Am I Suicidal? (Jessie and Helsing)

Jessie smiled and tried to ignore the jolt in her heart each time that Helsing was mean to her, she knew he didn't mean it and she also knew that she needed to stop letting onto the fact she was upset so she just swam on.

Humming lightly to herself Jessie did a couple of handstands in the water and some rollovers, getting a little bored after having all this time talking to someone.

Not really knowing what to do Jessie treads water looking at the island that Helsing had told her about, there was definately something creepy about it she just didn't know what. As she looked at it her mind drifted to the creatures up on it and she shuddered.

As soon as she felt an hand on her arm Jessie screamed so loudly that her voice was hoarse kicking put in every direction.

"HELSING HELP!!!"

Then she realised it was Helsing and frowned.

"That wasn't funny."

It was so easy to sneak up on and scare someone who was in their own little world. To ignore the temptation would have been futile.

He knew it was mean of him, but he couldnt help but laugh.
"Sorry, but it was pretty funny to me, and i've just taught you a life lesosn there; always be on your guard and expect the unexspected. You never know what life might throw your way."

He ruffled her hair and splashed a big wave of water on her before turning and quickly backstroking away. His body was covered in scars and burns and lashes. He ducked back under the water and circled around Jess like a shark, tugging or poking at her legs as a wind up.
He resurfaced and splashed her again. "Just so you know Jess, if there had have been a monster in this lake, i would have come to your rescue, even though im more likely to die than you. Dont ask me why though."

He threw a glance at the island.
"Its a bad idea. The mist alone could be a poisonous gas of some kind. I'd stay away."

Something brushed against his leg and his reached down into the water and pulled up a sodden old teddy bear with a name sewed onto its belly, although the filth made it hard to read.
"..Kora..? Huh.. A kid must have drowned out here a few years ago or something."

Jessie pouter and folded her arms while her legs worked underwater, smiling as she got over the shock of Helsing jumping out at her, pouting even more at him as he splashed her Jessie scowled and waited for him to circle back to her.

"You did Helsing but you didn't have to scare me so much did you?"

She asks, still pouting at him, but as soon as she got sight of his body in the dark Jessie bit her lip and tried not to look worried, Helsing had got those scars from killing her own kind, but strangely that wasn't the reason she was worried.

"Wow Helsing...you're really battle hardened aren't you?"

Jessie smiled and shook her head. She wasn't really thinking of going out there just wondering about it. "Don't worry I wasn't going to go over there, I'm too scared!"

The teddy in the water creeped her out a bit and Jessie swam away from it, over to the shallow side right by the beach.

"That's creepy..."

Helsing chuckled at Jessie's pouting.
"Erm...yes, yes I did, otherwise there's no fun in it" He winked and pulled a tongue at her to show he was trying to have a joke.

He clocked her expression and shrugged.
"Don't look so worried kid. And there are people who have survived a lot worse than me. This is the body of a hunter who has only lived half his life. I still have plenty of scars to collect yet. But they're like medals to a hunter. Any bones and fangs we take are additional trophies. You have to toughen up in a war torn world like this Jess, or you get eaten alive"

"Good, at least I know you're a girl with sense."

He smirked evilly and moved like a shark after her.
"Oooooh...evil ghost teddy is coming to get you Jess...its lonely in the lake..."
Yea, he didn't intend for his voice to sound that scary. He really shouldn't try to joke...

He chased her about with the teddy for a bit and then launched it back into the lake.
"Good to now my throw isn't bad. That got some distance. The evil zombie teddy of the lake can terrified you no more Jess"

Jessie giggled and had to agree with him, there would be no point in letting herself be scared if she wasn't scared properly, Helsing certainly was a character and she wanted to know why he was so...bi polar with his emotions...

"I guess you're right Helsing, and I'm sorry but I just can't help it I get worried when I see that people I like are hurt..."

Furrowing her brow Jessie gasped and placed a hand on her fangs as if protecting them from some hunters pliers that could tear them out of her mouth at any moment.

It wasn't as bad as what Helsing started to taunt her about, the voice that he used made Jessies hair stand on end and swimming as fast as she could away from him and the teddy she crashed right into a rock banging her head. Pouting she climbed up the rock and sat on top.

"You can't get me, nah nah na na nah!!!" she taunted.

Jessie smiled and watched the teddy fly off into the water:

"Good, if the owner did die, you probably shouldn't mess with her stuff..,"

He knew she must be wondering why he was so interchangeable. It was just the way he was; he didn't like making it easy got people to read him. Or maybe he was just insane.

