A step in the right direction (open)

[Jacey (DELETED 6681)]

It had been two days since Jacey had woken up from her slumber. Well, really not a slumber. More of a coma. It had been like sinking into the water, where she couldn't come back from. She tried swimming through the murky water, desperately trying to come back. After what had seemed like days, but really was merely a few hours, Jacey was able to break through the water and come back. When her eyes opened, she had found the man that had saved her, passed out on the floor. The poor man was so tired from saving her, he had fallen asleep! As not to disturb him, she had left a hastily written note.

Peter,
Thank you for saving me.
Always,
Jacey

She left it where he would find it quickly, before slipping out the door.

This was how Jacey found herself at Thornside Park, two nights later, lying on the ground, gazing up at the stars. Her blonde hair was spread out around her head like a golden halo. Her gaze had turned up to the stars, looking at the constellations. She had seen the Little Dipper already, which is what caused her to pause in the first place. As she lay there, she began to reflect on what she had already learned in her short existence as. . . whatever she now was. She had learned, after staying out in the sun, that she couldn't do that any longer. The sunburned arm, accompanied with the blisters from hell, attested to that. She could no longer eat regular food. A kind stranger had helped her with that one. He had offered her a bag of blood, which she had greedily drank, much to her own disgust. She could also heal at an incredible rate. That wound that the monster had caused her was already gone, the only evidence of it ever being there was her memory of it happening. Even that was a vague memory. Anything else, she figured she would learn along the way.

While lying on the ground, watching the stars, Jacey made the decision to make some friends. Friends could help her along the way, right? Perhaps she would even go to seek out the man who had saved her life from. . . that monster that had attacked the two of them. With that in mind, Jacey continued to lay on the ground, deciding that she was going to have to get up eventually to do what she was setting out to do.

[Peter Parkman]

[ OOC: Others should join this – I felt the need to post Peter’s reactions. ]

It had been two nights since the fadebeast attack in the park, and Peter would only have slept because the sun forced him to. If there was anything that could jolt Peter Parkman out of his regular routine, it was severe anxiety.

Two nights ago he had passed out due to copious amounts of blood in his vicinity. Two nights ago he thought that he had brought a dead body home with him; he had not thought that the very small amount of blood that the girl swallowed could have done much good. When he woke up, however, Jacey was gone and there was a note left behind.

Jacey was a vampire now. None of this had been explained to her. Nothing about having to drink blood to survive, or that one should avoid the sun at all costs. Nothing about hunters or zombies, or other vampires who might seek to kill you if you were seen to be a vampire. She was fresh. Peter had struggled enough with the change himself, and he’d had a sire to help him. Hell, he’d had two. Both Keara and Enver had been there to explain things and to help him through the transition.

If the blood had worked and Jacey was now a vampire, she was out there all alone. How long would she be alive for, without anyone to help her?

Peter had taken the dogs to the shelter and left them there; they would only get in the way. And for two whole nights he’d wandered the streets. To what end? It was a big city and where could she have gone? What if she had left the city? What if she had been kidnapped and was now being tortured? What if the Fae had got her and were now eating her, inch by inch? The possibilities grew more gruesome with each step that Peter took. The more he wanted to tear the city apart so that he could line up every single person who lived there to count them, to find her by some serious deduction.

Peter did not know how to hunt. He knew how to summon, but how could Jacey trust him enough for him to summon her? She didn’t. Because he couldn’t. It was the first thing he tried. So he continued to wander, down every street and alleyway, into pubs and clubs. Two whole nights, until he woke up in the Asylum and lamented. There had to be some other way to find her. Maybe he would have to get some help…

[Jacey (DELETED 6681)]

The cool night air comforted Jacey. It was something that she had loved as a young child, sitting out at night, feeling as though nothing in the world could touch her. Now that she was. . . whatever she was. . . it was even more comforting. Since she had awoken, her body and mind felt like they were on overload. Without meaning to, if she allowed her mind to drift enough, she could swear that she could hear the thoughts of others. It was almost like the scene in Bruce Almighty, when all the voices started talking to him at once. It was overwhelming. And because there were too many noises in her head, her heart would start to race, her anxiety (something she had never felt in her life) would start to creep up on her, almost crippling her. The cool air seemed to bring her back to where she was. Comforting. Soothing.

