#abchanchu

[archivist-crow]

Abchanchu - Bolivian vampire

The abchanchu pretends to be a kindly old man who loses his way. His well-meaning, helpful victims are either stricken with a fatal disease or are sucked dry of their blood while they are asleep.

Text from The Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves, and Other Monsters (Checkmark Books, 2005) by Rosemary Guiley

[goblinlipgloss]

The Bestiary: Abchanchu

In Bolivian folklore, the abchanchu is a shape-shifting creature with vampiric tendencies. This creature frequently finds its victims by pretending to be a helpless old man; when somebody stops to help, that is when the abchanchu strikes. It is not written if it had a particular sort of favored victim.

Not much is known about its true form, or if it really even has one. In some regional lore, the abchanchu is more of a malevolent spirit instead of a flesh-and-blood vampire. In its spiritual form, the abchanchu has been blamed for anything from fires to floods.

There's really only one real reason that the abchanchu sticks out to me, aside from the fact that I think Jareth reads as a little vampiric in nature, and that is the disguise the abchanchu is known for.

Jareth's blind beggar disguise is meant to catch Sarah and Hoggle off guard, and he is certainly able to startle them when he reveals himself. While he doesn't immedeately then chow down, there is some posturing before the eventual attack with the Cleaners.

Is the abchanchu a perfect fit for Jareth? Definitely not. But it could open up some interesting new ways of looking at the Glitter King himself.

[baalberithxarchive]

Abchanchu

Bolivian vampire. The abchanchu pretends to be a kindly old man who loses his way. His well meaning, helpful victims are whether stricken with a fatal disease or are sucked dry off their blood while they are asleep.

[VWMREG1]

[baalberitharchive]

Abchanchu

Bolivian vampire. The abchanchu pretends to be a kindly old man who loses his way. His well meaning, helpful victims are whether stricken with a fatal disease or are sucked dry off their blood while they are asleep.

[bloodyvampire-83]

Abchanchu:  Bolivian- It would take on the form of an helpless elderly traveler, asking for directions or a place to stay. When people would stop and offer the creature help it would grasp them and feast on their blood, or he would drink your blood at night. If anyone survives, they will wake up the next day with a fatal disease. If he is trying to find a place to stay, he is said to appear at a house on a stormy night.