"You don't need to apologize or worry about me Jess. And you shouldn't like me...after tomorrow, it would be better if you told other vampires you despise me. You're a good kid Jess, but you can't afford to care too much. Your soft heart will only be exploited in a world like this."

He couldn't help but laugh and at the same time feel guilty when he saw her cover her fangs.
"Don't worry kid, your teeth are safe as long as they stay away from my neck and wrists"

His face dropped with worry when he saw her whack her head. After he got back to her his hand stroked over her head to check she was ok. He knew Vamps healed quickly but still.
"Nah, you're alright, aren't you Jess?" He kissed her head were there was a small bump and ruffled her hair. Wait, why did he do that..?

He shrugged. "Fmeh, unless she's the undead she can't hurt me so I don't care. I wonder what else is floating out there."
He swan back out there and dove under the water. The water was too black to see so he had to just feel around.which was dangerous. He broke the lifeless surface of the water as he surfaced again and then suddenly yelled and plummeted back under like he was being pulled down.

Jessie nodded her head, she knew that she shouldn't like him but she did and she know that tomorrow she shouldn't tell anyone that he's been so kind to her so she would do as her instincts told her, just keep her feelings inside.

"Yes, I won't tell anyone that you've been this nice to me, I'll always like you Helsing, there's no way that I would ever change who I am even if I will be used for it."

A small smile graced her lips and as Helsing came over to her it grew, only getting bigger as she felt him kiss the top of her head, ruffling her hair, he was exactly like her father had been just a bit more scary, Jessie rested her head on his arm until he moved away.

"Thank you Helsing..." she whispered quietly

Jessie yelped as she saw him go under and as soon as she could she jumped into the water, swimming swiftly over to him and trying to peer through the water to find him, ducking under the water and shutting off the valve to her lungs she stayed under water searching for him.

"Helsing!"

She cried as she found him and latched her arm around him, using her vampiric strength to heave him up to the top of the water, onto the side and Jessie looked at him cautiously.

"Good.... You shouldn't do though...but fine, I won't try to change you... You're just as stubborn as I am"

"You're welcome kid. But hey you, stop smiling." He laughed.

He felt her dive in the lake and grab him and played his best dead impression ever. He knew he'd took it too far with the joke and she wouldn't find it funny but that was just his cruel humour.
He was motionless for a minute before he bolted awake "Rah!"

He pulled a stopwatch out of his trouser pocket.
"Not bad, you were pretty quick, if I had have been drowning you would have got to me. But you may also have gotten hurt yourself so you have to start thinking of yourself more kid, coz kindness will get you killed. I'm sorry, I know that wasn't funny. But what would make you want to save an asshole like me anyway?"

He donned his coat and shirt again and dried off by the fire.

Jessie looked over him as he lay on the shore, placing her head on his chest she was just trying to hear if his heart was still beating but as she did so Helsing sat up and scared her witless, shrieking she punched him right in the nose.

"AHHHHHH!!!"

She jumped up and ran away from him, then, shock wearing off she growled and folded her arms around her chest and Jessie felt herself getting genuinely angry about all this teasing, all this trying to scare her.

"Helsing, you're a jerk. That's really not funny."

Jessie sat down with her back to him and hugged her arms around her legs making herself curl up into a little ball, after using all her strength in getting him back, as well as that she was angry, more so than she wanted him to see.

"I saved you because I like you, and I dont think that anyone should die needlessly."

Admittedly, he wasn't expecting the punch, or for her to be able to punch so hard, but he'd been hurt worse before and laughed as he cracked his nose back into place.
"Work on that right hook of yours and you'll be quite the formidable opponent one day"

He could see he had pissed her off...
"Hunters are supposed to be jerks kid, not friendly comedians. It's something you'll just have to get used to I'm afraid"

He sighed and stood behind her.
"Don't be angry Jess, it was a joke. And it'd take a lot more than this lake to finish a tough old bastard like me off."
He sat next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"I'm not used to being around people Jess. I know I'm a dick, but you need to hate me kid, not think of me as a dad or friend or anything; its for your own safety. In my own weird way, I'm just looking out for you"

Jessie gazed over at Helsing and hugged her knees to her even tighter than she had been, laying her head on her knees so that she didn't have to look at Helsing anymore, she was hurt but not because he had made her look like a fool three times.

"Okay Helsing...okay, I know that your supposed to be but maybe you shouldn't have been so nice to me if you're going to keep shifting and changing whether you like me or want to push me away."