Laying under the stars, Jacey closed her eyes. Her arms moved so they were under her head, crossed to allow a space for her head to rest. The young woman took a deep breath, feeling content to be where she was. However, she allowed her mind to drift again, unwittingly allowing the voices to infiltrate her mind, her thoughts, to a point where she was uncomfortable again.

One voice, out of the hundreds that were muddling up her mind, caught her attention. A voice she had heard once before, in their brief encounter. It was the voice of the man who had saved her from the monstrosity that attacked the both of them. She bolted upright, her heart constricting. It was a strange sensation, one that she hadn't felt until she had heard the man's voice. She needed to find him. It was almost as though her life depended on it. She stood up quickly, brushing herself off before she picked up her backpack, tossing it over her shoulder.

Jacey would find him. It would be easy, wouldn't it?

[Peter Parkman]

… but Peter didn’t know who to ask for help, or whether he should. Keara was always there for him, he knew that. He knew that he could count on his sire to help him, no matter what. But it wasn’t a case of whether she’d want to. Her willingness was not what Peter questioned. It was what her husband would think if Peter asked. Enver seemed to have gotten worse, somehow, and Peter did not know why. It did not occur to him that Enver might be sour about Keara helping Peter when he’d had a nervous breakdown; when she’d had to physically get into the shower after Peter to calm him and to get him to move again. If Peter was ashamed of that night, it wasn’t because he’d been naked as the day he was born, it was because he had sunk so low, and someone else had been witness to it. But he was more than ever thankful for his sire and the lengths to which she would go to help him.

No, Enver’s increasing coldness toward Peter seemed solely due to any proximity that Peter might have to Keara; the last time Enver had threatened Peter, it was because Keara had deigned to help him. And so, Peter was wary of asking Keara for help. He did not want to incite Enver’s ire any more than he already had. Enver might be able to help. This time, however, it was the willingness that was questioned. Peter doubted that Enver wanted anything to do with him.

The only other person that Peter knew properly was Jersey. This was the kind of thing he’d have gone to her immediately about. She’d have been the first to know. But Peter was still trying to figure out the boundaries. They were still friends. But how far did that stretch, and would she appreciate a call from him in the middle of the night to help him find another woman?

That left Peter out of options. He had to keep trying on his own. And so it was that he found himself back out in the park outside of the Asylum. He had Hunter with him—only the big dog, who was always better at hunting, ironically enough. He took Hunter to the place where Jacey had been slashed. He crouched down in the grass and tried to direct the dog to where the blood had been spilled. It was a long shot. A very long shot. But maybe the dog would be able to track the girl down, somehow.

It was a big city with many different scents to distract a dog. But Peter had to try. He and the canine began to circle the property—though of course steering clear of any large bodies of water.

[Jacey (DELETED 6681)]

Doing her best to ignore the other voices in her head, Jacey attempted to focus solely on the voice of Peter. A sound that was getting ever more frantic. Was he worried about her? Was that what this was about? Jacey hoped that she hadn't caused him to worry about her too much. That wasn't the goal, at least. She simply didn't want to disturb him. After all, how do you repay a man who saved your life? You just don't. It really wasn't possible.

She held onto the voice of Peter for a brief moment before the other voices started to get loud again. It was almost overwhelming, hearing the desires, secrets, and whatever else of others. Jacey could feel the anxiety rising in her chest, demanding that she do something about the loud voices in her head. But she had to find Peter. So, she paused, tilted her head slightly (as if this would help her), closed her eyes, and focused. She'd get the hang of this. She'd be able to get rid of the other voices. And it worked. Briefly.

Squealing with excitement that she had been able to do so, Jacey ran off towards the Asylum, the very place that she had first met Peter. Should have known that was where they would meet again. It was almost fate, destiny, if you would.

Slowing as she neared the man, who was accompanied by his dog once again, she paused. Did she just walk up to him? Did she wait for him to notice her? What was she supposed to do? Once again, her feet decided for her, as they moved her forward towards the man.

"Hello again, Peter!" she called out, cheerfully.

[Peter Parkman]

The first place Hunter had wanted to go was back to the house. That’s where the blood trailed; that’s where Peter had taken Jacey, to begin with. Hunter then continued to go back to the spot where the attack had occurred, and it took Peter a while to convince the dog to focus on a weaker scent. The dogs were all pampered and were not fully trained as hunting dogs. Peter abhorred violence, so why would he train dogs to hunt? Whatever hunting skill he expected the Great Dane to have, he expected it would be instinctual. Hunter was probably very confused about what Peter wanted him to do.

