"Here it is, Pearl," Vivi grinned. "Inferno! The hottest nightspot in town, and with good reason: it's run by demons!"
"Demons?!" Pearl gasped.
"Succubi, to be specific," Vivi added. "It's owned by Delilah du Charme, one of Mom's biggest clients after Carmilla von Karnstein. You probably won't see her on-site, though. She usually delegates the day-to-day affairs of running the club to her manager and the hostesses."
Pearl put a hand to her mouth. "But don't they...?"
"Steal life force?" laughed Vivi. "Technically, but they take such trace amounts that the humans don't notice and quickly replenish it anyway. Well, there have been a FEW incidents with the bottle girl Obyzouth, but she's young and inexperienced. Her superiors will train that out of her quick."
Pearl eased up a bit. "Well, if you're SURE it's safe."
"Triple sure," said Vivi. "Come on, let's go in."
Just as they turned to go in, they noticed a striking couple leaving. One was a hippie-looking girl with platinum blonde hair flowing down to her ankles, dressed in a purple maxi skirt, a white lace tunic top, sandals, and a garland of black roses. The other was a punky girl with dark brown side-shaved hair dyed blue at the tips and a heavily pierced face, dressed in black, studded leather. Both of them were extraordinarily pale.
Vivi waved at the pale couple. "Liesel! Claudia! Hi!"
The platinum-haired hippie waved back. "Hi there, Vivi! Is that a new friend you've got there? Her aura's just groovy!" The hippie dragged her girlfriend over to Vivi and Pearl. She enthusiastically shook Pearl's hand."Hi, I'm Liesel von Karnstein! I'm a vampire, by the by. We're going to be such good friends; our auras are so compatible!"
"Name's Claudia," the punk said. "I'm a vamp, too. Don't let Liesel scare you. She's awesome once you get used to her energy."
"No worries," said Pearl. "She reminds me a lot of my own family. I'm pearl, by the way. Pearl Silverscales."
"Ooh, sounds like a mermaid name!" Liesel grinned. "That explains the sea-green tint in your aura."
"Yeah," said Pearl. "I'm a real mermaid. My ex cursed my tail and gills away, so now I'm trapped on land as a human. Morgana's promised to restore me, though. It'll take a little time, of course, so I'll be hanging around Stokerville for a while."
"Sweet," said Claudia. "So, you've made up your mind you want to be a mermaid again, huh? You could always join the von Karnsteins as a vampire. That'd be pretty cool, wouldn't it?"
"Also, I know this great new werehyena pack!" Liesel added. "My sister's girlfriend Selena started it, and it's recruiting right now. Ever wanted adventures in the wilderness of the land? How about some hot herm lovin'? Well, here's your chance!"
Claudia snickered. "Ever considered going into marketing, Lee-Lee?"
Liesel cringed. "Ew, no!"
Pearl pondered what the two vampires had told her. On the one hand, she'd need to be a mermaid if she wanted to go home again. On the other hand, her mermaid sense of adventure was doing joyous backflips at the thought of exploring life as a vampire or werehyena. Would it be stupid of her to pass on a chance like that?
Vivi turned to Pearl, seeming to sense her thoughts. "You'll have a long time to decide that, Pearl. Morgana's potion won't be ready for ages. For now, let's hit the club. Not for too long, mind you. I have a full day's work helping Mom and Dani summon that portal to Japan. It probably won't be done until the day AFTER tomorrow."
"Gotcha," Pearl smiled.
"Now to get past that pesky bouncer," said Vivi. "I have an enchantment spell with his name on it I've been just dying to try."