Turning to look at him Jessie bit her lip, the truth of the matter being that she was thinking of him as a friend, that she wanted him to be more than a one time meeting and she had thought that he wanted that too since he had given her the pendant.

"Well forgive me if I don't want to, I don't want to hate you and I won't, I've never hated anyone and I'm not going to start now. I thought you wanted to be friends, but obviously not."

Jessie smiled at him and nodded her head, she hung her head a bit and looked at her shoes, not wanting to show him how sad she was.

"It's okay though, as long as you're happy..,"

He felt like an asshole seeing her so upset and scratched the back of his neck.
"I'm sorry Jess. But again, I'm teaching you a lesson that not everything stays the same or it what it seems and other people can be hard to trust so don't get so easily attached right away. I push everyone away Jessie...it was better for them...and it made it easier for me to survive... The only people I've ever got close to died... I'm bad luck kid"

"Well you should. Or you should at least pretend you do. I don't make friends kid. I have acquaintences. This line of work and attachments don't mix. I can't be your friend...but that doesn't mean I won't sorta think of you as one."

"Me and happiness haven't coincided for a looong time... And I don't get a kick out of making other people sad you know; it does make me feel like a prick.."

"I'll go to sleep now so I can't bully you then. Nite kid"
He returned to the fire and didn't face her. He had his hat covering his face and his crossbow attached to his arm. He steadied his breathing and thought about the same thing he always thought about before he went to sleep; his family and home before the fire. The dream was always the same, and always woke him up after 4 hours, which would be just before the sun came up.

Jessie nodded her head as Helsing moved away to sleep, biting her lip she hung her head letting a few tears mist in the corners of her eyes, she had thought that she had found a real friend in Helsing, and that he wanted her to be his friend but now it seemed that she was just a bit of fun.

Moving away from him she swam back out to the lake and she looked for where the teddy had gone, finding it she picked it up and swam back to shore, dead or not this girl still deserved a ritual, something to ease her spirit wherever it was.

"I'm sorry Kora..."

Jessie created a small pile of rocks and placed the teddy on top of it. Lighting a small candle she put it in-between them and knelt by it for a few moments.

"Should I stay? Or should I go?"

She whispered looking at Helsing, biting her lip Jessie climbed a tree and swing her legs down from the branches.

Even though he didn't usually give a damn about anyone but himself, he felt bad, and knew he'd have to make it up to Jess. And he did feel like an asshole for upsetting her.

He could hear her moving around even half asleep. He shook his head and couldn't get why Jess cared so much; he thought the teddy freaked her out, be he accepted that was just the way she was.

For a human, he had good hearing.
"If you want to stay, stay. If you want to leave, leave." He muttered sleepily. "But for what its worth...I wouldn't mind if you stayed..."

His breathing slowed as he began to drift off, but the dream was different. This time he was thinking of Jessie too. And he wanted to protect her. He mumbled in his sleep.
"No... Get away from her you bastards... Run kid..."
He bolted up and fired 3 shots from his gun before he woke up properly.

He rubbed his head.
"Augh... No more vodka for me... Ok kid, come on, we might as well head for the nearest town now because I think this lake is screwing with my head... Jess... Jess?"

He stood up and cracked his neck and back as he looked about for her.
"Jess come on...I'm not in the mood for hide and seek"

Jessie had gotten bored of simply sitting there for hours so she went for a walk around the clearing where Helsing slept, she had checked in on him a few times, not like he needed her help but still she didn't want him to think that she had gone so she moved something each time she came back just in case he awoke.

"This is cutting it fine...I need shelter now..."

Biting her lip, Jessie went back to Helsing and wrote him a hurried note saying:

'Gone to find shelter,
Hope that I get to some before sun up!
Come find me if you can, if not meet me here tonight.

Jessie x'

Signing it in a flourish Jessie hurried off to find some shelter, a few miles off there was a cave, slipping inside she saw it had recently been inhabited by another vampire, perhaps last day? Empty now Jessie stayed in the shadows just hoping that Helsing would find her.

"Should I try to sleep?" she asked herself.

He searched around and cut see the first indication of dawn before he read her note.
"Stupid kid, the sun can't hit you in this clearing, its sheltered!"

He wasn't coming back to this place, and usually he didn't go looking for people, yet he went in search of Jess, worried that something may have happened to her.
He called her name as he headed through the forest. He wished vampires were easier to track.