The two had only managed to wander around the grounds a few times before Hunter let out a booming bark. The large dog strained on its lead Peter let go. It wasn’t that he lacked the strength to hold the behemoth canine back. It was more shock that had him loosening his grip. He half thought he was imagining things, and would not admit that he had actually given up hope that he would ever find the blonde.

In the end, he hadn’t found her. She had found him. And she was smiling like they were old friends meeting on the sidewalk on a sunny day, as if all were right with the world.

Hunter, of course, tried to tackle Jacey to the ground. Peter distractedly called the dog back before he found himself, strangely, wrapping his arms around this girl that he thought must have been ash by now. Dead. An aimless spirit wandering the Shadow Realm with no idea what to do or how to get out. Or that she even could.

”Where did you go? Why did you leave?” he asked. He had suddenly realised what he was doing and dropped the hug like Jacey was a burning hot potato. But the concern and relief melded together in his tone so neatly, that the words themselves may as well have been a hug.

[Jacey (DELETED 6681)]

A squeal erupted from the young woman as the enormous dog attempted to tackle her to the ground. If she hadn't been prepared for it, the dog would have surely barrelled her over and she would have fallen on her rear end, right into the very dirt that she had almost died on.

Jacey pet the dog, leaning down with puckered up lips to give the dog a kiss right on the top of his head. Perhaps that would calm the dog down. Another neat perk of being. . . whatever she was? The feelings that she would get from people, ones she use to think may or may not be right, were almost absolute truths now. Instead of being 50% right, they were 99.9% right. The feeling of anxiety from the dog was just an example. She ran her dainty hands over the dog's fur a couple more times before standing straight up. It didn't take long for the man to approach Jacey and, surprisingly, give her a hug.

Typically, when one gave Jacey a hug, she would throw her arms around the individual and squeeze them for all they were worth. Most times, she was the one who initiated the hug. But this one was different. It seemed more. . . special. . . somehow. Gingerly, Jacey wrapped her arms around the man before he dropped his arms away from her, as she had expected. The hug spoke a lot of things to her. But it mostly stated that he was worried about her. Something sweet. And it allowed for the tension that had built up within her to melt away. Jace felt much more relaxed now than she had since she had almost died.

She smiled once more. "I've been around. I wanted to explore the city that I'm in! It's what I do!" What she didn't say is that she didn't want to be a burden on the man. To save someone's life must be a burden, right? You begin to feel responsible for them? She didn't want to do that to the man. "What have you been doing? Besides looking for me, of course. You had to have done something else. Right?" Hopefully.

[Peter Parkman]

Peter could only stare, somewhat dumbfounded. The girl was so bright and happy even though she’d been turned into a vampire. Had she not noticed? She was acting as if everything was just peachy and nothing had happened at all. As if they were just two friends reuniting after a long time apart. Peter had let go of Hunter’s lead, and now that he was free to wander, the dog trotted around them, sniffing at the grass and probably trying to find somewhere appropriate to pee. Or worse. Peter wasn’t paying much attention to the animal, confident that he wouldn’t go far.

Finally, the words came. The response that Jacey probably wasn’t looking for, but which she was going to get. Because there was no way Peter was going to act like this was just another normal night. He had to try to understand.

”Of course I’ve been looking for you! The whole time,” he said. He was even too frustrated and too flabbergasted to tell her exactly how many minutes and seconds he had spent looking for her. It wouldn’t take too long to calculate, but he felt like he didn’t have the time, nor the mental energy. Even his preference for numbers and keeping exact time seemed trivial in comparison to Jacey’s seeming incomprehension.

”I thought I failed. I thought you were dead. But I turned you into a vampire, Jacey. You disappeared before I even had a chance to explain. To teach you anything. Why would I not be looking for you?! You don’t know anything! Are you okay? Are you hurt? Are you… hungry?” he asked. He had to swallow, pause before that last word. That was the one thing he dreaded when teaching his childer about this world. The fact that they had to drink blood to survive; he was in no way equipped to teach them how to hunt, so he would be showing Jacey where the shops were, from which she could buy blood packs. The same way that he did.

