Chapter Text
A thump sounded as Dracula landed back in Mavis’s room, with a billowing cloud of smoke behind him.
“Dad?” Mavis asked.
The crowd grimaced when the vampire revealed himself from the smoke, his clothing singed and his pale skin reddened.
“Oof,” Linda said. “Did anybody have some aloe vera oil?”
Drac approached Mavis and held onto her hands.
“Honey, l always thought the worst thing ever would be seeing you go. But the worst is seeing you unhappy.”
Dracula then lifted up Johnny’s traveling backpack. Mavis was confused.
“What do I need this for?” she asked.
“It comes with an accessory,” Drac explained, turning the object around to reveal Johnny.
Johnny scrunched his nose. “Ah, I think it would’ve looked cooler if I came out of the backpack, like a jack-in-the-box! Right, Drac?”
“Uhh, no.”
Johnny slumped. “Aw, man…”
On the screen, Mavis was surprised to see Johnny, and even more surprised when Johnny told her that he came back because he had zinged.
Drac looked on approvingly at the two, caressing Mavis’s cheek and handing her Martha’s postcard. “Go make your own paradise.”
Mavis smiled. She leaned in to kiss Johnny, everyone awwwwing at the young love, except for Drac, who had closed his eyes again. Ericka rolled her eyes at her husband. “Hypocrite.”
“It could have done without it,” Drac grumbled.
His mood lifted when he saw the scene change to another party for Mavis, this one much less chaotic and much more joyous as fireworks were launched and the monsters cheered for the zingers. The only one who was not having fun was Quasimodo, still frozen with his finger up his nose and getting licked by dozens of Wayne and Wanda’s wolf pups.
Ericka gave a satisfied nod. “It serves him right!”
Just then, folks in the audience got excited.
“Aw, yeah! This is the part that really throws down!” Johnny cried out.
“I’m totally going to sing along to this one!” Murray shouted happily.
Music started, and the screen showed Johnny on a colorful stage with some of Drac’s friends. He had grabbed a mike and began singing into it.
“I thought l found a love but she was just a fling,
And then l met a girl and felt a different thing,
It's like you're hit in the ring, like you're pulled by a string,
Can't breathe like you're choking on a chicken wing,
It was a thing called a Zing and l wanted to sing,
And listen to ballads of the man named Sting,
Lady looks in your eyes and it's suddenly spring,
Like when Nala looked at Simba in The Lion King!”
“Classic movie! Can’t wait to see the next remake,” Johnny said quickly before the next verse started, sung by Murray.
“Zinging in the air and I don't have a care I'm winging from the Zing that we shared…”
Mavis hopped in and joined her uncle. “Zinging in the rain Now I'm feeling no pain, It's a real time for celebrating 'Cause you're my Zing!”
“Aw,” Ericka said. “You’ve got such a nice voice, hon!”
“Thanks!” Mavis said, sitting up proudly.
“So do I,” Drac said a little jealously, crossing his arms with a pout.
Ericka chuckled and patted his arm. “I’m sure, but, uh,” she started to say, then lowered her voice to a whisper, “I already knew that.”
She winked and he knew exactly what she meant, the vampire’s cheeks flushing.
After being prompted by Johnny, Drac grabbed the mike and began to add his own verse to the Zing song, his being a rap.
“So listen all you Zingers from here to Beijing,
You better crash the box spring Get ready to cling,
'Cause if love was money you'd be yelling cha-ching,
Next to a Zing Cupid's arrow's a little bee sting,
It was a Zing and a zang and a zingidy-dee,
And there was only one lady in the Zing for me,
'Cause when you're dinged by the Zing,
You better know one thing,
The only bling you gonna sling,
ls a wedding ring!”
The vampire dropped the mike, and both the crowd in the movie and out in the audience cheered out.
“Man, you were on serious fire Drac!” Griffin said.
“Uh-huh, spittin’ out those bars like nobody’s business!” Murray said.
“Yeah, just like that Eminem guy!” Wayne said with a howl.
But Drac misunderstood everything that his friends were saying.
“Fire? Sure I was smoking before, but I was better for that scene,” Drac said. “And what ‘bars’? I wasn’t spitting anything out of my mouth, I was singing! And speaking of singing, since when do chocolate candies ever rap? Hmm?”
Next to him, Mavis laughed lightly. “I don’t think that’s what they mean, Dad. I think they’re saying you were very good!”
Drac grinned sheepishly. “Haha, right, I knew that.”
Mavis eyed him with a smile. “Mmm-hmm.”
Drac resumed singing on screen. “Zinging in the air Now I don't have a care I'm winging from the Zing that we shared Zinging in the rain Now I'm feeling no pain…”
“It's a real time for celebrating, 'Cause you're my Zing!” Mavis sang, finishing the verse.
Right after this, the audience really kicked up. They got up from their seats, dancing at their tables as the last of the song was sang, the monsters and humans singing along to it too.
“Feel the Zing, y'all! Ba-da-bing, y'all! Gonna knock you right out of that ring, y'all! Better bring, y'all! Happening, y'all! Pay attention to the undead king, y'all!”
The hype continued as they watched the monsters fly around on the tabletops.
“Aw, that looks like fun!” Ericka exclaimed.
Drac smiled and got an idea. “Ask and you shall receive, my love.” Then to the table he said, Number 47, up!”
In an instant, the sentient table’s eyes blinked and it flew right up as Drac helped Ericka on its top. The woman laughed delightfully as it levitated upwards. Johnny and Mavis, still sitting in their own seats, looked at each other.
“You thinking what I’m thinking?” Johnny said with a grin.