After about an hour, the sun pierced the dark blue sky and began to rise. It stretched across the woods and seemed to point his way to the mountain cave. Gun at the ready he went inside.
"Jess? You in here kid...?"

He found her asleep. He didn't think a vampire could ever look sweet. Not wanting to wake her or wait until nightfall, he took off his coat and hat and wrapped her up so not a single inch of her flesh showed, then he picked her up in his arms and carried her. The nearest town was only 2 or 3 miles away.

Although it'd take longer, he made sure to stick to sheltered paths with thick overgrowth of trees overhead to keep out the sun.

Jessie moaned in her sleep, the sound before waking up and trying to go back to sleep, but she found that she couldn't return to sleep because she seemed to be moving, oh no, she thought because the only people out now around here would be hunters and maybe the odd were.

Not daring to peek out of the blackness she found herself in Jessie wondered if she should try to talk to the person carrying her, maybe it was Helsing.

"H-Helsing is that you?"

Jessie curled her fingers softly into the persons stomach still quite tired from the sleep Jessie snuggled her head into his chest and yawned the largest yawn she had in a good long while.

"Where are you taking me?"

Shaky her voice asked this, she didn't want to be too informal with the person carrying her just in case it wasn't Helsing and she needed to kiss some serious ass to get him to let her go free...

He felt her stir and could feel her go tense.
"Yea kid, its me, relax. You still tierd? Try to sleep, my hat and coat should keep the sun off you until i reach the nearest town."

He set her down carefully in the sat leant up against a tree and stretched and took a break for a while since he had walked a mile all up hill.
"Hey Jess, do you need any water or food or anything..? Or can you wait until we reach the town?"

He didnt give her time to answer becuase he spotted a group of hunters and covered her mouth under the hat and shielded her.
"Shh... We need to stay out of site a sec..."

He watched and waited until he left before he picked her up and quickened the pace. After about an hour of solid walking they reached a town; but it had a gate, which meant they checked the people out who entered and left so it was an all human town... Damn.. He'd have to be careful here...

He approached the gate and a man stopped him.
"State your name and business and explain what you have there sir."
He wasnt going to give them the truth. "Gabriel Hellborne. Im just a trader, my village was attacked..."
"Yea..? Well what's with the hunters gear, and what have you got there..?"
He was very good at fake crying. "My brother was a hunter... He got ripped to shreds.. thats all i have left of him... But its also all i have to sell... And my poor daughter.. she got hurt pretty badly... she could be dead already... i need help... she's burned.."

Suprisingly, the guy bought this bullshit and let him pass.
"We're here kid... Just play it cool until i can get us some transport.. there should be a mixed village not too far from here who can point you in the direction of some vampires who'll look after you."

He hid her somewhere shaded and told her he would be back in an hour. He was a man who knew how to get things.

Jessie tried to peer through the coat but she couldn't see Helsing, daring to move the hat from her eyes she hissed but soon grew accustomed to the light, so she could see what was going on. As she was set down Jessie smoothed out her clothes and smiled at Helsing giggling happily.

"Thank you Helsing but no I need nothing right now, you should rest because you need it, it's still a while till the village right?"

Smiling she swiftly shut up as Helsing placed his hand over her mouth, biting her lip she didn't even breathe until he told her to. When she was picked up again Jessie quieted still and when they reached the gates of the village she felt nervousness rise up inside her as the guard talked to Helsing, she didnt know what she would do.

"Uh you're just going to leave me here!!? In the middle of day?"

Pouting Jessie folded her arms across her chest and sat cross legged on the floor so that she was sheltered by the shrub brushes muttering softly about how she was a sitting duck.

Helsing shrugged before he disappeared.
"You're covered up and hidden arent you? So what are you complaining about? I'll be back soon enough."

He was back within half an hour carrying bulging bags.
"Hey kid, you alright? Im managed to rangle us a room and you some transport to a vampire settlement. Dont ask me how i swung that one but i did." He passed her the bags and picked her up. He knew she wouldnt be able to walk properly in the length of his coat.

He darted through the crowd and pulled out a key from his pocket to a small one bedroomed hut like structure.
"I only had enough money to have this place until sundown, but it should be good enough to hide in for now."

He locked the door behind them, drew the curtains and sat her on the bed.
"Get some sleep if you want kid. Im just gonna keep a look out." He sat on a chair by the window and had his gun at the ready in case there was trouble. "Sorry i couldnt get you any blood Jess... Will you be alright for a few hours..?"
He felt insane sticking his neck out like this for a vampire; he could get himself killed if anyone found out about this, but there was just something about Jess...

