Chapter 7: A Fateful Encounter
Blog Entry #1739
This has been the most excruciating time I've ever had in my life. No matter where I go in this punk rock-poseur-infested hipster-hole, I can't meet a single decent human being. It's like the whole world is cursed, and I just have to deal with it.
I don't know what I expected. It's not like a day goes by where I don't get any weird looks from everyone. I don't know why I have to be here. Everyone here is just as judgemental as they were back home. Why can't they see past appearances? It's not like they're any better. All I ever hear about is how much they need my help, but do I ever get a favor from them? No. It's like I'm everyone's nanny, taking care of all their messes that they should be able to do themselves. Well if any of them want my help, they're going to have to make it worth my while.
I have to take care of someone else's problem today. The worst part is I have to meet her in person to do it. I swear if I get a look from her, I'm going to make sure she never forgets about it. I got enough of that crap back home. I don't need it here.
There was a loud discharge of electricity and a bright light like somebody was welding right next to her when Clawdeen glanced to her side.
"Come on! Come onnnn!" Frankie strained as she rubbed her palms upward against the lock, sparks flying in her face.
"Frankie," Clawdeen said, making Frankie cease her electric effort, "what the hell are ya doin'?"
"Ghoulia helped me figure this out. I thought a little electromagnetism would help me trip the lock," Frankie said, as she had to use her entire body to force her hands to slide over the lock.
Clawdeen rolled her eyes and unscrewed Frankie's bolts.
"Hey! What are you–" Frankie said.
"Ain't no point, Frankie. We just gotta wait, "Clawdeen said as she transposed the bolts, screwing them into the opposite sides of Frankie's neck.
"Wait! Where are you touching the bolts? Don't touch the–"
Frankie never got to finish as a hundred-thousand volts of electricity coursed between herself and Clawdeen both. There was a huge cloud of smoke and Clawdeen was blown to the ground, ending the electric mayhem.
"-Base…Great. Now I'm dizzy," Frankie groaned.
"Ya poor baby…" Clawdeen answered as she wiped the soot from her face and coughed out a puff of black smoke. As she stood up, she took out her compact mirror and began to examine the horror that had befallen her hair, which stood on end in all directions.
The sound of an approaching motor drew their attention, and they saw a familiar limo come rolling toward the parking lot.
"Ooh, look! Cleo's here!" Frankie said, waving to the limo.
Clawdeen rushed to fix her hair, not wanting to face Cleo in such a state.
The limo parked, and Cleo stepped out in her summer best, all accented by her favorite golden bandages. Only she was alone.
"Where have you been? Where's Mistress Bloodgood" Frankie asked.
"Oh, she ran into a snag. It turns out that in order to use school property during the off season, she needs to get permission from the superintendent," Cleo explained.
"How long will that take?" Frankie wondered.
"Have you seen the superintendent? I don't even think she's undead. Just dead," Clawdeen said, combing the static out of her hair.
"Precisely why I've decided to take matters into my own capable hands," Cleo said, showing the ring that she was wearing on her finger as she walked up to the gates.
"You took this long because of a ring?" Clawdeen incredulously asked.
"Well, I had to find the right outfit to go with the accessory, didn't I?" Cleo asked as if it were no big deal. "In any case, we can continue. Ra forbid I let something as silly as protocol slow down our progress. It's like my father says, 'Only peasants follow protocol.'"
She pointed her ring at the lock, and both began to glow with a ghastly green aura. In a second, there was a metallic click and the gates swung open.
"Voila," Cleo said.
"Another one o' your artifacts?" Clawdeen asked.
"Indeed it is. Who says you need to practice to use magic?" Cleo said, smirking smugly.
Clawdeen and Frankie glanced nervously at one another, remembering all of the times that those magical artifacts Cleo so flippantly abused always had turned on her. One time, she was forced to wear the ugliest, most outdated clothes in her wardrobe. Another time, she and Lagoona were turned into scarabs. But despite it all, she continued to use them without understanding them.
Still what was done had been done. The three of them walked past the gate and into the courtyard, where they began to assess the layout of the area. A whole new world of dazzling possibilities spread itself before them, ready to be transformed to their whims.
