cryptsleeper | 20s AU Post

20s AU Post

Current Carmilla plot outline
--Post-fire, Carmilla and Mr. Peanut team up mostly to use each other. Carmilla's spent the past several months (since November, it is now February 1925) networking, and it's clear to her that Alucard's not suited for the position and that the other two are the obvious weakness. Mr Peanut needs something back, so this is perfect on her end. Mr Peanut can only imagine the joys of vampire blood in his work, and he'd like an army of vampires for his own ends.
--Shit stirring from Mr Peanut (all of March?)
--Mr Peanut also begins to sell mis Miracle Serum, which has vampire blood in it.
--Gang is very much trying to murder Mr Peanut during this.
--Start of April, vampire gets a call from one of the blood bank contacts that 3 patients have come in and are displaying some bizarre signs. Investigation yields the fact that they're in process of turning, and they've all taken the same serum.
--Additional investigation reveals O FUCK IT MR PEANUT
--Meanwhile Carmilla's been made aware of a familiar she didn't sire, so she knows something's up. Big fight with Mr. Peanut and thus Mr. Peanut is left depowered
--Gang commits a murder
--Carmilla's well sured up on her contacts now, and it's time for open rebellion (mid-April)
--In a more subtle attempt to let Alucard just step aside, she cuts the breaks on demon car and shows up to gloat/suggest he not pull a dad and go to deal with his grief quietly while she runs the city. The how he wants to do it is up to him (black widow joke goes here.) Treffy and Sypha walk in.
--1 week of straight up rebellion; feedings, no help from allies, need to do damage control instead of fight carmilla, every dracula rule is
--MEANWHILE IN GRAVITY FALLS, triangle shows Vlad what's up to try and psyche him out, somehow this finalyl snaps Vlad out of his depression and he heads home
--Just in time for Alucard and Carmilla to be tearing each other to bits in one of the bayous, it's not going well
--Vlad coming in means the king of vampires is accosted by a belmont with a pair of blessed knitting needles and a speaker with a fucking gun and he's just like what the shit happened to the world while i was gone
--Wards around the fight means that only demon car can break the wards, everyone has to pile in.
--Carmilla gets her ass kicked AND SENT TO THE JUSTICE DIMENSION

THEN THERE WERE FAERIES.
--Prior to all of this the vampire and Sypha have done a shit ton of research on how to get their Belmont back
--Sypha has also been practicing debating with dad, which leaves everyone Very Tired.
--When Trevor is actually snatched up (1 year after marriage, it takes fae effort. Taking Arn's shape fails, so it's a lot more kidnapping by force), Sypha and Alucard go into Faerie
--But they're playing this as politics, not as heroes rescuing their damsel, so that means the faeries are just "wait what now excuse u?"
--There are 3 gates and 3 trials (the particulars we're still bullshitting.) Each is asked to sacrifice 3 things. (Alucard: voice, his titles as bestowed upon by his father and his people, i forget the third; Sypha: her human form (she's a birb), fuck what were the other two)
--They enter the court at the end of the third trial. After LITERALLY ALL THE TITLES Sypha declares she Speaks for Trevor Belmont
--Claim debate over Trevor, turns out that the rules are in Sypha's favor.
--But that means debating to leave Fae without giving up what they've chosen.
--Sypha lawyers it all out, Alucard is a safety deposit and hangs out with Fae!Trevor
--In the end, safe passage out of Faerie consists of Sypha giving up her memory of the necromancer (billed as a great mage she studied under), the vampire gives up his immortality, and Trevor is replaced with Carmilla (dad was aware of this option and OK with it), but Trevor has his ability to swear taken. He now soundslike a rubber ducky when he tries
--Everyone gets home okay, except for the AU of this AU where the gang fails, but Trevor's on their doorstep like a bat out of Hell because time doesn't work right and he's been in Hell for a WHILE.

Page 19 of 141

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It's- more pink and baby blue than I expected. I was thinking it would be a little more- gray stone and big wood and iron doors. You know?

[ Even the entranceway (innocent-looking enough, if a little old fashioned and tacky in its decoration) feels wrong somehow. Like it's possible to know the contents of the rest of the building just from being here. ]

Horrible fucking place, huh?

Contrasts, I suppose. Home is already that.

[He's tried to burrow into his own coat. It isn't going great.]

I hate every inch of it.

If it helps, the-

[ Torture chambers. ]

-upper rooms were never used, to my knowledge. Your father had strong opinions on that shit not working, even in Europe, and there's nothing on it in his records here.

It being for show doesn't help at all.

[Alucard's happy to linger near the door.]

I don't know how so much silver got in this place. But I am of the opinion that Dorian belongs held here rather than in the castle.

Let's see how well you like your fortune, then, and we'll set a price after.

[Which under ordinary circumstances would be a very stupid protocol to follow, but. It's not like the passerby are going to be judging how effective a performer she actually is, just that she's keeping up the performance at all.

Deftly, she fans out her cards and offers them to him, facedown and evenly spread.]

