The library was a place that Roxanne had always found to be of great comfort when growing up in the bustling metropolis that was Metro City. Despite the loud, hectic world outside full of its traffic, people, and sheer business of it all as soon as you walked through the arching door ways into the heart of the library that had been built there over one hundred years ago, that crazy world was left outside and unable to penetrate the silence and familiarity of the library.
She had seen the updates come, from the cards used to find a book to computer kiosks and how the newspaper section had gradually shrunk over the years... but it was still a library, her place of solitude where she could go to settle in a beanbag or an arm chair with a good book. Roxanne had been coming here since she was old enough to read, back then she had been brought by her father and her mother both of whom were avid book lovers.
The little girl had known how to read basic words, and even write some, before starting kindergarten, and she thanked both of her parents for instilling a love of words and reading from such an early age since it had been of great help for her career choice. From humble beginnings of reading Beatrice Potter, Roald Dhal and other children's authors she was now a hard edged journalist who wrote columns in the local newspapers and also reported live on the news. She had once thought the world made sense, that everything was at it should be.
Then she learned vampires were real and everything was thrown for a loop.
If they were real as she was, how was it they hadn't been detected by the general public yet? Surely that... blue... alien couldn't be the only one fighting them. Maybe there was a whole legion, groups of them, fighting vampires the world over so to protect man kind from all turning into blood thirsty monsters of the night?
Today Roxanne found herself in the occult section of the library and was sitting on the floor by the book shelves as she poured through books on vampires. She had once thought she knew all there was to know about them from watching television, movies, and reading a few books here and there but the creatures history was far more detailed than she thought possible. Not only that, but there were different 'breeds' of vampires as well.
There were some who could transform into wolves, bats, even those from Japan who detached their heads from their bodies and their flying heads sought out people to feast upon. It seemed almost every country had their own kind of vampire, and each one had its own way of being dealt with but of course this was all chalked up as playful, 'innocent' fiction.
"But how much of this is fiction...?" she wondered quietly as she picked up a book she had read a few times in high school. Dracula. While vampires had been known long before the book had been written, it was this 'story' that had brought vampires into the light of day to more people. Was it really a story? It wasn't written like a story, was it? Thumbing through the pages there were articles from newspapers, letters to friends and family, all of them documented papers of the events that surrounded the Count and his trip.
Sighing, she put the book down and rubbed her forehead.
"You know we have perfectly good seats for sitting on." the voice startled her and Roxanne would deny to her death that she gave out a surprised squeak when she had heard it. She turned and peered up to see a familiar face.
"Bernard!" she gasped, putting a hand to her chest. "Don't scare me like that."
"I can be incredibly terrifying when I want to be." his voice was, as usual, totally devoid of emotion and had been ever since Roxanne had first met him years ago in this very library where he worked. Bernard Dunning was a thin man by appearance, had wavy crazy brown hair that never seemed to do what it was told and he had round glasses perched on the end of his button nose. He crouched, and nudged his glasses up his nose since they had been slipping, and picked up one of the books she was reading. "Vampire Myths and Legends." he read, before lowering the book and arched his eyebrow at her. "I didn't take you as a fan of the supernatural."
"Neither did I." she admitted meekly as she picked up a few of the books and got to her feet since he had a point, they had chairs, and her butt was going to sleep from sitting on the floor for so long. "It's just... I don't know."
"You haven't been caught up in that whirlwind of screaming women who like those vampire romance novels, have you?" Bernard asked cautiously, as if asking her if she had contracted a highly contagious disease.
"Oh God no!" Roxanne laughed, shaking her head. "No, no. I'd sooner push nails through my fingers before reading that claptrap."
"Good. For a minute there I was afraid I was going to have to strap you to a chair and make you watch Gary Oldman as Dracula with Clockwork Orange style eyelid holding machine in place." he aid in such a way that made it hard for her to tell if he was being serious or not since he never inflected anything he ever said, ever. Unless you didn't count his sarcasm which was sometimes so potent she swore it could make paint peel.
"No, you don't have to do that." Roxanne assured him as they walked past the shelves of books, running a finger along the spine of one of the books. "It's just... I had the weirdest experience. I don't know if I can tell you or not, since I think you'd cart me off to an insane asylum or something."
"Now would I ever do that?" Bernard asked.
Roxanne gave him a long, pointed look.
"...all right maybe I would but that depends on the degree of insanity you're talking about." he replied with a smug grin. "So what was the experience?"
Roxanne had known Bernard for years now, even if she barely saw him outside the confines of the library walls. He had told her once it had everything he would ever truly want in the world what with all the books to read, audio tapes to listen to, newspapers to read, a small coffee store set up at the back of the library, and even sick beds where he could catch a few Z's if need be. Despite his inability to be seen outside the library walls, he was a good friend to her, and she one to him. Just how many times they had grumbled at each other about their love lives and the men that continued to elude them was lost on her.