Almost immediately, Clawdeen ran toward the center of the courtyard and looked around herself. She had seen plenty of stages before and knew the dimensions of even the smallest one that they could accommodate.
"I got it!" she said. "Right here! This is where the main stage goes!"
"Really?" Frankie wondered. "Do you think it will fit?"
"'Course it's gonna fit. We only need a small stage for us an' the others."
"And a changing area, which should take up only a little more room," Cleo said, as she strutted along an imaginary runway. "And of course, the runway needs to allow at least ten steps. Fifteen, preferably, so that the masses may gawk longer."
"Oh! And–And it should be wide enough for at least two people! So we're not bumping into each other," Frankie chimed in.
"And a round platform at the end, so that I may perform my signature swerve," Cleo said.
"Wait a sec'," Clawdeen said.
"Ooh! What if we had some spotlights set up?" Frankie said.
"Yes! One can never get too good of a look!" Cleo agreed, posing for the imagined audience.
"Ghouls, c'mon," Clawdeen tried to interject.
"Wait! I have it! The thing that will pull this all together…Concert seating!" Cleo said.
"An' how about a pettin' zoo an' a mini market?" Clawdeen blurted out.
"Huh?" Frankie said.
"Clawdeen, dear, don't be ridiculous. Think of the mess such things would make," Cleo said.
Clawdeen gently pushed back down the vein that was throbbing on her forehead. "I'm thinkin' about how long it's gonna take to get all that together. Unless ya got a relic that can make all that stuff just fall out o' the sky, I think we better rein it in."
"As a matter of fact, I think there is such a relic in the family crypt somewhere," Cleo cheerily said. "But since I don't feel like taking the time to have the servants sifting through every grain of sand, I have a more expedient solution."
Before the others could ask, Cleo reached into her purse, and with a flourish she produced her iCoffin, spinning it in her palm before she gripped it properly and flashed through her contacts list.
The phone began to ring as Cleo put it to her ear, a complacent, reassured smile on her face. Frankie and Clawdeen both thought they could guess who she was calling, knowing that the outcome could go either way.
There was a tiny beep, and Cleo spoke in her cheeriest, most endearing tone, "Hi, daddy. I was wondering if I could have a small favor."
There was silence as Cleo listened to the answer. Her friends' hopes slowly drifted away when they saw Cleo's smile drop.
"What do you mean? I thought I was allowed to use them. I mean, there they all are in the crypt where just anyone can get them," Cleo said.
She listened to a response.
"But, daddy, it was just a ring. I needed a door open, and–."
Cleo paused abruptly as her father gave his most verbose response yet.
"I don't think Cleo's solution is so expedient," Frankie whispered to Clawdeen, who only nodded.
"I don't know why that should matter. I've used them before, and you never seemed to mind," Cleo said.
Cleo's shoulders slumped as she listened to her father's response.
"All of them…" Cleo weakly said.
Pause.
"At least once…"
For just a moment, Cleo's pale tan skin began to go even paler and her hair seemed to lose its volume.
"Erm…So, I was wondering if you'd loan me a…a small lump sum for something me and the ghouls were–"
There was a loud, emphatic 'call ended' beep that made Cleo's hair blow, even as she jerked her phone away from her ear.
"Okay, I guess we're going to have to keep things a little smaller than we planned," Cleo said.
"Shame. That concert seatin' sounded like a real winner," Clawdeen sarcastically said, earning a venomous glare from Cleo.
Frankie's bolts sparked up suddenly, "We still have a chance. We just need to do a bit of a fundraiser."
"That's right! Draculaura's dad isn't as loaded as mine, but she can still probably get a small king's ransom out of him," Cleo said, taking out her iCoffin to ask Draculaura her favor.
"I meant doing something to earn the money," Frankie said.
It didn't take a moment for the solution to occur to Clawdeen, and she blurted out, "Closet sale! We take all our old clothes that we don't wear no more, an' we sell 'em to people!"
"But we don't wear them because they're so outdated. Do we really want to push that onto other people?" Cleo said.
"Most people aren't as into style as we are. They're just glad to wear anything. We all got deep closets full o' stuff that people would go for. Everyone needs clothes, so we'll give 'em to 'em," Clawdeen said.
