//------------------------------//
// Chapter 2 - To Trust Or Not To Trust 
// Story: Hotel Transylvania: Changeling Branch 
// by Universal Librarian 
//------------------------------//

Dracula wrapped his cloak around his body and drew himself up to his full height, looking down at the newcomer imperiously. "So, you must be King Thorax."

Thorax nodded. "That's right, I'm the new ruler of the Changeling Kingdom. Um…" He cocked his head to the side curiously. "Who are you?" 

The lack of recognition clearly threw Dracula off. "Who am I? Vhat do you mean, who am I?! I am the great vampire, Dracula! I am the one who banished your vile Queen from my Hotel Transylvania!"

Thorax coughed awkwardly. "Sorry, but I've never heard of you. I'm sure I've heard of Hotel Transylvania before, though." He rubbed a chitinous hoof under his chin as he thought. "Did Chrysalis mention it before she was deposed?"

The little changeling by Thorax's side suddenly gasped and pointed at Dracula. "I remember! You're Mr Bleh Bleh-Bleh!"

Mavis clamped a hand over her mouth in a vain attempt to hide her snort. She could see the colour rising in her father's cheeks already. Apparently, some old movie had depicted a fictional version of Dracula saying that bizarre phrase, and now almost every human that came to the hotel said it to him whenever they met him, saw him, or even talked about him. Unfortunately, the real deal had never said 'bleh bleh-bleh' in his incredibly long life, and he had some strong opinions on the phrase in particular.

Put simply, he hated it. With passion.

"How dare you! I have never said that ridiculous phrase in my life!" Dracula shouted, forcing Mavis to bite her lip to keep from laughing. "Where did you changelings even hear that phrase?!"

"Chrysalis came up with it herself," Thorax replied. "I remember now, she said something about it being a gift for an ungrateful host, or something along those lines."

Dracula's face boiled with barely contained rage. "Chrysalis vas the one who started that?! I vill ruin her! I'll tear off her crooked horn and shove it vhere the sun doesn't shine!" He flung an arm out, pointing a taloned finger at Thorax. "Bring me Chrysalis! I vill show her vhat happens to those who mess around vith me!"

Thorax cocked his head to the side. "I'm afraid I can't do that. It's like we said, she's not around anymore. The last time I saw her, she was a statue in an Equestrian garden."

"She vhat?" Dracula blinked dumbly. "Hold on, Equestria, that… that's the place she vas alvays complaining about. The land vith the ponies."

Thorax nodded. "That's right. Together we managed to defeat Chrysalis, and a couple of other lunatics in the process, and she was turned to stone for her crimes."

The dark turn the conversation had taken took Mavis by surprise. Glancing at her father, she saw that he was just as shocked as her.

"Chrysalis… turned to stone?" Dracula stared blankly at the changelings as he struggled to process what he had heard. Eventually, he frowned and crossed his arms. "I vant proof. I vant to know for sure that this isn't just some trick of hers to get back into the hotel."

The two changelings shared a look that was equal parts surprised and exasperated. "Do you think the ponies would let us drag her back here?" The little changeling asked.

"Not a chance," Thorax replied flatly. He arched a chitinous brow as he turned back to Dracula. "But you could come through and see for yourself if you want. The ponies, and us changelings, are always looking to make new friends."

Dracula looked taken aback for a moment, but then he smiled widely. "Oh, oh yes, that's a, uh, good idea. I'll do that. Let me just, uh, fetch a few things before I come through."

Mavis frowned and crossed her arms. She knew that tone. He had absolutely no intention of going through the portal, he was just trying to end the conversation and get away quickly. Acting on an impulse, Mavis piped up, "I'll come too, if you don't mind."

"Mavy?!" Dracula whipped his head around in surprise, but Mavis ignored him.

"Of course not, you're more than welcome!" Thorax said eagerly.

Dracula spluttered as he blatantly tried to come up with some excuse to keep her from going. "You, uh, vh-vhat about Dennis? He'll get lonely vithout his mother."

"He'll be fine, I'm sure Johnny can manage him on his own for a little while," Mavis countered. "I'll just let them know what's going on, then we're ready to go. I won't be long."

Thorax waved as Mavis strode out of the room. She didn't bother to slow or even look around as her father followed her, trying to get her attention. Only when the pair were out of the secret passageway and back in the castle corridor, with the hidden door securely shut behind them, did Mavis stop abruptly and turn to him. 

Dracula barely managed to stop before he crashed into her, stepping back awkwardly as he overbalanced. "Vha… Mavis, vhat do you think you are doing, vhy did you say that you vill go through that portal?"

"Because I want to see the changelings for myself, to make sure that they're not a problem, and I want to make sure that you stay out of trouble," Mavis replied. "You are going through the portal, aren't you?"

"Of course I'm not!" Dracula exclaimed. "Vhy vould I vant to do that? This is probably just some stupid new trick by Chrysalis."

