Jason watched Dawn wander around his room, exploring every corner. The strong possessive desire to guard his territory was put on hold just for her. Dawn admired the many toys spread around the room. She was amazed that a big, strong man like Jason still kept the toys from so long ago.
Dawn closely examined a stuffed dog on one of the shelves.
"That's so cute," she said adoringly. "You have toys just like me."
Dawn beamed a smile at Jason that brightened up the musty room. Her expression of excitement was just as golden as her hair.
"There's something really cute that I want to show you. I have a…"
Dawn's excited face turned down for a moment.
"Oh, I forgot. All my stuff's in the camp."
She smoothed out her denim dress, that still wasn't completely dry yet.
"My clothes, and my food. I have to get them."
Jason cocked his head when he heard Dawn's stomach growl. Dawn answered his confusion.
"I'm hungry. I need to go back and get my food."
Her growing calmness around Jason caused her to remember all her basic needs. Dawn hurried past Jason towards the bedroom door. Jason instinctively reached out and grabbed her as she went by. He pulled her close to him protectively. Dawn tried to push free from Jason's arms, but it was like a butterfly trying to push against a tanker truck.
"It's okay, Jason," Dawn assured him. "I'm just getting something to eat. I'll be all right."
But Jason did not let go. He couldn't bear to have the child leave his sight.
It didn't take long for Dawn to realize that any physical resistance against Jason's strength was useless.
She stopped pushing and said, "You can come with me, then. You probably know where my camp is better than me. Okay?"
Jason softened his grip just a bit and nodded in approval. He picked Dawn up and cradled her gently in his arms.
"Princess, stay there," Dawn told the kitten. We'll be back."
Princess remained where she was and rested her head on her paws. She had already been fed. Dawn placed her head on Jason's shoulder as he carried her out of the room.
When they entered the fresh outdoor air, Dawn instantly saw the piles of human corpses once again. She whimpered fearfully. She still wasn't sure why Jason had hated those people so much, and not her. Jason softly pressed Dawn's face down against him, so she couldn't see the bodies anymore. The small girl kept her face pressed down on Jason's shoulder. He took her past all the dead teenagers and adults that marked his territory.
Dawn stared down at Jason's powerfully built body and wondered how he had got so strong. There were still so many more questions that she wanted to ask him, but she knew now that they had to be yes or no questions.
Maybe there's another way that he can talk to me, she thought.
She contemplated what that other way could be as Jason carried her closer and closer to the camp.
"So Shauna, how'd you like Lieutenant Cameron?" Jenna asked lightly.
She was driving the child back to Sheltered Waters Foster Home. They had left Cameron back at the busy scene taking place at the Auckland house. Jenna had been curious about what was going on. She could tell by the masses of police officers and crime scene investigators that it was something serious.
Jenna wasn't completely informed about the many stories of Jason Voorhees circulating around Crystal Lake. She and her family lived in the city of Westport, outside the neighboring area of this town. She only came here to volunteer once or twice a week at the foster home. It was the closest one in the region.
She lived just close enough to Crystal Lake to have heard the basic storyline of Jason Voorhees, but not all of the details. Jenna knew the general legend of an undead, hockey-masked killer stalking the woods of Crystal Lake, often preying on careless, nubile teenagers.
Jenna hated those stories. Not just that the idea of a man that couldn't be killed was beyond her ability of comprehension, but also that the stories always portrayed teenagers as drunk, idiotic, fornicating potheads.
She herself was a teenager and did not belong under that stereotype. It was a stereotype that was even stronger than normal in this area. Jenna had been raised Catholic and her parents had taught her proper, moral values. She had learned that drinking and doing drugs was a waste of your life and that sex was only meant for the committed relationship of marriage.
That's why Jenna spent her time giving to the community and making it a better place. Taking care of the foster children brought such joy to her. Jenna loved children and believed that their innocence didn't automatically halt at adolescence. Jenna and her two other friends that volunteered at the foster home were proof that not all teenagers glistened with sin.
