Roxanne popped her gum noisily and smacked her lips as they were led into the Sunken Hotel. Sam and the Frogs were acquainted with it already, however briefly, but none of them could deny how much creepier the place looked at night without fingers of day reaching in through the entrance promising refuge from the monsters inside. Not to mention, said monsters were right behind them, driving the humans into the center of the lobby.
"Bogus," Roxanne whistled, shaking her head. Her sunglasses slipped slightly down her nose as her bangs brushed over her eyes.
"Is this some kinda make-out dive they don't talk about at school?" She turned towards Sam, the slight twitch of her lips a good indicator that the ride on the motorcycles with the psychopathic killers hadn't quite destroyed her sense of humor. Then again...maybe she wasn't joking. The look she was giving implied the latter. Sam could only slowly shake his head in response, because right now was not the time to get to second base, as much as he would otherwise have jumped at the chance.
David strode ahead of the group, spinning about and spreading his arms wide with a vicious grin. Not the sort of smile that would make anyone feel particularly welcome. "Home sweet home. But you boys have been here before, haven't you?" He lowered his eyebrows menacingly and flopped down into his wheelchair, gesturing for them to take their seats at the couch.
"Sorry we couldn't entertain ya a bit better last time, huh?" Paul whispered between Alan and Edgar. They looked like they were just about to break into a run before he poked their backs with sharp claws.
"Duuuuude...you guys live here?!" Roxanne exclaimed, flopping down on the couch with Sam and the Frog brothers. It was a tight fit, but they all managed. None of them was really about to speak up and complain about the accommodations.
"No, we don't live here," Marko replied, leaning over the back of the couch and snickering.
Michael rolled his eyes and crossed his arms and sat down on the edge of the fountain beside Dwayne. He wasn't about to say anything, given the theatrical mood David was apparently trying to set, but given how close and personal he'd gotten with the 'man behind the curtain', it was hard to believe he'd fallen for this performance the first time he'd been brought there.
"What are you planning to do with them, David?" Michael glanced over at the leader of the gang, who didn't even let his eyes flicker back in acknowledgment.
"You'll find out soon enough, sweetheart," David replied, the last word oozing sarcasm.
"Please tell me you're not gonna turn one of them...that's just...that's a bit cliche..." Michael raised his eyebrows slightly. He wouldn't wish this on anyone. He definitely wouldn't want Sam to go through it. And...the idea of spending the next several decades with Alan, Edgar, or even the pink-haired bimbo was enough to drive anyone nuts.
"Shit, I hope not. If you do, Davey, we will seriously ditch your ass in the pit with Star," Paul's turn to look at David. He didn't look as if he honestly thought they were going to do something like that, but the sentiment remained the same. None of them wanted any of these kids in their 'family'.
"Seconded," Dwayne agreed. "As blustery as those two over there are, just imagine how bad they'd be if they were vampires. They'd out us in less than a week, and we'd have a whole army of wannabe hunters to deal with."
David snorted, "I'm not turning any of them. When the fuck have I ever done something that stupid?"
Marko wiggled his eyebrows, "first time you saw Star. Remember? Used the blood as panty peeler, if I recall correctly..."
"You WHAT?!" Michael turned back to David with a slight growl, the thought loud enough in everyone's minds to make them all shift slightly. Maybe he didn't know Star at the time, didn't know any of them...but the idea that he'd basically date raped her with vampire blood...It took everything he had not to morph right then and there on the fountain and lash out at David.
"Nah, man, he's lying. They'd already fucked by the time Davey was plying her with that shit," Paul cackled, and it was no surprise when Edgar and Alan both whimpered and squeezed their eyes shut. Clearly they were expecting an attack at any second, and no one was bothering to alleviate that fear.
David just rolled his eyes and leaned back in his wheelchair. "Marko...get that other bottle we keep under the bed. You know the one."
Dwayne, Michael, and Paul turned their gaze towards Marko. And because they did, so too did the humans sitting nervously on their couch together.
Marko cracked a wide grin, looking down at all four of the teens, putting a gloved thumb to his mouth and biting on it. "Really? We're finally using it?!" He was almost too excited for words.
David simply nodded.
It was without a doubt one of the greatest challenges of his life for Alan not to perpetually scowl at the monsters he was surrounded by. What he wouldn't give for a good sharp stake, then and there. Oh, he was definitely terrified. And he wasn't about to tell them what he really thought about their weird male bonding theme they had going on with all the leather, and the fact that they slept together in the same...cave...room...chamber...thing. But god, he didn't even know how he and Edgar were going to survive the night. If they did, it would be the greatest mistake those bloodsuckers had ever made. Because he and Ed were going to come back, guns blazing once the sun rose.
His eyes followed the little one as it skipped away towards a large bed covered by a canopy tucked away in the corner of the lobby. He frowned, and looked back towards the rest of the vampires. Sam's brother looked confused. So there was a good chance he didn't know what was going on. Then again, he was pretty dumb, from what Alan could tell. After all...what kind of idiot would get himself turned into a vampire twice in one week?
