A Promise Kept [Kaelyn]

[Jesse Fforde]

OOC: Backdated to September 11, 2015

<Jesse Fforde> The conversation Jesse had had with Kaelyn would not be one that he would forget any time soon. After Kaelyn had left, he didn’t move. He stayed where he was, slouched in his armchair, replaying the conversation in his head. Focused mainly on the problem at hand, but realising, too, that it was the first time Kaelyn had ever stood her ground and argued with him. But, with all the accusations that she had made, he could understand why. He had slipped. Being a sire and a head of a bloodline was a slippery slope. And he was slipping.

One could not demand respect, one had to earn it. One did not earn respect by sitting on a throne and expecting the lackeys to come calling. And no one would get respect from anyone they considered a lackey, anyway. Jesse did not think that any of his bloodline were lackeys and he did not expect them to obey his every command. But he really wished they would, sometimes.

Maybe they’d be more inclined to not get themselves into this ******** if they were more concerned about how he would react. And the only way they were going to gain that concern was if he spent more time with them. If they got to know him, and that his reasons for wanting them to do as they were told were not selfish reasons. But were instead for their own safety and longevity in this life.

But, Jesse was true to his word. The appointed day came around, and he texted Kaelyn half an hour after rising; he’d dressed in casual attire. They weren’t going to do anything formal. And he didn’t want to watch a movie. So he would be making the suggestions.

Are you still a tattoo virgin? You have a choice. Tonight - we’re either going to etch something perfect into your skin, or we can go hunt something tasty. Dinner. It’ll be on me. Or we can do both. Meet you at Gresse’s whenever you’re ready.

<Kaelyn> Talking to Jesse about her recent choices had been something she hadn’t been looking forward to. She knew he’d have his hesitations and questions. However, she had expected that he would understand...that he would support her choices and just offer advice and support. While he had offered the advice...in the form of completely going off on her...he lacked the support part. He would not approve of this joining, but approval isn’t what she needed this time. She knew he was only worried about her best interests and safety. Well not just her, but of the family and vampires as a whole...if things went bad for her, they could go bad for her entire race. She was being selfish in this endeavor and she knew it, but sometimes...heart comes before head. She wanted this, she would have it and nothing Jesse or Doc or...anyone for that matter... would say could stop this.

Jesse seemed to have realized this. Kaelyn had made her decision and was sticking with it. He begrudgingly agreed to meet the guy. But his opinion wouldn’t change. After everything seemed to have calmed and Jesse seemed to have taken in everything she had said, he offered her the one thing she had been wanting. All she wanted was to spend time with her family, him and Victor most of all. Knowing she’d get to spend time with him brought a sense of calm to her.

The few nights between their conversation of going out and it actually happening seemed to take forever. But finally, the evening was here! She was just getting out of bed and heading to the shower when she heard her phone go off. It was Jesse. With a smile and a little chuckle, her little fingers started to tap out her response.

“Yes...I’m still a virgin in many ways. No tattoos on me. I came up with an idea that I really really like, but are we sure that the tattoo will even stay on me? And dinner would be great. I haven’t eaten yet tonight, so I’m huuuuungry! I’m going to shower and get ready. I’ll be there in an hour.”

She hit send and skipped off to finish getting ready for the evening. Ever since Clover had taken her shopping, she had upped her game quite a bit in the fashion department. Tonight she’d wear a cute pleated lavender skirt and a button up white blouse. It wasn’t what most people would call in style...but she liked how it looked. And she had actually been attempting to put an effort into her look lately. She even did her makeup! After tying a bow into her hair, she was ready for the night and headed directly over to Gresse’s.

<Jesse Fforde> They’d already had that discussion, Jesse thought. About whether or not tattoos would stay. He hadn’t heard back from anyone else about their tattoos disappearing, which he would explain to Kaelyn once she arrived. There had been no bad reports thus far of any tattoos disappearing from vampiric skin - and he would point out his own, too, as evidence. If she died? No, probably not. If that limb were cut off? Chances were iffy. Otherwise? Why not?

Although Kaelyn said she was going to be an hour, Jesse headed straight for Gresse’s anyway. He got everything in order that needed to be in order there; made sure the staff were all happy and that the ordering had been done. Nancy did most of the work for him - he’d enthralled her for that reason. A down-and-out soccer mum who was good at organising. A woman who’d lost her son and thus lost her purpose in life, but Jesse had given some kind of purpose back to her. Don’t let my establishment fall to ruins during the daylight hours.

