Waylon's Crossing Forum

Hmm. Well, a few things that might help you as you write. First, you have to remember that Helena is very young. She's a young woman in human years and practically an infant in vampire years. Now, she's an insightful and mature young woman, so she is not likely to be taken advantage of by humans, but other vampires are another matter entirely. She's extremely naive in the ways of vampiric culture. She cannot differentiate between an "old" vampire and a "young" one yet, she knows nothing about Krusniks, she knows nothing of vampiric interactions, the rules or ethics of vampiric living, etc. To be quite honest, she probably in no way differentiates between vampire-human, vampire-vampire or Krusnik-vampire relationships (whether lovers, friends, or predator-prey).

So. Any possible response she may have to Alber has to take into mind her past experiences and her lack of knowledge. Her experience of the "world of vampires", if you will, is quite literally limited to about a month, and the ONLY vampires she's had actual contact with---beyond perhaps seeing one walking down the street or something---are first Orrick, then Eliza and now Alber. Obviously, so far her experiences with male vampires have been extremely negative: she was used and abused by Orrick---first treated as human prey and plaything, then as property and plaything once he Made her, and there was no affection, gentleness or respect about it. Orrick was a sadistic bastard. She fears Eliza as well, but not as much; Eliza smells and smells like a vampire, which is terrifying to Helena on an unconscious level because of her experiences with Orrick, and her stillness is unsettling, but Eliza is perhaps as mother-like as a vampiress can get and Helena also finds that comforting.

So. Helena will react, on an instinctive level, with fear toward ANY vampire who interacts with her, but especially with male vampires. If something about Alber makes her feel even MORE like prey than she normally would around a vampire, then she's going to be doubly unsettled by him. Combine that with the effect of the Borderlands upon vampiric instincts, and she's probably soon going to be cognizant of quite literally EVERY emotion which might pass through him. Quite frankly, the first time she experiences "real" contact with him, she's going to be terrified and is probably going to flee blindly. However, she's also receptive to kindness and respect, so if he shows restraint and gentleness, she's probably going to respond like a small child or injured animal first, and over time like a young vampiric woman... whatever that means.

So... nature/nurture questions. Do vampires respond with anything other than fear to Krusniks? What exactly is it that fills them with fear? A deep psychological repulsion to all that a Krusnik is? Or simply something like the awareness of themselves as vulnerable, of the Krusnik as powerful, or of being the object of hunger/desire? If the former, Helena will probably not ever respond to him with anything but fear and will not want anything to do with him. If the latter, she may be more responsive to him.

ELIZA however is going to be a huge problem... not because she believes Krusniks are evil or dangerous---although she admits they can be both---but because she's downright old fashioned. She has ideas about womanly virtue which pertain directly to certain young vampiresses, and these ideas include: 1) No relationships with non-vampires (whether human, demon or Krusnik). 2) No relationships with much older vampires. 3) No relationships outside the bounds of "decent courtship" (i.e. no revealing clothing, no kissing or other improper displays of affection, and certainly no sex until marriage!)

Unfortunately for Eliza, although Helena is extremely tractable at the moment due to her confused and damaged state, her Ward is an extremely strong-willed young woman and isn't likely to obey rules she considers unreasonable.

That help?