The silence that met Helen as she approached Henry's lab was unnerving and for moment she hesitated on the threshold, unsure as to whether she wanted to enter. Traditionally silence and her two science boys were never a good combination. Having taken a deep calming breath in order to prepare herself for what she might face inside, Helen finally stepped into the room. What she saw inside thought brought her to an immediate standstill.

Henry was crouched over his desk, his head in his hands, an air of defeat surrounding him. Whilst on the other side of the room, Nikola was pacing, a look of anguish on his face that Helen hadn't seen in decades. Knowing that such a reaction could only be caused by something truly serious, Helen realised that whatever they had discovered regarding SCIU's final solution must involve an invention of Nikola's twisted for nefarious purposes.

Walking over to where Henry was sat, Helen gently placed her hand on his shoulder and squeezed it to gain his attention, smiling sadly as Henry raised his head and looked at her, a broken expression on his face.

"Ah Doc.." He began, but Helen shook her head, not needing the young man to explain what they had found.

"Can you give me a moment with Nikola, please?" Helen asked, and Henry nodded, standing up and walking out of the lab, briefly glancing back to see Helen approaching the still pacing vampire. Henry sighed as he looked at them, hoping that she could help soothe him. He may have had his issues with the vampire, but the knowledge that his work had been stolen and then used for this kind of monstrosity, something Nikola had proven he would never have even have considered doing, was clearly causing the vampire a great deal of pain. Sighing again, Henry bowed his head and left the room.

Without a word, Helen stopped in front of Nikola and placing her hands on his shoulders, she brought his pacing to a halt. She then lifted a hand and placed it under his chin, raising it so that she could meet his eyes with her own. They continued to stand in silence, until suddenly Nikola gasped and reached for Helen, his tone pleading as he muttered,

"It's not what it was meant for! It's not what it was meant for!"

Helen still said nothing, instead she simply wrapped her arms around the now shuddering vampire, holding him close. As he continued to rage against the injustice of such actions, Helen couldn't help but remember a similar situation when she had held Nikola. It had been the first time that he had been faced with an invention being twisted and used in a way that exemplified the cruelties of humanity. Although unfortunately it would not be the last time.

January 1903

When Helen had first read about Edison's plans to prove the dangers of alternating current, her mind had instantly gone to her friend and the pain that he must be feeling. She knew for all that Nikola tried to portray himself as an arrogant, confident vampire, beneath that facade he remained the somewhat innocent and childlike man that she had first met at Oxford. Nikola's inventions had always come from a simple desire to solve the problems he saw around him or to improve the inventions of others. So when people took advantage of that or twisted his genius into something sinister, as Edison was doing now, he was honestly surprised. His ongoing naivety was in fact something which Helen loved about the Serbian Vampire. Indeed for all the pain that it would cause him, she actually hoped that he would continue to expect people to approach his inventions with the same reasoning he did, as she would hate for him to lose that innocence.

For now though the mere fact that he must be hurting was enough for her to drop everything, and she quickly made plans to make her way to New York.

As soon as she arrived, Helen immediately made her way to where Nikola was staying.

"Ah Helen, so good of you to join me," and even though it had been months since she had seen him last, Helen tilted her head sadly at hearing the distress lying beneath the cheerful greeting. "Come to see the perversions of my great work?" He added, his expression and tone now filled with sadness, as he gestured for her to enter.

"Oh, Nikola," Helen murmured softly as she followed him through to a room simply furnished with two chairs, a table on which stood a bottle of wine and a glass, and a window with a view of the city. Glancing round the room, Helen was unsurprised to see several empty bottles lying haphazardly on the floor, proof of Nikola's current anguish. Rather than return to where he had clearly been previously sitting, Nikola had instead wandered over to the window, and Helen soon joined him. Knowing that asking him directly how he was feeling would lead to either a sarcastic comment or stoney silence, Helen took a moment to watch the lights of the living city below as she considered how she might begin to comfort her friend. A sudden flicker of lightning in the distant sky, allowed inspiration to strike, pun most certainly intended, she thought with a smile. Still facing the window, Helen began to speak.

"Do you remember the day that you first showed me your Tesla Coil?" Nikola grunted in affirmation, and taking that as a positive sign, Helen continued. "You were so excited about your discovery and all of its potential uses, you practically broke my arm dragging me down to see it. I remember I'd only just arrived from England, and rather than greeting me with a bath and a comfortable bed, you instead took me straight to your lab."

"I remember, you wouldn't stop complaining long enough for me to explain it to you, so instead I planted you in a safe spot and I showed you." Nikola chuckled, now lost in his own memories of the day. "In fact I think it was one of the first times that I'd ever truly seen you speechless."

"Well with good reason, it was terrifying but also spectacular. And the impact it's had since, as well as the impact it will continue to have in the future." She shrugged her shoulders and sighed in amazement. "It's incredible, Nikola, what you do, what you create, it's incredible. No one can take that away from you."

Helen now waited, as Nikola continued to stand beside her, hoping that her words would have some impact. His stance remained rigid, until all of a sudden, he span to face her, his eyes wide with misery.

"Oh Helen, it's not what its meant for. What Edison is doing to those poor creatures, to that poor elephant, it's not what I meant for it to do." Gulping back a sob, Nikola stared at Helen with an almost desperate need for her to explain why this was happening, to stop all the evil that was being done with his invention.

"I know, Nikola, I know. I wish that I could stop what Edison is doing or even come up with a reason as to why he would do such things, why anybody would do such things, but I can't." She paused and stepping closer to Nikola, she gently took his hands in hers, before smiling up at him. "The reasons behind why you create your inventions though, your quest for knowledge, that's what's important. What happens afterwards, you can't always control it, all you can ever do is hope for the best." She squeezed his hands and smiled at him. "Don't ever let Edison's actions, or anyone's actions for that matter, ruin who you are, or what you create."

Nikola let his gaze drop down to where Helen still held his hands in hers, allowing her words to wash over him, before sighing heavily as he felt the weight of sadness, betrayal and guilt lift from his shoulders.

"Thank you, Helen." He murmured simply.

Present time

In many ways, Helen was relieved to know that the innocence that she'd valued in Nikola so many years before, could still be seen within the man who stood in her embrace.

In the years since Edison, Nikola had been forced to lock himself behind walls, as time and again, mankind proved themselves to be untrustworthy, until the cynical vampire was all that the majority of people were allowed to see.

"Do you remember what I told you when we were in New York in 1903?" She muttered as she held Nikola a little closer, only continuing once she felt him nod. "We've had our moments, made mistakes, but in the end you're still you, Nikola. This proves it."

"Hell of a way to prove it, don't you think?" Nikola mumbled bitterly.

"Perhaps, but I for one take comfort in seeing you again, no matter the circumstances, I've missed you."

"Me too." Nikola agreed and for a while the pair remained where they stood, holding each close, forgetting for a moment the evils and dangers that lay beyond the door.

Instead they were simply a couple, relishing in the knowledge that beneath the scrapes, scars and bruises, they remained who they had always been and that was a comforting thought.

So first foray into the Sanctuary Universe. Constructive criticism is always appreciated. Hope you enjoyed it. A xxxxx