DISCLAIMER: If you recognize it, I don't own it.


It shouldn't be sunny, Jenny thought as she glared up at the cloudless sky. It looks cheerful.

Lucy would have loved it.

She watched as the coffin was slid into its vault and sealed inside. The other mourners gradually dispersed, most of them leaving the cemetery. There were still a few watching, but she couldn't bring herself to care; kneeling in front of the vault, she bowed her head and let her tears run silently down her face. I'm sorry...

"The master sends his condolences." Renfield offered a hand to help her up.

She brushed it aside. "Does he now?" she said as she stood, glaring at him.

"The master regrets that he could not be present at the burial. The sunlight does not agree with the master's skin."

"He wasn't at the cathedral, either."

Renfield cast his eyes downward. "The master shall answer all of your questions."

"What do you mean?"

He gestured to the gate. "Renfield has been sent by the master to bring Miss Jennifer to the master's house." Outside the cemetery walls, Dracula's black carriage was waiting.

"...I-I promised my friends I'd be back at the ship by three. We're going out to look for the captain again — "

"The master shall not keep you long."

"Can we at least stop by the place to let them know?"

She gasped as Renfield's ice-cold hand gripped her wrist. "The master," he hissed, "is not a patient man."


Jenny felt every bump and crack in the street as the carriage rolled along, its doors locked and its curtains shut. By the time it shuddered to a stop in front of the mansion, her head was spinning. Renfield opened the door, took her out and ushered her inside and up the staircase. Turning left, they came to a door of black oak topped with a wooden owl who glared down at her. Renfield pulled it open, shoved her through and closed it behind her.

"Sit down."

Jenny blinked, letting her eyes adjust to the lack of light. "I...I'd rather not, if that's acceptable."

"If you wish."

She looked around. Bookshelves packed with tomes lined each wall, not a single one poking out from the neat bands. In the wall across from the door was a window with its curtains closed. A fireplace filled with only ashes jutted out from the wall at the far end of the room. Next to it sat a high-backed red velvet chair, and in that lounged Dracula. His skin seemed paler than usual, and dark circles sagged from beneath his eyes. "I take it you are not fond of libraries?" he asked.

"They're fine," she answered as she approached a shelf, aware of his gaze on her. She pulled out a book and flipped through it; the pages had never been cut.

"Books no longer capture my interest," Dracula said, seeing her surprise. "They were meant for Lucy. Perhaps you'd like them."

Jenny snapped the book shut and put it back. "Renfield said you wanted to see me. That you'd answer my questions."

"You haven't asked any yet."

She took a deep breath and turned to face him. "Why weren't you at the funeral?"

"You have been informed of my condition, have you not? The sunlight is unkind to my skin."

"...You never came to see the body. Three days and you never came to see the body."

"An urgent matter came to my attention," he said, taking a book from the shelf and absentmindedly flipping through it. "I was too late to postpone the service."

"Did you even care for her at all?"

Sighing, Dracula stood up and began to walk towards her. "I felt as though a hole had been carved into my heart when the news first reached me. Do you know what I wish for more than anything else, my dear?"

Jenny backed away, only to collide with the wall. "I-I don't know why I should," she said, nervously pulling at the silver pendant around her neck.

Dracula chuckled. "Such an intelligent girl." Coming within a few inches of Jenny, he placed a hand on either side of her, boxing her against the wall. "Truth be told, I find you far more intriguing than I ever did your friend." He leaned down and sniffed her neck. "We are well suited for one another, I think..."

"Get away from me!" Slapping him across the face, Jenny pushed him off her and ran to the door. She tried to pull it open, but it was locked from the other side.

A book struck her in the back of the head and knocked her down. "Hold still, human," Dracula hissed. He loomed over her, his blue eyes fading to a blood red. A long, bony hand tipped with claw-like fingernails grasped her by the neck. When he touched the necklace, though, he jerked away with an inhuman screech. The place on his hand that had touched the silver was burning and scarred.

Silver. Of course! Scrambling to her feet, Jenny ripped off the necklace and hurled it into Dracula's face. He sank to his knees, screaming and covering his eyes.

The door opened. "Master!" Renfield said as he rushed inside brandishing a knife. "Renfield shall protect the master — "

Picking the book off the floor, Jenny brought it down on his head and watched him collapse. She took the knife and fled as Dracula's voice echoed through the halls after her. "I shall have your blood, human! Your blood and your mind!"

Jenny was barely aware that she was running. All she acknowledged was the path down the stairs, to the front door, out onto the street. Not until the house was well out of sight did she look back. When she did, her foot caught on a cobblestone and sent her sprawling.

"There she is...!"

She flinched and held the knife tighter as a hand grabbed her shoulder and pulled her up. "What on earth happened?" she heard the Pirate With A Scarf ask. "Where have you been?"

Jenny crumpled against him, too stunned to even cry.


The Pirate With Gout laughed when he heard what Jenny did to Dracula and Renfield. "Well done, lass! Showed 'em what they're up against, yeh did."

Jenny wouldn't look anywhere except at her hands.

"A little time to herself would be best, I think," Charles suggested. He ushered the others out of the hold before turning back to Jenny. "It really is a miracle that you're still with us."

"He killed Lucy," Jenny said, still not looking up. "I'm sure of it."

"I wouldn't be surprised."

She hesitated before speaking again. "Maybe we should leave the ship for a while, or guard it or something. He'll be coming for us."

"I'll tell Scarf," he answered. "We'll check on you in a bit, alright? Just try to calm down." When she nodded, he followed the others outside.

Jenny sighed and flopped back in her hammock, attempting to quell her swirling thoughts. One of them surfaced again and again; I shall have your blood, human. Your blood and your mind. She understood the first half well enough, but what could the second mean?