Jenna turned to smile brightly at Shauna for a moment. Shauna, with her dark blonde hair and miniature size, was so cute that Jenna was so saddened by what she had gone through. Shauna had inherited her heart murmur from her mother. Her mother's, though, was so serious, that she had died from it as a result of giving birth. Her doctors had advised her of the dangers beforehand, but Shauna's mother insisted on going along with it and refused on having an abortion.
Jenna had to pride Shauna's mother for this. Abortion repulsed Jenna and it would have prevented this cute little child from being born. Heart murmur or not, Shauna had the right to enjoy life just like any other person. It just wouldn't be with her mother, or her father.
Shauna's father could not afford the medical expenses of treating Shauna's heart murmur. He had dropped her off at the foster home about a year ago.
Shauna smiled thinly at Jenna from the backseat.
"He was nice. I like him because he let me play with the doggies."
She peered in at Hamtaro in the hamster cage seated next to her.
"Don't worry, Hamtaro. I still like you too."
The frisky hamster twitched his nose at her and jumped in his exercise wheel.
Jenna brushed her long, red hair away from her face. She wasn't big on wearing it in ponytails. It would expose too much flesh for her.
"That's nice. I'm sure that the doggies will go to loving homes. Just as loving as Sheltered Waters with all your friends. Right?"
Shauna gave a small nod and said, "Yeah. If you believe so, then I know they will. You're always right."
Jenna smiled modestly. "I'm not always right. Even grownups like me make mistakes. Not about the doggies, but about other things."
Jenna turned the car onto the long dirt driveway leading to Sheltered Waters Foster Home. The home was secluded at the farthest reach of the Crystal Lake wilderness. The owners of Sheltered Waters took in homeless and unwanted children as young as five, up to the ages of twelve, and put them up for adoption. There were about thirty children presently.
The car stopped in the large circular parking area of the home. Bright welcoming sunshine beamed upon them as Jenna helped Shauna, carrying Hamtaro's cage, out of the car.
Sheltered Waters was an enormous two-story white clapboard house with green shutters and a wraparound porch. The house's sloping gray roof, that had two chimneys, rose proudly up into the sky. The home had groups of trees surrounding the back of it, providing shade for that part, while the front was open to the warmth of the sun.
There was a fenced in outdoor play area for the children, containing a playground, basketball court, and a mini swimming pool. A manmade stream trickled along the play area's exterior. There weren't any other buildings in the area, except for the woodsman's shed a few miles away.
The long distance from civilization allowed the children to live stress free from human society. At least, until they were ready to make the transition into new families.
Jenna heard the playful shouting and laughing of the children coming from the playground.
"Hi, Jenna!" a voice called to her.
It was one of the other teenagers volunteering at the home, Jenna's good friend, Molly Hudson. She was waving to her and Shauna from over by the fence. Jenna smiled and waved back.
Sixteen-year-old Molly Hudson had befriended Jenna when they both started helping out at the foster home about six months ago. Molly was just as loving and warm to children as Jenna was. Molly's tenderness could soothe even the angriest of souls. She was another one that wanted to prove that teenagers could be moral, contributing members of society.
Molly had braided, tan hair and peaceful, emerald green eyes. At five ft, two in, she was the shortest teenager that Jenna knew. Molly's shorter height enabled some of the children to feel more comfortable around her than with the taller adults.
Jenna walked closer to her and shouted to make herself heard above the children.
"I'm going to take Shauna inside, and then I'll come back out to help you."
Molly had been assigned recess duty, along with one of the adults that worked there. That adult, Olivia White, waved to Jenna from over by the swings. She lived at the home and was a regular paid supervisor of the girls. Jenna waved to her as well. Shauna was already heading towards the house. She was sensitive to the loud noises of all the children screaming.
"Wait for me, Shauna," Jenna called.