When Kaelyn arrived, Jesse was already in the tattoo parlour. He’d removed his jacket, and welcomed Kaelyn with open arms and a ready smile. No scowling tonight.

“So what was this idea you had, and how can I oblige? I really don’t think it’ll disappear. But if it does, it’ll be a learning curve…” he said.

<Kaelyn> Kaelyn couldn’t remember but someone had told her that tattoos don’t stick to all vampires. So the idea was lodged into her mind, making her think maybe one wouldn’t even work for her at all. She had been thinking about getting one since the first night she was introduced to everyone. Almost all of them had at least one...most had many. She didn’t quite fit in with the bunch. The girl was too sweet, innocent, naive, light...it almost clashed with everyone else. It drove some of them insane. She assumed her bubbly personality was one of the biggest reasons people didn’t seem to want to be around her. How would a tattoo change this? It wouldn’t, but in her mind, she’d at least fit a little more.

Doc and her had bantered and bickered back and forth over her idea for a tattoo. She had explained to him her idea and she thought it was perfect for her and who she was. It was light and flowy and airy...just like her. It was sweet and innocent. To him, it was a tramp stamp that every hooker had. Butterflies could be very cliche...but at least her idea was somewhat original, or so she thought.

Walking through the front door of Gresse’s, she looked around a moment. She found herself here at least once a week, just coming to hang out, hoping to find some company. She didn’t recognize any faces other than the staff, so she just made her way straight for the tattoo parlour. Upon seeing Jesse’s face, her’s instantly lit up. He looked happy...like actually happy for once. Was this for show, or did he actually feel it? She didn’t know, but she’d take advantage of the moment. Arms locked around the man and a kiss was pressed to his cheek.

“I’ve missed you bunches!” She grinned widely before replying to the question he had asked her. “Well I had an idea...you might need to help me adjust it a little. So...like I was thinking about having a larger purple butterfly over my left shoulder blade. And then moving downwards in a sort of umm….a diagonal swarm, have smaller butterflies to represent those I’m closest to.” She was hoping that made sense. Maybe after they sat down and drew it out, it’d sound better.

<Jesse Fforde> Jesse was happy, in his own way. Sure, he wasn’t too happy about how quiet the family was, but he could see that the silence upset Kaelyn, too. In this, they were colleagues. But, he was also taking steps to amend the silence, to try to get everyone back; contacting them, at odd times, on and off. He was happy in himself that he was doing as they had requested of him; he wasn’t siring. He was taking steps to instead get to know those that were already here. And he could not be blamed if they were not forthcoming.

He returned Kaelyn’s hug and lightly ruffled her hair before he let her go. He turned and led her to his desk, where he gestured to the seat on the opposite side. There was a lamp. From beside the desk he plucked a couple of folders, flicked through until he found what he wanted, and presented a few different ideas to Kaelyn; starting points, rather than starting entirely from scratch. Something for her to look at rather than trying to explain something through words.

Butterflies were a common thing, sure, but Jesse aimed to make them original. They didn’t have to be cliche. They could be different, if the wearer allowed.

“Right. So we can go with traditional,” he said, pushing the first piece of paper over to Kaelyn, before the other two followed suit. “Or simple. Or… something a little different. Or a bit of both. Different colours of course, but what kind of style do you like best?” he asked, not at all judging her for her choice. Looking at Kaelyn, he could think of nothing that would suit her more than a perfect butterfly.

<Kaelyn> Hands came up to fix her hair after it had been ruffled. What was up with everyone doing that to it? Probably because it’s so poofy and curly. She didn’t mind so much, but literally almost everyone she knew liked to ruffle her hair. Maybe she’d learn how to tame it a bit and that’d cut down on all the hands wriggling around in her poof. Following him to the desk, she took a seat across. Eyes wandered the room a moment, taking in the decor.

Folders were flopped down onto the desk and he started flipping through them til he found what he wanted. Her eyes scanned the pages as he flipped. Had he done all those tattoos on people? A lot of them looked really good...some looked really cheesey. Even the best tattoo artist could only work with what’s given to him. Once to the drawings of the butterflies, she perked up and was a bit more interested.

First he showed her a traditional butterfly. It was cute and nice...but it looked like she had seen it on a million people already. That wouldn’t work for her. Kaelyn shook her head and slid that picture out of the way. “That won’t work for me. I’m not traditional.” Next came a very simplistic butterfly. It bored her. Once again, her head turned side to side and she pushed it back to him. “That’s boring...and there is not a simple thing about me.” Last he slid an interesting butterfly towards her. She looked it over...it was almost like a watercolor painting. It was fun and different, but not quite what she was going for. The paper was pushed back over to him.

