There's- not a lot to explain, really. This is the only thing that needs it, and you understood it the second you saw it.
[ Because Alucard's brilliant. Both of them are. He loves them both so much. And in truth this doesn't feel like enough, but it's what he can achieve with what he's good at - work and not being afraid of filth and memorizing the fuck out of every relevant text in one of the smaller sections of Dracula's library (because what use does a vampire have for texts on the best soil conditions for growing certain kinds of fruit? He half-suspects that most of the books in that section were acquired as gifts for his wife). ]
But I'll show you. Come with me.
[ He opens the door of the he-doesn't-know-that-it's-called-a-greenhouse-yet to lead Alucard into the old kitchen gardens of the Belmont house. It's split into two parts, now, with a wall between the parts closest to the old house (where the mass grave is, and the whole thing is alive with wildflowers this time of year) and the part where he's been working.
He's been working a lot.
The plants that were there for Belmont Reasons, the aconite and dogrose and hawthorne and sloe, all of them have been dug up and moved into the great mess of wildflowers. Still there if they're ever needed, but far enough away and controlled enough to not be a danger to the vampire and forming a tight barrier of thorns around the grave. In their place, the garden is- right now it's a lot of dirt, because things take time to grow. Some of them won't be ready for this harvest season (though the spinach is already showing signs of being an overachieving little shit that's going to take over everything if left unchecked, and the strawberries are already starting to bar fruit). But they're there, even if some of them are still only barely visible above the ground. Along the garden side of the wall, close enough to the mess of wildflowers to hopefully attract occupants come next spring, are five bee skeps.
And he's watching Alucard's face so carefully now, watching for any reaction at all. ]
I- don't think bee stings should hurt you. So it seemed like a waste not to have them.
[Alucard's not sure what to expect. In part because the greenhouse is so much that it doesn't feel like there can be even more to add on, but because it's so thought out. It makes so much beautiful sense. Because it's from Trevor, and because he cared enough to do it. Cares even as he still mutters that he doesn't, because that mutter is only habit now. He's cared the whole time, he just expresses it so differently than the other two of them do.
More than that, this is building on the estate. Alucard was certain it would simply become a ruin, or else there would be later Belmonts who may wish to build the home up again. Maybe one day they will, when the castle is out of wings that can be closed off due to the power of memory. Maybe one day they'll leave Wallachia and scatter, or else meet up with those more distant relations Trevor mentioned. The future is gloriously open.
He nods to the graves respectfully as they go past. It is right that all the things to protect Belmonts are growing there now, and the rest is for the living. Alucard can ping onto the familiar plants without wondering, and strawberries are going to get eaten tonight.
The future is also full of bees, which is a brilliant touch that has Alucard's face nearly in pain from how big the grin on his face is.]
An apiary. To ensure the sustainability of everything.
[Alucard pulls Trevor so very close. So Trevor can see his goddamn face.]
[ Alucard's face is filling his entire vision right now and it's terribly overwhelming. He's figured out how to react to warmth, how to react to warmth even when he can't just make a stupid comment to shrug it off. This is too much. This is him being looked at the way he looks at Sypha and Alucard when they're too busy talking about some magic bullshit to see him. Being looked at in that way that it's only really fair to look at people when they can't see you because what the fuck is he supposed to do with a face that bright and lovely and perfect? ]
I needed something to keep me busy. [ What he does in the end is to busy his head in Alucard's shoulder, because he can't fucking talk while looking at that face. It's too much. His heart might just burst. And- it is true what he's saying. Because at least the first week of his recovery wasn't spent working, just on sitting here and processing everything once the adrenaline was gone, and keeping busy was an excellent way to keep him from going too far into his own head. ] You know how I get when I'm not doing anything. It seemed as good a thing to work on as any.
[That weight there is so very lovely. A bit too warm, it is summer after all, but that's not important. What's important is the fact that there's tears threatening to leak out not for sadness for once but sheer and unrestrained joy.]
Best thing.
[Because if Alucard says anymore his voice is going to crack. It probably does as he says another thank you, and he nudges at Trevor again because he needs to see that this is the happiest the vampire's been possibly ever. That's the point, isn't it? The whole thing the first time that Trevor knocked him to the floor for want of happiness instead of instinct for killing vampires was predicated on. Happy for once in his fucking life.]
Well good, because you're making this fucking weird.
[ That was probably meant to come out a little harsher than it actually does, because it comes out sounding so ridiculously adoring that he's not sure the words actually came out of his own mouth. ]
I'm going to blame this shit on you when Sypha sees it, because I'm not dealing with this twice.
