• Least That Can Happen
    “The window was shut to keep out the cold...” He stopped and stared down his audience.
    “C’mon Seth finish the story!” Someone in the audience demanded.
    “They all went to bed, but by the next morning beds were empty and the window was open. The five children were gone without a trace of existence. A recent employee at the orphanage had said that strange things had been happening but no disappearances had ever occurred. Then it appeared small and red. A drop of blood fell on each of the children’s bed, and spread to cover and drench the beds in blood. The children were gone and assumed to be dead.”
    Seth once again stopped and scanned his audience for any trace of fear. Everyone was shaking and some faces were pale. He gave a small smile. Then a small four year old girl named Mia spoke up. Her voice was small and weak.
    “Wha-what happened to them?”
    Seth made a swoop with his arm around his audience then brought it up to his chin in a way a vampire might do with his cape. “No one knows. All they know is that the orphanage closed down after all the children disappeared without any trace of existence, all ending with blood-covered beds. ”
    He swayed and moved across the stage in a hunting manner, almost as if he had a secret. Mia shivered then stuck her head in Annie’s arm, and buried it there.
    It was Friday the 13th, the children at the Northwest City Orphanage were having a horror fest, and Seth was the best scary storyteller. He could scare any number of people with a scary story just by thinking up something on the spot.
    Seth continued, “Only one person died like that ever again and that was a girl who lived straight across the street from the orphanage. A girl with a bloodstained tooth said to be a vampire, so quiet she could move children from their beds without moving the bed at all. A girl who had killed every single one of the orphans. A girl like her!” He pointed his hand to his left and a girl popped out of the shadows with a great “BOO!”
    Everyone shrieked and fell over. Mia was crying. Seth fell to the ground laughing, and the shadow girl high fived him. Annie was now standing, and comforting Mia.
    “That was cruel Seth. Now Mia will have nightmares and it’s all your fault.”Mia wailed and sunk her head in Annie’s stomach. “C’mon Mia let’s get you to bed.” She turned and looked accusingly at Seth, then walked Mia off.
    “Wahah!” Mia cried all the way to her room. “Annie w-what if I’m next on that vampirey girl’s list?”She looked up, her face was completely tear stained.
    “Mia, listen to me, that vampire girl doesn’t exist. Seth just made her up to scare you.” Annie patted Mia on the back and gave her a hug. “Nothing is going to happen to you when I’m around, besides yesterdays’ lunch was scarier than any vampire. Now you don’t worry Mia, Annie will protect you.” She let go and smiled.
    Mia wiped a tear off her face “Really, Annie, you would do that?”
    “Of course I would, what else are friends for, well, other than tickling?” she moved her finger across Mia’s stomach she squirmed and giggled.
    Meanwhile Seth was busy thanking the shadow girl, “Thanks Emmi. You really scared them.”
    “Whatever, but I don’t come cheap!” Emmi held out her palm.
    “Fine, anything to get a scare out of Annie. Did you see her face? She was completely terrified.” He laughed and pulled out a red wallet, she swiftly snatched it from him, took out a $10 bill, pocketed it, and returned the wallet to Seth.
    “Pleasure doing business with you,” She shook his hand. A forced up and down movement with no effort on Seth’s part. When his hand fell she continued, “Now what are you going to do about that brat Mia, she seems like a handful?”
    “I’m still working on that don’t rush me!” he rubbed his hands together. “But I assure you that by the time I’m done with her, no one will know that she existed,” he smiled and revealed a small blood red tooth. “When you mess with the vampire, you get the fangs.”
    A week before this horror fest, Annie and Mia had made fun of Seth by publicly humiliating him during lunch. Seth has been seeking revenge ever since, he was very vengeful. They had insulted him by saying he was afraid to show his teeth because they were yellow. You see, Seth never really smiled he just turned up the corners of his lips. “Emmi I am going to need help, do you want to be like my side kick?”
    “Whoa! No, listen here, I DO NOT side kick, I lead, and if I help you it will be as an equal, and at a high price. Oh, and try not to be too much of a super hero. You’re not.” Emmi blew up in his face.
    “Ok, how much will it cost me?”
    “$20 plus, something like that, maybe more.”
    “You drive a hard bargain...deal.” Their hands clasped and shook, this time with an enthusiastic effort from both.
    That night, Mia was asleep, dreaming about what it would be like to have a father, and quite enjoying the thought, while Seth, who had snuck in previously, poked his head out from behind her. He smiled, his scarlet tooth flashed red on Mia’s pale skin from the moon light shining thought the window. He leaned in toward her neck, getting ready to strike, when a voice behind him said, “Seth? Is that you?”
    He quickly closed his mouth; Annie rubbed her eyes then said, “What are you doing here?”
    “I’m just saying good night to Mia...” he lied.
    Seth turned around, Annie was out, she collapsed on the bed snoring. Surprised that Annie actually believed him, Seth turned back around and flicked a strand of hair out of Mia’s face; she cuddled up to his arm, and wouldn’t let go. “Get off me!” he slid out of her grip and walked to the door, Emmi was waiting, arms crossed.