Pick three, if you please. Whichever three you like. Left, right, center, set them down in front of you, but don't turn them over! Can't rush the future, you know; you have to wait and let it come to you.

Oh, there are whole books on how this place was constructed. It's interesting, the ways he ended up using to move the silver-

[ He's sounding a little bit too excited about that. He stops and. Probably not the time, place or topic get excited about vampire construction techniques. He continues with an apologetic sigh. ]

That's how it's traditionally done. Even before he met your mother, it looks like. We can move him here once he's captured.

As you insist.

[He's sure that there will be no haggling. Everything there is fair. If anything, he's underpaying her for her and her people's help.

Alucard's certain that fortune will be a sour and bitter thing. Assuming that Sypha hasn't rigged this to be more of a comfort than he needs right now, because even if she doesn't know the circumstances of his injury, she knows what has taken place over the past week and change.

He takes three at random. All from different places in the deck. Each card is then placed between them, spacing careful and even. When Alucard is done, he gestures at her briefly.]

Your hand flips them over, correct?

[Belmont you don't get to call him and Sypha nerds ever, ever again.]

That's...for later. Knowing how to handle silver would be a useful skill to have.

[Alucard leans his head back against the wall. Next to a silver wall fixture, but not on it, thank God.]

That'll do. I'll find ways to monitor him between that point and concluding this matter. If you want to explore further, you need to be careful going into the basement. Not cleaning is a point of pride, it seems.

Just so. Let me do all the work; you are my guest, after all.

[She smiles, setting the deck down and folding her hands over it before reaching for the card to Alucard's left and turning it over to show him the Tower, reversed.

It's to her credit that she keeps her expression from changing; there's no visible reaction, and the cheery, chatty demeanor doesn't change. But her Tower is one of those cards that can be fairly well interpreted just from the image on it alone — not unlike the backstabbed man on the Ten of Swords, there isn't much about a lightning-struck tower that leaves much to ambiguity.]

Ah, monsieur. Been having a bad time of it lately, haven't you?

[Alucard nods. Then an idea smacks into him, because he has language skills enough, and something about Sypha's heritage suggests that this can be done a little more subtly.

His next response is in French.]

I think you know that's very much an understatement.

[And up go her eyebrows, but his guess is a good one; she answers in French just as easily, and probably she shouldn't be surprised at how good his is considering where he lives, but still.

Quite frankly, his is a little more perfect than hers. His accent is natural, while hers is a near-perfect imitation, but still an imitation.]

What I also know is that when the Tower is reversed, it means you're resisting the changes that are happening to you. But it's come, whether you like it or not; there's no denying or hiding from it now.

[Her hand passes slowly over to the next card; she turns it over, revealing the Four of Wands, and the two people dancing amidst them.]

There's happiness for you on the other side of that change, monsieur.

[ wow rude THIS STUFF IS INTERESTING THO ]

I'll copy down the parts that aren't horrible for you.

[ He nods, looking around the entranceway once more. ]

I probably should. Location of the most noteworthy vampire attack in the city, and all. Family business. [ And it's more personal than he wants to get right now, and so he doesn't ask the dreaded 'will you be okay' question. ] May I leave you here?

[ It's stupid and awkward to ask it that way, but at least it's not 'will you be okay on your own' ]

[Sypha please. His father's a polymath, of course he has command of other languages.]

Mm. That seems a little too on the nose, all things considered.

[It is. He is also terribly annoyed at how on the nose it is, and at how vague the next card is. That one is for the present, is it not? Why wouldn't it promise some kind of resolution after everything that has happened to him?

Alucard nods.]

And the third?

[AND THEIR STUFF ISN'T????]

Thank you. If nothing else, it might be vital to my safety in years to come.

[Alucard's eyes fix on Trevor, and he's not sure how happy he is about the words family business. He's taken a position that he doubts any other Belmont would. Not just in taking a vampire as a boyfriend, but in working along one to manage an entire city of them rather than destroying them all outright. Right hand of the king and all that nonsense.

He nods.]

Be careful. I'll make sure no one else disturbs us.

Patience. That happiness is...

[She pauses. It's too soon to tell him what it really means: that the Four of Wands is about celebration, and joy, and family.]

...something you'll be longing for. Who knows? Maybe you'll find a wife to buy some pearls for, after all.

[What a picture this is shaping up into, though. She's censoring it, because of course she is, and naturally there's nothing really magical or predictive about a set of cards, but she can't help but find it a little curious that he'd managed to pick himself a past calamity followed by the joy of finding himself a new family.

But, well. Time to see what the future holds, and so she reaches to turn over the Ace of Pentacles, reversed.]

Might be good for you to hold on to that special someone. There's more changes coming for you in the future — perhaps a business opportunity you'll be second-guessing yourself on. Patience and clear thinking's the way to get through it, and that's the truth.

Hm.