She ran over to the child and said, "Here, let me take Hamtaro. I'll put him back in the living area, while you go and get your lunch, so you can take your medicine."
Shauna ate her meals ahead of the other children because she had to take her heart medicine at the same time, and it needed to be at specific times. Shauna handed the cage to Jenna. The two then headed up the porch steps to the front door.
They entered the house into the decorative living area, which presented an essence of a comfortable family atmosphere. The carpet was a plush forest green, covering the floor all the way up to where the stairs were located. Three beige sofas stood in the middle of the room in front of the brick fireplace. Several armchairs were placed throughout the room, each one sporting a mahogany coffee table next to it. A bookcase and game shelf were in one corner. There was also a piano that looked too elegant for a secluded foster children's home.
Jenna went over to the coffee table in the middle of all the sofas and placed Hamtaro's cage on it. She took a sunflower seed out of the container on the table and poked it through the bars. Hamtaro squeaked hungrily and grabbed it in his teeth. Jenna smiled at the stuffed cat lying on one of the sofas. The children often left their toys throughout the house, and Jenna had been there enough to recognize which toy belonged to whom.
This particular gray cat was Blossom Kramer's. She was an affectionate eight-year-old that radiated a glow of acceptance and helpfulness wherever she went. No matter who entered the home, she always greeted that person with open arms. Blossom was currently playing outside on the playground, probably being pushed by Olivia on the swings.
Jenna walked into the colossal kitchen and saw Shauna seated at the long dining table. There were about twenty chairs on the left and right sides, with a chair at each head side for the owner and her husband. Oakwood beams that made up the ceiling crisscrossed above their heads.
Strong rays of sunlight poured in through the picture window, which took up one wall. The counters and appliances of the kitchen stood way on the other side of the dining table from where Jenna was standing.
Jenna strode all the way over there now to collect Shauna's medicine. She pulled out a key and unlocked a cabinet. She took out the prescription container with Shauna's pills in it. Jenna gave Shauna the plate of food that the cook had already prepared for her. Shauna took her pills and began to eat the grilled cheese sandwich and fruit salad.
"Why can't I have chips?" she begged pitifully, after swallowing an orange slice.
Jenna patted her head kindly.
"You know why, dear. The doctors don't want you eating any greasy foods, like chips or fries. Maybe when you get older, we'll see if your heart gets stronger, and then you can eat those foods."
Shauna sighed and nodded. Jenna felt sorry for her. Shauna's heart condition prevented her from enjoying some of the basic pleasures of childhood.
"I'm going outside now to help Molly and Olivia," Jenna said. "Bonnie will be back in a bit to keep you company while she makes lunch for the other children."
Bonnie was the outgoing cook, whose specialty was multitasking while cooking and still having the food made to perfection.
"And maybe Raelynn will come by after her story time to talk to you."
Shauna stopped chewing and showed an irritated thoughtfulness.
"Raelynn's weird. She keeps feeling stuff and bumping into things."
Jenna stroked Shaun's thin face.
"Shauna, that's not nice. You know Raelynn is not able to see, like you and I can. She needs to feel around to know where she's going. She may be different, similar to you with your heart condition, but she's a nice child too. Right?"
Shauna smiled and finished up her fruit salad. The paleness that she often had when she didn't eat started to fade.
"Right. I'm sorry."
Jenna heard Bonnie coming towards the kitchen to make lunch.
"That's okay. I have to go now. I'll see you later."
She hugged Shauna lightly and started walking towards the kitchen doorway.
"Bye," Shauna called sweetly.
She pushed her empty plate away and rested her head on the table.
Jason's expert navigation through the woods led him to Dawn's campsite in less than five minutes. The camp showed distinct signs of being affected by the storm. The strong wind had blown away the tent canvas. The damp material lay a little ways away near some bushes. The last wisps of smoke rose up from the washed out fireplace.
"My stuff's all wet!" Dawn cried disappointedly.