[ But he's putting his arms around Alucard, pulling them closer. He's maybe, maybe a little bit proud that he has it in him to make one of the two best people in the world so happy. ]
You both deserve all of this. You both deserve so very much.
MMmmmm, she won't buy it. She's been working with me in the lab most days, and we've both been aware you've been out here.
[There's arms right around Trevor back. They're the same arms that have held Trevor through far too much trauma and recovery lately, and so to have this wonderful, boundless happiness instead is the greatest joy.]
Then I'll just hide in the hold until everyone's done having feelings at me.
[ Oh, he's laughing as he says it, but it's a legitimate threat. This is overwhelming. But it's also wonderful. So, so wonderful. They've been through so much for his sake, it's nice to be able to start repaying that. ]
Impossible. We'll never stop having feelings at you or about you, and you just need to get used to it.
[After so many years, he's still not, and it's a little upsetting some days. But today isn't such a day, and Alucard can only nuzzle the top of Trevor's head. They are here and alive and whole in the beautiful summer sun that actually sets without resetting.]
Well shit. You should have told me that before I got attached. Too fucking late now.
[ He'll always be a little like this. It's hard to grow accustomed to being surrounded with this much love after so long of being deprived of it completely. But he'll try. Maybe. Every now and then. ]
She won't buy that, either. Because I'm not going to tell her about it until the thing's finished. And I saw you looking at the strawberries. You're going to serve them to her, because of course you are, and so she's going to know that you've known a while as soon as she sees the plant.
[Gentle and possessive. Far better than having to weaponize it as the turning demanded of them.]
I am going to clamp down on every urge I have to grab said strawberries, suggest you just stuff them into your mouth right now, and go to the library so I can help you figure this final part out.
Not yet. I got lucky with the strawberries. They were already here, just needed replanting. I was going to dig up some of the wild blackberries to plant them here, but they’re a little too far away.
[ He’s still technically recovering, after all. Well enough to be left to himself and to work, but not well enough to be out of yelling for help range of the two of them. And more important, he’s actually trying to care about that. Following the rules and everything. Actually Behaving, and not just doing it to try to fluster the vampire. ]
I can leave some cuttings later today. I was about to go to the kitchen for the foraging basket.
[There is something else here though, something that's much deeper. Perhaps unintentional. But it is worth clarifying, because if it's intentional then the vampire might actually break.]
Managing a garden like this requires constant attention, you know. Is this a declaration of intent?
[He asks it softly. Mildly. Almost unsure if he should put the question out there.
There is also a stray hair of Trevor's hair out of place, undone by the breeze. Alucard fixes that quickly, tucking it back into place.]
This is the man who told a horse that he was fucking a vampire with a completely straight face, and now here he is, struggling to talk about gardening. ]
I started it back before we knew if I'd be able to use the whip again. [ It had been in doubt, for a little while. Alucard's recovery had been painful but certain, but it didn't work that way for humans. Very little has ever been certain with humans. ] So I'd have something I could do. And- fuck.
[ It's easy to talk about the concept of being stuck here. Less easy to talk about choosing to stay. And so he falls back on his old reliable means of communicating with Alucard: sassing him by throwing his own words back at him. ]
[Alucard says it very softly, hand still lingering in Trevor's hair. He moves it slowly. Rests it on his cheek. Stays there, just being there.] You should keep buildling.
[Because if they're going to stay, really stay, stay for even just a year instead of returning to the world again, then he'll need something else to do. Sypha will. Alucard won't because he has his patterns and the Hold always needs attention.
And for those words, Alucard brings his forehead to Trevor's. Rests it there, because again he needs to see what such simple things can do. How they can make his face both the brightest and bring forth the happiest tears because there is knowing that simple fact and then it is hearing Trevor say it.]
[ And it's unfair to tell him things like that right now, because how is he meant to say no? How is he meant to say anything at all when the vampire is crying at him. Of course he has to keep building. Of course he has to stay. Of course he has to do every last thing Alucard says, because he's crying at him.
He doesn't know what he's supposed to build, because really they don't need that much, but he'll have to figure something out. Because this is, apparently, what happens when he builds things. And he hates it and it's wonderful. His arms were already around Alucard, but now his hand is at his back, rubbing awkwardly because that's what you do when people cry at you, right??? ]
[Two words with too much emotion in them. And Alucard knows that this much emotion makes Trevor a bit uncomfortable but too bad. Everything has been emotional lately, and this is probably one of the nicest outpourings Alucard's allowed himself in some time.
It's awkward. So Alucard tries to get himself under control just enough. He doesn't break this embrace though, or say anything more, or even entertain going and getting the books Trevor needs. Because here, this moment, this everything, it is wonderful and precious and if he was to capture a perfect day like his father tried, this, this memory, this would be it.]
