little hoarse from having coughed. "I thought I heard Tinkles whining. Why don't you go up to your room and check up on him to make sure he is okay, hmm?"

Dennis grinned, showing off his little vampire fangs. "Okay! See you later, Papa Drac!" Then, jumping into the air and turning back into a bat, Dennis was out of sight.

Dracula breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Ericka. "Whew!" he exhaled. "Conflict avoided!"

Ericka giggled as she wiped a dribble of Blood Beater that was on the corner of his lip with her thumb. "Yep!"

Just as they were getting over the shock of Dennis's sudden question, a slow and rather romantic song began to play over the speakers.

"I think that it's just about time for a certain couple to make their way to the dance floor!" Johnny called out from the microphone.

Ericka blushed as the spotlight fixated on her and her new husband. Dracula offered his arm out to her in a gentlemanly fashion and she took it as they treaded to the center of the room. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and he wrapped his around her waist. Their foreheads were pressed close together as they began swaying silently, but lovingly, in a slow embrace to the music, their lips meeting every now and then in gentle kisses. In between the sweet little pecks, the two shared soft words that could only be told by others through the movement of their mouths. As Mavis sat in observance while other monster pairs clamored onto the dance floor as well, she morphed her ear into that of a bat's. Her hearing in that way was much sharper, and provided her ease of access to the conversation despite her 30 foot distance from them.

"Sweetfangs," she heard her father say, "are you sure it is a good idea?"

"I know it is," Ericka assured. "Besides, once you're out of here, all your worries will go away… and you can finally rest in peace."

Mavis stiffened upon hearing those words. Rest in peace? Once he's 'out of here'? All his worries will 'go away'? In what context did any of that sound good when it came from a Van Helsing in regards to a Dracula? The young vampiress did not like the sound of it one bit, and from the look of how content her father was, he didn't seem to suspect a thing from his new wife. But Mavis was not about to let a potentially harmful plan that could bring demise to her father slip under the radar. Ericka was a good actor, the proof of it was obvious when the cruise happened and nobody else could see through her cheerful captainy demeanor. Even Mavis herself had been fooled for a while. A part of her felt guilty at the anger that was arising within her, clearly recalling the conversations she had had with her father during his courtship with Ericka and how much he had tried to tell her that she changed. So far, Mavis hadn't really seen any red flags, but whose to say it wasn't all just one big act again? Who's to say that Ericka could potentially have some other plot hidden just under her sleeve that no one could once again see?

Mavis clenched and unclenched her fist at the table and averted her gaze from anybody who could see her. Thankfully, nobody really paid her much mind as they were distracted with other happenings at the celebration. She tried to tell herself that Ericka was no longer like that anymore. She tried to tell herself that Ericka was not a monster hunter out to stake her father or harm her friends. But still ever so that little voice in the back of her mind persisted strongly. And it was that fraction of doubt that made Mavis feel uneasy. She couldn't shake the feeling that stirred inside of her whenever she fathomed something terrible happening to her father, leaving her parentless and the hotel ownerless. The hotel was built to keep such people out, and now that she was married to Drac, Ericka would come into ownership of it. The thought of it nearly made Mavis laugh if it hadn't been for the weight of worry resting on her shoulders, and the unpleasant thought of needing to take orders from who would turn out to become her so-called 'step-mom.'

So caught up in her thoughts Mavis was that she nearly jumped out of her skin when a loud pop song began to blare through the ballroom. The slow song had evidently concluded, and the fearsome dancing had once again resumed. Her eyes scanned the ballroom and quickly found Drac and Ericka coming off of the dance floor. As always, they were oblivious to anyone else but each other. Mavis almost rolled her eyes, but then perked up again when she saw Drac's friends - her "uncles" - and their wives approach the two. She didn't bother to listen in on what they said to the pair, as the next moment Dracula was drawn away by his Pack and Ericka by the excited monster females. Suddenly, Mavis grinned, an idea formulating in her head. She drummed her fingers against the tabletop as she brainstormed it for a few moments more, refining it in her mind, and then stood up to join them by the buffet table where they had gone.

Her Aunt Eunice's loud and rather nasally voice was the first she heard when approaching them.

"Congratulations!" the Frankenwoman said cheerily, clapping the bride on the back. "It's so wonderful to see the two of you finally tying the knot! I remember, I married Frank only a few months after we met too."

Next to her, Wanda raised a paw. "I can say the same for me and Wayne, and now look where we're at." She gestured down to her once-again pregnant belly.

Ericka blushed. "Oh! But, uh, don't you think it's a little too early to start thinking about children? I mean, we did just get married!"

Eunice snorted. "Of course not! We don't get any younger, do we?" The women chuckled and continued their talk.

"So, any immediate plans now that you're married?" Crystal asked.

"Well..." Ericka began. "There is one thing in mind…" But before Ericka could finish sharing the thought, Mavis came up to her from behind with a slight bounce in her step and made herself hug the woman, nearly knocking her off of her feet.

"Congratulations!" she exclaimed as happily as she could pretend to be. "I'm so happy for you and my dad!"

Ericka laughed and patted Mavis on the back. "Thanks, Mavis, that means a lot. Your father is an amazing person and I'm proud to now call him my husband!"

Mavis grinned even wider to hide the small pang of envy that shot through her. Instead, she turned to the other bridesmaids. "Aunt Eunice? Aunt Wanda? Crystal, and Mandy - would you guys mind if I spoke to Ericka alone for a few moments?"

They nodded easily. "Of course!" Eunice answered for them. "Take a breather, I know how riled up a monster party can get folks!"

The girls shared another laugh, and Mavis and Ericka excused themselves outside to the pool deck, each toting a small chalice of punch with them.

Mavis took a long sip of her drink before turning to Ericka with the biggest grin on her face. "You look beautiful today," she said simply.

"Thank you," Ericka replied quietly, smiling softly to herself. "I just can't believe this is all real. This time a few months ago I was plotting out his death and now... well, now I'm marrying him!"

"Yeah," Mavis agreed. "It IS crazy, right? But it's nice too."

Ericka sighed deeply and took a sip from her punch. "It's like a dream come true..."

Mavis watched her intently for a moment. "Yeah," she said again. "I just... I gotta wonder what's going to happen when the council hears of this though."

Ericka raised her head, both in interest and confusion. "The council?"