LADDIE
AUTHOR'S NOTE
All Lost Boys characters belong to Warner Bros. I only own the vampire who drains Laddie.
INTRODUCTION
A possible theory as to why Laddie was so comfortable around Dwayne and Paul.
Eleven-year old Laddie Thompson backed away from the big kid nervously.
"Please. Leave me alone," he begged.
"What's the matter, little boy?" the teen mocked. He grabbed Laddie and snarled. Laddie gasped in fright. The kid's face had changed into something horrible. With a laugh, the vampire bore down.
"Help!" Help!" Laddie screamed. He struggled, but minutes later, his barely conscious body was thrown to the ground. Some time later, footsteps came from far away.
"Hey, look," a voice said. The footsteps came closer.
"Hey, whoa. It's just a kid," a second voice stated. Laddie moaned.
"Oh, geez! He's still alive!" the first voice exclaimed.
"Come on. Let's take him home," the second voice said. With that, Laddie was vaguely aware of strong arms lifting him up. The footsteps walked and walked. As they entered the cave, Dwayne and Paul looked at the boy in concern. Who had done this?
"Come on. We can lay him here," Dwayne stated. Paul knelt down and lay the boy on the couch. For a moment, he just stared. This kid was young. So young. Too young to die. The vampire reached for a jeweled bottle.
"Are you crazy?" Dwayne demanded, grabbing Paul's arm. "You know how David feels about turning little kids!"
"You want him to die?" Paul retorted. Dwayne let his hand drop. He knew Paul was right. And hopefully, David would just understand. Paul tilted the jeweled bottle so that its contents would slide down the boy's throat.
"Sorry, kid. But this is the only way," the vampire murmured. A few seconds later, he pulled the bottle back. The boy moaned and opened his eyes.
"Hey. Welcome back, bud," Paul laughed in relief.
"Where am I?" the boy wondered.
"Safe," Dwayne answered.
"What exactly happened?" Paul questioned.
"This big kid...he was teasing me...his face!" the boy shuddered and his face twisted in fright.
"Hey, it's okay. We'll make him pay," Dwayne promised.
"What's your name?" Paul asked.
"Laddie," the boy replied.
"Laddie, what did this kid look like?" Dwayne prodded. In a halting voice, Laddie told them. It was a big kid in punk clothing with two earrings in each ear. Paul and Dwayne looked at each other. They knew the description all too well.
"Roger," Paul said.
"Gotta be," Dwayne agreed. "Stay here, Laddie. We'll be back soon," he continued.
"Where are you going?" Laddie wondered.
"To make it so that kid can't hurt anybody else," Paul replied. With that, he and Dwayne left the cave. As soon as they were out of sight, they took to the skies. They found Roger in a short time. Paul snarled. Roger turned around. The lone vampire didn't stand a chance against Dwayne and Paul who worked together. They lifted Roger into the sky and then dropped him into a bonfire. They laughed triumphantly at their deed. Then, they went back to the cave. They had just reached the entrance when David attacked, grabbing Paul by the neck. Marko moved up a step, but did nothing further.
"You turned a little kid!?" he snarled, pinning Paul to the wall. Paul tried to get the words out, but all he could manage was a strangled gasp. "You know the rules, Paul: no kids!"
"David, he was dying," Dwayne broke in.
"What?" David snapped, turning to his lieutenant.
"Roger drained him and left him for dead. Laddie would've died if Paul hadn't given him the bottle," Dwayne explained. David released his grip on Paul's neck.
"Where's Roger?" he demanded.
"Dead. We killed him," Paul answered.
"Good," was their leader's approval. He and the rest of the Lost Boys walked into the cave.
"Laddie," said David, kneeling down so that he and the boy were eye-level.
"Yeah?" Laddie questioned in a somewhat frightened whisper.
"You'll be safe here, Laddie. Dwayne and Paul took care of the one who hurt you. And until you find your family, you're welcome to stay here," David told him.
"Thank you," Laddie responded.
"And know this Laddie, as long as we're around, no one will ever hurt you," David promised. And then, though it was highly uncharacteristic of him, the leader of the Lost Boys placed his hand over Laddie's small one and gave it a quick squeeze.
THE END