Dracula destroyed the Belmont home. Everything inside it, everything below it, and every man and woman and child there.
[ And he says every word very, very slowly, because he doesn't have the greatest faith in the intelligence of a vampire who doesn't know how to vampire. ]
That is physically impossible. My father did not leave this city from the time the war began until it concluded and then some.
[Alucard pauses in his dinner preparation to look Trevor in the eye. Because this is a truth.
And if that is a truth, then he has accidentally forced Trevor to confront one even more terrible. If this destruction was not done by his father, then that home is also a casualty of the water.]
There are hunters in the city with no love for him that will vouch for the presence of Dracula here. My father was certain that Europe's plague would spread to the Americas, and he would not see this place destroyed for it.
That means nothing. You know that means nothing. He could have done it in a matter of hours.
[ He says that, but- he's still not reaching for the cutlery. He believes himself when he's drunk. He doesn't when he's sober. He knows full well that the Belmont home was just another casualty of Romania's defiance of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. A remote, self-sufficient stronghold that looked a little too much like it could house soldiers. ]
Your family would know better than any other how vampires fare with ocean crossings, Belmont. Even at my father's age, such a trip would take weeks.
[Alucard returns to getting dinner on the table. Chicken comes out of the cast iron skillet, large leg and thigh quarters for each plate. There are steamed collards taken from another pot, and that too goes on the plate.
It's terrible, the contrast. But it is how things are. Alucard puts the plates down at the table (there are, helpfully, four chairs at the round table), and then goes to grab a third set of utensils.]
[ He doesn't have a good argument any more, only a stubborn refusal to admit that a legacy of nine centuries could end in seconds at the hands of anything other than Dracula himself.
There are other concerns. His presence here means that he broke the truce, not Dracula, and that the man is free to return to Europe without consequence (that had been the deal. The Belmonts would not give chase, would leave the Americas to their cousins, and his shadow would not darken Europe's shores). Right now that seems a distant concern.
This is loss he knows deeply. It's why he doesn't speak. There's never the right words, everything is terrible and trite and it makes the whole ache even worse. His home stood, the Belmont's did not. Alucard cannot imagine he'd be any better in that grief than the man before him.
The very most he can do is pull out the chair closest to Trevor and get him to sit down. He shouldn't be standing on that ankle at all, it'll just make the injury worse.
He's inflicted the worse injury of all though, hasn't he? Physical wounds, those heal. This will not.]
[ He sits, leaning the curtain-pole-crutch against the empty chair. And he just holds his face in his left hand for a long time. He can feel Sypha staring at him, can feel her infuriating pity and sense as her hands occasionally rise up and almost touch his shoulders before falling back to her knife and fork and poking at her food.
He has thoroughly ruined dinner. ]
Do you really think that you can keep this shit under control?
[ His food is getting cold by the time he speaks, and he isn't looking at anything at all. ]
[There are quiet glances exchanged between Alucard and Sypha. To walk another through this process, it is something they shall simply have to do. Alucard will worry at Sypha about taking on more emotional burdens (she has his already, he still feels guilt for it), and they will discuss the matter quietly when the Belmont cannot hear them.
But it also means leaning another person's expressions of grief, when they need company, when they need space. Trevor is a mystery for now, and it shall be the rockiest roads going forward.
Alucard is also the only person capable of eating, it seems, because he does it without much issue.]
Bluebeard. That was who came out victorious from the power struggle in Europe after Dracula left. It was a bloodbath. He didn't follow Dracula's rules, didn't enforce any of his own. Spring-Heeled Jack came after him, and the Ripper after that, about a decade before I was born. We had to break our own rules to keep them all under control. Flooded entire cities with incense. Burned about a fifth of London, in the end, to be rid of Spring-Heel because he would have done so much worse.
[ It's easier to talk about this. Easier to focus on the horrors that they managed to defeat, on the ones that are yet to come, than on the ones of the present. ]
[Amazing. The Belmont's hit upon the subject the other two manage to discuss in quieter tones, acknowledging exactly how much that it's an unwanted thing. Alucard's face is stone cold by the time Trevor's asked again, and now he really has ruined dinner.]
It is me or it is chaos. The decision was made the moment my father left this house.
[That's the terrible weight of it. The truth he's avoided because recovery. Because grief. Because he still doesn't want this.]
This was the plan, for if a power vacuum came up again in Europe. We pick the candidate who does the least vampire bullshit, we make sure they gain and keep power, we put stakes in anyone who makes the transition too bumpy.
[ The unspoken part here, of course, is that following stupid Belmont plans is easier than figuring out what to do with himself. And apparently easier than convincing any vampires to kill him now that he's a rarity. ]
And I don't think you can do this. But it's going to be fucking hilarious to see how appalled half the vampires in this fucking city are going to be if you do.
Mm, an easier plan to say than to put into practice.
[But it is a logical one. Alucard can see how it might have come about, but it relied too much on any vampire trusting or even being willing to work with a Belmont. The situation that they are in now though, with how the Belmont ended up on his doorstep...that does work, doesn't it?
Alucard's plate is cleared. He stands up and he walks it over to the sink.]