“I like idea of the full spread wings from the traditional. I would like the butterfly to look a bit realistic. But...I don’t want a butterfly you can go and find on a million other women. I want something unique...something that shouts Kaelyn. I think the idea of a butterfly does that in general, however I want something more. Maybe a variation between a traditional butterfly and something created specifically for me. You’re an artist Jesse...I know you can create something brilliant.” She trusted him to come up with something perfect for her. If anyone could, it’d be him. Not only was he an amazing artist, but he knew her so well. He knew what would fit her personality and what would look good on her. “My only concrete idea I have is that it needs to be purple...at least the this one, the one to represent me.”

<Jesse Fforde> Jesse stared at Kaelyn for a while; his mind was trying to compute; the cogs were turning, trying to figure out how to make a realistic butterfly unique. A real butterfly is a real butterfly. It’s only as unique as its species, or its particular sub-genome, or whatever sets them all apart from one another. Jesse rolled his head on his shoulders and tugged the sketch pad toward him; he rifled through his draw to find not only a black marker, but a purple one, too. Just in case.

“This isn’t going to be the finish product - I know you want purple, I’m just trying to get an idea,” he said. His fingers curled around the marker and his hand flew hastily across the page. Being a vampire meant that he could work faster than before. His focus was sharper, his concentration more powerful. And his control was to be unrivalled. The butterfly that came to life had its wings spread, though drawn from such an angle that the body underneath was also visible, detailed right down to the miniscule hairs and the sharp, gripping talons on its little legs. The pattern on the wings, however -- which he would shade in varying degrees of vibrant purple -- was a pattern that would never be found on regular butterflies. It resembled, if one looked closely enough, the ouroboros symbol that Jesse had commandeered for Fforde. He even added shading for shadow beneath the wings, so that when the butterfly was applied to the skin, it would have a 3D effect - it would look like a real butterfly, perched and ready for flight.

“How about something like this? In purple, obviously. What do you want the trail of butterflies underneath to look like? Just smaller variations of the big one?” he asked, turning the page so that Kaelyn could look at it properly.

<Kaelyn> The girl watched him to get to work. Of course she would make it a challenge...nothing ever was easy with her. And this was hopefully going permanently on her body. It had to be perfect in her mind. It had to be perfect for her. She enjoyed the fact that he incorporated the ouroboros look into the design. It made it unique to her and the family. She continued watching him work, admiring how fast and how detailed he was able to get it done.

“I like this one a lot. It’s exactly what I said. It’s realistic, but unique. And on top of that….it’ll have my purple.” She took the paper from him so she could look at it a little more closely. “I would want this one a bit larger than the others. And no….no I don’t want the other butterflies to be just like this one.” Kaelyn slid the paper back over to him. “But for now...I just want to start on this one. For me. The rest will all be done at different points and will all be very different to represent each person I want them for.”

<Jesse Fforde> Jesse nods, and grins.

“Okay then. I’ll just get this cleaned up and transferred,” he said, settled down at the desk to re-draw the image - a little slower, this time, to make sure all the lines are right - just the basic ones, and he’ll fill the rest in as he goes. Some artists like to add lines to help them with their shading, but Jesse’s been doing this so long, now, and with the added preternatural senses, his accuracy doesn’t require training wheels.

As he’s bowed over the project, he momentarily glances up at Kaelyn; his focus is split between the drawing and his young family member.

“How’s everything else? Have you settled into the new body now, or does it still frustrate you?” he asks, his words slow as he makes sure not to mess up the design, his voice pitched at its usual husky tone.

<Kaelyn> As he continued working on redrawing her tattoo, she sat back in her chair, watching. Kaelyn was feeling excited for her first tattoo. She had been hesitant at first because of Doc constantly ragging on it, but she made up her mind, it was her decision, she wanted it.

She perked up at the mention of her new body. Adjusting to it was not easy for her. Accepting the fact that she was no longer the same person was pretty traumatizing for her. If it hadn’t been for her Papi, she may never have accepted herself for who she was now. This new body had many perks to it. She looked older. She felt she could do more with that. And now...she wouldn’t be recognizable to any family or friends from her previous life if she happened to see them in the streets.

“Honestly, I’ve adjusted pretty well now. Sometimes I miss my old body, but this is who I am now and I’ve come to accept that. Plus...I’m pretty sure that Stagger would never have wanted me in my old body. I looked sickly and young. I’m healthy, strong and a bit older in this one.” A smile pulled at her lips as she talked about her boyfriend.

