Only three hours had passed since Ethel had startled Ernest from his sombre reveries, but within this brief space their love had matured as if each hour had been a year. The pallor had vanished from his cheeks and the restiveness from his eyes.

Japanese manga artist and creator of Chibi Vampire (Karin) Yuna Kagesaki made her first visit to an American anime convention at Sakura-Con 2008 in Seattle, Washington. At two panel appearances, Kagesaki-sensei answered questions from panel moderator and TokyoPop Senior Editor Lillian Diaz-Pryzbyl and also answered questions from her fans in the audience.

I can't open my eyes
To reach out to you
Are you really there

Don't ask why
I don't think I really know
I cannot ever show
What I can't see

I feel myself fading away
I feel my mind going astray
Help me keep the wolves at bay

Damnation is my friend
And I am slain.

Twisted lies
You never told the truth
You took my faith in you
And you killed that too...

Now you wonder why
I want you to die
No one is that blind
You're so unkind

Vampires and vampire legend play significant roles in the cultures of many areas around the world. These blood-sucking beings are most common in the cultures of Eastern Europe, although similar manifestations are reported in some Asian cultures as well as some ancient cultures.

In the new blockbuster I Am Legend, virologist Robert Neville (Will Smith) is the sole survivor of a man-made plague that has wiped out all of humankind -- and turned those who didn't die into creepy, vampire-like mutants.