Jason set her down, and she ran over to where the tent used to be. She scavenged among the items that were scattered around the campsite. She searched through her backpack. Luckily, most of her things were inside and had not been soaked by the storm.
"Yay, these are dry," she remarked with relief.
Inside the backpack were most of her packed clothes and her hygiene items.
Jason walked around and scouted the camp with a guard-like mentality. His watchfulness for any kind of danger to Dawn was continually awake.
For a minute, he glanced over the scattered items to see if he could spot the sharpness of any weapon. Not just because Dawn could hurt herself with such implements, but it was a habit for Jason to be attracted to any weapon that he could use to eliminate his next victim.
Dawn pulled out some dry clothes to put on. They included a white blouse and jean shorts.
"I'm going to go change," she told Jason. "Then we can eat and I can show you what cute thing I've got. Okay?"
A serenity illuminated Dawn and filled the campsite. Dawn spoke the reason for this.
"I'm glad that my daddy went away. I don't mean to be rude, but he was a mean man. My mommy always said that bad people don't stay around long. Right?"
Jason nodded in agreement. That's exactly what his mother said to him. It was the belief that she fueled inside him all the time.
The commonality between Dawn and Jason grew a little stronger. Dawn carried her dry clothes over to some trees. She turned towards him and smiled shyly.
"I know you like to be with me, but you have to stay right there. I won't be long."
She disappeared behind the foliage. Jason heard the child humming as she changed clothes. Dawn quickly appeared in her new blouse and shorts.
Jason just stood there and watched her run a brush through her long, golden hair and clip a few barrettes among her blonde waves. Such simple human activities such as this escaped his levels of thinking. Along with this confusing feeling inside him, that Dawn was so cute.
Cute? Could that feeling really compute in his mind? Sure, he had seen many animals that may have been cute, but to think a human was cute was so out of the ordinary for him.
Dawn sat down upon the log before the wet fireplace. She was holding a box of animal crackers that she tore into and began to crunch hungrily on the snacks. She patted a spot next to her.
"Come on, Jason. Sit next to me," she coaxed. "Don't worry. I don't bite."
The child smiled and held up her cracker box.
"Look, crackers. Yummy, yummy. I'll share with you. You must be hungry too."
Jason stared uncertainly at the log that Dawn was sitting on. It was way too far down to accommodate his more than six ft 8 in height. Dawn looked at the log and then up at Jason, trying to comprehend his reluctance.
"Oh, you must be too tall to sit down here. That's okay, here."
She stood up and held a cracker up towards him. Her reach only made it up to the top of Jason's leg. It was like reaching up to a skyscraper for her.
Jason looked down at Dawn's tiny offering. This was something to eat, a human need that he no longer required. He shook his head at her. Dawn looked disappointed.
"You don't want it?" she asked. "Aren't you hungry?"
Jason shook his head again.
"Oh," Dawn lowered the cracker and pondered this for a moment.
"Maybe later, then," she said.
She popped the cracker into her mouth and walked over to James's former car.
She quickly finished up the cracker box and set it down next to the car.
"This is where my cute surprise is," she told Jason.
Dawn went to the trunk and pulled it, but it was locked.
"Man," she groaned, struggling and struggling, but getting nowhere. "It's locked. How am I going to get it?"
She grumbled over the lack of strength in her skinny arms. Jason headed over to her and gently pulled her hands away. He grasped onto the trunk handle with his massive hands and pulled the whole door off. Dawn gasped at this effortless feat of strength from him.
Jason tossed the door aside and gave her a look as if to say, "There you go".
Dawn didn't do anything for a moment.
So strong, she thought. Just like he was when the lightning hit him.
Dawn shook her head to recover from her shock. Bags of supplies that James and Dawn had not taken out yet were laid in the trunk. The child climbed in and shuffled through them, looking for that special item. She let out a cry of joy when she felt the furriness of what she was looking for. She pulled out a stuffed animal that Jason had never seen before.