"And just where will we sell these fashion antiques?" Cleo asked.
It was Frankie's turn to be brilliant just then when she remembered what her other friends were doing that day. As quickly as she could, she took out her iCoffin and sent a text message to Lagoona.
Spirits were high in the park that sunny day. Handcrafted goods, homegrown produce and amateur jewelry were all sold from the many booths that occupied the grassy lanes. And even if they weren't there to buy anything, the people who attended were simply happy to be in such a bountiful, cheerful place. Still, for all the goodness that was felt, there was always at least one spot of dreariness.
Gill idly hefted the sunglasses that he had taken off the rack at one of the booths, thinking about the conversation that he had just before he arrived in the park to for his meeting with–
"Gill?"
–Lagoona, who was looking curiously at Gill as if he were standing a long distance away.
"Come on, Gill. I asked you, what do you think of me in these?" Lagoona asked, as she modeled a pair of sunglasses for him.
"Uh, yeah. They really make your eyes look good," Gill said.
Lagoona raised a curious eyebrow behind her dark lenses and asked, "That's a joke, right? You're making a funny?"
"Yeah. Yeah, it is," Gill said, placing the sunglasses he held back on the rack.
As nonchalant as he was trying to seem, Lagoona saw past Gill's facade. She looked at the sign on top of the rack and saw the price per pair of sunglasses. She paid the amount necessary for the pair she had taken and turned back to face Gill.
"You didn't tell your parents you were coming here with me, did you?" Lagoona asked.
"No, I did," Gill said, walking with Lagoona down the path between the booths.
If there was anything that could ever have stood between Gill and Lagoona, it was Gill's parents. They had spent their entire lives with only freshwater monsters, rarely left their freshwater homes and only associated with others of their freshwater kind. The thought of their son dating a sea monster was enough to twist their tentacles. They had tried everything within their power to keep Gill from being with Lagoona, but nothing had worked. Instead, they only seemed to grow closer with every hurdle they crossed together. And every time they grew closer, things only seemed to get worse for Gill in his home.
"They weren't too happy, were they?" Lagoona asked.
"Well, you know how they are," Gill replied.
"Gill, I get that you're trying to stand up for yourself. And I really admire that. Really, I do. But there's got to be some limit. You can't keep pushing your family away from you."
"What if I don't?" Gill nearly snapped, turning abruptly to face Lagoona. "What if I did everything my parents told me and forgot about you? How about I never see you again, just to help them save face with their crowd?"
Lagoona gasped quietly as Gill clasped her hand in his.
"What if I never took a single risk and made myself miserable for the rest of my life? There's nothing I want that my family can give me," Gill said.
Lagoona's hand tightened around Gill's. Ever since that day at the frozen river those many months ago, she had noticed a change in Gill. No longer was he the indecisive, timid boy she swooned over in clawculus class. He had become something stronger that she could admire and respect. Somebody who could be her anchor when she felt like she was drifting off into dark waters. But the price he had to pay to be that for her was growing. She feared that in time, it would become too much for either of them to handle.
"Come on. Let's see what else there is here," Gill said, smiling reassuringly.
"Yeah. Let's do that," Lagoona agreed. After a few steps, she noticed a familiar sight in the nearby distance. "Look over there? Isn't that Draculaura?"
Gill squinted as he looked where Lagoona was indicating. And indeed, "That is Draculaura. But who's that with her?"
Draculaura fidgeted her hands as she waited on the bench under the big tree in the park. When she had first received that Frightbook message, she thought for sure that she had finally gotten some headway toward getting rid of whatever plagued her. She and the mysterious 'Once_Everything' spoke back and forth all morning to determine what was happening to her, or what she might have been seeing. Perhaps it might have been Draculaura's unwillingness to share the full details of what she was seeing or what had happened to her, but her correspondent didn't seem to have any answers. But as it so happened, Once_Everything had just arrived in New Salem from out of town and was nice enough to offer to help Draculaura in person.
It was like a gift had been given to her. Not only had Draculaura met someone who was willing to believe her, but was in the same town as her. Fortune continued to smile as her correspondent agreed to meet in the park to try and personally help. Draculaura had given a short description of herself, saying that she would be the short, stylish vampire sitting beneath the largest tree in the park, and the meeting was set. Now, she waited for her fateful rendezvous.
