Chapter Text
Mavis never seemed to get tired. Her tiny feet in red sneakers have already been on many stone sidewalks and pavemens of Parisian streets. She and Johnny had a rental car, but Mavis couldn't fully immerse herself in this new world, sitting locked in it. After all, she finally broke free.
No, it did not happen before or even after the wedding. As a honeymoon, the vampire-human couple went to the place of Mavis' dreams – the Hawaiian Islands, which she had not stopped thinking about since her 118th birthday. With the experience of traveling at such a young age, Johnny had been to Hawaii twice before, so he acted as a proud guide for his amazed wife. A few months after returning to the hotel to yearning Dracula, they discussed with joyful excitement their plans for the next foreseen journey... And Johnny soon found Mavis bewildered, with a positive pregnancy test in her hand.
That's how Dennis came into their lives. Everyone at the hotel was happy to meet the baby, without exception, especially his grandpa, and Johnny and Mavis were forced to say a temporary goodbye to travelling. Each of them perceived this change in their own way. Unplanned parenthood was not an upset for them. Raising their son, they rarely brought up the topic of traveling the world, but Jonathan was never going to give up his intentions. He was sad because Mavis, still a young and cheerful girl, even though a mother, suddenly began to delay this.
This night, Johnny couldn't believe his eyes that they were here in Paris, after long, long seven years. It was this city that became their first joint point on the map.
Passers-by, mostly humans, turned around curiously when Mavis ran from one house to another with her usual speed, looking at balconies, flowers and signs of shops and boutiques on the first floors. Her almost childish curiosity didn't disappear with the birth of her own child. And in general, her behavior was understandable. She hasn't been anywhere but Santa Cruz, Hawaii, and Transylvania where she grew up. Johnny didn't worry about her, he walked behind at his own pace and sometimes answered her questions, wearily running his hand through his hair, while in the other he carried several paper bright bags with their purchases.
"Aw, Johnny!" Ahead of him, Mavis gasped and joined her hands in emotion. "Look at all those lovely people there by the fountain!" They were in a mid-range, but clean and colorful quarter, where there were not as many people and cars as in the city center, and this was definitely more to Jonathan's liking now. Mavis admired all places equally.
They walked down a narrow street to a tiny square with a simple fountain in the middle. Nearby, companies, couples and just lonely, but completely happy people were resting on benches. The vampire girl brought a little fuss to their idyll by jumping on the side of the fountain and enthusiastically looked around. Johnny took a deep breath for his own mind balance and approached his wife, holding out his hand and grinning awkwardly.
"Look, honey, we have two more days here before we fly to Bern... Maybe we should go for a walk somewhere else?"
"Don't you like it here?" Mavis was surprised. "We have already been to the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Louvre..." she began to list the places they had already visited, with undisguised pride. "We even went to the opera theatre!"
She jumped back to the ground and spun around a little, laughing. Her long red skirt billowed in the wind. Johnny couldn't help but look at his wife with fascination. Upon arrival in Paris on the very first night, Mavis independently decided to buy something new for her monotonous and mostly black clothes, and her husband only supported the idea, taking care of it for himself, too. After becoming a vampire, he began to wear more closed clothes, especially the bottom, and had leaned towards choosing beige cargo pants. When asked why he began to wear trousers more often, he usually joked off with the phrase "He that lies down with dogs must rise up with fleas." Mavis at that time took a fancy to a cropped denim jacket, which she began to wear over a black T-shirt.
"I know, there are so many amazing things here..." Johnny looked up, and a sincere smile stretched across his lips. "Actually, I don't have any plans yet where we could go that night. But... we've walked so many streets..." he rubbed his lower back pitifully. "Maybe we should rest for a while somewhere?"
"Oh, maybe that place over there?" Mavis suggested, pointing her finger somewhere between the houses and looking at Johnny. "It looks beautiful!"
It didn't take Johnny long to figure out what she was talking about. There, between two narrow passageways, one of the three-storey houses similar to each other was located. At the end of the building visible to both of them, the ground floor stood out with large red awnings, long windows and garlands with reddish lanterns hung on this small area. Below, under umbrellas matching the canopy, round tables and chairs were arranged, some of them stood almost at the roadway. Despite the lateness of the time, this place had plenty of guests, at least on the street part of it, half of the tables were occupied by visitors eating and chatting among each other.
"You have a sharp eye, babe!" he grabbed her shoulders approvingly and kissed her. "I know where we're going to have lunch!"
Without saying a word, they turned into two bats and, mischievously catching up with each other, flew away towards the restaurant, followed by the looks of puzzled humans. Specifically, it was one of small Parisian bistros, lots of them Johnny had visited many times before Mavis, and now he was given the perfect opportunity to arrange something like a romantic date for her in one of the most visited places in the city. They had been in Paris for several days, but Jonathan had never brought her here, and now it seemed odd to him.
"So, Mavey, which one would you choose?" While still in the air, Johnny hovered in one place, together with his wife, examining the vacant tables.
"How do you like this one?" Mavis deftly jumped down at once at a table standing very close to the windows of the inner space of the bistro, which was pretty crowded. This spot was relatively secluded from the others, so he nodded in agreement and joined her, settling on a hard but comfortable wooden chair. Mavis enthusiastically ran her palms over the red and white checkered cotton tablecloth, pleasant to the touch, and then grabbed the menu first.
"Uh, honey?" Johnny distracted her. "I'm not sure if there's any kind of food here that you're used to..."
"Don't worry, sweetie!" Mavis calmed him down, running her eyes over the names of the dishes. "I don't miss the food at the hotel much, and I like the way they cook here. Oh, that must be the waiter?"