His arms were crossed over his chest; the world felt like it was spinning. Mostly he was relieved. He was a tiny bit angry, of course. But mostly, relieved.

[Jacey (DELETED 6681)]

Her eyes followed after the dog, somewhat involuntarily. The desire to obtain a small dog had grown within the woman after she had been able to play with Peter's dogs. They were wonderful animals. And they had to keep you company. She wouldn't be getting herself a huge dog though. She would get a smaller dog. Maybe a medium sized one. One that would sleep in her bed with her. And that she could take for a walk. And teach tricks. All the things that other people who owned dogs would do with their dogs. She already had her eyes on a dog. A small, cute little guy that she had already decided to name Dodger.

When the man had begun to speak, her eyes snapped back to the man's face. While he spoke, her eyes darted over his features, detecting the agitation, worry, and relief that she could feel from him. Guilt at having run away started to eat at her. Perhaps leaving without a notice was something that she should have reconsidered.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you. I just wanted to give you some space. . ." she frowned slightly, the only negativity that Jacey would show. Negative thoughts and feelings had to place in Jacey's life. She hated the negative feelings and hated when others felt that way. Guilt, embarrassment, anger, sadness. . . they were all feelings that Jacey tended to avoid. Her personal motto was when life handed you lemons, you made lemonade. Optimism was something that she lived by. "I really did just want to go exploring. And I got lost. . ."

It was after she had begun to speak that her brain registered the word vampire. Vampires weren't real, right? But of course, that could only explain why she had burned the first day she had stayed outside. And when she had felt the overwhelming urge to go to sleep, instead of stay up. Jacey, who was typically a morning person, had been a tad bit grumpy that day. The stranger who had given her the bag of blood hadn't said that she was a vampire. Just merely handed her the bag and told her to drink before he took off on her. Jacey nodded her head slowly, more to herself than to the man.

"Ooooh. That would explain it then. . ." she stated. Deciding to address each of Peter's worries, she spoke again, "I'm okay, Peter. Really. I just got a sunburn the first day. Didn't know I couldn't go outside. I'm not hungry. Some kind stranger told me where to get bags of blood, though he didn't say why I would need it. But that would be because I'm a vampire, as you said, right? I'm fine though. Don't worry. And now you've found me!"

Still feeling a bit guilty, Jacey moved up to the man and wrapped her arms around him again, squeezing him slightly. Once crack in the dam appeared, the floodgate behind it had opened. He would have to get use to being hugged, she decided. 'Cause he would be receiving a lot of them.

[Peter Parkman]

It was logic that finally gave out over emotion. As was normally the case, with Peter. If his emotions got too large to wrangle, he reasoned with them. He asked himself why he was feeling a particular way, and figured out whether it was something that could be fixed or something that he should just let go. In this instance, he was angry and ashamed that his childe had got burnt and that she had to rely on some stranger to give her blood. Rather than be angry, Peter mused, he should be thankful, and try to find out who that stranger was. And he shouldn’t be angry about something he couldn’t change. He couldn’t go back.

And how could he stay angry when the blonde was hugging him again? He didn’t push her away and nor did he remain tense. It was almost as if her optimism was catching, and he had to sigh. Within that sigh, all the anger and anxiety fell away. She had said she was fine, and she hadn’t freaked out when she found out what he had done to her. Instead, she hugged him. She was here. Peter shook his head.

”I didn’t find you. I looked, but I didn’t find you. You came back and found me,” he said, precise as always. No point in believing it to be the other way around. If Jacey had stayed lost, if she hadn’t decided to come back, maybe she would never have been found. The thought gave Peter pause, that panic wanting to rise in him again. But no. She was here. She would not get lost.

”You must always trust me, that I will look out for you. I will need space sometimes. I have… my schedule, and I like to keep it. But we are connected now, you and I. Come inside. I will show you a place you can stay, and where you can get blood from. So you don’t go hungry,” he said. Peter had lost control, once. He’d lost too much blood, and the tipping point was reached. He’d hurled himself right over it, and he never wanted to lose control again. Too many people had been hurt. So he was as strict as ever with his feeding habits.

”You must drink at least one a night to keep yourself full. And sane,” he said, very seriously. He had unwrapped his arms from around his new childe, his hands on her shoulders to urge her backward, so that they could walk back to the Asylum together.