And so she told him, in a quiet corner of the library. Roxanne explained about the celebration of her promotion at KMPG 8, how she had run into a handsome man who she just couldn't tear herself away from. That he had transformed into something incredibly evil, and dangerous, outside and would have surely killed her if not for a man coming to her rescue. All throughout her story Bernard stood there, arms folded over his chest, nodding his head to show he was listening.
"Then I woke up in my apartment, ankle sore, but no recollection of getting there." she finally finished. "I asked Carlos who got me home but he just said some guy in a suit." Roxanne glanced up at her friend since she had been looking down at the books in her hands. "You think I'm mad, don't you?"
"We're all a little mad here." Bernard replied with a shrug before stroking his chin in thought. "So... you were rescued by a vampire slayer?" he asked.
"I guess?" Roxanne shrugged.
"A blue one. With a big head. And a fish in a gorilla suit." Bernard added.
"...I know it sounds crazy but... yes." she sighed, looking down at the books once more. "That's what happened and I've just been... hungry for more information since then."
"Well. Either you smoked the weirdest pot ever created," he started, "had a realistic nightmare or it really happened. Now I know you're not the type to smoke that crap, and dreams never seem so real you remember every little detail like that."
"You think it really happened?" Roxanne asked hopefully, eyes wide.
"Stranger things have happened." Bernard shrugged. "What you need is to find this guy again, if you want information."
"But how?" she asked, "He's this... mysterious blue guy who drives around in a car you can't see with a talking fish. If it wasn't for that car I'm sure everyone would know about them more than they do now!"
"Obviously he doesn't want to be found. Maybe you'll see him again, maybe you won't. It's no good to keep dwelling on it, though. He saved you, and you're here now. That's his job, as a slayer. Just like Buffy." he continued walking again, and she fell into step alongside him. "Course, Buffy wasn't an alien but part of a family who had long since dealt with killing vampires..."
Roxanne gave a small laugh, and sighed. At least he didn't think she was totally insane.
"Just wait it out. Maybe he'll find you again, or maybe vampires will find you again." Bernard said.
"You're taking this whole alien and vampires thing pretty well." Roxanne said, giving him a look.
"Our universe is far too large, and there are many, many things we humans don't know about." Bernard said with another shrug. "I'm pretty much open to anything."
"Except sleeping with a woman." she smirked.
"That's where my line is drawn." he said with a face of disgust. "As lovely as you are." he added.
"Flattery will get you everywhere." Roxanne grinned toothily at him.
"I'm hoping flattery will keep me away from everywhere." Bernard replied smugly.
~*~
"Don't go to bed Sir, remember you've still got a job to do." Minion said as they walked over the threshold to their home. The rich wooden floorboards creaked beneath the weight of their footfalls, cushioned slightly by the ancient rug that spread the length of the hallway whose walls were adorned with paintings in expensive looking frames.
"Urrrggghhhh." Megamind groaned as he pulled his black jacket off of his shoulders and hung it on a clothes peg by the door that Minion was now shutting and locking. "But tonight was so hard." he complained like a child, looking up at his friend with doe like eyes.
"Don't let Father catch you whining like that." grinned the fish before glancing up at a portrait that hung on one of the walls ahead of them.
The portrait was of a distinguished looking man wearing a smoker's jacket. His white hair and moustache were groomed exquisitely and he looked every part a distinguished gentleman sitting there in his comfortable leather chair before a roaring fireplace. The only thing that looked completely out of place was the fact he was holding a disembodied head of a vampire, whose jaw was hanging open and its white, dead eyes stared out at nothing. The man gripped its black hair firmly in one fist, while the other hand supported its hacked open neck, uncaring of the blood dribbling over his fingers.
Megamind scoffed noisily as he tugged his boots off. "At least let me change into something not covered in vampire remains?" he asked sarcastically.
"If you must!" Minion said cheerfully before heading off into the manor.
The alien was left standing there in the entrance way to Father's manor, and wondered just what would the man say if he found out that his adopted son had gone and not wiped the mind of the young woman he had saved. Swallowing harshly, Megamind walked past the impressive portrait that he could see clearly in his mind even with his eyes shut. He swore the eyes followed him wherever he walked in the room and had always disturbed him, no matter how old he was. Making his way up the curving staircase he passed a few more paintings of men, and women, of the Family. There were all races and creeds here, people from oriental descent, African, European and of course American.
He wondered if he, too, would one day have a portrait up on the walls of the manor that had been handed down through generations since the 1700's. That one day, generations from now, young slayers would stare up at the vision of a blue skinned alien who had been brought into the Family despite his appearance and what he was.