<Jesse Fforde> Jesse momentarily stops what he is doing at the mention of Stagger. A quick glance is given to Kaelyn and her new body - so quick it could be missed. An assessing glance, as it were; she’s not entirely wrong. The body does look older. It looks like the kind of body that Jesse himself would have been attracted to; twenty-one, maybe twenty-two years old? But still, if Stagger is as old as Kaelyn says…

He doesn’t want to have that conversation again, though. Nor does he want to argue with Kaelyn. Again. He recalls the argument they did have and the way she had shouted at him, like she had never done before. In some ways he’s proud that she’s finally standing up for herself, but he hates the reasons why. Rather than encourage her to continue talking about the topic that would only make him angry, he ignores any mention of Stagger completely.

“You were healthy and strong in the other one. For a vampire. I still stand by the opinion that you could probably kick your sire’s *** by now, if you really wanted to,” he said, grinning at Kaelyn and winking. “And the hair? Do you like it yet? It looks good, you know…” he says, gaze now trained upon the parchment and the design coming to life beneath his fingertips.

<Kaelyn> She snapped out of her thoughts of Stagger when her sire was mentioned. He thought that she could probably kick Victor’s ***. Kaelyn quite literally burst into laughter. It was a sweet melodic sound that echoed around the room. “Jesse, I could have kicked his butt then and now...I have no hesitation or doubt that I could easily take on my sire. Whether it was with just hands, with guns, blades or powers. I have far outranked him as a vampire. I love him beyond words...but I have worked so hard to get where I am and I’ll keep working to build myself up even more.” It was sad that all of this was true, but facts are facts. She wished that he would stay awake, that he would work harder, become something strong...strong enough to protect her and her sister if it ever came down to it.

As for her hair, fingers instantly started running through the poofy curls. That was the one thing she hated most out of her entire new body. It was wild and bouncy and curly. Papi loved it...it was one of the reasons he chose the body he did for her. “Well, I like it better. I’ve learned different ways to tame it...make it not so poofy all the time. When Clover took me shopping, I found some product that helps keep it straight after I put a flat iron to it.” She blushed at the compliment to it. She would never get used to compliments. “Thank you...I’m glad you like it.”

Her eyes then went back to the paper her tattoo was being drawn on. “What does it feel like to get a tattoo? Will it hurt?” That was probably a silly question, especially for a vampire to ask. She had lost limbs and been shot and stabbed at countless times now. Heck, she had been ganged up on and killed. She would be able to handle a tattoo easily.

<Jesse Fforde> Jesse stares at Kaelyn for a good ten seconds. He cants his head to the side, before shaking it.

“Why would you want to straighten it? Girls these days all have their hair straight. Even if it’s already straight, they straighten it some more,” he says. He shrugs. It’s completely up to Kaelyn, of course, and he gets that she wants it straight because her hair was straight before. It’s familiar. But still. “Maybe you’ll get used to it. It’s different, y’know? Wild. You gotta be a bit wild sometimes,” he says the last part distractedly, as he adds a few finishing touches to the design. He turns it so that it’s facing Kaelyn.

“Is that size okay?” he asks. “As for whether it’ll hurt or not… sure. I’ve had dozens and it still hurts. Like someone taking a branding iron to your skin… though not that bad. That’s a bit much. But it’s like a burning sensation. Compared to the pain you’d have already gone through in this life thus far, I’m sure you’ll be fine,” he says. “And anyway, the shoulder isn’t as bad as other places. Other parts of the body are more sensitive, more susceptible to pain,” he explains. In any case, he’ll try to be swift.

<Kaelyn> Her shoulders lifted up in a shrug to his question. Maybe she didn’t overly like the curls because she wasn’t giving them a chance. Since the second she saw them, she detested the bouncy things on top of her head. So many others seemed to like them, so maybe she should stop trying to tame them and just let them be. “I guess it’s just because...I’m not used to bouncy curls. It’s blonde just like my hair used to be, so if I straighten it, it’s a lot like it used to be completely. I’ll give it a try. Maybe it matches my new assets to my personality.” She offered the man a cute smile before turning her look to the paper he was showing her.

“Yupp, that’ll be perfect for me I think.” Her shoulders shrugged again. “I think I’ll be able to handle that pain, it doesn’t sound like much compared.” She glanced around the room, looking for where exactly he’d be doing this tattoo on her. “Where are we doing this? Do I need to take my shirt off or something or...I’ll just keep myself covered somehow.” She still was quite modest about her body, not really wanting anyone to see it.