“You know it, honey,” Mavis answered. They clambered atop another table nearby, this one also lifting up when Johnny called out, “Number 22, up!”
Expressions brightened, and the crowd around them began to follow the lead of the Count and his son-in-law, calling out the table numbers and joining in on the high-flying fun.
“Number 35 up!”
“Number 14 up!”
“Number 27 up!”
“Number 43 up!”
Voices shouted and tables rose, Wayne, Wanda, Murray, Griffin, Crystal, Frank, Eunice, Mike, Linda, Johnny’s siblings, Dennis, Winnie – heck, even Vlad and Van Helsing had joined in. Wayne and Wanda howled in glee. Murray did an Egyptian boogey. Griffin and Crystal danced precariously on the tabletop, careful not to fall over. Frank and Eunice had climbed atop one of the buffet tables, happily helping themselves to the food as they moved to the beat. Mike and Linda - along with Johnny’s siblings Brett, Kent, and Mellie - were a little precautious at first of being so high up on tables that were able to move around on their own, but seeing their son happily breakdancing another few tables away inspired them to bust out some moves of their own. Dennis, Winnie and Sunny all danced on their own table, too. The wolf pup brothers tried to take over, but Sunny quickly shoved them off roughly and nipped at their tails, some tufts of their fur still hanging to her large teeth afterwards. Vlad shimmied along on another table, and Van Helsing - despite his wobbly wheels - managed to maintain a good balance, the table also being mindful to not let the old man roll right off.
Ericka laughed through it all and turned to look at Drac. “So… how did you like the movie, honey?”
Drac became pensive, and then he shrugged. “Ah, I guess it was okay overall. Still not the best Dracula movie out there, but it was fine.”
Ericka giggled and snuggled next to him. “Well, I think it was fantastic.”
Drac blushed at the compliment, happy that she and everyone else enjoyed it so. But right before he could ask Ericka what her favorite part of the movie was, Johnny’s voice suddenly cried out, interrupting them.
“DRAC!” he cried, a huge smile on his face. He jumped from table to table, Mavis floating down beside him more calmly in comparison to the redhead bursting with energy. “DRACDRACDRACDRACDRACDRACDRAC!!!”
“I’m right here! What is it?!” Drac yelled out, starting to get annoyed. Ericka put a hand on the man’s shoulder, giving him a warning look. Drac calmed down, taking a deep breath and asking again more composed, “Yes, my dear son-in-law, what is it?”
“Oh man, you’re not gonna believe it, Drac! I just got the bestest news!” He paused to giggle excitedly, his hands tucked under his chin.
Drac raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think ‘bestest’ is a word, but eh… what is the news?”
Johnny smiled and told him. “Drac, everyone loved the movie so much, that the studio and director have agreed to make at least three more!”
The Count’s jaw dropped, his blue eyes practically popping out of his head. “What?! Three more!”
Ericka was shocked too. “Wow, Drac, that’s…” She shook her head from the shock and then smiled brightly. “That’s amazing!”
But Drac was confused. “What the – how – how did they even know it was any good? We just finished watching the very first showing!”
Next to Johnny, Mavis pulled out her phone and showed her father. “A little bird told everyone, Dad. See?” He looked, seeing Twitter’s website blowing up with tweets all about the movie. Mavis smiled and raised her hands up triumphantly. “We’re trenching!”
“Heh heh, trending, Mavis,” Johnny gently corrected.
“Right, sorry!” Mavis said, fanning her hands in front of her face. “Oh, I can’t believe it, Johnny. We’re all going to be super famous! Like movie stars!”
Overhearing the conversation, Murray cheered. “Woo-eee! Sign me up for some of that, too!”
Munching on some cake, Frank nodded. “If there’s food like this every time during filming and at the premiere parties, then I’m game too.”
“Wayne, honey, I think it would be a good idea too, don’t you?” Wanda asked her husband.
Wayne nodded. “Are you kidding me? It’s a great idea! Our cut of dough will be enough to pay for our pups’ damages!”
“Just as long as I get my screen time,” Griffin said. He thought about it, and then corrected himself by saying, “Er, or at least as long as my glasses get the screen time.”
Nobody heard Drac as he tried to calm them down, his friends and family chattering excitedly and already signing autographs from the ballroom guests who were starting to surround them eagerly. “Wait a minute, guys, hold on, who said – “
“THIS JUST IN!” the same news reporter from earlier in the night interrupted Drac, scurrying in front of the Pack with the cameraman filming. “It appears that due to the instant success of the new feature film Hotel Transylvania, the director and studio have chosen to pursue more films, undoubtedly turning this little movie into a full-blown series! That’s right, you’ve heard what I said, folks. Get your popcorn and tickets ready, because before you can say ‘bleh-bleh-bleh,’ the next Hotel Transylvania movies will be hitting a theater near you!”
Monsters cheered happily. Mavis and Johnny hugged. Dennis and Winnie high-fived. Ericka gave Drac’s hand an excited squeeze and put on her best smile as the reporter turned to Drac with the mike, wide-eyed and eager to get the inside scoop. “Mr. Count Dracula sir, what do you have to say about this amazing news?” she asked.
What did he have to say? Well, Drac had a lot to say. He had not been expecting to be thrust into a whole other set of movies about his hotel like this. Filming this movie had not been bad per say, but he wasn’t eager to relive the experience again. Yet, his friends did. And, to be honest, he was actually glad for the publicity his hotel was receiving due to the movie. Much better than that songifying type of ad that Johnny had wanted him to do a few years back. But, overwhelmed with everything at once and not able to voice those very thoughts, Drac could only say one rather deadpanned thing into the mike.
“I don’t say ‘bleh-bleh-bleh.’”