Mavis scoffed. "A minute ago you were half convinced that the changelings were telling the truth about Chrysalis, now you're saying it's still a trick? What's really going on here?"

"There's nothing going on here," Dracula said innocently. In response to Mavis' disbelieving look, he sighed. "Fine. I just don't see the point in messing around with the changelings vhen ve don't have to. Besides, they could still be lying."

"It didn't sound like the changelings were lying," Mavis countered. "Why not give them a chance? It would bring in more customers, and it would reunite our people with monsters that haven't been seen in a century."

Dracula appeared to consider it for a second, but he quickly shook his head and drew himself up as if delivering a speech. "No. I don't trust Chrysalis, and I don't trust these changelings. Ve are not going, and that is final."

"Final?" Dracula baulked as Mavis rounded on him. "Final? I'll tell you what's final, I am going through that portal. With or without you."

Dracula backed away as his daughter advanced. "But Mavis, I… vh-vhat about Dennis-"

"Don't bring Dennis into this!" Mavis snapped. "After all of the awful things you did to him to try and get him to show his fangs, you are the last person who gets to tell me what I can and cannot do with my son! And since you keep saying you don't trust the changelings because of what they did to me, let's review what you have done, shall we?"

There was a loud thud as Dracula was backed up against the wall. He tried to stammer out a half-hearted defence, but Mavis ignored it. "First, you set up a fake village full of disguised zombies to convince me that humans were evil creatures who couldn't be trusted, and that I should spend my eternity locked away in this castle, on my 118th birthday! Then, when a human finally did stumble across the castle, the man who would become my husband, you sent him away because you didn't like the fact that I liked him!"

"Y-yes, but I did bring him back," Dracula said meekly.

"Next, you offered to look after Dennis while Johnny and I went to visit his parents. You swore that you had accepted that he might not become a vampire." Mavis pressed on until her fangs were inches from Dracula's throat, forcing him to tilt back and away from her. "Instead, you dragged him all over the country trying to force him to show his fangs. You threw him off a tower for crying out loud! And then! Then you had the audacity to try and lie to me about it! Yet somehow, after all of that, even after you got your wish and Dennis showed that he is a vampire, I still forgave you. If I can forgive all of that, then you can at least give these changelings a shot at redemption. And if you won't, then I will."

Without another word, Mavis swept away, storming through the corridors in a thoroughly vile mood. She wasn't quite sure why she was getting so worked up, but something about this situation, and her father's reaction to it, was getting right under her skin.

It didn't take long for Mavis to reach the corridor leading to her room. She reached for the door to her bedroom, then paused and pulled her hand back, taking a deep breath to calm herself. She preferred to avoid having her son see her unreasonably angry whenever she could.

Pushing the door open, Mavis couldn't help but smile when she saw her two favourite people sitting together on the bed. 

Jonathan, her husband, had a mop of messy ginger hair on his head, and deep brown eyes that she could cheerfully spend hours looking into. He was the first human she had ever met and, despite having met many more since, he was still by far her favourite. Curled up in his lap was the best little nightmare that had ever happened to either him or Mavis.

Sporting a shock of incredibly curly hair even more vibrantly ginger than his father, Dennis was only a few weeks over five years old, and was happily reading a picture book while Johnny stroked his hair. The two looked up as Mavis walked in, and both gave her such warm and genuine smiles that it made her heart flutter. "Hey guys, how's it going?"

"We're cool, Mavy, Dennis was just showing off his sick reading skills before bedtime," Johnny said languidly.

"I'm reading, mommy!" Dennis mumbled sleepily.

Mavis drifted over to the pair and knelt down, ruffling Dennis's hair. "You sure are, my smart little guy. Just make sure not to stay up too late, okay?"

"Okay, mommy," Dennis replied, yawning widely.

Mavis gently stroked his cheek and looked up at Johnny. "I've got a favour to ask." Johnny tilted his head curiously. "I've just found out about one of dad's old secrets and-" 

"Is it the collection of mermaid shells Murray convinced him to stash?" Johnny asked.

"No, it's- wait, mermaid what?!" Mavis shook her head, filing that little horror away for later incineration. "No, it's a portal to some other world. There's monsters there, too, but I want to go through and make sure it's safe before we start letting them stay here. I shouldn't be gone for more than a couple of days."

Johnny nodded. "No worries, me and Dennis can hold down the fort here until you get back. Right, little dude?"

"Right, daddy dude." Dennis smiled up at them, almost falling over backwards as he overbalanced in his half-asleep state.

"Quick question," Johnny put in. "Is Drac going with you, or…?" 

Mavis was about to shake her head when a deep voice echoed through the room, "Yes, I am."

The three looked around to see Dracula step into the room. "Dad? Are you sure?" Mavis asked.

Dracula sighed. "I still don't trust Chrysalis, or the changelings, as far as I could throw them, but you were right. I should at least give the changelings themselves a second chance."

Mavis gave him a soft smile. "Thanks, dad."