[Absolutely too on the nose. Alucard trusts that after their discussion on the road, Sypha would not dare to try any tricks or slight of hand, so this is all genuine. But aren't all of these ways of predicting the future meant to be all too open? Easy to interpret any which way.

Alucard doesn't say anything for a few moments. He's lapsing into a terrible silence, the one that means he's thinking too much.]

There is a very long time ahead to see how these things play out, I suppose.

[He is long lived. These changes could well be in the next century for all Alucard knows.]

[ EXACTLY! ]

I'll try not to take too long.

[ He's looking at the enchantments rather than the place itself, for the most part. Just how many blood removal spells were used, and where. The torture rooms have an interesting quirk (interesting is relative, Alucard would probably fucking hate it if he knew) what make them seem more actively used when viewed by those who might have thoughts of opposing Dracula. Since he's a Belmont, and thus does very little BUT oppose Dracula, it's a good thing he has a strong stomach. There's an illusion spell of sorts that he suspects might allow for recreating the scene of the massacre here. He doesn't poke at it too much. He suspects Alucard wouldn't appreciate it if he accidentally set it off.

He tries to be quick about it, returning after about a quarter of an hour. ]

That was all- enlightening.

[TREVOR UR RUDE!]

Mmm.

[Alucard's eyes go to the front door. He's very happy to stand watch while Trevor does...whatever it is he's doing. A quiet fifteen minutes to let everything settle as much as it can at the moment. When they leave here, they will drive home and Alucard will throw out a few names for Trevor to approve or disapprove of if the matter ends up being private. Allies, opponents, people who need to witness all of this. Once home, it'll be night. He will begin the process of contacting each in turn. The sires. Everyone who must be involved.

He's planned up to the third day when Trevor returns.]

...So, horrifying.

Well, you can come back anytime, and we can do this again.

[She sits back a little, looking at the cards he'd laid out with more than a little curious wonder. It's all just a game, of course, but she'd been curious to see what sort of story she could tell from the ones he'd picked for himself. Come to find it's one that's all too accurate — well, if you choose to read it that way.

That's the nice thing about archetypes. They're easily bent to tell almost any story, and fit almost any situation. These ones just happen to fit better than most.]

Now, about my pay...

[She glances at the way he's positioned his bags, then over to a cart with a vendor selling lemonades just a storefront or two down.]

Fancy that was worth a lemonade? I'll watch your bags for you, if you don't want to haul them.

Horrifying and a lot of posturing. Like this whole fucking job condensed into a single place. Most of the enchantments are still active, save for a few that seem to have relied on the presence of the man himself.

[ He has his own plan, but it's not really much of a plan so much as 'drag this fucking vampire back into the part of the castle that is their home sometime before 3am'. ]

And I'm just going to request now that we not eat meat for the next few days. That would be wonderful.

That would require you being in this city, would it not?

[There's a long time ahead, and Alucard does not know if Speakers ever really return to the same place twice. Perhaps not in a generation, at any rate. It's a question he ought to have asked the other day on the road. Not here. Not while these cards seem to be throwing his situation in his face.]

That's fair. Our springs here are sometimes closer to summers for those that come from further north.

[Alucard rises slowly. He's certain that this means departure. She is working, so his time is not the only time that matters.]

That's...apt. I think you're starting to gain Sypha's way with words. [Her influence is far more obvious on Trevor, in truth. Perhaps that's because she got him to behave first, wheras with Alucard it took much longer.] If we can use this horrible thing and place as a symbol of continuity, then we are so much the better.

[Then Trevor's speaking of food, and Alucard hisses at himself.]

I'll make something to hold us all over for the next few days. I'm going to be too busy, and we both know Sypha can't be trusted in the kitchen.

[It's a stupid little detail. But cooking means humanity in all the important ways, and it's the last kindness he will be able to do for the week. That is important.]

I can cook, if you need me to. Not brilliantly, but nobody will die.

[ He leads Alucard out. If they're both seen leaving then too fucking bad. Alucard has to leave last, because he can use the keys, and Trevor isn't leaving him here alone for another half hour. ]

Or we could just go within fifty feet of the babas and Bunicuta will get it into her head that Sypha's too skinny again. You won't need to cook for a week.

I'll take care of tonight and tomorrow. After that, they're in full control.

[They need to know what's going on too. With Trevor out the door, Alucard locks it, and the keys are put into the breast pocket of his coat. They sit too terribly close to him, but at least he knows that they are there.

There's no one on the street watching them. The sun hangs low in the sky, but it is not set. That is good. Alucard doesn't waste his time in walking down the pathway to get as much distance between himself and the house as possible.]

I'm switching to a full night schedule as of this evening too. There will be too much I need to attend to to keep my normal hours for the week.

[Waking up in the late afternoon rather than in the mid to late morning. No bed until just before dawn.]

Very well, then. Appreciate the patronage.

[As he gets up, her foot slowly moves to nudge the bags, drawing them closer in to herself, where she can easily grab them when the opportunity presents itself.]

...Be well, monsieur.

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Page 19 of 141

20s AU Post

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