A blond guy in a red shirt and a dark-gray apron tied around his waist, standing at another table, noticed the arrival of new guests and soon paid attention to Johnny and Mavis, who greeted him with a willingness to order.
"We'd like two servings of homemade vegetable soup, chicken escalope and creme brulee for dessert, please," Mavis began politely. The waiter mumbled in response, writing down the order in a notebook and sometimes glancing at the vampire girl with confusion and surprise.
"And a bottle of wine!" Johnny added when the guy had already turned to go inside.
"Well, the order will be done in about half an hour..." Jonathan yawned, covering his mouth with his hand, and crossed one leg over the other. "Do you want to go to a similar place next time, let's say... tomorrow?"
"Maybe..." she replied vaguely, looking back. "Johnny, why was that guy looking at me like that?"
"What's the matter?" Johnny opened his eyes wide and blinked. "It's okay, he probably just doesn't see vampires here very often, or anyone other than humans."
"You know, honey," Mavis put her hands under her chin, "after a few years, I realized something... The human world is just awesome, but sometimes it's hard for monsters like us to fit into it, even if we're not hostile to each other. And that's alright. I'm glad that not only we, but also others are trying to diversify their lives by contacting the human world."
"Yeah..." Johnny let out a relaxed sigh. "It's a pity your dad hasn't had a go yet."
Mavis thought of Dracula and felt a little sad. "I dream of us going somewhere, all together. Literally. Now with Ericka too..." These thoughts cheered her up, because she surely knew that Ericka would support her idea. In addition, her appearance in the family definitely led to positive changes in the Count's lifestyle.
"It's good that we finally got out of the hotel, isn't it?" Johnny continued, listening to the surrounding noise of voices and barely every five minutes passing cars. "I'm kinda tired of seeing the same faces, the same paintings on the walls, the same hotel rooms... Let alone you. Someday I'll also experience what it's like to live for more than a hundred years, haha..."
His wife smiled, looking at him as if he were a kid. They were the same age mentally, but the years Mavis had lived before him sometimes made themselves felt in their married life. However, this didn't concern the upbringing of Dennis. They were both new to this.
A few minutes passed with the same pleasant sounds and by the light of a huge lantern on the corner of the sidewalk. Mavis felt even more in awe than she had recently in the theater. She regretted that vampires were doomed to avoid sunlight all their lifetime, and enjoying the sunny day bustle of this world for them couldn't take place in a convenient way. Due to falling into a light oblivion, both didn't immediately hear the polite but persistent coughing near their table. The same young waiter came over with their order ready.
"Bon appetit and have a good night," he graciously inclined his head, putting all the dishes on the table for them, and then adressed to Mavis. "Excuse me, madam, do I have the honor of talking to the daughter of His Excellency Count Dracula?"
"Yep, that's my dad!" she responded amiably upon hearing the mention.
"Um, sorry... How did you know it was her?" Johnny wondered, starting to taste the first piece of chicken.
The guy began to explain awkwardly. "You see, many people know that the Count has an only daughter. But it's only because of your grandfather that some people know what you exactly look like. A year ago, I saw a photo of your family that came originally from Mr. Impaler, through several people, actually. I've heard about you too, Mr. Loughran," he nodded to the redhead vampire and smiled, "I dream of visiting Transylvania someday, if I get the chance."
"Whoa, cool!" Johnny cheered. "You'll like it, especially since the hotel is now as customized for humans as it used to be for monsters."
"What's your name?" Mavis asked, also about to start eating.
"I'm Edgar," he confusedly introduced himself, not expecting that his name might be interested. "Just... Just Ed! Sorry, I forgot to put on my name tag..." The other waiters who scurried around wore name badges, as required in every bistro and restaurant, and he shrugged, giggling guiltily.
"Hmm..." The vampire tilted her head, watching him go. "Sometimes humans can be so nice, Johnny."
"That's right..." he quietly agreed, pouring wine into glasses for them. "But, unfortunately, not all of them... I had moments when I really wanted to distance myself from this world and not associate myself with those of my kind whom I didn't see from the best side."
"I get it, honey..." she took his hand, honestly confessing. "But if anything, I'm ready for that." Johnny's eyes lit up lovingly. He carefully pushed the glass towards her.
"To future travels that no one will spoil," he toasted, raising a glass into which he poured a little more wine than for his wife.
"To future travels," Mavis repeated half of the phrase in the affirmative, and they clinked glasses. After sipping a little drink, the couple set about dining with great appetite. Meeting Ed left them with a warm feeling and lifted their spirits for the rest of the night. They were full of energy, but at some point it was expected to be exhausted.
A little over fifteen minutes later, Jonathan was full first, in an unusual hurry, and got up from the table, stretching his stiff body. Mavis looked up from her plate to him.
"Mavey, are you done?" he looked at her and then at his phone, smirking. "That was very delicious, but I think it's time for us to leave."
"Why are you in a hurry? Something's happening?" she didn't understand.
"The thing is, I've ordered a taxi, and it's coming any minute," he explained, picking up their packages. "Oh, there's the car!"
A black car pulled up to the vacant parking space opposite, waiting for them. Mavis stood up and looked from the taxi to her husband in disbelief. "So soon?"
"Oh yeah, this service is one of the fastest in the city," Johnny laughed. "And now we're going to the place that I planned to show you back in the early years of our acquaintance! And that's where we'll stay to sleep for the coming day."
Mavis shook her head a little at his haste, but took his elbow, and together they walked through the tables, taking a last look at the bistro. Whatever he was up to, it promised to be amazing and maybe odd to her.