[ He isn't letting go. And so Trevor doesn't let go. This is nice. This is comfortable. It's still overwhelming to look at Alucard's face, but if he cants his head to one side, settles against his shoulder again to look up at him from a different angle, it's a little easier.
And this is theirs. Like the little bedroom that they've made their own and lost and rebuilt. He made this for them, and it's not something left to them by some ancestor. Just theirs.
The secret's going to be out if they stay here for too long. But maybe- maybe that wouldn't be so bad. Sypha would see her gift incomplete, of course. But then she'd be all too eager to leap into the work of figuring out how to heat it, and he could watch her all excited, throwing solutions at Alucard for him to consider.
He's happy. He's happy here. And he's going to be happy here for a long time yet. ]
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cryptsleeper) wrote2018-11-10 11:26 pm
no subject
[ Because Alucard's brilliant. Both of them are. He loves them both so much. And in truth this doesn't feel like enough, but it's what he can achieve with what he's good at - work and not being afraid of filth and memorizing the fuck out of every relevant text in one of the smaller sections of Dracula's library (because what use does a vampire have for texts on the best soil conditions for growing certain kinds of fruit? He half-suspects that most of the books in that section were acquired as gifts for his wife). ]
But I'll show you. Come with me.
[ He opens the door of the he-doesn't-know-that-it's-called-a-greenhouse-yet to lead Alucard into the old kitchen gardens of the Belmont house. It's split into two parts, now, with a wall between the parts closest to the old house (where the mass grave is, and the whole thing is alive with wildflowers this time of year) and the part where he's been working.
He's been working a lot.
The plants that were there for Belmont Reasons, the aconite and dogrose and hawthorne and sloe, all of them have been dug up and moved into the great mess of wildflowers. Still there if they're ever needed, but far enough away and controlled enough to not be a danger to the vampire and forming a tight barrier of thorns around the grave. In their place, the garden is- right now it's a lot of dirt, because things take time to grow. Some of them won't be ready for this harvest season (though the spinach is already showing signs of being an overachieving little shit that's going to take over everything if left unchecked, and the strawberries are already starting to bar fruit). But they're there, even if some of them are still only barely visible above the ground. Along the garden side of the wall, close enough to the mess of wildflowers to hopefully attract occupants come next spring, are five bee skeps.
And he's watching Alucard's face so carefully now, watching for any reaction at all. ]
I- don't think bee stings should hurt you. So it seemed like a waste not to have them.
no subject
More than that, this is building on the estate. Alucard was certain it would simply become a ruin, or else there would be later Belmonts who may wish to build the home up again. Maybe one day they will, when the castle is out of wings that can be closed off due to the power of memory. Maybe one day they'll leave Wallachia and scatter, or else meet up with those more distant relations Trevor mentioned. The future is gloriously open.
He nods to the graves respectfully as they go past. It is right that all the things to protect Belmonts are growing there now, and the rest is for the living. Alucard can ping onto the familiar plants without wondering, and strawberries are going to get eaten tonight.
The future is also full of bees, which is a brilliant touch that has Alucard's face nearly in pain from how big the grin on his face is.]
An apiary. To ensure the sustainability of everything.
[Alucard pulls Trevor so very close. So Trevor can see his goddamn face.]
Thank you.
no subject
I needed something to keep me busy. [ What he does in the end is to busy his head in Alucard's shoulder, because he can't fucking talk while looking at that face. It's too much. His heart might just burst. And- it is true what he's saying. Because at least the first week of his recovery wasn't spent working, just on sitting here and processing everything once the adrenaline was gone, and keeping busy was an excellent way to keep him from going too far into his own head. ] You know how I get when I'm not doing anything. It seemed as good a thing to work on as any.
no subject
Best thing.
[Because if Alucard says anymore his voice is going to crack. It probably does as he says another thank you, and he nudges at Trevor again because he needs to see that this is the happiest the vampire's been possibly ever. That's the point, isn't it? The whole thing the first time that Trevor knocked him to the floor for want of happiness instead of instinct for killing vampires was predicated on. Happy for once in his fucking life.]
I don't have any more words, Trevor.
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[ That was probably meant to come out a little harsher than it actually does, because it comes out sounding so ridiculously adoring that he's not sure the words actually came out of his own mouth. ]
It's good to see you smiling, you dramatic fuck.
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[Fuck it, his voice cracks. Finally.]
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[ But he's putting his arms around Alucard, pulling them closer. He's maybe, maybe a little bit proud that he has it in him to make one of the two best people in the world so happy. ]
You both deserve all of this. You both deserve so very much.