Like a pair of flies, Draculaura's eyes darted between every person who was in her field of vision. Anybody who was walking toward her looked like they were coming to talk to her, only for her hopes to be dashed whenever she was passed. The morning had gone on, and Draculaura was beginning to wonder if she had been blown off. They had discussed the time. They knew how and where to meet. There was no reason for her to be left high and dry.
Draculaura habitually reached for her iCoffin to check the time, only to remember that she had lost it at the maul. She had already tried to check the maul lost and found, but it hadn't been turned in there. Wherever it was, she hoped that the thing that was stalking her hadn't been able to use it to find her.
Only then did Draculuara remember exactly how it had all started. She was in a crowded place with her friends. Except nobody but herself seemed to be able to notice anything that was amiss. She alone was able to see the apparition that was haunting her, and it surely knew that. Somewhere in that sunny, crowded place it was lurking, waiting for its moment to strike and do its evil to her.
A nervous tune hummed from Draculaura's lips as she searched more desperately through the crowd for any sign of anybody who was approaching her. Every shadow became a sinister shape. Every face was turned away from hers. She was going to disappear, taken away by some otherworldly creature, and nobody would ever know it.
Draculaura coughed when she suddenly became aware of a terrible odor. Something like the old vegetables she had found in the back of her refrigerator once upon a time. She tried to walk around to another side of the tree, but the scent didn't wane. Instead, it seemed as if it was following her, not about to let her escape. Her breath grew short and her eyes began to water as the scent began to choke her. And as she looked desperately around, she only saw people going about their day, paying her no mind.
A hot breath on her back made her jump and turn around. There it was. Draculaura nearly screamed as she was suddenly face to face with the thing that had been stalking her.
She fell to the ground and looked up at the form of the black poodle that loomed over her. Its open mouth panted out gusts of that foul scent, choking Draculaura with each breath.
Draculaura crawled backward away from the beast, hoping that somebody nearby would help her. Instead, they hardly looked in her direction even as the beast closed in on her.
Any escape Draculaura could have had ended when her back pressed against a concrete podium where a memorial plaque was mounted. Now it seemed that she was going to be earning a plaque of her own. Only, who would remember her as the mortal danger she faced was completely overlooked by everyone around her.
In her last moments, Draculaura closed her eyes and thought of Clawd and all the time she had been missing with him. If only he was there with her now as she waited with morbid anticipation for her end to come.
Something landed in her lap. Had she been given a last gift before her demise? Her salvation?
The world came into dim focus as Draculaura's eyes cracked open, there was an iCoffin set in her lap, covered in drool. She looked up, and the beast was staring blankly at her, its mouth open and panting out that foul breath. As if some unspoken cue were given to her, Draculaura turned on the phone and examined the homescreen where she saw a picture of herself and Clawd standing against a backdrop of fireworks in the sky.
She jumped when the beast stepped closer to her and began to sniff her face. In another moment, it began to lick her, making Draculaura laugh quietly in spite of herself as its tongue tickled her mercilessly. Try as she did to shield herself from the beast, her efforts were in vain as it seemed intent on lavishing its affection all over her.
There was a sharp whistle from nearby, and the beast ended its affectionate assault on Draculaura. From there, she watched as it lumbered over to the master who had bade its compliance. The beast sat down beside a normie girl who was dressed all in black, her ensemble seeming to give off a ghoulish vibe with its strategically placed tears and tatters and the long sash that was tied around her waist. Her hair was tied back with what seemed to be a single pin, though she seemed to have so much of it. And as she looked at Draculaura, she placed her hand on top of the beast's head.
"Sorry about Muffy. She likes to get a little too personal with people," the girl said.
Draculaura stared dumbfounded.
"You're Ula-D, right?," the girl asked.
Draculaura nodded.
"You needed my help, so here I am. What did you want done?"
"That's your dog?" Draculaura incredulously asked as she stood up.
"She's my familiar. And she's not a dog. She's a hellhound," the girl said, scratching the ears of the beast.
"But that–She's–That's vhat's been stalking me!"