[Kaelyn]

<Jesse Fforde> New assets to her personality, she says. And Jesse has to smirk. What would those new assets be? Stubbornness, maybe? A new sense of confidence? Jesse had never wanted to gather under him an army of minions, of lackeys to do everything he said. But, **** it if he doesn’t know what to do when they defy his orders. The greatest fear he has is that he’ll be left alone - it makes it hard to actually punish any of them if they defy him, for fear that he will push them away. Hell, he hadn’t even done anything to Rhett or his date yet, and he’s already gone. To ******* Germany. Another one bites the ******* dust.

He doesn’t mention any of this, of course. Instead, he just nods. “It’s best if there’s nothing to obscure the process,” he says, nodding to the chair at the back of the parlour; it’s laid out flat, covered in plastic to keep it all above board and hygienic, with its plastic-covered pillow at the head of it. He stands, and wanders over to the area, where there’s a folded screen that he can pull from the wall, keeping the chair from prying eyes. From one of the cupboards he retrieves a smallish white sheet, crisp and clean. He hands it to Kaelyn.

“Here, to cover yourself. If you lay face down,” he says. He can’t help the grin. Finally, tattooing Kaelyn. Of course, after she takes the sheet he’d leave the area, giving her privacy while she gets situated.

<Kaelyn> Stubbornness was definitely not a new trait of her’s. It may show more now, but she has always been a very stubborn girl. Victor had always just been the one to see it most because he brought it out in her most. Confidence however...that was new for her. She was finding her legs, feeling more secure about her place and pretty much everything about herself. Independence was another new trait of hers. She didn’t feel like she had to constantly be clinging at someone’s leg in order to feel safe and secure. She adventured out into different parts of the city on her own, learning and exploring. On top of that, she didn’t feel she had to check in every moment of every day. She was responsible for herself and would take care of anything that came of her own actions. The girl still loved her family beyond words, respected Jesse and would do everything in her power to make sure she was doing what was right by her family, but some things just couldn’t be helped. Her new boyfriend being one of those things.

She eyed the chair he nodded to. Kaelyn felt very exposed here...well she’d feel that way anywhere that wasn’t completely private. However, he had a sheet for her. At least she’d be able to cover up. Teeth tugged at her bottom lip a little nervously as she followed him over to the chair. “Thank you, Jesse.” She took the sheet from him and waited for him to leave before stripping from the top half of her clothing. Wrapping herself in the sheet, the opening to the back, she climbed up onto the table chair thing and lay down, face first. When she was ready, she called out for him.

“Alright...you can come back now.” Excitement and nerves swam in her stomach. This would be her first tattoo, but certainly not her last. The idea she had for it could take years to finish. Or could possibly never be finished. This was something she could always add more to.

<Jesse Fforde> While Kaelyn is readying herself, Jesse does the same. He gathers all the inks that are required and places them on a trolley, along with the machine, the gloves, and the copious cotton swabs. When Kaelyn tells him that she is ready, he rolls the trolley to the shielded area. He doesn’t take a stool, yet. Moving around the chair, he makes sure that Kaelyn’s thick hair is pushed out of the way before he carefully places the design upon her bare shoulder, lighting pressing it down so that it sticks. Afterwards he picks up a damp bit of cotton to press over the paper in the pertinent areas, so that the design is transferred to the skin.

Jesse is somewhat curious what Doc went through to acquire this body for Kaelyn, and how he could have been certain that it was the body that Kaelyn would return to. If the master Doctor, knower of all things, could manage such thing - if he could do enough research to be able to know how a Mystic’s movements work, when coming back to life, how could he not help Jesse? At least, it’s what Jesse assumes, having not heard back from Doc. And, stubborn as he is, and as hard as it was to go to him for help to begin with, Jesse’s not about to follow up. **** him. He’ll figure **** out on his own, as he always ends up doing.

Anyway, it’s not worth thinking about, there and then. The skin for this body is perfect. It’s not flawed in any way, and it would prove a delight to work with. Jesse peels away the paper, doing everything in silence. It’s what he’s accustomed to, while working - silence. It’s his default professional attitude. From his pocket he pulls his phone swiping the screen to bring up the camera. He holds it up high and takes a picture of the temporary design, a wide few of Kaelyn’s shoulder and neck. He holds the phone out for Kaelyn.

“How’s the placement? Is that where you want it?” he asks. He can go again if it’s not right.