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[There's arms right around Trevor back. They're the same arms that have held Trevor through far too much trauma and recovery lately, and so to have this wonderful, boundless happiness instead is the greatest joy.]
And we have you to make it so.
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[ Oh, he's laughing as he says it, but it's a legitimate threat. This is overwhelming. But it's also wonderful. So, so wonderful. They've been through so much for his sake, it's nice to be able to start repaying that. ]
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[After so many years, he's still not, and it's a little upsetting some days. But today isn't such a day, and Alucard can only nuzzle the top of Trevor's head. They are here and alive and whole in the beautiful summer sun that actually sets without resetting.]
I'll have the grace to look surprised though.
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[ He'll always be a little like this. It's hard to grow accustomed to being surrounded with this much love after so long of being deprived of it completely. But he'll try. Maybe. Every now and then. ]
She won't buy that, either. Because I'm not going to tell her about it until the thing's finished. And I saw you looking at the strawberries. You're going to serve them to her, because of course you are, and so she's going to know that you've known a while as soon as she sees the plant.
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[Gentle and possessive. Far better than having to weaponize it as the turning demanded of them.]
I am going to clamp down on every urge I have to grab said strawberries, suggest you just stuff them into your mouth right now, and go to the library so I can help you figure this final part out.
[More importantly:]
Is there a blackberry patch?
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[ He’s still technically recovering, after all. Well enough to be left to himself and to work, but not well enough to be out of yelling for help range of the two of them. And more important, he’s actually trying to care about that. Following the rules and everything. Actually Behaving, and not just doing it to try to fluster the vampire. ]
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[There is something else here though, something that's much deeper. Perhaps unintentional. But it is worth clarifying, because if it's intentional then the vampire might actually break.]
Managing a garden like this requires constant attention, you know. Is this a declaration of intent?
[He asks it softly. Mildly. Almost unsure if he should put the question out there.
There is also a stray hair of Trevor's hair out of place, undone by the breeze. Alucard fixes that quickly, tucking it back into place.]
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[ Yes.
This is the man who told a horse that he was fucking a vampire with a completely straight face, and now here he is, struggling to talk about gardening. ]
I started it back before we knew if I'd be able to use the whip again. [ It had been in doubt, for a little while. Alucard's recovery had been painful but certain, but it didn't work that way for humans. Very little has ever been certain with humans. ] So I'd have something I could do. And- fuck.
[ It's easy to talk about the concept of being stuck here. Less easy to talk about choosing to stay. And so he falls back on his old reliable means of communicating with Alucard: sassing him by throwing his own words back at him. ]
I'm yours. You know that.
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[Alucard says it very softly, hand still lingering in Trevor's hair. He moves it slowly. Rests it on his cheek. Stays there, just being there.] You should keep buildling.
[Because if they're going to stay, really stay, stay for even just a year instead of returning to the world again, then he'll need something else to do. Sypha will. Alucard won't because he has his patterns and the Hold always needs attention.
And for those words, Alucard brings his forehead to Trevor's. Rests it there, because again he needs to see what such simple things can do. How they can make his face both the brightest and bring forth the happiest tears because there is knowing that simple fact and then it is hearing Trevor say it.]
More than that, I'm yours.
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[ And it's unfair to tell him things like that right now, because how is he meant to say no? How is he meant to say anything at all when the vampire is crying at him. Of course he has to keep building. Of course he has to stay. Of course he has to do every last thing Alucard says, because he's crying at him.
He doesn't know what he's supposed to build, because really they don't need that much, but he'll have to figure something out. Because this is, apparently, what happens when he builds things. And he hates it and it's wonderful. His arms were already around Alucard, but now his hand is at his back, rubbing awkwardly because that's what you do when people cry at you, right??? ]
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It's awkward. So Alucard tries to get himself under control just enough. He doesn't break this embrace though, or say anything more, or even entertain going and getting the books Trevor needs. Because here, this moment, this everything, it is wonderful and precious and if he was to capture a perfect day like his father tried, this, this memory, this would be it.]
no subject
And this is theirs. Like the little bedroom that they've made their own and lost and rebuilt. He made this for them, and it's not something left to them by some ancestor. Just theirs.
The secret's going to be out if they stay here for too long. But maybe- maybe that wouldn't be so bad. Sypha would see her gift incomplete, of course. But then she'd be all too eager to leap into the work of figuring out how to heat it, and he could watch her all excited, throwing solutions at Alucard for him to consider.
He's happy. He's happy here. And he's going to be happy here for a long time yet. ]