"What?" the girl said.
"Your dog! It's been following me for–Since the beginning of summer! A-And nobody believed I vas seeing anything–And the strange things that had happened!-I–You–Everyone thought I vas crazy!" Draculaura babbled.
The girl sighed and shook her head before she admonished her hellhound, "Muffy, I told you to go around town and learn about the people. Not follow them."
Muffy the hellhound grumbled to her master, who scratched her ears again in reply.
"I'm really sorry about that. Muffy's still new, and she doesn't follow my commands very well. It's just part of this trip that I'm on right now to try and get her to listen," the girl said.
"So…So I'm not in danger? Your dog just followed me because it vasn't trained to stay vith you?" Draculaura asked.
The girl rolled her eyes and replied, "She's not a dog. She's a hellhound. And the whole point of sending her out was to learn about this place. Not to stalk you. Are you understanding that yet? Because you're not making my trip here any easier by accusing me of setting my familiar on you."
"I vasn't accusing you of anything–I vas just saying that…" They had just met and already Draculaura felt like she was making more of an enemy than a friend out of the stranger who had selflessly offered her help. She saw the way that the girl was looking at her, knowing that look of contempt from a first impression gone bad. Breathing slowly, Draculaura decided a change of topic was in order. "Um, so you're new in town, are you?"
"Yeah. My family has me doing this trip where I'm supposed to see the world and learn a bunch of stuff. I told them that's what the internet was for, but they sent me here anyway. Now look at me. I'm here with no friends, no family, and I'm living out of a dingy motel room that my mom set me up in. Things just seem to be looking up for me, don't they," the girl said.
Draculaura nodded uncomfortably, but decided to keep going, "If you vanted, I could show you and, er, Muffy around. It's kind of me and my friends' job to show the new kids at school the ropes. So…Interested?"
The girl looked at Draculaura almost as if she was appraising an animal if it was fit for slaughtering. She looked up and down at Draculaura, from her earrings down to her shoelaces before finally giving her answer, "Sure. Why not?"
"Great. Fang-tastic," Draculaura said. "My name's Draculaura, by the vay."
"Felicity. And you already know Muffy," the girl answered as she adjusted her sash, then presented a gesture to Draculaura, where her palm faced forward, her thumb pointed to Draculaura and her index finger pointed up.
It was only at that moment that it dawned on Draculaura just what kind of person she was speaking to. There was something familiar about her vocabulary. Calling an animal companion her familiar and talking about a trip to train herself. The long cord tied around her waist. The unusual hand gestures. The eccentric apparel. All of it reminded her of another normie.
"Hey! You're a vitch, aren't you?" Draculaura said.
Felicity looked at her like some secret had just been blown into the open. Before Draculaura could try to explain, she was called upon by a familiar voice.
"Draculaura! Hey!" Lagoona's voice called from somewhere nearby.
When she looked, Draculaura sure enough saw Lagoona trotting toward her followed closely by Gill.
"You're in luck. My friends are here now. Hey!" Draculaura called back.
Felicity looked at the oncoming company as if they were intruding on some important private meeting. Behind her, Muffy panted excitedly at the sight of the newcomers.
"Draculaura. How come you didn't say you were gonna be in the park today? We could have doubled," Lagoona said.
"Not today. Clawd's busy right now, and I already had someone else to meet vith," Draculaura said, standing next to Felicity, who waved uncomfortably. "This is Felicity. She's the vitch who helped me vith my creepy stalker. Vhich you didn't believe me about."
"You're a witch?" Gill said.
"No way! This is so weird," Lagoona said.
"Isn't that supposed to be a badge of honor for you monsters?" Felicity deadpanned.
"Wh–No! We didn't mean it like that!" Gill quickly explained, bubbling in his diving helmet. "It's just that our friend is a witch too. But he left for Europe for the summer."
"Yeah. It's like things kinda balanced out for us. One witch leaves, and we meet a new one," Lagoona said.
"Right," Felicity answered. "So, did you make him leave, or did he go on his own?"
"No. He left on his training…trip. I forget what he called it," Lagoona answered, feeling more and more uncomfortable with each passing second.