<Kaelyn> Kaelyn had no idea how Doc knew what to do with her body when she was coming back. How did he know that it would all work? She had asked him this all when in the Shadow Realm, only to be reassured that he knew what he was doing. She trusted him and everything turned out alright. Having asked a few questions about her body, she knew a little about who this person was before it was her...she knew slightly how Doc had obtained it. But, she honestly didn’t want to know too much. She didn’t want to feel guilty about it. To Kaelyn, Doc seemed to know everything on almost every topic...at least any topic that mattered. He astounded her with his knowledge and learned more from him every day.

The trolley was filled with so many tools that were going to be used on her for her tattoo. It almost looked like a doctor tray with all of the sterilized equipment and the cotton swabs. If she didn’t know what she was getting herself into, it might be a little intimidating. But for her, she was ready for this. Victor had explained the process of tattoos before and she trusted Jesse.

Taking the phone for a moment, she examined the picture. This was the first time she had seen her body from that angle. Eyes blinked a moment as she noticed a small freckle right at the crook of her neck. Her brow furrowed. That’s strange. She had that same exact freckle in that same exact spot on her true body. Was that a weird coincidence or did that have to do with the mystic magic stuff within her. For the moment she shrugged it off and looked at the tattoo location. It was perfect. “I like it just like that. It’s just right.”

<Jesse Fforde> In Jesse’s opinion, there’s plenty that Doc doesn’t know, too. There are specific things that Jesse himself has asked, and has got no response. None beyond I don’t know, anyway. Jesse, being stubborn, isn’t about to go chase it up. It was hard enough on his pride to begin with, and that was months ago. Now, he wears a mask of strength, and throwing himself at the mercy of a man who he’s beginning to dislike (for territorial reasons) just does not appeal.

Jesse nods as Kaelyn approves the placement. He takes his phone back and puts it aside; he won’t look at it again until they’re done. Though the only person who texts him is Kaelyn, and she’s with him. So there’ll probably be nothing to check.

“Okay,” Jesse says, pulling up a stool and preparing the instruments on the tray beside him; he pulls on the gloves even though vampiric skin is not as susceptible to infection - it’s habit, and Jesse is a stickler for the rules. He dips the needle into the ink - black, first - and tests the machine. It’s a pedal machine, controlled by his foot. The intense buzz of the machine is heard.

“You let me know if it’s too much and I’ll stop,” he says. Another habit. Something he is obliged to say to all of his customers. After which, however, he does not hesitate to lean over, to descend into an intense focus; the machine starts its incessant whirring, and within seconds, the needle assaults the skin.

<Kaelyn> The girl chewed on her bottom lip a bit nervously, knowing he was about to get started. She could hear him preparing everything, getting the cart ready with inks and...whatever else was needed. As his foot pressed down on the pedal and the buzzing sounded, a knot swelled up in her stomach. She was nervous, but this was definitely something she wanted.

This would be just fine...it couldn’t hurt anymore than losing a limb, which she had lost plenty of. With his reassurance that he’d stop if it was too much, she took in a deep, unneeded breath and steadied herself, relaxing against the table for him to work.
With that first prick, eyes widened a little and she tensed just a bit, but quickly let her body relax again. There wasn’t a need to be worried or scared. It really wasn’t that painful. In her human life, this probably would have been much less tolerable. Kaelyn closed her eyes, resting there as he worked, letting him do what he needed.

<Jesse Fforde> The slight reaction is expected; it’s the same on everyone, mostly, even those who’ve had tattoos in the past. The initial touch of the needle to the skin is always a shock - small or big, depending on the customer. Soon, however, Kaelyn relaxes, and a small smile spreads Jesse’s lips.

Kaelyn, who is most known in Fforde for being the one who talked a lot - a lot more than the rest of them, the majority of which claimed to be loners - is now silent. And Jesse smiles, not because he does not welcome Kaelyn’s chatter, but because this is how he is accustomed to working. All his tattooing life, until recently, he’d been mute. If customers talked to him, they either didn’t expect a response, or they were stupid. Either way, Jesse just continued working and, of course, didn’t respond.

Now that he has a functioning voice, however, it’s as if the small talk is expected of him. Most of the time, he discourages it; his responses are short and terse. He’ll be friendly before and after the appointments (it’d be bad for business otherwise) but during? He’d prefer they just shut up. Either Kaelyn had lost the will to talk, or she knows this about Jesse. Either way, he’s happy for the chance to focus.

There are no interruptions while he works; it takes a two to three hours, during which he swaps the machines a couple of times for the different techniques, refilling one of the colours just the once. At the end, he carefully cleans the area with antiseptic, swiping away all the excess ink and blood seepage. He removes his gloves and tosses them in the trash, before laying a comforting hand over the back of Kaelyn’s neck. The fingers squeeze just slightly, in case she’s drifted into some kind of trance. It’s not a touch he’d use on any other customer; just on this one, because he knows her. Even then, it’s a rare kind of touch from Jesse.