Jessie possibly had the worst half an hour of her life waiting for Helsing to come back and she had heard lots of humans in passing and each time she had drawn out her gun to blow them away if they came too close to her. Or she could just hide under the mass of leather coat.

"Helsing? That's you back? Wow what on earth have you got there? That's a lot of stuff! Want me to carry some?"

A large smile broke on her face as Helsing told her that she was going to a vampire settlement tonight, biting her lip the fact she would have to leave Helsing was becoming a lot more real in her own mind and that saddened her.

"Thank you Helsing, I owe you a lot."

Feeling Helsings arms around her and her being carried through town Jessie tried not to breathe again until Helsing had put her in the hotel room or wherever they were...looking around Jessie shook her head with a goofy smile and tousled hair.

"No no I don't need to sleep remember? I only slept because I was bored..."

Jessie poked her fangs and shrugged:

"I'm fine thanks, I've had more blood than normal anyway."

Helsing smiled weakly at her and ruffled her hair. "Naah dont worry about it... You dont owe me anything kid..."

He took his hat and coat back, finally feeling himself again.
"Well what do you want to do then? We can have a walk around town if you want..? I got you some long clothes to keep your skin covered and your own hat like mine but black and its more likely to fit you."
He pulled said clothes out of a bag and threw them too her.

He stretched and made a few adjustments to his gun and crossbow while he waited for an answer.
"Theres some sort of festival on. People are dressing up and dancing and having a bonfire and firework display or something. I tihnk with all the excitement going on, no-one will notice us."

Jessie smiled at Helsing cocking her head when he talked about the new clothes for her, she jumped over to him and gasped as she saw what was in the bag, it was like her own mini Helsing and she couldn't believe she had her own Helsing hat!!!

"Oh Helsing! This is wonderful!!! You got me your own hat!"

Immediately Jessie started to take her clothes off but after taking her tshirt off she stopped and put her finger in the air as she remembered something.

"Helsing! Get out while I change! I can't strip in front of a man!"

Jessie got the clothes on quickly then let Helsing back in she looked at herself in the mirror and nodded her head before putting her hat on, and standing next to him she modelled against him, they looked so alike only she was a girl.

"Wow, I'm like your mini me!"

Carefully Jessie walked over to the bed and picked up her two guns sliding them into her pockets.

"Okay, let's go then!"

Helsing smiled and laughed at her. "Yes yes, i got you your own hat."
He covered his eyes as she started to strip and stood outside as she got changed until he got called back.
"Good, at least i know you've learnt that lesson so its one less thing for me to worry about when we part ways. I dont know why ive turned into your temporary dad, but i have."

Jess looked like a wicken until she donned the coat and hat, in which case then she did look like a mini him. "Oh dear..." He laughed. The whole sliding her guns into her pocket tihngs just reminded him even more of himself when he was a rookie.
"And yet... you still manage to look adorable... But at least people will think you're a slayer or hunter and not a vamp, and they might be more likely to believe you're my daughter. Come on then, try not to wander off too far form me though."

He placed his hand on her shoulder and walked with her throw the crowds of people. It was like being at a fair since there were a few games. There was a shooting one which he knew he'd own at, and he won her a teddy with ease.
"Here you go kid. Do you want to go on any of the games?"

SOme people started dancing down the street and pulling people with them but Helsing told them to jog on if they came within 5 feet of him or Jess.

"Hey kid.. can vmapires not eat or drink normal stuff at all..? Is it just blood..? Because i was going to get us sometihng to drink.."

Jessie felt her eyes light up as she heard Helsing say that hecwas like her temporary dad, she didn't really want him to stop being that dad to her, she wanted him to be able to stay with her forever but of course that could never happen to her.

"Oh dear? You don't like you're mini me? I think I look dead cool. Oh and yeah it's useful for blending in and stuff...yeaaaah I should have said that first shouldn't I?"

With one more look at herself in the mirror Jessie grinned and hurried after Helsing as he left to go to the festival, she was anxious to to go one again after all it had been some time since she had even had the chance.

"I like looking like a mini you, mind if I keep this hat?"

Jessie gasped as Helsing gave her the teddy bear, she hugged it to her chest and pointed gingerly at one of the games called 'Hook a Duck'.

"Would it be okay if I played that one?"

Frowning a little she tapped her cheek and hummed a little.

"I don't know you know nobody ever told me, maybe I should...no...what happens if I eat and it blows me up?!"