"That's vhy Felicity's here now. She's on the same kind of trip that Volf's on, so she kind of needs a friend to show her around. Vant to join?" Draculaura said.
Lagoona drifted slowly over to Gill as she fidgeted with her hands, "Sorry. But me and Gill had a day planned already. And then I have to meet with the ghouls about our project."
"I thought you were taking the day off from that," Gill said.
"Yeah, but, you know, no sense putting off today what you can do tomorrow," Lagoona quickly said, nudging Gill behind his back.
Gill silently realized what Lagoona was hinting at and took her by the hand. Before he could excuse himself and Lagoona, Draculaura's face lit up with an excited gasp.
"That's right!" she said as if she had just remembered a crucial detail, "Felicity, ve're vorking on a project to promote acceptance and tolerance! Vhy don't you help us vith it as part of your training?"
Muffy's tail wagged as she looked up at Felicity, awaiting her answer.
"You know, that sounds like something I can get behind. Sure. I'll do it," Felicity said.
"Terror-ific!" Draculaura said, more than excited to have more help.
Lagoona looked at the new girl, thinking that she seemed somehow a little too pleased to be involved in their project. She was familiar with what she was feeling. It was the same aura that she felt when she first met Wolf. Except it was different. Wolf was just different. This girl was something else. Whatever her intentions were, Lagoona just hoped that Draculaura would remember what her own project was meant to be.
"So, I guess we'll leave you ghouls to it," Lagoona said, trying to leave as hastily as she could without seeming too eager.
There was a notification chime from Lagoona's iCoffin, and she checked it almost reflexively.
Hey, what was that thing you and Gill were going to? We might be setting up a fundraiser there
Frankie 11:22
Felicity Faust
Age: 16
Monster Parent: Witches
Killer Style: I don't know if you can put a label on it. I just kind of have a style where I wear awesome clothes
Freaky Flaw: People don't like to see me as a person. If they just got to know me, they'd know how amazing I am
Pet: My hellhound, Muffy, is the one I love the most
Favorite Activity: I don't know. I get bored with a lot of things quickly
Biggest Pet Peeve: Everyone only sees me as a witch. It's especially bad when I know I'm the only witch in the room
Favorite School Subject: I really love dance class. Except when I have to have a partner, because they never do it right
Least Favorite School Subject: Anything where I have to talk to people
Favorite Color: Black goes with everything
Favorite Food: I don't really like to pick favorites. It's all great
BMFF: I haven't met a decent, wholesome enough person like that yet
A/N: So that's what's going on! Looks like Draculaura wasn't in as much trouble as she thought. Or is she?
For anyone who doesn't know, Faust is the story of a man who made a deal with a demon to attain all of his earthly desires. The demon, Mephistopheles, first appeared to Faust in the form of a black poodle who nobody but he could see, even when it followed him around, before the demon appeared to him in human form. What any of this has to do with Felicity and Muffy will have to be up to your imagination for now. I will say that Felicity's screen name is derived from a quote by Mephistopheles that goes, "I am a part of the part that was once everything. Part of the darkness which gave birth to the light."
This new girl doesn't seem too pleasant, does she? Much like Wolf before her, she's standoffish and seems quite unfriendly, though not quite as mean (at least not to peoples' faces). In fact, her tone and vocabulary for her dialogue was meant to bring to mind a social media addict. You know the kind. Anxious. Unsocial. Narcissistic. Moral elitist. We all come across those types. But who knows? Maybe just like Wolf she'll turn out to be alright in her own way. I might even get PM's about how cool people think Felicity is at some point.
The ghouls have hit a bit more of a snag than they would have expected. It seems like following Toralei's suggestion has waylaid their plans a little bit. But that shouldn't be much of a problem for these resourceful ghouls. So long as nothing else comes up, that is. But now they have a witch helping them. One who looks like she might fit into the group slightly better than the last one. Things might be a little easier than they thought. Won't they?
As usual, it's my pleasure to close by letting you know that I wrote a book called Secret Seekers: The Hidden Girl. It's the first in a series I'm working on, as well as some other projects that are currently underway. If you like this story, you'll like my book. You can buy it on the Lulu website, so don't hesitate to visit. Next chapter, I'll tell you about that new book I'm working on.