    “So, did you get her?” She held out her palm, “I did my part, pay up.”
    Seth rolled his eyes, pulled out his wallet once more, he opened it and... “It’s empty; you’ve got all my money...” He got an idea. “You conned me!”
    “So! Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t.” She flexed her fingers, like someone waiting for something to be dropped into their hand.
    “Oh, you are going to get it. I promise you that!” he pushed her aside and walked off to his own room, ready to hatch his brilliant plan to dispose of the wretch Emmi! He was, after all, part vampire, how hard could it be?
    Seth started to mutter to himself, “That wretch Emmi is going to get it, like I said, when you mess with the vampire, you get the fangs.”
    That night he devised a plan to get back at Emmi, a plan that involved a small girl..., and two scarlet fangs.
    The next day Seth arranged to meet with someone who could help him get revenge over Emmi, the little girl from his story. “I need your help. I want to get revenge on someone who conned me out of all my money, you will help me.” Seth begged her.
    She licked her lips; apparently, she was very bloodthirsty and had no shame in being a vampire. “I might do it for a price, but seeing as you have no money I will make an exception. I will help you Seth, but only if you do something for me in return.”
    “Anything...”
    “I have been waiting for someone, like me, who understands the need for blood; bring me a small child, and then I will do your favor.”
    Seth ran back to the orphanage, enthralled by his newly struck bargain. It was perfect; he got rid of Mia and Emmi at the same time. He ran over to where Mia and Annie sat, he grabbed Mia’s arm and ran back to the small girl before Annie could stop him. “That was so easy, here’s a small girl.”
    He shoved Mia in front of him, the girl grabbed Mia, and thrust her teeth into Mia’s shoulder, and she cried a little then closed her eyes. Seth turned away; even though he too was a vampire, it was still too horrifying. Mia’s eyes bolted open. She smiled grimly and flashed a single scarlet fang in her front row of teeth. She was now a vampire. The small girl wiped her lips.
    “Thank you Seth I need an assistant.” She indicated Mia. Mia’s shoulder had two small bite marks in it, how was Seth going to hide that.
    “SETH! COME BACK! MIA, ARE YOU OK?” Annie was practically crying, she barged through the door to find Mia’s scarlet tooth, Seth cringing, and the small girl smiling.
    “You did well Seth, bringing me two girls, that is so thoughtful of you.”
    This is not what I wanted to happen, thought Seth, he had always had a soft spot for Annie, and in fact, some would say he had a crush. Annie was scared and confused; she came in here and found three vampires. The small girl strode forward to Annie; Seth crept up from behind the small girl, and noticed something, she was about the same height as Emmi, and sounded like Emmi, but Emmi wasn’t a vampire, or was she?
    “Emmi, don’t hide from me, I know what you did.” Seth said flatly.
    He rushed up in front of Emmi and hissed, baring his scarlet tooth. Emmi backed up, away from Annie. Annie ran up to Mia, and gave her a hug just when Seth struck his fang into Emmi’s shoulder. She cringed and fell, dead. Her fang, scarlet red, hit the ground. It made no noise.
    Annie had tears in her eyes, “Mia, are you okay?” she asked
    “I’m fine, I’m a vampirey now. Rawr!” she held up her hands like claws. “Seth saved your life!” she pointed at Seth.
    Annie considered what had just happened. “Your right Mia,” She stood up and walked over to Seth. “Thank you.” She kissed him on the cheek, and his cheeks blushed to the color blood red.
    “Annie and Seth, sitting in a tree...” Mia teased them. Seth smiled, but no trace of grim could be found.
    “I think it is best that we keep what happened here to ourselves.” Seth looked at the lifeless form of Emmi, her body disintegrated before their eyes. Surprised, he said, “She tried to hide from me, get Mia, and get away. She may be a shape shifting vampire, but she is a true con artist. Just not smart enough to fool me.” He started to address Mia; “You can’t tell anyone that you are a vampire, okay?” she nodded solemnly.
    Annie picked up the fang. “What are we going to do about this, if they find it they will know that something is up and they will investigate? I mean, Emmi is missing and all they find is a fang, it sounds pretty supernaturally freaky to me.”
    Seth nodded. “Just take it with us; we can get rid of it later.”
    Therefore, with new friendships made, Mia, Seth, and Annie walked back to the orphanage. Seth and Annie hand-in-hand, and Mia waddled behind them.
    After that day Mia, Seth and Annie remained close friends, the human and two vampires. When you experience something like that with certain people, you develop a bond with those people that cannot be broken. Things like that change people, Seth had a more caring heart, instead of cold and hard. Mia never told anyone that she was a vampire, and Seth taught her how to control the desire to bite anyone and everyone she saw. As for Annie and Seth, they were together for quite some time.
    The mystery of why Mia was spared and Emmi died will always remain a mystery, but the lesson learned is that when you mess with the vampire, getting the fangs is the least that can happen!