Hotel Transylvania's garden was a beautiful display of vibrant flowers, trees, and greenery. Little shrubs lined the path that Johnny took toward the gazebo, where Mavis was sitting and waiting. She had her legs crossed and a friendly smile on her face.
"Hey, Mavis," he greeted, sitting across from her. He took a look around. "Your dad has a really nice place here."
"Yeah," she agreed with a nod. "The zombies can get pretty decorative when they want to."
Johnny considered it with a nod. "So, what is it that you wanted to show me?" he asked.
Mavis shifted behind herself to bring out a small leather-bound book. "This. It's the present that my mom saved for me to open on my 118th birthday." She opened it and flipped through the pages, scooting next to Johnny so that he could see the illustrations better.
"Nice," Johnny said as he observed the sketches. "Your mom is a pretty good artist!"
Mavis gave a small giggle, but it was tinged with some sadness. "Yeah, she was."
Was?Johnny wanted to ask, but he had a different question on his mind as he began to read more closely at the words on the page. "Hey, Mavis? What's a 'zing'?"
"A zing," Mavis sighed dreamily as she said the word. "Mom says that the zing is kind of like a love at first sight - you just see them… and you already know."
Mavis shrugged her shoulders and peered at Johnny through her lashes.
"Whoa…" the redhead breathed, taking in the new information. He could probably add this word into his vocabulary, too. Come to think of it, Johnny felt as thoughhehad experienced that very same feeling only yesterday at the airport - when he locked eyes with…
Johnny gulped as the realization came over him. He turned to Mavis to begin to ask, but stopped short upon seeing the new expression she wore on her face. Her eyes were dilated and half-lidded, a sultry smile pulling at the corners of her black lips. The redhead suddenly felt his heartbeat escalate at the sight, his palms growing sweaty as she began to move her face closer towards his.
"Uh… Mavis…?"
"Hmmm?" she hummed tilting her head.
"I'm… uh… I'm crazily scared right now…"
Mavis chuckled lightly in reply. "Well, maybe that's a good thing," she said, moving in even closer. "You know… Dad also told me that Mom was the one who started their first kiss…"
Johnny's eyes widened. "R-r-really?" he stammered.
"Mmm-hmmm…" Mavis murmured almost inaudibly, her eyes slipping closed and her lips closing the final gap between them.
"Mavy? Where are you my little bat-bug?"
Dracula called out as he walked down the halls of the hotel. He wiped at the corner of his mouth, which still had a little dribble of Blood Beater, and continued his search. After not being able to find her in the spa, at the library, or the ballroom, he went out to the pool area. Quinston was there, being taught by Murray how to play monsterball. He waved at Drac.
"Hey, Drac! Come to hang out?"
Drac shook his head. "Eh, no Quinston. I'm searching for my daughter. You wouldn't happen to know where she is, would you?"
"Oh, you mean Mavis?" he asked. "I think your friends said she was heading out into the garden. She was hanging out with some redhead kid!"
Redhead? Oh, no.
"Okay, well thanks for the information, then." He turned around with a swish of his cape and made for the garden. Walking along the path, Dracula continued calling out her name.
"Mavis? Sweetheart, are you over here - "
The vampire stopped short in his sentence with a gasp. His eyes widened at the sight before him. Sitting in the gazebo was his daughter, lip-locked with the redheaded boy, her hands cupping his cheeks gently.
He gasped. "MAVIS!"
Mavis broke apart the connection with a startled gasp. "Dad!"
Dracula frowned at Johnny, whose wide-eyed gaze had met his own. "What are you doing to my daughter?!" he snarled, using his magic to lift the redhead up and away from her.
"Dad, stop!" Mavis cried out. "It was just a kiss - put him down!"
"No! You're not allowed to kiss!" Dracula retorted, still keeping Johnny levitating off the ground.
"Dad, I am allowed todothings. I can meet people, and like them if I want, and - "
"No, you can't! You don't understand! I won't let another human hurt our family!" the vampire hissed, his gaze steadfast on Johnny.
"But Dad, I… Izinged," Mavis said quietly.
Dracula stiffened at the words, immediately seizing his hold on Johnny and letting him drop to the floor. He turned slowly to his daughter. "W-what?"
"I think I zinged… with Johnny," she repeated.
Dracula shook his head, looking between her and the boy sprawled on the floor. "No," he said. "No, that can't be! You're too young to zing!"
Mavis shook her head. "I'm not 83 anymore, Dad. I'm 118. That's the age you and Mom met."
Dracula gaped at her as she walked up to Johnny and helped him up off the floor. Then, she intertwined their fingers together, her gaze soft as she met the redhead's eyes. Johnny stared back at her with a blush in his cheeks and a goofy smile on his face. He then turned back to face Drac, confidence in his expression.
"With all due respect, sir, I would like to agree with Mavis's statement - I think Izinged,too."
Dracula wanted to cross his arms and argue that humans couldn't zing, but before he could, Drac saw them lock back to each other's gazes, and in their eyes he could have sworn he saw the purple shimmery flash sparkle in them. Then, Dracula felt another feeling stir in him - one of an almost painful nostalgia. He recalled Mavis as she was when she was a baby, toddling around the castle or transforming into an adorable little bat so they could fly together. Now, he saw her in a new light. She was awomannow, grown and ready to take on her own life. She would always be his little girl, of course, but there was also something about seeing her this confident, this happy, thisbravethat made him feel a sense of pride. As for the human… he turned his gaze to him, eyeing the lean, red-haired boy with a skeptical air. He knew that this kid -Johnny- was not a threat to his Mavy. He had been one to show that he held no fear for monsters, and wanted to get to know them better. It was obvious in the way he presented himself now that he loved his little tarantula.
That, and he could smell the pheromones.
Breathing out a sigh he was holding in, Dracula gave a curt nod. "Very well. You've zinged. And if it's one thing I know, youdon'tget in the way of a zing."
Mavis's eyes lit up when she realized what he had said. "Oh, Dad!" She leaped forward, wrapping her arms around Drac's neck in an embrace. Dracula laughed and twirled his daughter around a few times.
"My little baby's in love!" he exclaimed. "Where did the time go?"
Mavis shrugged as he put her down. She then strolled back up to Johnny to take his hand again, but Dracula stopped her. Mavis looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Dad… didn't you just say that you don't get in the way of a zing?"
"I did," Drac responded. "And I'm not… I just want a few minutes alone withhim." He gestured a thumb towards Johnny, who gulped uneasily.
"Oh," Mavis said. "I guess so."
"Good." Dracula puffed up his chest and approached Johnny, who seemed to shrink on the spot. "You," he commanded, pointing a finger at him. "Come with me."
Johnny nodded frantically. "Yes, sir!" he replied, his voice coming out as a squeak as he exited the room with the Count.