“Done,” he says softly, standing to get his phone - to take another picture and hand it to Kaelyn so she can see the finished product.

<Kaelyn> She did know him, pretty well, she thought. Kaelyn had figured he’d want to concentrate on his art, not having to worry about keeping up with conversations at this time. She had the whole of eternity to spend time with him and talk his ear off...but right now, she was comforted in just being his canvas. Words were not needed while he worked.

If it had been any other day and they had been out doing something rather than this, she probably wouldn’t shut up. She could seriously probably go on for hours without break. There was always some new development to discuss. Always something she had been reflecting on that she wanted to talk about, or something she just wanted to rant about. She could go on and on and on. And with Jesse...she has always been able to just talk to him. She didn’t feel she needed to hold back with him, that maybe she was doing too much talking. He always listened, was always there for her. It was one of the things she loved most about him...the fact that he was there for her and she could count on him to always be that person.

But for now, she relaxed, nearly dozing off on the chair as he worked on her. For the first time in her life, she let her mind completely empty. She blacked everything out and focused on the repetition of the needle. The feeling of it and the buzzing of the tool at work drowning everything else out. She felt the cool antiseptic against her skin and then the light squeeze to her neck. Smiling softly to herself at the small affection, she sat up, holding the sheet around her front half. He was done and she was ready to see the piece.

<Jesse Fforde> There are no messages on the phone when Jesse picks it up. Kaelyn’s with him, so of course there’s going to be no messages. He even laughs at the fact.

“You know you’re the only one who ever messages me, Kae? It’s nice. Please don’t ever stop messaging me,” he says. It might sound as if he’s half joking but he’s really not. The road does go both ways, but Jesse gets around to it. He sends messages to check up on people - to make sure they’re still alive. The conversations sometimes don’t amount to much. But they’re there, at least.

He brings up the camera app and focuses, tapping the screen to capture Kaelyn’s new tattoo in the good light. He then hands the phone over, the purple colours vibrant as they blend together, dark into light. He circles around in front of her, chewing on his thumbnail. As much of an ego as he might have when it comes to his work, this is always the point at which he’s a little nervous. It’s there, in the skin. Permanent. If they don’t like it, then it’s harder to change. And this is Kaelyn’s first. He wants her to like it.

<Kaelyn> She was surprised to hear that she was the only one who ever messages him. He is the head of the family. You would think people would be running to him constantly with problems or exciting news or just to spend time with him. At least that’s what she did. She assumed it was normal for all of them. However, upon thinking about it...no one really ever messaged her. “I don’t think people really like texting. No one ever texts me either...unless I bother them first.” Her brow furrowed at that thought. It’s true...if she didn’t text someone, she could probably go a week or so without hearing from anyone. Other than maybe Papi. If she wasn’t clinging to him, he might worry and reach out. Same with Jesse...but no one else.

The girl was excited to see what the finished tattoo looked like. She waited patiently for the camera to take the picture and then happily took it from him to look it over. It was perfect...exactly as she had imagined it would be. With one arm, she kept the sheet propped up and with the other she wrapped it around Jesse, giving him a lopsided hug. “Thank you...I love it. It’s absolutely perfect!” She giggled in delight. This to her felt like a step closer to growing up...which she was so ready to do. “As for the texting you...I can promise you that it won’t ever stop. If it does...something bad happened and you should probably worry. ..Like the last time I disappeared.”

<Jesse Fforde> Jesse nodded. He wouldn’t forget; he’d keep tabs. If he didn’t hear from Kaelyn in a few days, he’d make sure to get a hold of her. In the back of his mind he told himself he should text her on a whim every now and again, too. He didn’t particularly like being the one to always initiate conversation, but that didn’t mean he should allow Kaelyn to do all the work for them. He found it odd that she didn’t hear from anyone either. For a few seconds he loathed them all. Even himself. They took Kaelyn for granted, and it was hardly fair on the girl.

As she exclaimed her excitement over the tattoo, Jesse grinned. It was good when his clients were happy; when he could tell that they were really happy, and not just faking it. It was a skill one learned, over the years. Easier now, somehow, that he was a vampire.