He shifted uncomfortably in his seat when Michael turned to give him an angry glare. Shit...did he...? No. No, that wasn't possible. Was it?
"So," David spoke up again, keeping the smug expression plastered on his face, "watch any good movies lately?"
"Oh! I saw one about these awesome monster trucks that totally took over New York, and like...fought alligators on the empire state building. There were tanks and guns, and RADICAL EXPLOSIONS! Totally bitchin'," Roxanne piped up, grinning widely.
"I...I watched 16 Candles," Edgar growled quietly. Alan's eyed widened as he turned on his brother. "You said mom rented that!" He exclaimed in a low voice. Edgar just shrugged. There didn't seem to be much point in lying. They were probably dead anyway.
"Molly Ringwald is a compelling protagonist with an engaging storyline," Edgar replied.
Marko trotted up towards David with a bottle in his hand, and passed it over to him. It was fairly simple. Unlabeled. There was still a lit of paper flaking away where the glue used to be...and inside, Alan could see the unmistakable red bright hue of blood. Without even thinking, he clung to his brother's sleeve and whimpered. Edgar did likewise. Sam shifted in his seat and tried to keep a brave face. Roxanne didn't react at all, because it just looked like a bottle to her.
But Alan knew what it was. He knew then what the vampires were going to do with them. Maybe force all of the boys to drink...maybe just one of them...oh god, he could already feel the itch of sharpened teeth under his gums at the very thought. It made sense, though. With their elite hunting skills at nearly annihilating the creatures, of course they'd only try to recruit them into the ranks. The 'if you can't beat em, join em' philosophy came to mind. But Alan would fight with every last ounce of willpower to keep from drinking what was in that bottle. Even if it meant they'd have to torture him to death.
"UGH...is that clamato? You don't refrigerate it?" Roxanne gagged, so grossed out she accidentally swallowed her gum.
"Roxie...it's not clamato," Sam whispered in her ear, squeezing her close to him. He looked over at Mike, and hoped with all his might that his brother was just putting up a front...and had some kind of plan to get them out of this mess.
"He's right..." David rasped, uncorking the bottle and taking a deep whiff. "...This isn't clamato..."
Of course it's not...it's the juice straight from the vein of an evil bloodsucker! A casket creep! A creature from beyond the grave! A-Alan's thoughts were suddenly cut off when David held the bottle towards him with a malicious grin.
"Let's let bygones be bygones...drink some of this. Be one of us...You'll like it. And I promise if one of you does it, nobody else has to."
"You use that line every time, don't you? Here I thought I was special," Michael thought sarcastically, casting David a glance.
"Oh, you're special Mikey, don't worry. You're the precious little snowflake he rides like a pony to the circus every night," Marko supplied cheerfully.
"He's said other stuff before. Like...'you won't get pregnant, this is a different kinda pill...'" Paul's helpful contribution.
"As if he isn't shooting blanks anyway," Dwayne snorted.
Alan glanced between Sam and Edgar nervously, reaching towards the bottle with a shaking hand. He didn't want to do this...didn't want to have shit breath for the rest of his days, or an all liquid diet, or gnarly toenails, or-...Edgar solved the problem for him and snatched the bottle quickly from David's grasp.
"This is for you, bro," Ed nobly growled, slinging the bottle back and taking one long gulp.
"ED! NOOOOOOO!" Alan shouted, jumping to try and slap the bottle from Edgar's hand before Paul reached over and slammed him back down in his seat, then gave him a quick pat on the cheek.
"Relax, bud, it's all gonna be fine...promise..." He teased. And then the bottle fell from Edgar's hand, crashing to the ground in front of him.
"Dude...totes wild. You guys allergic to tomatoes or somethin?" Roxanne's eyes widened as she leaned forward to watch the scene that played out between the frog brothers.
Sam licked his lips and looked over at Roxanne with a weak smile. In a way, he thought they kind of deserved it for being backstabbing assholes...but on the other hand, he knew what it was like to lose a brother. And he didn't wish that on anybody. "They're fine, Roxie. Alan just...he's just eccentric," Sam shrugged. The less was said, the better. She didn't need to be dragged into this mess too.
"ED!" Alan began to weep, pulling his brother into his arms and holding him close.
"It's gonna be okay, Alan...we're...we're gonna be fine..." Edgar gasped, sobbing into Alan's shoulder. He could already feel the evil liquid working it's dark magic on his insides. Changing him. Corrupting him. He only hoped his brother would keep good on their promise to stake him, if the need arose.
By the time the party was just about over, and Michael was walking alongside David towards their bikes, he was incredulous.
"So...it's just rotten tomato juice and egg yolks?" He asked, shaking his head and smirking despite himself. It was pretty funny...and he didn't really have too much sympathy left for the Frogs after how they'd treated Sam tonight. Acting as if he was the idiot stalking the boardwalk for clues about vampires, trying to steal grandpa's car to investigate the cave...
"Yeah. But they don't need to know. Besides, it's going to be hilarious to see what they think is happening when the dumber one has the runs in the morning," it was David's turn to smirk. What's more, once they were able to get everyone safe and sound back to their homes, he'd know if his other plan had worked or not.