All Hallows Eve

[Stefan cel Rau]

Vlad has always been a prankster. He's not always stealthy about it but he's fast. All Hallows Eve is celebrated with lights, parties and festivities all over Romania. The people still fear superstitions that revolve around Vlad the Impaler. Parties erupt all around Bucharest. Costumed people dance in the streets, gambling, sex and crime is at a peak during this week. The festivities are meant to ward off evil spirits but little do they know that it only attracts us more. Being what we are, we use it to our advantage.

Vlad is quite fond of the story, "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". He dressed as Clopin, the King of the Gypsies and paraded, quite loudly I might add, though the streets causing a scene and attracting attention from all directions. The crowd loved it and joined in with gaiety and frolicking. Once he had them in the palm of his hand he led them around town, most dropping off into smaller groups to continue their own celebrating as the early morning hours began. Vlad led them to a small tavern and inside I waited dressed as Claude Frollo. They were delighted! Vlad offered free drinks and food, a small band played and we simply sat back, watched and waited. As the dawn approached, so did the drunken mayhem. The bar closed a few minutes before 4am and we were ushered out of the tavern with urgency. If the police found a pub open after 4am it meant a huge fine to the owner and most likely the manager would lose his job. Not wanting to cause a scene, we obliged and slipped quietly into the shadows of an adjacent alley and waited. The small group,  full with food and drink were slow to make their way back to their meager homes. Vlad had his eye on one in particular. He had seen him take advantage of a young woman just a few hours earlier. Vlad does not tolerate the mistreating of women. When the time was right, he struck like lightning, instantly taking the man in his grip, slamming him against the wall. He toyed with his prey a bit before draining him, making sure he knew exactly what he was suffering for. 
If you ever visit Bucharest on All Hallows Eve, be sure to stay away from the shadows for if you stray you never know what might be waiting for you down a dark alley.