Finding his room Megamind walked in, and began stripping out of his dirty and torn clothes. The Goths hadn't been easy to deal with since there had been more of them than he had anticipated. Despite his knowledge of fighting in many styles against people of all shapes and sizes it had still been hectic. Minion even joined in the fray at some point, giving his friend a chance at getting through to the woman who was controlling them all like puppets. The alien had taken a few cuts to his body, and he knew he'd have a nasty bruise on his shoulder from where the woman had thrown him against the ceiling.
But it was all part and parcel of being who he was. You left for work knowing there was a chance you would be injured in some way, shape or form. He wasn't doing his job if he wasn't hurt, that's the way he saw it and that's the way he had been raised to believe. Fighting monsters of the night was never as easy as they made it seem in the movies, he always left with some kind of strained limb, a bruise, or as always some ash clinging to his skin.
"So what am I supposed to do exactly..." he muttered aloud as he pulled his boxers off and tossed them into his laundry hamper before walking across the lavishly decorated room to a walk in closet to select something to wear. "Just walk into the office and request to speak to her? That wouldn't work at all, she's far too important for that. Maybe if I disguise myself as somebody on the staff... no, I don't want to do that." he found some black tight jeans, a blue shirt and another faithful black leather jacket. After locating some clean underwear and socks he went through to his private bathroom.
Downstairs, Minion was loading the laundry into the washing machine but not turning it on since the machine wasn't nearly as full as it could be. He looked around the spacious room before walking out into the kitchen and sought out his tuna sandwich that was still waiting faithfully for him in the fridge. Just as he opened the hatch on the top of his dome to lower the sandwich in there was a harsh buzzing noise filling the air. Knowing that sound, Minion put the sandwich down and rushed through into the large living room area.
He dashed past a leather bound chair besides an empty fire place, and Minion arrived at a book case. Grabbing a book he tugged it slightly out before letting go, as he did the book slowly slid back into place as the books above it slid backwards, then up, revealing a screen and keyboard. Minion pressed a button on the mouse pad, typed in his log in name and password, then waited as the screen loaded. The fish read the message before biting his lower lip anxiously. He stepped back and pressed a button on the keyboard again and quickly the screen was hidden by the books once more.
"All right Minion..." Megamind walked into the room, adjusting the collar of his leather jacket. "I'm heading off. You'll be all right here?" he asked.
"Oh yes, of course Sir!" Minion said brightly as he picked up a dust and moved to the leather chair that had been painted long ago with a man holding a vampires head in it. "I need to do some dusting anyway." he added as he enthusiastically dusted the arm chair.
"Right, well. Whatever makes you happy?" Megamind said before giving the fish a wave and walked off, feeling very apprehensive. He was used to going into things with a plan, but those plans normally dealt with just how he was going to over power the vampire he was about to fight properly and get a swift stab in with the weapon of choice for the night. This, though, was not a battle. It was approaching a woman whose mind he should have wiped clean but didn't. Not just any woman, either, this was Roxanne Ritchi. The Roxanne Ritchi!
Swallowing hard he left through the front doors, got into the invisible car and drove off towards the city that the elaborate manor over looked. It had been established before Metro City was even a city, built long ago by the Family to offer shelter to those travelling but more so to their family members. Within were many secret hidden passageways, rooms, and histories about secret wars that nobody knew of but the privileged few who did. He could still remember the first day he saw the manor, held in the arms of his new Father as he walked him up the drive way after his chauffer had let them out.
It had been intimidating back then, so he had whimpered a little since the colors were dark and foreboding while he had gripped tightly at Minion's orb. Sensing his unease his Father had said "Don't be afraid. This is the only place you'll be safe, the two of you. This is your home now." all these years later those words were as true as the sky, and Megamind, was blue. He truly couldn't see himself fitting in anywhere else in the world.
He drove through the bustling city expertly, mindful of cars that couldn't see him, and soon parked down a side street marked 'No Entry'. Getting out he walked the rest of the way towards the towering building that was KPMG 8 and once he arrived at the shimmering, gleaming skyscraper he felt all his confidence trickle away. Even in his disguise, what could he do? What was his plan? What floor was she on? So many questions, so many fears… he didn't like it at all.
Then he spotted the window cleaners setting up for a long days work cleaning the many, many windows of the building. He watched as one of them said something about needing the toilet and walked off. The idea blossomed in Megamind's brain so quickly it hadn't even finished before he was walking after the man, who was going into the building to use the rest room. Inside was bustling with people rushing here and there with arms full of paperwork and gripping briefcases as if their souls were kept inside. Nobody cared for him, nor bothered him, as he followed the window washer into the rest room.
To be continued