I will say nothing of your confidence in me. And you need to learn the ways of this city. You are not in Europe anymore, and the rules are very different.
[By even being in the city, Trevor has bound himself to it's politics. By being offered as so-called tribute, he has had his persona and role defined for years to come.]
We will also have to come up with house rules, as I still don't trust you wandering these halls.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
cryptsleeper) wrote2018-11-10 11:26 pm
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...Sorry, what was that accusation?
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[ And he says every word very, very slowly, because he doesn't have the greatest faith in the intelligence of a vampire who doesn't know how to vampire. ]
He. Broke. The truce. And that is why I'm here.
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[Alucard pauses in his dinner preparation to look Trevor in the eye. Because this is a truth.
And if that is a truth, then he has accidentally forced Trevor to confront one even more terrible. If this destruction was not done by his father, then that home is also a casualty of the water.]
There are hunters in the city with no love for him that will vouch for the presence of Dracula here. My father was certain that Europe's plague would spread to the Americas, and he would not see this place destroyed for it.
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[ He says that, but- he's still not reaching for the cutlery. He believes himself when he's drunk. He doesn't when he's sober. He knows full well that the Belmont home was just another casualty of Romania's defiance of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. A remote, self-sufficient stronghold that looked a little too much like it could house soldiers. ]
He could still have done it.
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[Alucard returns to getting dinner on the table. Chicken comes out of the cast iron skillet, large leg and thigh quarters for each plate. There are steamed collards taken from another pot, and that too goes on the plate.
It's terrible, the contrast. But it is how things are. Alucard puts the plates down at the table (there are, helpfully, four chairs at the round table), and then goes to grab a third set of utensils.]
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[ He doesn't have a good argument any more, only a stubborn refusal to admit that a legacy of nine centuries could end in seconds at the hands of anything other than Dracula himself.
There are other concerns. His presence here means that he broke the truce, not Dracula, and that the man is free to return to Europe without consequence (that had been the deal. The Belmonts would not give chase, would leave the Americas to their cousins, and his shadow would not darken Europe's shores). Right now that seems a distant concern.
He just stares at the food. ]
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This is loss he knows deeply. It's why he doesn't speak. There's never the right words, everything is terrible and trite and it makes the whole ache even worse. His home stood, the Belmont's did not. Alucard cannot imagine he'd be any better in that grief than the man before him.
The very most he can do is pull out the chair closest to Trevor and get him to sit down. He shouldn't be standing on that ankle at all, it'll just make the injury worse.
He's inflicted the worse injury of all though, hasn't he? Physical wounds, those heal. This will not.]
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He has thoroughly ruined dinner. ]
Do you really think that you can keep this shit under control?
[ His food is getting cold by the time he speaks, and he isn't looking at anything at all. ]
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But it also means leaning another person's expressions of grief, when they need company, when they need space. Trevor is a mystery for now, and it shall be the rockiest roads going forward.
Alucard is also the only person capable of eating, it seems, because he does it without much issue.]
Yes.
[The lie is easier the second time.]
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[ It's easier to talk about this. Easier to focus on the horrors that they managed to defeat, on the ones that are yet to come, than on the ones of the present. ]
Are you really sure?
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It is me or it is chaos. The decision was made the moment my father left this house.
[That's the terrible weight of it. The truth he's avoided because recovery. Because grief. Because he still doesn't want this.]
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[ You could have just told him the truth in the first place and he wouldn't have needed to bring it up! Says trevor, expert at telling the truth. ]
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[Hey Belmont how about shut up.]
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You have choices. You're just not taking any of them. Because you're a shitty vampire.
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[He's not leaving his own table for this!]
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[ He finishes chewing and swallows, because he 100% has been talking with his mouth full. ]
For what it's worth, I suppose you have House Belmont behind you.
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You must be joking.
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[ He says, as if he has any room to complain there. ]
Very well, you have House Belmont hunting unsupervised.
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[ The unspoken part here, of course, is that following stupid Belmont plans is easier than figuring out what to do with himself. And apparently easier than convincing any vampires to kill him now that he's a rarity. ]
And I don't think you can do this. But it's going to be fucking hilarious to see how appalled half the vampires in this fucking city are going to be if you do.
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[But it is a logical one. Alucard can see how it might have come about, but it relied too much on any vampire trusting or even being willing to work with a Belmont. The situation that they are in now though, with how the Belmont ended up on his doorstep...that does work, doesn't it?
Alucard's plate is cleared. He stands up and he walks it over to the sink.]
I will say nothing of your confidence in me. And you need to learn the ways of this city. You are not in Europe anymore, and the rules are very different.
[By even being in the city, Trevor has bound himself to it's politics. By being offered as so-called tribute, he has had his persona and role defined for years to come.]
We will also have to come up with house rules, as I still don't trust you wandering these halls.
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[ He huffs. ]
I'm guessing 'all the enchantments stay in place' is the first rule.
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We'll discuss the others tomorrow morning. If I put furniture back in your room, do I have your word you won't take to making stakes?
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But yes, I'll behave myself. I'm keeping the curtain pole. I like being able to walk.
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[He just stares for a minute.]
I'm getting you an actual medical instrument, not an improvised piece of metal.
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