"Here, this is my special friend. You have your teddy bear, and I have this."
Dawn jumped down from the trunk and showed it to Jason proudly.
Jason looked over the animal, not sure at all what it was. It certainly wasn't an animal that was native to his woods. The stuffed animal seemed to emanate a force of purity and innocence, like that of Dawn herself.
Maybe it was because the animal was totally white as purity, and had a naïve face of coal black eyes and a neutral mouth that looked to be saying, "I have done nothing wrong."
"It's a seal pup," Dawn said. "Go ahead, pet him."
Jason still studied the animal before taking it, waiting for its newness to process in his mind.
A seal pup? What was a seal pup? He was thinking. Wasn't a pup supposed to be a dog? This animal was no dog.
Dawn giggled at Jason's puzzled expression.
"I knew you would be surprised. A seal pup's not from around here. My mommy used to say that they live far away from here, in a land of cold and snow."
She pushed the pup under Jason's hand in an attempt to coax him into petting it.
"His name is Angel. My mommy named him that because she said that he was as beautiful as an angel. Just like me, she would add."
Dawn's face trembled in sadness as she thought of her mother. A caring woman who made Dawn feel like everything would be all right. Who would put out the fire of Dawn's father's madness whenever he wanted to hurt her.
"Oh, why have you gone away?" Dawn murmured out loud, her voice dripping with perplexed agony.
Jason's confused expression strengthened even more as he heard this.
Who was she talking about?
Dawn sniffled and pushed the seal pup towards him.
"Here, take him," she said, not an order, but a pleading request.
"He wants to meet you. I have to sit."
Jason took the seal pup in his hand and lifted the white creature up to his face. Dawn sat down among the bags in the trunk and stared off into oblivion. A look of pure grief crossed her face.
Jason held the pup in his hand as he moved over to Dawn. He couldn't ask her what was wrong. He just hoped that his body language would persuade her into answering his silent question. Dawn didn't appear to notice Jason towering over her.
She said to some invisible person, "Mommy, where are you?"
Jason's eye widened in undeniable recognition. Mommy, where are you? was the one question that always echoed around him wherever he went. He had slashed through hundreds of human beings, hoping that with each bloody death he would seek the answer to this desperate question.
Now, Dawn was resonating the same question. Jason sat down next to her and placed the seal pup on her lap. Dawn sensed the furriness of the animal upon her legs and peered up at the man responsible for giving her that comfort. The child searched Jason's expression, trying to read what was taking place behind that mask.
"Do you know where your mommy is?" she asked.
She did not know that this heartfelt question would seal the bond that was already forming between them. A wave of mixed emotions washed over Jason. Mentioning his mother never failed to evoke a response from him.
Jason shuddered uncontrollably. He gripped Dawn's hand in his. Dawn didn't have to ask again to know that the answer was no.
"Your mommy's gone too. Wow, you're just like me."
There was an aura radiating through their intertwined hands, a deep loss that two children felt from the passing of their mothers. Jason pulled her hand up to his face and pressed the fragile palm against the mouth part of his mask.
Dawn's eyes widened in disbelief.
Is he kissing me through his mask?
Jason instantly sensed the peculiarity of what he was doing. He let go of her hand and quickly turned away.
Dawn blushed a bashful scarlet red. She had no idea how to respond to that. There were so many things that she wanted to ask him.
Questions that included, What happened to your mommy? Why are you so strong? Why do you wear a mask? And especially, Why do you hurt all those people and yet you seem to like me?
But she realized that all those questions would be answered in time. Dawn was not about to leave Jason anytime soon, maybe never.
She rested her head on his back and whispered, "Please don't be shy. You're the only person I have left in the world."
Jason stared off into the surrounding woods. The forest was normally filled with the vengeful shedding of human blood, but now a new emotion was mixed in with that blood. One that Jason thought had been destroyed along with the decapitation of his mother.
It was the blossom of friendship.