“It’ll heal really fast, but just let me put the ointment on anyway,” Jesse said, reaching for the oil he’d brought with him; there was also a roll of cling-wrap and some masking tape. He began applying the oil to the fresh tattoo, gently dabbing it in place. “Keep this on for a few hours. I’ll give you a tube of this stuff - keep applying it while it heals. Normally I’d say a week or two, but because we’re… “ he shrugged. “It’s really only going to be a night,” he said. The ointment probably wasn’t needed at all, but it couldn’t hurt.

<Kaelyn> It was something she had grown accustomed to. If she wanted something, she would have to go and get it. She couldn’t rely on others to bring it to her. That included conversation and company. It didn’t really bother her so much that the others didn’t make the first steps ever. She just enjoyed when they would reply or agree to spend time with her. Sometimes she worried she bothered them too much, that she was becoming annoying...but only rarely.

She wrinkled up her brow as he pulled out the plastic wrap and tape. What the heck was he doing with that? She really was new to the whole tattoo thing, not realizing it needed to be covered up, that it needed time to heal. It was a wound...of course it would need to. She always thought of it as kind of like...just drawing a picture on skin. Her blonde head nodded at his directions. Keep it covered, apply ointment as needed. That was easy enough and for some reason she messed something up...it’s not like he’d be far. “Okie doke...anything else I need to know or do?”

After he had finished covering it, she turned in the seat so she could face him, keeping the sheet pulled over her to keep her front half covered up. “Thank you for doing this Jesse...I really like it lots. And it means so much more because you are the one that did it. I think you’ll be my only tattoo person forever!” She offered him one of her overly cute and bubbly smiles.

<Jesse Fforde> Jesse laughed and shook his head.

“No, there’s nothing else you need to know. It’s pretty straightforward. Don’t use any scrub on it. Don’t get it dirty. Don’t go getting it sunburned,” he said with a mischievous smirk. These are the thing he had to tell humans, mostly. Don’t go out in the sun too much, unless they wanted it to fade; or if they did go out in the sun, make sure they always wore lotion to keep it protected.

“Now now. Forever is a long time and you might find artists whose style you like better. It won’t offend me, it’s a matter of taste. We all have different techniques,” he said. In the beginning, his techniques and mostly mirrored those of the guy he’d been apprenticed too. Over time, though, he had developed his own style.

“But thank you. I’m flattered. I’m glad you like it.”

<Kaelyn> Little did he know, she had fallen asleep in the sun more than once. She would have to be more careful. A big smile pulled at her lips and she leaned in, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “I will take really good care of it. Plus you’ll be around often enough to help make sure I’m not messing it up.” She kept the sheet pulled tight around her, covering her up. “Can I get dressed now?” It was pretty weird to be topless around someone else, even if that someone else was family.

Sliding from her seat, she didn’t wait for a response and she grabbed the little divider thing that blocked anyone from seeing her and slipped around to the other side of it. Clothing was put back on and she felt much more comfortable. “Well...I really like what you’ve done. But you may be right. Eventually I could find someone else who does really good work that I enjoy too.” She thought for a moment. “However...with this tattoo...it’s going to be a large piece, covering a large part of my back. All pieces will be done by you.”

The screen was pushed back to where it belonged and she folded up the sheet, setting it on the place she had been sitting. Kaelyn really was quite thrilled with her new tattoo. “Thank you again, Jesse! I really want to go show it off now!” She had one person in particular she wanted to show it to. Finding her boyfriend would be her first stop after she left here.

<Jesse Fforde> “Of course you can get dressed,” Jesse said. As if that was really a question to ask. While Kaelyn pulled the divider across and re-acquainted herself with her clothing, Jesse started to clean up the ink pots, always meticulously pedantic about keeping his workplace tidy and hygienic.

As Kaelyn talked, he crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned idly against the corner of his desk, one ankle crossed over the other. He had suggested multiple artists because his own tattoos had been done by multiple people; they were all different, and some cohesive. If someone was looking for a sleeve, generally it made sense to use one artist. One sleeve, with one theme. But if you didn’t mind a bit of mish-mash, then go with whoever.

“Go, flee. Be free. Run wild,” he said, laughing at Kaelyn’s excitement as she came out from behind the screen. “I’ll see you at home. I’ll finish up here,” he said. There were a few places he had yet to wipe down and clean before he turned the lights off for the night.

<Kaelyn> Petite arms were wrapped around Jesse in a tight hug and glossy pink lips pushed to his cheek, kissing it lightly. “I’ll see you later at home!” With that, she released the man and was on her way out the front door and into the night. Picking her phone out of her pocket, she sent a quick text to see if her boyfriend was home or at work and with his reply not long after that, she bee lined her way to the nearest transit and was gone.